March 16, 2007
For the past eight years Rimona and I have been involved in writing articles and sending them out, upon request. We also had a website with Rimona's "Hebrew insights into the weekly Parasha", and other articles. The Father laid on our hearts to freely give, as He has freely given to us. This includes work of service to the local body (that is those who want a relationship with us : -), and to our brethren overseas, as well as to none believers. Recently the domain that our website, 1st-born.com, was on closed down for some reason, and thus the materials are no longer available. We have decided to open blog spots (posted below) that will give you access to our teachings and articles. We have also been increasingly more active in teaching and building relationship between the House of Judah and the House of Israel/Joseph-Ephraim here, which means our time for writing, is somewhat diminishing. After many years of seeing only strife and contention between Ephraim and Judah, especially in the believing community, we are now beginning to witness the gradual collapse of those walls, and relationships being formed. This is happening among those who are not so interested in uniformity of doctrine, but in the unity of the Life of Yeshua and the Father, just as Yeshua prayed "I in them, and Thou in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, that the world may know that Thou didst send Me, and didst love them, even as Thou didst love Me" (John 17:23). "And the glory which Thou hast given Me I have given to them; that they may be one, just as We are one" (John 17:22).
On Tuesday night we returned home quite late from the weekly meeting in Jerusalem, in which Ariel K. was teaching a mixed Ephraimite/Judaite group. Ariel emphasized the need for a strong willful desire, or passion, for an intimate relationship with the Father and the Son, which would then also create strong bonds with each other. But that goal can only be attained if we lay down our life, "die out to self", or empty ourselves of pride and self righteousness and embrace Him. He, Yeshua, the Life of the Word, must be our target, goal, and objective.
The following morning we woke up very early, feeling that we didn't get a good night's rest. But the Spirit would not let us go back to sleep, prompting deep intercession for the Body of Messiah. After about two hours I dozed off for about 3 minutes (according to Rimona), only to be jarred out of sleep by a dream.
In the dream I saw myself walking, accompanied by others, in the direction of a graveyard in order to attend a memorial service. There were about 4 or 5 people on my right, and a girl of about 15 on my left. For some reason I had turned to the young girl, and jokingly said to her that I hoped the person, whose memorial service we were about to attend, was not buried alive. We then arrived at a place where the path split, and the girl left and joined the others on the right, while I was left to walk alone. As I looked ahead I saw the grave. It was mounded with fresh light-yellowish colored sand with a wreath lying on top (apparently others had arrived before us). As the group proceeded to the grave, I realized that the shorts I was wearing were not the proper attire for the occasion. I watched the others go over to the grave and bow in memory of the deceased. Suddenly the earth beneath the pile of sand began to push upward; sand poured down from both sides into the hole, as if the body was coming up out of the grave. It made two such movements, with the second revealing more of the body, and much less sand was left on top. I did not see the wreath anymore. However, the others carried on as if nothing was happening. I woke up trembling from the sudden surprise.
After prayer, this is what I believe to be the interpretation: The grave is that of Ezekiel's description of the dry bones of the whole House of Israel (both Judah and Ephraim). They are being united into one body by the power of the Spirit, but are still in the grave with the sands of time heaped up over them. In Ezekiel 37 it seems that the rattling of the bones, the putting on of the sinews, flesh and skin all takes place while they are still in the grave. But when the breath comes into them, they are filled with life and power to push up the earth and sand, and not beyond. We could be coming close to the time in which the Spirit is going to be breathing life into these two sticks or nations. Rimona thought that being dressed with shorts indicates that it was summer time.
The people to my right, I believe, were believers from the right wing conservative Evangelical and Charismatic circles, bible believing and lovers of Israel. They were all dressed in their Sunday church clothing while I was dressed as if I were going to a picnic. The wreath and the memorial service all represented their love for the land and the dry bones. My remark to the young girl apparently was not just a joke, but actually directed at all the ones to my right, as if to say that with their replacement theology doctrines they had buried alive the House of Israel. As we drew near to the grave there was a little island in the road, where the young girl had made her choice. This might be indicative of those who are in this relatively new Ephraimite movement, and who could be enticed with the dispensational doctrines of the right wingers. The left might mean the literal approach to the Word of YHVH, which gives glory to the faithfulness of a Covenant-keeping Elohim. Interestingly, all the others present, standing by the grave, were not aware in the slightest of what was happening right before their eyes.
Ephraim
For the past eight years Rimona and I have been involved in writing articles and sending them out, upon request. We also had a website with Rimona's "Hebrew insights into the weekly Parasha", and other articles. The Father laid on our hearts to freely give, as He has freely given to us. This includes work of service to the local body (that is those who want a relationship with us : -), and to our brethren overseas, as well as to none believers. Recently the domain that our website, 1st-born.com, was on closed down for some reason, and thus the materials are no longer available. We have decided to open blog spots (posted below) that will give you access to our teachings and articles. We have also been increasingly more active in teaching and building relationship between the House of Judah and the House of Israel/Joseph-Ephraim here, which means our time for writing, is somewhat diminishing. After many years of seeing only strife and contention between Ephraim and Judah, especially in the believing community, we are now beginning to witness the gradual collapse of those walls, and relationships being formed. This is happening among those who are not so interested in uniformity of doctrine, but in the unity of the Life of Yeshua and the Father, just as Yeshua prayed "I in them, and Thou in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, that the world may know that Thou didst send Me, and didst love them, even as Thou didst love Me" (John 17:23). "And the glory which Thou hast given Me I have given to them; that they may be one, just as We are one" (John 17:22).
On Tuesday night we returned home quite late from the weekly meeting in Jerusalem, in which Ariel K. was teaching a mixed Ephraimite/Judaite group. Ariel emphasized the need for a strong willful desire, or passion, for an intimate relationship with the Father and the Son, which would then also create strong bonds with each other. But that goal can only be attained if we lay down our life, "die out to self", or empty ourselves of pride and self righteousness and embrace Him. He, Yeshua, the Life of the Word, must be our target, goal, and objective.
The following morning we woke up very early, feeling that we didn't get a good night's rest. But the Spirit would not let us go back to sleep, prompting deep intercession for the Body of Messiah. After about two hours I dozed off for about 3 minutes (according to Rimona), only to be jarred out of sleep by a dream.
In the dream I saw myself walking, accompanied by others, in the direction of a graveyard in order to attend a memorial service. There were about 4 or 5 people on my right, and a girl of about 15 on my left. For some reason I had turned to the young girl, and jokingly said to her that I hoped the person, whose memorial service we were about to attend, was not buried alive. We then arrived at a place where the path split, and the girl left and joined the others on the right, while I was left to walk alone. As I looked ahead I saw the grave. It was mounded with fresh light-yellowish colored sand with a wreath lying on top (apparently others had arrived before us). As the group proceeded to the grave, I realized that the shorts I was wearing were not the proper attire for the occasion. I watched the others go over to the grave and bow in memory of the deceased. Suddenly the earth beneath the pile of sand began to push upward; sand poured down from both sides into the hole, as if the body was coming up out of the grave. It made two such movements, with the second revealing more of the body, and much less sand was left on top. I did not see the wreath anymore. However, the others carried on as if nothing was happening. I woke up trembling from the sudden surprise.
After prayer, this is what I believe to be the interpretation: The grave is that of Ezekiel's description of the dry bones of the whole House of Israel (both Judah and Ephraim). They are being united into one body by the power of the Spirit, but are still in the grave with the sands of time heaped up over them. In Ezekiel 37 it seems that the rattling of the bones, the putting on of the sinews, flesh and skin all takes place while they are still in the grave. But when the breath comes into them, they are filled with life and power to push up the earth and sand, and not beyond. We could be coming close to the time in which the Spirit is going to be breathing life into these two sticks or nations. Rimona thought that being dressed with shorts indicates that it was summer time.
The people to my right, I believe, were believers from the right wing conservative Evangelical and Charismatic circles, bible believing and lovers of Israel. They were all dressed in their Sunday church clothing while I was dressed as if I were going to a picnic. The wreath and the memorial service all represented their love for the land and the dry bones. My remark to the young girl apparently was not just a joke, but actually directed at all the ones to my right, as if to say that with their replacement theology doctrines they had buried alive the House of Israel. As we drew near to the grave there was a little island in the road, where the young girl had made her choice. This might be indicative of those who are in this relatively new Ephraimite movement, and who could be enticed with the dispensational doctrines of the right wingers. The left might mean the literal approach to the Word of YHVH, which gives glory to the faithfulness of a Covenant-keeping Elohim. Interestingly, all the others present, standing by the grave, were not aware in the slightest of what was happening right before their eyes.
Ephraim
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