Hebrews 13:2 Be nor forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.
Ah Friends, what a beautiful day we were blessed with today! Give thanks and praise to the Almighty! It was one of those perfect, well-balanced days, and the ole fella luxuriated in it. Hn! That’s a tad exaggerated, but I did enjoy the sunshine, fresh air and the cool, unseasonable breeze and temperature. Later on in the week though it’s expected to be hot, but like Job says, you can’t expect only good from God and no bad. Now my intention yesterday was to combine Hebrews 13:1-2 into one Bit, but when I got into the brotherly LOVE scene, I was sweetly surprised by how much there was to write on it, so I had to leave verse 2 for today. And people, this is a very important aspect of our Christian Faith, where Bruh Paul reminds us; ‘Be not forgetful to entertain strangers.’ Good treatment of strangers has been one of our God’s directives from the time Israel was released from bondage in Egypt. In the laws concerning human relations, He decreed; ‘Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.’ (Ex;22:21) In other words; know yuh history, remember it and live by it; remember where yuh coming from and how yuh got there. When the famine struck Jacob and his family, Egypt welcomed them with opened arms, though they knew them not. Later on the Lord again cautioned them on the treatment of strangers. ‘Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger: for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.’ (Ex.23:9) Once more reminding them of their sojourn as strangers in Egypt. Bruh David also mentions it in Psalm 146, which deals with the Blessedness of trusting God. ‘The Lord preserveth the strangers; he relieveth the fatherless and the widow: but the way of the wicked he turneth upside down.’ (Ps. 146:9) Yes my Friends, our God is certainly big on the treatment of strangers, widows and orphans. I remember being somewhat surprised, amused and moved when I discovered how important the Lord considered those groups of people. But now, having matured, both in life and Christian fellowship, I can understand His reasoning. It’s simple really: unfortunately, they oftimes have nobody to look out for them in their usually rough situations, and since the Lord cares for us all and wants to be merciful to all, He must make provision for those viewed as outsiders. And Friends, I can personally vouch for the benefits of that divine instruction, for I’ve been a stranger in many parts of this world, sometimes in serious situations, and not once can I say that I was terribly treated. In fact, I was often treated like royalty; another bit of exaggeration. But it does work, and that means Jesus will honour several people because of their good treatment to me, a stranger. Remember now, one of the conditions of brotherly LOVE that He laid down yesterday was: ‘For I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in.’ (Mat.25:35) So my people, we need to be kind to strangers, but with a be careful proviso, because of the many crooks and schemers willing to take advantage of your good nature and hospitality in this current age. But by the same token, while there can be problems in entertaining strangers, there can also be large rewards, as Bruh Paul declares; ‘For thereby some have entertained angels unawares.’ And the perfect example of that is the story of Abraham sitting outside his tent door, saw three men approaching and he ran to greet them, simultaneously offering food and rest. Lo and behold, it was the preincarnate Christ (Yahweh) and two angels come to tell him that Sarah would eventually bear him a son. (Gen.18:1-15) Shortly thereafter, ‘there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground. And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you into your servant’s house, and tarry all night and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early and go on your ways. And they said, Nay; but we will abide in the street all night.’ (Gen.19:1-2) Lot didn’t know these men from Adam, but he just felt the need to entertain them. ‘And he pressed upon them greatly: and they turned in unto his house; and he made them a feast.’ (Gen.19:3) I doubt nowadays we’d be so insistent to perfect strangers, but unbeknown to Lot, those same men were sent to save his life. And he didn’t only feed them, but also protected them from a mob that surrounded his house, wanting him to bring them out. But Lot refused. He even offered his two virgin daughters to the mob instead. The mob wanted the men though, and as they moved to break down Lot’s door, the men inside opened the door and quickly pulled Lot inside and shut it, then they ‘smote the men that were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great, so that they wearied themselves to find the door.’ (Gen.19:11) Then they told Lot of the impending destruction of Sodom, so that he was able to flee with his family the next morning before Sodom was destroyed. That’s how our great God works my people! You walk in righteousness, look after strangers, widows and orphans, He makes your path straight and your way prosperous. Many of us older geezers will have experienced practical examples in entertaining strangers through our parents, in the simpler days, before big city living, fear and self-centredness got the better of us, where now we don’t even know our neighbours. But back then strangers were always welcomed, and always got the best of everything. Sadly, that has turned right around now, to where the stranger is often neglected and gets the worse of everything. But Friends, let’s try and return to the earlier sort of mentality nuh, where strangers were appreciated. We have to be careful, but we also need to follow Jesus’ instructions and do His work, if we consider ourselves true believers. Much LOVE!…be kind one to another…it’s the only way LOVE…and Jesus…can spread…
Ah Friends, what a beautiful day we were blessed with today! Give thanks and praise to the Almighty! It was one of those perfect, well-balanced days, and the ole fella luxuriated in it. Hn! That’s a tad exaggerated, but I did enjoy the sunshine, fresh air and the cool, unseasonable breeze and temperature. Later on in the week though it’s expected to be hot, but like Job says, you can’t expect only good from God and no bad. Now my intention yesterday was to combine Hebrews 13:1-2 into one Bit, but when I got into the brotherly LOVE scene, I was sweetly surprised by how much there was to write on it, so I had to leave verse 2 for today. And people, this is a very important aspect of our Christian Faith, where Bruh Paul reminds us; ‘Be not forgetful to entertain strangers.’ Good treatment of strangers has been one of our God’s directives from the time Israel was released from bondage in Egypt. In the laws concerning human relations, He decreed; ‘Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.’ (Ex;22:21) In other words; know yuh history, remember it and live by it; remember where yuh coming from and how yuh got there. When the famine struck Jacob and his family, Egypt welcomed them with opened arms, though they knew them not. Later on the Lord again cautioned them on the treatment of strangers. ‘Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger: for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.’ (Ex.23:9) Once more reminding them of their sojourn as strangers in Egypt. Bruh David also mentions it in Psalm 146, which deals with the Blessedness of trusting God. ‘The Lord preserveth the strangers; he relieveth the fatherless and the widow: but the way of the wicked he turneth upside down.’ (Ps. 146:9) Yes my Friends, our God is certainly big on the treatment of strangers, widows and orphans. I remember being somewhat surprised, amused and moved when I discovered how important the Lord considered those groups of people. But now, having matured, both in life and Christian fellowship, I can understand His reasoning. It’s simple really: unfortunately, they oftimes have nobody to look out for them in their usually rough situations, and since the Lord cares for us all and wants to be merciful to all, He must make provision for those viewed as outsiders. And Friends, I can personally vouch for the benefits of that divine instruction, for I’ve been a stranger in many parts of this world, sometimes in serious situations, and not once can I say that I was terribly treated. In fact, I was often treated like royalty; another bit of exaggeration. But it does work, and that means Jesus will honour several people because of their good treatment to me, a stranger. Remember now, one of the conditions of brotherly LOVE that He laid down yesterday was: ‘For I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in.’ (Mat.25:35) So my people, we need to be kind to strangers, but with a be careful proviso, because of the many crooks and schemers willing to take advantage of your good nature and hospitality in this current age. But by the same token, while there can be problems in entertaining strangers, there can also be large rewards, as Bruh Paul declares; ‘For thereby some have entertained angels unawares.’ And the perfect example of that is the story of Abraham sitting outside his tent door, saw three men approaching and he ran to greet them, simultaneously offering food and rest. Lo and behold, it was the preincarnate Christ (Yahweh) and two angels come to tell him that Sarah would eventually bear him a son. (Gen.18:1-15) Shortly thereafter, ‘there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground. And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you into your servant’s house, and tarry all night and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early and go on your ways. And they said, Nay; but we will abide in the street all night.’ (Gen.19:1-2) Lot didn’t know these men from Adam, but he just felt the need to entertain them. ‘And he pressed upon them greatly: and they turned in unto his house; and he made them a feast.’ (Gen.19:3) I doubt nowadays we’d be so insistent to perfect strangers, but unbeknown to Lot, those same men were sent to save his life. And he didn’t only feed them, but also protected them from a mob that surrounded his house, wanting him to bring them out. But Lot refused. He even offered his two virgin daughters to the mob instead. The mob wanted the men though, and as they moved to break down Lot’s door, the men inside opened the door and quickly pulled Lot inside and shut it, then they ‘smote the men that were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great, so that they wearied themselves to find the door.’ (Gen.19:11) Then they told Lot of the impending destruction of Sodom, so that he was able to flee with his family the next morning before Sodom was destroyed. That’s how our great God works my people! You walk in righteousness, look after strangers, widows and orphans, He makes your path straight and your way prosperous. Many of us older geezers will have experienced practical examples in entertaining strangers through our parents, in the simpler days, before big city living, fear and self-centredness got the better of us, where now we don’t even know our neighbours. But back then strangers were always welcomed, and always got the best of everything. Sadly, that has turned right around now, to where the stranger is often neglected and gets the worse of everything. But Friends, let’s try and return to the earlier sort of mentality nuh, where strangers were appreciated. We have to be careful, but we also need to follow Jesus’ instructions and do His work, if we consider ourselves true believers. Much LOVE!…be kind one to another…it’s the only way LOVE…and Jesus…can spread…
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