One man's thoughts about Life, Torah, and Messiah

Superficiality is the curse of our age. The doctrine of instant gratification is a primary spiritual problem. The desperate need today is not for a greater number of intelligent people, or gifted people, but for deep people. (Celebration of Discipline, p. 1, by Richard Foster)

I have been told by a close friend and spiritual mentor repeatedly over the last couple of years that I am overly concerned with being right. I think that I’m beginning to understand what he means. I’ll see if I can “flesh it out” so to speak.

I have allowed my zeal for the Torah and related things (traditions found within Judaism) to dictate everything about me. In doing so, I have put lenses on that allow me to see everyone compared to my standard of righteousness, thereby allowing me to judge (and condemn) anyone who doesn’t measure up. I have allowed myself to become an idol, and everyone that doesn’t worship me, or bow to my standards receives my judgement.

What drives this behavior? On the one hand, I think that it is the zeal to follow the ways of G-d, but that only makes up (for me) about 2% of this. On the other hand (the other 98%) it is a way for me to justify my own sin. I know that I’m not measuring up to G-d’s righteous standard, nor am I following the Master, yet by continuing in this paradigm, I allow myself to stay the same, and expect everyone else to change.

This however is not the call of the Master. His call is to “Repent, for the Kindom is at hand.” Repentance is taking His yoke, not forcing others to take mine. His call is to follow Him and be His disciple, not to force others to follow me and become my disciple.

So often, following the Torah and taking up the traditions of our Jewish brothers can become a measuring stick whereby we judge others’ righteousness. It seems to me that simply wearing tzitzit, donning tefillin, and covering one’s head can be the “instant satisfaction” alluded to in the quote above. Certainly these things are not wrong in and of themselves. Two of my examples are commanded by the Torah! Yeshua taught though that “unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Scribes and the Pharisees, you will in no way enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.”

Our Master calls us to go deeper, to allow Him to change our hearts. This most assuredly does not abolish the Torah, but indeed fulfills it. He calls us to examine our hearts, and to allow Him to do the same. It is only when we turn to Him and acknowledge how far short we really fall that we begin to experience fellowship with the Father through our Messiah.

During this season of new beginnings, let us “celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” (1COR 5:8 NASB). Let us see that He is our Passover. He is the One whereby we cross from death to life. Let us know that He is right, and strive to walk with Him.

We don’t need more people trying to appear deep and spiritually mature simply because they wear the correct articles of worship. This world needs those who are willing to clothe themselves with humility and take up the radical call of discipleship to the Master.

This will likely be expressed in many ways, and I’m sure that most of them won’t be to my approval. That’s the point. This isnt’ about me. It’s about serving the One who gave His all so that I can fellowship with Him. He humbled Himself to be come like me. Now I must humble myself to become like Him.

Chag Sameach!