"Bigdei Kahuna" Parsha page by Rabbi Yehuda Katz

YITRO

"In the third month from the Exodus..................."(19:1)

The Jewish people are now preparing for the giving of the 10 commandments. There is a very interesting Medrash as follows:" Rabi Yitzchak expounded:Israel, when they left Egypt, were worthy of being given the Torah immediately. However, G-d said: "The radiance of My children is not yet apparent. They have just left the bondage of tar and bricks and they can not receive the Torah immediately." To what can this be compared? To a king whose son recovered from an illness, and his teacher said: "Allow your son to come to my school." The king then said: " My son's radiance has not yet appeared and you say,"Let him come to my school?Rather, let my son find pleasure for 2 or 3 months in food and drink, and regain his health. Then he can go to school." (END OF QUOTE)
We can , BEZRAT HASHEM, learn a very important lesson from this Medrash regarding our own spirituality and especially how we educate our children. Hashem understood that the Jewish people needed time before they were allowed to proceed to the next level, namely the giving of the Torah. It would have been foolish for them to jump to the next level before being properly prepared for the advancement. We as well must also gradually proceed from one spiritual level to the next only when we are ready for the challenge. Judaism is a growth oriented religion. Little by little we grow and develop into the type of person we want to be. Hashem waited before giving the Torah to the Jewish people for this very reason, why should we be any different? A great Torah sage once told me that the key to being a "BAAL ALIYAH"
(a person that advances from level to level) is being able to know exactly where you are holding at the present moment in terms of your level, and to proceed from that point upward. However, if you assume that you are somewhat on a higher level than you really are, then you are doomed for failure. This is precisely the mistake most people make when striving to better themselves. Have a good Shabbos