DOCSLIB.ORG

PRAYER and GOD's MOVE Message One Prayer and God's Move in the Books of the Law and History

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
PRAYER and GOD's MOVE Message One Prayer and God's Move in the Books of the Law and History PRAYER AND GOD'S MOVE Message One Prayer and God's Move in the Books of the Law and History Scripture Reading: Gen. 18:17-33; Exo. 17:8-16; 30:1-10; 1 Sam. 1:10-2:11; 12:23; Neh. 1:4-11 I. Genesis 18 presents a clear revelation of the basic principles of intercession: A. God revealed to Abraham His intention to destroy Sodom, because He was seeking an intercessor— Gen. 18:17-22; cf. Heb. 7:25; Isa. 59:16; Ezek. 22:30. B. The proper intercession is not initiated by man but by God’s revelation; thus, the proper intercession expresses God’s desire and carries out God’s will—vv. 17, 20-21; 19:27-29; Psa. 27:4-8; Heb. 4:16; 7:25; James 5:17. C. Apparently, Abraham was interceding for Sodom; actually, he was interceding for Lot by implication, showing that we should intercede for God’s people who have drifted into the world— Gen. 14:12; 18:23; 19:1, 27-29. D. Intercession is an intimate conversation with God according to the inward intention of His heart; for this we must learn to linger in the presence of God—18:22-33; Matt. 6:6. E. Intercession is according to God’s righteous way; in Abraham’s intercession for Lot, he did not beg God according to His love and grace; he challenged God according to His righteous way—Gen. 18:23-25; Rom. 1:17. F. Abraham’s intercession did not terminate with Abraham’s speaking but with God’s, showing that genuine intercession is God’s speaking in our speaking—Gen. 18:33; John 15:7; Rom. 8:26-27. II. Exodus 17 shows us how to fight against Amalek by praying with the interceding Christ— 17:8-16: A. As the one praying on the mountaintop, Moses typifies Christ, but as the one whose hands became heavy, Moses represents us. B. This signifies that while Christ is praying in the heavens, we too need to pray on earth—1 Tim. 2:8. C. Because the flesh never changes or improves, in order to prevail against the flesh, we need to pray without ceasing (1 Thes. 5:17; Col. 4:2), joining ourselves to Christ in His intercession. D. However, often our praying hands become heavy; thus, we need a stone to support us, and we need the help of Aaron and Hur: 1. The stone, a solid base for our prayer life, refers to our realization that in ourselves we are weak and that in order to sustain our prayer, we need Christ to be our support—John 15:5b. 2. Aaron, the high priest (Exo. 28:1; Heb. 5:1, 4), signifies the priesthood; the priesthood is related to the Holy of Holies, which in our experience is always related to our spirit (Heb. 10:19 and note); hence, to sustain our prayer and to thus defeat the flesh, we need the priesthood to strengthen our spirit. 3. Hur, who was of the tribe of Judah (Exo. 31:2), signifies the kingship (Gen. 49:10); we also need to be obedient to the Lord under His authority, the kingship; Hur is also related to the building of the tabernacle (Exo. 31:2-5), and the direction of Exodus is toward this goal; this indicates that we need to take the building of the church as the goal of our prayer. III. Exodus 30 reveals the golden incense altar; the incense altar signifies Christ as the Intercessor—vv. 1-10; Heb. 7:25; Rom. 8:34: A. We need to participate in Christ’s interceding life—vv. 26-27; 1 Tim. 2:1; Eph. 6:18-19; Col. 4:3; 1 Thes. 5:25; 2 Thes. 3:1; Heb. 13:18. B. Christ’s interceding life, His prayer life, is the center of the divine administration—7:25; Rom. 8:34; Rev. 8:3. C. The arrangement of the tabernacle with its furnishings is an accurate and detailed picture of God’s administration, God’s economy, in the universe: 1. According to this picture the Ark is the focus, but in practice the incense altar is the center. 2. According to Rev. 8:3-6, the intercessor is not merely the individual Christ but the corporate Christ, the Head with the Body; Christ as the Head is interceding in the heavens, and the church as the Body is interceding on earth—1 Tim. 2:1. D. In Exodus the incense altar is revealed after the tabernacle and its furniture and the equipping of the priesthood are revealed; this indicates that the priestly service begins at the incense altar, at the place where prayers of intercession are offered to God—Luke 1:10. E. The incense altar is the place from which the activities at all the other places in the tabernacle are motivated; it is not merely one item on the passageway through the tabernacle; rather, it can be compared to a motor that causes everything to operate: 1. It makes all the aspects of the tabernacle and the outer court effective in our experience. 2. The prayer of intercession also motivates others to come to Christ at the altar of burnt offering, at the laver, at the table, at the lampstand, and at the Ark in the Holy of Holies. 3. The prayer offered at the incense altar, a prayer that is offered in Christ and with Christ as the incense, governs God’s dispensing of grace and motivates the execution of the divine administration; hence, this prayer governs the universe. IV. Hannah’s prayer was an echo, a speaking out, of the heart’s desire of God; it was a human cooperation with the divine move for the carrying out of God’s eternal economy—1 Sam. 1:10-20: A. God could motivate Hannah as a person who was one with him on the line of life; the line of life is a line that brings forth Christ for the enjoyment of God’s people, that on earth God may have His kingdom, which is the church as the Body of Christ, the very organism of the Triune God—John 10:10; Matt. 16:18-19; Rom. 14:17-18; Eph. 1:22-23. B. As long as God can gain a person who is one with Him on the line of life, He has a way on earth; Hannah’s prayer indicates that God’s move with His answer to Hannah’s prayer was to produce a Nazarite who was absolute for the fulfilling of God’s desire—1 Sam. 1:19—2:11. V. The prophet Samuel knew that God’s work on earth requires the coordination of man’s prayer; therefore, Samuel told the children of Israel, “As for me, far be it from me that I would sin against Jehovah by ceasing to pray for you”—1 Sam. 12:23: A. Samuel was a Nazarite who had always lived in God’s presence and understood God’s heart; hence, he was God’s co-worker on earth. B. Had he not prayed for the children of Israel, God would not have had a way to work among them; if Samuel had not prayed, he would have hindered God’s work, which would have been a sin, an offense against God. VI. Nehemiah's prayer by fasting bound God by His own word—1:4-11: A. In his prayer to God, Nehemiah stood on God’s word and prayed according to it (vv. 8-9); thus, God was bound by His own word. B. As a person who loved God, Nehemiah prayed to God to contact Him in fellowship (1:4; 2:4b; 4:4-5, 9); furthermore, Nehemiah trusted in God and even became one with God; as a result, he became the representative of God. 2 WEEK 1 - DAY 1 Heb. 7:25 Hence also He is able to save to the uttermost those who come forward to God through Him, since He lives always to intercede for them. Gen. 18:17 And Jehovah said, Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do. 22b Abraham remained standing before Jehovah. In this message we come to another seed of the divine revelation sown in the book of Genesis—the seed of intercession. In the first seventeen chapters of Genesis, there is no record of any intercession. Although we may suppose that Melchisedec was interceding behind the scene for Abraham, there is no record of this. The first clear mention of intercession in the Bible is in Genesis 18, where we see that Abraham was the first intercessor. This record of intercession is not simply a seed, for it contains a certain amount of development. In Genesis 18 we not only have a story of intercession but a clear revelation of the basic principles of intercession. Intercession is a great thing in the Bible. Without it God’s economy cannot be accomplished. The excellent ministry of Christ today as our kingly and divine High Priest is a ministry of intercession. Romans 8:34 and Hebrews 7:25 both tell us that Christ is interceding for us. Since this matter of intercession is so important, we must devote an entire message to it, mainly considering the basic principles of intercession. The first basic principle of intercession is that it must be according to God’s revelation (18:17, 20-21). The only intercession that counts in the eyes of God is that which is according to His revelation.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Beshalach (When He Sent)
    An Introduction to the Parashat HaShavuah (Weekly Torah Portion) Understanding the Torah From a Thematic Perspective Beshalach (When He Sent) By Tony Robinson Copyright © 2003 (5764) by Tony Robinson, Restoration of Torah Ministries. All rights reserved. —The Family House of Study— Examining the Parashat HaShavuah by Thematic Analysis Welcome to Mishpachah Beit Midrash, the Family House of Study. Each Shabbat1 we gather in our home and study the Scriptures, specifically the Torah.2 It’s a fun time of receiving revelation from the Ruach HaKodesh3. Everyone joins in—adults and children—as we follow the Parashat HaShavuah4 schedule. We devote ourselves to studying the Torah because the Torah is the foundation for all of Scripture. Therefore, a thorough understanding of the Torah will help us more fully understand the rest of the Tanakh5 and the Brit Chadasha.6 Furthermore, as Yeshua stated Himself, the Torah teaches about Him. So we study the Torah in order to be drawn closer to Yeshua, the goal of the Torah. As believers in the Messiah we have discovered the richness of the wisdom of the sages of Israel. These men, who devoted themselves to the study of the Torah, have left us a rich heritage. Part of that heritage is a unique method of learning and interpreting the Scriptures. It’s called thematic analysis. In thematic analysis we search for the underlying theme/topic of each passage of Scripture. By studying Scriptures related by a common theme, line upon line and precept upon precept, the Scriptures open up to us in a unique manner that is clearly inspired by the Ruach HaKodesh.
    [Show full text]
  • Exodus 202 1 Edition Dr
    Notes on Exodus 202 1 Edition Dr. Thomas L. Constable TITLE The Hebrew title of this book (we'elleh shemot) originated from the ancient practice of naming a Bible book after its first word or words. "Now these are the names of" is the translation of the first two Hebrew words. "The Hebrew title of the Book of Exodus, therefore, was to remind us that Exodus is the sequel to Genesis and that one of its purposes is to continue the history of God's people as well as elaborate further on the great themes so nobly introduced in Genesis."1 Exodus cannot stand alone, in the sense that the book would not make much sense without Genesis. The very first word of the book, translated "now," is a conjunction that means "and." The English title "Exodus" is a transliteration of the Greek word exodus, from the Septuagint translation, meaning "exit," "way out," or "departure." The Septuagint translators gave the book this title because of the major event in it, namely, the Israelites' departure from Egypt. "The exodus is the most significant historical and theological event of the Old Testament …"2 DATE AND WRITER Moses, who lived from about 1525 to 1405 B.C., wrote Exodus (17:14; 24:4; 34:4, 27-29). He could have written it, under the inspiration of the 1Ronald Youngblood, Exodus, pp. 9-10. 2Eugene H. Merrill, Kingdom of Priests, p. 57. Copyright Ó 2021 by Thomas L. Constable www.soniclight.com 2 Dr. Constable's Notes on Exodus 2021 Edition Holy Spirit, any time after the events recorded (after about 1444 B.C.).
    [Show full text]
  • Traditions About Miriam in the Qumran Scrolls
    University of Nebraska - Lincoln DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln Faculty Publications, Classics and Religious Studies Department Classics and Religious Studies 2003 Traditions about Miriam in the Qumran Scrolls Sidnie White Crawford University of Nebraska-Lincoln, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/classicsfacpub Part of the Classics Commons Crawford, Sidnie White, "Traditions about Miriam in the Qumran Scrolls" (2003). Faculty Publications, Classics and Religious Studies Department. 97. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/classicsfacpub/97 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Classics and Religious Studies at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Publications, Classics and Religious Studies Department by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. Published in STUDIES IN JEWISH CIVILIZATION, VOLUME 14: WOMEN AND JUDAISM, ed. Leonard J. Greenspoon, Ronald A. Simkins, & Jean Axelrad Cahan (Omaha: Creighton University Press, 2003), pp. 33-44. Traditions about Miriam in the Qumran Scrolls Sidnie White Crawford The literature of Second Temple Judaism (late sixth century BCE to 70 CE) contains many compositions that focus on characters and events known from the biblical texts. The characters or events in these new compositions are developed in various ways: filling in gaps in the biblical account, offering explanations for difficult passages, or simply adding details to the lives of biblical personages to make them fuller and more interesting characters. For example, the work known as Joseph andAseneth focuses on the biblical character Aseneth, the Egyptian wife of Joseph, mentioned only briefly in Gen 41:45, 50.' This work attempts to explain, among other things, how Joseph, the righteous son of Jacob, contracted an exogamous marriage with the daughter of an Egyptian priest.
    [Show full text]
  • Exodus at a Glance
    Scholars Crossing The Owner's Manual File Theological Studies 11-2017 Article 2: Exodus at a Glance Harold Willmington Liberty University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/owners_manual Part of the Biblical Studies Commons, Christianity Commons, Practical Theology Commons, and the Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons Recommended Citation Willmington, Harold, "Article 2: Exodus at a Glance" (2017). The Owner's Manual File. 44. https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/owners_manual/44 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Theological Studies at Scholars Crossing. It has been accepted for inclusion in The Owner's Manual File by an authorized administrator of Scholars Crossing. For more information, please contact [email protected]. EXODUS AT A GLANCE This book describes Israel’s terrible bondage in Egypt, its supernatural deliverance by God, its journey from the Red Sea to the base of Mt. Sinai as led by Moses, the giving of the Law, the terrible sin of worshiping the golden calf, and the completion of the Tabernacle. BOTTOM LINE INTRODUCTION HOW ODD OF GOD TO CHOOSE THE JEWS! THE STORY OF HOW HE SELECTED THEM PROTECTED THEM, AND DIRECTED THEM. FACTS REGARDING THE AUTHORS OF THIS BOOK 1. Who? Moses. He was the younger brother of Aaron and Miriam (Ex. 6:20; Num. 26:59) who led his people Israel out of Egyptian bondage (Ex. 5-14) and gave them the law of God at Mt. Sinai (Ex. 20). 2. What? That books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.
    [Show full text]
  • Ki Tissa 5781 Sermon
    The Stirring Possibilities of Generative Constraint Parashat Ki Tissa 3.6.21 Rabbi Sharon Brous What if all this pain, all this isolation, death, illness, constriction, could awaken in us our own most audacious imagination, about our lives, this country, the world? The story of a young artist, the monarch butterfly rescue mission, and our own quest to make this period of confinement a generative and creative time. We’re getting milkweed this coming week. I’m so excited. I’ve been waiting a year for this. Just over a year ago, in one of my last meetings before pandemic, I sat in café with a new friend who told me about the monarch butterfly shortage. Like so many devastating effects of climate change, milkweed—the only thing monarchs eat—is becoming scarce because of excessive land development and the widespread overuse of weed killer. Without milkweed, the monarchs will go extinct. My friend and her kids decided to do their part to help—they planted milkweed in front of their house, and watched every day as it became a haven for monarch butterflies. Since then, we’ve heard R’ Artson and Elana speak about their own adventures with milkweed, and we’ve eagerly awaited the arrival of our own. I think it’s clear why so many of us are so invested in the monarch butterfly revival project. It’s not only because they’re beautiful, magical creatures, nor is it only because it frankly feels like the least we can do to help reverse course on some of the destruction caused by human greed and recklessness, with near total disregard for the creatures with whom we share this planet.
    [Show full text]
  • A Political Interpretation of Exodus 17:8-16 and Related Texts
    Chicago-Kent Law Review Volume 70 Issue 4 Symposium on Ancient Law, Economics & Society Part I: The Development of Law in Classical and Early Medieval Europe / Article 17 Symposium on Ancient Law, Economics & Society Part I: The Development of Law in the Ancient Near East June 1995 J as Constitutionalist: A Political Interpretation of Exodus 17:8-16 and Related Texts Geoffrey P. Miller Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.kentlaw.iit.edu/cklawreview Part of the Law Commons Recommended Citation Geoffrey P. Miller, J as Constitutionalist: A Political Interpretation of Exodus 17:8-16 and Related Texts, 70 Chi.-Kent L. Rev. 1829 (1995). Available at: https://scholarship.kentlaw.iit.edu/cklawreview/vol70/iss4/17 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by Scholarly Commons @ IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law. It has been accepted for inclusion in Chicago-Kent Law Review by an authorized editor of Scholarly Commons @ IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. J AS CONSTITUTIONALIST: A POLITICAL INTERPRETATION OF EXODUS 17:8-16 AND RELATED TEXTS GEOFFREY P. MILLER* In this Article, I argue that the pericope in Exodus 17:8-16, which recounts a wilderness battle between the Israelites and the Amalekites, should be interpreted as a political document written within the framework of the royal court in Jerusalem. The purpose of the text is to define power relations among four important institutions in the government: the king, the professional military, the priests of the official cult, and the bureaucracy of the royal court.
    [Show full text]
  • Ki-Tissa כִּי תִשָּׂא Exodus 30:11-34:35
    n° 915 Shabbat Shalom Newsletter March 6 2021 Shabbat Parah, 22 Adar, 5781 Ki-Tissa כִּי תִשָּׂא Exodus 30:11-34:35 LET’S PRAY TOGETHER We pray every NEWS week for the Jewish IMPORTANT NOTICE Seder experience virtually with our Jewish friends. Many synagogues organize a community Seder for Friendship Ministry HE AST SSUE OF THIS T L I the people who are alone at home, and for Jews who NEWSLETTER WILL BE PUBLISHED are not practicing and don’t know how to celebrate and their partner. I the Seder. This celebration of the Seder can normally NEXT WEEK be a great opportunity to meet Jews or to invite Jews e inform our readers that Parashat into our home or our building to celebrate the Seder. suggest our friends to Vayakhel-Pikudey, which completes the We are just 3 weeks before Passover, and it is time Wbook of Exodus/Shemot on March 13, to prepare a list of Jewish friends and a card of invi- pray from February will be the last newsletter produced and sent by tation to be ready to invite them to your Seder one the World Jewish Adventist Friendship Center. week before the event. It is not necessary to invite We understand the frustration of our readers, people a long time before your event, because if you 28 through March 6, particularly of the leaders of Jewish Adventist invite them right now, there is a good chance they Congregations, however, 8 years of former issues of might forget and not attend. the newsletter can be found on our website: Thus, we suggest that you invite your Jewish for Mark Hart, who is https://wjafc.globalmissioncenters.org/ friends one week before the event, then try to get Just remember that to have access to the mate- their answer one or two days after giving them the the leader of Jewish rial published on this website you have to register invitation.
    [Show full text]
  • Parshas Beshalach 11 Shvat | January 27, 2018 Candle Lighting Mincha Torah Reading Haftorah Candle Lighting 2/2 5:02P 5:05P Pg.366 Pg
    Parshas Beshalach 11 Shvat | January 27, 2018 Candle Lighting Mincha Torah Reading Haftorah Candle Lighting 2/2 5:02p 5:05p Pg.366 Pg. 1152 5:10p BESHALACH: HELPING HANDS RABBI SHMUEL SILBER SHABBOS SCHEDULE Dedicated by the Schreck family in commemoration Rabbi Silber out of town of the yartzheit of Fraida bas Moshe Yosef z’l Shabbos Night “Amalek came and fought with Israel in could be contrary to the will of God. As we 5:02p Candle Lighting 5:05p Mincha followed by Rephidim. So Moses said to Joshua, ‘Pick will learn a bit later in the Torah, God men for us, and go out and fight against Kabbolas Shabbos created age restrictions for army service. No Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the man younger than 20 and older than 60 could Shabbos Day hill with the staff of God in my hand.’ Joshua serve in the standing army of the Jewish 8:15a Daf Yomi did as Moses had told him, to fight against nation. Moshe Rabbeinu was 80 years old 9:00a Shacharis (9:49a KS) Amalek; and Moses, Aaron, and Hur and decided to hand over this military Teen Minyan Resumes next week ascended to the top of the hill. It came to responsibility to Yehoshua. The problem, 4:55p Mincha followed by pass that when Moses would raise his hand, Shalosh Seudos Israel would prevail, and when he would lay explains the Rebbe, is that when you see a 6:04p Maariv/Havdalah down his hand, Amalek would prevail. Now Jew in need, when you see your nation in 7:05p Motzei Shabbos Learning Moses’ hands were heavy; so they took a crisis, one must put their personal stone and placed it under him, and he sat on *No Chassidus on Parsha cheshbonos (calculations and ideas) aside, roll it.
    [Show full text]
  • Kol Kehilla This Month
    The Newsletter of Kehilla Community Synagogue KOL September & October 2019 KEHILLA Welcoming Pastor Mike McBride, Speaking on Reparations and Teshuvah, on Erev Rosh Hashana By Rabbi Dev Noily, with Hazzan Shulamit Wise Fairman We feel very honored to be welcoming Pastor Mike the front lines in a way that most McBride as our guest teacher for Erev Rosh Hashana. in our community are not (yet). Pastor Mike is an Oakland-based national leader in These are extraordinary times, the movement for racial justice. It’s unusual for us to and that’s why we feel called to have a guest from outside our community offering shake up our usual practice. By a drash / teaching during High Holy Days, and I’m practicing shaking up our usual practice, we are also excited to share here why it feels so important to preparing ourselves for what may be coming. take this step this year. The image of a havdallah candle comes to mind, with many Over the past few years, I’ve been moved to see Rev. individual wicks all intertwined to build a single, William J. Barber II visiting synagogues as a guest powerful flame. teacher on High Holy Days. I read about his visits to IKAR in Los Angeles in 2017, and to the East Side Alef: Living in an Unprecedented Moment Synagogue in New York last year. It was exciting to /א Wick The Spiritual Leadership team wanted to have a me because Rev. Barber is such a force for love and guest darshan (teacher) because we believe so justice, and it felt incredibly powerful to see him in a deeply that we need to come together across synagogue teaching Torah.
    [Show full text]
  • HOW to BUILD a TABERNACLE from SCRATCH One Person Gives Freely, Yet Gains Even More; Another Withholds Unduly, but Comes to Poverty
    Part 9: Building a Tabernacle From Scratch Part 9: Building a Tabernacle From Scratch Greg Surratt The LORD said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain and stay here, and I will give you to help him. Also I have given ability to all the skilled workers to make everything I have commanded you” the tablets of stone with the law and commandments I have written for their instruction.” Exodus 24:12 (NIV) Exodus 31:1–6 (NIV) When Moses went up on the mountain, the cloud covered it, Exodus 24:15 (NIV) • Two leadership principles: 1. Anything significant that you do for God is almost never and the glory of the LORD settled on Mount Sinai. For six days the cloud covered the mountain, and on the seventh accomplished alone day the LORD called to Moses from within the cloud. Exodus 24:16 (NIV) 2. God has planted the gifts you need to succeed in the people he places around you To the Israelites the glory of the LORD looked like a consuming fire on top of the mountain. 3. THE TABERNACLE WAS COMPLETED BY THE GENEROSITY OF WILLING PEOPLE Then Moses entered the cloud as he went on up the mountain. And he stayed on the mountain forty days and forty Tell the Israelites to bring me an offering. You are to receive the offering for me from everyone whose heart nights. Exodus 24:17–18 (NIV) prompts them to give. Exodus 25:2 (NIV) HOW TO BUILD A TABERNACLE FROM SCRATCH One person gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty.
    [Show full text]
  • Torah Dedication Own Your Own Parasha
    Community Sefer Torah Dedication Own Your Own Parasha Sunday September 16, 2018 at 9:30 am Mashadi Jewish Center Shaare Shalom Followed by a lavish breakfast in honor of the New Sefer Torah Dedicate a Parasha in the Memory of a Loved One Under the Instruction of our Chief Rabbi, Rabbi Eliyahu Ben Haim This special, travel-size Sefer Torah is only 30 centimeters tall. This Torah will be available for community members to borrow when traveling to Miami, Las Vegas, Tuscan or MYC weekenD getaways. When in town, this Sefer Torah will be kept in Rabbi Ben Haim’s minyan. The name of each Parasha with it’s donor’s names will be engraved on the cover of the Torah. In aDDition to Donating a Parsha, any community member who woulD like to be part of this beautfiul mitzvah can have their name enscribed on the inside of the Torah cover for a $100 Donatation. Bereshit G‑d creates the world in six days. On the first day He makes darkness and light. On the second day He forms the heavens, dividing the “upper waters” from the “lower waters.” On the third day He sets the boundaries of land and sea, and calls forth trees and greenery from the earth. On the fourth day He fixes the position of the sun, moon and stars as timekeepers and illuminators of the earth. Fish, birds and reptiles are created on the fifth day; land animals, and then the human being, on the sixth. G‑d ceases work on the seventh day, and sanctifies it as a day of rest.
    [Show full text]
  • Torah Weekly
    בס״ד Torah Common Denominator more esoteric which drives but the man who honors the This week's parshah tells of the each and every one of us. In place.”(Taanit 21b.) We are not Weekly census taken of the Jewish particular, when we feel defined by our circumstances. It people. A census places tempted to look down on is what we do with our somebody else because of their circumstances that defines us. July 5 - 11, 2020 everyone on an equal footing. 13-19 Tammuz, 5780 Somebody on the highest apparent "station in life," we In Parshat Pinchas, we read spiritual levels is counted must remember that really each about the apportioning of the Torah: Pinchas: Numbers equally to somebody on a of us is equal. By Rabbi land amongst the tribes 25:10 – 30:1 "lower" level, with nobody Mordechai Wollenberg of Israel, which was determined by lottery. The name of a tribe taking priority over anybody G-d Is in the Details Haftarah: would be drawn, along with a Jeremiah 1:1 - 2:3 else. The reason for this is not Buying a house in Brooklyn? slip of parchment delineating simply to make it easier to Fuhggedaboutit. Recently my PARSHAT PINCHAS count. There is a common the borders of that tribe’s friend shared with me her woes denominator which applies share. Rashi, in his We have Jewish regarding her foray into the commentary on the Torah, adds across the entire nation. On the Brooklyn, New York, housing Calendars. If you a mystifying detail: The lot would like one, surface, we each appear market.
    [Show full text]