Sid: My guest is provoking me to jealousy because I am interviewing him by way of telephone he’s living in Hawaii, Kauai, Hawaii, and he lives actually in a city called Princeville. And he’s written a new book called “Burning Desire” it’s God’s passion for you but from Hebrew eyes that very few Christians have ever seen. For instance SJ on yesterday’s broadcast we were talking about Mt. Sinai and the Ten Commandments would you continue?
SJ: Sure according to Jewish tradition the covenant God initiated with the Hebrew people of Mt. Sinai was really a covenant of marriage. Now I grew up in church I never once heard that, that wasn’t even suggested and I hardly hear it today; you know again I’m not being critical but as much teaching as there has been on the whole issue of covenant I think the missing ingredient has been the bridal theme of the scriptures. The covenant is really a bridal covenant and the Jewish wedding ceremony was really a reenactment of what Jewish people have believed took place on Mt. Sinai centuries ago. And I know when I say that people just go bonkers and they just have a hard time believing that you know “Where is this guy coming from?” But that’s how far we’ve gotten away from the Jewish-Hebrew perspective of the scriptures.
Sid: Well, let’s be even more accurate the average Christian never goes more than the first few chapters of Genesis and the rest of the Old Covenant they find irrelevant.
SJ: Yeah, exactly, exactly. And yet you know God chose this Hebrew nation for Himself, Israel became a treasured possession. A lot of what we read in the Torah was all about their uniqueness to God. He set them aside and yet the thing that I love to do is to bring people back to Exodus Chapter 20 and peel away some of the layers and share with them how that this was a sacred marriage proposal. God had tried to reveal Himself to these Hebrew people as a Father, and when He localized Himself on Mt. Sinai and Moses led these Hebrew people to the base of Mt. Sinai God took this thing to a whole different level. I mean He dialed this thing up big time; He put Himself on display; if I can say this without people misunderstanding, He really showed Himself off to a nation of people that were absolutely clueless about His beauty and His affections for them. They were used to the God of Egyptians, they were scared spit less of them and God localized Himself on this mountain. And yet what took place wasn’t terrifying in the sense that God was trying to get this nation to serve Him out of cringing fear but the manifestations of His beauty the consuming fire of His love radiated off of Mt. Sinai. And the thing that I love about Jewish tradition is that the rabbis tell us that this was actually God’s initiation of a marriage proposal. That’s why this whole thing begins with these words “I am the Lord your God, have no other God’s before me.” God could have easily have said “I am the Lord your husband, have no other lovers except me” And I really believe that the Decalogue, what we call the Ten Commandments, is very bridal in nature. You know it’s like the Bible it has layers of truth, it has layers of revelation but I think that one of the things that we have missed so much so is the fact that what was taking place on Mt. Sinai was incredibly passionate, it was pure, it was initiating a covenant of marriage and it was trying, it was God trying to bring Israel to a place where she could understand her true destiny and identity. And that’s one of the things that deeply burdens me Sid. Jewish people today in my opinion have lost they’re real sense of identity, they are God’s wife, they are the bride of this beautiful bridegroom God and I think that’s why they haven’t been able to understand all that’s happened to them, and the judgments, and all of the things that have taken place.
Sid: And I don’t know if you are aware of this or not but the latest information from Israel is and in one way it’s almost understandable with all of the pressure that they’re under as a nation. But its sin it’s so rampant, whatever we have in the US it’s multiplied so many times over from professional crime to prostitution to addictions. And I mean it’s almost a reenactment of the story of Hosea again marrying an unfaithful prostitute type wife.
SJ: Yeah, exactly exactly. But I’m really believing that God is going to waken the hearts of the Jewish people and she’s going to come back to her destiny. I long for that, you know here I am a Gentile…
Sid: Well, let me tell you it’s happening right now the first time in 30 years in modern day Israel’s history sabras, those native born Israelis’, every week are coming to believe in Jesus, it’s like unprecedented. SJ I want to take you back to a comment you said earlier. You said the Ten Commandments and this is such a different perspective; the Ten Commandments are actually bridal. I’d like you take one or two of the commandments and explain that.
SJ: For example Exodus 20 and verse 7 “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord Your God for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who missuses His Name.” Now let me say before I go any further, as I said earlier that there are layers of truth in the scriptures but you know remember that the Lord had just proposed to Israel on Mt. Sinai. He had asked her to give herself to Him in holy matrimony and so He didn’t want her bearing His name among the other nations wearing His rings so to speak but giving her heart to other lovers. When He challenged her to remember Shabbat, the Sabbath, to keep it holy you know we have people getting all hung up over days and what’s to be celebrated and when should we celebrate this and that. And yet from my research Shabbat the Sabbath day was all about the rest of intimacy, I mean to this day and you can reinforce this even more being Jewish. But to this day I have been told that Shabbat is to be a celebration of life, it’s all about intimacy. It’s about spending time with family.
Sid: Listen let me give you an interesting twist that perhaps you’ve never heard before. As I come from a traditional Jewish background and I am a believer in the Messiah and I am so grateful for Gentile Christianity switching the day to me to Sunday rather than Saturday because I need a day of rest and intimacy and to be restored with God. I am so grateful it was switched to Sunday so I can have my Sabbath on Saturday.
SJ: (Laughing) You are making enemies man.
Sid: (Laughing)
SJ: But you know the bigger issue is we get all hung up on a day and of course the Bible says that God rested on the seventh day obviously He wasn’t tired but he was taking in all He had made, He was celebrating all He had made. And again the Hebrew way of thinking about Shabbat is really all about celebrating God enjoying God, being enjoyed by Him celebrating life; celebrating family. It’s all about the rest of intimacy. Again we’ve had this Greek way of thinking crammed down our throats and it’s like this stuff is new language again to us. And you know we could talk about the commandment that says “You shall not commit adultery.” And I think again that’s talking about not just human relationships but the fact that when we become friends of the world to the point where we are giving our hearts to the things of the world that that is tantamount to spiritual adultery to the eyes of God. I mean that’s what James Chapter 4 is talking about. It’s not talking about having friends in the world it’s talking about giving our hearts to other lovers, lessor joys, lessor lovers, lessor pleasures and not finding our ultimate satisfaction and happiness in this beautiful God. And so I just burn with this longing to see people understanding the scriptures from a Jewish-Hebrew perspective.
Sid: Speaking of that, you do a wonderful explanation of the Rabbinic or Jewish understanding of the Tabernacle and you picture it as the restored relationship between God and His Bride, explain.
SJ: Well, I think it’s interesting first of all that when the first original couple Adam and Eve were driven out of the garden they were driven out of the garden by a way of the east. And I’m saying that because when we look at even things like the Tabernacle or stuff in the Book of Leviticus or whatever people just immediately think “bor-ing.” I’ve told people God understands how clueless we are about His feelings for us. So He uses an object lesson like this portable tent called the Tabernacle to really show us the way back to paradise restored. The way to the outer court Sid was by way of the east, the original couple were kicked out of the garden, they left by way of the east. I don’t think that’s coincidence at all. And as we come into the outer court we’re immediately confronted with the brazen altar. And to me when you start looking at all of this stuff from a bridal perspective you know it’s amazing as to the sequence of events. Obviously every piece of furniture, everything about that portable tent typified Christ. But you know you’re asking me about the bridal significance and I really believe that as we walk our way through the tabernacle, the outer court we’re immediately introduced to the ultimate bride price. You know in Jesus day and time brides were purchased, now that sounds demeaning probably to a lot of woman today. In pagan cultures woman were no better than animals a man could walk down the street grab a woman take her into his tent to have sex with her and then determine what he was going to do with her. But in the Jewish community a woman’s position in society was elevated and the more a man wanted a woman the greater the price he paid. So you know I’m looking at this brazen altar and I’m reminded…
