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1 Corinthians 13:12
For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known. Measure for measure is so real. So much of what happens to us is the returning of our own actions. The dish life serves us often proceeds from the kitchen of our own cooking. The harvest we reap is surely the result our own sowing. By this standard a man’s life is easily assessed and his character revealed. If someone has many friends, he must have been friendly. If others are generous with him, he must have been sharing. By the same token, if someone finds the heart of others like desert sand or a sky of brass, closed to his needs and pleas, maybe he lived his life as selfishly as a closed book. We are all too often to blame for the hell we create with our own two hands. Jacob deceived his father Isaac by concealing his identity, several years later Jacob becomes victim of the same as Laban conceals Leah’s identity in the nuptial chamber. This would result in a family’s sibling rivalry that would cause Leah’s children to later try to kill Joseph. Joseph would later trick them by concealing his identity, appearing to them as an Egyptian viceroy (Genesis 40-45). When Leah’s children headed by Judah returned from pasture with the news about Joseph, Judah showed Jacob the ‘hard evidence’ of Joseph’s bloody coat to prove their case. Judah used the Hebrew words, ‘haker-nah’, meaning ‘Please, recognize these’. Many years later, Judah would be tricked and exposed by his own daughter-in-law using the very same words, ‘Haker-nah’. These must have pieced his heart as he remembered the treachery and lying to his own father (Genesis 37:32; 38:25)! The concealing identity theme is a common one throughout the Hebrew Scriptures. Kings, queens and prophets used it, sometimes even under God’s own purpose. It could even be said that today Messiah hides His Jewish identity from both Israel/Jacob, and the gentiles. To the Western world He conceals His Jewish identity appears and appears to them as a Westerner, thinking, dressing, eating and living as they do. This in turn makes Him unrecognizable to His people. But as with Joseph with His brethren, the day will come when Yeshua will throw off His ‘Egyptian garb’ and say to them, “I am Yeshua, your brother” (Genesis 45:3). At that time Yeshua will show the whole world who He really is: the King of the Jews. He will also reap the harvest of His own labor and doing. At that time He will also reunite Rachel and Leah’s family (the whole twelve tribes) under one banner (Ezekiel 37), and rule over the whole world from His throne in Jerusalem (Revelations 19 and 20). In this day and in the Word to Come we each reap the harvest of the actions of our lives. What will it be for you?
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Matthew 5:45
That you may be sons of your Father who is in Heaven. As Eliezer arrived in Padam-Aram, he asked the God of Abraham to help him identify she who would be the next matriarch of Israel. He stopped by the municipal well expecting the chosen maiden to remove a very heavy stone from the mouth of the well, and then water his ten camels loaded with the bride price with hundred fifty gallons of water. This was a very unlikely sign but the calling was high. The chosen one needed to have the right heart, the heart of a servant. Many years later Jacob, Rebeccah’s son would stand by that same well and return the favor to the House of Laban. This time he would roll the stone from the well and water Rachel’s flocks Genesis 24:12-20; 29:1-11). The Torah teaches us the notion of measure for measure. It says, But if there is harm, then you shall pay life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe (Exodus 21:23). We may tend to think that to be God’s ‘Old Testament’ modus operandi, but our Master Yeshua expected us to also live within the notion of measure for measure; He said, For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you (Matthew 6:14). You see His idea was not for us to exact our measure like saying, ‘you did this so I’ll do that; you didn’t do this so I won’t do it either’, but rather in the sense that there is a god in heaven who on that Great Day will balance the scales. In His teaching about ‘Measure for Measure’, Yeshua affirms the teaching of some of the great luminaries of Israel who said, “Whoever refrains from exacting his measure, the heavenly courts forgives its sins (b.Rosh Hashana 17a)”. Another one also teaches that “Regarding those who are insulted but do not return an insult, those who are rebuked without replying, they are the ones who do good out of love for Gof and rejoice in their suffering …He who passes over an opportunity to retaliate has all his transgressions passed over (b.Yoma 23a)”. May we also like these great sages learn to live by our Master’s idea of measure for measure, by the Sage of all sages who said, "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Judge not, that you be not judged, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you.” Here is how the Master taught us to apply measure for measure; He said, “You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you … that you may be sons of your Father who is in Heaven (Matthew 7:1; 6:12; 5:38-45).” John 1:51
"Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man." In the days of the Master, Galilee was a center for Torah learning where many rabbis taught their disciples in Yeshivas (Religious schools). It was the dream of every parent for their child, especially the oldest boy, to be given the favor of being accepted as the disciple of a rabbi. Yeshua broke with the traditional way of local rabbis in those days; instead of waiting for potential disciples to pop the question, He himself did the choosing and proposed with the words: “follow me” (John 1:43). It seems that Yeshua did not want the type of disciple who was already learned in the local teachings. He wanted folks who came straight from the ‘streets’, people who had never really learned at the feet of other rabbis so He could teach from scrap without having to undo a lot of teachings; that’s why some wondered at the religious ethics of some of Yeshua’s disciples (Matthew 9:14-17). It is the problem with many of us today; we have so much to unlearn, so many ‘rocks’ of false teachings to rid the ground of before the truth can take root in our hearts! When in Judea, Andrew left John the Immerser to follow the Master. Andrew then ‘fished’ his brother, Peter. When the Master returned to Galilee to establish His roaming Yeshivah of disciples, He found Philip who then found Nathanael. These were all local friends who roamed the streets of Bethsaida as young boys. Yeshua chose all sorts. A hated Roman collaborator tax collectors; main stream working folks like fishermen, zealots who were political activists involved in resistance against Roman occupation, and even religious fellows. When He saw Nathanael, Yeshua had a very particular comment for him, He said, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit (John 1:47)"! Whatever He was referring to, it was a great compliment to receive from He who was the Messiah! It seems that Nathanael was a religious man, a ‘just’ or ‘righteous’ man like Yeshua’s own earthly father (Matthew 1:19), which in Judaism referred to what would be called today an ‘Orthodox Jew’. When Yeshua saw Nathanael, He told Him what he was doing. Some suggest that perhaps Nathanael was studying the Torah, which people would often do in the shade of a tree. Some even said that he was reading the section about Jacob’s Ladder, and that it is why Yeshua referred to that prophecy about Himself in His comment to Nathanael (John 1:51). Whatever it was that Nathanael was doing by the fig tree, he received a very nice compliment from the Master. Whereas we may not all be given that sort of accolade of being found without deceit or guile, may we all be told at the end of this age, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master (Matthew 25:21)”. Romans 8:13
For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. When Isaac entreated Hashem for his wife Rebecca to conceive, Hashem answered. Rebecca conceived, and in her belly were male un-identical twins that already strove together for domination. This was not only the start of a family, but the continuation of the of the present-day M.E. crisis started with Isaac and Ishmael. You see, God started it so only He can and will solve it. Jacob and Esau were as opposite as brothers could be. Esau was hairy, Jacob was smooth; Esau was hunter, Jacob was a home-buddy; Esau loved to chase girls, especially Canaanite girls, Jacob was a student learning to live by the Torah; Esau was carnal, Jacob was spiritual We all possess within ourselves the fruits of Rebecca’s travail. We are all born with two natures constantly at odds with each other: the carnal and spiritual. For those who take on the combat against the evil inclination plaguing us from birth, against the weight and the sin which clings so closely to us (Hebrews 12:1), the fight is to the finish and compromise is never an option. The apostolic Scriptures speak of this evil nature as the ‘old self’ (Ephesians 4:22), the ‘flesh’ and the ‘carnal mind’ (Romans 8:13, 7) which we are supposed to ‘mortify’ as the apostle says. We are to kill it, leave it behind with no forwarding address, bury it without a trace. Sad to say, many seem to only injure it for awhile, keep it dormant in a corner of their souls with a forwarding address or even a marker at the burial place so they can find it later. Is that why so many have problems with temptation? When it is so easy for people to revert back to their old habits and addictions, it shows they have not really mortified the old self; or maybe they are not even born again; if they were, they would be an actual new person. He who is very serious about this fight also gets tempted at times, but like Joseph of old, he flees the temptation ‘leaving his coat behind’ (Genesis 39:12-13). The problem with many is that they still like to hang around the elements that cause temptation. A good sample of ‘fleeing’ temptation is a sports fan friend of mine who told me that he likes to keep tabs of scores on a very good web site especially conceived for that. It is very important to him but in spite of it he decided to quit going to that site because every once in awhile the site would flash women in immodest clothing and postures. Just as light and darkness, oil and water, earth and iron cannot mix together, so Messiah’s nature within us cannot mix with that of the evil one. The battleground of this war is set within the realm our choices. By our own personal choices and decisions, we give power to Jacob or to Esau in our lives; to Yeshua, or to the evil one, the destroyer of our soul. May Hashem lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: (Matthew 6:13). Romans 11:25-26
Blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: The Book of Genesis tells us the story of Isaac, a father blinded to his son’s wickedness. Isaac could have been fooled by Jacob’s ruse but Rebecca his wife had been given a prophecy about the future of her two children. Did Isaac know about this? And how could Isaac be oblivious to Esau’s marriages with several Canaanite women? It seems also that Isaac was unaware of the birthright-for-‘red-stuff’ (that it how the dish was called in the Hebrew text) deal between Esau and Jacob. Many Talmudic commentators attribute Isaac’s blindness to an act of God’s mercy to spare him the distress of seeing his son Esau’s wicked behavior. Some also suggest that it was due to Esau’s smoke-screen of hypocrisy, pretending to be so righteous in front of his father. It could also simply be that he was old and had cataracts. Interesting elements are unveiled when we look at this story as the prophetic foreshadow of a future situation, as the microcosm of a larger concept. Not only was Isaac blinded to Esau’s wickedness, but so was he to Jacob’s righteousness. Here we have Isaac, the promised seed of Abraham, blinded to the righteousness of he who in essence would carry the seed of Messiah in him, which caused him to leave his mother’s tent for exile. We must remember also that Rebecca lived in Sarah’s tent which was in the eyes of the sages compared to Jerusalem. Jacob therefore is exiled from ‘Jerusalem’, and we never hear of Rebecca again. Jacob later returns to the Land with an angelic escort (Genesis 34). Two thousand years ago, Hashem ‘blinded’ the eyes of Israel to the early messianic movement (Romans 11:7, 25). The apostle Paul also started out blinded to the fulfillment of the promises made to the fathers. This forced the Messianic believers of Israel, which were mostly a Temple sect of Jerusalem found gathering by Solomon’s Portico, to leave the Land and go into exile. Today, as Jacob escorted by angels (Genesis 32:1) that seed is returning to the Promised Land as a growing Messianic movement. Though they face many ‘Esau’s, angels also escort them and will see them to destination in conquering the Land until, as in the story of old, The Messiah who is also called David (Hoseah 3:5) arrives and establishes his Kingdom in Jerusalem from where the whole world will learn to live by the Torah of God. May it be soon Abba, even in our days! Galatians 4:26
But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother. Then Isaac brought her (Rebecca) into the tent of Sarah his mother and took Rebekah, and she became his wife, and he loved her. (Genesis 24:67. It is said that in seeking a wife a man looks for another mother. Today, our stubborn demand for individuality makes potential wives want to distinguish and define themselves against their husband’s mothers. A man will often refer to his mother’s cooking as the best. New wives who haven’t sat learning at the feet of an older Mom feel they can’t compete and this often creates deep issues within families. In the ancient world, a betrothed woman would spend her betrothal time until marriage learning about the things that please her husband. She would learn from his parents and others who knew him well. She would learn to prepare the food he likes, wear clothes and do her hair in the manner that he liked, as well as behave in the way that he liked. Today the mentality is more of, ‘if you love me, you take me as I am’. There is no respect for continuity, traditions, or culture and in the end, grand-children live in a different world than that of their grand-parents. This creates fragmented families. That’s why it is hard for old people; they feel everything they taught their children is gone and as a result they feel useless! Sarah was the matriarch. Whole traditions of hospitality, care, wisdom and even of the prophetic gift have developed around her. She was a tough act to follow; that’s why Eliezer’s mission of finding Isaac a wife was so crucial. Though coming from the idolatrous culture of Babylon, she had to have the right spirit and endorse the traditions of Sarah, and she did. Isaac wanted, Isaac needed her to enter into his mother’s tent, continue in the godly traditions of his Mom. Things would have been different if she would have said, ‘Look, I am not living in your mother’s tent; can’t you give me my own tent; I am my own person after all, I left my parents house for you so you take me as I am …etc …etc…’. Jewish prophetic eschatology compares Sarah to Jerusalem. After her second captivity, Sarah birthed Isaac. After the binding of Isaac, Sarah dies which the text narration follows with Isaac’s marriage to Rebecca, after a long time. This order of event is not coincidental. Classic Judaism always looked upon Isaac as foreshadow picture of the coming Messiah. Like Isaac, Yeshua had a miraculous birth and was sacrificed on the altar; the sacking and consequent dying of Jerusalem follows under the Roman Empire. A long time after, the text tells us, Yeshua will return to marry His bride. Even now today, like Eliezer (meaning: my God is my help) of old did, the Holy Spirit, roams in the earth in search of the bride who will enter ‘Jerusalem/Sarah’s tent’ and continue in the Jewish traditions of His Mom; the bride where the Sabbath’ candle burns continually and where the ‘dough’ is blessed. May we spend our time in preparation to please our Messiah, learning from the Torah all the things that please Him. Hebrews 11:9
By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. Father Abraham was promised a promise. The Almighty swore to Abraham, all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring forever(Genesis 13:15). Yet, after decades of wondering, and even going to war with five kings to protect his inheritance, he was still a foreigner in the land of promise. When it came time for him to bury his wife, the patriarch still claimed to be as a ‘foreigner’ in the Land (Genesis 23:4) and he had to haggle a burial place from a mocking Canaanite. The Scriptures record three important places being purchased by a Jew: the Cave of Machpelah by Abraham (Genesis 23:17-18); the place where the Temple was built (2 Samuel 24:24); and Joseph’s sepulcher (Joshua 24:32). The Scriptures solidly record these purchases but until today, these places are claimed to be Muslim holy sites ‘stolen’ by the Jews. Abraham believed the promises of God and acted upon them as much as he could, but he lived within his reality of having to buy what already belonged to him by divine right. He actually refused Ephron’s offer of a gift. Abraham bought the land, and he bought it at an exorbitant price. This teaches us the difference between promise and reality. Four thousand years later, as a response to a distant echo, the descendants of the Children of Abraham moved into this land and conquered it. Until today this small strip of land by the Mediterranean Sea, that Pleasant Land promised to the descendant of Abraham not to die but to live in, is being bought at an exorbitant price. It is being bought not only at the price of the lives and deaths of many victims of war and terrorism, but also at the cost of world’s anger and the resurgence of anti-Semitism. The haggling continues, not with one king this time, but with the United Nations. Sometimes Israel is so tiered of the ‘haggling’ that it is tempted to offer ‘land for peace’. We must also live with our reality. Our souls have been bought and purchased; Yeshua paid the exorbitant bride price to live within the walls of our hearts, but daily the haggling goes on with he who does not let go. We also can get so tired of the daily fight that we compromise with the evil one offering him some land in our heart for peace. But wait, Messiah bought that land; it belongs to Him. And as Israel must remember the price and the promises, we must also remember that we belonged to Him who paid for it. Abraham still claimed to be a ‘stranger’ in the Land of Promise. Will Messiah say that He is as a stranger, a guest in your heart? Is He the prime owner in promise, and reality? Hebrews 11:19
He considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back. When Abraham and Isaac neared Mount Moriah, the patriarch told the young men with him, "Stay here with the donkey; I and the boy will go over there and worship and come again to you (Genesis 22:5)." The Hebrew is a little more specific, it says, “we will go, and we will return”. Knowing that he was going to sacrifice Isaac on the Mount, why did Abraham say “we will return”? The other question to ask is, ‘why did he go’? When I teach this story I always ask my students, ‘If today God came to you and said, “Son, I want to teach a lesson to the universe and I want you to help me. All you need to do is take your son or your little brother or sister and sacrifice them”. Would you go? Would you even hear that type of language? Abraham had always been a willing instrument in God’s hands so it is fair to assume the he was in all good conscience going to literally sacrifice Isaac on the altar that day; but he did say to the young men, “We will return”. We get a little clue from the writer of the Book of Hebrews. Chapter eleven says, By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, … He considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back (Hebrews 11:17-19). Because of Abraham’s willing intentions, the text tells us that Abraham ‘offered’ Isaac. The text also reveals that Abraham believed in resurrection, and that was the faith which made him obey God. This faith in resurrection was the seal of Abraham’s faith in God and wherein he and us become potential heirs to all the promised in the Book. But now, let’s return to our former scenario. What if today God came to you and said, “Son, I want to teach a lesson to the universe and I want you to help me. All you need to do is take your son or your little brother or sister and sacrifice them, but don’t worry, I will resurrect them right away”. Would you do it? Would you have that much desire to accomplish God’s purpose, so much love as to kill what is dearest to you, even if He had told you that He would give it back? Our messianic faith does lie in that one idea that Hashem allowed Yeshua to die on the cross, and that He resurrected Him. A problem also is that when Hashem allows us to be tested with the prospect of losing something dear, we usually rationalize the idea. We try to find a ‘comfortable’ compromise so we don’t really have to give ‘it’ up. Abraham probably had his trial, but he didn’t do that. Some people like to think that Abraham did it so we don’t have to, but this is not my experience. I for one believe that faith in God though Yeshua is sealed in our conscience through many trials and tests; you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood (Hebrews 12:4). Is yours? John 14:9
“Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.” The dear sages who compared Jerusalem to matriarch Sarah could not have foreseen the extent of their analogy; so many have written about this. In the midrash of the barren woman, Hashem inspires the prophet Isaiah with the messianic future of his dear city. So many have looked at Jerusalem just as Isaiah saw her! They saw a barren woman sitting on a heap of ashes, ostracized and rejected by her husband because of her many infidelities (Isaiah 54; Jeremiah 26:6). One of the legends I like the most is the one of the weaning of Isaac. When it was time for Isaac to be weaned Abraham called in a great feast (Genesis 21:8). Rumors circulated about this old man who just sired a child. People even suspected that it was actually Abimelek’s child, the Pharaoh who had kept Sarah captive (Genesis 20:2). People also could not believe that Sarah, at her age, had ever lactated. So the point of the feast was to vindicate the miracle God had performed. Great Sheiks came from all around in great caravans and pomp to attend Abraham’s feast. To prove herself, Sarah nursed her son, and then offered to nurse every baby in the camp. She did, and the story goes on to say that every child Sarah nursed eventually became a ruler, and a person of great integrity. Also, in order to erase any doubt that the child was truly Abraham’s, God had made the face of Isaac similar to that of his father, so that he who saw the son saw the father. Sounds familiar doesn’t it (John 14:9)? Look now at our mother Sarah. Just as Sarah was, twice Jerusalem was conquered and taken captive by foreigners, first by the Babylonians, and the second by the Romans, captivity which recently came to its end with the re-establishment of the State of Israel. Looking into Sarah’s life, let us see now the future of Jerusalem. After the return from her second captivity, Isaac, the fore-shadow of Messiah was born. Sarah, who barren till past the age, finally bore fruit. In the same manner, we can see Jerusalem, one of the oldest city in the world, a city that has been used, abused, rejected, redeemed, to be rejected again and re-redeemed, pride itself of a new vibrant Messianic community rising all over in Israel: the ‘remnant of the seed of the woman’ (Revelation 12:17) preparing the way for the soon return of the King. The same miracle that rejuvenated Sarah to conceive Isaac and lactate happened again in our days. A whole country was re-born in a day with a new generation of messianic believers preparing the way for the soon-coming of the King who will rule the earth in the justice and righteousness of the Father. Will they become the kings of integrity ‘nursed’ to rule in the Jerusalem of the World to Come? May it be soon Abba, even in our days! Those who would try to interfere with the miraculous plan of God are playing with the unstoppable spiritual and natural forces that created the heavens and the earth. May they beware! Romans 11:12, 18
Now if their trespass means riches for the world, and if their failure means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their full inclusion mean!? Do not be arrogant toward the branches. If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you. “You find that as long as Sarah lived, a cloud hung over her tent … her doors were wide open … there was a blessing on her dough, and the lamp used to burn from the evening of the Sabbath until the evening of the following Sabbath …. In this scrap of tradition, Sarah’s tent is homiletically compared to Jerusalem represented by the Temple. The cloud is symbolic of the Shekinah of God’s presence, the doors of the temple being wide opened is an invitation to the world to the house of prayer (as Yeshua called it); the blessed dough is the showbread which miraculously never spoiled, and the lamp is the seven-branches candelabrum which burned continuously in the Holy Place. In the Book of Galatians Paul builds on this illustration. Using the concept that Judaism views Sarah as the great matriarch he says, But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother. Then, using Isaiah’s allegory and adding the fact that that Sarah was barren (not Hagar) He quotes, "Rejoice, O barren one who does not bear; break forth and cry aloud, you who are not in labor! Though Paul doesn’t quote it, the rest of the oracle says, Enlarge the place of your tent, and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out; do not hold back; lengthen your cords and strengthen your stakes (Isaiah 54:1-2; Galatians 4:26).This is an illustration that Jerusalem, (the center of Jewish religion) was one day to open its doors to all nations. The next chapter of Isaiah goes on to call all nations to drink and be fed from the fountain of Jerusalem (Isaiah 55; Zecheriah 14:16).). Referring to modern history, I now will build on this concept. In their impatience waiting on God to fulfill the messianic promise of the birth of Isaac, Abraham and Sarah brought Hagar into the picture. As Hagar bore fruit she despised and boasted against Sarah who was still barren and dry. In His own time, Hashem miraculously caused Sarah to bear the fruit of the messianic promise. In the end, though blessed by God because of the seed of Abraham, Hagar paid for her attitude having to leave Sarah’s presence. For 2,000 years while waiting for the 19th century when Jerusalem would miraculously birth the present-day world-wide Messianic movement, the nations of the world, who did bear fruit through what is called Christianity, have done so while ‘boasting’ against the ‘natural branches’ in a doctrine called ‘Replacement Theology’, and even subjecting these ‘natural branches’ to horrible persecutions (or was silent while it happened). Will the nations suffer the same fate as Hagar? The Text tells us that not, but that in the end Jerusalem will return to its rightful original owners, and that the nations will come and serve and worship God in Jerusalem, bringing in their glory (Isaiah 66; Haggai 2:7). For what it’s worth, there is an ancient Jewish teaching which suggests that Keturah, Abraham’s second wife after Sarah died, is actually Hagar returned (Genesis 25:1-6). |
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