By Bob Mendelsohn
Given in Bondi Junction,
Sydney
1 Tishri 5775 (26 September
2014)
For the audio mp3, click here
L’shana tova to each of you gathered here today in Bondi Junction as we
share together in the feast of trumpets, the blowing of the shofars and the
consideration of things new.
When I was a kid, we started the school year about now, so we had new
clothing or at least one item which was new, and certainly some new #2 pencils
and a new notepad or such. By the way notepad was a stack of papers stitched
together, nothing electronic.
So I went to synagogue and it felt new, even though I had been going the
entire year before, there was a ‘new beginning’ feel to the whole experience.
At least for awhile. Then the sameness crept in and I began remembering why I
found it a bit of a drudgery.
Now here I am 5 decades on and wondering if you have something similar
going on. You might be thinking, ‘Wait, I already sang that song last year,’ or
‘Two years ago I prayed that same prayer’ or ‘When do we get to the lunch
already?’
But if you will allow me, I believe Rosh Hashanah is the time in our
calendar when we hope to find answers to life’s bigger questions. The questions
of forgiveness and repair, of a world gone mad and gone bad, and we wonder at
times aloud, and more often under our breath, if God even cares about our
situations and if He can see us and see to us in 2014 or 5775. It’s a Jewish
question. It’s a universal question.
We wonder if God notices the killings and beheadings. We wonder if God
watches the news as much as we do with horrors in Syria and Iraq. And we worry
that which is overseas and came to us one week ago in a major raid by federal
police on soon-to-be terrorists might cause God to notice.
Beyond the governmental difficulties, we wonder if we will find a new or
better job this year. Will we find satisfaction in relationships? There are
concerns to sort out in the difficulties of life with others, with whom we are
not reconciled or finding a place to live which we can actually afford.
Life gives us questions and not many answers, and then when the answers
do come, they don’t seem to satisfy, so we long for something restful,
something conclusive, something that will long matter into the long night.
That’s the hopelessness of the king in Ecclesiastes. Those words we read
are painful to read. “All
things are wearisome; Man is not able to tell it. The eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor is the ear filled
with hearing.”
Into that situation, Yeshua does speak, and His words found in Matthew
chapter 11 ring loudly today and every day.
“Come
to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My
yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU
WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”(Matthew 11.28-30)
Here we see Yeshua teaching us that if we want conclusion, or rest, or
satisfaction, we won’t find it in buying the latest iTunes Lady Gaga hit or by
joining the club at the RSL. We won’t find it by purchasing the best outfit in
the Fashion Festival or if our footy side wins this weekend (Go the Swans).
The activities of God and the plans of God bring conclusions; everything
else brings more questions.
I speak often with people who want to philosophize, some who actually
work in that field at uni. Last night over dinner, I was speaking with a
long-time friend about the considerations of life. He asked, “Why do people
kill each other?” The context was Iraq and ISIS. We spoke about ideology and
money. It seems as though many people who don’t have much money think that money
is the answer to their woes. To be fair, if you have more money, you are able
to purchase more answers to life, in a courtroom or in a doctor’s surgery, or
in a restaurant queue. However, money, when you have plenty doesn’t actually
satisfy the longing of a soul. They talk about people who win the lottery here
and there who still are unhappy and eventually divorce their mate. Some of the
richest people in the world are the ones who live in depression. We don’t have
to look further than Hollywood celebrities who are found in hotel rooms, having
committed suicide and yet they had all the popularity and the wealth that
people without, so often long.
King Solomon wrote
Ecclesiastes and he wrote on this particularly: “a man to whom God has given
riches and wealth and honor so that his soul lacks nothing of all that he
desires; yet God has not empowered him to eat from them, for a foreigner enjoys
them. This is vanity and a severe affliction.” (Eccl. 6.2) Earlier in Proverbs
Solomon wrote something equally frustrating about gaining wealth, “Do not weary
yourself to gain wealth, Cease from your consideration of it. When you set your eyes on it, it is gone. for wealth certainly makes itself wings like
an eagle that flies toward the
heavens.” (Prov 23.4-5)
So
it’s not really money that flies away, but the satisfaction that we think will
come when we gain it all.
My
friend and I last night decided that money didn’t satisfy. He gave me an example
of a mafia don who lives in Sicily and who has millions, and probably billions
of dollars, but who lives like a peasant. He’s over 70 years old and rakes his
own leaves. He is seeking to find meaning in life, and cannot find it – not
with power that he wields and not in money… The powerful man is lonely though
he can have any woman and any junior respond to him in any way. The answer he
seeks is not found in power or fame or riches. He’s looking for something new,
and maybe you are as well. The don is looking for peace. Where might it really
be?
We
spoke about ISIS and they have plenty of money, but they are seeking
satisfaction in conquest, and in making the world an Islamic state. You know
they will not be satisfied with Syria and Iraq. They want to dominate
worldwide. But that ideology is long shown as dead and their methods of
conquest are so savage that even the most ardent Muslim would have a hard time
agreeing with their tactics and methodology in the 21st Century.
Ideology will not bring us closer to our peace we seek. Where is that to be
found?
The answer might be as close as our shofar and the blasts we heard today.
The major symbol
of Rosh Hashana is more than just a primitive trumpet. During the blowing of the shofar on Rosh Hashana, notice
there are three distinct sounds:
1.
Tekiah ― one
long, straight blast
2.
Shevarim ― three
medium, wailing sounds
3.
Teruah ― 9
quick blasts in short succession
I borrow
some from a meditation from Rabbi Shraga Simmons of Aish and from Rabbi Paul Sall of Congregation Shuvah Yisrael, Bloomfield, Connecticut, a messianic rabbi. Simmons says,
The Tekiah Sound
“Rosh Hashana is the day of
appreciating who God is. God is all-powerful, the Creator, the Supervisor. In
short, God is King of the Universe.
But for many of us, the idea of
a "king" conjures up images of a greedy and power-hungry despot who
wants to subjugate the masses for his selfish aims.
In Jewish tradition, a king is
first and foremost a servant of the people. His only concern is that the people
live in happiness and harmony. His decrees and laws are only for the good of
the people, not for himself. (see Maimonides, Laws of Kings 2:6)
The object of Rosh Hashana is
to crown God as our King. Tekiah ― the long, straight shofar blast ― is
the sound of the King's coronation.”
In the Garden of Eden, the rabbis
teach that Adam's first act was to proclaim God as King. We eat a round challah
today to remind ourselves of the crowning of the king as well.
Rabbi Sall a US messianic
rabbi, says, “ The tekia reminds us that when we remember that the Holy One
who himself laid out the heavens and the earth is sovereign over creation, we
can be kept from idolatry, fear, and self-centeredness. The awareness that he
sits upon the throne of the world means that we don’t have to bear the weight
of that world on our own shoulders. “
Maimonides adds one important
qualification: It isn't enough that God is MY King alone. If ALL humanity
doesn't recognize God as King, then there is something lacking in my own
relationship with God. Part of my love for the Almighty is to help guide all
people to an appreciation of Him. Of course this is largely an expression of my
deep caring for others. But it also affects my own sense of God's
all-encompassing Kingship.
In other words, a selfish man
hears the shofar and says, in a post-Enlightenment fashion, “I’m related to God
the Creator.” But a biblical person always wants to bring others along to hear
the shofar, to meet the Almighty, to know God. Evangelism then is a very Jewish
concept and a proper response to knowing who God is and being under His
lordship.
The Shevarim Sound
Rabbi Simmons says of the
shevarim: When we think about the year gone by, we know deep down that we've
failed to live up to our full potential. In the coming year, we yearn not to
waste that opportunity ever again. The Kabbalists say that Shevarim ― three
medium, wailing blasts ― is the sobbing cry of a Jewish heart ― yearning to
connect, to grow, to achieve.
Rabbi Sall of Connecticut says,
“The modulated wail of the shevarim sounds almost like the bleat of
a suffering animal. It serves as a reminder of the suffering in the world. The
world is in a state of disrepair. Despite our best efforts there is a
potentially disheartening reality that the present state of the world does not
seem to be improving. Our hope therefore is not in our own efforts and
abilities alone, but rather in the faithfulness of the Sovereign. “
You might be wondering why we remind ourselves of this. We know
suffering. We see suffering each day. We try to dull ourselves of that
suffering with drinking, with entertainment, with noise of the music in our
ears and our iPads. Please don’t make me
listen to suffering. Please let me escape, we cry. But the shevarim keeps
us hearing. The world is broken. The world needs repair. Where is the answer?
Where is there rest and peace and comfort?
The Teruah Sound
Simmons says, “On Rosh Hashana,
we need to wake up and be honest and objective about our lives: Who we are,
where we've been, and which direction we're headed. The Teruah sound ― 9
quick blasts in short succession ― resembles an alarm clock, arousing us from
our spiritual slumber. The shofar brings clarity, alertness, and focus.”
I agree, we have to hear that
alarm and repent and come clean with God. The shofar sound pierces us with
sharpness and like a machine gun which doesn’t allow us to get out of the way
from the next bullet, the sounds, at least one of them, will certainly affect
us. Lord, you have my attention. Lord,
you got me. I was wrong. I repent. I’m sorry. I apologize. Please forgive me.
But now, besides all this about
my own situation, we mustn’t get away from the alarm we are to sound to the
world as well. Hey, world, wake up, the
Messiah has come. Hey, world, wake up, you are lost in your trespasses and
sins. You are broken. The fix is nearby.
We have battles each day. Will
another government official knife the prime minister Tony Abbott, like happened
under Julia Gillard and Kevin Rudd? Whom should we trust? There is a battle to
get onto the trains. There is a battle to survive the city. There is a battle
with the media. We want the truth, and they only tell their side of the story
to sell more papers. This was certainly true in the Israel/Gaza conflict
recently. We wonder when the battle will end.
Into all these situations
Yeshua’s voice which said, “Come to me” and he would give us rest, shouts all
the louder. When we don’t know where to go, Yeshua gives us a clear location in
Himself. If we don’t have rest, if we are travel weary and exhausted in trying
to find the meaning of life, Yeshua says, “Come to me.”
Not only a rest as in a weekend
in Bali or a couple weeks in a Fijian island. He says, “I’ll give you rest for
your souls.” That’s deeper than a massage can ever touch. Rest for our souls is the satisfaction of knowing Him personally.
Andrew Murray, the South
African / Scottish preacher from 100 years ago, wrote many little books with
devotional content, and one of my favorites was “Abide in Christ.” In that book
he talks about being drawn to Yeshua and being in Him. Only in Him is there human
satisfaction. He was right then, and we know that because Yeshua is right, for
Murray and for you and all who are far off.
Yeshua said, “Come to me, all
who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” We have to admit we
are worn out trying. We are done trying to be the best person in our family. We
are done trying to make everyone happy at work. We are done trying to make
sense of a senseless world. We need answers, and we need them now, and we want
real rest. Where is that found? Yeshua says, “come to Me.”
But that’s not where it stops.
Yeshua goes on to say, “Take my yoke and learn from me. I’m gentle and humble.”
There is a learning process, and we have more rest to gain as we learn about
Him and as Murray says, “Abide in Him.” Getting saved is great, and the
greatest decision a person ever makes in life, and then we have to remain, to
stick with it, to learn and to grow, and to bear fruit which remains. How do we
do that? Learn together, pray together, grow together, and take Yeshua’s
council, His instructions, His life in you. And what do we gain then? “You will
find rest for your souls.”
This same point was drawn from the prophet Jeremiah but that’s for another
study.
For now, let’s listen and
learn. The shofar blasts away and it’s more than a tune. It’s more than a
decoration to our Rosh Hashanah services. It’s life if we listen. It’s
fulfillment if we have ears to hear. It’s our resting place, if we are headed
in the right direction. Yeshua said, “Come to me.” That’s where our souls can
honestly find rest. And there we find newness of life. There we find meaning.
There in 5775 and every year we can have purpose and meaning and life abundant.
Will you come to him now?
