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A refreshing and clear review of each Parsha in the Torah presented by Rabbi Aryeh Wolbe
00:01 - Intro (Announcement)
You are listening to Rabbi Aryeh Wolbe of Torch in Houston, Texas. This is the Parsha Review Podcast.
00:10 - Rabbi Aryeh Wolbe (Host)
My dear friends, welcome back. We still have some more catch-up. The portion of Vayera is the fourth portion in the book of Genesis since the beginning of the Torah. Now we're on our fourth portion and we see that Abraham had his circumcision. He had his bond, his treaty with God. That's it Locked in. There's no reversing this. And now he has this treaty with Hashem.
00:40
Our sages tell us that the most painful time after a circumcision is the third day. It's the most painful. And Abraham, what does he do on that day? He sits by his tent. He sits by his tent, by the doors, looking for an opportunity to do the mitzvah of Achmos HaSorchem, to do the mitzvah of welcoming guests into his home. It's an unbelievable mitzvah To share what you have with others.
01:19
Abraham was the first soup kitchen. Anybody who passed by do you want to eat something? Do you want to drink something? Come in the middle of the desert. But how many times do we have people saying when I win the lottery, you know what I'm going to do. Then I'm going to build torch, a brand new building. I'm going to donate money to my synagogue and I'm going to do this and I'm going to do that.
01:50
I remember when the first almost a billion dollar. You know, just many years ago, the first one of those big, big, big lotteries was going on and I had many, many young professionals sitting around my Shabbos table and I always like to ask a question Everyone, introduce yourself, what's your name? We went around and the question was that I wanted them to answer along with their introduction, was if they won the $650 million lottery, what would they do with it? And everybody said, oh, I'll give half the charity, I'm going to do this and I'm going to do that, and I'm going to do everything that they're going to do already for the entire world make the world a better place. They're going to help needy families and they're going to help. You know, you name the cause.
02:45
It was mentioned there, everybody was talking about it, and then one individual said something which was shocking. He said well, the first thing I'm going to do is going to buy myself a vacation home in France. I'm going to buy a vacation home in whatever you know. He was going on all these different things. He says and I'll continue to give the charity as I do today. It's because all of you are a bunch of liars. He says do you currently give half of your income to charity. Do you currently support those causes? Do you currently assist in this and that way that you said you would?
03:28
You see, it's very easy for us to talk the talk, but are we able to walk the walk? Do we do that already? How many times do we hear people giving a promise and never following through with it? You know why? Because giving is a muscle, learning to give is exercising a muscle, and every time you exercise that muscle, you're strengthening it to learn to give. And people who don't know how to give nothing is going to change when they win 600 million dollars, because if now I don't know how to give, then I won't either know how to give. If not suddenly, oh, then I'm going to be able to know how to give. It's not suddenly, oh, then I'm going to be able to.
04:34
What was Abraham and what do we learn from Abraham? Abraham was a giver who couldn't stop giving. His muscles were popping out of his jacket from giving. He wanted to give. So what did he do on the third day, the most painful day after the bris, after his circumcision? He's wanting the opportunity and God sees him looking around. Is there anybody passing by? Is that somebody. There Is that somebody Because you know, you think about it. The angels that came that were dressed like humans. They were on a mission to come to Abraham anyway, to heal Abraham, to inform Sarah and to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah right, so they're going to be doing their job anyway. They could have been doing that as angels. Why did they need to appear as human beings? Just do your job as an angel, because when God sees that you have such a tremendous desire to do something, he brings you the good fortune that you're able to do it. When you want to give that charity, god will make it possible for you to give that charity.
05:54
There was a very, very big philanthropist in Jerusalem. His name was Mr Hochstein and he did very, very well in business and every year my brother heard this from him directly. My brother said that he said every year the beginning of the year, we're declared how much money you're going to earn. He says you know what I do? He told them. Mr Hochstein said I decide how much money I want to make that year and I commit 10% already to charity. I committed already. So what happens? Let's say he wants to make $10 million. See, he commits a million already to charity. So now God has to do his part. I did my part, I committed it. How am I going to pay for it? I have no idea. But that's your problem, hashem. I already made the commitment and people are like, oh, you can't do that. Yes, you can.
06:59
When God sees that you're so committed, he gives you the vehicle to accomplish, even if it's outrageous. Make the pledge, because God will help you bring it to fruition. Abraham doesn't say you know what? One day I'll feel better. I'll invite guests into my home One day. No, no, no, no, no. He goes right out there and says I want to have guests. God's like I have three angels coming. I'll give them the opportunity. God transforms them into an image of man, and now Abraham is able to fulfill his desire to give.
07:54
This is a lesson for each and every one of us. If we really want something, hashem will deliver it to us on a gold platter. If we really really want something, will it, desire it, manifest it. We're creating a vessel for it to happen. Desire it, manifest it. We're creating a vessel for it to happen. Live with it as if it's there and it will be there. This is a simple lesson that we learned from Abraham.
08:35
Vehu yoshev pesach haol kachom hayom, chapter 18, verse number 1. And Abraham was already sitting at the doorway of the tent in the heat of the day. He didn't say when it cools off, then I'll invite people when it's more comfortable, when I'm feeling better. Abraham had a litany of excuses that he could have pulled. He didn't want the excuses, he wanted the opportunity to do the will of Hashem. Hashem says you want it so badly. I'm going to give you the opportunity to do it.
09:11
Hashem should bless us all that we, we all, have things that we're inspired by. Let's go do it. Let's make a commitment. Hashem, I'm going to do this. And, by the way, it's not only with charity, it's not only with giving, it's with our own spiritual tasks that we want to accomplish. Hashem, I want to start keeping kosher. Hashem, I want to start keeping Shabbos. Hashem, I want to start putting on tefillin every day. Hashem, I want to do this mitzvah, that mitzvah. I want to do it. Hashem will bring it to you, just like he brought it to Abraham. It came to His doorstep. Hashem should bless us all that we should merit to have that clarity, to have that desire to have that desire to have that will and to see it all the time in our lives, the hand of Hashem delivering to us constantly. Amen.
10:17 - Intro (Announcement)
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