“There will appear signs in the sun, moon and stars; and on earth, nations will be in anxiety and bewilderment at the sound and surge of the sea, as people faint with fear at the prospect of what is overtaking the world; for the powers in heaven will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with tremendous power and glory. When these things start to happen, stand up and hold your heads high; because you are about to be liberated!”
- Luke 21:25-28 CJB
Do not be afraid of what may happen while here on Earth. Rest knowing that Yahweh (Lord) and Yeshua (Jesus) win in the end. Keep your trust in Them and always remain faithful to the words of the Bible.
At sunset tonight starts day 1 of Hanukkah. Hanukkah is the Jewish holiday known as “The Festival Of Lights” or “Feast Of Dedication.” In the Gospel of Yochanon (John), you can find Yeshua (Jesus) in Jerusalem during this time.
"And it was at Yerushalayim (Jerusalem) the Feast of Chanukkah, and it was winter. And Yeshua walked in the Temple in Shalomah's (Solomon's) Porch."
- Yochanon (John) 10:22-23 Cepher
You may be wondering why being followers of Yeshua, my family, and I celebrate Hanukkah and not Christmas. When you read the birth accounts in the Gospels about Yeshua, you can see that it would be in the fall when He was born, not winter. The sheep would not be in the field in winter. You can check out Pastor Jim Staley’s message “Truth Or Tradition” to see more reasons why we choose Hanukkah over Christmas.
While it’s said that Hanukkah comes from the events that took place in Maccabees 1 and 2, 1 Maccabees 1-4 shows the desecration of the Temple in Isreal as well as some of its people fighting back and how they cleansed the temple and the altar for eight days. I thought that I would share a summary/highlight of these passages with you. If you want to read the rest of the battles in Maccabees 1 and 2 or read both in their entirety, at of the time of this writing, I found that you can download them off of Google. I am reading them out of the Cepher, which has both the Bible and Dead Sea Scrolls with Hebrew Names in it. Here is 1 Maccabees 1-4
1 Makkabiym (Maccabees) 1-4
Alexander, son of Philip, the Macedonian, was king over the end of the earth. He reigned for twelve years, and when he was about to die, he split up his kingdom before his honorable servants. They then became kings when he died and their sons afterward, bringing lots of evil to the world. One of the sons was Antiochus surname Epiphanes, who had been a hostage to Rome and was ruler over the Greeks. He decided to expand his kingdom, so he took over Egypt and then headed to Israel, where he raided the temple in Jerusalem, taking everything from there and bringing it back to his kingdom.
Two years later, Antiochus returned to Isreal, destroying the temple and towns, taking the women and children captive. He then built a wall around Jerusalem with strong towers. The temple was desecrated, and anyone who didn’t eat unclean food and worshiped idols were killed. At this time, Mattithyahu and his sons were told by the kings officials that they were to make sacrifices at the alter in Modin. He refused, but when he was done refusing, he saw a fellow Jew going up to the altar to make a sacrifice. He was filled with such rage at this desecration that he killed the Jew and the kings commissioner and tore down the altar. He then went out and called anyone who was outraged by what was going on to follow him out of the city to dwell in the wilderness. The kings servants heard of this and went after them, killing most of them as they would not fight, being it was the Sabbath. Mattithyahu and those who were with him mourned them and made a vow that if they were attacked on the Sabbath, they would fight back. They then went around killing the kings men and pulling down altars that they came upon.
Mattithyahu became old, and so before his death, he told his sons to remember the Torah and to keep it. Avenge any wrong that the Israelites had done against the Torah. He then blessed his sons and passed away.
Makkabiy, one of Mattithyahu’s sons, then got up, and, with the help of his brothers and others, he fought with cheerfulness in the battle of Israel. He pursued the wicked, driving them out of Israel, making them fearful of him. In response to this, Appollonius gathered nations together to come against him, but he, along with others, were killed by Makkabiy.
Prince Seron, of the Aram army, decided to fight against Makkabiy and his men so he could get honor in the kingdom. Some men with Makkabiy asked how they, being few, could fight against a huge army. Makkabiy told them that with the strength of Yahuah (Lord), they would be able to defeat them. He then attacked Prince Seron and his army, killing about eight hundred of them. Fear of Makkabiy and his men then came to the surrounding nations.
King Antiochus became upset with what Makkabiy and his men were doing. So he gathered up many men for his army and gave them pay for a year. He then saw that his treasury was small because of the plague that had hit the land. This happened because he had taken the Torah out of the land. He feared that he wouldn’t be able to keep paying the charges, so he decided to go to Persia to take their money from them.
Lysias, being put in charge while King Antiochus was away, sent forty-seven thousand men to Yahud (Judea) to destroy it as King Antiochus has commanded. He chose Ptolemy, Nicanor, and Gorgias to lead these men into battle. Makkabiy and his men camped near Jerusalem, and when they saw these men, they fasted and prayed to Yahuah to help them in their battle. They said they would rather die than live and let Yahuah’s temple stay in ruins and be held captive by the enemy. At night time, Gorgias took six thousand of these men to try to sneak up on Makkabiy, but Makkabiy heard of this sneak attack, so he and his men went and hid. In the morning, Makkabiy and his men stood out in the plains, showing themselves to Gorgias and his men. Makkabiy told his men not to be afraid. Remember when Yahuah delivered our fathers from Pharaoh’s hand when they went through the Red Sea. Let us cry to heaven for Yahuah to have mercy on us so that all can see who saves Israel. They started fighting each other, and Makkabiy and his men became victorious, getting the spoils from the tents of Gorgias and his men. After that, they went home singing the song of thanksgiving to Yahuah because He is good and His mercy endures forever. Lysias heard of the defeat, and he was discouraged.
A year later, Lysias gathered up more men to come up against Israel. Makkabiy saw them, so he prayed to Yahuah to stop them and protect him and his men. They then fought, and Makkabiy won, but Lysias went to Antioch to gather more men, making his army greater so that he could come against Makkabiy again.
While Lysias did this, Makkabiy and his men went up to Mount Tsiyon to cleanse and dedicate the sanctuary. When they got there, though, they found the altar to be profaned, the gates burned down, shrubs growing all around, and the priests’ chambers pulled down. They then tore their clothes, put ashes on their heads, fell gave down unto the ground, and cried up to heaven with sadness. Makkabiy then had some men fight those who were in the fortress while he cleansed the sanctuary. He appointed blameless priests to help take out the defiled stones and rebuild the alter. They then rebuilt all the other items of the temple, and they then burned incense and lit the menorah to bring light into the Temple. They then gave smoke offerings to Yahuah, giving Him praise and worship. They kept the dedication of the altar for eight days. Makkabiy then ordained that the days of dedication for the altar should be remembered year to year.
Shabbat Shalom! Here are this Sabbath’s Torah readings:
Numbers 11:30-12:16
Zechariah 2:10-4:7
Ephesians 5:8-21
In today’s New Testament reading, we are told to be a light for the world living in Yah’s (God’s) Will. We are not to do the things of this world but the things of Yah. Give thanks and praise for all that Yah has done for you.
Shalom
"For you used to be darkness; but now, united with the Lord, you are light. Live like children of light, for the fruit of the light is in every kind of goodness, rightness and truth"
"When Jesus spoke again to the people, He said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
"Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path."
- Psalms 119:105 NIV
When we read God’s Word He will guide us in the right direction, like lighting up our path for us. Though our paths will be lighted up we will still have trials here and there, but God will be with us always as long as we trust in Him and keep His Word. I pray you will keep in God’s Word.
Image Copyright: Walt Disney Pictures and Jim Henson Productions
Tis the season where most people watch holiday movies. I’m no different. One of the movies I love to watch during this time of year is “The Muppets Christmas Carol”. Michael Caine plays Scrooge in this rendition while Kermit plays Bob Cratchit. Though I’ve seen this film several times since it came out in 1992 this year when watching I actually listened to the words being sung in “Bless Us All”. It was written by Paul Williams.
In “Bless Us All” it seems as though they are singing to God and it’s the closest to a Christian/Worship song that the Muppets sing. In the song Tiny Tim (Robin) sings “I look into the eyes of love and know that I belong”. God is love.
"Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them."
- 1 John 4:7-8, 15-16 NIV
In another part of the song Tiny Tim along with Emily Cratchit (Miss Piggy) sing these words “Let us always love each other. Lead us toward the light”. Jesus said that He is the Light and those who follow him will not be in darkness but will have the light of life.
"When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”"
- John 8:12 NIV
I pray that this season and all year we can strive to want to love others and follow Jesus. Check out “Bless Us All” by clicking the link below.
"When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”"
- John 8:12 NIV
When we choose to follow Jesus our paths will be easier then if we were to go alone. This doesn’t mean that we won’t have trouble, but it does mean that we can rely on Jesus to help guide our way and get us through whatever may come at us. May you look forward Jesus to help you on your path.
"The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it."
- John 1:5 NIV
Right now things around us can seem pretty dark. The sun is setting sooner and rising later. Several mandates are taking away people’s freedom of choice and threatening the lively hood of them and their families. The good news is that Jesus is still alive and He is the light shining in the darkness. He will defeat the darkness that is the enemy. We need to keep looking toward that light and praying that the light will shine ever brighter in us spreading to others. May your light shine for all to see.
"The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned."
- Isaiah 9:2 NIV
Jesus is the Light being referred to here. At the time this verse was written Isaiah was prophesying His coming. The world was in darkness blanketed by their sin. Jesus came to light the way to everlasting light and freedom from our sins. When we are away from Jesus and we don’t have a relationship with Him it’s like we are walking in the dark not being able to see where we are going. Sin can cloud our judgment and lead us deeper into that darkness. I pray that we can keep our eyes and life focused on Jesus and walk in His Light.
"But if anyone obeys His word, love for God is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in Him: Whoever claims to live in Him must live as Jesus did."
- 1 John 2:5-6 NIV
When you see someone how can you tell if God is in them? Just look at how they behave and treat people. I know that being human we all can make mistakes but if we truly love God and Jesus then our overall character should represent that. People should see something in us that separates us from non believers. I pray we all can have that character and be that light for others.
Branches MN 