Leviticus 19: 34 The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt. I am the Lord your God.
This is from a long list of rules in Leviticus. Some of them, frankly, make no sense. Do not plant seeds of 2 kinds in one field, do not cut the hair at the sides of your face, do not make cloth of more than one fiber. Many of them are very good--honor the elderly, do not have sex with your neighbor's wife, and this one--treat the foreign-born as you treat the natives of your country.
This one is striking b/c so many today who say they are Christians are not loving to the foreign-born or even the children of the foreign-born. Where does this hatred come from? Why can't we accept that every person is God's child? Why should we be upset that people on a tv commercial sing "God Bless America" in their own native language? Shouldn't we WANT people to seek God's blessing for our country, even if they weren't born here? According to this verse, we should LOVE them, not look for ways to divide God's people by national origin.
Prayer: God, please bless America. Help our people to be loving to everyone, regardless of their backgrounds. Let me see the ways I can help those who are different to be accepted in Your holy name.
Amen
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