Passage
Exodus 22:16-31 (ESV)
“you Will Be My Witnesses”
Acts 1:1-11
Key Verse: 1:8
God Cares About the Vulnerable
Date: Jan. 8, 2016
Daily Bread
Key Verse: 22:27b
First, there were protections for the vulnerable (16-28). God hears the cries of the oppressed, who may be young women, animals, immigrants, widows, orphans and the poor. The law emphasized fairness and social responsibility. The cloak is an example of protecting the rights of the poor. To deprive a person of their cloak was to deprive a person of their jacket today. God's people must have compassion towards the weak and vulnerable. After all, it was God who was kind and generous to us. He continues to be kind.
Second, true worship enshrines protection (29-31). God wants to preserve the protection of the vulnerable by promoting and preserving true worship among his people. You can not have the protection of the vulnerable without preserving the true worship of God. This means dispelling the darkness that keeps people from coming to God. We can share in God's heart by worshipping him in spirit and in truth, showing the way to God, and making the path clear.
Prayer: Lord, you have been so caring to me in my weaknesses. Help me to care about others.
One Word: True worship cares for the vulnerable
