TEVET 5
Residence
“Who does dwell in
Your set-apart mountain?” (Ps 15:1)
Immigration is one of
the hottest and most controversial subjects in our nation today, escalating in a
parallel with the numbers of illegal immigrants being caught and returned to their
country of origin. I have no problem
with legal immigration – I myself am
a first generation American, born to Danish immigrants. I still have a copy of my mother’s
immigration application, stamped from Ellis Island, New York. However, trying to enter our country illegally, trying to circumvent the
process, is not only wrong, it is not Scriptural.
There are no illegal
immigrants in the kingdom of our Elohim.
Bottom line, no exceptions. The
necessary immigration application is found within the verses of Torah, and
approval is gained by living a life in adherence to the divine instructions in
moral and righteous living. It is the
same in the United States; for those pursuing legal citizenship in our nation,
there are mandatory classes that must be
taken (covering our Constitution and Bill of Rights), followed by an oath that must be given, swearing to uphold the
laws of our country. There is nothing
new under the sun, is there? (see Ecc 1:9)
We find that it was
King David who was ultimately responsible for appointing the first gatekeepers,
as well as other Levites designated for specific functions (see 1Chro 28:11-13;
23:2-6). Mentioned are 24,000 concerned with the Temple proper, 6000 judges and
officers, 4000 gatekeepers, and 4000 singers and musicians. For those who thought it was possible to
‘gate-crash’ the Temple grounds, entering illegally, they ultimately had to
deal with Elohim’s “Border Patrol”, the assigned priests whose duty it was to
process those attempting to enter in.
The position of ‘gatekeeper’ into the Temple area was an important one,
and for those individuals who did manage to gain entrance illegally, death was
the reward.[1]
And so we look at the
question in our opening verse: “Who does dwell in
Your set-apart mountain?” The qualifications required are
found in the verses of Psalm 15, and as we study them closely, we find that
this Psalm focuses strongly on our relationships with other people. I hope you will join me as we take each
attribute apart, and examine it closely.
I believe this study promises to be an interesting one.
©2020
No comments:
Post a Comment