Hag Pesach sameach! Glory to God for all those innocent lambs slaughtered that night in Egypt for the redemption of His people — and for any Egyptians who also feared YHVH and obeyed Him that night — and even moreso for that Lamb slaughtered on that one-of-a-kind Passover almost 2000 years ago! Had the Israelis not slaughtered their lambs and sprinkled the shed blood around their door frames, they would have suffered just as the Egyptians did. Whosoever does not apply with faith the shed blood of the crucified Lamb of God — Yeshua the Nazarene, King of the Jews — as his/her only means of deliverance and salvation from the wrath of God will likewise suffer with all others who do not. Continue reading “Passover and First Fruits”
Evolution
We all hear and know that those younger than many of us reading this post are struggling with identity as believers in Yeshua, some of that struggle being caused by an unwillingness to accept being called by certain names; other causes because of not understanding the new birth as a new creation, and that we are in Messiah/Christ, putting to death the old man in Adam. Continue reading “Evolution”
The Necessity of Redemption
YHVH God created the heavens and the Earth in six days, and ceased and rested on the seventh. We are plainly told in the New Testament that Yeshua/Jesus is the Creator: Yeshua came to us as God in the flesh, in order that we could be redeemed and saved from death, and to inherit eternal life with God if we believe that Jesus died for our sins on the cross, shedding His blood of the New Covenant, and was buried, and rose from the grave on the third day — all according to the Scriptures.
God told us that this present Creation is very good — exactly as He wanted for His plan and purpose. It was/is not perfect — as is clearly evident to all. Even God’s Torah can make no thing or person perfect. The Lamb was slain before the foundation of the world: God always had redemption in mind when He created this universe, and all that is in it. He knew that sin and evil would be inevitable, because only HE is good and without sin, and therefore only HE does not sin. This proved the deity of Jesus Christ/Yeshua the Messiah, and God the Father testifies to the perfect righteousness of His Son by His resurrection from among the dead by the power of the eternal Spirit.
We look forward to the perfect that will come — the New Heavens and New Earth, wherein righteousness dwells — God dwelling among His redeemed family: no more sin, nor any of its evil consequences. Until then….even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Did NASA Spacecraft Discover the Firmament?
This August, 2018, article raises this question for those who believe the Bible, in which it is written that God said that He made the firmament (rakia) on the second day of Creation. The article reports that the New Horizons spacecraft discovered what looks like a brightly shining wall on the edge of space. Is this the boundary of the visible heavens?
https://gizmodo.com/new-horizons-spacecraft-sees-hydrogen-wall-at-the-end-o-1828258683
Gen 1:6-8 Then God said, “Let there be a [a]firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.” Thus God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament; and it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. So the evening and the morning were the second day.
Things Present, and Things To Come
The Great Tribulation/Jacob’s Trouble is coming, and the Church/Body of Messiah needs to be prepared for that. Jacob’s Trouble is not just Jacob’s trouble: the devil is furious against all those in covenant with YHVH — with the Jewish people and the nation of Israel, and with Christians, especially those who faithfully keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus. (Rev 12:17) Continue reading “Things Present, and Things To Come”
Knowing God
Had God not created anything at all, but was content to remain alone with Himself (in trinity), then we would not even be here to know that He is who He is. He would be truly the unknown God. Praise YHVH for who He is, and for all His marvelous works!
When Does The Day Begin?
Could it be that we have got it wrong? In Judaism, we have tended to take the Genesis 1 account as saying that the day begins in the evening, because God said, “And there was evening and there was morning — one day; the second day, etc”.
In the world today, we say that the day begins in darkness at midnight, at 12:00am/2400 hours. Today is January 1, 2020, and the celebration climaxed at the turn of the clock at midnight from what had been December 31, 2019. Continue reading “When Does The Day Begin?”
Christmas and Hanukkah
Holy, holy, holy . . .merry Christmas! And a blessed Hanukkah, too!
The 24th of the ninth month (beginning with Israel’s first month in April/Aviv/Nisan) comes together to bring attention of the light which pierces the darkness, and will ultimately banish it forever! Praise God the Father and our Lord Yeshua the Messiah/Jesus Christ! The darkness that is of the world is deepening; the lights of the redeemed are coming into focused view; the battle of the ages is brewing; and the glorious victory of the Lord of Hosts and of His saints draws us hopefully onward. This day about 2024 years ago was born in Bethlehem Messiah the Lord, who saves His people from our sins! The promises of God are sure; His covenant faithfulness is unfailing!
A Time For Unity
It is very difficult to avoid the special character of this time of year. For us, we like summer more than winter! It is cold in our home; sometimes it is warmer outside than inside. Hanukkah and Christmas are in the air. The spotlight on Jesus during this season of His birth shines brighter than the light that the Maccabees re-lit. They were called saviors (just as the Judges during their time), but they could only point Israel to our need of a true Savior, the true Savior — from every form of idolatry and oppression, sin being chief among them. As I write this there are spiritual songs being played and sung in the background, praising our God and Savior; and it is freeing to be able to enjoy them without a scrooge spirit that I used to have. Praise the Lord for the Holy Spirit enlightening me and Randi to rejoice in the great and holy thing that God did to bring His Son into the world among His people as the promised Savior and King! The God of gods came to redeem the human race and all of His universe that He created and made, buying it back from the rebel and liar! The day belongs to Him whom all the angels of God worship.
At this time of year which should unite all Messianic/Christian believers, there is much division. If we are divided on something so ‘obvious’, what surprise should it be that we will also be divided on many other ‘lesser’ issues. We worship Him who has come, the One of whom Moses and the Prophets spoke. We are AD and not BC in our clarity. Yeshua/Jesus increases as we decrease. All that was spoken in time past to the fathers at various times and in various ways has now been spoken to us by the Son. This Scripture is particularly written to Messianic Jews in the Epistle to the Hebrews, but speaks to every one brought into the Commonwealth of Israel by the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob/Israel. Just as we can use and need simple arithmetic to help understand higher math, so, too, can we use the roots and foundations of the faith to better appreciate the fullness of the much higher thoughts and ways of YHVH God.
As an expression of the unity of the Body of Messiah, we will again go, with others from Yeshua’s Inheritance Cong. joining us, to Bethlehem to an evangelical Palestinian Arab church to celebrate with them the birth of the Lord, and also to be with them as a testimony that we are brothers and sisters in Christ. As a church, they are not particularly favorable towards the purpose of God regarding Israel. But at the personal level, we have a friendship and fellowship as we walk in the light together about what we disagree about. The Holy Spirit will do His necessary work in each and all of us. Our going is an encouragement to them, and we are all reminded that Jesus/Yeshua/Yasua is not in anyone’s particular camp. We must go to Him, outside the camp, bearing His reproach. And Yeshua said that He bears the reproach of the Father. (Ps 69:5-9; Rom 15:1-7) We mutually build up each other as we rejoice in our Savior, born in Bethlehem, grew up in Nazareth, moved to Capernaum, crucified in Jerusalem, to where He will return at the appointed unexpected time, just like when He first came.
PLEASE PRAY FOR GOD TO BE PLEASED AND GLORIFIED AT THE CHURCH SERVICE AND IN THE FELLOWSHIP AMONG THE BELIEVERS IN LOVE. OUR PEOPLES NEED SUCH A GENUINE TESTIMONY AND WITNESS TO THE TRUTH OF MESSIAH/CHRIST BEING JESUS/YESHUA/YASUA. THERE IS ONLY ONE GOSPEL WHICH IS THE POWER OF GOD TO SAVE HUMAN BEINGS, CREATED IN HIS IMAGE, FROM OUR SINS.
The prayer for unity also goes out for us within Israel ‘proper’. As everywhere, we have our differences and disputes. But we are family here in a way that I think is a bit unique, since YHVH has chosen a family to be His people, the Children of Jacob/Israel. The Church is also a family that the Father is calling out from every tribe and tongue and people and ethnic group, whom Jesus redeemed to God by His blood of the New Covenant. When we acknowledge that we are brothers and sisters, we will “try harder”, in love for our Father and His beloved Son, to resolve matters peaceably, even bearing Messiah’s reproach for the sake of greater reward than merely “being right” now. Who knows?; we may be wrong now. SO PLEASE ALSO KEEP THE BODY OF CHRIST/MESSIAH IN ISRAEL IN YOUR PRAYERS, FOR HOLY SPIRIT-UNITY IN THE BOND OF PEACE. WE ARE CERTAIN THAT IN YOUR OWN COUNTRY AND CHURCHES THIS IS ALSO DISCERNIBLE AND UNDERSTANDABLE. IN ISRAEL, WE ARE UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL, NOT SEPARATED BY VAST DISTANCES OR STRONG DENOMINATIONAL DIVISIONS. YET THE SAME SPIRIT WHICH BRINGS DIVISION IS ALSO HERE WITHOUT LABELS.
Jesus the Israeli Jew
(Updated Dec 30, 2019)
After writing this post on Dec 8, several articles and pronouncements have come forth that proves the point of appropriating Jesus as a Palestinian, who though a Jew born under the Law (of Moses), is claimed to have been a Muslim prophet, just like Mohammed. Not only that, but that He was an Islamic martyr! However, in Islam, the Koran seems to say that Isa (their name for Jesus/Yeshua, who they make into another Jesus) did not die on a cross, and perhaps not at all — which, for those paying attention, makes Him greater than Mohammed, who did die for sure. Ignorance and darkness are the seedbed for lies, confusion, and deception. Although wanting to claim that Jesus was a Palestinian from Palestine, on the other hand Palestinian leaders have also claimed that they are Canaanites. If they want to be considered “indigenous” Canaanites, then they are neither Semites nor, therefore, descendants of Abraham.
https://www.algemeiner.com/2019/08/25/the-myth-of-palestinian-canaanites/
Here is an article from yesterday highlighting this false identity “narrative” — “Jesus Was Not Only First Palestinian, He Was Also First Islamic Martyr” : https://palwatch.org/page/17144
Both Islam and Rabbinic Judaism reject and deny Yeshua/Jesus for who He actually is and for what He did. Both deny His resurrection. Neither is the faith of Abraham. Jewish people are physical descendants of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob. Arabs are physical descendants of Abraham, of Ishmael, and of Esau. Muslims are not a people group; neither are Christians: they are both “faith” groups. Only Jewish believers and any Gentile believers who believe the truth of who Yeshua/Jesus is — the LORD (YHVH), the Messiah, the Son of the living God — and in His atoning death and resurrection for their sins is of the faith of Abraham in YHVH God.
Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child’s life are dead.” Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel.
But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region of Galilee. And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, “He shall be called a Nazarene.”