I came across this in my Bible reading today:
When you reap your harvest in your field and forget a sheaf in the field, you shall not go back to get it. It shall be for the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow, that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. 20 When you beat your olive trees, you shall not go over them again. It shall be for the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow. 21 When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, you shall not strip it afterward. It shall be for the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow. 22 You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt; therefore I command you to do this. – Deuteronomy 24:19-22
Though these laws were certainly part of the civil law of Israel, a law given to them for that time and that place, the general equity of the law is to be maintained anywhere, as it flows from the heart of God. That general principle is this: care for people who have less. In the ancient world, this is a trio that commonly had great needs: sojourners, orphans, and widows. And you can easily see why – in the latter two categories, they didn’t have families – and in the ancient world, family was everything. Business was tied to the family, money was owned by the family, and resources were shared. In the first category, the sojourner – they didn’t have a nation or social support system, and often would be without their families as a result. These are people who just needed help and the generosity that was to be shown them comes from the reality that God rescues Israel when she was a sojourner, when she didn’t have a home. When we apply that to our situations spiritually, we know that God rescued us from our slavery to sin – when we were broken, lost, and without hope. So why would we not respond with a heart of gratitude and generosity?
The particular law shouldn’t be applied directly – as this was a civil law for them when they operated as a theocracy. And in our context today, those categories have shifted. Widows, for example, often have good family support systems today (though not always!), and we may see more needs for the homeless or those who struggle with mental or physical illness. But we should care because God has always cared for the hurting and commanded his people to care for the hurting – and not just as individuals, but as one body. The division of labor won’t look the same for every church or for every person within the church, but the priority is there and never changing. Jesus himself cared deeply for those on the fringes of society when he walked the earth, and New Testament are equally as adamant as the prophets of old in declaring this necessity (James 1:27). So count it a challenge and a privilege to serve in this way, and don’t excuse it theologically or defensively. Getting your hands dirty might be just what you need!