First Things First:

Ephesians 6:2

Mothers are mothers 24/7, 365 days a year, every year. Mothers and single Dads, should be remembered every day! Thank you Adonai/Lord, for Mothers who know and love you and teach their children that Jesus/Yeshua IS THE WAY. (This includes all spiritual Mothers too!)

And also…

‘Who has seen such things? 

Can a land be born in one day?

Or can a nation be brought forth in a moment?’ Isaiah 66:8 was fulfilled on 5 Iyyar 5708; 14 May 1948. 

Mazel Tov YISRAEL!! 

Congratulations Israel!

It’s your 70^th Birthday!! 

  Iyyar 29, 5778 is 14th May 2018 and 44th day of the Omer.

It is 70 years since the independent State of Israel was established.

70 Years is a Biblical generation and has a significant connection to the words of Messiah Yeshua in Matthew 24:32-34: concerning the generation that would see the budding of the fig tree, (the blossoming/establishing of Israel). “Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.” (70 years from 1948 is 2018). This could indicate that anyone who clearly remembers the establishing of Israel in 1948 will have to be 70+ years of age in 2018 and could be the generation that will ‘not pass away’, until all these things in scripture are fulfilled.

He is near, even at the door! Maybe closer than we think!

“The Israeli Declaration of Independence, formally the Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel (Hebrew: הכרזה על הקמת מדינת ישראל‎). It was proclaimed on 14 May 1948; (5 Iyar 5708) by David Ben-Gurion, the Executive Head of the World Zionist Organization and Chairman of the Jewish Agency for Palestine. It declared the establishment of a Jewish state in Eretz-Israel, to be known as the State of Israel, which would come into effect on termination of the British Mandate at midnight that day. The event is celebrated annually in Israel with a national holiday Independence Day on 5 Iyar of every year according to the Hebrew calendar”

Also noteworthy, is the Embassy of USA is slated to be moved to Jerusalem and will officially open on May 14, just days after Israel celebrates the 51^st anniversary of the Six Day War and the reunification of Israel’s capital.

……………….

Seeing Jesus/Yeshua 

ALL along

THE WAY... The Emmaus WAY!

On the  Hebrew calendar we are in the 50 days between Passover/Pesach and Pentecost/Shavuot. This is the time when the disciples were acutely feeling the loss and had questions and doubts. This is just one of the times that Jesus/Yeshua appeared to the disciples after His resurrection.

At that time, it must have felt to them like that door to life, to any kind of future, had closed forever. All of their hopes and dreams of a Kingdom of God had been drowned in death and terror. Jesus/Yeshua of Nazareth – who brought healing in body, mind and spirit to so many; then inexplicably, He had been crucified and buried.

Simon and Cleopas were facing the emptiness of a world without Jesus/Yeshua and the future they once envisioned had, it seemed, been buried with Him. The same injustice and oppression of the past and present looked as if  it was all that the future now held. Anyone daring to say otherwise would most certainly end up like Jesus/Yeshua; betrayed by His fellow countrymen, tortured and then executed by the Romans.

To set a scene: It would have been very late in the afternoon on the first day of the week when Cleopas and his friend left Jerusalem to go home to Emmaus.They’d heard the morning’s disquieting talk among Jesus’/Yeshua’s disciples: the Master’s body has disappeared from the tomb and it made no sense at all. Did the Romans desecrate the tomb and remove Jesus’/ Yeshua’s body because it was their idea to prevent the tomb from becoming a martyr’s shrine and the body from becoming a religious relic?Jesus/Yeshua seemed to isolate and focus on those who are in the greatest need and He appeared to them first.

These men were in deep grief and confusion, as was Mary.

Sometimes in life, Jesus’/ Yeshua’s first effort is to help us focus on what His word says, so our faith will be established.Sometimes He hides Himself while He points us to the Bible and its scriptures, because God’s Word is the only true foundation for faith.Along the road, an hour or so into their walk, a stranger overtook Cleopas and his companion. Jesus/ Yeshua entered the men’s conversation by asking what they were discussing as they walked along. It was very odd that, coming from Jerusalem, this stranger seemed to know nothing of the bloody end of Jesus/ Yeshua of Nazareth; yet he talked like he’s a disciple of Jesus/Yeshua but they didn’t recall seeing him among Jesus’/ Yeshua’s disciples.

As the three walked toward Emmaus, Luke says, “They stood still, their faces downcast.”Then Cleopas asked, “Are you only a visitor to Jerusalem and do not know the things that have happened here in these days?” How is it possible you don’t know what has happened?
“What things,” Jesus asked?“About Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied, “He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. The chief priests and the rulers handed Him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified Him; but we had hoped that He was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place” (vs. 18-21).These disciples express the deep longing and belief all Jesus’ disciples’ had cherished, that He was the long looked-for Messiah. But, they said, all their hopes are dashed.
The two go on to report incredulously, that some of the women had described seeing angels and other disciples had seen the empty tomb, but they didn’t know what it all meant.Here are some of the most powerful words in the New Testament: “He said to them, ‘How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter His glory?’ And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scripture concerning Himself” (vs. 25-27).The stranger shares an interpretation of scripture that the two disciples, in their grief, have been unable to understand. Luke doesn’t tell us which scripture passages the stranger refers to, however, it’s not hard to guess which ones they were.

Beginning with the writings of Moses (Genesis through Deuteronomy), and continuing through the writings of the Hebrew prophets, Jesus/Yeshua points out the Scriptures that foretold His ministry, suffering, death, and resurrection.

Maybe He started in Genesis 3, with the messianic interpretation of what God said to the serpent: ‘I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.’ (v. 15)Next the stranger may have turned to the words of Moses in Deuteronomy 18: 17a, 18-19. ‘Then the Lord replied to me…I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their own people; I will put my words in the mouth of the prophet, who shall speak to them everything that I command. Anyone who does not heed the words that the prophet shall speak in my name, I myself will hold accountable.’Almost certainly the stranger would have quoted from Psalm after Psalm, including Psalm 68 and 22, the opening line of the verse was prophesying that the Messiah would cry out from the cross: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” After that maybe He opened the treasure trove of prophecies about the Messiah and His suffering, for Cleopas and his companion, especially Isaiah 9:6-9, 53 and 61 and Zechariah 12 and 13?He told them that, Messiah/Jesus’/Yeshua’s, death and resurrection, had been clearly foretold in the Hebrew Scriptures. He had tried often to explain this to them, but the disciples’ minds were clouded with popular beliefs that contradicted the messianic prophecies; beliefs that turned the Messiah into a powerful earthly ruler, who would conquer kingdoms and lead Israel to national glory.There must have been a deeper earnestness in Jesus’ voice as He opened the scriptures to them. Quoting Isaiah 53 which not only predicted the manner of Jesus’ death, but clearly described His resurrection too: “After the sufferings of His soul, He will see the light of life and be satisfied” (v. 11). “Though the Lord makes His life a guilt offering, He will see His offspring and prolong His days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in His hand” (v. 10).
 

Daniel said the Messiah, “the Anointed One,” (v. 26) would be “cut off ” (killed) in the middle of the final week (7 years) of the 70 Week Prophecy, but after His death, He would confirm the covenant with many” (9:27). In other words, He would die, then be resurrected to continue His covenant establishing work with His people.Cleopas and his friend had been mournfully nursing their dashed hopes, but as this stranger helped them understand that what had just happened, was exactly what God predicted, and planned for since before the foundation of the earth; they begin to feel an amazing hope. By the time the stranger had connected the dots, the two disciples’ hearts were on fire. In (v. 32), the men said, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?” They have a new understanding of what God has done in Jesus/Yeshua of Nazareth.

There is no record of how long He walked and talked with them so we don’t know, but as they neared Emmaus, it was late in the evening, and concerned for their friend’s safety, they urged Him to stay with them for the night. Luke says, “Jesus acted as if He were going farther. However they urged him strongly, ‘Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over. So he went in to stay with them” (vs. 28-29).They brought out food for dinner, and when Jesus/Yeshua took the bread BLESSED AND BROKE IT with them at dinner in Emmaus,the two disciples understand not only what the stranger has said, but who the stranger is.“Their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and He disappeared from their sight” (v. 31).Imagine their shock and amazement. They have just been walking and talking with the resurrected Messiah! The two men jump up from the table. They can’t contain their excitement and joy, They’re on fire;  and in the gathering darkness, they must return to tell the other disciples what has happened and they rush back the seven miles to Jerusalem .It would have taken them several hours to return the 7 miles –not a safe and sensible trip to be making in the dark. Nor is their destination a safe and sensible one if you’ve been a follower of Jesus of Nazareth.But nothing can restrain them any longer.

The transformation of their lives that has occurred this evening is one destined to be replayed in group after group of Jesus’ followers.

When Jesus/Yeshua opens our eyes we SEE clearly for the first time in our lives.There is an amazing change that comes over Cleopas, his traveling companion, Peter and the other disciples, as they go from fleeing and hiding to boldly proclaiming that the one who was Crucified lives again. It’s not a safe thing to say and it will cost many of them their lives. But they cannot remain silent.

Somehow, Jesus of Nazareth – who is supposed to be dead, now has an existence outside of time and space and it lies beyond scientific observation or human understanding.Yet it affects thought and action, time and space. A new future, one filled by the risen Messiah, springs out of the ruins of a future, that seemed empty of all life and hope. The future belongs to God and God is there, calling us forward into a new existence.

There are many lessons in this beautiful story for us today.

Luke wrote his gospel, so that we may know the certainty of the things that we have been taught. Luke 1:4

Below the charts indicate, who was there, and how their questions were answered by the certainty of the things they’d been taught.

Jesus/Yeshua cares for all His followers. There are no “insignificant” disciples to Him. We must never feel we are unimportant to God or Heaven Plan. He gives equal care to all His children, and special care to those who are in greatest need.

So Who Was Cleopas??

Not everyone agrees!… so here are some options:

One tradition has it (and it is possible) that Cleopas was the brother of Joseph, husband of Jesus’ mother, Mary.Another claims Cleopas’ companion on the road to Emmaus in Luke 24:13-35 may have been his own wife? Cleopas wife may have been Mary, (John 19:25) ‘the wife of Cleopas who stood at the foot of the cros’.And she was the same Mary that was the mother of James the Lesser and Jude.Luke 24:34 identifies Peter as one of the two on the road. Luke 24:34 1611 KJV: Saying, The Lord is risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon.

1 Corinthians 15:5. And that he was seen of Cephas — As mentioned Luke 24:34 , who saw him before any of the other apostles. He appeared, indeed, after his resurrection, first of all to Mary Magdalene: and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same.1 Corinthians 15:5. And that he was seen of Cephas Or Simon Peter; for Cephas was a name given him by Christ, ( John 1:42 ) .

However rabbi Paul states that Yeshua was seen of Cephas before He was seen of all twelve, which agrees with the fact that Luke mentions that it was the “them” that were with the “apostles” (verse 33) that mentioned Simon’s sighting, not the Emmaus “they” of verse 35. (1 Corinthians 15:5). This was not another Cephas, one of the seventy disciples, as Clemens suggests {g}, but the Apostle Peter himself, to whom it is certain the Lord appeared.Or was Cleopas a woman, the wife of the second person returning to Emmaus? The reference to appearing to Peter in Luke 13:35 was Simon Peter and was he the companion traveller? verse 18 names Cleopas as the other disciple.While most people assume Cleopas is a man, the Greek spelling has a feminine genitive (possessive) ending so that some scholars speculate that this could have been Peter’s wife on the road to Emmaus with him. It appears that they were going back to where they lived as indicated in the verse ‘The man came in unto their home’.

The Greek spelling of Cleopas Luke 24:19 is Kleopas while the spelling of Clopas in John 19:25 is Klopa. The letter o in klopa is omega, while the letter O in KleOpas is an Omicrom. Both words are in the genitive case with Klopa = masculine and Kleopas = feminine.Some say “Cleopas” name in high Greek (HaLane`Katara) means: “Glorious Father,” but Cleopas’ name is an abbreviated form of “Cleopatros,” a more common Hellenistic name at the time of Yeshua meaning: “son of a renowned father.”

 ?????

The fact remains there were 2 travelling back to Emmaus, which is 7 Miles from Jerusalem. Luke 1:26-38; 2Peter 2:4-11

The journey – walking and not recognizing!

Jesus/Yeshua wants to ground our faith in His word, the Scriptures, even more than giving us the emotions of joy, Jesus/Yeshua may reveal Himself to you in seemingly special ways, but never contrary to what His word teaches.The fact they did not recognize Him may have been due to His new Resurrected body being perfect, not looking anything like He was the last time they saw Him. Or maybe He could adjust His outward appearance, now He was not constrained by space and time and had supernatural qualities?
     Lastly, one can wonder what would have happened if the two disciples from Emmaus had not urged Jesus/Yeshua to stay with them.

Would they have missed the opportunity to know it was Messiah who had been talking to them?

Messiah agreed to stay only when they urged Him to do so.

Do we need to urge Jesus/Yeshua to be with us more than we do?

Not because He is unwilling, but because He never forces Himself on anyone?

How many blessings have we missed because we haven’t been more serious about seeking God, or because we haven’t urged Him to stay with us on our Emmaus journey of discovery and relationship?

What blinded them, is the same thing that sometimes blinds us, which is ??  

The Appearance to the 10 Disciples ‘While they, [Emmaus travelers], were telling these things, He Himself stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace/Shalom be to you.”’

Revelation – eyes open…Joy on return..

Can people SEE that we have been with Messiah?Gospel readings have given us accounts of people who looked at Jesus, walked with Jesus, and talked with Jesus but did not recognize Him.  

What is it that kept them from recognizing Him? What blinded their eyes?  What stopped their ears?

Could it be that they, had an idea, of who Jesus/Yeshua was supposed to be. They had formed Him in their minds in their own image and likeness. Yet their image and ours puts limits on the man who is essentially, God.

 So, when this man appeared to them in the garden and on the road they did not recognize Him.He didn’t fit the image they had formed.  He far exceeded it and it makes them, in a way, blind and deaf, if only for a time.In some ways seeing is deceiving.

Matthew 9:27 ‘As Jesus went on from the two blind men followed him calling and saying, take pity on us son of David.’

These two blind men began following Jesus. How could they follow Him if they were blind? Blind from birth they no doubt knew their way around the local area and were able to follow along with the crowds. And really, why would they follow him? They have not seen any miracles or witnessed any great wonders. Yet in the Scripture above they seem to be the first to recognize that He WAS the son of David, THE Promised long awaited Messiah. They heard what was happening as people were being healed and they surely heard the words that He spoke.These two blind men following Jesus could not rely on their eyesight for anything yet all their senses testified that they were in the midst of the one they have been waiting for, the great deliverer of Israel.

How often do we ignore what our senses are plainly telling us. Sometimes our faith can be so one-dimensional that we are unable to see the truth even when it’s standing right before us.

Seeing as how blind men can follow the Messiah, perhaps we too would do well to occasionally close our eyes.. And see what we can see.

The two disciples don’t recognize Him until the breaking of the bread.  Many commentators say that they saw the wounds in His hands at that time and they knew it was the Lord.  It may have been the wounds, however it was more likely what He said.  Perhaps what He said were once again, those life changing, universe shaking words, unparalleled in the history of creation: “This is my body which is given for you.  Do this in remembrance of me.”

Whether it was the words of Our Lord, the action of His Breaking Bread or His physical appearance, we do not know for sure.  What we do have is a record of the reaction of the two men, “…they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem…”  The seven mile walk from Jerusalem to Emmaus became a seven mile jog from Emmaus to Jerusalem – on that same day!The reaction was to run and tell others.  Mary ran too, at the Lord’s command, to tell others. Miriam of Magdala, we know her as Mary Magdelene, was by the empty tomb weeping over the death of her teacher/ rabbi. As She turned around and saw him standing there she did not realize it was Him and apparently thinking that He was the Gardener she said, tell me where you put Him and I’ll get Him. He replied by speaking her name, Miriam. She answered, Rabboni, meaning teacher/rabbi. All she could think about was that her beloved rabbi/ teacher was gone and yet He was standing right there beside her.In our day to day walk, it is easy for us to get bogged down by problems, or by what we think is missing in our lives, what we don’t have, or what we long for. We can easily end up like Miriam, so filled with sorrow, focusing on what we don’t have in our lives, blind to seeing the treasure that is right in front of us each and every day.

So, do you and I walk around kicking stones like the men/women on the road to Emmaus, or are we like the men/women on the road back to Jerusalem?  He has risen indeed!Let us run to everyone crying out, “I have seen the Lord!”

Each of us at some time in our life will find ourselves on the road to Emmaus. We each have been told fanciful stories of grace and mercy that are often more than we can believe. We have been told of stories of power beyond comprehension.Many have heard personal witnesses from others who have claimed to have seen the Savior or who have felt the presence of His love and power. The question will be that while we journey upon our own road of mortal life, how will we respond?

Will we believe those who have testified of the Savior and accept his redeeming blood, or will we lack the faith required to believe? When the Lord comes to us through the service of others will we invite them in to sup with us and to partake of those things of which we have been blessed?

Though these two disciples at first did not believe, it seems that because they were so willing to serve, that the Lord allowed their eyes to be opened and their hearts to be softened, so that the presence of the Lord would abide with them.In that moment of faltering faith and fear, that must have filled their hearts that day as they walked to Emmaus; they had not forgotten the words of their Master, to serve others. In their attempt to follow the Lord, He blessed them beyond description.Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. 

And they realized that they had been with Jesus. — Acts 4:13

The Apostles Peter and John were men who were like Jesus.  One day when they went to the temple to pray, they healed a man who had been lame since birth.  Then they preached with such boldness that 5,000 people believed that same day (Acts 3–4).It was unmistakable.  Even their enemies could see that Jesus/Yeshua had profoundly impacted these men.  Could a statement like that be said of us? Could it be said of us, that we have been with Messiah Jesus?

Seeing and being with Jesus/Yeshua on THE WAY.

The greatest blessings we could ever know or have in our life, we already have.

 

Jesus/Yeshua is the answer, He IS

the way the truth and life

and He’s standing right beside us –

we just have to open the eyes of our hearts, to see the blessings and treasures that already fill the Emmaus WAY of our lives. 

The WAY begins at the Genesis, Chapter 1, verse 1 and continues through to Revelation 22:21; for the WAY, is the whole of scripture and the WAY we should go.

Complete restoration and new direction –

Forward and upward.

It is THE Truth and THE Road that leads to LIFE EVERLASTING PS.139:24.

It’s the Emmaus WAY – His Way of Being, Living and Doing, not ours and

letting Him walk with us when He chooses to come alongside and joins Himself to our journey. Then He opens the scriptures to us and in so doing, He opens the eyes of our understanding. Eph 1:17-19 that we might SEE and KNOW Him.

I AM THE BREAD OF LIFE – THE BREAD THAT CAME DOWN FROM HEAVEN.

Shalom Haverim/Chaverim –

Friends,  חברים  

Phonetic Spelling: Kha-ve-ri

and Family – Mishpachah מִשְׁפָּחָה

Phonetic Spelling: mish-paw-khaw’

Shalom Friends and Family!

Shalom Haverim/Chaverim, Mishpachah

               ומשפחה חברים שלום

SHäˈlōm Kha-ve-ri, mish-paw-khaw’

Please don’t leave this page before making certain Jesus is your Redeemer, Savior, Lord and soon returning King and that you have a personal relationship with Him.

You are greatly loved and precious in His sight.

Its all about Life and Relationship, not Religion.

NOT SURE? YOU CAN BE..

SAY THE FOLLOWING FROM YOUR HEART RIGHT NOW…

Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus asking for forgiveness of my sins for which I am truly sorry. I repent of them all and turn away from my past.

I believe with my heart and confess with my mouth that Jesus is your Son and that He died on the cross at calvary to pay the price for my sin, so that I might be forgiven and have eternal life in the kingdom of Heaven. Father I believe that Jesus rose from the dead and I ask you to come into my life right now and be my personal Savior and Lord and I will worship you all the days of my life. Because your word is truth I say that I am now forgiven and born again and by faith I am washed clean with the blood of Jesus. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’ name. Amen.