Count the Omer: Today is thirteen days, which is one week and six days of the Omer.
Blessing: barukh ata, yhva eloheynu, melekh ha-y’kum, sh’hatsadik otanu be’emuna b’yeshua hamashiakh v’tsivah aleynu bnogea lisfirat haomer.
Blessed are You, Yehovah our God, King of the Universe, Who has justified us by faith in Yeshua the Messiah and commanded us concerning the counting of the Omer.
Focus Challenge: As a disciple of Yeshua we seek to live disciplined lives in awe of his love, in holiness truth and humility. “(The love of Yeshua constrains us that while we were sinners He died for us”) How He loves us!
Prayer: Heavenly Father, help me to remember that your strength is made perfect in my weakness. Help me to follow your ways as a disciple of Messiah. Amen.
In this week we commemorated Yom HaShoah – Holocaust Day, quoting from a famous rabbi; “The Jews have been an ever-dying people that never died. They live in spite of peril. Their refusal to surrender has turned their story into one long, unending Purim tale.” (Rabbi Dr. Nathan Lopes) Am Y’srael Chai!
Here is a true incident that occurred in the Holocaust that illustrates the point:
“As the camp commander…took a number of young Chassidim to be put to death, one of them asked for permission to say a few words of farewell to his friends. I stood opposite them and heard every word. He did not speak many words….He got hold of the hands of another young man and started singing. They were calling to each other: “Kiddush Hashem, the most important thing, let us rejoice!” They all began to sing and to dance as if a fire had been lit within them. Their sidelocks, which were then hidden under their hats, they now pulled out and let them hang over their faces. They paid no attention to what was going on around them. They were dancing and singing. And I thought I would lose my senses; that young people should go to their death as one goes to a dance! Thus dancing, they jumped into the pit as a rain of bullets was pouring down on them.” (Eliezer Berkovits, as told by a Kapo in the Plaszow concentration camp)
We have recently celebrated Purim and Pesach that focus upon Divine deliverance and redemption. Purim is a concealed redemption of God’s active intervention behind the scenes and is the only book in the Bible where His name is not mentioned even once although it is concealed in the Hebrew. Pesach celebrates God’s sovereign power and protection for His covenant people against a demonic, evil foe. In both cases, attempts were made to annihilate the Jewish people which failed miserably with consequences that rebounded with fierceness and severity upon the perpetrators. This everlasting testament has stood the test of time so no wonder the Chassidim in the story could rejoice even in the face of death. They understood that they were part of an ever-dying people who would never die!
Shortly before their expulsion from Spain in 1492, many Jews eagerly assimilated and considered Spain to be the new Jerusalem, thinking that the presence of so many Jews and Christians of Jewish ancestry in the inner circles of the court, municipalities, and even the Catholic church could provide protection and avert the decree of expulsion. They were wrong. Similarly, German Jews believed that if they assimilated as German, they would be safe from the eternal finger pointing and anti-Semitism that relentlessly pursued them. We remember how this assimilation ended. Strangely enough, even Adolf Hitler wondered how it was that the Jews had survived thus far. In Mein Kampf, he wrote, “When over long periods of human history I scrutinised the activity of the Jewish people, suddenly there arose up in me the fearful question whether perhaps for reasons unknown to us poor mortals we have not yet with resolve ensured the final victory over this little nation.” (i.e., their extinction)”
Out of the ashes of the Holocaust was reborn the nation of Israel, yet hatred against the Jewish people has not abated but increased. The lessons of the past should play a part in our vision for the future that we should cherish in the present. This is why the words, “Never again” remain far more than a slogan.
Through the highs and lows in life God has truly amazing things ahead for each one of us as we press forward with patience, perseverance and confidence in these end times. And in light of our recent commemoration of Yom Ha Shoah and the things that surround our lives in real time we too will never forget because God reigns from His throne so all is good! Am Y’Israel Chai!
SHEMINI (Eighth) Lev 9:1–11:47; Num 19:1-22; 2 Sam 6:1–7:17; Mk 9:1–13
By Raphael ben Levi
Our Torah portion begins on the eighth day following 7 days of careful preparation following the construction of the Tabernacle. Priests were appointed and trained and ready to go, and so the parasha opens with the words, “…on the eighth day Moses summoned Aaron and his sons and the elders of Israel.” (Lev.9:1)
Following all the highs and lows of their arduous 40-year wilderness wanderings, the Israelites now witnessed a pivotal event as the Glory of God filled the entire Tabernacle demonstrating the visible sign of His covenant which represents for us a type and shadow of the Holy Spirit’s seal upon every true believer in Yeshua.
At this point with the priestly garments made, the shifts of the priests arranged, the offerings and duties organised in minutest detail, here in the middle of everything when expectations were at their highest, a catastrophe occurred. Aaron’s two eldest sons appointed to serve in the sanctuary were destroyed by the holy fire of God. Scripture is explicit: “Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu took their censers, put fire in them and added incense; and they offered unauthorized fire before the Lord, contrary to his command. So fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord.” (Lev.10:1-2) T
Sometimes bad things can happen to us that are out of our control known as a “force majeure”, (an act of Heaven). But, here occurred something terrible yet avoidable. Nadab and Abihu offered “unauthorised fire” [‘zarah’-something of another kind]. Any person who claims to identify as a committed believer and fills their life with rebellion however carefully disguised will harvest the fruit of their labour. In the case of Arrons two eldest sons it resulted in their deaths. We dare not underestimate the holiness of God. In Acts 5, Annas and Saphira did so and were struck down by God for something many church leaders today would claim as trivial. Several believers within the early Corinthian church experienced sickness and death by participating in the Lord’s Supper carelessly.
No-one knows for sure what it was Nadav and Avihu offered as ‘unauthorised’ but It was probably connected with drunkenness, since shortly after this event God commanded Aaron in Lev.10:9-10 “Do not drink wine or intoxicating drink, neither you nor your sons with you, when you come into the Tent of Meeting, so that you will not die.”
To treat God’s holiness lightly is folly. Some believers who started well end up exchange their relationship with God for the allurements of the world with devastating results. Similar to Aaron’s two eldest sons, they may have experienced the glory of God at some stage yet allowed it to deteriorate into a faint memory. So too with several famous people in the Bible such as Solomon. May we never allow Satan’s allurements to override God’s boundaries but live in holy fear of the Lord.
It was a profoundly sad moment when Aaron heard the news about his eldest two sons but God told him to keep silent about it. He was not even allowed to publicly grieve or make excuses for his sons’ ungodly behaviour, nor show any outward emotion, or even question the Divine judgment of God. Yet how he must have pondered deeply where he had gone wrong as a father?
And as we all know, the easiest and most natural thing for us as parents is to make excuses for our children no matter how deeply they may be entrenched in sin. But we cannot stand in their place on that day when each person must give an account of their lives before God. So it is upon us to contend for their salvation because unless we do maybe no-one else will. SO many times I have heard testimonies of people who have experienced NDE’s where they discovered that the only reason they were spared an eternity in hell was due to the prayers of a loved one. God is faithful as Estee can testify regarding her unsaved son who she has been praying on her knees day and night for many years.
For everyone who walks in the pathways of God in accordance with His revealed will, never grow tired or weary in placing your full trust in the living God for He has stored up a crown of glory bearing testimony for every overcomer that God has ordained since before creation that will outlast eternity. It is indeed a prize for us that nothing on earth can begin to compare to!
There is a midrash of a king who once entered a city and all the inhabitants came out to applaud him. Their acclamation pleased him so much that he said to them: “Tomorrow I will erect various kinds of baths for you, Tomorrow I will provide you with a water-conduit.” He went away to sleep, but never rose again. Where is he or his promise? But with God it is different because He is ever faithful to His promises”. King’s Unfulfilled Promises – Tanhuma, 3rd century, Lev R 26:1
King David experienced deep betrayal from people whom he considered were dear to him. In Ps.55:12-14 he cried out to God, “If it were just an enemy sneering at me, I could take it. If it were just someone who has always hated me, treating me like dirt, I’d simply hide away. But it is you! A man like me, my old friend, my companion.We enjoyed sweet conversation, walking together in the house of God among the pressing crowds.”
David was devastated, but in the end could say: “But for my part, [Adonai,] I put my trust in you” and placed his hope and confidence in the living God that never fails or grow dim even in the worst moments that life throws at us!
Herein is something incredible. God can transform everything – the good, the bad and the ugly – and change it into something precious. Joseph could testify that what man intended for evil God turned it for good – but it comes at a cost. In His magnificent and infinite compassion and mercy, His faithfulness and patience, He takes the raw material of our lives, that formless lump of clay, and fashions it into something of infinite beauty! There are no limitations in the Kingdom of God for those who yield themselves unreservedly to Him! And through it all one thing that continually challenges us in the midst of change and transformation is forgiveness.
This is illustrated in the true account of an American GI in the aftermath of World War 2, on his return train trip after visiting Dachau concentration camp. It show cases the many dilemmas we may face, as indeed I was confronted with in similar ways as a young Jewish man struggling to come to terms with personal loss from the Holocaust.
“Until now I had not been aware of the compartment’s other passenger. Slowly my eyes focused on a blond, blue-eyed Aryan! I wanted to spit and run. The thought of sharing a tiny compartment with one of the ‘Master Race’ was more than I could bear. Yet, as my gaze dropped from his face I saw that he was only a pathetic remnant of a man. Instead of arms, a set of hooks protruded awkwardly from his shirt sleeves and his creaseless trousers gave evidence of artificial legs. He was nothing but a torso and a head.
The man was writhing in pain as he tried to adjust one of the artificial legs. The hooks kept slipping as he poked and prodded, trying to straighten that grotesquely bent limb, dangling like a broken puppet. I sat stiffly, arms folded defiantly across my chest.
‘Suffer, you blond Nazi!’ I thought. ‘Whatever pain you feel is nothing compared to what your people inflicted upon mine!’
We sat facing each other. The Aryan and the Jew . . . the persecuted and the persecutor . . . the German and the GI . . . the uniform of the occupation and the empty sleeves and trouser legs of the defeated . . . the vanquished and the victor.
Suddenly compassion moved me, defying reason, even will, and I found myself standing beside him. He looked up at my uniform, his brow creased with pain, his eyes cautious at first, then smiling gratefully as I bent over him. He showed me how to adjust his leg and I gripped the false limb with both hands, suppressing an involuntary shudder as it felt strange and lifeless through the cloth of his trousers. An impulse to yank and twist and hear him scream flashed through my mind, but gently, careful not to inflict any more pain, I slowly turned the wooden projection into the proper position and heard him sigh deeply with relief.
I turned to walk away, but his hook tugged at my sleeve. His voice was strained.
‘Please—sit and speak with me.’
I heard myself answer, ‘Yes, yes of course,’ and we both smiled and displayed cigarettes at the same time.
‘Please, I insist.’ He mouthed each English word carefully.
‘Oh, no, have one of mine.’ We looked at each other and laughed, then compromised by accepting each other’s offer. I held my pack to his mouth so he could grasp the cigarette with his lips.
We smoked in silence. Then he spoke:
‘You have been in Germany long, no?’
‘About eight months,’ I answered, and told him where I was stationed.
‘What do you think of Deutschland?’
‘It is very beautiful,’ I replied, sensing even as I spoke a love welling up within me for its culture and history, its antiquated formality, its language and spirit, and yes, its tragedy and shame. Even the texture of its soil—all had reached out and captured my soul.
I studied the face opposite me carefully, looking for signs of cruelty and barbarism. There were none. He was merely a man’s face. Suddenly the unspeakable pity of it all nearly overwhelmed me. We were two atoms brought together in a moment of time, two humans
caught up in an inhuman century. In that instant the truth dawned: Katz, except for the accident of birth, the caprice of time and place, you might have been born a German Aryan. It could have been you stoking people into the ovens.
I shuddered and looked long into his blue eyes.
‘I have been to Dachau,’ I said quietly. The cold metal of his hook reached out and touched the back of my hand, trying in a fingerless way to express the inexpressible. His blue eyes scanned my Jewish features.
‘Der Krieg. Der Krieg.’ (‘Never again. Never!’) I saw moisture gathering in his eyes as he stammered, seeking a word.‘My brother!’ New beginnings…
The opening verse of our parasha from Lev. 9:1 specifically mentions the 8th day when Moses, “…summoned Aaron and his sons and the elders of Israel.” Eight in Scripture represents covenant and new beginnings. Here began a new phase for the Israelites with the introduction of the sacrificial system enabling anyone who sinned against God or their fellow man, to be reconciled and restored and forgiven. God’s provision was truly wonderful, unique and unprecedented. And yet, Heb.10:1-10 reveals that something was flawed – not God’s provision but rather our inherent sinful nature that at best can only produces sticky-tape solutions:
“The old system … Even with its steady stream of sacrifices offered year after year, still was nothing that could make our hearts perfect before God. For if animal sacrifices could once and for all eliminate sin, they would have ceased to be offered and the worshipers would have clean consciences. Instead, once was not enough so by the repetitive sacrifices year after year, the worshipers were continually reminded of their sins, with their hearts still impure. For what power does the blood of bulls and goats have to remove sin’s guilt? So when Yeshua the Messiah came into the world he said, “Since your ultimate desire was not another animal sacrifice, you have clothed me with a body that I might offer myself instead! Multiple burnt offerings and sin-offerings cannot satisfy your justice. So I said to you, ‘God— I will be the One to go and do your will, to fulfil all that is written of me in your Word!’ ” … So by being the sacrifice that removes sin, he abolishes animal sacrifices and replaces that entire system with a newer covenant. By God’s will we have been purified and made holy once and for all through the sacrifice of the body of Yeshua, the Messiah!
Yeshua has provided us with something infinitely superior to the Temple sacrificial system through His sacrifice on the Cross in plain view that we are reminded of every time we break bread. Yeshua conquered death and rose from the dead on the 3rd day, on the 1st day of the week being the 8th day that offers a new beginning for every person who embraces Him as their personal Saviour and Lord. The Biblical number eight occurs several times with 8 individual resurrections recorded in the OT Bible that find alignment through Yeshua in the NT:
- The son of a widow (1Kings 17:17-25) and the widow of Nain (Lk. 7:11-18)
- The son of the woman of Shunam (2Kings 4:32-37) and the daughter of Jairus (Mk.5:35)
- An adult In Elisha’s tomb (2Kings 13:20,21) and Lazarus (Jn.11)
Among the prophets, the miracles Elijah performed were 8 in number and the miracles of Elisha were 16 because he received a double portion of anointing from Elijah (8×2).
The Greek name for Yeshua ‘Ihsous’ has a gematria of 888 because He is the perfecter and supreme provider of new beginnings for every sinner who repents that’s illustrated within the 7 names of Yeshua in Greek which are all stamped with the number 8:
Christos, Christ (1480 = 8×185)
Kurios, Lord (800 = 8×100)
Kurios Hemon, Our Lord (1768 = 8×221)
Soter, Saviour, Saviour (1408 = 8sq x 32)
Emmanuel, God with us (25,600 = 8sq x 50)
Messias, Messiah, (656 = 8×82)
Huios, Son (880 = 8×80)
So, on the 8th day following a week of purification, God’s glory descended upon Aaron and his four sons after they made sacrifices to Him- the sin offering – burnt offering – and the fellowship offerings. When they came out of the Tabernacle, Aaron blessed the Israelites; and the Shekinah Glory appeared to the entire population. It was a new beginning…
The Jewish people are confident of their continued existence as a greater reality to that of the negative rhetoric and motivations of the many anti-Semitic organisations throughout the world. The one thing which they have enjoyed a measure of success in has been in legitimising anti-Semitism. But whilst the politics surrounding resolutions against Israel world-wide are smeared with all manner of legalese and false accusations, whilst revisionists are busy seeking to rewrite history, the Bible clearly states that God has already sealed the future, confirmed through His covenant and inviolable promises. Israel is not surprised by the nations’ who shake their fists against them since their isolation is clearly prophesied in Scripture.
If this be true for them, how much more for the covenant we have with God through Yeshua as believers who stand for righteousness and godliness in a world that has capitulated to the evil of the day?
