Many times, we look at what is happening around the world, especially in the middle east, and we ask why? Why are so many nations against Israel? Why is Israel surround by enemies? In this week’s Torah Portion, God gives Israel a specific command to drive out all the inhabitants of Canaan. Let us fast forward in the scriptures.

Israel did not obey the command of God, they did not drive out all the inhabitants of Canaan and they suffered for it throughout history. If Israel had obeyed the command of God, the Bible we read today would be very different. Samson probably would not have died the gruesome way that he did. David probably would not have killed a giant.
God warned Israel that if any of Canaanites remained that they would become like barbs in Israel’s eyes and thorns in their sides. God also warned them that if they did not drive out all of the Canaanites that He would do to Israel what He planned to do to the Canaanites. History shows that Israel was driven out of the Land not once, but twice.

It has been over 50 years since Israel has returned to the Land and the inhabitants are still like barbs in their eyes and thorns in their sides. Looking at everything that Israel has gone through, it is safe to conclude that God’s judgment found in this week’s Torah portion is still in effect. Despite whether or not the current world government known as Israel is living under God’s commands one thing is true; they are still God’s people and we are grafted in with them, we are one with Israel. What happens in Israel affect us all. On September 29, 2011, the United Nations will hold a meeting to decide if Israel should go back to the pre- 1967 borders, a move that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says would weaken Israel’s defense. Let us hope that Israel gets a favorable vote that day.

As you go throughout the week, remember that we are a part of Israel. Pray for our brothers in Judah. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Pray for the Holy Land. Pray for the whole house of Israel. Pray for God’s shalom to cover us all.

Matot – מטות – Tribes
Numbers 30:2-32:42

In this week’s Torah Portion, the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness is drawing near and Israel is tying up some loose ends as they prepare to enter into the promise. This Torah portion begins with vows. Since God is setting up Israel to be a representation of Him on the earth, how we handle our words is something taken very seriously. What exactly are vows? According to dictionary.com, a vow is “a solemn promise, pledge, or personal commitment.”

Many times, we want to make a vow sound like something that requires some kind of ritual, or something special. Any time you tell someone that you are going to do something that is a vow. To the world words are often loose and many times, unfortunately, meaningless, but for the body of believers that cannot be the case.

It is very common to hear people within the body of believers make vows but far too often, these vows are broken. If our goal is to be like the image of Messiah We cannot use our words so loosely. Throughout the scriptures, words are presented as something very important.

In Genesis chapter 27, Isaac blessed Jacob thinking it was Esau and when Esau came to him, Isaac was unable to undo what was already said. Two Torah portions past we saw how Balak hired Balaam to curse Israel. God did not allow Balaam to curse Israel but to bless them instead. Even in the world of success, it is very common to hear someone say, “If you say it, it will happen.”

Nothing that comes out of the mouth of God is meaningless; this is one of the reasons why we strive to live by every word that comes out of His mouth. Yeshua even said in Matthew 5: 37, “But let your statement be, ‘Yes, yes ‘ or ‘No, no’; anything beyond these is of evil.”

We must be careful with what we say, however, it has also been seen when people go to the other extreme and refuse to commit to anything. This is sin also because it is not loving to leave people hanging. Of course, there are times when we give our word and something genuinely comes up, sometimes that is unavoidable. But we are not like the world, every action that we do, and every word that comes out of our mouths should have meaning, substance and should be important.

Pinchas – פנחס – Phinehas
Numbers 25:10-30:1

Let us go back to the tail end of last week’s Torah Portion.

Now let us compare this scene with another popular scene where a display of zeal is shown.

What is zeal? According to the Collin’s World English Dictionary it is “fervent or enthusiastic devotion, often extreme or fanatical in nature, as to a religious movement, political cause, ideal, or aspiration.” One of the definitions found in Easton’s Bible Dictionary is “an earnest temper; may be enlightened.”
Throughout the Bible we see examples of zeal being displayed. What Phinehas did was not an emotional outburst, nor was it something that he needed to ponder on before acting. Biblical, Godly Zeal is a connection with God that causes you to react to a situation as God would have. Zeal is an automated reaction based on knowing God and hating what He hate, and/or loving what He loves. Phinehas saw what was going on and because he knew God what needed to be done was not even a thought, just an action. When Yeshua went into the temple and saw what He saw, there was no thought, just action.
According to 2 Corinthians 5:20 we are expected to be ambassadors of Messiah and sometimes that requires action. If Phinehas was around today and in that same situation, he would have been told that the best thing to do was to simply talk to Zimri and Cozbi about the errors of their ways; if they did not listen, then go talk to the leaders. If Yeshua walked into the temple today (if it was around) and see what He saw 2000 years ago, do you think that He would simply just walk up to the high priest and say something like, “I really don’t like your policy of selling things in the temple, I would appreciate it if something is done about it.”
Today we live in a society that encourages something called “Political Correctness.” From an elementary level our kids are being taught a passive approach to the sins all around us. What is more worrisome is the fact that this political correct view is seeping into the body of Messiah. We are afraid to hurt people’s feelings, we are afraid to get too involved and this cannot work because the Bible requires us to have real relationships with one another. We have to look out for one another.
Within the body of Messiah, whose responsibility is it to protect the congregation from sin? Is it something that should only be left to the leaders? Absolutely not! We are all responsible to know who God is and to deal with sin accordingly; the leaders cannot do it all on their own. During the time of these last two Torah portions Moses was probably writing the book of Deuteronomy, preparing for his final days with Israel, making sure that everything was setup for the next generation to enter into the promised land. The leaders were running around killing those who were whoring with the gods of Moab, and on top of all this, there was a plague running loose.
Today when we see sin in a fellow brother or sister’s life, we often look the other way in hopes that someone else will deal with it, or maybe we want to hope that the individual is praying about it and that God will help them overcome: what if neither of those are true? What if they don’t even know they are in sin, or what if they feel completely powerless to it and have simply given up the fight against it? That sin would remain in the body.
We cannot allow sin to be in our mist. It is not just enough for us to know about God, we need to be in tune with Him and that includes loving what He loves and hating what He hates. Sin in the body is not just an individual’s problem; it affects us all. God does not just deal with sin on an individual level; He also deals with it on a corporate level. Phinehas saw sin and he did not turn away, he didn’t run to the leaders in hopes that they would deal with it, instead he took matters into his own hands and stopped the wrath of God in the process. Phinehas’ action not only saved lives, but God blessed him for it. Let us all be like Phinehas, let us be accountable to one another and let us all not tolerate sin among us.

Balak – בלק – Balak
Numbers 22:2-25:9

In this week’s Torah Portion we see king Balak hiring a man named Balaam to curse Israel. We also get to read about the famous talking donkey scene where Balaam was saved because his donkey would not go near the angel that was ready to kill him. When Balaam finally gets together with Balak, he is unable to curse Israel. No matter how many times Balak tried to get Balaam to curse Israel, Balaam could not do it, but instead he would do the opposite and kept blessing Israel. Balaam was listening to the voice of God.
What stuck out to me was the fact that Balaam knew God’s voice. Balaam was not a righteous man, nor was he someone seeking God’s ways. He was a hired sorcerer, someone who practiced in divination. According to Torah, Balaam’s lifestyle was an abomination before God, but God still communicated with him. This reminds me of the following verse.

For years I ran around telling people that I was saved because I chose God. My personal evidence was the fact that I heard His voice a couple of times, or at least I believe that I did. Every time I would make this statement in front of a particular wise person, they would quickly correct me and say, “No, you are saved when He chooses you.” For a long time I never really understood the meaning of that statement until the Holy Spirit revealed it to me.

Even though I heard the voice of God, I was still wallowing in my sins at that point in my life. Although God was a goal that I wanted to reach, I wanted to get to Him on my terms and in my own way. Just like Balaam, I heard the voice of God, but I was still living my life, not the life that God wanted me to live.
The day that God chose me was the day when everything changed. The born again experience became real in my life, I turned away from the obvious sins that controlled me and I began to seek ways of loving God with all my heart, mind, soul and strength. Instead of practicing lawlessness, I began to live by His Torah. And the coolest thing about it all is that I do not mentally choose to do these things, but I am compelled to change from within. That is the personal sign that what you have in God is real, when you are moved from within to love God with all that you have, not because it is something that you have to do.

Today we have many people running around performing miracles, prophesying and casting out demons in God’s name. Some of these people may truly love God, but there is no denying that modern day Balaams are among them. Do not be fooled by what people can do, God will use whoever He wants for His Name’s sake. If you truly want to know if someone is with God, then seek out the fruits of the Ruach Ha-Kodesh in their lives. At first glance, it would seem that Balaam was a prophet of God but he was far from the truth and his life showed it; in the end he was destroyed along with Moab.
(by M.R.)

Chukat – חוקת – “Statute”
Torah: Numbers 19:1-22:1
This week’s Torah Portion is jam packed with tons of information. We can easily cover topics such as the laws for purification, the death of Miriam, what happened at the Waters of Meribah, the death of Aaron, or the situation with the “Bronze Serpent;” but what really stuck out to me this week was the amount of adversity the children of Israel had to overcome.

In the previous two Torah portions we saw how Israel made it to the doorstep of God’s promise but became fearful when they realized the opposition that they had to overcome. Their lack of faith angered God and their punishment was for them to walk the wilderness for 40 years. In the following Torah portion we saw an attempted mutiny lead by a man named Korah who got the support of over 200 of Israel’s leaders in this rebellion. Now this week we read a little bit about how Israel is dealing with their life in the wilderness.

When people first come to the knowledge of Yeshua, in many instances there seems to be a fallacy or understanding that life will get easier. As believers, we often think that God will just hit the “yes” button for everything that we want, but that is not how it works. Ultimately, when everything is said and done we will find rest, but that time will not come until all is fulfilled; in the mean time we must contend with this world and all the evils in it. Despite the fact that God was with Israel, that did not stop Edom, Arad and Sihon from attacking Israel.

As believers of God we must accept the fact that adversity will come, despite the fact that God is with us. Without adversity we cannot grow in the Lord. It is through adversity that our faith strengthens.

Faith in God is trusting in His word over your own logic, no matter how hopeless or bleak the situation looks. Without adversity we cannot grow. The Israelites made it to the doorsteps of the Promised Land and they became fearful because of the adversity that was waiting for them; 40 years later, those adversities were still there but Israel marched in with greater confidence than before, why do you think that is? The reason is because during those 40 years in the wilderness, Israel’s faith in God grew due to the adversities they had to endure.

[audio:http://beityisrael.us/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Chukat.mp3|titles=Chukat]

Num 16:1 Now Korah, the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, with Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On, the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took men;
Num 16:2 and they rose up in face of Moses, with certain of the children of Israel, two hundred and fifty men; they were princes of the congregation, the elect men of the assembly, men of renown;
Num 16:3 and they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them: ‘Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them; wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the assembly of the LORD?’
Num 16:4 And when Moses heard it, he fell upon his face.
Num 16:5 And he spoke unto Korah and unto all his company, saying: ‘In the morning the LORD will show who are His, and who is holy, and will cause him to come near unto Him; even him whom He may choose will He cause to come near unto Him.
Num 16:6 This do: take you censors, Korah, and all his company;
Num 16:7 and put fire therein, and put incense upon them before the LORD to-morrow; and it shall be that the man whom the LORD doth choose, he shall be holy; ye take too much upon you, ye sons of Levi.’
Num 16:8 And Moses said unto Korah: ‘Hear now, ye sons of Levi:
Num 16:9 is it but a small thing unto you, that the God of Israel hath separated you from the congregation of Israel, to bring you near to Himself, to do the service of the tabernacle of the LORD, and to stand before the congregation to minister unto them;
Num 16:10 and that He hath brought thee near, and all thy brethren the sons of Levi with thee? and will ye seek the priesthood also?
Num 16:11 Therefore thou and all thy company that are gathered together against the LORD – ; and as to Aaron, what is he that ye murmur against him?’
Num 16:12 And Moses sent to call Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab; and they said: ‘We will not come up;
Num 16:13 is it a small thing that thou hast brought us up out of a land flowing with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness, but thou must needs make thyself also a prince over us?