Rumination #42: Why is it important for the followers of Messiah to identify not only with Abraham, but with Isaac and Jacob as well?

All stripes of the followers of Messiah, identify with Abraham; especially those who are from Gentile stock. Because of the promise of Genesis 12, and Paul's commentary in Romans 4, it is easy for us all to see Abraham as "our father." The difficulties enter when we identify with Isaac and Jacob. Are Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob "our fathers"? Of course much of Judaism has said "no" when Gentiles ask the question. Jacob of course was named "Israel" and clearly "Israel" is not Gentile - or at least so it seems to some. The various answers cover the spectrum from anti-Semitic Replacement Theology to "Two House" theology.

It all boils down to that age old problem that simply will not go away: what to do about all these Gentiles… (some in Messianic Judaism are replaying the First Century controversy all over again - and are failing in that regard). Each time the discussion comes up, various groups throw dust into the air - some to cause clear division between Jew and Gentile, while others do it simply to confuse, and obscure their real position on Gentile inheritance and responsibility.

Beloved, it really is important to identify with all three of the Patriarchs. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob really are "our fathers" - whether we are Jew or Gentile by natural birth. Not merely in some mystical or metaphoric way. So many theologians have difficulty with identifying with Jacob because he is the father of the twelve tribes – which is more difficult to spiritualize as they are prone to do. While the "Olive Tree" from Romans 9 is a metaphor, Israel and the Patriarchs are not. Our Master made it quite clear, the One True G-d, the King of the Universe, is the "G-d of Abraham, the G-d of Isaac, and the G-d of Jacob." His people are sons and daughters of these three. Period. By the work of Messiah, we all are grafted into the Patriarchs. They are our fathers.

Many people shall come and say, "Come, and let us go up to the mountain of HaShem, to the house of the G-d of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, and we shall walk in His paths." For out of Zion shall go forth the Torah, and the word of HaShem from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations, and rebuke many people; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore. O house of Jacob, come and let us walk In the light of HaShem. 
Isaiah 2:3-6

Clearly, there is no difference between "Jacob" and "Israel" - once again reminding us of this Gospel fact: 

Jew and Gentile are fellowheirs. We have One King. We are One People. We have been given One Torah

Pnei HaShem - Does God Ignore Our Pleas?

The purpose of suffering - Rav Dessler On The Parsha

Pnei HaShem - Forgiveness: A Story of Rabbi Yitzhak Of Berdichev

Pnei HaShem - Tisha B'Av - Of God loves us, why did He allow the Temple to be destroyed? Why does He allow us to suffer this bitter exile?

1. Likutey Moharan #7. Rebbe Nachman had a vision in which his great-grandfather, the Baal Shem Tov, came to him and said, "When people spoil things in the Land of Israel, they fall into exile. This is alluded to in the verse (Genesis 49:24), And from there the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel." Rebbe Nachman explains this vision here and again in Lesson #9. Both teachings were given during the winter of 5563 (1802-03). See Tzaddik # 129; Until the Mashiach, p.93.

This lesson opens with the first verse of the Torah portion Mishpatim (Laws). Rebbe Nachman quotes both a Talmudic passage and a Mekhilta, each of which explains what the words "that you must place before them" come to teach. The Talmudic passage in Kiddushin (also in Bava Kama 15a) focuses on the implication of the word "them," which is plural. The Mekhilta, on the other hand, explains the directive itself: "that you must place before them."

Rebbe Nachman unites both these explanations and weaves them into his lesson.

This lesson is leshon Rabbeinu z'l. Any lesson designated as such was either a) copied verbatim from Rebbe Nachman's manuscripts which Reb Noson had in his possession, or b) dictated by Rebbe Nachman to Reb Noon. The remaining lessons (excluding the few which were written down by some of the other followers) were recorded by Reb Noson after he had heard the teaching from the Rebbe. He would prepare the written version and present it to Rebbe Nachman for approval.

Why is repentance/Teshuvah so important? Why are we commanded to love HaShem our G-d? In this episode we explore what it means to live in obedience to HaShem's revealed will, the Torah. What does it mean to love HaShem, how does the Torah define love.

In Kabbalah the words אהבה and אחד have the same numerical value of 13 which indicates that we are in unity with HaShem when we are obedient to his mitzvot.

A special episode on Bein HaMetzarim/Between The Troubles. I read from:

Seasons Of The Soul by Rabbi Aryeh Trugman

The Months Of Tammuz and Av: Embracing Brokenness by DovBer Pinson

The Darkness and the Dawn by Daniel Glatstein.

From these books we have good starting point to rectification of this time of calamity and to bring about the final redemption.

1. Likutey Moharan #6. Rebbe Nachman taught this lesson on Shabbat Shuvah, 6 Tishrei 5563 (October 2, 1802). It was shortly after Reb Noson had joined the Rebbe's following and, in a sense, the lesson can be seen as Rebbe Nachman personally initiating him into the role Reb Noson would one day fill as the Rebbe's leading disciple (cf. Lesson #S, n. 1). Indeed, Reb Noson himself testifies that he drew a lifetime of encouragement from this teaching (see Through Fire and Water, Chapter 8). Through section 7 (see n. 156) of the lesson's text is leshon Rabbeinu (this terminology has been explained at the end of the first note to Lesson #2). Its main themes are: humility; remaining quiet and silent in the face of embarrassment, repentance; and strengthening oneself spiritually accomplishing more when things are good, and holding on when things are difficult. The lesson also explains the Ari's kavanot (Rabbi Yitzchak Luria's mystical meditations) for Elul, the month of repentance, and shows how they are applicable to learned and simple Jew alike.

In this episode we’ll explore the dichotomy between the man made categories and the Torah’s self categories such as: Chokim/Decrees, Mitzvot/Instructions, and Mishpatim/Judgements.

1. Likutey Moharan #5. Rebbe Nachman taught this lesson on Monday, Rosh HaShanah 5563 (September 27, 1802), shortly after he had taken up residence in the city of Breslov. On Sunday of the previous week (September 19), the man who was to become Rebbe Nachman's closest follower and scribe, Reb Noson, met the Rebbe for the very first time. The text of the lesson is leshon Rabbeinu z'l (see end of first note to Lesson #2 where this terminology has been explained. From the Rebbe's own testimony we know that within its sections are concealed the mystical intentions relating to tefilin (see Likutey Moharan I, 38:end, in note). Indeed, Reb Noson later composed his own discourse explaining the concepts of tefilin based on this lesson (see Likutey Halakhot, Orach Chaim, Tefilin 4). The main themes of the lesson are: mitigating decrees; performing the mitzvot with joy and the reward for the mitzvot; intense prayer; cleansing one's mind of undesirable thoughts; and strife between tzaddikim. Reb Noson once said that the inspiration and guidance he drew from this lesson, the first full discourse he heard from Rebbe Nachman, served him throughout his life.

Rumination #36: Where did the idea that congregations need a "pastor" or a "messianic rabbi" come from? Not the Bible. The Protestant Reformation failed in many ways, but one particular way it failed may have led to all its other failures. It is this: the Protestant Reformation failed to declare once and for all that the single leader model ultimately negates the leadership of Messiah. Just as Korach's rebellion was to replace Moses, so too the one-man-show in pulpits and bimahs usurps the very leadership of Messiah. There is one Head of the Congregation of HaShem - it is Yeshua alone. It is quite ironic that many self-appointed "pastors" and "messianic rabbis" lead the congregation away from the Torah of Moses. After all, they think of themselves as a kind of Moses. But there is only one Moses (See Rumination 13:Why isn’t Moshe the most revered man in Scripture? He should be). By speaking against the "Law of Moses" - they show their personal rebellion against the Almighty. Men that seize the role are just like Korach, they are not leading people to G-d by leading them away from Moses. By rebelling against Moses, they are rebelling against Messiah. By annulling or diminishing the Torah, they make for themselves a new law and it is not G-d's Law, no matter what they say. They gathered together against Moses and Aaron, and said to them, "You take too much upon yourselves, for all the congregation is holy, every one of them, and HaShem is among them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the Kahal [Assembly] of HaShem?" Numbers 16:3 And He [Messiah] is the head of the body, the Assembly, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence. Colossians 1:18

1. Likutey Moharan #4. This lesson was given on Shavuot 5561 (May 17, 1801), in Zlatipolia (Until the Mashiach, p.65). The text is leshon Rabbeinu z'l (see end of first note to Lesson #2 where this terminology has been explained). The main themes of the lesson are: recognizing God in all circumstances; confession in the presence of the tzaddik; humility, especially that of the tzaddik; and the three steps in attachment to tzaddikim.

There are teachers say that the Torah is abolished. They have played games with the Scriptures and created elaborate theologies to distinguish between "moral law, civil law, and ritual law." They do this for one reason: to separate Jew and Gentile (aka "Christian"). This 1,900 year old heresy uses "dispensations" or "covenants" as theological methods to make it quite clear that the followers of "Jesus" are not to be confused with Jews. Yes, it all boils down to just that. There are teachers that say that the Torah is abolished for Gentiles. They use new language and phrases such as, "inviting" but not "obligating" but the outcome is the same: separating Jew and Gentile. There is not a fine line between distinguishing family ethnicity and separating believers. It is clear that those who promote more than one standard of righteousness are not merely distinguishing between Jew and Gentile, they are separating them. May that never be. If we have One King, and if we are truly One People, we cannot have different rights and obligations under our One King's reign. There is only One Torah and it applies to all the citizens of Messiah's Kingdom equally. It is as the Almighty always intended, but is repeatedly denied by men. One ordinance [chokah] shall be for you of the assembly and for the stranger who dwells with you, an ordinance forever [chokat olam] throughout your generations; as you are, so shall the stranger be before HaShem. One Law [Torah] and one custom [misphat] shall be for you and for the stranger who dwells with you. Numbers 15:15-16 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens [sompolites = "of the same city/country"] with the saints and members of the household of G-d... ...the mystery of Messiah... That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Messiah by the gospel. Ephesians 2:19; 3:4b; 3:6 If there is One King, how can there be two standards, or two laws? There cannot be. If Jew and Gentile are made fellow citizens, it means that they have One King, they have One Law, and they are One People. Please note: at Bereans Online, we have only one obligation: to teach the truth. We are not trying to win the approval of anyone except the Almighty Himself. All of our materials are distributed without charge, so we have no division of loyalties or financial concerns that affect our teaching. We will always teach a single way of salvation, and a single way of walking out a righteous life. When faced with theologies or word-games that are designed to separate between Jew and Gentile, we will act like our namesakes, and simply go back to the Scriptures. We may stand alone, but we will not abandon this moral high ground. Go to www.bereansonline.org/outlines/dit.htm for more reading on the subject.

Behold! when someone listens to the singing of a singer who is wicked, it is detrimental to his serving the Creator. But when he listens to a singer who is virtuous and worthy, it helps him, as will be explained. Likutey Mohoran #3. This lesson was given on Shabbat, 7 Elul 5562 (September 4, 1802), in Ladizin, a town some 19 miles from Breslov.

Over the centuries, there have been numerous ways that so-called "true believers" of Jesus have identified themselves. Creeds and statements of "I believe" as well as tie pins, necklaces, and bumper stickers are like secret handshakes between fellow members. But what is the real way to identify a disciple of Messiah?

Of course, any child of the 1970s "Jesus Movement" can tell you, "They will know we are Christians by our love, by our love." The popular camp song is derived from Yeshua's statement about His followers:

By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.
John 13:35

It sounds perfect, but out of context it is without meaning or substance. Beloved, we do not know what love is, without knowing how the Almighty defines it. And He has defined it - again and again, and yet men are loathe to obey Him.

And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves G-d must love his brother also.
1John 4:21

You can never separate love from the commandments of the Almighty. Love and the revelation of G-d's righteousness (the Torah) are inseparable. Love of G-d, and love of each other are defined in the Torah. Cast it aside, and you will only think you love G-d and your brother.

By this we know that we love the children of G-d, when we love G-d and keep His commandments. For this is the love of G-d, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.
1John 5:2-3

The disciples of Messiah are marked by our love for one another. Our love for one another is defined by the Torah. Without the Torah, "love" has no biblical definition.
We are a part of an eternal lamp. We ourselves are wicks that fuel the flame, revealing the Shekinah to the world around us. What is the oil that keeps our wick lit, what is our "love"? It is Torah deeds, beloved.

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.
Matthew 5:16

What does it mean to be in a community? What are my responsibilities in that community? How does the Torah describe this community? These are important questions to ask. As you listen to this episode, keep these questions in mind as well as the fact that, the answers are not necessarily definitive.

We also have the understanding that, the Torah is likened to light that reveals flaws in our nature, but is this the purpose for light? Is the Torah's purpose to reveal sin? Again these are questions to be explored and kept in mind as you listen to this episode.

B"H

1. Likutey Moharan #2. This lesson was given on a Shabbat in the winter of 5561 (1801), in the town of Zlatipolia. Rebbe Nachman lived there from just prior to Rosh HaShanah 5561 until he moved to Breslov almost two years to the day, in 5563 (see Until the Mashiach, p.60). When the Terhovitza Magid (Reb Yekusiel, d.1811), a prominent Chassidic leader in his own right, later saw the lesson in writing, he remarked, "What can I say about this teaching? That it is Zohar? It's loftier than the Zohar! That it is Tikkuney Zohar? It's loftier than the Tikkuney Zohar!" (Aveneha Barzel p.74, #62). The main themes of the lesson are: prayer; guarding the Covenant; binding oneself to the tzaddik; charity; mishpat (justice); and Torah study. The Rebbe revealed this teaching following a visit from one of his closest followers, Reb Shmuel Isaac of Dashev (1765-1827), who had dreamt a most disturbing dream.

While it is certainly understandable for Replacement Theology (aka "Supercessionism", aka "Covenant Theology") to try and substitute the Land of Israel for the ethereal "heaven"; it is nonetheless as faulty as so many of their substitutions. The Scriptures are replete with the mention of the Land of Israel as central to the redemption plan of the Almighty. Like the entire inheritance of the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, these notable (and ignoble) theologians, by negating the inheritance of the Land undercut their own theologies of redemption. They may have study Bibles that include their names in the titles… but they ignore its words, to their own demise.

Behold, the days are coming, says HaShem, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah...

But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says HaShem: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their G-d, and they shall be My people. No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, "Know HaShem," for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says HaShem. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.

Behold, the days are coming, says HaShem, that the city shall be built for HaShem - from the Tower of Hananel to the Corner Gate. The surveyor’s line shall again extend straight forward over the hill Gareb; then it shall turn toward Goath. And the whole valley of the dead bodies and of the ashes, and all the fields as far as the Brook Kidron, to the corner of the Horse Gate toward the east, shall be holy to HaShem. It shall not be plucked up or thrown down anymore forever.
Jeremiah 31:31; 33-34; 38-40

Then say to them, "Thus says HaShem G-d: 'Surely I will take the children of Israel from among the nations, wherever they have gone, and will gather them from every side and bring them into their own land. ...Then they shall dwell in the land that I have given to Jacob My servant, where your fathers dwelt; and they shall dwell there, they, their children, and their children's children, forever; and My servant David shall be their prince forever. Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them, and it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; I will establish them and multiply them, and I will set My sanctuary in their midst forevermore. My tabernacle also shall be with them; indeed I will be their G-d, and they shall be My people. The nations also will know that I, HaShem, sanctify Israel, when My sanctuary is in their midst forevermore.'"
Ezekiel 37:21; 25-28

It matters not whether you are a theologian with the name of "Ryrie" or "Sproul," or a politician with the name "Obama" or "Trump." If you seek to take the inheritance of the Land either theologically or through some dishonest "peace plan," you will fail. In the end, you are the ones that will be crushed by the Rock of Ages (Daniel 2:34-35). You've been warned: ...Do not touch My anointed ones... Psalms 105:13

Beginning with this episode I'll be reading one lesson a week from Likutey Mohoran, the magnum opus of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, the great grandson of the Ba'al Shem Tov of blessed memory. Ashrei T'mimei Darekh (Happy are those whose way is perfect), who walk with the Torah of God. Know! by means of the Torah, all the prayers and all the requests that we request and pray are accepted. The grace and importance of the Jewish people are thus enhanced and elevated in the estimation of all of whom they may have need, whether in matters spiritual or physical.

In its modern usage, love is rarely spoken of in relationship to listening. 

In the Bible, love is different. It speaks of husband and wife; of parent and child; and of HaShem and His people. It is there that we learn what real love is - and it always involves listening. If we were speaking Hebrew, that might be enough to make the point - but English makes listening passive. Love is not passive, and it does not simply "go in one ear and out the other." In Hebrew, to sh'ma is to respond. It is not merely hearing – it is reacting to what is spoken. We cannot claim to love G-d, and not respond positively to what He says. To sh'ma is to hear and obey. It is why in Hebrew, the words for "hear" and "obey" is the same: sh'ma.

Followers of Messiah should not wonder if some "obscure commandment" from the "Old Testament" applies to them (there are no "obscure commandments to those who love G-d). 

If you love Me, keep My commandments. 
John 14:15

He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him. 
John 14:21

If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. 
John 15:10

You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. 
John 15:14

Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, "I know Him," and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
1John 2:3-4

By this we know that we love the children of G-d, when we love G-d and keep His commandments. For this is the love of G-d, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.
1John 5:2-3

Do you have ears? Did you hear what the Almighty spoke? Why are you not responding in love, by obeying Him? Sh'ma!

To the biblical mind, "being" cannot be distinct from "doing." In Hebrew, unlike English and other European languages, there is less emphasis on being and more emphasis on doing. We could read the multitude of verses that command us to "be holy" as saying something like: "do these holy things." Despite the wrong-headed theology that says that G-d proves our depravity by commanding the impossible, the Almighty never commands us to do something that He does not enable us to do. Read that again. When the Creator tells His people to be holy as He is holy, He is commanding us to act like Him. There is only one way to act like Him - and it is to do the things that He commands us to do. This is Peter's marvelous commentary on Leviticus 19:2: ...but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, "Be holy, for I am holy." And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear... 1Peter 1:15-17 Notice Peter's emphasis on doing? The only way we can reflect the glory of the Infinite One, is to engage in the acts of chesed [loving kindness] that He commands us to do. The only way we can do those things, is if we study them in order to do them. The commandments are not merely ethereal axioms, full of sentimentality. "Love your neighbor as yourself" only means something if you know the verses and the commandments that accompany that phrase. People reading Messiah Yeshua's words in Matthew 22:37-40 cannot understand their meaning if they refuse to read the context of Yeshua's words. The context is not a "New Testament" thing… it is an Torah thing. Without the Torah, the "New Testament" has no place in the Scriptures. It is only the context of the Torah that can define the holy writings of the first disciples of Yeshua. If those writings are independent of the Torah, they must be the writings of another religion – apart from the Bible.  Do you want to be holy as He is holy? Obey Him. Without the Torah, you cannot even begin to know how. Dig in and learn. Dig in, and do.

There is profound misunderstanding in many circles concerning the issues of "clean" and "unclean" - and out of that misunderstanding comes many false theologies. The fact that Yeshua "put on flesh" and became subject to death is seen not only in His atoning work, but also in His life, both then and now. "Leprosy" is seen as the ultimate expression of the frailty of humanity – stopping just short of death. It is the "walking death" – the nearly the worst in "clean" versus "unclean" with only death itself being more defiling. And yet Yeshua identifies with the leper. He touches him. He heals him. This is the mark of Messiah: Who bravely goes to those afflicted with "death" and cares for them… and heals them.

An account in the Talmud speaks to this as well. Rabbi Joshua ben Levi, was a Third Century teacher who is said to have had an encounter with Elijah (not uncommon in the Talmud). Rabbi Joshua asks Elijah,

"When will the Messiah come?" - "Go and ask him himself," was his reply. "Where is he sitting?" - "At the entrance." "And by what sign may I recognize him?" - "He is sitting among the poor lepers [caring for them]... 

So he went to him [Messiah] and greeted him, saying, "Peace upon thee, Master and Teacher."  "Peace upon thee, O son of Levi," he replied. "When wilt thou come Master?" asked he, "Today," was his answer. On his returning to Elijah, the latter enquired, "What did he say to thee?"... "He spoke falsely to me," he rejoined, "stating that he would come today, but has not." He [Elijah] answered him, "This is what he said to thee, today, if ye will hear his voice."
 b.Sanhedrin 98a (Soncino edition)

With echoes of Psalms 95:7ff, and by extension Hebrews 4:7ff, we hear the challenge of the "Leper Messiah" - do you hear His voice? He came and sat among us, we lepers. He bound up our sores. He healed us from our "death" disease. Do you hear the "Leper Messiah"? He is coming today.

The "faith community" is not immune to the fads of the world at large. At times, the health food mindset finds a comfortable place at the table of a teacher or a ministry. Often times it is focused on fear of some ingredients, or some processes. What is surprising to me is not that some find proper eating important - what is surprising is that rarely does it go beyond the latest societal trends. How often do these teachers reach back into the "Old Testament" for their inspiration? If they do, it is for "health reasons" - not because they read the words of the Living G-d as life-giving.

Our eating should not be motivated by desire or fear. It should be an act of worship of the Creator. Whether you are a fad-dieter, fast-food eater, or a careful eater… one thing is true: if you do not eat for the Creator, you eat for yourself. The Bible teaches that thankful and joyful eating is an act of worship. It is worship of the Creator. It is taking the daily, the common - and bringing holiness to it. If it isn't food (Leviticus 11), don't eat it. If it is food, eat it with thanksgiving - thus making it a worship experience of the Almighty.

It is too bad that so many who love to quote 1Corinthians 3:16 don't relate it to Leviticus 11.

Do you not know that you are the temple of G-d and that the Spirit of G-d dwells in you?
1Corinthians 3:16

For I am HaShem your G-d. You shall therefore consecrate yourselves, and you shall be holy; for I am holy. Neither shall you defile yourselves with any creeping thing that creeps on the earth. For I am HaShem who brings you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your G-d. You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy. 'This is the law of the animals and the birds and every living creature that moves in the waters, and of every creature that creeps on the earth, to distinguish between the unclean and the clean, and between the animal that may be eaten and the animal that may not be eaten.'"
Leviticus 11:44-47

Don't you think it is odd that some people that warn us against eating chicken with hormones don't bother to warn us to eat things according to the Creator's instructions? Ever wonder why?