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WHEN LIFE SWALLOWS DEATH!

3/22/2013

1 Corinthians 15:53
For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality.

Three days is such a repeated theme in the Torah. It is on the third day that Abraham and Isaac climbed the mountain (Gen. 22:4); Israel had to purify itself then God came in their sight on Mt. Horeb after three days(Exodus 19:16); Jonah was spewed out of the fish after three days (Jonah 1:17); Joshua crossed the Jordan as on dry land on the third day (Joshua 3:2,17), and the remainder of the flesh of any offering needed to be burned after three days (Leviticus 7:17).

The theme of the third day denotes of resurrection, of corruptibility putting on incorruptibility (1 Cor. 15:53). It is also on the third day that the Master rose (Matt. 16:21), that there was a wedding in Cana (John 2:1), and the two witnesses are raised up after three and half day (Rev. 11:11).

On the other hand, Yeshua waited four days to go to Lazarus (John 11:17). The Master wanted to wait that long because the third day is actually the time when unrefrigerated meat starts to decompose (John 11:39). The disciples hesitated to open the tomb not only because of the smell, but it represented a desecration and exposure to uncleanliness. Even in the Temple, meat from peace offerings was not allowed to remain on the altar more than three days; after that it had to be burned (Lev. 7:16—18). The Master waited till the fourth day so the people would know that Lazarus was truly dead and not just sleeping.

The three daysWHEN theme speaks to us of the most wonderful process and miracle in our redemption program: that of corruptibility putting on incorruptibility. The corruptible is transformed into an incorruptible state before it is allowed to decompose. This also represents the greatest promise Hashem made to his people. Through the prophet Hoseah came the following words for an apostate Israel who would soon face exile and deportation,

Come, let us return to ADONAI; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up. After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live before him (Hos. 6:1-2).

One day for God is 1,000 years. In the third millennia of exile, Israel is resurrected to its former Salomonic grandeur as when nations brought their glories to Jerusalem and came to learn from the wisest king in the world. We can see the beginning of it even now.

All these scriptural themes foreshadow our passing from mortality to immortality, from the corruptible to the incorruptible, from death to resurrection.

May we always live in the understanding of these things. No matter what life throws at us in what seems at times tsunamis of troubles, may we as Children of the Most-High be perfect (Matt. 5:48) and not have a morbid attitude towards the ending of our temporal passage in this dimension. May we always remember that the end of the vanity of our sad temporal life is fullness of eternal joy; that the end of death is life and that in due time, corruptibility puts on incorruptibility; death is swallowed up by life.

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ON THE THIRD DAY ...

3/21/2013

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Ephesians 2:14
For he himself (Messiah) is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility.

Everything about the Tabernacle was designed to mirror immortality. It is the reason why offerings were salted and why honey and leaven were forbidden on the altar. Resinous shittim wood also like cedar is resistant to corruption. On the third after the offering meat turns rancid, so after two days (on the third day) any meat from peace offerings was to be burnt. Anyone who partook of the meat of a peace offering on the third invalidated the offering and was regarded as cut off (Lev. 7:16—21).

This brings us into the third day reoccurring theme of the Tanach. Rather than seeing corruption, on the third day meat from a peace offering put on incorruptibility through being burnt. The fire of the altar, a fire which originated from heaven, lifts the offering back to heaven in the form of smoke (Lev. 9:23-24). In the story of Samson, we see an example of the Angel of the Lord, rising back to heaven through the smoke of a burnt offering called in Hebrew the olah or that which rises (Judg. 13:20).

The peace offering is the only one in which the offerer partakes. It is symbolic of communion and fellowship with Hashem through a meal. Hospitality was a big thing in the East and to invite someone to eat showed a great level of acceptance and relationship. In the same way eating with God shows he accepts us. Moses and seventy-three other people ate with Hashem on the mountain and the whole congregation of Messiah’s people will eat with him at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb (Exod. 24:11; Rev. 19:9).

The Passover Lamb is a shadow of Messiah, a peace offering that people partake of. Paul often used the imagery of the peace offering to describe Messiah’s role in our lives (1 Cor. 10:18; Rom. 5:1; Eph. 2:14; Col. 1:20). In the manner of a peace offering, the Master's body was not allowed to see corruption (Ps. 16:10; 49:9) but rose from the tomb on the third day.

Hoseah prophecied on the resurrection of Israel’s great Diaspora (exile) in the following words,

Come, let us return to ADONAI; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up. After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live before him (Hoseah 6:1-2).

Seeing as with Hashem one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day (2 Pet. 3:8), the prophet prophesied of the resurrection of Israel on the third millennium of the present exile, third millennium in which we presently witness the resurrection of the Jewish state which contains a strong Messianic first fruit element of believers which brings it incorruptibility.

In this day, in our day, the peace offering is finally being consumed. At the time appointed, at the sound of the great shofar of the Last Day, it will rise to him in immortality and find fellowship with Hashem. All those who partake of Messiah’s offering of peace are part of this everlasting promise.

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ISRAEL: THE FIRSTFRUIT PEACE OFFERING

3/28/2012

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Ephesians 2:14
For he himself (Messiah) is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility.

Everything about the Tabernacle was designed to mirror immortality. It is the reason why offerings were salted and why honey and leaven were forbidden on the altar. Resinous shittim wood also like cedar is resistant to corruption. On the third after the offering meat turns rancid, so after two days (on the third day) any meat from peace offerings was to be burnt. Anyone who partook of the meat of a peace offering on the third invalidated the offering and was regarded as cut off (Leviticus 7:16-21).

This brings us into the ‘third day’ reoccurring theme of the Scriptures. Rather than seeing corruption, on the third day meat from a peace offering put on incorruptibility through being burnt. The fire of the altar, a fire which originated from heaven, lifts the offering back to heaven in the form of smoke (Leviticus 9:23-24). In the story of Samson, we see an example of the ‘Angel of the Lord’, (who is really Messiah) rising back to Heaven through the smoke of a burnt offering called in Hebrew the ‘olah’ or the ‘ascent’ (Judges 13:20).

The peace offering is the only one in which the offerer partakes. It is symbolic of communion and fellowship with God through a meal. Hospitality was a big thing in the East and to invite someone to eat showed great acceptance. In the same way eating with God shows He accepts us. Moses and seventy-three other people ate with God on the mountain and the whole congregation of Messiah’s people will eat with Him at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb (Exodus 24:11; Revelations 19:9).

The Passover Lamb being a shadow of Messiah is a peace offering as people partake of it. Paul often used the imagery of the peace offering to describe Messiah’s role in our lives (1 Corinthians 10:18; Romans 5:1; Ephesians 2:14; Colossians 1:20). In the same way, His body was not allowed to see corruption (Psalms 16:10; 49:9) but as a proper peace offering, He rose from the tomb on the third day.

Hoseah prophecied on the resurrection of Israel’s great Diaspora (exile) in the following words: "Come, let us return to the LORD; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up. After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live before him (Hoseah 6:1-2). Seeing as with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day (2 Peter 3:8), the prophet prophesied of the resurrection of Israel on the third millennium of the present exile, third millennium in which we are also witnessing the resurrection of the Jewish state which contains a strong Messianic first fruit element of believers which brings it incorruptibility.

In this day, in our day, the peace offering is finally being consumed. At the time appointed, at the sound of the great shofar of the Last Day, it will rise to Him in immortality and find fellowship with God. All those who partake of Messiah’s offering of peace are part of this everlasting promise.

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LIGHT AND PERFECTION

2/28/2012

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John 14:27
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.

One of the mysteries of ancient Israel is the ‘Urim and Thummim’: ‘Lights’ and ‘Perfections’ (Exodus 28:29-30). According to tradition, these referred to the twelve stones set in the High-Priest’s breastplate. They are often mentioned as a means of consultation of God’s will. Only the High-Priest would wear them and only a king or prominent leader of the community could inquire from them. The High-Priest and the inquirer would stand in the ‘Holy’, and the answer would be given by the light of the Menorah shining on certain letters from the names of the tribes written on the stones of the breastplate. Until they were lost with the destruction of the first Temple, Israel often consulted with the Lord by the means of the Urim and Thummim.

One of the most popular example is how the Urim and Thummim revealed to Saul the reason for Israel’s military defeat (1 Samuel 14:24-45). This story teaches us about the use of the Urim and Thummim, but it also tells us something about sins of ignorance. They do not absolve us from defeat, but they can be ransomed.

We learn from the Urim and Thummim that God wants us to consult Him (Proverbs 3:5-7). Why did He allow the Urim and Thummim to disappear? Only He knows, but during the time of the Babylonian exile Israel developed systems of studies that kept them close to the Word and thereby God’s will. After the exile, Ezra established the system of local Synagogues and a yearly reading program.

When the people returned from the Babylonian captivity, Ezra also worked at re-establishing the Temple priesthood. When some families could not prove their Levitical descent, they were refused the offices of the priesthood (Ezra 2:61-62). Their name was not enough. They needed to be found written in the registry. Disobedience had had a disastrous effect on the country. Ezra was therefore determined to stick to the Torah commands about Levitical priesthood and circumstantial evidence was not accepted. Ezra told them, not to partake of the most holy food, until there should be a priest to consult Urim and Thummim (Ezra 2:63), a statement which lends itself to the idea that one day, a High-Priest will return with the Urim and Thummim.

Only that High-Priest-Priest, He who is Light and Perfection truly knows whose name is written in the ‘Book’ (Hebrews 5:5; Revelations 20:15). He promised through Moses and confirmed through Peter that we are a nation of priests (Exodus 19:6; 1 Peter 2:5, 9). As Yeshua HaMashiach returns with the Urim and Thummim, He will confirm whose name is written in the ‘Book’. We will then be able to partake of the ‘most holy food’, of the ‘peace offering’ (Leviticus 7:31-32;

In the mean time may we, through the agency of the Holy Spirit learn to consult Him about all our affairs. May we learn to seek His advice and follow it no matter what it says.

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A PEACEFUL MEAL WITH THE PRINCE OF PEACE

3/8/2011

1 Comment

Ephesians 2:14
For he is our peace …

The beginning of Leviticus presents us with five types of offerings to approach God each carrying a different message. We have lost their meaning in translation but their imagery still reveals their message. These offerings are the physical outward expressions of the longings of the inward heart in seeking to approach God in full communion.

The Sin and Guilt Offerings are mandatory. The Passover lamb and the daily perpetual offerings fall under these categories. The Sin Offering is for the state of being a sinner, the Guilt Offering for sins involuntarily committed (there are not offerings for voluntary sins). You see, we are not sinners because we sin; we sin because we are sinners. We may have never killed or stolen, but we may have thought or wished it at times through coveting. There is a teaching in Judaism that the last of the Ten Commandments is the reason why we break the nine others. Both God and priest get a share of this offering; the offerer gets nothing.

After we have acknowledged our sinful states, sinful actions and thoughts that result from it, we have the ‘Ascent Offering’ which is the only one that is totally dedicated to God. No one but God gets to partake of it. It is a voluntary offering. After we have cleansed ourselves from sin, the ‘Ascent Offering’ represents a desire for complete utter abandonment to God; a strong desire to perpetually abide with the Almighty. After dedicating our lives to God comes the Meal Offering. The Meal Offering is voluntary and now that we’ve dedicated ourselves to Him, it represents our walk with God. Only priest and God get a share.

After confessing our faults and dedicating our lives to walk with God, we celebrate the Peace Offering; the one we all look forward to as it expresses the completion of our union with God. This is the one we also get a share of along with God and the priests. These usually consisted of lavish parties. God’s fellowship with us has always been expressed by a meal; it was true on Mount Horeb and it will be true at the end of the age (Exodus 24:9-11; Revelations 19:9). That is why the most spiritual thing we can do in this world, the highest act of spirituality we can practice on this earth, is to have a peaceful and joyful meal with our families. It represents our union with God.

It is no wonder that in this day and age of the soon return of the Master, the enemy works like mad (and he is mad and the father of all madness; cursed be his name!) to break up families. When we break up our families we play in the devil’s hands against God’s plan. For decades now, his biggest attacks have been against the family units. First he got everybody distracted away from the daily dinner table which resulted in families breaking apart. Now the very idea of family is being redefined; ugh!

Please Messiah, return soon, even in our days, so we can recline with You at that Peace offering meal with all our brothers and sisters and start the work of bringing back sanity to this world!

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WHEN LIFE SWALLOWS DEATH!

ON THE THIRD DAY ...

ISRAEL: THE FIRSTFRUIT PEACE OFFERING

LIGHT AND PERFECTION

A PEACEFUL MEAL WITH THE PRINCE OF PEACE

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