More Meals, Less Messages
May 28, 2023Pastor Travis presented "More Meals, Less Messages" this week. A video of the message is here.
[Conversation Starters will begin again with the start of the next official life groups session a little later this summer.]
Hopefully you were in church to hear this message or have watched the video since. I say this because it's the only way you'll fully appreciate the clash I'm about to describe, though in the end it does make some sense.
Travis focused on Acts 2:36-46 where the four elements of Devotion to God are layed out: Teaching, Fellowship, Meals, and Prayer (as Travis enumerated them). He mentioned that the Greek word for "devotion" referred to keeping first things first, being focused, staying in the game, etc.; just as you might imagine.
You'll appreciate my total surprise and confusion when I do a search on "devotion" on the Hebrew side of the Bible and find what appears to be uses totally at odds with what we readily think of as devoted or devotion.
The Hebrew word often translated as devotion or devoted is cherem (חֵרֶם). It's use is largely in the "devoted to destruction" sense, though there is a "set apart" nature to it as well. But overwhelmingly "devoted" is used to describe things that stand in the way of believing and must be destroyed. Interestingly, there is a Greek word for "devotion" that also has this "devoted to destruction" sense (anathematizo). I breathed a sigh of relief (somewhat) when I got to a fundamental or root definition of cherem - "totally given to the Lord" - even if that was often in the form of destruction.
One of Travis' points was that submitting comes first, then you will be guided to the right things to do, not vice versa. This reminded me of a Torah instruction "Do, and understand." Specifically, Exodus 24:7: "We will do everything the Lord has said; we will hear (obey, understand)." Wouldn't you think "hear" would come first, then do? But really, how well do you understand something until you do it? When you do it, you get it. But here's the catch: humans don't naturally do the right thing unless they are motivated to do the right thing. And what better to motivate you than God, assuming you have faith in (have submitted to) God. It's not a coincidence that this instruction to do-then-understand was given right after the very dramatic delivering of the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai. So the path becomes: submit to God's will and instruction, then do that, then you'll understand. And be at peace.
A derivative of shalom (peace) is translated as "wholly devoted" four times in the OT. It's not surprising that devotion and being at peace are related.
Here's another piece in the Torah I found weird, amazing, and ultimately re-assuring... It's about the Nazirite (a person making a vow). And it warns of being too devoted to God, you might say. It has to do with inhibiting the taking of a vow to God ("If you will___, I will ___). How exactly does this relate to devotion? The root of Nazirite, nazir (נָזִיר), is another Hebrew word sometimes translated as devoted or consecrated. Like cherem, it also implies a sense of "set apart." As is often the case in the Torah, something that the Torah does not approve of is not outright banned but rather bounded by very restrictive laws in such a way that it eventually dies out on its own. Slavery is another such issue.
The Nazarite laws are given in Numbers 6:2-21. "If a man or woman wants to make a special vow of dedication to the Lord" then they may have no wine or anything of grapes, no cutting hair, and no going near a dead body. If the vow is broken, it must be restarted for the same period as the original vow. Here's the kicker... When the vow is all said and done, the Nazirite must bring a SIN offering to the Temple. Ultimately, God sees this as a sin! So, be careful, not all forms of "devotion" are smiled upon. Thankfully, when it's all done, the Nazirite can drink wine again!
One last tidbit... It appears that Paul was a Nazarite. See Acts 18:18, "Paul stayed on in Corinth for some time. Then he left the brothers and sisters and sailed for Syria, accompanied by Priscilla and Aquila. Before he sailed, he had his hair cut off at Cenchreae because of a vow he had taken."
Bonus
Judeo-Christian Values
We've all heard the phrase "Judeo-Christian Values." And I bet you have a general sense of what that means. But, can you list any of the values?
I was a bit shocked (but not really, I suppose) when a search on the phrase yielded more negative discussion than positive and suggested that the concept was nothing more than an early 1900s political invention.
Such is the world we inhabit today.
You should watch this Dennis Prager 5-minute video on the topic: here. I don't think he meant this to be an exhaustive list, but rather his "top ten."
Bonus
Shavuot (שָׁבוּעוֹת) and Pentecost (Πεντηκοστή)
Today, 5/28/2023, is Pentecost for Christians. Two days ago, Friday (5/26/23), was Shavuot for Jews (which actually started Thursday after sunset).
These two, Shavuot and Pentecost, are the same holidays in terms of timing, but quite different in terms of what they're all about. Shavuot is the Jewish holiday celebrating the delivery of the Ten Commandments at Mt. Sinai (Jewish tradition holds that God delivered the entire Torah), and Pentecost is when the Holy Spirit, with "a mighty wind," descended upon the apostles following Jesus' resurrection (see Acts 2). Pentecost is sometimes refered to as the birthday of the Christian Church.
The commonality is "50 days" which is what Pentecost means in Greek, 50. Shavuot happens 50 days after Passover for Jews and Pentecost is 50 days after Easter for Christians.
For Judaism, Shavuot is the Feast of Weeks, which is what it literally means (7-day periods), or the Feast of the Harvest. It's mentioned many times throughout scripture, but it's most clear description is in Leviticus 23:15-22 (in this chapter, all seven feasts, or "appointed times," are described; for a summary, click here). See also Deuteronomy 16:9-12.
Technically, per Leviticus, Shavuot is the day after the seventh Sabbath from Passover which makes it's seven weeks times seven days and that equals 49 days plus one more, or 50. Deuteronomy says seven weeks after you "begin to put the sickle to the standing grain." Seven is a very important number in the Torah harkening back ultimately to the seven days of Creation. Observant Jews literally count each and every day, along with prayers, getting from Passover to Shavuot. It's called "Counting of the Omer." Omer means "sheaf," a measurement of grain. It's all related to harvest times. The Counting of the Omer is commanded in Leviticus 23:9–14.
Shavuot is a pilgrim festival in that adult Jewish men are to return to Jerusalem for the event. It is also a holy day in that no work is to be done (like Sabbath). Wheat bread made of the newly harvested grain is offered to God. Shavuot also includes candle-lit dinners and staying up "all night" to read the Torah. Eating dairy on Shavuot is also popular. This practice relates to the kosher laws and to the metaphor of the Torah being "nourishing."
Just as the Last Supper was likely a Passover celebration (today known as a Passover Seder), Pentecost likely happened while the apostles (and thousands of others) were gathered in one place for a festival: Shavuot, Feast of Weeks/Harvest.
The story of Ruth takes place during the barley harvest, which coincides with the time of Shavuot. Ruth's journey to convert to Judaism and join the Jewish people is seen as an example of devotion and loyalty to the Torah. She is in Jesus' genealogy as she was the great-grandmother of King David from whom Jesus descended (through Mary his mother, of course).
For a brief rundown on the Christian Pentecost, click here.