Rabbi’s Reflections – Wednesday, June 2, 2021
Shalom,
A N N O U N C E M E N T
Our long time friend, Ted Pearce (https://tedpearce.com/), is coming to Shomair this Shabbat, and all are welcome. He will be ministering with many songs he has written over the years and in word as well. It’s been a long time since Ted was with us. We are looking forward to catching up with how the Lord is using him in this season of life.
Interestingly, he is bringing his virtual reality program with him. Many of you will be able to tour Israel in virtual reality. How exciting.
Daily Bread, reading plan by Lars Enarson (https://www.thewatchman.org/)
Wed 2 June-2021 22nd of Sivan, 5781
Nu 14:26-15:7 Jer 32 Dan 8 (Mk 14:43-72) 1 Co 14
God is never done loving Jewish people. The Bible makes this clear, especially today as we read through Jeremiah 32. God gave us this hint of His great love for His people, Israel. Jeremiah 32:15 For thus says Adonai-Tzva’ot, the God of Israel: “Houses and fields and vineyards will yet again be bought in this land.” There will be a return…
Where is the great promise of return in Jeremiah 32? We’ll get to that, but first we have to hear from God regarding all the destruction.
Jeremiah 32:22 You gave them this land, which you swore to their fathers to give them, a land flowing with milk and honey. 23 They came in and possessed it. But they did not obey your voice nor walk in your Torah. They have done nothing of all you commanded them to do. Therefore you caused all this evil to fall on them.
Then, just a few verses later (but still in the same chapter) we read of the fulfillment of the promise God gave at the beginning of the chapter…Jeremiah 32:37 “See, I will gather them out of all the countries, where I have driven them in My anger, My fury, and great wrath, and I will bring them back to this place and cause them to dwell securely. 38 They will be My people, and I will be their God. 39 I will give them one heart and one way, so they may fear Me forever; for their good and for their children after them. 40 I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never turn away from doing good for them. I will put My fear in their hearts, so that they will not depart from Me. 41 “Yes, I will delight in doing good for them, and with all My heart and all My soul I will in truth plant them in this land.” 42 For thus says Adonai: “Just as I have brought all this great evil on this people, so I will bring on them all the good that I have promised them.
God does things in layers. We had the first exile in Jeremiah’s day, followed by the first ingathering 70 years later. Then we had the second exile after Yeshua came (in 70AD). This was followed by the second ingathering about 1800 years later (give or take). We are still living in the season of that second ingathering.
Yes, that little piece of “Promised Land” is still being fought over. We read of the sovereignty of God in several places in Jeremiah 32. Jeremiah’s prayer starts like this… Jeremiah 32:17 “Ah, my Lord Adonai! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and by Your outstretched arm—nothing is too hard for You!
Then Jeremiah heard the voice of God again… Jeremiah 32:27 “Behold, I am Adonai, the God of all flesh; is there anything too hard for Me?”
My point in writing this to you today is that Jeremiah was able to hear from God in troubled times and make wise decisions as a witness to God’s goodness. We should pray for that same anointing. May we hear from God and make wise (sometimes even counter-intuitive) decisions in the coming days.
Week 23
Memory Verse: 1 Peter 2:23 When He was abused, He did not return the abuse. While suffering, He made no threats. Instead, He kept entrusting Himself to the One who judges righteously. 24 He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, so that we, removed from sins, might live for righteousness. “By His wounds you were healed.”
111 6/3 Monday: Isaiah 6, 9
112 6/4 Tuesday: Isaiah 44, 45
* 113 6/5 Wednesday: Isaiah 52, 53
114 6/6 Thursday: Isaiah 65, 66
115 6/7 Friday: Micah 1; 4:6-13; 5
Question of the day: What does Isaiah’s prophesy mean? Isaiah 52:3 For thus says Adonai: “You were sold for nothing. So you will be redeemed without silver.”
Answer: Israel went down in defeat. Defeated and “sold” into slavery, but for nothing. There is no reward for rebellion against God. But I want to focus on the idea of being “redeemed without silver.” 1 Corinthians 6:20a For you were bought with a price. That price is not a dollar amount. Our redemption is “purchased” by the shed blood of Yeshua. Ephesians 1:7 In Him we have redemption through His blood—the removal of trespasses—in keeping with the richness of His grace….
We are given a vision of this in Revelation. In the 5th chapter, the 4 living creatures and 24 elders are singing a new song. Here is a “snippet” of the lyrics. Revelation 5:9b by Your blood You redeemed for God those from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. 10 You have made them for our God a kingdom and kohanim, and they shall reign upon the earth.”
As a “type A” personality, I’m always trying to get to the bottom line. The “bottom line” here is this… Romans 6:1 What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may abound? 2 May it never be! How can we who died to sin still live in it? 3 Or do you not know that all of us who were immersed into Messiah Yeshua were immersed into His death? 4 Therefore we were buried together with Him through immersion into death—in order that just as Messiah was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. God has raised us up, so let us walk by the light of His glory.