Lev 23:22, 'When you reap the harvest of your land, moreover, you shall not reap to the very corners of your field, nor gather the gleaning of your harvest; you are to leave them for the needy and the alien. I am the Lord your God.'" 
    	In this chapter dealing with the various feasts which the Children of Israel were to observe, along with the instructions as to when and how to observe them, the Lord inserted this expression of concerned care for the needy. It is His heart after those who are less fortunate and less able to otherwise be part of the full joy and reverence of the service to be rendered unto God. 
While all the feasts were stipulated with respect to general requirements of the sacrifices and the eating of the various meats and breads, etc., God made certain that none would be left out. He paused, in the middle of this discourse to remind the listeners that they had a responsibility for all His people, not just those with means. Even the poorest of the nation were to be enabled to survive in order to be part of the true thankfulness and joy associated with being the Chosen People of God. This was unlike any other social grouping of that time and even into this very day. The poor were given the opportunity to provide for their food with dignity and without reproach.
	As we well know, in our current society, as it has been throughout the course of human history, those with little or nothing are often overlooked, ignored, abused, or maligned. They have no economic or political status, so they are considered to be a drain of the limited resources that could be used to the meet the needs of those in power and in control. The widows and the orphans, the needy and the strangers without property or substance, were left to their own devices in the general scope of humanity. They are often just seen as pitiful nuisances or sometimes merely the labor pool that can be exploited for the gain of the few. But in the eyes of God, they had a place and they had the opportunity, through the generosity of His people, to make their way in this realm. They were worthy to be allowed into the fields to harvest for themselves the food that they needed for survival, after the crops had been mainly collected. 
	This was so vital for the sake of the poor and the orphans and the widows, that God stipulated giving this opportunity to them earlier in our readings of Chapter 19, verses 9+10. It is almost an exact restatement. 
Lev 19:9+10, 'Now when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very corners of your field, neither shall you gather the gleanings of your harvest. 'Nor shall you glean your vineyard, nor shall you gather the fallen fruit of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the needy and for the stranger. I am the Lord your God. 
	Leviticus 19 was the instruction of the Lord that encouraged His people to be holy because God is Holy. Within that detailed listing of those things that the people needed to take to heart was this exact attitude and consideration of those who were so much less able to take care of themselves. God’s heart has always been after those in need and unable to make it on their own. 
Consider, for example, the people that He chose unto Himself. It was not Babylon, or Egypt, or any great and mighty nation. It was a generation of slaves, the sons of Israel, whom He had to deliver from their bondage. This people never really became a dominant world power. They were sometimes powerful in their neighboring communities, but never on the scale of those nations that we would list as controlling the history of humanity in the classic scale of powerhouse dominions. God has always been on the side of those people who needed Him to be Their Provider, Their Shield, Their Leader, and Their Savior.  
    	This was made especially evident with respect to the various feasts and celebrations for all the people. Consider Deut 16:10-15, if you would please turn to it. There, The Lord specifically detailed how the poor and the needy were to be included in all the festivities. 
Deut 16:10-15, Then you shall celebrate the Feast of Weeks to the Lord your God with a tribute of a freewill offering of your hand, which you shall give just as the Lord your God blesses you; and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God, you and your son and your daughter and your male and female servants and the Levite who is in your town, and the stranger and the orphan and the widow who are in your midst, in the place where the Lord your God chooses to establish His name. And you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and you shall be careful to observe these statutes. "You shall celebrate the Feast of Booths seven days after you have gathered in from your threshing floor and your wine vat; and you shall rejoice in your feast, you and your son and your daughter and your male and female servants and the Levite and the stranger and the orphan and the widow who are in your towns. Seven days you shall celebrate a feast to the Lord your God in the place which the Lord chooses, because the Lord your God will bless you in all your produce and in all the work of your hands, so that you shall be altogether joyful. 
	These less able were to be part of the joyful remembrance that all were delivered by the Hand of God from their slavery to Egypt. None was able to make it on his or her own. All the Children of Israel were in need of the Lord’s salvation and deliverance and sustenance throughout the wandering days after their release from captivity. Therefore, the people were to absolutely include the sojourner and the poor and the orphan and the widow in the every joy-filled recognition of God’s grace and mercy and love. 
    	Now please turn to Deut 24:17-22 and consider another direct statement concerning the treatment of those in such poverty and need. Read with me the heart of God manifested for the sake of those whom He called unto Himself. 
Deut 24:17-22, "You shall not pervert the justice due an alien or an orphan, nor take a widow's garment in pledge. But you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and that the Lord your God redeemed you from there; therefore I am commanding you to do this thing. "When you reap your harvest in your field and have forgotten a sheaf in the field, you shall not go back to get it; it shall be for the alien, for the orphan, and for the widow, in order that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. When you beat your olive tree, you shall not go over the boughs again; it shall be for the alien, for the orphan, and for the widow. When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, you shall not go over it again; it shall be for the alien, for the orphan, and for the widow. And you shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt; therefore I am commanding you to do this thing. 
	God reiterated, once again, the stipulated manner of making a way for the poor of the community by allowing them access to the fields and the vineyards after the harvest had been accomplished. He reminded all the people that they owed everything to Him for His so great salvation on their behalf. Therefore, they were to have an estimation of the less auspicious and underprivileged as belonging to the community and in need of the ability to gather for themselves, by the generosity of all those who were able to give such opportunity. 
	So important is this heart after those in need, that God has even included a book in the Bible which details this manner of making provision for the widows in the Book of Ruth. These women were desperate for food and, in Ruth 2:2, Ruth beseeched her mother-in-law for the opportunity to go into the field to glean for their sustenance. 
Ruth 2:2, And Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, "Please let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain after one in whose sight I may find favor." And she said to her, "Go, my daughter." 
	Ruth found favor in the sight of Boaz, the owner of the field. He even made special provision for her and Naomi, his kinsmen, to glean. He did not just give them the grain outright, but he caused his servants to leave a bit extra for Ruth to gather and in which to find satisfaction from the course of her work. This is recounted in verses 15-18 of this Second chapter. 
Ruth 2:15-18, When she rose to glean, Boaz commanded his servants, saying, "Let her glean even among the sheaves, and do not insult her. And also you shall purposely pull out for her some grain from the bundles and leave it that she may glean, and do not rebuke her." So she gleaned in the field until evening. Then she beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley. And she took it up and went into the city, and her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned. She also took it out and gave Naomi what she had left after she was satisfied. 
    	One of the key truths of this heart of God is revealed in the fact that the kingly lineage of both David and Our Lord Jesus Christ was traced through this Ruth, the widow who was forced to glean in the field for herself and her mother-in-law. From these most humble roots came the two greatest Kings, one of Israel, and the other of Eternity! 
Oh the magnificence of the heart of God for those who are in such need and want. He cares for the wretched and the poor and the broken and the sick because they are the ones who know that if God doesn’t provide, they will surely perish. They wholly lean upon Him as their everything!
As we can read together in Job 31:16-23, Job was fully aware of the special place that these forlorn had in the heart and the mind of God. He recognized that God would not permit them to be defiled and abused, but would hold the guilty those accountable for the way the poor were treated. The fear of the retribution from God was enough for Job to declare that he would rather have his arm broken apart than face the terror of God’s judgment shown against those who do not honor the poor and the orphan and the widow as so directed by His detailed ordinances. 
Job 31:16-23, "If I have kept the poor from their desire, Or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail, Or have eaten my morsel alone, And the orphan has not shared it (But from my youth he grew up with me as with a father, And from infancy I guided her), If I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing, Or that the needy had no covering, If his loins have not thanked me, And if he has not been warmed with the fleece of my sheep, If I have lifted up my hand against the orphan, Because I saw I had support in the gate, Let my shoulder fall from the socket, And my arm be broken off at the elbow. "For calamity from God is a terror to me, And because of His majesty I can do nothing. 
    	On the other side of this coin, the Psalmist, in Ps 41:1-3, declares the manner in which God will honor those who do as He commands with respect to caring for people in such need. Ps 41:1-3, How blessed is he who considers the helpless; The Lord will deliver him in a day of trouble. The Lord will protect him, and keep him alive, And he shall be called blessed upon the earth; And do not give him over to the desire of his enemies. The Lord will sustain him upon his sickbed; In his illness, Thou dost restore him to health. As this one cares for those in need so also God will take care of him in his hour of necessity. 
	The Psalmist, in Ps 112:4-9, goes on to praise the one who is gracious and generous to the poor and the afflicted. There is honor for the one who does not hoard away that which the Lord provides, but liberally shares from all that he has in the goodness of the heart of God. 
Ps 112:4-9, Light arises in the darkness for the upright; He is gracious and compassionate and righteous. It is well with the man who is gracious and lends; He will maintain his cause in judgment. For he will never be shaken; The righteous will be remembered forever. He will not fear evil tidings; His heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord. His heart is upheld, he will not fear, Until he looks with satisfaction on his adversaries. He has given freely to the poor; His righteousness endures forever; His horn will be exalted in honor. 
    	Another who proclaims the vindication of the Lord upon the one who cares for those in need is the Prophet Isaiah, in Isa 58:7-11. Here we have the promise of God voiced upon the generous who will make a way for those in desperate need of earthly provision. 
Isa 58:7-11, "Is it not to divide your bread with the hungry, And bring the homeless poor into the house; When you see the naked, to cover him; And not to hide yourself from your own flesh? "Then your light will break out like the dawn, And your recovery will speedily spring forth; And your righteousness will go before you; The glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. "Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; You will cry, and He will say, 'Here I am.' If you remove the yoke from your midst, The pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness, And if you give yourself to the hungry, And satisfy the desire of the afflicted, Then your light will rise in darkness, And your gloom will become like midday. "And the Lord will continually guide you, And satisfy your desire in scorched places, And give strength to your bones; And you will be like a watered garden, And like a spring of water whose waters do not fail. 
	Another who pointed out the heart of God set upon the poor in this world and their need for salvation was the Apostle Paul. In 1 Cor 1:26-31, he makes it very evident that we are not to think too highly of ourselves, but rather to have that heart of God which cares for those in need, because we are all in need before Him. 
1 Cor 1:26-31, For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised, God has chosen, the things that are not, that He might nullify the things that are, that no man should boast before God. But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, that, just as it is written, "Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord." 
	We will bring this to a conclusion with the encouragement of the Apostle voiced in his second letter to the Corinthian church, chapter 9, verses 5-12. In this writing, Paul describes the manner in which God has designed us to treat one another as from the selfless love of Jesus Christ. 
2 Cor 9:5-12, So I thought it necessary to urge the brethren that they would go on ahead to you and arrange beforehand your previously promised bountiful gift, that the same might be ready as a bountiful gift, and not affected by covetousness. Now this I say, he who sows sparingly shall also reap sparingly; and he who sows bountifully shall also reap bountifully. Let each one do just as he has purposed in his heart; not grudgingly or under compulsion; for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed; as it is written, "He scattered abroad, he gave to the poor, His righteousness abides forever." Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food, will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness; you will be enriched in everything for all liberality, which through us is producing thanksgiving to God. For the ministry of this service is not only fully supplying the needs of the saints, but is also overflowing through many thanksgivings to God. 
	We are to honor God in the manner in which we honor those in need. None of us are above anyone else. We are all here as the witness of the truth that God, Alone, will supply every need through His glorious and abundant grace. Therefore we need to recognize that everything we have been given is a gift from God for the needs of those whom He brings into our lives, which will result in all of us …overflowing through many thanksgivings to God. So be it!
	'When you reap the harvest of your land, moreover, you shall not reap to the very corners of your field, nor gather the gleaning of your harvest; you are to leave them for the needy and the alien. I am the Lord your God.' Amen.

This morning’s benediction is Ps 20:1+2. May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble! May the name of the God of Jacob set you securely on high! May He send you help from the sanctuary, And support you from Zion! Amen.