Rabbi’s Reflections – Wednesday, November 6, 2019
Shalom *|FNAME|*,
Let me make a “revelation” right now. What is in the RR below was in the RR exactly one year ago. I’ve been in the semi-annual meeting of the Tikkun American Apostolic Team all day yesterday and today. The meetings are going very well. We are in unity and on task to help our network of congregations grow stronger.
Yesterday I woke up at 3:30am and wrote the RR for Tuesday. Last night I woke up at 1:30am and read the Bible until 3:30 before going back to sleep. The lesson here is that nobody cares what I do in the middle of the night. I copied what I wrote last year and pasted it here below. Please forgive me.
The great revelation near the end of the book of Genesis actually is a mirror image of the great revelation near the end of the book of Revelation. (Is that enough Revelation for you?). Three words in Genesis 45:3.
In Hebrew, it is only 2 words, “Ani Yoseph.” In English, 3 words, “I am Joesph.” With these words Joseph, whom his brothers condemned, is revealed to be their Lord.
Rabbi Trail: Joseph dreamed a dream when he was about 17 years old that his brother’s sheaves would bow down to Joseph’s own. Genesis 37:6 He said to them, “Please listen to this dream I dreamed. 7 There we were binding sheaves in the middle of the field. All of a sudden, my sheaf arose and stood upright. And behold, your sheaves gathered around and bowed down to my sheaf.” Now, 17 years later, it happened, just as Joseph dreamed. End RT.
In ancient Egypt, Joseph is a type of savior for all the other children of Israel and also for the whole world. Today, Yeshua is the reality of that savior (Yeshua is the reality of all things of God); first for the children of Israel and then for the whole world. We long for the day when the scales will fall from the eyes of Jewish people all over the world. Joseph (in Hebrew “Yoseph”) the name means “increaser, additional, or he will add to you.”
Yeshua will call out to His people Israel, “I am your savior; the One for whom you have been waiting.” Then, according to Zechariah 12:10 “Then I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication, when they will look toward Me whom they pierced. They will mourn for him as one mourns for an only son and grieve bitterly for him, as one grieves for a firstborn. (Partially quoted in John 19:37)
But it doesn’t end there. Zechariah 13:1 “In that day a spring will be opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem to cleanse them from sin and impurity. This is confirmed by Paul in Romans 11:25 For I do not want you, brothers and sisters, to be ignorant of this mystery—lest you be wise in your own eyes—that a partial hardening has come upon Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; 26 and in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written, “The Deliverer shall come out of Zion. He shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob. 27 And this is My covenant with them, when I take away their sins.”
There is a great day coming. We do not labor in vain. Let’s wait with expectation. Don’t grow weary. Keep the faith.
Week 45
Memory Verse: Romans 12:1 I urge you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice—holy, acceptable to God—which is your spiritual service. 2 Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.
221 11/04 Monday: Romans 7-8
222 11/05 Tuesday: Romans 9-10
* 223 11/06 Wednesday: Romans 11-12
224 11/07 Thursday: Romans 13-14
225 11/08 Friday: Romans 15-16
Question of the day: We read in Romans 12:14 “Bless those who persecute you—bless and do not curse.” Why did Paul write that?
Answer: Obviously, it is a command from God for the people of God. Therefore; it must be for our own good. Would you rather argue with me? It is certainly difficult to bless and not curse. It goes against the natural tendency. If someone persecutes me, the last thing I want to do is to bless them.
Rabbi Trail: Maybe I could “bless them” in the vernacular by “blessing them out!” But I digress. That would be a clear violation of God’s command (aka “sin”). End RT.
God has brought us into His kingdom to be a reflection of His character in the earth. God clearly says, “Vengeance is Mine.” When He says that, He means we are not to be vengeful but gracious. When our tendency is to curse (get even) with someone who is harming us or our loved ones, the command is not to become bitter, but to bless.
It may sound like I’m preaching at you. Nothing could be further from the truth. I’m writing this for my own benefit. It is a testimony to me. I’m just allowing you to read my own note to myself. May we always share in God’s goodness together. Amen