Chanukah reveals a pattern written into the heart of God: He preserves His purposes through a remnant. When the Temple was defiled and the nation fractured, deliverance did not come through the many, the powerful, or the celebrated, but through a small company of faithful men who refused to bow.
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The best-known miracle of Chanukah, preserved in Jewish tradition rather than recorded in the Hebrew Scriptures, tells of a single, undefiled cruse of oil—enough for only one day—yet it burned for eight. Whether remembered as history or received as sacred legend, its message is relevant for us. In the aftermath of desecration, when compromise had polluted nearly everything in the Temple, the issue was never abundance but holiness. Heaven did not count how much oil remained; it honored what had not been defiled. What endured was not the quantity of oil, but the purity of what was left.
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Now that we have laid the foundation—that identity becomes calling—we move into the first and most essential expression of our response: surrender. Identity without surrender becomes theory. Identity with surrender becomes transformation. Knowing who you are in Yeshua (Jesus) must lead to a yielded life, because the Spirit does not shape what we withhold. He forms what He fills, and He fills what is fully surrendered.
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In God’s divine calendar, everything moves in rhythms of seven — seven days, seven weeks, seven years, and seven cycles of years. Yet when a cycle of sevens reaches its completion, something extraordinary happens: a new beginning emerges — the eighth.
Don’t stop now – more truth and grace await.
As we continue our study in Psalm 118, I want to take a deep dive into verses 17-18, where the psalmist makes one of the boldest declarations in all of Scripture: “I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the LORD.” This isn’t the voice of someone untouched by pain — it’s the cry of someone who has been through the fire and come out declaring God’s faithfulness. This statement is not a denial of suffering; it’s a defiance of death. It’s the resolve of a heart that’s been chastened, refined, and pressed, yet remains confident in the God who preserves life — not just for survival, but for purpose.
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The New Testament records that when Yeshua (Jesus) died; there was a great earthquake and the veil of the Temple was torn in two. The size of this gigantic veil is not recorded in the NT…but we read from other sources that it was roughly 60 feet long and 30 feet wide with multiple woven layers the thickness of a man’s hand! It was hung on a crossbeam stone – a lintel – which was over 30 feet long and weighed more than 30 tons! It was not an easy cloth to tear…
Continue reading – let faith rise.
We often develop strategies, game-plans, life-plans – and then, at some obstacle or critical point, we say – “Just stick to the plan!” It’s usually good advice.
Life is always sending unexpected surprises, but praise God, nothing takes Him by surprise. He’s the master planner. Our family might turn against us, our friends let us down, illness, afflictions, problems and “situations” on every side…God still has a plan, for you, and for me.
There’s more encouragement just ahead – read more.