Rabbi’s Reflections – Thursday, January 6, 2022
Shalom,
If you are a member of Shomair, please remember to register to attend the annual business meeting banquet on January 23rd. The evening will feature a catered dinner, so registration is free, but important.
If you would like to investigate Shomair membership, the Hayesod (Foundations) class is for you. Jan and I will be facilitating the 10 video sessions produced by First Fruits of Zion (ffoz.org) beginning this Sunday, and every Sunday for 10 weeks from 4-6PM.
I Am A Fool For Messiah – part 6
There is a Scripture that addresses foolish behavior. 2 Timothy 2:23 But avoid foolish and ignorant disputes, knowing that they produce quarrels. I think this was written primarily to the Messianic movement. Everybody has an opinion. While opinion may make for interesting conversation, it doesn’t make doctrine. “Sola Scriptura” îs one of the 5 “Solas” of the Protestant Reformation. It is Latin for “Only Scripture,” meaning that only the canonized Bible is the authority for our faith. While some act as if their opinion should carry equal weight, we must put our faith in Scripture and not in opinions.
This leads me to another point concerning foolish behavior. From time to time, we human beings tend to oppose ourselves. I love the way Scripture turns a phrase. Who could have thought this up other than God?
Ecclesiastes 10:1 Dead flies make a perfumer’s oil stink, so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor. 2 The heart of the wise is to his right, and the heart of the fool is to his left. 3 Even as the fool walks along the way, his heart lacks sense and tells everyone what a fool he is.
We love to focus our attention on defeating the enemy, God’s adversary, HaSatan (“the satan” means “the adversary”). But Satan is more easily defeated than God’s other adversary called self. We trip over our own feet. We stumble over our own shadow.
In the Garden of Eden, Satan visited Adam and Eve. All he had to do was ask a few questions to create doubt in their minds. Could God be a liar? Satan didn’t have to tie Adam and Eve down and force feed them the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. To this day, Satan is laughing his head off at how easy it is to seduce the people of God into sin.
Jacob 4:7 Therefore submit to God. But resist the devil and he will flee from you.
One key to being an overcomer is in the previous verse. Jacob 4:6b “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” (Quoting Psalm 138:6). Stay humble, believe God and you will be one of God’s chosen overcomers. 1 John 5:5 Who is it that overcomes the world, if not the one who believes that Yeshua is Ben-Elohim? Trust God.
Daily Bread, reading plan by Lars Enarson (https://www.thewatchman.org/)
Thu 06-Jan-2022 4th of Sh’vat, 5782 Rosh Chodesh Sh’vat
Ex 12:21-28 2 Sa 20 Ps 87 Lk 12:35-59 (Php 2:1-13)
Week 2
Memory Verse: Hebrews 11:6 Now without faith it is impossible to please God. For the one who comes to God must believe that He exists and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.
6 1/3 Monday: Job 38-39
7 1/4 Tuesday: Job 40-42
8 1/5 Wednesday: Genesis 11-12
9 1/6 Thursday: Genesis 15
10 1/7 Friday: Genesis 16-17