Jesus in the Torah Portions (Genesis Chapter 1-6:8)

Luke 24:27 And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.

We know from John chapter 1 that “in the beginning was the Word” and that all things were created by Him and for Him. But where else can we see our Savior?

By the work of the second Adam (Jesus)we can see the failure of the first Adam. The first Adam did not cover his bride (Eve), He blamed God for her transgression. The first Adam did not lay down his life for his bride. The first Adam did not use the word of God against the enemy.

Jesus gave up everything to cover His bride (the Church). His blood covered her sins. Jesus took upon himself the sin of the world. He used the word of God in the wilderness to rebuke Satan and temptation in the very thing that tempted the first Adam (food).

The point here is that God declares the end from the beginning. The story of Jesus is embedded in the old testament characters and situations. Search for the Savior as you would search for hidden treasure and you will be blessed!

A day in the backyard.

It was a great day today in the backyard on the Farm.  As you can see we put Olivia to work.  Later we went hunting for arrowheads and artifacts at the creek.  I found my first arrowhead!

 

Finishing the Work!

That’s me with Bob and Arlene Bonar.  Bob went home to be with the Lord last Thursday.  This picture was taken on 24 Jan 2014.  Bob was a big man in many ways.  Very strong in Spirit and a heart for people.  I had the pleasure of ending my work week every Friday with Bob.  We would share people stories from the Fellowship Cup.  “The Cup” as we call it was a God idea given to Bob 30 years ago.  It started as a small group of people opening a little refuge for people to come have coffee, share stories and songs.  Then a small food and clothing pantry for those in need.  If Bob asked you for money or your skill and talent, to assist the vision of The Cup you gave it to him! The Cup was known all over Henry County as a place to help those in need.  As I write this post tomorrow is Friday and I will not be able to sit with Bob physically and tell him about my week.  We must finish the work he started.  In just 3 short months Bob and I bonded into dear friends.  He ran a good race and finished strong.

We love and miss you Bob!

Ken

20 Degrees and no shoes!

This was another week at the Fellowship Cup where every day we met a new challenge.  On Monday a young man in his early twenties walked in with flip-flops on his feet.  It had warmed up to about twenty degrees.  This young man is the face of poverty in Henry County Iowa.  I’ve seen many young people walk in for assistance (food, clothes, and a place to sleep even for just one night).  He asked for socks and some food.  I found a six-pack of socks left over from our Christmas giving.  We keep a bin for shoes (mostly child sizes) so I asked him what size he wears.  A size 11 he replied.  I went to the bin in hope that maybe I would find something that fit.  Right on top was a big box of Nike tennis shoes size 10 and a half!  They fit perfectly.

I met with Bob and his family on Friday.  He is fighting pancreatic cancer.  Bob was the visionary behind the Fellowship Cup 30 years ago.  I hope a little of his dedication  caring for people will rub off on me.  His oldest son (in his mid fifties) was there also in a wheel chair.  I later during the visit heard the story of the tragic diving accident when he was 18 years old that broke his neck and paralyzed him from the chest down.  This event and the battle that Bob is in now has drawn the whole family closer to God.  Yes Bob does have many questions for God as to why, but he still has peace about his last days, cherishing the company of family and friends.

My prayer this week and daily is that I serve people in a worthy manner with love and compassion.

Met Bob Today!

Bob was one of the initiators of the Fellowship Cup thirty years ago!  He is now 80 and has terminal pancreatic cancer.  When I was told about Bob, I wanted to meet with him to hear his story.  His life and what he has done for others is amazing.  He is at peace with whatever time he has left here because he knows where he will spend eternity!  He has refused to drain the families financial resources to keep him alive longer.  Bob looked great to me when I walked into his house, a towering 6’6″ and 240.  I felt like he was handing over the spiritual reins of the Fellowship Cup to me, like it was his baby.  God guided him in building what it is today.  I will visit Bob weekly for however long he has left in this world and may share with you  our discussions.

My Iowa/Fellowship Cup Journey

The big move to Iowa was a roller coaster thrill ride.  After a great send off from my PrimeTime Fitness Family, I hit the road on Monday December 16th.  Weather was good to Lexington Ky where I stayed the night.  Headed out Tuesday, it was pretty cold in Indiana with enough icy roads to make my knuckles white for a little while.  Things cleared up in Illinois and the rest of the way.  Very happy reunion with my family and rested on Wednesday.  Thursday was my first day at work (7:00am).  I met so many people from leaders in the community to distributing food and clothing to over 200 people on our busiest day of the week.  That evening I met with a “thirtysomething” group of business people to promote the Fellowship Cup.  Even though it was my first day, I was able to knock their socks off!!  Headed home at 7:00pm, I was pretty mentally drained.  Friday we prepped for the biggest day of the year serving 400 families with food and gift boxes for the children.  I was overwhelmed by the community support and volunteers.  Saturday, the big day.  We were ready to bless the families before a big snow storm came in later that evening.  What a week and intro to my new job.  I love it.  The outgoing Director was just like me.  She was something to watch.  Her connection to the clients and community was inspiring.  She prayed me into service and I prayed for her going into her new job as a Pastor.  She was tearful in leaving.  She left me with a great foundation of volunteers and programs to try to maintain and improve upon.  I have big shoes to fill.  Here are some pictures of a snowy day at the farm.

fellowship cup

The Fellowship Cup Building where I work.

The Quarter Maybe Store

Bondservant = δουλος Slave in Greek (Part 1)

Bondservant =   δουλος   Slave in Greek

I love living in America – the land of the free and home of the brave.  G-d planned for me to live during this time and in this country and it has been a blessing.  I’m already rich with earthly blessings.  I have so much- too much- food options, cable, satellite, and Web TV choices.  Debt options with credit cards, payday loans, and “no payments till next year” options to satisfy every craving for more.

Our liberties and the freedom that we especially in Western culture have keep us ignorant to the Bondservant concept that I will bring out in part 2 of my blog.  We are called to be slaves of righteousness.  In later blog entries I will also share the Apostles thought process in their servant hood to G-d.  In part 1 of this entry I want to address what the Grace of G-d has the power to do.

We are in Hyper-Grace mode in the Body of Christ:  I’m free! I’m free!  But what am I free from and now free to do?  This is the question we need to be asking.  Let’s look at what Paul states pretty clearly how we should identify with the Grace that G-d has given us.  Over the next few blog entries I will breakdown the words of scripture in bold starting with renouncing ungodliness.

For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people,

training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

 

According to the scripture I’m free to renounce ungodliness.  Have I done that?  The world we live in is full of ungodliness and the battle is an ongoing one.  I have missed many cues from G-d to change.  I have free will and use it mostly to feed my flesh. I’m not going to change the world, my community, or my family until I change myself.  Certainly, there are areas in my life where ungodliness needs to be purged.  If I work on me with the grace of G-d the world around me can change.  So how can I do this?  How can I renounce ungodliness in my life?

 

I can do this by implementing “Spiritual Disciplines” (bible study, prayer, fasting, and meditation) that lead me on a path to be a slave of righteousness.  My mediation all the day, I have set the LORD always before me (Psa 16:8) compels me to take every thought, word, and deed into captivity to make sure it lines up with the integrity of G-d’s Word.  Is this easy? Of course not that’s why it’s called a discipline.  The scripture says that grace should be training us.

 

In life we plan out a strategy for worldly education, career paths, and finances.  How much planning are we doing to change our character flaws?  This is an area the Holy One has given each and every one of us the power to perfect His creation.  It is by His grace we can do it!  

 

I will share my walk in these areas and pray it helps the readers to become slaves of righteousness and not a slave to sin.  Because whether you realize it or not you are a slave to one or the other.

 

Shalom!

 

 

The Most Powerful Prayer of Repentance you’ve probably never read!

Manasseh was the son of King Hezekiah.  Hezekiah was one of the greatest Kings of Judah.  He restored the worship of G-d, abolished idolatry, and repented in his return of the nation to G-d.  His son Manasseh on the other hand was a polar opposite of his father.  He reinstituted pagan worship and reversed all the reforms his father made.  Manasseh sinned greatly against G-d.  He was taken captive to Babylon after ruling for over 40 years with terror.  Tradition says he even had the prophet Isaiah sawed in two!  But while captive in Babylon he repents to G-d in prayer. (2 Chronicles 33) I recommend you read this chapter and then the prayer below.  Chronicles makes reference to the prayer but you will only find the prayer in The Apocrypha.  This is a powerful prayer that relies upon G-d’s great mercy and grace.  We know that based on 1 John 1:9 we can confess our sins and plead the blood of Jesus and be cleansed from all unrighteousness.

 

Prayer of Manasseh

O Lord, Almighty God of our fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and of their righteous seed; who hast made heaven and earth, with all the ornament thereof; who hast bound the sea by the word of thy commandment; who hast shut up the deep, and sealed it by thy terrible and glorious name; whom all men fear, and tremble before thy power; for the majesty of thy glory cannot be borne, and thine angry threatening toward sinners is importable: but thy merciful promise is unmeasurable and unsearchable; for thou art the most high Lord, of great compassion, longsuffering, very merciful, and repentest of the evils of men. Thou, O Lord, according to thy great goodness hast promised repentance and forgiveness to them that have sinned against thee: and of thine infinite mercies hast appointed repentance unto sinners, that they may be saved. Thou therefore, O Lord, that art the God of the just, hast not appointed repentance to the just, as to Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, which have not sinned against thee; but thou hast appointed repentance unto me that am a sinner: for I have sinned above the number of the sands of the sea. My transgressions, O Lord, are multiplied: my transgressions are multiplied, and I am not worthy to behold and see the height of heaven for the multitude of mine iniquities. I am bowed down with many iron bands, that I cannot life up mine head, neither have any release: for I have provoked thy wrath, and done evil before thee: I did not thy will, neither kept I thy commandments: I have set up abominations, and have multiplied offences. Now therefore I bow the knee of mine heart, beseeching thee of grace. I have sinned, O Lord, I have sinned, and I acknowledge mine iniquities: wherefore, I humbly beseech thee, forgive me, O Lord, forgive me, and destroy me not with mine iniquities. Be not angry with me for ever, by reserving evil for me; neither condemn me to the lower parts of the earth. For thou art the God, even the God of them that repent; and in me thou wilt shew all thy goodness: for thou wilt save me, that am unworthy, according to thy great mercy. Therefore I will praise thee for ever all the days of my life: for all the powers of the heavens do praise thee, and thine is the glory for ever and ever. Amen. (KJV Apocrypha)

Binding and Loosing (Matthew 18:18 and Matthew 16:19)

I have been studying Messianic Judaism for 4 years.  What is Messianic Judaism?

“The earliest form of Christianity—the Christianity of the apostolic era—was a messianic sectarian movement within greater, first-century Judaism. More than one hundred years after the life of Yeshua of Nazareth, the explosive growth of Gentile Christianity eclipsed the early, messianic, sect of Judaism he had founded. Many Jewish and Gentile Christians discarded the distinctively Jewish practices of the Torah (Law) as they assimilated into the evolving Gentile religious environment. The original, biblical faith and practice of Yeshua and his first disciples faded into obscurity”.

http://www.bethimmanuel.org/about-us/messianic-judaism-all-nations

First understand that I’m not trying to be Jewish.  Our Messiah lived as a Jewish man and He is coming back to rule and reign not from Charleston or New York City or even from Rome, but from Jerusalem.  As a disciple I want to understand my Rabbi’s (Yeshua) words. Christianity has been severed from its Jewish Roots for many reasons that I will not get into for this post.  But, restoration is happening by the Holy Spirit.  Jewish people are coming to recognize Yeshua as their Messiah. There is much we Gentiles need to relearn and we can do that by reconnecting with our Jewish Roots.  Paul said in Romans chapter 3 the following;

Then what advantage has the Jew? Or what is the value of circumcision?Much in every way. To begin with, the Jews were entrusted with the oracles of G-d. (Romans 3:1-2)

G-d’s Chosen People were entrusted with the Words given to Moses directly from God’s mouth.  These foundational words were given in the Torah, the five books of Moses (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy).

And the LORD came down in a pillar of cloud and stood at the entrance of the tent and called Aaron and Miriam, and they both came forward.  And he said, “Hear my words: If there is a prophet among you, I the LORD make myself known to him in a vision; I speak with him in a dream. Not so with my servant Moses. He is faithful in all my house. With him I speak mouth to mouth, clearly, and not in riddles, and he beholds the form of the LORD. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?” (Numbers 12:5-8)

The call that is on my life is not for everyone to delve as deeply into these things.  With that said, we all need to read our bibles in context and be like the Bereans.

The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived they went into the Jewish synagogue.  Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so. (Acts 17:10-11)

I said all that to get to Binding and Loosing. This is a teaching from First Fruits of Zion.  It explains the context of these much misunderstood words of Yeshua.  Click on Binding and Loosing to watch.

Grace and Peace to you!

In My Father’s House (John 14:2-3)

Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house there are many mansions, if it were not so, I would have told you.  I go to prepare a place for you.  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.  John 14:2-3 (King James Version)

I can’t wait to see my mansion!  Isn’t that what Yeshua is saying I will have in the Kingdom?

When we see the word mansion our Western minds probably see a large house with many rooms that we have all to ourselves.  Marble and spiral staircases.  Entertainment room and large bedroom suites. Maybe our immediate family can stay for a while but they have to leave when we get tired of them. We can get way off track when we fail to look at scripture in its cultural context.  Our Western mindset can take us even further away from the original meaning of scripture.  Let’s put this passage back into its proper cultural context to get a fuller understanding of what Yeshua is saying.

First, remember that chapter and verse designation can sometimes interrupt the flow of a passage.  I believe the Scriptures were inspired not the chapter and verse numbers added later by scribes.  So in reading the passage in textual context we need to go back to chapter 13.  Here Yeshua is addressing his disciples concerning his impending death and resurrection.  He gives them “The New Commandment” which is to love one another.  This really is not a new commandment, it is established in the Torah in Lev 19:18.

You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.

Yeshua is tapping into the spirit of the commandment that should be written on the heart.  Those who carry out this commandment in sincerity will be known as true disciples of Yeshua.  Yeshua tells them where he is going they cannot follow now, but will follow later. Next in chapter 14:2-3 the word mansions is used in the description of the place that Yeshua is preparing.  This is the problem with some of the archaic language used in the King James Version because the word mansion in that time was simply dwelling, room or abode.  Webster’s Dictionary list an obsolete definition of this word mansion is: the act of remaining or dwelling. The archaic definition is: dwelling or abode.  The modern definition has changed to become what we know it as – a large imposing residence. So, what Yeshua is actually saying is that in his Father’s house there are many rooms or dwellings.  This is communal living, and the people of Yeshua’s time understood this.

Ray Vander Laan gives an insightful historical commentary on this called “The Insula”.

The Insula

“Jesus used the image of an insula – clusters of buildings where extended families lived together – to describe the kingdom of God.

In Jesus’ time, families usually lived in clusters of buildings called insulas.

These clusters were built around a central courtyard. Grandparents, cousins, uncles, and aunts all lived and interacted together in the insula.

As sons married, they added to the insula. After asking a girl to marry him, the son would return to his village and build new rooms onto his father’s home. The son, anxious to be married, waited for the day when his father declared that the building was complete. Then he could finally marry his bride and bring her to their new home.

Jesus presented a beautiful picture of heaven when he said, “In my Father’s house are many rooms, I am going there to prepare a place for you” (John 14:2-3). This word-picture presented Jesus as a bridegroom, preparing new rooms for his followers in the insula of heaven.

When Jesus described his second coming, he again used the picture of a young bridegroom, waiting for his father’s approval to return for his bride: “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, not the Son, but only the Father” (Matt. 24:36).

By using the familiar images of an insula, Jesus helped his followers to understand the kingdom of God—a household of faith where God’s family lives in close community.”

(http://followtherabbi.com/journey/israel/no-greater-love)

As you can see the picture is very different from our Western thinking.  It’s not about me and mine.  Its about community.  I’m sure that the Father’s house will be glorious and it will be a community of love with saints dwelling in unity together.

I know there are people who are “King James Version only”, but, in my opinion, unless you have a great command of the Old English language you should do a version comparison of bible verses.  Also begin to do cultural background studies of the times.  This will open the scriptures immensely.

Grace and Peace to you!