TorahBytes: Poetic License (Bereshit)

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth
(Bereshit / Genesis 1:1)

One of the marks of the time in which we live is that people think that a concept is valid solely on the basis that we believe that concept. Whether or not an idea is actually true is thought to be irrelevant. All that matters is whether or not the concept is true to a person's own self. What follows from that is whatever is true for self is not necessarily true for someone else. Self then has become the point of reference of truth and reality.

I think that this way of looking at life is ridiculous. And it's not just ridiculous for me myself, but it's ridiculous for everybody. While this "world according to self" has become the philosophy of choice for many today, it is an illusion. Not only is this way of looking at life not valid, many who claim to live this way, don't really do so, or at least not consistently. Take driving for example. Our society has made certain conclusions regarding what constitutes safe driving. Traffic rules are based for the most part on sound wisdom. Even if there is some disagreement over certain aspects of driving, we can accept that it is necessary for everyone to drive by the same rules. What is true and right for me is true and right for everyone else. If we drive according to "the world according to self," people get hurt and killed. That's just the way it is. Thankfully most people understand this regardless of their philosophical convictions.

Still, the hardcore reality that life is the way it is whatever our personal preferences might be, doesn't seem to diminish the belief that self is the primary point of reference to what is true and right. While we may not for the most part see this way of thinking in action on our roads, it is very active with respect to moral and spiritual issues.

The idea that truth should be based on self has affected Bible believers in a striking way. Because it has become popular to accept concepts that are based solely on personal perceptions and feelings, some people claiming to believe the Bible view the Bible that way. It has become acceptable to claim to adhere to the words of Scripture, while holding to an interpretation that is contrary to its plain meaning. Whether or not there is a reasonable connection between a particular passage and the conclusions drawn from it has become besides the point.

An example of this is found in the attempt to make the biblical creation accounts more acceptable to our culture. Some people try to reconcile the theory of evolution with the Bible by claiming that these passages are poetry. According to their reasoning, if they are poetry, then these passages should not be taken literally.

I do need to state that I don't have much reason to accept that the creation passages are poetical. While the Bible contains quite a bit of poetical material, Genesis chapters 2 and 3 do not read as poetry.

But even if these passages are poetical or metaphorical in some way, do they not assert certain things about God and his creation? Do we not read that God was intimately and personally involved in the various stages of creation including man and woman? Whether or not the writer is writing as if he was watching the process and giving us the precise details, or that these are creative expressions of what happened, we still have before us the truth of life's beginnings.

It is one thing to claim that a passage is metaphorical to prevent us from over literalizing what might be a creative way of expressing something. It is another thing in the name of poetry to deny what the Scriptures assert in order to justify a scientific viewpoint.

As we seek to uphold the validity of the Scriptures in our day, we need to avoid ways of thinking that in themselves undermine the very Truth we are seeking to affirm. As Scripture conflicts with the values of our culture, including the high regard we have for science, we are better off relying on the truth of Scripture than upon the opinions of so-called experts.

TorahBytes: A Most Basic of Basics (Sukkot)

Then Moses said to him, "If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?" (Shemot / Exodus 33:15,16)

The Festival of Sukkot (English: Tabernacles or Booths), a week-long celebration, beginning this year the evening of Wednesday, September 26, is a "back to basics" festival. The Torah tells us that Sukkot was to serve as a reminder of how the Israelites lived in the wilderness for forty years after leaving Egypt (see Vayikra/ Leviticus 23:42,43).

The wilderness years were a time of extreme vulnerability, but it was also a time when the reality of God was most apparent. The people had to rely on God in a way they would not have to once they settled the Promised Land. In the wilderness they ate miraculous bread called Manna and more than once required a miraculous provision of water. In the Land, while they would still need to rely on God, they would establish permanent dwellings and farms.

Once the people settled the Land and had more or less a normal existence, they would like most people tend to think that their provision and protection was something derived from themselves instead from God. God's directive to live in makeshift huts during the week of Sukkot was intended to help the people to remember who their provider and protector really was.

When Shabbat falls in the midst of the week of Sukkot, Shemot (English: Exodus) 33:12-34:26 is read. This passage includes an interchange between Moses and God following the sin of the golden calf. Moses pleads with God that, in spite of the people's sinful behavior, God's presence would continue to be with them to guide them to the Promised Land.

Moses understood a most basic of basics: God's people required God's presence. God's people are to be a people, who not only tell stories about God and his exploits, they are to be a people with whom God himself dwells.

Is this not the most basic of basics of which Sukkot should remind us? The busy-ness of day-to-day life may contain references to God and his existence, but how often do we take the time to ask ourselves if God himself is really with us. We might have religion in our lives, but do we have God? We may fill our minds with spiritual concepts, but is God actually directing us?

Moses knew that there was no sense continuing on without God being with them. That those who don't believe in God don't give this any thought is understandable, but for those of us who claim to have faith in the God of Israel, do we share Moses' perspective? Does it matter to us whether or not God is really in our midst to lead us? Do we take the time to even notice?

There is so much that goes on in the name of religion and of God, but how much of it truly has God in its midst? Instead of being like Moses, who desperately cried out for God's presence, we are too easily satisfied with our traditions and so-called spiritual activities. We blindly accept the claims of others who tell us that God is in our midst, even though the evidence is to the contrary.

But what's the use of going on without him? What's the point of all of our busy-ness unless God is leading the way? Moses knew that. What about you?

TorahBytes: Yom Kippur

This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: On the tenth day of the seventh month you must deny yourselves and not do any work—whether native-born or an alien living among you - because on this day atonement will be made for you, to cleanse you. Then, before the LORD, you will be clean from all your sins. (Vayikra / Leviticus 16:29,30)

As Jewish Believers my wife and I strive to express our Jewishness in such a way that is pleasing to God. In order to do that we put the religious and cultural aspects of our Jewishness through the filter of the Scriptures. Those things that are clearly supported by the Scriptures we keep. That which is clearly forbidden, we reject. And as for those things that are neither condemned nor condoned, we seek God for wisdom as to what to do. This is not always an easy or straightforward process, and so we regularly adjust what we do as we grow in understanding.

The high holiday season is full of rich meaning and tradition - some good; some not so good. It is a wonderful time of reflection. It is a time to especially remember who God is and what he has done. It is a time for family gatherings. It provides an opportunity to make things right with others. It is a time for joy and celebration.

Yom Kippur (English: The Day of Atonement) begins this year on the evening of September 21. I find the traditions surrounding this particular holiday some of the most challenging. According to the Torah, Yom Kippur was to be an annual event for the cleansing of the sins for the nation of Israel. Two important ritual ceremonies took place when the ancient Temple stood. One was that it was the only time in the year when the Cohen HaGadol (English: the High Priest) would enter the Most Holy Place to ceremonially cleanse the Ark of the Covenant. The other was the scapegoat - a symbolic act of carrying away the sins of the people by means of sending a goat into the wilderness.

Yom Kippur, like many other holy days, was to be a sabbath (whatever day of the week it would fall on) with the special directive to the people to deny themselves. Traditionally this has been interpreted to mean a complete fast of food, drink, wearing leather, washing, anointing oneself, and marital relations.

The Temple ceremonies ended upon its destruction in the year 70. Without the Temple it was impossible to fully observe what the Torah had directed Israel to do. What has not been readily accepted is that these ceremonies had already been rendered obsolete about 40 years prior by the sacrificial death of the Messiah. What was foreshadowed by these rituals was accomplished in Yeshua. Temple or no Temple the ceremonies of Yom Kippur are no longer necessary. This leads us to ask therefore, should the day still be observed?

Some believers use this day as a way to acknowledge and celebrate the gift of atonement given to us through Yeshua's sacrifice. As we do that, we may choose to reflect on the condition of our relationship to God and others. It can also be an excellent occasion to cry out to God for our people - for their welfare, both spiritual and physical. While Yeshua has accomplished the atonement foreshadowed by Yom Kippur, we await the full fruit of his labor - the final redemption of Israel, when the nation as a whole will recognize Yeshua as the Messiah.

If I were asked if we are obligated to keep Yom Kippur, I would have to say, "No," due to its fulfillment in Yeshua and the destruction of the Temple. Yet we may choose to enter into the day to express solidarity with the Jewish people and to seek God for the full accomplishment of his purposes among us.

As for what form our observance of Yom Kippur might take, if we decide to observe it, that is up to you before God. In the Messiah we are free to keep the day or not (Romans 14:5). Whatever we do, we need to do as he leads us by his Word and by his Spirit.

TorahBytes: Stay on the Road (Ha'azinu)

Who is wise? He will realize these things. Who is discerning? He will understand them. The ways of the LORD are right; the righteous walk in them, but the rebellious stumble in them. (Hosea 14:10; English: 14:9)

The readings this week occur between Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year/Feast of Trumpets) and Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement). These occasions are designed to cause us to reflect on our lives, our relationship with God, and our relationships with others. The goal of these reflections is to cause us to take God and life seriously enough to the point that we would truly walk in God's ways.

I have the impression that most people never take the time to reflect in this way. Even those who profess a faith in God seem to be content to let life take them on its course with little or no significant thought. Some people drift through life, while others are driven by it. They are either life's servant or victim (depending on their personality).

But God is calling us to something very different. He is looking for those who will hear his word and desire to do his will. He is looking for people who are not content with the way things are and will stand for the way God wants them to be.

In order to do that we need to heed the cry of the prophet Hosea: "Who is wise?...Who is discerning?" While we cannot understand the things of God without his help, we do have a part to play. As we hear his word we need to grasp it and act upon it. God will not do that for us. Too many of us are waiting for God to bring about dramatic change in our lives and life's circumstances without realizing that he is waiting for us to act.

Let me say again that I know that we cannot do this without God's enabling, but as we trust him, he will enable us. We need to make sure that we are in right relationship with him, something that can only occur by submitting ourselves to Yeshua the Messiah. It is as we follow Yeshua, that the presence and power of God works in us and through us. But that is not a passive thing. When we truly know God, his word will come to us again and again. If we do not allow ourselves to be instructed by him and respond to his directives with all our hearts, we will be useless.

As Hosea says, the righteous walk in God's ways. That means we understand the path he calls us to and purposely walk in it. It's as if God's path is an invisible road that co-exists among a complex and confusing super highway. As cars and trucks whiz by and neon signs lure us to lose ourselves in a multilaned frenzy of supposed pleasure and popularity, it is the truly discerning who understand that the super highway not only goes nowhere, but will result in catastrophe for all who stay on it. The discerning sees God's road, turning from the distraction of the world's superhighway and walks the lonely path of truth and life.

As Yeshua said,

Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. (Matthew 7:13,14).

Notice how both the entrance to the way of life and the resulting journey are narrow. Walking with God is not like an amusement park ride where all you have to do is get on and it will pull you along whether you like it or not. It is a step-by-step journey on a narrow road, requiring ongoing discernment and a willingness to take the steps necessary to remain on that path. It seems that God's narrow road intersects with the world's superhighway on a regular basis. Without the needed discernment and the willingness to do whatever it takes to stay on the narrow road, we may find ourselves on the superhighway to destruction.

TorahBytes: Silence Is not an Option (Nizzavim & Va-Yelekh)

For Zion's sake I will not keep silent, for Jerusalem's sake I will not remain quiet, till her righteousness shines out like the dawn, her salvation like a blazing torch. (Isaiah 62:1)

Through the Scriptures we learn the plans and purposes of God. Through its pages we understand the origins of life and the special place assigned to human beings by God. While that special place has never been revoked, history demonstrates how we have failed in our role as God's ambassadors on earth. Our failure is not the end of the story. God has been at work from the beginning to fulfill his desire to restore us to our rightful place in creation and in our relationship with him. To accomplish this, God established the people of Israel as his primary instruments with the view of making himself known to all nations.

The inability of the people of Israel to live up to God's standard was to help the rest of the world to understand that none of us can be what God intended without God's help. Not only was Israel to be God's channel of the coming of the Messiah, but also an object lesson for the world to see its need of him.

It is still in God's plan to fulfill his desire for his originally chosen people. Due to his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, he is determined to bring about a spiritual transformation of Israel.

It can be said that this transformation of Israel was the primary purpose of the coming of the Messiah. That is why the angel said to Joseph regarding his wife to be, Miriam, "She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Yeshua, because he will save his people from their sins" (Matthew 1:21). Years later not long after Yeshua's death, resurrection, and ascension, one of his followers was heard saying to the Jewish people of his day,

Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, and that he may send the Messiah, who has been appointed for you - even Yeshua. He must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets. (Acts 3:19-21).

Notice that it was necessary to proclaim these things to the people in order to invite them to turn to God. In doing so Yeshua's followers were in step with the Jewish prophetic tradition. God has always communicated his truth through words - both spoken and written.

That is why Isaiah cried, "For Zion's sake I will not keep silent, for Jerusalem's sake I will not remain quiet, till her righteousness shines out like the dawn, her salvation like a blazing torch." (Isaiah 62:1)

Isaiah knew that in order for Israel to experience its needed transformation, he had to speak out. Even though early in his ministry God told him that he would not see positive results, yet he spoke out.

In our day there is increasing pressure to keep silent. Western society, which at one time prided itself in the free exchange of ideas, tolerates less and less the clear proclamation of God's Truth. Popular so-called tolerance insists that all ideas are equally valid, thus denying the validity of God's Truth as revealed in the Bible. Followers of the Messiah are increasingly embarrassed to speak up in today's relativistic culture.

Making matters worse are those who use the principle of "actions speak louder than words" to downplay the necessity to speak out. While it is essential to demonstrate the reality of our words through corresponding actions, transformation comes about as people hear God's word.

Silence, therefore, is not an option.

TorahBytes: How Does it Work? - Part 2 (Shofetim)

For this is what the LORD says: "You were sold for nothing, and without money you will be redeemed." (Isaiah 52:3)

Last week I related the occasion of my being asked to explain how God's transforming power in my life actually worked. At the time of the question I had difficulty giving a satisfactory answer, but since then I have had more time to think about it, and I am ready to make another attempt.

The most obvious aspect of my transformation was psychological. I had been struggling emotionally to the point of having panic attacks, which stopped immediately. My outlook on life radically changed. I had become a very self-seeking person, and while I do not claim to have attained absolute selflessness, my world was no longer just about me. Similarly, issues of morality meant little to me, but once Yeshua came into my life, I began to develop a strong sense of right and wrong. Life in general had no meaning. I was always bored except for brief moments of distraction, but in the Messiah God gave me purpose. Up until knowing Yeshua and my embracing of the Scriptures as the Word of God, my being Jewish was without relevance. My Jewish identity was important to me, but without substance. Coming to know the reality of the God of Israel caused me to see myself as part of his eternal plan that had begun centuries before with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

All this has to do with the results of what God did in my life on a September day in 1976. But it doesn't explain exactly what it was that God did to me that day. The best way for me to explain it is through the biblical concept of redemption. In the Scriptures, redemption refers to the act of buying back a person sold into slavery or the restoration of property that has been lost due to extreme poverty. According to the Torah, when this would occur it was the obligation of a near relative to redeem or, in other words, to buy back the person or property (see Vayikra/Leviticus 25 & 27; Bemidbar/Numbers 35).

Redemption as an act of God on behalf of his people is a regular theme throughout the Bible. Jacob refers to God's redemption in his life (Bereshit/Genesis 48:16). The deliverance of Israel from slavery in Egypt is referred to as an act of redemption (Shemot/Exodus 6:6; 15:13). Hoping in God as the Redeemer of Israel is found several times in the prophets (see Isaiah 41:14; 43:1; 43:14; 52:3; Jeremiah 50:34; Micah 4:10; etc.). The Book of Ruth is a beautiful illustration of redemption. In Tehilim (Psalms) we have references to God as redeemer of both Israel as a nation (74:2; 77:15; 78:35. etc.) and for individuals (19:14; 69:18; 103:4, etc.).

Redemption is the act of rescuing a person or persons from a most dire situation and restoring them to a place of freedom. It brings about a complete transformation of the life situation of the redeemed.

This is what happened to me that day over thirty years ago. God redeemed me.

I was in an oppressive situation, which included several components. The most basic component was the spiritual one in that I had no relationship to God. But it also included a relational component in that my home life was extremely dysfunctional and my friendships were based on selfishness. It had an economic component in that the only parent in my life was no longer able to provide for our needs. It had an intellectual component in that I had no direction for my education. I also had no work ethic, since I thought life was simply about comfort and pleasure.

When I encountered God that day, he redeemed me. Due to what Yeshua did on my behalf by giving his life as the ransom for my sins, God rescued me from my oppression, set me in right relationship with himself and began to direct me in the kind of life he intends for us all.

It was his redemption that significantly alleviated my extreme anxiety. My perspective on life was not simply due to a psychological adjustment. Rather I experienced a psychological adjustment due to the transformation of my life by God.

I remember crossing a particular street not long after asking Yeshua into my life and remarking to myself that everything looked different. While my physical surroundings hadn't really changed, it was as if the realm in which I found myself had.

The fact is I was living in a different realm. This is expressed so well in the New Covenant writings:

For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (Colossians 1:13,14)

What our people experienced through God's redemption in Egypt anticipated an even greater redemption through the Messiah. Moreover, what is available to us today through him is a taste of what he still desires for us as a nation. It is something that is available to all people through trusting in Yeshua. It is not just a frame of mind or a commitment to a religious lifestyle, but a real transforming encounter with the God of Israel.

TorahBytes: How Does it Work? (Re'eh)

Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare. (Isaiah 55:12)

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to share some of the details of my spiritual journey with someone. Through the past thirty years of my knowing God through Yeshua the Messiah, I. have explained to many people how I have come to believe. When I have shared my story, people often respond with all sorts of questions, some of which I have heard many times: "How did your family react?; How did this change your life?; What does this mean to you as a Jewish person?"; and so on. But there was one question I was asked on this particular occasion that I don't think I have been asked before. The question was in response to my explaining the difference my faith in Yeshua has meant to me. Before I get to that question, let me provide some background. As a child and teenager, I suffered from a great deal of anxiety and depression. I had an emotional breakdown at age 11 and panic attacks along with a great fear of death at age 18. As far as I know, the chief contributing factor was my unstable upbringing. There was a lot of discord in our home. My parents argued (loudly) quite a bit. They separated when I was 6 years old, reconciled a year later only to split up permanently when I was 14. I lived with my mother until I went away to school at age 20, my three older brothers having moved away. I saw my father rarely through the years.

Just before my nineteenth birthday, I met a young Jewish man - a friend of a friend - who demonstrated from the Jewish Bible that Yeshua was the Messiah. He also explained to me the biblical concepts of sin and forgiveness. He said that if I asked God to forgive me and believe that Yeshua died for my sins and rose from the dead, I would be happy for the rest of my life and live forever in heaven. While there was so much of what this young man said that was true, even though he himself was fairly new to these things, I would eventually learn that his promise of constant happiness was inaccurate. It was inaccurate, but not entirely untrue. It depends how one defines happiness. If it means a life devoid of grief, struggles and disappointments, then he was completely wrong. But if it means a basic sense of well being in the midst of the ups and downs of real life, then he was absolutely correct.

As my story goes, the panic attacks stopped immediately and for the most part of the next several months I was on an emotional high of a nature that I had never experienced up until that point in my life. That high didn't continue, which at first was somewhat of a crisis, but it would not be long before I would come to understand the depth of what God had done in my heart and life. While my assumptions regarding being happy forever (or at least in this life) would not be realized, the change that God brought about in my life has been no less profound. Coming to believe in Yeshua has completely changed me. From my emotional state to my outlook in life to my sense of worth to my values and goals, I have been transformed. While I may still struggle to some extent with the remnants of my first nineteen years of life, I have experienced a most wonderful transformation through my encounter with the reality of the God of Israel.

It was in response to my explaining my transformation that I was asked the following basic, but unusual question: How did it work? The person wanted to know what it was exactly that affected the change in me. To be honest, at the time of the question, I groped for an answer. That I had truly experienced the transforming power of God was clear to me, but as to exactly what it was that God did to me to cause that change, I couldn't sufficiently express at the time. I know that it was God in Yeshua that brought about the change, but that explains who changed me, not what he did to change me. As I tried to answer the question, the other person determined it had to do with my coming to an understanding of the meaning of life. If I understood them correctly, they surmised that it was my acceptance of Truth that gave me a sense of peace. Getting a handle on what life was really all about gave me stability of mind and heart that up until then was beyond my grasp.

I think there is much truth to what they said, but it, too, doesn't really answer the question, "How does it work?" I accept that my changed viewpoint has had a great, positive effect on me. But is that what it was that changed me? And even if it did, how did my viewpoint change? Was I simply convinced of it? Was it my adopting of a new philosophy that caused my transformation? I don't think so. Is there even an adequate answer to this question? It wouldn't bother me if there wasn't. That God's reality is at work in my life is good enough for me. Yet I do think there is more that we can say about how the transforming power of God works, but that will have to wait until next week.

TorahBytes: It Isn't Working (Ekev)

If you carefully observe all these commands I am giving you to follow - to love the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways and to hold fast to him - then the LORD will drive out all these nations before you, and you will dispossess nations larger and stronger than you. (Devarim / Deuteronomy 11:22,23)

The story of the people of Israel is a story intertwined with God and the Promised Land. The connection with the Land is made very clear in our day by the unceasing attention of the media. Yet how God fits in to it all is rarely mentioned. From a biblical perspective, however, we cannot separate the people of Israel and the Land of Israel from the God of Israel.

God stated that the possessing of the Land was contingent on the people's relationship to him. If we remained faithful to him, we would remain in the Land. But if we rebelled against him, he would scatter us among the nations. Most of the Hebrew Bible deals with this very subject. From its pages we see how, for the most part, our ancestors failed to live up to God's standards, eventually resulting in exile.

Part of God's promise to Israel is that even though he would cast us out of the Land, he would also cause us to return. The first return is recorded in the latter books of the Hebrew Bible and continues through the books of the New Covenant. Even though Israel was able to reestablish itself in the Land, except for a brief period, the people lived under the rule of one foreign power or another. This continued until a few decades after Yeshua's coming, when Rome, the power of the day, scattered the people in what became the exile of the past 2000 years - an exile, which in many ways is still reality, since most of us live outside the Land of Israel.

The establishment of the modern state of Israel in 1948 is a modern miracle. God promised to restore us to our Land. But few thought that after being dispossessed for almost two millennia, we would actually have a homeland again. But is this the promised return? Does not the Scriptures reveal that our return would be intimately associated with a spiritual renewal in keeping with the Torah's understanding that the retaining of the Land was contingent upon our having a right relationship with God? Yet to my knowledge there is no significant spiritual renewal among our people today. Whatever spiritual vitality exists among us in the Land or elsewhere, it is a very small percentage.

No wonder the State of Israel is in the condition that it is currently. The leaders of the world are again seeking to divide the Land, Jerusalem included, and Israel's leaders are willing to negotiate. I am not commenting on the political leanings of any of the parties involved. I am not even commenting on the rights and wrongs of dividing the Land at this time. What I am commenting on is the fact that after almost 60 years since the establishment of the modern State of Israel, it is not working. The Zionist dream is not working. Left-wing and right-wing solutions are not working. The strategies of aggressive force and peaceful rhetoric are not working.

While our return to the Land may be miraculous, the current situation is not what it should be. It is not what it should be, because not one of the dominant approaches is working.

Our day is not unlike the days of the Bible, when stability in the Land was dependent upon our faithfulness to God. Nothing will change until we can recognize that the current instability is due to the very same reason. Until we truly turn to God in the name of our King, Yeshua the Messiah, there will be no Middle East solution.

TorahBytes: Addition and Subtraction (Va-ethannan)

Hear now, O Israel, the decrees and laws I am about to teach you. Follow them so that you may live and may go in and take possession of the land that the LORD, the God of your fathers, is giving you. Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the LORD your God that I give you. (Devarim / Deuteronomy 4:1,2)

The Bible has rightly been called God's instruction manual, for through it God has revealed how we are to live. It may be surprising to discover how many warnings there are regarding our need to do exactly what he says. These warnings are irrelevant to those who disregard the Bible's teaching, but for those who take it seriously, why would we need to be told over and over again to obey God's commands?

It seems to me that one of the reasons (if not the reason) is that we have a tendency to want to embrace the benefits of relating to the God of the Bible without accepting the obligations that go with it. This way of relating to the Bible takes many forms, but whatever actual form it takes, it is common to pick and choose which parts of the Bible we prefer to integrate into our lives.

I accept that to fully embrace the whole Bible's teaching has its challenges. We don't live in the days of ancient Israel when the Temple was standing and the priests and Levites were fully functioning. We live in the post-Temple, Messianic era. The coming of the Messiah has transformed our relationship to God through the forgiveness of sins and the gift of the Ruach Hakodesh (Holy Spirit). Still, a right relationship with God includes a lifestyle submitted to his Word.

This week's Torah reading includes one of the many warnings to follow God's commands. Included are the words, "Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it" . (Devarim / Deuteronomy 4:2). We have already looked briefly at our tendency to subtract from God's Word. While it is necessary to grapple with how to apply the many directives found in the Bible, I would hope that we would at least take it seriously enough to take up that challenge.

But what about the warning not to add to what God says. I don't know if we take this seriously enough. Ancient Jewish leaders created what is referred to as the fence around the Torah. These extra, man-made rules were designed as a buffer to prevent us from breaking God's actual commands by keeping us as far away from them as possible. For example, the Torah forbids doing work on Shabbat (English: Sabbath), but the rabbis forbid even the holding of an implement that might lead to work, though God gave no such prohibition. I appreciate the logic and wisdom in this. If we discover a tendency in ourselves toward certain wrong behaviors, then it is wise to avoid those situations that would normally draw us into those behaviors. Deciding to go beyond God's Word in this way is a good idea, but we must avoid taking our good idea and turning it into God's idea for everyone.

By not adding or subtracting from God's Word, we not only keep ourselves submitted to what God is saying to us, we also keep ourselves from getting in the way of what God is saying to others. We need to differentiate between what God has revealed and our traditions. Traditions may be helpful at the time, but when we add our traditions to what God has said, we misrepresent both him and his Word, thus robbing future generations of truly knowing God and his ways.

If we are really going to take God's Word seriously, it may be necessary to do a little arithmetic. Whatever we have added, we should subtract, and whatever we have subtracted, we need to add.

TorahBytes: Telling It Like It Is (Devarim)

Your country is desolate, your cities burned with fire; your fields are being stripped by foreigners right before you, laid waste as when overthrown by strangers. (Isaiah 1:7)

In the opening chapter of the book of the prophet Isaiah we encounter a very negative description of life in Eretz Yisrael (the Land of Israel). The interesting thing about this is that it probably isn't an accurate description of what was going on around him when he spoke these words. If my understanding is correct, Isaiah lived during a basically prosperous time. While there were various threats from the world powers of his day, for the most part, things were pretty good.

What Isaiah spoke of was not to happen until some time much later, when the Land would become completely desolate and the people carried away into exile. Yet he spoke of it as if it were the current reality. This is what it was like for many of the prophets. Their understanding of life was affected more by what they saw in the future, than whatever the current circumstances suggested.

Note that what the prophets were saying were not simply predictions. They were not just foretelling future events. Their speaking of the future was intimately connected to the welfare of the people to whom they were addressing as well as to those who would read their words in future generations.

People tend to derive their understanding of life from their circumstances. If things are going well, then we must be doing what's right. If things are bad, then we tend to seek change to make our lives better. This way of thinking neglects the influences of forces outside of our control. It is a way of thinking that disregards God and our fundamental need to submit to his will. It is a way of thinking that forgets that God is the Ruler of the Universe and of our circumstances.

The prophet comes with a message of God's reality. He cuts through the fog of life's circumstances. He comes to heal our spiritual nearsightedness, bringing into focus the implications of our current way of life.

It is too bad that the prophets are rarely heeded. They are too often seen as party poopers - they are the "glass-is-half-empty" kind of people. But the issue isn't over how positive or negative their message is, but rather over whether or not they are telling the truth.

Discerning the validity of their message isn't really that difficult to do. It is not as if the messages of the biblical prophets came out of nowhere. Their words of warning and promise were firmly founded upon God's earlier revelation to Israel through the Torah. The Torah clearly warned that if the people did not submit to God then they would be in big trouble. That's basically what prophets such as Isaiah were saying. They understood where the hearts of the people of their day were at and knew that they were heading down a destructive road. I don't think they were just figuring it out on their own, however. God enabled them to see what was really going on and where it would lead. Their job, then, was to tell it like it is.

We need people today who, like the prophets of old, are willing to tell it like it is. Even with the threats of global terrorism, world-wide epidemics, and unrest in many places, most of us think everything is just fine, when it is not. If we would be willing to compare our lives with the standards of God in his Word, how would we see the world today? And if we were brave enough to see it, who would be willing to tell it like it is?

TorahBytes: Household Responsibility (Mattot & Masei)

When a young woman still living in her father's house makes a vow to the LORD or obligates herself by a pledge and her father hears about her vow or pledge but says nothing to her, then all her vows and every pledge by which she obligated herself will stand. (Bemidbar / Numbers 30:3,4)

The Torah gives us an interesting perspective on household responsibility. The context of its directives on this issue assumes that a husband and father is to take responsibility for his wife and daughters respectively. Before we get into the main thing I wish to address, I want to mention that, contrary to what some may think, the Torah's understanding of the husband's and father's role in the household in no way degrades the worth of women. In fact the equality of males and females is made clear by the statement that vows made by widows and divorcees are binding (30:9). If women lacked value before God and within Israelite society, then their vows would be worthless or easily deemed invalid. The specific issue we are looking at, namely household responsibility, is not about the worth of individuals, but about the roles pertaining to households, in particular the special role given by God to husbands and fathers.

The Torah teaches that if a wife or daughter makes a vow (a promise to God), and her husband or father hears about it, he has the right to nullify it. But if he says nothing about it, then the vow stands. This clearly outlines for us the delineation of responsibility within the household. It is important to note that if the husband or father says nothing, then the vow is binding. If he nullifies it after a period of time, then "he is responsible for her guilt" (30:15).

I have the impression that we live in a day when husbands are, for the most part, disengaged from family life. Whether or not the husband and father is physically present with his family, fewer and fewer fathers get involved in the aspirations and desires of their wives and daughters. These principles apply to sons as well, though the context here is specifically wives and daughters.

Our passage assumes a certain level of involvement on the part of husbands and fathers. This kind of involvement is not simply about car pooling, family vacations, or other occasions when a man might just be present with his family. This kind of involvement implied by our passage is that when a husband or father is engaged sufficiently to hear and interact with the aspirations and desires of his wife and daughters.

The most crucial thing to understand before we can be the godly husbands and fathers we are called to be is that it is we who bear responsibility before God for our wives and daughters. Husbands and fathers will answer to God for their families. I know this is contrary to what many cultures believe today. I also know that this is contrary to what many people who adhere to the Bible believe today. But if this is the Torah's perspective on the delineation of responsibility in the household and this same perspective is expressed throughout the entire Bible, then accepting our special role of responsibility is necessary if we want to build godly households.

Too many men today, out of fear and intimidation, avoid confronting their families with what they know is right. God calls husbands and fathers to create the kind of boundaries in our homes that will protect our families from harm and lead them effectively in God's ways. This does not mean we run their lives for them or think on their behalf. But when they seek to step outside God's boundaries and we know better, God expects us to speak up. We will answer to God for every time we have failed to do so.

TorahBytes: Life Isn't Just Fun and Games (Pinhas)

"Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you," declares the LORD. (Jeremiah 1:8)

Jeremiah was called by God to be a prophet at a most difficult time in Jewish history. The northern kingdom of Israel had been overrun by the Assyrian empire many years prior and now the southern kingdom of Judah was in the hands of the Babylonian empire. Jeremiah would see the destruction of the temple and the vast majority of his people taken away into exile. God gave him the difficult job of telling the people that this was all due to God's judgment upon them and that they should submit to it. Even though the leadership of his day recognized God's call on his life, they regarded him as a traitor. Jeremiah took no delight in the message he was given to proclaim, but through it all he remained faithful to God and his word.

Jeremiah was at first intimidated by the task God gave him, due to his youth. But God told him not to be afraid, since God himself would be with him and would rescue him. To be honest, I wonder about these words. As the story of Jeremiah's life plays out, he had a pretty hard time of it. Besides having to live through the general hardships of his day, he had to endure the disregard for his message, personal criticism, imprisonment, and forced exile. How could these things happen, if God promised to take care of him? Did God not come through for Jeremiah?

In order to properly answer this question, we need to take a closer look at what God actually promised him and how it related to the difficulties he faced.

God didn't say that Jeremiah would not have a hard time. He said he would be with him and would rescue him. The fact is that even though Jeremiah had a hard life, he was able to remain true to his calling and survive through it all. We don't know the exact circumstance surrounding his death, but the list of kings provided at the beginning of his book makes it clear that he lived a long life.

My difficulty with understanding how God's promises are in keeping with Jeremiah's life has more to do with my personal distaste for hardship. When I read references in the Bible about God's commitment to be with his people forever, I tend to take that to mean that if God is real, and I have a right relationship with him, then my life is going to be comfortable.

I believe that one of the reasons why I think this way is due to some general misnomers I have about life. There's a part of me that believes that life is or should be about fun and games, so when I hear that the God of the Universe is with me, then I expect that things are going to work out the way that I want.

What has taken me many years to grasp is that life is actually a battle. Whatever our circumstances, we are all living in the midst of war - a cosmic battle between the forces of good and evil. It was just more obvious in Jeremiah's case than it might be for most of us, but we all share his call to some extent - the call to stand against the forces of evil, whatever the cost.

Once we can accept that life is not about fun and games, then we can see how much God was with Jeremiah and that he really did rescue him time and time again. And as we are willing to stand in the midst of the battles we face, we too can experience what it means for God to be with us and to be rescued by him.

TorahBytes: The Spiritual Roots of Illicit Behavior (Balak)

While Israel was staying in Shittim, the men began to indulge in sexual immorality with Moabite women, who invited them to the sacrifices to their gods. The people ate and bowed down before these gods. So Israel joined in worshiping the Baal of Peor. And the LORD's anger burned against them. (Bemidbar / Numbers 25:1-3)

The history of the people of Israel is fundamentally a spiritual one. As a nation created as a result of God's promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and then rescued by God from oppression in Egypt, Israel was called to be God's people. According to the Torah, the welfare of the nation would be dependent on its faithfulness to God. Israel was also to be the framework through which God would send the Messiah, the Savior of the whole world. Israel's history has also been designed to help the rest of the world understand spiritual principles.

Whenever Israel would turn to other gods, it would inevitably cause them great trouble. As we read in this week's parsha, before entering the Promised Land, Israel was in the vicinity of the nation of Moab. At some point they joined the Moabites in their worship of the false god, Baal, resulting in the death of thousands of Israelites.

Just prior to this incident, we read how Balak, king of Moab, having heard of Israel's earlier exploits, hired a sorcerer by the name of Balaam to curse the Israelites. God intervened and caused Balaam to bless Israel every time he tried to curse them. We may wonder then why God didn't intervene again in order to prevent Israel from turning to Baal as they did. Balaam's attempt to curse them was completely out of their hands. In that case God foiled the King of Moab's evil scheme. But in the case of the Moabite women, there was something else going on.

As we can see from the verse quoted at the start, Israel's sin was not purely religious. It was spiritual, as I will explain shortly, but not purely religious. It was not as if the people were drawn into simply singing songs to Baal, which would be bad enough, but they also engaged in sexual immorality. It is difficult to tell if they were lured into Baal worship by the advances of the Moabite women or if the sexual activity was part and parcel of the worship. Either way, unlike the earlier attempted spiritual attack, the men of Israel willfully engaged in illicit sexual activity.

What isn't obvious from the immediate context is it was Balaam that instigated this sexual activity (See Bemidbar / Number 31:15-17). What he could not accomplish through direct spiritual attack, he did through the advances of the Moabite women.

The lure of illicit sexual activity continues to be a snare to people today. The connection with Baal worship and the resulting destruction should warn us of the seriousness of such activity. Even though secular societies rarely, if ever, acknowledge the spiritual aspect of immoral behavior, that doesn't mean that it is not rooted in evil spiritual forces. The tactics of evil have not changed in all these centuries. Until we accept how serious sexual immorality really is and what its roots really are, the forces of evil will continue to overcome us.

TorahBytes: You Don't Have To Do Stupid Things (Hukkat)

And Yiftah (English: Jephthah) made a vow to the LORD: "If you give the Ammonites into my hands, whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me when I return in triumph from the Ammonites will be the LORD's, and I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering." (Shoftim / Judges 11:30,31)

The biblical book of Shoftim (English: Judges) includes some "interesting" stories and characters. It underscores for us the interpretive principle of prescriptive vs., descriptive passages. Prescriptive passages are those that provide general directives or life principles to live by, such as "Honor your mother and your father" or "To give is better than to receive." Descriptive passages are those which simply describe an incident or provide dialogue without necessarily encouraging the reader to follow suit. This isn't always straightforward, which gives us the opportunity to ponder over these passages as we seek God to speak to us through them.

Shoftim, is especially challenging in this regard. Several of its characters who seem to be the heroes of the stories, engage in some disturbing behaviors. Since these characters appear to be divinely inspired to save the day, so to speak, the reader may be inclined to think that these behaviors are acceptable.

When this passage was chosen to be part of the annual cycle of readings, it was decided to stop the reading at the point where the hero wins the day, which leaves out the disturbing part. Maybe the conclusion of the story was just too embarrassing or too difficult to handle. Yiftah promised God that if God would give him victory in battle, then, upon his return home, he would sacrifice whatever came out of the door of his house to meet him. That much we learn from this week's passage. But what is not included is what it was that met him upon his return. I don't know what Yiftah was thinking when he made his promise in the first place. Did he think he would be initially met by one of his goats or sheep? As it turned out it was his daughter. So what does he do? Does he say to himself, "Oy veh! Am I meshuge (English: crazy person)! Forgive me O Lord for making such a rash vow!"? No, instead he tells his daughter how bad he feels that he has to go through with his promise!

I could see some supposedly spiritually minded people attempting to justify Yiftah's actions. After all it was God to whom he made this promise. Of course his daughter's death was tragic, but "God is God," they might say. But what does God think about murder and human sacrifice? While we should keep our promises even when it is extremely difficult, it is never to late to stop ourselves from doing stupid things.

One of the things about descriptive passages, even though they are not prescriptive, is that we are still to learn from them. The story of Yiftah and his daughter shows us how someone could be chosen by God and inspired by him to do great things, yet still say and do some of the most ridiculous and destructive things in the entire Bible.

What lesson should we learn from this? Are we to learn that if we are really spritual, then we can get away with murder, both literally and figuratively, or should we stop and realize that being spritual doesn't autmactically prevent anyone from doing stupid things? I suggest that as soon as we realize that we have gone down a foolish road - no matter how we got there or how far down that road we are - it is never too late to change course.

TorahBytes: Do We Dare Dream? (Korah)

Moses also said to Korah, "Now listen, you Levites! Isn't it enough for you that the God of Israel has separated you from the rest of the Israelite community and brought you near himself to do the work at the LORD's tabernacle and to stand before the community and minister to them? He has brought you and all your fellow Levites near himself, but now you are trying to get the priesthood too. It is against the LORD that you and all your followers have banded together. Who is Aaron that you should grumble against him?" (Bemidbar / Numbers 16:8-11).

How do you like your position in life? Do you love it? Do you hate it? Maybe you never think about it. Maybe you think about it all the time. Do you have a dream? Do you dare dream? I hear a lot about daring to dream. Some people think that everyone has a dream - that each and every person deep inside has a yearning to do some great significant thing. Some people call it a destiny, a chosen path that we need to find in order to become all we were intended to be.

As for realizing those dreams or finding our destiny, some say that we can do anything, if we would only put our minds to it - that there's nothing we can't do, if we want it badly enough.

I don't know if that's how the Torah sees it, however. Were the Israelites stuck in oppressive bondage for all those years just because they all failed to want freedom badly enough? Then there was Moses. He was a man of destiny alright. How else can we explain his adoption by Pharaoh's daughter after being left in the Nile to die? We also know he was a man of destiny, because we know the rest of the story. It seems that he knew that he was a man of destiny early on. He had a dream of delivering his people from their bondage. But his dream became a nightmare when he killed an Egyptian, his people rejected his help, Pharaoh sought his life, and he ended up living forty years of his life as a fugitive in the wilderness.

Do you think he held on to his dream all those years? By the time God called him to the task, it doesn't look like it. He resisted the call of God, who had to persuade him to fulfill his destiny. This doesn't sound like the stuff of motivation seminars to me.

Now let’s look at a real dreamer. His name is Korah. His heart's desire was to be in the inner circle of the spiritual life of Israel. As a Levite, he was born into a certain level of spiritual privilege, but he wanted more. He wanted to be a priest (Hebrew: cohen), just like Aaron and his sons. Where did his dream get him? The earth swallowed him up. So much for dreams. Perhaps he had a subterranean destiny. Perhaps not.

I don’t know if everyone has a dream or a destiny. We read about many people in the Bible who did. Besides Moses, there was Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Samuel, David, Solomon, and others. But everybody? Some people have dramatic encounters with God through dreams and visions. Others, like Korah are simply born into their calling. Perhaps the burning in your heart is the fire of God calling you to great things, maybe it’s your discontent. How do we know?

God knows. I don't think there is any easy way to figure this out, but God knows. All we can do is be open to him - although even when we aren't, we may have a Moses experience. But unless we submit ourselves to God and entrust our lives to him, we may end up with a Korah experience.

The key? Here are the words of a dreamer, Solomon:

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. (Mishlei / Proverbs 3:5,6)

TorahBytes: The Fear Is Real (Shela Lekha)

That night all the people of the community raised their voices and wept aloud. All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole assembly said to them, "If only we had died in Egypt! Or in this desert! Why is the LORD bringing us to this land only to let us fall by the sword? Our wives and children will be taken as plunder. Wouldn't it be better for us to go back to Egypt?" And they said to each other, "We should choose a leader and go back to Egypt." (Bemidbar / Numbers 14:1-4)

I don't criticize the people who make up the negative examples (of which there are many) in the Bible. While I would like to think that I would be a Moses confronting Pharaoh or a David challenging Goliath, I fear that I am far more like the complainers and grumblers referred to in this week’s parsha.

It would be nice to think that after seeing God's power expressed so dramatically through the plagues and the crossing of the Red Sea, and after delighting in his miraculous provision of food and water, that when the time came to enter the Promised Land, I would be ready go. Walled cities? No problem! Giants, armed to the teeth? No big deal. With the God of Abraham on our side, it would be like cutting melted butter!

Weren't Joshua and Caleb like that? They were among those who had spied out the land. They were confident. Even though the others brought back an intimidating report and even though they saw all the same things they did, Joshua and Caleb believed God would help them. I would like to be like them. But I have my doubts.

It's so easy to boast about faith in theory. It’s another thing to be confident when facing true danger. It's easy to pretend confidence. It's another think to demonstrate real courage. It's one thing to be calm when there's nothing to fear. It's another thing to stand strong when facing the impossible.

The problem wasn't that the people were scared. It's that they didn't submit their fear to God. When Joshua and Caleb urged them to not give into their fears, but to trust God, they actually wanted to kill them.

We cannot learn the lessons from other people's failures until we can accept that we are prone to the same kind of failure. I wonder how many challenges God has brought into our lives that we have rejected outright due to fear. How many times have we let fear dictate our decisions, rather than submitting to God's direction?

It may be nice to think that we are like Joshua and Caleb, but the sooner we realize we are acting like the others, the sooner we will be able to face the fearful challenges God brings into our lives.

TorahBytes: Healthy Community (Be-ha'alotkha)

The rabble with them began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, "If only we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost - also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic. But now we have lost our appetite; we never see anything but this manna!"...The LORD said to Moses: "Bring me seventy of Israel's elders who are known to you as leaders and officials among the people. Have them come to the Tent of Meeting, that they may stand there with you. I will come down and speak with you there, and I will take of the Spirit that is on you and put the Spirit on them. They will help you carry the burden of the people so that you will not have to carry it alone." (Bemidbar / Numbers 11:4-6,16,17)

God's desire for people is to live in healthy community. Throughout the Scriptures, it is understood that God's people would live as family with God himself being our Father. Community as family is expressed in a variety of ways, from living with parents and siblings to being part of a clan, a tribe, and the nation. This reality is expanded in the New Covenant era as we become family with other followers of the Messiah.

Sadly it is too common that we profess love for the community, while we are disconnected from the individuals who make up that community. But this certainly was never God's intention when he designed humanity to be in community. Should we therefore accept our dysfunctional communities because they are the norm, or should we strive for the kind of healthy community that God wants for us?

This week's parsha (Torah portion) provides us with one of the things that is needed in the establishment of healthy community. A discontented group within the community of Israel expressed their discontent with their food situation. God miraculously provided a substance called "manna" which they collected daily. After eating manna for a couple of years they understandably got tired of it. I don't think that being bored with the same food day after day was the problem as much as it was their attitude and the expression of that attitude. The discontent of one group was contagious and affected the whole community.

That one discontented subgroup could so affect the whole, is a sign of communal dysfunctionality. This all became too much for Moses to bear. So like every other problem he faced, he went to God in prayer about it. God's answer was to broaden Moses' leadership to a group of 70 recognized elders, who would then be spiritually equipped by God to share Moses' burden.

It is interesting that in the New Covenant era inaugurated by Yeshua, the leadership model for congregations is teams of elders, that is men recognized as elders by the community and who have been spiritually equipped by God for leadership.

Qualified elders are key in the establishment of healthy community. To neglect God-ordained structure is to invite dysfunctionality. Too many New Covenant communities are suffering the ill effects of unhealthy community, but are unwilling to submit to God's structure. Instead of following God's directives, we look for ways to cope with our destructive behavior. It needn't be this way, however. Healthy community is possible, but only as we cooperate with God and his plan for us.

TorahBytes: Our Lives Affect Others (Naso)

A certain man of Zorah, named Manoah, from the clan of the Danites, had a wife who was sterile and remained childless. The angel of the LORD appeared to her and said, "You are sterile and childless, but you are going to conceive and have a son. Now see to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink and that you do not eat anything unclean, because you will conceive and give birth to a son. No razor may be used on his head, because the boy is to be a Nazirite, set apart to God from birth, and he will begin the deliverance of Israel from the hands of the Philistines." (Shoftim / Judges 13:2-5)

The story of Samson is one of the more troubling stories in the Bible. It is troubling because, on one hand it seems that Samson can be called a Bible hero, yet his life was not an exemplary one. Those familiar with the Scriptures are aware that even some of the noblest of biblical personalities had their share of personal issues, but Samson is extreme.

One of the lessons we can learn from his life is that just because a person has the call of God upon them as well as an experience of God's presence and power, doesn't automatically mean that they will live good lives and make wise choices. While God used Samson against Israel's enemies at the time, his tragic end demonstrates where careless living will take us.

How we live our lives makes a difference. It makes a difference to ourselves and to those around us - not to mention our relationship with God. The tendency to do whatever we feel like at the moment is far more destructive than we care to admit.

Samson's mother was to learn this even before Samson was born. When God revealed to her that she would give birth to a special son, she was given specific instructions as to what she was to eat and drink. It was essential that she limit her own freedom in order to ensure her son's fulfillment of his calling.

Her response to God's instructions would make all the difference. Her personal decisions would have a direct impact on her yet-to-be-born son's life - and upon the welfare of her people.

I don't think that Samson's mother's experience is that unique. Obviously there are elements of her story that are particular to her and her son, but the general principle applies to all of us. Samson's mother had to live for someone other than herself. Her decision to do just that set the stage for what God wanted to do in her nation.

How each of one us lives our lives affects others far more than we realize. Unlike Samson's mother we don't usually know exactly whom we affect in this way and how we affect them, but we do - for good or for harm.

TorahBytes: God's True Identity (Bemidbar)

"In that day," declares the LORD, "you will call me 'my husband'; you will no longer call me 'my master.' I will remove the names of the Baals from her lips; no longer will their names be invoked." (Hosea 2:18,19; English: 2:16,17)

My family and I are fans of C.S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia, a series of well-known children's fantasy books. In these stories people from our world have adventures in a parallel world. Masterfully written, Lewis weaves spiritual insights throughout these books, some of which have helped me to better grasp certain biblical concepts.

However, there is one particular concept Lewis seems to espouse that I take exception to. It is found in the last of the series, entitled The Last Battle. This story pictures the transition from life as we know it, to the age to come. The allegiance of the various characters is basically split between the messianic figure Aslan and an evil god, named Tash. It is only those who have served Aslan who will inherit eternal life in the age to come.

As it turns out one individual who, as far as everyone knows, including himself, has served Tash his whole life, is welcomed into the new creation. The explanation given is that those who have served Tash with noble and good deeds were, without knowing it, actually serving Aslan, while those who, in Aslan's name, lived cruel lives were actually serving Tash.

If this is Lewis's understanding of who, in the end, is truly accepted by God, then it expresses one biblical truth, while missing the mark in another. Certainly throughout history there have been many who have abused the name of the true God for their own evil purposes. Some of these people have put on a good front and others have not. Lewis is right that those who do evil in God's name are actually standing against him. These people should not be surprised when they are rejected by God in the end.

But Lewis has erred in his assertion that allegiance to the true God will be judged solely on the basis of people's intensions, faithfulness and good deeds. Whether or not people clearly and openly profess faith in the true God is therefore irrelevant according to "The Last Battle."

God is more than a spiritual concept; he is an actual personal entity with whom we need to be in proper relationship. God's identity is revealed to us very specifically. He is the God of Abraham , Isaac and Jacob - the God who led his people out of slavery in Egypt. It was essential that his people learn to in no way confuse him with other gods. He knew that if they made that confusion, they would engage in all sorts of destructive behaviors and would break loyalty to him.

The fact is the people of Israel continually engaged in this very confusion. They regularly integrated the spirituality of the nations around them with their service to the true God.

This week's Haftarah is taken from the writings of the prophet Hosea. Through him God foretold of a time when this confusion would be no more. Baal was a popular false god in those days. Throughout Israelite history the people were drawn into Baal worship. Through the passage quoted above we see that the true God was being called by the name of "Baal." The reference to "my master" is actually "my Baal." To the people of that day, they were one and the same. The day would come, however, when this confusion would be broken for good.

God's true identity is found in who he really is and not simply through our intentions. Our acknowledgement of his true identity is an essential part of being in right relationship with him. While true faith is not just a matter of using correct religious labels, to disregard the way in which God has revealed himself is to disregard him.

TorahBytes: Author's Intent (Be-har & Be-hukkotai)

Do men make their own gods? Yes, but they are not gods! (Jeremiah 16:20)

I have a friend who is a university English professor. I was somewhat surprised when he explained to me that the general approach to studying literature today disregards the author's intent. Instead, the goal of literature is to get in touch with what the text means to the reader. Personal interpretation has become infinitely more important than what the writer of the work had attempted to communicate.

Maybe I am overly influenced by my own upbringing (elementary and secondary education in Canada starting in the early 1960's through the mid-1970's), but I thought if there was some way to ascertain the intent of a written work, then that would establish its meaning. I can accept that I may be affected by the work in a way that the writer didn't anticipate. But that is more a matter of application, not interpretation.

The reluctance today to seek original intent stems from the popular philosophy of relativism. According to this worldview, life is what you perceive it to be. There is no actual reality to get in touch with. Everything then becomes a matter of perception alone.

I find this way of thinking lacks integrity. Do people who claim to think like this actually expect others to treat their communications in the same way? If I receive a written message from someone, is it for me discover what it means to me or is it assumed that I will interpret the message in keeping with the author's intent.

The sooner I come to grips with the way things really are, the sooner I will live life in the way God intended me to. The sooner I adjust my perceptions to reality, the better it will be for me and for others in my life.

The words of Jeremiah from this week's Haftarah, confront relativism. People make gods; they create values and ideals; they establish principles and ways of thinking. But no matter how elaborate or impressive the things that we make might be, that which is false is false. Only what is really true is true.

A false god is a false god. It doesn't matter if it has been in the family line for generations or if others paid a high price for it. It is still false. It may take a long time before the truth is known, but its day of reckoning will come.

What I believe or you believe about life or God or truth or whatever, means nothing apart from its reality. Do not believe the lie that truth can't be known. The only ones who want you to believe that, are those who also want you to believe their lies.

Like all literature, the universe too has an author - an author who designed it with an intent - an intent that can be known. Whatever meaning people derive from the universe, it is about time we came to grips with its author's intent.

TorahBytes: Spiritual Cleansing (Emor)

Say to them: "For the generations to come, if any of your descendants is ceremonially unclean and yet comes near the sacred offerings that the Israelites consecrate to the LORD, that person must be cut off from my presence. I am the LORD." (Vayikra / Leviticus 22:3)

As God's creatures, we were made to know him intimately. The relational aspect of our being human, reflects the profound relational component of life, the greatest of which is our relationship with God. That this relationship is not what it should be, is life's greatest tragedy. It is the primary cause of our deepest longings and fuels all other forms of relational brokenness, whether that be with our fellow human beings, the animal kingdom, the earth's environment, or the rest of the universe.

The human drive to pursue various forms of intimate relationships is evidence of this brokenness. We know things are not what they should be. We want real, loving, meaningful relationships. We want to be at home in the universe. We know that the troubles we experience on a regular basis, including pain, disease, and disaster of all kinds, are to be resisted and overcome. To give in to the brokenness of life is to give up.

The Torah helps us to understand the cause of our brokenness in the hope that we will discover God's remedy. Until we can accept this fundamental problem and its cause, we will have great difficulty grasping the remedy.

The Torah illustrates for us the separation between ourselves and God, while at the same time underscoring the need for an intimate relationship with him. We see this, for example, in the priests of Israel. Their very existence makes it clear that the people were to draw near to God. Yet in so many ways we see through the priests the reality of the great gap between us and him. While the priests had the great privilege of entering God's inner sanctum on behalf of the rest of us, if they failed to meet the detailed requirements, they risked death.

Israel was reminded over and over again that while we could have relationship with God, we were not fit for such a relationship. We are unclean. We need cleansing. The good news is that if the priests would be properly prepared, they could approach God without fear of death.

Like the priests of old we cannot approach God unless we are ceremonially clean. If we are clean, we can approach God without fear of death. But unlike the priests of old, we no longer have the Torah-prescribed ceremonies. Instead we have what the Torah anticipated: the Messiah. Through him and the cleansing he provides, we are able to approach God in a far more intimate fashion than the ancient priests. It is through the Messiah that we can have the kind of relationship with God which our hearts so long for.

TorahBytes: God's Standards for All (Aharei Mot & Kedoshim)

Do not defile yourselves in any of these ways, because this is how the nations that I am going to drive out before you became defiled. (Vayikra / Leviticus 18:24)

The Torah (the five books of Moses) is not simply a collection of dos and don'ts; it gives us God's perspective on life. The word "Torah," often translated as "law" could be understood more correctly as "direction." It shows us the way of life. Some of its teaching is explicit, such as certain clear moral directives, while much of its teaching is implicit, as we learn about God and life through good and bad behavioral examples or indirect statements. The verse just quoted is one of those indirect statements. This statement is part of the conclusion of a detailed list of immoral behaviors in which the people of Israel were forbidden to engage. The implications of this statement are essential in helping us understand how God views immorality among people in general.

Among some people who claim to believe the Bible, there is a tendency to avoid imposing biblical standards upon the society at large. In order to do this subject justice, we would need to discuss what "impose" really means in this context. In this brief discussion we don't have the time and space to get into every aspect. Before I delve into an aspect of this that I think is one of the most foundational, I do want to state that I don't believe that the biblical mandate is fulfilled in creating a religious political state. Faith cannot be legislated. But that doesn't preclude the need to address moral issues. All governments legislate morality; it is just a question of what kind of morality it will legislate.

Returning to the particular aspect of this issue that this week's passage addresses, note that God told the people of Israel that the peoples they were to displace in the Promised Land were being judged by God for the immoral behaviors listed. We don't know if and when God may have communicated morality to the peoples of the world. It is possible that no such communication was ever given. Yet this did not prevent God from calling these peoples to account for failing to meet God's standards.

This tells us that the God of the Universe responds to the behavior of people whoever they might be and whatever they might know. We who have received biblical revelation know what people in general do not know - and that is that God will judge them for failing to meet his standards. How then can we not communicate this truth to people? Whether or not the people among whom we live believe the Scriptures or have any concept of the true God at all, they and their children will benefit by following God's standards. Their failure to do so will lead them to a fate similar to those referred to in our passage.

It would take a fair amount of study to determine which of God's standards should apply to societies in general. But that some of his standards do apply is evident by this and other biblical passages. Of course the most important of these standards is the need for all people to trust in the Messiah. But personal faith is not the only aspect of life that God gives attention to, so neither should we.

TorahBytes: Healthy Skepticism (Tazri'a & Mezora)

Go and find out what has happened. (2 Melachim / 2 Kings 7:14)

It has been said that if something is too good to be true, it probably isn't. Well, thankfully that is not always the case. From time to time things do happen that are truly wonderful. When we first hear about things like this, they may seem literally unbelievable, but sometimes we just have to believe the unbelievable.

This is what happened during a most difficult time in the days of Elie-sha (English: Elisha), the successor to Elie-yahu (English: Elijah). The capital city of the northern kingdom of Israel was under siege resulting in severe famine. Elie-sha predicted by the word of God that prosperity would return to the city within one day - something that in the natural seemed completely impossible.

There were four men afflicted with leprosy who used to hang out by the city gate. They decided that since death was inevitable, they may as well surrender to the enemy in the slight hope that their lives would be spared. But when they arrived at the enemy camp, they discovered it completely deserted and all the enemy’s belongings still there, including food, drink, animals, clothes, gold, and silver. At first the four men began to take things for themselves alone without telling anyone else, but we read,

Then they said to each other, "We're not doing right. This is a day of good news and we are keeping it to ourselves. If we wait until daylight, punishment will overtake us. et's go at once and report this to the royal palace." (2 Melachim / 2 Kings 7:9)

So they went back to the city and announced their great discovery. When the news got to the king, he didn't believe it right away. He thought it was a trap. So one of his officers suggested that he send some men to go to check out the situation, which they did. Their investigation confirmed what the four men had said. As a result the city instantly went from disaster to prosperity.
I don't blame the king for his skepticism. His reaction was reasonable. The city had been completely crippled to the point of starvation by the enemy army. What responsible leader would immediately accept the report of four outcasts? Even if he fully respected Elie-sha's prediction from the day before, there had been no indication that this is how Elie-sha's words would be fulfilled. It is right and good for leaders to be cautious when confronted by fantastic reports such as the one he heard.

That's not the end of the story, however. The king was willing to check out the report even though it was unbelievable. Once the facts were in, the king didn't continue in his skepticism. The city was then able to enter into the miraculous turn of events.

I get the impression that some people think that true faith never includes intelligent skepticism. By intelligent skepticism, I mean a good and healthy understanding of life that prevents us from being drawn into foolishness and falsehood. The king understood the strategies of armies. He knew that just because their enemies seemed to be nowhere in sight, they may have been hiding in order to stage an attack.

But there is another kind of skepticism, which we might call philosophical skepticism. This is when we keep committed to our skepticism even when the evidence shows otherwise. Though the king had prejudged the situation at first, once the investigation had been made, he was willing to change his opinion.

We should never be scared to question the unbelievable. When we hear of something that goes against everything we understand to be true and right, there is nothing wrong about being hesitant to accept it. But it takes humility and honesty to adjust our opinion once the evidence is in.

TorahBytes: Avoiding Disaster (Shemini)

They set the ark of God on a new cart and brought it from the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill. Uzzah and Ahio, sons of Abinadab, were guiding the new cart with the ark of God on it, and Ahio was walking in front of it. (2 Samuel 6:3,4)

The ark of God referred to in this passage is also known as the Ark of the Covenant. It was a gold-covered chest that was to be kept in the most sacred area of the Mishkan (English: Tabernacle) and later, the Temple. Some time before the time period of this passage, it had been taken into battle and captured by the Philistines. The Philistines placed it in the temple of their god, Dagon. After several destructive occurrences, the Philistines discerned that the God of Israel was displeased with their keeping the ark, so they returned it. It remained at the house of Abinadab until after David became king and eventually sought to bring it to Jerusalem.

This happened at a time when things were going well for the nation of Israel. The return of the ark was one of several positive signs of those times. The return of the ark was accompanied with much joy and celebration. But at some point the oxen stumbled, and Uzzah, one of the sons of Abinadab, grabbed the ark. No one but the priests of Israel was ever to touch this most sacred object, and so as a result, God struck him dead. After this, David wasn't willing to take the ark any further. It would be three months before David would again attempt to bring it to Jerusalem.

We read in a parallel account of this story that when David made his second attempt to bring the ark, the method of transport was very different from that used in the disastrous first attempt: "Then David said, 'No one but the Levites may carry the ark of God, because the LORD chose them to carry the ark of the LORD and to minister before him forever.'" (1 Divrei Yamim / 1 Chronicles 15:2)

That only men from the tribe of Levi should carry the ark was established in the Torah (see Bemidbar / Numbers 4:15 and Devarim / Deuteronomy 10:8).

Why David neglected this instruction the first time is not stated, but there is something in this from which we may be able to glean an important lesson. When the Philistines returned the ark to Israel, they had come up with an elaborate method that they thought would be best. One aspect of that was transporting it on a new cart. In that case the transport of the ark went according to plan with no mishaps (see 1 Samuel 5 & 6).

While we certainly don't know for sure, it is conceivable that David, knowing that the Philistines had successfully delivered the ark the way they did, sought in some way to copy their methodology. Even if he wasn't aware of it, his method was unintentionally patterned after theirs to some extent.

The Philistines didn't have God's revelation of the Torah, while Israel did. God showed favor toward the Philistines in their humility and respect toward the ark. He did not hold them accountable for the directives he had given to Israel. On the other hand, Israel's neglect of God's clear directives proved to be disastrous for them.

I wonder how many times we determine what is good and right for ourselves by looking at the lives of others. We tend to assume that if good results occur when others do what they do, then we too will experience the same results. But God doesn't treat everyone the same. He holds each of us accountable according to what he has revealed to us.

It also seems that many think we can experience the successes of others by copying their methods, but life doesn't work that way. What God wants is for each one of us to know him personally and to allow him to instruct us in his ways, seeking him for wisdom in how to live our lives. This is not to say it is we ourselves who determine our own truth. God has established his Truth through the Scriptures. What we need to do is to be careful not to filter God's truth through the experiences of others. Instead we need to allow God through his Word to directly impact our lives. As we do that we will avoid many unnecessary disasters.

TorahBytes: Modern Slavery (Pesach)

This is what the Sovereign LORD says: O my people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. (Ezekiel 37:12)

March 25 of this year was the 200th anniversary of the abolishing of the slave trade by Britain. It is good and right that many at this time are bringing to our attention the fact of modern slavery. This is similar to what we experience at Pesach (English: Passover), which begins this week (starting the evening of April 2). As we remember our own slavery in Egypt 3500 years ago, we are called to not only appreciate our freedom, but are also challenged to have compassion for those who still remain in bondage today.

Bondage takes several forms. This is not to detract from the need to confront the evils of modern slavery in the world today. Far from it. For perhaps if we take the reality of the general bondage of the human race more seriously, we will find that we will be able to more effectively deal with the issue of modern slavery. A closer look at the celebration of Pesach is instructive in this regard.

The Pesach celebration is not only a remembrance of our deliverance from Egypt. At the time when much of the symbolism of the traditional ceremonial meal (or "Seder" as it is called) was developed, the Jewish people were, yet again, in an oppressive situation; this time under the control of the Roman Empire. They understood that even though years before they had known deliverance at the hand of God and that since then God had rescued them over and over again from the oppression of various foreign powers, there was to be a much greater deliverance to come. Not only were they expecting God to remove the oppression of Rome, but that a greater change - a more profound rescue - a spiritual deliverance - was to come.

As we read at the start, the prophet Ezekiel, during the time of the Babylonian exile over five hundred years before the coming of Yeshua the Messiah, predicted that the return of the people of Israel to the Land of Israel was somehow connected to a greater spiritual experience. This experience was likened to being raised from the dead. God showed Ezekiel the true condition of his people. Not only were they cast out from their God-given home, but they were actually spiritually dead. But God, who delivered the nation from literal slavery years before would eventually deliver them from spiritual slavery. The Jewish people during the days of the Roman Empire rightly expected God to fulfill Ezekiel's words. They also rightly understood that their deliverance from spiritual slavery would only come about by the hand of the Messiah - something that many Jewish people of that day did experience just as many more Jews and non-Jews since then have also experienced.

It is death and everything that goes with it (sickness, injury, oppression, depression, relational dysfunction, etc.) that continues to hold people in its grip. Slavery is but a symptom of the bondage that affects us all. This bondage is not an illusion or a state of mind, though it affects our states of mind as it does every other area of our life. This is the human predicament. And it is this predicament from which God through Yeshua has determined to free us.

At Pesach we encounter the reality of the God who delivers his people - a reality we may all experience today. But in order to experience that reality, we must be willing to acknowledge our own modern day bondage. It is when we are able to admit that we truly are in bondage, that we are in a place where God can rescue us. And once we experience that rescue, we are in the place where God can, through us, rescue others from whatever their bondage might be.