In this week’s parsha the pasuk says “v’yikchu li teruma” - they should take for Me a teruma, and Rashi says “li lishmi” – for My sake, meaning that the mitzvah must be done lishma. The question is, don’t all the mitzvos have to be done lishma, for the sake of the mitzvah alone and not for ulterior motives? Why specifically by the mitzvah of teruma does the Torah tell us that it must be “li lishmi”?
My Father Shlita brought down the The gemora in Pesachim (8:) “haomer sela zu l’tzedaka al menas shyichye beni harei zeh tzadik gamur” - If someone says “I am giving tzedaka in order that my son should have a refua sheleima”, he’s a tzadik. But doesn’t it say in pirkei avos that a person should NOT do a mitzvah “al menas lekabel p’ras”, just for the sake of a reward? Why should a person be considered a tzadik gamur if he’s only giving tzedakah in order to merit a refua sheleima for his child? Says Rav Shlomo Kluger: If you analyze the quality of the mitzvah of tzedakah, it is certainly not on the highest level if you are doing it on condition that your son should have a refua. But if you analyze the person who is giving tzedakah, obviously he has emuna and he believes in the power of a mitzvah. Being that his Emunah is on a high level, he is considered a tzadik gamur. Note that the gemora says that such a person is a tzadik gamur, not that such tzedakah is tzedakah gemura.
There was a certain gevir who gave tzedakah generously. However, whenever his shul made an appeal, he would never announce his pledge out loud. He wrote a nice check after Shabbos and quietly gave it in. Once, he went out of character and announced his pledge out loud. People asked him why he broke his tradition, and he explained that on that day his children were with him in shul. He wanted his children to see how he gives tzedakah. The rest of the world doesn’t have to see, but he wanted his children to receive that chinuch, that their father gives tzedakah generously.
The Biayalastuker Rav says peshat in this gemara, highlighting that the gemara says “haomer sela zu”, and not “hanosen sela zu.” He’s announcing it. Why? Because “al menas shyichye beni” – in order that my son should have an achrayos, a responsibility towards this mitzvah. If you always give quietly but here you give in public for the sake of chinuch, then “harei zeh tzaadik gamur”.
The maharam Shik (nedarim) explains the pasuk “hanistoros l’Hashem Elokeinu v’haniglos lanu ulevuneinu” that when you do mitzvos b’seser, in secret, then only Hashem knows. But those mitzvos that you do openly, those are for us to transmit to our children that they should follow.
Rav Mordechai Binet gives another explanation as to why such a person is considered a tzadik gamur although we are not supposed to do a mitzvah for the sake of the reward. He explains that when a person wishes to give tzedakah, many times the poor person is too embarrassed to take the money. The eitza is to take away the embarrassment by telling the ani, “I am giving tzedaka in order that my son should merit a refuah shelaima. You are doing me the favor by accepting this.” A person who gives tzedakah in this fashion is truly a tzadik gamur.
We find a similar concept in the Derashos Chasam Sofer who asks why Boaz told Rus that she should get complete s’char from Hashem – don’t we serve Hashem not “al menas lekabel p’ras”? The word p’ras can also mean a piece, as in the word “perusa”. The s’char of a mitzvah depends on us how much we value it. If you are machshiv the mitzvah for a million dollars then that is the value. Says Rav Shalom Shwadron, let’s say someone has a shiur that they always attend, and then one day a business opportunity arises with a chance to gain a $1000. If the person decides not to go to the shiur, he showed that that the mitzva of talmud torah is worth maybe a $1000. But if he ignores the business opportunity and instead attends the shiur, he shows that talmud torah is worth much more. “Al tihiyu k’avadim hameshamshin es harav al menas lekabel peras” – why should you only get a perusa when you serve Hashem? Why be short changed? The reward you will receive is dependent on you, how much you are machshiv your avodas Hashem. If you underestimate the value of a mitzvah, you are only going to get a “piece” of the real s’char. This can be compared someone who broke into a silver store and switched the prices around. For example, he took the tag off a candelabra that cost $5000 and switched it with the tag of a napkin holder that only cost $100. We do the same thing by mitzvos; we switch around the “price tags”. For example, when it comes to the mitzvah of esrog, people spend a lot of money. It’s for only seven days and only the first day is a “deoraisa” and yet people are willing to spend a lot. Why is it that by mezuzah, which is a deoiraysa every day, 24 hours a day, we don’t spend a lot? We are putting price tags on our mitzvos. Don’t be like those people who receive just a piece of their reward because they themselves lowered the value.
Rav Avigdor Miller says, it says “sechar mitzva behai alma leka” – there isn’t enough reward in this world for a mitzvah. Why not? Because all of olam hazeh is not enough reward for one mitzvah. What is the value of a mitzvah? Take a check, write a 1, then start adding zeros. When there’s no more room on the check, continue writing zeros on the table, then on the ground, and then all around the whole world. You still won’t reach an amount high enough to pay for one mitzvah. Says the Chasam Sofer, Rus was originally a princess. She gave up royalty to become a yid. She showed that she appreciated the true value of torah and mitzvos. So Boaz said, Hashem should pay “maskurteich sheleima” – your sechar will be sheleima, complete, not a perusa.
Says the pasuk, “v’yikchu li teruma” – li lishmi. There is a rule by mitzvos that “mitzvah tzericha kevana” – a mitzvah requires kavana. That’s specifically by a mitzvah whose main part is the actual action. But by tzedakah, the main idea is that the poor person should receive the help he needs. So by tzedakah, the mitzvah doesn’t have to be “l’shem shomayim” because there’s no difference to the poor person if you did it l’shem shomayim or not. Says Rav Gestetner, that’s only by a human being who needs the money, who benefits from tzedakah regardless of your kavana. But by giving teruma to Hashem, He doesn’t need our money. Hashem only commands us to give because He wants to give us merits. So by teruma for the mishkan, the main part of the mitzvah is our giving as there’s no “benefit” for Hashem. Therefore, by teruma the mitzvah must be done l’shem Shamayim.
May we all rise to the level of doing mitzvos for the sake of the mitzvah alone, thereby achieving endless, limitless s’char in olam haba.