Author: Steven R. Bruck

Parashah Vayyashev 2019 (And he dwelt) Genesis 37 – 40

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The rest of Genesis is about Joseph. We all know the story: he is hated by his brothers because he is the favorite of his father. Not to mention he is also a bit of a snitch, having once given a bad report to his father regarding his brothers. We can add that sharing his dreams with his brothers also didn’t help the situation since the dreams indicated they would all bow down to him.

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When given the chance, the brothers were going to kill him, but instead decided to sell him to a caravan of Yishmaelim However, before they could do that, some other Arabs found him in the cistern the brothers dumped him into, and they sold him. He ended up as the slave to Potiphar, one of the military generals of the Pharaoh. Meanwhile, the brothers dipped his coat of many colors into some blood and presented it to Jacob to make him believe Joseph was killed by a wild animal.

The Bible tells us that God was with Joseph, which is why everything he did was successful. I think it would be more accurate to say that Joseph was with God. In any event, Joseph is promoted to the position of trustee for Potiphar’s entire household and finances. But, trouble brews when Potipher’s wife gets the hots for Joseph and constantly demands he sleep with her.  Because Joseph was too righteous to sleep with her, she got revenge by accusing him of attempted rape. It is likely that because Potiphar liked Joseph that instead of having him killed, which would have been the standard punishment, he simply placed him in jail.

Even in jail, falsely accused and wrongfully punished, Joseph maintained his faith and was appointed a trustee. When two of the officers of Pharaoh in jail with him had dreams, he interpreted their dreams. The interpretations came true, with the Baker being hanged and the Cupbearer restored to his prior position. However, although the Cupbearer had promised Joseph to tell Pharoah about him, once restored to his position he forgot all about Joseph.

This is where this Parashah ends, and we learn later that two years pass before the Cupbearer remembers Joseph.

Here we have a righteous and trustworthy man, Joseph, who did nothing wrong yet was attacked by his own brothers, sold into slavery, wrongly accused of a crime that he didn’t commit, and all because he did what he knew to be right.  He never lost his faith in God, which was evident when Joseph told the Baker and the Cupbearer that God is the one who can interpret dreams.

I see a lesson here for all of us: when tsouris (Yiddish for troubles) comes into our life, and we know we have done nothing wrong, we have to maintain our faith in God that these trials are temporary and will lead to something better. So long as we do what is right in God’s eyes, even when the world is against us, we can survive and come out on top.

Because 1 John 4:4 says

 ...he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.

and Romans 8:28 tells us

Furthermore, we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called in accordance with his purpose;

we can be assured that when we are having troubles and going through a bad time, God is still there, he is aware of what is happening, and he has a plan for us.

There are so many verses in the Bible, as well as stories like this one, that confirm God is always aware of what is happening in our life. We need to trust that God is in charge and even when he allows bad things to happen, we probably won’t understand why they happened until God’s plan comes to fruition.

In Joseph’s case, the sale into slavery placed him in Egypt, and the false accusation put him where he could, eventually, find his way to the Pharaoh, which resulted in the entire family of Jacob being saved from starvation. Not to mention most of the population of Egypt and the surrounding countries. Joseph came to understand this later and in Genesis 45 he tells his brothers that it wasn’t really them who put him where he was, but God, in order to save them all.

Job is another good example of bad things happening to a good person, and he also learned that God does what God does for God’s own reasons. Kohelet, the author of Ecclesiastes, learned this lesson the hard way, spending years seeking to understand why things are as they are, realizing that the effort was as useless as chasing the wind. His conclusion was to simply enjoy that which God gives you.

Too often I hear people who are going through some sort of tribulation blame it on a Satanic attack, which it could be, or they blame God, saying he is punishing them for something they did wrong. God does punish those who do wrong, especially the ones who are unrepentant, but for the most part, I believe that when we are trying to walk in the path of righteousness we will have troubles, but God will always be there to help us back on our feet.

It isn’t for nothing Yeshua told his Talmudim that anyone who wants to follow him (in other words, live a godly life) will have to carry their own execution stake.

Here’s what we need to take home from today’s message: when something bad happens to you, don’t blame God. And don’t blame Satan. In fact, don’t look to blame anyone, but instead look to the future because if you maintain your faith in God, the Bible proves that God will bring you out of this desert of tsouris you are in and place you in a garden of everlasting joy. It may not be right away, it may not even happen in your lifetime, but when we maintain our faith in God and do what is right in his eyes, we will spend eternity joyfully in his presence.

Thank you for being here; please remember to subscribe and I welcome your comments. It’s always nice to know someone takes the time to let me know what they think of my message. Even if you disagree with me.

Until next time, Shabbat shalom and Baruch HaShem!

Is Your Gift to the Lord or to Yourself?

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I was reading Exodus 35 this morning.  This is the second time Moses comes down from Mount Sinai and asks the people to bring the items needed for the construction of the Tabernacle. Exodus 35:21 says, “And they came, every one whose heart stirred him up, and every one whom his spirit made willing, and brought the Lord’s offering,...” (Pentateuch and Haftorah, Soncino Press, 1965.)

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When I read this it struck me that this isn’t saying everyone came, but only every one of them that was willing to give what they had. This means that there were, at least, some who did not contribute, even though they might have had some of the items needed.

Let’s consider that their gifts, which were articles of gold, silver, wood, yarn, etc., were what they had to offer, but today the gifts we can offer are our knowledge, discernment, spiritual understanding, and compassion. When I read the posts in all the different “Christian” or “Messianic” discussion groups I am a member of through Facebook, there are posts about the calendar, about the pronunciation of God’s name, about the Christian holidays (especially now with Christmas right around the corner), and other topics. These are the gifts they are offering, which should be given in order to please and bring glory to God.

Some argue with validation from the Bible, others are just making it up as they go along; some misuse the Bible by taking verses out of context to justify what they want to say, and others repeat what they have heard without any personal research or study- they agree just because they like what they hear.

In all of this, there is some truth, there are some lies, and I believe there are many tares planted by the Enemy meant to cause division and strife within the body of Believers.

Much too often people argue for their own glory.

There were the Israelites in the desert who did not bring their gifts for the Tabernacle, there are people today who post topics offering their gifts of understanding the Bible, which many times aren’t directly related to salvation (although they will swear they are), and there are gifts that people offer, specifically discernment and spiritual maturity, which help to strengthen the faith of others and lead us to a better understanding of what God wants from us.

Suddenly, it occurred to me that there is a common thread in all this: I have my gift (of understanding) from God I offer in this ministry and you have your gift (of understanding) from God you offer in a discussion group, and others have gifts that they never offer.  Your gift is your gift, my gift is my gift, and we don’t have to share the same gifts. Likewise, we don’t have to share the same understanding, and no one has the right to force anyone else to accept their offering.

If someone believes that they know how something is to be done, pronounced, when celebrated, or whatever and they share that knowledge, it is only reasonable to expect that they are certain they are correct. But when someone else disagrees, or they just don’t agree, that person should remember their gift of understanding should be offered for God’s glory. When they share that knowledge and someone else rejects it, they shouldn’t continue to try to convince the other person. Once they have been told, “I don’t accept that”, then they are done. When God told the Prophets to warn the people, he didn’t say berate them or ram it down their throats, he simply said to tell them what God told the Prophet. If the Prophet told the people, and they rejected what he said, then the Prophet had done his job and God said that was all he was supposed to do.

Tell people what you believe God has shown you, but don’t continue to “sell” it once someone disagrees or rejects what you say. For all you know, you might be wrong. We are, after all, human and none of us can be absolutely certain that our own iniquity and pridefulness doesn’t influence our understanding. If you can’t accept someone else rejecting what you know, then you have gone beyond what God wants from you. Once you tell someone what God has made clear to you, it is up to them to accept or reject.

If you cannot stop trying to convince someone that you are correct, then you are no longer working for the glory of God- you are only after your own glory, and the prideful desire to have someone tell you that you are right. In other words, if someone won’t agree with you and you are arguing your point over and over, you are no longer doing God’s work but you are helping Satan.

That’s a hard word to hear, but can you tell me that causing strife and dissension within Believers isn’t helpful to the Enemy of God’s people?

In the desert, those whose hearts were not stirred to bring an offering to God are like the people today who cannot stop trying to get someone to agree with them: what they have in common is that they are not doing something for the Lord, but only for themselves.

When you share your gift of knowledge or spiritual understanding with others, and they don’t agree, it is OK to ask them why. Maybe they have been misled or taught something different, or maybe they have a better understanding than you do! It is a good thing to ask them why they disagree. If they are willing to discuss the topic and you are both respectful and enjoying the debate, then go ahead and discuss it. However, if one of you becomes agitated and begins to judge the other, or either of you become nasty and are no longer really arguing the point but attacking each others’ knowledge or spirituality, then you have crossed the line.

And I hope you agree with me when I say that the one who stops the discussion is the one who has the spiritual and emotional maturity to realize they are no longer glorifying God.

Yeshua sent his Talmudim to preach the Good News about the Kingdom of God and told them to be as wise as serpents and gentle as doves. If you find yourself in a discussion that doesn’t demonstrate wisdom with gentility, then that isn’t what Yeshua wants and you aren’t glorifying God. The thing you should do then is to shake the dust from your sandals and leave.

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And, as always, your comments are welcomed.

Until next time, L’hitraot and Baruch HaShem!

How You Can Be Wrong When What You Say Is Right

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One of the nicest left-handed compliments I ever received was from a Regional Vice President under who I was a Sales Manager for a large home remodeling company (if you’re reading this, Jim, thank you so much for setting me straight back then.)

He told me that what I say is almost always correct, but because I say it the wrong way no one wants to hear it.

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I have heard and seen people who profess to be Christians telling others about what they believe to be the truth, and when someone disagrees with them, they attack that person with both spiritual and personal insults. What they often do that really pisses me off more than any other thing is this: when they are asked to be polite, they claim they are only telling the truth and that if we don’t listen to their wisdom then God is not in us and we are defending the wrong religion, or we are satanically influenced, or some other reprehensible attack.

To those people, I say this: because of your lack of respect for people, who are also God’s children, and because of your pride and self-righteous attitude, even if what you say is correct, you will be wrong because you will never convince anyone by insulting them. Beyond that, you do nothing more than present a poor example of a Christian and when you use the word of God to justify being a self-righteous sphincter muscle, you insult God.

I recently had a discussion with someone about the calendar. He has done a lot of research, using non-scriptural books from the Apocrypha, and insists that because I am comfortable using the standard Jewish calendar that most of the world uses, I am defending a specific religion which is teaching us to celebrate pagan holidays.

Let me digress for a moment: we all know about the “Holy Namers”,  and we also have “Flat Earthers”, but now we can add one more overly-zealous group, who are absolutely obsessed with the “correct” calendar for identifying the Shabbat and the festivals, and I am calling them “Lunartics.”

I never said he was wrong, or that I was right, I simply said I don’t agree. As for the details of our discussion, I’m not going to go into that here because they are not relevant to this message.

What is relevant about this event is that because he was so nasty and insulting, even though I asked multiple times for him to not insult me or my faith, and if he didn’t stop I would have to block him, I ended up having to block him.

And you know what? I’ll bet he is bragging about being blocked. I have seen other people do that, always telling others that they should listen and never listening to others until they get blocked, and then they brag about it as if they were like those Yeshua talks about being happy because they have been persecuted for his sake.

If someone asks you to please not be nasty, don’t defend yourself- apologize. You may not think you were nasty, but if they do, then you were. It’s that simple.

There are Bible verses telling us to speak the truth, how the wise accept correction and that fools reject correction. Often enough, these are used by nasty people preaching their own beliefs as justification for their attitude. They don’t realize how much of a hypocrite they are: they accuse others of refusing to hear the truth (which is their truth), and when asked to please be nice or not so nasty, they ignore the correction being given to them. They don’t want to be nice, or respectful, or even to recall that they were once also neophytes in the Lord and didn’t know things. I’ll wager they were taught with compassion, patience, and understanding, which they now sorely lack.

There is one Biblical verse I believe can never be taken out of context because it is universally applicable. That verse is found in 1 Corinthians 13:2, and it goes like this:

If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.

People who get angry, who become insulting on both a spiritual and personal level, who judge you and accuse you of being ignorant and refusing to hear the truth, all because you don’t agree with what they believe, can’t possibly have the love that a spiritually mature person has. Even if what they are saying is valid, no one will pay attention to them. They will be blocked or ignored, and that is the most shameful thing that can happen because maybe, just maybe, they really have something important to hear.

For my money, if someone is blocked because of what they say, it is more likely the way they are saying it instead of what they are saying. Once blocked, they haven’t performed a service for the Lord, they have helped the Enemy of the Lord because they have turned someone away from hearing God’s word. They leave a bad taste in the mouth of anyone who might be interested in learning about God, especially someone who may not be a Believer and is seeking knowledge.

They place themselves on a pedestal alongside the likes of Jeremiah, Isaiah, Ezekiel, Matthew, James, and Shaul, speaking as though they are the only ones with the true understanding of God’s word.

They aren’t full of the spirit, they are only full of themselves, and their mannerisms are shameful, loveless, and not just useless, but harmful to God’s plan of salvation.

As far as I am concerned, if you can’t talk to people compassionately, with understanding, patience, and love, then just shut the heck up because what you say, no matter how correct, will be ignored; and all you will be doing is making it that much harder for the next person God might send to them to make any headway.

To conclude today’s rant, I want you to know that I have thought about this topic and asked God to show me if it is a result of my personal peeve or if it is something that stems from righteous anger. I confess I am still not sure, so I leave it up to you: do you think I am just venting on a personal level or am I justified in being angry and saying what I have said with regard to those people who behave as I have described?

Thank you for being here and please don’t forget to subscribe, check out my whole website (messianicmoment.com) and maybe consider (if you like what you hear from me) to buy a few of my books.

And, as always, I welcome your comments and only ask whether you agree or disagree, just be nice.

Until next time, L’hitraot and Baruch HaShem!

Parashah Vayyishlach 2019 (He sent) Genesis 32:4 – 36

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Jacob is on his way back to the land of his father and he hears that Esau is coming to meet him, with 400 men! Jacob assumes that Esau is still peeved about the firstborn rights thing, so he creates three groups of animals, each group separated from the other, to be a gift to Esau in the hope that it will appease his anger.

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Jacob comes to the Jabbok River, which is by Shechem in the Jordan Rift Valley, and everyone crosses over while Jacob remains as the last one to cross, making sure everyone is safely on the other side. As night comes, he wrestles with a man until the morning, when the man (who we learn is an angel) strikes Jacob in the hip, partially disabling him. Jacob holds on and the man asks to be released, but Jacob won’t release him until he blesses Jacob. The angel gives him a new name, Israel (one who wrestled with God.)

With Esau coming, Jacob sends his gifts and splits his camp into two, leading off with the handmaidens of his wives with their children, then Leah with her children, and in the rear, Rachel and Joseph.

Esau comes and they reconcile, with Esau going back to his land (Edom) and Jacob staying behind, settling in Shechem on a plot of land he buys from Hamor, the king of Shechem.

Later, after Jacob is settled, Shechem, the son of Hamor sees Jacob’s daughter Dinah alone and rapes her. Afterward, he falls in love with her and asks his father to get her to be his wife. Jacob and all the family, especially Levi and Shimon (who are her brothers by Leah) are disgusted by this vile act, but they agree to allow Dinah to become Shechem’s wife under one condition: all the men in the city must be circumcised. Hamor convinces the men to undergo this painful and debilitating operation (they didn’t have packages of frozen peas to act as a cold compress) because then all the possessions of Jacob will be theirs.  The men undergo the operation and on the third day, the most painful when they can’t even walk, Levi and Shimon attack the village and slaughter all the men, taking all their goods as booty.

Jacob is afraid the surrounding tribes will attack him for this evil act, and God tells him to go to Beth-El. On the way, Benjamin is born to Rachel, who dies in childbirth and is buried outside Bethlehem.

This parashah ends with the death of Isaac and the lineage of Esau.

So far in this book of the Torah, we know that Abraham purchased land in Hebron and that Jacob purchased land in Shechem (where, eventually, Joseph will be buried.) Did you know that these two places which are legally owned by the descendants of the Patriarchs (i.e., the Jewish people) are forbidden to Jews?

When I was in Israel in 2016, our guide told us that Jews going to the Cave of the Patriarchs was a dangerous trip, as it was surrounded by Arab towns and they have attacked Jews trying to visit the cave. As for Shechem, it is still under Arab control and here is the warning sign that is on the fence surrounding the territory:

If Jews want to visit the burial place of Joseph, they may be killed and there will be no legal action taken against the killers!

These aren’t the only places where Jews/Israeli’s are being kept from the land they legally own. The West Bank, which is really the section of Israel called Shomron (also known as Samaria) has historically been possessed by the Jewish people. Yet, the Jews that are now settled there and have built homes and cities are under attack by the Palestinian people, claiming that the land is their land and the Israeli’s are invaders!

For the record, there are no such people as the “Palestinian people”- this is a term that Yasser Arafat created and is propaganda. Before Israel was created in 1948, the North Syrian shepherds would often cross the boundary with their flocks and, after denuding the territory, return to their own country. That is the full extent of their “claim” to be inhabitants.  The only “real” Palestinian people, if we want to get technical, were the Jewish people living there after the Romans destroyed the temple in Jerusalem in 73 AD and renamed Judea to Philistia (after the Philistines, the ancient enemy of the Jews.)

There was never any Arab interest in any part of the land that the Israeli’s have settled in until AFTER they were there and making the land economically feasible. There has never been a permanent Arab settlement in that part of the world. It wasn’t until after Israel was declared to be a separate state that the surrounding Arab nations made claims of ownership.

God promised that land to the descendants of Abraham, and he confirmed that promise to Isaac and Jacob. When God says something once, you can be pretty sure it will be. When he says it twice, there can be no doubt at all that it will happen that way. But if God says something three times, then you can bet your life on it! In fact, God repeats the promise to give the land to the descendants of Abraham to Moses, as well, and gives Joshua the boundary lines of each tribe and orders him to take the land from those who were already there (Joshua 15-20.)

The only way to be certain of the ownership of all the land which God promised to give to the children of Israel is to start with the belief that God exists, that he created everything in the universe, and that everything on, in, around, under, and above the earth belongs to God. When we accept that as truth, then ownership of the land cannot be contested. God gave that land to the descendants of Abraham through Isaac: this is an important point- God did not promise this land to the descendants of Ishmael but to the descendants of Isaac and Jacob. God told Moses that the all the land from the Mediterranean Sea to the Euphrates River belongs to the Children of Israel (Exodus 23:31.)

The British promised Israel almost all the land that God said we should have in their Balfour Declaration (1917) but by the time Israel actually got the land, the size was only a fraction of what had been promised to them. Yet, God has strengthened his people and they have expanded, taking back much of their ancient boundaries.

One day God will make sure that his promise is completely fulfilled, and when that day comes only those who have accepted Yeshua as their Messiah and have stood by Israel will be able to see God’s promise come to fruition.

Thank you, as always, for being here and please don’t hesitate to subscribe and make comments, if you want to.

I wish you all Shabbat shalom, and until next time, L’hitraot and Baruch Ha Shem!

Do You Really Love Me?

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The answer has to be, “Of course, not. I don’t really know you at all.”

But how many people say “I love you” to each other because that is what they think they should do as Believers? Frankly, I don’t do it, and I don’t appreciate it.

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I also don’t appreciate being called “Brother” by people I barely know, such as (for instance) Facebook friends who are friends only because we share the same discussion groups or like each other’s postings. I have two sisters and no brothers, and a name my parents gave me that everyone calls me. They call me Steve or Steven, but no one calls me Stevie (the last person to call me that is recovering well and has recently been moved out of the ICU.)

I am a brother to the other members of the body of the Messiah, but that is a spiritual connotation. I find too many people throw around the terms “brother”, “sister”, and say “I love you” like it is a hot potato.

To me, love is a very serious thing and not to be taken lightly. It carries with it more than affectionate feelings for another: love demands obligations and responsibilities to each another, and strangers saying it to each other is something that is not only a misuse of the feeling but is, in fact, a lie. It is over-spiritualizing a relationship, and (I will probably offend someone now) I think it is done by those who want to show how “spiritual” they are. If you want to show me how spiritual you are, then do spiritual things, do good works, and stop thinking that calling me “brother” or telling me that you love me is proof that you are a godly person.

Too often people over-spiritualize things. You know who I mean (and if it is you, I am sorry if you feel offended): they always speak in biblical terms, they only talk about God and his wonders and how they love him, and they always answer your questions or address your problems with a biblical quote, as if that will magically fix things.  Hey! I know the Bible as well, if not better, than many, and if I am still struggling with something, quoting Proverbs or what Shaul wrote to a congregation of Gentile Believers isn’t going to be of any real use to me. I already know it…what I need is a real-life way to apply it told to me in plain language that I can understand.

People struggling within the world need a real-world solution, or (at least) a spiritual solution that they can understand in real-world terms.

It’s true that those of us who have accepted Yeshua as our Messiah and have the Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit) dwelling inside us can receive spiritual knowledge and understanding. That is a good thing, but if we can’t interpret it into real-world understanding, then that knowledge is useless to the ones who really need it, meaning those without the Ruach HaKodesh.

It is like what Shaul wrote when he wrote about Glossolalia (speaking in tongues) in 1Corinthians 14. What he said, essentially, was that when someone is speaking in tongues, it is spiritual communication between that person and God, but if no one else is around to interpret it the person should remain silent. The message received is useless to edify or help others if it cannot be interpreted into plain, everyday English (or Hebrew or Greek, as the case may have been back then.)

Birds can see light waves that humans cannot; dogs and cats can hear soundwaves that humans cannot; people speaking a language can’t be understood by others unless they also speak that language. When we accept Yeshua as our Messiah and have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, we are no longer of this world, but we are still in it!

We are to be a light to the world by spreading the Good News of the Messiah and how he makes it possible for us to enter the Kingdom of God: but, if we operate in a light wave that no one can see, or if we speak only in spiritual soundwaves that a non-Believer can’t hear, what good are we? The message we want to deliver will not be understood and we will have failed to help that person find salvation.

When someone hugs me without my permission or tells me that they love me or calls me brother, and we are really nothing more than acquaintances or friends, I feel uncomfortable. I know many others that feel that way, both Believers and non-Believers. Those who are Believers won’t be offended if you call them by name, and (in my opinion) it is better for you to address them as you would anyone else instead of acting and speaking “spiritually.”

If anyone is still willing to talk to me after this message, then please respect my wishes and don’t call me “brother” (except for my sisters Wendy and Gayle, of course) and don’t tell me you love me when it is just in a spiritual sense.

I believe the love we share together is not really for each other, but for God.

Thank you for being here; please subscribe and share me out. I always welcome your comments and don’t forget to check out my website, messianicmoment.com.

Until next time, L’hitraot and Baruch HaShem!