Blessing Israeli Believers April 2019

The Season of Passover Is Upon Us - Passover/Unleavened Bread - April 19-27

From our co-founder Dov Schwarz,

The first night of this very unique and special holiday is Passover, which then enters into the time of Unleavened Bread. In Exodus 14:1-28, while the wrath of God was sweeping over Egypt, the inhabitants of the house with the blood of the lamb on the doorpost would be spared and God's wrath would pass over them.

The Jewish people then, and many today, remove any food with leaven from their midst, and only eat food with no leaven for seven days. Of course leaven is an Old Testament type or shadow of sin. In this New Covenant with Messiah Jesus we see the fulfillment of these things.

Yeshua is the Passover Lamb and those who have believed in Him spiritually have applied the blood of the Lamb to the doorpost of their hearts. This facilitates His followers to be spared from God's wrath and on the day of judgment, His wrath will "passover" those who have the blood of the Lamb! Now we are to remember that the Passover Lamb is our sinless (unleavened) sacrifice, which should provoke us to live a holy life and maintain a holy faith community in Him.

Let's listen in as Paul the apostle is warning the Corinthian church about the seriousness of allowing sin (leaven) to spread in the church:

Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. (1 Corinthians 5:6-8)

Please pray for our Israeli Believing communities here is Israel. Pray that we may be salt and light, and that we may continually be a faithful witness of the Passover Lamb Yeshua here in the Promised Land!

Update from Efraim & Jeannie in Northern Galilee

Dear Friends,
Shalom -
שלום Blessings and peace to you all.

The Spring season is just days from now and here in Israel we have experienced one of the coldest and wettest winters in many years. In fact, we have had 130% of our annual rainfall so far. This is God's special blessing upon the Land and people of Israel
(Deuteronomy 28:12).

The almond trees put forth their buds and flowers this season; a sign that winter's grip has passed and spring is coming. The almond groves around the Land glisten like an
ocean of white flowers. The fragrance of the almond buds is so soothing and refreshing.

The budding of the almond tree was a sign of change. In Jeremiah 1:11, the appearance of the almond branch was a symbol of the steadfastness of the Lord and His faithfulness to fulfill His word. The faithfulness of the Lord is a truth we live by and need to be deeply rooted in. The Lord is faithful and trustworthy and this is the basis for our enduring faith.

Here at our Light of Galilee Congregation, we are reminded of that faithfulness on a regular basis. We have a small fellowship of Jews and Gentiles. Most of the people are of limited means and have testimonies that speak of hard circumstances. What we do have is faith in the Lord to meet our needs and the testimony of changed lives in Yeshua.

Our Arabic speaking fellowship has been re-launched and we are hoping that this will be a source of encouragement
to the Lebanese brothers and sisters and the other Arabs in Western Galilee. Please pray for these dear people as they serve the Lord. Pray that together we can reach Jews and Arabs for Yeshua here in Galilee.

These are days of uncertainty in Israel. We are in the throes of a contentious election campaign for a new government in Israel. Politics aside, it is my hope that we in Israel do not become even more divided as a result of the campaign. I am comforted by the fact that the Lord, the most High, rules and reigns. He has raised up and brings down kings and dynasties.Pray that all people here might realize that the Lord God is the one who watches over Israel. (Psalm 121:4)

March 21st was the celebration of the festival of Purim and the story from the Book of Esther. It is a fun time for boys and girls in Israel to dress up in costumes according to tradition. On Purim Day, thousands of little girls throughout Israel are dressed up as beautiful Queen Esther; though today you also find as many little girls dressing up like Wonder Woman!

The story of the Book of Esther is how the hidden hand of God reached out to the Jewish people living in exile in the land of Persia and saved them from destruction. When the book was written sometime in the fourth century B.C.E., the ancient nation of Iran was a threat to the existence of Israel. It is almost ironic; Iran stands in the same role as a threat to the land of Israel today.

If the leaders of Iran would read the Book of Esther, perhaps they would stop threatening Israel and be more concerned about their own survival. The warning and words of comfort are given in Psalm 121 that the one who protects Israel is always present. "He that watches over Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps." The Lord has spoken and His word stands true and everlasting.

Yours in Yeshua, Efraim & Jeannie