26 April 2010 (Shanee/Matzah)
Day #42, 5934 AM
Grafted In
Secret of the Eternal Bond
The famous Dutch painter Vincent van Gough once wrote:
"To me the book (Jules Michelet, L'Amour) has been both a revelation and a Gospel at the same time...And that man wife can be one, that is to say, one whole and not two halves, yes, I believe that too." (Vincent van Gough, Grange Books, Rochester, Kent: 2005, p.21).
Marriage is a sacred institution established by Yahweh and designed with the express purpose of every Adam gathering home his Eve from whom she was originally taken. Accordingly Yah'shua commanded:
"Therefore you shall be perfect (Heb. shlemim = complete - OJB), just as your Father in heaven is perfect (complete)" (Matt.5:48, NKJV).
Every believer is commanded to be perfect like Yahweh which means that every man is commanded to be shlemim, "complete" or "whole". This means, on the one hand, that every believer is to be complete in Yahweh's moral and character attributes through surrender, trusting and obedience to the commandments, and on the other, that every believer must be joined to source. Paul describes this process as grafting:
"I speak to you Gentiles; inasmuch as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, if by any means I may provoke to jealousy those who are my flesh (fellow Judahites) and save some of them. For if their being cast away is the reconciling of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? For if the firstfruit (bikkurim) is holy, the lump is also holy; and if the root is holy, so are the branches. And if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them, and with them became a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree, do not boast against the branches. But if you do boast, remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you. You will say then, 'Branches were broken off that I might be grafted in.' Well said. Because of unbelief they were broken off, and you stand by faith. Do not be haughty, but fear. For if Elohim did not spare the natural branches, He may not spare you either. Therefore consider the goodness and severity of Elohim: on those who fell, severity; but toward you, goodness, if you continue in His goodness. Otherwise you also will be cut off. And they also, if they do not continue in unbelief, will be grafted in, for Elohim is able to graft them in again. For if you were cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these, who are natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree? 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" (Rom.11:13-26, NKJV).
Yah'shua is the Olive Tree/Vine and we are the branches grafted into Him.
"I (Yah'shua) am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples" (John 15:5-8, NKJV).
Our entire life comes from Him and without Him we are nothing and have no permanence in the eternities and no place in Heaven. He has come to earth and laboured here, dying as our Cohen Gadol or High Priest after the Order of Melchizedek (Ps.110:4; Heb.5:6,10; 6:20; 7:11,17,21) for for our sins, in order to gather us and graft us in to Himself:
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! See! Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of Yahweh!'" (Matt.23:37-39, NKJV).
To reject Him is therefore folly for then we remain unprotected and unnourished. All husbands are in the same way seeking for their brides, and brides for their husbands, so that every Eve can be grafted back into Adam. How shall this happen? In the same way Adam and Eve were separated! As Yahweh took the rib (tsela = intimate companion) of Adam and fashioned Eve (Gen.2:21-22), giving Eve to Adam outwardly, so only Yahweh can take that same rib and graft it back into Adam. In other words, there is no permanent (eternal) marriage without Yahweh, which means there is no permanent marriage without husbands surrendering to, trusting and obeying Yah'shua the Bridegroom, or without wives surrendering to, trusting and obeying their husbands (1 Pet.3:1).
A woman may be directly grafted into Yah'shua and be saved, but when she is married, she is given by Yah'shua to the husband and grafted into Him, in the same way that Yahweh gave the Messianic Community or Church (Bride) to Yah'shua (Jn.16:15; Mt.28:18), giving Yah'shua all rights of ownership. For this reason both Old and New Covenant Israel were forbidden to marry unbelievers:
"Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness (torahlessness)? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Messiah with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of Elohim with idols? For you are the temple of the living Elohim. As Elohim has said:
"I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their Elohim, and they shall be My people."
"Therefore
"Come out from among them and be separate, says Yahweh. Do not touch what is unclean (unkosher), and I will receive you. I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says Yahweh-Elohim"
(2 Cor.6:14-18, NKJV).
A man in Yah'shua - submitted and obedient - is given all authority and ownership rights over his wife in the eternities because it is clearly understood that he will present her back to Yah'shua at the end of the age to see if he has been a worthy steward. And if he has not, she will be removed from him and given to another who has been true, his legal ownership over her expiring when he dies or should he commit adultery in life and not be forgiven (for lack of repentance). In the same way as Yahweh has given everything and everyone to Yah'shua, so Yah'shua shall return all to the Father and give account:
"Then comes the end, when He (Yah'shua) delivers the kingdom to Elohim the Father (Yahweh), when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power (demonic principalities and powers). For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet" (1 Cor 15:24-25, NKJV).
At this last day the validity of the eternal marriage covenant is judged - the covenant between Yah'shua and the Messianic Bride, and the covenants between every man-in-Messiah and every woman-in-Messiah. Yah'shua is worthy, this we know, so the covenant is valid and permanent, but are we, husbands and wives? So the question we must ask ourselves is this: To whom do I belong? And what fruits have I brought forth as evidence of the belonging? Let every man and woman answer for themselves and stand ready to be judged at the last day.
Further Reading
[1] Fruitfulness, Ownership and Multiplication - 3 part sermon series.
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