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Serving to help encourage and build up the body of believers in love  and truth


John 15
5 “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.

Luke 4:14-19: "And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and a report about him went out through all the surrounding country.  And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up.  And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him.  He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour."

  News, views and prayer for Israel, a home for Jewish seekers after Jesus, and a balanced approach to exploring the Hebrew roots of Christianity, looking for reconciliation between Jew and Gentile.

   The website of Dr Arnold Fruchtenbaum's Messianic Ariel Ministries.

2008
April 20-27	Pesach Commemorates the night before the Exodus when the death Angel destroyed all first born of Egypt but passed over the homes protected by the blood of the lamb.  Celebrated with the seder meal and chanting the story of Exodus from holy book Haggadah. Ritual food and wine celebrate the coming of Elijah and the Messiah.  The "Song of Songs" is read.
April 20-27	Feast of Unleavened Bread On the original passover, in haste of preparation for flight, there was no time for the Israelites to wait for the bread dough to rise.  They ate Matzah (unleavened bread) on depature.  A symbol of purity and a picture of freedom from the slavery of sin.  Celebrated seven days (Lev 23:6).
23 May	Lab B'Omer 33rd day of the Omer count which recalls the journey of the children of Israel from the Red Sea, fulfilling 50 days to the giving of the Torah at the Mountain of God on Shavout.
9 June	Shavout Begins 7 weeks after Passover ends.  Celebrates the giving of the Law to Moses on Mount Sinai. When the Ruach HadKodesh was poured out on the believers in Acts 2, the law was written on their hearts (Jer 31:33). Includes singing of Psalm 30, the solemn reading of the Ten Commandments and Book of Ruth, emphasising acceptance of God's law by a proselyte (Ruth 1:16, Lev 23:22).
30 Sept	Rosh HaShanah Means "Head of the Year" and celebrates the anniversary of the week of creation (Gen 1:2-2:2).  The Jewish Near Year begins with Yom Teruah (an awakening blast).  Begins a 10 day period of repentance known as Ya'Amin Nora'im or the "Days of Awe".  A time of rejoicing as well as holy occasion (Neh 8:2, 9-12).  Services include blowing of the Shofar (ram's horn), dipping bread in honey, opening the Ark of the Torah, and Akeida story of Abraham and prayers for the peace of all mankind.
9 Oct	Yom Kippur Includes two 24 hour fasts. the making of atonement offerings and communal confession of sins.  The day the Cohan HaGadol (High Priest) came face to face with God. The Shofar HaGadol (the Great Trumpet) is blown to gather the surviving believers from the awesome days. Neilah, "closing of the gates".
14 Oct	Succoth Feast of Booths/Feast of Tabernacles.  Seven day festival recalling the 40 years of Wandering in the Wilderness, when God miraculously provided for Israel as they travelled and lived in Succoth (portable booths or tents).  Also known as the  Feast of Ingathering of the spring harvest.
22 Dec	Hannukah Hannukah (dedication), commemorates the re-dedication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem in 165 BC by the Maccabees exactly three years after it was desecrated by Antiochus Epiphanes.

MESSIAH IN THE PASSOVER

Introduction

The Passover is the oldest of all Jewish holidays.

It marks the beginning of the religious calendar (Exodus 12:1-2).

The Biblical background is found in Exodus 12, 13 and 14.

The Passover Seder has a theme - redemption or deliverance.

“Seder” is the Hebrew word for order - it is an ordered service.

Exodus 13:8 gives the Biblical precept for the whole service of Passover.

“And thou shalt show they son in that day, saying, this is done because of that which the Lord did unto me when I came forth out of Egypt.”

According to Exodus 12:8 only three elements were on the Passover table.  The Passover lamb, the unleavened bread and the bitter herbs.

The Lamb of God

The story of the Exodus and redemption are not to be taken only as history, for each Jewish person is to consider the experience as personal.  Those of us who are spiritually redeemed by Jesus, the true Passover Lamb, see Him as being sacrificed for each of us individually and personally.  People need to be born again by personal faith in the Lamb of God to experience God’s redemption.

The Unleavened Bread

Leaven in the Bible speaks about evil and error.  After leaving Egypt, the Israelites were to throw away “leaven” - their former life and live a holy life.

For those who have received the Lamb of God, the Bible says that we are to consider ourselves dead to sin but alive to God through Messiah Yeshua.

“Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened.  Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth” (1 Cor 5:7-8).

The bitter herbs

The bitter herbs represent the bitterness of slavery for the Israelites whilst in Egypt.

Those who by faith have received Yeshua as their Passover Lamb can experience the redemption from bondage to sin.  “Whom the Son sets free is free indeed” (John 8:36).

The afikomen (hidden bread)

The matza (unleavened bread) is both striped and pierced.  Of the three that are on the table, the middle matzo is broken in two and half of it is hidden (the afikomen).  It is later brought back, broken and distributed.

Concerning the afikomen, it is written in Luke 22:19 “And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it and gave it to them, saying This is my body which is given for you, this do in rememberance of me.”

The cup of redemption (third cup)

This is the third of the four cups of wine.  It is the cup of redemption and represents the blood of the Passover lamb.

This is the cup which Messiah Yeshua raised and said “This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you” (Luke 22:20).

The cup of praise (fourth cup)

To Israel this cup represents the hope of the Kingdom and Israel’s restored glory.

For believers in Messiah Yeshua, it is the hope of His return.

Yeshua did not drink from this cup at his Seder.  When he drank the third cup he said “I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s Kingdom”.