Grace is not mercy and mercy not grace. Grace has been defined as unmerited favor and mercy not getting our deserved punishments. We sometimes think grace means I get forgiveness for whatever I do. I can get away with almost anything and still have salvation. That is one view but it is not a very good view. It may earn you a ticket to heaven but certainly not one first class.

So what did Yeshua say about the law?
Matthew 5:18-19:: For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. “Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

What is the complete fulfillment? The gospels were written after Christ’s resurrection from the dead. If that be the fulfillment then Matthew really missed a prime opportunity here to say that which was just fulfilled. Yet we rather seeing him warning the early christians to not ignore any commandment and to not teach others to do likewise. He does not say people will not get into the kingdom but rather they are least in the kingdom. Maybe like being at the back at the great wedding feast.

So what about grace? Some consider it a license to sin but grace really means favor.

Ephesians 2:8-10:: For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

So grace is not a stand-alone item. We get favor but then are expected to do something with it (works!). There are works of the law and also the works that the Lord has for us. They can be the same or different. Yeshua worked on Shabbat healing and delivering.

Galatians 3:1-9:: O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified? This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh? Have you suffered so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?— just as Abraham “believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”[Gen. 15:6-God’s promise to Abraham that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars of the sky] Therefore know that only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham. And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, “In you all the nations shall be blessed.”[Genesis 12:3; 18:18; 22:18; 26:4; 28:14] So then those who are of faith are blessed with believing Abraham.

Notice the reference to Genesis is before Abraham offering his son up on Mount Moriah. It was before he and Sarah concocting this plan to have Hagar get pregnant and birth Ishmael. Ishmael was technically still Abram’s seed but it was not the plan God had in mind for him. Do you know sometimes we can second guess God’s plans for our lives and royally muck things up. But the good news is that God can still fix up our messes because Ishmael still fathered 12 great nations, the same number as the sons of Jacob. It is interesting that it took another generation for Jacob to father 12 tribes. Isaac fathered Jacob and Esau.

Romans 3:23-25:: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed,

Redeam means to purchase back. We redeem coupons for a prize. Christ redeemed us so we can be brought back to right relationship with God. The propitiation is a sort of covering. By definition it is used of the cover of the ark of the covenant in the Holy of Holies, which was sprinkled with the blood of the expiatory victim on the annual day of atonement

Romans 4:1-8:: What then shall we say that Abraham our father has found according to the flesh? For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”[Gen. 15:6]
Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt. But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness, But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness, just as David also describes the blessedness of the man to whom God imputes righteousness apart from works: “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; Blessed is the man to whom the LORD shall not impute sin.”[Ps. 32:1-2]

Ps 32:1-2:: A Psalm of David. A Contemplation.[mascil] Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven,
Whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man to whom the LORD does not impute iniquity,
And in whose spirit there is no deceit.

Let’s go back the covenant promise that God made with Abraham:
Gen. 17:10-11:: This is My covenant which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you: Every male child among you shall be circumcised; and you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between Me and you.

This is the sign of the covenant. The faith we find back in Gen. 15:6 related to Abram believing God according the number of his descendants being as many as the stars of the sky. So before Abraham was instructed to circumcise he was already counted as righteous for his belief.

The passage in Romans above shows that faith (belief) is sufficient. The part of Genesis quoted in chapter 15 was after God promised Abram’s descendants to be as numerous as the stars of the sky but well before offering up Isaac as a sacrifice upon the Mountain. Abram faith, however, was not yet perfected because he and Sarah concocted the use of Ismael to create his descendants. Likewise, our faith does not have to be perfect because God is the faithful one thru Christ (Rev. 1:5, 3:14). Abram’s faith did get perfected (completed with testing).

Hebrews 11:17-19:: By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, “In Isaac your seed shall be called,”[Gen. 21:12] concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.

Apostle Paul had to make a stand against the requirement to circumcise Gentile believers. The Judiasers wanted all gentiles circumcised and to follow all of the laws of Moses.

Acts 15:5:: some of the sect of the Pharisees who believed rose up, saying, “It is necessary to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses.

This led to an big debate about accepting uncircumcised Gentiles into the church. The outcome covered a few general rules for the gentiles but was far from requiring them to get circumcised and follow the whole law of Moses. Then there is the arqument that the law is not sin but it points out sin.

Romans 7:8-13:: sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced in me all manner of evil desire. For apart from the law sin was dead. I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died. And the commandment, which was to bring life, I found to bring death. For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me. Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good.

Law Cannot Save from Sin::
Has then what is good become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, that it might appear sin, was producing death in me through what is good, so that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful.

Titus 3:4-5:: when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit,

Regeneration shows we are a new creation in Christ Jesus (2 Cor. 5:17). It is not the flesh that is regenerated, it is our spirit for flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God (1 Cor. 15:50). This is good because we don’t want to keep this fragile, sin, sickly body into enternity. Notice it is the washing of regeration and renewing of the Holy Spirit. Regeneration washes us clean, both inside and outside. Renewing gives as a new mind and body. In the greek the regeneration and renewal are pretty much synonyms. Finally, I want to say tonight:

Romans 12:2:: do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

Finally, let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus … now Christ made Himself of no reputation, took the form of a bondservant, and came in the likeness and appearance of a man.. So let us humble ourselves and be obedient to the point of death, if necessary, and die to our fleshly natures. (Dave’s Paraphrase for use on Phil. 2:6-8).

This is a provocative title which needs careful examination and explanation. It is also a delicate subject easy to argue one way or another. It does not divorce Yeshua from the godhead nor speak down to his human existence. Rather it helps define a position that counters a confusion from many theologians that makes Yeshua equivalent to God and God equivalent to Yeshua. It also counters an Apostolic view that considers Father God just another name for Yeshua in the flesh. I have to admit the incarnation is a divine mystery and does not negate the yeshua or yehoshua of the bible before incarnation nor negate his existence post resurrection. I am focused here on the earthly existence of Yeshua, the Son of the Living God.

Verses used to speak of Christ being God is the flesh in
John 1:1,2,14:: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

John declares Yeshua as the word made flesh and blood. Was the Word God in the beginning? We also see that he was in the beginning with God. So which is it? God himself or one with him? So does that now follow Yeshua is God in the flesh? I think the answer to this is both Yes and No. More on that under the Philippian Definition section.

1 John 4:2-3 is also used to support the idea of Yeshua being God in the flesh.
By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.

But it actually argues for the idea of the Son of Man being flesh and blood, not just spirit. Saying he was spirit only is a doctrine is of the antichrist. It is a gnostic doctrine called docetism. Saying Christ was fully man is not the spirit of the antichrist here so the Muslim concept of Isa is not wrong from that standpoint. They declare him only a man which is not the spirit of the antichrist spoken of in these verses.

— Writings of Apostle Paul

Apostle Paul contrasts Yeshua to that of Adam.

1 Cor. 15:45-49:: so it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterward the spiritual. The first man was of the earth, made of dust; the second Man is the Lord[kyrious] from heaven. As was the man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly. As we have borne the image (eikon) of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image (eikon) of the heavenly Man.

I take it in the verse when Paul says the last Adam became a life-giving spirit it does NOT uphold the idea that Yeshua was always a life-giving spirit due to verb tense. The name Lord from heaven uses the greek word kyrios. This is the ruler or monarch. It defines position. Notice it does not call him Yehwey or Jehovah or even Spirit of God. From John’s writing we know the Word of God was made manifest as the man Yeshua. Corporately, Yeshua is the Son of God, not technically God himself. The longer form of Yeshua, Yehoshua actually means God is salvation. The name Yeshua is actually spoken each Sabbath in many synagogues.

The greek word for image in these passages is eikon. As you shall see, this word is not used in the Philippian Definition. The word means image, figure, or likeness. Notice that Paul says we one day bear the image of the heavenly man. He certainly was not implying we are going to be God himself. Eikon is a representation. Yeshua was the heavenly Man. It almost sounds like a contradiction. How can a Man be God himself? Using the logic that Yeshua is God himself then it follows that one day we also we be God himself!

Remember that God man Adam of the dust of the ground. He made Yeshua however from the Lord from heaven, also known as the Word of God. I find it incredible that the Muslim consider Yeshua the Son of Mary but yet fail to connect to his divine connection. God created Adam complete from the dust of the ground but Yeshua was Son of Mary and the Man from Heaven.

To the colosssians a verse does speak of the Godhead in Christ:
Col. 2:9:: For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily

This is true. All the Godhead was in Christ yet did not always manifest itself to the world. Apostle Paul also said:
we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us (2 Cor. 4:7). There was a time on the mount of transfiguration that his true form was visible to a select few. Christ asked Peter what he thought men called the son of man. Peter answered the Christ, the son of the living God.

— Paul’s Philippian Definition

I love the verse Apostle Paul coined to the Philippeans. It is probably the most definitive verse in the whole bible which attempts to describe the true nature of Yeshua in the flesh.

Phil. 2:5-8:: Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form (morphe) of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form (morphe) of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness (homoiōma) of men. And being found in appearance (schema) as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.

Here we must distinguish between form (morphe) and likeness (homoiōma) and appearance (schema).

Morphe is where we get the term morphological and that speaks of the form or structure of a thing. Notice Christ is in form both that of God and a bondservant.

homoiōma means a figure, image, likeness, or representation. In the greek old testament it often uses this to mean the form of an idol but could mean the form of many things. The form is meant to visually represent something. So Yeshua appears as a man but is much more. His form is also described using the greek word schema.

There is one verse in the old testament septuiging that uses the greek word schema
The Lord will strike with a scab the crown of the head of the daughters of Zion, and the LORD will uncover their secret parts (Is. 3:17)

The secret parts in the Septuigint is the greek word schema. To those in database engineering the word schema has come to mean a group of objects with a common set of attributes. It could be a set of identity objects or types of sports or vacation spots. In terms of the verse in Philippeans this comes to mean a set of common attributes (humanity) which reveals something secret (true nature).

Going back to the word morphe. It says he was in the form of a bondservant, not a man. It is the likenss of man, but the form of a bondservant. His structure and form was that of a servant but likeness or image/appearance that of man. Our true self, our identity is that of a servant, a servant of God, yet we can have a form or structure of a human being (head, feet, arms, etc..). His schema was a set of common attributes which are common to all of mankind. He could laugh, grieve, get hungry, sin.

I should not leave this section before giving the standard definition what the NKJV says he made himself of no reputation. Other versions says he emptied himself or laid aside his equality with God and this was temporary until after resurrection. The incarnation, as it is called, means that God became man. This is a big theological concept that has been debated for centuries.

Does this mean Christ took on the nature of man? I think this is also true. Christ had the nature and capacity to sin like any other human beings. The crux comes about when he decided to not sin and live a holy life. Psalm 82 expresses this concept when King David said ‘you are gods and all of you children of the most high’ meaning mighty ones or judges. We pick up Yeshua’s discussion in John 10 where he did many good works and then ends up saying ‘my father and I are one (heis)’ (John 10:30). The Septuigint also uses the word ‘heis’ in the Shema of Israel: Hear O Israel, the LORD our God, The LORD is is one (Deut. 6:4). The oneness or unity is what we consider when people speak of the Trinity. Trinity did not become universally accepted until the first council of Constantinople in 384 AD. Remember the Word of God was God.

— Christ in Hebrews

Heb. 1:8-9:: to the Son He says: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; therefore God, Your God, has anointed You with the oil of gladness more than Your companions.

Hebrews 2:6-9::
What is man that You are mindful of him, or the son of man that You take care of him?

You have made him a little lower than the angels;
You have crowned him with glory and honor, and set him over the works of Your hands (see note on Psalms 8).

You have put all things in subjection under his feet.”[Ps. 8:4-6]
For in that He put all in subjection under him, He left nothing that is not put under him. But now we do not yet see all things put under him.

But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone.

The reason the MU-text and M-text might have omitted the rest of Hebrews 2:7 is that it is not an exact quote from Psalm 8 which reads:
You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands (Ps. 8:6)

Having dominion is pretty much the same as set him over the works of Your hands, the main difference is one has dominion and the other is set up to have dominion. At present we do not see all things put under him. It is a secret kingdom, one within, if you so choose to follow. That is why the writer of Hebrews adds the later part of verse 8.

So now I hope you can see the provacative title ‘Yeshua Was Not Born God in the Flesh’ is true because to be birthed a little lower than the angels cannot mean ruler over everything.

— The Glorious Consummation of the Age

1 Cor. 15:24-28:: Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power. For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet. The last enemy that will be destroyed is death.
For “He has put all things under His feet.”[Ps. 8:6] But when He says “all things are put under Him,” it is evident that He who put all things under Him is excepted. Now when all things are made subject to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subject to Him who put all things under Him, that God may be all in all.

Notice here the one exclusion to all things put under His feet the Father is excluded which helps further clarify Hebrews. We also read in verses 24 that all rule and authority and power have not ceased up until today. Death also rules up until today (vs. 26).

Apostle Paul made a curious verse in Romans 5:14: Death reigned from Adam to Moses. It is curious because we hear verses like Romans 7:11: For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me. So we think the law brings death, not life. But I don’t think this is Paul’s argument in Romans. Sin kills us, not the law. By the law we are judged for the commandment is holy and just and good (vs. 7:12). That’s why the principle here is ‘the law of sin and death’ and not ‘the law that brings death’.

Three times does the Book of Revelation speak of Yeshua ruling with a rod of iron (Rev. 2:27, 12:5, 19:15). Psalm 2 is the origin of that phrase. It speaks about ruling the nations during the millenium and beyond. In Ps. 2:8 we read ‘ask of Me, and I will give You the nations for Your inheritance, and the ends of the earth for Your possession’.

I am going to stop here for now. It is enough to say there is yet a distinction between Father and Son. It is a human mystery of what the incarnation means and so we have no idea what he became nor what we shall become so I leave you with this verse:

Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is (1 John 3:2).

In the last lesson I worked though definitions of biblical community and also interpersonal relationships. We looked briefly of the early christian community in Jerusalem and then I went through a proposed hierarcy of relationship just to show that some relationships are really one-sided, and some stay in a frozen state, never able to build nor fully recover. We started out this series with a discussion of finding hidden hurts and animosities and then broken family relationships. During this week lets dive into how community itself helps build relationships.

Community requires more than one person. In the bible it says where 2 or 3 are gathered in my name I will be in the midst of them (Matt. 18:20). We know if one can send a thousand to flight then two can s
end ten thousand to flight.

— Force Mulitiplication in the Right Hands

How could one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, unless their rock had sold them, and the LORD had surrendered them? (Deut. 32:30).

Who is their rock? We start out in verse 4 with the Rock is perfect and his ways are justice and he is the Rock that begot you (vs. 18).
Apostle Paul spoke of the Rock this way in 1 Cor. 10:4 this way ‘they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ’. In verse 31 we read ‘their rock is not like our Rock’

The LORD will say: ‘Where are their gods, the rock in which they sought refuge? (vs. 37)

Their rock is foreign gods in whom they took refuge. He is the one that sold them out and the LORD make them surrender. So we learn from this that multiplication does not always give success unless our enemies follow foreign gods then the LORD scatters them and delivers them into our hands.

We read in Deut. 28:7::
The LORD will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before your face; they shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways.

So it is not just force multiplication, it is also favor! Grace is often defined as unmerited favor.

Likewise community gives us more force against our enemies but we need favor as well. When our enemies follow after wickeness this forces a small multiplication to win over a huge number. Our enemies can be people but in the case of broken relationships it is those things that seperate us and keep our relationships at a low level, even open hostility and anger.

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places (Eph. 6:12).

We can get enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, and envy. This is what Apostle Paul told the church in Galatia are works of the flesh. Did you know when you manifest works of the flesh you are acting out what principalities, powers, rulers of the darkened world and spiritual wickeness in high place desire? We are slaves to our own masters.

How can you get God’s favor when you are allowing Satan’s kindom to control you? Without God’s favor force multiplication will only operated at the base level, that is one against one, like King Saul. That’s why we fight spiritual wickeness. The LORD is not going to give us ground when we are fighting and bickering. Satan has sold you out when you act in the flesh and so God’s favor does not come about with contentions and confusion.

A community has to be supportive. It has to build, not tear down. It has to have mutual understanding and trust. And then force multiplication gives one for a thousand and two for ten thousand.

Even in the case of King Saul and Young David it was sung ‘Saul has killed his thousands and David his tens of thousands’ (1 Sam. 21:11). We see a force multiplication of David over Saul of 10x. This was because David was righteous especially in his dealings with Saul and because Saul was not righteous and often ‘flew off the handle’. So while the numerical number of fighters in the song was only one the idea here is that favor comes when we live right. Saul was serving pagan gods for it says an evil spirit was upon him. God would give Saul some victory but not as much as young David. Remember David did not wear the king’s armor but went against Goliath only with a sling and a stone. Again, this shows are weapons, even our spiritual weapons, are powerful in the right hands.

— Personal commitment to conflict resolution and relationship building

Even if we are not a strong community with trust and mutual understanding we can build relationships and also work on ourselves.

Minfulness based cognitive therapy (MBCT) and cognitive behavioral theory (CBT) are two current therapies aimed at reducing stress, break depression, and eliminate negative thoughts and behaviors. I am not an expert in these therapies but have had training in assisting individual in crisis, group crisis intervention, and neuroscience. Much of these therapies are focused on the individual and short-term relief from the stresses of life. Additionally, I can recommend ‘Winning the War in Your Mind’ by Craig Groeschel.

Many times we can not control what others do or don’t do. They may have wronged us or we have wronged them. We can and should seek reconciliation but often it is impossible to fully reconcile because of seperation, open hostility (on their part), deceipt, or even death. The bible gives us a guideline for forgiveness.

if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses (Matt. 6:14-15). Tresspasses include violating boundaries, breaking moral laws, or sacred trusts amongst people and with God. Basically, it means someone done you wrong! There are stipulations in the Torah about repayment and penalities for trespasses but this is not a theological discussion on this subject. The issue here is not only ‘forgiveness’ but also ‘reconciliation’.

Remember the hierarcy of relationships. It the base level we quit having open hostility and anger. This is like when King David allowed Absalam back to Jerusalem three years after killing David’s son Amnon. Yet it was another two years later on that Absalom is brought before the King after an episode involving the burning of Joab’s barley field. Now we have toleration and acceptance but is not a good place to open all our gates to give full trust. For neither dignity nor respect was yet afforded King David, his father. In many ways Absalom stole the people’s trust at the city gates, plotting against his own father. So beware how much you lower your guard when reconciliation has not been fully implemented. It took an estimated 22 years for Judah and his brothers to gain respect for Joseph and then some additional time for Joseph to fully reveal himself.

Sometimes we are alone in our despair and resentment and dealings with unforgiveness. There are no simple solutions. Time might heal all wounds but we are stuck in present time or even left dwelling in the past. That is where vision, godly vision is most useful. Habakkuk was a watchman on the walls. He was an old testament ‘minor’ prophet who prophesied the end of wicked Judah at the hands of the Babylonians and the eventual punishment of Babylon as well because they too are wicked. He says:

I will stand my watch and set myself on the rampart, and watch to see what He will say to me, and what I will answer when I am corrected. Then the LORD answers Habukkuk and says

“Write the vision and make it plain on tablets, that he may run who reads it.
For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it will speak, and it will not lie.
Though it tarries, wait for it, because it will surely come, it will not tarry. (Habukkuk 2:1-3)

We need to be that watchman too. Waiting to see what the Lord will do about injustice, broken relationships, and how to move forward. With our minds, our spiritual vision, we need to see the reality of justice and also completion of what is envisioned. We should not dwell on the past or even present circumstances. The LORD wants us to see a path forward. One of reconciliation and building, not tearing down. Some things might need removing but the end thereof will be reconstruction and progress. Let us also trust the LORD in the process. Let us also be active in the planning thereof. For the appointed time will come and not tarry forever. The appointed time is called the moedin. It is like the high holidays of Israel. We don’t always the schedule but we can get clues about the season of appointment if we are listening closely.

The topic here, however, is the synergism of community. So how does our reaction to adverse things help build and advance community? We watch to see what the Lord is doing. We are the watchman so his ideas and his ways are what we are to promote. Whether it be one person or a multitude we can promote the ways of peace and reconciliation. When a group of people work together to promote community the effect is multiplied, many times greatly. Have others strayed far off course and followed the ways of foreign gods? Remember, when their god sells them out the effect can get even more multiplied as repentence kicks in. The Lord lines up reconciliation like dominoes lined up to fall.

— The Hidden Effects on the Synergism of Community Building

I spoke on force multiplication and how working together greatly multiplies the effects of reconciliation. But some things are hidden and suprising. Things are hidden in God not because he is unwilling or unable to give us what we need but because of ignorance and stubborness on our parts.

God gives all good things, even gifts, to his children. The problem is not on the giving side, it is on the receiving side. Our reception gets obscured, our antennae are many times defective.

Faith is the evidence of things unseen and the substance of things hoped for (Heb. 11:1). It is the unseen reality that gives us hope. It is the intangibles that help to build community. Faith, hope, and love yet the greatest of these is love. This is what remains (1 Cor. 13:13). Love never fails. It builds relationships and also sacrifices for the common good.

There are times when it seems that nothing is happening, at least nothing in the natural. Things are building behind the scenes and we are unaware of things going on but might be able to observe the effects, if we have the keen perception of a seer. The Apostle says we know in part and then we shall know as we are known (vs. 12). We might not recognize true friendship and new relationships right away. In fact it might come across as hostility at first. Without stressors the genuiness of true faith and friendship cannot be tested to withstand the test of time and trial.

We need to press on despite what natural circumstances seem to indicate. This is the faith aspect of relationship building. Abraham knew that God could raise his son from the dead, if necessary. Yet he pressed on the last three days toward his goal which is the ultimate test of a father.

Hope is between faith and love because it binds together the two. Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but when the desire comes, it is a tree of life (Prov. 13:12). So the longer we have to hope for something the stronger the desire. If we just got everthing right away, served as fast food, then we would never learn what it means to be steadfast, unmovable in the work of the Lord.

In Hebrews 12:1 it says we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses. Faithful witnesses (of history) surround those doing God’s work. But even in our current situation we often miss the hidden support we have and do not even realize that it is present.

For by faith the elders obtained a good testimony (Heb. 11:2). The idea of testimony here is the report given by a faithful witness. It is our testimony that brings about overcoming faith.

By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible (Heb. 11:3). So if the every world was framed by the invisible word of God then rest assured we have more with us than against us (2 Ki. 6:16). This unseen cloud will prevail against that attacking in the natural. It does not have to just be heaven’s armies. There are many who will join the fight when proper leadership prevails. Proper leadership builds support and that builds synergism. It is also a personality trait that manifests itself in the natural.

I first described this as building biblical community and then realized it is so much more than that. Interpersonal relationships is the basic core for any community. Without relationships no matter how much we structure a community and give it names and titles it is not a true community, no matter how much effort is put into oversight and growth. At best we could end up with a bunch of cliques which is what many times we see at what is called ‘church’. I have already covered discovering hidden hurts and anamosities, and repairing broken family relationships. At the core here are problems that interrupt proper family order. Some are hidden, many are just ignored. At the heart of this lies the responsibility of the leader or leaders to uncover and repair problems that break down family cohesion. The church and for that matter most organizations will benefit from conflict resolution.

— Definitions of Community

So what is community? A community is a group of people connected by shared characteristics, location, interests, or identity, forming a sense of belonging, mutual support, and shared purpose. These days not all communities meet in person. With the rapid expance of the internet and social media we now have millions of online or virtual communities that rarely, if ever, meet in person. This does not mean there is no interpersonal dialogue. Breakout rooms and direct messaging should be encourage in virtual communities.

A biblical community is a community based upon biblical concepts which help bind people together in common purpose, support, and encouragement. Interpersonal community is not a community, per se, but covers a whole range of groups which tend to get networked together. Each cell or specific group runs semi-autonomously with a common unifying organization pulling together the cells under one umbrella. Each group does not necessarily have to be christian but should include a set of core values and beliefs to keep the community united.

One such historical community was the Essenes near to the Dead Sea. This is the group that is attributed to hiding scrolls in caves which stood hidden for almost 2000 years. Traits of the community included communal living facilities, sharing things in common, ritual and spiritual purity. They envisioned arrival of Messiah in both priestly and kingly fashion. Their existence largely disappeared after Rome sacked Jerusalem in AD 70.

Other communities adhering to strict guidelines and purity are the Puritans of New England and the Amish communities of Ohio and Pennsylvania. In the world we live in today it is very difficult for any group to remain strictly isolation.

I have experience some of this community life during disaster relief rebuilding and one some missions trips overseas. In general the American culture is very individualistic and lacks good communal characteristics. Some churches strive to add community into their agendas, especially at midweek meetings. As part of some home church and home cell organizations I share in community as we strive to interract in each other’s lives and share life and worship and study together. Biblical community includes all of the benefits of communal life with the added emphasis on learning and expressing judeo-christian values and teachings.

Sometimes organizations, especially those I have seen online, can get heavily focused on one thing or another. For instance, some groups emphasis sabbath keeping and following the Torah, almost to the exclusion of following grace and christian freedom. Other groups I am not part of focus on things like free expression and even LGBTQ+ rights. Let us focus on one biblical community found in the bible at Jerusalem.

— The Church in Jerusalem

Acts 2:42::
they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.

44-46: All who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need. So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart,

There we have a total of three verses that attemp to describe a biblical community.

The Apostle’s docrines probably emphasizing Christ’s life, death, resurrection, and the believer’s response through repentance, baptism in his name, and receiving the Holy Spirit. Obviously the whole cannon of scripture was not available during this Jerusalem church.

The day of Pentecost had recently occured so they had that experience but the church had not yet spread out to the Gentiles. Speaking in tongues then was probably regulated to speaking to people in other languages that visit Jerusalem. Even the idea of ‘believer’s baptism’ was probably not a topic they spoke about and probably consisted more of the idea of mikveh’s (ritual baths) that the Jews and John the Baptist preaced.

Fellowship is absolutely key to group cohesion. That means sharing life together, not just a communal meal. Christ’s followers were with him almost all of the time. That is community. Breaking of bread was something they had learnt from Christ as the fed the 4000 and 5000 who gathered to hear Christ preach. The idea of some special service to break bread and drink from the cup was known but most likely more as a seder dinner or as a group gathering for a meal. Group prayers are also essential as in any group to be praying the same direction and for a common purpose.

Then we get to verse 44 which says they shared all things in common, sold possessions and good, and divided them among all.

Acts 4:32 highlights the communal nature of the gatherings in Jerusalem: Now the multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul; neither did anyone say that any of the things he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common.

This did highlight the idea that sharing everything helps give people a sense of being of one heart and soul. This worked well for awhile. Even Barnabus (Joseph) a Levite from Cyprus shared in this giving. The problems soon creep in when Ananais and Saphira sold a possession and only brought in a portion of the proceeeds, lying that it was all they received. Their decision to lie ended up having deadly consequences.

They also met in the temple daily and broke bread from house to house. Most likely the temple provided a central meeting place and houses a communal setting for meals and fellowship.

Beyond that we have little knowledge of how this community progressed, especially after AD 70.

Christ said, “When you see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains (Matt. 24:15-16, Mark 13:14). So these early followers eventually went to the mountains and then scattered. They had probably alread scattered much during the time of persecutions of Saul of Tarsus which started within a few years of the crucifixion.

As I said before, the Essenes continued communal living all the way up until the desctruction of the temple. Beyond this we have no record of widespread communal living in the New Testament. In fact, most Jews then and now believe in personal property. The Torah and Gospels teach us to be generous and to share with those in need. It also distates punishment and restitution for lands stolen or boundary markers moved. There are special provisions in the Torah to keep ancestral land within families, often reverting to original owners during the year of Jubilee. Of interest here, the law of Jubilee land return is not normally applied to lands outside of Israel so that if Barnabus sold lands in Cyprus they may never have gotten returned to his family. Levites had no inheritance in Israel so Cypress land was understandable or even land in Israel acquired by purchase or gifted.

So we really have no definitive example of ‘biblical community’.

— What biblical community has come to mean

I was part of a church in Raleigh which had community on Wednesday evenings. We met each week to share a meal together and fellowship and attend a class. It was good community as far as what I have seen elsewhere. It was not quite sharing life together but was a step in the right direction. True biblical community should involve sharing life together, meaning our good times and our bad times, our triumphs and our failures, our special days and our not-so-special days. We have biological families and also we should have bibilcal families, sometimes the later even being the closer family.

Recently I was part of an effort on behalf of our local assembly ensuring legal paperwork was set up for an elderly lady upon death or regarding near-to-death issues. There is really nothing to share materially so don’t get the idea anyone here is going to make lots of money. It was done just to show that in death, as in life, we need to help each other with burdens. A friend of this friend died unexpectently with no paperwork done. Things did not go as hope afterwards. Making final arrangements is important! Likewise, helping with financial matters while living is also part of sharing community together. This is also our trust base. There are many scammers and online predators out there so having biblical family is essential, especially for the elderly, infirm, and poor. We can help each other in many different ways beyond financial advice or help. Prayer is essential as was in the early church model in Jerusalem.

— Interpersonal community as an extension of community

So I said before that interpersonal communities are not communities per se, not even really a virtual community. We can be tied together by specific values, goals, and traditions. In the business world we have ties such as a memorandum of understanding. The is a business document spelling out two or more organizations interract. This might be a bit formal for an ad hoc group who just likes to meet together on Thursday online for a discussion about poker or religion. Without some ground rules, however, things can get misunderstood and even become hostile. Most online social media sites have at least a few basic ground rules: no hate speech, no political commentary, no religious discussions, etc… The goal is a smooth flowing communications, friendships, and cooperation.

So how does all of this aid in repairing broken relationships?

At the heart of repair and mending is the idea of understanding and trust. I understand your views and you understand my views.

This follows closely with respect. I may not fully agree with you or even fully understand you but I respect your views and your methods. The old adage respect is earned hold true here. Sometimes you even have to earn respect if you don’t already have it. I have leared that the hard way when some don’t respect my views and opinions. Dignity is a cousin to respect because that is how we treat others we respect.

Patience and vigilence often are traits we need to develop over the long run. If we disagree on a point then time sometimes bring us closer or at least builds up a wall of seperation. Walls keep things out and also things within. For instance, we might know to keep our political views to ourselves within certain groups.

A third point on repairing broken relationships is toleration. If I don’t completley understand another and have little respect for them or their views then I can at least tolerate you and your opinions. Toleration and acceptance are close cousins because when we tolerate others we accept them for who they are and what they believe.

The bottom of relationships is open hostility and anger. Pretty much no relationship at all.

— Hierarchy of Relationships

Just like Maslow’s hierarcy of needs there is a hierarchy of relationships:
If no mutual understanding and trust, then at least respect and dignity. If neither then toleration and acceptance. The bottom of the pyramid is hostility and anger.

Hostility and anger are not a good place to be. David and Saul never reconciled. David always respected the house of Saul but Saul got fits of rage and died indirectly because of his hostility toward David. Unfortunately David and Jonathan’s relationship got cut short because of Saul’s behavior.

Over the long term Jacob and Esau had toleration and acceptance. They never seemed to really trust each other nor understand each other well. Maybe they respected each other’s boundaries so they agreed to stay apart most of the time. Years after their split Jacob sent waves of gifts ahead of him toward Esau to ensure peace and tranquility. Jacob respected his elder brother with a dignified reunion. Esau for his part did not kill Jacob and so tolerated him.

King David’s anger was quelled after awhile against Absalom in regards to Amnon’s death. King David eventually let down his guard against Absalom and that had tragic consequences. When we move into toleration and acceptance that should not be the same as complacency. We like to say forgive and forget yet sometimes ill behavior lingers and ends up being problematic in the long run as it did with Abaslom. We can forgive but do not forget when someone is unrepentant and rebellious.

Judah and Joseph eventually reconciled completely with Judah respeciting Joseph’s new position in Egypt. If you remember the story, young Joseph had several dreams of grandeur so his brothers despised him. If it wasn’t for the intervention of Reuben, the eldest, they would have killed Joseph. Joseph ends up saving all of Israel by becoming the second most powerful person in all of Egypt. The brothers even prostrated before him.

I think the pyramid of relationships can also work as co-equals not just as ruler to subject. Jacob and Esau were brothers and Esau was the eldest. David and Jonathan are probably the closest we have here of mutual understanding and respect, Jonathan just had family problems which clouded his relationship with David.

The whole community benefits when we reach the top of the hierarchy in terms of our relationships. Guards need to be maintained while operating at the toleration and accptance level. It is true that respect needs to be earned. Eli’s sons neither respected their father’s wishes nor the office for which they inherited. Inheritance is not enough, we need to be true leaders. Leaders need respect and dignity which is often earned, but it is even better when they are fully understood and trusted.

In the first section we looked into hidden hurts and anamosities. It might be things we remember but most likely have buried deep within and may not consciously remember the details. Generational anamosities can easily fall into this category as well as long term issues. We eventually may even completely forget why we are even fighting! Here we delve more into something we are consciously dealing with but maybe do not know exactly why we are behaving badly. Some bible examples show consequences of bad behavior and leave it up to us on how to do the right things.

— Bitterness and Resentment in an Organization

Heb. 12:14-15:: Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled;

Eph. 4:31-32:: Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.

Is Apostle Paul talking to the world here or the church? The church pursues peace with all men. It is not always possible.

Now peace is not necessarily the way the world sees peace. The world sees peace as lack of confrontation. God sees peace as a way of life. We are told to rejoice in all circumstances, the good and the bad. We are called to be gentle. But there is a time to take a stand and there is a way that seems right unto a man but the ends thereof is death (Prov. 4:12). What stands have you taken lately that are unpopular?

Phil. 4:4-7:: Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;
and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

The injuction in Hebrews 12:18 is if it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.

Remember, the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking whom he might devour (1 Pet. 5:8). It does not say he sneaks up or approaches stealthily. We hear him coming. We see his teeth and hear his roar. He is big and obvious. We are to respond with prayer and supplication. Patience! Always being thankful, even in the testing. Our response, if full of bitterness, resentment, and harsh reactions does nothing to calm the roarding lion. A strong rebuke (in love) might turn away the lion but sometimes such words are easily misinterpreted.

That does not mean we don’t use tools to trap the raging lion. We could lull him to sleep but better soon entrap him into a cage. Proverbs 15:1 says a soft word turns away anger but a harsh word stirs up anger. Soft words many times allow defenses to be lowered. We pull in prey using some bait. Then we slam the cage shut as the bait is taken. This does not mean our first course of action against an embittered and resentful person is one of capturing a wild animal (nor should we go around caging people).

What I am saying here is spiritual. A soft word is always good. When that does not work sometimes you can trap people in wording of their own design. David got entraped by Nathan speaking of his rightful punishment for killing Uriah the Hittite. He took the bait of the rich man with many sheep who took the lamb of the poor man with only one little lamb. Sometimes people get goated to follow after the 99 instead of the one lost sheep. This is also a trap and often leads to destruction for the 99 can all be wrong, following after their own evil desires. There is wisdom in a multitude of counselors, if they are good counselors, but looking for that one outlyer is sometimes the key to success!

Even in our own families there can be arguments and dissentions. The church organization in many ways is one big disfunctional family. Let’s look at a couple of biblical examples.

— The case of Eli the Priest and His Two Wicked Sons

Here is another case of an elderly father not keeping in step with what is going on his own family. We first hear of the two sons in 1 Sam. 2:12: the sons of Eli were corrupt; they did not know the LORD.

The actual names is Sons of Belial, meaning wicked, worthless, or unlawful. For sure they did not follow what was proscribed by the law for the service of the priestly line.

1 Sam. 2:22:: Now Eli was very old; and he heard everything his sons did to all Israel, and how they lay with the women who assembled at the door of the tabernacle of meeting

the breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the heave offering I have taken from the children of Israel, from the sacrifices of their peace offerings, and I have given them to Aaron the priest and to his sons from the children of Israel by a statute forever (Lev. 7:34)

Eli’s sons rather took a large three-prongued fork to take whatever they wanted while the meat was boiling. Also the fat was to be burned on the alter, not consumed.

Lev. 7:25 says ‘‘For whoever eats the fat of the animal of which men offer an offering made by fire to the LORD, the person who eats it shall be cut off from his people’

For Eli did get a report regarding the wicked behavior of his sons but ignored it. Rules for priests can also affect our lives. Religious authorities should only take what is desginated their portion and not abuse women who come to receive ministry. We should likewise not do these things while trying to help people.

But the issue here is not just what the sons were doing but what their father failed to do. The bible says ‘train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it’ (Prov. 22:6). We are not told what Eli did in bringing up his children nor whether there was a mother involved. As head of his house it does not matter. He was ultimately responsible for their upbringing.

Perhaps they just rebelled. It is says is they were called Sons of Beliel which means worthless. Perhaps they got spoiled so they did not turn out good despite their upbringing. Whatever the upbringing or cause of their behavior it was up to Eli to take action.

Eli said to them ‘why do you do such things? For I hear of your evil dealings from all the people. No, my sons! For it is not a good report that I hear. You make the LORD’s people transgress. If one man sins against another, God will judge him. But if a man sins against the LORD, who will intercede for him?’ (1 Sam. 2:23-25)

This was a rather weak rebuke. He basically says at the end he is not going to intercede for his children.

Apostle Paul tells Timothy ‘there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus’ (1 Tim. 2:5). Yeshua is our great intercessor.

King David, after he arranged the murder of Uriah the Hittite, Bathsheba’s husband, said ‘against you, you only, have I sinned’ (Psalm 51:4). It is clear there as with Eli that sin against others can be considered sin against God himself. For sin is violation of God’s laws, no matter how you cut it. But when it comes to ceremonial law, sin is against God. Eli was not going to intercede for his sons and so judgement was inevitable.

For some violations the priest could make intercession. For a trespass like lying to a neighbor, a priest could make atonement (Lev. 6:7). When one sins unintentionally or out of ignorance atonement can be obtained. When one sins against holy things a tresspass or guilt offering can be made for atonement.

Leviticus 5:14-19 is the main passage regarding tresspass/guilt offerings which require a 20% penalty in addition to restoring the value of what was lost/stolen. Examples here are: 1) not witnessing (and reporting) the utterance of an oath 2) unknowingly touches an unclean thing, 3) unknowingly touches human uncleanness (like leprosy), 4) when one swears thoughtlessly to do something then realizes his violation. Also if one sins unintentionally regarding the holy things of the LORD restitation can also be made.

The problem is Eli’s sons were not ignorant of what they were supposed to do with offerings. No atonement could be made by Eli.

Willful sins are a serious matter! They are something for which atonement thru sacrifice cannot be obtained:
if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries (Heb. 10:26-27).

The ramifications of this for us today are huge. We could also say who will make restitution for my intentional sins, especially when it comes to ceremonial items. Thanks be to God that Christ fulfilled (ceremonial) requirements of the law.

Christ himself said ‘do not think that I came to destroy the Law (nomos or torah) or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled’. (Matt. 5:17-18)

— David and Absalom

First, ignoring what happened to Tamar resulting in the death of Amnon at the hands of Absalom

When Tamar was alone with Amnon in his bedroom and started making the moves on his half sister she said ‘please speak to the king; for he will not withhold me from you’. (2 Sam. 13:13).

For the idea that she was willing but only with the King’s permission is debatable. She may have been trying a stall tactic or seeking an out by royal decree. Amnon did not care. Raw passion many times blinds people to right action.

But since he was much stronger he forced her to have sex with him. Then he hated her more than he previously wanted her (2 Sam. 13:15).

Commentators think he hated her because she was now defiled, no longer a virgin. Whatever the actual reason for his hate this shows us the unbridled emotions can often have some severe and terrible consequence.

2 Sam 13:21-22: when King David heard of all these things, he was very angry. Absalom spoke to his brother Amnon neither good nor bad. For Absalom hated Amnon, because he had forced his sister Tamar.

Additionally, she tore her coat of many colors which each of David’ virgin daughters wore (as did Joseph, the favorite son of Jacob). It was a disgrace to now show she had lost her virginity. She also put on ashes as she wept. She stayed in Absalom’s house alone, deserted. After two years Absolom invited all of the kings son’s including Amnon to a sheepshearing near Epharaim. It was a plot so he would have occasion to murder Amnon as revenge for raping his sister.

Afterwards Absalom flees to Geshur for three years, his mother’s home town. He then returns after David’s wrath subsided.. After two more years in Jerusalem David formally forgives Absalom. But this is by far not near to the end of David’s troubles.

Second, ignoring the open rebellion of Absalom eventually resulting in war within the kingdom. We cannot ignore issues withou our own house because they will eventually catch up to us and hurt us.

Absalom was reported as being very good looking, without any blemish, and had heavy hair. I can almost imagine his hair was very wavy an curly. He was a man respeced for his looks as was King Saul years before. He began judging the people’s cases at the city gates, winning over their favor.

Now after 4 years Absalom asked the king to venture down to Hebron with the pretense he had to pay a vow there. He was actually planning a coup from Hebron, declaring he was ruling from there.

If you remember, David reigned from Hebron for about 7 1/2 years as things progressed in Jerusalem. Saul’s general Abner gets killed by Joab, David’s commander. Eventually some brothers kill Ishbosheth, Saul’s son. Then the leaders anoint David leader over all of Israel. Hebron is the burial place of the patriachs and their wives so it is only natural to seek this place as a ruling location outside of Jerusalem.

Sometimes going back to our roots, so to speak, is a good idea. Rebellion in our house, however, is never good. Remember, Absalom first fled to Gesher, which is his mother’s house. He goes back to Hebron to find Israel’s roots but it is really just a big ploy to gather forces and plan his attack. Many events transpire during this war. Eventually Absolom is defeated and was killed by Joab, hanging on a terebinth branch.

So this son was rebellious. Absalom also abused David’s ten concubines in sight of all Israel.

If you remember Nathan’s prophesy against King David it said:
2 Sam. 12:10-11:: the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised Me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife. Thus says the LORD: ‘Behold, I will raise up adversity against you from your own house; and I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun.

So we learn in David and Absalom the consequences of not dealing properly with misbehaving family. We don’t excuse the violation of Tamar by Amnon. But we also have to deal with sons and daughters who cannot get along. Open rebellion is not normal. Sometimes what happens in our family are direct consequences of what sins the parents have committed which are not completely resolved and flow down to subsequent generations.

— The Case of Jacob and Esau’s problems hidden from Isaac

The resentment and animosity between Jacob and Esau was seemingly hidden from Issac. There was much jealousy and favortism brought about by Rebekkah against Esau. Isaac comes off as an old man, devoid of understanding, even within his own family.

Genesis 28:25 says “Isaac loved Esau because he ate of his game, but Rebekah loved Jacob”.

I think this is truly a case of saying love is blind.

Heb. 12:16 calls Esau a profane person who sold his birthright for a morsel of food. It does not call Esau a fornicator but the idea of selling his birthright to Jacob implies he sold himself to another. This is not a normal sense of the idea of lust but it does highlight the idea that Esau despised his birthright so much he was willing to sell out his own future for some bread and lintel stew. The hebrew text says he felt like he was weary and about ready to die (Gen. 25:30,32). This is extemely sad so lust could easily be a good interpretation.

In Genesis 27 we read about the deception of Jacob to steal Esau’s blessing, Esau being the eldest. Even a cursory reading of the chapter reveals the fact that much of the planning was because of scheming and direction of their mother, Rebekkah. Yet Jacob fully participated and carried out the deception, speaking as Esau and even dressing up like his brother, covering his hands and at his neck with a hairy skin.

The deception here was only against Isaac but without Esau’s consent or knowledge. Rebekkah was in many ways the instigator.

Rebekkah says to her son Jacob ‘obey my voice: arise, flee to my brother Laban in Haran. and stay with him a few days, until your brother’s fury turns away, until your brother’s anger turns away from you, and he forgets what you have done to him (Gen. 27:44-45).

I think it unlikely that Esau completely forgot about the deception of Jacob in stealing his blessing. Chances are he got pre-occupied with other things and forgot about the anger he had against Jacob. All we hear about Esau in the rest of chapter 28 is he realized that Canaanite wives displeased his father so he sought a daughter of the Ishmaelites. In fact Esau had already married Hittite (Canaanite) women to the chagrin of his mother and father (Gen. 26:34-35, Gen. 36:2).

In fact Esau ran to meet Jacob, and embraced him, and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept (Gen. 33:4)

In this saga Esau seems more righteous than Jacob. Esau made bad choices about his birthright and had his blessing stolen. He also married Hittite woman which were too close to the Canaanites for his father and mother. It seems other things like family made him appeased and forget about Jacob’s bad behavior. He was also sufficiently blessed (Gen. 27:40, 33:9).

Problems with Jacob were forgiven but probably never completely forgotten. The two brothers never dwelt together nor did much together. Jacob sought forgiveness because he feared Esau but true reconciliation never did occur. The embrace and kissing and weeping lasted but for a moment. Isaac fails to see what is happening in his own family and seemingly trusts Rebekkah implicitly against his own choice for heir. In this I suggest that Issac failed to lead his family in the process of reconciliation.

We can many times be as Jacob and Esau. Someone might forgive and forget to the extent you are never going to seek vengeance. Gifts may also be offered to heal hurts but mistrust can remain so much so it can become a generational mistrust. Do those who could bring about true reconcilation either ignore or miss issues that they should be able to recognize and take charge of resolving?

The case in the USA of the Hatfields and McCoy’s took years to resolve. In the 1882 tensions created a brutal revenge spree which subsided into peace in 10-20 years but it took several more generations to completely resolve the tension. Family and personal relationships suffer when the path to reconciliation gets untrodden. What can we do to speed to process of reconciliation?

— The Case of Judah and Joseph Forgotten and Hidden from Jacob

If you remember the story of Joseph and his brothers in Genesis 37, Joseph was a talebearer and suggested that all of his brothers will one day bow down to him, even his father and mother. His brothers, who already hated him because of his favor from Israel, really hated him after telling them about his dreams regarding the sheaves and the sun, moon, and stars. When Joseph finds his brothers in Dotham feeding the flock his brothers conspire against him. Some conspired to kill Joseph but Reuben, the oldest son, desired to protect him so as to return Joseph to his father. So they threw him into a pit. While Reuben is gone, however, Judah and the others sold Joseph off to some Ishmaelite traders who carry him off to Egypt. Therein starts the 20+ year ordeal of Josepth until a huge famine comes upon the whole region. Then 10 brothers come to visit Joseph in Egypt:

Gen. 42:20-21:: Joseph, after greeting his brothers, says bring your youngest brother to me; so your words will be verified, and you shall not die.” And they did so. Then they said to one another, “We are truly guilty concerning our brother, for we saw the anguish of his soul when he pleaded with us, and we would not hear; therefore this distress has come upon us.”

Reuben even lectures his brothers at this point about selling Joseph into slavery. For they did not even heed Reuben’s desire to rescue Joseph from the pit and return his to their father. Because of various sins and lapses of judgment Judah ends up being the leader of his brothers, not Reuben. Judah eventually provides surity for his brother Benjamin so to pledge to his father that he will not lose Benjamin in Egypt (Gen. 43:9) showing his character had grown tremendously from what it was before Joseph went down to Egypt. For no son, including Joseph, ultimately wanted to tell Jacob what had really happened to Joseph. It is this deception which fuels much of the drama.

Let’s pick up the whole saga much later during the famine when the 11 brothers ventured down to Egypt a second time to buy grain.

Gen. 44:14-16:: Judah and his brothers came to Joseph’s house, and he was still there; and they fell before him on the ground.
Joseph said to them, “What deed is this you have done? Did you not know that such a man as I can certainly practice divination?”
Then Judah said, “What shall we say to my lord? What shall we speak? Or how shall we clear ourselves? God has found out the iniquity of your servants; here we are, my lord’s slaves, both we and he also with whom the cup was found.”

While Joseph speaks harshly to his brothers who come to visit for food a famous Jewish comentator, Rashi, makes note that Judah also speaks harshly to Joseph when his says “do not be impatient” (or “do not be angry”: Gen. 44:18). Judah even hides a veiled threat to kill Joseph and Pharoah. Yet Judah cannot openly threaten Joseph or Egypt. This whole time Joseph is playing with his brothers, trying to figure out what to do.

The guilt of the brothers expressed in Chapter 42 now comes manifest in their blind behavior in Chapter 44. Unresolved guilt can manifest itself in a wish for self-punishment. Outward signs often reflect internal turmoil, even hostility and anger (even if unable to openly express the emotions).

This whole saga plays out as Joseph toying with his brothers to see if they have changed.

Alas, it is Joseph who primarily makes amends for he says “now, do not therefore be grieved or angry with yourselves because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life” (Gen 45:5).

Justice is what this needs to happen but not punitive justice, redemptive justice. Remember Joseph has two sons in Egypt: Manasseh and Ephraim. They end up amongst the tribes of Israel. The brothers redeem Joseph as much as Joseph redeems all of Israel. The tribes of Judah and Benjamin ultimately unite during the second temple period showing prior anamosities can heal completely over time and in subsequent generations.

Even the Hatfield’s and McCoy’s in the USA made a symbolic truce starting in 1976 and formalized it in 2003. It took way to long and anamosities persisted for generations.

— Things that get hidden from your eyes

Now as Jesus drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, “If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. (Luke 19:41-42)

Jesus speaks about leveling to the ground and stones being thrown down because the Jews did not realize the time of their visitation (vs. 44)

Do we also not realize when God has arrived and is wanting to bless us and give us peace? Some things can get reported to us like when King David heard about the rape of Tamar and Amnon’s behavior and the case of Eli’s sons behaving wickedly. More on restitution of relationships in the next lesson.

If we ignore these reports or fail to take proper action, especially within our own family, it can create a world of chaos for us and those around us. In the case of Jerusalem it resulted in the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans and the death of over a million Jews. Apostle Paul says that their minds are blinded. For until this day the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament (Deut. 29:4; Isaiah 29:10, Rom. 11:25, 2 Cor. 3:14).

There are other bible stories that contain secret hurts and anomosities which show good results for those called to serve.

David hid his plans and even his whereabout from King Saul. He even went over to King Achish a Philistean King. He got protected there from the murderous intention of King Saul who had a lot of animosity and jealousy after they declared Saul has killed his thousands and David his tens of thousands. For the LORD had abandoned Saul and an evil spirit came upon him which cause him much pain and distress especially over David. David refused to harm God’s anointed (or even his family). Eventually Saul falls upon his own sword on Mt. Gilboa after the battle goes badly, his sons die, and he gets wounded by archers: an apparent act of suicide.

This shows us we need to be patient with those who oppose us for their destructing will eventually happen by the own undoing. We just need to take the high road and keep ourselves guiltless when it comes to dealing with our enemies. It is a story with no happy reconciliation with Saul because sometimes those against us are unwilling to repent. Saul seems blind to his problems and takes out his hostilities against David. Yet David ends up providing for Saul’s surviving children, in particular Mephibosheth. We should try to make amends to the extent possible. The bible says ‘if possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone (Rom. 12:8).

Esther kept her Jewish identity secret from King Xerxes, which ultimately allowed her to expose Haman’s plot and save her people. Haman was very angry at Mordecei for not bowing down in his presence but Haman’s evil plot twisted against him and he ended up on the gallows intended for Mordecai. He had much pride and ends up hating all Jews, including the Queen, because of Mordecai. Esther kept her true identity secret until the pivotal moment when she revealed it at a banquet for the King. The result was salvation for the Jews everywhere within the realm.

This tells us that salvation (deliverance) will occur despite evil intentions of those who desire self-glorification and even deification. We may need to act decisively at the appointed time, just as Esther acted at the time appointed for her to reveal her identity and take a stand. God many times orchastrates events to our favor (remembrance of Mordecai’s protection against an assasination attempt and seeing Haman fall across the queen’s lap). The death on his own gallows shows us that evil people sometimes create their own traps. Evil will not prevail if we follow God’s ways. Relationships get restored in God’s house and even before pagan kings who see our value.

In the creation account the Serpent deceived Eve telling her she would certainly not die if she ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. This was a lie and both Eve and Adam end up getting kicked out of Paradise and losing eternal life. It was the Devil or Satan who had much animosity and selfish ambition. For he later said in his heart: ‘I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God (Is. 14:13). We see this further manifested in the conversation he had with the Lord over righteous Job. In Revelations 12 he stands before the woman clothed with the sun and ready to give birth to devour her child (those birthed from above). In the end he shall find his ultimate fate: the lake of fire (Matt. 25:41, Rev. 20:10).

This is a story involving the whole human race. Evil deceives and continues to deceive. We need to hold fast to what is good and truthful. We will ultimately win but this is a generational process that cannot be won quickly and not with carnal means. It is sad that Satan cannot repent! While we should not repair a broken relationship with Satan there is always the need to repair our relationship with our Heavenly Father and his Dear Son. Ultimately He will fall on his own sword and create his own destruction.

Sources:
https://www.umjc.org/commentary/2020/12/22/whose-justice
https://spu.edu/lectio/david-tamar-and-absalom-the-sword-in-davids-house/#:~:text=After%20Tamar%20gets%20raped%2C%20Absalom,%5Bsee%20Author’s%20Note%205%5D.

• Becoming an over-comer (life more abundantly!)

they overcame (the accuser of the brethren) by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death (Rev. 12:11)
nikaō (nik-ah’-o) means to overcome, to carry off the victory

Apostle Paul told the Philippeans ‘I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus’ (Phil. 3:14). There is a prize to the victor, one that overcomes.

It is normally assumed that the accuser of the brethren is one who accuses Jewish and Christian believers on earth before God. We can see this in the book of Job. The LORD himself said that Job was blameless and upright.

Satan answered the LORD and said, “Does Job fear God for nothing? “Have You not made a hedge around him, around his household, and around all that he has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But now, stretch out Your hand and touch all that he has, and he will surely curse You to Your face!” (Job 1:9-11)

We see after a long and arduous tribulation that Job comes out in the end twice as blessed. The expression Job got double for his trouble has become a way to express rewards for suffering. Have you suffered? Have you done without blessings and no fault of your own? We can endure years of doing without having. If we have patience and endurance we can finally reap blessings from the Spirit. This is a common theme for those who live righteously but do not immediately get rewards. Even if not in this lifetime, it will occur in the age to come. Listen to the book of James:

My beloved brethren: Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? (James 2:5)

I know this can be of little consolation if you are living in poverty and have little or no hope of getting ahead. Yet this is hope.

In Hebrew the expression “L’Chaim” means to life. It is like cheers in English but so much more. It includes our health, happiness, and good fortune. We might be healthy one season and not the next. We might be cheerful one day and not the next. Happiness can depend upon our current circumstances and change in an instant.

Our word of testimony cannot by itself bring about an overcoming situation but it can help with our attitudes. Having a poverty mindset, for instance, might make one rigid and frozen even when an opportunity of a lifetime is presented before you. Life is a struggle and the strongest survive:

Luke 11:22:: when a stronger person (than the owner of the house) comes upon him and overcomes him, he takes from him all his armor in which he trusted, and divides his spoils.

Christ says in John 16:33 to have peace because he has overcome the world. The world brings tribulation (trouble).

1 John 2:14:: I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you,
and you have overcome the wicked one.

poponēros (pon-ay-ros’) normally means the wicked one but can also mean one full of labors, annoyances, or hardships. We need to overcome evil but also what buffets us like annoyances and hardships.

1 John 4:4:: You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.

The ‘them’ in verse 4 is speaking about every spirit that does not confess Jesus Christ has come in the flesh (vs. 3). This is the spirit of the Antichrist who is now already in the world. He needs overcoming. It is the internal kingdom of God thru Christ which is the overcomer.

1 John 5:4-5:: For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our[your] faith. Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

The world many times judges us. We are condemned as evildoers even when trying to do good. God can also judge us for our evil.

Rom. 3:4:: You may be justified in Your words, and may overcome when You are judged.”[Ps. 51:4]
That You may be found just when You speak, and blameless (made clear/pure/clean) when You judge (Ps. 51:4 Masoritic texts)

The Septuigint clears up who is judging in Psalm 51. It is us who is judged by God. That is what happened to King David. He was judged by God for his wrong doing in the case of Uriah and Bathsheba yet he overcame (did not die). It also clears up the idea of being blameless and says we prevail when being judged. Remember Satan is also called the accuser of the Brethren so make sure you are not hearing lies!

— Overcoming churches: models for us to consider

In Revelation the seven churches were in different cities. They also represent 7 models for us to follow.

The Ephesus church left their first love but they have labor and patience, and cannot bear those who do evil.
Rev. 2:7:: to him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.

The Smyrna church has works, tribulation, and poverty. There is no criticism from the Lord.
Rev. 2:11:: He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death.

The Pergamos church tolerates the doctrine of Baalam (sacrifice to idols and to commit sexual immorality) and the doctrine of the Nicolation (ecclesiastic pride). Yet they did have works and had at least one martyr.
Rev. 2:17:: To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. I will give him a white stone with only the recipient knowing the name written on it.

The Thiyatira church tolerates the false prophetess Jezebel who seduces those there to commit sexual immorality and eat things offered to idols but they have works, love, service, faith, and patience
Rev. 2:26:: he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nation

The church at Sardis has works but they are not perfect and the church is spiritually dead. Most have defiled garments.
Rev. 3:5:: He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life

The church in Philadelphia gets no criticism. They are to be kept from the tribulation that comes upon the whole world.
Rev. 3:12:: He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God

To the church in Laodicea is criticised for being lukewarm. They are rich and wealthy but really miserable, poor, blind and naked.
Rev. 3:21:: “To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne

Overall, the churches in Smyrna and Philadelphia got no real criticism. But even in the worst churches there are those that are overcomers. Overcomers will eat of the tree of life. That means life more abundantly. Ultimatly eternal life. The second death will not touch those with works, tribulation, and poverty. Hidden manna is reserved for overcomers in a godless society, even a clean stone to start anew. Manna sustains when there is no food, no kind words, no good news available. Christ said ‘my food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to finish his work’ so that is our goal too: good works. We must not give into false prophesies and sexual temptations. Idolotry is worship of fleshly things. We can get defiled garments (our body) and become spiritually dead like the prodigal son. But it we have love unfeigned especially of The Truth then we are an overcomers in the temple of God which is within. But don’t become complacent and lazy. Keep up the Spirit, light the torch and burn brightly.

— The final cosmic battle

Let us allegorize the Book of Revelation for the purpose of being an overcomer so we can see ourselves as needy.

Christ himself::
Rev. 5:5:: Behold the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has overcome to open the scroll and to loose its seven seals

Rev. 6:2:: I looked, and behold, a white horse. He who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering (overcoming) and to conquer (overcome).

Rev. 17:14:: (The scarlet woman and the beast she sits upon) will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them

The overcoming savior opens the scroll with seven seals indicating the judgements to come. A crown (wreath) was given him and a bow. He was upon a horse so the idea is war, war with the scarlet woman and the beast. He shall overcome our enemies, but the worst can be within: ego, pride, avarice. Much of what is called the trumpet and seal judgments are mankind fighting ourselves.

The beast she sits upon had seven heads and ten horns as does the beast from the sea. The battle outcome here is different than with the saints. The Lamb overcomes whereas the saints are conquored by the beast. Notice here that the Lamb is over the saints and the Scarlet Woman over the Beast. In this cosmic battle the leaders square off (Lamb against the Scarlet Woman). If we ever think we can win against evil on our own strength then we deceive ourselves.

Let’s go back and pick up how this final cosmic battle unfolds. First the beast overcomes the saints but when the Lamb and his redeemed of the 12 tribes gets involved they overcome the beast. There is more detail but I am trying to do an abbreviated version here.

Forces of evil::
Rev. 13:7:: (The beast from the sea) was able to make war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation

The beast from the sea overcomes the saints for a time and gets all authority over peoples. Remember, no matter how hard you fight if you do not have the Lord on your side, evil prevails. We can lose authority over evil if we focus only on carnal warfare. We do not battle against flesh and blood and we never should forget that.

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. (Eph 6:12)

We can see actual warfare with guns and bullets but it can also represent human nature.

Col. 2:21-23:: Touch not; taste not; handle not; Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines of men?
Which things have indeed a shew of wisdom in will worship, and humility, and neglecting of the body: not in any honour to the satisfying of the flesh.

Did you hear that? When we battle with our own willpower we do not satisfy the flesh. We need supernatural strength.

Overcoming people::
Rev. 15:2:: I saw something like a sea of glass mingled with fire, and those who have the victory (overcoming) over the beast, over his image and over his mark and over the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass, having harps of God.

Rev. 21:7:: He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son.

The sea of glass mixed with fire represents the waters above the firmament in the heavenlies. The sands of the seashore melt into molten glass as the heat of battle consumes earthly things before the LORD. The fire of God burns up the chaff and the wheat is stored into barns (Matt. 3:12, Luke 3:17) yet the heavens and the earth … are reserved for fire (2 Pet. 3:7). When we are wheat the Lord stores us in barns. It is a saving principle. Being an overcomer means being spared judgement just like the churches in Smyrna and Philadelphia. Be the overcomer. Rise above the flesh and find power within.

— Our walls come tumbling down when enemies encircle us

As another example of walls broken down … on the day when Joshua and the children of Israel overtook Jericho the walls had actually collapsed owing to a miracle of God. In the story in Jericho in Joshua chapter 6 we see the children of Israel marching around the city once for 6 days and 7 times on the seventh day. The priests blew the 7 trumpets (rams horns) each day but on the seventh they marched around the city seven times and after blowing the horns the people gave a large shout.

The symbology regarding the fall of Jericho is clear. The horns announce the coming of the LORD and in this case it is a call to battle. Seven is a number of perfection like the seven fold spirit of the LORD.

Spiritually the example of Jericho shows us how to attack a fortified enemy city. First, we listen to what God says. If he says be silent and follow directions we do so. If he says march seven times as much on the seventh day and then give a shout of praise, we do that. The key is listening closely and figuring out what God wants. Things he has to say don’t always make sense in the natural.

God is always known to have lived in the temple before Christ’s resurrection but lives in the human heart post resurrection.

If God seems to pull away from you he is always eager to return after an allotted time. The fact that the Second Temple was finished well before the gates and walls shows us that rebuilding our temple is his first priority. We see in the story of the prodigal son, after the son came to his senses he returned to the father who welcomed him back with open arms. Rebuilding our self-esteem and our character is something God considers important. Some will quote the verse ‘God will never leave you or forsake you’ (Heb. 13:15). This promise was first given in Deut. 31:6. Obviously, it appeared that God abandoned Israel with the Babylonian captivity, but this is not entirely true. Daniel was one that had an extra-ordinary spirit in Bablylon (Dan. 6:3). God lives in his holy men and women despite exile. Spiritual exile is the more potent form of exile.

In the parable of the prodigal son the father says ‘for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found’. Certainly spiritual death and being lost is the implication here. That does not mean that the Father completely forgot about his son and lost all hope of him ever returning. Sometimes we can think that God has forgotten about us when the real culprit here is self. It was the son who ran away and became lost, and lived a riotous life. In terms of Israel, Jerusalem had already pulled away from God in practice well before the Babylonian captivity.

In Romans 8:38-39 Apostle Paul says ‘For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.’ The key take-away here is created thing. That is all of creation to include angels and demons. But we can still walk away. That is called free choice. Money and fame called away the prodigal son. Be careful it does not woo you away too.

Yet rebuilding the temple did take some time. Likewise rebuilding our spiritual temple once destroyed can take time. This is not that God is slow in his promises but we may have to overcome obstacles. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance (2 Pet. 3:9).

Hebrews speaks about those that have fallen away:
Heb. 6:4-5:: For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame.

I have personally seen the effects of falling away in regards to those that dabble in new age things and witchcraft and drugs. This stuff defiles the soul and makes your temple uninhabitable by God in the Spirit. Only God can restore a soul that has turned reprobate.

It took Nehemiah took another 70 years to go to Jerusalem after the temple was rebuilt. This delay represents what can happen in our lives when we come back to Christ but are still lacking in certain spiritual disciplines. An unguarded heart leaves you open to further spiritual attack.

Many times emotions cloud our spiritual connection. Emotions can be positive or negative. Works of the flesh are many times emotional: hatred, contentions, jealousies, envy, etc…

— Nehemiah and guarding as we build walls

Zerubbabel led the first wave of Jews returning from captivity in Babylon back to Judah around 527 BC. This was followed maybe 80 years later by Ezra the priest arriving in Jerusalem. The second temple took about 20 years to rebuild and was finished around 517 BC (about 70 years after being destroyed), some sources say it was done in as little as six years. However, Nehemiah does not return to Jerusalem until about 445 BC, over 90 years after the edict from Cyrus the Great allowing for return and 140 years after the temple was destroyed.

As example of walls that are too weak or in a state of disrepair consider the situation in Jerusalem before Nehemiah arrived. Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites heard that the walls of Jerusalem were being restored and the gaps were beginning to be closed, that they became very angry and all of them conspired together to come and attack Jerusalem and create confusion. (Neh. 4:7). Sanballat was of Samaria and Tobiah of Jordan. Sometimes we see the same thing today with the Palestinians and Arabs. When Israel tries to defend itself with better defenses the armies of their enemies become enraged and try to splinter any alliances made and cause confusion.

Some of the violence on the temple mount in recent years has been confusing, with one report saying almost the opposite of another report. Israeli Jews are many times pitted against Israeli Muslim and Druse in an attempt to divide. The Arabs have their news and Israel their version.

Any time the Lord begins a restoration project to build walls of protection the enemies seeds in confusion and attacks. Many times self is our worst actual enemy. At other times it can be ungodly friendships and relationships which might need breaking (at least temporarily).

Israel has many walls today but walls are many times more than physical. Spiritually and socially we build up many walls of hatred and antagonism and misinformation. Bridge building is a term used to try to bring people together. Dialogue is key to any such effort. The Abraham Accords have done much to bring together countries in the region since it’s inception in August, 2020.

Neh. 1:3-4 And they (men of Judah) said to me, “The survivors who are left from the captivity in the province are there in great distress and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire.”

So it was, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven.

Broken down walls of protection are a great impediment to protection. There is also the idea of burt up gates. Remember, gates keep things out but also allow in things that need transit. Things like food, water, commercial products, and people often enter and exit thru gates. For us lack of guarding our eyes and ears opens us up to spiritual attack. Similarily people nations need walls and gates to protect us from intrusion and invasion. People might also attack us, like old ungodly relationships and behaviors.

Gates have traditionally been meeting places and provide access through walls. Many times elders and priests would judge at city gates. In Lam 5:14 it says that the elders have left the city gate. Having no gates or keeping them open too much can result in lack of wisdom and counsel. Judgement is left by the wayside.

God needs intercessors that will stand in the gap and declare God’s will upon this Earth. This can and often does include weeping and mourning. Just as Hannah and Hezekiah wept over their situations and the Lord heard them, likewise Nehemiah wept over the condition of Jerusalem – the walls and gates in particular.

Today there are many walls around Jerusalem. I have visited the Walled Off Hotel near Bethlehem, Israel. The hotel is next to a wall with all sorts of graphic depictions, what one might call graphitti. The point is there are many walls in and around Jerusalem these days. Walls tend to keep Palestinians out, in particular those considering harm or terrorism. At the time of Nehemiah walls were necessary to protect the inhabitants from attack by pagan tribes.

Prov. 25:28 says ‘Whoever has no rule over his own spirit Is like a city broken down, without walls’. If we come to the Lord yet have no spiritual walls we might have major issues like a tempor, certain vices, and lack of restraint.

I know a man whom I shall call Brad. He is brilliant in many ways but is open to almost every sort of doctrine and teaching that exists. He has no walls, no restraint, no control. This can make one unstable and mentally handicapped. When challenged, escalation is the result.

Once walls are built and gates restored the city can be brought back to full vitality.

Prophet Jeremiah said it this way:
Jer. 7:33:: I will cause to cease from the cities of Judah and from the streets of Jerusalem the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride. For the land shall be desolate.

There was also a promise of Jeremiah that these joyous sounds would once again return:

Jer. 33:10:: Thus says the LORD: ‘Again there shall be heard in this place—of which you say, “It is desolate, without man and without beast”—in the cities of Judah, in the streets of Jerusalem that are desolate, without man and without inhabitant and without beast..

It took Nehemiah about 52 days to complete the walls but almost 20 years to build the temple due to constant interruptions. Also note that is was probably 60 years before Nehemiah that Ezra the priest arrived to start teaching the people Torah. It is interesting that it took over a generation to teach correct living before walls got rebuilt. The process of getting rid of bad habits and beliefs can take a long time, maybe not even being complete during a generation.

Spiritually this process can take a lifetime. We get saved (temple restored), learn godly living (Torah explained). and get our personal walls rebuilt (Jerusalem walls rebuilt). Some want to say it all happend in an instant. That is often called inherited or imputed righteousness. Progessive sanctification takes place as we learn to live godly. Walls should be built up the whole time we are progressing from new birth to sanctification but for some it might never be learnt. That is why it is so important to pass on godly principles to the next generation. Chances are good if friendships between Jews and Palestinians get built it could take a whole generation.

— Walls of protection or walls of isolation?

As example of walls that are too weak or in a state of disrepair consider the situation in Jerusalem before Nehemiah arrived.

Now it happened, when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites heard that the walls of Jerusalem were being restored and the gaps were beginning to be closed, that they became very angry and all of them conspired together to come and attack Jerusalem and create confusion. (Neh. 4:7-8).

Sanballat was of Samaria and Tobiah of Jordan. This is almost the same play book today. It is the Arabs of the West Bank, Jordan, and Syria that cause the most problems for the Jews. We call them Palestinians.

When Israel tries to defend herself with better defenses the armies of their enemies become enraged and try to splinter any alliances made and cause confusion. This is one reason the Al Aqsa flood began October 7th, 2023. The Abraham Accords got put on pause up until today. It is an old tactic of enemies and of Satan too. Some of the violence on the temple mount in recent years has been confusing, with one report saying almost the opposite of another report. Israeli Jews are many times pitted against Israeli Muslim and Druse in an attempt to divide. Israel has many walls today but walls are many times more than physical.

Spiritually and socially we build up many walls of hatred and antagonism and misinformation. Bridge building is a term used to try to bring people together. Dialogue is key to any such effort. The Abraham Accords have done much to bring together countries in the region since it’s inception in August, 2020.

So what do walls and gates represent for the Christian? In one’s own spiritual life we have walls that protect us against evil and gates where evil can penetrate. When our walls are broken down evil penetrates. The whole idea of safeguarding our city against evil is akin to not allowing Satan to come in and attack.

Many times it takes teamwork or the help of a friend to rebuild our walls just like in Nehemiah one built, one stood at guard. We must always be on guard against the wiles of evil forces. Ephesians chapter 6 encourages us to put on the whole armor of God. Spiritual armor around our bodies is akin to the walls around a city. Both protect against attack.

Neh. 4:17:: Those who built on the wall, and those who carried burdens, loaded themselves so that with one hand they worked at construction, and with the other held a weapon.

Did you not know that building a wall requires teamwork? The last part of that word is WORK. Yes, it requires expenditure of time and energy to build up walls. Satan attacks wherever and whenever he sees a vulnerability. So the job of those who build, those who carry burdens, and those that guard all work together. We must work at repairing the breach and what has fallen down. This fall can affect our reputation, our livelihood, and our spirit. The bible says pride comes before a fall (Prov. 16:18). Some things should be lost but many things are beneficial and needed. We must bear each other’s burdens and pray often (Gal. 6:2). We must stay vigilant to keep each other protected because Satan prowls around like a roaring lion seeking whom he might devour (1 Pet. 5:8).

There is also an opposite affect when we have walls built around us that keeps us from being helped. This is when someone tries to help us and all we can do is keep ourselves isolated and not let anybody or anything in. This can be due to past hurts and current fears. Sometimes it is easier to keep our walls up than take a chance of being hurt again.

There are also gates around the city that need rebuilding. The gates are what lets good things in but can also be an access way for evil, especially when we are not on guard. There is a childrens song that has two verses that go like this:

1 Oh, be careful, little eyes, what you see,
Oh, be careful, little eyes, what you see.
There’s a Father up above looking down in tender love,
Oh, be careful, little eyes, what you see.
2 Oh, be careful, little ears, what you hear,
Oh, be careful, little ears, what you hear.
There’s a Father up above looking down in tender love,
Oh, be careful, little ears, what you hear.

So eyes and ears are two gateways whereby evil can defile our consciousness. Ephesians 1:18 speaks about the eyes of our heart or eyes of understanding. Go back and read what he says about his power and explosive strength toward us who understand the deeper things of God.

Christ said he is the gate of the sheep fold. He said all them that came before are theives and robbers but the sheep did not hear them (John 10:7-8).

We can ask this simple quesiton then. Why did the sheep not hear them before? Is it because they are deaf? No. They were not listening because they were not interested. Reading on in John, Christ says…

I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly (John 10:9-10).

The door Christ is speaking about is the door to your heart. It is the same as a gate to the city which controls access to the many. If Christ is in your heart then your will and emotions will be in proper alignment to allow his thoughts, his ways, into your heart. Thieves can likewise get into your heart and steal your money, kill your dreams, and destroy what good you are building in your own kingdom. The bottom line is if you let in the wrong person or the wrong ideology you can get greatly harmed. Much of this harm is then within, not from without.

Can you think of any other gates? What about ungody relationships? I have sometimes heard this called ungodly soul ties. Whether this relationship is plutonic or sexual, the company you keep affects you. Apostle Paul said bad company corrupts good character (1 Cor. 15:33). 1 Cor. chapter 6 talks about one having sex with a prostitute. They become one flesh during this union. The problem here is the body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. So in essence you are letting a prostitue or a very ungodly person into your temple. This leads to defilement not only in body but in your spirit. Many prostitutes have ungodly belief systems. Have you not heard the phrase ‘pussy whipped’? Prophets Ezekial and Jeremiah had visions of much lewdness and idolotry in the temple. Ezekial sees the spirit of the Lord leaving the temple (Ez. 10-12). So be careful, God can only stand so much uncleanliness in his temple before he leaves. This is called a reprobate heart and described at the end of the first chapter of Romans.

Obviously there are many things I can say about covenant. In the bible there are seven main covenants: Adamic, Noahic, Abrahamic, Palestinian, Mosaic, Davidic, and New. Sometimes the Palestinian Covenant is not listed and the New Covenant and an Everlasting Covenant added. This teaching is not specifically on covenants but relationship so I won’t go into details and differences between teachings. What I will do here is delve into the concept of covenants and what are our commitments and that of God’s in our relationship with God.

— What is covenant?

At the basis of this word is agreement, promise, even a commitment. It should be formal, like in writing, stipulating the terms and conditions of this agreement. The covenant is binding so long as each party fulfills their commitments. In normal civil law there are penalties imposed for breaking this covenant. For instance, if you sign a lease with a landlord there are certain stipulations imposed upon both the tenant and landlord. Penalties imposed for breaking commitments can be both financial and legal. When covenants are not in writing people used to swear to fulfill their parts of the agreement. Problems arise, however, when one remembers things differently or forgets or ignores part of the covenant. In Genesis 16 we see God himself swearing to uphold his end of the Abrahamic covenant. Interpretation of covenants, however, can vary greatly. For instance did the promise to Abraham to make his descendants as numerous as the stars of heaven and the sands of the seashore only include the Jews or others as well?

— What our our responsibilities to uphold a covenant?

The marriage covenant is another type of covenant. It exemplifies a commitment between a man and a woman. Traditionally the vows include something like ‘to love, honor, and cherish a partner for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part’. Many have departed from this commitment over the centuries. The idea of adding ‘so help me God’ or similar such phrases invokes the idea of a spiritual commitment before God. A binding agent in any covenant could be swearing to an oath, shedding of blood, or a symbolic even such as sharing a meal. Many times (written) covenants get sealed or perhaps even ‘sealed with a kiss’ although that is less common. For a kiss can also be a mark of betrayal like what Judas did to Christ.

— What God has bound himself to in covenant?

Listen to these words spoken by the Angel of the LORD:
Gen. 22:15-16:: the Angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time out of heaven and said: “By Myself I have sworn, says the LORD, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son

In Hebrews we read ‘God made a promise to Abraham, because He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself’ (Heb. 6:13). Normally men swear by the greater which is the case of God there is none.

Heb 6:17-18:: God, determining to show more abundantly to the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel, confirmed it by an oath, that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie

Immutable means unchangeable. The two things here are the promise confirmed by an oath. The promise is to bless 1) bless Abraham, 2) make his descendant numerous, 3) make his descendents possess the gates of the city, and 4) bless the whole world through his seed (offspring). The oath is God swearing by himself.

So if the two unchangeable things are the promise and the oath what does that say about lying?

We also read
God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent.
Has He said, and will He not do? Has He spoken, and will He not make it good? (Num. 23:19)

This verse leaves open the idea of the Son of Man having to repent. Repent at it’s core is not necessarily lying. It could be changing one’s mind or changing one’s course.

We read in the gospel of Luke ‘it came to pass, when the time had come for Him to be received up, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem’ (Luke 9:51). So where was he heading before heading toward Jerusalem?

Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people (Matt. 9:35)

He went around all of Israel before setting his face toward Jerusalem. So by the broadest sent he changed his course when the time for him to be delivered up drew near.

These twelve Jesus sent out and commanded them, saying: “Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel (Matt. 10:5-6).

Yet time changes things. Christ himself met the woman at the well in Samaria. Paul was sent specifically to the Gentiles. Even under the old covenant foreigners like Jethro, Rehab and Ruth were instrumental in Israel’s history.
To Ananias in Damascus the holy vision spoke to him ‘Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel’ (Acts 9:15). In Antioch Paul spoke to the gentiles quoting Isaiah: I have set you as a light to the Gentiles, that you should be for salvation to the ends of the earth.’ ”[Is. 49:6].

But never remember, the overall context of Isaiah 49 is to bring Jacob back unto himself. Isaiah 49:8 says ‘I will preserve You and give You As a covenant to the people, To restore the earth, To cause them to inherit the desolate heritages’

So even the preservation of Israel over the centuries, despite the many pogroms and the hollocaust was to show his covenant to all peoples. It is a witness to God’s unfailing commitment to all of the sons of Jacob. It may have always been God’s design to bring in the Gentiles yet it came to fruition under the ministry of Apostle Paul, comissioned on the road to Damascus.

— Covenant makers: God unto Abraham

When it comes to covenant the first person we usually think of is Abraham. In Genesis 15 Abraham brought out five animals and cut in two the heifer, a goat, and a ram. The animals were three years old signifying a triune god and three days in the grave. After the sun went down a smoking oven and a burning torch passed between these piece. God there made a covenant with Abraham. To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the River Euphrates. It was unconditional. Abram had already passed the test by leaving the land of his father. Brethren and fathers, listen: The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Haran (Acts 7:2). The ceremony in Genesis 15 happened after Abram left Mesopotamia and after he left Haran when his father died there. There was yet a still big test Abram was to undergo yet the LORD God had already promised Abram his inheritance. Yet Abram was obedient in his life. I suggest to you that even the birth of Ishmael to Hagar was in obedience to Abram’s descendants inheriting the whole land between the rivers. So while God made an unconditional promise to Abramham there was a sign of circumcision given unto him:

This is My covenant which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you: Every male child among you shall be circumcised; and you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between Me and you (Gen. 17:10-11). God further explains his covenant would only follow Isaac even though Ishmael and his descendants also followed the practice of circumcision. God can further refine and specify covenant, especially when we do not fully grasp his plans.

When we get to chapter 22 of Genesis the question I have is this. What would have happened if Abraham was unwilling to sacrifice his son? The word says in Genesis 22:2 that Isaac was his only son. The word hebrew word here is ‘ben’ and not ‘yeled’. For yeled also means son but that is from the root word yalad which means to beget, to bear forth. Hagar begat (yalad) Ishmael. Sarah was Abraham’s wife. Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children (yalad).

For Abraham and Sarah were of one flesh and only they could beget a son. We can have many sons and daughters but when one begets it is through our wife, not a concubine. It was God’s plan ‘C’ for Eliezar was to to be Abraham’s heir and Ishmael was place ‘B’ concocted by Abram and Sarai. Ishmael was from Abram’s body but Sarah did not beget him so it was his son (bēn) but thine only (yāḥîḏ) was Isaac. Ishmael was not a yeled unto Abraham and Sarah.

I suggest to you that passing the test of sacrificing Isaac on Mount Mariah was not a condition of the covenant of God with Abraham. If anything, it was circumcision that was the requirement for Abraham and his descendants. For this was a sign of the covenant.

Gen. 21:12-13:: in Isaac your seed (zera) shall be called. Yet I will also make a nation of the son of the bondwoman, because he is your seed (zera) We read in Genesis 22:18 ‘in your seed (zera) all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice. This blessing is for all of Abraham’s descendants, even the ones birthed through Ishmael, for he was also from Abraham’s seed, it was just not the seed that was called to carry on the covenant (Isaac).

Would the blessing given to all of Abraham’s seed (including Ishmael) have been lost in this test upon Mount Moriah? Up until then Abraham had obeyed the voice of the LORD but this was the ultimate test to bless all of Abraham’s seed.

Does obedience flow to the next generation to maintain covenant? Circumcision was the sign of the covenant. Obedience is what sealed it for his descendants.

Abraham’s descendants would have the inheritance so what happens if his descendants break the covenant of circumcision. Is this a covenant for both descendants of Isaac and Ishmael?

— Covenant breakers: Between Abraham and Abimelech’s descendants

Abraham took sheep and oxen and gave them to Abimelech, and the two of them made a covenant (Gen. 21:27). We find another Abimelech in Genesis 26, possibly a son who also lived in Gerar. Sources I have seen suggest 75 years between the two Abimelech’s. Actually abi means father and melech king so together Abimelech means my father is king: it is a title more than a name. What is also interesting is that Philcol was commander of Abimelech’s army in both accounts so the two incidents could easly be confused or at the very least related.

Abraham took sheep and oxen and gave them to (the first) Abimelech, and the two of them made a covenant (Gen. 21:27). Then seven ewe lambs were sent to Abimelech as a witness that I have dug this well (Gen. 21:30). The place was then called Beershiva which means Well of the Oath or Well of the Seven.

What is interesting is that Abraham lied about his wife Sarah being his sister. Isaac does the same thing, he lies to the king of Gerar about Rebekkah being his sister for she was beautiful as was Sarah. Deja vu? Sounds like a generational lie to me.

In Genesis 26:3-4 there is a re-iteration of the covenant God made with Abraham, this time to Isaac. Isaac’s servants also quibble over water rights. Isaac dug again the wells of water which they had dug in the days of Abraham his father, for the Philistines had stopped them up after the death of Abraham. He called them by the names which his father had called them. (Gen. 26:18). There were three wells which Isaac’s servants dug called Esek, Sitnah, and Rehoboth. The fourth well dug was called Shebah and it was in Beershiva.

I suggest to you some, if not all, of the wells Isaac’s servants dug were what Abraham originally dug and were stopped up by the Philisteans. The witness of the seven ewe lambs had been forgotten. The new generation ignored what was honored during their parent’s lifetime. Covenant broken in the subsequent generation. If you remember what happened to the children of Israel in Egypt. The new Pharoh remembered none of the promises of his father for the good done unto Joseph and his family. Likewise, many arab peoples forget the covenant given to Abraham and their part, along with Israel, to this covenant.

So in this day of broken covenent never forget God’s commitment to the Jewish people. They are also a light to the nations just as circumcision was a sign of covenant to the descendants of Abraham.

Sources:
https://www.gotquestions.org/Bible-covenants.html
https://hermeneutics.stackexchange.com/questions/48774/what-are-the-two-unchangeable-things-referred-to-in-hebrews-618
https://bam.sites.uiowa.edu/RTL/yalad