A few days ago someone greeted me oddly. They said, "Hello Servant of God!" I had never been greeted in such a manner, and it has stuck in my mind. I can't decide what I feel about it. 

Yesterday, I heard a message about Abram,  who was God's friend. (Isa 41:8 and James 2:23.

This morning a Scripture popped into my mind, "No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you." (John 15:15) 

Think about this. What does it feel like to be an employee vs one of the owner's buddies?  Wow!  Employees are on a time clock, they work, are compensated, and go home..the owner generally has very little interest in their personal lives outside of work. At work the owner's buddies can chit-chat with him and have no concern about it. They are the ones who we see leaving for lunch with him, hear about having dinner with him at his home, and who's kids play with his kids. Servant is okay, but friend is a whole other better. 

Who do you want to be? Are you content to be a servant of God's? I was. Today, I don't think so anymore. I want to be God's friend. It puts a whole new light on my time with Him, on my view of myself, and on the attitude of my heart when it comes to him. But how does it happen? How do we become God's friends, not just servants? 

The Scripture says, "You are my friends, if you do what I command you." Yet, I think we all know that mere checking off on a 'to do list' is not friendship..it's a servant's list.  So, what is the difference? I think the difference with God is like the difference with your boss--it is in the after-hours. When I have done all I'm 'required' to do for God....do I go find Him or do I jet off to do my own things? Is it TV or meditation that I choose when relaxing? Do I drive and plug in music, listen to talk radio, chat on the phone or do I converse with God? When I wake in the mornings am I dialoguing with God or sleeping in so long that I can't get a minute with Him? 

This week, take some special outings with God...after hours. Spend a lunch with Him (take your Bible or just talk with him over your meal.).  Take a walk Saturday morning and notice His handiwork...then tell Him what you think about it....listen to what He says in reply (He will speak to you, if you listen.). Chat with him at work, listen to Him on the drive, be with Him in active service around others. Bottom line is that when we start acting with God like you would a friend and He responds in like kind.   (With the measure you use, it will be measured to you.)

The word in the title is the Hebrew word musar. It is the word translated “discipline” in English. It is a picture of what is meant in Scripture by discipline. Let’s explore together.

Words are written from right to left in Hebrew, so the first letter in this word is on the right. It looks, in the script I’m using now, like a lowercase ‘n’.  Each letter in the Hebrew alphabet is symbolic of one or more things and is in itself a complete concept or set of meanings. This letter is the letter mem.  Mem carries the ideas of peace, protection, and living water. Notice that there is an opening at the bottom of mem and it represents a picture of living flowing water (which is not like stagnant or still water in a cistern). Jesus refers to himself as 'living water' and tells the Samaritan woman that he can provide superior water to the water in her well, saying, 'Indeed the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." John 4:14.

The second letter is vav. Vav is a picture also. It is a man (person) viewed from the side with head protruding and arms straight at his side. Vav is also sometimes considered a picture of a hook.  In both instances there is the idea that this is one on whom things can be hung. Man is the one on whom the Word of God is hung. For example, Paul said, we are clothed with Christ. This is the idea behind vav.

The third letter is samech. Samech is the first letter in a series of letters which are connected with blessings, promises, and warnings. Samech symbolizes ‘support to the fallen’. It is that upon which one can lean. The person of God should lean upon the promises and the warnings of God in order to receive His blessings, otherwise he finds himself crippled, lame, or stumbling through life but unable to recover. 

Finally, the fourth letter is resh. It is the picture of the back of the head and it stands for ‘human reasoning.’ It also can be a symbol for ‘obedience’. A person has to choose whom he will obey. Either he will follow the ways of God or his own thinking.

Now, back to the meaning of the word musar or discipline.  Musar is a picture. Let's take a close look at it by comparing and contrasting the two letters on the right with the two on the left.         

מוסר

Do you see similarities? The mem and the samech are both roundish, and the vav and the resh are similar to one another in their shape. However, there are differences between each letter also.  You'll see that mem has an opening at it's base while samech is completely closed. Vav’s top stroke is less dominant than that of the resh. These comparisons and contrasts are part of the story of musar.  Discipline is in fact, illustrated in the word musar.  

Discipline can be defined as "corrective instruction intended to guide individuals toward peace, prosperity, a good outcome".  Musar is the picture of two persons (or options). On the right is a person who’s  thinking is given fresh perspective by the continual washing and cleansing of the living waters of God’s Word.  Ideas, thoughts, or opinions which would be lead him to stagnant living are washed away. His ideas are continually purified under the spout of truth. He can expect blessings, peace, and protection. The Proverbs are full of this same sentiment. Paul, the Hebrew of Hebrews, taught that the man who set his thoughts on the Spirit would enjoy abundant life and peace.

The person on the left stands in contrast to the man on the right. His thinking is limited to his own reasoning. He is close minded to the helpful instruction of God's word. That which is intended to support him through life is subjugated to his own exaggerated thoughts of himself.  Note the oversized ‘head’ on the resh-- in fact, the resh is the image of a head so large that there is no body! This guy is guided totally by his own ideas of right and wrong. The Proverbs also speak of this type of person. He is called a fool and his ways are called folly. There is a way that seems right to a man, but the end of them is death. 

The word musar pictures two people or approaches to life.  Discipline is intended to draw out the distinctions between these two. Discipline is meant to help us avoid being the fool and become, instead, the man who is blessed, at peace, and a vessel of living water. The writer to the Hebrews (not surprisingly) was surely thinking of this idea when he wrote:

“No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. Therefore  strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. ‘Make level paths for your feet,’ so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.” 
Hebrews 12:11-12


How is discipline to be done? ......that will be the topic of the next post.

  Romans 12:6-8  is the text today. In this passage, as in several others, though Paul is speaking in Greek, he is thinking in Hebrew. The text lists seven gifts God has given the church.

Viewing this list as a Greek-thinker (linear) we get a great list of attributes; however, if viewed from a Hebraic viewpoint (more oriental and multi-layered) we get the list PLUS the purpose of the gifts to the Body.

The Menorah Lamp as a pattern for understanding Scripture (see the previous blog) can direct us to the central point of a passage. So, in this instance, if we contrast the first item in the Romans list with the last item in the list, and continue with this pattern throughout, the central point is discovered.

Below, I have done it for you, given each a number corresponding to its order in the list.

1.    Prophesying according to one’s faith (Those who know what is right according to the letter of God’s law.)
7.    Mercy with cheerfulness (those who know what is right according to the Spirit of the God’s law.).

2.    Serving (Those who servants who entrust their hearts to spiritual leaders)
6.    Leadership (Those servant hearted leaders who lead spiritually.)

3.    Teaching (Those who instruct by teaching the will of God)
5.    Giving (Those who instruct by doing the will of God)

4.    Encouragement-encouragement (This is the goal of the gifts individually and corporately for the Church.)  

Notice that the first branch in each pair is connected with the spiritual or inner things, and the second in each pair is more tangible, or visible—more like the practical application of its counterpart.

Therefore we each teaching is shown in both it's theoretical or spiritual format, and in it's practical application in life. Prophets received the Holy Word. The highest rendering of God’s Word (as we saw in the before this one) is the demonstration of mercy.   Service should be the unseen motive behind the person who leads.  The will of God came from above and those who teach it speak as those sent from God, but those who practice it, who selflessly give themselves and their things are the living embodiment of those high and holy instructions.  With the light of these insights, the central point stands-- encouragement.  Those who have the gifts are to use them to build up the members of the Body of Christ. In chapter 14, Paul reiterates this point saying,  “Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification (encouragement/building up).”   Any usage to the contrary is off center.

The Menorah Pattern is extremely helpful in the study of God’s Word. Care must always be exercised, along with prayer, as one attempts to discover passages where the Menorah Pattern is in play. Where it can be employed, however, the insights realized will bring the light of understanding to the student and practitioner of God’s Word.

God, in His great mercy, has used every means possible to communicate the way we can know and experience life to its fullest. In this post, we see Him using  a piece of furniture. Yes! A piece of furniture.

The Menorah lampstand is the first item of furnishing on the left side of the Holy Place. The menorah lamp stand is a series of branches, places opposite each other, supported by a single central column that rises above the others.  (Note: The Left-side, in Hebrew thought, is a symbol of ‘the physical/seen’. The Right-side is representative of all that is “spiritual/unseen”. )

The Menorah Lamp is also a pattern of thinking/teaching used by God throughout Scripture to direct us to understand His central concerns in the midst of many possible options.

In the pattern, each branch represents some aspect of a central thought. Those on one side will balance or contrast to those opposite them. Those on the right hand will be more spiritual, unseen, or internal in nature, while those on the left hand will be visible, tangible, and external in their nature. The central or chief focus of a menorah pattern teaching will be revealed in the central trait or element in the pattern. This central element will be the greatest, highest, most complete, purest, or perfected version of the other elements. The central element reveals God’s ultimate goal for us.

In the two familiar New Testament examples (one in this post and a second in a following post), I have arranged the elements that contrast to each other by placing them together. If you read them in the normal text, you’ll see that they are listed at opposite ends from one another. I have added comments drawn from the contrast of the elements pairs.

If, following the Menorah Lamp’s physical outline, they were written from right to left (as Hebrew is written), they would follow a pattern that set them at opposite to each other (as I have done for you) such that the first in the list stands opposed to the last in the list, the second stands opposed to the next to the last, etc. Eventually, one element stands alone. This central element/column is the completion or goal of all the others.

Again, keep in mind that elements on the right of the Menorah will be more internal or unseen, while those on the left more physical (though not necessarily carnal) or visible. The central element is the perfect balance of both the spirit/unseen and the physical/unseen. 

  Matthew 5:3-12

·      Blessed are Poor in Spirit 

           (The humble in Spirit. Those who exhibit a personal and truthful recognition of the evil within themselves.)

·      Blessed are you when men persecute you, saying all kinds of evil against you, falsely, on my account. 

           (The haughty in Spirit. Those who will not truthfully recognize the good within others.)

These first menorah branches represent a broad gap between those who judge because they lack the Spirit of God and those who will not be judged because they possess the Spirit of God.

·      Blessed are those who mourn

(Those persons who painfully recognize their own unrighteousness before God.)

·      Blessed are those who are persecuted. (The self-righteous who inflict pain to those seeking the righteousness of God.)

The next branches illustrate recognition of the fact of righteousness and the fact that people do not measures up.

·      Blessed are the meek. (Those who willingly submit to God.)

·      Blessed are Peacemakers. (Those who willingly submit to others).

At this point, the branches are no longer far apart. In them we see the Law of the Spirit working together in relation to God and others.

·      Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. (Those whose desires for God are as strong as their physical desires.)

.       Blessed are pure in heart. (Those whose spiritual desires come from deep within.

These branches are almost identical, each an illustration of the effect of God’s Spirit at work outside and in.

·      Blessed are the merciful. They will be shown mercy. (Those who show mercy to others, receive mercy from God)

This is the chief aim of the other branches. Mercy toward others is the attribute of God that is most blessed. It is the Spirit of God’s law being fully completed or matured in a person.

If there is any question that mercy is at the central point of Jesus’s message in Matthew 5, just continue to read a few verses and find him elaborating:

v. 21 “You have heard it said, ‘Do not murder.’ (Mercy is the antithesis of Murder.)

v. 23 “Go be reconciled to your brother.” (Mercy is the sacrifice of the self/ego for the good of another.)

v. 39 “But I tell you, do not resist an evil person.” (Mercy is unconditional love.)

v. 47 “Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Mercifulness is a sign of Christlikeness and spiritual maturity.)

Conclusion:
The striking contrast between the branches at the base as well as the similarities between those nearer the top serve to illuminate to us the central teaching that Jesus is emphasizing: What God prizes as of chief importance is people, not religious ceremony. Those who follow his way become a ‘light to the world’ and an extension of His merciful efforts to reveal to the whole earth how life may be lived with joy in abundance.

The “Principle of First-Mention” is the simple rule that in the first instance of a word’s usage in Scripture the full meaning of its usage through out Scripture is revealed.

Take the word ‘sin’ for example. There in Genesis we find the first mention of it with Eve and Adam. What accompanies this first account? Shame, death, separation from God, a lie, punishment, and broken relationships are all present, and these remain elements associated with sin throughout Scripture.

I tested this principle for myself using a word I thought was random—only to learn that there are no random words in Scripture. My test word was the word “horn”.

The first mention of horn is in Genesis 22:13. Abram is about to slay his son when God provides a ram that is “caught by its ‘horns’ in the thicket” (literally “entangled in the entanglement”.) The next time this word is used is in Exodus 27:2 where instructions are being given to build an altar with ‘horns’ on it. In later verses we find horn(s) used as trumpets, by Samuel when anointing Saul with a horn full of oil, when the rebel Adonijah clings to the horns of the altar for protection, in the lyrics of David’s songs about God as the ‘horn of his salvation’, and imagery in Daniel’s vision of a ram and a goat battling it out with their horns. This Hebrew word for horn is QEREN (kof, resh, nun).

I noted these elements in that first usage:

·      It was a life or death circumstance.

·      The ram died in place of the child.

·      It was associated with a sacrifice.

·      There was an entanglement.

·      God provided the animal.

Following these themes into the other usages of horn in Scripture we see those usages in a fuller context. The blowing of the horn before battle or to call Israel to gather is a reminder that God is their provider, the one to fight their battles for them bringing life and safety and victory over those who threaten their lives. The blood of animals placed on the horns of the altar symbolized the provision of God for the spiritual needs of the people. As leader of the people, God was always out front, caring for the concerns of Israel. Likewise, the kings, anointed from a horn of oil, were to lead with a pure concern for the welfare of the nation.  Seen in these contexts, the word becomes a much larger picture of an intimate and caring relationship between God and his people.

Not all usages of ‘horn’ are as positive, though the elements can be seen. In Revelation, the horns (kings) on the beasts there are not so beneficent. These rulers should have been offering care and concern, but, being associated with rebelliousness against God, they misuse their power and harm the people of God---making the people the sacrifice rather than giving themselves for the citizens of their lands.

Another aspect of the principle of first mention is that ultimately every jot and tittle finds itself connected with Jesus (Yeshua). It is easy to see in this case.  As the animal caught in the entanglement substituted for Isaac, so Jesus took on our sins (that which so easily ‘entangles’ Hebrews 12:1) and died in our place. The lamb that was slain then is also our loving King, our Savior (one who rescues), the Gift from God. The placement of his blood on the altar is sufficient for our needs, and we join David in praising Him who has become, “The Horn of our Salvation.”

NOTE:
See, no words in Scripture are random. They are ALL amazing! Study some for yourself. You'll need an Exhaustive Concordance (or use one online) to accurately track them according to their Hebrew and Greek original.

Jesus wore a crown made of thorns. Through their pain he became the King of Kings. You know that, but do you know how your thorns are made into crowns of strength, victory, and joy?

The Hebrew language uses pictographic characters and each tell a story. The word for “thorn”  is an insightful tale. Kof is the word's first letter, and stands for holiness. The bowls and utensils in the Temple were stamped with this letter to indicate that they were set apart for special purposes—holy. 

Second in the word is the letter ‘vav’. It represents a person. The character looks like a man from the side profile.  

Last is the letter “tzaddi”, and has more than one meaning, but the one I’ll emphasize is “righteousness”.  This letter is made of two strokes, which are actually two letters combined. Tzaddi is made of a ‘vav’ and a ‘yud’. Yud is the symbol of the Spirit of God. So, tzaddi is the picture of a man in whom is the Spirit of God—a righteous man.  

When a person is set apart for God (holy) they allow the Spirit of God to lead, guide, and direct them at all times. When things are easy, this is also easy, but what happens during times of trouble, tribulation, and hardship? One who continues to be led of God’s Spirit in spite of pain and loss, is a righteous person.

Jesus, was completely righteous. On the cross he pictured for us the principle of greatness which is steadfastness to the will and ways of God even when it is painful. Paul encouraged, “Our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.”  James says, “Consider it pure joy when you face trials…don’t you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance, and perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature?“ John assures, “Do no be afraid of what you are about to suffer. Be faithful even unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.”