Light In Torah

I asked earlier in the week what the big deal was about Sukkot. Observing Sukkot doesn't seem as earth-shattering as revelation or the Exodus. But I think the answer is: it  was  earth-shattering- what happened that first night. Earth-shattering in a quiet, terrifying kind of way. The act of faith is always earth-shattering. The pit in your stomach as you look around in the desert and feel all alone, only to have it dawn on you—you are not really alone. There is someone else there, one other Being—and it is God. It is just you and Him. And you have just left behind everything you took for granted and made this harrowing choice to completely rely on God. If God does not come through here for you, the next night could just be your last. The prophet Jeremiah says something to us about God's own memories of that first night. Here is his language:  "Go, and cry in the ears of Jerusalem, saying: Thus says the LORD: I remember the gifts of kindness of your youth, the love of thi...

  We are approaching the end of Sukkot, and we are two days away from finishing up our question: Why are we where we are? Here they were, the first night away from Egypt. It was the first night they experienced without a master's lash at their backs. That night, they breathed in the heady air of freedom. For the very first time in generations, they could come and go as they pleased. They could make choices. On the one hand, it was like living a dream. But the dream was also terrifying. They were in the desert. And they had nowhere real to sleep. No home to call their own. They were sleeping with their cattle, for goodness' sake—right next to Bessie the cow and Spotty the sheep. You could almost imagine what was going through their minds:  This is ridiculous. What am I doing here? To add to the ridiculousness of the situation, the Torah tells us one more thing about that night. It tells us what they ate that night in Sukkot. Let us read a little bit more from these verses: ...

We are in the process of uncovering why we spend eight days camping out in the late fall at the end of the summertime harvest season. Our key verse describes the very beginning of the Israelites' departure from Egypt:  "And the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Sukkot, about six hundred thousand men on foot, beside children"  (Ex. 12:37). Look at that again, my friend! Where did they travel to when they were leaving Rameses? They traveled to a place called Sukkot. "And the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Sukkot, about six hundred thousand on foot that were men, beside children." (Ex. 12:37) Now, is that not quite a coincidence!? Sukkot is the name of the very first place Israel encamped on their first night after leaving Egypt. You have to ask yourself: Is that a coincidence? We have a Sukkot holiday that supposedly celebrates God causing us to dwell in "Sukkot" when He took us out of Egypt... and lo and behold, right when God ...

I have pitched my tent with a view of the sky, and for one week I will be living in a temporary dwelling place. It does not sound too exciting, and to some it might even sound kind of strange. The question is, "Why would anyone do such a thing?" Why would God command us to sleep in a temporary shelter (Lev. 23:39–43)? We are coming to the end of the Lord's prophetic calendar that God wants us to keep. And in order for me to relate this to you, I want to play a game with you. Let us call it "Big Deal, Little Deal." Here is the way the game works: We are going to take each of the three main festivals of the Torah—Passover ( Pesach ), Pentecost ( Shavuot ), and Tabernacles ( Sukkot )—and we are going to ask ourselves: What event does this holiday commemorate, and is the event a "big deal" or a "little deal"? So let us play our game. We will start with  Pesach , Passover. What event does it commemorate? Well, that is easy enough: It celebrates ou...

Yom HaKippurim is behind us. We have dealt with our individual idiosyncrasies and feelings of inferiority in His presence during the previous forty-five days. We have experienced self-auditing in our relationship with Yahweh Elohim and toward one another. We have confessed our sins and repented, and we have been covered with His covering in anticipation of the future day (Rev. 19:7–8). As an assembly across the world, it is time to focus our attention on our current prophetic celebration: the Feast of Tabernacles ( Chag Sukkot ). It is the feast for the nations. It is the time of celebrating Yah's provision for us during our wilderness journey! It is a time to celebrate the bountiful blessing that He has lavished on us in His daily provision and to share it with those around us, including the stranger, the orphan, the widow, and the Levite who wants to celebrate Yahweh Elohim's goodness! Tabernacles conjures up so many thoughts of joy, celebration, and hope for the days ahead! ...

  This is the most exciting time of the year! Is there not a song about that? "It's the most wonderful time of the year" (Trumpets, Atonement(s), Sukkot)! Yes, yes, yes. It is the time when we are COMMANDED to be happy and rejoice (Deut. 16:11, 14). On the flip side of that rejoicing coin are those whose hearts have become fat, like Jeshurun (Deut. 32:15)—experiencing all the goodness of God, but through their lack of thankfulness and spiritual exercise, they begin to grow thick, insensitive, and obese in their faith. "But Jeshurun  (upright ones)  grew fat and kicked; you grew fat, you grew thick, you are obese! Then he forsook God who made him, and scornfully esteemed the Rock of his salvation." (Deut. 32:15) They have become insensitive to God's ways. Yet, as always, there is a remnant of people who, like King David, delight in Your law/Torah (Ps. 119:70). "Their heart is insensitive  (a hard heart toward those in need; no compassion),  like fat, but...

For many, the Feast of Tabernacles has begun. By God's design, it is a feast for the nations! Prophetically speaking, it will be the major determining event, after the Tribulation, to find out where the hearts of men are stationed. Zechariah tells us that everyone who makes the trek to Jerusalem to worship Messiah Yeshua will be blessed with rain. Those who do not will experience a difficult year of drought (Zech. 14:16–19). Every time we celebrate this holy convocation, it is a set-apart dress rehearsal (Lev. 23:35). One of the most unfortunate realities of living in the 21st century is that most people have forgotten that we are supposed to be celebrating these appointed times ( moedim ) of the Lord in anticipation of the full revelation that is to come, erroneously thinking they are Jewish feasts or only for the Jews. Nothing could be farther from the truth! By participating in these now, we are carrying out our role as salt and light to the world (Matt. 5:13–16). We are like a ...

It is a couple of days before the Feast of Sukkot. It is a time of celebration. It is a time to let the whole world know who our focus is. It is not a time to be shy; it is a time to shine, not a time to conceal (like the blood-red moon this morning). David said, "We will not conceal them from our children, but tell to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, and His strength and His wondrous works that He has done." (Psalm 78:4) What parent would even hide something vitally important and beneficial from a child? Actually, I would—and in reality, nearly all parents would. You see, the culture of origin that does not worship the King and pass His instructions to its children essentially deprives those children of life's most valuable treasure. Even worse, those parents sign the death warrant for their children, relegating them to lives of confusion and emptiness, vain hopes and shattered dreams. Why, oh why, would any parent do such a thing? The answer is tangled si...

I have been meditating on one passage in Leviticus chapter 26 for nearly six months. With the fall season two-thirds of the way done, the reality of these thoughts is more relevant than ever before. It is the promise in Leviticus 26 where Moses instructs obedient Israelites who gather in unity around Yahweh's Sabbaths (Lev. 26:2) that they will be able to, with only five individuals, chase away a hundred of their enemies, and a hundred will send ten thousand to flight (Lev. 26:7–8). They also know the odds can be even greater: one faithful individual can cause a thousand to flee (Josh. 23:10). For those who choose disobedience, the opposite will happen. They will flee when no one pursues (Lev. 26:37), and when one of the enemies does pursue, they will put ten thousand to flight (Deut. 32:30). Hmmm… I wonder which side of the fleeing I would rather be on? This is the power of unity! This is the power of a common vision. We see it in the world everywhere. When large businesses merge,...

  Sukkot is a few days away! Wow—I remember when we were counting the Omer together and wondering if day 50 would ever arrive (LOL)! The peaceful, joyous season of Sukkot is upon us, and the world seems to be going to "HE Double Hockey Sticks" in a handbasket. Shootings, earthquakes, floods, mass death, and craziness all around… wow, bring on Sukkot! But before we do, let us take a step back and put all the craziness of the world—and the apparent judgment—into perspective. By doing so, I think it will help us have a season of joy during this final  Moedim  of the year. There is a tendency in me, when I see all the "crazy" happening in the world, to pass judgment from a biblically superior-minded position. Similarly, how individuals might have been with the judgment that came upon Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen. 19). The judgment was catastrophic. Fire and brimstone destroyed that city! Why? The immediate response is… they were such an aggressive homosexual society, and ...

Over the past few days, I have been sharing an overview of the fall  moedim  (appointed times) on God's prophetic calendar. After Trumpets and the Day(s) of Atonement comes the Feast of Sukkot, also known as Tabernacles. It is a time of incredible celebration and feasting for the nations. It requires that the best of the best fruits of the Land are brought for the feasting: the grapes and wine, the wheat, fruits, oils, and livestock. All of these are to be eaten before Yahweh Elohim with the Levites, your family, strangers, widows, orphans, and aliens (and that is not "A.Lee-uns")... all are welcome to taste and see that the Lord is good (Ps. 34:8)! Everyone is invited, and no one is excluded, regardless of tongue, tribe, or nation. Despite the global invitation, there is still room for more (Matt. 22:1–10). Hence, Yeshua continues to stand at the door and knock, desiring to share in the feast with those who have, purposefully or inadvertently, locked Him out (Rev. 3:20)....