We all were stunned, shocked, and horrified by the Hamas massacre on October 7th, 2023. We will never forget the barbarity, cruelty, and savagery of what was done to our people! Yet Torah tells us to expect war. God is described as “ish milchamah”, a Man of War in Exodus 15:3, Who is with us as we fight our enemies.
Deuteronomy 20:1. "When you go out to fight your enemies and see horses, chariots and a force larger than yours, you are not to be afraid of them; because ADONAI your God, who brought you up from the land of Egypt, is with you.
War tests Israel’s capacity and willingness to obey and trust in Adonai. Adonai commands Israel to not be afraid when we fight our enemies. Adonai didn’t just give us the Promise land, then like now we had to fight for it! Our current war with Hamas and Hezbollah is a test! Every believer, every person who calls upon the Name of the God of Israel will be tested. We must fight and contend for our faith!
When a young David brought supplies to his brothers who were at the frontlines against the army of the Philistines, he heard Goliath’s taunts and said, “Who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?” (I Samuel 17:26). David didn’t see a giant he saw a large target! David became one of the greatest Kings of Israel, A man after God’s own heart, yet he was tested, almost to the breaking point! Yet David said:
Psalms 26:2. Examine me, ADONAI, test me, search my mind and heart.
This isn’t a prayer we tend to pray but it should be because testing reveals what’s in your heart! Testing produces a vigorous, tempered, and unshakeable trust, it builds a kingdom foundation that cannot be moved. The congregation at Ephesus tested those who claimed to be of the Kingdom:
Revelation 2:2. (TLV) I know all about your deeds and your toil and your patient endurance, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. You have tested those who call themselves emissaries and are not, and have found them to be liars.
This is a profound revelation! Not everyone who says they are emissaries, not everyone who says they are in the kingdom actually are! The Congregation at Ephesus existed in a mix of Greek and Oriental cultures, pagan false religions. The worship of the fertility goddess Diana was rampant in Ephesus. Witchcraft and sorcery flourished throughout the region. It is not surprising that the Congregation at Ephesus experienced intense persecution.
Nevertheless, the Ephesians stood their ground. They did not compromise the truth in order to be acceptable to the general population. Nor did they tolerate evildoers: their love of truth caused them to test those who professed to be emissaries to conclude that they were false. Time tests all things! Yeshua, the Son of God Himself was tested so that in Him we might pass our own testing.
Hebrews 2:18. (TLV) Because He Himself suffered when put to the test, He is able to help those being tested.
Because Yeshua experienced our humanity, our suffering, our adversities, He is able to help us being tested. He passed the test in when He said in Matthew 26 verse 39 and verse 42: Yet -- not what I want, but what you want!" “let what you want be done." Yeshua listened, He obeyed, He submitted His will to His Fathers will! He passed the test! We must do the same and say to Adonai: “not what I want, but what you want!".
Testing is to prove by trial, a basis for evaluation. Therefore, when God tests His children, His purpose is to prove that our own trust is genuine and real. Kefa gave a profound explanation and understanding of why we are tested in:
I Peter 1:7. Even gold is tested for genuineness by fire. The purpose of these trials is so that your trust's genuineness, which is far more valuable than perishable gold, will be judged worthy of praise, glory and honor at the revealing of Yeshua the Messiah.
Testing is synonymous with serving Him! There will always be a test before you rise to the next level! As citizens of the kingdom, believers are by default at war with the HaSatan. The ensuing conflict and spiritual warfare in which you and I engage is one of the means Adonai uses to bring us to maturity so we can rule and reign with Yeshua. The struggles and tests we face are necessary for our growth. Job is the personification of Testing! He makes a powerful statement in:
Job 7:17-18. "What are mere mortals, that you make so much of them? Why do you keep them on your mind? 18 Why examine them every morning and test them every moment.
This is a humbling revelation. Adonai visits us every morning and tests us every moment. This is something that we must meditate upon. We are being visited by Adonai every morning and tested every moment? All too often we blame HaSatan for our trials and tribulations when it’s not! We must recognize that we are being tested by Adonai! We may mistakenly adopt a posture of resisting HaSatan instead of submitting to Adonai.
His testing is preparing us for supernatural Jewish Revival, which is the ultimate Hatikvah-Israel’s Hope! We read what the Talmidim did in Acts 2 and Acts 4 respectively, 3,000 then 5,000 of our people saved in one day which we all desperately wish to experience. What we tend to forget is the years of testing they went through, walking and living with Yeshua before all this occurred. Persecution, oppression, whipping, stoning, you begin to see the picture. The more they were tested, the more powerful they became and the greater the revival. Look what Sha’ul endured:
II Corinthians 11:24-27. Five times I received "forty lashes less one" from the Jews. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. I spent a night and a day in the open sea. 26 In my many travels I have been exposed to danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the desert, danger at sea, danger from false brothers. 27 I have toiled and endured hardship, often not had enough sleep, been hungry and thirsty, frequently gone without food, been cold and naked.
For Sha’ul this is how his calling began with a road to Damascus encounter that left him blind…… for three days which he neither ate nor drank! Adonai then spoke to another Jewish believer Ananias and commanded him to go and lay hands on Sha’ul and pray for him! He was fearful to do so because Sha’ul was arresting Jewish followers of Yeshua as commissioned by the Sanhedrin. Adonai reassured Ananias and told him this:
Acts 9:16. For I myself will show him how much he will have to suffer on account of my name."
Whose had a statement like that on their Job Description? Ananias passed the test when he laid hands on Sha’ul restoring his eyesight! The more testing Sha’ul went through the closer to God he grew and the more powerful and victorious he became for the Kingdom of God.
Many, many of you are being tested, and we all will be tested in the coming days because He has a divine calling, a divine destiny for you! Increased calling requires increased testing! Avraham was tested 12 times! Don’t be depressed, dejected, or upset! Rather celebrate, rejoice, give Adonai the Glory! As Yaacov, James shared:
James 1:12. (TLV) Happy is the one who endures testing, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life, which the Lord promised to those who love Him.
He’s testing our genuineness, our endurance, our loyalty, our determination, and trust! We must endure to receive the crown of life! So how do we pass the test? By praising the most-High God of Israel!
The Hebrew word Yadah appears 111 times in the Bible, it means: To revere or worship with extended hands, to acknowledge, praise, to give thanks, Too lift your hands. “Yadah” is praising Adonai by lifting our hands unto Him. Raising our hands before Adonai is not a Charismatic or Pentecostal thing, it’s a God thing. Yadah is our response to testing!
When the Israelites were battling the Amalekites in Exodus 17, Moshes positioned himself on a hill overlooking the battle. He would raise his hands, and the Israel would win. But when he lowered them, the Amalekites would prevail. So, Aaron and Hur supported Moses by helping him raise his hands. Moses’ gesture was significant and powerful. His simple act of raising his hands in praise and worship to Adonai won the victory in Battle (Remember warfare is a test for Israel). This is also how we should be engaging Hamas who are spiritual Amalekites!
When you’re not used to it, the lifting of hands can be intimidating at first, yet it honors and blesses Adonai! The lifting of hands in praise and supplication is an expression of Freedom, a liberating experience that allows us to break through into a whole new realm, a whole new level of intimacy as we draw Closer to Adonai. When Adonai gave Daniel the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream Daniel was delivered from execution when he:
Daniel 2:23. I thank and praise you, God of my ancestors, for giving me wisdom and power, and revealing to me what we wanted from you, for giving us the answer for the king.
He thanked, Yada and praised, Shabach in Hebrew: to address in a loud tone, to loudly commend God! Yadah is used when we are in desperate physical, spiritual, or financial situations and need a decisive victory from the Lord. Raising your hands is one of the most explosive, meaningful, and powerful expressions of breakthrough praise one can do in spiritual warfare of testing. Worship pulls down Adonai’s glory. Psalms 22:3 states the He inhabits the praises of his people, or he sits enthroned on the praises of his people. What this means is that when you Yada,
When we Yadah Shabach Adonai, demons tremble, yokes and fetters are broken, and supernatural healing is released! HaSatan fears those who Yadah he cannot remain when the presence of Adonai appears, he must leave. Yadah is so powerful that it can bring healing to the physical body, mind and spirit!! May you live a life of worship and thanksgiving!
Shalom and Blessings,
Rabbi Eric S Carlson
Deuteronomy 20:1. "When you go out to fight your enemies and see horses, chariots and a force larger than yours, you are not to be afraid of them; because ADONAI your God, who brought you up from the land of Egypt, is with you.
War tests Israel’s capacity and willingness to obey and trust in Adonai. Adonai commands Israel to not be afraid when we fight our enemies. Adonai didn’t just give us the Promise land, then like now we had to fight for it! Our current war with Hamas and Hezbollah is a test! Every believer, every person who calls upon the Name of the God of Israel will be tested. We must fight and contend for our faith!
When a young David brought supplies to his brothers who were at the frontlines against the army of the Philistines, he heard Goliath’s taunts and said, “Who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?” (I Samuel 17:26). David didn’t see a giant he saw a large target! David became one of the greatest Kings of Israel, A man after God’s own heart, yet he was tested, almost to the breaking point! Yet David said:
Psalms 26:2. Examine me, ADONAI, test me, search my mind and heart.
This isn’t a prayer we tend to pray but it should be because testing reveals what’s in your heart! Testing produces a vigorous, tempered, and unshakeable trust, it builds a kingdom foundation that cannot be moved. The congregation at Ephesus tested those who claimed to be of the Kingdom:
Revelation 2:2. (TLV) I know all about your deeds and your toil and your patient endurance, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. You have tested those who call themselves emissaries and are not, and have found them to be liars.
This is a profound revelation! Not everyone who says they are emissaries, not everyone who says they are in the kingdom actually are! The Congregation at Ephesus existed in a mix of Greek and Oriental cultures, pagan false religions. The worship of the fertility goddess Diana was rampant in Ephesus. Witchcraft and sorcery flourished throughout the region. It is not surprising that the Congregation at Ephesus experienced intense persecution.
Nevertheless, the Ephesians stood their ground. They did not compromise the truth in order to be acceptable to the general population. Nor did they tolerate evildoers: their love of truth caused them to test those who professed to be emissaries to conclude that they were false. Time tests all things! Yeshua, the Son of God Himself was tested so that in Him we might pass our own testing.
Hebrews 2:18. (TLV) Because He Himself suffered when put to the test, He is able to help those being tested.
Because Yeshua experienced our humanity, our suffering, our adversities, He is able to help us being tested. He passed the test in when He said in Matthew 26 verse 39 and verse 42: Yet -- not what I want, but what you want!" “let what you want be done." Yeshua listened, He obeyed, He submitted His will to His Fathers will! He passed the test! We must do the same and say to Adonai: “not what I want, but what you want!".
Testing is to prove by trial, a basis for evaluation. Therefore, when God tests His children, His purpose is to prove that our own trust is genuine and real. Kefa gave a profound explanation and understanding of why we are tested in:
I Peter 1:7. Even gold is tested for genuineness by fire. The purpose of these trials is so that your trust's genuineness, which is far more valuable than perishable gold, will be judged worthy of praise, glory and honor at the revealing of Yeshua the Messiah.
Testing is synonymous with serving Him! There will always be a test before you rise to the next level! As citizens of the kingdom, believers are by default at war with the HaSatan. The ensuing conflict and spiritual warfare in which you and I engage is one of the means Adonai uses to bring us to maturity so we can rule and reign with Yeshua. The struggles and tests we face are necessary for our growth. Job is the personification of Testing! He makes a powerful statement in:
Job 7:17-18. "What are mere mortals, that you make so much of them? Why do you keep them on your mind? 18 Why examine them every morning and test them every moment.
This is a humbling revelation. Adonai visits us every morning and tests us every moment. This is something that we must meditate upon. We are being visited by Adonai every morning and tested every moment? All too often we blame HaSatan for our trials and tribulations when it’s not! We must recognize that we are being tested by Adonai! We may mistakenly adopt a posture of resisting HaSatan instead of submitting to Adonai.
His testing is preparing us for supernatural Jewish Revival, which is the ultimate Hatikvah-Israel’s Hope! We read what the Talmidim did in Acts 2 and Acts 4 respectively, 3,000 then 5,000 of our people saved in one day which we all desperately wish to experience. What we tend to forget is the years of testing they went through, walking and living with Yeshua before all this occurred. Persecution, oppression, whipping, stoning, you begin to see the picture. The more they were tested, the more powerful they became and the greater the revival. Look what Sha’ul endured:
II Corinthians 11:24-27. Five times I received "forty lashes less one" from the Jews. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. I spent a night and a day in the open sea. 26 In my many travels I have been exposed to danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the desert, danger at sea, danger from false brothers. 27 I have toiled and endured hardship, often not had enough sleep, been hungry and thirsty, frequently gone without food, been cold and naked.
For Sha’ul this is how his calling began with a road to Damascus encounter that left him blind…… for three days which he neither ate nor drank! Adonai then spoke to another Jewish believer Ananias and commanded him to go and lay hands on Sha’ul and pray for him! He was fearful to do so because Sha’ul was arresting Jewish followers of Yeshua as commissioned by the Sanhedrin. Adonai reassured Ananias and told him this:
Acts 9:16. For I myself will show him how much he will have to suffer on account of my name."
Whose had a statement like that on their Job Description? Ananias passed the test when he laid hands on Sha’ul restoring his eyesight! The more testing Sha’ul went through the closer to God he grew and the more powerful and victorious he became for the Kingdom of God.
Many, many of you are being tested, and we all will be tested in the coming days because He has a divine calling, a divine destiny for you! Increased calling requires increased testing! Avraham was tested 12 times! Don’t be depressed, dejected, or upset! Rather celebrate, rejoice, give Adonai the Glory! As Yaacov, James shared:
James 1:12. (TLV) Happy is the one who endures testing, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life, which the Lord promised to those who love Him.
He’s testing our genuineness, our endurance, our loyalty, our determination, and trust! We must endure to receive the crown of life! So how do we pass the test? By praising the most-High God of Israel!
The Hebrew word Yadah appears 111 times in the Bible, it means: To revere or worship with extended hands, to acknowledge, praise, to give thanks, Too lift your hands. “Yadah” is praising Adonai by lifting our hands unto Him. Raising our hands before Adonai is not a Charismatic or Pentecostal thing, it’s a God thing. Yadah is our response to testing!
When the Israelites were battling the Amalekites in Exodus 17, Moshes positioned himself on a hill overlooking the battle. He would raise his hands, and the Israel would win. But when he lowered them, the Amalekites would prevail. So, Aaron and Hur supported Moses by helping him raise his hands. Moses’ gesture was significant and powerful. His simple act of raising his hands in praise and worship to Adonai won the victory in Battle (Remember warfare is a test for Israel). This is also how we should be engaging Hamas who are spiritual Amalekites!
When you’re not used to it, the lifting of hands can be intimidating at first, yet it honors and blesses Adonai! The lifting of hands in praise and supplication is an expression of Freedom, a liberating experience that allows us to break through into a whole new realm, a whole new level of intimacy as we draw Closer to Adonai. When Adonai gave Daniel the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream Daniel was delivered from execution when he:
Daniel 2:23. I thank and praise you, God of my ancestors, for giving me wisdom and power, and revealing to me what we wanted from you, for giving us the answer for the king.
He thanked, Yada and praised, Shabach in Hebrew: to address in a loud tone, to loudly commend God! Yadah is used when we are in desperate physical, spiritual, or financial situations and need a decisive victory from the Lord. Raising your hands is one of the most explosive, meaningful, and powerful expressions of breakthrough praise one can do in spiritual warfare of testing. Worship pulls down Adonai’s glory. Psalms 22:3 states the He inhabits the praises of his people, or he sits enthroned on the praises of his people. What this means is that when you Yada,
When we Yadah Shabach Adonai, demons tremble, yokes and fetters are broken, and supernatural healing is released! HaSatan fears those who Yadah he cannot remain when the presence of Adonai appears, he must leave. Yadah is so powerful that it can bring healing to the physical body, mind and spirit!! May you live a life of worship and thanksgiving!
Shalom and Blessings,
Rabbi Eric S Carlson
Posted in December 2024
Recent
Archive
2025
August
Rabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner Sheva Moedim HaAdonai, the seven Feasts of the LordSend on your behalf – Sh’lach l’Cha & the “One New Man”Rabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner May 2022Word Omer and Yeshua’s AscensionTHE TALLIT Phrases and PurposeRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner June 2022What is a Bar/Bat Mitzvah?Rabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner July 2022Truth DecayThe ShofarRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner August 2022The ShemaThe Biblical Wedding Rabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner September 2022Etrog & LulavThe Wedding Kiddushin & NisuinRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner October 2022Fall Feasts (Moedim)The Shelamim OfferingRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner November 2022AnointingThe MezuzahRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner December 2022HanukkahWhat is ShabbatRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner January 2023God’s Covenant SignsWhy Is Torah For Today?Rabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner February 2023DiversityEchadRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner March 2023Pesach is a Sign of RevivalShalom in the StormRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner April 2023Pesach is a Sign of RevivalFestival of MatzahRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner May 2023ShavuotMothersRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner June 2023Father’s DayFreedom Juneteenth 2023Rabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner July 2023Independence DayT’shuvah is Topical & RelevantRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner August 2023Danger of PrideElul - 40 Days of Prayer & FastingRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner September 2023Yom TeruahSUKKOTRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner October 2023TransitionRestorationRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner November 2023Prophetic IsraelThanksgivingRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner December 2023What do we do with Christmas?Hanukkah Culture WarRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner January 2024HopeSeed’s and Tare’sRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner February 2024Mishpocha (Family)Rebuilding Rabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner March 2024Bondage to FreedomPurimRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner April 2024DeceptionPesach (Passover)Rabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner May 2024RiversInjusticeRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner June 2024Fathers Day 2024ShavuotRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner July 2024Attention to DetailCourage in Adversity The foundation of RevivalRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner August 2024Hindering SpiritsSuddenlyRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner September 2024Entering FaithfulnessForgivenessRabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner October 2024Be BoldFall Feasts (Moedim)Rabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner November 2024Adonai RophekahApproaching God. The Meeting Place.Rabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner December 2024TestingWhat do we do with Christmas?Rabbi & Rebbetzin's Corner January 2025Excellence