Dedication …and cleaning up… for healing … for abundant life.
April 6, 2013 ~ Nisan 26, 5773
Torah Parashah 26
Sh’mini – “Eighth”
This is about the dedication of the Priests, the Temple and the dedication of our bodies… and our lives…
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Readings for this parashah…
Torah – Vayikra (Lev) 9:1-11:47
Haftarah – Sh’mu’el Bet (2 Samuel) 6:1-17
B’rit Hadashah – Mark 9:2-13; Mark 7:1-23; Acts 5:1-11; 10:1-35; 2 Corin.6:14- 7:1; Gal 2:11-16; I Kefa (Peter) 1:14-16
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Sh’ma
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This teaching starts with a dream that I had yesterday morning.
I had just had a baby… and there was another baby that people kept trying to trade with me… because they were going to “get rid” of mine… the baby that they wanted to give to me instead, was deformed and not well… but they all thought it was “normal”… while it clearly was not.
They kept taking my baby and moving it- hiding it – it was hard to find. When I found it – even though it was just born – it spoke like an adult…. Which nobody heard but me. It talked about the birthing being difficult but worthwhile….
I believe this is about the ministry of HLM and how we had a baby/ ministry that wasn’t whole or healthy but was much like the popular religion of our nation… but Yah has led us back to Torah and we have been birthing a ministry that is not like the old one… not like the popular religion of our culture…… This ministry is healthy and whole… and based on the truth of Torah.
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And so I began to ask YHWH about that dream and about the Torah Parashah for this week…. So this teaching comes out of this place….
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I want to start with a verse I am sure you all know…
Divrei-Hayamim bet (2 Chronicles) 7: 14 cjb p 1191
“…then, if my people, who bear my name, will humble themselves, pray, seek my face and turn from their evil ways, I will hear from heaven, forgive their sin and heal their land.”
… if the people who are in “evil ways”…
Isn’t it interesting that no matter if we are in the popular religion or not… we can read this verse and it always seems to be about other people??
That 2 Chronicles has to be about other people… because it is other people that are evil.
What are evil ways?....
Remember we talked about “wicked”… and how that word means “to be wick-ed”… as a candle wick is twisted together….
Wicked is lies, twisted in enough truth to make them believeable.
The first thing we need to know is – just as our Parashah starts out with instructions to the priests in how to operate in the Tabernacle…
This scripture in Divrei-Hayamim is about the dedication of the Temple….
Shlomo (Solomon) has just built the temple and calls Isra’el to celebrate….
Read starting in Divrei-Hayamim Bet 5:11 – 7:23 cjb p 1188
It is a huge celebration.
Imagine what 120 shofars sound like with other instruments and singing in Hebrew!
Shlomo prays…
Then YHWH comes to Shlomo in the end – on the 8th day of this celebration…. In 7:12-23
Clearly we see that evil ways… is about turning from YHWH’s instructions and following after/ serving other gods…
And as we have been studying – we know that the traditions of man – the traditions of the popular religion of our culture… follow other gods and they don’t even know it.
So clearly YHWH is saying –if you keep MY Word, my instructions… I will bless you… and if you turn from My ways and then return in repentance… and come back to my instructions… I will heal….
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Vayikra (Lev) 9 – instructions on sin sacrifices.
Note that the sacrifice for Aharon’s sin is a calf. (forgiveness for the “golden calf”…
And the sacrifice for the people’s sins is a goat.
This day – the 8th day… was not a fun celebration as the dedication of the Temple would be in Shlomo’s day…
This was a day of “grief and trouble”…
Why?
Because… until the sin of the golden calf –
Remember that the word “calf” there is in Hebrew “agol” and that means cycles…. So that was the day when Isra’el decided they would use their ways/ mans ways / CYCLES to worship YHWH….
Until the sin of the golden calf – There was no need for a center for holiness – a tent or a building… because everyone was called to be worthy of the Divine presence…
….and after the golden calf = man choosing - cycles of man- to worship YHWH instead of Yah’s instructions…. It was necessary to build a Tabernacle as a resting place for the Sh’echinah of YHWH.
So while this day was the start of Tabernacle worship – it was a sad day.
Vayikra 10:1- 2 cjb p 118
“something he had not ordered them to do”… “and they DIED”.
They didn’t follow the instructions and they died.
Remember back to the golden calf story – YHWH was going to kill all of Isra’el and would have had it not been for Moshe’s intercession.
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Another time… when King David was bringing the Ark of the Covenant up to Jerusalem..
Sh’mu’el bet (2 Samuel) 6:6-11 cbj p 340
Uzah died on the spot because he disobeyed YHWH and touched the Ark.
What about the Ark…
It is what is in the middle or heart of the Tabernacle/ Temple….
What is it?... a box – a specially designed box – and so much more…
Sh’mot (Ex) 25:10-22 cjb p 88
In 25:21-22 “”you are to put the ark-cover on top of the ark. Inside the ark you will put the testimony that I am about to give you. 22 There I will meet with you. I will speak with you from above the ark-cover, from between the two k’ruvim which are on the ark for the testimony, about all the orders I am giving you for the people of Isra’el.”
“the testimony” = “d’bar” = the Hebrew word = “Word”… so He is saying… ----“there I will Word with you.”
It is also translated – I will commune with you.
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Now what we need to know and take a linguist’s word (Brad Scott) for it… is that ….
The ARK is always spoken of in the singular… even though it is made of several pieces/ parts….
It is ONE testimony - ONE witness –
… NOT EVER TWO….
The commands and the mercy seat – area considered ECHAD – ONE witness – ALWAYS in the Word.
In the popular religion that we came out of… they like to talk about how mercy is the new covenant and we don’t need to keep the instructions of YHWH…
But according to this picture of what a WITNESS / a TESTIMONY is… it is ONE… you can’t have one without the other…
When the B’rit Chadashah writers talk about mercy and grace – the mercy seat – they are talking about where the blood is sprinkled… and that places covers and protects – “shamar” (the Hebrew Word = to watch over and protect) the instructions!
After all – Y’shua didn’t come to destroy the instructions/ law…but to show us how to live them! (Matt 5:17)
It has never been one or the other – the instructions/ Torah or mercy/ grace…but always both.
When you repent/ Shuv and choose to follow Messiah….you get the Mercy Seat …. AND you get the instructions…
Yirmeyahu (Jeremiah) 42:5 cjb p 614 “They said to Yirmeyahu, ‘May YHWH be a true and faithful witness against us if we fail to do any part of what YWHW your Elohim gives you to tell us.”
Yirmeyahu (Jer) 44:22-23 cjb p 617 “…until YHWH could no longer bear it, so evil and so detestable were your deeds. This is why your land has become a wasteland, an object for astonishment and cursing, uninhabited, as it is today. 23 It is because you offered incense, sinned against YHWH, didn’t listen to what YHWH said, and didn’t live by his Torah, regulations and instructions that this disaster has befallen you, as it is today.”
“Torah, regulations and instructions” – is also translated as “testimonies”
So in B’rit Chadashah – the words witness and testimonies….
(Remember that the dictionary for the words in the B’rit Chadashah is the Tanakh.)
Witness and testimonies… is always about His presence and keeping His instructions/ Torah!
Yochanan (John) 1:6-8 cjb p 1329 “There was a man sent from God whose name was Yochanan. He came to be a testimony, to bear witness concerning the light; so that through him, everyone might put his trust in YHWH and be faithful to Him. He himself was not the light; no, he came to bear witness concerning the light.”
A witness – always perpetuates the testimony…
Testimony = grace and the work: the blood, the seed the relationship and the fruit of our obedience…
The light is Messiah….
So – to witness = something biblically, that is from the beginning that is perpetuated….
=Torah… instructions and the Living Torah Y’shua.
The testimony
Messianic Jews (Hebrews) 8: 10 cjb p 1501
“For this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Isra’el after those days, I will put my torah in their minds and write it on their hearts; I will be their God, and they will be my people.”
“For this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Isra’el after those days, I will put my torah in their minds and write it on their hearts; I will be their God, and they will be my people.”
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It’s always about the witness and the testimony and that is the ARK itself – the Torah (instructions) and the Mercy Seat (Messiah)… that is ONE unit.
…ECHAD and ….is never separated in the Word.
Are you kidding me?? They were always separated in the faith I grew up in!!!
Torah (instructions / commands) and the Mercy Seat (Messiah) are one unit and are never separated in the Word. !!
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Mark 7: 1-9 cjb p 1271
7b – 9 “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far away from me. Their worship of me is useless, because they teach man-made rules as if they were doctrines (IS 29:13). 8 You depart from YHWH’s command and hold onto human tradition. 9 Indeed, he said to them, you have made a fine art of departing from YHWH’s command in order to keep your tradition!”
- What is this – if not abandoning what YHWH says to do to worship Him and accepting ways of man??!!
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I Kefa 1: 14-16 cjb p 1515 “As people who obey YHWH, do not let yourselves be shaped by the evil desires you used to have when you were still ignorant. 15 On the contrary, following the Holy One who called you, become holy yourselves in your entire way of life, 16 since the Tanakh says, ‘You are to be holy because I am holy.’”
Acts 5:1-11 cjb p 1366 – story of Hananyah and Shappirah … who owned land and sold it… and they told the leaders of their congregation that they were giving ALL the money they got from the sale… and they did not… and they DIED.
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In Vayikra 11 – is the food laws which we talked about last Shabbat…. The importance of being clean inside… in order to be HOLY.
The other piece is that this clearly is about keeping the Temples of our body clean and in proper order physically/ spiritually.
Remember eating Kosher is not about health… although that clearly is a benefit from what just what we find out about pork!
But it is about obedience…
= “Because He said so…
…..just like so many things that we read today that are always about following what HE said ----or not….
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So let’s go back to
Divrei-Hayamim bet (2 Chronicles) 7: 14 cjb p 1191
“…then, if my people, who bear my name, will humble themselves, pray, seek my face and turn from their evil ways, I will hear from heaven, forgive their sin and heal their land.”
*
This is not about what the popular religion of our culture has tried to make it out to be… it is not just about repenting for sin….
It is about identifying first - that sin is to not follow Torah.
I Yochanan (John) 3:4 cjb p 1526 “Everyone who keeps sinning is violating Torah – indeed, sin is violation of Torah.”
And it is about identifying who “My people who bear My name” are….
Revelation 14: 12 cjb p 1546 “This is when perseverance is needed on the part of YHWH’s people, those who observe his commands and exercise Y’shua’s faithfulness.”
What is this saying??
YHWH’s people are the ones who have the testimony – the witness that is both … the commands – Torah, and the Mercy Seat – Messiah!!!
And the repentance has to be about not just sin, but recognizing that sin is violation of Torah… and
…. RE-TURNING back to Torah and the Mercy Seat -
=the instructions and Messiah!!
If HIS people who have his instructions/ Torah, and the Mercy Seat/ Messiah… seek His face and turn from their evil ways – of mixing man’s tradition in with serving YHWH and calling it “serving YHWH”…
THEN HE will hear and forgive and HEAL!!!
And He will heal our land.
This makes me think though, that the land isn’t getting healed until we are all living according to Torah and not according to the traditions of man.
D’Varim (Deut) 28:15 - 23 cjb p 227
15 “But if you refuse to pay attention to what YHWH your Elohim says, and do not observe and obey all his mitzvot and regulations which I am giving you today, then all the following curses will be yours in abundance….
Vs 23 “The sky over your head will be brass and the earth under you iron.”
Meaning – not only will you not have rain… your prayers won’t be heard.
Yesha’Yahu (Isaiah) 1:15-20 cjb p 436
Tehillim (Psalm) 51:10-13 cjb p 840 “Create in me a clean heart, YHWH; renew in me a resolute spirit. Don’t thrust me away from your presence, don’t take your Ruach Kodesh away from me. Restore my joy in your salvation and let a willing spirit uphold me. Then I will teach the wicked your ways, and sinners will return to you.”
Tehillim 19:8-15 cjb p 806
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We read about Aharon’s sons dying b/c they offered/ did something YHWH did not say to offer/ do.
We read about Uzah dying b/c he disobeyed and touched the ark.
We read about H and S dying b/c they claimed they offered all the money as offering.
We also heard about the ARK being of 2 parts but only and always just one thing… the commands/ instructions/ Torah ….and the mercy seat – Messiah.
- We also talked briefly about food instructions….what to eat and what not to eat.
There was clear directions given to the priests on how to function in the temple.
And what are we… a nation of priests – called to be holy unto Him….
There are two ministries at hand… one that is deformed – man has added his traditions… and they are doing things HE specifically said not to…
And another – young ministry – beginning to recognize that HIS Whole people are called to be holy and that is to have the Torah – the commands ---- and the testimony of Y’shua… the Mercy Seat….
And if we have these things… we can humble ourselves and cry out to Him and HE will not just hear, but HE will HEAL!!!!
Praise Yah!
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Now let me go back to the Torah reading …
Vayikra 10:16 cjb p 119 “Then Moshe carefully investigated what had happened to the goat of the sin offering and discovered that it had been burned up.”
The word “investigated” – is often translated instead as “inquired insistently”…
This is the middle of Moshe’s torah…
“inquired insistently” is a double expression….
They teach us that the entire Torah revolves around inquiry and that one must never stop studying!!!
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As we have been studying - we have been learning that the directions of the popular religion of our culture… doesn’t line up with the Word… they have added traditions of man and call it serving YHWH….
And this is not okay.
And we have learned that this is sin.
And we have learned that if we repent and RETURN to where we came from (Torah)…. We can humble ourselves and repent and HE will hear and He will heal. – Amein!!
So… I invite you to apply this to your own life…
Get yourself lined up with Torah instructions and repent of the sin you have committed … and watch and see Him heal!!
Amein!
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