LIGHT OF MENORAH

The Lord’s Prayer - Lesson 5 part 1- Hallowed be thy name

When was the last time you hallowed?  Is it allowed in your church?  Where you work?  Did you learn how to hallow in Sunday school?  Why aren't more 21st century Christians hallowing?  But, perhaps they are!  

 

In the 2nd Temple Period, the first century A.D. or Jesus' day, Jesus' talmideem, Hebrew for disciples, knew exactly how to hallow!  Jesus' fellow rabbis helped all know how to hallow the name of Adonai.  So when Jesus teaches His talmideem HaTehfeelah Adonai, the Lord's Prayer, and gives it to them so it becomes, HaTehfeelah Talmideem, the Prayer of the Disciples, the disciples understand clearly what all this means.  It was part of their culture and probably taught in their בֵּית סֵפֶר - pronounced  Bait Sefer, elementary school, so the Jewish kids right from the get go would know how to "hallow the name of Adonai." 

 

Now it's our turn - let's learn what they did.  Let's try and understand how they understood so that HaTehfeelah Talmideem, the Prayer of the Disicples, becomes that much more meaningful for us today.

 

Once again there are links I bring up in the podcast.  See below for the links for this lesson.

 

Link - Lois Tverberg' article, "What Does It Mean to Hallow God's Name? - https://engediresourcecenter.com/2019/06/06/what-does-it-mean-to-hallow-gods-name/

 

Link - Lois Tverberg's website - https://ourrabbijesus.com/

 

Rev. Ferret - who is this guy?  What's his background?  Why should I listen to him?  Check his background at this link - https://www.dropbox.com/s/ortnret3oxcicu4/BackgrndTeacher%20mar%2025%202020.pdf?dl=0

The Lord’s Prayer - Lesson 4 - ”Who Is In Heaven”

We continue with the words of the Lord's Prayer, HaTehfeelah Adonai.  Our focus is now on the words, "...who is in heaven."  This begs the question where does God live?  Where is His abode, where does He dwell 24/7?  Isn't heaven the sky above and space with the moon and sun and planets and galaxies?  If so does God live out there behind a nebula or a galaxy hidden from our eyes?  Or, does the English language cause some issues?  We have put the Lord's Prayer into its historical context and we see that it was first taught in Hebrew to a specific group of people, the religious Jewish disciples, and in a specific culture and time; He taught it sometime between 24-30 A.D. to those who practiced Second Temple Judaism and who only had the Old Testament, the Hebrew scriptures, as their only Bible.  So, let's jump in.  Let's see what they knew and understood in Hebrew.  Let's find out where God lives and dwells 24/7.  

Once again here's links I mentioned in the lesson.  Check them out as they hopefully will add and enrich your study of HaTehfeelah Adonai, the Lord's Prayer which He gave to us, His disciples, and we can now call it, HaTehfeelah Talmidim, the Prayer of the Disciples.

Link Gethsemane 1 - https://www.facebook.com/lightofmenorah/videos/229720674906046/

Link 2a - Dr. Brad Young's videos on the Hebrew background of the Lord's prayer - https://www.bradyoung.org/index.php/videos/40-dr-young-s-youtube-links-on-god-s-learning-channel

Link 2b - Dr. Brad Young's scholarly work on the Jewish background of the Lord's prayer - click here to access all his books in the bookstore  

Link 2c - Dr. Brad Young's article on the Lord's prayer at "Jerusalem Perspective" - https://www.jerusalemperspective.com/2229/

Rev. Ferret - who is this guy?  What's his background?  Why should I listen to him?  Check his background at this link - https://www.dropbox.com/s/ortnret3oxcicu4/BackgrndTeacher%20mar%2025%202020.pdf?dl=0

The Lord’s Prayer - Lesson 3 - ”Our Father”

In this lesson we start our study of the exact words of the Lord's prayer.  This lesson will focus on the first two words, "Our Father." 

Is Jesus teaching something new?  Is Jesus bringing in a new idea?  Were the disciples of Jesus amazed at the start of the prayer when they heard the words, "Our Father?"

Again, we return to 24-30 A.D. - the time when Jesus was here as a rabbi, as a Torah teacher.  Torah does not mean law but instruction.  Jesus was teaching the Father's instruction and not laws.  That makes sense when you understand what Torah means and that all the had in Jesus' day was the Hebrew Scriptures that we call the Old Testament.  There is nothing OLD about it.  And, as we reconnect to those days we find that these two words, "Our Father," show that the Lord's Prayer that He gave to His disciple, and therefore to us, is a prayer coming out of a Jewish culture; we can therefore more fully appreciate the prayer when we understand its Jewish background and foundation.

I said I'd supply some links.  The links in this lesson are referenced below.

Dead Sea Scrolls Link 1 - https://www.deadseascrolls.org.il/

The Tobit fragment - Link 2 - https://www.deadseascrolls.org.il/explore-the-archive/search#q='4q200'

Gethsemane - Link 3 - https://www.facebook.com/lightofmenorah/videos/229720674906046/

Rev. Ferret - who is this guy?  What's his background?  Why should I listen to him?  Check his background at this link - https://www.dropbox.com/s/ortnret3oxcicu4/BackgrndTeacher%20mar%2025%202020.pdf?dl=0

The Lord’s Prayer - Lesson 2 - Don’t Repeat, Repeat, Repeat

In this 2nd lesson on the Lord's prayer we will focus on Jesus' specific guidelines He taught when we pray.  1st, go into your inner room.  Next, do not use meaningless repetition like the pagan Gentiles.  Are these instructions unique?  Is Jesus teaching us something that is different than praying as a religious Jewish person in His day?  Are these guidelines uniquely Christian?  NOPE.  Jesus is teaching and emphasizing what His disciples have been taught as they grew up in their hometown synagogue schools.  As we study this in its historical context we find we are dealing with things so common in the Hebrew culture of the 1st century, Jesus' day.  But, Jesus is emphasizing that prayer is not just going through the motions.  Jesus is teaching us this act of prayer is a big deal in that praying to the Father is talking to Him in a deeply personal, intimate, and private manner.  He is teaching us that concentrated and intentional prayer is a mark of a true disciple.

Again, in this session I mention a few resources.  I am providing the links to two of them.  The first is a link to the early Jewish Christian instruction booklet called the Didache (Greek for "teaching") written in the late 1st century.  It provides guidelines and instruction for living as a true disciple.  The second link is Ray Vander Laan's article on Rabbi and Talmid or Rabbi and Disciple.  The Lord's prayer has been given to His disciples since one of His disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray.  Knowing what a disciple is is important background for us to know the Lord's prayer and how it relates to us.

Link to the Didache - http://www.thedidache.com/

Link to Ray's article on Rabbi and Talmid - https://www.thattheworldmayknow.com/rabbi-and-talmidim

Rev. Ferret - who is this guy?  What's his background?  Why should I listen to him?  Check his background at this link - https://www.dropbox.com/s/ortnret3oxcicu4/BackgrndTeacher%20mar%2025%202020.pdf?dl=0

The Lord’s Prayer - Lesson 1 - Pray Like the Rabbi

 

This is a NEW podcast series.  We will focus on the Lord's Prayer or what we sometimes call, "The Our Father."  There are 100's of excellent books from excellent scholars on this prayer.  What we will do is simply look at this prayer in its historical context.  And, God willing, this perspective will only add to the understanding we have of this prayer and prayer in general.  In this first session we ask why did Jesus give the disciples this prayer?  The Jewish people in Jesus' day were known as a praying people.  They had a set of prayers they prayed three times a day!  This was normative as relates to the Jewish culture of Jesus' day, 2nd Temple Judaism.  So why does Jesus add to their list of prayers?  As we reconnect to the culture the reason is explosive and only challenges us to also understand how this prayer relates to us in the 21st century.  

In this session I bring up various links to other resources.  Here's the links below.

Link 1 - Dr. Brad Young's videos on the Hebrew background of the Lord's prayer - https://www.bradyoung.org/index.php/videos/40-dr-young-s-youtube-links-on-god-s-learning-channel

Link 2 - Dr. Brad Young's scholarly work on the Jewish background of the Lord's prayer - click here to access all his books in the bookstore  

Link 3 - Dr. Brad Young's article on the Lord's prayer at "Jerusalem Perspective" - https://www.jerusalemperspective.com/2229/

Link 4 - Ray Vander Laan's article on "Rabbi and Talmidim" - https://www.thattheworldmayknow.com/rabbi-and-talmidim

Rev. Ferret - who is this guy?  What's his background?  Why should I listen to him?  Check his background at this link - https://www.dropbox.com/s/ortnret3oxcicu4/BackgrndTeacher%20mar%2025%202020.pdf?dl=0

Genesis - 86 part 2 - Gen. 38:9-30 - THE EXTRAORDINARY HAND OF THE LORD

THE STORY OF JOSEPH - lesson 5

GOD'S PARADIGM OF SALVATION OF THE WORLD

JUDAH AND TAMAR - PART 2

What is going on?  Joseph is nearly killed by his brothers, saved by Rueben, and Judah suggests they sell Joseph to a group of Ishmaelite traders.  They sell Joseph and the caravan carries Joseph as a slave to Egypt.  The story is just beginning and then out of nowhere comes Genesis 38 and the saga of Judah and Tamer.  Why did God cause this baffling interruption to the Joseph story?  Perhaps one reason is when we return to Joseph we will see that Joseph will not see his brothers, specifically Judah, for 20 years.  In those 20 years Judah has his encounter with his daughter in law, Tamar.  So, the Lord may have interrupted the Joseph story to do a kind of “meanwhile back at the ranch” side story.  But, this is God’s word!  His written word, especially His Torah, is said to be the Way and the Truth and the Life.  From the face of it, the Judah and Tamar story, though interesting in itself, is still baffling.  There must be something else going on. 

The great scholar Nahum Sarna, the author of the JPS Torah Commentary – Genesis, says there must be more to the Judah and Tamar saga since this saga is closed up in scriptural bookends.  Here’s the verse just before the Judah and Tamar event …

Meanwhile, the Midianites sold him in Egypt to Potiphar, Pharaoh's officer, the captain of the bodyguard. (Gen 37:36)

After this verse is chapter 38 or the Judah and Tamar saga.  Then we read the verse in chapter 39:1 – the verse immediately following the Judah and Tamar story …

Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt; and Potiphar, an Egyptian officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the bodyguard, bought him from the Ishmaelites, who had taken him down there. (Gen 39:1)

These two verses are almost identical repeats of each other. It is as if God packed in the Judah and Tamar story between these verses as to say that He engineered it, designed it exactly as is, so as to seemingly tell us this event, the saga of Judah and Tamar is a “big deal” and it critically related to the Joseph story.  Now, the Torah itself does not tell us why God inspired Moses to write it tis way.  All we can do is guess and speculate.  Dr. Sarna is a brilliant mind and awesome scholar and he thinks the story packed in between Gen. 37:36 and Gen. 39:1 is done on purpose to shake up our minds to really focus on Judah and Tamar.  There must be a significant reason why God is seemingly calling attention to this interruption.  In this podcast we will consider the possibilities.  We’ll find it seems to be a story that is intimately connected to the Joseph story and, on top of that, the coming of Jesus!  Just wait till you study along with me.  The Judah and Tamar saga is a story that gives us insights that God is designing amazing events.  He is behind it all.  Through all this we see the Cross of Christ in the distant horizon of time being planned by יד האלוהים Yad Eloheim - the hand of God.  

The rabbis have a saying for this ...

חיי האבות הם סימנים לבנים

HaYay HaAvot Hem Seemaneem Lay Baneem

The Lives of the Fathers are Signs for the Sons

In light of this the rabbis early on connected Joseph to the Messiah.  They said Joseph was a prototype of the Messiah.  For us that means Jesus.  Over and over again as we see Joseph we see the Messiah, our Jesus.  Joseph is God's model of what a savor of the world should be like.  We will continue to see these unbelievable connections of Joseph and Jesus.  God designed it this way so that Joseph is a picture of the coming Messiah.  And, the Judah and Tamar story adds to God’s engineering for Jesus, His birth, and His mission.

 Here are some resources to study that will add to your knowledge of these awesome and critically important last chapters of Genesis.

Link 1 - a great article from the awesome website, Hebrew4Christians, focusing on one title of the Messiah the rabbis used in the time after the 3rd century A.D., "Maschiach ben Yosef," or Messiah the son of Joseph.  This has to do with the fact the rabbis recognized that the Messiah had to suffer and even die.  They also recognized that the Messiah would also be victorious as well and establish the throne of Israel in Jerusalem in the days called "The Messianic Age" or the day Messiah comes to rule and reign - https://www.hebrew4christians.com/Articles/Mashiach_ben_Yosef/mashiach_ben_yosef.html

Link 2- a second article written by my lead teacher in my graduate program, Dr. Ron Mosely that discusses Joseph is a prototype of the the suffering Messiah just like David is a prototype of the conquering Messiah - https://www.academia.edu/3796976/Twice_Rejected_Mashiach_Ben_Joseph

Link 3 - a link to Netivyah ministries in Jerusalem.  This is a Messianic Jewish ministry founded by Joseph Shulam, an amazing Jewish scholar who helps us reconnect to our Jewish roots of our faith.  This link is to a book written by one of their resident scholars, Elhanan ben Avraham, "Moshiach ben Yosef" (Messiah the Son Of Joseph).  I highly recommend you get this book and all the books you can buy from this ministry - https://netivyah.org/product/mashiach-ben-yoseph/

Rev. Ferret - who is this guy?  What's his background?  Why should I listen to him?  Check his background at this link - https://www.dropbox.com/s/ortnret3oxcicu4/BackgrndTeacher%20mar%2025%202020.pdf?dl=0

 

Chanukah is Coming - is it about Yeshua? The Endtimes? The Antichrist?

Genesis 86 part 1 - Gen. 37:26-36, 38:1-9 - Judah and Tamar - God’s Plan for Messiah

THE STORY OF JOSEPH - lesson 4

GOD'S PARADIGM OF SALVATION OF THE WORLD

As we see in lessons 1-3 Joseph is 1) hated by his brothers and 2) they are jealous or envious of Joseph and 3) the plot to kill him.  But remember the rabbis of old recognized something truly amazing.  The Lord is uses PARADIGMS or patterns, templates, or models.  It is the Lord taking a person or event that becomes a prototype (synonym for paradigm) for another person in the future or an event in the future.  The rabbis have a saying for this ...

חיי האבות הם סימנים לבנים

HaYay HaAvot Seemaneem Lay Baneem

The Lives of the Fathers are Signs for the Sons

In light of this the rabbis early on connected Joseph to the Messiah.  They said Joseph was a prototype of the Messiah.  For us that means Jesus.  And just as we will see in this podcast that Joseph is sold for 20 pieces of silver as suggested by Judah (his name in Hebrew is Yehooda), his older brother.  We also see that Jesus was betrayed by Judas for 30 pieces of silver.  Judas’ name in Hebrew is Yehooda or Judah.  Amazing.  Over and over again as we see Joseph we see the Messiah, our Jesus.  Joseph is God's model of what a savor of the world should be like.  Joseph was born of Rachel in a miraculous birth and grew up and saved the world with the bread of the earth.  Jesus was born of Mary in a miraculous birth an saved the world with Himself and through Himself with the bread from heaven.

For more resources to study this in more depth check the links below.

Link 1 - a great article from the awesome website, Hebrew4Christians, focusing on one title of the Messiah the rabbis used in the time after the 3rd century A.D., "Maschiach ben Yosef," or Messiah the son of Joseph.  This has to do with the fact the rabbis recognized that the Messiah had to suffer and even die.  They also recognized that the Messiah would also be victorious as well and establish the throne of Israel in Jerusalem in the days called "The Messianic Age" or the day Messiah comes to rule and reign - https://www.hebrew4christians.com/Articles/Mashiach_ben_Yosef/mashiach_ben_yosef.html

Link 2- a second article written by my lead teacher in my graduate program, Dr. Ron Mosely that discusses Joseph is a prototype of the the suffering Messiah just like David is a prototype of the conquering Messiah - https://www.academia.edu/3796976/Twice_Rejected_Mashiach_Ben_Joseph

Link 3 - a link to Netivyah ministries in Jerusalem.  This is a Messianic Jewish ministry founded by Joseph Shulam, an amazing Jewish scholar who helps us reconnect to our Jewish roots of our faith.  This link is to a book written by one of their resident scholars, Elhanan ben Avraham, "Moshiach ben Yosef" (Messiah the Son Of Joseph).  I highly recommend you get this book and all the books you can buy from this ministry - https://netivyah.org/product/mashiach-ben-yoseph/

Rev. Ferret - who is this guy?  What's his background?  Why should I listen to him?  Check his background at this link - https://www.dropbox.com/s/ortnret3oxcicu4/BackgrndTeacher%20mar%2025%202020.pdf?dl=0

 

Special Video - Our Hope in the Days of Darkness and Death and Violence

Exodus - 49 part 2 - Exod. 21:1-2 - Love Your Non Hebrew Slave As Yourself

LESSON 49 PART 2

GOD’S NEW LAWS ON SLAVERY

I mentioned in the audio lesson about a number of links I’d provide that will enhance and add to your study.  These links are shown below.

Great article on slavery as found in the Bible – a must read for all of you serious about your understanding of God’s word -

https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/slavery-in-judaism 

Another awesome article reviewing slavery in the Bible – discussing that God was setting up conditions to eliminate slavery once and for all -

https://www.thetorah.com/article/the-treatment-of-non-israelite-slaves-from-moses-to-moses

Here’s a third article reviewing slavery Biblical slavery – these three articles are a great way to get a detailed view of what God’s word with His people 3400 year ago to be a witness to all the surrounding pagan nations as to who God is and His special and unique view of all men and women - https://www.bibleodyssey.org/articles/slavery-in-the-hebrew-bible/

In this podcast we will see how non-Hebrew slaves were to be treated by the Hebrews then, in the 15^th century B.C.  For example, check out Lev. 19:18 and 34. 

You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the sons of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself; I am the LORD. (Lev 19:18)

The stranger who resides with you shall be to you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt; I am the LORD your God. (Lev 19:34)

 

Here in the Torah, God’s instruction, the Lord is telling the Hebrews 3400 years ago that 1) to love your neighbor as yourself and 2) to love the stranger as yourself (Hebrew word translated as stranger means then one living close to you, not a Hebrew, and a pagan – it does not exclude the non-Hebrew slave who is a resident stranger, non-Hebrew, living among you – slaves are included).  Thus, it is clear the Lord is telling them then and us now that the stranger among us, one who is not like us, one who is not even part of our religion, are to be loved by us as our neighbor.  We notice that slaves are included in these laws.  Why?  Because God does not say that slaves, Hebrew and non-Hebrew slaves, are excluded from these laws.  This would’ve been explosive in the ancient Near East back then when slaves were looked down upon as almost not human in some cases.  But, our God, the only God, the true God, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob, and the God of Israel, as we shall see in this lesson, is saying to all of us that we are made in His image, plus that all men and women are equal in the eyes of the Lord, and all men and women are to be treated as if almost as if they were family.  When we sit back and stop to listen as they heard God’s word then, we see that our God is totally awesome and has given us a perspective for us today of how we as His people should treat and love others.  Jesus said it be when we read about a question He was asked in the Temple Courts …

 

One of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?" And He said to him, " 'YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.' "This is the great and foremost commandment. "The second is like it, 'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.' "On these two commandments depend (the Greek word translates a Hebrew word meaning “crucified.”  WOW!!  Is Jesus giving us a picture that the Written and the Living Word a day or two later were crucified together?)  the whole Law and the Prophets." (Mat 22:35-40)

Rev. Ferret - who is this guy?  What's his background?  Why should I listen to him?  Check his background at this link - https://www.dropbox.com/s/ortnret3oxcicu4/BackgrndTeacher%20mar%2025%202020.pdf?dl=0