August 31, 2024: Parashah Torah Portion Re'eh - "See"
Shabbat: August 30th, 2024 at sunset until August 31st, 2024 at sunset.
Scriptures:
Torah Portion: Deuteronomy 11:26-16:17
Haftarah (Prophets): Isaiah 54:11-55:5
Brit Hadashah: John 7:37-52
Restore Israel Team: Elihana Elia, Dr. Hadassah Elia & Devorah Silva
Parashat Re’eh begins with a dramatic appeal to choose to obey the commandments of the LORD: “See, I set before you blessing and curse” – a blessing if you follow God’s ways, but a curse if you turn to idolatry and forsake the way of the LORD.
"See (ראה), I give before you today a blessing and a curse: the blessing (הבּרָהָכ) if you obey the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you today, and the curse (הַקּלהָל), if you ... turn aside from the way that I am commanding you today, to go after other gods that you have not known" (Deut. 11:26-28)
We need to, first of all, have eyes to SEE and understand our responsibility concerning every choice we make in life! The consequences of every choice will either lead us to the pathway of blessing, or of cursing! The choice is ours to make! In either case, each individual is personally responsible to make their own choice.
We obtain God's blessing (Brachah: בּרָהָכ) when we obey the LORD, and our decision to obey manifests the blessings in our lives and confirms the state of walking before His Divine Presence.
The direct object marker et (את) before the word "the blessing" alludes to the blessings of "Aleph to Tav," that is from YESHUA, as described in Leviticus 26:3-13:
"3 “If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do them, 4 then I will give you your rains in their season, and the land shall yield its increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. 5 Your threshing shall last to the time of the grape harvest, and the grape harvest shall last to the time for sowing. And you shall eat your bread to the full and dwell in your land securely. 6 I will give peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and none shall make you afraid. And I will remove harmful beasts from the land, and the sword shall not go through your land. 7 You shall chase your enemies, and they shall fall before you by the sword. 8 Five of you shall chase a hundred, and a hundred of you shall chase ten thousand, and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword. 9 I will turn to you and make you fruitful and multiply you and will confirm my covenant with you. 10 You shall eat old store long kept, and you shall clear out the old to make way for the new. 11 I will make my dwelling[a] among you, and my soul shall not abhor you. 12 And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people. 13 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that you should not be their slaves. And I have broken the bars of your yoke and made you walk erect." Leviticus 26:3-13
As King David said, "I have set ( שויִתי) the LORD always before me..." (Psalm 16:8). David made a choice to "set" the LORD before his eyes, for he understood that the only path to real blessing, was to keep his eyes focused on the LORD, on YESHUA, the Author and perfector of his faith (Hebrews 12:2), keeping him from wandering in the wrong direction!
On the other hand, we obtain God's curse (kelalah: קּלהָל) when we close our eyes and "forget" that the LORD and His ways.... Suppressing God's truth invariably leads to idolatry, that is, to self exaltation, also known as PRIDE. This is what happened to satan and his fallen angels.
"Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall." Proverbs 16:18
This is why we are warned in the book of Thessalonians:
"19 Do not quench (suppress or subdue) the (Holy) Spirit. 20 Do not treat prophecies with contempt 21 but test them all; hold on to what is good, 22 reject every kind of evil." 1 Thessalonians 5:19-22
The RUACH HA'KODESH (Holy Spirit) is our best friend! He will lead and guide us into all Truth, helping us make wise decisions leading us in the pathway of LIFE, even life more abundantly!
John 16:13: "But when He, the Spirit of Truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears, and He will tell you what is yet to come."
John 14:26: "But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have told you."
John 14:15-17: "If you love me, keep my commands. I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of Truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you."
John 15:26: "When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father--the Spirit of Truth who proceeds from the Father--He will testify about Me."
A formal ceremony would later be held on the mountains of Gerizim and Ebal immediately after entering the promised land where the consequences of the blessing and the curse would be pronounced.
Moses then continued his speech, further explaining the laws the people must observe. First of all they must entirely destroy the worship shrines of the inhabitants of the land, burning all idols and tearing down all altars of sacrifices in the “high places.”
Moses warned the people to be wary of false prophets who might attempt to entice them into worshipping other gods. Someone guilty of seducing the people to engage in idolatry was to be executed – even if they were a family member. Likewise, a settlement that later embraced idolatry must be entirely destroyed just as the Canaanite settlements were destroyed. The people were warned not to worship the LORD as they saw fit, but only as directed by the law.
The last month of the Jewish calendar (counting from Tishri) is called Elul (אלול) , which begins at sundown on Monday, September 2nd, 2024 this year. Traditionally, Rosh Chodesh Elul marks the beginning of a forty day "Season of Teshuvah" that culminates on the solemn holiday of Yom Kippur.
The month of Elul is therefore a time set aside each year to prepare for the Yamim Nora'im, the "Days of Awe," by getting our spiritual house in order.
During this time we make additional effort to repent, or "turn [shuv] toward God." Self-analyzing our motives, our priorities and asking the LORD to show us areas we need to repent of that perhaps we're not even aware of. This is super important!
We need to be like King David who asked the LORD to search his heart, his priorities, his motives and to remove any wicked way from within him.
"23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties;
24 And see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting."
Psalm 139:23-24
Many times we erect idols in our own lives without being fully aware, blinded by pride and arrogance. We don't see the selfish pride, the independence and wanting to do things our own way...it could be making ourselves into an idol (everything is about me, me, me: what I want to do, what I need, what I love, what I don't like, etc...) or making someone or something else an idol in our lives.
ANYTHING that we make as our #1 priority, instead of ADONAI, becomes an idol in our lives and needs to be torn down and removed by repenting and making permanent changes in how we live, what we do, what we say, and how we think.
This kind of change can only be accomplished by the empowerment of the RUACH HA'KODESH (Holy Spirit) in our lives!
"3By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. 4And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires." 2 Peter 1:3-4
The parasha concludes with the reminder that all of Israel was to observe Shelosh Regalim, the three major pilgrimage Feats of the LORD: Passover, Shavu'ot, and Sukkot. Every Israelite was to make a pilgrimage to the Mishkan (Tabernacle), and later at the Bet Hamikdash (Holy Temple), offering sacrifices according to his means. These were times of rejoicing and fellowship before the LORD as Am Segulah - God's treasured people.
And this is what ADONAI wants for all of us, to be His treasured people, a HOLY NATION, set apart unto godliness before Him!
"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light." 1 Peter 2:9
Amen and Amen!
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