Deuteronomy 22-23
Sometimes we have a hard time understanding parts of the Torah. Sometimes it gives us heartburn, and we think God is too harsh (but see the post from two years ago). Some people want to disregard some verses altogether, thinking they are no longer culturally relevant (e.g., Dt. 22:5). But sometimes Torah just makes perfect sense:
You shall not see your brother’s ox or his sheep going astray and ignore them. You shall take them back to your brother. And if he does not live near you and you do not know who he is, you shall bring it home to your house, and it shall stay with you until your brother seeks it. Then you shall restore it to him. And you shall do the same with his donkey or with his garment, or with any lost thing of your brother’s, which he loses and you find; you may not ignore it. You shall not see your brother’s donkey or his ox fallen down by the way and ignore them. You shall help him to lift them up again.
Deuteronomy 22:1-4
What, pray tell, is wrong with that? What is wrong with basic neighborliness? What is wrong with looking out for one another, and helping one another through difficulties?
And yet… Just look around at our culture and how far we’ve sunk. If someone finds a wallet on the sidewalk with $1,000 in it, what are the chances that the wallet will find its way back to its proper owner intact? Hopefully, we here would all do the right thing in this case, but I don’t honestly expect that the average Joe on the street would do so these days. In fact, if the wallet were to be returned, it would likely become a news story: “Local Boy Returns $1,000!” Read all about it!
But returning the wallet should be the norm, not the exception. And if the Church (or all those individual believers constituting the Church) were to “walk the walk” more consistently, perhaps it would be the norm. Maybe we need to pay closer attention to what God has to say to us here, not just in the verses above but in all of Scripture. And maybe we ourselves need to do what He says, not just read or hear the words. Perhaps if we ourselves lived the way God tells us to, the culture around us might notice — and repent.
See also: February 27 (2023) / Deuteronomy 21-23