Praise and Worship in ALL form

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Immediately after the Temple's dedication, Solomon was reminded by the Lord that obedience brings blessings and disobedience brings discipline. Israel was warned that worshipping other gods would result in being uprooted (captivity) and the Temple would be levelled. But the captivity was temporary and the Temple was rebuilt. God never changed His mind on who He had given the land to, and never will. God's promises might be interrupted by man's disobedience but they will never be altered because of God's character.

 

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Isaac Prays for Rebekah​

The Talmud says, “Why were our ancestors barren? Because the Holy One, blessed be He, longs to hear the prayer of the righteous” (b.Yevamot 64a).

Just as Abraham’s wife, Sarah, was barren, Isaac’s wife, Rebekah, was also unable to bear children. For twenty years she and Isaac tried to have a child. It is normal for a couple to desire children, but for Isaac it was critical. He was the inheritor of the great promises given to his father Abraham. If he did not have children, those promises could not be passed on to the next generation. Isaac turned to the LORD and entreated Him on behalf of Rebekah.

Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife, because she was barren; and the LORD answered him and Rebekah his wife conceived. (Genesis 25:21)

The Talmud says, “Why were our ancestors barren? Because the Holy One, blessed be He, longs to hear the prayer of the righteous” (b.Yevamot 64a).

Rashi makes two notes on the Hebrew wording of Genesis 25:21. When it says that Isaac prayed, it uses a word that implies entreaty. Rashi explains that this means Isaac persistently prayed on her behalf. We can assume that Isaac had been praying throughout the twenty years of her barrenness. That’s persistent prayer.

Yeshua teaches us to pray persistently. He said persistent prayer can be compared to a widow who continually entreated the local judge to hear her case. Though the judge neither feared God nor respected men, he decided to hear her case lest she wear him out with her nagging. If persistent entreaty works on an unjust judge who neither fears God nor men, how much more so will the just Judge of the universe be moved to answer our entreaties.

Yeshua told another parable about the power of persistent prayer. He compared it to a man who needed to borrow food from his neighbour to feed an unexpected guest, but his neighbour had already gone to bed. The man continued to entreat his neighbour until the man eventually got out of bed and gave him what he needed. If persistent entreaty works on a lazy, reluctant neighbour, how much more so on God, who neither slumbers nor sleeps. (Luke 11:5-8) Yeshua encouraged us to pray persistently, saying, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you” (Luke 11:9).

Rashi makes a second observation on the Hebrew wording of Genesis 25:21. He notes that the Hebrew says that “Isaac entreated the LORD opposite his wife.” Rashi explains, “Isaac stood in one corner and prayed while Rebekah stood in the opposite corner and prayed.” In other words, Isaac and Rebekah prayed together.

The LORD heard the prayers of Isaac and Rebekah and answered by allowing Rebekah to conceive. Just as Sarah’s conception of Isaac was a direct miraculous intervention of God, so too with Rebekah. There is great power in the entreaties of a husband and wife who commit to praying together.

 

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#SeanFeucht #LetUsWorship #WashingtonDC
Louder - Sean Feucht - Let us Worship - DC

 

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Believers are led by God's Spirit day after day. On the other hand, people who do not know God do not have the Spirit of God guiding them and are not able to assess spiritual matters properly. This is exactly why we must exercise patience with those who are not of the family of God yet because they cannot process truth as we can. For the believer, the challenge is still to let the Spirit lead, moment by moment, step by step on our daily walk which is filled with fleshly obstacles, because even we, who know better, often succumb to the flesh.

 

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A Conniving Woman?​

Every story has two sides. The story about Rebekah disguising her son Jacob to deceive her husband makes her sound like a manipulative and deceitful wife. Have you ever heard Rebekah's side of the story?

When Isaac wanted to give his firstborn son Esau the blessing, his wife Rebekah intervened. She sent Jacob in Esau’s place to intercept the blessing. It seems like a capricious and conniving thing to do, and it doesn’t paint a very flattering picture of Rebekah or Jacob. But that’s because we are missing an important part of the story.

To understand why Rebekah did what she did, we have to back up to before her boys were born. For twenty years Rebekah and Isaac tried to have a child that could carry on the Abrahamic legacy. All that time, “Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife” (Genesis 25:21). One legend says that, at the end of twenty years, Isaac brought Rebekah to Mount Moriah, and he prayed for her there at the future site of Jerusalem and the holy Temple:

Rebekah was barren for twenty years. After twenty years Isaac took Rebekah to Mount Moriah, to the place where he had been bound, and he prayed on her behalf that she might conceive, and the Holy One, blessed be He, was moved by him, as it says, “Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife.” (Pirkei de Rabbi Eliezer 32)

Isaac prayed and the LORD answered him. Rebekah conceived twins. She did not know that she was carrying twins. As the children began to develop and move within her, she felt enormous pain. She began to wonder if she would survive the pregnancy. She exclaimed, “Why am I this way?”

But the children struggled together within her; and she said, “If it is so, why then am I this way?” So she went to inquire of the LORD. (Genesis 25:22)

In desperation, and without her husband Isaac with her, she returned to Mount Moriah to seek out the LORD again.

The children were contending with one another in her womb like mighty warriors … The time of her confinement came around, and her soul was near to death because of her pain, so she went to pray in the place where she and Isaac had gone. (Pirkei de Rabbi Eliezer 32)

Rebekah inquired of the LORD, and the LORD answered her through the voice of prophetic oracle. She received a prophecy about the children in her womb. Rebekah’s prophecy indicated that she carried the patriarchs of two great nations: Jacob the father of Israel and Esau the father of Edom. The nation of Israel (the younger) will prevail over Edom (the older).

The LORD told Rebekah that Jacob would prevail over Esau. He did not tell Isaac, and neither did Rebekah. One might expect that the LORD should have spoken to Isaac regarding his wife’s pregnancy, a matter for which Isaac had persevered in prayer for twenty years. The LORD did not give the prophecy to Isaac. In fact, the LORD had not yet spoken directly to Isaac at all. Isaac had not yet experienced the type of divine, mystical encounters that were so common for his father Abraham. At the time that Rebekah went to inquire of the LORD, Abraham was still alive, but the LORD did not vouchsafe the oracle about the twins to Abraham either.

That’s the important part of the story. Only Rebekah knew the truth: that Jacob was to be the heir of the Abrahamic legacy, not Esau, and that is why she did what she did.

Only Rebekah heard the prophecy, and she did not share it with her husband. Isaac’s ignorance of Rebekah’s prophecy is a crucial piece of the otherwise baffling story of Jacob and Esau.

 

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Psalm 136, known as “the Great Hallel” and is chanted by Jewish people during Passover. It reflects on God’s eternal lovingkindness for the Jewish people and is a testimony to His covenantal faithfulness in spite of man’s attitude or challenges. When we see how far the Lord went to preserve and protect Israel from Egypt to the Promise Land, we have reasons to celebrate the miracles that punctuated the wilderness wanderings, in spite of their many challenges. He is looking forward to going the distance with us as well. Is your glass half full today, in spite of your situation? Rejoice in Him!

 

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Tithing Straw​

It's easy to look pious and hide sin and spiritual dysfunction behind a veneer of litigious concern over ceremonial minutia in Torah observance. Just ask Esau.

Isaac loved Esau because “because he had a taste for game” (Genesis 25:28). Isaac loved the wild game that Esau brought home. Literally, the verse says that Isaac loved Esau because “game was in his mouth.” The Midrash Rabbah understands this to mean something other than just the taste of venison. Rabbi Abbahu suggests that the “game in his mouth” should be understood as Esau’s deceit of Isaac.

Rabbi Abbahu said, “He was a hunter and fieldsman, hunting at home and hunting in the field. He hunted at home by asking, ‘How do you tithe salt?’ and he hunted in the field by asking, ‘How do you tithe straw?’” (Bereishit Rabbah 63:10)

Esau duped Isaac into believing that he was a righteous son concerned with matters of Torah. He caught his father Isaac in the nets of his words. Isaac loved him because he thought he was a godly man:

One of Esau’s devices was to ask his father detailed questions about the observance of commandments. “Father, I have a problem,” he announced. “What is it?” Isaac asked him. “How do you separate the tithe from salt or straw?” By his question, Esau meant to imply (falsely, of course) that he fulfilled the commandments to a greater degree than is required, because tithes need not be set aside from salt and straw. Esau uttered with his lips the opposite of what he thought in his heart … thus Esau hid his wickedness and tricked everyone into believing that he was in reality righteous. (Moshe Weissman, The Midrash Says: The Book of Bereishis)

This interpretation about Esau’s hunting skills might underlie Yeshua’s rebukes of the Pharisees. In the Master’s day, some religious leaders ignored essential matters of Torah like justice, mercy, and faithfulness as they preoccupied themselves with tithing even their spices. In so doing, the Pharisees sought to show that their observance went beyond the requirements of the Torah. Yeshua applauded their concern for stringency, saying, “this you should have done,” but He rebuked them for ignoring the weightier matters of Torah.

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the Torah: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. (Matthew 23:23)

Rebekah, on the other hand, quietly meditated on the prophecy she had received regarding Jacob. Rebekah was always watching. Her ears were always listening. She watched Esau warily. She keenly observed the difference in the boys’ temperaments. She knew God had chosen Jacob to be the progenitor of the Abrahamic line: "Isaac loved Esau, because he had a taste for game, but Rebekah loved Jacob" (Genesis 25:28).

 

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As believers, we go beyond simply being saved by Yeshua’s blood, because we are expected to work together to further His kingdom. We build on Messiah’s foundation individually and corporately. The legacy that we build is only going to last on that foundation, no matter what we think will sustain the test of time. When we come before Messiah our work will be tested by fire and only what is worth to Him will sustain the test. Our salvation is never at risk but our legacy hinges around our obedience to his instructions. Let’s build for Him in unity

 

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Stairway to Heaven
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Vayetze

Yeshua bridged the space between heaven and earth. He is the ladder to heaven upon which angelic forces descend and ascend.

[Jacob] had a dream, and behold, a ladder was set on the earth with its top reaching to heaven; and behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. (Genesis 28:12)

Yeshua told Nathaniel, “You will see the heavens opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man” (John 1:51). What did these cryptic words mean? As far as we know from the gospel record, Nathaniel never did receive an apocalyptic vision in which he saw angels ascending and descending upon the Master. In what sense did he see the angels ascend and descend upon the Master?

Nathaniel and the disciples saw Yeshua working in the power and authority of heaven (which in apocalyptic literature is always betokened by angels). That is to say that the angels of God ascended and descended upon Him at His behest and command.

And behold, the LORD stood above it. (Genesis 28:13)

The ladder image illustrates the Master’s words, “No one comes to the Father but through Me” (John 14:6). The ancient idolater instinctively understood that a great separation exists between man and God (or “the gods,” as the case may have been in his mind). His mighty ziggurat towers, like the tower of Babel, and his lofty high places and tall altars all represented attempts to span that distance. Even the highest high place does not reach high enough. Even the tower of Babel did not reach to heaven, for Scripture says, “The LORD came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built” (Genesis 11:5).

The same might be said of all our religious impulses. The stars are always beyond our reach. God is far distant. Man’s best attempts to bridge the gap fail. The tall towers and tottering ladders we ascend are as naught. If we are to ascend to God, we must ascend upon a ladder that He Himself has extended to us from above.

God has extended the Messiah to us from above, as Yeshua says, “For I have come down from heaven” (John 6:38). The Messiah is the way of ascent, as He says, “I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God” (John 20:17). He is a son of Jacob—an Israelite—and yet angels ascend and descend upon Him, and God is above Him:

But when He says, “All things are put in subjection [under Messiah],” it is evident that He is excepted who put all things [under] Him. When all things are [under] Him, then the Son Himself also will be [under] the One who [put] all things [under Messiah], so that God may be all in all. (1 Corinthians 15:27−28)

Yeshua had bridged the space between heaven and earth. He is the ladder to heaven upon which angelic forces descend and ascend.

 

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The word of God is too often taken for granted. Additionally, we read it and edit out what we don't want to apply to our lives, somehow justifying that it is not for us. The reality is that God's word is indeed living and active for all believers, all the time and everywhere. The living word should be our standard for living the life that God has for us. It can be contextualized to a specific culture to relate to some people better, but it should not be compromised in fear of offending or because it is uncomfortable to us.

 

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Anointing from Heaven​

The story of Jacob's mysterious dream about a ladder between heaven and earth and the story of Jacob anointing the pillar contain hints and clues about the Messiah.

The LORD revealed the vision of the ladder to Jacob as he slept. In his sleep angels ascended and descended upon him. God confirmed the covenant with him while he slumbered with his head upon a stone. In the morning he erected the same stone as a monument and anointed it with oil.

Sleep represents death. Just as Jacob slept at Bethel, Messiah slept the sleep of death and rested upon the stone. Through the “slumber” of the Messiah, the LORD revealed the ladder to heaven, which is Messiah’s atoning suffering and death (the descent) and His triumphant resurrection (the ascent). Angels ascended and descended upon Him, and when He rose up, He moved the stone from before His tomb.

The stone on which Jacob’s dreaming head rested became the token of the promises bestowed in the dream. Jacob set up the stone to mark the spot where his encounter with God had occurred. To consecrate the stone as a sacred site, Jacob poured out a libation of oil over the top. He intended to return there and worship God in the future. Later in the Torah, Moses consecrated every implement and furnishing of the Tabernacle through anointing: “And you shall anoint it, to consecrate it” (Exodus 29:36).

This is the first anointing ceremony in the Torah, and it alludes to Messiah, the Anointed One. The Midrash says Jacob anointed the stone with oil to indicate that in the future his descendants would be anointed to priesthood and kingship.

Where did Jacob procure this anointing oil? According to his own testimony, when he left the land of Canaan he had nothing with him except the staff in his hand (Genesis 32:10). The Midrash Rabbah explains that he received the anointing oil directly from heaven:

The oil was supplied to him from heaven in abundance, as though from a cruse full to the very top. (Genesis Rabbah 69:8)

 

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There are times when people go to court to settle matters. The Bible doesn’t preclude us from law suits, but it clearly advises us to communicate with those who are at odds with us before we jump into a legal battle. If at all possible, matters should be resolved in person outside of the court system, lest the reputation of either party is destroyed forever. A reputation is fragile. It is like an impressive cathedral built over decades and levelled to the ground by one hit from a wrecking ball.

 

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When I trust You I don't need to understand...

Jesus, bring new wine out of me

 

[Mr. Wood]

The Widow’s Two Mites
(Mark 12 NKJV)
41 Now Jesus sat opposite the treasury and saw how the people put money into the treasury. And many who were rich put in much. 42 Then one poor widow came and threw in two mites, which make a quadrans. 43 So He called His disciples to Himself and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all those who have given to the treasury; 44 for they all put in out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all that she had, her whole livelihood.”

 

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happy sunday everyone

 

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Paul warns his audience that certain behaviours will prevent them from entering God’s kingdom. The list is clear and means what it means. What Paul is not saying is that people who fit the description are damned forever. He understands, and so should we, that it is the unrepentant perpetrator that is guilty, God did not send His Son to die for sinless people but to take on our sins and pay our penalty. Unrighteousness does exist and can be forgiven unless it is committed repeatedly without repentance.

 

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Rachel and Leah​

When Jacob took Esau's birthright and blessing, he got more than he bargained for: Two wives!

Here's how it happened. Laban had two daughters: Rachel and Leah. Leah was older, but the Torah says that she had "weak eyes." Rachel, on the other hand, was beautiful. What does it mean that Leah had weak eyes? The Hebrew word translated here as "weak" can also mean delicate, tender, or soft. Some translations understand it in the sense of "beautiful eyes." In that case, the Torah would be saying, "Leah had beautiful eyes, but Rachel had a beautiful figure and face." Leah had beautiful eyes, but was not as attractive as her sister.

Rashi explains that Leah's eyes were weak because she thought she was destined to marry Esau and therefore she was constantly crying:

She believed that she was destined to marry Esau. She would cry because everybody said, "Rebekah has two sons and Laban has two daughters. The older will marry the older and the younger the younger." (Rashi on Genesis 29:17)

This is probably not the real reason for Leah's weak eyes, but it does raise an interesting point. We know that Esau married Canaanite girls. We know that his mother and father would have preferred him to marry within the greater Abrahamic family. Leah would have been the logical choice for him. It seems natural that the firstborn would have married the firstborn and the second-born the second-born.

Jacob fell in love with the second-born Rachel, but, legally, he had already taken Esau's position as firstborn over the family when he purchased Esau's birthright. Leah was the one God had chosen to be the wife of the progenitor of Abrahamic blessing. When Jacob took that position from Esau, he unwittingly acquired Leah as well. Jacob worked seven years to pay the bride price for Rachel. On their wedding night, Laban surreptitiously switched his daughters. He disguised Leah as Rachel, just as Jacob had disguised himself as Esau to trick Isaac. The ruse worked. Jacob accidentally married Leah.

Laban switched his daughters on the wedding night simply to get another seven years of work out of Jacob. Executing the swap would not have been difficult. In the custom of the ancient world, the bride would have been completely veiled and in extravagant dress, unrecognizable. Her unveiling would have happened only in the bridal chamber and in the dark.

Many Jewish communities today still have the tradition of completely veiling the bride on her wedding day. However, the bridegroom is allowed to lift the veil just prior to the ceremony to make sure he is marrying the right girl.

Jacob's accidental marriage to Leah is a good example of how God works in our lives. We make plans, dream dreams and set out to accomplish certain things. Then our plans are frustrated, our dreams come to naught and we find ourselves far away from our original goals. But this does not mean that God has abandoned us. Your plans for your life may not necessarily be His plans. God may be attempting to work something great through your situation that you never expected.

Through Leah, Jacob sired Judah and Levi, who in turn fathered the line of the Davidic monarchy and the Aaronic priesthood. He never intended to marry her, but the spiritual greatness of Israel came through Leah.

 

[the only way]

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People often wonder why good things happen to bad people and vice versa. It often seems like life isn’t fair. The Lord tells us that the sun will rise an set the same way for the crooked and the righteous. This is not mean that God either doesn’t care about justice or doesn’t have the power to change things but there is a time for everything. Natural events affect people equally throughout our lives, but God keeps track of our moves and nothing will go unpunished. His justice is seldom early but never late!