A look at 1 Kings 5:12-6:13 and Mark 3:1-4:41

[Jacob Ben Avraham]

1 KINGS 5:12-6:13 
 

     The tabernacle was used for many, many years.  It followed “B'nei Israel” when they crossed over the Jordan,  but 480 years later, it was replaced by the first temple which Melech Shlomo (King Solomon) built.  It must have been magnificent.  The Ark of the Covenant and the furniture that were inside the Mishkan were transferred to the new temple.  Yet many years later, after the death of Shlomo, the priesthood corrupted themselves, and the kings as well.  The temple was destroyed by the Babylonians, and the furniture was taken away. However, it is said that (according to some stories) the Levite priests hid the Ark of the Covenant from the invading Babylonians, and later, shipped it down the Nile River to the city of Axom in Ethiopia, and it is still there today. 

 The other story is that it never left Jerusalem.  It was hidden in a cave under Mt. Calvary and when Yeshua was crucified on the cross, during the brief earthquake, a crack opened up where our Savior was hanging on the cross, and his blood dripped down the crack and anointed the Ark of the Covenant which was directly below it a few hundred feet down.  But as I said, these are stories.

Today our bodies are the "temples" of the Holy Spirit, it is where the Ruach HaKodesh comes to live when we accept Jesus as LORD and Savior.  We honor the Spirit of God in our bodies.  Do we defile it with unhealthy food or unhealthy physical practices? smoking? etc

     A believer can walk away from God, we can go astray, and the Ruach HaKodesh will call for us, to invite us back into fellowship, yet for how long?  Will the Spirit of God call us back indefinitely?  Or...like the Spirit of God that finally, “Left” the presence of the Temple, leaving it “Ichabod” just an empty building, can we become like an “empty vessel? Just walking around empty and lifeless? 

     But just as a believer is capable of going astray and walk away from the presence of God, the believer can also return, and be received with open arms by the Father.  One day, the third temple will be built, and the presence of YHVH will be there, and Yeshua will be back to rule the earth.  We will be there too, to share in this rule for one thousand years, and then...into eternity.   

MARK 3:1-4:41 

 

     Here we see Yeshua on the sabbath, and he heals a man with a withered hand, yet receives criticism from the Prushim (Pharisees).  Yet Yeshua explains, “doing a good deed on the sabbath is permitted” so, YES, if one works, doing a “mitzvah” on the Sabbath is permitted if it is to bless another, help another, be it to bring medicine for someone who is sick, help repair a hole in a roof (if you see the rain clouds a comin'!). 

     Yeshua went down to the Lake and more people came to be healed.  The Sea of Galilee is a peaceful place to swim in.  Just standing in the water and feeling the fish nibble at your feet, is quite an experience.  I swam down about 10 feet in The Sea of Galilee or "Lake Tiberias" as some call it and brought up a ceramic dish. Still have it, a free souvenir.  But just looking at the Lake brings back thoughts of Yeshua there 2000 years ago, healing those with illnesses.  He still does, and he heals our souls as well. 

 

The saucer I found 10 feet under the lake, nothing fancy, just meaningful because of where I found it

Edited February 27, 2023 by Jacob Ben Avraham
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