Ethics

I have been thinking about this blog I have started quite a bit, trying to decipher what direction I want to go with it. My original intent was to study the Tabernacle, which is a grand idea, as there is much misunderstanding concerning this Holy Place but, I think we will walk a different path to begin this journey.

In my first post I talked about holiness, and I asked if it was possible for us to achieve such a thing in our day to day lives. As I have thought about this more and more I have switched directions slightly. I still want to talk about holiness but, I think I will do it by looking at Mussar. Mussar is a Hebrew word that can be translated as ethics. The word itself comes from Proverbs 1:2 which means  discipline, chastening, correction.

Proverbs 1:2 2 To know wisdom and instruction(mussar), To discern the sayings of understanding

This will not be a comprehensive study of Mussar. It will simply be a map of my studies as I set out to learn how to better open myself to my Creator, the God of Abraham, Issac, and Jacob. The more open we are to His presence, the more His light will shine through us, into the lives of others. We will work through things like patience, humility, generosity, truth, trust, and faith among others. We will learn methods and exercises to bring these traits to the surface, thus transforming our lives and the lives of those around us.

We are told we need to transform ourselves to be like Messiah but all too often that is all we are told. How do we do this? Do we just say a prayer, accept Yeshua into our lives and then..BANG, we are transformed and saved for all eternity? Hardly. We have to work at it every single day. It is a process. We have to transform the way we live, the way we interact with people. the way we talk, the way we act, even the way we eat. If we want to be holy we have to first learn how. It doesn’t just happen, it takes work. For some of us like myself, it takes a lot of work and a long time.

My next post will explain the two forces at work within each of us. yetzer ha’tov (good inclination) and yetzer ha’ra (evil inclination) How these two forces both oppose and compliment each other.

Until then seek the God of Israel and please pray for the peace of Jerusalem!

The Purpose

Leviticus 11:45 ‘For I am the LORD, who brought you up from the land of Egypt, to be your God; thus you shall be holy for I am holy.’”

I have decided to venture out and try my hand at blogging. I am not a writer, a teacher, theologian, or a Biblical scholar. I am just one man, walking through this life, in this world, trying to find the Way.

With that being said, the purpose which I now start out with, is to find out what Holiness is. Can mere man achieve something so grand as to be Holy? How do we become Holy? What does it look like? What does it feel like? How do I know if I am in fact, Holy?

As you can see from the verse in Leviticus, God expects us to be Holy, just like He is. He did not give us an impossible task, maybe extremely challenging but, not impossible. Over the course of the next few weeks I am going to find out just what Holiness is. I am going to do this by looking at the Tabernacle (Mishkan) and the sacrifices. This is the epitome of holiness on Earth. We will look at the structure and then piece by piece the instruments used in this Most Holy Place. Their design and purpose. We will find out how this teaches, that we ourselves are tabernacles wherein, the Most High God dwells.

I write this, not for anyone that may read it but, for myself. To teach myself how I can improve my life, how I can attain a personal holiness. A way to walk uprightly fearing and loving God and loving my fellow man. This is the whole of the Torah and the prerequisites of holiness.

Walk with me, let’s see where this path takes us.