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I am big fan of Don Finto, former Senior Pastor of Belmont Church in Nashville. Don's current ministry is focused on Israel and embracing Jews who embrace Yeshua as their Lord and Savior. I have had the joy of traveling in The Land with Don twice.
Don's website is www.calebcompany.com. What follows below is his most recent post. It has nothing to do with Israel but everything to do with walking the faithful walk of integrity before our Lord, our ministry partners, our friends and neighbors.
"Lead us not into temptation. Deliver us from the Evil One."
"The thief comes to rob, kill and destroy."
"Keep you eyes fixed on Jesus."
May we all be encouraged to ignore the traps the enemy sets for us.
I was reading in Deuteronomy 11: 25-26 this week and happened upon a word from the Lord that brought clarity to a danger we face: unholy and dangerous curiosity.
Moses is encouraging Israel in their devotion to the One True God and the danger of involvement with false gods who would lead them into disobedience and the evil consequences to follow. During the reading I happened upon this remarkable phrase, “After they (the enemies) have been destroyed before you, be careful not to be ensnared by inquiring about their gods.”
“Ensnared by inquiring about their gods?”
“Ensnared by inquiring!”
Some things we need not to know. We have no need to know the ways of sin. Curiosity can open the door for inquiry. Inquiry can open the door for attraction. Attraction can open the door for participation.
My thoughts went to Eve in the Garden.
When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food …
Curiosity: “I wonder how it would taste?
…and pleasing to the eye,
Attraction: “I’ll just look at it for a while, no need to touch it, but I’ll look. No real harm done in looking.
…and also desirable for gaining wisdom…
Desire: “Why should I not know the ways of the other side? What harm does that do? That would make me wise. Perhaps I could even help others if I knew more about what is drawing them away from God?”
…she took some and ate it.”
Participation and the evil consequences of sin.
How many are ensnared into sexual sin by wondering what it is like? How many are lured into a life of drug addiction by wanting to know what it’s like to “get high?” Curiosity, inquiry, attraction, desire, participation with its evil consequences.
An interesting little sideline: I opened the Nashville Tennessean’s Sunday edition this morning and noticed a small side bar at the top of page one, “Nudists Strip Down, Shed Stereotypes,” reference page 1D. ”
My first impression was, “How gross! Who are these people? What would it be like to be in a nudist colony? Why would that appeal to people?”
My immediate secondary reaction was to turn to page 1D and find out more about this bizarre community.
But I had read the “Parasha” reading this week, and reconsidered my curiosity. Why did I need to know? Why should I even read more? Of what use would it be to me as a servant of the Most High God?
“Ensnared by inquiring!”
Be aware! Live as a faithful servant of the One True God! Lift high the Name of Yeshua, the Jewish Messiah and World Redeemer. Meditate on Him. Praise Him. Exalt Him.
Oak Hills Church is hosting a special worship celebration Sunday morning, August 23rd, at the AT&T Center, beginning at 9:30 a.m. The event is called “Bigger Than You” and features special music by Dove and Grammy award winner Michael W. Smith.
The "Bigger Than You" launch will feature David Robinson from the San Antonio Spurs, Christian recording artist Michael W. Smith and Minister Max Lucado.
In a cooperative effort with the Children’s Hunger Fund, Oak Hills Church Senior Minister Randy Frazee will unveil an important big step for the people of San Antonio in reaching out to our community. Over 15,000 empty food pack boxes will be distributed at the conclusion of the event, with the expectation that they will be filled, returned and distributed over the coming weeks to families with hungry children in San Antonio.
This is a free event and is open to the public. There will be free parking and assistance for the disabled and handicap will be available.
All five Oak Hills Church campuses will gather together for this single event for the launch of "Bigger Than You" -- a 25-week study of the New Testament book of Acts. This book, written by the apostle Luke, first focuses on a chosen nation but shifts its spotlight to a never-before-heard-of-group of people called “the church.” Its recurring theme reminds us that God is up to something big . . . something bigger than individual believers; something “Bigger Than You.”
While we encourage the media’s attendance, this is a worship celebration and service. Cameras are welcomed, however, we would ask that media outlets respect worshippers and stay clear of the front of the stage. The media will be invited to interview key speakers following the conclusion of the event.
For more information, please contact:
Rich Ronald
Worship Producer/North Central Mission Minister
Oak Hills Church
210-698-4674 office
You know that famous icebreaker question that goes something like “When is the last time you did something for the first time? And what was it?”
What comes to mind?
I asked that question recently at a church staff meeting. Some of the responses included “Meeting my daughter’s boyfriend,” “Taking guitar lessons,” “Riding a john boat through a Louisiana swamp,” and “Going hang gliding.”
How about you?
Doing new things... some of us are wired to enjoy doing new things, others of us are wired to loath doing new things...
I think I’m wired to enjoy it... possibly to a fault... I graduated from college in 1981... long before some of you were born! I’ve been employed by 16 different companies in those 28 years. Some were by my choice; some by my employer’s because a division was being closed or sold. I never thought I’d have that many job changes in my whole career, much less just half of it. And while sometimes it’s been way more than a challenge, I do enjoy change and doing new things. In fact, most of the time it is fuel for me and is allowing me to truly thrive in my work right now where I’m wrapping up one big assignment for another.
I celebrate one of those birthdays ending in zero here in couple of weeks... and maybe it’s the “reds sports car” phase of my life, but I feel like I’ve been doing a lot of new things lately... and for me, that’s very good. I went parasailing on my vacation... and that’s leading to me going to celebrate my birthday by jumping out of an airplane.
I believe God is all about doing new things as well. God’s first act was to create... take something from nothing... that’s about as new as you can get...
And then... actually become the thing that you created... when God sent Jesus to take on flesh... new again!
And then Jesus flipped so many paradigms of the day... teaching rabbis as a youth, then training blue collar fishermen to be compassionate and passionate about the message of the Gospel... radically changed the world... new again. Death leads to life. Being a bondservant leads to true freedom. Serving the best wine at the end. Finding fish where there was none. Calming storms with mere words. Granting health for chronic pain, not through the science of the day, but by a touch. Encouraging people to throw stones, yet none did...
Jesus causes people to think and, more importantly, to act with faith... in unconventional ways. He caused people to do things for the first time, even if it was late in their lives.
A Risk of Faith (Mark 5, The Message)
21-24After Jesus crossed over by boat, a large crowd met him at the seaside. One of the meeting-place leaders named Jairus came. When he saw Jesus, he fell to his knees, beside himself as he begged, "My dear daughter is at death's door. Come and lay hands on her so she will get well and live." Jesus went with him, the whole crowd tagging along, pushing and jostling him.
25-29A woman who had suffered a condition of hemorrhaging for twelve years—a long succession of physicians had treated her, and treated her badly, taking all her money and leaving her worse off than before—had heard about Jesus. She slipped in from behind and touched his robe. She was thinking to herself, "If I can put a finger on his robe, I can get well." The moment she did it, the flow of blood dried up. She could feel the change and knew her plague was over and done with.
30At the same moment, Jesus felt energy discharging from him. He turned around to the crowd and asked, "Who touched my robe?"
31His disciples said, "What are you talking about? With this crowd pushing and jostling you, you're asking, 'Who touched me?' Dozens have touched you!"
32-33But he went on asking, looking around to see who had done it. The woman, knowing what had happened, knowing she was the one, stepped up in fear and trembling, knelt before him, and gave him the whole story.
34Jesus said to her, "Daughter, you took a risk of faith, and now you're healed and whole. Live well, live blessed! Be healed of your plague."
Jesus says to this woman, you took a risk of faith. Why did she take a risk of faith? Well, she had had enough. 12 years of this affliction. And she had tried everything.
Here is one commentary from the Talmud on what she may have tried:
Rabbi Jochanan says: "Take of gum Alexandria, of alum, and of crocus hortensis, the weight of a zuzee each; let them be bruised together, and given in wine to the woman that hath an issue of blood. But if this fail, "Take of Persian onions nine logs, boil them in wine, and give it to her to drink: and say, Arise from thy flux. But should this fail, "Set her in a place where two ways meet, and let her hold a cup of wine in her hand; and let somebody come behind and affright her, and say, Arise from thy flux. But should this do no good, "Take a handful of cummin and a handful of crocus, and a handful of faenu-greek; let these be boiled, and given her to drink, and say, Arise from thy flux. But should this also fail, "Dig seven trenches, and burn in them some cuttings of vines not yet circumcised (vines not four years old;) and let her take in her hand a cup of wine, and let her be led from this trench and set down over that, and let her be removed from that, and set down over another: and in each removal say unto her, Arise from thy flux."
This sounds more like creative cures for the hic-cups… the prescribed medicine of the day.
And, it all but depleted this woman… So, she took a risk of faith… she tried something unconventional. And Jesus says “you’re healed. Be blessed. Live well.”
I am a big fan in studying where and when Jesus said the words he spoke, because if you dig deeper you will see incredible meaning.
First, you need to look at the day Jesus was having. He had been across the sea of Galilee and back before this took place. It is very likely that on this cross-over, one of the two storms at sea that are mentioned in the text took place. It is recorded in Matthew 8, Luke 8 and just previously in the Mark text in Chapter 4. His own disciples said, “Lord, save us, we’re perishing!” And Jesus rebuked the storm and brought calm to the sea… and then he looked at his disciples and said “Why are you so afraid? Where is your faith?”
And juxtapose this with a woman, who’s faith made her well. Why did she have such faith?
The second thing you need to know about the time and place is that Jesus, being a good Jewish rabbi, would have been wearing a Tallith, a prayer covering. At the corner, there are threads hanging down. They are called tzitizit’s. They are tied with five knots, representing the Torah, the five books of the Law of Moses, the Pentateuch. This word tzitzit, or in Hebrew “Kanaugh” is also translated “wings”… as in Malachi 4:2… “But to you who fear my name, the Sun of Righteousness shall arise, with healing in His wings…” This woman recognized that Yeshua could be Messiah… and if so, all she had to do was touch the wings of his garment… very outside the box thinking… she had tried everything else… she was weary… exhausted… probably embarrassed as her illness marked her as “unclean” and she was not permitted to worship in the temple…
It has been concluded about this passage: You can be a part of the crowd and never get any blessing from being near Jesus! There were many who were just a part of the crowd. And even those closest to him, his disciples, didn’t have faith to do something unconventional… didn’t have the faith to do something new. This woman did. And it changed her life.
So what does that have to do with us? I think we often get stuck in ruts... even in ministry. A worship leader in our church the other day shared that sometimes she often gets into a check box mentality in our relationship with God. Did we pray today? Check. Did we read scripture. Check. Did we do the ordinary, routine? Check. Sometimes we just don’t have the energy to do more than follow the same plan, meeting to meeting, Sunday to Sunday.
Isaiah 43:19 (The Message)
16-21This is what God says,
the God who builds a road right through the ocean,
who carves a path through pounding waves,
The God who summons horses and chariots and armies—
they lie down and then can't get up;
they're snuffed out like so many candles:
"Forget about what's happened;
don't keep going over old history.
Be alert, be present. I'm about to do something brand-new.
It's bursting out! Don't you see it?
There it is! I'm making a road through the desert,
rivers in the badlands.
Wild animals will say 'Thank you!'
—the coyotes and the buzzards—
Because I provided water in the desert,
rivers through the sun-baked earth,
Drinking water for the people I chose,
the people I made especially for myself,
a people custom-made to praise me.
If God is up to doing new things, can’t we also?
At our church there is a new strategic plan on the table to reach our city in creative ways. In fact, it calls for some radical, outside the norm, thinking... and acting. I want to encourage you to encourage those who are in your ministry circles... get up and do something different for the Kingdom. Let me repeat that: get up and do something different for the Kingdom.
Feed the hungry. Don’t just write a check, but get up and go someplace uncomfortable and do it.
Pray with a neighbor. First, for many of us, go meet our neighbors... and then when they describe an anxious moment or confusing personal situation, don’t just say you’ll pray for them... but do it. Right there at the mailboxes. It’s okay.
Visit the sick. Write a letter. Give a drink of water. Encourage a felon. Go on a mission trip. Get up and do something new for the first time. Be creative... celebrate God’s creativity in an act of worship. Romans 12:1 says: So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him.
That’s from The Message… and I would challenge us to give God, not just the ordinary, everyday, but, isn’t He worth giving the extra-ordinary?
Every day this past school year, when I dropped my son off at school I left him with these words: Be Strong and Courageous. It started when we as a family read Joshua’s story together toward the beginning of the school year. Is your courage building? I ask myself regularly: Rich, are you willing to take on anything God gives you? The answer should be “Yes.” Because God’s Holy Spirit gives me the boldness, courage, strength to tackle new Kingdom assignments... and to continue to have faith to believe that God WILL continue to use me... for the Kingdom.
And I know He wants to use each of us to tackle big projects for the Kingdom.
Can I leave you with some encouraging words from Paul?
From First Corinthians, Chapter 9 (The Message):
I've become just about every sort of servant there is in my attempts to lead those I meet into a God-saved life. I did all this because of the Message. I didn't just want to talk about it; I wanted to be in on it! You've all been to the stadium and seen the athletes race. Everyone runs; one wins. Run to win. All good athletes train hard. They do it for a gold medal that tarnishes and fades. You're after one that's gold eternally. I don't know about you, but I'm running hard for the finish line. I'm giving it everything I've got. No sloppy living for me! I'm staying alert and in top condition. I'm not going to get caught napping, telling everyone else all about it and then missing out myself.
Did you notice that Paul assumes we are all IN the race… we are NOT spectators.
Let’s run to win. And if that means doing some new things... let’s do so with courage and gusto.
Not sure that we'll get through all of these... but we will try. My teenage sons will earn $5 for each book read and reviewed. I have sought out these recommendations (in random order) from a number of other men with sons to help bring a "well roundedness" to our Christian world view. Of course there are many other great books out there... many of which we have already read. This is the current book list...
Our family is Christian. I grew up in a Methodist church in Ohio, my wife in a Christian Missionary Alliance congregation in Western New York. We love and celebrate all that Jesus is and have desired to teach our children about the "Jewishness" of Christianity. In that spirit, we have celebrated the Jewish holidays that Jesus celebrated... Shabbat, Passover, Purim, Feast of Weeks, Feast of Tabernacles and even Hanukkah. Tonight we will celebrate Passover with some dear friends. Here is our family's Haggadah, or story book, that joyfully celebrates Yeshua in the Passover Seder. It's a little long, but it is chock-full of rich ties to Jesus.
The Haggadah for The Ronald Family
WELCOME (outside)
Welcome in the name of Yeshua, Jesus our Messiah! Tonight we will celebrate Pesach (pah-SACH)… Passover. This is the celebration of the most incredible feast in the Jewish and Christian calendars. It intricately weaves a story of God’s power, faithfulness and love for mankind in both the Old and New Testaments. It was celebrated in the Ancient World, in Jesus’ time, and is still celebrated in traditional Jewish homes today.
The first Passover was not a celebration. It was a night of apprehension, fear and expectation for the beginning of a new journey for the children of Israel. The Word tells us that the Hebrews were to take the blood of a perfect lamb, and paint it on their doorposts. By following this command, the Angel of Death which moved through Egypt that night would “pass over” their homes. But since the Angel of Death did not pass over Pharaoh’s house, and his first born son was taken from him, his hardened heart was finally softened and the next morning Pharaoh let the Hebrew slaves go free. This meal that we celebrate tonight, the Seder, is symbolic of the rush to leave Egypt and the bondage it represents.
We also celebrate the significance of Yeshua’s last meal, a traditional Passover meal, with His disciples in the Upper Room. There is a lot of symbolism between the Old Covenant meal and the New Covenant meal. We hope you’ll enjoy learning how Yeshua tied the two meals together… and how it is applicable for us all tonight.
Tonight, we tell a story, the Haggadah, of how the blood of a lamb saved the people of God in the Ancient times… and still saves today.
John 1:29: The next day, John the Baptizer saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.”
Reading: Luke 22:7-20
Come, let us go up… to celebrate the Passover together!
THE SEDER PLATE
As we gather, you’ll see the Seder plate. It contains items that we’ll talk about tonight… unleavened bread or Matzah, bitter herbs, an egg, sweet apple mixture called the “Charoset” … parsley… and a lamb bone. As we tell the story tonight, we encourage you to take in the sights and smells, tasting each ingredient, and listening to every word... to hear and see and feel the truth of God’s love for us.
LIGHTING THE YOM TOV CANDLES
Like the Sabbath meal, tonight we light the Yom Tov, or the festival candles. There is traditionally a candle of creation and a candle of redemption. Light is a symbol of God’s presence. In Him there is no darkness. Tonight is a special night for we’ll see first-hand that Yeshua, the Light of the world, is our true redemption.
Barukh Atah Adonai Eloheynu Melekh ha’olam asher kidshanu B’mitzvo-tav v’tzivanu l’hadlik neir shel yom tov.
ALL:
Praised are you O Lord, our God, King of the Universe, who sanctified us through the commandments and the death and resurrection of Yeshua, our Messiah, the Light of the World and the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. Praised are you O Lord, our God, King of the Universe who commands us to light the festival lights.
SONG:
Shine, Jesus, Shine
Fill this home with the Father’s glory.
Blaze, Spirit, blaze. Set our hearts on fire.
Flow, River, flow. Flood the nations with grace and mercy.
Send forth your Word, Lord, and let there be light. (repeat).
KADDESH, THE CUP OF SANCTIFICATION
We’re going to drink four cups of wine, or grape juice, tonight. They represent four promises God gave to Moses in Exodus 6: 6 and 7. At your table, please pour the first cup for us to drink together. And while you’re pouring, let me tell you what the four promises were:
1. I WILL bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians.
2. I WILL free you from being slaves.
3. I WILL redeem you with an outstretched arm.
4. I WILL take you as My own people and I WILL be your God.
The first cup is the Cup of Sanctification. In the Old Covenant, the Hebrews were saved by the blood of the lamb. In the New Covenant, we are sanctified by the blood of Yeshua. Tonight, we celebrate our freedom from sin and the bondage it represents. Let us lift our cup together and bless the name of the Lord! And when we raise our cup, let us do so with our right hand as it symbolizes strength and the right arm reminds us of our Messiah, our strength.
Barukh Atah Adonai Eloheynu Melekh ha’olam borey pri hagafen.
ALL:
Praised are you, O Lord, our God, King of the Universe, who creates the fruit of the vine.
URECHATZ, THE WASHING OF HANDS
The Urechatz is symbolic of the purification of the priests in the temple. Let us consider what Yeshua did at the Passover meal. John 13 describes how he washed His disciples feet… let me take you there… think of the rocky and dusty roads of the hills of Galilee and the hills of Massada. Think of the cobblestone streets in the old city of Jerusalem… Think about in the Ancient Days when the master would be gone on business for a day or several days, having traveled under the hot, sizzling Israeli sun, and coming home tired and worn out and feeling like his feet were going to fall off. And the slave, his servant, comes and meets him at the door with a towel and a basin of water to wash his feet. Oh, this is great comfort and a soothing relief. He is the master and this is his due. And the other, his servant, his slave, his property… this is his position and he belongs to the master.
Now, Jesus is so incredible! HE takes that towel and that basin of water, and HE the Master, God in the flesh, God incarnate, God with ten fingers and two legs and two arms and two eyes and two ears and a mind and a heart that feels like we do… GOD took that towel and that basin of water and HE washed the feet of His talmadim. It’s easy to understand why Peter said, “NEVER! Never shall you wash my feet!” You see, because what Jesus had done is He had reversed the roles of the social norm of the Ancient Days. Incredible.
So, as you dip your hands in the bowls of water on your table remember the promise of David in Psalm 24: Who may ascend the hill of the Lord? Who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart… he will receive blessing from the Lord.
Barukh Atah Adonai Eloheynu Melekh ha’olam asher kidshanu B’mitzvo-tav v’tzivanu ahl natielat yah doyeim.
ALL:
Praised are you O Lord, our God, King of the Universe, who sanctified us through the commandments and the death and resurrection of Yeshua, and who has commanded us to wash our hands and our hearts tonight.
KARPAS, THE PARSLEY AND THE TEARS
The Parsley is the Karpas. It is fresh and it represents life!
But life in Egypt was a life of pain for the children of Israel… suffering, tears, turmoil. Together now, we will take a sprig of parsley and dip it into the bowl of salt water, remembering that life is sometimes immersed in tears. May our gratitude for the blessings we enjoy today help to soften the pain of sorrow… and convert tears of mourning to tears of joy! Also, remember the greatest tears shed, those of Yeshua in the Garden just after he celebrated Passover… tears of blood… tears of submission… tears that said, “If you could, take this cup from me… but, not my will, but, Father, your will be done.” (RVL teaching about this, the fifth cup…)
Barukh Atah Adonai Eloheynu Melekh ha’olam borey pri hagafen.
ALL:
Praised are you, O Lord, our God, King of the Universe, who creates the fruit of the earth.
YACHATZ, THE MATZAH
On the main table here, we have a stack of Matzah… unleavened bread. In the Ancient World, leaven or the yeast, the ingredient that makes the bread rise, can symbolize sin. Tonight, we eat “sinless” bread.
I’m going to take three pieces of Matzah… and take the middle Matzah and break it… and take the piece of broken Matzah and put it here in the cloth… This is called the Afikomen, and I’m going to hide it for dessert later. So, I need all the children to close their eyes as I hide the Afikomen. Okay?
(Hide the Afikomen and place the remaining broken piece of Matzah back in between the other two and place the stack back in front of the table host).
Can someone tell me why there are three pieces of Matzah? In the Old Covenant, they might represent Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. But, why break Isaac, represented by the middle Matzah? In the New Covenant, we can suggest that the Matzah represents God the Father, God the Son, Yeshua and God the Holy Spirit. The broken Matzah, called the Lechem Oni, is the Bread of Affliction (Deuteronomy 16:3), and it can symbolize the death of Yeshua on the Cross at Calvary.
MAH NISHTANAH, THE FOUR QUESTIONS
The children of Israel were preparing to leave the land of bondage… and oh, how this night is different from all the other nights… this meal is different than any other meal.
A child asks:
1. On all other nights we eat bread OR matzah. On this night, why do we ONLY eat matzah?
The Answer:
Tonight we only eat the unleavened bread, because, as the children of Israel knew that they would be released from their captivity in the morning, the bread would not have time to rise. We remember their haste… and we eat the bread without yeast, without sin.
Barukh Atah Adonai Eloheynu Melekh ha’olam ha-motzi lechem min ha-aretz.
ALL:
Praised are you, oh Lord, our God, King of the Universe, who brings forth bread from the earth… the bread of life!
(EAT MATZAH)
2. On all other nights we eat all kinds of vegetables. On this night, why do we ONLY eat bitter herbs?
The Answer:
Tonight we eat the Maror, the bitter herbs, so that we might taste bitterness. It reminds us how bitter it was for the Hebrews to be enslaved by Pharaoh in Egypt. The slavery to sin is just as bitter.
Barukh Atah Adonai Eloheynu Melekh ha’olam asher kidshanu bidevaro vetzivanu al akhilat maror.
ALL:
Praised are you, oh Lord, our God, King of the Universe, who has set us apart by His Word and commands us to eat the bitter herbs.
(EAT BITTER HERBS ON A MATZAH)
3. On all other nights we do not dip our vegetables even once. On this night, why do we dip twice?
The Answer:
Tonight we dip twice during the course of the meal. The first time was with the Karpas, the parsley, as we tasted the tears of bitter circumstances. Now, we will dip in the Charoset, replacing the tears with the sweetness of the hope we have in God to free us from bondage and suffering. In the same way, the Hebrews were counting on God to free them from Pharaoh. And, oh, how sweet the freedom was going to be after hundreds of years of slavery.
(EAT CHAROSET ON A MATZAH)
4. On all other nights we eat our meals sitting at the table OR reclining on the floor. On this night, why do we ONLY recline and sit on the floor?
The Answer:
Tonight we sit on the floor and recline because in the Ancient Times this was a sign of freedom. Kings and royalty ate their meals leisurely while reclining. We are not rushed or hurried by what tomorrow brings as the Hebrews were on the first night of Passover. We demonstrate our sense of complete freedom by reclining during the meal.
THE SECOND CUP, THE CUP OF PLAGUES
(Refill your cup if you need to.)
When people defy the will of God, they bring pain and suffering upon themselves. God’s law provides blessing and prosperity. To deny His Law and to do evil brings destruction. When Pharaoh defied the command of God to release the Jewish people, he invited curses upon himself and his people. With the second cup we remember each of the plagues that God used against Pharaoh to bring him to the point of releasing the Hebrews from slavery and bondage.
A full cup is the symbol of complete joy. Joy in God’s mighty deliverance to His children. Joy in life through Yeshua! We are going to diminish the wine in our cups to give expression to our sorrow over the losses which each plague exacted.
We’re going to take our pinky finger and dip it into the cup for each plague and allow a drop of wine to fall on our plate. Ready?
ALL:
Blood! Blood! Blood!
Frogs! Frogs! Frogs!
Gnats! Gnats! Gnats!
Wild Beasts! Wild Beasts! Wild Beasts!
Cattle Disease! Cattle Disease! Cattle Disease!
Boils! Boils! Boils!
Hail! Hail! Hail!
Locusts! Locusts! Locusts!
Darkness! Darkness! Darkness!
Death of the Firstborn! Death of the Firstborn! Death of the Firstborn!
DAYENU, IT WOULD HAVE BEEN ENOUGH!
Great and numerous are the kindnesses which the Lord extended to the Jewish people... and for each of his kind acts, we offer thanks and humble gratitude. Any one of these would have been sufficient to show His love for us, His compassion for His chosen people. How great God’s goodness is! We declare “Dayenu! It would have been enough!”
If the Lord had merely rescued us, but had not judged the Egyptians…
ALL: DAYENU! IT WOULD HAVE BEEN ENOUGH!
If He had only destroyed their gods, but had not parted the Red Sea…
ALL: DAYENU! IT WOULD HAVE BEEN ENOUGH!
If He had only drowned our enemies, but had not fed us with manna…
ALL: DAYENU! IT WOULD HAVE BEEN ENOUGH!
If He had only led us through the desert, but had not given us the Shabbat…
ALL: DAYENU! IT WOULD HAVE BEEN ENOUGH!
If He had only given us the Torah, but not the land of Israel…
ALL: DAYENU! IT WOULD HAVE BEEN ENOUGH!
But, the Holy One, blessed be He, provided all of these blessings for our ancestors… and not only these but so many, many more!
ALL:
Praised are you O Lord, our God, King of the Universe. You are our Jehovah Jireh, our provider, for you have in your love and mercy supplied all our needs.
THE PASSOVER LAMB
Much could be said about the significance of the Passover Lamb and Yeshua, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. The lamb shank on our Seder plate represents the Lamb of that first Passover whose blood saved the Children of Israel.
Think about the smell of a lamb being roasted over an open fire. Believe it or not, that smell is a delight to the Father. It fills His senses with delight for us, His chosen ones… His children.
Exodus 12: 8, 11, 12, 13 and 46
That same night they are to eat the meat roasted over the fire, along with the bitter herbs and bread made without yeast. This is how you are to eat it: with your cloak tucked into your belt, your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand. Eat it in haste; it is the Lord’s Passover. On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn, both men and animals, and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the Lord. The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt.
(The lamb) must be eaten inside one house; take none of the meat outside the house. Do not break any of its bones.
There is a red scarf on your table for each one of you. As we now give thanks and eat our Passover meal together, we encourage you to wear this red cloth, reminding each of us of the blood of the Lamb, painted over the door of our home, and worn over the door of our hearts… and remember that the sacrifice of the Lamb of God, Yeshua, was made to spare us all from the Angel of Death… to give us Life! John 10:10 reminds us, in the very words of Yeshua: I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.
(Pray for the meal and provide eating instructions).
WE NOW EAT OUR PASSOVER MEAL TOGETHER
THE AFIKOMEN, THE DESSERT
Our Seder meal tonight follows God’s plan for redemption. The first two cups of wine we drank before the meal speak of God’s redeeming us from Egypt and the bondage it represents, through the blood of the lamb and God’s great acts of power!
Now, after the meal, we’ll focus on the resurrection of Yeshua and His looking forward to His second coming. This Passover Seder is a rehearsal of God’s complete redemptive plan.
Now, let’s talk about the Afikomen:
The word “Afikomen” means dessert. It is the last food eaten at our meal tonight. Remember when I hid the Afikomen earlier? It is time for the children to go and find it and bring it back to me.
(Children go and find Afikomen).
To the child who brings the Afikomen: Thank you! Here’s a small reward ($1) for finding it.
It is said that in a traditional Seder meal, the child who finds the Afikomen barters with the father concerning a price to be paid. The father then gives the child a gift in the form of a down payment as his promise to the child who found the Afikomen. The father then promises to make the rest of the payment at a later time. In the Jewish tradition, this is called The Promise of the Father. In this, we understand that God paid a great price for our redemption.
Now, what does the Afikomen represent? Remember how we took the middle Matzah out and broke it and wrapped it up in the cloth? And now it has been found again! This Matzah represents Yeshua, the bread that was sent from heaven. Notice how the Matzah has stripes on it? Notice how it is has been pierced in the baking process? As Isaiah 53 states: “He was pierced for our transgressions… and by His stripes we are healed.”
At the Last Supper, in Luke 22, Jesus said, “This is my body given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” The Passover cannot be completed without the Afikomen. Nor can our redemption be complete without Yeshua, the Bread of Life, our Messiah.
Barukh Atah Adonai Eloheynu Melekh ha’olam ha-motzi lechem min ha-aretz.
ALL:
Praised are you, oh Lord, our God, King of the Universe, who brings froth bread from the earth… the bread of life!
(EAT MATZAH)
THE THIRD CUP, THE CUP OF REDEMPTION
(Refill cup as necessary.)
In the Ancient Days of the Old Covenant, the first cup after the Passover meal expressed gratitude for the freedom which the Lord God granted His people.
But again, during the Last Supper in the Upper Room, Jesus did something different. You see, it was the custom in the days of Jesus’ time that when a man desired to marry a woman, he went to her father and offered him a cup of wine, “take and drink” he would propose. If the woman’s father accepted the cup, it was his way of saying “yes, you may have my daughter’s hand in marriage.”
During this last formal meal together, Jesus offers bread as His body and then he offers His talmadim a cup and he says, “take and drink.” It was His way of saying “I want to marry you. You are my bride. Will you accept my proposal?” And as His disciples accept by taking the cup and drinking, Jesus says that he won’t drink the fruit of the vine again until the Kingdom of God comes (Luke 22). That will be when the Father tells the Son that He can go get His bride, the church… us! Oh, how Jesus loves us… passionately… as a bridegroom loves his bride! He demonstrated that passion throughout His ministry, but perhaps not so intimately as when he offered this cup of redemption to His closest companions, His talmadim, in a quiet upper room.
Barukh Atah Adonai Eloheynu Melekh ha’olam borey pri hagafen.
ALL:
Praised are you, O Lord, our God, King of the Universe, who creates the fruit of the vine.
ELIJAH THE PROPHET
God gives this section of the Passover Seder to teach us that before Messiah returns, Elijah will come (Malachi 4:5). The Messiah always has a forerunner, a preparer of the way. During the first coming of Yeshua, Jesus said in Matthew 17 Elijah already came in the person of John the Baptist. Luke 1:17 explains that John is of the spirit and power of Elijah. So shall it be with the second coming of Jesus (Revelation 11)!
I’d like a child to go and open the front door of the house, celebrating that the Prophet Elijah has already come once and indicating our readiness to receive Elijah again when Jesus returns to come and take His bride, His church, us, to Heaven!
ALL:
We await the coming of the Prophet Elijah. May he appear, bringing the Messiah with him!
(Now, the front door is closed.)
THE FOURTH CUP, THE CUP OF PRAISE
(Refill your cup as necessary.)
Let us life one more cup tonight, the Cup of Praise and let us give thanks to God… for we are His people and He is our God!
Barukh Atah Adonai Eloheynu Melekh ha’olam borey pri hagafen.
ALL:
Praised are you, O Lord, our God, King of the Universe, who creates the fruit of the vine.
THE HALLEL, PSALM 136
Give thanks to the Lord for He is good.
ALL:
And His love endures forever!
THE BLESSING OF AARON BY MOSES (Numbers 6:24-26)
May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord make His face to shine on you and be gracious to you.
May the Lord turn His face toward you all the days of your life
And give you His peace.
“NEXT YEAR IN JERUSALEM!”
Lashanah haba’ah bi Yerushalayim!
Thank you for joining us for this wonderful celebration of truth, redemption and a looking forward to our Messiah’s return.
We’d like to encourage you to take time during the coming days to read the whole story of Passover in Exodus. It is so powerful to see the compassion our Abba, Father has for His chosen people. For us! For you!
We are all called to live the Sh’ema, to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul and might, and to love our neighbors as ourselves. Know that God desires us all to walk in relationship with him and His son, Yeshua. It’s not a “religion.” It’s communing with Him daily. Praising Him first thing in the morning and continuing to do so until you fall fast asleep each night.
The Word is true. The prophesies are true. Jesus came to fulfill the Old Testament Law not to abolish it. Isn’t it amazing how the first Passover, celebrated 2000 years before Jesus celebrated it with His disciples, has such meaning now that we know Yeshua IS “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.” ?
May you be blessed in your relationship with Yeshua!
The Ronald Family
Today's staff meeting assignment includes a team icebreaker question to describe one of your most memorable experiences as a child. In general, I had a very blessed childhood. Three older sisters, mom and dad. Our very close extended family included Grannie and Grandpa, Grandmother and our only aunt. There were no cousins since my dad was an only child and my mom's only sister never married or had children. When the whole family got together it was just the ten of us.
What was normal then, today would be considered very abnormal. That kind of a Sunday Sabbath rest is not taken in our hectic on-the-go lifestyle. I miss those simpler times. Today, our extended family is spread out from Texas to Iowa, Virginia to Ohio. The last time we were all together was 2006.
I miss those types of restful days with the extended family. I guess I took it for granted. Back at Grannie and Grandpa's in the 1960's, I didn't know how sweet those days were.
I do now. And I am truly thankful for such great memories.
Have you ever been challenged to write a "philosophy of ministry?" Recently I was asked to provide mine.
And while I know that I have one, I've never put down in words. So I prayed. And here it is.
PHILOSOPHY OF MINISTRY
"Hear O Israel. The Lord our God, the Lord is One! You shall love the Lord your God will all your heart,
with all your soul, with all your strength." This is the Shema, the call from Moses in Deuteronomy 6:45.
Jesus took this to the next level when asked by the pharisees about the greatest commandment by adding
"Love you neighbor as yourself." (Matthew 22, Mark 12 and Luke 10).
It is with this conviction that my philosophy of ministry resonates.
There are so many levels to examine here. First is the call from Moses. “Hear O Israel.” Jesus
often encourages us to listen… “he who has ears to hear, let him hear.” What Moses is about to tell
us is a big deal… “a bug in our ear,” if you will (from Randy Frazee, March 1, 2009). The big message:
The Lord our God is One. It is not a hierarchal structure that has God at the top with Jesus
underneath and the Holy Spirit a direct line from Jesus with a dotted line to God. God is One.
Jesus and the Holy Spirit were with God in the beginning and are with us today. Sometimes, it is a
challenge, and yet always a joy, to put our hearts and minds around this concept. God is Creator.
Jesus is our Savior. The Holy Spirit is our Comforter. All are One.
So, understanding that God is One, the next step is to love Him with all that we are. When we love
with our heart we give His love away. When we love with our soul, we look to what is eternally
significant, that which will last forever, the people in our lives. When we love with our strength, we
give ourselves completely, physically, showing our love through acts of worship, acts of service,
disciplines of prayer and Bible study.
When we have that covered, and our relationship vertically with our Abba Father is all right, thanks
to New Testament grace, Jesus takes us to the next level… take what you have in your relationship
with God to your neighbor. It starts with being neighborly, being kind, friendly, courteous,
engaging. Reaching out. Doing something that shows God’s love to those around us. Who are our
neighbors? Those we live with. Those we live near. Those we work with. Those who work for us.
Those who serve us, wait on us or pick up our trash. Anyone and everyone God puts in our path
day to day is our neighbor.
And I believe, we are created in God’s image by God Himself, a masterpiece of His hands, for good
works which He has prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:10). What are these “good
works?” Reaching and loving our neighbors. Why? So that by serving, reaching and loving our
neighbors, our neighbors will see Him and will come to know Him. And that’s what drives me,
knowing that “God wants all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (I
Timothy 2:4)
Finally, Jesus charges us all to make disciples (Matthew 28:19). It is a joy to walk alongside of
believers, new and old, to encourage them, to challenge them and to see them grow more and more
like Him.
