September 13, 2014
Today’s reading from Encounter with God

Learn from the Law

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Opening Prayer

Creator God, You formed me. You are the beginning and the end of all I am and all I hope to be. You are worthy of my praise.

Read Exodus 23:1-19

[1] “Do not spread false reports. Do not help a guilty person by being a malicious witness. [2] “Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong. When you give testimony in a lawsuit, do not pervert justice by siding with the crowd, [3] and do not show favoritism to a poor person in a lawsuit. [4] “If you come across your enemy’s ox or donkey wandering off, be sure to return it. [5] If you see the donkey of someone who hates you fallen down under its load, do not leave it there; be sure you help them with it. [6] “Do not deny justice to your poor people in their lawsuits. [7] 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. [8] “Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds those who see and twists the words of the innocent. [9] “Do not oppress a foreigner; you yourselves know how it feels to be foreigners, because you were foreigners in Egypt. [10] “For six years you are to sow your fields and harvest the crops, [11] but during the seventh year let the land lie unplowed and unused. Then the poor among your people may get food from it, and the wild animals may eat what is left. Do the same with your vineyard and your olive grove. [12] “Six days do your work, but on the seventh day do not work, so that your ox and your donkey may rest, and so that the slave born in your household and the foreigner living among you may be refreshed. [13] “Be careful to do everything I have said to you. Do not invoke the names of other gods; do not let them be heard on your lips. [14] “Three times a year you are to celebrate a festival to me. [15] “Celebrate the Festival of Unleavened Bread; for seven days eat bread made without yeast, as I commanded you. Do this at the appointed time in the month of Aviv, for in that month you came out of Egypt. “No one is to appear before me empty-handed. [16] “Celebrate the Festival of Harvest with the firstfruits of the crops you sow in your field. “Celebrate the Festival of Ingathering at the end of the year, when you gather in your crops from the field. [17] “Three times a year all the men are to appear before the Sovereign LORD. [18] “Do not offer the blood of a sacrifice to me along with anything containing yeast. “The fat of my festival offerings must not be kept until morning. [19] “Bring the best of the firstfruits of your soil to the house of the LORD your God. “Do not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.

Scripture taken from the THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, NIV Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Reflect

“The law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and good” (Rom. 7:12). Listen to God’s Word and live it out by the power of his Spirit (Rom. 8:4).

A right attitude to the Law upholds its spirit. By contrast, selfish or careless actions only serve to weaken it. A lack of integrity in speech, whether in conversation or in court, ultimately undermines the community. Similarly, a lack of active good neighborliness weakens the ties that bind a people together. We should care for one another, both in the normal course of life and in the more formal procedures in court. Special thought should be given to protect the vulnerable.

The Sabbath, by breaking the cycle of doing and allowing time just to be, reminds us of God’s faithfulness in the past and the need for ongoing trust. More demanding (therefore less implemented) was the notion of a Sabbath year to allow the ground to renew itself and restore its depleted natural resources. This recognition of sustainable lifestyle was well ahead of its time and also ours! The Sabbath principle provides for hard work, creative rest, and a place for the poor. It is an early form of the welfare state and follows from a belief in a gracious and generous God who provides all we need.

The annual festival cycle reminded the people of basic community truths. In our individualistic and fragmented age, less and less holds us together. The Festival of Unleavened Bread (Passover) was a testimony to the grace of God and his saving power. The second and third festivals marked the beginning and the end of the harvest seasons, to recognize that an agrarian economy is daily dependent on the Lord for sun and rain, and for protection from disease, blight and infestation. Finally, there were careful regulations about acceptable sacrifices. Care is needed in coming into the Lord’s presence. Access to God is a privilege, not a right, and we must not reverse that order.

Apply

God gives the Israelites a routine of living designed to enhance their relationship with him. Are there any ways in which your routine can be changed to improve your relationship with God?

Closing prayer

Lord, in my frayed and frazzled world, I need Your wisdom to live wisely and carefully. Enlighten me with new ways to walk in step with You.

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