A Final Warning

12 Tevet 5776

This is what I believe...

The Geulah is coming and no power on earth can stop it - any more than you can stop the sun from rising or a baby being born or the onset of Shabbat - ready or not, it's coming. By the same token, there's nothing any of us can do to force Hashem to bring it before its time. Despite what some well-meaning people are saying - it's not "up to us". Not anymore. That train already left. We are locked into the b'ita scenario and now we just have to suffer and hold fast til the end. 

No matter how well-intentioned their motives, you need to steer clear of people who want to rope you into doing something - anything - to give us some sense of relief and return to us a renewed sense of having some control over our lives. We're in a very uncomfortable situation and people just feel that simple prayer and clinging to Hashem is not enough. They feel a need for action. That "need" can get them into trouble. And it can get us into trouble if we get caught up with them.

The closer we get to the end, the greater will be the temptation to give up waiting and jump the gun to DO SOMETHING! We are the most vulnerable at this time, just as Chavah was in Gan Eden and just as Am Yisrael was when Moshe was up on the mountain and it's why I'm writing this to you now. This is the moment when you must be most on your guard not to make any regrettable mistakes.

I've been an outsider all my life. And I'm comfortable with that. I'm an independent thinker and follow the truth wherever it leads me. The closest I will come to identifying with a particular group is to say that I am a Torah Jew. And I feel that's all I want or need. And in the future, that's all there will be.

This may yet be the final test for us - to see if we can wait! It's a big test of our emunah to wait patiently for Hashem. The Sitra Achra knows this very well and will pull every nasty trick in his book to get us to despair of waiting. It puts a different light on the fundamental to "wait for Mashiach every day".

Of course, there are things for us to do in this world. I'm not advocating giving up on life and sitting in a corner til the geulah will arrive. But we know what our job is in this world. It's to learn Torah, do mitzvot, perform acts of chesed, pray, provide for the next generation, not stand idly by the blood of our brothers, pursue justice, uphold the truth. But nowhere are we ever told that we have a mitzvah to bring the geulah. It comes about naturally as a result of our faithful avodah.

The same can be said of the so-called "commandment" to be "a light to the nations". You can't go out and try to be a light by turning into a Jewish missionary. When we do all these other things, we simple are a light to the nations. It's a natural result of our commitment to and our observance of our covenantal obligations.

It should be clear to see that outside forces are working in this country to foment civil unrest among the Jews by hook or by crook. If it's not over this Duma issue, it's the Temple Mount, or if not that then something else. They never rest. They want us to give them an excuse to come in here to restore order after they've first created the chaos.

It's been hard for them. They haven't quite managed to pull it off because Hashem is fighting for us behind the scenes. However, the SA still has a lots of tricks up his sleeve. The only way we can hope to win is to stay humble, take no pride in what "my hand" can do for me, stay focused on the avodah, remember that we are the servants and HKB"H is the Master. He doesn't need us to do His job.

Beware of false messiahs and false prophets, even though they are sincere. They are sincerely wrong and you must guard against being mislead at this very late hour - the most dangerous hour of all.