©28 February 2014 Revive Israel Ministries

Esther – A Parable for the End Time Church

In this video, Asher shares about the need for us to come together like in Esther's time: to pray for a great breakthrough of salvation; and that what the devil and the forces of this world mean for evil – God would turn around for good and a great victory.

To watch, click HERE!

By Asher Intrater

The verb in Hebrew "nisa" – נישא – means "lifted up." There is a beautiful string of verses in Isaiah with this word.  In Isaiah 3:11-17, everything that is lifted up which does not glorify the Lord will be brought low. In Isaiah 6:1-3, there is a glorified King lifted up and sitting on the throne of God, worshiped by angels, crying "holy, holy, holy." In Isaiah 52:13 – 53:12, the servant of the Lord is high and lifted up in the midst of suffering and pain.

Is the Lord lifted up and glorious or is He lifted up and suffering? The answer of course is both. In Isaiah 57:15, the two images are resolved as the Lord is both lifted up, yet also dwells with the lowly.

The idea of the servant-king being "lifted up" is expanded in the New Covenant.   John refers to Yeshua on the cross as "lifted up" to save all men (John 3:14; 8:28: 12:32-34).   Yeshua is described as lifted up to heaven in the ascension in Acts 2:23, and sitting above all authorities in Ephesians 1:22 and 4:10. In Hebrews 7:26, the Messiah as our spiritual high priest is lifted up to heaven, holy and separated from sin.

If the vowels in "nisa" are flipped to "nasi" – נשיא – the verb changes to a noun, meaning, "the one who is lifted up."  In modern Hebrew, the word nasi means "president," like Shimon Peres or Barak Obama.  In medieval history, the Nasi was the head of the Jewish community in exile or head of the religious court.  Judah the Nasi, the Prince, edited the Mishnah (first part of the Talmud).

At the end of the book of Ezekiel, there is an extended prophetic description of the millennial messianic kingdom on earth. The central figure throughout these chapters is a mysterious King. He is often called "The Prince." But in Hebrew the word in all these chapters is not "prince" but "Nasi." 

It is possible that Ezekiel was referring to the prophecies in Isaiah.  The glorious and holy king who is lifted up in Isaiah 6 is the same as the lifted up suffering servant of Isaiah 53, who is the same Messianic King, "Nasi" of Ezekiel's kingdom.  Yeshua is the Nasi, the suffering servant and glorified king.  He is the "Lifted Up One."  As we lift Him up, He will draw all men (John 12:32).

Pope Francis sent a 7- minute video greeting to a Kenneth Copeland conference.  Francis spoke of love as the language of the heart; and of our unity under the lordship of Yeshua.  He said he was reaching out for a new period of reconciliation. You could see the joy and hope in his face when he said, "It gives me joy that you have come together to worship Jesus Christ the only Lord. And to pray to the Father and receive the Spirit. This brings me joy because we can see that God is working all over the world."

To watch the video clip, click HERE.

Interview with Youval Yanay

Cody: Youval, how long have you been working with Asher and Revive Israel, and what is your job description?

Youval: For over 11 years I have been with Revive and I am currently the General Manager.

1. Muslim background believers.
2. Foreign workers who are reaching out to Muslims.
3. Sending agencies that are looking to sponsor evangelistic work to Muslims in the region.

C: What was the focus of this gathering?

Y: We took time to pray together to receive a burden for the salvation of Muslims in Israel and the West Bank. Now we are looking for ways to further our cooperation together.

C: What were the statistics you heard regarding the number of Arabic speaking believers in Israel and the West Bank today?

Y: Currently there are 5 million Arabs in Israel and the West Bank. 170,000 of them are Arabic speaking Christians. 5,000 of these are born again and actively seeking to advance the kingdom of God. 300 of these are of Muslim background.
C: What were some of the highlights?

Y: Our times of fellowship, eating and laughing together where the highlights. For the first time I was asked to give a morning devotional where I spoke about God's covenant. I was asked to bless the participants with the Aaronic blessing in Hebrew. While I sang the presence of God was so strong in the room.

C: As a Messianic leader from Israel, you have been involved with this Consultation for the past four years, why do you continue to make it such a priority in your schedule?

Y: Being part of such a group is a great honor because it represents the greater Arabic believing body in the conflict zone. I learned so much from them and it was a pleasure to develop personal relationship with them.  These are precious servants of Yeshua who work in difficult situations, have the hope and joy of the Lord and are persevering with faithfulness. I believe the joint work of Israeli Jewish believers and Arab believers together is one of the main keys for the salvation of the Muslim people.

Pray for the continued cooperation we have with our Arab brothers and sisters and for more revelation of God's heart for Muslims.