Why Is a Love of Chesed So Important?
Based on Ahavas Chesed vol. 2 chapter 2
Why did Hashem deem it so important to love chesed that He went so far as to fill every corner of the Torah with it?
As we all know, the Torah tells us that man was created in God’s image (Gen. 1:27). Commentators have explained this to mean that we are endowed with the ability to emulate God's traits, which means to do good things and to perform acts of chesed. We see that these are God’s traits in numerous places, such as in two verses from Tehillim. Psalms 145:9 tells us that “Hashem is good to all,” while 136:25 teaches us that “He gives sustenance to all living things because His kindness is eternal.” A person who follows the path of chesed will carry the image of God within him. One who says, “Why should I?” or “What’s in it for me?” distances himself from God, as we have said.
Upon reflection, it’s easy to see that mankind’s continued existence depends on chesed. As we pass through the various stages of life, each stage requires various forms of chesed. Sometimes we need a loan; other times we need a job. Sometimes we need help moving, or we need to be cheered up. Sometimes we need to express our pain and sometimes we need a place to stay. Sometimes we need people to care for us, and ultimately we’ll need someone to bury us. The need for chesed is so ubiquitous that of course Hashem packs the Torah full of it! Hence the statement in Avos (1:2) that the world stands on three pillars: Torah, service of God and acts of chesed.
The greatest reward that a person can strive for is to ultimately sit before Hashem and to bask in His Presence. But this is contingent upon getting close to God in one’s lifetime. But how do we do this? Deut. 11:22 tells us to “cling” to Hashem, which the Sages explain to mean that we should embrace His attributes (Sifre, Eikev 49). The pasuk in Micah (7:18) makes it clear that “He desires chesed,” so this is clearly an integral component of that great reward. If a person spurns the very thing that Hashem desires of us, how can he hope to bond with Hashem when his days are finished?
This point is made in the Gemara (Eiruvin 86a). Rava bar Mari explained a verse from Tehillim (61:8): “May he dwell forever before God; appoint chesed and truth to protect him.” (“Truth” refers to Torah.) When will a person dwell before God? When he has achieved success in the traits of chesed and truth, which will serve as his advocates.
We see from all this the great importance of chesed. When presented with an opportunity to perform an act of kindness for others, we should realize the great gift that Hashem is giving us. We should embrace the opportunity, performing the act of chesed completely and wholeheartedly. After learning to truly love chesed, a person will then be inspired to pay this love forward, which will motivate others to emulate him.
Get handy, colorful chesed "cheat sheets" in A Universe of Chesed!