Passion Week – Day #3

Posted on April 1, 2023 | Comments Off on Passion Week – Day #3

Shabbat Shalom!

None of the four gospels mentions the weekly Sabbath before the crucifixion. It fits the timeline to place the clearing of the temple on the Sabbath for the following reasons. Traditional understanding places the crucifixion on Friday (hence, Good Friday), but John (12:1) states that six days before the Passover (which would make it the Sabbath), Yeshua and His disciples traveled to Bethany. That was after their stay in Jericho. The distance between the two is roughly 15 miles, too far for travel on the Sabbath. (cf. Acts 1:12, a Sabbath day’s journey from the Mount of Olives to Jerusalem, a distance of fewer than two miles.) Also, a meal was given upon their arrival in Bethany. While it is not forbidden to entertain guests and relax with friends on the Sabbath, Leviticus 23:3 says that no work is to be done. This includes preparing food. When God sent manna, He instructed them to gather twice as much as they needed on the sixth day and prepare it to be kept for the Sabbath (Exodus 16:21-26). No gathering or cooking was to be done on the day of rest. So, unless Mary, Martha, and the others in Bethany knew that Yeshua and His disciples were coming on the Sabbath, they wouldn’t have been able to cook anything by the Sabbath command. So, it seems unlikely that they traveled to Bethany on the Sabbath. The NIV Study Bible places their arrival on Friday and then says there is no mention of the Sabbath in the account, but concludes that Yeshua observed the Sabbath at Lazarus’ house and then journeyed to Jerusalem for the Triumphal Entry the next day on Sunday. There are two problems with this rendition. First, if the crucifixion were on Good Friday, the arrival in Bethany on the previous Friday would be seven days before Passover, not six as recorded in John. Secondly, John 12:12 says it was the next day that Yeshua rode the donkey into Jerusalem. If the arrival in Bethany were on Friday, the Triumphal Entry would have to be Saturday, not Sunday. The timing doesn’t fit. It’s more plausible for the Triumphal Entry to be on Friday, leaving the clearing of the temple on the Sabbath. Having said all that, let’s begin.

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Passion Week – Day #2

Posted on March 31, 2023 | Comments Off on Passion Week – Day #2

John records that the next day following His stay in Bethany, where they had a meal and Mary anointed Him with oil, Yeshua made His way into Jerusalem (John 12:12). Matthew, Mark, and Luke all record that Yeshua came to Bethphage at the Mount of Olives, and there, He sent two unnamed disciples on to fetch a donkey and her colt that had never been ridden (Matt. 21:1-11, Mark 11:1-10, Luke 19:28-40). From there, Yeshua rode the colt into town. You know the story. People started laying their cloaks on the ground while others cut branches from the trees (Matt. 21:8), or from the fields (Mark 11:8). Luke only records the cloaks being laid down (Luke 19:36) with no mention of branches. Also, John is the only account to record that it was palm branches that were laid down (John 12:13).

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Passion Week – Day #1

Posted on March 30, 2023 | Comments Off on Passion Week – Day #1

Since the raising of Lazarus, Yeshua had left the region of Jerusalem because the Sanhedrin had sought to kill Him.  Those that had gone to Jerusalem prior to the Passover for the period of cleansing were looking for Yeshua and not finding Him (John 11:55-57).  As we saw Wednesday, Yeshua and His disciples had gone to Ephraim and stayed, and then traveled, or stayed, in Jericho on their way back to Jerusalem.  John is the only one that records Yeshua going to Bethany first (John 12:1-8) where there was a feast given for Him.  Martha helped serve the meal.

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Passion Week – Day #0

Posted on March 29, 2023 | Comments Off on Passion Week – Day #0

Passion Week begins with Palm Sunday, this coming Sunday, April 2nd.  But a lot that happened leading up to the Triumphal Entry gets overlooked as though it doesn’t have a connection to the crucifixion. For instance, the raising of Lazarus. Is there a connection? Let’s look.

The Messiah returned to Bethany before going into Jerusalem, but He had been gone from Jerusalem for a while. There are a few things to tell about His return that we’ll lump into this post.  We’ll call this “day zero.”  Wednesday.

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What is Passion Week?

Posted on March 28, 2023 | 1 comment

Surely you have heard of Mel Gibson’s movie “The Passion of the Christ.” The title comes from the idea that the Messiah was so passionate about His mission that nothing would stop Him from going to the cross. Passion Week is the cumulation of days during the week of the crucifixion, starting with the Triumphal Entry commonly known as Palm Sunday, and going through until Ressurection Sunday which everyone knows as Easter. But is it really a week long? Or longer? Or is it just a tradition of the Church? We’re going to look at each day leading up to the cross and beyond as it’s recorded in the Gospels. Let’s go.

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Is This the New Year?

Posted on March 24, 2023 | 1 comment

Exodus 12:2 “This month will mark the beginning of months for you; it is to be the first month of the year for you.”

In the Exodus story, God tells Moses that THIS MONTH will be the first month of the year. That would seem to indicate that they were keeping a different calendar before this time. Of course, all of the Israelites alive then would have been born and raised as a slave in Egypt, so it would make sense that they followed the Egyptian calendar. And the Egyptian calendar is an interesting one with only three seasons. Actually, they had three calendars each based on the sun, moon, and agricultural seasons, but the beginning of the year may not be what you would expect.

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Happy Rosh Chodesh!

Posted on March 22, 2023 | Comments Off on Happy Rosh Chodesh!

The new moon begins the 1st month of the new year. It’s two weeks until Passover!

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Happy Purim!

Posted on March 6, 2023 | Comments Off on Happy Purim!

Happy Purim! Enjoy some food and fellowship with friends, and celebrate God’s deliverance.


And check out this series of blogs from Kinetic Love Ministries, starting with the first one below. There are five parts.

Purim, part 1 – An Overview of Esther

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Hanukkah, Day 8

Posted on December 25, 2022 | Comments Off on Hanukkah, Day 8

Romans 12:14-18 “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.”

As the last day of Hanukkah has come, we’re going to put these five verses together as Paul is telling us a central theme. That theme is compassion. Compassion is a sympathetic concern for the sufferings of others. As you read through the above passage, you can see compassion in one way or another in everything Paul is telling us to do, with the exception of the first verse. How can you have compassion for someone that is persecuting you?

Bless, don’t curse.

It’s been said that the reason we hate is that we just don’t understand. Persecution only comes from people that don’t like us, possibly even hate us. Our instinct is to lash out in retaliation. Paul is telling us to bless them instead. Could it be that they are persecuting because they don’t understand, and we retaliate because we don’t take the time to understand either? If we have compassion for them for whatever they are going through, maybe it will reveal the real reason for the persecution. Now, even if we could see their point of view, it doesn’t mean we’re going to change their mind about us and why they are persecuting us, but if we bless them when they persecute us, who knows what effect that could have. Paul is repeating a command from the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus, Himself told us to bless those that persecute us. And remember, the second greatest commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself.

So today, this last day of Hanukkah, dedicate yourself to living through compassion in every situation you encounter.

Happy Hanukkah!
Stay dedicated.

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Hanukkah, Day 7

Posted on December 24, 2022 | Comments Off on Hanukkah, Day 7

Romans 12:13 “Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.”

In this day and age, there are so many “toys” that are vying for our attention, from the latest smartphone or electronic device to hobbies and habits that can be more costly than some of our monthly bills. All of these are optional expenses, but we gladly pay them because it’s what we want, but it’s not what we need.

In this verse, Paul is telling us this is something we “need” to do. What’s really interesting is that when you start to contribute to people in need, it then becomes something you “want” to do. There’s such a joy that comes with giving.

Today, dedicate yourself to finding a need and then contribute to filling that need. But don’t just stop with today. Continue to contribute whenever you find a need, and always seek to show hospitality.

Happy Hanukkah!

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