Yeshua grew up on the story of Choni, who lived a couple generations before him and was famous for that time he drew a circle around himself and told God he wouldn't move until it rained and...let's read the story and see what happened! This is a takeaway from my newest Mishnah Snapshots study. We also talked about these questions: ~Why did people blow shofars in ancient times? ~Is there internal evidence the Mishnah is historically accurate? ~Here's how helpmeet means "Hero" and not...

Paul described himself as a "Hebrew of Hebrews". So would you be surprised if I showed you places where his Hebrew brain showed through in his Greek letters? For instance, in Romans 13 "debt" and "love" are related, and so are "friend" and "hurt"...ouch. This is a takeaway from my newest Hebrew Verses study. We also talked about these questions: ~What should you do when you don't know a word as you're reading? ~How is resurrection the greatest insurrection against Satan's regime? ~Hebrew has...

Do you know what the word "kaballah" actually means, or why Jewish people call the prophetic book of Joel that? And how about the Torah, is that just Genesis to Deuteronomy or is the rest of the Hebrew Bible and maybe even the New Testament "Torah" also? This is a takeaway from my newest Mishnah Snapshots study. We also talked about these questions: ~Why were the people of Nazareth putting ashes on their heads? ~How does the Holy Spirit feel about liturgy and orders of service? ~Some words...

I was raised on the NASB and then in my teens joined "Bible Quizzing" and memorized several books of the New Testament in the NIV. Let's talk about using different translations to see the Word through new eyes, and then experience it by reading Romans 12:1 in Hebrew! This is a takeaway from my newest Hebrew Verses study. We also talked about these questions: ~Imagine reading the Hebrew text without translating in your mind! ~Worship involves both physchological and physical intelligence ~Why...

If you like rants you'll enjoy me tearing apart the "say the sinner's prayer and you'll go to heaven" mentality as a false gospel. Because confessing Yeshua is the consuming pursuit of a lifetime, not a pat one-time formula. Along the way I also go on several 'rabbi trails' to explain why approaching the Scriptures as a story can save you from a faith crisis, how you can only think about one thing at a time, and how Evangelical complexes may be wrecking your relationship with the Jewish...

Have you ever noticed what we do in the rain? Either we scrunch up and run for cover or we throw our hands in the air and start laughing and jumping around! Let's look at pictures of people in the rain, imagine what we'll be doing right after we get raised from the dead, and talk about why an ancient Jewish prayer smunches rainfall and the resurrection together. This is a takeaway from my newest Mishnah Snapshots study. We also talked about these questions: ~Did you know Israel gets about as...

If I walked up and said "I chose you!" what would you say? "Um, ok...what am I chosen for?" So what does that look like with God choosing Israel? And when Paul says they're enemies and loved, what does that mean now? This is a takeaway from my newest Hebrew Verses study. We also talked about these questions: ~What do you feel when you hear that "all Israel will be saved"? ~What's the concrete physical action behind forgiveness? ~Old covenants were made in blood and gore, and so was the new...

Why do Jewish boys grow up with their dads telling them every weekend they hope they'll be more like Joseph's boys? And why did Paul use that phrase "the fullness of the nations" that Jacob used for Ephraim? And if the hardening was only partial and temporary, what did God's relationship with the Jewish community and their leaders look like? This is a takeaway from my newest Hebrew Verses study. We also talked about these questions: ~Did you know there were two 10% tithes and a 1% tithe?...

This is probably the closest I've come to crying on film. Yeshua and his Jewish people both experienced pain, rejection, and failure for the same reason - so the world could be reconciled, brought to life, and enriched. And that's not the end of the story for Israel either; the best is yet to be! All of this relates to a secret Jewish belief that the sufferings of the righteous atone for the wicked and that Isaiah 53 could indeed be about the Messiah. This is a takeaway from my newest Hebrew...

Why are the Hebrew words for "neck" and "commandment" related? Because just as the neck connects the body to the head, God's traditions are opportunities to connect with him. You might not be "Torah-observant", but how could you allow this principle to rekindle the love in your relationship with God? What if you just whispered "I love you" every time you…? This is a takeaway from my newest Mishnah Snapshots study. We also talked about these questions: ~Fights about the calendar are nothing...

Why do Jewish boys grow up with their dads telling them every weekend they hope they'll be more like Joseph's boys? And why did Paul use that phrase "the fullness of the nations" that Jacob used for Ephraim? And if the hardening was only partial and temporary, what did God's relationship with the Jewish community and their leaders look like? This is a takeaway from my newest Hebrew Verses study. We also talked about these questions: ~Did you know there were two 10% tithes and a 1% tithe?...

In Yeshua's time the Mount of Olives had come to be called by another name which pointed to Messiah in startling ways. Was it any surprise he had so many special experiences there, including one which hasn't happened yet? This is a takeaway from my newest Mishnah Snapshots study. We also talked about these questions: ~Setting the NT in its Semitic context is hard work! Here's an example. ~Which directions can you go in the fifth dimension you can't in the four? ~Here's how the title "midwife"...

This is probably the closest I've come to crying on film. Yeshua and his Jewish people both experienced pain, rejection, and failure for the same reason - so the world could be reconciled, brought to life, and enriched. And that's not the end of the story for Israel either; the best is yet to be! All of this relates to a secret Jewish belief that the sufferings of the righteous atone for the wicked and that Isaiah 53 could indeed be about the Messiah. This is a takeaway from my newest Hebrew...

Did you know the Hebrew words for rope and Christ come from the same verb? Are these concepts "tied" together on a deeper level or "knot"? Let's look at how tzitzit symbolize Messiah, the "thread" running from Genesis to Revelation. We'll also talk about why Jews believe in two Messiahs and imagine how the New Moon signal fires foretold the message spreading "from Jerusalem and Judea..." This is a takeaway from my newest Mishnah Snapshots study. We also talked about these questions: ~How did...

If you like rants you'll enjoy me tearing apart the "say the sinner's prayer and you'll go to heaven" mentality as a false gospel. Because confessing Yeshua is the consuming pursuit of a lifetime, not a pat one-time formula. Along the way I also go on several 'rabbi trails' to explain why approaching the Scriptures as a story can save you from a faith crisis, how you can only think about one thing at a time, and how Evangelical complexes may be wrecking your relationship with the Jewish...

The Torah says Aviv in the springtime is the first month of the year, but the Jewish New Year is on Tishrei in the fall. The Torah also calls the first of Tishrei "Yom Teruah", but Jewish people today call it "Rosh Hashanah". What gives, is Judaism wrong? Let's look at all the verses, and you'll see that Rosh Hashanah is actually 100% Biblical. This is a takeaway from my newest Mishnah Snapshots study. We also talked about these questions: ~Upon which dates is it believed that God decides for...

Every translation is an interpretation and Romans 10:4 is no exception. People read "Christ is the end of the Law" and assume Jesus did away with the Torah...except he said not to think that. So what gives? Let's look at how the Greek word for "end" is used elsewhere in the NT. Maybe we can find an interpretation that actually agrees with the rest of the Bible. This is a takeaway from my newest Hebrew Verses study. We also talked about the differences in meaning and pronunciation between...

There's an old Jewish teaching that a righteous person's "merit" has the power to positively affect the people around them. Does Messiah have merit? And if so, is that a paranormal power that could affect you? This is a takeaway from my newest Mishnah Snapshots study. We also talked about whether your relationship with the Jewish community is mostly about judging or trying to understand, the "if this, then how much more that" equation in Jewish logic, what's pictured by snowflakes, olive oil,...

Izzy here. A question came up recently in our volunteers circle about Messiah and his relationship to his "Abba". This impromptu video was my response. Originally it was intended as a private discussion, but I decided to share it with you here as a peek behind the scenes, a chance hear our Tribe's heartbeat and feel the passion that drives me personally. The five questions I raise in this discussion are: Would we rather know Yeshua personally or talk about him like he's not in the room? Are...

Have you ever heard somebody say that Christianity's a religion of grace and Judaism's all about works? It's not true. Take a look at this prayer that millions of Jews pray every year on the Day of Atonement that tells it like it is. I'll even sing it for you! This is a takeaway from my newest Hebrew Verses study. We also talked about the Hebrew word for patience and how it means to take a long breath, the dark angel Apollyon and the meaning of his Hebrew name Abaddon, whether or not you love...

It's neat to read about the relationship that disciples had with their rabbis in ancient Judaism because it's a picture of the relationship that we have with our Rabbi from Nazareth. Here's an example. This is a takeaway from my newest Mishnah Snapshots study. We also talked about why Abraham's bosom is the Hebrew emblem of the afterlife, the real Hillel sandwich which was two Gamliels between three Shimons, an instance where the Jewish religious leaders followed Rabbi Yeshua's teachings, the...

Paul talked about national Israel in overwhelmingly positive ways, and the gut-wrenching care he felt for the Jewish community was a reflection of Yeshua's own heart. If you don't get that you're not going to get Paul, because that fierce love is the context of his writings. What would it look like for that same love to take over your life? This is a takeaway from my newest Hebrew Verses study. We also talked about the main point of Romans 9-11 and how it's not predestination versus free will...

"IF YOU'RE THIRSTY COME TO ME AND DRINK!" Did you know Jerusalem was in the throes of an ecstatic celebration when Yeshua jumped up and yelled these immortal words, and that this ceremony stopped for almost 2000 years until it was started again in 2014? How about the meaning of "Siloam", were you aware that it was lost but that it contains a key for understanding the mission of Messiah? This is a takeaway from my newest Mishnah Snapshots study. We also talked about which Psalms were prayed on...

Falling in love with a god. Or that moment when someone you don't recognize walks up and says they knew you long ago. Or how about the overwhelming deja vu that you were meant to be here, right now. Let's look at the Hebrew words for foreknowledge and predestination and see if we can't feel the romance and mystery anew. Because he is here. This is a takeaway from my newest Hebrew Verses study. We also talked about what to do if your Bible reading is getting boring, how falling in love with a...

The New Testament was written by Jews. Here's an example of how discovering the Jewish backdrop of the Gospels can bring the old stories to life like never before. This is a takeaway from my newest Mishnah Snapshots study. We also talked why Jared Kushner's bouquet didn't have any flowers, the gorgeous Hebraic Bible commentary of Reformed Baptist preacher Dr. John Gill, one of the GOOD "takanot of the Rabbis" which kept people from losing an eye, and how the commandments are the seeds of...