Today is Simchat Torah!  Rejoice with us!
But no one in Israel is rejoicing because here in Israel, it has a scarry day!
Family members of our ministry live in the Moshav next to Gaza where the terrorists infiltrated.
Along with the terrorists infiltrating Israeli villages from Gaza, there have been incoming missiles – and there are at least 22 dead Jewish Israelis and almost 600 wounded!  Reservists have been called up as more than 5000 missiles were fired into Israel.  Prime minister Netanyahu stated that “We are at War.”
It is now 3pm Israeli time and we are waiting to find out how many Israelis have been kidnapped and taken back to Gaza (Philistine in the Bible)!  Hamas said that it has kidnapped dozens of Israeli Jews!
The head of Hamas said that this attack was based on the Jews being present in the Temple Mount area, where the Muslim the Dome of Rock is situated.

Did you know that this Muslim mosque was destroyed by an earthquake 1000 years ago and later rebuilt?  Did you know that this where the King Solomon’s and King Herod’s temple were situated?

Did you know that Israeli scientists believe that there will be the BIG earthquake any year now in Israel (like the one that killed 70,000 in Turkey this year)?  Did you know that in Ezekiel 38:19, it says that God will create an earthquake at the same time that Gog along with Iran and the other Muslim countries invade Israel?
Around the world, today should be the festive holiday of Simchat Torah (Joy of the Torah), where the Jewish People display their gratitude to God for giving us the great gift of His Word. 
Let’s look a little closer at what exactly the Torah is comprised of and how the Jewish People celebrate God’s Righteous Word here in Israel and around the world.

Parading the Torah outside of a synagogue on Simchat Torah in a suburb of Tel Aviv.
A tallit (prayer shawl) is held over the Sefer Torah. Hundreds of congregants
dance and follow the procession.
Celebrating the Torah both in and outside of Israel
Israel is in shock and mourning today, and reservists are being called up for War, so let’s discuss Simchat Torah outside of Israel which starts tonight.
We usually read the last pages of Devarim (Deuteronomy) and the beginning of Bereisheet (Genesis)!
The reading of the yearly Torah cycle has come to an end, and a new one began.  Hallelujah.
The services will last about three hours, as the men and women relished in the Word given to our people by God Himself through Moses — the most treasured Word in the world — the Torah (Five Books of Moses).
In every synagogue the men joyfully danced around the bema, proudly holding the sacred Torah Scrolls.
As the Rabbi and cantor sing from Holy Word of God, the whole congregation will gather in one accord singing in Hebrew.
All the men take turns reading from the Torah.  And the faces of the children, women, and men beam; rejoicing in the honor of the Holy Book that the One God of Israel entrusted to His Chosen People.
This wonderful holiday begins at sunset tonight at the conclusion of Shemini Atzeret (Eighth Day of Assembly), a Biblically mandated assembly celebrated the day after Sukkot ends (Leviticus 23:36).
For the second time in 24 hours, they will dance around the Torah Scrolls, and this time, throughout the night.
“Oh, how I love Your Torah; It is my meditation all the day.  You through Your commandments, have made me wiser than my enemies. … Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”  (Psalm 119:97–98, 105)
On Simchat Torah, ALL of the ornately decorated Torah scrolls are taken out of the Ark in which they are safeguarded, in contrast to Shabbat and regular holidays when only two are removed from the Ark.
Grace, in the country where you live, the Jewish People will parade these precious Torah scrolls around their synagogues in circles called “hakafot,” accompanied by joyful singing and dancing.
In some synagogues, the celebrations are spilling out of the sanctuary into the street, where participants dance and sing while carrying the scrolls.

It is considered a mitzvah (good deed) to dance with the Torah and to rejoice
over it on Simchat Torah.
Simchat Torah: The Beginning and Ending of the Parasha Cycle
The Jewish People have diligently preserved the Word of God for more than 3,000 years, and Simchat Torah gives jubilant expression to the Jewish People’s love of the Torah. 
Besides rejoicing, another central theme to this special day is the completion of the annual cycle of weekly Torah readings.
But as soon as we end the cycle, we begin anew, and a portion from the first chapter of Genesis is read immediately afterward.  This serves to remind us that our study of the Torah never ends.

Holding one of 11 sacred Torah scrolls in a Tel Aviv
synagogue on Simchat Torah.  Nearly 400 people sang
and danced for joy on this day.
Torah Points in the Right Direction
What is Torah?  This Hebrew word Torah is often translated in English Bibles as “Law;” however, this is a rather poor translation.
The word torah comes from the roots yarah, which means to shoot, aim, or point to, and morah, meaning teacher.
Therefore, the Torah is God’s instruction to His people.  These instructions teach us how to live on this earth and point us to eternal life through Yeshua, who as the Word in flesh, perfectly embodied God’s teachings.
The Torah contains all the wisdom and instruction we need to live healthy, happy, successful, prosperous lives.
Be strong and very courageous.  Be careful to obey all the instructions [Torah] Moses gave you.  Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left.  Then you will be successful in everything you do.
Study this Book of Instruction [Sefer haTorah] continually.  Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it.  Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do.  (Joshua 1:7-8)

Rejoicing over the Torah, God’s instructions, on Simchat Torah
The Books of the Torah
The Torah, in its strictest sense, includes the five books of Moses: Genesis (Bereisheet), Exodus (Shemot), Leviticus (Vayikra), Numbers (Bamidbar), and Deuteronomy (Devarim).
However, Yeshua (Jesus) and Paul both quoted from other books of the Bible, including the Psalms and the Prophets, and also called them Torah (law).
For instance, in John 10:34, Yeshua quotes Psalm 82:6 referring to it as the Torah:
“Yeshua answered them, Is it not written in your Law (Torah), I said, You are gods?”  (John 10:34)
In 1 Corinthians 14:21, Paul references the prophetic book of Isaiah, calling it the Law:
“In the Law (Torah) it is written: ‘With men of other tongues and other lips I will speak to this people.'” (1 Corinthians 14:21; compare to Isaiah 28:11)  

Dancing and singing with the Torah on Simchat Torah
Another word for Torah often used by Jewish people is the Tanakh, which is a Hebrew name for all the books of the Jewish Scriptures.
This word is actually an acronym (T-N-K) for Torah (Five Books of Moses), Nevi’im (Prophets) and Ketuvim (Writings – Psalms, Proverbs, etc).
The word Torah comprises the first three letters of each of these words: T-N-K [Hebrew letters Tav, Nun, Kaf].
Orthodox Jews consider yet another compilation of writings as “Torah.”  This is the Talmud (which is comprised of the Mishnah, and Gemara), which are rabbinical interpretations and commentaries (oral laws) of the written Torah.
They consider both to be the Torah because they believe that the “written Torah” cannot be understood completely without the interpretation of the “oral Torah.”
Sadly enough, most Orthodox Jews consider the oral law of greater weight and authority than the written Torah and many spend the majority of their time and study in these rabbinical teachings.
Yeshua Unrolls the Torah Scroll in the Synagogue,
by James Tissot.
Yeshua Fulfilled the Torah
Because Yeshua is the Word (John 1:1), He is the ultimate fulfillment of the Torah (God’s moral guidelines for mankind to live in righteousness).  
Some Believers in Yeshua think this means that the Torah is abolished.  But Yeshua clearly taught that He did not come to abolish the Torah:
“Don’t misunderstand why I have come.  I did not come to abolish the Torah of Moses or the writings of the prophets.  No, I came to fulfill their purpose.  I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God’s Torah will disappear until its purpose is fulfilled.
“So if you ignore the least commandment and teach others to do the same, you will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven.  But anyone who obeys God’s Torah and teaches them will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven.” (Matthew 5:17–19)
As the Jewish People diligently study the Scriptures in the Torah as well as the prophets and other writings, trying to fulfill His teachings on their own, they miss the very essence of God’s Word that they so desperately seek to learn and obey.
Yeshua said, “You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life.  These are the very Scriptures that testify about me.”  (John 5:39)
Almost 99% of the Jewish People still do not recognize Yeshua as the Messiah who is Himself the Torah.
On this Simchat Torah, as we bring Messiah Yeshua (Jesus) — hidden in the teachings and prophecies of the Eternal Word of God — to the Lost Sheep of Israel, please stand with us.
You can make a difference that will last for Eternity.

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