The Shofar Newsletter
THE SHOFAR Newsletter of Bet Yeshurun Messianic Assembly
Good News for the Assembly of Bet Yeshurun
No. 907 / September 30, 2017
Schedule of Gatherings
Schedule of Gatherings
9/30/17 Yom Kippur(Day of Atonement and Fasting) *** 1:30 pm
10/5/17 Succoth(Day 1 of Tabernacles) *** 1:00 pm
10/6/17 Succoth(Day 2 of Tabernacles) 1:00 pm
10/7/17 Succoth(Day 3 of Tabernacles) 1:30 pm
10/8/17 Succoth(Day 4 of Tabernacles) – see Announcement for location 1:30 pm
10/9/17 Succoth(Day 5 of Tabernacles) 1:00 pm
10/10/17 Succoth(Day 6 of Tabernacles) 1:00 pm
10/11/17 Succoth(Day 7 of Tabernacles) 3:00 pm
10/12/17 Shemini Atzaret(The Last Great Day of the Feast) *** 1:00 pm
10/14/16 Sabbath(consecutive) 1:30 pm
10/19/16 Sabbath(lunar) 1:00 pm
10/20/17 Chodesh (8th New Moon celebration of the year) 1:00 pm
10/21/17 Sabbath(consecutive) 1:30 pm
10/27/17 Sabbath(lunar) 1:00 pm
10/28/17 Sabbath(consecutive) 1:30 pm
2017 Schedule for Reading the Bible in One-Year
Ketuvim; Tehillim (Songs) Book of Psalms
9/23 - Chapters 51 – 57 9/24 - Chapters 58 – 65 9/25 - Chapters 66 – 69
9/26 - Chapters 70 – 73 9/27 - Chapters 74 – 77 9/28 - Chapters 78 – 79
9/29 - Chapters 80 – 85 9/30 - Chapters 86 – 89 10/1 - Chapters 90 – 95
10/2 - Chapter 96 – 102 10/3 - Chapters 103 – 105 10/4 - Chapters 106 – 107
10/5 - Chapters 108 – 114 10/6 - Chapters 115 – 118 10/7 - Chapter 119
10/8 - Chapters 120 – 125 10/9 - Chapters 126 – 132 10/10 - Chapters 133 – 139
10/11 - Chapters 140 – 145 10/12 - Chapters 146 – 150
Ketuvim; Mishley (Proverbs) Book of Proverbs
10/13 - Chapters 1 – 3 10/14 - Chapters 4 – 6 10/15 - Chapters 7 – 9
10/16 - Chapters 10 – 12 10/17 - Chapters 13 – 15 10/18 - Chapters 16 – 18
10/19 - Chapters 19 – 21 10/20 - Chapters 22 – 23 10/21 - Chapters 24 – 26
10/22 - Chapters 27 – 29 10/23 - Chapters 30 – 31
Tabernacle Invitation
Interested in joining Bet Yeshurun Assembly? Please contact Pastor ObadiYah by email, telephone, mail, or in person at a gathering of Yahushuah’s Body.
Don't Be Deceived or Worry
(Matthew 24:1-8) Yahushuah went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came to Him to show Him the buildings of the temple. And Yahushuah said to them, “See all these things? Verily I say to you, there shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.” As He sat upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately saying, “Tell us, when shall these things be? And what shall be the sign of your coming, and of the end of the world?” And Yahushuah answered and said to them, “Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name saying, “I am Messiah; and shall deceive many. And you shall hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you not be troubled for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.”
That passage begins what many call the Olivet Prophecy. (Matthew 24:1-58) Named after the location where Messiah Yahushuah givies specific details about world events to occur before His return to earth, He also commands His disciples, including those at Bet Yeshurun Assembly (BYA): (1) Take heed no one deceives us regarding the temple's destruction, the end of the age, or His return; and (2) Be not troubled when we hear of wars and rumors of wars, for the end is not yet.
One certainty about this prophecy: we're closer to His coming today, than yesterday. And for those watching televised news, or listening to radio broadcasts, or reading magazines, the world is reporting on its “beginning of sorrows.” The New York Times, for example, reports over 20 million African refugees in Somalia, South Sudan, Nigeria and Yemen are fleeing due to wars, droughts and famines causing international aid officials to face one of the biggest humanitarian disasters since World War II.Plus, it's difficult to ignore the rumors of looming nuclear war between North Korea and America that's front page news fodder throughout the world.
Some might claim that last one is an example of a “fake” news story that's intended to distract people from other deceptions taking place in the world. Roget's Thesaurus identifies some “deceptive acts” to be on the lookout for: “hoaxes, swindles, illusions, trickery (ruses to deceive), subterfuge (ways to hide true objectives, evade, or gain some end), fraud (deliberate, dishonest disception to deprive people of rights), chicanery (tricky talk or action).” So, to keep me from being bamboozled by a flimflam artist, or getting fleeced like a sheep, I need to keep getting my facts straight from Scripture. In other words, become a prayer warrior, and not a worrier. Yahushuah's warning is so important that two witnesses recorded it: (Mark 13:1-37; Luke 21:1-38)
Mark's account includes a parable to help our understanding: (Mark 13:28-37) “Now learn a parable of the fig tree. When her branch is yet tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. So in like manner, when you shall see these things come to pass, know that it is nigh, even at the doors. Verily I say to you, that this generation shall not pass, till all these things be done. Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away. But of that day and hour knows no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, nor the Son, but the Father. Take heed, watch and pray: for you know not when the time is. For the Son of Man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch. Watch, therefore, for you know not when the master of the house comes, at even, at midnight, at the cockcrowing, or in the morning: Lest coming suddenly he finds you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to all, watch!”
That last sentence reveals the signs of His coming are a warning meant for the world. Thus, Yahushuah answers to the following questions are really meant for everyone: (Matthew 24:3) “Tell us, when shall these things be? And what shall be the sign of your coming and of the end of the world?”
The King James Bible (KJV) translates “coming” from the Greek “parousia” (G3952), which Thayer's Greek Lexicon explains means “the official visit of a ruler to a city; manifests the coming, arrival, advent of a saving deity.” In the New Testament, that speaks to the future, visible return of the Messiah, who is coming to raise the dead, hold the last judgment, and formally establish Elohim's Kingdom in glory: (1 Thessalonians 2:19) “For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even you in the presence of our Adonai Yahushuah Messiach at His coming?” (also see Matthew 24:27;37-39)
Yahushuah's disciples understood that His second coming marked “the end of the world.” In Greek, those words are “synteleia” (G4930) “aion” (G165), which means “the completion, consummation, the end of an age or period of time.” (Thayer) He explains further to disciples: (Matthew 13:36-40) “Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field.” He answered and said to them, “He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; the field is the world; the good seed are the children of the Kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; the enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world.”
In Greek, “polemos” (G4171) means “war.” Yet it is more than declared conflicts. It also means “fights, battles, disputes, strifes, quarrels.” (Thayer) Our news is filled with many examples, but consider this prophet's version. Insert “Americans” for “Egyptians” for relevance: (Isaiah 19:2-6) “I will set Egyptians against Egyptians. They shall fight everyone against his brother and everyone against his neighbor; city against city, kingdom against kingdom. The spirit of Egypt shall fail in the midst thereof. I will destroy the counsel thereof. They shall seek to the idols, to the charmers, to them who have familiar spirits, and to the wizards. The Egyptians I will give over into the hand of a cruel lord; and a fierce king shall rule over them,” says Adonai YAHUAH of hosts. “The waters shall fail from the sea. The river shall be wasted and dried up. They shall turn the rivers far away; the brooks of defence shall be emptied and dried up. The reeds and flags shall wither.”
That ancient prophecy aptly fits America's current calamities: our internal and external wars, droughts, famine (poverty), pestilence and “earthquakes.” That word in Greek is “seismos” (G4578). It means more than the ground shaking. It also describes commotion of the air, like gales, tempests, tornadoes and the three recent hurricanes to pummel American soil. Interestingly, the last two Hurricanes were named Jose and Maria (reminders of Joseph and Mary?).
Furthermore, such signs are “the beginning of sorrows.” In Greek, “ōdin” (G5604) describes “sorrows” as “the pain of childbirth, travail pain, birth pangs and the intolerable anguish, in reference to the dire calamities preceding the advent of the Messiah.” (Thayer) ImagineMary's intense pain transitioning into joy upon a baby's birth. That's how Believers will feel: pain just before Yahushuah's coming, then joy afterward: (John 16:20-22) “Verily, verily, I say to you, that you shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice. You shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall turn into joy. A woman when she is in travail has sorrow, because her hour is come, but as soon as she delivers the child, she remembers no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world. You now therefore have sorrow, but I will see you again. Your heart shall rejoice and your joy no man takes from you.”
In summary, stay alert for deceivers, and avoid at all cost their alluring speech, deeds and misrepresentations: (Mark 13:21-2) “If any man shall say to you, 'Lo, here is Messiah!' Or, 'Lo, He is there!' Believe not! For false Messiahs and false prophets shall rise and shall show signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect. But take heed! Behold, I have foretold you all things.” (Luke 21:8) “Take heed that you be not deceived for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Messiah; and the time draws near. Go ye not therefore after them.”
Be not deceived with teachings not rooted in Scripture. Follow Yah's Word, not human philosophy and traditions: (Colossians 2:6-8) “As you therefore received Adonai Yahushuah ha'Messiach, so walk in Him. Rooted and built up in Him and stablished in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Messiah.”
Furthermore, don't worry about the signs of Yahushuah's coming. Yah's got us protected and secure: (Psalm 91:5-11) “You shall not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flies by day; nor for the pestilence that walks in darkness; nor for the destruction that wastes at noonday. A thousand shall fall at your side and ten thousand at your right hand; but it shall not come nigh you. Only with your eyes shall you behold and see the reward of the wicked. Because you made YAHUAH, my refuge, Elyon, your habitation; there shall no evil befall you, nor shall any plague come nigh your dwelling. For He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways.”
Indeed, our Redeeemer is coming for us, not against us: (Luke 21:27-36) Then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draws nigh....So likewise, when you see these things come to pass, know that the kingdom of Elohim is nigh at hand. Verily I say to you, this generation shall not pass away, until all be fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away. Take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that day come upon you unaware. For as a snare shall it come on all them who dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch therefore and pray always, that you may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.”
Let our love for the Most High, and our calling upon His Name, sustain and save us: (Psalm 91:14-16) “Because he set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him. I will set him on high because he has known My Name. He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him. I will be with him in trouble. I will deliver and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him My Salvation.” Yahushuah! Hallelu YAHUAH Elohim!
In this season of repentance, forgiveness, reconciliation, and restoration may YAHUAH accept BYA through the sacrifice of His beloved Son, Yahushuah. And may Elohim's mercy and grace be upon us all. Shalom, Elder Curt
Announcements for the Festival of Tabernacles 2017
Saturday Sabbath worship is highlighted by an important new series on the Book of 2 Samuel. Join us!
Wed. Oct. 4 (from 5:00 to 7:00 pm) Join BYA in building its sukka (booth). Meet at RBC to help construct our temporarydwelling place. As Yah instructs, don't forget to bring your green decorations (Leviticus 23:39-43).
Sun, Oct. 8 (from 1:30 until 8:00 pm) On Day 4 of the Festival, BYA will gather at the Wildwood Ranch with members, friends and family. Please confirm attendance on the sign-up sheet. Services will include P&W, a hayride, fellowship meal and bonfire. A map to the location is available.
Wed, Oct. 4 until Fri. Oct 13) Join a group from BYA who will camp out at Pontiac Lake Rec. Area (located within 40 minutes of RBC). Please contact Sis Michelle, if interested: noelmichelle82gmail.com or text 248.212.5771.
Thought for Meditation
“Mercy receives the ungrateful again and again and is never weary in pardoning them.” Catherine Elizabeth McAuley