Mark Call

Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a hard-hitting teaching that admittedly won’t sit well (or be sat through, in all likelihood) by those who most need to hear it.

“Ki Tavo”, or “when you have come in to the land” may sound like a bit of a non-sequitor. After all, just as promised, we failed to do as required, and were thus exiled from the Promised Land. And the promised curses came, too.

But what then? Even though America, the “New World,” wasn’t THE promised land, it was certainly seen as a land OF promise by those who sought to escape the persecution of an oppressive ‘church’ (yeah, probably plural) in Europe, and find freedom along with elbow room on those shores. And the Blessings, as promised, came — even though our forefathers were never even close to 100% obedient.

The parsha begins with “when you have come in,” and then prescribes a profession to be made, along with an offering of “bikkurim,” or first-fruits, of that land. The same conditions we have seen before, in fact, over and OVER again in His Word, of obedience TO His Word, all of it, are again repeated. Like He knew it was necessary.

That’s followed by a recounting of curses directed to individuals for things generally done in secret. (That, of course, was before they became Hollywood and Swamp Favorites, and Oh-So-PC).

And finally, the most telling, and maybe even famous – or at least they SHOULD be – blessings, and then cursings, in the whole Book. The blessings, we’ve seen. So we know they can be made, even in exile. But the curses, as Mark recounts with the usual “like it or not” proofs, are “already in progress.” Which should be more than sufficient warning.

“Ki Tavo: Blessings Proven and Cursings Now Already in Progress”