Author: FCC Admin

Channukah and Matthew 24

Informing our view of scripture and prophecy through the Feast of Dedication.

Video with slides below via Rumble

Audio only via Spotify below

Today’s message is about how important Hanukkah is to the faith once delivered to the saints even though the majority of beliers don’t understand this remembrance at all.

The word chanukkah is spelled a few different ways in English because the first letter is not an English letter. This word is pronounced like you are clearing your throat. Regardless of how it is pronounced or represented in English, the word is very important. It means dedication and, in context, the dedication of the temple. This is the word used in Torah when talking about dedicating and consecrating the Levitical service. This festival is not part of Yahweh’s appointed times outlined in Leviticus 23, but it was definitely part of Jewish life in the first century. Yeshua was at the temple for the Feast of Dedication recorded at John 10:22 and they asked Him if He was the Christ, meaning Messiah, specifically at that time. For those of us who have studied Chanukkah, this banter has quite a lot more meaning and none of it has to do with miraculous oil.

If you want to know the official story on Chanukkah, please read the 1st book of Maccabees. It’s available at the link that follows or in any version of the LXX Brenton Septuagint Translation Maccabees I 1 (ebible.org)

The books of Maccabees aren’t considered scripture, which is why they are not included in our 66 book bibles. They used to be in family bibles in a special section called “the Apocrypha” which means “these books are important to the faith but are not considered to be inspired”. They and a couple other books that aren’t in our bibles are in the LXX because they were considered important enough to be preserved by the Rabbis who made that first translation of the Hebrew bible into Greek about 120 years before Yeshua. 1 and 2 Maccabees are very true recordings of history and they chronicle why there came to be a Feast of Dedication.

The absurdly abridged true version of Chanukkah is that it’s the observance of the temple being cleansed and re-dedicated after the Greeks defiled it under Antiochus Epiphanes. When the Greeks took over Judea, many Jews joined Greece even to the point of un-circumcising themselves. The Greeks burned the Torah scrolls and did horrible things to children who were circumcised and their mothers. The Greeks wanted to erase the faith of Abraham from the face of the earth and bring their blended pagan worship to Judea. A small band of true believers fought back against this and prevailed over much time. Their leader was called Judas Maccabeus, meaning Judah the Hammer, because he was successful in defeating the impossible-to-defeat Greeks. The Greeks defiled the Temple with the abomination of desolation and did other horrific things. The Maccabee family pushed Greece out of Judea which allowed for the Temple and Levitical service to be restored and all the paganism to be eradicated from the Holy Land. Once the Temple was restored, the menorah was lit to show the people everything was back the way it was supposed to be and they celebrated by having an 8 day festival in winter like Sukkot. There is no record of a miracle of oil in the books of the Maccabees, the Festival is 8 days long because it mirrored Sukkot.

Now that you have an absurdly abridged version of Chanukkah, let me explain what they were really asking Yeshua in John 10. They were asking Him if He was a messiah like Judas Maccabeus. They were asking if He was going to lead a rebellion against Rome and restore Judea like the Maccabees did prior. And He didn’t really answer their question.

Now we come to the Matthew 24 connection. Matthew 24 is where most of Christianity looks to read about Yeshua speaking of His return, which is often equated erroneously with the end of days. The end of days is 1000 years after His return, but that’s a story for another today. Today, let’s address Matthew 24 where the banter starts with Yeshua’s disciples marveling at the Temple.

Slide 2 Yeshua left the temple area and was going on His way when His disciples came up to point out the temple buildings to Him. But He responded and said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down.” (Mat 24:1-2)

In an earlier message I spoke about how the destruction of the temple, but really the destruction of all Judea, in AD70 proves Yeshua to be the Messiah. These verses are that reference. In reality, Yeshua’s response at Matthew 24:2 should be in all caps, signifying it’s a call back to an Old Testament prophecy.

Slide 3 “Then after the sixty-two weeks, the Messiah will be cut off and have nothing, and the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. And its end will come with a flood; even to the end there will be war; desolations are determined. And he will confirm a covenant with the many for one week, but in the middle of the week he will put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering; and on the wing of abominations will come the one who makes desolate, until a complete destruction, one that is decreed, gushes forth on the one who makes desolate.” (Dan 9:26-27 NASB)

This is how the NASB reads for this prophecy. The NASB is based on the Masoretic text, the Hebrew Bible that from about 1000 AD. It is a good thing for us to use a Tanakh, or Old Testament, based on Hebrew, because it preserves (or restores) how these words should be represented. And you can see in the English here that the temple is going to come down and that’s associated with “abominations”. Now let’s take a look at how the LXX represents this. The LXX is a Greek translation of the Hebrew scriptures from about 120 years before Yeshua. I referenced it earlier when I recommended everybody read 1 and 2 Maccabees. This translation was made before Yeshua and since the New Testament was written in Greek, and based off of the LXX, oftentimes our NT references match the LXX better. Check this out.

Slide 4 And after the sixty-two weeks, the anointed one shall be destroyed, and there is no judgment in him: and he shall destroy the city and the sanctuary with the prince that is coming: they shall be cut off with a flood, and to the end of the war which is rapidly completed he shall appoint the city to desolations. And one week shall establish the covenant with many: and in the midst of the week my sacrifice and drink-offering shall be taken away: and on the temple shall be the abomination of desolations; and at the end of time an end shall be put to the desolation. (Dan 9:26-27 Brenton LXX)

Doesn’t this sound a whole lot more like Matthew 24 than the Hebrew translation? I think so. The reason I wanted to show this to you is because of the phrase “abomination of desolations” and that the Temple and all Judea were going to be destroyed. You can see very clearly that this abomination had already happened once and is going to happen again. And the reason Matthew 24:2 should be in all caps, showing it’s a reference to the Tanakh (the OT), is because Daniel prophesied the destruction of the second temple and all Judea being associated with the Messiah.

Slide 5 And as He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” And Yeshua answered and said to them, “See to it that no one misleads you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and they will mislead many people.” (Mat 24:3-5)

There’s a separation in my bible between verse 2 and 3 that was put there by the NASB translators. It’s not supposed to be there. What did the false messiahs say in the first century? They said the Rome was going to be purged and the temple restored at that time. This was what the people wanted and why they asked Yeshua if He was the Messiah at the Feast of Dedication – they believed erroneously the next Messiah would RESTORE Judea even though the Bible said that the DESTRUCTION of Judea was associated with the coming of the Messiah.

Slide 6 “Therefore when you see the ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place—let the reader understand— then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains. Whoever is on the housetop must not go down to get things out of his house. And whoever is in the field must not turn back to get his cloak. But woe to those women who are pregnant, and to those who are nursing babies in those days! Moreover, pray that when you flee, it will not be in the winter, or on a Sabbath.” (Mat 24:15-20)

He goes on further in Matthew 24 to talk about wars and rumors of wars and then He gets to this. Almost all of Christianity doesn’t know that the abomination of desolation has already happened. Twice. I implore you all to read 1 Maccabees and then you will understand that He was quoting it here. He was telling them to reference Daniel 9 and 1 Maccabees to understand the future prophetic proof of Him being the Messiah was that the temple was going to be defiled again as it had been before, but that next time, which was in AD 70, was going to lead to a complete destruction of Judea. 1 Maccabees talks in great detail about not going back and a slaughter the revolutionaries endured on the Sabbath after they rebelled against the Greeks. He was telling them that not only was He not there to restore Judea but that the next step in the plan of Salvation after His death and resurrection was going to be the destruction of the Temple. Those who came to understand this knew to leave Jerusalem when Hadrian’s army approached in AD70 and flee to the mountains. Those who didn’t, well, it didn’t go well for them. See The Temple and the Messiah – First Century Christianity for details.

So what do we do with Chanukkah, the Feast of Dedication? Brothers and sisters, we need to understand it and let it inform our view of the first century faith. We also need to understand it to inform our view of future events. The Feast of Dedication happened as a remembrance of the Jews getting rid of paganism and restoring Judea to proper worship and governance. This is a foreshadowing of the entire world getting the same treatment. We look forward to Judea being cleansed of its sins and the true, never defiled temple coming down from heaven when the Messiah returns. We look forward to a time when we will live in a world with a proper religion and governance, with Yeshua as our King and Yahweh as our God. My family lights a 7 candle menorah during Chanukkah to remember the rededication of the temple and looking forward to the eradication of all the sin and paganism we are surrounded by. This is just a tradition we have and not a commandment since Chanukkah is not a commanded festival in the Torah. But Yeshua did observe it and John recorded it, so we should do something for it. And the most important thing we can do for it is to read about it. Shalom.

Homeschooling Tips!

Any good parent cares immensely for the future of their child/children and part of that is thinking ahead for their educational path. While it is not for every family, homeschooling is a great option to consider. My family had its own journey and came through the other side, seeing success for our children.

We want to share some homeschooling tips from our personal experience. Your experience will and should be different from ours, so please don’t think of this article as a complete recipe for success.

Decision making

Early on, my wife and I decided that public school was not the path we wished to put our children on. Neither of us had great experiences in public school; my wife’s public school experience was so bad, and since her parents couldn’t afford tuition, she opted to work her way through private school by washing dishes in the cafeteria. 

Different states have different rules for homeschooling so please check your state before assuming anything. We are blessed to live in Missouri, which is one of the most favorable states for those who choose to homeschool. Homeschooling is a blessed path because you can tailor each child’s education to their God-given traits and personality.

Where to start

Tip 1:
Do not start from scratch!
We decided for the benefit of the family to begin each child with at least two years of private school before we endeavored to home-school them. We used this to establish basic order and teach them to read. Part of this journey is realizing where you need help and expecting to pay for that help.

Regardless of what avenue you choose, there is a cost.  Public and private schools have fees, wardrobe expectations, etc. Private schools have high tuition.  

Tip 2:
Designate roles.
I highly recommend that one parent be the designated breadwinner and concentrate on that while the other concentrates on the schooling. 

Both parents must realize that the parent doing the homeschooling is a human with limitations. There came times when my wife needed a vacation or just a couple of days off. The concept that being a housewife or home school mom is somehow not a job is absurd. My wife even went to a hotel for the weekend a few times just to have some alone time and unwind.

Prior to sending the kids to private school, we enrolled them in daycare for a couple of hours a day, a couple of times a week. My wife was the teacher and, frankly, sometimes she needed to be alone to get some chores done, or just run errands without the clan in tow. Daycare also helped the kids to learn order but was a necessity for sanity and for the house to generally operate.

Tip 3:
Be realistic.
The bread-winning parent needs to set realistic expectations of what the running of the household will be like. 

I traveled for work extensively when the children were young and I would come home to a disaster of a house sometimes. If a child or my wife had gotten sick, if an appliance had broken down, or if a kid had had a tantrum, sometimes the place would just be a hopeless mess. I had to learn to see that and realize she did not intend for the house to look like that, rather than becoming part of the problem by getting upset.

Tip 4:
Academic discipline.
Remember how I said this path isn’t free? We had a rule that each child had to master something like a sport or a musical instrument. This teaches them at a very young age how to achieve long-term goals and the satisfaction of mastering a skill that nobody can ever take from them.

Because of our geography, we were a bit limited as to what they could choose. Each child started with gymnastics and then had a choice to try one other activity or stay in gymnastics. My son and one daughter left and became black belts in martial arts. One daughter stayed and entered competitive gymnastics. Both daughters added music to their repertoire, one becoming a classical pianist and another learning guitar.

The point of this, and the private school, is to realize that accredited teaching is very valuable. It teaches the children to respect genuine authorities and then to become genuine authorities on subjects. A big drawback of leaving the public school system is the lack of authority-led instruction so we have to find a way to achieve this. The kids must understand how important it is to respect those who have put in the time to master things and how to recognize people in life who are, frankly, charlatans.

The curriculum is also very important. These can be purchased online or at stores like Mardel’s (Mardel Christian & Education). These cost a couple of hundred dollars and will walk your child through entire subjects or entire grade levels. They come in workbook forms and in computer forms. Alpha Omega (Homeschool Curriculum – AOP Homeschooling) and Teaching Textbooks (Teaching Textbooks — homeschool math curriculum free trial) were two resources we used to significant effect.

Tip 5:
The public library is your friend!
Libraries are a splendid resource for homeschoolers. They will host homeschooling events, offer classes, and host movie nights.

My girls were into reading and developed remarkably advanced vocabularies at a young age. Our library card offers online resources that rival the Library of Congress. One huge perk was free access to a language learning website called Mango Languages where you could learn any language on earth for free (if you linked up your MidContinent library card). This program is worth quite a bit of money and meets a graduation requirement: Remember, foreign language is a requirement for high school graduation, and entrance into most colleges and universities.

Mango Languages (Home – Mango Languages) is a program that excels because it teaches grammar, not just how to speak a foreign language.

Tip 6:
Transcripts are required.
Keeping track of what the kids learn is generally important but becomes crucial once your child starts high school.

Transcripts are required to enter community college. We used TranscriptPro | EdPLUS® (homeschooltranscripts.com) for our daughters and it was accepted without question. Granted, you have to fill it out yourself, so our experience may have been uniquely blessed. What’s great about this program is that extra-curricular activities like music and karate can count for credit as do jobs if you enter information properly. 

While transcripts were required for our kids entering college, my son went into a trade upon graduating from high school and has not had to show a diploma to anyone. He just enters that he graduated from homeschool on his applications and it has worked for him. We do recommend providing transcripts though, in case anyone ever does ask. 

Tip 7:
Encourage independence. 
I just touched upon entering the workforce or a trade. One great thing about homeschooling is the flexible hours. Our children started working the moment they could. They wanted out of the house and we wanted them to start earning money on their own so we could teach them about money management (a skill I don’t think public school will ever teach). 

Because of homeschooling, they were able to work during the day pretty much anywhere they wanted during the school year. This has helped them immensely as they have progressed into other jobs and my son entered a trade quite young. This is because they possess basic employee acumen and communication skills that most people don’t develop for a few more years. Our children are frequently mistaken for being much older than they are because they acquired experience and work skills at such young ages.

Tip 8:
Prepares students for real life!
With respect to college, homeschooling prepares a student for college while public school simply doesn’t.

Our kids have been studying like college students since middle school. The two who entered college are excelling because they are already independent studiers who are comfortable expressing themselves. 

Final BIG tip:
Dual enrollment.

The biggest tip I want to share:
We graduated our older daughter a year ahead to start community college early. She had earned it and we thought she had to be done with high school to enter college. While she had earned the honor of completing high school, this was a financial mistake. Because we live out of district, her tuition ended up being full cost from day one. Our younger daughter enrolled in community college at age 15, and we learned that she did not have to be graduated from high school to take community college classes. In fact, being technically “in high school” qualified her for a 50% discount; this is called dual enrollment!

There you go! The biggest tips we gleaned after homeschooling three children, all of whom grew through it into productive, mindful, young adults. Blessings! 

If you have questions or comments, I welcome them. You can either comment on this post or contact me here!  

(This blog post has been updated from an earlier version.)

The Temple and the Messiah

Daniel 9 Proves Jesus is Messiah

For those who desire proof Jesus is the Messiah, the destruction of the second temple provides ample. The leaders in Judea at the time of Christ were looking for someone to free them from the Roman occupation. They were looking for a messiah like Judas Maccabeus, who led the successful revolt against the Greeks. The Maccabees were successful in repelling the pagans and restoring Judea. The leaders in the time of Yeshua, aka Jesus, were looking for the same thing. This is why the disciples were constantly ready to fight for Him, because they could not comprehend a different outcome.

The prophecy of the ultimate Messiah, Jesus aka Yeshua, given by Daniel, included the phrase “desolations are determined”. This mean that the true Messiah was quoting Daniel when He foretold the destruction of the temple at Matthew 24 and other places. In fact, this phrase is why they ultimately killed Him, defying even the prophecy they sought to be fulfilled.

Fully understanding the fall of the Temple and the events that led to it helps us to understand our faith better. This message identifies the four key factions in the first century working to remove Rome and their idiosyncracies. This knowledge helps us to build confidence in who Jesus aka Yeshua really was. This detailed message about the fall of the second Temple ties in relevant scriptures to Daniel 9 and provides proof Jesus is the Messiah. I recommend watching this one because the notes below are pretty rough.

Proving-Yeshua-is-the-Messiah-from-the-Destruction-of-the-TempleDownload

Thanksgiving and Torah

Giving thanks to Yahweh is a very biblical concept. Let’s enjoy this day of unity!

Video with slides below via Rumble.

Audio only via Spotify.

Slide 2 Give thanks to YHVH for He is good, For His lovingkindness is everlasting. Give thanks to the God of gods, For His lovingkindness is everlasting. Give thanks to the Lord of lords, For His lovingkindness is everlasting. (Psa 136:1-3)

Give thanks to YHVH, for He is good, For His lovingkindness is everlasting. Give thanks to the Elohim he elohim, For His lovingkindness is everlasting. Give thanks to Adonai ha adonim, For His lovingkindness is everlasting. (Psa 136:1-3)

Hodu YHVH kit tov, ki l’olam chasdo. Give thanks to YHVH for He is good, his love is everlasting.

The thanksgiving holiday is uniquely North American. It is a remembrance of God preserving early European settlers on this continent after a terrible winter. They survived terrible primitive conditions, cold, disease, lack of food, and the like until the following year or years, with the help of Massasoit’s native American tribe, they were able to raise enough crops to preserve themselves and begin to grow. The held a feast in autumn to give thanks to the Creator of the universe for allowing them to live and then thrive. They feasted on turkey and deer for several days. Indeed, clean foods for a festival to honor God.

Slide 3 “When you have eaten and are satisfied, you shall bless YHVH your Elohim for the good land which He has given you.” (Deu 8:10)

Having a national day for us to give thanks to Yahweh is a very good thing. This celebration does not pretend to be a holy day, but a day of gratitude. It’s a blessing for us because we can celebrate with our families without any religious tension at all. The Torah commands us to give thanks when we have eaten and are satisfied. Even I forget to do this because our society blesses the meal before we eat, but let’s remember to do it at the right time this year. Or before and after. Giving thanks on an annual basis is also a good thing.

My family and church family have had a pretty rough year, if we were to think of times being rough. We’ve lost many loved ones, even a couple of the brethren. We lost one of our beloved dogs, a sister in Messiah named Edna who died at a good old age, a sister in our congregation lost her husband and then she herself passed exactly a month later to the day. And my own mother died at a good old age. Through all this I give thanks to Yahweh that we were all together to suffer these losses. I give thanks that I could be there for people and that they could be there for me. I give thanks that we were able to afford the time and travel necessary to attend to all these things, and more. I give thanks that my children are healthy and growing up well and becoming good citizens along the way. I give thanks for our little fellowship that shares openly and supports each other. I give thanks for the larger brethren, the WI feast site, and all of our friends, because having a larger group of like-minded brethren out there is very comforting.

Slide 4 Click

I hope you all find blessings in this American tradition and find many things to be thankful for. One thing we all must be thankful for is that Yahweh gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life. It’s a blessing in this life when Yahweh brings us through trials, but we know that’s not always going to be the case. But whatever happens in this life, we have the opportunity to enter eternal life with Yahweh and His Son.  Hodu YHVH ki tov, ki l’olam chasdo. Give thanks to Yahweh for He is good, his love is everlasting.

Cult Followings

Why are we such suckers?

Video with slides below through Rumble.

Audio only via Spotify below.

Cult Followings

Why are we such suckers?

My car selling story

FTX currency – young man with immense disposable wealth, no flags from agencies, people taking the money gladly

Elizabeth Holmes – young college dropout shows up with technology that exceeds science fiction with no peer review papers, gets billions in financing.

Church leaders, pundits and political figures that tell us what we want to hear and then we fall for them to the point that we can’t see their blatant flaws.

Why does this keep happening? Same as the garden – the serpent deceives.

But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil. (1Th 5:21-22)

This isn’t just for religious stuff. We have to be diligent in all things, brothers and sisters. Deception is very strong and very alluring. What we think isn’t spiritual always ends up being spiritual. Elizabeth Holmes defrauded immense people and caused others to have physical harm with faulty medical tests. Friedman defrauded financial houses and caused people’s pensions and 401ks to get decimated. Religious cult leaders enrich themselves and abuse authority given to them by their followers. Political leaders who don’t have ethics or a conscience don’t care if they harm the universe as long as they get re-elected. All of these things are incredibly sinful with devastating consequences.

In the end times, there will be false prophets who perform miracles to get people to follow them. At the present time, we as a society keep following false prophets without the miracles. Think about that for a while.

Are You Worshiping False Gods?

If you found out you were accidentally worshiping false gods, would you make a change?

Video with slides below from Rumble.

Audio only below via Spotify.

Pat Robertson admitting Christmas is pagan on live TV below.

If you found out you were accidentally worshiping false gods, would you make a change?

Christianity universally accepts the Ten Commandments as foundational. These were the ten words spoken by Elohim (Yahweh) directly to the people at Mount Sinai, they were written in stone, placed in the ark, and are the bedrock of a civilized and faithful society that fears the true God. The first four commandments show us how Yahweh wants to be worshiped and specifically does not want to be worshiped. Let’s take a look at the first three:

  1. “You shall have no other elohim before Me. “
  2. “You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, YHVH your Elohim, am a jealous Elohim, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.”
  3. “You shall not take the name of YHVH your Elohim in vain, for YHVH will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain.” (Exo 20:3-7)

For those who may be hearing me for the first time, I use the Hebrew Names for God (Yahweh) and Jesus (Yeshua) while also using the Hebrew word for God, which is Elohim. It’s more precise and I find it to be more respectful but I also use the traditional words so people don’t get lost in translation.

So what action could we possibly be doing that breaks these commandments? Have you ever thought about it? While we cherish the 10 commandments, we normally only focus on the last 5 of them. But these are the top 3, and Yahweh led off with the most important commandments, if they could be ranked. He even includes that He’s a jealous God, meaning that He’s not inclined for us to share our devotion with another.

To be blunt, the celebration of Christmas breaks all three of these commandments. I know that sounds almost blasphemous to many Christians, but it’s the reality. Christians have been coming to this truth for decades and we used to have to direct everyone to the Encyclopedia or a couple books like The Two Babylons or Too Long in the Sun to show that Christmas is actually a pagan holiday. But a couple years ago Pat Robertson, the famous Southern Baptist Minister, actually let the cat out of the bag in a TV interview and affirmed the truth, that Christmas is a pagan holiday. If you go to firstcenturychristianty.net, the website for this ministry and where this podcast is posted, his video will be embedded below this one so you can watch it for yourself. And let there no longer be any doubt, this holiday has nothing to do with the actual birth of the Son of God or of the true worship of Yahweh.

So I’m going to work from the bottom up on how Christmas breaks the commandments. You see, when somebody tells us “Christmas is pagan” and then we look it up and discover it’s true, we have to make a change. Classically trained theologians and ministers, like Pat Robertson, know that December 25 and it’s observances are pagan but they don’t tell their congregations. That, brothers and sisters, is taking God’s Name in vain. Taking His Name in vain means to misrepresent Him. Teaching that this religious observance is somehow scriptural or sanctioned by Yahweh is lying about scripture, which breaks the third commandment cleanly. Watch that Pat Robertson video and realize how cavalierly he is breaking the third commandment. Shamelessly. And all those ministers out there who know the truth are doing the same thing.

The second commandment is broken through idolatry. I’m sorry, but dragging evergreen trees into our houses, setting them up in a place of prominence, and placing gifts under them as if they are the providers, is idolatry. The evergreen tree was used in pagan religions as a symbol of life during winter, when everything else dies off. Jeremiah 10 actually mocks this practice, even to the detail of decorating the wood with silver and gold, which is what tinsel does. Jeremiah 10 is referencing idolatry more like statues, but the description is so similar to what is done with a Christmas tree that it’s uncanny. The idolatry goes even further with all the ornaments, elves, and a false god called Santa who’s made out to be all knowing and the judge of all the living. I could go on, but you all get the drift.

The first commandment is broken by the entire practice of mixing pagan worship practices with Christianity. This is THE sin Israel kept getting smote for over and over. It’s completely prohibited to have any false god stuff in the sight of the true God, Yahweh. Making up our own holidays in the name of God would be bad enough, but Christmas is almost completely adopted from pagan sun-worshiping religions of antiquity. The twelve days of Christmas come directly from Roman polytheism, the yule log is pagan, the timing is pagan as it is celebrated when the sun looks to be far off and returning for another year to give life. And the date of December 25 has nothing to do with the God of the Bible at all.

Yeshua, our Messiah, told us to do something very specific to remember Him. And we know exactly when that is. The night before Passover every year, we are to get together to remember His sacrifice by washing each other’s feet and having bread and wine. He literally said to do that in memory of Him. His birth is pretty hard to deduce from the scriptures. One has to look at when John the Baptist was conceived and then born and then add six months. We generally come up to Yeshua being born in the fall. If we were to observe His birth, it would have been recorded specifically and the date would have been on the Hebrew calendar, not the Roman calendar.  But it’s not.

So, brothers and sisters, I encourage you to listen to Pat Robertson tell us the truth about Christmas and then share in my shock when he and the hostess of the show say it’s OK. It’s not OK. It’s contrary to the commandments and the very sin that Israel was guilty of many, many times. And this year, take it to heart. Be convicted and stop this practice today.

Antisemitism Makes No Sense

Antisemitism makes no sense from either a practical or a religious perspective.

Slide 1 – celebrities exposing themselves with actual antisemitic views. This has not made sense to me from my youth. Our country respects freedom of religion and, until my conversion (if that’s what we call it) to being a Messianic believer, I was rather oblivious to anything Jewish. But from a secular view only, this group of human beings generally makes society better and keeps to themselves. It blows me away that this small group of people keep coming up at all, let alone in a negative light. And that’s not from any religious perspective at all. When we look at any demographic and see a group of people who have a good work ethic, value education, want to be self-sufficient, and then even make society better with scientific advances, then we should have a favorable view of that group of people. Now, let’s get into the religious aspect of this briefly Slide 2 – Christians, whether we be Messianic or otherwise, are grafted into a branch that already existed. We are adopted into the family of God. Christianity is not a new religion but a continuation of the faith of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. We serve the same God as Moses and our entire foundation is the Tanakh, the Old Testament. I could go on, and on, and on, because this is one of the key concepts I realized when I read the bible for the first time. Slide 3 – The first believers were Jews. And when I say that, I mean for YEARS the first believers were predominately Jews. We start with this 8K, but we Gentiles only got one apostle, Paul, and a little of Peter. The rest got the 12. I know I’m oversimplifying, but it was a long time before the faith went to the Gentiles (us) and when it did, we started showing up at synagogue. To such a degree that Paul had to make a trip back to Jerusalem to have the grand council decide what to do with us. And the end of that decision includes us attending synagogue and hearing Torah every Shabbat. And then we have Paul’s letter to the Romans covering how this was dealt with as the faith grew and became more appealing to gentiles – but we are not to ever get arrogant toward the branches. Slide 4 – New covenant is with Judah and Israel. For it to apply to us, we have to be adopted children of God. We have to be grafted in. That means we don’t replace Israel, but join them, and look forward to a future Messianic Kingdom. Slide 5 – The crucifixion was very unique in that both Gentiles and Jews were responsible for Yeshua’s death. That’s two-fold, we are all responsible for His death and we all can benefit, whether Gentile or Jew. God so love the world, the whole world, that He gave His only begotten Son. Remember that. The death is for the whole world, but those who accept Him as Messiah, the Son of God, have the opportunity of salvation by being adopted children of God and heirs according to the promise. I don’t see where antisemitism has any place in this formula. Shalom.

Did Yeshua Really Say We Can’t Have Teachers?

In Matthew 23: 6-11, Yeshua said to call no man “teacher”, among other things. Was He being literal here? Are we really prohibited from having teachers and leaders?

Video with slides below. Courtesy of Rumble

Audio only below. Courtesy of Spotify

A common misconception that comes up with those of us who have come out of mainstream Christianity, and very often with those who have been in oppressive ministries like the former WCG, is to reject ministers, preachers, and leadership altogether. I see this a lot among my brothers and I entertained a variation of this for quite a few years myself. I’ll explain at the end how I realized my own error.

Slide 2 “And they love the place of honor at banquets, and the seats of honor in the synagogues, and personal greetings in the marketplaces, and being called Rabbi by the people. But as for you, do not be called Rabbi; for only One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers and sisters. And do not call anyone on earth your father; for only One is your Father, He who is in heaven. And do not be called leaders; for only One is your Leader, that is, Messiah. But the greatest of you shall be your servant.” (Mat 23:6-11)

I know what you’re saying. “But Chris, it says right there not to call anyone a rabbi or a teacher or a leader. You’re all washed up.” Except He also says not to call anyone your father but we know that can’t be true because we have to call our parents mother and father.

Here’s an earlier version of a message I gave at Sukkot this year on reading the Bible. How to Read the Bible – First Century Christianity Part of that message addresses taking the bible too literally. I’m no fan of titles or hierarchal leadership systems in church settings, but the reality here is that Yeshua is not being completely literal here. We have to read through the entire passage to understand what He’s getting at. He is making sure His disciples know they are to be servants and not lords over the people because they were about to become some of the most influential leaders and teachers in history. He was telling them to be like Moses – servant leaders – and to explicitly NOT be like the haughty religious leaders of their day.

So it sounds like I’m contradicting scripture here, so I guess I better get to the proof texts.

The only person in the NT to be called Rabbi, meaning the literal word Rabbi, is Yeshua. But the other word for teacher is G1320 Didaskos (different from Rabbi) but is when He says not to be any teachers, He uses this word. The reason we know He’s not being literal is because this exact word  used later to describe teachers in the Church of God.

Slide 3 And He gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelists, some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the building up of the body of Messiah; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Messiah. As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of people, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, that is, Messiah, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love. (Eph 4:11-16)

For the record, the word for teachers here is the same word that Yeshua said to not call anyone. And this is but one of many passages I could use to show teachers and leaders in the first century church. Clearly He didn’t mean for there to be no teachers. That would be preposterous because His disciples, which are the equivalent of talmidim and mean students, became Apostles and then went off to teach the world about the Son of God. This passage defines a lot of leadership roles in the NT assembly. What are the reasons for these leaders? To build unity, protect against false teachings, increase knowledge in the Son of God, and allow for the body to grow in love. Yeshua was not railing against having leadership and teachers, He was railing against the widespread misuse of these offices. The proper usage of these offices is to build each other up in love, not try to tear people down and spread division. In fact, these offices exist to deal with the miscreants who bring division and strange teachings.

Earlier I mentioned I would let you know how I realized my error in rejecting leadership. This story is two-fold. The first reason is the brutal reality that it just doesn’t work. Somebody has to take the lead if anything is going to get done. We only get to have assemblies because peopl step up to lead them. We only get to have Sukkot sites because people step up to do the work to host them. I was in an assembly for many years that “had no leader” but in practice they had one, everybody knew who it was, and if he hadn’t taken the lead to organize and get the basic stuff done, it would not have happened. When we went off on our own, I became the same guy. I was constantly eschewing official leadership but it made doing stuff very difficult because I technically did not have the authority to spend the group’s money or sign contracts. And then I realized there’s nothing wrong accepting the gifts Yahweh has given us. In fact NOT using them risks committing the unpardonable sin! The fact that people misused authority in the past is not a reason to reject it. It’s a reason to not abuse it and use it properly.

The passage above says these gifts and offices are for the equipping of the saints. I like to give the message about how to read scripture when I go to sukkot to fulfill this mission. That message let’s people know some simple things that will help the bible become a lot clearer. At Sukkot, I also demonstrated software to teach us how to read Hebrew and how to get the Masoretic Text on our computers. Why? Because it took me 20 years to get to the maturity of the faith and I want it to take less time for you. I want to empower you to get to the knowledge of the truth on your own time and in your own way. I trust the Ruach ha Kodesh, the Holy Spirit, to lead us into all truth. You may be interested in different topics that I have ever been interested in, so if I can help you to get on that path quicker and more accurately, then I believe I have used my gifts well.

My example for this are the men who trained me to speak and teach. They were secure enough in their faith to let me learn while doing and I want to keep that tradition going. Because that’s the maturity of the faith.  

Yeshua Our Mediator

The most important information in the history of mankind is that Yeshua (Jesus) is the Son of God and the Mediator between us and God.

Video with slides below courtesy of Rumble.

Audio only below courtesy of Spotify.

Today is the Sabbath before we break for Sukkot. By now I hope all the calendars are done observing Yom Kippur, but you never know. Yom Kippur is incredibly important to Christianity. It’s a shame that only a small percentage of those of us who accept Yeshua as the Messiah observe. The New Testament has an entire book devoted to Yeshua being our Mediator, which is the Book of Hebrews. The most important piece of information any human can know and believe is that Yeshua is the Messiah, the Son of God, and died for the sins of anyone who accepts this. This is the only information that is the gateway to eternal life through either the resurrection of the dead or through being caught up in the air when Yeshua returns. Everything we do in our walk with Yahweh and His Son is based on this truth. Today, before we break, let’s refresh on this truth.

Slide 2 For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and mankind, the man Messiah Yeshua, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time. For this I was appointed as a preacher and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), as a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth. (1Ti 2:5-7)

Still slide 2 For this reason He is the mediator of a new covenant, so that, since a death has taken place for the redemption of the violations that were committed under the first covenant, those who have been called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance. (Heb 9:15)

Paul didn’t write the book of Hebrews so here are our two witnesses. This concept of a mediator. However, Paul writes that he was appointed a preacher and an apostle to teach the gentiles this specific truth. That’s very significant because we are the beneficiaries of his teachings. Through Paul, Yahweh evangelized the western Roman empire of the truth of the Messiah. Paul was a very unique individual, born and trained for such a time as that. He was a gifted Rabbi, trained by Gamaliel himself, but was also a full Roman citizen so he could travel freely and operate anywhere within the Roman Empire. He knew several languages fluently, specifically Greek, so he could teach the Messiah to the world. This starts with the Torah.

Slide 3 Then YHVH Elohim said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you more than all the livestock, and more than any animal of the field; On your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life; and I will make enemies of you and the woman, and of your offspring and her Descendant; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise Him on the heel.” (Gen 3:14-15)

In our way of thinking, we accept the entire Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, as scripture and applicable to our lives and faith. The Torah, also called the Law or the Pentateuch, is the foundation of all scripture and truth. This right here is a prophecy of Yeshua. It was a mystery how a descendant of the woman could damage the serpent until Yeshua came born of Mary. Mary, a virgin, impregnated miraculously to give birth to the Son of God.

Slide 4 And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and give birth to a son, and you shall name Him Yeshua. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.” But Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” The angel answered and said to her, “The Ruach haKodesh will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; for that reason also the holy Child will be called the Son of God.” (Luk 1:30-35)

The Name of the Messiah is Yeshua, which means salvation. This is from, among other places, Isaiah 52. In verse 7 it says how delightful the feet are of those who announce Salvation, which is a prophecy of John the Baptist who came as an Elijah ahead of Yeshua to announce His arrival. And then at the end of Isaiah 52 and into chapter 53, it prophecies Yeshua’s crucifixion and death, calling Him Yahweh’s Servant in 52:13.

Yeshua is Yahweh’s Servant. Let this sink in. Here in the middle of the message is probably the most important topic:

Slide 5 “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that of everything that He has given Me I will lose nothing, but will raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.” (Joh 6:38-40)

Yeshua’s will could have been different than Yahweh’s. But the way, Yeshua is the Name of the Son of God, Yahweh is God’s Name. Yeshua was and is an independent being. The message of the Gospel is that the Son of God came down and fully, 100%, submitted to Yahweh. That He died sinless, murdered by both the Gentiles and the Jews, brutally, and was resurrected by Yahweh three days and three nights later. By us accepting that God sent His only begotten Son, we have the chance at eternal life. By accepting that Yahweh made a way for mankind to be reconciled to Him, a way that is foolishness to most, understanding this truth, and deciding to obey, we have the chance to enter into eternity with Yahweh and Yeshua. And how was this accomplished?

Slide 6 “The God of our fathers raised up Yeshua, whom you put to death by hanging Him on a cross. He is the one whom God exalted to His right hand as a Prince and a Savior, to grant repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses of these things; and so is the Ruach ha Kodesh, whom God has given to those who obey Him.” But when they heard this, they became infuriated and nearly decided to execute them. (Act 5:30-33)

Do you see how this is the most important information in all of humanity? Peter and the apostles were granted the Holy Spirit to be able to stand in front of those with the power to kill them and testify that Yeshua died innocently, on a cross even, the execution method of the pagans and a curse to hang an Israelite on a tree. That it was the God of their fathers, who are now our fathers, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Yeshua who did this. And that through Yeshua’s death and resurrection repentance is possible as is the forgiveness of sins. They were standing before the very people who had killed Yeshua two months prior and were telling them the very information they killed Yeshua to stop. And how do they start?

Slide 7 But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men.”(Act 5:29)

This is the verse prior to their testimony and they told the High Priest Himself that they had to obey God rather than men, meaning them. This is incredible because up until this point. The Kohen Gadol, the High Priest, was the mediator between God and men and these brothers were telling him that was no more.

Slide 8 Now the main point in what has been said is this: we have such a high priest, who has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a minister in the sanctuary and in the true tabernacle, which the Lord set up, not man. For every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices; so it is necessary that this high priest also have something to offer. Now if He were on earth, He would not be a priest at all, since there are those who offer the gifts according to the Law; who serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things, just as Moses was warned by God when he was about to erect the tabernacle; for, “SEE,” He says, “THAT YOU MAKE all things BY THE PATTERN WHICH WAS SHOWN TO YOU ON THE MOUNTAIN.” But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, to the extent that He is also the mediator of a better covenant, which has been enacted on better promises. (Heb 8:1-6)

We have a new High Priest with a new covenant established in the heavenly tabernacle. This is a better covenant. But we don’t get to get carried away with this. Because we can’t understand the New Covenant without understanding the Old Covenant.

Slide 9 For in finding fault with the people, He says, “BEHOLD, DAYS ARE COMING, SAYS THE LORD, WHEN I WILL BRING ABOUT A NEW COVENANT WITH THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL AND THE HOUSE OF JUDAH, NOT LIKE THE COVENANT WHICH I MADE WITH THEIR FATHERS ON THE DAY I TOOK THEM BY THE HAND TO BRING THEM OUT OF THE LAND OF EGYPT; FOR THEY DID NOT CONTINUE IN MY COVENANT, AND I DID NOT CARE ABOUT THEM, SAYS THE LORD. “FOR THIS IS THE COVENANT WHICH I WILL MAKE WITH THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL AFTER THOSE DAYS, DECLARES THE LORD: I WILL PUT MY LAWS INTO THEIR MINDS, AND WRITE THEM ON THEIR HEARTS. AND I WILL BE THEIR GOD, AND THEY SHALL BE MY PEOPLE. (Heb 8:8-10)

This is a quote from Jeremiah 31 but it’s prefaced with finding fault with the people. Boy did Yahweh find fault with them when they decided to crucify His Son. The Torah establishes and defines sin. It defines proper behavior for the children of God. The Old Covenant did work, by the way. The sins were atoned for with the blood of bulls and goats, but it was in a cyclical fashion. It was repeated annually. Yeshua’s death atoned for sin for all time, looking back and forward, which is why the curtain was torn at his death. It signified that all the sins heaped upon that curtain were finally atoned for AND there is a new way to Yahweh, a new High Priest. The people who obeyed and the priests who served honorably did well. We can’t read this to come to the notion that Yahweh gave the Israelites something bad, or strung them along. That’s a reprehensible thought. And we know that sin remains today, which is the transgression of the law. And we know at the end, all will be measured against the law. But this was part of the story. This is the plan of salvation. And those who came before will be judged based on the information of their day.

Slide 10 “Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Messiah—this Yeshua whom you crucified.” Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what are we to do?” Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Yeshua Messiah for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Ruach ha Kodesh. For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far away, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.” (Act 2:36-39)

Brothers and sisters, Yahweh’s plan was laid out from the beginning. From Genesis 3 where Eve’s descendant was declared to bruise the serpent on the head until the crucifixion of our Lord, until His ascension, until the Gospel going forth from Zion, until His return, and until the end, when we enter the olam ha ba, it all has to come to pass. So let’s enjoy ourselves at Sukkot, fellowshipping with our believing and obedient brethren. Let’s enjoy meeting in larger groups, good teachings, music, dancing, food, and festival. But do so in the Name of our Mediator, Yeshua the Messiah.