October 4, 2022 Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) starts today at sundown and is celebrated tomorrow. The significance of this day is that only once a year, and only the High Priest, would access the Holy of Holiest on this day, to offer the blood of the atonement lamb for the remission of sins. The amazing significance of this today is that Yeshua, Jesus Christ of Nazareth, is the atonement offering, and is also our High Priest. We don’t have to wait once a year for the forgiveness of our sins, or to access the Holy of Holiest, because the veil of the temple was torn with His death signifying that we access Heavens through Him, not through men or sacrifices, but by believing, confessing and repenting in His name, on His behalf of Jesus, (because He already paid the price). No other God has ever died for His people! Therefore He, Jesus, is the ONLY true God, the only way, the truth, and the life and whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life IN HIM. (We all who believe and follow Jesus, have access to the Holy of Holiest, the throne room, through the blood of Jesus). Now, we see the sufferings of His sacrifice in Luke 22:41-46- “And He withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and He knelt down and began to pray, saying, “Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done.” Now an angel from heaven appeared to Him, strengthening Him. And being in agony He was praying very fervently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground. When He rose from prayer, He came to the disciples and found them sleeping from sorrow, and said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray that you may not enter into temptation.” So, as believers, we often want to partner in Christ’s blessings, but not in His sufferings. Discipleship is costly, and we must count the cost of what we believe in. There are also joy and blessings from partnering with Jesus’ sufferings, because we behold Him in the process. We become what we behold. There is joy in repenting to what we are becoming in Christ. I heard a story from my pastor about a rabi in Israel who told her that the word “why” in Hebrew, when you change just one letter from it, changes into “what”. So, it is wise to change our questions as we face trouble in our lives and ask ourselves: “what is God teaching me?” instead of asking: “why am I going through this?” We must not forget that the Holy Spirit is not only our teacher, but our comforter and helper, so He will show us how to renew our minds to receive the blessings of partnering with Jesus’ sufferings. Graham Cooke says: “Every trouble is an opportunity to grow into Christ’s character. We can practice the truth of what He says about the situation until our freedom becomes real in our circumstances.” Think of one area where you are upgrading as a disciple. Then ask yourself: What is Jesus thinking about me in this process? He has not changed His mind about you. His Words about you are always full of life and truth because His Word is true. What opportunities are present to remain living in that truth of what Jesus is saying? May we find joy in partnering with His sufferings and count it an honor, instead of “sleeping FROM sorrow” May we face the troubles and “turn them into exciting possibilities”. When the enemy persecutes you, send him reinforcement in prayers and multiple yourself in numbers, the darkness cannot overcome Yeshua’s light in us. Besides, our response to trouble is sometimes the best testimony we can give to nonbelievers, and even to our brothers and sisters in Christ. What if God is teaching us to be gentle, patient, kind, loving…? May the inconvenient and unconventional in Jesus become our lifestyle, that we can be called true disciples! May you be encouraged “to stir up the water”. Happy Tuesday and give the enemy tones of TROUBLE today! 😊 Yaneisy del Corral

Posted by Yaneisy del Corral Linares at 2022-10-04 14:12:01 UTC