The Spiritual Danger…

In this world of constant flux, change, and invariable dissolution, is it realistic to expect perfection? Are not our expectations often romanticized notions of how we think things ought be rather than what they really are? Don’t they often collide with the messy and unpredictable matters of life? The desire for elusive “perfection” leads to disillusionment and sorrow. Instead of gratefully accepting what we have, we ask “what if” or wonder about other possibilities that might bring us closer to our supposititious ideal.

The underlying assumption at work here is that everything should (or must) cohere with our desires and wishes. The doctrine that life should follow our own script not only leads to disappointment, however, but actually constitutes a form of idolatry. We must do teshuvah by revising our unrealistic expectations. Instead of seeking the “good life” in this dying world, we must turn to face reality by acknowledging the pervasive brokenness of the world. If we refuse to let go of our demand for personal happiness we will eventually be shattered and go on to blame God for our troubles. We may suspect that our suffering is a sign of God’s disapproval or rejection; we may begin to question whether God will ever heal us, give us his blessing, and so on. We must remember that God’s promises were never intended to give comfort to those who seek life and contentment in this world, or even to those who simply want a “happy ending” to a life of relative ease… No, the message of hope is delivered to those who have “ears to hear and eyes to see” – that is, to those who know they are dying, that life is beyond their control, and who understand their great need for divine intervention. Far from being a sign of God’s abandonment, our suffering indicates God’s near presence and the call to find eternal life in Yeshua our Savior…

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Return to Sanity…

“Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: for the LORD hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me…. Ah, sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, offspring of evildoers, children who deal corruptly! They have forsaken the LORD, they have despised the Holy One of Israel, they are utterly estranged. Why will you still be struck down? Why will you continue to rebel? The whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint. From the sole of the foot even to the head, there is no soundness in it, but bruises and sores and raw wounds… Your country lies desolate; your cities are burned with fire; in your very presence foreigners devour your land; it is desolate, as overthrown by foreigners….” (Isa. 1:2-7).

“Hear this, O foolish and senseless people, who have eyes, but see not, who have ears, but hear not. Do you not fear me? declares the LORD. Do you not tremble before me? Therefore “hear, O earth; behold, I am bringing disaster upon this people, the fruit of their devices, because they have not paid attention to my words; and as for my Torah, they have rejected it.” (Jer. 5:21-25).

Repentance is a return to sanity which begins with the resolution to question your presuppositions and to change your thinking… There are three requisites for genuine repentance, that is, for turning to God in the truth, namely: 1) seeing eyes; 2) hearing ears; and 3) an understanding heart, ready to be healed (Isa. 6:10). God alone does the miracle but it is nevertheless our responsibility to believe that the miracle is personally for us. Repentance is the first step of salvation, as Messiah said: “Repent and believe in the good news” (Mark 1:15), and apart from repentance man has no real existence. As Yeshua said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). Repentance is the expression of trust in God’s love, and by means of it we affirm: “I am ready to exist as a person of worth.” Come alive, friends!

Blessing of Godly Wisdom…

It is written in our Scriptures: “My child, if you receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you, making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding; yes, if you cry out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the LORD (יראת יהוה) and find the knowledge of God (דעת אלהים). For the LORD gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding; he stores up sound wisdom for the upright; he is a shield to those who walk wholeheartedly before Him” (Prov. 2:1-7).

Weapon of Praise…

Think counterculturally. Do not let your mind be conformed (lit., “squeezed into the mold”) of this world, but be transformed (μεταμορφόω, i.e., metamorphosized like a caterpillar is changed into a butterfly) by the renewal of your mind (Rom. 12:2). The Greek word translated “renewal” is ἀνακαίνωσις, from ἀνά, meaning “up, into the midst,” and καινός, meaning “newness.” The idea here is that we are inwardly transfigured as we take hold of the truth of the new covenant and make it central to our lives. For this we must “put on the mind of Messiah” and repudiate the world’s values and vain philosophies (1 Cor. 2:16). “When the devil is called the god of this world, it is not because he made it, but because people serve him with worldliness.” The “god of this world” blinds the eyes of those who do not believe so they cannot see the truth of the gospel of Messiah (2 Cor. 4:4). The philosophy of this world is always based on lies, propaganda, fear, lust, pride, anger, appeals to vanity, and so on. We must use discernment and test the world’s assumptions against the truth of the Scriptures.

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Rosh Hashanah Seder…

Though there are technically four “New Year Days” on the Jewish calendar, two are most widely recognized: the New Year of spring (i.e., Nisan 1 and the time of Passover) and the new year of fall (i.e., Tishri 1, the time of the High Holidays). The New Year celebration of the fall begins before sundown, just before the start of Tishri 1. The main event consists of a special simcha (festive) meal, somewhat similar to a Friday evening Shabbat meal, with the addition of some special food, blessings, and listening to the shofar blast. The celebration begins with the lighting of candles (symbolizing the transition from profane to sacred time) and the special blessing thanking God for enabling us to reach this season (i.e., the Shehecheyanu).

After starting the celebration, ritual “appetizers” called simanim (סִימָנִים) are often served. These are symbolic foods used as an occasion to offer first blessings for the New Year. Traditionally we eat round challah to remind us that life is a circle (a cycle of seasons) and also to remind us of the Kingship (Crown) of God; we taste apples dipped in honey as a token of our wish for a sweet year, and so on. We also eat some specialized foods just for Rosh Hashanah. For example, we eat leeks, called karsi in Aramaic, as a play on the Hebrew word karat – to cut down – i.e., “may our enemies be cut down.” We also eat pomegranates to remind us of the sweetness of the Torah and to remember God’s commandments, and so on. Doing all this adds fun to the occasion and helps us sanctify the main meal. After finishing dinner, we are ready for the climatic event of the evening: the sounding of the shofar!

To make it easier for you to participate, I have created an “Easy Rosh Hashanah Seder Guide” that includes step-by-step procedures for holding your own Rosh Hashanah home celebration. The Seder Guide includes English transliterations along with the basic Hebrew blessings, so now everyone can join in! Celebrating Rosh Hashanah is both joyous and spiritually significant, especially from a prophetic perspective. I hope you find this helpful, chaverim. L’Shanah tovah u’metuka b’Yeshua – “to a good and sweet year in Yeshua!”

 


Note:
 Regarding observing the holidays, always remember that what most important is not rituals based on tradition, nor even getting the date and time exactly right, but understanding the prophetic significance of the holiday and learning more about how it reveals the glory of Yeshua. It does the soul no good — and the LORD God surely isn’t impressed — if you’re 100% kosher and keep all the holidays down to the exact minute but have a hard heart that is proud or that doesn’t understand God’s desire to save a lost and dying world.

The Prophetic Calendar…

The spring festivals (i.e., Passover, Firstfruits, and Shavuot) have been perfectly fulfilled in the first coming of Yeshua as Mashiach ben Yosef, and the fall festivals (Teruah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot) will be fulfilled in His second coming as Mashiach ben David. Since the first advent fulfilled all of the spring mo’edim to the smallest of details, we believe that His second advent portends similar fulfillment as revealed in the fall mo’edim.

After the summer of harvest (John 4:35), the very first fall festival on the Jewish calendar is Yom Teruah (יוֹם תְּרוּעָה), which is a picture of the “catching away” of kallat Mashiach (the Bride of Messiah) for the time of Sheva Berachot (the seven “days” of blessing that follows the traditional marriage ceremony). Then will come the Great Tribulation and Yom Adonai – the Day of the LORD (יוֹם יְהוָה). The heavenly shofar blasts heard at Sinai will be reissued from Zion. First will be the gathering together of those who follow the Messiah (i.e., those declared tzaddikim because they trust in the merit of Yeshua’s sacrifice), and then God’s war against Satan and the world system will begin, culminating in the long-awaited coronation of the King of King of Kings – Melech Malchei Ha-Melachim (מֶלֶךְ מַלְכֵי הַמְּלָכִים).

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Divine Absence and Teshuvah…

From our Torah reading for Rosh Hashanah (i.e., Vayeilech) the LORD foretold Moses’ death and the people’s subsequent apostasy from the faith: “This people will rise and whore after the foreign gods among them in the land that they are entering, and they will forsake me and break my covenant that I have made with them” (Deut. 31:16). The Lord then continued: “And then my anger will be kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them and hide my face from them, and they will be devoured…. And I will surely hide my face in that day because of all the evil that they have done, because they have turned to other gods” (Deut. 31:17-18).

The phrase hester panim (הֶסְתֵר פָּנִים) means “hiding of the face.” It is often used when discussing the Book of Esther, where God’s Name isn’t mentioned even once, yet the hidden Presence is realized in the outcome of the story. In this sense of the term, hester panim is somewhat like the sun on an overcast day: Just because you don’t see it doesn’t mean it isn’t there. God’s providential care for us is at work at all times, whether we perceive it or not.

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Teshuvah of Seeking…

In the Torah portion for Rosh Hashanah (i.e., parashat Vayeilech), Moses announced his impending death and transferred the leadership of the Jewish nation to Joshua (יְהוֹשֻׁעַ), a type of Messiah who would bring Israel into the promised land. Moses continued his speech, and foresaw that despite his appeals the people would turn away from the covenant, which would cause God’s face to turn away: “And hiding I will hide My face on that day, because of all the evil they have committed” (Deut. 31:18). The sages note this verse is grammatically unusual because of the double use of the word “hide” (i.e., הַסְתֵּר אַסְתִּיר פָּנַי). God hides the fact that He is in hiding… If you do not know that God is “hiding,” you will not seek for Him; and if you feel within your heart that God is hiding, you are invited to return to Him, as King David said, “For you have said to my heart, ‘Seek my face;’ and my heart has said to You, ‘Your face, O LORD, will I seek.’

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Teshuvah’s Confession…

From our Torah (Nitzavim) we read: “The word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can do it” (Deut. 30: 14). What “word” is this other than the confession of faith in the LORD? Faith is the key, since it responds to God’s voice and receives the message of hope within the heart… Faith is a matter of the will: of choosing to receive the blessing, accepting that you are accepted, and trusting God’s passion for your life. “Consider Abraham; he believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness” (Gal. 3:6). Faith itself is the obedience of Torah, the necessary precondition for all that follows. “I am the LORD your God” (אָנכִי יְהוָה אֱלהֶיךָ) is the very First Commandment. When we turn to the LORD, we esteem him as truthful, just, wise, compassionate, and worthy of our trust. “Let us then with confidence (μετὰ παρρησίας) draw near to the throne of grace (כִּסֵּא הֶחָסֶד), that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Heb. 4:16). Faith is teshuvah’s confession of the reality of love…

The students of the maggid of Zlotchov once asked him, “In the Torah we read that our father Abraham kept all the laws (Gen. 26:5), but how could this be, since they had not yet been given to him?” The maggid replied, “All that is needed is to love God. If you are about to do something and you think it might lessen your love, then you know it’s a sin; but if you think it will increase your love, then you know it’s in keeping with God’s will. That’s what Abraham did.” Amen. Faith is the confession of God’s love. Abraham was justified by faith because he trusted in God’s love more than anything else, and that is the essence of Torah. “Now abide faith, hope, love, these three, but the greatest of these is love” (1 Cor. 13:13).
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The Book of Life…

The Scriptures teach that every word we speak and every choice we make are infallibly recorded in “heavenly scrolls,” and one day these scrolls will be opened as a testimony about what we did with our lives (Dan. 7:10; Matt. 12:36-37; 1 Cor. 3:13, 4:5). “And I saw the dead, both the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book (סֵפֶר אַחֵר) was opened, which is called the Book of Life (סֵפֶר הַחַיִּים). And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done” (Rev. 20:12).

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