In His Dust – 2. An Overview - His Word, Our Defense

In His Dust – An Overview 
His Word, Our Defense
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Recently, I heard an online roundtable discussion among leaders who are exposing corruption and bringing truth to light so we can act accordingly. Each leader was asked, “What can we do?” One man said something I didn’t expect given the topics of discussion – he said, “We must learn all we can about Yeshua (Jesus). We must know Him, spend time with Him, and follow Him. Then, we will be ready.”

Well… that doesn’t sound like an action item, does it? But, it is! In the worst trial we face, our response should be, “What would Yeshua do?” He has not only given us His life to imitate, but He has given us the Spirit to discern the right action in every situation and His resurrection power to follow through. If we will let His words abide in us, we will be ready, even in situations that take us off guard.

Two verses of Scripture have been paramount to me in the last weeks –

• “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15), and
• “If you abide in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free!” (John 8:31-32)

So, let’s abide and study as we fight with our prayers and give action with kindness and generosity that will overcome the darkness!

Through my next emails, I hope to pass along to you a series of writings about Yeshua called In His Dust, a new category at ShaleFragments.com. I have been studying the Hebraic meanings of Yeshua’s words to understand His original intent more fully. I believe when we understand the author’s original intent in any book of the Bible, we can then give a proper application to our own lives.

This winter, I’ve been listening to the teaching of Dr. Dwight A. Pryor, and my heart and mind are soaring! (Dwight was the Founder and President of the Center for Judaic-Christian Studies and a founding member of the Jerusalem School of Synoptic Research where He studied for decades with Jewish and Christian scholars in Israel. He is now with our Lord.) I simply cannot wait to share with you what I am learning, not only for your growth and equipping, but to instill these truths deeper into myself!

The Importance of the Author’s Original Intent
In previous studies, I wrote, “The Old Testament was originally written in Hebrew with a few spots of Aramaic in the books of Daniel and Ezra. The New Testament was originally written in Greek.” Greek was the language of the entire region in the first century, so the life and teachings of Yeshua were translated into Greek for everyone. However, they were originally recorded in Hebrew before being translated into Greek, because the Jewish people spoke, studied, and wrote in Hebrew. Therefore, it is valuable to learn the Hebraic meanings and idioms that are not always apparent in the Greek.

As an example (extreme to make the point), if I told a person in Africa it was raining cats and dogs, they would not understand it was pouring rain, but rather they might think small animals were falling from the sky. I would need to explain my words.

So, at the end of each teaching, I will give an application to our current day with my best understanding of the original intent (the Lord willing). I would love to receive your thoughts through email, as well. Since emails can be overwhelming, I will try to keep each teaching to one page. You may respond by “replying” to the email.

If you didn’t read my previous explanation of the term In His Dust, I will recap the principle here:

In His Dust
In first-century Israel during the time Yeshua lived on earth, there were hundreds of rabbis (teachers). Their disciples would learn from them by trekking through life with them, observing their actions and imitating their words. A well-known saying arose – you should learn from a rabbi by covering yourself in his dust, meaning that you should follow so closely behind him as he traveled from town to town that billows of sandy granules would cling to your clothes. As you walked after your rabbi, the Spirit of God would change your heart. Metaphorically, I desire to be covered in Rabbi Yeshua’s dust. Dwight is helping me as I listen to his teaching.

In the 1980s, I attended classes taught by Dwight, but I was so new to my faith and struggles inhibited my learning. I had no idea of the treasure before me. I do remember his humility, humor, personable nature, laughter, and request for peppermint tea when he came to our home for dinner (smile). So, come along with me and learn as I do my best to transfer Dwight’s teaching in my own, perhaps more concise, words. I can’t wait to hear your thoughts!

Something important to know before we begin
As you know, Yeshua the Messiah did not have a New Testament (what we have called the compilation of His life and teaching, and the Apostle’s letters to the believing communities, and John’s Revelation).

Yeshua was born into a conservative Jewish family and so was steeped in the learning of the Torah (the first five books of the Bible), the Prophets, and the Writings. We call this the Old Testament; the Jews call it the TENAKH. TENAKH is an acronym for these three components:

Teachings (or Torah) + Prophets (or Nevi ’im) + Writings/Psalms (or Ketuvim) =
T + N + K = TENAKH

The Torah or teachings (translated by some as Law) were a gift of grace from God to an already-redeemed people. The Jews desired to keep the Law out of gratitude for their redemption and deliverance from slavery, not to win God’s favor. They knew His favor was not based on their merit but on the covenant He made with them. God’s salvation was always by grace.

And so, the Torah was seen by the Jews and by Yeshua as a treasure, a precious inheritance, God’s loving guidance, and the work of God’s Spirit that would one day be written on their hearts. (See Psalm 1:2; Psalm 19:7-14; Psalm 119:97; Jeremiah 31:31-34; Ezekiel 36:25-26; Joel 2:28 – NASB)

Yeshua embodied and fulfilled the Torah. He explained and gave His life for its true intent. He said, “Do not think that I came to abolish the Torah or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill…” (Matthew 5:17f) By His Spirit, we would fulfill His teaching, understanding that we never did or never can earn His favor. We seek His ways by the Spirit out of gratitude for His gift of redemption, deliverance, and favor!

Next
I hope to share about binding and loosing! :)

Shale Fragments™ - devotionals by Beth Ann Phifer is a division of Flower Girl Greetings, LLC. ©2020, All Rights Reserved.
Blessings and love in Him,
Beth Ann