Shemot | שמות | "Names " Jan. 14 2012

My study is taken from the Torah Portions from First Fruits of Zion, http://torahportions.org/.   This week's scriptures are:  Luke 5:12-39, Exocuds 1:1-61 and Isaiah 27:6-28:13 & 29:22-23.

Connections:
I like to find connections in my scripture readings and this week is no exception.

The Torah Portion title is "Shemot" (שמות),which means “names.”  Generally, titles for each Torah Portion can be found within the first verses of the portion. That being said, we find that the Exodus reading begins by giving the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt. 

My study habits have transformed from being satisfied with just surface knowledge into seeking to know more about the author and finisher of my faith, My Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  I have grown accustomed to asking deeper questions at the onset of my study.  One question has become, "What is the greater importance of the title and how is this connected to the scripture readings for the week?"

I have been taught that there is no Hebrew word for coincidence.  This just means to me that God's plan doesn't allow for coincidence. Since there are no coincidences then there must be a reason for the order and format of my study. Now, everyone will not agree with me on this matter, but that's okay.  I'll move on anyway...

• I began by looking at the scriptures from Luke and questioned how "Names" was connected. The scripture is interesting in that the the scribes and the Pharisees began to question, saying, “Who is this...?"  They seek a name, an answer to know who is it that does all these healing miracles?  Without realizing, they are seeking The Name above all names.  The answer is not clearly given to them, but with a deeper than surface understanding, we can see that The Name is Jesus, the Son of God. Hallelujah! 

· Jesus Heals a Man with Leprosy …But now even more the report about him went abroad, and great crowds gathered to hear him and to be healed of their infirmities. 16 But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray. Word of mouth drew the people to Him for what He could do for them, that He could heal them…


· Jesus Heals a Paralyzed Man…Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with him to heal… And the scribes and the Pharisees began to question, saying, “Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” When Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answered them, “Why do you question in your hearts? Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the man who was paralyzed—“I say to you, rise, pick up your bed and go home.” Yes, with the crowds, even the scribes and Pharisees came. But they came not only to see but to condemn. This reminds me that there will always be those around who do not understand and do not want to understand when God is moving. Those who think they know everything will not be willing to see God because they will have blinded eyes and deafened ears!
· Jesus Calls Levi (Matthew) …a tax collector named Levi…Levi made him a great feast in his house, and there was a large company of tax collectors and others reclining at table with them. 30 And the Pharisees and their scribes grumbled at his disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” Still the scribes and Pharisees stand in judgement…

· A Discussion about Fasting “The disciples of John fast often and offer prayers, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours eat and drink.” And Jesus said to them, “Can you make wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days.” I wonder who is asking this question.  Could it be one of the scribes and Pharisees or just someone who has taken notice?  Is the qustion asked in judgement or from the perspective of a sincere desire to know?  We do not know the answer to this.  But God knows and there is a reason that it is recorded for us.   Is the bridegroom with us? Isn't He supposed to be spiritually speaking?  Or does it mean, physically? Has the bridegroom been taken away from us?  Questions to ponder...                                                                 

• Next, I read the Torah Portion and the title emerges: Now these are the names (shemot) of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob (Exodus 1:1).  Each son came with his own household:  Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah,  Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin,  Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher.  All the descendants of Jacob were seventy persons; Joseph was already in Egypt.  Then Joseph died, and all his brothers and all that generation.  But the people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them.  As we continue to read, we find the people, enslaved, being mistreated and mistrusted by Pharoah and the Egyptians. They cry out to God. Various events take place and God raises up Moses to act on His behalf.  But Moses is hesitant and questions God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?”  God said to Moses, “I am who I am.”  This is the Name above all names!  At the end of this portion, the promise is given: But the Lord said to Moses, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for with a strong hand he will send them out, and with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land.”  Although in this portion, the people are not delivered out of Egypt yet, but God has not abandoned them.  The upcoming readings reveal the story.  Much of the surface of the story, we all know.  But what of deeper meanings?  How can the life of the people of Israel be likened to the people of the United States or even of any country?  How are we like Moses or Aaron, or not like them?  How are we like Pharaoh or the Egyptians, or not like them?  What lessons are here that reveal our relationship to God Almighty?  Each of us must answer these questions on our own...

Many things stand out in these scriptures, but the points highlighted in color were the most important to me during this study this time and represent the basis for my understanding.

· Exodus 1:1

Introduction ~ the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt…

· Exodus 1:8
The Israelites Are Oppressed …the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and the more they spread abroad…they ruthlessly made the people of Israel work as slaves… birth sons were to be killed…

· Exodus 2:1
Birth and Youth of Moses …saved for a greater purpose, raised in the Pharoah’s home, raised as royalty with all the advantages

· Exodus 2:11
Moses Flees to Midian …after killing an Egyptian, hides away and makes a new life… the new life is one of hard work and few advantages

· Exodus 3:1
Moses at the Burning Bush …God reveals Himself to Moses

· Exodus 3:13
The Divine Name Revealed …“I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” “I Am has sent me to you.”

· Exodus 4:1
Moses' Miraculous Power …the staff of Moses becomes a serpent…that they may believe… the leprous hand was cleansed… the water of the Nile turned to blood… God send Aaron along with Moses to be his mouth…

· Exodus 4:18
Moses Returns to Egypt …the people believed and wanted to worship & sacrifice to the Lord

· Exodus 5:1
Bricks without Straw …but Pharaoh punishes the people

· Exodus 6:1
Israel's Deliverance Assured …God promises the people will be delivered

• Last, the reading of Prophets: Isaiah 27:6-28:13, 29:22-23. Therefore thus says the Lord, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob:“Jacob shall no more be ashamed, no more shall his face grow pale. For when he sees his children, the work of my hands, in his midst, they will sanctify my name; they will sanctify the Holy One of Jacob and will stand in awe of the God of Israel.   Again, there it is the Name above all names!

 · Isaiah 27: …The time is coming when Jacob’s descendants will take root. Israel will bud and blossom and fill the whole earth with fruit!

· Isaiah 28 …A Message about Samaria…proud people brought down… the Lord will send a mighty army against it…

· Isaiah 29 …A Message about Jerusalem…Suddenly, in an instant, I, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, will act for you with thunder and earthquake and great noise, with whirlwind and storm and consuming fire. All the nations fighting against Jerusalem* will vanish like a dream!


  



 

Leaving… just moving on or running away?

I run away from…

I move on to…



How might we finish these sentences? If we make a list of all the things that we run away from and all the things that we move to, what do we begin to understand about ourselves? Try it sometime. You will be amazed at the way it sounds when you read it back. Do you find negatives or positives in your list or are the things you mention rather neutral?



Well, when anyone leaves a place, there may be many reasons but only one of two basic motivations; either we simply want to go to a new place or we are getting away from an old place. Sometimes these motivations are so intertwined that it is hard to say which one is the most forceful in our desire and action to leave a place and go to another.







My devotional thinking comes from the Torah Portion entitled, “Vayetze (He went out)” from the Genesis 28:10-32:3. It is the story of Jacob when he left home as a young man. I see him running away to keep from being killed by an angry brother and I see him moving on to a new life. He dreams at Bethel, later meets Rachel, marries Laban’s daughters and prospers at Laban’s expense. I see a mirror of his lying (when he was younger) manifest over and over into his adult life through his father-in-law. I can see to some extent that he reaps what he has sown, but I also see God’s blessing on him as he builds a huge family and prospers greatly! God never left him although I’m sure he must have felt alone.



Jacob runs away again with all his family and prosperity, only to be overtaken by Laban. In this episode of his life, I read about a covenant made between Laban and Jacob and I see that he had to make peace with this part of his past. He had to make peace with it in order to go home again. At this point, he does not know if he will be accepted at home or perhaps be killed. He only knows that he must return home.

All of us must face the return home someday.

We must face either God (whom we don’t know)

or our Heavenly Father (whom we know).

My heart is in tune with others who have shared their various concerns with me. My prayers are lifted up for those that are physically sick, financially burdened or overwhelmed with more to do than can possibly be done well, because of an overload of duty. My prayers are for those who know the Lord already and for those who don’t know my Lord. I pray for those who don’t know the peace that He alone provides when we believe in Him and trust on Him. My prayers are that they may all know what God desires in every situation. Some of us are dreaming of, praying for or simply waiting to move on. Right now we either lack the courage, security or the word from God to go! In this respect, those that have shared with me are no different from me. The circumstances in their lives may not be anything like mine, but the thought of and the desire to move on is strong.



Through this season in my life, I’m learning that this desire to go doesn’t make me bad or unworthy. There are those in my path who sometimes would see me take guilt for my desire. But I will not take guilt because this desire is a signal for me to determine why I want to move on or run away in the first place. It is a signal for me to examine if the desire is godly or if it is merely my own flesh wanting what it wants. No one can determine this for me, but I must look within myself to find the answer. Am I like Jacob, in that sometimes he chose to run away? Would God have had a different way to have him meet Leah and Rachel? We do not know. We only know what is recorded. I make many choices. If I look back I see when I moved because God wanted it and when I did so because I wanted it. God’s moves were always best. The point I must remember daily: God’s moves are best!





It is good for us to know what is motivating us in all the things that we do, for God knows us even better than we know ourselves. He wants us to know Him so that He can reveal Himself to us to an even greater degree. I cannot know myself without God. I would only see something distorted as an image in a dim, antique mirror. His light is needed to shine in order that I might see clearly His reflection instead of mine!



He hears me as I lift my hands and say, “LORD, I am ready!” I do not need to add “ready for what” to the end of my plea. I only need to listen for the next step that He has prepared and take it when He says to take it. Others may see me staying in place, running away or moving on but it doesn’t matter what they think if I am in the will of GOD.  So this I must  remember daily that I must not judge others. God's Word says I will be judged according to how I judge.  I must not judge because it is not my place.  The reason I make this a huge issue is that being misunderstood and judged by others, especially Christians, is the saddest state that I have ever known especially when I know that I am in the will of GOD.


Now, that He has led me through this valley let me remember that I am not to judge others. I need to remember especially not to judge other Christians when they believe they are in His will. Let me remember to pray for them. If it seems they are acting against God’s Word in some way, let me pray for their discernment. Let me look again at His Word because often it is not God’s Word that is in conflict but man’s interpretation of His Word that is causing the conflict. God will show me if I look. God will answer if I ask. Whatever the case, let me love others to the point that they know I love them with agape love, for we are to be known by our love.



In this world, where we are ambassadors for Christ, let us remember as the song reveals:

King and kingdoms will all pass away.

But there’s something about that Name!

Jesus, Jesus, Jesus!

Master, Savior, Jesus

Like a fragrance after the rain.

Jesus, Jesus, Jesus

Let Heaven and earth proclaim.

King and kingdoms will all pass away.

But there’s something about that Name!

“Yes, I am coming soon!”

from Revelation 22: 20

Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!  I am ready to move on!


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