Under His Wings

We recently painted our kitchen which hasn't been painted for several years.  Here are some pictures of the process and the result.

Josh made the Hebrew stencils by hand and then did the stenciling on the soffet for me.

Of course, the Hebrew reads from right to left and the transliteration goes like this, "Shema Israel, Adonai, Eloheynu, Adonai, Echad."

The other wall in the kitchen has the English translation from Deuteronomy 6:4, "Hear O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one!"

And one last look at the finished Hebrew lettering:

Thus says God, the LORD, who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people on it and spirit to those who walk in it:

“I am the LORD; I have called you in righteousness; I will take you by the hand and keep you; I will give you as a covenant for the people, a light for the nations…” (Isaiah 45:5-6).

Just before they reached the Promised Land Moses gave the children of Israel some final instructions.  How interesting that just at the time one of my Bible studies is studying this the Torah portions are in the Book of Deuteronomy where Moses gives these final instructions.   During our time of worship at our house fellowship this week some Scriptures were highlighted that I would like to share here.

"The LORD your God will clear away these nations before you little by little; you will not be able to put an end to them quickly, for the wild beasts would grow too numerous for you." Deuteronomy 7:22   One thing that I noticed in particular is that this battle for the Promised Land is going to be something that the Israelites and God do together.  God says repeatedly that He will destroy the enemy and then they will do it.  But in this verse God says that the job will be done "little by little" and that it will not be done quickly.  Why?  One thing he says is that the wild beasts will become too numerous.  But, I think it is also that living in the Promised Land is a relationship with God that will last for eternity.

The other passage that we noticed is in Deuteronomy 10:12-22, "Now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require from you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and love Him, and to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the LORD'S commandments and His statutes which I am commanding you today for your good?

Behold, to the LORD your God belong heaven and the highest heavens, the earth and all that is in it. Yet on your fathers did the LORD set His affection to love them, and He chose their descendants after them, even you above all peoples, as it is this day.

So circumcise your heart, and stiffen your neck no longer.

For the LORD your God is the God of gods and the Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God who does not show partiality nor take a bribe.

He executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and shows His love for the alien by giving him food and clothing.

So show your love for the alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.

You shall fear the LORD your God; you shall serve Him and cling to Him, and you shall swear by His name.

He is your praise and He is your God, who has done these great and awesome things for you which your eyes have seen.

Your fathers went down to Egypt seventy persons in all, and now the LORD your God has made you as numerous as the stars of heaven."

This passage shows the awesomeness of God in the highest heavens, yet the mercy of God that he cares for the widow and the orphan.  It shows that God is a Judge who acts justly, not taking a bribe and shows love for the alien.  He is a covenant keeping God.  It talks about cutting the flesh away from our hearts to serve the Lord in purity, keeping the commandments in righteousness before Him.  He has done awesome things for His people.  There is blessing and freedom in obeying Him.

For His Name's Sake.

(First of all I want to thank those of you who prayed. I am confident that I will not be in any kind of director position at the center although I am volunteering more hours. The Lord is good to lead and speak to His children. He takes care of the details and I know that He will provide the right person.)

We have only two weeks left in my Bible study on "From Slavery to the Promised Land". Yesterday was our last day in the wilderness and next week we head into the promised land and we will be reading the Book of Joshua for that. Contrary to popular belief the Promised Land is not heaven and we don't have to escape this world to get there. But, I will save that topic for another post because I wanted to write some thoughts about the wilderness in this post.

Yesterday's study included God's heart for His people which is shown in Deuteronomy. Many times today we have the mistaken idea that the God of the Old Testament was an angry, slave driver who laid down terrible laws that the people could not accomplish. How different God is if we really take the time to stop, read and think about what He is saying. "I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants, by loving the LORD your God, by obeying His voice, and by holding fast to Him; for this is your life and the length of your days, that you may live in the land which the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them." Deut. 30:19-20 God is pleading with His people to choose to do the right thing so that He may bless them. He desires blessing for them. Paul talks about the same thing in Galatians 6:7-8 "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life." This is the same thing, blessing or curse, flesh or Spirit, obedience or disobedience. But, I am off the topic.

God led the Israelites through the wilderness for 40 years. It was a trip that should have taken only eleven days. They had days when they did obey God, but many days when they grumbled and complained, or questioned who God chose for their leader, or wanted to back to their old ways of bondage. There were times when God was ready to destroy them and Moses interceded on their behalf. Ultimately, the generation that came out of Egypt never even went into the Promised Land.

We, like the Israelites, are familiar wilderness. No one likes to go there. But, the wilderness is part of the journey to the Promised Land. Look again. It was in the wilderness that God made the marriage covenant with His Beloved and gave her the symbol of the sabbath as a sign of that covenant. He made her His Treasured Possession. He provided everything she needed to sustain her. He covered her in a pillar of cloud to protect her by day and a pillar of fire to warm her by night. He lead her way. He gave her instructions to teach her how to live in community as a people. "and in the wilderness where you saw how the LORD your God carried you, just as a man carries his son, in all the way which you have walked until you came to this place." Deut. 1:31

In 2005 I wrote a blog post called "Loving the Wilderness" which you can read here.

Perhaps our wilderness experience depends upon our focus. I am not, not, not downplaying the pain and devastation that comes to us. I have had times like that also. I have had my share of pain and depression and crying out to the Lord. But, the wilderness times, the times of trial are much more difficult when I focus on ME. If I focus on the One who redeemed for Himself, for His Name's Sake, and ask how I can hallow His Name through this trial I see things in a different light. I am not alone in the wilderness, but with a Lover.

For His Name's Sake.

I've been learning so much in the Bible studies that I am involved in this summer that I always want to come home an blog about what I am learning, but I never know what to say.   With teaching two studies and participating in two more I sometimes go into Bible overload.  Is there such a thing?

Each of these studies are meshing together so beautifully and I find myself talking in one Bible study about something I have learned in another.  For example,  in the book of John today we came to chapter 8 where during the Feast of Tabernacles Jesus stood up in the Temple and announced, "I am the Light of the World."

We had just studied last night how God has set apart the people of Israel to be a treasured possession for Himself.  He chose them from among all the other nations to be set apart, not because of anything they had done, but because of His love and because of His promises to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.  He instructed them to obey Him and in doing so they would be a light to the nations.  The word "nations" in Scripture is "goyim" which can also be translated "gentiles".  When Israel did not obey the Lord they were scattered into the nations, but God said that He would bring them back.  The book of Isaiah is full of prophesies about God's salvation and righteousness.  In God's working salvation for Israel it would spill over to the nations.  Isaiah 60:1-3 "Arise, shine; for your light has come, And the glory of the LORD has risen upon you. For behold, darkness will cover the earth And deep darkness the peoples; But the LORD will rise upon you And His glory will appear upon you. Nations will come to your light, And kings to the brightness of your rising. "

Next, I took the ladies to Luke chapter one where Zacharias gives a prophesy after his son, John is born;  And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying:
"Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
For He has visited us and accomplished redemption for His people,
And has raised up a horn of salvation for us
In the house of David His servant--
As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from of old--
Salvation FROM OUR ENEMIES,
And FROM THE HAND OF ALL WHO HATE US;
To show mercy toward our fathers,
And to remember His holy covenant,
The oath which He swore to Abraham our father,
To grant us that we, being rescued from the hand of our enemies,
Might serve Him without fear,
In holiness and righteousness before Him all our days.
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
For you will go on BEFORE THE LORD TO PREPARE HIS WAYS;
To give to His people the knowledge of salvation(yeshua)                                                          By the forgiveness of their sins,
Because of the tender mercy of our God,
With which the Sunrise from on high will visit us,
TO SHINE UPON THOSE WHO SIT IN DARKNESS AND THE SHADOW OF DEATH,
To guide our feet into the way of peace."

This prophecy is full of the thinking that was in the minds of the people of the 2nd Temple period.  God had made a covenant with Abraham and with David which they were looking to be fulfilled.   They were looking for salvation and the righteousness of God.  They were looking for the prophet Elijah who was going to come to prepare the way of the Lord.

So what does all this have to do with John 8?  In this chapter the people of Israel were celebrating the Feast of Tabernacles and one of the ceremonies at that time was to light 4 menorahs in the court of the women. The Feast of Tabernacles celebrates God dwelling with his people.  The menorahs represented the shekinah glory of God dwelling in the Temple.  These were huge menorahs which would light up every courtyard throughout Jerusalem and the whole city could be seen from far away.  It was during this festival that Jesus said,  "I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life"(John 8:12)

What an awesome thing to contemplate!  What an awesome thing it would have been to experience, to have been one of the people with the culture and the heritage and the knowledge of the Word.  "O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!" Romans 11:33

For His Name's Sake

Some would call me strange. I'm the kind of person that when President Reagan was shot I was glued to the television set. There are just some things that affect me deeply, like what happened one year ago today.

I received this news clip in an email this morning:

"One year ago today, terrorists kidnapped an Israeli soldier after tunneling into Israel from Gaza. Sergeant Gilad Shalit, captured on June 25, 2006, has not been heard from since he was captured except for a hand-written letter to his parents.

This morning, Palestinian gunmen involved in the kidnapping said Shalit was in good health and was being treated well. Hamas has announced that later today it will release an audio tape from the young Shalit.

"Shalit is alive and in very good shape," said Abu Mujahid, a spokesman for the Popular Resistance Committees, one of three groups that captured Shalit. "His health is good and he's stable. We are treating him according to our religion's instructions on how to deal with war prisoners."

The terrorists called for Shalit's family to put pressure on the Israeli government to release Palestinian prisoners in exchange for freeing Shalit. If Israel wants Shalit freed, the government should agree to release Palestinian prisoners who are women, children, elderly, sick, leaders of factions and people serving long sentences, Abu Mujahid said.

Israel has agreed to a prisoner swap in principle, but balked at some of the Palestinian demands for the number and type of prisoners to be freed.

It has been reported though I don't know for sure if it's true that Shalit is being held in a booby-trapped building to discourage the IDF from trying to rescue him.

In this photo, Gilad is shown on duty in Gaza shortly before he was kidnapped. Please continue to keep him in your prayers, along with the two soldiers that were kidnapped on the northern border by Hezbollah."

I rather doubt that Israel is holding women and children as prisoners. If they are, it is for their safety. Hamas has a way of distorting the truth.

I received another excellent link in an email recently. It tells the truth about Israel. I would encourage everyone to take the time to view this slideshow. http://tinyurl.com/2jzuwd

Living in the 21st Century, so far removed from the time and culture in which Jesus lived, we often forget that Jesus was, and still is, Jewish.  He lived life as an observant Jew.  Let's look at some of the ways in which we see evidence of this in his life.

His parents where devout, Torah observant people.  We see this first in the birth narrative.  In Deut. 16:16 God had commanded, "Three times in a year all your males shall appear before the LORD your God in the place which He chooses, at the Feast of Unleavened Bread and at the Feast of Weeks and at the Feast of Booths..."   In Luke chapter 2 we read that Caesar Agustus had made a decree that a census should be taken.  Since people had to travel to their homeland they were probably given a year's time in which to do this.  Joseph, being from Nazareth which is located in the Galilee, would have coordinated his time of travel to Bethlehem with the event of going to Jerusalem for one of the Feasts.  Many times men would take their families with them for the Feasts as they were a time of celebration.  This would make sense as to why Mary was traveling when she was so heavy with child.

Another example of the piety of Joseph and Mary is when they go to dedicate Jesus in the Temple.   In Luke 2:21 it says, "When eight days had passed..."  Did they just wait a random number of days?  No, Jewish boys are circumcised in accordance with the covenant that God made with Abraham on the eighth day after birth.  Verse 22 says, "And when the days for their purification according to the law of Moses we completed, they brought Him up to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord....(vs. 24) and to offer a sacrifice according to what was said in the Law of the Lord, "A pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons."  Their offering shows us that they were poor.

While they are in Jerusalem they meet a man named Simeon.  Scripture says of him, "this man was righteous and devout" meaning he did what was right in the sight of God and he was observant of the Torah commandments.  He was also "looking for the consolation of Israel", the Messiah.  The Holy Spirit  was upon him.  Interesting.

Luke tells us that Mary and Joseph brought in the child Jesus, "to carry out the custom of the Torah."  And Simeon blessed God.  "For my eyes have seen Your salvation."  Except what he really said was, "My eyes have seen Your Yeshua."  Yeshua is the Hebrew word for salvation.  It is also the name that the angel told Joseph to call the child.  "You shall call His name Yeshua."

Just a couple of other things I want to highlight in Simeon's blessing to God.  He said that the child would be, "A light of revelation to the Gentiles and the glory of Your people Israel."  WOW!   The Messiah, the glory of Israel had come.  But, He had come in a way that they had not expected.   The light to the Gentiles(nations) which God had also promised, was also here.

Well, this post also went in a way that I had not expected.  So I will write more on Jesus the Jew, Jesus the Rabbi, and Jesus the Messiah in the future.

For His Name's Sake.

"The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory" John 1:14

This verse has really spoken to me this year as I have been pondering the season of Sukkot. This Biblical holiday commemorates the days of Israel wandering in the wilderness and living in tents in the wilderness. They were fully dependent upon G-d. His glory dwelt among them in the form of a pillar of fire by day and a pillar of cloud by night. He was their Provider and Protector.

In the same way Yeshua, Jesus, came in an earthy dwelling and the Scripture says that He was G-d's glory among us. We are secure in Him. This is the season of our joy. The festival of Sukkot is a celebration of G-d dwelling among His people in the past and in the future. In contrast to the solemn celebrations of Yom Teruah and Yom Kippur it is a day of singing, dancing and celebration.

My Bible study had our Sukkot celebration this afternoon. Here are a few pictures for you.

HAPPY SUKKOT - Chag Sameach!

Psalm 142Maskil of David, when he was in the cave. A Prayer.

1 I cry aloud with my voice to the LORD;

I make supplication with my voice to the LORD.

2 I pour out my complaint before Him;

I declare my trouble before Him.

3 When my spirit was overwhelmed within me,

You knew my path

In the way where I walk

They have hidden a trap for me.

4 Look to the right and see;

For there is no one who regards me;

There is no escape for me;

No one cares for my soul.

5 I cried out to You, O LORD;

I said, "You are my refuge,

My portion in the land of the living.

6 "Give heed to my cry,

For I am brought very low;

Deliver me from my persecutors,

For they are too strong for me.

7 "Bring my soul out of prison,

So that I may give thanks to Your name;

The righteous will surround me,

For You will deal bountifully with me."

I read this Psalm today after reading a prayer that was issued for the Israeli soldiers who are being held captive. As I read and prayed today it was as if I was living these Psalms with them. These Scriptures mean more than they ever have before. The prayer was issued by the Chief Rabbi of Israel:

MAY it be Your will, Lord our God and God of our fathers, that these Psalms which we have read before You today should come to You favorably, and be accepted before you as if King David Your anointed one – peace be on him – had said them himself. Please take action for the sake of Your Holy names which are written in them, and which are alluded to in them, and accept with mercy and favor our prayers and requests, so that our supplications reach You. Have pity, show concern and extend mercy to the captives, Ehud ben Malka Goldwasser; Eldad ben Tovah Regev; and Gilad ben Aviva Shalit, and save them, showing redemption and mercy, together with all captives and prisoners from Your nation Israel.

MAY the One who can liberate captives release them from their detention, deliver them from captivity to liberty, from tyranny to redemption, and from gloom to brightness, and restore them to complete health – a healing of the soul and of the body – and revitalize their spirit, reinvigorate their strength, and help them in happiness and joy; then they will be strengthened and healed and will have eternal happiness.

MAY the merit of the prayers, the cries, and the supplications of the multitudes who plead for them all over the world stand for them as a shield and a protection, freeing them from their captivity. Please tear asunder any negative judgments. May all their merits be presented before You, the Blessed One, and all that they have achieved and done for the sake of our nation and our heritage. Tear up their verdicts for the merit of the Holy Name that is alluded to in the initial Hebrew letters of the phrase “Accept the prayer of your nation; fortify us, purify us, You who are so awesome.”

MAY the words of this scriptural verse (Isaiah 53:10) be fulfilled for them: “God’s captives will return and come to Zion in joy; eternal happiness will be on their heads, they will be invested with joy and happiness, and sorrow and anxiety will be banished.” May this happen very soon!

Translation by Rabbi Mayer Waxman, Director of Synagogue Services, Orthodox UnionEdited by David Olivestone, Director of Communications, Orthodox Union

What a wonderful prayer! We can pray this for the Israeli captives, but we can also pray this for the Persecuted Church. May we rally around them for they are part of us. May they return with joy at what the Lord has done for them:

Psalm 126 A Song of Ascents.

1 When the LORD brought back the captive ones of Zion,

We were like those who dream.

2 Then our mouth was filled with laughter

And our tongue with joyful shouting;

Then they said among the nations,

"The LORD has done great things for them."

3 The LORD has done great things for us;

We are glad.

4 Restore our captivity, O LORD,

As the streams in the South.

5 Those who sow in tears shall reap with joyful shouting.

6 He who goes to and fro weeping, carrying his bag of seed,

Shall indeed come again with a shout of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.

For His Name's Sake

"And the Word became flesh, and did tabernacle among us, and we beheld his glory, glory as of an only begotten of a father, full of grace and truth." John 1:14

"On exactly the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in the crops of the land, you shall celebrate the feast of the LORD for seven days, with a rest on the first day and a rest on the eighth day. Now on the first day you shall take for yourselves the foliage of beautiful trees, palm branches and boughs of leafy trees and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before the LORD your God for seven days.You shall thus celebrate it as a feast to the LORD for seven days in the year. It shall be a perpetual statute throughout your generations; you shall celebrate it in the seventh month.You shall live in booths for seven days; all the native-born in Israel shall live in booths, so that your generations may know that I had the sons of Israel live in booths when I brought them out from the land of Egypt. I am the LORD your God." Lev. 23:33-43

The Feast of Tabernacles, Succot, is the last of the appointed times God listed in Leviticus 23. It is a festival of joy. From the somber mood of repentance and atonement in the holidays of the Feast of Trumpets and the Day of Atonement we now rejoice that our sins are forgiven. God has always desired to dwell with his people and the Feast of Tabernacles is a wonderful celebration of that reality. This year it is sunset October 17, 2005 - sunset October 24, 2005.

Historically, Sukkot looks back to the time when God took the Israelites through the wilderness. During this time they dwelt in tents and were ready at any moment to move where God wanted them to go. They were dependent upon Him. He dwelt among them in a pillar of cloud by day and fire by night.

This festival is rich with prophetic meaning as well. Many believe that it was during the Festival of Sukkot that Yeshua (Jesus) was born. It is also a celebration of His reign as King in His Kingdom. One day all the nations will celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles (Zech. 14:16-18)

"The sukkah(singular) or booth, symbolizes man's need to depend upon G-d for his provision of food, water, and shelter. This is true in the spiritual realm as well. The booth is the physical body, which is a temporary dwelling place for our souls and spirits (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). We need the food that the Word of G-d provides (Matthew 6:11; 4:4; John 6:33-35); the cleansing, rinsing, and washing that the Word of G-d brings to our lives (Ephesians 5:26); and the shelter of G-d's protection over our lives from the evil one (Matthew 6:13; Psalm 91). Our physical needs will be provided for by G-d if we seek Him spiritually (Matthew 6:31-33)." (From "The Seven Festivals of Messiah" by Eddie Chumney)

To celebrate this festival each family builds their own sukkah. It can be built out of lumber, small branches, a tent, even sheets. Remember this is a temporary dwelling. The ceiling is to be made so as to see the sky at night. Then you are to enjoy time together as a family in your sukkah by either eating your evening meal or even spending the night in your sukkah.

There are many, many thoughts regarding the Biblical holidays and celebrating them at Robin Sampson's site. Understanding these feats greatly enhances one's understanding of the New Testament and of Jesus' life.

God is so amazing. He set up His appointed times to remind us of what He has done in our lives. Sort of like anniversary dates. Who wouldn't want to spend these special times with the King of the Universe?
For His Name's Sake.