A Case for Eating Out on the Sabbath or Not

A practice that I’ve begun following of late is incorporating the Michael Rood Chronological Gospels into my regimen of Torah Study. I do this following the Rood Astronomically & Agriculturally Corrected Biblical Hebrew Calendar and looking at the corresponding events based upon Rood’s presumed calendar dates. Those of you who haven’t and are so led, I would highly encourage you to get your hands on a copy of the Chronological Gospels and the Creator’s Calendar. These two tools work together to provide perspective in terms of the time frames that each Gospel event occurred. The time frames, of course, are highly connected and embedded in the Feasts of Yehovah, the Sabbath and Torah. Michael’s commentary on key events also illuminates the issues being addressed through the sighted events in the light of Torah, Judaism, history and the Hebrew language. This perspective has taken my study to a whole new level; beyond anything that I’ve ever experienced, just in the past year. I can’t recommend this invaluable tool enough.
ChronoGospels
ARA_Calendar2014-4th
Being transparent, I can’t say emphatically whether or not the events exactly correspond to every assigned date as Michael assigns in his Bible, but I truly believe at the very least, the dates and events as assigned are reasonable. I had the great privilege to speak to Michael last year, at an event launching the Chronological Gospels, regarding this very question about assigning dates and time frames. I expected Michael to provide me with some type of nebulous answer. However, I was highly impressed and surprised to learn from him that a great deal of research and study was placed in the assignment of dates/time frames to every event. In some cases, the events could be assigned to specific dates simply by correlating obviously-associated feasts and known documented history. Other, less than obvious events, required Michael to actually extrapolate distances and cultural practices in association with various historical markers–the biggest marker being the miraculous feeding of the 5,000, which Michael used as a primary reference point for much of the Chronological Gospels construction.
The most recent event correlation was 68–“Yeshua and His disciples ‘harvest, winnow, and grind’ grain on the second Sabbath after the first of the month, incurring the wrath of the Pharisees.” This event, as recorded in Matthews 12:1-8; Mark 2:23-28; and Luke 6:1-5, is believed to have occurred on the Shabbat, 10th day, of the 5th Biblical month which certain computers have been used to extrapolate back in time to specific dates, assigns this day to August, 2, 27 of the common era. This is a well-known story. Yeshua and His disciples happen to have been traversing a wheat field on the second Sabbath of the 5th Biblical month when certain religious leaders witness them plucking wheat and eating grains of wheat to cull their hunger. The religious leaders attributed the act of plucking wheat and extracting the kernels as violating Sabbath laws; specifically the Pharisees accused the group of conducting work on the Sabbath. Yeshua’s response to the accusation was one of outrage in that the violation of the Sabbath laws as seen by the Pharisees was in no way Torah-based. The fact of the matter was that the oral tradition in this and virtually every other commandment, law and precept of the Torah was refashioned by the religious leaders to create a form of righteousness that was not of Yehovah but of man. To get His point across, Yeshua referred the Prushim to the story of David while hiding from King Saul who sought to kill him, took Shewbread for him and his men from the tabernacle to eat (1 Samuel 21:14-16). The showbread, by Torah, was restricted to the consumption by the Tabernacles priests (Exodus 25:30 and Leviticus 24:5-9). The showbread was considered to be holy (Leviticus 24:9) and only to be eaten by Aaron and his sons. In general. The letter of Torah would indicate that consumption of the shewbread by anyone other than the Levitical priest was out of the question. Yet Yehovah never instructed that this was emphatically the case. Consequently, David, hiding from King Saul, hungry, and in need, found a source of provision through the grace and providence of Yehovah. If this David and the shewbread situation were to have been played out by the Prushim who rebuked Yeshua, likely David would have been sent away without sustenance and we can only surmise what would have become of him afterwards. Interestingly, the attending priest who provided the showbread to David, although having a degree of angst over the entire situation, capitulated and provided the bread to David with the understanding that David and his men were in a state of purity. Also interestingly, Yehovah, who enjoyed a close relationship with David, seemed to have not had any issue with David taking the shewbread for emergency sustenance.
 Shewbread1
Letter of the Law, without any consideration for the spirit of the Law, can be problematic, especially as it relates to our Hebraic Roots/Messianic Faith. I recall coming in to this Truth going on 10-years ago and having to work through the many challenges and questions regarding the Sabbath. The Torah is clear on there being no work conducted on the Sabbath. But the questions that floated around us constantly was, what constitutes work? Thus, we went through a million and one permutations and adjustments regarding the observance of Sabbath. In our home, we went from one extreme to the next because we didn’t fully grasp what the expectation was regarding the Sabbath and the whole concept of what we can and can’t do on the Sabbath. I’m certain that many of you have faced the same situation. I can tell you, this very situation had a tendency to create a lot of turmoil in our home during the early days of our transitioning to Sabbath observance. Very early on, we swung heavily over towards total, systematic, shutdown on the Sabbath. I mean, absolutely NO television watching allowed; no preparation of meals; prayer beginning at sundown and again at the end of Sabbath; no running of appliances; and there were other things implemented that escapes me at the moment. Well, the pendulum swung from extreme conservative to more liberal, especially after we affiliated with United Church of God and then Rock Valley Christian Church. Being in these fellowships, we experienced working hard to facilitate the conduction of weekly Sabbath services as well as eating out in restaurants and other peoples homes during the Sabbath. So, it was indeed interesting how things can change in terms of how we as humans apply Torah to our lives, especially as it relates to something as foundational as the Sabbath.
As it related to this particular event, the Torah by this point in history had become nothing more than a broken egg shell (my wording and description) whereby the whole egg (i.e., the Torah as given by Yehovah to the children of Israel) had been cracked open by men and the contents spilled out into a skillet. The purity of the egg was then comprised by the heat of the stove and the extra “stuff” (i.e., seasoning, butter, etc.) that is added to suit the taste of the one who is cooking it. The Law as known to the Jew in first century Palestine was not Torah. The original 613 laws, commandments and precepts that were stipulated in the five books of Torah had morphed into 1000’s of additional laws and rules, all designed according to the Prushim, to keep the Jew from violating the original 613 laws. This erecting of a fence around Torah by these man made laws (as it has come to be known in Judaism) was never intended nor sanctioned by Yehovah and it was this system of laws (i.e., the Talmud; takanots; ma’hasim) that enraged the Master and ultimately resulted in His crucifixion. The instance of Yeshua’s disciples plucking wheat and rubbing the kernels in their hands to strip away the chaff as they traversed that wheat field that August day in 27 C.E. was deemed a violation of the Law, when in fact it was only a violation of Jewish law. The Prushim’s interpretation of Torah through the lenses of Judaism regarding the Sabbath was in many cases absolutely ludicrous. Instead of a people (specifically Jews) experiencing freedom from sin through the keeping of Torah, the people instead experienced an intense form of bondage to religion. I recall reading something a few years ago that certain sects of Judaism weren’t allowed even to tear toilet paper to take care of their personal toilet needs on the Sabbath. Thus, the toilet paper had to be torn into prepared strips on Friday so as to not incur the work of tearing a piece of toilet paper on the Sabbath. I mean, how silly is this. One can only surmise that hasatan and his imps have over the centuries fallen over themselves laughing at the absurdity of some of these rules.
Picking Wheat
As it relates to us: the redeemed and elect of Yeshua HaMaschiach, our observance and keeping of Sabbath must be done within a healthy and proper perspective. Indeed, Torah is clear that we must not do any work. Most will agree that work would refer to servile activity–especially activity that we do on a daily basis to provide financial support for our families. This work would be considered income. But then, what about the work of cleaning up the house, mowing a lawn, washing clothes, preparing meals, baby sitting, and the like? I guess the best way to look at this is, there is absolutely no reason to do any of these tasks on the Sabbath when there are six other days in the week in which to complete this tasks. These tasks may not be activities for which we earn a living, but they could be classified as servile work. Then what about those who work in socially critical positions such as paramedics, firemen, policemen, doctors, nurses and soldiers–these professionals keep our society safe from the dangers of everyday life? Surely Yehovah would be okay if a believer who happens to be one of these critical professionals was required to fulfill the tenets of their profession (i.e., work) on the Sabbath.  I think most would concede that the believer in Messiah is compelled to honor the Sabbath by not fulfilling the tenets of His profession on the Sabbath. I believe that it comes down to one who finds themselves in such a situation to petition Yehovah to provide the right organization that would grant him or her the Sabbath off. I found myself in a similar situation and it was the grace of Yehovah that worked a wonder and I was promoted to a position that did not require me to work on Sabbaths. Yehovah can do wonders if we seek Him and never doubt Him. It’s a trust issue. And if we aren’t able to make headway in the company or organization in which we are employed, then maybe Yehovah has another, even better, opportunity out there for us that does not require us to work on the Sabbath. Nevertheless, this is an individual issue that one must face alone and make the decision of what to do about the Sabbath. True believers must make a stand. However, true believers must keep Torah real and not fall pray to personal perceptions and ideals as to what constitutes proper Sabbath observance. The Torah is clear as to what justifies generally the proper observance of the Sabbath–that is there will be no work. The minute details, however, rests with the leading of the Holy Spirit and common sense. If you’re hungry on the Sabbath and your options are limited, by all means find something to eat. Next time, maybe you might want to be more prepared so as to not find yourself in the same situation. Just saying.

Demons Once Again Reveal Themselves through a Ouija Board Game

Just when the 21st century western world has relegated demons and the topic of demon possession to the primary domain of fictional books and blockbuster movies, comes a story from the “Daily Mail” that reminds the spiritual minded of us that demons and demon possession indeed exist even today. Sophie Jane Evans, a writer for the Daily Mail, in her article entitled “Three American friends hospitalised after becoming ‘possessed’ following Ouija board game in Mexican village,” reports on the acute demon possession of 3-young adults in a Mexican village while playing a Ouija board game. According to Evans, 3-American friends, ranging in age from 18 to 22, were hospitalized with classic possession symptoms after the trio played a game on a Ouija board. The town? San Juan Tlacotenco, located in southwest Mexico.

Ouija Board

Minutes after these young people began playing the game, the only female participant, began “growling and thrashing around in a trance-like state” while the two males suddenly became blind, deaf and began hallucinating. A local Catholic priest was called to perform exorcism on the three by one of the victims’ parents, but the Church refused to provide the service citing that the young people were not members of the church congregation. Conversely, those same parents called for paramedic assistance. The trio were transported to a local hospital. The three young peoples’ possession symptoms were treated with pain and anti-anxiety drugs and eye drops. The possession symptoms seemed to succumb to the hospital’s treatment regimen. A medical professional who witnessed the behavior of the three said of the victims, “They had involuntary movements…they were so erratic. It appeared as if they were in a trance-like state…They spoke of feeling numbness, double vision, blindness, deafness, hallucinations, muscle spasm and difficulty swallowing.”

Indeed, the spirit-realm or spirit-world is real, whether or not we choose to believe this story. Our 21st century, western world, effectively masks this reality from her citizens. Yet, tens of thousands and maybe even hundreds of thousands of people throughout the world experience such connections with the spirit world on a frequent basis. In many parts of the world, the spirit world is as common a reality as waking up and going to sleep each morning, breathing, eating, or talking to one’s spouse or children. Those of us who experience such connections with the spirit-realm are considered crazy, demented, psychotic and the like. One can only imagine how many people behind bars in this country alone (i.e., the United States) are beset and influenced by the spirit-world. The greatest attention and seemingly the most prolific manifestation of the spirit-world has to do with the evil or demon side. It is this dark side of the equation that seems to demand, deprive and take away from its victims their freedom to live peaceful and productive lives. In extreme cases, this dark side brings its victims to a state of harm to others and to themselves.

demons

The Bible contains several stories related to demon possession and in each case, the manifestation is frightening and intimidating to say the least. Man overall appears impotent in the midst of such possession events. Man is carnal and incapable of even the smallest influence on demons. Spiritual beings, which we all know include demons, angels, the Creator and now the Son, Yeshua HaMashiach, operate on an entirely different plain of existence. Brute mortal strength has no effect on demons. Human reasoning can not break through to possessing demons. Demons are opportunistic creatures who seek out opportunities to intervene in the affairs of men—invited and uninvited. As a species, people in general are so oblivious to the dangers of the demon realm, that they will embark upon activities and behaviors that open the door to demon activity. Such things include: drugs, alcohol, Ouija board games, seances, promiscuous relationships, vodoo, satan worship and the like. Once demons find a foot hold in an individual’s life, it is next to impossible to get rid of them. The only sure cure for demon possession is the name and power of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, Yeshua HaMashiach (aka: Jesus Christ). Luke 10:17-24 addresses the disciples (the seventy) reporting back to Yeshua, just before the Feast of Dedication in December of the year 27 CE. Luke records, “The seventy returned again with joy saying, “Master, even the demons are subject to us through your name.” Yeshua said to them, “I saw hasatan come down out of the heavens like lightning. I gave to you the authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and authority over all the power of the enemy.” As redeemed, believers in Messiah, we should be equipped to effectively deal with demons. When we became disciples of Messiah, we received that whole package. Yet the vast majority of us want nothing to do with the spirit-realm and thus would not be in any position to attend to a demon possession if we were to come across one. Regardless what side of the Faith we find ourselves in, we by virtue of our sacred heritage and calling, are required to not only operate in the spirit-realm, but to also deal with evil spirits when they enter our sphere of influence. We must absolutely begin with our relationship with the Father who stated through the Son, 23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. 24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. (Joh 4:23-24 KJV)

Once we’ve gained a foothold in to the spirit-realm, dealing with demons on their turf should not be a problem and demon fighting should become the duty of every believer and disciple of Messiah. May we all be so ready and fit for the battle ahead. Be Most Blessed.

Israel’s Indiscretions with Moab–Moses Intervenes

Greetings Fellow Saints! Today is the 30th day of the 2nd Biblical Month and the 41st Day of the Counting of the Omer. May this great day of preparation be of most blessing to you and your family.

My Torah studies today took me to a most profound place in the Children of Israel’s history–Numbers 24: 14-25: 9. Encamped just outside the region of Moab, the king of Moab (Balak) had just concluded his failed attempt to have a prophet of Yehovah (Bil’am) curse Israel on Moab’s behalf. Being totally protected by the strong arm of Yehovah, Balak failed in having his future destroyer cursed and put away.

The insult to injury, however, was seen as: while Yehovah pledged His unwavering protection of Israel, the men of Israel began to whore after the women of Moab which ultimately led to the people of Israel assuming the worship of Moab’s principle god, Ba’al. This of course angered Father to no end and this terrible betrayal on behalf of the Israelites against their protector resulted in the death of some 24,000 people; many of them were executed by direction of Moses.

Yehovah has pledged His undying protection of us, His beloved. This of course doesn’t mean that we will never meet doom or harm, as the will of Yehovah and His providence will have its just way. What Yehovah’s protection does afford us, however, is eternal guarantees that we will not see death eternally, but some day arise to life everlasting and a renewed body and a new assignment in the kingdom of Yehovah. This all can come to a screeching halt, of course, when we forsake the protection and disobey Father’s Torah. Father has shown over and over throughout His Torah how much He despises idolatry and how jealous He is. Yet many of us struggle with the urge to violate and compromise His Torah and whore after Ba’al in our land of Moab. Each time we do such things, we offend and anger Yehovah as well as hurt Him.

It’s tough to be the Israel that Yehovah desires of us to be. We can’t always do it alone. But fortunately, we are in a better place than our forefathers, the Israelites at Ba’al-P’or. We have Yehovah’s Holy Spirit to provide us that extra oomph we may need to resist the urge to embrace other gods and violate Father’s Torah. We have been provided the tools to fight competently against this problem. But like everything else in life, it all comes down to how effectively we utilize those spiritual tools that have been provided to us by the Almighty. Prayer, fasting, meditation, Torah, fellowship, reading resources-all of these are lethal weapons against the enemy and remedies against evil. I struggle daily with my natural inclination to complain, worry, engage in idle talk at work, all of which leads to less than kingdom behavior. These and other shortcomings are my Ba’als as I try to live a righteous life in P’or and Moab. I know, however, that my strength comes from Father and His Spirit and I’m ever so conscious to be on guard and to be always questioning within myself: is Yehovah happy with my behavior today? Is my walk today with Messiah a pleasant and good one?

How about you?

The God Who is Evergreen

Greetings Fellow Saints in Training! Today was the 28th Day of the 2nd Biblical Month and the 39th day of the counting of the Omer. We trust that you have a blessed day in Messiah.

My Torah studies today took me to Numbers 23: 13-26. Those of you who are Torah buffs may be familiar with this passage of Scripture. This is a continuation of the Balak and Bil’am story whereby Balak, the king of Mo’av feared for the life of his country/nation as the nation of Israel was encamped nearby, too close for his comfort. Thus he attempts to hire a prophet to curse Israel-i.e., Bil’am, and neutralize the perceived threat. Balak takes Bil’am to high country after erecting 7-alters and making a significant sacrifice to Yehovah, to see the immense size of Israel. Bil’am then receives direction from Yehovah regarding what he should tell Balak and the message Bil’am has is not favorable to Balak’s desires to eliminate the perceived threat of Israel. Apart from telling Balak that Israel is protected by the Creator of the Universe, Yehovah also reveals some things about Himself that most believers tend to forget from time to time:

vs. 29-Yehovah is not a human who lies or a mortal who changes his mind. When Yah says something, He will do it; and when He makes a promise, He will fulfill it…(vs. 21) for Yehovah their Elohim (speaking of Israel) is with them and acclaimied as King among them…(vs. 23) thus one can’t put a spell on Ya’akov, no magic will work against Israel.

Imagine Balak’s disappointment upon receiving this news from Bil’am. Yet, I fear that our beloved Faith has over the last 2,000-years forgotten these iron-clad traits/characteristics of Yehovah, attributing to Father a change in Father’s plan for man. So much of what Christianity has adopted as doctrine, beliefs, and teachings is based upon the concept of progressive revelation that says that over time, the spirit of God has revealed greater and greater truths about the Father as well as we better understand our Creator and the person of Jesus Christ more than we ever could have. How presumptive we’ve become as a people, as supposed adherents to the Faith once delivered. The truth of the matter is that no one knew the Savior and the Father better than Yeshua’s handpicked apostles who delivered the true faith to the first century saints of old. The whole grace perversion is a prime example of how men have crept in to the Faith once delivered and over time convinced many that the Father really didn’t mean what He said previously or that the Father actually intends this and that for man and there was no way the apostles could have known the things we know today about the faith.

Hogwash! It is absolutely time that we stop playing church and return to the original ekklesia that was founded by Yeshua HaMaschiyach, become staunch and uncompromising disciples of Messiah, and adhere to the ways and the laws of Yehovah. Father has said without ambiguity, that He is the same today as He was yesterday and He does not change. There is no foundation beyond this truth upon which one can nor should they even try, to build their faith. Any move towards adding to or subtracting from the Word that Father has given is only leading one to religion and religion has no place in our Faith. No place.

Shalom. Be most blessed.

The Samaritan Woman at the Well and Our Salvation

Greetings Fellow Saints in Training. Today was the 27th Day of the 2nd Biblical month and the 38th day of the counting of the omer. I trust you had a lovely day in Messiah.

This morning prior to going to work and as part of my daily Torah studies, I happened upon Rood’s Astronomically and Agriculturally Corrected Biblical Hebrew Calendar that highlighted the Miracle at the well as having occurred this past Sunday-in accordance to The Chronological Gospels: The Life and Seventy Week Ministry of the Messiah. Somehow I had missed that over the last two days. Given that my anticipated Torah reading passage was rather short, I squeezed in the reading of this story which is found in John 4: 5-43. You all know the story I certain so I won’t go into the particulars here. Suffice to say, however, that what I found quite astounding and what I seemed to have missed all these years was the beautiful prophetic shadow picture portrayed in this unique story. The Samaritan woman at the well, whose name was never mentioned, but who has gone down in Christian history as the woman who confronted the Master at Yaakov’s well in Samaria about the Jew’s views of her people.

The story goes into the woman being asked by the Master for a drink of water from the well. The amazed woman, obviously learned in the ways of the Jews and their disdain towards gentiles calls Yahoshua out on the carpet that He is violating a central tenet of the Jew’s religion. Yahoshua uses this situation as an evangelistic opportunity and in a rare and most amazing revelation, He announces to her that He is indeed the prophesied Messiah. In the interim the Savior uses the analogy of water to get His point across to the woman as well as He exercises His bordering on god-like knowledge of the woman’s personal situation. Eventually the woman realizes that indeed this is the prophet that Moshe foretold of whom we must Shema. She goes and fetches the town’s inhabitants who come to witness this most auspicious appearance of the one foretold would come to earth and set man free from the bonds of sin and death.

The passage goes on to read: “Many of the Samaritans of that village believed in him because of the testimony of the woman who declared, “He told me everything that I ever did!” When the Samaritans arrived at the well, they begged Him to stay with them, so He abode there two days. Many more believed because of Yeshua’s own words, and they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not because of what you said but because we have heard Him ourselves. WE know truly that this is the Messiah, the redeemer of the world. Now after two days, Yeshua departed from Sh’khem and went into the Galilee. (John 4: 39-43)

Most of us who profess to be Messianic, Torah Observant Believers, are Gentiles. We have been tremendously blessed to have been included and grafted in to the promise given to the Children of Israel. We’ve had 2,000-years (the equivalent of the two-days Yeshua spent with the Samaritans) to get our acts together and come in to the fold. We are now in the year 6014. The end of the two-days is rapidly approaching. Yeshua said, “…the hour has now come when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in  truth, for the Father seeks such worship.” (vs. 23) I ask each of us today, have we treasured the two-days Messiah spent with us and are we truly worshipping Father as He has so much sought from us? May we not squander these two-days that Messiah abides with us. May you be most blessed. Shalom.