“If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in and dine with him, and he with Me.” (Revelation 3:20)
Torah Portion: Deuteronomy 11:26-16:17
R'eh (‘See’)
There used to be a tradition in Welsh homes, a result of God's visitation with revival power, that a place would be set at mealtimes for the ‘unseen guest’. There was such a consciousness of the closeness of God that He was treated as a guest at mealtimes, and there was a special sense of His presence when grace was spoken by the gathered families.
Despite Christians’ greater expectation of the power of the Holy Spirit at work in our lives today, is it possible that we may have missed something such as was experienced, not only by Welsh families after times of revival, but also by Israel of old?
The difference between the Old Covenant and the New Covenant is that in the Old Covenant the families of Israel feared the curses for disobedience to the laws of God, while in the New Covenant Yeshua has taken those curses, giving us the freedom to learn through even unintentional mistakes (Gal 3:13). How wonderful to explore God's Torah without fear! But with such freedom to learn, do we take too lightly our understanding of God's ways and miss out on the fullness of His blessing? This is a good question in light of the current lockdown – a unique opportunity to consider our ways before God and strengthen our families.
Invitation to a Feast
Time and again in Deuteronomy we are reminded of the great blessings of obeying the laws of God. What do we see (r'eh in Hebrew) as we read the Torah portion this week?
In Deuteronomy 12:5-7, the families from the Tribes of Israel are instructed to take their tithes, sacrifices and offerings to a place chosen by God. There, they had to eat of their tithes before the Lord their God, all their household.
If seen as a command, this instruction bears the sense of ‘must do or else’. If taken as an invitation, which it really is, how wonderful that the Creator of the Universe invites His people to use a portion of their tithes to share a meal in His presence (a meal at the Father's expense, as it were). The words are repeated in verses 11 and 12, helping us to see that this truly is the Father's gracious intention.
A Family Picnic
A prominent theme of Scripture is that God is building a family of His own. He does this, in part, through building our own families. How many of us eat together these days, with so much to preoccupy us? How often do we fix up a meal and go out for a picnic?
If we go on a visit to modern-day Israel and tour the biblical sites, we might go to Shiloh, where the Tabernacle was set up when Israel first entered the Promised Land. Scattered all around are ancient pottery shards, which remind us of the clay pots that the families of Israel took with their meals to eat before the Lord - a picnic, if you will!
How wonderful that the God of Israel invites all of His children to eat with Him in a similar manner – all who believe that Yeshua is Messiah are included, as Yeshua Himself says in Revelation 3:20.
Strengthening Families
What a wonderful principle tithing is. Many ministries benefit from the giving of God's people. But dare we take the tithing principles first given to Israel and see that God invites us to share a special meal with Him, once a year, using a portion of our tithe? What a gracious Father to use this as a means of strengthening our families, a principle that we can then take into every family meal.
Perhaps you would like consider where God might suggest that you go with Him, with all your family, for your next special meal together: perhaps, on one of these beautiful sunny summer days of lockdown, to somewhere special to share a picnic in His created world. Remember too that He will be there with you, enjoying your meal, as you express His love to each other.
“If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in and dine with him, and he with Me.” (Revelation 3:20)