Remember

April 13

Deuteronomy 24-25

Psalm 45:1-5

Proverbs 11:4-6

Luke 10:1-24

Remember

“You shall not oppress a hired person who is afflicted and needy…You shall give him his wages on his day before the sun goes down…You shall not pervert the justice due a sojourner or an orphan, not take a widow’s garment in pledge.  But you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt and that Yahweh your God redeemed you from there…When you reap your harvest in your field and have forgotten a sheaf in the field, you shall not go back to get it; it shall be for the sojourner, for the orphan and for the widow, in order that Yahweh your God may bless you in all the work of your hands.”  Deuteronomy 24:14-15, 17-19 LSB

Deuteronomy 24 gives us further insight into the heart of our God.  God gave Moses specific instructions about how to treat widows, orphans, and sojourners.  God is concerned about the overlooked and the outcast.  Yesterday we looked at how we are to treat our neighbors.  God wants us to be more concerned about the well-being of others than we are with our own needs.  Today He takes it a step further discussing how we should treat those who cannot reciprocate in any way.  When we treat our neighbors well, we hope that in turn they will treat us with the same type of care and concern.  The widows, orphans, and sojourners have nothing to offer us.  God wants us to treat them well out of love and a generous heart.  He told the children of Israel not to take a widow’s garment in pledge implying that was all she had to offer.  She would need it at night to cover herself to keep warm.  Instead of requiring a pledge they should give her what she needed without requiring a pledge.  If they forgot their sheaf, or tool for cutting wheat, in the field, they were to leave it for the sojourner.  This seems like an odd instruction, but God was telling them not to worry about getting every little thing they were entitled to get.  They could trust that God would use it to bless someone else who needed it.  He reminded them several times in this chapter that they were slaves in Egypt and God saved them and redeemed them.  Everything they had was from Him.  They had nothing and God was giving them a land flowing with milk and honey that was bountiful and abundant.  He had met their needs before and He would continue to meet their needs.  They could be generous with others because He had been generous with them. 

            This applies to our lives as well.  God wants us to have loving and generous hearts towards those in need.  He does not want us to worry about getting everything we think we deserve or are entitled to.   In Matthew 5:40-42, Jesus expresses the same idea.  “And if anyone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your garment also.  And whoever forces you to go one mile, go with him two.  Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you.”  LSB  We can argue that if we follow this principle people will take advantage of us, but Jesus is saying that we should not worry about getting taken advantage of.  We can trust that He will take care of us.  We don’t have to look out for our interests. God has our back.  We need to selflessly follow Him, do what He tells us to do, love others and be generous and He will look out for us.