
Tonight we light the 3rd candle on the Hannukiah. We are celebrating the third Fruit of the Spirit. Why was Jesus in Jerusalem during Chanukkah? Remember Jesus didn't do anything his Father in Heaven didn't need him do. John chapter 10:22,27 confirms this.
Day Three: “Patience” The Fruit of Patience:
Tonight we light the candle of patience. “Patience is a virtue.” That is a phrase we commonly hear in life. Patience is something we must learn. We are not born with patience. So we know that the love of God must cultivate patience in our life.
Patience - “the quality of being patient, as the bearing of provocation, annoyance, misfortune or pain, without complaint, loss of temper, irritation, or the like.”
Read the following bible passages:
• Galatians 5: 22 - 23 - Patience • Zechariah chapters 5 and 6 • Psalm 117 • John 10:20-38
God’s Steadfast love toward us:
“Praise the Lord, all nations! Extol him, all peoples! For great is his steadfast love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever. Praise the Lord!” - Psalm 117 “And those who are far off shall come and help to build the temple of the Lord. And you shall know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you. And this shall come to pass, if you will diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God.” - Zechariah 6:15
We find in Zechariah 5 and 6 the people of Israel had neglected rebuilding the Temple of God after returning to Jerusalem and rebuilding the wall. Both Haggai and Zechariah address this neglect and issue with the people of Israel. We see that from 539 BC to 521 BC the Temple is not being rebuilt.
Finally in 521 BC we see the people start work on the second Temple. Although, the Temple was nothing like Solomon’s Temple, “Herod the Great” would come later and make major improvements on the second Temple as an appeasement tactic to the Jewish people.
• 586 BC the Babylonians take Jerusalem • 539 BC - Jews come back from Babylon • 521 - 516 BC Second Temple built As you read Zechariah notice these are names and their meanings:
• Heldai Means “worldly.” • Tobijah Means “Yahweh is good.” • Jedaiah Means “Yahweh has known.” • Josiah Means “Yahweh supports.” • Zephaniah Means “Yahweh has treasured.”
What does the rebuilding of the Temple have to do with Chanukah? One aspect is the neglect of the people to make the rebuilding of the temple a priority.
Why didn’t they start building the Temple right away?
We can see God’s patience exhibited in history waiting for the people to obey him. God sent His prophets Haggai and Zechariah to help get the people into proper alignment with him. It is as if they forgot that a Messiah was coming and their responsibility in relationship to God as Jews.
How does that mindset affect people today? Have we forgotten that a Messiah is coming? We have a hope that a Messiah is coming (Yeshua).
“For we are the temple of the living God; as God said,“I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God,and they shall be my people.Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord,” - 2 Corinthians 6:16-17
“I will give you the land of Israel.’ And when they come there, they will remove from it all its detestable things and all its abominations. And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in my statutes and keep my rules and obey them. And they shall be my people, and I will be their God.” - Ezekiel 11:17-20
“And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.” - Ezekiel 36:26-27
“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” - Jeremiah 33:31-34
“but if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.” - John 10:38
Whether you were a Jew 2,000 years ago or living today, God wants to be in relationship with us. He wants to give us a new heart and put His Spirit within us. The natural man has trouble understanding this amazing opportunity. We should encourage each other during this Chanukah season, and beyond, to begin or continue to be mindful of the cultivating work God wants to do in our life.
Consider this:
"Then came Hanukkah in Yerushalayim. It was winter, and Yeshua was walking around inside the Temple area, in Sholmo's Colonnade. My sheep listen to my voice, I recognize them, they follow me, and I give them eternal life." - John 10:22,27 CJB
What was Jesus doing in Jerusalem in the Temple during Chanukah?
Questions for Reflection:
• Why was Jesus in Jerusalem during Chanukkah? • Why was Jesus walking around inside the Temple area? • Do you see yourself as the Temple of God where He dwells? • Do I recognize God wants to build Himself in my Temple? • Am I patient enough with myself to allow the new creation that He has started inside of me? • Think about how patient God is with us. • Am I obeying the voice of the Lord?