Category: Discussions

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Discussions Torah

Bread of Heaven, bread of vengeance, bread of mercy (Exodus 10:1–13:16)

When God says, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay” (Deut. 32:35; Rom. 12:19; Heb. 10:30), He means it. We can take matters into our own hands and enact a form of justice on those who commit evil against us and our people, but we can only right the wrong done to us. Our acts of justice don’t vindicate God and bring Him honor and glory.

We see the intersection of vengeance and mercy in the 10th plague on Egypt, memorialized in the annual remembrances of Passover and Unleavened Bread, two key lessons in the Torah reading בוא Bo (“come,” Exodus 10:1-13:16).

They also are key lessons that teach us about the Messiah in the Gospels.

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Discussions Torah

Do we live as if the Creator is really in charge? (Exodus 6:2–9:35)

The Torah reading Va’era (Ex. 6:2–9:35) is the first of two accounts of how the 10 plagues on Mitzraim (Egypt) humbled a superpower of the time to bring freedom not just to Israel but to the entire world.

How much more would Heaven’s sending the quintessential Son of Man to humble the “prince of the power of the air” win freedom for Israel, and by extension the whole world.

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Discussions Torah

How to be a righteous leader (Exodus 1:1–6:1)

In the Torah reading שמות Shemot (“names,” Ex. 1:1–6:1) and its parallel passage, we learn about Moses and Samuel, great leaders of ancient Israel. But their greatness came from their humility, not grasping at the reins of power. Because of their meekness, Heaven appointed them to be chief agents of the power of Heaven on Earth.

How much more does the Messiah, the exact representation of Heaven (Heb. 1:3), show us what a faith-worth leader should be.

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Discussions Torah

Will we recognize our Jewish Messiah when He returns? (Genesis 44:18–47:27)

Just as Judah and his brothers did not recognize the gentile Egyptian governor as their flesh and blood Hebrew brother Joseph, many Christians may not recognize their Jewish Messiah, Yeshua (Jesus) of Nazareth, when He returns to Earth for His bride.

In Torah reading ויגש Vayigash (“he approached,” Genesis 44:18–47:27), Joseph disguised himself as a gentile to save Egypt and the entire world from famine. Yeshua’s apostle Paul tells us that the Messiah disguised Himself from His Jewish kin for a time for the sake of the Gentiles, but He will reveal Himself as our Jewish Messiah at His second coming. The question is, are we prepared to see Him as He really is?

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Appointments With God Chanukah Discussions Prophets and Writings

Haggai and Chanukah: How Messiah fills God’s House with greater glory

Heaven calls us to be “ambassadors” of the Messiah (Christ) and “temple(s) of God” (1Cor. 3:16; 6:19), and Yeshua (Jesus) called His body a temple (John 2:19–22).

The prophet Haggai’s message was that the House of God is not a building, but it does reflect the heart condition of the people. Haggai proclaimed that the glory of God and foretold a time when God will fill His house with a greater glory than He did when Solomon commissioned the first Temple (Hag. 2:9). That greater glory arrived when Yeshua stepped foot into the Temple during the Festival of the Dedication (Chanukah, John 10:22-39) in fulfillment of what that prophet foretold would be a crucial work of the Mashiakh (Christ).

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Discussions Torah

Genesis 37:1–40:23: How the first became lost and the lost became first

The accounts in Torah reading וישב Vayeshev (“he settled,” Gen. 37:1–40:23) of Judah’s hooking up with his daughter-in-law and Joseph foretelling the rise and deeper fall of his jailmates seem as unrelated as they are dismaying. But the two actually contain prophecies that reveal the transforming work of the Messiah.

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Discussions Prophets and Writings Tabernacles Torah

Genesis 32–33; Hosea 11–12: Sick of the false allure of the temporary?

The Torah reading וַיִּשְׁלַח Vayishlach (“and he sent,” Gen. 32:4-36:43) gives us an active example of what the apostle Paul calls the “ministry of reconciliation” (2Cor. 5:18).

What we see in Jacob and Esau is a profound message for us today, buried amongst sibling rivalry. We should strive to live at peace with everyone, but there still must be a division between the Kingdom of the Eternal and the Kingdom of the Temporary. God wants everyone to leave the Kingdom of the Temporary and join Him in the Kingdom of the Eternal, because the Kingdom of the Temporary will be destroyed on the Day of the LORD.

The LORD sends us into the world to be His ambassadors and part of the kingdom of priests. Will we go? Will we face challenges of our own making or ones that are out of our control?