Weekend Meditation--What We Already Know, Is Insufficient!!

Luke 15:11-32; 1 Kings 11; Amos 9:9; Deuteronomy 29:30; Genesis 45:28; Deuteronomy 30; Isaiah 48:9-12

We are walking in today:  Weekend Meditation--What We Already Know, Is Insufficient!!

Counting the Omer Psalms 119:145-152 Day 41

Leviticus 23:15-16 (NKJV) 15 ‘And you shall count for yourselves from the day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering: seven Sabbaths shall be completed. 16 Count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath; then you shall offer a new grain offering to the Lord.

ק Qoph

145 I cry out with my whole heart;
Hear me, O Lord!
I will keep Your statutes.
146 I cry out to You;
Save me, and I will keep Your testimonies.
147 I rise before the dawning of the morning,
And cry for help;
I hope in Your word.
148 My eyes are awake through the night watches,
That I may meditate on Your word.
149 Hear my voice according to Your lovingkindness;
O Lord, revive me according to Your justice.
150 They draw near who follow after wickedness;
They are far from Your law.
151 You are near, O Lord,
And all Your commandments are truth.
152 Concerning Your testimonies,
I have known of old that You have founded them forever.

Witness wealth throughout the Bible: H1952 

hown​

--meaning wealth, riches, substance
Deuteronomy 8:17; Zechariah 14:14; Ruth 2:1; 2 Chronicles 1:11; Esther 10:3; Psalm 112:3; Proverbs 10:15, 13:22, 19:4; Ecclesiastics 5:19

 

Here are the next 10 principles of the Lord God Almighty. This arrangement of the 613 principles, the law of our Lord God Almighty, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is from the book by Rabbi Ralph Messer, Torah: Law Or Grace? Kingdom Principles For Kingdom Living. This book can be ordered online here or in the store if you are in the Denver area here. 

 

The Eighth Commandment--Exodus 20:13  Thou shall not steal

481. You shall not aggrieve one another in your buying and selling -- Leviticus 25:14 And if thou sell ought unto thy neighbour, or buyest ought of thy neighbour's hand, ye shall not oppress one another:

482. You shall not give your brother your money for interest --Leviticus 25:37 Thou shalt not give him thy money upon usury, nor lend him thy victuals for increase.

483. You shall not give your brother food for increase --Leviticus 25:37

484. You shall observe the laws of inheritance --Numbers 27:8 And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a man die, and have no son, then ye shall cause his inheritance to pass unto his daughter.

485. You shall not harden your heart or close your hand against your destitute brother --Deuteronomy 15:7 If there be among you a poor man of one of thy brethren within any of thy gates in thy land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thine heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother:

486. You shall open your hand and lend whatever is lacking --Deuteronomy 15:8 But thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need, in that which he wanteth.

487. You shall not move the boundary markers of your neighbor --Deuteronomy 19:14 Thou shalt not remove thy neighbour's landmark, which they of old time have set in thine inheritance, which thou shalt inherit in the land that the Lord thy God giveth thee to possess it.

488. You shall return the lost property of your brother --Deuteronomy 22:1 Thou shalt not see thy brother's ox or his sheep go astray, and hide thyself from them: thou shalt in any case bring them again unto thy brother.

​489. You shall not hide yourself from any lost property of your brother --Deuteronomy 22:3​

​ In like manner shalt thou do with his ass; and so shalt thou do with his raiment; and with all lost thing of thy brother's, which he hath lost, and thou hast found, shalt thou do likewise: thou mayest not hide thyself.​

​490.​

​ You shall not take the mother bird with her young --Deuteronomy 22:7​

​ But thou shalt in any wise let the dam go, and take the young to thee; that it may be well with thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days.​

​

​ Fiveamprayer there is a certain amount of comfort the things that are familiar.  And this comfort in come cases has lulled us to sleep.  Because of this comfort, we may not even pay close attention, assuming that we already know how this is gonna go.  Wake up and open your eyes to see what Yahweh will teach us early this morning!  We have to take all that is familiar and put in the proper context to obtain proper understanding​

​ .  Reading His scriptures in the Hebraic context instead of 21st century eyes revels the original intent of the Author and Finisher of our faith!  This parable in Luke 15 often called the prodigal son has been featured in many sermons in every church.  Taking this in context for the culture and time of history is extremely important.  We have a battle of opposing ideas, that the Lord God in His mercy is ever reaching for us to return to Him and the image of a harsh to the 'T' watcher of us to see if we miss any portion of the law.  Who is looking for the slightest infraction, to throw the book at us.  This idea and image that is linked with this thought has us looking at our Heavenly Father in a distorted light.  The ideas started in the early church that echo even now today are from misunderstanding or misinterpretation of the original intent.  The severe judge who keeps the law in the strictest sense is certainly at odds with our loving Heavenly Father who is beckoning us back to Him.  It is in His presence, as His sons that we experience His complete mercy and grace, we come to understand His intent and purpose for us!

This parable introduces a man who has two sons, then proceeds to the request or rather demand of the youngest son coming and asking for his portion of the inheritance from the father.  This to us in our 21st century, American mindset does not raise any eyebrows.  To those in the Yeshua's audience not only would this be a eyebrow raising beginning to a teaching but actual outrage.  The level of disrespect and shame the younger son shoves onto the father is beyond belief!!  The audacity to make this request, which is tantamount to saying 'dad, I need some money and I can't wait until you die, so gimme mine now!'  This thought of the younger son does not end there because once the father agrees to divide the inheritance between the brothers, he promptly leaves and goes about his way.  This shows his lack of connection to his father, a total disregard for family and respect.  This illustration brings even more apprehension and anger to the audience listening to Jesus the Christ teach.  His actions speak volumes of where he finds value, in his travels to a distant land he goes and spends all the money of wild living.  His exit also speaks to the community being furious with him for how he is treating his father, this deed seen as the highest form of disrespect. The elder of the sons during this exchange has nothing to say.  In this time and culture, he was to go to the younger brother and plead that he would not do this shameful thing and attempt to restore the younger son back to the father.  But we have no interjection from him to stop this rude and humiliating action of the younger son towards his own father.  After the money runs out and the younger son is forced to hire himself out in a job that was the lowest of the low.  In this culture you would not want a person to suffer but in this situation they do offer him a job, to feed the pigs.  This job was actually not a helping hand but a insult that you did not expect them to work or soon after quit.  We have been given the clue that no one would help him, which confirms the communities outrage at his action of the treatment of the father.  This news even spread from his home town to where he was currently.  The phrase he came to his senses does not mean what we think in the 21st century context, this is partial repentance born out of suffering and desperation not a true desire to turn form wicked ways and wholeheartedly grasp onto righteousness.  His plan to return and ask to be a hired servant is that he would be able to obtain money for his well being but not have to come under the father's authority.  This was a plan to save face.  Is this one many of us have considered?!  We have to take a hard look at ourselves is that our relationship with the Almighty God?
Repentance is more than remorse it involves the following actions:
recognition of wrong doing and confession
determination to stop doing the wrong things
the actual appropriate response
 The biggest surprise to the audience of this parable is the father's response.  He did divide up the inheritance at the younger son's request.  He could have rebuked the disrespect and even put him out of the house for such a request.  Then when the son returns with the appearance of his hat in his hand (making to look that he has been humbled) to request a lower status with the father for the wrong that he had done unto him. The father comes out running to greet him, he had been watching and knew of his return from a distance.  The shame of a man running in the this culture shows that he is not cautious and lacking in wisdom.  While the community was still in disbelief at the arrogance of the younger son, the father rushes out to forgive and restore him.  The younger son did not have to bear the judgement of the community nor their very likely harsh words for the contempt that he showed his father.  The killing of the fatted calf shows that this celebration was for the entire community for the restoration of the lost son to the loving father.  It is not until the return of the younger son that we hear the voice of the elder son inquiring about the celebration going on in his house.  The hardness of his heart is shown in the discussion with his father where he distances himself from his brother and blames the father for not showing him the same kind of love and favor while he has been by his side serving without error.  The father, in leaving the celebration of the returned son, goes to entreat his other son to come celebrate with the community.  Again the father is willing and ready to reposition himself to make a plea for the son to join him.  The custom at that time would see the shame of the father having to go out and plead to the son, as a open shame before the  community.  The father does not vary in his love nor actions the same grace extended to the younger is here extended to the elder brother.  The parable ends there, but Fiveamprayer we have to determine which brother are we?  
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