|
Hidden Manna
Zechariah describes a Passover-like event that will take place in which the Words of Torah will become a curse to those living a life of rebellion against the mitzvot (commandments). Their ashes are not holy copies of the commandments in human flesh, nor are they a light to the world. Their ashes are the evidence of being a copy of the unclean beast who refuses the dominion of Elohim's Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit) within His Word.
Then I lifted up my eyes again and looked, and behold, there was a flying scroll. And he said to me, 'What do you see?' And I answered, 'I see a flying scroll; its length is twenty cubits and its width ten cubits.' Then he said to me, 'This is the curse that is going forth over the face of the whole and; surely everyone who steals will be purged away according to the writing on one side, and everyone who swears will be purged away according to the writing on the other side.'[1] 'I will make it go forth,' declares the LORD of hosts, 'and it will enter the house of the thief and the house of the one who swears falsely by My name; and it will spend the night within that house and consume it with its timber and stones.'[2]
The feasts themselves are contranyms (their own opposite), for in their celebration or lack of celebration, one is either sealed or marked. It was not a conscious cutting of a mark or activity that marked the Egyptians,
but the lack of obedient activity that set them apart from the Israelites and the mixed multitude.
Sealing occurs in agreement with the authority of the Angel of the Lord; marking occurs with grumbling about the path in which he leads. Sealing is safety from the plagues; marking is the plagues of the Egyptians:
There the Lord made for them a statute and a rule, and there he tested them, saying, 'If you will diligently listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, your healer.'[3]
When the Ruach reveals a "statute and rule," then the disciple is expected to grow in regard to it, making better and better copies of the original, the Living Word of Messiah Yeshua. Growth is accomplished through tests, and
even a failed test can yield growth if it leads to a better copy of the Word in the next test.
Following the grumbling about the water at Elim, the Israelites would again grumble at the next stop on their journey. At Elim, they camped in a cozy place of prophecy in which the twelve tribes rested by the living water of the Word, and the 70 symbolic nations of the world grew tall from the nourishment:
Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees, and they encamped there by the water. (27)
As with the stop at Sukkot, they celebrated the comfort of the end of prophecy at the beginning of the journey. What their souls did not accept, though, was the difficult tests and discomfort of the journey to the final destination. Through the wilderness journey the Israelites would face tests of the four altar judgments in some form: sword (including lack of water), famine (hunger), wild beasts (serpents), and plague. They found that they would face the same plague judgments as the Egyptians if they did not give ear to His commandments, for their calling into the Land was a high one.
By their obedient action, they would "polish" their copies of the commandments, releasing Spiritual light of the Torah in physical bodies. With increasing faith, they would make these tests, not judgments. Isn't it His mercy that He gives us a choice when He presents a difficult situation? He lets US choose whether it is merely a test or a plague!
- The manna that fell when Israel grumbled for food was the very food of angels. In other words, the manna that was Messiah Yeshua is also the Word on which HaShem's messengers feed. As explained in Volume 1, the manna had the appearance of bdolach, or bdellium, one of the precious stones found within the boundaries of the Rivers of Eden. Even in their grumbling, the Father extended them an offer of transformation in the test. Do you want physical bread to feed your soul and flesh, or do you want the Spiritual power that spoke that physical bread into being?
The power comes with testing in the "statute and rule."
Moses takes a jar of the manna and hides it in the Holy of Holies as a testimony both to Israel and against them. This is the hidden manna promised to the Pergamum assembly if they will overcome. A people who have just left an encampment of twelve springs that grew seventy palm trees surely should be able to move on into the Ruach, but in their immaturity, they tried to gather on Shabbat when they had been told to take advantage of the Preparation Day. Because they did not have faith that the truth of Shabbat lay ahead, they stumbled in a darkness of their own making, and the greatest miracle of the manna was hidden from that generation.
This describes the struggle of the human soul against the spirit, which longs to connect to the Heavenlies and agree with the Ruach HaKodesh within. Although delivered from the desire of Egypt, they were still captive to their own hungry, thirsty, and rebellious souls. This is always the test of a disciple of Yeshua. The Ruach will lead a disciple where his soul does not wish to go, and at first his soul will complain, grumble, rebel, dig in, fight the wrong battles with the wrong people, and make up "spiritual" reasons not to obey.
Yeshua told Peter about this phenomenon, but ultimately, Peter did lay down his soul and allow the Ruach to lead him to a place he did not wish to go. His soul eventually had to give up control and give the ruach full authority, not just occasional, comfortable control over the soul. When this maturity takes place, then we can feed the lambs of the Great Shepherd.
As the ashes of Egypt and boils were open testimony against rebellion against Moses' "statute and rule," the Word of God either becomes food for our souls, or it remains hidden, a testimony against us.
[1] The original tablets of the commandments, like the scroll with seven seals in Revelation, were written front and back.
[2] Zechariah 5:1-4
[3] Exodus 15:25-26
Gather the Scattered is back, following up a very successful (thanks to attendees like you!) 2016 event. This year we will be focusing on the End Time Gathering that the Scriptures speak of. What will the return of our Savior look like? Can we know when this will be? We believe there are 'keys' in the Scriptures that we've lost, Keys, that once recovered, will bring clarity to the confusion of this subject and in the process will greatly encourage you in your walk with God.
We want to see everyone that comes leave refreshed, uplifted, encouraged, and blessed. Whether you may be struggling with one thing, or a myriad of things, we believe you will find that in the presence of a gathering of the Body of Messiah this is possible. Whether you have weekly fellowship, or believe you are all alone, Gather the Scattered 2017 is for you.
We've gone to great lengths to bring premier speakers to be a blessing to you. Like last year, we will have the opportunity to be a blessing to them and to others.
What is the Torah? in Spanish
The Kindle Spanish version of BEKY Book
What is the Torah? is now on
Amazon.
Now available on
Amazon, the newest BEKY Book,
Truth, Tradition, or Tare: Growing in the Word.
Readers of the Newer Testament can find its treatment of tradition confusing. Many of the customs in its pages are Jewish, and therefore foreign to non-Jewish believers. Yeshua (Jesus) sometimes corrected those observing religious customs, yet at other times he said they should have observed them. Paul does the same in his letters, and twice he instructs non-Jewish believers to keep the Jewish customs he passed on to them.
Among believers in Yeshua today, some enjoy incorporating tradition into their worship. Some dismiss all customs as "man-made," and therefore extraneous at best or the sin "adding to" the written Word at worst. There is a way to determine the relationship of the written Word to tradition, for the Word would not leave us without comfort on such an important question. Our Father wants His children to grow in wisdom, maturity, and favor before Him as well as their communities.
The methods used by the prophets of the Older Testament (TANAKH) as well as the writers of the Newer Testament (Brit HaChadasha) did leave readers guidelines to divide the Seed of truth from tradition, and then to separate a tradition grown from truth from a "taredition" grown from a different seed. Additionally, it is just as important to the disciple of Yeshua to test the goodness of the soil on which the practice of the Word grows. The most important consideration in the Older Testament's, Yeshua's, and the apostles' instructions is the sincere heart that holds justice, mercy, and faithfulness as the weightier matters of any religious custom.
By evaluating the traditions that one chooses to observe or not observe, the individual can avoid the lament:
"O Lord, my strength and my stronghold, my refuge in the day of trouble, to you shall the nations come from the ends of the earth and say: 'Our fathers have inherited nothing but lies, worthless things in which there is no profit.'"
By applying the instructions in the Word, every believer is encouraged in his or her growth. A careful examination of Yeshua's instructions lifts a nuance that is frequently lost in discussions of truth and tradition. The first step is to identify whether that tradition is a tare. By throwing all tradition into a mental trash bin labeled Man's Tradition, it is possible that one could throw good plants and fruit into the bin with the tares. This is a logical fallacy called oversimplification. Yeshua's parables encourage his disciples to learn critical thinking skills so that growth in the Word is abundant life.
When a disciple of Yeshua examines his or her walk in the Word, there may be times that he or she feels that there is not enough growth. The very fact that we question our growth is a sign of readiness to grow. The next step is to allow the Holy Spirit (Ruach HaKodesh) to teach us how to bear good fruit. To do that, every disciple can identify beliefs and practices that either stimulate healthy growth in the Word, or they stunt it. Welcome to the living fields of the Father's Garden!
LaMalah Children's Centre
Thank you for your faithful donations! We hope to be able to take in two more youngsters on the waiting list soon.
http://www.thecreationgospel.com/donate/
|
