Issue #19

Submitted by saltysteve on Sat, 11/28/2009 - 13:44

Shalom,

Just to draw a line under the whole deal, my office is now complete and I am eternally grateful to wifey, even though she has created a penalty system equating messiness with kitchen duties! Who said we lived in a perfect world, anyway?!

The Bible Study - Life of Yeshua. Thanks to an overwhelming response - too many for me to answer individually - with many menfolk appearing out of the woodwork, it looks like it's going to happen!
Help! It's now up to me now to figure out HOW it's going to work. I expect to have further details in the next newsletter. Just for a taster, though, here's a list of the first 10 sections (notice the Hebrew name terminology):

001 Dedication to Theophilus (Luke 1:1-4)
002 The Eternal Word (Jn. 1:1-18)
003 The Genealogy of Yeshua (Mt. 1:1-17; Lk. 3:23-38)
004 Yochanan’s Birth Announced to Zacharias (Lk. 1:5-25)
005 Yeshua’s Birth Announced to Miriam (Lk. 1:26-38)
006 Miriam Visits Elizabeth (Lk. 1:39-45)
007 The Song of Miriam (Lk. 1:46-56)
008 The Birth and Childhood of Yochanan and His Desert Life (Lk. 1:57-80)
009 The Annunciation to Yosef of the Birth of Yeshua (Mt. 1:18-25)
010 The Birth of Yeshua (Lk. 2:1-7)

Regarding the Bible Study, it would not happen if it wasn't for the fantastic work done by my good friend Bob Doty. But Bob has a troubling medical condition and I feel that we should all do our bit to pray earnestly for him. Here's how he describes it:

"As far as my medical condition is concerned, I have what is called degenerative arthritis in my spine. Basically that means that some of my discs are slowly collapsing and the spaces around the nerves in my vertebrae are filling in with calcium. I am in constant pain to some degree or another constantly and am on some pretty heavy pain medication. The doctors have said that surgery is too dangerous to consider right now, so I just try to live with it. I do appreciate your concern. I just do my best to go each day and not let it interfere with my work too much, but it does get a little difficult at times."

Please pray for this dear, faithful man, who has produced such excellent Bible study material despite being in constant pain.

Here's a sneak preview of the latest batch of questions sent to our clever "messianic rabbis". The answers should be published by the end of December. If you have any burning questions of your own, why not email them to steve@saltshakers.com

1. Should believers keep kosher? Isn’t it down to a misunderstanding of scripture and promoted by the Talmud, which surely Christians should not put on par with Holy Scripture? 2. What are your views about Christians applying Old Testament verses to today’s church or for individuals as prophecies or words of knowledge? Is this not taking scripture out of context? 3. What is the spiritual justification for Israel’s return to the land, didn’t it have to be preceded by repentance? 4. What was the alcohol content of wine produced in ancient times? When the scripture talks about mingling wine, what does it mean? How was wine stored during the time of Jesus – barrels, leather pouches, ceramic containers? 5. Were the Wise men actually Ishmaelites? 6. As a gentile I want to know must I live only according to the Torah. Must I stop going to church, am I allowed to use the Name Jesus, or only the Hebrew names of the Lord? 7. Where is John the Baptist buried? 8. Do you believe in the Rapture? 9. If, in Matthew 23:8 Jesus says that you are not to be called “Rabbi”, why do many in the messianic movement call themselves “rabbi”? 10. My husband is a traditional Christian and does not agree with my messianic beliefs, he thinks that I am going back into legalism. He is very aggressive in his attitude. What are the rabbis view on submission (Eph 5:22) in this situation?

Get in touch with me at steve@saltshakers.com if you have any feedback about anything.

Many blessings

Steve
www.hebrewroots.com

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