“The Kingdom of God is no longer identified with any geopolitical kingdom on earth. It is no longer the era of driving the nations out of God’s holy land but of living side by side with unbelievers in charity. It is the hour of grace, not judgment.” – Michael Horton, The Christian Faith

Don’s Upcoming Ministries

October 27 –

“Prophets are Good for Business”

(Applying Biblical Principles to Work Situations)

Care for the “Alien in the Land” – Sabbath-keeping (part 3)

“The reason to pass immigration reform is not to bolster [a political party but] to fix a system that’s broken. Good policy yields good politics.” – George W. Bush

If we eat fruit or vegetables grown in the U.S., the likelihood is very high that they were picked by immigrant workers, many undocumented.

Immigration issues arise naturally from what I might call “Sabbaththinking.” On the Sabbath Day, “you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates.” (Exodus 20:10 New International Version, emphasis mine)

Protecting the non-Israelite who lived in the land from exploitation in the workplace or other situations is a common theme of the Old Testament.

Here are some examples:

• “You are to love those who are aliens, for you yourselves were aliens in Egypt.” – Deuteronomy 10:19
• “Do not take advantage of a hired man who is poor and needy, whether he is a brother Israelite or an alien living in one of your towns.” – Deuteronomy 24:14
• “Do not deprive the alien or the fatherless of justice, or take the cloak of the widow as a pledge.” – Deuteronomy 24:14
• “When you are harvesting in your field and you overlook a sheaf, do not go back to get it. Leave it for the alien, the fatherless and the widow, so that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands.” – Deuteronomy 24:19
• “When you have finished setting aside a tenth of all your produce in the third year, the year of the tithe, you shall give it to the Levite, the alien, the fatherless and the widow, so that they may eat in your towns and be satisfied.” – Deuteronomy 26:12 (That was a mandated “benefit”, folks!)
• “Cursed is the man who withholds justice from the alien, the fatherless or the widow.” – Deuteronomy 27:19

I would not call for all the details of the Mosaic Law that regulate and protect “the alien” to be implemented by a modern government just because they are found in the Bible. I would call for us to look for “the spirit of the law” (the social values) to be found in these commands.

The workplace, governmental policies, and social attitudes toward immigration—all need to be informed by biblical teaching, more than by any other source or standard.

• I personally support the bill passed by the U.S. Senate (SB744).
• I personally am concerned by many in the House of Representatives who seem to favor a harsh response to undocumented immigrants.
• I fail to see how “amnesty” or “reward” are appropriate terms to describe the process undocumented immigrants will have to follow (under various proposals) in order to become “legal” or citizens way down the road.

I would be the last to claim that SB744 or any other bill Congress debates is “God’s bill.” But I can favor a bill that moves in strong incremental ways toward what I think is right.

“Sabbath-thinking” leads to immigration reform. “Do justice, love mercy” (Micah 6:8) is God’s call—for immigration reform or many other great social debates.

Religious Liberty Vigilance—Can Business Be Religious?

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…”

– 1st Amendment (Our “First Freedom” in the Bill of Rights)

“To compel a man to furnish contributions of money for the propagation of opinions which he disbelieves is sinful and tyrannical.”

– Thomas Jefferson (Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom)

Rodney and Karen Mersino own and operate a business in Michigan. As committed Catholic Christians, they objected to having to participate in the contraception mandate that is part of the new health care program commonly called “Obamacare.”

They filed suit against Health and Human Services. A federal court judge in Michigan refused to give the Mersino’s a preliminary injunction.

It is not my intention to speak on the legal aspects of this decision. But I do want to raise a concern about one statement by the court: “The fact that its owners may hold deep religious beliefs, and that the mission statement of the company includes a statement of fealty to God, does not convert this secular, for profit company into a religious organization capable of exercising religion…”

Cannot a secular business set forth ethical ideals and then be able to practice them? Why should it matter if some of these ideals have roots in biblical values or Christian convictions?

This should not be an unlimited right. But the shoe is on the wrong foot. The state should have to prove a “compelling state interest” in limiting the exercise of religious convictions. Then the state should have to demonstrate that its remedy is narrowly tailored and the least burdensome to religious freedom.

The owners of a business have to show in what way a government requirement offends their religious convictions. But the real burden of proof should lie with the government.

Message of the Month –
Care of God’s Creation

Among the many desecrations of God’s Country is the growing amount of graffiti one sees on popular trails in lower elevations. This picture is from a recent hike on the Echo Mountain trail above Pasadena—one of my favorite hikes. The trail is heavily travelled—too much so, apparently. This picture shows one of several defacings of rock along the trail. To add insult to injury, it happens to be at a shady spot where I always pause for a break when hiking uphill. Trail signs have graffiti. Historical markers can’t be read. Much of this I’ve not seen on previous hikes.

Here’s a slogan along the Sturdevant Falls Trail in the San Gabriel Mountains. Non sequitur that it is, it still has its appeal.

God has made us stewards of his beautiful handiwork called “Earth.” “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth…'” (Genesis 1:26).

This is not a selfish, exploitative stewardship—certainly not a desecrating one. It is a caring, careful stewardship that uses, not abuses, and recognizes that those who follow us will want to enjoy and benefit from the earth as we did.

As I write this, I’m wearing this T-shirt:

Let’s do it!

The Bible’s word on our stewardship is undergirded by two foundational points: (1) the Earth is God’s, not ours, and (2) the God who made all things at the beginning will be present to judge us on the Last Day and call our stewardship to account.

So I’d suggest a stronger, better message than that philosophically materialist one on the Sturdevant Falls Trail:

TAKE CARE OF THE LAND
SOME DAY YOU WILL ANSWER TO THE OWNER!

Happy Trails to you!

www.donaldshoemakerministries.com