You Are Welcome
"For the assembly, there shall be one statute for you and for the stranger who sojourns with you, a statute forever throughout your generations. You and the sojourner shall be alike before the Lord." - (Num. 15:15, ESV) Even a casual reading of the Apocrypha (Genesis - Deuteronomy, OT) will introduce the reader to the terms "the Stranger." The stranger refers to any outsider or non-Jew show chooses to dwell among the Israelites. We rarely hear of this as we are reading the OT works of God, but the Israelites were not the only ones enjoying the blessings and benefits of serving God. Anyone, regardless of their nationality or racial makeup could worship the God of the Jews, "...one statute for you and for the stranger." All were welcome. The idea that God was only concerned with one group of people simply is not supported by Scripture. It was always the plan of God to offer salvation to the world, through the Israelites. We see it in the gospels,...