Sar Shalom (2021) #5: Eternal Investments
[Music] welcome to our jewish roots with insightful bible teaching from israel by dr jeffrey seif this week we look at legalism and eternal rewards ansar shalom prince of peace [Music] foreign [Music] we are so glad you joined us today i'm david hart i'm kirsten hart i am jeffrey seif and do you know that there's a correlation between the word disciple and discipline interior disciplines we'll look at some of that today where are you matthew six is that where you're at well matthew chapter six that's right is there a theme today that we do need to have a disciplined approach to life and more important than just disciplining ourselves isn't to go around and advertise look how holy and pious and disciplined we are it's we want to have an internal locus of control with his discipline with his focus but not go around acting like we're the king of the universe it's interesting because his discipline with humility there you go and uh we don't like that word humility very much anymore oh that's what it is you know what i mean you said in two words but i well i couldn't say correctly in three paragraphs it is right very good it is true you should have been teaching not me but it is true to discipline and humility it's from jesus he taught about it right there in that bible he surely did and you know we could use a little bit of both some discipline and some humility what do you think thank you for your teaching ahead of time we appreciate it now let's go up to the gallery [Music] there is a place for fasting but it is not in public especially at the city gate disfiguring the face with ashes may be rewarded with attention but the attention is the extent of the reward when fasting do so in secret says the lord and your father who sees in secret will reward you openly [Music] just to be sure i looked at my driver's license the other day and looked at my date of birth being reminded that i'm 54 years old it occurred to me that i didn't just start living and one of the things that i've learned in 54 years of living is that things aren't always as they seem and neither are people there's this little thing called pretense there's a word ostensibly which means intended for show there's the word pretense that and the word pretend or cut from the same cloth and speak to how some people present themselves as being something when they're really not we all know that it happens in the world at large but isn't it rather bizarre odd that it actually happens in the church people parade about to be a little more righteous a little more holy than they really are i'm not impressed by that jesus isn't impressed by that he said as much when he warned against those that fast and they just make their face they they make themselves to look just a certain way so others round about can go ah what a what a righteous person what a holy person jesus says you know they have the reward by virtue of their so doing payday comes every moment that is to say what they're after is wanting to impress the world and they get payment immediately for it because the world's impressed or at least the shallow people in the world if i understand the lord correctly better it is that we do things for him not in order to garner the attention round about the truth of the matter is that when we fast when we do deny ourselves for christ's sake we have a way of cleaning ourselves out really as you sit there right now your body can be pumped full of sodium from the cokes you're drinking from caffeine from the coffee the sugar can be having effect on your mind not just your body there's so much junk in and it affects not just the way we look the way we feel the way we think truth of the matter is we need to purge ourselves some stuff to get some new perspective new ideas new ways of thinking new ways of feeling fasting has great value beyond the momentary value of impressing the world how righteous we are the value of denial like this is that we can kind of get in touch with ourselves get in touch with with the lord get in touch with our body and this pays great dividends with the passage of time oh don't be a hypocrite friend jesus said those that fast they anoint themselves to impress others they are in effect hypocrites in chapter 6 verse 18 the word hypocrite as i mentioned in another segment in hebrew comes from the word for hyena they make an absolute fool out of themselves they they they ruin the moment they ruin others by going around trying to impress let me encourage you instead to place a personal premium on holiness righteousness let me encourage you to absorb some spiritual disciplines prayer fasting charity giving there are different ways that different people can benefit for sacrificing themselves like this never mind how others can derive some benefit from us but let's remember never never never do it for show let's give up uh various pleasures so we can pursue god's treasures [Music] no one will notice he whispers to himself this treasure of mine will remain a secret forever but not so says the lord lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal for where your treasure is there your heart will be also i know some people it's all about quote me and my money and they love to behold it they love to hold it to seize it ever so close and hold it because they hold it so dearly and they look make sure no one sees and they bury it they hide it oh they just feel so good to possess it jesus said you know we're better served to not want to hold on so tight to the money because it does have a way of getting away from us now doesn't it the lord's saying don't lay up for yourselves treasures on earth where thieves break in and steal in another vocation served as a police officer in a patrol division and had more than one occasion as a peace officer to deal with burglars in the middle of the night and i can assure you that people can be very creative in the way they go after your assets we've learned that now haven't we in our culture tragically by the way we've seen money just evaporate horrible through stealth through intrigue people work their way into our banks money just dissipates it's horrible some have gone to jail some people have gotten away with it billions of dollars have just gotten away from us jesus said that we do well to invest money not just look to seize it because he can he can't hold it forever anyway never never never never in my life did i ever see a hearse making that final drive with the u-haul in the back of it the guy's just taken his treasures to the next world now i know of some pharaohs that went through all kind of efforts to build these magnificent structures underneath which they went to their grave with their treasures with them and you know what people even got in there better friends to be rich toward god not just to invest in holding on to all of it but to invest some of that in the kingdom jesus talks about this does he not and then he goes on to conclude the point saying you know where your treasure is there will your heart be also and i'd like to speak to that for a moment i think that by understanding some of the original language and the original culture that expression which you probably heard will make just a little more sense talk about the heart where your heart is you know today if you have a heart problem you'll go to a quote cardiologist someone who specializes in the heart cardiology the word cardo is is a heart term and it speaks of main street in old cities you know the cargo was the main street that went through town and that's where everyone had their shops it's where all the business was transacted so in the cardo that's where you found the money the money was in the city and the money was at the cardo and people went there so where your treasure is that's where your cardo was jesus says you know where our treasure is that's where our heart is and a way to find out about what someone's heart's all about just look and see to the extent you can what they do with this little thing called money pray tell do we want to hoard it and hold it ever so close or do we want to be gracious do we want to be kindly disposed to love other people to advance the lord's work listen to me in this if you're willing to let go of some money to advance the lord's work you're going to find the lord bringing some more money back in our resource this week the hebrew names of god cards this collection includes 12 vibrant high quality art cards each with old and new testament connections on the back with scripture and beautifully written devotionals these art cards can be used for personal reflection group discussion or as a beautiful gift for your friend or pastor for this resource and more call 1-800 wonders or visit us at levitt.com for many a trip to the holy land is the dream of a lifetime the bible truly comes alive as you see the sites where so many biblical events happened come and a zola tour to see israel and petra see the land of the bible for yourself contact us to reserve your dream of a lifetime [Music] i had a pastor friend this week contact me and he said i really want to go to israel with you folks but i'm afraid financially that i'm not going to be able to make it and i told him if he's supposed to go god will help direct him and the funds will happen we would love for you to join us on a tour to the galilee where you've seen some great footage of this program you can find all the information on levitt.com it's in the galilee that's been the backdrop for this whole series but after galilee and in tiberius we go to jerusalem we go to the holy city the city where the lord himself will reign for a thousand years the tours are incredible we will save a seat on the bus for you now let's go back to the beautiful galilee to hear more on the beatitudes [Music] for some it's been a good day at sea not so for others it's in times like these the lord says that one's light can pierce the prevailing darkness the image is clear barren nets empty baskets despondent friends if therefore your eye is good your whole body will be full of light [Music] [Music] if you're like me you just don't really like stingy people they frustrate me personally god knows i really don't want to be that way better it is to be sharing and caring we know that to be the case and we know as well that just not everybody's like that there's a hebrew expression called iron ra an evil eye which interestingly harks to being stingy they look at others and just don't care conversely there's the expression ayantova which means a good eye yeshua jesus is employing this uh hebrew expression here in the mathian gospel in matthew chapter 6 he speaks of something that's unintelligible unintelligible apart from understanding the hebrew background he says and i quote the lamp of the body is the i in verse 22 and in verse 23 he says and if the eye is bad then you know that whole body is going to be full of darkness the point here if you have an evil eye an eye in raw eye an evil eye then if you're stingy it's just going to affect you throughout not just in the way you dispense your monies that this is a jewish expression a hebrew expression is noted in the book of proverbs and and yeshua is harking back to this in chapter 22 verse 9 he says and i quote he who has a generous eye will be blessed for he gives his bread to the poor in other words you see someone in need and you want to respond to it the lord says if we're that way you perhaps heard the expression he uh we do well to to share our bread with the hungry we do well to be responsive to needs round about to people round about not everyone's like that some people are just selfish to the core and they hurt other people by their indifference it should not be so among us when yeshua instructs disciples for what it is to be christian hear me it's not just about creeds it's about deeds it's about doing good in the world it's about being kindly disposed it's about caring and sharing and if we're generous we give to the poor we help others we tithe we give offerings if our eye is good our whole body will be full of light because we're caring and sharing and that lovingness about us draws others into that vortex into that way of being and we're just a delight to be around because we're caring sharing people conversely if we're not if we're just mr and mrs scrooge you know it's just all about coveting my money it's all about me and my stuff if i understand the lord correctly that's like our eye being dark we're blind and it imposes a kind of darkness in the body you've ever heard the expression lighten up or let the sun shine in from the 70s as an old song let the sun shine and listen from yeshua's perspective from jesus perspective let the sun shine in have an eye that's full of light see what's happening in the world around you be open be gracious be caring and sharing and you're going to find as you look out for others as you're loving toward others jesus says that you'll get it back in return 30-fold 60-fold and a hundred-fold and you're going to see because you have an iron tova a good eye your body's going to be full of light and blessing you're going to be a blessing and you are going to be blessed yourself have three grandkids don't we together very fun we have landon he's 12. bella rose is two and a half and the baby is ty david but our two and a half year old with our son tyler will learn some of the basic things that jeff has been teaching today and our son tyler in particular will say to bella he'll say sharing is and bella says caring even a two and a half year old knows what you taught today it's simple it's basic way of living listen i think if we would just follow what our parents told us in nursery school and our nursery school and kindergarten teachers taught us that would be a good key to success in life right there it makes us proud grandparents or parents with our kids to get some of the but you really taught jesus was teaching some basic human things that unfortunately some of us just don't get to share and be nice to each other and to be kind things like that yes and the the kindness opens up heaven's door in ways that greed pushes away because god is kind he's compassionate revealed as such in the older testament incarnated as such in the new and the person of jesus and when we're caring and sharing we we have a way of opening up blessings into our own lives that wouldn't otherwise be there now there's different ways to do that we want to make sure that we do do that and by the way having said that if you would be gracious and kindly disposed to sow an investment in this ministry i believe god would bless you for it and as much as he's blessed me and us for caring and sharing and investing in the kingdom when i ask for an offering i don't it's not that i don't put into the plate i endeavor to be a giver with tithes and offerings and i found that that it's better to be a blessing than it is to be blessed and uh we do good to care to share you also taught on the principle and this is very interesting i love this that the lamp or that the eye is a lamp of the body and i've looked up scientific research on that also and doctors can look at someone's eyes to see if they're healthy or not it's just fascinating and our oldest daughter-in-law both of our girls but our oldest daughter-in-law i always say you have the most sparkly eyes and i said she has god eyes and i see what comes out of her it's just very interesting for jesus to teach that he created our bodies he created the eye and you can read so much of a person if they're sharing and caring to that point you know you see some of these magazines these models on vogue or whatever they look like death warmed over nice figures nice clothing but the eyes are scary to death you know it's no countenance to speak of but there's a kind of radiance with a god radiance it's in the eyes good point he can tell but i love that he taught that he created the eyes and he created that we can tell that i just i don't know great teaching wow thank you all about humility what you're teaching today much more to come stay with us our resource this week the hebrew names of god cards this collection includes 12 vibrant high quality art cards each with old and new testament connections on the back with scripture and beautifully written devotionals these art cards can be used for personal reflection group discussion or is a beautiful gift for your friend or pastor for this resource and more call 1-800 wonders or visit us at levitt.com if you only watch us on television you're missing additional content available only on our social media sites facebook youtube and twitter you can always visit our website which is home base for all of our ministry activities and information there you can sign up for our free monthly newsletter watch the tv program or visit the online store join us as we tour israel and petra please contact us for more information we would love to hear from you there's not a whole lot out there today that is free for you the levitt letter is free for you kirsten you write every month i do i write an article every month dave you and i answer viewers mail there there's a crossword puzzle in every levitt letter in a personal letter here's the thing it's free for you to receive but it costs us money it costs the ministry money to send out we have some wonderful people that say you know what i would love to buy some level letters to send to people a lot of prisoners receive our publications and if that's laid on your heart to help other people receive this wonderful periodical the levitt letter with great information about israel if the lord lays it on your heart get in touch with the ministry and we'll get you to the right person you know it reminds me salvation is free but still someone had to pay for it there's always a price and uh the the the magazine if people like the program and on jewish views then if you like that the magazine it's it's like it's a news magazine with dozens and dozens of dozens articles cartoons things for and about israel the middle east bible prophecy the news behind the news and it's free of course we print it and send it and those that donate help take care of all that but we're all about getting the good news through the eyes of the jews out to use and so thank you for helping us dramatic reenactments you're teaching in israel not free no no no no we need help and that's the distinguishing characteristics of the program it's not just the pontificating from a minister uh it's the dramatic reenactments and we write we like to give value added to what we do and if you find value in what we do please help us do it and we'd appreciate we have more next week to come and we appreciate everything that you do for this ministry and your wisdom and your insight and we're just thankful to be with you you're kind we end today's program with a song from our founder zola levitt but first as we say in hebrew sha'alu shalom yerushalayim pray for the peace of jerusalem for the holy city of jerusalem we will pray for peace alone [Music] on the holy mountain in jerusalem take my son my son my only son slay him there and show me in jerusalem of thy faith by faith that god is one o my god my only son but ask of me and it is done for in my mercy for in my name i know for me you'll do the same on the holy mountain in jerusalem take my son my son my only son slay him there and tell the world jerusalem of thy faith by faith that it is done for it is done we are the son the blessed one his only son believe on him and it is done and always pray shalom [Music] for the holy city of jerusalem we will pray [Music] join us right now for additional content that is only available on our social media sites facebook youtube and twitter [Music] visit our website levitt.com for the current and past programs the television schedule tour information and our free monthly newsletter which is full of insightful articles and news commentary view it online or we can ship it directly to your mailbox every month also on our website is the online store there you can order this week's resource or you can always give us a call at 1-800 wonders your donations to our jewish roots help us to support these organizations as they bless israel please remember we depend on tax deductible donations from viewers like [Music] you [Music] you
2021-02-02 08:07
