The Most Vulnerable - Exodus 21:1 - 11

Good morning to each of you. Welcome to faith Bible Church. Glad that you are here. I Thought today is we celebrate Memorial Day or Memorial Day weekend and You've heard it many times before we are a country that are is free but freedom doesn't come cheap and If you think back even among our own Country where we had war between the north and the south many many lives lost that there might be freedom in this day and age and I think of when I was a kid, I lived in a small town in Kansas and The whole town would go out to the cemetery on Memorial Day, especially and grandma would say now here is buried so-and-so and And here's buried so-and-so and give us a story on all that and when you have a family that's close.

That's and I had one uncle that was killed in World War two Uncle H a and you think about those sort of things and I think I was five years old when he came home and they had the funeral for him left a lifetime impression and he was killed like in Italy as they went through that married to My mom's sister at that time.

And so as we think about Memorial Day we need to stop and think a minute a minute about The people who did give their lives that we continue to have freedom. We as believers though to Have Liberty in Christ, but that came at a price and not to us.

Because it came at Christ's death and his payment for our sin and I thank the Lord for that and I need to remind myself of that and I jokingly say to you many times my brother used to say constantly I said to myself self and I need to say to myself self now and then and remind myself of The payment of Christ gave for my sins also the payment that many men gave for my freedom and we have a much to thank the Lord for in your bulletins if you Look, I think most of the things in there are What you're familiar with but we do have a new summer Bible study on Friday evening 530 to 630 going through Galatians and I Told pastor jokingly and I won't say the denomination, but the Lord has put a particular group of people into our life.

That we dealt with quite off and I would consider them very close friends. And they would say that you're saved by grace through faith. But you must maintain your salvation by works. Well, I said pastor is going to straighten us out on that in Galatians.

Because Galatians is an excellent book and going through talking about where our salvation is and the fact that our salvation comes from the Lord and It's not dependent on our works or we'd be in big trouble.

And so we thank the Lord for that. So that's take note of that they especially did it for the summer because some of the young people are out of school and They hope to get a few of the young people to coming to the Bible study.

So if you know of young people that would enjoy that you make sure the direct them in that direction. Also, we have the men's breakfast fellowship this coming Saturday at the Probably that's the fourth.

Am I right? Is that yeah, June the 4th and So at 9 o 'clock we have our men's fellowship breakfast and so it's been an enjoyable time to Come out and join us at that point. Then let's open in a word of prayer this morning thank you Heavenly Father for the day that you have given us to come together and to set apart and to worship you we pray Lord that today our Fellowship and our worship with you might be a pleasant thing.

We might go home saying it's been great to be in the house of the Lord today. We thank you Heavenly Father for the freedoms that you have allowed here in America we do think of The individuals that have given their life that we might have this Freedom and this Liberty.

Lord, we would pray that you would help even as we think about that. As we celebrate that tomorrow. But we also thank you Lord for the Liberty that you give to us as believers in Christ. That the righteousness that we have when we are placed in you because of the price that you paid Lord.

And we thank you for that today we pray that you would be with Pastor Elgin as he brings your word again. We would ask Lord to Liberty as He gives the things that you have laid on his heart and we would pray for the music time together.

Help us Lord to praise you and all that you have done for us. Even as we sing from our hearts. And we'll thank you for that and we'll pray in Jesus name.

Amen, and let's stand and sing.

Scripture reading this morning is from the book of Galatians Galatians chapter 3 verses 26 through 29. Galatians 3 26 through 29. For you all for you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.

For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek. There is neither slave nor free there is neither male nor female for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

And if you are Christ's Then you are Abraham's seed and heirs according to the promise. May the Lord has blessing to the reading and hearing of his holy word.

Sing for joy to the Lord. Shout loudly to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before him With Thanksgiving. Extol him with music and song for the Lord is great. He is our God and the Great King above all.

And let's stand and sing. Thank you for singing. Please be seated. Children are now dismissed at Children's Church as our pastor Iljin comes here.

The Law of God and the Most Vulnerable in Exodus 21

Please turn with me to. Exodus chapter 21 verses 1 through 11. Exodus chapter 21 verses 1 through 11. Now these are the judgments which you shall set before them if you buy a Hebrew servant He shall serve six years and in the seventh He shall go out free and pay nothing if he comes in by himself.

He shall go out by himself if he comes in married. Then his wife shall go out with him. If his master has given him a wife and she has borne him sons or daughters the wife and her children shall be her masters and He shall go out by himself.

But if the servant plainly says I love my master my wife and my children I will know not go out free then his master shall bring him to the judges he shall also bring him to the door or to the doorpost and his master shall pierce his ear with an awl and He shall serve him forever.

And if a man sells his daughter to be a female slave She shall not go out as the male slaves do if she does not. Please her master who has betrothed her to himself. Then he shall let her be redeemed he shall have no right to sell her to a foreign people since he has dealt deceitfully with her and If he has betrothed her to his son, he shall deal with her according to the custom of daughters.

If He takes another wife He shall not diminish her food her clothing and her marriage rights. And if he does not do these three for her then she shall go out free without paying Money, this is the word of the Lord.

Let us pray. Father we are thankful that we do live in a free country. We're thankful that by your grace You have freed the slaves of America and we're thankful for the sacrifice that brave young men have poured out For this country so that we may live free and we remember them the ancestors here who have Sacrificed their lives so that this country may be free.

Father we pray for today that we as we learn of this text that we may see how compassionate you are and How much you care about even the lowly? Those who can't defend themselves. We pray that in Jesus name now.

This text is a difficult text for many reasons. And one of them being the fact that we.

Live.

Under the new covenant and under That covenant which Christ has established for us through his blood. We do not follow the law exactly the same way as the Israelites did. However, this does not mean the law is useless to us.

After all Paul tells us in 2nd Timothy 3 16 through 17 all scripture is inspired by God and beneficial for teaching for rebuke for correction for training in righteousness So that the man or woman of God may be fully capable equipped for every good work.

Paul meant that all scripture not some. All scripture includes the law and For Christians the law does not save us. But it quips us for every good work. It prepares us to live in A godly way and it shows us God's character and It shows us who we are as God's people.

Now as I mentioned above Today's text text is one of the more difficult texts to unpack because it deals with the topic of slavery Something all of us do not have direct experience with. Second it is difficult because American slavery is part of our history and We have a tendency to import our history and our concepts back into the Bible.

Which was written by ancient Jews who had no concept of American history. Hence I will first start by showing the differences between Israel slavery and American slavery and why it would be inappropriate to read this text as justifying American slavery first unlike American slavery.

Kidnapping and enslaving was due capital punishment. Found in Exodus 21 16 the very same chapter. In fact verse 16 of this chapter right prohibits anyone kidnapping a man and enslaving them. He who kidnaps a man and sells him or if he is found in his hand shall surely be put to death.

Anyone who is a slave trader who kidnaps a person against his will will be killed. So a person even if he was a poor and a weak man Was not to be stolen and enslaved like some sort of object. The Lord viewed that as worthy of a capital offense and This is important to us because slavery in the ancient Israel Was not Objectifying the slaves.

But rather the people who entered into slavery. They made a willful commitment to do so because of their financial situation whether they're in debt or they were facing starvation and Secondly, it also meant that the Lord did not view the slaves of Israel any less because of their social status.

Their worth was not based upon their wealth. They were still just as worthy because they're made in the image of God. Another difference is that slavery in Israel was the result of poverty. Living in a fallen world.

There is such thing as scarcity of goods. Unlike now. Poverty back then was a death sentence. There was no bankruptcy court, there was no government entitlement program. So the only thing a poor person who has no way of feeding himself Was that he would sell his service to another individual who could provide for him so that he may not die of starvation and This was also true for anyone who got into so much that that he could not pay off from the wealth he has already owned and I say that he sells his services because their masters Were not allowed to just do anything they would like.

They were the slaves were protected by the law and if the law was broken they were free to go. They were no longer in any obligation if their legal contract was broken. They were treated as individuals not as objects.

Third unlike American slavery Israel slaves were voluntarily Choosing to serve. No one was forced to be a slave and that goes back to the prior Point where you could not kidnap and force someone into slavery or you would face death.

Fourth Israelite enslavement was not based upon skin color or ethnic backgrounds. Israelites were often enslaved to pay off their debt and Israelites often enslaved each other and even this text is precisely about Israelite enslaving Hebrew slaves their own people.

This also meant that after their enslavement was over there was no distinction afterward because It wasn't based upon ethnic background or skin color. So there was no stigma associated with skin color or their physical attributes their primary identity still was based upon their relationship with the Lord and.

And fifth as this text will show us an Israelite slave served for a limited time and the masters were obligated to provide for every one of their need and Treat them humanely. Any lasting physical harm would free them automatically even a broken tooth Would free them from their enslavement.

The slaves had to be fed they had to be clothed and they were a allowed to participate in religious festivals and Ceremonies, they were treated just like family and they were freed after their contract at time was over.

In one sense a more appropriate comparison of Israelite slavery would be the military enlistment of our days. A Man sells his services for a certain number of years to the government as the government takes care of their food housing and medical needs and If they are injured in any way from their services, they are honorably discharged.

Just as an Israelite slave would have been however the church Does not have a direct Application of this text especially in America because we do not own slaves. The question is then how does this law Apply to us.

What does this law? Tell us about the Lord and about his people. So the main point of this text is that the Lord Compassionately cares for the most vulnerable. The Lord Compassionately cares for the most vulnerable.

The Lord Protects the Life of the Most Vulnerable

First The first six verses will tell us through the law the Lord Protects the life of the most vulnerable. Through the law the Lord protects the life of the most vulnerable. After publicly announcing the Ten Commandments to all of Israel the Lord shares the judgments or the ordinances.

Now these are the judgments which you shall set before them. So what the Lord is about to share are more specific applications of the law. The law of the Lord Will set apart Israel from the nations and these specific Applications these specific laws would be called the case laws.

The case laws Were dependent on the situation. Unlike the Ten Commandments where it was more general and broad the case laws really depended on what the circumstance was and With this law The Lord will show what kind of God he is to the surrounding nations.

It will show what kind of God Israel worships. Now who is responsible for knowing God's ordinances. The legal experts the lawyers.

Know.

God's law must be known and explained to all of God's people. Moses Was tasked to set the law before all of Israelites not just some it was supposed to be heard and Ingested fed so that they may live according to the Lord's will.

Now what does God's ordinance cover first there is something important about what gets covered first in Any collection of the law. Because it shows what's really important. God's ordinance does not cover the ruling class first.

God's ordinance does not cover the wealthy first. First and foremost God's ordinances care for the slaves of Israel. God's law first and foremost protects the most vulnerable of society. In fact, the law of the Lord is the only ancient law collection that begins with slavery.

All the ancient law collection deal with slavery. At some point why. Because they all had slaves. But only the Israel's law starts with slavery. The famous Hammurabi's code right eye for an eye tooth for a tooth.

Deals with slavery in fact last it's the last on their mind and This would distinguish the Lord from any other surrounding deities. Because Israel serves God who protects the rights of the slaves first.

Israel's God cares for those who cannot care for them selves that's what kind of God they served. And Verse 2 tells us that God places a temporal restriction on enslavement. If you buy a Hebrew servant, he shall serve six years.

And in the seventh, he shall go out free and pay nothing. No matter how desperately in debt this slave was. God ordains a maximum of six years for his service and This was a merciful act of God. He placed a gracious limit lest his people be enslaved for generations as they were in Egypt.

Even if the remaining debt was not paid off after six years He would still be free to go. No extra compensation necessary. In fact Deuteronomy 15 13 through 14 tell us that the master was commanded to supply the newly freed man with the starting fund and When you send him away free from you, you shall not let him go away empty-handed.

You shall supply him liberally from your flock from your threshing floor and from your winepress. From what the Lord your God has blessed you with you shall give to him in the end. The master the former master would be giving to the slave.

What? Ultimately belonged to the Lord and that's a lot. That's a snapshot of the Lord's loving kindness to his people. Not only does he restrict the time of enslavement. But he provides a starting fund so that they may have a good footing.

So that they may not go back into enslavement again.

God.

Graciously cares for the well-being of the vulnerable. Verses three to four explains the case for familial situations again. These are case laws very situational. First if he comes in by himself, he shall go out by himself.

If he comes in married. Then his wife shall go out with him. Now if a married man became so poor that he sold himself into slavery. The master was expected to provide not just for the slave but his whole family.

Not only that after the time of the service was over. The master could not keep the rest of the family saying well, I I fed your family now. I could keep them now, right? No. It was not just a slave who was fed but his whole family as well got to go free.

Verse four introduces a more complicated situation in which a man enters into the contract single but ends up marrying one of his master's female slaves during his time of service. If His master has given him a wife and she has born him sons or daughters the wife and her children shall be her masters and he shall go out by himself and.

This verse was specifically to protect his master from losing his workers.

Now a.

Freed man. Could not just take away his master's other servants. However, this did not mean that the freed man had to leave his wife behind by ending the marriage covenant. First he could wait until his rest of his family were free.

After all the maximum is six years for the servants.

And.

Second he could even accumulate enough wealth to redeem them himself to buy them.

And.

Third is Explained in the following two verses verses five and six in which how a freed man would stay with his family. Verse five, but if the servant plainly says I love my master my wife and my children. I will not go out free.

Then his master shall bring him to the judges he shall also bring him to the door to the doorpost and his master shall pierce his ear with an owl and He shall serve him forever. Now if a slave truly wanted to stay with his master He had a choice to stay with him.

It was up to the slave not the master. God's law even gave an option for a freed person to stay in slave if he so desired and This would allow him to stay with his family. Not only that This would have been sometimes an economical decision if the master was really generous and kind and The outside world was harsh and deadly.

Imagine during a famine year and you got freed. You have no land. You have no family members outside of the master's household. How are you going to support yourself? When there's a famine You would starve to death or you would risk being enslaved to a harsher master.

Well in this case this slave had a choice to go back to the kind master who provided him with his family and he Could live with his family under that master's generous care. It would be better to go back to the master who fed him and clothed him consistently and generously rather than to die on the street out of starvation.

Of Course these are not favorable choices, but there were the only choices. There in the ancient times there weren't Exorbitant amount of wealth there weren't government programs to take care of these people.

Starvation was a reality. There was no other choice. Now what is striking here? Is that the former slave and his master? Must go to the others. The other translation actually say they must go to God in order to declare this.

And it is not a transaction between two men, but God as the witness. In the end God is between them. God takes interest in his people's well-being in Another sense if the master mistreats his slave he will have to deal with God himself and The piercing of the slaves ear would forever remind them of this decision.

Because God is the witness you'd better be careful how you treat this man. You're dealing with God now, although this law cannot be applied directly in our days. We can learn about God's character and how we interact with the most vulnerable of.

Society.

First the Lord is utterly compassionate toward the most vulnerable of his people. He watches them intently he protects them with his law He hears their cry and answers.

These.

Case laws show us God's heart behind the weak and the meek. When the most vulnerable are too weak to speak up for their rights God will and Indeed he has in the Mosaic Law. When the powerful are oppressing the defenseless They are ultimately breaking God's law.

They're opposing God and Best of luck to them Because God will deal with them. Second. This means the people who worship the Lord must reflect his compassion for the defenseless. In Israel slaves were not treated as tools.

But people with dignity. In Israel their law did not protect the slaves as an afterthought. But the law prioritized them first Just as the pagan nations would have witnessed God's compassion when they saw how Israel's slaves were treated.

The world today can witness God's compassion when they see how the church treats the most vulnerable among us. And This is why the New Testament Commands us over and over again to take care of the orphans and the widows the most vulnerable in society.

Take care of those who cannot take care of themselves. Because that's what God does and as God's people we do what our Heavenly Father does. That's what it means to be God's children. We speak up for the meek.

We protect and fight for the defenseless. We provide for those who are in need. We are always mindful of the most vulnerable among us and I'm I'm always grateful to see how faith Bible Church takes care of each other.

If.

Something is broken Victor will fix it. If someone needs help you will find different people providing that help whether physically with prayer or even financially.

And.

We don't look down upon anyone because of their circumstances. They're still our brothers and sisters. Does not matter their age. Does not matter their physical abilities. Does not matter their financial stability.

Their brothers and sisters equal before Christ. And that's what it means for the church for God's people to Be compassionate toward The most vulnerable as God is. Second how are the slaves to be treated during their service?

The Lord Honors the Most Vulnerable

Through the law The Lord honors the most vulnerable. Through the law the Lord honors the most vulnerable. From the protection of freedom for slaves. Verses 7 to 11 move on to protection of their honor their well-being.

During the enslavement. Verse 7 sets the background for a specific case. And if a man sells his daughter to be a female slave, she shall not go out as the male slaves do. This part is a specific case in which a daughter would be sold as a slave.

Now, of course, this was not a favorable Thing. No father wants to sell his daughter to be a slave. However This was done in order for the daughter to have a secure future in a poverty stricken family.

The choices were either your daughter starves or marries a wealthy man who will provide for her right in the Ancient times where there was dowry a Fees so for the bridal family to pay for the bridegroom, which was expensive.

Unless you had that dowry your daughter would not get married. Now if you can't afford a dowry your daughter would not get married period. Now what happens when the father in his old age passes away? Back in those days it was very very difficult for a single woman to support herself and the rest of the family and this although Unfavorable was one way in which The daughter would not starve to death and the following verses Will show that this is not legalized prostitution but one way in which To guarantee the honor and rights of the female slave that is equivalent to a wife or a daughter.

The Lord did not allow the master to treat the female slaves as disposable. The Lord did not allow the master to use her as a tool. Verse 8 shares a specific case in which the master does not find favor in her.

Let's just say say that she is sold into enslavement to be married To be taken care of. But what happens if the master doesn't like her anymore. If she does not please her master who has betrothed her to himself, then he shall let her be redeemed.

He shall have no right to sell her to a foreign people since he has dealt deceitfully with her. I Prefer the NASB rendering of this case if she is displeasing in the eyes of her master. This is not due to something she has done.

But suddenly the master does not find her pleasing anymore. That's the fickleness of men. When this happens the master does not have the right to do anything he wants with her. He cannot sell her to a foreign people where the girl would be far away from her own people learning a new language a traumatic experience and he also cannot.

And he also cannot be financially profiting from this Right. He has to take responsibility for his own agreement. And since he is the one who broke faith with her She must go free. She can be redeemed.

The master does not own her. The master broke the agreement to take care of her. So she is free to go and This would protect From many women of Israel being abused this way being sold as some goods to make profit.

But rather if she's not going to be taken care of as promised the Lord says You do not deserve her. That's how powerful this is and This is very counter cultural in the ancient days Where women often had no rights of their own and were often treated as objects a pleasure tools.

Disposable.

Not so for women of Israel. That will not be the case under the Lord verses 9 to 11. Command positive ways to protect her rights. Verse 9. And if he designates her for his son, he shall deal with her according to the custom of daughters.

It is not enough that the master cannot treat her as a disposable tool. He needs to treat her as a daughter if she is designated to marry his son. Her impoverished background does not define who she is.

How she entered the family does not mean a thing. She is legally his new daughter. And she better be treated like it. Verse 10 tells us the implication of this. If he takes to himself another woman He may not reduce her food or clothing or her conjugal rights.

Now in the Old Testament God did not directly prohibit polygamy a practice of marrying more than one wife. So some men had multiple wives. Some of the Old Testament heroes had multiple wives. However, the Old Testament narratives constantly show.

What kind of problems came about through having multiple wives? For example. The kingdom of Israel was split into two after Solomon took on hundreds of wives and concubines. When Jacob favored one son of his favorite wife over the other sons.

That one son got sold into slavery when David had multiple wives and multiple kids. One son rate one of his stepsis half-sisters and the other son Murdered him and that's on over through his dad temporarily.

That shows how the Bible views polygamy. Disastrous yet. God allowed this.

And.

We'll talk about this more but in the New Testament Jesus brings marriage back to its original design one man and one woman Becoming one flesh and that's according to the design of Genesis 2. The Old Testament shows the design.

And also shows what it happens when that design when people fail to obey that design. Now the case law here in verse 10 Does not approve polygamy. But explains how a case must be handled since there is polygamy.

After all if there are multiple wives It would be extremely Disadvantageous for the wife that is less liked by the husband. Especially if she comes from a an impoverished background. She doesn't have her family to fall back to.

Therefore the Lord graciously commands the husband to provide for her every need food clothing and conjugal rights. Everything that a favored wife would receive Generously from her husband the less favored wife must receive as well.

This is not just the physical sustenance like food and clothing. She must not be treated as a slave here, but a wife. But sexual as well. The least favored wife must be allowed to experience sexual intimacy With her husband to enjoy the marriage covenant.

In this case, she's not just a servant but a wife. She's not just a slave but a covenant partner. And the Lord wants to Protect that right for her. The Lord protects that honor.

For her.

And what if the husband fails to provide those things for her? Verse 11 says. But if he will not do these three things for her then she shall go free for nothing without payment or money. If the husband fails to treat her as he promised to He cannot keep her.

At all.

He has to obey the covenant agreement to treat her as his wife. And this is because before God's eyes the female slave's identity is not based upon her social status. But her identity before God as a daughter of God.

She belongs first and foremost to God. And God will make sure that her child his child is provided for God will make sure That his daughter is honored. And that is an important reminder for marriage covenant under the new covenant.

Even more so as one husband and one wife. When we mistreat as men our wives We're going to have to deal with Christ For mistreating God's own daughters. For men, we're stewarded Our wives to take care of.

And we're going to have to answer How well did you take care of my daughter? Unlike other surrounding nations The law of God here treats slaves not as disposable tools But as humans who sold their services due to their poor circumstances.

And here God has always viewed the lowest and the most vulnerable as valuable. Because they're made in the image of God. Their identity was not based upon their circumstances But based upon their relationship with God.

And this is why the mosaic law treats them with honor and protects their honor. No other nations did so. American slavery did not do so. Any other future enslavement outside of Israel did not treat their slaves like people.

But not so in Israel. They were regarded with honor and if you decided to dishonor them you had Just broken God's law you went against God himself. Now for Christians when Christ Came and instituted the new covenant By dying for our sin on the cross He took this concept of our identity in God to a new level.

As David read for us this morning Galatians 3. Verses 25 through 28 show the better identity that we all have in Christ. Sure, the law was great. Yes, the law protected the rights of the slaves. But here Paul says.

The law was just a guardian who protected the people from destroying themselves. And Paul argues that the law was the guardian who ultimately pointed to.

Christ.

The ultimate identity and reality found in Jesus. The law was ultimately the signpost pointing to Christ verse 25. But now the faith has come. We're no longer under a guardian. That's the law for you are all sons and daughters of God through faith in Christ Jesus.

That's the new identity. For all of you who are baptized into Christ have clothed yourself with Christ. That's your new clothing. What how you wear what you wear Is who you are? There is neither jew nor greek.

There is no neither slave nor free. There is neither female male nor female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus. In Christ Our primary identity Is a child of God through faith in Christ Jesus. The world tries to categorize us into different groups all the time whether gender whether ethnic backgrounds religions Socioeconomic backgrounds and they pit each category against each other as if they're competing for some limited good.

But in Christ Our new identity as children of God Overwhelmingly covers Any old identity or labels we've held.

Before.

Any old identities or labels that the world tries to put on us? This is why Paul can say there is neither jew nor greek. That is a distinction that is found in the old covenant. The jews had special access to God that the gentiles the greeks did not.

No longer anymore in Christ. Both jews and greeks have special access to the Lord because of Christ. And that also goes For slave nor free. In Paul's days there were slaves in the roman empire. But in according to Paul it did not matter.

The primary identity of being brothers in Christ sisters in Christ Made that distinction. It didn't matter. Because you were all children of God, how could you have More privilege than being children of God together.

That's Paul's point here and that is the echo of what we see.

From.

Exodus today. Even in the old testament God did not find worth and honor and identity in people's circumstances and we see that fulfillment in Christ when socioeconomic backgrounds gender Gender race none of those differences make a dent in our identity in Christ and that's from that We treat each other with the utmost respect and love that is due to our brothers and sisters in Christ.

You're treating other fellow children of God. Oh, you better be treating them with love and respect. And in Christ The lowest and the most vulnerable are just as honored as the highest and the strongest.