Road to Zion

Category: Teachings 5782

Counting the Omer Leviticus 23:1-16

Eighth Day of Passover

Counting the Omer Leviticus 23:1-16

Today we will take a closer look at the period we are now in in G-d’s calendar. We will look at what the counting of the Omer can teach us about our spiritual life.

Metzora (Leper) Vayikra/Leviticus 14:1-15:33

Metzora(Leper)Vayikra/Leviticus 14:1-15:33
Haftorah Reading: II Kings 7:3-20
 
Bless each of you today. This Shabbat is known as Shabbat HaGadol. It is the last Shabbat before Pesach.
 
The Haftorah portion for the week is II Kings 7:3-20. Before we get to my question for the week, I would like to take a moment and spend a little time on this passage in II Kings. If you remember, the religious leaders of Israel set up a system of weekly readings from the prophets that could be tied to the Torah portion that week. This was done to get around a prohibition on Jews reading the Torah on Shabbat. King Antiochus Epiphanes outlawed the reading of  the Torah around 168 BCE during the time the Seleucidans ruled Israel. 

Tazria (She Conceives) Vayikra/Leviticus 12:1-13:59

Tazria(She Conceives)Vayikra/Leviticus 12:1-13:59

Haftorah Reading: II Kings 4:42-5:19

This Torah portion may seem at first glance to have little to do with us or our world. However, as we go over it tonight I pray each of us will see the biblical truths within these verses, truths that will give us a far better understanding of how it speaks exactly to us today.

Shemini (Eighth) Vayikra/Leviticus 9:1-11:47

Shemini(Eighth)Vayikra/Leviticus 9:1-11:47
Haftorah Reading: II Samuel 6:1-7:17
 
Tonight I want us to look at our portion and search for new revelation and connections to our faith. Let’s look at Leviticus 10:17 and see how it relates to us. To do this we will later look at Isaiah 25:8 and I Corinthians 15:52, 54.
 
To begin, let us examine Leviticus 10:17 from our Torah portion. This verse covers the rebuke of Aaron, Eleazar and Ithamar by Moshe.  The verse reads, “Why have you not eaten the sin offering in the place of holiness, for it is the holy of the holies, and He gave her to you to take away the sin of the congregation.” Remember this rebuke came immediately after Nadav and Avihu had perished after bringing strange fire before the L-rd. Their death was caused by them being overcome with zeal. This action caused the fire of G-d to come forth and kill both boys.  This in its self teaches us an important lesson. Zeal for G-d is a good thing unless it causes us to lose sight of the holiness of G-d and as a result lose respect for His word. Even in our zeal there are boundaries not to be crossed.

Vayikra (And He called) Vayikra/Leviticus 1:1-5:26

Vayikra(And He called)Vayikra/Leviticus 1:1-5:26

Haftorah Reading: Isaiah 43:21-44:23

Today we will talk about a Torah portion that on its face seems to have little to say to us in our modern world, but that is not correct. It begins with the duties of the priests in the offering of animal sacrifices for a variety of issues. In Leviticus 2:13 we read, “and all your offerings you shall offer salt.” Why did G-d make this stipulation? The Torah went so far as to require this rule concerning every offering. Salt and sometimes the absence of leaven were used to avoid corruption and to keep the holy things in an imperishable state. We could say these two requirements represented a never ending covenant relationship.

Tzav (Command) Vayikra/Leviticus 6:1-8:36

Tzav(Command)Vayikra/Leviticus 6:1-8:36

Haftorah Reading: Jeremiah 7:21-9:24

 

 

Today we will look at the Torah portion Tzav or Command. I would like us to pay special attention to Leviticus 8:19 where it speaks of the setting apart of Aaron and his sons. Aaron was High Priest and his sons were priests to the L-rd. They were to serve as the priests in the Tabernacle and later their descendants as priests in the temple in Jerusalem.

P’kudei (Accounting) Exodus/Sh’mot 38:21-40:38

P’kudei(Accounting)Exodus/Sh’mot 38:21-40:38

Haftorah Reading: I Kings 7:40-8:21

Tonight we finish the book of Exodus. Let’s take just a moment and think of how far this book has taken us. We began this book seeing Jacob and his children going down to Egypt. Then we read tonight about the people leaving Egypt behind and beginning their forty year boot camp in the desert. This forty years was school for these former slaves. This time of learning was not just for them but for us as well. Even with all their failures G-d never gave up on them nor does He give up on us. He called them His prized possession. Think of that whenever you fall. Our G-d is a loving G-d and wants the best for each of us. All He requires is our faith and our obedience to follow Him each day.

Vayak’hel (He Assembled) Exodus/Sh’mot 35:1-38:20

Vayak’hel(He Assembled)Exodus/Sh’mot 35:1-38:20
Haftorah Reading: I Kings 7:13-26
 
Today I want to urge you to be in prayer concerning the Russian invasion of Ukraine, going on now. We as G-d’s people have a responsibility to hold this situation before the Father. Many people have already died and sadly many more will likely die. However, we know the Ruler of the universe and we must seek His answer to this tragic conflict.
 
In some ways our Torah portion this week should encourage us. In this portion we read one of the two times the details of the construction of the Mishkan is laid out. We read the details of the construction already in Exodus 25:1-31:17. Now, again in Exodus 35:1-38:20 we read another account of the instructions to build this structure. However, there is one marked difference in these two accounts. In Ki Tisa, Exodus 25, the command of the Sabbath appears at the end of the details of construction while here today we read of the command of the Sabbath at the very beginning of Moshe speaking to the people Why the difference? On a simple level we might say that when G-d created man he, Adam, experienced Shabbat as his first day living on this earth but as G-d’s saw it, it was the last day of creation or the seventh day.

Ki Tisa (When You Take) Exodus/Sh’mot 30:11-34:35

Ki Tisa(When You Take)Exodus/Sh’mot 30:11-34:35
Haftorah Reading: I Kings 18:1-39
 
When we read our portion Ki Tisa, we read of several epic events that took place, events that still shape our world today. I would like to major our study on one such event. I want us to spend most of our time on the giving of the tablets of G-d to Moshe and the Jewish people.
 
When we read our portion we read where two sets of the Commandments serve as book ends to the sin of Israel when they worshipped the golden calf. In Exodus 32:16 we read, “The tablets were the work of G-d, the writings of G-d engraved on the tablets of stone.”

Tetzaveh (You are to command) Exodus/Sh’mot 27:20-30:10

Tetzaveh(You are to command)Exodus/Sh’mot 27:20-30:10

Haftorah Reading: Ezekiel 43:10-27

This Sabbath I have a few points I want to cover with you. I believe each of these points are spiritually relevant to our lives today. They should speak to each of us in our personal walk.

To begin, I want to share an example I read this week from a good friend who lives in Jerusalem. It concerned him buying olive oil for lighting his menorah on the Shabbat. According to scripture, pure pressed olive oil was used to light the candles in the Tabernacle and later in the Temple. This friend lights his Shabbat candles each Friday at sundown to welcome the Sabbath. As he was shopping for oil he found it would be much cheaper to buy sunflower oil or other substitutes for his menorah than pure pressed olive oil. Olive oil was double the price of sunflower oil. After thinking about it he decided to follow scripture and use what was prescribed there and not use a substitute.