PONDERING THE REASON FOR THE SEASON
In December of this year many Jewish and some Christian families will be celebrating The Miracle of Hanukkah.
But what is Hanukkah?
Isn’t it only a Jewish celebration?
Why would a Christian want to be thinking about celebrating Hanukkah?
This is what I would like for us to ponder together over the next few days.
IT IS ALL ABOUT THE HISTORY
You can’t even think about Hanukkah until you begin to understand the history of Hanukkah.
Just what happened way back then; and why would we think Jesus would approve of Hanukkah anyway?
Let’s look back a bit:
JESUS CELEBRATED HANUKKAH
One scripture starts out by noting: “Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem,” which is the same as the Festival of Lights we now call Hanukkah.
It was winter and Jesus walked in the Temple of Solomon’s porch.
He had come to bring light into the darkness.
The light that Jesus brought into the world was a continuation of the light that God had formed when He first created the world.
The first light was the miracle that made all other miracles happen.
Do you remember that “in the beginning?”
John 1:1-5 says: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shined in the darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
In the beginning of every glimmer of hope we must find light.
So Jesus taught about the light, straight from the Torah. He read from Genesis and told people that He was The Light of the World.
Did they understand the Master?
Did they understand the book?
He reminded them of the importance of the book and how they should always keep the words of the book. His teachings were exactly like the words of The Holy Scriptures.
JESUS DESIRES THAT THERE BE OTHER LIGHT-BEARERS
He desired for everyone to be a “light bearer.”
Perhaps as He walked over the steps of Solomon’s porch, He pondered how that first Hanukkah happened so many years before His birth, and the time that He came to live inside the flesh of a man.
His presence must have been there at the first Hanukkah too, you see; it had to be, because He is the maker of all miracles, and He is always there when a miracle happens.
A mighty miracle happened here! Right inside this time of the first Hanukkah.
THE END OF THE SILENCE
Those were the days of the silent years.
It was a time when no prophet was given any words to speak.
God was waiting on something.
Perhaps He was waiting on the hearts of men to change.
THE HOPE FOR THE NEW
Those were the years between the old and the new.
It was a dark time on the earth.
Yes, it definitely seemed that God was waiting on something.
A DARK MAN LIVING IN A DARK TIME OF HISTORY
Out from the darkness rode Alexander The Great who had a vision to conquer the world.
His conquests brought all things Greek, Greek language, Greek thought, Greek customs and Greek philosophy.
Greek education became the standard for all the earth.
From the Greeks emerged theaters and chariot races, gymnasiums and stadiums.
When Alexander conquered a people these things were brought to them. When Alexander conquered a people, he also conquered the culture of the people.
SOME WERE NOT BEING TRUE TO THE BOOK
Many Jews accepted his culture with open arms.
They wanted to be “modern.”
They began to forget the words of the Book.
“Why do we need to keep following the Torah?” they asked the more dedicated ones who tried to remind them.
Those who stayed faithful always answered. “Because this is who we are! We are the people of the book! We cannot compromise and follow another culture’s ways.”
THE TRUE PEOPLE OF THE BOOK COULD NOT COMPROMISE
So there was a split; and the people grew weaker from it.
All of the nations became weaker.
At age 23 Alexander came charging through time like a goat shattering everyone and everything in his path. He conquered all that could be conquered. Finally he had conquered the whole world.
Part of that world had previously been Jewish.
Part of that part, still was.
THE SPREADING OF THE GREEK CULTURE AND THE COMING OF AN EVIL FALSE GOD
About 323 B.C. Alexander The Great died. He was gone but the Greek culture lived on and continued to spread.
Without Alexander to rule, the empire was split into four pieces that were governed by four generals. One of the generals ruled over an area that later became Syria.
Many years went by and another man came to rule this area. His name was Antiochus.
Antiochus was evil and crazy.
He declared himself “Epiphanies” which means “god manifest.”
The mad-man was actually stating that he was god.
He set up statues of himself everywhere. Then he ordered the people to worship him. He even put a statue of himself inside the temple.
He made Greek language and Greek religion mandatory in the land.
People embracing the Greek culture were called Hellenist. These were people who glorified themselves instead of God. They glorified the human body both in sport and in art.
THE WORSHIP OF MEN INSTEAD OF GOD
During this time many Jews forsook their Jewishness for money, power and prestige.
They worshiped men instead of God.
One day Antiochus lost a battle that he really wanted to win. He was a poor loser. This evil ruler became enraged.
In his horrid anger, he ordered Jerusalem destroyed.
Houses were burned.
The walls of the city were broken down.
Many were sold into slavery, even those who had accepted the Greek ways.
THE DESECRATION OF THE TEMPLE
The soldiers of Antiochus’s army went to the Temple and destroyed the porches and the gates.
They stripped the Temple of its vessels and treasures, including the table of the altar, the incense and the menorah.
Antiochus erected a statue of Zeus on the Holy Altar.
On December 25th, the birthday of Zeus, Antiochus offered a pig to Zeus on the altar.
He sprinkled its blood in the Holy of Holies and poured its broth on the scrolls.
Then he had the sacred scrolls cut into pieces and burned.
This made the sanctuary and the Holy of Holies desecrated and defiled.
The temple was converted to a shrine for Zeus and only pigs were sacrificed.
FORBIDDING THE JEWS TO PRACTICE THEIR RELIGION
Antiochus made it his goal to abolish every trace of the Jewish religion.
He forbid circumcision and Sabbath worship, kosher diets and Torah study.
Those found living out the words of Torah were put to death.
Mothers were hung for human crosses with their babies being hung from their necks.
Antiochus could achieve a lot of evil things; but only because it was allowed by God. God was still there, watching and waiting and pondering when the best time would be for his precious Son to come to the earth as a child and grow into the man who would save all of mankind from such evil as that of Antiochus and his followers.
Perhaps it was this horrid abomination that Antiochus brought into the Temple of the people trying to worship the REAL God; that convinced God that the time was exactly right to allow a virgin to conceive The Son of God.
Quietly and without notice; God was carrying out His plan for saving mankind in the midst of the terror and destruction of Antiochus and his band of evil men.
No one knew that The Light of the World was coming.
The Faithful had heard the prophecies for generations now; but no one knew that the miracle of God was on the verge of entering the earth.
On the same day that Antiochus decided to install Zeus in the temple and sacrifice swine to him; God’s Holy Spirit visited Mary, and the hope of the world was planted inside her womb.
All the evil was noticed and the people were fearful; but all of the good of God went on quietly behind the scenes.
Had He not spoken long ago and said “I will be with you always?”
Remember?
Had He not given Torah with all of the answers to all of these things within its pages?
AT HANUKKAH WE REMEMBER THE FAITHFUL
So each year at Hanukkah, when we light the candles, we remember those who gave their lives for Torah.
There was another One who was born to give His life in this same way.
His name was Jesus Christ, and He became The Light of the World.
Even before Jesus walked the earth, there were many who followed the words of the book that The Messiah suffered and died for. Some of these people were the light-bearers that Antiochus murdered.
THE LEGACY OF THE LIGHT-BEARERS
These precious light-bearers of long ago made it possible for the Word of Torah to be passed on to us.
They helped us to have the light of truth.
It cost them their lives.
These godly people thought the Word to be this worthy.
Each martyred life pointed the way to Jesus Christ; even before they knew Him.
They brought light and life into a very dark and dying world.
WE TOO MUST BECOME LIGHT-BEARERS
We too must bear our lights and bring the light of Messiah into a dark and dying world.
In may ways, our own days are much like those of the first light-bearers,
An appropriate way to honor those who have done this noble deed of bearing the light into the darkness is carried out each time we light the candles of Hanukkah.
Mostly though; as Christians observing Hanukkah, we honor Christ, The Messiah; The Light of the World. He was the Greatest Light-Bearer.
The memory of how Christ suffered and died for us is always present.
We remember too, the ninety-year-old man named Eleazar, who was tortured by the troops of Antiochus for not eating pork. He died for keeping God’s ways over the ways of the false god named Zeus.
As we light another candle we remember a woman named Hannah. She had seven sons who were arrested for refusing to stop studying the Torah.
We tell our children their stories so that they may pass their stories on to their own children.
They did not die in vain.
The world today who benefits from their courage should never forget their bravery and faithfulness.
REMINDERS OF THE HOPE OF THE RESURRECTION
Hannah was forced to watch as all of her sons died.
They were, one-by-one, boiled alive in cauldrons.
Hannah had reminded her last son of the hope of the resurrection as she watched him die. Then she too was put into a cauldron and boiled alive.
There were many like Hannah and her sons, who died awaiting a better resurrection.
It will come.
We will see them again in the resurrection of The Saints of God.
Until that day; we will always remember them at Hanukkah.
As we go through the season as Christian followers, we will always celebrate the Messiah; the One they died for.
We must never forget.
REMEMBERING A MAN NAMED MATTATHIAS
In those days, hidden away in the mountains, lived a man named Mattathias. He and his sons were from the priestly line of Aaron. Legend holds that the disciple named Matthew was named after this man.
Mattathias would not compromise.
Soon, with his influence, a small army was formed to fight for the truth of Torah.
The truth is of God and the truth is always worth fighting for.
THE FORMATION OF THE MACCABEES
Before Mattathias died, he passed his leadership role on to his son, Judah.
Judah and his group of Freedom Fighters came to be called the Maccabees.
Maccabee was NOT Judah’s last name; as many have mistakenly thought. The word “Maccabee” means “hammer.”
The Freedom Fighters were just common men.
They were farmers, workers and servants.
These humble men lived simple lives. They were just common people willing to take a stand for the things that they knew were right.
They were willing to give up all that they had to keep from compromising the Word of God.
Each man fighting knew they were outnumbered, but they also knew that God was in charge.
Do we have any Freedom Fighters left today?
I wonder.
TRUSTING THE STRENGTH THAT COMES FROM HEAVEN
Judah taught them that the victory in war did not depend upon the size of the army but upon the strength that comes from Heaven.
This heroic man named Judah and his army went out with brave confidence and won many battles.
Israel has continued to win many battles since that day.
These brave soldiers did not fear those who could kill the body but could not harm the soul.
They DID fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
GOD BRINGS THE VICTORY
In a clear miracle from heaven, The Freedom Fighters found that battle after battle was won where the few were victorious over the many, and the weak overtook the strong.
When they were willing to stand and not compromise; God gave them the victory.
The Freedom Fighters regained control of the Temple and began to purify it.
All of God’s people could take a lesson from them.
RESTORING THE TEMPLE
The altar was torn down and rebuilt.
The Temple was restored.
New vessels were crafted.
The Temple courts were consecrated.
The altar of the incense and the table were brought back.
They burnt the incense on the altar, put the sacred bread on the table and hung the curtains back again.
The true people of God prepared the house of God for His presence.
ONE DAY’S WORTH OF OIL
Everything was ready, except they found only one small cruse of oil.
This was just enough to light the holy lamps for one day.
The festival lasted for eight days.
They decided to light the lamps anyway.
To their amazement the menorah miraculously burned for eight days until some new oil could be made!
THE OIL LASTED; IT WAS A GREAT MIRACLE – THE MIRACLE OF HANUKKAH
Little is much when God is in it.
Hanukkah teaches us to stand for the truth of Our God and to be courageous in His name.
We learn not to compromise when it comes to the things of God.
Also; we learn how to overcome because God is on our side.
We know the hope of overcoming evil with good.
All of God’s people should always remember the message of Hanukkah.
All of us need to go out and become light-bearers.