Tag: Parashat Beshalach

Torah reading Beshalach (“and he sent”) covers Exodus 13:17-17:16.

Categories
Discussions Torah

Are you ready to enter God’s rest? 5 questions to ask yourself (Exodus 13:17–17:16)

Cat resting from his hard work. Photo Patataj Patataj via Freeimages.com.

Am I really free from my old way of life? Am I going somewhere in life that leads to eternal contentment, or am I wandering through this existence, at the mercy of happenstance? These are some of the big questions tackled in the Torah reading בְּשַׁלַּח Beshalach (“when he sent”), covering Ex. 13:17-17:16. We can’t imagine what our ancestors in faith experienced as they witnessed God’s work during the Exodus from Mitzraim (Egypt). As they were leaving the house of bondage, were they really free or did they leave their hearts in Mitzraim, despite the cruelties and indignities they experienced there?

Categories
Discussions Torah

Exodus 13:17–17:16: If God is with us, who can be against us?

"The Israelites Crossing the Red Sea" by Circle of Juan de la Corte
Circle of Juan de la Corte (1580-1663), "The Israelites Crossing the Red Sea," Oil on canvas, Fundacion Banco Santander, Wikimedia Commons / Google Art Project, Public domain (U.S.), 1630-1660.

The questions ancient Yisra’el asked after the Exodus from Mitzraim are similar to what we often ask ourselves today: Is God with us or not? Are we really free? Where are we going? How will we get our “daily bread”? Where will we find “living water”? That’s the focus of the Torah reading Beshalach (“when he sent”), covering Exodus 13:17-17:16.

Categories
Appointments With God Discussions Shabbat

Hebrews 3-4: How to enter God’s lasting ‘rest’

Hebrews 3-4: How to enter God's lasting 'rest'

Some read about the “Sabbath-rest” in Hebrews 4 and conclude that the teaching is that the remembrance of the seventh-day rest, the Sabbath, has been transferred to the Messiah, Yeshua. Yet the context of the passage and the quotations in it relating to a pivotal event in the Torah point to the fuller meaning of personal peace and real “rest” that God provides.

Categories
Appointments With God Firstfruits Pentecost/Shavuot

You want to be one of God’s firstfruits

Messiah Yeshua (Jesus) is called the firstfruits of the resurrection (1st Cor. 15:20), and why are we called firstfruits of creation (James 1:18)? Pentecost originally was a celebration of the firstfruits of the wheat harvest and followed 50 days after the celebration of the firstfruits of the barley harvest. What is God teaching here about Yeshua and us?