Sojourners, Widows & Orphans

A summary of Sunday evening's teaching:

We looked at several Scriptures on Sunday. I wanted to demonstrate that Scripture is replete with concern for the Sojourner, Widow and Orphan. By looking at each of these Scriptures we can see that God's concern for these people is demonstrated in the Law, the Prophets, the Writings and the New Testament.

God himself is their champion:

• Ex :22:21-24
• Duet 10:18,19
• Ps 146:8-10
• Prov 23:10-12

God champions their cause through his people:

• The Law commands; what is designated is sacred -- Duet 26:12-14.
• The Prophets reiterate the commands -- Is 1:16; Jer 22:3; Mal 3:5-7.
• The Law appeals to the memory of God's people; they too were sojourners -- Ex 23:6-9.
• The Law commands God's people to love the sojourner -- Lev 19:33-34.
• This is how we love people . . . right? -- 1 John 3:16-18.
• The New Testament demonstrates the enduring importance of taking care of this group of people -- James 1:27.

Upon creating the nation that would be God's people, God instituted the following methods to care for these people and other categories of down-and-out people:

• The every-third-year tithe -- Duet 14:28, 29.
• Gleaning privileges -- Duet 24:19-22.
• The land Sabbath -- Ex 23:10-12.
• Don't charge interest -- Lev 25:35-38.
• Release from servitude -- Duet 15:1-18.
• Jubilee -- Lev 25:8-17
• Kinsman Redemption -- Duet 25:5, 6.

Here's the question: Seeing God's unchanging heart for the Sojourner, Widow and Orphan, how do we, as God's people, respond today?

10 Commandments for Possibility Thinkers for everyone

I saw the below "10 Commandments for Possibility Thinkers" framed in our central county school office today and then found them on the internet. These commandments encouraged me. I thought, "hey, there might be other risk takers out there that scare and even offend people." Maybe I'm not as alone as I sometimes feel. I hope these resonate with some of you as well.

1. You will never vote NO to any idea because "It's impossible."
2. You will never block a helpful thought because it entails problems, or wait to begin until you find a solution to every problem.
3. You will never oppose a possibility because you've never done it and can't imagine how it could be done.
4. You will never obstruct a plan because it runs a risk of failure.
5. You will never cooperate in defeating a potentially good suggestion because you can see something wrong with it.
6. You will never quench a creative idea because no one else has succeeded in perfecting it.
7. You will never declare any constructive concept to be impossible because you lack the time, money, brains, energy, talent or skill to exploit it.
8. You will never discard a plan or a project just because it's imperfect.
9. You will never resist a proposal because you didn't think of it, you won't get the credit, you won't personally benefit from it, or you may not live to see and enjoy it.
10. You will never quit because you've reached the end of the rope.  Tie a knot and hang on.
Start dreaming!  Be sure to make your dreams big enough for God to fit in!

Tithing

A summary of our teaching from Sunday night was essentially this:

The Jews were obligated by the Law to tithe by giving of a tenth of their produce and livestock annually to the Levites, to consume a tenth of their own produce and livestock annually before the Lord at festivals in Jerusalem, and to give a tenth of their produce and livestock every third year to be put in the storehouse for the sojourners, orphans, and widows. On an annual basis, the Law prescribed tithe calculates out to 23.33% of produce and livestock. Here are the passages that prescribes these tithes:

I think that from this we learn the kinds of things God loves for us to give to:

• The Levitical system--drawing attention to his Glory and teaching people about himself.
• The festival tithe--reminding us that he loves to provide for us and wants us to enjoy and be thankful for what he provides.
• The landless--sojourner, orphan, and widow. 

As Christians, we do not have a system like the one prescribed in the Law, but we do give generously to the things that God loves.