Today is Holocaust Memorial Day. Please take time out of your schedule to remember, to pray, and to resolve you will actively be a part to ensure this will never happen again.
Forgetfulness leads to exile, but in remembrance lies the key to redemption.
Simon the Just was of the remnants of the Great Assembly. He used to say: On three things the world stands: on the Torah (תורה), on the (Temple?) Service (עבודה), and on Deeds of Loving-Kindness (גמילות חסדים).
I’ve read these words many times over the last few years, and each time I read them something new comes to mind. Most recently, my thoughts were turned to the words of the Master when he was asked, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?” His answer actually included three commandments:
“Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. ‘There is no commandment greater than these.”
From my perspective, this has the same melody as “On three things the world stands…” We have the same basic components. Let’s examine them.
Although these phrases don’t sound anything alike, they both put forth the same premise: the Torah and the principles contained therein are the foundations of everything. How else would we know about the monotheistic pillar of our faith that there is only one God? It is through the Torah. Shema Israel! We must hear the Torah in order to be obedient to the voice of Hashem. Devarim 5:1 tells us:
Hear1, O Israel, the decrees and laws I declare in your hearing today. Learn2 them and be sure to follow3 them.
We must first 1) hear Torah (i.e. study) in order to 2) learn the ways of Hashem, and thus 3) follow them. But from there, what are we required?
As is commonly known, there are two categories into which all of the commandments fall. There are commandments that have their root in the relationship between the Almighty and mankind (what we might term as our “vertical” relationship), and then those which have their root in the relationship of mankind with mankind (what we might term as our “horizontal” relationship). Both of these statements deal with our “horizontal” relationship. The world cannot stand without its connection to the Almighty.
In Simon the Just’s comment, he merely names avodah (service) as the second item on which the world “stands”. But what is our “service” to Hashem?
Now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require from you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and love Him, and to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the LORD’S commandments and His statutes which I am commanding you today for your good? (Devarim 10:12-13)
And again in the Apostolic Scriptures we have this instruction:
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service. (Romans 12:1)
We are not only to say we love Hashem, or even feel we love Him. We are to love Him with our entire lives, which is displayed by our avodah–service (i.e…works… doh!).
This is the third principle in both accounts: To love and serve others. When we invest our time and our stuff into others, rather than ourselves we will find that Hashem is glorified, we are changed, and others are blessed. How is your world holding up?
Boaz Michael, President and Founder of First Fruits of Zion will be speaking in Central Arkansas. His topic is “Knocking on Heaven’s Gates: Discovering the Appointed Time of Prayer.” This is a FREE event, and open to the public.
A fascinating teaching seminar that explores the Scriptures, reexamining them from an historical and biblical perspective, for a fresh understanding of prayer. Prayer is often misunderstood. Too often we have simply assumed that the ordinary model of prayer we hear around us is biblically normal. We are excited to share with you some of the ancient rhythms of prayer we have rediscovered—a rich biblical understanding with practical application that will transform your prayer life and help you to connect with God daily in a significant and transforming way.
Everyone will leave educated, encouraged and challenged to rise to a new life of fervent prayer.
Sunday, May 21st, 2006
6:00pm – 9:00pm.
We will be meeting at the Burns Park Hospitality House in North Little Rock. Take I-40 to North Little Rock, Exit 150. Follow the map (download the map here) through the park on Military Road to Joe K. Poch Drive. Turn left on Joe K. Poch Drive; the Hospitality House driveway is the next right.
Please download a flier in PDF format (Acrobat Reader) and help spread the word throughout Central Arkansas.
For those who are wanting to study along in Pirkei Avot, I’ve posted the text to the first chapter at this location. I’m sure there are many online commentaries available with a search. You may be able to find more if you search for “Pirkkei Avos” since the Ashkenaz pronounce it this way.
Moses received the Torah from Sinai, and transmitted it to Joshua, Joshua to the Elders, the Elders to the Prophets, and the Prophets transmitted it to the Men of the Great Assembly. They said three things: Be deliberate in judgement; and raise up many disciples, and make a fence for the Torah.
During the time from Pesach to Shavuot it is traditional to study a chapter a week from Pirkei Avot (Ethics of the Fathers), a portion of the Mishnah which focuses on ethical conduct and practical steps for living. As we have been re-studying this as a family this week, it has been interesting to see all of the connections and parallels to teachings from the Apostolic Scriptures. In the next few posts I’ll be sharing some basic insights into these mishnayot. Let’s begin with the very first one.
Moses received the Torah from Sinai, and transmitted it to Joshua, Joshua to the Elders, the Elders to the Prophets, and the Prophets transmitted it to the Men of the Great Assembly.
Many times this is used to try and authoritatively prove the divine origin of the Oral Law. However, if we examine the text itself, this is not the point of the text. The purpose of the text is to show how the teachings of the Torah were transmitted from Moses down through the ages, where people were entrusted to learn and teach Torah. And then from these different people in this long line we have sayings that provide methods of living out the Torah, and protect oneself from being ensnared by sin. The first of which is:
Be deliberate in judgement; and raise up many disciples, and make a fence for the Torah.
“Be deliberate in judgement” – In every matter we must be diligent in seeking truth. In judging any situation we must be sure to receive all of the information necessary to make an educated decision. This is especially important when others are involved. We must not discount information that others may bring into the picture in order that we may make an honest, rather than a biased decision. (After reading this article, we might just want to revisit our judgements against the Pharisees as a whole.)
Raise up many disciples – Isn’t this also what Yeshua taught us to do, saying
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, immersing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.
In order to accomplish this we need to know what it means to make disciples. But in order to make disciples, we must ask the question of “what is a disciple?” In the time of Yeshua, a disciple (or talmidim) was someone who first had a teacher (or rabbi). He had someone from which to learn. He wasn’t just a renegade trying to interpret the Scriptures on his own, by his own means. He had a person who was trained in the Scriptures to guide him through his studies, keeping him from the pitfalls of shallow understandings, going beyond (but not neglecting) the mere literal interpretation of the text, to the fuller, richer meanings. A classic example of this is Yeshua’s mini-discourse on the laws of Torah from the context of what many call the “Sermon on the Mount.” In this teaching he puts forth a literal interpretation of a passage, and then puts forth a more rich, deeper understanding of it. And, if we do our homework, we find that his “deeper” understandings of these passages are actually common teaching among the rabbis of his time. Yeshua was not teaching anything new, but teaching them “with authority,” declaring his halachah as binding (Matthew 7:24-27). These are the types of things that would be passed from teacher to disciple, in order that they would not be lost along the way. Unfortunately, many in Yeshua’s day (and many in our day) had lost these deeper understandings because they did not have a teacher.
Although some will argue the point, I sincerely believe that even Yeshua had this mentoring relationship with a teacher. Many believe that since he was the son of the Almighty, his wisdom was simply imparted unto him. However, I believe we see a glimpse into his early years when he visits the Beit HaMikdash (Temple) during one of the feasts. During this time he is engaged with the rabbis in Torah discussion, and they are amazed at his grasp of the Scriptures. Although his mentorship is not recorded, the great sage Hillel lived during the days of Yeshua, and if we look at the positions of Yeshua on the various matters of Torah, he agrees with Hillel in all but two: Divorce and the Prosbul (which we will have to leave for another discussion). This at least gives the indication that Yeshua could have belonged to the school of Hillel, whether by direct tutelage or extension. We will discuss this more in a future mishnah.
Ultimately, a disciple was a miniature copy of his rabbi. He was the recipient of all that the rabbi had learned, and should be nearly a carbon copy of his rabbi. He should have an ability to render judgements and decisions on matters of Torah with the same precision (or better) of his rabbi. His life should model that of his teacher in nearly every manner. And for his true discipleship to be “complete,” he must take on his own disciples and pass down the wealth of wisdom he received. Because when the river is dammed, the water becomes stagnant.
Make a fence for the Torah – This is the statement that raises the blood pressure of all Christians, and causes heart failure in most Kara’ites (the self-proclaimed “modern day Sadducees”). For anyone who has a negative outlook on the Pharisees as a whole (because of either tradition, or a one-sided reading of Scripture) this causes real problems. “The problem with fences,” they say, “is that not only do they keep some people in, but they keep others out.” This is definitely true, and with this we need to exercise caution. However, just as the old adage goes, we don’t need to “throw the baby out with the bath water.” While some fences are built to the extreme (you don’t need a 20 ft fence to keep your dogs in the yard… unless you have my dogs…), a properly built fence keeps in the children and pets, keeps out the unwanted solicitors, and maintains a healthy relationship with the neighbors. It’s the same with Torah. The fence must be built properly in order to merit it’s usefulness.
We see this modeled by Yeshua, again, in the Sermon on the Mount. In his series of “you have heard it said…but I say…” he models the institution of making fences around Torah. The letter of Torah says, “Do not commit adultery.” The spirit of the Torah says, “Do not look at a woman lustfully.” In making this declaration, Yeshua is making a fence around Torah to ensure that his disciples do not violate Torah by merely obeying the literal understanding of the commandments.
