On the last day of the feast, the great day, Yeshua stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. 
Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.'” John 7:37-38
SHABBAT SHALOM FROM OUR HOME TO YOURS
Headwaters of the Jordan River, ISRAEL 2006
“And Deborah, a prophetess ( Neviah ), the wife of Lappidoth, judged Israel at that time.”
(ruled, governed, acted as law-giver ) Judges 4:4
Hilkiah the Priest and those of the king (Josiah) went to speak to the prophetess Huldah, who was the wife of Shallum son of Tikvah, the son of Hasrah, keeper of the wardrobe. She lived in Jerusalem, in the Second District. 2 Chronicles 34:22
“And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, 37 and then as a widow until she was eighty-four.1 She did not depart from the temple, serving with fasting and prayers night and day.” Luke 2:36
“I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon (diakonos m/f) of the church at Cenchreae;”
Romans 16:1
“Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. 25 He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and he spoke with great fervor {25 Or with fervor in the Spirit} and taught about Jesus accurately, though he knew only the baptism of John. 26 He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they invited him to their home and explained to him the way of God more adequately. “ Acts 18:24
( most translations list Priscilla first or refer to ‘them’ )
“Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man nor man independent of woman;” 1 Corinthians 11:11
“For as woman came from man, so also man is born of woman. And everything comes from God.” +1 Corinthians 11:12
So, if Father God can appoint the woman, Deborah, to be the governing voice and ‘law-giver’ over ALL Israel ( including the men), and HE cannot and will not violate His own Word and principles;
And if Father God appointed the woman Huldah to give an authoritative word to the king ( who was a man) and all Israel;
And if Anna served in the Temple day and night without leaving;
And if Phoebe is recognized in Paul’s day by Paul as a deacon in the congregation;
And if Priscilla and Aquila ‘team taught’ Apollos ( ‘them’, not ‘him’ );
And if Paul ( as well as Yeshua ) did not come to start a new religion;
Then could it be that Paul’s statements about women were addressing specific issues in two specific congregations, and no more than that ? Why do men ( and some women) have a problem with God using women? Blessings – Jerry
Re’eh – See . . .
This portion of Scripture begins with God setting before us ‘blessing and a curse’ and then He begins to meddle. That’s right, meddle. After offering us a Blessing, God begins to work under the assumption the Gift gives Him the right to tell us how to live our lives.
He begins to tell us how we are allowed to approach Him. He tells us what we can eat and what is not food. He tells us how to determine if a prophet is true or false, as if we’re not capable of knowing the difference on our own. He then dictates what we should celebrate as holidays, where and when, and then, to top it all off, He starts talking about offerings and how we should spend our money. I would call that meddlin’, wouldn’t you?
Now that we have your attention – No, it is not meddling if it’s God doing the telling.
Much of this passage, Deut 11:26 – 16:17, deals with concepts that we have not been taught or have been taught in part. The first thing He says is “ Behold . . .” That’s an intriguing word, “Behold”. It gives an air of anticipation and excitement ! It is the Hebrew word ‘ra-ah’ which means to ‘see, perceive, look at, give attention to’. God literally begins this passage this way – ‘look here and pay attention. I’m getting ready to show you something really important.’ And then He goes on to explain there’s good news and there bad news. The good news? Behind door #1 is a Blessing. And the bad news? Well, you should have the picture by now.
And as we read through this passage as well as Isaiah 54:11-55:5 and John 7:37-52, we should remember from the Beginning it has been an ‘open book test’. God says ‘I set before you two options, one good and one bad . . . choose the good one’. “I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you; I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live;”
(Deut. 30:19) Pretty neat, huh, when the Teacher gives you the answer to the test questions before you take the test . . . and the test is coming.
So, why are these concepts important for us to understand today ? Why should I care what God says is and isn’t food ? Why should I be concerned how to discern a false prophet from a true one? Why should I understand proper protocol in approaching the Creator of the Universe, or what He says are acceptable holidays and what to do with my money? The answer? We are stepping into a time period that the Bible has pointed to for roughly 6,000 years. The challenge is most of us have only read part of this ‘End-Time Survival Guide to the Supernatural’ we call The Bible.
It’s kinda like reading a map. On every map there is that little thing down in the corner called the ‘Legend’. If you attempt reading the Map without understanding the Legend, you might get a few things correct but you will usually wind up lost. But once you understand the Legend, that understanding gives clarity to the Map and you’re able get where you want to go.
Understanding God’s ways and expectations in these upcoming days may just make a world of difference when the chips are down. Expectations ? Like any Good Parent, God has the right and responsibility to delineate and realize a level of behavior of His children for their own good. As kids, we, many times, thought our parents were meddling . . . but they were just being good parents. When it seems as if Abba is meddling . . . He’s just being a Good Dad; for our own good; even if we don’t realize it until later. Shalom – 
Little Sammy is home and doing well (thanks for all the prayers) and NOW the oldest of the three boys – Benjamin – is in the hospital with asthmatic complications. He will be there for at least a couple of nights. Jason, his dad, says the air quality in Louisville has been very bad lately, with an “L.A. type” smoggy heaviness. The doctor said even folks that don’t normally suffer from asthma have been coming in wheezing with difficulty breathing. Please pray Ben’s stay will be short and Mom & Dad will get some rest. We also pray the affects of the medication be mitigated. In Yeshua’s Name –
There was one last song we wanted to play the day of Mariela’s baptism but time just did not allow. It was personal for Rhonda and I since this one song takes us back to a time when God was dealing with us as well as a dark time of heaviness and great uncertainty, uncertainty not unlike some days we have now. But through it all there has been and will be this one thread that never breaks – God is faithful.
http://youtu.be/–RFfHmQAS0?list=UUeBRDP0VCpgggvw61UPEzzw
This is not an all-encompassing, all-inclusive teaching but it will cover some biblical basics most of us were never taught. It is a live recording, made a couple years back at Sukkot, and has all the background noise that goes along with being live. So turn up your speakers and take a listen. shalom –
We have noticed the attacks on believers seem to have increased dramatically. There seems to be hardly a day that goes by that there is not a report of a family that is being touched by something! We are hearing of, and getting prayer requests for, people that are sick or have something else physically wrong or at least heading in that direction, such as cancer (that seems to be a biggie right now), strokes, car accidents (another big one), eyesight being affected (several of those lately), lumps and bumps in different areas of the body, marriages under attack, arguing and fighting among people (even those that don’t usually do this). The list seems endless. The same goes for depression and all it’s various forms. Also, spiritually, people are asking for prayer. If individuals or their family or a good friend or neighbor is not going through something physical, spiritual, emotional then it seems to manifest in the financial (we know of those also).
As this War rages in the spiritual realm, does it manifests itself in the physical realm in ways that we sometimes fail to recognize? In Israel, and surrounding countries, there are rockets being fired, prisoners taken captive, beheadings, torture, death, people fleeing for their lives having their houses, wealth, jobs, food, water, clothing stolen from them. When things get stirred and shaken in the Heavens, that stirring and shaking affects the earth and believers world-wide. It seems as though the war that is taking place in the middle east in the physical mirrors the War that is taking place in the spiritual realm and is exponentially radiating from there, outward, to the rest of His people, wherever they live. Could it be?? Could the war against Israel (and all that is going on with Isis) step up the war in the heavenlies and manifests itself in the physical by attacks of fiery darts etc. against the LORD’S people? (we are not saying everything listed here is a result of what is going on in the middle east, only that it seems to be on the increase). Here, in America and some other countries, we are not currently running for our lives into the hills from ISIS or being taken prisoner by Hamas or having rockets lobed at us but at the same time many are running frantically for their lives from disease or financial ruin or being taken prisoner by Fear, depression or apathy, and it appears to be on the increase.
Could it be we are not seeing this for what it is or how it manifests itself in our lives as believers? First, and foremost, we need to look at our hearts and hands to see if there be anything we need to repent of. We need the whole armor listed in Ephesions 6:10-18 and also be in prayer to be strong, as verse 10 says, and mighty in His power. And as verse 13 says….”so that when the day of evil comes ,you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, TO STAND”. (my emphasis)
When I first opened my bible this morning this is what I opened up to
Psalm 130:1 A song of ascents. Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD;
2 O Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy.
3 If you, O LORD, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand?
4 But with you there is forgiveness; therefore you are feared.
5 I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope.
6 My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning.
7 O Israel, put your hope in the LORD, for with the LORD is unfailing love and with him is full redemption.
8 He himself will redeem Israel from all their sins.
As we find ourselves going down the path that we are on (and we have a ways to go yet) remember……
Yeshua is our redemption…..our redeemer. Israel’s hope . . . our hope.
Be strong and of good courage, for “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33
Philippians 4:13 “ For I can do all things through Messiah who pours His strength into me.”
These are just some thoughts and questions we have. Blessings in Messiah, stay in prayer…..
‘Scripture’ is a word spoken and heard time and time again in our churches, synagogues and meeting places. According to dictionaries, it is ‘any sacred book or writing, a passage from any sacred book or writing; The Bible;’ We also refer to The Bible – Scripture – as ‘The Word’.
Where does the term ‘The Word’ come from ? The phrase “the Word of the Lord came’ appears almost one hundred times in the The Old Testament, and most of those appearances are followed by this phrase, ‘and said’. So ‘The Word of the Lord came and said . . .’ John tells us this ‘Word’ was in the beginning and took on flesh and walked among them . . .’ It tells us Yeshua is the Word made flesh. He is the living, breathing version of the written Word. Yeshua is not only He that spoke from Mt. Sinai but also that which was spoken.
The title, ‘The Bible’ comes from first century common greek (ta biblia) and literally means ‘The Books’, which is an apt title, understanding the Bible to be not just a book but a collection of books written by numerous authors from different backgrounds and educational levels over a period of more than four millennia. And in all this it is not only a collection of books in which there is no contradiction but that all carry the same theme and thread and point to the same culmination – the last days and the Salvation of Israel.
One thing we seem to lose sight of is the fact that the Bible as we know it today and the ‘Bible’ in Yeshua’s day is not the same collection of books. Don’t hang up yet. What we mean by that is in Yeshua’s day the only Scripture that existed is that which we refer to as the Old Testament. The New Testament ( also called ‘Apostolic Writings’) did not exist in His day. Yeshua, the Apostles, and the others were ‘living’ the NT but it was not compiled as a ‘collection of letters’ and added to the canon of The Bible for another 200 years or more.
“Yes”, you say, “we know all that”. Well, with that understanding, ponder this concept. Paul spoke this admonition in 2 Timothy 3:15 “ . . . from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work. 4:1 I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the Word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.” “. . . in the volume of the book it is written of me.” (Hebrews 10, Psalm 40)
So the question ? What ‘Scripture’ and ‘Word’ was Paul referring to in his letter to Timothy if the NT did not exist at that time ? Well, the only Scripture that existed was that which we call the Old Testament. Paul is telling Timothy not only are the Law and the Prophets not done away with but they are the ‘Word’ we are to be ready to preach in and out of season. How can we be sure this is what Paul means ? Because it lines up with what Yeshua says in Matthew 5 . . . 16 “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. 17 “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill . 18 “For truly I say to you, heaven and earth shall pass away, but not the slightest stroke of the pen shall pass away from the Law, until all is accomplished (and when will all be accomplished?…at the end of the millineum). 19 “Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and so teaches others, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” The keeping of His ways is not a matter of salvation but of obedience.
So are we saying ‘the Old does away the New’ ? Not at all. We are saying ‘the Old is the foundation for the New’.
“This is what the LORD says: “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths where the good way is, and when you find it walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But the people said, We will not . . .”” Jeremiah 6:16
May that not be said of us in these days . . . Shalom –
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