"Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt." - (Ex 22:21)

"And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou? And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live. But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?" and Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee. Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise." (Lk 
10:25-37).

The topic of Immigration Reform was a hot button item in the 2016 US Election, and it continues to generate much debate and discussion around what the right answer should be on both sides of the political aisle. On one side, we have those who side with the plaque on the Statue of Liberty - "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,I lift my lamp beside the golden door!" Others are concerned about immigrants displacing american jobs, or allowing radical extremists to enter the country to attack us from within. There are valid arguments on both sides, and we are not here to take a political position for either the Left or the Right, but to examine what God's Word has to say on the topic, and let the chips fall where they may.

The Law makes explicit provision for the treatment of the stranger (some translations read alien) in the land of Israel.

Two words are used. "gur" - “to dwell as a client, sojourn.” This verb means “to dwell in a land as a client.” The first occurrence of the word is in Gen. 12:10, where it is reported that Abram journeyed to Egypt and dwelt there as a client. The other word is "ger" - “client; stranger.”

A “client” was not simply a foreigner (nakri) or a stranger (zar). He was a permanent resident, once a citizen of another land, who had moved into his new residence. Frequently he left his homeland under some distress, as when Moses fled to Midian (Exod. 2:22). Whether the reason for his journey was to escape some difficulty or merely to seek a new place to dwell, he was one who sought acceptance and refuge. Consequently he might also call himself a toshab, a settler. Neither the settler nor the “client” could possess land. In the land of Canaan the possession of land was limited to members or descendants of the original tribal members. Only they who were full citizens enjoyed all the rights of citizenry, which meant sharing fully in the inheritance of the gods and forefathers—the feudal privileges and responsibilities (cf. Ezek. 47:22). In Israel a ger, like a priest, could possess no land BUT enjoyed the special privileges of the third tithe. Every third year the tithe of the harvest was to be deposited at the city gate with the elders and distributed among “the Levite, (became he hath no part nor inheritance with thee,) and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, which are within thy gates …” (Deut. 14:29).

Children of “clients” were to be treated as full citizens: “And it shall come to pass, that ye shall divide it [the land] by lot for an inheritance unto you, and to the strangers that sojourn among you, which shall beget children among you: and they shall be unto you -- as born in the country among the children of Israel --- ; they shall have inheritance with you among the tribes of Israel” 
(Ezek. 47:22).This is the current Law in the U.S for this same reason (the framers drew this from the Bible!). It may be abused... but the principle has Biblical basis.

The ger was to be treated (except for feudal privileges and responsibilities) as an Israelite, being EQUALLY RESPONSIBLE TO OBSERVE and EQUALLY PROTECTED by the law: “Hear the causes between your brethren, and judge righteously between every man and his brother, and the stranger that is with him” (Deut. 1:16); “ye shall therefore keep my statutes and my judgments, and shall not commit any of these abominations; neither any of your own nation, nor any stranger that sojourneth among you” (Lev. 18:26); "ye shall have one manner of law, as well for the stranger, as for one of your own country: for I am the Lord your God” (Lev. 24:22). The ger also enjoyed the Sabbath rest (Lev. 25:6) and divine protection (Deut. 10:18). God
commanded Israel to love the “client” as himself (Lev. 19:34). -- while certain accomodations to our civil laws may be made to allow for cultural differences (e.g. wearing of headscarves by girls/women in school as a matter of faith), having separate laws for different classes of individuals has no basis in the Bible. In fact, justice is not to even discriminate between the rich and the poor - a reflection of God who is no respecter of persons.

When it comes to assimilation, the Law allows for the full assimilation of the stranger into the fold of God, based on his meeting the entrance requirements.The ger would be circumcised (Exod. 12:48) and enjoy all the privileges of the true religion: the Passover (Exod. 12:48-49), the Atonement feast (Lev. 16:29), presenting offerings (Lev. 17:8), and all the feasts (Deut. 16:11). He was also obligated to keep the purity laws (Lev. 17:15).

This principle of assimilation is best seen in the admission of us Gentiles into the Kingdom of Israel. The Apostle Paul in Romans 11, likens us to branches grafted into the place of branches that are - broken off - from the tree of Israel, and cautions us to not think badly of the branches that were broken off so that we could be grafted in. "And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert grafted in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree; (Ro 11:17). God gives us access to everything He promised to the nation of Israel through Christ our Redeemer!

The last thing to consider by way of spiritual application is our treatment of those that are "heathen"/"unbelievers". Our opening text admonishes Israel not to vex or oppress the stranger, by reminding them of their own prior status in Egypt. If they were mindful of what they once were, they would be more likely to treat them as they themselves would have wanted to be treated. We should remember that we once were as much sinners and unbelievers as they were, yet Christ died for us then, so that He could draw us to saving faith in Himself. We Christians sometimes have a tendency to look at unbelievers in an unflattering light, and think ourselves superior. The Law enjoins us to treat them as fellow Christians, and Christ tells us to treat them as neighbors - as in the parable of the Good Samaritan we saw above. Ultimately, its not about what label you are wearing (Priest, Levite, Christian, Muslim, Hindu)... its your actions that show if you are obeying the divine conscience of God in your heart, and if, so, the Apostle Paul writes..

"In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel. Behold, thou art called a Jew, and restest in the law, and makest thy boast of God, And knowest his will, and approvest the things that are more excellent, being instructed out of the law; And art confident that thou thyself art a guide of the blind, a light of them which are in darkness, An instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, which hast the form of knowledge and of the truth in the law. "
(Ro 2:16-20).

To those questioning the wisdom of the Law as exposited, here are some points you may wish to consider:

1. The Law has everything to do about how you treat the stranger that is already IN the land - some people were distracted about how to discriminate among those that are proposing to ENTER it. That is up to the laws of the country and the administration of the immigration process.
2. The post is about legal immigrants. ILLEGAL immigrants, by definition, have already broken the laws of the country, and the existing laws on the books should be enforced without prejudice. Isn't that what the Word teaches and is clearly articulated in the post? "You should have one law for everyone...."
3. The enemy gains strength from hate and judgments clouded by emotion. One gentleman quoted the word perfectly! "Be ye wise as serpents and as harmless as doves." - Matthew 10:16 Fighting a spiritual battle requires discernment. There are evil forces everywhere... not all of them come dressed in wolfs clothing, but it requires the application of wisdom to discern the sheep from the goats.
4. Last of all, there are no illegal immigrants in the Kingdom of Heaven. Unless the righteousness of Christ clothes you, you will be deported to the outer darkness where there is the wailing and gnashing of teeth. In our "Are You Saved?" video available at www.tabernacleoftheholyspirit.org, we go into great detail into how it is God who sovereignly applies the atonement, and justifies the sinner through the work of Christ - not through our works of flesh. Pray for his opening the eyes of those who currently live in the darkness and have been taking captive by the enemy - be they sinners in this country or without!