Post by Woody Williams on Sept 27, 2007 7:52:52 GMT -5
Text for the Day -- Exodus 23:1-9
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You shall not spread a false report. You shall not join hands with
the wicked to act as a malicious witness. You shall not follow a
majority in wrongdoing; when you bear witness in a lawsuit, you shall
not side with the majority so as to pervert justice; nor shall you be
partial to the poor in a lawsuit. When you come upon your enemy's ox
or donkey going astray, you shall bring it back. When you see the
donkey of one who hates you lying under its burden and you would hold
back from setting it free, you must help to set it free. You shall
not pervert the justice due to your poor in their lawsuits. Keep far
from a false charge, and do not kill the innocent and those in the
right, for I will not acquit the guilty. You shall take no bribe, for
a bribe blinds the officials, and subverts the cause of those who are
in the right. You shall not oppress a resident alien; you know the
heart of an alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.
Devotional
----------
Israel's social code made provision for protecting the innocent,
caring for a neighbor's goods and protection for the poor as well as
hospitality for the alien. Israel's law promoted justice, especially
for the poor and the outcast. One of our great struggles is to find
unity with those who are different from ourselves, especially those
on the margins of society. The Gospel invites us to live out God's
justice.
Prayer
---------------
Lord, help me with the courage to live out the Gospel invitation.
Amen
----------
You shall not spread a false report. You shall not join hands with
the wicked to act as a malicious witness. You shall not follow a
majority in wrongdoing; when you bear witness in a lawsuit, you shall
not side with the majority so as to pervert justice; nor shall you be
partial to the poor in a lawsuit. When you come upon your enemy's ox
or donkey going astray, you shall bring it back. When you see the
donkey of one who hates you lying under its burden and you would hold
back from setting it free, you must help to set it free. You shall
not pervert the justice due to your poor in their lawsuits. Keep far
from a false charge, and do not kill the innocent and those in the
right, for I will not acquit the guilty. You shall take no bribe, for
a bribe blinds the officials, and subverts the cause of those who are
in the right. You shall not oppress a resident alien; you know the
heart of an alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.
Devotional
----------
Israel's social code made provision for protecting the innocent,
caring for a neighbor's goods and protection for the poor as well as
hospitality for the alien. Israel's law promoted justice, especially
for the poor and the outcast. One of our great struggles is to find
unity with those who are different from ourselves, especially those
on the margins of society. The Gospel invites us to live out God's
justice.
Prayer
---------------
Lord, help me with the courage to live out the Gospel invitation.
Amen