They don’t have money or power, but what they do have is “a particular set of skills”. And they better use those skills to perfection because already they lost nearly half of their number and now, if these few who are left mess up too, they die and a nation of 2 million is put at risk. Who can save the day? Nothing from the mind of Hollywood that’s for sure. These are the priests and they literally take their lives into their own hands every day they serve. Don’t be”taken” in by imitations–Aaron and sons are the real deal. And also we close with a Torah Thought for the Week on a fairly controversial subject but one which I truly endeavor to deal with in both love and accurately from Scripture. What is it? Well, let’s just say it’s about the people in your neighborhood–as told through the eyes of another priest, Ezekiel.
It’s just a skin disease; a medical condition like any other. Or is it? Even the sages cannot decide this seemingly simple question. Is leprosy divine judgment for a moral failure or just another kind of defilement that happens in the course of normal living? Can it be equated to any known ski disease today? And if it has nothing to do with today’s skin diseases, why do the medical protocols in this part of Leviticus still being used today with great medical effectiveness? Also: When Y’shua heals the woman with the 12 year flow of blood, did the power come only from Y’shua or from his Father and what does that answer reveal about the relationship between the Father and the Son? One thing is for certain: These mysteries certainly don’t just run skin deep!
Tazria. One chapter gives us intimate details about what Messiah’s earthly parents will go through bringing him into the world. The other chapter reveals the true reasons why Messiah kept saying to those he healed of leprosy “Go and show yourselves to the priests”. Messiah is in fact all over this short yet very powerful portion. Also we’ll have an update on some of the latest research surrounding Passion Week and how to clarify what seems to be hopelessly contradictory and confusing language describing the day Messiah died. It’s a surprising conclusion, to say the least.
It’s five priests for more than 2 million Israelites. That is, until it’s down to only three because Nadav and Avihu die for their rebellion against Father Yah. Even more socking, neither their father Aaron nor their brothers are allowed to bury them, because then the whole priesthood is at risk and, along with it, the fate of the entire nation. What Moshe and Aaron do now will literally determine the fate of an entire nation. No pressure guys, but whatever you do, you better do it soon!
Welcome to the ordination of the priests, where one mistake can cost you your life and put a nation of more than 2 million in jeopardy. But Tzav is about far more than just a series of regulations regarding purity and sacrifices. It reaches deep into the secrets of time and history that are embedded in its text. Enjoy the journey!
As the third book of Moshe opens, we are right back where we were at the end of Exodus. The Tabernacle is being erected and the detailed instructions for establishing the priesthood are being given. But there is so much else going on in this parsha than details on how to do burnt offerings! Our Messiah Y’shua is literally all over this text, sometimes in very surprising ways. Also find out about the latest calendar controversy literally just in time for Pesach and an counter missionary attack on Messiah that appeared to some so scary, that even a professional NT Greek scholar came to me for help on it. See the tricks and traps the counter missionaries use to twist the Torah and deny Messiah, from one who used to do that very thing (yes I mean me).
Now the book of Exodus (Shemot) wraps up with some of its most amazing secrets, but they don’t reveal themselves easily. How is the approach of this parsha sending a strong message of integrity that echoes straight into our daily headlines? How does Aaron anticipate the end of King David’s life when nearly five centuries separate the two men? And, perhaps most interesting of them all, how is the Renewed Covenant message tied to the colors of the Tabernacle? These and many other revelations await, as I actually show the real math behind all these connections. Enjoy!
They are the most mysterious and most fascinating objects ever built by the hand of man, and three and a half millennia later their blueprints survive in exacting detail and the history remains as powerful and fresh as when these events first happened. To explore the translation issues and versions around these descriptions is like interviewing a series of ancient witnesses to reconstruct what otherwise would seem hopelessly lost. Also explore with me the common thread behind a series of excellent member Q&A that I call “Found in Translation”. Enjoy!
It starts as a census and ends in one of the most terrifying idolatrous rebellions in history. This is the week the Israelites worship the golden calf and nearly destroy themselves in the process. Only the hope of Moshe’s intercession and the promise of Torah observance can save them. But will that help come in time or will Father Yah carry out His plans to start a new nation from Moshe? It all comes down to one remarkable conversation, between Father Yah and the distressed leader Moshe who seems closer to despair than he has ever been.
Chag Samayach and welcome to the 2018 Purim Special! From a prolonged preview and set up from Genesis and Exodus, to deep roots in the NT (from two Gospels) Purim is a feast not just of great joy but of surprise twists and turns. What historical roots from Genesis caused Hamam to want to destroy not just Mordechai but all of the Jewish people? And how did one of the most famous battles of the pagan world have a direct impact in paving the way for attempted genocide? And why is this the only book in the entire Tanakh to not be in the Dead Sea Scrolls–or is it the only one? Come and explore all this with us, and so much more, as we see that Purim is more than a carnival and Esther is more than a queen.
They say the best secrets are the ones that hide in plain sight. The ones in this parsha are no exception, as the most visible and prominent member of the Israelite community–the high priest–literally hides a universe worth of secrets both on and under his own clothes. The fabrics, the colors, the dimensions, not a single detail is without a deeper meaning. Also get a very special calendar update on the challenges that await us in 2019 and find out how one of the most familar parables of them all hides one of the greatest secrets of them all. And feast season returns…the Purim Special is next week!