Shavuot is associated with two invaluable gifts in the Believer’s life: God’s Word and His Spirit.
The Rabbis teach that fifty days after leaving Egypt on the Passover, the Israelites found themselves at Mount Sinai, where God gave them the Torah. It was on the day that He had commanded to be the Feast of Shavuot once they entered the Promised Land. Thousands of years later, on Shavuot (also called Pentecost), the Lord poured out His spirit, causing the blinders to come off thousands and enabling the bold proclamation of the Gospel. With these incredible gifts, we can know the God who loves us, is always with us, and sent His Messiah to draw us near Him.
A closer look at the gift of God’s Word
The Torah, in its most technical use of the word, refers to the first five books of the Hebrew Scriptures (the Old Testament), but the word itself also means “instruction.” So, as we commemorate Shavuot and God’s gift of the Torah, we also celebrate the entirety of His Word as His gift, revealing more of who He is.
Join us for a devotional excerpt from the Jewish Voice resource "Portions: A Weekly Devotional for Drawing Near to the Lord", which is based on the annual Torah reading cycle that Jewish people follow worldwide. After the excerpt, we’ve included a bonus list of some benefits Believers receive from the Scriptures.
Portion 46
Deuteronomy 7:12 – 11:25
Hanging on Every Word
"...He fed you manna…in order to make you understand that man does not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of Adonai.
— Deuteronomy 8:3(TLV)
Before Jesus began His public ministry, He fasted and prayed in the wilderness. After 40 days, Satan tempted Him in three ways. One was with food. Though certainly hungry, Jesus replied by quoting a verse from this week’s parasha (Matthew 4:3 – 4).
Looking at Israel’s 40 years in the wilderness, the Lord explained that He gave them manna to
teach them that their lives depended on not only physical food but also on God’s provision and on God’s promises. The New Testament tells us to cling to God’s Word as “the word of life” (Philippians 2:16a) and let it richly dwell in us (Colossians 3:16).
God wants us living off of and hanging onto His every word as if our lives depend on them. He wants us to give His Word our rapt and avid attention — be enthusiastic for it, absorbed by it, eager for it. Yeshua said we should strive harder for spiritual food that gives eternal life than we do for tangible food that sustains our physical lives (John 6:27, 58). God wants us to crave hearing what He has to say.
Why? Psalm 119 gives us a glimpse of how nourishing and sustaining God’s Word is. Its writer describes what it means to him. He calls it wonderful, good, just, faithful, his counsel, and sweeter than honey. God’s instruction sustains him, restores his life, reveals wonders, and gives him hope and comfort.
The psalmist also showed an example of our right response to the Lord’s Word by noting that he treasures, observes, speaks, loves, trusts, meditates on and stands firm in it. He asks God to teach him His Word, revive him with it, be gracious to him by it, give him discernment through it, and help him keep it. (See Psalm 119.)
How do we come to crave God’s Word? We must read it to see its worth. As we experience its nourishment, we’ll grow hungrier for it. Start with an act of discipline, setting aside regular time to read Scripture. Ask the Lord to increase your appetite for His Word. As you feast on it, you’ll discover for yourself the wonderful things Psalm 119’s author found in it — and more.
Parasha Takeaway
I will pray for God to help me recognize I need His Word to strengthen and sustain me — as much as natural food nourishes my body.
God’s Word:
- Instructs us how to live lives pleasing to God (2 Timothy 3:16b, Hebrews 11:6)
- Conveys His love for us (Romans 5:8, Ephesians 3:17–19)
- Strengthens us by reminding us of His power within us (Philippians 4:13)
- Lifts our spirits when life is hard, reminding us that He has overcome the world (John 16:33)
- Assures us that He has good plans for us (Jeremiah 29:11)
- Encourages us that He makes all things beautiful in time (Ecclesiastes 3:11) and turns all things good for those who love Him (Romans 8:28)
Your gift to Jewish Voice today will enable new Jewish Believers in Africa and elsewhere to discover the invaluable gift of God’s Word with a Bible of their very own. In many of the remote places where Jewish Voice ministers, Bibles are too expensive and hard to come by for Believers to acquire. Your gift to Jewish Voice today will supply Bibles to Believers and do much more to meet practical needs and bring the Good News to Jewish communities worldwide.
