"Three times a year all your males shall appear before Yahweh your Elohim (God) in the place which He chooses: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Chag haMatzah), at the Feast of Weeks (shavu'ot), and at the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot); and they shall not appear before Yahweh empty-handed. Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of Yahweh your Elohim (God) which He has given you" (Deut.16:16-17, NKJV).

"Now when the Day of Pentecost (Shavu'ot, Feast of Weeks, Ekatost) had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Ruach haQodesh (Holy Spirit) and began to [supernaturally] speak with other languages ('tongues'), as the Ruach (Spirit) gave them utterance" (Acts 2:1-4. NKJV).

Chag sameach Shavu'ot kol beit Israel and Mishpachah and welcome to this divine moed or appointment of Yahweh in which we are commanded to gather as Messiah's people as Messianic Israel - His nation scattered throughout the earth. This is going to be a long but important message so stay with me. So important is this day that we are commanded to consciously and deliberately count off seven sabbaths plus 50 days, starting at Aviv 16, the festival of Yom haBikkurim, the Day of Firstfruits. Today is the only qadosh (holy, set-apart) day which is not a fixed day in the annual calendar like Aviv 14 for Pesach (Passover). Why? What is so special about this day?

We can, of course, start by taking a look at its history. What has happened on this particular day of note? Why do we commemorate it? And what do we expect from it every year? At the risk of offending those who think birthday celebration is pagan and forbidden by Yahweh, and that's the end of the discussion, the Torah nowhere commands or forbids it, incidentally - it's just something people have done from the beginning to mark time, and in the New Covenant, Paul speaks of celebrations like it falling under the umbrella of the freedom to observe non-religious days like wedding anniveraries, national independence days, etc.. Let me give you this illustration: when you, your family and your friends celebrate your birthday, what are you doing? If you're a believer, you are celebrating the day of your birth, and giving thanks to Yahweh for bringing you into the world to serve Him and build His Kingdom of Light in the midst of Darkness. You are thanking Him for preserving you year after year so that you may accomplish - or continue accomplishing - what you have been called to do. And it's important you do that with loved ones and friends - those you trust and can be at ease with. On the flip side, you could also say that the wicked celebrate, albeit unconsciously, their birthdays to rejoice that they have not been brought to judgment for yet another year, as King Herod did before he was struck with worms which ate him alive. Then there are all those who have no idea why they celebrate because they're just doing what the culture has always done. And when you're doing what the 'culture' does, you'll remember, you're doing things but invariably don't know why. You're just following the crowd like a blind sheep or choosing to ignore the truth and rebelling against Elohim (God).

At Shavu'ot we celebrate two things, as shown in today's two opening passages of Scripture. First, we celebrate the giving of the Torah or Law of Mitzvot (Commandments), the National Constitution of Israel, the lifestyle of Yahweh's people, and secondly, we celebrate the First Messianic Shavu'ot that Christendom calls 'Pentecost'. Let's start with the first.

Torah carefully outlines the principles we are to live by, the qadosh (holy, set-apart) days or moedeim we are to observe like Rosh Chodesh (New Moon Day) when each month of sabbaths is to be reset, the time when Israel consulted the nevi'im (prophets) for guidance on serious matters; then there's the Sabbath day of rest itself, the seven annual festivals (of which this is the fourth), the Sh'mittah or Sabbatical Year (every 7th year) and the Yovel or Jubilee Year (every 50th year). The Torah gives us our practical, spiritual, ethical, moral and social code for right behaviour God-ward and man-ward so that we may live in peace and happiness with Elohim (God) and with one another.

In other words, we are here first of all to celebrate the heaven-ordained lifestyle for Yah's people, as David frequently did in his psalms:

"I delight to do Your will, O my Elohim (God), and Your Torah (Law) is within my heart" (Ps.40:8, NKJV).

"Open my eyes, that I may see wondrous things from Your Torah (Law)" (Ps.119:18, NKJV).

"Oh, how I love Your Torah (Law)! It is my meditation all the day. You, through Your mitzvot (commandments), make me wiser than my enemies..." (Ps.119:97-98a, NKJV).

"Seven times a day I praise You, because of Your righteous judgments. Great shalom (peace) have those who love Your Torah (Law), and nothing causes them to stumble. Yahweh, I hope for Your yeshua (salvation), and I do Your mitzvot (commandments). My soul keeps Your testimonies, and I love them exceedingly. I keep Your precepts and Your testimonies, for all my ways are before You" (Ps.119:164-168, NKJV)

When Moses was given this Constitution for the Nation of Israel (a bit like the American Constitution or the Magna Carta of England), it was the second time this had happened in this history of the earth. I like to call it the 'Second Constitution' or 'Mosaic/Levitical/Aaronic Order' because it was re-established by Moses and administered or governed by a theocratic order of cohenim (priests), the descendants of the tribe of Levi in the genealogical line of Aaron, the brother of Moses. We know there was an earlier one before Moses, and though it is not detailed in the Bible, it is mentioned in passing as having been then Law and Doctrine followed by Abraham and his descendants until the time of Moses. It's theocratic order of cohenim (priests) was called the Melchizedek Priesthood which was not so much a 'national' priesthhod (because it didn't represent a static nation located in one geographic spot, because nothing like Israel existed at that time), but was structured around the mostly nomadic way of life of the patriarchs, though it did have a small temple or sanctuary that's been found by archaeologists in a place called Salem, that became the pagan Canaanite Jebus, which later became Jerusalem when David captured Jebus and initially renamed it the City of David). Whether there was more than one pre-Mosaic Constitution before Abraham and the Flood, I cannot say for sure because we're not told, though it was almost certainly Melchizedekian too.

So the first thing we are here to celebrate is the giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai and the specially designed Levitical Order whose purpose was dual. On the one hand, it was given for a static nation in the 'Promised' or 'Holy Land', a nation called to set an example for the other nations to emulate and follow. On the other hand, it was given to prepare that nation - and the world - for the first advent of the Messiah...which brings us to the second reason we celebrate Shavu'ot.

When the Messiah came, He would assume the dual rôle of both Navi (Prophet), as Moses was (though greater than Moses) as well as Cohen Gadol or High Priest, as Aaron had been, and He would do so permanently as an eternal High Priest and transform the Mosaic Constitution of Israel not only into a Melchizedek one once again but into an upgraded and complete Melchizedek Constitition - under both an entirely New Covenant and, in part, a Renewed Old Covenant, but minus the whole Levitical system of animal sacrifice and ministry. This we may call the 'Third Constitution' of not just 'Israel' but now of 'Messianic Israel' as Messiah is its Monarch or King as well as its Cohen Gadol (High Priest), National Navi (Prophet) and Redeemer/Savior/Deliverer. Everything has converged on the Person of Christ in the New Covenant and therefore Shavu'ot in this New Covenant has to be looked at in these new terms too. All our Torah-obedience proceeds out of our relationship with, and connection to, Yah'shua (Jesus) - He is not an 'add-on' to Torah as one or two misguided messianics think (not the majority of them). New Covenant Torah can only be lived out of the New Creation in Messiah!

As a visible sign as well as a new, present reality, something different happened on the first Messianic Shavu'ot. After He had been crucified, resurrected and had ascended to heaven, Yah'shua (Jesus) instructed His talmidim (disciples) to 'tarry' or remain behind in Jerusalem:

"I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay ('tarry' - NKJV, KJV) in the city [of Jerusalem] until you have been clothed with power from on high" (Luke 24:49, NIV).

Now I said earlier that this Messianic Covenant and Priesthood Order was both (and primarily) New but also Renewed. The Renewed part is the earlier moral and ethical law which remains in force, because Yahweh's morals and ethics do not change. Elohim (God) is "the same yesterday, today, and forever" (Heb.13:8, NKJV), and that means His character and in good part the morality that defines it. What is not transferred to the New Covenant is the old sacrificial or Levitical Temple system with its ceremonies and priesthood officials given charge of the religion of Israel - all that came to a permanent end in Messiah, including the outward sign of the Old Covenant which was circumcision. The sign of the New Covenant is water baptism or full immersion. Oh, and incidentally, both circumcision and animal sacrifice were a part of the first or pre-Mosaic Melchizedek Order too because Messiah had not then yet come to fulfil the types.

So that we have a clear mental picture as to what has happened historically, so you don't misread the Bible and misapply parts of old, defunct systems to today's New Covenant, you need to remember what historical covenants consisted of. So lets quickly summarise them:

• 1. The pre-Mosaic Melchizedek Order (that included circumcision and animal sacrifices) for an essentially nomadic/scattered people throughout various nations or city states and (later) empires where each family head was its family cohen (priest) with a human Cohen Gadol or High Priest based in Salem (at least latterly);

• 2. The preparatory Mosaic, Levitical or Aaronic Order for a settled nation-state, with a human Cohen Gadol or High Priest based in Jerusalem, Israel, the covenant established through Moses in the desert of Sinai and brought to fruition after the conquest of Canaan; and

• 3. The New Covenant Melchizedek Order for an essentially (for now) pre-Millennial momadic/scattered people throughout various nations and empires where Yah'shua (Jesus) is the Eternal Cohen Gadol (High Priest) in Heaven and each family head is a cohen (priest) of his family but now those family heads and their families are called to gather together or assemble at the divine moedim like Rosh Chodesh, Sabbath and the Seven Annual Festivals for fellowship and to cooperate in preaching the Gospel and building the Kingdom throughout the world and establishing new congregations, whether above ground in times of peace or underground in times of extreme persecution. There were other Covenants (making 12 in all - see The Babylonian Circus) but overall those were the three main ones.

Traditionally New Covenant Shavu'ot is known by the churches as 'Pentecost', named after the second 50-day count following the 7 week/sabbath count preceding it, which has in turn led to much confusion (see the Shavu'ot website for explanatory articles). The proper name, 'Shavu'ot', literally means 'Weeks' and is named for the first half of the count, the seven weeks of Sabbaths before the extra 50 day count. So you'll typically find nearly all messianics, who accept and implement most of the Torah, counting only 50 days from Yom haBikkurim instead of the 7 weeks (49 days rounded off to 50) plus 50 days because they think the two halves of the Omer Count (as it's called - Lev.23:15-16) are one and the same, when they're not.

Why does this count have two parts? Why (essentially) 50+50 (or 2x50) and not a straight ~100? 50 is the number of Jubilee or deliverance. It is the issue of 7x7 or 7², and points to deliverance and rest following on as the result of the perfect consummation of time. In case you're wondering how 7x7=49 can be '50', let me just explain to you that in Hebrew numerics a number can be prophetically significant if it's a larger number even if it is 1 too high or 1 too low. In other words, 49 and 51 may be regarded as '50' too in this prophetic system.

Why, you may legitimately ask? The reason is, in part, I suspect, because of the biblical Creation Calendar established by Yahweh the Creator, which has to take into account changes in the movements of the heavenly bodies over time because they're not constant. Whereas before there were always 30 days in 12 months, and not 31, or 28 and 29 in February) making for a 360-day year, today, because of altered orbits of heavenly bodies, there are 365¼ days in a solar year (actually 365 days + 5 hours + 48 minutes + 46 seconds), requiring that the calendar be adjusted annually to accomodate 'extra time'. But that's not all. The orbit of the moon is extremely complex and it's progressively getting further and further away from us too. The moon completes one revolution relative to the Vernal Equinox in about 27.32 days (a tropical or sidereal 'moonth' or 'month') but makes one revolution relative to the sun in about 39.53 days, which is just short of 30 days (a reason we have monthly Rosh Chodesh reset to make those adjustments). What's so brilliant about Yahweh's calendar is that is takes all of this into account in whatever your location may be and whatever the current orbits of the heavenly bodies may currently be.

It's also why we now have an extra 13th month to be inserted every few years. And this is all thanks to a cosmic catastrophe that took place in 705 BC, and perhaps other catastrophes from much earlier too. But that's another subject all of its own!

So the 'Weeks' of Shavu'ot are technically 49 days long, or would be but for the fact that extra days may be added or removed. You can read all about this in our Creation Calendar website. This is also a reason why those examining the 'days', 'months' and 'years' in various prophecies commonly miscalculate, like the weeks in Daniel, because they're either using the Roman Gregorian or Talmudic Jewish calendars, both of which are foreign to Scripture and cannot be used to calculate prophetic timelines.

Then you have orthodox Christians who don't do any Omer counting at all because they follow even less of the Torah. Instead, they count seven weeks after the rebranded pagan festival on 'Easter Sunday' (named for the pagan goddess 'Ishtar' or 'Astarte') and simply call their festival 'Pentecost'. 'Pente', in Greek, means '50'. Confusing, isn't it? Well, that's only because the Enemy is in the business of causing confusion in order to divide believers. (See the Quartodecimans).

Now I'm not saying orthodox Christians are 'wrong' to call Shavu'ot by the name of 'Pentecost', only that confusion often results because it's only half the story. 'Pentecost' is but an abbreviation, and humans are famous for (or lazy about) abbreviating things. We call bicycles 'bikes' or 'cycles', dropping the 'bi' (two) in the second case so someone learning English from a radically different language wouldn't know there was a 'two' or '2' in there, in this case, a 2-wheeled vehicle - 'two cycles' or 'circles'. A 'bicycle' is a 'two-circled' machine. I am sure you can think of dozens of examples. Who calls a 'pram' a 'perambulator' any more or a 'phone' a 'telephone apparatus'. We shorten words to save time. Strictly speaking Shavu'ot or 'Weeks' should be called Pente-pentecost' or 'Double Pentecost' because it's roughly 100 days long, a reason we have elected to call it Ekatost, eka being the Greek for a hundred. We strive for accuracy. What's the result of all the confusion at this time of year? Most Messianics and Christians observe the festival 50 days too early in the late spring or early summer when in truth it is a mid- to late-summer moed (appointment). Properly speaking, it's the one-and-only summer festival of Messianic Israel. If you want to know the scriptural and historical evdience for ~100 day long Omer Count, please check out our Shavu'ot website.

So today we commemorate the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai to the children of Israel through Moses both because it's a part of our history and because we highly prize the mitzvot (commandments) that were most definitely renewed in the New Covenant by the endorsement of Christ Himself and the apostles. "If you love Me," Yah'shua (Jesus) said, "keep My mitzvot (commandments)" (John 14:15, NKJV). Tragically, most Christians reject the Torah because of false teachings about its rôle in the New Covenant even though thay do submit to parts of it but in a more-or-less arbitrary fashion. Each denomination picks and chooses the rules it wants to follow and ignores the ones it doesn't like. The strange made-up 'rule' that they follow is that if an Old Covenant mitzvah (commandment) is spoken or and re-endorsed by the apostles (not Christ, but the apostles) in the New Testament, they will obey it, but if it isn't, they will ignore it. And, of course, they frequently disagree over which mitzvot or commandments are binding on New Testament believers.

For instance, 9 of the 10 mitzvot (commandments, Devarim = 'Words') are endorsed by the apostles and so they teach and (more often than not, though not always) obey these. But since the apostles never, as a rule, mention that the Sabbath needs to be obeyed (because it was taken for granted), most Christians either do not observe the Sabbath or label something else as the 'Sabbath', usually. I don't want to get into the Sabbath controversy today - you can study that out on our Sabbath website but mostly most Christians (on the one side) squabble with most Messianics and some 'sabbatarian' or '7th-day' Christians over whether the weekly holy day or rest day is 'Saturday' (Day of Saturn) or 'Sunday' (day of the Sun) when it's neither because both have lost Yahweh's original Creation Calendar. The real issue is this: where is a commandment issued anywhere in the New Testament saying that believers need only obey commandments specifically mentioned in the New Testament?

Let me give you another example. Ask a Protestant it it's OK for a man to marry his sister and they will vehemently deny that is allowed by pointing back to the Old Testament even though Christ and the apostles nowhere repeat the rule in the New Testament! But in doing that, they deny their own man-made Sola Scriptura (Scripture-Alone) rule (in reality, their 'New Testament-Alone Rule in this case) not to accept any Torah instruction that the New Testament doesn't specifically endorse. The Torah says a man may not marry his sister (e.g. Lev.20:17) or a very close relative. You see, deep down we know certain things are right and certain things are wrong but we can only know what Yahweh's mind on the matter of many such cases is by going back to the Torah itself. This response of the conscience in action - disgust at the thought of being intimate ones own sister or brother - is either evidence that the Torah has truly been written on the hearts of spiritually-regenerated Protestant believers as Jeremiah prophesied it would (Jer.31:31-34) or that they have been strongly conditioned by man-made tradition - in this case, Catholic, Eastern Orthodox and Protestant tradition which in this case happens to be totally correct. That's why we must resort to Scripture because feelings are not always a reliable judge of truth. So why don't born-again Christians obey the Torah supernaturally written on their hearts by the New Birth in all matters codified in Leviticus 20 and elsewhere? Because they willfully silence parts of their heart by clinging onto man-made traditions or they were never authentically born-again in the first place.

Most people prefer to follow traditions and feelings and prioretise them over the Davar (Word) of Truth (2 Cor.6:7; 2 Tim.2:15):

"Of His own will He brought us forth by the Davar Emet (Word of Truth), that we might be a kind of firstfruits (bikkurim) of His creatures" (James 1:18, NKJV).

Those who stop at Yom haBikkurim because they are lawless by choice in their hearts, when faced with the Torah that may contradict their feelings, are already inclined to reject it when it comes to making a head-choice too, born-again or not. In so choosing, they are unwriting the Torah written on their hearts by the New Birth and indeed have started rejecting the New Birth, the evidence for which starts appearing later when they start taking some very strange paths in their spiritual journey. Selective obedience to the mitzvot (commandments) is a sign that a believer is on the slippery slope to apostacy, however fast or slow that slide might be, as some are better at applying brakes than others, and maybe even back-pedalling for a bit. Given long enough, a whole community or church of backsliders eventually arrives at the spiritual condition that prevailed at the end of the reign of the Judges of Israel:

"In those days Israel had no king, so the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes" (Judg.21:25, NLT),

That's where the Body of Christ is headed right now and why apostacy gets worse and worse the longer no repentance is forthcoming and nothing is done about it. They become more restless and disagreeable, shifting the blame to those who are obedient because that is how the demonic always works. Yes, willful disobedience opens doors to the Enemy. You see, the same part of Torah that regulates marriage and sexual behaviour that says a man cannot marry his sister, to which Christians default because there's nothing said about this in the New Testament, close down spiritually when they read a man may have more than one wife, and instead default to their man-made traditions denying him that right. That's called hypocrisy. It's called being double-minded and the apostle James reminds us that "a double-minded man [is] unstable in all he does" (James 1:8, NIV) - unstable mentally, emotionally, and...theologically. It's why there are over 33,000 denominations and why they're growing by the day. In the end, if this continues, everyone will become their own denomination...and all because they reject the Torah. It's what happened to Israel more than once and finally led to destruction and disapora. This is why the formerly Christian West is tumbling at an ever faster pace into chaos and judgment.

Now I am not saying that there aren't issues in Torah interpretation amongst messianics (and indeed the Jews themselves) but the issue is usually another set of man-made traditions. But let me make this VERY IMPORTANT POINT - all those persons who were present on the first day of Messianic Shavu'ot (Weeks, Ekatost, 'Pentecost') who experienced tongues of fire supernaturally resting on their heads and who then began to supernaturally speak all the human languages of the visitors to Jerusalem, were all Torah-observers. And yes, I'm talking about the talmidim (disciples) of Yah'shua (Jesus). Not a single one of their company, who were baptised in fire, was not a Torah-observer. Think on that. They were't gentiles, they weren't whatever the equivalent back then might have been of a Protestant, Pentecostal, Charismatic, Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Mormon, Seventh-Day Adventist or Jehovah's Witness. Why not? Because all these are Torah-rejecting to one degree or another! Listen up! The true gift of 'tongues', sent by Yahweh on the very first Messianic Shavu'ot, what Christians call 'Pentecost', wasn't given to anyone who rejected the mitzvot (commandments)! The true Day of 'Pentecost' is all about Torah-obedient believers in Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus Christ) receiving an anointing from Heaven to seal the Torah on their hearts and to equip them for evangelism. All evangelists, in the fullest and proper sense of the word, are Torah-obedient followers of Christ. Are you getting that? In other words, Torah-obedience was the pre-existing condition of those Yah'shua/Jesus followers who were granted a supernatural outpouring of the Ruach (Spirit). It's undeniable. This is the foundation of true 'tongue-speaking'.

So now we know who the first tongue-speakers were (Torah-obedient Israelites) and so long as we know what tongues-speaking consisted of back then - it was not - and never was - speaking in gibberish. Never! It wasn't a so-called 'private supernatural prayer language' either. Tongues is speaking Mongolian, Russian, Turkish, Telagu, Cantonese, Quicha Indian or Swahili when you never learned these or other known languages the natural way in your life before. On the 'first day of Pentecost' or 'Messianic Shavu'ot', Yahweh caused those first talmidim (disciples) to speak in all the languages of the vistors from around the Roman Empire and outside it who had gathered to Jerusalem for the feast - and this is what we read about them:

"Utterly amazed, they asked: 'Are not all these men who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own native language? Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs - we hear them declaring the wonders of Elohim (God) in our own languages (tongues)!" (Acts 2:6-12, NIV).

And they started converting, didn't they, not just because these visitors heard their own languages being spoken fluently by peasants from Galilee (even though that undoubtedly grabbed their attention), but because they heard the Gospel being preached in their own languages! THAT'S WHAT TONGUES IS FOR - to hear the Gospel preached in your own native language. The goal is to hear the Gospel, not to speak in tongues. Tongues is but a vessel for witnessing, not something for selfish self-edification, not something to prophesy in when you can just as easily prophesy in your own language which is the language of your congregation.

I mean, it's insane, isn't it? I remember watching a video once of an American Pentecostalist preacher, who knew no Spanish, standing before a vast crowd of South Americans, preaching in English and having a local interpreter translate him into Spanish! That's back-to-front! If that Pentecostal truly had had the gift of tongues, he would have spoken in fluent Spanish, wouldn't he, not English, and got through his presentation twice as quickly and amazed any unbelievers present, persuading them to receive Christ?

I've given you other examples over the years. The Torah-obedient Messianic I knew about who went to Haïti to evangelise barely had any high school French, and the Haïtians don't in any case speak standard French but a kind of pigeon French called Creole. He started speaking in very broken high school French but no one really understood him. None of his hosts spoke English well enough to translate for him the natural way. So he stopped, prayed fervently, and for the first time in his life, never having received or experienced any of the charismatic mumbo-jumbo, started speaking in fluent Creole without ever being awaren of it until afterwards when the people approached him and said what had happened. The response of the audience was electric. Dozens were converted. And when they thanked him for speaking their language, he couldn't at first understand what had happened. He did not go there expecting to speak in tongues. True tongues-speakers never do that and not everyone receives the gift anyway, as Paul testified.

A English friend of mine went to communist China back in the 1970's when it was very dangerous to share the Gospel. He went to hand out Christian Bibles and tracts in Chinese. He didn't know a word of the language. He didn't even go there to preach. He went solo. Riding on a train in the middle of China one day he found himself alone in a compartment with a Chinaman sitting opposite him whom he felt strongly he should witness to, though he didn't know how, since English was little known back then. As soon as he opened his mouth he was speaking fluent Mandarin! He wasn't a Pentecostal or a Messianic, but a humble Anglican, and Anglicans, as you may know, are cessationists.

Now I'm not, of course, saying you have to be a born-again Torah-obedient Messianic in order to speak authentic tongues, because Yahweh uses whomsoever He will. One of you here experienced a Norwegian Pentecostal minister in Oslo years ago suddenly break out into a Chinese dialect who began to preach the gospel in that language for about half-an-hour, breaking off his sermon in Norwegian to do so, and resuming that once the Chinese message had been delivered. A single Chinese woman unbeliever, who knew no Norwegian, who had wandered into that congregation out of curiosity, broke down into tears and was converted. She got the basic gospel in her own language. Yahweh can, and does, use whoever is available and humble enough because authentic tongues only occurs when it is absolutely needed. It's not a gimmick to virtue-signal Spirit-baptism but an 'emergency package'.

We can, and must, absolutely get the basic gospel out but we cannot stop there. When gentiles first heard the Gospel at the preaching of Paul, they were pagans entirely ignorant of the Torah, save those who had converted out of the Jewish synagogues. When Paul went to Jerusalem to ask about the gentiles and the Torah, he was authorised to give them a 'starters' package', as it were, because it was not right to burden them with the whole Torah right at the beginning lest their testimony be crushed from under its weight. Like small children, we can only drink milk at first - the meat must come later during systematic discipling. And what was the starters' package for these new gentile converts? Listen up and ask me how many modern Christians are obeying these apostolic instructions:

• 1. Don't have anything to do with things polluted by being sacrificed to idols;
• 2. Don't engage in sexual immorality;
• 3. Don't eat animals that have been strangled; and
• 4. Don't eat blood (Ac.15:20,29).

How many Baptists or Pentecostals or Catholics do you know who drain the blood from their meat the way it is prescribed by the Torah kashrut Laws and as required by the apostles? The second instruction was to eat kosher food and the only way they would know how to do that was by studying the dietary laws in the Torah. Don't eat blood pudding or haggis as the Scots do, don't drink animal blood as many tribesman do in East Africa? Don't eat the meat of strangled animals - in other words, you must kill the animals you eat the Torah-way, out of kindness to the animals. That's a big chunk of Torah right there.

What about sexual immorality? Well, firstly, you have to know what sexual immorality is. It's not as the world defines or as nearly all the churches do. We've already seen that marrying your sister or brother is sexual immorality and that plural marriage isn't. The Torah says who you can have sex with and who you can't, and what kind of sex you can engage in and when not to. It says that to have sex you have to be married, and that means taking lifelong covenants of faithfulness to your spouse in the presence of witnesses who will hold you to account. The laws of sexual immorality are listed in great detail in the Pentateuch. Paul knew that's what the Jerusalem Council meant because they were all Torah-observers like himself, every one of them. How many modern young believers live a sexually chaste life before marriage, or even during it? From my knowledge of Evengelical Churches in Norway and Sweden, not many.

Finally, though it's first on the list, there's an instruction on the occult; specifically, to have nothing to do with anything offered to pagan idols and the demons who hide behind them. They would principally have been thinking about food offered to idols, which we were reminded of again not so long ago in Part IX our Book of Revelation Course (Rev.2:14,20) where we studied this in great detail so I don't need to go into it again today.

It's a huge leap transitioning from paganism to Christ and to His Torah and it has to be done step-wise. There's a lot to learn. The Jersualem Council understood this and gave four basic instructions which few Protstants, Catholics and Eastern Orthodox are observing today. And yet people go to these people who supposedly have spiritual authority? Seriously? Yes, there is grace in the days of ignorance, and Yahweh uses such people to be sure, but when these people hear the truth about Torah and reject it, how long do you suppose that grace is extended by Yahweh for? The more disobedience there is, and the longer it goes on for, the more extensive is the progressive withdrawal of the Ruach haQodesh (Holy Spirit) over time.

One of the reasons I do not personally believe we are going through the final Book of Revelation judgments at this time, in spite of the increasing evil of the time, and why this is only a penultimate judgment, is because - quite apart from the fact that vast areas of the world remain unevangelised; and those parts which are, know little to nothing about the Torah - is because bringing Christians steeped in tradition around to Torah takes a LONG time. People get stuck in their ways. They love their traditions. They prefer the familiar. They are very tribal in their spirituality. As one older Methodist told me in Oxford years ago, 'I was born a Wesleyan and I shall die a Wesleyan'. True to his word, that's what he did, though I suspect he will be surprised to find that there are no Wesleyans, Catholics, Protestants, Messianics or any other 'type' of Christian there - just believers, some more true and others less so, each of whom will be rewarded according to their works and obedience (or lack thereof).

The charismatics are one of the fastest growing denominations of Christianity in the world because they offer an existentialist gospel - something that's hands-on, can be experienced, and is exciting. There's action going on. It's not boring and stuffy. People are speaking in what they believe to be biblcially-sanctioned ecstatic 'tongues'. They're falling to the ground and being rendered lifeless. They're rolling around on the floor, contorting, and supposedly having demons thrown out of them. Ministers are waving their hands and dozens of them are being knocked down like trees in a gale. They are being promised fabulous wealth if they will just 'seed' their last savings into various ministries, and when it doesn't happen they're being told it's because they don't have enough faith. Some are roaring and hissing like animals. Though I have little positive to say about charismatics, especially the prosperity idolaters, there is a lot of faith and eagerness amongst them. Pentecostalism is but a milder version of charismaticism, minus the excesses, but still retaining 'ecstatic tongues'. You might say there are all sorts of degrees or types of the charismatic spirit but it's all essentially from the same stock. It can all be traced back to Azusa Street in Los Angeles, California, a little over a century ago.

Many Pentecostals are on fire for Yah'shua (Jesus) and love Him with all their hearts. I respect and love them for that. This isn't a black-and-white thing. The issue is all about mixtures and that goes for most denominations, including the cessationists. And though the Final Gathering is to be from all denominations, I suspect ex-Pentecostals are going to be strongly represented. And since the Day of Pentecost or Shavu'ot is so important to them, and since it's Shavu'ot today, it is Pentecostals I am principally addressing now, and those from Pentecostal backgrounds who may still be clinging on to a number of spirits from that century-old tradition, and those among us who interact with, and minister to, them. Once they come out of the contaminated spiritual mixture that Azusa Street bequeathed them, they will be unstoppable. (And I think that will be true of those from all denominations but in different ways). You see, Pentecostals are right about one thing: Shavu'ot is most definitely about anointing and spiritual power, but the bigger question is: what anointing and what kind of power? That's what we need to talk about now as we bring this message to a conclusion.

The vital key here for Pentecostals is getting tongues right. False tongues was the initial contamination at Azusa Street. Certain truths need to be recognised from the teachings of Paul who had to deal with the problem of false tongues in Corinth. These are seven important things he taught, all of which must be taken together:

• 1. Tongues is not a gift for everyone - just a select few who need it for the evangelism of unbelievers - it's not a test for your having been born again or Spirit-filled;
• 2. It isn't gibberish but a known, human language (like Spanish) that's spoken in the world today;
• 3. It's purpose is to witness to unbelievers whose language nobody in the congregation knows or can speak;
• 4. There should never be more than 2 or 3 people speaking in tongues in any single assembly meeting;
• 5. They should speak one after the other in an orderly way;
• 6. There must always be an interpreter present so that there is an edifying message for everyone else present - his or her interpretation can either be naturally learned or supernaturally gifted; and
• 7. The one possessing the gift of tongues should always be in control of it and be able to stop instantly at will - as the "spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets" (1 Cor.14:32, NKJV) so the spirits of tongue-speakers should be subject to the tongue-speakers.

So if you're at a meeting where dozens of people are all speaking gibberish simultaneously and nobody is even attempting to interpet them (were that even possible) you can know immediately there are false spirits at work. If any of the seven criteria are unfulfilled then what's happening is counterfeit - false - and anyone using this kind of 'tongue' is deceived, and that congregations giving assent to this behaviour are deceived as a whole, including (and especially) the leaders whose responsibility it is to guard their flock. These are fundamental apostolic, scriptural congregational rules and they are inviolable. Just because false tongues may 'feel good' doesn't make them right or kosher. They are impure and from the dark side.

And, of course, there must be mature Elders present able to discern any counterfeits because ecstatic tongue-speaking is not confined to Christianity. Other religions do it too. Hindus do it. Satanists do it. Sometimes it's gibberish and sometimes it's in an actual language spoken by people today. Satanists do it in Pentecostal and Charismatic meetings to curse the Christians there. I have heard a satanist with my own ears supernaturally speak in many languages in quick succession - French, German, Spanish, Russian and others I didn't recognise, some of which I could mostly understand, which they do through demonic power. So if satanists are supernaturally speaking in, say, French, and Christians are supernaturally speaking in French too, how can you tell the difference? I hope the answer is obvious because one lot is glorifying Satan while the other is glorifying...who? That will depend what Gospel they are preaching supernaturally in tongues! I knew of an American Mormon who spoke fluent Dutch on his mission to what would become Indonesia (a former Dutch colony) which he had never learned and the Gospel he taught was false.

A true tongues-speaker will preach about Christ and cover all - or at least not contradict any of - all 14 points of the Apostles' Creed. If he deviates from any teaching in that fundamental creed, he's under the influence of a false spirit. I use this in deliverance ministry too. What's the Apostles' Creed? Here they are in our own messianised version:

1. We believe in Yahweh-Elohim (God), the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
2. We believe in Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus Christ), His Only Begotten Son, our Master (Lord).
3. He was conceived by the power of the Ruach haQodesh (Holy Spirit) and born of the Virgin Mary.
4. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.
5. He descended to the dead.
6. On the third day He rose again.
7. He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of Elohim (God) the Father Almighty.
8. He will come again to judge the living (quick) and the dead.
9. We believe in the Ruach haQodesh (Holy Spirit),
10. the universal Body of Messiah [1],
11. the communion of the qodeshim (saints, set-apart ones),
12. the forgiveness of sins,
13. the [physical] resurrection of the body,
14. and the life everlasting. Amen.

Once, many years ago, and in this very room, I had a malak (angel) stand before me and deliver a message for nearly two hours. It was absolutely sublime. I wished I could have recorded or transcribed it - you would have been amazed. I can point to the very spot where he was standing - just behind where the piano stool is today. It was such a brilliant piece of oratory, such a dense, compact telling of the Gospel and I was so taken by the eloquence of the presentation that I let my guard down. And then, toward the end, he slipped in the words: "Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus Christ) is the second-born Son of Elohim (God)". WHAM! I was alert now, not passive anymore! I knew a demon was standing in front of me and instantly I cast him out in the Name of Yah'shua (Jesus), reciting the Apostles' Creed to him as a summary of Scriptural Truth. Next thing I knew he was outside the window at the back of the room, knocking on the glass with his fist, begging to be allowed back in. I then cast him off the property too, and he was gone.

I mention this experience to you simply to make you aware of the lengths to which the Enemy will go to deceive. He's not an idiot. He is clever, subtle and (at times) charming. What out for charmers, human or angelic! I mean, how often have you had a supernatural being stand before you physically and speak to you for nearly two hours! (I've since learned that Yahweh's malakim (angels) rarely hang around for more than a minute or two. They deliver a short message and then go). You see, where the piano is now I once had a bed which I used to rest in, just as the boy Samuel and the Cohen Gadol (High Priest) Eli did close to the Tabernacle in case Yahweh summonsed them at night. That entity simply wanted me to acknowledge, in my passive state of enthrallment, that Yah'shua (Jesus) was not the first-born son of Yahweh because by implication that would have meant someone else was the firstborn, and you all know who wants to be inserted in that place of honour and to be worshipped by mortals!

The same is true of tongues and any other doctrine or practice because Satan seeks to corrupt them all from infant baptism vs. adult baptism to a priesthood/laity division vs. a priesthood of all believers. Some of the lies he tells are small, some are gigantic, like Yah'shua (Jesus) isn't Elohim (God) (some messianics and others) or that Elohim (God) was once a man (Mormonism). But even a small lie that is believed is a foot-through-the-door of a believer's soul, an exploitable chink in his spiritual armour. Azusa-type tongues started off innocently enough with a desire to break out of the deadness, stuffiness and lifelessness of the older cessationist denominations. Today that door in the Pentecostal and Charismatic churches is so wide open that the dark spirits of hell are flooding in and turning the churches that espouse this practice into cults. And one thing demons hate is the mitzvot - the commandments - the Torah - because that is the lifestyle of the qodeshim, the holy ones, the set-apart ones, the purified ones, and purity is the devil's greatest enemy. Torah identifies and pinpoints sin, and devil wants none of that - he would rather keep souls in ignorance.

Another illustration. Some years ago I asked a believer and good friend - a man who passionately loves Yah'shua (Jesus) - to pray for me as I was very ill. He laid hands on my head and started fervently praying. In the middle of the prayer he suddenly burst out into gibberish - your typical Pentecostal or Charismatic so-called 'tongues' - and I never got an interpretation. It was completely meaningless to me. He may have been personally edified but I certainly wasn't, and I was desperate for a word from Yahweh. Indeed, it was a breach of covenant between us. That's a false spirit because it breaks at least two of the Pauline rules. Others were present so even if gibberish were an authentic heavenly 'tongue' (which it isn't) someone else ought to have translated so that I could have been edified. Indeed he had a friend in the room who was a Pentecostal but he never opened his mouth. My friend may have understood what he was saying (though I doubt it) but he never told me what the meaning was. THAT WAS A CLEAR EXAMPLE OF FALSE TONGUES. Besides, he spoke English excellently and 'tongues' wasn't needed at all.

Now I do know of the very rare pentecostal who strictly follows nearly all the Pauline rules. They understand that gibberish is not for public meetings, at least, and so they desist. Instead, they pray in gibberish at home, privately, and regard it as a supernaturally-given 'private prayer language' for self-edification, even though it's not a proper language by the strict definitions of our English language. It has no vocabulary, syntax or grammar.

I have to commend a new Norwegian Bible translation, made in 2018, called the Hverdagsbibel or 'Every Day Bible', made by a Pentecostal theologian called Sørensen and his wife. He is an ex-Baptist. A brother here brought a copy of this with him on Monday. It's written in very simple Norwegian, being designed as a missionary tool and a Bible for new believers. The good thing about it is that it speaks in very neutral terms about 'tongues' in both the 1 Corinthians texts and short commentaries by simply referring to it as 'a language unknown to the one speaking it'. Well done Mr.Sørensen! However a convert using this Bible coming to a Pentecostal Church will soon be introduced to, and taught, gibberish.

The best book on what the Scriptures teach on tongues is undoubtedly John MacArthur's, Speaking in Tongues (1988) which is 99 per cent accurate. I have found it immensely helpful. The only thing you have to be careful about is that MacArthur is a Baptist cessationist (and Calvinist), prefers the antiquated King James version, and doesn't believe that tongues is for today. Otherwise, his exegesis of the tongues passages in 1 Corinthians 13:8-14:40 is excellent, thorough, the best I have seen to date, analysing the text verse by verse. I believe this book, issued with a short corrective, should be an integral part of the training of every minister and teacher in this ministry.

Which leaves me with one last issue to deal with today. What if a believer rejects gibberish for public meetings and confines it to the home. Is that OK? Originally, I was too lax on this, but today my answer is a definite, no, it isn't OK, because it isn't the authentic Ruach haQodesh (Holy Spirit) at work and it isn't harmless, psychic infantile babble either. Why? Because making a habit of this will assuredly influence the practitioner to break the bounds of that self-limitation and start speaking in gibberish in public, because it is an unclean spirit that drives it and seeks to corrupt others with it, unbeknown to the user who thinks he is serving Yahweh. Satan constantly wants to spread his spiritual virus. I make no bones about this, no apologies, even when the person says that he restricts gibberish tongues-speaking to the home as a private prayer language, citing in defence, amongst others, the passage in 1 Corinthians 14:14 which reads:

"For if I pray in an unknown tongue, my spirit prayeth, but my understanding is unfruitful" (1 Cor.14:14, KJV).

In other words, he would claim: 'well, this is just a sound to human ears, even if not to heavenly ones, with no intellectual meaning for the recipient, but I nevertheless my spirit is praying and I find it comforting and upbuilding or edifying'. He might even go so far and agree that public tongue-speaking is just for a few gifted ones but private tongue-speaking is for everyone who has been 'Spirit-filled'. (You can create all sorts of interpretations to justify gibberish-speaking if you set your mind to it). That's the thinking behind some who interpret this passage. But that interpretation is entirely incorrect. Once you have understood what Paul is saying here in the overall context of 1 Corinthians 13-14, you'll understand he is giving absolutely no license whatsoever for speaking gibberish anywhere, either in public or privately in your prayer closet. So take the bull by the horns to break the back of false tongue-speaking for good in your life and start observing Shavu'ot with a pure heart! Because no member of the Remnant can enter the spirit of Shavu'ot and advance further into the autumn festivals without the complete removal of false charismata in his life. He will immediately gain clearer discernment and stop following false lawless teachers who practice this impurity which corrupts their own teaching in turn.

Understand this: pagans speak gibberish because that is how they communicate with their pagan god. It invites in (when first spoken) and strengthens (as the user continues practicing it) a subtle demon that takes over the human psyche which it then uses to filter the spirit of a man so that it is either unreceptive to the fullness of Torah or diminishes its importance in spiritual discernment. The 'God told me this' crowd flourish in a gibberish-speaking environment because they can't alays be tested. And, yes, there are messianic gibberish-speakers too, who say they follow Torah, but that same spirit still distorts the Torah they teach and leads to some mighty strange teachings coming out of their groups at times. The gift of language is to enable human beings to communicate and convery meaning that involves every faculty of the soul including the mind. Read 1 Corinthians 13-14 over and over again without trying to interpret specific passages and try to get the overall sense of what Paul is saying. What is that sense? What's the overall drift? How would you summarise the main message of those two chapters in a single sentence? My answer would be: Tongues or languages exist to ensure that order and meaning are preserved so that the Body may be one, which is true of both naturally-learned languages and supernaturally spoken languages ('tongues').

Pagan tongue-speaking was widespread in pagan Corinth before Christianity arrived. It was part of the heathen culture. The Corinthian believers gave Paul a really hard time. It was an immature, showy, stubborn and rebellious group of spiritual know-it-all teenagers who put experience above sound doctrine. It took a whole generation to sort them out. Paul didn't manage to do so in his day. Then they had a brief golden era that Bishop Clement writes about before descending into apostacy again owing to a revolt by the younger members of the congregation. I talked about this early on in our Book of Revelation series. Again, what you have to continually remember when you are reading from 1 Corinthians is that the Corinthian qodeshim (saints, set-apart ones) were speaking in a private kind of ecstatic communication with a PAGAN GOD - that's ALWAYS the context and Paul is answering them out of this context. He is saying, from beginning to end, that praying in gibberish is a PERVERSION. Paul was saying, 'The one praying in gibberish should at the very least (were it valid) be praying with the purpose of interpreting what he is praying'. His approach is this: 'What if what you're doing is true (in other words, if gibberish-utterance is OK), then oughtn't you to be doing this or this?' And you know he often resorts to sarcasm and irony to expose the stupidity of the apostate thinking of his day - like the time he said that those who tried to impose the Old Covenant ordinance of cicumcicision on gentile converts should go all the way and cut their whole progenitive apparatus off. Interpreters forget these devices which may seem surprising, and sometimes shocking, to us. Indeed, how many Gospel teachers have even taught you what irony and sarcasm are? Or what rhetoric is? In other words, what Paul is saying is this: 'You who are so busy praying and prattling like excited monkeys, why don't you pray for something that will have meaning for someone?'

You'll find Paul using sarcasm and irony in 1 Cor.4:7-14 too. It's his way of dealing with pig-headedness and stupidity. So what he's saying here, in the passage cited, is: "Let the person who's so anxious to pray in monkey-talk which he calls either his 'public' or 'private tongues language' pray instead for the TRUE gift that's INTELLIGIBLE. Let him ask Yahweh for something that the rest of the Body can benefit from instead of being so selfish and self-absorbed with his own attention-grabbing or self-stimulation 'thing'". Oh yes, gibberish-talk is attention-grabbing alright and leads unbelievers to think charismatic Christians are complete nutcases when they babble:

"Therefore if the whole congregation (church) comes together in one place, and all speak with tongues, and there come in those who are uninformed or unbelievers, will they not say that you are out of your mind? But if all prophesy (i.e. speaking intelligible, inspired words), and an unbeliever or an uninformed person comes in, he is convinced by all, he is convicted by all. And thus the secrets of his heart are revealed; and so, falling down on his face, he will worship Elohim (God) and report that Elohim (God) is truly among you" (1 Cor.14:23-25, NKJV)

Now I know many take issue with sarcasm as a device for communicating truth, or even that the Ruach haQodesh (Holy Spirit) would use it to create Scripture. Personally I don't mind the occasional bit of sarcasm but when it becomes a modus operandi or a primary way of communicating, then I think it can do a lot of harm and can assume an ugly spirit. However, Paul is not the only one to use sarcasm in Scripture. Do you not remember when Elijah used sarcasm to mock the prophets of Baal?

"At noon Elijah began to taunt them. 'Shout louder!' he said. 'Surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened.' So they shouted louder and slashed themselves with swords and spears, as was their custom, until their blood flowed" (1 Ki.18:27-28, NIV).

The Corinthians were speaking in a private kind of ecstatic communication with a pagan god (read 'demon') and thinking they were praying to the true Elohim (God). But praying in gibberish was never the intention of the gift of tongues - it was a perversion, and still is. Again, I repeat, genuine tongues is a gift given by the Ruach haQodesh (Holy Spirit) as the Ruach (Spirit) wills (1 Cor.12:30, NIV). And then 1 Corinthians 12:30 says, "Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? (No). But eagerly desire the greater gifts". In other words, DON'T DESIRE TONGUES - don't go seeking after them or you might get tricked, as millions of Pentecostals and Charismatics have been. If they're needed, as my Messianic and Anglican friends clearly needed them in their situation, Yahweh will provide them...but only when genuinely needed.

What, then, are the "greater gifts" that we can, ought to, and verily must seek after? Well, that's what the incredible 13th chapter of 1 Corinthians is all about, isn't it? And then Paul goes on to make emunah, tiqveh and ahavah the focus - FAITH, HOPE and LOVE. The other gifts are incidental, like tongues, but faith, hope and love are a matter of life and death. And tongues isn't one of them. We are not to seek it, like the Messianic preacher in Haïti and like the Anglican missionary in communist China. The gift is given when it is needed...to witness to unbelievers. Those are the boundaries and woe betide anyone who steps outside them because they're not only disobedient but they are opening themselves us to a massive deception. And demonic spirits, when they have a legal right to be present, cannot be retained and controlled by their carriers - they can only be appeased, forcing you to commit ever more sin, forcing you break even more of the Torah mitzvot (commandments). The charismatic movement continues to expand and exists only because of what Pentecostals originally embraced - it's simply Pentecostalism on the next level of its 'natural' (demonic) evolution.

So why has the correct interpretation of this 1 Corinthian passage been hidden for so long, some ask me? My answer is it hasn't. The early Messianic Community (Church) learned early on what true tongues were and weren't, thanks to the wild semi-pagan Corinthians whom Paul was always fighting to stop them losing their faith and reverting to full-blown paganism. Corinth then is a bit like your modern multi-cultural Western metropolis today - a seathing cauldon of witchcraft which is already turning those cities into something like those that once existed in the Jordan plain in Lot's day. These modern cities are now ripened for destruction. You can see it with your own eyes in some places. Just go Chicago, or Portland, or Lagos, or London, or Rio. They are ready to fall apart at the seams. Once the restraining forces are removed, whether governmental or divine (and ultimately it's all divine), they will collapse into their own dirt.

We are gathered here to leave all anti-Torah teaching and practice well and truly behind us - all of it. There can be no looking back in regret like Lot's wife, no yearning for the 'old ways'. If you're a Penecostal, you are now called to love on and to leave your old charismatic life behind you. A new, exciting and productive spiritual life awaits you. Not only must we leave charismata behind but also any remaining sympathy we may have for it. Black-and-white decisions are the stuff of Shavu'ot - no compromises. You're either for Yahweh or you're against Him. You either do all He says or you don't. That was the stark choice facing Israel at Mt.Sinai - they had to leave their old pagan Egyptian thinking, habits and urges behind them and embrace the new. And those who make the right choice, may now, additionally, in the New Covenant, present themselves for an anointing, outpouring, Spirit-filling for heaven. All they have to do is wait patiently like the early believers did because it will come unexpectedly and to just get on with Kingdom service. Let us be done with sinning for good and not keep going back, like dogs, to our own vomit of bygone days. This is hardly a safe time to be doing that anyway, what with economic and social collapse happening all around us. The forces of evil are swelling and seathing, ready to break their catchments, preparing for a major assault on liberty and the Gospel. Imagine a giant tsunami wave of water frozen, as it were, in time and waiting to melt and descend with violence. That's the situation today.

How are we going to counteract and survive that? Simple. Yahweh has His own tsunami waves, purer and far greater, waiting too. Do you remember the vision of the giant dam and reservoir I saw in 1994? It's in chapter 354 of the Olive Branch. Let me read it to you:

"I saw a group of people, whom I recognised as my family and other members of [NCAY], walking along a narrow, rocky gorge. The sides of the valley were steep and rugged, and the valley bottom itself was dry and stoney. As the company of people turned around a bend they were confronted by a massive wall of rocks and rubble about 10 to 20 metres high that blocked their way, making further progress impossible, apparently the result of a natural rock fall. All looked hopeless. And then, quite suddenly, I was lifted up into the air so that I could see beyond the rocky wall, and there before my view was a beautiful reservoir filled with blue, sparkling water of great depth, the waves of which were lapping against almost the very top of the rocky barrier.

"Surprised and delighted at the sight, I was then gently lowered by the invisible force back onto the dry valley floor after a few seconds, and I found myself among the people, wondering how we could scale the rocky sides of the gorge, and fearful that the waters might spill over the top or break down the wall and so engulf us in a mighty and terrible deluge.

"The vision then faded away, and I was left to wonder at the interpretation. I understood that our lonely walk would soon be over and that great spiritual resources and blessings lay ready for us to tap, but I did not know what would immediately transpire, nor how we would overcome our problems. Since I had in recent weeks been occupying my mind with the acquisition of land and the settlement of Kadesh by our people, I supposed that the vision might in some way relate to this and to the spiritual needs of [NCAY] in general" (OB 354:2-9).

That was 28 years ago. We found and relocated to Kadesh-biyqah in 1997 through a series of miracles. It's right here. How accurate that vision has proven to be! It's been a long walk, a long wait. But there are two more prophetic visions that followed this one which we will talk about at Rosh Chodesh in two days' time because we are about to see them fulfilled!

Long waits often cause people to doubt and abandon their callings. We have seen that happen so many times and indeed those familiar with the Olive Branch will know that it specifically predicts that several of the leading lights of this work at that time would do just that. These prophecies have been fulfilled. We must all be tested, as Abraham and Sarah were, who had to wait until old age for the promise of the messianic seed to be fulfilled. Look how many are here today of the original thousands who were with us at one time. Four. Yes, just four. A lady in Bergen, Norway once told me she would join us when we were larger in number, demonstrating her complete lack of faith and commitment. She never came and probably never will now. You can never make progress in a new work without taking a certain amount of risk and making sacrifices along the way. Think of the sacrifices made by such men as David Livingstone to bring the Gospel to Southern Africa and of others who have done the same elsewhere around the world. They planted seeds that grew into mighty trees. There were not many on Noah's Ark, were there? Just 4 families, a total of 8 souls. And so it shall be in the end-times too, at least to begin with. As everything rested on Noah's family being left behind to pass safely through the waters of the flood, so everything will rest on a few trusting and faithful passing through the fire.

Also, we must sometimes wait a long time before we can properly understand things. Yahweh purposefully keeps some things hidden. Why? Because first there must be a ripening of iniquity so that everyone can see the lies they have believed and embraced with crystal clarity and be appalled by them. The same is true, I suspect, of babbling tongue-speaking. Because the delusion is so strong it is hard to penetrate without considerable resolve and dedication to purity, which means becoming habituated to the Torah way of life. There's a certain rhythm and phronema to it. In the rarified atmosphere, and shallow waters, of apostacy (a mile wide but only an inch deep) it is hard to breath any ruach (spirit) at all because there's so little there. Like using an oxygen tank, you need to take deep breaths of pure Ruach (Spirit) to see the emet (truth). You have to be immersed in it which is what being 'baptised in the Spirit' means ultimately. There are initial immersions and then progressively deeper ones for those who will walk the extra mile. So, yes, keeping things hidden from the disobedient is part of Yahweh's Plan. Everyone has their limits of spiritual tolerance depending on what demonic they have let in them through willing, habitual sinning without repentance.

The collapse that has started and is now well underway, and the Ukrainian war that is still happening, will cause not only much suffering but also bring about many blessings. For one thing, it will cause the stubborn and inflexible to loosen up and become open to the deeper things of the Kingdom so that prophecy may be fulfilled and the cause of the Kingdom advanced. Only then will people start questioning the things they took for granted because of their upbringings and traditions, and finally let go of them. But first most people have to be taken to the ends of themselves before they will start to bend enough, like a tree bowing before a strong wind, to be willing to turn to face the right spiritual direction, which is Christ. Waking up can be a hard and painful thing sometimes, but the end result will be good and worthwhile because it will enable us to finally take care of the besetting sin of idolatry. Blessed are those who believe without first seeing! (Jn.20:29)

Brethren and sisters, blessed indeed are those who have believed without first seeing, and blessed are those called to this work who have believed without seeing, for they shall most assuredly see in the days ahead that this was not just some pipedream, because Yahweh rarely works in the way we expect. We have our own agendas and expectations, and He has his. Ours must give way to His. I have shared with you the vision of the great reservoir of water and of the long thirsty walk we have been through these past decades. I had a bad night last night and complained bitterly to Yahweh for all the pain and my frustration that I might not be strong enough to complete this work before I have to leave. Then He spoke audibly to me, three times, and each time he said the same Norwegian word: "PILESTREDET" which baffled me. I knew there was a street by that name in Oslo but wondered what on earth it had to do with my pleading for relief in prayer at this hour. You see, the street has its name because of the willow trees that once lined it, for it means in English, WILLOW [TREE] STRAIT. A strait is an oceanic landform connecting two seas and one of our missions as Messianic Evangelicals has been to form a bridge between Messianics and Evangelicals, bringing them together as one as at the very beginning.

But why the willow tree? In my family home in Surrey, England we had a magnificent willow tree in our garden that I loved. It was huge and majestic. Willow trees, to my mind, are quite beautiful. And when we moved here to Kadesh-biyqah in Sweden we found a very similar tree, like a willow tree, a huge, magnificent tree, with hanging branches. It actually has a preservation order put on it by the government. We received a visit many years ago from a man from the forestry department who informed me it was protected as it is quite rare here. It is on the east side of this property, right behind me as I am speaking to you. I was afraid it might be blown over in a storn and crush our garage and barn but he told me it was robust so long as we pruned overhanging branches. You can't miss it on the right hand side as you drive into this property. As some of you know, a willow tree has great longevity and it's very easy to cultivate. You can easily root cuttings from it. As trees go, it's a great survivor, and survive we have in spite of the odds and the numerous attempts to destroy us over the years. It is very flexible and does not snap easily - you can contort it a great deal. Its roots grow with fervour and remarkable strength, and can be planted along river banks to prevent flooding. We're close to a fjord. So it's a survivor, it represents the ability to adjust to life's pressures without snapping, and is easily propagated. In other words, the willow tree is a picture of this work, of those who serve in it, and how this work will spread and has been spreading.

Now listen to these words of Ezekiel, the only passage in the Bible that speaks of the willow tree...or rather something like a willow tree, just as ours here on this sacred plot is like a willow tree:

"Then [a great eagle] took some of the seed of the land
And planted it in a fertile field;
He placed it by abundant waters
And set it like a willow tree.
And it grew and became a spreading vine of low stature;
Its branches turned toward him,
But its roots were under it.
So it became a vine,
Brought forth branches,
And put forth shoots.

"But there was another great eagle with large wings and many feathers;
And behold, this vine bent its roots toward him,
And stretched its branches toward him,
From the garden terrace where it had been planted,
That he might water it.
It was planted in good soil by many waters,
To bring forth branches, bear fruit,
And become a majestic vine" (Ezek.17:5-8, NKJV).

Now as the scriptorians among you know, this was originally, and primarily, a parable of historical events that took place a very long time ago. This chapter was penned about two years before the destruction of Jerusalem and in the original vision the first eagle represented the King of Babylon who took royal captives, the cedar (mentioned before the quote I gave you) being the Kingdom of Judah. The topmost twig that was taken was King Jehoiakim who was exiled in 597 BC, Babylon being the "land of trade" also mentioned in the earlier part of the passage. But a seed was left behind in Judah which could prosper as a tributary (or vassal state) to the conquerer. Next comes the spreading vine which refers to Zedekiah whom Nebuchadnezzar appointed King of Judah whom he helped to propser and he would have prospered if he had remained faithful to his pledge, continuing as a tributary kingdom. But as we know, Zedekiah turned to Egypt which the navi (prophet) Jeremiah vigorously opposed. The "..other great eagle" here is Egypt under Pharaoh Apries (Hophra) to whom Zedekiah turned for help in revolting against Babylon. And you all know what happened because of Zedekiah's treachery. That's the primary historical interpretation of the prophecy in Ezekiel.

But this is a multi-layered prophecy and refers to other events in the future too, and specifically, to the first coming of Messiah who is "one of the highest branches" (Ezek.17:22-23) who will make the dead tree flourish.

But there is a second coming too, which is yet to happen, and a third layer of prophecy that this passage applies to too, which is where this apparently insignificant work "of low stature" comes in. So many Christians and Messianics believe it will happen any day but it is still some time off. A latter-day 'Nebuchadnessar' has yet to carry another 'Judah' off into captivity, and specifically, the 'Joseph' nations this time - not the first Assyrian captivity of literal tribes, but the heart of Christendom, just as Joseph was sold into slavery. The Western nations are about to become vassal states and we're already seeing the first signs of that as the EU slowly caves in to Russia and the US dollar ceases to be the main reserve currency. The events taking place now mark this huge shift in power away from America, the EU and the rest of the West, which has apostacised, and to the East.

Take your mind now back to Jacob's patriarchal blessings to the sons of Rachel to see more connections:

"Joseph is a fruitful bough,
A fruitful bough by a well;
His branches run over the wall.
The archers have bitterly grieved him,
Shot at him and hated him.
But his bow remained in strength,
And the arms of his hands were made strong
By the hands of the Mighty Elohim (God) of Jacob
(From there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel),
By the Elohim (God) of your father who will help you,
And by the Almighty who will bless you
With blessings of heaven above,
Blessings of the deep that lies beneath,
Blessings of the breasts and of the womb.
The blessings of your father
Have excelled the blessings of my (Jacob's) ancestors,
Up to the utmost bound of the everlasting hills.
They shall be on the head of Joseph,
And on the crown of the head of him who was separate from his brothers.

"Benjamin is a ravenous wolf;
In the morning he shall devour the prey,
And at night he shall divide the spoil" (Gen.49:22-27, NKJV).

The Western nations will be subjugated, just as Judah once was in the days of Nebuchadnezzar, and by one like Nebuchaznezzar, and a time of great suffering is about to begin. This time the nations occupied will be the primary nations of the 10 Tribes led by Joseph who is Ephraim (the UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, etc.) and Manasseh (USA and Germany). The Rachel tribes (Joseph and Benjamin) will hold positions of national leadership and they must not rebel as Zedekiah once did. We will talk more of this another time as I want to focus on this ministry rather than the nations and what is about to happen to them as we conclude now. Also don't get these Israelite nations confused with Messianic Israel, for they are deep in sin.

Joseph is the willow tree look-alike which turns into a vine that runs over the walls. This was originally a picture of how the Tribe of Joseph spread around the world physically as colonists. In its secondary meaning, applicable today, it is how the two halves of the Gospel - Messianic (Judah) and Evangelical (Joseph) - are re-united and how this work will become global...not just by conventional missionary work but primarily by the dissemination of the word through key witnesses. This will take time. The restoration of Messianic Israel in diaspora will take time too, before the Final Gathering can take place. But do you see the picture now? We must continue like the willow tree in spite of the storms developping around us. Everything is about to change politically. We are about to be impoverished financially, but also, more importantly, religiously. The traditional churches will collapse. Christianity is about to be completely divided into a true Remnant and all the apostate rest.

The Shavu'ot Covenant takes on added importance this year because of the rapid march of events. It's going to be a hard, hard winter but if we are true, we will be robust like the willow tree. We can bend. We are flexible and we will not be overpowered. In all likelihood those who left us were never a part of us (1 Jn.2:19) because they lacked the quality of robustness represented by the willow tree, but I pray some will repent and return. In the meantime Yahweh is about to raise up an entirely new generation, as one shepherd gives way to the next.

It is written:

"So Moses came and told the people all the words of Yahweh and all the mishpatim (judgments). And all the people answered with one voice and said, 'All the words which Yahweh has said we will do.' And Moses wrote all the words of Yahweh. And he rose early in the morning, and built an altar at the foot of the mountain, and twelve pillars according to the twelve tribes of Israel. Then he sent young men of the children of Israel, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen to Yahweh. And Moses took half the blood and put it in basins, and half the blood he sprinkled on the altar. Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read in the hearing of the people. And they said, 'All that Yahweh has said we will do, and be obedient.' And Moses took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said, 'This is the blood of the covenant which Yahweh has made with you according to all these words'" (Ex.24:3-8, NKJV).

That was the blood of the Old Covenant, the blood of animals. Today, in the New Covenant, the blood is that of Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus Christ), shed once and for all for our sins and for eternal life on the cross of Calvary. But we are still required to obey the Torah as Messianic Israel, the joined parts of Ephraim-Joseph and Judah. The covenant is still in force but it is now a New Covenant. Therefore I ask you to join with me in entering this Covenant, for the first time or in renewal, of your own free will, as we do each Shavu'ot, by repeating the same words again. Repeat after me:

"ALL THAT YAHWEH HAS SAID WE WILL DO, AND BE OBEDIENT!"

We will return tomorrow for the regular Sabbath and continuing study of the Book of Revelation and the day after for the Rosh Chodesh message which will be a continuation of what I was saying at the end here. Yahweh bless you all! Amen.

Endnotes

[1] The traditional reading is "the Holy Catholic Church" which people often wrongly think refers to the Roman Catholic Church, which it does not. The word 'catholic' simply means 'universal', the whole Body of Christ everywhere.

Comments from Readers

[1] "Thank you! This has been a very interesting talk with a lot of important points to think about. That picture of the willow tree brought back my own memories of the willow tree near the river where I gew up. They are indeed, very flexible tress" (RRB, USA, 27 July 2022)