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Hebrews 11:9
By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. The Almighty El-Shaddai swore to Abraham, all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring forever (Genesis 13:15). Yet, after decades of wondering, and even going to war with five kings to protect his divine inheritance, when it came time for him to bury his wife, the patriarch still claimed to be a ‘foreigner’ in the Land of Promise (Genesis 23:4). He even had to haggle a burial place from a mocking Canaanite. The Scriptures record three important places purchased by Abraham and his offspring: Abraham bought the Cave of Machpelah (Genesis 23:17-18); David purchased the place where the Temple was built (2 Samuel 24:24); and Jacob acquired the parcel of ground where Joseph was eventually buried (Joshua 24:32). The Scriptures solidly record these transactions but until today, these places are claimed to be Muslim holy sites ‘stolen’ by the Jews. Abraham believed the Divine reality of the promises of God and acted upon them as much as he could, but he also knew how to live within his earthly present reality, the very present reality of having to buy what already belonged to him by Divine right. He even refused Ephron’s offer of a gift. Abraham bought the land, and he bought it at an exorbitant price. This teaches us the difference between promise and reality. Four thousand years later, as a response to a distant echo, the descendants of the Children of Abraham move into this land and re-conquer what is already theirs by Divine right. Until today this small strip of land by the Mediterranean Sea, that Pleasant Land promised to the descendant of Abraham not to die but to live in, is being bought at an exorbitant price. It is being bought not only at the price of the lives and deaths of many victims of war and terrorism, but also at the cost of world’s anger and the resurgence of anti-Semitism. The haggling with the 'Canaanite' seems to continue, not only with one king this time, but with the world and the United Nations. Sometimes Israel is so tired of the ‘haggling’ that it is tempted to offer ‘land for peace’. We must learn something from Abraham our father. While being aware of our Divine reality, we must also learn to live within our present earthly reality. Our souls have been bought and purchased; Yeshua paid the exorbitant bride price to live within the walls of our hearts, but daily the haggling goes on with t 'Canaanite' who does not let go. We can get so tired at times of the daily fight that we compromise with the 'evil one' offering him terms of 'peace' in the form of land from our heart. But wait, Messiah bought that 'land'; it belongs to Him. And as Israel does, must remember the price and the promises, expecting total fulfillment in the Messianic Era.. As Abraham and his 'offspring', we must learn to fight knowing that what God has promised, He is also able t fully accomplish (Romans 4:21).
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Revelations 14:1
Then I looked, and behold, on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with him 144,000 who had His name and His Father's name written on their foreheads. Moses gives a stern warning to the Children of Israel concerning the alternative spiritual influences they will find in Canaan. Remember, not only this generation of Israelites hadn't seen Pharaoh, the plagues, and the crossing of the Red Sea, but they lived in God's hands of provision and protection. That's all they knew. As home-schoolers, my wife and I taught our kids in a spiritually controlled environment. When they grew older and went into the world by themselves, they were faced with unfamiliar elements and had to make choices as to where they stood about things. It was tough for them and they made some mistake. So we sent the last one part-time to High-School while he was still with us. He could then be faced with some of these unfamiliar issues while at home when we could coach him through some of that. It was the same for the children of Israel. As they would enter the land, not only they would be faced with alternative spiritual forces, but the Father would also withdraw some of His provision and protection. No more manna, protective cloud at night, or column of fire during the day. Also, no more free water from the Rock. It is graduation time; they will now have to depend on their army for protection, on their agricultural skills for survival, and on hard work for water and irrigation. My youngest just graduated and turned eighteen; we are putting him through some of that reality, and he doesn't like it too much. Some Jewish sages speculate that that was really the reason why the first generation of children of Israel in the desert didn't want to go in the Land in the first place. Moses says, You must destroy all the places where the nations you are dispossessing served their gods … Break down their altars …. Exterminate their name from that place But you are not to treat Adonai your God this way (Deuteronomy 12:2-4)." It is from this command that is derived the prohibition to erase God's Name, therefore the 'fence' not to write or pronounce it in a common manner. Whereas we need to treat the place where His name is written, and even books which display the Sacred Name with honor and respect, there is also another place. In his vision on the Isle of Patmos John reports seeing, 144,000 who had his name and his Father's name written on their foreheads (Revelations 14:1). As believers, His Name is sealed on our foreheads, and in our hearts, it is therefore incumbent upon us to treat all those with His Name on their foreheads and hearts with utter honor respect lest we deface the place where His Name is written. May we not be found guilty of hypocrisy by showing honor to temporal books and buildings while defacing His Name in our brother or sister's eternal soul! Maybe that is why Yeshua said, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:37-39)." Matthew 15:4
For God commanded, 'Honor your father and your mother,' and, 'Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.' The Sacred Texts tell us that after the Great Flood, Noah began to be a man of the soil, and he planted a vineyard. He drank of the wine and became drunk and lay uncovered in his tent. And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father and told his two brothers outside. Then Shem and Japheth took a garment, laid it on both their shoulders, and walked backward and covered the nakedness of their father. Their faces were turned backward, and they did not see their father's nakedness. When Noah awoke from his wine and knew what his youngest son had done to him, he said, "Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be to his brothers (Genesis 9:21-25). What Ham did was very serious. Many have speculated as to the actions that caused Noah to curse his grand-son for the sake of his son’s actions, but the Text tells us exactly what happened and if it does, why speculate? What the Text tells us about Ham is that he saw the nakedness of his father and told his two brothers outside. When Ham saw his father in a vulnerable disgraceful position, he went and publicized it. His brothers to the contrary, going in and out of the tent respectfully, covered the shame of their father with a blanket of discretion. Today’s lack of high reverence and respect towards parents and elders is not seen as a very serious sin. That’s why we feel the need to find something else that is not in the Text to justify Noah’s judgment of Ham. But according to Biblical standards, honoring parents is what caused longevity and prosperity in the Land. The idea was to also care for them in their old age as they cared for us in our young age. That meant that they needed to live close to each other, not miles apart. As young children we adore our parents like gods, but as we grow older, we become critical of them and see their faults. Should we then go and gossip about them to others publicizing their faults? Or should we respect them by doing what love does, which is to cover a multitude of sin (Proverbs 10:12)? We may today wonder at our kids attitudes towards us, but are they emulating our very own attitudes towards our parents? How do we talk about or treat their grand-parents in front of them? This is a commandment without when, if, and buts; ‘only if my parents are respectable and honorable’. We are not asked to obey them, only to respect and honor them, as well as care for them in their old age. A very important blessing that influenced all of history until today ensued from Shem and Japheth’s discreet and respectful actions action. God said, "Blessed be the LORD, the God of Shem; and let Canaan be his servant. May God enlarge Japheth, and let him dwell in the tents of Shem, and let Canaan be his servant (Genesis 9:26-27)." Indeed, the way we treat and honor our earthly parents is a hint about our relationship with our heavenly Father. |
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