The Bread of Life
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So I have received multiple text messages, emails, that kind of stuff. We are not meeting in the park tomorrow. We are meeting at Descan Drive, which is an event center in Norman. So if you are going south, you're going to take 35 to Tecumseh. That's where the big healthplex is, right there on the exit ramp.
You're going to turn east onto Compson. You're going to go about one mile and it's going to be on the right hand side. Super nice place. I think I'm going to host a lot of parties there in the future. Didn't know it existed until this week, which is great because I'm pretty sure nobody else knew it existed and that's why we were able to rent it within like five days of doing an event.
But tomorrow morning at 9:30. So no longer is this a sunrise service based upon the forecast of our weatherman locally in our congregation. I don't think the sun is going to be visible of rising at all tomorrow. But either way, 9:30 tomorrow morning, we're going to have some worship, we're going to have a teaching, and we're going to have a time of our first fruits offering. So over the last three years of our church, we've had a very eclectic growth and change.
Before we had what I would label people who were very closed off and boxed in somewhat like they were involved in a denomination and denominational practices. Over the last three years in the change of the church, we have seen a diversity. Not only a diversity like we would see when we hear about the Israelites coming out of Egypt, but we've seen a diversity of individuals who are coming from various different denominations and walks of Christianity and joining the congregation and joining the community. And in doing that, we like to talk a little bit before we show up because a lot of people are like, what is this first fruits thing? What are you doing?
Like, what is this? So First Fruits is Resurrection Sunday. It is a remembrance of, of when the Marys went to the tomb, Mark's gospel says after the Sabbath, when they went to the tomb, they found out that Jesus wasn't there. Not only did they find out Jesus wasn't there, they found out that the Romans had gotten scared and left too. And so at that point they realized that a man who had given his life for all, who was the Christ, who was Mashiach, who was the anointed one, the sent one, there's a lot of definitions in English and all the different language that he had done exactly what he Said he was to do that.
Not only did he give his life, not only did he go into the tomb, but on the third day, he came out of the tomb, conquering the sin and death and the curse of sin and death. And so I've been doing the feast and the festivals roughly 20 years. Brent's been doing them at least since the 90s, right. Somewhere in there, Brent, like in the 90s, you've been doing them. Okay, so since the 90s.
So Brent's been doing them since, you know, at least 10, 15 years longer than I have. There's not a lot of emphasis in the feasts and the festivals on the first fruits. There's not. I believe that's for two reasons. One, we don't like talking about tithing.
We don't like talking about it at all. It's like, oh, you know, we can't talk about tithing. And the first fruits was a tithe, it was an offering, it was a gift, whatever terminology you want to use. It was something that you came and you brought to the storehouse for the Lord to acknowledge that the Lord is first overall, whether that's your finances or your mental health or whatever it is. But second, and that is, is that Messiah resurrected.
That kind of gets lumped in with Passover. It kind of gets lumped in with the other things. Guys, I gotta tell you, at this church, I've made no secret about it. This church isn't for everybody. I totally get that.
No one church should be for every one person. I will help you find a church. If this is not the church for you, I will not be angry. I will not be mad at this church. This church goes into resurrection, Sunday and first fruits, with the physical offering being number two.
And the fact that Jesus the Christ, the only one, Yeshua Hamashiach, resurrected out of the tomb, as Paul calls the first fruits of the dead. That is a pillar of this church. That is a pillar, foundational piece of this church, that Jesus the Christ is the Messiah. There is no other Messiah, and he is the fulfillment of the first fruits. Just like we talked about at Passover, him being the fulfillment as the Passover lamb.
Why do I put so much importance on this feast? It's because without Jesus coming out of that tomb, without the resurrection, we are in the same cycle, the same rote routine that our ancestors were. We've got our Pharisees, we've got our Sadducees out somewhere in Newcastle. We've got our Essenes. Sorry, Michael, I'm not talking about you.
You're not an Essene. But out in that general vicinity, we have the Essenes, we have the Romans, we have the Greeks, we have the Assyrians. And we're all just trying to every day put our foot in front of our foots and please and to bring offerings and blessings to the Lord. The moment Jesus goes into the tomb and comes out, everything changes. And that is a pillar of this church.
And so, yes, I understand. We have Sabbath today, We have Saturday church. We still have a message. I'm excited for what Brett and Brent has to do. Anytime Brent deviates off the course.
We've talked about it's normally gonna be really, really, really good. And so I'm very excited for what happened today. But today sets up a gathering tomorrow morning that is unlike any other. And we can argue over the dates, we can argue over the terminology, but in the end, if Jesus doesn't resurrect, we're all screwed. I'm sorry.
Brentbraicfamily.com I'm being honest with you. We can sugarcoat it. I can use eloquent words, but if Jesus doesn't come out of that grave, we are still under the law of sin and death. We are still under the bondage and the curses of sin and death. We still don't have a way back to the Father and we are still in that endless cycle.
It changes everything.
So I would rather you keep your first fruit offering of your financial tithe tomorrow and come and praise Jesus because in the end that we can do without your tithes. Because Jesus is on the throne of this church and he is the pillar and his teachings are the pillar of this church. And I will never ever apologize for it. I will never defend it. It is the first fruits of all creation.
Yeshua Hamashiach and so for those of you who didn't know what was happening tomorrow, for those of you who are planning on being there at 8am in the park, don't do that. It's going to be miserable. You are not going to be rejoicing at all. It's going to be rainy, it's going to be cold. Nobody else will be there.
You'll be all alone. But at 9:30, I mean, Jesus will be there with you, but you'll still be rainy and cold and you might be mad at Jesus. At 9:30 tomorrow. It's on our Facebook page. We changed it on our website.
We're gonna gather at the Countdown Event center for our first fruits gathering. I asked tonight go to sleep as early as you need to go to sleep. I'm a 9 o'clocker. Go to sleep as early as you need to. Because when we come together tomorrow, we are going to praise Jesus, we are going to extol Jesus, we are going to give all the adoration and the glory to Jesus, and we are going to remember the greatest sacrifice and the greatest gift that could ever be offered from the dawn of time till the end of time.
Thank you.
You got.
So to recap, we all know what time to send Chris a text tonight, 9:05. He needs to know you're thinking about the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. Okay. I'm just saying.
Well, we've got to dive into this fast because, you know, the funny thing is, the scripture I want to talk to you about today is the feeding of the 5,000 where Jesus took a little and expanded it and wow, do I need that miracle right now because I have one bar and I thought my laptop had charged. It had not. So we're going to jump in real fast. Here we go. Let's just pray.
Father in heaven, we love you so much. We're thankful for being here. Have your way within us. And all God's people said amen. This is a kingdom day.
Amen. Why? Because we've taken the whole week, Passover, unleavened bread, and tomorrow, first fruits to celebrate and to commemorate the redemption and salvation that is ours. But we sometimes forget that that celebration could only come about because of the warfare that took place leading up to it. When the Germans were finally defeated and surrendered, the world celebrated V Day, or V E Day.
Victory in Europe, May 8, 1945. But there could never have been a V Day if there wasn't first, a D Day. Every great victory comes after that day. June 6, 1944, is known as D Day. But it might surprise you to know that not everybody knows what that means.
Not everybody agrees what the D stands for. Some say it means Disembarkation Day. That's a mouthful. I mean, for the men on those. Those troop carriers that were getting ready to offload there at Normandy Beach, I just have a hard time thinking that they looked at each other and said, well, this is Disembarkation Day.
It meant a whole lot more. But some say that's where it comes from. Others say that the D in D Day stands for the Decision Day, the day the rest of the world had had enough of the Nazis. Tomorrow the world will celebrate the victory of the empty tomb, celebrate our greatest victory. But today, we are still in the feast of Unleavened.
Bread today, Yeshua is still in the tomb this morning. Guys, I want to talk to you about this. We're breaking away from the Sermon on the Mount, but this is the Torah of the Kingdom, the Bread of Life. Now, it may seem like a strange introduction for a message during the Feast of Unleavened Bread, but in truth, this day is. The day is part of the D day that sets up the celebration of Victory Day tomorrow.
When we think of Jesus as the bread of Life, it's impossible to not think about the feeding of the 5,000 because Passover was drawing near and Jesus was about to do something with bread that would change everything. This morning, as we consider Jesus as the Bread of Life, there are two things I want you to keep in mind. Spiritual warfare and spiritual welfare. Because both of these terms relate to what we are celebrating today during unleavened Bread and tomorrow when we come together to celebrate the Feast of First Fruits. I want to start this morning by talking to you about spiritual warfare.
Let's go back and remember Genesis 37:13 where this story all began. The Jewish ages say that the story of redemption began in Genesis 37:13, when Jacob sent Joseph to find his brothers. Man, I love that. I love sharing that. At every Passover Seder, I get to lead.
Because according to the Jewish sages, the story of redemption, the fight for humanity began when a father sent his son to find his lost brothers. And Jewish tradition adds to bring them bread. You know, we like to talk about redemption, we like to talk about being saved, but we forget about the fight that it took for it to happen. The story begins with Joseph being sold into slavery. And after being thrown in prison for crimes he had not committed, he is delivered by God and ends up as the Viceroy of all Egypt because of his ability to interpret dreams.
After seven years of plenty and planning ahead, they were followed by seven years of famine. But because of Joseph, because of God's leading in Joseph's life, Egypt was ready to survive. And so was the world because of one man.
But then a pharaoh arose that knew not Joseph. Joseph's season as viceroy ended. He became an old man and went to retirement. Even maybe had already passed away. For sure, he had passed away.
And the new kingdom conflict begins. A conflict when a kingdom rose up against God's people. And this is what I want you to understand about that kingdom conflict. It did not start with an invading force. The children of Israel were in Egypt by invitation of the Pharaoh himself.
When he told Joseph to go and bring his family into Egypt but now, years later, the place that had been a place of safety, a place of provision, a place of respite, is now turned around into a place of warfare. Because this Pharaoh is now going to turn against them. And that is a lesson that we need to remember today. Warfare, spiritual warfare, isn't always an attack from an enemy on the outside trying to get in. It can come in a place where you thought you were safe.
It can come in a place where you once fled for safety. And it can come even at the hands of people you used to trust say, wow, Brent, this is not exactly the happy, feel good message I saw today. No, because during the feast of unleavened bread, Jesus is fighting for us. He is in that grave because he is battling for us. The very people had once welcomed Israel now is enslaving them.
It's funny how history repeats itself.
Sadly, it is something that the Jewish people, even in this nation, are going through again. Right now, if you were to go to New York harbor, you'll see the very famous Statue of Liberty. And at the base of that statue, there is a poem written by a woman named Emma LAZARUS. And in 1883, she wrote these words. Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these the homeless tempest tossed to me. I lift up lamp, my lamp beside the golden door. What motivated Emma Lazarus to write that, to plea for people to come? You see, Emma Lazarus was a Jewish immigrant, and she was writing about all of the pogroms and all the persecution, all those places where the Jewish people had once felt welcome had once prospered in their cities. The Jewish people in many of the cities of Europe were doctors and lawyers.
In fact, they thought because of the prestigious positions they held, they would be safe. But the place that felt like a place of safety suddenly started feeling like a place of abuse. Who would have ever thought that Jewish people would have to feel unsafe in, of all places, New York City? But that's what happens when a place that used to be safe turns on you. And when that happens, you better know there's some spiritual warfare going on.
What we read about in Exodus is a spiritual warfare. It's a battle of kingdoms, but not just armies of ideologies. God sends Moses, a man whose name means born over, drown out of water, to lead God's kingdom people out of Egypt through the water, out of a land whose Hebrew name is Mitsrayim, which one of the translations or one of the definitions means tribulations. God sends ten judgments upon the idols of Egypt. Ten plagues on the things that the Egyptians worshiped.
Why? To show them those things aren't God? Folks, that's spiritual warfare. When we come to the season of Passover, we are talking about the time when God went to war on behalf of his people. And he went to war not against the Egyptians.
He went to war against the false idols and ideologies that had enslaved them as well. He brought them to their knees as one by one he judged those, used those things to expose. I mean, I can't even imagine having grown up as an Egyptian, believing in Ra, the sun God, while you're sitting there in three days of darkness, gnashing your teeth in a darkness that is so thick it is tangible. Where is Ra?
Well, like tomorrow, he's probably not going to be seen.
One by one, the Lord brings them down. Why? Because he's fighting for his people. And when God wanted them to remember and to declare that there was one God who delivered them and to remember that moment, how did he tell them to do it? Eat unleavened bread.
Wait, what? Eating a piece of unleavened bread is somehow supposed to connect me to all of those judgments of the false gods and ideas? Yes. Eating that bread is somehow to take you back to that moment when God was warring for his people. You see, Passover is the remembrance not just of a physical enemy, but a spiritual enemy that it set itself against God's people.
Unleavened bread reminds us of how sinfulness was overcome by sinlessness and how righteousness overcame selfishness. All of this was to be remembered and commemorated by the eating of the kingdom bread, the unleavened bread of Christ.
When Jesus preached about was D day, it was a decision time. It was a time when he was going to invite people to see who he was. You see, he didn't just come to fight the spiritual war. He also came because of our spiritual welfare. Israel crosses over the Red Sea on the very day that will be commemorated tomorrow as the Feast of First Fruits.
When they move from death to life, from bondage to freedom, that is the day Yeshua comes forth from the grave. Once they are out of Egypt and in the wilderness, a whole new battle emerges. The battle for faith. To trust the one who delivered them will also be the one who will provide for them. It's no longer about the enemy at the gate.
It's the enemy within my own needs, my own beliefs, my own battle with my flesh. And how does God win that war? He proves himself to be the good heavenly Father, he has always been by giving them daily bread, manna. Every day they would wake up and there would be bread or this substance out on the ground. And the first day they walked out and they saw it, they went, mana, what is this?
That's what manna means. What is this? I mean, you could get caught in a loop. Manna. What is it exactly?
No, really, Manna. What is it? Uh huh. That's what manna is. What?
What is it? I the test was to see if they would trust him for their daily bread. You see, when God knew he had to, he had. God knew he had chosen them. The question was, would they choose him?
Would they trust him? But here's what's funny. They didn't even know what it was. In fact, they never even gave it a name for what it was. They just left the question as the name Mana.
In Hebrew we say, mazeh, what is this? They said, mana, what is it?
That's what made manna a test and spiritual warfare. Because the question is simply this, Will what we don't know keep us from trusting the Lord with what we do know?
I mean, they could have walked out of there and said, hey, I don't know what that is. I don't have a definition for that. I don't know the origin story of that. Well, you know who brought you out of Egypt? Trust him.
This is intense spiritual warfare trying to get us to undermine the spiritual welfare that God has provided when he said, eat. So how did he test them? With daily bread. You can't think of Passover and unleavened bread and first fruits without thinking about John, chapter six. Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was near.
Therefore, Jesus, lifting up his eyes, seeing a large crowd was coming to him, said to Philip, where are we going to buy bread so that all these may eat? He was saying this to test him.
Well, that's unprecedented. No, it's not. In fact, just about every time God wants to test us, there's probably going to be bread involved. Where are we to buy bread so that these may eat this? He was saying to test them, for he himself knew what he was intending to do.
Philip answered, 200 denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them for everyone to receive even a little. One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said him, there is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these for so many? And Jesus said, have them sit down. Now there was much grass in the place, so the men sat down and number about 5,000. And Jesus took the loaves, and having given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated.
Likewise also the fish as much as they wanted. He was showing himself as the bread provider. When they were filled, he said to the disciples, gather up the leftovers so that nothing will be lost. So they gathered them up and filled 12 baskets with 12 baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves that were left over that had been eaten.
This is an amazing prophetic moment. The second part is when he says, gather them up so that nothing will be lost. 12 baskets. You can't help but think of the 12 tribes of Israel. These 12 baskets are a prophetic testimony.
I want you to think about that. 12 baskets of bread are a prophetic testimony that God is going to continue to fight for for his people, that God is going to continue to gather them up, and that nothing will be lost that is truly his.
When they found out, or, excuse me, he ends up going across the lake and it says, when they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, rabbi, when did you get here? And Jesus answered them and said, truly, truly, I say to you, you seek me not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. Do not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him the Father God has set his seal. Notice that Jesus is now equating his own life with the bread sent from heaven.
In fact, that's one of the main themes of the Gospel of John. Therefore they said to him, what shall we do that we may do the works of God? How many of you would like to know what you're supposed to do to do the works of God? It's a pretty decent question, isn't it, if it only been asked in sincerity. Jesus said to them, this is the work of God that you believe in him who he has sent.
Are we saved by works? Yes.
Turn to your neighbor and go, oh, he got me.
This is the work of God that you believe in, the One whom He sent. Can you be saved if you don't do that work? No.
So we're saved by works.
Please don't make that a meme.
One of those groups out. I'll end up on the Holy. Nope. Have you seen that? Because that's all he'll see.
He'll go, nope, we're saved by this one work believing in the One whom He sent. Now, folks, I just want to stress, how important is that? What could Jesus have answered? Well, make sure you celebrate on all the right days. Make sure you pronounce my name in all the correct Hebrew phonics.
Make sure you know all the traditions. And no, this is what saves you. Believe in the one whom God has sent. Because if you don't believe in him, you don't believe in God. Because God is the one giving the testimony of who Yeshua is.
So they said to him, what do you do for a sign so that we may see and believe you?
I'm pretty sure they probably were the ones that ate some of that bread and fish, like Jesus. What else can you do?
Our fathers ate manna in the wilderness. We don't know what it means, but he gave them bread out of heaven to eat. Jesus said to them, truly, truly, I say to you, it is not Mosheh who has given you the bread out of heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread out of heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven and gives life to the world. And they said to him, lord, always give us this bread.
He's not. They're not getting it. Manna. Well, what is that Bread? What is it?
And Jesus saying, it's me. I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will not hunger, and he who believes in me will never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen me, yet you do not believe. All that the Father gives me will come to me.
And the one who comes to me I will certainly not cast out. For I have come down from heaven not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me. This is the will of him who sent me. Of all that he has given me, I lose nothing but raise it up in the last day. How many of you want to be one of those remnants in those baskets?
How many of you want to be the one of those ones that he does not lose? Believe in the one whom he has sent for the will of my Father. This is the will of my Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in him will have eternal life. And I myself will raise him up on the last day.
Someone comes knocking on your door. Will Jesus never claim to be God? Really? I myself will raise him up on the last day. How many of you can do that?
How many of you can create life from nothing?
Therefore, the Jews were grumbling about him because he said, I am the bread that came down out of heaven. Friends, this is spiritual warfare. This is D Day. That scripture goes on to describe how many stop following him because of that teaching and some other teaching he shares that day. Why?
Because they didn't like what he was saying and they didn't like what he said.
They wanted to argue over the meaning of words. And we're still doing it today. Now I want you to know how heavy my heart is right now and how much I've been seeking the Lord all morning. Lord, don't let me be. Don't let me come across mean or negative.
How do I know it's still happening today? Because there are people who turn this year, this season of the year and also the month of December into the very thing Yeshua warned us to not do. Even though Jesus warned us about the leaven of the Pharisees, even though the Apostle Paul told us to get rid of the old leaven when he wrote, for Christ, our Passover has been sacrificed.
Therefore let us celebrate the feast not with the old leaven, the leaven of the Pharisees, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. I don't know why it surprises me that this time of year becomes a spiritual battleground because it is a season of spiritual warfare. But every year at this season when we are to get rid of the leaven, instead we gorge ourselves on what we want people to focus on.
Facebook is flooded with memes and posts of those who claim they want the focus to be on Jesus, but spend all their time casting aspersions at other believers for not focusing on what they want them to focus on. The definition of words of uncertain origin, kind of like anti mana. And it leaves me utterly flustered looking at the screen, wondering what is this? Because this isn't the fruit of righteousness they want it to be.
They want it to be on getting rid of the word Easter because they think that is what is of first importance. To make sure everybody knows they think that Word is pagan, that they want to go online and argue about the origin story of a word when we're supposed to be celebrating the the death, burial and resurrection and ascension of the Word of God. First Corinthians, Paul says, for I delivered to you as a first importance what I also received. That Christ died for our sins according to scriptures and that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to Scripture and he appeared to Peter, then to the 12. After that he appeared to more than 500 brethren.
First importance was all that the sent bread from heaven had done for them by living, dying and rising again. But every year what becomes painfully clear is that is not as what is not of what is first importance. For many people, they want to correct, criticize, admonish, accuse.
It's literally the leaven of the Pharisees. The leaven of the Pharisees always includes taking what is minor and making it the major. Don't believe me? Go read Matthew 23 every time if you want to know what the leaven of the Pharisees is. When you get involved in something and a believer just cannot let this one thing go, and they will, they will disown you, they will disfellowship you, they will discourage you and they will come into your celebration and ruin it for you.
That's the leaven of the Pharisees. You know how I know? Because they can't stop themselves. I can stop anytime I want. Good, then stop.
Here's a challenge. Determine right now that when next season comes around, you will not post, respond or share any meme about anything other than how great Yeshua is, because that's of what's first importance. If it wasn't, they wouldn't focus on what is. If it was. If this wasn't of first importance, them, they would focus on what is.
If that wasn't what was first important to them, they would be able to stop. And I'm just going to be honest with you. This is what kills me every season that there are those who put things out there. This is spiritual warfare. And they sincerely think they're trying to help you and they want you to sincerely understand that they are sincere in what they're doing, while at the same time judging the sincerity of their brothers and sisters in Christ who will gather tomorrow who may not share the same definition of the word Easter that you do.
I'm gonna have to re watch that one to see what I said. Even though they're sowing leaven and dissension in a season that's supposed to singularly be focused on Christ, even though they're doing what Christ and the apostles told us not to do. And then the funny thing is they don't want anybody, they want everybody to understand their sincerity for what they're doing. Even though the Bible explicitly decries and tells them to not do. But then they turn around and they judge their Christian brothers and sisters.
Right now, I mean, not in this very moment, I'm in the process of writing a thesis, an 11 year process to get a master's degree, and I'm Writing it on the death or on the meaning of the word Shiloh. You know, Genesis 49, 10, when Jacob blesses Judah, and he says, the scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the staff from between the ruler's feet, until Shiloh comes, and to him shall be the obedience of the nations. You know, it's really very easy to write a paper on this. As far as getting resources. Do you know why?
Because everybody agrees that Shiloh is about the Messiah, but nobody knows what the word means. In fact, Judaism has 11 different definitions because they have 11 different possible origin stories of one word. Can you imagine showing up to do Passover with someone next year? And if you come to my house, I'm gonna stop you at the door and say, first of all, could you pronounce this word for me? Oh, that's Shiloh.
You're out. The Hebrew word is Shiloh. Oh, my goodness. I can't. I can't sup with you.
Can you imagine over the pronunciation of a word? The next person comes to my door and I. Would you please answer this question? What is the correct definition or origin of the name Shiloh? Oh, I'm sorry.
You chose the wrong one. You're out. Does that sound insane? It should. That we would take.
Listen, and don't you walk out of here and tell people I told you, you have to like the word Easter. I don't care if you hate the word Easter. I don't care if you think it's a completely pagan word. What I care about is you don't act like a pagan trying to talk to people about it.
Ow.
We know our English word Easter is of Germanic origin. But in Matthew, if you go to a German Bible, in the verse that talks about them going after the Sabbath, the German word is Erstein.
That sounds familiar. Just means first. In Luke, Erstin, same word. And both of them just mean the first.
What if the origin story is not what you thought the origin story was, but you turn this season that is supposed to be. This is spiritual warfare. What I hope you understand is I'm trying to protect. Protect the unity of the body, that we don't destroy one another, that we don't isolate ourselves from one another over the definition of a word we don't really know the origin of. And if there are multiple origin stories of this word, how can you use it to judge your brothers and sisters?
How many of you are really happy about the price of eggs?
Can I get a. Everybody said, uh, you know, I've been thinking about this. Maybe the price of eggs in America right now is like a heavenly parable because too many people are willing to pay too high a price because of eggs. Now don't go away from here and say, Brent likes Easter eggs. Brent doesn't.
But don't go away and tell someone, pass judgment on someone and say they're pagan because they have eggs in their celebration when most of us have eggs on our Passover table.
And guess what? The Jewish people don't know the origin story of how it got there. I don't know how eggs got into the celebration of the resurrection. And quite honestly, I wish it'd go away because of the culturalism. But I'm not going to call somebody a pagan because if I'm going to do that, then I have to call all of you people.
I'm not going to do it. I actually thought about asking you to raise your hand if you had an egg so that I could just condemn you right here and be done with it. It's Shiloh.
I'm not saying that none of these discussions don't have any kind of merit as we seek to know the truth. But we're supposed to be focused during. This is the feast of unleavened bread. This is when our Savior is in the tomb. He has died because of our pettiness.
It is not a season for us to be petty and be self righteous and turn our righteousness into paganism by taking a pen, a play out of the page of the Pharisees. Do you understand my heart? Don't leave here and say, oh, Brent's a pagan. He. Well, you can say whatever you want.
I don't care anymore.
There are people in my church that will go hunt eggs, and there's people in this church that have eggs on their seder plate. So I'm just around a bunch of pagans.
Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate manna in the wilderness and they died. This is the bread which comes down out of heaven so that. No.
So that the one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down out of heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread which I also give for the life of the world is my flesh. Then the Jews begin to argue with one another, saying, how can this man give us his flesh to eat?
So Jesus said, truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat of the flesh of the Son of Man and drink of his blood, you have no life. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life. And I will raise him up on the last day. Can anybody cheer if you partake of the Passover, our Passover, he says, I will raise you up on the last day. For my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink.
He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him, as the living Father sent me. And I live because of the Father. So he who eats me also lives because of me. This is the bread which came down out of heaven, not as the fathers ate and die. He who eats this bread will live forever.
Amen. That is what is of first importance. That is the origin story of the Word that we should be focused on. Worship team, you can come back before I get stoned.
You see our bread's origin story? I mean, why use bread in the first place? Everybody looking up here, it's because the origin story of bread begins when a seed, a kernel is buried in the earth, and you wait for it. Like the disciples had to wait for three days. The farmer hopes and he believes that it's going to come forth.
Why? Because he understands the spiritual rule that a seed that is buried will come forth and bring forth life.
Jesus told the parable of the wheat and the tares. And he told him, not everything that's planted was planted by my Father. The tares is a specific kind of plant. And Jesus used this word because it's a type of plant that looks just like the wheat. It can grow right up in the midst of the wheat, and you don't even realize it until it flowers, until it buds, until it's ready to bring forth its fruit.
What did Jesus tell us? What did Paul tell us? By your fruit, they will know you.
This is a season of unleavened bread, when we're supposed to be considering what's going on in our hearts and our lives, not what's going on on somebody else's plate. This is a season when we remember that he left heaven to fight for me.
I didn't deserve that.
I didn't win him over. You didn't win him over. He didn't look at you and say, oh, wow, those people are so good. I mean, they deserve for me to be saved. No, the only thing you deserve is to be loved by God because you're a child of God.
But he came. This is a season that he was fighting for you. It's not a season for us to be fighting each other. Do you hear my heart? Do you understand what I'm saying same.
It's a season to be solely and singularly focused on who Jesus is as the bread of life. Because when they buried him as the seed that was promised, he came forth as the first fruits of the resurrection.
And I don't care what you call it, Easter, first fruits, resurrection day, I just hope you know who he is. He is the bread of life. This is a season of spiritual warfare. You say, well, Brent, you know, why would you, why would you say, preach a message that's kind of heavy and kind of hard? Because this is the last day of unleavened bread for this year.
It's the last chance to get it right. And church, I want to say to you, you need to know there are other Hebraic friendly, Torah friendly congregations and even Christian churches that are watching us. They're listening to us.
What are they hearing?
If they listen? If they went to your Facebook post, what would they know about Yeshua? What would they know about what is the first importance for you?
I come to you today because first fruits is tomorrow. And I want all of us to go there with clean hands and a clean heart. Because what did Paul say when he says, when you're handling the unleavened bread and you're handling the fruit of the vine, these elements of Christ's body, that we are to search our hearts, we're to think on Jesus, we're to think about who he is, and we're to make sure that there's no uncomely way, no unclean thought, nothing going on in our heart. And folks, this is why I want you to be clean tomorrow. Even if you've, you know, messed up, you've gotten in.
You know, I get it, everybody loves a good debate, but sometimes it's a price that's too. It's paying too much for eggs. The unity of my brothers and sisters, that I would say something or that I would do something that would harm the body of my Savior. There should be a check in my spirit. You watch what you say about them, Brent.
That's my bride. You watch how you, how you try to sincerely teach them. That's to my beloved. For as you have done to the least of these, you have done it unto me.
We must take back this season from the hands of those who want it to be about judging others and let it return to be a time when we judge our own hearts. We get the log out of our own eyes so that we can see Jesus, so we can see that stone rolled away, so that we can know There is another resurrection day coming. There is another first fruits coming. And they will send forth the angels. He will send forth the angels to gather them up like wheat.
Those who were buried with Christ and rose to be ready for the resurrection day. This is the Torah of the kingdom. Jesus is the bread of life. Let's worship him.