26/07/2024
Hope this sweetens your Shabbat! Shabbat Shalom!
Pinchas פינחס – Phineas
Numbers 25:10-30:1
Welcome back to this week’s “Getting Down to the Root” with D’vorah Calic. This week our Torah portion is Pinchas (Phineas).
I sincerely hope you are being inspired to study the Torah. Sadly, for most Christians, the five books of Moses were abandoned long ago because of an unfortunate misunderstanding of Yeshua’s words in Matthew 5. The Torah is not just a bunch of laws. The Torah is full of precious instruction and teaching from our Heavenly Father. When Yeshua said, “I came to fulfill the Torah”, He did not mean He came to do it all so we don’t have to anything. He meant that His ministry was to bring people back to the Torah, and to teach the proper interpretation so that we can fulfill all the commandments which apply to us. He came to also teach us the internal heart of the Torah, to fill it up with meaning, so we would have the right intention when doing those commandments. In other words, He intended to show us how to properly interpret it and how to live it, because every commandment in the Torah was either about how to love and approach God, or how to love and approach our neighbor. I think we can all agree there’s lots to learn about those two things!
In addition to that, the great Ramban (Rabbi Nachmanides) points out that although the Torah was not given for the purpose of prophecy per se, these five books do have prophetic value and insights to teach us. In light of that, Bless Israel Network also produces a more in-depth Torah study where we search for the Messiah who is often hidden. That program is called “Heartbeat of the Torah” and you can also find those teachings on our Bless Israel Network YouTube channel.
Our parasha this week is Pinchas or Phineas. As usual it is jam packed with amazing things to teach us. Today I want to focus on something which may be a little foreign to many of you. It is the principal of Kiddush Hashem or sanctifying the name of the LORD. The opposite of Kiddush Hashem is Chillul Hashem, profaning or making common the name of the LORD. Perhaps you have seen this phrase in Ezekiel or Leviticus or the Psalms.
What do we mean by “the name of the LORD.” It doesn’t literally mean a name that we address him by. It has nothing to do with his personal name. In Jewish thought, the name of a person represents their reputation, their acts, and the essence of who the person is. Sanctifying means to separate, make holy, honor, or glorify the LORD God of Israel, before others. It means not doing anything that would make Him guilty by association with us; It means refraining from speech or actions that would tarnish His reputation, what He stands for. It means diminishing who He is in the eyes of others.
The ultimate act of Kiddush Hashem is dying or martyrdom. This is what Yeshua our Master did. It is believed that a tzaddik, a righteous person, can atone for an entire generation through their death. Yeshua atoned for the entire world! But even His sinful generation was not judged until 40 years after Yeshua died. Stephen in the book of Acts performed the ultimate Kiddush Hashem. And even Rabbi Shaul (Paul) performed Kiddush Hashem before he actually died. In Romans 9:3 when Paul said, “For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Messiah for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh.” He was in effect saying the same thing Moses said in Exodus 32:33 “may my name be blotted out if You don’t forgive the people.” These men were practicing Kiddush Hashem. They so desired God’s name to be sanctified that they were willing to give up their lives and their place in the Kingdom. In essence, they were willing to die rather than commit chillul Hashem! That is the essence of love, both for Hashem and for his brothers!
Pinchas is also a good example of someone who, through his actions, performed Kiddush Hashem. The prophet Eliyahu (Elijah) sanctified the name of the LORD when he confronted the wicked prophets of Ba’al in 1 Kings 18. Interestingly, the Chazal say the spirit of Eliyahu rested upon Pinchas. He most certainly demonstrated the zeal of Elijah. There is another important person in the Brit HaChadashah (New Testament) who also walked in the spirit and zeal of Elijah. That was Yochanan the Immerser, or John the Baptist. He is also an example of someone who performed Kiddush Hashem – he gave his life for the Kingdom, and he brought holiness to God’s name. All these men remained loyal and obedient to God, no matter what. They did not regard their lives as more important than making sure God’s reputation was not profaned.
“Phineas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned away my anger from the people of Israel, while he was zealous for My sake among them, so that I did not consume the people of Israel in my zeal.” (Numbers 25:11)
Though Pinchas did not die for the act of killing Zimri, the prince of the tribe of Shimon, he thought he would not come out of it alive. In essence, the story of Pinchas teaches us that our deeds, our avodah in Hebrew, is the essence of our life. Our deeds will either bring Kiddush Hashem or Chillul Hashem. Yeshua said it this way, “Let your light shine before men so they will see your good deeds and glorify your Father who is in Heaven.” Our service, our avodah is what reflects our true love and zeal for God.
I’d like to make one last connection between our deeds and the Spirit of God. This is something I learned from my Rabbi, Rabbi Dr. Itzhak Shapira of Ahavat Ammi Ministries. Many Christians and Messianic Jews today talk about walking in the Spirit. Do you want to know how to walk in the Spirit? It starts with our avodah, our deeds. How do I know this? Because the Torah tells me so.
It’s very interesting that we begin with Pinchas, and near the end of our parasha, we are looking at Joshua. Let’s look at Numbers 27: 18. Here’s how the Torah says it: “Hashem said to Moses, ‘Take to yourself Joshua son of Nun, a man in whom there is the Spirit, and lean your hand upon him.”
There is so much to say about this one verse, but this is only a taste of Torah. The key point is this: a true leader is one who does the work AND has the Spirit of God in him. Walking in the Spirit is about doing the commandments and inspiring others to do the same. There is no way that a true leader can lead Israel out of the wilderness of exile (galut) into the promised Land of redemption (geulah) without both the avodah (deeds) and the Holy Spirit. Pinchas represents the avodah and Joshua represents the worthiness. God wants leaders who are:
1) Able to carry the message
2) Able to do the work
3) Filled with the Spirit of God
Moses laid hands on Joshua and passed to him the authority to be his successor because Joshua was ready from the work he did, and he was worthy because the Holy Spirit was in him. Moses proved Joshua was ready and worthy when he ordained him by laying his hands on him.
We are each called to be leaders with someone – in our families, communities, or work places. Are we willing to do the work? If we are, the Spirit will follow. That is what makes us worthy to be leaders. There is always a price to pay. Our avodah will either bring Kiddush or Chillul – Holiness to our King or profane His reputation. And when we sanctify His name, when we perform actions that bring glory to Him, when we represent Him in a way that shows others what He is truly like, we will indeed find the Spirit of God operating powerfully in our lives. We all have a choice to make every day. May we live in such a way that we bring honor to the King of Kings, inspiring others to love and serve Him! Shabbat Shalom!
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