Pesach, Matzah, Bikkurim!

It's the time of year again to begin the Feasts of the Lord!  The first feast, Passover (Pesach in Hebrew) , is today.  Our savior fulfilled this God-appointed time through his sacrificial death on the cross.  He became accursed and took on sin for us.  


Deuteronomy 21:22-23 says this:  If a man has committed a sin deserving of death, and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree,  his body shall not remain overnight on the tree, but you shall surely bury him that day, so that you do not defile the land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance; for he who is hanged is accursed of God.


Tomorrow begins the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Matzah in Hebrew), which lasts seven days.  Yeshua fulfilled this feast through His burial.  The first and last days of Unleavened Bread are Sabbaths.  The disciples, knowing the above scripture about the body remaining overnight on the tree (and also being aware of the approaching Sabbath) requested that the body of Yeshua be released to them for burial.  He was buried just as the Feast of Unleavened Bread was about to begin.


The Feast of Firstfruits (Bikkurim) always follows the regular Sabbath of Passover week.  The days of the week for Passover and Unleavened Bread change from year to year according to the Hebrew calendar, but Firstfruits always falls on the first day of the week.  THIS is the feast that found fulfillment when Yeshua rose from the dead!  On this day, the priests at the temple were to wave the first sheaf of barley as an offering to the Lord God.  Yeshua, as the Firstfruits of all creation, was "waved" before His Father as an acceptable offering on our behalf.  Leviticus 23:10-11 says, ...then you shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest to the priest. He shall wave the sheaf before the Lord, to be accepted on your behalf; on the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it.  He shall wave the sheaf before the Lord, to be accepted on your behalf; on the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it.  


In John 20:17, Yeshua said to Mary Magdalene, “Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.’”  The waving of the sheaf by the priest at the temple took place at 9:00 am, at which time Yeshua also became the acceptable offering before His Father.  No one could touch Him before the appointed time.


I just love the way these three Feasts go together, and how Yeshua fulfilled them all so beautifully.  It is no mistake that the Lord commanded Passover to be a pilgrimage feast under the Law of Moses, when all the Israelite men were required to be in attendance in Jerusalem.  I believe He wanted to make sure that all were in attendance when the fulfillment took place!

Spring Cleaning!

This week, observant Jewish people all over the world will be cleaning out the "chametz" from their homes. What does this mean? Here is a brief commentary on the custom from about.com:

Before Passover, the house needs to be cleaned so that all chametz (leavened products) are removed. Don't forget the bag of baby crackers in your diaper bag. What about the Purim treats your 3rd grader has stashed away in her desk? Gotta lift the sofa to get all that popcorn vacuumed up. While you are at it, you might as well throw some Spring cleaning in there - get out the summer clothes and put away the winter blankets and coats.

Spring cleaning is always a good thing.  I'm doing quite a bit of it myself.  Physical and spiritual cleaning.  The clutter in the closet and the clutter in my heart have to go.  Spring is a time for new birth.  However, trying to get all the leaven out on our own is absolutely impossible, and fortunately, we are not expected to do it all on our own.  In fact, in removing the leaven (which spiritually represents sin) prior to Passover, we are, in fact, doing it backwards.

In a week, we will celebrate the Feast of Passover.  Passover was fulfilled by Yeshua, who by His sacrifice paid for the sins of all who will trust in Him.   The seven day Feast of Unleavened Bread follows the one day of Passover.  The number seven (sheva) represents completeness.  Those seven days are a picture of the rest of our life.   After our sins have been forgiven at the cross, we are commanded to live a holy life - to spend the rest of our lives becoming more and more like Jesus.  In other words, getting rid of the leaven day by day.

Hebrews 10:14 says, For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.

1 Corinthians 5:7-8 says this:  Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us.  Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

Like I said, spring cleaning is good.  Self-examination is good.  But don't forget that we have One who forgave us once for all, the moment we trusted in Him at the cross.  He will help us get the leaven out!

Judge not?

Lately, it has seemed to me that "You're so judgmental" actually means "I am enjoying my sin and I don't want you to remind me." 

Are we really not to judge anything?  Let me pose a question. Isn't the statement "You're so judgmental," um, making a judgment?   (I am speaking to myself here as well).

What do the scriptures say?

First, Matthew 7, from the sermon on the mount:
Judge not, that you be not judged.  For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.  And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?  Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye?  Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.  Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.

Because of the context, "Judge not" is actually not a command, but a warning.  Why else would the passage warn us to get the specks out of our own eyes FIRST?  And from whose eye are we to help remove the speck?  Our brothers - meaning those in the household of faith.  Not those on the outside -the passage tells us that we are not to give what is holy to the dogs, or they will turn and tear you in pieces. 

1 Corinthians 5 offers further confirmation:

I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world.  But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner—not even to eat with such a person.  For what have I to do with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside?  But those who are outside God judges. Therefore put away from yourselves the evil person.

Galatians 6:1 says how we are to approach our brother who is caught in sin:

 Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted.

Is there judgement when we do this?  Yes!  Is it difficult?  Yes!  Nobody wants to be called "judgmental."  As believers, we need to be careful to follow what scripture says, and to challenge, exhort, and restore those believers who are caught in sin - NOT for the purpose of condemnation, but for the purpose of restoration.  If someone comes back at you with "Stop judging me!," then perhaps this is a clue that they either don't understand the role of fellow believers in restoration, or they are not a fellow believer in the first place.

The Crimson Worm

The Scriptures are a gold mine.  If you keep searching, you find many nuggets under the surface.

Here is a beautiful example.  Most people agree that Psalm 22 is a depiction of the Messiah to come.  But look at verse 6:

But I am a worm, and no man;
A reproach of men, and despised by the people.

Is Yeshua really being compared to a worm?  Worms in scripture generally have a bad connotation.  But Yehsua was sinless... there has to be more to the story here.

(You can do a word study on worms in the Bible, and you will notice a definite play on words in connection with worms.  While men in their depraved sin nature are symbolized as "maggots" in the scriptures (Hebrew rimmah), Yeshua is symbolized as the rare Crimson grub (tola'ath).  Job 25:6 actually uses both words:  How much less man, who is a maggot, And a son of man, who is a worm?”)

 The word "worm" referred to is unique in Scripture.  The Hebrew word tola'ath is a particular female worm, which is called the "crimson worm."   The Crimson worm is common to the region of old Israel and was used in the dyeing of garments to scarlet.

Only when you study the attributes of this worm can you really understand what the verse is saying.  See if any of this has a ring of familiarity to you...

When the Crimson worm is prepared to reproduce offspring (and she does so only once in her life) she rigidly attaches herself to an oak tree in such a way that she can never be removed without tearing her body completely apart.  The crimson worm willingly climbs on the tree all by itself - nobody forces it to get on the tree. The worm knows when it climbs on the tree that it will not come back down alive. It is going to the tree to birth a family and to do that it must die.

The worm will then lay its eggs and shelter them under her body.  During the birthing process, she secretes a crimson fluid or gel. The scarlet fluid covers her entire body and all the eggs she lays. It also leaves a stain on the tree, which will never fade away with the passing of time!

After dying to birth the family, something amazing takes place. For a period of three days the worm can be scraped from the tree and the crimson gel can be used to make a dye. That dye was the same which was used in the tabernacle and in the garments of the High Priest.

On the morning of the fourth day, the worm has pulled the head and tail together and is now in the shape of a heart on the tree but it is no longer crimson. It is now a wax, which is white as snow! They can still harvest the wax and use it to make shellac, a preservative of wood.

The crimson worm is also very fragrant when it is crushed.  No other life in history has sweetened the pathway of humanity like the crimson worm who was crushed for our sin - Yeshua!

The crushed worm is also used to make medicine. Praise be to the One Who heals our diseases!

Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And forget not all His benefits:
Who forgives all your iniquities,
Who heals all your diseases

Psalm 103:2-3

For Such a Time As This

The spirit of Haman is alive and well today.  One would have to be pretty sheltered to have not heard how Iran would like to wipe Israel off the face of the map, or how they are currently beefing up their nukes to do just that.

Ironically, the main Haman of today, Amadinijad, lives in the very place of Haman in the book of Esther (In biblical times, Iran was Persia.)

The Feast of Purim begins on Wednesday evening, March 7.  Just as Esther called for a three day fast to intervene for her people, I would like to issue an invitation to people who love Israel to consider doing the same.  Our family (the older ones at least) will begin our three day fast at sundown on March 4, and continue until we break our fast for Purim on the night of the 7th.

So who's in?  Will you stand in the gap for Israel by praying and fasting at this critical time?

And Mordecai told them to answer Esther: “Do not think in your heart that you will escape in the king’s palace any more than all the other Jews.  For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai:  “Go, gather all the Jews who are present in Shushan, and fast for me; neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will fast likewise. And so I will go to the king, which is against the law; and if I perish, I perish!”  Esther 4:13-15

 

By the way, those triangles on Haman's (oops, I mean Amadinijad's) ears are called Hamantaschen, which means "Haman's pockets," and are traditionally eaten at Purim.  

Scripture Picture: Messiah the Son

Right off the bat, Matthew 1:1 says, The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham.

What does this mean?  God gives us a messianic picture with each of these titles. 

When God tested Abraham, to see if he was willing to give up his beloved son, He was giving us a prophetic picture of the future sacrifice of His own Son.  Isaac, son of Abraham, is a picture of the Suffering Servant, which was fufilled by Yeshua at His first earthly visitation.

The son of David however - Solomon - gives us a different picture.  Solomon was a glorious king of Israel, ruling his kingdom in peace and wisdom.  Solomon, son of David, gives us a prophetic picture of Yeshua, the Reigning King.

Ancient Hebrew rabbis understood that there was a scriptural picture of the Messiah being a suffering servant as well as a conquering king.  For awhile, it was thought by the ancient sages that there were two Messiahs, because of the very different nature of each one.  Then the thinking became that maybe there was only one Messiah, but that He comes twice.  This thinking does not exist right now in Judaism.  By the time of Yeshua, the Jewish people were oppressed by Rome and they were only looking and hoping for the Conquering King.  This is one of the reasons so many Jewish people missed the visitation of the Suffering Servant.

Look at Luke 4:16-22:
So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.  And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:

 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,
Because He has anointed Me
To preach the gospel to the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives
And recovery of sight to the blind,
To set at liberty those who are oppressed;

 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.”

 Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him.   And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” 

If you go back to the book of Isaiah, you will see that Yeshua stopped reading in the middle of the verse, and did not quote the second half:  And the day of vengeance of our God.  Why did He stop?  Because the day of the Lord's wrath will not happen until He returns to the earth for a second time; no longer the Suffering Servent, but the Conquering King.

(If you keep reading in Luke 4, you will find that eventually the people in His hometown synagogue were so angry with Him that they wanted to throw Him off the cliff!)

I find it quite amazing that in the very first verse of the New Covenant, God gives us a picture of the dual roles of the Messiah.

The Door

Hebrew is an amazing language.  I have just begun studying it in the last year.  The letters and words have such meaning to them!  Here is a great example. 

The name of the LORD is yod heh vav heh - YHVH.  Also called the tetragrammaton, it is called "the unpronounceble name" in Judaism.  The vav can made an O, U, or V sound, allowing for numerous pronunciations..  There is no "J" in the Hebrew language, so the rendering "Jehovah" is an English misnomer (along with many other names in scripture - Joseph should be pronounced Yosef,  Jacob - Ya'acov, Jerusalem - Yerushaliyim, Jesus - Yeshua, etc).

This is how the tetragrammaton appears in Hebrew (reading right to left):

In order to make the name Judah (Yehuda), you would place a dalet between the vav and the last heh, like this:

יהודה

The letter dalet in Hebrew symbolically represents a door - through which we can be open to the hope of our dreams or to remain closed off and alienated.  Yehuda is the door through which God will send the promised Messiah, Yeshua.  It is a picture of our future redemption - the only door to the Father!