Joshua 1:8 This Book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth; but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it: for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; be not afraid nor be dismayed: for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.
On Sunday night, many around the world began celebrating the festival of Chanukah -- or the Festival of Lights.
While Chanukah is not a Biblical feast mentioned in the Old Testament, it is an important one. Chanukah commemorates the story of small group of men with much courage -- enough courage to defeat even the greatest of the world’s empires.
The Greek-Syrian Emperor Antiochus Epiphanes defiled the Temple by erecting an idol within it and commanded all of Israel to worship it. If that wasn’t enough, he made it illegal to follow God's laws and anyone caught observing them would be put to death. Yeshua (Jesus) pointed out in Matthew 24 -- when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel -- flee! This warning by Yeshua foreshadowed a future event.
So what happened? A few men, the Maccabees, decided to fight an entire empire on their own! They had a miraculous victory, restoring and rededicating the Temple, and relighting the menorah -- a victory which we celebrate.
In these dark days approaching, we're going to be called to a deeper walk with the Lord, to stand up for His truth and be a light to the dying world around us! Let's get restored, rededicated and rekindled so that we can be strong for Him!
Copyright 1999-2024 Worthy Devotions. This devotional was originally published on Worthy Devotions and was reproduced with permission.
How to display the above article within the Worthy Suite WordPress Plugin.
[worthy_plugins_devotion_single_body]When Peter and John had gone up to the Temple for prayer [Acts 3], they saw a man who was lame from birth, and were moved to heal him in the name of Yeshua (Jesus). Immediately the religious leaders laid hands on them [Acts 4:3] and kept them imprisoned for a day. The following day, with boldness, they declared this miracle was done in the name of Yeshua. I love what the “religious” leaders said next — “they perceived that they were unlearned men and they marveled at their boldness!” Why were they bold? They had been with Yeshua, and the leaders took note of that!
When we think of a good citizen, we probably think of a law-abiding, productive contributor to society who takes pride in his country. I’m sure all of us would like to be thought of as good citizens of the countries in which we live. My wife has dual citizenship, she’s both Israeli and American — I guess that means she has to work extra hard at being loyal!
Right now, around the world, many are celebrating the holiday of Pesach (Passover) reminding us of the time that the Lord led His people out of slavery in Egypt.
The Temple Institute in the Old City of Jerusalem has been preparing temple articles, priestly garments and studying for years to prepare a priesthood for service in a proposed rebuilt temple on the Temple Mount. A recent news article reported that training had begun for the preparation of the Passover sacrifice. The day for the training was the 10th of Nisan, the day designated in the Old Testament for choosing the Passover lamb. Since the eyes of the Jewish people are still partially blinded to the true identity of their Messiah, most of them don’t know that the ultimate Passover Lamb was already sacrificed 2000 years ago.
There are many who are not aware of the very deep significance of Bethlehem,Yeshua’s (Jesus’) birthplace. Everyone knows that Bethlehem was a place where shepherds grazed their sheep, and where the Messiah was to be born, but do not realize that it was a town designated as the birthing place for lambs which were used for the Passover sacrifice. The Scriptures give significant details about this little town lying slightly south of Jerusalem.
It was a stormy night in Birmingham, England, and Hudson Taylor was to speak at a meeting at the Severn Street schoolroom. His hostess assured him that nobody would attend on such a stormy night, but Taylor insisted on going. “I must go even if there is no one but the doorkeeper.” Less than a dozen people …
In a documentary mini series called “Against All Odds” a remarkable story is told about an Israeli platoon who found themselves in the midst of a minefield along the Syrian border during the Yom Kippur War. When the platoon realized they were in a minefield they pulled out their bayonets and started to dig out mines and to disarm them…