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This Sabbath
I want to speak about confidence. As those who
know the Lord, it is important for us to be bold,
courageous, confident men and women. Writing to
the Messianic Jews who were being persecuted,
who were experiencing various kinds of suffering,
who were being publicly exposed to insult and
persecution, who were having their property confiscated,
who were being imprisoned, who were being excluded
from the worship at the Temple and denied participation
in the synagogues, the writer to the Messianic
Jews told them they were part of God's house,
if they firmly held fast to their confidence and
the boast of their hope until the end. They were
to be confident, remain confident, and never let
go of that confidence. They were to boast about
their hope until the end of their lives. They
were to proudly proclaim that they had found the
meaning of life, that all who committed themselves
to the Messiah were reconciled to God. They were
to boldly declare that eternal life, redemption
and salvation was theirs, and that they were going
to Heaven. We are not confident in ourselves,
in the goodness of our character, in our righteousness,
in our abilities, powers, prowess, talents, skills
or smarts. We are weak. We are frail. We are prone
to sin. Nor are we confident in other people,
or in leaders, or in anything the world, or in
our circumstances. No, the source of our confidence
is the faithful and true and changeless Creator
of the universe. Our declaration is: “Adonai,
Adonai meev-tah-chee - the Lord, the Lord is my
confidence” (Psalm 71:5). That which we
cling to, that which rely upon, that which we
trust in, that which provides safety, that which
gives real hope, that which is our source of security
in this world and in the World-To-Come is the
eternal God, and knowing Him, and being in a right
relationship with Him. Because we have been reconciled
to God due to what Messiah did for us, dying for
us on the cross, making full and final atonement,
because we have been accepted by God, because
we are at peace with our Creator, because we are
loved by the Almighty and welcomed by the Eternal
One, we can be confident. When the Lord is the
source of our confidence we are able to be strong,
firm, resolute and unwavering.
We are
willing to suffer for God, for truth, for justice.
We are able stand our ground. We are able to resist
evil. We are able to stand up to falsehood. We
don’t fall away. We don’t give in.
We don’t compromise. We don’t back
down. We don’t remain silent. We don’t
tone down the message. We speak up for the oppressed.
We stand with the oppressed. We fight injustice.
We aren’t intimidated. We boldly speak the
truth. It is the righteous who are bold as a lion.
It is the righteous who take the initiative. It
is the righteous who go on the offensive. It is
the righteous who advance the truth forward. It
is the wicked who are timid, who flee when no
one is pursuing, who experience uncertainty because
they have no true source of confidence. When the
Lord is our confidence, we don’t fear living.
We can live confidently because we will not suffer
if the Lord does not allow it. We can live confidently
because the Lord knows our limits and won’t
test us more than we are capable of handling.
We can live confidently because we know that we
can do all things that the Lord calls us to do.
We can live confidently because His grace will
always be sufficient for us. When the Lord is
our confidence, we don’t fear death. We
do not fear death, for all die, and for the child
of God, death advances God’s purposes for
us. Death brings the end of suffering. Death means
advancement. Death brings a promotion. Death leads
us to the entrance to Heaven, and Heaven is where
the Lord is, and where our eternal inheritance
awaits. We are always of good courage, knowing
that to be absent from the body is to be present
with the Lord. So we are able to say: “O
death, where is your victory? O death, where is
your sting?” We can be confident because
we will not die a moment before the Lord wills
it. We know that we will not be touched by the
terror that comes by night, or of the arrow that
flies by day, or the pestilence that stalks in
darkness, or of the destruction that lays waste
at noon - unless the Lord wills. We know that
in a great battle, a thousand may fall at our
side and ten thousand at our right hand, but death
won’t approach us - unless it is our their
time, and the Lord wills it. When the Lord is
our light (the One who gives us knowledge and
truth) and our salvation; whom will we fear? When
the Lord is the One who defends our lives in this
world, and in the World-To-Come, whom will we
dread? Even though a army is ready to attack,
our hearts won’t fear. Though war rise against
us, in spite of this we will be confident. When
the Lord is our confidence, we don’t fear
man. We fear God, and not man, because we know
that God is infinitely greater than man. When
the Lord is for us, we will not fear; what can
man do to us?
We are
able to be thought a fool for the sake of Messiah.
When the Lord is our confidence, we don’t
fear Satan, knowing that He who is in us is greater
than the evil spirits that dominate this world.
Satan and his principalities and powers will soon
be crushed under our feet. What does confidence
look like? Confidence looks like young David,
who, without armor, and armed with only a sling
and stones, standing before the giant Goliath,
said to him: "You come to me with a sword,
a spear, and a javelin, but I come to you in the
name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies
of Israel, whom you have taunted. This day the
Lord will deliver you up into my hands, and I
will strike you down and remove your head from
you. And I will give the dead bodies of the army
of the Philistines this day to the birds of the
sky and the wild beasts of the Earth, that all
the Earth may know that there is a God in Israel,
and that all this assembly may know that the Lord
does not deliver by sword or by spear; for the
battle is the Lord’s and He will give you
into our hands." Confidence looks like Hananiah,
Mishael and Azariah who, when brought before mighty
king Nebuchadnezzar, and told to worship the image
of one of his gods, or be burned alive in a blazing
furnace, courageously replied to the king: "O
Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves
before you in this matter. If we are thrown into
the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able
to save us from it, and He will rescue us from
your hand, O king. But even if He does not, we
want you to know, O king, that we will not serve
your gods or worship the image of gold you have
set up." Confidence looks like the Son of
God, who on trial before the leaders of the nation,
declared that He was the Messiah, and the Son
of God, and that one day they would see Him sitting
at the right hand of God, and coming on the clouds
of Heaven. Confidence looks like Peter and John
who were arrested for doing a good deed. When
they appeared before the leaders of the nation,
who were strongly opposed to them, instead of
being timid in their defense before the governing
council of the nation, they boldly spoke the truth.
Peter said to them: "Rulers and elders of
the people! If we are being called to account
today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple
and are asked how he was healed, then know this,
you and all the people of Israel: It is by the
name of Messiah Yeshua of Nazareth, whom you crucified
but whom God raised from the dead, that this man
stands before you healed. He is the Stone you
builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.
Salvation
is found in no one else, for there is no other
name under Heaven given to men by which we must
be saved." That’s confidence my friends,
to be able to boldly speak the truth to those
who have the power to harm you. Then the leaders
of the nation commanded them not to speak or teach
at all about Yeshua. But Peter and John boldly
and courageously replied, "Judge for yourselves
whether it is right in God's sight to obey you
rather than God. For we can’t help speaking
about what we have seen and heard." When
they were released, Peter and John reported to
the believers all that the chief priests and elders
had said to them. They all prayed that the Lord
would consider the threats of the non-believing
leaders, and enable them to speak God’s
Word with great boldness. And they were all filled
with the Holy Spirit and spoke the Word of God
boldly. Confidence looks like all of the apostles,
who were arrested and put in jail. During the
night an angel of the Lord enabled them to escape
from prison. Did they run and hide? No, they went
boldly to the Temple, to the very heart of the
power that opposed them, and were teaching the
people about Yeshua! They were rearrested, and
brought before the Sanhedrin. "We gave you
strict orders not to teach in this name,"
the High Priest said. "Yet you have filled
Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined
to make us guilty of this man's blood." The
apostles replied: "We must obey God rather
than men! The God of our fathers raised Yeshua
from the dead - whom you had killed by hanging
Him on a tree. God exalted Him to his own right
hand as Prince and Savior that He might give repentance
and forgiveness of sins to Israel. We are witnesses
of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom
God has given to those who obey him." What
boldness! What courage! What confidence! The truth
that the apostles spoke offended the Sanhedrin.
They were furious and wanted to kill Messiah’s
Emissaries, who were the true leaders of Israel.
After listening to rabbi Gamliel, they decided
not to kill the apostles but only to whip them
and order them not to speak about Yeshua anymore.
They tried to intimidate them. They tried to silence
them. Were these holy men, sent to us from God,
intimidated, frightened and sad? No, the apostles
left rejoicing because they had been counted worthy
of suffering disgrace for HaShem - for the Name,
for God and for Messiah. They knew that it was
a honor to be persecuted and suffer as those who
represent God in this world. And after that, day
by day, confidently, boldly, courageously, right
in very courts of the temple, and going from house
to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming
the good news that Yeshua is the Messiah. That’s
confidence!
Confidence
looks like Rosa Parks who, armed with faith in
God and believing in justice, was willing to defy
unrighteous laws, and not give her seat on a bus
to a white man. Confidence looks like you, at
work, with your family and friends, taking the
initiative and speaking the truth about God, Messiah,
the infallibility and inerrancy of the Scriptures,
and the issues of the day that the Word of God
speaks clearly about. Confidence is you standing
for creation and not evolution. When someone asks
you if your religion is only one that will get
you to Heaven, confidence is saying “yes.”
When someone asks you if you are pro-choice, you
confidently tell them that all human life is sacred,
and murdering a baby in the womb is not a legitimate
choice. Confidence is demonstrating in front of
an abortion clinic. When someone asks you if they
are going to Hell if they don’t believe
in Yeshua, confidently say: “you, and everyone
in the world are going to Hell unless they place
their faith in Yeshua, the only true Savior.”
If someone makes the statement that Jews don’t
believe in Jesus, you confidently reply: “only
Messianic Jews are really Jewish. They are the
true Jews, the real Israel, who get their praise
from God.” When someone asks you, “Is
homosexuality wrong?” You don’t hem
and haw, you state: “yes. It is wrong. It
goes against the law of nature and the law of
God.” Confidence is handing out pamphlets
with us, wearing a “Jesus Made Me Kosher”
t-shirt in public, going door-to-door, calling
people on the phone. We must be confident about
the Lord and the truth. We must not be ashamed.
Messiah warned anyone who claims to be a Christian
or Messianic Jew: "whoever is ashamed of
Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful
generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed
of him when He comes in the glory of His Father
with the holy angels." We must not be like
Peter when he denied the Lord three times, but
like Peter who fearlessly spoke the truth. We
can face jail, knowing that we have been set free
from sin and death, and that nothing can imprison
our spirits. We can lose property and wealth,
knowing that we have better and lasting possessions.
We can endure shame and suffering, knowing that
the Lord will honor us, and our sufferings will
end and be replaced by unending joy. We can stand
up to man, knowing that we serve the King of kings.
We can face death, knowing that we will live forever.
We can draw near with confidence to the throne
of grace. We can even be confident in the day
of judgment, knowing that due to God and Messiah,
we will pass though it safely. Set a courageous
example for others. Paul, writing to the Philippians,
tells them that most of the brothers, trusting
in the Lord because of his imprisonment, had far
more courage to speak the word of God without
fear.
Do you
lack confidence? We need to pray for ourselves,
our ask others to pray for us, like great Rabbi
Paul did, that utterance may be given to me in
the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness
the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador
in chains; that in proclaiming it I may speak
boldly, as I ought to speak. Take courage, since
you know the Lord. Stand firm! Be strong and courageous!
Be confident. Speak the truth boldly. Testify
to the Lord’s reality. Do not throw away
your confidence, which has a great reward! Don’t
give into intimidation. Don’t be ashamed
of the Lord, or the truth, or ashamed to suffer
for the Lord, or suffer for being a Christian,
or be rejected for being a Messianic Jew. May
the good Lord do a good work in all of us, and
enable us all to be men and women who are supremely
confident!
Shalom,
Rabbi Loren
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