FROM THE RABBI'S DESK
Shalom and Blessings
Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,…
One of the Fruits of the Spirit that is hardest to manifest in our lives is the Fruit of Joy. It is because of all that is going on in the world around us. Certainly, with all the wars that are being fought in various places, the natural disasters that seem to never let up, the political upheaval in so many nations, and the riots that foster destruction of property and lives, how can we manifest the Fruit of Joy? Where is the joy when we hear of murders, famines, rapes, child abuse and more happening on a daily basis? Where is the joy when we have sickness, death and lockdowns from a supposedly manmade virus? Where is the joy when we are suffering economically as prices go up and our income goes down? Yet, as Believers who have received the Holy Spirit one of His Fruits is joy.
As triune beings, the different parts of us experience joy differently. To the body joy is pleasure, to the soul joy is happiness, but to the spirit joy is an intimate, loving relationship with God. Pleasure is temporary, happiness ebbs and wanes, but joy that comes from a relationship with God is enduring and transcendent. God's joy is not temporary, it never wanes or ebbs, it is constant and consistent no matter what is going on in the world, no matter what is going on in our lives. As Believers in Messiah Yeshua, if we have the Holy Spirit, and every true Believer does, we have the joy of the Lord.
Nehemiah 8:10 … This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength."
The joy of the Lord is our strength because of who our Lord is. Our God is a God of love, compassion, grace, truth, mercy, kindness, and faithfulness. He is a God who will never leave us nor forsake us, He is always with us tenderly keeping watchful care over us day and night. He is a God who keeps His promises and remains true to His Word. Joy comes from knowing the truth, and the truth is found in knowing Messiah Yeshua as Lord and Savior.
Hi Ellen here…Well there will be no doom, no gloom and no warning…just great anticipation and excitement! What's up you say, let us read together. Each week Jack does a drash, a commentary on the Torah portion and I confess that I do not always read them on my own. But this is a very special time because we read in the Book of Deuteronomy and Isaiah together. It is almost like reading the entire Torah encapsulated in one book and for Isaiah…the news! And now for the icing on the cake, it also means that the High Holy Days are soon approaching. Our hopes and aspirations become more alive and the drawing near of Yeshua's return is most palatable. This is a time of deep introspection. This is a time of self-examination and confession. This is a time to come clean with our Maker and ourselves. This is a time of preparation as the bride readies herself for her Groom. This is the time to be able to enter the month of Elul with confidence. Are You ready?
Visit our blog for more teaching and to view previous Torah commentaries:
Yours in Messiah Yeshua; our Lord, our God, our soon coming King;
Rabbi Jack & Ellen
 |
| Read Parasha |
 |
| Listen to Parasha |
 |
| Listen to "Your Redemption is Coming" |
No comments:
Post a Comment