GreatLight

      Isaiah perceived a great spiritual darkness upon the land. God's people were seeking the words of wizards and mediums, instead of seeking God. Isaiah wrote the Word of the LORD: "To the law and the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them...they will look to the earth, and see trouble and darkness, gloom of anguish; and they shall be driven into darkness." (Isa. 8:19-22, excerpt). There is no doubt that we can say that Isaiah's prophecy is still working today in our time. The prophets wrote of the great darkness that will precede the day of the LORD, and His appearing in the last days. Jesus also prophesied: "Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven..." (Mt. 24:29-30). Even before the absence of natural light, there will also be spiritual darkness and deception (Mt. 24:9-12). As this darkness spreads, the light of the gospel of the kingdom of God will be preached to all the world (v. 14).

     It looks like a time of spiritual darkness is now covering the earth and its people, as we have turned away from God, and His Word. However, Isaiah then wrote this prophecy: "The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them a light has shined." (Isa. 9:1-2, excerpt). The LORD will not allow darkness to rule His creation. His light will rise up. Sometimes, we are so intent upon looking at the darkness that we forget that we have been called to be light, which we will see later.

     Jesus physically changed His dwelling place from Nazareth to Capernaum, in order to show the fulfillment of this prophecy of Isaiah (see Mt. 4:12-17). Also, using the foundation of Isaiah's prophecy above, a heavenly Jesus called Saul of Tarsus, renamed Paul, into salvation and ministry to the Gentiles:  "...to whom I now send you, to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me." (see Acts 26:15-18, excerpt).

     Hanukkah begins this week. It is also called the Feast of Lights, or the Feast of Dedication. Believers in Christ generally ignore this feast, although Jesus observed it (Jn. 10:22-30). It was during this feast that Jesus was asked to say plainly whether He was the Christ, The Messiah, The Anointed One, promised by God. He answered plainly that He was, and had demonstrated that He was, but they had not believed Him.

     This Sabbath reading portion titled Va-yeishev, meaning "And he (Jacob) settled (yasab - dwell, inhabit, abide, remain, tarry, continue, settle, marry, sit down)", as found in Gen. 37:1. Perhaps what we will learn in this Sabbath's portion will cause us to re-examine the importance of Hanukkah to us, the Believers in Christ. This portion covers Gen. 37 through 40.

     Last week we read about "Jacob's trouble". This week, while dwelling in Canaan (meaning "lowland, merchant, trafficker/bring anyone low, humble, bring down, vanquish, humiliate, fall to one's knees, depressed"), Jacob's troubles and sorrows increase and darken to such an extent that he will not be able to be consoled. He will say, on the occasion of what he believes to be the death of his most favored son: "For I shall go down into the grave to my son in mourning." (Gen. 37:35). Here are some of the terrible troubles that came into Jacob's life: 

• The sons of Jacob conspired to kill their brother Joseph because they envied him for receiving their father's favor, and because Joseph told them of his dreams of rulership which offended them. The brothers would eventually sell Joseph to slave traders for twenty shekels of silver, and tell their father that Joseph had been killed by a wild beast. Jacob was crushed in spirit.
• One of Jacob's sons, Judah, left the family camp and married a Canaanite woman, Shua ("wealth, to be rich/to cry for help or freedom from some trouble"). Judah had three sons with Shua but two were killed by the LORD for their wickedness. 
• Judah mistook his widowed daughter-in-law, Tamar, for a harlot, and had twin sons with her. One of Tamar's sons by Judah, Perez, was the forefather of the line of David and Jesus.

     Jacob's favorite son, Joesph, hated by his brothers, sold into slavery in Egypt, was meanwhile falsely accused and thrown into Pharaoh's prison and forgotten by one who owed him a favor. However, to all who encountered Joseph in Egypt, he would be the rising light of revelation that not only raised him to rulership in Egypt, but saved that nation, and provided food and rich land for his father and brothers in Egypt during a time of great famine. Though deep darkness covers the land and people, the LORD raises a light.

     In another reading portion from this Sabbath, Israel is caught in a period of spiritual darkness. The priests are corrupt and apathetic. That darkness is described this way: "And the word of the LORD was rare in those days; there was no widespread revelation." (1 Sam. 3:1). Into this darkness, the boy Samuel, a miracle birth, was brought to the house of God to minister to the LORD, serving Eli the priest. As the result of a vow made by his mother, Samuel served in the house of God even though he was not a Levite. He was from the tribe of Ephraim (1 Sam. 1:1-2).  The spiritual condition of the house of God under the priesthood of Eli and his sons was growing dark: "...while Eli was lying down in his place, and when his eyes had begun to grow so dim (kehe/kaha - dim, be dark/be darkened, grow weak)

 that he could not see, and before the lamp of God went out in the tabernacle of the LORD where the ark of God was, and while Samuel was lying down, that the LORD called Samuel. And he answered 'Here I am!'".  (1 Sam. 3:2-4). According to the statutes of the Law of Moses, the priests were to make sure that the golden lampstand (menorah in Hebrew) of the LORD remain lit throughout the darkness of the night hours (Ex. 27:20-21, Lev. 24:1-4). However, in this case, Eli, his eyes darkened, and resting during the night, neglected the keeping of the Lamp of the LORD. It is in this condition of darkness that the LORD raised up the boy, Samuel, who became a judge and prophet of Israel, and through him, the prophetic Word of the LORD and His revelation was restored to Israel. Samuel would eventually anoint Saul as the first king of Israel, and later David, who would replace the rebellious Saul.

     The feast of Hanukkah, itself, is observed as a memorial to a time in the history of Israel, when an enemy desecrated the temple of God in Jerusalem before being defeated by the Maccabee family. The Lampstand of the LORD in the re-dedicated (cleansed, purified, sanctified) temple was about to be extinguished because there was only one cruse of pure oil on hand, which would keep the Lamp lit for only one day. By a miracle of God, the Lamp remained lit for eight days, while the new supply of special oil could be prepared for it. (see The Miracle of Hanukkah, Talmud). The LORD would not allow His Light to go out.

     In another reading for this special Sabbath during Hanukkah, the prophet Zechariah wrote of a vision given to him of the Lamp pf the LORD supplied by an unending source of oil. The vision of the Lamp and the oil brought this Word of the LORD for Zerubbabel, the governor presiding over the difficult re-building of the Temple of God in Jerusalem: "This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: 'Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit, ' says the LORD of hosts. 'Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain! And he shall bring forth the capstone with shouts of 'Grace, grace to it!...The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this temple; His hands shall also finish it. Then you will know that the LORD of hosts has sent Me to you.'" (Zech. 4:1-9). According to the vision of Zechariah, the eternal light produced by the Lamp of the LORD is continually supplied by the oil of the Holy Spirit. In this light, nothing is impossible, and darkness cannot prevail. We see a similar description as the vision of Zechariah applied to the two witnesses in the Book of Revelation who will have a testimony to deliver in a time of spiritual darkness (Rev. 11:3-14).

      Jesus identified Himself as eternal Light: "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life." (Jn. 8:12, see also Jn. 1:1-5, and 14, and Gen. 1:1-2).  He is a light that is from above, and not of this world (Jn. 8:23). We should not be surprised then that Jesus observed the Feast of Lights/Dedication, or Hanukkah. It is especially important to observe the powerful meaning of this feast as we see spiritual darkness trying to cover the earth. Jesus told us that we, being part of Him, were also the light of the world - not just any light, but light that is set high on a Lampstand, or menorah: "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.". This light that we are, by the oil of the Holy Spirit, in the manner of Christ, is the light of the Kingdom of God, and the same light into which we were saved (1 Peter 2:9).

     Each night, as a Hanukkah candle is lit, this prayer is said: "Blessed are You, O LORD our God, King of the Universe, who makes us holy with Your commandments (see also Jn. 17:17, Prov. 6:20-23), commanding us to kindle (light) the Hanukkah lights."  Here is another prayer offered during Hanukkah, which is especially needed today: Al HaNissim. The other prayers spoken while lighting the Hanukkah candles praise God for His miraculous salvation, as you can see in this video: Lighting the Hanukkah Menorah. David also wrote about the connection between the LORD's light and His salvation: "The LORD is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid?" (Ps. 27:1). For me, the observance of Hanukkah is for all who desire to proclaim and praise our Father of Lights (James 1:17), and especially for those who believe in His Son, Jesus, the Light of the world.

     Isaiah wrote this Word of the LORD: "Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and deep darkness the people; But the LORD will arise over you, and His glory will be seen upon you. The Gentiles shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. Lift up your eyes all around and see...Then you shall see and become radiant, and your heart shall swell with joy..." (Isa. 60:1-5, excerpt).

     If you would like to know more about our purpose in the Kingdom of God as the light of Christ in the present time of spiritual darkness and trouble, you can pray with me: "Dear Father, how You have blessed us with Your light, and the light of Your Son, Jesus! This would have been enough of a miracle, but You also told me that I am of the same light, made to shine into the darkness. During this season of Lights and Dedication, let me dedicate myself to sanctification in Your Word of truth. Fill me with the oil of Your Holy Spirit so that I can shine with Your testimony. Darkness is here, but You will never allow the darkness to overcome Your eternal light of salvation. Instead of fearing the darkness, let me light a candle. I ask these things in Jesus' name. AMEN."