Never Forsaken: Caring for those God Cares For

 

“Do not deny justice to your poor people in their lawsuits. Have nothing to do with a false charge and do not put an innocent or honest person to death, for I will not acquit the guilty.”  Exodus 23:6-7

 Today’s reading, Exodus 21-24, includes the beginning of the Mosaic Law. The Israelites had lived under Egyptian law for 430 years and before that, everyone pretty much had done what they thought to be right in their own eyes. Here, for the first time, God is clearly telling the people what He sees as right and wrong. He’s giving them guidelines and priorities. There are lots of details in this that are foreign to us and may be confusing, such as dealings with servants/slaves, but as we look at it, we can begin to see what God values and, in turn, what He wants us to value. As a reminder, as Christians we are no longer bound by the Law, but we can still very much learn from it and take those lessons to inform how we honor God and represent Him in a fallen world.

 People are made in God’s image and should be honored and respected accordingly. There are times in these chapters that it is specifically called out that even when dealing with someone who you dislike or who hates you, you are to treat them the way you’d like to be treated. In Exodus 23:5 we read, “If you see the donkey of someone who hates you fallen under its load, you must not ignore him, but be sure to help him with it.” This is echoed by Jesus later in Luke 6:27, “But I say to you who are listening: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you.” We are not just to be kind to those who are kind to us, but to everyone, for we are all God’s children, made in His image and loved by Him. I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t want to go against someone that God called His own!

 Deception and evil intent are just that, evil. Over and over the Law highlights this:

·       [Exo 21:14 NET] 14 But if a man willfully attacks his neighbor to kill him cunningly, you will take him even from my altar that he may die.

·       [Exo 21:16 NET] 16 "Whoever kidnaps someone and sells him, or is caught still holding him, must surely be put to death.

·       [Exo 21:20 NET] 20 "If a man strikes his male servant or his female servant with a staff so that he or she dies as a result of the blow, he will surely be punished.

·       [Exo 23:1 NET] 1 "You must not give a false report. Do not make common cause with the wicked to be a malicious witness.

·       [Exo 23:7 NET] 7 Keep your distance from a false charge - do not kill the innocent and the righteous, for I will not justify the wicked.

 God sees the heart, and He very much holds us accountable for it. The mirror to Exodus 21:14 above is, “But if he does not do it with premeditation, but it happens by accident, then I will appoint for you a place where he may flee.” [Exodus 21:13 NET] God knew that accidents would happen, and He never intended for those to be judged the same as intentional evil. Just like with worship (John 4:19-24), God cares about our heart in our actions.

 God cares very much for the suffering and disenfranchised and He is their protector and provider. When you do evil to them, it is the same as doing evil to God Himself. Likewise, when you serve and love on them, it is like loving God (Matthew 25:40). I think it’s really important that we recognize what and who is important to God. He’s not looking with favor on the rich and powerful, lifting them up that we should respect and honor them like Him. No, He is drawing our attention to the needy, the poor, those that cannot look out for themselves. They are who we should be seeking to honor, to protect, to care for.

 Who are those people in your life? Are there widows in your church that could use help with their lawn or home maintenance? Have you considered sponsoring a child in need so that they could attend school and have the basic necessities of life? Perhaps you know someone in prison that could benefit from a pen pal, someone to encourage them and show them the love of Christ?

Here’s the Thing: Just like everything else, honoring the Law of God starts in your heart. If you’re just going through the motions, “obeying”, it does you, nor the world, any good. As Christians, any beneficial obedience we show to God’s Law needs to begin within and flow out of us as an offering of worship, and natural reflection of the One who lives within us.