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Hebrew Word of the Day degel(flag) Hear Translation » Father Knows Best November 29, 2011 “For I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in obedience to him, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess. But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed.” — Deuteronomy 30:16-18 If you’re a parent, you’ve probably heard protests from your children when you’ve told them they need to be home at a certain hour, or that they can’t attend a certain event. At the time, your children probably thought you were just being mean and didn’t want them to have any fun, right? But what your children didn’t understand at the time was why you made those decisions. You know that getting enough sleep is better for them than staying out too late. You know the potential dangers of walking into an unknown situation. So you make rules and decisions based on what is best for them. It’s often like that in our relationship with God, isn’t it? This is perhaps most clear in the covenant created between God and the nation of Israel at Sinai. This is called the “Sinaitic” covenant. In it, Israel promises to obey God’s Word and commandments — all 613 of them contained in the Torah, the first five books of the Hebrew Bible. In return for their obedience, God promises to bless and reward the Israelites. Whew! That’s a lot of rules. But each one was designed by our Heavenly Father for our own good — just as our parental rules are designed for our children’s benefit. God did not give us His commandments to make our lives difficult, to burden us, or to punish us. Rather, He wants to protect our relationship with Him. He knows better than we do that our ultimate happiness and deepest satisfaction will be found when we act in harmony with His will. Disobedience will cause both parties sorrow and hurt — not just us. Thus, the Sinaitic covenant — also known as the Mosaic covenant — teaches us to view our vow to keep God’s commandments not as a chore, not as legalism, but rather as pure joy. How do you view obedience to God? Is it a chore, a punishment, or is it an act of love and source of joy for you? What can you do today to take a more positive attitude about obeying God’s law? With prayers for shalom, peace, Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein President