DID JESUS DECLARE "ALL" FOODS CLEAN, OR JUST LEVITICAL FOODS?
Question 1:If G-d declared something an abomination/disgusting in His sight. Could Jesus be from the Father, and be ONE with the Father, and completely contradict Him???
Question 2: If Jesus declared "ALL" Foods Clean in His earthly ministry, why would Peter declare that NOTHING UNCLEAN had ever touched his lips, years after the Resurrection??
Question 3: Did you read the WHOLE Chapter Peter had the vision, and the WHOLE CHAPTER where Jesus said the mistranslated quote above?
READ THIS BIBLE CHAPTER REAL SLOW.
Mark 7
"Now when the Pharisees gathered to him, with some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem, 2they saw that some of his disciples ate with hands that were defiled, that is, unwashed. 3(For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash[a] their hands, holding to the tradition of the elders, 4and when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other traditions that they observe, such as the washing ofcups and pots and copper vessels and dining couches. 5And the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, "Why do your disciples not walk according to(H) the tradition of the elders, but eat withdefiled hands?"
JESUS AND UNWASHED HANDS:
The Disciples were NOT eating pork. They were eating Levitically Clean Food (Broma/Bromatis) in the Greek. Jesus and His Disciples were first Century Jews, they would never even refer to a pig as food at all. The problem the Pharisees has was that like their version of what is lawful on the Sabbath Yeshua, also a Rabbi, was allowing His disciples to break a TRADITION of the Church leaders. He was not letting them break the Commands of G-d by eating something G-d said was not intended for the human body.
The Pharisees had a tradition that you must WASH YOUR HANDS before you eat. This part is backed by Torah. The problem is that they invented an entire ceremony that was required before you could eat, with someone else washing your hands for you and a paragraph long prayer and the whole nine yards. If you didn't do the entire TRADITIONAL HANDWASHING CEREMONY then what you ate, was considered by the Pharisees, jsut as unclean as eating pig or bat, or a snake or scorpions. The Pharisees did not ask the Disciples why they were eatign a X-mas ham, instead they asked why they ate with "Unwashed Hands". Then "JESUS declared All BROMA clean" Broma is Greek for Levitically Clean/Kashrut food. Their is another word for unclean food that is also translated unclean spirit. He declared ALL Levitically Clean Food as Clean, IF YOU GAVE YOUR HANDS A TRADITIONAL CEREMONIAL WASHING before you ate or Not!
The Pharisees also made their disciples fast on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and Jesus did not make His Disciples fast and they questioned Him about this as well.
MARK 7 Continues about the Traditions of the Pharisees, such as Hand Washing.
"6 And he said to them, "Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written,
(M) "'This people honors me with their lips,
but their heart is far from me;
7 in vain do they worship me,
teaching as(N) doctrines the commandments of men.'
8 You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men."
9 And he said to them, "You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition! 10 For Moses said, 'Honor your father and your mother'; and, 'Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.' 11 But you say, 'If a man tells his father or his mother, "Whatever you would have gained from me is Corban"' (that is, given to G-d)[d]— 12 then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or mother, 13 thus(R) making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And many such things you do."
What Defiles a Person
14 And he called the people to him again and said to them, "Hear me, all of you, and understand: 15 There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him." 17 And when he had entered the house and left the people, his disciples asked him about the parable. 18 And he said to them, "Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, 19 since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?" Thus he declared all foods clean.) 20 And he said, "What comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person."
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SANITATION UNCLEAN AND SPIRITUALLY UNCLEAN IN MARK 7
The Pharisees got to a point of legalism in which they no longer distinguised between Kashrut Laws (the Sanitation code for good communal health) and the Moral Laws both given by G-d and upheld by Jesus. There are two kinds of unclean, one is that you are physically sick and most likely contagious (Koinos in Greek). The other is that you Spiritually sick and most likely contagious (Akathartos in Greek, from a root word meaning "Spiritual Death"). The Pharisees got the idea from that Greeks that the body was a reflection of the soul, and if you were sick or physically unsanitary then G-d must be upset with you and you are Spiritually Sick. Jesus said that not washing your hands thoroughly before you eat, and what goes into your mouth (like pork) can make you physically sick (Koinos), but what comes out of you is a display of your Spiritual Sickness(Akathartos).
Jesus also upheld the Levitical Diet by upholding the Torah in Matthew 5:19
19 December 2009
A House in the Land of Shinar
"Then said I to the angel that talked with me, Whither do these bear the ephah? And he said unto me, To build it an house in the land of Shinar: and it shall be established, and set there upon her own base." (Zechariah 5:10-11)
This prophecy of the latter days shows a woman named "wickedness" being translated rapidly in a great measuring basket (symbolizing commerce and finance "through all the earth," v. 6) to a base being built for it in the ancient land of Shinar (same as Sumeria). This was also the land of Nimrod, the leader of the post-Flood rebellion against G-d at Babel. "He began to be a mighty one in the earth. . . . And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, . . . in the land of Shinar" (Genesis 10:8, 10).
From this first Babylon in the land of Shinar, the dispersed followers of Nimrod carried their anti G-d, materialistic religion into every land through every age. Its current form is mainly a pantheistic, evolutionary humanism promoting a "new world order," featuring a world government and (supposedly) universal prosperity, without G-d, a world order such as Nimrod tried to build at Babylon long ago. This "new world order" isn't new at all, but it is trying to birth itself once again... maybe for the final stage!
In the final book of the Bible, this woman of wickedness is called "MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH." She is said to be sitting upon "peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues" (Revelation 17:5, 15). This monstrous system is evidently once again to have a house built for it in the land of Shinar. I am not being a paranoid conspiracy theorist, but isn't it a "coincidence" that we have "freed" Babylon recently??
It is interesting that Babylon (near Baghdad in Iraq) is partially rebuilt. Being very near the geographical center of the earth's land masses, this site is the ideal location for a world government. In any case, the day will come when Babylon will fall forever, and there will be "a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia" (Revelation 18:2; 19:1).
Think... don't feel as much, but THINK.
This prophecy of the latter days shows a woman named "wickedness" being translated rapidly in a great measuring basket (symbolizing commerce and finance "through all the earth," v. 6) to a base being built for it in the ancient land of Shinar (same as Sumeria). This was also the land of Nimrod, the leader of the post-Flood rebellion against G-d at Babel. "He began to be a mighty one in the earth. . . . And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, . . . in the land of Shinar" (Genesis 10:8, 10).
From this first Babylon in the land of Shinar, the dispersed followers of Nimrod carried their anti G-d, materialistic religion into every land through every age. Its current form is mainly a pantheistic, evolutionary humanism promoting a "new world order," featuring a world government and (supposedly) universal prosperity, without G-d, a world order such as Nimrod tried to build at Babylon long ago. This "new world order" isn't new at all, but it is trying to birth itself once again... maybe for the final stage!
In the final book of the Bible, this woman of wickedness is called "MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH." She is said to be sitting upon "peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues" (Revelation 17:5, 15). This monstrous system is evidently once again to have a house built for it in the land of Shinar. I am not being a paranoid conspiracy theorist, but isn't it a "coincidence" that we have "freed" Babylon recently??
It is interesting that Babylon (near Baghdad in Iraq) is partially rebuilt. Being very near the geographical center of the earth's land masses, this site is the ideal location for a world government. In any case, the day will come when Babylon will fall forever, and there will be "a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia" (Revelation 18:2; 19:1).
Think... don't feel as much, but THINK.
23 October 2009
Knowing What To Do Is Often HEARD, not Always SEEN!
Just because an opportunity presents itself for which we are qualified does not necessarily mean that it is G-d’s will for us to accept it. Many times circumstances “line up” and everything looks good, yet it doesn’t seem right. In such cases we need to hear from G-d. That is why I say that divine direction is really heard not seen. We Kingdom believers should be more interested in the unseen than we are in the things that are visible.
The only safe way to decide which direction to go is by learning to distinguish between the voices we hear. There are always three sources of voices: there is G-d’s voice, our own voice (usually crafted by the experiences of our life- good and bad- and what was spoken over us like "you can't do THAT" or "NO ONE has EVER done that before")and, lastly, the Enemy's voice. We must learn to distinguish among these three.
We must choose to eliminate all foggy areas in our lives. This is the key to being able to see and think clearly. Fog is very dangerous to drive into, especially a spiritual fog.
We believers should choose to build on what we hear on the inside, not what we see on the outside.
There is a big difference between having an ability to do something, and being called and anointed to do it. As you have sat in church, you may have seen someone who has the ability to sing, but that is not the necessarily evidence that the person has been called of G-d to the life of a singer. A gift is not a call.
I am not suggesting that when we have the ability to do something that G-d isn’t directing us to use that ability. But ability should not be the only criterion for deciding whether or not we make a particular choice. Not only does the Lord give us a road map, He also provides direction signals, information signs, a vehicle, fuel, and time to get to our destination.
We need to be sensitive to what lies in the unseen. Many people have walked right over rich pools of oil or veins of gold, not realizing what lay just beneath their feet. Their vision was too limited. They only saw the ground, not the treasure hidden in it.
Look beyond what you see with your natural eyes. Listen with your spiritual ears. Keep your antenna up for G-d’s perfect direction in your life. It isn't always as it seems! He knows the outcome... will you trust Him??
Shabbat Shalom!!
The only safe way to decide which direction to go is by learning to distinguish between the voices we hear. There are always three sources of voices: there is G-d’s voice, our own voice (usually crafted by the experiences of our life- good and bad- and what was spoken over us like "you can't do THAT" or "NO ONE has EVER done that before")and, lastly, the Enemy's voice. We must learn to distinguish among these three.
We must choose to eliminate all foggy areas in our lives. This is the key to being able to see and think clearly. Fog is very dangerous to drive into, especially a spiritual fog.
We believers should choose to build on what we hear on the inside, not what we see on the outside.
There is a big difference between having an ability to do something, and being called and anointed to do it. As you have sat in church, you may have seen someone who has the ability to sing, but that is not the necessarily evidence that the person has been called of G-d to the life of a singer. A gift is not a call.
I am not suggesting that when we have the ability to do something that G-d isn’t directing us to use that ability. But ability should not be the only criterion for deciding whether or not we make a particular choice. Not only does the Lord give us a road map, He also provides direction signals, information signs, a vehicle, fuel, and time to get to our destination.
We need to be sensitive to what lies in the unseen. Many people have walked right over rich pools of oil or veins of gold, not realizing what lay just beneath their feet. Their vision was too limited. They only saw the ground, not the treasure hidden in it.
Look beyond what you see with your natural eyes. Listen with your spiritual ears. Keep your antenna up for G-d’s perfect direction in your life. It isn't always as it seems! He knows the outcome... will you trust Him??
Shabbat Shalom!!
06 May 2009
The Real Roots of Our Financial Crisis
Almost all of the liberal and conservative commentators on the Great Recession and Financial Collapse/Bailout of 2008 have neglected the cultural and moral reasons for this economic mess. Unless those causes are addressed, all the finger pointing and all the proposed "solutions" will be like putting band-aids on a tumor. Let me be as specific and concrete as I can.
In the 1980s, Michael Lewis wrote a comedic book called Liar's Poker that depicted the excesses of Wall Street at the firm, Salomon Brothers. He recently updated it with an article entitled, "After the Fall, Greed, Stupidity, and Really Bad Luck: How Wall Street Did Itself In." The bottom line is Wall Street learned next to nothing, from the past, the scandals, schemes, downturns and the criminality. The materialism and culture of greed was just too addictive. To quote Lewis' last line, "Something for nothing. It never loses its charm."
Certainly macroeconomic weakness, heightened economic imbalances, over-leverage and extreme credit risks have contributed to the unbelievable levels of market volatility we have witnessed in this downturn, now become a near collapse. Almost all financial experts and many policymakers have started to cry out for financial reforms, greater financial transparency and measures to rebuild confidence. Trust is needed in the financial architecture and institutions, regulatory agencies among them, that underlie our now highly interconnected global economic system. Yet this is why the sage market advisor, David Smick spells out so explicitly in his book, The World Is Curved, "The distasteful reality, is that there are no quick fixes for the global credit system's dilemma, which is why the world has become a dangerous place with so much economic heartache."
Let's be completely honest since so much is at stake. Why did the financial giants: investment banks, hedge funds, ratings agencies, large investors for that matter, get us into this "risky business" and dangerous situation in the first place? The answer in a word, actually a deep-seated vice, is greed.
The outcries for punishment, heads rolling, massive government regulations and bureaucratic solutions are only now beginning. There will be dozens of plans and much hand wringing. Congress will over-react and yet more firms and perhaps half of all hedge funds will fail, hurting yet more people and dragging down the economy as a whole. No one can even predict what will happen to the credit default swap market, which totals just shy of a quadzillion dollars (do the math).
It is characteristic of the age in which we live to see the "moral dimension" as a matter of following yet more rules or dictated regulations. The ancients, however, seldom referred to rules or even principles. For them a moral life was not a matter of what you do but of what you are. The fundamental notion was not duty but virtue and the task of the moral person was to describe the virtues that we should emulate and teach. This is how Socrates, Plato and preeminently Aristotle conceived of the moral life. St. Thomas Aquinas synthesized it into Christianity. The words of the Roman, Cicero closely correspond, as do those of the great sage Confucius, in China. Like him, the Greeks, Romans and Christians all attempted to find a basis for moral conduct in human nature. They all believed that the core idea is virtue.
Today "virtue" is literally and figuratively missing from our public vocabulary and the idea of "the moral" has been either trivialized or totally relativized. No training session or quick executive briefing can revive ethics and morality because they are habituated over years and years not in some late afternoon consultants' PowerPoint presentation or a touchy feely weekend retreat. At the very root of our financial crisis is a moral vacuum, which can only be filled with true virtue. Virtue can be defined as "moral excellence," which is gained on the grounds or basis of reason. It is a core positive quality that advantages both individuals and society.
Capitalism, the goose that laid our golden eggs over the past decades, brings about immense transformation, particularly in its globalized form. It is in nature as Adam Smith reminded us in his first book, The Theory of Moral Sentiments, written long before his better-known work, The Wealth of Nations, all about what he called "the moral sentiments." He himself distinguished between self-interest, which he promoted, and greed. Self-interest is both good and essential. Greed is always wrong and bad. The key difference is the former uses self-restraint, which obviously requires a moral code and a moral compass. There are moral preconditions in a market economy: the sentiments of sympathy, benevolence and compassion, of approval; disapproval and indignation, which underpin the social order and make it possible to engage in business in the first place. Human beings are not just profit-maximizers. They have moral scruples, personal commitments and the desire for happiness. These set limits to their plans for personal profit, and also stimulate them to pursue profit in ways that honor their higher values and generosity. Many companies, large and small, exhibit these; they live and conduct business by these values, in every industry and on every continent.
Those nations, peoples, and businesses that neglect the moral ecology of their own cultures, especially corporate cultures, and financial firms' cultures are most noteworthy, cannot enjoy the fruits of capitalism. Because that system must essentially be moral or it falters, declines and fails. What we need to rediscover and renew today at this time more than any other in modern memory is spiritual enterprise, which is capitalism in its most profound and important virtuous form.
Spiritual capital is the fund of beliefs, examples, and commitments that are transmitted from generation to generation through a religious, moral or spiritual tradition, and which attach people to the transcendental source of human happiness. Without rediscovery of the virtues we cannot understand or resolve the deepest roots of this financial and, ultimately, moral crisis.
That moral crisis cannot be dictated by governmental power or throwing money at "problems." One of the paradoxes of the "progressive movement" is that it has spawned public policies that have had as their collective consequence an end totally opposite to the one intended. Instead of offering temporary help to a needy few, we have expanded the ranks of those perpetually in need. Where communism failed to create "new socialist man" behind the former Iron Curtain we are succeeding in America. Instead of creating a society of free and responsible individuals, we have created the entitlement generation(s). Ever since we proclaimed that we should be free from fear, we have been afraid to be free.
There is, lest we forget in this era of Obamanomics, a very corrosive and morally corrupting influence of government which stimulates the "something for nothing" mentality more than anything else in our present culture. The latest episode in so-called "stimulus" is mostly a series of government giveaways or payoffs to interest groups now in power. There is nothing virtuous about such bailouts to any and every constituency that screams loudest or turns out the vote. Quite the opposite, such actions inevitably destroy freedom, cripple the market, and like drug addiction lead to a need for more and more without regard to effect. At some point we will wake up and there will be hell to pay, i.e., hyperinflation and a worthless currency.
In the 1980s, Michael Lewis wrote a comedic book called Liar's Poker that depicted the excesses of Wall Street at the firm, Salomon Brothers. He recently updated it with an article entitled, "After the Fall, Greed, Stupidity, and Really Bad Luck: How Wall Street Did Itself In." The bottom line is Wall Street learned next to nothing, from the past, the scandals, schemes, downturns and the criminality. The materialism and culture of greed was just too addictive. To quote Lewis' last line, "Something for nothing. It never loses its charm."
Certainly macroeconomic weakness, heightened economic imbalances, over-leverage and extreme credit risks have contributed to the unbelievable levels of market volatility we have witnessed in this downturn, now become a near collapse. Almost all financial experts and many policymakers have started to cry out for financial reforms, greater financial transparency and measures to rebuild confidence. Trust is needed in the financial architecture and institutions, regulatory agencies among them, that underlie our now highly interconnected global economic system. Yet this is why the sage market advisor, David Smick spells out so explicitly in his book, The World Is Curved, "The distasteful reality, is that there are no quick fixes for the global credit system's dilemma, which is why the world has become a dangerous place with so much economic heartache."
Let's be completely honest since so much is at stake. Why did the financial giants: investment banks, hedge funds, ratings agencies, large investors for that matter, get us into this "risky business" and dangerous situation in the first place? The answer in a word, actually a deep-seated vice, is greed.
The outcries for punishment, heads rolling, massive government regulations and bureaucratic solutions are only now beginning. There will be dozens of plans and much hand wringing. Congress will over-react and yet more firms and perhaps half of all hedge funds will fail, hurting yet more people and dragging down the economy as a whole. No one can even predict what will happen to the credit default swap market, which totals just shy of a quadzillion dollars (do the math).
It is characteristic of the age in which we live to see the "moral dimension" as a matter of following yet more rules or dictated regulations. The ancients, however, seldom referred to rules or even principles. For them a moral life was not a matter of what you do but of what you are. The fundamental notion was not duty but virtue and the task of the moral person was to describe the virtues that we should emulate and teach. This is how Socrates, Plato and preeminently Aristotle conceived of the moral life. St. Thomas Aquinas synthesized it into Christianity. The words of the Roman, Cicero closely correspond, as do those of the great sage Confucius, in China. Like him, the Greeks, Romans and Christians all attempted to find a basis for moral conduct in human nature. They all believed that the core idea is virtue.
Today "virtue" is literally and figuratively missing from our public vocabulary and the idea of "the moral" has been either trivialized or totally relativized. No training session or quick executive briefing can revive ethics and morality because they are habituated over years and years not in some late afternoon consultants' PowerPoint presentation or a touchy feely weekend retreat. At the very root of our financial crisis is a moral vacuum, which can only be filled with true virtue. Virtue can be defined as "moral excellence," which is gained on the grounds or basis of reason. It is a core positive quality that advantages both individuals and society.
Capitalism, the goose that laid our golden eggs over the past decades, brings about immense transformation, particularly in its globalized form. It is in nature as Adam Smith reminded us in his first book, The Theory of Moral Sentiments, written long before his better-known work, The Wealth of Nations, all about what he called "the moral sentiments." He himself distinguished between self-interest, which he promoted, and greed. Self-interest is both good and essential. Greed is always wrong and bad. The key difference is the former uses self-restraint, which obviously requires a moral code and a moral compass. There are moral preconditions in a market economy: the sentiments of sympathy, benevolence and compassion, of approval; disapproval and indignation, which underpin the social order and make it possible to engage in business in the first place. Human beings are not just profit-maximizers. They have moral scruples, personal commitments and the desire for happiness. These set limits to their plans for personal profit, and also stimulate them to pursue profit in ways that honor their higher values and generosity. Many companies, large and small, exhibit these; they live and conduct business by these values, in every industry and on every continent.
Those nations, peoples, and businesses that neglect the moral ecology of their own cultures, especially corporate cultures, and financial firms' cultures are most noteworthy, cannot enjoy the fruits of capitalism. Because that system must essentially be moral or it falters, declines and fails. What we need to rediscover and renew today at this time more than any other in modern memory is spiritual enterprise, which is capitalism in its most profound and important virtuous form.
Spiritual capital is the fund of beliefs, examples, and commitments that are transmitted from generation to generation through a religious, moral or spiritual tradition, and which attach people to the transcendental source of human happiness. Without rediscovery of the virtues we cannot understand or resolve the deepest roots of this financial and, ultimately, moral crisis.
That moral crisis cannot be dictated by governmental power or throwing money at "problems." One of the paradoxes of the "progressive movement" is that it has spawned public policies that have had as their collective consequence an end totally opposite to the one intended. Instead of offering temporary help to a needy few, we have expanded the ranks of those perpetually in need. Where communism failed to create "new socialist man" behind the former Iron Curtain we are succeeding in America. Instead of creating a society of free and responsible individuals, we have created the entitlement generation(s). Ever since we proclaimed that we should be free from fear, we have been afraid to be free.
There is, lest we forget in this era of Obamanomics, a very corrosive and morally corrupting influence of government which stimulates the "something for nothing" mentality more than anything else in our present culture. The latest episode in so-called "stimulus" is mostly a series of government giveaways or payoffs to interest groups now in power. There is nothing virtuous about such bailouts to any and every constituency that screams loudest or turns out the vote. Quite the opposite, such actions inevitably destroy freedom, cripple the market, and like drug addiction lead to a need for more and more without regard to effect. At some point we will wake up and there will be hell to pay, i.e., hyperinflation and a worthless currency.
27 March 2009
I Can't Give Up... I Just Can't
A look at Elijah in 1 Kings 19: 4-16
Do you sometimes feel like giving up? Does it seem like the journey is too difficult and that everyone is out to get you? Do you just want to lie down somewhere and hide from your troubles? This is the way Elijah felt. He had done a mighty work for God, but it seemed like he was the only one in the nation of Israel being true to God. Now he was being pursued and hunted, and he just felt like the fight wasn’t worth all the effort. If you’ve ever felt that way, you can learn from the example of Elijah. These verses give us important instruction as to what God would have us do when we feel like quitting.
Verse 4
But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a broom tree; and he asked that he might die, saying, "It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life; for I am no better than my fathers."
Elijah was so frustrated that he asked God to let him die. Have you ever felt that way? You feel like you’ve come to the end of your rope and you simply have no strength left. That is the way Elijah felt.
Snaith comments, "Elijah stops and shelters, exhausted and disillusioned, under a broom tree. ... It provides no great amount of shade against the desert sun, but it is the best shade there is. Elijah is utterly at the end of his own courage and his own strength, and dejectedly confesses that in spite of all he has done at Carmel he is no better than his fathers."
Verses 5-6
And he lay down and slept under a broom tree; and behold, an angel touched him, and said to him, "Arise and eat."
And he looked, and behold, there was at his head a cake baked on hot stones and a jar of water. And he ate and drank, and lay down again.
Elijah was so despondent that all he felt like doing was sleeping. Many people when faced with difficult situations feel more tired and drained than usual. They just want to sleep, hoping that when they wake up all their troubles will somehow have disappeared. God cared for Elijah and sent an angel to minister to him. He cooked bread and provided water and woke him up so that he could be strengthened and nourished. But Elijah didn’t want to face another day and so retreated again into sleep.
Into what are you retreating? It may not be sleep. You could be running from your problems by retreating into drugs or alcohol or immorality or some obsession to distract your mind. Elijah didn’t want to face tomorrow.
Verses 7-8
And the angel of the Lord came again a second time, and touched him, and said, "Arise and eat, else the journey will be too great for you."
And he arose, and ate and drank, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb the mount of God.
Here we have three things the angel tells Elijah to help him get over his desire to give up. I believe God is telling us the same three things today.
First, he says, to arise. We will never overcome our feelings of frustration and despondency unless we are willing to get up and do something about it. The angel told Elijah to arise. God may be telling you to arise – you’ve been hiding for too long. It’s time to get up and face the real world once again.
Second, the angel tells Elijah to eat. Elijah needed physical nourishment. We may not need food, but we may need other forms of nourishment – emotional, mental, spiritual. Whatever we need, God has provided it for us just the same way he provided for Elijah. He told Elijah to be strengthened by the food. God is telling us to be strengthened by spiritual nourishment. This might come from the living message of the Bible, or the love and encouragement of our church family. It could come from our time in prayer and meditation or it could come from being renewed by the Holy Spirit. Whatever your need, God will provide it and is offering it to you by saying, "arise and eat."
And third, the angel tells Elijah that he must begin the journey. He could not simply stay where he was and do nothing. He must begin the journey which would end in a new calling and a new spiritual encounter with God. God is telling us we cannot stay where we are in the shade of discouragement and hopelessness. We must begin the journey out of our depression. We must allow God to strengthen us for the journey, and then by faith step out.
Remember, trying times are no time to quit trying.
Verse 9
And there he came to a cave, and lodged there; and behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"
So Elijah made the journey to Mount Horeb. This was most likely the Sinai mountain where God had given Moses the ten commandments. God had sent Elijah here for a purpose. But when he arrived, instead of climbing up the mountain, he decided to hide in a cave. As Sockman remarks, "Elijah was in the cave mood. He came to a cave and lodged there. Both his mind and heart had gone into hiding. He was still free from Ahab and Jezebel, but he was a prisoner of himself. He had shut the sunlight out of his mind. He had drawn the shutters of his heart. When doors are slammed against us, we are prone to draw into ourselves and lock our hearts against others."
So God came to Elijah and asked the question, "What are you doing here?" Is God asking you that same question? Are you hiding in a cave trying to escape the turmoil and confusion out there? God does not want us to live unto ourselves. He wants us to get out of the cave and start helping others and being a blessing to them. Perhaps it’s been a long time since you’ve thought of ways you could strengthen and be a help to others. Perhaps it’s been a long time since you got out of your cave. God may be asking you, "What are you doing here?"
More to come...
Do you sometimes feel like giving up? Does it seem like the journey is too difficult and that everyone is out to get you? Do you just want to lie down somewhere and hide from your troubles? This is the way Elijah felt. He had done a mighty work for God, but it seemed like he was the only one in the nation of Israel being true to God. Now he was being pursued and hunted, and he just felt like the fight wasn’t worth all the effort. If you’ve ever felt that way, you can learn from the example of Elijah. These verses give us important instruction as to what God would have us do when we feel like quitting.
Verse 4
But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a broom tree; and he asked that he might die, saying, "It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life; for I am no better than my fathers."
Elijah was so frustrated that he asked God to let him die. Have you ever felt that way? You feel like you’ve come to the end of your rope and you simply have no strength left. That is the way Elijah felt.
Snaith comments, "Elijah stops and shelters, exhausted and disillusioned, under a broom tree. ... It provides no great amount of shade against the desert sun, but it is the best shade there is. Elijah is utterly at the end of his own courage and his own strength, and dejectedly confesses that in spite of all he has done at Carmel he is no better than his fathers."
Verses 5-6
And he lay down and slept under a broom tree; and behold, an angel touched him, and said to him, "Arise and eat."
And he looked, and behold, there was at his head a cake baked on hot stones and a jar of water. And he ate and drank, and lay down again.
Elijah was so despondent that all he felt like doing was sleeping. Many people when faced with difficult situations feel more tired and drained than usual. They just want to sleep, hoping that when they wake up all their troubles will somehow have disappeared. God cared for Elijah and sent an angel to minister to him. He cooked bread and provided water and woke him up so that he could be strengthened and nourished. But Elijah didn’t want to face another day and so retreated again into sleep.
Into what are you retreating? It may not be sleep. You could be running from your problems by retreating into drugs or alcohol or immorality or some obsession to distract your mind. Elijah didn’t want to face tomorrow.
Verses 7-8
And the angel of the Lord came again a second time, and touched him, and said, "Arise and eat, else the journey will be too great for you."
And he arose, and ate and drank, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb the mount of God.
Here we have three things the angel tells Elijah to help him get over his desire to give up. I believe God is telling us the same three things today.
First, he says, to arise. We will never overcome our feelings of frustration and despondency unless we are willing to get up and do something about it. The angel told Elijah to arise. God may be telling you to arise – you’ve been hiding for too long. It’s time to get up and face the real world once again.
Second, the angel tells Elijah to eat. Elijah needed physical nourishment. We may not need food, but we may need other forms of nourishment – emotional, mental, spiritual. Whatever we need, God has provided it for us just the same way he provided for Elijah. He told Elijah to be strengthened by the food. God is telling us to be strengthened by spiritual nourishment. This might come from the living message of the Bible, or the love and encouragement of our church family. It could come from our time in prayer and meditation or it could come from being renewed by the Holy Spirit. Whatever your need, God will provide it and is offering it to you by saying, "arise and eat."
And third, the angel tells Elijah that he must begin the journey. He could not simply stay where he was and do nothing. He must begin the journey which would end in a new calling and a new spiritual encounter with God. God is telling us we cannot stay where we are in the shade of discouragement and hopelessness. We must begin the journey out of our depression. We must allow God to strengthen us for the journey, and then by faith step out.
Remember, trying times are no time to quit trying.
Verse 9
And there he came to a cave, and lodged there; and behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"
So Elijah made the journey to Mount Horeb. This was most likely the Sinai mountain where God had given Moses the ten commandments. God had sent Elijah here for a purpose. But when he arrived, instead of climbing up the mountain, he decided to hide in a cave. As Sockman remarks, "Elijah was in the cave mood. He came to a cave and lodged there. Both his mind and heart had gone into hiding. He was still free from Ahab and Jezebel, but he was a prisoner of himself. He had shut the sunlight out of his mind. He had drawn the shutters of his heart. When doors are slammed against us, we are prone to draw into ourselves and lock our hearts against others."
So God came to Elijah and asked the question, "What are you doing here?" Is God asking you that same question? Are you hiding in a cave trying to escape the turmoil and confusion out there? God does not want us to live unto ourselves. He wants us to get out of the cave and start helping others and being a blessing to them. Perhaps it’s been a long time since you’ve thought of ways you could strengthen and be a help to others. Perhaps it’s been a long time since you got out of your cave. God may be asking you, "What are you doing here?"
More to come...
10 March 2009
Where I Have Been Lately-
Chastening... it's not fun, but it's the required process.
"Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth: therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty." (Job 5:17)
One of the fascinating paradoxes of Scripture (and of human life) is the oft-repeated principle that true parental love requires appropriate chastening, and chastening rightly received generates blessing and happiness. "He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes" (Proverbs 13:24).
We are living in a world very devoid of correction and personal discipline- it is at epidemic levels and is the reason for the demise of the moral fiber, glue and basic respect for life in general!
This practice of discipline and correction is effective child psychology, assuming that the chastening is remedial rather than vindictive and is applied in love rather than anger. But the main teaching of such passages goes beyond parental child-training methods to the grand theme of God’s spiritual training of His children for eternity.
This thought is often expressed in the Psalms (94:12, etc.), but it is especially clear in the Proverbs. "My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord; neither be weary of his correction: For whom the Lord loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth" (Proverbs 3:11-12).
The classic passage on this theme is Hebrews 12:5-11, which begins by quoting the above verses in Proverbs, and eventually concludes as follows: "Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby" (Hebrews 12:11).
We are "sons and daughters" of "the Lord Almighty" (2 Corinthians 6:18), and it is essential that we be properly trained for our glorious future as "kings and priests unto God" (Revelation 1:6). We must learn to behave in ways appropriate to our high calling as children of the King, and this requires the divine rod at appropriate times. In His closing words to the last of the seven churches, Christ reminds us again: "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent" (Revelation 3:19).
Just grin and bear it... it drives away those who really aren't called to us anyway and makes us ready for the coming role of Kingdom leadership you were called to take. it separates the "chosen" who assume the role they are called for and those who "talk it" but aren't willing to "walk it"! I ask G-d each day that His will be done in me, so I bring it on myself...gladly!!
"Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth: therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty." (Job 5:17)
One of the fascinating paradoxes of Scripture (and of human life) is the oft-repeated principle that true parental love requires appropriate chastening, and chastening rightly received generates blessing and happiness. "He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes" (Proverbs 13:24).
We are living in a world very devoid of correction and personal discipline- it is at epidemic levels and is the reason for the demise of the moral fiber, glue and basic respect for life in general!
This practice of discipline and correction is effective child psychology, assuming that the chastening is remedial rather than vindictive and is applied in love rather than anger. But the main teaching of such passages goes beyond parental child-training methods to the grand theme of God’s spiritual training of His children for eternity.
This thought is often expressed in the Psalms (94:12, etc.), but it is especially clear in the Proverbs. "My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord; neither be weary of his correction: For whom the Lord loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth" (Proverbs 3:11-12).
The classic passage on this theme is Hebrews 12:5-11, which begins by quoting the above verses in Proverbs, and eventually concludes as follows: "Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby" (Hebrews 12:11).
We are "sons and daughters" of "the Lord Almighty" (2 Corinthians 6:18), and it is essential that we be properly trained for our glorious future as "kings and priests unto God" (Revelation 1:6). We must learn to behave in ways appropriate to our high calling as children of the King, and this requires the divine rod at appropriate times. In His closing words to the last of the seven churches, Christ reminds us again: "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent" (Revelation 3:19).
Just grin and bear it... it drives away those who really aren't called to us anyway and makes us ready for the coming role of Kingdom leadership you were called to take. it separates the "chosen" who assume the role they are called for and those who "talk it" but aren't willing to "walk it"! I ask G-d each day that His will be done in me, so I bring it on myself...gladly!!
02 March 2009
TRUST... that's the issue
G-d wants to be trusted.
G-d's greatest desire is to be trusted.
G-d's passion is fellowship with us, with YOU... now!
How?? Sounds "mystical" and pretty unattainable? It's not! But only certain people "hear" from Yashua... "I hear all the time" or "Jesus TOLD me..." Well, I hope they did hear from Him. I am not the judge, but that creates too broad of a brush stroke for those of us who don't get words directly everyday, who has never had words written on walls telling us what to do and where to go... so here is a devotional for the "rest of us" who don't hear G-d's audible voice all the time... but seek fellowship and direction from the King of kings and Lord of lords and made a way for us to enter the throne... enjoy and relax. TRUST Him.
"Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed." (Psalm 37:3)
Sprinkled throughout this psalm are various pictures that provide the assurance of God’s victory--not only in His eternal plan, but also in and through the lives of His precious saints.
Trust is the most basic of the characteristics of our relationship with the Lord and sets the foundation for all the rest. The Hebrew word carries the meaning of confidence, or boldness, and is often used in such a way that it would imply that we are to "gain support" and "lean on" the One in whom we trust. The expanded definition of trust is contained in Proverbs: "Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones" (Proverbs 3:5-8).
But merely having great confidence in the God of creation is not enough. We must "do good" (our text). The entire New Testament book of James is devoted to this theme: "faith without works is dead" (James 2:20). "And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?" (Luke 6:46). "O that there were such an heart in them," God told Moses, "that they would fear me, and keep all my commandments always, that it might be well with them, and with their children for ever!" (Deuteronomy 5:29).
If we would enjoy the blessings of God, we must embrace the plan of God. If we are to expect the promise that we will "dwell" and "be fed," then we must submit to the instructions of our Lord, who told us to "seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you" (Matthew 6:33).
G-d's greatest desire is to be trusted.
G-d's passion is fellowship with us, with YOU... now!
How?? Sounds "mystical" and pretty unattainable? It's not! But only certain people "hear" from Yashua... "I hear all the time" or "Jesus TOLD me..." Well, I hope they did hear from Him. I am not the judge, but that creates too broad of a brush stroke for those of us who don't get words directly everyday, who has never had words written on walls telling us what to do and where to go... so here is a devotional for the "rest of us" who don't hear G-d's audible voice all the time... but seek fellowship and direction from the King of kings and Lord of lords and made a way for us to enter the throne... enjoy and relax. TRUST Him.
"Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed." (Psalm 37:3)
Sprinkled throughout this psalm are various pictures that provide the assurance of God’s victory--not only in His eternal plan, but also in and through the lives of His precious saints.
Trust is the most basic of the characteristics of our relationship with the Lord and sets the foundation for all the rest. The Hebrew word carries the meaning of confidence, or boldness, and is often used in such a way that it would imply that we are to "gain support" and "lean on" the One in whom we trust. The expanded definition of trust is contained in Proverbs: "Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones" (Proverbs 3:5-8).
But merely having great confidence in the God of creation is not enough. We must "do good" (our text). The entire New Testament book of James is devoted to this theme: "faith without works is dead" (James 2:20). "And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?" (Luke 6:46). "O that there were such an heart in them," God told Moses, "that they would fear me, and keep all my commandments always, that it might be well with them, and with their children for ever!" (Deuteronomy 5:29).
If we would enjoy the blessings of God, we must embrace the plan of God. If we are to expect the promise that we will "dwell" and "be fed," then we must submit to the instructions of our Lord, who told us to "seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you" (Matthew 6:33).
09 February 2009
The Temple's Silent Construction
"And the house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready before it was brought thither: so that there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building." (1 Kings 6:7)
Here is a remarkable testimony to the engineering and construction skills of the ancients. In order to erect the magnificent temple of Solomon, every portion was so carefully fabricated, far away from the construction site, that the building could be completely erected in reverent silence.
Furthermore, the stones were not small and rough. "They brought great stones, costly stones, and hewed stones, to lay the foundation of the house" (1 Kings 5:17). They were quarried from limestone beds beneath the city and had to be fabricated and brought to the temple site, all ready to be laid in place. "And Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders did hew them, and the stonesquarers" (1 Kings 5:18).
In both its unique beauty and its silent assemblage, the temple is a striking type of the spiritual temple now being erected by the Holy Spirit. "Now therefore ye are . . . built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord; In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit" (Ephesians 2:19-22).
In this spiritual temple, each new believer is a costly stone, carefully cut from the world's dark quarry, then silently placed in the growing structure by the Holy Spirit on the foundation of Jesus Christ, "to whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house" (1 Peter 2:4-5). "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?" (1 Corinthians 3:16).
I don't care what you see, feel or understand... you are being chipped away and broken for the use of the Master. As david saught G-d's face and cried out "Create in me a clean heart, Oh G-d, and restore, renew, clean up a right Spirit within me" you too must look deep inside and let Him chip away at what is costic, foul, selfish, causes doubt and fear and let Him make you into what He needs you to be to fit in where He needs you. Here is where your peace in the midst of the storm is found. It is usually through struggles we find this place and it will take a struggle of a different kind to stay there. It's worth it. Come on- let's go together and emerge ready for His Kingdom's purpose. I am with ya'!
Here is a remarkable testimony to the engineering and construction skills of the ancients. In order to erect the magnificent temple of Solomon, every portion was so carefully fabricated, far away from the construction site, that the building could be completely erected in reverent silence.
Furthermore, the stones were not small and rough. "They brought great stones, costly stones, and hewed stones, to lay the foundation of the house" (1 Kings 5:17). They were quarried from limestone beds beneath the city and had to be fabricated and brought to the temple site, all ready to be laid in place. "And Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders did hew them, and the stonesquarers" (1 Kings 5:18).
In both its unique beauty and its silent assemblage, the temple is a striking type of the spiritual temple now being erected by the Holy Spirit. "Now therefore ye are . . . built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord; In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit" (Ephesians 2:19-22).
In this spiritual temple, each new believer is a costly stone, carefully cut from the world's dark quarry, then silently placed in the growing structure by the Holy Spirit on the foundation of Jesus Christ, "to whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house" (1 Peter 2:4-5). "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?" (1 Corinthians 3:16).
I don't care what you see, feel or understand... you are being chipped away and broken for the use of the Master. As david saught G-d's face and cried out "Create in me a clean heart, Oh G-d, and restore, renew, clean up a right Spirit within me" you too must look deep inside and let Him chip away at what is costic, foul, selfish, causes doubt and fear and let Him make you into what He needs you to be to fit in where He needs you. Here is where your peace in the midst of the storm is found. It is usually through struggles we find this place and it will take a struggle of a different kind to stay there. It's worth it. Come on- let's go together and emerge ready for His Kingdom's purpose. I am with ya'!
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