Our Banner Who Gathers Us

Our Banner Who Gathers Us 
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Dear friends… beloved of the Lord,
We grieve together for our brothers, sisters, and all people in the land of Israel. The depth of evil that took place on October 7^th is incomprehensible. We pray together for the survivors to be protected and, if they do not know Messiah Yeshua (Jesus), that they would come to know Him during this time. May they see Him in dreams and visions and in the pages of Scripture. May they be drawn to Him by the Father and see Him clearly as their Savior with spiritual eyes and receptive hearts. He is the Only One Who can save them now and for eternity. We pray for a spiritual awakening and an outpouring of the Holy Spirit across the land of Israel!

When evil strikes nationally or globally, we look for a focal point, a rallying flag… someone to show us the way, someone to look to… someone of integrity who gives us comfort, calls us together in unity, and declares the best way forward. But there is no one such person or president or flag. Only our Master Yeshua and His disciples who follow close to His side.

Yeshua stands high and lifted up at the right hand of the Father as our rallying Focus. Just as He directed Nicodemus on that night over 2,000 years ago, we lift our eyes and hearts to Him… all at one time, all over the world. We seek His voice, direction, declaration, and comfort.

Yeshua said to Nicodemus, “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:14-16)

1,500 years prior, Yeshua’s words to Nicodemus were foreshadowed by Moses:

“The Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died. So, the people came to Moses and said, ‘We have sinned, because we have spoken against the Lord and you; intercede with the Lord that He may remove the serpents from us.’ And Moses interceded for the people. Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a standard; and it shall come about, that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, he will live.’ And Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on the standard; and it came about, that if a serpent bit any man, when he looked to the bronze serpent, he lived.”

Moses rallied the people around a pole lifted high with a serpent on it to save the Israelites. Why was Yeshua compared to the serpent on Moses’ pole? After all, the serpent represents sin and evil. Because, as the apostle Paul wrote of Yeshua, He became sin for us – “He [God] made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21)

By His blood, He paid the debt of our sin and, in exchange, gave us His righteousness. He saved us by grace, an unmerited, undeserved favor. His blood covers us always.

In Moses’ day, the people didn’t realize that the serpent on that pole represented their sin and the sin of all people that would be crushed for all time when Yeshua was crushed on the Roman execution pole. So, what is our part? Simply opening our hearts and hands to receive His gift of salvation and forgiveness! It sounds too good to be true, but it is true!

And now Yeshua the Messiah is high and lifted up as our risen Lord! He is our rallying pole, our Banner Who gathers us. He is our Focus of hope, our Comfort, our Direction, and our Way forward – raised high above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come! (Ephesians 1:21)

He beckons the world to be reconciled to God through Himself. We become His rallying pole for others to find this reconciliation. Paul calls us “ambassadors for Messiah, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.” (2 Corinthians 5:21)

About the Art – Moses called God Yahweh Nissi (The Lord our Banner) after the Israelite’s victory over a cruel enemy. Nissi is derived from the Hebrew nēs meaning signal pole, standard, or banner. The Israeli flag’s blue color was inspired by the Jewish prayer shawl that symbolizes trust in God. The red letters and ribbons in the art symbolize our Yeshua Messiah Who gave His blood and said, “The Son of Man must be lifted up, so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life.” (John 3:14-15) The Yahweh Nissi Art Card is available in the Hebrew Names of God Collection at Flower Girl Greetings.com

Shale Fragments™ - devotionals by Beth Ann Phifer is a division of Flower Girl Greetings, LLC. ©2023, All Rights Reserved.
Blessings and love in Him,
Beth Ann