Messiah in the Five Sacrifices – Vayikra (And He Called)
Torah Portion: Vayikra (And He Called) Leviticus 1:1-6:7
HafTorah: Isaiah 43:21-44:23
G-d’s presence had moved from the mountain to the Tent of Meeting and called to Moses from the Tent. This is the third time we see G-d calling to Moses. The first time at the bush, G-d says Moses, Moses. -Exodus 3:4. Here he called Jacob twice Genesis 46:2, and here he called Samuel twice 1 Samuel 3:10. In the New Testament Acts 9:4 we see Yeshua use this same pattern with Shaul. Usually when a name is repeated like this in scripture it is a sign of special affection.
Vayakhel (And He Assembled)
Torah Portion: Vayakhel (And He Assembled) Exodus 35:1-38:20
HafTorah: I Kings 7:40-7:50
II Cor 9:6-11; I Cor 3:11-18
Tonight we look at the Torah section, “And He Assembled.” The root word in Hebrew Khal is the word usually translated as assembly. In the Hebrew Scriptures this word often refers to the people in the tabernacle or temple as the assembly. You have heard me often refer to the group here as the kehila which is the assembly. When the Hebrew Scriptures were translated to Greek, in the 2nd or 3rd century BCE, this word passed over into Greek as ekklesia. It appears throughout the Septuagint in place of khal. However, when this same Greek word appears in the New Testament it is almost always translated by the English word “church.” What does it matter? A recent letter to the editor in the Pensacola News Journal highlights this problem by stating, “The Old Testament is Jewish scriptures; those living under it are living under the law. Although it is our history, for Christians it has been replaced with the New Testament. Those living under the New Testament are living in the age of grace, which was ushered in by the resurrection of our Lord….” This gives the impression that the church is an exclusive New Testament term and draws a stark boundary between the two sections of the Bible. It is a way of disconnecting us from our Jewish roots as believers. Another even more striking example is the Hebrew word “eda” translated in Exodus 35:1 as congregation. When it came into the Septuagint it was translated with the Greek word “sunagogay”, it was usually linked to the place the “eda” met. However in places like James 2:2 the Greek again was translated into English as assembly. Paul uses the same word in I Cor. 11:16. The effect of such translation biases has been to hide any connection between Judaism, from which we sprung and Christianity. We as believers are the worse for it. We have to a large extent been deprived of the sweetness and spiritual food of the Hebrew Scriptures because of these sort of deceptions. And I for one count us most blessed that we have begun to restore some of what has been lost for almost 2000 years.
Entering His Sabbath – Ki Tisa (To Take) Exodus 30
Torah Portion: Ki Tisa (To Take) Exodus 30:11-34:35
HafTorah: I Kings 18:1-39
Tonight I want to start right off with the question I sent out to you. Moses takes a census of the people and as a result of this census every person age 20 and older had to pay ½ shekel for an atonement for their soul. (Exodus 30:12) How can money count as an atonement. Leviticus 17:11 tells us that only the shedding of innocent blood of an animal can atonement come. So how do we reconcile this? Another meaning for the word atonement is ransom. And if we use that word it gives us a clearer understanding of what Moses is saying here. In battle they would be shedding blood and in the Torah when you shed blood a ransom must be paid for the taking of a life.
A Shadow of Heavenly Things – Tetzaveh (You will command) Ex 27
Torah Portion: Tetzaveh (You will command) Exodus 27:20-30:10
HafTorah: Ezekiel 43:10-27
Hebrews 13:10-17
A few thoughts first about this section of Torah; First, it is mainly about the priesthood, the articles of clothing and the setting apart of the priests for their service. However, it begins with the commandment that the people bring pure olive oil to cause the lamp to burn continually before G-d. Why not include these few verses with the prior section which was about those things of the Mishkan? Also, G-d speaking to Moses in Exodus 27:20 “bring to you” not “bring to Me.” Why? We are the ones who need the light of G-d in this world. We pray mainly to remind ourselves of whom we serve. So the light here reminds us that without it we are lost in a world of spiritual darkness. No wonder Yeshua said that He was the light of the world. And as here, we as priests are reminded that we must depend upon the light to find our way as we do G-d’s will and service
Beshalach (When He Sent) Ex 13
Torah Portion: Beshalach Exodus 13:17-17:16
HafTorah: Judges 4:4-5:31
Tonight we look at a Torah section that is packed with spiritual lessons. We can’t cover them all but I would like to look at a couple. The people complain four times in this portion. The second time is at the bitter waters of Marah. Do any of you remember where you have heard this word before? Ruth’s Mother in law said to call her Marah after her husband and sons had died.
We Are Redeemed! – Bo (Come) Exodus 10
Torah Portion: בוא Bo Exodus 10:1-13:16
HafTorah: Jeremiah 46:13-28
This Torah portion is called “Bo” in Hebrew or “Come” in English. What does the name of a Torah portion usually tell us? It is usually the main thought or idea or maybe the name of one of the main characters. So here, in one of the most important portions in the Torah, the name is “come” rather than freedom, or Exodus, which would seem more fitting. Why? I would like to take a few minutes before we get to the Passover implementation to answer the question of why. Last year I think we touched on this to some degree so some of you may remember that discussion. Why did G-d use the word “come?” Moses had met with Pharaoh a few times already. But in each of those cases G-d says “Go to Pharaoh” but here He says “Come to Pharaoh.” I think we see Moses about to enter into Pharaoh’s inner sanctum rather than meeting him in a somewhat neutral place such as by the river. Here Moses is coming into the “belly of the beast” so to speak and G-d is saying, “Come with Me to Pharaoh.” Remember in Ezekiel 29:3 how Pharaoh is described as a great serpent who crouches in the river and says, “My river is my own, I have made it or ‘made myself.’” What was Pharaoh’s biggest sin? Was it the enslavement of the Jewish people or killing of infants? No, everything he did sprung from his unbridled ego. He lived his life saying, “I am god. What is good is what helps me. What is bad hinders me.” So Moses was about to come face to face with the heart of evil. G-d assures him He will be with him. Is our ego bad? It is only bad when it is separated from G-d. Our ego should be a reflection of G-d and as such should lead us to do those things which brings glory and honor to G-d, not to ourselves. If not, then we become god in or own eyes and the world revolves around us. Right and wrong becomes perverted.
What Do You Do When No One is Looking? – Va’era (I Appeared) Exodus 6
Torah Portion: Va’era ( I Appeared) Exodus 6:2-9:35
HafTorah: Ezekiel 28:25-29:21
I want us to look at a question that I think has bearing on our Torah portion this week. I have been discussing this subject with some of you this week and have continued to think about it as the week has progressed. I shared with you a few months ago the title of an interesting book I was reading, “Seven Questions You are Asked in Heaven.” This book will provoke you to think, which is always a good thing.
Vayechi (And He Lived) Genesis 47
Torah Portion: VAYECHI Genesis 47:28-50:26
HafTorah: I Kings 2:1-12
Tonight the Torah section is named “And he lived”, yet it mainly covers the death of Jacob. There is another Torah section that follows the same pattern. What is it? Chayei Sarah, Genesis 23:1. Yet it also mainly talks of her death and burial. So what is the Torah trying to tell us here and with Sarah? Even in the beginning we read in Genesis 3:19 about G-d relating to Adam, Adam’s own death. But then in the next verse we see Adam named his wife Hava (Eve) for she was to be the mother of all life. What is striking with her name is that literally it means one who narrates or tells a story.
G-d’s Plan – Vayigash (To Approach) Genesis 44
Torah Portion: Vayigash (To Approach) Genesis 44:18-47:27
HafTorah: Ezekiel 37:15-28
Tonight I want to continue with the story of Joseph and his brothers and also to look at it again as a pattern of the Messiah. We, last week, talked about the fact of Joseph not being recognized by his brothers and how this was and is the state of many Jewish people today concerning Yeshua. Paul in Romans 11:25-26 talks of this blindness and how it has been during this time that we as non-Jews have had the opportunity to come into the faith.
Meketz (At the End) Gen 41
Torah Portion: Meketz (At the end) Genesis 41:1-44:17
HafTorah: I Kings 3:15 – 4:1
The number seven plays a big part in Biblical reckoning of days and years. Seven days in a week, the Sabbath falls on the seventh day and each seventh year is a sabbatical. In Daniel chapter 9 years are numbered in sets of seven. In Genesis 41 Joseph interprets Pharaoh’s dream as referring to seven-year periods. Both in Judaism and in Christianity the number seven is important to the years before Messiah’s coming. In both it is seen as a time of famine, plagues and disasters. Revelation 12: 6-14 refers to this seven-year period.