Parshas Bo
A Yid discovered inside an Egyptian's home on the night of makas bechoros — spared despite every reason to expect otherwise — becomes the model for how far kiruv must go.
Part of Shemot
Explains Rashi's point that a Yid who happened to be in a Mitzri's house during makas bechoros was still spared, per v'lo yihiyeh bachem negef, despite every warning to stay inside and every plague already witnessed. Highlights how spiritually far this Yid must have drifted, and how Hashem nonetheless lowered Himself, so to speak, to save him. Draws the practical lesson that just as the Oibershter went to that Yid's level to bring him out of Mitzrayim, every Yid must be willing to lower himself to reach and be mekarev another Jew, however far removed he may seem.
Audio Transcript
A vort from the Rebbe on this week's parshah, פרשת בא. In פרשת בא we learn that the Eibershter told the Yidden before they left Mitzrayim to bring the קרבן פסח, and He said to put the blood on the houses, which means on the doorposts, etc., etc. And then the pasuk says that by doing this, ולא יהיה בכם נגף למשחית בהכותי בארץ מצרים, and then there will be no death, no plague upon you. And Rashi adds one of the things the pasuk tells us, הרי שהיה ישראל בביתו של מצרי, if while Hashem was killing the firstborns, there was a Yid in the house of an Egyptian, שומע אני ילקה כמוהו, I might think he'll also get punished because he's together with the Mitzri. The Mitzri will be punished, so he'll also get punished. תלמוד לומר, but the pasuk says, ולא יהיה בכם נגף. There will be no נגף, there will be no plague on the Yid no matter where you are.
And the Rebbe says, from here we can learn out something special concerning how a Yid is supposed to be mekarev every Yid as he's able to, bring him closer to Hashem and the Torah. Because there are some people who claim, and even if they're ready to help other Yidden, but not to go to their level, not to lower themselves to them and shlep them out from the place they are, but if they come into the beis medrash, or I meet them in a place, then I'll work with them trying to help him. So here we see a lesson. Imagine a Yid at Pesach night was in the house of a Mitzri. You can imagine how low in spirituality he is. After everything that the Eibershter did to the Mitzrayim, after the makot, the plagues that He gave to Mitzrayim, after the Yidden were warned, don't go out from your house this night, and he's still in the house of a Mitzri? You can imagine how low b'ruchniyus this person is. Nevertheless, the Eibershter lowered Himself till the house of this Mitzri, saving this Yid and taking him out of Mitzrayim. Why? Because the Eibershter loves every Yid, and the Oibershter made sure that every Yid goes out. So from here we can learn בנוגע other Yidden, too. There's an expression in Gemara: דיו לעבד שיהא כרבו. It's enough if a servant is like his master. In other words, we have to follow the master, the Master is the Oibershter. So we as avadim of the Oibershter follow Him. Whatever He did, we have to do, too. והלכת בדרכיו, we have to go in His ways. So from here we see that just like the Oibershter came down bichvodo uveatzmo, all by Himself, to the house of this מצרי, you can imagine how He lowered Himself in order to be mekarev the Yid to bring him out of the מצרי and bring him closer to become part of Klal Yisrael and get closer to the Torah and serving Hashem, so too, every Yid has to be mekarev every Yid, no matter which level he is, bring him closer to the Oibershter. Even though it means that you have to lower yourself from your level, but that's what the Oibershter wants, that you should work very hard to bring every Yid, no matter how low he is, to bring him closer to the Oibershter.