Showing posts with label politics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label politics. Show all posts
boldness to speak up
The certainty of some people proclaiming their beliefs which do not match with mine, should neither intimidate me nor cause me to doubt, but should cause me to speak up, express my disagreement and question them how they derived at their belief.
"Prince of Egypt" & healing through judgement
important lessons for the Kingdom of G-d and the understanding of His heart and actions.
the prophets job
"Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee: be not dismayed at their faces, lest I confound thee before them.
For, behold, I have made thee this day a defenced city, and an iron pillar, and brasen walls against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land.
And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I [am] with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee. " (Jeremia 1: 17-19)
LORD, may you give me Your Word to speak and the courage to stand, not to be dismayed and to speak. May you give me Your strength, and joy, trust and faith. May you make my mind and body work and my senses respond when it is needed.
For, behold, I have made thee this day a defenced city, and an iron pillar, and brasen walls against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land.
And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I [am] with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee. " (Jeremia 1: 17-19)
LORD, may you give me Your Word to speak and the courage to stand, not to be dismayed and to speak. May you give me Your strength, and joy, trust and faith. May you make my mind and body work and my senses respond when it is needed.
Thoughts for Prayer - Israeli politics/ political choices
Three very fundamental points for repentance on behalf of the nation and individuals of the nation stick out to me:
- Repentance for being self-centered instead of G-d-centered
If we were G-d-centered as a nation, our first response in times of troubles or of making decisions would be prayer. Now, there are many religious people living here, which do open their prayer books and pray and expect miracles, but a G-d-centered nation would expect prayer to be 2-way communication in which the well tested prophetic voices are part of the decision making process.
- Repentance for unbelief and lack of knowledge
Trying to reach our goals in our ways led to a lot of harm. Even actions in self-defense are usually quite different from actions in the Spirit of Yeshua. It is all about Him, not about us. Therefor, believing Him and getting to know Him and His ways better and better is an essential pre-requisit for doing what is right.
- Repentance for hatred and lack of care and love towards Arabs, and especially towards Gazans
Finally, it might be necessary to take initiatives in order to stop and prevent evil, but when we enter the discussion of right and wrong and justified and unjustified, we have to constantly remind ourselves that we all are wrong and unjustified except through Him, Yeshua, and that any hatred for the lost is out of place, that we are commanded to love our enemies and that any necessary means of restraint of evil and discipline have to be motivated by care and love for them, the enemies. Our own fears, hurts and anxieties we have to give to the Lord and let Him take care of us. We can not act in response to them with our fears, hurts and anxieties serving as fuel for our actions, except if the action is turning to the Lord!
Thoughts for political leads
If we are in the Land because we truely love the land - not a selfish love - but a love that wants to see the land restored, not for ourselfs, but for G-d's purposes, let's not fight about to whom it belongs, but what we can do, together, to heal the land. The water crises breakes the land, let's see how we can develope the desert to make it bloom!
G-d commands His blessings where brothers dwell together in unity (Hineh ma tov u'ma nayim...) I believe we need to seriously take the lead and face our internal problems of disunity, rejection of one another or of groups within, of blame, of corruption and dishonesty, of selfishness ... and challenge one another regarding our beliefs and life-philosophy-systems, whether they are coherent and true and leading to G-d or not and engage together on an honest quest for truth and for the presence of G-d in our midst as a nation.
- Repentance for being self-centered instead of G-d-centered
If we were G-d-centered as a nation, our first response in times of troubles or of making decisions would be prayer. Now, there are many religious people living here, which do open their prayer books and pray and expect miracles, but a G-d-centered nation would expect prayer to be 2-way communication in which the well tested prophetic voices are part of the decision making process.
- Repentance for unbelief and lack of knowledge
Trying to reach our goals in our ways led to a lot of harm. Even actions in self-defense are usually quite different from actions in the Spirit of Yeshua. It is all about Him, not about us. Therefor, believing Him and getting to know Him and His ways better and better is an essential pre-requisit for doing what is right.
- Repentance for hatred and lack of care and love towards Arabs, and especially towards Gazans
Finally, it might be necessary to take initiatives in order to stop and prevent evil, but when we enter the discussion of right and wrong and justified and unjustified, we have to constantly remind ourselves that we all are wrong and unjustified except through Him, Yeshua, and that any hatred for the lost is out of place, that we are commanded to love our enemies and that any necessary means of restraint of evil and discipline have to be motivated by care and love for them, the enemies. Our own fears, hurts and anxieties we have to give to the Lord and let Him take care of us. We can not act in response to them with our fears, hurts and anxieties serving as fuel for our actions, except if the action is turning to the Lord!
Thoughts for political leads
If we are in the Land because we truely love the land - not a selfish love - but a love that wants to see the land restored, not for ourselfs, but for G-d's purposes, let's not fight about to whom it belongs, but what we can do, together, to heal the land. The water crises breakes the land, let's see how we can develope the desert to make it bloom!
G-d commands His blessings where brothers dwell together in unity (Hineh ma tov u'ma nayim...) I believe we need to seriously take the lead and face our internal problems of disunity, rejection of one another or of groups within, of blame, of corruption and dishonesty, of selfishness ... and challenge one another regarding our beliefs and life-philosophy-systems, whether they are coherent and true and leading to G-d or not and engage together on an honest quest for truth and for the presence of G-d in our midst as a nation.
Jewish Identity in Messianic Context
For the Messianic Jewish community, as well as for the broader Jewish world, I think it is time to come to a definition of the Jewish identity and what it means to be Jewish.
Obviously we can't use the historical definition of being a descendant of the Jewish people - or adopted into it - and not believing in Yeshua.
Is there a distiction to be made between Jewish believers and followers of Yeshua and non-Jewish ones?
One of the definitions of messianic Judaism being offered at Youtube holds that Messianic Jews are Jews and Gentiles united by the Messiah Yeshua, which refrain from certain "Christian" traditions, and keep certain other Jewish ordinances. This sounds like an attempt to reform and correct the Church, creating a new, more biblical-correct movement within the Church.
The common-use definition of Messianic Jews here is Israel means believers and followers of Yeshua within an Israeli Jewish context, whereas non-Jewish (mainly according to their own self-definition) members of the community just call themselfs messianics.
The original realization standing at the birth of the messianic Jewish movement is G-d's faithfulness regarding the promises given to the Jewish people and the irrevocability of the calling. Replacement theology is found faulty. Being a Jew is not a curse that needs to be washed off at baptism together with all the sins, but it is a responsability, which remains, just as a parent retains the responsabilities of a parent after baptism, - surely not without relying on G-d's help, guidance and direction in order to fulfill these responsabilities.
I would want to try to state these special responsabilities of the Jewish people, which are incumbant upon all Jews born as such and upon those that join the Jewish people and are adopted into it.
One might think of the "obvious" answer to the responsabilities: the 613 Mitzvoth. But this is not a very applicable answer to the question. They might supply a theoretical framework of action, but the reliability of the rabbinical translation into halacha is a matter of dispute for messianics. The reasons are manyfold:
-disagreement about the adaptation to the new reality: on one side to the absence of the temple and living in exile, on the other side to the time after the coming of Yeshua and the multitude of gentile believers in Him.
-mistrust towards the rabbinic judgements, their intentions and the spirit guiding them.
-the dichotomy of the Letter and the Spirit might require rather an understanding of the heart of the Mitzvah, its intention and normal practical application, leaving the specific details for each instance up to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, instead of arguing about specific applications based on the Letter in a kind of legal debate.
With this last point in mind, one might also in regard of the responsabilities rather look to describe them in terms that touch the heart of the calling of the Jewish people. The framework of the 613 Mitzvoth are just the instructions given by divine wisdom in order to live out this calling to G-d's honor. They reflect G-d's love and character and are a way which He chose to bless.
... to be continued. Comments welcome!
Obviously we can't use the historical definition of being a descendant of the Jewish people - or adopted into it - and not believing in Yeshua.
Is there a distiction to be made between Jewish believers and followers of Yeshua and non-Jewish ones?
One of the definitions of messianic Judaism being offered at Youtube holds that Messianic Jews are Jews and Gentiles united by the Messiah Yeshua, which refrain from certain "Christian" traditions, and keep certain other Jewish ordinances. This sounds like an attempt to reform and correct the Church, creating a new, more biblical-correct movement within the Church.
The common-use definition of Messianic Jews here is Israel means believers and followers of Yeshua within an Israeli Jewish context, whereas non-Jewish (mainly according to their own self-definition) members of the community just call themselfs messianics.
The original realization standing at the birth of the messianic Jewish movement is G-d's faithfulness regarding the promises given to the Jewish people and the irrevocability of the calling. Replacement theology is found faulty. Being a Jew is not a curse that needs to be washed off at baptism together with all the sins, but it is a responsability, which remains, just as a parent retains the responsabilities of a parent after baptism, - surely not without relying on G-d's help, guidance and direction in order to fulfill these responsabilities.
I would want to try to state these special responsabilities of the Jewish people, which are incumbant upon all Jews born as such and upon those that join the Jewish people and are adopted into it.
One might think of the "obvious" answer to the responsabilities: the 613 Mitzvoth. But this is not a very applicable answer to the question. They might supply a theoretical framework of action, but the reliability of the rabbinical translation into halacha is a matter of dispute for messianics. The reasons are manyfold:
-disagreement about the adaptation to the new reality: on one side to the absence of the temple and living in exile, on the other side to the time after the coming of Yeshua and the multitude of gentile believers in Him.
-mistrust towards the rabbinic judgements, their intentions and the spirit guiding them.
-the dichotomy of the Letter and the Spirit might require rather an understanding of the heart of the Mitzvah, its intention and normal practical application, leaving the specific details for each instance up to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, instead of arguing about specific applications based on the Letter in a kind of legal debate.
With this last point in mind, one might also in regard of the responsabilities rather look to describe them in terms that touch the heart of the calling of the Jewish people. The framework of the 613 Mitzvoth are just the instructions given by divine wisdom in order to live out this calling to G-d's honor. They reflect G-d's love and character and are a way which He chose to bless.
... to be continued. Comments welcome!
Arab leads Jews in worship - Amazing
Shmuel Aveida - Congregation Beit Immanuel Haifa
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XK6NtWYwbZM&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XK6NtWYwbZM&feature=related
The Sin of A Prayerless Life
Prayer for the authorities
Prayer for those I am in contact with
Prayer for the lost
Prayer for my brothers and sisters
Prayer for those I am in contact with
Prayer for the lost
Prayer for my brothers and sisters
- Proclaiming and keeping up G-d's standards
- Standing in the gap
- Being mindfull of promises and prophecies
- Going into battle on behalf of people, communities, cities and nations
on tolerance and support of religious plurality
Religious tolerance of other gods and supported plurality of objects of worship became King Salomons doom. Does this mean that we also need to be very careful not to tolerate non-orthodox thoughts and beliefs?
The latter are not always a product of rebellion. Rather, they reflect the individual's ability or inability to understand and make sense of experience, revelation and transmitted history. Philosophical and theological skills are needed to understand and apply properly the religious language.
What would have been the correct attitude of King Salomo to the worship of other G-d's of the peoples around? He used the political tool of marriage to make peace with the other nations around; and he got swayed away by his wifes.
Post to be continued, question in process ... Comments welcome!
The latter are not always a product of rebellion. Rather, they reflect the individual's ability or inability to understand and make sense of experience, revelation and transmitted history. Philosophical and theological skills are needed to understand and apply properly the religious language.
What would have been the correct attitude of King Salomo to the worship of other G-d's of the peoples around? He used the political tool of marriage to make peace with the other nations around; and he got swayed away by his wifes.
Post to be continued, question in process ... Comments welcome!
The Command of Daily Bible Reading
Kings of the tribes of Israel are commanded to write a copy of the Torah for themselfs and study it and meditate upon it daily, day and night.
But moreover, we are called to be a nation of kings and priests. We are called to positions of high responsibility in the Kingdom of G-d. I think it is permissable to extend the command for kings of Israel to disciples of Yeshua, which enter into the calling to be part of the nation of kings and priests.
We need to be very familiar with all the instructions G-d gave us for life on this earth and need to remember everything He revealed to us about Himself and take hold and expect everything He promised.
But moreover, we are called to be a nation of kings and priests. We are called to positions of high responsibility in the Kingdom of G-d. I think it is permissable to extend the command for kings of Israel to disciples of Yeshua, which enter into the calling to be part of the nation of kings and priests.
We need to be very familiar with all the instructions G-d gave us for life on this earth and need to remember everything He revealed to us about Himself and take hold and expect everything He promised.
to die and be born again
I'm troubled by the Amalek passages in the bible. How can it be an eternal command to hate and destroy Amalek? Is there no repentance? Aren't they, like all other human beings, created in the image of G-d and therefor to be loved and respected?
Didn't Yeshua die for each and every sinner?
Yes, the sinner needs to die and be born again. (And I don't mean - as my flat mates might want to understand - in a reincarnation. I believe in resurrection, definitly not in reincarnation, - except as the very same person at the time of the resurrection.)
How can I get through to the people, my flat mates, which hate the Arabs and justify this hatred with the commanded hatred for Amalek?
I'm used to differenciate between people and their actions: I hate sinful actions, but I love the sinner. I'm used to look at people groups which are full of hatred and abominations as people that need to be reached by the love of G-d. I'm used to pay the price, if necessary with my own life, to get the message of the Gospel across. How many missionaries got killed, but the people were reached through the remaining family or team by the surprising absence of hatred and vengance and the experience of continued and even more fervent love.
Didn't Yeshua die for each and every sinner?
Yes, the sinner needs to die and be born again. (And I don't mean - as my flat mates might want to understand - in a reincarnation. I believe in resurrection, definitly not in reincarnation, - except as the very same person at the time of the resurrection.)
How can I get through to the people, my flat mates, which hate the Arabs and justify this hatred with the commanded hatred for Amalek?
I'm used to differenciate between people and their actions: I hate sinful actions, but I love the sinner. I'm used to look at people groups which are full of hatred and abominations as people that need to be reached by the love of G-d. I'm used to pay the price, if necessary with my own life, to get the message of the Gospel across. How many missionaries got killed, but the people were reached through the remaining family or team by the surprising absence of hatred and vengance and the experience of continued and even more fervent love.
עדות
An עדות is usually a testimony to remember something. To testify/ be a witness is the calling of the Jewish people.
עדות: commandments that result in the performing people giving and being themselves a testimony of G-d.
עדות: commandments that result in the performing people giving and being themselves a testimony of G-d.
Common basis for working together
Reading the Bible, relation to the land of Israel, relation to the people to whom the land is given as inheritance, relation to the intructions of how to live in the land, given to the people of Israel.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
