Study on Tassels (Question – Women too?)

STUDY ON TASSELS

Yep … we all hate sticking out like a sore thumb … “You want me to do what? Wear white and blue strings around my waist?” Talk about standing out! BUT, if it’s a command of God … there is no question, “Yes sir”.

(I am using NIV below)

The command: Numbers 15:38-40 … “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: Throughout the generations to come you are to make tassels on the corners of your garments, with a blue cord on each tassel. You will have these tassels to look at and so you will remember all the commands of the Lord, that you may obey them and not prostitute yourselves by going after the lusts of your own hearts and eyes. Then you will remember to obey all my commands and will be consecrated to your God.”

The command … again: Deuteronomy 22:11-13 … “Do not wear clothes of wool and linen woven together. Make tassels on the four corners of the cloak you wear. If a man takes a wife and, after lying with her, dislikes her …”

• The passage found in Numbers 15:38-40 is right after the recording of the Sabbath-breaker being stoned. As if, DO THIS (wear these tassels) so that this does not happen again (as verse 40 states … “By wearing them … THEN you will remember to obey”. Remember the “tying a string around your finger to remember what you are to remember?” God uses tassels!)
• Also found are the words “throughout the generations” and the verb “TO MAKE”.
• Let me ask you, are these following commands still valid today?:
- Putting a parapet around your roof so that no one gets injured by falling?
- Not planting two kinds of seed in your vineyard?
- Not plowing with and ox and donkey yoked together?
- Leaving part of your field (the corners) for the poor and hungry?
- Rising up when the “gray-haired” enters a room (the elderly)?
- If we find our neighbor’s ox (animal) we are to take it in and care for it until they return?
- Not wearing clothes of wool and linen woven together?

• If yes … then the verse on the tassels is the very next statement of some of the above … not skipping a beat … “Make tassels on the four corners of the cloak you wear.” … (It then continues on marriage violations) as well as mixed in with the others above.

People may use excuses for not obeying certain commands, such as:

1.) It doesn’t say “forever” or “for all generations”, so it’s not for us today (Can’t use this excuse, it does say throughout the generations!) Did you know that the Ten Commandments do not say “forever” yet we know that it is to be. Hmmm …
2.) They (the Jews) had the tassels to remind them of God’s Law … we have the Spirit now (We are never to negate a command because we know the spiritual meaning … “You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.” (Matthew 23:23) and “Dear friends, I am not writing you a new command but an old one, which you have had since the beginning. This old command is the message you have heard.” (1 John 2:7) This is how we KNOW that the Spirit is within a child of God … their flesh obeys the Law (For it is through the Spirit that it is done)!
3.) I have even heard that it was used as a similie … you know, describing something else. Let us examine that one for a moment:

Two similes come to mind … Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and another similar one in Exodus 13:7-9. A Simile is comparing two items using the words like or as. Below, in blue, are descriptive words or action words. The underlined are the similes. Note: wearing tassels is not used as NEVER used as a descriptive word for an action. Simply, by wearing them, you are reminded.

(I am using NASB below)

Deuteronomy 6:4-9 … “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you get up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.”

Exodus 13:7-9 … “Unleavened bread shall be eaten throughout the seven days; and nothing leavened shall be seen among you, nor shall any leaven be seen among you in all your borders. You shall tell your son on that day, saying, “It is because of what the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt. And it shall serve as a sign to you on your hand, and as a reminder on your forehead, that the law of the Lord may be in your mouth; for with a powerful hand the Lord brought you out of Egypt.” (BY observing this feast, and by doing so, it will be “as if” it were written on our hands and displayed on our foreheads.)

Can you see in the above passages that there is a difference between actually being asked to do something (in blue) VERSUS being told that doing something was “as if” it was like doing something else (a simile … see the underlined items)

For example:

1.) You just finished a beautiful vacation that was absolutely breathtaking. You come back to explain it to your friends … “It was as if I was in paradise” (Were you actually in paradise, or was it like you were?).
2.) Again, many people living out in the farm lands of the country often say, “Living in the country is as if you are living in heaven.” (Are you actually living in heaven, or is it “LIKE” living in heaven, “as if” you were?)

The same with the above passages … by doing one thing, it is “as if” you were doing another. As you can see, wearing tassels is never mentioned as a similie. It even explains what they will do when worn.

Let me ask you:

How do you exactly live out “Keeping the Sabbath”? I often look and see what my forefathers have done … I often institute my own precautions, as well. What if our Master (Yeshua / Jesus Himself) did or did not do something on the Sabbath … would that be a good enough test on what to do? Well … He wore His tassels! Matthew 9:20 … “Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind Him and touched the edge of His cloak.” (Edge is strong’s # G2899 … specifically a fringe or tassel) Are we not to be imitating what HE does? (1 John 2:6).

Matthew 23:5 … “Everything they do is done for men to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long;” (We often say that the Master had many opportunities to address an issue such as nullifying the Sabbath, but He never did (He simply corrected the interpretation of how to obey it). Same with this passage, He had the opportunity to let us know that wearing the tassels is NOT a command. Instead, He corrects the way they were being worn. The leaders were making their tassels and prayer shawls longer and wider to show others that they were superior to the “common folk”)

4.) (Regarding excuses for not wearing tassels) “I don’t have a 4 corner garment, so I don’t have to wear them.” OR “you are not wearing them right, since you are not wearing a 4 corner garment” (some attach them on their belt loops around themselves).

Here’s a thought regarding how to wear tassels:

• I have been criticized about wearing them on the belt loops of my pants. (Yet, I do not hear criticism of those who hide them by tucking them in?). What is the proper way to wear them? Let me ask you, what if someone was wearing his tassels on the bottom of His pant-legs? To him I would say, “Ah, Great!” (I would then ask him how he came up with that, but great!) What are the four corners of your garments? If you use other Scriptural references to four corners which simply refers to being “around the entire object” … the object, in this case, is me. I have nothing against those who actually wear them on a 4 corner garment (that happened to be what they were wearing at that time in history).

“Son of man, this is what the Sovereign Lord says to the land of Israel: The end! The end has come upon the four corners of the land.” (Ezekiel 7:2) (Since Israel’s land is not a square … the combined meaning in Strong’s means “border”, “end”, or “uttermost part” … in word search it also describes it as “It took on the sense of the outer edges, corners, or extremities of something.”

“After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth to prevent any wind from blowing on the land or on the sea or on any tree.” (Revelation 7:1) (Maybe this is where they got that whole “the world is flat” idea? Instead, I think that the writer meant that there was no escaping the four angels … they covered the earth, they had it surrounded!!))

“When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth – ” (Revelation 20:7-8a) (Maybe this is why they believed the earth was flat?)

(I enjoyed this next one … most heads are not square, nor do they have edges / corners … except mine … it has a flat top! Get it? (Wow, tough crowd!))

(NIV) Leviticus 19:7 … “Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shall thou mar the corners of thy beards.” (I don’t know if anyone told Moses, but God already rounded off the corners of my head … it’s now a ball-shape)
(NASB) Leviticus 19:17 … “Do not cut the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard.”
(KJV) Leviticus 19:7 … “You shall not round off the side-growth of your heads, nor harm the edges of your beard.” (Question: Where would the side end and the top begin? That would be the next controversy, eh?)

Makes you think again … “Make tassels on the four corners of the cloak you wear.” (Deuteronomy 22:12) (How do I see it? You should be surrounded by God’s Word … these tassels shall be all around you. They are on the edge of my garment (the top of my pants) and my brothers can see them and remember to obey God’s Laws. What does “all around” mean to you? As long as we are practicing … that is what pleases God, I believe.

But what about woman? Are they to wear them too?

Deuteronomy 22:12 simply states to do “this”: “Make tassels on the four corners of the cloak you wear.” To answer the question about who this command is to, let me ask you, who is Deuteronomy 22:11 to? (“Do not wear clothes of wool and linen woven together.”). Obviously, this is for the woman to do, as much as for the men. I think about Adam and Eve. Adam (the man of the house) was given the command and HE was to pass it on to Eve. That is the job of the men or husband, to be spiritual heads of their household. ALL the commands were to the “Israelites” or “sons of Israel” (unless a certain command was for the woman or man, it then said “a man is not to …..” or “a woman is to do ….”) Below is the Strong’s definition of “Israelites” or “sons of Israel”:

H1121
bên
bane
From H1129; a son (as a builder of the family name), in the widest sense (of literal and figurative relationship, including grandson, subject, nation, quality or condition, etc., (like H1, H251, etc.):

Numbers 15:38-41 … “Speak to the Israelites (many translations have “sons of Israel”) and say to them: ‘Throughout the generations to come you are to make tassels on the corners of your garments, with a blue cord on each tassel. You will have these tassels to look at and so you will remember all the commands of YHVH, that you may obey them and not prostitute yourselves by going after the lusts of your own hearts and eyes. Then you will remember to obey all my commands and will be consecrated to your God. I am YHVH your God, who brought you out of Egypt to be your God. I am YHVH your God.’” Could this be to the men, like Adam, the builders of the family name, to tell the woman? Oh … you thought that I would have an answer? I don’t know. My wife has put them on her prayer shawl she covers herself with during her intimate prayer times. We are saved by faith as we try to figure out how to obey God.

God Is Not a Daddy Warbucks

06 / 24 / 06
(Comments in parentheses and emphasis are mine)

FIRST THOUGHTS:

We have all seen them before: Children who act like they love their parents only when they want something. (Some of us may even have a child like this). We all know what they look like. The parent’s first thought is, “Okay, what do you want, now.”

I don’t know about you, but I would simply hate to have this kind of a relationship that is based upon what the child receives. But we see it all over!! Many think that they are actually building a relationship when they give and give to their children … they are not. Just like our pets, our children know who “feeds” them. They know which parent is the “Daddy Warbucks”. These children know how much they can get away with and they know who has the money and how to get it! This is NOT true love. Actually, many of us may even have friends like this, as well!! The only reason they may be a friend is for THEIR own gain (what they can get out of the relationship)?

Can you imagine how God feels? Many say, “I love you”, but in actuality they believe that they are gaining eternal life by saying so. Some say, “I love you, Lord”, but actually they are being taught that they will gain wealth in saying such words or by a certain style of worship.

Spoiled children.

Yes, these people cannot hide behind their curtain of fake godliness. Can you talk about God with them? If it’s not during their scheduled weekly hour (at church) … forget it. That kind of stuff takes up way too much time. Do they want to learn something new about God? That, too, is impossible for they are content with where they are at and what their pastor is preaching. They may even feel that their relationship with God is perfect, for their life is going great … in their eyes. (You know … why “rock the boat” … Why spoil a “good thing”)

VERSES THAT TOUCH ON THE THOUGHT:

“These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by me.” (Matthew 15:8-9)

(Mark expands on it, in Mark 7:8-9) “You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men.” And He said to them: “You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!”

LAST THOUGHTS:

1-800-CALL-GOD

When they are in trouble is the only time many will call upon God. That seems to be their emergency number. Until then, this number is kept in the phone book. Just like those children who give lip service … there is no real relationship. They just keep their parents close enough for support.

God knows the heart of these “want-a-be” children. He is not being fooled, in the least. When His righteous judgment is reveled is when they will find out that “that number has been disconnected!

Yep, spoiled is what they are.

God cannot be mocked. Many think that they are fooling God with their traditions and man-made days … but they are not fooling God. This is where Satan’s deception comes in: Since life is good and problems are few and money is flowing … “God must be pleased” (Funny, it is when all these things are taken away and they are in need, that they finally truly search for God’s face)

Just something to think about

God Gets Upset with His Disobedient Children

06 / 02 / 07
(NIV used)

FIRST THOUGHTS:

• I have to be honest with you, I truly anticipated doing a study on a subject people tell me they want to hear about. You know, God’s love, God’s forgiveness, God’s blessings (never curses), wealth, health, prosperity … ahhhhhhh. These topics make us feel good about ourselves and life. Don’t get me wrong, we all need these types of studies, also. However, the Lord seems to be calling me to preach a different message (I guess He feels we enough of those). Many of you don’t know that I really don’t like preaching about repentance and obedience to God (especially since I know that I, myself, am utterly ruined before God in my sinful flesh. Praise His name for His forgiveness!)
• WE ARE COMMANDED TO OBEY THE CREATOR OF THE UNIVERSE!!
• Okay, I feel a little better after that outburst.

• Before I began to write about an “easy hearing” subject, I wanted to spend some time in God’s Word. He took me to Jeremiah 8 and 9. Jeremiah was explaining the reason God withdrew His presence at that time and sent His children into exile, scattering them throughout the nations. So, why was God was so upset?
• Now, if this doesn’t wake us up, I don’t know what will!! (Remember, God does not change!)
• Read these passages very carefully. And to think that we, today, count on the “wisdom” of men like they did the scribes and teachers of the Law back then. Again, the people trusted and admired their leaders (just like we do). However, they were leading God’s people astray.

ALLOW ME TO SHOW YOU SOME OF WHAT I READ OUT OF JEREMIAH 8 and 9:

• “At that time, declares the Lord, the bones of the kings and officials of Judah, the bones of the priests and prophets, and the bones of the people of Jerusalem will be removed from their graves … they will not be gathered up or buried, but will be like refuse lying on the ground. Wherever I banish them, all the survivors of this evil nation will prefer death to life, declares the Lord Almighty.”(8:1 and 2b-3) Don’t you just want to know what these people (God’s children) did that upset the Lord of hosts so much? I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t want to repeat their mistake!! As you will see, they were and are NO different from us today. They believed their “scribes” like many do today.
• “Say to them, ‘This is what the Lord says: When men fall down, do they not get up? When a man turns away, does he not return? I have listened attentively, but they do not say what is right. No one repents of his wickedness, saying, “What have I done?” Each pursues his own course like a horse charging into battle.’” (8:4 and 6) Okay, it sounds like they were sinning without any remorse. It sounds like there was no repentance or turning back to God. Sinning … forsaking God’s Laws. They were kind of doing what many today do, playing “follow the leader”. What ever pleased themselves was their attitude, as well. Whatever the leaders said, well, must be right … right?
• “But my people do not know the requirements of the Lord.” (8:7b) Have you ever wondered why many times God will separate those who teach from those who are taught? In the end BOTH will be held accountable for what they believed and lived out. But here, God is saying that His people do not know His Laws! He was upset about this (Don’t we get upset when our children do not listen?). BUT HOLD ON! Continue reading … Who is to blame? Please understand that this was approximately 800 years after Moses had received God’s eternal Laws. I am not going to be quiet about this fact, but it has been 2,000 years since our Messiah attempted to set them straight about these Laws. However, MANY Pastors and leaders are repeating the mistakes of the past.
• “How can you say, “We are wise,fro we have the law of the Lord,” when actually the lying pen of the scribes has handled it falsely? The wise will be put to shame; they will be dismayed and trapped. Since they have rejected the word of the Lord, wheat kind of wisdom do they have?” (8:8-9) Yes, the Lord of hosts is saying that the leaders were wrong. Even today, many leaders have rejected the Word of God (Rejecting His Laws and ordinances regarding how to live as children of the King).
• “They make ready their tongue like a bow, to shoot lies; it is not by truth that they triumph in the land. They go from one sin to another; they do not acknowledge me,” declares the Lord.” (9:3) (Did you see that God relates obedience to knowing / acknowledging Him? Wow!! You have heard it before, truly believing in God should MAKE us obey whatever He asks of us. Truly understanding should cause us to want to obey like His Son did (Isn’t that how we become like Him?) Wow, this sure sounds like Matthew 7:22-23 …. “Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” These people, in the end, thought that they knew God. They did many things for God, but never knew Him and what He desrires for their lives … “Observe them carefully, for THIS will show your wisdom and understanding to the nations.” (Deuteronomy 4:6a) Today, Many of His children are not even trying to obey His Laws. Many have listened to the “scribes” of our day and discarded His Laws! Question: How can someone claim that God’s eternal laws are done away with? Better yet, how can someone believe this when God’s Word clearly says, “All your Words are true; all your righteous laws are eternal.”? (Psalm 119:160)

LAST THOUGHTS (We MUST learn from the past):

• I will close with the following words from Jeremiah (given to Him by God). Again, WHY was God so upset? Let us read VERY carefully (for THIS is the revelation of the heart of God!):

- “The Lord said, “It is because they have forsaken My Law, which I set before them; they have not obeyed me or followed my Law..” (9:13)

• Now, wait a minute. We often hear that “they” had to obey God, but we don’t (I could not find this in the Bible, so if someone could show me where it says that, I would be quite amazed!). Many say that “they” had the Law, but we have grace … really? Continue reading to see just how false this cliché is and how much grace and mercy “they” truly had: “This is what the Lord says: “Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,” declares the Lord.” (9:23-24) and again in 31:34b … “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” That’s odd. So there WAS mercy and grace back then, too! A child who loves his parent, obeys his parents. What was Adam and Eve’s fall? It was sin … they did NOT obey God. Whose children are we … Adam’s or the Messiah’s? Let us be honest, God has ALWAYS been merciful and gracious … Go, proclaim this message toward the north: ‘Return, faithless Israel,’ declares the lord, ‘I will frown on you no longer, for I am merciful,’ declares the Lord, ‘I will not be angry forever. Only acknowledge your guilt (sin) – you have rebelled against the Lord your God, … and have not obeyed me,’” declares the Lord.” (Jeremiah 3:12-13 … p.s. … in verse 14, God even calls Himself HER husband. So either He is talking to us and His Word is eternal for all generations, or it is not. If it is, then we must acknowledge our sins, repent, and obey Him again (No matter what any leader says otherwise)!

- “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” (Matthew 7:24)
- “So you MUST obey them (The words of Moses) and do everything he (original word is singular) tells you. But do NOT do what they do (Speaking about the leaders of that time), for they do NOT practice what they preach.” (Matthew 23:3) (Those words in red are not mine, but are words from our Savior!! He is commanding us to do what Moses said, NOT what their leaders were saying! We did it again … we trusted in men!! Oops.)
- “Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, BUT whoever practices and teaches these commandments will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:19)

• So how do we show God that we believe in Him? How do we show God that we love Him and have given Him authority over our lives? How DO WE look like His Son (our example)?

• By obeying His Laws (These Laws tell us “HOW” to love God and our neighbor.)

• Just something to think about as we attempt to be like Him … obedient to the Father (In ALL ways, not just what the leaders pick and choose as relevant and applicable for us today).

When Did the Son of God Die?

We are always to be searching for God’s face. This is just part of it … Is God “close enough” or is He “exact”? The God I serve hits it on the head of the nail every time.

SO … WHEN DID OUR SAVIOR DIE?
(Good Friday? It is more like Good Thursday.)

There are a few different opinions regarding when Yeshua (Jesus) was crucified and when He rose. God’s Word does not contradict itself … so we will take each opinion and test it against His Perfect Word. Does it fit?

- One thing that we MUST remember is that the evening (after sundown) belongs to the next day. In other words, a day starts on the evening of the day before. This is based upon creation and God’s timing … not man-made … so evening (sundown) to evening (sundown) is a day to God.
For example: If a verse says … “The first day of the week” … this could be “our” Saturday night.
- Another misunderstanding in our Greek culture, are not knowing the Feast days of God. It is very important to understand these days that God has put aside for us to celebrate.

1.) First view of our Savior’s death:

“Jesus died and was buried on Friday and rose on Sunday”

Fri-day Fri-night Sat-day Sat-night Sun-day

Died 3:00

day one night one day two night two (He was risen by a.m. … no day three)
(partial)

Passage that seems to contradict this view:

“For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” (Matthew 12:40)

Hole in this view: There are not three days or three nights. (And God’s Word is true)
How was this view developed? Verses such as Mark 15:41 which recounts when the Savior was buried. “It was Preparation Day (that is, the day before the Sabbath). So as evening approached,” (then we read about Joseph of Arimathea going to Pilate for the body). When we don’t view the “New Testament” in light of the “Old Testament” … we will miss many points God is trying to tell us. In other words, we will be in error more often than not. The fact is, the Feast of Passover is immediately followed by the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread … this day is a Special Sabbath. So when our Savior was crucified … they had to remove His body and bury it before the Sabbath … the first day of Unleavened Bread’s Sabbath.
What might be a response to these facts? “Oh, it’s close enough.” (And then they smile, as if we were cute to ask such a silly question). Well … for God’s children … close enough is not good enough. So let us examine it further.

2.) Second view:

Yeshua (Jesus) died and then was buried on Wednesday at evening (based upon the above passage in Matthew 12:40…. “For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. And on Leviticus 23:5 … “The Lord’s Passover begins at twilight on the fourteenth day of the first month.”) We know that the crucifixion was at 3:00. This view states that He was taken off the cross and then was buried at the fading of one day (Passover) and the entering in of the next day (Unleavened Bread) … thus twilight … the time between). This view assumes that the Jonah passage means He was in the tomb three full 24 hour periods and three complete nights. Then, He rose on Saturday evening just after sundown which is actually Sunday.

Wed-evening Wed-night Thur-day Thur-night Fri-day Fri-night Sat-day
(Sabbath) (Not a Sabbath) (Sabbath)

(died 3:00) night one day one night two day two night three day three (buried in evening) (Risen at the
end of day)

Passages that seem to contradict this view:

“They will kill him, and on the third day he will be raised to life.” (Matt. 17:23) Also, Matt. 20:19, Mark 9:31, Mark 10:34, Luke 9:22, and Luke 18:33 which all state that He would rise on the third day.
If He was in the tomb for three full 24 hour periods, then He would not have risen on the third day, but actually on the fourth day. This is further clarified in the following passage:

“The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place.” (Luke 24:20-21) Now from Luke 24:13, we know that this conversation took place on the same day the women went to the tomb which was the first day of the week very early in the morning according to Luke 24:1. Then, later that same day, we are told it is the third day since his crucifixion. If this second view was true, and He was crucified on Wednesday, then this would be the fourth day. God’s word never contradicts itself and is never wrong.

Hole in this view: The Jonah passage says that He will be in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights. This is referring to the fact that He was no longer in this body on the surface of the earth. Thus, the three days and nights begin to be counted at the 3:00 death of our Master … The time that His Spirit was given up. Thus, by 3:00 pm on Saturday, we have already hit three 24 hour periods and at 3:01p.m. we enter the fourth day. Even if we count from the moment He was put in the tomb, we know from Luke 23:54 that He was placed in the tomb on Preparation Day which means the sun had not yet set, so it was still the day He was crucified. If this view is true, then He rose, in fact, on the fourth day which contradicts the whole list of Scriptures above. This cannot be.
Possible other hole: If He was crucified on Wednesday, this would mean that Friday was not a Sabbath. Therefore, the woman were anxiously waiting for the Sabbath to be over to anoint the body of the Son of God … they would have had time to do this on Friday before the weekly Sabbath began.

3.) Third view:

Yeshua (Jesus) died and was buried on Thursday (Again, based upon Leviticus 23:5 … “The Lord’s Passover begins at twilight on the fourteenth day of the first month.”) The crucifixion was at 3:00 … but He was taken off the cross and then was buried before the Sabbath of Unleavened Bread began. Using the verse “Then they went home and prepared spices and perfumes . But they rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment.” (Luke 23:56) this shows that these woman had time to prepare spices BEFORE the Sabbath … just not time to go to the tomb.

Thur-day Thur-night Fri-day Fri-night Sat-day Sat-night Sun-day
Died 3:00 (Sabbath) (Sabbath)

Day one night one day two night two day three night three
(parital) (risen by a.m.)

Passages that seem to contradict this view:

None that we can come up with. The Spirit of God departed Him at 3:00 … this is where we start counting (even if one does not agree with this … the body was buried before the sun set and the next day started). 3:00 p.m. on Thursday to 3:00 on Saturday is two FULL days and nights … The third day would begin after this 3:00 p.m. mark on Saturday, as well. Saturday night gives us our third night, and He rose before sunrise on Sunday. This is rising on the third day. This view makes both the three days and three nights passage true and the 3rd day rising passages true. The three days were not three full 24 hour periods, but partial Thursday before sunset + partial Saturday after sunset until rising just before sunrise, Friday, and Saturday.

Hole in this view: There does not appear to be any.

How was this view developed? By trying to make sure our interpretations of Scripture match up with all the rest of Scripture so that there are no contradictions. By doing so … is searching for God’s Truth.

Just think about it. This is what us Gentile believers are missing when we let go of God’s Feasts … His truth. Good Friday? I suppose every day is good if we wake up breathing … but Friday is not when our Savior died. Thursday seems to fit Scripture the most.

The Jobs of a Priest Are like Being on the First String Team

“Does not the Potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some
pottery for noble purposes and some for common use?”

(Romans 9:21)

02 / 09 / 08
(NIV used)

FIRST THOUGHTS:

Within the body of Christ, we are ALL on the same team, but only the “Priests” are on the first string.

The coach: the Potter (Or God)
The team: the lump of clay (All Israel … God’s chosen ones by faith)
The first string: clay for noble purposes (The Priests)
The second string: clay for common use (They help the Priests, just like the second string assists the first string team)

I have played on many sports teams in my life. On some teams I was a starter, which is often called being a first stringer. On other teams I was a second stringer. Here, we simply relieved the first string players when they were tired. Yet on some other teams I was, well, a “bench warmer”. But when the team did well, we ALL got praised and we ALL won. When the team did poorly, we ALL got punished and had to do extra laps. The purpose of this devotion is to remind us of the commitment and dedication it takes to be on the first string of God’s team. We are all saved by faith! However, everyone must answer these questions:

1.) Are you satisfied by simply being on the team? You know, enjoying the win that others have achieved?
2.) Are you satisfied with simply relieving those players who have sacrificed everything to be the best and are, therefore, on the first string? (If we dare to admit it, this is probably most of us. “Hey, let me know when you guys get tired. We’ll come in for ya … but only for a short time.” This way, if we win, we can say that we played.)
3.) Or have you given up your life to practice night and day to be best player you can be: a first string player?

Let us look at the original starting lineup:

The first stringers (chosen by the Coach): (Numbers 18:1 and 7) “YHVH said to Aaron, “You, your sons and your father’s family are to bear the responsibility for offenses against the sanctuary, and you and your sons alone are to bear the responsibility for offenses against the priesthood.” and “But only you and your sons may serve as priests in connection with everything at the altar and inside the curtain. I am giving you the service of the priesthood as a gift. Anyone else who comes near the sanctuary must be put to death.”

The second stringers (chose by the Coach to relieve the starters when they are tired): (Numbers 18:2 and 6) “Bring your fellow Levites from your ancestral tribe to join you and assist you when you and your sons minister before the Tent of the Testimony.” and “ I myself have selected your fellow Levites from among the Israelites (the rest of the team) as a gift to you, dedicated to YHVH to do the work at the Tent of Meeting.”

SINCE WE SHOULD OBVIOUSLY ALL BE STRIVING TO BE ON THE STARTING LINEUP, LET’S TAKE A LOOK AT WHAT THAT ENTAILS:

The first stringers are to teach righteousness (obedience):
- “Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven (the rest of the team), but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” (the starters) (Matthew 5:19)
- “I have written you quite boldly on some points, as if to remind you of them again, because of the grace God gave me to be a minister of Messiah Yeshua (Christ Jesus) to the Gentiles with the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:15-16) Recall the job description of the priests (first stringers) and the Levites (the second stringers) from the book of Numbers. It was their “… responsibility for offenses against the sanctuary…” They had to make sure that the offerings were acceptable to God. Paul is describing his “priestly duty” to make sure that the “rest of the team” (The Gentiles) are an “acceptable offering” to God.
- Do you remember the “greats” of the past … Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth, even Michael Jordan? God’s team also has its “greats”. Just scan through Hebrews, Chapter 11, for a glimpse into the “hall of fame” (I mean “hall of faith”). Let’s look at 2 Peter 2:5 for another example, “… when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others. (The rest of Noah’s team)”
- “First to those in Damascus, then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and to the Gentiles also, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds.” (Acts 26:20) What was the message? That they should all be first stringers by repenting and proving it by striving to obey (Turning from sins).

They are to forgo their own desires for His. They give up this world and its passions to achieve their goal. They accept the rigorous training it takes to be a starter (the best):

- “I am to be the only inheritance the priests have. You are to give them no possession in Israel; I will be their possession.” (Ezekiel 44:28) God knew that if His first team got distracted, the whole team would suffer. So, the Coach had to make sure He kept the first stringers focused! I have been on sports teams that kept us from the rest of the school crowd so that we would stay focused on the “big game”!
- Occasionally, though, the Coach still has to remind the team: “Hey, the big game is coming, stay alert!” “For everything in the world–the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does–comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.” (1 John 2:16-17) and “So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans (The other team) run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness (The win), and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” (Matthew 6:31-34)

They are held to a higher standard. The Coach knows that if the leaders are bad examples, the rest of the team will follow. The leaders MUST know the Laws (God’s play book) and MUST know how to teach others with compassion and love:

- “Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.” (James 3:1)
- “This sin of the young men (priests who did not take their job seriously) was very great in YHVH’s sight, for they were treating YHVH’s offering with contempt.” (1 Samuel 2:17) Not every season was a winning season! These priests were wicked, therefore, so was the rest of the team.
- “In all that has happened to us (the team), you (the Coach) have been just; you have acted faithfully, while we did wrong. Our kings, our leaders, our priests and our fathers did not follow your law (the play book); they did not pay attention to your commands or the warning you gave them (the extra laps and longer practices).” (Nehemiah 9:33-34)

Every team has a team captain, or the team leader! This player is the ultimate player and example. He is the one who pumps up the team and gets them to play their hardest. The whole team looks to the Captain!

- “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” (John 10:27)

Here is just one of the pre-game “pep talks” for the big game coming up:

- “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us … Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God.” (1 peter 2:9-12 and 16) Did you catch the Captain’s charge?:

o We are to be “aliens and strangers in the world” and to “abstain from sinful desires” In other words, if you want to be a starter don’t worry about making it big here on earth, but focus on the win (eternity and its wealth). The good players are the ones who take the play book home to study and walk through it in their heads. They go over it and practice continually. “Practice makes perfect” is their standard and rule.
o “Live such good lives among the (other teams) that, though they accuse you of (cheating), they will see your (obedience and righteousness) and glorify (the Coach) on the day He visits us.”
o “Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil (sin).” This is a huge one for the starters. Yeshua (Jesus) is our example – NOT our excuse to sin! Since we are free from death, we are NOT to use that freedom as a cover-up for evil! “Thanks for the pointer, Captain!”

- We all know that the Captain can do ONLY what the Coach tells Him to do. Although He is the best player on the team, the Captain does NOT make the plays! The coach gives the plays! “… I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what He sees His Father doing, because whatever the Father does the son also does.” (John 5:19) Why do you think He was chosen to be Captain? He executed the plays perfectly and adhered to every wish that the coach desired! The Captain is always encouraging His teammates to imitate Him so that they will become the best … “Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites.” (Exodus 19:5-6) “You too can be a starter”, He says, “If you do what I say.”

The big game has finally come! The bleachers are full with spectators. In the crowd are past players that have been your idols and that you have set as your role-models. In other words, you “… are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us thrown off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” (Hebrews 12:1).

There you are, though, sitting on the bench … again (been there and done that). You are cheering on those who are in the game. Cheering on those who practiced endlessly, while you fooled around or were watching the cheerleaders during practice. You watch and cheer, satisfied with your position on the bench. As you are cheering: “GO team … GO!” Something happens! “Oh no! Johnny is injured really bad! He is being taken out of the game!” Your head turns to the coach, then back to the field, then back to the coach. Is this your chance? Is this the opportunity you have been waiting for?

“Then I heard the voice of the (Coach) saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”

“Yes!” You think. “I know the plays (Laws of God)! I know how to lead with compassion!” You stand up and scream back to the Coach:

“…. Here am I. Send me!” (Isaiah 6:8)

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