Eternity Daily Bible Study No. 264

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The Scriptures and Justice  - 4

ALIENS, WIDOWS AND ORPHANS – THE CHURCH AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

The defense of the helpless is a constant biblical theme in both Old and New Testaments. The helpless are typified by three categories – the alien or stranger, the widow, and the orphan. Right from the beginning the early church ministered to these people with hospitality and by providing food and comfort. 

The over-arching principle is well stated in 1 John 3:16-18:
 We know love by this, that  He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the  brethren.  17 But whoever has the world's goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him? 18 Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.

In other words a truly born-again bible-believing Christian is supposed to act unselfishly when faced with an obvious and immediate human need - to which he or she has the answer. If a  person acts selfishly and even hypocritically saying “a prayer” or giving mere verbal encouragement they “do not have the love of God in them”.

Or as James puts it:  James 2:15
15If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, 16and one of you says to them, "Depart in peace, be warmed and filled," but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? 17Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

Doing good – or good works is typified by such care of those who cannot care for themselves:
Isaiah 1:17 Learn to do good;  Seek justice,  Reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan, Plead for the widow.
James 1:27 Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by  the world.

God sets the example here as a defender of orphans and widows and one who hears their cry:
Exodus 22:21-23 You shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.  You shall not afflict any widow or orphan.  If you afflict him at all, and  if he does cry out to Me, I will surely hear his cry;

God even regards oppression of people of the helpless and those in your power (such as wage-earners) as a sin ranking with sorcery and adultery:
Malachi 3:5 "Then I will draw near to you for judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers and against the adulterers and against those who swear falsely, and against those who oppress the wage earner in his wages, the widow and the orphan, and those who turn aside the alien and do not fear Me," says the LORD of hosts.

The early Christian communities put such welfare on a properly organized basis and had deacons appointed to make sure that everyone was taken care of and that non-one was neglected.
Acts 6:1-3
Now at this time while the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint arose on the part of the Hellenistic Jews against the native Hebrews, because their widows were being overlooked in the daily serving of food.  So the twelve summoned the congregation of the disciples and said, "It is not desirable for us to neglect the word of God in order to serve tables.  "Therefore, brethren, select from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may put in charge of this task.

After a while (according to church history) some problems arose with a deacon called Nicolai (one of the seven) who fell into immorality with the young widows and set up a “salvation by sex” cult called the Nicolaitans which is even referred to in Revelation. (Revelation 2:6,15) By the time of Paul dealing widows had become tricky and he gives extensive guidelines to Timothy in 1 Timothy 5.  Here Paul instructs younger widows to marry and puts the burden of care on the widows family first of all, the church would only care for widows over 60 who had behaved themselves morally. Despite the tangled mess that caring for widows had become it was still done and seen as essential and the apostles were trying to put it into order.

In the Shepherd of Hermas, which may have been written in the late first century, we get an insight into the teaching and practice of the early church:
Hermas 26[103]:2 they that have the spots are deacons that exercised their office ill, and plundered the livelihood of widows and orphans, and made gain for themselves from the ministrations which they had received to perform. If then they abide in the same evil desire, they are dead and there is no hope of life for them; but if they turn again and fulfill their ministrations in purity, it shall be possible for them to live.
Hermas 1[38]:10 Hear now what follow upon these; to minister to widows, to visit the orphans and the needy, to ransom the servants of God from their afflictions, to be hospitable (for in hospitality benevolence from time to time has a place), to resist no man, to be tranquil, to show yourself more submissive than all men, to reverence the aged, to practice righteousness, to observe brotherly feeling, to endure injury, to be long-suffering, to bear no grudge, to exhort those who are sick at soul, not to cast away those that have stumbled from the faith, but to convert them and to put courage Into them, to reprove sinners, not to oppress debtors and indigent persons, and whatsoever actions are like these. Hermas 1[38]:11 Do these things," saith he, "seem to thee to be good?" "Why, what, Sir," say I, "can be better than these?" "Then walk in them," saith he, "and abstain not from them, and thou shalt live unto God.

Practical Christianity has always been good Christianity. And selfishness, hypocrisy and taking advantage of the weak has always been wrong. 

If we are to be like Christ then we need to do whatever we can for the vulnerable people in our midst – widows, orphans, single mothers, foster children, the mentally ill, new migrants, the elderly living alone in their homes, the frail, and those with long-term illnesses are just a few that come to mind.  There may be moral temptations, and you may be “conned” and deceived - and tangled messes may result, but the obligation remains to press on, to sort out the mess and to help those in need in the name of Christ.

Blessings,

John Edmiston johned@aibi.ph

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