Upon a time in the heart of the Western Kingdom, lay a beautiful garden. There in the cool of the day the Master of the garden would walk. Of all the dwellers in his garden; the most beautiful and beloved was a noble bamboo tree. Year after year Bamboo grew yet more and more noble and gracious, conscious of his Master’s love and watchful delight.

One day the Master himself drew near to contemplate his beloved tree, and Bamboo in a moment of adoration bowed his great head to the ground. The Master spoke: “Bamboo, I will use you.” It seemed that the day of days had come; the day for which the tree had been made. Bamboo’s voice came low: “Master, I am ready. Use me as you wish.”

“Bamboo,” the Master’s voice was grave, “I must take you and cut you down.”

“Cut….me….down!? Me….whom you have made the most beautiful in your garden….cut me down!? Not that! Use me for your joy, O Master, but do not cut me down!”

“Beloved Bamboo,” the Master’s voice grew graver still, “If I do not cut you down, I cannot use you.”

The garden grew still. The wind held his breath. Bamboo slowly bent his glorious head. There came a whisper, “Master, if you cannot use me unless you cut me down....then....do your will and cut.”

The Master spoke again, “Beloved Bamboo, I must cut your leaves and branches from you also.”

“Master, spare me! Lay my beauty in the dust.…but would you take from me my leaves and branches also?”

”Unless I cut them away, I cannot use you.”

The sun hid his face. A butterfly glided fearfully away, and Bamboo shivered in expectancy, whispering low; “Master, cut away.”

“Bamboo, I must divide you in two and cut out your heart, for if I do not, I cannot use you.” Then Bamboo bowed to the ground; “Master, then cut and divide.”

So did the Master of the garden cut down Bamboo and hack off his branches, strip his leaves, and divide him in two and cut out his heart. Then the Master carried Bamboo to the place where there was a spring of fresh, sparkling water in the midst of the Master’s dry fields. Putting one end of the broken Bamboo into the spring and the other end into the water channel in his field, the Master gently laid down his beloved tree.

The spring sang ‘welcome’ and the clear sparkling waters raced joyously through the broken vessel into the waiting fields. Then the rice was planted, and the days went by, the shoots grew and the harvest
came.

In that day, Bamboo, once so noble, was truly put to use in his brokenness and humility. For in his own beauty he had life abundant for himself, but in his brokenness he became a channel of abundant life to his Master’s world.

Mrs. George Britt is an author who served as a teacher in Kowloon, Hong Kong for the South China Foursquare Gospel Mission. She composed this legend after hearing it told at a Christian conference.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This legend is a spiritual reminder of how God can use us when we are totally surrendered to Him.

Forward to Tov’s article

In our last issue Tov’ gave us a short history of Hanukkah,
(rededication) also known as “The Festival of Light.” In this sequel, Tov discusses the possibility that Jesus may have been conceived on Hanukkah, the true Light of the world.

Jesus preached three sermons in which he declared Himself the “Light of the World,” and all three could have been given during Hanukkah; the Festival of Lights, or at the earliest during a similar ceremony of light at the very end of the Feast of Tabernacles, which would have ended approximately two months earlier. According to former Rabbi and Talmud scholar, Alfred Edersheim in his book, The Temple, one of the three sermons was definitely spoken at the closing ceremony for the Feast of Tabernacles; “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.” (John 8:12) “As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world” ( John 9:5) “Then Jesus said unto them, yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you; for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth. While ye have light, believe in the light that ye may be the children of light.” (John 12:35-36) John also records Jesus healing a blind man thus colloquially giving “light to his eyes.” (John 9:1-12)

Jesus conceived on Hanukkah?

Several schools of thought ascribe to the view that Jesus was actually conceived during the Festival of Lights, rather than being born around the month of Kislev. Jesus was certainly not born during this coldest month of the year in Bethlehem, according to the testimony of Scripture itself, because the sheep were in the pasture. (Luke 2:8) Sheep are taken to the green and growing areas near the Dead Sea during the winter months where it is much warmer. There would not have been green grass in Bethlehem during this time, and if there were sheep in the area, they would have been sheltered in nearby caves adapted for this specific purpose until such time as the shepherds were able to lead them to the more lush green areas of the lower valley region. A study of the time of the conception of Jesus’ first cousin, John the Baptist, reveals he was conceived about the month of Sivan on the day 30 of the Jewish civil calendar year (Luke1:8-13, 24) There’s a clue in the kind of ministrations his father was performing in the Temple. Adding forty weeks for a normal pregnancy reveals that John the Baptist was born on or about Passover, the 14th day of Nisan. Six months after John’s conception, Mary conceived Jesus, (Luke 1:26-33) therefore Jesus would have been conceived six months after the 30th day of Sivsan, which would be in the month of Kislev – which is the month of Hanukkah. It makes sense that the “Light of the world” would be conceived on the Festival of Lights; a time of rededication to God.

Starting with Hanukkah; which begins on the 25th of Kislev, (the 25th day may seem familiar to people who celebrate Christmas) the festival continues for eight days, then counting nine months for Mary’s pregnancy, one arrives at the approximate time of the birth of Jesus – the Feast of Tabernacles. “And the Word became flesh, and did tabernacle among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of an only begotten of a father full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14 YLT)

Followers of Jesus look forward with hope and expectation to a time known only to God the Father as John the Apostle foretold; “And I heard a great voice out of the throne saying, Behold the tabernacle of God is with men, and he shall dwell with them and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes and there shall be no more death; neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain; for the former thing are passed away.” (Revelation 21:3-4)

All translations King James Version, unless otherwise noted.
Tov Rose is a Board member of Midwest Hebrew Ministries.

The Canadian government has ordered a Christian ministry that teaches doctrine and the differences between Christians and cults shut down because its reference materials were “critical” of the beliefs of those who are not Christian, WND has learned. What used to be called MacGregor Ministries with offerings in how to recognize and eliminate “faulty fads” in Christian churches has been re-created in the United States, and now operates under the name MM Outreach Media Ministries.

Lorri MacGregor, who has dedicated her life to explaining the straight and narrow of Christian beliefs since she found her way out of the Jehovah Witnesses system years ago, told WND that Canada’s version of a “hate crimes” law prevented their work from continuing as it has for nearly 30 years. “Canada is no longer a Christian nation,” she said. “And watch out America!” The issue of the ministry’s charity’s license in Canada, allowing it to operate as a ministry, came up during a routine audit of the ministry’s finances, which was uneventful. “The auditor that originally looked at our books told us that her supervisor had said she wanted us shut down, “Mrs. MacGregor told WND. “Canada has very strong hate laws.” She said that the ministry points out differences between Christianity and various cult beliefs, but also with respect, and never as a proponent. She said the work always is in response to a question or issue. “When a group of Jehovah’s Witnesses said of our doctrine we’re worshipping a freakish three-headed God, (the Trinity) we should be able to respond,” she said. “We say, ‘Here’s the doctrine of the Trinity and here is where it is in the Scripture.’” That, however, violates Canada’s hate crimes laws, and the ministry was ordered to either make wholesale changes in its presentation, or shut down. “There was nothing we could do that would please them,” she said. “They wanted us every time we criticized something to say, ‘Christianity is equal to Buddhism, Islam, Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witnesses…..Just decide for yourself! We cannot do that,” she said of the work she and her husband, Keith, have spent their lives assembling. “She gave us an ultimatum that we needed to say that all religions are equal; Lorri MacGregor was to stop writing our magazine on the cults, we were to remove our websites and stop selling any products to teach about the cults, and any future DVDs that we do on the Bible must not be persuasive. We could not live under those restrictions.”

“We chose to shut down the ministry and we are in Washington to sign papers to start up a U.S. corporation and also start the long process of applying for 501-c status in the U.S. We have been told that within five to ten years, the U.S. government will be in the same position and they will also go after Christian apologetics groups.” “It was a no-win situation. We didn’t want to see our charity money eaten up by layers,” Mrs. MacGregor told WND. “It was heart-wrenching.”

WND previously has reported how proposals are being made in Canada to raise taxes and fees on churches dramatically, as well as ban them from meeting in some locations. WND also has reported on how many Biblical standards of behavior are under attack by the “bastardized courts” of Canada, where activists who claim to have “hurt feelings” are demanding – and getting – penalties imposed against those who oppose the homosexual lifestyle. It has also been reported that at times “hate crimes” legislation has been considered in the Congress of the United States.

(Editor’s note: Who would ever have thought that the Bible would be accused of being hate speech? We are living in the ‘last’ of the last days!)

“But know this, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of those that are good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God”
(2 Timothy 3:1-4 NKJV)

The storms that roared through the northern suburbs of Minneapolis/ St Paul recently remind us once again of the havoc that storms can deliver to our communities. Television pictures of the devastation left behind by tornadoes, rain and flooding are fixed in our minds. And who can forget the devastation of Katrina? Hurricanes are scary! Here in the upper Midwest we seldom experience storms of that nature. In the fourth chapter of the Gospel of Mark we find an account in the life of Jesus’ disciples that had them facing one of the worst storms they had ever experienced. The severity of the storm produced fear in men who were familiar with the storms on the Sea of Galilee. Waves were beating the boat, filling it with water. Luke’s gospel records that “they were in grave danger.” Jesus was sleeping in the back of the little boat. What the storm could not do, the disciples did. They awoke Jesus. Their fearful cry was heard over the howling wind, “Master, don’t you care that we are perishing?” Jesus arose; rebuked the wind with a command of “peace be still.” The account goes on to tell us that the wind ceased and there was a great calm.

During the storms of life, we face some scary things as well. Some of these storms are “squalls” and others are “hurricanes”! To many of us it seems as if God is asleep; not caring about the predicament we find ourselves in, and what really perplexes us is that we don’t know the “why” of our storms! But the Bible tells us that God cares about us and He has our best interest at heart. We must remember that God is in control of every storm you and I face, and He has promised to be with us during those difficult times of our lives. We must remember too, that God loves us too much to leave us the way He found us. He is continually working on us to bring us to a place of complete surrender. So why do these storms come to harass us?

DISCIPLINE

First of all storms come to discipline us. When things go wrong we must remember that God is trying to get our attention. Adversity brings us to the realization that there are things that we just can’t handle alone. We need help. God has promised to help us. The Psalmist has written, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” (Ps 46:1) Sometimes we get a little too independent and God has to allow hardship so we will come to a place of depending upon Him instead of our own plans. So when facing an insurmountable situation, it might just be the thing God is allowing, so you will call upon Him.

DIRECTION

Secondly, storms come to direct us to follow the ways and will of God. The Old Testament book of Jonah tells us that this prophet of God was directed by God to go preach to the ungodly people in Nineveh. Jonah got on a ship and proceeded to go in the opposite direction that God had instructed him to go. He was “running from God”. This account tells us that God sent a storm to persuade His prophet to repent and go to Nineveh, which is what Jonah finally ended up doing. So you see, dear reader, God often sends storms into the lives of those running from Him to help direct them back to following His will. God’s will for us is to come to a place of surrender to Him.

DETECTION

Thirdly, storms come to detect who we really are. Do you know how well your house is built? You can judge the quality and strength it has by how it weathers a storm. The storms of life detect us; they reveal what we are made of. How we face the storms of life is determined
by what our lives are built upon. If we have a good foundation – we will weather the storm. If we do not have a good foundation the storms of life can wash us away. The book of Job, reveals a man who trusted God in everything. When his possessions were taken from him; including his children, it is recorded that “In all this Job sinned not, nor did he charge God foolishly.” (Job 1:22) How easy it is to charge God foolishly when He is testing us. Some people going through storms designed by God become bitter and turn away from Him, thereby missing the blessed outcome of surrendering to a loving God. How Job faced what was dealt him revealed his relationship with God.

You may be going through a storm at this moment. Maybe the death of a loved one – physical pain – loss of a job – financial setback – loneliness – rejection, are causing you an overwhelming sense of loss and pain. Whatever it is – God cares about you! God loves you! He has not forgotten you! He is in control of the circumstances you find so overwhelming. But He has a plan for your life and He wants you to place your trust in Him just as a child would trust a parent. You need to reach out to Him. He is awaiting your call; “Dear God, I’m hurting – I’m confused – I don’t know what to do! I need you!” It is when we call upon Him that he will grant us peace in the midst of our storm. Do you know God’s “telephone number?” It is Jeremiah 33:3 “Call upon me and I will answer you and I will show you great and mighty things which you do not know.”