Advent - God's Preperation

Help for Israel & History of Hanukkah:

Celebrating Victory of ‘Light Over Darkness’

We can be those that stand up for God and bring His light to the World. This is indeed the mission he has given us!

The season to kindle the Hanukkah (Festival of Lights) candles is here! Synagogues, community centers, households and businesses come aglow with the light of the special menorah (seven-branched candelabra) called a hanukkiah. Its eight branches (plus one to light the rest) recall the miracle of Hanukkah, when a single day’s oil used to kindle the menorah in the rededicated Temple in Jerusalem lasted for eight days instead. The lights of Hanukkah speak of Jewish freedom, but behind the glory of liberty is a tale of a hard-won liberation. The ancient story reminds us that it is God who fights Israel’s battles—both then and now—for it is on this land and among these people that He works out His redemption plan for all the nations of the earth.

Our Story Begins

The drama unfolded in 165 BC in the Judean foothills near the village of Emmaus, when the Jewish revolt against the Hellenistic (Seleucid–Greek) regime of Antiochus IV Epiphanes was in full swing. Antiochus had mercilessly oppressed the Jews and had turned his wrath on Jerusalem through great slaughter and pillage. He prohibited reading and studying the Torah (Gen.–Deut.), forbade circumcision and sacrificed swine flesh upon the sacred altar of the Temple.

As in the days of Moses, Joshua and David, Israel was desperate for God to raise up a man who would deliver them from their oppressor. Just like then, God would once again act as Israel’s ultimate Heavenly Deliverer. As such, His chosen human deliverer had to know his core mission: reestablishing the worship of the God of Israel by the people of Israel in the Land of Israel.

Israel’s Heavenly Deliverer did indeed raise up a human deliverer for His people. The leader of God’s choosing was called the “Hammer.”

God’s Deliverer: Judah Maccabee

Judah Maccabee was the third son of a priest named Mattathias. The surname Maccabee comes from maqqaba, which is Aramaic for hammer. While the word was built into the family name, Judah decidedly earned the moniker through the exploits of his ragged Israelite band against vastly superior Seleucid forces, both entrenched in the Land and invading from the north.

Judah led his mace and sling-equipped freedom fighters against highly trained Seleucid regulars employing the latest in Greek-developed tactics and armament. Under General Gorgias, they boasted heavy and light infantry, cavalry, ballista, chariot, javelin, spear, bow, battering ram, sword and shield. The rag-tag band of Jewish troops was no match, unless God working through inspired leadership could somehow overcome the imbalance of forces.

As a deliverer, Judah was indeed inspired. Perhaps that inspiration came from his father in the faith, Abraham, who centuries earlier, had used his few advantages against the Mesopotamian kings and their mighty armies that had absconded with his nephew Lot, his family and all their possessions. Catching up with his opponents near Dan in the north, Abraham adopted guerilla tactics as he “divided his forces against them by night” (Gen. 14:15). Judah Maccabee would employ the same tactics against the military might of the Seleucids.

The Fight

The Hammer chose the narrow valleys in the sh’felah (lowland) region to stage his ambush. There he could cut off escape routes while harassing the vulnerable flanks of the invading forces. Units in column marching with those constrictors could not form the deadly phalanx that made them invincible. The Israelites could hit and run, thus demoralizing the soldiers and reducing their combat efficiency.

The champion of the Jews was also inspiring a zeal for God and the Land of Israel among his growing number of followers. The apocryphal book of 1 Maccabees records Judah’s motivational address to his soldiers on the eve of battle. The words spoken by Israel’s human deliverer that night echo with a deep dependence on the Heavenly Deliverer, the God of Israel:

“It is easy for many to be defeated by a few. In the sight of Heaven, there is no distinction between deliverance by many and deliverance by a few. Victory in war does not depend upon the size of the fighting force, but rather upon the strength that comes from Heaven. Our enemies have come against us in a display of insolence and lawlessness to destroy us and our wives and our children, and to plunder us. However, we are fighting in defense of our lives and our laws. He himself will crush them before our eyes; therefore, do not be afraid of them” (1 Maccabees 3:17–22).

Gorgias had to break out of his tactical quagmire, so he devised a night attack on the Maccabean encampment at Emmaus. With intelligence gained from Judean hill dwellers, Judah ordered campfires lit all around Emmaus to draw in Gorgias while he withdrew his main force, leaving only a rearguard in the camp. As Gorgias staged the assault, the Maccabean remnant retreated into the valley, thus drawing the Seleucids after them and into the trap that Judah had set. The follow-on forces of Gorgias then retreated in disorganized panic!

Mission Accomplished: Worship Restored

The war was by no means over, but a subsequent victory at Beit Zur secured the Jewish army’s victory march into recaptured Jerusalem. Judah’s first order of business was cleansing the Temple of the Lord, sanctifying it after defilement. The rekindling of the menorah—and the miracle of the eight days’ supply of oil—birthed the Hanukkah traditions that lives on to this day.

Traditions certainly abound during this holiday. Jews gather to enjoy foods fried in oil, recalling the miracle of the oil in the menorah. There are eight days of gift giving in celebration of hard-fought freedom, and there is storytelling of the Maccabees’ bravery and victory over their Seleucid oppressors.

During this time, you too can gather, perhaps in like celebration, but also in prayer for the security and well-being of Israel. As during ancient times, enemies today continue to seek to oppress, subjugate and destroy the Jewish people. But in the power of the One who fights Israel’s battles and in the spirit of the Maccabees, the Israel Defense Forces and the other security arms of Israel stand guard to secure the land and people of God’s choosing for His redemptive purpose in the earth.

We pray for their success and their protection. We pray for the peace of Jerusalem (Ps. 122:6). Chag Hanukkah sameach (happy Hanukkah)!

Advent Candle lighting

Pastor Nathan Jay

<< take notes here>>

Dec 10th, 2nd Sun Of Advent 2023

Advent(from Lat. adventus“coming”).

Can designate either:

the incarnation of Christ or

his second coming.

It most often designates the season immediately preceding Christmas

The Messiah comes twice

We are using this season to emphasize that the Messiah is most certainly coming again, and soon!

Adorning our Heart

Advent is waiting for the Coming of Jesus. How are are you waiting?

Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious. 1 Peter 3:3–4 (ESV)

Be Adorned, Be “wrapped” for Jesus -

This is how Revelation describes the new Jerusalem the home of all of God’s family. Described as the Church. as a Bride.

Revelation 21:2 ESV

And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

The meanings of our Christmas Traditions

therefore since our adornment must be in our heart, lets use the decorations of Christmas speak to us of God’s love and message.

Evergreen - evergreen branches laid flat to symbolize eternal life.

Presents – God gave us the greatest gift of all Jesus

Candles/Christmas Lights - The light of God each of us as a witness is a shining in the darkness.

evergreen leaves which stand for eternity, God’s eternal love for us (which is ever green, ever new), shown in the promise and birth of the Messiah, his Son.

Holly is traditionally used as part of the wreath, with the sharp points of the leaves reminding us of the crown of thorns.

The circular shape of the wreath is like a crown of thorns but also stands for eternity (the ring goes round without beginning or end).

Red berries stand for the drops of blood which Jesus shed for us

Sometimes a red ribbon is tied through the wreath – this too stands for Christ’s blood, the cost of our redemption.

Advent Candles

The four candles represent the four weeks of Advent, the season of preparation for Christmas.

Purple is the liturgical colour of Advent and rose (or pink) is a special colour that may be used on the 3rd Sunday of Advent with a meaning of ‘rejoice’ from Phil 4:4 ‘Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice!’

a fifth white candle is added in the centre of the wreath. This is lit on Christmas Eve to mark the coming of Christ the Light.

Advent schedule

1st – Dec 3: God’s Prophesy

2nd - Dec 10: God’s Preparation

3rd – Dec 17: Our Response (pink=Rejoice)

4th – Dec 24: God’s Love (Christmas eve)

Christmas - Dec 25: God’s Son (white)

How we can be involved in Spreading God’s love to others:

Ben and Laura. Restoration Ministries.

Pastor Nathan

Week 2 - Dec 10: God’s Preparation

Galatians 4:4–5 (ESV)

4 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.

God is again in preparation for the last days before the tribulation.

Week 3 – Dec 17: Our Response

Galatians 4:6–7 (ESV)

6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.

1 Thessalonians 5:16–24 ESV

16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not despise prophecies, 21 but test everything; hold fast what is good. 22 Abstain from every form of evil. 23 Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.

Week 4 – Dec 24: God’s Love (Christmas eve)

Romans 8:32 ESV

32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?

Christmas - Dec 25: God’s Son

John 1:14 ESV

14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Christmas commemorates a divine event and a divine person—the miraculous birth of the Son of God, Jesus Christ. Unlike most of our holidays, Christmas is not a celebration of an event strictly from human history that commemorates a human achievement or recognizes a national milestone. An authentic celebration of Christmas honors the most wonderful of divine accomplishments. It recognizes that the eternal, sovereign God came to earth as a human being to live a righteous life among His people and then to die as a perfect sacrifice to deliver from the wrath of God all who repent and believe.

He was first and foremost the almighty God of the universe who humbly came to earth in human flesh to seek and to save the lost (Matt. 18:11; Luke 19:10; 5:32; Rom. 5:8).

John F. MacArthur Jr., God in the Manger: The Miraculous Birth of Christ(Nashville, TN: W Pub. Group, 2001).