Jamie Alexander & Rabbi Jason Sobel: Miracles & The Power Of Return | Breaking Sunday School

June 18, 2026 | 58:24

What if the Bible stories you grew up with weren’t wrong but they were incomplete? Teacher Rabbi Jason Sobel looks to unpack the deeper truths hidden beneath familiar stories. Reframe the Sunday School narrative with historical depth, cultural context, and spiritual revelation.

#Bible #Truth #Church #Theology #Education #Pastors #WalkwithGod #Jesus #Miracles #Resurrection #ReturnofChrist #JamieAlexander #JasonSobel

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| Jamie Alexander & Rabbi Jason Sobel: Miracles & The Power Of Return | Breaking Sunday School | June 18, 2026

Male announcer: what if the bible stories you grew up with
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Weren't the full story?
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What if in the beginning didn't just mark a moment in time but
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Reveal the very purpose of it all?
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What if noah's ark was filled two by two and seven by seven?
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And what if babel's tower wasn't about height but about the heart
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Of humanity?
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What if a young shepherd boy could face a giant and change
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The course of history?
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Because when we see god's story the way he wrote it,
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Everything changes.
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Tonight we're breaking open the bible stories you thought you
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Knew to discover the truths you've missed.
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This is "breaking sunday school."
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[music]
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[audience applauding]
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Jamie alexander: welcome to "breaking sunday school," the
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Show where the bible stories you thought you knew reveal the
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Truths you've missed and turn out to be just the beginning.
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I'm jamie alexander, and tonight we're talking about miracles
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That happen in storms, healings that happen after long seasons
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Of waiting, and what it really means to come home when you've
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Wandered far away, and one of the most mysterious moments in
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The gospels, when graves are opened and resurrection breaks
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Into history.
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And as always, we're not doing this alone.
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To help us uncover the jewish context, the hebrew depth, and
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The messianic meaning behind these stories, please welcome
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Our resident guide through the jewish roots of our faith,
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Messianic rabbi, teacher, and author, rabbi jason sobel.
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[applauding]
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Jamie: yeah, yes.
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Jason sobel: shalom, it is so good to be here with all of
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You tonight.
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These stories are familiar to so many of us, and, but when we
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Slow down and read them through the eyes of a first-century
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Jewish world, we discover there is so much more to
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These miracles.
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There is so much more to these stories than maybe we've ever
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Even considered.
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What do they do?
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They're stories of identity.
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They reveal who yeshua is and who we are invited to become
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In him.
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Jamie: you know, that's what makes tonight so special.
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We're not just retelling stories, we're letting scripture
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Speak for itself.
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Now, you've already shared your thoughts and instincts before
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The show, and throughout the night we're gonna see how those
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Assumptions line up with what the text actually says.
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So if you've ever wondered whether miracles still happen,
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Whether waiting means god has forgotten you, whether it's
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Really possible to come home after failure, or what
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Resurrection actually means for life right now, this night is
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The show for you.
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Alright, why don't we begin where fear and faith collide,
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Out on the water.
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[music]
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Jamie: alright, before we open the story, let's pause for a
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Moment, because when we read about the disciples in that
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Boat, facing the wind, the waves, and their own
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Uncertainty, it's hard not to recognize those same emotions in
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Our own lives.
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So, earlier we asked this audience here in the room and in
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The folks joining us virtually to respond to a few polling
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Questions, not as a bible quiz, but to see what instincts we
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Bring to the story.
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So let's look at our audience polls and see how well you
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Remember your sunday school lessons and how they might just
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Be the beginning of the story.
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Okay, here we go, poll question one.
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Who is the only disciple recorded as attempting to walk
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On the water towards jesus?
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Uh-huh, yes.
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Peter was the only one who stepped out.
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Excellent job, everybody.
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I love seeing that.
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Boom, 96%, very good.
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Poll number two, in the biblical account, what caused peter to
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Begin sinking?
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Yeah, exactly.
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He didn't sink because of the waves, but because his
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Focus shifted.
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Question three, what does jesus reveal about himself while
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Standing over the storm?
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Ooh, that's a good one.
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The answer is c, jesus is revealing something about who
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He is, not just what he can do.
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So it's really neat, these questions help us see what's
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Really happening on that water.
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So, rabbi, would you actually help us understand why on earth
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This moment mattered so much?
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Jason: you know, i love taking people to israel, and one of my
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Favorite places to go is for a boat ride on the sea of galilee
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On our rock road rabbi tours, but 2,000 years ago the
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Disciples went on a boat ride, and it was a little
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Bit different.
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It was after jesus, yeshua, had fed the 5,000.
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They're in the boat, it's dark, it's night, and all of a sudden
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A giant storm whips through the sea of galilee, and the
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Disciples are struggling, they're in fear that maybe
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They're not gonna make it through, all the while jesus,
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Yeshua, is on the mountain praying and interceding, and i'm
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Sure the disciples were like where is our rabbi when we
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Need him?
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What's going on here as we look at this story, we're gonna begin
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To break open sunday school by looking at this story from a
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Slightly different perspective, because what it is is actually a
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Replay of creation.
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Think about it for a moment.
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When god created the world, there was darkness over the face
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Of the deep.
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The disciples are there in the middle of the night.
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You have the chaos at creation.
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Here you have the winds and the violent storms.
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And in the same way that the spirit of god, the ruach, was
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Hovering over the face of the deep, ruach can also mean wind.
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It is the same wind or spirit tied to creation tied to the
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Wind that was blowing on the sea that evening.
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The disciples felt hopeless, and they felt overwhelmed, they
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Felt powerless.
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The boat was battered and being beaten, for the wind and the
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Waves were against them, but we have to understand that from a
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Jewish worldview, the waters were never neutral.
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They represented chaos, and they represented forces of
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Spiritual opposition.
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And this is how the disciples would have understood it.
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But of course, there was still something more, because going
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Back to genesis chapter 1 verse 2, it says
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[speaking hebrew]
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Darkness was upon the face of the waters, and what we read
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About is this.
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When they say there was darkness and the spirit of god was
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Hovering over the deep, they say that spirit, the rabbis, was
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Actually the spirit of the messiah, of the king of kings.
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And so the rabbis associate that story with the messiah.
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And so when yeshua comes walking on the winds, walking through
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The winds, walking on the water, he's actually saying the same
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Spirit that was present at creation, that spirit is present
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In me.
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In the same way god calmed the storms in the beginning, he's
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Still the one that calms the storms in our life.
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And as yeshua approaches the water, he tramples literally
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Chaos under his feet.
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And why is this so significant?
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Because it reveals something about his identity.
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It reveals his divinity.
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Why is that so significant that he comes walking on the water?
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Because job 9:8 tells us this.
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It says that there is only one who walks, who treads on the
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Waves of the sea, and that is god himself.
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So when messiah walks on the water, it points to him as the
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One job spoke about, but of course there is still more.
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When he approaches the disciples after he comes walking on the
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Water, and he says these words to them, he says, "it is i.
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I am he. do not be afraid."
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Why is that significant?
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Because in the greek he uses the greek word ego eimi, and that is
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Part of the phrase that moses hears in the burning bush, i am
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Who i am.
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When it gets translated into greek in the septuagint uses
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That phrase, same phrase, ego eimi.
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So when he says i am he, we miss it oftentimes in the
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English translation.
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He's saying i am, i am the great i am.
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And that's why the disciples respond, truly you are the son
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Of god, because they understood no human being can walk on
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The water.
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The rabbis associate it with the messiah, and in the scriptures
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Only god walks on the water.
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But of course there is still more.
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There is also a moses connection.
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Think about it for a moment.
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God redeems the children of israel out of egypt, but they're
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Still not free until he parts the red sea.
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So just like moses stretched out his hand over the waters, yeshua
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Stretches out his hands to peter.
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Just like moses parted, yeshua does even better, he walks on.
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He is the greater than moses.
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Moses delivers israel from death, yeshua delivers peter and
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The disciples from drowning.
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He truly is the greater than moses, as well as the great i am
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Who appeared to moses.
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But then of course you have peter the disciple who steps
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Into impossibility.
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There's 12 disciples in the boat, but only one has enough
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Faith and trust not to play it safe, but he's literally willing
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To step out of the boat when messiah calls him to come.
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So, oftentimes we like the safety of the boat.
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The boat feels good, we feel protected in the boat, but here
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Is the reality, nothing supernatural happens if you stay
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In the boat.
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[applauding]
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Jason: and then of course peter wound up sinking, why?
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He took his eyes off the lord.
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So, the question is what are our eyes fixed on?
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Are they focused on the lord, or are they focused upon what's
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Happening around us?
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Because here's the reality, like the disciples in the boat, all
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Of us are going to face storms.
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But here's the reality about storms, the storms are meant to
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Be your school.
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The storm is not meant to destroy you.
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Storms are meant to create something more in you.
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Storms create struggle, but struggle builds strength in
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Our lives.
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Storms teach us about god, and they teach us about ourselves.
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If we wanna get strong in faith, strong in god, strong for the
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Supernatural, we need storms, because they reveal our level
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Of faith.
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Do you know how you spell faith?
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R-i-s-k.
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If you're not willing to risk, you really don't have
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Much faith.
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It doesn't take faith to believe god for the possible, it takes
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Faith to believe god for the impossible.
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If you don't need him, it's not faith.
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So the question is we don't look at the waves, we look to him,
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And when we do, the hand of yeshua is never far from us.
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[applauding]
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Jamie: thank you, rabbi.
00:12:53.028 --> 00:12:54.630
Alright, let's bring this into real life, because storms don't
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Just stay in the bible times.
00:12:57.633 --> 00:12:59.535
And what rabbi just walked us through isn't just theology,
00:12:59.535 --> 00:13:02.204
It's experience.
00:13:02.204 --> 00:13:03.639
And every one of us knows what it feels like to step out, feel
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The wind pick up, and wonder if we ever actually even heard god
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At all.
00:13:11.013 --> 00:13:12.381
So let's slow this down and talk about how this actually plays
00:13:12.381 --> 00:13:15.584
Out when faith gets tested.
00:13:15.584 --> 00:13:17.386
I'm gonna dive into our audience with a couple questions.
00:13:17.386 --> 00:13:21.257
Hey, we're looking for teresa.
00:13:21.257 --> 00:13:22.791
Teresa: do you think it was peter's faith alone that allowed
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Him to step out onto the water?
00:13:26.562 --> 00:13:28.030
And we see that similarly in stories where it seems that the
00:13:28.030 --> 00:13:32.201
Faith alone was the action towards the healing, or is there
00:13:32.201 --> 00:13:38.073
A little more to it?
00:13:38.073 --> 00:13:39.742
Jason: great question.
00:13:39.742 --> 00:13:41.110
I think, again, we have to understand, as we know from the
00:13:41.110 --> 00:13:44.713
Gospels that when faith was not present, there are times that
00:13:44.713 --> 00:13:48.784
Jesus does not perform miracles, but here is really the most
00:13:48.784 --> 00:13:53.455
Important issue that people miss.
00:13:53.455 --> 00:13:57.026
Faith alone is not enough to unlock the supernatural blessing
00:13:57.026 --> 00:14:02.164
Of god.
00:14:02.164 --> 00:14:03.632
You need faith, faith is belief, but trust is acting on what we
00:14:03.632 --> 00:14:09.271
Know to be true.
00:14:09.271 --> 00:14:11.240
You can have faith without trust.
00:14:11.240 --> 00:14:13.375
You can't have trust without faith.
00:14:13.375 --> 00:14:16.145
The other disciples, with the exception of maybe judas, had
00:14:16.145 --> 00:14:19.348
Faith, but they didn't have trust to step out of the boat.
00:14:19.348 --> 00:14:23.319
And again, this ties back to moses, when they come to the red
00:14:23.319 --> 00:14:27.323
Sea, and they seem like it's gonna be the end, the egyptian
00:14:27.323 --> 00:14:31.460
Army and pharaoh on one side, and the red sea on the other
00:14:31.460 --> 00:14:34.463
Side, they begin to panic, and god said to moses when he
00:14:34.463 --> 00:14:37.833
Prayed, "did i not tell you to go?"
00:14:37.833 --> 00:14:40.269
The sea doesn't part until they have enough trust to step into
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The waters, just like peter hadn't had enough faith and
00:14:44.740 --> 00:14:47.876
Trust to step out of the boat into the water, and only then
00:14:47.876 --> 00:14:51.647
Does the miracle happen.
00:14:51.647 --> 00:14:53.649
[applauding]
00:14:53.649 --> 00:14:59.455
Jamie: thank you, rabbi, amazing stuff.
00:14:59.455 --> 00:15:02.124
You know, some of you are in a storm right now, and some of you
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Feel stuck in the boat, and some of you are soaked but
00:15:05.461 --> 00:15:09.331
Still standing.
00:15:09.331 --> 00:15:10.699
Now, here's what tonight reminds us.
00:15:10.699 --> 00:15:12.401
Jesus meets us on the water, not just when it's calm, and next,
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We're gonna go to a very different kind of place, not a
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Storm, but a waiting room, a pool where hope felt delayed
00:15:20.009 --> 00:15:24.046
For decades.
00:15:24.046 --> 00:15:25.447
Let's go to the pool of bethesda, the waiting place.
00:15:25.447 --> 00:15:29.918
[applauding]
00:15:29.918 --> 00:15:33.255
Jamie: before we open the text, let's sit in on the tension of
00:15:35.858 --> 00:15:39.194
This story for a moment, because this miracle doesn't happen in a
00:15:39.194 --> 00:15:42.097
Storm, it happens in a waiting room.
00:15:42.097 --> 00:15:45.734
Some of us have been sitting in that waiting room a long time,
00:15:45.734 --> 00:15:49.138
Maybe long enough to know exactly which chair squeaks and
00:15:49.138 --> 00:15:52.007
Which one doesn't.
00:15:52.007 --> 00:15:53.375
That's exactly why this story matters, because it meets us not
00:15:53.375 --> 00:15:56.545
In the dramatic moments, but in the ordinary, uncomfortable
00:15:56.545 --> 00:16:00.315
Spaces where hope feels delayed.
00:16:00.315 --> 00:16:02.684
This is about what we assume god is doing when nothing seems to
00:16:02.684 --> 00:16:06.321
Be happening.
00:16:06.321 --> 00:16:07.923
Okay, poll question one, how long was the man at the pool of
00:16:07.923 --> 00:16:12.194
Bethesda unable to walk?
00:16:12.194 --> 00:16:15.164
Very nice, 38 years, and it's long enough for disappointment
00:16:15.164 --> 00:16:19.034
To really become an identity, and you guys nailed that one,
00:16:19.034 --> 00:16:22.137
Well done.
00:16:22.137 --> 00:16:23.605
Poll question two, what question does jesus ask the man before
00:16:23.605 --> 00:16:28.343
Healing him?
00:16:28.343 --> 00:16:29.678
Do you want to get well?
00:16:29.678 --> 00:16:31.847
That question sounds pretty simple, but it's actually
00:16:31.847 --> 00:16:34.383
Really confronting.
00:16:34.383 --> 00:16:36.285
Jesus is asking about desire, not just belief.
00:16:36.285 --> 00:16:40.689
Okay, poll question three, what was the man still relying on for
00:16:40.689 --> 00:16:44.560
Healing before jesus arrived?
00:16:44.560 --> 00:16:47.129
Well, this is interesting, this is the heart of the story,
00:16:47.129 --> 00:16:50.732
Waiting on a system, a moment, or other people when mercy is
00:16:50.732 --> 00:16:54.002
Standing right in front of him.
00:16:54.002 --> 00:16:56.171
That's great, okay, so rabbi, will you help us understand why
00:16:56.171 --> 00:16:59.741
Jesus meets this man here and what the story is really
00:16:59.741 --> 00:17:03.512
Teaching us about, waiting and mercy and healing?
00:17:03.512 --> 00:17:08.784
Jason: what a great miracle, the pool of bethesda,
00:17:08.784 --> 00:17:12.454
John chapter 5.
00:17:12.454 --> 00:17:14.857
And after this, the gospel tells us there was a feast, and
00:17:14.857 --> 00:17:19.128
Yeshua went up to jerusalem, and now there had been a certain man
00:17:19.128 --> 00:17:23.599
Who had been an invalid for 38 years, and yeshua sees him lying
00:17:23.599 --> 00:17:28.637
There, and he asks him the question, "do you want to be
00:17:28.637 --> 00:17:32.474
Made well?"
00:17:32.474 --> 00:17:33.876
So, what's amazing is this, here's a man, stuck there,
00:17:33.876 --> 00:17:39.982
Hasn't been able to walk, seems as if there is complete
00:17:39.982 --> 00:17:44.286
Hopelessness that nothing is ever going to change, but then a
00:17:44.286 --> 00:17:49.258
Miracle happens, and the place that it happens is
00:17:49.258 --> 00:17:53.095
So significant.
00:17:53.095 --> 00:17:54.429
Bethesda, comes from the hebrew word beit, which means house,
00:17:54.429 --> 00:17:59.735
And hesed, which means lovingkindness.
00:17:59.735 --> 00:18:03.772
This man is going to encounter the lovingkindness of god in the
00:18:03.772 --> 00:18:08.944
Person of yeshua, and it's about to change everything for him.
00:18:08.944 --> 00:18:14.149
But think about it for a moment.
00:18:14.149 --> 00:18:16.018
There is no detail in the bible that is wasted.
00:18:16.018 --> 00:18:20.255
God doesn't waste words.
00:18:20.255 --> 00:18:22.391
So what we learn is that this man had not been able to walk
00:18:22.391 --> 00:18:26.895
For 38 years, and the question is what is so significant about
00:18:26.895 --> 00:18:31.967
The fact 38 years?
00:18:31.967 --> 00:18:34.770
Well, if i was to ask most people a question, so let's
00:18:34.770 --> 00:18:37.773
Break some sunday school misconceptions here, because we
00:18:37.773 --> 00:18:40.809
Are breaking sunday school.
00:18:40.809 --> 00:18:44.213
How many years did israel wander in the desert?
00:18:44.213 --> 00:18:47.049
Most people would say 40, but the answer is actually 38,
00:18:47.049 --> 00:18:52.487
According to deuteronomy chapter 2:14.
00:18:52.487 --> 00:18:56.625
They crossed over the wadi zered.
00:18:56.625 --> 00:18:58.727
The years were 38.
00:18:58.727 --> 00:19:00.963
They were in the desert 40, but they wandered 38 because of
00:19:00.963 --> 00:19:05.234
Their unbelief, wilderness, unbelief in the heart, and that
00:19:05.234 --> 00:19:10.639
Is what is at the heart of the story literally.
00:19:10.639 --> 00:19:15.277
So we know that hebrew is alphanumeric.
00:19:15.277 --> 00:19:18.413
The way that you write numbers is with letters, and you know i
00:19:18.413 --> 00:19:22.517
Love the numerical values, and so the numerical value of libo,
00:19:22.517 --> 00:19:28.090
His heart, equals, guess what, 38.
00:19:28.090 --> 00:19:34.196
Because god was testing this man like he tested the children of
00:19:34.196 --> 00:19:38.400
Israel in the wilderness to see what was in his heart.
00:19:38.400 --> 00:19:43.138
Thirty eight, a generation stuck under judgment, a generation
00:19:43.138 --> 00:19:48.243
Stuck between promise and fulfillment, and this man
00:19:48.243 --> 00:19:53.081
Represents not only his own predicament, but he represents
00:19:53.081 --> 00:19:56.585
Israel and the jewish leaders of his day, and so yeshua gives him
00:19:56.585 --> 00:20:01.690
The command, rise, get up and walk, and it is actually meant
00:20:01.690 --> 00:20:06.395
To be a new exodus movement.
00:20:06.395 --> 00:20:10.565
He's calling them to rise up and to enter their promise by faith
00:20:10.565 --> 00:20:16.071
In the same way israel was called to enter into the
00:20:16.071 --> 00:20:19.808
Promised land.
00:20:19.808 --> 00:20:21.143
And here's the reality, this is the choice, we don't have to,
00:20:21.143 --> 00:20:25.514
You don't have to stay stuck.
00:20:25.514 --> 00:20:27.816
You don't have to spend another 38 years where you are right
00:20:27.816 --> 00:20:32.654
Now, because yeshua in the business of changing us when we
00:20:32.654 --> 00:20:37.959
Turn our hearts to him.
00:20:37.959 --> 00:20:39.895
But this raises another question.
00:20:39.895 --> 00:20:43.065
There's a detail that is often overlooked that is key to
00:20:43.065 --> 00:20:46.034
Unlocking the deeper meaning of the story.
00:20:46.034 --> 00:20:49.404
It says he went up to jerusalem and encountered the man at the
00:20:49.404 --> 00:20:54.142
Pool of bethesda during a feast.
00:20:54.142 --> 00:20:57.079
What feast was it?
00:20:57.079 --> 00:20:58.914
It doesn't tell us, but there are clues, and i believe it was
00:20:58.914 --> 00:21:03.318
The feast known in hebrew as shavuot, or in english,
00:21:03.318 --> 00:21:07.522
Pentecost from the greek, and it is the time god first spoke to
00:21:07.522 --> 00:21:12.994
Israel at mount sinai and gave the ten commandments was on
00:21:12.994 --> 00:21:17.999
Pentecost, shavuot, the same time acts chapter 2, the holy
00:21:17.999 --> 00:21:22.537
Spirit is poured out on the people.
00:21:22.537 --> 00:21:25.707
But the question is why is that significant?
00:21:25.707 --> 00:21:28.643
Why does this miracle happen at shavuot?
00:21:28.643 --> 00:21:32.314
And i think there is a forgotten truth that many christians
00:21:32.314 --> 00:21:36.351
Don't know.
00:21:36.351 --> 00:21:37.686
It says in the bible at mount sinai they all stood, they all
00:21:37.686 --> 00:21:43.058
Heard, and they all saw.
00:21:43.058 --> 00:21:45.827
Weren't there blind people who came out of egypt?
00:21:45.827 --> 00:21:48.630
Weren't there deaf people who came out of egypt?
00:21:48.630 --> 00:21:51.299
Weren't there people who were invalids and were not able
00:21:51.299 --> 00:21:54.102
To stand?
00:21:54.102 --> 00:21:55.437
But it says all did all three things, so what does that mean?
00:21:55.437 --> 00:22:00.308
What it means is this, from a jewish perspective, god healed
00:22:00.308 --> 00:22:04.179
All the children of israel, that they could enter into the
00:22:04.179 --> 00:22:07.816
Covenant whole and healed.
00:22:07.816 --> 00:22:11.920
And when does he do the miracle?
00:22:11.920 --> 00:22:14.022
He gives the ten commandments.
00:22:14.022 --> 00:22:16.625
That first shavuot is actually a shabbat.
00:22:16.625 --> 00:22:20.529
It is actually the sabbath.
00:22:20.529 --> 00:22:22.931
So god healed all israel on the sabbath, and the religious
00:22:22.931 --> 00:22:28.637
Leaders get upset that jesus does a healing on the sabbath,
00:22:28.637 --> 00:22:34.109
But he's like, "listen, i'm only doing what my father was doing.
00:22:34.109 --> 00:22:38.380
I only did what i saw my father doing.
00:22:38.380 --> 00:22:41.850
My father is working until now, and i am working."
00:22:41.850 --> 00:22:47.022
You weren't upset when god healed our ancestors on shabbat.
00:22:47.022 --> 00:22:50.759
You didn't complain, god, you broke the sabbath.
00:22:50.759 --> 00:22:55.530
This is not law-breaking, it's actually an imitation of
00:22:55.530 --> 00:23:00.435
The father.
00:23:00.435 --> 00:23:01.870
Healing of the shabbat doesn't violate the torah in god's
00:23:01.870 --> 00:23:05.273
Commandments, it actually is meant to fulfill it.
00:23:05.273 --> 00:23:09.511
But what we need to understand is this, waiting for the right
00:23:09.511 --> 00:23:13.248
Moment can actually sometimes be a form of unbelief.
00:23:13.248 --> 00:23:21.156
The man believed healing was possible, and he was healed, but
00:23:21.156 --> 00:23:28.997
Here's the reality.
00:23:28.997 --> 00:23:31.700
When he was asked the question, he was hesitant.
00:23:31.700 --> 00:23:36.304
His drama and his trauma had begun to define him, and you
00:23:36.304 --> 00:23:43.345
Would think he would've been like yes, yes, yes, but he was
00:23:43.345 --> 00:23:46.214
Stuck in his pain, he was stuck in his past, and he literally
00:23:46.214 --> 00:23:51.653
Could not see past it.
00:23:51.653 --> 00:23:53.889
He had become hopeless.
00:23:53.889 --> 00:23:57.025
We have to be careful we don't miss the moment.
00:23:57.025 --> 00:24:00.595
The right timing, the right movement of the water, the right
00:24:00.595 --> 00:24:06.268
Help from somebody else which we think we need might only be an
00:24:06.268 --> 00:24:10.872
Excuse for our lack of faith, but yeshua showed us that we're
00:24:10.872 --> 00:24:17.178
Not defined by where we've been or what we've been through.
00:24:17.178 --> 00:24:22.450
The wilderness doesn't have to define your future, and that is
00:24:22.450 --> 00:24:27.622
Really good news.
00:24:27.622 --> 00:24:29.791
Your past doesn't determine your future.
00:24:29.791 --> 00:24:33.061
Israel was a wandering generation, they died because of
00:24:33.061 --> 00:24:36.464
Their unbelief.
00:24:36.464 --> 00:24:37.933
This man had a choice.
00:24:37.933 --> 00:24:39.267
Was he gonna believe or die in his unbelief?
00:24:39.267 --> 00:24:42.904
And in the same way he was saying to the religious leaders
00:24:42.904 --> 00:24:45.574
Of israel, you have a choice.
00:24:45.574 --> 00:24:48.009
Will you be like the generation that did not have faith and
00:24:48.009 --> 00:24:51.813
Missed the promise, or will you believe in me, the greater than
00:24:51.813 --> 00:24:55.850
Moses, and enter into the fullness of redemption, healing,
00:24:55.850 --> 00:25:00.422
And transformation?
00:25:00.422 --> 00:25:02.223
And here's the good news, it doesn't matter how long you've
00:25:02.223 --> 00:25:05.660
Been stuck, and it doesn't matter how long your pain has
00:25:05.660 --> 00:25:09.864
Lasted, and it doesn't matter what your problem is, whether
00:25:09.864 --> 00:25:14.069
It's physical, spiritual, emotional, or relational, 38
00:25:14.069 --> 00:25:19.107
Years is not too long for god.
00:25:19.107 --> 00:25:22.110
You may not have been in control of what happened to you, but you
00:25:22.110 --> 00:25:25.947
Do control how you respond to his voice.
00:25:25.947 --> 00:25:29.117
Hope fulfilled leads to life, and yeshua is still calling his
00:25:29.117 --> 00:25:33.254
People out of paralysis.
00:25:33.254 --> 00:25:35.457
Stop waiting for the water to move, listen to the voice of the
00:25:35.457 --> 00:25:39.127
Lord, because he wants to bring you through your past and into
00:25:39.127 --> 00:25:43.798
Your future.
00:25:43.798 --> 00:25:45.133
Your past doesn't define you, he's got more for you.
00:25:45.133 --> 00:25:48.069
[applauding]
00:25:48.069 --> 00:25:57.012
Jamie: so, before we open the text, let's sit in on the
00:25:57.012 --> 00:25:59.714
Tension of this story for a moment, because this miracle
00:25:59.714 --> 00:26:02.250
Doesn't happen in a storm, it happens in a waiting room.
00:26:02.250 --> 00:26:05.654
And judging by our discussions in studio and online, some of us
00:26:05.654 --> 00:26:09.357
Have been sitting in that waiting room a long time.
00:26:09.357 --> 00:26:11.926
That's exactly why this story matters, because it meets us not
00:26:11.926 --> 00:26:14.929
In the dramatic moments, but in the ordinary uncomfortable
00:26:14.929 --> 00:26:17.999
Spaces where hope feels delayed.
00:26:17.999 --> 00:26:20.702
This is what we assume god is doing when nothing seems to
00:26:20.702 --> 00:26:23.004
Be happening.
00:26:23.004 --> 00:26:24.739
Okay, what do you say we dive in for some questions?
00:26:24.739 --> 00:26:27.108
[applauding]
00:26:27.108 --> 00:26:28.743
Jamie: okay, we're gonna jump over to elizabeth also joining
00:26:28.743 --> 00:26:31.546
Us virtually.
00:26:31.546 --> 00:26:32.914
Elizabeth asks, "how do i know when fear is a warning versus
00:26:32.914 --> 00:26:37.152
When it's something i need to push through in faith?"
00:26:37.152 --> 00:26:41.389
Jason: that's a great question.
00:26:41.389 --> 00:26:43.525
God oftentimes uses fear to speak to us, and i think part of
00:26:43.525 --> 00:26:49.431
What we do, obviously we need to take those fears to the lord,
00:26:49.431 --> 00:26:52.934
Which is important, and i also think it's important to
00:26:52.934 --> 00:26:57.972
Understand that we need wise counsel around us, that we can
00:26:57.972 --> 00:27:03.545
Get wisdom and input.
00:27:03.545 --> 00:27:04.879
We're not meant to process these things alone.
00:27:04.879 --> 00:27:07.215
That's why we need spiritual community, and we need spiritual
00:27:07.215 --> 00:27:11.653
Leaders in our life to help guide us through those moments.
00:27:11.653 --> 00:27:16.458
But i think the bottom line is this, god has not given us a
00:27:16.458 --> 00:27:21.429
Spirit of fear and timidity but of power and of love and of a
00:27:21.429 --> 00:27:25.900
Sound mind.
00:27:25.900 --> 00:27:27.235
There's a fear that raises red flags and creates caution for
00:27:27.235 --> 00:27:32.440
Us, and there is a fear that paralyzes us and that causes us
00:27:32.440 --> 00:27:38.079
To become literally stuck.
00:27:38.079 --> 00:27:41.282
That is not a fear that's from god.
00:27:41.282 --> 00:27:43.885
And when we see that we especially need to pray and to
00:27:43.885 --> 00:27:47.455
Ask god to break that spirit off of us.
00:27:47.455 --> 00:27:50.725
[applauding]
00:27:50.725 --> 00:27:57.298
Jamie: some of you have been waiting a long time for healing,
00:27:57.298 --> 00:28:00.235
For a prodigal, for a breakthrough in your soul.
00:28:00.235 --> 00:28:03.671
Well, next, we'll meet someone who did walk away, a son who
00:28:03.671 --> 00:28:07.942
Left home and a brother who stayed but never really
00:28:07.942 --> 00:28:11.379
Came close.
00:28:11.379 --> 00:28:13.214
If you've ever felt far from god or judgmental towards people who
00:28:13.214 --> 00:28:16.584
Are, you're gonna see yourself in the prodigal
00:28:16.584 --> 00:28:19.988
And the power of return.
00:28:19.988 --> 00:28:23.258
[applauding]
00:28:23.258 --> 00:28:27.328
[music]
00:28:27.328 --> 00:28:34.836
Jamie: okay, so i'm just reading the room here.
00:28:34.836 --> 00:28:38.406
Feels a little bit like we've got a strong older brother
00:28:38.406 --> 00:28:42.010
Presence in here tonight, which is exactly why yeshua told
00:28:42.010 --> 00:28:47.549
This parable.
00:28:47.549 --> 00:28:48.883
He knew who would be listening.
00:28:48.883 --> 00:28:50.518
So if you've already started thinking, you know what?
00:28:50.518 --> 00:28:52.754
I've never really left the house, well, stay with us, this
00:28:52.754 --> 00:28:56.024
Story might surprise you.
00:28:56.024 --> 00:28:57.792
Okay, poll question one.
00:28:57.792 --> 00:29:00.094
When the younger son asked for his inheritance early, what did
00:29:00.094 --> 00:29:03.665
That imply culturally?
00:29:03.665 --> 00:29:06.234
Yeah, it was b, it sure was.
00:29:06.234 --> 00:29:08.670
That one's always pretty heavy.
00:29:08.670 --> 00:29:10.705
This wasn't about money, this was about relationship, and in
00:29:10.705 --> 00:29:14.108
That culture, this was a way of saying i want what's yours, but
00:29:14.108 --> 00:29:17.979
I don't want you.
00:29:17.979 --> 00:29:19.314
Mm, alright, poll question two, what three items does the father
00:29:19.314 --> 00:29:24.586
Give the returning son?
00:29:24.586 --> 00:29:26.654
Hey, notice what the father gives him, it's nothing
00:29:26.654 --> 00:29:28.890
Practical, everything's relational.
00:29:28.890 --> 00:29:31.059
This isn't probation, this is restoration, and
00:29:31.059 --> 00:29:35.230
That's intentional.
00:29:35.230 --> 00:29:36.831
Okay, poll question three, what does teshuvah mean in
00:29:36.831 --> 00:29:40.235
Jewish thought?
00:29:40.235 --> 00:29:41.569
Okay, not just feeling bad, not just regret, return.
00:29:41.569 --> 00:29:46.908
Coming back to relationship, you guys nailed that one,
00:29:46.908 --> 00:29:49.677
Too, beautiful.
00:29:49.677 --> 00:29:51.446
And that word, return, is the key that unlocks this
00:29:51.446 --> 00:29:55.116
Entire story.
00:29:55.116 --> 00:29:56.885
Rabbi, will you help us see why this parable isn't really about
00:29:56.885 --> 00:30:00.588
A prodigal son, but rather about a father who never
00:30:00.588 --> 00:30:03.458
Stopped waiting?
00:30:03.458 --> 00:30:06.227
Jason: this is such a powerful story that we've all heard of,
00:30:06.227 --> 00:30:11.432
We've sat in sunday school and listened to it, but let's break
00:30:11.432 --> 00:30:15.303
Sunday school.
00:30:15.303 --> 00:30:17.038
Who said the parable should be called the prodigal son?
00:30:17.038 --> 00:30:21.276
Yeshua doesn't give it that name.
00:30:21.276 --> 00:30:23.244
It's a name that we've assigned to it, and the reality, as we'll
00:30:23.244 --> 00:30:27.916
See is the focus of the parable is actually not the prodigal.
00:30:27.916 --> 00:30:34.155
So, remember, there was a younger son, and he goes to his
00:30:34.155 --> 00:30:38.059
Father, and he asks for his inheritance.
00:30:38.059 --> 00:30:41.863
Why is that so significant?
00:30:41.863 --> 00:30:44.432
Because you would never ask your father for your inheritance
00:30:44.432 --> 00:30:49.070
While he was still alive.
00:30:49.070 --> 00:30:51.039
It's basically saying in that ancient jewish culture i want
00:30:51.039 --> 00:30:55.376
Your possessions, but i'm not interested in a personal
00:30:55.376 --> 00:30:59.180
Relationship with you.
00:30:59.180 --> 00:31:01.115
I want what you have, but i'm not interested in you as
00:31:01.115 --> 00:31:05.286
My father.
00:31:05.286 --> 00:31:06.854
Because we think about inheritance as assets, but
00:31:06.854 --> 00:31:12.393
Biblically in the first century culture assets are connected
00:31:12.393 --> 00:31:18.266
To identity.
00:31:18.266 --> 00:31:21.369
Inheritance and identity go hand in hand.
00:31:21.369 --> 00:31:25.173
In hebrew, yerushah, the inheritance.
00:31:25.173 --> 00:31:28.943
Assets are about belonging.
00:31:28.943 --> 00:31:31.446
It's about being part of a family, a community, something
00:31:31.446 --> 00:31:35.883
Bigger than yourself.
00:31:35.883 --> 00:31:37.251
And so when he asks for his inheritance while his father is
00:31:37.251 --> 00:31:40.221
Still alive, he's rejecting his father, he's rejecting his
00:31:40.221 --> 00:31:44.258
Family, he's rejecting his community, and he's rejecting
00:31:44.258 --> 00:31:48.496
His father's faith.
00:31:48.496 --> 00:31:50.198
And then he takes that wealth, he goes to a foreign land, and
00:31:50.198 --> 00:31:54.268
He squanders it on a lavish, hedonistic lifestyle, and it
00:31:54.268 --> 00:31:59.841
Says he went to a far country.
00:31:59.841 --> 00:32:03.311
On a spiritual level it represents us and our soul going
00:32:03.311 --> 00:32:08.983
Far from god.
00:32:08.983 --> 00:32:10.351
It's not geographical distance, it's spiritual distance from the
00:32:10.351 --> 00:32:15.623
Father in heaven.
00:32:15.623 --> 00:32:18.092
And then we see things are great at first, but then they get
00:32:18.092 --> 00:32:22.130
Really bad, and he winds up struggling to eat and finding
00:32:22.130 --> 00:32:28.036
Food in the pig pen.
00:32:28.036 --> 00:32:30.304
Let me tell you, yeshua is speaking to a jewish audience.
00:32:30.304 --> 00:32:34.709
This is the lowest it can get, in the mud with the pigs.
00:32:34.709 --> 00:32:40.448
Because you have to understand, pigs are the most unclean animal
00:32:40.448 --> 00:32:46.487
There is.
00:32:46.487 --> 00:32:48.356
Why are they so unclean?
00:32:48.356 --> 00:32:50.858
Because they have the outward sign of being kosher, which is
00:32:50.858 --> 00:32:56.497
The external sign of cloven hooves, but they lack the
00:32:56.497 --> 00:33:00.068
Internal sign, they don't chew its cud, so it represents a
00:33:00.068 --> 00:33:04.705
Hypocrite, someone who's clean and looks good on the outside
00:33:04.705 --> 00:33:09.410
But is totally unclean on the inside.
00:33:09.410 --> 00:33:13.681
That's why it's the most unclean animal, because it's
00:33:13.681 --> 00:33:17.051
A deception.
00:33:17.051 --> 00:33:18.853
The word for pig in hebrew is chazir and actually comes from
00:33:18.853 --> 00:33:23.257
The same word meaning to turn or to return, and it's one of the
00:33:23.257 --> 00:33:27.962
Words for repentance to returning to god.
00:33:27.962 --> 00:33:32.100
And because of that, the rabbis teach that in the messianic
00:33:32.100 --> 00:33:35.136
Kingdom, pigs will be transformed, and they will
00:33:35.136 --> 00:33:39.540
Become kosher once again, and we will be able to eat them.
00:33:39.540 --> 00:33:43.511
If there's a promise that the pig is going to become kosher
00:33:43.511 --> 00:33:47.748
When it was the most unclean, the prodigal realized if god can
00:33:47.748 --> 00:33:52.353
Do that for a pig, he can certainly do that for a person.
00:33:52.353 --> 00:33:55.189
[applauding]
00:33:55.189 --> 00:33:58.059
That is the promise of the pig, the promise of transformation
00:33:58.059 --> 00:34:02.497
That god is willing to bring in our life.
00:34:02.497 --> 00:34:05.967
So what does he do?
00:34:05.967 --> 00:34:07.335
It says he came to his senses.
00:34:07.335 --> 00:34:10.972
That is the beginning of the teshuvah, that is the beginning
00:34:10.972 --> 00:34:14.275
Of his return to god.
00:34:14.275 --> 00:34:16.144
He gets up, and he decides that he is going to go home, because
00:34:16.144 --> 00:34:20.748
He realizes that his father's servants have it better than
00:34:20.748 --> 00:34:26.020
He does.
00:34:26.020 --> 00:34:28.456
And then he goes back, return to the land, return to the father,
00:34:28.456 --> 00:34:33.427
Return to the family, return to community.
00:34:33.427 --> 00:34:36.464
That is what true repentance is about, a 180 return.
00:34:36.464 --> 00:34:41.569
But to understand this parable, we have to understand
00:34:41.569 --> 00:34:44.772
Something more.
00:34:44.772 --> 00:34:46.107
We have to understand the ketzatzah ceremony.
00:34:46.107 --> 00:34:49.744
Say that ten times really quick, ketzatzah ceremony.
00:34:49.744 --> 00:34:54.015
What is that ceremony?
00:34:54.015 --> 00:34:56.484
It refers to a communal act of cutting someone off from their
00:34:56.484 --> 00:35:02.690
Village or from covenantal identity and life itself,
00:35:02.690 --> 00:35:07.929
Because they severed themselves from their inheritance.
00:35:07.929 --> 00:35:11.999
They severed themselves from their identity and
00:35:11.999 --> 00:35:15.203
Their community.
00:35:15.203 --> 00:35:17.205
It was a public shaming ceremony, and what would happen
00:35:17.205 --> 00:35:23.144
Is this.
00:35:23.144 --> 00:35:24.512
It was triggered when someone did something that was so
00:35:24.512 --> 00:35:27.748
Culturally bad that it brought shame and disgrace on the family
00:35:27.748 --> 00:35:32.420
And on the community, like going and living an immoral life among
00:35:32.420 --> 00:35:37.959
The nations or asking your father for his inheritance,
00:35:37.959 --> 00:35:42.163
Breaking one of the key commandments to honor your
00:35:42.163 --> 00:35:44.465
Father and mother and treating your father like he is nothing,
00:35:44.465 --> 00:35:47.702
The person who invested so much in you and loved you to
00:35:47.702 --> 00:35:52.073
The most.
00:35:52.073 --> 00:35:53.407
And what would happen when this ceremony was triggered, the
00:35:53.407 --> 00:35:57.044
Elders of the community would gather at the gate of the city,
00:35:57.044 --> 00:36:01.382
And many of the community members would join him, would
00:36:01.382 --> 00:36:05.987
Join the leaders, join the elders, and they would take a
00:36:05.987 --> 00:36:09.023
Jar with seed in it, and they would smash it, and the seed
00:36:09.023 --> 00:36:13.561
Would scatter on the ground, and once that jar was broken and the
00:36:13.561 --> 00:36:20.001
Seed scattered, that person was cut off from the community, cut
00:36:20.001 --> 00:36:25.206
Off from his family forever.
00:36:25.206 --> 00:36:28.876
They could never return, no meals, no marriage, no
00:36:28.876 --> 00:36:33.814
Protection, and no future once the ceremony had been completed.
00:36:33.814 --> 00:36:40.187
Now we understand why the son is nervous to come home and wants
00:36:40.187 --> 00:36:45.626
To come home as a servant.
00:36:45.626 --> 00:36:48.029
Now we understand the deeper reason why the father sees his
00:36:48.029 --> 00:36:54.402
Son at a distance, rolls up his robe, and runs, because that was
00:36:54.402 --> 00:36:59.640
Considered dishonorable and shameful, but why does he do it?
00:36:59.640 --> 00:37:04.278
Because if the elders decide to do the ketzatzah ceremony and
00:37:04.278 --> 00:37:09.984
Complete it before he reaches his son and embraces him and
00:37:09.984 --> 00:37:14.121
Accept him once again, he can never come home.
00:37:14.121 --> 00:37:21.228
But if the father embraces the son, forgives him before the
00:37:21.228 --> 00:37:26.600
Ceremony is completed, the elders cannot go forward with
00:37:26.600 --> 00:37:32.440
The ceremony.
00:37:32.440 --> 00:37:34.642
He takes the shame upon himself that his son rightfully
00:37:34.642 --> 00:37:39.480
Deserves, and we see the beauty.
00:37:39.480 --> 00:37:42.216
The father just doesn't welcome him as a servant, he gives him
00:37:42.216 --> 00:37:45.953
Those three gifts, the robes, the ring, and the sandal.
00:37:45.953 --> 00:37:51.025
And these aren't sentimental gifts, they're
00:37:51.025 --> 00:37:54.295
Legal declarations.
00:37:54.295 --> 00:37:56.797
The robe represents restored honor.
00:37:56.797 --> 00:38:00.401
The ring represents restored authority like a signet ring.
00:38:00.401 --> 00:38:05.106
And the sandals represent restored relationship, because
00:38:05.106 --> 00:38:09.510
Slaves and servants are depicted as not wearing sandals.
00:38:09.510 --> 00:38:17.585
So it's a complete embracing of the son.
00:38:17.585 --> 00:38:21.255
But here's the point, the parable is actually about the
00:38:21.255 --> 00:38:25.626
Older brother, why?
00:38:25.626 --> 00:38:28.262
The older brother is furious.
00:38:28.262 --> 00:38:30.498
He can't believe that the father has welcomed him back and
00:38:30.498 --> 00:38:34.702
Embraced him in such a way.
00:38:34.702 --> 00:38:37.338
He's upset because he wants to see justice done, and instead of
00:38:37.338 --> 00:38:42.042
Justice, mercy and kindness is extended.
00:38:42.042 --> 00:38:46.547
Instead of dealing with the shame of the family, the father
00:38:46.547 --> 00:38:49.517
Is willing to endure more shame, and the older brother is like
00:38:49.517 --> 00:38:53.521
This isn't right.
00:38:53.521 --> 00:38:54.855
He should get what he deserves.
00:38:54.855 --> 00:38:59.059
But that's the point, this parable should really be called
00:38:59.059 --> 00:39:03.230
The older brother, why?
00:39:03.230 --> 00:39:06.200
Because the older brother is the one who is truly lost.
00:39:06.200 --> 00:39:12.440
He never left home, but he doesn't understand the heart of
00:39:12.440 --> 00:39:17.578
The father, even though he had been with him the entire time.
00:39:17.578 --> 00:39:23.484
One son was lost, but he returned, and he loved his
00:39:23.484 --> 00:39:27.555
Father all the more.
00:39:27.555 --> 00:39:29.290
One son never left but never knew the father and who he was.
00:39:29.290 --> 00:39:34.962
One son literally became a slave and a servant but got restored,
00:39:34.962 --> 00:39:40.201
And one son was always his son but lived and interacted with
00:39:40.201 --> 00:39:46.774
His father in a servant transactional relationship.
00:39:46.774 --> 00:39:52.146
In the context of this parable is the religious leaders being
00:39:52.146 --> 00:39:56.317
Upset with yeshua that he was eating and embracing tax
00:39:56.317 --> 00:40:01.188
Collectors, sinners, women, unclean people, those that
00:40:01.188 --> 00:40:05.826
Are immoral.
00:40:05.826 --> 00:40:07.628
He's trying to say to them, "which brother are you?
00:40:07.628 --> 00:40:12.733
Those people are dear and precious to me, and i welcome
00:40:12.733 --> 00:40:17.204
Them home.
00:40:17.204 --> 00:40:18.606
What are you gonna do?"
00:40:18.606 --> 00:40:20.508
And so the question that god asks each and every one of us,
00:40:20.508 --> 00:40:25.279
Because there's a reason why the parable is never resolved.
00:40:25.279 --> 00:40:28.749
We don't know the answer.
00:40:28.749 --> 00:40:30.518
We don't know if the older brother ever gets it or not.
00:40:30.518 --> 00:40:35.789
But it's left unresolved because he's asking each and every one
00:40:35.789 --> 00:40:39.693
Of us that very same question, do we realize that we were once
00:40:39.693 --> 00:40:44.765
Lost and he found us?
00:40:44.765 --> 00:40:46.967
Or do we think that we were always righteous and yet miss
00:40:46.967 --> 00:40:50.271
His heart?
00:40:50.271 --> 00:40:51.605
And so the question is this, are we willing to receive a son
00:40:51.605 --> 00:40:57.177
Who sins?
00:40:57.177 --> 00:40:58.546
Are we willing to receive people who are far from god, or do we
00:40:58.546 --> 00:41:03.717
Keep score?
00:41:03.717 --> 00:41:05.052
Or are we, like yeshua, willing to love and extend grace and
00:41:05.052 --> 00:41:08.956
Mercy to others because he extended that same grace and
00:41:08.956 --> 00:41:13.260
Mercy to us?
00:41:13.260 --> 00:41:16.330
[applauding]
00:41:16.330 --> 00:41:23.504
Jamie: so, this one does hit close to home for a lot of us,
00:41:23.504 --> 00:41:26.373
Because return is beautiful, but it's rarely simple.
00:41:26.373 --> 00:41:30.811
Rabbi just showed us that the story isn't really about
00:41:30.811 --> 00:41:34.114
Distance traveled, but more about hearts revealed.
00:41:34.114 --> 00:41:37.318
So let's stay right there for a moment and hear what questions
00:41:37.318 --> 00:41:39.753
This parable might be stirring up in this room.
00:41:39.753 --> 00:41:43.457
Okay, we're gonna dive in to nicholas isaacs, who's a virtual
00:41:43.457 --> 00:41:47.194
Viewer with us today.
00:41:47.194 --> 00:41:48.929
Nicholas asks, "what are the deeper prophetic implications of
00:41:48.929 --> 00:41:52.733
The prodigal son in regards to israel and the gentiles?"
00:41:52.733 --> 00:41:56.737
Jason: oh, that is a great, great question.
00:41:56.737 --> 00:42:00.140
I think there is a dual meaning to this in the sense that i
00:42:00.140 --> 00:42:05.412
Think the younger brother can in a sense represent the nations,
00:42:05.412 --> 00:42:13.320
And israel can represent the older brother, because salvation
00:42:13.320 --> 00:42:18.258
And the covenant came to israel first, but israel was always
00:42:18.258 --> 00:42:22.463
Meant to be a light to the nations.
00:42:22.463 --> 00:42:25.165
Even in the book of acts, acts chapter 2, pentecost, christians
00:42:25.165 --> 00:42:28.802
Think it's the birth of the church.
00:42:28.802 --> 00:42:30.704
It's the birth of the jewish-believing community.
00:42:30.704 --> 00:42:34.208
The gentile church isn't birthed till acts chapter 10
00:42:34.208 --> 00:42:37.411
When cornelius, a gentile centurion,
00:42:37.411 --> 00:42:40.948
Gets the message preached to him by peter
00:42:40.948 --> 00:42:43.250
After having a vision from heaven, don't call unclean
00:42:43.250 --> 00:42:47.554
What i have called clean, and therefore he goes and proclaims
00:42:47.554 --> 00:42:52.259
The good news.
00:42:52.259 --> 00:42:53.594
And cornelius, a roman centurion, you can't get any
00:42:53.594 --> 00:42:56.363
More gentile than that, is filled with the holy spirit.
00:42:56.363 --> 00:43:01.001
It's to show that there's no second class citizens in the
00:43:01.001 --> 00:43:03.704
Kingdom of god.
00:43:03.704 --> 00:43:05.072
Jew and gentile are now equal in messiah, and all they need to do
00:43:05.072 --> 00:43:10.477
Is have faith, and this was hard for jewish people to get their
00:43:10.477 --> 00:43:15.683
Mind around, because in their mind gentiles needed to convert,
00:43:15.683 --> 00:43:19.486
Keep all the 613 commandments if they were gonna be full members
00:43:19.486 --> 00:43:23.691
Of god's covenantal family.
00:43:23.691 --> 00:43:25.726
This parable tells us no one is unclean.
00:43:25.726 --> 00:43:29.897
No one is too far from god, that yes, the older brother, israel
00:43:29.897 --> 00:43:33.867
Came to faith first, but ultimately the nations would,
00:43:33.867 --> 00:43:36.603
Too, and we need to receive them even when they come out of
00:43:36.603 --> 00:43:39.707
Paganism and immorality and all these things like we see in the
00:43:39.707 --> 00:43:42.676
First century.
00:43:42.676 --> 00:43:44.678
[applauding]
00:43:44.678 --> 00:43:49.116
Jamie: okay, so whether you've run far or stayed close and
00:43:49.116 --> 00:43:53.554
Grown cold, the invitation is the same, come home.
00:43:53.554 --> 00:43:57.725
Next, we're going somewhere that almost never shows up in
00:43:57.725 --> 00:44:00.694
Children's bibles, a moment after the cross when the earth
00:44:00.694 --> 00:44:03.964
Shakes and graves are opened.
00:44:03.964 --> 00:44:06.266
Let's go to "graves opened: resurrection ripple."
00:44:06.266 --> 00:44:11.939
Alright, this is one of those moments in scripture that most
00:44:11.939 --> 00:44:15.242
Of us don't really remember from sunday school.
00:44:15.242 --> 00:44:17.711
So, before rabbi walks us through what's actually
00:44:17.711 --> 00:44:20.114
Happening here, i wanna hear your first instincts.
00:44:20.114 --> 00:44:23.016
Now, don't overthink these, just go with your gut.
00:44:23.016 --> 00:44:26.220
Alright, here we go.
00:44:26.220 --> 00:44:27.588
Poll question one, according to matthew's gospel, what happens
00:44:27.588 --> 00:44:31.191
First, at the moment jesus dies?
00:44:31.191 --> 00:44:34.495
Oh, i think we got a pretty good idea that matthew is very
00:44:34.495 --> 00:44:38.165
Intentional with the order here, and that order is going to
00:44:38.165 --> 00:44:41.568
Matter more than you think.
00:44:41.568 --> 00:44:43.804
The veil of the temple is torn, love that.
00:44:43.804 --> 00:44:46.940
Poll question number two, what does the tearing of the temple
00:44:46.940 --> 00:44:50.077
Veil represent?
00:44:50.077 --> 00:44:51.979
Well, this is one of those moments where the symbol is loud
00:44:51.979 --> 00:44:55.082
And clear.
00:44:55.082 --> 00:44:56.450
God is the one moving towards us, so the veil is torn.
00:44:56.450 --> 00:45:00.654
Okay, poll question three in scripture, firstfruits most
00:45:00.654 --> 00:45:04.858
Closely means, and this is the key that unlocks the
00:45:04.858 --> 00:45:08.729
Whole scene.
00:45:08.729 --> 00:45:10.063
Not horror, not confusion, but promise.
00:45:10.063 --> 00:45:13.600
Okay, rabbi, now this moment raises some big questions, but
00:45:13.600 --> 00:45:17.504
It also carries a massive hope.
00:45:17.504 --> 00:45:19.506
Help us understand what matthew wants us to see when graves are
00:45:19.506 --> 00:45:22.776
Opened and resurrection ripples out from the cross.
00:45:22.776 --> 00:45:27.614
Jason: hey, let's continue to break sunday school by exploring
00:45:27.614 --> 00:45:33.654
The reality that the first zombie apocalypse is read
00:45:33.654 --> 00:45:38.826
Actually in the gospels, the walking dead, right?
00:45:38.826 --> 00:45:42.663
We know the scripture verse and yeshua cried out again with a
00:45:42.663 --> 00:45:47.167
Loud voice and yielded up his spirit, and behold, the veil of
00:45:47.167 --> 00:45:51.471
The temple was torn from top to bottom, the earth shook, and
00:45:51.471 --> 00:45:56.443
Rocks were split.
00:45:56.443 --> 00:45:57.978
The tombs opened and many bodies of the saints who had fallen
00:45:57.978 --> 00:46:02.516
Asleep were raised.
00:46:02.516 --> 00:46:04.184
And coming out of their tombs after his resurrection, they
00:46:04.184 --> 00:46:08.355
Entered the holy city and appeared to many.
00:46:08.355 --> 00:46:12.125
Wow, how many of you guys have thought ever about the spiritual
00:46:12.125 --> 00:46:16.563
Significance of dead people coming out of the tomb?
00:46:16.563 --> 00:46:20.634
Why?
00:46:20.634 --> 00:46:21.969
Well, it connects back to passover.
00:46:21.969 --> 00:46:25.172
Yeshua dies at the time of the passover lamb.
00:46:25.172 --> 00:46:28.809
This is not random.
00:46:28.809 --> 00:46:30.777
This is about redemption.
00:46:30.777 --> 00:46:33.347
The blood on the doorpost of the house delivers israel from the
00:46:33.347 --> 00:46:38.252
Death of the firstborn, the final plague, and in the same
00:46:38.252 --> 00:46:42.022
Way the blood of yeshua spares us from judgment and brings
00:46:42.022 --> 00:46:47.461
Redemption and salvation from sin and death.
00:46:47.461 --> 00:46:51.531
It is a greater passover.
00:46:51.531 --> 00:46:54.034
When i see the blood, i will pass over.
00:46:54.034 --> 00:46:58.105
And paul makes this connection.
00:46:58.105 --> 00:46:59.973
He says, messiah, our passover lamb has been slain, has
00:46:59.973 --> 00:47:05.812
Been sacrificed.
00:47:05.812 --> 00:47:07.281
So just as death in egypt lost its claim when the lamb was
00:47:07.281 --> 00:47:11.685
Sacrificed and the blood applied, so in the same way
00:47:11.685 --> 00:47:15.188
Death loses its legal authority.
00:47:15.188 --> 00:47:18.425
Sin no longer has a claim on us because of the cross, and
00:47:18.425 --> 00:47:23.797
Because of the resurrection, we literally pass over.
00:47:23.797 --> 00:47:29.102
It is the feast of redemption, and that's why yeshua has to die
00:47:29.102 --> 00:47:34.408
At the passover.
00:47:34.408 --> 00:47:36.310
But we read about these signs, tombs are open.
00:47:36.310 --> 00:47:40.314
The veil in the temple is torn at his death, why?
00:47:40.314 --> 00:47:45.018
It's showing there is new access to god.
00:47:45.018 --> 00:47:48.956
Sin, beginning in eden, kept us distant from god.
00:47:48.956 --> 00:47:54.294
Cherubim guarding the way back into the presence of god.
00:47:54.294 --> 00:47:57.064
The veil guarding the way back into the presence, the holy of
00:47:57.064 --> 00:47:59.833
Holy now has been rent.
00:47:59.833 --> 00:48:01.401
There is a new access, a restoration of relationship.
00:48:01.401 --> 00:48:06.173
The way has been reopened.
00:48:06.173 --> 00:48:08.809
God is trying to show us to come to him.
00:48:08.809 --> 00:48:11.778
And then we see that the earth shakes.
00:48:11.778 --> 00:48:15.315
It's shaken at creation when he dies.
00:48:15.315 --> 00:48:19.419
Creation shakes just like sinai trembled when god spoke the
00:48:19.419 --> 00:48:23.957
Ten commandments.
00:48:23.957 --> 00:48:25.492
When god speaks, the world shakes, and it reorders all of
00:48:25.492 --> 00:48:31.732
History and reality.
00:48:31.732 --> 00:48:33.467
All of creation groans for this redemption.
00:48:33.467 --> 00:48:37.237
And we also see that the graves actually open.
00:48:37.237 --> 00:48:42.342
So we need to understand this, when he dies, the graves open,
00:48:42.342 --> 00:48:47.014
But the dead people don't come out, out of the tomb, the
00:48:47.014 --> 00:48:52.085
Saints, until after his resurrection.
00:48:52.085 --> 00:48:55.589
And this isn't sloppy writing, it is very intentional
00:48:55.589 --> 00:48:59.893
Sequencing, because think about it, this is not a horror story,
00:48:59.893 --> 00:49:04.498
This is not in a zombie apocalypse like "the walking
00:49:04.498 --> 00:49:08.068
Dead," zombies decay, but saints are restored, right?
00:49:08.068 --> 00:49:13.440
These saints appear as witnesses, zombies wander.
00:49:13.440 --> 00:49:17.577
Zombies spread fear, but the saints announce good news and
00:49:17.577 --> 00:49:22.682
Victory for all.
00:49:22.682 --> 00:49:24.951
There is an unveiling, there is a proof here, why?
00:49:24.951 --> 00:49:28.989
He dies as the passover lamb, but guess what?
00:49:28.989 --> 00:49:32.993
He rises from the dead on another biblical holiday known
00:49:32.993 --> 00:49:37.564
As yom habikkurim, or the firstfruits.
00:49:37.564 --> 00:49:41.435
So on the second day of passover, the priest would go
00:49:41.435 --> 00:49:45.605
Down into the field, would cut the firstfruits of the barley
00:49:45.605 --> 00:49:48.909
Harvest, and wave it before the lord, and that would begin the
00:49:48.909 --> 00:49:52.779
50-day countdown to pentecost, shavuot.
00:49:52.779 --> 00:49:56.616
And if there was a good firstfruits, it was a guarantee
00:49:56.616 --> 00:50:00.754
Of a later greater harvest.
00:50:00.754 --> 00:50:03.723
Because yeshua rose from the dead, it is a guarantee that we
00:50:03.723 --> 00:50:07.627
Are going to rise from the dead.
00:50:07.627 --> 00:50:09.729
But maybe someone could think, well, he's the son of god.
00:50:09.729 --> 00:50:12.833
Of course he can overcome death and rise from the dead, but what
00:50:12.833 --> 00:50:17.204
About average people like you and me?
00:50:17.204 --> 00:50:20.440
And here's the power of the saints coming out of the tomb at
00:50:20.440 --> 00:50:25.378
The resurrection.
00:50:25.378 --> 00:50:26.880
It shows the firstfruits reality.
00:50:26.880 --> 00:50:30.283
It is the resurrection ripple.
00:50:30.283 --> 00:50:32.786
It shows tangible historical evidence that if they came out
00:50:32.786 --> 00:50:38.058
Of their tomb and were resuscitated when messiah
00:50:38.058 --> 00:50:41.728
Returns, we will be raised.
00:50:41.728 --> 00:50:44.064
He is the firstfruits, those saints were the firstfruits, but
00:50:44.064 --> 00:50:48.034
We are going to be the later greater harvest, and we will
00:50:48.034 --> 00:50:51.905
Rise because he rises.
00:50:51.905 --> 00:50:54.808
Graves are opened, and death is challenged, and the resurrection
00:50:54.808 --> 00:51:00.413
Is not just future.
00:51:00.413 --> 00:51:01.882
Yes, there is a future bodily resurrection, but the same
00:51:01.882 --> 00:51:06.920
Spirit that raised yeshua from the dead lives in each and every
00:51:06.920 --> 00:51:11.992
One of us, and that resurrection power is available to us.
00:51:11.992 --> 00:51:16.997
You're not just waiting for the victory.
00:51:16.997 --> 00:51:19.466
The good news is that you have the victory, and that victory
00:51:19.466 --> 00:51:24.171
Lives inside each and every one of you in that moment.
00:51:24.171 --> 00:51:28.775
[applauding]
00:51:28.775 --> 00:51:34.881
Jason: that moment, it changed everything.
00:51:34.881 --> 00:51:39.619
Yeshua dies on passover, the time of freedom and redemption,
00:51:39.619 --> 00:51:48.328
The exodus.
00:51:48.328 --> 00:51:49.963
He rises on firstfruits, and because he rose, it is the
00:51:49.963 --> 00:51:54.935
Guarantee that we will rise again at his return.
00:51:54.935 --> 00:52:00.607
We don't have to fear death, we have a better future.
00:52:00.607 --> 00:52:04.544
We have a hope, the blessed hope that our future is going to be
00:52:04.544 --> 00:52:08.348
Better than our past, and it's all about hope.
00:52:08.348 --> 00:52:12.519
The veil tore, the earth shook, the graves opened, and
00:52:12.519 --> 00:52:17.624
Resurrection didn't wait for the end of time, it broke in at
00:52:17.624 --> 00:52:21.962
Passover, and that contains a promise, a promise that we don't
00:52:21.962 --> 00:52:26.866
Have to live from a place of horror no matter what happens in
00:52:26.866 --> 00:52:29.836
The world, but from a place of hope, and that's good news for
00:52:29.836 --> 00:52:33.940
Each and every one of us.
00:52:33.940 --> 00:52:35.942
[applauding]
00:52:35.942 --> 00:52:42.882
Jamie: thank you, rabbi.
00:52:42.882 --> 00:52:44.618
So this passage raises a lot of questions, and it's okay to sit
00:52:44.618 --> 00:52:48.288
With them.
00:52:48.288 --> 00:52:49.656
Matthew doesn't rush past the mystery here, and neither
00:52:49.656 --> 00:52:52.058
Should we.
00:52:52.058 --> 00:52:53.426
So let's take a moment and hear what kind of questions this
00:52:53.426 --> 00:52:55.128
Stirs up for you as we open this up together.
00:52:55.128 --> 00:52:58.298
Let's dive right in.
00:52:58.298 --> 00:52:59.666
Okay, we've got david zamora.
00:52:59.666 --> 00:53:01.434
David, where are you?
00:53:01.434 --> 00:53:02.836
You close by?
00:53:02.836 --> 00:53:04.537
David zamora: thank you for taking my question.
00:53:04.537 --> 00:53:06.306
My question is why do preachers either avoid or just kind of go
00:53:06.306 --> 00:53:11.511
Around the tombs being opened and people being resurrected?
00:53:11.511 --> 00:53:18.151
What have we been missing?
00:53:18.151 --> 00:53:20.320
Jason: i think there's something powerful.
00:53:20.320 --> 00:53:22.756
Heaven and earth will declare the glory of god and the power
00:53:22.756 --> 00:53:26.726
Of god.
00:53:26.726 --> 00:53:28.295
There's signs in the heavens, the sky is darkened, and there's
00:53:28.295 --> 00:53:34.334
Signs on earth, the physical earth shakes and quakes.
00:53:34.334 --> 00:53:41.141
When we fell, we caused the physical material world to fall
00:53:41.141 --> 00:53:47.380
With us, but at the resurrection, yeshua begins to
00:53:47.380 --> 00:53:52.319
Reverse that and causes it to rise.
00:53:52.319 --> 00:53:55.055
The veil in the temple reminds us there was a spiritual aspect,
00:53:55.055 --> 00:53:59.492
A relational aspect to the fall, distanced and disconnected from
00:53:59.492 --> 00:54:04.497
The father like the prodigal son, but because the veil was
00:54:04.497 --> 00:54:08.001
Torn, we can now return like the son did.
00:54:08.001 --> 00:54:12.339
And because dead people come out of the tomb, it shows that death
00:54:12.339 --> 00:54:16.843
Has lost its sting, and it is no longer holding power over us.
00:54:16.843 --> 00:54:25.385
And i think the reason why a lot of times it's not mentioned in
00:54:25.385 --> 00:54:29.622
Connection to the resurrection is just a lot of people don't
00:54:29.622 --> 00:54:33.893
Know what to do with it.
00:54:33.893 --> 00:54:36.196
And it doesn't seem to make sense, and it's an uncomfortable
00:54:36.196 --> 00:54:40.166
Couple of verses, but it makes sense when you understand it in
00:54:40.166 --> 00:54:46.706
Its historical jewish context, which is it is firstfruits, and
00:54:46.706 --> 00:54:52.712
That is the key to unlocking the significance.
00:54:52.712 --> 00:54:56.316
They are the firstfruits that shows of the later harvest, but
00:54:56.316 --> 00:55:01.187
People don't understand the connection to the biblical
00:55:01.187 --> 00:55:03.390
Holidays and how they're fulfilled in yeshua, so it's
00:55:03.390 --> 00:55:05.925
Hard to explain, and i think people avoid it because
00:55:05.925 --> 00:55:09.596
It's uncomfortable.
00:55:09.596 --> 00:55:11.598
[applauding]
00:55:11.598 --> 00:55:17.604
Jamie: what a night.
00:55:17.604 --> 00:55:19.472
We've gone from storms to waiting rooms to long roads home
00:55:19.472 --> 00:55:23.977
And even to open graves, and what we've seen in every place
00:55:23.977 --> 00:55:28.348
Is this, jesus is not distant, he is present, and he meets us
00:55:28.348 --> 00:55:33.520
Where we are, and he invites us to trust him where he's going.
00:55:33.520 --> 00:55:38.258
So, some of you watching tonight feel like peter, trying to stay
00:55:38.258 --> 00:55:41.294
Above the water, and some of you feel like the man at the pool,
00:55:41.294 --> 00:55:44.164
Tired of waiting.
00:55:44.164 --> 00:55:46.065
Some of you feel like the prodigal or the older brother,
00:55:46.065 --> 00:55:50.036
Wondering if there's still a place for you.
00:55:50.036 --> 00:55:52.205
And some of you are carrying grief, fear, or questions about
00:55:52.205 --> 00:55:55.542
What comes after this life.
00:55:55.542 --> 00:55:57.877
Wherever you are tonight, we want you to know this, that you
00:55:57.877 --> 00:56:00.213
Are seen, you are loved, and you are not alone.
00:56:00.213 --> 00:56:04.150
Rabbi jason, would you pray for us?
00:56:04.150 --> 00:56:07.253
Jason: absolutely, abba, father, thank you for this opportunity
00:56:07.253 --> 00:56:10.390
To come together and learn.
00:56:10.390 --> 00:56:12.692
We just wanna ask that you would give us the faith of peter to
00:56:12.692 --> 00:56:16.830
Not remain stuck in the boat, but to step out.
00:56:16.830 --> 00:56:20.600
Help us to learn the lesson of the miracle of bethesda.
00:56:20.600 --> 00:56:24.771
We don't need to remain stuck in our past or in our pain, but you
00:56:24.771 --> 00:56:30.243
Call us to rise up and to step into our future in the same way
00:56:30.243 --> 00:56:35.048
We're called to step out of the boat.
00:56:35.048 --> 00:56:38.451
And we ask, lord, as well that you are the great physician,
00:56:38.451 --> 00:56:42.889
That you are the great healer, do a great work in our life, and
00:56:42.889 --> 00:56:47.494
Help us to understand when we mess up we can always come home
00:56:47.494 --> 00:56:52.699
To you and to realize that the same spirit that raised yeshua
00:56:52.699 --> 00:56:56.736
From the dead lives in us.
00:56:56.736 --> 00:56:58.905
We have resurrection life and power and a hope and a future.
00:56:58.905 --> 00:57:03.676
We don't live by fear, we live by faith.
00:57:03.676 --> 00:57:06.212
The lord bless you and keep you.
00:57:06.212 --> 00:57:08.548
The lord cause his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.
00:57:08.548 --> 00:57:12.285
Lord, lift up his countenance and give you shalom,
00:57:12.285 --> 00:57:15.755
Wholeness, completeness.
00:57:15.755 --> 00:57:19.726
Blessing in the name of the prince of peace, yeshua our
00:57:19.726 --> 00:57:23.963
Messiah, from fear to faith and faith to trust, it's in his name
00:57:23.963 --> 00:57:27.300
We pray, amen, ve'amen.
00:57:27.300 --> 00:57:29.969
[applauding]
00:57:29.969 --> 00:57:34.741
Jamie: amen, thank you, rabbi jason for helping us see these
00:57:34.741 --> 00:57:38.878
Scriptures with such wisdom and heart.
00:57:38.878 --> 00:57:41.314
And to our live audience here in fort worth and everyone watching
00:57:41.314 --> 00:57:44.350
On tbn, thank you for leaning in, asking honest questions, and
00:57:44.350 --> 00:57:48.488
Taking this journey with us.
00:57:48.488 --> 00:57:50.823
Jason: shalom, friends, may the hope of the resurrection and the
00:57:50.823 --> 00:57:54.928
Kindness and the love of god walk with you this week.
00:57:54.928 --> 00:57:59.032
I'm rabbi jason sobel.
00:57:59.032 --> 00:58:00.433
Jamie: and i'm jamie alexander, and together we're breaking
00:58:00.433 --> 00:58:03.770
Sunday school, goodnight!
00:58:03.770 --> 00:58:05.138
Jason: goodnight!
00:58:05.138 --> 00:58:07.140
[applauding]
00:58:07.140 --> 00:58:09.142
[music]
00:58:09.142 --> 00:58:09.142

Jamie Alexander & Rabbi Jason Sobel: Miracles & The Power Of Return | Breaking Sunday School

June 18, 2026 | 58:24

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