Acharei Mot / Kedoshim

"YOU SHALL BE HOLY FOR I, YEHOVAH, AM HOLY" - part 2

This week Parashah is a double portion. In it, it has the most fundamental concept in the Jewish religion: God is Holy and we are asked, by following God’s teachings, His Torah, to set our moral standards to the highest degree possible and emulate - imitate - God’s Holiness: Vay’daber Yehovah el Moshe lemor: Daber el kol adat bnei Yisrael ve’amarta alehem kedoshim tihu ki kadosh ani Yehovah Eloheikhem... “Yehovah spoke to Moshe, saying, ‘Speak to the entire assembly of the sons of Israel, and say to them, “You shall be holy for I, Yehovah your God, am Holy... You shall revere every man his mother and his father, and you shall observe My Shabbats; I am Yehovah your God.”’” Vayikra 19:1-2

Rav Shaul, the apostle Paul, an observant Jewish man, is reiterating this concept by speaking to us through ages of Jewish wisdom when he says to do just that, be imitators of God’s Holiness, i.e. the Moshiah: “Whether, therefore, you eat or you drink or whatever you do, do all things to the glory of God. Give no offense both to Yehudim and to Hellenes or to the Kehillah of God, even as I also please all men in all things, not seeking my own advantage but that of the many, that they may be saved. Become imitators of me as I also am an imitator of Moshiach.” 1 Corinthians 10:31 — 11:1

The apostle tells us to be imitators of Messiah who is merciful, gracious, loving and long-suffering.

But the first enduring value that God tells us in the beginning of this Parashah is that holiness begins at home. Respect and reverence for parents supersedes all other commandments. When people honor their parents, God regards it as if they honor Him, and the reverse is true. Disrespect for God starts with showing disrespect for parents. If one has no respect for a person how will he show respect for his words? If we do not honor God, how would we honor His commandments?

It is surprising to hear the answer that Yeshua gave to a scribe, when this scribe sought to find out from Him which of the commandments is the most important of all. Yeshua answered him: Shema Yisrael, Yehovah Eloheinu, Yehovah Echad. Mark 12:28-29 "Hear O Israel, the Lord our God. The Lord is One," quoting from Devarim (Deuteronomy) 6:4.

Even though the Shema seems to us to be more of a declaration of faith, a Jewish creed, if you will, our Messiah tells us that it is a commandment. He is clearly establishing that our first duty, our first responsibility to God as believers, is to sanctify His Name in this world. To proclaim that there is one and only one who is Holy. Holiness, in Hebrew 'Kadosh,' is the word that designates sanctification. We are to sanctify, to set apart, God from everything and everyone else. He is Holy and He is the only One who is Holy, and other persons, places or things are only holy as He has touched them, choosing them for His service. We are commanded by Yeshua to recite the Shema, and, in doing so, to declare God’s holiness.

Therefore, holiness is not an abstract or a mystic idea, but a regulative principle in our everyday lives, because the Hebrew word ‘Kadosh’ also connotes separation. We are to make a distinction between the holy and the profane, we are to separate from sin. But God did not leave it up to our imagination of what it means to be holy; He gave us specific instructions. He begins with the instruction to observe His Shabbats, plural, because observing the Shabbat goes beyond the seventh day of the week. It includes the sabbatical seventh year and the year of jubilee as well as the Holy Days which we are to observe as reminders to our sinful nature and the redemptive plan of God laid-out through the symbolism of these days. The observance of Shabbat is a marker for our compassion towards our fellow human being as well as to nature, for it, too, testifies that God is the Creator and the Master of the universe. The observance of His Shabbats is a marker for our spiritual growth.

Our holiness begins by understanding the fundamental principles of His commandments and we should pay attention to His commandments and perform them for the simple reason given here that He is our God, He is Holy, and He only wants what is good for us. The expression “I am Yehovah your God” - ani Yehovah Eloheikhem is repeated in this Parashah 18 times. Therefore, this Parashah must contain important instructions for our walk in holiness so that we should pay attention:

— We are not to turn to idols, or to foreign gods, because our God is Yehovah - ani Yehovah Eloheikhem

As believers, we should be mindful of all these commandments and their observance should be a manifestation of our new nature in Messiah, because we should live our life as in His presence. If we love our God we should do what He asked us to do, for He concludes: Vihiytem li kedoshim ki kadosh ani Yehovah “You shall be holy for Me, for I, Yehovah, am Holy.”

Notice that our God, Yehovah, is asking us to be holy for Him, not for anyone else. We obey His commandments and do the mitzvot, the good deeds, not for people to see how “good” we are, but to be obedient to Him and worship Him with our actions. He will be pleased and receive us in heaven with the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant... Enter into the joy of your Lord.'” Matthew 25:21

Shabbat Shalom!