Blessed In Celebrations

“The Word became flesh and tabernacled among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only, Who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14)

This year, our President and his First Lady caused a bit of a stir in the Jewish community when they sent an invitation to a White House Hanukkah celebration on their Christmas stationery. Human inattention or divine intervention? Well, after all, 2008 is a year when Hanukkah and Christmas coincide on the calendar.

Here on Brighton Beach Avenue in Brooklyn, we see the synergy every year. The street decorations include lighted Hanukkah menorahs nested in red and green garlands attended by six-point snowflakes. Looking up at our center’s second-story windows, one can see electric menorah lights casting a soft orange glow into the night. Inside are the poinsettias and the staging for the Christmas programs, alongside more menorahs and Jewish artifacts. We have Bibles and Gospel tracts here, too. Hopeless eclecticism or direct evangelism?

One of the issues of interest to some believers is the actual date of the birth of Jesus, His first tabernacling among us. Much of Christendom celebrates His arrival on December 25, also the date of an ancient Roman holiday. Russians save the celebration for early January, although even in atheism almost everybody decorated a tree for the New Year. Meanwhile, based on certain facts about John the Baptist’s chronology, Messianic believers are able to calculate the likelihood of Jesus being born during the Feast Of Tabernacles in the fall. Hanukkah, celebrated by Jesus Himself in John 10:22-23, always begins on the 25th day of the Jewish month Kislev, its lunar basis roaming around on the solar calendar.

The fact of His first coming is the most important issue during this season, but this is a year in which all of the symbolic and prophetic strands intersect with a certain brightness that alerts us to the nearness of His second coming. This year, the interweaving of Hanukkah and Christmas causes us to look more closely, to sort out the facts.

The original Hanukkah is noted in the apocryphal book 2 Maccabees 10:5-8 in a text written more than 2000 years ago. After the priestly Maccabee family led a successful revolution against an evil foreign ruler, they purified the defiled temple in Jerusalem and then began specifically on 25 Kislev to belatedly celebrate the Feast Of Booths (Tabernacles), or Sukkot. What a celebration of victory, freedom and purity! Legend added to the attraction that remains even to this day. For the eight days of the late Sukkot observance, holy oil was needed to light the temple menorah. The Jews had only enough oil for one day, but God miraculously kept the lamps burning for all eight days!

Jesus Himself remembered these events, but interestingly the prophetic framework was foretold by Daniel hundreds of years before. In the 11th chapter of Daniel’s divine record, he writes of a time when the Beautiful Land would be ruled by a contemptible person who would eventually desecrate the temple, abolish the sacrifices and set up an abomination that caused desolation. Some violators of the Covenant would be corrupted, but:

“…The people who know their God will firmly resist him. Those who are wise will instruct many, though for a time they will fall by the sword or be burned or captured or plundered. When they fall, they will receive a little help, and many who are not sincere will join them. Some of the wise will stumble, so that they may be refined, purified and made spotless until the time of the end, for it will come at the appointed time.” (Daniel 11:32b-35)

One partial fulfillment indeed happened during the time of the Maccabees and the first Hanukkah, when they defeated the evil Greek-Syrian ruler Antiochus Epiphanes. But it is also understood by many that this evil ruler was himself symbolic of the greater despot to come – the antichrist. Jesus referred back to Daniel’s prophecy when explaining what would happen at the end of the age. He provided details in His Olivet Discourse in Matthew 24, and in His Revelation to John.

But here we are today. We remember the first Hanukkah which was the symbolic Feast Of Tabernacles celebrating the defeat of the symbolic antichrist and the restoration of God’s symbolic tabernacle. We also remember the first Christmas which was the real first tabernacling of the real Christ Who then provided access to the real tabernacle in Heaven by His Own sacrifice. And, with this year’s confluence of these holidays and so many other factors in the world, we anticipate the complete fulfillment of all things in Him, including the utter defeat of the antichrist along with his benefactor and henchmen and ultimately the glory of His final tabernacling:

“And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Now the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.’” (Revelation 21:3-4)

This week, during Hanukkah and Christmas, we can resolve to let prophetic truth shine forth in our hearts and lives. Even as we contemplate and anticipate the great works of God to destroy evil and deliver His people forever unto purest worship in the Holy City, we can ask Him to fulfill this in us today:

“Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.” (Daniel 12:3)

Freedom Of Conscience

"Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (John 8:32)

These are the words, in Russian, on the narrow door of our center. All who pass by on busy Brighton Beach Avenue can read them, and they notice also that we teach English and Bible classes. Each week, at least 200 people enter that door and climb the carpeted stairs to a lighted place, where they receive practical help through a variety of classes and programs. Most importantly, here and on the streets and in the Russian-language media we openly proclaim Messiah Jesus to Russian-speaking Jews, Muslims, Russians and others -- 300,000 of whom have immigrated to Brooklyn since the fall of the Soviet Union.

I have been a patriotic American since childhood, long before also becoming a believer in Jesus. How exciting it was to learn that the foundation of this country was specifically Biblically Christian. The Pilgrims, most of the Founding Fathers, many of the great Presidents -- all gave testimony of Jesus in their lives and callings. I often refer to these facts while teaching and speaking with immigrants from the Former Soviet Union, who knew only atheistic communism and before that the authoritarian czars or the tribal chiefs. The freedom of conscience that we take for granted in America is something still difficult for them to grasp.

The most important aspect of this freedom is how one can relate to God through Jesus Christ. It cannot be dictated either way. Receiving His free gift by faith is not something that can be forced upon a person. Neither should it be prohibited for a person. I thank God that we can freely speak of Jesus in this ministry in this country, and that so many people -- many of them lifelong atheists -- feel free to come and consider Him.

Another aspect of our freedom of conscience in America is the ability to discuss and choose our political leaders without great fear of reprisals. Looking out the window, I often tell my students that I could walk downstairs and out into the middle of the street and shout my disapproval of any President, and nobody would do anything to me. Most of them were afraid to discuss political issues in Soviet times for fear of being betrayed to authorities. Many lived in secret fear of the sudden knock on the door and the scant chance to even say goodbye.

As I considered the 2008 Presidential candidates, my own conscience had been troubled for a year or two, and I often prayed in distress about it. I could support some of them for some reasons, but the negatives were hard to justify. How could I in good conscience vote for even a competent person who was not close to Biblical standards? What about the foundations? How could I explain such a fallen position to immigrants who expected something better in America? Were our blessed days behind us? Would we be given over to a leader who reflected the worst in us and not a hope for the best?

Now I'm going to exercise both freedom of conscience and freedom of expression! I do so not in my official ministry capacity but as a private citizen with a rejoicing heart! It turns out that there is a candidate for President who deeply understands the founding principles of our nation and whose entire public life has been specifically Biblically Christian. I'm referring, of course, to Governor Mike Huckabee!

Del actually met Mike Huckabee in the 1990s at a Promise Keepers event in Seattle. We heard bits and pieces about him over the years, and were interested that he was running for President. Then we began to realize that he is the complete package, the real deal! The more we tuned in and the more we heard, the more we understood that we were seeing an exceptionally faithful, unusually competent man prepared and raised up by God for such a time as this.

One of the key points that we consider in a candidate, in addition to the important social, fiscal and security issues, is his position on Israel. This is where it gets really good! Mike Huckabee has visited Israel 9 times and has the best, most Biblically-literate plan for Palestinian statehood of any politician we have heard lately. It should be located in Saudia Arabia or Egypt or some place with a lot of land, but not in little Israel. And the United States Embassy should move out of Tel Aviv and into Jerusalem, the actual capital of Israel.

These are not easy issues, of course, but with Mike Huckabee, you get the idea that his statements are more than just standard political posturing. This is vitally important for America, because if we fail to bless Israel according to Biblical principles, we will be disciplined by God, Who said to Abram, "I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse." (Genesis 12:3)

I encourage you to visit www.mikehuckabee.com for more information about this candidate whom we can wholeheartedly support as Bible-believers. And whatever your own conclusions might be, please pray for America and for Israel.