A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. - John 13:34

Brothers like to compete with each other. Whether playing one-on-one basketball or some video game, neither guy wants to lose. It’s called “sibling rivalry,” and it’s not unusual.

That was often the situation in the book of Genesis, which we could call A Brief History of Sibling Rivalry. Cain and Abel (Genesis 4); Isaac and Ishmael (21:8–10); Joseph and everyone not named Benjamin (chapter 37). But for brother-to-brother problems, it’s hard to beat Jacob and Esau.

Esau’s twin brother Jacob had cheated him twice, so he wanted revenge on Jacob (27:41). Decades later, Jacob and Esau would work it all out (chapter 33). But the rivalry continued on in their later families, who became the nations of Edom and Israel. When Israel prepared to enter the Promised Land, Edom refused to help (Numbers 20:14–21).

Happily for us, the Bible shows us that the story of God’s redemption can help people who don’t get along.

Brothers can become friends. That’s the thing with God. When we forgive others, God can change even sibling rivalries into brotherly love.

In 2008, NBA brothers Pau and Marc Gasol were traded for each other. Pau was sent to the LA Lakers, and Marc, who had been drafted by the Lakers, was sent to Memphis.

“God, when my brother (or sister) gets on my nerves, can you help us get along?”