Sabbath Sanctuary: Rest in His Joy

But be glad and rejoice forever in what I create; For behold, I create Jerusalem for rejoicing and her people for gladness (Is. 65:18).

Joy. Christmas is a time where joy is abundant. But not everyone can find it. But when we reject joy, we reject one of the greatest promises ever breathed from God. The joy promise is woven throughout the Holy Writ. The parched will be quenched, the barren will blossom. The lame will walk, the blind will see:

The wilderness and the desert will be glad, And the Arabah will rejoice and blossom; Like the crocus it will blossom profusely And rejoice with rejoicing and shout of joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the majesty of Carmel and Sharon. They will see the glory of the Lord, The majesty of our God.  Encourage the exhausted, and strengthen the  feeble.  Say to those with anxious heart, “Take courage, fear not. Behold, your God will come with vengeance; The recompense of God will come, But He will save you.”  Then the eyes of the blind will be opened And the ears of the deaf will be unstopped.  Then the lame will leap like a deer, And the tongue of the mute will shout for joy. For waters will break forth in the wilderness And streams in the Arabah.  The scorched land will become a pool And the thirsty ground springs of water; In the haunt of jackals, its resting place, Grass becomes reeds and rushes.  A highway will be there, a roadway, And it will be called the Highway of Holiness. The unclean will not travel on it, But it will be for him who walks that way, And fools will not wander on it.  No lion will be there, Nor will any vicious beast go up on it; These will not be found there. But the redeemed will walk there, And the ransomed of the Lord will return And come with joyful shouting to Zion, With everlasting joy upon their heads. They will find gladness and joy, And sorrow and sighing will flee away (Is.35.1-10).

Joy is available to us as we prepare and hope in Him:

In that very day his thoughts perish. How blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, Whose hope is in the Lord his God, Who made heaven and earth, The sea and all that is in them; Who keeps faith forever; Who executes justice for the oppressed; Who gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets the prisoners free. The Lord opens the eyes of the blind; The Lord raises up those who are bowed down; The Lord loves the righteous; The Lord protects the strangers; He supports the fatherless and the widow, But He thwarts the way of the wicked. The Lord will reign forever, Your God, O Zion, to all generations. Praise the Lord! (Ps. 146.4-10).

The arrival of the incarnate Lord was a joyful happening—the angels could not suppress their joy at His arrival:

 

The humble shepherds the first recipients of the Message:

And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord (Lk. 2:10-11).

If the angels, who did not understand sweet redemption, but longed to comprehend it, (see 1 Pet. 1:12) could not contain their celebration, how much more should we, the redeemed, be full of joy at the advent of our Lord?

May you always be joyful in your union with the Lord. I say it again: rejoice! Show a gentle attitude toward everyone. The Lord is coming soon. Don’t worry about anything, but in all your prayers ask God for what you need, always asking him with a thankful heart. And God’s peace, which is far beyond human understanding, will keep your hearts and minds safe in union with Christ Jesus (Phil. 4:4–7 TEV).

This Advent season choose joy. This Sabbath rest in His joy. He came so that our joy will  be full. These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full (Jn. 15:11). He desires for you to be full of joy.

In this Advent season, prepare and have hope, shed the love of Christ in the earth, and be filled with His joy. Let’s pray each day that the joy we know, the joy that is in our hearts, will be shinning from our countenance as we hope, love, rejoice. Happy are the people whose God is the Lord! (Ps.144:15).

For you will go out with joy, and be led forth with peace (Isaiah 55:12, NASB).

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Hanukkah: The Light of the World and Re-dedication Of The Temple

Hanukkah, or the Feast of Dedication is a celebration not included in the Feasts of Jehovah, this celebration finds its origin during the intertestamental period—the time between the Old and New Testaments. It is an epic story of deliverance of God’s people from yet another attempt by Satan, through his puppet Epiphanes, to annihilate the Jewish people.  

Tonight is the first night of this special celebration and its symbolization is remarkable. Jesus celebrated the Festival of Lights, and the importance of this festival is significant. First, I do not celebrate this holiday as the Jewish people do, but I do recognize the importance.

Hanukkah commemorates the re-dedication of the Temple in Jerusalem by Judah Maccabee in 165 BC after a standoff with Antiochus IV Epiphanes, who nearly succeeded in wiping out the Jews. The Maccabees won the standoff. (My own little note: it is no accident that the heroic leader of the Maccabees is named Judah—the line of the Messiah).

When the Maccabees took back the Temple from Epiphanes, it had been completely desecrated—so the Jews went to work to clean and rededicate the temple. They cleaned out the liter left by Epiphanes, and tore down the altar built to Zeus. The Jews offered incense on the golden altar, and placed the shewbread on the table.  The lampstand in the Tabernacle and the Temple, was required by God to be lit every day. The high priest tended the lamps day and night by trimming the wicks and filling the cups with oil. However, only one jar of oil was found, and that would last only one day. But out of faith in God, and a desire to rededicate the Lord’s house, they miraculously lit the lamp from that one jar of oil for eight days.  

Not only was this a miracle at God’s hands to rededicate His temple, it was also a miracle that the Jews defeated Epiphanes. Satan purposed to wipe out the Jews in hopes of wiping out any hope for the Messiah to come.  Satan is no match for the plans and purposes of God.

John 10:22-23 tells us that Jesus celebrated the festival:

At that time the Feast of the Dedication took place at Jerusalem; it was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple in the portico of Solomon.

What does this festival mean for us? It certainly does not mean you need to light a menorah each night.  I celebrate that the plot to wipe out the Jews failed. The hope in the Advent of the Messiah was renewed with the victory over Epiphanes.  

The miracle of the oil was preceded by a desire to renew—rededicate the Temple. Let us during this time of Hanukkah, in this Advent Season, clean out the liter (the Braze Laver)  , renew our study and love for the Word (Table of Shewbread), allow the Holy Spirit to guide us again (The Lampstand), and reignite our prayer life (the altar of incense). Let’s rededicate our temple to the Lord, and renew the hope in the advent of Christ.   Jesus is the Light of the world; let’s shine His light in this season of Hanukkah and Advent. 

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Sabbath Sanctuary: Rest in His Love

                       God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. Jn. 3:16

Today is the second Sunday in Advent. Traditionally, the theme is love; I hold to that tradition.

By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 1 Jn. 4:9-10

Our fallen human nature cannot love God; our carnal nature is at war with God (see Rom. 8:7). He loved us regardless. Love is in high demand, with the hate and evil of the past couple weeks; terrorism and evil seem to be overtaking the world, but Love overcame, and has victory over death, hell, and the grave—yesterday, today, and forever.  

But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Rom. 5:8

God loves us. In the midst of a fallen, sinful, broken world, the love of God is displayed toward us. In Exodus, God called Moses to the top of the mountain to receive the Ten Commandments, and to receive the pattern for the Tabernacle, a pattern that designated Aaron to be the high priest. At the moment that Aaron led the Israelites into idolatry with a golden calf, God was preparing the propitiation that would redeem Aaron and the people. He did that for us as well. He loves us so much that He provided a way to redeem us—fallen, sinful, and broken people we are. He loves us that much. He redeemed us and called us His own.

See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. 1 Jn. 3:1

It all began in a garden, this Redemption story. In Genesis 3:15 is the protoevangelium—the first promise of the Savior that would come to redeem His fallen children. The story is recorded in the Holy Writ; beginning in Genesis and fulfilled in Jesus Christ.

And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel. Gen. 3:15

He loved the world so much that He sent His beloved Son, to redeem you and me. When the Father could have turned away, He instead sent His Son, to dwell with us and be our God, He came and Tabernacled with us. He ordained it from the foundation of the world.

Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world. Jn. 17:24

Jesus, in His moving prayer in John’s gospel reveals the heart of God toward a fallen, broken world, and fallen, broken humanity.

Love is the reason for the first Advent. Love is the reason for the second. He will dwell with us forever.

Rest this Sabbath in the Love of God. Let your love shine in this advent season, so that we can spread His love throughout the earth. This is the reason for the season. 

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Renewing Your Joy For The Holidays

This year seems to have flown right by—the holidays are upon us once again. It’s been a brutal year; one I do not wish to repeat. 2015 has been a year of struggle in my world, and human tragedy and suffering around the globe. The news and the vignette on my dresser remind me of a prayer assignment for country I long to see; it renewed my resolve to pray. 

Though some events cause us to feel like Sam Wise Gamgee in The Two Towers, “How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad has happened?”[1] Even Sam understood that the darkness will pass: “But in the end it's only a passing thing this shadow, even darkness must pass. A new day will come, and when the sun shines it'll shine out the clearer.”[2]

The holidays are a season of joy and thankfulness, yet every year I dread them. Talking with my mother on the phone last week, I hate the holidays, came pouring from my lips. I wish they would arrive and just be over with, I continued. I knew as soon as these words poured out from my lips, that the dread and drudgery had taken control of my mind and my heart. They came too easy; my fallenness finding expression. I sighed deep, and in frustration breathed, I need to figure out some way to enjoy the holidays. Why should I be miserable when I have so much to be thankful for? Why should celebrating the greatest gift ever given to this fallen world, bring dread and discouragement?  The Creator of the universe desired to dwell with humanity and came to the world in human skin. There was no fire or earthquake at His advent, the world slept as the King of Glory entered our chronos to tabernacle with His people, and to reconcile them to the Father.  

As I reflected on my attitude, and why the holidays are so dreary for me, I determined that it is not really Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years that steal my joy. They represent the end of yet another year that I did not accomplish all I wanted to—in fact I fell far short of my plans and intentions, and the end of the year reminds me of how I failed. I have promises yet fulfilled, and prayers unanswered, and another year means I am still in the same place. I just don’t want to celebrate another trip around the mountain.

I also realized that my perception of the holidays reflects a stronghold in my mind. I have been stuck in a pattern or cycle of false perceptions for many years concerning the holidays; if I don’t change my perception, I will stay stuck.

We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. 2 Cor. 10:5

I must cast down this stronghold from my mind; the sighing out of I must find a way to enjoy the holidays, caused me to be determined to change my perception. I want to change the way I perceive them. But this change must not be only for the holidays, it must last from January to December, because truth be told, I dread them all year—a hanging cloud on the horizon. This is not just a momentary change for a season, I need to relearn gratitude—as a wise bishop challenged his flock. The way to break the discouragement is to be thankful for everything. When I begin to feel discouraged, I praise Him, I find something to be thankful for. Blessing and cursing cannot come from the same mouth.

From the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way. James 3:10

We must make the choice ourselves to change our thinking and perceptions. A new day will come—if we choose to have a new day. When we choose to change our thinking, we are breaking the strongholds that keep us locked deep in discouragement. We must develop a habit of gratitude. The bishop challenged the flock to journal the things they’re grateful for. I have been privately, but I was apprehensive to share because it seems to be the theme of most blogs during this season. But how can I thank Him enough? I could write them a thousand times, and still not fully express my thankfulness 

for all He has done.

If we want a new life, or just to get out of the mundane, we have to be grateful for where we are now. God can’t move us to something new when we can’t be thankful in the old. I refuse to be unhappy or miserable during this season, I want my joy to be renewed. The Lord will renew my joy, if I change my thinking and become grateful in the mundane—the Holy often occurs in the mundane.

If you feel stuck return to the Word to relearn gratitude. The Psalms are a prayer tool, and a life line for worship. The poetry and prose of David and the other worshipers are breathtaking.

I have been reciting this Psalm for about a year, in the morning and the evening:

It is good to give thanks to the Lord and to sing praises to Your name O Most High; to declare Your Lovingkindness in the morning and Your faithfulness by night. Psalm 92:1-2

These are a few other passages that I read frequently:

Give thanks to the Lord for His love endures forever. 2 Chron. 20:21

Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, For His lovingkindness is everlasting. Psalm 107:1

This is the day that the Lord has made; I will rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24

Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth. Serve the Lord with gladness; Come before Him with joyful singing. Know that the Lord Himself is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people and the sheep of His pasture. Enter His gates with thanksgiving And His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him, bless His name. For the Lord is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting And His faithfulness to all generations. Psalm 100

O come, let us sing for joy to the Lord, Let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving, Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms. For the Lord is a great God And a great King above all gods, in whose hand are the depths of the earth, the peaks of the mountains are His also. The sea is His, for it was He who made it, and His hands formed the dry land. Come, let us worship and bow down, Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker. Psalm 95: 1-6

O LORD, You are my God; I will exalt You, I will give thanks to Your name; for You have worked wonders, Plans formed long ago, with perfect faithfulness. Isaiah 25:1

You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have loosed my sackcloth and girded me with gladness, that my soul may sing praise to You and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever. Psalm 30:11-12

I will rejoice greatly in the Lord, My soul will exult in my God; For He has clothed me with garments of salvation, He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. Is. 61:10

Arise, bless the Lord your God forever and ever! O may Your glorious name be blessed and exalted above all blessing and praise! “You alone are the Lord. You have made the heavens, The heaven of heavens with all their host, The earth and all that is on it, The seas and all that is in them. You give life to all of them and the heavenly host bows down before You. Nehemiah 9:5-7

Start by thanking Him for loving you and dying for you…if He does nothing else for me, the cross is enough, and I cannot thank Him enough—had I all of eternity to express it.

#1 Thank you for your salvation. Thank you for loving me, dying for me, and saving me.

 The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing. Zeph.3:17

#2 Thank you for filling me and sealing me with Your Holy Spirit.

And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness. Acts 4:31

In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise. Eph. 1:13

#3 Thank you for Your Word and Your promises.

Consider how I love Your precepts; Revive me, O LORD, according to Your lovingkindness.
Psalm 119:59

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. Heb. 10:23

I pray this helps you have a new perception of the season. I pray you will renew your gratitude, not just for Thanksgiving, but the whole year through.

---

[1] The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, DVD (Los Angeles: New Line Home Entertainment, 2003) disk 2.

[2] Ibid. 

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Psalms To See Me Through: Psalm Twenty-Two A Cry Of Anguish

For the choir director; upon Aijeleth Hashshahar. A Psalm of David.

My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? (v.1)

It was a somber day. The air chilling; death inevitable; hate abounding. Christ is hanging on the cross. He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross (see Phil. 2:8). He is seeking the Father’s face, but for a brief moment in time, heaven has turned away. Jesus feels the despair of being separated from the Father. He is nailed to the tree to bridge that gap for all mankind. In His suffering, Jesus reaches back almost one-thousand years to the prophetic Psalm of David;

And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matt 27:46 ESV).

Far from my deliverance are the words of my groaning. (v.1)

Jesus felt the separation from the Father when He took the sin of the world on His shoulders. It felt as though God was far away. It feels like that for us to sometimes in the midst of our anguish.

O my God, I cry by day, but You do not answer; And by night, but I have no rest. Yet You are holy, O You who are enthroned upon the praises of Israel (vv. 2-3).

Many times we suffer through trials and the heavens seem as brass. Sleep is lost to the tossing and turning, the writhing of the hands, the swirling of the thoughts. But we, like David, must remind ourselves of who God is. He is always faithful.

In You our fathers trusted; They trusted and You delivered them. To You they cried out and were delivered; In You they trusted and were not disappointed (vv.4-5).

David begins by declaring His trust in the faithfulness of the Lord, but then in the same breath exempts Himself:

But I am a worm and not a man, A reproach of men and despised by the people. All who see me sneer at me; They separate with the lip, they wag the head, saying, “Commit yourself to the Lord; let Him deliver him; Let Him rescue him, because He delights in him” (vv. 6-8).

These words are prophetic and evoke the events at the cross that day. These words ring familiar from Matthew’s gospel:

He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him… (27:43 ESV).

Don’t buy the lie that God delivered the patriarchs but ignores your cries. When God seems silent, it does not mean He is far away. He is calling you into fellowship with Him. Do you trust Him? Is He faithful? Is He far away? Do you believe in Him? He is deep calling to deep…

David in the midst of his despair, remembers yet again the God of his fathers. He remembers the journey in which God has brought him. Yes, God is faithful even when He seems silent. I may not be able to trace Him in the silence, but I can trust Him. I can trust Him by remembering how far He has already brought me…

Yet You are He who brought me forth from the womb; You made me trust when upon my mother’s breasts. Upon You I was cast from birth; You have been my God from my mother’s womb (vv.9-10).

Before you were born, He was your God. He has a plan and a purpose for you. He did not bring you this far only to fail you now. He will not let you drown:

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, Nor will the flame burn you (Isaiah 43:2 NASB).

Believers are not immune to trouble. Jesus promised that trouble should be expected. But He also promised that He has already overcome it (see Jn. 16:33). He made that promise so that we will have peace. The Lord is only a prayer away. He may not calm the storm, but He may calm you in the midst of it. He wants us to know that He is our anchor. He is our strong tower. He is a refuge for all that come to Him.

Be not far from me, for trouble is near; For there is none to help. Many bulls have surrounded me; Strong bulls of Bashan have encircled me. They open wide their mouth at me, As a ravening and a roaring lion. I am poured out like water, And all my bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; It is melted within me. My strength is dried up like a potsherd, And my tongue cleaves to my jaws; And You lay me in the dust of death. For dogs have surrounded me; A band of evildoers has encompassed me; They pierced my hands and my feet.  I can count all my bones. They look, they stare at me; They divide my garments among them, And for my clothing they cast lots.  But You, O Lord, be not far off; O You my help, hasten to my assistance.  Deliver my soul from the sword, My only life from the power of the dog. Save me from the lion’s mouth; From the horns of the wild oxen You answer me (vv. 11-21).

These words of misery and anguish are attributed to the Messiah, and though they seem hopeless, they are far from it. This prose paints a vivid picture of what Jesus endured on that cross, and it would seem that He felt that God had forsaken Him. We feel that way when we are enduring a trial or a hard season. The loneliness is unbearable at times. It must have been for Christ as well;

For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin (Heb. 4:15).

Christ in all His anguish still trusted in God, even in the moment that He turned away. He still in the end, committed His spirit into the hands of the Father. He knew the dark and the loneliness would be only a moment in time.

Though this poetry has Messianic implications, don’t overlook the poet that penned these words—David. He too is in anguish, surrounded by many who seek to harm him, and their mocking is unrelenting. But like Christ our ultimate example, David reaches past the darkness and anguish and finds words of praise and worship. He recalls the faithfulness of God through the ages. He reminds Israel to stand in awe of Him.  

Read the remaining verses with awe and meditate on His magnificence. He is worthy of all glory honor and power. Cast all your cares on Him. Give Him all your trouble. Praise Him for His deliverance past, present, and future. He is faithful. He is trustworthy. He is glorious and mighty. He is beautiful. He is spectacular.

I will tell of Your name to my brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will praise You. You who fear the Lord, praise Him; All you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him, And stand in awe of Him, all you descendants of Israel. For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; Nor has He hidden His face from him; But when he cried to Him for help, He heard. From You comes my praise in the great assembly; I shall pay my vows before those who fear Him. The afflicted will eat and be satisfied; Those who seek Him will praise the Lord. Let your heart live forever! All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, And all the families of the nations will worship before You. For the kingdom is the Lord’s And He rules over the nations. All the prosperous of the earth will eat and worship, All those who go down to the dust will bow before Him, Even he who cannot keep his soul alive. Posterity will serve Him; It will be told of the Lord to the coming generation. They will come and will declare His righteousness To a people who will be born, that He has performed it (vv. 22-31 NASB).

He does not despise the afflicted, but when we cried unto Him for help, He heard. 

May we never lose our wonder. 

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Praying the Psalms, Touring The Holy of Holies, Finding Your Song, and Bringing Back The Awe and Wonder

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Simchat Torah: Rejoicing In Torah

The Feast of Tabernacles has drawn to a close, and today marks the Simchat Torah, A day of rejoicing with the Torah. This is not a biblical feast, it was added later to the Jewish holidays, but I love the implications. 

Devout Jews read through the Torah cyclically through the year. The eighth day of the Feast of Tabernacles marks the end of the cycle of weekly Torah readings with Deuteronomy 34, and the new cycle begins, going back to Genesis 1. Synagogues hold services on this day, and at the end of the reading service, a ceremony call the Hagbah is performed. The Hagbah is lifting the Torah Scroll for the people to see. It is held in a way where it is reversed with all the weight of the scroll on one side to symbolize turning the Torah back to its beginning. This eighth day is said to be the last great scene of Jehovah’s joy in the accomplishment of His purposes of grace.

What are the implications here for believers in Yeshua? Jesus is the Living Word, the Living Torah, written upon our hearts, so that we can truly dance and embrace God’s Truth. David said of the Torah:

I delight in following your commands more than in having great wealth. I study your instructions; I examine your teachings. I take pleasure in your laws; your commands I will not forget (Ps. 119: 14-16 NASB).

In Nehemiah 8, Nehemiah and Ezra, and the Levites, gathered the people to read them the Law (Torah), because it had been lost for so long, and the people did not know or understand what was written in the Law:

Then Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn or weep.” For all the people were weeping when they heard the words of the law. Then he said to them, “Go, eat of the fat, drink of the sweet, and send portions to him who has nothing prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”  So the Levites calmed all the people, saying, “Be still, for the day is holy; do not be grieved.”  All the people went away to eat, to drink, to send portions and to celebrate a great festival, because they understood the words which had been made known to them (vv. 9-12).

The people were weeping at the reading of the Torah. That we would be in awe over hearing God’s Word. Nehemiah instructs the people not to mourn, but that this is a time of celebration. Celebrate over the Word—that we would celebrate over the Word. Right after this, the people realized that the Feast of Booths had not been celebrated since the days of Joshua.

The sons of Israel had indeed not done so from the days of Joshua the son of Nun to that day. And there was great rejoicing. He read from the book of the law of God daily, from the first day to the last day. And they celebrated the feast seven days, and on the eighth day there was a solemn assembly according to the ordinance (vv.17-18).

Again there is celebration over obeying the Word; such an example for us.

Jesus said in Matt. 5, that He came not to destroy the Torah, but to fulfill the Torah. He is the embodiment of the Word. Jesus Is the Word and He came down and dwelt among us;

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was in the beginning with God.  All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.  In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.  The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it… And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth (John 1:1-5,14).

Jesus is the Word and we should be celebrating Him every day. We should be thankful for His Word, and allow it to guide our lives—daily.

The Word came to make you whole, and to heal you. I love the account of the woman caught in adultery. The religious leaders threw her at the feet of Jesus, at the end of Sukkot (Jn.8). Jesus had remained in Jerusalem during the conclusion of the eighth day of the Feast of Tabernacles, and it was during this time that a woman caught in her sin, had an appointment with the Word Himself. Not to be condemned by it, but cleansed by it.   

The Torah in which they were celebrating, Numbers 5 to be precise, describes a test for a woman suspected of adultery. If a husband suspected his wife committed adultery but could not prove it, he would bring her to the priest. The priest wrote the curses of the law on parchment. He would then mix the water from the dirt and pour it over the ink-stained parchment. This would cause the ink to bleed into the cup. The woman then was required to drink it. If she was not guilty she would have no ill effect. If she was guilty her thigh would swell.

This test for adultery is known as the trial of bitter waters, and it usually is performed in the temple. The leaders however, decided they would kill two birds with one stone; condemn the woman and trap their enemy. They did not understand that they brought her to Christ—for the Living Torah Himself to bring judgement according to the Word. He simply knelt down and wrote in the sand. Is it possible that He wrote this in the sand with the finger that created the universe?

Lord, you are the hope of Israel; all who forsake you will be put to shame.Those who turn away from you will be written in the dust because they have forsaken the Lord, the spring of living water (Jeremiah 17:13).

They were saying this, testing Him, so that they might have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down and with His finger wrote on the ground. But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.”  Again He stooped down and wrote on the ground.  When they heard it, they began to go out one by one, beginning with the older ones, and He was left alone, and the woman, where she was, in the center of the court. Straightening up, Jesus said to her, “Woman, where are they? Did no one condemn you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “I do not condemn you, either. Go. From now on sin no more.” John 8:6-11

Whatever Jesus wrote in the sand that day, we will not know—at least not on this side of eternity. But He was most likely writing in the very dust that would have been used at the woman’s bitter waters trial that day. The religious leaders brought her to Jesus to condemn her according to the Torah; He restored her according to the Word. He told her to go and not sin—He never condoned her sin, He freed her from it. Now we can rejoice that the living Torah delivers the sinner from sin and guilt, and restores them to life. This is worth celebrating. 

This is my scribbling...

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The Holy Place Part III: The Altar of Incense

***Notes soon to come!***


This is my scribbling...

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