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Jewish Holiday Calendar
For June 2025 site updates, please scroll past this entry....
In the summer there occurs a three week period of mourning that begins with the Fast of Tammuz and ends with Tishah B'Av. The last nine days of this three week period (i.e., from Av 1 until Av 9th) are days of increased mourning. However, after this somber time, the romantic holiday of Tu B'Av, the 15th of Av occurs. Summer ends with the 30 days of the month of Elul, a yearly season of teshuvah (repentance) that anticipates Rosh Hashanah and the fall holidays. The 30 days of Elul are combined with the first 10 days of the month of Tishri to create the "Forty Days of Teshuvah" that culminate with Yom Kippur.
Because they occur between the spring and fall holidays, the summer holidays help us prepare for the second coming of the Messiah:
The Summer Holidays:
Note that in accordance with tradition, holiday dates begin at sundown. Moreover, some holidays may be postponed one day if they happen to fall on the weekly Sabbath:
- Month of Tammuz (Wed. June 25th [eve] - Fri. July 25th [day])
- Month of Av (Fri. July 25th [eve] - Sat. Aug. 23rd [day])
- Month of Elul (Sat. Aug. 23rd [eve] - Mon. Sept. 22nd [day])
- Month of Tishri (Mon. Sept. 22nd [eve] - Tues. Oct. 21st [day])
Note: For more about the dates of these holidays see the Calendar pages....
June 2025 Updates
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Cleansing from Death...
The following entry concerns this week's Torah reading, parashat Chukat, though the mysterious themes of purity and impurity are first described in parashat Tzav...
06.30.25 (Tammuz 4, 5785) In our Torah portion this week (i.e., Chukat) we learn that contact with the dead causes spiritual impurity (i.e., tumah) because death, as the separation from life, is the ultimate expression and consequence of sin.
People routinely deny the meaning of death, explaining it away as the result of some natural cause from which one might escape ("he worked too hard," "she got sick," "it was an accident," etc.). People rationalize death because they refuse to see it as the effect of sin, the consequence of the original transgression of Adam and Eve that humanity as a whole has "inherited" (Gen. 2:17; 3:19; Rom. 5:12). Therefore the Torah states that the birth of a child results in impurity (Lev. 12:2,7). Full atonement comes from "digging up the root of sin" by being purified from its source, namely, the metaphysical curse of death itself. The Red Heifer alludes to the sin of the Golden Calf, which finds its source in the original idolatry of Adam and Eve. Even the blood of the sacrifice was burned to ash "outside the camp," putting a complete end to the "life of death" and its power to corrupt. The Red Heifer is therefore a special sort of "sin offering" (chatat) that cleanses from contact with death itself (Num. 19:9).
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The "fall" of man implies that we have contact with death - both inwardly and outwardly. The sacrifice of Yeshua as our "Red Heifer" cleanses us from all tumah and lovingly makes us clean (tahor) before the Father. The "water and the blood" is part of the "olah sacrifice" of Yeshua for our redemption and purification before God offered at Calvary (John 19:34, 1 John 5:6). The water and blood flowing from His wounds are the means by which we are purified from sin and death... All this comes from the love (chesed) of God given in our Messiah and Savior. Just as the sacrifice of the Red Heifer cleansed from the effects of physical death, so the sacrifice of Yeshua cleanses us from the effects of spiritual death.
For more on this subject, see the "Gospel of the Red Cow."
Hebrew Lesson
Psalm 51:2 reading (click):
The Foundation of Torah...
The following concerns the foundation of the Torah (yesod ha'Torah) and parashat Chukat...
06.30.25 (Tammuz 4, 5785) The commandments of God are usually divided between the rational laws (i.e., mishpatim) and the divine decrees (i.e., chukkim), though this distinction is somewhat artificial, since all of the commandments of Torah (and that includes the Torah of the New Covenant) are grounded in the mystery of God's will, which is to say that we are to obey them simply because they derive from the Divine Authority itself...
When the people gathered before Moses to receive the covenant at Mount Sinai, they said: "All the LORD has spoken we will do and we will hear" (na'aseh ve'nishmah: נַעֲשֶׂה וְנִשְׁמָע). Note the order: first comes faith in God expressed in the decision to act (na'aseh), and then comes understanding (ve'nishmah). As Yeshua said, "If anyone's will is to do God's will, he will understand" (John 7:17). The heart of faith is willing to do what God asks before hearing (or understanding) what is required. Many people operate the other way round, sitting in judgment of God's word, demanding to understand why they should obey.
You cannot understand apart from faith, however, and that is categorically true of all forms of knowledge, which is usually defined as "justified true belief." We are to be "doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving ourselves" (James 1:22). The Greek verb used in this verse is emphatic: "Be doers!" (γίνεσθε) means "be born!" "Come alive!" "Do, live, and exist before God!" This is a call to creative action, to newness of life...
Hebrew Lesson
Exodus 24:7 reading (click):
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The Scriptures state that "if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like" (James 1:23-24). If we just hear the truth but do not act upon it, we are comically likened to someone who looks his face over in a mirror but then promptly forgets what he looks like after he steps away... Likewise those who only hear the word but do not "bring it to life" in their deeds forget who they are and why they were created (Eph. 2:10; Titus 2:14; Col. 1:10). When we look into the mirror of truth we see our need for teshuvah and turn to God for the healing miracle he provides (Heb. 4:12).
It's not about doing but being, though being is revealed in doing... If your actions do not align with your values, then back up and recover who you really are in Messiah, understand what your new nature truly is. That is what it means to "take up the yoke" of Messiah, for his yoke is easy (kal) and burden is light, and the task is to repeatedly practice allowing Him to carry your pain, shame, and sin far, far away from your heart.
There is a deeper law, however, a "mirror" that reveals something beyond our passing image. When we look intently into the "perfect law of liberty" (תּוֹרַת הַחֵרוּת וּמַחֲזִיק) - the law of faith, hope, and love for our Savior - we find blessing in our deeds (James 1:25). Note that the verb translated "look into" the law of liberty is the same used when John stooped down to "look inside" the empty tomb of Yeshua (John 20:5). The deeper law reveals the resurrection power of God's invincible love. The Torah of the New Covenant also has many mitzvot, though these are based on the love God gives to us in Yeshua: "This is my Torah: that you love one another as I have loved you" (John 13:34).
Related Content:
The decree of Torah:
Parashat Chukat (חֻקַּת הַתּוֹרָה)...
06.29.25 (Tammuz 3, 5785) Our Torah portion this week (i.e., parashat Chukat) begins with the words: "zot chukat ha-Torah" (זאת חֻקַּת הַתּוֹרָה), "this is the decree of Torah" (Num. 19:2), referring to the sacrifice of a specially chosen red cow (פרה אדומה) whose ashes would be used to purify someone contaminated by contact with a dead body. The language of the Torah here is both striking and unique, suggesting that this ritual is the "seminal decree" of the entire Torah.
The red cow (or "red heifer") had to be a perfect specimen "without blemish, in which there is no defect." The sages interpreted "without blemish" to refer to the cow's color, that is, it was to be without a single white or black hair. This is the only sacrifice in the Torah where the color of the animal is explicitly required. Moreover, the cow was never to have had a yoke upon it, meaning that it must never have been used for any profane purposes.
Unlike other sacrifices offered at the altar at the Tabernacle, the red heifer was taken outside the camp to be slaughtered before the priest, who then took some of its blood and sprinkled it seven times before the Tabernacle. Then the heifer would be burned in its entirety: its hide, flesh, blood, and even dung were to be burned (unlike other sacrifices). Also unlike other offerings, the blood of the sacrifice was to be completely burned in the fire.
Hyssop, scarlet yarn, and a cedar stick would then be thrown upon the burning heifer, which were the same items used to cleanse from tzara'at (skin disease). These items, along with the blood of the red heifer, were therefore assimilated into the ashes of the sacrifice, which were gathered and mixed with living water to create what was called the "waters of separation" (i.e., mei niddah: מֵי נִדָּה) for the community. Anyone that came into contact with death (i.e., a corpse) was required to be cleansed using these waters. The purification procedure took a full seven days, using three stalks of hyssop dipped into the water and shaken over the defiled person on the third day and then again on the seventh day. After the second sprinkling, the person was immersed in a mikvah and was declared "clean" the following evening.
The sages have said that this commandment is "chok," meaning that it transcends human reason, and therefore we are to simply accept it by faith. If we think about the meaning of the red heifer sacrifice, however, we will realize that its ashes were used to cleanse people from contact with death. To fulfill God's decree, however, required sacrificial love, since the priest who offered this service would himself become defiled (separated) for the sake of healing of others.
The Hebrew word for love is ahavah (אַהֲבָה), from a root verb (יָהַב) that means "to give." Love means giving of yourself to benefit another person (John 15:13). This central decree of Torah, then, which is beyond our ability to rationally understand, is that God's love is so great that it is willing to become "dust and ashes" on our behalf so that we might find blessing and life.
Abraham Twerski comments: "The mitzvah of parah adamah (i.e., the red heifer) represents the suspension of logic in deference to the Divine Will. This attitude is not restricted to this mitzvah. Scripture introduces the mitzvah of the parah adamah with the words "this is the law of the Torah." Surrendering one's own reasoning and accepting the superior reasoning of God is the law of the entire Torah... To the extent that we let go of our own will, we can understand the Divine will. Our ancestors at Sinai understood this ideal when they proclaimed, "we will do and then we will understand." Torah is not beyond our understanding, but we must be willing to make the sacrifices that true Torah understanding demands."
Yeshua willingly became unclean on our behalf - through contact with our sin and death - so that we could become clean (see Isa. 53:4, 2 Cor. 5:21, Gal. 3:3, Eph. 5:2, Titus 2:14). The pure became impure through His sacrificial offering. Because of Him, we have been cleansed from our sins (and the separation of death) "by a better sprinkling" than that which the Tabernacle of Moses could afford (Matt. 26:28, Heb. 9:14, 12:24, Eph. 1:7, 1 Pet. 1:2,18-19, Rom. 5:9; Col. 1:14, 1 John 1:7, etc.). Amen, blessed is the name of the LORD.
Chukat Audio Podcasts...
There are two connected podcasts for this week's Torah portion (i.e., parashat Chukat). In the first podcast I discuss the meaning of the mitzvot (commandments) of the written Torah, including the subcategories of chukkim (decrees), mishpatim (rules or judgments), eidot (testimonials, holidays) with a discussion of the oral tradition's corresponding categories of halakhah (oral law) and its subcategories of gezeirot ("fences"), takkanot (case laws), and minhagim (customs). Throughout special attention is given to how Yeshua the Messiah is the Substance and Inner Meaning of all true Torah. In the second podcast I discuss: 1) the significance of the mysterious Red Heifer (פרה אדומה) sacrifice, 2) the gospel message of the nachash nachoshet (the "bronze serpent"), and 3) the sin of Moses...
It is best to listen to these broadcasts in order:
The Word "Chukat"...
In connection with our Torah reading for this week, parashat Chukat (חוקת), we note that the Hebrew word "chok" (חוֹק) means a "divine decree," related to a verb meaning "to engrave" (לַחקוֹק). The sages say that the word is directed to a desire to do God's will that is "engraved" upon the heart (חקוק על הלב) rather than simply understood with the intellect (2 Cor. 3:3).
Indeed the very first time "chok" (חוֹק) appears in the Torah concerns Abraham's obedience of faith as demonstrated by the "Akedah" sacrifice (קרבן עקדה) of his beloved son (Gen. 26:5), and the second time concerns the sacrifice of the Passover Lamb of God: (כבש הפסח) "This day shall be for you a memorial day, and you shall keep it as a feast to the LORD; throughout your generations, as an eternal decree (חֻקַּת עוֹלָם), you shall keep it as a feast (Exod. 12:12-13).
Because both the Akedah and the sacrifice of the Passover lamb reveal God's "yeshuah" (יְשׁוּעָה), his salvation, we are to engrave the significance of our deliverance by the Lamb of God within our hearts forever. Just as God Himself has engraved us upon his own heart, it is written, "behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands" (הֵן עַל־כַּפַּיִם חַקּתִיךְ; Isa. 49:16).
Hebrew Lesson
Isaiah 49:16 reading (click):
Lessons from Rebellion...
06.27.25 (Tammuz 1, 5785) Is there anything we can learn from rebellion? Is there anything redeemable about protesting the status quo, objecting to the state of the world, refusing to accept reality, even if that has theological implications? In Dostoevsky's great novel the Brothers Karamazov, a character named Ivan takes issue with his devout brother Alyosha's unquestioning faith in God. Even though Ivan would like to believe that this is the "best of all possible worlds," and that God indeed works "all things together for good," he stumbles over the ongoing presence of moral evil in the world. For instance, Ivan insists that nothing could possibly justify the torture of a five year old girl who was chained to an outhouse and left to die in the Russian winter. He objects that somehow this awful suffering may be part of God's great plan for the ages. The same sort of objection may be expressed regarding the rise of Hitler and the Nazi Holocaust and other obvious cases of grotesque moral evil in our world. A person like Ivan cannot "accept such a universe," even if it is true that one day God will wipe away every tear from the eyes of everyone.
But is there anything to learn here? Can the rebel teach us anything or impart to us any wisdom? Well, for one thing, we observe that the rebel lacks patience and refuses faith in the idea that God is ultimately good. He sees the cup as "half-empty" rather than "half-full." His lack of trust, however, serves as a warning for us. Doubt cries out, "Let's put truth to the test," though the truth eventually swallows up doubt and brings to silence the rebel's protest. This was the solution given in the Book of Job, after all, when God overwhelmed Job from the midst of the whirlwind. As Kierkegaard wrote: "Speak, raise your voice, cry out. God can speak even louder: all the thunder is at His disposal. And thunder is the answer, it is the explanation: firm, trustworthy, primordial. God's answer, even if it smashes man to pieces, is superior to all the chattering of human wisdom."
In my own darkest moments of despair and doubt, I have been jarred back to reality after personally encountering radical evil - either that which arose from within my own heart or that which was committed by others in this world. After all, how can we explain the inexplicable cruelty and madness of human beings - war, murder, rape, abortion, genocide, the breakup of families over selfish desires, and so on - without invoking the category of real moral evil? Yet evil, by itself, is entirely senseless apart from real moral truth and goodness, and therefore the rebel's cry is really the call for transcendental justice... Nonetheless the rebel can't have it both ways; he can't consistently object to the existence of moral evil in the universe apart from appealing to God's righteousness and the existence of moral truth. It's been said that while the man of faith must must wrestle with the "problem of evil," the faithless man must wrestle with the "problem of goodness."
Often a disease must "declare itself" to be identified, treated, and hopefully cured. Likewise with our struggle with sinful impulses and the disease of our own divided hearts. Sin "forces the hand" of truth by revealing our own ambivalence, our own inner darkness, our own fears, doubts, lusts, and so on. The rise of sinful impulses and rebellious desire serve as warning signals... Indignation, disgust, and even shame are the voice of protest from our intuitive love of the ideal, appealing to the greater truth that we are God's children, called to walk with God, to mirror His character, and to exist on a different level. We see this in the case of Korach, whose rebellion ultimately revealed God's truth, and whose name was later surprisingly associated with twelve great Psalms in the Scriptures. In one of these Psalms we read how the sons of Korah learned the meaning of the gospel itself by considering God's love despite the sins and failures of the past: "Steadfast love and truth have met; righteousness and peace have kissed" (Psalm 85:10).
חסד־ואמת נפגשׁו
צדק ושׁלום נשׁקו
che'·sed · ve'·e·met · neef·ga'·shoo
tze'dek · ve'·sha·lom · na·sha'·koo
"Love and truth have met,
justice and peace have kissed."
So again, can any good comes from rebellion? Only to serve as a warning, and sometimes we need to be warned (1 Cor. 10:6-12; 2 Pet. 2:2-26). The fire pans of the rebels who followed Korah and died in the fire were hammered and made into part of the altar of sacrifice. God took the very means of their rebellion (the fire pans) to serve His purposes. Moreover, the "blessed fault" of our sin and rebellion helps us to profoundly understand our great (and ongoing) need for God's grace and forgiveness. Only the rebel who turns to God in teshuvah can understand the deepest expression of God's love (Luke 7:47).
Korach serves as a warning to us all. He took the hard road, and his followers learned the hard way... He was a "taker," and being a taker means that he was a slave, in bondage to the yetzer hara (evil impulse). Takers see the world as something "out there" to be exploited, consumed, and used. To deal with the "Korah within" each of us - the rebel, the complaining child, etc., - we must first confess the truth about the damage we've done by our own "taking," that is, by making our own selfish demands on others, and so on. To be healed, we have to revisit the depths of our hell to acknowledge and confess the impulse of our own "inner rebel." In the end, only the LORD our God can deliver us from evil.
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The Warning of Jude...
06.26.25 (Sivan 30, 5785) Our Torah portion this week (i.e., parashat Korach) centers on the rebellion a man who questioned God's authority and arrogantly sought to "intrude" into the office of the priesthood. It is noteworthy that Korach's rebellion is explicitly mentioned only once in the New Testament - in the Book of Jude - as an example of the fate that awaits those false teachers who likewise despise God's law. Unfortunately, Jude's warning is often neglected today, probably because people feel uncomfortable over the prospect of God's judgment. After all, in our "politically correct" age, people have been indoctrinated to regard "tolerance" as the greatest of virtues and "intolerance" (even of evil) as the greatest of vices.... Most unbelievers don't mind hearing the "good news" of God's love, but they take exception when they are confronted with their personal duty to live according to the moral truth revealed in the Torah. False teachers within the church are dangerous because they feed on this sense of discomfort and attempt to rationalize it away. Jude identifies them as spiritual impostors who "work from the inside" to confound or obscure the truth of God. Such a charlatan may appear to be a genuine believer, but their hidden agenda is to sow confusion and sin among God's children. They are proverbial "wolves in sheep's clothing" (Matt. 7:15). Jude's warning is especially important for us to heed in this present hour, because in the time immediately preceding the coming of the Messiah, spiritual deception and unbridled godlessness will greatly increase (2 Tim. 3:1-5).
Many churches today teach that we can (and should) disregard the moral law of God. They may give lip service to the "old testament," and they may claim it is still of "historical interest" that provides some interesting illustrations, but they arrogantly discount its essential message of holiness as being inapplicable to our daily lives. Often they are antinomian, teaching that we are no longer "under the law" and therefore are free to live in sin. Because they disregard (or "reinterpret") the clear moral teaching of the Torah (and the New Testament), they wink at fornication, support alternative "marriages," endorse gay clergy, and clamor for abortion rights. Many of the institutionalized churches promote syncretistic "replacement theology" that invent rituals, holidays, and symbols that are alien to the truth revealed in the Jewish Scriptures. These churches are often tolerant of "universalism," new age mysticism, and regard postmodern skepticism as "trendy." They may claim they are "seeker sensitive" but this is often "code" that they disregard the moral duty believers have to walk in righteousness. And because of their willful ignorance, some of these churches unthinkingly accept anti-Jewish propaganda - despite the irrevocable promises God has made to the Jewish people. Jude likens advocates of such doctrines to be "inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah" who will likewise be judged by God with eternal fire...
It is important to see that the primary characteristic of a false teacher is that they "deny our only Master and LORD, Yeshua the Messiah" -- that is, they deny His moral authority and identity as the LORD God. Since Jude is writing to those who are "beloved by God," that is, to sincere Jewish believers, he is careful to remind us that it was Yeshua Himself who saved the people from Egypt -- but afterward destroyed those who did not believe (Jude 1:5). In other words, Jude wanted to ensure that we fully understand that it was Yeshua who was the thunderous "Voice of the Living God speaking from the midst of the fire" at Sinai (Deut. 5:26), and therefore to regard Him as none other than the great Lawgiver Himself (Matt. 5:17-7:29). That is why he is called "our only Master and LORD," and to esteem him as anything less is to deny the reality and truth of God. Therefore we understand any religion or philosophy that denies the truth that Yeshua is none other than the true King of Glory (מֶלֶךְ הַכָּבוֹד האמיתי) to be a false system of faith...
Hebrew Lesson
Isaiah 43:11 reading (click):
In this connection let me remind you of a verse from the New Testament: "Let no one in any way deceive you, for it [Yeshua's return] will not come until the apostasy (ἀποστασία) comes...." (2 Thess. 2:3). The word "apostasy" literally means "standing away" (ἀπό + ἵστημι) from the truth while making a pretense of abiding within it. In Hebrew, the word is meshuvah (מְשׁוּבָה), one who "turns away" from God. It is not a word that describes an unbeliever as much as it describes a traitor.... Some people think there will be a great time of revival just before Yeshua returns, but unfortunately that is not true. Indeed, Yeshua asked if he would find anyone who had faith at that time (Luke 18:8). At any rate, Jude states that those who "creep into" congregations to teach truth contrary to the revealed will of God are apostates, and the judgment they face is terrible to consider.
Jude reminds us that God is the same "yesterday, today, and forever," and His moral will was not suspended or "superseded" through the advent of Yeshua. Indeed, Yeshua clearly amplified the teaching of the Ten Commandments, insisting that they were to be obeyed from the heart, not merely adhered to as an external law code (Matt. 5:21-48). After all, it was Yeshua Himself who saved the Israelites from Egypt and led them to Sinai to receive the Torah of the LORD (תורת יהוה). The Exodus generation also fully understood the promises of God: "I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians; I will deliver you from slavery to them; I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment; I will take you to be my people... and I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob" (Exod. 6:7-8). They understood all this - and they had personally experienced God's direct intervention - yet they failed to believe and therefore were decreed to wander about in the desert until they perished.
We can guard against false teachers by using discernment to "test their spirits" (1 John 4:1), but we can only be equipped to do so if we "build ourselves up in the most holy faith" (Jude 1:20). We build ourselves up by carefully studying the word of God - especially the Torah, since it is the foundation of all that follows. In this way we will be able to accurately wield the Sword of the Spirit (2 Tim. 2:15-16, 2 Pet. 1:19-20).
In order to grow, we must have "good soil" for the seed of the word to take root. We "get rooted by knowing the roots" of our faith! Studying the Scriptures and praying in the Holy Spirit keeps us in the love of God as we wait for the mercy of Yeshua who gives us eternal life (Jude 1:21). This will equip us to show mercy to those who have honest doubts and to save those who are defiled by sin (Jude 1:22-23).
Our Lord Yeshua promises those who put their trust in Him: "You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free" (John 8:32). May God watch over you, keep you, and give you the glorious liberty to obey Him in the truth, chaverim....
For more see:
God's Purity of Heart...
06.26.25 (Sivan 30, 5785) The heart is a miracle, an "engine" that distributes life, and the heartbeat is a great mystery, inexplicably pulsing with energy, contracting the muscles, pumping blood.. The pulse of the heart, then, is the "center of the center" of a person's physical life... If we are impure of heart, we will be inwardly divided, unfocused, fragmented, filled with destabilizing anxiety, envy, anger, and so on. More tragically, because we seek to escape ourselves, we will be devoid of a true center, without a focal point or abiding purpose, and therefore we will be lost to ourselves, wandering and without rest....
"Who shall ascend to the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to vanity (לא־נָשָׂא לַשָּׁוְא) and who does not swear deceitfully" (Psalm 24:3-4). In other words, we "ascend" to the place the Divine Presence when we are honest with ourselves and inwardly confess that God alone is our righteousness and our grace; only God can change our heart.
Yeshua expounded: "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God'" (Matt. 5:8). The Greek word translated "pure" is katharos (καθαρός), sometimes used describe the cleansing of a wound (catharsis), or to describe the unalloyed quality of a substance revealed through refining fire (the corresponding Hebrew word for the "pure of heart" (בַּר־לֵבָב), used in Psalm 24:4, comes from a root (בָּרַר) that likewise means to purify by fire). Metaphorically, then, purity of heart refers to separation from the profane - singleness of vision, wholeheartedness, passion, and focused desire for the sacred. As the Beatitudes reveal (Matt. 5:3-8), only those who are impoverished in spirit, who mourn over themselves and hunger for God's mercy, are refined by their struggle to see God (the Greek text implies these will see God now – with inward vision – and in the world to come). Because the pure in heart use ayin tovah, the good eye, they walk "in the light, as He is in the light" (Matt. 6:22).
When we are undivided in heart, the Spirit imparts to us divine wisdom (1 Cor. 2:6-7) and we are able to discern hidden realities that others do not see (1 Cor. 2:14). As we center our affections on Yeshua, we become unified, made whole, and healed of inner conflicts. We see the Lord in this world, through his effects, and then again panim el panim, or "face to face," in the world to come. We are given the power of his salvation within our hearts as our hope purifies us for the coming day of full disclosure (1 John 3:2-3; Heb. 12:14).
Hebrew Lesson
Psalm 86:11 reading (click):
Hope against Hope...
06.25.25 (Sivan 29, 5785) Some people think they should turn to God for help only with their big problems, but not with the struggles and inner conflicts that we face on a daily basis. This is a serious mistake. If God wants us to seek him be'khol levavkha -- "with all our heart," then understand that God wants all of us — and that includes our daily concerns, our missteps and sins, our sorrows and our joys. We turn to God in all that we are and in all that we do.... That's the life of faith: ongoing struggles, learning to endure ourselves, and keeping hope alive.
Yeshua taught us that the essence of Torah is mercy (Matt. 9:13; Matt. 23:23), and that God is close "in all our calling to Him" (Deut. 4:7), that is, in every appeal of our heart for Him. The Talmud says the central verse of Torah is "Know Him in all your ways" (Prov. 3:6), since by seeking the will of our heavenly Father, we attain the mitzvah (connection) of Torah.
The Hebrew word for trouble is "tzarah" (צָרָה), from the root idea of "constricting" or being bound (i.e., צָרַר). Indeed the land of Egypt, the house of slavery, is called mitzrayim (מִצְרַיִם), from a cognate root (צוּר) that means to "bind." This suggests that a narrow perspective is unable to understanding the "big picture."
Of course it is impossible for us to fully fathom God's ways (Isa. 55:8), though we can rely on Him to lead us and to trust that our testing in this life is not in vain. That is why the sages remark that the Hebrew word lamah (לָמָה) "why?" also spells the word le'mah (לְמָה) meaning "for what?" In other words, instead of asking why afflictions befall you, ask how they may help you grow closer to God...
Most of us know that Abram was declared righteous (or "justified") by believing the promise of God that he would become the father of a multitude of descendants: "Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the LORD, and He accounted it to him for righteousness" (Gen. 15:5-6). The Apostle Paul commented that Abram "hoped against hope" to become the father of many nations: "He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah's womb. He did not stagger over the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. And therefore "it was accounted to him for righteousness" (Rom. 4:18-22).
Nevertheless even though Abram believed God's promise, he grew impatient and later thought to "help God" by having a baby with Sarai's servant Hagar - an ill-begotten venture that set in motion a series of bad consequences that continues to this day... So is there is a contradiction when we read Paul unconditionally extoling Abraham's great faith? And didn't Paul regard Abraham's offspring with Hagar as one "born after the flesh," as a "type" or symbol of spiritual slavery (Gal. 4:21-31)? After all, contrary to the false claims of Islam, Ishmael was not the heir of the divine promise, for that would come exclusively through Isaac, for he was the child to come by the agency of Spirit of God through the miraculous conception of Sarah (Gen. 17:21; Gen. 21:12; Rom. 9:7).
What I find intriguing about this, however, is that despite Paul's praise of Abram's great faithfulness, the Torah's account of the conception and birth of Ishmael reveals that Abram indeed "staggered" over the promise of God, and that he had lost conviction that God was able to do what he had promised. Nevertheless - and from this we can learn an important lesson - God esteemed Abraham as the paradigmatic example of faith in the Scriptures...
Let's take a very brief review of Abraham's life. He was called from his pagan homeland to discover an unknown land, "looking for a city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God" (Heb. 11:10; Gen. 12:1). He believed the promise of God and received the divine pledge (Gen. 15), but later he lapsed in his faith by taking matters into his own hands (Gen. 16). Nevertheless God's grace pursued him as he was renamed "Abraham," the father of multitudes, and Sarai was renamed "Sarah," the noble matriarch (Gen. 17).
Some time later, twenty five years, to be exact, the LORD announced the time had come for Sarah to conceive, and He named the child "Isaac" ("he laughs") because he would establish his everlasting covenant with him (Gen. 17:19). Abraham was 100 years old when Isaac was born (Gen. 21:5). After Isaac had grown up, God tested Abraham by asking him to sacrifice his "only begotten" son as a whole burnt offering on mount Moriah. Abraham (and Isaac) unhesitatingly obeyed God's request and just before he was going to plunge the knife into his beloved son's heart the Angel of the LORD stopped him. God then praised Abraham for his great faithfulness and sealed his blessing with an irrevocable oath (Gen. 22:16-18).
In light of all this, the vicissitudes of the journey of his faith, Abraham passed the test and is therefore rightly called the "father of all who believe" (Rom. 4:11). Through his "education for eternity," Abraham was indeed steadfastly convinced that God could do the "impossible" - including bringing the Promised Seed back from the dead (Heb. 11:19).
Amen. Faith never lets go... It persists despite the darkness. It finds hope against hope...
Hebrew Lesson
Isaiah 51:2 reading (click for audio):
Confession and Reality...
"To confess your sins to God is not to tell God anything He doesn't already know. Until you confess them, however, they are the abyss between you. When you confess them, they become the bridge." - Frederick Beuchner
06.25.25 (Sivan 29, 5785) Sin is not the result of not knowing what is right, but rather of being unwilling to understand such, and therefore is the refusal to do what is right. It is not the result of ignorance but rebellion. Sin doesn't say "I can't" but rather "I won't," and therefore it is a matter of the will, the heart, the secret desires of the soul... Just as grace is inaccessible for someone who refuses to be honest with himself, so is forgiveness. If a person refuses to confess the truth about his condition, salvation itself is impossible, since God literally cannot save the soul that denies its need for Him. Therefore the Scripture does not vainly declare: "Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but the one who confesses and forsakes them will find mercy" (Prov. 28:13).
Hebrew Lesson
Psalm 29:11 reading (click):
A person who "conceals" or "covers" his sin denies it, either by outright disavowal or by explaining it away by offering self-deceptive excuses. This person simply cannot prosper – in the spiritual sense of the word – because he is not living in reality... Indeed, his conscience is burdened with a "secret ban," an inner voice of condemnation that must be suppressed and squelched. As Alan Redath commented: "Willful sin that has not been confessed and forgiven that makes us feel that God has forsaken us, for that sin causes Him to hide His face from us." It is only when the person who comes to the light, who acknowledges the truth of his sin and who is anxious to be free of its effects, who will be shown mercy (i.e., rachamim (רַחֲמִים), which comes from the word rechem (רֶחֶם), "womb").
In this evil world, it may sometimes seem that crime "pays," but certainly not before the Divine Presence, and in the world to come, every word and deed will be fully accounted before the bar of God's justice and truth. But even in this world, the sinner is secretly haunted by his conscience; he is driven to madness, hidden despair, and lives in dread and anxiety over the truth he conceals... It has been said that the problem with "getting away with it" is that you indeed "get away with it," meaning that your sin will follow you as doggedly as your own shadow in this world... Ultimately sin is a form of cowardice, since it hides in fear from the light of truth. Unconfessed sin leads to anxiety, paranoia, and weakness of the soul...
"What is done through lies can assume the mask of truth; what is accomplished through violence can go in the guise of justice, and for a while the hoax may be successful. But soon people realize that lies are lies at bottom, that violence is violence - and both are damned." (Martin Buber)
I mentioned recently that one of the reasons God revealed the Ten Commandments was because it was His way of saying, "I know who you really are, I see you..." This is why the people drew back in terror, because they realized that God saw the inner condition of their heart, exposed it, and shined the light of moral truth upon it. Nonetheless it is a great and ongoing credit to the Jewish people that they were willing to receive the revelation at Sinai, since it demonstrates that they were genuinely willing to be honest with themselves. Despite their many subsequent failures, they still revered the truth of God's Torah and meticulously preserved the revelation for future generations (Rom. 3:1-2).
Endurance to Hope...
"Being a good steward of your pain involves being alive to your life, keeping in touch with the pain as well as the joy of what happens because at no time more than at a painful time do we live out of the depths of who we are instead of out of the shallows."- Frederick Buechner
06.24.25 (Sivan 28, 5785) Though we are optimistic about the purpose and end of reality, and though we believe that God "works all things together for good" (Rom. 8:28), we are not therefore "monistic idealists," that is, those who say that "God is One" really means that evil is not real or that it is actually a "part of God." Reductionistic answers are always too simplistic, whether they come from science, theology, or cracker-barrel philosophy...
The Spirit of God says: "Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!" (Isa. 5:20-21).
It is woeful to confound the moral truth of God with sophistical categories of human arrogance: "language games" intended to subvert and pervert all the great principles of truth, wisdom, and of righteousness... And it is woeful to "sanctify crimes with the names of virtues," to pillage the truth of language for illicit or perverse gain. And yet again it is woeful to abuse the mind by confounding the role of conscience, to disparage intuitions of moral reality, to impugn logical reasoning, and therefore to make a "pretend form" of knowledge.
The Holy Spirit states that the difference between good and evil, and of sin and righteousness, is as evident as the difference between the most obvious of contrary qualities discovered by the senses, such as the benefit of light over darkness and of seeing over being blind.... Throughout the Scriptures, "darkness" symbolizes ignorance, error, deception, and crime, whereas "light" connotes truth, knowledge, and heartfelt piety. Likewise bitterness is associated with evil and sin: "Your own wickedness will correct you, and your backslidings will rebuke you. Know therefore and see that it is evil and bitter (רַע וָמָר) that you have forsaken the LORD your God, and that the fear of Me is not in you (וְלֹא פַחְדָּתִי אֵלַיִךְ)," declares the Lord GOD of hosts" (Jer. 2:19; see also Jer. 4:18), just as sweetness is associated with goodness and righteousness: "How sweet are Your words to my taste! Sweeter than honey to my mouth" (Psalm 119:103); "Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the person who trusts in Him" (Psalm 34:8). The commandments of God are more to be desired than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb; moreover by them is thy servant warned, and in keeping of them there is great reward" (Psalm 19:10-11).
Alas, the majority of people in every generation love darkness more than light, as our Lord attested: "This is the condemnation, that light has come into the world, but people love darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil. For every one that does evil hates the light and does not come to the light, so that his deeds would be exposed. But the person who does truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest that they done by God's power" (John 3:19-21). In this connection Charles Elliot wrote: "Deliberate perversion is in all ages the ultimate outcome of the spirit that knows not God, and therefore neither fears nor loves Him, whether it shows itself in the license of profligacy, or the diplomacy of Machiavellian statesmen, or the speculations of the worshipers of mammon."
We are given "exceedingly great and precious promises," yet in this world we suffer and experience real pain, heartache, and troubles. Yeshua said "in this world you will have tribulation," though that is not the end of the story, of course, for there is the cheer of God's' victory, even if we must repeatedly ask God for grace to endure our troubles without murmuring or kvetching (John 16:33; Heb. 4:16). I realize that is often difficult, and some of you might be within the fiery furnace even now. You might be asking, "Where are you, Lord, in all of this? Why don't you bring me out of these troubles?" In such testing you need endurance (ὑπομονή) to hold on to hope, believing that God uses affliction to refine you for good. As Paul said, "We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces refined character, and refined character produces hope" (Rom. 5:3-4). Each of us is still upon the "Potter's wheel," and God's hand continues to shape us into vessels that one day will reveal his glory and honor. "The LORD will give strength to his people; the LORD will bless his people with peace" (Psalm 29:11).
Hebrew Lesson
Psalm 29:11 reading (click):
Let's keep holding on, friends, and never give up. Though these are indeed perilous times, the Lord our God is faithful and true. He will never leave nor forsake us, whatever may come. The Lord gives us acharit ve'tikvah (אַחֲרִית וְתִקְוָה), "a future and a hope" (Jer. 29:11).
The Breath of His Life...
The greatest blessing you've been given is the gift of existence, partaking in the image of God and being endowed with the breath of his life...
06.24.25 (Sivan 28, 5785) A verse from this week's Torah portion (i.e., Korach) reveals another great Hebrew name for God: Elohei ha-ruchot lekhol basar (אֱלהֵי הָרוּחת לְכָל־בָּשָׂר), which can be translated "the God of the breath of all flesh" (Num. 16:22). The LORD is the Source of your breath, the One who exhales to you nishmat chayim (נִשְׁמַת חַיִּים), the "breath of life" that enables you to live (Job 12:10).
To understand this, the sages use the analogy of a glassblower who creates a glass vessel. Just as the glassblower blows into a tube to form a vessel from molten glass, so the breath (i.e., neshamah: נְשָׁמָה) that comes from the LORD functions as spirit (i.e., ruach: רוּחַ) that forms and fills the human soul (i.e., nefesh: נֶפֶשׁ). Note that the Name YHVH (יהוה) first appears in this connection (Gen. 2:7), a Name that means "God is Present" (Exod. 3:14) and "God is Mercy" (Exod. 34:6-7). Note also that each letter of the Name YHVH represents a vowel sound (i.e., breath), suggesting that God's Spirit is as close as your very next breath. Like the wind that cannot be seen, so is the spirit the essential part of your identity. Yeshua breathed on his followers and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit" (John 20:22).
The special Name Elohei ha-ruchot lekhol basar appears only one other place in the Torah. After accepting the fact that he would soon die and therefore be unable to finally lead the people into the promised land, Moses prayed: "Let the LORD (יהוה), "the God of the spirits of all flesh" (אֱלהֵי הָרוּחת לְכָל־בָּשָׂר), appoint a man over the congregation who shall go out before them and come in before them, who shall lead them out and bring them in, that the congregation of the LORD may not be as sheep that have no shepherd." So the LORD said to Moses, "Take Joshua the son of Nun (יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בִּן־נוּן, lit. "son of life"), a man in whom is the Spirit (רוּח), and lay your hand on him" (Num. 27:16-18).
The Talmud notes that the word Nun (נוּן) means "fish," a symbol of activity and life. Joshua, the chosen one who succeeded Moses and led the people into the Promised Land, was the "Son of Life" - a clear picture of Yeshua our Messiah, the "spirit-filled good Shepherd" who would lay down His life for the sheep (John 10:11). The LORD is indeed the "God of the breath of all flesh." When Yeshua cried out, "It is finished" and breathed his last breath as He died for our sins upon the cross, the greatest exhalation of the Spirit occurred, the greatest sigh, the greatest utterance was ever declared. The sacrificial death of Yeshua for our deliverance was God's final word of love breathed out to those who are trusting in Him.
Hebrew Lesson
Job 12:10 reading (click):
Marks of False Teachers...
The following entry concerns this week's Torah reading, parashat Korach...
06.23.25 (Sivan 27, 5785) In this week's Torah portion we encounter Moses' cousin Korach who agitated the people to reject the Torah in favor of a more "populist" approach. The reading begins with Korach and a group of leaders of Israel confronting Moses and Aaron saying: "You have gone too far! (רַב־לָכֶם, lit., "(too) much for you!"). All the community are holy, all of them, and the LORD is in their midst. Why then do you raise yourselves above the LORD's congregation?" (Num. 16:3). Korach made an appeal to the crowd, in effect saying that everyone could make up their own mind regarding the meaning of God's law. Now this was matter that required discernment and revelation. Was Korach teaching the truth when he said that following God was a matter of personal opinion and preference?
False teachers (מורי שקר) tend to be "people pleasers." They desire the esteem of the crowd, the praises of men, and therefore appeal to the murmurings of the unregenerate heart: "Do not prophesy to us what is right; speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits" (Isa. 30:10). They flatter people by "tickling their ears"; they offer either platitudes or "new revelation" based on their own imagination. Consequently, they tend to be grandiose and quick to disparage God's faithful servants. Thus Korach accused Moses of wanting to exalt himself when this only disclosed the evil lurking within his own heart (Num. 16:3).
False teachers speak in their own name and presume to be something when they are nothing (Gal. 6:3). "The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not... they are prophesying to you a lying vision, the deceit of their own minds" (Jer. 14:14). They secretly deny that Yeshua is LORD (יהוה), though they offer "lip service" about his importance (2 Pet. 2:1). Instead of focusing on the message of the gospel and the greatness of salvation found in Messiah, they "major in minors," passing over the weightier matters for the sake of divisive doctrines (Matt. 23:23). They crave to be teachers of the law, but they have no idea what they are talking about (see 1 Tim. 1:7). Often such deceivers have natural charisma, charm, "good hair," and an ability to bewitch people through buttery oratory or clever presentation (Col. 2:4,8). Often they focus on the truth of the head rather than the truth of the heart; they are more concerned with being vindicated than healing broken hearts. Finally, they tend to exploit people to promote their own self-serving agenda (1 Pet. 2:1-3). They make "merchandise" out of the gullible, regarding them as the means to support their "ministry" rather than as souls in need of God's love and care...
False teachers inevitably "twist the Scriptures" by unsound interpretations contrary to the ruach, or spirit of the Hebrew prophets, and by evading the commandment to "rightly divide" the word of Truth according to basic logic and the rudiments of clear thinking (2 Tim. 2:15; 2 Pet. 1:20-21; 3:16). In Christian circles, they often come in the name of the law (legalism) or in the name of grace (licentiousness), but rarely do they take the trouble to carefully (and equitably) work through the paradoxical tensions. False teachers are uncomfortable humbly confessing they don't know or understand something, and therefore they are quick to style themselves as an infallible prophet or source of authoritative wisdom...
There is no substitute for taking the time and energy to humbly study Torah, friends, and we should be suspicious of those who claim special insight when it is evident that they have not really labored working through the Scriptures... All disciples of Yeshua are called "students," or talmidim (תַּלְמִידִים), a word that comes from lamad (לָמַד) meaning "to learn" (the study of Scripture is called talmud Torah (תַלְמוּד תּוֹרָה) from the same root). Among other things, then, following Yeshua means becoming a student of the Jewish Scriptures that he both loved and perfectly fulfilled (Matt. 5:17-18; Luke 24:44-45). Only after learning the truth of the Scriptures will you be equipped to "go to all the nations and teach" others (Matt. 28:19). This is accomplished not merely by explaining (propositional) doctrine but by kiddush HaShem -- sanctifying the LORD in our lives (1 Pet. 1:15-16). "Know them by their fruits."
Yeshua brings the kingdom of God "at hand," that is, into the realm of this fallen world. False teachers are emissaries of evil, commissioned by the devil to seduce, deceive, and ensnare souls; they disguise themselves as an "angel of light" (2 Cor. 11:14). God allows false teachers to justify the desires of the unregenerated heart, for such teachers find their audience among those who want to be deceived (Matt. 13:24-30; 15:14). "For there must also be false teachers among you, that those who are approved may be recognized among you" (1 Cor. 11:19) .This implies that there can be no false teachers apart from false believers who go along with the ruse. In light of this possibility, we should be careful to honestly examine our hearts. What are your motives for faith? What draws you to Yeshua? Do you accept the message of the gospel or are you trusting in something else? Are you really one of his "sheep"? Do you hear his voice, or are you heeding something contrary to the truth of the Holy Spirit?
Just as the easiest way to spot a counterfeit bill is to know the various details of the original, so our best defence against false teaching is to know the details of doctrine and to use discernment as the LORD helps us "test the spirits" (1 John 4:1). This implies that we "build ourselves up in the most holy faith" by carefully (i.e., humbly) studying the word of God - especially the Torah, since the Torah is the foundation of all that follows (Jude 1:20). In this way we will be able to accurately wield the Sword of the Spirit (2 Tim. 2:15-16, 2 Pet. 1:19-20). In order to grow, we must have "good soil" for the seed of the word to take root. We "get rooted by knowing the roots" of our faith! Studying the Scriptures and praying in the Spirit of Truth keeps us securely in the love of God as we wait for the mercy of Yeshua who gives us eternal life (Jude 1:21).
Hebrew Lesson
Psalm 138:6 reading (click):
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Finding Real Treasure...
06.23.25 (Sivan 27, 5785) "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it" (Matt. 13:44-46). Here Yeshua teaches us that a relationship with God is the true source of joy and value in life, and that all other passions and desires are like "fools gold" when compared with its overwhelming worth... In this connection Soren Kierkegaard wrote: "If anyone thinks he is a Christian and yet is indifferent toward being that, then he really is not one at all. Indeed, what would we think of a person who gave assurances that he was in love and also that it was a matter of indifference to him?" (Works of Love).
The Shema, the "first and greatest commandment," is to love God "bekhol levavkha" (בְּכָל־לְבָבְךָ) with all our hearts, yet how is that love possible apart from the revelation of the passion of love itself? "We love because God first loves us" (1 John 4:19), and therefore teshuvah ("repentance") is a matter of being in love, celebrating God's heart for us, awakening to its wonder, and being thrilled and overjoyed at its reality. Is this not the essence of the matter? "Shimon ben Yonah, atah ohev oti?" – "Simon son of Jonah, do you love me?" (John 21:17). But how can we love the Lord apart from trusting his heart for us? "Come unto Me," Yeshua says, "live in Me and I will live in you." O Lord God our Savior, deliver us from apathy and indifference! Soften our hearts and awaken us to our great desire and need for you! Hashivenu, Adonai: turn us, O LORD, and we shall be turned; heal us, and we shall be healed. O Source of all grace and truth and love, let know the breadth and length and height and depth of your great love!
So for what do you hope, friend? What are your dreams? Your deepest desires? Where is your treasure? Yeshua cautioned those who sought their happiness in this world: "Do not store up for yourselves treasures upon earth... be rich toward God" (Matt. 6:19-20; Luke 12:21). When we treasure God, our focus is directed toward the eternal reality, and our interest in this world fades. We trust God to meet our daily needs and surrender our future to His care. The only worry we face concerns our own deficiencies in our obligations to the Savior. Our duty is to love God in the truth - bekhol levavkha - with all our heart, having no thought of ourselves. Indeed, self-denial means to quit thinking about yourself (from α-, "not," + ῥέω, "to speak") by accepting what God has done for you. "It is not my business to think about myself. My business is to think about God. It is for God to think about me" (Simone Weil). Amen, where your treasure is, there will be your heart also.
Hebrew Lesson
Jer. 24:7a reading (click):
Which is of Ultimate Concern...
The following entry concerns this week's Torah reading, parashat Korach...
06.23.25 (Sivan 27, 5785) We read in our Torah portion for this week the terrible fate of Korah and his co-conspirators: "And the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up" (Num. 16:32), which the sages say metaphorically refers to being consumed by this world, its desires, and its end...
Life is a serious business, an irrepeatable opportunity. Many trifle their way to the grave, fully unprepared for the shock of the world to come... How few make it the great business of life to prepare themselves "until their change comes" (Job 14:14); how few consciously number their days to obtain a heart of wisdom (Psalm 90:12)? We mustn't fool ourselves by thinking we have a long road ahead before we face who we are at the time of our death (Luke 12:19-21). "No one knows the day or hour," yet it is certain to come, and wisdom bids us be prepared. All must die; there is no escape (Heb. 9:27). "No man has power to retain the spirit, or power over the day of death. There is no discharge from this war, nor will wickedness deliver those who are given over to it" (Eccl. 8:8).
In light of this somber truth, do you reflect on its significance? Have you taken time to consider how it will be for you at your death? Allow such thoughts to awaken you from your careless and unwatchful state. Lay up treasure in heaven (Matt. 6:20). You are not saved by doing ma'asei tovim (good works) but they evidence genuine faith (Eph. 2:10). Good works validates the presence of faith, and its absence is a sign of "Laodicean" apostasy (Rev. 3:14-22). Considering the vastness of eternity, human life is likened to a mere vapor that quickly passes away (Psalm 103:15-16). It is madness to put off that which is of ultimate concern until the last moment. Therefore "repent one day before you die." Live each day as if it might be your last before your judgment (Heb. 9:27), and may our blessed God help you to "seek the LORD while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near" (Isa. 55:6).
כי־ידעתי מות תשׁיבני
ובית מועד לכל־חי
kee-ya·da'·tee · ma'·vet · te·shee·vei'·nee
oo·veit · mo·eid · le·khol-chai
"For I know that you will bring me to death,
and to the meeting place for all the living."
(Job 30:23)
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Of course dying in the LORD assumes you are really "in Him," that is, that you are a person whose heart is known by Him (1 Cor. 8:3). You can't die in him if you have never lived in him. In this world we learn to die, and as we die in Him, so we will live in him. Resolve this within your heart: "Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord" (Rev. 14:15).
Concerning the prospect of death we are full of confidence, of course, since Yeshua has overcome death for us and secured our place in heaven (John 11:25; Heb. 2:9-10). "We must all die; we are like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again. But God will not take away life, and he devises means so that the banished one will not remain an outcast" (2 Sam. 14:14). Though physical life inevitably returns us to dust (Heb. 9:27), death does not have the final word, since God wonderfully "devises the means by which the banished are brought back home." If you belong to the Lord, your death is the day of precious homecoming to be with your beloved Savior: "For me to live is Messiah, and to die is gain" (Phil. 1:21). As it is written, "just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven" (1 Cor. 15:49). Amen.
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All in the family:
The Rebellion of Korah...
06.22.25 (Sivan 26, 5785) Shavuah tov, chaverim. Last week's Torah portion (Shelach Lekha) told the tragic story about the "sin of the spies" (חטא המרגלים) and the divine decree that the generation rescued from Egypt was sentenced to die in the exile of the desert. In this week's portion (parashat Korach), the hard truth of their condition began to sink in, and the people bemoaned their fate and rebelled further by attempting to overthrow God's designated leadership and return to Egypt. This rebellion was instigated and organized by Moses' cousin Korach, who – along with a band of co-conspirators – was swiftly judged and put to death, thereby vindicating the Aaronic priesthood and Moses' leadership of Israel.
Korach was the cousin of Moses and a Kohathite who was honored to be one of the carriers of the Holy Ark (ארון הברית). He was a wealthy man of influence - a nassi (prince) of the people. Despite all this privilege, however, Korach rationalized that he should be the head of the Kohathite clan (instead of his cousin Elzaphan), since he was the firstborn of Kohath's second son, whereas Elzaphan was not even a firstborn son. Indeed, because he felt slighted by Moses' choice, Korach went even further and brazenly questioned whether the office of the High Priest should not have been given to him – rather than to Aaron.
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Korach's co-conspirators were two brothers named Dathan and Abiram from the tribe of Reuben, Israel's firstborn son. Together, they put together a force of 250 men to confront Moses and to challenge his exclusive claim to leadership: "You have gone too far! For all in the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the LORD?" (Num. 16:3).
In response to their challenge, Moses proposed that Korach and his followers bring firepans to offer incense at the Tabernacle to determine whether they were indeed chosen to serve as priests. The following morning, when Korach and his 250 followers assembled at the gate of the Tabernacle to offer incense, God threatened to destroy them all instantly. Moses begged God not to destroy all the people, but only the rebels. He then warned the congregation to stand clear of the dwellings of Korach, Dathan, and Abiram. The earth then opened up and swallowed them alive, and a fire consumed the 250 men who illegitimately offered the incense...
Korach's rebellion introduced outright mutiny and chaos within the leadership of the camp that brought swift and terrible rebuke from the LORD. Nevertheless, the very next day the entire congregation of Israel audaciously began to accuse Moses and Aaron, saying: "You have killed the people of the Lord." When the people looked toward the Tabernacle, however, the Glory of the LORD appeared, where God descended to tell Moses and Aaron that he was going to destroy the Israelites for their treason. Despite Moses and Aaron's fervent intercession, however, a deadly plague broke out among the people. Moses then instructed Aaron to take his firepan with incense and to bring it in the midst of the congregation to make atonement for them. Aaron did so, "and he stood between the dead and the living; and the plague was stayed." The Torah tells us that 14,700 Israelites died because of the plague, not including the deaths of those involved in the rebellion of Korach.
As a final test to vindicate Aaron as God's chosen priest, each of the twelve tribal heads of Israel, as well as Aaron himself, were instructed to bring their staffs to Moses. Moses then inscribed their names on each staff and brought them into the sanctuary before the ark of the testimony. "And the staff of the man whom I choose shall sprout. Thus I will make to cease from me the grumblings of the people of Israel, which they grumble against you." The following day Moses went into the Tabernacle and "behold, the staff of Aaron for the house of Levi had sprouted and put forth buds and produced blossoms, and it bore ripe almonds." He then brought out all the staffs and gave them back to each of the tribal leaders. God then told Moses to return Aaron's staff to the Tabernacle as a testimony for generations to come.
Persevering Faith (היה איתן)
"Salvation is free, but discipleship will cost you your life." - Dietrich Bonhoeffer
06.20.25 (Sivan 24, 5785) When Israel believed the report of the faithless spies, Moses commented: "You were not willing to ascend (וְלא אֲבִיתֶם לַעֲלת), but became embittered (מָרָה) against the Word of the LORD your God" (Deut. 1:26). Moses' rebuke was not that the people were afraid to conquer the land as much as that they had lost heart and no longer desired to take hold of God's promise. The people gave up their dream; they forsook their hope; and they had lost the "devotion of their youth, their love as a bride, how they followed the LORD in the desert, into a land not sown" (Jer. 2:2).
The people's failure was on two levels: First they lapsed in faith by abdicating trust in God's word, and second, they had lost the passion of their first love. In light of this, the sages say that the greater problem was that of losing heart, since the heart directs the will to believe in the miracle of God, or not...
Moses' rebuke of the people's heart condition recalls the sober warning Yeshua gave to the Ephesian believers: "I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false. I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name's sake, and you have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your menorah from its place, unless you repent" (Rev. 2:2-5). Likewise the author of the Book of Hebrews commented: "And to whom did he swear that they would not enter his rest, but to those who were disobedient? And with whom was he provoked for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the desert? So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief" (Heb. 3:17-19). The question of our faith is essential: "It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God" (Heb. 10:31).
What we fear says a lot about what we really believe, and therefore what we are thinking. True fear is awareness of the sanctity of life - the "fear of the Lord" (יראת יהוה) which is the beginning of wisdom (Prov. 9:10). True fear is true because it corresponds to reality by discerning that God is the source of all that is worthy and good. False fear, on the other hand, reveals disordered thinking, by both believing that some finite good is utmost and that losing that good is an existential threat. False fear is grounded in worldly concern and pleasures that immerse the soul in the moment, devoid of consciousness of any deeper connection with the future. "Time and busyness think that eternity is very far away" and this becomes the temptation that your life and eternity are unrelated.
The Scriptures warn us to "pay more careful attention to what we have heard so that we do not drift away" (Heb. 2:1). We must be anchored to the truth lest we become shipwrecked in our faith. Drifting occurs slowly and almost imperceptibly, though the end result is as deadly as openly turning away from God in outright apostasy. As C.S. Lewis once wrote, "The safest road to hell is the gradual one - the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts." The devil seeks to lull you to sleep...
Hebrew Lesson
Psalm 119:10 Hebrew reading:
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The Sigh of Faith...
06.20.25 (Sivan 24, 5785) "We groan inwardly as we eagerly await our redemption..." (Rom. 8:23). We sigh deeply because we are suspended between two worlds, living in the ambiguity of an already-not-yet expectation, enduring ourselves as imperfect vessels longing for perfection, trapped between what is and what will be, seeing the unseen, yearning for healing, believing that we shall never die, even as we die (John 11:26). We are restless for our eternal home and long for God's presence as we walk through shadowy vales, facing various temptations, whispering our prayers in the dark. And though we must learn endurance and trust in God's sovereign purposes, our faith nevertheless compels us to cry out, "How long, O Lord?" and "Come, Lord Yeshua" (Rev. 22:20). Our challenge is to keep a positive attitude despite the struggles we face, and therefore we inwardly pray: "Renew within me ruach nachon (רוּחַ נָכוֹן) - "a spirit that says 'Yes' (Psalm 51:10).
Surrender means accepting God's will for our lives -- saying "yes" to his promise of love, even if we presently feel empty inside and may wonder how long we can hang in there... Saying "yes" implies saying "no" to other things - no to fear, anger and doubt, for example. Tragically there are people who have given up hope for bitterness and despair. Asking the Lord to give us a spirit of "yes" is really a prayer for focus, direction, and the willingness to keep pressing on to our heavenly destiny, especially when the way seems dark and hope seems distant.
Though life is a struggle, we do not lose heart or faint, since even though the outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed (i.e., ἀνακαινόω, "raised up") day by day. "For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, that is, substance and reality..." (2 Cor. 4:16-5:3). Meanwhile we must endure ourselves, deal with our resistance to mortification, and ask God for the great blessing of keeping us from evil so that we are not consumed by grief....
Our light affliction, which is but for a moment, works for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory... Or as the Boethius wrote from his prison cell: "The now that passes produces time; the now that remains produces eternity" (Consolations).
Hebrew Lesson
1 Chronicles 4:10 Hebrew reading:
"Spying Eyes" of the Flesh...
"In faith there is enough light for those who want to believe and enough shadows to blind those who don't." - Blaise Pascal
06.19.25 (Sivan 23, 5785) Which will you choose to believe - the "spying eyes" of the flesh, or the Word and promise of the LORD God Almighty? The "eyes of the flesh" focus on this world and its possibilities (חַיֵּי שָׁעָה) and are therefore unable to discern beyond mere surface appearances. They are easily seduced by superficialities and glitter of this world and its vanities (עוֹלָם הַשֶּׁקֶר). The eyes of faith, on the other hand, "look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal" (2 Cor. 4:18). Faith sees the realm of the invisible (חַיֵּי עוֹלָם): For we "walk by faith, not by sight." We are "saved by hope," but hope that is seen is not hope (Rom. 8:24-25). Faith is the foundation (ὑπόστασις) of things hoped for, the conviction (ἔλεγχος) of things (πρᾶγμα) not seen" (Heb. 11:1).
It had only been 13 months since the Israelites had witnessed the awesome power of God deliver them from Egypt. Surely the people vividly remembered how God sent ten great plagues upon Egypt, forcing the wicked Pharaoh to finally relent and let them go; surely they recalled how the Sea of Reeds was miraculously split in two as they walked across on dry land. Were they not overjoyed when they sang about how God had decisively vanquished the power of Egypt as the waters returned over the pursuing armies? And when their food ran out, had not God sent them ha-motzi min ha-shamayim - "the bread from heaven"? When there was no water to be found, had not God provided them with "living water"? Did not the Pillar of Cloud and Fire lead them to Sinai, where they felt the tremor of the great revelation from heaven - the fire, earthquakes, and blasts from the heavenly shofar? Did they not hear the very Voice of the LORD speaking to them from the thick darkness? Did not the 70 elders of Israel eat the covenant ratification meal and behold the glory of God? Wasn't it just a few months later, after Moses explained to the people the laws of the Torah and assembled the Tabernacle in their midst, that the people saw the Shekhinah Glory of God descend from the summit of Sinai to dwell over the sanctuary? Did they not fall on their faces as the fire of the LORD consumed the sacrifices on the altar?
And yet, in a sense, these displays of divine power - these "signs and wonders" - were something of a distraction for the eye of faith, since faith does not confuse the means for the end. For example, the manna that fell was meant to keep people alive, but that life was to be lived in trusting relationship with the Living God.
Recall that the Israelites had camped near Mount Sinai for nearly a year before God commanded them to begin their journey through the desert back to the Promised Land. It was at Sinai that Moses had first set up the Mishkan (i.e., Tabernacle), dedicated the priesthood, and taught the people the commandments of the Torah. In the "second year, in the second month, on the 20th day of the month" (i.e., Iyyar 20), the cloud lifted from over the Tabernacle and Moses dispatched the Ark of the Covenant to follow after it into the desert (Num. 10:33-6). Moses then directed the people to set out "by stages" toward the desert of Paran (in the Negev). First the eastern camp led by Judah set out, which was followed by the Levites who moved the Tabernacle. Then the southern camp of Reuben set out, followed by the Kohathites who carried the Tabernacle's sacred furnishings (e.g., the menorah, the altar of incense, etc.). Then the western camp of Ephraim set out, followed by the northern camp of Dan which served as a "rear guard."
In our Torah portion, the Israelites had trekked across the desert of Paran for several days, with their camps ordered in military precision. The Ark of the Covenant was in their midst and the Shekhinah Glory filled the desert skies. Now the people were at Kadesh Barnea (קָדֵשׁ בַּרְנֵעַ), about 11 days out from Sinai and about three days to the Promised Land, at the very edge of the conquest.... Zion was within reach!
But then a dark misgiving arose within the heart of the people... fear ... the old whisper of the enemy was heard in the desert wind: "has God really said...?" (Gen. 3:1). The enemy's voice always solicits and plays on our fears.... Satan is a liar who seeks to take our heart away. He is a bully who first seeks to intimidate us and then attempts to damn us for accepting his lies... Nonetheless, despite his temptation in the wilderness, the people's lack of trust in God's provision is altogether remarkable, and very nearly incomprehensible. The people had seen so much evidence of God's care for them, and yet they seemed to be driven by the vexation of fear. We learn later that it was the people's desire - based on their fear - to send out the spies, and surely not the result of God's command (Deut. 1:21-33). Indeed, shelach lekha (שְׁלַח־לְךָ) means "send for your own sake," that is, send them based on your request - certainly not because I command this thing... Was there a secret wound at work here? Did the people somehow suspect that God's discipline was a sign of His disfavor? Was the old accusation that Moses had led the people into the desert to die still inwardly being harbored (Exod. 14:11-12, cp. Num. 14:3)? Perhaps the idea of being in relationship with a Holy God proved to be more than what was bargained for... Salvation and provision are fine, but the fiery judgments proved there was something far more was required... After all, it is one thing to dabble in religion, but it is quite another to encounter the Reality of the Divine and entirely Holy Presence, and indeed, to become infinitely accountable to Him.
The mistrust of the people reminds us that miracles are always insufficient to sustain our faith. "An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign." Seeing isn't believing, but rather the other way around.... Yeshua made this point in His parable of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31). Even if a person should encounter someone literally risen from the dead it wouldn't suffice to impart true faith (Luke 16:31). The great sin that so angered God to say, "I swore in My wrath, They shall not enter into My rest..." was not that of the Golden Calf, as dreadful as that was, but rather the sin of unbelief.... "So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief. Let us, therefore, fear lest, a promise being left us of entering into His rest, any of you should seem to come short of it" (Heb. 3:7-4:2).
The report given by the spies was a function of their faith: "According to your faith, be it done unto you." "Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks." Faith sees what is possible and refuses to yield to the artificiality of mere appearance. When Moses told the twelve spies to "Go up into the Negev and go up into the hill country, and see what the land is, and whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, whether they are few or many, and whether the land that they dwell in is good or bad" (Num. 13:18-19), he certainly did not need the opinion of the spies regarding the land and its qualities. After all, God Himself had told him the land was very good, a "land flowing with milk and honey." In a sense, Moses - and God through him - was testing the spies, to see if they had faith to see beyond mere appearances. "Even if the land seems bad in your eyes, declare that it is good... Do not rely on your initial impressions, since in order to see the promise, you must look beyond what is immediately visible."
All the spies saw the same physical phenomena: They saw the land "that devours its inhabitants," they beheld the heavy fortifications, they shrank back before the "giants" that dwelled there, and so on. The "majority" view was that the land was unassailable and that danger awaited the people... However, Joshua and Caleb exercised genuine faith and refused to regard themselves as "grasshoppers" before the enemy. Despite seeing the same obstacles, they beheld the future promise of the LORD and understood their stature as God's beloved children... The test of faith turned on the identity of the spies themselves. Were they "grasshoppers" or were they ambassadors of the Living God?
Some of the sages have said that the LORD allowed this shelach lekha - this "test of faith" - in order to judge the perfidy of the Exodus generation. In the aftermath of their failure, the LORD said, "But truly, as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD, none of the men who have seen my glory and my signs that I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and yet have put me to the test these ten times and have not obeyed my voice, shall see the land that I swore to give to their fathers. And none of those who despised me shall see it" (Num. 14:21-23). The midrash rabbah likens their fate to the story of a royal prince who reached marriageable age. His father then arranged a suitable match and chose a young lady of royal pedigree who was intelligent, beautiful, and charming. The son, however, insisted on first meeting the prospective mate. The father, of course, was deeply hurt by his son's lack of trust in him, and therefore reasoned: "If I refuse to allow them to meet, my son will be convinced that his doubts were justified. I will therefore allow them to meet to vindicate my choice. However, since he didn't trust me, I will not allow him to marry her." When the Israelites of that generation questioned God's word, God allowed them to send spies, to see with their own eyes that the land was good. However, since the people doubted His word, they would not be allowed to inhabit it.
As the Book of Hebrews makes clear, the theme of this week's Torah portion concerns the essential nature of salvation itself, which comes exclusively through trusting in God's love and grace as given in Yeshua - χάριτί ἐστε σεσῳσμένοι διὰ πίστεως (Eph. 2:8). The essence of the Torah has always been: הַצַּדִּיק בֶּאֱמוּנָתוֹ יִחְיֶה / "the righteous shall live by his faith" (Hab. 2:4; Heb. 10:38). Believing in the manifestation of the miraculous is insufficient for faith, and indeed, in the end of the age there will arise one who through lying signs and wonders will induce "strong delusion" to deceive the people of this world (2 Thess. 2:9-12). Regarding the case of the Israelites, what has struck some commentators is not so much the signs and wonders that the LORD performed on their behalf, but rather their persistent inability or unwillingness to believe... After all, truly loving the LORD with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength is a miracle of a greater kind than that of splitting the Sea of Reeds. The heart of faith does not seek the miraculous, but is transformed by God's miraculous power into a testimony of His faithful love.
Hebrew Lesson
Jeremiah 29:13 Hebrew reading (click):
Faith and Trust...
06.19.25 (Sivan 23, 5785) Since our Torah portion this week (Shelach) tells the tragic story of how the Exodus generation lost their inheritance by believing the faithless report of the spies, I thought it would be helpful to review the nature of faith so that we might guard ourselves from stumbling in a similar way. After all, concerning the tragic decree of God regarding the fate of Israelites in the desert (see Num. 14:21-35), the New Testament admonishes Messianic pilgrims, "Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into His rest, any of you should seem to come short of it" (Heb. 3:7-4:2).
The Hebrew word emunah (אֱמוּנָה), often rendered as "faith" in many English translations, comes from the root word aman (אָמַן), which means to rest securely or rely upon (and from which we get the word "amen"). The root word occurs for the first time in the Torah in connection with Abraham: "And he believed (וְהֶאֱמִן) the LORD, and He counted it to him as righteousness" (Gen. 15:6). But what was the nature of Abraham's faith that caused God to regard it as tzedakah (צְדָקָה) or "righteousness"? What was the "object" or "content" of his faith? Was it not that Abraham knew the character and will of God so intimately that he unconditionally put his trust in Him? Abraham was declared tzaddik (righteous) because he believed and understood that the LORD would fulfill His promise to him, despite his advanced age and the seeming impossibility of becoming the father of a multitude of nations (for more on this, click here). Abraham affirmed God's promise by saying the first "amen."
Now while emunah has an intellectual aspect that understands God's attributes and character, it certainly goes beyond intellectual apprehension and assent (i.e., the idea of believing certain ideas and doctrines), since the "object" of faith is the Person of the Living God Himself. Therefore it is not inaccurate to say that emunah is more "belief in" than "belief that." The root word (aman) later appears when the Torah describes how Moses' arms were "steadied" by Aaron and Chur during the battle against Amalek (Exod. 17:12). Genuine faith is a settled intellectual conviction (ἔλεγχος) that what God has promised will indeed come to pass (Heb. 11:1). It accepts that God's verbal promise of our future good is reliable and sure. Abraham believed in a future state of affairs (a future-tense proposition) as expressed in his present faith in the Person and Promise of God. He foresaw the redemption of the world (the Messiah) and understood God's promise of salvation (John 8:56).
Hebrew Lesson
Genesis 15:6 reading (click):
If emunah describes the cognitive dimension of faith, the word "bittachon" (בִּטָּחוֹן) describes its emotional dimension. The word bittachon (בִּטָּחוֹן) comes from a root word (בָּטָח) that means to trust, to feel safe and secure. Bittachon describes emotional acceptance of the goodness of the LORD. Some of the sages have said that while emunah represents a state of understanding (בִּינָה) that God is intimately involved in all the events of the universe, bittachon means personally trusting in God in every situation for your good.... It is an intuitive awareness of the personal love of God for your life, coupled with complete trust that He cares for you (Rom. 8:28). It is an expectation that the lovingkindness (חֶסֶד) of God is for you, too. The ancient Greek translation of the Torah (i.e., the Septuagint) never translates words derived from this root in terms of merely "believing in God" (i.e., intellectual assent), but in terms of hoping or relying upon God's faithful love as the only true Source of hope. As the Psalms repeatedly state, the confidence that comes from relying upon God is valid only because of God's chesed (his loyalty or covenantal faithfulness). "On what do you rest this trust of yours (מָה הַבִּטָּחוֹן הַזֶּה אֲשֶׁר בָּטָחְתָּ)?" In other words, what is the source of your confidence?
Surely it is possible for a person to have emunah but not bittachon. This is the case of the mere "professor" of faith who does not know the LORD existentially within his or her heart. Theologians can "understand" that God exists, they can "assent" that He (alone) is the Creator of the universe who acts in justice, they can even claim that the Scriptures are true, and yet they can be in a state of profound spiritual darkness (James 2:19). Even the devil knows how to quote Scripture... On the other hand, it is also possible to have bittachon without emunah. This is the case of a gullible soul that is willing to accept any "wind of doctrine" even if it clearly contradicts the truth of the Scriptures. For example, people who stress the "sweetness and light" of God are often offended at the prospect of God's judgment for sin.... To be balanced, we need both emunah and bittachon - we need doctrine with heart, "spirit and truth" (John 4:23-24). We need to understand the attributes and character of the LORD (i.e., his Holy Name, his redeeming acts, etc.) as revealed in the propositional Scriptures, but we also need to let this truth of His Spirit penetrate our hearts so that we live genuinely in a state of peace, forgiveness, and love.
The head and the heart must work together. While emunah may be somewhat "conceptual" or "theoretical," bittachon is the practice of emunah into everyday life. It is "where we live," in the everyday world of temptation, struggles, heartache, and hope. Sometimes "intellectual" people need to make a radical break from the paradigms they have relied on to understand true spirituality. For example, the "problem of evil" can be regarded as an "academic question" until someone experiences great personal suffering... Indeed, the "head" can actually become a "defense" against the duty of heart to sympathize with others, to share in the pain and sorrow that is a ubiquitous aspect of life in this fallen world. It is one thing to think that you love other people, but it's quite another to actually do so, "down in the trenches," so to speak... It is all too easy to become self-deceived (Gal. 6:3). As the Apostle John admonished, "Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth" (1 John 3:17-18).
Thomas Aquinas' most significant work was his Summa theologiae or 'Summary of Theology,' a massive book that attempted to "systematize" all of Christian theology. He worked on it for many years, but when he was nearly finished he underwent a spiritual experience that, as he himself explained, made everything he had written "seem like straw." He thereafter gave up writing about "theology" after he encountered the Reality itself. Aquinas apparently moved from the realm of theoretical emunah to the realm of heartfelt bittachon. Similarly, toward the end of his life and career someone asked the prolific theologian Karl Barth if he could sum up all that he had learned and written. Barth thought a bit and replied, "Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so."
The Scriptures are "propositional" in their truth claims and therefore faith must be expressed in terms of emunah (i.e., as "theology"). However, the content of faith is not a static creed but calls for personal trust (bittachon) in the Living God who makes promises to those in existential need... All of this needs to be put in balance. Emunah must logically come first in the process, since we must first know about the true God before we can put our trust in Him... We must understand that "there is no other Name" for salvation given to us (Acts 4:12). After this, we begin learning to personally trust God in our daily lives. Yeshua gave us the proper order, "If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them" (John 13:17).
So do not yield to despair. Though our Torah portion this week warns us about the terrible sin of unbelief, "God is able to make all grace overflow (περισσεύω) to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may overflow (περισσεύω) in every good work" (2 Cor. 9:8). "Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom" (Luke 12:32). May we all "grow in grace and in the knowledge of our LORD and Savior, Yeshua the Messiah." Let us press on in faith, chaverim!
Hebrew Lesson
Psalm 9:10 reading (click):
Faith's Projection...
06.18.25 (Sivan 22, 5785) In our Torah reading for this week (i.e., Shelach) we read the account of the men who were commissioned to scout out the promised land and report back to Moses. When they returned, the men described the land as a beautiful and fruitful, flowing with "milk and honey," but they openly expressed doubt that the Israelites would be able to conquer the land. They justified their fear by saying that the inhabitants were formidable, their cities were well fortified, and that there were giants living in there. "We were in our eyes as grasshoppers (וַנְּהִי בְעֵינֵינוּ כַּחֲגָבִים), and so we were in their eyes" (Num. 13:33). Here the sages note the subtle - yet profound - connection between how we see ourselves and how we suppose that others see us... "We were in our eyes as we were in their eyes..." This sort of "projection" is common enough in everyday life. However, while it may be valid for you to sometimes feel small, inadequate, and even "grasshoppery," it is not valid to claim that this is how others see you or that this is how you really are. After all, how do you know how you appear to others? And, moreover, what difference does that make in light of who God says you are? Remember David and Goliaith?
Who or what defines you? Do you need the approval of man to exist, or the approval of God? Worrying about how others see you, seeking your self worth among the fickle passions of men, is cowardly, carnal and self-centered. When the spies said that "the land devours it inhabitants" (Num. 13:32), they projected their own hidden fears. Instead of seeing God at work, preparing the way for the Israelites to more easily conquer the land, the spies saw only themselves, and that led to the irreparable sin of unbelief... Here we see that faith is self-authenticating: "according to your faith be it done unto you" (Matt. 9:29).
For every reaction there is a counter reaction. As the Kotzker Rebbe wisely said, "If I am I because I am I, and you are you because you are you, then I am I and you are you; but if I am I because you are you and you are you because I am I, then I am not I and you are not you." The Kotzer's saying reminds me of a story I once heard. A man went to a rabbi and said, "I know I am a fool, rabbi, but I don't know what to do about it. Can you help me? The rabbi replied in a complimentary way, "Ah my son, if you know you're a fool, then surely you are no fool!" "Then why does everybody say I am fool?" complained the man. The rabbi regarded him thoughtfully for a moment and then said, "If you don't understand that you are a fool, but only listen to what other people say, then you surely are a fool!"
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Rabbi Hillel once said: "If I am not for myself then who will be for me? But if I am only for myself, what am I? And if not now, when?" (Avot 1:14b). Hillel notes that the language of "I am" (אָנִי) and "for me" (לִי) reveals that our relationship with ourselves must be sanctified and ordered before God. As Soren Kierkegaard once cryptically wrote: "The self is a relation which relates itself to its own self, or it is that in the relation that the relation relates itself to its own self; the self is not the relation but that the relation relates itself to its own self." In other words, the "self" - your inner life - is revealed as an inner dialog or conversation with yourself... An "authentic" self must relate itself to God as the Ground of existence, otherwise irremediable despair will result, that is, lethal sickness of soul...
The remedy for anxious confusion of heart is to turn to God and to find your value in God's love and blessing. "By the grace of God I am what I am" (1 Cor. 15:10), that is, I am made a person. As we come to believe that we are accepted and loved despite our many imperfections, inadequacies, and character defects, we find courage to accept ourselves, to "let go" and relax. As Yeshua said, "whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall not enter it" (Luke 18:17).
We lose sight of what is real because we want the blessing on our own terms, apart from the miracle... The legalist is actually enslaved to the idea of God's conditional acceptance: "If you obey, then you belong." There is still some faith that the right religious scruples, the affirmation of a particular creed, and the practice of certain rituals will gain us access to His heart. The message of the cross scandalizes the religious because it boldly states, "if you believe, then you belong." As Kierkegaard rightly observed, "And this is the simple truth - that to live is to feel oneself lost. He who accepts it has already begun to find himself, to be on firm ground. Instinctively, as do the shipwrecked, he will look around for something to which to cling, and that tragic, ruthless glance, absolutely sincere, because it is a question of his salvation, will cause him to bring order into the chaos of his life. These are the only genuine ideas; the ideas of the shipwrecked. All the rest is rhetoric, posturing, farce."
Religious rituals devoid of a sense of crisis within the heart are little more than a sham. Anthony de Mello wrote: "I think of the times I tried to use him to make my life secure, and undisturbed, and painless. Also the times I was enslaved by fear of him, and by the need to protect myself against him through rites and circumstances." Ritualistic behavior is a poor substitute for trusting that His heart is forever present for you.
Hebrew Lesson
Psalm 18:25-26 reading (click for audio):
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Prayer for this hour...
06.18.25 (Sivan 22, 5785) Many of us are hurting, Lord, and we sometimes feel alone in our struggle... This world seems so senseless, so brutal, and so evil at times; we feel powerless, overwhelmed, and even sick inside... We look to You, O God, and for your mercy and your power. Help us to accept what we cannot change and to completely trust in Your great healing to come, despite the depravity of the world around us. Remind us that though we cannot change the world, we are given grace to sustain our trust in You, our glorious and merciful Healer. And may we never be ashamed; may we never grow bitter; may our sorrows lead us from strength to strength. And may this time of testing lead us to greater wisdom, to deeper compassion, and finally back to You. Amen.
It is prophetically written in our Scriptures: "The path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day" (Prov. 4:18). From the first glimmer of heaven-sent faith we detect the divine light, "the light of dawn," which continues to grow more and more until it becomes as radiant as the midday, an image of the full light of the World to Come. Amen. Praise God that more light is coming to you who are trusting in the LORD, even in your present darkness, for it is written: "He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Yeshua our Messiah" (Phil. 1:6).
Hebrew Lesson
Proverbs 4:18 reading (click for audio):
Joshua and Yeshua...
06.17.25 (Sivan 21, 5785) In our Torah reading for this week, parashat Shelach-lekha, we read that before he sent out the leaders of the tribes to spy out the land of Canaan, Moses renamed his trusted servant Hoshea (הוֹשֵׁעַ) to Yehoshua (יְהוֹשֻׁעַ), appending the letter Yod (י) to make his name begin with a divine prefixive (יָהּ־). The Talmud (Sotah 34b) states that Moses did this because he foresaw the treachery and faithlessness of the spies and he therefore appended the Yod to remind Hoshea that YHVH (יהוה) must come first.
The renaming of Hoshea, however, was certainly prophetic, since Joshua was chosen to be the successor of Moses who would finally lead the people into the promised land. Notice that the name Yehoshua (i.e., Joshua) and Yeshua (i.e., Jesus) come from the same root (i.e., yasha: ישׁע) meaning "salvation" or deliverance (in the Greek LXX, Joshua is spelled Ιησους, the same spelling for Jesus in the New Testament). In the Book of Nehemiah, Yehoshua is explicitly called Yeshua (יֵשׁוּעַ), the name often transliterated as "Jesus" (Neh. 8:17).
There are a number of similarities between Joshua and Jesus given in the Torah. For example, Joshua was a descendant of Joseph from Ephraim (lit., "double fruit"), and Yeshua came as Messiah ben Yosef, the "son of Joseph" who would come from Bethlehem of Ephrata (אֶפְרָתָה), a term that also means "fruitfulness." Joshua was Moses' faithful companion at Sinai (Exod. 24:13) and overseer of the "Tent of Meeting" (אהל מועד), taking every opportunity to be near God's presence (Exod. 33:11). He was a capable commander of the armies of Israel who regularly routed the enemy in battle (Exod. 17:9, etc.). Joshua was humble and of impeccable moral character, a true servant of Israel filled with Holy Spirit of God (Num. 27:18). Therefore we see the correspondences: both Joshua and Yeshua loved God's house (Exod. 33:11; Luke 2:49), both were faithful leaders of Israel (Deut. 1:37-38; Matt. 2:6); and both were directly ordained by God.
Moreover, Joshua was tested and found steadfast in his faith (Num. 32:12); he was willing to be "despised and rejected of men" rather than appease the mob, just as was Yeshua. Both Joshua and Yeshua appointed twelve men (Josh. 4:4; Mark 3:16-19); both led the people of God to the Promised Land and engaged in warfare for the Kingdom of Heaven; both performed various miracles; both allotted the inheritance of the LORD to God's people (Deut. 1:38, 3:28), both circumcised the people (Joshua at Gilgal; Yeshua in the Spirit); both married Gentile brides (Joshua married Rahab, Yeshua married the faithful of the nations), both signified salvation by means of the "scarlet cord," and so on. Moses was the "lawgiver" of Israel who was unable to give rest (salvation) to Israel; that honor was given to Joshua, who brought the people into the land after Moses had died on Mount Nebo (Rom. 7:1-4).
Joshua's full name was "Joshua the son of Nun" (יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בִּן־נוּן). The Talmud notes that the word Nun (נוּן) means "fish," a symbol of activity and life. The first mention of the word is found in Exodus 33:11 in reference to Yehoshua. One application here is to note that Yehoshua, the one who succeeded Moses and was able to enter the Promised Land, was the "Son of Life" - a clear picture of Yeshua our Messiah, blessed be He...
A midrash says that when Yehoshua was born, no one took note, but when he died, all of Israel took note. Nonetheless, the Israelites did not mourn for him properly. One was busy with his vineyard, the other with his field, yet another with his coal. "The Holy One, Blessed be He, therefore sought to make the whole world quake" (Midrash Shmuel 23:7). This is also an apt description of Yeshua as Mashiach ben Yosef, the Suffering Servant, whose birth went unnoticed, but His death and resurrection indeed shook the world!
Hebrew Lesson
Isaiah 9:6 reading (click):
Acharit Hayamim:
Nearing the End of Days...
"For this time it will be God without disguise; something so overwhelming that it will strike either irresistible love or irresistible horror into every creature. It will be too late then to choose your side." - Mere Christianity: C.S. Lewis
06.17.25 (Sivan 21, 5785) Shalom friends. Our Lord foretold us that in the "end of days" there would be perilous times -- moral, political, ethnic, and spiritual chaos throughout the world, "as it was in the days of Noah." Of Noah's generation the Torah says: "The LORD saw that the wickedness of humanity was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually, so that it grieved the LORD to his heart" (Gen. 6:5-6). Yeshua further said the time would be "like the days of Lot" where the people of Sodom lived lawlessly, celebrated sexual anarchy, and were destroyed suddenly in fiery judgment from heaven (Gen. 19:4). Indeed, Paul's description of the character of people before the time of the end is chillingly accurate of our present generation (see 2 Tim. 3:1-7).
With the increasing rise of anarchy and godless tyranny throughout the nations, the Scriptures further foretell the rise of a governmental system that would oppress and subjugate the entire world, using surveillance systems and devices to control every aspect of life, so that no one would be able to buy or sell without being tagged as an compliant member of the system. Once a global (cashless) currency system has been established, the prophesied "man of sin" would then arise to embody the presence of Satan on the earth, in mimicry of the advent of the true Messiah.
At first this "man of sin" (איש החטא) will seem to be a man of peace but after his reign is secured, his malice will be revealed by openly persecuting those who still believe in the one true God, causing great tribulation, particularly for the Jewish people. The rise of this "Messiah of Evil" or the "anti-Christ" will be in accordance with the great vision of the prophet Daniel, wherein the final "week" of "seventy weeks of years" is fulfilled...
Presently we are living in the "gap" between the 69th week and the 70th week of years, but we see signs that the gap is now closing, and soon the world will enter into the "tribulation" period... As things get closer to the time of great judgment (יום יהוה), followers of Messiah will be forcefully removed by God's hand (i.e., raptured) either before the tribulation proper begins ("pre-trib"), or perhaps just before the Great Tribulation period ("mid-trib"), the later view being argued because followers of Yeshua will see the rise of the man of sin (2 Thess. 2:3-4). Either way, however, God has not appointed his followers to undergo the unleashing of his wrath upon the world system during the last half of the seventieth week (1 Thess. 5:9), so "post-trib is not a sound eschatological option. The rapture will occur as we are gathered together with the LORD to meet him in the air (1 Thess. 4:16-17).
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The 70th week of the vision will begin when the "man of sin" appears to make a "covenant" with the people of the world, though he will later set up an "abomination" and force all world citizens to bow down to its image (perhaps like Nebuchadnezzar's insane decree to force people to bow down before the golden image of himself; at this time the rapture of followers of Messiah may occur). Like Daniel's three friends who refused to bow down before the image, many will refuse to comply and outright worldwide persecution of the Jewish people will take place. This is called the "time of Jacob's trouble" and the "Great Tribulation." Satan will rule only "until the end that is decreed is poured out on him" and then the great Day of LORD will seal his doom with the second coming of Yeshua (see Rev. 19:11-21).
So, in light of this (very brief) sketch of what is coming -- and as the world system becomes more and more tyrannical as it prepares for the arrival of the "messiah of evil" -- how are you walking out your faith? Spiritual warfare is not "optional" for a follower of Yeshua. How are you keeping free of fear or anger? How are you preparing for the days ahead?
Remember that the evil one "lives" to devour souls, as it is written: "Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour" (1 Pet. 5:8). The apostle Paul lists the panoply of armor required for our struggle: "Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication" (Eph. 6:11-18). In another place Paul refers to this as the "armor of light" (Rom. 13:12). James the Righteous (יעקב הצדיק) gives us remedy by saying: "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you" (James 4:7).
We are to walk "in truthful speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left" (2 Cor. 6:7). Let us wear the armor of light (ὰ ὅπλα τοῦ φωτός), being sober (i.e., νήφω, "calm and of sound mind") putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation" (1 Thess. 5:8). "Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Yeshua the Messiah" (1 Pet. 1:13).
Hebrew Lesson
Zephaniah 1:14 reading (click):
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The Breath of His Life...
06.16.25 (Sivan 20, 5785) The Holy Spirit is called "Ruach HaKodesh" (רוּחַ הַקֹּדֶשׁ), the "breath of the Holy One" (נשימתו של הקדוש ברוך הוא). The Spirit is metaphorically likened to our breath to indicate how intimate and essential God is to our own lives.
By ourselves we are nothing (כְּלוּם), without substance or breath, for the Lord is our Maker and the one who imparts nishmat chayim (נִשְׁמַת חַיִּים), the "breath of life" (Gen. 2:7). If this is true of the natural, how much more so is it of the spiritual? We are as powerless to give pulse to our natural hearts as we are to give life to our spiritual existence. How does the natural heart receive its secret pulse? What is the origin of this "spark" of life within the body? As the lower, so is the higher...
We must be reborn to be made alive in the realm of the spirit. Such rebirth originates "not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God" (John 1:13). It is the Spirit of God (רוּחַ אֱלֹהִים), the Breath of the Holy One (נשימת יהוה), that quickens us to the truth of spiritual reality. Yeshua said this life was as mysterious as the motions of the wind: "The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit" (John 3:8). Just as the origin of the pulse of our physical life is a mystery to us, so is the origin of life from above. Just as we received nishmat chayim (נִשְׁמַת חַיִּים) to partake of the atmosphere of this realm, so we need receive nishmat chayim chadashah (נשמת חיים חדשה), a new breath of life to partake of the atmosphere of the heavenly realm of the Spirit.
The life of the Spirit of God imparts the "fruit of the Holy Spirit" (פרי רוח הקודש) that is, supernatural qualities of heart (i.e., middot ha'lev: מידות הלב) that are evidence of newness of life. These fruits are spiritual in nature, derived from the heart of God: "love, joy, peace, patience, good will," and so on (see Gal. 5:22-23). Yeshua explained that a transformed life is a miracle of God: "The Spirit is the one who gives life; human nature is of no help! The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life" (John 6:63).
Hebrew Lesson
John 6:33a reading (click for audio):
If you feel breathless and filled with anxiety, ask the Father for the comfort of the Holy Spirit. "If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?" (Luke 11:13). By faith may you "receive the Holy Spirit" (John 20:22).
Visions of the Far Country...
06.16.25 (Sivan 20, 5785) "Grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever" (Isa. 40:8). This is a great word of hope. Despite experiencing exile and living in oppression, the Lord speaks words of everlasting consolation: Nachamu, nachamu ammi: "Comfort, comfort my people..." (Isa. 40:1). These were God's words of encouragement to the Jewish exiles that were carried away into Babylonian captivity. Despite the appearance of ruin, God promised to establish Zion as the praise of the earth. There is a glorious future ahead, even if present circumstances seem overwhelming and your heart's cry is stifled.
The LORD God is the only enduring Reality in a constantly changing world, and He has designed it this way to cause our hearts to search for him. "All flesh is grass, and all its beauty is like the flower of the field" -- such is the condition of this ephemeral world with its flux and fortunes. The flesh fades because the breath of the LORD blows upon it (Isa. 40:7). God Himself has ordained human life to be a vapor...
Nonetheless we are told not to fear, because there is good news for Zion: the LORD is coming with might to reward those who are waiting for him. "He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather his lambs and carry them close to his heart" (Isa. 40:11). As the apostle Peter said, this good news is the eternal life given through the imperishable "Seed" - the Word of God that rises forever in Yeshua (1 Pet. 1:23-25).
The nations of this world are reckoned as less than nothing; their glory is "tohu" (תהוּ) - confusion and unreality - and their princes are regarded as utter vanity (Isa. 40:23). "Scarcely are they planted and have taken root when He blows upon them and they wither to become dust carried off by the storming winds" (Isa. 40:24). The nations of the earth are dried grasses; the kings of the earth are withered flowers.
But the LORD God is incomparably great and will faithfully fulfill his promises to Israel: "The word of our God will stand forever." He created the heavens and calls each star by name. He is invincible in power and no one can overrule His will.
This world is not our home; we are "strangers" here. It is an affliction to wait for the LORD, a "homesickness" of heart... The apostle Paul says our loneliness and alienation prepare for us an "eternal weight of glory" beyond all comparison, because we are not looking at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen. "For what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal" (2 Cor. 4:17-18). Just as the "two-souled" man is unstable in all his ways, so the process of being "educated for eternity" means learning to focus our heart's passion and hope on the glory of heaven. "For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."
Those who wait for the LORD inwardly groan to be clothed with immortality and eternal life, and their consolation is great indeed. Yeshua is "preparing a place for you," an everlasting place of refuge whose builder and maker is God (Heb. 11:10). Faith sees beyond the shadows of this world to behold your true home with your Heavenly Father. Amen. Believing is seeing, not the other way around. "Keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah that leads to eternal life." (Jude 1:21)
Hebrew Lesson
Isaiah 40:8 reading (click):
Small in our Eyes...
06.16.25 (Sivan 20, 5785) Our Torah portion this week (Shelach Lekha) is a "heavy one" since it includes the infamous "Sin of the Spies" and the failure of the people to believe that God would care for them. The people's lack of bittachon in God is the most serious sin recorded in all the Torah, even more serious than the sin of the Golden Calf. This is confirmed by the testimony of the New Testament, which presents the fate of the Exodus generation as the dire warning of apostasy for those who claim to follow the Messiah (Heb. 3:7-4:2).
In order to trust God you must believe that you are valuable to Him and that He genuinely desires a relationship with you. God redeemed you so you could know and love Him. In this connection it is important to notice that the spies said, "we were in our eyes like grasshoppers" (Num. 13:33). They felt small because they had forgotten the reason for their redemption - they had forgotten their identity as God's sons. Their lack of self-respect made them feel unworthy of the inheritance. The sin of the spies was not just that they doubted they could overcome the "giants in the land," but rather that they were worthy people in God's eyes... Sadly the spies view of themselves was more real to them than God's view of them, and that is why they added, "and so we were (like grasshoppers) in their eyes." From a spiritual point of view, this was profoundly tragic...
One lesson we can learn from the unbelief of the spies is that we must be careful to esteem ourselves properly. We are created b'tzelem Elohim (in the image of God), and that is the starting point for everything else revealed in the Torah. This foundational idea may be expressed as "respect precedes Torah." Self-esteem and self-worth are very important characteristics because they enable the soul to receive the Word of God. This isn't a selfish, narcissistic type of love, of course. If you have no self-worth, then it is likely you will believe the promises of Scripture are for other people, but not for you. You will regard yourself as an "outsider" or "alien" who is without promise of inheritance. So we have to begin there, with the fact that God created you in His image and therefore you are of infinite value. You matter to God - and therefore you must respect yourself.
Sometimes we need to be humbled and to remember that we are but dust; at other times we need to remember that for our sake God created the very worlds... In this connection recall the old chassidic tale says that every person should walk through life with two notes, one in each pocket. On one note should be the words bishvili nivra ha'olam (בִּשְׁבִילִי נִבְרָא הָעוֹלָם) -- "For my sake was this world created," and on the other note the words, anokhi afar ve'efer (אָנכִי עָפָר וָאֵפֶר) -- "I am but dust and ashes."
Regarding your relationship woth God, it is no mark of holiness to shame or belittle yourself - notwithstanding your sinful nature - since you have a duty to honor yourself as one of God's created children. Dishonoring yourself violates the central ethical commandment of the Torah: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself" (Lev. 19:18). How can you respect others if you don't respect yourself? You will regard yourself as "insect like" and will tend to view others as "gigantic" threats; you will act defensively and walk in fear of other people.... This is the path of a person living in a prison of fear, and it is a type of living hell. Trusting in God's personal love for you presupposes that you are worthy to be loved and that there is a divine inheritance for you. This gives you the courage required to go and take possession of the land as its rightful heir. Trusting in God means regarding God's view of you as more real than your own. It means allowing yourself to be elevated to honor so that you can be in a genuine love relationship with your Heavenly Father. "From now on, therefore, we regard no one (including ourselves) according to the flesh..." (2 Cor. 5:16).
We "walk by faith, not by sight," which means we must take hold of the promise of God, even in a world that "devours its inhabitants" and that is filled of seemingly invincible giants... Faith believes the possible, even in moments of testing and struggle. As Yeshua said, "All things are possible for the one who believes" (Mark 9:23).
"Lord, I believe: help thou my unbelief!" (Mark 9:24). "God is able to make all grace overflow to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may overflow in every good work" (2 Cor. 9:8). May it please God our Heavenly Father to help us esteem ourselves properly so that we can receive, abide in, and walk in the reality and presence of His overflowing love. And may the LORD keep us all from the terrible sin of unbelief by always remembering that we infinitely matter to Him. Amen.
Hebrew Lesson
Proverbs 3:5-6 Hebrew reading (click):
Related Audio Podcasts:
The Warning of Unbelief...
06.15.25 (Sivan 19, 5785) Shalom chaverim yakirim, and Yom Ha'Av Sameach. Our Torah reading for this week, Shelach Lekha (שלח־לך), recounts how Moses sent twelve spies from the desert region of Kadesh (קָדֵשׁ) into the land of Canaan to search it out and give a report of its condition. The spies returned 40 days later extolling the land, saying that was indeed fruitful and zevat chalav u'devash (זבת חלב ודבשׁ), "flowing with milk and honey." However, ten of the spies also gave a discouraging report, expressing their fear that the people could not conquer the land. Only Joshua (יהושע) and Caleb (כלב) kept faith in God's promise....
Upon hearing the report of the ten spies, however, the people rebelled and cried out to return to Egypt. Angered by their lack of faith, God sought to destroy the people, but Moses interceded on their behalf. The LORD then decreed to lengthen the Israelites' wandering in the desert to 40 years -- one year for each day the spies were in the land -- until all of the faithless over the age of 20 would die in the desert, except for Joshua and Caleb, the two spies who kept faith with the LORD. After hearing the judgment of God, a group of remorseful Israelites decided to "repent" by taking matters into their own hands. Without either the "Ark of the Covenant of the LORD" or Moses' leadership, they presumptuously decided to storm a mountain on the border of land but were decisively routed by the Amalekites and Canaanites.
If last week's Torah might be called "sefer kvetch" (the book of complaint), this week's Torah reveals the fateful outcome... The people's lapse of faith in God's power serves as a profound and very sober warning, and indeed is a primary warning regarding the dreadful sin of unbelief in the New Testament (see Heb. 3:7-4:11). Indeed, Jewish tradition states that the decree that "none of the men who had seen my glorious Presence and my signs I performed in Egypt and in the desert will see the land that I swore to give to their fathers" (Num. 14:22-23) was given on the Ninth of Av (i.e., Tishah B'Av), which was prophetic of the destruction of the Temple and the worldwide exile of the people from the Promised Land. The sin of unbelief may rightly be regarded as the "unpardonable sin" of the Torah (as well as the New Testament).
The tragedy of the sin at Kadesh ultimately has a happy resolution, however, since the LORD is never thwarted by man's sin and weaknesses. After the 38 years of exile were complete, Moses' faithful successor Joshua sent a second spying expedition to the promised land, though this time God led the spies to a prostitute named Rahab (רחב), a direct ancestor of Yeshua the Messiah, who later identified her faith in the LORD's victory by displaying the scarlet cord (i.e., chut ha'sheni: חוט השׁני) during the fall of Jericho (Joshua 2). Rahab was the (grand)mother of Boaz, who later married Ruth, the great grandmother of King David. May God likewise give us courage to walk in the power of His promises, even if our present circumstances seem daunting. May the LORD clothe each of us with the "spirit of David" to stand before all the giants of the land who defy the LORD and His power.
Trusting God's Providence...
06.13.25 (Sivan 17, 5785) The Scriptures teach us that creation is "going someplace," and that there is order and an overarching purpose to our existence. Your life is not adrift in a random universe that is destined to ultimately fade away but is grounded in the Divine Mind and Will that personally supervises and pervades all things. A lack of emunah (faith) has been likened to a passenger flying on an airplane who doesn't believe there is a pilot in the cockpit... Faith in the LORD believes that a single supreme, all-knowing, all-powerful and benevolent spiritual Power directs all things, and that God is the beginning, middle, and end of all conscious meaning, truth, and substance, as it is written: כִּי הַכּל מִיָּדוֹ הַכּל בּוֹ וְהַכּל לוֹ הוּא, "For from him and through him and to him are all things" (Rom. 11:36). A life of faith in the one true God imparts the blessing of shalom (inner peace) and assures the heart that all shall be made well by the love of God. Everything God does is for the very best, and there are no exceptions to this truth (Rom. 8:28).
Our faith that everything God does is for the best is not some rationalization that denies or minimizes the suffering we encounter in life, but is an affirmation that there is an unseen (though knowable) good at work that ultimately will heal us and comfort our shattered hearts... The phrase gam zu l'tovah (גַּם זוּ לְטוֹבָה) is an affirmation that "this too is for good," and that this "this" includes the various challenges and struggles we face during our days of sojourn here on this earth. Every "down" in life prepares us for an "up," with the ultimate end being beatitude and everlasting joy. Challenges draw us closer to God, igniting our hearts to cry out for his Presence and blessing. Even death itself is a passageway to eternal life (Psalm 16:10; 49:15; 1 Cor. 15:12-58). בַּעֲצָתְךָ תַנְחֵנִי וְאַחַר כָּבוֹד תִּקָּחֵנִי - "You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will receive me to glory" (Psalm 73:24).
By faith "we know that if the 'tent' that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens" (2 Cor. 5:1). God is our good Shepherd who leads us along the byways of the desert of this world (Psalm 23:4). In God's presence is total and absolute joy; at his right hand there are pleasures forever (Psalm 16:11). As it is written in the sacred testimony of the prophets: "No eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him" (Isa. 64:4; 1 Cor. 2:9). The LORD "will wipe away every tear from our eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away" (Rev. 21:4, Isa. 25:8). God foresees your way and prepares a place for you (John 14:1-3); he has ready a precious white stone with your "hidden" name inscribed (Rev. 2:17); the table is being set and your place has been reserved...
So be encouraged, friend. You do not need to struggle alone – bitter and afraid that you might be swallowed up in your infirmities... God knows the groan of your struggle and invites you to find solace and strength in Him. "It is enough to open your heart the smallest amount - even the width of a pin - to repent, so that you feel a stab within your heart, like a piercing sting in living tissue, not like a needle thrust into dead flesh" (Menachem Mendel of Kotzk). Bittachon (בִּטָּחוֹן) is a Hebrew word that means trust in God... Those who have bittachon do not worry about the future because their faith fully permeates their heart and mind, enabling them to surrender their cares and burdens to the Lord.
Hebrew Lesson
Psalm 23:4 reading (click):
Shepherd of your Soul...
"Trust the past to God's mercy, the present to God's love and the future to God's providence." - Augustine of Hippo
06.13.25 (Sivan 17, 5785) Whenever you feel oppressed by sorrows, heartache, or fears, say with deep assurance: "The Lord cares for me, he has brought me to this place and I can trust in him." Cast your burden upon Him, whatever it may be, for He cares for you, and he will uphold your way. Refuse to stagger beneath the weight of earthly fears...
God cares for you. This is the message of the gospel, after all; this is the meaning of the cross itself: God Himself cares for you.
Consider the one who personally bore your very sins and terribly suffered in anguish for you to be fully forgiven and accepted by Heaven: This beloved one will never forsake you, but indeed forever lives to make intercession for you (Heb. 7:25). Be bold, therefore, to avail yourself before the throne of mercy, where we are given grace to help in time of need.
The Lord has not forgotten you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. He who feeds the birds of the air and tends the lilies of the field will surely provide for your needs. All who belong to him are forever made secure by the indomitable glory of his perfect love.
"I will trust Him. Whatever, wherever I am, I can never be thrown away. If I am in sickness, my sickness may serve Him; in perplexity, my perplexity may serve Him; if I am in sorrow, my sorrow may serve Him. My sickness, or perplexity, or sorrow may be necessary causes of some great end, which is quite beyond us. He does nothing in vain." (John Newman)
Let us resist then the whispers of despair. Affirm the greatness of God who watches over your way as the Good Shepherd of your very soul. Even if you are in distress, affirm the greatness of God and confess the truth of His love for you. Overlook the present moment to find refuge in his promise. Trust him to bind up your wounds and heal your broken heart. God is your strength and song! Do not countenance any thought that his grace is not present for your need and troubles. God is forever faithful; his promises are sure; the one who has begun a good work in you will perfect it: press on in confidence of your Shepherd's care...
Hebrew Lesson
Psalm 23:1-3 reading (click):
The Book of Complaint...
06.13.25 (Sivan 17, 5785) Some of the sages have called this week's Torah portion (i.e., Beha'alotekha) "Sefer Kvetch," a Book of Complaint, since the very first stage of the journey back to the Promised Land upon departing from Mount Sinai was marked with murmuring, ingratitude, and wild-eyed fantasies about the "good old days" when the people ate "free fish" in Egypt, and so on. The repeated episodes of complaining really were a form of rebellion against God's leadership, as the people blasphemously charged the LORD with folly, incompetence, or even malice ("Why did God take us out of Egypt - to kill us all in the desert?"). Indeed, the spiritual condition of the people was so bad that they were all doomed to die in the desert. The New Testament later identifies the unbelief of the people as a picture of blasphemy of the Holy Spirit (Heb. 3:7-4:6).
Often the Israelites appeared to behave like spoiled children, demanding "real food" and fussing over the miraculous supply of bread that literally came from heaven (manna)... It would be somewhat comical were it not so tragic: Despite all the miracles the people had directly experienced during the great Exodus - including the splitting of the Sea, the Pillar Cloud of Cloud by day and Fire by night, leading to the awesome revelation at Sinai - despite all this - in a little over a year the memory of Egypt had become positively euphoric, and the people "forgot" how degrading their lives were as slaves... They romanticized the way things were, rationalizing that it wasn't "that bad," and savored the taste of their "free fish..."
Therefore a central commandment of this Torah portion is: "Thou Shalt Not Kvetch" (or, put positively, "Thou Shalt be Grateful"). "The deeds of the fathers are signs for the children" (1 Cor. 10:11) and therefore we are sternly warned not to follow the example of those who were redeemed by God's outstretched hand but who later drew back in fear and unbelief, as it is written: "I swore in my wrath, 'They shall not enter my rest.' Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called "today," that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. For we have come to share in Messiah if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end. As it is written, "Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion" (Heb. 3:11-16).
Hebrew Lesson
Psalm 95:7-8 Hebrew reading (click):
The End of the Story...
The price for Israel's unbelief was great... The narrative of Torah was supposed to have ended after the Exodus generation left Sinai to enter the Promised Land with the completed Tabernacle... Unfortunately, things did not work out that way, and "Sefer Kvetch" begins with Numbers chapter 11. According to the Talmud, the scribes marked this "unhappy ending" by putting an "inverted Nun" before and after Numbers 10:35-36 to mark a break in the (ideal) narrative. What should have been written (beginning with chapter 11) was the "happy ending," namely, that the redeemed Israelites successfully entered the land because they kept faith in the LORD's promises. In other words, the account of the sin of the spies, the apostasy at Kadesh, the exile of the Exodus generation, etc., should never have happened. The sages said that marking the text this way affirms that what should have been written will indeed one day be so written, after the Messiah comes to finally deliver the Jewish people. For more on this subject, see the article, "The Seven Books of Moses."
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Imminence of Judgment...
"In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act." - George Orwell
06.13.25 (Sivan 17, 5785) This evil world is ripe for judgment, and indeed, the judgment of God has begun to fall in earnest on the nations. Deranged thinking and insanity are the hallmarks of the day. Propaganda (i.e., scripted "news") is ubiquitous as the masses throughout the world are repeatedly indoctrinated to be fearful and helpless in the face of manufactured crises... Moral truth is mocked and censored in the mass media. Public education is little more than indoctrination of godless and nihilistic ideologies of despair. Regarly worldly politics, consider the "liberal" (in name only) countries of the world today. In the name of supposed "tolerance" they have willingly opened their doors to anarchy and lawlessness, with the predictable (and desired) outcome of increased governmental oppression, tyrannical control measures, weakened populations, and so on. All this derives from the abuse of language and the scorning of divine truth... As Orwell presciently foresaw, propaganda has been designed to destroy the semantics of various cultural keywords: "marriage," "gender," "truth," "right," "wrong," "power," "borders," "racism," "liberal," "tolerance," "peace." etc. This creates further social instability and moral degradation.
Demagogues assuredly know that there is no swifter route to the corruption of thought than through the corruption of language. So let's not play that game and be sure to define our terms with some clarity of mind. The word "liberal" used to mean those who genuinely love freedom, but today's so-called "liberals" (often "democrats") are actually "anti-liberals" that is, people who hate freedom and demand conformity to their thinking (or else!). That's fascism, after all, and we should no longer allow them to get away with their spurious redefinition of terms... We are not to be ignorant of Satan's devices (2 Cor. 2:11).
"Liberalism" (in the deceptive sense) has become the doctrine of deliberate cognitive dissonance, creating dialectical tensions that redefine words to death. It is a philosophy of deconstruction, nihilism, and despair intended to create social unrest leading to "revolution." History is littered with the crumbled states and innumerable corpses that come from those who have wreaked havoc with language and made a deal with the devil to overthrow the "old regime" for something that is far, far worse -- namely, an autocratic state that dehumanizes and murders people that are considered "enemies of the State." This is where our world is now heading - into a full-on collision with God Himself and the realm of transcendental moral reality. Modern politics are "unlivewithable" because they promote the culture of death. They are scheduled for a divine appointment with the Author of Reality soon enough, and may that appointment come soon, and in our days.
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Propaganda is crafted to "divide and conquer" people by means of fallacies of distraction. For instance, to create social unrest and weaken a culture, propagandists focus on secondary characteristics, such as the race of a person, and elevate that to be primary in understanding our social relationships.... Really? Ask: What color is "who"? The answer to the problem of "race" relations is resolved by the truth of Scripture, since all people are created in the image and likeness of God and are therefore to be respected, and so on.
Addendum
The "dialectic" or battle of ideas between cultures, particularly those cultures based on Judeo-Christian values of justice, truth, and respect for individual liberty, and Islam with its medieval theology of absolutism is coming to its head. Since the early 1900's the apostate west has turned progressively away from God and the idea of transcendental truth to embrace moral relativism. The fruit of such skepticism is the postmodern world of today, where "anything goes." Gender (and sexual) identity is openly rejected; ethical ideas of "good," "evil," "right" and "wrong" have been subjectivized into irrelevance; the epistemological ideas of "truth" and "falsehood" have been vitiated by spurious reasoning about "fuzzy" logic and non-binary calculations, and so on. The only non-negotiable (or absolute) value of the postmodern world is an undiscrimating (i.e., unthinking) form of "tolerance" that claims that "all viewpoints" are equally valid (and therefore that none really are), which of course is not only self-contradictory (because the claim that everything is relative is considered an "absolute") but is inherently self-destructive. The "sword of Allah" is the antithesis to the anarchy of the postmodern world, insisting that truth matters and that if you do not submit to the theological fascism of Islam, you will be killed... But it goes deeper still than such religious differences. The "sword of Allah" is a tool being used by a satanic ruling "elite" to undermine the foundations of all the nations and to usher in a "new world order" that will enslave humanity to global autocratic control. That is the end game. Thank God, however, that the aspirations of the wicked will be overthrown during the End of Days where the supreme autocratic leader (antichrist) will be overthrown and the Kingdom of God will be established in Zion... That day draws near, chaverim...
Selected Scriptures
- "Because I have called and you refused to listen, have stretched out my hand and no one has heeded, because you have ignored all my counsel and would have none of my reproof, I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when terror strikes you, when terror strikes you like a storm and your calamity comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you. Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently but will not find me. Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD" (Prov. 1:24-29).
- "The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and against his Anointed, saying, "Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us." He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision. Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying, "As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill." I will tell of the decree: The LORD said to me, "You are my Son; today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel" (Psalm 2).
- "God is a righteous judge; a God who feels indignation every day" (Psalm 7:11).
- "For the LORD of hosts has a day against all that is proud and lofty, against all that is lifted up-- and it shall be brought low" (Isa. 2:12).
- "For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the LORD of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch" (Mal. 4:1).
- "Therefore, as flaming fire devours straw, and dry grass disintegrates in the flames, so their root will rot, and their flower will blow away like dust. For they have rejected the law of the LORD of Hosts (תורת יהוה צבאות), they have spurned the Word of the Holy One of Israel" (Isa. 5:24).
- "Wail, for the day of the LORD is near; as destruction from the Almighty it will come!" (Isa. 13:6).
- "Therefore I will make the heavens tremble, and the earth will be shaken out of its place, at the wrath of the LORD of hosts in the day of his fierce anger" (Isa. 13:13).
- "Be silent before the Lord GOD! For the day of the LORD is near; the LORD has prepared a sacrifice and consecrated his guests" (Zeph. 1:7).
- "For the day is near, the day of the LORD is near; it will be a day of clouds, a time of doom for the nations" (Ezek. 30:3).
- "For the day of the LORD is near upon all the nations. As you have done, it shall be done to you; your deeds shall return on your own head" (Obad. 1:15).
- "Your hand will find out all your enemies; your right hand will find out those who hate you. You will make them as a blazing oven when you appear. The LORD will swallow them up in his wrath, and fire will consume them" (Psalm 21:8-9).
- "Our God comes; he does not keep silence; before him is a devouring fire, around him a mighty tempest" (Psalm 50:3).
- "And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done" (Rev. 20:12).
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The Emptiness of Worldly Philosophy...
"Don't let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and the principles of this world, rather than from the Messiah." - Col. 2:8
06.13.25 (Sivan 17, 5785) Worldly philosophy and logical argumentation can never bring a person into relationship with the Living God, since human reason by itself serves as an instrument of the will, and therefore the will must first accept that something is true before reasoning can even begin. Knowing that God exists, however, is not gained by deductive reasoning or by logical axioms but by direct mystical encounter and revelation that establish the starting point of godly reasoning. Part of that revelation is found in the conviction of the conscience, intuitions of what is "right" and what is "wrong," with the authority of a divine "voice" that inwardly speaks to the soul. Philosophical intellectualism, while perhaps useful in some cases, is powerless when it comes to the issue of personally knowing God, since it invariably indulges the mind with unending questions that reinforce unbelief and godless impulses: "The natural person (i.e., ψυχικός, the worldly-minded, "soulish" person) does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned" (1 Cor. 2:14; Rom. 8:7).
Worldly philosophy is inimical to faith in God since it undermines the vision and conviction that reality itself demands reverence, and therefore its bias is to reject the idea of divine Lawgiver (i.e.. transcendental moral truth) in order to evade the idea of retribution for wrongdoing. However it is precisely this fear of retribution for sin that constitutes the first step of faith, since the "fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding" (Prov. 1:7, 3:7, 14:6; Job 28:28; Psalm 34:14; etc.).
Incidentally, any form of "Christianity" that minimizes the divine wrath for sin perverts the meaning of the gospel itself, confusing worldly sentimentality with the terrible price paid for the atonement... However if there is no retribution for sin, there is no need for the cross, and that leads to the false teaching sometimes called "cross-less Christianity." The Apostle Paul would describe those who deny the wrath of God and the need for divine blood atonement as the "enemies of the cross of Messiah" (τοὺς ἐχθροὺς τοῦ σταυροῦ τοῦ χριστου), and indeed the focus of his ministry was centered on the Messiah Yeshua who was crucified for our healing: "For I decided to know nothing among you except Yeshua the Messiah and him crucified" (1 Cor. 2:2; 2 Cor. 5:18). There is simply no gospel message apart from the truth of the verdict of the law, and therefore the first step of faith is to fear God's wrath for sin and to tremble before the remedy given in the sacrifice of Yeshua...
It is written, "with the pure you show yourself pure; but with the perverse you show yourself perverse" (Psalm 18:26, Titus 1:15). We see by means of faith, and what we see is also the result of faith. As Yeshua said, "according to your faith be it done to you" (Matt. 9:29). For the one who trusts in God's holiness and love, the whole world will be lit up with divine glory (Isa. 6:3), but to the one who trusts in his own reasoning, demanding to understand in order to believe, the whole world will be filled with darkness, vanity, and despair.
To the believer in the Lord, worldly philosophy is a dead end since it is devoid of life and blessing. Torah begins without philosophical rationalization by simply affirming, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" (Gen. 1:1). We believe in God because he imparts the blessing of faith, not because of philosophical or rational arguments. Therefore Scripture admonishes us to be "simple" before the LORD, that is, "wholehearted" and full of confidence (Deut. 18:13). Philosophy and worldly wisdom offer up speculations, probabilities, and tentative inferences, but the life of faith encounters the urgency of the moment, when the heart casts itself in complete abandonment before God. Philosophy says, "let's consider the evidence," but faith says, "you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might" (Deut. 6:5).
Worldly philosophy is childish because it trifles with the meaning of life, pretending to be "objective" in its thinking and observations; it is, however, cowardly because it does not want to venture the risk of faith, and it is disingenuous because its refuses to recognize that its own set of presuppositions constitutes a system of faith, a "religion" of the ego and its self-styled rationalizations. "For the wisdom of this world is folly with God. For it is written, "He catches the wise in their craftiness," and again, "The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain" (1 Cor. 3:20). "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he..."
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Now while worldly philosophy is often little more than the mutterings of fools (Psalm 14:1), there is a "hidden wisdom" (חָכְמַת נִּסְתָּרָה) of God that is not grounded in worldly speculations, that is, "the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, that God ordained before the world for our glory" (1 Cor. 2:7). This is the wisdom of God revealed in the overarching plan of redemption given in the Scripture, a plan that transcends human reason yet is discerned by the spirit to be of divine origin (Eph. 3:9-11; Rom. 16:25-26; 1 Tim. 3:16; Rom. 11:33-36). Moreover God has implanted within the human heart a "hunger for eternity" (Eccl. 3:11), intuitions of the divine power who designed and created the universe (Psalm 19:1-2; Rom. 1:20), and an innate sense of justice within the soul to reveal moral reality (i.e., the conscience). Indeed, the right use of logic and reason - when submitted to the obedience of faith - is assuredly useful as we seek to interpret Scripture and apply its significance to our lives. "Faith seeking understanding" is a valid approach when interpreting Scripture, though even then, when logical paradoxes arise (e.g., the paradox between free will and God's foreknowledge, or the paradox that the infinite became finite in the incarnation of Yeshua) we must confess to the limitations of reason and resort to pure faith - trusting in the LORD God who is beyond our understanding (Prov. 3:5-7; Psalm 145:3; Isa. 40:13, 28).
Faith sees the invisible... "For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal... For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead. Therefore we are strangers and exiles on the earth, looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God" (2 Cor. 4:18; Rom. 1:20; Heb. 11:10,13).
Our father Abraham was promised descendents as numerous as the stars in the sky or sand on the seashore, despite the fact that he was an old man and his wife had long past the age of bearing children. Abraham believed in the One who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist: "He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; and being fully persuaded that, what He had promised, He was able also to perform: And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness" (Rom. 4:19-22). By faith Abraham looked beyond the stars, closing his eyes to this world, and thereby discovered the inner light of truth...
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Not losing your mind...
06.12.25 (Sivan 16, 5785) The Apostle Paul foretold that the time before the "End of Days" would be "perilous" and full of unrelenting human depravity and lawlessness (2 Tim. 3:1-5). Yeshua warned that apostasy would abound and that the hearts of many would run cold as ice (Matt. 24:12). In light of the raging spiritual war going on all around us, the following needs to be emphatically restated: "The important thing is to not lose your mind..."
The mind is the "gateway" to your heart, and it is therefore essential to guard your thinking by immersing yourself in the truth... "Not losing your mind" therefore means being grounded in what is real, and it therefore means understanding your identity and provision as a child of God. "God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love, and of a sound mind" – literally, a "delivered" mind, "healed" from chaos and despair (2 Tim. 1:7). The Greek word "sound mind" (σωφρονισμός) comes from a verb meaning "to be made safe," in the sense of being under restraining influence of the Spirit of God... The closest Hebrew word might be musar (מוסר), or "moral discipline."
Part of the task of "guarding your mind" is being able to discern between good and evil. "The fear of the LORD is to hate evil" (Prov. 8:13) and as the prophet cried out, "Hate what is wrong, love what is right" (Amos 5:15). We must love the truth and abhor the lie (Psalm 119:163, Zech. 8:19; Prov. 12:22). Tolerating sin in a world ripe for judgment is a tacit form of "collaboration" with the enemy. Indeed, the only thing regarded as intolerable in the devil's world is the denial that people have the "liberty" to sin. But the Lord is clear on this point: "Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, and who turn darkness into light and light into darkness, to those who turn bitter into sweet and sweet into bitter. Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and shrewd in their own sight!" (Isa. 5:20-21). It is the truth that sets people free, but this presupposes the ability to discern how we become enslaved to deception. Therefore we are instructed: "You are to distinguish between the holy and the common, and between the unclean and the clean" (Lev. 10:10).
Someone who loves you will to help you stay honest with yourself: The truth of God's moral law is likened to a Father's moral correction that leads his child to life (Prov. 6:23).
Hebrew Lesson
Psalm 119:105 reading:
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Shelter of the Most High...
06.12.25 (Sivan 16, 5785) The "world" is a place of fearful exile from the Lord. To find healing, turn must away from its faithless messages and listen (shema) to the great promises of God. As it is written: "He who abides in the secret of the Ascended One will dwell in the shadow of Shaddai" (Psalm 91:1).
The sages say that Moses wrote Psalm 91 as he dwelt in the secret place (סֵתֶר) of the Most High God, in the "midst of the dark cloud" (Exod. 24:18), a place of sacred and holy concealment. The thick clouds were a "hiding place" for him (Job 22:14). Notice that the one who "abides" in the secret of the Most High dwells in an ascended place of rest – being lifted up above the surrounding madness of this fallen world of flux and shadows. The Hebrew word means to lodge or to "sleep" (לִין), connecting it with death and resurrection. By dwelling in the death and resurrection of Yeshua, God will shield you with His Presence and make evil powerless before you.
When you abide in the secret of Elyon (עֶלְיוֹן) - "the Ascended One" - you are concealed by the dark clouds of His Glory, and the Presence of Shaddai (שַׁדַּי) overshadows you... The LORD will save you from the ensnaring trap and from the devastating pestilence (Psalm 91:3). By abiding in the truth that God's Presence pervades all things at all times - you become a "stranger" (גֵּר) with the LORD in this world, a "sojourner" (תּוֹשָׁב) who awaits the healing of the world at the end of the age. "You will tread on the lion and the adder; the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot" (Psalm 91:13).
We are made secure exclusively on account of Yeshua our Savior, who gloriously ascended over the powers of this age, the hidden principalities of darkness, and who made safe passage for us to come by means of his sacrificial death on the cross. Yeshua is the Bridge and the Way to the truth that sets you free, though He indeed is the narrow bridge. Because of Him alone, we have access to the Divine Presence, the Holy of Holies made without human hands. Yeshua is the Ascended LORD of Glory, the Master of all possible worlds, and the King over all thing!. Nothing can stop Him or thwart His victory secured for those trusting in Him.
Hebrew Lesson
Psalm 91:1 reading (click):
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Since God hides Himself in this world (Isa. 45:15), we must humbly seek His face to enter into the place of His holy concealment in all things. God is Elyon – ascended High above - but He dwells "with the lowly and the broken of heart" (Isa. 57:15). Therefore the LORD our God is called Shaddai (שַׁדַּי) – our Sustainer, Provider, Refuge, and Home. Just as we can be surrounded by the "shadow of death" (tzal mavet), so we can be surrounded by the "shadow of Shaddai" (tzal Shaddai). Like a powerful eagle brooding over her chicks, so Shaddai covers you with wings of protection (Psalm 91:4).
Miracle of Regeneration...
"The most common form of despair is not being who you are." - Kierkegaard
06.12.25 (Sivan 16, 5785) Many of us deal with inner conflicts, self-reproach, and meagerness of faith... It is reported that on his deathbed Reb Zusya said, "I am not afraid that the Holy One will ask me, 'Zusya, why were you not more like Moses?' Rather, I fear the Holy One will say, 'Zusya, why were you not more like Zusya?'" This Hasidic story is interesting because, on the one hand, how could Zusya be anyone other than he is? and on the other, why is Zusya afraid that he is not who he should be? Zusya's parable reveals that there is an inner conflict in his soul. He senses that has not lived as he ought, that he has failed himself (and God), and that he is lost in the rift between the ideal and the real... His struggle, then, is with himself. Who he is and who he thinks he should be are at odds within his heart.
The question of who we are supposed to be haunts us, and consciousness of the failure to practice our ideals leads to a sense of guilt, anxiety, and shame. For those who believe in Yeshua the question is essential to the question of what it means to be an authentic disciple. How are we to live before God and be accountable for what we do? For instance, we read Yeshua's message in the Sermon on the Mount and we eventually realize - if we are honest with ourselves - that it is not within our nature to be able to do as he teaches, and this leads us to a despair not unlike that which Zusya experienced. A divided house cannot stand....
Reb Zusya's despair can be remedied only by overcoming the inner divide through a personal relationship with Yeshua, for salvation is not simply deliverance from the accusations of conscience (i.e., the verdict of the law) but constitutes the healing grace that delivers us from ourselves. Yeshua did not die on the cross to simply take away our sins, but to create within us indestructible new nature that it no longer enslaved to the power of sin. The message of the gospel is that your heart can be - and ultimately will be - transformed by the miracle of God given in Yeshua.
Salvation is not a matter of "religion" or of man's attempt to justify himself by some kind of reformation of character. Yeshua is not the "second coming of Moses," after all. Try as you might to live a "good life," keep the commandments, and aspire to elevate yourself spiritually, you will eventually come to realize that it is impossible to change yourself. You will then be faced with a decision: either to deceive yourself about who you are, or to be honest and confess your wretched and hopeless condition. This is the "lawful use of the law," that reveals the "ought-to-be" self, so that the gap between the ideal and the real becomes unsurpassable, and we know ourselves as lost sinners who are in peril over ourselves...
In our natural estate we are "fallen," shattered of heart, full of trouble "as the sparks fly upward." As Simone de Beavoir once wrote: "In the very condition of man there enters the possibility of not fulfilling who he is" (Ethics of Ambiguity, 1947). The breach between who we are and what we ought to be creates a sense of alienation from ourselves, a "shadow self" that we deny, suppress, or try to control. In a moment of rare lucidity, the "natural man" cries out to God: "What do you want from me?" This is the moment when truth has its opportunity, when the heart is stirred to confess its need for deliverance and to accept God's love, despite the brokenness and incoherence of life.
When by miracle we escape from the "hard yoke" of our laws, our vain attempts at self-justification, we do not encounter another set of laws, or another heavy yoke, but we take hold of the love of God, a personal love, and we engage in relationship with God as the central (and unifying) reality of our lives. Deliverance from ourselves is not found in religious (or "spiritual") recipes of any kind but in our connection with the truth of who God really is, trusting in his love and healing for all that we are, have been, and ever shall be, amen.
"Salvation is of the LORD," which means that God does the work of righteousness within you. It is God who saves you; it is God who sanctifies you, and ultimately it is God alone who heals you. Whenever you say "I can't," you are either looking at yourself or at God. If you are looking at yourself, "I can't" is better understood as "I won't," and the problem then is a lack of faith. On the other hand, if you are looking at God, "I can't" is followed by "but You can, O Lord" and faith trusts that God will complete the good work that he has begun in you.
God sends each soul into the world with a special message to deliver, a revelation that only he or she can disclose... As George MacDonald once said, "I would rather be what God chose to make me than the most glorious creature that I could think of; for to have been thought about, born in God's thought, and then made by God, is the dearest, grandest and most precious thing in all thinking." That's the good news of the gospel, friends: God not only saves us from ourselves, he remakes us to be true bearers of his image and likeness. He works all things together for his glory and our good. Amen, let it be so, O Lord!
Hebrew Lesson
Psalm 51:10 reading (click for audio):
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Trusting God's Plan...
06.11.25 (Sivan 15, 5785) "And now abide faith, hope, love: these three" (1 Cor. 13:13). The opposite of faith is fear; of hope, despair; and of love, indifference. Fear is the "default mode" of the soul that dwells in darkness. This is because the "fallen" soul regards the empirical world and its flux as ultimately real -- and therefore "sees in order to believe." The life of faith, on the other hand, looks beyond the realm of transient appearance to behold an abiding glory -- and therefore "believes in order to see." How we choose to see is ultimately a spiritual decision for which we are each responsible....
In the geo-political world there are more seemingly good reasons to be afraid today than in any time since the rise of Nazi Germany in the 1930s. Every day the media indoctrinates people about the threats of various plagues (e.g., H5N1, H1N1, SARS, Covid), of economic disasters, of terrorist plots, globalist tyranny, and so on. In short, living within a "culture of fear" (with its ongoing propaganda campaigns from both the right and left wing perspectives) is to traffic in images and sound bites, inducing a sense of dread and anxiety (as someone once said, "FEAR" is "False Education Appearing Real"). Just as a lie-detector can physiologically sense when people are telling lies, so our souls can sense when we are believing them... There is no neutral ground here, no "transcendent" place of the soul where we can rise above the realm of truth claims: We will either be set free by the truth or else we will live in fear. As Yeshua said, the "Truth shall set you free" (האמת תשחרר אותך).
Of course it isn't easy to be courageous, and the temptation to yield to fear often seems compelling. The test of our faith is of more value to the LORD than our material or emotional comfort, however, and therefore we will all experience tribulation of various kinds. This is the way we obtain heart (i.e., courage). Awhile ago I wrote a Hebrew meditation ("Fear Thou Not") that reminded us that the most frequently occurring commandment in Scripture is simply al tirah (אַל־תִּירָא), "don't be afraid." If living without fear were easy, it would be of little spiritual worth, but since it requires all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength, it is therefore considered precious. It requires, in short, an infinite (and divinely given) passion. And it is part of God's plan for us to be "in but not of" the world system, to be alienated, to be misunderstood, to be persecuted... We are called to "take up the cross" and to die daily. Following Yeshua means denying ourselves along the way.
Ultimately fear distills to the fear of death, or rather, of "the one who has the power of death, namely the devil" (Heb. 2:14-15). If we come to peace with our own finitude, our own mortality, and our eventual blessed estate in the Messiah, death has no more power over us. Perhaps this is part of the reason why Christian faith is so hated in communist countries or in other places of absolutist secular ideologies (including "deconstructed" America). If you are free from the greatest threat that man can menace over you, if you are free of the fear of man, then you are free to be a voice crying in the wilderness, a bold witness of truth....
Fear is the antithesis of faith, though living without fear is certainly not easy. After all, how do we naturally choose to be unafraid of what we in fact fear? Is this power within our conscious control? Only by a miracle are we set free from fear... Indeed, true faith working within the heart is one of the greatest miracles of God. May it please God to impart to each us real courage that comes from Heaven itself. Amen.
Hebrew Lesson:
John 4:18 reading (click):
Outshining the Darkness...
06.11.25 (Sivan 15, 5785) "If I say, surely darkness covers me ... the night shines as the day; nothing hides from your radiance" (Psalm 139:11-12). We have to trust that God is in our darkness, in the silence, in the unknown... We come out of the shadows when we admit that we act just like other people, that we are human, in need of reconciliation ourselves...
Above all we need God. We need help. We need a miracle to help us to truly love. We may find excuses for many things, but we cannot escape the "wretched man that I am" reality that is grounded in our fears. God sees in the darkness and is present there, too. When you feel alone, like an unbridgeable gulf lay between you and all that is good; when you feel like you want to scream but are afraid that even then no one would hear, may the LORD shine His light upon you... Amen, may His light shine upon you.
גַּם־חשֶׁךְ לא־יַחְשִׁיךְ מִמֶּךָ
וְלַיְלָה כַּיּוֹם יָאִיר
כַּחֲשֵׁיכָה כָּאוֹרָה
gam-choh'·shekh · loh-yach·shikh · mee·me'·kah
ve·lai'·lah · kai·yom · ya·eer
ka·cha·she·khah · kah·oh'·rah
"The darkness is not made dark to you;
but the night shines as the day:
as the darkness so is the light...
(Psalm 139:12)
"For it is you who light my lamp; the LORD my God outshines my darkness" (Psalm 18:28). There is "depression," and there is the dark night of the soul, and these are different matters, though they may overlap... "Hope deferred makes the heart sick." The dark night of the soul calls us to walk by faith, not by sight. Faith enables us to walk through the darkness with God and to learn from him even there, as it is written: "Who among you fears the LORD and obeys the voice of his Servant, who walks in darkness and has no light in him? Let him trust in the Name of the LORD and lean upon his God" (Isa. 50:10).
Hebrew Lesson
Psalm 18:28 reading with comments (click):
The Seeking Shepherd...
06.10.25 (Sivan 14, 5785) "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick" (Matt. 9:12). Even though we are weak, sickly, broken, and sinful people, we must never lose hope and begin to fear that we are worthless in the eyes of heaven... Indeed, our infirmities are often a blessing in disguise, a gift that reveals our need...
If you are sinful and sick, you are invited to come before the Master for life and rescue from the power of sin. Take your place among the lepers, the tax collectors, the outcasts... you will never hear Him criticize you or shame you for sincerely coming to Him for healing of your sinful state... "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost" (Luke 19:10).
Yeshua is the Good Shepherd (הָרעֶה הַטּוֹב) who leaves his "flock of 99" sheep to find the one sheep who is lost (Matt. 18:12-14). He is always like that – He is always seeking and saving the lost sinner; He is always offering life and healing to those who have been made sick with the plague of sin. Thank God we have a Savior who seeks us out in our desperate need!
Hebrew Lesson
Ezekiel 34:16 reading (click):
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King David wrote, "You have given those who fear you a banner (נֵּס לְהִתְנוֹסֵס) for the sake of the truth" (Psalm 60:4), which Rashi interprets as, "You have given hardships and suffering to those who fear you to elevate them in the way." Indeed the word nes (נֵּס) can mean "banner" (as on the mast of a ship), a "sign" (or miracle), or a "test" (nisayon). God tests those who fear Him in order to help them become a miraculous sign to the world at large. Ultimately, the sign or miracle is the gift of Messiah's suffering on our behalf and His resurrection for our justification (Isa. 11:10). Even in the face of our enemies who have breached the land, we have the promise of victory in Adonai Nissi (יְהוָה נִסִּי), God my Miracle.
May you, dear broken and contrite one, hear the word of His hope calling out for your soul... He is your Shepherd, your Healer, and your Miracle. May you come beneath His banner of truth and love to find eternal refuge.... Amen.
The Central Light...
"I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else." - C.S. Lewis (God in the Dock)
06.10.25 (Sivan 14, 5785) Our Torah portion this week (i.e., Beha'alotekha) begins with the LORD instructing Aaron to kindle the seven lamps of the Menorah (מְנוֹרָה) so that the light from each would be "turned" toward its central shaft (Exod. 25:37; Num. 8:4). The entire Menorah was formed mik'shah (מִקְשָׁה), that is, beaten from a single piece of pure gold (זָהָב טָהוֹר), and its base, shaft, branches, cups, fruits, and flowers were all "one" with its substance (Exod. 25:31). The central shaft upheld the light of the Shamash (servant or helper lamp) which also served as the trunk for the other branches.
The radiance of the Menorah symbolized the Divine light (the word "shamash" can also be read as shemesh, "sun"), which is the radiance of Yeshua, the Tree of Light and the great Servant of the LORD (John 8:12; 1 John 1:5; Prov. 3:18). Yeshua is the light that gives light to every person created in the image of God (John 1:9). Our spiritual life stems from our connection with Him, since he provides us with support, sustenance, and illumination from the oil of the Holy Spirit (John 15:1-5).
Amen. Yeshua is the Light of the LORD (אוֹר יי). As it is written, "God is our light and our yeshuah (יְהוָה אוֹרִי וְיִשְׁעִי), our salvation" (Psalm 27:1; 1 John 1:5). He alone is the Light of the world (אוֹר הָעוֹלָם), the Shamash (שַׁמָּשׁ) who descends to ignite the "light of life" (אוֹר הַחַיִּים) within all who will believe. Our Savior is the Radiance (זוֹהַר) of the glory of God (Heb. 1:3), the Fire of God's holy countenance. The person who has the Son has life, but the one who refuses this life is spiritually dead. May we all walk in the Light of His countenance; "O house of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of the LORD" (Isa. 2:5).
The essential question is whether you are willing to believe in the light of God's love. Will you choose to receive his promise? Yeshua said that He is the light of the world, and that those who follow him will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life (John 8:12). So, do you have ohr ha-chayim (אוֹר הַחַיִּים), "the light of Life," shining within your heart? The light radiantly beckons: "Wake up, open your eyes, and believe! Darkness and despair will not prevail; your mourning will find comfort, your grief its solace. Your heart's deepest longing shines brightly, even now, if you will but believe...
Let us press on in our confession, chaverim; let us take courage and affirm the promise of our faith: "The LORD is my light and my salvation (i.e., my Yeshua); whom shall I fear? The LORD is the refuge of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?" Amen.
Hebrew Lesson
Psalm 27:1 reading (click for audio):
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Note: For more on this topic, see "The Menorah and the Tree of Life."
Finding Right Desire...
06.09.25 (Sivan 13, 5785) Our Torah portion this week (i.e., Beha'alotekha) recounts the rebellion of the people during the desert sojourn... Instead of joyfully anticipating the promise of their inheritance, the people grew dissatisfied and bored. The Sefat Emet noted that just after we read how the people complained bitterly to the LORD, they had a "strong craving" (הִתְאַוּוּ תַּאֲוָה), which in Hebrew literally means they "craved a craving."
Moses could tolerate the people's desire for food and water, but when they began to actively cultivate their cravings, lusting after the imaginary "free fish" they enjoyed in Egypt, he began to realize that the problem was deeper, a matter of the heart (Deut. 9:22)... Moses understood that what the people really wanted was impossible, since it involved denying who they were as God's redeemed people.
The issue was not about wanting to eat "meat," after all, but rather hungering after the forbidden, desiring to desire, etc. Creating desires, fomenting a sense of deprivation, and choosing to see yourself as a victim, is a lethal sickness of spirit, a disease of the soul. It is a "burning" (i.e., taberah: תַּבְעֵרָה) that destroys inner peace. It is the spirit behind all sorts of addictions. May God help us understand and seek what truly matters; may he deliver us from self-destruction; and may he help us to be satisfied with the manna he provides! Amen.
Hebrew Lesson
Psalm 37:4 reading (click for audio):
Stupor and the Mass Mind...
06.09.25 (Sivan 13, 5785) Perhaps the defining characteristic of our age may be summed up by the word "stupidity," which may be defined as the impaired spiritual, moral, and mental condition of acculturated people (even seemingly intelligent ones) that has rendered them incapable of honestly evaluating truth claims and thinking logically (Rom. 1:28). Such "stupidity" has been inculcated by pop culture, comedians, vulgar music, and scripted by mass media; it has been propagated by the "dumbing down" of our educational system, and disseminated by godless political correctness propaganda for several generations now... Today we live in a morally insane and utterly lawless culture that is incapable of self-governance -- a culture that has become entirely reprobate before the eyes of heaven. Like the debaucheries revealed by ancient Sodom, the Judgment of God is a hand.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who was surrounded by the atrocious evils of Nazi Germany, regarded the stupidity of his age as more dangerous than outright evil, since stupidity is a type of irrationality, a chosen ignorance of what is real and true. It is like the fatuous eructation that arises after chugging down several pints of beer... Against such mockery or willed ignorance we are often defenseless, since logical reasoning that appeals to objective truth for its premises finds no traction, carries no weight, and has no effect. It is like arguing about morality with a man filled with whiskey or who is high on drugs. The strategy of the devil, then, seeks first of all to stupefy people, that is, to flatter and persuade them that there is no need for them to engage in serious thinking or to humbly question their assumptions... This is the deeper meaning of "intoxication." As William James observed: "A great many people think they are thinking when they are merely rearranging their prejudices." The antidote to unthinkingly accepting the biases and inculcated prejudices of the world is to be awakened to the reality of God: "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding" (Prov. 9:10).
For Bonhoeffer, stupidity is a moral fault, not an intellectual deficiency; it is the toxic result of a willed ignorance, unwarranted pride, and cynical laziness. It is not a matter of intelligence per se. You can be a highly intelligent yet be entirely stupid in your thinking. As Bonhoeffer wrote: "If we want to know how to get the better of stupidity, we must seek to understand its nature... that it is in essence not an intellectual defect but a human one. There are human beings who are of remarkably agile intellect yet stupid, and others who are intellectually quite dull yet anything but stupid. We discover this to our surprise in particular situations. The impression one gains is not so much that stupidity is a congenital defect but that, under certain circumstances, people are made stupid or that they allow this to happen to them. We note further that people who have isolated themselves from others or who live in solitude manifest this defect less frequently than individuals or groups of people inclined or condemned to sociability. And so it would seem that stupidity is perhaps less a psychological than a sociological problem" (Bonhoeffer: Letters from Prison).
Soren Kierkegaard likewise regarded stupidity to be a category of the "group-think" of the crowd. He wrote: "There is a view of life which holds that where the crowd is, the truth is also, that it is a need in truth itself, that it must have the crowd on its side. There is another view of life; which holds that wherever the crowd is, there is untruth, so that, for a moment to carry the matter out to its farthest conclusion, even if every individual possessed the truth in private, yet if they came together into a crowd (so that "the crowd" received any decisive, voting, noisy, audible importance), untruth would at once be let in... Indeed, the crowd is untruth. There is therefore no one who has more contempt for what it is to be a human being than those who make it their profession to lead the crowd. ... For to win a crowd is not so great a trick; one only needs some talent, a certain dose of untruth and a little acquaintance with the human passions" (Upbuilding Discourses).
Those who deny that truth exists (or those who deny that something may be known about reality) are themselves making a truth claim, namely the claim that there is no such thing as objective truth (or that knowledge of the world is not possible). This self-inflicted incoherence is a sign of irrationalism, of course, the abandonment of reason, which perhaps is the ulterior motive for such manner of thinking, after all. The person who denies truth does so to escape the demands of truth – to flee from personal responsibility before moral and spiritual Reality. It is a form of "wish-fulfillment" to deny that people are not responsible for what they believe and how they live their lives. Hence our culture's obsessive "busyness," its craving for ongoing diversion, entertainment, fantasy, escapism, and so on. Our generation finds evil in "boredom" and finds nothing of lasting interest because it has forsaken the big questions of life and the pursuit of truth. Popular culture encourages apathy, indifference, and seeks to enslave people to thrills and titillations of the moment... The ancient pagan world at least esteemed honor and believed in the pursuit of virtue and truth, but today's post-Christian world is nihilistic, anarchist, and therefore marks a return to barbarism.
Hebrew Lesson:
Proverbs 9:10 Hebrew reading lesson (click):
The central axiom of all right thinking about reality is "wonder," or the humble awareness that life itself is something mysteriously beautiful, amazing, and therefore inherently sacred. This is sometimes called yirat Adonai (יִרְאַת יְהוָה), "the fear of the LORD" that leads to wisdom. Right thinking therefore begins with consciousness of the good (הַכָּרַת טוֹבָה), that is, with an awareness that life itself a gift, a mystery, and a hallowed question... We seek our origin, our essence, and our purpose -- and in our seeking we seek the LORD. We long for deliverance from what keeps us from healing, from love, from real hope. And as we seek, the wonder of the LORD God never ends. As Yeshua said, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you" (Matt. 7:7).
Break Free of the Matrix...
06.09.25 (Sivan 13, 5785) Much of what we think - our ideas, motives, desires, and our assumptions about what is real - is socially engineered and controlled, and indeed we are usually unconscious of how we are conditioned to accept false visions and interpretations of reality... Pop culture, politics, socialized education, the world "news," and the "Zeitgeist" of the age, all serve as outlets of spiritual disinformation and propaganda, "teaching" (implicitly) that there is no Creator and moral Authority that bears on our existence, that there is no Judge before whom each soul shall give account of their lives. Consequently the "wisdom of this world" insists that there is no existential need for people to turn to God for deliverance from evil and spiritual death, but on the contrary assumes that that everything that exists (inexplicably) has evolved out of primordial nothingness by means of randomness (evolutionary theory), that moral truth expresses mere subjective preference, and that there is no ultimate purpose to our lives other than the immediacy of the moment and the will to selfish fulfillment...
We must be conscious of the various self-destructive philosophies of life and how their implications pervade the darkness of this present world; we must learn to identify and expose the assumptions used to define what the world declares as "facts" and to question its metaphysical presuppositions and prejudices. These are the hidden assumptions that underlie godless thinking and the inculcation of profane propaganda.
Indeed we are given a mandate from heaven to "pull down strongholds of worldly false assurance" and "take every thought captive" by repudiating any interpretation of reality that excludes, suppresses, denies, or minimizes the Divine Presence (2 Cor. 10:4-5). We are not to be conformed to the matrix or "schema" (σχῆμα) of this world as its deceptions (Rom. 12:2). If we are not diligent in this matter, chaverim, if we do not actively "test the spirits," we will be caught up in the "madness of the crowd" and come under the spell of the ideological insanity of this fallen world... How we think is a spiritual practice - ideas are "intangible entities" that wield enormous power, and therefore it is essential to learn to think clearly and to be able to detect the assumptions at work in any supposed statement of "fact" or truth claim.
Hebrew Lesson
Psalm 10:4 reading (click for audio):
We are admonished by the Spirit of God to set our thoughts on things above, to the realm of divine truth and reality (Col. 3:1-4). Faith sees things "above" - things beyond the shadows - that conceal the greater substance of life. God gives each soul the responsibility to choose what it will believe. "According to your faith be it done unto you" is an axiom of spiritual life: Faith in God reveals true first principles of thinking, discloses the reality of the Kingdom of God, and unveils the ultimate Glory that overrules all things.
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