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Shabbat Message for 10-11-08 Hazinu

2008-10-07T18:10:05Z

Message 10-11-08

Hazinu-Give Ear

Deuteronomy 32:1-52

2 Samuel 22:1-51

Luke 1:68-75

Introduction

Moses sings his last song, a love poem to God and a chastisement of the people. God tells Moses to begin his ascent of Mount Nebo, from where he will see the Promised Land from a distance but he will not be allowed to enter it.

Deuteronomy 32:8-12

8 When the Most High divided their inheritance to the nations, when He separated the sons of Adam, He set the boundaries of the peoples according to the number of the children of Israel. 9 For the LORD's portion is His people; Jacob is the place of His inheritance. 10 "He found him in a desert land and in the wasteland, a howling wilderness; He encircled him, He instructed him, He kept him as the apple of His eye. 11 As an eagle stirs up its nest, hovers over its young, spreading out its wings, taking them up, carrying them on its wings, 12 So the LORD alone led him, and there was no foreign god with him.

Moses is relating to the Children of Israel that God had given them the land and divided it into twelve portions, one for each of the twelve tribes of Israel. Moses tells the people that God found His people in the desert after they had been brought out of Egypt but that while in the Wilderness they had sinned against God after God had called them out to be His portion from among all the nations of the earth. We are not just talking here about Biblical times but down through history right up to modern times. God has always kept His hand on Israel and protected His people no matter where He sent them to or what they had done. He forgave them but at the same time He had to punish them for their sins.

This concept may prove to be a tough one for some of you reading this but compare it to this scenario: A parent sees that their child has broken a rule. The child asks for forgiveness but that does not change the fact that they broke the rule. The parent loves their child but they know they have to discipline their child for breaking the rules. It works the same way with God. You break the Torah and God will hold you accountable and punish you. We see this happening throughout the forty years the Children of Israel were in the Wilderness. We see plagues, earthquakes, etc. happening when the Children of Israel defied their Father. Why do you think it is that God refers to Israel as the Children of Israel? We are equated to being children who need to learn what our parent expects from us and then conform our behavior to that which pleases Him, not out of fear but out of love.

We love God and want to please Him. What kind of a parent would God be if He allowed us to break His rules? Of course He forgives us but the bottom line is He has to discipline us. When God had had enough of the Children of Israel breaking His Torah He decided to punish them in a way they had not been punished before. He decided to exile them from the Promised Land for what they had done. God revealed to Moses what Israel would do after His death. Moses had labored forty years to teach the Children of Israel the ways of God as found in the Torah. Moses was not placing Israel under legalism but trying to get them to understand what it was that God desired from them.

The Children of Israel had been promised a homeland and for forty years they wandered in the Wilderness until they were ready to enter into that promise. Yet while in that promise they broke God’s heart by consistently breaking His Torah. The Torah was the covenant between God and Israel and it contained the blessings for obedience and the curses for not. Israel knew what was expected of them and they insisted on following their own course or the course laid out by their leaders. The end result was that God broke Israel into two parts. One would become the Kingdom of Judah and the other would become the Kingdom of Ephraim/Joseph/Israel. Judah was sent into the Babylonian captivity and returned after 70 years. Ephraim or Israel was sent into the Assyrian captivity and has not returned though some believe they are beginning to come back.

God punished them both for idolatry – following after other gods when God had distinctly warned them that He would not tolerate that. This does not mean that there are greater and lesser sins – sin is sin to God, nothing more and nothing less. One sin that really makes God angry is the sin of idolatry.

1 Corinthians 10:14 Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry.

Colossians 3:5 Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.

Rav Shaul makes it very clear that there is more to idolatry that following after other gods. He tells us that sin is idolatry and that we must do all that we can to remove it from within us. This is easier said than done my friends. None of us can say that we are perfect and without sin even as Believers in Messiah Yeshua. We are what we are and that is flawed human beings but God knows that and He still desires to have a relationship with us. That is the most amazing thing to me about God’s love. He loves us even when we rebel against Him. This does not mean that we can count of God’s forgiveness while we sin knowingly or unknowingly but God is more understanding about unknowing sin.

2 Peter 2:21 For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them.

Shimon tells us that as Believers it would have been better for us had we never have know Messiah than to turn away from Him. The holy commandment is the Torah which points the way to Yeshua and the forgiveness we receive when we accept Him and ask for forgiveness for our sins. If you do not ask you cannot receive. We are told to ask and we will receive. Messiah is waiting for us to ask. He is standing at the door to our hearts waiting for us to open up the door and invite Him in. He will not force His way in and neither can Satan. We have to open the door and invite in the one we desire to take up residence within us. Just remember that Satan is standing at the door waiting for you just as Yeshua is. The choice is yours.

2 Samuel 22:1-4

1 Then David spoke to the LORD the words of this song, on the day when the LORD had delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul. 2 And he said: "The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; 3 The God of my strength, in whom I will trust; my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge; my Savior, You save me from violence. 4 I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised; so shall I be saved from my enemies.

King David was a man after God’s own heart and yet David was a murderer, an adulterer, etc, but God still loved him and placed him at the head of Israel, seven years over Judah, and thirty three years over a united Israel. It would only be under David and Solomon that all the tribes of Israel would be united as one nation literally under God. This does not mean that it was always this way under David and Solomon. For the most part David was God’s man and acknowledged his sin when confronted with it. Solomon started out with the best intentions but like others he did not stay the course of his father. One his death bed David told Solomon to follow the Lord your God.

1 Kings 2:1 Now the days of David drew near that he should die, and he charged Solomon his son, saying: 2 "I go the way of all the earth; be strong, therefore, and prove yourself a man. 3 "And keep the charge of the LORD your God: to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commandments, His judgments, and His testimonies, as it is written in the Torah of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn; 4 "that the LORD may fulfill His word which He spoke concerning me, saying, 'If your sons take heed to their way, to walk before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul,' He said, 'you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.'

David shares with his son Solomon what will be required of him to rule over Israel. He tells him that he must follow the Torah of Moses so that God will fulfill His word to David that if his sons followed God He would make sure that there would always be a descendant of David on the throne of Israel. Because this did not happen we see a divided monarchy, a divided priesthood, false festivals and idolatry that finally resulted in exile for both groups from the Promised Land. This is not what God had desired but this was the result that Israel brought on itself through the actions if their leaders and the hearts of the people. The people had permitted their leaders to defy God and they in turn followed the actions of their leaders and defied God as well. This is what happened in the Garden in the beginning when Adam and Chavah disobeyed a direct commend from God. This has always been the sin – rebellion. As the Children of Israel we are called to be the Children of God but we struggle with this and cannot do it.

1 Samuel 12:14 "If you fear the LORD and serve Him and obey His voice, and do not rebel against the commandment of the LORD, then both you and the king who reigns over you will continue following the LORD your God.

Samuel is the one God used to choose the first king of Israel Saul. Samuel did not want this and neither did God. In fact, Samuel grew angry with the people for even asking this. He knew that God was the one who was to rule over Israel as King but Israel rejected God and desired a king just like the rest of the nations. They did not want to be the people of God but they wanted to be like the Goyim or Nations. God told Samuel to give the people what they wanted because God had told Moses that would happen. God chose Saul and gave them a king like the other nations and we all know the story of Saul. Then God instructed Samuel to anoint another who would take the place of Saul. This time God chose a man He wanted and not what the people wanted though God would build up David in the eyes of the people.

The difference between the two men was in their devotion to God and His ways. Saul desired to do what he wanted and not what God wanted and David tried to do what God wanted but the ways of man and his children and wives got in the way of this from time to time. David’s heart was for the Lord and this is why the Messiah would come from the line of David of the tribe of Judah. The prophecies speak about this and we see them one after the other in the Bible. Yeshua, the Son of God and the Son of man would come through the line of Judah and would sit upon the throne of His father David and yet David was His son because Yeshua was in the beginning with the Father. He existed with the Father before anything there is was. In the final analysis Yeshua will sit on the throne of David and restore Israel to the way His Father had always meant it to be.

Luke 1:68-75

68 "Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, for He has visited and redeemed His people, 69 and has raised up a horn of salvation for us In the house of His servant David, 70 as He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets, who have been since the world began, 71 that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us, 72 to perform the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember His holy covenant, 73 the oath which He swore to our father Abraham: 74 to grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve Him without fear, 75 in holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life.

These were the words spoken by the Priest Zechariah after the birth of son Yochanan would is better known as John the Baptist. He would be the one who would come before the Messiah and would pave the way for the Messiah ben Joseph, the suffering servant. These are the two Messiahs known to the Jewish people and they are the ones they are looking for and the reason they missed Him the first time was because they were looking for the Messiah ben David who would come in the power and might of King David and not the Messiah ben Joseph who would come like Joseph the son of Jacob who suffered until finally being restored by God at the moment he was needed to save his people just like the Messiah does with us.

The Jewish people were blinded to the truth of Messiah Yeshua because they were doing exactly what the Jewish people have done after then and that was to look for King Messiah and not the servant Messiah that has to come first. One day that error will be fixed and Judah will look on the one whom they have pierced and will finally have the blinders lifted to behold their King. The nations will also recognize Him and finally they will know the truth and yet they will still rebel against Him. This is the beginning of the end for those who stand against God and His Son. The Son comes to set up the Kingdom for His Father to come and take up the throne and together the Father and Son will rule over their Kingdom forever. This will not be a temporary Kingdom but one that will last from the eighth day on.

This will be the day of Shemini Atzeret, the eighth day of assembly, when the Lord asked His people to remain behind for one more day with Him. This will finally be the day. Eternal will mean eternal and not something that will pass away. If we could only understand that the Torah is not just for the Jewish people but for everyone things would be a whole lot better.

Deuteronomy 29:14 "I make this covenant and this oath, not with you alone, 15 "but with him who stands here with us today before the LORD our God, as well as with him who is not here with us today.

God makes it very clear that day that His covenant of Torah was the tie that binds all of Israel together and that Israel was the not only the one that stood before Him that day thousands of years ago but it included the people who had been added to Israel down through the ages up to our day. We were with our ancestors when God made this covenant. The Torah is His covenant and is the word of God and Yeshua is the living Word of God so Yeshua is the living covenant that seals us forever unless you choose otherwise. Choose wisely and not the way Solomon did. He turned away from the God of his father and followed after the gods of his foreign wives.

Joshua 24:15 "And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD."

I choose the words of Joshua, who do you choose?

You will not attain what you love if you do not endure much that you hate, and you will not be freed from what you hate if you will not endure much from what you love…Moses ibn Ezra

If you want to learn more about your Hebrew/Jewish Roots sign up for one of our e-mail lists at http://etz-chayim.org/cgi-bin/dada/mail.cgi and for other Torah Studies check out:

Tony Robinson at www.devoted.to/Torah (sign up)

Mark R. Ensign at mrensign@arn.net (request to be added to list)

Ardelle Brody [abrody@mchsi.com](posted on Mordecai’s website along with his Torah commentary-an excellent woman’s perspective)

May the Lord bless you and yours… Mordecai Silver

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If you have been blessed by what you have read in these daily e-mails or by what you have read or listened to on our website at www.etz-chayim.org please make a donation to Tree of Life Messianic Ministries on our website by clicking on the donation button in increments of $25.00 and you can increase your donation by changing the quantity…

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We need your support

2008-10-05T22:40:07Z

Shalom: We have also added a new section to our on-line store for DVD’s. We are now carrying the DVD’s of Mordecai’s new TV show Our Jewish Heritage: Restoring our Hebrew Roots. These DVD’s have been professionally edited and cost $7.00 each. They are on a variety of subjects pertaining to the weekly Torah, Haftarah, and Apostolic Scripture portion. They are great for personal use in your studies or in a group setting. They are the next best thing to being able to see Mordecai live. Also check out our News page where we have updates on what is taking place at our congregation’s and what is new on our website.

Tree of Life Messianic Ministries offers the following services:

· We publish all the books and audio CD’s by Mordecai Silver and other teachers

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Whatever you can do to help we thank you and appreciate all of you. Thank you for helping Tree of Life Messianic Ministries to make a difference throughout the Messianic Community!

Our preference would be for you to purchase our materials, even if you give them away, as it will allow us to get our teachings out into the Messianic Community.

You can pledge a monthly amount via Visa, Mastercard, Discover,PayPal, or by snail mail. You can contact us at tolmm@etz-chayim.org or by snail mail at: PO Box 467, Organ, NM 88052. Tree of Life Messianic Ministries is a non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation recognized for tax exempt purposes by the IRS. We have a donation link on our website at www.etz-chayim.org that allows you to donate by Visa, Mastercard or Discover directly through our website. It can be done in increments of $25.00. We also accept donations through Paypal. All of your donations go to the work of Tree of Life Messianic Ministries and not to Etz Chayim-Tree of Life Messianic Congregation. Tree of Life Messianic Ministries and Etz Chayim-Tree of Life Messianic Congregation are separate ministries.

Todah Rabbah (Thank you very much)…

May the Lord bless you and yours… Mordecai Silver

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If you have been blessed by what you have read in these daily e-mails or by what you have read or listened to on our website at www.etz-chayim.org please make a donation to Tree of Life Messianic Ministries on our website by clicking on the donation button in increments of $25.00 and you can increase your donation by changing the quantity…

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If you would like to have your group listed on our website at www.etz-chayim.org/directory.htm drop us an e-mail with your information…

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Check out our different e-mail groups at http://etz-chayim.org/cgi-bin/dada/mail.cgi

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Tree of Life Messianic Ministries is a legally incorporated non-profit ministry with 501 (c) (3) status…

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DVD Special

2008-10-05T22:30:06Z

We have over 28 DVD’s that are commentaries on the weekly Torah, Haftarah, and Apostolic Scripture portions. Each DVD is 30 minutes in length and costs $7.00. If you purchase all 28 titles at $7.00 per DVD you would pay $196.00. For the month of October you can purchase all 28 DVD’s for the special price of $125.00. That is a savings of $71.00! To order this special send a check or money to Tree of Life Messianic Ministries, PO Box 467, Organ, NM 88052. S&H included within the United States but extra for international orders. To order by credit card call 575-382-0193 or fax us your information to our toll free fax number 1-866-800-2390.

May the Lord bless you and yours… Mordecai Silver

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If you would like to have your group listed on our website at www.etz-chayim.org/directory.htm drop us an e-mail with your information…

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Check out our different e-mail groups at http://etz-chayim.org/cgi-bin/dada/mail.cgi

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Tree of Life Messianic Ministries is a legally incorporated non-profit ministry with 501 (c) (3) status…

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Have a Blessed Shabbat

2008-10-03T16:50:04Z

Have a Blessed Shabbat My Friends!

Psalm 122:6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: "May they prosper who love you.”

May the Lord bless you and yours… Mordecai Silver

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If you would like to have your group listed on our website at www.etz-chayim.org/directory.htm drop us an e-mail with your information…

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Check out our different e-mail groups at http://etz-chayim.org/cgi-bin/dada/mail.cgi

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Tree of Life Messianic Ministries is a legally incorporated non-profit ministry with 501 (c) (3) status…

Subscribe to messianic_life_dlist via email by entering your email address below: