I Was Just Thinking Ministries Podcast: Let’s Talk Hanukkah S1. Ep. 2

Season 1 Episode 2: “Let’s Talk Hanukkah”

 Episode Title: Hanukkah:  Cleansing and Rededication – A Believer’s Call to Action

Hosts

Rev. Dr. Sanette Fleming, President of I Was Just Thinking Ministries

Rev. Garritt Fleming, Chaplain and Co-host of I Was Just Thinking Ministries

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This conversation moves beyond history and asks deeper discipleship questions:

• Why does Hanukkah matter for followers of Yeshua today?
• How does Yeshua’s ministry teach us the importance of cleansing and rededication?
• How do I resist the urge to compromise and instead remain steadfast to Adonai?

This episode inspires listeners to put the meaning and intent of Hanukkah into action so that they might become vessels for the Ruach Elohim, Spirit of God.

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Key Themes Discussed

Warning Against Compromise
God commands us to hold fast to Him and not seek after the gods of other nations. Our heart is to belong to Him and no one and nothing else.

Cleansing and Dedication
Before any service of dedication could take place, the Temple needed to made clean first.

High Priest’s Cleansing of the Temple
The High Priest did the work of cleansing the temple. As High Priest, Yeshua cleansed the Temple in Jerusalem (John 2:14-16).

Hanukkah: the Feast of Light
Light returns to the Temple once it has been cleansed and dedicated. Yeshua cleans us (John 13:8) and calls us “the light of the world” (Matthew 5:14-16)

Why Christians Should Celebrate Hanukkah
Celebrating Hanukkah is not legalism but is an opportunity for us to rededicate our hearts to Yeshua. As we celebrate Hanukkah, we ask ourselves: What has defiled the Temple of my life? What needs to be cleansed? What needs to be rededicated?

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Scripture Highlights

• Deuteronomy 12:29–31 (TLV) “Do not inquire about their gods… You are not to act like this toward Adonai
• John 8:12 (TLV) — “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12)
• Matthew 5:14 (TLV) — “You are the light of the world.”
• Psalm 51:12 (TLV) — “Create in me a clean heart, O Lord. And renew a steadfast a right spirit within me.”

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Why This Episode Matters

Hanukkah moves us to take action, to make a stand:

• Just like Maccabee’s protected God’s physical Temple, we are to refuse to let our temples to become defiled by the patterns of the world.
• Hanukkah is an annual reminder to cleanse and rededicate.
• Yeshua’s celebration of Hanukkah cements its relevance and importance for the believer today.
• Today we have the opportunity to return to God and rededicate our lives to Him.

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Shalom, and thank you for listening. May you walk in His truth and peace.

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