Post by Mark on Dec 19, 2008 4:27:12 GMT -8
It’s typical of us to remember to read the sub-titles and skip the fineprint. Yet, seldom do we understand the Word of Adonai to be structured in that way. "You shall not kill" is given to us in bold print, inscribed on a tablet of stone,declared before us all by the very mouth of Adonai, from the fires on Mount Sinai. It’s a little tough to forget. It’s also easy to see the advantages of such instruction, not wanting to die and all, so there is not much arguing the point. Killing people is, generally, to be considered a bad idea.
Messiah Yeshua, when teaching the people from the Mount of Olives, acknowledged that this is a command which they had heard taught to them by the rabbinical scholars for generations. Yet, Article 3, sub-paragraph 19, line 17 was one they may not have heard before.
Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbor, and not suffer sin upon him.
(Leviticus 19:17)
The Hebrew word sa-nay means to hate or otherwise to make someone one’s personal enemy. Especially since there is no control of outward evidence in this command, since it is what occurs in one’s heart, there’s no way of using this command to accuse anyone of wrong-doing. It can be only be applied to oneself personally. It’s of little value to those who see the
as simply a cultural tool for maintaining an orderly society.
That’s the way we tend to see and understand the Old Testament commands: as an outward set of rigid boundaries that constrain us from our individuality. We forget that it is in the Old Testament that it is explained to us,
"…for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart."
(1 Samuel 16:7)
If is simply a tool of rabbinical authority to retain the peculiarity of the Jewish people, then the commands describing outward evidences are all that are really important; but if they are something more…
Our Messiah certainly believed that the is more than just the appearance of things. Consistently, His message to the people and His rebuke of the leadership reflected this understanding,
Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
(Matthew 23:23)
Since commands that we shouldn’t go around killing people, we easily assume that this is the extent it. Yet, as we begin to search the Word of Adonai, we find that it is folded in layers, with the idea of drawing closer and closer to the center. The outward appearances are where we begin. Yet, as we search deeper, we find that the command is not a structure of ordinances but a definition the loving relationship our heavenly father desires to share with us.
To declare a person as "a fool" or "empty-headed" is to say that there is no hope for them, that it is a waste of time to invest in teaching or helping them. Leviticus 19:17 disallows our writing anyone off:
…thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbor, and not suffer sin upon him.
(Leviticus 19:17)
The Hebraic vocabulary uses the term "brother" to specify any fellow Jewish person. A "neighbor" is anyone who is within our proximity of influence whether they be Jew or not. Leviticus 19:17-18 purposefully uses these terms interchangeably. In verse 18 it is commanded that "you are to love your neighbor as yourself." This precludes any idea that we might choose to love some above others, while recognizing that there is a distinction that exists. While we are naturally inclined to love and respect those who are like us, commands us to love and respect those who are different with equal fervency. It specifically disallows us from deciding that any person, for whatever reason, is not worth our time.
It is the same basic arrogance that leads to the wilful distruction of life as our dispassionate regard for those around us with whom we don’t care to associate. We find it summed up in a quip I once read on a T-shirt, "The only reason why some people are alive is because it is illegal to kill them." We laugh because we can identify withg this sentiment and it betrays our hearts.
commands that we regard each person’s life with equal value as our own: that we love our neighbor as ourself.
We figure that we are being righteously
obedient just by not killing some of them. Messiah Yeshua holds us to a higher standard.
Messiah Yeshua, when teaching the people from the Mount of Olives, acknowledged that this is a command which they had heard taught to them by the rabbinical scholars for generations. Yet, Article 3, sub-paragraph 19, line 17 was one they may not have heard before.
Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbor, and not suffer sin upon him.
(Leviticus 19:17)
The Hebrew word sa-nay means to hate or otherwise to make someone one’s personal enemy. Especially since there is no control of outward evidence in this command, since it is what occurs in one’s heart, there’s no way of using this command to accuse anyone of wrong-doing. It can be only be applied to oneself personally. It’s of little value to those who see the
as simply a cultural tool for maintaining an orderly society.That’s the way we tend to see and understand the Old Testament commands: as an outward set of rigid boundaries that constrain us from our individuality. We forget that it is in the Old Testament that it is explained to us,
"…for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart."
(1 Samuel 16:7)
If
is simply a tool of rabbinical authority to retain the peculiarity of the Jewish people, then the commands describing outward evidences are all that are really important; but if they are something more…Our Messiah certainly believed that the
is more than just the appearance of things. Consistently, His message to the people and His rebuke of the leadership reflected this understanding, Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
(Matthew 23:23)
Since
commands that we shouldn’t go around killing people, we easily assume that this is the extent it. Yet, as we begin to search the Word of Adonai, we find that it is folded in layers, with the idea of drawing closer and closer to the center. The outward appearances are where we begin. Yet, as we search deeper, we find that the command is not a structure of ordinances but a definition the loving relationship our heavenly father desires to share with us.To declare a person as "a fool" or "empty-headed" is to say that there is no hope for them, that it is a waste of time to invest in teaching or helping them. Leviticus 19:17 disallows our writing anyone off:
…thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbor, and not suffer sin upon him.
(Leviticus 19:17)
The Hebraic vocabulary uses the term "brother" to specify any fellow Jewish person. A "neighbor" is anyone who is within our proximity of influence whether they be Jew or not. Leviticus 19:17-18 purposefully uses these terms interchangeably. In verse 18 it is commanded that "you are to love your neighbor as yourself." This precludes any idea that we might choose to love some above others, while recognizing that there is a distinction that exists. While we are naturally inclined to love and respect those who are like us,
commands us to love and respect those who are different with equal fervency. It specifically disallows us from deciding that any person, for whatever reason, is not worth our time.It is the same basic arrogance that leads to the wilful distruction of life as our dispassionate regard for those around us with whom we don’t care to associate. We find it summed up in a quip I once read on a T-shirt, "The only reason why some people are alive is because it is illegal to kill them." We laugh because we can identify withg this sentiment and it betrays our hearts.
commands that we regard each person’s life with equal value as our own: that we love our neighbor as ourself. We figure that we are being righteously
obedient just by not killing some of them. Messiah Yeshua holds us to a higher standard.
