Vetting and Borders

There is two sides to every border wall

by Dale Brown.

Those who strive to justify illegal entry into the United States go to great lengths in debate.  They are likely to quote the following verses from the Bible.

 "When a stranger resides with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong. The stranger who resides with you shall be to you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt; I am the Lord your God." (Leviticus 19:33-34)

Shibboleth

The scripture certainly addresses an important issue in regards to fairness to all of mankind however one cannot paint a complete picture of reason based on one or two Bible verses.  Later on in Jewish history aliens from other countries and tribes often became a threat to not only the Jewish religion but also national security.  At one point in Judges 12:1-6 the Israelis used a code password, a shibboleth, to sort out some unwanted guests.  How it worked was this, it was known that this group could not pronounce the word shibboleth correctly so when they failed the test they were immediately apprehended.

Then, during the restoration of Israel during the days of Nehemiah and Ezra there were many foreigners that posed a threat to the restoration project in Jerusalem.  Some came as friends hoping to be accepted but Nehemiah saw through their deceit and run them off.  Their enemies used many means by which to harass the builders, to such an extend that those building the wall had to carry weapons for their own protection.

When we get to the New Testament we see apostle Paul using his Roman citizenship to his advantage by pointing out his rights to the Roman guards who were mistreating him.  They were quick to acknowledge that he had privileges that others did not have. (Acts 22:28-29)
There are many illustrations of vetting in God's kingdom.  Jesus said, "Truly, truly, I say unto you, he who does not enter by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbs up some other way, he is a thief and a robber". (John 10:1) He went on to say, "I am the door of the sheep".  In John 14:6 he reinforced the illustration by saying, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the father but through me."

His vetting process is quite thorough.  In the gospel of Matthew there is a chapter which starts with the famous words, "judge not lest ye be judged". Usually that is as far as the liberal critics read.  But it goes on to warn about false prophets and leaves us with a strict warning, "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven; but he who does the will of my father who is in heaven.  Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name cast out demons, and in your name perform many miracles?  And then I will declare to them, "I never knew you; depart from me, you who practice lawlessness." (Matthew 7:1,15,21-23)

Notice how he points out the lawlessness nature of these people.  It is for this reason we have to lock our cars and secure our homes.  Some people have no manners or respect for the law.  When there is no self discipline there must be imposed discipline.  Anarchy has no place in a civil society nor the kingdom of God.  God is a God of order and discipline. The very word disciple is related to the word discipline which implies rules and order. 

But the children will suffer?

What we do as adults effects the future of our children.  If we break the law, and this pattern of behavior is passed on to our children we will inherit a society of rebels.  In fact the Bible says in many places that the sins of the fathers are passed down to the children to the third and fourth generation (Exodus 34:6-7).  Eventually the fruit of this behavior will cause a society to collapse.  Jesus has provided a way in which God's law can be written on our hearts but one must give their heart to Jesus.  Just applying rules and regulations cannot solve the problem.  Only He can fix the problem.