Category: Homeland - Lindsey Neal Photography + Fine Art

Democracy in Israel, and the Gospel!

3/30/2022

The Gospel is impacting Israel like never before! As many in the Orthodox community are coming to faith, we were taken to court because of their family members who started following Yeshua. They sued Google and One for Israel ordering us to take down our videos. Will Israel uphold freedom of religion or will we be forced to shut our Israeli social media channels? Join us as Dr. Erez Soref shares about the legal battle and the results of this important case in Israel.

Join with us and help more hear the life giving Gospel!
https://www.oneforisrael.org/arise-online/

This is tough because for two thousand years the Hebrew scripture has been -viewed- from two ‘different angles.’ Its difficult because -the gospel- is most -misunderstood- probably in areas within Judaism, and -i understand- the reasoning behind that. Ultimately, the israeli judge in the “Peace Court” ruled that the discrimination and “anti-christian sentiment” against Yeshua, and followers of Yeshua in this case was ‘unlawful,’ undeserved, and unfair. So what is lawful? “Gods law? or Mans?”

Theres a large and “growing messianic jewish and arab/muslim christian community” that -follow Jesus- and they have -god given- rights in israel too (his home) although being a minority is always -met with hardship. Thankfully, “the side of history” that israel is on today is that of a democratic country with freedom of religion, and freedom of speech- two necessities for “true peace” its truly wonderful:) Actually whats happening with his followers in israel today is repeating what happend after his first coming, so its come -full- circle. Its being shared more because more is coming to -light- as prophecies continue to -fulfill- in the days ahead!:)

The phrase the law and the prophets refers to the entire Hebrew Bible, what we call the Old Testament. Jesus spoke of “the law and the prophets” multiple times, such as when He listed the two greatest commandments (Matthew 22:40). In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus pointed to His absolute perfection, saying, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them” (Matthew 5:17)

I sincerely wonder why -sharing the gospel is unwanted- in israel- perhaps judiasm, and why God would want that? Its his nation. His people. Would god want -someone to search- for him? Why cant people search for answers? Learning and researching is not wrong- it has always been -what unites- people, its how we -understand other people- its what brings unity. Why would government in a nation that has freedom of religion not allow people to read the new testament? What is there to be scared of? ‘God? Or is it Man?’ Why are people who want to know their creator being -excluded from their faith- community? If it werent true, why arent they proving its not true or allowed to prove its not true? Is that a standard all people should live by? How will we -ever understand- each other?

Theres better news, the future is so much greater and the REWARD is BEYOND measure- hes a GOD of ALL PROMISES to his people, he -will- provide! Thats why im -confident- all of the PROMISES in the Hebrew bible are TRUE. We are all ‘one human race.’ Jesus Christ, yeshua, IS the Jewish messiah spoken of in the Hewbrew Bible. It is indeed, the best news!! Its not a message of conversion, its a TESTIMONY of TRUTH!! We are All ‘United in One’ God!:) We are one Isreal. WE are One Family, “One Tree.”

The Holy Spirit is co-equal with God the Father and God the Son and is of the same essence. Yet He is also distinct from them. Scripture describes the Holy Spirit in personal terms, not as an impersonal force, when it says that He teaches, guides, comforts and intercedes.1 He possesses emotions, intellect and will. The Scriptures also attest to the deity of the Holy Spirit. He is spoken of as God and is identified with the title of Jehovah.5 The Christian who is indwelt by the Spirit is indwelt by God.6 The Holy Spirit possesses the attributes of deity, such as omniscience, omnipresence, omnipotence and eternality.7 He does works only God can do, such as creating, regenerating and sanctifying. The Holy Spirit teaches and gives insight; “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you,” John 14:26. The Holy Spirit will give you insight into what you are reading and furthermore, will help you recall what you’ve read in Scripture. He brings to your mind understanding and truth. The Holy Spirit uses you for evangelism. “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth,” Acts 1:8.

Telling others about Jesus and making disciples is our most important role on this earth. It’s literally the last thing Jesus said before he ascended into heaven! Having the Holy Spirit with us means having power to be a witness. To tell people about what Jesus did for them on the cross and how he conquered death and reigns victoriously! Don’t shy away from being an advocate for Christ; it’s what you are called to do.

“But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.” (Romans 8:11) “The Holy Spirit illuminates the minds of people, makes us yearn for God, and takes spiritual truth and makes it understandable to us.” –Billy Graham. The Holy Spirit is a beautiful and powerful part of who God is. We need Him in our life as a conduit to become who God created us to be, and through His power we have aid in all situations. Without Him, we are powerless. Who is the Holy Spirit? Our first encounter with the Holy Spirit is when He convicts us of our sin, shows us that none of us can live up to the righteousness of Jesus, and reveals to us the judgment that is coming to those without a Savior (John 16:8-11). As we repent, confess our sins and receive the gift of Salvation the Holy Spirit regenerates our dead inner human spirit which now becomes sensitive to the spiritual things of God (John 3:1-16; Acts 2:38). There is a second work of the Holy Spirit when He baptizes a believer (Acts 2:1-4). It's available to all (Acts 2:39) and a gift of empowerment, helping the believer to live a holy life. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, the Helper, we become more like Jesus and are directed to do the Father's will. Furthermore, the gift is primarily for the empowerment to witness to others (Acts 1:8). We are encouraged to ask the Holy Spirit to fill us up on a regular basis. When you feel depleted or need strength, ask Him to replenish you (Ephesians 5:18).

“Then I looked, and behold, a #lamb standing on Mount #Zion, having His Father’s name written on their foreheads.” Rev-14.1 It is the same for we who are spiritual residents of the kingdom of heaven – the heavenly Jerusalem-#dwelling place of christ #messiah. (Rev14:1) Zion is where Yahweh, the God of Israel, dwells (Isaiah 8:18; Psalm 74:2), the place where he is king (Isaiah 24:23) and where he has installed his king, David (Psalm 2:6). In the Bible, the Land of Israel and the city of Jerusalem are both referred to as Zion. The name refers to both a hill in Jerusalem and to the city itself — also used to mean "holy place" or "kingdom of heaven." After Jerusalem was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BC, the Israelites could not forget Zion (Psalm 137), and, in the prophecy after the Babylonian Exile of the Jews, Zion is the scene of Yahweh’s -messianic- salvation. It is to Zion that the exiles will be restored (Jeremiah 3:14), and there they will find Yahweh (Jeremiah 31). After the crucifixion, the 2nd temple falls to destruction from the pagan romans. This is when the same context of OT scriptures in Judaism and christianity diverge interpretation. The collections of scriptures in the Hebrew cannons were -displaced- of chronological -order- of context and storyline. Because of the destruction of the temple- This Hebrew canon, though somewhat fluid up to the early 2nd century BC, was finally -fixed- by a council of rabbis at Jabneh (Jamnia), now in Israel, c. AD 100. The Oral Torah, transmitted orally, explains the Written Torah- untill written after 70AD. Though scripture is all of the above- because of the reordering and transmission it is only being seen as being about people, god and land, which in its -entirety- and -order- depicts the unifying picture of humanity, salvation and redemption. The Prophets in the Protestant canon include Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel from the Hebrew Latter Prophets. The Minor Prophets (The Twelve) are treated as 12 separate books; thus the Protestant canon has 17 prophetic books. Here- Zion #symbolizes a longing by wandering or lost people for returning to their safe *homeland -with- God.

Roman Jewish Wars

11/29/2016

The Roman-Jewish Wars were a series of conflicts waged between the Roman Empire and Israeli rebels in AD 66—70, 115—117, and 132—135. These wars were devastating for Israel, resulting in immense Jewish casualties, the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, and the expulsion of Jews from their homeland. The Jewish people would not reestablish statehood until 1948 when the modern state of Israel was founded.

During the time leading up to the Roman-Jewish Wars, Israel was under Roman domination and occupation; however, Jewish authorities were allowed some measure of autonomy. They were able to enforce certain religious laws but could not do anything beyond the limited authority allowed by Rome. For instance, the Jewish leaders were able to detain the apostles, forbid them to preach in Jesus’ name, and even have them beaten (Acts 5:17–40), but their authority went only so far. They killed Stephen in a sort of spontaneous “lynching” and thought about doing this with Jesus, but, normally, they would have had to seek Roman approval—as they ultimately did in Jesus’ case.

Rome was serious about “keeping the peace,” and the Jewish authorities were afraid of doing anything that would cause Rome to crack down on them. They were also afraid that Jesus would cause an uprising among the people if the leaders did nothing to curb His popularity (John 11:48) because it seems that Messianic expectations were running high. There was equal pressure on the Roman ruler at any given time because, if the Jews started an uprising, the Roman official in charge might be blamed for mismanagement; for this reason, he would normally give the Jewish leaders as much as he could. This seems to be why Pilate allowed Jesus to be crucified, against his better judgment (see Luke 23:20–22). All in all, first-century Israel was a turbulent place.

Roman occupation of Israel had been in place for over a generation, and most people living at the time of Christ would have never known a time when Israel was not occupied. Many Jews lived in the expectation that God’s Messiah would soon come to deliver them from the political and cultural bondage imposed by Rome. But, when Jesus the Messiah came, He made it clear that His kingdom was “not of this world” (John 18:36). After His “Triumphal Entry” (Matthew 21:1–11), instead of ridding Jerusalem of the Romans, Jesus cleanses the temple (verses 12–17); teaches that the kingdom will be taken away from Israel and given, at least in part, to the Gentiles (verses 33—22:14); tells His followers to pay taxes to Caesar (Matthew 22:15–22); condemns the Jewish leaders (Matthew 23); and predicts that the temple will be destroyed (Matthew 24:1–2). He was not going to be the type of Messiah that so many expected, and they rejected Him.

The rejection of Christ left the door open for other would-be messiahs to try to save Israel from Rome, and in less than 40 years after Jesus ascended into heaven, an Israelite rebellion against Rome had been crushed and the temple had been destroyed. This was the first in a series of uprisings against Roman rule that are known today as the Roman-Jewish Wars or sometimes simply the Jewish Wars.

The First Roman-Jewish War took place about AD 66—73 and is also known as the Great Jewish Revolt. About halfway through the conflict, the temple in Jerusalem was completely destroyed, and the Jews in Jerusalem were slaughtered. It was a time of unprecedented suffering. Jewish nationalists took a final stand at the fortress of Masada, where, under siege and with no hope of victory or escape, almost 1,000 freedom fighters committed suicide rather than surrender or be captured by the Romans. This is the war that is chronicled by Josephus in The Jewish War. Following the defeat of the Jewish rebels, Roman rule was restored in Judea.

About 40 years later, riots and rebellions broke out among Jewish exiles in various parts of the Roman Empire. These were all eventually crushed by the Roman military. This series of uprisings is called the Kitos War; some consider it the Second Roman-Jewish War, although some do not because it did not occur in Israel.

The final chapter in the Roman-Jewish Wars was the Bar Kochba Revolt, led by Simeon bar Kosba, who made messianic claims and was renamed Bar Kokhba (“Son of the Star”) by an influential rabbi. The rebels were able to defeat Roman forces garrisoned in Palestine, and, for about two years, they established an independent Jewish state. As a result of Bar Kokhba’s victories, many hailed him as the Messiah who would restore the kingdom to Israel. However, Emperor Hadrian ordered six legions of soldiers with reinforcements into the area, and the rebellion was crushed. Many Jews were slaughtered in the process.

After this final rebellion, the Roman-Jewish Wars ended. In the aftermath, Jews were barred from Jerusalem except for the festival of Tisha B'Av, which commemorates the destruction of the first and second temples. The Jews began to be persecuted in a way they had not been before, and the Diaspora began in earnest. Bar Kokhba was denounced by Jewish leadership as a false messiah, and Jews began to abandon the concept of a personal messiah who would restore Israel. Approximately 100 years after rejecting Jesus as Messiah, Judaism was giving up any hope of a personal messiah, a Jewish homeland, and an independent Jewish kingdom.

Anew Light Ministries

CREATING environments through the vehicle of Visual and Expressive ARTS to help plug people into their CREATOR by fostering Spiritual Growth. By combining Therapeutic Art, Christ-Centered CBT techniques, and Integrated Arts in Scriptural Education, I seek to Heal human brokenness and Redeem Fullness through the Transformative Healing Power of The Holy Spirit.