Weekly Sidra: Emor (Say)
Torah Portion: Leviticus / Vayikra / 21:1-24:23 
Haftorah: Yechezkel / 44:15- 44:31

“This shall be their portion, for I am their portion; and no holding shall be given them in Israel, for I am their holding. 29 The meal offerings, sin offerings, and guilt offerings shall be consumed by them. Everything proscribed in Israel shall be theirs. 30 All the choice first fruits of every kind and all the gifts of every kind— of all your contributions— shall go to the priests. You shall further give the first of the yield of your baking to the priest that a blessing may rest upon your home.”(Ezekiel 44:28-30)

This week’s Torah and Haftarah portions deal with the commandments concerning the Levitical priests (Cohanim).

I found the above portion interesting.  The priestly portion and holding given to them is Hashem.  All the best fruits, food, etc shall be given to the priests.  In the Torah we are reminded that:

“You will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites." (Exodus 19:6)

Keefa (Peter) reiterates this thought in the Besora HaTova (The Good News).

“You also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to Hashem through Yeshua HaMashiach.” (I Peter 2:5)

Once the Bet HaMikdash (Holy Temple) is re-built, may it be speedily in our days, and then the Levitical priesthood will be re-established.  The priesthood will resume, but we must live our lives consecrate to Him as cohanim as well, not replacing them, but taking the light of the world, King Messiah, and his Torah to the world. We were chosen to do this job!

Just like them, HaShem wants to give the best of everything that He has for us.  All we have to do is love Hashem and obey His commandments.

That seems like an excellent deal to me!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Ftdsi9mAYc

Weekly Sidra: Terumah (Gift)
Torah Portion: Shemot / Exodus 25:1-27:19
Haftorah: Yeshayahu / Isaiah 66:1-24

He who pays Maaser removes part of his self love for the sake of the Creator.

Maaser kesofim literally means a tenth of money. Tithing one’s income for charity, is an age-old practice dating back to our forefathers’ days. Avraham gave Maaser to Malki-Tzedek (Bereishis 14:20); Yitzchak gave Maaser (Rashi Sefer Bereishit 26:12); and Yaakov, too, says, "And of all that You will give me I will surely give a tenth to You" (Bereishis 28:22). In addition, tithing is a time-honored formula for becoming wealthy (Tanchume Devarim 18), so much so that it is even permitted to give Maaser with the intent of "testing" Hashem to see if one will become rich through giving tithes (Based on the verse in Malachi 3:10).

Is there any difference between the Mitzvah to give Tzedakah (charity) and the obligation to give 10% from our income? What unique laws are involved in this obligation, and what is the reward for giving Maaser properly? Although anyone who gives Tzedakah has a guarantee from our Torah that he will not be impoverished by doing so, one who properly separates 10% of his income to charity has a guarantee that he will be repaid for every penny that he gives to charity, and that he will become wealthy over time.

Maaser means “a tenth.” It’s based on the Hebrew word eser, or ten. As a rule, it refers to donating ten percent of whatever to whomever. While maaser may seem like a lot of giving, it’s actually all about receiving. Just like sacrifices, which primarily benefit those who bring them, giving maaser whips you into spiritual shape by forcing you to extend yourself. The original concept of maaser is Torah-based. Additionaly, every person is obligated to give a tenth of his earnings to charity. We already find this custom by our patriarchs. Before Jacob went to his uncle Laban he pledged to God that "everything that You give me, I will surely tithe to You." Income maaser is given from all gross income and monetary gifts which a person earns or receives.

Halacha requires the tithing (separation of teruma and Maaser / Tithes). Teruma and Maaser may not be separated on Shabbat and Festivals.

The base on which Maaser kesofim is calculated is one’s income including recurring income like wages and ordinary profits, plus non-recurring income such as inheritances and capital gains. One should give tzedakah on his capital. However tzedakah should be calculated on each asset only once, not annually. Maaser k’sofim must be deducted even if the income is received from one who has already given Maaser kesofim on those funds. (This is different from agricultural tithing in which case the tithe must be given only once on any given crop.) Maaser kesofim may be paid in cash, merchandise, or one’s labor. In the case of labor, Rav Auerbach points out that Maaser must be given on the value of the work done.

Rabbi Akiva said about the Maaser (Mishnah, Masechet Avot): “Tithing is a qualification for wealth.” The Vilna Gaon: “Who keeps Maaser is guarded from harm.”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvAHvH_iXNo

Weekly Sidra: Tazria-Metzora (Conceived-Leper)
Torah Portion: Vayikra / Leviticus 12:1-15:33
Haftorah: Melachim Bet / II Kings 7:3-7:20

There were four men, lepers, outside the gate. They said to one another, "Why should we sit here waiting for death? If we decide to go into the town, what with the famine in the town, we shall die there; and if we just sit here, still we die. Come, let us desert to the Aramean camp. If they let us live, we shall live; and if they put us to death, we shall but die." (Malachim Bet 7:3-4)

This week we read two Parashiyot.  One is Tazria meaning she conceives and Metzora which deals with a skin affliction.  This is usually, but incorrectly translated as leprosy. 

It is interesting that the first Parashat deals with the ritual of birth and the second one is about a person who is afflicted and the ritual concerning how to deal with them.  In Tazria the woman gives birth and becomes unclean.  Parashat Metzora deals with the purification of a person with a skin disease.

The Haftarah portion also deals with four men who have Tzarat (the skin disease). Rabbi Shimshon Raphael Hirsch demonstrated at length that tzarat was not to be interpreted as a medical malady, but rather as a spiritual affliction. The verse itself indicates this, as it directs those who find themselves afflicted to seek out a Cohen (priest) and not a doctor, while the Torah specifically permits and even encourages those who are in need of medical care to seek treatment from physicians.

The Torah’s emphasis is clearly on the tu’mah (טומאה, "ritual impurity ") that results from a diagnosis of tzarat because the verses focus on the Cohen’s declaration of "unclean" – וראהו הכהן וטמא אתו ("The Cohen will see [the eruption] and [declare] him impure").

The Talmud, and the majority of historic Jewish literature in general, regards tzarat as a punishment for sin; it lists seven possible causes for tzarat:

• an evil tongue (malicious gossip)
• murder
• a vain oath
• illicit sexual intercourse
• pride
• theft
• miserly behaviour

One midrashic source categorically states that tzarat only appeared as punishment for evil tongue, while others add further reasons to the list in the Talmud. Unlike the modern medical approach, which seeks to cure by natural means, the classical Jewish sources argue that cure from tzarat only came about through repentance and forgiveness. In particular, the Midrash Rabbah sees the different types of tzarat as increasing levels of punishment, which could be curtailed at any stage if repentance was made:

1. The first stage in the Rabbah’s view was the infection of homes, and if repentance came here it only required removal of the affected stones for a cure.
2. In the second stage, the entire house must be torn down as the tzarat would not go away, and the infection came upon one’s clothes; if repentance came here it required only washing of the clothes for a cure.
3. In the third stage of Rabbah’s scheme, the clothes must be burnt, and the infection enters the person’s skin; if repentance occurs here then purification could occur.
4. In the fourth stage, which only occurs when the person has completely refused to repent, the person is forced to dwell alone.

Our Rabbi Maran Yeshua was the only person in all of Jewish history to have a recorded healing of Jewish people with Tzarat.

12 As he entered one of the villages, ten men afflicted with tzarat met him. They stood at a distance 13 and called out, "Yeshua! Rabbi! Have pity on us!" 14 On seeing them, he said, "Go and let the cohanim examine you!" And as they went, they were cleansed. 15 One of them, as soon as he noticed that he had been healed, returned shouting praises to God, 16 and fell on his face at Yeshua’s feet to thank him. Now he was from Shomron. 17 Yeshua said, "Weren’t ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? 18 Was no one found coming back to give glory to God except this foreigner?" 19 And to the man from Shomron he said, "Get up, you may go; your trust has saved you." (Luke 17:12-19)

How many of us are living with spiritual Tzarat?  Will we repent and be healed or will we continue to live in our impurities and be spiritually outcast?  One way leads to life and the other to death.  Which choice will you make?  Whether we look at the Talmud or the Good News the choice is the same.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KG7fU-FMfWk

Weekly Sidra: Shemini (Eight)
Torah Portion: Vayikra / Leviticus 9:1-11:47 
Haftorah: Sh’muel Bet / II Samuel 6:1-6:19

David was afraid of the Lord that day; he said, "How can I let the Ark of the Lord come to me?" 10 So David would not bring the Ark of the Lord to his place in the City of David; instead, David diverted it to the house of Obed-edom the Gittite. 11 The Ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed-edom the Gittite three months, and the Lord blessed Obed-edom and his whole household.  12 It was reported to King David: "The Lord has blessed Obed-edom’s house and all that belongs to him because of the Ark of God." Thereupon David went and brought up the Ark of God from the house of Obed-edom to the City of David, amid rejoicing. (Sh’mwel Bet 6:9-12)

This week is Parashat Shemini which means eighth.  The number eight has a major significance in Judaism.  The number eight symbolizes new beginnings. According to Kaballah in the Zohar the number eight number signifies “new beginnings” because the eight day was the first day after creation when God returned to work; the week began again.  This is also represented through the holiday of Shemini Atzeret (the eighth assembly) following Sukkot.  This represents HaShem’s divine reset button Olam Haba or the World to Come.

In this week’s Haftarah portion David was afraid to bring the Ark of HaShem into his place.  Instead he let it go to someone else.  The result was that their home was blessed for three months.  Then after he found out about the blessings David then brought it to his own house and celebrates.

How often do we miss opportunities to be blessed by HaShem because we are afraid to task risks?  Yes, Uzziah died, and that was devastating!  However, he disobeyed HaShem’s commandment to not touch the Ark.  If it fell from the ox, that would be HaShem’s plan.  Many times we think we can help HaShem out; He does not need our help!!

Sometimes HaShem brings tragedies into our lives.  However, we must not allow difficult times to take away the blessings we may receive in these situations.  If we put our trust in HaShem, even in hard times, it can lead to many new beginnings and opportunities for growth and development.

Often facing hard times can be HaShem’s way of pushing the reset button in our lives.  We just have to be willing to trust and obey and take a risk from time to time.

Yes, David ultimately received a blessing, but he missed out on three month of that blessing.  All because he let fears get the best of him.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HbLmWU5rev0

Chol HaMoed Pesach or Chol Ha-Moed Pesach (also transliterated from Hebrew as: Hol HaMoed Pesach or Hol Ha-Moed Pesach) refers to the intermediate or middle days of the Passover or Pesach festival as well as another Jewish festival, the autumn harvest festival of Sukkot. Literally-speaking, Chol HaMoed means "The Non-Holy Appointed Time" in Hebrew, where Chol means "Non-Holy" as opposed to "Kodesh" which means "Holy"; Ha means "The", and "Moed" means "appointed time."

Our reading this Shabbat starts with the successful attempt by Moses to have God reconsider and have God come close again and lead the people through the wilderness. Let’s read:

So Moses carved two tablets of stone, like the first, and early in the morning he went up on Mount Sinai, as HaShem had commanded him, taking the two stone tablets with him. 5 HaShem came down in a cloud; He stood with him there, and proclaimed the name Yud Hey Vav Hey. 6 HaShem passed before him and proclaimed: "HaShem! HaShem! a God compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in kindness and faithfulness, 7 extending kindness to the thousandth generation, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin; yet He does not remit all punishment, but visits the iniquity of parents upon children and children’s children, upon the third and fourth generations." 8 Moses hastened to bow low to the ground in homage, 9 and said, "If I have gained Your favor, O HaShem, pray, let HaShem go in our midst, even though this is a stiff-necked people. Pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for Your own!" [Exodus/Shemot 34:4-9]

Many non-Jews that I talk to about Judiaism claim the difference between Christianity and Judaism is that Christanity promotes grace & love, but that the God of the Jews was always angry and that there is no grace in Judaism.

That is simply NOT true!! We see in the passage above that HaShem is “compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in kindness and faithfulness, 7 extending kindness to the thousandth generation, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin.” 

This does not sound to me like the angry unloving God which most non-Jews ascribe to our faith.  The entire story of Pesach (Passover) is one of liberation from being enslaved in Mitzrayim (Egypt) to freedom in Eretz Yisrael (the Land of Israel).  Even the Korban (offerings) for our sins shows the grace of HaShem, in that, HaShem allowed for an alternative to us paying for our own sins.

May you have a Chag Sameach v’kasher Pesach as you remember the love which HaShem has for us.  Even as Messianic Jewish believers we rejoice in the death and resurrection of our Maran Yeshua, the ultimate Korban Pesach.

Next Year in Jerusalem!!

Weekly Sidra: Tzav ( Command)
Torah Portion: Vayikra / Leviticus 6:1-8:36
Haftorah: Malachi 3:4-3:24

Behold, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before the coming of the awesome, fearful day of Adonai. He shall reconcile parents with children and children with their parents, so that, when I come, I do not strike the whole land with utter destruction. (Malachi 3:23-24)

Shabbat HaGadol ("Great Shabbat" שבת הגדול) is the Shabbat immediately before Passover. There is a special Haftarah reading on this Shabbat of the book of Malachi.  Various reasons are given for the name of this Shabbat.  I will focus on two of them:

1) The Midrash Rabbah states: “When they (the Jewish people) set aside their paschal lamb on that Shabbat, the first-born gentiles gathered near the Israelites and asked them why they were doing this. The following was their response: “This is a Pesach offering to HaShem who will kill the firstborn Egyptians.” They (the firstborn) went to their fathers and to Pharaoh to request that they grant permission to send the Jewish people free – but they refused. The first-born then waged a war against them and many of them (the Egyptians) were killed. This is the meaning of the verse (Psalms 136:10): “Who struck Egypt through its first born; for His kindness is eternal”.

2) The Chasam Sofer writes: On this day the Jewish people fully ‘returned’ (Teshuvah) to their commitment and faith in HaShem (as explained in reason #1). HaShem is called gadol. Therefore, the Jewish People who embraced and subjugated themselves to HaShem earned the title gadol as well.

Passover (Pesach) is a time when we are command to eat unleavened bread.  Therefore, traditionally after Purim, we start the process of cleaning the chametz (leaven) from our homes.

Rav Shaul (Paul) spoke about leaven to the assemblies at Galatia and Corinth.

Your boasting is not good. Don’t you know the saying, "It takes only a little chametz to leaven a whole batch of dough?"  (Korintim Aleph 5:6) and: It takes only a little chametz to leaven the whole batch of dough." (Galatim 5:9)

The Chametz Shaul is talking about is sin.  There only need be a little sin to destroy our entire lives.  Sometimes a little sin can turn into a big problem.  If it is not dealt with it can lead to devastating consequences.

The Haftarah portion above speaks of reconciling parents to their children and vice versa.  I believe that we can use that as a metaphor in our relationship to HaShem.  He is our father and we are His children.  We have been reconciled by the death and resurrection of our Maran Yeshua.  However, we need to be continually removing the leaven from our lives.  This is done by the Teshuvah (repentance) and submitting ourselves to the will of HaShem.

This week make sure to not only remove the leaven from your home, but also the leaven in your life.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NnIl1vyb2w

Korban Pesach (Hebrew: קרבן פסח "sacrifice of Passover") also known as the "Paschal Lamb" is the sacrifice that the Torah mandates to be brought on the eve of Passover, and eaten on the first night of the holiday with bitter herbs and matzo. According to the Torah, it was first offered on the night of the Israelites’ Exodus from Egypt. Although practiced by Jews in ancient times, the ritual is no longer performed today.

The blood of this sacrifice sprinkled on the door-posts of the Israelites was to be a sign to the angel of death, when passing through the land to slay the first-born of the Egyptians that night, that he should pass by the houses of the Israelites.[1] This is called in the Mishnah the "Egyptian Passover sacrifice" ("Pesaḥ Miẓrayim"; Pes. ix. 5). It was ordained, furthermore (Ex. xii. 24-27), that this observance should be repeated annually for all time once the Israelites entered into their promised land. Ex. xii. 25 "It will come to pass when you come to the land which the Lord will give you, just as He promised, that you shall keep this service (NKJV). This so-called "Pesaḥ Dorot," the Passover of succeeding generations (Pes. l.c.), differs in many respects from the Pesaḥ Miẓrayim. In the pre-exilic period, however, Pesaḥ was rarely sacrificed in accordance with the legal prescriptions (comp. II Chron. xxxv. 18). According to Rashi, only once during their forty years of wandering in the wilderness, one year after the Exodus, was the sacrifice offered.

For the next 39 years there was no offering, according to Rashi, as God stipulated that it could only be offered after the Children of Israel had entered the Land of Israel. In fact, the bringing of the Pesach sacrifice resumed only after the Israelites had taken possession of the land, and then the sacrifice was made annually until during the times when Solomon’s Temple and the Second Temple stood and functioned. During this time there was a definite ritual for the offering, in addition to the regulations prescribed by the Law.

The following is a brief summary of the principal ordinances and of the ritual accompanying the sacrifice.

The sacrificial animal, which was either a lamb or kid, was necessarily a male, one year old, and without blemish. Each family or society offered one animal together, which did not require the "semikah" (laying on of hands), although it was obligatory to determine who were to take part in the sacrifice that the killing might take place with the proper intentions. Only those who were circumcised and clean before the Law might participate, and they were forbidden to have leavened food in their possession during the act of killing the paschal lamb. The animal was slain on the eve of the Passover, on the afternoon of the 14th of Nisan, after the Tamid sacrifice had been killed, i.e., at three o’clock, or, in case the eve of the Passover fell on Friday, at two.

The killing took place in the court of the Temple at Jerusalem, and might be performed by a layman, although the blood had to be caught by a priest, and rows of priests with gold or silver cups in their hands stood in line from the Temple court to the altar, where the blood was sprinkled. These cups were rounded on the bottom, so that they could not be set down; for in that case the blood might coagulate. The priest who caught the blood as it dropped from the victim then handed the cup to the priest next to him, receiving from him an empty one, and the full cup was passed along the line until it reached the last priest, who sprinkled its contents on the altar. The lamb was then hung upon special hooks or sticks and skinned; but if the eve of the Passover fell on a Sabbath, the skin was removed down to the breast only. The abdomen was then cut open, and the fatty portions intended for the altar were taken out, placed in a vessel, salted, and offered by the priest on the altar, while the remaining entrails likewise were taken out and cleansed.

While the required quorum for most activities requiring a quorum is usually ten, the Korban Pesach must be offered before a quorum of 30. (It must be performed in front of kahal adat yisrael, the assembly of the congregation of Israel. Ten are needed for the assembly, ten for the congregation, and ten for Israel.) According to some Talmudic authorities, women counted in the minyan for offering the Korban Pesach.

Even if the eve of the Passover fell on a Sabbath, the paschal lamb was killed in the manner described above, the blood was sprinkled on the altar, the entrails removed and cleansed, and the fat offered on the altar; for these four ceremonies in the case of the paschal lamb, and these alone, were exempt from the prohibition against working on the Sabbath. This regulation, that the Sabbath yielded the precedence to the Passover, was not definitely determined until the time of Hillel, who established it as a law and was in return elevated to the dignity of nasi by the Bene Bathyra.

The people taking part in the sacrifice were divided into three groups. The first of these filled the court of the Temple, so that the gates had to be closed, and while they were killing and offering their paschal lambs the Levites on the platform ("dukan") recited the "Hallel" (Psalms 113-118), accompanied by instruments of brass. If the Levites finished their recitation before the priests had completed the sacrifice, they repeated the "Hallel," although it never happened that they had to repeat it twice. As soon as the first group had offered their sacrifice, the gates were opened to let them out, and their places were taken by the second and third groups successively.

All three groups offered their sacrifice in the manner described, while the "Hallel" was recited; but the third group was so small that it had always finished before the Levites reached Psalm 116. It was called the "group of the lazy" because it came last. Even if the majority of the people were ritually unclean on the eve of the Passover, the sacrifice was offered on the 14th of Nisan. Other sacrifices, on the contrary, called "ḥagigah," which were offered together with the paschal lamb, were omitted if the eve of the Passover fell on a Sabbath, or if the sacrifice was offered in a state of uncleanness, or if the number of participants was so small that they could not consume all the meat. When the sacrifice was completed and the animal was ready for roasting, each one present carried his lamb home, except when the eve of the Passover fell on a Sabbath, in which case it might not be taken away.

The first group stationed itself on the mount of the Temple in Jerusalem, the second group in the "ḥel," the space between the Temple wall and the Temple hall, while the third group remained in the Temple court, thus awaiting the evening, when they took their lambs home and roasted them on a spit of pomegranate-wood. No bones might be broken either during the cooking or during the eating. The lamb was set on the table at the evening banquet (see Passover Seder), and was eaten by the assembled company after all had satisfied their appetites with the ḥagigah or other food. The sacrifice had to be consumed entirely that same evening, nothing being allowed to remain overnight. While eating it, the entire company of those who partook was obliged to remain together, and every participant had to take a piece of the lamb at least as large as an olive. Women and girls also might take part in the banquet and eat of the sacrifice. The following benediction was pronounced before eating the lamb: "Blessed be Thou, the Eternal, our God, the King of the world, who hast sanctified us by Thy commands, and hast ordained that we should eat the Passover." The "Hallel" was recited during the meal, and when the lamb had been eaten the meaning of the custom was explained, and the story of the Exodus was told.

The paschal sacrifice belongs to the "shelamim," thus forming one of the sacrifices in which the meal is the principal part and indicates the community between God and man. It is really a house or family sacrifice, and each household is regarded as constituting a small community in itself, not only because the lamb is eaten at home, but also because every member of the family is obliged to partake of the meal, on pain of karet (ritual excommunication), although each man must be circumcised and all must be ritually clean. The fact that the paschal lamb might be killed only at the central sanctuary of Jerusalem, on the other hand, implies that each household was but a member of the larger community; this is indicated also by the national character of the sacrifice, which kept alive in the memory of the nation the preservation and liberation of the entire people.

In 2007, a group of rabbis led by Adin Steinsalz and supported by the Temple Mount Faithful and the New Sanhedrin Council identified a Kohen who was a butcher, made plans for conducting a passover sacrifice on the Temple Mount, and petitioned the Israeli High Court of Justice for permission. The Court sided with the government and rejected the request, holding that such an event would inflame religious tensions and would threaten security. The incident was a successor to a series of earlier attempts by various groups to perform such a sacrifice, either openly or by subterfuge.

In 2008 animal rights group Tnoo Lachayot Lichyot ("Let the Animals Live") sued the Temple Institute, claiming its conduct of a practice passover sacrifice demonstration would constitute animal cruelty. An Israeli court rejected the claim.

Weekly Sidra: Vayikra (and He called)
Torah Portion: Vayikra / Leviticus 1:1-5:26
Maftir: Bamidbar / Numbers 28:9-15
Maftir: Shemot / Exodus 12:1-20
Haftorah: Yechezkel / Ezekiel 45:18 – 46:15

On the fourteenth day of the first month you shall have the Passover sacrifice; and during a festival of seven days unleavened bread shall be eaten. On that day, the prince shall provide a bull of sin offering on behalf of himself and of the entire population; and during the seven days of the festival, he shall provide daily — for seven days — seven bulls and seven rams, without blemish, for a burnt offering to the Lord, and one goat daily for a sin offering. He shall provide a meal offering of an ephah for each bull and an ephah for each ram, with a hin of oil to every ephah. So, too, during the festival of the seventh month, for seven days from the fifteenth day on, he shall provide the same sin offerings, burnt offerings, meal offerings, and oil. (Ezekiel 45:21-25)

This week we celebrate Shabbat HaChodesh ("Sabbath [of the] month" שבת החודש).  It precedes the first of the Hebrew month of Nisan during which Passover is celebrated. 

In the special Haftarah reading for this portion it states that: “On that day, the prince shall provide a bull of sin offering on behalf of himself and of the entire population;” (v. 22)

The prince in this passage and in Ezekiel 46 refers to our Rabbi Maran Yeshua.  I am sure that people will be asking why Yeshua would need to provide a sin offering for himself.  This seems to contradict the fact that Yeshua was the Lamb who took away the sins of the world.

I will try and explain this paradox.  Yes, Yeshua did die for the sins of the world and he said it is finished.  Yeshua has never sinned so why would he need to bring a sin offering?  The answer is two-fold.  One Yeshua would never abolish the Torah and it is interesting for whom he brings the sin offering.

Yeshua stated he did not come to abolish Torah or the prophets. (Matthew 5:17)  People tend to confuse the Millennial Kingdom and the world to come (Olam Haba).   In the Millennial Kingdom the Temple will be restored and the sacrificial system will be reinstituted.  As a result everyone will have to bring their sacrifices, even Yeshua.  This is not because he sinned, but that he may fulfill Torah.

Secondly, the second part of the verse explains the question why?  “On that day, the prince shall provide a bull of sin offering on behalf of himself and of the entire population;”

In the Millennial Kingdom sin will still exist and people will still have their sinful nature.  Sin will not be abolished until the Olam Haba.  Therefore, a sacrifice is needed to atone for the entire population.  Was Yeshua’s death perfect atonement for sin?  Absolutely!!  However, the death he died on earth was only a copy of what is occurring in the Heaven.  “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” (Matthew 6:10)

Therefore, Yeshua’s death on earth is still being fulfilled in heaven.

There are those who would say that the third Temple is not holy.  This statement is not correct based on scripture.

“So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel–let the reader understand – then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains” (Matthew 24:15-16).

Yeshua calls the place where the abomination is standing a holy place.  Therefore, the Temple must be holy in order to be desecrated.  If it was not already holy then there would be no need to desecrate the Temple.

Does this explanation help the reader to understand?  Please feel free to share your thoughts.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h82ZDv9Xn5c

HaShem spoke to Moses, saying: 2 Speak to the Israelite people and say to them: I HaShem am your God. 3 You shall not copy the practices of the land of Egypt where you dwelt, or of the land of Canaan to which I am taking you; nor shall you follow their laws. 4 My rules alone shall you observe, and faithfully follow My laws: I HaShem am your God. 5 You shall keep My laws and My rules, by the pursuit of which man shall live: I am HaShem. 6 None of you shall come near anyone of his own flesh to uncover nakedness: I am HaShem. [Lev. 18:1-6]

This week we have a double reading Achrei Mot (after the death) and Kedoshim (holy ones). 

We live in a society today which promotes sexual promiscuity.  From television to billboards it is being promoted everywhere.  Young people are being advised that they can obtain condoms for protected sex or the morning after pill to abort an unwanted pregnancy.

The Torah is very clear about purity in sexuality.   HaShem warned Israel NOT to copy the practices of the land of Egypt.  We too would be wise to follow this advice.  Here are some practical guidelines to keep in mind for those who are dating.

1. Establish your standard. Write it down. Try to anticipate things that could and would happen when you date, and be prepared and make decision as soon as possible. You should know what you would say. Don’t decide later when you’re in the dark on a backseat of a car, because it would be extremely difficult to think clearly then.
2. Share your standard with someone who really cares about you, and ask the person to hold you accountable to your goal. It’s more difficult to be a single fighter and it’s not encouraged that you fight the battle alone. Even the feeling of loneliness can negatively affect your commitment.
3. Select good friends to hang out with. You are who you’re with. "Bad company corrupts good morals" (1 Corinthians 15:33). This is particularly true for girls, their friends’ attitude influence their stance about premarital sex.5
4. Stay a million miles away from drugs and alcohol. Alcohol and drugs are cruel masters that control you. They get to your head and make you do things you never would have considered doing.
5. Be careful with music, TV, movies and magazines. If you see it or think about it enough, eventually it gets in your blood. Garbage in, garbage out; Don’t flirt with temptation.
6. Do NOT go alone to the house or room of anyone of the opposite sex. Most sexual intercourse between teenage boys and girls takes place in the home of one or the other while the parents are away. Date rape, seduction, and mere rumor leave countless victims with tattered reputations every day.
7. Become an expert at saying "no" and mean it. When someone asks you to drink, tell ‘em you don’t look good in a lampshade (and smile). When someone tries to force sex, tell ‘em your dad is a Green Beret and trains Dobermans for a living.
8. Build a friendship, NOT a sexual partnership. If someone isn’t interested in you without the physical, you can be assured that he or she does not after love but sex and is not worth gambling your reputation on.
9. What goes around, comes around. Protect your date’s reputation and he or she will be more likely to protect yours. And who knows-you may start a positive trend at your school!
10. Only date people who share and respect your views, you need them to work WITH you, NOT AGAINST you. This one is ENORMOUSLY important, a definite key to abstinence.
11. Stick to your guns at all circumstances. Respect from a guy also come to a girl who can be consistent with what she believes. It is too common for guys to say "I respect your view about sex" when the girls mentioned it, but deep down in their hearts they don’t care about it and think if they waited a bit longer they surely could bring the girls to bed without any problem. Sadly, often enough that’s what happened.
12. Abstain from any activity that sexually arouses you, even at the lightest activity (i.e., light kiss, holding hands, back rubs, etc.). If that activity arouses you to have sex, then you are actually closer to the sexual intercourse itself. Beware, there is no clear line between no intercourse and intercourse, everything is happening gradually from white-light gray-gray-dark gray-black. One small thing will lead to bigger things and it is much easier to cool down small fire. Even much easier if you didn’t start the fire in the first place.
13. Love is a decision, not a feeling. The most loving decision you can make when your mind tells you it wants sex is to say no.
14. Always keep in mind that whoever you’re with right now might not be your future husband or wife. Just as you do not want other people to defile your future husband or wife, do the same to others, do not steal someone else’s future husband or wife by defiling your girlfriend or boyfriend (Mattityahu – Matthew 7:12).

    Guys: Keep an image of your future bride dressed in white and walking down the aisle of the Shul / Synagogue. To look at her and know that she is unstained by you or others is the greatest feeling in the world. Do not violate your dream or the dream some other guy could have had with your girl (in case you do not marry her).

    Girls: Hold tight to the goal of having a clean conscience when you walk down the aisle dressed in white. Look forward to the day when you can walk down that aisle, look into the eyes of your future lifetime husband, and know that he will be yours alone.

15. Lastly but one of the utmost importance is to pray for strength from Him [God]. You will not be able to "go it alone" without His help, and He is willing to help. The only thing that you need is ask.

The view of this Organization on dating:

In our understanding, dating is limited to the search for a marriage partner (we do not believe that a person can have a girlfriend or boyfriend just for fun). Both sides (usually the parents, close relatives or friends of the persons involved) make inquiries about the prospective partner, e.g. on his/her character, intelligence, level of learning, financial status, family and health status, appearance and level of religious observance. The number of dates prior to announcing an engagement may vary by community. In some, the dating continues several months. In other communities, the couple may decide within a few days.

Weekly Sidra: Vayakhel / Pekudei (and assembled / records)
Torah Portion: Shemot / Exodus 35:1-40:38
Maftir: Bamindar / Numbers 19:1-22 (Shabbat Parah)
Haftorah: Yechezkel / Ezekiel 36:16 – 36:36

22 Say to the House of Israel: Thus said the Lord God: Not for your sake will I act, O House of Israel, but for My holy name, which you have caused to be profaned among the nations to which you have come. 23 I will sanctify My great name which has been profaned among the nations — among whom you have caused it to be profaned. And the nations shall know that I am the Lord — declares the Lord God — when I manifest My holiness before their eyes through you. 24 I will take you from among the nations and gather you from all the countries, and I will bring you back to your own land. 25 I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be clean: I will cleanse you from all your uncleanness and from all your fetishes. 26 And I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit into you: I will remove the heart of stone from your body and give you a heart of flesh; 27 and I will put My spirit into you. Thus I will cause you to follow My laws and faithfully to observe My rules. 28 Then you shall dwell in the land which I gave to your fathers, and you shall be My people and I will be your God. (Yehezkel 36: 22-28)

This week we read Vayakhel (and he assembled) and Pekudei (records of) a double shot of Torah. We also read a special maftir and Haftarah portion for Shabbat Parah, which is the Sabbath of the Red Heifer.

Parashat Vayakhel deals with more instructions for building The Tent of Meeting. Parashat Pekudei records how much of each material (e.g. gold, copper, wool, etc) was used. We also have the reading for Shabbat Parah. How can we tie these three elements together to gain a deeper understanding?

The Haftarah portion above deals with all three aspects of serving Hashem. These are The Torah, the performance of mitzvoth (commandments) and purity of heart. The first instruction Moshe Rabeinu gives in Vayakhel is:

“Moses then convoked the whole Israelite community and said to them:

These are the things that the Lord has commanded you to do: 2 On six days work may be done, but on the seventh day you shall have a Sabbath of complete rest, holy to the Lord; whoever does any work on it shall be put to death. 3 You shall kindle no fire throughout your settlements on the Sabbath day. (Shemot 35:1-3)

The first thing Hashem commands them to do is not work on Shabbat. In other words keep the Torah and remember all the commandments.

Pekudei begins with these words: These are the records of the Tabernacle, the Tabernacle of the Pact, which were drawn up at Moses’ bidding — the work of the Levites under the direction of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest. 22 Now Bezalel, son of Uri son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, had made all that the Lord had commanded Moses; 23 at his side was Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, carver and designer, and embroiderer in blue, purple, and crimson yarns and in fine linen.(Shemot 38:21-23)

Hashem is a God of order and precision, not a God of chaos and disorder. That is why He wanted accurate records of everything in the Mishkan; including how much was material was used. The lesson here is simple. It is not enough to know the commandments of Hashem; we must learn to be faithful in our observance of them.

Lastly, the focus on the Red Heifer is one of purity. The ashes had to be mixed with water and sprinkled on an unclean person to make them pure before Hashem.

“A man who is clean shall gather up the ashes of the cow and deposit them outside the camp in a clean place, to be kept for water of lustration for the Israelite community. It is for cleansing.” (Bamidbar 19:9)

It is not enough to know Torah or simply perform the mitzvot, but we must do them with the proper (kavanah) intention of the heart. The Haftarah sums it up best.

And I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit into you: I will remove the heart of stone from your body and give you a heart of flesh; 27 and I will put My spirit into you.(Purity) Thus I will cause you to follow My laws (Torah) and faithfully to observe My rules (Mitzvot). 28 Then you shall dwell in the land which I gave to your fathers, and you shall be My people and I will be your God. (Yehezkel 38:26-28) Emphasis Mine

Therefore, you must have Purity of heart, knowledge of Torah, and a desire to faithfully perform the commandments. Thus, we will be His people and He will be our God.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJLMRNZYA84

Weekly Sidra: Ki Tisa (when you lift up)
Torah Portion: Shemot / Exodus 30:1-34:35
Haftorah: Melachim Alef / I Kings 18:20-18:39

Ahab sent orders to all the Israelites and gathered the prophets at Mount Carmel. Elijah approached all the people and said, "How long will you keep hopping between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; and if Baal, follow him!" But the people answered him not a word. (Malachim Alef 18: 20-21)

The prophet Elijah asks a very important question in the weekly Haftarah portion.  How long will you keep hopping between two opinions?

As I meditated on this I was struck by how often we like to sit on the fence.  A clear reading of the Bible states that Hashem wants us to eat kosher.  Read the dietary laws in Leviticus chapter 11.  Yet when you talk to Christians many will say that the law is done away with and so they can eat pork.

This is strange considering that Yeshua himself said that he did not come to abolish the law or the prophets. (Matthew 5:17)  It also states that Yeshua is the same yesterday and today and forever. (Hebrews 13:8)

There is however a similar problem in several Messianic Jewish congregations today.  Many messianic believers want to somehow combine Christian ideas with Jewish traditions.  So instead of the Christmas tree you have the Chanukah bush or the will celebrate the feast days not at the appointed times.  They will try to Jewify Christianity which in effect makes them Jewish churches.

There is another type of hopping which takes place.  This is when a person goes from place to place.  If Hashem has directed you to a synagogue and you are led to stay there then STAY THERE!!  There is nothing worse than when people go from shul to shul.  I like the teaching here, but I like the music there.
This becomes problematic because there is no accountability for the individual.  Where do you tithe?  Where do you learn Torah or celebrate the Feast Days?

Rav Shaul (Paul) warns us of what can happen.  “Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming.” (Ephesians 4:14)

We can be swept up in Synagogue hopping because we may not like a certain teaching or we don’t get along with someone in the congregation.  The fact is that if Hashem has led you somewhere then don’t keep switching based on your feelings or something minor.

You know the main problem with sitting on the fence? You will get splinters up your tuchus (button).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=shFKjBE01QI

Weekly Sidra: Tetzaveh (you command)
Torah Portion: Shemot / Exodus 27:20-30:10
Maftir: Devarim / Deuteronomy 25:17-19

Saul said to Samuel, "I did wrong to transgress the Lord’s command and your instructions; but I was afraid of the troops and I yielded to them. Please, forgive my offense and come back with me, and I will bow low to the Lord." But Samuel said to Saul, "I will not go back with you; for you have rejected the Lord’s command, and the Lord has rejected you as king over Israel." (Shumwel Alef 15:24-26)

This week we read a special Haftarah portion for Shabbat Zachor which means Sabbath of Remembrance. It is the Shabbat prior to Purim in which we are to remember the Amalakites and what they did to Israel.

In the Haftarah Saul is instructed to kill all of the Amalekites. "Thus said HaShem of Hosts: I am exacting the penalty for what Amalek did to Israel, for the assault he made upon them on the road, on their way up from Egypt. “Now go, attack Amalek, and proscribe all that belongs to him. “Spare no one, but kill alike men and women, infants and sucklings, oxen and sheep, camels and asses!" (v. 3)

However, Saul did not follow instructions. “Saul destroyed Amalek from Havilah all the way to Shur, which is close to Egypt, 8 and he captured King Agag of Amalek alive. He proscribed all the people, putting them to the sword; 9 but Saul and the troops spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the second-born, the lambs, and all else that was of value. They would not proscribe them; they proscribed only what was cheap and worthless.” (Verses 7-9)

How does this relate to the building of the Temple? HaShem is a God of order and precise detail. He does not expect us to follow his commands only half-way. Whether building something or taking out an enemy. Even though Saul asked for forgiveness he did not receive it.

Many cases in scripture point to this fact. The flood in Genesis “The earth became corrupt before God; the earth was filled with lawlessness. 12 When God saw how corrupt the earth was, for all flesh had corrupted its ways on earth, 13 God said to Noah, "I have decided to put an end to all flesh, for the earth is filled with lawlessness because of them: I am about to destroy them with the earth.” (Bereshit 6: 11-13)

The destruction of Sodom “As the sun rose upon the earth and Lot entered Zoar, 24 the Lord rained upon Sodom and Gomorrah sulphurous fire from the Lord out of heaven. 25 He annihilated those cities and the entire Plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities and the vegetation of the ground. (Bereshit 19: 23-25)

The point is that if we disobey HaShem and His Torah continuously eventually He will run out of patience. Yes, He forgives, but there also is a point where although Saul sought forgiveness HaShem had rejected him as king.

Be careful how far you stray from HaShem because you don’t want to reach the point of no return.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0KxjIDbOE4

Weekly Sidra: Terumah (Gift)
Torah Portion: Shemot / Exodus 25:1-27:19
Haftorah: Melachim Alef / I Kings 5:26-6:13

11 Then the word of the Lord came to Solomon, 12 "With regard to this House you are building — if you follow My laws and observe My rules and faithfully keep My commandments, I will fulfill for you the promise that I gave to your father David: 13 I will abide among the children of Israel, and I will never forsake My people Israel." (Malachim Alef 6:11-13)

The last third of the book of Exodus (except for the golden calf) deals with the building of the Tent of Meeting.  Why spend so much time to build it and what makes it so important?

Judaism teaches that Hashem is without form.  Rambam’s third principle of faith holds that:  I believe with perfect faith that G-d does not have a body. Physical concepts do not apply to Him. There is nothing whatsoever that resembles Him at all.

If God does not have a physical form, then why have a physical place for Him to dwell?

I believe that the existence of these dwellings such as the one in Exodus and the Haftarah portion mentioned above relate more to us than to Hashem.  Solomon was advised that if they followed Hashem and kept the Torah that He would abide among Israel.

The temple was commanded by Hashem to Solomon.  Thus, the primary function of the Temple was to remind us to keep his commandments (mitzvot).  There are several mitzvot which are not in force today due to the destruction of the Temple.

The Temple also evokes the presence of Hashem.  The Temple was the place where one could experience Hashem.  In other words, one could have a revelation of being in the Divine Presence of God without seeing Him.

When we speak of The Temple, we speak of the place in Jerusalem that was the center of Jewish worship from the time of Solomon to its destruction by the Romans in 70 C.E. This was the one and only place where sacrifices and certain other religious rituals were performed. It was partially destroyed at the time of the Babylonian Exile and rebuilt. The rebuilt temple was known as the Second Temple. The famous "Wailing Wall" (known to Jews as the Western Wall or in Hebrew, the Kotel) is the remains of the western retaining wall of the hill that the Temple was built on. It is as close to the site of the original Sanctuary as Jews can go today.

Today, the site of The Temple is occupied by the Dome of the Rock (a Muslim shrine for pilgrims) and the Al-Aqsa Mosque (a Muslim house of prayer). The Dome of the Rock is the gold-domed building that figures prominently in most pictures of Jerusalem.  May it be destroyed speedily in our days!!  Many Jews believe that The Temple will be rebuilt when the Mashiach (Messiah) comes. They eagerly wait that day and pray for it continually.  May we pray for the coming of Yeshua our Messiah and may he rebuild the Temple speedily in our days.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OC31ZfIc-NM

(Bamidbar/Numbers 21:6-9) “In response, HaShem sent poisonous snakes among the people; they bit the people, and many of Israel’s people died. The people came to Moshe and said; “We sinned by speaking against HaShem and against you. Pray to HaShem that that He rid us of these snakes.” Moshe prayed for the people, and HaShem answered Moshe: “Make a poisonous snake and put it on a pole. When anyone who has been bitted sees it, he will live.” Moshe made a bronze snake and put it on a pole; if a snake had bitten someone, then, when he looked toward the bronze snake, he stayed alive.”

Here in this Torah portion, we see the situation of when the children of Israel were sinning by speaking against HaShem and against Moshe. By speaking against HaShem and Moshe, they are ultimately speaking out against the Torah which is God’s divine instructions which He gave to us through Moshe. This rebellion against the Torah resulted in punishment from God as a decree of judgement; the agents of judgement in this case were the poisonous snakes.

So, what does mean for us as believers in our Rabbi Maran Yeshua? In what way does this benefit us in terms of our eternal salvation from the fires of hell? Well with a deeper look into His teachings, we will see the bronze snake in a new light.

(Yochanan/John 3:14-15) “Just as Moshe lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up; so that everyone who trusts in Him might have eternal life”

We see here a parallel within the scriptures which paint a beautiful picture of our salvation in our Rabbi Maran Yeshua. For those who do not know of the greatest miracle and gift from God, its promise was foretold in one of the most famous pieces of scriptures when proving Yeshua as the promised Messiah of Israel.

(Yeshua‘yahu/Isaiah 53:9-11) “He was given a grave among the wicked; in his death he was a rich man. Although he had done no violence and had said nothing deceptive, yet it pleased HASHEM to crush him with illness, to see if he would present himself as a guilt offering. If he does, he will see his offspring; and he will prolong his days; and at his hand HASHEM’s desire will be accomplished. After this ordeal, he will see satisfaction. “By his knowing [pain and sacrifice], my righteous servant makes many righteous; it is for their sins that he suffers.”

The children of Israel have always had the struggle with sin, as we saw above in the wilderness when they rebelled against God and Moshe and also in the prophecy about the Messiah. Sin is like the sting of a snake bite; it penetrates our souls just as the poison spreads through our bodies and eventually will leave us dead both physically and spiritually.

So what how do all these scriptures fit together into to paint a clear picture of our salvation in the one who was pierced? The answer for this question is hidden within Jewish rabbinical literature in the writings of Rashi and Ramban.

(Artscroll Chumash Parashas Chukas commentary Numbers 21:9) “God had not specified the material from which Moses was to fashion his serpent, but he chose נְחֹשֶת, copper, because it contains the letters נְחֹש, the serpent that was attacking the sinners (Rashi). It was a miracle within a miracle; the source of the destruction was the source of the healing (Ramban).”

In the wilderness, the source of the death of the children of Israel was the bite of the snake, in the bigger picture for humanity as a whole, the root of our spiritual death is the original sin of Adam. Using the rabbinical thinking of Rashi and Ramban, the source of our death spiritually is a man (Adam) and the source of our salvation and healing comes from a man (Maran Yeshua). The source of our destruction and death spiritually is Adam and his sin which results in the destruction of the soul, the miracle is the healing we receive from Maran Yeshua, which is the redemption of our souls from the eternal lake of fire. There is no other scripture which speaks of this healing other than the following.

(Yeshua‘yahu/Isaiah 53:4-5) “In fact, it was our diseases he bore, our pain from which he suffered; yet we regarded him as punished, stricken and afflicted by God. But he was wounded because of our crimes, crushed because of our sins; the disciplining that makes us whole fell on him, by his bruises we are healed.”

All scripture and even the wisdom of the Rabbi’s who deny Yeshua point to Him and him alone as our promised Messiah, Just as the children of Israel looked to the copper/bronze snake which was on the pole and received their healing and lived. All humanity, especially the children of Israel today need to look to the one who was pierced on the execution stake (the cross) and have faith in His death and resurrection to receive their healing from the one who lives forever and is coming soon to reign as king of kings and lord of lords in the holy city of Jerusalem. Remember it if from a man that we first were bitten with the deadly sting of sin, and it is by a man we receive the miracle healing and eternal salvation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yT7I5H6u1w

Weekly Sidra: Yitro (Jetro)
Torah Portion: Shemot / Exodus 18:1-20:23
Haftorah: Yeshayahu / Isaiah 6:1-6:13 (Sephardim)

13"But while a tenth part yet remains in it, it shall repent. It shall be ravaged like the terebinth and the oak, of which stumps are left even when they are felled: its stump shall be a holy seed." (Isaiah 6:13)

Retailers of carpet, linoleum and cloth call the unused and unwanted scraps of these materials "remnants." However, the word remnant, as it applies to scripture, has a different meaning.

The definition of the word is: “Something left over, especially the righteous people of God after divine judgment. Several Hebrew words express the remnant idea: yether, “that which is left over”; she’ ar, “that which remains”; she’ rith, “residue”; pelitah, “one who escapes”; sarid, “a survivor”; and, sheruth, “one loosed from bonds.”  

Rav Shaul (Paul) states in Romans “And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: "The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob.” (11:26)

If we closely examine this verse we see that it states all Israel will be saved.  Many people say that this refers to all Jewish people, but that is not what the verse means.  Prior to this Rav Shaul mentions that there are non-Jews who are grafted in to Israel.

“But I am speaking to you who are Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am a sent one to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry… But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive, were grafted in among them and became partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches; but if you are arrogant, remember that it is not you who supports the root, but the root supports you.”  (Romans 11:13, 17, 18)  

The verses above explain that non-Jews who become grafted in to the olive tree which represents Israel.  I think it is important to note that the root Israel supports those who are grafted in and not the other way around.  We are also reminded not to be arrogant towards the branches.  I believe that we must continue to love and support the Jewish people.  We also must show love to each other for although the branches are many we are but one olive tree.

We may also look at the tree itself as the Etz Chayim (Tree of Life) also referred to as the Torah.  Those that teach that the church replaces Israel or that Torah is just for the Jews are both incorrect. 

It is only those who seek to be part of the olive tree (Torah) and believe that Yeshua is Messiah who will be part of the remnant.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LSwH_xtOhrI