Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Before Moses could become the Redeemer, he first had to become a man. Not because it was easy, but because no one else would. What was that defining moment that changed everything? Let's take a look in this week's five minute Torah.
[00:00:19] Shalom and blessings from Shalom Macon, the place where disciples of Yeshua learn, connect and grow. I'm Darren and before I get into the 5 minute semi 5 minute Torah commentary, let's cover a few quick facts about this week's Tora Port portion. This week we are studying the 13th Torah portion and beginning the book of Exodus. We are in the portion of Shemote, Exodus 11, 6:1. And here are the three things that you need to know about it. Number one, oppression of Israel. The rise of the Redeemer. When Joseph dives, things go south quickly for the Israelites, a campaign of oppression eventually landed the descendants of Jacob into a life of slavery. But no matter how hard they were oppressed, they multiplied. To us, that sounds like a blessing. But to Egypt, the Israelites were like a cancerous growth that needed excision. So Pharaoh commanded all of the male Israelite babies to be thrown into the Nile. God spared the life of Moses when he was put into the Nile by his mother and adopted by Pharaoh's daughter. When Moses grows up, he sees the horrible treatment of his brothers and sisters and tries to do something about it, only to have it backfire. He flees to Midian and eventually marries Zipporah, the daughter of Jethro, the prince priest of Midian. Meanwhile, the cry of the Israelites rose to heaven. Number two, the burning bush. The call of Moses. One day as Moses is tending his father in law's sheep, he saw something unusual and turned aside to investigate. He saw that a bush was on fire but not being consumed. God called out to him from the bush and told him that he had heard the cry of the Israelites and was sending Moses to deliver them from the hand of Pharaoh. Moses didn't believe it, but impossible at first. But God shows him miraculous signs to validate what he had told him. God tells Moses that Pharaoh will refuse, but that he will eventually give in. He also tells him that he will have his brother Aaron be his mouthpiece to Pharaoh when he confronts him. This is also confirmed when God speaks to Aaron and Aaron comes out to meet Moses on the mountain where he saw the burning bush. And number three, the return of Moses. The showdown begins. Moses and Aaron went to meet Pharaoh and demand that he let the Israelites go so that they could worship the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The result was that Pharaoh increased the workload of the Israelites, making them forage for their own straw to make bricks with, while maintaining their daily production quota. When the Israelites blame Moses for their additional burdens, he cries out to the Lord, asking, why did you ever send me our portion ends with the Lord's response saying, now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh. For with a strong hand he will send them out, and with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land. Genesis 6:1. What does it really mean to live by the Spirit of the Law and not the letter of the Law? For centuries, believers have been told that the law of God is a burden and something Yeshua came to set us free from. But what if that's not what the Scriptures say at all? What if Paul's words about the letter of the law killing were never meant to pit God's spirit against his own commandments?
[00:03:23] If you've ever struggled to reconcile law and grace, Spirit of the Law will open your eyes to a richer, more faithful understanding of both. It will challenge assumptions, bring clarity to misunderstood passages, and invite you into a deeper walk of obedience, one that's alive with the Spirit of God. Pick up your copy today and let the spirit of the Law transform the way you see God's word and the way you live it. This week's Torah commentary is called Be a Man and comes from my book, Five Minute Torah, Volume one.
[00:03:54] Last week we concluded the Book of Genesis, and this week we have begun the Book of Exodus. Up to this point, we've been studying a brief history of the world leading up to the emergence of the children of Israel. Beginning in the Book of Exodus, however, we start to learn about how God calls Israel out from among all the other nations of the earth to be a bride to himself. From here, we will learn about the marriage covenant between God and Israel and their unique responsibilities in that covenantal relationship. Right now, though, we're still learning about how God raised up a single man who would be faithful over the flock of Israel and lead them in the paths of righteousness. This man, of course, was Moses. After we read of the miraculous incident surrounding the birth of Moses and how he was taken into Pharaoh's court to be raised there, we're given our first glimpse into the compassion he had for his own people. One day, when Moses had grown up, he went out to his people and looked on their burdens and and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his people. He looked this way and that, and seeing no One he struck down the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. This is Exodus 2, verses 11 and 12. The English standard translation says that Moses looked this way and that, and seeing no one, he took action. However, the Hebrew is a little more visual. It says, ki Ain ish says, because there was no man, he struck down the Egyptian. We can read this two ways. The first way is to say that because no one was watching him, he killed the Egyptian. This seems to be the plain and simple meaning of the text. However, we can also read it to say that because no other man was available to defend the Hebrew slave, Moses rose to the occasion. If we think about this incident in these terms, it will help us understand the words of Hillel. Hillel taught his disciples, in a place where there are no men, strive to be a man. This is a vote. Two, six. Maybe he hadn't mind the actions of Moses in this incident because no other man was there to do what needed to be done. Moses had to become a man who would defend his brother. Leviticus 19:16 literally says, you shall not stand against the blood of your neighbor. However, this has always been interpreted to mean that we are obligated to defend those who are not capable of of defending themselves. This is exactly what Moses did, and most likely an aspect of what Hillel intended in his statement. We are to be a man when no one else is willing to be one. A few years ago, a terrorist in Israel ran around and stabbed people at random. An Israeli man saw him and took off after him. After a long chase, he finally was able to subdue the terrorist and bring him to justice, but not without receiving knife wounds himself. In an interview after the event, he described how he did not feel that he was a hero, nor were his actions optional. He said that the Torah did not allow him to stand by idly while the blood of his brothers and sisters was being shed. Because of the values he learned in the Torah, he became a man who saved the lives of others and brought a heinous reprobate to justice. Most of us will never be in a situation like this where we are responsible for the lives of others. And however, all of us are put into situations routinely that give us an opportunity to forsake complacency and become a man. As the popular expression goes, evil triumphs when good men do nothing. If you look to your left and then to your right and don't see a man, then your time has come. In a place where no man stands, choose to become one. I always knew God wanted to use me. I just thought he didn't like me. And I'm pretty sure I'm not alone. That tension between calling and insecurity was at the heart of a teaching I shared this past Shabbat called Being Jacob Becoming Israel. Jacob wrestled with the angel, received a new name and a new calling, and yet spent much of his life still living as Jacob rather than Israel. He struggled to fully accept the identity God had placed on him. And if we're honest, many of us do the same. We survive, but we never really live. We never quite step into who God says we are and live up to what he has in store for us. Are you still living as Jacob, or are you ready to become Israel? Just click the link right here to begin your transformation.
