From Help To Sacrifice

 

Shalom to you all.  Once again, I find myself in somewhat of a quandary.  Some of the main points of the message of Shabbat are difficult to expound upon without going into great detail.  So, regretfully I must leave the deeper points alone.  But, I can bring to light a very peculiar point that I’m sure will bless you all. 

In last week’s Parasha, Moses was faced with some very helpful advice from his father-in-law, Jethro.  Moses’ task was to bring about understanding of the Torah to the entire population of the children of Israel, a monumental task, to be sure, and warranted the advice of Jethro. 

In verse #17 of Exodus 18, Jethro says, “The thing that you are doing is not good”.  We should all take a moment to pause at this point and reflect on the call, the business, the ministry, the very life that we lead today.  How much of your effort could be better served with some help?  Who do you have around you that is waiting in the shadows that could help you in the thing that you are trying to accomplish?  It is from this perspective that Moses yields to the advice of his wise old father-in-law, and from that yielding, has set in motion judicial concepts that we see even in our own government today.  Now, let us look at our Lord and Savior as an example.

With the salvation of the world at stake; your salvation and mine to be exact, Yeshua carried the weight of the world on His shoulders.  The Roman soldiers placed the beam upon His shoulders, to carry His cross, the very thing that He was to be sacrificed upon.  The Lord endured the torture, the ridicule, and the shame of all the demonic hoards, yet He pressed on. 

It was on His way to Golgotha that He stumbled and fell.  Our Lord and Savior needed help.  Think about it.  The creator of heaven and earth, himself, needed help.  One of the soldiers called upon Simon of Cyrene to carry the cross for Him. 

My brothers and sisters, I am so grateful that our Lord and Savior did not call upon supernatural strength to accomplish the work for us.  No, He allowed someone to help Him so that we could realize that we too need help at times.  Let us never forget that the sacrifice of our Lord and Savior was accomplished with the help from one who needed salvation.  Selah…

We should be careful how we deal with and judge those whom God has placed in a position to be our helpers.  For even our Father, God, saw fit that one in need of salvation would help accomplish the plan of salvation. 

Lastly, my friends, let us take Jethro’s words to heart in verse #23, “If thou shalt do this thing, and God commands thee so, then thou shalt be able to endure, and all His people shall also go to their place in peace.”  So, I say to you, do this thing and go to your place in peace.  Amen.