Deuteronomy 15 A RELEASE The Lord continued to use Moses to review and reaffirm all the issues that affect daily living so there will be no question as to what God expected from His people. One particularly impacting instruction was the sabbatical year, every seventh year was to be a year of release. By this means, hope and incentive was kept alive in people who through no fault of their own were poor. There were some who became indentured servants and labored for a creditor for six years without pay. But because they knew there would be a release from their debt when the seventh year came, and they would be given the means to make a new start, they would do their daily work as best they could. Poverty is not always caused by carelessness and laziness. Poor health in a family and the circumstances in which one is born has an effect on the conditions in which one is found. Some situations in life leave people without the means or ability to provide what they need. It is God's intention that care for the poor be made by those who are able to assist, either by one's family by nature or by God's family. The biblical practice of labor expended for needs supplied is reasonable and acceptable. Farmers of old left the corners of their fields with standing grain for the poor to gather.
Today for those who are too ill to work and who have no support from family members, in this country there is provision by the government that taxes us to meet their needs. Not every place has this, and there are times when we are to provide the help the poor need. In this country and some others, there are social welfare programs that make provision for the basic needs of life. There are many countries in the world where none of this is available, and we are to meet the needs of family members, neighbors and friends in whatever ways we are able.
It is wrong for us to ignore the situation of the poor. The Lord Jesus said, "The poor you have always among you." When the Lord provides for us and our needs, He uses us to be a channel to provide for the needs of others. The only time we are freed from this responsibility is when there are no poor people. In any case, whatever a person's situation in life, it is right to treat people with dignity, respect and a sense of worth. They have been created by God and they are precious to Him. We are called upon by God to help them.
To avoid becoming poor, it is a wise person who does not borrow money. "The borrower is servant to the lender." Unless it is absolutely necessary, avoid borrowing because it puts a person and/or a family under bondage until that loan is paid off. In our present-day world economy, people are being urged to borrow money so the lender can get rich at the borrower’s expense. One of the ways to support this binding habit of borrowing, is to make people discontented with what they have. Modern media and advertising exist to promote discontent by appealing to the covetous nature of people. The people of God need to be reminder we are not immune for such attractions. Our needs can be met by our Gracious Father who gives us "all things" in Christ. He makes rich and adds no sorrow with it. But of course, those things He provides are much more basic than the attractive trivial trinkets that appeal to the materialistic minds of modern men and women.
Hebrew servants were able to go free on the seventh year - the sabbatical year. When they left servitude, they were given enough provision to meet their needs until a new start could be made. If they chose to remain a servant of a benevolent master, they had a hole bored in their ear indicating they were a servant for the rest of their life. When we are called upon to meet the needs of the poor, we do well if in our provision for them, we provide some form of equity in which they can begin to supply their own needs. Sometimes for poor people who have health and strength, it is better to give them a net and some "fish", than a lot of fish. They way they can "fish" for themselves and perhaps start to make their own way by selling fish to others.
In the Hebrew economy the first-born animal belonged to God. It was the evidence in a household as to who they were, and what they were able to provide for their needs came from God. God was supplying their need. God was the Source of all they had and of the blessings they should never take for granted. Far too often we forget that "every good gift" comes from God. By setting aside the first-born, there was the reminder of who gave us what we have and who sustains our life day by day. That animal was not to be put to work but to be kept so there would be no blemish on it when the time came to give it to God as a thank- offering.
There were a number of very practical and workable instructions given to the children of Israel that can teach us how to best conduct our lives. A release from debt is great freedom. If you are a creditor or an employer and have been in debt yourself one time, you will know the value of being fair to employees and never mistreating them in any way. They deserve to be respected and treated fairly because they will be free to go their own way some day. Your reputation will soon be known by others with whom you do business. If you are a debtor, you owe your employer honesty and a good day's work every day. The way you apply yourself to your work will determine your future and what you will receive for your labor beyond the bare minimum. "What you sow, you reap."
Another lesson is, do not ever try to short-change God. We can never repay God for all of His benefits to us, so when He lets us know what He wants from us, it is our blessing to give from a warm and whole heart. Everything we claim for ourselves comes from God as the source. There is a principle to remember: the more you give, the more you get. We will never be able to out-give God. His abundance is there to dispense to those He can trust to gladly give to others what He desires through us. When He receives from us that which shows the attitude of our hearts toward Him, He releases to us that which reveals His heart of love and grace to us.
A lesson hard to learn is to be satisfied with what we have. "Having food and raiment, let us therewith be content" is a fundamental principle of living. The over-extension of credit to a dissatisfied person, places the borrower in a bondage from which many never get free in their lifetime. Some people are paying off debts for a lifetime because they started out with an expectation that they had a right to have those things now, for which they have not yet worked. Many young people live with a sense of "entitlement" that has been generated by over-indulgent parents. They really believe they deserve now what hard working parents took a lifetime to accumulate. A dissatisfied generation of people bode very ill for the future - even for the people of God. Our children are not immune from this popular mindset. It is incumbent on those mature believers to guide young people in matters pertaining to daily living, even as Moses taught the Israelites many generations ago. They need our practical teaching and experience as well as our spiritual direction in order to live effective lives for God.