 Joined: 9/5/2007(UTC) Posts: 641  Location: Virginia Beach, VA Was thanked: 3 time(s) in 2 post(s)
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I am currently going back through TOM to create a linked/bookmarded pdf and mitzvah 360 brought a question to mind. Quote:(360) Do not eat the fruit of a tree for three years from the time it was planted. “When you come into the land, and have planted all kinds of trees for food, then you shall count their fruit as uncircumcised. Three years it shall be as uncircumcised to you. It shall not be eaten. But in the fourth year all its fruit shall be holy, a praise to Yahweh. And in the fifth year you may eat its fruit, that it may yield to you its increase: I am Yahweh your God.” (Leviticus 19:23-25) Beyond the plain obedience of the command, this is a hard one to figure out. Why did Yahweh declare the fruit of a newly planted tree ceremonially forbidden for the first three years? As an enthusiastic arborist, I can tell you that it takes that long for a tree’s root structure to become established. The “tree maxim” is: the first year they sleep, the second year they creep, and the third year they leap. Perhaps Yahweh is teaching us about patience—not to expect a new believer to bear edifying fruit for a few years, no matter how promising he or she might appear. If ever there was a “convert” who might have wanted to jump immediately into the fray, it was Paul. But as he testifies in his preface to the Galatians (1:18), he waited for a full three years before he even conferred with the leaders of the Ekklesia at Jerusalem. Three years. Paul was an acknowledged expert in the Torah. Perhaps he realized that he was a newly planted tree and none of his fruit would be usable for the first three years. So he sidelined himself until, as he himself put it (v. 15), “it pleased God….” Based on this, should we be waiting, as Paul did, three years before we conferre with others about the things we know? Should we use that time imersing ourselves in scripture? I'm sure that several (perhaps many) of us were already believers for some time, but I believe that most of us are fairly new to the things discussed in YY. So, it would seem we are at the place Paul was when he came to know Yahushua as Messiah. He waited three years, should we? Personally, I think I sort of have been doing this (unconsiously), just like the tree. I sort of "slept" on it for a year or so. Now, I'm in my second year of knowing things and I am sort of "creeping" and starting to get my feelers out there and mention things to people, but not discuss in depth. In a year, I imagine I'll be out talking to people and discussing things indepth with confidence and much more knowledge of what scripture says, and where to find it.
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 Joined: 10/23/2007(UTC) Posts: 2,616 Location: Texas Thanks: 5 times
Was thanked: 216 time(s) in 149 post(s)
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Interesting don't know if I have done that to well, sometimes I feel the old saying I know enough to be dangerous is true of me. However most of the people I have talked to about what I have learned, are people who are close to me, mostly close friends and family, and mostly because I am still trying to figure it out myself, and talking through it with people helps me. But kinda like Icy I didn't realy know what much at first, and kept it mostly to myself and my fiance, because I talk with her about everything. But Having been studying for about a year and a half now, I find myself, not starting conversations on the matter, but giving my opinion when it does come up. Perhaps in another year I will feel confidant enough with my knowldge to do more. Edited by user Friday, November 2, 2007 10:14:18 AM(UTC)
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Don't take my word for it, Look it up.
“The truth is not for all men but only for those who seek it.” ― Ayn Rand |
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 Joined: 6/28/2007(UTC)
Posts: 1,030
Location: Palmyra, VA
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Returning to the "tree" metaphor, since that's the one Yahweh used here: the first three years are critical. The growth the tree is experiencing is beneath the surface. It won't show up for a while. The roots are growing stronger: the foundation, in other words, is being built. I moved into a new home last spring, and ('cause I just can't help myself), I planted ten or fifteen new trees at strategic places around the yard, even though the whole thing is surrounded by forested land. Even though we're suffering from a drought here in central Virginia, my wife and I have been faithful in watering the new trees; we know that giving their roots a good start now will affect their ability to grow tall and strong later.
The life of a new believer is like that. When he's first "planted," he's all perky and optimistic, but doesn't have much of a root structure. He's not bad, and he's not useless---he's just immature. No problem: time, food and water will make him healthy, strong, and useful. Just as you can't expect to harvest a crop of fruit from an immature tree, or built a tree-house in one, or sit in its shade, a new believer needs to be given time to put down roots, to get grounded in the Word. I find it fascinating that in the fourth year, the Torah's tree is said to bless Yahweh, and only in the fifth year does the community derive any tangible benefit.
Am I saying that a new believer in his (or her) first few years should keep his mouth shut, not share his faith, play dead? No, not at all. A new tree grows, spouts leaves, and shows promise of good things to come. Just being there, obviously alive, is an encouragement to the community. It's enthusiasm prompts the landowner to plant even more. But it is vulnerable: a good strong wind can blow it over---it's best to keep the support stake in place for a while. Paul understood this. Although he was already a masterful Torah scholar when called to faith (he had a great "root ball"), he still felt the need to go back to Sinai for three years to get his new roots established before he could, in turn, bless Yahweh, and subsequently bless the world.
kp
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