Dare 2 Share - But I have this complaint against you. You don't love me or each other as you did at first! (Revelation 2:4)
Ever hear of tefillin? No, it’s not the stuff that goes on the inside of cooking ware. Tefillin is actually a three thousand year old Jewish ritual of wrapping leather straps attached to small boxes of scripture around the forehead, arm and hand while praying.
Why do they do this?
According to one Rabbi: “When you put Tefillin on your arm symbolically you are marrying yourself to God in a way that you will obey his commandments and his words that are given in the Torah. And you're also putting them on your head and your brain so that you think about them all the time.”
Where would anyone get an idea to do something like that?
From the Bible-
Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. (Deuteronomy 6:4-9)
God knew that people are by nature very forgetful…what was I talking about again? Oh yeah, so He commanded the Hebrews to put up physical reminders of His precious word so they would constantly be reminded to keep the main thing the main thing. It must be working, because they are still carrying on the tradition after 3000 years!
We often fail to remember the important things in our lives because our minds are so full of trivial pursuits. We also forget that following Him is not just a matter of memorizing verses or feeling ‘good’ about Jesus: it’s a combination of both. We learn God’s word so that we love Him with our mind, we pour out our hearts to our Lord and live for Him so that we love the Savior with our hearts. The key is in balancing the two- that’s why God had the Hebrews put reminders near their heads and their hearts.
I know some ‘ostrich’ Christians who have their heads stuck so deeply into theology that they can’t see a world dying and going to hell.
I know some ‘teddy bear’ Christians who are wide open in their thinking that their brains leak out.
Perhaps today would be a good day to revive the ancient practice of tefillin in a Christian sort of way. Put your Bible somewhere you can always see it, so you don’t forget how important it is to be someone “who correctly handles the word of truth.” (II Timothy 2:15).
Also, put some worship tapes or cd’s out where you can see them, so that you don’t forget how important it is to connect with Jesus on a daily basis, and not lose your “first love”.
Questions:
1) Are you more like an ostrich or a teddy bear? Why?
2) What is a specific way you could practice tefillin?
3) How is God speaking to you right now?
