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Sermons Series 3:46, 15 July 2006
The Trial of Your Faith
The Blood of the Messiah and the Second Wave
Main Themes:
Minor Themes:
Our scripture reading this Sabbath is from the opening verses of Paul's epistle to the Colossians:
"In all our prayers to Yahweh, the Father of our Master Yah'shua the Messiah, we thank Him for you, because we have heard of the faith you hold in Messiah Yah'shua, and the love you bear towards all Yahweh's people. Both spring from the hope stirred up for you in heaven - that hope which you learned when the message of the true Gospel first came to you. In the same way it is coming to men the whole world over; everywhere it is growing and bearing fruit as it does among you, and has done since the day when you heard of the graciousness of Yahweh and recognised it for what in truth it is. You were taught this by Epaphras, our dear fellow-servant, a trusted worker for Messiah on our behalf, and it is he who has brought us the news of your Elohim-given love.
"For this reason, ever since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you, We ask Yahweh that you may receive from Him all wisdom and spiritual understanding for full insight into His will, so that your manner of life may be worthy of the Master and entirely pleasing to Him. We pray that you may bear fruit in active goodness of every kind, and grow in the knowledge of Elohim. May he strengthen you, in His glorious might, with ample power to meet whatever comes with fortitude, patience, and joy; and to give thanks to the Father who has made you fit to share the heritage of Yahweh's people in the realm of light.
"He rescued us from the domain of darkness and brought us away into the kingdom of His dear Son, in whom our release is secured and our sins forgiven. He is the image of the invisible Elohim, born before all created things. In Him everything in heaven and on earth was created, not only things visible but also invisible orders of thrones, sovereignties, authorities, and powers: the whole universe has been created through Him and for Him. And He exists before everything, and all things are held together in Him. He is, moreover, the head of the body, the Messianic Community (church). He is its origin, the first to return from the dead, to be in all things alone supreme. For in Him the complete being of Elohim, by Elohim's own choice, came to dwell. Through Him Elohim chose to reconcile the whole universe to Himself, making peace through the shedding of His blood upon the cross - to reconcile all things, whether on earth or in heaven, through Him alone" (Col.1:2-20, NEB - New English Bible, edited with Messianic terminology).
In these magnificent words of Paul we are given a panoramic view of the majesty and splendour of Yah'shua our Messiah. He is, in three words, Yahweh made visible. But He is even more than that: "in Him the complete being of Elohim, by Elohim's own choice, came to dwell". Everything that is Elohim is in Yah'shua. But more importantly for us, the Messiah is the firstborn of a new humanity through being the first to be resurrected from the dead. A person who is touched and changed by Yah'shua is not the same kind of person who has never known Him before.
Today I want to suggest to you that every meeting you have with Yah'shua makes you into an entirely different kind of human being. And I want to suggest to everyone here who is a witness of our Messiah that if you operate in His Ruach, and bear witness at the time and place and to the person or persons He wants you to, that the words of witness you speak to that person, and the deeds you do in Yah'shua's Name, will also change that person into a different human being. Not all at once, but a little at a time. These are the fruits that Paul speaks of at the beginning of our passage under study: "everywhere... growing and bearing fruit".
As a result of this moment-for-moment meeting with Yah'shua, we are continually experiencing little miracles. Every day. There is no meeting with Yah'shua in which a miracle - little or large - is not taking place. That is because there is cosmic power in the Life of Messiah. The power that constructed the entire universe according to Yahweh's blueprint and established all the "invisible orders of thrones, sovereignties, authorities, and powers" is to be found in the very One who either enters us, or swells within us, when we praise the Name of Yahweh-Elohim, believe His words in Scripture, or act believing in His promises. The contact we make with Him is an interface with the Creator of the whole universe. It is actually mind-boggling. Yet should we surprised by the incredible transformation in a soul when that soul makes genuine contact with Him? You don't put your finger in an electric socket and stand motionless - you get a whopping great electric shock that throws you across the room (I know, it's happened to me more than once) - and you don't not get a transformation of the heart when you make contact with the living Messiah in whom is the fullness of the Elohim. You can't not be changed by a genuine contact, and changed in a dramatic way.
About three years ago when I was in abroad England for a whole month and had lots of time to kill, I settled down in-between appointments and social contacts and got to know what was for me a 'new' Hebraic version of the Bible - the ISRV or Institute for Scripture Research Version which was produced in South Africa by Messianic Jews. And though it's not my favourite translation, it is a very useful addition to the various Messianic Versions on offer. In particular, it makes a conscious attempt to render into alternative English, Hebrew words that have become fossilised in their meaning in our own language. And although this can have the effect of making the translation very stilted and clumsy at times, it does open your eyes to shades of meaning which might otherwise get lost.
One afternoon, as I was sitting reading the Epistle to the Hebrews, I got quite a rude shock. This was the passage in question:
"But only the High Priest (Cohen Gadol) entered the inner room [of the Temple], and that only once a year [at Yom Kippur], and never without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance" (Heb.9:7, ISRV).
The words "in ignorance" shot out of the page at me as this was not included in the version I had grown up with, the King James Version (KJV), though it does, I discovered, appear in most modern versions (interestingly omitted by the RSTNE but included in the HRV). These two words set me off on a trail that took me back to the Torah which was being cited:
"And when you sin by mistake and do not all these commands which YHWH has spoken ... all the congregation shall prepare one young bull as a burnt offering ..." (Num.15:24; also vv. 21-25; Lev.4).
In other words, until Messiah came, there was no forgiveness for deliberate, wilful sin, even for an Israelite under the Covenant of Moses. Sins of ignorance could be forgiven, just as Yahweh disregarded them when committed by the pagans anciently:
"In the past Elohim overlooked such ignorance, but now He commands all people everywhere to repent. For He has set a day when He will judge the world with justice by the man He has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising Him from the dead" (Acts 17:30-31, NIV).
Today everyone has proof of the resurrected Messiah. How can this be so? How can we, 2,000 years later, have proof that Yah'shua is risen? We weren't there. We didn't see Him back from the dead in an immortal body. And we can't drop by one of the apostles' secret meeting places and meet Him in a post-resurrection appearance. And yet according Paul, when he addressed the Athenians, all mankind has proof. Every living soul since the time of the death and resurrection of Yah'shua has proof. How? Well, we have the Bible - for those who can get access to a copy, and then assuming they want to even read it with an open heart. But according to Paul, there is the evidence of the creation itself which should inspire men to reach out for Him. And yet many men, doing just that, end up worshipping the heavenly bodies themselves, or the more sophisticated (as they suppose), invisible astrological forces emanating from them. To the Greeks of the Areopagus Paul said:
"The Elohim who made the world and everything in it is the Master of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And He is not served by human hands, as if He needed anything, because He Himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. From one man He made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and He determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. Elohim did this so that men would seek Him and perhaps reach out for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us. 'For in Him we live and move and have our being.' As some of your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring'" (Acts 17:24-28, NIV).
The very clue to Elohim is within us - in the life force in our bodies that cause us to "move and have our being". Yah'shua is within every soul in that respect. And with the testimony of nature and the cosmos revealing an intelligent design, it is then a matter of connecting our own life with the life around us and wondering. Paul continued:
"Therefore since we are Elohim's offspring, we should not think that the divine being (Godhead - Aram. Elhuta) is like gold or silver or stone - an image made by man's design and skill. In the past Elohim overlooked such ignorance, but now He commands all people everywhere to repent. For He has set a day when He will judge the world with justice by the Man He has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising Him from the dead.' When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, 'We want to hear you again on this subject.' At that, Paul left the Council" (Acts 17:29-34, NIV).
It is possible to come to a knowledge of Yahweh without ever hearing His Name or reading His Scriptures, by simply looking at nature and within your own being and wondering without preconceptions. Paul prayed that the Colossians would come to a "knowledge of His will" (Col.1:9, KJV), the Greek word here being thelema which could easily be rendered 'science' too. We can study the 'science of Elohim's will' by observing nature and listening to the still small voice within. The Light of Messiah within can whisper truth to the heart. And when that heart responds, Yahweh will ensure that either a tract, a Bible, a preacher, a missionary or just an ordinary Christian will somehow cross that man's path so that he gets the opportunity to translate that simple faith and spiritual science into even more concrete knowledge and action. As he starts by reading the Genesis account of the beginning of the world, and progresses into the New Testament to see that Yah'shua is the Creator appointed by Yahweh, then he will stark making vital, saving connections. He will learn that Yah'shua shed His blood for his own sins at Calvary; and he will understand that that shed blood has to be applied to the door posts of his own heart in the same way that the Israelites did in Egypt at Passover (Pesach) when they applied the paschal blood to the door posts of their homes to escape the destroying angel. He will understand that it is through this door of his house - his body - that he invites Yah'shua into his heart to dwell as Sovereign (Rev.3:20). As he does this, he partakes of a symbolic meal, the Last Supper, the Passover Meal. This blood which he has applied to the door post of his heart brings with it the presence, manifestation, and revelation of Yahweh in even greater power. There is, he will discover, gradually or suddenly, 'power in the blood', as the classical hymn proclaims,
He will notice that blood predominates in Scripture and this will lead him to wonder further, because he will notice that there are three bloods in the Bible, each with different value. There is the blood of Messiah (which has the greatest, infinite value), there is the blood of man (which is less valuable but still very precious) and finally there is the blood of animals (which is least valuable). He will learn that the blood of Yah'shua contains all the life of Yahweh - eternal life and eternal living. By receiving the blood-life of Yah'shua through faith into his heart, having marked the door posts with the Blood of the Lamb of Elohim, he will be symbolically drinking the wine (blood) in the Lord's Supper (Jn.6:53-56) and thus appropriate everything Yah'shua's blood represents. And what does the blood represent? His life-force. The life-force that constructed and organised the entire universe and every living creature in it. He will discover demonic enemies who have deceived him and gained entrance into his being as the light of truth is shone on them, but he will also discover that the blood of Messiah contains the power that crushed Satan 2,000 years ago with which to evict them And he will discover, most sublime of all truths, that it is through this blood-marked door of his heart that he becomes reunited with his Heavenly Father, Yahweh, with Yah'shua as His intermediary and advocate. Then he will begin to fully immerse himself in truth, obeying the commandments with joy, and start merging with the Ruach Elohim and become echad with Him. This cosmic life-power, in the blood of Messiah, will begin to systematically put every desire of self-satisfaction to death and lead to self-denial, as it did with Yah'shua Himself, thus causing Messiah to live in him.
Now you will remember that at Passover the Hebrews had to remain in their homes where the blood had been placed on the door posts. They had to remain connected to it, as we must remain connected to Yah'shua (Jn.15:5). "This cup is the New Covenant IN My blood," Yah'shua said, not "of" it. You do not enter into the blood (life) of Yah'shua by just mentioning that someone is "covered" with the blood while he is actually squandering his life in darkness. The blood receives its authentic power and has effect when we come in true repentance to the Cross and remain there, because the Cross is the only place the blood of Yah'shua was poured out for us. And what is the 'Cross'? The Cross is the act of redemption, the spiritual place where sin and guilt are cancelled out in our lives when we confess our duplicity in sin, our helplessness to do anything about it, and our willingness to surrender all self-rule and ownership rights to the One who died for us. The apostle John says quite clearly that we must "walk in the light" and "the blood of Yah'shua" to be purified from all sin (1 Jn.1:5-7). A journey must begin while we are in mortality, a journey we must remain in, a journey to a goal and a prize, on which our eyes must firmly rest day and night for the remainder of our lives until we are back home with our Master.
Paul said: "He rescued us from the domain of darkness and brought us away into the kingdom of His dear Son, in whom our release is secured and our sins forgiven". Yahweh hates sin because it isolates us from Him. And it is the blood of the covenant that brought Yah'shua back from the dead (Heb.13:20). Demons cannot resist those who proclaim the blood if they are anointed with the Ruach haQodesh. All demons were present at the Cross along with Satan - they were gathered in their billions there. All demons know that they are defeated by the blood of Messiah IF ... and I underline the word IF deliberately ... we appropriate it correctly (Col.2:13-15). Demons must always be reminded of that defeat in any kind of deliverance ministry and the one seeking deliverance must believe it and claim it in genuine faith - the trusting that leads to obedience and is not mere talk or intent. Every time we mention the blood of Yah'shua, Yahweh is glorified, Yah'shua is exalted and the power of the Ruach is released. To enter into the blood of the B'rit Chadashah - the New Covenant - is to enter into the torrential outburst of the very life of Yahweh which scatters all darkness. If we enter into that blood, and stay there, we can never be overcome.
Now I realise that for those not familiar with Hebraic thought forms and symbols that this may either sound very mystical or plain macabre. It is hard for most, if not everyone, to conceive of the very power of creation contained in one human being, Yah'shua, let alone that red fluid jam-packed with blood corpuscles. And yet there it was. In fact it is no more mystifying than a pinhead of material from the planet Jupiter weighing many tons because of the enormous gravity of that heavenly body. It is all a matter of scale. We have seen the power of atom bombs - a canister no bigger than a small kitchen - levelling an entire city. When it comes to the fullness of the Godhead dwelling in a human body, the mind does boggle.
However, it happened. The Messiah we love, though fully human, was also fully divine. It is the central mystery and truth of our faith. It is because He is both, that He is not only able to fully identify with us but also apply the fullness of the divine power on our behalf. We have seen it. And we know what we have witnessed. We wouldn't be risking life and limb, our reputation, homes, families - everything - if we didn't know this truth absolutely, or if we hadn't had an undeniable supernatural witness once or many times. And we are not some poor brainwashed, mindless people who have fallen victim to a programming in science or religious fiction. We're intelligent, educated free-thinkers; we challenged our own upbringing - the assumptions of the world view we were taught and the paradigms of the surrounding culture - and have seen a lot of the world. It may be said that we have even seen too much. I don't know. We only know what we know. The world may think us stupid but I disagree. I think we have made the most intelligent decision any man or woman could ever hope to make, a decision that has led not only to unspeakable spiritual riches but also to a proper grasp of reality. And because it's real, it's scientific in the truest sense, because it's testable and repeatable.
There is one piece of vital knowledge in this respect of reality that I feel obliged to share with you now before I forget it. And it's this: Do not trust yourself to crowds! Yah'shua didn't, because He knew what was in man (Jn.2:24). The Kingdom of Yahweh is not based on charismatic mass hysteria, whether religious or political. One day the crowd yelled, "Hosanna!" and the next, "Crucify Him!" We must detest the plaudits of men as much as we disregard their insult. The masseurs of vanity and the abusers of character are both equally guilty of spiritual defacement. We are, like John the Baptist, but voices in the wilderness - voices that announce the Messiah and the deliverance of man through His blood. But it is important to remember that we are not to be "noises" as Pharaoh was (Jer.46:17): noise is all wind and of no worth. "I believed, therefore I have spoken" (2 Cor.4:13) has to be the guiding principle of that voice. Because John was a voice, it was personal, containing his personal imprint. It was not the rehash of something someone else had said and repeated by rote. Our voices will contain our will, our heart, our desire, our motivation, our thinking, our feeling, our personality imprints and our habits too, like John's locust diet and 'fashionable' goatskin attire which will be seized upon and used by the incredulous and disbelieving to criticise and mock us. What we say must be from personal conviction, not rote. It must be impregnated with our life-passion, as Yah'shua's words were, and like John's. We must also be articulate, not vague and mumbling, nor delivering ear-splitting shouts. That voice, above all, must have heart in it, a passionate, kind heart filled, driven and inspired by the Ruach whose aftermath is love and not ringing ears and a headache.
I was not sure, again, what message I should bring you this week when I started, especially as we are in the middle of the Second Wave as I deliver it. One thing I do know is that you have to have a passionate conviction in the blood of Messiah. It's literally our spiritual lifeblood. Without exception, as Yahweh turns the waters of every heart to bring up concealed darkness, fears have to be recognised and dealt with, not run away from. It is at such times that we are often tempted to steady Yahweh's Covenant-Ark ourselves just to be 'sure' it isn't damaged. It's our way not only of futile self-management but managing Himself Yahweh too, were such even possible! But you will remember how the wrath of Yahweh burned against Uzza, that He smote him, because He put his hand to the Ark of the Covenant to steady it, and thereby died (1 Ki.13:10). And you will also recall how David was displeased with Yahweh but was at the same time afraid (vv.11-12). I am sure you have 'reacted' reading this passage as I have done, wondered at the fairness of it, and possibly even shelved it, not knowing quite what to do with it.
Right now as I speak to you there are people associated with this work wrestling with 'hard to understand' issues. Wise is the man who knows how to deal with them constructively whilst remaining temporarily ignorant. Living with unanswered questions is one of those secrets to contentment. Fools rebel against Yahweh, demanding to 'know', and when they do, it is a rejection of faith. It is to discard the way of salvation - which comes from trusting - in exchange for the illusion of 'knowledge' or gnosis.
Now David was one of those rare spiritual thoroughbreds who was wise enough to "fear" - his displeasure with Yahweh did not cross the line into rebellion. He knew better than to challenge the Most High, whose thoughts are higher than our own. We need not be ox-headed and try to storm the throne of Yahweh demanding our supposed 'educational rights'. The decision is folly, the result always a bloody nose and invariably spiritually painful.
When the Shepherd has gone, the wolves begin to entice. Watch out! Be as though the Shepherd has never gone! When Yah'shua ascended, there was temptation to disbelieve and return to what was before. We see it all the time, don't we? Strike the Shepherd and the sheep scatter. Nevertheless the sheep know the Shepherd's voice.
One day my voice will be gone, the pulpit empty, but my voice will continue to speak through what I have written and recorded, just as Yah'shua's and the apostles' voices still speak to us through the pages of Scripture centuries on. These written words connect us to the invisible Ruach. So it is with the Shepherd of Mankind. He remains though He is unseen. The power of the blood is right here amongst us now.
It is easy to be angry, but better to subdue it with fear, as David did. And what was his question? "How shall I bring the ark of Elohim to me?" (v.12) He had watched the Ark kill Uzzah, which he thought unjust because the man was just trying to steady it, and yet ... and yet he still desired the Ark to come to him. Many would not. Many would scorn it and abandon it, along with their faith. And many do just that and will still do it.
We should not miss the profound truth in this narrative. Recall that Abraham was angry once, because Yahweh demanded the life of his son, the one called to be the seed-bearer of Messiah - and yet he still went out of his way to bring that boy to Yahweh's altar of sacrifice. Love must overcome through trust even when the trust that is demanded seems 'undeserved' and 'unfair'. When we start getting angry with our Head, we abandon His demand to be trusted no matter what.
Job learned this lesson ... painfully. "And Yahweh answered Job, and said, 'Should a reprover contend with the Almighty?'" (Job 40:1, ISRV). Now what is the answer? Yahweh asks you to give it, just as He did Job: "Let him who reproves Elohim answer it" (v.1b) So what do you say? Do you give a philosophical discourse on morals? Did Abraham answer Yahweh with Torah? No! And neither did Job. Rather, the latter answered: "See, I am insignificant, what would I answer you? I lay my hand over my mouth" (v.3). Job knew it was futile to argue with the Maker. But Yahweh is not finished. "Would you also set aside My judgement? Would you pronounce Me wrong, and you be declared righteous?" (v.8) I wonder sometimes just what drives people to argue with Yahweh and I am led to the inevitable conclusion it is because they want to be right. That's what the bible calls self-righteousness, and in truth we have none of that. In the psychic power of our own self-guidance, we end up in error all the time. Man, like a shepherdless sheep, is a natural blunderer. And yet people will wander around aimlessly, getting nowhere, falling into every pothole on the road of life, and still claim to be right and know best.
Yahweh then goes on to make an amazing comparison. He asked if Job would try to capture Leviathan, and asks: "Would he [Leviathan] keep on pleading with you? Would he speak softly to you? Would he make a covenant with you to be taken as a servant forever? Would you play with him as a bird? Or leash him for your young girls?" Now, it does not matter whether Leviathan is a dinosaur or a powerful demon, the principle is the same: Leviathan is a lot bigger!
Yahweh says: "Any expectation of him is dissipated" (v.9a) This is a discourse on the proper attitude we as humans should have towards anything greater than ourselves by recognising our proper position and situation. Yahweh is Master over Leviathan. If contending with Leviathan is ridiculous, then contending with El Elyon - the Most High - even if we think we are right - is sheer madness. And He tells us the source of our madness in no uncertain terms: "He sees all that is haughty. He is Sovereign over all the sons [and daughters] of pride" (v,34).
We do not 'win' by being more 'knowledgeable' than others. We win by being submitted in the right way. Job said: "Who is it that hides council without knowledge? Therefore I declared but I did not understand, matters too marvellous for me, which I did not know" (Job 42:3). Job made a transition here - a quantum leap in spiritual growth. "I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You" (v.5). How come Job "sees" when still he does not understand the reason for all his suffering? What actually does He "see"? Now if you can grasp this, brethren and sisters, you have been propelled to great spiritual heights! How are we to view the conclusion of this great book? Is it just: "You know better, I'll just shut up"? Does that sound like "seeing" to you? What was it that David "saw" after Uzza's dramatic death? Why was his wrath converted to fear? And where did Job's friends go wrong? Reading the eloquent and sophisticated discourses of Job's friends reminds me so much of the brilliant but fatally flawed discussions of the contemporary oh-so-proud-and-wise-in-their-own-eyes debaters in Christian internet chat rooms and discussion boards, who are there to win a point rather than to let Yahweh rule them. They are smitten with that lethal bug called pride.
So I ask you again: Why was David's anger converted to fear? What was the mistake of Job's friends? And what lesson might wives profitably learn in respect to their relationship to their husbands as lords and masters over them? The Scripture reads: "Job died, old and satisfied with days" (v.17). What was the cause of his latter satisfaction? And more importantly, are you who hearing or reading me today truly and honestly satisfied with your life?
The answer to all these questions is simple: obedience in spite of not having all the answers, and in the knowledge that Yahweh always knows best even when He apparently contradicts Himself, is the only solution. We may not always understand, let alone see, all the 'causes'. There is more to the death of a man guarding the Ark than the steadying of a hand. There is more to the suffering of a faithful servant than the loss of family and property even if we don't want to see it. There is more to a wife obeying her husband over the his choice of a brand of toothpaste than obedience for its own sake. There is more to the infinite than the finite eye perceives.
The death of Yah'shua on the Cross must have seemed meaningless and futile to whose who witnessed it at the time. They saw only with their natural eyes - as the Jews did and still do - and not with their spiritual. I am sure they came up with a list of all the good He could have done had He remained mortal. Doubtless Job wondered about what his dead children might have accomplished had they lived. I am sure he did. How do I know that? Simply because Yahweh ordained it, and Yahweh is just and glorious. They did not die simply as actors in a drama especially set up for Job - they too had purpose. We may not know what it was, but we have no choice but to believe so without reproving Yahweh and declaring ourselves more righteous than Him! Is that not to "see"? And in thus "seeing", does that not remove from us the temptation to rebel and fall because of pride, as Lucifer once did?
Now the world would, I am quite sure, call me naïve, blind, fanatical stupid, for believing in such a thing. But they do not have my satisfaction or repose. I am not hopping about the lower branches of the tree, restless and unsure (OB 351). Am I brainwashed by delusional thinking? I think the fruits of my life - and the fruits of the life of anyone claiming to be a Christian - must bear witness for or against that. I, for one, have nothing more to say on the matter because this is a crossroads of faith for those who claim to be believers. If they don't cross it, they cease being believers and become Gnostics.
This of which I speak is one of the overcomings - of learning to trust completely when our deficient 'logic' and 'knowledge' cries against it. There is, if you like, a heavenly 'supra-logic' - a logic far above our own. It is not, however, comprehended, until that leap of faith is made. Only when that leap has been made can you begin to get glimpses of the purpose of it all, because you needed an expanded spiritual horizon to see it, a spiritual horizon that is widened only by faith. Job will be reunited with his lost children in the resurrection - they will resume their ages from when they were suddenly cut off. Better, they will live in a millennial world of peace and grow up under optimal conditions. Job and his children will be satisfied and content. Uzza too, and guarding far more than a gold-plated covenant box. And the wife willing to break up a marriage over a brand of toothpaste will see how utterly absurd her demand was and realise that the only way to know her husband is to trust and obey him "as to the Master [Yah'shua]" Himself (Eph.5:22; 1 Pet.3:6).
This, brethren and sisters, is what the Second Wave is all about. It's about leaving the world's Gnostic version of Christianity - which conceals itself not only in those religions and belief systems which we know are false and Gnostic but even in the ones we thing aren't - because it's in evangelical Christianity as well as in Messianism as well - and entering into the true spirit of Biblical Christianity. The whole Body of Messiah is infected through and through with Gnosticism - this insistence that we have advance knowledge before we will exercise faith. And that, brothers and sisters, was not the religion of Abraham, Job, David or Paul. It was not the religion taught by Yah'shua. It was not the proud and arrogant "If you don't tell me first I won't believe you" religion of the spoiled little brats of our modern neo-pagan society who have taken their pagan attitudes with them into Christianity. Yahweh will not tolerate such a rebellious attitude! He will send you His fire and either burn your pride out of you if you choose to stay or drive you back to the satanic camp your heart always belonged to if you won't. This is the choice you face NOW.
Will you, therefore, make teshuvah - make repentance - as Job did, turn your anger into fear as David did, surrender with a broken heart and a contrite spirit as Abraham did, and obey your husband as to the Master as Sarah did to Abraham - or will you rebel and return to the darkness to be swallowed up by it? For this time, brethren and sisters, is one of separation. This time determines whether you become a sheep or a goat (Mt.25:31-46). I have no idea who most of you are, I just know what Yahweh is doing to you. I know - because the Ruach keeps bearing witness to me - that these things are happening. And it's not just to those who name the Name of Messiah, but to our enemies as well. These He will either topple or destroy, depending on the degree of their evil. He will do it in His own way and probably without us ever knowing what happened to the majority of them. It really doesn't matter, because He is in control.
My desire is that you should have an unshakeable faith beaten pure on the anvil of divinely-instituted affliction. Not that I wish you affliction by any means, but only shalom - I just happen to know how Yahweh works. The love that He is imparting through the tempering of our mettle is creating before your eyes a new generation of believers unlike any the world has seen for centuries. He is preparing this generation for the very end-time. The principal actors of the end-time scenario are all here. The Beast, the Antichrist, the False Prophet - they're all here, waiting their hour. And their workers are all here too - the Satanists who will not repent, the nephilim bred to assist the Beast, they're here too. If you don't want to believe this, don't. It's not a matter of salvation but knowing the truth may well make your life a lot more comfortable, intelligible and ultimately secure as you deal with reality rather than fiction. My enemies say I am trying to scare people into this fellowship but in my experience those who hear such things and fear usually run away. Some already have. Besides, we neither teach nor cultivate fear. We bring everyone to Messiah, no matter what they believe, and invite them to open their hearts and apply the blood of salvation to the door posts thereof, and receive His peace - His Shalom.
If you are under test, know that I am also. Indeed, my faith is being tried like at no other time of my life. The stakes are far higher than I have ever known. My reputation and the reputation of this ministry. My ability to survive economically. Our rights to homeschool are being challenged by a fascist mentality which wishes to control and brainwash our children. Our ability to bring out the captives from the covens. All these and more are being tested to the full. I do not see how Yahweh will accomplish His purpose and my requests for concrete information on how He will, have been refused me so far. Therefore I must do as David and swallow my anger at injustice and defamation by evil men and instead reverently fear my Maker. I must do as Job and accept that my spiritual and physical sufferings are to work a purpose in me greater than I can understand. I must do as Abraham and sacrifice what I think is needful and let Yahweh do what He wills and trust Him to return what I have offered with something even better. I must trust Him as Hezekiah when I am surrounded by enemies and watch Him drive them away in defeat, confusion and death. I must trust Him and not try to steady the Ark of the Covenant as Uzza did, and leave Him to take care of the direction and progress of the Kingdom, not fearing that it will fall. And if the ministry does fall, what of it? Can He not right it, better and greater than it was before? And I will remember, finally, as I hope you will, this profound and moving admonition of the apostle Paul:
"If I speak in the languages of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are languages, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love" (1 Cor.13, NIV).
May Yahweh bless you as you seek the prize of grand fruit of these waves, which is love. Amen.
Author: Lev-Tsiyon
Glossary of MLT Hebraic, Greek and English Terms For other terms and full details please see the Micropedia
A
Adon(ai) = Master, a pagan fertility god, Adonis; used by many Messianics but not MLT
(a)eon(ian) = 7 dispensation- or age-long time periods, not forever (see le-olam-va-ed)
Alef-Tav = Alpha-Omega, A-Z, first and last letters of the Hebrew alphabet = Yah'shua
Amen = truly, let it be so, written Amein by some Messianics
Apocrypha = Hebraic Scriptures not a part of the Protestant canon (e.g. Baruch)
Anti-Messiah = Hebraic term for the end-time Antichrist or anyone opposed to the Messiah
antinomian = lawless Christian who disregards all or part of Torah/commandments
Ashkenazi Jew = East European Jew descended from the Turkic-Japhethite Khazars
Assembly = church, congregation, ekklesia, community, fellowship, koinonia, gathering
Azazel = the Yom Kippur scapegoat
B
Baal, Ba'al = any other master than Yahweh, usually demonic in MLT terminology
Bachor(im) = firstborn son(s)
Bar/Bat Mitzvah = Son/Daughter of Commandment, covenant to obey Torah at age 12
being = soul, the whole person (spirit and body), e.g. "my whole being"
Beit, bet, beth = house, e.g. Beit Yisrael (House of Israel), Beth Lechem (House of Bread)
Beit haMikdash = Yahweh's Temple in Yerushalayim
B'rit Chadashah = the New Covenant; B'rit Chadashah Scriptures = New Testament
B'rit Milah = circumcision - abolished in the B'rit Chadashah, replaced by Mikvah
C
canon = authoritative Scripture (Heb. qaneh, Gk. kanôn = measuring instrument)
Catechumen = a serious, covenanted investigator seeking Mikvah or Baptism in MLT
Chag haMatzah = Feast of Unleavened Bread, second of the annual feasts of Yahweh
Chavurat Bekorot = MLT's Priesthood Order, Holy Order and Assembly of the Firstborn
Cohen = priest; Cohen Gadol = High Priest (also spelled Kohen)
Council of Yah's elohim = the heavenly Assembly of the Firstborn or Chavurat Bekorot
D
demon = fallen malek or angel in rebellion against Yahweh (Heb. shad; see Êl-Shaddai)
derech = the Way, Path or Road - Yah'shua and the Gospel are the Way
Drash = moral or homiletic interpretation of Scripture - see PaRDeS
E
Echad = One, Union of two or more in one (as opposed to Yachid) - see Elohim
Echad Godhead Doctrine = Father Yahweh, Son Yah'shua and Sevenfold Ruach (Mother)
Êl, Eloah, Elah = God the Father, Yahweh
Êl-Elyon = Most High God, Yahweh
Êl-Shaddai = Master/Lord over all shads or demons
Elohim = God, the Godhead (Father, Son & Holy Spirit), lit. 'Mighty One(s)', 'Ruler(s)'
elohim = Israelite judges, rulers, angels or gods (false deities, idols, demons)
emunah = faith, actively trusting, clinging or adhering to (especially Yahweh or Yah'shua)
emet = truth, Yah'shua is the Emet
Ephraimite = descendant of the patriarch Ephraim and head of Messsianic Israel
F
Feasts of Yahweh = the 7 annual Moedim (Pesach, Chag haMatzah, Yom haBikkurim, Shavu'ot, Yom Teruah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot)
G
Gan-Eden = Garden of Eden, Paradise and state of the purified heart in Messiah
goy(im) = nation(s), Israelites or gentiles not born in or converted to the Covenant
H
hallelu-Yah = praise Yah(weh)!
Heylel = proper name of Satan or haSatan = the Adversary, the devil
Sabbath = Yom Shabbat (Friday to Saturday sunset, add 1 day in IDL Zone)
Hochmah = Wisdom, title of the 7-fold Ruach haQodesh
I
IDL = International Date Line, false man-made time division in Pacific Ocean
IDL Zone = Area between the true Divine Date Line (Lake Van/Eden) and the false one
Israeli = citizen of the modern Edomite-Khazar Republic of Israel (not Biblical Israel)
Israelite = citizen of biblical state of Israel or a modern follower of the Messiah
J
Jew = post-biblical term describing descendants of Edomite and Khazar converts to Judaism
Johannine = pertaining to the Apostle Yochanan (e.g. Gospel of John)
Josephite = descendant of the patriarch Joseph, the head of Messianic Israel
Judahite = a person in direct descent from the patriarch Judah, forefather of the Messiah
Judaism = a Talmudic-based religion rejecting Yah'shua the Messiah
Judean = a citizen of the Kingdom or Province of Judah until the 2nd Century diaspora
K
Kadosh la Yahweh = set-apart or dedicated to Yahweh, 'Holiness to the Lord', MLT motto
Karaites = Jews (from 700 AD) who reject the Talmud and accept only the Tanakh
kashrut = keeping kosher, food laws of Yahweh and correspinding lifestyle
Ketuvim = Writings or Hagiographa of the Tanakh
Khazar = a Turkic convert to Judaism ~700 AD forming the Ashkenazi Jewish community
kosher = clean foods authorised by Yahweh for human consumption
L
Lashon Hara = evil-speaking, gossip or slander
legalism = false route to salvation through works (self-salvation)
le-olam-va-ed = dispensation- or age-long, aeonian, not eternal, forever or for eternity
Lev = heart, as in Lev-Tsiyon = heart of Zion
Lev-Tsiyon = Heart of the Fortress [of Yahweh], Hebrew name of MLT's founder
M
Master = Lord, Sir, Adon(ai) - (one in authority, a ruler - a king, husband, prophet, judge)
Malak(im) = Angel(s), heavenly supernatural messenger(s)
manna = wafers of honey, bread from heaven (lit. 'what is this?')
matzah = unleavened bread, see Chag haMatzah
Menorah = 7-armed candlearbra = the 7 annual Moedim and 7-fold Ruach haQodesh
Messiah = Christ; Anti-Messiah = Antichrist
Messianic Community = Body of Christ, sum total of all true believers; all true fellowships
Messianic Israel = all who worship Yahweh, trust in Yah'shua, obey Torah and overcome
Messianic Jew = Messianic convert from Judaism still clinging to Talmudic traditions
Midrash = aggadic interpretation of scripture viâ Drash, a scriptural discussion
Mikvah = baptism by immersion of convert into Yah'shua or of wife into husband
Mishpachah = family: nuclear, congregational, tribal or the whole of Messianic Israel
MLT = Mishpachah Lev-Tsiyon = family of the heart of the fortress [of Yahweh]
Mishpat = right-ruling or judgement
mitzvah/mitzvot = commandment(s)
moed(im) = appointment(s) of Yahweh, 7 Annual Feasts, Sabbath and Rosh Chodesh
N
Nefilim, Nephilim = giant offspring of materialised demons and human women
Nevi'im = prophetic writings of the Old Testament or Tanakh
New Birth = spiritual conversion in the Ruach haRishon, being 'born again' with new heart
Nidah = a woman's menstruation period during which no intercourse is permitted
O
Olive Branch = collection of revelations, prophecies and visions published by MLT
P
Paraclete = Comforter, Advocate (NEB), Counsellor, Ruach haQodesh (Gk. paraklêtos)
PaRDeS = method of textual interpretation (homiletics) - see P'shat, Remez, Drash, Sod
Patriarch = a father who is head of his family, clan or tribe (lit. 'father-ruler')
Pentateuch = first five books of the Tanakh (Genesis-Deuteronomy), also called Torah
peribolaion = headcovering worn by daughters/wives in submission to fathers/husbands
Pesach = Passover, first of the annual feasts of Yahweh
Peshitta = an Aramaic version of the Bible
Prototrinitarianism = early, simplified MLT formulation of the Echad Godhead Doctrine
Prush(im) = Pharisee(s)
Pseudepigrapha = Non-canonical Hebrew writings additional to the Apocrypha
P'shat = literal, contextual, philological, exoteric, outer meaning of Scripture - see PaRDeS
Q
Qadosh Qadoshim = Holy of Holies, most sacred set-apart room of the Beit haMikdash
Qodesh, Kodesh = set-apart, holy (see Ruach haQodesh)
R
Rabbi = Teacher, term used by Messianic Jews and some Messianic Israelites = Pastor
Refuge, the 12 Cities of = divinely protected MLT fortresses during the 7-year Tribulation
Remez = hint or allegorical level of Hebraic understanding of Scripture - see PaRDeS
Rosh Chodesh = monthly New Moon appointment of Yahweh
ruach = spirit of a person (lit.'breath')
Ruach Elohim = Spirit of God (the Spirit of the collective Godhead or Elohim)
Ruach haChamashee = 5th Ruach presides over Yom Teruah and Yom Chamashee
Ruach haQodesh = the Sevenfold Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost (lit. 'Set-Apart Breath')
Ruach haRevee = 4th Ruach presides over Shavu'ot, Yom Revee and Bar Mitzvah
Ruach haRishon = 1st Ruach presides over Pesach, Yom Rishon and the New Birth
Ruach haShanee = 2nd Ruach presides over Chag haMatzah and Yom Shanee
Ruach haSheshi = 6th Ruach presides over Yom Kippur and Yom Sheshi
Ruach haShleshi = 3rd Ruach presides over Yom haBikkurim, Yom Shleshi and Mikvah
S
Sabbath = Yom Shabbat (Friday to Saturday sunset, add 1 day in IDL Zone)
Satan = rebel archangel Heylel, father of lies, devil, chief demon (lit.'Adversary')
Sephardic Jew = West European Jew of mixed blood containing many Judahites
Septuagint = Greek translation of the Tanakh, LXX
Shegal haShabbat = 7th Ruach (Sabbath Queen) presides over Sukkot and Yom Shabbat
Shekinah = Divine Presence and Glory of Yahweh-Elohim
Set-apart = holy, sanctified, consecrated, dedicated, separated (to and by Yahweh)
Shabbat-Shabbaton = High Sabbath (e.g. Yom Kippur)
Shalom = heavenly peace, standard Hebraic greeting invoking Yahweh's peace
Shamash(im) = servant(s), deacon(s), attendant(s)
Shavu'ot = Pentecost or Weeks, fourth of the annual feasts of Yahweh
Sheol = grave or pit, euphamism for Hades or hell - also see Tartarus
shofar = ram's horn, blown during Yahweh's Moedim
simcha = joy, keynote of Sukkot
Sod = mystical, anagogic, inner or esoteric understanding of Scripture - see PaRDeS
Sukkot = Tabernacles or Booths, seventh of the annual feasts of Yahweh
Synagogue = Greek word used by Jews and Messianics (but not MLT) for a meeting house
T
talmid(a) = male/female disciple or student
Talmud = scriptures, teachings and commentaries belonging to non-Messianic Judaism
Tanakh = acronym for Old Testament Scriptures - Torah, Nevi'im & Ketuvim
Tartarus = place of imprisonment under the earth for rebellious angels and Nephilim
teshuvah = repentance, remorse and contrition leading back to Torah obedience
Torah = Yahweh's teachings or Law; New Covenant Torah includes Yah'shua's teachings
Tribulation, the Great = the final 7 years of the present aeon when Anti-Messiah rules
Trinity = Catholic Godhead formula - see Echad Godhead Doctrine and Prototrinitarianism
Tsiyon = Zion, a fortress, a name of Jerusalem and a prominent hill
Tzitzit/Tizitziyot = tassel(s) worn by men in remembrance of Torah
U
Universalism = salvation of all at the cosmic Yovel, with different rewards and punishments
Y
Yachid = one, single person or item, as opposed to Echad (many in one, unity)
Yah'shua the Messiah = Jesus Christ (the Son)
Yahudah = Judah - see Judahite
Yahweh, Yah, YHWH = the true Name of our Heavenly Father, also carried by Yah'shua
Yahweh-Elohim = LORD God (the Father, Yahweh as Head of the Godhead or Elohim)
Yahweh haQatan = the sent Yahweh = Yah(weh)'shua, Malak of Yahweh's Presence
Yam Suf = Sea of Reeds, the true Israelite Exodus water crossing, not the Red Sea
Yarden = Jordan River (lit. 'meanderer')
Yerushalayim = Jerusalem
Yisrael = Israel (lit. 'ruling with Êl') = true believers under the New Covenant
Yom Chamashee = 5th day of the week (Thursday, Friday in IDL Zone)
Yom Din, Yom haDin = (the) Day of Judgement
Yom haBikkurim = Feast of Firstfruits, third of the annual feasts of Yahweh
Yom Revee = 4th day of the week (Wednesday, Thursday in IDL Zone)
Yom Rishon = 1st day of the week (Sunday, Monday in IDL Zone)
Yom Kippur = Day of Atonement, sixth of the annual feasts of Yahweh
Yom Shabbat = 7th day of the week and Sabbath Rest (Saturday, Sunday in IDL Zone)
Yom Shanee = 2nd day of the week (Monday, Tuesday in IDL Zone)
Yom Sheshi = 6th day of the week (Friday, Saturday in IDL Zone)
Yom Shleshi = 3rd day of the week (Tuesday, Wednesday in IDL Zone)
Yom Teruah = Day of Trumpets, fifth of the annual feasts of Yahweh
Yosef = Joseph - see Josephite
Yovel = Jubilee or Year of Jubilee
Z
Zaqen(im) = elder(s) of an assembly or congregation, or senior members of a community
Zoë Life = Greek term for spiritual life in the Messiah
Commonly Used MLT Abbreviations
For additional abbreviations and explanations, please see the Micropedia
A
Amp.V(er). = Amplified Version of the Bible
Aram. = Aramaic
AV = Authorised Version of the Bible - see KJV
B
BCAY = B'rit Chadashah Assembly of Yahweh - see NCCG
BoA = Books of Abraham (e.g. 1Abr., 2Abr., etc.)
C
cp, cf = compare with
CB(Q) = Chavurat Bekorot
CEV = Contemporary English Version of the Bible
ch. = chapter
CJB = Complete Jewish Bible
CLNT = Concordant Literal New Testament
CYe = Council of Yah's elohim
E
Eng. = English
F
ff. = and onwards/forwards
fn = footnote
G
Gk. = Greek
GNB = Good News Bible - see TEV
H
Heb. = Hebrew, Hebraic
HEM = Holy Echad Marriage, eternal marriage
HO = Holy Order - see Chavurat Bekorot
HOC = Holy Order Collection of revelations - see OB
HRV = Hebraic-Roots Version of the Bible
I
ibid. = ibidem (lit. 'in the same place'), referring to a book previously cited
ICJC = Independent Church of Jesus Christ, earlier name of NCCF
ISRV = Institute for Scripture Research Version of the Bible
J
JB = Jerusalem Bible
JBP/Phillips = J.B.Phillips translation of the New Testament
JNT = Jewish New Testament
K
KJV = King James Version of the Bible - see AV
L
LB = Living Bible
lit. = literally or literature
LXX = Septuagint, Greek translation of the OT
M
MLT = Mishpachah Lev-Tsiyon
Moff. = Moffatt translation of the Bible
MRC = Messianic Renewed Covenant Version of the NT
MS(S) = Manuscript(s)
N
NASB, NASV = New American Standard Bible/Version
NC&C = New Covenants & Commandments - see OB
NCCF = New Covenant Christian Fellowship, earlier name of NCCG
NCCG = New Covenant Church of God, earlier name of MLT - see BCAY
NCP = New Covenant Press, publishing arm of MLT
NCW = New Covenant Witness, MLT magazine
NEB = New English Bible
NIV = New International Version of the Bible
NKJV = New King James Version of the Bible
Nor. = Norwegian
NT = New Testament, B'rit Chadashah
NWT = New World Translation of the Bible, unreliable Jehovah's Witness version
O
OB = Olive Branch - see NC&C
op.cit. = opere citato (lit. in the work cited)
OT = Old Testament, Tanakh
P
p(p). = page(s)
pl. = plural - see s.
PWNC = Prophetic Words of the New Covenant, revelation cataloging system - see OB
Q
QED = quod erat demonstrandum (lit. which was shown to be proved)
R
RCF = Restoration Christian Fellowship, earlier name of ICJC
RhQ = Ruach haQodesh, Holy Spirit
RSTNE = Restoration Scriptures True Name Edition of the Bible
RSV = Revised Standard Version of the Bible
RV = Revised Version of the Bible
S
s. = singular - see pl.
S&G = Smith & Goodspeed Version of the Bible
T
TEV = Today's English Version of the Bible - see GNB
V
Vulg. = Biblia Vulgata, Latin Vulgate translation of the Bible
W
WEB = World English Bible
Glossary Copyright ©2007 Mishpachah Lev-Tsiyon (MLT) - All Rights Reserved
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This page was first created on 18 March 2007
Last updated on 18 March 2007
Copyright ©2006 Mishpachah Lev-Tsiyon (MLT) - All Rights Reserved
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