Fear No Fear

(All scripture from the World English Bible, ebible.org, all rights reserved)

“Yahweh said to Moses on Mount Sinai, “Speak to the children of Israel, and tell them, ‘When you come into the land which I give you, then the land shall keep a Sabbath to Yahweh. You shall sow your field six years, and you shall prune your vineyard six years, and gather in its fruits; but in the seventh year there shall be a Sabbath of solemn rest for the land, a Sabbath to Yahweh. You shall not sow your field or prune your vineyard. What grows of itself in your harvest you shall not reap, and you shall not gather the grapes of your undressed vine. It shall be a year of solemn rest for the land. The Sabbath of the land shall be for food for you; for yourself, for your servant, for your maid, for your hired servant, and for your stranger, who lives as a foreigner with you. For your livestock also, and for the animals that are in your land, shall all its increase be for food.”
(Leviticus 25:1-7)

“Beloved, let’s love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. He who doesn’t love doesn’t know God, for God is love. By this God’s love was revealed in us, that God has sent his only born Son into the world that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Beloved, if God loved us in this way, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God remains in us, and his love has been perfected in us..“
(1 John 4:7-12)

Everyone was the same. The same pool. The same country. The same rule. They were to treat each other as if they were all part of the same family – even while recognizing differences. This was what made Israel DIFFERENT. They LET the Lord bless them by OBEYING the Lord. They brought everyone in on the harvest He provided. They were welcoming, not stingy. They were blessings, not judgmental and aloof. They didn’t treat them with different measures or different procedures. They showed that even with their un-likes, God was letting them BE alike. It certainly set them apart in the ancient world.

The New Covenant sometimes FEELS like the ancient world as well, something happening two thousand years ago instead of something happening right now. But the times haven’t changed the command. We are STILL to include others. STILL to bless others. STILL to treat them as family – and not that one uncle nobody likes and doesn’t get invited anywhere. To bless and to help. To build up and not tear down. This is what makes us so different. This is what makes us like Him. Having the same heart toward the same people. No matter what.

Summary

How did John put it? “Brothers, I write no new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which you heard from the beginning” (1 John 2:7). We are to be known as those who love others. Not love others we agree with. Not love others who are just like ourselves. Love others. Period. Having the same heart for them that God does. That’s why we pray for our enemies. That’s why we bless those who treat us less than well. That’s why we are DIFFERENT. It is God’s love shed abroad in our hearts, coming out of our mouths and in our actions, that MAKES us different. He is love. We too should be love. And love doesn’t criticize or judge. It loves and seeks the best for the other person. Period.