Purification Fires Come Before Gold Shines Bright and Beautiful - Relfecting God's Glory

Today's reading comes from Malachi 3:1-4:6; Revelation 22:1-21; Psalm 150:1-6; and Proverbs 31:25-31


“I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the LORD Almighty.  But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap.  He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness ...  Malachi 3:1-3


I feel the messenger Malachi is  speaking of is Jesus.  For it is the blood of Jesus that purifies us like the refiner's fires do to make gold and silver pure.  The refining fires he uses are the situations / obstacles He places on our path.  We need to find a way to get past them - whether it be over, under, around or through - before we can make progress down the road we are traveling.  These obstacles  may be people, or things he is using to bring us to another milestone in our relationship with Him.  You know we may be obstacles on someone elses path, too.


He uses people to teardown our defenses - the walls we build around our hearts - so that He can strengthen the connection we have to Him through His Spirit.  He uses some people to teach us that loving is good and that we all need to love and be loved.  He also uses people to teach us it is OK to trust - to learn who can be trusted and just how much AND who cannot be trusted. 


I said that He also uses things as obstacles too.  Places we need to conquor  - either by leaving them or by traveling to them, belongings we need to rid ourselves of because we are holding onto the past, feeelings we harbor - either positive or negative - that are hindering our growth, or maybe even the chosen profession we are working in - or at. 


Did you know that you could be working at something and not actually be a part of it?  I work at a call center helping customers with the problems they may be having on their accounts.  But I learned last night that I don't actually work in that place.  I don't really belong there.  But I still need to work at this job until I both conqour it and am released from it.  God has placed me there for a purpose, and that purpose is not complete - yet!  He has allowed me to help many people there, and I have learned much through my sojuorn, but it is not quit over.  Someone still has something to learn by my being there - and it may or may not be me.


But the pathway does become clear once again - at least for a time - and we can see right into the throne room of our Savior and King.  Rev 22:1-4a says;
Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.  No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him.  They will see his face ...


Yesterday's passage said that the Bride - the church of Christ - IS the New Jerusalem, right?    So, if we are this Spiritual City that God dwells in, this passage speaks of our hearts when He has purified them - washed them clean with His blood - in preparation on our eternal home with Him.  The water of life - the Holy Spirit of God - runs freely through our streets, the pathway we follow to His throne. 


This throne is within us if we have accepted Him and allowed him access to live within us.   we have to open the door of our heart and allow Him full and total access.  Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent.  Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.  Revelation 3:19-20 


Eating with someone is the most basic form of communion.  Communion, sweet fellowship, with a person can be found is this sharing of a meal together.  It is a time of peace where we give our bodies and our souls that which sustains them, food and the presence of another.  Jesus longs to be that other that you commune with and the meal you would share with Him may not be meat and drink, but His words - His very Spirit - coming to life within your spirit.  This time of communion with Jesus produces the fruit that are growing on the tree of LIFE within our hearts and lives.  The very Fruit God gives is Love, Joy, Peace / Peacefulness, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-control.  These fruit will be growing year-round, they will always be available to us in abundance!  and when we look in the mirror we will behold our faces changing to be an exact likeness of Jesus, for He dwells fully within us.  We will SEE His face in ours.


When this preparation comes to you - while you are going through it, take time to give your praises unto Him for the progress He is making in you - in you very heart, soul and mind.  Let Him know you are thankful for ALL He has given you - even the refining fires.  Psalm 150 answers all those questions that every good investigator asks.  IT tells us Who, how, where, and why we are to give unto God.  It also tells us the most important thing - the What - to give; we are to give Him all of our praise!


I think I will do a little creative re-writing on this Psalm.  So, here goes!

Praise The Lord - Every Body!

Praise Him in the Sanctuary of your very Heart!

Praise Him for all of His wonderful acts of Creativity and his Mighty Power!

Praise Him for every great thing He has done in you,

through you and for you!

Praise Him with the fanfare of the Trumpets!

Praise Him with Keyboards of all types,

Clarinets, Flutes, Saxes, and Bagpipes!

Praise Him with all Percussion Instruments

and Clapping Hands!

Praise Him with all of your Movements and Dancing!

Praise Him with every kind of Stringed Instruments!

Praise Him with the tinkling of the castanets,

The crash of cymbals and the resounding sounds of the Gong!

Let all creatures which breathe

Praise the Lord with every fiber of their being!

Praise Ye The LORD!

As we close out 2010 and look forward to the New Things God is going to do in and for us in 2011,

Remember ALWAYS the words of this Psalm and

'Praise Ye The LORD!'

The End of the Year Brings Preparations for New Challenges in the New Year.

This week the Lord has told me to renew the journaling I used to do during my quiet moments with Him.  I thougth to buy a new journal to begin with the new year, but then I felt God leading my to do my journaling here, so that I could share His lessons to me directly with you.  I felt this was His leading for two reasons. One, so that I was making better use of both my time and my resources - not buying another journal to be written in that would be tossed in a shelf at the end of the year and most likly lost shortly thereafter.  And Two, so that those of you who read this blog would be able to see what He is doing in my as it happens - and not have to read it some months or years down the road, when it is no longer pertinent to my daily walk.  So today I start thie new daily walk with Jesus and with all of you!  I am reading from the NIV One Year Bible

If you want to read through the Bible with me in the new year I will list the Pasages here each day.  Today's Reading is from Malachi 1:1-2:17, Revelation 21:1-27, Psalm 149:1-9 and Proverbs 31:10-24

In Malachi's passage God is repremanding Israel for her lack of obedience and her total disregard of His law.  In 2:1 He tells Israel; "And now, you priests, this warning is for you.  If you do not listen, and if you do not resolve to honor my name,” says the LORD Almighty, “I will send a curse on you, and I will curse your blessings. Yes, I have already cursed them, because you have not resolved to honor me."

As New Testament Believers, We don't need a priest to talk to God for us, so I feel this rebuke is for us.  We fall far short of the calling He has placed on our lives in the same ways Israel did here.  But when Jesus took our punishment on Calvary, He paid our debt - He took our curse on Himself.  It proclaimed it completed on the cross as well as in our passage in Revelation 21:6-7; He said to me: "It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life.  Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children ..." 

But we still need to grow as children into the Beautiful Bride He has chosen.  He sees us as the wife of noble character He describes in Proberbs 31:10-24.  His Bride should be all of this and so much more.  Look at what He says we are worth to Him in verses 10-11; A wife of noble character who can find?  She is worth far more than rubies.  Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value.

But we are not quite there yet.  In the new year we will be preparing to take our place as the Bride, so that when Christ returns we will look just like He descirbed us in Proverbs and also in Revelation 21: 9-14; One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.”  And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.  It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal.  It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel.  There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west.  The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

The Gates of Christ's Church are the teachings of the Prophets of the Old Covenant.  They come from historic beginnings of God's Chosen People and the lessons He taught them through those who honored Him down through the ages.  We enter into relationship with Christ in the same manner that they did - through the very Gates they used; through the leading and drawing of the Holy Spirit.

Likewise the Foundations of Christ's Church are the Apostles of the New Covenant.  A covenant that was sealed with the Blood of God's perfect Lamb - Jesus Christ.  These men were taught by Jesus in the flesh - walking side by side with them - as they walked through their not os ordinary lives.  Not ordinary by men's views, not God's.  By learning their lessons directly from Jesus, they had first hand knowledge of how He expected them to handle all of life's situations - th good, the bad AND the ugly!  Who better to stand our relationship with Christ on?  But their teachings were just the foundations - the milk of a new babe in Christ, as it were.  God expects us to look to them for examples and guidelines as we spread our wings in this new life of holiness in His Spirit; but as we grow into the men and women Christ is calling us to be we need to take our focus of the men of the Bible and focus on the One who they were focused on - the giver of the very words these men wrote for us - Jesus.

Yes, Jesus!  You can find Him in the writings of the Old Testament Prophets and in those of the New Testament Apostles; and you can hear Him speak directly into your hearts, minds and lives.  Both through these written words from History and directly into your very ears / hearts and minds.  Listen.  Listen very closley, hear Him calling your name?  Then follow His commands for you - He can never lead you astray.  Never Will!

I rend to hear Him best in the music - not necessarilly the words of the songs, but the chords that He strumbs on my heart as I listen to the notes He plays in my heart and mind.  Yes, when I am following close after Jesus, I hear music that is not clearly audible to those around me.  It keeps me focused on My Lord and King and the pathway He has chosen for me to walk.

Maybe He has songs he is trying to share with you, listen...listen very closely and carefully.  It will swell in you heart and lift your soul rigt up into the heavenly places to sit at the feet of Jesus - as Mary did when He walked among men - to learn all that He has for you and that special place He has reserved for you quiet moments alone with Him!

Let us work hard in our time of preparation so that we may be this beautiful Bride for Jesus!

“Happy Halloween?”

Please be advised that the opinions stated in this article are my own and may not be held by my church, Bread of Life Christian Fellowship, any of its staff or other members.

Thanks! Leigh

It is almost that time of year again when those around us will begin wearing costumes and spouting the acceptible phrases of the season ... Yes, that's right it is the beginning of  the holiday season and Halloween is almost here; and  I feel it is time to share this article with you all once again.

Why is it that people are afraid to use the words, “Merry Christmas” on the phone or in public, but these very same people have no problem uttering the phrase; “Happy Halloween”? It seems to me that it should be just as “un-pc” to utter this religious holiday rhetoric as it is for a Christian holiday. But I guess it’s all in the name of the God or god served.


Happy Chanukah, Merry Christmas, and Happy Easter are all meant to honor the true and living God. But they are all considered ‘politically incorrect’ to voice in any type of public forum or arena. But if you want to utter any type of greeting in honor of the “holy” days of any other god or deity, it is totally OK.


It is just as offensive to me, and many other Christians, to have people, customers and others, end their conversation with “Happy Halloween” as it is for those who oppose our spouting any type of Christian greeting. Both greetings are “religious” in their origins and scope.


True, many people have no concept that Halloween is actually a religious holiday; and many of those who do know, do not care. They feel we who are offended by the phrase “Happy Halloween” are being ‘nit picky’ or ‘overly sensitive’ on this issue. But I think if we are to be tolerant of their fights to religious freedom and practices, they should have to be just as tolerant and considerate of ours, as well.


Each time I mention that I don’t celebrate Halloween I get the weirdest looks and comments. I try to keep any explanation short – usually just mention that we have Creation Celebration instead; to give our children a Christian Alternative to this very Pagan, and some feel satanic, holiday. Those who hold the opinion that this holiday is satanic may very well be correct in the broader scope of things. As anything that doesn’t give honor and glory to Jesus as “King of King’s” and “Lord of Lord’s” is in essence giving that honor to something or someone else – namely Satan.

In Mark 9:39-40, NIV it says; "Teacher," said John, "we saw a man driving out demons in your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us."

“Do not stop him,” Jesus said. “No one who does a miracle in My name can in the next moment say anything bad about Me, for whoever is not against us is for us …”


So It stands to reason that the reverse is also true – if a person is not for Christ, he is against Him, or for HIS adversary, the devil. (If a+b=c; then c-b=a, both ARE true.)


Satan comes like an ‘angel of light’ as we find in II Cor 11:13-15; “For such [are] false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore [it is] no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.”


And this ‘minister’ in ‘angel’ garb “as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour …” as Peter states in I Pet 5:9.  So it is very important that we weigh all things against the word of God before we start spouting “seemingly innocent” greetings, or participating in any so called ‘harmless’ activities offered by those around us who may not be as well informed as they should be.

Please prayerfully consider what I have written before adopting it as your own or sharing it with others.

Thanks for allowing me to voice my opinion in this manner!

Leigh

Loving Your Wife As Christ loves The Church

While walking through the halls of my job earlier this week I had a chance to stop and speak to another Christian Sister and to share with her a prayer request or two.  She in turn shared her heart with me.  She spoke of how her daughter and son-in-law had recently been struggling to hold their marriage together and of the words of wisdom she was able to speak into their marriage to them both; but mostly to her son-in-law.  And thus began the Lord’s gentle leading for this new area of life He wanted me to look into.  So that I might share my lessons learned, and the wisdom of others, with those who need what we can glean from them – the Husbands and Fathers among us who are striving to do as Jesus commanded us in the scripture and to teach these lessons to their sons so that they may be passed down to the generations yet to come.  The lessons of which I speak will be related to the message Paul shared long ago when he penned the verse; ‘Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;’ Ephesians 5:25.


And so today I would like to begin a conversation on the practical applications of how this would look in our modern world.  And to remind us that our world really hasn’t changed as much down through the ages as we have been led to believe – or should I say as we have been ‘brain washed’ into thinking is fact and is actually a work of pure fiction.  This conversation is not just for the men in the family of God, it is open to all who would participate with, and learn from, what is shared.


Even with all of the lies out there telling women they can do anything a man can and do it, and that we can do so as well or better than he and telling men that they need to show their 'femine-side', there remains a ring of truth to the phrase that was once common amongst our men.  That being the women were [are] the fairer sex, the gentle half of the whole that is needed if a marriage, Christian or non-Christian, is to work well and last for a lifetime.  For very few marriages, both in the church and outside, last for more than a few years before they start to go down hill and eventually to disintegrate into the divorce courts.


As I have said this is to be the start of a conversation.  With that said, I will be sharing in this forum the insights of those around us who have ‘loved for a lifetime’ and are willing to share bits of their wisdom with us as we tackle this area of life.  I will be providing biblical tidbits throughout this conversation so that we can keep our message centered on Jesus, as He is to be the rock on which our whole life is to be grounded - He is our 'firm foundation.'


So today we will continue where we started, in Ephesians.  The passage I want to share is 4:17-5:33, for in this passage Paul is addressing believers with a plan for living Godly lives centered in Christ’s teaching.  And I believe this to be where He would have us begin our conversation.  Here I have quoted  that selection from the NIV:


So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking.  They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts.  Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more.  You, however, did not come to know Christ that way.  Surely you heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus.  You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.  Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body.  "In your anger do not sin": Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.  He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need.  Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.  And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.  Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.  Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.  Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.  But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people.  Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving.  For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.  Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God's wrath comes on those who are disobedient.  Therefore do not be partners with them.  For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.  Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord.  Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.  For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret.  But everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for it is light that makes everything visible.  This is why it is said: "Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you."  Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.  Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord's will is.  Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.  Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs.  Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.  Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord.  For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior.  Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.  Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing] her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.  In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies.  He who loves his wife loves himself.  After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church— for we are members of his body.  "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh." This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church.  However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.


As I close today, I ask each of you to take time to read through this passage multiple times.  Try reading it daily as you begin your day, or perhaps as you end it – maybe you need to do both.  Think on the meaning of each verse so that you will be prepared to join in our conversation; for this is the reason I think Blogs were created – to be a jumping off point for conversation.  And as I too study this passage, I will add what I learn from our Lord here so that we can discuss it and share together in the ‘message’ Paul was teaching to believers so long ago, and to us today.


Until next time!

Getting Out Alive!

I read a quote while I was out this morning [May 12,2010]. It said; ‘Never take life seriously, no one ever gets out alive anyway.’ This really bugged me. I started thinking don’t they know Jesus? They have never experienced ‘true life’ if they believe this. My mind would not let me rest, or eat breakfast, until I thought this through, or wrote it through anyway. So here goes.



I once believed much like the person who created today’s topic. So I lived entirely for and in the moment. I followed the high in drugs to manage the day and get things done. Then looked for the low in other drugs and alcohol in order to find sleep – never true rest, just sleep so that today would end and perhaps tomorrow would be better; but it never was … at least not until I had hit absolute bottom and the only direction there was was up. And that pit was very deep and very, very dark!


My bottom was in a cell with 20+ other women in the Butte County Jail in 1984. I had made my first real decision in my adult life in the moment that I chose to be there. Yes I said chose, for I did indeed choose to be incarcerated on an outstanding warrant I had known about for months. I know it seems pretty sad when jail time looks to be better than the home life, and I use that term very loosely, that I had. But it was the lesser of two evils at that particular moment in my life. But that discussion is for another day and another article. I had never taken my life, or my responsibilities, seriously – ever! But from the very first moment that I stepped into that cell I knew I had to start, right then and there. I knew if I didn’t that this was going to be just a pit stop for me on my way to eternity in hell and death. And that thought scared me more than the impending hearing and sentencing for my crimes against the state of California and the County of Butte. I was through hiding from life.


So I started looking for answers. Boy am I glad that I was raised in a Christian home and knew where they could be found. I looked for, and found, the ONLY Bible in the Women’s Detention Center of that jail. And I started reading it. I don’t know what I read, and it really doesn’t matter. I knew it was ALL God’s truth and I could believe EVERY word. What did matter was that I started to pray and really believe that God did hear my prayers and would answer them.


I didn’t pray to be released from my prison, I knew that I deserved to be there and so much worse. No my prayers were to find peace for my children for all that and all the pain I had caused them; and to find a real, true relationship with Jesus. I knew in my heart of hearts that without this real relationship I wouldn’t get out of this life, and possibly not this cell, alive. I knew I was on a collision course with death; not just physical death, but spiritual, eternal DEATH. And now I truly wanted to live.
So how do you find life when you have chased death and her companions for so long? You search for the source of life; you find Jesus. I knew from my youth that Jesus could be found in the pages of His Holy Word and in earnest prayer. So I sought Him in these places while I lived in the balance between life and death.


While I was in jail a ministry group from Honeyrock Christian Discipleship Ranch came in on Sunday evening and preformed a play in the gym. Both the men and the women were allowed to go at the same time into the gym to see what this group had to offer. For both groups to be allowed in the gym together was rare, but as this ministry group was well known to the jail staff, they knew all would be fine while the team was in charge. That Sunday afternoon in a darkened gym in the Butte County Jail I found Real Life. How, you ask? It was like this:

The ministry group presented a play about Sally and the effects the divorce of her parents had on her life from the age of three through to her adult life. It broke my heart, for there on that stage I saw the lives of my children and how my actions had shaped and formed them and their choices.
Now I was sobbing openly for the first time in many years, and not for myself! I was sobbing because Sally was my daughter, was my son. Their lives were exactly what this little girl on stage had lived and felt and believed about herself. And I was truly repentant for having caused my children to live the life that Sally had also lived there on the stage for all to see. God had shown me my nakedness for all the world to see but mostly for me to see. Looking back I know that there was between 100 and 150 men and women in that gym, but in that moment there was only Jesus and me. And I was on my knees with my face to the floor, but looking straight into the face of my God for the very first time of my life seeking to be forgiven for all that I had caused my children to experience in their short lives.
I don’t remember going back into the cell, but I do remember the ladies from the4e ministry team coming in and having Bible study with us there. They were not afraid to be in with women who were considered dangerous for they knew their safety was held secure in the arms of Jesus.
I don’t remember what was read from God’s Word that night, but I do remember giving my life to Jesus there in that cell with those beautiful ladies from Honeyrock. I also remember asking them what was a Honeyrock and how did one get to go there. One of those ladies, Vivian Myers, gave me their card with a phone number on it and told me to call when I was released from jail.  I did just that two days later.


How does all of this come from that which I quoted at the beginning of this story? It was that Sunday night, April 29,1984, that I knew for a fact that I had passed from searching for death unto seeking life – for sure and for always. I KNOW that when this life is over, I will not leave it in death, which is eternal separation from God. I have found life, and that more abundantly, In Jesus! For He said in John 10:9-10; ‘I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.’  I will LIVE forever in His presence and for His Holy and Eternal purposes.

I still try not to take life too seriously, and to enjoy it fully. But I know even if I die, yet shall I live.

‘Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?’ John 11:25So the quote that started my thinking process is false and proved so by the very words of Jesus. Believe and see that He is GOOD. Follow Him and LIVE Forever!

Nicole C. Mullen - Redeemer

We Are The Body Of Christ

Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.  Romans 12:4, 5

But now are they many members, yet but one body. And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you.  1 Corinthians 12:20, 21

The Body:
The human body has many parts visible: arms, hands, torso, legs, feet; and invisible: heart, lungs, circulatory system, digestive system, elimination system. All of these parts have very special jobs to do.

The body of Christ also has many parts – parts that are the spiritual equivalent of our human body parts. Each member of the Church performs at least one ‘body’ function, some of us more than one.

Head:
The head is where all the knowledge is stored. It does the planning and makes decisions for the body. It also houses the eyes and ears and mouth – as input devices; they take in sight, sounds, and nourishment. The mouth is also an output device – it speaks what is stored inside the head.

For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and He is the Savior of the body.  Ephesians 5:23

And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. Colossians 1:18

Christ is Wisdom and Truth. He is the Blueprint, the plan for an abundant life. He is the Way.  Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.  John 14:6

His Word is the nourishment for our spirits:

Nevertheless he left not himself without witness, in that he did good, and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness.  Acts 14:17

The Mouth speaks the Plan, spreads the Truth to those inside and outside the body – to bring in new members and to encourage the existing ones. It also speaks the words of nourishment.

The Ears hear the needs of the body and of the others in need.

Eyes see the needs.

The Feet and Legs take the body to where the needs are.

The Hands and Arms bring healing and meet the needs of those in need.

And so on.

Let’s look at a little different analogy: Christ and the Church are much like a computer networking system. Christ is the CPU and His Holy Word is the Hard Drive. Together they hold the whole of Truth, Wisdom and Knowledge.

Pastors / Teachers are the fingers on the keyboard tapping out the message stored on the Hard Drive. They are also the sound system pouring out the Word to the Congregation to encourage and edify them for ministry to those outside the body.

Evangelists are the ethernet cables taking the signal beyond the local community to the world at large.

The Congregation are the peripheral components of the system.

Writers = printers / disc burners. They produce messages sent to them from the Hard Drive through the inspiration of God’s Holy Spirit – the electrical current passing from the CPU to all the components of the network.

Singers and musicians = disc drives. They share the music that flows through the network by the power of the Spirit’s current. This in turn inspires others to closer contact to the network’s source, Our CPU – Jesus Christ.

Janitors, and other ‘unseen’ components = the mouse. You see the form and the essence of the actions they perform, but you never actually see them do their very important jobs. But if their functions were not performed it would be very noticeable in a very short time.

Each component is connected to all of the others by either seen or unseen cables or connectors. We are all interdependent upon each other and totally dependent on Christ – our CPU.

So we are all integral parts of the system; but are we doing all that we could or even should to support the other components in the system?

Are we sending the messages from our Central Processing System to those who need to hear them?

Are we taking the message beyond these four walls?

Are we printing the words He has given?

Are we singing the songs of Praise to His name to bring Him honor and glory?

Are we plugging into the currant of His Holy spirit to be revived and recharged?

Are we sending the messages back to our CPU of all the needs that we see and hear, taking our prayers to the Master?

God Says; No! My people are not properly connected to the network. They are broken and hurting. They are trying to patch up the system with bits of bubble gum and bailing wire. Even though they may be “Mac Gyver” in the natural world, in God’s Computer Network they are not the repair technician He has ordered to scan the system for necessary repairs and to complete the needed healings. And the system is broken, becoming more so day-by-day. In fact on the monitor of His system God has made the screen saver out of the error message which reads; ‘Warning, multiple network cables are disconnected. Please see your System Administrator for necessary repairs.’

So how do we find the broken connections? How do we start the healing the wounds within the body so that we can reach out to the needy on the outside? Pray.

Prayer is our lifeline to our CPU. It is also the first step in receiving the healing we need. By making our requests known to the body and praying one for another God starts healing our connections to each other and to Him. Prayer is not only a repair kit it is also a part of His diagnostic system. It opens our hearts and minds to the things of the Spirit so that He can have access to all of our hidden files, even those deeply hidden in our secret, dark, dusty closets.

And the LORD appeared to Solomon by night, and said unto him, I have heard thy prayer, and have chosen this place to myself for an house of sacrifice. If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people; If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. Now mine eyes shall be open, and mine ears attent unto the prayer that is made in this place. For now have I chosen and sanctified this house, that my name may be there forever: and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually. II Chronicles 7:12-16, KJV.

I know that these verses are talking about Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem, but Paul says in I Corinthians 6:19, ‘What? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?’ I feel this verse is also speaking about each and every one who is a component in God’s Computer Networking System. We are His people. He has chosen to call each of us His Home, the dwelling place of His Holy Spirit. His Eyes are always watching us and His Ears are listening for us to call upon Him with our prayers.

As His people we need to humble ourselves before Him, seek His face repent from our sins and turn from our wicked ways. God will always keep His promises – He always has. He never lies. He confirms these truths for us in Numbers 23:19, ‘God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? Or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?’ Knowing these truths, if we do these things from II Chronicles in earnest, from the bottom of our Heart – Believing and Trusting God; then God WILL do all that He has promised. He WILL hear from heaven. He WILL forgive our sin. And He WILL HEAL our land.
Only by repairing the many broken connections within God’s Networking System will we be a whole and vital machine prepared to perform the most complex functions He has designed us for. Then we will be able to energize all of the peripheral components and reach each soul He means to become a part of His Church – His Computer Networking System – The Body of Christ – The Lamb’s Bride.

Psalms 55: 16-18, 22; As for me, I will call upon God; and the LORD shall save me. Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice. He hath delivered my soul in peace from the battle that was against me: for there were many with me . . . Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.

James 5:13-15 says; Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.
Call upon God, seek His face, repent from your sins and be reconnected to your real power source. He will repair the network and heal our land just like He promised Solomon in II Chronicles 7:14. And The Body Will Work Well Once Again

Jesus Describes His Bride

‘… Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.’ Ephesians 5:25b-27. NIV



‘One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, "Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb." And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west. 14The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.


The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city, its gates and its walls. The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia in length, and as wide and high as it is long. He measured its wall and it was 144 cubits thick, by man's measurement, which the angel was using. The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald, the fifth sardonyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of pure gold, like transparent glass.


I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life.’ Revelation 21:9-27 NIV



Wall - Sanctified/Set apart unto the Lord, our heavenly husband. Built of Jasper - Transparent - all is visible, nothing is hidden from His view.


12 Foundations - Names of the Apostles in them.


City/Bride was formed of pure gold - Without any impurities or imperfections. Transparent - all is visible, nothing is hidden from His view. All have been refined as with fire, as pure gold in the refiner’s kettles after the slag has been scraped off of its surface.


The foundations were decorated with all kinds of precious jewels, like as of a crown. These Precious stones were a symbol of the Twelve Tribes of Israel [more precisely The Law and The Prophets]. For these are the way those of ancient times were taught about Jesus.


These jewels are also symbolic of the many crowns that are mentioned throughout the Bible that will be rewarded to us at His final coming, when He rewards all for the things we have done and the things the things we have not done. These crowns are: The Incorruptible Crown, the Crown of Rejoicing, the Crown of Righteousness, the Crown of Life, Crown of Glory and Honor, the Crowns of Gold, the Beautiful Crown, the Crown of Loving Kindness, the Crown of His Tender Mercies, the Crown of Knowledge, the Holy Crown, and the Royal Crown.


So the Foundations of the Heavenly Bride shall be the teachings of the Apostles, sprinkled with the teachings of the Law and the Prophets and decorated with the jewels of the many precious crowns that are waiting for us when we meet Jesus at His final return. They are yet to come, but here with us in effigy in the symbolism of our likeness as his bride in His final revelation to the apostle John while he was on the Isle of Papmos.




12 Gates – Had the names of the 12 tribes of Israel on them.

And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: - Bought with a great price, like the Pearl of Great Price that a man gave all that he owned to possess - Jesus is this / these Pearls. He paid the greatest price. One Pearl for all the gates.


Each gate in the Old city of Jerusalem had a specific purpose and symbolic meaning, these meanings were all fulfilled in Jesus life, death and resurrection - he paid it all and fulfilled it all, once and for ALL.


The Twelve Gates of the ancient city of Jerusalem were the Sheep Gate, The Fish Gate, The Old Gate, The Valley Gate, The Dung Gate, The Fountain Gate, The Water Gate, The Horse Gate/King’s Gate, The East Gate/Beautiful Gate/Golden Gate, The Ephraim Gate, and The Prison Gate. Here I will share how Jesus, our ‘Pearl of Greatest Price’ fills [or fulfills] all of these gates in us.

The Sheep Gate - the Gate through which the temple sacrifices were brought into the city. Jesus is the perfect lamb that was slain for the sins of the world.

‘He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.’ Isaiah 53:7

The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is the one I meant when I said, 'A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.' John 1:29, 30 NIV

The Fish Gate - the fish were brought into the market place through this gate.


And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers. And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. And they straightway left their nets, and followed him. Matthew 4:18-20 KJV


Jesus called fishermen to become ‘fishers of men.’ They were the first of many that He called to this purpose. And we as His followers today He has also given this compulsion of fishing for the souls of men to; in order to draw others into His kingdom.


The Old Gate - is said to be representative of the Old Covenant; which is the Law of Moses. Jesus fulfilled every aspect of the law in His life, death, burial and resurrection.

Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Matthew 5:17, 18


The Valley Gate - Led to the Valley of Hinnom, and the place called Gehenna - it was a place dedicated to thee worship of Molech & burning human sacrifices. It was later a place where the fires never went out from all of the defiled things that were burnt there. As David implied in His most known Psalm Valleys in our life are dark places in our lives.


But I have another thought on these dark places. I take it from topography. Mountaintops have nice, scenic views. And they are symbolic of the high times we have in the Spirit, but there is little growth going on there. A valley is where most of the growth takes place. It is also where the mountain streams flow down to and through on their way to the ocean. The living waters of the Holy Spirit water us in our valleys and bring the growth in our spirits. And when we pass the test he leads us to the mountaintops once again.


Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Psalms 23:4


Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. Matthew 5:4


But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace. Ephesians 2:13-15


The Dung Gate - The way to the trash dump. This is figurative of what our righteousness is in the eyes of God and how He imputed the righteousness of Jesus to us when we came to Him answering His call unto salvation.


But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. Isaiah 64:6


I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.  Isaiah 61:10


And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith. Philippians 3:9


The Fountain Gate - Was near the pool of Siloam. This gate was said to be representative of the Holy Spirit. Jesus spoke of giving ‘living water’ to the Samaritan woman at the well: Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle? Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not … John 4:9-15a


The Water Gate - The Gibeonites [water bearers] brought in the water to be used in the city through this gate.


This gate was said to be symbolic of the word of God, of which Paul said in Ephesians 5:25-27; Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.


The Horse Gate - This was the King's gate and the gate through which His horsemen rode when going to or from battle/war. Jesus is our King, and the Battle belongs to the Lord:


And all this assembly shall know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the LORD's, and he will give you into our hands. Samuel 17:47


I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. "He will rule them with an iron scepter. He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. Revelation 19:11-15 NIV


The East Gate - Also call the Beautiful or Golden Gate, Gate that is said to be where Messiah will enter the city when he Returns. It is the gate that He enters when we make Him King and Lord of our life. It is also symbolic of the gate into our heavenly home.


As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne. Revelation 3:19-21


The Miphkad Gate - This is the gate of Inspection and is said to be symbolic of the judgment of all men, saints and sinners alike.


And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment. Hebrews 9:27


So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad. 2 Corinthians 5:9, 10


The Ephraim Gate - A Northern Gate looking out over the land of Ephraim [which means doubly fruitful - Jew & Gentile / Earthly & Heavenly]


That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the seashore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice. Genesis 22:17, 18


So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also. For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, the just shall live by faith. Romans 1:15-17


The Prison Gate - This is where they held prisoners [the jail]. Peter is seen in Acts 12 being led out of this gate by an angel. Each of us, before we came to Jesus, were in prison to our various sins and vices and he came to set the captives free. He also sets actual prisoners free from their jail cells. I know this personally. I was in a California jail facing a year in prison and a large fine, but Jesus gave me a second chance [or possibly my 100th]. He saw my heart and showed it to the judge who in the Mercy of the Lord set me free after serving only seven days.


The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; to proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified. Isaiah 61:1-3


And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee: and there went out a fame of him through all the region round about. And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all. And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read. And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears. Luke 4:14-21


And the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass. The streets were all of pure gold, transparent and clear as glass - the way through the city was clothed with the righteousness of the Holy Spirit. The Holy of Holies is now with in the heart of every believer, no longer hidden behind the veil of the temple, or the dark recesses of our finite minds. But living and breathing and in full view of all who would behold it.

And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. As His Bride, we are the true abode of Jesus. He is our Lord God Almighty. With Him living inside of us, we live and move and have our being truly in Him and Him alone. He is our Life, our very reason for existence.


And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. This abode of God has no need of any light but that which comes directly from Him. The lesser lights of sun, moon, and stars would pale in comparison to that true illumination which comes for Jesus alone and shines through the lives of each of His true followers. For they have found True Light and no longer doew darkness dwell in them of around them in any way. They have truely been given to the Light in every aspect of their being. They have learned the truth of 'dio a luz' . . . 'given to light!' Birthed into everlasting Life and Light.

And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there. This new life in His light CAN'T be shut up behind any gate or wall, it shines forth and will make itself known wherever it may be - it can't be hidden under a bushel, or any other barrier. It knows no boundaries.

And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honor into it. In this verse He fulfilled His promise to Abraham that all the nations of the earth shall be blessed through his descendant, his seed.


Galatians 3:13-16; Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. Brethren, I speak after the manner of men; though it be but a man's covenant, yet if it be confirmed, no man disannulleth, or addeth thereto. Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.

And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life. One who is a true part of Christ's Bride will have no room within them to allow anything in that is not of Him. He is Truth, no lie can enter in. He is Light, no darkness can exist in His presence. He is Holy and Righteous; hatred, deceit, wickedness and/or evil cannot come near to Him or His. Only those found written in the Lamb's book of Life - the True Believers / Followers - will be a part of His everlasting Kingdom, His Holy and Perfect Bride


… And as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee. Isaiah 62:5b


And I John saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.  Revelation 21:2


And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. Revelation 22:17




Yes we, His Bride, are the heavenly New Jerusalem, the Great and Coming City of Peace, Ruled by the Prince of Peace; Jesus Christ, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords and our Heavenly Husband; Amen. Even so, Lord Jesus, Come!

February 2, 2010 5:20 AM In Response to 'God's First Chosen' ...

afinkle221 said...

For more information about Shofar and other Holy Temple instruments we have three websites:

1) Shofar Sounders WebPage
http://shofar221.com


2) Joint Effort with Michael Chusid, an expert Shofar sounder and commentator
http://www.hearingshofar.com


3) Shofar WebPage
http://shofar-sounders.com

When was Jesus born?

Each year we as believers in Jesus Celebrate Christmas in honor of the birth of our Lord and Savior; in fact I started a family tradition when my children were very little of baking and decorating a cake for His birthday each year.
But I have been doing a lot of thinking about Jesus’ real birthday. I know there is no hard evidence to prove what day he was born. There is no birth certificate and no hospital records for us to pull up on a computer or even on old fashion microfiche files hanging out in some dank basement or dark stuffy attic. But I do believe that we can learn from Scripture and Jewish tradition a time period that is more likely than the date that we celebrate in December.

When Moses was sent to lead the Children of Israel out of Egypt God taught him His law and religious ordinances to teach His chosen people. Part of those ordinances was the institution of seven major feasts that each Jewish person was required to keep each year. They are Pesach [Passover], the Feast of Unleavened Bread [Hag Ha Matzah], the Feast of Weeks [Shavuoth or Pentecost], First Fruits [Yom HaBikkurim], Rosh Hashanah [Feast of Trumpets], Yom Kippur [the Day of Atonement] and Succoth [the Feast of Tabernacles].

Each of these feasts is a picture of an aspect of Jesus and what He has done for us:

Passover is his provision of a covering saving His followers from death. He is our perfect Passover lamb, slain for the sins of the world – if only they would believe and accept His sacrifice. Leviticus 23:4-8; Exodus 12:1-17; 1 Corinthians 5:7b; Exodus 12: 24,26-27; Exodus 2:23-24; 6:5-8; 13:3,14. Fulfilled in 1 Corinthians 5:6-7; John 8:34; John 1:29; 1 Peter 2:5; Galatians 4:3-5,9; 5:1; 2 Peter 2:19; Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 1:14; 1 Peter 1:18-19; 1 John 1:7; Revelation 1:5; Hebrews 10:1-10; John 1:36; John 13:1-16 & Luke 22:13-20

The Feast of Unleavened Bread was to remind the Israelites of the way God took them out of Israel in haste. Leaven was also an example of sin and how a tiny bit of it could totally corrupt the whole person and the community, if they allowed it to breed and grow. Exodus 12:15-20; 1 Corinthians 5:7-8 & Leviticus 23:4,6-14. Jesus fulfilled it as recorded in 1 Cor 5:6-8; Acts 12:3-4 & Acts 20:6

First Fruits is the offering of the first and best of the harvest to God instituted in Leviticus 23:7-14. Jesus is the first fruits of the resurrection from the dead. He fulfilled this as recorded in Matthew 28:1-3, Mark 16:1-3, 8-10, Luke 24:1-3, John 20:1-3, 18-20, Acts 20:6-8, 1 Corinthians 15:20-21.

Pentecost is the celebration of the giving of God’s law to Moses on Mt. Sinai; Leviticus 23:9-22 & Deuteronomy 16:9-12. This found it’s fulfillment in the gift of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2:1-41.

Yom Kippur – The Day Atonement was the day the Jews brought their sacrifices to the temple to cover their sins and postpone them for one more year until their true atonement came. Leviticus 16:1-34 23:26-32 & Isaiah 34:5-6. Jesus came to be our atonement once and for all time. He poured out his blood of our redemption on the cross of Calvary. We can read this in Matthew 27:31-51, Mark 15:14-38, Luke 23:20-49, John 19:15-37.

Rosh Hashanah – the Feast of Trumpets was the day they celebrated the Jewish Civil New Year. The day started with the blowing of the Shofar, to call everyone to a ‘Holy Convocation’ a nationwide worship service to the Lord God. It is both a time of rejoicing as well as a holy occasion. Leviticus 23:23-25. The Shofar was sounded for other reasons, too. To call the men to war was one reason. But another was during the procession of a bridegroom coming to take away his bride the Shofar would be sounded to announce his coming, so that the bride would be prepared for him when he arrived. This feast has yet to be fulfilled in Jesus. I believe that it will be fulfilled when Christ comes again to carry His bride away to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. 1 Corinthians 15:51-53, 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18.

But we were talking about the birthday of Jesus, weren’t we. The one feast we haven’t touched is Succoth, or the Feast of tabernacles. This feast was set up for the children of Israel to remember the time of their wandering in the wilderness after they were freed from their captivity in Egypt. Leviticus 23:43 states; ‘That your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.’ They would build a tabernacle of foliage, palm fronds and branches and decorate it with fresh flowers and other things of beauty. They would set an extra place for any stranger that might wander by and need a place to eat and stay for the evening. But I feel this feast of tabernacles has a much broader meaning than this. It should also remind them, and us, of when God dwelt in the garden with Adam and Eve and draw them to seek their Messiah – Jesus – who came to earth to dwell, to tabernacle with us. Even the name of Jesus given by the angel to Joseph was Emmanuel, God with us, in Luke 1:26-38. Jesus birth came in fulfillment of the Feast of Tabernacles. This feast is celebrated in the fall of the year, the Jewish month of Tishri, our months of September or October. So in my mind, if He came in fulfillment of Tabernacles, he most probably was born during this feast time. Looking at the records of the census/tax that caused our couple to travel to Bethlehem is said to have taken five years to complete. But I found no actual dates that pinpoint the specific time they traveled from Nazareth to Bethlehem to be taxed and recorded.

Whether we Celebrate Jesus birthday at Christmas time or during the Feast of Tabernacles, or even every day of the year – as we rightly should – doesn’t change the fact that He is indeed God with us. He lives is our hearts and has brought to us life and that truly in abundance! God again dwells with men just as he did in the Garden with Adam and Eve, and yet in a much closer way even than that. He doesn’t just dwell in our homes, but in our lives, our hearts – the very innermost part of our being. We have become and are becoming ‘one’ with Him more and more each day! 1 Corinthians 6:19; ‘What? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?’

‘Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us. Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife:’ Matthew 1:22-24

Jewish Bride - Step Twelve

The Final Step — The Marriage Supper

Following the seven days in the huppah or bridal chamber the bride and bridegroom joined their guests for a joyous marriage feast with singing, dancing, music and much merriment. Jewish weddings in ancient times were not considered complete until they were consummated. This was the very reason for the couple’s seclusion.


Revelation 19:6-9: "And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, 'Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns! Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready. And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.' Then he said to me, Write: ‘Blessed are those who are called to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb!' And he said to me 'These are the true sayings of God.'"

Just like the ancient Jewish wedding, there will be shouts of joy and dancing (yes, dancing) and how exciting it will be. The Bride will dance for joy with her Bridegroom, King Jesus.

We will rule and reign with Him forever. For those of us who look forward to the marriage supper of the Lamb, we must go out to the highways and byways and extend an invitation to others to come.

Revelation 2:17: "And the spirit and the bride say Come! And let him who hears say, Come! And let him who thirsts, Come; and whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely."

Revelation 22:20: "Surely I am coming quickly.' Even so, Come Lord Jesus, Come!"

BEHOLD, HE COMES!

Jewish Bride - Step Eleven

The Huppah

The second half of the ancient Jewish wedding ceremony, or huppah, is also called the “hometaking.” The original meaning of the huppah was “room” or “covering.” Legend has it that the very first Huppah was the wings of the angels as God presented Adam’s wife to him.


The huppah of ancient times was a special room built in the bridegroom’s father’s home. This special room was eventually replaced by the bridal canopy. The huppah [canopy] symbolizes the new home to which the bridegroom would take his bride. The bride and bridegroom were escorted to the bridal chamber where they would be alone for seven days.

Isaiah 26:20-21 tells us of this time: "Come my people, enter our chambers and shut the door behind you, hide yourself as it were, for a little moment until the indignation is past. For behold the Lord comes out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity."

The spiritual parallel to the huppah for the bride of Christ begins as we are lifted up off the earth to be taken to our heavenly wedding chamber where we will spend our bridal week with our Bridegroom/King.

'For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:  Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.’ I Thessalonians 4:16-17

Jewish Bride - Step Ten

Return of the Bridegroom

When all was prepared for his bride and the groom’s father had given his approval he would gather his friends they would all go in procession – much like a parade through the village – to the home of the Bride. When they were getting closer someone would sound the Shofar, a horn made from the horn of a ram, and shout that the bridegroom was approaching to announce his coming to his bride. This had a dual effect, people of that village who heard the announcement would also join the throng, whether or not they were invited, to enter into the festivities. Can we say ancient wedding crashers? Just kidding. The Father of the groom would be glad to have all who would enter. In fact families looked forward to the weddings of their villages. These were celebrated in Royal fashion, or as close to that as a family could afford. This announcement by horn and shout would bring the Bride dressed in her finest dress and her new veil covering her face along with her attendants to a place of final preparation to wait for the Bridegroom.


We, as Christ’s Bride will also hear the sound of the Shofar – trumpet - and hear the announcement of His attendants - archangels. ‘For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.’ 1Thesessalonians 4:15-17. And again in I Corinthians 15:51-53; ‘Behold, I shew you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.’


As a thief in the night, our Bridegroom will call us to arise and meet Him in the air. We will hear a shout and the sound of the shofar. It will happen quickly. We must be ready.

Matthew 24:27 says, "For as the lightning comes from the East and flashes to the West, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be."

Jewish Bride - Step Two

Step Two: Price of the Bride

In Bible times Brides were purchased. The price was paid to the father of the bride, both to compensate him for the loss of a worker and to show him how much the bridegroom loved and valued the bride. The groom would have to raise this money during his preparing of their future home. This bride price was usually equal to at least one year of the groom’s wages. It was a high price, for brides were to be highly valued and not easily obtained.

We, as the bride of Christ, have also been purchased with a price. A very high price — the blood of Jesus. His very own blood shed upon a cross on Calvary’s hill was the price He paid for His bride. We are a highly treasured bride, worth far more than rubies. Proverbs 31:10-12, ‘Who can find a virtuous woman? For her price is far above rubies. The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil. She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life.’ For we have been given the righteousness of Christ at our new birth. We stand full of His grace and glory – in fact, when God looks down on us He sees the image of Jesus in our hearts, not the filthy rags that we had owned before.

1 Peter 1:18,19: "Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from our aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot."

Ephesians 1:13, 14: In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.


1 Corinthians 7:23 says, "We were bought at a price, so do not become slaves of men."

We belong to Christ. He is our Bridegroom. We are His Bride. We are in this world but we are not of this world.

1 Corinthians 6: 19,20: "Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore, glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s."

Jewish Bride - Step One

Selection of the Bride

In ancient Israel, brides were usually chosen by the father of the bridegroom. He would send His most trusted servant to search for a bride for his son. We see this example in Genesis when Abraham sent his trusted servant to find a wife for Isaac. ‘And Abraham was old, and well stricken in age: and the LORD had blessed Abraham in all things. And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house, that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh: And I will make thee swear by the LORD, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell: But thou shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac.’ Genesis 24:1-4

We as Christ’s Bride were also chosen.  In John 15:16, 19 Jesus said, ‘You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should remain … If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.’

‘And except that the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh should be saved: but for the elect's sake, whom he hath chosen, he hath shortened the days.’ Mark 13:20

‘The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, Until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen: To whom also he shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God:’ Acts 1:1-3

Jewish Bride - Step Three

Betrothal/Ketubah

The ancient Jewish marriage ceremony consisted of two main parts, beginning with the betrothal. The betrothal is much like our engagement today, but with a much greater sense of commitment. During the betrothal the couple is actually entering into a covenant [ or contract. Covenant in Bible times was serious, final, sealed in blood and legally binding. Once a couple entered into the covenant of betrothal, they were legally married in all aspects except for the physical consummation of the marriage. At the betrothal ceremony, a marriage contract, or Ketubah, was presented to the father of the bride. The Ketubah consists of all the bridegroom’s promises to his bride. The bride cherishes her Ketubah. We, too, have a Ketubah from our Bridegroom. Our marriage contract is God’s Word! Our Ketubah (God’s Word) shows us all we are entitled to as the Bride of Christ. All, not some, but all the promises in God’s Word, are for us. As the Bride of Christ, we are entitled to them — they are part of our Marriage Contract.


Jeremiah 31:31-34; 'Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD: But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.'

And Jesus presented it in Matthew 26:28, ‘For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.’

Hebrews 8:7-9; ‘For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second. For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord.’


Hebrews 8:12, 13; ‘For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more. In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away.’

Hebrews 12:23-25; ‘To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel. See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven:'