TorahBytes: The Key to Spiritual Riches (Terumah & Rosh Hodesh)

Thus says the LORD: "Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool; what is the house that you would build for me, and what is the place of my rest? All these things my hand has made, and so all these things came to be, declares the LORD. But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word." (Isaiah 66:1, 2; ESV)

When Solomon dedicated the Temple in Jerusalem, he prayed,

But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you; how much less this house that I have built! Yet have regard to the prayer of your servant and to his plea, O LORD my God, listening to the cry and to the prayer that your servant prays before you this day, that your eyes may be open night and day toward this house, the place of which you have said, 'My name shall be there,' that you may listen to the prayer that your servant offers toward this place. (1 Melachim / 1 Kings 8:27-30; ESV)

Solomon in his day understood what God would say many years later through the prophet Isaiah: that God cannot be contained by a man-made house. While the Temple was central to the life of the nation of Israel and would eventually become a source of pride, virtually taking God's place in the minds and hearts of the people, Solomon himself understood its intended function as representing God's presence among the people.

But a source of pride it did become and so it was necessary for God through Isaiah to remind the nation that the existence of the Temple was not proof positive that they were in good stead with him. God's regard for the people was not based on the Temple, but upon their relationship with him - a relationship based upon a certain kind of heart attitude. This kind of person is described by Isaiah as "he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word."

This description is reminiscent of Isaiah's own experience when God appeared to him as recorded near the beginning of his book (see Isaiah 6). When he was drawn in to witness the heavenly worship scene, he became a most broken man - a man most unfit to speak God's word to the people. And it was because he was humble enough to recognize the reality of his condition before God, that God was able to equip him to speak on his behalf.

The description of the type of person that God regards is one that most people would resist. What is translated here as "humble and contrite" is the usual way to describe the poor, the needy, and the afflicted. These are those who are at the mercy of their circumstances, their oppressors, and their environment. They have no power and influence and there is nothing they can do about it. But by adding "in spirit" most likely denotes that these people are not afflicted in the natural, though they might be that as well. This is a description of people who are stricken in their hearts, people who see themselves as most needy in their spiritual state, just like Isaiah, those who tremble at God's word.

The people whom God regards are those who are keenly aware of their constant need of him. No matter how confident they may be in their relationship with him, that confidence never crosses into self-confidence as evidenced by their ongoing dependency on him and their continual openness to his correction and teaching.

It is so easy for us to "temple-ize" the work of God in our lives, where we regard that which we have learned in the past as his final word upon which we focus our lives. Our hearts become sealed in the concrete of our perceptions and find comfort in predictability and easy-(or not-so-easy-)to-define formulas.

To be in that place is to lose sight of who God is or, rather, to lose sight of God altogether. Just as the Temple of old could not contain the Creator of the Universe, we need to recognize that our perceptions of God, no matter how good, correct, and helpful they may be can never fully contain him. No matter how well off we may be spiritually, compared to his riches, we are all just spiritual paupers in great need of him. Once we are able to truly acknowledge how spiritually needy we really are, we will be in a place where we can get to know God as never before.

TorahBytes: Liability (Mishpatim)

When men quarrel and one strikes the other with a stone or with his fist and the man does not die but takes to his bed, then if the man rises again and walks outdoors with his staff, he who struck him shall be clear; only he shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall have him thoroughly healed. (Shemot / Exodus 21:18, 19; ESV)

The wisdom of God regarding liability in physical conflicts is clear: wrongdoers are not to be held responsible for more than the harm caused, but are responsible for both the lost wages of the injured party and for the cost of healing. Following God's directive on such matters contributes to a healthy thriving community.

Some people would rather address the issue of liability by proclaiming that fighting is wrong and ignore it. Others insist that the New Covenant approach contradicts the Torah and places all burden of crime on the victim. I am aware of the Messiah's teaching on "turn the other cheek" and what Paul wrote against lawsuits:

To have lawsuits at all with one another is already a defeat for you. Why not rather suffer wrong? Why not rather be defrauded? But you yourselves wrong and defraud—even your own brothers! (1 Corinthians 6:7, 8; ESV) 

What the Messiah and Paul are teaching have to do with personal conflicts, not the establishment of godly laws governing a society. Sadly wrongs do happen to people and we will not always see justice in our personal conflicts. The Messiah, through his life, teaching, death, and resurrection, shows us how to handle being wronged. Paul is simply applying Yeshua's teaching and example to the life of a most dysfunctional congregation in the ancient Greek town of Corinth.

The need to learn to suffer wrong is not to be twisted into a societal dictum that gives wrongdoers free reign to abuse others. Even if the Messiah's "turn the other cheek" means that we should never speak up for ourselves when wronged (which I doubt is the intent), this is not a directive for people in authority to impose such an idea upon their people, whether those authorities are government officials, congregational leaders, or parents. When one of our children punches his little brother or sister, Yeshua does not expect us to get the two of them together and practice "turn the other cheek". While this might be a time to learn forgiveness (which is a different issue), it is also an opportunity for the wrongdoer to learn the principle of liability. In the same way congregational leaders and government officials would do well to follow God's ways to protect the innocent by ensuring that wrongdoers bear the responsibility of their actions.

TorahBytes: Presuppositions (Yitro)

In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called to another and said: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!" And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. And I said: "Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!" (Isaiah 6:1-5; ESV)

I have heard it said that Isaiah's vision of God, even though it is found in the sixth chapter of his book, must have occurred before he began his prophetic ministry. I can understand why. It is in this experience that Isaiah receives his marching orders and therefore serves the purpose of an introduction. Another clue that suggests this took place before he ever spoke to the people on God's behalf is his reaction. First, it devastated him: "Woe is me! For I am lost", which is not something we would expect from a faithful servant of God. Second, he confessed to have "unclean lips" just like the rest of his people. What kind of prophet of God has unclean lips? I would propose: a genuine one.

While it is possible that Isaiah's vision is set out of sequence, is it necessary that his dramatic experience had to come first before he took up his prophetic vocation? That assumption says more about our presuppositions of how God works than truly grappling with what is going on here.

I am aware of the many biblical accounts of people to whom God appeared and/or spoke to before they began their divine task. But there are also people that God appeared and/or spoke to well into their ministry. So why can't it be that Isaiah is an example of the latter? Well, as I already mentioned, the nature of the vision and the level of interaction is so foundational both in terms of Isaiah's personal spiritual state and the scope of the mission to which he was called, it is difficult to think of this coming to him midstream.

But why not? Why do we assume that Isaiah must have had all this in place prior to the beginning his work? Many people hearing or reading this are engaged in some sort of work for God. Do we believe that we are completely spiritual and that the scope of our ministry is perfectly defined? Oh, but we are not Isaiah, we might say. We cannot compare our callings to his. Why not? How different are we from him really? Isaiah, as were all the significant biblical characters, was a human being just like us, serving the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as we are called to do. Does it sound that far fetched that this great prophet of God might discover that he is not as spiritual as he thought he was and that he may not have yet fully grasped the scope of his calling?

Isaiah wasn't alone in his need to grow in his faith and work. All through Abraham's life God expanded his understanding of what was being promised to him and how it was to work out. It took Jacob years to become a true believer. Moses had a lot to learn before he was ready to assume his leadership role and even then the challenges that he faced forced him to draw closer and closer to God. David's whole life was one of getting to know God better. Some of his personal weaknesses did not rise to the surface until after God used him in very significant ways.

God uses imperfect vessels. He doesn't perfect us prior to his using us. When God calls us unto a task, he doesn't usually give us all the details. So then let us not presume that whatever understanding we currently have of God, our relationship to him, or the nature of the work to which he calls us, is complete.

God may not appear to or speak to us in the same manner as he did Isaiah, but let's be careful not to let our presuppositions about God and how he deals with us prevent him from working in our lives.

TorahBytes: Don't Refuse God's Commandments (Be-Shallah)

On the seventh day some of the people went out to gather, but they found none. And the LORD said to Moses, "How long will you refuse to keep my commandments and my laws?" (Shemot / Exodus 16:27, 28; ESV)

These words refer to the failure on the part of some of the Israelites regarding God's instructions about the gathering of manna. Manna was the miraculous bread-like substance that God provided for the people of Israel during their forty years of wilderness wanderings. Each morning the people were to gather only the amount necessary for their family. If they would collect too much it would go bad by the next day. The only exception was on the sixth day of the week (modern day Friday), when they were to collect twice as much so that they would have enough for Shabbat, the seventh day, when there would be no manna.

But some of the people didn't obey the Lord's words and went to gather on Shabbat anyway. The problem with what they were doing was probably not their attempt to gather, since they could not gather what was not there. What most likely happened was either they didn't collect double as they were told, perhaps due to not believing it would go bad overnight as it usually did, or they ate the entire double portion. Whatever it was, they didn't believe God and so did not obey his directives.

Years later Moses would reflect on God's provision of the manna and tell the people that its primary purpose was to teach them the essential lesson of relying on and obeying God's word:

And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD (Devarim/ Deuteronomy 8:3; ESV).

This is why God chastised them the way he did by saying "How long will you refuse to keep my commandments and my laws?"

God provided the manna to feed his people. But the gathering of the manna had to be on his terms. To neglect his clear instructions was detrimental to the society and its individuals. God was seeking to train Israel to be a godly people, who would be a light to the nations. In order to do that, they needed to pay attention to his words and to do exactly what he directed them to do.

That lesson is the same lesson we all need to learn today. When the Messiah was tempted by Satan in the wilderness, one of the verses he used was the one I quoted from Deuteronomy (see Matthew 4:4). Yeshua said it is foolishness to neglect his teaching (see Matthew 7:24-27). His commandments which he instructed us to keep (see John 14:15) are the correct interpretation of the Torah (see Matthew 5:17, 21, 27, 31, 33, 38, 43). His disciples were mandated to teach the nations to obey his teaching (see Matthew 28:18-20). According to the book of James, the person who is blessed in his activities is the one who perseveres in God's law (see James 1:23). Some adherents of the New Covenant Scriptures claim that in the Messiah God is not so concerned about the details of his directives. But if anything, he is more so. As we read in the book of Hebrews:

See that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven (Hebrews 12:25; ESV).

It's tragic that both Judaism and Christianity have tended to be confused over this essential topic. In Judaism, the tendency has been to view the keeping of God's commandments as an end in itself. Christianity, on the other hand, has often over emphasized that a relationship with God is based on grace through faith to the neglect of doing God's will.

The Biblical balance is found in our trusting in the Messiah for the restoration of our relationship with God and then living out that restoration by carefully heeding his directives. This includes being open to hearing him confront us as he did the Israelites of old, when he says to us "How long will you refuse to keep my commandments and my laws"?

TorahBytes: Noisy Lives (Bo)

Call the name of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, "Noisy one who lets the hour go by." (Jeremiah 46:17; ESV)

Can a person miss their life's calling? This sort of question presupposes that each person has a specific God-given destiny that needs to be discovered. I don't know if the Scriptures teach that this is God's intention for each and every person, but it certainly seems that he intends this for some. It's not that these people's lives necessarily matter more than others. It's just that some people are chosen by God for very particular purposes.

Whether or not each one of us has a general life's calling, throughout our lives God presents us all with all sorts of opportunities. How much effect on history these opportunities might have differs from situation to situation, person to person. The things we do may seem very insignificant to us, especially at the time, and we may or may not be aware of how crucial the outcome of an opportunity might be. But just as seeds are so small in comparison to what they produce, so are our deeds in relation to their results.

This week's Haftarah portion is from the prophet Jeremiah. It is a message to Pharaoh, king of Egypt. The selection of this passage to coincide with this week's Torah portion is obviously because it harkens back to the Pharaoh of Moses' day. Jeremiah's description could be applied to either Pharaoh: "Noisy one who lets the hour go by." Both Pharaohs held positions of great power. Their decisions had wide-reaching effects. It was in their power to do a vast amount of good for the benefit of many. But in the case of both men, they let the hour go by, or, in other words, they each missed their opportunity.

Whether or not we can miss our life's calling is irrelevant if we miss the opportunities that God brings our way. What good does it do, if we have correctly discerned our vocation, but fail to respond properly to God-given opportunities as they arise?

One of the things that can easily distract us from responding effectively to God-given opportunities is found in how Pharaoh is described in our verse, where he is called "noisy one." The Hebrew word "sha-'own" may indicate more than just a lot of sound, but rather the clamor of a great amount of useless activity.

It is so easy to fool ourselves and others into thinking we are living truly productive and successful lives by increasing our noise level - the noise of busyness that is. Being busy, even doing good things, can function as a smoke screen, clouding over our reluctance to do what God is actually calling us to do.

Busyness often breeds more busyness in that it never allows us to turn down the noise level of our lives long enough for us to face the possibility that we have been neglecting God's will.

This is not to say that being busy in and of itself is just noise. It might be that God himself has you very busy. But let's not be fooled into thinking that busyness itself is a sign of being true to God's call on our lives. Turning down the noise of our busyness also doesn't necessarily mean we need to change vocations or other major aspects of our lives. It might, but we won't know until we turn down the noise of unnecessary busyness. As we begin a new calendar year, what a good time to stop and turn down the noise.

TorahBytes: A People in Process (Shemot)

Then the LORD said, "I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites." (Shemot / Exodus 3:7, 8; ESV)

There are many unique features regarding the nation of Israel. First and foremost is that even though every nation is the product of the providence of God, Israel was specially created by God for a particular purpose, namely to be God's chosen channel through which to make himself known to the world. It is no wonder therefore that Israel's history should be as complex and interesting as it is.

One interesting aspect to Israel's history is how the nation migrated from place to place under God's direction for very specific reasons. This started with Abraham and his call to move his household from Mesopotamia to what was then known as the land of Canaan. Even though all he came to possess in his own lifetime was a burial plot, God said his descendants would one day possess the entire region. But God told Abraham that before this would happen his descendants would first be servants in a foreign land for 400 years (Bereshit / Genesis 15:13, 14).

It would be through a most complex set of circumstances that Abraham's grandson Jacob and his clan would be brought to Egypt, where at first they were most graciously treated and only sometime later would come under oppressive servitude. This is what sets the stage for God's deliverance of the people under the leadership of Moses and his brother, Aaron.

God's deliverance of Israel from slavery in Egypt was itself a process by which God demonstrated his power. It was necessary for Israel to witness God's mighty hand in this way in order to prepare them for serving God in the years ahead. They would be taught many important lessons through this and their years of wandering in the wilderness followed by the conquest of Canaan under Moses' successor, Joshua.

As they came to possess the Land, God would continue to instruct them in his ways. As the people and their leaders would most often fail to live according to God's instructions, God would send prophets, his spokespeople, to speak his Word to them in hopes that they would trust God and live life as he intended. However, human nature as it is, Israel did not live up to God's standards, thus resulting in dispersion and exile. Most nations by this time would cease to exist, but God was not finished with Israel - more lessons to be learned - more of God and his ways to be revealed to them and through them. During this period, the anticipation of a Great Deliver, the Messiah, began to become part of the psyche of the nation.

Eventually some of Israel returned to re-establish itself in the Promised Land. The anticipation of the Messiah grew until Yeshua appeared on the scene. He accomplished all that God purposed for him, including the giving of himself as the perfect and eternal sacrifice for sin and the conquering of death through his rising from the dead. During his time on earth he continued to put Israel through a process by preparing a small remnant to journey out into the world, thus fulfilling God's promise to Abraham by making himself known to all peoples.

I get the impression that people don't like being put through process. We tend to want to learn things easily and quickly and get to a place in life where we are done: no more learning; no more process. We like to have things figured out. This is true for the atheist and believer alike. We make our philosophical and theological determinations and spend the rest of lives defending our positions and/or ignoring challenging ideas. The agnostic is no different in their stubbornness to accept that Truth can be known, preferring to hold onto the illusionary comfort of indecision.

But for those who truly walk with God, there is a process through which God puts us. God is preparing us for an eternity with him. This preparation involves a lifelong education through which all sorts of means are at God's disposal. God is not satisfied with leaving us where we are at in life. In order for his plans and purposes to be accomplished in and through us, he will often upset our circumstances, taking us on to the unknown and the uncomfortable. It is as we give ourselves over to God's process that we are most able to learn the lessons he is seeking to teach us and be all that he wants us to be.

TorahBytes: Misinformed Feelings (Va-Yehi)

When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, "It may be that Joseph will hate us and pay us back for all the evil that we did to him." So they sent a message to Joseph, saying, "Your father gave this command before he died, 'Say to Joseph, Please forgive the transgression of your brothers and their sin, because they did evil to you.' And now, please forgive the transgression of the servants of the God of your father." Joseph wept when they spoke to him. (Bereshit / Genesis 50:15-17; ESV)

Just as God revealed to Joseph in dreams years before, God placed him in a position of power over his family. No one could have guessed the context in which this would occur. Second only to Pharaoh in Egypt, Joseph administered a massive food program which sustained not only Egypt during a severe famine, but also the surrounding region. Joseph's brothers had no clue that when they plotted against him they were seeking to destroy the very person God had planned to use to save them. In a way only God can do, he used Joseph's brothers' violent hatred of him as the means by which Joseph was put into a position to preserve not only their own lives, but the destiny of their whole nation.

Imagine what it must have been like for the brothers to spend the rest of their lives in Egypt under the good graces of Joseph. I am sure they were well aware of how blessed they were in a material sense, having suffered through the first years of the famine. At the same time, it must have been very difficult emotionally. We know this from our passage. They had figured that Joseph was only being kind to them for their father's sake. They thought that once Jacob had died, they would be the targets of Joseph's vengeance.

It is most likely that the message they sent to Joseph about Jacob's request regarding forgiving them was fabricated. But they were understandably scared of what Joseph might do to them. After all, they deserved retribution for their evil, and Joseph had it in his power to severely mistreat them.

But note Joseph's response to them. He wept. Joseph was heartbroken that they thought the way they did. As we saw last week, Joseph regarded God as having the upper hand in his ordeal. He knew that God was using him to preserve his family. He had no animosity towards them, his graciousness toward his brothers was firmly rooted in his trust in God.

I don't blame the brothers for not being quick to accept where Joseph was at. They certainly had not conducted their own lives this way. If the roles would have been reversed, then they may have taken advantage of their position of power and insist on retribution. They couldn't fathom that someone could forgive, accept, and love them as Joseph did.

I wonder if God weeps for us much like Joseph did for his brothers.

How often do we relate to God, not on the basis of reality, but from misinformed feelings? He has done everything necessary so that we could be in an intimate relationship with him. Through the Messiah he has demonstrated to us his forgiveness, acceptance, and love. It is understandable that those who refuse to turn to him in repentance and trust would feel alienated from him, but those who have been reconciled to him have no reason to fear his rejection.

One reason for being uncertain about how God relates to us could be due to serious unresolved issues in our lives. Having a sense of God's disapproval when we are involved in truly wrong things is appropriate. That sense of disapproval is a sign of God's work in our lives and should drive us to get right with him.

But other times we are uncertain in our relationship with God due to misinformed feelings. This comes from basing our understanding of him more on how we see ourselves and life, than on how God has revealed himself. God, like Joseph, grieves over our how we allow our feelings to misinform us. When we begin to base our understanding of God on his own revelation of himself rather than upon our misinformed feelings, we will begin to relate to him in the way he longs for us to.

Hanukkah Day Eight: Taking Action

Tonight we light the eighth and final Hanukkah light for another year. We wouldn't have anything to celebrate if Matitiyahu and the Maccabees hadn't moved from thought to action. It is one thing to remember the events of the past and perhaps respond emotionally, but until these events move us to action, then the purpose of the holiday is not fulfilled.

As we light the eighth light this evening and once more acknowledge the miracles God did for our ancestors long ago at this time of year, may God do miracles through us now. And just like long ago, miracles happen when we don't just think about them, but act upon what we claim to believe.

Hanukkah Day Six: On being a lamp stand

The most common symbol of Hanukkah is a nine-branch candelabra, called a Hanukiah or Hanukah Menorah. Eight of the lights represent the eight days of Hanukah. On the first evening (the Jewish day begins at sundown) one candle is lit and then an additional candle is lit on each subsequent evening until all eight are lit on the final evening. The special ninth candle is called the Shamash or the "servant ". Its purpose is to light the other lights and is always offset from the others. This way the purpose of the eight lights is preserved, whose sole purpose is to proclaim the miracle of Hanukkah and nothing else.

Hanukkah happened partly because the Jewish people had forgotten their purpose. Having been called to be a light to the nations, their light had all but extinguished. The people were beginning to adopt the customs of the prevailing culture and neglected those things that distinguished them from the rest of the world.

In order to be what we are called to be we need to be what we are called to be. Obvious perhaps? Yes, but it is so easy to neglect what distinguishes us from the rest of the world. To be the lights we are called to be, we must make sure that we don't give ourselves to other purposes.

TorahBytes: God Has the Upper Hand (Va-Yiggash)

And God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors. So it was not you who sent me here, but God. (Bereshit / Genesis 45:7, 8; ESV)

Joseph was a victim of betrayal and abuse from his immediate family, which resulted in his being sold into slavery in Egypt and eventually into spending years imprisoned in a dungeon. Yet the day would come when he would face the perpetrators of his abuse and tell them that it was not them who sent him to Egypt, but God.

Did Joseph only say this because he was now the second most powerful person in Egypt? When we experience remarkable changes of circumstances for the better, it is easy to give God the credit. But would he have said this sort of thing if he would have remained in the dungeon till his dying day? It's hard to say, since that is not what happened. Still, a reasonable question would be does God only deserve the credit when we experience positive remarkable circumstances or is he intimately involved like this in both good and bad times? A third possibility is does God only get intimately involved like this occasionally? Does life normally go on without his direct intervention? If so, then most of the time it would be inappropriate to make a statement like Joseph's even when things do turn out well, unless we somehow know for certain God was involved.

My impression is that most people live life according to this third possibility. If God exists at all, his involvement in life is viewed as unpredictable and sporadic and therefore undependable. Sure, there are stories like Joseph's, but even if they are true, they are special cases.

Certainly there are aspects of Joseph's story that are unusual. First, this is the unfolding of God's specific plan for the world through the development of his chosen people, Israel. Second, God had already predicted Joseph's rise to power through his dreams while he was still living with his family in Canaan. So perhaps Joseph was only commenting on God's special role in his particular circumstances without purposely implying that this was a general principle that applies to everyone at all times.

While Joseph was most likely not making a general statement about God's workings in all of life, could he have made this statement without having such an understanding? There is something about Joseph's composure and faithfulness to God throughout his ordeal that speaks of real depth of faith on his part. So his comments about God's involvement in his circumstances were not a result of the outcome only, but of a life that was truly grounded in the understanding that God always has the upper hand in everything.

God's upper hand is not always evident as our lives unfold. But for those who truly love God, knowing that he has the upper hand is a great comfort. As we read in the New Covenant Scriptures, "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose" (Romans 8:28; ESV).

This is not cold deterministic fatalism. Far from it! The confidence exemplified by Joseph does not stem from a philosophical conviction over how the universe works, but rather from an intimate, personal relationship with the universe's Creator and Master. How comforting to know that our Father in Heaven has the upper hand!

Hanukkah Day Five: Taking a stand

The true story of Hanukkah begins in the ancient Israeli town of Modi'in with a cohen (English: priest) named Matitiyahu, who not only refused to sacrifice to Greek gods, but also slew his fellow Jewish countryman, who was willing to do so. The adoption of Greek pagan customs was prevalent throughout the land. Matitiyahu's drastic action was what was necessary to begin to restore righteousness in Israel.

How often do we find ourselves in situations where taking a stand for what is right is necessary? And yet, for one reason or another, we do nothing. Most of the time the issue at hand is nowhere near as drastic as what Israel faced in those days. Most of the time the type of drastic measures that Matitiyahu employed are not necessary. Most of the time what's needed is simply saying, "no". Yet, we say nothing. We do nothing. Sadly, when we get in the habit of not taking a stand for small things, we won't for the bigger ones either.

So as we prepare to light the fifth candle this evening, may God bring to mind those things for which we need to take a stand right now.

Hanukkah Day Three: Festival of Lights

Another name for Hanukkah is the Festival of Lights, a name given to it by the first-century Jewish historian Josephus. The lighting of lights at Hanukkah may be due to its being patterned after the Festival of Sukkot (English: Tabernacles), which in ancient times featured the lighting of lamps.

We read in the Psalms, "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path" (Psalm 199:105; ESV). Life without God's Word is to live in darkness. Without God's Word we are left to human opinion and power, groping meaninglessly is an enormous universe. With God's Word, we live in light, our way illumined before enabling us to navigate a hostile world.

This was the experience of the Maccabees. In the midst of the growing darkness of oppressive assimilation, they stood in the light of God's Word and took action based on his Truth, which resulted in the restoration of the true worship of God in the land of Israel in their day.

When our eyes are opened to God's Word, we see life according to reality. We can no longer pretend that life is something it is not. If we let his light burn bright within us, then we, like the Maccabees, will no longer allow darkness to prevail.

Hanukkah Day Two: The true miracle

Each night of Hanukkah, when we light the candles, we say the following blessing: Baruch ata adonai eloheinu melech ha-olam she-asa nissim la-avoteinu bayamim hahem bazman ha-ze (English: Blessed are you, O Lord our God, King of the universe, who did miracles for our fathers in days of old, at this season). What miracles? In answer to that question, most people would recount the legend of the single cruse of holy oil that was found when the Maccabees reclaimed and cleansed the temple. It is said that this single cruse of oil miraculously lasted for eight days. But what most people are not aware of is that there is very little evidence for the historicity of this legend. It seems that it was introduced by the rabbis as to detract from the military and political victory of the Maccabees.

If the oil story is legend, then what are the miracles being recounted by the blessing. It is noteworthy that Yeshua when he was in Jerusalem for Hanukkah, used the occasion of this feast to speak about his own miracles (see John 10:22-28). The miracles of Hanukkah have to do with the surprising victory of the small Jewish army over the vast, mighty Greco-Syrian army. It was the Maccabees' faithfulness to God and his ways that spurred them on to resist the oppressive, assimilating policies of that day's world power. And like King David before Goliath, the God of Israel gave Israel's enemies into their hands.

Hanukkah then is a reminder to us, that those who trust and follow the true God can expect great wonders from his hand. Because of him, there is no reason to be intimidated by whatever the world might throw at us. As we anticipate the second night of Hanukkah, let us expect the miraculous again.

Hanukkah Day One: Heritage of Light

Tonight we light the first light of Hanukkah. Did you know that it was to a large crowd of Jewish people that Yeshua said the words, "You are the light of the world? (Matthew 5:14). The people of Israel are called by God to be a light. It is difficult for us to picture the state of the world when these words were spoken two thousand years ago, but most of it was it was in utter darkness - "having no hope and without God" (Ephesians 2:12). Israel was different, for the Jewish people had the gift of God's light, his Torah (see Romans 3:1, 2). What a marvelous heritage - what a great responsibility!

With the coming of Yeshua, God's light has shone, not just in Israel, but throughout the whole world, dispelling the darkness. On this the first night of Hanukkah, may the light of God's reality in the Messiah shine in us and through us.

TorahBytes: Waiting (Miketz / Hanukkah)

After two whole years, Pharaoh dreamed that he was standing by the Nile (Bereshit / Genesis 41:1; ESV)

The Torah, as well as the whole Bible, is not wordy. Perhaps that was due to the scarcity and cost of writing materials in those days, but the lack of lengthy description in no way diminishes its literary depth. So much is communicated in surprisingly few words. An example of this is found in the short phrase at the beginning of our opening quote, "After two whole years". The Hebrew reads, "Va-yehi miketz shenatayim yamim", literally translated as, "And it was at the end of two years of days". The choosing of this kind of expression underscores for us how long a time it really was. The English Standard Version tries to get this across by using "two whole years," but it seems to me that for readers of English, statements of time tend to be understood simply as calendar references. Yet there is more going on here than "Two years later, Pharaoh had a dream." By telling us that "two years of days" went by, we are drawn into the experience of Joseph, who after correctly interpreting the dreams of his fellow dungeon inmates. who happened to be servants of Pharaoh, had to endure over 700 more individual days in that horrible place.

All throughout the Bible we have stories of people who had to endure great hardship for long periods of time. When we read these accounts, to us the waiting periods seem to fly by in an instant, unless we stop and think about it. In Joseph's case in particular, the wording, at least in the original Hebrew, draws our attention to what the passing of time must have been for Joseph after all he had gone through, first in being hated by his own brothers, who sold him into slavery in Egypt, and then his unjust incarceration in an Egyptian dungeon. While God was with him and gave him favor in these difficult circumstances, we cannot underestimate just how difficult it must all have been.

God doesn't work according to our expectation of time. If we would have our druthers, we would get everything instantly. It's as if we think that getting something faster is almost always preferred. But that is not God's way. Good food takes time to grow. Good food takes time to prepare. It takes time to manufacture quality products. Living things develop over time. Good character takes a lifetime.

It is likely that Joseph wasn't ready for the kind of rulership for which God was preparing him. I don't think a person like Joseph, who had no issue telling on his brothers and broadcasting his dreams that spoke of his having a place of prominence among them, would necessarily treat them with the level of kindness that he ended up showing. It is possible that the time delay was partly designed to do a deep work in his heart, so that he would be to his family what they needed him to be despite their earlier abuse of him. I am aware that the Torah gives no comment as to the work of God in Joseph's life, but what we do know is that he endured abusive oppressive circumstances for a long time and that there was something about those last two years that were especially long.

Whatever God was doing in Joseph's heart and life, is this not what many of us go through? There is a proverb that says, "Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life" (Mishlei / Proverbs 13:12: ESV). Waiting for God-given expectations to be fulfilled can be sickening. Those of us who have experienced this at times think we would be better off not having such hopes than to wait and be given glimpses of our hope's fulfillment, only to have to wait again.

But God knows what he is doing. His sense of timing is perfect. We will never know all that he is doing as we wait, but we can be assured that if we truly love God, he is doing everything necessary to accomplish his purposes in us and through us.

TorahBytes: God Is in Charge (Va-Yeshev)

Now Israel loved Joseph more than any other of his sons, because he was the son of his old age. And he made him a robe of many colors. But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peacefully to him. Now Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers they hated him even more. (Bereshit/ Genesis 37:3-5; ESV)

The story of Joseph is one of the most mind-blowing stories in the entire Bible. It is the story of how God uses a most dysfunctional family for his plan and purposes. Not only did he use jealousy and hatred to preserve the nation of Israel, but also of Egypt and the surrounding region. Joseph's understanding of how God was involved in his difficult circumstances are summed up by his words to his brothers some time after the whole clan moved to Egypt, when he said, "you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today" (Bereshit / Genesis 50:20; ESV). There is no doubt in Joseph's mind that God's good intentions for Israel, Egypt, and many others were carried out through his brothers' evil intentions.

Let's look at some of the details of what happened. Joseph, the eleventh of twelve sons, was his father's favorite. Jacob had no qualms about broadcasting his feelings about Joseph in public in that he gave Joseph the gift of an extraordinary outer garment. Joseph had no qualms about speaking badly about his brothers to their father. This all would be sufficient to cause significant problems between Joseph and his brothers, We read "But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peacefully to him" (Bereshit / Genesis 37:4; ESV).

Then we read that Joseph had two dreams that predicted that he would rule over his parents and brothers. We do not know Joseph's motivation in sharing his dreams with his family, since the Torah provides no behind-the-scenes commentary on what he was thinking. All we know is that his older brothers hated him all the more to the point of wanting to kill him. One day when Jacob sent Joseph to check up on them, they were about to murder him. The eldest brother, Reuben, convinced the others to hold off in hopes of rescuing him. While Reuben was away attending something, the nine brothers sold him to slave traders on their way to Egypt. They then deceived their father into thinking that Joseph was killed by wild animals. Do note if it wasn't for Reuben's intervention, Joseph would have been killed.

Joseph served as a slave in Egypt. Yet God made him successful in his work. Even when he resisted his master's wife's advances, which ended up in his going to prison, there too God was with him, resulting in his being put in charge of the other prisoners. It was due to his accurate interpretation of some dreams of his fellow prisoners that he was eventually called up to interpret some of Pharaoh's dreams, thus resulting in his release and promotion to second in command in Egypt. This was the set up for the fulfillment of Joseph's earlier dreams concerning him and his family.

In the midst of all the human intrigue, jealousy, hatred, and lust, God's was at work for good. The Torah in no way excuses the evil just because God used it for his own good purposes. Also, there is no impression given that God made the bad stuff happen. The people did the bad. Yet the bad stuff served the overall purposes of God.

People also did the good stuff. Joseph was faithful to God in the midst of his terrible circumstances. It was not as if he was a passive spectator as God manipulated the situation to accomplish his purposes. He actively trusted God and worked hard. At the same time, it was not as if Joseph had the ability in himself to make things work out as they did. God did that. The Torah gives no impression that people are mechanically controlled by spiritual forces. Human responsibility in the affairs of life is not an illusion, but a reality. But whatever effect our actions have, God's plans and purposes cannot be thwarted. That's why we can trust him no matter what happens to us. While we cannot understand how this works, it is comforting to know that God is in charge.

TorahBytes: Getting a Hold of God (Va-Yishlah)

And Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the breaking of the day. When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he touched his hip socket, and Jacob’s hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him. Then he said, "Let me go, for the day has broken." But Jacob said, "I will not let you go unless you bless me." (Bereshit / Genesis 32:24-26; ESV)

You cannot encounter the God of Israel without being transformed. This certainly was Jacob's experience, but not Jacob's only. The Torah and the rest of the Scriptures contain all sorts of examples of people whose lives were radically changed as a result of encountering God. What is interesting is how each person's story is unique, which is one of many aspects that testify to the genuineness of these experiences.

Another such aspect is how unusual and unexpected these encounters are. They don't sound made up. The account of God wrestling with Jacob is a case in point. Who would make up a story where the Master of the Universe initiates a wrestling match with a key character, Jacob, who was in terror of his twin brother's wrath? Not only that, Jacob locks on to God to the point that God requests to be let go (God requests to be let go?), and that is only after God permanently injures Jacob's hip. Jacob knows that this was an extraordinary encounter, for he says, "I have seen God face to face, and yet my life has been delivered" (32:30; ESV).

One of the questions that arises from this story is who was really holding on to whom? On one hand God requests to be let go and Jacob says he won't until God blesses him. On the other hand how could it be that Jacob could hold on to God like that? Jacob himself is surprised that he survived this encounter at all, apart from how unusual it was that he held on to God as he did.

I like studying theology. I love to grapple with the truths of Scripture in order to get to know God better and how to live life the way he intended. Yet, as I study theology I sometimes find a disconnect between the way some people try to explain the truths that they supposedly derive from Scripture and the reality of God in the Bible itself. What is often missing is an overwhelming sense of wonder in the attempt to explain the infinite God of the Universe. How could we read stories like this one and presume that we can fit the teaching of Scripture into neat little categories or claim to discern how all its loose ends fit together into a fine-tuned system.

When I compare the result of the know-it-all attitudes of some teachers with what we actually find in the Scriptures, I am led to believe that what these people are putting forward is not just lacking in its details, but in the very essence of their teaching. In other words, they are completely misrepresenting both God and his written Word.

Teaching that is in keeping with the reality of God is one that reflects the examples of the genuine encounters with God that we find in the Bible. This is teaching that leads us to greater and greater humility before God and people. It is honest about human failure and sin, while demonstrating that God is our rescuer through the Messiah. It highlights our need to depend solely on God, putting him and his agenda first. This kind of teaching never leads us to thinking that we know it all or have God and life figured out (this is why I am hesitant to embrace an "ism" or becoming an "ist", if you know what I mean). In fact, the more we truly learn the Bible, we discover how much more there is to learn about God and life, not less. This is not to say that what we learn on the way is not valid. Far from it! Whatever we learn about God and his Word today is essential for what we will learn in the future. But we should never think that we can get a handle on God. Like Jacob, we need to learn that the more we get a hold of God, it is actually God who is getting a hold of us, or however it actually works.

TorahBytes: A Biblical View of Life (Va-Yeze)

Jacob became angry with her and said, "Am I in the place of God, who has kept you from having children?" (Bereshit / Genesis 30:1, 2)

When Jacob's wife Rachel could not get pregnant, she demanded children from him as if he could somehow make it happen. Jacob's response included the assertion that God was the one who had prevented her from getting pregnant.

When we read statements like this from people in the Bible, we are encountering how they thought life worked. But just because a statement is recorded in the Bible doesn't mean that it is absolutely true. There are many examples of people, even godly people, who said things or did things that were wrong.

For example, King David, described as "a man after God's own heart" (1 Samuel 13:14) is someone, whom, for the most part, we should emulate. Yet he did not always do what was right. The story of his sin with Bathsheba is not included in the Bible in order to justify adultery, but rather as a warning that even godly people are susceptible to temptation, sin, and cover-up. Still. even in this case, the Bible is teaching us God's ways, doing so through a bad example instead of a good one.

Jacob himself is an example of this. I don't think we should justify his striving and trickery just because he was one of the patriarchs. I would understand someone being cautious about Jacob's theology. It would be a while after his statement to Rachel before Jacob would truly know God. We need to take care not to accept something as true and right unless the Bible clearly asserts it as so.

Whether or not Jacob is providing us with a biblical view of God's involvement with conception would have to be determined by what the rest of the Bible teaches on the matter. As it turns out, as the story continues, the biblical writer appears to share Jacob's understanding:

Then God remembered Rachel; he listened to her and opened her womb. She became pregnant and gave birth to a son and said, "God has taken away my disgrace." (Bereshit / Genesis 30:22,23)

Here we have a clear assertion concerning God's involvement in Rachel's ability to conceive. This along with other references to God's closing of the womb (Bereshit / Genesis 20:18; 1 Samuel 1:5,6) concurs with Jacob's understanding of the matter.

God's involvement in this crucial and personal aspect of the human experience is so very contrary to the prevailing world view that such things are just a matter of natural process. This view is held even by those who claim to believe the Bible. Somehow many have concluded that conception is a result of human activity alone - a natural process that God put into motion to follow its own course.

Reading the story of Jacob and Rachel as well as other similar accounts of couples who had difficulty conceiving (Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, and Elkanah and Hannah) challenges the view of natural process. But I imagine many would see these examples of God's intervention as special cases, while normally nature would just run its course.

But is this what the Scriptures really teach about God and conception? King Solomon asserted that children were a reward from God (see Tehilim / Psalm 127:3) - not some children, but children in general. Does this mean that each individual child is a gift directly from God or is it just a poetical way to speak about how God created life?

The Bible doesn't attempt to analyze its theological assertions through a scientific analytical lens. The Scriptures are far less interested in how things worked as much as how to please God and live life the way he intended. How conception works from a scientific point of view does not help us discover how to live life to its fullest. The Bible is clear (and correct!) in its assertion that God is the life giver and that we are the recipients and stewards of his gift of life. This is nowhere better expressed than through the miracle of having children.

Perhaps it is about time that those of us who claim to believe the Bible begin to see how much we have let a non-biblical view of the world influence us. In order to truly live the kind of life God designed us for, we need to allow ourselves to be re-acquainted with how God himself sees life.

TorahBytes: Long-Term Picture (Toledot)

Once when Jacob was cooking stew, Esau came in from the field, and he was exhausted. And Esau said to Jacob, "Let me eat some of that red stew, for I am exhausted!" (Therefore his name was called Edom.) Jacob said, "Sell me your birthright now." Esau said, "I am about to die; of what use is a birthright to me?" Jacob said, "Swear to me now." So he swore to him and sold his birthright to Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew, and he ate and drank and rose and went his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright. (Bereshit / Genesis 25:29-34; ESV).

I was struck the other day as I was reading from the book of Mishlei (English: Proverbs), of one of the many times it warns the reader to keep away from the lure of sexual sin. What caught my attention wasn't just the fact that it was saying that such activity is bad; it was that its consequences are not immediately felt:

and at the end of your life you groan, when your flesh and body are consumed (Mishlei / Proverbs 5:11; ESV)

One of the reasons for the writing of Mishlei was to instruct us in wisdom, so that we could live life the way God intended. Throughout the Bible God instructs us in his ways, so that we can be the people he designed us to be. But many of us determine whether or not our actions are good or bad, right or wrong, by their immediate results rather than by taking a long-term view.

We live in a day like never before where we expect our actions to have immediate results. It is difficult to remember that being in a push-button culture is fairly new. It took about three times as long to dial a 7-digit phone number on a rotary dial phone than it does to enter a 10-digit number on a key pad today. When I was a teenager it was a thrill to write a letter to a friend and receive a reply in as little as a week. While today if my text message isn't responded to in seconds I freak out (I am exaggerating for effect, but you get the idea).

Whether or not our push-button society is making it harder for us to realize that we need to have a long-term view of our actions, our shortsightedness - that is our failure to realize that the consequence of our actions may not be fully realized for many years - is not a new problem. This week's Torah portion includes a vivid illustration of this.

Abraham's son and daughter-in-law, Isaac and Rebekah, had twin sons, Esau and Jacob. Esau, as the first born, by rights had a special position in the family. The earthly benefits of this would not be realized until Isaac's death and the greater blessings of God's promises would not be realized at all in his own lifetime. Esau lacked a long-term view. The only thing he cared about was the here and now. He gave no consideration to the long-term benefits of retaining his birthright. All he knew was that he was very hungry now and all he could think about was his immediate need to satisfy his hunger.

Let's be fair to Esau. He was not in good shape when he came home that day. The word used for "exhausted" signifies being very weak. Whether or not his statement about going to die was real or imagined, we know how desperate and unreasonable we can be when we are overly depleted. However, this makes this lesson all the more important. Having a long-term view of the consequences or benefits of our actions is so crucial in the living of a godly life, even when we think we are about to die.

The only way to keep a long-term view of life is to fix our sights on the One who sees the end from the beginning. God in his wisdom has revealed his ways through the Scriptures. His wisdom often contradicts the popular courses of action we are often tempted to take. The lure to do the thing that brings the quickest satisfaction can be so strong. Yet, it is only when we are willing to resist the temptation to give in to our desires, but instead see the long-term picture that God paints for us in his written Word, that our lives will become part of that glorious picture.

TorahBytes: Forget Not the Promise (Hayyei Sarah)

Abraham gave all he had to Isaac. (Bereshit / Genesis 25:5; ESV)

When God called Abraham in his old age to get up and go to an unknown land, God promised to make him into a great nation that would be a blessing to the other nations of the world. It would be another 25 years before God would give him and his wife Sarah, a miracle baby named Isaac. Sarah's inability to have children provides much of the dramatic backdrop to their journey of faith. Prior to Isaac's birth, they devised a scheme whereby Abraham could have a child through one of their servants, but God rejected that so-called solution. The child of promise had to come through Sarah, which he did.

After Sarah's death, Abraham lived for many more years. He married again and had several children through his second wife. Reading through quickly one might jump to the conclusion that this was the fulfillment of God's promise. After trusting God for the miracle baby, notwithstanding their scheme which produced Ishmael, now God was ready to bless Abraham through the natural and legitimate means of a second wife.

God certainly blessed Abraham with these additional children. But even so, Abraham didn't forget God's plans and purposes for Isaac. For though he was generous to all his offspring (25:6), his estate and all it represented was given to Isaac just as God intended.

We don't read of too much drama in Abraham's life between the time of his willingness to offer Isaac to God and the end of his life. During that period, the Torah records his negotiation with the people of the land for a burial plot for Sarah and his sending his servant back to his homeland to find a wife for Isaac. His story ends with his marrying his second wife and the names of his children through her, along with the distribution of his wealth. In all this time we don't read of God speaking to him or leading him in any unusual way. He just lived his life. But in all that time he never forgot his responsibility in ensuring that Isaac and Isaac alone was the recipient of God's promise.

I wonder how many people who had at one time in the midst of dramatic circumstances received special promises or directives from God, but have begun to lose sight of them once the drama subsided. Back then his word to you was so clear, his promises so sure. But now that the drama is history and life has become routine that which you thought you would never forget has all but faded away. But God has not forgotten. Whatever God promised to do in and through your life, no matter how normal your life has become, is still in his heart for you to fulfill. It might take a bit of work to allow God's word to you to be restored to its proper place in your heart, but it's worth it.