Love in Action — A Call to Life, Memory, and Compassion in Yeshua the Messiah

A Call to Life, Memory, and Love

Shalom Dear Friends:

Today we gather with hearts that are heavy, yet filled with deep hope, for today the words of Scripture are not only read, but lived before our eyes. The Torah declares: “Do not stand idly by the blood of your neighbor.” (Leviticus 19:16) This is not just a written law, but the heartbeat of God Himself; a call from the Creator to love, to act, to care, and to move. We cannot stand aside while our brother or sister suffers, when a person’s life, body, or dignity is in danger.

When Abraham heard that his nephew Lot had been taken captive, the Scriptures say: “And Abram heard that his brother was taken captive; he armed his trained men… and pursued as far as Dan.” (Genesis 14:14) He did not wait for an army, nor did he ask whether it was worth the risk. He simply rose and went because true love acts. Abraham was the first to live out the commandment, “Do not stand idly by the blood of your neighbor,” and became a timeless example of faith expressed through action.

The sages of Israel taught: “There is no greater commandment than the redemption of captives,” for it encompasses mercy, righteousness, and the saving of lives. Yet even when there are no lives left to save, the call does not cease. It reminds us to bring our brothers and sisters home to honor their bodies, their stories, and their memory for in the eyes of God, no one is forgotten.

In the New Covenant, Yeshua the Messiah takes this same truth and breathes His Spirit into it. He tells the parable of the lost sheep of the shepherd who leaves the ninety-nine to find the one that is missing, because love cannot rest while even one soul remains lost. He tells the parable of the prodigal son of the father who runs toward his returning child and embraces him with unconditional love, revealing the very heart of Heaven a heart that rejoices in every return, every restoration, every life that is found. And He tells the parable of the Good Samaritan a stranger who stops on the road to help the wounded man, binds his wounds, lifts him up, and pays the price for his care. Yeshua teaches us that the true question is not “Who is my neighbor?” but “How can I be a neighbor to another?” Yeshua said to His disciples: “By this everyone will know that you are My disciples if you love one another.” (John 13:35)

This is our calling as His followers to build a community of love, responsibility, and compassion, a family in which no one is forgotten neither the living nor the dead. And today, these words take on painful and powerful meaning. After 4,118 days in captivity, the body of Lt. Hadar Goldin has finally been returned to Israel a son of Israel, a soldier, a brother.

Hadar was born in the communal village of Eshkhar, during the same years when my own family and I also lived there a small place, surrounded by hills and light, filled with prayers of hope and life. His story is one of faith expressed through action of a people who never gave up, who stood watch through long years and declared with one heart: We will not stand idly by.  Hadar’s return reminds us that love is stronger than death. It is the sacred echo of the shepherd seeking his lost sheep, the father welcoming his son, and the Savior who gave His life for His friends.

“Greater love has no one than this that one lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13) May we also walk in that same love a people who never stand idly by, who reach out to the lost, who honor the fallen, and who live as one body, one heart, one hope, in the redeeming, love in action of Yeshua the Messiah.

Amen. Shalom. May his memory be blessed.