Philippians 4:7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
One of the sacrifices mentioned in the Tenach (Old Testament) is mentioned as a Peace sacrifice or sometimes translated as the Thanksgiving sacrifice. It is known as the ‘shalem’ sacrifice. The root behind this word is the word ‘shalom’ whereby we get the word, peace.
This sacrifice foreshadows the perfect peace and restoration that a believer has with God through a perfect sacrifice of peace, the Lord Yeshua, who offered himself 2000 years ago. The root of “shalem” is the word “shalom”, which means peace, completeness, prosperity, safety, contentment, health, blessing, and rest.
Since we are complete in Him and have peace with God, we need not entertain spirits of discontent, desperation, unhappiness, self-ambition, regret, etc … but can rest in His ‘peace sacrifice’.
Over the past year, the world has plunged into chaos with multiple major wars erupting globally and the onset of economic uncertainty. Inflation has reached historic highs worldwide. Headlines are dominated by news of ongoing conflicts and threats of further unrest. Given these turbulent times, finding peace seems nearly impossible.
Nevertheless, the Lord who is called Sar Shalom, who dwells within us, is our PEACE… He is our Prince of Peace!
It’s truly a matter of focus. And though it may take some internal discipline these days, the reality of our identity, our completeness in Yeshua, is a totally valid and real foundation for resting in His peace, a peace in the midst of real threats, and serious turmoil that passes all understanding!
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[worthy_plugins_devotion_single_body]Civilization continues to erode as the world is being prepared for its greatest deception, the appearance of the false messiah — the Antichrist. The word literally means “one against Christ” and also, one “in place of Christ.” Yeshua (Jesus) predicted and warned his disciples and all believers of this dangerous development in the last days.
This is one of my favorite passages of scripture. What I’ve often noticed, however, is that we focus on receiving the desires of our heart. But if we look closely at this passage we have to realize that delighting ourselves in the Lord comes first, centering in Him, delighting in Him as the source and the fulfillment of our desires, and then, also, receiving from Him after your life is centered on Him.
Farmers and gardeners plant with great expectations. An abundant harvest is their vision as they sow the seeds for crops and vegetables, fruit, or grains. But everyone who plants, even the most amateur gardener, soon discovers there are competitors for the soil's nutrients...called WEEDS. Weeds are ambitious, resilient, and relentless, and they will affect the harvest if not removed. Every farmer and gardener needs a strategy to deal with weeds.
When Gideon was called by God, a mighty man of valor, his first task was to tear down the idolatrous altars of Baal and Asherah at his father’s house. Though he was ready to obey this command, his obedience was mixed with fear, so he destroyed the idols at night [Judges 6:27]. When the men of the city realized it was Gideon who destroyed their idols, their allegiance to Baal and Asherah drove them to demand Gideon’s life.
Biblical Hebrew uses a grammatical form called “s’michut”. This form joins two words together to form a single word form. We have this in English: for example, a door and a knob are two nouns, which are used to form the word “doorknob”, a compound noun. This form of joining nouns is found in Judges 6:12. The expression, “Angel of the Lord” is rendered, “angel-YHVH”; (Yud-Hay-Vav-Hay); in modern English — “angel-Yehovah”. Then, suddenly, the narrative changes from “angel-Yehovah” to simply, “Yehovah”. Here we see another appearance of YHVH in human form in the Old Testament. The God-Man, Yeshua in a “pre-incarnate” appearance.
Yeshua (Jesus) called himself the Good Shepherd. He described his followers as sheep. Why?
Wolves hunt in packs. Their aggression, power, and cunning, are no match for the sheep they hunt to devour. When wolves gather to form packs they are incredibly vicious and effective predators.
Truly we are living in remarkable times! Tomorrow is probably one of the most significant days of our lifetime, as Americans go to the polls and decide the future of the United States. Of course, voting is important, but let's be sure we know what we're voting for!