(Un)Saddle Your Ass

An excerpt from CGWKBK 5 Vol 1: Miketz

Donkeys, Dreams, and Crack Creams

What is a dream?  It is from the verb chalam:

CHALAM:  to dream; to be healthy, be strong; to restore to health

A dream realized is a hope fulfilled.  It is vindication for long, dry spells in which faith sustained the dreamer in the wilderness.  It makes one strong and healthy, ready to tackle the next task for Adonai.  The fulfilled dream is a sign of an overcomer, and it also demonstrates something the nefesh (soul) abhors, which is patience!  Only in patience can the spirit prevail; therefore a primary characteristic of the righteous is the "patience of the saints."

Here is the patience of the saints: here [are] they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus. (KJV) - Revelation 14:12

There may be many years, a lifetime, or even generations between the dream and its realization.  The dream either will give us hope to overcome the obstacles, or we will allow it to become a source of bitterness.  The verb meanings of CHAMAR, the root of CHAMOR, for an ass, are:

to boil, foam, foam up, ferment

                        (Qal) to boil, foam up

                        (Poalal) to be troubled, be in turmoil

                        (Poalal) to be reddened  

Like chametz (leaven and pride), a dream deferred can turn the dreamer sour and bitter against others and even against the Holy One, Blessed be He.  Perhaps this is the link between chametz (pride) and the firstborn red ass ( chamor) that must be redeemed with a lamb.

Joseph's conflict with his brothers was for dominance and acceptance.  When Joseph told his dream of leadership over his brothers, he did not have the wisdom to realize that because he was his father's favorite and he had received the special garment of favor, sharing the "spiritual gift" of the dream would make his brothers envious, not happy about his blessing.  

Discretion is the rule of the day when it comes to blessings.  The testimony should never draw attention to one's self, but to the gift of God.  It is unwise to give glowing accounts of our blessings to those who have yet to realize theirs if they are prone to insecurity. 

There is also the danger that we boast of the dreams and blessing not to glorify Adonai, but ourselves.  The ability to dominate others has no relationship to the ability to lead them.  Domination grows from chametz and chamor, and there will be foaming, red trouble!

The key to the building of the congregation of Israel was humility.  The humility grew from dreams deferred, which was the goal of the dreams!  Joseph was humbled and suffered tribulation before he was in a position of reconciling his brothers.  The brothers also humbled themselves and repented of not listening and causing emotional distress. 

Putting man or beast through emotional distress is a sin.  If we are not to cause even an ass or ox distress under his load[1], how much more will Adonai hold us guilty for causing or ignoring the distress of brothers and sisters in the faith?

Then they said to one another, 'Truly we are guilty concerning our brother, because we saw the distress of his soul when he pleaded with us, yet we would not listen;  therefore this distress ( tsarah/tribulation) has come upon us.'  And Reuben answered them, saying, 'Did I not tell you, "'Do not sin against the boy'; and you would not listen?'" (Genesis 42:21-22)

Jacob humbled himself to trust humbled Judah to protect Benjamin, and he had to commit all his sons to Adonai's protection.  As Judah said, Jacob had to "die" in order to release Benjamin, for his nefesh was so intertwined with the young man's, that like a separation of conjoined twins, one may have to die in order to preserve the other.  Jacob sent a gift, a minchat:

Then their father Israel said to them, 'If it must be so, then do this: take some of the best products of the land in your bags, and carry down to the man as a present, a little balm and a little honey, aromatic gum and myrrh, pistachio nuts and almonds.' (Genesis 43:11)

Having sent a fragrant and sweet healing gift of firstfruits, Israel says, "If I am bereaved, I am bereaved."  He trusts Adonai to keep the next generation safe and enable it to carry on in the covenant.  When he does not understand the affliction, he sends some perfume, sweets, and a healing balm...crack creams for the cracked, drying dreams.

What was the point of young Joseph's dream?  Not domination, but unification of a family.  When we are young and immature, blundering in the field as the text describes Joseph, we fail to appreciate the pain our proud, competitive words cause to others.  Joseph had to learn to put his shoulder to the burden like the blessing of Issachar, the humble ass.

Are we blundering in the field like a red ass boiling over in the pursuit of our dreams, thinking that we are doing our Father a favor to point out the shortcomings of His children? 

Is our "reproving and rebuking" rash and unseasoned?  Or are we patiently working to unify brothers and sisters in Messiah like the redeemed red ass?  

Have we saddled our asses with healing balm, or do we have a burr under our saddles?

If our Father does not even permit us to cause an animal unnecessary pain or distress; if our Father COMMANDS us to relieve the distress of fallen donkeys, then how much more should we become a healing balm for the dry cracks and tears of a human being's distressed soul?  Any dreamer without patience in His Word becomes a nightmare.

Father, deliver us from the unredeemed red asses of Shimon/Levi attitudes, for they lamed oxen in their anger.  Let us not enter into their counsel, but into humility and patience.  Father, it is You who apportions gifts and dreams, so permit us to mature into true Hearers of Your Word with righteous zeal that glorifies You.  We confess that it is YOU who makes all things beautiful in Your time.  Heal us, our Father, and we will be healed.  Save us, and we will be saved, for you are our praise.  Let our dreams strengthen our faith in You. Open our eyes to even the smallest creature in distress so that we may learn to comfort one another with Your Words. Amein.


[1] If you meet your enemy's ox or his donkey wandering away, you shall surely return it to him. (Exodus 23:4)  If you see the donkey of one who hates you lying helpless under its load, you shall refrain from leaving it to him, you shall surely release it with him.  (Exodus 23:5)



ISRAEL STUDY TRIP

We still have two seats available on the March 19-30, 2017, Israel tour.  Our focus is preparing for Passover as we walk in the ancient paths of our forefathers' faith.  We're looking for spiritual renewal, and studies will focus on both the observance of Passover in the First Century as well as its spiritual and prophetic place in our lives and apocalyptic prophecies.

 

Cost is $2100 plus your airfare.  For more information or registration, go to www.blossomingrose.org and view the Pennington/Alewine tour:  Standing With Israel: the Revelation.

If you are unable to go, but you'd like to assist someone else, we do have a person in need.   Those who contribute any amount toward this pastor's trip will be given access to an extended video teaching on Chanukkah and the Seven Shepherds, so be sure to include an email address to receive the link. 

The teaching points include:

  • Why did Yeshua say that we should pray that our flight be not in winter or on Shabbat?
  • What did the Prophet Chaggai prophesy about Chanukkah?  How did Zechariah extend this Chanukkah "blessing" to the nations?
  • Where is the First Mention of chanukkah in the Torah, and how does it relate to the time Yeshua walked in the Temple at Chanukkah?
  • What was the context of the Pharisees' challenge to Yeshua at the Feast of Dedication, and how was his answer prophetic of the "other flock" and how he would accomplish the task of bringing them to the House?
  • When was the "real" Chanukkah, and what does it have to do with Passover Sheni in the Torah and the Chanukkah celebrated today?
  • What do Yared, Enoch, and Methuselah have to do with Chanukkah and the 1,000-year reign?  What about the loosing of the Adversary after 1,000 years?
  
If you can help, click   HERE to donate by PayPal.  Please put "Shepherd" in the Comment section so we can know who the donation is for.  Alternatively, you can send a check (memo line:  "Shepherd") to

Creation Gospel
PO Box 846
East Bernstadt, KY  40729


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/