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We are contemplating the hosting of a Passover Seder, friday evening. April 3rd, location TBA . . . it will depend on the amount of interest and attendance, so, IF you would be interested in being a part of this celebration, we need your RSVP NOW . . . and if there is enough interest, we will move forward with the plans and will keep you updated accordingly. Shalom –

FROM THE INSIDE OUT . . .

Since, at least for this year, we have completed another season dubbed as the ‘birth of Jesus ( Yeshua )’, we would like to take a few moments and look at Luke 1 and related passages from a little different perspective and as a segue into an understanding of a deeper truth. Allow us to establish up front that the mentioned passages as well as other writings of the Apostles are not an effort to set a birthdate or establish a birth celebration of the Messiah, but rather to confirm the unavoidable fact that He – Yeshua – is the promised Messiah of Israel spoken of by the Prophets, the ‘Seed of the Woman’ of Gen. 3:15, and the ‘Son of Man with all dominion’ of Daniel 7:13-14.
Have you ever been reading your Bible and then, all of sudden, BAM !!, you see something in the passage or a connection to another passage that you’ve never seen before ? Well, that’s what happened back in 2011. There is much more to this, but here is an overview and the ‘reader’s digest condensed version’, if you will.

The Scriptures address the concept of that which is good comes from the ‘inside out’ rather than from the ‘outside in’.
“. . . For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks . . .” Matt 12:34;
“ . . . From his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water. . .” John 7:38
“ . . . unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 3:3-ff, just to list a few . . .

When the Tabernacle was erected, the process began from the inside out. The first thing that was put into place was the heart of the Tabernacle – the ‘Tent of Meeting’ – and it’s heart is the Most Holy Place – the place of The Ark of the Covenant and Mercy Seat, the earthly throne of God Almighty. Afterward the rest of the Mishkan ( the Tabernacle – the place of the Shekinah ) was put into place from the inside outward. ( Exo. 40 ) ) From the inside out’ is foundational in Scripture and evident even from the beginning when Abba brought forth EVE from Adam ‘from the inside out’ .
Another concept we see in the Word is the requirement of the shedding of blood to seal a covenant. It was actually customary for the parents of the new bride to obtain and keep the ‘wedding night bedding’ in case the virginity of the bride was ever called into question. The shedding of blood was recognized as validation of the consummation of even this most holy and intimate of covenants. ( Deut.22:13-19)
So What does all THAT have to do with the account of the birthing of Messiah in the Apostolic Writings ?
While reading the passage in Luke about the ‘then’ upcoming birth of Yeshua ( Jesus ), Rhonda was suddenly struck with new insight and fresh revelation within this passage. She, Mary, asks the Angel Gabriel how all this could come about – the birthing a child – since she was a virgin and had never had intimate relations with any man. He begins to explain to her that this event would come about by a work of the Spirit of God from the ‘inside’ rather than from the ‘outside’ by the will of man. John makes reference to this concept in his Gospel rendering.
Without being to graphic, we understand that when a man and a virgin woman come together intimately, there is the ‘shedding of blood’ in the ‘ tearing of the veil of her flesh ( the hymen ) ’ . The ‘seed’ is implanted from the ‘outside in’ by the ‘will of man’ and the covenant between the bride and bridegroom is sealed by the shedding of that blood.
But this was not the case with Mary and the conception of Yeshua . . . ‘for The Holy Spirit will come upon you and EL ELYON shall envelope you and this offspring shall be Holy . . .’ ( Luke 1:30-35 ) ‘ . . . and The Word became flesh and dwelt among us . . . the only begotten of the Father full of glory and grace’ . . . ( John 1:14 ff ) The ‘seed’ was planted from the ‘inside out’ by Abba. So where is the ‘blood’ that seals the covenant ? It was shed at Yeshua’s birth. When the ‘veil’ of His mother’s flesh was torn from the ‘inside out’ at His birth, it was the consummation of the promise that Abba made in the garden and it was sealed by the blood shed at the birthing. By the way, at any birth there is both blood and water present. Keep that in mind . . .
Hopefully we understand that when a man and woman ‘come together’ in an intimate relationship they have literally become ‘one flesh’. If that intimate encounter culminates in pregnancy, the two have literally become ‘one flesh’ in the body, birth and life of the child. The child is ‘one flesh’, made up of the two, 100% mother, 100% Father, yet unique, one of a kind.
So it is with Yeshua. At His birth, he was 100% flesh ( His mother ) and 100% Spirit ( His Father ), unique and ‘one of a kind’. At His death – the ‘tearing of His flesh’ – not only was His bride ‘birthed’ ( blood & water – John 19:34) but it culminated in the birthing of ‘many children’. “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name . . .” John 1:12

So let’s look at a bigger picture. Adam was put into a deep sleep and while he slept his side was opened up and out of that wound was ‘birthed’ his bride . . . from the inside out . . . When Yeshua (the second Adam) went to the cross, His side was opened up and out of that wound HIS bride was birthed . . . from the inside out with water and blood. . . . the tearing of the veil, which is HIS flesh . . . ( Heb 10:20 ) .
A ‘veil of flesh’ was torn at HIS birth and at HIS death . . . the first tearing was the consummation of the promise ( Gen. 3) The second tearing not only birthed the bride of the Second Adam ( Yeshua ) but also consummated that relationship. And THEN the veil of the temple was rent by Abba to display for the Bride that access to HIM had been secured through the blood of HIS Son. The ‘veil was torn coming in and torn again going out . . . all of this, ‘from the inside out’ .
So when we read the writings of the Apostles, let us remember part of their purpose. The point of the writers was not to establish a birth date or a birth celebration. Rather their writings would and should establish to all the prophesied lineage of the One born, the prophesied type of birth, and establish the fact that Messiah has come. HIS birth fulfills the promise and the prophecies and reminds us that anything our Father GOD does is always from the ‘Inside Out’ .
In Matt. 5:17 Yeshua declares that He has come to fulfill . . . ( Heb. 10:7, Psa 40:7 ) Remember, nowhere are we commanded to celebrate His birth, but we ARE commanded to remember His death until He comes again; and we know the month, day and hour of His death . . . not so with His birth.
( 1 Cor. 11:24-26 )

“For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.” Romans 5:10

“Therefore, remember that formerly you who are of the nations by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” . . . 12 remember that at that time you were separate from Messiah, excluded from the citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Messiah Yeshua, you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Messiah.
Ephesians 2

“ . . . I was sent only for the lost sheep of the House of Israel . . .” Matt. 15:24

Shalom U’Vrachot – Peace & Blessings – Rhonda&Jerry

http://www.breakingisraelnews.com/26310/presbyterian-church-usa-voted-erasing-israel-prayers-biblical-zionism/#TE4g6UlFEhhfs0mR.97

To all those feeling frustrated and discouraged this time of year, seemingly fighting an uphill battle to walk and share the Truth of The Word, to keep and teach our Father’s instructions, to teach our children His ways and His Holy Days rather then the holidays instituted by man and taken hold of and set apart by the religious system of our day…..

A Maskil of Asaph. “O my people, hear my teaching; listen to the words of my mouth. 2 I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter hidden things, things from of old– 3 what we have heard and known, what our fathers have told us. 4 We will not hide them from their children; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD, His power, and the wonders He has done. 5 He decreed statutes for Jacob and established the law in Israel, which He commanded our forefathers to teach their children, 6 so the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and they in turn would tell their children. 7 Then they would put their trust in God and would not forget His deeds but would keep His commands. 8 They would not be like their forefathers– a stubborn and rebellious generation, whose hearts were not loyal to God, whose spirits were not faithful to Him.” Psalm 78

O LORD, my Strength, and my Fortress, and my Refuge in the day of affliction, the gentiles shall come unto thee from the ends of the earth, and shall say, Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and that in which there is no benefit. Jeremiah 16:19

‘ . . . and to those that are faithful, God will show Himself faithful . . .’ Psa 18:25

“If you refrain from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on My holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the LORD’s holy day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, 14 then you will find your joy in the LORD, and I will cause you to ride on the heights of the land and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.” The mouth of the LORD has spoken. Isaiah 58:13-14
Shabbat Shalom

Toledoth – ‘these are the generations of Isaac . . .’ As we were reading the beginning verses of this week’s Torah portion, it reminded us of the following excerpt from an article we posted sometime back concerning Rebekah and her connection to the woman of Revelation 12.
” Let’s take a little closer look at the passages concerning Rebekah for some deeper understanding and clarification. Unlike Moses and Jacob finding their brides at a well, when Abraham sent his servant to find a wife for Isaac, she – Rebekah – was found at a spring. So what’s the significance? In the Hebrew a well and a spring are not the same. ‘Be’ayr’ – well – is a hole in the ground full of water. The Hebrew word for spring is ‘ayin’, literally the eye of the water. It is actually the word for ‘eye’ in the Hebrew. Why was Rebekah found at a spring? Why is that important? Later in life we find that Isaac is physically blind. He was also spiritually blind in reference to his two sons. Isaac was blinded to Esau’s spiritual depravity by his affection for his eldest son. Rebekah, on the other hand, is the one that had ‘eyes to see’. She is the woman chosen to birth Israel.” You know, both Jacob and Rebekah get what we believe to be a ‘bad rap’ in reference to the events concerning the ‘deception of Isaac’. It’s funny how we can read something over and again and still miss nuggets right under our noses. In the opening verses of this passage, God declares Jacob’s preeminence over his brother Esau. We also get a glimpse of Esau’s attitude towards God Almighty. The passage says ‘he (Esau) despises and had no regard for his birthright’. So Esau ‘sells’ his ‘right of the firstborn’ to his younger brother. Jacob now had a legal, enforceable right to the ‘bekorah’ or ‘first-born preeminence’. So, although the actions of Rebekah seem a little underhanded, she is prophetically the one with the ‘eyes to see’ and is determined to make sure the birthright is enforced. Here again, a meal is involved which could represent the appetites and desires of the flesh rather than the Word spoken by God. Isaac offers the birthright blessing to Esau in exchange for a ‘savory meal’ ; the same birthright Esau despised and sold cheap for a bowl of ‘red stuff’. . . We find it interesting Esau ( Edom – ‘red’) exchanges his preeminence with God for something ‘red’ . . . red, like the ‘dragon’, that serpent of old . . . Shalom –

“This is what the LORD said, – “Tomorrow is a Sabbath observance, a holy Sabbath to the LORD . . . Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Observe the Sabbath, because it is holy to you. The whole house of Israel shall observe the Sabbath, to celebrate it throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant. Above, all keep My Sabbaths, for it is a sign between you and Me throughout your generations that you may know that it is I, YAHWEH, Who sanctifies you.”
So observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the LORD your God has commanded you. For there still remains a ‘Sabbath-keeping’ for the people of God. Shabbat Shalom – J&R

Previous study tells us this portion of Scripture begins with the death of Sarah and concludes at the death of Abraham. It includes, among other history, the account of the meeting of Isaac and Rebekah. But, while reading through it last evening and again this morning, something came to mind we had not noticed before. Abraham, the first Hebrew, the patriarch of all Israel (which includes all born-again believers ) bows himself before a pagan. What’s up with that? Abraham bows himself before the children of Heth, the council of the Hittite leadership and before Ephron, the leader of this pagan bunch ? Anybody besides us have a problem with this ? Let’s look a little deeper and see what we find.
The Torah admonishes us to ‘honor our father and mother, for this is the first commandment with a promise.’ We, as adults, should have learned ‘respect and honor’ while we were children in the home, by honoring our parents. As we mature, this understanding and extending of respect and honor should mature as we do and be evidenced by appropriate respect and honor for our God, our spouse, our family, our employer and those in positions of responsibility and authority over us. Eventually, this comes to be known as ‘proper protocol’.
So what does ‘proper protocol’ have to do with Father Abraham bowing himself before a pagan leader? Remember in the letter of Jude how the writer makes reference to Michael the archangel NOT railing against satan but literally turnin’ him over to The Lord ? That’s because the angelic host understand proper protocol and chain of command in ways we haven’t quite got a grasp on as of yet.
Abraham could have gone strutting into the ‘enemy’s camp’ and declared ‘I am Abraham, the friend of God, so recognize my importance and give me what I desire’. Alas, he did not, for he knew ‘proper protocol’ and the purpose for his visit. He wasn’t there to ‘take on’ the enemy. He was there to accomplish the purpose for which he came – to find a suitable burial place for his beloved wife. There would come a time to deal with the enemy. There are times when God has called his people to fight and times when He has called them to stand down. But, again, what has all that got to do with Abraham bowing before the descendants of Heth? Let’s try to boil all this down.
The Apostle Paul understood and taught this concept – first the physical, then the Spiritual. Abba gives us tasks to perform in the physical realm by which we are to learn and understand Spiritual truths. Abraham understood ‘proper protocol’. It was evidenced by his interaction with Ephron and the children of Heth, and shows the maturity level of his understanding of ‘respect and honor’.
In his letter to the Galatians, Paul confirms this truth – “If you are in Messiah, you are Abraham’s seed . . .’ (Gal. 3:19) and if we are Abraham’s seed we should be able to walk in some reasonable level of an understanding of honor and respect comparable to that of our father Abraham. Abraham knew how to properly honor, respect and approach His Father and this understanding overflowed into his relationships with those around him.
So how does our Heavenly Father desire we approach Him? The Word is jam-packed with ways in which Abba would want us to come into His presence, and visa-versa. Just as we need to learn what pleases our Father, we also must learn what displeases Him, and that is in His Word as well. Here are some examples:

‘Seek out the old paths and walk therein and find shalom . . . but the people said
we will not . . .’ Jeremiah 6:16

‘Do not come to Me in that manner . . .’ Deut 12:4;

‘you shall not behave this way before the Lord your God . . .’ Deut 12:31;

‘do not imitate the ways of the nations . . .’ Deut 18:9;

‘do not learn the ways of the nations . . .’ Jeremiah 10:2;

‘while these people were worshiping the LORD, they were also serving their idols. To this day their children and their grandchildren continue to do as their ancestors did in the past. 2 Kings 17:41 (and they were judged accordingly );

‘But now that you know God– or rather are known by God – how is it that you are turning back to those weak and beggarly practices of the world . . . (by) observing (their) special days and months and seasons and years ?’ Galatians 4:9-10;

and the phrase ‘under every green tree’ is always connected to ‘the ways of the nations’ and is a phrase especially appropriate this time of year.
Deut 12:2, 2 Kings 16:4, 2 Kings 17:10, 2 Chron. 28:4, Jer. 2:20,
Jer. 3:6, Jer. 3:13, Ezekiel 6:13

‘Thus says the LORD: “Learn not the way of the nations . . . 3 for the customs of the peoples are vanity. A tree from the forest is cut down and fashioned with an axe by the hands of a workman. 4 They decorate it with silver and gold; they fasten it with hammer and nails so that it cannot move. 5 They are idols that cannot walk or speak . . .’ Jeremiah 10

Jeremiah 16:19 O LORD, my strength and my fortress, My refuge in the day of affliction, The nations shall come to You From the ends of the earth and say, “Surely our fathers have inherited lies, that which is worthless and unprofitable;                                    (weak and beggarly; Galatians  4:9);

So just as our Father Abraham understood ‘proper protocol’ in his day, so to, we must understand in these days the proper ways to approach our Father as well as the ways that displease Him . . . especially ‘as The Day approaches’.

In the meantime, Shabbat Shalom to you and yours –

” . . . and by this they shall know that you are My disciples when you” – fuss and fume over the ‘proper’ spelling and pronunciation of My and My Father’s Names;
when you have learned all the mysteries of the Hebrew language and culture so as to show how much you know and how much others don’t;
when you have divided my family and drawn battle lines due to disagreements over calendars and moon phases and when the month and week begins;
when you expect mercy, grace and compassion but are not willing to extend it because someone is not as ‘Torah observant’ as you;
when you have come to the point that you are ‘so right’ that anyone even hinting they may disagree with you is ‘all wrong’;
when you have ‘arrived’ and come to the point that you will not and need not receive and accept true, loving correction from a brother or sister;
when you have come to the point you have such zeal for the Word that you have lost the capacity for compassion for the misguided, misinformed, and those in error;
when you have come to the point that you are so ‘heavenly minded’ that you are no ‘earthly good’ . . .
NO, wait a minute . . . that’s not what it says, is it . . .

“For if I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.”
1 Cor. 13:2
Yeshua said “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You pay tithe of mint and anise and cumin, and have omitted the kabod of the law – justice, mercy, and faith. These ought you to have done, and not neglect the former.” Matthew 23:23

Father, give us the grace and willingness to bring more Light to the discussion than heat . . . B’Shem Yeshua – Amen.

Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834 – 1892) Baptist Preacher, author and teacher among other accomplishments. Referred to as the ‘Prince of Preachers’ . . . A ‘Baptist among Baptists’ who understood the un-biblical issues of and with christmas . . .