Where is Your Joy?

 

Nehemiah 8:10

King James Version (KJV)

¹⁰ Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the Lord is your strength.

It's so easy to loose our joy these days. The news, our own daily drama and gloom & doom predictions can turn our attention from the positive things of God to the worrisome things of man. Yahushua himself said not to let the cares of this world consume us as this is the mindset of the nations who do not know Yah.

Matthew 6:25 says:
²⁵ “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?

When we rejoice in the promises of God, being thankful for what He has already done, we are then ready to receive that strength. Nehemiah told his brothers and sisters of Israel NOT to be sorry or sad. They had already repented of forgetting the Law and were to rejoice in God's presence with eating, drinking and sharing a feast of good things.

Keeping in mind that Christ did far more for us than the Law ever could as his blood obliterates our sins. It was shed once and for all time unlike animal sacrifices which had to be repeated often. So where is YOUR joy? Don't let the strength of the Lord Most High be snuffed out because of worries, fears and uncertainty.
Take confidence in the finished work of Yahushua in that your sins have been forgiven and rejoice! As adopted sons and daughters of the Most High, we know that He cares for us even more, providing the fat, the sweet and the good things in life because He loves us so.  

A Friend of God

"For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life." Romans 5:10

It's Christmastime so naturally we think of the Biblical account of Yahushua's birth in Bethlehem. Now while that is perhaps the most monumental event in human history, it pales in what was accomplished in the finished work and death of our Savior on Calvary. The Bible says by His Son's DEATH were we reconciled to Him and because of Yahushua's precious life, we shall be saved by the same.

Yahuwah our Heavenly Father, the only true God, had this in mind from the foundation of the world. He would have a way to reconcile us to Himself so that just like Abraham, we too can be called a Friend of God. When we did not serve or acknowledge our Father we were His enemies, choosing to serve ourselves as "gods" over and above Him. Once we have confessed His Son, we have become servants of the Almighty through Christ. However, Yahushua goes a step further to say that as we now know the Father through his teachings were are to be considered Friends of Yah!

"No longer do I call you servants, for the servant doesn't know what his lord does. But I have called you friends, for everything that I heard from my Father, I have made known to you." John 15:15

The chain of command is from the Father to His Son and then to us who believe. Our faith, not works is what saves. However if we do have such faith, we will want to do good as well. Likewise a servant does not concern him or herself with what their master does. However we who listen to and obey the words of Christ are friends of God because through Yahushua, we have heard from the Father. We know our Father's business.

We can and should ASK of God, everything that we may need. Jesus relates this in the following parable:
"Then He said to them, "Suppose one of you has a friend, and goes to him at midnight and says to him, 'Friend, lend me three loaves; 6for a friend of mine has come to me from a journey, and I have nothing to set before him' Luke 11:5

Yahushua goes on to say that the friend will not get up and give you something because of the friendship. No your friend will supply as much as you want so you'll stop pestering him so he can go back to sleep! God never sleeps so He does this out of love if we ask in faith.

So next time you feel inadequate, defeated or discouraged look back on all of the good things God has already done for you as His friend. Realize that no weapon formed against you shall prosper. Minor setbacks are for a season, not a lifetime. If He has brought you through terrible times in the past, He's not about to abandon you now.

"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28

Those who are called according to God's purpose are His friends! 

Always Remember to Rejoice

Nehemiah said, "Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is sacred to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength." Nehemiah 8:10

The prophet Nehemiah wrote this to a repentant yet grieving Israel after they had learned just how far they had fallen from the Law of Moses.

So even today, we can be crushed by past sins, mistakes and simply missing the mark of prefect obedience and honoring God. That's what word "sin" really means. Like an archer who takes aim but misses the target.  A Christian is someone who knows they are covered by the once for all time shedding of Yahushua's precious blood.  He in fact is our Shabbat and makes every day sacred to his Father and our God. Back in Nehemiah's day, the temple system was set up to deal with the sins of God's covenant people. Animal sacrifice, abstaining from certain foods lest you become impure, and other rituals were part of daily like. This system, only foreshadowed the BETTER covenant which would come through Christ.

Sometimes we get too locked into technicalities. Some may say, "Well, that was the prophet talking to those particular people at THAT time." You totally miss the point that Yah is the same yesterday, today and forever! Guess what? God's mercies are still fresh and new every morning but now all of these blessings come through Christ, our only mediator.

"For there is only one God and likewise only one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus," 1 Timothy 2:5

So this is God's new and better covenant and new and better way of dealing with us and sin. That being the case, why would the joy of the Lord not be our strength today? That would defeat the whole purpose of a better covenant, wouldn't it?

But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises. Hebrews 8:2

So always remember to rejoice in the Lord, no matter what things may look like in the natural. This an amazing source of strength if we would only believe and tap into it. 

New Every Morning...

They are new every morning: great is your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:23

It comforts me to know that each morning, God's mercies are new and fresh. So it really perplexes me why many Christians are still self-flagellating over sins and mistakes they made years ago.

Here's the thing. Christ's blood and sacrifice was made once and for all time.  All time includes the time we are living now and any future sins we may commit. Due to our fallen nature, no matter how good we try to be, each day we all sin in our words, our minds or actions. We try but Satan trips us up on one point or another even if we ourselves don't realize it.  In fact the Bible says that those who claim to be without sin deceive themselves.

If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 1 John 1:8

Notice it also says the truth is not in us.  So right there we're liars too! That is not Yah's plan for our lives to be lived under condemnation. Remember Yahushua came to remove us from the effect of the Law which would be simply termed, "The wages of sin is death..." Romans 6:23.  We were under that judgment but Christ's love and sacrifice has changed that for repentant believers:

There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. Romans 8:1

Walking after, means following a path. Our flesh wants to wear the sackcloth and ashes while beating ourselves for our sins. This is man's way of making himself righteous before God. If we are going to do all of that, what value is Christ's sacrifice for our sins? Are we really trusting in Jesus' finished work on the cross in that through HIM we are now the righteousness of God?

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21

So today may have been rough. You lost your temper. Maybe you were where you should not have been doing something you should not do. Don't be discouraged because that is just what ha-Satan wants you to be. He is the accuser of the brethren for that same reason. Ask for forgiveness and for Christ to strengthen you for the next time. Also remember, tomorrow is a new day and God's mercies are new as well. 

We Hold These Truths...

When I think of Independence Day, I can't help but remember all those brave men in my family who served our country in part because they believed these words from the Declaration of Independence:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

So what is the meaning of unalienable as pertains to rights given to all people by God?  Here is a definition:

"Unalienable: incapable of being alienated, that is, sold and transferred." Black's Law Dictionary, Sixth Edition, page 1523:
You can not surrender, sell or transfer unalienable rights, they are a gift from the Creator to the individual and can not under any circumstances be surrendered or taken. All individuals have unalienable rights.

We take a lot for granted but in many countries slavery, oppression, lack of freedom of religion and free speech rule the day.  Human life is seen as having little or no value and even in THIS country, the rights of the unborn are not fully considered under this protective banner.  Did you know that in the U.S. abortion due to the sex of the child is LEGAL whereas even in China such a practice is restricted?

The point is that GOD ALMIGHTY has given all people such rights and even in the Bible, slavery was highly regulated with people being allowed to go free after a period of 7 years or at the Jubilee Year, whichever came first.  If a slave was injured or otherwise mistreated, they could go free immediately with compensation.
We really can't criticize slavery's presence in the Bible when we condone abortion in modern times.  The Bible in fact sees an unborn child as just that, a valued human life.  Here is the penalty under Mosaic Law for harming or killing an unborn baby:

"If men fight and hurt a pregnant woman so that she gives birth prematurely, and yet no harm follows, he shall be surely fined as much as the woman's husband demands and the judges allow. 

But if there is harm, then you shall pay life for life,"  Exodus 21:22-23
 
See what it says?  Life for Life.  So the Bible extends the unalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness even to the unborn and lays a heavy penalty to those who accidentally cause harm.  Remember the men are fighting with each other, not the woman.  Yah sees that life as precious as shown in this Psalm:

"For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb." Psalm 139:13

We need to remember that our unalienable rights can not be given or taken away by man or governments, no matter what laws they may pass or uphold.  I can think of nothing so cruel as to deliberately hurt and kill an innocent child who had nothing to do with his or her own conception.  Please pray for our country to live up to its creed this Independence Day. All people, including the unborn have inherent value as each is created in the image of God our Father.

God is SO Generous!

A large bushel of oysters, Yah's bounty from the sea!

Generous, benevolent, magnanimous, beneficent and truly AWESOME is Yahuwah Yireh, our provider!  The scriptures say it correctly when it speaks of our Heavenly Father's giving nature and care of His creation:

You open Your hand And satisfy the desire of every living thing. Psalm 145:16

Sometimes we forget that our needs will NEVER be greater than Yah's capacity to provide for them.  When we look to other people or things to provide for us, we often don't see that there is but ONE GOD who gives to all.  In other words, rather than looking to another person or institution as our hope, we need to trust God who is Sovereign over all.

When Yahuwah sent manna to supply the needs of the children of Israel in the desert, He didn't say, "You can only gather so much per person."  Now while our Heavenly Father does not condone greed, He allows us to choose how much and when to partake of His bounty.

"This is what the LORD has commanded: 'Each one is to gather as much as he needs. Take an omer for each person you have in your tent.'" Exodus 16:16

An "omer" was about equivalent to 1/2 to 3/4 of a gallon in US measure.  Still the Bible recounts that some gathered much and some gathered little, all according to his or her eating.  We also have to remember that the manna could not be kept over from the previous day.  It would spoil and become wormy except when it was gathered prior to Shabbat or the Sabbath their day of rest.

So didn't God just let them gather enough for the whole week at once?  Well the lesson here is the same for us today.  When we are able to physically "see" our abundance, the focus can tend to shift from the one who provided it to the material things themselves.  We put more of our confidence in these gathered resources rather than the One who provided them in the first place. Paul said:

Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. 1 Timothy 6:17

So next time you are worried about what tomorrow will bring financially just remember that Yah is a RICH and generous provider.  We can put our full confidence in HIM, not material things which are so temporary. 


Prayer: Oh Yah, Maker of all things, thank you for what You have already done starting with the generosity of this day's provisions. I know that if I but first seek the Kingdom, as Yahushua taught, all other things will be added to me.  I have all things in Messiah and bless You for all that You have done, are doing and will do for me.  Amen   

Good News!

If Christmas doesn't do anything else, it should at the very basic level remind us of the Good News.  Not just the Biblical account of Yahushua's birth or geneo (beginning), but of the Good News that he himself preached.  In the synagogue He read the following scroll of the prophet Isaiah and finished saying this prophecy is now fulfilled in your hearing:

“The Spirit of THE LORD YAHUWAH is upon me, and because of this He has anointed me to preach The Good News to the poor; He has sent me to heal broken hearts and to proclaim liberty to captives, vision to the blind, and to restore the crushed with forgiveness,”  Luke 4:18

No human authority, government or earthy power could stop this fulfillment and it was executed with precision and completeness during Yahushua's three year ministry.  See the Jews in the first century were looking for a powerful king who would immediately free them from oppressive Roman rule.  The only problem is in their quest for political liberation, they failed to recognize their present spiritual slavery to sin and evil.  This was the Messiah's primary mission, to preach the Good News of salvation to both the materially and more importantly spiritually bankrupt of the House of Israel.

So while the Good News or Gospel is certainly about the Lord Messiah, it also is his message to his spiritual brothers and then to us.  As the apostle Paul summed it up:

“I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile” Romans 1:16  

Now that is the power of God.  The message of salvation delivered through the one whom it would ultimately be advanced.  First the Jews were told and then it was spread to the Gentiles.  

But glory, honor, and peace, to every man that works good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile:  Romans 2:10

We just can't hold that sort of good news in!  We've got to tell it because it is a once in a lifetime opportunity to become right with God through the saving power of Christ's finished work and blood.  When he said, "It is accomplished", he had done all that the Father had asked of him.  Like our Master, we can be faithful too and proclaim the good and acceptable year of the LORD while there is still time.  It won't go on forever.  So yes, rejoice this Christmas as it calls to mind the loving act of our Heavenly Father and His obedient son.  It still holds out the gift of salvation and the promise of everlasting life to those who believe.