Beth Emanuel Messianic Synagogue

Reading the Fine Print- Understanding The Rules

Third message in the series Cultivating a Hunger for G-d. Hungering for more of His presence requires that we are willing to surrender every are of our lives to Him without striving.

The second in our series on Cultivating a Hunger for G-d. If we are truly going to experience His manifest presence we must improve the condition of our own hearts.

As w enter 2015, Adonai would encourage and remind us of His plans for us as a congregation and as individuals. This is a Yovel Year (Jubilee Year) in which G-d promises release, restoration and favor. It is important that we understand the plans He has for us.

shared in my message that it was a year of release and a year of favor. Adonai has encouraged us personally and as a congregation that the best is yet to come. Yet, for some it may seem that things have gotten worse. What is happening? The enemy is rearing his head because he does not want you and I to walk in the release and favor that Adonai has for us. When all hell breaks out against us, we need to experience a break through similar to that of David and the Israelites. How can we do that?

Today we want to talk about faith that sees. It is faith with 20/20 vision. There are two things this verse speaks to us. Let’s think of the context of this verse. Moshe was in Egypt. He was raised by the Pharaoh’s daughter after being saved by his mother’s faith in placing him in a basket in the Nile River so he would not be killed by the Pharaoh. When he became an adult, he turned away from the palace of Pharaoh, fled to Midian after killing an Egyptian who was beating another Jewish man, returned with a mandate from Adonai to lead around 2 million Jewish people out of Egypt by confronting a king who was defiant to the existence and mandate of the G-d of Israel. Moshe made it through these difficult and challenging situations by focusing on the unseen which, in turn, allowed him to persevere.

Faith that is not tested is not real faith. Adonai will use various means to test us. His desire is to help us through each one as we learn to put our hope and trust in Him.

Living Faith is a Faith that Speaks. This message seeks to answer these two questions: What does faith say? To whom or what does faith speak.

Adonai calls us to do things that sometimes are out of our comfort zone, but it requires simple faith from us. Today's message focuses on Real World Faith - Faith that affects us in our every day life. It is so easy for our faith to be diminished in our day to day living. We need to cultivate our faith as we walk through life.

Maybe you are experiencing financial difficulties, perhaps it was a bad report from the doctor. Maybe your relationships are strained. Perhaps you feel beaten and broken by all that life has thrown your way recently. Maybe you feel like you just cannot continue to fight the battle that you are facing. It is so easy at moments like these to feel abandoned and forgotten. Our emotions rise up and overpower our faith and the truth of Adonai’s Word. Like Israel we can cry out in our spirits, Where are you G-d? When will you show up? Have you forgotten us? Are you ignoring my pain? Can’t you see? Don’t you hear my prayers? In moments like these Adonai speaks a simple but powerful message - You are not forgotten