(The First) Commandment.

If you can ask only one question to determine the quality of a Jewish education, what would you ask? rabbi Moshe Feller suggested you ask "what is a Mitzvah?". The advanced response is “commandment” (not “good deed”). The word commandment indicates that there is a commander, a commander who communicates and has expectations of the human being, and that Judaism is more then a feel good experience.

A commandment is uncomfortable, nobody wants to be told what to do. We’d rather be enlightened or inspired to follow the lead why is a commandment necessary?

Let’s take a look at the most fundamental idea in Judaism, belief in Hashem. Interestingly there are some authority's who say that belief in Hashem is not a commandment, it proceeds and is the foundation of all the commandments. Others maintain that belief is indeed a commandment.

Chasidus explains that every person can understand and experience a certain aspect of Hashem, we can all relate to him as the Creator of the world by seeing the life all around us. we don't need to be commanded to except this realization for it can be seen. The commandment is to realize and believe in an aspect of G-dlyness that is removed from our understanding, that is beyond our natural reach. We must believe that the human mind can't fathom the essence of Hashem. The commandment forces us to expand our horizons and to discover a greater truth about Hashem.

Growth is a painful process. To grow, you must be forced out of your comfort zone. You'd rather just think the way you did yesterday and stick to the familiar routine. To blaze a new trail, to risk failure by trying something new, is as painful as being thrown into a freezing cold pool of water and being forced to learn to swim.

Perhaps the same is true regarding all of the commandments, including the ones that seem simple. The uncomfortable tone of a commandment should force us to expand our spiritual horizons, to discover greater depth within the Torah. When we awake in the morning and realize that we are commanded to put on Tefilin, we must not be satisfied with the experience we had yesterday. The commandment must push us to reach greater depth and meaning within the TEFILIN. It mush force us to go beyond the routine, to dig deeper and reach the unimaginable.