To pray this section of the prayer that Jesus taught His disciples is to acknowledge several things that are central to our life 'on earth'.

We have, if we believe in our Lord Jesus, an eternal life with Him after this present life on earth comes to its end (John 3:36). This prayer addresses not so much what we would desire for personal fulfilment but what God would desire for His earth (world) that He created.

The prayer matures from the “Lord, bless Mum and Dad, my brother and sister, my home, my job, my friend John, and me – Amen” approach to a genuine concern for God's will to be done for the benefit of all mankind and of His creation. But of course that concern is ours too.

A Little Matter of Authority

This is the uncomfortable bit. In praying for God's perfect will to be done on earth, we have to ask: who has the highest authority in the earth? Even though satan may have temporary legal authority over rebellious mankind, the final authority does not rest with him, or with Supreme Courts or national or political leaders; and looking at man's history, it's not with us either!
Jesus makes it quite clear that ALL authority has been given to Him (Matt 28:18) and since He and the Father (to whom we are praying) are one, it follows that God's will is expressed in what Jesus has said and done.

God's will, both for all people and for His earth, is bound up with the Kingdom that Jesus came to earth to bring in accordance with His character and nature – “Thy Kingdom come on earth”, and “Thy will be done on earth”, are two sides of the same coin. Although there are at least three heavens (2 Cor 12:2) and God is omnipresent, the 'heaven' in this prayer - the “highest heaven” (Ps 115:16) – is, in Jewish thought, God's primary abode. This word is a synonym for God, to avoid misusing or profaning His Holy Name (Ex 20:7). So this prayer is a request for Father's will, His good and perfect will of love, to be done in all the earth under His authority, partly through us, for the benefit of all His creation.

God’s Safe, Good and Perfect Will

Isaiah found this ultimate authority when he was given a vision of God in the Temple in around 740 BC, when he saw the sovereign Lord and King (Isa 6:1-5). Isaiah's response was total submission1 to the King and to His call for an apostle – Hineni sh'lacheni, “Here am I, send me” (shalach is Hebrew for a 'sent one'). God's will and His creation are tov me'od (very good), and is ALWAYS (even in discipline) the very best for us – good, dependable and fully trustworthy, because He is totally faithful. Who would not want this earth to be under the authority of the King whose will is “very good”?

We know that the physical earth is under His sovereign rule, but will we also be obedient to the authority of our Lord and King? Jesus said, “Why do you call me Lord, Lord, but do not do what I say?” (Luke 6:46). It makes no sense NOT to do what is God's best for us.

Jesus Himself submitted to His Father's will in His time of deep anguish and distress in Gethsemane, to bring in the Kingdom, and this could be true for us too in our times of suffering. God is our safe hiding place in these times, so let us not hide from our hiding place as Adam did, by seeking to be independent of God. Let us not stray from our safe place by seeking independence from God, but stay safe under His authority. We can follow Mother Theresa's encouragement prayer² and the lovely poem by Minnie Haskins,³ quoted by King George VI in WWII. For God's hands are a safe place for us.

Following Through with This Prayer

So, how may we follow through with this prayer? The expression of will is made through the mind. When God created the heavens and the earth, He spoke His thought and will into being (Gen 1:3). Wonder-fully, this is also true for each one of us, as we see in Psalm 139:13,15. This psalm tells us that each one of us was a thought in the mind of God, created even before our conception (v16) in a specific time and place, in order to grow up to know and love Him as a Father, and to test and approve what is His good, pleasing and perfect will for us (Rom 12:2-3).

Paul reminds us that to do this we need to be transformed by the renewing of our mind. We may pray, “Lord, Thy will be done”, but that renewal starts with our “Yes, Lord”. Can we too, say, “Not my will, Lord, but Thy will be done”? If this were done in governments, local councils, families, even all believing church groups, what a different place this earth (world) would be.
Some of these do praise God (like in the annual Prayer Breakfast in New York last month, where President Trump closed with, “For us here in Washington, we must never ever stop asking God for the wisdom to serve the public according to His will”⁴), but individually it starts with us, as we submit our will to His authority. The choice to reject or be independent of His authority and seek power by secular thinking, or force, is the enemy of this process, to the world's great loss and distress, as we well know. Thank God that He gives people, and nations, a second chance to change our ways. But time is short. Let us pray this into being.

Knowing Him

Lastly, many of God's “I will...” statements in Scripture are linked with His purpose that people might know Him. This is a major purpose of God's will, that all might come to know Him (Heb. yada – a close Father/son relationship) but we cannot fully know the 'infinite and transcendent' so this can only be achieved through His self-disclosure in Jesus, who is the exact expression of the Father's being.

For us to say (by our lives), as Jesus did, “Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven”, is thus a pathway to our knowing Him (Jer 24:7), because His will done in us displays His nature, sanctifies and exalts His name, and echoes the seraphim's prophetic calling to one another in their worship of the King: “The whole earth is full of His glory” (Isaiah 6:3).

For this we can give thanks in all circumstances, and in this at least we can fulfil His specific will for us in Christ Jesus (1 Thess 5:18).

Author: Greg Stevenson

References

1 Submission - Latin, sub, mittere, to be put or sent under the authority of a superior being.

2 As Mother Theresa said, “Prayer is not asking. Prayer is putting yourself in the hands of God, at His disposition, and listening to His voice in the depths of His heart.”

3 GOD KNOWS by Minnie Louise Haskins (1875-1957):

And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year:
“Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown.”
And he replied: “Go out into the darkness, and put your hand into the Hand of God.
That shall be to you better than light, and safer than a known way.”
So I went forth, and finding the Hand of God, trod gladly into the night.
And He led me towards the hills and the breaking of day in the lone East.

4 President Trump's closing prayer at the Annual Presidents' Prayer Breakfast, New York, February 2017, with representatives from 140 nations, quoted in Ari Sorko-Ram, It's a new day in Washington, Maoz Report, March 2017.

In The Complete Jewish Bible that I have been using lately, the phrase “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven” is written as the second part of a sentence. As a prayer on its own it can be read as “May your will be done on earth as in heaven.”

I ask myself, what do I know about heaven or any things being done in accordance with God’s will there?

• We read of sounds from heaven. 1 Samuel 2:10 tells us that God in heaven will thunder against the wicked.
  
• We read of fire from heaven in judgment (2 Kings 1), but also in acceptance of sacrifice (Lev 9:24).
  
• We read of provision from heaven. Exodus 16:4 tells us that God fed Israel with bread from heaven.
  
• We read in Malachi 3:10 of floodgates being opened from heaven to pour out blessings.
  
• We read in 2 Kings 6:17 of a heavenly army when Elisha asks God to open the servant’s eyes and he sees “the mountain was covered with horses and fiery chariots.”
  
• We read in 2 Samuel 5:24 of David hearing marching in the tops of the balsam trees - God going ahead to war.
  
• In Revelation 12 we read that heaven is a place that has seen war, the adversary satan and his army being beaten and thrown out of heaven.
  
• In Revelation 21:1 we read that heaven, as well as earth, will need renewing.

These scriptures are somewhat different to my conception of heaven being a place of total paradise! They seem to paint a picture of heaven, where God dwells, as a place of free will, from which blessings and judgments can flow, but also as a place of armies and battles, all closely connected with earth.

The Book of Job

In chapter 1 of Job, the adversary (satan) visits God in heaven and is given permission to bring harm on Job, a man righteous in God’s eyes. A debate follows where Job and his friends try to understand God and His Creation. In chapter 38, God answers Job in such a way that Job realises this is all beyond his earthly intellectual understanding and in 42:3 Job comes to the conclusion that “I spoke without having understanding, of wonders far beyond me, which I didn’t know.”

I think that, whilst the debate was a necessary part of Job’s journey, it was meeting God that brought him to the realisation that God, heaven and all of Creation are totally beyond the understanding of us mortals. It needed God to open Job’s eyes - not answering questions but changing Job’s total perspective on God and his Creation.

So, perhaps “May your will be done on earth as in heaven” was not a prayer to bring a wonderful paradise where all is peace and managed in accordance with God’s perfect will, to earth, even though this is our sure hope for a future heaven and earth.

Instead, I am wondering if it means that an act of God’s will had been done in heaven and that Jesus was telling his disciples to pray for the continuation of this act of God’s will to be completed on earth.

What Act of God’s Will?

So, what will of God might we be talking about? I put to you a small number of clues that I think I have uncovered:

1. The Garden of Eden clue: Genesis 2:4 tells that God made earth and heaven. Reading the account of Creation in Genesis, there appears a close relation between heaven and earth. Mankind was made on earth in the image of the God of heaven. The Garden of Eden was the place of growing relationship between Adam and Eve and God, a heavenly connection in a state without sin. But following their disobedience, in Genesis 3:8 Adam and Eve heard the voice of God, walking in the garden at the time of the evening breeze and in verse 9 God called to the man: “Where are you?”
2. The Mosaic clue: In Exodus 33:12-23, Moses has a conversation with God where God reveals more of Himself and reassures Moses that He will go with the people of Israel.
3. The Tabernacle clue: Exodus 40:34-38 tells how God lived with Israel throughout their years in the wilderness. The tabernacle with cloud and fire made visible the reality of God’s presence.
4. The Jeremiah clue: In Jeremiah 31:1-14 God expresses his joy over an amazing future reunion with Israel and including the nations.

These and other references show me that God wants relationship with you and me. God’s method of achieving this desire of His heart was to send His only and unique son (Jesus / Yeshua / Salvation), to live a perfect, sacrificial life on earth (Isaiah 53). God’s heavenly will.

When Jesus taught His disciples how to pray, He was well into His ministry years, and the time was drawing close for Him to complete that sacrifice. So perhaps this short phrase could be expanded to say “May Heavenly Father’s will, started in heaven, be completed on earth by Jesus.” Was Jesus telling his disciples to pray that he would be able to complete God’s plan for salvation with his upcoming sacrifice? Partly, I think.

Ongoing Prayer

Look at John 17. Jesus’ prayer just before His sacrifice reveals more than anything else our Heavenly Father’s will, especially in verse 11: “…so that they may be one, just as we are.” And verses 20-21: “I pray not only for these, but also for those who will trust in me because of their word, that they may all be one. Just as you, Father, are united with me and I with you, I pray that they may be united with us…”.

This might be the ongoing part of this prayer that you and I can pray, until we are together, united with our Father. It encompasses both the prayer for unity of us believers, both Jew and Gentile, and Jesus’ Great Commission of Matthew 28:18-20 to reach out to the ends of the earth to bring all who God calls into His Kingdom.

“May your will be done on earth as in heaven.”

Author: John Quinlan

Our pick of the week's news to inform your prayers.

Society & Politics

• BBC Brazil says Westminster attacker may be a ‘freedom fighter’: Whilst the BBC in Britain referred to the recent London attack unambiguously as a ‘terror attack’, BBC Brazil (also paid for by UK license fees) refused to use this label, stating after that terrorists are, in the eyes of some, freedom fighters. Read more here.
• UK puts UNHRC ‘on notice’ over anti-Israel resolutions: The UK warned last Friday that it would follow the US in rejecting all resolutions on the Israel-Palestine conflict if the UNHRC does not address its anti-Israel bias. Meanwhile, Israel withdraws more funding from UN.

World Scene

• Thirteen church-goers die in bus crash: a minibus carrying senior citizens back from a 3-day Christian retreat was involved in a major collision. Please pray for all involved. Read more here.
  
• Vimeo censors testimonies of former gays: the major internet video platform allows porn and terrorism videos, but has moved to shut down video accounts that provide Christian testimonies of freedom from homosexuality. Read more here.
  
• 13-year-old challenges EU to stop funding PA terror: Ayala Shapira, victim of a Molotov cocktail attack in Samaria, urged the European Parliament to rethink its PA funding strategy at an event in Brussels hosted by a new pro-settler caucus of MEPs. Read more here.
  
• Canada moves to shut down criticism of Islam: a motion passed recently by the Canadian Parliament condemns ‘Islamophobia’ and seeks to protect Islam from criticism. Read more here.

Israel & Middle East

• Send Passover gifts to Israeli soldiers! Give via United with Israel to send Passover packages and greetings to IDF soldiers and their families. Click here to find out more.
  
• Rumours circulating of summer Middle East peace conference: according to the Jerusalem Post, the US is quietly exploring the idea of a conference to bring together Palestinians, Israelis and Gulf Arab leaders. Read more here.
  
• 19-year-old Jewish teen arrested for bomb threats: New information has been released about the Israeli-American teenager who has been arrested for the waves of bomb threats targeting Jewish communities in America this year. Read more here.
  
• Israel prepares for mass evacuations in the event of war: In light of Hamas developing new short-range rockets and Hezbollah stockpiling weapons, Israel is developing contingency plans to evacuate some 250,000 Israelis in border communities. Read more here.
  

Upcoming Events

• ‘What are we teaching the Children?’ Conference (25 March): Find out how current education policy is influencing children in Britain and how Christians can respond, with Voice for Justice. Emmanuel Centre, Westminster. Click here for information and tickets.
• Foundations 8 Annual Weekday Conference (3-7 April): A few tickets are left for Steve Maltz’s Cumbria conference. Speakers to include David Andrew and Chris Hill. Click here for more information.
• Calling Intercessors Canterbury (8 April): 10am-4pm, Canterbury. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to book.
• Prom Praise at the Royal Albert Hall (22 April): International gathering of both classical musicians and worship leaders, with a Gospel message. Find out more and buy tickets here.
• Unbelievable? The Conference (13 May): London. World-class Christian apologists and evangelists show how Jesus is “the answer to life, the universe and everything”. A Premier event. Find out more and book here.

Recommended Sources

At Prophecy Today UK we are aware that the world is moving very quickly and it is difficult to keep up with all the latest developments – especially when the material circulated by our mainstream media is increasingly far from reality and definitely not devoted to a biblical perspective!

Though we are not a news service, we want to help keep you informed by passing on updates and reports as we are led. This will be a selective, not an exhaustive, round-up, which we hope will be helpful for your prayers. Click here to browse our News archive.

We also recommend the following news services for regular updates from a Christian perspective:

• Christian Concern (UK)
  
• Christian Institute (UK)
  
• JNN News (Barry and Batya Segal, Israel)
• Family Watch International
• Barnabas Fund
  
• Kehila News (Israel)

Are you able to join us in September?

From Sunday 24 September to Sunday 1 October 2017, join Issachar Ministries and members of the Prophecy Today UK team on a study trip to the Holy Land, together with evangelists and ministry leaders Syd and Liz Doyle. Bookings are now open – we would love for you to join the group!

The 8-day tour will take place over the Days of Awe and Yom Kippur and will include evening meetings led by the Doyles and Clifford and Monica Hill. We will be meeting with Messianic communities during our stay and enjoying worship at Christ Church, Jerusalem on the last day.

Destinations include Galilee, Banias (or Caesarea Philippi, the springs of the River Jordan where Jesus taught his disciples), Qumran (where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered) and a variety of locations in Jerusalem including the Western Wall tunnels, the Bible Lands Museum, the Pools of Bethesda, the Garden Tomb and the Garden of Gethsemane.

Price £1,495 per person on a half-board basis, plus a single supplement (£282) and travel insurance.

For a full itinerary and details of how to book, click here.

Free at last? Not quite!!

Free at last! – Well not quite!! What does it mean? What is the future for Britain? We know what Theresa May said on Brexit Day and we know what Donald Tusk said, but what is God saying to us? Are any of our politicians pausing to seek God’s direction at this crucial time in our history – the most challenging time since the end of World War II?

It is quite wrong to look at Brexit as a ‘divorce’ because it was never a ‘marriage’ that the British people entered willingly and joyfully. It was certainly not a marriage made in heaven! We were tricked into a civil partnership and we lost our virginity in Europe! We were led to the altar, bright-eyed and trusting. When we discovered the reality we felt betrayed. The great question is – can we recover from the experience, and what sort of nation will we be?

In 1973, we thought we were simply joining a trading alliance but we were tricked by our politicians. Edward Heath admitted that he knew right at the start that what was being presented to the British people was not true. He didn’t exactly say that it was a con trick, but he certainly admitted that he knew the end result was full social and political union.¹

British Ambassador to the EU Tim Barrow handing over Theresa May's letter formally triggering Article 50. See Photo Credits.We have the opportunity now to create something new – it’s like being born again! But biblically, being born again involves repentance for the past, and committing ourselves to follow a new path – to live a Godly life. Is there even the faintest possibility that this might happen on a national scale for Britain?

Wartime Faith

A lot of commentators are comparing this testing time to the difficult days of World War II when Britain stood alone against the might of the Nazi army. But Britain is a very different nation today! In May 1940 when France had capitulated and it looked as though the whole of our army was trapped on the continent, King George VI called the nation to prayer.

The nation responded with practically every able-bodied man and woman filling the churches and a quarter of a mile-long queue to get into Westminster Abbey. Britain was a nation of faith. We did not all live godly lives but we believed in God and when we fervently cried out for help he responded with the miracle of Dunkirk, when calm seas enabled the small boats to get to the beaches to rescue the soldiers and low cloud shielded them from air attack.

Brexit feels like the chance to be born again as a nation - but biblically, this involves repentance and dedication to God.

The whole nation recognised this as a miracle - it was even acknowledged as such by Prime Minister Winston Churchill in a speech to Parliament. The nation gave thanks to God for answered prayer. People in Britain knew that they were the only ones left in Europe still standing against the vast army and air force of Nazi Germany; but their confidence was in God.

A Christian Nation?

The difference back then, however, was that everyone in Britain had been taught the Bible from infancy. Every school started the day with an act of worship and every day included teaching from Scripture. Most people knew at least some Bible verses as the children were taught to learn Scripture by heart. After Dunkirk many favourite verses were memorised such as:

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. (Isaiah 41:10)

My grandma had a ‘promise box’ which was like a honeycomb. Each day she took out one of the little folded pieces of paper with a text that gave her a word for the day. I am not saying that Britain was a Godly nation, but it was certainly a Bible-believing and God-fearing nation.

Today, more than half the nation doesn’t even believe in the existence of the God of the Bible and we have a large minority who worship other gods. It would not be possible for the Queen to call the nation to prayer today – who would they pray to? How can the nation know God when they have never heard the Gospel?

We have to face the plain fact that we are no longer a Christian nation.

A lot of commentators are comparing this testing time to the difficult days of World War II – but back then Britain was still a God-fearing nation.

Still Under Judgment

So what hope is there for the future? Will Brexit really bring a blessing? Will Brexit be good for Britain - was it really an answer to prayer?

If we believe Brexit was an answer to the prayers of the faithful remnant of committed Christians left in Britain, then we have to recognise the enormous responsibility that this faithful remnant now bears. The remnant recognised the true spiritual nature of the European Union and the satanic forces that were driving Europe towards an ever-increasing secular humanist and anti-God society.

But it is not enough to recognise the sinful nature of the EU and to rejoice that we are leaving it. We have to recognise the true spiritual state of our own nation. We are a nation under judgment, not least because we have passed many laws that are directly against the word of God - and we cannot blame all these on the EU. Brexit will not get us out of judgment: it is a time of grace, not deliverance.

We lost our way when we drifted from our constitutional position encapsulated in the Queen's Coronation Oath, which was made before God on 2 June 1953. Central to the Oath is the commitment to the utmost of our power to maintain the laws of God and the true profession of the Gospel. Now we have the opportunity to bring that Oath back into the centre of our recovery as a nation - more central than the economy or any other primary motivating principle.

In our democracy, we all share responsibility for the state of the nation because we all have a vote and we all have access to our politicians who are our representatives in Parliament. Most Christians don’t ever bother to look at what our politicians are discussing in Parliament and don’t even bother to pray for them! If we never bother to witness to our MPs and ensure that they know the word of God when they are considering issues of state, then how can we escape the judgment of God ourselves?

Brexit will not get us out of judgment: it is a time of grace, not deliverance.

A New Nation Under God?

If Britain is to be a new nation under God, much depends upon the faithful remnant of believers. Are we prepared to stand firm for the truth even when it’s not politically correct to declare it and we may get strong opposition? How much are we prepared to suffer for the Gospel?

We need to read again the letters to the seven churches in the Book of Revelation because we are facing similar situations today and we need to learn how to become ‘overcomers’.

The Christians in Laodicea, which was the richest town in the region, were lukewarm in their faith and had shut God out of their lives. Is this not the condition of many Christians in Britain? We are like the believers in Laodicea who said “I am rich; I have acquired wealth and I do not need a thing.” God’s response to them was “You are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked” (Rev 3:17).

Many Christians in Britain are quite content with their lives and do little or nothing to share their faith with others. We are just like the Christians of Laodicea – and we don’t even realise it!

If we are among the Christians who voted for Brexit, we carry a responsibility to blow a trumpet of warning in the nation and to make our witness among fellow believers who do nothing about the spiritual state of their unbelieving neighbours. God will hold his Church responsible if Brexit fails to produce a new nation under God.

There are many signs of life in some of Britain’s churches so we must pray that the faithful remnant rises to the challenge and exercises a transforming influence in the nation.

References

1 See here and here.

Schools are queuing to hear the message of Easter creatively told in an interactive, child-friendly way.

Some 10,000 primary pupils in the South Yorkshire town of Doncaster – statistically at the bottom of the church attendance league table at just 2% – have been discovering the amazing story of the death and resurrection of Jesus over the past seven years.

Christians around the country have been taken by surprise at the openness to the Gospel now found in the teaching establishments of this northern metropolitan borough – geographically the largest outside London but with a population of only 300,000.

Eye-Catching Atmosphere

For the eighth successive year a project known as the ‘Easter Journey’ is being offered to Key Stage 2 pupils of the town, with Tuxford in north Nottinghamshire also now benefitting.

A total of 1,300 pupils from eight schools will experience the unique journey this year, taking them through five stages of the Easter story – Palm Sunday, the Last Supper, the Garden of Gethsemane, the Cross and the Resurrection – each told by volunteers (some in costume) in different classrooms specially set up with appropriate props and backdrops, creating a peaceful, eye-catching atmosphere in which the children are encouraged to interact with the story and think about what they are hearing.

Over the last seven years, some 10,000 primary pupils in Doncaster have been discovering the amazing story of Jesus’ death and resurrection.

At the Last Supper, for example, the children are asked to gather round a long table laden with jars of water and ‘wine’ along with bowls of grapes and pitta bread, candles and serviettes – and even a money-bag (for Judas). We explain something of the significance of the feast of Passover and, with the help of a bowl and towel, enact the servant nature of Jesus in washing the disciples’ feet, though due to practicalities and time constraints we usually invite just one pupil to have his or her hands washed instead!

Wide-Eyed and Excited Pupils, Enthusiastic Staff

Often spell-bound by what they see and hear as they are transported to the Holy Land at the time of Jesus, the pupils leave the 75-minute experience wide-eyed and excited while matching enthusiasm from staff means there is always a waiting list of schools wanting to host the event.

Because there are simply not enough volunteers to meet the need – “the harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few” – a rota ensures that those missing out get priority the following year or instead have the chance of hosting a ‘Christmas Journey’, which is restricted to Key Stage 1 pupils.

Backed by the Doncaster Schools Worker Trust, supported by a number of local churches and in associating with Scripture Union, the project is headed up by Linda Gardner, who has been teaching Christianity in the town’s primary schools for over 20 years through RE lessons, Bible classes and assemblies. With the addition of a secondary school worker, Dan Budhi, and a host of teams taking assemblies using the Open the Book (Lion’s Storyteller Bible) method, the Trust is currently supporting over 50 of the town’s schools.

The pupils leave the 75-minute experience wide-eyed and excited and there is always a waiting list of schools wanting to host the event.

Spreading the Gospel

The Easter and Christmas journeys follow the success of a project celebrating the Pilgrim Fathers when coach-loads of pupils enjoyed a day of discovery in the nearby village of Scrooby, where the founding fathers of the United States first gathered 400 years ago before being hounded out of the country for their passionate faith.

Along with all the other regular school visits throughout the year, the journeys allow the Trust not only to help schools meet their curriculum requirements on religious education and outside visitors, but also to carry out the Great Commission in spreading the Gospel.

Who has the authority to interpret God's teachings into everyday living?

We have discussed how Torah and halakhah are dependent on one another. In plain language the former is the instruction of God and the latter is the way to apply this instruction in all aspects of life – what the Jews would call a Torah lifestyle and what we could also meaningfully call a biblical lifestyle.

As Yeshua (Jesus) reminded those who questioned him, the Torah hangs on two commandments: to love God with all our heart and to love our neighbour as ourselves. We infer that all else that God teaches us in our Bibles leads us to understand how these two commandments are fulfilled.

There is much to consider: things that apply to our personal walk with God and witness to the world; things that apply to our families; things that we share together as a community. But who has the authority to interpret God’s teachings into everyday living?

Israel Under Moses: Torah, Mishnah and Talmud

Moses received the Ten Commandments and began to teach these and other instructions from God in order to lead Israel to be a Torah-observant community. These were later written down and have been passed on to us in our Bibles as what is called the written Torah.

There is also the oral Torah, which became codified by the Jews into the Mishnah, which is traditionally thought to contain other aspects of Torah passed on from generation to generation beginning with Moses – teachings of Moses that were not written down, but passed on orally.

Jesus reminded us that the Torah hangs on two commandments: to love God with all our heart and to love our neighbour as ourselves.

Commentaries were later written on how to interpret the Mishnah. These commentaries, which include the Mishnah itself, make up the Talmud, of which there are two versions - one written in Babylon and the other in Jerusalem. This led to various branches of Judaism considering Torah, both written and oral, to be a complete set of teachings passed on from generation to generation as ongoing instruction from God. It also resulted in a legal form of halakhah.

However, all this lacks the flexibility that we discussed in the last article in this series. Indeed, my view is that some Christians in search of their Jewish roots have ended up taking this rather legalistic route in their re-discovery of Torah. To me, to a high degree, the Talmud is the alternative to the New Testament for Jews who have not yet accepted Yeshua as Messiah.

Torah Before Moses: The Walk of Abraham

Let us, therefore, retrace our steps to the time that Torah was given by God through Moses and see if there is continuity in God’s purposes and teachings for his people throughout Scripture, leading up to the New Covenant and even today.

Let us also recall that Enoch, some centuries before, had walked with God achieving a lifestyle that pleased God without, as far as we know, having being told what was later revealed through Moses regarding Torah. We might also recall that Abraham walked with God in faith before the giving of the Torah of Moses. Nevertheless, regarding Abraham we are told that God said of him (Gen 26:5) “Abraham obeyed me and did everything I required of him, keeping my commands, my decrees and my Torah.”

So how did Abraham, and possibly Enoch as well, obey God’s Torah prior to the time it was given to Moses? If we interpret Genesis 26:5 through the spectacles of the legal codification of written and oral Torah of the Talmud and Jewish halakhah, we might think that Abraham was told in advance what Moses later wrote down - or at least the relevant parts of the written Torah. But I find this hard to accept, particularly in the light of my view of halakhah as walking with God by the inspiration of his Spirit, as I outlined in a previous article.

The account of Abraham shows him to be a man who learned to walk in personal relationship with God so that he obeyed all that God instructed him according to the circumstances through which he was taken. Among the clearest of instructions were the command to leave Ur, to trust God for the birth of Isaac, and to take Isaac onto Mount Moriah as a sacrifice.

How did Abraham, and possibly Enoch as well, obey God’s Torah prior to the time it was given to Moses?

These were not instructions of the nature of the Torah of Moses, but specific to Abraham’s own personal walk. Indeed, we would be unwise to take the sacrifice of Isaac into our own written or oral Torah for literal application! I would, nevertheless, believe that all Abraham was commanded and taught by God came from the two great commandments and would have been compatible with any of God’s later teaching through Moses. Indeed, we perceive shadows of the birth of Yeshua and of the New Covenant in Abraham’s walk of faith.

We also know that Abraham was familiar with the principle of tithing (Gen 14:18-20), but this seemed more spontaneous and from the heart than legalistic, similar to Jacob’s response at Bethel (Gen 28:18-22). Is this not an indicator of Torah being written on the heart, where God prompts a person to walk faithfully and obediently to him through all the circumstances of life that we encounter on our personal walk with him?

Is this not an indication of what God intended for Torah, rather than the legalistic framework that we can fall into so easily?

Authority to Interpret Torah

So on to Moses. With all the detail that was given through Moses encoded into the written Torah, there was still the need for interpretation into every aspect of life. Questions arose for individuals, families and in the more general aspects of community life. This multitude of questions was beginning to wear Moses out until his father-in-law told him to appoint elders to teach and interpret the easier aspects of Torah, as deputies (Ex 18:1-27). They were given a share of authority to interpret Torah.

That same authority was passed on to successive generations through the priesthood, down to the Sanhedrin and to the Rabbinic schools of Yeshua’s day. The point is that however many individual commands one can count in the written and oral Torah, there is always a new personal application that is a current manifestation of Torah principles, and the authority to interpret this application is given to those who are appointed as teachers. This cannot be fully codified and is part of our personal walks with God – just as for Abraham.

That Authority Transferred

Yeshua’s Sermon on the Mount was an extensive teaching from the heart of God which seemed something fresh and different to those listening, whilst also being fully founded on the Torah of Moses. Yeshua’s entire ministry was founded on Torah, whether through word or deed.

Yet so ingrained were some of the religious leaders in their traditions by this time that to some he seemed a heretic. Much of the interaction between Yeshua and the teachers of Torah involved him challenging them (e.g. Matt 23). By contrast to the Rabbinic schools, however, the authority of Yeshua was clear (Matt 7:29).

Yeshua’s Sermon on the Mount seemed fresh and different to those listening, but was also fully founded on the Torah of Moses.

When Yeshua cursed the fig tree (Matt 21:18), I suggest that this was not a sign of cursing Israel as a whole, but a sign to the teachers of the Torah. He was telling them, in a symbolic way that they would have understood, that authority would be taken from them and given to others (Matt 21:43).

The authority to teach and interpret Torah was going into other hands. The New Covenant in Yeshua’s blood was soon to be made manifest, whereby the Gospel would go to the entire world. Torah, the teaching of God, was still to be interpreted into the lives of all who would have faith in him, but a new authority would be released among the disciples of Yeshua, both Jews and Gentiles.

The Authority of the Holy Spirit

The new authority is given to all believers according to the promise of Jeremiah 31:33, that the Torah will be written on our hearts, free of the curse for disobedience (Gal 3:13), giving freedom to learn and to walk (halakh) with God (Rom 8).

This takes us back to the model of Abraham. Our Bibles give us the root and foundation through which our lives are to be built, but through a living relationship rather than through ritual observance. Instead of the elders at Moses’ time, we now have God’s Holy Spirit to give us meaningful interpretations of Torah principles and truths in every area of our lives - personally. Each of us can walk with God as a disciple of Yeshua. Obeying the call and teaching of God along this walk is to be Torah-observant, or biblically observant.

Authority is also given to Bible teachers to help disciples on this walk of faith. I wonder if more Bible teachers should think in these terms, because they have both a great privilege and responsibility. In New Covenant terms they inherit the ministry passed on through Moses to successive generations of God’s covenant family.

The Budding of the Fig Tree

I suggest that the budding of the fig tree in Luke 21:29-31 is not only related to the re-gathering of Israel in the end times but also to a re-awakening of the authority to interpret Torah amongst Yeshua’s disciples. If the cursing of the fig tree denoted a change at the time of Yeshua, the re-budding is a sign of restoration in our day.

Our Bibles give us the foundation for our lives, but through a living relationship rather than through ritual observance.

As there is a call to renewal in the Gentile Church, so a new authority to interpret Torah will coincide with the re-gathering of Israel in the days preceding the return of Yeshua. There can be a new co-operation between Christians and Messianic Jews. Surely this will also result in the provocation of Israel to jealousy as described by Paul in Romans 11:14.

In the excitement of these days, let us not revert to ritual and over-fascination for Jewish traditions so much that we miss this fresh move of God’s Spirit. Will this be revival, rooted as never before in biblical truth? Surely that is God’s plan.

Next time: Community

Here are links to all the articles in our 'Being Hebraic' series, by Dr Clifford Denton.

1. The Life of Faith

2. Walking with God

3. Torah (the Teaching of God)

4. Illustrations from Torah

5. Authority to Interpret Torah

6. The Importance of Community

7. Re-Thinking Community

8. Guarding Against Deception

9. Our Ultimate Goal

Though Wednesday brought fear to London, God has made opportunities for his love to be shown.

We bring you a report from David Foster and the Manor Park Christian Centre, who have had opportunity in the aftermath of the attack to show God's loving care to London Met police.

London Terrorist Attack & MPCC’s Ministry to the London Met Police

One important ministry of the Catering Team of Manor Park Christian Centre has been to cater for regular Police Breakfasts that we host for the London Metropolitan Police here in Newham. The MPCC Catering Team come in the day before to set-up and decorate the tables and to start the food preparations. Since another Police Breakfast was planned for this morning, Thursday 23^rd March, the MPCC Catering Team were just finishing all their preparations when the terrorist attack took place on Wednesday afternoon.

The Police Breakfasts are always an opportunity for our Catering Team to lovingly serve the Met Police here in Newham. A small number of police, usually up to 36 police, from the 1,000 strong police force here in the London Borough of Newham are given an opportunity to attend these breakfasts. As Met Police Chaplain here in Newham, I have the opportunity to share a short relevant Biblical message with the police officers who are in attendance at the Police Breakfasts and then to pray for them.

With the unfolding aftermath of the terrorist attack in Central London, I received a telephone call late on Wednesday afternoon from the London Met Police to say, not surprisingly, that the Police Breakfast we were planning would need to be cancelled. This was certainly understandable considering the circumstances. After a quick consultation with the MPCC Catering Team, the decision was made to still prepare at least some of the food which had already been purchased and to instead take it to the main Newham Met Police Station in Forest Gate at 10:15am on Thursday morning. I then sent word to the Met Police to let them know about the new plans.

When the food was delivered this morning at the Forest Gate Police Station, I was quickly ushered into the Acting Newham Metropolitan Police Borough Commander’s office where he said: “David, I hope you don’t mind me doing this, but..." ...whereupon he grabbed me and gave me a big bear-hug. With tears in his eyes, he said: “Thanks so much to all your Catering Team. You don’t how much this means to us!” We both stood together for a few moments, choking back the tears.

What I was then told was that many of the London Met Police who had been policing the area of the terrorist attack since Wednesday afternoon were from Newham. With over 1,000 police officers stationed in Newham, many of them are often called upon to also help with events such as the terrorist attack. Word had been sent to these police officers, who had been working for over 19 hours straight in Central London since Wednesday afternoon without having any opportunity to eat, that there was food waiting for them at the Forest Gate Police Station. As hungry, tired police officers started arriving at the station from Central London, I sent word to our Catering Team that more food was needed, if possible. They quickly prepared more food, which was delivered to the Forest Gate Police Station. Upon arrival, one of the commanding officers took a photo of the food and sent the photo to New Scotland Yard as a testament to the loving care and service that had been shown to London’s Met Police.

Some of the police officers commented that the Police Breakfast had ended up having a far greater impact upon London’s Met Police than we had originally planned. For the MPCC Catering Team, what could have initially been seen as a disappointing cancelled ministry opportunity was turned into a far greater opportunity than could have ever been imagined. God’s purposes and plans stood firm. God’s Word holds true. “But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations” (NIV, Psalm 33:11).

David Foster

Manor Park Christian Centre

What is the word of the Lord to Britain?

What is the word of the Lord to Britain today as we grieve for the families of those who lost their lives in this latest act of terrorism that has shocked the nation?

The enemies of peace have struck a blow at the very heart of our civilisation and democracy with the indiscriminate murder of innocent civilians going about their ordinary daily lives in the tourist centre of London. It is a crime of unspeakable savagery that is hard to imagine how any human being can carry it out – to deliberately drive a car at pedestrians and to attack an unarmed policeman with a knife.

First: we can be sure that God is grieving with those who have lost loved ones and is reaching out to them in his compassion and comfort. This is where the Christian scriptures penetrate the darkness and wickedness of humanity by reminding us that “God is love; and whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him” (1 John 4:16).

The Apostle John also reminds us that “If anyone says, ‘I love God’, yet hates his brother, he is a liar. Whoever loves God must also love his brother” (1 John 4:19-21). Although this was addressed to Christians, its teaching also means that we should reach out in love to our Muslim neighbours who are no doubt fearful of retribution falling upon them because a fellow Muslim has carried out this atrocity in the name of Allah, their god. We have to remember that not all Muslims follow the creed that has been embraced by Islamic State.

Speaking the Truth about Islamic Terror

Nevertheless, a great danger facing us is that we do not know how many radicalised Islamists there are in Britain (or any other Western nation) today, which creates fear and uncertainty. This is not helped by the problem that most Muslims have not integrated into Western society but remain a separate enclave. We do not know what they teach in mosques as much of their teaching is in Arabic. This inevitably creates suspicion.

Christian scriptures penetrate the darkness and wickedness of humanity by reminding us of God’s love.

Ik Aldama/DPA/PA ImagesThe terrorist who drove the car and killed people in Westminster was doing exactly what Islamic State has called for in a statement that has many references to the Qur’an, where Muhammad calls upon Muslims to kill Christians and Jews. A small part of the statement is quoted below:

If you are not able to find an IED¹ or a bullet, then single out the disbelieving American, Frenchman, or any of their allies. Smash his head with a rock, or slaughter him with a knife, or run him over with your car, or throw him down from a high place, or choke him, or poison him.²

If this statement shocks us, it is because our Western leaders and the media have been brainwashing us for years with lies about Islam being a religion of peace. These lies are now coming back to haunt our leaders – both politicians and church leaders.

It is dangerous to say that terrorism has nothing to do with Islam – it has everything to do with Islam, because it is the policy that Muhammad established for the forcible propagation of the Islamic faith. But there is a conspiracy of silence in the Western media and among our political leaders to suppress the truth. The only journalist I know in Britain who tells the truth is Melanie Phillips, who published an excellent article on this subject yesterday.³

This is a Spiritual Battle

There will be no peace in the Western nations where Muslims have settled in great numbers during the past 40 years until we recognise the spiritual nature of the battle that is raging across our part of the world today. Part of this battle for truth is between the teaching and practice of Jesus and the teaching and practice of Muhammad.

Surely even secular humanists can see that it is better for humanity to follow the teaching of the man who said “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbour and hate your enemy’. But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matt 5:43).

By contrast, Muhammad’s teaching was, “And when the sacred months have passed, then kill the polytheists [Christians and Jews] wherever you find them and capture them and besiege them and sit in wait for them at every place of ambush." (Al-Tawbah 9:5).

Part of the battle for truth is between the teaching and practice of Jesus and that of Muhammad.

Alerting Us to Danger

If we return to our original question at the beginning of this article, we need to ask: Why did the Lord allow this act of terrorism to happen in Westminster? Could it be that God is using Islam to shake the nation, alerting us to the major spiritual battle that is taking place for the soul of Britain?

This battle is typified by the woolly-minded politically correct platitudes that have come from our politicians since the attack on Parliament, such as the statement by Home Secretary Amber Rudd, who said:

The British people will be united in working together to defeat those who would harm our shared values. Values of democracy, tolerance and the rule of law. Values symbolised by the Houses of Parliament. Values that will never be destroyed.⁴

It is platitudes like this that have got us into the problems we face today! We can no longer go on sweeping the real issues under a secular humanist carpet. The issues we face are far too serious! It is a battle between truth and lies, between the forces of light and the forces of darkness of which Islam is a part. The liberal intelligentsia, who have been creating a climate of deception for decades, do not realise how they will suffer if Islam gains power in this land.

The Church is Responsible

Meanwhile, there has been no large-scale, co-ordinated strategy among mainline church leaders for communicating the truth of the Gospel to Muslims. It is the churches in Britain that are particularly responsible for the spiritual state of the nation!

The liberal intelligentsia do not realise how they will suffer if Islam gains power in this land.

But largely we have left Muslims to set up their own mosques, to bring in imams who do not speak a word of English and to establish separatist communities – a kind of voluntary apartheid – in Britain.

The city of Leicester is the only place I know where the churches have come together to form a united outreach to the Muslim community, though this is on a relatively small scale.

Overcoming Deception

There has been no national policy, from politicians or from the Church, of engaging with Muslim leaders to call for a critical examination of the Qur’an and the teaching and practice of Muhammad and its relevance for today, as Clifford Denton calls for in his article this week. Until this is done, the teaching of Islamic State, who claim to be followers of Muhammad, doing exactly as he did, will continue to be a thorn in the flesh of Western society.

We are suffering from a large dose of what Jesus described as spiritual deception:

Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand… For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them. (Matt 13:13-15)

But how can the politicians in Westminster understand if they never hear the truth from church leaders – or even from the bishops in the Upper House of Parliament?

Surely God holds his Church responsible for the state of the nation today?

The sword of judgment fell very quickly upon David Cameron’s career when he crossed a red line, but even this message of warning was not heeded by Parliament. Is not this one of the reasons why God has now shaken the whole of Westminster?

References

1 Improvised Explosive Device.

2 Griffin, A. Isis told supporters to run French over with cars before Nice truck attack. The Independent, 15 July 2016.

3 In the midst of grief, still confusion. Melanie Phillips, 23 March 2017.

4 Home secretary: Terror will never destroy our values. ITV News update, 22 March 2017.