Rabbi’s Reflections – Thursday, February 27, 2020
Shalom,
T H R E E A N N O U N C E M E N T S
- Friday night, February 28th, (tomorrow) the “Brothers Together” worship/concert will begin at 7pm at Fellowship Church, 8000 Middlebrook Pike. The doors open at 6. Purchase your tickets here… https://www.eventbrite.com/e/
brothers-together-concert- aaron-shust-joshua-aaron- tickets-81958109913. Where else would you rather be? - Saturday morning, February 29th (Shabbat), prepare for fun and fellowship. Once a quarter there is a 5th Saturday. On those 5th Saturdays (4 times in 2020) we will gather after the Shabbat service in the social hall for fun and fellowship. Bring your own food that you will enjoy (if you don’t like the quality or the quantity, complain to the chef). Bring nothing that has to be cooked or refrigerated, please. Be completely self contained including napkins and silverware. (The bad news is that Shomair will provide only ice. The good news is that we have plenty of ice.) So stay after the service and let’s have some fun.
- Shomrim Tze’irim (Young Watchmen) is our youth ministry. This summer we will have our third annual summer camp. (See the logo above.) We are currently working on the details (to be announced soon). The previous two years we have been able to heavily subsidize each child and adult for the 5 days and nights of camp. We hope to do the same this year, so this Shabbat we will receive an offering for Shomrim Tze’irim. Let’s send these children to camp with our blessing (spiritually and financially).
Pillar Eight: The Kingdom is Expressed in Jewish Calling – part 3
I wrote the bottom part and the announcements first, so this part is going to be intentionally brief.
Jewish calling has much to do with times and seasons. The special events on our calendar every year are called by their biblical name, “The Feasts of the Lord.” Although many people call them “Jewish Feasts,” God never calls them that. They are His feasts.
Valentine’s Day, the Fourth of July, and Halloween are not there. Passover, Yom Kippur and Sukkot (among others) are there. When we observe God’s special days, we honor Him. Why not worship Him by observing His appointed times?
You don’t understand, Rabbi. Yeshua came so that we don’t have to do that any more. Believe that and you’ll have to cut this out of your Bible.
From the sermon on the mount… Matthew 5:17 “Do not think that I came to abolish the Torah or the Prophets! I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. 18 Amen, I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or serif shall ever pass away from the Torah until all things come to pass.
What’s that? “Until all things come to pass?” I have good news! All things have not yet come to pass. If that’s not true, and this IS all there is… we are all in more trouble than we think. Meanwhile, we worship God in keeping His appointed times. And as we do, He continues to provide revelation on His purposes in establishing these celebrations.
Psalms 30:12(13) You turned my mourning into dancing. You removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy.
Jeremiah 31:12(13) Then will the virgin rejoice in the dance, both young men and old men together. For I will turn their mourning into joy, and I will comfort them, and make them rejoice out of their sorrow.
Let’s keep our eyes on Him and we will prosper. Psalm 1:2 But his delight is in the Torah of Adonai, and on His Torah he meditates day and night. 3 He will be like a planted tree over streams of water, producing its fruit during its season. Its leaf never droops— but in all he does, he succeeds.
Week 9
Memory Verse: Exodus 33:16 For how would it be known that I or your people have found favor in Your sight? Isn’t it because You go with us, that distinguishes us from all the people on the face of the earth?”
41 2/24 Monday: Exodus 32-33
42 2/25 Tuesday: Exodus 34-36:1
43 2/26 Wednesday: Exodus 40
* 44 2/27 Thursday: Leviticus 8-9
45 2/28 Friday: Exodus 16-17
Question of the day: Why do we only read 2 chapters of Leviticus?
Answer: We are following the reading plan of Robby & Kandi Gallaty called F-260 from their book Foundations. They selected only 2 chapters out of Leviticus. There are several possible reasons for this. From their Baptist background, they may not be oriented to the value of understanding the Aaronic priesthood and the associated sacrificial system described in Leviticus.
They are also following a chronological reading of the Scriptures. They may not have understood how to fit the instructions to the priests into the timeline of the narrative of the Bible. Lastly, it may have seemed dry to them, so they decided to leave it out.
No matter why they left it out, God put it in, and we can too. Go ahead and read as much of Leviticus as you like. It’s free. That’s several possibilities on why they left out the rest of Leviticus, maybe a better question would be, why did they include these two chapters?
My guess is that the consecration of Aaron and his sons fits into the timeline of the Bible narrative. So let’s go with that. After reading these two chapters, I have one more question. Why did Moses put blood on the right ear, the right thumb, and right big toe of Aaron and his sons?
The ear, thumb and toe represent what you hear, what you do and where you go. The right side is used for this because the right side is the right side and the left side is the wrong side. Think about it. Yeshua is seated at the right side of the Father. We even use it in English; like being in your right mind.
I could go on, but half of you already get the picture, while the other half of you are begging me to stop. Okay then, I’ll stop.