tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-76571552663401458252024-03-14T19:45:14.021+02:00Shalom Fellow Israelite LettersEphraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.comBlogger133125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-29541438945915298612014-04-25T09:13:00.002+03:002014-04-25T09:13:57.690+03:00Lawlessness<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Shalom
Fellow Israelite,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">That
we are living in one of the most potentially perilous times in history can’t be
overstated; this being so not only in the physical or natural sense, but also
spiritually. One major example of such lurking danger is the ecumenical
movement, which took a mighty leap forward with the advent of the Charismatic
movement (circa 1967), and has been relentless ever since. In fact, in our day strong affiliations are
being cemented and have become quite the ‘norm’ in various “Christian” circles. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Yeshua
warned us that in the latter days, <i>“many false prophets will rise up and
deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow
cold”</i> (Matthew 24:11-12). Paul adds
to this one of the most sobering statements: <i>“For such are false apostles,
deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Mashiach. And no
wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his
ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness…”</i> (2
Corinthians 11:13-15). The above usage
of “Mashiach” is in reference to the anointing of the Holy Spirit, or the
Spirit of the Messiah.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">“Now
the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith,
giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons”</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"> (1 Timothy 4:1). One of those doctrines is “universal unity”
or “catholicism”. In accordance with this
creed, mankind must unite under the banner of humanism and its varying ideals.
In order to succeed in achieving this end, liberal acceptance in the name of
‘love’ must be embraced for the sake of ‘good works’, which can actually lead
to pride and self-righteousness. What is the purpose of these so called good
works? They are the mortar which is to hold
together the structure of the one world religious order. These efforts issue from the spirit of Nimrod
who gathered together all the members of the family of man in order to build
another kingdom with a hierarchal “tower”.
This spirit’s proponent was true to his name, as Nimrod means “we will
rebel”. Against whom was this rebellion
directed? Obviously it was against
YHVH’s kingdom <span style="color: red;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Yeshua really hit the nail on the head, when He said
to the religious leaders: </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"> <i>"Even so you also outwardly appear
righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness”</i> (Matthew
23:28).<b> </b> What is lawlessness? <i>“Whoever
commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. And you know that
He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin. Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever
sins has neither seen Him nor known Him” </i>(1 John 3:4-6). Disregard of the
Creator’s statutes, laws, and ordinances are a direct affront to Him. <b> </b> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">All
efforts to unite the world religions means compromise with lawlessness,
including the most recent one which lauds the “Holy Spirit” as the common unifying
factor. Such efforts were also undertaken by Constantine, who created the
‘universal church’ through incorporating pagan practices.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Many
governments today are passing laws, backed up by penalties including
imprisonment, which are directly contrary to YHVH’s Laws. Approval (even if tacit) of such lawlessness
will bring on YHVH’s judgments of “death”.
Not only are the “kings” granting approval to such diabolical behavior,
but also the “priesthood/religious leaders”.
Thus for the sake of unity in the Christian religious world (and outside
of it) lawlessness and a flagrant compromise of holiness are being accepted and
put to practice.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">At
the end of Romans chapter 1, Paul describes the acts of lawlessness. At the conclusion of his list he issues a warning,
elaborating on what brings on YHVH’s judgments: <i>“…knowing the righteous
judgment of Elohim, that those who practice such things are deserving of death,
not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them”</i> (Romans 1:32).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">How
true is the prophet’s statement: <i>"Woe to the rebellious children,"
says YHVH, "who take counsel, but not of Me, and who devise plans, but not
of My Spirit, that they may add sin to sin”</i>! (Isaiah 30:1).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Shabbat
Shalom,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Ephraim<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-38759235998688918202014-04-04T12:44:00.001+03:002014-04-04T12:44:52.162+03:00Passover and Nationhood<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
Over a decade ago I wrote the letter
below. When I re-read it just now, I asked myself if in the course of the years
that had passed, we, individually and corporately, have moved in any way
further into our Heavenly calling to be the one Nation Israel upon this
earth.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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It was over 3,800 years ago when
the Elohim of Jacob sent His family down to Egypt to make them into a
nation. Speaking to His servant Jacob,
He said: “<i>I am YHVH, the Elohim of your father; do not fear to go down to
Egypt, for I will make of you a great nation there” </i>(Genesis 46:3). One of
the Hebrew words for “nation” is “goy”.
It is first used in the Tanach in the Covenant that YHVH made with our
forefather Abraham, <i>“I will make you a great nation; I will bless you, and
make your name great; and you shall be a blessing”</i> (Genesis 12:2). One
man, one Elohim, one Covenant, one national identity; this was at the heart of
YHVH’s plan for the redemption of the creation.
The Elohim of Abraham set apart a man, and swore by His own name that
his seed/sperm would become a great and holy (set-apart) nation. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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When Jacob and his band of seventy
souls arrived in Egypt, he found another family member already down there -
Joseph. As we can see from the story
recorded in Genesis, Joseph and his progeny had lost their identity and
connection with their family of origin, and thus in a sense were a prophetic
type of the second family, Ephraimites, or the so called Gentiles of the house
of Jacob. Perhaps this is why Jacob had
to adopt Joseph’s sons (ref. Gen 48:5), even though they were of the same
bloodline. The adoption was significant for the restoration of the governmental
order and unity of the clan. If they were to become a nation, they had to be
set apart from the other nations by having their own (temporary) territory in
Egypt. And so since Joseph was in a position to carry this out, he gave them
the land of Goshen where they multiplied profusely. The Creator blessed them
with fruitfulness, as they dwelt in one of the most fertile areas of the land
of Ham. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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However, eventually Jacob’s family
became slaves to their Egyptian overlords. And while in that state, they lost
their vision of being a nation, a family and a people with a purpose and a
Divine call. This is portrayed quite
vividly in the scene of the two Hebrew slaves who (much like today’s ‘two
houses’) were fighting one another much to their own demise. The seed of
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob was now characterized by individualism. This was only natural, since they were living
under extreme conditions, and self-preservation became their means of survival
(while in the eyes of the Egyptians they had become a faceless mass, according
to the wording in the Hebrew of Exodus chapter 1). So where was this great nation that was
promised to Abraham? His seed, now
turned slaves, were cursing the day they were born on. They had become nothing more than dead dry
bones in the desert sands of Egypt. So helpless were they that, they could not
even respond to Moses when he came to them preaching the good news of their
deliverance (ref. Exodus 6:9)!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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The Passover story is replete with
pestilence, famine and one disaster following another. But when gross darkness covered the land,
there was still light in the tents of the Hebrews (ref. Ex.10:23), as the
anointing of YHVH’s covenant word (which “<i>is a light</i>”, ref. Ps. 119:105)
was still upon them to become a great nation. How was this going to be made
possible? It certainly was not going to
happen by the nation’s own strength. This was going to take a miracle, a Divine
intervention. YHVH, therefore, dispatched a man with a message: “Let <b>My people</b> go”. Moses was faithful to bring that word to the
ruler of the slaves, but YHVH hardened the heart of Pharaoh, just to make sure
that His people would know that their deliverance was not going to come by the
way or authority of man. Had Pharaoh given his permission, these Hebrews would
have been forever indebted to their slave owner. They would never be free to take
up (in the future) their divinely ordained position as the head of all the
nations, and would still be legally bound to Egypt. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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YHVH had another plan to restore
these slaves to freedom, and to their national identity. He told His servant Moses to have each family
take a lamb: <i>"Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying: `On the
tenth day of this month every man shall take for himself a lamb, according to
the house of his father, a lamb for a household. And if the household is too small for the
lamb, let him and his neighbor next to his house take it according to the
number of the persons; according to each man's need you shall make your count
for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year. You
may take it from the sheep or from the goats…. Pick out and take lambs for
yourselves according to your families, and kill the Passover lamb….then you
shall take a bunch of hyssop, dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and
strike the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin.
And none of you shall go out of the door of his house until morning…. Now the
blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the
blood, I will pass over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you
when I strike the land of Egypt”</i> (Exodus 12:3-5; 21-22; 13). <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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The moment the elders applied the
blood and struck the lintels and the doorposts of the Hebrews’ homes with it,
the latter were all sealed into their deliverance, freedom and destiny. But
even beyond that - their self-centered ‘survivalism’ had given way to being
united behind the one sacrifice, being totally dependent upon the powerful
right arm of the Almighty to protect them and deliver them to freedom. <i>“Let <b>My
people</b> go!”</i> YHVH had already announced to all the rulers of Egypt to whom
these people belonged. These was a people that did not belong to itself, the
Hebrews were and still are today <i>“<b>My people,</b> </i>[“ami” -singular]
says YHVH”. But now, through the blood
of the lamb they were set apart to enter into the next phase of His plan. <i>“And you shall be <b>to Me</b> a kingdom
of priests and a holy nation. These are the words which you shall speak to the
children of Israel"</i> (Exodus 19:6 emphasis added). <o:p></o:p></div>
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As we, Ephraim and Judah, YHVH’s two families, the two
nations, gather together to honor Him during this year’s Passover and Feast of
Matzot, let us let go of individualism and lift up the cup of our national unity.
Remember that we were all once slaves to sin and death and bound to the
principalities and powers of this world’s (kosmos) dominion. It behooves us to <i>“…purge
out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened.
For indeed Messiah, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. Therefore let us keep
the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness,
but with the unleavened of sincerity and truth” </i>(1 Cor. 5:7-8). May we walk together through the Door that is
splattered with the blood of the Lamb, out of the houses of our bondage and
into the liberty of the new corporate life, and become that Royal Priesthood
and Holy Nation Israel! <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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May you all be blessed during this
Pesach and Feast of Matzot (unleavened bread) with a sense of national
unity! May the eyes of our hearts be
opened anew to the fact that we are “<b>My people Israel</b>” in this
generation. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
Shabbat Shalom, <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .25in;">
Ephraim <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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“Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for
brethren to dwell together in unity!<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
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It is like the precious oil upon the head, running
down on the beard, the beard of Aaron, running down on the edge of his
garments. It is like the dew of Hermon, descending upon the mountains of Zion; for
there YHVH commanded the blessing--Life forevermore” (Ps. 133). <o:p></o:p></div>
Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-89682232145658474892014-03-28T12:22:00.001+03:002014-03-28T12:22:39.498+03:00Return to Zion<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: .25in; margin-top: 0in;">
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One of the most quoted and song verses in Scripture is the following: <i>"And the ransomed of YHVH shall return, and come to Zion with singing, with everlasting joy on their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away" </i>(Isaiah 35:10). However, few realize that in order to return, one would have had to be there in the past. So who really are the ones returning to Zion?</div>
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Modern day Zionism came into being
during the nineteenth century, inspired, at least in part, by contemporary
nationalistic movements, which were prevalent in <st1:place w:st="on">Europe</st1:place>
of that day. But perhaps still greater was the contribution made by a few
Spirit-filled Christian (Gentile) visionaries, who began to realize the importance
of the Torah, the prophets, and the Jewish people's return to the ancient land
of their ancestors. Relationships between these Gentile Christians (Zionists)
and the Jewish community in <st1:place w:st="on">Europe</st1:place> started
developing already in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries (ref. The Vision
Was There by Franz Kobler, 1956). The Zionist movement, however, was not really
acknowledged by nineteenth century historians as a viable or a definable
phenomenon. Jewish identity was still
very much attached to religion, which preserved the uniqueness of the Jews as a
people while in the "Galut" (diaspora, or exile). But the religious
traditions left them with only a very slight hope of realizing any national
aspirations. Saying "next year in <st1:city w:st="on">Jerusalem</st1:city>,"
every Passover was not enough to extricate them from their host countries.
Their identity was defined more by default than by anything positive. It wasn't
until the time of Rabbi Alkalai and Kalishcher (two Jewish "prophets"
of the 1800's) that seeds of national identity began to be sown. They were followed by Moses Hess,
Ben-Yehudah, Pinsker, Herzl, Nordau, Ahad-Ha-am, Bialik and others, whose names
and writings have lost their prophetic significance today, and have become (in
the eyes of most Israelis) mere signs posted on street corners in the cities of
Israel.</div>
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The transformation, from religion to
nationalism, began to grow in the hearts and minds of a remnant, ultimately
resulting in the birth of the State of Israel, albeit not without tribulation
(pogroms, persecutions and the Holocaust). The return of Judah (the Jews), as a
nation, to the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">Land</st1:placetype>
of <st1:placename w:st="on">Promise</st1:placename></st1:place> is a direct
fulfillment of the End Time prophetic scriptures. It testifies to the fact that
the God of Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps (Ps. 121:4), but "watches
over His word to perform it" (Jer.1:12). </div>
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<br /></div>
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However, this is only half of the
story. Zionism, as a national movement was not only evident among a remnant
of Judah, but also began to surface in Ephraim, who is the other
"witness" of the God of Israel's unending mercies and covenant
keeping faithfulness. It was at about
this time (i.e. the nineteenth century), that a few born-again, spirit-filled
believers in Europe, especially in the UK, received prophetic insight into the
history of the Two Houses, the two witnesses, the two olive branches, the two
sticks, the two families, the two kingdoms and the two nations, spoken of in
the Bible. Many believed that the nations that made up Europe were primarily of
the lost tribes of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>.
Intense studies of languages, culture, religion etc. began to emerge. In <st1:metricconverter productid="1887, a" w:st="on">1887, a</st1:metricconverter> work by M.M. Eshelman, called The Two
Sticks, was published. Later, another,
by J.H. Allen called <st1:country-region w:st="on">Judah</st1:country-region>'s
Sceptre and Joseph's Birthright, 1917.
These works were evidence that the Spirit of the Lord was (and still is)
working to turn the hearts of the children to our forefathers, and to restore
the national identity of both houses of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region> (Ephraim and Judah). </div>
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In the covenant that God made with
Abraham, He promised him a land and a nation (Goy) which was to come out of his
own loins, (Gen 12:1-3). God would never forget the covenant, although He would
scatter this nation into all the nations, and thus it is written that Ephraim
is "well mixed into all nations" (Hos. 7:8), and that he would become
their "fullness" (Gen 48:19). Yet, in Ezekiel 37:22 we read: "I
will make them one nation in the land," (as well as in Jer 3:18). God's
redemptive plan for this earth was, and still is, a united, redeemed, single
nation of "<st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>",
living in the land that YHVH promised to the patriarchs.</div>
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Religious identity has kept the Two
Houses divided. However, with the restoration of our national identity we can
begin to tear down the age-old divisions of enmity and jealousy and build,
under the guiding hand of the Messiah, the commonwealth that will be a light to
the rest of the nations, a royal priesthood and a holy nation. Both houses need to return to true Zionism,
to the Zionism of the Torah. This Zionism is a very simple concept; it involves
a land, a nation ("goy"), and a kingdom government. (to be continued)</div>
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Ephraim <a href="http://www.1st-born.com/">www.1st-born.com</a></div>
Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-7782671177461832552014-03-09T11:10:00.000+02:002014-03-09T11:10:31.947+02:00Righteousness in Messiah<div class="MsoNormal">
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The question of how we attain righteousness always seems to
be at the forefront of the discussion about the Torah. Can we be righteous without Torah? It has always puzzled me why Paul, an expert
in keeping Torah, so much so that he was found “blameless” in the eyes of his
contemporaries, was still regarded by YHVH as a man full of iniquity and sin
whose righteousness was as “menstrual rags”. All of Paul’s righteous living and
good works were ultimately defiled by his own sin nature. <o:p></o:p></div>
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However, when Paul came into the revelation knowledge of the
righteousness that is in Messiah he still did not abandon Torah, as is
evidenced by the following: “<i>Do we then make void </i>[destroy, do away
with, abolish]<i> the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish </i>[fulfill]<i>
the law” </i> (Rom 3:31). <i>“Wherefore the law<b> </b>is holy, and the
commandment holy, and just, and good…
For we know that the law<b> </b>is spiritual” </i>(Rom 7:12,14). <o:p></o:p></div>
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In chapters five through seven of the Gospel of Matthew is
found the portion known as “The Sermon on the Mount”, in which Yeshua
reiterated aspects of Torah and expounded on them in great detail. He began his
dissertation by saying: <i>“Think not that I am come to destroy the law<b>,</b>
or the prophets: I am not come to destroy… but to fulfill…” </i>(Matt 5:17).<i>
</i> Why did Yeshua go into such great
detail to explain to His audience the Law of Moses? Surely he knew that there was not one person
sitting out there who could ever live up to its standards or keep it
completely, so why would he bother going into such specifics to explain the
commandments of His Father? The answer is found in His introductory statement: <i>“I
have not come to destroy but to fulfill”</i>.
In actual fact, in this manner Yeshua was introducing Himself to his
listeners. Bearing the righteous nature of His Father, He was the only one able
to fulfill every requirement of the Law.
Did He actually expect the people, whom he knew to be sinners by nature,
to keep all His sayings? Didn’t He
Himself proclaim that man’s heart was wicked and evil?<i> “For from within, out
of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,
thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye,
blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and
defile the man” </i>(Mark 7:21-23).
Wasn’t His very coming to earth intended for the elimination of the sin
nature? He was “<i>the lamb that takes away the sin of the world</i>”.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Yeshua was the righteousness of Torah incarnate; in other
words, the righteousness of Torah is the righteousness of Elohim. They are one and the same. Yeshua was righteous by nature. He did not
have to keep Torah in order to become righteous. He manifested Torah because it was natural
for Him to do so. Man, on the other
hand, is under the spiritual powers of rebellion and disobedience and has taken
on that nature. Man cannot change his
fallen condition by trying to be “like God”, or “like Christ”, through keeping
the written Torah (and I might add the ‘Beatitudes’ too). This will only result in religious pride,
self-righteousness and judgmentalism or criticism of others. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Yeshua declared that anyone who teaches disobedience to the
commandments would be least in the kingdom of heaven, but then He made a
reference to the religious leaders and said: <i>“For I say unto you, that
except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and
Pharisees, you shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven”</i> (Matt 5:20).
Remember, Paul was a Pharisees and a rabbi. Yeshua’s denouncement of the Pharisees must
have been a surprise to the people, as they held their religious leaders in
great respect because on the outside they saw only the beautiful whitewashed
sepulchers that they were (notwithstanding the proverbial dead men’s bones on
the inside, ref. Matt 23:27). So why did
Yeshua expound Torah to the masses? What was Yeshua referring to when he said
that “He came to fulfill”, while there was still a lot more to be fulfilled
regarding His Father’s words in the Torah and the Prophets, even after the
Messiah’s death and ascension? <o:p></o:p></div>
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The issue of Yeshua’s entire dissertation was to reveal the
righteousness of Torah, resident in Himself, as He was the Son of a righteous
and holy heavenly Father. If we go back
to the Garden, Satan suggested to Adam and Eve that they could become “like
Elohim” if they would only eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.
But what our first parents did not realize was that disobedience to their
Creator would take them in the opposite direction. They received what they wanted, but now they
had a different spiritual boss (actually a different spiritual father) to demonstrate
to them who they were going to look like.
They came under another law called the “law of sin and death”. They now
had the knowledge of good and evil and were not aware of anything other than
“self”. This is what Paul meant when he
wrote: <i>“For without the <b>law </b>sin was dead. For I was alive </i>[to self]<i> without the <b>law
</b>once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died” </i> (Rom 7:8-9).
In their self-life Adam and Eve were trying to live by the good, but the
evil was right there with them as it was the very nature of the fruit of which
they had partaken. Paul, in explaining
this phenomenon, says it this way: “<i>For the good that I would I do not: but
the evil which I would not, that I do” </i>(Rom
7:19). He therefore adds that it is
“foolishness” for man to try to live the righteousness of Torah without a
change in his nature. <o:p></o:p></div>
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If we say we love Torah and want to be Torah-righteous, the
only way to do it is through the channel that YHVH provided, that is through
faith in what He has accomplished by His Son’s death, burial and resurrection. Abraham our father was reckoned righteous
because he believed YHVH. We can only
enter into that same righteousness if we believe what YHVH accomplished by
sending His only begotten Son. This is
the message of the “good news” to those who by faith receive the free gift of
grace. Our eyes will no longer be fixed
on ourselves, but on Him who is our new creation life and righteousness. Thus, when we know Him, we know who we are as
well. <i>“For you are dead, and your life is hid with Messiah in God. When Messiah, who is our life, shall appear </i>[be
revealed in us]<i>, then shall we also appear </i>[knowing who we are as new
creation beings] <i>with him in glory” </i>(Col 3:3-4). <i>“But of Him are you
in Messiah Yeshua, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness<b>,</b>
and sanctification, and redemption”</i>
(1 Cor 1:30). <i>“For He made Him
to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness<b> </b>of
God in Him”</i><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> (</span>2 Cor.
5:21). <i>“That the righteousness<b> </b>of
the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the
Spirit” </i>(Rom 8:4).<o:p></o:p></div>
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Ephrimona</div>
Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-15226205365736060552014-02-26T09:40:00.002+02:002014-02-26T09:40:23.760+02:00Bread of the Presence/Face<div style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<i><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 150%;">“And
Yeshua said to them, ‘I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never
hunger…’”</span></i><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 150%;">
(John 6:35).<i> </i><b> </b><i>"I am the bread which came down
from heaven…"</i> (John 6:41). <i>"I am the living bread which came
down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever…”</i>
(John 6:51).<b> </b> </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 150%;">Yeshua
has chosen to compare Himself and the Life that He gives to “bread”. In
last week’s article, “Bread of Heaven”, we noted that, Yeshua told His
followers to eat His flesh and drink His blood (see John 6:53).
Therefore,<i> “If anyone <b>eats</b> of this bread, he will live forever…”</i>
(v. 51 emphasis added). Later Yeshua clarified these ‘hard’ statements by
saying that, <i>"it is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits
nothing. The <b>words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life</b>”</i>
(v. 63 emphasis added).<b> </b> In other words, Yeshua, His words, His
message, and even His person constitute the “bread”. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 150%;">Already
Moshe, in the wilderness, made the declaration: <i>"So He </i>[Elohim]<i>
humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not
know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not
live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth
of YHVH” </i>(Deuteronomy 8:3). But one would think that this kind of spiritual
reality would have eluded the Israelites. As hungry and distraught newly
released slaves, what would they have understood about “living by the Word”?
Indeed, they did not appear to grasp that notion. Yeshua, however, quoted some
of these very words, in reference to bread, immediately upon His encounter with
the adversary at the start of His ministry (Matt. 4:4; Luke 4:4). From then on
the ‘bread imagery’ continued to be a central theme, as we have seen, during
the rest of His time on earth. He even taught His disciples to pray:
“Give us this day our allotted portion of bread” (literal translation, based on
Proverbs 30:8).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 150%;">During
the Passover meal Yeshua took the unleavened bread, broke it and said: <i>“This
is my body”.</i> He was reminding His disciples of what He had said to
them previously, after the feeding of the five thousand. Since they did
not understand spiritual realities, He had to make His point very
tangible. Only after being filled with the Spirit of Elohim they grasped
what Yeshua meant by “partaking of His body and blood/life”. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 150%;"> After
being immersed in the Spirit, these disciples had become the “one bread” and
their communing with each other, as His body, was by “eating Spirit and
drinking Life”, which each member provided. Later on Paul wrote, <i>“Now
you are the body of Messiah…”</i> (1 Corinthians 12:27), and a little earlier: <i>“…The
bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Messiah? For
we, though many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one
bread”</i> (1 Corinthians 10:16-17). Obviously, the apostle was not
speaking of “flesh”, or anything of this creation. He was referring to Spirit
and Life, the bread which came down from heaven. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 150%;">Recalling
the scene of the feeding of the five thousand, where Yeshua blessed the bread
and then broke it and gave it out, we can rest assured that He will do the same
with us. Blessing us as the “bread” is not for us personally, but for the
sake of others. Hence it says: <i>“In whom the whole body, joined and knit together
by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every
part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in
love” </i>(Ephesians 4:16).<b> </b> </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 150%;">Nourishing
each other in the body of Messiah with His love and all the other fruit of the
spirit will cause the body to mature. But should this not be the case, there is
a severe warning issued by Paul:<b> </b><i>“For he who eats and drinks in an
unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's
body. For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep”</i>
(1 Corinthians 11:29-30). This statement is not speaking about a wafer
and a sip of wine. It is telling us to recognize the mystery of Messiah’s
Spirit in one another, as we are bound together by the Word. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 150%;">After
Yeshua was glorified, He sent the Spirit of His Father in fulfillment of His
(earlier) prayer:<i> "…that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in
Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe
that You sent Me. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that
they may be one just as We are one” </i>(John 17:21-22). In John 14:8<b> </b>Philip
addressed Yeshua and said to Him: <i>"Lord, show us the Father, and it is
sufficient for us"</i>. Yeshua responded to him with a question: <i>"Have
I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip?”</i> He then
added:<i> “He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, 'Show us
the Father?’”</i> (v. 9). Yet in chapter 1 of the Gospel of John it says
that, <i>“No one has seen </i>[the face of] <i>Elohim at any time. The only
begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him” </i>(v
18). In saying what He did to Philip, Yeshua was therefore declaring that He
was/is the very manifestation of His Father. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 150%;">As
believers who have received the Spirit of Elohim, we too have become united
with the Father and His Son, Who are the “one bread”. This brings to mind
another bread, the “bread of the presence” - lechem hapanim - literally “bread
of the face”, which was in the <st1:street w:st="on"><st1:address w:st="on">Holy
Place</st1:address></st1:street> (in the Mishkan and the <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Temple</st1:place></st1:city>). And even though Elohim said to
Moses,<b> </b><i>“…My face shall not be seen…" </i>(Exodus 33:23), in
partaking of Yeshua (His life), we, the twelve loaves of Leviticus 24:5, are
the very bread of Elohim’s presence, or the “face of Elohim”. Quite a
staggering reality! What’s more, as Yeshua’s body we have within us the
treasure of His presence in our earthen vessels: <i>“For it is the Elohim who
commanded light to shine out of darkness </i>[in creation]<i>, who has shone in
our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of Elohim in the <b>face</b>
of Messiah Yeshua” </i>(2 Corinthians, 4:6 emphasis added)<i>.</i> “<i>Therefore
purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are
unleavened. For indeed Messiah, our Passover, was sacrificed for us”</i> (1
Corinthians 5:7). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 150%;">Interestingly,
even after Yeshua’s resurrection He continued to remind His disciples of <i>His</i>
legacy and <i>their</i> calling, by feeding them with “bread”. </span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Shortly after His resurrection, two of the disciples were on
their way to Emmaus when they suddenly noticed a man walking alongside
them. It was only after He broke the
bread and blessed it, when they were sitting around the table, that they
recognized Him. In their report,<b> </b><i>“about the things that had happened on
the road”,</i> they emphasized<i> “… how He was known to them in the breaking
of bread”</i> (Luke 24:35). Yeshua will
also make Himself known through us when we become His blessed and broken
bread. Another episode that took place
after the resurrection was upon Yeshua’s arrival to
the shore of the <st1:place w:st="on">Sea of Galilee</st1:place>. There He
prepared a meal for the hungry fishermen. <i>“Then, as soon as they had come to
land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid on it, and bread… <b> </b>Yeshua
then came and took the bread and gave it to them, and likewise the fish</i>”
(John 21:9 and 13). I wouldn’t doubt that this took place right
where it all started – when the five thousand were fed… </span></div>
Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-91186973155310746912014-02-26T09:37:00.002+02:002014-02-26T09:37:54.354+02:00Bread of Life<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">In chapter 6 of the Gospel of John,
it is recorded that multitudes of people were following Yeshua because of the
miracles that they saw Him perform. One
day, for example, five thousand people gathered around Him. Yeshua approached Philip, one of the
disciples, and tested him regarding their ability to feed the people. Philip,
for his part, was only able to perceive the situation from his natural
perspective, suggesting that not even two hundred denarii would suffice to give
each one present just a small amount.
(Is there a lesson in this for today, that no amount of money will be
able to feed the spiritually hungry people of this world?) Just then Andrew noticed
a boy with five loaves of bread and two fishes. Yeshua turned to the disciples
and told them to have the multitude sit down.
He took the fish and the bread, blessed them, broke off some and gave it
to the disciples so that they would distribute the food to the people. When all
had finished eating, they took up twelve baskets-full of leftovers. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">This story sets the stage as to what
Yeshua was going to reveal about Himself shortly. After some of His followers wanted to take
Him by force and make Him king right there and then. He departed from the scene
while His disciples got into a boat and took off across the sea. Amazingly, Yeshua arrived, somehow, on the
other side and greeted them upon their arrival. How he got there so fast astounded everyone. The next day some of the same people were
looking for Him to perform more miracles, but Yeshua discerned their true
motive, and said:<b> </b><i>“"Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me,
not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were
filled”</i><b> </b>(John 6:26). Is this another warning sign for today’s
followers of Yeshua?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Following the ‘feeding scene’, Yeshua
was now ready to take his listeners further and reveal to them hidden truths
regarding that miracle. And so He states: <i>"Do not labor for the food
which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life…”</i><b> </b>(v.
27a).<b><i> </i></b><i> </i>Just as when
He met the Samaritan woman at the well and told her about the eternally thirst
quenching water that He gives (see John 4:14), so too now, Yeshua speaks of the
bread that gives everlasting life,<b> </b>“<i>which the Son of Man will give…
because Elohim the Father has set His seal on Him" </i>(John 6:27). Notice that He does not directly point to
Himself right away, but leads them on to asking more questions. <i>"What
shall we do, that we may work the works of Elohim?"</i> (v. 28), they
respond. The Messiah’s answer really
sparks their curiosity: <i>"This is
the work of Elohim that you believe in Him whom He sent"</i> (v. 29). One would think that their next question
would have been, “Tell us whom has Elohim sent?” But the trained Jewish mind does not
necessarily commit itself so quickly. They figured that this man just might be
referring to Himself and they were not about to acknowledge that fact. So they
tested Him: <i>“What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe
You? What work will You do?”</i> (v. 30).<b> </b> Apparently they did not recognize the
multiplication of the bread as anything significant, and in a way they were
actually belittling Yeshua, as seen in their further comment: <i>"Our
fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, 'He</i> [Moses] <i>gave
them bread from heaven to eat’" </i>(v. 31). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;"> Yeshua is now going to counter their
statement: “<i>Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread
from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of Elohim is He who comes down
from heaven and gives life to the world"</i> (vs. 32-33). Later He will remind them that their fathers
ate of that bread and died. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The inquirers, like the Samaritan
woman at the well, responded based upon their ‘natural’ understanding. Completely
missing the point they reply: <i>"Lord,
give us this bread always"</i> (v. 34)<i>.</i> Yeshua is now ready ‘to
drop the bomb’ and let them in on the secret:<i> "I am the bread of life.
He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never
thirst”</i> (v. 35).<i> </i> This
statement really got to them and they began to murmur and complain. Although
Yeshua knew that they did not believe Him, He went on to press the issue, “…<i>this
bread is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world…<b> </b> If anyone eats of this bread, he will live
forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh”</i> (v. 51b,a). This was more than they could take; enough is
enough - “eating human flesh?!”
Everyone knew that this was an abomination before Elohim, and is totally
repulsive to any Jew or even non-Jew.
Did Yeshua truly believe what He was saying? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The Jews began to quarrel amongst
themselves saying: <i>“How can this Man give us His flesh to eat?”</i> (v. 52).
Relentlessly Yeshua continues to ‘rub it
in’: <i>"Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son
of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has
eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is
drink indeed. He who eats My flesh and
drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him” </i>(vs. 53-56)<i>. </i>Wow!
This is beyond anything any man has ever said. What blasphemy! Even Yeshua’s disciples were offended by
these statements. However, Yeshua’s intent
was to get their attention and at the same time separate the sheep from the
goats, so to speak.<b> </b> Can you
imagine? These things He said in the synagogue in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Capernaum</st1:place></st1:city>!
It is amazing that they did not take Him to the water and drown or stone
Him. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The Messiah’s next statement to His
offended disciples was going to be the key that unlocks the mystery of the
bread of heaven: <i>"What then if
you should see the Son of Man ascend where He was before?” </i>(v. 62). <i> <o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Yeshua is now revealing to them that
He was with the Father in the beginning, and is now manifesting His (the
Father’s) presence (see John 14:8-9). He
then goes on to clarify His previous statement, referring to His “flesh and
blood”: <i>"It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing.
The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life”</i> (John 6:63). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Many of the disciples left as they
could not accept what Yeshua was about Himself. So it is today, many will fall
from the faith for the same reason<i>. "As the living Father sent Me, and I
live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me. This
is the bread which came down from heaven -- not as your fathers ate the manna,
and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever"</i> (vs.
57-58). Is Yeshua asking us the same
question that He posed before the twelve: <i>“Do you also want to go away?”</i>
(John 6:67).<i> </i>May our response be as emphatic as Peter’s: <i>"Lord,
to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe and know that
You are the Messiah, the Son of the living Elohim" </i>(vs. 68-69).<i><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-48637389721824828072014-01-01T10:05:00.000+02:002014-01-01T10:05:11.388+02:00Torah and Spirit<div class="MsoNormal">
Shalom Fellow Israelite,</div>
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After reading some choice excerpts, from a modern day English
translations of the Bible, it appears that under the guise of bringing
scripture ‘up to date’, this assemblage-cum-translation is nothing more than a
bamboozling attempt aimed at sanctioning sin, or even worse, promoting it under
scriptural auspices. The distortions offered by these texts made me realize all
the more why the enemy of our Creator would steer the “church” as far away from
the Torah as possible. This is most likely the reason why Yeshua is leading people
out of the Torah-less or lawless institutions, taking the sheep back unto
Himself and feeding them His word by the Spirit.</div>
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<br /></div>
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The following is a testimony of a friend who describes her
experience regarding this issue: </div>
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<i>“I believe what happened was that I had to be taken out
of the things I had been in before, to start understanding the Torah, so I
could understand the REAL workings of the Spirit. So much of the Charismatic movement had the
real Spirit, and then it seemed that it got into something that really was not
of the Father. It was a wonderful time
for me back in the mid 90's because that is when I was baptized in the <o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>Ruach, but as things went on, I began to see many things
that seemed to be a <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>counterfeit.” <o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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There are many others with similar testimonies.</div>
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</div>
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In order to present and communicate the gospel of Yeshua,
His disciples turned to the Torah and to the words of the prophets, as those
were the only scriptural resources that they had. Therefore, how can we throw
away those foundations and expect to mature in our spiritual lives? Instead of the Word becoming flesh in us, the
flesh changes the Word, so that God’s image is ‘created’ in the image of
man. Just as Paul warned in his letter
to the believers in <st1:city w:st="on">Rome</st1:city>:
“<i>Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory
of the incorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man</i>…” (Rom
1:22-23)<i>.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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Because of this tendency to alter the original biblical
text, we must try and stick as closely as possible to the Hebrew and
Greek. We must be careful, as some of
the modern versions alter and change words to fit a new or modern morality (if
morality is what it is...). However I must say that although here in <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region> we have
many institutions studying the Torah, Prophets and Writings in the original
language, yet sin still abounds in our midst.
One would think that with the Torah being taught in the schools we would
see a different society here. It is not
hard therefore to put two and two together. That is, Torah without the New
Covenant indwelling Spirit of Holiness results in the same sin behavior, which
is present where the Spirit of Holiness resides, but without Torah. Now the question arises, what will happen
when the New Covenant Spirit filled believers embrace Torah? Will they also
compromise and continue in the ways of the spirit of this world, or will they
become mature sons and daughters of the Living Elohim?</div>
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This brings me to another quote from another letter.<i> “As we mature in the Messiah and learn to be
obedient to the Spirit of Truth, letting Him operate His will in our vessels,
the victorious life of abundance comes just as promised. But now, through further revelation, we know
that this includes Torah obedience, we are on a less traveled road that was
last traveled frequently by the Apostolic generation and early Believers.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i> <o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>Now that the Ruach is taking us back to that trail, where
the end-time saints will have the testimony of Yeshua and obey His
commandments, as John tells us in the book of Revelation, we have a goal that
inspires embracing His will for our lives.
In other words, with the great war upon the Saints scheduled for the end
of the age, the only way that any of us will be able to survive until the end
is by being led by the Spirit, walking in the Spirit and letting Him through us
comply with the Torah. After all, He
cannot do anything that is contrary to the Torah because that would be sin and
He cannot sin. If we have Him as the old
four spiritual laws diagram put it, "on the throne of our life," then
it is Him operating through us and we have submitted our will to Him. He must
increase and we must decrease.”<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i> <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText">
Yes, how do we live and
walk in the Spirit at all times and in all places? How do we “cleanse ourselves from all
filthiness of flesh and spirit” (2 Cor
7:1)? How do we not become “children
who are tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine” (Eph. 4:14)? How can we mature
to become young men and women who have overcome evil (1 John 2:13-14), and then
become mature spiritual fathers and mothers that know how to raise spiritual children in
the nature of righteousness and holiness?
This is the challenge and opportunity that YHVH is giving to this
generation of the seed of Abraham. Will
there be a remnant that will be an expression of maturity, perfection,
wholeness and completeness as Yeshua’s body, a truly New Creation (adult)
Spiritual Man? I believe that it is
possible by the obedience of faith and by the Word made flesh, as the Torah is
being written on our hearts. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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There seems to be a union,
a marriage, taking place between the Torah and our New Creation person. What that will look like has yet to be seen,
but it is developing and will have its day of full expression through a people,
a nation, that has been predestined before the foundations of this present
cosmos. Privileged, as we are, to taste
of the power and glory of the coming age, we can have the same zeal as the
early apostles: “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended, but
this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching
forth unto those things which are before, I
press<b> </b>toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in
Messiah Yeshua. Let us therefore, as
many as be perfect [teleios – full age, mature,
complete] be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded,
God shall reveal even this unto you” (Phil
3:13-15).<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
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<o:p> Ephraim</o:p></div>
Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-83345615717025210782013-12-19T09:00:00.002+02:002013-12-19T09:00:58.900+02:00BE THEREFORE PERFECT<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
In Paul’s letter to the Ephesians we see that the body of
Messiah has been given workers “<i>for the perfecting</i><span style="font-family: Arial;"> [</span>Strongs 2677 </div>
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kat-ar-tis-mos -
perfecting, complete furnishing, thoroughly completing or maturing] <i>of
the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of
Messiah; till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of
the Son of God, unto a perfect</i> [teleios: perfect, of full age,
completeness]<b><i> </i></b><i>man, unto the measure of the stature of the
fullness of Messiah” </i>(4:12-13). Just
as a side note, the word “katartismos” is sometimes translated as “equip”,
which is interpreted by some to mean a method or a technique on “how to do”
this, that or the other, depending on what method they devised. These ‘methods’
will not necessarily mature the disciple unto full stature. </div>
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Yeshua also spoke about the “perfect man”:<i> “Be therefore perfect </i>[5046<b> </b>teleios
- tel'-i-os - perfect, of full age,
completeness, fully mature]<b><i>,</i></b><i> even as your Father which is in
heaven is perfect </i>[teleios]<i>”</i> (Matt. 5:48). </div>
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Recently I have been challenged to believe what
Yeshua and the Apostles all taught about the saints (the set apart ones)
maturation and ability to express the Father’s life and nature in its fullest
sense, measure or stature in this lifetime.
Almost everyone, including myself, has been led to believe that the
power of sin is a permanent feature and more influential, powerful or higher
ranking than the Spirit of Holiness. “<i>Whosoever
is born<b> </b>of God does not commit sin; for His seed remains in him: and he
cannot sin, because he is born<b> </b>of God” </i>(1 John 3:9-10).</div>
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Paul was emphatic that our victory over the power of
sin, the devil, the flesh and the world was only “through” Yeshua our Messiah
and Lord (ref <st1:country-region w:st="on">Rom.</st1:country-region>
7:25). The Greek word for lord/master is “kurios” and means “supreme authority
or controller”. Those of us who have
lived within a democratic system are under the impression that we have the
freedom to decide, “what is right in our own eyes”. This predisposition got our ancestors into a
lot of trouble, as it bred rebellion against the Creator and His
Word/Torah. Satan’s lies and deception
led us to believe that we are our own gods and are lords over our life. By using this little trick Satan actually set
himself up on the throne, and we gullibly left him there thus making him our
lord or master. When we cooperate with
sin, or anything that is not a part of our new creation life in Messiah, we
come under the principalities and powers of Satan’s kingdom, despising the
grace of our Heavenly Father and His way of redemption through His Son.</div>
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</div>
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Forty years ago, after being filled with the Spirit,
I had gone through a seminar called
“Life in the Spirit”. In that teaching we were admonished to “get off
the throne of our life” and to “allow Jesus (Yeshua) to get on it”. This teaching made most of my spiritual walk
into an exercise of an “on again/off again” game of proverbial musical chairs
with Yeshua, as it implied that I was actually lord over my life. Since I did
not succeed in getting off the throne permanently, I had to give up and
compromise by “letting” Yeshua become my helper to get me through life’s
problems. He could be Lord when I needed
Him, but when things smoothed out a bit I could take over again. </div>
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These past years I found out (not that I wasn’t told
at the beginning of my spiritual birth), that when I became a believer in my
salvation and redemption, and embraced Yeshua’s death (the cross), I actually
died. If that is the case, then how
could I be on any throne ruling over my life?
With a little more teaching from the Holy Spirit and the Word, I found
out that there is another spiritual kingdom, rule and authority that are
operating in me and making their nature known through my ignorance of the truth
of the apostolic Gospel. If those spirits
can make me believe lies or doubt the scriptures, or who I am in Messiah
Yeshua, they will sit on the throne of my life and govern my thoughts, words
and deeds. In other words, they will
have a ready channel to express the nature of their spiritual kingdom, and
because they had a good start before I became a believer (through the “flesh”),
it will not be hard for them to continue, as they have already worked their
evil nature into my soul. But there is a
way out of this mess. As stated above,
we can be delivered by the power of the Spirit of Holiness as we embrace
Yeshua’s authority/Lordship through the obedience to faith. The Word tells us
that “anything that is not of faith is sin” (Rom 14:23), which is a pretty
sobering statement<i>. “If we say that
we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us”<b> </b></i>(1
John 1:8).</div>
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In Hebrew the word for spirit (“ru’ach”) is masculine and
for soul (“nefesh”) feminine. As we know from nature, the male provides the
potency for life and the female takes it into herself, giving birth to the
nature of that which came in from the male.
There are only two spiritual seeds/sperms that impregnate the soul of
man, as is seen with Cain and Abel, Ishmael and Isaac and Esau and Jacob. Paul
tells us to cast out the bondwoman and her son. In other words, deliverance
must be an integral part of our spiritual walk. “<i>In this the children of God
are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever does not righteousness
is not of God, neither he that loves not his brother</i>” (1 John 3:10). We are a new creation being, and as such any
residue of the old nature inherited from Satan’s spirit sperm/nature must be
sent away. “<i>Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse<b>
</b>ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting </i>[epiteleo:
perfecting, accomplishing, executing, performing]<i> holiness in the fear of
the supreme authority of our Heavenly Father” </i> (2 Cor 7:1).
We must work out our salvation by cleansing ourselves. He has already put into us everything
pertaining to life and godliness, as well as the power of His Spirit in order
to accomplish His purposes, thus we have no excuse except to plead guilty of
ignorance from lack of knowledge. The scriptures warn us that, <i>“My people
perish”</i> or<i> “are destroyed for lack of knowledge”</i> (Isa. 5:13; Hos
4:6). This cleansing is necessary so
that the bride (soul) will be without spot or wrinkle and can be fully merged
with the New Spirit Man (Yeshua), who is wooing the soul into a divine love
affair with Himself. He is impregnating
my soul with His fruit/nature:<i> “The fruit </i>[“karpos” -fruit of ones’s
loins, i.e.his progeny, his posterity]<i> of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance”</i> (Gal.
5:22).</div>
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In calling Him Father/Abba we are proclaiming that we are
His offspring and are just like Him. “<i>We know that whosoever is born<b> </b>of
God sins not; but he that is begotten of God keeps himself, and that wicked one
touches him not” </i>(1 John 5:18).</div>
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<i>“He is the Rock, His work is “tamiym” </i>[perfect,
without blemish, upright, without spot];<i> for all his ways are judgment; an
Elohim of truth and without iniquity, just and right is He”</i> (Deut 32:4).</div>
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Ephraim</div>
Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-88777251356721013752013-12-05T14:43:00.000+02:002013-12-05T14:43:53.913+02:00Galilean Tapestry<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
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Galilean Tapestry </div>
Isaiah 9:1: <i>“But there will be no more gloom for her who was in anguish;
in earlier times He treated the land of Zebulon and the land of Naphtali with
contempt, but later on He shall make it glorious, by the way of the sea, on the
other side of the Jordan, Galilee of the Nations.</i> <st1:place w:st="on">Galilee</st1:place>
- “Galil” – province, region or district in Hebrew. The “province or district
of the nations” has truly lived up to its name. Being <st1:place w:st="on">Israel</st1:place>’s northernmost region,
throughout history it has seen many civilizations come and go. Being a region
of varied topography it has also drawn people of various interests for multiple
reasons who were engaged in many types of occupations. During this past week’s
visit to that colorful region, a window was opened so that we could gaze into
the rich tapestry formed by time, people and place. The Galilee was
certainly the bedrock upon which the modern restoration of Jewish settlement
in the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">Land</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename w:st="on">Israel</st1:placename></st1:place> was established. This intricate
process, which is by no means over, is commemorated and demonstrated
in multiple ways in the <st1:place w:st="on">Galilee</st1:place>’s towns
and villages. <br />
The Galilee’s western border is formed by the shore line of the <st1:place w:st="on">Mediterranean Sea</st1:place>. Between Acre, an ancient port city
that has seen Muslim and Crusader conquerors with memories even of Napoleon
Bonaparte, and Nahariya, a seventy year old town that was founded by mostly
German Jews, is the living monument to the European Holocaust – Kibbutz Lohamey
Ha’geta’ot – “Ghetto Fighters” Kibbutz. The kibbutz type of settlement was the
Jewish pioneers’ answer to millennia of oppression and repression of various
forms. Agricultural communities of mutual help, accountability and egalitarianism
of and for all of its members, was the new lifestyle envisioned by the young
men and women who resolved to shake off the dust of exile and Diaspora. In the
Ghetto Fighters’ kibbutz this takes on a far greater meaning. The founders of
this kibbutz (in 1949), survivors and ghetto fighters, did not only shake off
the dust of Diaspora, they were literally reborn from the ashes of the inferno
of the crematoriums and burning ghettos and themselves became living monuments
to a Jewry that perished in the Holocaust. In a totally new and vigorous
lifestyle they, by their own admittance, “raised to the burning ghetto a
monument of life… a life that will never cease…” It was in the
museum and study center which they established for the purpose of documenting the
atrocities, the culture that was lost, the victims, the resistance fighters,
the acts of heroism and yes… even the hopes, that we began our <st1:place w:st="on">Galilee</st1:place> exploration experience. These salvaged firebrands
themselves stocked the fires of life in order to enable others to
participate in the life kindling, albeit tragic, memories. <br />
On one of the walls, next to some poignant drawings and paintings, we read
the following poem. It deals with Joseph’s counterpart, if you will, whose cry
for redemption is still resounding: <br />
The Coat of the Prison Camper <br />
And his brethren envied him not <br />
For the many-tracks* coat <br />
With which they too were clad <br />
When from the (train) tracks they were dragged. <br />
And he did not dream, nor offer wise talk, <br />
And there was no one to arise from the stalk <span style="font-size: 7.5pt;">1</span>.
<br />
And it was not a goat <br />
That in blood was soaked. <br />
Neither was it recognized by their father the sage <br />
For many were the children of his old age, <br />
And he only murmured, “A savage beast!” <br />
And he never laid eyes on them again as long as he lived. <br />
(Translated from a poem by Avner Trainin) <br />
<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">* In Hebrew the coat is of “many
stripes/tracks”, same word as the tracks of a train.</span> <br />
<span style="font-size: 7.5pt;">1 In Joseph's dream he saw himself as a stalk
of wheat rising above 11 other stalks, which represented his brothers.</span> <br />
Aside from the many exhibits dedicated to the Holocaust, there is an
entire floor in which are depicted pre-Second World War Zionist activities
among Jewish youth around the world. Tens of different Jewish youth movements
existed from the end of the 19th century all the way to and through the Second
World War, each with its own political slant, yet all focused on the need for
the sons of <st1:place w:st="on">Judah</st1:place>
to unite as a viable entity and to act together. By far the majority of them set
their goal on “aliya” (immigration to the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">Land</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename w:st="on">Israel</st1:placename></st1:place>),
and on building a healthy, prosperous new life here. For that purpose they went
into rigorous training in their homelands. They not only had to adjust to
a new life style, but they also saw the need to adjust to a different mentality
of the “new Jew”. They had to ward off objections from the older generation,
from religious authorities and community leaders and sometimes from their own
peers, not to speak of physical, financial and cultural challenges that their
aspirations presented them with. And so, in order to take a journey into the <st1:place w:st="on">Galilee</st1:place>, we had to go back to a past which nurtured the
resettlement of this region in our times. <br />
We then crisscrossed the central Galilee in order to get to our destination,
which was the north-western shore of the Kinneret (<st1:place w:st="on">Sea of
Galilee</st1:place>), bird’s eye views of colorful valleys availed
themselves to us. On one of the bare hilltops that we frequented lay the
remains of Yodfat, a Galilean town which took part in the Great Jewish Revolt
against the Romans in 66 A.D. In the year 67 the town fell after 47 days of
heroic resistance. The leader of the revolt was captured in the town, and was
one of the few not to be put to death. His name was Josephus, who became the
historian of these battles whose writings are almost commonplace, even in our
own day and age. <br />
Traveling through the winding roads of Arab and Druze (a Middle-Eastern
sect, the Druze are not regarded as Muslims by other Muslims, but they regard
themselves as such, having no national aspirations they are generally loyal to
their host countries) villages which pepper the Galilean hills, we finally
‘landed’ by the green and lush shores of the Sea of Galilee, in a guest house
located on Kibbutz Ginosar. This Kibbutz is named after the biblical
Gennesareth (Mat. <st1:time hour="14" minute="34" w:st="on">14:34</st1:time>).
The <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">Valley</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename w:st="on">Gennesareth</st1:placename></st1:place> (or Ginosar in Hebrew), and
its fertility, is also mentioned in the Mishna part of the Talmud. <br />
One of Kibbutz Ginosar’s founders, who was also at the helm of the battle
for independence and one of the leaders of <st1:place w:st="on">Israel</st1:place>’s Labor movement, was Yig’al
Alon. Ginosar’s museum is named after him, and is a real open window into life
in the <st1:place w:st="on">Galilee</st1:place>, past and present. Although a
military genius, Yig’al Alon’s vision and faith were focused on
interrelationships with the Arab population, and thus the museum portrays not
only the Jewish settlements in the Galilee, but also Arab life; both in the
villages and in the towns; the Bedouin shepherd’s nomadic lifestyle against the
artisans and merchants and their traditions. In fact, along the shoreline, at
the back of the edifice, are placed environmental sculptures which are the
result of a joint effort of Galilee Jews and Arabs. <br />
Jewish life in the Galilee during the Mishnaic and Talmudic times is also
introduced, as after the first and second Jewish revolts and the sacking of <st1:city w:st="on">Jerusalem</st1:city> (first and second centuries A.D.), the <st1:place w:st="on">Galilee</st1:place> became the center of Jewish religion and learning
for those Jews that still remained in the Land. In the museum we learned about
the (late) 19th and (early to middle) 20th centuries settlers’ dual role of
building homes and farmsteads in desolate and unfriendly physical conditions,
while having to deal with frequent Arab rioting and foreign overlords’
hostility (first the Turks and then the British). The difficult decision making
in many an instance, where life threatening situations presented themselves to
young and inexperienced leaders who shouldered heavy moral responsibilities, is
featured prominently among the museum’s inter-active exhibits. Some of these
documentations present a very different picture from the way life is
experienced and understood in present day <st1:place w:st="on">Israel</st1:place>, whereas in other cases,
these past episodes are still lived and relived daily in this country.
The figure of Yig’al Alon embodies the character etched by the Father in the
young leadership which was emerging in the nascent state. The crucial and
critical actions taken by these pioneers were marked by not loving their lives
even when faced by death, but rather by being each others' keepers and servants
(to quote Alon himself). They had preferred one another and were willing
to take responsibility not only for successes but also for failures, all the
way down from the commander to the last soldier. Whether or not they knew it,
they were fulfilling Godly principles and so were able to stand up to the tasks
placed before them. <br />
Just as the present is supported by past centuries whose stories are told in
the museum, so are the building’s four stories supported by the ground floor
where a two thousand year old boat finds its resting place. This vessel was
discovered in the 1980’s by two of Ginosar’s members, fishermen and armature
archaeologists. After a fourteen year old treatment, designed to preserve its
rotting wood, the boat was finally put on display, ‘flaunting’ all of its
humble beauty. And whereas it was constructed mainly of one type of wood,
eleven other trees were used to patch it up (when it was in use, two millennia
ago). Thus the lumber of a dozen indigenous trees was needed in order to make
this ancient boat workable! <br />
The <st1:placetype w:st="on">Valley</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename w:st="on">Jezreel</st1:placename>,
<st1:place w:st="on">Israel</st1:place>’s
bread basket, was also one of the main sites for many historical episodes.
Situated just below the <st1:place w:st="on">Lower Galilee</st1:place>, we made
our way home through some of its interesting villages and towns. Our journey
took us to Bethlehem of Galilee, mentioned in Joshua as being part of Zebulon’s
inheritance. Among the many groups and individuals who had Messianic
aspirations and visions concerning the “<st1:place w:st="on">Holy Land</st1:place>”,
there was also a group of Germans known as the “Templers” who began to make
their way here in the middle of the 19th century. These new comers engaged
mostly in agricultural exploits and did very well for themselves. They
withstood the many difficulties which the land presented at that time. Settling
in various parts of the country, it seems that the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Jezreel</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Valley</st1:placetype></st1:place>
was one that they particularly favored. When the British expelled them from the
Land, during the Second World War (fearing Nazi sympathies on their part),
Jewish settlers took over their villages. Bethlehem of Galilee is a beautiful
agricultural village whose German stone houses, which retain their old charm,
are still in use. <br />
Aside from the kibbutzim, the pioneers founded another form of settlement,
the moshav, which combines cooperation of assets, finances and produce, but
maintains the privacy of family life. The first moshav, Nahalal (a name found
in Zebulon’s biblical territory), was established during the first decade of
the 20th century, and has become synonymous with agricultural ventures as
well as with security of the country. One of <st1:place w:st="on">Israel</st1:place>'s military chiefs, Moshe
Dayan, hailed from Nahal. During the British Mandatory era, the Jewish
defense arms were stockpiling ammunition and weapons for their defense needs in
face of constant Arab threats and under the watchful eyes of the British, who
forbade both Jew and Arab to own weapons. These secret weapons caches
were named “sliqs”. <br />
The Nahalal sliq is a unique family museum which tells stories inextricably
connected with the establishment and security of the State of Israel. The old
sliq is situated on the family farm. Members of the third and fourth generation
tell fascinating family tales, especially the story of the cache which was built
under the guise of a pit for collecting cow urine for fertilizing purposes,
making the story as humorous as it is fascinating. <st1:place w:st="on">Israel</st1:place>’s formative history, with
its various facets is well represented by this one family’s story. And as
things are in this small country, while the story unfolded it was not without
some very close family connections. These caches, scattered throughout
the country and especially in some of the leftist kibbutzim, apparently gave
rise (in the first years of the independent state) to ideas among some
malcontents, or those who subscribed to certain unsound ideals. This
phenomenon, of course, had to be dealt with, or else it would have posed a
danger to the security of the fledgling state. We thus found out some
surprising facts about Rimona’s father’s tasks, while he served in those days
in <st1:place w:st="on">Israel</st1:place>'s
General Security Service. <br />
Our visit to the <st1:placename w:st="on">Jezreel</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Valley</st1:placetype> was concluded by a trip to the local cemetery,
where Ilan Ramon, <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>’s
first astronaut, was laid to rest after the failed shuttle mission of the <st1:place w:st="on">Columbia</st1:place>. The crew at
large, made up of members of the "nations”, is also commemorated on his
tombstone set on a hill that commands the valley which spreads below,
ready, as always, for further fulfillments of what it's Creator has destined it
for. <br />
<br />
Shabbat Shalom <br />
Rimona <br /> Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-43506914041195409592013-11-22T17:07:00.001+02:002013-11-22T17:07:50.456+02:00Overcoming Sin<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
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In most of the apostles’ writings, or teachings on faith,
the latter is presented as an active part of life. Faith must be exercised in
order for us to grow in grace and in the knowledge of the Son of the Father
(ref. 2 Pet. 3:18). James says: <i>“Faith
without works is dead”</i> (James
2:17,20). This is especially true when it comes to sanctification. Nothing is going to happen in this area
unless we actively participate with the Spirit of Holiness. Unfortunately, we, along with many others,
have been ignorant of this fact and as a result ended up in the condition
described by the prophet: <i>“Therefore my people are gone into captivity,
because they have no knowledge…Therefore hell hath enlarged herself, and opened
her mouth without measure”</i> (Isa 5:13:14). </div>
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What do we do when sin has become so ingrained into our
being, that it is even reflected in our personality and seems to be a permanent
part of our make up? We have heard it
quoted many times that we must <i>“cast down every imagination, or reasoning
that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bring every thought into
captivity to the obedience of Messiah” </i>(2 Cor 10:5). But if we are deficient in our knowledge of
Truth, that is the knowledge of who the Father is in His Son, we can be very
easily fooled into believing lies, particularly those that masquerade as
truth. Scriptures do tell us that Satan
can act like an angel of light and his ministers (demons) may be transformed
into ministers of righteousness (ref 2 Cor 11:14-15). Thus, if we have been saved out of the
ignorance of this world’s wisdom, it behooves us to seek first YHVH’s kingdom,
His righteousness and the wisdom that is from above from the Father of
light. We also must renew our minds by
the revelation knowledge of our new creation life in Messiah Yeshua.</div>
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A question that I have been pondering at various times,
after falling prey to the enemy, was: how do we permanently get rid of the
power of sin? How do we renew our minds so that it no longer thinks any other
thoughts except in accordance with the mind of Messiah? The apostle Paul faced a very similar problem
when he confessed through his letter to the believers in <st1:city w:st="on">Rome</st1:city>:<span style="font-family: Arial;"> </span><i>“For
what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. If,
then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. But
now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me”</i><span style="font-family: Arial;"> </span>(Rom 7:19-20).</div>
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I think most of us can relate to
that statement of Paul’s, as there are those things that work in us that we
know to be sin but just can’t seem to get rid of. So how does Paul deal with this problem? He has a wonderful excuse. He maintains that
it is no longer he who was performing these activities, but the power of sin that
was “working in his members”. Well, I to
could say that the devil made me do it (and as a matter of fact that may not be
so far from the truth). Indeed, Satan was the originator of it all. However,
Paul does say that it is possible to overcome this wretched part called the <i>“power
of sin working in our members”</i>. <i>“O
wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank
God -- through Yeshua the Messiah our Lord!” </i>(Rom 7:26-27). That is a great answer, but what does it
mean? Is it practical advice? What
exactly does he have in mind by this phrase “through Yeshua Messiah our
Lord”? </div>
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<b><i>“</i></b><i>Through<b>” - </b>dia (dee-ah'), a primary preposition denoting the channel of an act; by, through,
for, for this cause, because, </i><span style="font-family: Arial;"> </span><i>by the means of, the ground or reason by which something is or is not done; by reason of; on account of;
because of for this reason;
therefore; on this account.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i> <o:p></o:p></i></div>
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When we call upon Yeshua,
yielding to His righteousness, which releases the flow of His life and nature
in us, the power of sin will weaken and ultimately will diminish to nothingness
in our life. Therefore we must willfully
stop identifying and participating with sin. There is a fundamental faith
factor here that must come into the equation for overcoming sin forever. It
will take an actual intermingling of the waters of the Spirit of Holiness with
the waters of our life, by living our life from Yeshua’s source, that is the
Spirit of the Father. He must become “LORD”
that is supreme ruler </div>
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Also the word “through” means the
finished work, act, labor of faith and willing obedience, which was exercised
by our Redeemer when He gave up His life on the execution stake/tree. The world of sin, Satan and his kingdom were
overcome once and for all when Yeshua the perfect man died. This was the Father’s righteous judgment upon
the son of disobedience (Adam). But the
good news is that Yeshua was not only a man, He had another life in Him, the
indestructible, eternal Life of His Heavenly Father. That power raised Him from
the dead and transferred Him into a realm of glory so high that He now rules
over all principalities and powers in the heavens and on earth. If the rulers of this age had known that this
would be the outcome of the crucifixion, they would have never done it (ref. 1
Cor 2:8). They were defeated and all
humanity was reconciled to the Father, as He (the Father) through the blood
(life) of His Son opened the gate of fellowship that man once had in the garden
with Him. </div>
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We, who are of the first fruit of
the risen life, contain within us the same life and power that raised Yeshua
from the dead and defeated every attempt of the enemy to get Yeshua to fail and
to fall. The Word tells us that we are seated with Yeshua in heavenly places
and that we have the same authority over all these rulers and powers, but not
in ourselves; only “through” the lordship, rulership, kingdom authority of the
Only Begotten Son of the Father -“Yeshua”.
There is no other provision made to come out from under and have victory
over the powers of sin and darkness. We
cannot do it through righteous deeds or dead works. The apostle says “through our Lord Yeshua
the Messiah”. </div>
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Whether we are looking to
overcome sin in the form of its temptations, lusts, pride, personality
characteristics, or of its programming that is engrained in our minds, it is
possible to defeat it through active obedience.
Loving YHVH with all our heart, mind and strength binds us to Him in
such a way that it releases His life and nature into ours. He is the Way, the
Truth and the Life. </div>
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Not only do we have to come to the knowledge of who He is,
but also to become aware of that which He is not. We have to take the responsibility to repent
when we participate with that foreign nature of sin, resist temptation, work
out and practice the divine nature that is now in us, as the Spirit has given
to us everything pertaining to life and godliness. Our true nature in Him is listed as: “<i>love,
joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance:
against such there is no law”</i> (Gal. 5:22-23). The body of Messiah has been given workers “<i>for
the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of
the body of Messiah; till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the
knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect<b> </b>man, unto the measure of the
stature of the fullness of Messiah” </i>(Eph. 4:12-13). Yeshua also said that it is possible to
become a perfect man:<i> “Be ye
therefore perfect<b>,</b> even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect”</i>
(Matt. 5:48). </div>
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<i>But thanks be to God </i>[our Heavenly Father]<i>, who
gives us the victory<b> “</b>through” our Lord Yeshua our Messiah </i>(1 Cor.
15:57).</div>
Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-58638108047377088282013-11-01T15:23:00.001+02:002013-11-01T15:23:32.519+02:00Our Father's love<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
Most of us have never heard our earthly father say, “I
love you”, or “this is my beloved son/daughter in whom I am well pleased”. Can you imagine how Yeshua felt when His
Father said those words to Him? I think
every son or daughter would give every thing they have just to hear an “I love
you,” said by their father. But because
we have a spiritual enemy, that steals, kills and destroys, our fathers are (or
were) in no condition to respond to us in a Godly manner. As a result many of us have been robbed of one of life’s<span style="font-size: 18.0pt;"> </span>greatest
treasures, the love of a father. This
has created a great void in the heart, and has often precluded us from giving
and receiving love. Have you heard the voice of our Heavenly Father say to your heart "I love you". </div>
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After having our heavenly Father’s love ministered to me,
my eyes were open to how many times the apostles pointed to our “Father”. When Yeshua taught his disciples to pray he
said, “our Father”(Math 6:8), and he continued to refer, many times, to His
Father and their Father. In his
writings, Paul also keeps reminding the believers of their relationship with
the Father. “<i>And because you are
sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out,
‘Abba, Father<b>!’</b>" </i>(Gal. 4:6). “<i>For you did not receive the
spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by
whom we cry out, ‘Abba, Father’" </i> (Rom. 8:15).
Many times the apostles begin their letters to the congregations of
believers with this greeting: “<i>Grace
to you and peace from God our Father<b> </b>and the Lord Yeshua the
Messiah”. </i></div>
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I began to wonder why we would want to address our
Heavenly Father in any other way but “Abba”.
In the scriptures YHVH is known by many names, and when examined they all
speak of fulfilling some need in one’s life, especially in the one area that we
spoke about above that we long for the most, and that is the Father’s
love. If we looked at His role as a
loving Father, all His names or attributes would be included in that one
relationship. So why do we not just call
Him with the most endearing of all names (which also helps us set our own
identity in order)? </div>
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I can honestly say that I did not know His love for me,
even after 30 years of being a believer.
I knew Him as a good provider, very similar to my earthly father, but
something was always missing. Was it a
lack of spiritual maturity, or did it have something to do with obedience unto sanctification? I had to seriously
consider the latter, because it wasn’t until receiving teaching on this subject
that His Father’s heart began to be revealed to me. </div>
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There were many spiritual blocks in my life that the enemy
had set up over the years, blocks which had to be removed. But first I had to
recognize and admit to their existence, take responsibility for cooperating
with them and then repent and renounce each one of them individually. Amazingly, after they were cast out or down,
that which remained in me was… His presence.
Thus I am getting to know my Father as that perfect love, and because I
have been created in His likeness, I also get to know who I am as a new
creation in Messiah with exactly the same nature. </div>
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In the first letter of the Apostle John, he writes: <i>“Behold
what manner of love the Father<b> </b>has bestowed on us, that we should be
called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did
not know Him. Beloved, now we are
children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know
that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.
And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure” </i>(1
John 3:1-3).<span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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In this verse we can see the connection between purifying
ourselves and seeing the Father. The
Greek word for “revealed” is from Strong’s 5319:<b> </b>fanero<b>, </b>phaneroo
{fan-er-o'-o} “to make manifest, appear, be manifest”, from the root “to
enlighten”. We can never know who we are
as His progeny, unless we come to the revelation knowledge of who He is as revealed in His Son. Our new life as children of a loving heavenly
Father should bear the same nature as the Father, and thus anything that is not
of Him is also not of us. So how do we
proceed when we realize that there are things in us which are a far cry from
the Father’s expression? <i> “Having
therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all
filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God”</i><i><span style="font-family: Arial;"> </span></i>(2 Cor 7:1). It cannot be clearer! We must take the
responsibility to “cleanse [or purify] ourselves” from all filthiness of flesh
and spirit. We will not be able to do this if we are ignorant of the spiritual
realm and the truths of sanctification. Most of the problems in the Body of
Messiah could be resolved if we were rid of many of the spiritual influences
that come from the power of sin working in the flesh. Thus, if
we see ourselves as children of the same Father and having this same nature, we
will easily recognize one another. John
puts it this way: <i>“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God </i>[our
heavenly Father]<i> and everyone who loves is born of God </i>[the Father]<i>
and knows God </i>[the Father]<i>. No
one has seen God </i>[the Father]<i> at any time. If we love one another, God </i>[the
Father]<i> abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in Him, and He
in us, because He has given us of His Spirit.
God </i>[the Father]<i> is love, and he who abides in love abides in Him
</i>[the Father]<i> and God </i>[the Father]<i> in him” </i>(1 John 4:7; 12-13;
16). Thus we have fellowship with one
another and our joy can be made full. </div>
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Ephraim</div>
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<br /></div>
Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-91939357144375492652013-10-18T14:59:00.001+03:002013-10-18T14:59:19.837+03:001 + 1 = You<div class="MsoNormal">
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In one of the recent letters (“the Birthmark), reference was
made to Paul’s emphatic statement about Abraham being the father of “all who
are of the Law [the Jews]”, and all those who are not “of the Law” (non-Jews),
but are of <b>the</b> “faith”. For those who are not of Jewish descent, but yet
have an affiliation with the Jews, the Land and the forefathers, these words
confirm that what they know or feel is not some extra-biblical fantasy, but is
indeed deeply rooted in the Word. </div>
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The scriptures sometime make things as simple as one
(“faith”) plus one (“promise”) equals two, but until the Spirit illuminates the
full equation we may miss it. In this
letter let us take a look at the other “one” in the equation, making the
equation look something like this: “Faith” plus the “Promise of the Spirit”
(that is, the other “one”) = YOU” - a progeny of Abraham and Sarah. </div>
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If YHVH, by His Spirit, sowed the seed of Abraham, Isaac and
Jacob into many peoples and nations, how are we to know who they are, except by
the characteristics that mark them? Thus
the Apostle adds the second witness to our true identity, when he confirms the
words of YHVH through His prophets from of old. </div>
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<i>“I will pour My Spirit on your descendants</i> [referring
to Jacob)”, (Isaiah 44:3).</div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>"I will put My Spirit within you</i> [<st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>]”
(Ezekiel 36:27).</div>
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<i>“And I will put My Spirit in you </i>[the whole House of
Israel], <i>and you shall live”</i> (Ezekiel 37:14).</div>
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<div class="MsoBodyText">
“’I shall have poured out My Spirit on the house of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>,' says
YHVH Elohim"</div>
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(Ezekiel 39:29).</div>
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In
the letter to the Galatian believers, Paul asks a very important question: “<i>Did
you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith </i>[the
faith of Abraham your father]<i>?” </i>(Gal. 3:2). He then reiterates,<i>
“Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does
He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?”</i> (Gal. 3:5). <i> </i>In these two scriptures Paul is connecting
the equation: faith plus the receiving of the Spirit equals the identity of the
natural seed of Abraham<i>. “And if you be Christ's </i>[that is anointed with
His Spirit],<i> then you are from Abraham's sperm </i>[life]<i>, and heirs
according to the promise</i> (Gal. 3:29).
If you have received the anointing of the Spirit of Holiness, you are a
fulfillment of the above prophecies which were spoken to Jacob/Israel. Thus, all those who have the faith of
Abraham, whether Jews or those who are (or were) lost to their natural heritage
and have became Greeks, whom YHVH scattered into all nations, slave or free,
male or female are one in the same Spirit of Holiness, and have the same
natural father – Abraham. Again, one (Spirit) + one (faith) = you (or, if you
will “ewe”, one of the sheep). </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>"Parthians
and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia,
Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya adjoining
Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes…”</i> are all mentioned in
Acts 2:9-10, and by now it could be any one on the face of the earth. The
promises were given to Isaac, and that includes the promise of the indwelling
Spirit (see Romans 9:6-9). YHVH has not abandoned His word to those
forefathers. If He did, we are all in
big trouble.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Many
who are into replacement theology, will interpret that Galatians scripture to mean
that “being in Christ Jesus makes you the seed of Abraham by some kind of
adoption or spiritual transfer”. However, the above quoted verses do not say
that. Those who hold to that idea, are the same ones who claim that we do not
need the Torah and diminish the importance of the Tanach (Old testament),
because “Jesus” established a whole new covenant that really does not have
anything to do with the natural seed of Abraham. It is for this reason that those espousing
the above- mentioned doctrine have no attraction to the Land, or to the plight
of the Jews living in the Land. As a
matter of fact, most of them believe that the Palestinians have just as much
right to the Land of “Palestine” as do the Jews, and even more so (especially
when the gas prices go up). If YHVH
commenced His work only two thousand years ago, then the writings of the
Apostles would suffice. But what about all the many references in the New
Covenant books to the Torah and to the books of the prophets, and to the
“called”, “chosen” and “predestined” (that is, those who are to inherit that
which according to Scripture rightly belongs to them because it was given to
their ancestors)? </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I
hope we will always remember Yeshua’s words to His disciples when they asked Him “<i>when
are you going to restore the kingdom to <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region>?</i>” (Acts 1:16). There is no doubt in my mind that by “<st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>” they
were referring to the natural descendants of Jacob/Israel. Yeshua’s answer is confirming what was promised
to the forefathers and to their seed: <i>"But you shall receive power when
the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in <st1:city w:st="on">Jerusalem</st1:city>, and in all Judea and <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Samaria</st1:place></st1:city>, and to the end of the earth"</i>
(Acts 1:8). Witness to what? To the restoration
of the kingdom to <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>,
because when they received the promise of the Spirit (through the faith that is
in them from their fathers), they also received the kingdom. What is the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">kingdom</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename w:st="on">Elohim</st1:placename></st1:place>? “<i>For the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">kingdom</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename w:st="on">Elohim</st1:placename></st1:place>
is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy
Spirit”</i> (Rom 14:17).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Let
us celebrate and worship in Spirit and in truth and declare with the prophets:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>“Therefore
thus says YHVH, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob: ‘Jacob
shall not now be ashamed, nor shall his face now grow pale; but when he sees
his children, the work of My hands, in his midst, they will hallow My name, and
hallow the Holy One of Jacob, and fear the God of Israel. These also who erred
in spirit will come to understanding, and those who complained will learn
doctrine’"</i> (Isaiah 29:22-24).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Shabbat
Shalom</div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Ephraim </span>Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-77030459110421068912013-09-26T08:18:00.001+03:002013-09-26T08:18:30.429+03:00Preparation for War<div class="MsoNormal">
We all are familiar with the (biblical) saying “time for
peace and a time for war”. As of late
we have been hearing of wars and rumors of wars. However, the present war that we are in, the
terrorism war, has really never been fought before, and at the same time we
hear “peace, peace when there is no peace.
What is all this confusion about?
Is this happening for the purpose of bringing together some one-world
system? Is it so that Islam will become
the only legitimate religion in the world?
Is it to restore and bring back the tribes of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region> to their homeland? Or is the Creator judging iniquity and sin?
Whatever the reason might be, we who have been taken out of this world’s system
and order, and have been transferred into the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">kingdom</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename w:st="on">YHVH</st1:placename></st1:place>’s
beloved Son, need to focus on what the Word of YHVH says, just in case we
should find ourselves in a grip of an even fiercer war.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
With this in mind, let us take a look at how one of the
kings of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Judah</st1:country-region>
faced his nation’s war-woes. It was
during the reign of King Jehoshaphat that some of the surrounding nations,
Ammon, Moab, Syria and Mount Seir (Esau) were gathered together as “a great
assembly” (2 Chron. 20:2) to destroy Judah/Israel. When Jehoshaphat first heard the news of this
mighty army he “feared”. Is inflicting
fear not the motivation of the terrorist packs nowadays? We can see just how sinister this spirit is,
as was illustrated this week in a mall in <st1:country-region w:st="on">Kenya</st1:country-region>. None of the victims were
wearing military uniforms. With this
kind of demonic mayhem, is it any wonder that the nations are spending more on
protecting themselves from these religious fanatics than on any other military
objective? </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText">
What did Jehoshaphat do
when he faced the same threat of annihilation from his neighbors? Scripture records that he”set ‘natan pa’neem’ himself to seek ‘drash’ YHVH”.
“Natan pa’neem” means to give oneself,
set or put oneself in a position before the face of YHVH in order to “drash”,
to inquire advice of YHVH (ref. 2 Ch.
20:3-4). Then he proclaimed a fast
throughout <st1:place w:st="on">Judea</st1:place>. The Judeans gathered from many places to
seek - “baqesh” - or simply ask for
divine protection. Notice the difference
between what the king did in turning to God, and the people. As a leader, he set himself before the face
of YHVH and inquired for YHVH’s counsel and wisdom. But before he begins to make his requests, he
acknowledges the Elohim whom he is addressing.
He then reminds YHVH, by way of questions, as to who He is:
“YHVH, Elohim of our fathers, are You not Elohim in the heavens? And do You not
rule over all the kingdoms of the heathen? And in Your hand is there not power
and might, so that none is able to withstand You? Art You not our Elohim, who
did drive out the inhabitants of this land before Your people <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>, and
gave it to the seed of Abraham Your friend for ever?” (2 Chr 20:6-7). Why did the
king address YHVH in this way? Was he
himself in doubt as to who He was and what He could do? Did the Almighty need someone to remind Him
of His position and duties? In the
following statement we can see what Jehoshaphat was driving at. Those questions came from one who knew and
feared (revered) the Elohim of Abraham, and knew that what He was and what He
did was all for one purpose, to glorify His name: “And they dwelt
therein, and have built thee a sanctuary therein for Your name sake” (v. 8).<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The
king understood that if YHVH were going to move to deliver him and His people,
it would not be because of their worthiness or their righteousness, as the mere
fact that those nations were ‘knocking at their door’ meant that YHVH was not
pleased with <st1:country-region w:st="on">Judah</st1:country-region>.
Listen to the following statements of the king:<i> “If, when evil comes upon us, as the sword,
judgment, or pestilence, or famine, we stand before this house, and in thy
presence, (for Your name is in this house,) and cry unto You in our affliction,
then You will hear and help” </i>(v. 9).
This is the prayer of a very wise man, who knew how to get the Elohim of
the heavens to respond to his plight and the fears of the people. This confession, and the following
conclusion, demonstrated humility and complete dependence on YHVH’s
sovereignty, not only over Judah, but also over those kingdoms of the enemies
that were about to attack the nation (see v.6).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Here
is Jehoshaphat’s concluding prayer “<i>O
our Elohim, will You not judge them? For we have no might against this great
company that comes against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are
upon You”</i> (v. 12). The king, along
with the men, women and children were not looking at their own chariots and
horses, at their strong men with their bows, arrows and spears, neither for the
shrewdness of their politicians and generals.
Their eyes were upon YHVH Elohim alone; He was their only Savior and
Deliverer. It was only then that the
Spirit came to a priest/prophet and delivered YHVH’s response to their
supplication, consecration and prayer. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Jahaziel
(“God will cause to see”) came to deliver the message: “<i>Be not afraid nor
dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but
Elohim's.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Tomorrow
go down against them: behold, they come up by the cliff of Ziz; and you shall
find them at the end of the brook, before the wilderness of Jeruel. You shall
not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand still, and see the
salvation of YHVH with you”</i> (v.15-17).
What wonderful words! Now they knew exactly where the enemy will be the
following day, and what they (Judah) were to do. But even better news were encapsulated by the
statement: “the battle is not yours, but the Almighty’s”. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This,
however, is not the end. Even though they had this wonderful word from YHVH
they still had to go to bed that night and wake up to a very unpredictable
future. They had to face their enemy,
which is something we too must do. As believers, our enemies are principalities
and powers in heavenly places; they come to us in the form of evil thoughts and
intentions. At that time the only thing the Judeans had to stand and act upon
was YHVH’s word. So too today - we must face our enemy with faith and trust in
the truth of YHVH’s word. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The
following day, the king, knowing the doubts and fears of his people, encouraged
them with these words: <i>“Believe in
YHVH your Elohim, so shall you be established; believe his prophets, so shall
you prosper” </i>(20). The Hebrew word
for “established” is “te’am’nu” - of the
root a.m.n, which is “to believe”. Thus Jehoshapat addressed the nation with a
play on words: “ha’aminu, ve-te’amnu”: “Believe and be established, confirmed,
strong” and in particular “become credible”. In other words, by believing,
trusting, giving credit to and having faith in YHVH, they themselves were
becoming not only strong and established, but also “credible”. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>“Praise
YHVH; for his mercy endures for ever”</i> (V.21).</div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Ephraim </span>Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-2996662273057558202013-09-06T16:02:00.000+03:002013-09-06T16:11:26.751+03:00Gog and Magog war<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt;">
In the past few months, with the
current situation in <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>,
some have written, asking if we thought that this was the beginning of the Gog
and Magog War. While anything is possible with YHVH, and He will ultimately
fulfill His word in His way and in His time, we, who have the Holy Spirit and
the scriptures, try as best we can to discern the time and season in which we
are living. So with that in mind, let us take a stab at what is happening and
attempt to come to some (subject to change) conclusion.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt;">
I personally do not believe that
this is the time of the Gog and Magog ‘scenario’ for the following reasons:
According to Ezekiel 38, which describes the times of YHVH's judgment upon Gog
and Magog, that war takes place at a season in which Israel is "dwelling
securely" (verses 8,10, 14). The
root for the word “securely” here is “ba’to’ach” (b.t.ch), meaning security,
quietness, trusting, confidence, while in Aramaic it means to throw one down
upon his face. Based on this definition, <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region> of the pre-Gog and Magog
days will have been humbled by YHVH and will come to trust Him fully. In verse
8 we read that the war takes place at the time during which the land is
restored from the sword (war) and a remnant of Israelites, who have been
gathered from the nations, are living on the mountains of Israel (Judea and
Samaria) in a state of trust and confidence in YHVH. It seems that this
condition can only come to pass after the prophetic fulfillment of Ezekiel
34-37. This is one of the main reasons for this sequel of chapters (that is,
events), which climaxes in chapter 38. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoBlockText">
Chapter 34 focuses on the condition of the lost sheep of
the House of Israel. The shepherds, or
leaders, of the political and religious systems are seen as <i>“feeding
themselves”</i> (v.2), and “<i>eating the fat and clothing themselves with the
wool” </i>(v.3.). They dominate the flock with harshness, manipulating and
controlling them for their own purposes.
They do not strengthen the sick, nor do they bind up the wounded. They
do not protect those under their charge from the beasts of the field (which
could mean demons), but leave them to run wild over the mountains fleeing to
the high places, and do not even bother to look for them, and when they do
happen to find any, they pen them up in their earthly institutions for the
purpose of serving their own interests.
This seems to be the condition of the lost sheep of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>
today. However, there is a remnant that
the Shepherd of Israel, Yeshua, is calling out. This remnant He will bring back
to the land and to the mountains of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region> to graze in good pastures
(v.13-14).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
Chapters 35 and 36 describe <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>
as having some problems with Esau from <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">Mount</st1:placetype> <st1:placename w:st="on">Seir</st1:placename></st1:place>
(see Ez 35:2,12; 36:2). The latter,
together with some of his sons and cousins from the surrounding nations, are
allying themselves (see Ps. 83), planning to stake a claim upon the mountains
of Judea and <st1:city w:st="on">Samaria</st1:city>
and proclaim ownership over them (35:10). Thus, they are ridiculing <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>, saying:
“<i>Aha, the everlasting heights belong to us and have become our possession</i>”
(36:2). But YHVH will speak in His
jealousy and in His wrath against all the surrounding nations (36:5). He will
gather them together, and will have them pound their agricultural equipment
into military hardware. Then He will bring them down to the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">Valley</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename w:st="on">Jehosaphat</st1:placename></st1:place>
(meaning, “His judgment”), and there He will judge them for dividing up His
land and for the violence done to the sons of Judah (Jews; ref. Joel 3:2,
9-12,19).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
At about this time period YHVH will lift up His standard,
and recover a second time the banished ones of Ephraim and the dispersed of
Judah from the four corners of the earth. Ephraim’s jealousy towards <st1:country-region w:st="on">Judah</st1:country-region> will depart, and <st1:country-region w:st="on">Judah</st1:country-region>’s enemies will be cut off, as together
they will swoop down on the slopes of the ‘Philistines’ and plunder the sons of
the east (<st1:country-region w:st="on">Edom</st1:country-region> and <st1:country-region w:st="on">Moab</st1:country-region>), and even the tongue of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Egypt</st1:country-region> will be
destroyed (Is.11:11-15). As mentioned above, the prophet Joel, who also foresaw
this, concludes that the destruction resulting from this war of YHVH’s
judgments will fall on the surrounding nations.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
Because the Ephraimites help <st1:country-region w:st="on">Judah</st1:country-region>
during this war with the surrounding nations, they will possess and return to
portions of <st1:city w:st="on">Samaria</st1:city>, <st1:country-region w:st="on">Lebanon</st1:country-region>
and <st1:place w:st="on">Gilead</st1:place> (Zech.10:7-10), and the nations all
around will be subject to them. There will even be a highway from <st1:place w:st="on">Assyria</st1:place> for the remnant of His flock (Isa. 11:16). YHVH
will establish the throne of David over the united <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>, and Yeshua their Shepherd
and Messiah will rule over them and prove Himself holy <b><i>in</i></b> them.
He will make a covenant of peace with them and pour clean water upon them. YHVH
will also give them His Spirit, so that they will walk in His ordinances and
keep His statues and observe them (Ez. 37:21-28). They will live securely for a
thousand years, as Yeshua will rule the nations with a rod of iron through this
royal priesthood and holy nation. Thus, all the nations will know that YHVH is
the one who sanctified <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>,
when His dwelling place is in their midst, for they will be living securely and
no one will make them afraid. (Ez. 34:28).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
It is at the end of this period that YHVH causes Gog and
Magog to take note of His people, who are living securely. Now let us pick up
the narrative from Revelation 20:7-8: “<i>And when the thousand years are
expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, and shall go out to deceive
the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to
gather them together to battle</i>.” What thousand years is John speaking
about? Is he not referring directly to
the chapter that precedes Ezekiel 38, the chapter that deals with the two
trees, Israel and Judah, who are living securely under one kingdom authority of
YHVH their God, and Messiah Son of David, as one nation in a land that was
given to their forefathers, and are now no longer at strife with the
surrounding nations? </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
The big question that is usually asked at this time goes
something like this: “Is the Messiah physically present during the thousand
years, or is His presence the indwelling of the Spirit of Holiness, ruling in
and through His redeemed people?” </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
Because I see
through a smoky class, my understanding of this could change in light of
progressive revelation or reality. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt;">
Ephraim</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt;">
Behold how good and how pleasant
it is for brothers to dwell together in unity…</div>
Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-7837622624645668942013-08-16T05:50:00.000+03:002013-08-16T05:50:01.711+03:00The Birthmark<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What
is it that identifies us as being of the progeny of Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob? Surely there must be some
birthmark that the scriptures point to, that reveals this biblical God-given
relationship between this generation and the lives of the forefathers of 4,000
years ago! The covenants that YHVH made
with our natural forbearers is that they would have multitudes of descendents
like the sand of the sea, dust of the earth and the stars of heaven, too
numerous to number. The prophets
reiterated these promises of the multiplicity. How will we ever know how “<i>great
the day of Jezreel”</i> (Yah’s sowing, Hos. 1:10), if the descendents are only
a handful of Jews, in this generation, who are easily countable? Will there always be a suppressed doubt in
the back of bible believers’ minds that YHVH was not true to His word and
faithful to the covenant of multiplicity? Or will His Word be regarded simply
as containing numerous figures of speech?
These questions, although not at the hub of this letter, do raise
another: who are to inherit all the blessings and promises that were given to
these natural forefathers and to their offspring? The Abrahamic seed, that is <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region> (both
houses), has an inheritance to claim, and other promises from YHVH that
specifically belong to them. But if we
have lost our ancestral line, how are we going to claim those promises? What
proof do we (Jews or Ephraimites) have that will allow us to possess the
inheritance, especially at a time when there are other people groups who are
contesting our rights vis-à-vis that inheritance? </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The apostle Paul warns us that we are not going to be able
to trace our ancestry through a biological tree of the generations, and if we
try it will only result in strife and contention: <i>“…nor give heed to fables
and endless<b> </b>genealogies, which cause disputes rather than godly
edification which is by faith” </i>(1 Tim 1:4). And again, <i>“But avoid foolish disputes, genealogies,
contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofitable and
useless”</i> (Titus 3:9). Is there any
one on this earth who can trace their genealogy back 150 generations? There may be a handful of Jews today who can
possibly go back 2,000 years or 50 generations, but still that is no
proof. Of course an easy way out of this
would be to just blurt, “God knows”, which is true - yet the ones who really
need to know are the rightful inheritors themselves.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Let
us see if we can find some scriptural ‘identification papers’ that are
necessary to stake a claim on the inheritance, or the riches of the promises.
The above quote from Timothy already gave us a clue. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What
was inherent in the forefathers that marked them and set them apart, and made
them special in the eyes of their Covenant Maker? They all seemed to have one thing in common -
they believed YHVH, utilizing the ability that was in them called “faith”. However, even though this characteristic was
in the life of the father (Abraham), it was not going to be made fully manifest
in his offspring until after the redemption.<span style="font-family: Arial;"> </span><i> “For I would not, brethren, that you should be
ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own conceits; that
blindness in part is happened to Israel </i>[Judah-Israel]<i>, until the
fullness of the Gentiles/nations </i>[Ephraim-Israel] (Gen 48:19)<i> be come
in. And so all Israel </i>[both houses]<i>
shall be saved: as it is written, there shall come out of <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Zion</st1:place></st1:city> the Deliverer </i>[Yeshua]<i>, and shall
turn away ungodliness<b> </b>from Jacob” </i>(Rom. 11:25-26).</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
YHVH
said, “<i>I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob, for, lo, I will
command, and I will sift the house of <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region> among all nations, yet shall
not the least part </i>[“tz’ror”]<b><i> </i></b><i>fall upon the earth” </i>(Amos
9:9). In other words, they (<st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>) will be
well mixed into the nations but YHVH will not lose track of any one “segment”
or “part” (which is what that Hebrew word means in this context). YHVH was saying, then, that even though <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region> will
lose its identity and will be scattered in the nations, through divine
providence they would somehow continue to remain in groupings of their own kin
(as depicted by the popular cliché, “birds of a feather flock together”).
Isaiah also prophesied that YHVH would “<i>cause
them that come of Jacob<b> </b>to take root”</i> and that,<i> “<st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region> shall
blossom and bud, and fill the face of the world with fruit”</i><span style="font-family: Arial;"> (</span>Isa. 27:6).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<i>“And he </i>[Abraham]<i> received the sign of
circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet being
uncircumcised: that he might be the father of all those who have the faith,
though they be not circumcised” </i>(Rom 4:11). We know from biblical history
that the ten tribes of the northern kingdom did not keep Torah and consequently
were not circumcised. <i> </i>But yet the
promises remain to all the seed, <i>“for the promise, that he should be the
heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed through the law, but
through the righteousness of faith” </i>(Rom 4:13)<b>. </b>Active<b> </b>faith, like that of
Abraham’s, seems to be the birthmark that we are looking for in order to
identify the inheritors of the promises.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>“Therefore
it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might
be sure to all the seed </i>[sperm]<i>, not only to those who are of the law </i>[the
Jews, who have the faith, but in some, as is true of all Israel, it is still
hidden]<i>, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the
father of us all” </i>(Rom. 4:16). <i>“Therefore know that only those who are
of faith are sons of Abraham<b>” </b></i><b> </b>(Gal 3:7).
“<i>And if you are Christ’s </i>[in other words, have the anointing of
the Spirit of God]<i>, then are you </i>[recognized as] <i>Abraham's seed, and
heirs according to the promise” </i>(Gal 3:29). Being anointed with the Spirit
does not make you one of his natural offspring, because that interpretation
would eliminate and make of non-effect all the prophecies and blessings from
the Tanach. The Apostle, in writing to
the Galatians, was not contradicting himself, but in fact was staying
consistent with what he had written to the believers in <st1:city w:st="on">Rome</st1:city>. His writings line up with many Old
Testament prophecies about the Spirit of God anointing the Abrahamic seed. “<i>Fear
not, O Jacob<b>,</b> my servant; and thou, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen. For I
will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I
will pour My Spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon your offspring: And
they shall spring up as among the grass, as willows by the water courses” </i>(Isa. 44:2-4)<i>. </i> Here we see that the Spirit that was promised
in the new covenant to the two houses of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region> (Judah and Ephraim), is
given as an anointing (“Christ”) to the believers, through the same faith that
was in their forefather Abraham. This anointing is another of the identifying
marks, or second witness if you will, to being of the Abrahamic seed. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Scriptures
show that faith was always evident to some degree in the progeny (see Hebrews
11), but remained mostly dormant. It was not seen in the multitudes until after
the redemption, at which time it came to the fore through the preaching of the
Gospel of the Kingdom and Yeshua as Messiah.<span style="font-size: 20.0pt;"> </span>“<i>But
before faith came or appeared, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the
faith which should afterwards be revealed </i>[meaning, the unveiling of its
hidden presence]” (Gal. 3:23). The full
potential of the seed is already inherent within it, but it has to “fall into
the ground” and to receive a scent of water, before it can shoot forth. Faith was already in Abraham and his progeny,
but it had to wait until YHVH would send His Son with His faith to accomplish
redemption for His kinsmen from the Abrahamic family. Only after the faith of Yeshua was made
manifest to His brethren, could the faith that was in them become evident so
that they could receive the promises, especially of the Spirit. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Moreover
whom he did predestinate </i>[sperm of Abraham]<i>, them he also called</i>
[Isaac/Jacob],<i> and whom he called, them he also justified </i>[those who
have the faith of Abraham]<i>: and whom he justified, them he also glorified </i>[<st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>]<i>”</i>
(Rom 8:30). <i> Sing, O you heavens; for
YHVH has done it: shout, you lower parts of the earth: break forth into
singing, you mountains, O forest, and every tree therein: for YHVH has redeemed
Jacob<b>,</b> and glorified Himself in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region>” </i>(Isa. 44:23).</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Our
father Abraham “<i>did not stagger at the promise of God through unbelief; but
was strong in faith<b>,</b> giving glory to God; and being fully persuaded
that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform” </i>(Rom 4:20-21).</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I
pray that we, like our forefather, will not stumble nor stagger in unbelief, but
be strong in the faith, especially now that we have been<i> “sealed with that
holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest</i> [or down payment]<i> of our
inheritance<b> </b>until the redemption of the purchased possession </i>[all
Israel]<i>, unto the praise of His </i>[YHVH’s Son]<i> glory”</i> (Eph.
1:13-14).</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Ephraim</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-78862839550611209922013-06-14T08:01:00.000+03:002013-06-14T08:01:31.438+03:00Restoration of YHVH's Inheritance<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
According to
Scripture, the “Two Houses of Israel” are two separate and distinct entities.
Each of them has its own specific prophetic destiny. But even though two, they are still bound to
the calling which they have inherited from their forefather Jacob - that is, to
be one chosen nation of kings and priests.
However, in the course of their history YHVH divided the nation into two
nation/kingdoms for His purposes and plans that are directly related to the
covenant that He swore to Abraham. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
Isaiah 8:14 presents the ‘Two
House truth’: “<i>He will be as a sanctuary, but a stone of stumbling and a
rock of offense to BOTH the houses of <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region>”</i> (emphasis added)<i>.<b>
</b></i>As long as these two continue to stumble and take offense over the One
who is their Rock they will remain two distinct entities. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
Many like to define the two
groups as ‘Christians’ (Israel/Ephraim), and ‘Jews’ (Judah), as if they are
made up of two religious sects. In spite of that we must realize that all
tribes are represented in both houses, and that together they constitute
multitudes of peoples, which make up many ethnic and religious groups. But for our purpose here, let us relate to
them as nations. We have, then, the nation of Judah/Israel today, being made up
mostly of Jews from <st1:country-region w:st="on">Judah</st1:country-region>.
On the other hand, because YHVH is true to His word, there is also the other
house (Joseph/Ephraim), which YHVH has sown or mixed into many peoples in
literally all nations: <i>"Ephraim has mixed<b> </b>himself among the
peoples”</i><span style="font-family: Arial;"> </span>(Hos. 2:8), being the
“fullness of the nations” (Genesis 48:19), even though most of them are unaware
of their identity. The influence of the multitudes of Ephraim, on some of these
nations, brought about blessings of multiplicity, military prowess and economic
wealth (see Genesis 49:22-26). In the
blessing to Joseph, through his son Menasseh, Jacob pronounced that they would
become a great people. However, as a great people the descendants of the
northern kingdom would not be able to connect their greatness to the
fulfillment of the prophecies, as YHVH was going to blind them and cause them
to forget their identity (which is indicated by the meaning of the very name
“Menasseh”). </div>
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
<st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on"><span style="font-family: Umbra;">Judah</span></st1:place></st1:country-region><span style="font-family: Umbra;"> never lost its identity<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
One of the keys to understanding
the end time scriptures is to watch for <st1:country-region w:st="on">Judah</st1:country-region>’s lead. The Jews have never lost their identity, but
have been preserved by the Almighty: <b><i>“</i></b><i>Yet I will have mercy on
the house of Judah, I will save them by YHVH their Elohim, and will not save
them by bow, nor by sword or battle, by horses or horsemen</i>" (Hosea
1:7). And:<b><i> “</i></b><i>He will set
up a banner for the nations, and will assemble the outcasts </i>[or rejected
ones]<i> of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region> </i>[Joseph/Ephraim]<i>,
and gather together the dispersed </i>[but<i> </i>preserved and recognizable] <i>of
<st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Judah</st1:place></st1:country-region>
from the four corners of the earth<b>” </b></i>(Isaiah 11:12). </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">In
Ezekiel 37 we see that <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Judah</st1:place></st1:country-region>’s
stick (nation) is gathered first (and indeed it was restored in 1948) and is
also being ‘written upon’ (v. 16). Then,
during the times of the “latter rain”, <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Judah</st1:place></st1:country-region> is called as a nation to be <i>“a
mighty war horse in battle<b>”</b></i> (Zechariah 10:1,3). In the course of
those days <st1:city w:st="on">Jerusalem</st1:city> is restored to <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Judah</st1:place></st1:country-region> (which
was fulfilled in 1967), who is called to prepare for war against its surrounding
nations (see Joel 3:1-2,11). In these
self-same days the stick of Joseph/Ephraim is also to be gathered and to be
‘written upon’ (Ezekiel 37:16). Sometime later the two are to join together in
the war with the surrounding nations (ref. Isaiah 11:13-15, Zechariah
9:13). These are but a few of the
scriptural descriptions and references that have been and are yet to be
fulfilled, in what are called the ‘latter days’. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Umbra; font-size: 14.0pt;">Our day and age<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
The nations surrounding <st1:country-region w:st="on">Judah</st1:country-region> and <st1:city w:st="on">Jerusalem</st1:city>
are hostile and belligerent at present. Their hostility extends not only toward
Judah/Israel also toward some of the Ephraimite peoples who are supportive of
the Jews, and who are aligned with them economically and militarily (such as
the <st1:country-region w:st="on">United States</st1:country-region>). With impending war and other potentially
catastrophic world events, it is necessary to gain an understanding of the
prophetic perspective. When we know that
all of this has been predicted beforehand, and that in YHVH’s strategy it is as
good as having taken place already, we can rejoice, for our full redemption is
drawing closer. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
According to the prophets of old
these days are marked with wars and great turmoil. Yeshua’s words about these
days also reiterate the same thoughts: <i>“Take heed that no one deceives you. For
many will come in My name, saying, `I am the Messiah,' and will deceive many, and
you will hear of wars and rumors of wars’” </i>(Matthew 24:4-6). Most us don’t
have any problems relating today’s world situations to what Yeshua or the
prophets said on the topic. YHVH has
given us the scriptures, His Spirit and this wonderful world of communication
as a tool to reveal to us the truths of His Word. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
So why are the kingdoms of this
world being shaken? Is it because YHVH so hates the world that He is bent on
destroying it? That is far from being
His motivation. YHVH’s true motive is
always based on His nature, which is, of course, unconditional love,
righteousness/justice and faithfulness.
All that YHVH does revolves around possessing His inheritance, and
establishing His kingdom here on earth. <i>“YHVH’s portion is his people; Jacob
is the lot of his inheritance”</i> (Deut. 32:9). YHVH sent His Son (Yeshua) to restore the
House of Jacob (both houses) and set up His everlasting kingdom in and through
them (Luke 1:31-33).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
What then are these ‘heavy-duty’
judgments all about? Could He be acting
now in the same manner that He did in the days when His people, our
forefathers, dwelt in <st1:country-region w:st="on">Egypt</st1:country-region>?
At that time too YHVH wasn’t just being vindictive, when He hardened Pharaoh’s
heart. He was not looking for a pretext in order to harm the land and people of
<st1:country-region w:st="on">Egypt</st1:country-region>.
Neither was He trying to convince them that they had to repent from their ways
and turn to Him (at least not directly).
He was motivated by faithfulness to His word and compassion toward His
people. He wanted to establish them and
His kingdom according to His pre-ordained plan, so that <st1:country-region w:st="on">Egypt</st1:country-region> and the rest of the nations would know
that He was the Elohim of His people <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>. He never once called Himself the God of
Egypt, or the God of Amalek, but He did say repeatedly that He was the God of
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
YHVH says about Himself that He
changes not. He is the God of Israel
(both houses) and we still belong to Him, just as did our forefathers. We, who have come into the revelation
understanding of our true identity, must face up to our history as His covenant
people, His inheritance and to our relationship with Him, especially now that
He has raised us from the dead spiritually and restored our lost national
(natural) identity through the new covenant.
One scripture that we have quoted over the years, along with other Two
House teachers, is Acts 3:19-21:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
<i>"Repent therefore and be
converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may
come from the presence of the Lord, and that He may send Yeshua the Messiah,
who was preached to you before, whom heaven must receive until the times of
restoration of all things, which Elohim has spoken by the mouth of all His holy
prophets since the world began.”<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
Ephraim
<span style="font-size: 8pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 5pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 8pt;">16/04/04</span></div>
Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-9428513508721947492013-06-07T13:22:00.000+03:002013-06-07T13:22:00.737+03:00From Shadows into the Light<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
“<i>In
Your light we see light” </i>(Ps. 36:9).
</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
One of the most troubling scriptures for Christians who
are having their Hebraic roots exposed by the Spirit, is Paul’s admonition to
the Colossians: “<i>So let no one judge
you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths,
which are a shadow of things to come, but the body of Messiah” </i>(Col
2:16-17). There are many who perceive
these words to mean a renunciation of the Feasts and Sabbaths. A more careful
reading, however, reveals that Paul is simply stating that these are shadows of
things yet to come; in other words, these special days have a prophetic
significance. But, now, as believers,
we are actually stepping out of the shadows and are moving into the reality of
the true meaning of these special days. <i> “For it is YHVH who commanded light<b> </b>to
shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light<b> </b>of
the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Yeshua the Messiah”</i> (2
Cor. 4:6). This is why Paul says that no one can be our judge in regards to
these “shadows”, <i>but the body of Messiah, </i>for we have His light (Spirit)
which shines into these Torah scriptures eliminating the shifting shadows. Paul was not telling us to break the Father’s
commandments, but rather to keep them in the light of their true meaning. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
Those of us who are believers and are honoring this Feast,
should ask the Spirit to unveil to us the truth of the apostle John’s words:<i>
“But if we walk in the light<b> </b>as He is in the light<b>,</b> we have
fellowship with one another, and the blood of Yeshua the Messiah His Son
cleanses us from all sin” </i>(1 John 1:7).
Please note, it does not say from “some sin”, but from “all sin”! Sin is the leaven that leavened our lump of
life, but after the sacrifice of the Lamb and the shedding of His blood,
celebrating the Feast of Unleavened Bread (e.g.) is quite clear and natural. In order to be freed from the contamination
of the power of sin that can still work in our members, we must, by faith
(which means to walk in the light), be identified to that sacrifice. Paul plainly states that,<i> “if One died for
all, then all died; and He died for all, that those who live should live no
longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again. Therefore,
from now on, we regard no one according to the flesh” </i>(2 Cor. 5:14-16<i>). "I have been crucified with Messiah; it
is no longer I who live, but Messiah lives in me; and the life which I now live
in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself
for me”</i> (Gal 2:20). “<i>For you
died, and your life is hidden with Messiah in God”</i> (<st1:state w:st="on">Col</st1:state> 3:3).
That is why the day after the Lord’s Passover (the 15<sup>th </sup>of
Nissan or Aviv) is a “Shabbaton”, that is, a Shabbat-like day, a celebration,
because of the removal of the body of sin on the previous day. </div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
Paul’s passion was to present us blameless (without
leaven) before our heavenly Father through the preaching of Messiah Yeshua, and
Him crucified. “<i>Therefore, if anyone
is in Messiah, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all
things have become new. Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to
Himself through Yeshua the Messiah, and has given us the ministry of
reconciliation, that is, that God was in Messiah reconciling the world to
Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the
word of reconciliation. Now then, we are
ambassadors for Messiah, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you
on Messiah's behalf, be reconciled to God” </i>(2 Cor 5:17-20). </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
The above words reveal Paul’s understanding of the
revelation that was given to him on the road to <st1:city w:st="on">Damascus</st1:city>.
Later he put that faith into action, when he wrote: </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<i>“For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but
what I hate, that I do. If, then, I do
what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. But now, it is no
longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me”</i> (Rom 7:15-17). Paul was able to separate himself from sin
because he knew the truth of the Passover and of the Feast of Unleavened
bread. It was no longer a shadow, but a
living reality in his very being. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 18.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
If the body of Messiah is to judge these matters (Col
2:16-17), then we should no longer be in the shadows when celebrating these
feast days and Shabbats, but truly be in the light as He is in the light, which
means to walk in the Spirit for we “<i>are a chosen generation, a royal
priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that we may proclaim the
praises of Him who called us out of darkness into His marvelous light”<b> </b></i>(1
Pet 2:9).<i> “For you were once
darkness, but now you are light<b> </b>in the Lord. Walk as children of light
(for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth)”</i>
(Eph 5:8-9).<i> “You are all sons of
light<b> </b>and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness”</i>
(1 Thes 5:5).</div>
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<i>“For with You </i>[YHVH]<i> is the fountain of life; in
Your light<b> </b>we see light<b>”</b></i> (Ps. 36:9).</div>
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Ephraim</div>
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Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-43813299929280950482013-05-31T10:02:00.004+03:002013-05-31T10:02:56.489+03:00Our Inheritance (part 2)<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 18.0pt; margin-right: 18.0pt; margin-top: 0cm; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
To continue looking at our inheritance, we first must
define two words that are translated “world”, the reason being is that Abraham
our father and we his seed, or sperm, have a promise from YHVH to inherit the
world; howbeit, not through trying to keep the law, but through faith. <span style="font-family: Arial;"> </span>Of the
patriarch it was written,<span style="font-family: Arial;"> “</span><i>the father
of circumcision to them who are not of the circumcision only, but who also walk
in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham, which he had being yet
uncircumcised. For the promise, that he
should be the heir of the world </i>[kosmos]<b><i>,</i></b><i> was not to
Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of
faith” </i> (Rom. 4:12-13). The word used here for “world”, in the
Greek, is from Strong’s <b>2889 - ko,smoj </b>kosmos {kos'-mos}, described as:
“An apt and harmonious arrangement or
constitution, order, government.” The Apostle John gives a glimpse into what
constitutes this present “kosmos”: “<i>For all that is in the </i>kosmos<b><i>,</i></b><i>
the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not
of the Father, but is of the </i>kosmos<b><i>. </i></b><i> And the </i>kosmos<b><i> </i></b><i>passes
away, and the lust thereof”</i><span style="font-family: Arial;"> </span>(1 John
2:16-17). Is this the kosmos that
Abraham was promised, or is there another, that will not pass away, that was
preserved in heaven but has now come to us through the Spirit of Holiness (ref.
Col 1:5-6)?</div>
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The other word that is translated world is <b>aivw,n </b>aion
{ahee-ohn'}, described as: evermore, age,
eternal, period of time, a fixed order of time. This is the world that according to Paul we
have been transferred out of: <i> “…Who
gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil
world </i>[age]<i>, according to the will of God and our Father” </i>(Gal.
1:4). <span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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In order to understand what makes up this kosmos, we have
to return to the garden of man’s delight - <st1:city w:st="on">Eden</st1:city>.
Man was created with an inherent weakness (see 1 Cor. 15: 42-49). Unlike the reptiles, animals and birds, to which
YHVH gave natural instincts, smells and colors to govern them and attract
like-life forms in order to perpetuate their respective species, man was given
faith, a will and an attribute of the heart called desire. He was given these
in order to enable him to have a relationship with his Creator, himself, and
others of his own order as well as with the creation. Adam/man was to grow into
the same likeness and nature as Elohim.
The Creator also declared that he was to have dominion and rule over all
living things. To the first humans it
was given to establish the first “kosmos”, as they walked by faith with their
Creator. Adam and Eve were to serve and
to channel Spirit-life and light that they received from this divine
relationship, to the kosmos of the creation. That was to be the first
expression of the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">Kingdom</st1:placetype>
of <st1:placename w:st="on">YHVH</st1:placename></st1:place> on earth. However, we know that in the Garden there was
another tree, which contained a potential spiritual influence over man’s faith,
will and desire. Let us remember who placed
the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil in the Garden in the first place. And
let us also bear in mind that YHVH already had a signed and sealed document
called the scroll of redemption. In
other words, He was taking full responsibility for His plan. </div>
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Satan was well aware of Adam and Eve’s inherent weakness,
of which he was about to take full advantage.
He knew that they had the potential to believe a lie, and once their
faith was diverted from looking toward their relationship with their Creator,
he could tempt them through desire (lust), and cause their will to choose his
kingdom and express his nature. So when
Eve looked at the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil she saw that the “<i>tree
was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be
desired to make one wise” </i>(Gen. 3: 6).
However, the fruit was not congruent with her (and Adam’s) well-being.
Instead of eternal life coursing through their being, death began to reign in
and through them, consequently affecting the rest of Creation. This
may sound tragic, but it was all in YHVH’s plan (see Rom 8:20). </div>
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Adam and Eve still had dominion over a now groaning
creation, but they were being governed by another spiritual kingdom; Satan
became their lord, king and constant companion.
Satan’s corporate servant called “Adam” became his channel of expression
through the demonic forces that could now influence, inhabit and give
expression to their nature through the usage of lusts. Adam’s kosmos was thus being manifested
through the lust of flesh (“good for food”), the lust of the eyes (“pleasant to
the eyes”), and the pride of life (“to make one wise”), and consequently man
was trapped in his own prison house; the principalities and powers of this evil
spiritual kosmos were now in charge.
Humanity was thrown into a realm of spiritual darkness so deep that they
believed themselves to be like Elohim.
Satan’s nature of disobedience, rebellion and the pride of life,
self-preservation and self-centeredness occupied the heart and mind of
man. Deception engulfed him to such an
extend that he now believed that the knowledge of good and evil would enable
him to take charge of his life and become like God, and that he therefore no
longer needed his Creator. </div>
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Satan now had a body, which Paul defines as the “body of
sin” (ref. Rom 6:6), through which he could express his fallen nature. However, there was a mystery that still
smoldered like a spark in the heart of man; a mystery which YHVH, in His
wisdom, kept hidden in the depths of His own Spirit-life. It was like an embryo that would have to wait
until the seed (the flesh of man) could fall to the ground and die. This
happened when Yeshua went to the stake and gave up His life. From YHVH’s standpoint, through His Son all
of humanity received the penalty for sin, that is death (ref 2 Cor.
5:14-16). Adam the seed, (1 Cor 15: 44)
was now planted into the ground with Yeshua, (Rom 6:4) but as Paul relates, it
will be raised but each man in his own order. (1Cor 15:23).</div>
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As for us, who have been raised in Messiah in order to receive
the promise that our forefather Abraham was given, we must now live in this
faith reality of life in Messiah Yeshua.
We can only be in Messiah by faith, and it is only faith which will
allow us to continue living in this truth<i>.
“I am crucified with Messiah: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but
Messiah lives in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by </i>[or
because of]<i> the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for
me” </i> (Gal. 2:20).</div>
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Paul says that “<i>whatsoever is not of faith is sin” </i> (Rom. 14:23). <i>“Let us </i>[therefore]<i> <o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so
easily beset us, and let us run with
<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>patience the race<b> </b>that is set before us, looking
unto Yeshua the author and finisher of
<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>our faith”, </i> so that we of the Abrahamic seed might receive
the promise of our </div>
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inheritance. </div>
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Ephraim</div>
Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-50631502222473677512013-05-24T06:42:00.002+03:002013-05-24T06:42:52.896+03:00Our Inheritance<br />
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The themes of the scroll of redemption, inheritance and
the qualifications thereof, have been brought up in recent letters. Last week mention was made of the hope that
had been laid up for us in heaven, of which we have heard in “<i>the word of
the truth of the gospel”</i> (ref. <st1:state w:st="on">Col</st1:state>
1:5). The wonderful news is that now
this “word of truth” has come to us, as the following verse indicates, “w<i>hich
is come unto you, as it is in all the world; and brings forth fruit, as it does
also in you, since the day you heard of it, and knew the grace of YHVH in
truth” </i>(v.6). Is this good news or what?
This mystery of Messiah in us is the hope of glory, and with Him comes all
the riches of our inheritance. <span style="font-family: Arial;">“</span><i>Even the mystery which has been hid from
ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to His called out ones, to
whom YHVH would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery
among the Nations; which is Messiah in you, the hope of glory”</i> (Col
1:26-27). What are the riches of our inheritance that have come to us, being in
us and bearing fruit?</div>
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The Apostle Peter points out that we have become partakers
of the divine nature:<i> “Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and
precious promises: that by these we might be partakers of the divine nature,
having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust”</i><span style="font-family: Arial;"> </span>(2 Pet. 1:4).
Armed with this knowledge of the Word, what are these precious promises
that are now in us? </div>
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Paul’s greatest desire and passion was to share with the
believers this incredible reality, and this is why he prayed that the Father of
glory would give the believers the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the
knowledge of Him, His calling and the riches of the glory of His inheritance
which is now in us, so that we would come to understand the exceeding greatness
of His power unto us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power,
which He demonstrated through the anointing of His Spirit in Yeshua when he
raised Him from the dead (Eph 1: 16-20 paraphrased). Paul wanted us to be strengthened with might
through the indwelling presence of the Spirit of Holiness that is now working
in our inner man, and that the reality of Messiah’s life would dwell in our
hearts through faith, so that we would be able to comprehend with all the
believers the breadth, length, depth and height of this inheritance, but
especially the divine nature of love that is in Messiah, so that we may be
filled with all the fullness of Elohim (Col 3:16-19 paraphrased). For our Heavenly Father’s nature is
unconditional<i> </i>love (ref. 1 John 4:8).</div>
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Let us take a look at what is in us; that is at the divine
nature “<i>which is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness,
faith, meekness and temperance”</i> (Gal 5:22-23). Reading this list may cause
one to wonder whether this divine nature is truly within… If you have received Messiah Yeshua, through
the anointing of the Spirit of Holiness, I assure you that this is His nature
and these character traits are already in you, to which you may reply: “I don’t
see this nature being manifest through me.”
Both Paul and Peter help us with the dilemma. Peter writes that we must
come to the knowledge of Elohim the Father and Messiah Yeshua (ref. 2 Pet 1:2).
He also adds that if we give all diligence to the faith, believing that the
life and nature of the Messiah is our life and nature, and add to this
understanding through the faith – this knowledge, to the knowledge - temperance,
to the temperance - patience, and to the patience - godliness, and to the
godliness - brotherly kindness and to that unconditional love, we will bear the
fruit of the divine nature in our lives. Peter ends this little list with a
very important statement: <i>”For if these things be in you, and abound, you
shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Yeshua
Messiah”</i><span style="font-family: Arial;"> </span>(2Pet.1:8). Paul states that, <span style="font-family: Arial;"> “</span><i>you died, and your
life is hidden with Messiah in God. When Messiah who is your life appears </i>[or
reveals Himself],<i> then you also will appear </i>[you will know who you are
as a renewed, redeemed, restored creation being]<i> and together be revealed
with Him in glory” </i>(Col. 3:3-4).
This can only happen if we are walking in the faith, as we move from
faith to faith and glory-to-glory - looking to Messiah Yeshua whose Spirit life
is resident in us.</div>
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Faith in the gospel of the Kingdom and Yeshua the Messiah
through the writings of the apostles, as they received it from the Torah and
the Prophets, reveal to us some very fundamental insights. If we are to possess our inheritance, that is
the divine nature and the riches and the glory, we must continually stand on
the foundation stone of the faith and of YHVH’s work through the death, burial,
and resurrection of His Son. Paul makes it very clear that when Yeshua died
“all men died”, and that we are no longer to judge men by the flesh, nor to
even recognize them after the flesh (ref. 2 Cor. 5:14-16). You and I died on that cross once and for
all, but are alive because of Him who is our life. (ref. Col. 3:1-4). He is the new creation Man, the One New Man that
came to redeem His brother Adam thus we
are members of His body.<i> “Therefore
gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace
that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Yeshua our Messiah” </i>(1
Pet 1:13). <i>“For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face:
now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.</i> <i>And
now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is
unconditional love”</i> (1 Cor. 13:12-13).
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Ephraim</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></div>
Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-32941399118746279912013-05-16T13:57:00.000+03:002013-05-16T13:59:36.399+03:00Kings and Priests of Righteousness<br />
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One of the most mysterious bible characters is the one who
seems to have appeared ‘out of the blue’, conferring a blessing upon
Abram. Some say that it was Yeshua,
others Shem or Noah. “<i>Then
Melchizedek<b> </b>king of <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Salem</st1:place></st1:city>
brought out bread and wine; he was the priest of God Most High. And he blessed him and said: ‘Blessed be
Abram of God Most High, possessor of heaven and earth’</i>” (Gen. 14:18). Who
was this person and why did he bless Abram?
</div>
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His name, translated “King of Righteousness”, and his
title, “Priest of God Most High”, imply a two-fold position of king and priest.
He was therefore designated as a (righteous) king-priest. The first time we run into such an office is
in the first chapter of the bible, where Adam is given dominion over all living
things (constituting a kingly position), while also “walking with” his Creator
(which would imply a priestly role). At
that time this position belonged to both male and female, as sin had not yet
separated them from one another: "<i>Let Us make man in Our image,
according to Our likeness; let them</i> [male/female] <i>have dominion</i>”
(Gen 1:26). After the fall of man into
the realm of sin, this coveted position was passed on as a birthright and was
given to the firstborn just before the death of his father (that is if the
firstborn qualified to receive it). </div>
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When YHVH gave dominion to Adam He actually established
His kingdom, along with its order, here on earth. In Psalm 145 it says that YHVH’s kingdom “is<i>
</i>an everlasting kingdom,” and that His “dominion endures<i> </i>throughout
all generations” (verse 13). But
although YHVH maintained His sovereignty and held the title "Melchizedek" throughout all generations,
it could not be fully manifest because man was under the dominion of another spiritual
kingdom with another law (the “law of sin and death”). However, as mentioned in the above
scripture, YHVH’s kingdom order was still in effect in the form of the law of
redemption, being the only means out of man’s fallen condition, and depended on
a redeemer and on the laws that govern the loss of inheritance. </div>
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But the question still remains, who was the one who
blessed Abram? Since Noah was still
alive at the time, it most likely was the latter (while Shem and Eber were princes
in line to take the position that Noah would impart when the time came). The Scriptures also indicate that Noah was a
righteous man according to faith: “<i>By faith Noah, being divinely warned of
things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of
his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the
righteousness which is according to faith</i>” (Heb 11:7). What was Noah an heir of? His obedience to the divine directives
qualified him to bear the title of the firstborn (king of righteousness), and
because he walked with YHVH by faith, the priestly office belonged to him as
well. Thus, being alive at the time of Abram he could have very well passed on
this office to Abram as part of the covenant that YHVH was making with the
latter, who was a prince and a firstborn in the genealogy of firstborn; a man
of faith whom YHVH declared righteous through the obedience of faith. </div>
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At the time of Abram YHVH decided to make a covenantal
change that would affect the firstborn position. Instead of a single father, from the
generations of the first/born, holding the office of king-priest, YHVH chose a
nation to fill that role in humanity.
Thus in the twentieth generation of these princes (firstborn of the
Melchizedek line of Firstborn) YHVH, by means of Noah, blessed Abram and established the
promise of a nation that would come out of his loins through Sarah (Isaac) and
give rise to the chosen nation (Jacob) (see Romans 9:6-13). This chosen nation would hold the birthrights
of the Melchizedek office. Because this
is an irrevocable anointing, Yeshua had to come to this seed as a kinsman
redeemer and fulfill all obligations, according to law, as its King and High
priest. He would in effect be King of
the kings and High Priest of the priesthood.
Yeshua could then be in a position to restore the <st1:placetype w:st="on">kingdom</st1:placetype>
of <st1:placename w:st="on">YHVH</st1:placename> to the nation of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>. This is
what the disciples of Yeshua understood when they inquired of Him before his
departure, “Is it at this time you are going to restore the Kingdom to <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>?” (Acts 1:6). They did not understand at that time that it
would come into them by the Spirit. “The
<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">Kingdom</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename w:st="on">YHVH</st1:placename></st1:place> is righteousness, peace and joy in
the Spirit of Holiness” (Romans 14:17).
The bread and the wine that Melchizedek shared with Abram demonstrate
the connection between the Abrahamic Covenant and the New Covenant. The Abrahamic Covenant could not be fully
realized until the coming of a kinsman redeemer who would take away the veil of
flesh that hid the “faith”, atone for sin and fulfill the requirements of the
Mosaic Covenant, which condemned sin in the flesh (ref. Romans 8:3-4).</div>
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Now that YHVH has reconciled His people through His Son,
Yeshua, and the blood of His cross, we may enjoy the fullness of the promises
that were laid up in heaven and have now come into us through the indwelling of
the Spirit of Holiness, as stated in Scripture: “….<i>because of the hope which
was laid up for you in heaven, of which you heard before in the word of the
truth of the gospel, which has come to you, as it has also in all the world,
and is bringing forth fruit, as it is also among you since the day you heard
and knew the grace of Elohim in truth;… that you may be filled with the
knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully
pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge
of Elohim; strengthened with all might,
according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with
joy; giving thanks to the Father who has
qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the
light. He has delivered us from the
power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in
whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins” </i>(Col
1:5-6, 9-14).<span style="font-family: Arial;"> “</span><i>For it pleased the
Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, and by Him to reconcile all
things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having
made peace through the blood of His cross” </i>(<st1:state w:st="on">Col</st1:state> 1:19-20).</div>
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This hope that was laid up in heaven is now in you through
the Spirit of Holiness,<i> “… the mystery which has been hidden from ages and
from generations, but now has been revealed to His chosen. To them God willed to make known what are the
riches of the glory of this mystery among the nations: which is Messiah</i>
[the anointing of Yeshua]<i> in you, the hope of glory” </i>(<st1:state w:st="on">Col</st1:state> 1:26-27).<span style="font-family: Arial;">
“</span><i>Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves
from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of
God”</i><span style="font-family: Arial;">
</span>(2 Corinthians 7:1).</div>
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However, the apostle attached the following condition to
this message of the “covenant of faith”:<i> “And you, who once were alienated
and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled in the body
of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above
reproach in His sight </i><i><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">-<b> if</b></span>
indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved
away from the hope of the gospel which you heard” </i> (Col. 1:21-23).</div>
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Ephraim </div>
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Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-31136711437113669932013-05-10T14:29:00.002+03:002013-05-10T14:29:18.367+03:00Order in Redemption (part III) <br />
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Whose names are written in the
Lamb's Book of Life from the foundation of the earth? Do the Scriptures give us
any indication as to who they might be? </div>
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Obviously a kinsman redeemer has to be a family member, an
elder and firstborn brother and one who possesses the birthrights. We have seen
in previous letters that Yeshua was the Father’s proven firstborn, and was
given full rights to redeem that which belonged to Him (i.e. to the
Father). Thus, the redeemed would have
to be kinsmen of Yeshua. But who is of the family of Yeshua? The Word tells us of His linage, especially
in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke.
Yeshua was “adopted” into the family of David by Joseph who was of the
tribe of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Judah</st1:country-region>,
the latter being a son of Jacob, son of Isaac, son of Abraham – who himself was
of the lineage of the firstborn. There
is only one people that fit this specific genealogy, and that is the people of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>. The Apostle Paul describes this promised seed
very clearly in his letter to the believers in <st1:city w:st="on">Rome</st1:city>:
“<i>They which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children
of Elohim: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed. For this
is the word of promise, at this time will I come, and Sara shall have a
son. And not only this; but when Rebecca
also had conceived by one, even by our father Isaac (For the children being not
yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God
according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calls); It was
said unto her, ‘the elder shall serve the younger’. As it is written, ‘Jacob
have I loved, but Esau have I hated’. What shall we say then? Is there
unrighteousness with God? God forbid” </i>(<st1:country-region w:st="on">Rom.</st1:country-region> 9: 8-14).</div>
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These people became YHVH's
inheritance by being called, chosen and elected according to the statute of
first fruit, or firstborn. It is also
worth noting that they were conceived in mothers whose wombs were dead and
barren. Thus “life from the dead”
already characterized and identified them from the beginning. </div>
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Since according to the Torah ordinance <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region> belonged
to YHVH, they must be the recognized firstborn and the ones whose names are
written on the scroll. YHVH sealed this relationship by commanding Abraham to
circumcise all the firstborn males on the eighth day: “<i>And he that is eight
days old shall be circumcised among you, every man child in your generations”</i>
(Gen 17:12). Later the nation of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region> was
commanded: <i>“You shall not delay to offer the first of your ripe produce </i>[fullness]<i>
and your tears</i> [that which is produced with labor pains]<i>. The firstborn
of your sons you shall give to Me.
Likewise you shall do with your oxen and your sheep. It shall be with
its mother seven days; on the eighth day you shall give it to Me”</i> (Ex.
22:29-30). “<i>Sanctify unto me all the firstborn, whatsoever open the womb
among the children of <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region>,
both of man and of beast: it is Mine”</i> (Ex 13:2).</div>
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However, circumcision of the flesh was only a sign of whom
the firstborn belonged to, especially so since iniquity and sin still reigned
in their mortal bodies, preventing them from fulfilling their divine role as
king-priests according to Melchizedec. The latter status would only be made
possible through a future covenant, one that would take away the sin nature and
circumcise the heart. YHVH then would write His Torah on their hearts and would
give them His indwelling Spirit to enable them to fulfill their divine mandate
as a firstborn nation. As such they are to become the redeemers/saviors of the
rest of humanity, as YHVH gave them the nations/peoples for their inheritance
(ref. Isa. 54:3). </div>
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The Apostle Paul
describes this divine order in his letter to the believers in <st1:city w:st="on">Corinth</st1:city>: <i>“For as in Adam all die, even so
in the Messiah all shall be made alive. But each one in his own order: anointed
first fruits, afterward those who are Messiah's at His coming </i>[hidden<i> </i>presence]<i>”</i><span style="font-family: Arial;"> </span>(1
Cor. 15:22-23). The word translated for
“coming” is not referring to a physical appearance, but to His hidden presence
in a people, such as: “Messiah in you the hope of glory” (Col. 1:27). The word in Greek is parousia (par-oo-see'-ah) and means “presence”. It does not mean a future coming, but the
hidden presence of Yeshua in those who have received His Spirit-life in their
innermost being. This “presence” in the
believer is the evidence of the New Covenant that was made with the House of
Israel and the House of Judah (ref. Jer. 31:31-34; Eze. 36:24-28). </div>
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The Messiah of Israel has come in the Spirit of Holiness,
and is in a continual process of revealing Himself in a people that have been
preordained (called and chosen)for this glory or light. This is only made possible through the
promises of the New Covenant that was made with His Father’s inheritance (that
is, with those who belong to Him who constitute the Firstborn nation). In order
for the Abrahamic seed to be a light of His glory to all nations, they had to
be first sown into the nations in the state of iniquity and sin, and remain
hidden until the time came for “the faith” of their father Abraham to be
revealed in them. Only then can they be declared as the “redeemed” who are
“returning” to <st1:city w:st="on">Zion</st1:city>: “<i>Therefore the redeemed
of YHVH shall return to <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Zion</st1:place></st1:city>
and come with singing</i>” (Isa. 35:10).
Returning to <st1:city w:st="on">Zion</st1:city>
means that they were there sometime in the past. How? In the loins of their forefathers. How were their forefathers in <st1:city w:st="on">Zion</st1:city>, the dwelling place
of YHVH? The answer takes us right back
to YHVH’s own declaration that the firstborn belongs to Him. They are His
possession, His inheritance. These forefathers did not only dwelt in the <st1:placetype w:st="on">Land</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename w:st="on">Zion</st1:placename>,
but YHVH was also King over them and thus they also dwelt in a “spiritual” <st1:city w:st="on">Zion</st1:city> (albeit the
relationship took on a more external aspect in the form of a tabernacle or
temple).</div>
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Nevertheless, YHVH gave them over
to iniquity, sin and unbelief that He might have mercy upon all. His plan, even from the beginning, was to
make the seed of Abraham into multitudes of peoples and nations. Before entering the Land as a nation they
were told that they would not be able to be righteous according to Law, and as
a result would be scattered like seed into the earth, later to be redeemed,
harvested and brought back (Deut. 30:1-6). There is not any one skin color, eye
color or hair texture that characterizes His people, only two attributes
identify them: the faith of their father Abraham and a love for the Torah (see
Rom 4:16). And, yes, there is one more significant element… their names are
written on the scroll with the seven seals (ref. Rev. 5:1).</div>
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It is for this reason that Peter,
when addressing a redeemed remnant living alongside the heathens, exhorts them
to conduct themselves
throughout the time of their stay (on earth) in fear; cognizant of the fact
that they are not redeemed with corruptible things, silver or gold, or by their
own aimless conduct, through performing the traditions of men, or that of their
fathers' traditions, but, rather, that they are redeemed with the precious
blood of Messiah, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. Indeed, He was
foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last
times for them (ref. 1 Pet.1:17-20). <o:p></o:p></div>
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YHVH says that the nations are <i>their/our</i>
inheritance. What do you think it will cost them/us to redeem their/our
inheritance, "the nations"?
Again the Apostle writes: "<i>Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest,
hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation </i>[the
unveiling of His hidden presences in you]<i> of Yeshua the Messiah; as obedient
children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance;
but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because
it is written, 'be holy, for I am holy'</i>"(1 Pet 1:13-16). <i>"For
to this</i> [suffering] <i>you were called, because Messiah also suffered for
us, leaving us an example that you should follow His steps: who committed no
sin, nor was deceit found in His mouth; who, when He was reviled, did not
revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself
to Him who judges righteously</i>" (1 Pet. 2:21-23). Remember there is
still a creation that is groaning, waiting for the appearance of the sons of
Elohim! (ref. <st1:country-region w:st="on">Rom.</st1:country-region>
8:19, Hos. 1:10).<o:p></o:p></div>
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We, who
are proclaiming our newly found identity as Ephraimites must become aware of
who we are as a firstborn and what our destiny is here on earth. Just as our Messiah was a lamb for a
sacrifice and yet a prince and priest, so we, of the lost sheep of the House of
Israel, have the same calling. YHVH
describes us best when He says:<i> “</i><i>' Thus says YHVH: ‘I will
also let the house of <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region>
inquire of Me to do this for them: I will increase their men like a flock. Like a flock offered as holy sacrifices, like
the flock at <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Jerusalem</st1:place></st1:city>
on its feast days, so shall the ruined cities be filled with flocks of men.
Then they shall know that I am Elohim'"</i> (Ezekiel 36:37-37). Yeshua was one of those sacrifices on a
feast day in <st1:city w:st="on">Jerusalem</st1:city>.
The scriptures tell us what kind of sacrifice was taken to <st1:city w:st="on">Jerusalem</st1:city> for those feasts; unblemished,
untainted, perfect firstborn!</div>
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The redeemed of YHVH shall come with singing:
"Worthy, worthy is the Lamb, the Almighty’s prevailing right hand, to take
the two redeemed families of Judah and Ephraim and make them one in His hand
and the Land."<o:p></o:p></div>
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Ephraim</div>
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Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-6655204523600588022013-05-02T16:45:00.000+03:002013-05-02T16:45:24.882+03:00Order in Redemption II<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">In last week's letter we began to
take a look at the laws of redemption.</span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;">Redemption is a very important
aspect of the restoration, because without it restoration would not be
possible.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The scroll in YHVH's hand
(Rev.5:1) is a legal document, which was already written before the foundations
of the world. It is a document specifying the requirements incumbent upon a
redeemer. Only by viewing Yeshua’s life story can we find out what was written
on the side that specified the redeemer’s qualifications. In order for Yeshua
to take that scroll and open it, He had to fulfill all the requirements
inscribed on the scroll. Thus, He had to
be a firstborn and a prince in the family. He had to be obedient to the will of
His Father in all matters pertaining to life and godliness. He also had to be His brothers’ keeper and be
willing to give up His life for them.
Because the laws of redemption required a blood sacrifice in accordance
with the Almighty’s righteousness, the Redeemer had to be perfect, undefiled
and unspotted by sin. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Yeshua faced these legal
requirements head on. He knew that He was a lamb for the sacrifice who was to
be without spot or blemish, and that He had to be obedient in all things
pertaining to His Father's will in order to qualify to be that sacrifice. In
Revelation chapter five we see John falling on his knees and weeping bitterly,
because in that moment he understood what was required for the redemption of
the inheritance. Even King David wrote: <i>"None
can by any means redeem a brother, nor give to YHVH a ransom for him, for the
redemption of their souls is costly"</i> (Ps. 49:7-8). How costly? Look at
the scroll: the shedding of the blood (life) of a firstborn son (the shedding
of blood meant not just a few drops trickling down the face, it was the
complete draining or separating of the blood from the body). However, it was
not just the blood that YHVH was looking at, but also the nature of the life in
the blood that was either acceptable or not. In other words, it had to be a
sacrifice that was not defiled by sin. Yeshua, therefore, met and fulfilled
every requirement of the Supreme Law, both in heart and deed. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Yeshua was not ignorant of the Law;
He knew what was written there. That scroll was not called the "Lamb's
scroll" (or "Book of Life") for nothing! And since our names are inscribed on that
scroll, we also need to know what is written in that legal document. Those requirements are written there for us
as well, but if we do not know or understand the reason for these instructions
we may find ourselves falling short of the calling that is upon our lives
because of ignorance. We are His
inheritance, bought with a price for a purpose. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"Then I saw a strong
angel proclaiming with a loud voice: 'Who is worthy to open the scroll and to
loose its seals?' And no one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was
able to open the scroll, or to look at it.
So I wept much, because no one was found worthy to open and read the
scroll, or to look at it”</i> (Rev.5:2-5). </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The strong angel was looking for
someone qualified to open, look at and read what was written on the
scroll. It seems almost inconceivable
that no one in heaven, or on earth, or under the earth could be found. John was so shattered over this, that he fell
on his face and wept. But then one of the elders comforted him and told him not
to weep, because the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has
succeeded in fulfilling all the requirements written on the scroll. Yes, Yeshua
was the one now able to loose the seals and to disclose the text written on the
other side. What was it that was written there? What are the property rights? </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Before getting into this, let us
take another moment to listen to, and view the courtroom scene in heaven. The
Father YHVH is sitting on the judgment seat with a scroll in His right hand;
there are angels, four living creatures, twenty- four elders and a myriad of
other angels all around. However, those
are not the only ones present in this courtroom. Suddenly a proclamation about
a Lion from the Tribe of Judah is made. But lo and behold, instead of a lion we
see a lamb, with seven horns and seven eyes, which looks as though it had been
slain! What a grotesque animal! Is there some confusion here? No! As we watch
this slain, sacrificial lamb go up to the Father and take the scroll out of His
right hand, all those around the throne fall down and begin to SING A NEW SONG:
"You are worthy, you have succeeded, you have prevailed, you did it, you
overcame, you qualified [according to all that was written on that legal
document]! You have redeemed us and saved us from the wrathful judgments of
YHVH. But not only that, you are also making all those who are written on that
scroll into a royal priesthood and a holy nation." </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Who are those twenty-four elders
sitting on thrones and dressed in white garments with crowns on their
heads? Why were they not qualified to
take the scroll and open the seals? Were they not of import and stature? Even
though they were out of the firstborn in the human family, they too were in
need of redemption and saw themselves as part of the company of the redeemed of
the Lamb. Something great had just taken place; so awesome that they fell down
and cast their crowns before the throne of YHVH and sang a new song! But who else was to be redeemed by this
lamb? Who was the "us" from
every tribe, tongue, people and nation that legally belonged to YHVH’s
inheritance? Who are they and where did they come from? </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Remember that there were two
sides to the scroll. On the one side were specified the qualifications of the
redeemer, and on the other side was the description of the inheritance. Whose
inheritance? The scroll was in the Father’s hand. Thus it must have been the
Father's inheritance, which was made up of those who were to be redeemed.
Therefore it was their names, which were written on the scroll (even before the
foundation of the world). These are the ones who are to become kings and
priests unto our Elohim, and they shall reign on the earth. Yes, it is hard to believe that the redeemed
were foreordained and predestined according to the will of the Father and
inscribed on this scroll before the foundation of the earth. We all have this
document in our library. It is called the Holy ("set apart")
Scriptures. However, it is sealed with seven (spiritual) seals, so as to make
it not entirely comprehensible. Not only are there seals, but there are also
veils over our minds, which block our understanding. Only Yeshua can open the
seals and lift the veils, just as He did to the two men on the road to Emmaus,
or to the Ethiopian eunuch. Therefore, as long as we see through a glass darkly
we need to pray: <i>"Open my eyes, that I may see wondrous things from
Your [legal document the</i>…] (Psa.119:18). </span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Whose names are written in the
Lamb's Book of Life from before the foundation of the earth? Do the Scriptures
give us any indication as to who they might be?</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Ephraim</span>Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-58940251638118487622013-04-26T16:21:00.003+03:002013-05-02T16:45:47.489+03:00Order in Redemption I<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">When the angel Gabriel, who had
been sent to earth by YHVH, arrived in a little Galilaean town called <st1:city w:st="on">Nazareth</st1:city> he announced to
a young girl that she was to conceive a son by Divine intervention. This young
maiden was to name her baby Yeshua (salvation).
Keep in mind that this was not the first time that YHVH intervened in a
woman's womb so as to bring forth life for His purposes.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Isaac's was another miraculous
birth, as his mother and father were too old to have children. Not only was his
mother too old, but she had also been barren all of her life. Jacob's mother, Rebecca, was also barren, and
in need of the touch of the Spirit of the Father. And of course Jacob's beloved Rachel, who
became the mother of Joseph and Benjamin, needed that divine healing touch as
well. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">However, the situation was a
little more dramatic in Miriam's case, as she had not had sexual relationships
with a man. Today we do not think much
of the status of a virgin, but in those days a maiden could forfeit her life by
stoning, if her husband found her to be without blood on the wedding day. In
the case before us, YHVH Himself was to supply the life force that would become
His only begotten Son. He therefore sent a messenger to announce the purpose
for bringing forth this son at that time.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">"<i>You shall call his name
Yeshua, which means salvation, and He would be great, and He will be called the
Son of the Most High God, He will be given the throne of His father David. He
will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no
end</i>" (Luke 1:31-33).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">It is not the promise that Yeshua
would succeed to the throne of David which is puzzling, but rather the wording:
"throne of <i>His</i> <i>father</i> David," is what makes this
announcement somewhat curious. How could Yeshua be David's son, when we know
that He was not of the sperm of natural man?
His mother, who was Jewish, had relatives connected to the priesthood,
which most likely made her a Levite (see Luke 1:36). Joseph, the man she was betrothed to, was of
the seed of David (Luke 1:27). However, as you know, he had a bit of a problem
with this bride of his, who (just happened) to be pregnant before their
marriage was consummated. Being a righteous man, Joseph was ready to take the
necessary steps and have her put away according to the Torah if it were not for
another angelic visitation, in which he was told to take Miriam as his wife. By doing so he in essence adopted the child
that she was carrying, as his own. Thus,
through adoption, Yeshua entered the lineage of David, who, in a very real and
legal sense became his (fore)father, just as we, who are sons of Abraham,
become sons of God through adoption (see Rom 8:15, 9:4; Gal. 4:5). </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Why was it so important that Joseph adopt this
child? Couldn't redemption have been
accomplished anyway through a Levite, or a Benjamite or for that matter through
a Syrian? As we know, Yeshua came as a kinsman redeemer to redeem a lost
inheritance. Whose inheritance? His Father's! What or who belonged to His
Father and had gotten lost, so as to be in need of redemption? Apparently at
some time or another YHVH must have owned something that had ‘gotten lost’. The
principle that all first fruit belong to Him is very evident in Torah (see Ex.
22:29-30, 23:16-19; Deu. 26:2 and many more).
Because these first fruit belong to YHVH He places His name on them,
marking them "for His name sake", thus claiming rightful ownership of
them.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The following scriptures indicate
that the entire nation of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>
was and is YHVH's possession and inheritance. "<i>But YHVH has taken you and brought you out of
the iron furnace, out of Egypt, to be His people, an inheritance as you are
this day,</i>" (Deut. 4:20). "<i>Yet they are Your people and Your
inheritance, whom You brought out by Your mighty power and by Your outstretched
arm</i>," (Deut. 9:29). Not only were the people His inheritance, but so
was a place called <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">Mount</st1:placetype>
<st1:placename w:st="on">Zion</st1:placename></st1:place>. "<i>You will
bring them in and plant them in the mountain of Your inheritance, in the place,
O YHVH, which You have made for Your own dwelling, the sanctuary, O YHVH, which
Your hands have established"</i> (Ex. 15;17).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">In order for Yeshua to become the
redeemer of YHVH's inheritance, in this case <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>, He would have had to have a
very specific legal status in the family. He could not be a son randomly
chosen, from 'any old' family in humanity because YHVH is a law-giver, and
everything that has been created in the heavens and the earth is governed by
His laws. This is especially true concerning the laws of redemption. Regarding
our justification we are not <i>under</i>
Law, (that is laws of sin and death) yet Elohim’s Law should be <i>under</i> us, as it were, giving us a firm
foundation!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">In the book of Revelation we see
YHVH the Mighty One sitting on His throne with a scroll in His hand (Rev.
5:1). It says about this scroll that it
was inscribed on both sides and was sealed with seven seals. What was this
seven-sealed document? It must have been extremely important, as the legal
qualifications to open it were so high that no one could be found, in heaven or
on earth, worthy of taking it and of opening its seals (ref. Rev 5:3). The
thought of no one qualifying was so grave, that it caused the prophet to weep
uncontrollably. Most scholars agree that
this scroll was the scroll of redemption. Such a scroll was seen when Jeremiah
redeemed a piece of property by purchasing it (Jer. 32). A scroll of redemption was usually written on
both sides; the one side had the title deed to the property and the other, the
qualifying requirements of its redeemer. Please notice that the Father had the
scroll in His hand, as a judicial guardian over the inheritance, until the one
qualified would come and take the scroll. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">What was written on that scroll?
What were the regulations that qualified the Redeemer to take the scroll and
open its seals? What does all of this have to do with us?</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Ephraim </span></div>
Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-28930510404462460852013-04-18T20:11:00.000+03:002013-04-18T20:11:30.397+03:00Establishing Order (part two)<br />
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Jacob, as he lay upon the bed of
his departure from this life heard the announcement: <i>“Behold, your son
Joseph has come to you”</i> (Gen. 48:2). There probably was not a more
comforting, nor a sweeter word that Jacob could have heard than those spoken by
that faithful servant attending him on that final day. With those words, heralding the arrival of
his beloved son, he gathered up whatever strength he had left, for he knew he
had one last task to perform. But just
before doing that, he recalled to Joseph the covenant promise that he had
received from Elohom Almighty in Luz (Bet El). <i>“Behold, I will make you<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>fruitful and multiply you, and
I will make of you a multitude of people, and give this land to your
descendants after you as an everlasting possession”</i> (Gen. 48:3-4). Jacob was not just telling Joseph this for
the purpose of reminiscing. He wanted his son to know that the
birthright included the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">land</st1:placetype>
of <st1:placename w:st="on">Canaan</st1:placename></st1:place> and the
covenant of fruitfulness. But please
keep in mind that Jacob left out one little part of this covenant reminder, “<i>and
kings shall come out of your loins”</i> (Gen. 35:11).</div>
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Everything that was happening in
those moments was under the guiding hand of YHVH. Jacob’s prophetic anointing
was working with keen clarity. It was not because of old age that he forgot
this portion of the verse. He knew and understood the statutes and ordinances
of YHVH’s kingdom government, suggesting that to him the term “kings” was not
referring to the kingdoms of men, but to the kings after the order of
Melchizedek. </div>
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Leaving out that portion of the
blessing, he now concentrates on the prophetic destiny and significance of
Joseph’s two sons, Ephraim and Menashe. Because Israel’s eyes were so dim from
age, he apparently was not aware that they were present with Joseph; although,
he did speak to Joseph very directly about them saying: <i>"And now your two sons, Ephraim and
Manasseh, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in
Egypt, are mine; as Reuven and Simeon, they shall be mine”</i> (Gen. 48:5).
Notice Joseph did not argue this point with his father, as he knew the old
patriarch had the right to adopt his sons.. “May they be like Reuven and
Simeon”, Jacob declared. It was no coincidence that Jacob put Ephraim’s name
before Menashe’s, even though Menashe was the firstborn. Thus in the
positioning of the lads, he compared Ephraim to Reuven Leah’s firstborn and not
Menashe. Joseph was totally unaware of what was happening, as later he
questioned the way Jacob placed his hands upon their heads. </div>
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Why was Jacob so interested in
Ephraim and Menashe? Let us go back
to when their names are given. <i>“And Joseph called the name of the first-born
Manashe: 'for Elohim has made me forget all my toil, and all my father's
house.' And the name of the second he
called Ephraim: 'for Elohim has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction'”</i>
(Gen. 41:51-52). Hidden in these two
names is Elohim’s prophetic plan to bless and multiply while in a state of
forgetfulness. Elohim intended to bless all the families of the earth through the
Abrahamic covenant. Thus YHVH, being
faithful to His word, laid the foundations for the fulfillment of this part of
the plan of redemption, in (and through) the House of Joseph. </div>
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Jacob now gets down to his
prophetic ‘business’, and so does the Elohim of Abraham. <i>“And <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region> beheld Joseph's sons, and
said: 'Who are these?'” </i>(Gen. 48: 8). Now why would <st1:place w:st="on">Israel</st1:place> be asking Joseph that
question when he had just proclaimed them to be his own,
unless he was testing Joseph? Well, if
he was, Joseph failed the test by still declaring that those two little ones
belonged to him. There is another interesting point in the above scripture.
Looking closely we find a very interesting switch. It does not say <i>“Jacob beheld”,</i> but “<st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>”.
>From now on, throughout these next couple of chapters, when Jacob blesses,
he does so in his Elohim-given name of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>.</div>
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The above question seems to be
eternally on the heart of Jacob, as even later the prophet Isaiah says of him
(Israel) that he doesn’t recognize his own children (see Isa. 63:16). Again in
another scripture: <i>“Therefore thus says YHVH, who redeemed Abraham, concerning
the house of Jacob: ‘Jacob shall not now be ashamed, nor shall his face now
grow pale; but when he sees his children, the work of My hands, in his midst,
they will hallow My name, and hallow the Holy One of Jacob, and fear the God of
Israel. These also who erred in spirit will come to understanding, and those
who complained will learn doctrine’"</i> (Isa. 29:22-24).</div>
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If we gain an understanding of
what is going on here, in the tent of Jacob, so many years ago, we will not err
nor complain about Elohim’s order or instructions. Maybe we should hear again the
voice of our father when he says: <i>"Assemble yourselves, that I may tell you what shall
befall you in the last days. Gather together and hear</i> (from the root “sh’ma”),
<i>you sons of Jacob, and listen </i>(also from the root “sh’ma”) <i>to <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region> your
father”</i> (Gen. 49:1-2)!!!</div>
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Ephraim </div>
Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7657155266340145825.post-55606564586354151892013-04-12T07:04:00.001+03:002013-04-18T19:53:27.807+03:00Establishing Order (part one)<br />
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The last four chapters of the book of Genesis are some of the most prophetically loaded scriptures in the entire Bible, and quite appropriately ends the book of
Bereshit (Genesis). The title itself
describes Elohim’s sovereign intentions regarding the fulfillment of His
covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Thus, not only did they live, but also
became fruitful and multiplied: <i> “and
they </i>(<st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>) <i>had
possessions there </i>(in <st1:country-region w:st="on">Egypt</st1:country-region>)
<i>and were fruitful</i> (from the same root as the name “Ephraim”) <i>and multiplied
exceedingly”</i> (Gen. 47:27). Many years later Moses, observing the multitude,
exclaimed: <i>“YHVH your Elohim has multiplied you, and here you are today as
the stars of heaven in multitude. May YHWH Elohim of your fathers make you a
thousand times more numerous than you are, and bless you as He has promised
you!”</i> (Deut. 1:10-11). One of the
interesting things to note about the fruitfulness of Elohim’s chosen nation was
that it always took place outside the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">land</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename w:st="on">Israel</st1:placename></st1:place>. Jacob propagated his family (Goy-nation) (all
except for Benjamin) while in <st1:city w:st="on">Haran</st1:city>. In <st1:place w:st="on">Egypt</st1:place> he became as numerous as the
“stars of heaven”, and of course later, being dispersed into all the nations
and lands on the face of the earth, became<i> “as the sand of the sea”</i> or
the <i>“fullness of the nations”</i>. A
simple mathematical equation would be as follows: <st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>
came out of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Egypt</st1:country-region>
somewhere between 1.5 million and 3 million souls, multiplied by a thousand
yields the figure 1.5 to 3 billion souls. Who knows how many out of 7 billion people living on the earth today are
a fulfillment of that prophecy?! As we
know, <i>“with Elohim everything is possible”</i>, especially when it comes to
keeping the covenant that He swore to the patriarchs.</div>
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Elohim’s plan of fruitfulness or
multiplicity is laid out prophetically in this parasha. Right from its
beginning verses we see a Torah, or life, principle in action. Laying on his
deathbed Jacob calls for Joseph. The meaning of the root of the name Joseph is
“to add to,” in accordance with his mother’s prayer at his birth (to have
another son). Joseph’s presences
alongside of his dying father is a foreshadowing of the promise “to add to”, or
to multiply the life of the one dying (Jacob-Israel). Thus, even under these
natural conditions it may be said:
"O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your
victory?" (Hos.13:14). Our Messiah
also said: <i>“Truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the
ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain</i>
(John 12:24). Wheat was one of the biblical symbols that described the House of
Joseph. </div>
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The years of Jacob’s troubles and
sorrows were over. Only the memory of a blood stained garment of his beloved
son would linger, as a prophetic picture of what price it would cost the
Heavenly Father to redeem these sons of promise (<st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>). In those few fleeting moments of
Jacob’s life he approached Joseph with reverence and honor as the government of
the entire world of <st1:country-region w:st="on">Egypt</st1:country-region>
was upon Joseph’s shoulders (“shechem) but yet he was not the king.</div>
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Joseph was known as a dreamer and
an interpreter of dreams. But far
surpassing these attributes was Joseph’s understanding of the faithfulness of
the Elohim of his fathers through the very situations of his life. The Torah
was being written on Joseph’s heart through his
tribulations. The testing of his faith produced wisdom, humility and compassion
which then qualifying him to hold the position that he was now in. His life
exemplified the prophetic destiny of his entire household. For as a people they
were to pass under the rod of YHVH’s judgments, which afterwards would prepare
them for their irrevocable call to become a part of a nation of kings and priests.</div>
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When Jacob knew he was drawing
nigh to death, his first line of business was to strike up his final deal by
making Joseph swear to bury him with his fathers. The transaction was for
Joseph to put his hand under his (Jacob’s) thigh, just like Eliezer did to
Abraham when sealing the oath. This meant that the strength and power of life
represented by the thigh, will find expression through the hand of another, who
swore or promised to be faithful to the oath.
<st1:country-region w:st="on">Israel</st1:country-region>
then bowed at the head of his bed, signifying, as it were, having completed the
work that Elohim had sent him to do. However, there was still one more thing
left for this chosen servant of Elohim, and that was to pass on, by the laying
on of his right hand, the most coveted of all blessings that are recorded in
the Scripture. This blessing was
reserved for a son, a son who has shown himself faithful and trustworthy in the eyes of his father. The son who
would now step into the role of his father, and take upon his shoulders
(shechem) the right to be the redeemer in the family. In order to have the
means to redeem, this son would receive a double portion of the inheritance.
However, that was not all that was to be passed on in that solemn moment in
history. Jacob, holding the positions of a prophet and a king-priest after the
order of Melchizedek in YHVH’s kingdom on the earth, was now obligated to pass
on this highest of all positions to his beloved; the right to govern, with the
dual role, or the authority of a king-priest. But is that what happened? To be continued. </div>
Ephraim and Rimonahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118882157673023701noreply@blogger.com0