What the Bible Says About Immigrants, Strangers, Aliens and Enemies ...
... and how we should relate to them.
God Has Much to Say About How His People Should Relate to Foreigners
Immigration is the top domestic issues that divides Americans. It is no less divisive elsewhere in the world — including countries that identify with Christianity.
Because the bible reports several stories of major characters (e.g. Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Ruth, Israel, Jesus, etc.) who lived as aliens in foreign lands, we should not be surprised to learn that God has given many commandments about how to relate to immigrants, strangers and aliens. For lack of understanding of the meaning of these stories and God’s commandments, some religions (including Jews and Christian Nationalists) and political movements (Christian Nationalists) consider immigrants to be their enemies. This attitude is not what the bible teaches.
Jews and Christians will recognize that most of the statements listed below are paraphrases of scripture. People who are not familiar with the bible, and even people who do not believe in God, will not be handicapped in their ability to recognize that these statements are practical, common sense, biblical guidelines for how to relate to immigrants, strangers, aliens and enemies. They don’t need scripture references to know in their hearts that these statements reflect God’s attitudes about immigrants and strangers.
Because God spoke these statements, they are his laws about how to relate to immigrants, strangers, aliens and enemies. Obedience to God’s laws define the standards of righteousness and justice. Therefore, government laws and policies that do not conform to God’s commands are injustice which can also be labeled as sin because the definition of sin is lawbreaking.
Denial of justice to immigrants is an example of favoritism and partiality which is also defined as sin. This confirms that failure to obey God’s commands about how to relate to immigrants is also a sin.
Because they conveniently disassociate their political life from God’s laws about how to relate to poor people and immigrants, religious people — Christian Nationalists in particular — do not recognize that the most far-reaching consequences of their sins of injustice, favoritism and partiality exists in the context of politics and government. For example, voters who elect legislators that deny help to poor people affects millions of families own the sin. For example, voters who elect legislators that restrict immigration to millions of people own the sin.
This point is worth restating: Religious people who vote for politicians who enact unjust legislation are directly responsible for the sins of injustice and partiality. Worse yet, in the case of Christian Nationalists, they break the Third Commandment by cloaking their sins with religious self-righteousness.
What can be done to educate religious people about these truths? Sharing this post is a good place to start.
God judges righteousness based on the content of hearts — not on politics, policy preferences, or religion. People who trust God have compassionate, welcoming heart attitudes towards immigrants, strangers and poor, marginalized people. They respect, honor and serve immigrants, strangers and the poor because these attitudes and behaviors are God’s attitudes.
God uses the bible to report his heart attitudes and to tell people how they should reflect those attitudes in their relationships if they want to please him. He summarizes these attitudes and behaviors in the second great commandment to “love your neighbor as yourself.”
Christians like to quote the verses that say “faith without works is dead.” They do not realize, however, that the works God is talking about are the works of loving your neighbor — not religious works.
The world would be a better place if Christians set aside religious works in favor of loving their neighbor. If they did, the immigration problem would be solved.
What can be done to retrain religious people about the kinds of works they should be doing if they want to please God? This link is a good place to begin.
Christian Nationalists falsely claim to trust God. And yet they do whatever they can do to prevent immigrants and aliens from entering America and accessing social services. They say proudly that the bible is a reliable guide for living a righteous life but do not do what the bible says to do about welcoming immigrants and aliens. They say “in God we trust” but vote for politicians who promise to restrict immigration and deny social services and citizenship to aliens. They say that they trust God to provide for all their needs, but they worry that immigrants threaten their physical, emotional and financial security. What they say does not agree with what the bible commands. This is hypocrisy pure and simple
Furthermore, people who vote for candidates who advocate against the needs of immigrants and strangers put the power of the candidate to allay their fears ahead of God’s promises to protect his people. This is idolatry pure and simple.
These are important facts to remember when Choosing Friends, Making Alliances and Voting. Politicians who relate to strangers, aliens and enemies in ways that are consistent with God’s commands are worthy of receiving the votes of discerning voters. Candidates who relate to strangers, aliens and enemies in ways that are inconsistent with God’s commands, however, are not worthy of receiving the votes of voters who obey God’s commandments.
American democracy provides freedom to vote according to conscience and policy preferences. In God’s kingdom, it is permissible to vote according to conscience and policy preferences, but people who trust God and obey him do not do what culture and civil laws permit. They will always do what is good for others. The principle is found in 1Corinthians 10: 23-24
23“I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but not everything is constructive. 24No one should seek their own good, but the good of others.
New Covenant disciples always do what is profitable for others. This is how they obey God’s commands to love their neighbor. They do not take advantage of cultural permission to do what is good for themselves. Not so for Christian Nationalists who are Old/First Covenant religionists who typically do what is best for themselves.
Political candidates who promise to restrict immigration and social services selfishly do what is profitable for their interests and the interests of people who support them with money and votes. They do not do what is profitable for others. Christian Nationalists choose to trust their own instincts and the promises of political candidates who think like them instead of trusting God by doing what is good for others.
The hearts (i.e. consciences) of New Covenant disciples will not allow them to vote for candidates who break God’s laws by restricting immigration and social services. On the other hand, people with evil hearts always vote to create advantages for themselves and people like them. They never vote to create advantages for oppressed, marginalized people. They trust their own thinking and the promises of smooth-talking politicians. Idolatry exists whenever you trust yourself or another person instead of trusting God.
This is the religious world we live in. Can the world ever be made better? The answer is yes, but it will only happen when people are willing to commit to sacrificial love.
It can be make better if people obeyed God’s commandments and loved their neighbors with Godly love.
SCRIPTURES ABOUT HOW TO RELATE TO IMMIGRANTS, STRANGERS, ALIENS AND ENEMIES WITH GODLY LOVE
Do not wrong strangers or oppress them.
Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.
Show love for the alien by giving him food and clothing.
The stranger who resides with you shall be to you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself.
Protect strangers. Support the fatherless and the widows
Be a stronghold for the oppressed in times of trouble.
Treat others the same way you want them to treat you.
Provide for the alien, the orphan and the widow so they can eat and be satisfied.
Do not oppress the alien, the orphan, or the widow.
Do not despise little children so that any of them perish.
Do not turn aside the alien.
Vindicate the orphan and the oppressed.
Love your enemies.
Do good to those who hate you.
Support the fatherless and the widows.
Do not devise evil in your hearts against one another.
Love and care for your neighbor the same way you love and care for yourself.
Do not take vengeance, or bear grudges against others.
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.
IF YOUR ENEMY IS HUNGRY, FEED HIM, AND IF HE IS THIRSTY, GIVE HIM A DRINK.
Luke 6: 35 Love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great.
Matthew 25:31-46 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
34“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
37“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
40“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
41“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
44“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’
45“He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’
46“Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
Proverbs 24:11-12 Deliver those who are being taken away to death, And those who are staggering to slaughter, Hold them back. If you say, “See, we did not know this,” Does He not consider it who weighs the hearts? And does He not know it who keeps your soul? And will He not render to man according to his work?
Leviticus 19:33-34 ” ‘When a foreigner resides among you in your land, do not mistreat them. 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.
These are examples of God’s commandments about how to love your neighbor. The world will be a better place when religious people — especially Christian Nationalists — practice what they say they believe about the bible being a reliable guide for living.
Because there is no evidence that they are moving in that direction, the question that remains is this: Who will teach them how to love their neighbor? The answer is that all who practice the principles of loving your neighbor are teachers.
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