Tag: feast of dedication

The Light of the World
Advent · Christmas

The Light of the World

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Hanukkah started on Thanksgiving this year. The feast lasts for eight days, so it ends on December 5.

Jesus celebrated Hanukkah in Jerusalem.  How do I know?  The bible tells me so.

 

 

John 10: 22 

And it was at Jerusalem the feast of the dedication, and it was winter.

23 And Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon’s porch.

The Feast of the Dedication, Hanukkah, and the  Festival of Lights are different names for the same celebration.

An evil ruler controlled Israel about 165 years before Christ was born.  He stopped the worship of God in the temple and contaminated the temple with a statue of Zeus; he sacrificed pigs to Greek gods.

A group of men who loved the Lord fought and won their freedom from this corrupt ruler.

Once free, they worked to clean the temple and rededicate to the Lord.  The Menorah stood in the temple and it was to be an eternal fire before the Lord.  When they were ready to light it, they realized they had only enough oil for one day.

Then a miracle occurred.  The day’s worth of oil continued to burn for eight days.  This was the amount of time needed to prepare the oil for use in the temple.  The fire burned eternally.

 

John tells us that once when Jesus was at the temple he made the following statement

John 8

12 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

 

He is my eternal light.  When my heart and my mind are focused on Him, I walk in the light.  When the business of the world or the aggravations of this life become my focus, I stumble in darkness.
Prayer:  Ask Jesus to shine light in my life; to be my eternal flame.

Mediation: Think about what habits, attitudes, or desires block the light from my life.

Activity:  Practice going through the day in silent prayer asking him to keep me in the light.

Light of the World
Christmas · Christmas Traditions

Light of the World

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In the mist of preparing for Christmas, a Jewish holiday exists.  Hanukkah, the feast of dedication, celebrates the miracle of light.  The symbol of this holiday is the Menorah.  A candelabra designed by the Almighty.  And the fact the Lord designed the Menorah is not the miracle which is amazing.

Israel suffered under an evil ruler who interfered with Israel’s worship of the Lord. He even desecrated the temple.

A small group of men in Israel rose up and defeated the ruler’s mighty army.  Then, the people of Israel cleared the temple and made it ready for worship.  When they were ready to rededicate the temple to the Lord, they discovered they had only enough oil to burn the candles for one day. The men trusted the Lord.  And the oil lasted eight days.  This was the time they needed to prepare more oil for this sacred purpose.

Each year, the Jewish faithful celebrate for eight days in memory of the miracle.

Jesus celebrated Hanukkah.  It is right there in the 10th book of John.

22 And it was at Jerusalem the feast of the dedication, and it was winter.

23 And Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon’s porch.

Interesting, Jesus came to Jerusalem to join with others to rejoice in the miracle of God making one day’s worth of oil last for eight days.  All around Him people celebrated the miracle of God, but only a few realized that the Light of the World walked among them.
John 8
12 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
Exercise.
In this time of Christmas celebration, write in your journal about the light of the world.
Write about when you stepped out of darkness to walk in the light.  Document that great miracle of light coming into your life.

If you still walk in the dark, ask Jesus to be the ruler of your life, to forgive you of your sins and to guide you in the way that you should go.  Trust Jesus to be your Lord.