by Baruch
Parasha: Exodus 19:1-20:23
Maftir: Numbers 28:26-31
Haftarah: Ezekiel 1:1-28, 3:12
Many people are familiar with the term Pentecost and its relationship to the giving of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is eternal and is a member of the Trinity. Although some Messianic believers shy away from the term “Trinity” I do not! I remember sitting in the airport in Israel when a fellow Jewish man (actually a Rabbi) sat next to me and saw that I was reading the New Covenant. When he knew that I knew that he saw what I was reading, he shook his finger at me as though to say, shame on you. This man was not mean-spirited at all; rather he had a genuine concern for me, and believed what I was reading was spiritually harmful. I asked him what he knew about the New Covenant and he did not respond right away, so I asked him if knew that the New Covenant preceded the final editing of the Mishnah by over a hundred years? He answered he did not. I continued and asked him if knew that the New Covenant was between 300-400 years older than the Gemara (the main portion of the Talmud)? Once again he answered he did not. Finally I asked him if he knew that the writers of the New Covenant were Jewish (personally I think Luke was also Jewish and perhaps will write an article soon on the reasons for believing this)? Instead of answering my question he simply blurted out about how ridiculous it is to believe that a man could become G-d. I stated to him that I did not believe that a man could become G-d, but that G-d could become man and heal the sin the first man Adam brought about (See Romans 5).
I confessed to him that I did not understand all the aspects of the Trinity, but I did accept it because the word of G-d reveals this. Before waiting for his response I quickly asked if he believed the rabbinical teaching that the Ark of the Covenant לא תופס מקום did not take up any space even though its dimensions are recorded in the Torah. He answered that he accepted this teaching. Then I asked him if he could explain to me how this was possible? He saw my point, not everything which one believes can he necessarily explain. The difference is my faith is rooted in the Holy Scriptures and a great deal of his beliefs, are rooted in the writings of man. There is another important difference.
Many of his doctrines he accepts because he is required to do so in order to be in good standing in his community. I have a marvelous advantage over him, as a believer I am a recipient of the Holy Spirit. In speaking about the Holy Spirit, Yeshua calls Him the Spirit of Truth and promises that He will guide the believer in all truth (See John 16:13). This means that when I rely upon the Holy Spirit, He will show me which things are of G-d and which things are not from Him. All this is a promise from Yeshua to the believer; but it is not an automatic outcome. The text that teaches this also has a condition attached to it; the primary condition being that one must desire to bring glory to G-d, for the Holy Spirit to function in the manner. In the following verse one reads,
“That One (or He) will glorify Me, because out of Mine He will take, and He proclaims unto you.” John 16:14
This verse makes it most clear that the Holy Spirit will move in the believer’s life empowering and enlightening him so that this one may behave in a manner that brings honor and glory to Yeshua. When this is your desire, the Holy Spirit will become your teacher. Ultimately the outcome of this is without limitations. Yeshua continues teaching and says,
“All things that the Father has are Mine, on account of this I said, because out of Mine He will take, and He proclaims unto you.” John 16:15
What an incredible statement. This verse promises that the believer who is committed to HaShem’s will, and wants to see the world full of the holiness of G-d, can expect that by means of the Holy Spirit, all the heavenly resources (without limit) will become available to him. This fact should cause all the followers of Yeshua to rejoice on this Shavuot.
Chag S’meach