HOW IT WAS: The Lord’s Supper as Jesus Inaugurated It. (Part #3)

After the second cup of wine was consumed everyone washed his hands a second time. Then the leader would take the middle of three stacked loaves of unleavened bread and hold it up. He would then break it into two unequal “halves.” After doing so, the leader pronounced the following invitation, not in the Hebrew language, but in Aramaic, a non-Jewish language:

“This is the bread of affliction that our fathers ate in the land of Egypt. Whoever is hungry, let him come and eat! Whoever is needy, let him come and celebrate Passover!” [1]

HOW IT WAS: The Lord’s Supper as Jesus Inaugurated It. (Part #2)

"Now on the first day of the Feast of the Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying to him, 'Where do you want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover?' And he said, 'Go into the city to a certain man, and say to him, "The Teacher says, 'My time is at hand; I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples'"'" (Mat 26:17, 18).

We can assume that in Mark’s family’s house all was cleansed of leaven and ready for the Passover holiday, as was befitting of Jews. At sundown, Jesus and his twelve closest disciples had gathered in the upper room of the house. It was time for the Passover meal.

HOW IT WAS: The Lord’s Supper as Jesus Inaugurated It. (Part #1)

Introduction

“On the night our Lord Jesus was betrayed…,”[1] Good Friday as we now call it,[2] the Israelite city of Jerusalem was strangely quiet. Earlier in the day the narrow streets had been alive with frantic activity. Now the evening approached.

Sunset marked the beginning of the biblical holiday Passover. Over the last week and a half hundreds of thousands[3] of Jewish pilgrims from all over the land of Israel, and the Roman Empire, had converged on the surrounding villages and hillsides. While it was still light they had poured through the gates of the city to be within its white stone walls in order to celebrate this special meal with family and friends.[4] The ancient Israelites, later called Jews, had been instructed by God through the Law of Moses to do so on this date. At sunset. Each year.[5]

Discover the Mercy Seat of God - The Kapporet...

                               The Transfer of the Ark by Singing and Dancing David

Shalom,

"There I will meet with you; and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are upon the Ark of the Testimony, I will speak to you about all that I will give you in commandment for the sons of Israel.”  (Exodus 25:22)

As Believers, we all long to have that closeness to God, to be in His very Presence, in the Holy of Holies.

This longing is well expressed by songwriter Dave Browning in his popular song called "Holy of Holies":

Take me past the outer courts

Into the Holy Place

Past the brazen altar

Lord, I want to see Your face

(Lyrics excerpted from “Holy of Holies” Copyright: Dayspring Music, LLC)

In Jars of Clay

The presence of Yeshua within us consecrates forever. Though we still occupy mortal bodies, these are not ordinary clay pots. We are holy because of the holy treasure within us.

THIS WEEK'S TORAH PORTION:

Tzav (צו | Command)

Torah: Leviticus 6:1-8:36

Haftarah: Jeremiah 7:21-8:3, 9:22-23

Gospel: Mark 7:31-8:38

A special portion for Shabbat HaGadol is applicable this Shabbat!

Shabbat HaGadol (שבת הגדול | The Great Sabbath)

Haftarah: Malachi 3:4-24

Did Yeshua have a Bar Mitzvah?

Shalom,

“After three days they found Him [Yeshua] in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.”  (Luke 2:46)

The Bar/Bat Mitzvah is a milestone in Jewish life.  It not only tells the world that the child has reached adulthood and is taking greater responsibility for his or her actions, it strengthens his or her identity as a Jew.

In Jewish law, Jewish girls (at age 12) and boys (at age 13) become responsible for observing Jewish ritual law, traditions, and ethics.  The rite of passage associated with this observance is the Bar Mitzvah for boys and Bat Mitzvah for girls.

Obedience and Sacrifice

What gift can you get for the God who already has everything? Does God desire sacrifice? The book of Leviticus opens with a gift registry that offers a few suggestions.

THIS WEEK'S TORAH PORTION:

Vayikra (ויקרא | And he called)

Torah: Leviticus 1:1-5:26

Haftarah: Isaiah 43:21-44:23

Gospel: Mark 7:1-30

* Special readings for Shabbat HaChodesh are applicable this Shabbat.

Shabbat HaChodesh (החדש | The Month)

* Maftir: Exodus 12:1-20

* Haftarah: Ezekiel 45:16-46:18

Great Jewish women

 “Now Deborah, a prophet, the wife of Lappidoth, was leading Israel at that time.”  (Judges 4:4)

Yesterday, International Women’s Day (IWD) celebrated the contributions of women throughout history while encouraging and empowering women for greatness today.

Great Jewish women such as the Prophet Deborah, Queen Esther, and even Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir have lived in critical times in Israel’s history, times that threatened the very existence of the nation if it weren’t for the courageous leadership of these women.

The 'Church' at Mount Sinai

We often see pictures of Jesus in church, but in reality, Jesus himself never set foot in a church. He attended synagogue services, and He assembled along with all Israel at the Temple, but He did not go to church because there was no such thing.

THIS WEEK'S TORAH PORTION:

Vayakhel-Pekudei (ויקהל/פקודי | He gathered/Countings)

Torah: Exodus 35:1-40:38

Haftarah: 1 Kings 7:40-50 *

Gospel: Mark 6:14-29/John 6:1-71

* Special readings for Shabbat Parah are applicable this Shabbat.

Shabbat Parah (פרה | Cow)

* Maftir: Numbers 19:1-19:22

* Haftarah: Ezekiel 36:16-36:38

Getting The Cast and Context Right For ROM 7:1-6

"Or do you not know, brothers—for I am speaking to those who know the Law—that the Law is binding on a person only as long as he lives? For example, a married woman is bound by the Law to her husband while he lives, but if her husband dies she is released from the law of marriage. Accordingly, she will be called an adulteress if she joins with another man while her husband is alive. But if her husband dies, she is free from that law, and if she marries another man she is not an adulteress.

Likewise, my brothers, you also have died to the Law through the body of Christ, so that you may belong to another, to him who has been raised from the dead, in order that we may bear fruit for God. For while we were living in the flesh, our sinful passions, aroused by the Law, were at work in our members to bear fruit for death. But now we are released from the Law, having died to that which held us captive, so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter" (Rom 7:1-6).

The Word Made Stone

Moses descended and broke the tablets when he saw the golden calf. He returned to the cloud of glory, carrying new stone tablets before descending a second time in the glory of the LORD, carrying the new stone tablets of the renewed covenant.

THIS WEEK'S TORAH PORTION:

Ki Tisa (כי תשא | When you take)

Torah: Exodus 30:11-34:35

Haftarah: 1 Kings 18:1-39

Gospel: Matthew 9:35-11:1