Walking God's Way (Part 1 of 5)

This is part 1 of 5 in the teaching series, "Walking God's Way" by Rebecca J. Brimmer, International President and CEO of Bridges for Peace. May you be blessed by reading this teaching letter.

Walking God’s Way

My husband, Tom, and I frequently walk in the evening after work for exercise and just to spend a little time together in conversation, which we enjoy because it is our time. We live in Gilo, a southern neighborhood In Jerusalem, which is the highest point in the city. No matter how hot the day is, there is almost always a cool breeze in the evening. Recently, I was reading in Ephesians chapter five and noticed a repeated theme of walking. It was an emphasis of how we live or “walk” out our lives, that led me on a trek through the Scriptures to see the connections between walking and God.

Adam and Eve Walked with God

Adam and Eve lived an idyllic life in a beautiful garden and, best of all, they had close fellowship with God, who would come and walk in the garden with them. In Genesis 3:8 it says: “And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day…” It seems that God agrees with us, walking and fellowshipping in the cool of the day is a pleasant thing.

Walking with God

The word walk in the Bible is used literally and figuratively. When used figuratively, it has to do with conduct and manner of life, or the observance of laws and customs. Repeatedly, we read accounts in the Bible of those who walked with God, like Enoch, Noah, Abraham, and Isaac. From the scriptural accounts it is apparent that God was greatly pleased by such followers.

Over and over again, God encourages His people to walk in His ways. “And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments of the Lord and His statutes which I command you today for your good?” (Deuteronomy 10:12–13). This passage has been described as the essence of the Law. The apostle Paul uses the same kind of terminology in Ephesians. “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10).

The Way We Walk

In Hebrew the most common word for walk is halak and it means:

1) To make one's way, progress; to make due use of opportunities.
2) To live, to regulate one's life, to conduct one's self, to pass one's life.

Hebrew is a language of consonants, with the vowel sounds being memorized or sometimes indicated by small symbols placed above, below, or inside of letters. Every Hebrew word is comprised of a root, called a shoresh. So in this instance the shoresh for walk, halak is composed of the consonants H-L-K (הלך). Other words share this same root and have similar meanings. One of the most common is halaka, which literally means the way on which one goes.

Halaka—The Way on Which One Goes

I believe it is important for us to understand this word, which permeates Hebraic thought and the practice of Judaism. The Bible was written by Jewish writers (with the possible exception of Luke), who thought Hebraically. They lived in a Hebraic culture and would have been very familiar with the idea of halaka.

Dr. Marvin Wilson in his book, Our Father Abraham, describes halaka in part:
“During the period of Rabbinic Judaism, the Hebrew term halaka (literally walking, proceeding, going) took on special significance. It designated the religious laws and regulations to follow so one might keep straight on the road of life. It provided a map from the start to the end of one’s journey. When one errs from God’s path into crooked and perverse ways, one violates God’s Torah [Gen.–Deut.] and must ‘return.’ The Hebrew word for repentance is teshuva, suggesting the idea ‘turn around,’ ‘go back.’ The way back is the way of Torah; it gives direction and guidance needed to remain on the way.”

Halaka is the term used for Jewish Law. It refers to the final authoritative decision on any specific question. It rests, first and foremost, upon the biblical statutes and commandments in the written and oral Torah, it is practical not theoretical. Halaka is legal not philosophical. Judaism is a way of life. Halaka (walking) is the way the commandments are translated into everyday living. Although faith is the basis out of which halaka develops, its major emphasis is on deed. It is deed, not just faith.

I was sitting eating with an Orthodox friend recently and an interesting conversation ensued. I had mentioned that I had noticed in the newspaper Orthodox Jews being described as believers—one who was running for office stated, “Israel needs a believer in the position of Prime Minister.” I found this interesting, as previously I had thought that was a term used only to describe Christians. My friend responded, “Most Jews are believers. The important thing to know is: are they are practicing Jews.”

That reminded me of my friend, the late Dr. Bernard Resnikov. He once said to me: “Becky, I don’t understand Christians. I’ve been to many inner-faith meetings and the Christians stand around talking about what they believe. It isn’t that way in Judaism. If I read in my Bible about Shabbat (the Sabbath) and want to understand it better, I go to my neighbor who practices Shabbat, and ask him to share his insights. If he isn’t keeping Shabbat, why would I bother to ask him what he believes about it?”

These two conversations illustrate a common stream of thought in Judaism. The conceptual truths of Judaism and its values mean little unless they are translated into a way of life.

By Rebecca J. Brimmer
International President and CEO

All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version unless otherwise noted.
 © 2010
Bridges for Peace holds the copyright on this material. We encourage pastors, Bible teachers, and lay people to use these articles for preaching and teaching, and we hereby grant permission for a limited number of copies for such educational purposes. However, any other reproduction or transmittal of this material in any form—including reprinting, republishing, recording or use with any information storage and retrieval system—requires written permission from BFP International.


For the full version of this teaching letter please visit www.bridgesforpeace.com or click on the link provided http://www.bridgesforpeace.com/pics/TLWEB0206.pdf.

 

Jerusalem, My Home (part 4 of 4)

This is part 4 of 4 in the teaching series, "Jerusalem, My Home" by Rebecca J. Brimmer, International President and CEO of Bridges for Peace. May you be blessed by reading this teaching letter.

Jerusalem of Future Hope

Recently, we have noticed a shift in attitude as Jewish people have recognized that Bible-believing Christians are their friends, maybe their only friends. Through the good work of many Christians in Israel and around the world and that of the Knesset Christian Allies Caucus, we are seeing a shift in attitude. The Caucus was formed in January of 2004 when Knesset Member Yuri Shtern, along with 12 other Knesset Members, joined together to recognize Christian support for Israel in an official capacity within the Knesset (Parliament) of Israel. It was the first time an official government body was created to reach out to Christians and forge relationships based on mutual respect and appreciation.

In the past, whenever a Jewish person asked me if I was an evangelical Christian, I braced myself for a negative response when I answered in the affirmative. Today, I am more likely to get a word of thanks for the many good things we do to help Israel and her people. Jewish people are awakening to the fact that millions of Christians around the world love them, because they are loved by God.

In many conversations with Jewish people (rabbis, politicians, intellectuals, and average everyday people), there is an affirmation that when the Messiah comes, we will all follow Him (both Christians and Jews). Teddy Kollek was once asked if he believed that Yeshua was the Messiah. He was always the consummate politician and obviously didn’t want to offend the inquirers. So he answered by saying that he had a good idea. When the Messiah comes, a committee should be formed including both Christians and Jews. The committee should seek an appointment with the Messiah and prepare questions to ask Him. Teddy suggested that the first question should be, “Sir, have you ever been here before?”

The centrality of Jerusalem in biblical history is undisputed. The fact that the world is watching Israel is apparent today. And in the future, Jerusalem is the city the Messiah will come to! I’m looking forward to the day when Psalm 133 will become reality in the lives of Christians and Jews…when together we will join arms and sing the song, “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is when brothers dwell together in unity.” Our shared past is not good, but our shared future will be amazing under the leadership of the Messiah.

By Rebecca J. Brimmer
International President and CEO

Photos
www.bibleplaces.com/Todd Bolen
All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version unless otherwise noted.

 

© 2010

Bridges for Peace holds the copyright on this material. We encourage pastors, Bible teachers, and lay people to use these articles for preaching and teaching, and we hereby grant permission for a limited number of copies for such educational purposes. However, any other reproduction or transmittal of this material in any form—including reprinting, republishing, recording or use with any information storage and retrieval system—requires written permission from BFP International.


For the full version of this teaching letter please visit www.bridgesforpeace.com or click on the link provided http://www.bridgesforpeace.com/pics/TLWEB0507.pdf.

Jerusalem, My Home (Part 3 of 4)



This is part 3 of 4 in the teaching series, "Jerusalem, My Home" by Rebecca J. Brimmer, International President and CEO of Bridges for Peace. May you be blessed by reading this teaching letter.


Jerusalem Today

I am one of about 750,000 inhabitants, which include Jews, Arabs, Christians, and internationals from around the world. Until recently, my husband Tom and I lived in Gilo, a southern neighborhood of Jerusalem. Our apartment there has a beautiful view of the city of Jerusalem. For about two years, Gilo was under attack from Palestinian groups. Nearly every day shots were fired at Gilo. We lived six blocks from the danger line and learned to live with the constant sound of gunfire. The Bridges for Peace office is in downtown Jerusalem, and over 15 terrorist incidents occurred within six blocks of our office during the height of the second intifada.

People are always asking me if I am afraid to live here. Certainly terror attacks are frightening, but at the same time, Jerusalem is also a city where I feel safe to walk alone at night, because there is very little crime against individuals. Children ride alone on city buses to go to school, and no one worries about their safety because crimes against children are almost unheard of in Israel. There are no pictures of missing children on milk cartons in Israel. But, certainly no one would say Jerusalem is a peaceful city today.

Jerusalem, City of Peace?

Many say the name “Jerusalem” is Eir Shalom (city of peace). Others say it is Eir Shilem (complete city). Certainly it is the dearest wish of the Jewish people that there would be peace in Jerusalem and in Israel. Many times we say peace will only come when the Messiah comes. The Hebrew phrase Ad sh’ yavo Moshiach (until the coming of the Messiah) is a common phrase in Israel. The city has seen much conflict throughout history and also in recent times, and, at times, it seems that peace is a distant dream.

But there is a peace that descends on the city every week that I have come to cherish. Every Friday afternoon, the city begins to quiet down as the citizens prepare to welcome the ShabbatShabbat meal. The Scriptures are discussed, and beautiful songs are sung. Husbands bless their wives by reading Proverbs 31 to them. Parents bless their children. When I travel outside of Israel, the thing I miss most is Shabbat and the blessing of a day set aside from our busy lives to be with our families and the Lord. (Sabbath). The smell of chicken soup fills the air; in fact, you can’t walk down any street in a Jewish neighborhood without smelling chicken soup. Everyone dresses in nice clothes. Fathers bring flowers home to their wives. Traffic slows down to a near standstill as everyone hurries home to be with their families before sundown. The tables are set beautifully, and families join together to share a leisurely time together over the

Living in Jerusalem as a Christian

I am in Israel and living in Jerusalem because I want to see relationships between Christians and Jews improved. For 2,000 years, we have been divided in our belief of who the Messiah is. As Christians, we accept that Yeshua is the Messiah, while the Jewish people are still looking for their Messiah. This difference in belief has caused great tension between our peoples. For 1,700 years since Christianity was made the state religion by Constantine, the Jewish people suffered at the hands of organized Christianity. Their persecution through the ages has been well documented and culminated with the Holocaust when six million were murdered simply for being Jewish.
It saddens me to know that people who bore the name of Christ acted this way. I would love to go back in history and change events, but I can’t. However, we can make a difference today and for tomorrow. Many Christians have made the decision to make a difference by showing unconditional love to the Jewish people. The International Christian Embassy Jerusalem, Christian Friends of Israel, and Bridges for Peace are three of the largest Christian ministries in Jerusalem doing that.
It is not always comfortable to be a Christian living in Israel. I have personally experienced some persecution, dislike, and suspicion from Jewish people who have negative attitudes about Christians, as a consequence of past actions by Christians. I understand why they feel that way and want to change those negative attitudes by living a godly Christian life in their midst, a life characterized by love and mercy.


By Rebecca J. Brimmer
International President and CEO

Photos

www.bibleplaces.com/Todd Bolen
www.israelimages.com/Garo Nalbandian
www.israelimages.com/Richard Nowitz

All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version unless otherwise noted.

 

© 2010
Bridges for Peace holds the copyright on this material. We encourage pastors, Bible teachers, and lay people to use these articles for preaching and teaching, and we hereby grant permission for a limited number of copies for such educational purposes. However, any other reproduction or transmittal of this material in any form—including reprinting, republishing, recording or use with any information storage and retrieval system—requires written permission from BFP International.


For the full version of this teaching letter please visit www.bridgesforpeace.com or click on the link provided http://www.bridgesforpeace.com/pics/TLWEB0507.pdf.