You may have heard the expression, “The proof of the pudding is in the tasting.” It is an odd proverb that basically means that you really can’t know the value or quality of something until you experience it for yourself. It doesn’t matter how good the pudding looks on the surface. Until you dig in…
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Is It Enough? Human trafficking, Genocide, Rape, Abortion, Murder … and so many other things that I cannot and absolutely do not want to imagine. I have for so long been deeply disturbed by the severity of human suffering. I can say that certainly some of my angst comes from a heart of intercession and…
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The “big sermon” (the Sermon on the Mount) starts with 7 “blessed are …” statements. There are really 8 of them, but the 8th one is different. The first 7 are attitudes (‘be’ attitudes, as opposed to ‘don’t be’ attitudes). These attitudes come from within the believer. The 8th “blessed are …” statement is not…
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Matthew 5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. This verse and the following 8 verses start with the word “Blessed”. The meaning of the Hebrew word Baruch is “to bend the knee” or “bow down”. It is how we start our Hebrew blessings, but that word is not…
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Yom HaAtzma’ut follows immediately on the heels of Yom HaZikaron. That’s right, Israel Independence Day begins as the sun sets on Israel Memorial Day. Such a contrast: as one of the saddest days ends, one of the most joyful days begins. But, this is the reality of Jewish history too. The Holocaust ended in 1945.…
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Yesterday, in part 1, I briefly mentioned a pivot that takes place in Psalm 22:23 I will declare Your Name to my brothers. I will praise You amid the congregation. Up until that point, the Psalm focuses on the pain and suffering of Yeshua’s crucifixion. Yeshua’s first thought, after His sacrificial death, is evangelism to…
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Our memory verse a few weeks ago was Psalm 23. The entire congregation was charged with memorizing and reciting the entire Psalm at the start of the service on Shabbat. Psalms 22, 23 and 24 actually form a trilogy. They are all prophetic of Messiah Yeshua, past (first coming), present (current ministry, Psalm 23:1a The…
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Isaiah 50:7 For Adonai Elohim will help Me. Therefore I have not been disgraced. Therefore I set My face like flint, and I know that I will not be ashamed … 9a See, Adonai Elohim will help Me. Who is he who would condemn Me? I woke this morning with thoughts of shame. Not my…
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How is it possible that statistics say that the younger generation has been lost in droves to the Body of the Messiah? I don’t think the answers are difficult to find. The basic answer is that this generation in the deepest level of its soul was formed much more by the secular world than by…
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Isaiah 53:12 Therefore I will give Him a portion with the great, and He will divide the spoil with the mighty – because He poured out His soul to death, and was counted with transgressors. For He bore the sin of many, and interceded for the transgressors. Isn’t this a great summary verse? The whole…
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