Home > The Clarion

The Clarion, Oct. 2024

---

Welcome

Welcome to October. The year is flying by. This being an election year has added to the season’s colors with its reds and oranges and yellows all blending together to give its beauty. I guess life is better when it’s not only red or blue. Life has to have a variety or else as humans we would become so bored with what we see. God knew and so God surrounded us with color, blue skies, red sunsets, green grass and white clouds and night skies so that the stars could glow with all of their beauty. October has so much to offer us, not only with the color changes, but it also reminds us that we are getting older and, if blessed, will also enter into the fall of our lives. The hair begins to turn white and we begin to lose our swagger and it does not take much wind for us to fall to the ground. The circle of life with its continuing motion keeps us going in circles and moving forward. 

Here is a Sandiegram we hope you will enjoy. 

Sandiegram/What Season is Best of All/copyright 2010

Autumn

Autumn is a time of beauty. It is a time when our Lord touches the earth
and changes it into a wonderland.
The leaves on the trees change into elegant colors as they reach the height of their beauty.
Weeds become beautiful as the Lord’s hand gently touches them.
Many of us have lived lives like weeds— growing wild, not really caring about others.
But once we found our Lord, we have

 become beautiful like the weeds in Autumn.

Enjoy the Autumn Season, especially this October

---

The Hidden Meanings Behind the Miracles of Yeshua : Part 4

Last month we read how Yeshua not only healed people but forgave them of their sins. So we continue on this journey with Yeshua and His disciples. We find Yeshua and His disciples walking through a grainfield on the Sabbath and His disciples were hungry, so they began picking some of the heads of grain and began eating them. Yeshua was quite popular and it seems like everyone knew what He and His disciples were doing, much like our news media today. Well, it seems that some Pharisees saw the disciples picking the grain and eating it and they said to Yeshua, “Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath.”

Now before we go any further, I want to say that Yeshua, Himself, was a Pharisee in His beliefs. But as He said “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I have not come to abolish, but to fulfill.” This word fulfill has been wrongly translated. Yeshua came not to abolish the Law, but to teach it correctly. Who else could teach God’s Word correctly, but the Word Himself? Matthew 5-7 goes on to speak of these correct teachings of Messiah. In the Jewish culture, it is a regular activity to debate Scripture. All the Rabbis and their students would debate back and forth about many different subjects. And so too, for Rabbi Yeshua as He continues to tell the Pharisees in Matthew 12:3-8 this,  “Have you not read what David and those who were with him did when he was hungry,  how he entered the house of God and ate the ritual bread, which was not lawful for him to eat, neither for those who were with him, but only for the priests?  Or have you not read in the law how on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath, but are blameless?  I say to you, in this place there is One who is greater than the temple.  If you had known what this meant, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent.  For the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”

Mark 2: 17-18 tells it this way, Yeshua said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.  So the Son of Man is Lord, even of the Sabbath.”

We must ask ourselves, if Yeshua is the Lord of the Sabbath, then why are we not keeping the Sabbath? The Ten Commandments are God’s standard of holiness and holiness is for all of God’s people. It was made for man, it was made to bear witness of his Creator. Yeshua went about doing good, even on the Sabbath. Matthew 12:9-13 goes on to say this, “Leaving from there, He went into their synagogue.  A man with a withered hand was there. And so that they might accuse Him, they questioned Yeshua, saying, ‘Is it permitted to heal on Shabbat?’ He said to them, ‘What man among you will not grab his sheep and lift it out, if it falls into a pit on Shabbat? How much more valuable a man is than a sheep! Therefore it is permitted to do good on Shabbat.’ Then He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out and it was restored, as healthy as the other.”

Mark 3:1-4 tells the story this way, “He entered a synagogue again; and a man was there whose hand was withered. And they were watching Him closely to see if He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him.  He said to the man with the withered hand, ‘Get up and come forward!’ And He said to them, ‘Is it lawful to do good on the Sabbath or to do harm, to save a life or to kill?’ But they kept silent.  After looking around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, He said to the man, ‘Stretch out your hand.’ And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored.”’ 

Yeshua knew that one day His disciples would have to continue on without Him, and so knowing this, He knew that they too, would encounter those who would try to get them to fall. It’s the same with us today. There are many people even in our congregations who will test your beliefs and rightfully so, but we must be like Yeshua who went about doing good despite what others may think about it. You see you must be the salt of the earth and you must be the light to the world. Great crowd began to gather around Yeshua and He began to teach them. Matthew 5:1-12 says, “Now when Yeshua saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him.  And He opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying, ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the gentle, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.  Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in this same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”’

Yeshua told the people who they had to be if they were going to be His disciple. The Lord of the Sabbath meant that we who are His Sabbath Keepers must be like Him, yes, going about doing good. But also we must be people who are poor in spirit, mourning for the sinfulness of this world, gentile in our spirit and always hungering and thirsting for righteousness, showing mercy from a pure heart and bringing peace to a troubled world. Yes, we will be persecuted and insulted and even lied about, but His disciples knew that one day they would rejoice because of His great reward in heaven. You see the Sabbath is a reflection of our future rest in eternity. It’s like a little heaven here on earth. Hebrews 4:10-13 speaks of that rest. “For the one who has entered His rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from His. Therefore let’s make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following the same example of disobedience.  For the Word of God is living and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, even penetrating as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.  And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him to whom we must answer.”

Matthew 8: 5-13 speaks of this healing. “And when Yeshua entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, begging Him, and saying, ‘Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, terribly tormented.’ Yeshua said to him, ‘I will come and heal him.’  But the centurion replied, ‘Lord, I am not worthy for You to come under my roof, but just say the word, and my servant will be healed.  For I also am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, ‘Go!’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come!’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this!’ and he does it.’  Now when Yeshua heard this, He was amazed and said to those who were following, ‘Truly I say to you, I have not found such great faith with anyone in Israel. And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and recline at the table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven;  but the sons of the kingdom will be thrown out into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’  And Yeshua said to the centurion, ‘Go; it shall be done for you as you have believed.’ And the servant was healed at that very moment.”

So what was this all about? Well, first the centurion recognizes that Yeshua is the Messiah, the sent One of God. He recognizes Yeshua’s great authority as God’s representative. By telling Yeshua that He only had to speak the Word, he realized that Yeshua was the Word and, just like in Creation, only had to speak and it would happen. Yeshua found this man to have great faith. This Gentile recognized Yeshua and believed in Him, while His own people did not. When we are in need of a healing or a miracle could we too, have such great faith in our Lord by praying such a prayer as this, “Lord just speak the Word and I will be healed or my need will be met.? Could we pray such a prayer, and then stand in faith waiting upon the Lord to respond? Or are we too quick to take matters in our own hands and try to work out our problem ourselves? God is a rewarder of faith and this is how He rewarded the centurion, by healing his servant, but not before He praised the man for his great faith. Keeping the 7th day Sabbath is kept by faith, because we lay down everything, and trust God to provide for our needs while we rest. This is what Yeshua taught, and this is what His disciples learned, even when they were hungry, even when someone needed healing, God is able to provide even while we rest in Him.

---

Recipe Corner    Apple and Dried Cherry Crisp

2 1/2 to 3 pounds apples, about 6 to 8, such as Gala, Mutsu, or Honeycrisp, fully or partially peeled, cored and cut into 3/4-inch chunks

1/2 lemon, juiced

2 tablespoons sugar

• 1/3 cup dried tart cherries
• 1 cup rolled oats, old-fashioned, not instant
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 cup canola oil, or grapeseed oil
• 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
• 1/4 cup chopped pecans, raw
• Preheat the oven to 350 F. Oil a deep 8 x 10-inch (or similarly sized) baking dish.
• In a large bowl, toss the apples with the lemon juice, sugar, and dried cherries. Transfer to the baking dish. 
• In another bowl, whisk together the oats, flour, sugar, cinnamon, and ginger. Add the oil and maple syrup, and stir until the oat mixture is moistened. Stir in the pecans. 
• Sprinkle the topping evenly over the apples. Bake the crisp in the preheated oven for 45 to 50 minutes, or until the fruit filling is bubbly and the crisp topping is golden brown and crunchy. (Check the crisp after about 30 to 35 minutes—if the topping is getting too brown, cover lightly with foil or parchment paper, then remove the cover for the last few minutes of baking.)  Allow to rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving. Enjoy! 

---

Hebrew Corner:          The Martyrs, Barnabas

Barnabas was one of the prominent Christian disciples in Jerusalem. According to Acts 4:36, Barnabas was a Cypriot Jew. Paul the Apostle and Barnabas  undertook missionary journeys together.  Barnabas and Paul successfully evangelized among the “God-fearing” Gentiles who attended synagogues in various Hellenized cities of Anatolia. Acts 15:1-4,12-14,22 tells us this, “Certain people came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the believers: “Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved.”  This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question.  The church sent them on their way, and as they traveled through Phoenicia and Samaria, they told how the Gentiles had been converted. This news made all the believers very glad.  When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and elders, to whom they reported everything God had done through them. The whole assembly became silent as they listened to Barnabas and Paul telling about the signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them.  When they finished, James spoke up. ‘Brothers,’ he said, ‘listen to me.’  Simon has described to us how God first intervened to choose a people for His name from the Gentiles.Then the apostles and elders, with the whole church, decided to choose some of their own men and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They chose Judas (called Barsabbas) and Silas, men who were leaders among the believers.”

 Paul mentions Barnabas in some of his epistles. Tertullian named him as the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews, but this and other attributions are conjecture. The Epistle of Barnabas was ascribed to him by Clement of Alexandria and others in the early church and the epistle is included under his name in Codex Sinaiticus, the earliest  manuscript of the complete New Testament existing at this time. A few modern scholars concur with this traditional attribution but it is presently a minority view. Barnabas is usually identified as the cousin of Mark the Evangelist  in Colossians 4, which carries the connotation of “cousin.” Orthodox tradition holds that Aristobulus of Britannia, one of the Seventy Disciples, was the brother of Barnabas. Although the date, place, and circumstances of his death are historically unverifiable, Christian tradition holds that Barnabas was martyred at Salamis, Cyprus, possibly in 73CE. He is traditionally identified as the founder of the Cypriot Orthodox Church.