to fulfill all righteousness.

The Bible is full of patterns.

Which comes as no surprise to us, since from the very beginning we are shown that our God is full of order and plan.

Within these patterns lie powerful messages about God and His story, a truth I was reminded of recently by a teacher, who showed me the following:

Chaos. Ruach. Voice. Temptation. Sin.

1. Creation.

watery chaos covers the deep. God's breath (ruach) hovers above the waters. God speaks: "let there be..." and a new creation comes to fruition by the power of His voice. Immediately following, the people God has formed are tempted to disobey Him, their Maker. And they fall into that temptation, eat of the fruit of the forbidden tree, and sin.

2. The Flood.

God sees that the heart of man is full of deceit, and He sends a flood to destroy the men of the earth. The flood waters come and fill the earth, and the land is filled with watery chaos once again. Only Noah and his family are saved. Once the rest has been destroyed, God remembers Noah in the ark, and He sends a wind (ruach) over the earth, and the water subsides. And by His voice the Lord speaks blessing over Noah and His family, charging them to be fruitful and multiply on the earth, establishing with them a new covenant and creation. But soon after, Noah's sons are tempted by pride, and Canaan his son gives way to that pride, disrespects his father Noah, and sins.

3. The Exodus.

God hears the cry of His people, and sends His messenger, the great prophet, to bring them out of their bondage. In their escape, they find themselves trapped and hedged in by the watery chaos of the sea of reeds. But God blows His breath (ruach) and the waters split, and the Israelites walk through the sea unharmed. And by God's mighty hand, the waters cover over the Egyptians as they follow, and destroy them. And the Israelites journey into the wilderness, and come upon the mountain of the Lord. And God, by His mighty voice, speaks, and gives Moses the great Torah, His very Word, a new covenant and creation for His people. And while Moses is with God upon the mountain, the Israelites are tempted by fear and unbelief. And the people of God give in to their temptation, create a golden calf idol, and sin before the Lord their God, their Saviour.

4. The Jordan.

The Israelites prepare to cross over into the land of promise. The watery chaos of the Jordan separates them from their journey into this land. And the spirit of God (ruach) goes with them, and the waters part, and the people pass through to the other side. And God, by His mighty voice, speaks, and charges Joshua to choose twelve men, to make an altar to Him there, standing stones as a witness to His power. And the men of Israel are circumcised before the Lord that day, and a covenant is established and renewed between the Lord and His people. And the people march on to Jericho, and Achan son of Zerah and his family are tempted by greed and possession, and Achan and his family give in to their greed and disobey the proclamation of the Lord their God, take for themselves silver and gold, and sin against the Lord their God, their provider.

5. Rabbi Jesus, Messiah.

Jesus comes to John to be baptized. John tries to deter Him. Surely Jesus should be the baptizer, not the baptized. But Jesus replies, "Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness." And Jesus enters the watery chaos of the Jordan, the waters signifying all the weight of sin, and plunges under. And then, Jesus went up out of the water, and heaven was opened, and the spirit of God (ruach) descended on Him. And a voice from heaven said, "THIS IS MY SON, whom I love; with him I am well-pleased." Immediately following this proclamation, Jesus is led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted.

And Jesus is tempted. And Jesus says, MAN DOES NOT LIVE ON BREAD ALONE, BUT ON EVERY WORD THAT COMES FROM THE MOUTH OF GOD.

And Jesus is tempted. And Jesus says, DO NOT PUT THE LORD YOUR GOD TO THE TEST.

And Jesus is tempted. And Jesus says, AWAY FROM ME, SATAN! for it is written, WORSHIP THE LORD YOUR GOD, and SERVE HIM ONLY."

And this man Jesus, the gentle One, our great Rabbi and Shepherd, God's only son, and our MESSIAH,

DOES NOT SIN.

darkness driven back.
sin conquered.
righteousness fulfilled.

bless God, our Messiah changed the story.

Jesus has redeemed it.

HE HAS FINISHED IT!

The very words of God.

(Gamla Synagogue - Torah Closet. Israel, 2009).

-----

"The Lord your God commands you this day to follow these decrees and teachings. Carefully observe them with all your heart and all your soul." Deut. 26.

"How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!" Psalm 119.

-----

In Biblical times, a Torah scroll was a rare and sacred thing, and one of great value. Generally priced at an extremely high cost, a normal Biblical city would have only one, and sometimes not even that.

There was great ceremony and joy associated with the scroll. At the beginning of the gathering, the keeper of the synagogue would remove the scroll from the Torah closet, open it, and slowly make his way around the people, holding it out for all those present to touch. Each person would place their fingers on the precious scroll, dancing before God and praising Him because His words were still there.

The very words of God, before them.

I got to mimic this ceremony and celebration while standing in the ruins of the ancient city of Gamla, in one of the oldest synagogues left in Israel. To dance with joy amongst other believers in celebration of the words of God was a beautiful and life-changing experience, and one that I will never forget.

This same attitude was true in other religions as well. I was told by one teacher that in Biblical times, people of the world would pay extravagant amounts of money, wait days and weeks and months outside of temples, and do just about anything possible in order to be given a word from the gods. They pursued with great fervor any guidance they could receive from the powers above.

They understood that a word from a god was a valuable and precious thing, and they would go to incredible lengths to receive one.

Even one.

one. little. word.

OUR GOD GAVE US AN ENTIRE BOOK.

A book FILLED with His blessed words.

His guidance.

His love.

His story.

His law.

His desires.

His will.

A whole book.

A Book that was carefully constructed, passed down, and preserved, for our benefit.

Do we read it?

Do we know it?

Do we seek it out morning, noon, and night, pouring over it like precious silver and gold?

We have it! His Words are STILL HERE.

Dance for joy.

His words.

The very Words of GOD.

torah.

(via jerusalemperspective.com)

The Rock from which you were cut.

Jesus was a tekton.

In English, we have chosen to translate the word tekton as "carpenter," but tekton can mean other things as well.

It can also mean "stonecutter."

Most likely, when the Bible calls Jesus a tekton, it is referring to Him as the latter, a stonecutter.

You see, back in Jesus' day, people didn't usually work with wood, and if you take a walk through the Biblical ruins of Israel, all you see is stone stone stone.

Why is this important?

In the grand scheme of things, I guess it doesn't matter either way. Jesus built things as a trade, and that's all we really need to know...

BUT.

There is richness to be found in the picture of Jesus being a stonecutter, because there are countless references to stone and masonry and building processes that are scattered all throughout the Bible.

For instance, take this verse:

"Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness and seek the LORD:
Look to the rock from which you were cut, and to the quarry from which you were hewn.
Look to Abraham your father, and to Sarah, who gave you birth.
When I called him, he was but one, and I blessed him and made him many." - Isaiah 51.

***

Look to the rock from which you were cut.

It's a stonecutters job to cut and shape the rock from the quarries.

Which, yes, is a cool reference in light of Jesus being a tekton, but there's so much more than that going on here too. Dig a little deeper with me into the meaning of the verse:

Look to the rock from which you were cut...

Well, in order to look to it, we first need to know what rock Isaiah is referring to. Our answer to that question comes from the very next verse:

"Look to Abraham your father, and to Sarah, who gave you birth."

Abraham and Sarah are the mother and father of the Israelites. God blessed them "and made them many." He made them into the Israelites - the Jewish people.

The rock from which we were cut is the nation of Israel.

The rock from which we were cut is the chosen people of God.

Do you know what that means?

It means that

Abraham is our father.
Sarah is our mother.
Elijah is our prophet.
Moses is our guide.
Samuel is our priest.
Paul is our teacher.
Peter is our brother.
Ruth is our sister.

and on and on and on.

These stories that God has passed down to us, these people of faith, are a part of our legacy. They are the heritage that we bear.

And even better?

We are cut from the same rock.
We are made of the same material.
We have the same abilities.

We. Are. the. Same.

Why?

Because we serve the same God. The same God we read about in all those stories.

And do you know what that means?

It means that
we serve
the God
who

created the world.
called Abraham and made an everlasting covenant with him.
parted the Sea of Reeds.
sent the 10 plagues.
provided the promised land.
empowered Elijah to run faster than chariots.
sent down fire on the altar.
enabled a young boy to kill a giant.
won battles.
spoke through prophets.
healed the sick.
raised the dead.

That God
is our God.

And because
that God is our God,
we have the ability to live lives like the ones who went before us.

Because their God is our God.

We have that ability because Jesus, our tekton, cuts us from the same rock as the rest of them. He, with His infinite power, crafts all of us from the same stuff.

And if we would get to a place where we
truly believed and understood that...
do you know what we could do?

We could

go, with the faith of Abraham, to new and distant lands.
lead, with the strength of Moses, the people of God from their bondage.
run, with the swiftness of Elijah, past the evil of this world and its fears.
prepare, with the passion of John the Baptizer, a people ready for the Lord.
encourage, with the understanding of Paul, fellow believers.
rejoice, with the perseverance of Peter, in the sufferings of our circumstances.
praise, with the heart of Hannah, the amazing things that God has done.
love, with the purity of Jesus, our great God and the people of His world.

This story, God's story - it's our story.
This Bible, God's Word - it's our history and our guide.
This people, God's nation - it's our ancestry.

And whether we like it or not, we are called to be a part of the story.

God's story..

We pick it up, we partake in it, and we pass it on.

It's ours.

...

So own it.

...

Step one in owning it?

Knowing it.


Let's study. learn. know. the stories that God passed down to us.

Let's
look to the rock
from which
we were cut.

Let's
remember
that
God has blessed us
and
that
we are capable
and
that
we are many.

Let's
Pick it up.
Partake in it.
so we can
Pass on it on.

And

more than anything...

more.
than.
anything.

...

LET'S NOT TAKE IT LIGHTLY.

Letter.

************************************************************************
"Tell Him what you like about Him..." - Francis Chan, Crazy Love.
************************************************************************

Father, Rabbi, Almighty God:

1. I love your heart for history. I like it that you thought to put Jesus in a place like Israel, where it's dry and hot and dusty, so that memories and pictures and places from His life could be preserved. I like that you gave us archaeology, I really do. It makes me excited that we can know Jesus better because of it...(plus, it's fun to dig things up). I really like the things you're allowing us to learn because of the way you kept Israel protected from too much modernity. You knew what you were doing, hiding all that stuff in the sand. Thanks for letting us find some of it in my lifetime.

2. I love your sense of adventure. I like it that I serve a God who isn't so safe. I like that you ask us to risk. You plant and deposit so much RICHNESS into life, and then you ask us to go and find it. I like that your call is scary and mysterious sometimes. Your world is a place full of culture and spontaneity, and I like that you give us a spirit that desires that adventure.

3. I admire your creativity. How there is color everywhere. How you infuse poetry throughout the world. People, places, ideas, things, from big to small, everything is different and new and mysterious and beautiful. I like that you give us the desire and ability to be creative too.

4. I'm proud to follow You because you speak truth that doesn't let us off easy. You see potential in us and demand much from us, even our best. I love it that your truth is always laced with kindness, but never relents. It makes me better, the way you push me and the example that you set. You are brave in life and you are brave in truth, and it challenges me.

5. I love your ability to tell stories. Glory, honor, betrayal, sin, mystery, humanity, redemption, humor...your Word is full of them. You know us well and you speak to us in a way we understand and you use people we can relate to. Your stories are full of broken people and the way you work through them...and that inspires me.

6. I admire your intelligence. I am amazed Jesus, by your ability to speak so plainly yet challenge so fully, all at the same time. I appreciate and enjoy the levels of wit and humor you root in people. And I really like what you have allowed us to discover about your world. It's so intricate and full and complicated and big. The detail of it, the intelligence behind it, is astounding.

7. I love your JOY. The way you delight in us, despite it all. How you send us good things, every day. Your LIFE, all around...abundant.

Thank you for all of it.

Your history, your adventure, your creativity, your truth, your stories, your intelligence, your joy.

Your mere presence.

And help us, Father,
not only to SEE you,
but to rejoice in you as well.

Today.
Tomorrow.
The next day.


***P.S. Thanks, too, for the printing press... for the ability to make A LOT of BOOKS.
That, God, is one of my favorites.

Voice.

I let people tell me who I am.

I always have.

Do you know that book, "You are Special," by Max Lucado? A simple children's book, only a few pages long.

But filled with truth.

It is the story of a little wooden toy who is covered in little red dots. Little red dots that were placed on him by others. Marks that send a message of inferiority and failure. A little toy, labeled by his peers as broken, less than, and not much.

Not all the stickers in the story are bad. There are stars that are given as well. Shiny gold ones. They are good marks, marks of success given from one peer to another.

Simply put, it is a story about value. A story about striving and approval. A story about our unceasing desire to obtain an image that is gold, shiny, and admired.

I am valuable if they label me as so. I am something if the many voices of those around me agree: "She is special."

The message behind this simple tale has always resonated with me, but never so much as it does right.now.

Because right now, at this very moment, I am at a red-dot phase in life. You see, recently I made a choice (a big choice) that many people don't agree with and don't understand. That one big choice continues to lead me to even more choices that people don't agree with and don't understand. Choices that have been marked.

wrong. ungodly. unbiblical. selfish. ugly. sinful. untrue.

And until right now, I didn't really realize.

I didn't really realize how often I cling to my bright, shiny, golden stars.
How much I strive for them, every single day.
How I desire so badly to be admired by my peers.
How I work and long and strain for the image.

I want it.

I want that mark of value and success, and I want it given to me from people. from peers. from loved ones...from EVERYONE.

And I didn't realize just how much I really do want the image until I started getting covered with little red dots.

Those dots crushed me. They left me broken and questioning who I was. They ripped my heart open and left me weak.

I was surprised to find out that all along, all this time, I have been listening to the voices of people to discover my value. I have been working and striving and sweating all these years for the approval of man.

What does she think of me? Does he think I'm beautiful? Does she believe I'm capable? Does he think I can do it?

...Who do they say I am?

Thankfully, Today, this very night, my Creator pursued me in my confusion and in my pain and reminded me of what matters most. He opened my ears and allowed me, through His incredible grace, to hear what is true.

His Voice.

Because ultimately, when the rest falls away (or sometimes, as is neccessary for a turning/repentance, when the rest is ripped away), it is His Voice that remains.

The Voice of the One that formed us.

And through His Voice (His blessed Word) He tells us that we are blessed. beautiful. radiant. brides. stones. heirs. sons and daughters. capable. sheep. powerful. full of love. disciplined. chosen. led. protected. passionate. zealous. comforted. healed. priests. grafted in. graced. good. disciples. like Him. His.

And when we begin to listen, once again, to the Voice of our Maker, we start to believe that we.are.who.He.says.we.are.

We start to hope and trust that we are all of those things. Because our Creator believes that we are. And He would know...because He made us.

He made us (and continues to make us) those things.

The more time we spend with Him, the more time we allow Him to speak into our lives and refine us, the more we become those good things.

And tonight, I needed to be reminded of that.

I needed to listen to His Voice. I needed to open up His word and read what He thinks of me. What He says of me. I needed to remember that I have been labeled by Almighty God as valuable.

Today, I ask you to allow Him to do the same for you.

Let Him remind you.
Let Him speak good things about you, pour blessing over you, begin to peel away your stars and your dots.

Allow His Voice to rise above the others.
Allow Him and Him alone to refine you and make you new and whole and better.

And when He speaks, believe.

You are all the things that He says you are.

God's Timing.

(Roman Road, Susita, 2009)

God is so good at TIMING.

Whenever I read things of history, I am reminded of this.

And it's amazing to me how God can put people exactly where they need to be, surround them with the resources they will need, and give them the connections that will aide them on their journeys and further His plan, and do it so well.

Most often too, I don't think we recognize these details until they are already history. The people that are living IN God's timing, often don't get the privilege of seeing the things that He is bringing together for His mission, RIGHT NOW.

Perhaps that is why I have such a love for Biblical history (and history in general). History allows us to see better how God is working now, based on the things that He did a long time ago (because He was, is, and is to come. He doesn't change).

This morning I read in "Walking the Bible," by Bruce Feiler, that during the time the Israelites were going through their Exodus from Egypt, the alphabet and a writing system were just starting to break forth in the ancient world...

Just before God gives them the 10 commandments, establishes (or renews) His covenant with them, and starts them on their journey of becoming a nation of their own, the written word is gaining power.

Think of how important that is?

Writing was KEY to the Israelite nation. It is so important, the timing of this, that it almost baffles me.

It was the beginning. The beginning of The Book. The Text. The Torah.

The Word of God, being written down, remembered, passed down, shared.

Wow.

It seems God knows what He's doing.

And this is just one instance of God's incredible timing and His attention to detail.

There is also Jesus. God sent Him to a time when the Rabbi/disciple model was normal and a popular, respected institution. He sent Him to a culture where faith, God, and morality was the most important thing, where the Bible was talked about and discussed and debated, and where people were HUNGRY for truth.

There's the early church. God started the movement of Jesus' message in a time when Rome ruled, and therefore Roman Roads covered the land, connecting cities and towns like never before. Travel was easier, and the likelihood of a message being shared with the WHOLE world, much stronger. There was a common language, making communication possible. Everything was connected in a way it had never been before, just in time for the story of Jesus to be shared, grow, and gain power.

And there's now. At this moment, God has placed us in a world with the Internet (our Roman road), enabling us to connect with anyone, anywhere, anytime.

He has placed us in a time when science is making incredible discoveries about the world and how it runs, pointing us to a God who is bigger and smarter that we could ever dream.

This is a time when Biblical Archaeology is making huge discoveries, allowing us to know more about our Jewish forefathers, the land they walked, the people they were, and the covenant that God established with them. Not only that, but it allows us to know more fully and intimately the Rabbi we serve, and the God who sent Him.

And my favorite? He has placed us in a time when Jewish history is becoming a huge part of Biblical study, which enables us to understand so much better, this faith that we have been grafted into.

All this being said, I think the question to ask ourselves is this;

Are we using the resources that God surrounded us with to share His story and bring Him glory?

Do we even see the details that God is bringing together now, in this time that we're a part of?

God has put each of us Here. Now. For a reason and a purpose.

And someday hundreds of years from now, someone will be studying our time, and reading what God did, now. What will they see?

We are only a small part of this ongoing story, but we are most definitely a part.

So what is God doing with ours?