Parashat Eikev

Saturday 8 August 2015              Av  23  5775

Parashat Eikev

Deuteronomy 7:12-11:25; Isaiah 49:14-51:3; Hebrews 11:8-13

This is the second of seven portions consoling Israel after the destruction of the Temples on Tish B’Av.

"He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD." (Devarim / Deuteronomy 8:3)

As Israel prepared to enter the Promised Land, Moses reviewed and reflected upon their experiences of being delivered from Egypt and their subsequent wilderness
wandering. Through those years it seems that God was at work to bring about a fundamental change in their life perspective.

It seems that the people of Israel, like most of us, tended to be concerned about their survival. We view life as it relates to our own needs and wants. But that is not how God intended us to live. As his beloved creatures we were designed to depend on him - our Father in heaven - to care for us, while we were to be concerned about our God-given task of subduing the Earth.

Because of our first parents' rebellion again God, we have been bent, so to speak, away from our Father and Creator, and bent toward ourselves. We have become our
own caregivers. In fact we have become our own lords and masters instead of servants of the Great King.

Israel's experience in the wilderness was partly the means through which God sought to restore them to our originally intended posture. Through God's ongoing miraculous provision, the people were called to understand that their life focus was not to be one of looking out for themselves. Rather, true living was to be discovered by being attentive to God's word.
Yeshua the Messiah reiterated this so well, when he said,

"So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." (Matthew 6:31-33)

We all know this text and quote it quite readily. And, in doing so, there are moments where we actually minimize the message. It is irrelevant how much money you have stored away for a rainy day. All of us (no, not one), worry about the mundane things of everyday life. We are anxious about money, about our health or the health of someone close to us. We worry about being on time for a meeting and whether we are appropriately attired. We worry about our children’s future.

Yeshua’s words in Matthew 6 address a fundamental attitude that is common to all, no matter how much faith we profess to have. As human beings, we are very familiar with stress and anxiety. It is part and parcel of living in this fallen world.

In quoting the above verse, Luke’s Gospel uses the word ‘anxious’. In Luke 12:29, he says ‘do not have an anxious mind’. In the Greek, ‘anxious’ translates as ‘having a doubtful mind’. A doubtful mind implies a lack of faith!

So, suddenly, Yeshua’s words to not be anxious or not to worry, now speaks about our faith levels. And, if you’re anything like me, this gets us squirming in our seats! We now feel rather uncomfortable and convicted about the shallowness of our walk with the Father. We realize afresh that when Yeshua warned us about the narrowness of The Way, he was not using euphemistic language at all! The Messiah was cutting to the chase! It is indeed a very narrow way. Walking with Yeshua is not for the faint-hearted!

This way of thinking is so radically different from what would be understood as normal. Both Moses and Yeshua are telling us that we are not alone in the world. We have a Father who loves us and cares for our needs. In fact, He knows what we need even before we ask! This doesn't mean that our physical needs are not important. It is just that we don't need to give our hearts to them. What we need to be concerned about are the higher matters of life.

We should be concerned about God's kingdom – Matthew 6:33! We should be more attentive to His rule and His reign in our lives! We should be more attentive to obeying the still small voice of the Ru’ach, as we seek to adhere to His standards of righteousness. These values ought to be our priorities!

We were created by God to be his emissaries on Earth. He has put his heavenly resources at our disposal. Why then would we live solely for ourselves, our needs and desires, when God has promised to take care of us? Instead let us tune our ears to what he is saying, allowing ourselves to be drawn to higher matters, and live life accordingly. I know that this stretches our thinking but the reward of faith, is nearness to Him! The reward far outweighs the risk and as someone once remarked, faith is spelt R-I-S-K!