בס“ד

Parashat Sh’mot (Names) Exodus 1:1-6:1

Haftarah: Isaiah 27:6-28:13, 29:22-23

In this week’s Torah portion one learns that if you want to be used to the fullest by HaShem, you must realize that your plans for your life might need to be changed in a drastic way. We are all familiar with the account of Moses standing up for his fellow Hebrew and killing the Egyptian who was afflicting him. When Moses realized that the news of this had reached Pharaoh, and that Pharaoh intended to kill him, he fled from Egypt to Midian. When G-d appeared to Moses, one of the things He said was,

“And now go, I have sent you to Pharaoh והוצא My people, the Children of Israel from Egypt.” Exodus 3:10

The first thing that HaShem instructed Moses to do was to go! Moses was very content to raise his new family in Midian and to live out his days there. But G-d had a very different plan for his life. When Moses saw the burning bush, he could have simply ignored it, but he did not.  In other words, Moses responded to HaShem’s act to capture his attention. All too often people are not open to G-d’s methods of communicating to them. G-d moves, but we are so consumed by the things of our life that we fail to turn aside.

Notice that I did not translate the Hebrew words והוצא. There is actually two Hebrew words here, “ו” which means “and” and the word “הוצא”, which is a hiphil imperative verb. The imperative is the command form and the hiphil is the causative stem in Hebrew grammar. In other words, Moses is being commanded by G-d to cause the Children of Israel come out of Egypt. Therefore it ought to be translated as “and you will make to come forth”. How could one man make the Children of Israel to be set free from bondage and to be brought forth from Egypt? The answer is that Moses certainly could not do so alone.

Here is the exciting message of this passage; when one responds to G-d all things become a possibility. What do I mean, “All things”? The proper answer is that His will, no matter how beyond our ability, can become a reality in our life. Does G-d’s will becoming the reality of your life excite you?

I watch via the internet several messages each week. This past week (the first week of 2012) I heard several popular pastors, boldly shout from their pulpits, “This is your year”. People in the audience were so excited to hear these “men of G-d” proclaim this declaration. I suppose that people are looking for encouragement and those in trying situations take consolation in hearing one that they admire proclaim, “This is your year!”

I hope that we are not so spiritually blinded to fall prey to such vain and empty proclamations. What should excite us is that if we respond in faith to Messiah Yeshua, this year, HIS WILL can be the reality of our lives.

Shabbat Shalom