Given By Rev. Madison Shockley March 3, 2019
Today’s reading is one of the more fascinating stories of the Bible. Judah had three sons. His first son, Er, was evil so God struck him done. In ancient times, there was Levirate marriage. If a husband dies without bearing an heir, his brothers must marry his widow so as to produce an heir. Judah’s second son, Onan, married Tamar but would not impregnate his brother’s widow. God struck him down also. Judah promised Tamar his third and last son, Shelah, but asked if she would wait until he was of marriageable age. Tamar waited but Judah did not fulfill his promise. Tamar disguised herself and slept with Judah. She became pregnant. When Judah heard Tamar was pregnant, he ordered her death. Tamar revealed that Judah was the father and Judah realized that he had failed in his duties and Tamar was in the right. The men in this story used her without honoring their responsibilities to her. Tamar took control of her life and did something desperate. The poor/desperate/powerless can be driven to do the unimaginable to survive. Today, the world has a problem, human trafficking. We need to see what is happening right in front of us. It is modern day slavery. They are trapped by their poverty, lack of education, and unemployment. It is profitable and the demands are never ending. This is part of our ministry at Pilgrim Church. Until we fulfill our responsibilities to help these women, men, and children, we are letting them down. God will judge them more righteous than those of us who stand silently by.
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