Perspective

Sometimes in the middle of the battle it helps to gain some perspective.  I often get so caught up in the day to day rush that I loose sight of what really matters.  This time of year I stop and orient myself by contemplating what Jesus was doing as He approached Jerusalem to be crucified.  It puts my struggles into perspective.

Passover is fast approaching, Jesus had turned his face towards Jerusalem and was passing through Jericho.  The crowds were growing larger as word spread that Jesus was in town. The streets of Jericho were already filled with travelers on their way to the temple for Passover. It must have been a festive atmosphere, as Jesus pushed through the crowded city.  A local tax collector named Zacchaeus was desperate to catch a glimpse of Jesus. He climbed up into a tree to see over the throng of people and as Jesus passed by he stopped and called to Zacchaeus by  name, "Zacchaeus! hurry down, I'm spending the night at your house." 
Wow!  Jesus loves a desperate heart!  Jesus responds to a repentant heart!  "Today salvation has come to this house...." and in only a few days SALVATION will be made available to all mankind.  Jesus was on His way to redeem that which was lost.

Passover is only seven days away.  Jesus never lost sight of why He was on His way to Jerusalem. A little man in a tree who was hated by many, despised by all, yet loved by Jesus.

WATCHING

Friday evening as the sun set in Jerusalem a new month began. A few days earlier aviv barley was reported by Karaite Jews in the fields of Israel.

So what does this matter to believers in America today?

Why should we care about an archaic calendar and Jewish traditions that we know nor care little about?

Jesus Himself gives us a clue, "Watch therefore, for you do not know when the master of the house is coming—in the evening, at midnight, at the crowing of the rooster, or in the morning— lest, coming suddenly, he find you sleeping. And what I say to you, I say to all: Watch!”

Jesus was talking to His disciples about His return. His admonition in a word: WATCH!

I'm watching. Are you?

Welcome to Monday!!

ל Lamed

⁸⁹ Forever, O Lord,
Your word is settled in heaven.
⁹⁰ Your faithfulness endures to all generations;
You established the earth, and it abides.
⁹¹ They continue this day according to Your ordinances,
For all are Your servants.
⁹² Unless Your law had been my delight,
I would then have perished in my affliction.
⁹³ I will never forget Your precepts,
For by them You have given me life.
⁹⁴ I am Yours, save me;
For I have sought Your precepts.
⁹⁵ The wicked wait for me to destroy me,
But I will consider Your testimonies.
⁹⁶ I have seen the consummation of all perfection,
But Your commandment is exceedingly broad.

Good Monday Morning!

This is the section of Psalms 119 I’m in this week.  It is the Hebrew letter “Lamed”.  This letter represented a shepherd’s staff and means to teach, bind, or yoke.  It can also mean to move toward. 

This is going to be great Psalm to meditate on this week.  We are leading up to Passover and at the beginning of the year I decided to place a high emphasis on acknowledging the Feast’s of the Lord this year in my personal life.  As the Feast draws near and I begin to think about what Jesus was going through at this point in His life, I am so thankful that God provided a perfect sacrifice for Me.

Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! 
1 John 3:1

The Harvest

This morning as I stepped off of my front porch, I looked up and noticed a nearly half moon directly overhead.  Only seven or eight more days until the beginning of a new month according to the Hebrew calendar.  Not just any month, but possibly the first month of the year, Nisan.  I say possibly because the Hebrew calendar is a lunar calendar and every few years an extra month is added to keep the months in sync. with the seasons.  It is why we add an extra day every fourth year we call leap year.  The Hebrew month we are now in is Adar and if an extra month is added it is called Adar II or Adar Bet.  Modern Jews use a set formula to determine this but in Jesus’ day it was determined by the barley fields.  As the month of Adar drew to a close, the barley was watched closely for ripening heads of grain. If ripe barley was not found then the year would be extended another month.  Why was ripe barley so crucial for the New Year?  Nisan was the month of Passover and the first three of seven very important appointments with Yahwey (God).  We refer to these appointments as the feasts, but they were not manmade events, but established by Yahweh as appointed times.  One of the first feasts is the “feast of first fruits” and requires the first fruits of the harvest to be presented to the Lord.  Does that sound familiar?  For New Testament Believers this idea of “first fruits” is found several times in the New Testament.

For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive.  But each one in his own order:  Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ's at His coming.Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power.  I Corinthians 15:22-24

This feast of first fruits occurs on the “morrow after the Sabbath” which is Sunday morning during Passover.  This is great! On that morning as the priests were waving the sheaves of barley in the Temple, The resurrected Jesus was being glorified before the throne of His Father! Christ the Firstfruit! Wow! Sorry I got side tracked…..

There are still Jews today who follow this ancient custom. They are known as Karaite Jews and they can be found examining the barley fields around Jerusalem this time of year.  They even have a web-site that they post the condition of the barley harvest.  

Well I said all that to say this….. As I gazed upon the Moon this morning and anticipate Passover this year I wonder about the harvest.  One day the master of the harvest will call forth the reapers, and as the above scripture states, “Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father…”

   כ Kaf
 ⁸¹ I long for Your salvation;
I put my hope in Your word.
⁸² My eyes grow weary
looking for what You have promised;
I ask, “When will You comfort me?”
⁸³ Though I have become like a wineskin dried by smoke,
I do not forget Your statutes.
⁸⁴ How many days must Your servant wait?
When will You execute judgment on my persecutors?
⁸⁵ The arrogant have dug pits for me;
they violate Your instruction.
⁸⁶ All Your commands are true;
people persecute me with lies—help me!
⁸⁷ They almost ended my life on earth,
but I did not abandon Your precepts.
⁸⁸ Give me life in accordance with Your faithful love,
and I will obey the decree You have spoken.

“KAF” or “CAPH” is this weeks Hebrew letter.  The image of an open hand represents this ancient letter. It’s meaning is to bend, subdue, tame or open.

 As I read this Psalm I can feel the writer’s desperation.  I like the old King James version of this Psalm because it conveys the weariness of the psalmist’s condition.

⁸¹My soul fainteth for thy salvation: but I hope in thy word.
 ⁸²Mine eyes fail for thy word, saying, When wilt thou comfort me?
 ⁸³For I am become like a bottle in the smoke; yet do I not forget thy statutes.
 ⁸⁴How many are the days of thy servant? when wilt thou execute judgment on them that persecute me?
 ⁸⁵The proud have digged pits for me, which are not after thy law.
 ⁸⁶All thy commandments are faithful: they persecute me wrongfully; help thou me.
 ⁸⁷They had almost consumed me upon earth; but I forsook not thy precepts.
 ⁸⁸Quicken me after thy lovingkindness; so shall I keep the testimony of thy mouth.

This will be a great scripture to meditate on this week.  I printed it off on a small card to keep with me.  Working through Psalms 119 has been awesome. Looking forward to a great week.

   י Yod
 ⁷³ Your hands made me and formed me;
give me understanding
so that I can learn Your commands.
⁷⁴ Those who fear You will see me and rejoice,
for I put my hope in Your word.
⁷⁵ I know, LORD, that Your judgments are just
and that You have afflicted me fairly.
⁷⁶ May Your faithful love comfort me
as You promised Your servant.
⁷⁷ May Your compassion come to me
so that I may live,
for Your instruction is my delight.
⁷⁸ Let the arrogant be put to shame
for slandering me with lies;
I will meditate on Your precepts.
⁷⁹ Let those who fear You,
those who know Your decrees, turn to me.
⁸⁰ May my heart be blameless regarding Your statutes
so that I will not be put to shame.

The Hebrew letter “Yod” is derived from a picture of an arm with an open hand. It means to make, throw or work. The first verse of this section proclaims the Yod. “Your hands made me and formed me.”

Is there anyone who knows me better than God?
He is my creator and savior, could anyone love me more?
He sees my future and knows my past, should I trust Him?
Why do I find it so difficult to obey?
Why do I fret and struggle to find contentment?

This week as I have read this section of Psalms 119, I have been challenged to acknowledge my creator.  It has kept life in the right perspective.