Author: Daniel

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Discussions Torah

Genesis 12–17: Instant gratification is never instant or gratifying

TRural route between Deuri & San Antonio. Zack Clark, the photographer said, "Fork in the road and I took the one heading down (wrong choice)." Photo by Zack Clark via Wikipedia, public domain photo.

It’s not easy to leave one’s family, even at 75 years old, but God called Abram out of his father’s house for his own good. This was Abram’s first test. 

In the Torah passage לֶךְ-לְךָ Lech Lecha/Lekh Lekha (“go forth,” Genesis 12:1-17:27), we learn that Abram’s faith came from both hearing God’s instruction and doing it. Doing matters, not just hearing. Hearing is easy, doing is much more involved and more difficult. When our life is smooth and we get instant gratification, it’s easy to continue walking in a way that brings a quick blessing. But when we are doing something that is right but we do not receive instant gratification, it’s harder to continue doing what is right.

When God tells us to do the right thing but we don’t want to do it, it’s hard to do it anyway.

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Apostolic Writings Appointments With God Discussions Prophets and Writings Torah Trumpets

Judgment Day: Day of the LORD is a day of awakening

Darkness falls over Buenos Aires, Argentina. Photo by Marcelo Gerpe/Freeimages.com via Creative Commons License.

Yom Teruah (Day of Blowing [Trumpets]) has a number of nicknames, such as Rosh haShanah (New Year). Regardless of what you call it, Yom Teruah has a special purpose in God’s calendar. It’s a day of remembrance, a day of gathering, a day of awakening and a day of offerings. But mostly, it’s the Judgment Day. It’s a day when the wicked are judged and the righteous are vindicated by the Mashiakh (Messiah).

Apostles Paul and Yokhanan wrote a lot about this day, as did the prophets.

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Discussions Torah

Deuteronomy 29:9–31:30: Hungry to get close to God?

An Eastern chipmunk from Bas-Saint-Laurent, Province de Québec, Canada, stuffing its face full of seeds. (Photo by Gilles Gonthier via Wikipedia Commons under Creative Commons license.)

We don’t have to go to Heaven ourselves to learn God’s Law; we don’t have to die to keep it. God’s Law is so close to us, we can taste it. That’s a key lesson in the dual Torah reading נִצָּבִים Nitzavim (“standing,” Deuteronomy 29:9–30:20) and וַיֵּלֶךְ Vayelech (“he went,” Deuteronomy 31:1–30).

The book of Deuteronomy applies to us, regardless of where we come from, whether we are born Israelites or grafted into Israel (Romans 11).

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Discussions Torah

Deuteronomy 11:26–16:17: Learning to live a blessed life

Decisions (Photo by FreeImages.com/Paul de Bruin)

Blessing and cursing are very important Biblical principles. There are two ways of life, either under God’s blessing or under His curse. Emphasized in the Torah reading כי רְאֵה Re’eh (“see,” Deuteronomy 11:26–16:17) is we want to live under His blessing.

We live under God’s blessing when we read and apply Torah. When we screw up, we still apply Torah to deal with our screwups. We are under God’s curse when we refuse to follow Torah. We all have experienced how bad life is when we refuse to obey God and walk in Torah. God can’t bless us when we are walking in sin. He can only bless obedience. He teaches us like we teach our own children.

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Discussions Torah

Numbers 30-36: We want Messiah to give us rest from our dumb oaths and vows

A picture postcard from 1908 with a humorous theme of women capturing prospective husbands during the leap year.

Yeshua the Messiah (Jesus the Christ) emphasized that vows and oaths are not to be taken lightly (Matthew 5:33-37). Why then did the Holy One of Israel give instructions about vows and oaths? Part of it is our distance from the original language and meanings of these words. Another part is we aren’t seeing the lessons from Heaven in these instructions, namely, that just as the LORD promises to give a land of rest to Israel, so too, should those who make promises be as faithful to them.

The dual Torah reading מטות Matot (“tribes,” Numbers 30-32) and מסעי Massei/Mase’y (“journeys of,” Numbers 33-36) take us to the end of the 40 years of wandering judgment against the rebellious first generation post-Mitzraim (Egypt).

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Discussions Torah

Numbers 22:1-25:9: God sent emissaries to the Gentiles too

Cartoon of Balaam and the King of Moab by Jack Foster of MrBibleHead.blogspot.com via Creative Commons License.

The prophet Bilam (Balaam) is not an isolated individual, an anomaly in Scripture. He was not the first or last emissary to the Gentiles. God did not leave them without guidance. Bilam is a foreshadowing of the ministry of Saul of Tarsus, aka the apostle Paul, whose experience on the road to Damascus echoes the account in the Torah reading בָּלָק Balak of Bilam’s experience with a “recalcitrant” she-donkey.

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Discussions Torah

Numbers 16–18: Korah, an early anti-Messiah

Moses and Korah, 1466 manuscript miniature, National Library of Poland. Photo via Wikipedia Commons under Creative Commons License.

There are no shortcuts to holding a position of authority in God’s kingdom. People who try to take shortcuts to greatness will not prosper in the end. Just as Aaron and Moses are examples of how God and Yeshua interact with each other, Korah is an example of the “spirit of antichrist” (1John 4:3).

Novelist Catherine Aird wrote, “If you can’t be a good example, then you’ll just have to be a horrible warning.” This fits very well this week’s Torah reading, aptly named קֹרַח Korakh/Korach, after the leader of this merry band of rebels.