The King In The Field
Moreover the profit of the land is for all;
even the king is served from the field.
Ecclesiastes 5:9
The last month of the civil Jewish calendar is the month of Elul
before the New Year starts with the month of Tishrei again. The month of Elul is a time of paradox. Why? Because it is known
as the time of spiritual workdays.
The Jewish calendar distinguishes between two general
classifications of days: "mundane" (chol) and "holy" (kodesh).
Ordinary workdays are mundane, but the Shabbat and the feasts of the
LORD are holy.
On holy days, we free ourselves from the material entanglements
of life to devote ourselves to the spiritual pursuits of praise,
worship, prayer, intercession and the study of the Word of God.
These holy days are enriched with spiritual attributes such as rest
on Shabbat, freedom on Passover, and awe on Rosh Hashanah etc. Each
holy day provides a unique experience to us as we journey with the
Lord through life.
The month of Elul resembles the holy portions of the calendar.
Elul is a haven in time. It is like a city of refuge where we can
escape from the ravaging and devastating demands of material
pursuits in life. It is a time to take stocks and audit our
spiritual life and accounts – a time to assess and evaluate how we
have fared in the current year that has gone by.
Elul is also a good time to prepare for the New Year (Rosh
Hashanah), Ten Days of Awe, and Yom Kippur. We repent of the things
we have done and failed the Lord, and also resolve what to do in the
future. It is a great time to read the Word of God more, pray more,
praise more, worship more, give more to the Lord and to others by
doing charitable deeds.
Elul is a great opportunity to draw near to God as we renew our
relationship with God – asking Him to light our way, lead us, guide
us and guard us in the days ahead.
In contrast to the other holy days such as the Shabbats and the
feasts of the LORD, the days of Elul are workdays. On Shabbats and
the holy days, the Bible commands us to cease from doing all
physically constructive work (melachah). Work is forbidden on these
holy days. However, in the month of Elul, there are no such
restrictions. The divine and holy activities of Elul are conducted
in the midst of our workday lives in the workplaces, fields, homes,
schools, shops, factories, hospitals or offices etc.
According to a rabbi’s explanation for the paradox of Elul, the
month of Elul is when the king is in the field.
The king is usually
in his royal palace in the capital city. If we need to see or
approach the king, we need to go through the proper protocols and
authorised channels in the palace bureaucracy. Approval is needed
and granted through a succession of ministers and departmental
heads.
We must also journey to the capital where the king is located. We
must pass through many gates, corridors and passageways that will
eventually lead to the throne room. Our appearance before the king
must be meticulously prepared and presented. And we must adhere to a
strict and acceptable code of dress, speech and mannerism before and
upon entering into the royal presence.
But this is different when the king is in the field. Sometimes,
the king comes out of his royal palace to visit his people in the
open fields. At such times, we can approach the king just as we are.
No protocols, no pre-arrangements and no prior preparations.
The
king will receive all of his people with a smiling face and a radiant
countenance. Even the peasant or farmer with all their dirt and
sweat can have free access to the king in a manner not easily
available even to the ministers when the king is in the royal
palace.
For eleven months of the year, our lives alternate between the
mundane workdays and the holy days, between facing the people and
the King, between the fields and His royal palace, and between the
outer courts and the Holy of Holies. But in the month of Elul, the
King of glory comes to the field.
What happens when the king comes to the field? When the farmer
sees the king in his field, does he keep on doing his work? Does he
behave as if it were just another day in the fields? Does he have
the time to run home to wash and change? Can he keep the king
waiting for him to get ready and look right? Of course not. The
farmer must be ready to meet his king in the fields.
Likewise, we must be able to meet the King in our fields - our
homes, schools, workplaces and neighbourhoods. At all times! We must be ready to
receive Him wherever we live, work, rest, eat and enjoy leisure.
1 Peter
2:9-10
But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood,
a holy nation, His own special people,
that you may proclaim the praises of Him
who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
who once were not a people but are now the people of God,
who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.
We are chosen by God. Chosen for the high calling of priestly
work; chosen to be a holy people; chosen to be His instruments to do
His work; chosen to speak out for Him and to tell others of what He
has done for us. Transforming us from nobody to somebody, from rejected to
accepted, and from a sinner to a saint.
We are a holy people, regardless of whether it is a mundane
workday or holy day! At all times, we are called to be holy as He is
holy! Some of us will utterly and totally unprepared if the King of
glory will come and knock at our doors. Will we be ashamed to open
the door for Him to enter into our homes, our workplaces and the
places we are frequenting or visiting?
Revelation
3:20
Behold, I stand at the door and knock.
If anyone hears My voice and opens the door,
I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.
When Jesus comes knocking at our door, will we be glad to hear
His voice and open the door immediately? Will we be ready to invite
Him to come in, and share a meal together as friends? Will we be
happy to commune with Him? Will we be able to stop all we are doing
and serve Him when He comes to us in our fields?
Elul is not a month of ordinary workdays. The very air is charged
with holiness. Everyday we live, everywhere we go, everything we do
is unto the Lord! When the King is in our field, where the
King is, it is holy ground. We are standing on holy ground! Our
field is a holy ground!
God is more interested in a holy people than religious projects,
activities, programs planned and made by man! It is time to stop
playing church and spiritual games with God. Game over!
God is more interested
that His people are a royal priesthood and a holy nation at all times
than that they become holy on holy days and secular on mundane
workdays!
This year, the month of Elul is from August 19 - September 16,
2012. We are now in the month of Elul.
The King is coming to our
fields. Are we ready to meet Him? Face to face.
Source:
http://www.meaningfullife.com/torah/holidays/12a/The_King_in_the_Field.php
Written on 23 August 2012