Above&Beyond

      The title of this week's Sabbath reading portion is Sh'mini, meaning "the eighth." The title comes from Leviticus 9:1: "It came to pass on the eighth day that Moses called Aaron and his sons and the elders of Israel." It is taught in Judaism that "the eighth" is "one step above/beyond the natural order". The Hebrew word for the eighth, semini, includes this meaning: "eighth, plumpness, plenteous, rich, robust, cover with fat." In other words, there's more to "the eighth" than meets the eye. There is something bigger held within it. There is so much more existing in the meaning of "the eighth" that it is almost full to bursting with fatness! We will see this in the Sabbath reading portions of this week.

     This week's Sh'mini Sabbath portion also includes the recognition of the upcoming anniversary of Israel's modern statehood which was re-established in 1948. This anniversary is called Atz-ma-ut. Within minutes after David Ben-Gurion proclaimed the establishment of the state of Israel in May 1948, the President of the United States, Harry S. Truman, recognized the new state of Israel, making the U.S. the first nation to do so. As with the meaning of sh'mini stated above, we will see that the nation of Israel's purpose goes above and beyond what men might think or expect. Let us begin to reveal this hidden pattern of Sh'mini.

     As Leviticus Ch. 9 begins, Moses instructs Aaron and his sons about the offerings which must be brought to the altar in order to make atonement for themselves and the Israelite congregation. These offerings from the animals must contain the hidden inner fat (heleb - fat, fatness, best, finest, the richest or choice part, the best or most excellent of any kind) from the specified sacrificial offerings (see Lev. 9:9-11, 19-20). Even the grain offering had to be mixed with the fatness of oil (semen/saman - fat, oil, richness, fatness of the earth). The description could stop there, but these sacrifices that included the fatty portions would yield a result above and beyond what an observer might expect. Moses said: "...for today the LORD will appear to you" and "...the glory (kabod - glory, honor, glorious, abundance, riches, splendor, copiousness) of the LORD will appear to you." (Lev. 9:4, 6). The fatness of the glory of the LORD would be appearing (ra'a - look, behold, show, appear, seer, foresee, perceive, discern, to be visible) to His people. Not only would the LORD be visible, but the word ra'a appear also has a prophetic application. Many generations later, the LORD also became visible to us in the appearing of Jesus Christ, "and we beheld His glory". (see Jn. 1:14, Jn. 14:9-11, Col. 2:9). As Moses had prophesied, the LORD did appear after the offerings had been completed: "And Moses and Aaron went into the tabernacle of meeting and came out and blessed the people. Then the glory of the LORD appeared to all (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) the people, and fire came out from before the LORD and consumed the (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) burnt offering and the fat on the altar. When all the people saw it, they shouted and fell on their faces." (Lev. 9:23-24). This was "the eighth" day above and beyond wonder from the LORD.

     We see another example of a kind of Sh'mini "the eighth" above and beyond work of God in another reading portion from this Sabbath. In 1 Chron. 17, King David tells Nathan the prophet about his desire to build a house for the Ark of the Covenant. The King reasoned that since he dwelt in a fine house of cedar, why shouldn't the Ark be housed in a fine house as well instead of a tent? The prophet Nathan told David to do what was in his heart to do because the LORD was with him. However, that night, Nathan was given a prophetic Word from the LORD for David. Nathan told David the prophetic Word. David would not be building a house for the LORD..."Furthermore I tell you that the LORD will build you a house....I will set up your (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) seed after you, who will be of your sons; and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build me a house, and I will establish (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) his throne forever. I will be his Father, and he shall be My son...And I will establish him in My house and in My kingdom forever; and his throne shall be established forever." (v. 10-14).

     While this prophetic Word from the LORD was partially fulfilled as one might expect it to be through David's son, Solomon, who did build a house for the LORD, this prophetic Word goes above and beyond in the Spirit of Sh'mini "the eighth" what anyone would have expected.

     The LORD was prophesying that the eternal King, the Messiah/Christ, who would rule forever, would be a seed of David, and David understood this prophetic meaning. After receiving this above and beyond covenant promise of God, King David went in and sat before the LORD, and he said: "Who am I, O LORD God? And what is my house, that You have brought me this far?...And now, LORD, You are God, and have promised this goodness to Your servant. Now You have been pleased to bless (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) the house of Your servant, that it may continue before You forever; for You have blessed it, O LORD, and it shall be blessed forever." (v. 16, 26-27). The LORD poured out His spiritual fatness and goodness towards the house and seed of David, above and beyond what David ever could have expected, and we have Jesus, the Son of David (Lk. 18:35-43), the Messiah/Christ, as our Lord today.

     Both of these blessings from God came as a result of offerings. The first instance included the offerings of the choicest kinds through Moses' Word to Aaron, and this led to the appearance of the LORD and His glory before all of the people. In the second example, David desired to give God an offering from his heart - a cedar house for the Ark of the Covenant, which would be a house like David's, fit for a king. This led to the promise of the Messiah/Christ from David's house, who would rule forever. David described this above and beyond promise as the goodness of God towards him.

     From another reading portion from this Sh'mini "the eighth" Sabbath, David's son King Solomon wrote about an evil which he has seen under the sun. This evil is summed up this way: "If a man begets a hundred children, and lives many years...but his soul is not satisfied with goodness...even if he lives a thousand years twice - but has not seen goodness. Do not all go to one place?" (Eccl. 6:3-6, excerpt). The above and beyond goodness of God is needed, and even hungered for, by the human soul, for those things which are above and beyond the natural order (see the meaning of "the eighth above), no matter how naturally well off that person is. Solomon said that a man's life is a failure without that above and beyond goodness of God.

     From another Sh'mini Sabbath reading portion, the LORD had broken out against and killed one who had touched the Ark of the Covenant while it was being incorrectly moved to the City of David (Jerusalem). After that event: "...David would not move the ark of the LORD into the City of David; but David took it aside into the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite. The ark of the LORD remained in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite three months. And the LORD blessed (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) Obed-Edom and all his household." (2 Sam. 6:6-11, excerpt).

     Obed-Edom was faithful in allowing the Ark into his home and among his family, even though the previous mishandling of the Ark had just caused the death of a man. His offering of obedience and reverence was rewarded.

     This is a very interesting example of an above and beyond blessing of God as associated with Sh'mini, "the eighth". Obed-Edom's name means "servant of Edom" or "servant of the flesh". The fact that he is called a Gittite means he is from the Philistine city of Gath, also the hometown of Goliath the giant whom David killed. Perhaps this was not the expected place where one would leave the Ark of the Covenant. However, Obed-Edom must have treated the Ark with the special reverence that it deserved because the LORD blessed his house. There is a hint for us in the fact that the written Hebrew places an aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega prefix before Obed-Edom's name, which associated him with the (fore)knowledge of the identity of Messiah/Christ (see *note below). Obed-Edom would also be named later with the Levites as one of the doorkeepers for the (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) Ark. (1 Chron. 15:23-25).

     From this Sh'mini "the eighth" Sabbath reading portion, we also have the Atz-ma-ut scriptures to be read for the coming anniversary of Israel's statehood as mentioned above. We will also see that these reading portions fulfill the above and beyond meaning found in Sh'mini, "the eighth". The LORD shows us that Israel is more than just a nation in the earth. Its purpose is above and beyond what one might expect of a geo-political state. The LORD reveals this abundance of meaning: "Now it shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the LORD's house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and peoples shall flow to it. Many nations shall come and say, 'Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, and we shall walk in His paths.' For out of Zion the law shall go forth, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. And He shall judge between many peoples, and rebuke strong nations afar off; They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore...So the LORD will reign over them in Mount Zion." (Mic. 4:1-7, excerpt, see also Isa. 2:1-4).

     Regarding this nation of Israel, the LORD promises His/Messiah's/Christ's reign of peace, judgment of the nations, and the end to all war. The nations will come to Israel to receive and learn the Word of the LORD. This above and beyond purpose is prophetically hidden in one of the smallest nations on earth, but it is the nation of God's covenant people, and the LORD intends to rule all of the nations from this place upon which He has written His name.

     In Isaiah 60, another reading portion this Sabbath for Atz-ma-ut anniversary, the LORD describes the glory that will bring all of the nations of the earth to Israel. It is resurrection glory: "Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the LORD has risen upon you...The Gentiles/nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising...You shall know that I, the LORD, am your Savior and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob...Violence shall no longer be heard in your land, neither wasting nor destruction within your borders; But you shall call your walls Salvation, and your gates Praise...Also your people shall all be righteous; they shall inherit the land forever; The branch of My planting, the work of My hands, that I may be glorified." (Isa. 60, excerpts).

     It is fitting that the anniversary celebration of the re-establishing of the nation of Israel, and the above and beyond prophetic vision of the LORD towards this nation, be included this year with the Sh'mini, "the eighth", Sabbath reading portion. Let us understand the LORD's miraculous vision for that nation.

     There are many mentions of "the eighth" in scripture that are connected to meaningful and amazing events. However, except for the mention of "the eighth" in Lev. 9:1, above, there are no specific mentions of "the eighth" in the other reading portions from this Sabbath. This leads me to question the Lord as to why none of the other reading selections gathered together under this scheduled Sh'mini Sabbath portion have a specific mention of "the eighth"? For me, this is an example of the wisdom and revelation to be found in the schedule of Sabbath reading portions in general. "The eighth" is not just a specific ordinal number, but it contains a truth that surpasses above and beyond a literal connection to "the eighth". "The eighth" does not express only a physical reality, but the very vision and will of God for man and for the earth. It is an above and beyond vision that man could never have imagined. The New Testament gives us this clarity by saying: "...that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height - to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen." (Eph. 3:17-21). Paul was revealing "the eighth" realm to us in this set of verses. As a Jew, he would have studied this Sh'mini Sabbath reading portion.

     As I read these verses written by Paul, above, I can see where he is trying to pull us into the realm of "the eighth", a realm beyond natural knowledge and expectations, and exceedingly abundantly above what we now think and ask of God. It is said that man uses only 10% of his available brain capacity. Perhaps we have kept our understanding of God to the same limitation - 10% of His capabilities and plans for each of us and beyond us, into future generations. That would be a shame. Paul is telling us that we need to be filled with the knowledge of, and the belonging to Christ in order to truly comprehend the above and beyond contained in God, expressed here as "all the fullness of God", and its accessibility to us through Christ, who was the perfect, choicest offering that was provided for us. As believers in Christ, we can begin to desire and reach forth for this above and beyond understanding of the fullness of God meant for us. It is part of our purpose. This is especially important for us to know while living in these turbulent times before the return of Christ. 

     If you would like to learn more about this above and beyond fullness of God in us and for us, you can join me in my prayer: "Almighty God, Heavenly Father, how wonderful are Your thoughts towards me and towards the whole earth! You desire for me to understand the depth and heights of Your fullness as I deepen my joining with Jesus Messiah/Christ, Your beloved Son, and as I seek out the knowledge of Your Holy Spirit. Forgive me for the many times that I have limited Your power and Your will by not understanding that You are absolutely limitless. My Lord, I want to live in the fullness that You have intended for me so that I may walk in Your Ways and draw others to You with that rising light. Renew my mind and create a right spirit in me so that I can know and show others the above and beyond of my Lord. I pray for Your vision for Israel, for Your glory to appear in the midst of it, for Your peace to secure it, and Your rule to reign from it, and the awesome, earth-changing things You have in store for the whole world through that nation and its Messiah/Christ. I ask this in Jesus' name. AMEN."

*NOTE: aleph-tav written in Hebrew as אֶת, are the first and last letters of the Hebrew alphabet. The meaning of the two pictographic Hebrew letters can also be interpreted "Adonai (Lord) of the Cross/Covenant". In the New Testament, these letters are translated as Alpha and Omega written as ΑΩ , the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. These letters are those by which Jesus Christ identifies Himself in the Book of Revelation: see Rev. 1:8, Rev. 21:6, Rev. 22:13.

AbovePerfection

      This week's Sabbath reading portion is titled Sh'mini, which means "8th Day". The reading portion includes Lev. 9 through Lev. 11. The title comes from Lev. 9:1: "It came to pass (haya/hava/ava - exist, become (like), be established, to be finished/existence, shall be, become, breathe, the breath of living creatures, to live/ negatively, the root ava mentioned above includes the meaning: lust, greatly desire, covet, be greedy, crave, long for, turn aside) on the eighth day that Moses called Aaron and his sons and the elders of Israel." There is a positive and a negative meaning associated with the phrase "It came to pass", as we can see. Breathing life is created, existence is established, or the opposite of life - the darkness of heart that leads to sin and death is established.

     We see here in the meaning of the Hebrew of this verse that something became alive and breathing, came into existence on the eighth day. "Eighth" in Hebrew is semini. It is an ordinal number, showing a progression in order like sixth, seventh, eighth, and so on. The root words connected to semini: semone and samen, refer to "a surplus above the perfect seven" and "fatness, plenteousness". There is also a root word, saman, which can mean to shine from fat or oil, or, in a negative sense, to be covered in the grossness of fat, and to cover the heart with fat to render it callous so as not to heed the words of the prophet (see Isa. 6:10). Again, we can have a positive or negative result when going "above the perfect seven". The abundance above the seven can work two different ways depending upon the heart of the person. In another reading portion from this Sabbath, Solomon wrote of a man having great plenty in every way, "but his soul be not filled with good (tob - goodness, beauty, favor, gladness, joy, delight, merry, agreeable, to do rightly)". It would have been better, Solomon wrote, if that man had been a stillborn child rather than to not to see this goodness. He calls it vanity and an evil affliction (Eccl. 6:1-6). Good and goodness are part of the character and name of God (see Ex. 34:5-7, Ps. 23:5-6). Psalm 23 is an "eighth day Psalm" to me, incorporating the eighth day blessings of abundance, which are those blessings that result from exceeding above the perfection of "seven". We will read about those blessings and where they come from later.

     However, we see a problem today. We have a very prosperous society, but there is sickness of heart and mind, an evil affliction as Solomon wrote, because we consume the bounty, the fatness, but we as a society have systematically and deliberately removed the knowledge of the goodness of God. Without being able to incorporate that goodness, having all of earth's riches sickens the soul rather than gladdens it. Without the goodness that is rooted in God, Solomon wrote that man has no hope or future regardless of how much wealth he has or how long his days are (v. 10-12). Rather than the eighth day blessing, we are living the eighth day curse. Let's now see what happened on the eighth day in Lev. 9.

     The eighth day in Lev. 9 marks the beginning of the priests' ministry, after Aaron and his sons spent seven days of consecration, being set apart as holy. So in numeral order, the eighth day is above or beyond the perfection of the seven of consecration. This priestly ministry started with peace offerings, sin offerings and burnt offerings made to the LORD to make atonement for the priests and the people. This eighth day would be a special day: "...for today the LORD will appear to you...and the glory of the LORD will appear to you." (v. 4, 6). From the sacrifices, Aaron's sons "presented (masa - find, attain, suffice, deliver, secure, to meet, to encounter, to detect, to discover, to come to, obtain knowledge of, be in possession of) to him the (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) blood, which he sprinkled all around on the altar (mizbeah/zabah - altar/to slaughter, kill, sacrifice, to slaughter in divine judgment)." (v. 18).  After the offerings were completed, the LORD kept His promise: "Then Aaron lifted (nasa - lift up, bear up, carry, forgive, be exalted, take up) his (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) hand toward the people, blessed them, and came down (yarad - descend, sink down, go down alive into Hades [see Ps. 55:15-16], those who go down to the grave) from offering the sin offering, the burnt offering and peace offerings. And Moses and Aaron went into the tabernacle of meeting, and came out and blessed the (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) people. Then the glory of the LORD appeared to all the people, and fire came out from before the LORD and consumed the (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) burnt offering and the fat on the altar. When all the people saw it, they shouted and fell on their faces." (v. 22-24). This was an awesome eighth day event. The glory and fire of the LORD answered their offerings.

     The Hebrew word for blessing used above as Aaron blessed the people, also contains the meaning "to curse": (barak - bless, salute, kneel down, cause to kneel, be blessed, be adored, also to break down, to curse, to imprecate some evil on one by calling upon God, blaspheme, impious words against God, to wish ill). As we have seen above, the eighth day can have a dual meaning. What made the eighth day above such a wondrous event? 

     We can see the hint of the presence of Jesus Christ in this eighth day event. He is in the offering. He is in the knowledge of the blood. He is in the descent of Aaron from the brazen altar of sacrifice, just as Jesus descended into the realm of death and the grave after offering Himself as a sacrifice for us. There He led captivity captive, took the keys of authority over death, hell and the grave, and "ascended far above all the heavens". (see Ps. 68:18-19, Eph. 4:7-10, 1 Pet. 3:18-19, Jn. 20:16-18, Rev. 1:17-18). The eighth day to us must be all that is contained in the death, burial, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ into the realm far above the highest realms: the realm of all glory, which He has delivered to us (Jn. 17:22-24). It is from this realm of glory above the highest realms that He blesses us with all of the riches and abundance, particularly spiritual riches, of that glory realm (Phil. 4:18-29). The word "above" in Hebrew is al, meaning, "over, in addition to, above, excess, pre-eminence, state of rest, on high, the Highest". The root word, ala, of "above" gives us a deeper understanding of this highest region: "offer up, bring, come, cause to ascend, go up, light, increase, raised, arose, to be taken up into, go up over, exalted".  The al "above" is the place of God (Gen. 28:12-13). We have the scripture also from Paul: "...to know the love of Christ which passes (hyperballo - beyond anything, surpass, exceed, excel) knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fulness (pleroma - fulness, abundance, copiousness) of God. Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above (hyper - beyond, more than, above, very chiefest) all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen." (Eph. 3:19-21). What a wonderful eighth day calling to which we have been called! Paul tells us to "walk worthy of the calling to which you were called...". (Eph. 4:1).

     We have seen the duality in meaning of the eighth day, which can be either abundant blessing, or abundantly empty and hopeless life, a curse. The dividing line between the two, as we saw in the Hebrew meanings of Lev. 9 above, is the new and abundant life of glory in Jesus Messiah/Christ (see Jn. 10:7-11), or the vanity and evil of a life without Him and the work of salvation which He completed (Eph. 2:12-13). 

     We see this duality again immediately after the glory was experienced on the eighth day. This is what occurred: "Then Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it, put incense on it, and offered profane (zur - estranged, gone away, turn aside, depart, stranger, foreigner, enemy, loathsome, alienated, prostitute, adulterer, falsehood, lie) fire before the LORD, which He had not commanded them. So fire went out from the LORD and devoured them, and they died before the LORD. And Moses said to Aaron, 'This is what the LORD spoke, saying: 'By those who come near Me I must be regarded as holy; And before all people I must be glorified." (Lev. 10:1-3). These two priests, who had experienced the eighth day blood and glory, approached the LORD in a manner that did not respect His holiness and glory. By doing so, the LORD did not recognize them as priests, but as strangers, and destroyed them. Jesus mentioned the same thing about some of those who will claim to know Him and serve him doing spiritual works in His name. To them He will say: "I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness." (see Mt. 7:21-23). Jesus will not accept "strange fire" from us, a fire mixed with something loathsome and foreign to the Lord. Are we coming before the Lord with strange fire?

     Moses had two kinsmen of the dead priests to carry their dead (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) brethren from the front of the sanctuary, and out of the camp (v. 4-5). However, to Aaron and his two remaining sons who were still serving in the tabernacle, Moses gave a serious warning not to defile their holy priestly robes with signs of mourning for the (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) burning which the LORD had kindled, or to come out of the tabernacle "...lest you die, for the anointing oil of the LORD is upon you.' And they did according to the word of Moses." (v. 6-7). We want the anointing of the Lord, the priceless Holy Spirit, but do we understand the standards by which the Lord commands that we wear His anointing? Paul wrote: "Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are." (1 Cor. 3:16-17, see also 1 Cor. 6:19-20).

     As those who are part of the eighth day new and abundant life in Messiah/Christ, which is above the perfection of seven, we also have been made priests by God (1 Pet. 2:9-10). We are purposed to be blessed, as we offer our pure worship to God. We are here to bring God's eighth day glory among His *aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega people. Our golden bowls of incense are not filled with strange fire, but prayers, declaring the new song: "You (the Lamb, Jesus) are worthy to take the scroll, and to open its seals; For You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God; And we shall reign on the earth." (Rev. 5:9-10).

     Let's learn to walk worthy of this exceeding abundance from above that has been given to us from God through the death, burial (descent), resurrection and ascension of His Son.

*NOTE: aleph-tav written in Hebrew as אֶת, are the first and last letters of the Hebrew alphabet. In the New Testament, these letters are translated as Alpha and Omega written as Α Ω , the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, which is the name of Jesus Christ in the Book of Revelation: see Rev. 1:8, Rev. 21:6, Rev. 22:13.

     If you would like to know more about the eighth day and its calling and blessings, you can pray with me: "Dearest Father, You have called me into Your eighth day abundance through our Savior, Your Son, Jesus. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit to lead me into the new life of glory and priestly ministry before You. You said that You have filled me with all fulness of God. Through Christ, I have been joined to You in the highest realm, the realm of glory and exceeding abundance. This is the substance of Your Kingdom, and this is the calling and purpose to which I have been called. Help my understanding so that my offerings to You in holiness will bring forth Your glory in the earth. I ask this in the name of Jesus. AMEN."

     

Eighth

This week we resume the Sabbath readings in Leviticus, which is from the Latin, meaning "of the Levites". The Hebrew name of this third book of scripture is Va-yikra meaning "and He (God) called". In this third Book, the LORD is establishing something new. He commanded Moses to construct a tabernacle and furnishings for worship which would follow a pattern that God had shown to Moses on the mountain. Also established at this time would be a priesthood, led by Aaron, Moses' brother, as the high priest. The priests would be accepting and offering specific sacrifices for the atonement for their sins and the sins of the people, and for their forgiveness. Why was God establishing this new pattern? Sacrifices had been offered to God since Genesis, including Abel, Cain, Noah, Abraham, and so on, all done without the mediation and reconciliation ministry of the priest. While only the tribe of Levi could form the priesthood, the LORD had previously said to Moses in scripture regarding His people: "You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to Myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you will be a special treasure to Me above all people; for the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation." (Ex. 19:6). We can see here a prophetic promise of a priesthood that goes beyond the tribe of Levi, and extends to all of Israel. Long after this Levitical priesthood was established, Isaiah prophesied: "But you shall be named the priests of the LORD, they shall call you the servants of our God." (Isa. 61:6). This prophecy comes in a section that begins: "The Spirit of the LORD God is upon Me, because the LORD has anointed (masah - to rub with oil, to anoint, to consecrate, to spread out and expand (like a liquid)) Me..." (v. 1). As Jesus read this passage from Isaiah in the synagogue, He declared that part of the prophecy was fulfilled in that moment by Him. This prophecy is considered to be connected to the Anointed One, the Messiah, the Christ. Over a thousand years after Moses, the apostles Peter, and also John in the Book of Revelation, wrote about a royal priesthood, and of kings and priests, who are connected to the Messiah, Jesus. This priesthood consists of people who do not seem to be directly connected to the Levites: "His own special people...who once were not a people but are now the people of God..." (1 Peter 2:9-10). Perhaps this week's Sabbath reading will help us to understand more about the formation of the priesthood, and its ordained transformation to our present day. The title of this week's reading portion is Sh'mini, which means "eighth" in English. This portion covers Lev. chapters 9 through 11. Aaron and his sons had completed the seven days of their consecration as priests. Then, on the eighth day, their priestly ministry began with offerings for both Aaron and sons, and the people of Israel: "... make atonement for yourself and the people." (Lev. 9:7). Something unusual would happen, as Moses prophesied the Word of the LORD, as a result of the atonement made on this eighth day: "...for today the LORD will appear to you...This is the thing (hadabar) which the LORD commanded you to do, and the glory of the LORD will appear to you." (Lev. 9:1-4, 6). The glory would come as a result of obedience to "the thing" which the LORD had commanded them to do. "The thing" is dabar in Hebrew, or "the word, speech, voice, command, song" of God. The meaning of the individual letters in the word dabar, which are daleth, beth, and reysh, with the letter he added to the beginning of them, could also mean "Behold, the door to the house/family of the Highest". The glory and presence of God that comes from the service of the priesthood is a result of obedience to the Word of the LORD. That Word of creation, salvation, deliverance, life, abundance and holiness would be wonderful enough just as it is written, but even greater is that the glory of the Word is of such a nature that it became flesh, and dwelt among us. It is light, it is living, it is Spirit, it is truth and grace, and it is the Person of Jesus Christ, who possesses the glory as of the only begotten of the Father (Jn. 1:1-5, 14). The priests followed the hadabar command of God, and the glory of the LORD did indeed appear to all. We see the opposite of this in the second reading portion for this Sabbath from Lev. 10. Two of Aaron's sons, who were consecrated priests, put fire in their censers, added incense to it, and "offered profane/strange (zur - another place, strange, foreign, enemy, loathsome, falsehood, turn aside, depart) fire before the LORD which He had not commanded them. So fire went out from the LORD and devoured them, and they died before the LORD." (Lev. 10:1). Aaron's other two sons had to go and carry out the bodies of their brothers from before the sanctuary. Some may think that this seems harsh of God, but we can find out why this action of seeming worship cost the two brothers their lives. One thing we know for sure that made this fire "profane" in God's eyes is that He did not tell them to do it. If it is not of the Spirit and the Word (of God), then it is of corrupted flesh. Let's look and see how Paul explained this: "For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace...So then those who are in the flesh cannot please God...For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of God." (Rom. 8:5-8, 14). We can get more understanding perhaps in the names of the two sons who offered this "profane fire". One was named Nadab, which means "generous, spontaneous, freely offered, incite to anything, to impel oneself". It is good to be generous, but giving by the flesh rather than by the Word and the Spirit is like bringing death before God. Our "good ideas", or "good intentions" mean nothing if they have not been birthed by the Spirit of Truth. The second son ws named Abihu, meaning "he is my father". A son of God, as Paul wrote, is led by the Spirit of God. It is not enough to say, "My father is Aaron, or My Father is God, so I can do this". An anointed son obeys his Father (see Phil. 2:5-11), who is Spirit. We see this in what the LORD spoke after this sad event: "By those who come near Me I must be regarded as holy; and before all the people, I must be glorified." (Lev. 10:3). We, the priests of the LORD, cannot come so disrespectfully into the presence of God in the rotting death of flesh. By doing so, we rob all of the people of the glory of God. Scripture says in an earlier part of Leviticus that if an anointed priest sins, it brings guilt on all the people, and he must make a burnt offering sacrifice for his sin (Lev. 4:3). In another portion from this Sabbath's reading, we see another example of seemingly "good intentions" gone horribly wrong. In 2 Sam. 6, David wants to bring the Ark of God up to Jerusalem, to be placed in a tabernacle there. However, they did not transport the Ark as the LORD commanded Moses to do, carried on poles by the priests, but they placed the Ark on a new cart pulled by oxen. As the oxen stumbled, and the cart shifted, the Ark began to slide off the back of the cart. Uzziah (meaning "strength") put his hand forward to steady the Ark. God struck Uzziah there, and he died by the Ark of God. David was angry at the death of Uzziah (v. 1-8). Later, David would make a second attempt to bring up the Ark to Jerusalem, but this time, they would do so according to the Word that the LORD had commanded Moses: "And so it was, when those bearing the Ark of the LORD had gone six paces, that he sacrificed oxen and fatted sheep." (v. 13). This time, the Ark was carried, as it was commanded by God generations before. "New" ideas, like new carts, and the strength of men, if they break the Word of God, will not result in the blessings and life of the Spirit, but in the death found in the flesh. In another portion from this Sabbath's reading, King Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes: "All the labor of man is for his mouth, and yet the soul is not satisfied." (Eccl. 6:7). He wrote that if a man seems to have everything, "but his soul is not satisfied with (he-behold) goodness (he-behold)...I say that a stillborn child is better than he...Though it has not seen the sun or known anything, this has more rest than that man, even if he lives a thousand years twice - but has not seen (vawhe - behold)..." (v. 3-6). In these verses, "goodness" is greatly emphasied by the addition of Hebrew letters not normally part of the word "goodness" that translate to "behold!" and "nail". This emphatic goodness required by the soul of men cannot be satisfied by the desires or comfort of the flesh, as Solomon wrote. As mentioned earlier, there is a ministering priesthood connected to the obedience and sacrifice of the Messiah, our Savior Jesus, revealed openly in the New Testament (1 Peter 2:4-5, 9-10, Rev. 1:5-6). There is also a connection to Messiah, the Son of David, Jesus, mentioned in this week's Sabbath reading portion which deals with the ministry of the priests. In 1 Chron. 17, David was given a promise from God, later called the Davidic Covenant, in which the LORD promised that David's Son would rule on the throne forever: "He shall build Me a house, and I will establish his throne forever. I shall be his Father, and he shall be My son...and I will establish him in My house and in My kingdom forever; and his throne shall be established forever." (v. 12-14). David understood very well what God had just promised him - that the Messiah would come from David's house, and would rule on an eternal throne. Because of this understanding, David was overwhelmed and humbled exceedingly (v. 16-20). Now knowing all of these things, what does the Sabbath title Sh'mini, or "Eighth", have to do with this? The eighth day in this Sabbath portion from which we get the title, marks the end of the seven day sanctification period of the priests, and the beginning of their ministry in the tabernacle before God on behalf of themselves and the people. The eighth day also memorializes the end of one day of Passover plus the seven days of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, and it is a special Sabbath commanded by God (see Lev. 23:5-8). The meaning of the "Eighth Day" in rabbinical teaching is expressed this way: seven days mark the completion of the natural order, but the eighth day signifies a step above/beyond the natural order. The priesthood of God in Christ is to bring all of the people up to a higher level, beyond the natural realm and into the spiritual realm of God. This is not done by ruling over the people by natural understanding and strength, nor by approaching God in any way we please, but in leading the people into the way of the sacrificial atonement of Christ, and God's forgiveness (Lev. 4:26,31, 35). Jesus, our great High Priest who has passed through the heavens (Heb. 4:14-16), is also the atoning sacrifice that we minister to all people as God's priests: "...these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate (parakletos - comforter, advocate, one who pleads another's cause before a judge, an intercessor) with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And He Himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world." (1 Jn. 2:1-2). If you would like to learn more about this special priesthood in the atoning sacrifice of Christ, you can pray with me: Dear Father, You established a priesthood that followed a specific pattern of atonement and forgiveness. You fulfilled that pattern through Your dear Son, Jesus, and You have made us priests and kings before You on behalf of all people through Him. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit so that I can minister the atonement and forgiveness in a manner that upholds Your holiness and glory before the people. Help me to walk in obedience to Your Word and Spirit, and not in my own flesh. Forgive me for those occasions when I have relied on my own understanding and strength, rather than Your hadabar commands. Let my life glorify You, and lift all people into the heavenly realm of Your presence. I ask these things in Jesus' name. AMEN."

Reverence

Our society in general has lost a sense of reverence towards God, and the things of God. If society reflects a lack of reverence, it is likely, as we will see, that it is the people of God who failed to reverence the Lord first. This week's Sabbath reading brings up this question to us, the believers. The title of this Sabbath's reading is sh'mini, meaning "8th". According to Jewish teaching, the "8th" represents a step above and beyond the perfection of the number "7", which refers to the perfection of the natural creation as written in Genesis. The 8th also symbolizes resurrection and spiritual regeneration and renewal. Eight/eighth is represented by the Hebrew letter cheth which means "inner room or chamber, to separate, to cut off, to protect". So we can say that the term 8th represents God's desire to bring us to the next step in supernatural perfection, deeper and closer to Him. "The 8th day" is mentioned often in scripture. There is also a change involved in the concept of 8th, the same change that is found in resurrection and renewal, as a result of this next step in progressing perfection. The Sabbath reading starts in Leviticus 9, where God is about to bring His people into that next level. God commanded that there be seven days of consecration of the tabernacle and the priests, Aaron and his four sons, "...that you may not die." (Lev. 8:33-35). Moses had just received these commands from God on the mountain. On the 8th day, the priests were commanded by the LORD through Moses to prepare specific sacrifices "for today the LORD will appear to you...and the glory of the LORD will appear to you." (Lev. 9:4-6)). The priests were to make sacrifices of atonement for themselves and the people (v. 7). The presence of the LORD, therefore, was to be ushered in with sacrifice and reverence so that they might live. Moses and Aaron blessed the people: "Then the glory of the LORD appeared to all the people, and fire came out from before the LORD and consumed the burnt offering and the fat on the altar. When all the people saw it, they shouted and fell on their faces." (v. 23-24). However, the reverence and awe of the LORD experienced on that day did not last long. Immediately afterward, two of Aaron's sons burned incense in their censers that had been ignited by "profane/strange fire" (zur - strange, of an enemy, a foreigner, of one alienated, turned from the way). The fire that they used was not holy to the LORD. As a result, fire went out from the LORD and killed the two priests (Lev. 10:1-2). This is the explanation that the LORD gave to Moses and Aaron: "By those who come near Me, I must be regarded as holy. And before all the people, I must be glorified." (v. 3). We must approach the LORD with reverence, and glorify Him before the people, not for His benefit, but for our benefit, and the benefit of the people. He said that His priests must "distinguish between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean, and that you may teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the LORD has spoken to them by the hand of Moses." (v. 10-11). We cannot expect the people to reverence the LORD, or the things of the LORD, if we do not reverence Him. Those who believe in Christ are also considered priests before Him (1 Peter 2:9-10, Rev. 1:6, 5:10), who offer spiritual sacrifices in His spiritual house (1 Peter 2:5). The Apostle Paul also warned us against an attitude of irreverence concerning the things of the Lord. He was correcting the Church at Corinth regarding their irreverent attitude and actions involving The Holy Communion, or Eucharist (1 Cor. 11:17-26). He told them the revelation that He received directly from the Lord regarding this remembrance of the Last Supper, which was a Passover Seder, that Jesus had with His disciples. At that time, Jesus revealed the necessity of His body and His blood, represented by the bread and the wine, as a sacrifice, and as a new covenant for them. The Church at Corinth was treating the Communion as if it were an occasion for food and drink. Then Paul gave us this warning that brings to mind the deaths of the two sons of Aaron, which we read above: "Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup in an unworthy manner (anaxios - "irreverently") will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself...For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner (irreverently) eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep (are dead). (v. 27-30). As the LORD told Moses and Aaron, when His priests are not reverent in their ways before Him, they rob the LORD of His glory before the eyes of the people. Paul wrote, "...whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." (1 Cor. 10:31). In another example from this week's Sabbath reading, David and many from Judah, were attempting to bring the ark of the covenant into the City of David, or Jerusalem, in 2 Samuel 6. Although this account does not mention an "8th day", if we look at the Hebrew key words used in verses 1 and 2, there is an underlying meaning of resurrection, and even the Rapture, the catching away of the living believers (see 1 Thess. 5:14-18 for a description). If you wish to see a breakdown of these Hebrew words and their meanings, I will add them to the bottom of this entry*. We find out in this account from 2 Sam. 6, that the ark of the covenant has a name: "...the ark of God whose name is called by the Name, the LORD of hosts, who dwells (between) the cherubim" (v. 2). The ark was moved on a cart, which is against the command of the LORD that it must only be carried on poles. One of the movers, Uzzah (meaning "strength, power, might"), reached out with his hand to steady the ark when the oxen pulling the cart stumbled (v. 6). He died immediately. David became angry, and was afraid (yare - "fear, reverence, honor, respect, awe") of the LORD that day, and then asked, "How can the ark of the LORD come to me?" (v. 8-9). Now David sought the proper way to handle the holy thing of God that bears His Name. On the second attempt, men, not a cart, bore the ark. Not only did David bring up the ark with joy and praise, as he had done the first time, but David now also wore a linen effod (a change of clothes to white linen, which symbolizes the LORD's righteousness), but also had sacrifices made every six (the Hebrew letter vaw, meaning "nail, nailed to, joined") paces. "So David, and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting and the sound of the trumpet." (v. 13-15, see also 1 Thess. 4:16-17). David's wife, who was the previous king's daughter, had contempt for David and the manner by which he brought up the ark, and because of that, she was barren for the rest of her life (v. 16, 20-23). So David, who loved the LORD and was already familiar with the power of praise, learned the power of reverence also, and the danger of neglecting it. He successfully brought the ark into the city of Jerusalem. God's people were brought a step above and beyond in perfection, and it was accomplished through reverence. The author of the Book of Hebrews wrote: "Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. For our God is a consuming fire." (Heb. 12:28-29). We can see that there is a connection to being taken above and beyond the natural perfection into the supernatural perfection of God, and our continued reverence for Him, and the things that are called after His Name. Our reverence also glorifies God before the people. Perhaps there are holy things that we have begun to take for granted in our faith, such as the name of God, the Word of God, Communion, and the resurrection and rapture of the believers. All of these things incorporate the principles of the 8th day, which include change, resurrection, renewal and regeneration. However, there is also the necessary ingredient of reverence that must accompany these things. If you would like to know more about reverence toward the LORD, you can pray with me: "Heavenly Father, You are great, and holy, and worthy of our praise and reverence. You desire to bring us into Your inner chamber, and to a higher level of perfection in You, and into the exact image of Your Son, Jesus. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit so that I can walk in reverence before You always, as You change and perfect me. I ask these things in Jesus' Name, AMEN." *An addendum to this entry: First we will read 2 Sam. 6:1-2, and then the meaning from the key Hebrew words: "Again, David gathered all the choice men of Israel, thirty thousand. And David arose and went with all the people who were with him from Baale Judah to bring up from there the ark of God...". One meaning of these two verses might also be: "Again the Beloved (denotes the Messiah) assembled, collected, took away, harvested, received the company or family which is under a leader, of the taught, yoked, and lifted up, the elect, the selected, the tried, the examined, the proven, that which is the same as, or an exact copy. The Beloved was raised up and caused to come forth, and carried away, led forth, the lords or citizens of praise, the flock, the kindred, the attendants who were with Him, in order to bring up, ascend, take up, carry away and fetch up the chest, especially a coffin, of the Lion, pierced, piercing."

Resurrection

We have entered the season of the resurrection of Jesus! There are several occasions in scripture, in both the Old and New Testaments, when the dead were raised. However, the resurrection of Christ is different from these other events, which is why He is called the First Fruits of those who are raised from the dead (1 Cor. 15:20-23). Something extremely powerful in the spiritual realm was achieved by the singular event of the resurrection of Christ. We assume that the others who were raised from the dead in scripture went on to finish their natural lives on the earth. Christ, however, was a Door to the eternal through His resurrection. He said, "I am the door of the sheep...I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture." (Jn. 10:7-9). Notice that Jesus said the sheep shall go both in and out. He is a two-way Door. Jesus showed this to His disciples after His death. After His resurrection, Jesus appeared to His disciples at different times. On one occasion, although He could be physically touched (solid), and told His disciples that He was not a spirit, Jesus could mysteriously enter a room where doors and windows were shut (Jn. 20:19, 24-29). Jesus became the Door by which eternity and natural space and time existed in the same place. The Greek word anastasis is translated into the word "resurrection" in English. It means what we would expect: raising up, raising from the dead, raised to life again. The root word, anistemi, also includes the meaning: of those who leave a place to go elsewhere, of those who prepare themselves for a journey, to cause to be born, to cause to appear. It also means "to stand, as the foundation of a building". The most basic meaning of the Greek words used for "resurrection" here is "to uphold or sustain the authority or force of anything". Resurrection comes from a place of absolute authority and power. It was by this absolute authority and power, and even by God's glory, that Jesus was raised (Acts 2:22-24, 3:14-15, 4:10, Rom. 6:4, 1 Cor. 6:14). The only faiths that include resurrection as a doctrine are those that have an all-powerful Creator as their center. We associate resurrection with going to heaven, and this is a blessed destination for those in Christ. However, the goal of the authority, power, and glory of God does not end at heaven. The resurrection accomplished through Christ ultimately brings the eternal to the earthly realm. As we will see, I hope, the Resurrection is not just about where we will end up, but what we are to be now. This principle of the intermingling of eternity with the earthly realm is also found in this week's Sabbath reading portion. The title of the Sabbath reading is "Sh'mini", meaning the 8th. The 8th day in this case refers to the ending of Passover and the beginning of the 49 days until the next feast, which is Pentecost. The Jewish concept of the number 8, or 8th day, also means going beyond the measurement of natural time, which is represented by the seven days of creation, and into the eternal. In Lev. 9, Moses called the priests, Aaron and his sons, on the 8th day to begin offering sacrifices to "make atonement for yourself and for the people" because "...today the LORD will appear to you...the glory of the LORD will appear to you." (v. 4, 6-7, 23-24). This also serves as a prophetic picture of the sin offering, the grain offering and the peace offering, which was embodied in Christ, that allowed the presence and glory of the God of eternity to be seen by all men. It is also recorded in scripture that at the same moment of Christ's sacrifice, the separating veil in the temple was also torn, and allowed men to see into the Holy of Holies, containing the Mercy Seat, or the Throne of God (Mt. 27:51). Even after showing Himself before Israel on the 8th day, the LORD had to teach a necessary but sad lesson to the priests regarding His absolute authority. This is the same authority involved in the resurrection of Christ, and the melding of the eternal and the natural creation. Two of Aaron's sons decided to offer to the LORD burned incense from their priestly censers. However, the LORD called this offering a "profane (to be strange or foreign, as opposed to Jehovah) fire before the LORD, which He had not commanded them." (Lev. 10:1). Aaron's two sons died that day when the LORD sent out fire and devoured them. The thing that made their offering offensive is that God had not instructed them to do it. Moses explained this shocking event to Aaron by relating what the LORD had told him: "By those who come near Me, I must be regarded as holy; and before all the people, I must be glorified." (v. 3). It was and is vital for the people of God to understand His absolute authority, and have complete confidence in it, because it would be by that same authority that God would bring about the resurrection of His Son and His Kingdom to the earth. His priests undermined that authority that day by doing something that God had not commanded them to do. How many times have we decided what we will do before the LORD, when He has not instructed us to do it? How many words have we spoken in His name that He never gave us to speak? This undermines His (resurrection) authority before the people. In another example, this time from this Sabbath's haftarah reading, David decided that he would build a temple for the LORD, because God should have a house instead of a tabernacle of tents (1 Chron. 17). David tells his idea to Nathan the prophet, who also thinks it is a wonderful and appropriate idea. God, however, has other ideas. Nathan, after having a dream, had to go back to David, and explain the LORD's thoughts: "Go and tell My servant David, Thus says the LORD: "You shall not build Me a house to dwell in. For I have not dwelt in a house since the time that I brought up Israel, even to this day, but have gone from tent to tent, and from one tabernacle to another." (v. 4-5). God then, however, began to prophesy to David about the eternal throne and house to be inhabited by one from David's natural line (1 Chron. 17:11-15). Here again, there is promised an intermingling of the eternal with the natural or physical time and space of the earthly realm. This promise made by God to David was concerning the coming Messiah. In another haftarah Sabbath reading, Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes that man has no satisfaction, no fulfillment, no completed purpose without the assurance, the knowledge and the experience of the eternal. Life without eternity is like "grasping for the wind...For who knows what is good for man in life, all the days of his vain life which he passes like a shadow? Who can tell a man what will happen after him under the sun?" (Eccl. 6:9, 12). Solomon knew that there had to be an intermingling of the eternal with the natural for a man's life to be an effective life, a life of meaning. This Sabbath's reading, as well as dealing with the importance of "the 8th", is also dedicated to the re-birth of the nation of Israel in 1948. Because of this anniversary, this Sabbath is also called "Atzma-ut" in recognition of this event. The nation of Israel, as well as should be the case for all of the people of God, is a living testimony to the intermingling by God of the eternal and the natural. God showed this prophetic pattern to Moses, and commanded that it should be told to the priests and the people. On this special Sabbath of Atzma-ut, Isaiah 60 is read. Knowing now what we have discovered regarding the plan of God to intermingle His eternal realm with the earthly realm, as we read Isaiah, this becomes very apparent: "Arise (qum: to rise, be raised up, be established, to make binding), shine; for your light has come! And the glory of the LORD has risen (zarah: arise, rise up, come forth, break out, shine, appear, irradiate-to shoot forth beams of light) upon you. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and deep darkness the people; but the LORD will arise (again the use of zarah) 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 (zerah: dawning, shining, a rising of light)...Then you shall see and become radiant, and your heart shall swell with joy...They (those who come to these "risen" ones) shall ascend with acceptance on My altar, and I will glorify the house of My glory. Who are these who fly like a cloud, and like doves to their roosts?...I will make you an eternal excellence, a joy of many generations...You shall know that I, the LORD, am your Savior and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob...you shall call your walls Salvation (Yeshuah: the name Jesus), and your gates, Praise (tehillah: adoration, thanksgiving to God; root meaning: to shine, to flash forth light)...the LORD will be to you an everlasting light, and your God your glory...I, the LORD, will hasten it in its time." As we see in the prophecy of Isaiah, those who understand the full implications of the resurrection of Christ, and the opening of the Door into the eternal for those here on earth, will have tremendous impact even on those who are in thick natural and spiritual darkness, because of our qualities of eternal "light". Daniel also prophesied that those who know God will be "wise": "Those who are wise (sakal: understanding, wisely understand, have insight, to look at or behold (a figure, a likeness), to put his hands across) shall shine like the brightness of the firmament, and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever (olam: perpetual time, time out of mind) and ever (ad: forever (of God's existence), also to put on (as an ornament)." (Dan. 12:3). This also is the plan of God which is fulfilled through the resurrection of His Son, and our understanding of all that the resurrection accomplished. The Living Door of resurrection, Jesus, not only opens the gates of heaven to us, but opens the gates of earth to heaven. Our Father, by His authority, power, and glory, has united eternity and earth by raising His Son, Jesus, from the dead. If you would like to know Jesus as the Resurrection and the Life, you can pray: "Lord Jesus, I believe that You died to cleanse me from my sin. I believe that You rose from the dead. I believe that You have opened the door of heaven for me, and made earth and eternity one, which is the Kingdom of God. Baptize me, Lord, in Your Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, and teach me to be the radiating light of Your resurrection, and the eternity of God, even in the middle of darkness here on earth. I ask this in Your blessed Name, AMEN."