Msindisi Monthly # 114

SALVADOR & DIANNE’S MSINDISI MONTHLY

NUMBER:      114       Mar 2014

 

PO BOX 1481

VRYHEID 3100

KWAZULU NATAL

SOUTH AFRICA

 

+27 (0) 728311008

+27 (0) 815836288

 

Email:  msindisi@gmail.com ,

salv.di@gmail.com

 

KwaZulu Mission Website: http://www.kwazulumission.com

 

Due to the amount  of traveling we did over the month of Feb we have decided to put this newsletter in date form. We were truly blessed by the incredible people we got to meet with and have fellowship with. To all who we stayed with, we say a huge thank you for your hospitality. The trip was wonderful to catch up with old friends and to make new ones.  Thank you all!!!!!

 

28- 29 Jan

We left Vryheid and headed to Secunda where we stayed with our dear friends Joshua and Veronica. That night a friend of Veronica came and Sal shared a message from the word.

 

30-31 Jan

We travelled to Pretoria to help with the wedding arrangements. Our friends Riaan and Debbie whose daughter Bianca was to be married on the 31st. Sal was asked to take the service and Di to do her hair. It was a wonderful day. The message was interpreted into Afrikaans by Riaan Jr. We were also able to catch up with Mark and Paula Hibberd as they attended also. Bram and Bianca, we wish you much happiness in your married life and pray the Lord would use you both.

 

1- 3 rd Feb

We meet up in Pretoria with the fellowship, who meet in a home church. Murjuru and his wife Joanna also came over to attend. The meeting turned into a discussion from the word about marriages. Our own assembly and theirs are facing marriage issues so it was beneficial for all. After the meeting, we were able to visit our brother Abel, as we had not seen him for some time.

We spent 3 nights with our friends Allen and Sue Wells and the family. On the Sunday, we had a church meeting in their home which Riaan and the family attended. Lizzy and Ernest lead the singing while Sal bought the message.

 

4-5 Feb

We travelled to Kokstad to Jed and Jenna Van Neikerk. While with them, we visited Jed’s grandmother Polly and then made an impromptu visit to a children’s home that Jed’s aunty runs, called Crossroads. This home runs a fantastic ministry looking after orphans, abandoned children and foster care. For more information, please click on the following link: http://crossroadscarecenters.co.za/crossroads.html. That night Sal spoke at the Baptist church in Kokstad where he was told that the message was timely. It was confirming what many were pursuing in their walk with the Lord. He spoke on Haggai and building up the Lords house. Please keep Jed and Jenna in your prayers as they are expecting their first child soon.

 

6-10 Feb

Port Elizabeth was next on our travel plans. We try to visit each year so it was a blessing to get there early in the year. We arrived just before a meeting started which they have every Thursday. This is where they break bread together and share from the word. The fellowship is so big now that they have separated into two groups to be able to cater for more people. The next morning Di went with Brenda to a prayer meeting while Sal and Alan went over business. The following morn Sal attended a men’s prayer meeting. Sunday came where we all got together and Sal shared to two messages from the word. Afterwards it was family time, playing scorer and chilling over a delicious lunch. In the early evening we went to the Chinese church were Sal spoke again. This is the second time we have visited them. While at PE we got some time to go to the beach and spend time over a meal getting to know others from the fellowship. We made some wonderful friends and had many laughs along the way.

 

 

As we headed out to Sedgefield the next day we meet up for coffee with Mike Benade and a friend. Mike leads a Moriel assembly in PE.

 

11-13 Feb

The Coast road is breath taking and we stopped along the way with lots of  ” WOW” comments. At Knysna heads, we stopped in for coffee and met up with Malcolm Harris, a friend of Alan’s. From there it was to Sedgefield where we stayed with Peter and Antoinette Wood and the family. We shared a lovely evening walk with them and the dogs along the beach and rose early in the morn to do it again. It is a beautiful small place with lots of character. We also attended a bible study there on our last night and discussions went into the evening. It truly was a wonderful time.

 

13 – 17 Feb

Before heading into Cape Town we stopped in Swellendam to see the Dave and Lyn Royle and their family. We were amazed how the children had grown since we last saw them in Gauteng. Dave shared the plans they have for their Mount of Olive’s project. It was lovely to see them all again.

 

We arrived in the early evening to Paul and Ronel Grobler and the kids. On friday, Sal had put aside for some “us” time and to celebrate our anniversary of 6 years. We were unable to celebrate last year so he chose this time. So we visited vineyards, swam and dined out. It was such a special day with a clear Cape day and evening.

Saturday we went to visit Tom, a fellow student at Salvador’s bible college, from Durbanville. He had visited us just after the shooting at our home with his wife, Ayanda, and child. It was nice to see him in his neck of the woods. Sadly Ayanda’s father had passed away early in the year so she was away with family in Durban.

The weather was sooo hot while there.  At 8.40 pm it was still 29c so we were grateful for Paul and Ronel’s pool. We met Paul’s parents over dinner before heading to church the next day. Sunday was another pool day and a visit to the beach. It was such a special time for us and we were really blessed by staying with them. Many thanks again.

 

17-18 Feb

The huge drive to Bloemfontein!! We turned the corner and we were now heading back across South Africa. We shared the driving and enjoyed the scenery along the way. While in Bloemfontein we stayed with Chris and Linda De Wet. A meeting had been organized for the Tuesday night so we once again got to meet lots of lovely brothers and sisters in the Lord. Sal spoke that evening and the discussion turned to the following of Hebrew Roots Movement as there are many Gentiles in the area that are apparently being deceived into thinking that they need to start acting like Jews.

 

19-20 Feb

Back to springs and stayed with Alan, Sue and the kids once again. We were able to meet up with Lorraine who worked at Ebyown and Bernard and Mabel from Endicott. We also took a trip to visit John and Julie Leo in Kempton Park to pick up books and ended up staying most of the evening. Julie distributes the Berean Call and the Discernment Ministries Newsletters around South Africa and sells many good books and DVDs. On the 21st we drove back to Vryheid.

 

22-23 Feb

Kids club and cell group that evening. It was great to catch up with everyone again. Kim put on an amazing meal.  What a welcome back! Sunday was with the Zulu assembly.

24 Feb

Took Gogo to visit Asimbonge and Ncedo in Newcastle. While there, Di applied for her visa to be transferred into her new passport.

 

25 Feb

Di was in town helping our friend Belinda with funeral preparation as sadly she lost her mum. Salvador went to discipling with Phumlani.

 

26 Feb

Teaching at Care bear Creche in morn, prayer meeting and bible study with Bethany Baptist Church that night.

 

27 Feb

Phumlani and Salvador went out preaching with Thembi, another woman from church.

 

28 Feb

Salvador visited some brethren. He also went preaching with Thembi in Cibilili at a home of some people who follow Shembe. They did not want us to share with them initially but after a small chat they invited us in to share the gospel. At Louwsburg he went to visit a lady that he led to the Lord last year and found out that her husband had gotten saved. We praise the Lord for that. We had cell group by us. This year we have decided to combine the two study groups into one. Friday night was chosen, so we continue to go from house to house, share a meal, sing, pray and listen to teaching. We looked at the Jewish feast of Tu B’Shvat.

1 Mar

Attended Belinda’s Mother’s funeral where Salvador sang and played the guitar.

We would just like to wish congratulations to Jacob Meads and Raewyn Bellringer on the news of their engagement. Jacob stayed with us for a few months a couple of years ago. We are thrilled with the news. May God bless you both.

 

God bless and thank you for your prayers on our travels.

 

Please continue to pray for:

 

Gogo health, she has lost weight and not feeling so good

Thabi, that she would search her heart and do what is required

Belinda family

Marriages

Give thanks for the safe travel and the blessings of our time away.

 

 

 

CHAPTER 5

The Shared Dominion

Genesis 1:26-28

26Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

 

After the fall there came a power struggle within marriages. God said that the woman’s desire would be for the man but he would master her. Before the fall there was no power struggle. Adam was the head and Eve supported him as the helper. But in the aforementioned verses the dominion was not given to the man alone but to both of them. Both of them were to rule together. Because Adam and Eve were in a marriage situation Adam was the head but they were to rule together. In this chapter we will be examining the shared dominion between the man and the woman and what the ultimate purpose of this dominion is pointing to. In the context of Genesis the dominion was over the whole earth and things created on it. Through multiplying, and having children, eventually the dominion was to extend over the whole earth. The dominion was related to fruitfulness.

 

THE CALL TO DOMINION

Adam and Eve were given a call to dominion. They were given this call together. The man was commissioned with the work of tending the garden but the dominion was given to both of them. Adam and Eve had this dominion but then sin came into the world and everything was affected adversely and was subjected to futility. Humanity becomes increasingly more wicked till at the time of Noah God felt sorry that He had made man. God destroyed humanity but saved Noah and his immediate family. After the flood we find a kind of repeat of this call to dominion though it is not quite the same.

 

Genesis 9:1-3

1And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth. 2The fear of you and the terror of you will be on every beast of the earth and on every bird of the sky; with everything that creeps on the ground, and all the fish of the sea, into your hand they are given. 3Every moving thing that is alive shall be food for you; I give all to you, as I gave the green plant.

 

In the beginning the earth was in Chaos and covered with water. Then God brought order out of chaos by His word. When the wickedness of men grew great, as they rejected God’s word, therefore God had to judge the world by flooding it. So the earth went back to a state of chaos. God saved Noah and immediate family and started anew with him. Thus the post flood situation is a type of the new heavens and earth and Noah is a type of the new Adam. God does not explicitly state that He was giving Noah dominion, but He does say that He was giving everything into Noah’s hands. God made His covenant with Noah and all creation but Noah is the focus of creation, as a type of second Adam. Thus, this is a somewhat a repeat of the original call to dominion. However this call is not quite the same as the original call because the earth is in a fallen state. But after this call, Noah drinks too much and Ham spies on his father’s nakedness and disgraces his father. Thus just as a curse comes quickly after the first call to dominion so a curse comes quickly on the scene after the call given to Noah. Humanity degenerates quickly and unites in rebellion at the time of Babel. Therefore God brings judgement and divides the people in different language groups. After more time elapses paganism has filled the earth but God picks a man called Abram. The promise of dominion is then given to Abraham.

 

Genesis 17:4-8

4″As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, And you will be the father of a multitude of nations.

5″No longer shall your name be called Abram, But your name shall be Abraham; For I have made you the father of a multitude of nations. 6I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of you, and kings will come forth from you. 7I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your descendants after you. 8I will give to you and to your descendants after you, the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.”

 

Abraham is promised several things. Firstly Abraham is given the covenant. Secondly Abraham will become the father of a multitude of nations. This is the universal aspect or dimension of the Abrahamic Covenant. It is universal which means it covers all of humanity. There are two aspects to God’s promises to Israel. There is the universal aspect and there is the particular aspect. The particular aspect is specifically related to the nation of Israel. It is ethnocentric. Both the universal and particular dimensions of the Abrahamic Covenant are both important. Some people will emphasise the particular dimension and downplay the universal. These tend to be your Hebrew Roots crowd that focus so much on Israel that they seem to show no regard for gentile identity whatsoever. Some people emphasise the universal dimension and reject the particular dimension so that they would claim that God has no place for Israel as a nation in His purposes. The Church is now Israel and therefore God does not hold any special place or promises for Israel as a nation any more. However, these two dimensions belong together. The promises are universal, Abraham is the father of a multitude of nations.

Thirdly God promises to make Abraham fruitful and kings will come from him. With this promise lies the concept of dominion. The dominion is going to be given to Abraham and will be accomplished through Abraham. But then, fourthly, God promises to give Abraham a land, that is the land of Canaan. The land of Canaan is the particular meaning of this promise. The land of Canaan is specific to Israel. When you get these extreme right wing Afrikaaners in South Africa who claim to be the true Israel, the thing to tell them is that there is no reason as to why they should be upset that South Africa has been taken away from them as God gave the land of Canaan to Israel and not South Africa. In the Old Testament we have a lot of emphasis on the particular dimension of the Abrahamic Covenant. Though it has something to do with the universal dimension, something to do with the nations, even so it is focussed on the nation of Israel. In the New Testament we find that the apostles bring out the universal significance of the particular promises. The two dimensions belong together.

 

Romans 4:13-17

13For the promise to Abraham or to his descendants that he would be heir of the world was not through the Law, but through the righteousness of faith. 14For if those who are of the Law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise is nullified; 15for the Law brings about wrath, but where there is no law, there also is no violation. 16For this reason it is by faith, in order that it may be in accordance with grace, so that the promise will be guaranteed to all the descendants, not only to those who are of the Law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all, 17(as it is written, “A father of many nations have I made you”) in the presence of Him whom he believed,even God, who gives life to the dead and calls into being that which does not exist.

 

This is the universal aspect and Paul shows us that God’s promises to Abraham are not only for the Jews but also for believing Gentiles. And Paul bases this on his treatment of scripture in Romans 4:17. Abraham would become the father of multitudes of nations. Paul sees the Gentiles in the body of Messiah as the present day fulfilment of that promise. When we recognise that the universal and particular dimensions belong together, then we come to recognise that the land of Israel is a picture of the whole earth.

 

Deuteronomy 5:16

16’Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God has commanded you, that your days may be prolonged and that it may go well with you on the land which the Lord your God gives you.

Moses speaks to Israel and this verse speaks about the land of Canaan.

 

Ephesians 6:2-3

2Honor your father and mother (which is the first commandment with a promise), 3so that it may be well withyou, and that you may live long on the earth.

 

Paul takes the scripture from Deuteronomy and applies it to the earth because obviously the land of Canaan does not apply to Christians in a physical and geographical sense. Thus Paul widens the meaning to include the whole earth. Paul can do this because the word for ‘land’ in Hebrew is ‘Aretz’ which also means ‘earth’. In the beginning, God made the Heavens and the Earth. The land of Israel is therefore a picture of the whole earth. When you look at those promises to Israel with the spectacles of Messiah you can then see what they mean for all of us. God upholds both universal and particular dimensions. Therefore, through both believing Israel, and through believing Gentiles, Abraham is going to inherit the whole earth. This is the dominion that God promised to Adam, to Noah and ultimately to Jesus. It has a specific relevance and meaning for Israel as a nation but it also has a general meaning for everybody too. This dominion finds its ultimate fulfilment, not only in Messiah, but also in what scripture terms ‘The Adoption as Sons’.

 

THE ADOPTION AS SONS

When most people hear the word adoption, what comes to mind is family, orphans being given a home, little abandoned African babies etc. It carries the significance of family because God has become our father through adoption but it means more than this. In the Old Testament world, when two nations went into war and one nation wins, the king of the victorious nation then rules over the defeated nation. The king of the victorious nation cannot rule all his territory by himself. Thus he may take the king of the defeated nation and adopt him as a son. This is what is called, ‘A Royal Grant’. The superior king makes a covenant with the lesser king, and refers to the lesser king as his son. This means that the inferior king rules under the superior king. Thus the phrase ‘Adoption as Sons’ signifies dominion, ruling and reigning and not only the concept of family. Our Father is not only the head of the family but is also the King of kings. Therefore we are heirs of His dominion to a certain extent. This dominion was initially promised to Abraham in Genesis 15:5.

 

Genesis 15:5

5And He took him outside and said, “Now look toward the heavens, and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” And He said to him, “So shall your descendants be.” 

 

God tells Abram that his offspring (literally seed) are going to be like the stars. The literal meaning behind that promise is that Abram’s descendants would become too numerous to count. But like many passages throughout scripture there is also a deeper meaning. If God simply wanted to say, “You descendants will be too numerous to count” God could have said to Abram what He said to Hagar in Genesis 16:10.

 

Genesis 16:10.

10Moreover, the angel of the Lord said to her, “I will greatly multiply your descendants so that they will be too many to count.”

 

When it came to the descendants of Ishmael it says plainly that her descendants will be numerous. God could have likewise said that to Abram. But instead, God picks stars and says that Abram’s descendants will be like the stars. The reason for this is that God is also trying to communicate something else about the destiny of the descendants. Consider what scripture means when it employs the symbolism of stars.

 

Job 38:7

7When the morning stars sang together

And all the sons of God shouted for joy?

 

Hebrew poetry does not rhyme with sounds because if it did it would be very boring. A lot of words have the same endings. For example, most masculine plural nouns end in ‘im’; Elohim, Katuvim, Chaim, Maim etc. So instead Hebrew poetry rhymes by ideas. This rhyming by ideas is called ‘Parallelism’. There are different types of parallelism. For example, there is antithetical parallelism, where ideas are contrasted and there is synthetic parallelism where the same idea is repeated but expressed with different words. This verse in Job 38:7 is an example of synthetic parallelism, the two ideas are the same. The ‘stars’ speak of the same thing as the ‘sons’. ‘Singing’ also communicates the same sentiment as the words ‘Shouted for joy’. They are two different ways of saying the same thing. Therefore what do the stars and the sons of God speak of in this verse? Who was shouting for joy in the creation when God laid the foundation of the earth? They were angels. You even see that in Job 1:6. Satan comes among the sons of God to present himself to God. The sons of God are angels. Therefore the stars also speak of angels.

 

Daniel 12:1-3

1″Now at that time Michael, the great prince who stands guardover the sons of your people, will arise. And there will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time; and at that time your people, everyone who is found written in the book, will be rescued. 2Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt. 3Those who have insight will shine brightly like the brightness of the expanse of heaven, and those who lead the many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.

 

So in Daniel we see a time of tribulation. After the time of tribulation there will be a time of resurrection. Those who lead the many (Israel) to righteousness will be resurrected and made like the stars forever. In this context, the stars are resurrected saints. Therefore the concept of resurrection is linked to the symbolism of the stars.

Up till now we can see some terms that are linked together: Stars, Sons of God, Angels and Resurrection. Jesus uses the three terms linked with the symbolism of stars in Luke 20:34-36.

 

Luke 20:34-36.

34Jesus said to them, “The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage, 35but those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry nor are given in marriage; 36for they cannot even die anymore, because they are like angels, and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.

When we are resurrected from the dead we are made like angels. We will have bodies like the bodies of angels. We will not be able to die. We will also be sons of God and this will be at the time when we are resurrected from the dead. We are sons of God, even now, but we have not yet received the adoption as sons. We have the sonship now by faith through the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of adoption by which we cry out, “Abba, Father”. But we are still awaiting the adoption as Sons. God is the King of kings but Yeshua is the main adopted son. Yeshua was always the Son of God. But the adoption in this context means being elevated to position of ruler under the supreme ruler. Yeshua received that at His resurrection. We will also receive this at our resurrected to rule with Yeshua.

 

Romans 8:15

15For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!”

 

Even now the Spirit of adoption lives within us and therefore we can call God “Abba, Father” before we have experientially received the adoption. It is a reality through the Spirit that we have received by faith. And faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. We know it is true. It is a reality now, but it is a reality now by faith. We have it in part now and we will have it fully then. God is our father now. We have been born again by His Spirit.

 

Romans 8:23

23And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body.

 

So we are still awaiting eagerly for our adoption as sons. And this is why, although we are King’s kids now, we will only really experiencing the ruling at the resurrection. The adoption was demonstrated by Messiah Himself. This adoption is seen in Psalm 2:7.

 

Psalm 2:7.

7″I will surely tell of the decree of the Lord:

He said to Me, ‘You are My Son,

Today I have begotten You.

 

Here God is ultimately speaking about Messiah. God tells the world rulers that He has chosen His king. He has installed Him, chosen Him and begotten Him. This is concerning the day that the king is inaugurated as king. It speaks of his coronation. This is when the king becomes the king, it is his adoption as the son. We will also experience such coronation at the revealing of the sons of God. This adoption is what the dominion originally promised to Adam is leading up to. We are all going to share in the dominion that God originally gave to Adam but Adam messed up. We will experience this dominion through the ‘adoption as sons’, with believing Israel, and see the realisation of God’s promises to Abraham, who was to become the father of many nations.

 

The Future Rule of the Sons of God

Adam was given dominion over the created earth, the plants, the animals etc. What we will inherit with Messiah is bigger than the physical, created earth.

 

Daniel 10:13, 20-21

13But the prince of the kingdom of Persia was withstanding me for twenty-one days; then behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left there with the kings of Persia.

20Then he said, “Do you understand why I came to you? But I shall now return to fight against the prince of Persia; so I am going forth, and behold, the prince of Greece is about to come. 21However, I will tell you what is inscribed in the writing of truth. Yet there is no one who stands firmly with me against these forces except Michael your prince.

 

Michael is the archangel and he is prince over Daniel’s people, Israel. But behind the kingdom of Greece is what is known as, the prince of Greece. And behind the kingdom of Persia is what is known as, the prince of Persia. Behind every human government, and every political power in this world, there are spiritual forces in the heavenly places. Satan is the god of this world, the prince of the power of the air. So behind the physical rulers there are spiritual rulers, and there is a battle going on. Michael was fighting against the prince of Persia, and then he fought against the prince of Greece and that was followed by the prince of Rome. Finally, Satan himself will be the prince of Antichrist’s kingdom. Antichrist will be possessed by Satan himself. When Yeshua returns, these princes will all be done away with. These kingdom of this world will become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Messiah and He will reign forever and ever. So when Yeshua returns there will be no more prince of Persia, there will be no more prince of Greece. The spiritual sphere of ruling will be vacant of all those demonic forces.

 

1 Corinthians 6:2-3

2Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? If the world is judged by you, are you not competent to constitute the smallest law courts? 3Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more matters of this life?

 

The saints are going to judge the world which must concern the order that exists on this earth. The saints will also judge the angels. So when the demonic principalities are taken out of the picture we will be there. We will be part of the judging process. In the context of 1 Corinthians such judgement concerns judicial matters and making decisions between two parties. To understand the biblical concept of judging you have to read the book of judges. Judgement means that God’s rule has been instituted. The judges in the book of Judges delivered God’s people and then sort to arbitrate the issues that arose among the sons of Israel. They wielded God’s authority over the sons of Israel. When Satanic power is at its highest on this earth and Antichrist summons an army of all nations to come against Israel at Armageddon, then we will return with Yeshua to deliver the sons of Israel, judge the enemies and institute God’s rule on this earth. So these demonic princes go out and we come in with Yeshua. We will have bodies like the bodies of angels. We will be sons of God, adopted as sons.

 

Galatians 3:26-29

26For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 27For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise.

 

The first dominion given to Adam was shared between him and Eve. They were to rule together. However Adam was the head in the rule. There was male primacy because Adam was created first in God’s image and Eve was taken from the man. But in the resurrection it is not going to be like that. And the reason for that is that there is no longer going to be any marriage. And that is why Paul states that in Messiah, there is no Jew nor Greek, no male nor female. It is in the context of being heirs of Abraham. The inheritance equally applies to believing men and believing women. We are co-heirs together. When a woman will be resurrected from the dead she will no longer have a husband as head over her. Messiah alone will be her head just as much as Messiah is the head of every man. It will be different. In creation there was male headship because there was, in existence, the reality of a marriage relationship. Every person is born as the product of a male and female union. But in the resurrection it will no longer be like that. And with this in view we can understand why Deborah is listed among the judges.

 

Judges 4:4-5

4Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel at that time. 5She used to sit under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim; and the sons of Israel came up to her for judgment.

 

Deborah is the only woman in the whole of scripture, the only prophetess out of 8 named prophetesses in scripture, she is the only woman who exerted spiritual authority over men amongst God’s people. She does not deliver men in warfare, that was Barak’s job. Deborah’s judging was joint with Barak. Notice that scripture states that Deborah was the wife of Lappidoth. The fact that she is a wife under her husband is very important and significant concerning her judging. This shows that she accepts Lappidoth’s headship and she works alongside Barak who is responsible for delivering God’s people. Deborah accepted the position that God placed her in. But Deborah was the only woman who wielded spiritual authority over men among God’s people. Paul wrote to Timothy that he did not allow a woman to teach or have authority over men. A woman should rather learn quietly and in submission. But Deborah was different. Why does God make an exception of Deborah? Firstly we need to note that Paul wrote concerning the context of Church meetings and Church governance. Secondly, during the time of the judges there were few godly men. But thirdly note what is written in Judges 4:5. Deborah used to sit under the palm tree of Deborah. This palm would have been a date palm. The Hebrew word is Tamar and has to do with the tree being erect. The dates were dried and used in cakes. They were also boiled down to a syrup which they called ‘Davash’, (Honey). Israelites would make different articles from the leaves and the wood. They would weave the fibres to make sandals. All kinds of things. These palms were very important because their roots would run very deep which meant that they could survive in harsh conditions. If you were going through a desert and saw palms, they would be a very welcome sight. Palms symbolised fruitfulness, joy and victory.

Palm branches play a major role in the feast of Tabernacles. The feast of Tabernacles has to do with Yeshua’s return and rule on this earth. There were 2 main concepts in the feast of Tabernacles. There is the concept of God’s provision and the concept of His presence. Israel remembered how God led them through the wilderness. For forty years Israel lived in the wilderness in tents, or tabernacles. Israel were heading to the promised land and had to rely on God to give them water and food. When Israel entered the land Tabernacles took on a greater significance. Israel had to rely on God for the harvest. They needed rain for the harvest but this all revolved around God’s presence being amongst His people. Ultimately this symbolises the return and reign of Yeshua on the earth. Yeshua will reign the nations with a rod of iron and will bring about peace, prosperity and wholeness. This is because Yeshua’s presence will be on this earth in all its unveiled glory.

 

Leviticus 23:40

40Now on the first day you shall take for yourselves the foliage of beautiful trees, palm branches and boughs of leafy trees and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days.

There was to be a rest on the first and the eighth days. Israel were to feast before the Lord for seven days. Literally the foliage means the fruit of beautiful trees. The Jews decided that the fruit was a citron, which is a citrus fruit resembling the lemon but with a dry instead of a juicy pulp. Palm branches, boughs of leafy trees and willows were to be taken together and Israel was to rejoice before the Lord for seven days. The Jews took this very literally. They would take the citron, a palm branch, a myrtle branch (leafy tree), and a willow branch, and bind the branches together. They would hold together the bound branches with the citron and literally rejoice with them by waving them up and down. In the feast of Tabernacles during Yeshua’s day they would have two ceremonies. There would firstly be the water drawing ceremony. In this ceremony the high priest would go down to the pool of Siloam and he would draw water. Then the high priest would walk back, and as he walked back, silver trumpets would be blown three times. Meanwhile, the people would be waving these palms and citrons, called ‘lulavim’ and ‘ethrog’. The high priest would circle the altar once every day for six days. The high priest would then pour the water into a silver basin on the altar and everybody would cheer. At the same time somebody would pour wine into another basin. The people would recite what was known as ‘the great Hallel’. The great Hallel is also recited at Passover, but without the waving of palm branches, and it is taken from Psalm 118:25-26.

Ana, Adonai hoshiana. Ana Adonai hatzlichah na. Baruch haba bashem Adonai. Berach nuchem mibeit Adonai.

O Lord, do save, we beseech You; O Lord, we beseech You, do send prosperity! Blessed in the one who comes in the name of the Lord; we have blessed You from the house of the Lord.

 

When the water was drawn they would also recite Isaiah 12:3.

3Therefore you will joyously draw water from the springs of salvation.

 

The word for spring here is the word ‘Ayin’ and means a source. So often when you have place names in the Old Testament starting with the word ‘Ein’ or ‘En’ it is to do with a source, spring or fountain, for example ‘En Gedi’. But in Isaiah we are speaking about the springs of salvation.

But on the seventh day, when the high priest fetched water from the pool of Siloam, everybody would rip willow branches. As the high priest walked back with the water to the temple thousands of Jews would make a whooshing sound by waving willow branches. The Jews would should, “Hoshiana, Hallelujah, Baruch Ha’ba bashem Adonai.” On the seventh day the high priest would then go round the altar seven times. And the silver trumpets would be blown seven times three times before the high priest would pour the water.

On the second evening of the feast there would be a ceremony of light. Many lamps would be lit and the Jews would dance with torches in their hands. The Jews would dance, and dance and dance. It is said that one Rabbi juggled eight lighted torches. And they would dance, they would shout and they would rejoice to such an extent that the Talmud claimed that if you had never seen the feast of tabernacles, you have never seen rejoicing. These guys partied unto the Lord. They celebrated God’s provision and presence. The light symbolised His presence and glory and the water symbolised His provision in sending rain. On the seventh day, the high priest did not go round the altar once but seven times!

In Zechariah 14:16-21 we read that in the future kingdom, when God restores Israel, all nations will be required to go to Jerusalem for the feast of Tabernacles. This is the only feast that Gentiles are required to attend. Throughout the whole feast of Tabernacles Israel would sacrifice seventy bulls. Seventy is a number that represents Gentiles. This symbolism is derived from Deuteronomy 32:8.

8″When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, When He separated the sons of man, He set the boundaries of the peoples According to the number of the sons of Israel.

 

When did God separate the sons of men? At Babel. In Exodus 1:5 we read that all the persons who came from the loins of Jacob were seventy in number. The number, seventy, is seen in Genesis 10. The division of the nations equals seventy. In verses 1-5 there are 14 nations of Japheth. If you take Nimrod as a father of a nation and include the Canaanite tribes separately you have 30 nations from Ham in verses 6-20. And there are twenty-six nations from Shem in verses 21-32. Altogether there are seventy nations from Noah’s three sons. There is a connection of the feast of Tabernacles with the Gentiles. There is a connection with the feast to palms also.

 

Exodus 15:27

27Then they came to Elim where there were twelve springs of water and seventy date palms, and they camped there beside the waters.

 

Israel travel through the desert. Tabernacles has to do with Israel’s time in the wilderness. There are twelve springs of water and seventy date palms. The word for spring in this passage is ‘Ayin’, just as was there in Isaiah 12:3 representing the springs of salvation. There are twelve springs because salvation will come from the Jews, and there are twelve tribes of Israel. But they are watering seventy palm trees. Therefore, through Abraham’s seed all nations will be blessed. This is what the feast of Tabernacles is about.

 

1 Kings 6:29

29Then he carved all the walls of the house round about with carved engravings of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers, inner and outer sanctuaries.

 

Solomon’s temple was covered with palm trees and in chapter seven they opened Solomon’s temple with the feast of Tabernacles.

 

Ezekiel 41:16-18

16The thresholds, the latticed windows and the galleries round about their three stories, opposite the threshold, were paneled with wood all around, and from the ground to the windows (but the windows were covered),17over the entrance, and to the inner house, and on the outside, and on all the wall all around inside and outside, by measurement. 18It was carved with cherubim and palm trees; and a palm tree was between cherub and cherub, and every cherub had two faces,

 

There are altogether eight chapters in Ezekiel (40-48) dedicated to describing a temple that no one has ever seen built. Ezekiel’s temple is an enormous structure. All along the panel work of this temple are carved Cherubim and in between each angel is a palm tree. The temple is the place of God’s presence and Ezekiel’s temple is specifically the temple of Messiah’s reign on the earth. In Revelation 11:15-19, at the seventh trumpet, it states that the kingdom of this world will have become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Messiah. There will be victory over the kingdoms of this world. When Israel entered the promised land, the first city they came to was Jericho. God told the people to march round once the city for six days. But on the seventh day they were to march round the city seven times, reminiscent of the water drawing ceremony at the feast of Tabernacles. When they marched round the city seven times they blow trumpets and the walls fell down. They kingdom of Canaan became the kingdom of God. And people wave palm branches in Revelation 7:9 as a symbol of victory, freedom and joy in heaven.

 

Satan’s Hatred of the Sons of God

But the inheritance goes beyond dominion in the kingdom. Our inheritance does not only concern our ruling and reigning with Messiah in the place of the demons. We will also be above the angels. We cannot even imagine what this is going to be like.

 

Isaiah 14:12-14

12″How you have fallen from heaven, O star of the morning, son of the dawn! You have been cut down to the earth, You who have weakened the nations! 13″But you said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God, And I will sit on the mount of assembly In the recesses of the north. 14’I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’

 

God is speaking against Babylon. But behind Babylon are demons and the main spirit here is Satan himself. The star of the morning is the planet Venus. Yeshua is the true morning star but Satan wants to be worshipped as God. This is why this scripture gives Satan the name of the morning star. The goddess of the Babylonian empire is Ishtar and she is where we get the names, Easter, Ashtaroth and Astarte. She was the goddess of love and of war. She was known as the morning star, the planet Venus. The Roman version of this goddess was called Venus among other goddess versions of her. The Hebrew word for morning star is ‘Heylel’ and in the King James it reads, ‘Lucifer’ but Lucifer simply means, ‘Light bringer’. Satan said that he would ascend to heaven and raise his throne above the stars of God. That is Satan’s heart. He wants to be worshipped as God.

 

Ezekiel 28:2

2″Son of man, say to the leader of Tyre, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Because your heart is lifted up

And you have said, ‘I am a god, I sit in the seat of gods In the heart of the seas’; Yet you are a man and not God, Although you make your heart like the heart of God-

 

This is the human leader of Tyre, the human king, who regards himself as a god. But Ezekiel does not call him a king but rather a leader.

 

Ezekiel 28:11-17

11Again the word of the Lord came to me saying,12″Son of man, take up a lamentation over the king of Tyre and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “You had the seal of perfection, Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. 13″You were in Eden, the garden of God; Every precious stone was your covering: The ruby, the topaz and the diamond; The beryl, the onyx and the jasper; The lapis lazuli, the turquoise and the emerald; And the gold, the workmanship of your settings and sockets,

Was in you. On the day that you were created They were prepared. 14″You were the anointed cherub who covers, And I placed you there. You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked in the midst of the stones of fire. 15″You were blameless in your ways From the day you were created

Until unrighteousness was found in you. 16″By the abundance of your trade You were internally filled with violence, And you sinned; Therefore I have cast you as profane From the mountain of God. And I have destroyed you, O covering cherub, From the midst of the stones of fire. 17″Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; You corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor.

I cast you to the ground; I put you before kings, That they may see you.

 

Now God tells Ezekiel to speak to the king of Tyre. This king of Tyre is not a human king. The phrase, ‘You had the seal of perfection’ means ‘You completed the pattern/plan’. God created this world according to a pattern. And different things filled up the pattern in different ways. Animals filled it up so much. Man filled it up even more. Satan filled it up completely. He embodied the whole thing. He was full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.

Satan was the anointed angel, the cherub that covers. He was anointed and high above the other angels. Satan was as near as you could get to being God without being God. He was close and had mostly everything but he did not have everything. He was so powerful he could even chose to go against his own perfect nature. Adam and Eve had to be tempted from the outside. They could not be tempted by anything within themselves for they were perfect but they were not that powerful. Satan had to tempt them. Yeshua could not be tempted by anything within Himself. Satan had to tempt Him personally. Satan did not need anyone to tempt him, he was so powerful that he could chose contrary to his own nature. He chose to rise above the station that God ordained for him. The angels that followed Satan were not that powerful so they needed Satan to tempt them in order to rebel.

 

Hebrews 2:5-9

5For He did not subject to angels the world to come, concerning which we are speaking. 6But one has testified somewhere, saying, “What is man, that You remember him? Or the son of man, that You are concerned about him? 7″You have made him for a little while lower than the angels; You have crowned him with glory and honor, And have appointed him over the works of Your hands; 8You have put all things in subjection under his feet.” For in subjecting all things to him, He left nothing that is not subject to him. But now we do not yet see all things subjected to him.

9But we do see Him who was made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone.

 

All things are going to be under man’s feet. But at this moment in time we do not see all things subjected under man’s feet. Man has been made, for a little while, lower than the angels. In other words, man will not be lower than the angels forever. One day man will be above the angels but we do not see that yet. However, we do see Yeshua, who was made for a little while lower than the angels. We do not yet see this for us, but we do see it for Yeshua. Yeshua was made, for a little while, lower than the angels. In other words, He shared in our humanity. Then, because of the suffering of death, Yeshua was crowned with glory and honour, so that by the grace of God, He might taste death for everyone. And He brings many sons to glory. So Yeshua won the inheritance that we could never win and He did so on our behalf so that we could attain to that glory. And that glory will be above angels. Now we are under angels but that will not be the case forever.

Look at how much of God’s character and attributes Satan had. He was closer to God than any other living being could have been.

 

1 John 3:1-3

1See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. 2Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. 3And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.

 

We will be like Him because we will see Him just as He is. If we must be like Him to see Him just as He is it means that we will have to be just like He is in His Sonship but not His deity. We will not be God, but will be under God. Yet we will be as close to God as anyone could ever be. We will be just like Yeshua. I am not saying that we will take Satan’s place as the anointed Cherub that covers. But just as Satan was so close to God, so we will be so close to God. Do you have any idea now as to why Satan hates you so much? Because you are going to take the place of communion that Satan had! That closeness to God, that wisdom, perfection, that beauty that he had is going to be yours and Satan hates it. Satan says, “My kingdom is forever, I will never allow anyone to usurp my place.”

 

1 Corinthians 2:9

9but just as it is written, “Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, And which have not entered the heart of man, All that God has prepared for those who love Him.”

 

We cannot imagine what it is going to be like. But we have clues in the word of God. We cannot push further than that. We cannot say what it is going to be like. We look see it as a hazy image on the back of a bronze mirror. Yet we can know what scripture tells us and that is still amazing by itself.

So the question that we must ask is, how should we respond to this? We saw in 1 John that everyone who has this hope fixed on Yeshua purifies himself, just as Yeshua is pure. This is what He has for us. Let us therefore live the best that we can live here. Our lives have eternal consequences. When you became a believer and started to follow God’s word, everything in your life took on meaning. Before you were simply existing and trying to get through life. Now you have a purpose.

 

Titus 2:2-8

2Older men are to be temperate, dignified, sensible, sound in faith, in love, in perseverance. 3Older women likewise are to be reverent in their behavior, not malicious gossips nor enslaved to much wine, teaching what is good, 4so that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, 5to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored. 6Likewise urge the young men to be sensible; 7in all things show yourself to be an example of good deeds, with purity in doctrine, dignified, 8sound in speech which is beyond reproach, so that the opponent will be put to shame, having nothing bad to say about us.

 

Older men are to be examples to younger men and older women are to teach younger women. We must perform these differing roles in the congregation and help one another grow into the image of Messiah. But in the context of the home and marriage, just as God gave Adam and Eve a shared dominion with Adam as the head, so we experience that dominion in the home. In the marriage home, with man as head, the man and the woman rule together.

 

1 Timothy 3:4-5

4He must be one who manages his own household well, keeping his children under control with all dignity 5(but if a man does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of the church of God?),

 

The man who would seek to be an elder must be someone who manages his household well. He presides, he governs, he superintends his home well. Paul is saying that your home is your training ground for ministry. The ruling that you exercise in your home trains you for your ruling in the assembly as an elder. But the man does not rule in the home alone.

 

1 Timothy 5:14

14Therefore, I want younger widows to get married, bear children, keep house, and give the enemy no occasion for reproach; 

 

The word, ‘keep house’ in Greek is ‘oikodespotein’. ‘Oikos’ means ‘house and the word ‘despotein’ is where we get the word ‘despot’ from. A despot is someone who has ultimate authority. It often means someone who rules with great cruelty. Here Paul says that the younger widows should be married, bear children and they are to rule their house. This tells us that the man and his wife rule the home together. The man is head but the ruling is performed together just as it was in creation. In the man’s case, the dominion trains him for ministry. This teaches us that whatever we learn from ruling in the home is training us for something greater. Our dominion in the home teaches us about future dominion. If you are faithful in the little, more will be given. What we do here is our training ground for eternity. It is not just about paying the bill and feeding the kids. It is about much more than that. But we have to be faithful in these little things. A married woman, like Deborah, has to be a faithful and submissive wife. Deborah, first and foremost, was the wife of Lappidoth. If you are a married woman be proud to be the wife of your husband. Be proud that he is your head because one day you will be sitting under a palm tree yourself. You will be sitting under a palm tree, in the Messianic kingdom, giving God’s decisions to people, because He found you faithful in this life to you children and within your sphere of influence. To husbands, likewise, if God finds you faithful here, He will find you faithful there. If you are faithful now, in a weak body, prevailing over the indwelling sin, how much more faithful will God find you in a perfect body? And know that Deborah signifies to you that your wife is your fellow heir of future dominion. In the resurrection, the marriage relationship will not exist and you will not be her head any longer. Treat her with respect for in that day you may find her promoted above yourself.