“All my little plans and schemes, Lost like some forgotten dream, Seems like all I really was doing, Was waiting for you”.  In our lives, in Yahweh God’s created world we have made big plans and grandeur schemes.  To get rich, buy a big house, travel the world and live happy ever after.  Remember in school at age about 11 you were asked what do you want to be when you grow up.  Who do you want to marry, where live etc?  Big plans for us; but little in the bigger scheme of things, the world and God’s plans.  How many of ours did we accomplish?  How many of God’s did He accomplish?  Were we able to add one hair to our head.  I MEAN NATURAL HAIR!

Some of you are of age to remember the Milk Tray chocolate advert.  I won’t say of when to show our age; but for those of you who do not, It was of a man going through some endeavours of jumping from a moving convertible car while driving, onto and hanging on to the undercarriage of a passing helicopter, dropping from that into a lake, swimming to an island and finally climbing up the cliff to deliver a box of chocolate to the lady in the middle of the night to surprise her when she awakes. 

We hear and see ways of expressing love daily.  In song, gesture and gifts.  To friend or family.  Mother’s and Father’s days, pagan or not most Christians and the world take the effort to keep or make that specific date of importance and memorable to them. 

Wedding anniversaries, birthdays of child or adult are all marked in calendars not to be forgotten and to remind us to make and take time to search for that well thought of gift, wrap it up and deliver with a smile.  The biggest one which almost the whole world partake is Christmas.  Shops, streets and traffic are busy to crushing point.  Cash tills and online purchases soar.  Houses decorated and spill over even to the outside streets.  You have all seen it.  I want you to take 15 seconds to remind yourself of the imagery and YOUR and people’s time that goes into these dates and seasons.  Whether what used to be done or still is.  Birthdays, anniversaries, national holidays. 

I came across these song lyrics to do with love.  This one is titled “Real Love”

“All my little plans and schemes, Lost like some forgotten dream, Seems like all I really was doing, Was waiting for you”.  In our lives, in Yahweh God’s created world we have made big plans and grandeur schemes.  To get rich, buy a big house, travel the world and live happy ever after.  Remember in school at age about 11 you were asked what do you want to be when you grow up.  Who do you want to marry, where live etc?  Big plans for us; but little in the bigger scheme of things, the world and God’s plans.  How many of ours did we accomplish?  How many of God’s did He accomplish?  Were we able to add one hair to our head.  I MEAN NATURAL HAIR!

Were we able to add one inch of stature to our height?  I mean without the heels!

God was able to prophecy the coming of His Messiah to the “T” and accomplished it.  He spoke and it was formed.  In Isaiah 55:11  He says “So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it” and He proved it.  Maybe we should get Him to speak our future.

As the song says, most if not all those plans have been lost like a forgotten dream.  Even at job interviews we were asked and taught to have ready an answer to “where do you want to be or see yourself in five years time?  As if we are in full control of our destiny.  What was the motivation for all these plans?  Was it not to find happiness, love and contentment?  Who is the YOU in the lyrics “Seems like all I was really doing was waiting for you”?  The one that can deliver these things.  Agree! 

The next line of the song is “Just like little girls and boys, Playing with their little toys, Seems like all we really were doing Was waiting for love”.  What is love and can it be achieved without another person?  Is love not something one receives or feels.  All those gifts and efforts for the dates I mentioned above, were they not to let the receiver feel loved.  Is that feeling not one of peace, joy, contentment.  One of no worries or cares, at least for those moments. The same feeling little boys and girls get playing with their toys.  Especially a new one eagerly awaited or unexpectedly received. The reason for those Xmas etc toys.  What a feeling.  One that money can buy for some moments; but not one it can buy forever.  Seems like all our efforts in this world is really waiting for that permanent feeling of love from a person who can give it permanently.  Is it the same YOU that can deliver on disappointed dreams? 

“From this moment on I know, Exactly where my life will go. Seems that all I really was doing

Was waiting for love”.    The writer implies that finding love gives them direction.  Not direction of a general kind; but “exactly” where their life will go.  Why are we here?  I do not mean only in this room; but this precisely made world.  Have we decided where we want to go?  Have we accepted the destination?  If so and it is the same as the one where dreams of contentment, peace and joy comes to all.  Where  (Isa 11:6)  The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.  Then I strongly recommend finding the YOU that can give permanent love and follow their (His) instructions. 

“Thought I'd been in love before, But in my heart, I wanted more. Seems like all I really was doing

Was waiting for you”.   Hopefully most of us have experienced receiving love so that we have something with which to compare.  Whether as a child, parent, friend, husband or wife.  Some of those connections have passed, failed or other.  At the time we thought we were in love; but even in those times there may have been ups and downs when we wanted more.  It wasn’t the permanent high we envisaged.  It was as if at times the love left our hearts, leaving us wanting more.  For it to return, be mended or even never to have started.  We keep coming back to the YOU who gives without measure.  That even if there is a whole in our hearts where some of the love seeps out, there is never a void, gap or longing as sufficient love is always poured in if we open our hearts to repair and receive.  The Bible portrays a picture of a God full of love, that no other human can give another.  He is the faithful husband in Jeremiah.  The husband that will take back an unfaithful defiled wife in Hosea.  The faithful God in Isaiah.  Five times I found the phrase For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.  No matter how disobedient or often His child Israel departed from His ways He kept His promise that if they repented he would be there for them. 

“Oh, before you I was searching for a rarity Oh, you showed me things I'd never thought that I would see”.  Once the writer found that rarity, the thing for which they were searching; but never really thought they would find, they now have a real comparison of love.  Mat 13:44  Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.

Mat 13:45  Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls:  Mat 13:46  Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it. Mat 13:47  Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind: Mat 13:48  Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away.

There are many things and persons of the world we can and have loved; but if we have not yet, hopefully we will before we die find the ONE whose love we value the most and whose love surpasses all other loves.  If we think we have seen beauty, one day we hopefully will see things never even imagined.   Things out of this world that can only be seen in heaven. 

Some of the words to the chorus of the song is “Don't need to be alone, No need to be alone. Don't need to be afraid, No need to be afraid. It's real love, it's real.  Yes it's real love”.

These are all things the YOU mentioned above offers. 

Deu 4:31  (For the LORD thy God is a merciful God;) he will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which he sware unto them.  Deu 31:8  And the LORD, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.  1Sa 12:22  For the LORD will not forsake his people for his great name's sake: because it hath pleased the LORD to make you his people.  Psa 27:10  When my father and my mother forsake me, then the LORD will take me up.  Isa 42:16  And I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not; I will lead them in paths that they have not known: I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them.

Psa 23:4  Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.  Psa 27:1 The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? 

Those are some things God said to Israel.  If we become part of Israel we become part of the receivers of the promises to them.  The Messiah told His apostles He would always be with them and send a comforter to replace Him.  Again, if we become an apostle, obedient in conduct to His ways, we can also receiver the comforter. 

So what does this YOU we have been searching for offer?  What is this real love?

Dreams fulfilled.  Constant and permanent joy and peace. Surety in destination.  Incomparable love where no need to be alone, or afraid; but perfect shalom. 

Two more verses from a long promise to Israel is Isa 32:17  And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever. Isa 32:18  And my people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places; 

So why am I talking about love and asked the question how deep or real is yours for Yahweh God?  The God of the bible you follow?  Because I see many confessing love for God; but not showing it.  At least not in the way He wants.  To show someone love we give them something they want not what we want.  We are told not to be hearers of the Law of God; but doers.  I am sorry to have to use this verse.  No offence intended; but I think it is crucial and hope it stirs deep contemplation in you for the next points I am going to make.  As Pro 27:6  says “Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful”.

Mar 7:5  Then the Pharisees and scribes asked him, Why walk not thy disciples according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashen hands? Mar 7:6  He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.  Mar 7:7  Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. Mar 7:8  For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do. Mar 7:9  And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.

We have heard and read these next verses many times, yet have not changed our traditions.  Mat 7:21  Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Mat 7:22  Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? Mat 7:23  And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. 

We have read the real love God offers.  Claim to want it and the benefit of His promises; yet do not the deeds needed to receive.  Deeds which are really quite easy to do.  I recently got some cards for my birthday.  An extravagant one precisely made and gold worded one purchased from a shop and another not so precise one made by the hands of my daughter.  Which one do you think was more precious to me and probably would be to you too in similar circumstances?  My daughter’s.  But why?  As you see it has paint errors or blobs.  But it took time and effort to make.  A lot more time and thought than buying one off the shelf.  The words are also quite important.  Replaces pictures of loved ones where money used to be.  Those people are more valuable than money.  There is real love from both sides.  Effort in the time taken to make the card and get it right.  The person more important than money.

Well it should be the same with us and God.  He wants us to take the time to be with Him on the dates He prescribed.  Not our times of tradition or convenience; but His.  He has already done His part.  Replaced photos of us where His most valuable thing use to be.  Prepared a place for us in His wallet, heaven.  Like the paint errors on the card, He does not need perfection.  If he wanted that, He could have made robots as the other card is made by machines.  No love nor individualism, just mass production.  He accepts our flaws and falls as He did with David’s errors; because David was a man after His own heart.  He tried his best.  Kept the commandments of God even against his enemy Saul by not touching God’s anointed.

What does God require that we are not giving Him? Our time at His appointed times.  God wants our time not our tithes.  Time goes to Him.  Tithes to the priest for His ministry.  So what tradition am I referring?  That of not keeping His appointed times of Leviticus 23.  In three weeks is the start of God’s year as mentioned in Exodus 12:2.  This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you.  Neither did this calendar or time start with Israel or Moses.  We read in Gen 8:13 And it came to pass in the six hundredth and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, the waters were dried up from off the earth: and Noah removed the covering of the ark, and looked, and, behold, the face of the ground was dry. 

It would be good if more of you made the effort to switch to God’s calendar than man’s.  It is NOT the Jew’s calendar; but God’s.  They only follow it.  Just like Chinese food is not theirs, it is only food; but they are the primary ones to cook and eat it.  Exo 12:11  And thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the LORD'S passover. 

That year starts with the day of Passover and is immediately followed by seven days of Unleaven Bread.  Sometimes the whole eight days is called the Passover; but it is really two separate things.  Luk 22:1  Now the feast of unleavened bread drew nigh, which is called the Passover. God’s calendar is very easy to keep and there should be no excuse to those who say and really want to show their love for Him.  We do not have to buy, separate a lamb for 14 days, kill it etc etc.  Simply memorialise it as my daughter did with a card.  I do not mean we send cards; but we hold a memorial of the day.  Customarily this is a Passover meal in the evening.  I shall go more into that at the next session.  The reason I am informing you today is so you can prepare for it from now.  

The preparation you ought to do is that for the 7 days of Unleaven bread.  Clear you home of every food product with yeast or other rising agent.  Just like a spring clean; but of leaven products.  Meaning sweep, vacuum and clean cupboards, toasters and wherever you eat food of crumbs etc.  Do not buy or consume any leaven products for those 7 days whether at home or other places.  Do not do any paid work either paid or not.  That includes cooking at home, gardening and such.  It is a holy holiday to be enjoyed and spend some time with God.  Watch some Christian films etc.  Book the first and last days of the seven day period off work.  You even normally get paid for it as you can take it as annual holiday.  This year it is even easier as the days falls on a weekend.  Passover is sunset Friday 22 April to sunset Saturday when we shall be here on the Saturday.  That is not a no work day.  The 1^st Day Unleaven Bread is sunset Saturday to Sunset Sunday and the last at the end of the week from sunset Friday 29^th to sunset Saturday 30^th.  If any of you wish to come here for a special one off extra day from our schedule let me know we shall be showing some films and having some holy fun.  

I am sure if I had started the session asking for a show of hands who really and deeply loves God, all hands may have gone up.  Well, it is not me who needs to see; but God and the way you can show your hand is to change your life and calendar.  1Co 5:7  Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: 

Yahshua kept it as His Father instructed, as a memorial of the salvation he brought to them delivering them out of Egypt.  Let us also continue to keep it by memorialising both the day god brought His people out of the physical Egypt and the Messiah out us out of the spiritual one of the world’s calendar as far as spiritual matters are concerned.  No more to keep the pagan holidays; but from this year forth to keep Yahweh God’s holy days.  I am sure most have memorialise pagan holy days called holudays as Mother’s day, Easter etc.  How do you think God felt?  Was His heart joyful or sad.  Let us bring a sweet savour to Him with the renewing of our minds and lives. 

Passover was not only kept by birthright Israel; but anyone who wanted to be part of Israel.

Exo 12:43  And the LORD said unto Moses and Aaron, This is the ordinance of the passover: There shall no stranger eat thereof:   

Num9:6  And there were certain men, who were defiled by the dead body of a man, that they could not keep the passover on that day: and they came before Moses and before Aaron on that day:

Num_9:10  Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If any man of you or of your posterity shall be unclean by reason of a dead body, or be in a journey afar off, yet he shall keep the passover unto the LORD.

Num 9:2  They shall leave none of it unto the morning, nor break any bone of it: according to all the ordinances of the passover they shall keep it. Num 9:13  But the man that is clean, and is not in a journey, and forbeareth to keep the passover, even the same soul shall be cut off from among his people: because he brought not the offering of the LORD in his appointed season, that man shall bear his sin. Num 9:14  And if a stranger shall sojourn among you, and will keep the passover unto the LORD; according to the ordinance of the passover, and according to the manner thereof, so shall he do: ye shall have one ordinance, both for the stranger, and for him that was born in the land. 

When it says man, it means family.  Remember in Ex 12 if any woman had not kept it; but went out the tent on which was the blood, she would have been killed.  So you see it was a sin not to keep the Passover and God removed any excuse as unworthiness due to being unclean or on a journey.  That is how important it is.

Ok, to finish off.  Some more Bible verses to remind you of the benefit of making God the “YOU” for whom we should be searching.  We have found Him, let us be like those in the Messiah’s parables and put everything second to pleasing Him.  

Psa 34:8  O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. Psa 34:9  O fear the LORD, ye his saints: for there is no want to them that fear him.

Psa 119:103  How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth! Psa 119:104  Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way. Psa 119:105  Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. Psa 119:106  I have sworn, and I will perform it, that I will keep thy righteous judgements. 

1Pe 2:1  Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, 1Pe 2:2  As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: 1Pe 2:3  If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious. 1Pe 2:4  To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, 1Pe 2:5  Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.  1Pe 2:6  Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded. 1Pe 2:7  Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, 1Pe 2:8  And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed. 1Pe 2:9  But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light: 1Pe 2:10  Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy. 

Be part of His peculiar people and nation who keep His kingdoms calendar, laws and ways and in return inherit the blessings He promises to those people.  [Add scriptures about being cut off if not keep Passover or feast days.  It is a commandment of the covenant of Ex 24:7 show its keeping is commandment of God]. 

Shalom.