By Joseph Shulam.
We are in the last Torah portion of the book of Deuteronomy. The name of this Torah Portion, like all the Torah portions, comes from the opening phrase that the text starts. The last portion of Deuteronomy in Hebrew is Vezot Ha’Bracha. Meaning “This is the Blessing!”
We will read on Shabbat from Deuteronomy 33:1-34:12.
From the prophets, we will read from the first chapter of the book of Joshua 1:1-18.
From the New Testament, we will read from Acts 1:1-14.
The first verse of this dramatic, powerful biblical text raises so many questions that ought to challenge us. The first question is simple: How could Moses write this chapter when he went up to the mountain on the east side of the Jordan River? I am very interested to know how much of the Land of Israel Moses saw from on top of Mount Pisgah? If the weather on that day was clear, Moses could have seen parts of the northeast Sinai Peninsula and maybe the coast of Gaza.
Moses was not worried about himself. He walked up that high mountain to experience the Grace of God that gave him a glance of the Land promised to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. The book of Deuteronomy starts with Moses begging God to let him cross the Jordan River and see the promised Land, but God answers Moses with an emphatic “No”.
Moses begs God to see the Land promised to Abraham and his descendants. God says “no” a second time in the first chapters of the book of Deuteronomy. Now Moses is alone, climbing the high mountain, knowing that the view he would see of the Land of Canaan would be the last thing that he would see. Understanding how God granted Moses his final request allowed Moses to see a good and generous portion of the Torah.
In a way, God’s mercy overcame His judgment and motivated God to allow Moses, after all, to see most of the Land of Israel from the top of the Nevo Mountain. Maybe Moses could see on a clear day all the way across the mountains of Judea and parts of the mountain of Samaria.
The whole chapter of Deuteronomy 33 is actually written in verse – it is poetry. Oftentimes in the Bible, prophecy is stated in verse and in poetic style. These last two chapters of Deuteronomy are actually in a lyrical style.
There is one more element to touch on in our chapter, and that is in chapter 33:4 – The verse is written in second voice.
“When Moses charged us with the Torah as the heritage of the congregation of Jacob.”
Moving on to the next verse 5, we find out an incredibly significant statement that affects us all, even in the 21st century.
“Then God became King in Jeshurun, when the heads of the people assembled, the Tribes of Israel together.” (Deut. 33:5).
I find this verse to be of extreme importance, especially in our day and time. The Lord can’t be King over a nation that is divided and in a constant struggle and battle from within. In such a situation, the division, enmity, and argument, God is unable to invest in the people because they cannot get along with their brothers and sisters and the community of Israel.
Verse 5 of chapter 33 is a revelation that I needed in order to understand the strategy of God in the relationship with the leadership of His people.
Let me give you an analysis of verse 5 of Deuteronomy 33:
Nachmanides (Ramban), a great commentator of the Hebrew Bible from the 14th Century in Spain, gives us a critical perspective and commentary on this verse. Here is a paraphrase of this verse in English:
“When the people worked in unity and they were walking straight, the Lord God became their King.”
In Proverbs 29:18, a lesson is found:
“For lack of vision a people lose restraint, but happy is he who heeds instruction.“
Moses is telling us a simple truth, universal and actual in all settings and at all times. No one can rule effectively over a nation that is divided and unruly, and all the time full of strife and chaos. Moses is telling the people that when the nation of Israel gathered together in unity in the wilderness of Sinai, God became their King.
To expand a little and bring this idea home to us in the 21st century:
The only religion that is expanding and conquering significant territory in the world in our times is Islam. The Muslim countries are backward, although some of them are very rich with oil and other natural resources. Their leaders, kings and sheiks, understand that money alone is not going to solve their problems and not satiate their hunger for power and control.
So what did they do to bring their countries and their people into the brave new world of Western society and superiority in technology and innovation? The Muslim oil-rich countries in the Persian Gulf and in the Middle East invested in their bright young generation and sent them to study in the best schools and Universities in Europe and in the United States. These students were subsidized by their governments. They study subjects that will put them out of their palaces in the capital cities of their tents in the deserts of Saudi Arabia into the western academic world. Their leaders in countries like Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, the Emirates, and others invested. Their investments are paying off with a wealth of young people graduating from the best schools in Europe and the United States.
Their society was built on unity and on the ancient vision of Islam to take over the so-called European and Western culture. It spread Islam through the power of education for their young generations, knowledge, and single-minded dedication to Islam. We must collectively understand that the division, competition, and lack of unity in Christianity are going to be the end of Biblical Christianity and faith in Yeshua and in God.
Those of us who have committed our lives to the restoration of the New Testament Church must return to the Cain Ridge, Kentucky, paradigm to restore the First Century Church. Primarily, the goal of those pastors and preachers of the American Frontier was to unite and be like the first-century church that was one church, founded on the Word of God from Genesis to Revelation. Their commitment to unity was the power that gave them the energy and the strength to be united and committed to the unity and commitment to work together for the good of the people and disciples of Christ as one church.
All of us need to understand that we don’t have an example or a command to separate from brothers, sisters, and communities that might have a different opinion on some teaching or practice, and start a new community on such minor matters like worshiping with a printed song book or not, or when to take communion of the bread and wine. The most crucial aspect and challenge for the future of the world is the future spiritual health of the Body of Christ in this world. Our spiritual health is found in unity and must be working continuously on unity and oneness, much more than building church buildings. The spiritual health of the church is the most critical aspect of the Body of Christ in our day and time.
For the churches that are Bible based and committed to the Biblical truth, the ultimate task that will bring the healing and restoration of the unity of the body of Christ is a return to the commitment to work for the restoration of the oneness of the Body of Christ. This oneness does not mean uniformity or a “canned sardines” type of forced unity for political reasons. Return to the commitment of one body of Christ with unity of purpose and mission, and for the fulfillment of the wish and plan for the followers of Christ to be united in purpose and commitment. And for the sake of unity and oneness, not uniformity, but unity.
This unity doesn’t mean that everyone has to believe the same and sing the same songs and have their preachers wear the same brand of blue jeans in order to work together for the success of the Kingdom of Christ here on this earth. I genuinely believe that if each of us works together, the body of Christ, the result will be a pure desire to see the unity of Christ’s body and the cooperation of men and women.
When we learn to respect and cooperate, divisions and competition, and the divisiveness of the denominational structure that keeps the denominations neck to neck, holding on to the divisive and destructive attitude breaks down. Division keeps God away. The revelation of His kingship over the world and the unity and mustering of the powers of faith to march and stand for the Lord God Almighty can’t be fulfilled. The return of Yeshua to Zion to sit on the throne of King David to rebuild and restore the power of God is put further on hold. Yeshua has risen from the dead and is seated on the throne of King David. Allow him to shine a new light on the darkness of division and competition between the disciples of Christ worldwide.
The prophetic nation of the last words of Moses in the book of Deuteronomy must be accepted, learned, and promoted in preparation for the transition that will come when Yeshua returns to Zion and is the King of the Jews, the Prince of Peace, and brotherhood.
Please, dear brothers and sisters, break down the walls of division and competition that were created by the pagan spirit of the historically paganized churches that cut themselves from the true vine of the sons of David. When that cut was made, the restoration of both the power and the message was made more distant.
God bless you all and keep you and inspire you to pray for Zion, that is the place of God’s throne, prepare for the return of Yeshua the Messiah back home to Zion and Jerusalem.
Joseph Shulam