Dive into the rich history and deep spiritual significance of Hanukkah with Rabbi Schneider as he illuminates the festival’s origins and its celebrated role in Jewish tradition. In this episode, uncover the powerful story of the Maccabean revolt and the miraculous re-dedication of the Temple following Greco-Assyrian desecration. Learn how Hanukkah, beyond its historical roots, provides insights into Yeshua’s identity as he celebrated this iconic feast in Jerusalem. Explore how the themes of dedication and salvation are interwoven through both ancient and New Testament scriptures as Rabbi Schneider relates them to our modern-day journeys of faith. Step into the
00:00:01 Introduction to Hanukkah and the Dedication
Hach Hanukkah Sameach. That’s Happy Hanukkah in Hebrew. And this is Discovering the Jewish Jesus. I’m your host, Dustin Roberts. And today, Rabbi Schneider reveals God’s desire for dedication. Well, the word Hanukkah means dedication, and this eight-day feast that started last night at sunset was a feast that Jesus celebrated. Did you know that? Well, in John chapter 10, we discover Jesus in Jerusalem during the Feast of Dedication. And these passages, they help us learn more about Jesus’s Jewish identity and God’s heart. You can learn more about this ministry by visiting us online at discoveringthejewishjesus.com. And right now, let’s get started. Rabbi Schneider is going to begin our special presentation with a Hanukkah song.
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Hanukkah, oh Hanukkah, let’s light the menorah.
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Let’s have a party and all do the hora. Well, that’s a song that we sing during this time of year as we’re celebrating the victory that God gave the Maccabees over the Greco-Assyrians that had defiled their temple and taken over Jerusalem. So I’m going to go back now and tell you the story that led to the celebration of Hanukkah, what Hanukkah means. And Father, we just begin today by inviting your spirit into this broadcast. Lord, that your word would go forth clearly and that you’d use it to draw people to you. For we ask it, Father, in Yeshua Messiah’s name and for the purpose of the building of your saints and your kingdom. Amen. And as we’re getting ready to celebrate Hanukkah this year, I wanted to begin by telling you the history, and then I wanted to bring it forward and show you how Yeshua was celebrating Hanukkah in the pages of the New Testament. So first of all, what had happened was the Greco-Assyrians under Antiochus IV had taken over Jerusalem and the temple of the Jews that God had given Solomon and then was later rebuilt and destroyed in 70 AD. What happened was the Greco-Assyrians had gone into the temple and in the year 167 BCE had actually erected an altar to Zeus, the pagan god Zeus, in the temple. Furthermore, the Greco-Assyrian armies were going throughout Israel and Jerusalem, and they were forcing Jewish people to make a sacrifice to Zeus. And unfortunately, some Jewish people were compromising. But it all stopped when the Greco-Assyrian soldiers got to a Jewish settlement called Modin. And when they got to Modin and tried to get the Jews there to make a sacrifice to Zeus, a priest there by the name of Mattathias said no. And because one of the Jewish onlookers that was gathered with Mattathias was afraid that because Mattathias said no, that the Greco-Assyrian soldiers were gonna respond to Mattathias’ no by putting them all to death, slaying them. He volunteered, this Jewish onlooker volunteered, trying to appease the Greco-Assyrian army and said, well, I’ll do it. Are you getting what I’m saying? Mattathias, the priest, said no. So this Jewish onlooker said, well, I’ll do it because he was afraid that the Greco-Assyrian soldiers were going to put all of them to death because Mattathias said no. So when he, this Jewish onlooker said, I’ll do it, Mattathias turned on the Jewish onlooker and then that so riled and rallied the other Jews that were gathered there to stand up in solidarity and to resist this pressure to conform or to be Hellenized. That’s what the term was that was going on. These Greco-Assyrians were trying to Hellenize the world, including the Jewish people, to worship like them and to adopt their customs. We read about it, in fact, in the book of Acts that many of the Jews had been Hellenized. But when Mattathias said no, he so inspired the rest of the Jewish onlookers that they turned on the Greco-Assyrian army that was in Modine where they were, and they effectively began to drive out the Greco-Assyrians from Modine. And this movement that was started by Mattathias’ resistance It grew and it grew and eventually more and more Jewish people joined the movement and they began to take place in what is known today as guerrilla warfare, where they would hide and they would wait for the Greco-Assyrian troops to come into an area. And then when the Greco-Assyrian troops came into an area, they would come out of hiding and ambush them. And they were able to more and more recover Jerusalem until they eventually recovered the temple And then in 164 BCE, they dedicated the temple back to God. And that’s where we get the name Hanukkah from. Jewish people all over the world celebrate Hanukkah every year since 164 BCE, including the time of Yeshua. We’re going to see in a second, Yeshua was in the temple celebrating Hanukkah with the rest of the Jewish people that were gathered. Hanukkah is the Hebrew word that means dedication. And so once again, in 164 BCE, the Maccabees, that was the army that drove the Greco-Assyrian soldiers out. The word Maccabee means hammer. And it comes from the name of the priest’s son. Mattathias had a son named Judah, and he was the leader of this movement of driving out the Greco-Assyrians. They named him Judah the Maccabee, Judah the Hammer. And so that’s the name that’s given today to the army that was successfully able to drive out the Greco-Assyrians. Now, our tradition tells us that when they came in to the temple, everything of course was desecrated. And one of the things that they found there was the oil that had been used to light the menorah in the temple that burned perpetually. And according to our tradition, there was only enough kosher oil in the temple when it was recaptured to burn for one day. But instead of burning for one day, our tradition tells us it’s supernaturally burned for eight days. And so a Hanukkah menorah has eight different candles plus an extra ninth candle, which is called the servant candle. And so the way we celebrate Hanukkah is we put the menorah in front of a window of our home or apartment. And the reason we put the menorah in front of a window is because we’re proclaiming to the world, God did a miracle here. And so we light the menorah. We first of all light the servant candle, the ninth candle. We light that on the first night and then we take that servant candle and we light one other candle. And we do the same thing for eight days. The second day we light the servant candle and then we take the servant candle and we light the first candle and then the second candle for the second day. And thus it goes all through the eight days of Hanukkah.
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Jewish people are so galvanized by Hanukkah. You’ll see these menorahs even televised all over the big cities of the world where different Jewish groups will like rent a huge space in London and someplace in Australia and all over the world. There’ll be thousands of Jewish people gathered together to celebrate the lighting of the menorah. They have a huge menorah up on a big stand. and they’ll light the candle each night. So Hanukkah is a huge galvanizing holiday for the Jewish people. But interestingly, the holiday of Hanukkah, it’s nowhere in the Jewish Bible. Of course, the whole Bible is the Jewish Bible, but I’m talking about the Old Testament. The only place that Hanukkah is written about, beloved one, in the scriptures is in the Brihadashah or the New Testament. And so we read about Hanukkah in the Gospel of John chapter 10, again, the only place in scripture. So let me read for you, beginning in the 22nd verse of Yochanan, we say in Hebrew, John chapter 10. At that time, John writes, the feast of dedication. Why does he say dedication instead of Hanukkah? because dedication, once again, is the English translation of the word Hanukkah. It’s the same thing. One’s Hebrew, one’s English. At that time, we could say Hanukkah took place at Jerusalem, but because the New Testament for us is written in English, it’s written as the Feast of Dedication took place in Yerushalayim, or at Jerusalem, where we’re at right now. It was winter, and Yeshua was walking in the temple in the portico of Solomon. The Jews then gathered around him and were saying to him, how long will you keep us in suspense? If you’re the anointed one, meaning the Messiah, of course, our Bible says Christ, if you’re the Christ, but Christ is just the Greek word for the Hebrew Mashiach, which means anointed one. So they said to him, if you’re the Mashiach, Tell us plainly. Yeshua answered them. I told you and you do not believe the works that I do in my father’s name. These testify of me, but you do not believe because you’re not my sheep. I want you to notice two things here. If someone doesn’t want to believe, beloved ones, you can argue with them till you’re blue in the face. If they don’t wanna believe, they’re not gonna believe. They said to Yeshua, if you’re the Christ, if you’re the Mashiach, tell us plainly. Yeshua said, I told you, but you didn’t believe me. And then he said, and the works that I do, all the miracles that you’ve seen, they testify of me. But then he said, but you did not believe because in verse number 26, you’re not my sheep. It’s good for us to keep that in mind, that it’s not up to us to save people. It’s just up to us, beloved, to be a witness. Whether they believe or not, that’s up to the Father. Even Yeshua didn’t expect that he was gonna save everybody. He said in John 10, you believe not because you’re not my sheep. Notice what he said next in the next verse. He said, my sheep… He knew he had sheep. He knew that the ones that were not believing were not his sheep, but he also knew he had sheep. The same thing with you. Some people you share with will not listen. It’s okay. Same thing happened to Yeshua. Some people will. Yeshua said, my sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me and I give eternal life to them. and they will never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of my hand. He continues, my father who has given them to me. I want you to notice this. Jesus knew who his sheep were, and according to Yeshua’s own words, his sheep, get this now, beloved ones, were the ones that the father had given to him. This was the same thing Yeshua was talking about in John 6, where Jesus said, don’t grumble amongst yourself. He was speaking to the ones that didn’t believe in him. He said, don’t grumble amongst yourself. No one can come to me, he continued in John 6, unless my Father draws him. All the Father gives me, Jesus said, will come to me. And he that comes to me, I will lose none. So think about what I just said in John 6, Jesus said to the ones that didn’t believe, hey, listen, don’t grumble. You think you’re over me? You know, you think you’re over me, judging me, critiquing me? Jesus said, no, don’t grumble among yourselves. He said, no one comes to me unless the Father draws them. And all the Father gives me shall come to me. And of all that he gives me, I will lose none. Compare what Yeshua said in John 6 with what he’s saying right here. He’s saying, you do not believe because you’re not my sheep. My sheep hear my voice and I know them. I give them eternal life and no one will ever snatch them out of my hand. Verse 29, my father who has given them to me is greater than all and no one is able to snatch them out of the father’s hand. And then he made this remarkable statement. He said, I and the father are one. So when we see the love of Jesus, we see the love of the father. When we see the compassion of Yeshua, we see the compassion of the Father. When we hear the parables of Jesus about him going after the one lost sheep, we hear the heart of the Father desiring to save. I want you to hear me though, beloved, as I shift back for a moment. If you believe in Yeshua, is because the Father chose you, according to the book of Ephesians, before the foundation of the world, and he drew you to Jesus. The scripture tells us that we were chosen in the Father, Ephesians chapter one, by the Father before the foundation of the world, And then the scripture says we were predestined to the Father, to Yeshua, so that we could enter into the spirit of adoption of sonship with the Father. And so God chose you and I to be his sons and daughters before we were born. That’s why he sent Yeshua. See, the Bible says that we were chosen before the foundation of time. And then in the fullness of time, the Bible tells us in Galatians chapter four, in the fullness of time, the father sent his son and gave us the spirit of adoption. And so it’s such an awesome thing. I’m just wanting to bring back. Yeshua is in the temple in the gospel of John chapter 10, celebrating Hanukkah, revealing the mystery that you and I that are his sheep were given to him by the Father. And this revelation comes to us in the word of God during Hanukkah. Yeshua was in the temple on Hanukkah when he gave us this penetrating revelation. So I want to strengthen you today to know that you were in the mind and in the heart of God before you were even born. Like the psalmist said, he knew you when you were in your mother’s womb. He knew you when you were yet unformed. And he had a destiny for your life before you took your first breath. So if you and I want to come into alignment and find out who we really are, we have to give ourselves to the one that number one, created us, and secondly, redeemed us through Yeshua, Messiah, for a purpose. And that purpose is to be His, to walk with Him, not as slaves, not as those that are under the law, but as those who cry forth through the spirit of adoption, Abba, Father. And so I speak freedom and liberty over you this Hanukkah season. Even as Yeshua liberated his people in coming, even as those Maccabees in 164 rededicated and liberated the temple, so I speak to you today, liberation and freedom in the spirit And I challenge you in the love of God to dedicate yourself just as that temple in 164 was dedicated to the Lord. I encourage all of us this Hanukkah season to truly dedicate every area of our life to Hashem. The words we speak, the foods we eat, how we spend our time, the friendships we have, how we spend our money, what we let into our ears, what we watch with our eyes. Let’s live as sons and daughters that are fully dedicated to the Lord, knowing what our purpose is. god has created good works for you and i to walk in and yeshua is returning quickly he said to reward to each and every one of us for what we’ve done we only have a short time beloved on this planet let’s use it wisely and let’s dedicate ourselves spirit soul and body fully to him As I’m thinking today about Hanukkah and how that relates to us, what we’re doing with your help through Discovering the Jewish Jesus, I think of this. Hanukkah was about the recovery of Jerusalem and then the rededication of the Jewish people’s temple. Today, as the Gospel of the Jewish King Messiah, Yeshua, goes forth, once again, Jewish people are being recovered into a true and authentic relationship with the Creator. And beloved, those of you that are supporting this ministry, it’s happening with your help. We’re meeting people here in Jerusalem, Jewish people that are feeding their souls on the ministry of God’s Word through Discovering the Jewish Jesus. So I wanna ask you for your financial help and your continual financial support, because the truth, beloved, what we’re doing, it’s not free, it costs money, and it’s only with your help that we’re able to spread the gospel around the globe. Thank you for your Hanukkah offering.
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Amen. Thank you, Rabbi. To give a special Hanukkah offering to support Discovering the Jewish Jesus, visit us online at discoveringthejewishjesus.com. You can also give generously by calling us at 800-777-7835. And if God is calling you to do even more this special Hanukkah season, I wanna encourage you to become a regular monthly partner. You can even text in your monthly partner donation by texting the keyword rabbi to the number 45777. And as a token of our appreciation for your gift, we wanna send you our engaging and insightful newsletter. It includes exclusive teachings from rabbi, testimonies that show the impact that we’re having and even ministry updates like our recent trip to Nigeria. It’s a really great way to stay connected each and every month, and we’ll deliver it right to your own mailbox. So as you step into this joyous season of celebrating miracles and the light of the world, King Jesus, please help us bring that light to others. When you give, you’re not just supporting a ministry, you’re becoming a part of someone’s story of hope and of salvation. Send your gift in the mail to Discovering the Jewish Jesus, P.O. Box 777, Blissfield, Michigan, 49228. Happy Hanukkah. And now here’s Rabbi Schneider to wrap up with God’s sacred and special blessing.
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Blessings trump curses, and in the book of Numbers chapter six, we find the Aaronic blessing that God commanded Moses’ brother Aaron, the high priest, to speak over the children of Israel. There’s power in blessing, beloved ones, so take part in receiving Father’s blessing upon your life today.
The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift you up with His countenance. And the Lord give you, beloved one, His peace. God bless you and shalom.
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I’m your host, Dustin Roberts, and this program is produced and sponsored by Discovering the Jewish Jesus. Join us again next time when Rabbi Schneider explains why we were ordained to fight. But fight what? Learn more Friday on Discovering the Jewish Jesus.
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