A father of the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in His holy habitation.
--Psalm 68:5 (NKJV)
From the daily Bible reading on April 1, 2013 of Psalm 68:1-7; Romans 2; Deuteronomy 5-6.
In this Psalm, David instructs that the righteous should praise God and rejoice, for He has driven their enemies from before them, and dispersed their foes like smoke. David continues glorifying God by noting some of the good things He does for us. Remarkably, the first of God's mighty works David chooses to list is that He cares for orphans and widows. David could have started with some of the great victories his people had won with God's help, powerful kings and armies defeated by God's hand. Or he could have begun with all the wonders God worked as He delivered the people out of Pharaoh's grasp and captivity in Egypt. Or he could have simply led off with some of his own personal triumphs and rescues he received and had experienced through God's hand. Instead, David chose to first cast God as a father to those who have no father and a defender and provider to those who have lost their means pr provision and defense. Caring for the special needs of orphans and widows was apparently very important to David or he would not have included this first, if even at all. And we also see nearly the same message in Psalm 146 verse nine. So the plight of widows and orphans must be of special concern to God, evidenced by this order of placement in His achievements and its repetition in His Holy Word.
But the Psalms are not the only book where we find emphasized concern for orphans and widows. Perhaps more relevant to us in the present age are inclusions in the New Testament. Paul speaks extensively in the fifth chapter of his first letter to the young Timothy about the responsibility of the church as regards widows. He even makes a distinction between younger and older widows and those who still have living family members. He wants to make it clear to the young pastor that widows need to be helped and how the church should be involved in that help. (Please reference 1 Timothy 5.) In the twenty-seventh verse of the first chapter of his letter, James declares that true religion in God's eyes is, "to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world." (Please reference James 1:27). Again pay note to the order that James, inspired by God, chose to list these two qualifications, putting greater importance to seeing to the needs of orphans and widows ahead of keeping oneself separate and apart from the world. Even Jesus takes up this cause, indirectly perhaps, as recorded in Matthew 25:31-40. Here, Jesus foretells the day of judgement, when He will separate the sheep to His right hand and the goats to His left; the righteous from the unrighteous. And He will bless the righteous for seeing to the needs of the least, the weakest, of God's children, but He will curse the unrighteous for not doing so. Widows and orphans are definitely among the least and weakest of us. They have special needs. They have little or no means of providing for those needs or even of defending themselves. I would even include today's single mothers in this category, those whose husbands or the father of their children abandoned them, trying to survive in an unforgiving world without adequate resources to do so. Jesus charges us to take care of the least of these our brethren, so that we might be blessed. Let's help where and as we can. Amen.
Lord God, we know how important it is for us to help provide for those who cannot provide for themselves. We know that widows and orphans are too often the weakest in our society, too often neglected when other needs are seen to first. Forgive us, Lord, when we turn a blind eye. Help us provide them the assistance they desperately need, no matter where they may be found nor from what nationality they come. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
But the Psalms are not the only book where we find emphasized concern for orphans and widows. Perhaps more relevant to us in the present age are inclusions in the New Testament. Paul speaks extensively in the fifth chapter of his first letter to the young Timothy about the responsibility of the church as regards widows. He even makes a distinction between younger and older widows and those who still have living family members. He wants to make it clear to the young pastor that widows need to be helped and how the church should be involved in that help. (Please reference 1 Timothy 5.) In the twenty-seventh verse of the first chapter of his letter, James declares that true religion in God's eyes is, "to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world." (Please reference James 1:27). Again pay note to the order that James, inspired by God, chose to list these two qualifications, putting greater importance to seeing to the needs of orphans and widows ahead of keeping oneself separate and apart from the world. Even Jesus takes up this cause, indirectly perhaps, as recorded in Matthew 25:31-40. Here, Jesus foretells the day of judgement, when He will separate the sheep to His right hand and the goats to His left; the righteous from the unrighteous. And He will bless the righteous for seeing to the needs of the least, the weakest, of God's children, but He will curse the unrighteous for not doing so. Widows and orphans are definitely among the least and weakest of us. They have special needs. They have little or no means of providing for those needs or even of defending themselves. I would even include today's single mothers in this category, those whose husbands or the father of their children abandoned them, trying to survive in an unforgiving world without adequate resources to do so. Jesus charges us to take care of the least of these our brethren, so that we might be blessed. Let's help where and as we can. Amen.
Lord God, we know how important it is for us to help provide for those who cannot provide for themselves. We know that widows and orphans are too often the weakest in our society, too often neglected when other needs are seen to first. Forgive us, Lord, when we turn a blind eye. Help us provide them the assistance they desperately need, no matter where they may be found nor from what nationality they come. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
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