Parasha Re'eh (See)

From Rabbi Jack...

In this fast paced, fun loving age we now find ourselves living in, we are often caught off guard when the worst comes; when despair, dismay, and discouragement hit our lives; when calamity comes our way. We are shocked because we never believed stuff like that would happen to us. But the worst does come and in life, things do not always go according to plan, not our plan anyway. Catastrophic circumstances, tumultuous times, and perilous predicaments, strike us and affect our lives, whether they be personal, national or international calamities, events or problems.

Not every day will be wonderful for us. So, we need a "Hard Times" faith in God to see us through the unexpected sorrows, sicknesses and tragedies which happen in life. "Hard Times" faith caused Daniel to pray three times a day during the Babylonian captivity. It caused Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to believe that God would deliver them out of the "fiery furnace."

Therefore, despite the unanticipated events of life we need to rejoice in our salvation and we need to keep on rejoicing in our salvation believing that God is in control. "Hard Times" faith believes that God is going to work things out in our home, at our job, in our community, in our nation, in the world and in every possible situation we may have to face.

Matthew {28:20}: "….and be sure of this-- that I am with you always, even to the end of the world."

Hi Ellen here…

I'm going to divulge some personal information to reach my point. When Jack and I were courting, the lease on my apartment was almost over. Jack owned a home but being born again believers I could not move in with him, even if I stayed in another part of the house. As blessings would have it Jack's parents did not live far away, we were all in pretty much the same neighborhood, so he moved back in with his parents and I moved into his house! Here's a man set in his ways, a bachelor for quite some time, not only once again coming under the roof but also the authority of his parents at the age of 45! His dad was very clear about Jack living there and coming under the guidelines set by him. In other words, at that age Jack had to be obedient to his parent's house rules.

So here it is…if you have children living under your roof there are ways to express your witness of the living God, the Messiah Yeshua to those under YOUR roof! Mishpocha/family, if you are born again then that is who you have to be for your children, whether 5 years of age or 45 years…they may not agree with your values but living under YOUR roof they must come under your authority.

Shabbat should be a blessing and not a burden to any in your household as it is to you. Setting times or curfews should be at your discretion also knowing who their friends are…Listen to me, this is not being strict…this is being born again!!! If you are allowing or even encouraging any of your children to do other activities on Shabbat, shame on you. Do you know that the most hateful thing you can do to a family member or anyone for that matter is not share Messiah's truth with them.

We have shared with our families; some listen and some do not but we leave it to the Lord. However, if they are living under our roof, they sit with us at the Shabbat dinner table and spend Shabbat afternoon as we do. Jack and I want to populate heaven and plunder hell! So, if you are being nice and allowing your children, no matter what age, to do whatever they want when they are under your roof, especially on this one super blessed day of Shabbat…well you may be facilitating them going to hell.

Blessings, we love you and one day we want to see all of you in heaven with Yeshua!

Yours in Messiah Yeshua; our Lord, our God, our soon coming King.

Rabbi Jack & Ellen

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Parasha Commentary (coming soon)

Sermon of the week "Discipleship"

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Parasha Ekev (Because)

From Rabbi Jack...

Galatians {6:7} "Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows."

I have shared this Scripture passage many times in my messages and teachings. Anyone who has ever planted a seed knows that if you plant cucumber seeds in your garden you are not going to reap pumpkins at harvest time. This principle of sowing and reaping has its roots in Torah.

Deuteronomy {7:9} "Know therefore that the LORD your God is God; He is the faithful God, keeping His covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love Him and keep His commandments."

Simply said; if we sow obedience and righteousness, we will reap blessings. Equally if we sow rebellion and stubbornness, we will reap curses. Every idle thought we think, every negative word we speak, whether against others or against ourselves will affect our tomorrows. Curses and blessings are in the power of our thoughts and our tongues. We do not need people to bless us or curse us because we can do both to ourselves by the seeds we sow. Every thought, word and deed sown today either negative or positive will bear its corresponding fruit tomorrow. Sow seeds of obedience and righteousness because it is not so much that others bless or curse us, we bless and curse ourselves.

 

Hi Ellen here…

We continue to pray and seek out a place for Etz Chaim Kenya, Nairobi, so we can gather together as a family on Shabbat…it has been very difficult finding a place because Jack and I are here and not there and most have become comfortable watching services on Zoom!  We know God's timing is perfect so we wait on Him for instruction.  Please pray for us as frustration sets in at times and as we know that can open the door for the evil one to attack!  I believe God desires His children to worship together in spirit and truth, together.  Looking at Zoom on Shabbat has sometimes been discouraging because sitting in our living room's is very conducive to falling asleep, surfing on our phones or anything we might be doing at home; but do not forget we all can see each other!  So, we have been praying as of late the following… "Lord we want to see what you see.  Lord, we want to hear what you hear.  Lord, we do not want to do anything by our own power. Lord, Help!!!"

 

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Parasha Commentary

Sermon of the week "Joy never changes"

Parasha Va'etchanan (And I Pleaded)

From Rabbi Jack...

Luke {5:1} "One day, as Yeshua was standing on the shore of Lake Kinneret, with the people pressing in around him in order to hear the word of God, {5:2} he noticed two boats pulled up on the beach, left there by the fishermen, who were cleaning their nets. {5:3} He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little way from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat."

There are times when we sense that Yeshua is telling us to do something. We can feel it in our spirit but we have some unwillingness to do it. We ask: "Why do I have to do this; why do I have to give this up; why can I not do it my way and why can I not do it in my own time." These are very common struggles that most Believers have, common complaints that have been around since man was created. Let us face it, many times our free will gets the best of us. It is the things that we hold dearest, like our personal time, that usually come into conflict with our relationship with God. Sometimes it is our ego that drives a wedge between us and the Lord. We also take offence when the Holy Spirit convicts us that making money should not be our driving force in life; we are put-off when we are made to feel guilty about things we say or do and we get offended when someone confronts us with the reality of who we really are. But these things have to happen because they are a natural part of drawing us closer to the Lord. Without these experiences we cannot be molded into Yeshua's image. Just as an X-ray probes deep into our bodies, exposing the defects and disease, the Holy Spirit probes deep into our being exposing everything that we are either intentionally or unintentionally concealing. Without the diagnostics there can be no progression to treatment or cure.

So how should we react when we feel the influence of our Lord's will telling us to do something we do not feel like doing? There's only one word that should describe the way we need to react to Yeshua's will for our lives when it is revealed to us through His Word or by the Holy Spirit, and that is "immediate." Once we know the will of God there is no time to waste, only action to take. There is no time for discussion, disagreement or compromise; there needs to be quick, total, immediate and complete surrender to His will.

Hi Ellen here…

A friend sent me an image some time ago that I liked very much. I liked it so much that I posted it on my WhatsApp status more than once. It says…"Joseph waited 15 years; Abraham waited 25 years; Moses waited 40 years; Yeshua waited 30 years. If God is making you wait, you are in very good company." Just typing it makes me smile! If you truly believe that God has promised you something, may it be ministry, traveling, a spouse, a child or a divine and miraculous opportunity then wait patiently. If it is of God, He will bring it to pass. We all need to know that His timing is not like ours…the world offers us instantaneous gratification in so many areas. These areas are most probably not from God so wait patiently. Isaiah 62.6-7 urges the people of God to pray fervently, not to allow God to rest, but to awaken Him with relentless cries so that He should keep His promises to the end, (paraphrased). Waiting patiently does not mean sitting back or second-guessing God or making things happen by your own power! Waiting patiently on God means praying, listening, reading and at times sitting quietly at His feet and asking Him to speak to you. So today I would like to leave you with this, God wants us to press into His presence and wait patiently before His Holy Throne of Grace. Blessings, we love you!

Yours in Messiah Yeshua; our Lord, our God, our soon coming King.

Rabbi Jack & Ellen

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Parasha Commentary

Sermon of the week "Mistaken Priorities"

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Parashot Devarim (Words)

From Rabbi Jack...

Matthew {6:25,34} "Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing. {6:34} Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble."

Due to the external influences the world's secular humanism exerts on people, Believers lose touch with the inward leading and guiding of the Holy Spirit. God does not tell us in advance what tomorrow will bring, He leads us day by day working in our lives and directing our path as the Holy Spirit sees fit. If we are in touch with the Holy Spirit within us and have released our lives to Him, we do not have to plan tomorrow but can trust that God has our tomorrows in hand and under control. More lives have been derailed because Believers left the leading of the Holy Spirit and ventured into planning and directing their own lives.

Proverbs {29:18} "Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keeps the law, happy is he."

This Scripture is perhaps one of the most misinterpreted and abused passages in the Bible. From it, people think they need a vision for their lives. Pastors and Messianic Rabbis think they need a vision for their congregation's direction, business people think they need a vision for where their companies will be in the next years, and so on. However, the word for vision used in the Hebrew is, "hazon" which properly translated into English means divine communication. I think the New Living Translation grasped how the scripture is to be understood.

Proverbs 29:18 "When people do not accept divine guidance, they run wild. But whoever obeys the law is joyful."

So, what is the conclusion of this matter?

Matthew {6: 34} "Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble."

Hi Ellen here…

Everyone Ok out there in the cyber world? I was thinking today that Zoom is a great vehicle to hide in. We have many people logging on Shabbat to our services but many "squares "are black with just a name or number. There are some who do show themselves and that's great! I think of those we cannot see a lot. Are you not dressed for Shabbat? Is there not enough power or internet in your homes? Are you cooking? Are you painting the hallway? Maybe you don't know how to turn on the video? Are you even there? There are many reasons or should I say excuses for not joining the visual virtual cyber family on the Zoom screen but guess what? We may not see you but God sees everything.

In the Bible we know that Adam and Eve tried to hide from God, we also know how that turned out. We know that Jonah tried to hide from God and yes, we also know how that turned out as well. Are you busy? Are you feeling shameful or unrepentant? Come out, come out wherever you are…so we may have a more intimate time of fellowship with you and you with us. You can hide from us but remember you cannot hide from God (Psalm 139) …Looking forward to seeing you on Shabbat.

Yours in Messiah Yeshua; our Lord, our God, our soon coming King.

Rabbi Jack & Ellen

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Parasha Commentary

Sermon of the week "Perfect love drives out fear"

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