Word for the Day November 6
By: Evang. Cascille Hammack
"Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her
daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy.
They were haughty and did detestable things before me. Therefore I did away with them as you have seen." Ezekiel
16:49,50
Most people know how God destroyed Sodom in Genesis 19 for their gross immorality and perversion.
We see in Ezekiel 16:49,50, the root of their deep rebellion and sin was pride, as they are described as "overfed and
unconcerned, they did not help the poor and needy" and were "haughty did detestable things" before they
Lord. The Lord removed them. They did not help the poor and needy and the Lord saw it. Obedience to the
Lord will grow out of a sincere desire to help those in need (Dt. 24:14,15; Pr. 14:21,31). God expects His children
to show compassion and empathy to those have suffered circumstances that bring poverty and need (Mt. 25:31-36; Gal. 6:2,10).
This is so important to God that He included a law for protecting those in these circumstances. In Dt. 15, He commands
at the end of every seven years debts must be canceled. He warned people not to withhold lending because the seventh year
was approaching. He said, "If there is a poor man among your brothers in any of the towns of the land that the
Lord your God is giving you, do not be hardhearted or tightfisted toward your brother...Give generously to him and do so without
a grudging heart; then because of this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and everything you put your hand
to." (Dt. 15:7,10)
A
spirit of greed and selfishness that ignores the needs of others removes God's blessing (Dt. 15:9,10). Jesus taught
and expects His children to give generously to those in need (Mt. 6:1-4). Jesus kept a money bag with Him
to bless those in need (Jn 12:5,6; 13:29). He instructed that those who follow Him must care for those in need
and give them money (Mt. 19:21; Luke 12:23; 14:12-14, 16-24; 18:22). This giving is not optional. Jesus proclaimed
that one of His requirements for entrance into His kingdom is whether we have helped those who are hungry, naked and thirsty.
(Matthew 25:31-46). He said in Matthew 25:40, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for the least of these, you
did for Me."
In
Proverbs 6:16-19 we are taught the things God hates, "There are six things the Lord
hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood,
a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a man who
stirs up dissension among brothers." Listed first of what He hates are "haughty eyes." The world
is full of those with haughty eyes. In fact, the world applauds them. Look at those the world upholds as firsts.
Look at their eyes of pride in themselves. Jesus called the rich man who had stored up wealth for himself a "fool". In
Luke 12:18-21 Jesus explained what the man said, “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will
tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. And I’ll say to
myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’ “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then
who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves
but is not rich toward God.”
Isaiah 58:6-10 describes fasting God approves that consists of love for Him
and care for those in need, “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and
untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with
the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to
turn away from your own flesh and blood? Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will
quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I. “If
you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, and if you spend yourselves
in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
then your light will rise in the darkness, and
your night will become like the noonday."
John
3:16, "For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes
in him shall not perish but have eternal life." He gave us His all, let us follow His example. Let us love
others with the same love He has poured into our hearts and give as He gave to us.