Worthy Brief - 5/5/2021
Friend, learn sacrifical love!
Isaiah 53:2-6 For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, And as a root out of dry ground. He has no form or comeliness; And when we see Him, There is no beauty that we should desire Him. He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
This pivotal passage of scripture, Isaiah 52 and continuing into Isaiah 53, profiles a suffering servant whom the nation of Israel would not recognize. The spiritual leaders of Yeshua's (Jesus) day were blinded to the messianic passages which pointed to the messiah's role as a humble servant and bearer of sins.
Expecting a conquering king who would vanquish the Romans and set up a restored Davidic kingdom, they completely missed and ultimately rejected the lowly servant that God sent, an unpretentious carpenter's Son from a not-so-respectable town who was virtually unknown until He was about thirty. Yeshua of Nazareth did perfectly fulfill God's messianic qualifications even though He arrived in Jerusalem riding on a donkey and not a majestic horse. [Zechariah 9:9; Matthew 21:7] One wonders what might have happened if he had been recognized and received, since He did come proclaiming that the Kingdom of God was at hand.
Since it was absolutely necessary that the Son of God would die for sins to restore the spiritual plight of the entire world which was separated from God, before He could restore the Kingdom to Israel, Yeshua came preaching repentance and righteousness. He drew large crowds, demonstrating His uniqueness among all of Israel's prophets by performing many amazing miracles and signs by the power of the Spirit, and delivering unprecedented, authoritative teaching which surpassed everything that had ever been heard before. Yet while His ministry was growing, so was His opposition, and His awareness that He was destined for suffering and death. This suffering also surpassed anything we can begin to imagine as the iniquity of the entire world was laid upon Him and He bore it willingly. Yeshua exemplified and revealed the profound connection between serving and suffering by becoming a suffering servant to all mankind. Later testifying that there was no greater love than that a man lay down his life for his friend, He made it clear that love, the deepest love, involves sacrifice.
We say that we want to be like Him. If so, we will be learning and practicing a lifestyle of sacrifice, not caring who sees or knows what we are going through for His sake, because we really just want to make Him happy, because we love Him and are infinitely grateful and full of admiration for Him. It's true for most of us that we naturally seek the spotlight, and are hungry for attention. But if we're truly honest we must admit that the praise of men is a hopelessly futile addiction that we need deliverance from. God's praise is the best praise, and His pleasure in us, the only really lasting kind.
Friend,
Yeshua pleased His Father by suffering for us. We can afford a little discomfort to make Him happy. Don't you think?
Your family in the Lord with much agape love,
George, Baht Rivka, Elianna & Obadiah
Nashville, Tennessee
Editor's Note: We've added a minute-by-minute channel to Telegram. Follow us on Telegram.
Editor's Note: We're starting to schedule our Spring tour of the United States. If you would like us to minister at your congregation, home fellowship, or Israel focused event, be sure to let us know ASAP. You can send an email to george [ @ ] worthyministries.com for more information.
3rd rocket attack in 3 days targets US forces in Iraq
The Iraqi army said two rockets were fired Tuesday at a base hosting Americans, in the third such attack in three days and as a US government delegation is visiting the country.
People aged over 50 in Britain to be offered 3rd COVID vaccine shot in autumn
Everyone aged over 50 in Britain will be offered a third COVID-19 vaccination jab in the autumn in an attempt to eradicate the threat from the infection entirely by Christmas, The Times newspaper reported.
Egypt and Turkey to hold two days of talks in normalization push
Egypt and Turkey will hold two days of political consultations in Cairo on Wednesday and Thursday as part of a push to mend ties between the regional rivals, the two countries said.
Netherlands Remembers War Dead Amid Corona Controversy
The Dutch king laid a wreath Tuesday at a monument to the country’s war dead amid fresh controversy about reduced liberties in the liberal nation.
Malian Woman Gives Birth To Nine Babies
A Malian woman “is doing well” after giving birth to nine babies on Tuesday - two more than doctors had detected inside her crowded womb, officials said.
Israel-Palestinian Conflict
Report: Civilian killed, six injured in Israeli airstrike on Syria
An Israeli airstrike set off Syrian air defenses early Wednesday, killing one and injuring six, according to Syrian state-run SANA news.
Police closes Temple Mount to Jews indefinitely
Israel Police Tuesday banned Jewish visitors from visiting the Temple Mount until further notice as tensions rise in the Old City of the Israeli capital.
Inside the United States
Biden boosts refugee cap to 62,500 for the current fiscal year, but says it won’t be reached
President Biden has boosted the nation's refugee admissions cap to 62,500 for the current fiscal year, a whopping four-times more than the 15,000 figure under the Trump administration, but only half of the 125,000 refugee admissions that the Biden administration aspires to achieve next fiscal year.
U.S. trade deficit soars to record high
As cargo ships clogged U.S. ports, the trade deficit soared to a record high in March. The Commerce Department reported Tuesday that the trade gap widened by 5.6%.
FL Gov. DeSantis Signs Into Law Ban on Vaccine Passports, Arbitrary Lockdowns
Florida's Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation into law on Monday that prohibits private businesses, schools, and government offices from requiring citizens to show proof of vaccination against COVID, a so-called vaccine passport. In addition, the new law prohibits local governments from arbitrarily imposing lockdowns or closing the schools.
Christian News
Philippines Christian school leader arrested and detained in government crackdown on human rights
Police in the Philippines has arrested and detained the administrator of a Christian school in Bicol region, in what rights advocates have described as a spate of “questionable operations” designed to crack down on human rights in the island nation, International Christian Concern reports.
Nigeria: Islamist Fulani militants murder 33 Christians in one week; “please pray”
Thirty-three Christians were killed in just one week of attacks by suspected Islamist Fulani militants in Nigeria’s Benue state last month, International Christian Concern reports. The murders were among the latest in years of deadly attacks on Nigerian Christian communities by Fulani militants who want to eliminate Christianity and impose Islam in the country.
Uganda: Muslim arrested for murdering Christian pastor
A Muslim man has been arrested for the April 5 murder of a Christian pastor in eastern Uganda, Morning Star News reports. Pastor Yolonim Oduchu died of poisoning in Pallisa District after he refused to sell a piece of land to Aliasa Opeduru, one of a group of Muslims who wanted the land to build a mosque.
Finnish MP charged with “hate speech” for sharing Biblical views on marriage and sexuality
Finnish lawmaker Päivi Räsänen faces imprisonment after being charged with three counts of “hate speech” because she publically shared her Biblical views on marriage and sexuality, ADF International reports. Räsänen was subject to lengthy interviews and a year of waiting before the Finnish Prosecutor General finally decided to bring charges against her.
Tunisia Grants Asylum To Algerian Christian, But Persecution Remains
A Christian man who escaped from Algeria after being jailed and persecuted for “blasphemy” against Islam has received temporary asylum in neighboring Tunisia, Worthy News learned.
Worthy Watch
Classified study found COVID-19 could have originated in Chinese lab
Why Did Biden Census Bureau Add 2.5 Million More Residents to Blue-State Population Count?