To this day, I still have family members and friends who say to me, “Why do you follow the laws in the Old Testament, aren’t they just meant for the Jews?” Have you ever had to wrestle with this? At times, I get tired of the question, but mostly I get super excited to share Yahshua from both the Torah and the Gospels, in that I believe they are directly related to each other.
This week, I would like to draw attention to the revealing of the Messiah to Moses, the Sons of Israel, as well as the disciples and followers of Yahshua, by just listing a few Biblical verses. I want to challenge you to look at them closely to see what the Holy Spirit reveals to you.
“Then Moses went up with Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and they saw the God of Israel; and under His feet there appeared to be a pavement of sapphire, as clear as the sky itself. Yet He did not reach out with His hand against the nobles of the sons of Israel, and they saw God, and they ate and drank.” Exodus 24:9-11
“So, when Aaron and all the sons of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him.” Exodus 34:30-31
“. . . whenever Moses went in before the Lord to speak with Hm, he would take off the veil until he came out; and whenever he came out and spoke to the sons of Israel what he had been commanded, the sons of Israel would see the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses face shone. So Moses would replace the veil over his face until he went in to speak with Him.” Exodus 34:34-35
“No longer will you have the sun for light by day,
Nor will the moon give you light for brightness;
But you will have the Lord as an everlasting light,
And your God as your glory.
Your sun will no longer set,
Nor will your moon wane;
For you will have the Lord as an everlasting light,
And the days of your mourning will be over.” Isaiah 60-19-22
“And he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. There will no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and the Lamb will be in it, and His bond-servants will serve Him; they will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. And there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illuminate them; and they will reign forever and ever.” Revelation 11:1-5
“Six days later, Jesus took with Him Peter and James, and his brother John, and led them up on a high mountain by themselves. And He was transfigured before them, and His face shone like the sun, and His garments became as white as light. And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. Peter responded and said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If You want, I will make three tabernacles here: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” While he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, a voice from the cloud said, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to Him!” When the disciples heard this, they fell face down to the ground and were terrified. And Jesus came to them and touched them and said, “Get up, and do not be afraid.” And raising their eyes, they saw no one except Jesus Himself alone.” Matthew 17:1-8
“For we did not follow cleverly devised tales when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty. For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, such a declaration as this was made to Him by the Majestic Glory: “This is My beloved Son with whom I am well pleased”— and we ourselves heard this declaration made from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain.” 2 Peter 1:16-18
I don’t know what you will dig out of these texts or others that surround them by this Sabbath. As for me, I was unable to even begin writing something this week. I was overwhelmed and realized it would take a book effort.
Though not to disappoint some of you, I was able to draw out a few points that are causing me to dig deeper. Here they are: The consistent message of light reigning upon those who obey YHVH really grabbed my attention. I loved the representative picture of Moses and how it reflects the promise of the Messiah. The dual workings of the Father and the Son (Lamb) could be talked about for weeks. Hearing the voice of Yah from the Heavens in both the Torah and the New Testament reminds me to show respect to the Most High. Finding out that there must be a representative between man and YHVH spoke to my soul. Being a witness to His Revelation was moving for me. The six-day concept and coming to fellowship with the Messiah on the 7th day was super interesting. And above all, knowing that there will be a kingdom of Light gives me some real hope.
But before I close, there is something else I would love to remind us all about. Here it is. There will be different viewpoints from many of you and it will be interesting to hear them. The concept of having Midrash, Sabbath, or Sunday School discussions and even Bible study groups comes from ancient sources. The early priests and rabbinical leaders form their round table discussions stated that Midrash is “an explanation or elaboration of Biblical verses that reveal layers of meaning that are theologically sound but are nowhere stated explicitly in Scripture.” Does this sound familiar to you? How often do each one of us pull inferences out of a Biblical text that is relatable to ourselves, our family, or our problems but we can’t necessarily pinpoint a “thus sayeth the Lord.” We just know that we have been changed and want to share the testimony of that revelation.
Consequently, I would challenge each of us to read the verses outlined by the Torah Portion handout. The Word itself can speak to our spirit like nothing else. Find out what it says and what it speaks. Compare to other verses. Look at the context. Find the Messianic pictures and you will begin to share the gospel of the Messiah through the Torah. You will be a witness.
Be super blessed,
Rollyn