Kameel Majdali's Road Ahead

  Introduction It was a sobering scene.   Location : The plain of Moab, near the Jordan River, at the back door of the ‘Promised Land,’ near the city of Jericho.   Main character: Moses, the aged and faithful servant of God, was about to give his valedictory speech.   The audience: A large group of Israelites: the younger generation, who were born in the wilderness (‘the wilderness generation’).   The challenge: Moses would need all the God-given communication skills he could muster to reach this younger group of people who knew no other leader but him. After all, if Ronald Reagan and Pope John Paul II, in their 70s, could connect with younger people, why not God’s anointed prophet? The setting: It had been forty years since Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt by the power of God. The journey on foot should have taken around forty days. Yet, due to tempting God ten times (Numbers 14:22, 24-34), the days turned to years. During these forty years, the ...

Introduction Some of your favourite Bible stories and characters are found in this book. Yet it also serves as a solemn warning about the perils of disobeying God. In all cases, it is folly and madness to say ‘No’ to Him. Welcome to the Book of Numbers, the fourth of the five books of Moses, known as the Pentateuch or Torah (the Law). The stories are great, and the lessons even greater.   The name in the original Hebrew is wayyedabber or ‘ and he said.’ The reason for the name ‘Numbers’ is that it has to do with two censuses. The first is of the ‘generation of the exodus’ (Chapter 1), namely the children of Israel who miraculously departed from Egypt. The second census or numbering was of the ‘generation of the wilderness,’ the generation of Israelites born in the wilderness (chapter 26), to the ‘generation of the exodus.’ Though the exodus generation was headed towards the promised land of Canaan, they never reached it. Numbers will explain the dire reasons why. Key Characters Mos...

Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts — Malachi 3:1 Yes, God will send His messenger and indeed, he has already come. His name is Malachi, which literally means ‘ my messenger .’ This last prophet of the Old Testament may actually be anonymous and his title has become his name.   While this book deals with issues of the day, it speaks about modern things like tithing (3:8-12). It is not an exaggeration to say that you can tell the direction of a person’s heart by where their money goes. In places where Christians are an oppressed minority, you can tell who the infiltrator or ‘fake Christian’ is during the church service because they steadfastly refuse to give money when it is offering time. As always, Jesus said it best ‘ For where your treasure is, there will your heart be a...

Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain — Exodus 20:7 It is a most precious sound and defiling it brings great punishment. We are talking about God’s Name - YHWH / יְהֹוָה - Yeshua / ישׁוּעַ . This wonderful name is the key to life, salvation, and eternity itself. Yet to misuse and abuse it will bring incalculable loss. As we continue our series on God’s ‘Top Ten,’ the Ten Commandments, we now focus on the third commandment. It solemnly warns us not to take the name of the LORD in vain and if we do, we will   not be guiltless. First, let’s understand the importance of God’s Name, followed by what it means to use it ‘in vain’ in Part 02 Majesty of the Name First, God actually does have a name, and it is יְהֹוָה or YHWH. The patriarchs, mightily beloved of God, knew God by His titles but not His Name. Only when Moses came to the scene that he, a friend of God was revealed th...