The power of living a post-resurrection life

The power of living a post-resurrection life

By Andrew Farley, 

 Monday, April 11, 2022 

As we approach Easter, a time to celebrate the cross and resurrection of Jesus, it brings to mind an important question that hardly anyone asks: “What does it mean to have Christ living in me?”

Some will say, “I grew up in a Christian home,” or “I’ve been baptized,” or “I’m a member of such-and-such congregation.” That’s not what I’m talking about here. And I’m not even talking about inviting Christ to live in you. I’m talking about what it means to have Him living in you now that you’re already a believer. Hardly anyone asks about how His indwelling presence affects their everyday perspective and life.

Almost nobody is talking about it at all. I’ve asked myself why many times, and I think it comes down to this: Most of us are still asking questions about Friday, so to speak. We haven’t graduated to Sunday. In other words, most of us are still asking “cross” questions:

Am I forgiven of my sins?

Does God really accept me as I am?

Did I do something to mess up my relationship with God?

If you don’t have solid answers to these cross questions, it’s hard to move on to get your resurrection questions answered. We can easily find ourselves stuck in a “Friday” experience and miss all that “Sunday” (the resurrection!) has to offer us.

Resurrection thoughts might include:

• What does it mean that Christ lives in me?
• How do I live from my union with Jesus?
• What should I expect from His indwelling life?

Living in a post-crucifixion world means we have received God’s forgiveness and we are at peace with Him in every way. But we need to be living in a post-resurrection world, too, as the resurrection gave us victory over sin and an unbreakable spiritual union with Jesus.

How miraculous it is to be totally forgiven and to live under grace as a new creation! But maybe it’s time we now focus on what it means to have new life — His resurrection life in us, here and now.

Have you considered that eternal life is more than everlasting life? Everlasting life is life with no end. But the word “eternal” means “having no beginning and no end.” Whose life is the only life with no beginning? God’s life, of course. To have eternal life is to have the life of God Himself within you!

So, the gift of eternal life is not your life made longer. And eternal life is not your life made better. Eternal life is actually Christ’s life.

“And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life” (1 John 5:11-13).

Eternal life isn’t just a ticket to Heaven. Having eternal life is not primarily about reading a book or visiting a building for an hour a week. Whoever has the Son has the life. Having eternal life means having the Son’s life. The life lost in Eden is restored to us in Christ.

A building of brick and mortar is not the house of God. You are!

Some may think experiencing eternal life is about book knowledge — knowing facts and figures from the Bible. Jesus Himself dismissed that idea:

“You study the Scriptures diligently because you think in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life” (John 5:39-40).

The Jews were certainly dedicated to studying Scripture and memorizing what it said. But getting to know the book is very different from getting to know the Author. You can see how easy it is to get off track.

I taught linguistics for two decades and wrote a textbook. My students read the textbook to get to know linguistics, not to get to know me. Growing up in school, you read your math book to learn the formulas. You read your history book to learn the facts. Likely, you never once thought about getting to know the author of those textbooks. But with the Bible it’s different: It’s ultimately not about being an expert in the Book. It’s about knowing the Author.

“Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent” (John 17:3).

Knowing the presence of Christ Himself within us is nothing short of miraculous. It’s the core of true Christianity. Paul says the test you need to pass is this:

“Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you — unless indeed you fail the test” (2 Corinthians 13:5)?

The best revelation a Christian can have is to realize that you contain within you every attribute of Christ at every moment. Need more patience? Don’t wait for a gift package to fall from Heaven. Trust God within you here and now. Need more love? Recognize God poured out His love into your heart through His Spirit (Romans 5:5). You have all that you need.

There’s no more waiting or hoping, begging or pleading. Instead, count yourself alive and connected to the One Who is pure patience and pure love. No more long-distance phone calls to Heaven asking for a special visit of God’s Spirit to “fall fresh” on you. The presence of Christ is local, powerful, and all-encompassing. He is everything you need!

“And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of His glory in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19).

Our union with the resurrected Christ means our attempts at getting “more of Jesus” can come to a screeching halt. We’re complete in Him. Through the resurrection, we are blessed with every spiritual blessing (Ephesians 1:3), and we have everything we need for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3). This is the greatest news we could ever receive. This Easter season, and every day, celebrate all you’ve been given through the resurrection of Jesus Christ!

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Adapted from The Grace Message by Dr. Andrew Farley, released March 8, 2022, from Salem Books. 

Dr. Andrew Farley is a bestselling author of nine books including The Naked Gospel and Twisted Scripture. He serves as president of The Grace Message – a nonprofit Christian media ministry dedicated to proclaiming the love and grace of God with boldness and clarity. Andrew hosts The Grace Message with Dr. Andrew Farley– a live, call-in radio program– every weeknight on Sirius XM Satellite Radio and on stations across North America. He is also the lead pastor of The Grace Church and has been recognized with several awards for his excellence in teaching. Andrew lives in Texas with his wife Katharine and their son Gavin.  Learn more at  www.andrewfarley.org.

Substitutionary atonement: Yahoshua died for us

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*Substitutionary atonement: Yahoshua died for us*

(Monday, April 18, 2022)

The prophet Isaiah said it so beautifully,  Israelite. As described in Lev. 17:11, it was a matter of life for life. That’s why the shedding of blood was so important (see also Heb 9:22).

And that’s why, on the Day of Atonement, the High Priest would lay his hands on the scapegoat and confess the sins of Israel over that goat. The animal would then be sent into the wilderness, while the blood of another goat would be killed to provide expiation (meaning atonement and cleansing) for the nation.

As stated in Leviticus 16, the High Priest “is to put [the sins of Israel] on the [scape] goat’s head and send it away into the wilderness by the man appointed for the task. The goat will carry on it all their wrongdoings into a desolate land, and he will release it there” (Lev. 16:21-22).

One goat would be killed, shedding its blood to bring atonement and cleansing to the nation. The other goat would be driven out into the wilderness to symbolically carry away Israel’s sins.

But on the cross, Jesus literally carried our sins away and willfully shed His blood to wash us clean. And by the power of that cross and the efficacy of that blood, we can be forgiven and delivered and washed clean.

As Paul wrote to the Corinthians after listing a number of sinful behaviors and lifestyles, “And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:11).

Or as he wrote to the believers in Rome, “What the law could not do since it was limited by the flesh, God did. He condemned sin in the flesh by sending His own Son in flesh like ours under sin's domain, and as a sin offering, in order that the law's requirement would be accomplished in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit” (Romans 8:3-4).

But why did the Savior have to die such a horrific, barbaric, humiliating, degrading death? Why the cross?

It’s because His death on the cross shows us just how ugly our sins are.

It’s because the cross shows us the terrible price that must be paid for sin.

It’s because the cross shows us the extraordinary, mind-boggling, totally humbling, incredibly massive love of God.

And when Jesus rose us from the dead, He declared victory over all the powers of darkness and provided our justification and vindication. He died for us, meaning that we died with Him, so that we could also rise to new life in Him.

That is the power of the cross. That is the reality of the resurrection. And that is why Paul could write, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17, ESV).

That’s also why John could say, “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.”

He continued: “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father — Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 1:8-2:2).

As one who received the Lord’s cleansing mercy and liberating grace more than 50 years ago — a mercy and grace that have been with me every day since — I urge you not to live in your sins another moment.

Jesus took your place on the cross — a place we all deserved — so that you could have a place with Him forever.

Call on Him today to save you from your sins, and let that new life begin right now.

What will it be?

*Dr. Michael Brown* (www.askdrbrown.org) 

Passover: Holiday of Freedom by Redemption

Passover: Holiday of Freedom by Redemption

Everyone knows the holiday of Passover as the celebration of the Exodus from Egypt, going out from slavery to freedom. In that sense, Passover is something that touches more than a handful of individuals, or even just one nation. The protest song sung by African-American slaves was inspired by the original Passover: “Go down, Moses, way down in Egypt’s land; tell old Pharaoh to let My people go!” The first line of the song became a password on the famed Underground Railroad, which helped slaves escape from the South to the free states in the North.

However, that isn’t exactly what the Holy One commanded Moses to say to Pharoah. The verse really says: “And you shall say to him, ‘The LORD, the GOD of the Hebrews, sent me to you, saying, “Let My people go, so that they may serve Me in the wilderness.’’” (Exod. 7:16) Israel was not being set free to do as they pleased. There was a specific goal, and it wasn’t to found a democracy – a government “of the people, by the people, for the people.” They were exchanging a human king and worthless idols for the only true GOD, the King of kings and Maker of heaven and earth. But their King saw them as more than subjects. “Israel is My son, My firstborn. So I said to you [Pharoah], ‘Let My son go so that he may serve Me’…” (Exod. 4:22-23) A son serves his father from love and respect, not obligation. A firstborn son serves with extra diligence, because he is a role model for all the other children. And the firstborn son of a king serves with the knowledge that he is destined to rule the kingdom someday.

If the Eternal has named Israel as His son, then Israel’s existence is assured for all time. The world is a witness to this anomaly of history: nations without number have come and gone, while a people called “Israel” has remained. Many (like the Pharoah of Moses’s childhood) have actively tried to annihilate them, without success. 

The greatest victory was “when the LORD brought back the captives of Zion” from exile to their homeland. “Then they said among the nations, ‘The LORD has done great things for them.’” (Ps. 126:1-2) Not once, but twice! These events are recited and discussed by the Jewish people during the Passover ceremonial meal (the Seder), to remember, and to tell their children, how the twelve tribes became one people – and also why. The Heavenly King was keeping a promise He had made to their forefathers: to give the small land of Canaan, where Abraham, Isaac and Jacob had lived as strangers, to their descendants for an everlasting inheritance. Both their enslavement and their liberation were foretold hundreds of years beforehand, in a personal encounter between the Lord of all the earth and the father of the nation, Abraham (Gen. 15:12-16). “Then in the fourth generation they will return here [to Canaan].” (v. 16)

Pharoah decided to resist the Holy One’s command. “Who is the LORD that I should obey His voice?” (Exod. 5:2) He learned the answer, the hard way. “For I am a great King,” says the LORD of armies, “and My name is feared among the nations.” (Mal. 1:14)

Pharaoh essentially said: “Yeah? Prove it.” The result was the Ten Plagues – in Hebrew, makot (“violent blows”). They were not random punishments either; they were designed to humiliate Egypt’s gods as well as its king (Exod. 12:12). At the halfway point, the Highest King warned the earthly king that worse blows were yet to come: “I am going to send all My plagues on you and your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is no one like Me in all the earth. For had I now put out My hand and struck you and your people with plague, you would then have been eliminated from the earth. But indeed, for this reason I have allowed you to remain, in order to show you My power and in order to proclaim My name throughout the earth.” (Exod. 9:14-16) The Creator also made a supernatural separation: “In order that you may know that I, the LORD, am in the midst of the land, I will put a division between My people and your people.” (Exod. 8:22-23) 

This creates a dilemma for those who try to explain the ten plagues as natural occurrences, since there were no natural obstacles to keep the disasters out of the region of Goshen. Nor were there natural explanations for their timing (beginning and ending on the days announced beforehand by Moses). Thus, the Holy One proved that He not only rules over the heavens where He is seated, but “so that you may know that the earth is the LORD’s” (Exod. 9:29). He moves on the earth among us and does whatever He pleases. 

Pharoah repeatedly denied the reality, believing instead in his own divinity (one of his titles was “Preserver of the God-Given Natural Order”). It wasn’t until he lost his firstborn son, just as the GOD of gods had warned him in the beginning (Exod. 4:23), that he surrendered… temporarily.

To be fair, though, the Israelites also needed convincing. Leaving a life of oppressive slavery sounds like a “no-brainer”… until you look ahead to your new life, and you see – a blank. How would they feed and shelter their families out in the wilderness? At least the taskmasters brought them food every day, and provided beds at night. Could they trust a GOD who could not be seen, who only sent messages through Moses? “Come, make us a god who will go before us; for this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt—we do not know what happened to him [literally, “we do not know what he had”].” (Exod. 32:1)

Taking the people out of Egypt was easier than taking Egypt out of the people. 

The lesson presented to Israel was simple: “Your GOD reigns. He has redeemed you in the sight of all the nations, and you are His.” Yet the lesson was learned and forgotten, over and over. Hundreds of years later, the prophet Isaiah foresaw a day, still in the future, when this message would again be proclaimed to Zion, and it would be received like “news” (Isa. 52:7-10).

There are many kinds of slavery today, and escape to freedom presents the same challenges. We all want to steer our own life, and be prepared for what will come next. It costs something to give up that control, even to Someone who seems to have control over our prison doors and our slave-masters, over creatures and weather, over kings and gods that we thought were invincible. If our Liberator told us that freedom means leaving our homes “tonight”, taking nothing but whatever assets we have on hand, some valuables ‘borrowed’ from the neighbors, and a bowl of bread dough quickly mixed for tomorrow… would we trust Him enough to do it? “They were driven out of Egypt and could not delay, nor had they prepared any provisions for themselves.” (Exod. 12:39) Whatever faults the Hebrew slaves had, the tiny spark that they possessed on that night was enough faith to produce obedience.

Freedom from slavery doesn’t happen without the slave’s bold participation. “Shake yourself from the dust, rise up, captive Jerusalem! Release yourself from the chains around your neck, captive daughter of Zion!” (Isa. 52:2) 

The world-changing proclamation only opens the door of the prison. The courage to shake off the dust and leave that dreary but familiar place, where we know what to expect, walking out into the unknown where anything might happen, can only come from faith in the One who calls from outside, “saying to those who are bound, ‘Go free!’ and to those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves!’” (Isa. 49:9) 

When our desire to be free to serve our Father and King is stronger than our desire to “play it safe” as slaves who answer to others, only then will we see Redemption. What does it mean for a human being to be “redeemed”? The word in Torah refers to slaves being freed for a price (Exod. 21:8, Lev. 19:20, Num. 3:49). It more often refers to the people of Israel together being freed from slavery or captivity (Exod. 15:13, Deut. 7:8, Deut. 9:26, Isa. 51:11, and many more). Some verses explicitly mention the Creator paying a price for Israel’s freedom (Ps. 74:2, Isa. 43:3-4). 

The Jewish sages have long taught that we are waiting for a greater future Redemption, which will come at the Passover season: "In Nissan [Passover month] our forefathers were redeemed from Egypt, and in Nissan we will be redeemed."  (Talmud, Rosh Hashana 11a) They identified the future Redeemer as the Messiah, because of the words of Isaiah: “’A Redeemer will come to Zion, and to those in Jacob who turn from wrongdoing,’ declares the LORD.” (Isa. 59:20) 

From what kind of trouble will the Messiah redeem us? The chapter above describes the situation, speaking to Israel (v. 2): “Your wrongdoings have caused a separation between you and your GOD, and your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hear.” 

The people of Israel answer (v. 9-11) with a confession of helplessness: “Therefore justice is far from us, and righteousness does not reach us. We hope for light, but there is darkness; for brightness, but we walk in gloom. We grope for the wall like people who are blind; we grope like those who have no eyes…. We hope for justice, but there is none; for salvation, but it is far from us.”

So, in compassion for our dilemma, the LORD sends His Redeemer (sometimes called “My Servant”), “to open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the dungeon, and those who dwell in darkness from the prison.” (Isa. 42:6-7)

As it was for our fathers in Egypt, it will take courage for us to walk out of the spiritual prison and follow the GOD of our Salvation. But just as those who left Egypt were promised to inherit the Land as their fathers, the Creator offers a greater inheritance to the future redeemed ones: 

“A Redeemer will come to Zion…. ’As for Me, this is My covenant with them,’ says the LORD: ‘My Spirit who is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth, shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your offspring, nor from the mouth of your offspring’s offspring,’ says the LORD, ‘from now and forever.’” (Isa. 59:20-21) 

The next chapter describes a glorious future when the LORD will “rise upon” Jerusalem, dazzling the nations; “and they will call you the city of the LORD, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel.” (Isa. 60:1, 14) In that day, we as a nation will finally internalize the lesson we first heard in Egypt, never again to be forgotten: “Then you will know that I, the LORD, am your Savior and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.” (v. 16)

May we be worthy to see it in our days.

I’m a slave – Halleluyah! (Ps. 113:1)

I have already said that in Passover we commemorate the Festival of Freedom, a “freedom to serve” another Master. 

During the Passover celebration called the Seder, we read Psalm 113, which calls on a specific group to praise the Eternal One: “Praise the LORD! Praise Him, you servants of the LORD. Praise the name of the LORD.” (v. 1) 

The English versions all have “servants.” but that would be: “meshartei Hashem”. The Hebrew actually says: “ovdei Hashem” – literally, His “slaves”.

The translators were catering to modern societies, which have a problem with this word. Today, the consensus is that any kind of slave mentality is self-damaging. “Happiness only comes in being free.” It’s true that most slaves are not happy with their situation, even if they submit to their masters. But there’s no guarantee that freedom from slavery makes one happy… or free. 

We live in an age that equates freedom with autonomy (self-government). The French concept of Liberté, symbolized by the statue standing in New York’s harbor, carries the message that we are (or we ought to be) the only ones who decide our destiny. To be free, we must resist submission to any higher power – human or divine, take control of our life, and be accountable only to ourselves. A famous saying is that we should be “the master of our fate and the captain of our souls.”

The idea sounds lofty and inviting, but it doesn’t work very well. 

It’s more like a little boy who is given a helium balloon. Older people smile at his happiness. But they know from experience that he will not keep the balloon, or the happiness it brought, for long. What he thinks of as his possession is not really under his control. For the moment, he enjoys making the balloon bob on its string and follow him. But the wind can interfere without his permission, pulling the balloon in a different direction, knocking it against a rough surface, causing it to burst. It can suddenly pop, or slowly deflate, for no visible reason at all. In fact, it’s the balloon that is really in control. The owner cannot relax and expect the toy to obediently follow him. If he loosens his grip on the string for even one second, it will escape into the sky and leave him behind, crying with helpless anger or misery. 

Our control of life’s circumstances is just as fragile, unpredictable and deceptive. Yet autonomy means that I must at all costs keep control of my “balloon” – or pretend to – because I have declared myself “master” of my unknowable fate, and “captain” of my unmanageable soul. 

The declaration seems justified as long as life is going as planned. I gladly take all the credit for my “self-made” success. But what happens when (not if) I lose control of my circumstances? When things go horribly wrong, do I take all the blame for my “self-made” failure? More often than not, I will blame GOD for “doing this to me” or “for allowing bad things to happen” in general.

Let’s be reasonable. If we declare “freedom” from the Creator as our “right to be autonomous”, we cannot complain when disaster strikes and we find ourselves alone. If we expect the Creator to take the responsibility to care for us as He promises to do, we must regard ourselves as His possession. 

As strange as it may seem, by becoming the slaves of the Creator, we are the freest people in the world. At Passover especially, I recognize this and rejoice. Just think… I could have been a slave to Pharoah in Egypt – or to some other spiritual bully, who would use me as a cog in his matrix, and then throw me away when I had no more to give. Instead, I belong to One whose goal is to care for me, protect me, and use life’s circumstances to make me into the person I was meant to be. He who has “declared the end from the beginning” (Isa. 46:10), and who “made the depths of the sea a pathway for the redeemed to cross over” (Isa. 51:10), is certainly qualified to be Master of my fate. Since He knows what I am about to say before I know it myself (Ps. 139:4), He is a far better Captain of my soul than I could ever be.

At Passover, all the symbols on the table were chosen to make us remember where we came from, and where we are going. We were brought out of the darkness of Egyptian bondage into the light of the Creator’s liberating ownership, a message to be transferred to all generations. “And 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.’” (Exod. 13:8) For that reason, we have four cups of wine, one for each of the Holy One’s promises (Exod. 6:6-7). We lean to the side while drinking them, a custom in ancient times that was permitted to free people but forbidden to slaves. The Passover Haggadah (the ceremonial “telling” of our liberation) has the youngest person present asking four traditional questions, which is the same question in different words: Why is this night different from all other nights?

The answer takes up many pages, beginning with, “We were slaves to Pharoah in Egypt…” and recounts all the Creator’s great acts in freeing us. The story includes the ten miraculous plagues, and the parting of the sea on the seventh day – the greatest miracle of them all. Just when it seemed that Pharoah had trapped his runaway slaves with no way out, the Holy One opened the sea, took them safely through on dry ground, and then sprang His own trap – drowning their pursuers by closing the sea on them. Some see this crossing as a final shedding of the slave mentality, for Moses told them: “Stand by and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will perform for you today; for the way you saw the Egyptians today, you will never see them again, forever.” (Exod. 14:13, the literal Hebrew). 

The parting of the Jordan River to allow the people into the Promised Land was considered a parallel crossing (Josh. 4:20-24), this time shedding the homeless mentality. At the first camp in their homeland, Israel celebrated the Passover as one “nation” (Josh. 5:8-10). It was quite a contrast with the first Passover, which was eaten quickly as separate families, with shoes on and walking staff in hand (Exod. 12:4-11), waiting for the command to leave. And since that first Passover in the Land, the generations of this nation living elsewhere have recognized that Passover could not be fully joyful away from our Home. The Haggadah ends the ceremony with: “Next year in Jerusalem!”

Celebrating Passover in the Land, with no time pressure and no enemy chasing us, we obey the Master’s command to leave our work and declare a holiday, so that we can ponder the gap between being slaves of Pharoah, and being slaves of the Creator. Whereas our ancestors cried from the cruelty of their bondage, for us who are free it takes a mouthful of bitter herbs (usually horseradish) to bring the tears. Whereas our forefathers ate the Passover standing up, ready to go out the door, we lean on the shoulder of the person next to us and sing, “How good and pleasant for brothers to dwell together!” (Ps. 133:1)

The Haggadah story continues by mentioning highlights from forty years under our Master’s protection: meeting the GOD of all the earth at Mount Sinai, receiving the Torah, eating bread from heaven called manna, enjoying Shabbat rest as an inheritance. The telling reaches a climax by reciting Psalm 113: “Halleluyah – Praise the Eternal. Praise Him, Slaves of the Eternal!” 

One of the most interesting symbols in the Haggadah is an ancient custom involving a group of three matzahs in the center of the table. These are covered in a special sack that keeps them together, but with each matzah in a separate pocket. The middle one is taken out and broken in half; one half is returned to the sack, and the other is wrapped in a napkin and set aside. Every child fastens his or her eyes on that napkin – because during the coming meal the head of the house will sneak away and hide it somewhere, and the child who finds it will win a prize. Oddly, the Haggadah, which explains the meaning of every other symbol in great detail, is silent about this procedure, only naming the action: Tzafun (“hidden”); and the hidden object: Afikoman (not even a Hebrew word, which is the focus of much debate). Also odd is the rabbinic requirement that the Afikoman be hidden and recovered, even if no children are present… which defeats the explanation that this is only a game to keep the kids interested. The riddle of the Afikoman is a favorite topic at many Israeli Passover tables.

The ceremony of the Passover Seder is designed to link past and present generations in a living chain. We are all supposed to see ourselves coming out of Egypt, a place of forced servitude, into the kingdom of the Creator, a place of freedom to serve Him. The people of Israel need this reminder. Sadly, our history is filled with shameful memory lapses concerning who we are. 

Isaiah called out (Isa. 2:5), “Come, house of Jacob, and let’s walk in the light of the LORD.” The next verse is often translated: “For You [i.e., the LORD] have abandoned Your people, the house of Jacob.” But the more logical reading is: “For you have abandoned your people, house of Jacob.” Indeed, it was the people who had cut themselves off from “the nation whose GOD is the LORD” (Ps. 33:12). Isaiah then tells how it happened: “Because they are filled with influences from the east… Their land has also been filled with idols. They worship the work of their hands, that which their fingers have made.” (Isa. 2:6-8) 

How different from the Exodus days! Through Jeremiah, the Creator laments: “I remember regarding you the devotion of your youth, your love when you were a bride, following after Me in the wilderness through a land not shown…. (Jer. 2:2) In remembering, the Creator graciously skips over His bride’s unfaithfulness in the wilderness: the complaints, rebellious actions, even idolatry. His lament focuses on the people’s return to the empty life of an Egyptian slave by refusing to serve Him: 

“What injustice did your fathers find in Me, that they went far from Me, and walked after emptiness and became empty? They did not say, ‘Where is the LORD, who brought us up out of the land of Egypt?’ …Have you not done this to yourself by your abandoning the LORD your GOD when He led you in the way? But now what are you doing on the road to Egypt, except to drink the waters of the Nile?... For long ago I broke your yoke and tore off your restraints; but you said, ‘I will not serve!’” (v. 5-6, 18-20)

What kind of slave master would plead with his rebellious slaves? Only One who has adopted them as family and loves them: “‘Return, you faithless sons,’ declares the LORD, ‘for I am a master to you; and I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, and bring you to Zion.’” (Jer. 3:14) This hints that being rescued from that empty “road to Egypt,” and brought back to the Creator’s service, will be an individual experience based on personal repentance.

As we in Israel celebrate the seven days of the Festival by eating unleavened bread, we have the privilege of going up to Zion, the city of our GOD, where we can meet with the Creator and with one another as His Family. We remember how our ancestors suffered as slaves under men, and were brought out from that “house of bondage” by a loving Master and Father, who is ours also. We gather to lean on one another, physically and spiritually. 

I pray that all of you will experience the encouragement and joy of being together, looking back into the past, looking forward into the future, and looking at one another with love and gratitude that you are not walking alone on this journey of faith. 

Be blessed by the Most High, from Zion and Jerusalem,

Mordechai ben Yakov

(Israel)

Paso a paso (En proceso)

08. Shabat. Con Lázaro, Mata y María

10. Entrada a Yerushalayim

       Se eligien los corderos

13/14. Última cena: Lucas 22:14

14 Getsemani: Mateo 26:36

14 Arresto: Juan 19:12

      - Caifás Lucas 22:54

      - Pilatos Marcos 15:1

      - Herodes Lucas 23:6-10

      - Pilatos 23:11

      - Sentenciado Luc. 23:23, 24

        (Hora 3ª / 9 h.)

      - Crucificado Lucas 23:26/ 

        Mat. 15:26

        (Hora 4ª)

      - Echan suertes por sus

        vestiduras Mateo 15:24

      - Padre perdónalos" Luc. 23:34

      - Los que lo miran se burlan

        Mateo 27: 39, 40

      

        

      -  Entre las 2 tardes

      

15. Seder

       Panes sin Levadura

17. Primicias

       Resurrección.

S.O.S - "Al judío primeramente y también al griego"…

Amigo/a: 

Aunque un "pelín" extenso, te recomiendo que leas hasta el final  estos pensamientos  y que no dejes de estudiar y meditar en los textos que te sugiero. Créeme, si lo haces, te ayudarán a entender mejor el tema tan importante al que me refiero: El de ayudar a Israel a volver a casa en los "últimos días" como se nos ordena. (*)

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¿Has pensado en ese momento cuando todo el mundo, el representado y arrastrado por la ONU, vaya contra Israel (Jerusalén) cómo va a ocurrir, más bien antes que después, según nos lo dice la Biblia? 

Sí, es dificilísimo creer que eso "está detrás de la esquina", pero espera a que se termine o se "solucione" el problema de Ucrania y verás lo que piensa hacer la ONU con la "rebelde Israel" y con ella, a los que no acepten las decisiones que la Agenda Globalista irá imponiendo!

¿Y por qué se les va a perseguir?, me preguntarás. Pues porque, entre otras muchas razones, las Naciones Unidas no soportarán la idea de que esa "minúscula e  insignificante nación", dicen ellos, no se rinda ante las demandas del Nuevo Orden Mundial. Recuerda, ese ha sido el problema desde que nació Israel hace unos 4.000 años.  (Cuando hablo de Israel, me refiero al formado por las 12 tribus, estén donde estén y sean quienes sean,  más los gentiles (no judíos tipo Ruth, esposas de los patriarcas, Irías, etc) que hayan sido injertados en el Buen Olivo (Romanos 11:17 / Ojo, fíjate que en el texto original dice *" ENTRE*  LAS RAMAS NATURALES" y no "EN LUGAR DE", que da pie a seguir sosteniendo a y participando con la doctrina satánica del reemplazamiento (la que sostiene que Israel ha sido reemplazada por la Iglesia en el día del Pentecostés y oficializada por Constantino el grande en el Concilios de Constantinopla (año 325 de. C.).

Como ves, parece ser que todo el mundo se ha volcado sobre Ucrania sin saber que lado lleva razón. Ayudarle está muy bien pero, ¿por qué no echar una mano a otras naciones también? Hay muchas razones para actuar como se está haciendo. La principal, cree un servidor, se bebe a los intereses económicos (ver Santiago 4)

Movilización mundial

Ya ves, el mundo entero gira alrededor de las opiniones de USA o Rusia impulsando a miles de personas "ayudar" a un lado o.a otro.

En el caso del Occidente, miles de organizaciones, cientos de coches, autobuses y aviones han ido, salen y saldrán hacia Ucrania para ayudar y sacar de ese "infierno" a todo el que se pueda. Mentras tanto, las naciones, gobiernos, iglesias y ONGs en el Occidente se preparan para recibir a los ucranianos en sus casas y albergues, con la ayuda de la Cruz Roja, Cáritas, REMAR.org, Manos Unidas, etc.

Y un servidor -al recordar algunas profecías- se pregunta: ¿Y quiénes son los que, aprovechando está situación de caos, sentirán al Eterno decirles que colaboren con Él ya que ha llegado el momento de llevar a los judíos a casa como lo tiene programado? 

 ¿Sabías que es un mandamiento divino hacerlo y consolarlos de una manera práctica en estos "últimos días" (los nuestros). 

Entonces y si es así, ¿a qué estamos esperando?

¿Sabes de alguien que lo esté haciendo? ¿Sabes de alguna radio, TV o grupo pastoral que  esté divulgando la idea? Sí, has entendido bien, me refiero a que si conoces a alguien que tenga carga por los judíos ucranianos en particular, repito, para ayudarlos a hacer Aliya. Yo sólo sé de unos cuantos y, créeme, ¡los puedo contar con los dedos de la mano!. 

¿Y por qué se da este fenómeno? ¿Pudiera ser que no tenemos las prioridades bien puestas? ¿Será por desconocimiento o falta de enseñanza? 

En el caso de Pablo, él tenía muy claro por dónde empezar y así lo dejó escrito:  "Al judío primeramente y también al griego" (Rom. 1:16). ¿Y qué me dices de las consecuencias que nos caerán encima por no hacer las cosas "cuando Dios quiere y manda hacerlo? ¿Sabes lo que dijo YESHÚA al respecto? ¿Sabes de qué va EL JUICIO A LAS NACIONES Y POR QUÉ SE HARÁ (Mateo 15:24; 25:31-46)? 

Te cuento una anécdota para que lo entiendas con más facilidad. 

Verás: "Hubo una pandemia horrible, y toda la población moría "como moscas". Alguien se dio cuenta de que, entre ellos, habían algunos doctores contagiados por el mismo virus. ¿Te imaginas el "cuadro"? Todos gritaban y gritaban pidiendo socorro y ser atendidos, pues sabían que iban a morir a no ser que alguien les aplicara la vacuna esa "milagrosa" que esperaban con tanta ansiedad. 

Cuando por fin llegaron los que la traían, estas preguntas surgieron entre ellos: ¿Por dónde empezamos? ¿A quiénes vacunamos primero? ¡Son tantos y tantos!

- "Da igual, ¿qué mas da?", decía la   mayoría de los enfermeros;

-  "No, no, debemos empezar por los doctores, pues ellos, a su vez, nos ayudarán a salvar a los demás tan pronto puedan ponerse en pie", gritaban los que sabían de que "iba la cosa" y lo que tenían que hacer en esa situación tan angustiosa.

Al final, así lo hicieron. Salvaron primero a los doctores y luego, con su ayuda, inyectaron y salvaron al resto.

Si lo entiendo bien, según las palabras del patriarca Abraham, YESHÚA, Shaul y el resto de los discípulos, la redención, la salvación y el AGUA VIVA para TODA la humanidad (Juan 3:16) vinieron, vienen y vendrán a través del "canal" llamado "Israel". No es el agua, pero sí es el "grifo" por donde salió, sale y saldrá, repito, "EL AGUA VIVA QUE SACIA LA SED" de todo aquél que la beba. De ahí que en cada generación se deba consolar y consolar al único PUEBLO de YHVH. La triste realidad es que el mundo no lo ha hecho, y sólo se ha dedicado a ignorarlo o matarlo, hasta el día de hoy.

 ¿RESULTADO? La sed y la muerte (lee Gen.12:1-3: Juan 4:22; Isaías 40:1; 7:37-39; Hechos 4:13; Rom. 5:8; 6:23; 10:9-13; 11:11-24).

Amigo/a: EL LIBRO DE INSTRUCCIONES (la Biblia) dice: "Cuando sea edificado Sión, veremos al Mesías venir en Su Gloria establecer SU REINO DE PAZ MUNDIAL" (Salmo 102:16 - texto parafraseado). Esto quiere decir que, para que eso ocurra, Su pueblo tiene que regresar a casa para estar allí y darle  la bienvenida, como está escrito.  

¿Entiendes las prisas y la urgencia que hay para edificar a Israel o Sión?

Entonces, repito: Aprovechando esta situación, ¿por qué no hacer todo lo que se pueda para ayudar a los judíos a llegar a Eretz Israel, con el fin de ver a "toda la Tierra ser llena del conocimiento de YHVH", como dijo el Eterno al profeta Habacuc que pasaría cuando el Mesías viniera (ver cap. 2:14)?

Tal vez necesites saber un poco de historia para entenderlo mejor:

Verás: Dios (YHVH) creó un Pueblo nuevo, lo separó o santificó puiéndolo entre las naciones para bendecirlas en el plano físico (inventos en medicina, ciencia, tecnología, agricultura, riegos, etc.) y en el espiritual (Biblia moral, el Mesías Yeshúa, etc.), y eso es lo que ha hecho desde entonces. Las naciones, sin embargo y, créeme, es toda una realidad, sólo han tratado de destruir a Israel hasta la fecha a través de Satanás usando todo lo que está ausente sabíendo muy bien que "el Cordero de YHVH, el que quita el pecado del mundo tiene que volver y esta vez como Rey de reyes y Señor de señores". De ahí que estemos metidos en la batalla espiritual en la que estamos metidos. 

Se trata de lo siguiente:

De la misma manera que el Eterno avisó a Adán y Eva de lo que les pasaría si comían del árbol prohibido que estaba en el Edén, también avisó al pueblo de Israel antes de entrar a la Tierra prometida, diciéndole, además, que se preparanan para las consecuencias si.no vivían y actuaban como debían.

Para los primeros, el castigo sería la salida del Edén, el destierro y, más tarde, la muerte dentro  del primer "día" de sus vidas (es decir, dentro de los primeros 1.000 años / Salmo 90:4). Para los segundos, la orden consistía en amarar al Eterno con todo el corazón, alma y cuerpo, de  guardarse de no caer en la idolatría de los paganos y, sobretodo, cumplir Sus mandamientos.

Por no hacerlo, repito, a Adán y Eva se les echó del paraíso. En el caso de Israel tuvo que dejar dos veces la Tierra Prometida por no hacerlo, para volver de nuevo en los "últimos días", o en los del "parto", para nunca más salir y eso es exactamente lo que está ocurriendo hoy.

Primero, Nabucodonosor se los llevó a Babilonia (723/722 a. C.), luego Tito y otros (como las Cruzadas, la Inquisición, los progromos de Rusia, Hitler y su Holocausto, etc.)  todos  les forzaron a irse a todas las partes del mundo, donde han estado hasta hoy, tal y como decían las Escrituras.

Ahora bien, según Gen. 6:3, Dios (YHVH) dio a la humanidad 120 jubileos, o sea, 6.000 años (120 x 50 años), los cuales ya han pasado o están a punto de pasar. (Hasta Yeshúa, 4000 años y hasta nuestros días 2.000 más (2 días), según los profetas (Daniel 8:17,19; 10:14;12; Oseas 5:15; 6:1-3).

Amigo/a, créeme, AHORA es el momento para que los judíos de Ucrania y países de alrededor (más de 250.000), vuelvan a su tierra, y ahora es el momento para que los extranjeros les  ayuden trayéndles "en sus hombros", incluyendo la colaboración de los reyes y reinas que serán sus ayos, etc. ¿por qué no?

Es más, así como lo hizo el Eterno en el caso de Adán al soplarle se Espíritu en la nariz para cambiarlo de un muñeco de barro en un hombre "a Su imagen y semejan esa", así lo volverá a hacer ahora con los "huesos secos". Si, los meterá en Su mikvé (o baptisterio), los rociará con agua pura, les quitará el corazón de piedra y las dará un corazón de carne, etc., etc. 

¿Te puedes imaginar el gozo que se siente participando con el Eterno para llevar a cabo Sus proyectos?

RESUMIENDO: Amar y ayudar a los Ucranianos o cualquier otra nación es un deber en estos momentos de crisis y necesidad pero, ¿te das cuenta de lo importante que es  ayudarle a ÉL para llevar al pueblo de Israel, repito, a la tierra que el Eterno les dio para siempre y esperar en ella al Mesías para establecer Su REINO DE PAZ con Yerushalayim como capital. Entonces las palabras de Isaías se harán TODA UNA REALIDAD (cap.2:2-4)

¿Te extraña, pues, de que TODAS las naciones le hayan declarado la guerra a Israel (Salmo 83)? Por cierto, la cosa no es nueva, como ya he dicho antes, han sido y serán atacados por el famoso Amelek disfrazado del "Faraón" correspondiente, en cada generación, incluyendo la nuestra.

Vuelvo a decir: ¿Te imaginas qué está esperando la ONÚ para hacer con Israel y con los que estén "injertados en el OLIVO" lo que tiene planeado, cuando "arregle" el problema de Ucrania? Es muy sencillo: Cuando lo haya resuelto, querrá solucionar el de los palestinos pues, si no se queda resuelto una vez por todas, la paz mundial que la ONU busca y quiere imponer, no puede llegar porque esa tierra se la entregó el Eterno a Israel para siempre como está escrito y porque quiere traer la suya (ve Gén. 15:18-21; Juan 14:27 ).

Amigo/a: Además de ese Salmo profético (el 83), no dejes de leer y meditar los  textos que te señalé al proncipio, sacados todos de los libros proféticos (los de los Salmos y los de Daniel a Zacarías). Si los lees y los meditas te ayudarán a saber por dónde van "los tiros".

Y ya, para terminar, decirte que, hace poco, mandé a unos 3.500 contactos un SOS pidiéndoles ayuda para el equipo que se encarga de traer a los Judíos ucranianos a Israel. ¿Cuántos crees que han respondido hasta la fecha? Sólo unos 15. ¿Te lo puedes imaginar? El resto de se conformó con "orar" sin saber o sabiendo que ”la fe (oración) sin obras es muerta". Ya ves, "¡mucho te quiero perrito pero pan poquito!". (De paso: A todos los contribuyentes, a los que sólo ha oradp y a los que se han "rascado el bolsillo", muchas, muchas gracias por hacerlo). 

El 05.04.'22, mandé a través de la Agencia Judía el dinero recibido (2.000 €). 

Y esto es todo por hoy. Te animo a que pases estos "apuntes" a quién pueda interesarle y, como siempre lo hago, te aconsejo que, en estos días tan especiales, siguas ADELANTE, sí, SIEMPRE ADELANTE, sin desmayar en ningún momento porque "los días son malos". No dejes de poner los ojos en el AUTOR Y CONSUMADOR DE NUESTRA FE" con el fin de seguir siendo luz y sal (Ester 3:8,9; 4:13-,14; 8:6; Mat. 5:13-16; Rom. 12:1 y 2). Si, sírlvele esperando Su venida, repito, para establecer Su REINO DE PAZ (no el de la ONU) tal y como está escrito en las Sagradas Escrituras o el LIBRO DE INSTRUCCIONES (Josué 1:5-9).

Entonces, ¿Te animas a cooperar con el Eterno para llevar a cabo este SU PROYECTO? Dímelo si así lo quieres hacer, ¿vale?.

Abrazos de los de siempre.

Samuel del Coso Román
TOLDOT (España o Sefarad)
Tel. y WhatsApp: +34.659.682031

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Acerca de los sefarditas y su futuro, lee lo que el profeta Abdías escribió en los versículos 20 y 21 de su libro.

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 (*) Isaías 11:11,12,16; 27:12-13; 14:1; 43;5 y 6; Jerem. 23:7 y 8; 31:8-11; Ezq. 11:27 y 28; 28:25 y 26; 34:11-13; 36:24-28; 37; 39:27 y 28; Zac. 2:6 y 7 etc., etc.