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Matthew 5:9
"Blessed are the peacemakers” As Aaron is anointed High-priest, he became a foreshadow of Messiah. The one time anointing of Aaron is remembered in Psalms 133 in the following words, Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity! It is like the precious oil on the head, running down on the beard, on the beard of Aaron, running down on the collar of his robes! It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion! For there Adonai has commanded the blessing, life forevermore (Psalms 133:1-3). Why did David compare Aaron’s anointing to peace and unity? We have learned before of the little scheme Aaron used to get people at odds with each other back in fellowship. Jewish sages taught that we should emulate Aaron in our efforts to bring peace within our families and communities. We all search for peace and unity but seem to be plagued with division and conflicts. Maybe we have a wrong idea of what peace and unity are. Peace and unity does not mean 'absence of conflict' and uniformity. Debates from differences of opinions are healthy. They keep us intellectually alive and sharp while seeking for better answers. Also, as humans, we are naturally divided into cultural groups and thought patterns. Who said that we were all supposed to be uniformed zombies all thinking the same thing? Hashem made us human beings with free will, not preprogrammed robots. What creates our inability to be together is not the way Hashem made us, but the way we react to those that are different from us. We generally fear that which we do not understand and do not have the control over, and that is what causes the problem. We all believe in unity but because of our fear mixed with intolerance, we want that unity to orbit around us. The Master had around Him twelve men coming from diverse walks of life, culture, and religious affiliation from Israel, and He taught them to love, accept, understand each other, so they could work together. As a result, they taught about the God of Israel to the whole world. Let us therefore learn not to concentrate on what divides us but on what unites us; not on what we dislike but on what we appreciate about each other; not to merely see each other, but see Yeshua, the image of the Father in our brethren. Didn’t our Master say, "Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called sons of God (Matthew 5:9)?
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Ephesians 4:4-6
There is one body and one Spirit--just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call-- one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. When the Almighty Creator of heaven and earth revealed Himself to mankind, He thoroughly explained Himself, even to the point of what would seem to us redundancy. He said it, repeated it, and as if to prove His point, He made sure that people recorded the history of both those who obeyed and those who didn’t. If we would take the time to review the spiritual parameters established for us by Abba, we would avoid much confusion. From very early on, there was to be one central place where the Father would write His Name (Deuteronomy 12:5). People could love and worship anywhere, but one place had the altar and the Ark. One place was the spiritual center of the universe: the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Ancient Jewish writings submit that God chose that place for His Name from the times of creation. When the children of Israel entered the land, they saw the pagans build altars, set up poles and worship by trees everywhere they pleased, but God told His people to not follow that example (Deuteronomy 12:2-7). He had one place and one form of worship in mind. This teaches us about centrality and leadership. The way God has it is that He is the Boss, and whereas He may have governors in provinces, His orders come from one central place, and people have to come to place at times of His choosing to worship, to hear Torah, and to offer gifts and tithes, all in the way that He commanded. Abba told the people before entering the Land, "You shall not do according to all that we are doing here today, everyone doing whatever is right in his own eyes, … But when you go over the Jordan … to the place that the LORD your God will choose, to make his name dwell there, there you shall bring all that I command you: … (Deuteronomy 12:8-11). It is the place where Abraham, through whom all the families of the earth should be blessed, offered Isaac; (Genesis 12:3). It is where Yeshua, who became light to the gentiles and glory to Israel (Luke 2:32) was crucified. It is also in Jerusalem that Mashiach will establish His central global reign on the earth forever. At that time not just Israel, but all nations will be required to come to Zion and attend the Feast of Tabernacles (Zachariah 14:16-19). Gone will be the spiritual anarchic madness of today where everyone likes to interpret the Word according to what is right in his own eyes (Deuteronomy 12:8). One of the saddest verses in the Bible may be ‘In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes (Judges 17:6; 21:25). The book of Judges is a testament against man left to his own devices without kingly central authority. Our world today is in the same predicament. We are waiting for the King to come and take central authority of His Kingdom. He will come; may it be soon, even in our days! LONG LIVE THE KING OF KINGS! |
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