וְאֵלֶּה שְמוֹת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל הַבָּאִים מִצְרָיְמָה אֵת יַעֲקֹב אִיש וּבֵיתוֹ בָּאוּ׃
But the midwives feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but let the male children live. (Exodus 1:17) Here’s a question to get started… “Who do we have to obey?” All authority in this world is established by Adonai. This is one of the seven commandments given to Noach and his descendants. If one is set in a context in which there is an authority that doesn't fulfill its task, that doesn't obey what is established by God or that forces its subjects to break any of Adonai's commandments, one is not forced to obey that authority. We must obey God rather than men that He set as representatives of our God on earth. Every man must obey and fear the authority figures that the Eternal has set upon him; parents, elder siblings, teachers, rabbis, other spiritual leaders, police authorities, politicians, judges, etc.. The one who rebels against the authorities’ rebels against the Almighty. We must obey the authorities in everything as long as they don’t contradict the Torah of Adonai. The Hebrew midwives submitted to the authority that God had set over them, the king of Egypt. However, there was a point in which a conflict between authority and principles arose. The Pharaoh of Egypt wanted to force them to murder all male firstborns of the Hebrews. This is a violation of the commandment, "you shall not murder". So, on the one hand, there was the commandment regarding submission to all authorities; and on the other hand, there was the commandment against murder. The midwives could not fulfill both. The principle stating that if there is a conflict between two commandments, that one of them has preference over the other and it is not necessary to obey it, applies here. In this case, they opted for the commandment that forbids murder, because it has preference over the commandment to obey the authorities. The reason they could do that is because they feared Adonai more than the human authority that God had established over them. This attitude was the right one. When there is a conflict between authorities our God should ALWAYS comes first. Adonai protected and blessed the midwives for not obeying an illegal commandment from the king of Egypt. But there more to this story… let’s continue…
The Hebrew midwives feared the Almighty more than Pharaoh and that's why they didn't kill the Hebrew male children who were born, which was the order from the king. When the king reprimanded them, they responded with something not totally true. Is it allowed to use lies in order to save lives? To lie is to say words that twist the truth. Is it true that Hebrew women were vigorous (the Hebrew text literally says that they were "animals" implying that they were able to give birth without help like animals do) and that they gave birth before the midwife could get to them? It is very possible that it was so sometimes, especially given the severe situation all the people were in.
It is also true that the midwives actually assisted the Hebrew women when giving birth (v.17) though it was not always so. Thus, we could understand that the midwives' words were just true in part. They didn't tell Pharaoh the whole truth to save their lives and Adonai honoured them for having acted that way. According to Jewish law, it is allowed to break almost any commandment in order to save a life in a very critical moment. The halachah – practical Jewish law – establishes that it is allowed to break all the commandments except three – blasphemy, murder and adultery – in order to save a life. This principle is called pikuach nefesh (salvation of the soul/life). The Commandments were given to live by them not to die by obeying them (Leviticus 18:5). In this way, what the midwives did could be justified. They used a half-truth to save their own lives as well as others'. Rachav lied to save lives (Joshua 2:5). Michal, King David's wife, used a lie to save lives (1 Samuel 19:14, 17). There are other examples in King David's life in which he hides truth or lies to save lives (1 Samuel 21:2, 13; 27:10-11). We must remember the fact that King David was a man after Adonai's heart who knew that God desires truth in the inner parts and who was aware that only the one who speaks truth in his heart will dwell in the presence of Adonai, as it is written in Psalm 15:1-2: "A Psalm of David. O LORD, who shall sojourn in your tent? Who shall dwell on your holy hill? He who walks blamelessly and does what is right and speaks truth in his heart.” And in Psalm 26:3 king David himself says: "For Your mercy is before my eyes; and I have walked in Your truth." Our God cannot lie. Lying does not come from Him. HaSatan – an angel who rebelled against haShem – is the father/origin of the lie (John 8:44). The children of Adonai don't associate with lying and if they lie by error, they repent in order to avoid being judged together with the father of lies. I am personally convinced that we should never use lies, no matter how critical the moment is, not even to save lives. In a grave situation, there are other ways of speaking to hide a truth that could harm or even cause someone's death. May God help us never to lie and may He give us wisdom to know how to hide part of the truth when necessary to avoid damage to others. Lastly in my opening… Moshe had a strong desire to help his Hebrew brothers. He felt identified with them much more than with the Egyptian royal house. This was from Adonai who created him to be the deliverer of the people of Israel. However, the time for the people's deliverance was not ripe yet. Moshe did all he could with his youth's strength to help his people, but his attempt was a complete failure. In his anger, he killed an Egyptian and that wasn't the way to free the people. The people of Israel didn't acknowledge him as their deliverer, in spite of the fact that God had called him to be that. The reason of the failure was because it wasn't time yet and because he used his own strength instead of working with Adonai. Moshe had a lot to learn. His character wasn't prepared for enduring the people's complaints in the desert. He also was too self-confident. He hadn't learned to walk in the time of haShem or working with Him. He needed many years in the desert training to become the deliverer of the people of Israel.
Moshe thought that he could commit murder and get away with it. He hid the body in the sand, but can sin be hidden? For how long? Maybe it's possible to hide many sins from the eyes of men but not from the eyes of the One who sees it all, even the heart's motivation. Sooner or later, all things that men hide will come to light, as well as all works that have been done in the dark. There is nothing hidden before the Heavenly Court before whom one day, every single person will have to account for his/her deeds. Besides, in order to be a public character, acknowledged by the people, one has to live his private life as if it were public. A heaven-approved leader cannot go around hiding his sins; they will come to light sooner or later. And so it was that Moshe's sin came to Pharaoh's ears, and he tried to kill him. Proverbs 28:13 tells us, "He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy." This chain of though as I studied gave me the crux of this teaching… Obedience is required.
1 John 2:3-6 says, “Now we know that we have come to know Him by this—if we keep His commandments. 4 The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God is truly made perfect. We know that we are in Him by this— 6 whoever claims to abide in Him must walk just as He walked.”
A woman told a pastor that a relative of hers had died. He asked if he was a Christian. She said, "Oh, yes, he made a profession of faith and was baptized at age seven. He never went back to church or read the Bible in the seventy years after that, but I'm sure he was a Christian." Such a claim is astonishing in light of what John wrote in these verses. Obedience is a central theme throughout Scripture. From the story of creation to the end of Revelation, it's difficult to turn a page that doesn't deal - directly or indirectly - with God's call for obedience. Remember, Yeshua not only said, "Believe me," he also said, "Follow me." God places a high premium on our obedience. In our time, however, obeying God's commands often is ignored, dismissed, or glossed over. Why? Because obedience slaps us in the face. It confronts our sin. It challenges our lives. It runs contrary to our unwritten mantra: Who are you to tell me what to do? Yet God commands us to obey, not because He is on a power trip, but rather because He wants what's best for us. God's commands are not to kill our fun, but to increase our enjoyment. Disobey those commands and quickly you will see how much sadness you can experience. God's commands are not to box us in but for our protection. Again, disobey those commands and quickly you will see how much trouble you will be in.
I think that there are four realities for obeying his commands that are revealed in 1 John chapter 2. I want to share what I feel obedience does for our spiritual journey.
I. Obedience proves our salvation
John begins by saying that "we know that we have come to know Him" (1 John 2:3). John is saying that not only can we know God, but that we can know that we know God. In other words, we often know in our head, accepting facts about God and recognizing that we acted on such facts. But sometimes our heart doubts. John is saying that we can know in our hearts, too. And one of those evidences or signs of knowing that we know God is that we obey His commandments. Let me be very clear, John is not answering the question, "How does one become a Believer?" He is not saying that if you want to be saved or receive God's grace or know God, then you have to obey. He is saying, "Here's how you know that you know God: it's manifested in the way your live. It's manifested in your obedience." In other words, we know that we know God because we keep His commandments. John is not teaching that salvation is conditional on obedience. John is teaching that salvation is evidenced by obedience. And, in turn, that obedience contributes to our assurance of salvation. Obedience is a sign that we know God, recognizing that God expects His people to live a certain way - His way. In the Tanakh, the prophet Hoshea complained that the people of Israel did not know God. "There is no faithfulness, no love, no acknowledgement of God in the land" (Hoshea 4:1). How did he know this? He immediately confirmed this by saying, "There is only cursing, lying and murder, stealing and adultery" (Hoshea 4:2). What had the people done? Each of those actions was a violation of the Ten Commandments. Proof of our knowledge of God involves knowing his character and requirements and living in obedience to those requirements. How do we know that we know God? The test is whether we keep His commandments. Do you obey God's Word? Is the Bible your final rule for faith and practice? Be careful how you answer for many people place a greater emphasis on traditions than on the teachings of the Bible. In addition, in American Christian culture today we have assigned the obligations of Christianity (like make disciples, go into all the world, give ten percent of our money) to a few, while keeping the privileges of Christianity (like experiencing God's comfort, receiving God's forgiveness, knowing God's guidance) for us all. Still others think that keeping a few commandments is enough. Remember, partial obedience is another name for disobedience. The Nobel Prize-nominated Christian, Henry Shafer, who is a chemist who teaches at the University of Georgia, tells the story of how he came to reject Christianity. He had been raised in a nominally Christian home, attending a mainline Presbyterian church, and one day in the midst of a discussion in the kitchen, he made a point to his father about an ethical question by saying, "Look, Dad, the Bible says such and such." And his dad responded by saying, "I know what the Bible says. It's wrong." Henry Shafer said, at that moment he decided that Christianity must be bunk, because his dad claimed to be a Christian and yet rejected the teachings of the Bible. Sadly, this is a common occurrence in America, where churches of the frozen chosen are gathered. In God's mercy, God did a work of grace in Henry Shafer's heart and brought him to saving faith in Yeshua later on. And then, he realized that it wasn't that being a believer was bunk. It was that his father's profession of faith was bunk. You see, if you believe the Living God, you will believe His word; you will trust His word; you will acknowledge it as your final rule of faith and practice. You'll not just do it in the abstract; you'll do it where it hurts; you'll do it even when it's hard to obey.
II. Obedience transforms our lives
By way of contrast, in verse four, John restated verse three with a warning: "The man who says, 'I know Him,' but does not do what He commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him" (1 John 2:4). His point is: If you claim to know God but your life is not changed by knowing Him, then that is a certain sign that you don't know God. He is not saying that the truth is in one's head and has not made it to their hearts, like we try to do, letting people off the hook. He is saying that the person who does not keep God's commands does not have the truth at all. Why? Because the truth of God turns our lives upside down. It changes us. It transforms us. Once you have the truth it fills you with a fire in your belly and a love for the living God; it changes everything. God's truth always leads to love; it always leads to obedience; it always leads to a transformed life. So, when that transformed life is not present, you can be certain that the person has never had the truth; he or she has never known God. This reality is all throughout Scripture, just said in a variety of ways. In Romans 5 Rav Sha’ul says, "Grace always reigns in righteousness." In Ephesians 2, R’ Sha’ul says, "Salvation always leads to obedience." In Romans 8, R’ Sha’ul says, "Justification is always accompanied by sanctification." In James 2, James says, "Faith always shows itself in works." Here in 1 John 2, John is saying the same thing: Truth always expresses itself in transformation. You will see change!
III. Obedience springs from our love
John continued, "But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him" (1 John 2:5). In this verse John broadens the scope from "obey his commands" to "obeys his word." But it is second half of the verse that arrests my attention, "God's love is truly made complete in him." John seems to be saying that our love for God is a reflection of God's love for us and a response to it, so that our keeping of God's word could be a sign that God's love had done its full work in us. Made complete means that the believer's love is entire and mature. Here John addresses motive. In essence, he is communicating that we know that we know God when we love to do what he commands. Three motives for obedience exist: We can obey because we have to; we can obey because we need to; or we can obey because we want to. A slave obeys because he has to. If he doesn't obey he will be punished. An employee obeys because he needs to. He may not enjoy his work, but he enjoys getting his paycheck. He needs to obey because he has a family to feed and to clothe. But a believer obeys God's word because he wants to - for the relationship between him and God is one of love. Yeshua said, "If you love me, you will obey my commandments" (John 14:15). I read of a housekeeper that went to work for a bachelor. Each day when the man would leave for work, he would leave a list of projects for the housekeeper to complete. In time, the two fell in love and became married. Upon arriving at work, following their wedding, his buddies asked if he left her the list. He said, "No." "Well," they said, "she will watch television all day and do nothing." The newlywed replied, "No. She will do all those tasks and more, not because she has to but because she wants. She will do it for love." That’s exactly why we should obey all of God’s commands that we are able to. Because true love for God is expressed in moral obedience. We keep the commandments because of our love for God. When we comprehend what Yeshua did for us by sacrificing Himself on the cross, our response is to love Him and to obey Him. Love delights to do God's will because it understands the cost and sacrifice of that love. Yeshua loved to do God's will, did he not? And, if we are like Yeshua, then we will love to do God's will as well. If we love God, we will keep His commands, and that obedience will in turn evidence our true love to God.
IV. Obedience characterizes our walk
In 1 John 2:1, John called, "Yeshua haMashiach, the Righteous One". Then, John wrote, "This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Yeshua did" (1 John 2:5-6). John employs another expression of being a believer: in him. The phrase is synonymous with "live [literally, abide] in Him." It implies a living relationship of the deepest and closest sorts with Yeshua, our Lord and Savior. This relationship issues forth, not in passivity and indifference and inattention to duty, but in activity and commitment and love for God's will, imitating Yeshua's way of living. In other words, if someone said to the apostle John, "I know Yeshua." John would reply, "Good. But, if you're in him, abiding in Messiah, then you are walking like Yeshua, living like Yeshua." And how did Yeshua live? He lived as a Jew in perfect obedience to the commandments. Here's the question for you: Would people know that you are a believer by the way you live? Do you walk as Yeshua walked? You have heard the quip: "Actions speak louder than words." That's exactly what John is saying. Do our actions show that we are living in Yeshua? When I was a teenager, a question circulated: If you were arrested for being a Jew would there be enough evidence to convict you? Great sages and church forefathers evidenced their faith by their lives. Robert Chapman, set before himself this great aim. He said: "Seeing so many preach Messiah, and so few live Messiah, I will aim to live Messiah." Pirkei Avot 1:15 the sage, Shammai says, "Make your Torah fixed, say little and do much, and receive every person with a pleasant countenance." Will anyone that knows you ever say: "Oh, that is the most Yeshua-like man I ever saw!" What will people say of you when you're dead and gone? What will they say of me? A missionary who, shortly after arriving on the field, was speaking for the first time to a group of villagers was trying to present the gospel to them. He began by describing Yeshua, referring to Him as a man who was compassionate and kind, loving, caring, one who went about doing good works towards all men. When he was speaking, he noticed that his lesson brought smiles of familiarity to the faces of his audience, and some of them nodded their heads to one another in agreement. He was somewhat puzzled, and he interrupted his message to ask: "Do you know who I'm talking about?" One of the villagers quickly responded: "Yes, we do. You're talking about a man who used to come here." Eagerly they talked about a missionary doctor who came to their remote village to minister to their physical needs, and his life was so like Yeshua in caring for those people that they saw Yeshua in him. He walked like Yeshua walked. Are you living like Yeshua? If you're resting in Yeshua, if you've found Him to be the source of every spiritual blessing, you're trusting in Him for salvation; you're fellowshipping with Him in grace; then your whole life will have been changed. You see, everyone who is united with Yeshua expresses that union with Him by living like Him, by walking as He walked.
David Platt's book, Radical, challenges the modern caricature of Christianity and calls for a return to biblical Christianity. In the opening chapter, he begins by writing: "I was confronted with a startling reality: Jesus (Yeshua) actually spurned the things that my church culture said were most important. So what was I to do? I found myself faced with two big questions. The first was simple: Was I going to believe Yeshua? Was I going to embrace Yeshua even though he said radical things that drove the crowds away? The second question was more challenging. Was I going to obey Yeshua? My biggest fear, even now, is that I will hear Yeshua's words and walk away, content to settle for less than radical obedience to him." Then, Platt concludes the chapter by writing: "First, from the outset you need to commit to believe whatever Yeshua says. As a Christian, it would be a grave mistake to come to Yeshua and say, 'Let me hear what you have to say, and then I'll decide whether or not I like it.' If you approach Yeshua this way, you will never truly hear what he has to say. You have to say yes to the words of Yeshua before you even hear them. Then second, you need to commit to obey what you have heard. The gospel does not prompt you to mere reflection; the gospel requires a response. In the process of hearing Yeshua, you are compelled to take an honest look at your life, your family, and your church and not just ask, 'What is he saying?' but also ask, 'What shall I do?'" You see… the bible isn’t a rule book you can pick and choose from.
This teaching is important for at least two reasons. It's important because some people profess to be Christians, Messianics, believers etc., but are not living in accordance with God's word and really have no deep desire to do so. And what John would say to you is, "You're not a Believer, friend. Come to grips with that. Realize that you need grace!
You don't need to be cleaned up and made to look better; you need grace; you need saving grace!"
God appears to Moses in a burning bush at the foot of Mount Sinai, and instructs him to go to Pharaoh and demand: “Let My people go, so that they may serve Me.” And how do you serve Him? …with obedience to His commands… by having a relationship with the God of Israel. By pleading the blood of Yeshua upon your life when you stumble in sin. This teaching is important because some people wrestle with a lack of assurance because of imperfections in their lives. And John would say, "I'm not asking for perfect obedience to God's word; I'm asking you to look at your heart and answer this question: Are you keeping God's commandments?" While keeping the commandments is not a condition for salvation, it is a sign, an evidence, of your salvation - a mark of a true Believer that lives a repentant Torah observant life.
Exodus 3:4 tells us, “When Adonai saw that he turned to look, He called to him out of the midst of the bush and said, “Moshe, Moshe!” So, he answered, “Hineini.”… Will you say Hineini? Will you answer the voice of Adonai and renew your walk in obedience?
b’Shem Yeshua, haMelech v’haMashiach Shelanu! Amein.
(“in the name of Yeshua, our King and the Messiah! Amein.”)
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