the gods we serve – Bechukotai – May 16

Whom are we serving?  It is easy to live our lives and think they we are serving God with our lives when in essence we are serving other gods as well.

Yeshua taught that we cannot serve two masters.  We may try to fool ourselves and others but if we are serving other gods in any capacity there will be a day when our true hearts are exposed.  Yeshua explained it this way: “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money” (Matt. 6:24).  We cannot serve two masters because the true master of our hearts will eventually be exposed.

The context of Yeshua’s words regarding the one whom we serve as master is found within the famous teaching of Yeshua called “The Sermon on the Mount.”  This title is based on the text that tells us that Yeshua went up on the mountain to teach the people (Matt. 5:1-2). Throughout this teaching Yeshua was continually expounding on spiritual truths which have their foundation in the Torah (the Law), the first five books of the Bible.  Yeshua often used the words, “you have heard that it was said…” while quoting some verse from the Torah followed by a deeper understanding of the truth that He was trying to teach.  Yeshua was correcting the misunderstandings and the false teachings about the Torah and challenged His listeners to live as the heavenly Father truly intended (Matt. 5:48).

When Yeshua challenged His listeners and said that they could not serve two masters it was in this context of defining the Law and teaching the people how to truly serve God with their lives.  In what we know today as Matthew chapter six, Yeshua confronted the people with the false gods that they were being tempted to serve.

The gods we serve:

The “gods” that Yeshua spoke of in Matthew chapter six were not man-made idols that one could touch and see.  The so called “gods” that He spoke of were practices and a manner of living that looked holy from the outside but were deceptive and led the people away from the Father in heaven.  Let’s briefly look at these so called “gods.”

1. The god of man

The first “god” that Yeshua refers to is that of trying to please people rather than God in our “righteous acts.”  The fear of man can lead people to live in such a way so as to appear religious and to receive praise from man but at the same time forfeit their reward from God above.  Yeshua said: “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven” (Matt. 6:1). This is what it means to fear man above God and put man in the place of God.  Yeshua warned His followers to not make a god of man and not to live for the praise of men.

2. The gods of society & religion

The next two gods that Yeshua addressed are so much a part of everyday life that it is extremely difficult to refuse bowing down to them.  These are the gods of society and religion.  These two gods are similar to the first god, the god of man, but they are represented in the community in one way or another.  Yeshua gave three specific examples in reference to these gods of society and religion; giving money (or doing acts of charity), praying, and fasting (Matt. 6:2-18).  Yeshua warned that whenever one does any of these things it should be done for God alone and not for the praise from the society or a religious institution.

In taking the example of prayer Yeshua stated it this way in Matthew 6:5-6:

And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

The synagogue is a place of Jewish worship and prayer.  It is a religious community and it is easy to look pious by the prayers one prays in front of others.  The street corners are public places in the community where everyone can see what is going on.

Yeshua warned His followers and He warns us today not to bow down to these gods of society and religion.  We are not to make a show regarding our giving to others, our spiritual act of praying, or our spiritual act of fasting.  Each of these were to be done from a pure heart out of devotion to God alone.  Yeshua strictly warned His listeners not to bow down to the gods of society and religion.

3. The god of money

Man, society, and religion are all relational aspects to life.  Yeshua gave these different examples to make it clear that it doesn’t matter if your god is only one person or the whole community, you shall not have any other gods before the LORD.  Then Yeshua took his teaching one step further and entered into the heart of the matter, the issue of earthly treasures and money (Matt. 6:19-24).

Yeshua exhorted His listeners not to bow down to this false god of earthly treasures where moth and rust destroy and thieves can break in and steal.  Instead, He challenged His listeners to invest in heavenly treasures where these treasures will be eternally safe and secure.  Yeshua continued with these heart piercing words, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matt. 6:21).

The true master of our hearts is revealed through the focus of our earthly treasures.  Are we serving the god of this world and the god of mammon with our lives or are we serving the God of heaven and earth?  Our earthly treasures will reveal our hearts.  The flow of our riches will expose the master whom we serve!

Serving the True God

These words of Yeshua in Matthew chapter six are so much more than mere guidelines for healthy spirituality.  Yeshua challenged His listeners and challenges us today to turn away from these false gods and to turn and serve God the Father alone.

Whom do we Fear and Whom do we Trust?

In the last ten verses of Matthew chapter six Yeshua summarized everything that He had just taught and urged His listeners to walk a different path (Matt. 6:25-34).  Yeshua took all of the complexity of the standards of man, all of the burdens of religion and society, and all of the delusion of riches and offered words of comfort that are able to set people free.  Yeshua begins with a challenge and then asks a series of simple questions:

Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

The questions continue and so do words of comfort regarding the faithfulness of the heavenly Father to meet our every need.  Towards the end of Matthew 6 Yeshua makes a promise to encourage His listeners to serve God the Father alone: “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matt. 6:33).

Yeshua promised that those who seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness will not lack any earthly need.

Serving the King of Kings

As mentioned earlier, the teachings of Yeshua in the “Sermon on the Mount” are explanations of teachings from the Torah.  Often Yeshua quoted specific verses from the Torah, however, sometimes He simply explained general teachings from the Law.  This appears to be what Yeshua was doing in Matthew chapter six.

This week’s Torah Portion is found in the last two chapters of the book of Leviticus (Lev. 26:3-27:34).  The first eleven verses (Lev. 26:3-13) directly correlate to Yeshua’s words in Matt. 6:33, “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”  The LORD Himself made a promise to the children of Israel that mirrors the promise of Yeshua:

If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do them, 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. 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. I will give peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and none shall make you afraid.  – Lev. 26:3-6

God promised that those who trust in Him will have their needs met.  In essence, God promised that if the children of Israel would seek Him first with their lives and obey His righteous decrees, He would so abundantly bless them that they literally would have no physical needs.

Yovel & Yevul – יובל ויבול

God promised abundant produce from the land and from the fruit trees if His people will obey His commands and trust in Him (Lev. 26:4).  The word for “produce” in Lev. 26:4 is “yevul.”  It is the same root word as the word “yovel,” which is the word for “jubilee.”   We can see that the words for “jubilee” and “produce” have the same Hebrew root.  Just as God promised to bless the people in the year of Jubilee so He desires to bless His people everyday of the year as they trust in Him.  To read more about the significance of the Year of Jubilee I recommend reading the previous week’s Torah Portion commentary, Proclaiming Liberty & Forgiveness!

Just as the Year of Jubilee was to be a time of abundance and provision for everyone equally, so Yeshua was proclaiming to His listeners that God was more than able to abundantly provide for His children day by day.  God’s desire is to abundantly bless His people, however, it is not without relationship with Him.  Just as God’s blessing on the children of Israel was based on their walking in God’s statutes and commandments (Lev. 26:3-13) so the blessing of the heavenly Father today is based on our seeking first His kingdom and His righteousness (Matt. 6:25-34).

Where are our hearts?  Whom are we serving?

The Choice of the Blessing and the Curse

This week’s corresponding section from the prophets is found in the book of Jeremiah.  In these few verses from Jeremiah chapters 16 & 17 God reminds all mankind of the choice to walk in the blessing or the curse.  To put it very simply God said, “Cursed is the man who trusts in man and puts his strength in flesh and turns his heart away (rebels) from God” (Jer. 17:5).  This man will have a fruitless, dry, and bitter life (Jer. 17:6).  But on the contrary God said, “Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, and whose trust is the LORD.  He shall be like a tree planted by a stream (“yuval” – יובל) of water, which sends forth its roots.  And he will not fear when the heat comes and his leaves will be green and flourishing and in the year of drought he will not be anxious and will not cease in yielding fruit (Jer. 17:7-8).

The deciding factor between receiving the blessing or the curse is where we place our trust, whether in man or in God.  I specifically wrote the Hebrew word for “a stream of water” in Jeremiah 17:8 above to show the connection to the blessing and abundance of God.  The word for “a stream of water” is the Hebrew word “yuval,” which is also used as a name in Hebrew today.  “Yuval” again has the same root as the word for “jubilee – yovel” and “produce – yevul.”  The man who trusts in the LORD and makes the LORD his trust will be abundantly blessed and will have a constant source of blessing in his life, like a tree planted by a stream of water (yuval).  

In this journey of life we choose to either trust God or not.  We either fully walk with Him or we permit ourselves to serve other gods.  The blessing or the curse will be the fruit of our choice.

Jeremiah gave us a picture of the LORD Himself as our trust: “O Lord, the hope of Israel, all who forsake you shall be put to shame; those who turn away from you shall be written in the earth, for they have forsaken the Lord, the fountain of living water (Jer. 17:13).  The word for “hope” in the phrase “the hope of Israel” in this verse is מקוה pronounced “mikveh.”  The word “mikveh” also means “a pool of water.”  God is a true source of water (hope) for the people.  All those who forsake Him shall be put to shame and written in the earth because they have forsaken the “source of living water” (מקור מיים חיים), the LORD!

Whom are we serving?  Whom are we trusting in?  Where is our hope?  Where is our source of life and abundance?  Are we serving the gods of man, society, religion, and riches or the God of heaven and earth?  The choice is ours.

Take time today to contemplate these questions and consider who is really the master of your life.  True life and blessing are only found by serving God and in seeking first His kingdom and His righteousness!

Shabbat Shalom!

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Torah Portion: Lev. 26:3 – Lev. 27:34

Hafatara: Jer. 16:19 – Jer. 17:14

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