Skip to content Decoding the Torah Season 1: The Divine Blueprint May 5 · 21 min ...more
Decoding the Torah Season 1: The Divine Blueprint
May 5, 2025 · 21 min
In this episode Rabbi Schneider explores the deeper meaning behind the first commandments God gave to man in Genesis 1:28.
Series Discovering The Jewish Jesus May 5, 2025 · 21 min · Discovering The Jewish Jesus
In this episode Rabbi Schneider explores the deeper meaning behind the first commandments God gave to man in Genesis 1:28. ...more Show the full description Show less In this episode Rabbi Schneider explores the deeper meaning behind the first commandments God gave to man in Genesis 1:28.
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God's Purpose for Humanity 0:07 Have you ever wondered what God's purpose is for your life? Well, you know what, my beloved friend? Right away, the Lord addresses that in the very first0:19 chapter of the Torah, in the very first chapter of our Bible. Now there's much more about what God's purpose is for your life that the Bible says, But right away, the first law of God0:31 helps us to understand His purpose for every human being, whether you're a Jew or a Gentile. There are a total of 6 13 laws in the Torah.0:43 Today, we're gonna begin by studying this first of those 613 laws. It comes from the book of Genesis. We say in Hebrew, Bereshit. The book of Genesis is referred to in Hebrew as the book of Bereshit,0:55 which means beginnings. And I'm reading now in the first chapter and the 20 eighth verse. The grass withers and the flowers fade, but praise the Lord, the word of the Lord abides1:07 forever. Hear the word of God. God bless them. Speaking of Adam and Eve here. God bless them, and God said to them, be fruitful and multiply,1:20 and fill the earth and subdue it, and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth. Now I want you to think about this because1:31 there's a lot to be gained. The foundational and first commandment that God gave to you and I whom he created in his own image is that we should, number 1,1:43 reproduce, be fruitful, and rule. That we're to reproduce and rule over every living creature on the earth, the fish1:55 and all other beast of burden. So how does this connect to us? How do we relate to us? What do we extrapolate from this concerning what our destiny is, what2:07 God's desire for us is? First of all, know that God has a good plan, and his plan for you is to increase. When God tells us to reproduce,2:20 yes, he's talking about physical reproduction. He's talking about having children. We're gonna get to that in a moment. But even more so than this, conceptually, God's plan for us2:32 as those that he's created in his own images that we would increase. And I want you to get that in you because a lot of times in life, we start getting older, and we start thinking that our life is2:43 kind of going downhill from here. We reach 40, 50, 60, whatever age it is that we have in our own mind where we think that we're getting old, we start to think, okay, it's downhill from here. But2:55 the reality is for the rest of our life, every single month, every single year, every single day that goes by, God's will for us3:08 is that we would increase. I just want you to get that generally for a second. The second thing we find out about the heart of God in relationship to you and I is that he has put us in the world as3:20 vice agents to rule. And so we said here that we're to subdue and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth. So3:32 your purpose as 1 that's been created in God's image is to grow, to increase, to reproduce, and rule. What a glorious destiny God has given3:44 mankind, you and me, whom he's made in his image. In fact, the author of the book of Hebrews says that for a little while, we're lower than the angels. Because right now, angels are spiritual3:56 beings that are in the spirit world more powerful than you and I. But ultimately, we're gonna have dominion even over the angels, the scripture tells us. So we have been created from great4:07 heights to great things. Now let's take a step backward and put this back in its original historical context, and then once again, we'll give modern day spiritual application. So4:19 we go to the original concept, and of course, we know that literally God is speaking to Adam and Eve, and and this extends to mankind in general and tells them first to reproduce, to have children, to4:31 have families. And, of course, this is what living and being human is about. It's about having families, being in relationship with people. Life is all about relationship.4:43 Reproduce. Why do we reproduce? So that humanity continues to grow on the earth. More relationships are brought into being. More families are brought into being. Eventually, Israel is birthed as a nation4:54 and spreads. Eventually, the Messiah comes through Israel. All this has been brought about because beginning with Adam and Eve, mankind has been reproducing and filling the5:06 earth. Now, if you think about this, the same command to increase, fill the earth, and rule over it can be extended even to the5:18 kingdom of God, where the Lord commanded us as his disciples to increase, right, to grow, to grow in the fruit of the spirit, to grow in love, to grow in joy, to grow in5:30 peace. All the fruits of the spirit were to be increasing, reproducing fruit, right, and to fill the earth with the gospel. Here's his last words right in5:42 Matthew, go into all the world and preach this gospel to all creation, to every nation, making disciples of all nations, of all peoples. And so we5:53 take this thing that begins literally, and then we extrapolate, and we see the spiritual application. And this is true of all the mitzvot, all the commandments that we're gonna be studying. By the6:05 way, when I use the Hebrew word mitzvot, this is another word that we use for commandment. So whether I say commandment, law, precept, or mitzvot, in this6:17 teaching from my book, Decoding the Torah, Ancient Wisdom for a Modern World, all these terms, mitzvot, precept, law, commandment, they're all used interchangeably. But what we're gonna be doing and what we're6:29 doing in this verse, beloved friend, is we're looking at the law in its original historical context, and then we're giving modern day application. And so we're still6:41 commanded to fulfill the first foundational meaning of this law, to get married, to have children, to raise our children in the admonition of6:53 the Lord to reproduce. Now I understand that there are some people that are listening today, you've not been married. Some have difficulty having children. This doesn't mean that you don't have favor with God or that7:04 you're not fulfilling God's purpose in your life. But the clear meaning of this law that we're looking at is that we should have children. In fact, what I'm sharing with you is the way Orthodox Jews view this today.7:15 Orthodox Jews, they don't use birth control. They feel like the greatest mitzvah, the greatest thing you could do is have a large family. I remember years ago, I was already, like, 60 something years7:27 old when I met this rebbe. Somebody introduced me to this rebbe, and a rebbe is more than a rabbi. A rebbe is the leader of a Hasidic sect. Hasidic are the Jews that7:39 you see wearing the black hats and the black coats, and they they're part of these ultra orthodox groups. And each 1 of these groups has their own rebbe. Those of you that have been to Israel before,7:51 you might have seen some of the big signs with the picture of a a man. He looks like a rabbi, Looks to be about 80 years old, close to it. Black hat on, long beard, black8:03 coat. He was his name was Rabbi Menachem Schneerson. He passed away some years ago. But he was the leader of the most influential Jewish sect in the world over the8:14 last 200 years called Chabad Levavaca. But, the the the Chabad the the Hasidic, community, the ultraorthodox Jewish community, they wanna have8:26 as many children as they can. And they look at every child as a blessing from the Lord because in having all the children, they're fulfilling this commandment. And not only that,8:38 but deep within the ultra orthodox world of Jewish thinking is the fact that every time they have a baby, they are, repopulating the earth8:50 with the 6000000 Jewish souls that were lost during the holocaust. And so, to to to relate to this commandment in9:02 a, spiritual and, or religious way, speaking now from from a ultra orthodox perspective, is a very beautiful thing that, it's not controlling our lives. Well, I'm gonna9:14 have 1 child or I'm gonna have 2 child, 2 children and, you know, making it all about trying to create this perfect world. No. Doing it according to the commandment is you get married, you have as many children as the9:26 Lord provides, and you bless him for every single 1 because the scripture tells us every child that you have is like a a a arrow in your quiver. And, in so doing, we're fulfilling God's command once again to be9:37 fruitful and multiply. Now all does also notice in in this first commandment is the second part of it where the Lord says here, fill the earth and subdue it, and rule over9:49 the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth. So the second part of this first commandment is the Lord10:01 making us, those of us that are his, created in his image, his vice agents in the earth, that he's called us to rule over the10:13 world. It's a powerful thing, the place that he's given us. I mean, you and I have consciousness. This is because we're created in God's image. Animals10:24 don't have a sense of choice like we do. They can't discern, spiritual realities like we can. They're not able to think through complex problems from a10:36 spiritual perspective like we can. I know that some would argue, well, you know, they can figure things out, but not like we can as human beings. We can think through moral issues and and and and10:48 sort things out in a way that no other created being can do on the planet. And we're called to rule over the world. And this also speaks to you and I, beloved, of the11:00 fact that God has raised us up to be kings and priests for him in the earth. The New Testament tells us we're a kingdom of priests. And God wants us11:12 to think this way about ourselves, that he wants us to walk in this world in our calling. It doesn't matter what we do for a living. We're created in his11:23 in his image to rule. We rule where we're at. We rule over the space that we're given. If you're called as a seamstress, you rule where you're at as a seamstress,11:35 and you do your job with excellency. And by your very presence, you reflect the rule of God. If you're a mother in your home, you don't become11:47 a victim to the whim of your children, but rather you bring your children under God's authority in you as a mother. And obviously, the same thing for fathers. We live11:59 according to our calling. We're called to rule, to walk in that. Not to do it like the ancient, pagans ruled, like ancient pagan kings ruled, but we do it as God's12:11 rulers with his dignity, with his love, with his compassion. God called humanity here to rule over the fish and over everything that moves on the earth, but we're gonna see12:23 in 1 of the other laws that we're gonna cover later on in the series that God calls humanity to treat livestock with compassion and sensitivity. So12:35 we don't just rule with brute force, but we rule with the mind of the godhead, with the love of God, and the compassion of God, and the wisdom of God expressing his nature and his12:47 character, beloved ones, to all that we rule over. And I wanna just close this law up, this law of you and I walking in12:59 this, call to reproduce, to bear fruit, to be fruitful, and to rule. I wanna just wrap this up today by helping us grasp this as not13:11 just a principle, once again, that applies when we're young and can have children, if we can have children. But this applies to us even when we're old and in old age, we can still bear13:23 fruit. We can still give wisdom to our loved ones in such a way that we're ruling by giving God's great godly counsel to our children, grandchildren, or loved13:35 ones. Because the Bible tells us that even though our outer man is decaying, our inner man is being renewed day13:47 by day. So even though we can't stop the body from decomposing, it's just what happens inwardly, we're being renewed so we can keep bearing fruit and keep ascending13:59 because God's spirit is living in us and through us. So getting back to our question, what is God's purpose for you? His purpose, beloved friend, is to14:11 increase and to rule. Now I wanna close today by thinking about this law of reproduction, this law of increase, by applying it to our14:23 lives as we continue to grow in age chronologically each year. How do we continue to increase? How do we continue, you and I, as believers, to14:35 increase thereby fulfilling this mitzvah when we get to be 70 years old if we live that long, 75, 80, and beyond? How can we continue to reproduce? We14:47 do it, beloved ones, through the law of the spirit. You see, the apostle Paul wrote in the book of Romans that the law of the spirit of life has set us14:58 free from the law of sin and death. Think about this with me. The law of the spirit of life, Paul wrote, has set us free from the law of sin and death. What does15:10 this mean? There's a law of sin and death that's still in place. Our body continues to age, as I said. It continues to decompose, as I said. But just because our body is dying,15:22 it doesn't mean that inside, we cannot still increase and reproduce because the law of the spirit of life, the fact that we're born of God's15:34 zoe life, the Ruach HaKodesh, the Holy Spirit, because he lives within us, we continue to grow in the fruit of the spirit. You see, as you and I15:47 continue to lift up the principle of the cross of Christ in our soul, in other words, we deny the flesh, We say no to selfishness. We say no15:59 to anger. We say no to all the other things that are of the flesh, impatience, all those things. As we say no to the flesh, crucify ourself to those things,16:10 and say yes to the spirit, and agree with the spirit of love. Lord, I'm gonna choose to love. When you have an impulse to hate, you reject it, and you say, no, lord. I16:22 will reach out. I will love. When you have an impulse to be impatient or angry, you resist it. You say, no. I'm gonna choose, instead to walk in patience16:35 and long suffering. As we continue to practice the law of the spirit of life, denying the flesh and choosing to act in the law of the spirit, what happens is we keep reproducing. And16:47 every time you and I make a decision to crucify the flesh and choose life, choose the spirit by the grace that worked within us, we actually grow. Our spirit in us is expanding.16:59 In other words, God's spirit doesn't grow, but the emanation of his spirit gains access and dominion in and through our lives. And in that respect, we continue to grow and increase. We're17:11 continually being transformed, the scripture says, from glory to glory and from strength to strength. So the truth is as you and I are picking up our17:22 cross daily to say no to the flesh, no to the enemy, no to the powers of darkness, and say yes to the impulse of the spirit and God's truth, what happens17:34 is the power of the enemy is broken off and new life continues to be hatched or released from our lives. Our spirit continues to be17:46 expanded by God's spirit, and we keep on increasing in peace, in power, in love, and in17:57 dominion. We grow spiritually. We become more and more powerful. It's a tangible weight of God's anointing that gains mastery over our lives. And when that happens, we also continue to rule18:09 more effectively. Because remember, the second part of this commandment was to rule over the fish and over every living thing. As you and I grow in God's strength by saying yes to Him, we grow in our ability to18:21 rule. We bring God's glory and power and presence wherever we go. We bring his light into the atmosphere of darkness wherever we might be. Even if18:33 someone was in a nursing home, because maybe they lost the the the use of some part of their body, they would still be able to bring God's light and weight and glory and happiness even in that place.18:45 Wherever you go and wherever you are, God will be with you. And because you have consistently chosen to follow him, his strength will be your portion.18:57 You'll continue to emanate more and more light, more and more of his beautiful color and glory. You'll impregnate every place that you go to with his dominion and his19:09 influence, and you'll fulfill his commission to reproduce by growing in character and spreading his name and fame and19:20 kingdom all over the earth wherever you are. I hope you're enjoying this series on decoding the Torah, ancient wisdom for a modern19:32 world. There's something about studying the Hebrew Bible and making the connection to the New Testament and Jesus' words that just brings revival and it strengthens us. If you're being blessed by19:44 my teaching, beloved, I wanna humbly ask you, would you consider financially supporting us? The truth is it costs money to do what we do. The television, the radio,19:56 the prison system, everything that we do costs money, and we can't do what we're doing without people that love the ministry and believe in us and believe in what we're doing. So I just want20:08 to once again say to you, if you just feel the Holy Spirit just knocking on the door of your heart to make an offering to the Lord through Discovering the Jewish Jesus today. Just be obedient. That's all I ask. Yeshua20:19 promised that everything that we do unto him will come back pressed down, good measure, and running into our lap. Thank you very much for your love and support.In this video 0:00 God's Purpose for Humanity468K followers
Rabbi Schneider is equipping the body of Christ, building the church, and evangelizing the world. From the Old and New Testament, learn the biblical roots of Christianity and Jesus' Jewish heritage.
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