Newsletter 11

Issue Number 12/19/06

We are right in the middle of Hanukkah this year and I thought I might try to explain a little bit about it to those of you that might want to know. This year Hanukkah started on the 16^th of December and runs 8 days until December 23^rd.

For a lot of us, the most we know is that there is a Menorah and you put candles in it and the children play games. Well, there is much more to know! A lot of good symbolism also. I hope that this newsletter explains some of that to you! I can't go deep into it, the way it ties in with Daniel's prophecies, being pictures of Hanukkah and times yet to come. But I can give you a brief overview of the festival.

In the apocryphal book of 1 Maccabees you can find the history that surrounds Hanukkah. I would like to take this moment to talk about the Apocrypha. A lot of Protestant denominations think that “those are the extra Books in the Catholic Bible”. Well, that is true, but one thing a lot of people do not know, is that the first version of The King James Bible contained the Apocrypha also.

1 Maccabees tells the story of Judah Maccabee and how he and his band of men overthrew Seleucid rule that had subdued and defiled the Temple in Jerusalem.

In about 170 BCE, Antiochus, ruler of the Seleucid Dynasty, suffered a humiliating defeat in Egypt. When the army marched back north through Jerusalem, Antiochus heard of civil unrest there and had his army sack the city and desecrated The Temple.

1 Maccabees 1:20-28

20 And after that Antiochus had smitten Egypt, he returned again in the hundred forty and third year, and went up against Israel and Jerusalem with a great multitude,
21 And entered proudly into the sanctuary, and took away the golden altar, and the candlestick of light, and all the vessels thereof,
22 And the table of the shewbread, and the pouring vessels, and the vials. and the censers of gold, and the veil, and the crown, and the golden ornaments that were before the temple, all which he pulled off.
23 He took also the silver and the gold, and the precious vessels: also he took the hidden treasures which he found.
24 And when he had taken all away, he went into his own land, having made a great massacre, and spoken very proudly.
25 Therefore there was a great mourning in Israel, in every place where they were;
26 So that the princes and elders mourned, the virgins and young men were made feeble, and the beauty of women was changed.
27 Every bridegroom took up lamentation, and she that sat in the marriage chamber was in heaviness,
28 The land also was moved for the inhabitants thereof, and all the house of Jacob was covered with confusion.

KJV Apoc

Antiochus soon after decided that all nations under his control must do away with their religions and start to worship the Greek gods. Doing this, the Temple Sacrifices were done away with and the Temple converted to a Temple to Zeus. He forbade circumcision, Sabbath, kosher dietary laws and anything to do with Hebrew worship of The One True God.

Much akin to many times when men fought for God, there was a miracle. Judah Maccabee and his bands of followers defeated an entire army, battle after battle, to retake Jerusalem and The Temple. When they entered the Temple, all they could find was enough oil ( with the priestly stamp on it ) to burn the lamps of the Menorah for one day. It would take them eight days to get enough oil fit for the Menorah. Not knowing what to do, they lit the Menorah with the oil they had. It miraculously burnt for eight days, until they got more oil. A lot of people say this is why Hanukkah is eight days.  When Judah and his men finally were able to reinstate the daily sacrifices at The Temple, they celebrated the rededication for eight days. The “Days of Dedication” became known as The Festival of Hanukkah!

 Now, what has this got to do with us? Is Hanukkah a God Appointed Moedim (appointed time)? No. Is it Biblical? Yes. And I am not talking about the Apocrypha. It is recorded in The Book of John.

 Jesus went to The Temple for Hanukkah!

22     At that time the Feast of the Dedication took place at Jerusalem;

     23     it was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple in the portico of ^Solomon.

     24     ^The Jews then gathered around Him, and were saying to Him, “How long ^will You keep us in suspense? If You are ^the Christ, tell us ^plainly.”

     25     Jesus answered them, “^I told you, and you do not believe; ^the works that I do in My Father’s name, these testify of Me.

The bold type is my highlighting. Yeshua was at The Temple, during The Feast of Dedication. That is Hanukkah!

 The fact that Yeshua certainly honored the Festival says a lot to me.  No, it isn’t a High Holy Day, it is simply a “tradition” Holiday. But Yeshua went to The Temple to celebrate the festival.

 Why? Is it the fact that “rededication” is central to a Believer’s life? Is it that Hanukkah is also known as The Festival of Lights? That the Menorah being relit and shining brightly, was a testament to the fact that Jerusalem and The Temple was back in the hands of God’s people? Remember that Yeshua said He was The Light of The World!

 We could all speculate on the whys. It is enough for me to know that Jesus did in fact celebrate Hanukkah. As Disciples of Christ, we are to emulate Him. That’s what being a disciple was and is.

 I think that these eight days are perfect for us to reflect on our own personal “rededication”. I know myself, that there is a lot of the world that creeps into my life, in the course of a year. No matter how much I try to keep it out, I fall to a lot of the traps that are in this fallen world. These eight days are perfect for me to step back and look at my life and the areas where I have fallen short and take the conscious effort to “rededicate” my life to God. To look at the Temple within myself and see the areas that have been desecrated and clean them up, rededicate them.

 We are called to Be Holy. We are called to Be a Light on a Hill. We are called to walk in The Lord’s Ways.

 There are a lot of Churches today that won’t mention the word “sin”. They don’t want to talk about it. They want a “feel good” atmosphere that makes everyone go home feeling good about themselves. Well, I am telling you that sometimes, we need to feel bad. Sometimes we need to look at the desecrated areas of “our” temples. There are times that we need to do some cleaning to make ourselves more presentable to The Lord.

 I know that my sins are washed clean by The Blood of The Sacrifice of Jesus.

 But Jesus also asked me to be more like Him.

 This is a weird way to say it, but,

a life not changed – is a life not changed.

 I have been changed. I want to be a light on the hill. I want to walk in The Ways of The Lord. I want to be more like Christ.

 I want to rededicate myself. Over and over again, because I need to, over and over again.

Isn’t it wonderful that we have a set apart time to remind us to do just that!

Blessings in the name of “The Light of the World”,

Tony and Robin