The Greatest Chessed
Now, all of that is very important. A Torah Jew should always consider the myriad of ways that the Torah makes him happy and successful in this world. And he should do it until it becomes part of his outlook on life; not superficial words but an attitude that percolates in his mind always.
But now we’ll move on and understand another level, a higher level, of the Torah being a Torah of kindliness. The entire Torah, from beginning to end, is one big kindliness because by means of receiving the Torah, that’s how we became Yisroel!
To be a Yisroel! That’s the greatest chessed of all chassadim provided by the Torah. More precious than all the happiness and success the Torah gives us in this world, what we have to appreciate most about the Torah, is that because of the Giving of the Torah that’s how we became Jews.
We’ve Received a Promise
You know, before Matan Torah even the Avos were called bnei Noach. Avraham, Yitzchok and Yaakov, the shevatim, their families, they were gedolei olam; they were tzaddikim and chassidim, but they weren’t yet the Am Yisroel. It was only when we were given the Torah at Har Sinai that the nation became geirim. The Gemara says that. (Krisus 9a): We all became geirim at Har Sinai. And once we became Yisroel then all the promises that Hakadosh Baruch Hu made to His chosen nation are ours.
What promises? Many; very many. But the most important one, the one that stands out above and before all others, is that to be a Yisroel
