Author: Steven R. Bruck

Ain’t Nothing Free

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I am a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (retired) with a specialization in Security. I also have a CompTIA Security Plus certification.

Why am I mentioning this? Because despite all that I know about Internet security and cyber crime, I myself have (embarrassingly enough) recently fallen victim to an Internet scam.

It started with someone’s Face Book account being hacked and they did not know it. I was contacted by the “bad guys” using this trusted friends Face Book Messenger service, and told that she had won a giveaway and I was also on the list. She sent me the link to the Face Book page (which was expertly spoofed) where I was fooled into believing I had won one of those many “Like this page and enter a contest” events. There were many signs along the way that now using 20-20 hindsight I can see were obvious. The problem was I was initially taken in because I really believed the contact was from my friend. At that point even though the signs were there, I couldn’t recognize them because my eyes were too filled with dollar signs.

And, honestly, I am not greedy or money-driven. I did not lose that much money, and I thank God that I finally caught on. I reported this to an Internet Crime site and when the bad guys tried to get me for more money, I wrote back that I was contacting the authorities and told them, “Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.”

I don’t feel humiliated- I feel humbled. Next time someone tells me about being scammed, I will certainly be more compassionate and understanding about it.

I share this with you all not only as a warning that anyone, and I mean ANYONE, can be taken by a well set up scam, but also to show there is also a spiritual lesson in this for us all. That lesson is this:

When someone promises you something for nothing, you will be the one giving something and ending up with nothing.

The enemy of God will promise us worldly goods: money, power, friendship, whatever it is that we want. The promise will be that we won’t have to do anything to receive this, except maybe worship him (or her?) or something that takes us away from Godly worship. That’s the hook, and if you take it you might end up, like I did, finding yourself too deep in to get out without losing something. In the case of Satan, what you might lose is your eternal soul. Much worse than losing some lousy lucre that won’t have any permanent effect.

So what is the answer to maintaining your security? Just that- maintain your security. If someone tells you something that sounds too good to be true, don’t accept it. It may be true, but verify it and do so using a totally different method. For example, if you receive an email or IM from a trusted friend with good news about a product or context, do not reply. Call them on the phone and verify that they sent it to you. And even then, don’t trust it- they may have been taken, too.

The Golden Rule of Cyber Security is this: you NEVER have to buy something to receive a free giveaway. If you are told you have won a contest but you need to send a retainer or purchase a gift card, whatever… don’t do it. It is a scam.

The Golden Rule of Soul Security is this: If it sounds like something the world would want, don’t accept it. You can be sure that whatever is important and valuable to the world is not valuable to God. Remember what Yeshua told us about how God feeds the birds and dresses the poppies in the field- if you are promised something of worldly value for nothing, you don’t really need it.

Such as a chip that will let you buy things faster and easier.

So stay alert, watch out for evil from everyone, and keep that armor of God on you (Galatians 6:14) all the time. I dropped my armor for a moment, and it cost me a couple of hundred dollars.  A costly lesson, but a good one.

Please learn from me and not from your own experience.

Apathy or Patience?

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In many of my messages I mention that I do not read the newspapers or listen to the news on TV. Nor do I pay much attention to who is in Washington or what they are doing.

Consequently, I have sometimes been accused of being apathetic. Frankly, if someone thinks I don’t care…they are right: I don’t care what they think.

I do care about what is happening in the world, and there are times I could just SCREAM!! at the many people who follow the crowd running from one extreme to another, like a pendulum that is swinging from one apogee to another.

And when I see this happening, as with the recent gun control issues and the constant badgering of the Presidents (both present and past), I think of the many verses in the bible that tell us how we must wait on the Lord. You may ask, “Wait for what?” and my answer would be….justice. I don’t believe we will receive an answer to the problems we face, but eventually, in God’s good time, there will be justice served on the ones who are the cause of the problems.

When David’s own son rebelled against him, David accepted the situation and waiting for God to make the decision about what would happen. Let’s look at some of the things David said during this terrible time in his life:

2 Samuel 15:25, when they were taking the Ark with the king as he fled Yerushalayim:  “Then the king said to Tzadok, “Take the ark of God back into the city. If I find favor in the Lord’s eyes, he will bring me back and let me see it and his dwelling place again.  But if he says, ‘I am not pleased with you,’ then I am ready; let him do to me whatever seems good to him.”

2 Samuel 16:11-12, when David was being cursed at by a member of Shaul’s family: “Leave him alone; let him curse, for the Lord has told him to.  It may be that the Lord will look upon my misery and restore to me his covenant blessing instead of his curse today.”

 

I could list many, many examples here of the bible telling us to wait upon the Lord, which is the same as saying have hope that God will make everything right (in the end.) So I ask you: am I really apathetic because I do not care that much who is in charge or what the maddened crowds are screaming about, or am I patiently waiting for God to act as he sees fit?

My answer to you is that I am trusting in God to make things right in the end. I don’t care that much for the news, which is always sad, designed to evoke emotions of fright and concern, and is untrustworthy. I don’t care who the President is, why or how he or she got there, and what they want to do. The United States government is not a race horse, and the worst thing that any President has done is to leave behind the programs he wanted to get done for the next President to sort out.

No…I am not apathetic, I am faithful. Faithfully waiting on the Lord to make things right; faithfully hoping in God that I will be rescued from the tsouris we are all experiencing in the world, and faithfully looking forward to the day when I will be in his presence.

I respect those who are advocates and trying to make a change for the better, and do not deny their tremendous value in our society.

I just ain’t one of ’em.

Parashah Tzav 2018 (Give an order) Leviticus 6:1 – 8:36

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As we continue in Vayikra (Leviticus), God gives the orders and commands regarding the daily offerings, specifically the wholly burnt, meal, guilt, peace and thanksgiving offerings.

The procedure and requirements for anointing of the Priests and the Cohen haGadol (High Priest) are given, and Aaron and his sons are anointed by Moses.

There are so many different things we could discuss in these few chapters, but since in this year (2018) Passover falls next Friday night, I would like to talk about the Passover lamb and its significance in the sacrificial system.

Yeshua (Jesus) has been referred to as the “Passover Lamb” for centuries, and His sacrifice is the means by which we are able to be absolved of our sins, so why is He called a “Passover” lamb? The lamb sacrificed on Passover was not a sin sacrifice.

We are told the requirements for the 5 different types of sacrifices outlined in Leviticus; by definition, Yeshua’s sacrifice was a Thanksgiving, or Peace sacrifice. We know this because only the peace sacrifice was eaten by the one bringing the sacrifice. In all the other forms of sacrifice some of the animal was given to the Priest as his compensation, with the remaining parts either burned on the Altar or removed and thrown away. Only the Peace sacrifice was also shared with the one bringing the animal.

Yeshua’s sacrifice was a sin sacrifice, and also served as a Passover sacrifice; in fact, His sacrifice fulfilled three sacrifices: peace, sin and wholly burnt. Of course, His body wasn’t consumed by fire, but His entire body was sacrificed (which is what was done with the wholly-burnt sacrifice.)

The wholly burnt sacrifice represents our complete devotion to God- no question that Yeshua was completely devoted to His Father in heaven.

The sin sacrifice is the means by which we are forgiven our sins when we do T’shuvah (repentance) and ask God for forgiveness (now by means of Yeshua’s sacrifice.)

The peace offering is how we enter into communion with God by sharing the meal made from the sacrifice, which we do at the Passover Seder.

Can you see how Yeshua’s once-and-for-all sacrifice accomplished all three types of sacrifice? Through our acceptance of Yeshua we can show our complete devotion to God, receive forgiveness of sins and enter into communion with God.

Does this mean we shouldn’t call Yeshua the “Passover Lamb” anymore? I think it is still appropriate to refer to Him that way, just as it would also be appropriate to refer to Him as the Yom Kippur goat.

Personally, I prefer to use “lamb” other than “goat” when I refer to Yeshua, although from a technical perspective either would be correct.

For those that will celebrate the Holy Days of Passover and Hag ha Matzot, I pray you thoroughly enjoy this festive festival. I am always afraid I will accidentally eat something with yeast during the week of this festival, and have done so, once or twice, in the past. I hope it is easier for you to keep away from leavening than it is for me (I just LOVE bread!)

Donna and I have different people to our Seder every year, and we usually try to have Gentile friends who have not enjoyed this Holy Day. Every single couple we have shared our Seder with, for nearly 20 years now, has enjoyed it and it has helped them to get closer to their Jewish roots.

I may be a week early, but…Chag Sameach!

Does God Require Praise?

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Let me start out by saying, unequivocally, that God deserves praise.

David praised Him constantly throughout the Psalms, the Prophets praised Him, and Yeshua told us to praise Him at the beginning and the end of the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-14), which serves as a template for all prayer. I found plenty of places where we are told to praise God.

But does God tell us to praise Him? Does He ask for us to do that anywhere in Scripture? I couldn’t find any place in the Bible where God says we must praise Him.

God is very clear we must worship Him, and Him alone, but worship isn’t praise. I believe praise is a form of worship but not worship, itself.

So if God doesn’t require praise from us, why should we do it?

First off, let’s make sure we are all talking about the same thing: for the purpose of this discussion I am defining praise as a verbal expression of wonderment, appreciation and respect. It references specific events, such as acts performed for the benefit of others, for the benefit of the one giving praise or just as a general statement showing respect for the one being praised.

Now, let’s go back to the original question: Does God want us to praise Him? Do you think He feels a need to be praised? Is He a little shy? Maybe He wants our approval? Could it be that God desires praise so He can feel better about Himself?

Of course not- those thoughts are just plain silly.

God doesn’t need anything from us, but He does require worship from us. He tells us exactly how to do that, which is through sacrifice and obedience. Those are the things God requires of us.

So why should we praise God? I think we praise God because by praising Him we are reminding ourselves of all the wonderful things He has done in our life and that makes us feel better. That is why the Bible is full of verses telling us to always praise the Lord.

Praising the Lord makes us feel better.

When we praise God I am sure He appreciates our heartfelt emotions, but the real power of praise is how it lifts our spirits and makes us feel better. God doesn’t need us to make Him feel good, but we need God to make us feel good and the effect of praising God is that we receive joy.

It is that simple: the act of praising God makes us joyful. When we are down, praising the Lord reminds us of all the good He has done in our life and helps overcome the sadness of the moment. When we praise God, the memory of the events that justify our praise brings back that emotional “high” we had when it happened.  When we praise God, our spirits are carried into the very presence of God and we fell elated.

Praise is the best way to get over the doldrums we experience every day when we have to live in a cursed and fallen world. It is a “Happy Pill” we can take anytime, anywhere, without ever needing a prescription.

The most important thing to remember about praise is that it is just as effective when you already feel good as when you feel bad! Now…ain’t that the coolest thing? Praise makes us feel good when we feel bad, and when we feel good praise makes us feel even better.

Praise the Lord every day: every time something good happens in your life, and especially every time something bad happens.

Remember Job? When everything he had was taken from him all at once, his immediate response was to praise God. His praise sustained him through the worst trials and tribulations anyone could ever have to endure.

Here’s a final lesson about praise: it is one of the most powerful weapons we have to use against the enemy.

Starting right now- this very moment- join me in shouting, “Praise the Lord for He is good, and His love endures forever!”

Let me leave you today with Psalm 150:

Halleluyah!  

Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens.  Praise him for his acts of power; praise him for his surpassing greatness. Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet, praise him with the harp and lyre, praise him with timbrel and dancing, praise him with the strings and pipe, praise him with the clash of cymbals, praise him with resounding cymbals. Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.

Halleluyah! 

What’s in a Name?

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In the famous play “Romeo and Juliet”, William Shakespeare wrote: “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet.”

It was spoken by Juliet, who knew that Romeo’s last name was the last name of her family’s enemy.  Her point was that Romeo would still be Romeo, no matter what name he was called by.

My point is that God is God and Messiah is Messiah: no matter what name we use, that name will not change who they are.

Now, I am positive (and I base this on experience) that there are more than a few people reading this who are beginning to vent steam out of their ears because I am saying it doesn’t matter what name they use when they address God or Messiah.  To those people, using a name different from the one they think is correct is no less than blasphemy.

I do not think poorly of these people because I recognize their love for God and Messiah and their devotion to honoring them both. I respect the intensive research they have done over the years to come to the conclusion that they know the correct name. I also understand that to them, using any other name is an insult to God.

I would like to ask this of those people: Do you really think God will reject someone praying to Him with a contrite heart and a broken spirit (Psalm 51) just because the name they use is the only name they have ever known for Him?  Do you really think God will say to Himself, “That’s a nice prayer and I can see they are truly repentant, but I never liked –whatever- as my name so they can just go to hell.” ?  Really?

For myself, I cannot see God refusing a repentant sinner because the sinner calls out to God using a name that isn’t exactly the same name He told Moses.  I also cannot see Messiah refusing to represent a sinner that has called out to Him simply because “Jesus” isn’t the Hebrew name for Him.

Here’s a thought….when somebody tells someone else, as I have seen all too often, that the name they are using for God is wrong and implies that it won’t be heard, isn’t that the real insult to God? Isn’t that the same thing as saying God is too self-absorbed, too egocentric and too “picky” to accept a prayer to Him just because someone uses a name that may not be exactly the way God knows it should be pronounced?

I want to ask those people who are (pardon me for saying it this way) so obsessive about God’s “real” name to please try to remember God’s merciful nature, His understanding and His compassion; I would like to ask that you please STOP telling people that they have to use the name YOU think is right. Have you ever thought that you may be the one who is in the wrong? Could it be that you are the one who may be wrong because you are speaking for God?

Who are you, or me, or anyone to tell anybody else that their prayers and devotion are wrong just because they don’t call God the same name you call Him?

Did you ever consider that maybe, just maybe, your pronunciation is not correct? If so, are you willing to be judged in the same way that you are judging others?

Please think about that before you correct someone else.

I believe God and Messiah are both “big” enough to be able to handle someone mispronouncing their name. Don’t you?

And if it doesn’t bother them, it shouldn’t bother us.