01/05/2021

Shabbat Word

01/05/2021

Shabbat Shalom!

Covid-19 continues to ravage the world. Every night, I pray this Psalm for the continued well-being, security and prosperity of Yahuah’s people, Yisra`el, His land, Yisra`el, His set apart city Yerushalayim and my family spiritual and physical.

Psalm 91:1-16

91:1) He who dwells in the secret place of Ha`Elyon,

Will rest in the shadow of Shaddai.

91:2) I will say of Yahuah,

“He is my refuge and my fortress; My `Elohiym, in whom I trust.”

91:3) For He will deliver you from the snare of the fowler,

And from the deadly pestilence.

91:4) He will cover you with His feathers.

Under His wings you will take refuge.

His faithfulness is your shield and rampart.

91:5) You shall not be afraid of the terror by night,

Nor of the arrow that flies by day;

91:6) Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness,

Nor of the destruction that wastes at noonday.

91:7) A thousand may fall at your side,

And ten thousand at your right hand;

But it will not come near you.

91:8) You will only look with your eyes,

And see the recompense of the wicked.

91:9) Because you have made Yahuah your refuge,

And Ha`Elyon your dwelling place,

91:10) No evil shall happen to you,

Neither shall any plague come near your dwelling.

91:11) For He will give His angels charge over you,

To guard you in all your ways.

91:12) They will bear you up in their hands,

So that you will not dash your foot against a stone.

91:13) You will tread on the lion and cobra.

You will trample the young lion and the serpent underfoot.

91:14) “Because he has set his love on me, therefore I will deliver him.

I will set him on high, because he has known my name.

91:15) He will call on me, and I will answer him.

I will be with him in trouble.

I will deliver him, and honour him.

91:16) I will satisfy him with long life,

And show him my salvation (yeshu`ah).”

Psalm 32:1-12

32:1) By David. A maskil.

32:2) Blessed is he whose disobedience is forgiven,

Whose sin is covered.

32:3) Blessed is the man to whom Yahuah does not impute iniquity,

In whose spirit there is no deceit.

32:4) When I kept silence, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.

32:5) For day and night your hand was heavy on me.

My strength was sapped in the heat of summer.                                                             Selah.

32:6) I acknowledged my sin to you.

I did not hide my iniquity.

I said, I will confess my transgressions to Yahuah,

And you forgave the iniquity of my sin.                                                                         Selah.

32:7) For this, let everyone who is godly pray to you in a time when you may be found.

Surely when the great waters overflow, they shall not reach to him.

32:8) You are my hiding place.

You will preserve me from trouble.

You will surround me with songs of deliverance.                                                            Selah.

32:9) I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you shall go.

I will counsel you with my eye on you.

32:10) Do not be like the horse, or like the mule, which have no understanding,

Whose are controlled by bit and bridle, or else they will not come near to you.

32:11) Many sorrows shall be to the wicked,

But he who trusts in Yahuah, lovingkindness shall surround him.

32:12) Be glad in Yahuah, and rejoice, you righteous!

Shout for joy, all you who are upright in heart!

.A Word

As Much Use As A Chocolate Tea Pot

At sea, the use of colourful terms to describe someone or something, is very common. It usually involves irony, sarcasm or hyperbole and can be recognised by the use of ‘As….as…’ The title of this message is typical. If someone was incompetent he was said to be ‘As much use as a chocolate tea pot or fireguard’.

“By the sweat of your face will you eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken. For you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” (Gen. 3:19). When we die, our body is of no further use. Whether we are buried or cremated, we all return to the dust from which we were formed. 99% of the mass of the human body is made up of the six elements oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, calcium, phosphorus and iron (the balance made up with trace elements). (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Composition_of_the_human_body).

Compare this with the typical composition of soil that comprises of a mixture of rock and organic material being mostly oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, iron and calcium (the balance being made up with trace elements). (www.krishiworld.com).

“Yahuah `Elohiym formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” (Gen. 2:7). Mankind’s body consists of a combination of bio-chemicals. Only when Yahuah breathed into Adam did Man come to life.

This verse is of utmost importance. Yahuah `Elohiym created the seas and the land (Gen. 1:9), He created the trees and the grass (Gen. 1:11) and He created the sun, moon and stars (Gen. 1:16). Although He spoke all these things into existence, Man He formed or made.

“We are of good courage, I say, and are willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be at home with Yahusha. Therefore also we make it our aim, whether at home or absent, to be well pleasing to Him.” (2 Cor. 5:8, 9). Our bodies will be useless after our death, therefore it is important to make good use of it while we live.

The Parable of the Jar, Cup and Beaker

There was once a sculptor who made a precious jar out of alabaster. He took his time in selecting the correct block of stone. He then carefully chipped away the stone flake by flake, constantly holding it up to the light and turning it around until the one-off, stunning jar was completed. The stone was polished and polished to a fine, smooth finish. At the end, the sculptor declared it as very good.

At the same time, a carpenter made a wooden cup. He studied several pieces of wood looking how the grains ran. Then, by lovingly chiselling away the wood first in big chunks but gradually splinter by splinter until the unique, beautiful cup was completed. Around the base he carved an intricate design. When it was finished, the carpenter likewise declared it as very good.

There was also a potter who made a clay beaker, one of many he made each day.

One day, the stunning, alabaster jar was purchased by woman and was filled with very expensive nard perfume. In spite of its beauty, it was used only the once, broken and the perfume poured over the Master’s head prior to His entry in to Yerushalayim (Mark 14:3).

The cup was purchased by a house owner and one evening, the beautiful, wooden cup was filled with wine. It, too, was used only the once as the Master blessed it and said, “All of you drink it, for this is my blood of the Renewed Covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” (Matt. 26:27b, 28).

However, the beaker was carried in a bag by the Master wherever He went. Each time the Master was thirsty, He took out the beaker, filled it with water and raised it to His lips, refreshing Him over and over again.

Scripture tells us of the jar and the cup, but nothing is said of the day-to-day drinks taken by the Master.

The moral of this parable is do not despise lowly service. In fact, if it is done for the Master, there is no such thing as lowly service. However, no matter what you do, if it is not for the Master, then it is useless. “There is no one who understands. There is no one who seeks after Yahuah. They have all turned aside. They have together become useless. There is no one who does good, No, not, so much as one.” (Rom. 3:11, 12). A person may have taught Sunday School or lead the worship for thirty years, or even been a pastor or vicar, but if they have not got a personal relationship with the Master, then all their hard work has been in vain. At judgement, all useless work will be burnt up. (1 Cor. 3:10-13).

The only thing worse than knowing we have laboured all these years for nothing, is that of knowing without that personal relationship with the Master, we are all destined for Hell.

Now, I am not saying that we are saved by works. We are not saved BY works but saved FOR works. “For we are His workmanship, formed in the Messiah Yahusha for good works, which Yahuah prepared before that we would walk in them.” (Eph. 2:10). For all those who accept Yahuah’s salvation, there are plenty of jobs to go around. We cannot all be apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors or teachers (Eph. 4:11). Nevertheless, Yahuah does not look at the intrinsic value but for obedience. If we are called to be an alabaster jar, then we must be obedient and be the best jar we can be. However, if we are called to be an earthenware beaker, then we must be the best beaker we can be.

Yahuah is no respecter of persons (Rom. 10:12). He does not look upon what you have done, but rather, have you been obedient to His call. There is an account of David attacking the army of Amaleki. Some men were told to guard the supplies, while the rest went down to fight. Upon victory and the sharing out of the spoils, the fighters complained that they had risked their lives so demanded a larger share. However, David insisted that each would receive the same amount (1 Sam. 30:11-25). They were not rewarded for what they did, but for being obedient to David’s instructions.

Have you followed Yahuah’s instructions?

What about “…the Kingdom of Yahuah is at hand. Repent and believe in the Good News.” (Mark 1:15)?

There is only one way to escape the wrath of Yahuah, and that is through the shed blood of His Son, Yahusha. We must acknowledge that we have all sinned and cannot do anything to prevent the well-deserved, eternal punishment in Hell. Nevertheless, if we confess our sins and seek forgiveness through the shed blood of Yahusha, then we enter that personal relationship that will never be broken. This is the Good News spoken of by Mark.

Then, and only then, will any of our works be of value.

Take a close look at your life. Are you useful or useless to the Master?

The best use anyone can make of their lives is to accept Yahuah’s salvation through His Son. This can only be done when we are still alive. For after death comes judgement.

What sort of service are you giving to the Master? How will He look upon your works? Will He say, ‘Well done good and faithful servant’ (Matt. 25: 21, 23) or will He say, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into everlasting fire’ (Matt. 25:41)?

Ameyn

HalleluYah

Ameyn

Father, we thank you for the power of your Word and that Word was made flesh in the Messiah Yeshua so that in believing in His life, death and resurrection we may have eternal life with you.

If you want to accept Father’s offer of salvation through the Messiah Yeshua, you need to ask Him in prayer along these lines. You may use these or your own words but they must be genuine as Father knows our very hearts and nothing is hidden from Him.

“Father, I am a sinner who needs forgiveness of my sins through your Son, the Messiah Yeshua. Please forgive me of all my past sins as I accept that, Messiah Yeshua my Saviour, has taken upon Himself my punishment. By your Spirit, help me to live a life worthy of His sacrifice. Thank you, Father, for making the perfect way back to you.”

Remember, the Judge looks into your heart, mind and future.

If you have honestly said such a prayer as this, and truly renounced the sin in your life and accepted Father’s salvation through the Messiah Yeshua, then please drop us an e-mail or call us at FGA to let us know. This helps build up our faith and offers an opportunity to prayerfully support you. Even if you have Believing friends or family, we at FGA would be privileged to pray for you. Please contact us at ezra710@firstgenerationassembly.com. Having believed and prayed, now please find a local faith-based church to attend. Drop FGA an e-mail or call us so that we can rejoice with you and pray and support you over the coming weeks.

If you have sincerely called out to Father for forgiveness, then eternal life is assured. Salvation does not take away the day-to-day questions of life, nor is it a short-cut away from trials or tribulations. Nevertheless, knowing your eternal life is secure, any temporary trial can be overcome by looking at the completed work of Messiah Yeshua.

All blessings to you.

“He becomes poor who works with a lazy hand,

But the hand of the diligent brings wealth.” (Prov. 10:4).

Breaking Matzah

Our Saviour welcomes all His Family to join in this memorial. If you have accepted Messiah Yeshua as your Master and Saviour please take the next few moments to seek Father and to ensure that all is right between Him and you and between you and your Brothers and Sisters. If not, please put this right before continuing.

If you have not yet accepted Him into your life, then we encourage you to seek Him while it is still possible, as time is running out. When He returns or if you pass away then it will be too late. Please do not partake of the matzah and wine as in doing so, it gives thanks for the broken body (matzah) and shed blood (wine) for and a witness of salvation.

On the night of the Master’s betrayal, He took the matzah, blessed it and broke it saying ‘This is my Body broken for you; take and eat it as a memorial to Me.’

Bless the matzah saying: Blessed are you, O Yahuah our `Elohiym, King of the Universe, who brings forth matzah from the earth.

Break and eat the matzah (sharing it if within a group setting):

After the meal He took the Cup, blessed it saying ‘This is my Blood poured out for you for the remission of sins; take and drink it as a memorial to me.’

Bless the wine saying: Blessed are you, O Yahuah our `Elohiym, King of the Universe, who creates the fruit of the vine.

Drink the wine (sharing it if within a group setting):

Thanksgiving prayer: Blessed are you, O Yahuah our `Elohiym, King of the universe, who gives us, in Yeshua, all that we will ever need. In your lovingkindness and mercy, you rebuild broken lives. You bless us, in Yeshua, with a perfect blessing. Ameyn.

 Dates to remember

04/04/-22/05/2021 – Counting of the Omer

13/05/2021 – Rosh Chodesh 3^rd. New Moon

Father willing, we will meet again next Shabbat.

“Y’varekh’kha Yahuah v’yishmerekha,

Ya’er Yahuah panav eleikha vichunekka,

Yissa Yahuah panav eleikha v’yasem l’kha shalom.”

(May Yahuah bless you and keep you)

(May Yahuah make His face to shine upon you and show you His favour)

(May Yahuah lift up His face toward you and give you peace.).