What happens when things don’t go according to your plans? Will Yahweh still allow you to see?
This week’s Torah selection begins with, “I pleaded with the Lord at the time, . . . Let me, I pray, cross over and see the fair land that is beyond the Jordan”. These are the words of Moses, who shares them with the new generation—the ones who are about to cross over from the wilderness into the Promised Land. But Yahweh, in His wisdom and grace, refuses to budge. Instead, He tells Moses to go to the top of the mountain and “lift up his eyes” to see the land of promise. He then instructs Moses to “encourage” the new leader Joshua.
A similar story is found with John the Baptist in Luke chapter 3. Like Moses, John is to prepare the way for the Messiah. He is the voice crying out in the wilderness for Israel to mend their ways, repent, and be baptized in living water. But he, too, has his life cut short for Yeshua to lead.
As you read the Torah portions this week, I want to challenge you to look for the pictures of redemption that are so beautifully described in these two stories. For instance:
- Both Moses and John the Baptist cried out in the wilderness for Israel.
- They both crossed over or into the living waters of Jordan.
- They each had their ministry cut short while they were yet with strength.
- Both of these men prepared the way for another leader—Joshua and Yeshua.
- Joshua would lead Israel into a physical promised land, while Yeshua leads Israel into the land of the Kingdom.
- Moses could still “see” the promise—the goal he had worked for.
- John the Baptist could “see” the Messiah for whom he had been speaking.
The prophet Isaiah starts in chapter 40 by stating, “Comfort, O comfort My people, says Your God.” The prophecy goes on to say, “A voice is calling, Clear the way for the Lord in the wilderness, make smooth in the desert a highway for our God, let every valley be lifted up, and every mountain and hill made low, and let the rough ground become a plain.” From this prophecy, one might ask, “Who comforts, who makes the desert a highway, and who lays down the mountains?”
According to Isaiah, the greatness of God is incomparable; “Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been declared to you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is He who sits above the vault of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers.
“It is He who reduces rulers to nothing, who makes the judges of the earth meaningless.” Isaiah 40:21-23
Yeshua instructed his disciples to share the gospel into all the nations and baptize others into The Kingdom of Elohim. They were to be a witness of the sort who, like Moses and John, would prepare the way for His return. What do we see right now? Are we looking forward to a Greater Kingdom? Are we looking beyond our immediate desires to see the Desire of our Heart?
Be blessed this Sabbath.
Rollyn