Why I Am Celebrating Yeshua in Chanukkah This Year...

Yeshua spoke to them, saying, "I am the LIGHT of the world. He who follows me shall by no means walk in darkness, but possess the light of life." John 8:12

Today (at sunset) begins the 8 day celebration of Yahweh's faithfulness to His people, the Festival of Dedication, the Festival of Lights...Chanukkah. This is my first year to celebrate this festival (and actually, it's my first year to celebrate all of Yahweh's appointed times...what an incredible year it has been!).

Many people might question why I have chosen to celebrate these feasts and festivals. My answer is simple. I have read and re-read in the Word of Yahweh that these feasts are commanded throughout all generations. I am no longer taking only part of His Word and applying it to my life. I want to obey ALL of His Word, from Genesis to Revelation. I want Him to write His Word on my heart in every way. I want my relationship with Yahweh to be what HE desires and commands, rather than the tradition and teachings that come from man.

Is it true that I no longer celebrate Christmas?
Yes.

I have read enough about the pagan origins, date, traditions of Christmas...I have read enough of Yahweh's Word that warns His people about adopting the pagan traditions of worship. I am convinced that since Christmas is NOT in the Word (Yeshua was not born on December 25th...He was most likely born during Sukkot, the Feast of Tabernacles around September) and since what is commanded in the Word is to observe Yahweh's appointed Feasts throughout all generations, and since Yeshua Himself did NOT celebrate Christmas (he wouldn't have because it was a pagan holiday), and since Yeshua Himself DID celebrate Chanukkah (see John 10:22), then this is what I want to do too!

We have this popular saying and acrostic in Christian circles: WWJD (What Would Jesus Do). I am discovering more and more that the traditions I have embraced are NOT what He would do or did do. I truly want to be a follower of Him, a disciple. I want to follow His commands...ALL of them. Yeshua is the Living Word, from beginning to end. I want to give honor to my Redeemer and Savior by obeying every part of Him.

So, what exactly is Chanukkah? Is it a commanded feast? Is it in the Bible?

Chanukkah is not a commaded feast in the Old Testament like others such as Pesach (Passover), Feast of Unleavened Bread, Sukkot, etc. Chanukkah is a celebration that Jewish people of Yahweh have observed since an event that happened in 165 BC. Since this event happened in the 400 year period between the Old and New Testaments, it is not recorded in Scripture. It is, however, recorded in historical books.

Basically, in 168 BC, Jerusalem and the Jews were conquered by the Hellenist Syrians, who took over the Temple, dedicated it to the worship of Zeus, and desecrated it by sacrificing pigs (and other attrocities). The Jews who resisted at all were persecuted and killed, so some Jews went along with these attrocities. The other Jews who were committed to keeping Yahweh's commandments and cleansing His land and people of forbidden idolatry decided to fight back against the Syrians. For three years they fought, and finally regained possession of the Temple in 165 BC.

They cleaned out the Temple and repaired the broken and missing items. They held a dedication ceremony for the restoration of the Temple and wanted to light the eternal flame of the Menorah. However, they only had enough oil to last one day, and it would take 8 days to prepare the oil properly. Yahweh provided another miracle by providing just enough oil each day to keep the Menorah lit for 8 days until more oil was ready.

This is why this celebration is called Festival of Dedication and Festival of Lights!

Let's look at some important sections of Scripture....

1. Regarding the importance Yahweh places on His Temple:

Exodus 25:8-9... YHWH said to Moses: "The people of Israel are to make me a sanctuary, so that I may live among them. You are to make it according to everything I show you - the design of the tabernacle and the design of its furnishings. This is how you are to make it."

Exodus 40:34,35,40... "Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting and the glory of Yahweh filled the Tabernacle. Moses was unable to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud remained on it and the glory of Yahweh filled the Tabernacle....For the cloud of Yahweh was above the Tabernacle during the day, and fire was in the cloud at night, so that all the house of Israel could see througout all their travels."
(read the whole chapter)

Leviticus 26:11-12 (to Israel) "I will put my Tabernacle among you, and I will not reject you, but I will walk among you and be your God, and you will be my people."
(read the whole chapter)

1 Kings 5:3,5 (said by Solomon regarding building the first Temple for Yahweh) "You know that David my father was not able to build a house for the name of Yahweh his God...so now I intend to build a house for the name of Yahweh my God, in keeping with what Yahweh said to David my father 'Your son, whom I will put on your throne in your place, will be the one to build the house for my name.' "

1 Kings 8:10-11 (Solomon prays to dedicate the Temple to Yahweh) "When the cohanim (priests) came out of the Holy Place, the cloud filled the house of Yahweh, so that, because of the cloud, the cohanim could not stand up to perform their service; for the glory of the Lord filled the house of Yahweh."
(read the whole chapter to see the relevance of Solomon's prayer)

2 Chronicles 6 (another chapter with Solomon's important prayer...includes Yahweh's plan for foreigners/gentiles)

Ezekiel 37 (important prophetic scripture, not yet completed...proof that Yahweh's Temple is still important in ways we cannot imagine. Proof that Israel will know her Yahweh in His Temple. Who is the Temple?)
"I will make a covenant of peace with them, an everlasting covenant. I will give to them, increase their numbers, and set my sanctuary among them forever. My home will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be my people. The nations will know that I am Yahweh, who sets Israel apart as holy, when my sanctuary is with them forever." (vs 26-28)

Zechariah 6:12,13,15 (Yeshua is the Temple!) "Yahweh Tz'vaot says 'There is coming a man whose name is THE BRANCH. He will sprout up from his place and rebuild the Temple of Yahweh. Yes, he will rebuild the Temple of Yahweh, and he will take up royal splendor, sitting and ruling from his throne....Those who are far away will come and help rebuild the Temple of Yahweh."

Matthew 12:6 Yeshua said, "I tell you, there is in this place something greater than the Temple."

John 2:15-21 "(Yeshua) knocked over the money-changers' tables and said 'Get these things out of here! How dare you turn my Father's house into a market.' So the Judeans asked him, 'What miraculous sign can you show us to prove you have the right to do all this?' Yeshua answered them, 'Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up again.' The Judeans said, 'It took 46 years to build this temple, and you're going to raise it in three days?' But the "temple" he had spoken of was his body."

John 10:22-24 (Yeshua celebrated Chanukkah! Read the rest of the chapter to see the importance of what he said about Himself during this Festival of Lights.) "Then came Chanukkah in Jerusalem. It was winter, and Yeshua was walking around inside the Temple area, in Solomon's Colonnade. So the Judeans surrounded him and said to him, 'How much longer are you going to keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us publicly!' "

1 Corinthians 3:16-17 "Don't you know that you people are God's temple, and that God's Spirit lives in you? So if anyone destroys God's Temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you yourselves are that temple."

2 Corinthians 6:16-17 "What agreement can there be between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God - as God said, 'I will house myself in them...and I will walk among you. I will be their God, and they will be my people.' Therefore, Yahweh says, 'Go out from their midst; separate yourselves; don't even touch what is unclean. Then I myself will receive you. In fact, I will be your Father, and you will be my sons and daughters' says Yahweh Tz'vaot."

Ephesians 2:19-22 "So then, you are no longer foreigners and strangers. On the contrary, you are fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's family. You have been built on the foundation of the emissaries and the prophets, with the cornerstone being Yeshua the Messiah himself. In union with him, the whole building is held together, and it is growing into a holy temple in union with the Lord. Yes, in union with him, you yourselves are being built together into a spiritual dwelling-place for God!"

Revelation 7:14-17 "He told me, 'These are the people who have come out of the Great Persecution. They have washed their robes and made them white with the Blood of the Lamb. That is why they are before God's throne. 'Day and night they serve him in his Temple, and the One who sits on the throne will put his Sh'khinah upon them. They will never again be hungry; they will never again be thirsty; the sun will not beat down on them, nor will any burning heat. For the Lamb at the center of the throne will shepherd them, will lead them to springs of living water, and God will wipe every tear from their eyes.'"

Revelation 11, 14, 15, 16 (Yahweh's Temple is the place from where the judgments and seals come.)

Revelation 21:22-27 "I saw no Temple in the city (New Jerusalem), for Yahweh, God of heaven's armies, is its Temple, as is the Lamb. The city has no need for the sun or moon to shine on it, because God's Sh'khinah gives it light and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. Its gates will never close, they stay open all day because night will not exist there, and the honor and splendor of the nations will be brought into it. Nothing impure may enter it, nor anyone who does shameful things or lies; the only ones who may enter are those whose names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life."


2. Regarding the Menorah, Light, and Yeshua:

Genesis 1:3-4 "Then God said, 'Let there be light' and there was light. God saw that the light was goodd, and God divided the light from the darkness."

Exodus 25:31,37 (part of Yahweh's commands for his Tabernacle) "You are to make a Menorah of pure gold. Make seven lamps for the Menorah, and mount them so as to give light to the space in front of it."

Exodus 27:20 (regarding the Menorah lamp in the Tabernacle, as instructed by Yahweh) "You are to order the people of Israel to bring you pure oil of pounded olives for the light, and to keep a lamp burning continually."

2 Samuel 22:29 (David's prayer of praise for Yahweh's strength and protection...read the whole chapter and also Psalm 18.) "For you, Yahweh, are my lamp; Yahweh lights up my darkness."

Psalm 132:13,14,17 "For Yahweh has chosen Tziyon (Zion), he has wanted it as his home. 'This is my resting-place forever, I will live here because I so much want to....I will make a king sprout there from David's line and prepare a lamp for my anointed one."

Psalm 27:1 "Yahweh is my light and salvation; whom do I need to fear? Yahweh is the stronghold of my life; of whom should I be afraid?"

Psalm 36:9 "For with you (Yahweh) is the fountain of life; in your light we see light."

Psalm 43:3 "Send out your light and your truth; let them be my guide; let them lead me to your holy mountain, to the places where you dwell."

Isaiah 42:6,7 "I, Yahweh, called you righteously, I took hold of you by the hand, I shaped you and made you a covenant for the people, to be a light for the gentiles, so that you can open blind eyes, free the prisoners from confinement, those living in darkness from the dungeon."

Isaiah 60:1-3,19 "Arise, shine (Jerusalem), for your light has come, the glory of Yahweh has risen over you. For although darkness covers the earth and thick darkness the peoples, on you Yahweh will rise; over you will be seen his glory. Nations will go toward your light and kings toward your shining splendor....No more will the sun be your light by day, nor will moonlight shine on you; instead Yahweh will be your light forever and your God your glory."
(read the whole chapter)

Matthew 4:16 (about Yeshua) "the people living in darkness have seen a great light; upon those living in the region, in the shadow of death, light has dawned."

Luke 2:27-32 "Prompted by the Spirit, (Simeon) went into the Temple courts, and when the parents brought in the child Yeshua to do for him what the Torah required, Simeon took him in his arms, made a blessing to God, and said 'Now Yahweh, according to your word, your servant is at peace as you let him go; for I have seen with my own eyes your yeshu'ah (salvation), which you prepared in the presence all peoples - a light that will bring revelation to the Gentiles and glory to your people Israel."

John 1:1,4,5,9 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God....In him was life, and the life was the light of mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not supressed it....This was the true light, which gives light to everyone entering the world."

John 12:46 "I have come as a light into the world, so that everyone who trusts in me might not remain in the dark."

Acts 26:22-23 (spoken by Paul) "I stand testifying to both small and great, saying nothing but what both the prophets and Moses said would happen - that the Messiah would die, and that he, as the first to rise from the dead, would proclaim light to both the People and the Gentiles."

2 Corinthians 4:6 "For it is the God who once said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,' who has made his light shine in our hearts, the light of the knowledge of God's glory shining in the face of the Messiah Yeshua."

Ephesians 5:8 "For you used to be darkness, but now, united with the Lord, you are light. Live like children of the light."

1 Peter 2:9 "But you are a chosen people, the King's cohanim, a holy nation, a people for God to possess! Why? In order for you to declare the praises of the One who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."

Revelation 22:5 (in the New Jerusalem) "They will need neither the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because Yahweh, God, will shine upon them. And they will reign as kings forever and ever."



Isn't it exciting to read about the rich meaning this Festival of Dedication/Festival of Lights holds for us as believers in Yeshua the Messiah and the hope it gives for those who do not yet believe?!

Perhaps you too will see the truth of Yeshua's light dwelling with us forever in the simple but profoundly-important celebration of Chanukkah this week.

In the LIGHT of the world, the Temple of Yahweh, Yeshua HaMashiach,
Gina

Psalm 119...A Beginning Place for Truth in HIS WORD!

"Your Word continues forever, Adonai, firmly fixed in heaven; your faithfulness through all generations; you established the earth, and it stands." Psalm 119:89-90

Hello from Mexico!

Recently I have had some telling conversations with a few people who have expressed to me that they or someone else have had concerns about this new direction I seem to be going in my beliefs and in my journey with Yahweh through His Son Yeshua. This "new" journey actually began for me many years ago with some compelling questions. It wasn't until 5 or 6 years ago that I seriously began to search for answers to these questions. And it wasn't until the last 2 or 3 years that I actually made the decision to ACT on the answers that I knew were from Yahweh! So, even though this "new" journey isn't really that new, I realize that I haven't outwardly shown this journey to many people, who might now be surprised at this supposed "sudden departure" from the "tried and true ways" of Christianity.

In my upcoming blog posts, I will be addressing some of these questions and the answers I have found and am still finding as I open my heart more and more to Yahweh's truth and seek Him alone.

The general question that I have had many times over the last 5 or 6 (or more) years is this:

"What if those things I have known and trusted regarding my faith and my beliefs about God and a relationship with Him have been wrong?"

Now, before you think that I am abandoning my God or my relationship with Yeshua, and before you think that I have begun to believe there is any other way of relationship with Yahweh outside of Yeshua, let me put your mind at ease. I have no doubt that the only way to have a relationship with Yahweh is through His Son Yeshua, the Living Word.

I do not think that EVERYTHING I have heard or been taught or known in my Christian walk is wrong. But I do think that MANY teachings and traditions that I have heard and embraced and accepted are not actually according to the complete Word of Yahweh but are actually from man and have been twisted subtly (and not so subtly) by the enemy who desires to keep us from the TRUTH of Yahweh.

For those of you who have ever had a similar life experience, you know how very hard it is to come to a realization that what you have "known" and accepted as truth is actually not truth, and in reality could be going directly against the Word of Yahweh. This experience has really shaken me over a period of years...and that is a good thing (although very hard at the same time)!

The primary Truth I have come to see, the Truth that governs every other sub-question I have, is this:

The WORD of Yahweh is true for His people. The COMPLETE WORD is true for His people. Every part of His Word is still for His people today. If we are believers in Yeshua, then we have been grafted into the people of Yahweh, and we are to OBEY His commandments, His Torah...every part of it!

Everything else, every specific detail of my new life immersed in obedience to the Word of Yahweh, hinges on this one Truth. I cannot examine the Scriptures with an open heart and open eyes and mind and not see that Yahweh does not change. He has made covenants with His people. He has given commandments to His people, instructions on how to live. Yeshua is the LIVING WORD! He did not come to abolish or do away with the Torah of Yahweh! He IS the Torah of Yahweh! He is the fullness of the Word of Elohim!


Psalm 119 is one of the first places this question came to my mind.
If you have ever read Psalm 119, you know that it is unique in several ways. It is an acrostic using every letter of the Hebrew alefbet (alphabet). Every section features a different Hebrew letter, and every line of that section begins with that letter (in Hebrew). And every part of all 176 verses of Psalm 119 is about obeying the mitzvot, commands, precepts, laws, Torah, instructions, rulings, WORD of Yahweh.

I grew up attending a Christian church from my very earliest childhood. We memorized Psalm 119:11 when I was kindergarten: "I treasure your Word in my heart, so that I won't sin against you." And all during my teen years, we sang a song directly from Psalm 119:105: "Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light to my path." We learned the Ten Commandments from my earliest memory. We even had the Ten Commandments in public school when I was in the first grade.

Now, the questions for me came when I read the rest of Psalm 119. It is hard to ignore the fact that many times Christians ignore part of the TORAH, the commandments of Yahweh.

Psalm 119:4-5 says "You laid down your precepts for us to observe with care. May my ways be steady in observing your laws. Then I will not be put to shame, since I will have fixed my sight on all your mitzvot."
And in verse 21, "You rebuke the proud, the cursed, who stray from your mitzvot."

And in verses 33-34, "Teach me, Adonai, the way of your laws; keeping them will be its own reward for me. Give me understanding; then I will keep your Torah."

And in verses 51-53, "Though the arrogant scorn me completely, I have not turned away from your Torah. Adonai, I keep in mind your age-old rulings; in them I take comfort. Fury seizes me when I think of the wicked, because they abandon your Torah."

And in verses 71-72, "It is for my good that I have been humbled; it was so that I would learn your laws. The Torah you have spoken means more to me than a fortune in gold and silver."

And in verses 103-104, "How sweet to my tongue is your promise, truly sweeter than honey in my mouth! From your precepts I gain understanding; this is why I hate every false way."

And in verses 118-119, "You reject all who stray from your laws, for what they deceive themselves with is false. You discard the wicked of the earth like slag; this is why I love your instruction."

Verse 137, "You are righteous, Adonai; and your rulings are upright."

Verses 142 & 144, "Your righteousness is eternal righteousness, and your Torah is truth. Your instruction is righteous forever; give me understanding, and I will live."

The message in this Psalm is hard to ignore. Yahweh is serious about His people obeying His commands...ALL of them! From the beginning of His Word, in Genesis when he gave instructions to the first people, through to the covenants and Torah given to His people Israel, through to Yeshua's life and ministry, through to the early church, Yahweh has not changed and Yeshua is the LIVING WORD!

If Yahweh did not want His people to obey His Torah after the coming of Yeshua, then why do the New Testament writers quote, refer to, or allude to the Word of Elohim in the Old Testament at least 1,000 times (some sources say up to 4,000 times)? If Yahweh did not want believers in Yeshua to obey His Torah, then why did Yeshua obey and keep the Torah in every way? Why did Yeshua say this in Matthew 5:17-19? "Don't think that I have come to abolish the Torah or the Prophets. I have come not to abolish but to complete. Yes indeed! I tell you that until heaven and earth pass away, not so much as a yud or a stroke will pass from the Torah - not until everything that must happen has happened. So whoever disobeys the least of these mitzvot and teaches others to do so will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But whoever obeys them and so teaches will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven."

Yeshua, according to John chapter 1, was the WORD in the beginning, and all things came to be through Him. This Word became human and lived among us. In Revelation 19, the name by which Yeshua is called is THE WORD OF GOD. In John 5, Yeshua says that the Torah bears witness to Him, and that if people really believed Moses's writings in the Torah, then they would believe Yeshua as well, because it was about Yeshua that Moses was writing. Later in John 8, Yeshua says "If you obey what I say, then you are really my disciples, you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
If Yeshua is the LIVING WORD of Yahweh, then He is the complete WORD, from beginning to end. If we obey what He says, then we will know the truth, learn from Him, and have relationship with Him.

Isaiah 40:8 says "The grass dries up, the flower fades; but the word of our God will stand forever." Peter quotes this again in 1 Peter 1:24-25 and adds, "morever, this Word is the Good News which has been proclaimed to you."There are so many other scriptures throughout the WORD of Yahweh that support the truth that we are to obey His commands...ALL of them. It is worth researching and digging into much deeper!


So how does this change my life?

Briefly (and to save more for future posts), I have decided to no longer celebrate things that are not commanded by Yahweh and that have their origins in pagan idolatry. This includes Christmas and Easter. Instead I am learning more about Yahweh's appointed Feasts, commanded by Him to be observed by His people throughout all generations (that's me). Last year was the first year that I began to observe His command to keep Shabbat (Sabbath, Saturday) holy and set aside for Him as a resting day. My life has become so much richer as I see the implications and symbolism in His command to set apart this day. I still attend my church on Sunday, but that is only because that is the day they meet. Otherwise, I spend time with my Abba from sunset Friday to sunset Saturday in obedience to His Word, sometimes meeting with other believers to worship and study His Word...sometimes just resting with Him and delighting in Him.

This year is the first year I have celebrated the appointed Feasts. What a picture of Messiah they present! What a picture of Yahweh's timeline for past and coming events in His biblical calendar! What an amazing picture of His covenants with His people! I can't believe I have waited this long in my life to obey and observe this part of His Word.

I have begun to eat the foods that Yahweh laid out in His Word and stay away from those that He said to stay away from.

I have chosen to use the personal name for Elohim that He revealed and said to use: Yahweh. (If you read the intro section of just about any version of the Bible, you will discover that somewhere along the way, men removed the name of Elohim, Yahweh, from the Bible and replaced it with LORD or Adonai.) And I have chosen to use the proper Hebrew name for the Messiah, Yeshua or Yahushua, because the meaning of His real name is so important...it means "YHWH saves" and it includes the name of Elohim, showing that Yeshua and Yahweh are one.

I know there are more changes in my life that are still to come. I want to know and obey the complete Word of Yahweh. There is a difference between observing the Torah of Yahweh and observing the Rabbinical or even Christian traditions of man. I choose to observe the Torah, the Prophets, the Living Word of Yeshua.

Now, once again, I know that this is a huge jump for many people. It was for me. And I know it can cause some alarm and concern...it can bring up some strong reactions in people. It did in me.

If you would like to do some digging for yourself, I have put some helpful links in the Link Menu on the right side of this blog. Check out "Torah Resource" and "Bible Truth". I have also included a link for the version of the Bible I have been using in this blog - the Complete Jewish Bible. More than anything, it has been helpful for me to read the Word (both Testaments) with spiritual and fleshly eyes that are willing to be changed from tradition to truth. Yahweh's Word has been shining in dark places in my life, and I ask Him daily to show me more of the Truth of living in Him.