Chanukah(More than just lighting candles)

Here's a fun little factoid for you, did you know Chanukah is in your bible? 

don't believe me huh?

And it was at Jerusalem the feast of the dedication, and it was winter.

John 10:22

You may be saying to yourself; "Um…I see winter and dedication, I don't see the word Chanukah at all."

Well my friend, it's because you don't know the meaning of Chanukah or the fact that it's the only feast in "winter" that is celebrated by jewish people. Chanukah is the "Feast of dedication" that is its meaning, it is more than what you see on the surface level, it is more than lighting some candles for eight days. Yeshua(Jesus) found Chanukah important enough to be in the temple, at the time of it's celebration. 

And Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon's porch.

John 10:23

What did Yeshua say in John chapter 8? He called Himself the "Light of the World",

do you not see the symbolism of lighting the chanukiah?(Chanukah Menorah) it goes much deeper than that.  A chanukiah(a menorah specifically used for Chanukah) has a total of 9 candle holders, usually one candle holder on the chanukiah is raised a little higher than the others, this is called the "Shammash candle" this is the candle that is lit and then lights the other candles on the menorah. Shammash means "Caretaker" or "helper"or a better way to put it is "Servant", this is usually a title given to a person in a jewish synagogue who takes care of temple duties,  in christianity this would be called a "Deacon". 

Yeshua was absolutely a servant, He only did the Fathers will, and like the "Shammash candle" that gives light to the other candles, is Yeshua not our light? without Yeshua we are nothing, and we must be shining beacons of light, and only by Yeshua is it possible for us to be light! Where is such symbolism, such biblical affirmation in Christmas? think about it, what does Christmas even have to do with Yeshua? sure, you say;

"it's when our savior was born!"

but really that's not even biblically accurate at all, and even if it were true…what exactly does santa clause and decoration of a tree have anything to do with His birth? none the less I'm not writing to talk about Christmas, I'm writing to share how biblical and important Chanukah is. 

I did say it was more than lighting a menorah, some call it "the festival of lights" and I suppose it is, but its meaning is really "The feast of Dedication", the question becomes, what exactly is being dedicated? Well, you would have to know the story of the Maccabees, which oddly enough is in the Catholic cannon. The story of Chanukah is really found in the first book of Maccabees, I'd say if you want to know the whole story read chapters one thru four.  Basically It's about the hellenization of Israel, the spread of greek culture and their philosophy forced down the throats of the jewish people.

This hellenization happened slowly, it really started with Alexander "the great" and only infected and spread after Alexander passed away and divided his kingdom up among his generals. To the greek mind set the jewish people were barbaric for they only "worshipped one GOD" and their laws and customs were looked down upon. Some jewish people welcomed the change, and had no problem adopting pagan customs, but most were really forced to change or they were put to death. King Antiochus attacked Jerusalem and pillaged the Temple, took all the gold out of the temple and defiled the temple of the LORD our GOD the GOD of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and made it a worship place for zues, turned the temple into a place of orgies and pagan sex practices to please their "gods".

They would gather up the jewish people and murder them if they didn't worship their gods, and murder them if they tried to hang on to any type of jewishness. It's even recorded that there was a mass slaughter of jewish people who refused to worship their gods and adopt pagan practices, they were keeping the sabbath and refused to take up arms against Antiochus's forces, so they were massacred without fighting back. Well a man named Mattathias and his sons were disgusted with what was happening with Jerusalem and their people being forced into hellenistic practices, and they were not going to stand for it any longer.

This small band of jewish men who were devoted to God and His commandments started up a revolt against Antiochus, they were vastly out numbered but it was shown that God was absolutely on their side. THe real leader and hero of the story is Mattathias's son Judah/Judas Maccabee who was steadfast,loyal and brave…a cunning warrior very much like Gideon.

Judah Maccabee took back Jerusalem and the temple, and they "re-dedicated" the temple back to the LORD, which took eight days, not only was it a miracle that they took back the temple but when they started to dedicate the temple and cleanse it from it's perversion they only found enough oil to last one day but the oil lasted eight days…hence the eight day celebration of Chanukah.

How is this not important? Shouldn't we as believers in our jewish savior Yeshua Ha'Mashiach(Jesus Christ) honor the days of Chanukah? It was apparently important enough to Yeshua that He went to temple during the feast. Don't the events of Chanukah parallel for us today? 

Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?

1 Corinthians 6:19

As believers in Yeshua, full of the promised Ruach Hakodesh(Holy Spirit), our bodies are the temple, Chanukah is a time of declaring such, Chanukah is a time of clarification and dedication of our bodily temple to God. I mean, can you seriously not relate to the Maccabees? have our beliefs not been hijacked…has "Christianity" itself not become "hellenized" or to put it in todays terms "Westernized". We live in a culture that is saturated with unbiblical thinking, unbiblical theology and unbiblical living…and just like back in the days of the Maccabees some of us have no problem adopting paganism, and following the ways of the world while still claiming to be for God. Just like the days of the Maccabees we will come to a time where we will no longer be able to walk the fence, we wont be able to walk on the line of worldliness and Godliness, I promise you there will come a time where you are going to have to choose a side, and there will come a time where you will be faced with either surrendering your faith in the God of Abraham,Isaac and Jacob or being faced with death…..which would you choose?

I hope you would stand and fight, and refuse to surrender just like the Maccabees ! 

The "Stoning" Verse

If there is found among you, in any city that ADONAI your God gives you, a man or a woman who does what ADONAI your God sees as wicked, transgressing His covenant by going and serving other gods and worshipping them, the sun,the moon, or anything in the sky- something I have forbidden- and it is told to you, or you hear about it; then you are to investigate the matter diligently. If it is true, if it is confirmed that such detestable things are being done in Israel; then you are to bring the man or woman who has done this wicked thing to your vita gates, and stone that man or woman to death.

-Deuteronomy[D'varim] 17:2-5

Have you had this verse thrown in your face before?

it's a verse that God mockers(Atheists/Agnostics)

love using. it's suppose to make God look cruel and at the same time make His word(The Bible) look like a "Contradiction"(trust me I know, I use to do the same thing they do with certain verses) 

Claiming that The Bible is a "Contradiction" only comes when one is lacking of understanding, and doesn't understand the context of the scripture they claim is a "Contradiction". I'd say 90% of the time "contradiction" comes up when it has to do with Torah(Old testament) and this stoning one is a perfect example, it comes around because most people fail to realize what God was doing with His people. 

BUT, before I get into that, lets just think logically for a second(something the atheist/agnostic throwing this verse in your face claims to do nothing but)

Lets imagine God is exactly who He says He is, crazy I know, but try to stay with me. So, God is one(Echad)

there is NO other, He is creator of all, the potter who can mold and destroy as He wishes. He demands, doesn't just ask for, but demands Holiness and worship of ONLY HIM, remember the 1st and 2nd commandment? they pretty much make that absolutely clear. So does...

Exodus(SH'MOT) 34:14 

because you are not to bow down to any other god; since ADONAI -whose very name is Jealous -is a jealous God.

So, as He is molding His people, there comes one person who decides he/she will ignore all God asks and worship creation rather than creator. Now this ONE Holy perfect God is suppose to do what? tell His jewish people;

"Oh…that man or woman worshipping what I told you NOT TO, just ignore them, it's all good."? 

This man/woman wouldn't just be effecting themselves, they are living in Gods Holy Land which He gave to His people, this person would corrupt others and lead others to do such wickedness. God isn't going to bless you if you completely ignore His mitzvot(Commandments) and He was blessing His people by giving the land He promised them. So God said get rid of the wickedness from you before it corrupts you all, provided there is two or three witness's to attest to the fact that the person is indeed worshipping a false god. (Deuteronomy[D'varim] 17:6)

God was establishing a Holy people & nation, He chose a people who were lesser then others, He showed His grace to the Jewish people by saving them out of Egypt! they did nothing to deserve saving from slavery, and did nothing to deserve Him choosing them as His people.

Now all God asks from them( and us by the way) is to put Him first, and that we don't worship His creation or false gods. What a cruel God to ask for such a thing! what a cruel God to show grace and only ask we acknowledge Him as ONE!(that's called sarcasm kiddies incase you missed it)

Now if you would say this to a person who throws the "stoning verse" in your face, what will they say next?

 well, they will absolutely ignore all the "babble" about God being ONE and Holy and demanding we surrender to Him completely and they'll either go off into some other tangent or say something like;

"Ok…so then your "God" gives you permission today to go and stone people who don't believe like you."

Again they will ignore the fact that God was establishing His people in the Holy Land and thats who the verse was directed too. The fact is..NO that verse isn't for today, and no that doesn't mean God has changed in His Holiness or jealousy or that He still doesn't demand us to worship ONLY HIM nor does it mean that God doesn't still want us to be Holy. NONE of that has changed, the reason killing someone who ignores the truth has changed is because the promised Messiah/Prophet/Lord of Lords and King of Kings has come! Yeshua Ha Mashiach! (Jesus The Messiah/Jesus Christ) Moses talked about Him in 
Deuteronomy [D'varim]18:15

"ADONAI will raise up for you a prophet like me from among yourselves, from your own kinsmen. You are to pay attention to him,just as when you were assembled at Horev and requested ADONAI your God, 'Don't let me hear the voice of ADONAI my God any more, or let me see this great fire ever again; if I do, I will die!' On that occasion ADONAI said to me, 'They are right in what they are saying. I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their kinsmen. I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I order him. Whoever doesn't listen to my words, which he will speak in my name, will have to account for himself to me.

What Yeshua says is from Abba, and Yeshua paid the price we couldn't, the Prince of Peace our High priest who intercedes for us! Hallelu et ADONAI!(Praise the LORD)

Yeshua's yoke is easy, but His words and following Him isn't. 

Deuteronomy[D'varim] 19:21 says;

Life for life,eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot. 

As human beings wretched and wicked as we are that is probably the easiest thing for us to follow, HOWEVER Yeshua says;

"You have heard that our fathers were told, `Eye for eye and tooth for tooth.' But I tell you not to stand up against someone who does you wrong. On the contrary, if someone hits you on the right cheek, let him hit you on the left cheek too! If someone wants to sue you for your shirt, let him have your coat as well! And if a soldier forces you to carry his pack for one mile, carry it for two!  When someone asks you for something, give it to him; when someone wants to borrow something from you, lend it to him.- Matthew(Mattityahu) 5:38-42

You see, Yeshua doesn't destroy the law but fulfills it, He doesn't make it ok to worship other gods or to sin, He makes it so we can be forgiven of such wickedness, so those chains can be broken and we can be a new creation, and be Holy as God called us to be! All Glory to HIM! Holy Holy Holy is the one who was and is  and is to come!

R3TURN to Me

I always hear this or something like it said;

"God was a tyrant/unloving/unmerciful in the

Old Testament, and yet He was full of Grace/Love/Mercy in the New."

This, and statements like it, is nothing more then biblical ignorance. First and foremost God doesn't change..

"And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor relent. For He is not a man, that He should relent." 

[-1 Samuel 15:29-]

"For I am the LORD, I do not change"

[-Malachi 3:6-]

"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever."

[-Hebrews 13:8-]

God not being full of love and grace in the "old" is absolutely false. This statement that He has changed or was any different then He has always been can be proven false in so many different ways. For instances, do you think God was oblivious to the fact that the Israelites would backslide? Do you think He was surprised when they started worshipping idols and false gods?

Do you think He was like: "…hmmm…I did not think they would turn from me, I totally didn't see this coming."

If you think so, well you are wrong..check out Deuteronomy 31

And the LORD said to Moses: "Behold, you will rest with your fathers; and this people will rise and play the harlot with the gods of the foreigners of the land, where they go [to be] among them, and they will forsake Me and break My covenant which I have made with them.

"Then My anger shall be aroused against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide My face from them, and they shall be devoured. And many evils and troubles shall befall them, so that they will say in that day, 'Have not these evils come upon us because our God [is] not among us?'

"And I will surely hide My face in that day because of all the evil which they have done, in that they have turned to other gods.

"Now therefore, write down this song for yourselves, and teach it to the children of Israel; put it in their mouths, that this song may be a witness for Me against the children of Israel. "When I have brought them to the land flowing with milk and honey, of which I swore to their fathers, and they have eaten and filled themselves and grown fat, then they will turn to other gods and serve them; and they will provoke Me and break My covenant.

"Then it shall be, when many evils and troubles have come upon them, that this song will testify against them as a witness; for it will not be forgotten in the mouths of their descendants, for I know the inclination of their behavior today, even before I have brought them to the land of which I swore [to give them]."

Deuteronomy 31:16-21

"For I know the inclination of their behavior today, even before I have brought them to the land which I swore to give them." hmm..doesn't sound like God is oblivious to the fact that the Israelites would turn away from Him.

God knew before they even set foot in the land He promised them, that they would eventually turn away.

Yet God still fulfilled His promise to His chosen people, and knowing they would turn away still showed mercy and forgiveness. In Deuteronomy 30 The LORD says;

"Now it shall come to pass, when all these things come upon you, the blessing and the curse which I have set before you, and you call [them] to mind among all the nations where the LORD your God drives you,

"and you return to the LORD your God and obey His voice, according to all that I command you today, you and your children, with all your heart and with all your soul, that the LORD your God will bring you back from captivity, and have compassion on you, and gather you again from all the nations where the LORD your God has scattered you.

Deuteronomy 30:1-3

Return to ME, God was willing and is willing to forgive because He is loving and merciful. Look at Jeremiah chapter 3

"They say, 'If a man divorces his wife, And she goes from him And becomes another man's, May he return to her again?' Would not that land be greatly polluted? But you have played the harlot with many lovers; Yet return to Me," says the LORD.

Jeremiah 3:1

If a man divorces his wife and she becomes another man's, there is no returning back to the first man,

She is considered unclean. Israel had turned to so many different idols and gods, she had many "lovers"…like a whore….YET God being as loving and merciful as He is simply says "Return to Me"

The LORD said also to me in the days of Josiah the king: "Have you seen what backsliding Israel has done? She has gone up on every high mountain and under every green tree, and there played the harlot.

"And I said, after she had done all these [things], 'Return to Me.'

Jeremiah 3:6-7

Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say: 'Return, backsliding Israel,' says the LORD; 'I will not cause My anger to fall on you. For I [am] merciful,' says the LORD; 'I will not remain angry forever.

Only acknowledge your iniquity, That you have transgressed against the LORD your God, And have scattered your charms To alien deities under every green tree, And you have not obeyed My voice,' says the LORD.

"Return, O backsliding children," says the LORD; "for I am married to you. I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion.

Jeremiah 3:12-14

What a tyrant God is…so unmerciful He is, to forgive an adulterous nation who turned their backs to Him, but not their faces. God had and absolutely has mercy, he asks you to return to Him, even after all of Israel's backsliding, all their abominations and idolatry God wanted them back! and He still does! Even after all your backsliding all your abominations and idolatry and sinfulness God still wants you, Yeshua Hamashiach-Jesus Christ the son, God in the flesh coming and taking the wrath we deserve is the ultimate proof of that.

Thank God for the breath of life in your otherwise dead lungs, each day amongst this completely wicked world He holds back the return of the SON is a testament of His mercy. Each day we wake is a chance of repentance, every time a non-believer wakes God is showing His mercy! seeking repentance He simply says "Return to me!" 

"We have acted very corruptly against You, and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, nor the ordinances which You commanded Your servant Moses.

"Remember, I pray, the word that You commanded Your servant Moses, saying, '[If] you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations;

'but [if] you return to Me, and keep My commandments and do them, though some of you were cast out to the farthest part of the heavens, [yet] I will gather them from there, and bring them to the place which I have chosen as a dwelling for My name.'

Nehemiah 1:7-9

A Gentile asks Forgiveness

You know what I find interesting….Acts 28:28,

now you may be asking yourself why is that interesting?

or actually probably not, because I mean it does state that the salvation of God(keywords salvation of God)

has been sent to the gentiles and they will hear it!

Amen..right? Gentile of course meaning anyone not jewish. But this is not why I bring up the verse, you see Paul being the apostle of the gentiles(a jew himself) is speaking about salvation to the gentiles has come, and he is saying this to jewish leaders in Rome. I want you to go read Acts 28, the whole chapter, I want you to notice this, these jewish leaders listened to Paul, some agreed with what he was saying about Jesus, and others disagreed but they all departed after Paul said one thing.

Now they had a disagreement amongst themselves about this Jesus Paul was speaking of but they didn't all leave until Paul said "Salvation of God has been sent to the gentiles" that was pretty much the straw that broke the camels back. You see back in that time the jews didn't understand how or why God would want to give salvation to gentiles, to them, they were very unclean ungodly people..heck they were not even circumcised. This is even a dispute in Acts where certain gentile believers are troubled by certain jewish believers telling them they must be circumcised and keep the law:

Since we have heard that some who went out from us have troubled you with words, unsettling your souls, saying, "You must be circumcised and keep the law"*—to whom we gave no such commandment—

Acts 15:24

My point is this, certain jewish believers were disgusted with the thought of Gentiles being brought into God's good graces, they would force their laws and traditions on a converted gentile believer, or at least try to. It seems today however, things have flipped…I mean obviously back then the majority of real believers in Yeshua(Jesus) were Jewish, all the apostles were. But now in 2012…would you say that's true? of course not…the majority of believers in Christ are gentiles, and I'm not saying anything is wrong with that. But you see, like the certain jewish people who were trying to force gentiles into being jewish to earn salvation, now we as gentiles have forced ourselves on the jew's saying they must become like us for salvation. Don't get it twisted…YES

a jewish person(or gentile for that matter) must recognize Jesus Christ(Yeshua Hamashiach) as LORD and savior to be saved..

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.

Romans 1:16

HOWEVER, we don't then say they must become as gentiles too. Just like a believing jew doesn't tell a believing gentile he must adopt his customs. What we as gentiles have done through the years is curse the natural branches..

And if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them, and with them became a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree, do not boast against the branches. But if you do boast, remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you.

Romans 11:17-18

Us being the unnatural branches(gentiles) we have taken promises that God has given to His chosen people, we even dare say things like we are the real Israel or we are the real chosen, like God has taken His hand away from those He promised to bless and, His chosen, and He has cast them aside all for our glory.

We get puffed up against jewish believers and we ridicule them, some even going as far as despising and cursing them. Then we wonder why they refuse to hear about Yeshua(Jesus)? 

I wrote the following a month ago after reading

"Our Hands are stained with blood" by Michael Brown.

It has everything to do with this subject.

Abba forgive me, I apologize for what has been

done against your chosen people in your Holy

name. Those who claim to follow Yeshua(Jesus)

The Son, have risen up to destroy your first love…

As gentiles you grafted us into the tree, like a poison

we have decided to destroy the roots of the seed.

Gentiles stealing your promises for your chosen,

and making it all about them. As if Israel and your Jewish people you no longer love, in the name of Christ we've trampled them down, instead of asking for your love in them to abound.

From people like Luther who wanted to see Jews burn, to Christians today claiming to be your new chosen. So much injustice we have brought into the church.

In your Holy name we reject them, say that you yourself have rejected them, and not even Jesus can save them.

in effect we curse the natural branches, the ones to whom you have made promises! Lord forgive us of this treason, and let us instead proclaim Yeshua to them our roots of our faith, our brothers and sisters who were never taken from the covenant to never return again.

O LORD fulfill the promises you made them, bring them into Your glorious Kingdom recognizing Yeshua Hamashiach for who He is, and as gentiles and jews let us stand together as your sons and daughters.

Why I LOVE and support Israel

Does Israel matter today? A question on many minds here in America "Land of the confused Christian". With it being voting season, it's a topic that comes up all over the place, specially in this particular season when you got a person like a Ron Paul. Now I know there are a lot of Christians who don't like diving into political issues because they don't want to;

A. offend anyone

B. don't think it really matters where you stand

Well if you want to read such or listen to such or have your ears tickled then go to your local westernized American church, they're not hard to find. I on the other hand live to offend, Jesus is offensive and standing by God's word will offend and piss people off hence why I am offensive(I offend because I stand by His word). I'm not mr.political or anything, but I'll plainly state what is right and what is wrong and I do think it matters who you support. The following is something I wrote and I feel it explains why I love Jewish people and the land God gave to them(Israel). I also included a radio broadcast that I urge you to listen to by Dr.Michael Brown that has to do with the question "Does Israel matter?"  my reasons and his for standing behind Israel and God's chosen people are very much the same, he just explains it better then I could(although If you read my blog consistently you would have already seen my reasons, but i'll explain them here again)

The question "Does israel matter?" I find to be a stupid question. I can't help but to have an overwhelming appreciation for Jewish people, God's chosen people, when I read God's word. Am I insane? Am I missing something? or maybe just maybe we are suppose to have such feelings towards the Jewish people. Jesus(Yeshua) was Himself Jewish(just incase you missed that or were confused by the images portraying Jesus as very roman looking) 

"He did not come to abolish the law or the prophets, but to fulfill them."- by the way that's biblical, Yeshua said it Himself in Matthew 5:17-18. He also said He was sent for the lost sheep of Israel, and almost didn't heal a gentile woman's demon possessed daughter until he saw her faith- that's also biblical it's 

Matthew 15:21-28.

Yeshua doesn't contradict the "old" testament and prophets He fulfills them, He stands by God's word because He was there when it was formed.

Also biblical read John 8:58. 

While Yeshua was Jewish in the flesh, He is also God, not a god.... but GOD.

He and the Father are absolutely unequivocally ONE through the trinity, three distinct persons Father/Son(Yeshua)/ Holy Spirit as GOD.
 That my friends is biblical for several reasons…

1. Yeshua says it Himself: "I and [my] Father are one" (John 10:30)

If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.

Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us.

Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou [then], Shew us the Father?

Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.

(John 14:7-10)

and two because the bible over and over again says there is only ONE GOD

(Isaiah 43:10-11) "Before me there was no God formed nor shall there be after me" is just one example. Now you may be saying something like;

"Oh absolutely I totally agree Jesus is God in the flesh, but what does that have to do with Israel and Jewish people?"

It has everything to do with it, if God is one, Then Yeshua is obviously God and that means they would not contradict each other and when it says that the jewish people are God's chosen people then that means they are Jesus's chosen too. Or are you saying that when God said "I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you" Genesis 12:3 are you saying Christ Jesus doesn't agree with that statement? of course He agrees with it, Jesus was there at the beginning of time, and He only does the will of the Father.

Now, just to make a clarification… if a jewish person doesn't recognize Yeshua as LORD and Savior then just like a gentile they will be forever separated from God. So yes, they must surrender to Christ like everyone else. They however are the roots of the christian faith, God chose them to work through not because they are a superior race, He chose them because He chose them;

For thou [art] an holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that [are] upon the face of the earth. The LORD did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye [were] the fewest of all people:

But because the LORD loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your fathers, hath the LORD brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.

(Deuteronomy 7:6-8)

Lets also not forget that the disciples were jewish. Saul or better known as his greek name Paul had a burning desire for the jewish people to turn to Christ, they were his brethren and countrymen. He even wished he himself could be accursed for their sake(Romans 9:2-4) Paul also says God didn't cast away His people who He foreknew(Romans 11:1). That of course is a given to anyone who actually reads the bible, God made promises to Israel and God keeps His promises.

Paul was the one whom Christ appeared to, and Christ told him to preach the gospel to the gentiles. Paul in preaching to the gentiles wished to drive his brethren to jealousy(Romans 11:13). You see as Romans 11 continues to emphatically state….we as gentiles have been grafted into the tree, the tree that has it's roots set in God, the tree that God chose to sprout through Judaism. God has through the Son grafted us gentiles into this tree, and Paul warns us not to mock or boast against the natural branches (The Jews) this is simply stated in Romans 11:16-21.

I've run into plenty of people who completely ignore this and they hate Jewish people with a passion, I shouldn't have to state just how unbiblical that is. Because if you read the bible and then hate jewish people and you become hostile towards them and wish for their death you are a not only completely blind…you're also completely stupid.I personally don't care how much you claim to "know" Jesus, if you hate Jewish people  then you don't have a clue about Jesus.

I have a heart.. a love for my brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world, they need to recognize Yeshua Hamashiach and I pray for them and I support them not because I feel like it, but because GOD tells us to. I'll bless them because we are called to and I refuse to support or stand by those who don't support the lost sheep of Israel.(cough) Ron Paul (cough)

Listen to this awesome broadcast from Dr. Michael Brown on this very subject he explains way better then I can, it's about two hours but it is well worth your time. Reasons like this is why I stay on Facebook, I would like to thank a new friend who sent me this broadcast through a friend request(Rick Estrada) who probably wont read this but still, give credit to where it is do.

Dr. Michael Brown's Radio broadcast on Israel

The Genealogy of Jesus

I find it completely ridiculous when people don't respect

or even acknowledge their Christian roots, which by the way

are built upon the Jewish faith. I see so many Christians

who disregard scripture, who even disregard that Jesus

himself was Jewish, or how important it was/is that Jesus was

from the house of David.

Maybe it's because it confuses people, the whole tracing Jesus's

genealogy, simply because He was/is the son of God... so really

how important is his "earthly" parents genealogy? but you see

everything happens for a reason, and I realize people can

argue the genealogy account of Jesus in Matthew 1

with the genealogy account in Luke chapter 3

but the fact of the matter is Jesus was born through a virgin birth

just as it was said the Messiah would be in Isaiah

"Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign:

Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call

His name Immanuel."

Isaiah 7:14

also born in Bethlehem, as it was said He would be in Micah

"But you, Bethlehem Ephratha, though you are little among

the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth

to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel,

Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting."

Micah 5:2

It's also fact that the Messiah was said to come out of the house of David

"Behold, the days are coming says the LORD, that I will raise to David

a Branch of righteousness; A King shall reign and prosper, And

execute judgment and righteousness in the earth.

In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will dwell safely;

Now this is His name by which He will be called:

THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS"

Jeremiah 23:5-6

For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given;

And the government will be upon His shoulder.

And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end,

Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, To order it and

establish it with judgment and justice From that time forward, even

forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

Isaiah 9:6-7

Now Jewish people(the ones who don't recognize Jesus as messiah)

claim that Jesus can't be the Messiah because

if He was born of virgin birth(as He absolutely was) then how can He

be a descendant of David or "out of the house of David". They claim even if

Joseph was from David's line(which he was by the genealogy account in Matthew)

it wouldn't of mattered because Joseph was essentially not Jesus's real father.

But to me, I think they bring up a mute point, I mean first of all Isaiah says

the messiah would come from a virgin birth, do they just ignore that? so obviously coming from a virgin birth, Christ the messiah would be far different then anyone else. BUT yet he still would fulfill the other prophecies which claim Christ would come from out of the house of David(the Tribe of Judah)

I believe God chose Mary as the earthly mother for Jesus for a reason,

not because she was greatest among all women, but to fulfill Jewish prophecy

that...

1. The Woman would be a virgin(Mary was)

2. Her ancestry line(Mary's relative was Elizabeth)

Luke 1:5 "Zacharis wife(Elizabeth) was of the daughters of Aaron(levites)"

priestly ancestry line is important in itself, but Mary could have also

been a descendent of David. Luke 3:23-38 is disputed as not

being Joseph's ancestry line but actually Mary's

3.Her husbands line was traced back to David and his son Solomon

(Matthew 1)

And because Joseph was of the house of David and he was from that lineage

he had to travel back to Bethlehem because of the census with his pregnant

wife marry who thus then gave birth to Jesus in Bethlehem which was foretold in Micah.

An interesting thing to think about is Bethlehem means "House of Bread",

I say interesting because Jesus was and is "The Bread" which came down from heaven, and just like at the Last supper when Jesus blessed the bread, broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said "Eat this is my body", His body which was broken upon the cross for our sins.

Then Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly,

I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven,

but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven.

For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven

and gives life to the world.

Then they said to Him, "Lord, give us this bread always."

And Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life.

He who comes to Me shall never hunger,

and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.

John 6:32-35

Now the following that i'm about to post is from "Learnthebible.org" and it

is in support of Luke chapter three being about Mary's genealogy and not Joseph's which again is disputed. I just want to make a few points and be clear here..

I absolutely believe Jesus is what he said He was, and I believe He is the son of God who was born from a virgin birth and has every right to be on the throne of David. I believe Jesus could prove he was from the tribe of Judah and Jewish wether it was from His earthly fathers genealogy or Mary's. For me the argument on if Luke chapter three is really Mary's genealogy or Joseph's is pointless,

and Jewish people who refuse Christ as messiah will dispute anything

that doesn't line up with their thinking, just as the Jewish people in Christ's

time refused to believe He was(AND IS) the Messiah.

It's called FAITH my friends..true faith is faith like a child,

blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

I.E yield to Christ everything until you are nothing.

In a real sense, Jesus has three genealogical lines. Each of these lines has significance as to His person. We will look at each of them in turn.

HEAVENLY FATHER

Jesus was born of the virgin Mary by the Holy Ghost. Therefore, in the announcement of the angel to Mary about the birth (Luke 1:31-35), Jesus is called "the Son of the Highest" (v.32) and "the Son of God" (v.35). Even at age 12 when He spoke with the doctors in the temple, Jesus knew that God was His "Father" (Luke 2:49). In explanation of His special relationship to God as Father, Jesus testified, "I proceeded forth and came from God" (John 8:42). First and foremost, this is the genealogy of Jesus.

SUPPOSED EARTHLY FATHER

However, in addition to His heavenly Father, Jesus had one who served as his earthly father. Joseph was not the biological father of Jesus and the scriptures make this very clear. Concerning Jesus, Luke 3:23 states, "being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph." In two different verses (Luke 2:33, 43), the text of scripture refers to the earthly parents of Jesus as "Joseph and his mother." This clearly denies the physical parentage of Joseph.

However, others looked on Joseph as the father of Jesus. The multitudes consider Christ to be "Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know" (John 6:42). They looked on Him as "Joseph's son" (Luke 4:22). And, since Jesus was to sit on the throne of His father David, His genealogy through His supposed earthly father would be important. If He is to be king of all Israel, He must have a male genealogy back to David. This is the genealogy we find in Matthew, chapter one.

Mathew, of the four gospels, is the gospel that deals most with Jesus as the King of the Jews. It is in Matthew that the wise men of the east seek Him that is born King of the Jews (Matthew 2:1-2). The genealogy of Matthew begins by introducing Jesus Christ as "the son of David" (Matthew 1:1). In the eyes of the Jews, in order to be king He would have to be able to trace his royal line through his father. That is why the genealogy of Joseph is given in Matthew. But even here, great care is taken to show that Joseph was not the biological father of Jesus. The genealogy ends with, "And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ" (Matthew 1:16). Jacob begat Joseph--that is biological. But Joseph was simply the husband of Mary of whom was born Jesus. The remainder of Matthew, chapter one, tells of the virgin birth of Jesus.

So, the genealogy of Matthew is the genealogy of Joseph. It is given to establish the legal right of Jesus to the throne of David. However, if we want to understand the true human genealogy of Jesus, we must look at it through His mother Mary. That is the genealogy of Luke, chapter three.

EARTHLY MOTHER

The genealogy of Luke is radically different from the one in Matthew. Mathew goes from Mary's husband Joseph all the way back to David but Luke has different names between Joseph and David. Only before David do the two genealogies merge again and have the same names. However, although the genealogy of Matthew begins with Abraham, the genealogy of Luke goes all the way back to "Adam, which was the son of God" (Luke 3:38). This can be understand in light of the emphasis Luke makes concerning Jesus. Whereas in Matthew, Jesus is presented as the King of the Jews, in Luke He is presented as the Son of man. That is, the emphasis is on His humanity. So, although the King of the Jews need only trace his lineage back to Abraham to prove his Judaism, the Son of man needs to trace his lineage all the back to the first man- Adam.

The gospel that emphasizes the humanity of Christ is also the proper one to trace His biological genealogy through His mother Mary. Although a mother's genealogy did not usually matter greatly, Jesus had only one human parent and His biological genealogy had to be traced through that one parent. However, even here, Joseph stands in for Mary. The genealogy begins, "And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli" (Luke 3:23).

Obviously, the passage does not say that it is the genealogy of Mary. However, we can rest assured that it is that of Mary for several reasons. First, it is completely different from the one in Matthew. This suggests that each genealogy follows a different parent. Second, giving both genealogies (although unusual) is required because of the unusual circumstances. Third, the Matthew genealogy uses the word "begat" to define the line. This is a biological term and pretty much has to refer to biological descent. The key phrase in Luke is "the son of." Although this often refers to biological descent, it is often used of adopted children and other situations as well. In a sense, Joseph adopted Jesus as His earthly son. The best understanding of the two genealogies is that Matthew refers to the line of Joseph for legal reasons and Luke refers to the human line through Mary.

However, there is another extremely important reason for the two genealogies. One of the kings of Judah in Matthew's genealogy is a man named Jechonias (Matthew 1:11-12). He was king during the time of the Babylonian captivity. Jeremiah also lived during this time and made an important prophecy concerning Jechonias (also called Jehoiakim and Coniah). Consider these prophecies concerning Jechonias.

Jeremiah 22:28-30 Is this man Coniah a despised broken idol? is he a vessel wherein is no pleasure? wherefore are they cast out, he and his seed, and are cast into a land which they know not? O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD. Thus saith the LORD, Write ye this man childless, a man that shall not prosper in his days: for no man of his seed shall prosper, sitting upon the throne of David, and ruling any more in Judah.

Jeremiah 36:30 Therefore thus saith the LORD of Jehoiakim king of Judah; He shall have none to sit upon the throne of David: and his dead body shall be cast out in the day to the heat, and in the night to the frost. According to the prophecy of Jeremiah, Coniah (Jehoiakim) will have no man of his seed to sit upon the throne of David. The word seed would refer to all of his future descendants. This was true during his time because of the Babylonian captivity. It has been true historically since that time. However, of Jesus it is prophesied that He shall be given "the throne of his father David" (Luke 1:32). That is a problem because the genealogy in Matthew includes Jechonias, a king God prophesied would never have a man of his seed sit on the throne of David. What is the answer? It is found in the second genealogy.

As you recall, the genealogy of Matthew is that of Joseph. It is the legal line of David that includes the kings of Judah. However, it is not the biological line of Jesus. That is found in Luke. This is where the genealogy of Luke becomes so interesting. It is not traced through Solomon the son of David (as the Matthew genealogy). Rather, it is traced through another son of David, a man named Nathan (Luke 3:31). Nathan was a younger brother of Solomon, being born to David and Bathsheba. So, although the Luke genealogy is traced through David, it avoids the cursed line of Jechonias. Jesus was of the legal line of David through His mother's husband, Joseph. However, He was not of the seed of Coniah (Jechonias). He was not biologically of the cursed line.

What a declaration of God's providential wisdom. Only He could have worked all of this out. Praise the Lord for His goodness! He took care of every requirement and gave His Son to be born to this earth so that He could fulfill the promise of the Jewish Messiah and offer Himself as the Saviour of the world. Thanks be to God for His amazing grace- Taken from(http://www.learnthebible.org/the-genealogy-of-jesus.html)