A Messianic Hanukkah

I attended a Messianic Hanukkah service tonight at South Canyon Baptist Church in Rapid City. It was very interesting and inspirational.

Hanukkah, also known as the "Feast of Dedication" or "Festival of Lights," is mentioned in the New Testament in John 10:22-30 when Jesus was in Jerusalem for the Festival.

Hanukkah means "dedication," and it commemorates a miracle at the time the Jewish Temple was cleansed and rededicated to God.

The story of Hanukkah takes place in the Second Century BC. Alexander the Great had conquered Judea along with pretty much all of the Middle East, and after his death in 323 BC his empire was divided into four parts among his generals--a fulfillment of the prophecy of Daniel 8:5-14.

After several years, Antiochus IV, ruler of the Syrian area, waged a campaign to erase the Jewish faith and replace it with Greek culture. In an act of unforgivable sacrilege, Antiochus sacrificed a pig to Zeus on the altar of the Jewish Temple. This led to what is known as the Maccabean Revolt, led by the Maccabeus family and Judas Maccabeus.

In a couple of miraculous and decisive battles (47,000 Greeks against 3,000 Jews, and the other with 65,000 Greeks against 10,000 Jews), the Syrian Greeks were defeated and the Jewish nation was free for a time.

After the victory, the Jews destroyed the desecrated altar and dedicated a new one on December 14, 164 BC. According to tradition, there was only enough sanctified oil to light the Temple menorah for one day, and it would take eight days to prepare more oil. But in the Hanukkah miracle, a single days' supply burned for eight days.

It was either during or near the Festival of Lights that Jesus declared, "I am the light of the world."

The service tonight included several Scripture readings, several songs, the lighting of the menorah, and a first-person telling of the Maccabean Revolt and Hanukkah miracle with Dr. Richard Wells, Senior Pastor of South Canyon Baptist Church, dressed in Old Testament garb as Judas Maccabeus telling the story.

Happy Hanukkah and Shalom!