Parashat Korach

Num 16:1-18:32 Honor (Kavod) In Parashat Korach the Children of Israel were doomed to wander in the wilderness. Because they rejected God’s will, they now had to deal with a lot of hopelessness and discouragement. Many negative emotions began to circulate around the camp and it was not long before discouragement, despair, and discontent surfaced. Korach and his followers attempted to take over leadership of the camp and God himself quelled the coup and settled who was to lead Israel. In inciting a coup, Korach failed to honor God, he did not honor Moses or Aaron. Honoring God and his will would have saved them from catastrophe. If honor is not in our camp, our homes cannot function either. We live in an honorless culture. Much of the problems in America stem from people acting in dishonorable ways. Honor is important because a person’s sense of honor drives their convictions and commitments. If we do not place value on respect, dignity, and honor, our relationships and family will be weak. The core issue is that we must honor God and his word. We must treat our relationship with the Creator as our most important duty in this existence. We cannot honor if we do not love. Our capacity to love God is linked to how we also honor him. We are to love him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength (Deut 6:5). When our whole being is given to love him, honoring him will not seem strange or out of place. We honor God by cultivating a prayer life and seeking him first. We honor him by making our time with him a priority and giving him our undivided attention. We honor him when we live out his word and wait for his will to unfold. We honor him in how we speak to him, adore him, and worship him. Honoring God as our first priority helps us give appropriate honor to others. God will always honor those who honor him (1 Sam 2:30, Ps 91:14-16). Two places in scripture record the biblical commandment to honor one's parents. It is interesting to note that Ex 20:12/Deut 5:16 render honor as “kavad” (to be heavy or to make weighty). In Lev 19:3 it is rendered using the word “yaray” (fear, reverence, and honor). Both terms are related and are often used interchangeably. Conversely, a lack of honor in dealing with one's parents is considered a curse (Deut 27:16). Honor is an expression of love that makes someone feel significant, valued, or esteemed. We do not have to feel honored to honor others. We do not have to feel respected to respect others. Honor and respect do not always have complementary emotional feelings to them. An emotional response does not have to be present for our honor and respect to be valid. Our honor and respect are a part of our covenant relationship with God and it is not always given based on whether we think someone is worthy or whether someone can reciprocate. We can honor and respect a person’s position even though we may not actually like the person in it. Our sense of honor is also not blind or naïve. For honor to be a godly expression, it does have to be balanced. We do not have to ignore, deny, or dismiss the bad we see. Value the Good The key to honor is being able to value the good in others. God created the good and a large part of our sense of honor is not just focused on the person, it is also recognizing that God directed and blessed with his goodness. The Apostle Paul encouraged the Roman believers to “be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honor preferring one another.” In other versions that portion is translated as “outdo one another in showing honor” (ESV) and “taking the lead in honoring one another (CSB). When we can value the good, esteeming another often helps to build faith and confidence, and also helps love to abound. In the end, only God can give us true honor (1 Chron 29:12, Jn 5:44) Rav Calev Lehrer, PhD Apostolic Messianic International-Gulf Coast