Monday, September 16, 2013
He looked handsome; he looked smart
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HUMILITY
“Joseph was Jacob’s favourite son, of all the family he was the special one: so Jacob bought his son a multi-coloured coat to wear. The coat was elegant; the cut was fine; the tasteful style was the ultimate in good design, such a dazzling coat of many colours. Joseph’s brothers weren’t too pleased with what they saw . . . and when Joseph graced the scene his brothers turned a shade of green, his astounding clothing took the biscuit, quite the smoothest person in the district. "He looked handsome; he looked smart; he was a walking work of art.” Tim Rice.
Joseph flaunted his coat as he wore it, and didn’t hesitate to assume the role of lordship, and his brothers smarted under his presumption. He was superior to them, smarter than they were, more attractive to people than they were, more richly blessed in every way, destined for greater things. He inherited his father’s intelligence, quick-wittedness and shrewdness, and his mother’s good looks and charm, and when you get a combination of intelligence, good looks and charm, it’s almost irresistible.
Joseph came into the world inheriting both the strength and weakness of his father and mother, and these things he always had to deal with, and so do we. No one comes into the world with a completely clean slate. We are not absolutely free to be ourselves. We may not be prepared to agree with William Wordsworth that we come “trailing clouds of glory” but we must admit that we all come trailing the characteristics and traits of our fathers and mothers, good and bad.
Then see how evil creeps into the best of things and the most sacred places. This is a constant theme in every pulpit where the gospel is preached. We think of the family circle, or the church community as the one place where ties are secure, where loyalties are absolutely safe, a protection from all the evils of the world outside, yet it is into these sacred circles that evil sometimes creeps by way of disloyalty, irresponsibility, jealousy, and almost before we know it, the circle disintegrates before our eyes. After all, it was perfectly natural for Joseph to lose his head as a result of all the attention, and just as natural for the brothers to be jealous of him.
And it’s so easy for us to go into the secret places of our lives, and say it’s perfectly natural for people to want to be happy, to be successful, even though they may have to ruin somebody else in the achievement of it. We ask ourselves, what do we need to do to achieve our goals? If one is an officer, what does it take to leap from being a Major to becoming a Lieutenant Colonel, from being a field officer to being a DC? What does one have to be, or do, or who does one have to know? Doesn’t everyone want to be a Joseph?
The truth is there will always be only a small group of people who will wear the coat of many colours, or the velvet epaulets with silver or gold.
They will always be favoured above the rest of the community. What matters it the way they wear it. If you happen to be the one in your circle who is wearing it, whatever you do, wear it quietly and gratefully. You are what you are, not because of anything you’ve done, but because of what have been given to you.
If only you can assume the coat that you didn’t choose, but that has been given to you and wear it humbly, you may wear it to good advantage. If you don’t, the brothers will be jealous and the sisters too, and the tension will increase, and it is almost certain that they will be resentful, or dismissive and fail to show respect.
Dr. John Sullivan
Former Officer
Canada
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