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Messianic Covenant Community?
So that through them The האור Light, רפואה The Healing and The ואהבה Love of ישועת יהוה Yeshuath YHWH may come back to הארץ The Land of Israel?
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| Prophecy in Purim & the Passover Deliverance |
 By Jane DiffenderferThe Book of Esther is not just the story of "once upon a time in a kingdom far away," it is a living lesson for the saints of the Most High. According to Revelation 12:14, these saints are defined as those "…that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus [Yeshua]." Are the saints of Revelation two people groups, those that keep the commandments, and another who hold on to the faith of Yeshua? Or are they one group, one people, with one faith who hold on to both? The Book of Esther is a veiled prophecy, which indicates these two people groups have joined to become one powerful force to be reckoned with in the Last Days. In the days of Esther and Mordecai the Jew, the kingdom of Persia had written decrees that were to be carried out in every province within their jurisdiction. Written by the direction of the adversary Haman, these evil decrees were designed to murder all the Jews in territories of King Ahasuerus's domain, including Jerusalem. …on the thirteenth day of the first month, and there was written according to all that Haman had commanded…in the name of King Ahasuerus…and sealed with the king's ring. And the letters were sent by posts into all the king's provinces, to destroy, to kill, and to cause to perish, all Jews, both young and old, little children and women, in one day…The posts went out, being hastened by the king's commandment, and the decree was given in Shushan the palace. And the king and Haman sat down to drink; but the city Shushan was perplexed (Esther 3:12-14).The issuing of these dispatches produce their prophetic impact, when they are layered upon the Biblical feasts, as commanded in the Torah (the first five books of Moses). What is the 13th day of the first month? According to Scripture, the first month is Nisan (or Aviv). What significance does this date have for those that have the testimony of Yeshua? It is the day before Passover, the anniversary of the Last Supper, which was shared in the Upper Room. What do the saints do on the 13th day of the first month? Prepare for Passover, the remembrance of the deliverance from Egypt and the memorial of Messiah Yeshua's atoning death. During the reign of King Ahsuerus, the entire kingdom was confused by the orders issued, but Haman the Agagite sat down to eat, drink, and be merry. Haman was of the seed of Amalek and the seed of Satan. He was following after his father the devil with his murderous decrees. He simply had no conscience about it and must have been gloating that his orders were being sent out and distributed on the 14th of Nisan, just as Jewish parents were sitting down with their children to eat their Passover meal. What a total shock this news would be to the Jews, on the day set aside to celebrate their deliverance from Egypt! Not only were they being issued a death sentence to be enacted 11 months later, their neighbors were forced–by the decree–to commit the crime against them. No wonder everyone was perplexed in Shushan! Haman must have licked his chops at the idea that he had concocted such a scheme, to ruin the special feast of those he hated so passionately. All seven of the abominations of the wicked one from Proverb 6 were emboldened in Haman. Haman was arrogant; he spoke lies against the Jews and persuaded the king–through his false witness–to give his royal stamp of approval to the evil imagination of his heart, the shedding of the innocent blood of Abraham's seed. Haman acted swiftly in sending his dispatches throughout the provinces to sow discord in the kingdom. In one day, by one decree, neighbor was set against neighbor. The wicked lamp[1] illuminated in Haman had one agenda, death. Haman was not content with just one word, "kill" in his murderous decree. His agenda was to "kill, destroy, and annihilate" the Jewish people because "their laws are diverse from all people" (Esther 3:8). Haman despised the Torah and the people who kept the commandments of their God. The seed of Amalek hated the seed of Abraham with such blazing wrath, that Haman wanted to wipe the Torah honoring faithful from the face of the earth. This is a prophetic picture that continually repeats throughout time and history. Fools say "there is no God" in their heart. Haman was a fool, yet he thought he was wise. God in heaven cannot be mocked by men. He is a strong Deliverer and He will deliver his people, no matter what force of darkness comes against them. Gather this into your soul: When all is said and done, Satan can't win and you can't lose… God always trumps Satan. Every hope and every victory the enemy thinks he has, is maddeningly thwarted at the perfect time…His first giveaway should have been the timing.[2]The edicts were written on the 13th day of Nisan and delivered on the 14th, just as the Jews in all the provinces were preparing to remember the Exodus from Egypt. This great deliverance celebration is an annual reminder of the power of Yahweh and His ability to save His people through great signs and wonders. What a night to remember! With the news of Haman's command, ... what was meant to be a commemoration of a past event, suddenly turned into a concert of imminent need. Decades earlier, the Persian Jews had chosen not to take advantage of their deliverance under the decree of Cyrus and their permission to return to Jerusalem. They decided they liked Persian life and stayed put. Then [along] came Haman. Maybe that's one reason God allows 'Hamans' to come along in life – so we will quit being so at home here.[3]Those who had faith during the dark hours of the death threat could hope in the same God. The God Who delivered them from the bonds of Pharaoh would also be able to deliver them from the hand of Haman. The saints are told to rehearse and remember the events of the Exodus. And it shall come to pass, when your children shall say unto you, 'What mean ye by this service?' That ye shall say, It is the sacrifice of the LORD'S [Yahweh's] Passover, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt, when He smote the Egyptians, and delivered our houses… (Exodus 12:26-27).Remembering to observe the commandments of Passover can remind us of our God's greatness. For those who know Messiah Yeshua, Passover takes on an even deeper meaning of redemption. Yeshua, the Lamb of God, came to die to deliver us from the bondage of sin. Passover is the annual reminder of our escape from the merciless control of the power of sin. The Passover seder has clues of eternal significance, "For as often as ye eat this bread [the unleavened bread of Passover], and drink this cup [the cup of redemption – the third cup of the Seder] ye do show the Lord's death till He come" (1 Cor. 11:26). When our Purim heroine, Queen Esther, learned of Haman's evil decre, she declared a fast instead of feasting. This fast lasted for three days and three nights. It began on the first day of Unleavened Bread, Nisan 15, and continued through Nisan 16 and 17. What is the spiritual and prophetic impact these days have for the saints? These are the same days that Yeshua, was buried in the tomb! In the year 30 AD, the day of Passover (Nisan 14) was a Wednesday.[4] What we traditionally know as Palm Sunday, was actually Palm Sabbath, Nisan 10. Four days after the Lamb was taken and examined in the Temple, He was labeled as YHWH's lamb, with the title The King of the Jews, and mocked as He hung on the cross. The number four has to do with authority.[5] Yeshua gave up His authority and died on the fourth day, at the time the Passover lambs were slaughtered in the temple. The background music of the Hallel (Psalm 113-118) was sung by the Levites as Yeshua took His last breath.[6] He was taken down from the tree and buried in the tomb before the annual Sabbath of Unleavened Bread began (Nisan 15). In Hebraic reckoning, days begin with nightfall the evening prior. Yeshua was in the tomb at the end of the 14th of Nisan just as the day of Nisan 15 began. He remained there for three entire nights and three entire days. At the end of the three nights and days, He came forth from the grave at the eve of the Biblical feast of First Fruits. During this same three days centuries prior Queen Esther also had her people die to themselves in fasting and prayer, for the sake their deliverance, during these same three days. Do you think there is a coincidence in the timing? Not with Yahweh! At the end of the three-day fast, Esther invited King Ahasuerus and Haman to a feast. This first banquet, at the beginning of the Biblical holiday of First Fruits, was the initiation of the exposure of the Adversary. The queen was obviously deeply distressed and the king was willing to give her up to half of his kingdom to give her peace. When asked, Esther declined to tell the king what her source of trouble was and instead invited Haman and the King to another banquet the following night. During the night between these banquets, the King's sleep was shaken and he was up through the wee hours reading the chronicles of his life. Perhaps he was searching for something to give him a clue to what has disturbed his Queen. In reading about a past assassination attempt, the king realized that he omitted honoring the man who once saved his life, Mordecai the Jew. Haman also has a troubled night, because he did not have the patience to wait 11 months for the death of Mordecai. He had to have it immediately! How ironic, that both the King and Haman couldn't sleep and both were focused on Mordecai. Another irony is that on the 18th day of Nisan, the King decided to honor the Jew, the one who saved his life. To twist the irony even deeper, the honoring was done at the advice of prideful Haman, who thought more highly of himself then he ought. Mordecai the Jew was then exalted with royal robes and paraded on one of the King's horses throughout the whole city of Shushan with the words, "Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor" (Esther 6:9). This lifting up of Mordecai the Jew was the exact opposite of the intention of Haman's vile heart. Haman intended to lift Mordecai up on the gallows, and God intended to see him lifted up in kingly honor. The full fury of Haman's wrath must have reached its peak that First Fruits of Nisan 18. He was suddenly escorted into the king's presence for his last supper with Esther. During this feast, the Queen, whose identity and ancestry was hidden until this precise time, exposed the Enemy and delivered his head to the very same gallows, which Haman had erected to kill Mordecai. For the saints, the picture is clear. The King will honor the Jew, who is willing to die ("if I perish, I perish") for the sake of the people and will lead them in triumph over every Enemy. Those who plot against the work of Yahweh will be exposed, for who they are, just as Satan was exposed in the victory over death at the resurrection. Yeshua, the Bread of Life, came forth from the ground as the First Fruits of the resurrection. We speak this truth every Sabbath eve with the words, "Blessed are you Adonai/Yahweh, King of the universe, who brings forth Bread from the earth." The 18th day of Nisan confounded the work of the Enemy and will always be remembered as the victory for the saints. Yeshua's death on the cross, erased the decree of destruction for us, and made a public spectacle of Satan. What the Adversary meant for harm on Nisan 13th, God triumphed over on Nisan 18. Yeshua gave up His authority and died on the fourth day of the week. Four days later–with His ascension on First Fruits–Satan's authority over mankind was forever destroyed. For in Him [Messiah Yeshua] dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily and ye are complete in Him, which is the head of all principality and power: In whom also ye are circumcised…Buried with Him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with Him through the faith… And you, being dead in your sins…hath He quickened together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses; Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us…nailing it to His cross; and having spoiled principalities and powers, He made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it. Let no man therefore judge you… in respect of a holy day, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come… (Col. 2:9-17).The saints are one people, with one hope, and one faith in the Most High God. Let no man deceive you or judge you according to the Sabbaths you choose to honor. Yeshua is our Passover and our First Fruits of the resurrection. The Biblical feasts are the Sabbaths set aside to honor the awesome work of our God. The Book of Esther teaches the Torah and the Testimony of Yeshua in shadows. The New Covenant Scriptures openly display the Torah of Yeshua and how He, as Messiah, fulfills the commandments of God in the Feasts of the LORD. In the Book of Revelation, there is only one group of people that will stir up the wrath of the Enemy to the vexation level of Haman. It is the saints that know who they are and who obey the voice of their God. "…And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ [Yeshua Messiah]" (Rev. 12:17). This united group of people will be a powerful witness of the authority of the Kingdom of God over all the forces of darkness. They will shine as the people that know their God and they shall do exploits against the Pharoahs and Hamans of this world. In conclusion, the covenant community of faith is the one which keeps both the commandments of God (the Torah) and the Testimony of Yeshua. May all those who read this have the courage and patience of the saints, like Esther, to stand as lights in this dark world, and overcome all the work of the Enemy. It is Yeshua, our Passover Lamb, who will lead His people to victory. "And they overcame him [the Accuser of the brethren] by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death" (Rev. 12:11). From Purim until today, the pattern of our victory is the same. It all centers on the blood of the Lamb and the faith inspired testimony of our lives. May our lives be a strong testimony this Passover season, bringing light to this dark world, and hope to those who are in need of knowing the One who assures our victory.
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Messianic Covenant Community PO Box 2843, Lebanon, Tennessee 37088 (888) 874-4622 | ask@messianiccovenant.com |
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