Joy in the Messiah

 אַחֲרֵי מוֹת
Acharei Mot / After the Death
Leviticus 16:1-18:30
HafTorah Amos 9:7-15
Brit Chadasha Hebrews 9:11-28

 קְדֹשִׁים
Kedoshim / Holy Ones
19:1-20:27
HafTorah Portions – Ezekiel 22:1-16
Brit Chadasha – 1 Peter 1:13-16

      This double Torah portion is about holiness.   In the first paragraph of Acharei Mot, Elohim gives instructions for approaching the Tabernacle after the death of Aaron's two sons as a result of the strange fire that they offered.  God is reiterating the fact that His presence is holy and we are to come before Him His way and with a humble heart.
    ‘Now the Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered profane fire before the Lord, and died; and the Lord said to Moses: “Tell Aaron your brother not to come at just any time into the Holy Place inside the veil, before the mercy seat which is on the ark, lest he die; for I will appear in the cloud above the mercy seat.’ “Thus Aaron shall come into the Holy Place: with the blood of a young bull as a sin offering, and of a ram as a burnt offering. He shall put the holy linen tunic and the linen trousers on his body; he shall be girded with a linen sash, and with the linen turban he shall be attired. These are holy garments. Therefore, he shall wash his body in water, and put them on.  And he shall take from the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats as a sin offering, and one ram as a burnt offering.’ Leviticus 16:1-5.
    The key words for us to adhere to are: ‘…not to come just any time into the holy place…shall come with the blood…holy linen on his body…he shall wash his body in water and put them on…’
     These are instructions of preparations, humbleness, of a mikveh, and of a status change, from God regarding His holy place. They are instructions to an imperfect people coming to a perfect and holy place to worship a perfect and holy God. These are instructions for life.  How do imperfect people approach the perfect and holy place of God?  Only through His way. 
     Kedoshim continues with holiness.  Leviticus 19:2  ‘Speak to all the congregation of the sons of Israel and say to them, 'You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy.’  Leviticus 20:26  'Thus you are to be holy to Me, for I the LORD am holy; and I have set you apart from the peoples to be Mine.’   
       To be holy, Kadosh, is an intangible thing. We can’t make ourselves holy. We are holy because we are created in the image of a holy God. However, the oxymoron is that we are commanded to be holy for “I am holy” says the Lord.  Our soul is holy, yet our flesh is human.  Just like it is intangible to be holy, there are tangible acts to make us unholy. 
     Our speech, our thoughts, our mindset, the company we keep, the places we go, the gossip we hear, the gossip we spread, the lack of reverence for the High Holy Days, the Sabbaths we ignore, a mentality other than that which represents the truth of Yeshua and The Word.
     There are seven definite things that will keep us in the season of un-holiness:
Proverbs 6:16-22
‘These six things the Lord hates,
Yes, seven are an abomination to Him:
A proud look,
A lying tongue,
Hands that shed innocent blood,
A heart that devises wicked plans,
Feet that are swift in running to evil,
 A false witness who speaks lies,
And one who sows discord among brethren.’
    In the book of Psalms we read about worship: Psalm 29:2 ‘Give unto the Lord the glory due to His name; Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.’ Psalm 24:3-4 ‘Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD? And who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his soul to falsehood and has not sworn deceitfully.’
     In Exodus 19:3-5 God clarifies His holy nation of His people; ‘ And Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel: ⁴ ‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself. ⁵ Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. ⁶ And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.’
    The key word here is ‘IF’.  We have the choice; He gives us the if. Because God is holy, everything about the Holy One is holy. All of His attributes are holy; no one else can have them in the same way. Nothing can be compared to His infinity, His eternality, His wisdom, His mercy, His power, His goodness, His omniscience, His kindness, His love, or His self-sufficiency. He is unique in all these attributes. 1 Samuel 2:2 states: Ayn kadosh ka-Adonai: There is no one holy like the Lord.  And Isaiah 40:25 ‘To whom then will you liken Me that I should be His equal? says the Holy One.’
    Since making ourselves holy is intangible, even with the ‘IF’, it is important that we realize how easy it is to become unholy.  We have a loving, graceful, and forgiving Father in Heaven, who has given us His only Son as our sin bearer. Not only is Yeshua bearing our sins, but He has also washed us in His holy and atoning blood. This is called justification. We are justified through the blood of Yeshua our Messiah. Since we are imperfect beings, we can not achieve holiness through works.  We ‘do’ because we love God. We obey His word, not for perks but because He first loved us, 1 John 4:19.  Psalm 103 speaks of that loving Father.  In Psalm 103:11-13 it shows that our sins are erased from the east to the west.  Not the north to south, where there are ending points.  But from the east to the west has really no beginning or end. That us how merciful The Father is.

  אַחֲרֵי מוֹת
Acharei Mot / After the Death
Leviticus 16:1-18:30
HafTorah Amos 9:7-15
Brit Chadasha Hebrews 9:11-28

 קְדֹשִׁים
Kedoshim / Holy Ones
19:1-20:27
HafTorah Portions – Ezekiel 22:1-16
Brit Chadasha – 1 Peter 1:13-16

      In the prior Torah portions, Shemini, Tazria, Metsora gave the foundation for Kesoshim/Holy Ones.  This double Torah portion opens up with instructions for Aaron and recounting the events concerning the death of Aaron’s two sons.  God adds that Aaron can’t just ‘come’ into the holy place whenever he feels like it. This chapter moves right into Yom Kippur, which is considered the holiest day of the Hebrew cycle.
    Chapter 17 continues with the regulations regarding the eating of blood. God specifically states that ‘He will set His face against’ the person who eats blood, Leviticus 17:10-12.  This was also stated in Genesis 9:4, Leviticus 3:17, Deuteronomy 12:23 and Acts 15:20.
    In Leviticus 18 God’s people are given instructions about interpersonal relations a moral compass reflecting God’s holiness. This was preparing the Israelites for a life far different from the Canaanites, whose lifestyle was deplorably immoral. Colossians 3:5 reiterates this: ‘Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.’
      Leviticus 19 begins the Parsha Kedoshim/Holy Ones.  In the first sentence, God instructs Moses to speak to the entire assembly of Israel and say to them, “Be holy because I the LORD your God am holy.” The message was so crucial it was given to all the people, to the entire nation as a whole, meaning that the community was to be together in unity.  
     Chapter nineteen continues with in-depth instructions on living a moral life regarding God and His moral compass. Chapter 19 also repeats the 10 Words (Commandments).
     The beginning of Leviticus 20, God specifically mentions ‘giving children to the god Molech.’ This refers to the sacrificing of children through fire to the Canaanite god, Molech.  In Leviticus 20:23 God is clear on His directives towards His people: ‘You must not live according to the customs of the nations…’ The finality of all of this is Leviticus 20:26 where God emphatically states: ‘You are to be holy to Me because I, the LORD am holy and I have set you apart from the nations to be My own.’ 1 Peter 1:13-16, which is the Brit Chadasha portion for this Parsha, emphasizes this exact commandment. 
    The soul of every human is holy strictly because God created it. No one can create a soul. Man can create an array of life-sustaining things, but not a soul. Regardless of the path that man chooses, the soul is still holy because of God.  God owns every soul and this emphasizes the inherent value and sacredness of human life, as it is created and belongs to God.  Yet, we are instructed to be holy as we live. What constitutes for us to be or act holy?  Is it tangible? 
     We are created in the image and likeness of God. Therefore, we must copy after God, which means knowing God. We must live the life that He chose for us, which is walking in His ways, which is the beginning, which is the Torah, His very instructions for a moral life.
     We have a beginning in Genesis 1 and John 1. Are they two separate beginnings – or the same beginning.
     Genesis 1:1 ‘In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth…’
     John 1:1-2 ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ² He was in the beginning with God.’
    John 1:2 gives the timeline, ‘He was in the beginning with God’.  The Word was there with God in the beginning - before the beginning of the universe stated in Genesis 1:1. 
     What was the Word?  Torah, God’s Word, God’s moral compass, God’s instructions, God’s way, God’s very lifeline to live. John 1:3-5 continues with the description of Yeshua. ‘All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. ⁴ In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. ⁵ And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. 
     All through Scripture Yeshua states that He is the Light of men, the Light of the world, and the Life. As Yeshua speaks and teaches, He references John 1:1-5 and the Creation. 
     Our soul is holy, that is understood. But how does our flesh become holy? We can only be holy through Yeshua, which is the Living Torah.  
     The last chapter of Hebrews, concludes with moral directions, specifically Hebrews 13:1-17, Hebrews 13:12, Ephesians 1:7, Hebrews 9:22, Hebrews 10:19 and 1 John 1:7.  God’s people are sanctified through His blood, emphasizing Leviticus 17:11. 
    Unfortunately, so many walk in the ways of the religion of Jesus, for that religion does not duplicate the ways of God. But rather the ways of the nations, the nations that God forbid His people to mimic, included in this parsha. 
    Rabbi Shau’l in Romans 7:7-12 explains that it was through the Torah, that he was able to recognize what God deemed sinful. Without the Torah, he would not have been prepared to acknowledge his sin.   Rabbi Shau’l goes on to explain the struggle between flesh and soul, between clean and unclean, pure and impure. Romans 7:13-25.  
     There are many external instructions we can do that is pleasing to God. And there are just as many if not more internal behaviors we can strive for that is in the Word.  Being holy is more of an act of being set-apart, a set-apart people.  Out of the 51 commandments in Kedoshim, some are directed at God alone, others towards individuals and how we treat one another.