Foreigners
Don’t mistreat foreigners. You were foreigners in Egypt, and you know what it is like. ~ Exodus 23:9 (CEV)
That night, Joseph got up and took his wife and the child to Egypt... ~ Matthew 2:14 (CEV)
KEY IDEA:
Jesus was a refugee and so we treat all displaced people as though we were treating him.
PRAYER:
Thank you, Jesus, for your kindness toward displaced people. We are all subject to displacement and some of our families have been forced to move. I confess, though, that sometimes I have trouble treating people who are different from me with respect. I worry about their influence and their secret agendas to change us. Save me from my fear and help me to grow in my love for foreigners. Because of Jesus, I'm going to treat all with dignity -- whether they deserve it or not. Amen.
TRANSLATIONS
ABP = Authorized Boydston Paraphrase — my own freestyle biblical adaptation — somewhere between paraphrase, commentary, and sermon
CEB = Common English Bible (©2011, the Common English Bible)
CEV = Contemporary English Version (©1995, American Bible Society)
MSG = The Message (©1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson)
NIRV = New International Reader's Version (©1996, 1998, Biblica)
NIV = New International Version (©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011, Biblica)
NLT = New Living Translation (©1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, Tyndale House Foundation)
