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AVINU
Living Church Ministries
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29 Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord, our God, is the one and only Lord. 30 And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ 31 The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is more significant than these.”
The Old Testament Hebrew Lexicon (Aramaic)
shaw-mah’ definition
to hear, listen to, obey[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]If the “Shama” carries such importance, with the Jewish population in the world, is there any single passage in the New Testament that brings us to focus within the Christian Community? The answer is “yes”. Our Messiah taught His disciples a powerful ancient prayer out of a collection of prayers entitled the Amidah, the “Lord’s Prayer,” found in the Book of Matthews 6:9.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_images_carousel images=”11436,11435″ img_size=”large” autoplay=”yes” hide_pagination_control=”yes” wrap=”yes”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]All of Psalm 110 is considered Messianic and is quoted or alluded to in the New Testament more than any other passage of the Tanakh [Hebrew Bible], namely, Lk 20:42; Ac 2:34-35; Ep 1:20; Co 3:1.
If the “Shama” carries such importance, with the Jewish population in the world, is there any single passage in the New Testament that brings us to focus within the Christian Community? The answer is “yes”. Our Messiah taught His disciples a powerful ancient prayer out of a collection of prayers entitled the Amidah, the “Lord’s Prayer,” found in the Book of Matthews 6:9.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]I believe that all Christians should demonstrate great respect for Shama. While the Shama is a command to Jews, believers need to understand that it’s power compelled Jews to worship the only true Holy God. He is our single focus in life and as a single group of worshipers, we are made one with all the nations of the world.
Mark 12:30 And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”11445″ img_size=”medium” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_shadow_3d”][vc_column_text]There are many Bible verses about seeing ourselves as one people, moving together as one in the Spirit, and forgiving each other’s offenses. None of which can be displayed unless it is done with humility, truthful repentance, and restoration. Yeshua, the great King is creating a Kingdom of “conquering warriors”. However, we must make sure that He is part of the training. We were sheep, but now we are in transition to become a pride of lions and Jesus is the King. When we realize that it is not about me, my, and mine; we will begin fighting for the existence of a “one people” by serving God’s people, and teaching them who they are in Christ.[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”11452″ img_size=”medium” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_shadow_3d”][vc_column_text]Just like the children of Israel, who made statements of affirmation to the only true God, Adonai; we are now a part of that same Body, exhorting our God by using the strongest nouns and adjectives to express our awe of Him.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text](I) As the seat of the desires, feelings, affections, passions, impulses, i.e., the heart or mind.
(A) Generally (Matt. 5:8), “the pure in heart” meaning those whose center of life has been made pure by Jesus Christ. See Matt. 5:28; 6:21; Mark 4:15; Luke 1:17; John 14:1; Acts 11:23; Rom. 2:5; 1 Cor. 4:5 for the counsels or dispositions of the heart or inner man.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]1271. διάνοια diánoia; gen. dianoías, fem. noun from dianoéomai (n.f.), to agitate in mind, which is from diá (G1223), denoting separation, and noéō (G3539), to think over. Understanding, intellect, intellectual faculty, thought, mind.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text](CWSB Dictionary)
Syn.: lógos (G3056), reason, intelligence; phrónēma (G5427), the thought of the mind and the process of thinking and understanding; phrónēsis (G5428), prudence; epínoia (G1963), a thought or design for evil purposes; nóēma (G3540), the product of the mind or thought;
Mark 12:32-34 (CWSB)
And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth: for there is one God; and there is none other but he:
33 And to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding, and with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbor as himself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.
34 And when Jesus saw — that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. And no man after that durst asks him any question.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Here again, we can sense the magnitude of knowing the meaning of these words of the Shama. The Messiah tells the religious leader, “Thou art not far from the kingdom of God.” A divine invitation to His Kingdom was given simply because of the lawyer’s respect for the Shama.
So, we can conclude that the understanding of the “Shama” is an essential foundation to summing up our love for our Heavenly Father and those who are our neighbors. A synonym for the word neighbors is “acquaintances.”
[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”11448″ img_size=”medium” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_shadow_3d”][vc_column_text]Interestingly, the Body of the Messiah is adopting components of Jewishism in their lives because of prayers petitioned by Christ’s disciples in the Book of Matthew, 6th Chapter. One of the essentials in having a proper mindset about serving one God as one people is found in Yeshua’s answer to His disciples when they asked for a more profound prayer to Adonai. We must remember, Jewish men already knew how to pray since their entire lives were filled with prayer and worship.
Notwithstanding, the prayer in Matthew 6:9 serves to change us from the nature of a domesticated sheep into the character of our Lord and Savior. Our cross is designed to develop us into a pride of lion the Messiah.[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”11459″ img_size=”medium” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_shadow_3d”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]We have a powerful passage of Scripture that is entirely Jewish and carries the awe and respect for Adonai, God of the Abraham, Issac, and Jacob. You might be familiar with this famous and well-accepted prayer taken from a group of Jewish Amidah prayers. It sounds like this:
Matthew 6:9-15 (NLT)
9 Pray like this:
Our Father in heaven,
may your name be kept holy.
10 May your Kingdom come soon.
May your will be done on earth,
as it is in heaven.
11 Give us today the food we need,
12 and forgive us our sins,
as we have forgiven those who sin against us.
13 And don’t let us yield to temptation,
but rescue us from the evil one.
14 “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. 15 But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The Lord’s Prayer performs a similar function as the Shama, as to focus our love and devotion on our Heavenly Father above everything else. And to love one’s neighbor as themselves. Also, this prayer pushes us beyond our offenses and misunderstandings as we must love our enemies while dying and becoming something better in the Lord, Yeshua.
In other words, the Lord is warning Jews and Christians alike; the Messiah regards broken relations as activity outside of the Body. Sometimes we say, “I don’t hate them; I just dislike them.” While the change of wording sounds a lot better, you might be surprised to find out that the definitions of ‘hate’ and ‘dislike’ are similar. Synonyms for “dislike” are to hate; to despise; to resent; animosity; hatred; and hostility.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”11447″ img_size=”medium” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_shadow_3d”][vc_column_text]As believers, we must consider how many people are wounded today because of something we said, we did, or we forgot to do. Plus, it’s a tiny bit arrogant to not forgive others. It indicates that we think we are more special than Christ our Lord, Who endured the humiliation of the Cross, and Who prayed: “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.”
What Jesus did for us is the same total-covering process we are to cover our family members, friends, or enemies. When we realize that we are in the process of forgiveness, we can help our neighbors through their ‘letting go’ process, and everything will begin to make more sense.
Love your neighbor as one’s self.
Matthew 5:43-45
(Complete Jewish Bible)
43 “You have heard that our fathers were told,’Love your neighbor—and hate your enemy.’44 But I tell you, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! 45 Then you will become children of your Father in heaven. For he makes his sun shine on good and bad people alike, and he sends rain to the righteous and the unrighteous alike.
Matthew 6:14-15
(NLT Study Bible Text,)
14 “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you.15 But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.
These passages are saying to us that no one wants to die with unforgiveness in his/her heart. It is anti-Body of Christ to hate, envy, or even mildly dislike.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]