9 Then the LORD said to Moses: 10 "Speak to the Israelites and say to them: 'When you cross the Jordan into Canaan, 11 select some towns to be your cities of refuge, to which a person who has killed someone accidentally may flee. 12 They will be places of refuge from the avenger, so that a person accused of murder may not die before he stands trial before the assembly. (Numbers 35:9-12)
This is an interesting addition to the Law, don't you think? It seems to me that if someone accidentally killed someone else, all they should have to say is 'oops' and that would settle it. Or, as happens in my house, when one child reigns blows upon the other, I make them sound really apologetic as they mumble 'sorry'.
But I'm not God, so if this system sounds good, then we'll go with Cities of Refuge. Can you imagine what these cities were like? These designated cities were some of the cities given to the Levites, so it sounds to me like after enough accidents, you'd have a good mix of pastors and killers. This could be a good thing, or it could turn disastrous. Or it could make for the perfect scene for the filming of Footloose, where everyone was just a bit too tense and all they needed was a dance.
Since these were cities where people lived pre-accidents, it seems like the original residents would have to be very understanding of all the people who 'accidentally' killed someone. What would this have been like? Did they go around saying "I didn't accidentally kill someone"? Was there some sort of system to differentiate between those who did not accidentally kill someone and those who did?
The Law gives room to extradite those who were actually guilty, but imagine the need of those who had deep regrets and were suddenly thrust into new living situations. It seems to me that Cities of Refuge sound an awful lot like what the Church should be doing. Whether people are guilty or not when they come to us is secondary to the fact that they have come. Since we're all guilty, the Church should be the place where all can seek refuge from their past, from this world, from their hurts.
We, the people that make up the Church, need to be that sanctuary for others. After all, grace has come to us all and there is no difference (Romans 3:22-23).
This is an interesting addition to the Law, don't you think? It seems to me that if someone accidentally killed someone else, all they should have to say is 'oops' and that would settle it. Or, as happens in my house, when one child reigns blows upon the other, I make them sound really apologetic as they mumble 'sorry'.
But I'm not God, so if this system sounds good, then we'll go with Cities of Refuge. Can you imagine what these cities were like? These designated cities were some of the cities given to the Levites, so it sounds to me like after enough accidents, you'd have a good mix of pastors and killers. This could be a good thing, or it could turn disastrous. Or it could make for the perfect scene for the filming of Footloose, where everyone was just a bit too tense and all they needed was a dance.
Since these were cities where people lived pre-accidents, it seems like the original residents would have to be very understanding of all the people who 'accidentally' killed someone. What would this have been like? Did they go around saying "I didn't accidentally kill someone"? Was there some sort of system to differentiate between those who did not accidentally kill someone and those who did?
The Law gives room to extradite those who were actually guilty, but imagine the need of those who had deep regrets and were suddenly thrust into new living situations. It seems to me that Cities of Refuge sound an awful lot like what the Church should be doing. Whether people are guilty or not when they come to us is secondary to the fact that they have come. Since we're all guilty, the Church should be the place where all can seek refuge from their past, from this world, from their hurts.
We, the people that make up the Church, need to be that sanctuary for others. After all, grace has come to us all and there is no difference (Romans 3:22-23).
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