Month: February 2023

The Trouble with: AND

On By Bp. Justin ElwellIn Applied Theology, Inspiration1 Comment

After the revelation on Mt. Sinai of the Ten Commandments, the next portion in the Torah cycle opens with two words: וְאֵלֶּה, הַמִּשְׁפָּטִים, “And these are the statutes.”

The Torah portion called Mishpatim/Statutes signals a drastic change from historical narrative and revelation, to chapters of legal code. Again, mishpatim itself means “statutes,” and we begin to look at statutory law in Israel, concerning the covenant community of God.

The ten commandments are apodictic, divine law; while beginning in Exodus 21:1, casuistic or case law, which is conditional in nature, is now in view. Casuistic law refers to the incidents or circumstances that emerge in life, meaning “if this” than “this.” Many of these instructions direct us in the right way to love our neighbor, stranger and even enemy as ourselves.

Yet, as is so often the case, one word can mean so much. Depending on when and where you were educated (in English grammar), you probably learned that beginning a sentence with the conjunction “and” is incorrect. And for strict grammarians it probably remains so … yes, I started that sentence ironically. Even though I am aware that it is not incorrect, I still wrestle with doing so. Thankfully, Moses did not have trouble with English rules of grammar.

The portion of Mishpatim/Statutes, opens with the conjunctive letter “ו,” which means “and.” וְאֵלֶּה, “And these…” Exodus 21:1. The conjunctive vav connects the previous subject with what follows after it.

There is an important lesson to learn from this: the casuistic law, the “if … then …” statements were revealed upon Mt. Sinai with the apodictic laws contained in the ten commandments.

I’ve often explained that the horizontal love of neighbor and stranger is an important outworking of the vertical love we have for the Lord God, the two tablets of the Law. With this tiny letter, ו/vav, a simple stroke of the scribes hand, we find how true this is.

Walking in faith is not just about our responsibility and devotion towards God, but also to our fellow, in our environment. Moses is careful to show that the sanctity of our business, civil and interpersonal relationships is as important as our relationship with the Lord. Why? We live out the reality of our vertical relationship within the framework of the horizontal communal reality.

Two Scriptures, of many, speak powerfully to this:

“Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world” (Jas. 1:27).

“So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets” (Matt. 7:12).

So often our minds get caught up in and overwhelmed by the dense legal matter of sections such as Mishpatim/Statutes. Yet, as I’ve often taught, these detailed instructions are an elucidation of the ten commandments themselves. Now, the vertical devotion enumerated in the ten are amplified in the dozens of situations where humanity intersects with humanity in the realm of society. How does God enter that setting? The devoted actor present in the situation.

It is our devotion to the unseen God in the midst of the, often difficult, seen reality that manifests His presence, and our devotion to Him for the world around us.

The conjunctive vav not only moves our text forward, but it also connects our forward movement to the past revelation. It was not only the presence of the Living God and the ten commandments revealed on Mt. Sinai, but also those seemingly mundane “legal matters” of every day life that God gave to Moses in order for Him to be present in our business deals, in our marriages and families, our communities, and in our walking along the way.

The vav/and connects the mundane to the supernatural, and makes our spiritual lives very much part of our every day life. “And” becomes a bridge between heaven and earth in faith-obedience to the Messiah, and stakes or holds the revelation of heaven firmly upon the earth into which we have been sent (Matt. 28:18-20, the Hebrew letter ו/vav resembles a tent peg).

Be well. Shalom.

Not Just a Cloud, but a Person

On By Bp. Justin ElwellIn Applied TheologyLeave a comment

When people think about the ten commandments, and their revelation on Sinai, this revelation seems to somehow lack the spiritual excitement of other moments in Scripture. Yet, the revelation of the ten commandments was such a supernatural event that the children of Israel were terrified by the event itself. We read:

“All the people experienced the thunder, the lightening, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking. When the people saw it, they trembled. Standing at a distance, they said to Moses, ‘You, speak with us; and we will listen. But do not let God speak with us, or we will die’” (Ex. 20:18-19).

They were so overcome by the power of the event, they did not want to speak to God directly. They were so overwhelmed by the supernatural that they were paralyzed by awe. Why were they so fearful? What was actually happening here? Consider the words of the apostle John in Revelation 4:5, with Exodus 19 and 20 in mind; he writes, “From the throne came forth lightnings, voices and thunderings; and before the throne were seven flaming torches, which are the sevenfold Spirit of God.”

John is describing the throne of the Living God in the 3rd heaven, a description very similar to that of Exodus 20. Here, at the Sinai revelation, is the moment when heaven and earth kissed as the condescending presence of God manifest upon the mount; and by that meeting, a people were given a special purpose.

Often, words such a spirituality or religion are used as a means of escape from the restraints of the material world. They represent a language expressing mental, emotional, or physical detachment from the immediate responsibilities associated with human life, and the often tragic situations where human life is found.

Biblical faith is not detachment, or whatever escapist language may be utilized. Rather, it is the power of God’s presence manifest in the midst of the barren wilderness of human experience. Echoing the words of Exodus 19:6, the apostle Peter writes:

“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light” (I Pet. 2:9).

When Moses is called heavenward, to the summit of Sinai, he does not stay or reside there; rather, he is sent back down. Consider others who have ascended:

Enoch, walked with the Lord and was taken up to heaven until the set time when he will be returned for the Lord’s purpose. Moses, ascended Sinai in order to receive the commands of the Lord that would distinguish the people of Israel from the world, as a light. Elijah, was taken up bodily into heaven, also to be kept until the set time. Isaiah: witnessed the heavenly worship of the Lord and returned with prophetic warning and hope for Israel. Ezekiel, was take to the 2nd heaven, beheld the vision of the appearance of a Man sitting upon the throne of heaven, also returning with prophetic warning and hope for Israel. John, was called into heaven in order to receive the contents of the Book of Revelation and returned to deliver that message. Paul, was blinded when Yeshua/Jesus manifested to him on the road to Damascus, a turning point in his life. He also ascend into the 3rd Heaven, and return to fulfill his calling upon the earth. Then, of course, there is Messiah Yeshua/Jesus, Who ascended into heaven, as the first fruit, to be the firstborn of many brothers(Ro. 8:29), Who will return for His Bride.

Yet, there was a Christophany upon Sinai that is often overlooked. Why? Can Messiah be present where the Law, the Torah, is being revealed? Most certainly.

In Exodus 24:9-11, Moses, Aaron, Nadav and Avihu, and the seventy elders of Israel ascended Sinai, into the smoke, the flashings and thunders and, “They saw the God of Israel, and under His feet was something like a pavement of sapphire, as clear as the very heavens. Yet He did not raise His hand against the nobles of the children of Israel. So they beheld God, and ate and drank.”

It wasn’t just a cloud upon Sinai, or an amorphous spirit presence. There, upon Sinai where heaven and earth kissed, Yeshua/Jesus sat enthroned, and He shared communion with the leaders of Israel, when this nation of priests in the midst of the darkening world was established.

Here, God in the person of the Son, descended in order to deliver the ten words, and the remainder of the covenant to Israel. The Word, later to be made flesh (Jn. 1:14), speaks His Word to Moses, engraving it upon the stone tablets (Ex. 24:12) with the very hands that will later be nailed to the Cross. Why? For those chosen to remember that they are not called to a creed, a list or a dogma, but to a Person, with Whom they are to have a personal relationship, and share communion.

While we press on in the upward calling of Christ (Phil. 3:14), we must remember that we have been dispatched on an earthly mission, to shine as light in the darkness, as a city on the hill, even in the midst of the valley (Matt. 5:14-16).

Messiah did not remain detached, trapped or disconnected in the heavens in order to set us on our priestly mission, no, He descended with the power of heaven for us to know that while we are walking along the Way, He is right here with us. Faith in Christ should not be the reason for our withdrawal, but the power of our involvement.

Be well. Shalom.