Welcome to … Sharaka Shares

Starting ‘the New Year” (on the Jewish calendar) with the first book of the Torah (Bible). Here are a few thoughts from the first chapter of Breshit (say Bray-sheet):  (from the NKJV)

1. “In the beginning God created…”
It is G-d, always G-d. He is the beginning, the center, and the ending of everything.

2. “The earth was without form and void…”   (void =  not occupied, vacant, not inhabited, deserted) The earth was a big ball of mud. G-d doesn’t create ‘junk’, leading me to believe the condition of the earth at that time was the result of a disaster – perhaps a destroyed earlier creation? G-d was doing a ‘make-over’.  Many scholars subscribe to the “gap theory” – an extended period of time between the first and second verses, therefore giving credibility to the ‘millions of years’ talk.

Day One:
3. “…God said, “Let there be ‘light’, and there was light.”   What was that light? Did you ever wonder about that?  God hadn’t yet created the sun or the moon – so what light? G-d IS light, so His light was already present. What light appeared when He spoke it into existence? “The evening and the morning were the first day.”  Notice the first day started in the evening or at sundown. Man later changed the new day to begin at midnight!  We always know so much better than G-d, right?   Not!

Day Two:
6. “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.” (firmament =  the expanse of space that seems to be over the earth like a dome – or the heavens) I understand there are three ‘heavens’. The first ‘heaven’ – expanse above the earth filled with air. The second heaven, which is where the sun, moon, stars and planets are and the third heaven which is
G-d’s home. I believe we are talking about the first heaven here. G-d says He divided the firmament (first heaven) with a water barrier. At that time there was a band of waters above the earth. I also believe that the water acted as a ‘greenhouse’ effect upon the earth. There were no seasons, no polar ice, and we had protection from the sun’s harmful rays. At the time of the flood, that overhead band of water was released onto the earth, which tipped slightly, and everything changed into how we know the earth to be today.

Day Three:
9. “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together in one place, and let dry land appear… let the earth bring forth grass, the herb…….. and the fruit tree……..”  This is the day G-d caused the land to produce vegetation. But remember – there was no sun to make things grow. Makes me realize G-d really did His creative works in six real 24 hour days.

Day Four:
14.  “Let there be lights in the …… heavens ……. and let them be for signs and seasons…….. and to give light on the earth. …….He made the stars also.”  The heavenly bodies are for light and we understand that.  But for “signs and for seasons”?  What signs? What seasons? We need to search this out and try to understand what He meant. The Book of Revelation speaks of “the moon turning into blood” Some have said that means the moon will be inhabited and there will be bloody wars up there, some say horrific modern pollution will cause the atmospheric conditions to show the moon to look red. We have seen red moons and they usually seem to be ’a bad sign’.  Requires more study, Huh?

Day Five:
20. “Let the waters abound with an abundance of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth …….”  So G-d created all the fish and sea creatures and all the birds that fly. Think ahead to the Flood in the time of Noah. Who died? All humans but eight, all animals and birds save two of the unclean ones and seven of the clean ones. Evidently this destruction did not apply to anything that lived in the sea. Noah took no sea creatures into the ark. There are so many myriads of sea creatures and more are being discovered every year.  Nothing was lost of them in the flood while only a few animals and birds escaped. Take dogs for instance. How many breeds of dogs are there in existence today? From Chihuahuas to Saint Bernards. They weren’t all on the ark! No, there was only one pair and from these two all other breeds “evolved”. This is the only kind of evolution I believe in. A dog is a dog – great or small, snub nose or long nose, short hair or long, 3 pounds or 200 pounds. They are all dogs and they all came from just the first two after the Flood. All animals are identifiable in their species, dogs, cats or whatever.  There has never been a fossil found that is half dog and half cat, etc. Each is fully preserved in it’s own species.

Day Six:
24. “Let the earth bring forth …… cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth, each according to it’s kind.”
26. Then God said, ‘Let Us make Man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over ……. all the earth……..’
27. “………male and female He created them.”
28. “Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”   G-d called upon all creation to reproduce itself. He gave mankind the job of caring for His creation. ‘Having dominion over’ does not mean rule with an iron hand or be tyrannical in our actions. G-d is love and He deals with His creation in a tender, loving way. He expects us to do what is necessary to keep the earth and it’s creatures in good form. Yes, we are superior to all other creatures but that does not give us the right to be unfair or unkind. We are to be careful with our environment and use it in the best way possible but it does not mean we are to ‘worship’ it. I believe the environmentalists have gone too far. Moderation and common sense go a long ways! Let’s pattern ourselves after the Ruler of the universe and treat our world and what’s in it the way He would.

29. And God said, “See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food.
30. Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food”;  In the beginning, all creatures were vegetarians. There was no death – nothing was killed for food – either by man or animal. Man was not given permission to eat flesh until after the flood. Man was told in the New Testament to not abstain from the eating of meat as some taught. I believe one day we will all be vegetarians again!

31. Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day.  There you have the six days of creation. Have you ever memorized them?
It’s time to do that now.

1. LIGHT
2. FIRST HEAVEN
3. LAND, VEGETATION
4. SECOND HEAVEN WITH SUN, MOON AND STARS
5. SEA CREATURES, BIRDS
6. BEASTS, BUGS AND HUMANS

See you next time,

Shalom,  Sharaka

Most people have heard of the Apocrypha, but few understand what it really is. Webster says, “A group of 14 books, …… included in the Septuagint (Jewish) and Vulgate (Catholic) in the Old Testament, but not by most Protestants.” Apocrypha literally means of doubtful authorship and/or authenticity.

These are small books and well worth reading but not to be equated with Scripture.

They are:
I Esdras = corresponding to the books of Ezra and Nehemiah

II Esdras = see above

Tobit = the story of a devout Jew (Tobias)

Judith = A pious Jewess who cut off the head of the enemy army as he slept, to save her town.

The rest of Esther = More about the story of Esther

The Wisdom of Solomon = more from Solomon

Ecclesiasticus = Also called Wisdom of Jesus

Baruch, with the Epistle of Jeremiah = written by a friend of Jeremiah

The Song of the Three Holy Children = included as part of Daniel 3 in the Catholic Bible

The History of Susanna = During the time of Daniel

Bel and the Dragon – included as chapter 14 of Daniel in the Catholic Bible

The Prayer of Manasses = when King Manasses (of Judah) while being held captive in Babylon

I Maccabees = history of Chanukah
II Maccabees = see above

The two books of Maccabees are the most well read and contain the history of Chanukah during the 400 year period between the Old and New Testaments.

So now you know the rest of the story!

See you next time!
Shalom, Sharaka
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To begin this study at the beginning – click on March 1st and then every highlighted day on the March calendar. Today marks the final chapter!

Chapter 24

The History of the Children of Israel
Y’hoshua recalled the history of his people. Abraham – Abram at the time – was the first one to “cross over” the river “Eber”, on their way to the Promised Land. Therefore, Abraham became the first Hebrew.
Ya’acov (Jacob) became the first Israelite and Yhudah (Judah, son of Jacob) was the first Jew. I know this is technical information – but it is true! The Brit Chadasha (New Testament) speaks of “the Jews” because they were mainly the only ones left in the land. Today, all Hebrews/Israelites are all lumped together as “Jews”. Every Jew is a Hebrew – but not every Hebrew is a Jew.

Y’hoshua had an excellent memory. Truth was passed from father to son and great care was taken to keep it all accurate. G-d was always there for His people – and He will always be there for YOU. He gives us choices and when we make the right ones – we thrive and survive. When we rebel and act up against Him – we pay! It’s not worth it. One generation tries to tell their children how to live and do they listen and obey? No! They have to make all the same mistakes and receive all their bumps. All we can do is pray for our children, live a good example before them and trust G-d to pull them through. We wish we could spare them the pain that we went through but it is not possible. Each generation must face the battle and win or lose according to their faith and obedience to G-d.

Here is a great “speech” from the Lord that Y’hoshua passed on at Shechem:
“I have given you a land for which you did not labor, and cities which you did not build, and you dwell in them; you eat of the vineyards and olive groves which you did not plant. Now therefore, fear the Lord, serve Him in sincerity and truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the Lord! And if it seems evil for you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve…… But as for me and my house – we will serve the Lord.”

G-d created Adam and Chavah (Eve) with a free will. He wanted them to have the choice of obeying Him or listening to hasatan (the devil). He could have created puppets or robots to do His will and love only Him, but that isn’t love! You can’t force that. It is freely given or withheld. It’s a choice. He wanted humans to have a choice and He wanted them to choose Him. We have always had choices —– and usually we have chosen wrong! He created us to be His friends – His children. He wants all of us – freely given. After all He has done for us, is that too much to ask?

The children of Israel that day at Shechem promised faithfully to serve the Lord and Him only. Y’hoshua warned them they would be severely punished if they broke their word – which, of course they did. How like them we all are! Y’hoshua made a covenant with the people and erected a huge stone as a witness and a memorial to that fact. The people then returned to their homes all over the land.

The bones of Yosef (Joseph) that were carried out of Egypt were buried in Shechem. Eleazar, the son of Aaron died and was also buried in the lands of Ephraim.

Y’hoshua died at 110 and was buried on his land, on the north side of Mt. Gaash. The people served G-d all the days of Y’hoshua’s life. This goes to show the people follow their pastors, their leaders. A Congregation is only as good as it’s pastor. A country is only as good as it’s leaders. And so ends the history of Y’hoshua, the namesake of the Son of G-d.

See you next time!
Shalom, Sharaka
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To begin this study at the beginning – click on March 1st and then every highlighted day on the March calendar.

Chapter 21 b

When these two and a half tribes reached the Jordan River, they erected a great impressive altar on the west side. When the rest of Israel heard this, they were shocked and appalled…. And prepared to go to war against them. They sent The priest’s son and ten rulers from the tribes to find out what was going on. It’s still good to “count to ten” and get to the bottom of a problem before you start getting radical about it! Many of us “shoot and ask questions later..”

The “Western group” accused them of treachery and rebellion against G-d. They felt G-d would be angry with the whole Congregation for them doing such a thing. They offered them other lands if their first choice was “unclean” and reminded them of Achan’s sin and how they had all suffered because of it.

The “Eastern group” accepted them and gently provided an answer. They said because of the River, the main Congregation might feel, in years to come, that the “eastern’ group were so detached from them that they would no longer recognize them as brethren. They built the altar, not for sacrifice or burnt offerings but as a memorial and a witness to their relationship. They promised they meant no harm or disrespect to G-d or to the rest of Israel.

What a relief! Everybody went home happy and they called the altar “Witness” “for it is a witness between us that the Lord is G-d!”

Chapter 22

Many years later, after there had been peace in the land, Y’hoshua called for all Israel to come and gave them this message. He said he was “old, and advanced in age.” He reminded them of all that had happened and admonished them to be ’very courageous’ and to keep doing all of the Lord’s commandments. He warned them not to mingle with the nations around them, intermarry with them or even speak the name of their gods. He told them how G-d was with them and fought for them and how one man could chase a thousand – with G-d at his side.

He wanted them to be a living “Shema”, loving G-d with all their hearts and souls and strength. He continued reminding them that their future was with the Lord and only sorrow and everlasting shame would be theirs should they turn away from the Lord G-d of Israel. How sad that in these last days maybe 80% of Israel is secular and not following the Lord. We see the words of Y’hoshua are coming to pass. There may soon be a Palestinian State and that will surely signal the beginning of the end…. We must pray for the peace of Israel and do all we can to convince our leaders that our survival depends on our treatment of Israel. Will we be cursed or blessed? It all depends on how we treat His land and His people. Scripture tells us that one day Israel will stand alone against the world. That saddens me. Would that America stand with Israel and continue to be a great and strong Nation. G-d help us!

See you next time!
Shalom, Sharaka
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Y’hoshua con’t…. Part XI
To begin this study at the beginning – click on March 1st and then every highlighted day on the March calendar.

Chapter 20

Cities of Refuge
The Lord spoke to Y’hoshua and told him to appoint “six cities of refuge” for the children of Israel and for the gerim among them. A ger (say gare) is one who lives among the Israelis and stands with them. One might say they are adopted in. I am a ger, and proud to be one! The people leaving Egypt during the time of the exodus were called a “mixed multitude”. There were many, many non-Jews among them who were accepted and adopted into the various tribes. They received land right along with the Israelis. Same rules applied for all.

There were three cities on the west side of the Jordan River and three on the east side. They were pretty well spaced to allow access to all the people. The purpose for these cities was this: If an Israeli accidentally killed another Israeli without meaning to they could flee to the nearest city of refuge and be safe from the family of the victim. In those days, if someone was murdered, the family had the right to go after them and kill them. There was no long court battle, no endless amount of attorney’s fees and no super long delays for those on “death row”. Plain and simple – if you murdered someone, your life was taken immediately. When you arrived in one of these cities, you went to the gate and declared your innocence to the elders of the city. There was, of course, no radio, no TV, and no newspapers. The city gate was the place where people went to “catch the news”. Important men of the city gathered there to decide matters, hear the latest, and be seen by the inhabitants and travelers coming and going. The refugee was given a place to live and I would suppose, employment of some kind. Then he went before the Congregation to be examined. If you were found innocent, you had to stay inside that city until the death of the Cohen HaGadol (high priest). After that he could safely return to his own city and take up his life without fear of retaliation.

Chapter 21

The Levites were given 48 cities and their common lands. Many of them were also cities of refuge. The land was thus divided and Israel was able to rest. None of their enemies stood against them and everything happened just as G-d said it would. It was a good time for the Israelites.

Chapter 22

The two tribes and the half tribe which were granted land on the east of the Jordan had been requested to leave their families on their new lands and the warriors were to do battle along side the rest of the nation until all had received their portion. This was now accomplished. Y’hoshua commended them for their good work and sent them home to their families. He sent them with his blessing as these words – which are apropos for us today. I think this verse would be a good one to memorize and live by!

Joshua 22:5: But take diligent heed to do the commandment which Moses, the servant of the Lord commanded you, to love the Lord your G-d, to walk in all His ways, to keep His commandments, to hold fast to Him, and to serve Him with all your heart and soul.

If we do this, we will be doing well!

See you next time …
Shalom, Sharaka
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To begin this study at the beginning – click on March 1st and then every highlighted day on the March calendar.

Chapter 17

This chapter tells about the land given to the half tribe of Manassah. The rest of their tribe already had a spot east of the Jordan. These people wanted a great area for their own but they were hesitant to go in and claim it, saying that the people were too much for them. They did not succeed in driving out the Canaanites but put them to forced labor.

When we have things in our lives that are not pleasing to G-d, we simply need to get rid of them. However, this is not always so simple! Instead, we often make a place for our pet sins in our lives and try to live with them. Everyone else’s sin is always so much worse than our own! Let’s ask G-d to check our hearts today and see if there be any sins left lying around. Sin must be recognized and gotten rid of or we can never live up to the full potential G-d has given us.

Chapter 18

“The Congregation of the Children of Israel”……..assembled together at Shiloh.

“Congregation” is the English translation of the phrase “called out ones”. Those that G-d, Himself, has called out and they that have answered the call. The Greek word for this is erroneously translated as “church”. Christian Biblical scholars have taught that the “church” was born at Pentecost (Acts 2:1) another Greek word meaning “50 weeks” or as the Hebrews say “Shavuot”. The “called out” ones were, in fact, called out at Mt Sinai hundreds of years before. The word “church” comes from the pagan word “kirke”. The Old English word KIRKE was the word referring to their pagan places of worship. When they became Christianized, the Anglo-Saxons continued to call their places of worship KIRKES and as the language evolved “churches”. It is still a pagan word and I prefer to say Congregation because G-d did.

The tent of meeting, or tabernacle, was set up at Shiloh. In Samuel, it is erroneously translated as Temple. Remember the Temple was not built until the day of Solomon.

Seven tribes did not yet have their land and Y’hoshua was a little disgusted with that. He told them to pick out three men from each of the seven tribes and to go survey the land and divide it into seven sections. They were then to bring the information to Y’hoshua, who would cast lots before the Lord in Shiloh — there we go with the lots again — to see who got what. Yhudah (Judah) was already situated in the South and Joseph (Ephraim and Manasseh) in the North.

It turned out that Benyamin received land near Judah and included the city of Jabus (later changed to Yerushalayim or Jerusalem) This was the birthplace of their father, Benyamin, so it rightly belonged to his descendents. He was the only son of Ya’acov (Jacob) born in the Land.

Chapter 19

Simeon, Zebulun, Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, and Dan received their portions. When they finished the task, a special city was given to Y’hoshua. It was the one he asked for – Timnath Serah in the mountains of Ephraim. He was an Ephraimite. This was the end of dividing up the Land.

You might say the Land of Israel was somewhat like the United States of America. Each tribe was responsible for their own portion but they were united under the leadership of Y’hoshua, and ultimately – G-d. Would that that would be true of America!

See you next time!
Shalom, Sharaka
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To begin this study at the beginning – click on March 1st and then every highlighted day on the March calendar.

Chapter 14

The land was divided by lot. Remember Jonah was chosen by ‘lot’ to see who was to blame for the storm when the ship sailed from Yaffa? The replacement disciple for Judas was chosen by ‘lot’ and by ‘lot’ the day chosen to kill all the Jews in the Book of Esther was decided. Many decisions of that day were made by ‘lot’ or a throw of the dice. It was thought that YHVH would speak through this method.

Concerning Calev/Caleb: Caleb, which means ‘dog’, and was a slang term for Gentile, was one of the two men out of the twelve who gave a good report concerning the Land when they were sent in to spy it out. He was the son of Jephunneh, the Kenizzite, but adopted into the tribe of Judah. He was chosen to go into the land as the one representing the tribe of Judah. There is much in the Bible concerning adoption. The expression, “to bear a child upon the knees” refers to adoption. (See Genesis 30:3) As Believers, we are adopted into the Commonwealth of Israel. That makes us former Gentiles just as loved and able to inherit the same as the Israelites! We can now be rightly called Israelites and therefore Children of G-d, too!

Caleb came to Y’hoshua at Gilgal, where they still had their original camp, and asked for certain land that he had wanted. Moshe promised him the land where “your foot has trodden shall be your inheritance.” It was time to collect! He was 85 years old and as strong as he ever had been. Y’hoshua blessed him and gave him Hebron, the mountain he wanted. This word is pronounced “heh-BRON”, sounding the “O”, not “HEB-rahn”. This is where King David ruled his first seven and a half years before he reigned in Yerushalayim. It is where Abram lived with his family for so many years. The current administration in Israel today wants the PA to rule over Hebron. How ironic and sad! The original name of this city was called Kirjath Arba, and it is also still there today. Caleb took his land and Israel rested from war.

Chapter 15

This chapter deals with the borders of the land given to Judah. An interesting side note tells us about how Caleb offered his daughter, Achsah, to who ever conquered the city called Debir (Kirjath Sephir) in his portion of land. His nephew wanted her so he went up and conquered the city.

The Jebusites were living in Yerushalayim at that time. The children of Judah were never successful in driving them out so they lived together in harmony. Remember that Ornan, the Jubusite, sold King David the threshing floor where the Temple was built?

Chapter 16

The lands given to the sons of Joseph are revealed here.

G-d has a specific place for you. A spot perhaps no one else can fill. It is so important to be obedient to what the Lord has for you to do so that your job will get done. If you have no idea what your ministry is, ask Him. He will show you what His plan is for your life. You just need to surrender to Him and determine in your heart to follow His will for you.

See you next time!
Shalom, Sharaka
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To begin this study at the beginning – click on March 1st.

Chapter 12

This chapter names all 31 kings and their cities that were defeated by Moshe and Y’hoshua in the Land.

It is true that G-d GAVE the Land to his people – but they had to go in and take it! It is true that G-d has provided healing for us – by His stripes we were healed – notice the past tense. Yes, we ARE healed, but we have to claim our healing and possibly do something toward it. We need to eat the right foods, drink enough pure water, get enough sleep and enough exercise, think pure thoughts, stay away from evil, etc. etc. We must do our part to be well and healthy. You’ve heard the old saying: “G-d helps those who help themselves.” Well, I can also say G-d helps those who cannot help themselves! If we do our part to keep our bodies – our temples – in the right condition, then G-d is able to do what we cannot and bring healing. He is ALWAYS able to heal us, but sometimes for whatever reason He does not. He is a sovereign G-d who has His reasons. He never makes mistakes, never comes too soon or too late. He ALWAYS answers prayer – Yes! Every one! The answer is “Yes, No or not now!”

Chapter 13

By this time Y’hoshua was old. He had lead the people many years. The Lord told him he was old and yet there was still much land to be possessed. It was time to stop fighting and divide up the land to the nine and a half tribes that had none as yet. Remember that Moshe had given some land to the north east of the Jordan River to Reuben, Gad and half the tribe of Manasseh because they asked him for it? The Levites were the only tribe who were not given land. That still made 12 tribes to inherit the land…. Joseph’s two children, Ephraim and Manasseh, were each made a separate tribe, leaving Levi landless. Their job was to serve in the Temple (which hadn’t been built yet). The Levites were later divided up into 24 courses and each course served at the Temple for two weeks twice a year as well as during the three pilgrimage feasts when all the males were to come up to Jerusalem. They were given some of the offerings that came from the people’s sacrifices. The Levites lived in certain cities and had a certain amount of land that they could raise their gardens and a few animals to sustain their households. Every Israeli was a farmer!

See you tomorrow!
Shalom, Sharaka
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To begin this study at the beginning – click on March 1st.

Chapter 10

Even as far back as this, there was a Jerusalem! And the king (named the Lord is righteous) of it heard about the Israelites. At that time, every big city had its king. These were all Amorites. King Adoni-tzedek called on the kings of four other cities to join with him and attack Gibeon to pay them back for making a treaty with Israel. All their armies camped before Gibeon and prepared to war against them. Naturally, Gibeon called upon their new “brethren” to come to their aid and the Israelites felt duty-bound to go to war. G-d Himself, told Y’hoshua not to fear, that they would win this battle. The Israelites soldiers marched all night to reach Gibeon and a great battle was fought. The Israelis quickly won. After they had battled a long while, – the Lord sent great hailstones down upon the Amorites and more were killed from the hailstones than from the sword!

Y’hoshua was so elated at this victory, that he called upon the sun to stand still so he could continue the battle. And it did! For about the space of a whole day, the sun did not move from its place. This had never happened before nor did it happen again! Y’hoshua must have been a very righteous man, zealous for G-d in all his ways. Daylight lasted until all the enemies were slaughtered. The five kings ran from the battle and hid themselves in a cave. They were discovered and brought to Y’hoshua who killed them and hung them from five trees until sunset. Does this sound somehow familiar? What other king do you know that was hung from a tree and released before sunset? This record was found in the Book of Jasher. I haven’t ever read that book —– it has been lost to us. Just as well, I don’t really like war stories anyway!

Y’hoshua and his men were now on a roll!! They marched against and took seven cities and then won cities with their kings from Kadesh Barnea to Gaza clear up to Gibeon. They “destroyed all that breathed”. The Lord G-d fought for Israel and no one could stand against them. After this, the men returned to their camp at Gilgal.

Chapter 11

The great Israeli warriors, with G-d as their General, took most all of the land. They took the spoil (valuables and goods of the conquered cities) and the livestock but killed every human. They even destroyed the Anakim – the giants of the land. They remained only in Gath, in Gaza and in Ashdod. Remember Goliath from Gath? When all these battles were fought and won, the men returned to their families and rested from war.

We as Believers today are in a battle. Everybody you know almost is in the middle of some kind of a battle – physically, financially, or spiritually. We can win! We are winners! All we have to do is stay close to the Lord and listen to His plan for us. If we obey – we can conquer! If we refuse to listen to Him and obey His voice, we will be lost. Looks like we have two choices: Listen and live or refuse and lose.
What’s your choice today?

….to be continued
Shalom, Sharaka
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Chapter 8

The Lord told Y’hoshua NOT to be afraid – now that the sin in the camp had been taken care of. We sin. We ALL sin – and when we do, bad things happen. But when we repent and ask forgiveness, things can go back to ‘normal’. Except – there is always a price to pay, forgiven or not. One family of Judah was gone forever. Completely wiped out. That was a tremendous loss. A murderer can be caught, placed in jail and sentenced to death. What if they repent, ask forgiveness of G-d and the victim’s family? Yes, G-d will forgive them and they will spend eternity with Him – BUT most likely, they will still have to pay the penalty here for what they did. They can witness to others on Death Row and lead them to teshuvah (repent with the intention of never doing it again) But they will still die!

Thirty thousand warriors went up to Ai and this time won the battle and 12,000 people were slaughtered! G-d allowed them to take the spoil and the cattle for themselves. (Reward for obedience?) These are hard things to understand. Maybe we never will. All I can say is, if they left anyone alive, even the youngest ones, one day down the road they most likely would have rebelled and turned against the Israelites and would be a ‘thorn in their sides’ forever! G-d doesn’t make mistakes and whatever He says is right, no matter how hard it seems to us.

Y’hoshua built an altar to the Lord and sacrifices were made. I’m sure they worshipped the Lord at that time, even though Scripture does not record it. Y’hoshua read every word of Torah to the people. It specifically mentions the foreigners among them., proving once again there is no separation between races when you give your life to the Lord. All are treated the same – receiving good and bad at the Lord’s hand.

Chapter 9

The entire countryside, from the all the coasts along the Mediterranean Sea clear up to Lebanon, heard what had happened at these cities and the people were terrified but they decided to come as one against the Bnei Yisrael – the Children of Israel. One group of peoples – the Gibeonites, from three days away, came up with a clever plan. They dressed in raggy clothes and worn out shoes. They made themselves look as if they had traveled a very long way and approached Y’hoshua, pretending to have come from a far off country and had heard about G-d’s people. They said they had come to make a covenant with them. Y’hoshua did not consult with G-d about this and was tricked into making peace with them. They left happy! Soon their secret was found out, as all secrets are sooner or later and they got caught. However, since the covenant was made in good faith – even with such a lie involved, Y’hoshua would not break his word. The Gibeonites were allowed to live and be slaves to the Israelites. They worked as woodcutters and water drawers for generations. This was the curse they received. When we lie and deceive, there is always a terrible price to pay and it lasts on and on! Best thing to do is repent and ask the Lord to forgive you and then make Him Lord of your life! Many people believe in G-d! But that’s not enough! Even the devil himself believes in G-d. Won’t do HIM any good! If we love Him, we are to keep His commandments – Torah – all that applies to us today.

The ABCs of salvation are:
Admit that you are a sinner. All have sinned and come short of the glory of G-d. Ask G-d’s forgiveness. Romans 10:13
Believe on the Lord Y’shua HaMashiach (Jesus Christ) and thou shalt be saved. John 3:16 Become a child of G-d by receiving Y’shua. John1:12
Confess that Y’shua is the Lord of your life (Romans 10:9) and that you will obey Him. He said, “If you love me – keep My commandments.