Malachi3:1“Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple;
For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight.’”A voice cries: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Is 40:3
Therefore thus I will do to you, O Israel; Because I will do this to you, Prepare to meet your God, O Israel.” Amos 4:12
Jonah 1:17 And the Lord prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the stomach of the fish three days and three nights.
Jonah was to prepare the people of Nineveh for Gods’ judgment, he was to tell them to repent. When Jonah was disobedient then the Lord became a way preparer, to bring Jonah back to what he was supposed to be doing.
Proclaim this among the nations: Prepare a war; rouse the mighty men! Let all the soldiers draw near, let them come up! Joel 2:9.
Therefore, son of man, prepare for yourself baggage for exile and go into exile by day in their sight; even go into exile from your place to another place in their sight. Perhaps they will understand though they are a rebellious house. Ezek. 12:3.
Noah was a way preparer
In obedience to the Lords directive, he
prepared the ark to make a way to survive the flood.
By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith. Heb. 11:7.
Moses was a
way preparer
in Ex. 14:1-32 preparing the way for freedom from Egypt by way of the reed/red sea.
And the Lord God Himself was again a
way preparer,
Behold, I am going to send an angel before you to guard you along the way and to bring you into the place which I have prepared.
Ex. 23:20.
Joshua and Caleb were way preparers. Going before the Israelites to cross the Jordan into the promised land. Joshua 3.
John the Baptist was a way preparer for Yeshua/Jesus.
Matthew 3:3 For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight.’” 4 And so John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
The disciples were sent out in twos, they were way preparers for Jesus/Yeshua. In Luke 10:1 After this, the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of Him to every town and place He was about to visit.
The apostles being sent out, were way preparers for Yeshua/Jesus and the gospel of His Kingdom. Luke 9:1-10 First it was the Twelve Apostles:
Jesus called his twelve disciples together and gave them authority to cast out evil spirits and to heal every kind of disease and illness
later he calls the Seventy in chapter 10:1-24.
In Matthew 28:16-20 and Luke 24:44-53
The great commission calls all believers and disciples to be
way preparers.
The 2 witnesses in Revelation 11:13-19
are
way preparers
for the second coming of Messiah.
All Way Preparers are to be
awake, alert, ready, they are to be watchful.
1 Corinthians 16:13
Watch ye stand fast in the faith quit you like men be strong.
How many times did Messiah say to watch? Here are a few:
Watch with me one hour Matthew 26:40-45.
Watch and pray.
Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. Matthew 24:42-51.
Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh. Matthew 24:44.
Rom. 13:11 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.
And that servant, which knew his lord’s will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. Luke 12:47.
The Way Preparer for Messiah.
15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Eph. 6:15.
Those scribes in John’s day who were familiar with the TaNaKH, the Torah, Writings and the Prophets, sent a delegation to ask John two questions.
John 1:21 They asked him, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” He answered, “No.”?
This was referring to Malachi’s prophecy that the prophet Elijah will come as a messenger before the appearance of the Messiah.
in Malachi 4:5. See, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes.
And in
Is. 40:3 The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
To this day Jews around the world still set out a cup of wine for Elijah at Passover /Pesach, in participation of his arrival as the forerunner the
way preparer of the Messiah.
The second question was are you the prophet. John 1:21. This referred to Moses/Moshe prophecy that God would send a prophet like me. Deuteronomy 18:15 – 19 I willraiseupforthemaProphet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him.
Clearly people knew the prophecies, another example is when we read of the time Philip talked with Nathanael. John 1:45 He said we have found him of whom Moses in the Law/torah and also the prophets wrote Jesus of Nazareth the son of Joseph.
After Yeshua/Jesus fed the 5000 the people began to ask if this was the prophet who is to come into the world. John 6:14. Then Peter identified Yeshua/Jesus as the prophet in Acts 3:22, 23.
Stephen before the Sanhedrin declared that Yeshua/Jesus was the promised Messiah. Acts 7:37 – 38. This is that Moses……
From the beginning there have been
way preparers.
Abraham was a way preparer leaving his homeland and becoming the father of faith and through him came Isaac Jacob Israel his Sons and the 12 tribes.
Joseph was a way preparer for the children of Israel giving them a safe place in the years of famine in Egypt.
Moses was a way preparer for the children of Israel to be released from Egyptian bondage. He was also a way preparer towards the promised land.
Reading through the Scriptures there are many heroes and heroines of faith who were way preparers for those who would come after. How many others can you find? John is one of many and with the spirit of Elijah as Messiah referred to him.
And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come. Matthew 11:14
Then the disciplesunderstood that He was speaking to them about John the Baptist. Matthew 17:13
All the disciples were way preparers, going into the villages prior to Messiah arriving there. All the apostles and believers were way preparers. Go into all the world and preach…… whereas all those. written of in the TaNaKH way preparers were for Messiahs 1st coming, those in the Brit Chadashah are way preparers for His 2nd Coming/ return. Paul was a way preparer for the Gentiles to be reached with the gospel of the kingdom and to be grafted into the true vine, spiritual Israel. The one who brought us the way is Messiah Himself, Yeshua of Nazareth. He said I am the way the truth and the Life. The first believers were known as followers of the Way.
Yeshua/Jesus Himself is the way preparer for us to be reconciled to a Holy God Who we will be united with eternally. From Jesus/Yeshuas’ command ‘to go’, we too are way preparers; our mission field is right where we are. It is time we move out.
Prepare ye the way of the Lord.
Johns answer was from Isaiah 40:3,that he was a voice of one crying out in the wildernesssent as a way preparer to bear witness to the Messiah, Yeshua, Who was there present in their midst.
In Acts, Peter’s message is recalled when he spoke at Solomons portico, he was quoting from Deuteronomy 18:18 – 19 and he identified Jesus/Yeshua as the prophet like unto Moses.
Are you a way preparer?
Maybe it is time to find out?!
The days in which we are living are described in
Matthew 24 and in Luke 21:9-36 But when ye shall hear of wars and commotions, be not terrified: for these things must first come to pass; but the end is not by and by. 10 Then said he unto them, Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: 11 And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven. …
Part of being a way preparer is carrying and giving the appropriate message given by His Holy Spirit, which is fitting for the time and season.
Are we giving meat in due season?
Mathew 24:45
To give them meat (τὴν τροφὴν, their food) in dueseason.
The message for this time is that it must be meat in due season. Why? Because it is to feed the believers from the Word of God.
It was a direct reference to
Ps. 145:15-21.
The eyes of all wait upon thee; and thou givest them their meat in due season.
The Lord God is moving and He wants us to be way preparers and providers of spiritual meat in due season.
It is time to move and get into the front ranks and hold our position. We must never flinch. Can our Heavenly Father be sure that we will never turn cowardly and flee? He promises to sustain us in dangerous positions. He is well able to keep us there and adequately supply every need by His grace.
“Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” 1Pet 1:13.
Peter urges believers to prepare their minds for action and to be disciplined in their thinking. This preparation includes setting our hope fully on the grace to be received when Messiah returns. It emphasizes the need to focus our thoughts, aligning them with God’s promises and remaining alert and ready for His coming.
“In everything the prudent acts with knowledge, but a fool flaunts his folly.” Prov. 13:16.
Preparation involves acting with knowledge and discernment.
The prudent person carefully considers their actions and plans, while the fool recklessly displays their ignorance. This verse in Proverbs, reminds us of the significance of acquiring knowledge, seeking wisdom, and acting accordingly.
Being well-prepared requires understanding and thoughtfulness, avoiding foolishness and its consequences.The Bible emphasizes the importance of preparation in various contexts, offering guidance on both spiritual and practical aspects of life. Preparation is often linked to concepts such as wisdom, diligence, and foresight. Moses, was given detailed instructions by God to prepare the tabernacle and its furnishings with meticulous precision. Exodus 25-31. This shows the significance of being prepared to serve God as Daniel did, with a spirit of excellence, always offering our best work.
Joseph’s wise preparations during 7 years of abundance allowed Egypt to survive seven years of famine. Genesis 41. Proverbs frequently extols the virtues of planning, diligence, and foresight in all aspects of our lives.
As we have noted John was a way preparer,
but what does the phrase
That wisdom is justified by all children?
mean in
Luke 7:33, 35. For John the Baptist came neithereatingbreadnordrinkingwine; and ye say, He hath a devil.
John was a ascetic,
(definition: avoiding physical pleasures and living a simple life, often for religious reasons:)
He practiced strict denial as a means of physical and spiritual discipline; but why would his refusal to eat bread and drink wine lead the Pharisees to believe he was a demon possessed man?
We would say of a nun or monk who lived such a lifestyle that they were very godly people in leading lives of denial.
Interestingly in the Aramaic language
not eating bread and drinking wine
is an ancient idiom/ or expression:
la ekal la khma shetha khamea
and literally translated reads:
not consuming food and drinking the juice of fruits.
To say an individual consumes food and drinks the juice of fruits is like saying in English: we have lunch with friends at our favorite cafe, pub or bistro. This idiom is an expression of:
hospitality or interacting socially.
John the Baptist literally came out of the wilderness simply to preach, baptize those who repented of their sins and then went back into the wilderness. He didn’t interact with people socially or have lunch with with them, he didn’t live what was considered a normal life of those days. Yeshua/Jesus was not like John in that He came and lived among the everyday people so that He could minister to them.
Matthew 9:10-17, Mark 2:15-22, Luke 5:29-39
He interacted with them socially and often went to ‘sinners’ homes to eat, and this is why it was written:
He came eating and drinking.
There are those who say this scripture was to endorse the fact that Messiah actually drunk alcoholic drinks and even got drunk. To spin this from the expression/ idiom, would amount to setting our own Western thought and Greek mindset into an Aramaic idiom. Those who desire to drink alcohol and want it to be acceptable, use it to support their personal lifestyle; but it is far from the intent of the passage. We are not to twist the scriptures to make it fit how we want to live a compromised lifestyle and not feel guilty.
The word for wine in Greek used here is: Oinon which could mean: both fermented and unfermented wine and the Greek word doesn’t differentiate between them. However, Yeshua/Jesus spoke in a Aramaic Galilean dialect, and that language does have different words for fermented and unfermented wine; and the word used was khamea , which is a reference to unfermented juice from some fruit. It was not necessarily the fruit of grapes, it could have been apples, oranges, grapefruit, melon etc. The key is that it is unfermented, or non-alcoholic, meaning: the sugar content in the fruit had not turned into alcohol. It would seem that Messiah Yeshua/Jesus was mocking those accusing Him by saying in our vernacular: Look, the Son of Man comes drinking non alcoholic drinks with publicans and sinners and you accuse Him of being drunk?
Today we might say: you sit down in a social setting with all kinds of sinners drinking lemonade or Pepsi and people think you’re getting drunk with them?
The last phrase of the same scripture is:
but wisdom is justified by all her children.
What does that mean?
We must stop trying to understand with our western Greek/English mindset and try to understand the Eastern Oriental concept of wisdom. In English the word wisdom is always used positively however, in the eastern semitic mind, it can have both a positive and negative connotation. Sometimes in Aramaic the word wisdom which is: khekmtha, can idiomatically, have the expression of meaning stupidity, which is just the opposite. In the same way people in the west will say ‘that was such a bad movie, it was wicked’ really meaning, it was very good and extremely exciting!
Messiah was using a similar Aramaic idiom/expression in this scripture and it is quite likely He was inferring: because your arguments are so ridiculous it’s a clear indication of your stupidity. The reference to all her children has the meaning: whatever is the offspring from the parent or the original. It is in the same way we would say, a chip off the old block or the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. If the source is wise the offspring/children will be wise but if then the offspring/children are stupid… like begets like.
Yeshua /Jesus was the ultimate way preparer when He said
“I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6.
For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Rom. 10:13.
and so was our Heavenly Father
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:10.
David wrote in the23rd Psalm.A Psalm of David. The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
John 14:22 In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
Today we are way preparers for Yeshua/Jesus and the gospel of His Kingdom. We are to go into all the world and tell people to prepare themselves for the soon return of our Messiah; to prepare the way for the Lord….
Then he said to his disciples, ‘Theharvestisplentiful, but the laborers arefew; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.’Matthew 9:27 Luke 10:2.
It’s time not only to pray for more laborers but to become one,
a way preparer…
Shalom mishpachah/family
and cheverim/friends!
It’s all about Life and Relationship,
NOT Religion.
You are greatly loved and precious in His sight.
NOT SURE?
YOU CAN BE..
SAY THE FOLLOWING FROM YOUR HEART RIGHT NOW…
Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus/Yeshua 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/Yeshua 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/Yeshua 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/Yeshua. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’/Yeshua’s name. Amen.
Are we really sure of what we are supposed to be doing?
Messiah was very clear in His instructions.
First we are to follow Him… and next to
Go therefore and make DISCIPLES of all the nations [help the people to learn of Me, believe in Me, and OBEY My words], immersing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always [remaining with you perpetually—regardless of circumstance, and on every occasion], even to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:20 Amplified Bible
We are to become MORE THAN just believers in Him,
we are to become disciples/talmidim ourselves; for only disciples can make disciples. We will never be greater than our Master/Messiah but we can become like Him.
yet this way is both narrow and difficult.
Matthew 7:13-14.
If we are going to live as disciples of Messiah we have to be obedient to ALL His words and remember that all efforts that are of worth and excellence are difficult. We were never promised an easy life and the difficulties we face are not supposed to make us faint, they are to stir us up to become overcomers.
We may need to rethink our understanding of being an obedient follower of Jesus Christ/Yeshua HaMashiach.
Jesus/Yeshua gives a parable about life and death. He urges His disciples to
seek life
by entering through the narrow gate the one that runs opposite to the way of the world.
Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
Only one way leads to life!
Matthew 7:13
His gospel, His Truth, has been so watered down and In western society the focus is too much on blessing, comfort and physical prosperity rather than that of life in the Spirit.
Do we really, seriously appreciate the miraculous free gift of salvation offered to us? We are saved by His grace only through the atoning work of Messiah Jesus/Yeshua, which cost Him everything. Philippians 2:13
It is God who works in us both to will and to do for His good pleasure. NOT ours!
Then it is up to us to work out that salvation in our practical daily life. Philippians 2:12.
We will find out that we can do it, if we will only begin on the basis of His redemption and to do what He commands.
“If you [really] love Me, you will keep and obey My commandments. John 14:15
If we do not put into practice what our Heavenly Father has placed within us, that‘s when we fail; and a crisis will show whether or not we have been doing so. It’s not what we think we know that will save us or make us free.; its only the Truth we know, believe and act on that will. Mental assent does not help us to reach spiritual maturity.
If we will obey the Holy Spirit of our Heavenly Father and practice in our physical life that which He has placed within us by that same spirit; when a crisis comes, we will find that our own nature as well as His Grace/chen will cause us to stand strong in Him and the power of His might. Eph. 6:10.
He told us that in this life we will have tribulation and it will test us for all we are worth.
I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace. In the world you have tribulation and distress and suffering, but be courageous [be confident, be undaunted, be filled with joy]; I have overcome the world.” [My conquest is accomplished, My victory abiding.] John 16:33 Amplified Bible
Why?
Hebrews 2:10 tells us why ….. it is because He is
bringing
and He will not shield us from the necessary requirements of son-ship, that of being His child. We should rejoice that He gives us difficult things to do because His salvation is a thing of joy and
the joy of the Lord is our strength. Neh. 8:10.
At the same time it also requires of us much bravery, courage and holiness. The work of our Heavenly Father’s grace within our lives is to produce men and women who display a strong family resemblance to Yeshua HaMashiach/Jesus Christ.
We are not to be spoiled, pampered, entitled, complaining, weaklings. We should not be deceived, because it takes a huge amount of personal discipline to live the life of a disciple. One that is worthy and excellent, while facing the realities of a life in this world; however that’s what we are called to do.
We looked at the example of Daniel and an excellent spirit in a previous post.
It is a daily choice, every day.. it is not a one time thing and then we go on our merry way! Its ongoing and lasts as long as we are here on earth, we are to daily take up our cross ….
And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to follow Me [as My disciple], he must deny himself [set aside selfish interests], and take up his cross daily [expressing a willingness to endure whatever may come] and follow Me [believing in Me, conforming to My example in living and, if need be, suffering or perhaps dying because of faith in Me]. Luke 9:23. Amplified.
Are we truly willing to daily take up our cross..even if it means enduring pain loss and physical torture and death???
Are we willing to do so for Him?
Many around this world already are…
It is up to us to choose, because
an individual’s will is embodied in the actions of the whole person.
We must exercise our will, putting it in to action; because we cannot give up our will, we must choose to obey, we must set our will to obey and we must will to receive our Heavenly Father’s spirit and those who are obedient will receive His spirit.
And we are witnesses of these things; and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey Him.”NAS Bible Acts 5:32
When the truth is revealed to us, the only question is what will we do, not what the Father will do. When God places big plans in front of us, a wise thing to do is to remember what we did before He touched our lives. If we can remember when we first received Messiah or had a truth revealed to us, it was easy to yield our will to Him and it will help us when His spirit brings something new before us.
Joshua 24:15 choose for YOUR SELVES this day…
Our Heavenly Father does not choose for us, we are to choose for ourselves. It’s not something which we’ll automatically slide into, it is a deliberate determination to choose our Heavenly Father’s Way over our personal way, or what someone else is telling us to do. Galatians 1:16 do not confer with flesh and blood.
The choice is between our Heavenly Father and ourselves, and everything in our lives will be on hold, paused, until we make a decision. In these situations, tension can develop and He allows other believers opinions to matter to us and yet we sometimes wonder if they really understand the steps we are taking; and this makes those around us seem to become more and more separated from us. Faith demands that we have to stop trying to figure out when and where His Spirit is leading; we just have to declare that we will be faithful.
Joshua reminds us in chapter 24:22 that even in this, as soon as we make that choice, we become witnesses against ourselves.
The choice to serve the Lord is personal, we are to will to be faithful, this choice is not something we need to consult with other believers, nor rely on anything or anyone other than the Fathers’ spirit and that includes ourselves. We cannot live a holy life without His Spirit, but we can decide to submit for Him make us holy. Joshua 24:19 reminds us also that neither can we serve the Lord in our own strength, but we can put ourselves in the correct position so that His power will flow through us; and that is all dependent on relationship and requires setting our will to align with His.
Obedience takes faith
and
faithful people are obedient.
In Joshua 24:21 when the people said to him we will serve the Lord.
It was not an impulsive action but a deliberate commitment. It is high time that we make that choice, no more wavering. We must be quick to obey as David said:
I will be quick to obey your commands Ps 119:60
Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will OBEY my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. John 14:23
James 1:19 And let every man be swift to hear, but slow to speak, and slow to anger
We are to be slow to speak, quick to hear and in hearing be a doer.
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. James 1:22
To be quick to hear and slow to speak means, having both humility and respect for others as well as for Messiah. It means we take the necessary time to listen to people instead of just speaking our opinion.
The moving of the Father’s Spirit of Holiness is many times inconvenient to our flesh and it’s often completely opposite to reason or what we sometimes call common sense. We are to obey Him regardless of the cost, yet He will never force us to make the choice; and there will always be an easier away out open to us which will seem more sensible and have less risk involved. All the challenges He places in front of us are to test and develop our faith as well as our obedience, which is needed for the choosing process and to reveal just how much we love Him.
Matthew 7:13 Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and MANY enter through it.
This is the gate of true conversion, of self-denial, dying to the self life, and of walking the way of holiness; the gate which few, comparatively speaking, are inclined to choose.
This Way, this gate, cannot be entered into without
teshuvah-repentance.
Acts 3:19 “Now repent of your sins and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away.
“I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. Luke 13:3
In the Hebrew Alefbet/alphabet,
the letter Hei
is the 5th letter and
a symbol of repentance
HEY or HEI ה is the letter H
Rabbis in the time of Messiah Jesus/Yeshua, would often illustrate spiritual truths using Hebrew letters.
The letter hei makes the sound of the H. Jewish literature teaches that Moses could not speak properly because ‘he was thick of tongue.’ Having an unusually ‘thick tongue’ would make it very difficult for someone to pronounce a name of God that necessitated having to use their tongue to say it; so it is said that our Heavenly Father gave Moses a name for Himself which had letters in it that he didn’t need to use his tongue in order to pronounce.
The letters yod making a Y sound
and the letter vav which makes a V (waw) sound
and the letter Hei which makes the H sound.
The name Yod Hei Vav Hei -YHVH or YHWH
is the name which could be spoken out loud with breath only
and without needing to move the tongue.
Traditionally the letter
hei represents:
the breath and the presence of God.
Some Hebrew scholars teach that our Heavenly Father created the world with the letter hei, H,
meaning:
that He created the world with His breath and presence. He breathed His own life into His creation.
The letter Hei was known as the broken letter.
It is almost identical to the letter Cheth
CHETH (or HETH) kāth ח ḥeṭ .
Sometimes written Chet, but more accurately Ḥet.
As the 8th letter of the Hebrew alphabet
it represents the number 8.
This letter looks the same except that there is a narrow space, a brokenness in the upper left hand corner of the letter hei /H.
This space was known as
the narrow or strait gate
that leads to the Heavenly Father’s presence.
The bottom of the letter is open
and is known as:
the wide or broad gate.
As the Hei represents the breath of God,
and through brokenness which leads to teshuvah/repentance;
an individual will find
the breath of God
which will blow through the narrow gate.
Without repentance we cannot find the Hei,the breath of God which will sustain us so and then we will fall to destructionthrough the wide gate at the bottom of the letter.
The rabbis taught that the letter Hei represents:
the presence and breath of God and that it is very hard to climb to the narrow gate; and few there are who can rise to that narrow gate and achieve such a state of righteousness that they are able to pass through that narrow gate to the Shekinah or the presence of God, but many are those who pass through the broad gate that leads to destruction.
It is possible that Messiah was making reference to this when He said “Enter the narrow gate, for the gate, is wide and the road is spacious which leads to destruction, and many are those who are going in it.” Matthew 7:13?
One thing is certain, our walk with Messiah is a daily walk along the Way that leads to life and to be in His presence for eternity. He is our righteousness and so the climb to the narrow gate is made easier.
However it takes faith to obey, to trust.
Sometimes the simplest statements are the most profound!
Trust and obey for there’s no other way …
as little children would say and sing,
simple and uncomplicated to
trust in,to have faith in
and
obey His commands
because
we truly do love Him above all else
and
put Him 1st in everything we do.
If we truly love Him then we will be truly obedient
and we will be sure of what we are supposed to be doing!
We are to be MORE THAN just believers we are to be
His obedient Disciples/talmidim.
שָׁלוֹם עֲלֵיכֶם,
Shalom aleikhem
chaverim and mishpachah!
Peace to friends and family.
Shavua Tov, Have a blessed week.
Make certain Messiah Jesus/Yeshua is your Redeemer, Savior, Lord and soon returning King and that you have a personal relationship with Him.
It’s all about Life and Relationship, NOT Religion.
You are very precious in His sight.
Not sure ..you can be…
SIMPLY SAY THE FOLLOWING MEANING IT FROM YOUR HEART..don’t delay one more minute,
SAY IT RIGHT NOW…
Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus/Yeshua 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/Yeshua 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/Yeshua 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/Yeshua. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’/Yeshua’s name.
When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; Walk [habitually] before Me [with integrity, knowing that you are always in My presence], and be blameless and complete [in obedience to Me]. AMP.
When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said to him, “I am El Shaddai. Walk before me, and be blameless. NHEB
And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, Jehovah appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be thou perfect. ASV
The word BEFORE
is
Strongs 6440
Original Word:פָנִים Transliteration: panim or paneh Phonetic Spelling: paw-neem’
Hebrew Rabbis teach that the words we have in English Bibles translated as
Plural (but always as singular) of an unused noun (paneh {paw-neh’}; from panah); the face (as the part that turns); used in a great variety of applications (literally and figuratively); also (with prepositional prefix) as a preposition (before, etc.) — + accept, a-(be-)fore(-time), against, anger, X as (long as), at, + battle, + because (of), + beseech, countenance, edge, + employ, endure, + enquire, face, favour, fear of, for, forefront(-part), form(-er time, -ward), from, front, heaviness, X him(-self), + honourable, + impudent, + in, it, look(-eth) (- s), X me, + meet, X more than, mouth, of, off, (of) old (time), X on, open, + out of, over against, the partial, person, + please, presence, propect, was purposed, by reason of, + regard, right forth, + serve, X shewbread, sight, state, straight, + street, X thee, X them(-selves), through (+ – out), till, time(-s) past, (un-)to(-ward), + upon, upside (+ down), WITH (-within, + -stand), X ye, X you.
This changes the perspective
of Abram’s relationship with the
Almighty God – El Shaddai –
which we render as:
the all sufficient God
or the Almighty-Breasty-One.
The Hebrew language incorporates numerical value to letters and words and it is understood that the number
9 is the number of completion
and
90 is the number of Humility.
According to this it would indicate that when Abram became
99, complete in humility,
he recognized and understood that God was truly
El Shaddai – all-sufficient
and he could
walk WITH God.
Torah scholars definition of humility is that, we are not for one moment to be trusting in self, in the arm of flesh, our own capabilities, knowledge, talents or any kind of security we have built; or any dependence on wealth or provision from any source other than the Lord/El Shaddai.
It is having complete total TRUST in our
Heavenly Father as El Shaddai,
to be all-sufficient for us.
We are to put our trust/batak in our Heavenly Father as He and Abram did. Messiah never put His trust in people because He knew and understood the shortcomings and weaknesses of the fallen human nature.
Jesus didn’t commit Himself to them. John 2:24,25.
He was never suspicious, yet He was discerning and wise.
He was never bitter, resentful or offended, nor did He take vengeance toward anyone; and yet at the same time, He never gave up hope for them.
Why?
Because His BATAK/TRUST
was totally and completely in His Father first.
If we place our trust in people before Him and not in the Father, we will quickly experience despair, hopelessness and disappointment towards them. This can lead to bitterness and resentment because they didn’t measure up to how they presented themselves. Understanding that not one individual, except Messiah Yeshua/Jesus, can ever be right or perfect in this life, prevents the negative assessments in others. The only part of a person or ourself we can trust, is God’s spirit of grace and mercy in us.
Hebrews 10:9. He came to do God’s will.
An individual’s obedience is to what they see and determine to be a need. Messiah’s obedience was to His/our Fathers will. To seek and save the lost and tell the heathen about Him. However, first we are to make sure that God’s needs and His will in us personally are being met. Jesus/Yeshua said for us to be mindful of this in Matthew 6:5-15
7 “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words.8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.9 Pray then like this:
“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.[a] 10 Your kingdom come, your will be done,[b] on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us this day our daily bread,[c] 12 and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.[d]
14 For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you,15 but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
The purpose of our training as His disciples, is to get us into the right relationship towards the needs of our Heavenly Father and His will, plan and purposes, NOT ours. Once our Father’s needs in us have been met, He will then open the way for us to accomplish His will, which is meeting His needs, plan and purposes somewhere else.
And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[b] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:18
We are also to remember that He said: Matthew 18:5 who ever receives one little child in my name receives me.
Messiah came as a child Himself. He is entrusting Himself to each of us and desiring our individual lives to be a Bethlehem; where He can grow up, where the natural life could be slowly transformed by the indwelling life of the Son of God. His ultimate purpose is that the life of Messiah be manifest in and through us. The same life/ chaim that was in Him can also be in us, by the power of HIs Holy Spirit, just as it was in
Luke 1:41. and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit/Ruach HaKodesh.
And we are to be always ready with a listening ear for the slightest whisper of His Voice/kol, calling to us. In the Song of Solomon there is a verse that says:
The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land; 2:12
A season of the voice of Messiah, the bridegroom is calling.
This season is also a time of pruning, to bear more fruit for His Kingdom.
The dove, Yonah (Jonah) in Hebrew, reminds us that Messiah Jesus pointed to Noah and Jonah as end-times signs.
The dove was a sign for Noah and Yonah/Jonah/Dove
was a sign to the people of Nineveh
to repent and turn to the Lord before His judgment came.
Matthew 12:39; 24:37.
The entire book of the Song of Solomon is a picture of Messiah’s love for His bride; into whom we are grafted and His voice calls to us in unconditional love and devotion. He is calling to His Bride.
Those who truly love Him will respond to His loving call.
Like always attracts like- what is common between people will draw like a magnet, just like the old saying, birds of a feather flock together.
Like desires, like lifestyle, like interests, like goals, etc.
If you ever feel you don’t fit, like you are a square peg in a round hole, then you’re probably in the wrong place with the wrong group. The Spirit of God within people draws them together.
Phil. 2:2-8. fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. 3 Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit.
1Pet 3:8 Finally, all of you be like-minded [united in spirit], sympathetic, brotherly, tender-hearted, and humble in spirit;
Romans 15:5 Now the God of endurance and of encouragement give to you to be like-minded one toward another, according to Christ Jesus;
2 Corinthians 13:11 Finally, brothers, rejoice. Be perfected, be comforted, be of the same mind, live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you.
We are to have Messiah as the center and the priority of our lives.
Romans 5:5 And hope maketh not ashamed, because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts, by the Holy Spirit which is given to us and like Elizabeth/ John leaped when in the presence of his Messiah.
We too have that inner knowing… we are one in Him with fellow believers/ disciples and love has always been the test of true discipleship.
Those listening to the voice of their beloved, will not be deafened by the cries of man. In a world filled with noise, all clamoring for our attention; we need to hear only the voice of our beloved and those who love Him will hear and recognize His voice and will respond just like the sheep. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me John 10:27
They will even hear the tender gentle cooing of the turtledove above the chaos of the world busyness. And just as Elizabeth’s inner involuntary response was to the close presence of Messiah within Mary.
We are up to watch for Him, wait for Him, with baited breath, and anticipation as the bride for her groom; and as we do, our heart will not only listen for Him… our hearts will hear.
There are times when many bewildering experiences challenge the peace/shalom in our souls; however, when we truly love Him and are listening, and our spirits are submitted to Him willingly, He works all things together for good.
Just as the scripture records the story of Joseph in Genesis 50:20 But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.
God has His Plan and purposes, His ways are not our ways.
’For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the LORD. ‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts’” Isaiah.55:8,9.
The one who truly loves Him submits to His discipline and chastening, also called pruning, shaking and sifting. His love holds us steady beneath the chastening rod.
“I will make you pass under the rod [as the shepherd does with his sheep when he counts them, and I will count you as Mine and constrain you] and bring you into the bond of the covenant.
Ezekiel 20:37-38
The verse says that the sheep
pass under the rod.
Besides being an instrument of both offense and defense, the rod was, in effect, a two-foot club;
it also functioned as a tool, under which the sheep passed.
What does this picture?
First of all, it pictures counting. The shepherd would count the sheep in his flock to make sure they were all present and accounted for.
This is also a picture of something else, because as the sheep passed under the rod, which is a symbol of the Word of God, they would undergo a very close examination. The shepherd would run his rod backward or across the sheeps body, which separated the wool. This action allowed the shepherd to look down onto the sheep’s skin, enabling him to see both the condition of the wool and the skin which was hidden beneath.
Our Savior the Good Shepherd, is illustrating that by means of His rod, He is giving us a careful, close examination: it gives Him the opportunity to check the quality of His sheep and it also provides a means of separation. As His disciples, both quality and separation are the reasons that He carefully examines us. The rod and the path it leads us on, will take us to deep and difficult places, taking us right into the hidden man of the heart where holiness is formed.
In Matthew 25 we read of the separation of the sheep and the goats. The rod helps to identify, or is a means of making sure of ownership. Sheep’s ears were often bored through or distinctively notched as an identifying mark. When the shepherds could not always clearly see the identifying mark because several flocks had mixed together in the fields, they would make the sheep
pass under the rod.
When they did, the shepherd would flip back the EAR to see the mark of ownership. Again, it also gave them a chance to examine and check the health and quality of each of the sheep.
Note the EAR… that listens and hears!
Right now we are all
Because now,
this season,
is the time of our judgment – I Peter 4:17,
and we are being evaluated to make it clear to whom we really belong: the Heavenly Father or the adversary.
Who is our Shepherd?
Who are we following?
The rod is a vitally important instrument for a shepherd and no good shepherd would be without one.
This process is critical and should not be avoided but rather welcomed because it means He loves us.
Hebrews 12:6 For the Lord disciplines the one He loves, and He chastises every son He receives.” because the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.
Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. Hebrews 12:11
1Corinthians 13:7 because love believes and hopes and all things and love will never fail.
Love endures what ever comes. It seeks not its own doesn’t retaliate because it rests in Him rather than in the circumstance. As long as we are focused on and our desires are fulfilled in him we will never be deprived of comfort.
Luke 1: 53
He who goes away Will always be empty in spite of his riches. He who seeks the Lord first will never be unhappy or poor.
David said in Psalm 146:3 Do not trust in princes, In mortal man, in whom there is no salvation–
6 Who made heaven and earth, The sea, and all that is in them, Who keeps truth and is faithful forever,
What is first in our lives?
We must trust in Him 1st
We must put His will 1st.
We must put Messiah 1st.
The questions we should and indeed
must ask ourselves are:
Are we 99 yet?
and are we in other words,
at a place where we are
walking before/WITH the Lord El Shaddai?
Is He all sufficient to us?
Are we doing Gods will for our lives?
Are we hearing His voice directing our path or our own choices of future plans?
Will we respond to His loving call?
Are we watching for Him, waiting for Him, with baited breath,
and anticipation, as the bride for her groom?
Can we say with the Shulamite?
The dove
was a sign for Noah and Yonah/Jonah/Dove
pruning before He returns…
Are we willing to be sifted like the disciples?
Luke 22:31
Are we truly 99 – complete in humility, yet?
If we are obedient and willing
we shall eat the good of the land
and we will be ready to walk WITH Him.
Shalom aleikhem
chaverim/friends and mishpachah/family!
Shavua Tov, Have a blessed week,
you are greatly loved and prayed for.
Please don’t leave here without assurance of your salvation
Not sure ..you can be…
Make certain Messiah Jesus/Yeshua is your Redeemer,
Savior, Lord, and soon returning King
and that you have a personal relationship with Him.
It’s all about Life and Relationship, NOT Religion.
You are very precious in His sight.
SIMPLY SAY THE FOLLOWING MEANING IT FROM YOUR HEART..
don’t delay one more minute,
SAY IT RIGHT NOW…
Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus/Yeshua 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/Yeshua 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/Yeshua 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/Yeshua. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’/Yeshua’s name.
KJV: of my salvation; on thee do I waitall the day.
INT: of my salvation for wait all the day. Psalm 25:21
There are a few words in Hebrew for wait.
InIsaiah 40:31 we learn that those who
waitupon the Lord will renew their strength.
This wait is qavah
which is a twisting or binding.
It is the word used for making rope and the ancient method of making rope is still used today.
Hundreds of thin strands of fabric, each one alone could easily be broken, but when tightly bound together they form a rope that cannot be broken.
We may here recall the scripture:
A cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart.
Ecclesiastes 4:12.
In some weddings, a three-cord braid is included as part of the ceremony, here the three cords that are not easily broken represent Our Heavenly Father, the bride and the groom.
So in Isaiah 40:31 this waiting is just not sitting back, doing nothing, it is a process of binding/blending/melding/merging ourselves with the Father and the more we bind ourselves to Him, the stronger we become.
In Isaiah 30:18, however, he uses a different word for wait.
which is the word chakah this is a:
patiently waiting,
like someone waiting for a train.
However, this word is in a Piel or imperfect form,
so it has the meaning of:
a continuing process, it is patiently waiting.
יָחַל verb Niph`al – wait;
Pi`el – await (compare Late Hebrew יִחוּל expectation); to Niph`al – Perfect feminine singular – נחֲלָה in Ezekiel 19:5 also Imperfect: וַיִּיָּ֫חֶל in Genesis 8:12 + 1 Samuel 13:18 וַיּחֶל;
and wait: Genesis 8:12 and he waited yet seven days.
WAITING – CHAKAH – the Hebrew letters: חכה – Cheth Kap Hei.
The word chakah is spelled:
Chet, Kap/Kaph, Hei/Hey.
The Chet indicates:
moving to a higher level,
something like:
waiting in line and then moving forward.
Our Father is patiently allowing us to go through our human/carnal ways, trying to satisfy all our needs by ourselves; then all of a sudden He appears next in line.
Here we find the next letter in the word for
waiting – chakah
which is the letter Kap/kaf
this has the picture word for:
the palm of the hand.
This shows us that all this time our Father has been holding out His hands in order to receive us; and finally after years of searching for answers, we ask Him to come into our lives.
The 3rd Hebrew letter in the word
to wait, chakah, is Hei
and is akin to:
the conclusion of His waiting, entering His presence which is filled with all of His graciousness and mercy.
Isaiah 30:18 tell us about it:
blessed are those who chakah (wait) for Him.
Our chakah is not in the sentence construction/parts of speech as a Hebrew Piel or imperfect form, it is a Hebrew Qal participle (a word formed from a verb (e.g., going, gone, being, been) and used as an adjective or noun.
This means in others words:
blessed are those who
have been waiting for God.
Without realizing it we have been waiting for Him all the time; we just did not know or understand it. At least our Father’s waiting has been in the Hebrew (Piel Imperfect sentence construction) as in: He is waiting
Original Word: יָחַל Part of Speech: Verb Transliteration: yachal Phonetic Spelling: yaw-chal’
In the following versions of Luke 24:49
English words used are:
remain and tarry
Berean Literal Bible And behold, I am sending the promise of My Father upon you. But you, remain in the city until that you should be clothed with power from on high.”
King James Bible And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.
Amplified Bible Listen carefully: I am sending the Promise of My Father [the Holy Spirit] upon you; but you are to remain in the city [of Jerusalem] until you are clothed (fully equipped) with power from on high.”
Hee•ne ano•chi sho•le•ach et asher hiv•ti•ach la•chem Avi ve•a•tem ho•chi•loo ba•eer Ye•roo•sha•la•yim ad ki-til•be•shoo oz mi•ma•rom.
This must have been an extremely stressful time immediately following the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus/Yeshua. There was much unrest in the city which was filled with 1000’s of people who had travelled there for the Spring Meodim/Appointed Times of Passover/Pesach; which was one of the 3 annual Shalosh Regalim. Passover/Pesach/הַפֶּסַח, Pentecost/Shavuot/שבועות & Tabernacles/Sukkot/סוכות.
Though they are called Feasts by many, the correct Hebrew translation is Rehearsal Pattern because it is a rehearsal. It was/is a practice for the real thing to come, similar to rehearsals prior to a wedding ceremony; and why they were required to be in Jerusalem precisely at those times. We looked at this in previous posts.
This had been a momentous time; unlike any other previous year and the turmoil following those events had made the talmidim/disciples and followers of Messiah further targets for those who had plotted to kill Him.
On the road to Emmaus, one of them, named Cleopas, asked Him, “Are You the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in recent days?”
verse 18.
Luke 24:13-24
In verse 25: Then Jesus said to them, “O foolish ones, how slow are your hearts to believe all that the prophets have spoken!…
This was confirming that HE WAS the fulfillment of Gods’ prophetic plan of redemption.
Luke 3:16 John answered all of them: “I baptize you with water, but One more powerful than I will come, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.
John 1:26 “I baptize with water,” John replied, “but among you stands One you do not know.
John 1:33 I myself did not know Him, but the One who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit descend and rest is He who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’
5For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” 6Sowhen theycame together,they askedHim,“Lord,will You atthistimerestorethekingdomto Israel?”7Jesus replied, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by His own authority.… But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”…
Acts 1:4V-PNA GRK: χωρίζεσθαι ἀλλὰ περιμένειν τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν NAS: Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father KJV: but wait for the promise INT: to depart but to await the promise
לחכות ל wait for
לחכות wait
The length of time they were told to wait was not just for a couple of days, it was for the next 49 days until Pentecost/Shavuot.
Yeshua/Jesus had said He had come to fulfill the Torah which has the Moedim/Appointed Times of the Lord as pivotal to the annual cycle of Israeli life.
We miss the full revelation of what Messiah accomplished as we in our western christianity and calendar festivals, jump from Passover/Resurrection Sunday (which we have called easter), to Christmas. There is a very precise sequence of Appointed Times/Moedim, whose meanings were prophetic in nature in their annual rehearsal for fulfillment in Messiahs’ life.
What was the purpose of this waiting?
He told them they would be
endued with power from on high
but why did they have to wait so long?
What does it mean for us?
The purpose of waiting is part of our training as talmidim/disciples.
It is for us to get into the right relationship to meet the requirements of our Heavenly Father and His Will not ours. Once those needs /requirements for being His child /disciple are met then He will open the doors and make the WAY clear for us to GO and DO and fulfill His will, plan and purposes.
One thing we should have learned during our 49 day walk/halak, it is this; we cannot artificially accelerate the growth of our crops and we cannot force them to produce out of season!
We need to see that we are not in control and being impatient will only cause frustration.
It will also choke the seeds and prevent them from bringing forth the harvest; which will result in us being impatient farmers with only barren and unfruitful fields. We must bear the fruit of patience if we are to grow in Messiah, without it we become impatient, impetuous, unsatisfied and are always looking for a future we cannot change. This is sad because it means we are ignoring what we have been blessed with today in the here and now.
Our training is accomplished by the power of His Spirit/Ruach within us, as we are also
endued with power from on high!
and for what?
To be witnesses to Him.
We must allow our lives to be slowly and continually transformed by the indwelling life of His Son; which is the ultimate purpose and goal ..that Jesus/Yeshua be exhibited in us.
This Shavuot/Pentecost, let’s be in an attitude of waiting after our days of preparation, and allow Him to do the necessary work in us and then He can fill us again. Just as we recharge batteries and continually refill our cars’ tanks with fuel, we need to be-being filled with His Spirit – continuously.. to go on being filled not just one time. Meaning to completely surrender our life and give Him full control. Ephesians 5:18 commands that we be filled with the Spirit. 1 Thessalonians 5:19 the command is given, “Do not put out the Spirit’s fire.” Paul gives the simple principle when he says, “Live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature” Gal. 5:16. The important experience of becoming a Spirit-filled disciple results in the progressive sanctification of a believer in Messiah. The result will be that the individual will manifest the fruit of the Spirit as stated inGalatians 5:22-23,
The 49 days leading up to Pentecost/Shavuot is a time of looking at our own lives and allowing God to do His work in us so He can work through us.
Hebrews 10:9 Behold I have come to do your will O God.
Jesus/Yeshuas life was one of obedience to His Father and He said Follow Me; so we are to be obedient to His/our Fathers will also.
We must take the time to be continually filled up or we will have nothing to pour out. If all we are doing is seeking to be blessed personally, we are missing the point of servanthood. We are blessed to be a blessing – freely we have received, freely we give. If we are always taking in/receiving, and not giving out, we will stagnate like the waters of a pool with no outflow; then we will become like the Dead sea and not a sea of Galilee. Living waters flow continually, that is what flowed through Messiah and what we are to release to others. Let Him pour into us so we can pour out.
For Them…?
The time of waiting was not a new thing for the disciples as every year the counting of 7 weeks or 49 days from the Omer following Peasch/Passover to Shavuot/Pentecost/Weeks was part of the Spring Feasts/Moedim/Appointed Times of the Lord which they followed every year.
Leviticus 23:1-2 God introduces His Moedim/Appointed Times when He begins by declaring to Moses
My appointed times are these….
This statement makes clear that these Moedim/Appointed Times, originate with our Heavenly Father, they cannot be claimed to have been appointed by any nation, including Israel. While they were initially given to the children of Israel for them to observe as their calendar/way of life, they are just as applicable to the followers of Messiah today.
Many have grown up believing that the Jewish Feasts have nothing to do with the New Testament body of Messiah – the ecclesia, the called apart ones. A few have grown up trying to take back the feasts and celebrate them, while rediscovering Christianity’s Hebrew Heritage. Some have never heard of the Feasts at all, however there are a growing number who are interested in what the Moedim/Appointed Times/Feasts of the Lord, have to impart to us prophetically.
Questions for us are: why are we ignoring what the Father has instructed us to do and why are we only understanding and remembering 2 of the 7?
We have the benefit of the completed Word of God so we can study His plan of redemption; and one of the ways in which He prophetically revealed His big picture plan, is through the Appointed Times/Moedim/Feasts of the Lord. Approximately 4000 years ago, God commanded His people to gather in sacred assembly for very specific celebrations – His Feasts.
The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, These are the appointed feasts of the Lord that you shall proclaim as holy convocations; they are my appointed feasts.” (Leviticus 23:1-2)
If we are not aware of the Moedim/Appointed Times when we read that verse, we do not understand the whole picture.
God commanded a yearly remembrance of each of His Holy convocations. The Hebrew word for sacred assembly or holy convocation is miqra, which carries the meaning of a dress rehearsal. Every time these festivals are celebrated, it is a visual and spiritual aid to remind humanity of the prophetic plan of God.
Prior to each feast’s fulfillment, it points forwards to Messiah.
During each feast’s fulfillment, it points directly at Messiah.
Subsequent to each feast’s fulfillment, it points backwards to Messiah.
These seven appointed times are collectively called the mo’edim and are detailed inExodus 12-13, Leviticus 23, Numbers 28-29and Deuteronomy 16. Together, they represent the Fathers’ entire redemptive plan from Messiah’s death through His millennial rule.
This is what Yeshua/Jesus was referring to in Matthew 5:17-18 when He said, “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law/teaching till all is fulfilled.”
Because the common western understanding of fulfill
means done away with,
Christians have believed that Yeshua/Jesus meant the prophetic pictures pointing to Him are now no longer needed. This is not what He meant, because to Jewish rabbis at that time, the word that is translated into English as
fulfilled was understood to mean:
the true or correct interpretation of Scripture,
while the word destroy meant: to give a false or incorrect interpretation.
Yeshua/Jesus was telling them that:
He did not come to do away with the Hebrew Scriptures/or destroy i.e. lead them astray by false teachings
Rather, He was:
the human embodiment of their true meaning and spiritual reality.
Again we can see other reasons for the WAITING…
First it was for their own preparation and
second because Messiah was not yet glorified.
As soon as He was glorified Acts 2:33tells us:
therefore being exalted to the right hand of God and having received from the father the promise of the Holy Spirit/His Spirit of Holiness He poured out this which you now see and hear.
The second reason is in the statement in John where he clearly tells us in 7:39..
for the Holy Spirit was not yet given because Jesus was not yet glorified.
This is not the case for us today because His Spirit of Holiness/Ruach haKodesh, has been given and Messiah is glorified; our waiting is not dependent on the promised future outpouring; but rather on our own spiritual condition/preparation, to receive what is readily available.
We know from scripture that the influence and power of His Spirit were at work before Shavout/Pentecost because He was upon individuals, prophets, priests and kings of the Old Testament; and in some instances, He filled them with His Spirit: e.g. both John the Baptists parents. Luke 1:41
However, once Messiah was glorified in His ascension, His Spirit of Holiness/RuachHaKodesh, came into the world in an unrestricted way and has been here for the last 2000+ years. It is critical that we believe and receive this revealed truth that He is indeed here in our midst; and within each believer who welcomes His presence, influence and power. He will not force His presence upon us but patiently waits for us to invite Him in as we yield to His offer.
The attitude of receiving and welcoming His Spirit into our lives is to be the continual attitude of a believer. When we receive His Spirit we receive His life/chaim which revives us, imparting the same resurrection life that raised Him from the dead, which will quicken us and make us alive in Him. Romans 8:11
As our ascended Messiah He is able to give New Life.
It’s not the so termed, baptism of His Holy Spirit, that changes people, but it is the power of the risen Messiah coming in to dwell in our lives that changes us through His Holy Spirit working from the inside out. We sometimes have a tendency to separate things that the New Testament/Brit Chadashah does not separate. The termed, baptism of His spirit of Holiness, is not an experience apart from Jesus/Yeshua – it is the real and living evidence of the risen Messiah. He has given us chaim/life everlasting and full of glory.
John 17:3This is eternal life that they may KNOW You
it’s something that begins at new birth and never ends….
We often speak of types and shadows in the scriptures…
The giving of the Torah (teaching/law) at Sinai was the type/shadow
that was fulfilled at Shavuot/Pentecost.
Sinai marked the birth date of the dispensation of Torah/Teaching/Law, and involved great displays of God’s power through thunderings, lightning, fire and the sound of His reverberating voice.
The fulfillment at Shavuot/Pentecost was the giving of the Spirit of the Law to the followers of the Mashiach/Messiah.
Shavuot/Pentecost, marks the birth date of the ecclesia/church/called apart ones, and what some term as the dispensation of Grace.
This occasion was also accompanied with great displays of God’s power through fire and a sound like a mighty rushing wind. According to Ephesians 4:30, from this point onward, His Ruach HaKodesh/Spirit of Holiness dwells within each follower and seals the Body of Messiah for the day of redemption.
When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. (Acts 2:1-4)
The gift of tongues is simply the Holy Spirit giving us the supernatural ability to speak in a foreign tongue/language that we have no knowledge or ability to speak out on our own.
There are two types of tongues He can give us. One is a tongue of this earth; e.g., if our native language is English, then He can give us the ability to speak in Chinese, Japanese, or Spanish, etc. For the simple reason we may be in that country or with people who speak that language and will understand it.
The other type of tongue that He can give us is a tongue direct from heaven, a heavenly language that is not of this earth. The Bible tells us in 1 Corinthians 13 that there are tongues of angels.
Whichever it is, it will be a foreign language that we will not be able to speak out on our own, and only His Holy Spirit’s supernatural transmission of this language out of our spirits will give us the ability to be able to speak it using our voice.
Whatever tongue Holy Spirit gives us, we will be able to use it all the time, whenever we want. It will be our own personal, private, prayer language between us and the Lord.
One thing to remember with this gift is that for the most part, we may never know or understand what we are praying about when we operate in this gift, however we can pray to interpret what the Lord has spoken through us.
The Bible tells us that we will be speaking out “mysteries,” and only the Father and His Holy Spirit will know exactly what the prayer is about on any given occasion.“Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.” (Romans 8:26)
Here we are told clearly that they were ALL filled and spoke in other tongues… which was the physical evidence of His Spirit in them, there were no exceptions and so we can expect the same today, and includes all the other gifts of His Spirit as in
The Word of Knowledge
The Word of Wisdom
The Gift of Prophecy
The Gift of Faith
The Gifts of Healings
The Working of Miracles
The Discerning of Spirits
Different Kinds of Tongues
The Interpretation of Tongues
our Father has not changed..
He is the same yesterday today and forever. Heb.13:8
In Him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory. (Ephesians 1:13-14) Here we see the sealing by His Spirit to enable us to continue our walk.
It is interesting that the Father waited 50 days after Messiahs’ resurrection, (10 days after His Ascension) before He sent His Holy Spirit. As our Father is precise in all His details it is without doubt because He was waiting for the Appointed Time/Shavuot/Pentecost. He is never early and He is never late in fulfilling His promises.
The other symbol of His Spirit and presence is FIRE.
From the Ex.3:2burning bush, to the pillar in the wilderness, to the outpouring in Jerusalem …
our God is a consuming FIRE Heb.12:29
and as Malachi states like a refiners fire.
In Malachi 3:1-4, the prophet declares the
imminent return of the Lord
and with it,
His holy judgment of refining fire.
We are all too well aware that being a follower of Messiah does not spare us from experiencing testings, trials, conflict and trouble; and the process of refinement is one that He continually applies to our lives.
This fire is Holy Fire – Esh Kadosh/qadosh. אש קדושה
The Fire that cleanses, refines and purifies; it burns up all that is not acceptable to the Father and also speaks of His power so that like Jesus/Yeshua, we may work the works of Him who sends us.John 9:4, for greater works than these will you do. John 14:12.
BUT as always, there is a condition, an IF …
We have to be willing..
we have to lay down our lives, our plans and allow Him to be sovereign in our lives.
The choice is ours…His offer is there for whosoever will… The events of Acts 2 includes the
empowering
of His spirit
and the imparting of His boldness to proclaim the good news of Messiah’s Kingdom. The boldness of the fire like Jeremiah* had.
Are we truly on fire for God? .. or
are we just barely glowing embers, dying without the breath of His Spirit … we need the mighty rushing wind of Shavuot to blow on and re-ignite the fire.
Holy Spirit of Truth is certainly God, however, He is not the Person of Yeshua/HaMashiach/Jesus Christ. The scriptures seem to indicate that it was the Father who sent the Holy Spirit – “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.” (John 14:16-17) And then Messiah says – “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” (John 14:18)
The early spring Appointed Times/Moedim: (Pesach/Passover, Chag haMatzot /Unleavened Bread, Bikkurim/Firstfruits); were fulfilled in order, all in the same year, through the death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ/Yeshua HaMashiach. When we look at the harvest times, Yeshua/Jesus and the many saints that were resurrected with Him, were the barley harvest. Notably, the ripeness of the barley is what decides if a new year can begin, or if a leap month, called Adar2, needs to be added to the calendar. This is always taken into account when the date of the late spring feast – Pentecost/Shavuot is calculated.
Pentecost/Shavuot experienced at least a partial fulfillment in the same year the three spring feasts were fulfilled. As we already noted, 50 days after Firstfruits/Bikkurim, or 10 days after Yeshua/Jesus’ ascension, His Holy Spirit/Ruach HaKodesh, descended upon the Jewish believers waiting in Jerusalem. Partial fulfillment in that He has been indwelling and sealing believers ever since, until the day of their redemption –
as He said, we are to
look up for your redemption draweth nigh,
so it is not yet completed!
And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh. Luke 21:28
Since Holy Spirit is God, He is omnipresent, everywhere at the same time.
Pentecost/Shavuot marks the time of the wheat harvest in Israel.
As we have walked through the springAppointed Times/Moedim, we can see a picture of our own walk with Messiah.
At Pesach/Pasover we are reminded of being set free from the bondage of sin and death, then during the Feast of Unleavened Bread/Matzah week, we have the opportunity to practice our unleavenedness; and rejoice in our saviors Resurrection as Firstfruits from the dead. Then as we count from the Omer we are like the wheat crops growing towards maturity, ultimately designed to become an abundant harvest for Him.
During this season of counting we can focus on certain spiritual themes such as: sowing, growing, increase, being fed and nourished by the Father and being mindful of how we are growing toward maturity in Messiah. By examining our ways we discover if they are truly aligned, submitted and conformed to His.
This is why we are to WAIT on the Lord, for His power to fill us and enable us to be witnesses unto Him; this is how He goes with us, and will always be with us, and will never leave us nor forsake us.
Isaiah 30:18: “And therefore will the Lord wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted that he might be merciful upon you: for the Lord is a God of judgment, blessed are all that WAIT for him.”
Like the farmer who waits for the precious fruit of the earth, we too have to wait for God to mature us and grow us. Part of our being mature in Messiah, is knowing when to put our hand to the plough and work hard but also knowing that when we have done all we can do then it is time to WAIT/CHAKAH. We must ask ourselves if we have been listening/hearing to His call and responding by doing that which He has required of us?..We must walk and work in maturity and continue to be patient, stabilize our hearts because the coming of the Master draws near. James 5:7-8
Let’s be mindful of the season we are in…..
on each of us..
For those new to the site previous posts linked below cover more detail on Shavuot/Pentecost..
Shavuot 2022 begins Saturday, June 4 at sunset and ends Monday, June 6 at nightfall.
Shalom aleikhem
chaverim/friends and mishpachah/family!
Shavua Tov, Have a blessed week,
you are greatly loved and prayed for daily.
REMEMBER..
Please don’t leave here without assurance of your salvation
Not sure ..you can be…
Make certain Messiah Jesus/Yeshua is your Redeemer,
Savior, Lord, and soon returning King
and that you have a personal relationship with Him.
It’s all about Life and Relationship, NOT Religion.
You are very precious in His sight.
SIMPLY SAY THE FOLLOWING MEANING IT FROM YOUR HEART..don’t delay one more minute, SAY IT RIGHT NOW…
Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus/Yeshua 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/Yeshua 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/Yeshua 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/Yeshua. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’/Yeshua’s name.
Romans 5:5 And hope maketh not ashamed, because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts, by the Holy Spirit which is given to us
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