10 Days of Awe
2-12 October 2024
And Peter said to Him, "Lord, are You washing my feet?"
Jesus answered and said to him, "What I am doing you do not understand now, but you will know after this."
Peter said to Him, "You shall never wash my feet!"
Jesus answered him, "If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me."
John 13:6-8
Sections:
From Rosh HaShanah to Yom Kippur are 10 days. Known as the “Days of Awe,” they are a call to repentance in Hebraic tradition. As believers in Jesus, Yeshua, we know that Christ paid the ultimate sacrifice to redeem us from our sin. As days intensify, and pressures, challenges, wars and rumors of war are before us, we are calling a time for special focus on aligning with the Lord and consecrating our lives to Him. Repentance is not just a momentary confession, but a determination to change course for greater intimacy and obedience to the Lord. To face the challenges ahead, this is time to strengthen ourselves and one another. Underneath the tumult of this day is a God calling forth His bride. This is an invitation to draw closer to Him and to one another to answer that call.
From Rosh HaShanah to Yom Kippur are 10 days. Known as the “Days of Awe,” they are a call to repentance in Hebraic tradition. As believers in Jesus, Yeshua, we know that Christ paid the ultimate sacrifice to redeem us from our sin. As days intensify, and pressures, challenges, wars and rumors of war are before us, we are calling a time for special focus on aligning with the Lord and consecrating our lives to Him. Repentance is not just a momentary confession, but a determination to change course for greater intimacy and obedience to the Lord. To face the challenges ahead, this is time to strengthen ourselves and one another. Underneath the tumult of this day is a God calling forth His bride. This is an invitation to draw closer to Him and to one another to answer that call.
1). Personal Repentance: Pray for alignment with God and unity of the Spirit. This will require honest calibration of your spiritual life with the Lord. Paul exhorts the Corinthians and speaks to issues we all face: For I fear lest, when I come, I shall not find you such as I wish, and that I shall be found by you such as you do not wish; lest there be contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, backbitings, whisperings, conceits, tumults; lest, when I come again, my God will humble me among you, and I shall mourn for many who have sinned before and have not repented of the uncleanness, fornication, and lewdness which they have practiced. 2 Cor 12:20-21
- Psalm 32 is a great backbone and reference point for guiding meditation
- Be honest with yourself about your need for repentance v. 3-5, 9
- Acknowledge the danger of sin and its repercussions in your life and confess them to the Lord: v. 3-5
- Receive forgiveness: v. 5-6
- Turn whole-heartedly to the Lord as your comforter, guide, and protector; v. 5-8
- Claim the promises of forgiveness and its freedom, v. 1, 8, 10-11
- Acknowledge God and worship Him Ps. 103
- Additional promises of repentance in scriptures: Romans 6:1-19; 8:11, 28-29; 1 John 1:9
- Renew your mind daily
- Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
- 1 Peter 2:23-24 He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously; who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed.
- Isaiah 53:5-6 Smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
2). Interpersonal Repentance: Matthew warns us of the times we are presently in, “And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another,” Matthew 24:10. It is a vital time for Christians to strengthen one another in ways that lead to effective collaboration for His Kingdom.
- Take time to review if there is anyone with whom you hold an offense or have unforgiveness and take steps to resolve.
- Follow Matthew 18:15-18 protocol and repent of times when you have not followed it.
- The fruit of such endeavors leads you to the promises of Matthew 18:19-20
- “Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.
- Pray for your adversaries and those who have hurt you:
- Matthew 5:23-24 Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.
- Matthew 5:11 Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
- Step out to bless someone who has hurt you
- Matthew 5:43-45 You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven.
- Pursue and maintain your joy and peace in the midst of trials, accusations, and temptations. Remember, satan is the “accuser of the brethren,” Rev. 12:10. We are in times Jesus spoke of in Matthew 24:9-12 and warns of the times today: Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.
- John 14:27 Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
- Isaiah 55:12 Yes, you will go out with joy, you will be led forth in peace.
- Romans 14:19-20 Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another. Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food.
- Make efforts to encourage someone daily.
- Step out and connect with others: Hebrews 10:24-25 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another - and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
- See also Acts 2:46-47
- Value their giftings, particularly when expressed publicly: Romans 12:4-5 For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, each member belongs to all the others.
- Step out and connect with others: Hebrews 10:24-25 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another - and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
- Take time to reach out to your children/younger generation friends, to bless and encourage them.
- Malachi 4:5-6 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD. And he will turn The hearts of the fathers to the children, And the hearts of the children to their fathers, Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.
- Ps 71:18 Now also when I am old and grayheaded, O God, do not forsake me, Until I declare Your strength to this generation,Your power to everyone who is to come.
3). International relations: Though there are oceans of issues between people groups and nations, here are a few highlights that are very much on the horizon.
And make firm the feeble knees.
Say to those who are fearful-hearted,
"Be strong, do not fear!
Behold, your God will come with vengeance,
With the recompense of God;
He will come and save you."
Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,
And the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.
Then the lame shall leap like a deer,
And the tongue of the dumb sing.
For waters shall burst forth in the wilderness,
And streams in the desert.
The parched ground shall become a pool,
And the thirsty land springs of water;
In the habitation of jackals, where each lay,
There shall be grass with reeds and rushes.
- Pray for those in authority.
- For salvation for those in leadership who are lost in ideologies that oppose God.
- Isaiah 60:1-3 Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, And deep darkness the people; But the LORD will arise over you, And His glory will be seen upon you. The Gentiles shall come to your light, And kings to the brightness of your rising.
- For salvation for those in leadership who are lost in ideologies that oppose God.
- Pray for the strengthening of believers in leadership and authority
- 1 Timothy 2:1-2 Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
- Isaiah 35:3-7 Though this verse applies to Israel, it can be for all today re: harvest:
And make firm the feeble knees.
Say to those who are fearful-hearted,
"Be strong, do not fear!
Behold, your God will come with vengeance,
With the recompense of God;
He will come and save you."
Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,
And the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.
Then the lame shall leap like a deer,
And the tongue of the dumb sing.
For waters shall burst forth in the wilderness,
And streams in the desert.
The parched ground shall become a pool,
And the thirsty land springs of water;
In the habitation of jackals, where each lay,
There shall be grass with reeds and rushes.
- Pray for an awakening of the need for repentance, forgiveness, and reconciliation particularly amongst ancient animosities, i.e. Isaac and Ishmael, Esau, and other nations where ideologies have separated people groups, i.e. No. So. Korea, Myanmar, Vietnam,
- For ancient wounds of offense and rejection to be understood, revealed, and healed through the reality of Jesus.
- Heb 12:15-17 looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled; lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright. For you know that afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears.
- 2 Cor 5:19 That is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation.
- Isaiah 60:7 (Nebaioth and Kedar are the first born sons of Ishmael): All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together to you, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister to you; they shall ascend with acceptance on My altar, and I will glorify the house of My glory.
- For ancient wounds of offense and rejection to be understood, revealed, and healed through the reality of Jesus.
- Pray for truth to be revealed and recognized in days when deception is ramping from every corner and the eyes of the blind opened.
- Isaiah 35:3-7 (see above)
- John 3:31-32 Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."
- 1 John 5:20 And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us an understanding, that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.
- Pray for unity of the brethren and watchmen to strengthen hearts fully committed to Him and be the relentless watchmen of Isaiah 62:6-7. Unity for unity’s sake will not stand unless we are one in the Spirit of Christ and His Word. When this is achieved, compassion is released leading to true healing and not pacification with underlying division and wounds.
- 1 Cor 1:10 Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
- Eph 4:17-24 This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. But you have not so learned Christ, if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.
- Romans 14:19 Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another. Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food.
4). Pray for the Harvest: As times intensify, the door to the harvest is upon us. God desires none to perish in the heat of wars in the Middle East and elsewhere, His desire is that none perish. Interestingly, many of the scriptures that speak of Israel’s salvation are linked to the Gentiles as well. John 3:14-17 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
- Pray for salvation of Jews and Gentiles even in the darkest of times:
- Isaiah 60:1-3 Arise, shine! For your light has come! And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, And deep darkness the people; But the LORD will arise over you, And His glory will be seen upon you. The Gentiles shall come to your light,And kings to the brightness of your rising
- Isaiah 49:5-6 "And now the LORD says, Who formed Me from the womb to be His Servant, To bring Jacob back to Him, So that Israel is gathered to Him (For I shall be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, And My God shall be My strength), Indeed He says, 'It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant To raise up the tribes of Jacob, And to restore the preserved ones of Israel; I will also give You as a light to the Gentiles, That You should be My salvation to the ends of the earth.'"
- Simeon blesses baby Jesus: Luke 2:29-33 "Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, According to Your word; For my eyes have seen Your salvation Which You have prepared before the face of all peoples, A light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of Your people Israel." And Joseph and His mother marveled at those things which were spoken of Him.
- Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
- ! Cor 12:13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. For in fact the body is not one member but many.
- Pray for the fullness of the Gentile Church and salvation of Israel
- Romans 11:25-27 For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written:
- "The Deliverer will come out of Zion,
And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob;
For this is My covenant with them,
When I take away their sins."
- "The Deliverer will come out of Zion,
- Romans 11:25-27 For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written:
The Bible speaks of two significant times where the shofar is sounded by God Himself. The first time on Mount Sinai when God entered into covenant with Israel. The second time will be at the return of the Messiah. So Rosh Hashanah is a time for Christians and Jews to look to Heaven with anticipation for the return of Jesus – Yeshua – the Messiah, promised of God. (From "The Significance of the Days of Awe for Christians.")
For further reference: "The Significance of the Days of Awe for Christians"
For explanation and further meditation from the Al Chet preyer guide: "Exploring the Al Chet Prayer"
For explanation and further meditation from the Al Chet preyer guide: "Exploring the Al Chet Prayer"
