Pinchas: Phinehas — פנחס

Thoughts on Last Week's Torah Portion.

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Numbers 22-25
In last week's parsha, we saw King Balak hire Balaam to curse Israel for fear that Israel would overtake Moab. Balaam, who was a diviner from Aram, was a prophet of a false gentile god who had achieved a certain notoriety for his ability to curse and bless.  We see Balaam being enticed with money to help Balak, which is a  lesson for Endtime Believers in keeping themselves from going down paths that take them away from the true God. These paths are rooted in idolatry that appeals to man's fallen nature.

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The Nature of Idolatry
Every Saturday or Shabbat, Jews worship God by reciting the Sh’ma and the V’havata – Deu 6.  Jews consider these scriptures a basic statement of belief. 
 
4 “Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one! 5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 6 These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as [a]frontals [b]on your forehead.9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
 
This scripture lays out the foundation of what defines idolatry.  Here the Sh’ma and V’havata, instruct us to love the Lord God with all of our heart, soul and might. So it is telling us to worship Him is to love Him with all of our heart, soul and might – this scriptures goes on to define how to love Him and that is by keeping His Law.  Isn’t this exactly what Yeshua said, “If ye love me, keep my commandments”.
 
We worship the world when we fill our lives with worldly pursuits to the detriment of loving God. So the concept of idolatry is linked to what we love and love manifests itself by what we pour our energies, time and money into.  If we love God, then we direct our soul to do His work.   But if we are enticed by the trappings of the world and pour our soul into the world - that is where our heart is.  The trappings of the world then becomes what we worship, which is then what we idolize.  Idolizing anything but the true God is called Idolatry.  

​Balaam’s Idols
The story of Balaam reveals what Balaam loved or idolized – money or riches.  The Apostle Peter wrote,
 
"Which have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness;"2 Peter 2:15

Consider this short video teaching by Dan Gallagher on Luke 18 about what is in our hearts is what are our idols.
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Modern Idolatry
The love of money or riches is one of the Idols that God has warned about throughout all ages and applies to Endtime Believers.  The primary sin associated with amassing riches is the neglect of the poor and needy.  Commenting on this Dr. Gileadi wrote,
 
“The scriptures in all ages warn humanity that the “mammon of unrighteousness” (Luke 16:9) – the riches of this world – have been and will be the downfall of countless souls.  The Lord himself has told us plainly that we cannot serve God and mammon.  Each is a master to be loved at the expense of hating the other. So numerous are the scriptural counsels warning about the riches of this world that we must suppose they dulled the ears of those who perished with their riches.  Or perhaps the rich did not think of themselves as rich and so did not apply these warnings to themselves.”
 
“From the way the scriptures emphasize equality among the Lord’s people, we see that the Lord’s idea of the rich draws a contrast between the haves and the have-nots.  In the scriptural sense, being rich means possessing a surfeit when others lack.”
 
Besides idolizing money or riches, Dr. Gileadi mentions eleven other enticements of the world that Endtime Believers need to avoid.  These include:

Images that distract – television and movies with its degrading morals.  Images that reduce God to our human senses.
Violence and Sex
Rock Music
Organized Sports
Human Idols in entertainment, sports, music, etc.
Imaginations of the Heart
Nature Cults
Babylon – the works of man’s hands – materialism.
The Arm of Flesh
Elitism
Polluting places of Worship with images and worldly practices.​

Endtime Babylon
In an Endtime context, Idolatry is a primary sin of the world.  Consider this video about what Enditme Babylon looks like.

Isaiah Prophecy Highlights 5 — Babylon in the Prophecy of Isaiah — Avraham Gileadi from Color My Media on Vimeo.

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Isaiah Chapter 40
Believers who endure Endtime trials, God raises to a higher spiritual level of Zion/Jerusalem. Having spiritually ascended, Zion/Jerusalem declares good tidings to those who have yet to ascend.

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Hebrew Study

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Resource Links for this Week's Portion

TORAH: Numbers 25:10-30:1
GOSPELS: John 2:13-22

Listen and Read the Portion
First Fruits of Zion

Torah Pearls with Nehemia Gordon

HAFTARAH: Isaiah Chapter 41

Commentary with Avraham Gileadi, Ph