Discovering The Jewish Jesus

Rabbi K.A. Schneider: There's a new miracle that's being birthed into your life even now. So look up from where your redemption comes, rejoice continually I say, and you will overcome every obstacle. Shalom uvracha. Peace and blessings. We're continuing today a series from the book of First Samuel chapter 2. A series that I'm calling Hannah's song, or we say in Hebrew, Chanah's song. Evreit is Hebrew.

I began in season one talking about the history, the context from which Chanah sung her song or spoke her song in First Samuel chapter 2. What had happened was that Hannah was unable to conceive, and she went to the temple praying unto the Lord, unto the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Give me a son, open my womb, I'm barren, remove this from me.

And as she was in the temple praying, Eli the priest saw her praying there. But the way that it appeared to Eli was that this woman, Hannah that was praying, he thought she was under the influence of alcohol because Hannah's lips were moving, but no sound was coming out because she was praying from her heart silently and even though her lips were corresponding to the words in her heart, it wasn't out loud to be heard. And so Eli rebuked her.

And Chanah said to him, no, sir, no, no, I'm not drunk, I'm praying, my heart is grieved. I haven't been able to conceive. And when Eli the priest heard her deep anguish and her grief, he blessed her. Well, what happens next? Chanah conceives.

And when she conceives, after the child was old enough, she brought the child, who was the prophet Samuel, the boy she named Samuel. She brought him to the temple and dedicated him there. And that's the context that we pick up the narrative in. Now before we launch in to where we left off in season one, which is verse number 6 of chapter 2.

I want to point out the fact that today within the church, we have a custom of bringing our infant children to the church after they've been born, early after they've been born, and dedicating the child to the Lord there within the congregation, in the church building often times.

This tradition is taken directly out of the book, beloved ones, of First Samuel. Listen as I read now, showing you how infant dedication today that is practiced in the Christian community is taken right out of the Hebrew scriptures in the book of First Samuel chapter 1.

Now, when she had weaned him, she took him up with her with a three-year-old bull and one ephah of flour and a jug of wine, and brought him to the house of the Lord in Shiloh. Again, I just want to make the point that the ceremony of dedicating our children to the Lord in a church building or in some type of facility with the pastor or a priest, that right or that tradition is taken right out of the verse that I'm reading. It's taken from the book of First Samuel where Chanah, Hannah, dedicated Samuel to the Lord when she brought him to Eli the priest in the house of the Lord.

So, it's important to understand our Hebrew roots, beloved, because again, infant dedication comes from this. So let's continue on. She brought him to the house of the Lord in Shiloh, although the child was young. And they slaughtered the bull and brought the boy to Eli. She said, speaking to Eli here, Oh, my Lord, as your soul lives, my Lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the Lord.

Because remember, Chanah was in the temple there, praying to the Lord months earlier, just a few months earlier, you know, nine months earlier, requesting of the Lord to give her a child. Remember, Eli thought she was drunk, and when he realized she was grieving, he blessed her. She left and conceived. So, she reminds him, I'm the one that was here that you rebuked and you thought I was drunk and you prayed for me to have a child when you understood I wasn't drunk, but just grieving and crying out in anguish for my soul, and look, I'm back.

The Lord answered my prayer. The Lord answers prayer, beloved. Not only did he open Chanah's womb, but he's the God of miracles today. Let me tell you, the miracles of God never stop. Chanah when she conceived, when the Lord had opened her womb after all this time of barrenness that she had been experiencing, she didn't think that it was just random.

She came back to the house of the Lord and dedicated her child to the Lord because she knew that her womb being opened to be able to give birth to Samuel was a gift from HaShem. And you and I need to cultivate that same habit in our lives of giving thanks for all the things that the Lord is doing for us, recognizing their miracles, and the miracles of your God will never run out.

Some of us are going through times right now. We're going through a season where it feels in the natural like things are hopeless or there's nothing going on. We're up against some challenge. But I want you to know that the miracles of God are inexhaustible. And even as he's been faithful to you and I in days past, he's still the same God. There's a new miracle for you. There's a new miracle that's being birthed into your life even now. So look up from where your redemption comes. Rejoice continually I say and you will overcome every obstacle.

As we read these stories in scripture, beloved, we're not simply reading history. We're reading of the living God who's doing the same thing today that he did in years gone by. Paul said in the New Testament that the things that are written in the Hebrew Bible, in the Tanakh, are not only written for the children of Israel, but they're written for you and I as well, for us upon whom the end of the ages has come.

So, I just want to encourage you today. Our God is a God of miracles, the same God that opened Hannah's womb is doing miracles in the lives of all his children continuously and everlastingly because God is continually bringing forth new miracles in our life. And so once again, she spoke to Eli, she said, I'm the one that stood before you. I was barren, and you prayed for me, and we prayed to the Lord, and look, in verse number 27, for this boy I prayed, and the Lord, Yod-Hey-Vav-Hey, the covenant God of Israel, has given me my petition which I asked of him. So, I have also dedicated him to the Lord, as long as he lives she said, he is dedicated to the Lord. And they worshipped together the Lord there.

So, it's great when we are taking part in dedicating a child to recognize that it's not without precedence. If you'll forgive me, if I share with you the most humorous story that I've ever experienced in dedicating a child. This is going back about 15 years ago, but a beloved couple in the congregation I was pastoring at the time had a little infant boy that had been constipated and it was a challenge and a problem and, you know, there's a lot of pain involved and the child was suffering.

They brought the child to be dedicated and as soon as I lifted up the child to the Lord, his bowels were loosed, and he was cured of his constipation right there and right then on the spot. And the parents, you know, noted it and really rejoiced in it, and they didn't just take it for granted that oh, it happened here or, you know, that it was some accident. They took it as a miracle from the Lord releasing this child from the pain that the child was in and releasing the parents, Hallelujah, of the burden.

And so, it is in this setting of dedicating Samuel, Hannah's child, to the Lord, to live for him as long as he was alive and for Hannah to be a source of encouragement to him, to live his life for the Lord. It's in this setting that Hannah burst out in what is called in scripture, the song of Chanah, or the song of Hannah. As she begins to praise God for who he is and for all he has done for her.

And I'm just going to read the first five verses which I covered in season one. So I encourage you to go back and get season one because it's powerful and it will lift your spirit. If you're feeling despondent and you're feeling discouraged, beloved, go back and get season one in this series because the word of God is alive and it's living and it will lift you up.

Dustin Roberts: You're listening to Discovering the Jewish Jesus and Rabbi Schneider will be right back. But first, I'd love for you to stay connected with us by signing up for Rabbi's Seeds of Revelation newsletter. Each week you'll receive a powerful devotional direct from Rabbi along with other ministry updates including when Rabbi will be live. It's a simple way to stay uplifted and informed. Go to discoveringthejewishjesus.com and click stay connected today.

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Rabbi K.A. Schneider: So let me read now verses number 1 through 5 of chapter 2. As Hannah, after dedicating Samuel, who became the great prophet Samuel in Israel, let's read now how she goes into song and thanksgiving at his dedication. Then Hannah prayed and said, My heart exalts in the Lord. My horn is exalted in the God of Israel, in Yod-Hey-Vav-Hey, in the Lord.

My mouth speaks boldly against my enemies, because I rejoice in Your salvation. There is no one holy like Yahweh. Indeed, there is no one besides You, nor is there any rock like our God. Boast no more so very proudly. Do not let arrogance come out of your mouth, for the Lord is God. For the Lord is a God of knowledge, and with Him actions are weighed.

The bows of the mighty are shattered, but the feeble gird on strength. Those who are full hire themselves out for bread. But those who are hungry cease to hunger. Even the barren give birth to seven. And she who has many children languishes. So, I've already preached several messages in season one on the verses that I just read. So, I'm not going to go over them right now again, please go back and get that series.

Let's pick up in verse number 6. She continues, the Lord, Yod-Hey-Vav-Hey, which are the four letters that compose God's sacred name, the covenant name of the God of Israel, whom Semitic scholars believe is pronounced a breathy, reverent Yahweh. The Lord kills, she said in verse number 6, and makes alive. He brings down to Sheol and raises up. The Lord makes poor and rich. He brings low, he also exalts.

Now, the point that needs to be stressed here, and if you've been following Discovering the Jewish Jesus, you've heard me speak on this many times, is that the Hebraic concept of God is often times much fuller than the concept of God that people have if they only read the New Testament. Because the New Testament didn't come out of a vacuum.

The New Testament is rooted in the Hebrew Bible, the Bible that we're reading from right now. That's why Matthew 1 begins, this is the genealogy of Yeshua, the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham. From the very first verse of the New Testament, Matthew shows us it's rooted in the Hebrew Bible. So, to understand who Yeshua is and who his father is, we have to understand the Hebrew Bible.

And one of the things that we come to understand about God, as we understand the Hebraic mindset through our reading of the Hebrew scriptures, is that the children of Israel, the Hebrews that wrote the Hebrew Bible, they understood that the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth below, Deuteronomy 4:39. You see, Hannah is saying here in verse number 6, the Lord kills and makes alive.

But the common Christian teaching today is oh, the Lord would never kill. The Lord would never put somebody to death. The Lord would never judge somebody. The Lord would never make anything bad happen. Isn't that what many in the church think today? Isn't that the type of theology that we often hear being communicated from our pulpits? Isn't that what many of you have been taught to believe? That God is good and because he's good, he would never cause anything painful to happen to us? That because God's good, we think, he would never cause any suffering.

Let me say it again, beloved one. Many of us have been taught that because our God is good, which he absolutely is, he would never cause anybody to suffer. But beloved, that is not comparing apples to apples. Yes, God is good and in him is only light. But that does not mean that a good God would never cause suffering.

In fact, God in his goodness causes suffering, because it's only when men suffer, often times that they're brought to recognize their own sin and to call out to him. So this concept that many of us have been taught that because God is good, he would never bring judgment. Because God's good, he would never cause pain. Because God's good, he would never do anything to anybody that would make them hurt. That concept does not line up with the word of God. It's shallow. It's superficial. It's empty. And it is false.

Listen to what Hannah said. Verse 6, the Lord kills and makes alive. He brings down to Sheol and he raises up. The Lord makes poor and rich. He brings low and exalts. Think about Nebuchadnezzar. First, the Lord raised him up, then when Nebuchadnezzar was raised up as king, he got proud. So what did God do? God brought judgment into his life. He made him become mentally ill.

And in his mental illness, Nebuchadnezzar learned how weak and how dependent on the Lord he needed to be. And when he came to his senses because of the suffering that Yahweh brought on him, then the Lord raised Nebuchadnezzar back up to his kingship, and when Nebuchadnezzar was raised back up after he learned the needed lesson from the suffering that the Lord brought upon him, he said, the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth below, and no one can stop him or say to him, what are you doing?

You see, beloved, the Hebrew mind that we see reflected in the Hebrew scriptures, through the entire portion of the Old Testament, recognizes that the true God of the universe, the God of Israel, and the God and Father of Yeshua, Jesus, the Messiah, is Lord in the heaven above and on the earth beneath. And listen, sometimes his judgments are his greatest mercy.

Sometimes the judgment of God is simply a reflection of his love for us because without being judged, we wouldn't repent. But because he loves us so much, he brings judgment. And the judgment isn't because he doesn't love us, but rather, it's because he does love us. That's why the book of Proverbs tells us that when we spare our children the rod, when we don't discipline them, we don't love them.

The scripture says, he that spares the rod spoils the child or hates his child. It's because God loves us that he brings judgment and discipline. Think about the apostle Paul. He said there was a messenger of Satan given him to torment him, to keep him from exalting himself. So this very messenger of Satan, Paul said, was actually a gift of the Lord to keep Paul from exalting himself so that Paul could stay right in the pocket of HaShem's anointing.

I want you to get this, beloved one. Jesus said salvation is of the Jews. Yeshua said to the woman of Samaria that believed in God, but didn't have a good understanding of who the God of Israel was. Yeshua said to her, woman, you don't know what you're worshiping. And so today, many within our church, beloved, because we have not learned the Hebraic roots of our faith, we have a faulty theology. We don't understand what we're worshiping.

God is sovereign. He's Adon Olam. He's master of the world, and this is what Hannah is proclaiming here. The Lord kills and makes alive. He brings down to Sheol and he raises up. The Lord makes poor and rich. He brings low, he also exalts. And so, I want to encourage you today. Let's trust in God's sovereignty in our lives.

Everything that's happening in the world is moving towards God's ultimate intention, especially during the season that we're in, during these days. So many things are happening. I know that this broadcast will air at different times, and people are wondering what's going on, where is God? But I want to say to you, he's God in heaven above and on the earth below. And he's got you, beloved child, right in his hand.

He's loving you. He's protecting you. And as long as you and I stay humble and walk before him with our hearts open in love, he's going to bless us and give us victory. There's a portion in God's word that I've really been putting myself under, asking the Lord to shepherd me into perfect obedience. It's the story of the rich young ruler that came to Jesus in Matthew 19. It's also repeated in Mark and Luke.

And the rich young ruler says to Jesus, good teacher. Jesus says, why do you call me good? Only God's good. And then the rich young ruler said to Jesus, what must I do to inherit eternal life? Yeshua said, keep all the commandments. The rich young ruler said, I've done all the commandments from my youth. He was a moral man. Then Yeshua said to him, now go and sell everything you have and you will inherit the kingdom of God.

And the Bible says the rich young ruler went away sad because he wasn't able to surrender his possessions to the Lord. And the disciples were really like, wow, who can inherit the kingdom of God? Jesus said, what's impossible with man is possible with God. Beloved, we don't have to earn our salvation, but Jesus is calling for us to surrender. Will you surrender your finances to him?

Dustin Roberts: Amen. And if you feel God leading you to take this step of faith today, then please give by going online to discoveringthejewishjesus.com or give a gift of any amount over the phone by giving us a call at 800-777-7835. That's 800-777-7835. You can also send a check in the mail. Our address is Discovering the Jewish Jesus, P.O. Box 777, Blissfield, Michigan 49228.

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Rabbi K.A. Schneider: In the book of Numbers chapter 6, the Lord gave instructions to Moses and Aaron to speak this blessing over his people, and the Lord said, when you speak these words over my people, I will place my name on them and bless them. Receive the impartations of the Lord's blessings. The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift you up with his countenance and the Lord give you, beloved one, his peace. And now in Hebrew.

Y'varekhekha Adonai v'Yishmerekh. Ya'er Adonai panav eilekha v'yikhmekha. Yisa Adonai panav eilekha v'yasem lekha shalom. God bless you and shalom.

Dustin Roberts: I'm your host Dustin Roberts and this program is produced and sponsored by Discovering the Jewish Jesus. Join us again when Rabbi Schneider explains how we should comprehend God's authority in our lives. That's Friday on Discovering the Jewish Jesus.