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Discussions Torah

Numbers 12-13: Aaron and Miriam ‘speak evil’ against Moses; spies ‘speak evil’ against the Land

Numbers 12 shows us the consequences of Miriam and Aaron’s jealously of God’s special relationship with Moses. Since they could not openly complained about God’s special treatment of Moses, they struck out against Moses’s by attacking his Cushite wife. Numbers 13 shows us the story of the first spies who went out into the land of Israel to scout out the land. God told Moses to call out one leader from each tribe to be the spies of the land.

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Apostolic Writings Discussions Shabbat

Luke 6:1-11: Law vs. mercy: Does picking grain violate the Sabbath?

There are three main classes of interpretation: 1. Yeshua is heralding the “end of Torah” and the “beginning of Grace.” 2. Yeshua was simply correcting unwarranted additions to the Torah. 3. Yeshua is talking about a “higher standard” for the Torah.

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Anger Discussions Life With God

Forgiveness: God’s requirements to forgive others

Forgiveness is not a difficult biblical topic to understand. However, because humans are creatures of emotion, forgiveness becomes more complex in its application. Not all who call themselves Christians will be among the First Fruits unless they learn the discipline of forgiveness.

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Apostolic Writings Discussions Prophets and Writings

2nd Samuel 15:30-32: How does the Bible define the symbols of a covered head and bare feet?

Daniel addresses a question raised during the last study of 2nd Samuel 15 about David’s going the Mount of Olives to pray with a covered head and bare feet in this excursus. In many places in the Bible, covering a man’s head is an act of shame or mourning. Why does God command His priests to wear head coverings? Why did Paul write in 1st Corinthians 11 that a man should pray or prophesy with his head “uncovered”?

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Discussions Torah Trumpets

Numbers 10-11: Two silver trumpets; curse of craving quail; distributing the Spirit from Moshe

In chapter 10, use of two silver trumpets is explained, such as calling together the people to celebrate the New Moon and other appointed times. In chapter 11, the people of Israel call out for more than meat and manna, and God curses the cravers with copious quail followed by a plague.

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Apostolic Writings Discussions

Luke 5:17-39: Yeshua heals a paralyzed man lowered through Peter’s roof, calls Levi-Matthew, tells parables of cloths and wineskins

Yeshua had authority to heal paralytics, forgive sins and call tax collectors to His select 12 disciples. The punchline and the context of these stories and the parables Yeshua told are crucial clues to the meaning of Yeshua’s parables and miracles. A common interpretation of the parables of the cloths and wineskins is that Yeshua is teaching that one needs to unlearn the Torah to learn the gospel, but parables of the same time period employing the same symbols have a different point.

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Appointments With God Discussions Passover Torah

Numbers 8-9: ‘Second Passover’; purification of Levites as Israel’s new ‘firstborn’

The events of this chapter occurred during the first month of the second year after the children of Israel left Egypt. There’s the provision for a “makeup Passover” for those unavoidably out of the country or “unclean” at the time of Passover and purification of the Levites as the primary “firstborn” of Israel in God’s eyes.