On October 10, the Church of the Messiah held its annual Feast of Tabernacles celebration at Beavercreek Church of the Nazarene.
The festivities began at 9 AM with some worship music. Then Dwight Pryor began a talk on the book of Ecclesiastes, a text traditionally read during the Feast. Following Walter Kaiser's excellent commentary, Dwight intended to explain why Ecclesiastes is a very appropriate book for a season of rejoicing, since it identifies the only source of lasting joy. Unfortunately he wasn't feeling well and was not able to complete the remarks he had prepared. (He was taken home and felt better after getting some rest.)
Next Lois Tverberg gave a presentation on Jewish prayer in the time of Jesus, summarizing the material in Chapters 6 and 7 of Sitting at the Feet of Rabbi Jesus. In particular, she discussed the meaning of the Lord's Prayer and explained the Jewish practice of saying short prayers of thanksgiving throughout the course of each day.
After eating a light lunch that we had packed, we took a walk around the neighborhood before the afternoon events. After lunch, Keren Pryor talked about how the annual cycle of festivals helps us to walk in...
Today was the first day of Sukkot, the Feast of Tabernacles. A special guest at the Church of the Messiah was Dr. Lois Tverberg. Lois noted that she had enjoyed celebrating the Feast with the Church of the Messiah since 1998. (The same is true for me.) That year Dwight Pryor gave a wonderful in-depth teaching on John 7:37-38, where Jesus proclaims at Sukkot in Jerusalem:
On the last day of the feast, the greatest day,Jesus stood up and shouted out, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink. Just as the scripture says, ‘From within himwill flow rivers of living water.’ ” (NET Bible)
Lois revisited the background of this verse, exploring the significance of water in Jesus' culture.
She noted that the Feast has traditionally symbolized both the abundance of the fall harvest and Israel's 40-year sojourn in the desert, an unusual juxtaposition. But this combination makes more sense when we realize that the Feast in Israel comes at the end of a lengthy dry season.
Because rain in Israel is both scarce and crucial, prayers for rain have always played an important role in Jewish festival observance. (Lois noted that modern Jewish...
On August 15 Messianic singer Jonathan Settel led worship at the Church of the Messiah. He was in Dayton attending a Haverim School of Discipleship on the subject of the Feast of Tabernacles.
This was at least the second time over the last 10 years that Settel had come to Dayton. A number of years ago he visited Dayton and gave a concert. He has a deep, rich, resonant voice,and I was glad for the opportunity to hear him again. We have his album Kol Ba'Midbar (Voice in the Wilderness) on cassette, and his voice has kept us company during a number of car trips over the years.
On August 1, 2009, James Whitman gave the sermon at the Church of the Messiah. His text was 1Tim 1:13:
"What you heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus. " (NIV)
Mr. Whitman raised the question: What are the characteristics of "sound teaching'? He explained that the Greek word for "sound" comes from a root that is the source of the English word "hygiene". The same word is translated "enjoy good health" in 3 John 2. So "sound" teaching is sound in the sense of healthy.
To give further insight into this word, he went on to explore its use in the Gospels:
In Matt 12:9-13 Jesus participates in a halakhic discussion on the subject of healing on the Sabbath. He gives sound teaching and also heals a man's hand, restoring it to soundness.
In Matt 15:29-31 Jesus heals many people. The crippled are "made well" (Gk. hygios) , prompting those present to praise God.
In Mark 5:25-34 a woman who has suffered for 12 years seeks healing from Jesus and receives it. Later this woman would have been able to look back on this event with thanksgiving. It...
Dr. Lois Tverberg to Speak at Dayton Feast of Tabernacles celebration
July 25, 2009
Every year we look forward to the Feast of Tabernacles celebration in Dayton, Ohio, sponsored by the Church of the Messiah. We began attending these events in 1998, and they have enriched our lives greatly.
I have long been an admirer of Dr. Tverberg, who gave up a career as a biology professor in order to pursue her passion, sharing the excitement of learning about Jesus in his first-century Jewish context.
Zondervan has generously sent me a review copy of Lois's new book. Over the next few months I'll post comments on it from time to time.
The Church of the Messiah received a visit today from an Israeli couple, Mikhael and Orit Murnane, along with four of their six children. The Murnanes are Messianic believers and have a ministry called "I Bless Jerusalem Ministries."
Mikhael, who moved from the U.S. to Israel in the late 1970s, is known as a pioneer in Davidic dance.
Orit, who was born in Israel, said that when she accepted Yeshua as Savior in the 1970s, there were only a handful of Messianics (fifteen or twenty) who were native Israelis. This small group became leaders in the Messianic movement in Israel.
Mikhael and Orit said that the Messianic movement in Israel has begun to take off during the past 10 or 15 years. They estimated that there are now 100-120 congregations, many of them home fellowships, in Israel. They said that among young people in Israel today there is a new openness to the Gospel.
It is, of course, not easy to be a Jewish believer in Jesus in Israel. Israeli Messianics face a fair amount of persecution. They are disowned by their families and harassed by the ultra-Orthodox. But persecution has made the public more aware of them.
