Aryel Tzyion

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Liturgi Yudaisme

Liturgi diterjemahkan dari istilah Ibrani avodah, yang berarti menyembah atau bekerja sama. Secara umum, liturgi adalah pengelolaan tentang drama untuk menyembah Tuhan. Liturgi bukan hanya kata-kata yang dibacakan, baik tetap atau spontan, itu juga termasuk tindakan, kesempatan untuk ibadah, dan pertemuan para peserta. Liturgi dalam beberapa hal mirip dengan skenario, tetapi seperti halnya skenario memiliki tingkat penyesuaian yang berbeda di tangan sutradara yang berbeda, demikian pula pada liturgi yang akan berbeda tergantung momennya.

Yudaisme punya 2 jenis liturgi.
1. Liturgi tradisional.
Salah satu jenis liturgi tertua sudah ada sejak zaman Nabi Daniel.
Liturgi ini punya ciri-ciri, seperti ; Rabbi membelakangi umat, adanya pemisahan gender, tidak ada tempat duduk, 100% menggunakan bahasa Ibrani, banyak gerakan, sangat kaku, wajib beribadah 3 kali sehari.
Kekurangan yaitu ; umat hanya jadi penonton dan tidak berpartisipasi, sehingga ungkap bekerja sama menjadi tidak sesuai.
(Liturgi ini tidak dilarang untuk digunakan, waktu untuk beribadah yaitu 3 kali sehari tetap dipertahankan ke liturgi harian)

2. Liturgi modern.
Terjadi penyesuaian dengan liturgi, liturgi ini punya ciri-ciri ;
Rabbi mengahadap umat, tidak ada pemisahan gender, ada tempat duduk, disesuaikan dengan bahasa setempat tapi pada beberapa bagian masih mempertahankan bahasa Ibrani, sedikit gerakan.
Pada liturgi ini umat berpartisipasi dalam liturgi.
(Bentuk liturgi paling umum disemua Synagoge)
(Liturgi ini ada karena respon Yudaisme kepada Kekeristenan, terjadi kolaborasi)

Pertemuan liturgi pertama di katedral Albany Immaculate Conception antara umat Katolik dan Yahudi sejak akhir 1980-an, serangkaian perjalanan antaragama ke Israel dan layanan doa minggu lintas agama membuka jalan bagi dialog dan kolaborasi.

Dibawa ini adalah kolaborasi antara liturgi.
* Bacaan pertama dalam liturgi sabda hampir selalu dari Perjanjian Lama.

* Ekaristi mirip seperti makanan seder. Seder adalah layanan makan dan doa yang diadakan di rumah-rumah Yahudi pada malam hari pertama Paskah dan Perjamuan harian, mingguan di Sinagog.

* Stola adalah sepotong kain panjang dan sempit yang dikenakan oleh pastor ketika merayakan Misa mirip selendang doa yang digunakan dalam Yudaisme.

* "Amin" berarti "jadilah itu" dalam bahasa Ibrani.

* "Alleluia" berarti "puji Tuhan" dalam bahasa Ibrani.

* "Hosanna" berarti "selamatkan sekarang," atau "selamatkan, aku mohon kepadamu" dalam bahasa Syria.

* Selama ribuan tahun, orang-orang Yahudi telah berdoa untuk roti: "Terpujilah Engkau, Tuhan kami, raja alam semesta, sebab karenaMu kami menerima roti dari bumi."
Saat mempersiapkan Misa, seorang imam Katolik mengatakan: "Terpujilah Engkau, Tuhan, Allah semesta alam, sebab dari kemurahan-Mu kami menerima roti yang kami siapkan ini. Inilah hasil dari bumi dan dari usaha manusia yang bagi kami akan menjadi roti kehidupan". Para Imam Yahudi juga para Imam Katolik berdoa untuk anggur dengan cara yang sama juga.

* Imam Katolik mencuci tangannya, melanjutkan tradisi Yahudi dan berkata: "Aku mencuci tanganku dengan tidak bersalah, dan pergi ke altar, ya Tuhan" (Mzm 26: 6). "Altar" berarti "tempat pengorbanan" dalam bahasa Ibrani.

* Gereja-gereja Katolik memiliki tabernakel yang menyimpan Ekaristi, sedangkan di Sinagoge memiliki tabernakel yang menyimpan gulungan Taurat kuno.
Lilin juga dipakai di kedua rumah ibadah.

Kedua agama berbagi pemujaan kepada satu Tuhan Ibadah adalah tentang pemujaan, ucapan syukur, persiapan dan permohonan.

Membentuk RIM Israel Pasifik

BREAKING NEWS ISRAEL 🇮🇱❤️

MEMBENTUK RIM ISRAEL PASIFIK

(Oleh: AW Cohen 🇮🇱)

Pendukung Israel di Vanuatu;  Kepulauan Cook;  Papua Nugini;  Samoa;  Negara Federasi Mikronesia;  Kepulauan Fiji;  Kerajaan Tonga;  Pulau Solomon;  Kiribati;  Republik Kepulauan Marshall;  Nauru;  Niue;  Palau;  Tuvalu, Papua dan Maluku dan Indonesia TIMUR :

IDENTIFIKASI PARTAI POLITIK & POLITIK YANG MENDUKUNG ISRAEL.

Bicara dengan mereka tentang perlunya membentuk Aliansi bersejarah ini dengan Negara Israel. 

Pilih mereka menjadi Kekuatan. 

Mereka dapat menginspirasi pembentukan Lingkar Israel Pasifik di Bangsa Anda di masa mendatang.

APA ITU RIM ISRAEL PASIFIK?

Pacific Israel Rim adalah Aliansi yang ingin dibentuk oleh Pemerintah Israel dengan Pemerintah di Negara-Negara Kepulauan Pasifik. 

Niat Israel untuk membentuk Rim (Aliansi) ini diumumkan pada Agustus 2018 oleh Duta Besar Israel untuk Negara-Negara Kepulauan Pasifik H.E.  Tibor S. Schlosser.
Aliansi ini membawa banyak beban antara Tanah Suci Israel dan Rakyat Cantik Pasifik.

Pemerintah Israel akan mengusulkannya selama Forum Kepulauan Pasifik yang diadakan di Pulau Bangsa Nauru pada bulan September 2018.

Ini akan menjadi Aliansi proporsi Alkitab & Nubuat antara Orang-orang Musa & Anak-anak Pasifik yang tinggal di ujung Bumi (dari Yerusalem).

Aliansi akan mencakup 14 Negara Kepulauan Pasifik yang disebutkan sebelumnya.

Setiap pendukung Israel memiliki peran untuk dimainkan, untuk terus membicarakan hal ini & tidak pernah beristirahat sampai Aliansi ini terbentuk.

Aliansi ini akan menghasilkan banyak manfaat bagi Masyarakat pulau dalam jangka panjang. 
Meskipun Dunia Arab memiliki lebih banyak uang untuk diberikan, Israel di sisi lain memiliki keahlian yang lebih mendalam yang dibutuhkan oleh petani biasa di Pasifik (pertanian darat & perikanan darat) & I.C.T.  & bidang lainnya.

Dunia Arab & negara-negara anti-Israel yang menghasut Pemerintah Pasifik untuk memilih melawan Israel di dalam PBB dapat memberikan uang kepada Pemerintah Pasifik kami untuk memberi manfaat bagi generasi ini, tetapi, Israel di sisi lain, dapat memberi kami pengetahuan dan keahlian dalam industri komersial vital yang akan  bermanfaat bagi anak-anak kita & anak-anak mereka untuk banyak generasi yang akan datang. 

Oleh karena itu, perkataan itu benar, "Beri manusia ikan & kamu akan memberinya makan sehari, tapi ajari seorang pria cara memancing & kamu akan memberinya makan seumur hidup."

Israel pasti akan mengirimkan keahlian dan pengetahuan berkualitas ke Pasifik seperti yang diungkapkan Duta Besar Israel tetapi ini bukan tentang kuantitas tetapi lebih banyak tentang kualitas ketika datang ke Israel.

  Israel adalah Negara yang Memulai & Ibukota Cyber Dunia. 

Sektor penelitian dan pengembangan Israel menduduki peringkat tinggi di Dunia.

Terobosan ilmiah Israel dalam sains dan kedokteran adalah kecemburuan negara-negara besar.

Sumber daya terbesar Israel adalah pikiran (otak) dari Rakyatnya yang merupakan sesuatu yang dapat dipelajari dan dipelajari oleh Pasifik.

Investor Israel pasti akan tertarik ke Pasifik serta investor Yahudi di diaspora (Yahudi yang tinggal di luar Israel). 

Perusahaan-perusahaan Israel akan menaruh minat pada Pasifik & kita semua tahu orang-orang Yahudi dapat menciptakan banyak kekayaan di mana tampaknya tidak ada kekayaan karena mereka telah membuktikan dalam bertani di gurun Tanah Suci & mengekspor hasil pertanian mereka ke negara-negara yang lebih hijau di Eropa.

Israel adalah tanah tanpa sumber daya alam ketika didirikan tetapi orang-orang Yahudi telah mengubahnya menjadi kekuatan ekonomi dengan PDB per-kapita Israel melampaui Jepang pada tahun 2018 (Tautan disediakan di bawah) & melampaui banyak negara Arab & anti-Israel di seluruh dunia.

Dengan simpanan minyak yang sekarang ditemukan di Israel, kekuatan ekonomi Israel akan tumbuh lebih banyak lagi & ketika cadangan minyak di Dunia Arab habis dalam setengah abad berikutnya, pertumbuhan ekonomi Israel yang tidak bergantung pada minyak pada awalnya akan tumbuh dengan teknologi dan  industri modern lainnya yang pasti akan mengalahkan musuh-musuhnya.

Banyak yang gagal menyadari bahwa banyak cadangan minyak Arab akan mengering pada akhir abad ini & sisanya pasti akan mengikutinya.

Bahkan sekarang Bangsa Pilihan Israel telah membuktikan di depan seluruh Dunia bahwa itu adalah kekuatan ekonomi yang harus diperhitungkan mengingat kecakapan inovatif & teknologi Yahudi yang telah membuat iri Dunia modern kita.

Israel dikutuk secara tidak adil di dalam PBB lebih dari negara mana pun di Dunia selama beberapa dekade sekarang.

Aliansi ini suatu hari nanti bisa menyatukan Pasifik untuk memilih sebagai satu dengan Israel di dalam PBB. 

Berdiri dengan Israel di dalam PBB berarti BERDIRI DENGAN KEBENARAN.

Hadiah terbesar akan datang dari Dewa Israel, Pencipta Surga dan Bumi yang berkata, "Aku akan memberkati orang-orang yang memberkatimu, dan siapa pun yang mengutukmu aku akan mengutuk; dan semua orang di Bumi akan diberkati melaluimu."

  Kejadian 12: 3

Karena PBB & Dunia terus melawan Israel, kita diingatkan akan Kitab Suci yang terkenal dalam Kitab Ester:

Esther 4: 14 (ESV)
"Karena jika kamu tetap diam pada saat ini, kelegaan dan pembebasan akan naik untuk orang-orang Yahudi dari tempat lain, tetapi kamu dan rumah ayahmu akan binasa.

Dan siapa yang tahu apakah kamu belum datang ke Kerajaan SELAMA SEPERTI WAKTU SEPERTI INI?"

Bani Israel tidak pernah meminta Aliansi dengan saudara-saudari mereka di Negara-negara Kepulauan Pasifik .... SAMPAI SEKARANG!  💙💖

Bagi Pemerintah Israel untuk menginisiasi Aliansi ini dengan Pasifik bahkan sebelum Pemerintah Pasifik memintanya, sangat bernubuat & merupakan indikator (tanda) dari zaman yang kita tinggali.

Ini adalah tantangan bagi semua orang yang mencintai Israel di generasi kita untuk mendorong Pemerintah Pasifik kita untuk melihat pembentukan Aliansi bersejarah ini di masa mendatang.

RIM ISRAEL PASIFIK
PDB ISRAEL PER-CAPITA LEBIH TINGGI DARI JEPANG DI 2018.

#PacificIsraelRim #PacificAllianceWithIsrael #Pacific_Islands_With_Israel

10 HUKUM, Kel.20:2-17

Ashara Hadebarot
Shmot / Keluaran 20:2-17

Keluaran 20:2 Akulah YAHWEH, Elohimmu, yang telah membawa engkau keluar dari Tanah Mesir, dari tempat perbudakan:
שמות 20:2  אָנֹכִי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ אֲשֶׁר הֹוצֵאתִיךָ מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם מִבֵּית עֲבָדִים׃
Anoki Yahweh Eloheika asher hotsetika me'erets Mitsrayim mibeit avadim

1. Keluaran 20:3 Jangan ada padamu ilah-ilah lain di hadapan-Ku.
שמות 20:3   לֹא יִהְיֶה־לְךָ אֱלֹהִים אֲחֵרִים עַל־פָּנָיַ ׃
Lo yihyeh leka elohim akherim alpanai
2. Keluaran 20:4-6 Jangan membuat patung bagimu yang menyerupai apa pun di langit, di atas, atau apa pun yang ada di bumi, di bawah, atau yang ada di dalam air, di bawah bumi.
Jangan bersujud kepada mereka dan jangan melayani mereka, karena Akulah YAHWEH, Elohimmu, Elohim yang cemburu, yang memperhitungkan kesalahan bapak kepada anak-anak, kepada generasi yang ketiga dan kepada yang keempat, kepada mereka yang membenci Aku;
tetapi yang melakukan kebaikan kepada beribu-ribu orang, kepada mereka yang mengasihi Aku dan kepada mereka yang memelihara perintah-perintah-Ku. .
שמות 20:4-6  לֹא תַעֲשֶׂה־לְךָ פֶסֶל וְכָל־תְּמוּנָה אֲשֶׁר בַּשָּׁמַיִם  מִמַּעַל וַאֲשֶׁר בָּאָרֶץ מִתַָּחַת וַאֲשֶׁר בַּמַּיִם  מִתַּחַת לָאָרֶץ ׃
Lo ta'asheh leka fesel wekal temunah ashwr bashamayim mimaal wa'asheh ba'arets mitakhat wa aaher bammayim mittakhat la'arets
לֹא־תִשְׁתַּחְוֶה לָהֶם וְלֹא תָעָבְדֵם כִּי אָנֹכִי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ אֵל קַנָּא פֹּקֵד עֲוֹן אָבֹת עַל־בָּנִים עַל־שִׁלֵּשִׁים וְעַל־רִבֵּעִים לְשֹׂנְאָי׃
Lo tishttakheweh lahem welo ta'avdem ki Anoki Yahweh Eloheika el qanna poqed aon avod al banim al shileshim weal rabeim lishnai
וְעֹשֶׂה חֶסֶד לַאֲלָפִים לְאֹהֲבַי וּלְשֹׁמְרֵי מִצְוֹתָי׃
We'osheh khesed le'alafim leohavai ulshomrei mitsotai
3. Keluaran 20:7 Jangan menyebut Nama YAHWEH, Elohimmu, untuk kesia-siaan, karena YAHWEH tidak akan membebaskan orang yang menyebut Nama-Nya untuk kesia-siaan.
שמות 20:7  לֹא תִשָּׂא אֶת־שֵׁם־יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ לַשָּׁוְא כִּי לֹא יְנַקֶּה יְהוָה אֵת אֲשֶׁר־יִשָּׂא אֶת־שְׁמֹו לַשָּׁוְא׃
Lo tisha et shwm Yahweh Eloheika lashawe ki lo yenaqqeh Yahweh et asher yisha et sh'mo lashawe
4. Keluaran 20:8-11 Ingatlah hari Sabat untuk menguduskannya.
Enam hari engkau seharusnya bekerja dan melakukan segala pekerjaanmu,
tetapi hari ketujuh adalah sabat bagi YAHWEH, Elohimmu; setiap pekerjaan janganlah engkau lakukan, baik engkau, atau anak laki-lakimu, atau anak perempuanmu, budakmu, atau wanita pelayanmu, atau ternakmu, atau pun orang asing yang ada di dalam gerbangmu.
Sebab, enam hari lamanya YAHWEH telah menjadikan langit dan bumi, laut, dan segala isinya, dan Dia beristirahat pada hari ketujuh itu. Oleh karena itu, YAHWEH memberkati hari Sabat itu dan menguduskannya.
שמות 20:8-11  זָכֹור אֶת־יֹום הַשַּׁבָּת לְקַדְּשֹׁו ׃
Zakor et yom ha shabat leqaddsho
שֵׁשֶׁת יָמִים תַּעֲבֹד וְעָשִׂיתָ כָּל־מְלַאכְתֶּךָ ׃
Sheshet yamim ta'avod weashita kal melaketteka
וְיֹום הַשְּׁבִיעִי שַׁבָּת לַיהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ לֹא־תַעֲשֶׂה כָל־מְלָאכָה אַתָּה וּבִנְךָ־וּבִתֶּךָ עַבְדְּךָ וַאֲמָתְךָ וּבְהֶמְתֶּךָ וְגֵרְךָ אֲשֶׁר בִּשְׁעָרֶיךָ
Weyom hashvi'i  shabat la Yahweh Eloheika lo ta'asheh kal melakah attah avddeka weamateka uvhemtteka wegerka asher bishareika
כִּי שֵׁשֶׁת־יָמִים עָשָׂה יְהוָה אֶת־הַשָּׁמַיִם וְאֶת־הָאָרֶץ אֶת־הַיָּם וְאֶת־כָּל־אֲשֶׁר־בָּם וַיָּנַח בַּיֹּום הַשְּׁבִיעִי עַל־כֵּן בֵּרַךְ יְהוָה אֶת־יֹום הַשַּׁבָּת וַיְקַדְּשֵׁהוּ׃
Ki sheshet yamim ashah Yahweh hashamayim we et ha'arets et hayam we et kal asher bam wayanakh bayyom hashvi'i al ken berak Yahweh et yom hashabat wayeqaddshehu
5. Keluaran 20:12 Hormatilah ayahmu dan ibumu supaya lanjut umurmu di negeri yang YAHWEH, Elohimmu, berikan kepadamu.
שמות 20:12 כַּבֵּד אֶת־אָבִיךָ וְאֶת־אִמֶּךָ לְמַעַן יַאֲרִכוּן יָמֶיךָ עַל הָאֲדָמָה אֲשֶׁר־יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ נֹתֵן לָךְ׃
Kabed et avika we et immeka lemaan ya'arikun yameika al ha'adamah asher Yahweh  Eloheika noten lak
6. Keluaran 20:13 Jangan membunuh.
שמות 20:13 לֹא תִּרְצָח׃  / Lo tirtsakh
7. Keluaran 20:14 Jangan berzina.
שמות 20:14 לֹא תִּנְאָף׃ / Lo tin'af
8. Keluaran 20:15 Jangan mencuri.
שמות 20:15   לֹא תִּגְנֹב׃ / Lo tignov
9. Keluaran 20:16 Jangan mengucapkan kesaksian dusta terhadap sesamamu.
שמות 20:16  לֹא־תַעֲנֶה בְרֵעֲךָ עֵד שָׁקֶר׃
Lo ta'aneh bere'aka ed shaqer
10. Keluaran 20:17 Jangan mengingini rumah sesamamu; jangan mengingini istri sesamamu, atau budaknya, atau wanita pelayannya, atau lembunya, atau keledai jantannya, atau pun segala sesuatu yang menjadi milik sesamamu.”
שמות 20:17 לֹא תַחְמֹד בֵּית רֵעֶךָ לֹא־תַחְמֹד אֵשֶׁת רֵעֶךָ וְעַבְדֹּו וַאֲמָתֹו וְשֹׁורֹו וַחֲמֹרֹו וְכֹל אֲשֶׁר לְרֵעֶךָ׃
Lo takhmod beut re'eka lo takhmod eshet re'eka weavddo wa'amato weshoro wakhamoro wekol asher lere'eka

Prodigal Son and Parable

The parable of the prodigal son One of the most well known parables of the gospels is the parable of the prodigal son. We find it in Luke’s gospel where, starting from 15:11 we read: Luke 15:11-24 "Then He [the Lord Jesus] said: "A certain man had two sons. "And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me.' So he divided to them his livelihood. "And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living. "But when he had spent all, there arose a severe famine in that land, and he began to be in want. "Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. "And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate, and no one gave him anything. "But when he came to himself, he said, How many of my father's hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants." And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. "And the son said to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son. But the father said to his servants, Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet. And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry; for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found. And they began to be merry." The Son of God came to find and save the lost (Matthew 18:11). The one that comes to Him will never be cast out, says the Word (John 6:37). It does not matter what one has done or not. It does not matter what is his/her past. What the Son of God wants is not to condemn but to save (John 3:17). The compassion of the father of this parable is a figure of the compassion of the Father God (Jesus said the parable in relation of the joy occurring in heaven, when a sinner returns). God "wants all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth" (I Timothy 2:4). The son of this parable could not wait for his father to die. He wanted the property right and then, though his father was still alive. Once he put his hands on it, gathered all together and left for a "far country". Who knows what he might have heard for this country. Advertisements, TV, radio (if they existed) would speak for this country. If he had lots of money, he could live the "big life" there – the "big life" the Word of God describes with two words: "prodigal living". At the end, the balloon blow out and the once son-of-a-rich-father, became poor and hungry. His hunger was actually so much that he didn’t have anything to eat - the pigs were fed more than him! And then, something critical happened: "he came to himself" and he thought: "How many of my father's hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants." The prodigal son came to himself! The time that one "comes to himself" is usually not the time that everything goes well, but the time that, as with this son, he may not even have pots to satisfy his hunger. The son came therefore to himself and took the way of return to his home. All the thoughts he made were right and just: after what he had done, he had no right to be called a son of this father. He had eaten up his labours by living prodigally. Yet the Father saw him from afar. This shows that he was watching the road. Though the son had taken his inheritance and left the home, the father was not indifferent. He was waiting day after day for him to return. If he could find him, he would go and plead him to come back - as the Lord pleads us to be reconciled with Him (II Corinthians 5:20-21). The Father was waiting. He was watching the road, and as soon as he saw his son coming, he RAN to meet him ! Really what a touching picture: a father running to hug and kiss a son that ate up his property by living prodigally. However, is it not the same with God? We were dead in sins and trespasses, children of wrath, and yet He saved us, He raised us together with Christ and He sited us with Him in the heavenlies. Not because of our works (we were dead) BUT BECAUSE OF THE MULTITUDE OF HIS LOVE (Ephesians 2:4). As the father of the parable, God waits for the lost sheep, and when one returns, HE RUNS TO HUG HIM/HER AND KISS THEM. THE FATHER FORGETS AND DELETES ALL THE PAST OF EVERY SON THAT RETURNS. HE WILL NOT BRING TO JUDGMENT ANY BELIEVER, ANY SHEEP THAT RETURNED, FOR WHAT WAS DONE IN THE TIME HE WAS LOST. "IF ANYONE IS IN CHRIST , HE IS A NEW CREATION; OLD THINGS HAVE PASSED AWAY; BEHOLD ALL THINGS HAVE BECOME NEW" (II Corinthians 5:17) says the Word of God. So, the father of the parable instead of kicking out his son – as many fathers do when they find out the rebellions of their children, even though they may have repented – instead of putting him in a trial period, he hugged him, he kissed him and killed the fattest calf he had – ALL STARTED TO BE MERRY. Similar is the joy in heaven when a sinner returns. What the Lord desires is not the condemnation of the sinner. If you have been told that God waits with a stock whip if you turn to Him, please hear this: GOD IS WAITING FOR YOU LIKE THE FATHER OF THE PRODIGAL SON. HE WAITS FOR YOU AND ONCE HE SEES YOU COMING, HE RUNS TO HUG YOU, KISS YOU AND START A BRIGHT CELEBRATION FOR YOUR RETURN. "I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance" (Luke 15:7)  

Faith and Works

Faith and works About good works, faith and salvation James 2:14 tells us: James 2:14  “What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?” Many brothers are perplexed with this passage, thinking that James contradicts Paul, who so many times said that a man is saved and justified freely, without any works, through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and His resurrection (see the articles: “Righteousness and the Bible” and “Saved and righteous by faith”) Something that we need to make clear right from the beginning is that the Word of God never contradicts itself. What is usually happening, and is happening also with this passage, is a problem of understanding what the Word of God tells us. The purpose of this article is to help the reader in the understanding of this passage of James 2 as well as to give him a more complete view about salvation. Faith and works: he who has true faith he will also have works. Starting from the first part of James 2:14, we see that James is speaking for “someone that says he has faith”. The verbal expression of one’s faith i.e. If someone says he has faith, is not enough to save him. In fact, Paul tells us the same too, in Romans 10:9-10, where we read: “if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” For somebody to be saved what is required is real faith, faith from the heart. Such faith the Word of God means when it speaks about faith. Faith that is simply in the mouth, i.e. does not exist in the heart is not real faith. As the Lord said: “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34). The confession of faith is meant to be a confession that comes from a heart that has believed. Otherwise it is a fake confession. If therefore as James 2 says “someone says he has faith”, two things may happen: His confession is genuine i.e. what he says is true, or what he says is not genuine i.e. though he says that he has faith he actually does not have. Let’s get the first case, the case of a genuine confession. This confession being genuine is a confession of the faith that is already in the heart. In this case natural consequence of this faith is the fruit, the works. To say it differently: though the works do not precede salvation and faith (i.e. we are not saved through works), they are however natural consequence of salvation, they are coming as a fruit, as a result of the faith present in the heart. As the Lord said: Luke 6:43-45  “a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. For every tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” The fruit, the works of every man is the result of what is in his heart. As we also read in Romans 10:10, “with the heart one believes .. and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation”. In other words the mouth is to always follow what is in the heart. There is salvation not when the mouth simply confesses but when the heart has believed and then as a result the mouth confesses this faith. And since such treasure, such tree, such faith exists in the heart it is natural to see from that tree the respective good fruit too. Therefore the good works is something very natural, as natural is for the good tree to give good fruit. Faith and works: the works, proof whose children we are. When somebody is born again (Ephesians 1:13) he is sealed with the holy spirit, receives a new nature and becomes a child of God. This new nature gives fruit - when, as expected, we walk with it. As Paul says about this fruit: Galatians 5:22-23  “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” All these are characteristics of God too. He is kind, good, long-suffering, gentle, loving, faithful etc. Now, since we are children of God – and I’m referring here to people who have genuinely believed in the Lord Jesus Christ as the Messiah and the Son of God – it is absolutely normal to exhibit the same characteristics as our Father i.e. to be good, kind, joyful, with longsuffering, gentleness and self control etc. It is normal to resemble Him, reflect Him. The same happens with our kids: it is normal for them to resemble us, to look like us, as they are our kids. The children of God therefore resemble, reflect God, Who lives in the inside of them. Obviously this cannot happen for those who are not His children: they do not and cannot resemble God as they are not His children. And how somebody resembles, reflects God? Very simply: in the characteristics he exhibits, in the fruit he bears, in his works. The works, the fruit show whose children we really are. See this dialogue between Jesus and certain Jews, who, as the context tells us (John 8:30-31) had in fact believed in Him but then eventually, after the below conversation, they wanted to stone Him (John 8:59)! John 8:38-44  “I speak that which I have seen with my Father: and you do that which you have seen with your father. They answered and said unto him, Abraham is our father. Jesus said unto them, If you were Abraham's children, you would do the works of Abraham. But now you seek to kill me, a man that has told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham. You do the deeds of your father. Then said they to him, We be not born of fornication; we have one Father, [even] God. Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, you would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me. You are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father you will do.” These people believed that God was their Father. But, if God was really their Father they would do His works. They however were doing the works of the devil. Who therefore was their father? He whose works they were doing: the devil. What I want to say with the above is that the works, the fruit of every man is the proof whose child he or she is. If somebody is really a child of God he will do the works of God and in fact he will do them very naturally as they are part of his spiritual DNA. God has made him for this. As Ephesians 2:10 tells us we were created for, made for, it is in our spiritual DNA to do, the good works God has prepared for us. The works therefore though they do not precede faith and salvation, they indeed follow it. Faith that has not given fruit, faith without works, is truly as James 2 says dead. I know that some may have difficulty to believe what I’m saying, as in some churches there is a teaching that says “confess Jesus as Lord and you will be saved”. This however is not true. „Believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead and then confess Him as Lord. Then you will be saved“ (Romans 10:9-10). This is right. It is the faith that saves and the confession simply confesses this faith. As the Lord said: Matthew 7:21  “Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.” For somebody to say “Lord, Lord” is not enough. He needs also to mean it. And if he means it or not will be shown by the fruit, by whether he does the will of the Father. And yes somebody may fall into mistakes that may affect, even seriously, his fruitfulness. However it cannot happen that he or she is permanently fruitless. A Christian that has never brought forth fruit is simply not a Christian1. I know that this may not sit well for certain readers but this I believe is the truth of the Word. To sum it up: when there is true faith in the heart of a man, the works will come out naturally, as fruit comes our naturally from a tree. We are created for, made for, it is natural to us to do, the good works that God has already prepared for us (Ephesians 2:10). This is therefore the one case of man: the case of the man whose confession is a result of the faith he has in his heart, it is in other words REAL. Faith and works: he who “says he has faith”. Apart now from this case, there is also another case. This is the case of the faith that “someone says he has”, but it is faith only in words. This is the faith of the man that has not really believed in his heart and who, for various reasons, may pretend, even without realizing it himself many times, to be a believer. Such a man, a man that “says he has faith” but actually he does not, is NOT a born again man and therefore the only that he has is the sinful nature of Adam i.e. he has a tree that is rotten and sick. And from such a tree there is no way to get good fruit. If therefore “someone says he has faith”, but the respective good fruit is missing and this happens on a permanent basis, we have to wonder whether the faith that he says he has is a genuine faith. As the Lord said: “every tree is known by its own fruit” (Luke 6:44). Seeing the fruit we know the tree. Here I need to make clear that this article does not propagate to make people suspicious about the salvation of others. God will judge the work of everybody and He knows our hearts. What this article aims to is to wake up the reader who is complacent because some time, somewhere, he made a confession of faith without any transformation ever happening to his life. If somebody believes that because of a confession alone he is going to be saved he deceives himself. It is the faith that saves! And if faith is present then there is really no need for anybody “to say that he has faith”: this faith will be manifested through the works, the fruit it bears. Having said the above let us now read James 2:14 once again: “What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can [the] faith [that he says that he has] save him?” Can the faith that is only in words and not in the heart save the one that says he has it? NO. The fruit, the walk in the works that God has prepared for us and He has created us for (Ephesians 2:10) is the natural result of the faith. As from an orange tree we get oranges, so also from the born again believer, the believer that has the spirit of God in him, we get the respective fruit. If somebody says he has faith but he never has the good fruit that accompanies it then probably he does not have the faith he says he has. Such faith, faith in words and only in words, is a dead faith like the dead tree that gives nothing. And to this man James says: “Can [the] faith [that he says he has] save him?”. And the answer is clearly: NO.

Gideon and Call by God

Judges 6:6-16 : Gideon's encounter with the Lord In Judges 6 is recorded the encounter of the Lord with Gideon - the man through whom God would save Israel from the slavery to the Medianites. Verses 1-10 give us the situation that Israel was in at that time: Judges 6:6-10 "Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD. So the LORD delivered them into the hand of Midian for seven years, and the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel. Because of the Midianites, the children of Israel made for themselves the dens, the caves, and the strongholds which are in the mountains. So it was, whenever Israel had sown, Midianites would come up; also Amalekites and the people of the East would come up against them. Then they would encamp against them and destroy the produce of the earth as far as Gaza, and leave no sustenance for Israel, neither sheep nor ox nor donkey. For they would come up with their livestock and their tents, coming in as numerous as locusts; both they and their camels were without number; and they would enter the land to destroy it. So Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites, and the children of Israel cried out to the LORD." The reason the sons of Israel turned to the Lord was their deep poverty and distress, which in turn came as a result of their rebellion and disobedience against the Lord. Then verses 8-10 tells us what the Lord did: Judges 6:8-10 "And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried out to the LORD because of the Midianites, that the LORD sent a prophet to the children of Israel, who said to them, "Thus says the LORD God of Israel: I brought you up from Egypt and brought you out of the house of bondage; and I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of all who oppressed you, and drove them out before you and gave you their land. Also I said to you, "I am the LORD your God; do not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell." But you have not obeyed My voice." As answer to the Israel’s plea for help, the Lord send a prophet who told them what He had done for them and how disobediently they behaved. This answer though didn’t mean that He would not help them. Israel behaved disobediently, but they finally returned and this was the important. Thus in verse 11 we read: "Now the angel of the LORD came and sat under the terebinth tree which was in Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon threshed wheat in the winepress, in order to hide it from the Midianites. And the angel of the LORD appeared to him, and said to him, "The LORD is with you, you mighty man of valour!" The Lord’s call didn’t come to somebody sitting in a palace. It didn’t come to someone that was especially trained for this mission, to a great fighter let’s say, or to a man that was a leader in Israel. The call of the Lord came to a peasant that was threshing wheat, in order to hide it from the Medianites. "Man looks at the at the outward appearance but the Lord looks at the heart" says the Word (I Samuel 16:7). He looks at the heart and He calls. He calls anybody. You, that you may not have a Ph.D. in theology and you may have never been in a pulpit. Yet, you have Christ. You are a member of His body with the same significant and critical role as any member of your physical body has. So the Lord called Gideon, a peasant that was threshing wheat, to do his work. Was he really looking a "mighty man of valour"? He was threshing the wheat to HIDE IT from the Medianites. And yet that is what exactly you are, "a mighty man (or woman) of valour" when the Lord is with you. "The Lord is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid?" (Psalms 27:1), David said. "If God is for us, who can be against us" (Romans 8:31), "I CAN DO ALL THINGS THROUGH CHRIST WHO STRENGTHENS ME" (Philippians 4:13) Paul said. "Without Me you can do nothing" (John 15:5), the Lord said. It does not matter what we have or what we can do – without the Lord, from ourselves, we can do nothing – but what He can do through us, if we obey to what He calls us. And carrying on to verse 13: "Gideon said to Him, "O my lord, if the LORD is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt?' But now the LORD has forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites." Had Gideon understood that he was speaking with an angel of the Lord? Probably not yet, as only later in verse 22 he admitted it. Gideon answered with a "why" to the Lord’s greeting that opened their conversation. "If the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us". Some brothers and sisters look at the past, to the so and so event and they make the same thoughts as Gideon: "if the Lord is with me, then why all this happened to me"? "I will never leave you nor forsaken you" (Hebrews 13:5) says the Word though. The Lord will never leave you. He will never forsaken you even if difficult times may arise, and they will arise in life. However, God didn’t wait till Gideon had no question. Verse 14 gives us His reply: "Then the LORD turned to him and said, "Go in this might of yours, and you shall save Israel from the hand of the Midianites. Have I not sent you?" "Have I not sent you?" It does not matter who you are and what are your credentials. These may matter for men. Men look at titles and names. However the Lord does not – He looks only at the heart. What really matters is that He has sent you. If the Lord sends you and you obey to His instructions, then you will succeed to whatever your mission may be, even if it is the liberation of a whole nation, as here with Gideon. And the conversation carries on in verses 15-16 Judges 6:15-16 "So he said to Him, "O my Lord, how can I save Israel? Indeed my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house." And the LORD said to him, "BUT I will be with you, and you shall defeat the Midianites as one man." Gideon was the smallest of the small. His words remind me the similar conversation between Jeremiah and the Lord, in the beginning of Jeremiah’s ministry. Jeremiah 1:4-8 "Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying: "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations." Then said I: "Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, I cannot speak, for I am a youth." But the LORD said to me: "Do not say, I am a youth,' For you shall go to all to whom I send you, And whatever I command you, you shall speak. Do not be afraid of their faces, For I am with you to deliver you," says the LORD." Yes of course, physically speaking, you may not be the most trained or admitted for this work. Physically speaking, there might be others, better than Gideon, from a more well known family or tribe that might be more acceptable. There might be also speakers in Jeremiah’s time that could handle language better than him. However, again it does not matter what you can do but what God can do through you. When the Lord has called you for a work and you obey Him there is no chance of failure. FOR HE IS WITH YOU. To what Gideon is saying, God does not answer that he is wrong. He replies however with a BUT. "Gideon it may even be like what you have said. BUT YOU FORGOT SOMETHING: I WILL BE WITH YOU AND IF I’M WITH YOU THEN ALL ELSE IS NEEDLESS. THE ONLY THAT IS NEEDED IS TO BELIEVE ME." And Gideon did believe God and the Lord delivered through him the Israel from the Midianites. May we also do the same. May we also believe, follow and obey God to whatever He has called us.