By Yehuda Bachana.
Lech Lecha : Genesis 12:1-17:27 , Isaiah 40:27-41:16, Romans 4:1-5:11
In our daily walk, we’re blessed to have Yeshua by our side
Parashat Lech Lecha begins with God’s command to Abraham to get up and go to Canaan – an amazing and special region, that one day would be named after Abraham’s grandson – Jakob/Israel – the father of Israel’s twelve tribes. Throughout history, from Abraham to Yeshua the Messiah, this battered tiny piece of land has been at the center of the Bible that we hold in our hands.
Even today, the history of the Land of Israel continues to be written in our very own handwriting. Our beloved little country has endured much war and pain. Also today, we’re in the midst of a reality that demands war (yet again). The People of Israel don’t want war, but this war is forced upon us.
The Bible distinguishes between two types of war, one is voluntary and the other one’s obligatory. A voluntary war – as implied by its name – is optional and designed to increase territory and bring economic benefits.
Today it’s important to clarify that the war we’re battling today, is an obligatory war in which we fight for our right to exist as Jews in the Land of Israel. If the State of Israel loses this war for our existence, we’ll once again find ourselves in exile, painfully struggling to (barely) preserve our identity. In such a case, the Jewish identity would be preserved as an ember that’s about to be extinguished at any moment.
Of course, we’ve already endured such a reality, and we’re well aware of the pain of the antisemitism that accompanies us everywhere. We truly don’t have any other place else to be. Which is why we cherish that living in Israel grants us the opportunity to defend our way of life and our right to exist as Jews.
One day, soon, the current war will come to an end. Already now, every believer should plan their visit to Israel. In my opinion, every believer should visit Israel at least once. Because in Israel, the places we read about in the Bible come to life as they get an extra dimension.
It’s truly remarkable for any Bible student to walk the paths of Israel (with an open Bible), and to overlook Mount Carmel where Elijah confronted the Prophets of Baal; which is the very same mountain where Elijah hid in a cave from the wrath of Israel’s King Ahab on the shadow-side, a bit later on.
Yes, every believer should visit the Mount of Olives, which is located above Gethsemane, and is the place where Yeshua was taken to the cross and where He’ll return, as well. Come visit the Jordan River – the place of Yeshua’s baptism, as well as the location where Israel crossed over to the Promised Land. Walk through the City of David, at the foot of the Temple Mount – where Abraham almost sacrificed his very own son Isaac. These are the very stones of the same altar of the First and Second Temple. Yes, every believer should visit and experience the Land of Israel.
Here, on this piece of land, God commanded Abraham to get up and go; after which He promises immediately: “And in you all the family of the earth shall be blessed” (Genesis 12:3). What did Abraham’s seed give to humanity, beyond a few Nobel Prizes, inventions and innovations? Truly the greatest and most precious gift to humanity from the seed of Abraham, is sharing the knowledge of God & Abraham’s faith in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, with the world. Here we clearly see Yeshua the Messiah as the fulfillment of that promise.
The New Testament begins with the words: “The book of the genealogy of Yeshua the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham.” (Matthew 1:1)
Yeshua the Messiah – from the seed of Abraham – is the Israeli Jew Who spreads hope, and Who is the source of salvation for the world! Thanks to Yeshua the Messiah the world knows the Bible and the God of Abraham. I am convinced that at the time, Abraham was unaware of the true magnitude of his calling and journey. And, who could’ve imagined the rich history of events that would happen on this piece of land.
Even if Abraham had doubts before he got up and traveled to the land God called him to, Abraham kept those questions and doubts to himself. Then, when Abraham receives the divine command, he gets up, gathers his relatives (like Lot) and slaves, and his many possessions, and sets out on a dangerous journey to an unknown land.
Did Abraham have any doubts? The Bible doesn’t tell us that, but I allow myself to imagine that naturally, before such a challenging and dangerous journey, Abraham had doubts like I would.
At the end of the next Torah Portion, we’ll read about the most difficult test of all, which is the Sacrifice of Isaac: a test where a father is asked to get up, tie up his beloved son, pick up a sharp knife and slaughter his son. And yet, we shouldn’t underestimate the hiking-test, either.
Abraham was 75 years old when God ordered him to go. As believers, we imagine following God and obedience as something romantic and blessed. And yet, the historical (and Biblical) reality points out quite the opposite.
Most often believers who obeys God, pay a price, and sometimes that price is very high. It isn’t easy and it isn’t cheap to obey God. And still, Abraham puts his doubts aside and obeys, nonetheless. That’s why the writers of the New Testament mention Abraham as an example of what it means to have a living and active faith.
I allow myself to assume that most of us picture Abraham as a legend and some sort of super human being. But, is Abraham really an example of a perfect faith? Or did Abraham perhaps also face faith struggles and doubts?
By reading Parashat Lech Lecha, we discover that Abraham laughed, too (and not just Sara). We see how Abraham has lost hope for a son from his beloved wife Sarah, when he asks God for Ishmael to continue as the promised son. (Genesis 17:17)
The Bible doesn’t paint its heroes in black or white, but rather in different shades of gray: Moses, Aaron, and Miriam are punished for their sins; as is King David, who symbolizes Messiah. Both David and his son, Solomon (the wisest of men) sinned. Here we internalize that the Bible is truthful. And that the people mentioned were ‘just human beings’ who lived and worked in the real world. The Bible doesn’t try to turn them into superhumans.
God doesn’t require us to be ‘perfect’, but He does ask us to seek His face, worship Him, and that we seek His kingdom and invest in it. That we try to do what’s good and right in His eyes. That being said, throughout the Bible, our Heavenly Father also asks us to understand that – on our way to the Kingdom of Heaven – we’re likely to make mistakes, as all people do. As believers we know we can acknowledge our mistakes.
Yeshua allows us to repent, to reexamine our lives and our decisions, and then to step forward towards change.
And that’s life, that’s our life with Yeshua by our side.