Project Jericho - Blow the Shofar and Break Down the Walls of Hatred

— Wednesday, August 31, was Rosh Chodesh - Elul 1. Elul is the sixth month of the Biblical year. It is called the month of RACHAMIM — MERCY, in anticipation of God's Judgment, which, according to tradition, takes place in the following month of Tishrei. It is also called YEMAI HA-SELICHOT — DAYS OF PROPITIATORY PRAYERS or DAYS OF REPENTANCE.

The period of forty days, from the first of Elul until the tenth day of Tishrei (the day of Atonement - Yom Kippur), commemorates the second stay of Moshe on Mount Sinai, to invoke God's abundant mercy for our complete atonement, in which God inscribed the second set of stone tablets. Since then, these days are marked as a special period of Divine grace, during which, the tradition says, the sincere prayers are sure to find favor in the eyes of God.

There are two traditions for these Selichot prayers:

According to the Sephardic Minhag, these prayers begin on the first of Elul and continue until first of Tishrei (the Feast of Trumpets - Yom Teruah) or Rosh HaShanah.

In the Ashkenazic Minhag these penitential prayers begin on the Sunday before Rosh HaShanah with a minimum of four days of Selichot, thus September 25 this year. The first Selichot are said early Sunday morning after midnight. The preceding Shabbat is called Shabbat Selichot.

Elul is indeed an appropriate time to reflect on our actions and attitudes of the previous year, and resolve to correct our shortcomings. After prayers each morning, it is customary to blow the Shofar.

But I would like to do more than that. I would like to stand with all the believers around the world, resolve to change my attitude and show God's love and mercy in my life. I would like to break down the walls of hatred and tell the world that there is a God and His word is the only true truth and that we need to obey His commandments. Blowing the Shofar is one of these commandments ("Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, 'In the seventh month on the first of the month you shall have a Shabbat, a reminder by blowing (Zikaron Teruah) [of Shofarim], a holy convocation.'" - Leviticus 23:24

Yes, by blowing the Shofar we will also tell Israel that we stand with them in these times of rising anti-Semitism, because Israel is the apple of God's eye and that those who bless Israel would be blessed. We can do that by each of us blowing the Shofar around the Globe.

Therefore, would you stand with me and blow the Shofar? Project Jericho is blowing the Shofar every day around the Globe in every time zone at 6:00pm - local time - starting with Rosh Chodesh - the first of Tishrei - Wednesday, September 28, for the duration of the Ten Days of Awe, culminating with Yom Kippur Saturday, October 8. Wouldn't be amazing if we can hear the sound of Teruah every hour in a chain reaction around the Globe? Please let me know where are you located and see if we can have a believer blowing the Shofar in every time zone.

Thank you for participating in this event - Project Jericho.

PLEASE NOTE: According to a rabbinical ruling it is prohibited to blow the Shofar on Shabbat, but not according to the Bible, therefore, how much more appropriate is to obey God's commandment to celebrate Yom Teruah with the blowing of the Shofar even if it falls on Shabbat.

There is only one true Jesus, the Jewish Yeshua

Parashah Beha'alotcha - “When you Kindle"

Torah: Numbers (Bamidbar) 8:1 – 12:16

Haftarah: Zechariah 2:14 – 4:7

Pirkei Avot: Chapter 1

Right after the dedication of the Tabernacle, after this spiritual high point, people complained about not having meat to eat. It was true then and it is true now, after an uplifting spiritual event - such as the infilling with the Holy Spirit at Shavuot - our humanity is the most vulnerable to fall pray to the Adversary. God supplied to them manna from heaven, a perfect food with all the vitamins, minerals, proteins and calories needed to sustain life perfectly, but people’s taste buds were not satisfied, the flesh wanted something else.

To parallel this with our Messianic life, God gave us the Manna from heaven, Yeshua HaMoshiach, the Bread of Life, and He also gave us the Ruach Hachodesh with an uplifting infilling event at Shavuot, but some of us are not satisfied – it is our flesh, it is our human nature that surfaces its ugly character. We want something else, but we are warned. In the second letter to the Corinthians the apostle Shaul writes, chapter 11:3-4: “But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Havah by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity {of devotion} to Moshiach. For if one comes and preaches another Yeshua, whom we have not preached, or you receive a different Spirit which you have not received, or a different Gospel which you have not accepted, you bear him well enough.” 

God was not pleased with the people of Israel’s request and He will not be pleased with us if we stray away from the purity of the Gospel. The many denominations that preach another Yeshua are a testimony that the Adversary is at work and we must be on guard. The apostle not only warned us but also gave us the remedy, Ephesians 6:11: “Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.” And that “full armor” is study - both Tanakh and Brith Chadashah, prayer, fellowship and mitzvoth centered around the teachings of Yeshua.

Serve with Zeal, Reverence, and Joy

Parashah Nasso - "Elevate"
Torah: Bamidbar (Numbers) 4:21 – 7:89
Haftarah: Judges 13:2-25
Pirkei Avot: Chapter 6
The previous Parashah of Bamidbar ends with a census being taken from the tribe of Levi from the families of Kohath, ahead of the families of Gershon. But this should not be taken as an elevation of the families of Kohath over the families of Gershon, rather it signifies reverence to the Ark, for which the Kohathites were responsible. To emphasize the equality of the two families, the Scripture says in this second Parashah, Parashah Nasso, "Nasso gam-hem," "take also a census," literally "raise up as well," i.e., give honor as well to the families of Gershon. The Kohathites carried the most sacred parts of the Tabernacle, while the Gershonites carried the less sacred. But by saying, "as well," the Torah makes the point that both tasks are necessary for the Tabernacle and both should be done with equal zeal, reverence and joy. This is an implied message to people who may not have the ability of doing certain jobs for the Kingdom of God. It is easy for such people to be discouraged, but to this, God responds that whether one bears the exalted Ark or only the curtains, every role is significant, because each is a unique participant in the sacred service and worship of Yehovah.
Many centuries later, God conveys the same message through the apostle Shaul who writes in 1 Corinthians 12:
"To each is given the disclosure of the Ruach HaKodesh for the common benefit. To one, through the Ruach HaKodesh, is given a word of wisdom; to another, according to the same Ruach HaKodesh, a word of knowledge; to another, by the same Ruach HaKodesh, faith; to another, by the one Ruach HaKodesh, gifts of healing... All these things are activated by the one and same Ruach HaKodesh, distributing individually to each one as He determines. For even as the body is one, and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so is Moshiach. For also in one Ruach HaKodesh we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or freedman, and all were given to drink, as it were, from one Ruach HaKodesh. For the body is not one, but many members. But the members should have the same deeds of lovingkindness and caring for one another."The parallelism between the Scriptures describing the hearts of men in the process of building the Tabernacle and the hearts of men in the process of building the Ekklesia, the new spiritual Temple, is striking.
We further read in the Parashah: "It was on the day that Moshe had finished setting up the Tabernacle that he anointed it, and sanctified it, and all its instruments, both the Altar and all its utensils, and had anointed them, and sanctified them. The leaders of Israel, the heads of the house of their fathers, who were the leaders of the tribes, and who were those who were counted, brought offerings. And they brought their offering before the Lord." Bamidbar 7:1
Moshe finished erecting the Tabernacle and anointed it and sanctified it, so, too, our Messiah finished erecting the Ekklesia, the New Holy Tabernacle in His body, anointed it and sanctified it by sending the Holy Spirit, the Ruach HaKodesh. And just as the people of Israel responded to the awesomeness of the earthly Tabernacle bringing offerings from their overflowing hearts, so too the believers seeing the awesomeness of the new Tabernacle, the Ekklesia, brought gifts above and beyond their abilities with hearts overflowing with joy:
"And they were constantly devoting themselves to the Moshiach Shluchim's (apostles') teaching and to the Messianic Chavura (fellowship), to the shared meals with breaking bread and to prayer. All were filled with awe, and many wonders and signs through Moshiach's Shluchim were taking place. And all those who had believed were together and they were having all things in common. And they were selling properties and possessions and were distributing tzedakah to everyone as someone had need. And day by day, devoting themselves with one mind in the courts of the Beit Hamikdash, and from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart praising Yehovah, and having favor with all the people." Acts 2:42 As we approach Shavuot which commemorates the outpouring of the Ruach HaKodesh and, traditionally, the giving of the Torah, may God teach us to have again this awe of His Tabernacle, of His Ekklesia, and be together, Jews and Gentiles, two loaves of fine flower as the Shavuot offering, with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God for He had mercy on all of us, Jews and Gentiles, while we were sinners. And, as sanctified utensils of this New Tabernacle, spread the Good News to Jews and Gentiles alike, using with zeal, reverence, and joy the gifts that the Ruach HaKodesh gave to each, because each member of the body is an important instrument for the Kingdom.

"Messiah in Israel's Census"

— Parashah Bamidbar - "In the Wilderness" Torah: Bamidbar (Numbers) 1:1 – 4:20 Haftarah: Hosea 2:1-22 Pirkei Avot: Chapter 5

This week's Parashah begins the fourth book of Moshe known by the fourth word in the opening sentence: "Vaydaber YHVH el-Moshe Bamidbar," 'And spoke Yehovah to Moshe in the Wilderness.' Bamidbar designates a unity of time and place to the varied happenings in the Book. The current English designation, "Numbers," is derived from the Septuagint Greek translation done before the Common Era. 
The greater portion of the Book is devoted to the trials of the Israelites in their wanderings after the exodus till, thirty-eight years later, they are about to enter the Holy Land. But Bamidbar is not just a chronicle of the outstanding events during the journey in the wilderness. It also interprets these events and shows the faithfulness of God in every distress and danger as well as the stern severity of the Divine judgments against rebellion and apostasy. In addition, it records the teachings and ordinances given during that journey; teachings relating to the Sanctuary, the camp, and the purification of life; and such civil and political ordinances as would enable the Israelites to fulfill the task God assigned to them among the nations.
"And Yehovah spoke to Moshe in the wilderness of Sinai, in the Tent of Meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they came out from the land of Egypt, saying, 'Take a census of all the congregation of the people of Israel, by families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of names, every male by their polls. From twenty years old and upward, all who are able to go forth to war in Israel; you and Aaron shall count them by their armies. And with you there shall be a man of every tribe; every one chief of the house of his fathers.'" Bamidbar 1:1-4.
The wilderness journey begins by taking a census. There are two remarkable facts about this census. First, the counting is to be done "by the house of their fathers." The Biblical way of reckoning one's genealogy is through the line of the father, unlike the rabbinical one which is through the mother. The rabbinical reasoning is that the tribal affiliation is through the father but the nationality is matrilineal. Thus, according to this reasoning, King David was a Gentile because his great grandmother Ruth was a Moabite even though his tribal lineage of the fathers could be traced back to Judah. The great Jewish king was a Gentile according to human reckoning but not to God's. King David was Jewish and God chose the Jewish nation to send a Redeemer through David, through the line of Judah, Yeshua of Natzeret, to cover our sins with His shed blood and that is a fact no matter how much humanity tries to undermine it by its unbelief. The irony here is that the prophecy of a redeemer - through the son of Yishai of Bet Lechem - through the line of Judah and through David is well understood by the rabbinate and is incorporated into the Friday night Shabbat service when the prayer "Lecha Dodi" is chanted. But this uniting of the Jewish line with the Gentile line is a beautiful symbolism of the two leavened loaves of bread which come together as one in the second First Fruits of the Shavuot offering (more about this on Shavuot). In God's eyes there is no difference between Jews and Gentiles when comes to sin. We all are sinners because we fell short of God's requirement for holiness. 
The importance of the line of the fathers cannot be enough underscored since this patrilineal record was lost with the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem in 70 CE. Because these records were lost forever, after 70 CE no one can prove his tribal lineage, therefore, Messiah had to come before the destruction of the Temple, because there can be no other Messiah to fulfill the prophecy of being from the line of Judah, thus, there can be no other message of salvation except the one given to us in the Brit Chadashah. God chose the Jewish nation to be the bearer of the Good News and with God there are no coincidences. There is no coincidence in choosing the line of the fathers to tell the Jews exactly who the Messiah would be, and there is no coincidence in the destruction of the Temple which points out that the messianic prophecies are fulfilled in Messiah's coming before its destruction as prophesied by Daniel in chapter 9. Indeed He came in the person of Yeshua of Natzeret, born in Bet Lechem, proven with signs and wanders to be the one sent by God the Father as His Son (Proverbs 30). 
Second, the final count of the men above twenty years of age from all tribes - except the tribe of Levi - was 603,550, which was the exact number of men from all tribes including Levi from a census taken one year earlier in Exodus 38:26. This earlier census was done before the construction of the Tabernacle and was for the purpose of raising funds for its construction. This earlier census was done in order for everyone, from every tribe, regardless of their ability, to contribute half a shekel for the construction of the Holy Mishkan. This contribution was a symbol for an atonement for their souls. The second census was done after the Mishkan was finished and God consecrated the tribe of Levi to serve in it. By ending up with the exact same number, even after God took out 22,000 Levites to serve Him, signifies that providing for the spiritual matters is an issue of the heart. God provides the means for everyone to participate in the spiritual uplifting of the community. In this case He provided 22,000 teenagers to mature to be twenty years old and, to show them that this was not a coincidence, later God asked them to count the firstborn males (Numbers 3:43) to replace the Levites as a redemption, and their number was 22,273. They were 273 more than the number of Levites. The lesson here is that God provides and He provides abundantly, but it is up to us to make it happen. God gave Israelis no excuse not to contribute – or contribute less – for the spiritual matters, and He gives us no excuse for not contributing to the spiritual growth of our communities, which in the end is for our benefit.