Founder’s Blog
A Time of Recognizable Growth and Maturation
I trust that your Passover was enriching. Now is the time in which we count each day to connect the deliverance of Passover to the coming empowerment of Shavuot.
The Omer is a 49-day countdown to the final spring appointment, Pentecost (Shavuot). The Omer is an integral link between Pesach and Shavuot. The days of the Omer create a chain between the things we experienced at Pesach and Chag HaMatzah with Shavuot, when we receive a fresh empowering of God's Spirit.
The Omer is a time of recognizable growth and maturation. In the land of Israel, it is a period in which the wheat that was planted before Passover is allowed to mature until the time of the harvest fifty days later. The days of the Omer also correspond to the days that our Messiah Yeshua walked among His disciples after His resurrection, revealed Himself to hundreds of believers, and ascended to the Father.
According to Jewish tradition, the counting is done in the following prescribed manner. After the evening prayers, a blessing is recited, "Blessed are You, Adonai our God, King of the Universe, Who has sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us to count the Omer." Then the counter simply states, "Today is X days of the Omer." This formal counting is followed by the recitation of Psalm 67 and a few short petitions for spiritual cleansing and renewal.
Psalm 67 is recited because it is composed of exactly 49 Hebrew words which correspond to the 49 days of the Omer count. The Psalm is seasonally appropriate because of its harvest motif. It is spiritually appropriate because it speaks clearly of God's salvation—Yeshua—being made known over all the earth.
A Torah-based, Messiah-centered lifestyle is surely transforming! We are constantly introduced to new aspects of our faith and the revelation of what obedience practically looks like in our actions. It is my prayer for each of us that we remain focused on being disciples of the Master�that we never lose site of an empty tomb and our risen Messiah. During this season that He walked with His disciples—remember that He also walks with us and He takes great pleasure in our dedication to be faithful and responsive disciples.
Your prayers are always appreciated and your support is such a blessing to this ministry.
Boaz Michael
Prayer Needs:
Please remember us during the middle of this month as we tour throughout the mid-west. Our schedule is posted on the wedsite under the events/conference tab of our home page: www.ffoz.org.
The FFOZ seminars that will be presented are Trembling at the Word, The Return and an abbreviated version of Yeshua: My Master, My Rabbi. CLICK HERE For dates / locations / Times
Please pray for safe travels and for the Lord to bring those who are hungry to hear the truth of Torah. And, remember our wives and children who will not be with us. Thank you for your support!
Quote of the Month:
Words will always fall short of adequately describing and capturing God's nature and make-up. Thus some in the Torah movement have difficulty expressing their understanding of God with the term "trinity." Others outside of the Torah movement often make use of this non-biblical descriptive as a litmus test to Torah submissive believer's authenticity as what they consider to be true believers. FFOZ has created a position paper in hope to bring balance and understanding in this area. I'll briefly quote the paper,
We (FFOZ) try only to use biblical language when referring to the nature of God. I know that this makes some people uneasy, because people want to have things defined clearly in black and white. To me, that desire represents a Greek mindset (wanting to fully understand, comprehend and explain). A Hebrew mindset, on the other hand, is comfortable with the unknown, allowing for contradiction and accepting it without fully comprehending it. Paul states in 1 Corinthians 1:22, "For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom."
The Greco-styled (Greek minded) theologian will not be pacified with biblical language. By implication, this suggests that they regard the Christology expressed in the scriptures as inadequate. We regard it as adequate and inerrant in its original manuscripts. Here are some examples of verses we find powerful and sufficient for describing the divine nature of the Creator...
Quote from Unique and Incomprehensible: Comments and Approaches to Explaining the Nature of God, by Boaz Michael. Available for download in PDF CLICK HERE
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