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Feb. 17, 2023
Thank God for the Law!
As we read through the Torah this year, we will be wading through many rules and laws! To twenty-first-century ears, those rules and regulations seem antiquated and restrictive—even harsh. But how did they sound to the ears of the children of Israel some 3,500 years ago? They sounded so good the people quickly agreed to follow them! Maybe we need to take a second look at those laws!
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Thank God for the Law! (Out of Zion Episode #165)
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Transcript
1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:04,740
Well, as we're reading through the Torah this year, we're going to be wading through
2
00:00:04,740 --> 00:00:08,820
lots of laws and rules and regulations.
3
00:00:08,820 --> 00:00:16,580
To the 21st century year, they may sound antiquated and restrictive and even harsh,
4
00:00:16,580 --> 00:00:23,240
but how did they sound to the ears of the children of Israel some 3,500 years ago?
5
00:00:23,240 --> 00:00:30,360
Well, they sounded so good that the children of Israel said, yes, we will obey them and
6
00:00:30,360 --> 00:00:32,320
be the people of God.
7
00:00:32,320 --> 00:00:37,120
So maybe we need to take a second look at those laws.
8
00:00:37,120 --> 00:00:41,600
So welcome to this week's Shabbat Shalom devotional, when I seek to share just a little
9
00:00:41,600 --> 00:00:47,840
inspiration, bring a little peace to the close of your very busy week.
10
00:00:47,840 --> 00:00:55,840
So this week our Torah portion is from Exodus chapter 21 through chapter 24 verse 18.
11
00:00:55,840 --> 00:01:01,040
It's called Mishpatin, which means rules.
12
00:01:01,040 --> 00:01:09,320
Now we start out reading about laws for servants, for violence or harm inflicted on people,
13
00:01:09,320 --> 00:01:18,160
even animals, property rights, virgins that have been violated, strangers, justice, and
14
00:01:18,160 --> 00:01:24,480
then we have laws of Sabbath and the three annual Feast of the Lord.
15
00:01:24,480 --> 00:01:31,680
So rules, laws, the world hates them, even many Christians love them.
16
00:01:31,680 --> 00:01:37,600
We prefer to think that we are free of rules, that we just enjoy the love and grace of God
17
00:01:37,600 --> 00:01:39,560
freely given.
18
00:01:39,560 --> 00:01:47,240
That's because we associate rules and law with judgment or with legalism.
19
00:01:47,240 --> 00:01:51,120
We obeying the letter of the law and not the spirit of the law.
20
00:01:51,120 --> 00:01:53,200
So we look down on the law.
21
00:01:53,200 --> 00:01:55,800
So why did God give the law?
22
00:01:55,800 --> 00:01:58,640
It must have served a purpose.
23
00:01:58,640 --> 00:02:00,840
What can we learn from the law?
24
00:02:00,840 --> 00:02:04,680
Well actually we should thank God for the law.
25
00:02:04,680 --> 00:02:12,040
Now of course the apostle Paul said that the law was a tutor to show us our need for Christ.
26
00:02:12,040 --> 00:02:18,200
It taught us our need for forgiveness and atonement for the need for Christ.
27
00:02:18,200 --> 00:02:20,520
But I want to go even beyond that.
28
00:02:20,520 --> 00:02:26,520
The civil law that God gave to the Israelites was very different from the pagan world around
29
00:02:26,520 --> 00:02:28,200
them.
30
00:02:28,200 --> 00:02:35,240
Now the Jews preserved the law, the Christians took them all around the globe and today they
31
00:02:35,240 --> 00:02:40,920
provide the basis for all of our understanding of right and wrong.
32
00:02:40,920 --> 00:02:47,800
Now granted this understanding is being confronted by many ideologies of our world today.
33
00:02:47,800 --> 00:02:53,240
But as you take a Shabbat break this weekend, just take a moment to reflect upon how blessed
34
00:02:53,240 --> 00:02:58,520
we are that God gave the law to the Jewish people.
35
00:02:58,520 --> 00:03:05,120
A world without the law, a world without the Jewish people and the law they obeyed would
36
00:03:05,120 --> 00:03:07,920
have been very different today.
37
00:03:07,920 --> 00:03:08,920
So why is that?
38
00:03:08,920 --> 00:03:14,400
Well because the law that you're reading this week contained really key concepts that
39
00:03:14,400 --> 00:03:20,480
became ingrained, embedded in the Jewish people of right and wrong.
40
00:03:20,480 --> 00:03:25,480
There was equality of all men before the law, no one was exempt.
41
00:03:25,480 --> 00:03:31,920
And that included the divine law as well as human civil law, the sanctity of life and
42
00:03:31,920 --> 00:03:34,640
the dignity of the human person.
43
00:03:34,640 --> 00:03:40,200
That wasn't found in the pagan world around the Israelites, it was found in the laws that
44
00:03:40,200 --> 00:03:42,280
God gave them.
45
00:03:42,280 --> 00:03:47,720
The individual conscience, the individual knowledge of right and wrong and therefore
46
00:03:47,720 --> 00:03:51,600
the need for personal redemption and forgiveness.
47
00:03:51,600 --> 00:03:58,440
But also the collective conscience of the group and their social responsibility to each
48
00:03:58,440 --> 00:04:01,440
other and to others in the group.
49
00:04:01,440 --> 00:04:08,160
There was the idea of love as found in justice and much, much more.
50
00:04:08,160 --> 00:04:12,360
So thank God for the law.
51
00:04:12,360 --> 00:04:20,480
With that, I want to wish you Shabbat Shalom.
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:04,740
Well, as we're reading through the Torah this year, we're going to be wading through
2
00:00:04,740 --> 00:00:08,820
lots of laws and rules and regulations.
3
00:00:08,820 --> 00:00:16,580
To the 21st century year, they may sound antiquated and restrictive and even harsh,
4
00:00:16,580 --> 00:00:23,240
but how did they sound to the ears of the children of Israel some 3,500 years ago?
5
00:00:23,240 --> 00:00:30,360
Well, they sounded so good that the children of Israel said, yes, we will obey them and
6
00:00:30,360 --> 00:00:32,320
be the people of God.
7
00:00:32,320 --> 00:00:37,120
So maybe we need to take a second look at those laws.
8
00:00:37,120 --> 00:00:41,600
So welcome to this week's Shabbat Shalom devotional, when I seek to share just a little
9
00:00:41,600 --> 00:00:47,840
inspiration, bring a little peace to the close of your very busy week.
10
00:00:47,840 --> 00:00:55,840
So this week our Torah portion is from Exodus chapter 21 through chapter 24 verse 18.
11
00:00:55,840 --> 00:01:01,040
It's called Mishpatin, which means rules.
12
00:01:01,040 --> 00:01:09,320
Now we start out reading about laws for servants, for violence or harm inflicted on people,
13
00:01:09,320 --> 00:01:18,160
even animals, property rights, virgins that have been violated, strangers, justice, and
14
00:01:18,160 --> 00:01:24,480
then we have laws of Sabbath and the three annual Feast of the Lord.
15
00:01:24,480 --> 00:01:31,680
So rules, laws, the world hates them, even many Christians love them.
16
00:01:31,680 --> 00:01:37,600
We prefer to think that we are free of rules, that we just enjoy the love and grace of God
17
00:01:37,600 --> 00:01:39,560
freely given.
18
00:01:39,560 --> 00:01:47,240
That's because we associate rules and law with judgment or with legalism.
19
00:01:47,240 --> 00:01:51,120
We obeying the letter of the law and not the spirit of the law.
20
00:01:51,120 --> 00:01:53,200
So we look down on the law.
21
00:01:53,200 --> 00:01:55,800
So why did God give the law?
22
00:01:55,800 --> 00:01:58,640
It must have served a purpose.
23
00:01:58,640 --> 00:02:00,840
What can we learn from the law?
24
00:02:00,840 --> 00:02:04,680
Well actually we should thank God for the law.
25
00:02:04,680 --> 00:02:12,040
Now of course the apostle Paul said that the law was a tutor to show us our need for Christ.
26
00:02:12,040 --> 00:02:18,200
It taught us our need for forgiveness and atonement for the need for Christ.
27
00:02:18,200 --> 00:02:20,520
But I want to go even beyond that.
28
00:02:20,520 --> 00:02:26,520
The civil law that God gave to the Israelites was very different from the pagan world around
29
00:02:26,520 --> 00:02:28,200
them.
30
00:02:28,200 --> 00:02:35,240
Now the Jews preserved the law, the Christians took them all around the globe and today they
31
00:02:35,240 --> 00:02:40,920
provide the basis for all of our understanding of right and wrong.
32
00:02:40,920 --> 00:02:47,800
Now granted this understanding is being confronted by many ideologies of our world today.
33
00:02:47,800 --> 00:02:53,240
But as you take a Shabbat break this weekend, just take a moment to reflect upon how blessed
34
00:02:53,240 --> 00:02:58,520
we are that God gave the law to the Jewish people.
35
00:02:58,520 --> 00:03:05,120
A world without the law, a world without the Jewish people and the law they obeyed would
36
00:03:05,120 --> 00:03:07,920
have been very different today.
37
00:03:07,920 --> 00:03:08,920
So why is that?
38
00:03:08,920 --> 00:03:14,400
Well because the law that you're reading this week contained really key concepts that
39
00:03:14,400 --> 00:03:20,480
became ingrained, embedded in the Jewish people of right and wrong.
40
00:03:20,480 --> 00:03:25,480
There was equality of all men before the law, no one was exempt.
41
00:03:25,480 --> 00:03:31,920
And that included the divine law as well as human civil law, the sanctity of life and
42
00:03:31,920 --> 00:03:34,640
the dignity of the human person.
43
00:03:34,640 --> 00:03:40,200
That wasn't found in the pagan world around the Israelites, it was found in the laws that
44
00:03:40,200 --> 00:03:42,280
God gave them.
45
00:03:42,280 --> 00:03:47,720
The individual conscience, the individual knowledge of right and wrong and therefore
46
00:03:47,720 --> 00:03:51,600
the need for personal redemption and forgiveness.
47
00:03:51,600 --> 00:03:58,440
But also the collective conscience of the group and their social responsibility to each
48
00:03:58,440 --> 00:04:01,440
other and to others in the group.
49
00:04:01,440 --> 00:04:08,160
There was the idea of love as found in justice and much, much more.
50
00:04:08,160 --> 00:04:12,360
So thank God for the law.
51
00:04:12,360 --> 00:04:20,480
With that, I want to wish you Shabbat Shalom.
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