Fear No Fear

(All scripture from the NET, netbible.org, all rights reserved)

“When someone’s body has a boil on its skin and it heals, and in the place of the boil there is a white swelling or a reddish white bright spot, he must show himself to the priest.
Leviticus 13:18-19 (emphasis added)

The Daat Zkenim (a commentary on the Torah composed by the Tosafists in the 12th and 13th centuries, primarily in France and Germany) has this note for today’s verse: ‘ונרפא, ‘and it is healed.’ At first glance this word is enigmatic. How does this word get into this verse? However, we find that in the Torat Kohanim this word plus the fact that instead of the afflicted person being the subject in this verse, the subject is the state of his skin, teaches that in spite of the nega not being able to develop in the normal manner, the person so afflicted is already declared as ritually impure. The boil, שחין, must first heal completely, before a healing process for the nega can even begin.’ What does this tell us? That sometimes healing must be completed before a healing can begin.

I’m not being esoteric or all philosophising. There are times when the sickness we see (regardless of whether it is spiritual, mental, emotional, or physical) is on top of a deeper hurt. The surface has to be dealt with before the root is taken care of. Now killing the root will kill the surface symptom. That is true. Without killing the root the symptoms will reappear. Modern medicine, for example, does some great things for people. But they tend to treat the symptoms and not the underlying disease. In today’s verse, though, we are presented with the opposite. Sometimes we cannot even SEE the root until we have healed the surface. We tackle the UNSEEN only after we have tackled the SEEN.

This section of scripture is dealing with physical signs of spiritual conditions (like Biblical leprosy which needs a priest, not a dermatologist). A simple example would be someone who has depression. They are depressed and they walk around with it (when they can) and it dominates their lives and they feel weighted down by it. When they get some help and learn to deal with it. When it is cast off of them through Jesus’ healing power released from the cross, they discover something else. That all their depression was riding a deeper scar. Poverty maybe. That helplessness we feel in the face of lack of money. Or maybe there was emotional abuse. Being bullies which built up feelings of inadequacy and inferiority, which led to depression. I’m not saying these are root causes of depression, I’m just giving an example we can all understand. Sometimes things we have forgotten about or don’t even think of as related cause our psyche to burst out or accept other conditions.

This is a MAJOR threat in the world today. Both in the carnal world and in the church world. There is a real move toward feelings as THE barometer of your life. That feelings are the only real way to see how your life is going, what your life is about, and the standards by which you should be living your lives. In essence, we are moving backwards to a philosophy from Before Christ (BC). In it’s article on it, The Encyclopaedia Britannica (https://www.britannica.com/topic/Epicureanism) says this: ‘Epicureanism, in a strict sense, the philosophy taught by Epicurus (341–270 BCE). In a broad sense, it is a system of ethics embracing every conception or form of life that can be traced to the principles of his philosophy. In ancient polemics, as often since, the term was employed with an even more generic (and clearly erroneous) meaning as the equivalent of hedonism, the doctrine that pleasure or happiness is the chief good. In popular parlance, Epicureanism thus means devotion to pleasure, comfort, and high living, with a certain nicety of style.’
Pleasure. What feels good to YOU. What feels good to ME. Doesn’t that sound like many of the movements today? If you FEEL like a woman you are one. If you FEEL attraction to another human, you are that attraction. It is the decision to base your identity on a FEELING. The main principle of Epicureanism is that pleasure is the path to a fulfilling life. It also is violently opposed to God as a concept. Epicurus felt that God makes you fear judgment after death and fear judgment during life. Guess what? He did NOT understand Adonai. But then, so few people did. When Jesus came preaching Good News, peace between Yahweh and humanity, and LOVE they wanted to kill Him.

The problem with looking to our feelings for our identity (no matter WHAT kind of identity is being grasped) is two-fold. First off, feelings change almost as often as the wind. It is ridiculous, really. What we put into ourselves (entertainment, schooling, conversations, news, etc) will ultimately determine how we ‘feel’ on a subject. We program ourselves into the worldview that we possess. We CHOOSE – consciously or unconsciously – what it is that we believe, think, and emote. Feelings are input. They are sensory data that our bodies literally FEEL. To base any aspect of your life on them is the height of foolishness. We need to take them into account – they hold important information. But they are a factor, not the foundation.

The second issue is that they don’t matter. What WE feel doesn’t matter. What is Adonai’s point of view? THAT is what matters. He is the CREATOR and not the CREATED. He determines what is right because He made EVERYTHING. We corrupted things, but we created nothing. The devil twisted things, but created nothing. Adonai and ONLY Adonai can say what is objectively RIGHT and objectively WRONG. HE is the only one who can tell us what morals we should hold. We CAN hold any, but only HIS are correct. One reason is that they rely on a foundation of RIGHTEOUSNESS, not FEELINGS.

Righteousness doesn’t change. It doesn’t shift. It doesn’t move. It stays EXACTLY the way it was before creation was created. It will be EXACTLY the same way four billion years from now. Righteousness stays the same. So does Jesus (Hebrews 13:8). What He says is what the Father says and what the Father says GOES. Period. Look in the Old Covenant and you see it again and again. They did wrong or right according to Yahweh’s point of view. It is only HIS point of view that matters. Once we accept this and submit to it, life becomes a lot easier.

Yahweh is righteous and we need to accept that. If we do, we will be humble. You can’t be puffed up and conceited while giving Adonai His proper position in your life. When we submit to Him and His will – as illustrated in His Word – then life is lived in the BLESSING zone. We end up in the middle of His will. Not turning left or right or even going forward without His permission. Yes, to the flesh it is hard – it’s a creature of habit. But no, it isn’t because every single one of the tools of Adonai is geared to keeping us in His will. When we use them (Fruit of the Spirit, gifts of the Spirit, or following His commandments), we will naturally be in the centre of His will. We use them because we love Him. We love Him because He loved us. When we focus on that love, it is easy for us to hear Him when He speaks (John 10:27-28).

Adonai wants us well. In every way. Our spirits are perfected. Totally renewed. Full of the Holy Spirit. Jesus’ own spirit of righteousness. They are as righteous as we are ever going to get (1 Corinthians 5:21). We need to listen to it. It will tell us when we have a hidden root. Yes, we might have to heal up the surface thing first (physical, emotional, mental, or spiritual). But if we ask for wisdom and LISTEN to what He tells us (James 1:5-8), He will get that root healed too. Layer after layer He will deal with it when WE are willing to deal with it His way. The Blood of Jesus washes EVERYTHING away, but we need to build our trust in it. Without trust, nothing happens (Hebrews 11:6). But with trust in Him? Nothing is impossible (Luke 18:27). Total and complete healing is available to us. And it IS the will of Adonai. From the surface right down to the root.

Daily Affirmation Jesus IS Messiah: Psalm 69:14-20

“Rescue me from the mud. Don’t let me sink. Deliver me from those who hate me, from the deep water. Don’t let the current overpower me. Don’t let the deep swallow me up. Don’t let the Pit devour me. Answer me, O Lord, for your loyal love is good. Because of your great compassion, turn toward me. Do not ignore your servant, for I am in trouble. Answer me right away. Come near me and redeem me. Because of my enemies, rescue me. You know how I am insulted, humiliated, and disgraced; you can see all my enemies. Their insults are painful and make me lose heart; I look for sympathy, but receive none, for comforters, but find none.” Messiah is a RIGHTEOUS person. Someone righteous about to take on the sin of the world in order to pay that price. In order to make a way where there was no way. Messiah would be joyful in SPIRIT to do this, but in the flesh be full of anguish. Knowing what was coming, knowing it was needed, knowing He had agreed to it already. He would be anguished about it. “Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to the disciples, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” He took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and he became anguished and distressed. Then he said to them, “My soul is deeply grieved, even to the point of death. Remain here and stay awake with me.” Going a little farther, he threw himself down with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if possible, let this cup pass from me! Yet not what I will, but what you will.” Then he came to the disciples and found them sleeping. He said to Peter, “So, couldn’t you stay awake with me for one hour? Stay awake and pray that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if this cup cannot be taken away unless I drink it, your will must be done.” He came again and found them sleeping; they could not keep their eyes open. So leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same thing once more. Then he came to the disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Look, the hour is approaching, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners” (Matthew 26:36-45). Jesus was anguished. He was grieved. Jesus’ spirit was willing but His flesh was weak and desired ANY way out of the situation. It was torture for Him. Jesus felt all the insults of His enemies and was desperate for rescue. Jesus went through so much for us. Jesus IS the Messiah!

Your Daily Confession of Jesus/Yeshua’s Identity:

Yeshua is the Christ, the Son of the living God.

Matthew 16:16b