Rabbi's Drash

Beha'alotekha

jtlihb

5769

Bamidbar 8:1-12:16
 

In this portion which is filled with so many messages, I want to focus on the leadership of Moses who was not only a great prophet but he was truly a great man, a very humble man." Now the man Moses was very humble, more than any man who was on the face of the earth" Numbers 12:3. Our sages say that when this book was written by perhaps Joshua, the word for humble "anaiv" vyni was changed by Moses to anav vni. He removed the 'yud" (which represents G-d) because he was so humble he would not in any way compare himself to G-d. "According to our rabbis this type of change appears in only 18 places in the Scriptures and is called: tikkun soferim (scribal emendations); the scribes tried to soften the Word of God. Immediately after this we read about Miriam the prophetess and Aaron the High Priest both criticizing Moshe committing "lashon harah: the evil tongue. "The anger of the LORD burned against them, and he left them. When the cloud lifted from above the Tent, there stood Miriam-leprous, like snow. Aaron turned toward her and saw that she had leprosy; and he said to Moses, "Please, my lord, do not hold against us the sin we have so foolishly committed. Do not let her be like a stillborn infant coming from its mother's womb with its flesh half eaten away." So Moses cried out to the LORD, "O God, please heal her!" Number 12:9-13 Miriam was put outside the camp for 7 days where the people waited and mourned for her like sitting "shiva". It was like she was dead and returned back to life. These passages speak volumes to us about our great teacher Moshe. A great teacher never demeans his students; he never sees himself as better than anyone else or more capable. He knows that he is not above the law. Sometimes we see the police using their authority to go through a red light. The person in authority needs to be just the opposite-an example to everyone. Moshe never thought that he was better than anyone. When asked the question, "What does it mean to be humble?" a rabbi responded "before we can answer that, let us look at what it means to have pride." Pride in itself is neutral. It is how it is used that makes it right or wrong. A person can take pride in his achievements without being arrogant or boastful. In our western society, being number 1 is the most important thing you can be. We rarely focus on the achievements of the person in no 2 or 3 position even if they were close to number 1. G-d is teaching us that He is Nº 1 and we are all to follow Him. The philosopher, Socrates who was considered the most brilliant of people when asked on his death bed what he knew, said "All I know is that I don't know anything." A highly intelligent and educated person is usually the one who can be the most humble. Yeshua says in Matt 5:3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit, the kingdom of Heaven is theirs." To understand the Kingdom of Heaven we need to understand that it is a euphemistic expression meaning to be in the presence of the Eternal. Being in His presence is another way of saying that we realize that we are unable to do anything on our own in order to be close to Him. We are nobody on our own and it is only through Him that we can accomplish anything. The closer we are to G-d, the more we realize how far we are from Him; it is only because of Him that we can be close to Him! Our sages say that Moshe was great because of his actions in doing what was right. He came down, saw the golden calf, and broke the tables of stone. He was ashamed of Israel. He demonstrated true leadership unlike Aaron who instead looked for acceptance. The Levites were the only ones who had enough courage to stand with Moshe to the point of being willing to kill their own families. They like Moshe understood the meaning of being instruments of G-d. When the people complained about having no meat it was obvious that this was not true. They had animals for sacrifice but they preferred to look for someone to blame for their unhappiness. Moshe after being in such a high position found himself in this low state, a state of true humility. Wasn't Miriam special, an anointed woman? She had saved the life of Moshe when he was a baby. Why did she need to complain about Moshe? Yet we read about her making fun of his black wife, making a mockery of her own brother. This seems similar to the passage in the book John 6:70 when Yeshua said "Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!" There is not one of us who is holy or anointed or good on our own. If G-d has not chosen you, don't your time trying to impress anyone with your deeds. G-d knows you. After Judas had betrayed Yeshua and committed suicide, the talmidim decided to replace him. In Acts 1:23 we read "So they proposed two men: Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias." Later we read that they drew lots and chose Matthias. Where in the Scriptures after this time do we hear anymore about him? Instead we know that G-d Himself chose Rabbi Shaul (Paul) to be his follower instead. This story was similar to David, the last person that our prophet Samuel would have chosen. G-d knows our heart (I Sam 16:7, 12-13). The world works on a very different system-democracy. This is an invention of man. The Scriptures don't speak about democracy but theocracy. Man makes their own kingdom in their own way using their own rules. This has nothing to do with G-d. The greatest quality of any leader is humility; not how good or great he is but one who depends on others for good advice, one who is honest accepting his own limitations. Moshe asked Joshua…'"are you jealous for me…"? Joshua was young. This was why the 70 men called were elders. Young leaders tend toward being puffed up when authority is given to them too soon. (I Timothy 3:6) The most important thing we should remember is when Yeshua said "you didn't choose me, I chose you." (John 15:16) You were not saved because of your qualities or abilities; it is quite the opposite. This is a lesson in humility. Yeshua said "blessed are the poor in spirit." This has nothing to do with finances. The poor in spirit realizes the distance between him and G-d; how far they are from Him. People who boast of how spiritual they are usually are full of pride and have never had a relationship with the G-d of Israel. Yeshua opens our hearts and our minds to have a perfect relationship with G-d. He and Moshe were the two men who were the most humble men to walk the earth. Yeshua…"who being in the form of God, did not count equality with God something to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a slave becoming as human beings are." (Philippians 2:6 -7). Moshe said in Deuteronomy 18 that a greater prophet than him was coming and we believe this prophet to be Yeshua. Neither of these men tried to glorify themselves but both were examples of humility. Both were surrendered to the will of G-d. My challenge to you is that if you are truly called by G-d and are part of Him, examine yourself to see if you are surrendered to serving Him not a human religion nor an organization. Part of our problem is that we become confused and do not know who we are worshipping. Are you worshipping the god of doctrine taught to us by people or have you found the true G-d of Israel?    May G-d add blessings to His Word!      Rabbi Percy Johnson      Netanel ben Yochanan      [nxy [b lantn      © 2008 Use by Permission      Kehilat She’ar Yashuv

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