THE 7 YEAR SABBATH OF THE LAND

Shalom Stan, JULY 12,08 MESSIANIC BIBLE PROJECT.

It’s a typical day in Israel, which means sunny and full of life with beautiful flowers and trees everywhere! Every morning I wake up thanking God for fulfilling Ezekiel’s prophecy of bringing us back to the Land and making it blossom again.

For I will take you from the nations, gather you from all the lands and bring you into your own land. The desolate land will be cultivated and in the sight of everyone who passes by. They will say, This desolate land has become like the garden of Eden. Ezekiel 36:24, 33-35.

Every city in Israel is unique and today I’m making stops in 5 cities to visit outreach workers and to pray for those cities and how we will reach them by setting up future Gospel cafes.It’s 7 am and I’m writing this letter to you this morning from Ramat Gan (near Tel Aviv), however I have to meet with outreach workers in various cities today. I will be in Ranana by 10:00, then Haifa by 2:00 and then in Sefad by 4:30 (first I have to go to the town to a cousin’s home in Meron) and later tonight at 8:30 I will be meeting with Believers and outreach workers in the city of Tiberias on the Sea of Galilee. It will be a long day, but in sharing the Gospel and building up the Kingdom of God, it is a joy to be working and there is no time to waste.The body of Messiah is growing in Israel: Recently about 600 of the Israeli Messianic youth attended an outdoor worship conference where the presence of Spirit of the Lord was felt by all. Many of these Israeli teenagers (18-21) were in the army and they needed this refreshing of the Spirit of God. One of attendees said: The spirit of the Lord was so thick, that I just rested in His presence for hours.Orthodox Yeshiva students accept Yeshua: Ori, an outreach worker recently shared the Gospel with David, an Orthodox Jew attending a Yeshiva (seminary) in Sefed. David asked about the Messianic prophecies and he wanted to know more about Yeshua. After three meetings he accepted confessed with his mouth, and believed in his heart that Yeshua is Lord. He was so excited that his Orthodox Yeshiva study partner (a classmate) also accepted Yeshua! Families accepting the Lord: This month another Israeli family of five accepted the Lord. First the mother, then a daughter, then a son-in-law, and one by one, people in the family believed in the Promised Messiah of Israel – Yeshua! It is awesome to see whole families coming to faith. Family salvation is promised in Acts 16:31 - They replied, Believe in the Lord Yeshua the Messiah and you will be saved ­- you and your household.

Even though people are being saved in Israel, we must put this in perspective. Still 99.9% of the people in Israel do not know Yeshua. However, with your help Stan, we will be able to continue reaching the people here and change these statistics.Stan, please make a difference for the Kingdom today!
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The CARMEL ALERT July 11th 2008 A compilation of news reports from the past week for the information of those committed to praying for Israel and the salvation of the Jewish people. David's Comment: The Iran Nuclear Issue - Israel: Damned if You Do - Damned if You Dont.

As the weeks pass by and we have already entered the second half of 2008, for Israel and the USA, the issue of Iran's nuclear program is coming to a head. Even without madman Armadinejad's constant rhetoric calling for the destruction and disappearance of Israel, a nuclear armed Iran would be a worry. Any Islamic nation with nuclear power is a worry as underneath any peaceful surface, lies the evil spirit of Islam that calls for Islamic world domination at any price - the lives of innocent people being taken in acts of religious violence is irrelevant.In spite of disagreement, protests and sanctions, Iran continues undeterred, to construct an enormous infrastructure of nuclear facilities. They are planning to have more than 3000 centrifuges - in which they will produce Enriched Uranium. It is Enriched Uranium that empowers the Atomic Bomb.
The simple fact of the matter is that Iran is a rogue nation and cannot be allowed to achieve nuclear capabilities. The US, UN & EU have been applying pressure on Iran to cease construction. Even with very generous financial and trade incentives, Iran refuses to comply. Of course the peace orientated Western world believes that continued negotiations will succeed, but the chances of that working with Iran are almost neglible. That leaves only one other option - destroy Iran's nuclear facilities before Iran uses them on Israel. Someone has to take the initiative and stop Iran now

In June 1981, Israel was faced with the same dilemma as Iraq was finishing construction of a nuclear plant. The French built reactor was totally destroyed in a surprise attack by the Israeli Air Force. At first the world condemned Israel (whats new ?) but as time went on and Saddam Hussein showed his true colors, it became clear that Israel saved the Middle East and herself from a nuclear armed madman.So now we have Iran in the nuclear seat. The rheotoric is flying both ways. Iran is threatening the USA and Israel. Rumours are coming out of the US & Israel and Israel about a mission to destroy Iran's facilities sometime this year. On the other hand, other sources are denying any form of military action, but to me it seems inevitable. In fact the longer they leave it, the worse the situation will be. Iran cannot be allowed to have nuclear weapons.Israel seems to be in a lose / lose situation. If Israel takes the initiative and attacks Iran, there will be a firestorm in the Middle East and even perhaps in the US and Europe. As usual the world will lay the blame at Israel's feet. And if Israel does not take action and Iran reaches her nuclear goal, then Israel will be in great danger of being destroyed by a nuclear firestorm. Former US Ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton believes that puts Israel in an impossible situation.

However there is one other alternative - an excellent alternative ........... The Body of Messiah can launch a war against Iran - a spiritual war.

Josie will take over off here ...............

The history of Israel has never changed. Israel has always had her enemies who want to annihilate her, but Israel has always had her God, to deliver her. The God of Israel, who is far above every other power and principality, every other dominion and authority, every other god and every other nation. However, for the God of Israel to act on Israel's behalf with great power, He has always had intercessors to stand in the gap and plead before Him for mercy, and to remind Him of His covenant and to deliver Israel for His great names sake. Men such as Moses, Abraham, Daniel, Jeremiah, Isaiah and the many others, stood before the God of Israel and called upon Him for help in times of war and trouble. We are the intercessors for today and we desparately need to come before Him and plead for mercy and deliverance from Israeli's modern day enemies. Here are some scriptures to remind our all powerful, all consuming God.

Psalm 34:7 ..... For without cause they have hidden their net for me in a pit, which they have dug without cause for my life, let destruction come upon him unexpectedly, and let his net that he has hidden catch himself, into that very destruction let him fall

Psalm 37:35 When the wicked are cut off you shall see it, I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a native green tree, yet he passed away, and behold, he was no more,......... the transgressors shall be destroyed together, the future of the wicked shall be cut off ............... but the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord, He is their strength in the time of trouble, and the Lord shall help them and deliver them, He shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them because they trust in Him.

Psalm 33: 10 The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing, He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect, The counsel of the Lord stands forever

Daniel 10:18,19..... O my God incline Your ear and hear, open Your eyes and see our desolations..... we do not present our supplications before You because of our righteous deeds but because of Your great mercies. O Lord hear ! O Lord forgive ! O Lord listen and act ! Do not delay for Your own sake, my God, for Your city and Your people are called by Your name.

Psalm 44:10..... You are my King O God, Command victories for Israel, thru You, we will trample those who rise up against us
and verse 23-26. Awake! Why do you sleep O Lord, Arise ! Do not cast us off forever, ..........Arise for our help and redeem us for Your
mercies sake.

Psalm 46:3.... Thru the greatness of Your power, Your enemies shall submit themselves to You....... He rules by His power forever

Psalm 71: 10-12..... Those who lie in wait for my life (for Israel) take counsel together, saying God has forsaken him(her), pursue and take him for there is none to deliver him.......... O God, do not be far from me (us)- O my God make haste to help me (us) Let them be confounded and consumed.

Also pray all of Psalms, 2, 33 and 83....................

Psalm 105: 8-10 He remembers His covenant forever, the word which He commanded for a thousand generations.

The Lord bless you as you bless Israel by standing in defense of her right to exist on the land given to the Jewish people by the God of Israel Lets pray that Israel will turn back to their God. Do not be silent, but share this with your fellow Christians, share it with your pastors, and with anyone you have a chance to speak to. Lets also pray for that breakthrough to the Muslims, and please remember to pray for our son Jordan, and all of his fellow soldiers in the IDF.

Shabbat Shalom ... David & Josie

* * * * FLASH TRAFFIC: WASHINGTON UPDATE * * * * MISSILES & THE MESSIAH MAKING NEWS Interesting times we live in. By Joel C. Rosenberg

(Washington, D.C., July 11, 2008) -- Talk of missiles and the Messiah are making big news in Israel, Iran, and the U.S. in recent days. It's a curious combination, to be sure. But numerous high-profile stories and television programs on both topics are stirring interest and controversy among millions in three countries that could not be more different. The Messiah stories are particularly interesting to me. Iran, as I mentioned the other day, is running a new documentary TV series on Jewish, Christian and Islamic eschatology (End Times theology), consistent with President Ahmadinejad's on-going call for the Muslim world to prepare for the imminent arrival of the Islamic Messiah, known as the Mahdi. The Israeli archaeological community, meanwhile, is currently abuzz over the discovery of an ancient stone tablet dated not long before the birth of Jesus that strongly suggests that religious Jews of the day were expecting the coming of a Messiah who would suffer, die, and be resurrected three days later. Most Rabbis and other Jewish scholars have long argued that the death and resurrection of a Jewish Messiah was a Christian invention, not part of long-established Jewish thought or Biblical teaching. But a front-page story in Haaretz, a leading Israeli newspaper, just a few days ago has a lot of people asking: Are Jews really supposed to believe their Messiah will actually die and rise again, and was this really Orthodox religious thinking before the time of Jesus?

That said, let's actually start with the missile stories. Tensions are growing -- as are oil prices -- after Iran tested more medium- to long-range ballistic missiles overnight. Each of the missiles were capable of reaching Israel, all U.S. bases in the region, all of the major oil fields and facilities in the epicenter, and even cities in southern Europe. Each were also capable, experts believe, of carrying nuclear warheads. Particularly disturbing to me was this story out of Israel. The IAEA's latest report of Iranian nuclear capabilities noted several covert developments which should be cause for some concern: Developments of nuclear detonators, high-end experiments involving conventional explosives made to accelerate nuclear warheads' fission and underground nuclear testing facilities. The most disconcerting find, however was that of computer files suggesting Iran already possesses - and may have already tested - a full-fledged nuclear warhead. To make matters worse, the Swiss authorities have recently discovered even more computer files suggesting Abd al-Kader Khan did more than draw plans for a simple nuclear warhead - he may have also provided the Iranians with the blueprints for a new, extremely small nuclear warhead, which can be installed atop ballistic missiles.

Consider these other headlines:

* Iran Press Service: In Direct Warning to Israel, Iran Test-Fired Long-Range Missile
* Islamic Republic News Agency: President Ahmadinejad: US, Israel not dare attack Iran
* AP: Iran test-fires more missiles in Persian Gulf
* Times of London: Iran ready to strike at Israel's nuclear heart: Iran has moved ballistic missiles into launch positions, with Israel's Dimona nuclear plant among the possible targets
* AP: Israeli defense minister Barak hints at Israel's readiness to strike Iran
* AP: Rice warns Iran that US will defend Israel
* MEMRI: Iran in Preparations, Deployment to Withstand Possible Attack by West

There's no question now that Tehran, Jerusalem and Washington are also actively preparing for the possibility of a major regional war this fall. But that's not all. A Wall Street Journal editorial yesterday morning on Iran's Missile Threat raises another disturbing scenario, one seemingly ripped right out of my latest thriller, Dead Heat. Yesterday's tests offered no big surprises about Iran's missile technology, but they are a useful reminder of just how real the Iranian threat is - and how rapidly it is growing, observed the Journal. One of the missiles tested was the latest update of the Shahab-3, which has a range of about 1,250 miles. Replace the payload with a lighter one - say, a nuclear warhead - and the range gains 1,000 miles. Add a booster and the range can be extended even farther. North Korea did just that with its Taepodong missile - technology that it passed along to Iran. U.S. intelligence estimates that Iran will have a ballistic missile capable of reaching New York or Washington by about 2015. Iran may already have the capability to target the U.S. with a short-range missile by launching it from a freighter off the East Coast. A few years ago it was observed practicing the launch of Scuds from a barge in the Caspian Sea. This would be especially troubling if Tehran is developing EMP - electromagnetic pulse - technology. A nuclear weapon detonated a hundred miles over U.S. territory would create an electromagnetic pulse that would virtually shut down the U.S. economy by destroying electronic circuits on the ground. William Graham, head of a Congressional commission to assess the EMP threat, testifies before the House Armed Services Committee this morning. We hope someone asks him about Iran.All the more reason to move forward -- rapidly -- with a robut missile defense program for the U.S., Israel and Europe, regardless of what the Russians say.

Now, let's turn to the Messiah stories. Through TV programs like The Secret of Armageddon, the Iranian government continues trying to prepare people for what Ahmadinejad sees as the increasingly imminent coming of the Islamic Messiah. I don't begrudge them that, per se. I also believe we are living in the last days. I believe the Messiah is coming. And I believe we all need to live differently in light of these truths. The problem is that while Jesus, the Apostles and all Biblical eschatology teaches us to love our neighbors and our enemies in the End Times -- and share the good news of God's love and salvation for all who will listen and respond -- Shia Islamic eschatology teaches just the opposite. The way to hasten the Mahdi's appearance or arrival on earth, Shia scholars teach, is to create chaos and carnage on the planet and kill tens of millions of people. They believe that annihilating Judeo-Christian civilization as we know it and sending the world goes up in flames will then trigger the arrival of the Mahdi who will bring righteousness, justice and peace and create a worldwide Islamic empire. Of course, it's one thing to believe in such horrifying theology. It's another thing to run a country based on it. Yet that is exactly what is happening in Iran today. Such Shia eschatology is driving Iranian foreign policy. What's more, it is driving the Iranian regime's feverish bid to build, buy or steal nuclear weapons and the missiles capable of delivering them to U.S. and Israeli targets. Such genocidal zealots cannot be successfully negotiated with or deterred. That's what is so critical for Washington and our allies to understand. Ahmadinejad -- and, more importantly, the Ayatollah Khamenei -- don't want to be stopped. They believe they are on a God-given mission to bring about the end of the world, and they are eager and passionate about getting the job done as quickly as possible. Meanwhile, a far healthier discussion is going on right now in Israel. Many religious Jews also believe global events are lining up to usher in the coming of the Messiah. Of course, they believe He will be arriving for the first time, not the second time, as Christians believe. But now the very nature of who the Messiah is and what He will do when He arrives is being debated in a whole new way. Consider these stories (and I strongly encourage you to read each thoroughly):

* Haaretz (a leading Israeli daily newspaper): Dead Sea tablet suggests Jewish resurrection imagery pre-dates Jesus
* New York Times: Ancient Tablet Ignites Debate on Messiah and Resurrection
* Agence France Presse: Mystery tablet could redefine Jewish-Christian links
* The Jewish Journal: Was Jesus' resurrection culturally expected?

Israeli Professor Israel Knohl of The Hebrew University of Jerusalem finds himself in the spotlight for a presentation he is giving this week at a major conference on the 60th anniversary of discovering the Dead Sea Scrolls. His lecture is entitled, The Gabriel Revelation and the Birth of Christianity, and it is creating a whole lot of buzz. The first part [of the ancient tablet that he has been studying] describes an eschatological war, Knohl explains. The nations of the world besiege Jerusalem, and the residents are expelled from the city in groups. This description is followed by a passage in which God sends my servant David to ask...the Messiah Son of Joseph to deliver a sign. From the context, it appears that this sign heralds the coming redemption.The second part of the Gabriel Revelation focuses on death and resurrection - and the blood of the slain. The last paragraph cites the words of the Archangel Gabriel who commands a person to return to life after three days: By three days, live. In my lecture I will deal with the possible connection between the figure of Ephraim, the Messiah Son of Joseph, and the image of Jesus in the New Testament. I will also explore the possible link between the resurrection by three days commanded by Gabriel in the Gabriel Revelation and the resurrection of Jesus on the third day.

Moshe Idel, a professor of Jewish thought at Hebrew University, said that given the way every tiny fragment from that era yielded scores of articles and books, Gabriel's Revelation and Mr. Knohl's analysis deserved serious attention, reports the New York Times. Here we have a real stone with a real text, he said. This is truly significant.What Knohl finds most significant is the fact that [the writings on the stone tablet] strongly suggested that a savior who died and rose after three days was an established concept at the time of Jesus. He notes that in the Gospels, Jesus makes numerous predictions of his suffering and New Testament scholars say such predictions must have been written in by later followers because there was no such idea present in his day. But there was, he said, and Gabriel's Revelation shows it.His mission is that he has to be put to death by the Romans to suffer so his blood will be the sign for redemption to come, Mr. Knohl said. This is the sign of the son of Joseph. This is the conscious view of Jesus himself....To shed blood...to bring redemption to Israel. Two trends worth watching.
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Radical Sabbath of the Land copyright (c) 2008 by Mr. Yosef Ben Shlomo HaKohen Editor, Hazon: Our Universal Vision
http://www.shemayisrael.co.il/publicat/hazon/

My Search for the Soul of Zion Series, Essay #7

Excerpt: During the early days of the State of Israel, there was a beloved sage, Rabbi Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman, who was the founder and head of the Ponivez Yeshiva in Bnei Brak. Rabbi Kahaneman was aware of the difficulties facing those farmers who were striving to fully observe the Shmittah. On the eve of the Sabbatical Year, this sage traveled to Kibbutz Chafetz Chaim, a religious kibbutz affiliated with Poelei Agudath Israel which was keeping the Shmittah laws....Rabbi Kahaneman desired to strengthen the spirit of the farmers, and he spoke to them about the holiness of this Shabbos for HaShem -- a holiness which permeates each plant and each boimelah (an affectionate Yiddish term for a tree). As the Shmittah year was about to begin, he suggested that every farmer go over and wish a tree, Good Shabbos, boimelah! He himself then kissed the earth and wished it a Good Shabbos!.

YERUSHALIYIM, Israelite Tribal Territories of Judah and Benjamin, Kingdom of David and Solomon, United Israelite Kingdom of Judah and Joseph, Eighth Day (Tammuz), (Shmittah/Sabbatical Year) 5768; Erev Shabbat (Eve of the Sabbath), Yom Shishi (Sixth Day of Week/Fri-day, July 11, 2008), Root & Branch Information Services [ mailto:rb@rb.org.il ] [ www.rb.org.il ]:


Dear Friends,

Among the mitzvos which we are to specifically fulfill in the Land of Zion is the following land-related mitzvah regarding Shmittah -- the Sabbatical Year: Six years shall you sow your land and gather in its produce. But in the seventh year, you shall let it go and abandon it, and the needy of your People shall eat, and the wildlife of the field shall eat what is left; so shall you do to your vineyard and your olive grove.[ Shemot/Exodus 23:10-11]

Maimonides, in his classical work, The Book of the Mitzvos, discusses the above mitzvah, and he writes:By this injunction, we are given a mandate to renounce as ownerless all produce of the land in the Shmittah Year, and to permit anybody to take what grows in our fields.[ Mitzvah 134]

Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch discusses the above verse in his biblical commentary, and he writes:By observing the mitzvah of Shmittah, an entire nation proclaims before the world that its land belongs to God and that He is the land’s one, sole true Master. In the seventh year, the nation refrains from exercising its rights of ownership and humbly returns its land to the Master of all the earth. By doing so, the people acknowledge that they are strangers and sojourners on their own land, dwelling on it only by the grace of the Owner. Then the arrogance that causes people, secure in their own land, to become callous and harsh in dealing with those without property, melts away, yielding place to love and kindness toward the stranger and the poor. Even the wild animals, as God’s creatures, are considered endowed with rights on God’s earth, on which all are to dwell together.[ Commentary on Exodus 23:10-11]

A related mitzvah is the Divine mandate to desist from cultivating the land during the Shmittah Year. The source for this second mitzvah is found in the following verses where HaShem, the Compassionate and Life-Giving One, speaks to Moses about the Shabbos -- Sabbath -- for the Land:Speak to the Children of Israel and say to them: When you come into the Land that I will give you, the Land shall observe a Shabbos for HaShem. For six years you may sow your field and for six years you may prune your vineyard; and you may gather in its crop. But the seventh year shall be a complete rest for the Land, a Shabbos for HaShem; your field you shall not sow and your vineyard you shall not prune.[ Vayikra/Leviticus 25:1-4]

Through this mitzvah, states the Talmud, HaShem is telling Israel:

Sow for six years and let go of the Land in the seventh year in order that you know that the Land is Mine.[ Babylonian Talmud/Tractate Sanhedrin 39a]

It is written, The Land is Mine, for you are strangers and sojourners with Me [Vayikra/Leviticus 25:23]. With these words, say our sages, HaShem is conveying the following paradoxical message: When it is Mine, then it will be yours (Sifra).

When we acknowledge that the Land belongs to the Creator, then the Creator gives us the right to live in the Land and to serve as its custodians. To serve as the custodians of the earth was the original Divine mandate given to humankind, as the Torah states that the human being was placed in the Garden of Eden to serve it and protect it [Bereshit/Genesis 2:15].

Today, a growing number of farmers in the Land of Israel are fervently fulfilling the sacred principles and laws of the Shmittah Year. Through their observance of this mitzvah which causes them to give up their control over the Land, they are proclaiming, To HaShem belongs the earth and its fullness, the inhabited land and those who dwell in it [Tehillim/Psalm 24:1].

During the early days of the State of Israel, there was a beloved sage, Rabbi Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman, who was the founder and head of the Ponivez Yeshiva in Bnei Brak. Rabbi Kahaneman was aware of the difficulties facing those farmers who were striving to fully observe the Shmittah. On the eve of the Sabbatical Year, this sage traveled to Kibbutz Chafetz Chaim, a religious kibbutz affiliated with Poelei Agudath Israel which was keeping the Shmittah laws.

Rabbi Kahaneman desired to strengthen the spirit of the farmers, and he spoke to them about the holiness of this Shabbos for HaShem -- a holiness which permeates each plant and each boimelah (an affectionate Yiddish term for a tree). As the Shmittah year was about to begin, he suggested that every farmer go over and wish a tree, Good Shabbos, boimelah! He himself then kissed the earth and wished it a Good Shabbos!

Have a Good and Sweet Shabbos.
Shabbat Shalom from Yerushaliyim,
Mr. Yosef Ben Shlomo Hakohen

Advisory Board Member, Ecology Fellowship, Root & Branch Association, Ltd.Advisory Board Member, Social Welfare Fellowship, Root & Branch Association, Ltd.Author, The Universal Jew (Feldheim Publishers)Editor, Hazon: Our Universal Vision
http://www.shemayisrael.co.il/publicat/hazon/

Related Teachings:


1. This year is a Shmittah Year in the Land of Zion. During the previous Shmittah Year, for the first time in the history of the State of Israel, the grounds of the Knesset -- Israel's parliament -- were managed according to the laws of Shmittah. The Jerusalem Municipality also observed the Shmittah laws in the city's parks. Although some of the secular city council members were critical of this practice, council member Anat Hoffman from Meretz, a secular leftist party, endorsed the observance of the Shmittah Year. She praised the city’s efforts to observe the Shimittah laws as illustrating respect for both Judaism and the environment.

2.The story about Rabbi Kahaneman appears in the book Builders by Chanoch Teller. This book is distributed by Feldheim Publishers: www.feldheim.com.

3.Many of the farmers who observe Shmittah find that the year of Shabbos for HaShem gives them the opportunity to increase their Torah study. Thus, special educational programs are organized for these farmers during the Shmittah Year.