Torah Commentary Archives

B'ha'alotcha (When you set up)

Numbers 8:1-12:16

Zechariah 2:14-4:7

John 19:31-37

Hebrews 3:1-6

Moving With the Cloud

I have heard it said so many times that the Hebrews “Wandered” in the wilderness. Nothing could be farther from the truth. In Chapter Nine of this Torah portion it speaks of the Cloud which covered the Tabernacle. We read that as long as the Cloud stayed over the Tabernacle the peoples were to remain camped and as the Cloud moved, they were to move.  I would not call being guided by a Cloud of His Glory simply 'wandering'.  I would refer to it as being "guided by His hand." But what about us today? Are our lives guided at that same level?  My answer is yes. The only difference between  them and us is in their day they could see the Cloud with physical eyes. Today? For those who desire, we see the Cloud with spiritual eyes. He is still in the guiding business.

Of course, there are times in our lives in which we wonder if we are seeing very well, times we are looking for the cloud, but it seems more like a fog. What are we to do in those times? The answer is maybe too simple; trust and keep walking.

Go back to the first verses of the Torah portion. It speaks about the Menorah and a concept I have taught on many times. The Menorah was to be placed in the Tabernacle in such a way that the light would shine forward.  Message here; one I lived out recently.

This past weekend I went to Amarillo, TX to teach on the Tabernacle. Due to the fact I take the representation of the Tabernacle with me, I could not fly, but had to drive. 2508 miles in 5 days! It was a great time in Amarillo, but the last miles of the drive were a bit brutal. It had been lightly raining off and on most of the day so I had to keep a real watch for all the crazies on the road. I finally made it to the last leg of the trip, which is over a mountain pass. That is where the clouds I had seen in the distance now became a fog, which enveloped me. What was I to do? Pull over and stop? Absolutely not! My destination was too close. I slowed down a bit, made sure my lights were on and kept going. A few miles later I broke out of the fog and into some of the most beautiful mountain scenery I had ever seen.

What is my point? Many people I speak to believe themselves to be in a fog today. What is fog? It is a cloud which has come to our level. Maybe what you think is a fog today is really His Cloud, which has come to your level. Keep walking and see where it takes you.

One of the major points of this portion is found at the beginning of Chapter 11. It says they were complaining about their hardships. Really now? They are free people who have been given the Torah, Yah's presence in their midst, an unlimited supply of fresh water to drink and bread which appears ever morning for their enjoyment. Besides that, they are walking in total health and their clothing and shoes are not wearing out. I am just not feeling the hardship going on here and apparently neither is The Almighty! To add further insult to injury they turn their minds back to the fish, cucumbers, melons, etc they ate in Egypt and say, “It cost us nothing!” Hold the bus here! Now how much are they paying for the free medical care, extended wear clothing, water and manna? I don't read anywhere that they were being charged.

We could of course point our fingers at them all day on this one. Especially since none of us have ever uttered a word of unmerited complaint in our lives...?

If there is a lesson we all need to take to heart in this weeks reading it is “Father does not like it when we complain!” Take a look at Isaiah 29:24. No, you look it up and quit complaining that I did not cut and paste it. (+: What does it say about those who continue to complain? What lesson do you think that is? Do you really want to know? Not me!

One last point; In Chapter 12, Aaron and Miriam come to Moshe with a criticism. They say they do not like the woman he married, but the fact is they were jealous of Moshe's position. Come on now. Aaron is the man in charge of the whole Tabernacle and Miriam is the chief prophetess? They can't be content with those jobs? The real heart of the matter here is they were not content in what they had been called to do. They wanted a share of Moshe's job. If the two of them had ever taken a moment to consider what his job really entailed, they would have probably withdrawn their complaint as a really dumb idea.

So let's sum this all up. This Torah portion is teaching us to keep looking to His Cloud.

1. If the cloud looks more like a fog, maybe it is that He is enveloping you so you will not see the dangers around you, but rather you will only focus on moving forward.

2. Let's quit allowing our hearts to take us back to where we were. In looking back, we normally only remember what we thought was good and forget the hardships which we had to deal with.

3. Keep a piece of duct tape at the ready, one which is about mouth size. It may keep you out of quite a bit of trouble.

4. Don't be jealous over someone else's calling. If you knew what all came with that calling, you would never want it is the first place.

5. If you have something to say to someone, be truthful. Don't veil it to make your motive sound better.

6. And lastly, concentrate more on your own walk. That will probably take care of all the above better than anything else!