WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.080 We hope that you enjoy this teaching from Christ Church. 00:00:05.719 --> 00:00:11.599 This material is copyrighted and no unauthorized duplication, redistribution, or any other 00:00:11.599 --> 00:00:15.280 use of any part is permitted without prior consent from Christ Church. 00:00:15.640 --> 00:00:22.620 Please consider donating to this work in the San Francisco Bay Area online at ChristChurchEastBay.org. 00:00:24.719 --> 00:00:25.760 Good morning. 00:00:25.760 --> 00:00:32.200 My name is Cynthia Ersu and I am a member of the Central South Berkeley Community Group. 00:00:35.920 --> 00:00:43.200 Our reading this morning is from the book of Deuteronomy, chapter 15, verses 1 through 15, 00:00:43.660 --> 00:00:45.359 as printed in your liturgy. 00:00:48.939 --> 00:00:54.240 At the end of every seven years, you shall grant a release. 00:00:54.240 --> 00:00:57.480 And this is the manner of the release. 00:00:57.880 --> 00:00:59.660 Every creditor shall release. 00:01:00.359 --> 00:01:04.420 Every creditor shall release what he has lent to his neighbor. 00:01:05.400 --> 00:01:12.219 He shall not exact it of his neighbor, his brother, because the Lord's release has been proclaimed. 00:01:13.280 --> 00:01:15.659 Of a foreigner, you may exact it. 00:01:15.659 --> 00:01:21.140 But whatever of yours is with your brother, your hand shall release. 00:01:21.140 --> 00:01:24.399 But there will be no poor among you. 00:01:24.780 --> 00:01:31.859 For the Lord will bless you in the land that the Lord your God is giving you for an inheritance to possess. 00:01:31.859 --> 00:01:41.939 If only you will strictly obey the voice of the Lord your God, being careful to do all this commandment that I commanded you today. 00:01:42.500 --> 00:01:50.200 For the Lord your God will bless you as he promised you, and you shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. 00:01:50.840 --> 00:01:55.900 And you shall rule over many nations, but they shall not rule over you. 00:01:55.900 --> 00:02:04.520 If among you one of your brothers should become poor, in any of your towns within your land that the Lord your God is giving you, 00:02:05.040 --> 00:02:10.300 you shall not harden your heart or shut your hand against your poor brother. 00:02:10.840 --> 00:02:17.000 But you shall open your hand to him and lend him sufficient for his need, whatever it may be. 00:02:17.000 --> 00:02:22.199 Take care, lest there be an unworthy thought in your heart, and you say, 00:02:22.680 --> 00:02:28.979 The seventh year, the year of release, is near, and your eye look grudgingly on your poor brother, 00:02:29.379 --> 00:02:35.060 and you give him nothing, and he cry to the Lord against you, and you be guilty of sin. 00:02:35.900 --> 00:02:41.219 You shall give to him freely, and your heart shall not be grudging when you give to him, 00:02:41.219 --> 00:02:48.620 because for this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you undertake. 00:02:49.460 --> 00:02:52.500 For there will never cease to be poor in the land. 00:02:53.079 --> 00:03:01.360 Therefore, I command you, you shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy, and to the poor in your land. 00:03:01.800 --> 00:03:06.099 If your brother, a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you, 00:03:06.099 --> 00:03:11.759 he shall serve you six years, and in the seventh year you shall let him go free from you. 00:03:12.219 --> 00:03:16.620 And when you let him go free from you, you shall not let him go empty-handed. 00:03:17.139 --> 00:03:23.780 You shall furnish him liberally out of your flock, out of your threshing floor, and out of your winepress. 00:03:24.299 --> 00:03:28.500 As the Lord your God has blessed you, you shall give to him. 00:03:28.959 --> 00:03:32.840 You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, 00:03:32.840 --> 00:03:35.439 and the Lord your God redeemed you. 00:03:35.439 --> 00:03:38.659 Therefore, I command you this today. 00:03:39.259 --> 00:03:44.759 The grass withers and the flowers fade, but the word of our God stands forever. 00:03:51.759 --> 00:03:53.539 Thanks for that scripture reading, Cindy. 00:03:53.719 --> 00:03:54.300 Good morning, everyone. 00:03:54.419 --> 00:03:54.979 My name is Andrew. 00:03:55.039 --> 00:03:55.979 I'm one of the pastors here. 00:03:56.340 --> 00:03:58.680 Looking forward to getting into God's word with you today. 00:03:58.759 --> 00:03:59.479 Will you pray with me? 00:04:01.699 --> 00:04:03.699 Lord God, we want to hear from you this morning. 00:04:03.699 --> 00:04:12.739 I'm asking your invitation and challenge to open up our hands in the same way that you have opened up your hands toward us. 00:04:13.239 --> 00:04:18.920 Inspire us this morning to love our neighbors, and to, by doing so, love you. 00:04:19.279 --> 00:04:21.779 With all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, we pray. 00:04:21.839 --> 00:04:23.379 In the name of Jesus, amen. 00:04:23.379 --> 00:04:25.500 So I'm going to give you a warning. 00:04:25.800 --> 00:04:31.600 It's going to be a little bit longer today because, honestly, this topic is very dear to my heart. 00:04:31.680 --> 00:04:33.560 This topic of God and the poor. 00:04:34.019 --> 00:04:35.240 God and the poor. 00:04:35.819 --> 00:04:41.819 And it's interesting to me that today is Reformation Sunday because, you know, contrary to what you might think, 00:04:42.199 --> 00:04:46.819 if it weren't for Reformed theology, I'm not sure that I would care for the poor 00:04:46.819 --> 00:04:51.240 and that I would care about poverty and human suffering like I do today. 00:04:51.839 --> 00:05:00.360 I don't think I'd recognize, without Reformed theology, how deeply, how deeply God cares for all of creation, all of life. 00:05:01.060 --> 00:05:07.360 I love how one Reformed theologian, his name is Gordon Spikeman, he said this in his final address. 00:05:07.360 --> 00:05:16.280 He said, nothing matters but the kingdom of God, but because of the kingdom, everything matters. 00:05:16.639 --> 00:05:21.160 Nothing matters but the kingdom of God, but because of the kingdom, everything matters. 00:05:21.220 --> 00:05:27.040 And what drew me to Reformed theology as a college student was this holistic vision that it gave, 00:05:27.120 --> 00:05:32.540 this vision of how the good news of Jesus, it comes to bear on every square inch of creation, 00:05:32.540 --> 00:05:36.860 so much more than just saving people out of hell and into heaven. 00:05:37.600 --> 00:05:40.180 That's what I love about the Reformed tradition. 00:05:41.080 --> 00:05:47.720 And it really was as a result of diving deeper into the implications of this tradition that God began to convict me 00:05:47.720 --> 00:05:53.560 back in my college days, going into working for two years before going to seminary. 00:05:53.920 --> 00:05:56.860 He started to convict me about moving toward the poor. 00:05:56.960 --> 00:05:58.819 Every Tuesday I started going out. 00:05:58.819 --> 00:06:02.080 I was living in Orange County and every Tuesday I would go out to Santa Ana. 00:06:02.080 --> 00:06:05.900 Santa Ana was one of the poorest cities in the nation, 00:06:05.899 --> 00:06:09.139 even though it was part of one of the richest counties in the nation. 00:06:09.239 --> 00:06:12.060 And I would go out and I would help distribute food. 00:06:12.179 --> 00:06:13.379 I would bring clothing. 00:06:13.719 --> 00:06:18.879 And I would start building relationships with many of the houseless folks out there in Santa Ana. 00:06:19.699 --> 00:06:26.699 And then as I grew in appreciation of the incredible need that was out there, 00:06:26.699 --> 00:06:32.099 and as I grew in my appreciation also of the Reformed tradition that says we live before God, 00:06:32.219 --> 00:06:36.479 all of life before God, Coram Deo, my prayers began to expand. 00:06:37.279 --> 00:06:40.620 Before I had only prayed, God, break my heart for those who don't know Jesus. 00:06:40.620 --> 00:06:45.439 But as I spent more time with the people in Santa Ana, 00:06:45.939 --> 00:06:48.259 my prayer began to expand to, 00:06:48.699 --> 00:06:53.120 God, don't just break my heart over those who are hell-bound apart from Jesus, 00:06:53.519 --> 00:06:55.680 but break my heart, continue to break my heart 00:06:55.680 --> 00:06:59.459 for those whose lives are living hell now. 00:07:00.160 --> 00:07:02.680 Make me a witness of the whole gospel, 00:07:02.819 --> 00:07:04.939 not just the good news of heaven later, 00:07:05.060 --> 00:07:07.600 but the good news of Jesus' kingdom now, 00:07:07.600 --> 00:07:11.260 the good news of the Holy Spirit's power and presence now. 00:07:11.939 --> 00:07:15.820 And like I mentioned a couple weeks ago on our birthday celebration Sunday, 00:07:15.939 --> 00:07:18.260 this is what I began to pray 15 years ago. 00:07:18.740 --> 00:07:22.520 For myself, for maybe the future family that God might give me, 00:07:22.600 --> 00:07:23.540 for my future children, 00:07:24.120 --> 00:07:28.000 for the future church that I believe God was one day gonna call me to lead, 00:07:28.640 --> 00:07:30.820 I prayed that God would break our hearts, 00:07:31.260 --> 00:07:32.200 all of our hearts, 00:07:32.520 --> 00:07:36.600 for all who live without the person and power and presence of Jesus. 00:07:36.600 --> 00:07:39.980 And I want you to know that this prayer has continued. 00:07:40.080 --> 00:07:41.720 It's continued today, 00:07:42.020 --> 00:07:44.800 maybe even more fervently than before, 00:07:44.920 --> 00:07:47.320 especially looking around in the Bay Area, 00:07:47.460 --> 00:07:49.920 especially looking around just on my newsfeed in the whole world, right? 00:07:50.480 --> 00:07:53.640 How can the spirit-filled, Jesus-following people, 00:07:53.720 --> 00:07:56.980 how can their hearts not break for this broken Bay, 00:07:57.060 --> 00:07:58.360 for this broken world? 00:07:59.180 --> 00:08:02.420 Did you know that according to a study conducted by UC Berkeley, 00:08:02.600 --> 00:08:03.860 this was before the pandemic, 00:08:03.860 --> 00:08:05.340 did you know that even before the pandemic, 00:08:05.340 --> 00:08:08.139 more than one in three people, 00:08:08.560 --> 00:08:10.220 residents in the Bay Area, 00:08:10.720 --> 00:08:13.100 frequently run out of money before the end of the month? 00:08:13.819 --> 00:08:16.300 Or according to a California United Way study, 00:08:16.800 --> 00:08:18.900 that one in four Bay Area families, 00:08:19.020 --> 00:08:21.960 that's 608,000 households here in the Bay Area, 00:08:22.500 --> 00:08:26.160 are not earning enough income to cover their daily essentials? 00:08:27.220 --> 00:08:27.900 Or did you know, 00:08:27.899 --> 00:08:29.799 according to the World Bank, 00:08:30.339 --> 00:08:33.159 that one out of 10 people in the world 00:08:33.159 --> 00:08:35.240 is living underneath, 00:08:35.539 --> 00:08:36.519 and this was before the pandemic, 00:08:36.860 --> 00:08:39.360 underneath the international poverty line, 00:08:39.620 --> 00:08:42.600 which was $1.90 per day. 00:08:43.039 --> 00:08:45.899 That's 689 million people 00:08:45.899 --> 00:08:48.919 under $1.90 per day. 00:08:49.819 --> 00:08:50.959 So it's in light of this, 00:08:51.100 --> 00:08:53.819 and it's in light of God's word from Deuteronomy 15, 00:08:53.820 --> 00:08:56.400 that my prayer for us today is the same. 00:08:57.200 --> 00:08:59.660 My prayer is that the reality of our open-handed, 00:09:00.000 --> 00:09:02.000 open-hearted God would inspire us 00:09:02.000 --> 00:09:04.900 to be an open-handed and open-hearted people. 00:09:05.000 --> 00:09:06.900 This is what God wants for us. 00:09:07.440 --> 00:09:10.860 This is what God has always wanted for his holy people. 00:09:11.620 --> 00:09:13.660 Now I need to qualify everything I'm saying. 00:09:13.760 --> 00:09:15.520 I am no poverty expert. 00:09:16.100 --> 00:09:17.220 I am not a social worker, 00:09:17.520 --> 00:09:18.780 an economist, or a politician, 00:09:18.780 --> 00:09:20.000 so I'm not here to tell you 00:09:20.000 --> 00:09:22.120 that if we would just vote for this, 00:09:22.220 --> 00:09:24.059 if we would just invest in that, 00:09:24.139 --> 00:09:25.580 if we would just volunteer there, 00:09:25.659 --> 00:09:28.399 then definitely we could make everything better. 00:09:28.940 --> 00:09:30.860 That's not what I'm here to do. 00:09:31.659 --> 00:09:32.659 And you also have to understand 00:09:32.659 --> 00:09:35.019 that because of what's written in Deuteronomy 15 00:09:35.019 --> 00:09:37.259 is a civil law meant to govern 00:09:37.259 --> 00:09:39.700 the old covenant nation of Israel, 00:09:39.799 --> 00:09:40.740 this ancient nation, 00:09:41.240 --> 00:09:44.159 how we apply it as citizens from many nations 00:09:44.159 --> 00:09:45.220 as new covenant Christians 00:09:45.220 --> 00:09:46.620 is gonna be quite different. 00:09:47.299 --> 00:09:48.820 To apply Deuteronomy 15 00:09:48.820 --> 00:09:51.680 isn't to go and lobby Biden and Newsom 00:09:51.680 --> 00:09:54.500 and insist that they make Deuteronomy 15 00:09:54.500 --> 00:09:56.120 our new economic policy, all right? 00:09:56.940 --> 00:09:58.840 But as your modern-day pastor, 00:09:59.240 --> 00:10:00.360 while I don't have all the answers 00:10:00.360 --> 00:10:03.420 about what political platform will best help us forward, 00:10:03.500 --> 00:10:04.780 while I don't have all the answers 00:10:04.780 --> 00:10:07.400 about which nonprofits or volunteer opportunities 00:10:07.400 --> 00:10:09.800 are most strategic to invest in, 00:10:10.600 --> 00:10:14.480 and while we're not here to just imitate identically 00:10:14.480 --> 00:10:15.880 Deuteronomy chapter 15, 00:10:15.879 --> 00:10:19.200 these civil laws for this ancient nation, 00:10:19.720 --> 00:10:20.980 what I can tell you, 00:10:21.240 --> 00:10:22.419 and what I'm called to tell you, 00:10:22.460 --> 00:10:24.700 I believe, is what to believe about God, 00:10:25.299 --> 00:10:26.700 and what to believe about our neighbors, 00:10:27.340 --> 00:10:28.939 and what to believe about ourselves 00:10:28.939 --> 00:10:33.919 that must and that will transform our care for the poor. 00:10:34.580 --> 00:10:36.840 So today, I want us to see what Deuteronomy 15 00:10:36.840 --> 00:10:39.399 teaches us about God, 00:10:39.659 --> 00:10:40.480 and about our neighbors, 00:10:40.679 --> 00:10:41.639 and about ourselves, 00:10:41.639 --> 00:10:45.039 and how a right understanding of all these three things 00:10:45.039 --> 00:10:48.240 cannot but transform our care for the poor. 00:10:48.559 --> 00:10:49.659 All right, so let's start with the first one. 00:10:49.699 --> 00:10:50.519 This is our longer one. 00:10:50.759 --> 00:10:52.559 Let's look at God's heart for the poor. 00:10:53.379 --> 00:10:54.559 Now, we're in Deuteronomy, right? 00:10:54.600 --> 00:10:55.519 So we need to remember, 00:10:55.960 --> 00:10:57.759 Israel's about to enter the land. 00:10:57.919 --> 00:10:59.019 Israel's about to enter the land, 00:10:59.220 --> 00:11:00.539 and Moses is about to die 00:11:00.539 --> 00:11:03.379 without being able to enter with them. 00:11:03.439 --> 00:11:04.299 So what he's doing here 00:11:04.299 --> 00:11:06.559 is he's expounding the law to them. 00:11:06.580 --> 00:11:07.240 One more time, 00:11:07.240 --> 00:11:09.560 he is explaining the heart and will 00:11:09.560 --> 00:11:11.480 of their covenant God to them. 00:11:11.519 --> 00:11:12.919 He's making sure that they understand 00:11:12.919 --> 00:11:15.919 what it looks like to be his holy people, 00:11:16.039 --> 00:11:18.159 and what we have in Deuteronomy chapter 15 00:11:18.159 --> 00:11:20.779 is Moses is unpacking 00:11:20.779 --> 00:11:22.200 one of the 10 commandments for them, 00:11:22.299 --> 00:11:24.259 and he's unpacking the fourth commandment, 00:11:24.700 --> 00:11:25.480 the fourth commandment, 00:11:25.500 --> 00:11:26.299 and the fourth commandment 00:11:26.299 --> 00:11:27.740 is the Sabbath commandment. 00:11:27.820 --> 00:11:28.960 Deuteronomy chapter five says, 00:11:29.440 --> 00:11:31.840 observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, 00:11:32.240 --> 00:11:34.399 as the Lord your God has commanded you. 00:11:34.399 --> 00:11:36.659 On it you shall not do any work, 00:11:36.840 --> 00:11:38.699 neither you, nor your son or daughter, 00:11:39.120 --> 00:11:41.019 nor your male or female servant, 00:11:41.539 --> 00:11:42.840 nor your ox, your donkey, 00:11:42.919 --> 00:11:44.000 or any of your animals, 00:11:44.299 --> 00:11:46.980 so that your male and female servants 00:11:46.980 --> 00:11:49.139 may rest as you do. 00:11:50.000 --> 00:11:52.740 Remember that you were slaves in Egypt, 00:11:53.259 --> 00:11:55.120 and that the Lord your God brought you 00:11:55.120 --> 00:11:57.079 out of there with a mighty hand 00:11:57.079 --> 00:11:58.340 and an outstretched arm. 00:11:58.980 --> 00:12:01.939 Therefore, the Lord your God has commanded you 00:12:01.939 --> 00:12:03.939 to observe the Sabbath day. 00:12:04.720 --> 00:12:06.500 Moses is explaining to God's people 00:12:06.500 --> 00:12:08.980 how they are to live out in the promised land 00:12:08.980 --> 00:12:11.459 the fullest implications of the Sabbath. 00:12:12.360 --> 00:12:14.659 And guys, this is so much more 00:12:14.659 --> 00:12:16.939 than just taking a day off every week, 00:12:17.279 --> 00:12:18.259 taking a day off from work. 00:12:18.319 --> 00:12:20.220 This is so much more than even coming to church 00:12:20.220 --> 00:12:20.819 once a week. 00:12:21.519 --> 00:12:23.919 These holy people of God were to embody 00:12:23.919 --> 00:12:25.459 as an entire community, 00:12:25.600 --> 00:12:27.539 the liberating justice of God, 00:12:27.539 --> 00:12:29.259 seeking the Sabbath rest of God, 00:12:29.360 --> 00:12:31.500 not just for themselves as individual persons 00:12:31.500 --> 00:12:32.879 or even as individual families, 00:12:32.879 --> 00:12:35.059 but they were to seek the Sabbath rest of God 00:12:35.059 --> 00:12:35.879 for their neighbors, 00:12:36.679 --> 00:12:37.919 even their servants, 00:12:38.039 --> 00:12:40.019 their entire covenant community 00:12:40.019 --> 00:12:41.460 on a regular basis. 00:12:41.559 --> 00:12:42.899 In Deuteronomy chapter 15, 00:12:43.039 --> 00:12:44.620 God, who is Lord of their time, 00:12:44.980 --> 00:12:46.279 who's Lord of our time, 00:12:46.340 --> 00:12:47.700 who's Lord of all time, 00:12:48.320 --> 00:12:50.480 is building his Sabbath principle 00:12:50.480 --> 00:12:54.000 into the seasonal rhythms of the people of God. 00:12:54.379 --> 00:12:55.700 Look with me at verses one and two. 00:12:55.700 --> 00:12:58.480 At the end of every seven years, 00:12:58.580 --> 00:12:59.920 you shall grant a release. 00:13:00.640 --> 00:13:02.140 And this is the manner of the release. 00:13:02.240 --> 00:13:03.640 Every creditor shall release 00:13:03.640 --> 00:13:04.960 what he has lent to his neighbor. 00:13:05.460 --> 00:13:07.080 He shall not exact it of his neighbor, 00:13:07.180 --> 00:13:07.640 his brother, 00:13:07.920 --> 00:13:11.120 because the Lord's release has been proclaimed. 00:13:12.100 --> 00:13:14.620 God was building into their conception 00:13:14.620 --> 00:13:17.000 of time and seasonality 00:13:17.000 --> 00:13:20.520 a permanent sense of freedom and hope. 00:13:20.600 --> 00:13:22.700 He was building into their sense of time 00:13:22.700 --> 00:13:24.480 a shadow of new creation. 00:13:24.480 --> 00:13:26.399 He was building into their community conscience 00:13:26.399 --> 00:13:28.740 the reality that if you are God's people, 00:13:29.120 --> 00:13:30.480 if you belong to God's people, 00:13:30.560 --> 00:13:33.220 there's no such thing as permanent poverty. 00:13:33.420 --> 00:13:34.820 There is no permanent debt 00:13:34.820 --> 00:13:36.879 that will forever cripple and enslave you, 00:13:36.980 --> 00:13:37.279 God says, 00:13:37.360 --> 00:13:38.560 not for my people, 00:13:39.019 --> 00:13:39.740 not for my people. 00:13:39.820 --> 00:13:40.820 For God's covenant people, 00:13:40.960 --> 00:13:41.960 there is always hope 00:13:41.960 --> 00:13:43.340 and there is always freedom. 00:13:43.680 --> 00:13:44.700 No debt is forever. 00:13:45.320 --> 00:13:48.220 There is no permanently binding burden 00:13:48.220 --> 00:13:49.139 on the people of God 00:13:49.139 --> 00:13:50.240 because the seventh year, 00:13:50.560 --> 00:13:52.680 the seventh year is always on the way 00:13:52.680 --> 00:13:53.480 for God's people. 00:13:53.480 --> 00:13:56.420 So this is what God's holy people were to embody 00:13:56.420 --> 00:13:58.360 in this astonishing practice 00:13:58.360 --> 00:14:01.980 of regularly canceling debts every seven years. 00:14:02.399 --> 00:14:04.659 This is how they were to demonstrate to the world 00:14:04.659 --> 00:14:06.019 the huge difference, right, 00:14:06.360 --> 00:14:08.960 between being a Yahweh-ruled nation 00:14:08.960 --> 00:14:12.220 and a Pharaoh-ruled nation, right? 00:14:12.620 --> 00:14:14.159 Every other nation sought to rule 00:14:14.159 --> 00:14:16.820 and govern like the oppressive Pharaoh of Egypt, right? 00:14:16.899 --> 00:14:17.840 Might makes right. 00:14:18.080 --> 00:14:19.120 People can be property, 00:14:19.460 --> 00:14:21.539 increase debts and leverage and power, 00:14:21.539 --> 00:14:25.179 but not in a nation ruled by Yahweh, 00:14:25.339 --> 00:14:26.799 the liberator of Israel. 00:14:27.559 --> 00:14:29.120 Yahweh, the Lord, right? 00:14:29.439 --> 00:14:31.000 The Lord who is one, Israel's God, 00:14:31.059 --> 00:14:33.259 the one true God over the entire universe, 00:14:33.360 --> 00:14:36.480 greater than all the false gods of Egypt and Canaan. 00:14:36.599 --> 00:14:39.419 He was a God who desired and demanded rest, 00:14:40.559 --> 00:14:41.959 rest for all people, 00:14:42.399 --> 00:14:43.240 not just the wealthy, 00:14:43.360 --> 00:14:44.679 not just the powerful elite. 00:14:44.679 --> 00:14:48.359 Sabbath rest is not only the obligation of all, 00:14:48.879 --> 00:14:52.039 but it's the right of all God's creatures. 00:14:53.099 --> 00:14:55.339 And this is quite an incredible thing 00:14:55.339 --> 00:14:56.099 if you think about it, 00:14:56.539 --> 00:14:59.759 that Sabbath rest is the right of all God's creatures. 00:15:00.319 --> 00:15:01.579 We have to think about that for a second. 00:15:02.139 --> 00:15:04.120 Because I think a lot of us tend to think about 00:15:04.120 --> 00:15:05.259 caring for the poor 00:15:05.259 --> 00:15:07.679 and obeying the Sabbath in this way 00:15:07.679 --> 00:15:08.459 of caring for the poor 00:15:08.459 --> 00:15:11.459 as merely a voluntary thing that we do, right? 00:15:11.460 --> 00:15:14.080 A matter of niceness and charity and mercy 00:15:14.080 --> 00:15:15.480 and compassion and generosity, 00:15:15.800 --> 00:15:17.800 but that's only partially right. 00:15:18.600 --> 00:15:21.660 The fuller implication of Deuteronomy chapter 15 00:15:21.660 --> 00:15:23.759 is not simply that we should be generous, 00:15:24.200 --> 00:15:27.300 but also that we should be just. 00:15:28.019 --> 00:15:29.460 That we should be just. 00:15:30.360 --> 00:15:31.220 Verse nine says, 00:15:31.540 --> 00:15:33.400 if you give your needy neighbor nothing, 00:15:33.680 --> 00:15:35.420 he will cry to the Lord against you 00:15:35.420 --> 00:15:38.300 and you will be guilty of sin. 00:15:38.299 --> 00:15:42.059 By institutionalizing and legislating 00:15:42.059 --> 00:15:44.779 and commanding care for the poor, 00:15:45.559 --> 00:15:46.500 God was saying, 00:15:46.740 --> 00:15:48.559 this isn't just a matter of generosity, 00:15:49.059 --> 00:15:51.139 this is a matter of justice. 00:15:51.319 --> 00:15:53.079 God's people, God's holy people 00:15:53.079 --> 00:15:55.219 are to be generous and just. 00:15:56.159 --> 00:15:57.719 And I know that for some of us, 00:15:57.779 --> 00:16:00.639 this might be hard to hold together, 00:16:00.759 --> 00:16:01.859 this both and, right? 00:16:01.899 --> 00:16:04.559 That we are called to be generous and just 00:16:04.559 --> 00:16:06.179 in our care for the poor, right? 00:16:06.179 --> 00:16:07.399 Because those on the left, 00:16:07.659 --> 00:16:09.399 we prefer the language of justice, sure, 00:16:09.779 --> 00:16:12.259 and rightly giving to the poor what belongs to them. 00:16:12.899 --> 00:16:14.319 But then those on the right, right? 00:16:14.359 --> 00:16:17.079 We might prefer language of generosity 00:16:17.079 --> 00:16:19.679 and of mercifully giving to the poor 00:16:19.679 --> 00:16:21.039 what belongs to us. 00:16:21.739 --> 00:16:23.639 But I think Deuteronomy chapter 15 00:16:23.639 --> 00:16:25.199 and the ethic of the scriptures 00:16:25.199 --> 00:16:28.419 offers us a beautiful third way. 00:16:29.239 --> 00:16:31.339 While the left often pulls for the rights 00:16:31.339 --> 00:16:32.359 of the debtor, right? 00:16:32.799 --> 00:16:34.699 And the right often pulls for the rights 00:16:34.700 --> 00:16:35.940 of the creditor. 00:16:36.900 --> 00:16:39.160 The scriptures remind us of a third party 00:16:39.160 --> 00:16:42.120 who's often overlooked in all these debates. 00:16:42.800 --> 00:16:43.460 Look at verse two. 00:16:44.379 --> 00:16:45.220 You have the creditor, 00:16:45.759 --> 00:16:46.640 you have the debtor, 00:16:47.120 --> 00:16:48.280 but you also have the Lord. 00:16:48.680 --> 00:16:49.840 Second sentence, verse two. 00:16:50.160 --> 00:16:51.340 He, the creditor, right? 00:16:51.660 --> 00:16:53.879 He shall not exact it of his neighbor, 00:16:53.980 --> 00:16:54.980 his brother, the debtor, 00:16:55.460 --> 00:16:58.220 because the Lord's release has been proclaimed. 00:16:58.360 --> 00:16:58.759 Verse four. 00:16:58.980 --> 00:17:00.700 But there will be no poor among you, 00:17:00.700 --> 00:17:03.800 for the Lord will bless you in the land 00:17:03.800 --> 00:17:05.600 that the Lord your God is giving you 00:17:05.600 --> 00:17:07.160 for inheritance to possess. 00:17:08.160 --> 00:17:11.200 Yes, the creditor-to-debtor relationship exists, 00:17:11.319 --> 00:17:15.340 but so also does the Lord-to-creditor-to-debtor 00:17:15.340 --> 00:17:16.940 relationship exist. 00:17:17.580 --> 00:17:20.180 The Lord who is the one who gave to the creditor 00:17:20.180 --> 00:17:22.700 all that the creditor possesses in the first place, 00:17:22.779 --> 00:17:25.580 the Lord before whom even the richest creditors 00:17:25.580 --> 00:17:27.920 are only inheritors, right? 00:17:27.920 --> 00:17:30.100 Only recipients of all that they possess. 00:17:31.259 --> 00:17:32.039 And if you think about it, 00:17:32.060 --> 00:17:34.279 then this changes everything, right? 00:17:34.640 --> 00:17:36.800 There isn't just a two-party relationship 00:17:36.800 --> 00:17:38.259 between the haves and the have-nots, 00:17:38.380 --> 00:17:39.640 between the rich and the poor, 00:17:39.740 --> 00:17:41.620 between the superior and the inferior. 00:17:42.100 --> 00:17:44.580 There's a third ultimate party member 00:17:44.580 --> 00:17:48.840 who relativizes supposedly unequal relationships. 00:17:49.820 --> 00:17:51.620 The supposedly unequal relationships 00:17:51.620 --> 00:17:53.740 between creditors and debtors. 00:17:54.539 --> 00:17:55.720 See, while the left and the right 00:17:55.720 --> 00:17:59.299 want to argue endlessly about what belongs to whom. 00:17:59.839 --> 00:18:03.000 The simple point here is that God's the real owner. 00:18:03.920 --> 00:18:05.059 God's the real owner. 00:18:05.860 --> 00:18:08.160 The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, 00:18:08.240 --> 00:18:10.059 and thus while our individual ownership 00:18:10.059 --> 00:18:12.500 and our right over our possessions is real, 00:18:12.720 --> 00:18:17.120 it's also relativized and subjected to God's ownership. 00:18:18.200 --> 00:18:20.240 Jesus says, yeah, I know that's your tunic, 00:18:20.500 --> 00:18:22.039 but it's also, and more importantly, 00:18:22.039 --> 00:18:24.180 actually my father's. 00:18:25.339 --> 00:18:26.960 And the question for us this morning is, 00:18:27.200 --> 00:18:28.299 do we believe this? 00:18:28.879 --> 00:18:29.680 Do we believe this, 00:18:29.720 --> 00:18:32.779 that everything we own is our father's? 00:18:33.440 --> 00:18:36.480 And if so, what reason could we possibly have 00:18:36.480 --> 00:18:38.859 to not share with those in need 00:18:38.859 --> 00:18:41.700 what our father has so kindly given to us? 00:18:43.039 --> 00:18:44.819 You know, sometimes I open my hand 00:18:44.819 --> 00:18:48.839 and I open up a bag of goldfish 00:18:48.839 --> 00:18:50.980 for my three-year-old daughter, Cami. 00:18:51.379 --> 00:18:52.240 A bag of goldfish. 00:18:52.899 --> 00:18:54.899 And then her hungry one-and-a-half-year-old sister, 00:18:55.019 --> 00:18:57.319 Leah, will stretch out her little hand 00:18:57.319 --> 00:18:59.159 toward her jeje and say, 00:18:59.579 --> 00:19:02.319 please, jeje, please, share. 00:19:03.740 --> 00:19:04.039 Right? 00:19:05.319 --> 00:19:06.700 And Cami will often say, 00:19:06.799 --> 00:19:08.240 no, mei-mei, no, little sister. 00:19:08.899 --> 00:19:09.399 Mine. 00:19:10.619 --> 00:19:11.099 Mine. 00:19:11.099 --> 00:19:11.219 Mine. 00:19:11.939 --> 00:19:13.099 And so I'll say to Cami, 00:19:13.699 --> 00:19:17.740 Cami, I want you to share your goldfish with mei-mei. 00:19:18.919 --> 00:19:21.079 And then she'll say, but they're mine. 00:19:22.019 --> 00:19:22.939 But they're mine. 00:19:23.639 --> 00:19:25.039 So then I'll say, Cami, 00:19:25.500 --> 00:19:27.159 did you pay for those goldfish? 00:19:29.679 --> 00:19:31.659 Didn't mommy buy them for you? 00:19:32.259 --> 00:19:34.699 Didn't God give them to us? 00:19:35.339 --> 00:19:35.879 And I don't know, 00:19:35.980 --> 00:19:37.659 maybe it's like 10% of the time 00:19:37.659 --> 00:19:39.339 that this actually persuades her 00:19:39.339 --> 00:19:40.839 to share willingly, right? 00:19:41.099 --> 00:19:42.319 And it drives me crazy 00:19:42.319 --> 00:19:43.159 because in my head, 00:19:43.219 --> 00:19:44.219 I'm like, come on, Cami. 00:19:44.879 --> 00:19:46.199 These are my goldfish. 00:19:47.459 --> 00:19:51.459 And I want you and your sister 00:19:51.459 --> 00:19:54.339 to enjoy my goldfish. 00:19:56.459 --> 00:19:57.459 And you know there are a lot of times 00:19:57.459 --> 00:19:58.279 where she might, you know, 00:19:58.359 --> 00:19:59.879 just give two goldfish, 00:20:00.240 --> 00:20:00.939 maybe three. 00:20:01.659 --> 00:20:02.779 And I'm like, come on. 00:20:03.459 --> 00:20:05.500 You know there's a whole box at home. 00:20:05.559 --> 00:20:06.799 We bought the Costco box. 00:20:06.799 --> 00:20:09.579 We're not going to run out. 00:20:09.899 --> 00:20:11.919 We're not going to run out of goldfish. 00:20:12.240 --> 00:20:13.759 I ask her, or at least I think, 00:20:13.960 --> 00:20:16.319 why can't you trust that I love you? 00:20:17.180 --> 00:20:19.579 Why can't you trust that I love to give you 00:20:19.579 --> 00:20:21.740 and your sister goldfish? 00:20:22.099 --> 00:20:23.359 Why can't you trust and believe 00:20:23.359 --> 00:20:26.019 that you will always have more than enough 00:20:26.019 --> 00:20:27.299 because you are my child? 00:20:28.759 --> 00:20:30.139 Now maybe she doesn't believe that 00:20:30.139 --> 00:20:32.559 because sometimes her father gets hungry too. 00:20:32.559 --> 00:20:35.299 And I might grab a handful out of her bag, right? 00:20:36.319 --> 00:20:37.619 But let me tell you something. 00:20:38.399 --> 00:20:40.500 Our father in heaven, he never hungers. 00:20:41.440 --> 00:20:44.819 And he calls us to radical generosity. 00:20:45.819 --> 00:20:48.259 This radical generosity that he calls us to 00:20:48.259 --> 00:20:50.460 is an invitation for us to trust in 00:20:50.460 --> 00:20:52.740 and experience his abundance. 00:20:54.039 --> 00:20:55.419 But again, will we believe that? 00:20:55.980 --> 00:20:56.879 Will we believe that? 00:20:57.359 --> 00:20:59.980 Will we believe his promise of abundant care 00:20:59.980 --> 00:21:01.859 and blessing over us? 00:21:02.559 --> 00:21:04.519 Look what he says in verse five. 00:21:05.940 --> 00:21:07.599 If only you will strictly obey 00:21:07.599 --> 00:21:09.159 the voice of the Lord your God, 00:21:09.519 --> 00:21:11.039 being careful to do all this commandment 00:21:11.039 --> 00:21:12.059 that I command you today, 00:21:12.319 --> 00:21:14.799 for the Lord your God will bless you 00:21:14.799 --> 00:21:16.759 as he promised. 00:21:18.079 --> 00:21:18.960 Think about that. 00:21:19.399 --> 00:21:21.779 The God who owns it all has promised 00:21:21.779 --> 00:21:24.419 to bless us richly, 00:21:24.419 --> 00:21:26.500 even as we pour ourselves out 00:21:26.500 --> 00:21:28.599 to serve others in need. 00:21:29.599 --> 00:21:31.379 I want to read you this quote from Jen Wilkins. 00:21:31.380 --> 00:21:33.280 She's a Bible teacher I really enjoy. 00:21:33.380 --> 00:21:34.560 She taught on this text. 00:21:35.140 --> 00:21:35.600 She said, 00:21:36.340 --> 00:21:38.960 it's so easy to slip into believing 00:21:38.960 --> 00:21:40.960 that we provide our own daily bread. 00:21:41.660 --> 00:21:43.940 And when we believe that we are the origin 00:21:43.940 --> 00:21:46.160 and sustainer of all we have, 00:21:47.000 --> 00:21:49.420 generosity will die a hard and fast death. 00:21:50.000 --> 00:21:51.620 Our hearts will grow hard 00:21:51.620 --> 00:21:53.320 and our fists will grow tight. 00:21:54.100 --> 00:21:56.860 Whether you see yourself as an owner or a steward 00:21:56.859 --> 00:21:59.539 will determine how generous you are. 00:22:00.359 --> 00:22:01.879 Owners will be tight-fisted 00:22:01.879 --> 00:22:04.059 and stewards will be open-handed. 00:22:04.939 --> 00:22:07.779 But when we recognize that God gives us good things, 00:22:07.859 --> 00:22:10.079 not so that they might terminate on us, 00:22:10.599 --> 00:22:12.379 but so that we might steward them 00:22:12.379 --> 00:22:13.659 on behalf of others, 00:22:13.759 --> 00:22:15.240 it changes the way we interact 00:22:15.240 --> 00:22:16.279 with the world around us. 00:22:16.379 --> 00:22:18.059 When we find ourselves with abundance, 00:22:18.159 --> 00:22:19.119 we must ask, 00:22:19.699 --> 00:22:22.779 am I a terminus or a distribution point? 00:22:22.779 --> 00:22:24.920 Does it all terminate on me 00:22:24.920 --> 00:22:26.559 or do I see myself as someone 00:22:26.559 --> 00:22:29.819 who now has abundance to share with others? 00:22:29.920 --> 00:22:30.559 Christ's church. 00:22:31.359 --> 00:22:32.339 Do we believe this? 00:22:32.960 --> 00:22:35.359 Do we believe that this God that we worship 00:22:35.359 --> 00:22:37.480 is the owner of all things? 00:22:38.299 --> 00:22:39.839 Everything we have is his. 00:22:41.220 --> 00:22:42.259 All right, now I gotta move quick, 00:22:42.660 --> 00:22:43.339 but I also wanna show you 00:22:43.339 --> 00:22:44.440 what this text calls us to, 00:22:44.639 --> 00:22:45.920 how this text calls us to view, 00:22:46.119 --> 00:22:46.839 not just God, 00:22:47.039 --> 00:22:48.160 but also our neighbors. 00:22:48.819 --> 00:22:50.399 And the first thing that we need to see 00:22:50.400 --> 00:22:52.400 is that we need to see our neighbors 00:22:52.400 --> 00:22:55.500 as more than just liabilities and burdens. 00:22:55.740 --> 00:22:56.820 All right, look with me at verse nine. 00:22:57.660 --> 00:23:00.340 Take care lest there be an unworthy thought 00:23:00.340 --> 00:23:01.800 in your heart about your neighbor 00:23:01.800 --> 00:23:02.600 and you say, 00:23:03.100 --> 00:23:04.000 oh, the seventh year, 00:23:04.340 --> 00:23:05.360 the year of release is near 00:23:05.360 --> 00:23:07.780 and your eye look grudgingly 00:23:07.780 --> 00:23:08.960 on your poor brother 00:23:08.960 --> 00:23:10.180 and you give him nothing 00:23:10.180 --> 00:23:12.780 and you be guilty of sin. 00:23:13.340 --> 00:23:15.500 So imagine this is a very possible scenario, right? 00:23:16.040 --> 00:23:17.680 Maybe for the first couple of years, 00:23:17.680 --> 00:23:19.320 first couple of years 00:23:19.320 --> 00:23:21.160 after the previous year of release, 00:23:21.440 --> 00:23:22.720 you're rich and you're comfortable 00:23:22.720 --> 00:23:24.220 and you're lending out freely, 00:23:24.340 --> 00:23:24.960 thinking, oh, well, 00:23:25.100 --> 00:23:26.500 these people, they have five, six years 00:23:26.500 --> 00:23:27.560 to pay me back. 00:23:27.640 --> 00:23:28.840 I can be generous, right? 00:23:29.600 --> 00:23:31.660 But now imagine it's two months, right? 00:23:31.799 --> 00:23:33.360 Two months before the seventh year, 00:23:33.460 --> 00:23:34.460 the year of release, 00:23:35.039 --> 00:23:36.220 and someone comes to you 00:23:36.220 --> 00:23:38.580 asking for a gigantic loan. 00:23:39.700 --> 00:23:40.539 How might you feel? 00:23:42.240 --> 00:23:43.900 Would you see the person coming to you 00:23:43.900 --> 00:23:46.180 for that loan as more of a brother 00:23:46.180 --> 00:23:48.759 or more of a bother, right? 00:23:49.660 --> 00:23:50.900 See, Moses warns us here 00:23:50.900 --> 00:23:51.640 against the temptation 00:23:51.640 --> 00:23:52.620 of seeing our neighbors 00:23:52.620 --> 00:23:55.120 as pests and not people. 00:23:56.480 --> 00:23:57.259 Like, here's a question, 00:23:57.360 --> 00:23:58.360 here's a question for all of us 00:23:58.360 --> 00:23:59.080 that we need to answer. 00:23:59.799 --> 00:24:01.660 Do we actually care about the poor 00:24:01.660 --> 00:24:03.259 and the houseless people 00:24:03.259 --> 00:24:04.240 in the Bay Area? 00:24:04.860 --> 00:24:07.920 Or do we really just like the idea 00:24:07.920 --> 00:24:08.840 of a cleaner street, 00:24:09.620 --> 00:24:11.680 of a less depressing commute 00:24:11.680 --> 00:24:13.480 to work in Berkeley 00:24:13.480 --> 00:24:15.340 and Oakland and San Francisco? 00:24:17.180 --> 00:24:19.960 Do we love these people as people, 00:24:20.580 --> 00:24:22.320 not as burdens we're trying 00:24:22.320 --> 00:24:24.100 to get rid of out our society? 00:24:25.980 --> 00:24:27.480 Notice how Moses, 00:24:27.980 --> 00:24:29.860 he also continues to remind the Israelites 00:24:29.860 --> 00:24:31.860 that not only are the poor 00:24:31.860 --> 00:24:33.259 not to be seen as a burden, 00:24:33.840 --> 00:24:36.400 but they're also not just some random people. 00:24:37.259 --> 00:24:39.080 Actually, God's people are called 00:24:39.080 --> 00:24:41.560 to see their neighbors as their family. 00:24:42.560 --> 00:24:43.080 Verse two, 00:24:43.079 --> 00:24:45.079 he shall not exact it of his neighbor, 00:24:45.419 --> 00:24:46.059 his brother. 00:24:46.740 --> 00:24:47.299 Verse three, 00:24:47.539 --> 00:24:48.059 your brother. 00:24:48.279 --> 00:24:48.720 Verse seven, 00:24:48.839 --> 00:24:49.659 if among you, 00:24:49.740 --> 00:24:50.659 one of your brothers, 00:24:51.099 --> 00:24:52.159 you shall not harden your heart 00:24:52.159 --> 00:24:52.839 or shut your hand 00:24:52.839 --> 00:24:54.159 against your poor brother. 00:24:54.240 --> 00:24:54.619 Verse nine, 00:24:54.679 --> 00:24:55.299 your poor brother. 00:24:55.399 --> 00:24:55.799 Verse 12, 00:24:55.839 --> 00:24:56.299 your brother, 00:24:56.579 --> 00:24:57.019 a Hebrew. 00:24:57.419 --> 00:24:58.240 And in verse 11, 00:24:58.319 --> 00:24:58.740 in the Hebrew, 00:24:58.939 --> 00:25:00.199 this is a more awkward 00:25:00.199 --> 00:25:01.579 but more literal translation, 00:25:02.220 --> 00:25:04.659 you shall open wide your hand 00:25:04.659 --> 00:25:05.659 to your brother, 00:25:06.139 --> 00:25:07.480 to your needy, 00:25:07.480 --> 00:25:09.140 and to your poor. 00:25:09.339 --> 00:25:10.339 That's what it says in the Hebrew. 00:25:11.140 --> 00:25:12.819 These people are ours. 00:25:13.640 --> 00:25:14.900 The scripture rejects 00:25:14.900 --> 00:25:17.259 any kind of radical individualism 00:25:17.259 --> 00:25:19.420 that denies our relational connectedness 00:25:19.420 --> 00:25:21.059 to our neighbors before God. 00:25:21.539 --> 00:25:22.500 The scripture rejects 00:25:22.500 --> 00:25:23.700 any kind of individualism 00:25:23.700 --> 00:25:26.059 that denies our collective responsibility 00:25:26.059 --> 00:25:27.599 to our needy neighbors, 00:25:27.720 --> 00:25:29.240 our needy family members 00:25:29.240 --> 00:25:30.019 in our community, 00:25:30.279 --> 00:25:32.440 especially amongst the covenant community. 00:25:33.539 --> 00:25:35.000 Paul writes in Galatians chapter six, 00:25:35.000 --> 00:25:37.319 let us not become weary in doing good. 00:25:37.839 --> 00:25:38.839 As we have opportunity, 00:25:39.299 --> 00:25:41.160 let us do good to all people, 00:25:42.000 --> 00:25:43.119 especially to those 00:25:43.119 --> 00:25:45.359 who belong to the family of believers. 00:25:46.339 --> 00:25:47.779 According to the law of Moses, 00:25:48.240 --> 00:25:49.480 the poor amongst us 00:25:49.480 --> 00:25:51.559 are not simply the poor over there. 00:25:52.579 --> 00:25:53.380 There are poor. 00:25:54.400 --> 00:25:55.559 There are poor. 00:25:56.440 --> 00:25:57.519 I was just at a shelter, 00:25:58.259 --> 00:25:59.539 an animal shelter the other day. 00:25:59.619 --> 00:26:00.519 We just wanted our kids 00:26:00.519 --> 00:26:01.680 to see some dogs and stuff. 00:26:02.240 --> 00:26:04.279 And there was a quote by Gandhi 00:26:04.279 --> 00:26:05.740 and it said, 00:26:06.200 --> 00:26:06.639 oh man, 00:26:06.680 --> 00:26:07.240 I don't even remember. 00:26:07.319 --> 00:26:08.119 I didn't plan to say this, 00:26:08.279 --> 00:26:10.200 but the quote by Gandhi was, 00:26:10.720 --> 00:26:14.079 you can tell how great a society is 00:26:14.079 --> 00:26:16.460 by how well it cares for its animals. 00:26:17.420 --> 00:26:17.619 All right? 00:26:18.279 --> 00:26:19.220 Well, how much more 00:26:19.220 --> 00:26:22.019 how it cares for the poor? 00:26:22.720 --> 00:26:23.420 How much more? 00:26:24.119 --> 00:26:24.779 There are poor. 00:26:25.160 --> 00:26:26.279 There are people. 00:26:26.899 --> 00:26:28.259 And thus, in some real way, 00:26:28.980 --> 00:26:30.759 they are our responsibility. 00:26:32.559 --> 00:26:33.960 Like, just sit in that for a second. 00:26:34.940 --> 00:26:36.339 What if we looked upon 00:26:36.339 --> 00:26:38.440 that last houseless person we saw, 00:26:38.519 --> 00:26:41.319 maybe as we drove to church today, right? 00:26:41.759 --> 00:26:42.740 What if we looked upon 00:26:42.740 --> 00:26:44.480 that houseless person 00:26:44.480 --> 00:26:45.899 as our brother, 00:26:47.200 --> 00:26:49.039 as our responsibility? 00:26:51.000 --> 00:26:52.059 Wouldn't this change everything? 00:26:53.019 --> 00:26:54.960 Wouldn't this change everything? 00:26:55.119 --> 00:26:56.779 Wouldn't we have a burning passion 00:26:56.779 --> 00:26:58.960 to see this brother thrive? 00:26:59.059 --> 00:27:00.279 Wouldn't we want to give this person 00:27:00.279 --> 00:27:01.759 the benefit of the doubt 00:27:01.759 --> 00:27:03.619 and believe in better things for him? 00:27:04.920 --> 00:27:06.220 Deuteronomy chapter 15 00:27:06.220 --> 00:27:07.539 is not calling for, 00:27:07.960 --> 00:27:08.119 you know, 00:27:08.220 --> 00:27:09.119 Moses is not just saying, 00:27:09.240 --> 00:27:10.460 go throw some people a bone, 00:27:11.059 --> 00:27:12.799 which really often only cultivates 00:27:12.799 --> 00:27:13.700 unhealthy dependencies. 00:27:14.059 --> 00:27:14.900 Moses' law 00:27:14.900 --> 00:27:16.359 is actually calling us 00:27:16.359 --> 00:27:17.680 to something even higher. 00:27:18.339 --> 00:27:19.559 Higher than mere charity. 00:27:20.059 --> 00:27:21.440 Higher than just relief. 00:27:22.099 --> 00:27:24.339 To see our needy neighbors rightly. 00:27:24.339 --> 00:27:26.000 And as God sees them 00:27:26.000 --> 00:27:27.659 is to see them as responsible 00:27:27.659 --> 00:27:29.179 and capable agents 00:27:29.179 --> 00:27:30.539 with gifts and callings 00:27:30.539 --> 00:27:32.699 that our God desires to cultivate 00:27:32.699 --> 00:27:34.099 in his kingdom. 00:27:35.299 --> 00:27:36.579 Deuteronomy chapter 15 00:27:36.579 --> 00:27:37.519 is not just saying, 00:27:37.740 --> 00:27:39.319 just go give out some handouts. 00:27:39.939 --> 00:27:40.959 If you look at verse 12, 00:27:41.039 --> 00:27:42.039 there's this situation here 00:27:42.039 --> 00:27:44.000 where he's applying the year of release 00:27:44.000 --> 00:27:45.980 to indentured servants. 00:27:46.699 --> 00:27:47.559 But I want us to notice 00:27:47.559 --> 00:27:48.799 God's attitude of abundance 00:27:48.799 --> 00:27:49.819 toward the release 00:27:49.819 --> 00:27:50.959 of these indentured servants 00:27:50.960 --> 00:27:52.319 in verses 13 and 14. 00:27:52.420 --> 00:27:53.620 God doesn't just desire 00:27:53.620 --> 00:27:54.200 for the poor 00:27:54.200 --> 00:27:56.299 to go from thousands of dollars 00:27:56.299 --> 00:27:57.500 of debt to zero. 00:27:58.200 --> 00:27:59.279 He wants to put them back 00:27:59.279 --> 00:28:00.019 on their feet 00:28:00.019 --> 00:28:03.980 and be so generously cared for, right? 00:28:04.000 --> 00:28:05.059 That they are empowered 00:28:05.059 --> 00:28:07.360 to become productive citizens 00:28:07.360 --> 00:28:08.799 of the community once again. 00:28:09.340 --> 00:28:09.960 Verse 13, 00:28:10.579 --> 00:28:13.500 and when you let him go free from you, 00:28:14.259 --> 00:28:16.340 you shall not let him go empty-handed. 00:28:16.519 --> 00:28:17.279 You shall not just bring him 00:28:17.279 --> 00:28:18.240 back to zero, right? 00:28:18.559 --> 00:28:20.700 You shall furnish him liberally 00:28:20.700 --> 00:28:22.180 out of your flock, 00:28:22.620 --> 00:28:24.019 out of your threshing floor, 00:28:24.299 --> 00:28:25.960 and out of your winepress. 00:28:26.740 --> 00:28:27.319 He's saying, 00:28:27.680 --> 00:28:29.380 give to him from among your wide, 00:28:29.519 --> 00:28:31.460 wide variety of resources. 00:28:31.640 --> 00:28:32.819 Help restore his dignity 00:28:32.819 --> 00:28:34.920 as a self-sufficient citizen. 00:28:35.640 --> 00:28:37.680 This isn't just a cancellation of debt, 00:28:37.799 --> 00:28:38.799 money for a single meal, 00:28:39.039 --> 00:28:40.799 a roof over a head for one night 00:28:40.799 --> 00:28:41.799 just to help them survive. 00:28:42.680 --> 00:28:43.980 This is job training, 00:28:44.759 --> 00:28:46.259 education, financial planning, 00:28:46.400 --> 00:28:47.600 spiritual discipleship, 00:28:47.680 --> 00:28:48.420 walking with people, 00:28:48.420 --> 00:28:49.480 helping them to avoid 00:28:49.480 --> 00:28:51.320 the self-destructive habits 00:28:51.320 --> 00:28:53.019 that they might have been accustomed to 00:28:53.019 --> 00:28:54.740 to help them thrive. 00:28:55.940 --> 00:28:57.279 A radical generosity 00:28:57.279 --> 00:28:58.140 that doesn't settle 00:28:58.140 --> 00:28:59.320 for our neighbor's relief, 00:28:59.539 --> 00:29:02.100 but aims for our neighbor's revitalization. 00:29:03.800 --> 00:29:04.140 All right, 00:29:04.180 --> 00:29:05.580 so we've talked about God and the poor. 00:29:05.680 --> 00:29:06.480 We've talked about God 00:29:06.480 --> 00:29:08.580 and how we should view our neighbors. 00:29:09.259 --> 00:29:10.000 And I hope that, 00:29:10.000 --> 00:29:10.220 you know, 00:29:10.300 --> 00:29:11.080 I hope that it's pricked 00:29:11.080 --> 00:29:12.180 some hearts this morning. 00:29:12.860 --> 00:29:14.060 I hope that it's pricked some of us 00:29:14.059 --> 00:29:15.679 to consider taking some action 00:29:15.679 --> 00:29:16.759 to look for opportunities 00:29:16.759 --> 00:29:18.500 to serve and to donate. 00:29:18.779 --> 00:29:19.960 You can drop off some diapers 00:29:19.960 --> 00:29:21.440 in the pack and play back there. 00:29:21.859 --> 00:29:22.819 Fill up a shoe box 00:29:22.819 --> 00:29:23.960 for Operation Christmas Child. 00:29:24.059 --> 00:29:24.700 Ask Molly Wood 00:29:24.700 --> 00:29:25.940 or Jane George about that. 00:29:26.419 --> 00:29:29.059 Join our Care Portal response team. 00:29:29.639 --> 00:29:30.919 Care Portal is a way 00:29:30.919 --> 00:29:32.519 that we can receive requests 00:29:32.519 --> 00:29:34.559 from social caseworkers in the area 00:29:34.559 --> 00:29:35.799 and help prevent children 00:29:35.799 --> 00:29:37.339 from going into the foster system. 00:29:37.980 --> 00:29:39.440 You could tutor with Harbor House 00:29:39.440 --> 00:29:41.600 or help them unload and sort 00:29:41.600 --> 00:29:42.920 and distribute food in November. 00:29:43.940 --> 00:29:45.259 Maybe you could become a foster parent 00:29:45.259 --> 00:29:46.640 or at least a support friend 00:29:46.640 --> 00:29:47.860 with Foster the City. 00:29:48.660 --> 00:29:49.460 Support a child 00:29:49.460 --> 00:29:51.200 with Compassion International. 00:29:51.980 --> 00:29:52.240 Actually, 00:29:52.580 --> 00:29:53.740 preparing the sermon this week 00:29:53.740 --> 00:29:56.019 convicted my family to do that. 00:29:56.480 --> 00:29:57.420 We found this little girl 00:29:57.420 --> 00:29:59.360 named Hekaya in Tanzania 00:29:59.360 --> 00:30:00.779 who was born on the same day 00:30:00.779 --> 00:30:02.180 as our firstborn, Kami. 00:30:03.180 --> 00:30:04.340 And I'm not sharing this 00:30:04.340 --> 00:30:05.299 to our own horn. 00:30:05.400 --> 00:30:05.820 Truthfully, 00:30:05.900 --> 00:30:06.920 I feel like my family 00:30:06.920 --> 00:30:07.720 is so far 00:30:07.720 --> 00:30:09.000 from where we want to be 00:30:09.000 --> 00:30:10.119 in terms of our ministry 00:30:10.119 --> 00:30:11.960 of generous justice. 00:30:12.900 --> 00:30:14.400 But the challenge for myself 00:30:14.400 --> 00:30:15.859 and my challenge to all of us 00:30:15.859 --> 00:30:16.920 is that we just start 00:30:16.920 --> 00:30:17.940 taking some steps. 00:30:18.619 --> 00:30:20.000 Let's just start taking some steps, 00:30:20.039 --> 00:30:20.880 even small ones, 00:30:21.099 --> 00:30:22.680 toward the generous justice 00:30:22.680 --> 00:30:24.279 that our God calls us to. 00:30:24.940 --> 00:30:26.700 Even if it's just going home today 00:30:26.700 --> 00:30:27.759 and doing some research, 00:30:28.599 --> 00:30:29.839 thinking more about the problem 00:30:29.839 --> 00:30:30.400 of poverty 00:30:30.400 --> 00:30:31.700 and how you can help. 00:30:32.200 --> 00:30:32.799 Or just like 00:30:32.799 --> 00:30:34.000 when you go for a walk 00:30:34.000 --> 00:30:34.599 and you encounter 00:30:34.599 --> 00:30:36.000 these houseless folks, 00:30:36.480 --> 00:30:37.339 look them in the eye 00:30:37.339 --> 00:30:38.700 with dignity, 00:30:39.000 --> 00:30:40.660 share your smile 00:30:40.660 --> 00:30:42.400 and remind yourself, 00:30:42.839 --> 00:30:43.640 teach your children 00:30:43.640 --> 00:30:44.680 to teach our, 00:30:45.299 --> 00:30:47.240 to see our houseless neighbors 00:30:47.240 --> 00:30:48.440 as neighbors, 00:30:49.220 --> 00:30:49.960 as people. 00:30:50.700 --> 00:30:51.680 Let's take some steps 00:30:51.680 --> 00:30:53.079 and increase our heart for 00:30:53.079 --> 00:30:54.099 and our proximity 00:30:54.099 --> 00:30:55.099 to the poor. 00:30:56.500 --> 00:30:57.759 And this is where really, 00:30:58.539 --> 00:30:59.960 I think this is really 00:30:59.960 --> 00:31:01.119 where the core issue is though, 00:31:01.859 --> 00:31:02.980 is taking steps, 00:31:03.200 --> 00:31:05.059 it has to come from your heart. 00:31:05.779 --> 00:31:07.240 This is a heart issue. 00:31:07.240 --> 00:31:08.200 And I have to be brief 00:31:08.200 --> 00:31:08.779 as I conclude, 00:31:08.880 --> 00:31:09.660 but the last thing I want us 00:31:09.660 --> 00:31:11.359 to notice in Deuteronomy 15 00:31:11.359 --> 00:31:12.599 is how Moses doesn't, 00:31:12.819 --> 00:31:13.539 he doesn't just give them 00:31:13.539 --> 00:31:14.279 a law to obey 00:31:14.279 --> 00:31:16.420 or a fact to believe. 00:31:17.339 --> 00:31:18.180 Moses understands 00:31:18.180 --> 00:31:20.480 that this is a heart issue. 00:31:21.220 --> 00:31:21.740 Verse nine, 00:31:22.480 --> 00:31:23.059 take care, 00:31:23.380 --> 00:31:25.079 lest there be an unworthy thought 00:31:25.079 --> 00:31:26.099 in your heart 00:31:26.099 --> 00:31:28.120 and your eye look grudgingly 00:31:28.120 --> 00:31:28.880 and you give him nothing 00:31:28.880 --> 00:31:30.220 and you be guilty of sin. 00:31:30.299 --> 00:31:30.720 Verse 10, 00:31:31.099 --> 00:31:32.440 you shall give to him freely 00:31:32.440 --> 00:31:33.759 and your heart 00:31:33.759 --> 00:31:35.320 shall not be grudging 00:31:35.320 --> 00:31:36.620 when you give to him. 00:31:37.620 --> 00:31:39.299 A law for our hands to obey 00:31:39.299 --> 00:31:40.640 is not enough 00:31:40.640 --> 00:31:42.820 and neither is the right information 00:31:42.820 --> 00:31:44.200 for our heads to acknowledge. 00:31:44.600 --> 00:31:45.840 What is most needed 00:31:45.840 --> 00:31:47.559 is a change of heart, 00:31:47.660 --> 00:31:49.860 a deep personal reassessment 00:31:49.860 --> 00:31:51.640 of who we are 00:31:51.640 --> 00:31:53.799 before God and the poor. 00:31:54.620 --> 00:31:55.640 And that's why Moses says, 00:31:55.720 --> 00:31:56.680 starting in verse 14, 00:31:56.900 --> 00:31:58.900 you shall furnish him liberally 00:31:58.900 --> 00:32:00.620 as the Lord your God 00:32:00.620 --> 00:32:01.680 has blessed you. 00:32:02.180 --> 00:32:03.560 You shall give to him. 00:32:04.060 --> 00:32:04.759 You shall remember 00:32:04.759 --> 00:32:06.320 that you were a slave 00:32:06.320 --> 00:32:07.140 in the land of Egypt 00:32:07.140 --> 00:32:08.200 and the Lord your God 00:32:08.200 --> 00:32:09.040 redeemed you. 00:32:09.960 --> 00:32:10.320 Therefore, 00:32:10.500 --> 00:32:12.480 I command you this today. 00:32:12.580 --> 00:32:13.600 He reminds his people 00:32:13.600 --> 00:32:14.440 that above all, 00:32:14.700 --> 00:32:15.820 they should care for the poor 00:32:15.820 --> 00:32:16.820 with open hands 00:32:16.820 --> 00:32:17.480 and open hearts 00:32:17.480 --> 00:32:19.000 because they were poor, 00:32:19.640 --> 00:32:21.140 because they were slaves 00:32:21.140 --> 00:32:22.960 and yet their open-handed, 00:32:23.100 --> 00:32:23.960 open-hearted God 00:32:23.960 --> 00:32:25.140 cared for them 00:32:25.140 --> 00:32:26.860 to stir the hearts 00:32:26.860 --> 00:32:27.580 of God's people 00:32:27.580 --> 00:32:28.380 toward the poor. 00:32:28.380 --> 00:32:29.140 Moses preached 00:32:29.140 --> 00:32:30.560 the old covenant gospel 00:32:30.560 --> 00:32:30.940 to them, 00:32:30.980 --> 00:32:31.600 the good news 00:32:31.600 --> 00:32:32.260 of the redemption 00:32:32.260 --> 00:32:34.060 from slavery in Egypt. 00:32:34.760 --> 00:32:35.400 But you know what? 00:32:35.920 --> 00:32:36.220 Today, 00:32:36.340 --> 00:32:37.160 it's my privilege 00:32:37.160 --> 00:32:37.620 to preach 00:32:37.620 --> 00:32:38.420 the even better 00:32:38.420 --> 00:32:39.920 new covenant gospel, 00:32:40.580 --> 00:32:41.380 the good news 00:32:41.380 --> 00:32:41.900 of redemption 00:32:41.900 --> 00:32:43.180 from slavery 00:32:43.180 --> 00:32:43.900 and sin 00:32:43.900 --> 00:32:44.900 to death 00:32:44.900 --> 00:32:47.280 through the work of Christ. 00:32:47.980 --> 00:32:48.700 This Christ 00:32:48.700 --> 00:32:48.900 who, 00:32:49.000 --> 00:32:49.800 though he was rich, 00:32:50.380 --> 00:32:51.760 yet became poor 00:32:51.760 --> 00:32:52.540 for our sakes, 00:32:52.660 --> 00:32:52.880 right? 00:32:53.320 --> 00:32:54.020 A newborn 00:32:54.020 --> 00:32:55.260 with a manger 00:32:55.260 --> 00:32:56.000 for a crib, 00:32:56.360 --> 00:32:57.180 born into a family 00:32:57.180 --> 00:32:58.080 who could only afford 00:32:58.079 --> 00:32:58.699 two pigeons, 00:32:58.839 --> 00:33:00.039 the poorest of poor 00:33:00.039 --> 00:33:01.579 sacrifices at the temple. 00:33:02.299 --> 00:33:03.099 This son of man 00:33:03.099 --> 00:33:03.279 who, 00:33:03.419 --> 00:33:04.379 while foxes had holes 00:33:04.379 --> 00:33:05.179 and birds of the air 00:33:05.179 --> 00:33:05.579 had nests, 00:33:05.799 --> 00:33:06.659 had nowhere himself 00:33:06.659 --> 00:33:07.799 to lay his head. 00:33:07.879 --> 00:33:08.319 This king 00:33:08.319 --> 00:33:09.519 who rode into his kingdom 00:33:09.519 --> 00:33:11.059 on a borrowed donkey, 00:33:11.199 --> 00:33:12.279 ate his last meal 00:33:12.279 --> 00:33:13.559 in a borrowed room, 00:33:13.639 --> 00:33:14.519 was stripped naked 00:33:14.519 --> 00:33:15.619 of his last possession, 00:33:15.740 --> 00:33:16.179 his robe, 00:33:16.220 --> 00:33:16.839 and then crucified 00:33:16.839 --> 00:33:17.519 by the ones 00:33:17.519 --> 00:33:19.099 occupying his homeland. 00:33:19.839 --> 00:33:20.619 The naked, 00:33:21.019 --> 00:33:21.439 crucified, 00:33:21.440 --> 00:33:22.799 and forsaken Messiah 00:33:22.799 --> 00:33:24.059 who was buried 00:33:24.059 --> 00:33:25.700 in a borrowed tomb. 00:33:26.620 --> 00:33:27.960 By becoming poor 00:33:27.960 --> 00:33:29.799 with and for us, 00:33:30.340 --> 00:33:31.120 Jesus Christ, 00:33:31.220 --> 00:33:31.880 the Son of God, 00:33:31.920 --> 00:33:33.299 has paid our debt of sin 00:33:33.299 --> 00:33:35.100 and he's made his people rich. 00:33:35.220 --> 00:33:36.059 He's made us heirs 00:33:36.059 --> 00:33:37.000 of his kingdom. 00:33:37.880 --> 00:33:39.240 And because of his resurrection, 00:33:39.420 --> 00:33:40.140 we can trust 00:33:40.140 --> 00:33:41.620 that the Spirit of the Lord 00:33:41.620 --> 00:33:42.820 has come upon him 00:33:42.820 --> 00:33:43.740 to proclaim 00:33:43.740 --> 00:33:44.799 and to secure 00:33:44.799 --> 00:33:46.480 good news for the poor, 00:33:47.100 --> 00:33:48.480 liberty for the captives, 00:33:48.480 --> 00:33:49.120 and the year 00:33:49.120 --> 00:33:50.519 of the Lord's favor. 00:33:51.599 --> 00:33:52.539 And this is the gospel 00:33:52.539 --> 00:33:53.880 that we, 00:33:54.400 --> 00:33:55.319 who were once poor 00:33:55.319 --> 00:33:56.460 and helpless, 00:33:57.079 --> 00:33:58.000 slaves ourselves, 00:33:58.140 --> 00:33:59.680 that we've been redeemed 00:33:59.680 --> 00:34:01.259 by our open-handed, 00:34:01.599 --> 00:34:02.860 open-hearted God 00:34:02.860 --> 00:34:03.460 in Christ. 00:34:04.480 --> 00:34:05.559 So as Israel was called 00:34:05.559 --> 00:34:06.000 to remember 00:34:06.000 --> 00:34:06.860 their good news 00:34:06.860 --> 00:34:07.519 in Moses, 00:34:07.680 --> 00:34:08.360 may we hear 00:34:08.360 --> 00:34:09.099 the Spirit's call 00:34:09.099 --> 00:34:09.559 to remember 00:34:09.559 --> 00:34:10.960 our good news 00:34:10.960 --> 00:34:12.159 in Christ. 00:34:12.880 --> 00:34:14.019 And with this good news 00:34:14.019 --> 00:34:16.199 of God's ultimate generosity, 00:34:17.099 --> 00:34:18.460 open up our hands. 00:34:18.480 --> 00:34:19.699 open up our hearts 00:34:19.699 --> 00:34:21.039 to love 00:34:21.039 --> 00:34:22.380 and serve this world. 00:34:23.420 --> 00:34:24.400 Will you pray with me?