A This week, Hanukkah will be celebrated by Jews all over the world this week. (AKA Feast of lights, Feast of Dedication)
1 Although it is a special 8 days, the feast is not among those listed among the Lord’s Appointed Times in Lev. 23.
a Passover, Unleavened Bread, First Fruits, Pentecost, Trumpets, Day of atonement, & Feast of Booths/Tabernacles..
b Despite it’s absence in the Torah (Moses’ Writing), we shouldn’t assume that Hanukkah is unbiblical.
c John 10.22-23
aa By the time Jesus comes to Jerusalem in John 10, Hanukkah had been observed for decades.
bb W/O a doubt, Jesus observed Hanukkah.
cc If Christians are looking for reasons to remember Hanukkah, the simple fact of Jesus having observed it is good enough reason alone.
2 I believe Daniel 8.21-25, reveals a prophetic vision of the events surrounding Hanukkah. (Even liberal scholars think this passage was written & added later due to the extreme clarity in the passage.)
B If we go back to 167 BC, the Jews were living under the oppression of a foreign power.
1 A few generations before, Alexander the Great had brought the world under one government & culture called Hellenism.
a After Alexander’s early death, four of his generals scrambled for power and Alexander’s kingdom was divided.
aa North (Seleucides/Syria)
bb South (Ptolemies/ Egypt)
cc Judea was stuck in the middle.
b Eventually, Judea fell into the hands of the Seleucides, under the leadership of Antiochus IV.
2 To unify his holdings, he made people assimulate into Hellenistic culture (arts, language, even religion)
a Not surprisingly, most people didn’t put up too much of a fight.
b Some of traditional Jews did!
aa Antiochus demanded Jews give up their customs, Sabbaths, circumsion of sons, feasts.
bb Told to shut up, give up, or die.
b To prove his point, Antiochus marched his troops into Jerusalem into the Temple.
aa Defiled the alter by sacrificing a pig on it.
bb Erecting an image of Zeus in the Holy Sanctuary.
c What Antiochus did was go out of his way to be Satanic, demonic in his desecration of the Temple was make God’s Temple to become totally unholy.
aa His glory/shekinah was gone.
bb In part to Israel’s unfaithfulness!
3 Daniel 8.21-22
a The first horn is Alexander, early death, rise of 4 generals.
b Split the empire among themselves.
c Daniel 8.23-25
aa According to the word given to Daniel, the focal point of this Hellenistic kingdom is the leader who would persecute the Jewish people.
bb Magnified himself, Epiphenes –God manifest.
C Although many of the Jewish people went along with the governments silencing them, there was a remnant who would not be silenced!
1 In a village called Modin, an old Godly priest by the name of Mattathias, w/ 5 sons.
a The Seleucide soldiers marched into town, erected an alter to perform a pagan ritual . . . that climaxed with the eating of swine.
b The soldiers choose Mattathias to perform the ceremony and that was enough!
aa Mattathias & his sons revolted, killing the soldiers, and sparking what would eventually lead to the re-taking of the Temple.
bb The son that arose as the leader of the revolt was nicknamed, Maccabee (The Hammer).
2 This ragamuffin band of patriots used guerilla warfare, knowledge of hill country, and armed w/ a conviction that God was faithful, keep His promises, . . . they did the impossible!
a In the month of Kisliv (Late November/ Early December), they drove out the Syrian army from the temple and reclaimed it for the God of Israel.
b When they took it over, it was defiled with images, idols, alters desecrated, lamp stands broken.
aa Menorah was symbolic of the light of God, glory, Shikanah.
bb Only enough oil to last one day (eight day process to make it)
cc The presence of God had been absent for too long . . . get the lamp going. . . God’s been too gone for too long!
c The one day’s oil lasted 8 days!
aa Menorah is a special lamp stand, uses 7 candles.
bb Hanukkah menorah has 9 candles to represent the 8 days of light out of 1 days worth of oil.
d What a day it must have been when Jews were once again able to ascend to Mt. Zion, enter the courts, come into the Temple to cleanse the Temple, rebuilt its alar, and rededicate them once more to the living God of Israel.
D Every 25 of Kisliv, Jews celebrate the military victory & miracle of the oil, rededication of the Temple.
1 Hanukkah is a time to celebrate the Maccabees saving/redeeming Israel, and the one who will redeem Israel completely: Messiah!
a John 10.24 “Are you the Christ/Messiah?”
aa 10.25-30
bb I’m here!
b I believe this is the real connection between Hanukkah & Christmas.
aa If Antiochus had succeeded there would have been no Jews around. No Jews, No Jesus.
bb The miracle of Christmas could only happen after the miracle of Hanukkah.
c God causes all things to work together for good for those who love Him
2 1Maccabees 4.44-46 “They deliberated what to do about the altar of burnt offering, which had bee profaned. And they thought it would be best to tear it down, lest it bring reproach upon them, for the Gentiles had defiled it. So they tore down the altar, and stored the stones in a convenient place on the Temple hill until there should come a prophet to tell what to do with them.
a Let Messiah/prophet worry about it.
aa Let Him deal with the dirty, desecrated stones.
bb The Maccebbee’s were looking for a prophet who would deal w/ dirty stones; the One who would come came to deal w/ all the worlds dirty sin & guilt.
b When the Jews light the Hanukkah menorah, they light every candle from the center candle (Servant) & it gives light to them all!
aa The prophet the Jews expected turned out to be Jesus of Nazareth.
bb Jesus is the center candle, the light of the world.
c He being in the form of God was also in the form of a servant. (Phili. 2.5-11)
aa He became one of us to destroy darkness, so we could go free!
bb He is the one John the Baptist pointed to (John 1.21,29)
cc The disciples recognized as the prophet like Moses, promised in Isaiah (Acts 3.18, 22, 26)
dd Jesus Himself said, Mark 10.45
3 I think it’s incredible that we find Jesus celebrating Hanukkah at the same Temple where the miracle happened, rededicated, cleansed just a few generations earlier under the Maccabees. celebrating Hanukkah.
a John 10.31-33 (STONES)
b Perhaps stones that had once been used in service, put aside for Messiah to make clean or rededicate . . . now used against Him.
Conclusion:
A Surely we understand stones of discouragement, defilement, disappointment in our own lives.
1 Some people will hold on to these stones and use them against Jesus.
a Mr. Woods (Superintendent when I was in H.S.) recently had a stroke, in a rehab center miles away from Odin. He was asked to be pray over.
aa “Don’t talk to me about God. I prayed for my mother when she was sick, healing, and she died slowly, suffering. A stone.
bb Springfield praying from a Jet Ski accident victim Jessica. Many are angry @ God because she is still not healed. A stone.
cc Other have lost sons/daughters/wife/husband/marriage . . . angry @ God. A stone
dd Sin, temptation that never seems to go away. If God was so good, why doesn’t He remove it? A stone.
b We allow these stones to defile our Temple.
2 1 Cor. 6.18-20
a To often believers allow the Temple to be defiled by leaving the stones of yesterdays discouragement & disappointment to clutter up the Temple Mount.
aa It’s okay to get angry with God, He can handle it. But don’t stay angry at Him.
bb Your waiting for relief, comfort, healing, restoration, redemption . . . it will only come from Jesus.
cc Don’t run from Him, run too Him.
b Make peace with your past it will mess up your present!
aa Bondage to those old stones.
bb Drop them.
c However good or bad a situation is, it will change and God will receive Glory & He loves you.
aa He doesn’t love you because of anything you did or didn’t do.
bb He loves you because of who He is.
B He is my rock, shield, fortress, portion, light, servant, Temple cleanser, rededicator, redeemer, . . .and I will praise Him and if He wants to cleanse the stones, it’s up to him.
1 I’m not going to throw them in His face, and I’m not going to let them stop me from entering the Holy Place!
2 Cleansing the Temple wasn’t Jesus only goal, His ultimate goal was to cleans our temples!
3 Would you let Him?
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