Chag sameach Rosh Chodesh kol beit Yisra'el and Mishpachah. We are gathered here today to hear the Davar Elohim (Word of God) as we enter into the nineth month of the current sacred year.

Today's message is specifically for the ungathered Israelite Tribe of Reuben which, like all the other tribes, must be sifted through the fine net of the Torah before he will be allowed to assemble for the Final Gathering

Reuben was the firstborn of Jacob's 12 sons and would have been at the Head of the twelve Tribes of Israel after Jacob's death had he not fallen into gross sin. Had he been born during the days of the Mosaic Covenant he would not have been permitted to live because of his sin. As it was, he was shown Yahweh's undeserved loving kindness or grace and he was spared execution for the wickedness of adultery, the second most serious sin of all after murder. Worse, in some ways, he additionally brought disgrace and shame upon his own father, Jacob. Interestingly, Moses would prophesy over his descendants on the eve of the conquest of the Promised Land, saying:

"Let Reuben live, and not die,
Nor let his men be few" (Deut.33:6, NKJV).

Reuben was the firstborn son of his mother Leah, one of Jacob's four wives, whom his father-in-law, Laban, had tricked into marrying, and which had understandably created much resentment initially in the young man, for his heart was set on Laban's other, younger daughter, Rachel. Though he did not know it at the time, it was Yahweh's plan that he be the father of the Twelve Tribes of Israel through four different women which meant, of course, he would have to live plural marriage or polygamy as most of patriarchs and close friends of Yahweh did in ancient times.

Why were four wives needed and not just one? There are many women who have had 12 or more children. I personally know some with one being a relative. There are doubtless many reasons which we do not have time to go into today as I must focus on only one. One of these reasons was that Rachel was of such a physical constitution that she was evidently unable to have more than two children and as you know she would tragically die giving birth to Benjamin. This Yahweh foreknew [2], if not actually planned. Two of Jacob's sons - Joseph and Benjamin - had to have certain personality characteristics both for their own personal missions in life and for the important missions of their respective tribes throughout history and especially in the end-times. They, and they alone, were foreordained [3] to come through Rachel.

The young Jacob was not a particularly spiritul man though he possessed a number of outstanding virtues even in his youth. Like all of us, he had to overcome his carnal tendency and finally become a spiritual man in the true image of his Creator. This did not finally happen until later in his life when he fled from his father-in-law back to the Promised Land with his large family and herds of cattle. Facing the possibility of an ugly confrontation with his brother Esau, whom he had defrauded of his birthright by trickery instead of waiting as a spiritual man should have and letting Yahweh sort matters out, he had to finally wrestle with his fallen Adamic nature at a place called Peniel by the River Jabbok and learn finally to deal equitably with his wives. Though he was, unquestionably, a victim in the first instance, so too had his first wife Leah been, the mother of Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar and Zebulun, who was constantly trying to win his affection by competing with Rachel in producing children. A righteous man, which Jacob was not yet, would have risen to the occasion, and have given prominence to sacrificial love over romantic love which can be very selfish. This favouritism was bound to have impacted the individual members of his family.

Because Jacob dealt unevenly with his wives, Yahweh blessed Leah and gave her the honour of bringing forth both the firstborn son, Reuben, and also the one who would bring forth the Messiah, Judah. Something of Leah's noble heart must have passed to Reuben as we find a number of good qualities in the man displayed in his life. For one, he persuaded his nine brothers to throw Joseph into a dry well instead of killing him, Reuben's hidden purpose being to return secretly and deliver Joseph out of the well (Gen.37:18-30). More than 20 years later when these brothers reasoned that the spy charges made against them down in Egypt were due to their mistreatment of Joseph, Reuben reminded the others that he had not shared in their plot to murder Joseph (Gen.42:9-14,21-22) and that is something we must remember when we consider both Reuben the man, and Reuben the Israelite tribe. Again, when Jacob refused to let Benjamin accompany his brothers on their second trip to Egypt in search of grain, it was Reuben who offered his own two sons as surety, saying:

"You may put both of my sons to death if I do not bring [Benjamin] back to you. Entrust him to my care, and I will bring him back" (Gen.42:37, NIV).

You see, there was greatness and nobility in the man in spite of his character defects and weaknesses. We see this greatness reflected in the global influence of the Romans (Italians), French, Spanish and Portuguese. And though we can find much fault with these essentially Roman Catholic Empires founded by largely Reubenite peoples, as we can find fault in all the Empires of the other tribes - like the British (Josephite-Ephraimite), American (Josephite-West Manassehite), German (Josephite-East Manassahite), Dutch (Zebulunite), Swedish (Napthalite), etc. -- the Israelite trait of honour is particularly strong. I have spent much of my life studying the history of the Israelite tribes and the nations that formed from them, my most recent study being of Spain, and I have found much that impresses me with all of them, for all of them, naturally, possessed the greatness of their ancestor Jacob when they were true to Elohim (God)...and his weaknesses (when they were not).

As the firstborn son of Jacob, Reuben naturally had the rights of the firstborn son of the whole family. This was not so much a privilege as a sacred responsibility. As the firstborn son, he would have been entitled to two portions of his father's estate when Jacob died, not so he could squander it selfishly like some prodigal, but to enable him to assume headship of the tribes and to make sure the needs of his brothers were taken care of, especially should they get into difficulties and need material help. Remember also that the patriarch Jacob, as head of the family, was also Yahweh's cohen or priest for the whole family and had offered up sacrifices at the family altar (as we likewise read Job doing for his sons and daughters) and had led in prayer and in giving spiritual instruction. As a father he had also acted as the governor of the whole family and of all its servants, livestock and property. This is a feature of the structure and pattern of the Melchizedek Priesthood.

Much responsibility would have devolved upon Reuben if he had not grievously sinned. What was his sin? He slept with his father's wife (not his his own biological mother), the same sin committed by the unnamed Corinthian Christian/Messianic whom a horrified Paul soundly rebuked:

"It is actually being reported that there is sexual sin among you, and it is a sexual sin of a kind that is condemned even by pagans" (1 Cor.5:1, JNT).

Reuben's sin, then, was not incest but adultery with Bilhah, Rachel's maidservant, which also brought disgrace upon Jacob's name. So serious a matter was this that we find it highlighted in Jacob's list of patriarchal blessings to his sons. Let's read it now:

"Reuben, you are my firstborn,
My might and the beginning of my strength,
The excellency of dignity and the excellency of power.
Unstable as water, you shall not excel,
Because you went up to your father's bed;
Then you defiled it--
He went up to my couch" (Gen.49:3-4, NKJV)

This is what disqualified Reuben from retaining the honour of being the firstborn son. He forfeited his right to become a responsible leader of his brethren - permanently. His life was spared, through grace, but the trust required for such a posititon of responsibility as the firstborn was gone. This occurred right after Rachel had died giving birth to Benjamin. Now whether Reuben violated Bilhah to prevent her from taking Rachel's place in Jacob's affection and thus becoming more favoured than Reuben's own mother Leah, or whether he acted out of sheer lust, we aren't told, and neither do we need to know. What happened ended Reuben's firstborn status and future head of the tribes. Interestingly, the Greek Septuagint (LXX) adds this phrase: "And it appeared evil (grievous) in his (Israel's/Jacob's) sight" (Gen.35:21, LXX).

So whilst Jacob rightly viewed this act as "evil", Reuben was not disowned and cast out for this wickedness as perhaps he should have been. It was only years later, when Jacob blessed his sons, that he said to Reuben: "You shall not excell". Thus Reuben was stripped of his privileges that would otherwise have been his as a firstborn son, and this was because of a weakness: he was "unstable as water". And so Reuben turned out to have been - he was reckless, temperamental, tempestuous, turbulent, quickly aroused to anger, hot-headed...something we can easily recognise in the Latin temperament. He was headlong like waters bursting a dam or raging down a torrent valley, unable to easily control his passions. As a leader-in-the-making, he should have exercised self-control. He should have shown a son's respect for the dignity and honour of his father and for the honour of the two sons of his father's wife Bilhah - Dan and Napthali.

Consequently then, as today, Reuben, along with the other sons of Jacob, came under the new headship of Joseph. Historically, this has meant much rivalry and warfare between these two tribes, as the histories of neighbouring England and France have shown, for example. And though Britain and France have reconciled since the days of the Entente Cordiale, the old rivalry still lurks and is never very far beneath the surface. There is still this generational animosity on Reuben's side. The same is true of England and Spain (think of Gibraltar and the Falkland Islands) though interestingly England and Portual were closely knit by an alliance that lasted many centuries. And so we see that choices made nearly 4,000 or more years ago have significantly impacted the history of nations. The same kind of generational rivalry exists between Isaac and Ishmael as also between Ephraim and Judah (Is.11:13). The Reuben nations have spread over the world, from French Québec to Mexico and Spanish Buenos Aires in Argentina, with Spanish, Portuguese and French being the lingua franca of billions of people. The same has happened with the Jospeh tribes only on a grander scale with English being not only the lingua franca of nearly the whole world today, as French once was for a while, but Joseph peoples settling Canada, the USA, Great Britain, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Germany, Austria and Switzerland - two brothers who have left their mark, and made a deep impact on, the world.

So why am I bringing up this subject today on Rosh Chodesh? For a number of reasons:

• 1. To help identify the lost tribes through historical rivalry and personality traits;
• 2. To establish tribal headship for the Final Gathering;
• 3. To sternly warn against lawlessness (Torahlessness) and immorality;
• 4. To underscore the importance of honour and integrity; and
• 5. To warn people against being led by passions masquerading as the 'Spirit'.

Finally, I need to share a vision with you that I saw shortly after midnight on Friday 10 November (2023), four days ago. Whatever may be going on in the world (and there's always something going on), I have been feeling restless now for a number of days as we shift our focus from Penultimate Judgment and to the needs of the 12 Tribes. We're in the 10th year of the Final Exodus as we prepare for the eventual physical exodus out of the Babylonian system (which we have spoken about for the last two sermons [5]) and the great relocation of the Tribes from the four quarters of the earth to the Promised land. (See, The Fifth Commission of NCAY). Up until now it has all been spiritual preparation. I guarantee that Satan does not want any true Israelite gathering out of his domain. He wants the Remnant trapped and controllable so he is doing all in his power to deceive it into simultaneously remaining where it is, abandoning Christ and the Torah by getting believers to be led by their feelings instead of by truth. The pair of chief characteristic of Yahweh's end-time people is their obeying the mitzvot (commandments) and trusting in Christ (Rev.12:17; 14:12)...so the Enemy will do all in his power to get us to abandon the one or the other...and preferably both:

"This calls for patient endurance on the part of the qodeshim (saints, set-apart ones) who obey Elohim's (God's) mitzvot (commandments) and remain faithful to Yah'shua (Jesus)" (Rev.14:12, NIV; cp.12:17).

So as I was getting ready for bed I saw an intense vision of a huge dragon, its wings outstretched over the world, its neck fully extended and its eyes looking downwards on the inhabitants of the earth. It was then I understood the source of my uneasiness and restlessness these past few days. I have been watching with great sadness dear brethren and sisters abandoning Torah and electing instead to follow their feelings and calling them 'the Spirit'. All of them are connected ancestrally to the House of Reuben, hence my distress and the subject matter of this message. So please, if you are a Reubenite, wake up because the devil, like a roaring lion, seeks to devour you (1 Pet.5:8) at this critically important hour where every choice counts for good or evil.

Our security and spiritual stability depends on us adhering to Christ and obeying the mitzvot (commandments) so that the Enemy has nothing to accuse us of. Half a million lives may already have been consumed in Ukraine, lives are being consumed in the Israeli Republic and Gaza, and more victims to war and persecution are on the way. WAKE UP! Obedience to the Torah is not dead 'legalism' as its opponents are falsely accusing commandment-keepers of for the Remnant's response is always faithfulness in love, through grace, to Yahweh's righteous Way. Read the Book of Revelation, for this seal of all the Bible books makes it perfectly clear what is required of us. Read chapters 2 & 3 to see what it is Yahweh judges us by! (Clue: it's our works as well as our faith, i.e. our faithfulness). Read chapters 12 & 14 to see what the first foundation of the qodeshim (saints, set-apart ones) is: the Torah of our Heavenly Father Yahweh and faith in the work of Christ...and specifically in that order! They are the two hands of discipleship and Gospel life. Satan wants to maim you spiritually by cutting one or both hands off altogether. Abandon one or the other and you become like a doomed aeroplane with one wing broken off spinning out of control.

We love Reuben - he is our dear brother in Messiah - as we love all the tribes, for we are one Messianic Israel. We need each other and the only way to both reconciliation and cooperative endeavour is a Ruach (Spirit)-filled life through being reborn in Messiah and strict compliance with Yahweh's Torah-mitzvot. There's no other way. The Book of Revelation makes that crystal clear, perhaps a reason why Luther (who believed in grace-alone and despised the commandments) hated it along with the Epistle to James. We cannot imitate this Reformer or the half-gospel of Protestantism, important though he was in breaking the monopoly of Catholicism. Yahweh has gone to a great deal of trouble to restore awareness of the Torah to Christians. Nor should we be deflected from this because of the bad example of many Hebraic-roots legalistic messianics who have not understood that commandment-keeping must flow out of a regenerated life in Christ in a New Covenant rather than Christ simply being tacked on to the Old Covenant in an imaginary 'Renewed' Covenant. Don't be deflected by the bad example of believers. We need to rise above that as an excuse for disobedience.

The restoration of the Twelve Tribes is a partnership in the restoration of all Truth. We need each other but we have to be united in a common purpose. Going back to old Protestant notions is a major step backwards and will simply retard the great end-time work of Gathering. Yahweh's people must live the same lifestyle as their ancestors and "be of one mind" (2 Cor.13:11), for truth alone can define love (which can also be counterfeited) and not the subjective whims of our feelings masquerading as the Ruach haQodesh (Holy Spirit).

My whole life changed when I was born again, filled with the Ruach (Spirit) and spiritually regenerated as a student in Oxford when I surrendered to, and accepted, Yah'shua (Jesus) as my Master (Lord) and Deliverer (Saviour). He is the foundation of my life, together with the Ruach (Spirit) and Father's Torah. Since then my mission has been one of witness and the restoration of Torah-truth for the returning Tribes who cannot be gathered without it. Without both Yah'shua (Jesus) and Torah, our differences can never be healed and we can never be echad or one (Eph.4:3,11-13), as the disarray in Protestantism has proven, made infinitely worse by the arrival of the lawless, babbling, Batalogian charismatic movement in the 20th century. That system is under shaking judgment as I speak now along with the rest of Christendom and Messiandom. I am an Ephraimite through my English ancestry with a strong dollop of Judah through my Ulster links, East Manasseh through my German connections and Reuben through my French ones. Add to that Danish Viking blood through my ancestors from Normandy, where my family name comes from. So I am deeply invested in the Tribes as I must be if the Final gathering is to happen in an orderly way. My children all have that mix along with Benjamin (Norway) from their mothers.

It is time to seriously think and pray about 'gathering' again, something the final generation will effect but we must begin preparing for now. There's so much to learn and do. I leave these thoughts with you this Rosh Chodesh. The winter is upon us and deepening, we are all (I hope) prepped but come spring we must be ready to start concretely moving out, each Christ-trusting and Torah-obedient soul in his or her own season and timing. It is time for Zion to stir, in Yah'shua's Name. Amen.

Endnotes

[1] See The 25 Death Penalities in Raised Valleys & Flattened Mountains
[2] See Are We Predestined? Calvinism & Arminianism Compared
[3] See Molinism: Reconciling Yah's Sovereignty with Man's Free Agency
[4] The difference between a man's "mother" and his "father's wife" is clearly differentiated in the Torah: "The nakedness of your father or the nakedness of your mother you shall not uncover. She is your mother; you shall not uncover her nakedness. The nakedness of your father's [plural/polygamous] wife you shall not uncover; it is your father's nakedness" (Lev.18:6-9, NKJV; also see v.11). When Reuben exposed Bilhah's nakedness he exposed his father's nakedness too, effectively repeating (in part) the sin of Ham against Noah (Gen.9:22-25).
[5] See Book of Revelation LX: Babylon the Great, Part 1 - A Tale of Two Cities (Revelation 17-18) and Book of Revelation LXI: Babylon the Great, Part 2 - The Whore Rides a Scarlet Beast (Revelation 17:1-8)