Standing Strong |
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Nitzavim and Vayeilech— You Are Standing and And He Went
Deuteronomy 29:9- 30:20 & Deuteronomy 31:1- 30 Isaiah 61:10- 63:9 & Isaiah 55:6- 56:8 Acts 8:9- 25 & Matthew 10:5- 16 Romans 11:1- 33 & Romans 10:13- 28 |
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Isaiah 11:6 2 Thessalonians 2:15 |
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I've enjoyed looking at what I wrote last year and find there are some new insights. That is one of the greater things about G-d's word. It is fresh no matter how many times you read it.
I still revel in amazement that G-d refers to the Gentile believer as well as the future souls of His people yet to be born as quoted in Verse 29:14 — “I make this covenant and this oath, not with you alone, but with him who stands here with us today before the L-rd our G-d, as well as with him who is not here with us today.” I think it is important to restate the observations about the believing gentile. Who is the “him who is not with us here today?” It is the Gentile who follows the L-rd G-d of Israel and keeps the commandments. He keeps His covenant.
Isaiah 56:3-6 gives a promise to the non-Jew who keeps the law:
"Blessed is the man who does this and the son of man who lays hold of it, who keeps from defiling the Sabbath, and keeps his hand from doing any evil. Do not let the son of the foreigner who has joined himself to the L-rd speak saying, “The L-rd has utterly separated me from his people”, nor let the eunuch say, “Here I am, a dry tree.” For thus says the L-rd: “To the eunuchs who keep My Sabbaths, and choose what pleases Me, and hold fast My Covenant, even to them I will give in My house and within My walls a place and a name better than that of sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off. Also the sons of the foreigner who join themselves to the L-rd to serve Him, and to love the name of the L-rd to be His servants – Everyone who keeps from defiling the Sabbath, and holds fast My covenant – Even them I will bring to My holy mountain, and make them joyful in My house of prayer.”
This peace does not come from picking and choosing what commandments we are to obey. I firmly believe that Gentiles who follow G-d are not only to just keep the Noahide laws. The Noahide Laws never mention keeping the Sabbath and here we clearly see the promise to the foreigner who keeps the covenant of the L-rd as given to all of Israel.
A point that jumps out at me this year is the refusal to accept duplicity. Deut. 29:18 shows that he who says 'Peace will be with me as I walk as I see fit', following other G-ds and not serving G-d with his whole heart soul and mind, is cursed. The L-rd's anger will come down upon him. What does this mean to us today?
I don't see many people going around today saying they worship Ba'al while going to synagogue, kehilah or church. But while not openly saying it, the statement is there in actions if we look closely. I have been guilty of this myself on enough occasions. It is when we toy with false beliefs, when we look at secular humanism, pop psychology, Ouija boards, mysticism, power crystal necklaces, scientology, our inner G-d, and numerous other items. When we see the church embracing the enneagram as a means of getting deeper understanding, when we see meditation with the purpose of finding our spirit guide through meditation to lead us to new levels of understanding. When we add mysticism to G-d's ways through kabbalah or other teachings we are on shaky ground. Do not go where G-d does not lead and do not mix the holy with the profane.
What happens to those who dabble "harmlessly" with such things? Verse 26: "So G-d's anger flared against that land to bring upon it the entire curses tha t is written in this book." Re-read chapter 28:45-67. This is nothing to toy with.
It reminds me of the story of a man who made brownies. The children came in, and smelling and seeing the great brownies were pleading with their father to have some. The man said they could but they had to be aware that there were not all pure ingredients in it. But it was only a little and they probably could not even taste it, so don't worry. The children, leery of the man's tone of voice asked what the other ingredient was. The man replied well it's only a little and it's mixed in real well so you won't even notice, but I got some dog waste from the back yard and added just a little. After all, you kids always say "Just a little bit of bad stuff won't do us any harm." The children were appalled and refused to even come near the dish of brownies they were clamoring for just a few minutes ago. How could the man be so bad? Do you see the connection?
When our churches, or synagogues, or our kehilah offers to allow just a small entering in of what is worship to other G-ds, serving anything but the one true G-d of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, we should be so appalled as to flee from such an offering. G-d's wrath is waiting for those who will allow for mixing even a little of such false worship within what He commands. Think about this when things still smell good and look appealing. What is really in there?
At the same time we need to realize that it is not by our own efforts that we are saved. We are saved by His grace. But we do need to beware lest we forget it is by grace we are saved. This is shown by the verse Deut 30:6 “And the L-rd your G-d will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendents, to love the L-rd your G-d with all your heart, and with all your soul that you may live.” Exactly what Yeshua (Jesus) says is the greatest of the commandments. Here this is shown as what will happen after the ingathering of the Jews from dispersion throughout the world. The circumcision is the softening of the heart for the reasons of obedience. We obey through love, not out of fear or compulsion.
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