This Weeks Video Blog

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Life is a Test

Photo Courtesy of Dennis Moore

We ask the obvious questions...why did God want Moses to send out spies if God was going to give them the land?

Why did God allow Moses to pick who the spies would be?

In the original Hebrew it says, "Send for yourself men that they may spy...(Num. 13:2) the land of Canaan, how it can be captured."

In certain circles I've walked this would be called "setting them up for failure". 

King Solomon in Proverbs 21:31 said, "The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but salvation comes from God."

The Land was Plentiful  

A person should do as much as possible, not relying on God to help him, yet he physically must do all he can do and rely on God in his heart. 

This may seem a bit contradictory but God is always testing us. 

Why? Because that is how we learn and grow stronger in our walk with Him. 

God tested Moses to see who he would pick and only 2 out of 12 came back with a good report. 

The spies were given power and became "elitists". The spies failed their mission by putting their wants before the needs of the people.
The spies were also tested and only 2 out of 12 passed. 

Some interpret God saying, "Send for yourself..." as being left up to Moses whether or not spies should even be sent, after all was it not God who said I will give you this land?
Even Shoev suggested that they wait for the cloud to move. 

Seems tricky doesn't it? Well no matter what you decide you are being tested...

The heart and the eyes are the spies of the body: the eyes see, the heart covets, and the body does the sin-Rashi.

 

This Weeks Readings

Shelach | שלח | "Send "
Torah: Numbers 13:1-15:41 
Prophets: Joshua 2:1-24
Gospel: Mark 10:1-45
Brit Chadashah: Heb. 3:7-4:1

I Die Daily

Photo courtesy of Dennis Moore

In Biblical times it was customary to be cleansed in a mikveh (ritual bath) fully immersing. This was likened to a dying out.
The interesting thing about a mikveh is the fact that you cannot stay under the water. You cannot live there, you would drown and die, this is where we get the phrase "watery grave" from.

Many ask the question, "If Jesus was without sin, why was He baptized then?"
The answer is that in that time, and still today, not only was the bride to be immersed, but the groom as well.
Now as far as the remitting of sins there was no need because we know that Jesus was sinless.

Was Jesus just setting an example for us whenever He prayed?

Photo courtesy of Gary Dornbach

There is a story of a teacher that was so pious that his students thought he was a blameless man.
He was an inspiring teacher loved by all.

One day a couple of his students were walking when they heard some weeping coming from the other side of a ridge. When they peeked over they saw their beloved teacher repenting.
Sneaking away they were dismayed and wondered what in the world would such a righteous man need to repent over?
Later on the students could no longer stand it and asked him about it.
He told them that it was something that he did everyday.

At one point in his life the teacher realized that all the attention he was getting about being a great teacher and a righteous man was actually hindering his walk with God for you see...

God must be served with joy, and without complete humility, joy is impossible.

This teacher decided he would regularly disguise himself and spend time in places where no one knew him. 
In his wanderings he stayed at an inn where he enjoyed pleasant evening chats with the keeper. In the mornings he would pray then eat breakfast and go on his way.

His students began to look for him and came upon an inn where their teacher might have stayed. They mentioned to the inn keeper that their great teacher may have come through the area. 
The keeper informed them that no one by that name had stayed at his Inn. 
They then described their teacher to the inn keeper whereby he realized he had just entertained this great teacher! 

He saddled up and pursued the teacher in the direction he had gone. He was relieved to catch up with him. He fell off his ride at the teachers feet and profusely apologized to the teacher. "If I had only known, I would have served you differently." 

What does this teach us? 

That we should repent and plead for God to forgive us of our shortcomings and failings in our service to Him daily. 

Each evening we need to review in our mind how we served God that day. 

             'If I had known about God in the beginning of the day what I know now, I would have served Him completely differently!'

Oxygen...for Life

It is vitally important to have a routine of prayer. 

Prayer is what has sustained the Jewish people for thousands of years. 

"Hear O Israel..." is said everyday. 

Each morning, I don my small prayer shawl, a tallit, or "a little sanctuary" as it is known.

There is beauty in closing yourself away with God. 

Donning the tallit helps me focus on prayer. 

Your routine may be like mine...

Beginning with praise, acknowledging God's power, protection, and redeeming help.

I declare God's holiness and sanctify His name making known His greatness.

I ask God for wisdom then pray for repentance and ask for forgiveness. 

A wise person will always find their way to repentance and forgiveness.

Next, I reveal to God the needs of my family and redemption. 

I grab a bottle of frankincense anointing myself for healing while praying for others also in need of healing. 

Why me first? 

It is like we are taught when the steward instructs us on an airplane. 

They teach that if an emergency happens, the oxygen masks will drop down.

 You are to apply the oxygen mask to yourself before your children because you can't take care of others if you yourself faint for lack of oxygen. 

The next thing I pray for is abundance. 

What kind of abundance? 

It is a prayer that those who have abundance will share with those in need.  

Anointing once again with a blend of orange, frankincense, patchouli, clove, ginger, myrrh, cinnamon bark, and spruce. 

An abundance of oils for an abundance of needs.

I ask God to help those who are oppressed and bring about freedom in their lives.

I pray for righteousness and justice. 

This is a good time to pray for our leaders, "Bestow Your Spirit on the rulers of all lands!"

Photo Courtesy of Art Hodges

I pray against evil and ask God to bless the faithful.

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.

Prayer for deliverance and even pray for prayer as He is a God who hearkens to prayer as it is our prayers that are forever before His throne.

At this point worshipping of the One True God flows naturally which leads to giving Him thanks for all he does in my life and the lives of my family. 

(Much time needs to be spent in this area).

Thanking God for peace and praising Him is the best way to finish your prayer time as you will walk away with praise still upon your lips...

A great way to start the day.

This Weeks Readings

Behar/Bechukotai | בהר/בחקותי | "On the mountain/In my statutes "

Torah: Leviticus 25:1-27:34
Prophets: Jeremiah 16:19-17:14
Gospel: Luke 13:1-33/John 10:22-42/Luke 14:1-15:32
Brit Chadashah: Matt. 21:33-46; Luke 24:44-53; Acts 1:9-11; 
Eph. 4:8

Thank You Gabrieli for supporting Hebrew Perspectives!

The Mantle of Messiah

Photo Courtesy of Missionary Dennis Moore

The Bible has so many beautiful stories... none more beautiful than the passing of the mantle.

The scene of Moses laying hands on Joshua his disciple where the mantle falls to Joshua...
When God's Spirit fell it must have been fantastic...I can feel the charge in the air!

Then, there is the amazing telling of Elijah dropping his mantle and Elisha picking it up whereby he received the spirit of Elijah...it must have been an awesome moment!

In both instances a mantle was passed.   

The passing of the mantle is the giving of ministry from the teacher to his disciple. 

Some believe that each of these stories the mantle was a tallit or prayer shawl. 

It may have just been a simple piece of cloth or a cloak. Interestingly enough is that when a Jewish person dies his fringes (tzit-tzit) are cut off because he can no longer fulfill God's commandments.

Moses was buried by God and Elijah was taken up.

Now Jesus when He finished His ministry doesn't pass on a mantle, or so it appears....
If He did have a mantle, who got it?

Since Jesus is God robed in flesh, His mantle is too big for any one person to receive, but it was received by many.

He ascended and the Holy Ghost fell on 120. 

On the Day of Pentecost the 120 received the mantle of Messiah, then to others ... it still falls on us today.

When the Holy Ghost fell it was the mantle, it was the ministry that we all have. 

We have a part in His mantle, we have a part in His anointing. 

This is our calling, to have a part in His ministry, through the mantle of the Messiah.

"And the Lord, He it is who doth go before thee. He will be with thee, He will not fail thee, neither forsake thee. Fear not, neither be dismayed.” 

Deuteronomy 31:8

Benefits of Doubting

Just the wind upon one weed can fill a field

Earlier in the week I posted something on Facebook that drew much interest ... and even more questions. 

I wrote, "When someone gets an idea about someone else it becomes a virus.  Even when the idea is wrong they can't be swayed...infected by the idea."

Many things came to mind when I posted this, but it mostly has to do with how people perceive others. 

For example ...  

A man in his workplace finds the new guy to be annoying. 

He tells a fellow co-worker about how annoying the new guy is. 

His fellow co-worker does not find the new guy annoying yet the seed has been planted. 

As word spreads, this new guy who was only annoying to one person is now seen as annoying by most of the employees. 

Initially, he may not even have been annoying, it was just how the first person perceived and felt about him. 

Nevertheless the damage has been done, the new guy is now annoying even if he is not.

If we give our fellow man the 'Benefit of the Doubt', God will give us the 'Benefit of the Doubt'!

This thought initially came from a quote I read, 

"One who judges his fellow man favorable will be judged favorably by Heaven."  

~ The Chofetz Chaim 

A field which grew from one weed which shared its seeds

I am walking through the airport and I see a fellow believer of alcohol abstinence standing at the bar. 

My first compulsion is to think that this fellow believer is drinking, yet I have to give him the 'Benefit of Doubt.'

As it turns out, he is ordering a meal to take on his flight which had to be ordered through the bartender. 

If I do not give him the benefit of the doubt then continue on to tell someone else about my doubts, the seed will be planted. 

Should I decide to share my perception with others the seed grows.

In this weeks Torah portion Emor (say or speak) we find, 

"You shall not desecrate My holy name, rather I should be sanctified among the children of Israel." 

Leviticus 22:32

Our behavior sanctifies God's name. 

When we speak badly about our fellow man and we cast a poor shadow upon God's name.

So you see....there is some benefit to doubting.

This Weeks Readings For Hebrew Perspectives

Emor | אמור | "Say "
Torah: Leviticus 21:1-24:23 
Prophets: Ezekiel 44:15-31  
Gospel: Luke 11:1-12:59  
Brit Chadashah: 1 Pet. 2:4-10

This Weeks Readings for Hebrew Perspectives

Acharei Mot/Kedoshim | אחרי מות/קדושים | "After the death/Holy "

Torah: Leviticus 16:1-20:27 

Prophets: Ezekiel 22:1-19  

Gospel: John 7:1-52/John 7:53-10:21  

Brit Chadashah: Heb. 9:11-28;

1 Pet. 1:13-16;

1 Cor. 6:9-20

Readings for Week of 28th of Nisan 5777 (April 23, 2017)

Tazria/Metzora | תזריע/מצורע | "She will conceive/Leper "
Torah: Leviticus 12:1-15:33  
Prophets: 2 Kings 7:3-20  
Gospel: Mark 9:14-50/Luke 9:51-10:42  
Brit Chadashah: John 6:8-13; Matt. 8:1-7
Yom HaShoah
#Zachor
#Remember
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A Chosen People

Attending a recent Torah study in a local synagogue the subject of the Jewish people being the "Chosen People" came up.

Photo Courtesy of Gary Dornbach

Some said they were uncomfortable with being called chosen.
Is it possible that the concept of being chosen is also an overwhelming responsibility to "Be Holy"?

One woman said, "It seems wrong to be called chosen because it can bring about an elitist mentality which can bring about arrogance...".

One famous Rabbi says a few times, "Many are called but few are chosen".

Balance comes about by remembering Who you have been chosen by.


When we become favored by someone in power it impacts us then we feel a sense of entitlement and power.

Being chosen should actually bring about humility not arrogance. 

Lets say you were really close to the President of the United States, your status in life becomes seemingly more significant.

Yet, when it comes to being closer to God the closer you get the more you realize how insignificant you truly are and how great He is.

You shall be to me a kingdom of priests and an holy nation, as stated in Exodus 19
While not everyone is a priest, we are all called to a priestly function ... that function is to bring God to the people while bringing the people closer to God.

Having someone of power on your favorites along with family members.
Meeting people of significant value in this world then connecting with them on social media.
The feeling of importance that sweeps over you because of who you know.
God has a way of bursting that egotistical bubble often through humbling life experiences.
Many of those in important positions wouldn't be tarnished to be near you during your crisis either.

When it comes to our rich knowledge of the Bible which creates our close relationship with God we need to be careful that we don't have an elitist attitude.

The privilege to be "chosen" allows us the beautiful opportunity to draw close to God.

To hear the Truth, to bring it to the world, to shine and yet be humble.

At Mt. Sinai, according to legend, everyone in the world with the 70 known languages of that day heard God in their own language. Each people had the same opportunity to receive the Torah, yet only the Jewish people and the strangers among them accepted it.

Just as an atom could bring about the atomic bomb so it is with an ego used without caution can bring about a detrimental explosion to both self and others.

And so this brings us back to the beginning where some felt unworthy to be called chosen as they do not want the arrogance that often accompanies chosenness...that my friend is called humility.

If you have truth and you are arrogant then you are not acting "chosen".

The test of chosenness is actually how humble you are.

You may be so humble as to think you are not chosen, but you are and should act accordingly.

"Not by might and not by power, but by My spirit, says the Lord." Zechariah 4:6

A Most Holy Soul

The question is ... "How much potential is there in our souls?"

A soul in Hebrew is neshama.
We live in a world where you are only seen as a success if you acquire or amass tangible things.
The world does not put much stock into the growth of your soul, your neshama.
We must remember, it is okay to make yourself into something great for God.

In Jewish thought our souls are not only created by God, but they are an actual part of God.
Since God is holy, then our souls are holy.
This is why whenever we are criticized we revolt and are offended.
Our souls are so holy that we can even convince ourselves we are doing right when we are not.

I grew up in the twentieth century being raised and taught by a world that was influenced by the nineteenth century.
The nineteenth century was influenced by people like Karl Marx where communism really showed itself in the twentieth century. According to Marx, man is a machine.
Then there was Sigmund Freud who emphasized that every man has a good inclination and a bad inclination.
Finally, there was Charles Darwin who taught evolution, that man is descended from apes.

All of us were influenced by these philosophies ...

 we in turn taught them to our children. 

Now we have a world that virtually has no creative ability. 

Take for example music and movies which at their inception showed amazing creativity that have since become reproductions as many that we experience today are, quite frankly, remakes of prior works ... there is nothing new under the sun.  

We all know that doing the same things over and over getting the same result ...

 is the very definition of insanity.

Since God is a Creator, we have that same creative power within us. 

God created with words and our ability to speak is what sets us apart proving we have a soul. 

God created the universe by speaking it into existence. 

Speaking is not something we can see.

The soul is not something we can see.

Yet when God spoke He created.

And man is created in the image of God.

It is no accident that the neurons making up the brain, when photographed, look just like the universe God created.

Through our very words we can create a better world, not only for ourselves, but for others.

When we have finished with what we were put upon this world to create, our souls return to the creator from which they came. Eventually, all souls will return to God ... to give an account.

Did you use the creativity God gave you or did you just repeat what others created.

Chai-Life

Speak Life.

That's a Real Triumphal Entry!

Traditionally, Christians celebrate the Sunday before Easter as Palm Sunday.  
They do this because of the palm branches that were laid out before Jesus … that in itself is a beautiful picture. 

Yet, there is so much more to Passover that offers a more complete picture.

That’s why we should study the culture of that day…  

Then ask ourselves …

“Why were all those people gathered there in the first place?”

To the Jews this was commonplace as they had observed the Passover for may years before the time of Jesus.

We know of Zechariah's prophecy and from King Jehu that it was a custom for garments to be laid out for a path for the King. (2 Kings 9:13)

While teaching this someone asked me …

”Did they have extra clothes with?"

To which I replied …

”As a matter of fact they did…Because the Passover is a seven day feast!”

Passover is one of the three feasts that all male Israelites were required to attend. 

So it was...
During Temple times the High Priest would leave the city to an area near Bethlehem where lambs were raised. 

The High Priest would be looking for the sacrificial lamb … one without spot or blemish. 

When the High Priest found the lamb that was to be slain for the nation he would exclaim...

"BEHOLD, THE LAMB!"  

This yearly observance at the time of Jesus...

Jesus enters the city and not only were they treating Him like a King by paving His way with their garments … they were also selecting their lamb … without spot or blemish.

 I've always imagined that on this particular Passover the High Priest and his religious entourage entering the city, seeing the street empty except for palm branches and clothes scattered about, saying, "where is everybody?"

That's a real triumphal entry!