There are two things I wish to cover in this installment of TMTO. The first will be an update on this ministry: What’s happening and what’s ahead. Secondly, I want to share my thoughts and reflections on the terrible, tragic, horrific, heinous events that transpired this past week in Yisra’el.

 

TMTO Ministry Update

 

• As I post this installment of TMTO, we will have just concluded our celebration and honoring of Sukkot with our family locally here in the DFW. (Brief expounding)
• TMTO is officially back as a weekly Messianic teaching podcast program. This means we will resume weekly teachings and commentary as before we went on hiatus beginning in November 2022. However, we will now be deviating from our previous teachings and commentary, which were based primarily on the weekly Torah Portions. Over this past year’s hiatus, I have been seeking Yah’s direction and guidance as to which direction He wanted TMTO to go moving forward. And what has become abundantly clear to me as a result of my seeking Yah’s direction is that TMTO’s focus (at least until Yah tells me otherwise) will primarily be based on issues and topics related to the coming Kingdom of Elohim–the Kingdom of God/Malchut Elohim.
  • That said, we will be delivering the true Gospel of the Kingdom to the nation peoples of the world in a way that only The Messianic Torah Observer can deliver it.
  • The mission and goal of this platform and ministry is to equip and prepare a people to receive and enter the Malchut Elohim of the here and now and of the world tomorrow.
  • I believe there’s nothing more important in these perilous times than to preach and teach the Gospel of the Kingdom, warn the modern nations of Yisra’el to repent, and prepare themselves to receive the Malchut Elohim through Yeshua-focused Torah Living.
• I am continuing work on the book of which I have a working title, “The Beatitudinal Personas/Personages of the Kingdom-focused Messianic, ” that I hope to complete by this Gregorian Year’s end.
• Lastly, we’re thinking about publishing a monthly email newsletter. Consequently, we will be jimming up a new subscription list, which means we will also purge our old email list. So, any email subscriptions we hold in our database older than November 2022 will be purged. And that leads me to this: If you have been blessed by the content of this ministry and are led to support this ministry, we would humbly ask that you consider supporting this ministry by two means: The first by subscribing to TMTO from our website: org. The second means is this: If you are not already committed to supporting another ministry that is feeding you, and you are so led by Father, that you prayerfully consider supporting this ministry with your financial gifts. This internet ministry is a labor of love funded by our financial resources and the generous financial gifts of those who give to this ministry. We do not personally take any pay whatsoever for the work we do for this ministry. Abba has generously blessed us to have a comfortable, liveable income, which means that any financial gifts you are led to give will go exclusively to maintaining and even expanding this ministry’s footprint on the World Wide Web. You can subscribe and donate by going to themessianictorahobserver.org, scrolling to the bottom of the landing page, and accessing the appropriate fields.
  • Thank you in advance for your support of TMTO as we prepare and equip a people that will be wholly acceptable unto Yehovah to receive and enter His glorious Kingdom. Praise Yah!

 

Reflections on Hamas’ Invasion of Israel (Which Some Have Dubbed Israel’s 911)

 

Horrific and Terrible Evil Perpetrated Upon the Innocents of Yisrael

 

My thoughts and reflections on this past Sabbath’s horrific attacks on Southern Yisra’el by Hamas terrorists are pretty much in alignment with those of most people of Faith-at least as it relates to the terrible atrocities that were committed and continue to be meted out on the innocents of the Land. My prayers are for them, for the safety and shalom of the remnant who may be caught in the midst of this ongoing modern-day holocaust. Indeed, pure evil is behind this terrible tragedy, certainly at both the human and spiritual levels. Both the human and spiritual sides of this equation are acting in perfect concert, as they often do. I am convinced that the atrocities that have and are continuing to be committed by Hamas and her proxies are the result of human entities availing themselves to the will and purpose of evil spiritual entities and or of the fallen ones who have set themselves against Yehovah and His chosen ones from the very beginning.

 

I have personal thoughts and concerns regarding how the government of Yisra’el should address what many in the media complex call Israel’s 9-11. However, I have been led to believe that those thoughts are not appropriate for this forum. So, I’ll keep them to myself.

 

But I will say this about the modern nation-state of Yisra’el, particularly in light of this present crisis.

 

God Protects Yisra’el (When Yisra’el is on Good Terms with God)

 

Psalm 121 gives us insight into God’s willingness to protect those who are His. The writer, no doubt inspired by the Holy Spirit, wrote this beautiful liturgy regarding Yah’s protection:

 

1I will lift up mine eyes unto the mountains:

From whence shall my help come?

2My help cometh from Jehovah,

Who made heaven and earth.

3He will not suffer thy foot to be moved:

He that keepeth thee will not slumber.

4Behold, he that keepeth Israel

Will neither slumber nor sleep.

5Jehovah is thy keeper:

Jehovah is thy shade upon thy right hand.

6The sun shall not smite thee by day,

Nor the moon by night.

7Jehovah will keep thee from all evil;

He will keep thy soul.

8Jehovah will keep thy going out and thy coming in

From this time forth and for evermore.

American Standard Version (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1995), Ps 121:1–8.

 

The Jewish Scribe Ezra, at the cusp of Yisra’el’s return to the Land of Promise after years of Babylonian Captivity, confirmed the Psalmist’s proclamation:

 

21Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God, to seek of him a straight way for us, and for our little ones, and for all our substance. 22For I was ashamed to ask of the king a band of soldiers and horsemen to help us against the enemy in the way, because we had spoken unto the king, saying, The hand of our God is upon all them that seek him, for good; but his power and his wrath is against all them that forsake him. 23So we fasted and besought our God for this: and he was entreated of us.

American Standard Version (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1995), Ezr 8:21–23.

 

Has God Lifted His Hand of Protection from Yisra’el

 

But we know from scriptural history that Yisra’el’s stiffnecked persona has time and time again led to a complete reversal of Yah’s protective hand over her. It’s not that Yehovah personally meted out judgment and punishment upon His beloved Yisra’el, but rather, Yah’s hand of protection was withdrawn from her when she fell out of covenant with Yehovah and into perpetual sin. And I believe this is what we’re seeing happen in the nation-state of Yisrael today with these terrible attacks from Hamas from the south and Hezbollah from her northern border with Lebanon/Syria.

 

Yisra’el has time and time again, not done herself any favors with Yehovah. Instead, she has put herself in harm’s way due to her refusal to teshuvah and be faithful to her Elohim. And despite the many and constant sugar-coated sermons and teachings touting Yah’s exclusive protection over Yisra’el, her sin and failure to teshuvah and walk in Yah’s covenant and give up her stiffnecked ways has, of course, led to Yah withdrawing His hand of protection from her.

 

We’ve seen example after example of this throughout the ages, yet when Yah provides Yisra’el relief from her tribulations, she still refuses to straighten up and fly right.

 

Reflecting upon Yisra’el’s destruction by the Babylonian hoards in the 6th century BC, Jeremiah, the presumed writer of the Cepher of Lamentations, wrote:

 

2 How hath the Lord covered the daughter of Zion with a cloud in his anger!

He hath cast down from heaven unto the earth the beauty of Israel,

And hath not remembered his footstool in the day of his anger.

2The Lord hath swallowed up all the habitations of Jacob, and hath not pitied:

He hath thrown down in his wrath the strongholds of the daughter of Judah;

He hath brought them down to the ground; he hath profaned the kingdom and the princes thereof.

3He hath cut off in fierce anger all the horn (i.e., the power and favor) of Israel;

He hath drawn back his right hand from before the enemy:

And he hath burned up Jacob like a flaming fire, which devoureth round about.

American Standard Version (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1995), La 2.

 

Beloved, understand where I’m coming from on this. Yisra’el is our wayward brother whether we like it or not. She is Yah’s chosen people with whom He cut a covenant (Exodus 19). We, as the redeemed of Yehovah, have been engrafted into the commonwealth of Yisra’el. And thus, we have an inextricable link with her. Not with Zionist Yisra’el, mind you, but with true Yisra’el. Remnant Yisra’el. And true Yisra’el–remnant Yisra’el, if you will, is who we must hold up in our prayers as we pray for the peace of Yerushalayim.

 

However, what has happened to the nation-state of Yisra’el this past week is inexcusable at any and all levels of morality and decency. The reports of the atrocities that we’re receiving from various news platforms are nothing short of heartrending. Nevertheless, my point is that Yisra’el, because of her refusal to teshuvah and get back into covenant with Yehovah her Elohim, has left her feloniously open to the attacks we saw played out before us on the news feeds.

 

Master Yeshua lamented over Yisra’el’s impending destruction at the hands of what would be the Roman hoards, laying out before her, in the process, Yisra’el’s dirty laundry of not doing what she was called to do–that is, to be a light to the world and to exclusively serve Yehovah Elohim. Instead, Yisra’el brazenly thumbed her nose at Yehovah, and even today, she has thumbed her nose at her Husband Yehovah, which has, in effect, left her without His protection. Of this situation, Master Yeshua lamented in the hearing of His disciples:

 

34Therefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: some of them shall ye kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute from city to city: 35that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of Abel the righteous unto the blood of Zachariah son of Barachiah, whom ye slew between the sanctuary and the altar. 36Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.

37O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, that killeth the prophets, and stoneth them that are sent unto her! how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! 38Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. 39For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

American Standard Version (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1995), Mt 23:34–39.

 

Beloved, what we see happening to those innocents in the Land of Yisra’el is a reiteration of what Master lamented in Matthew 23. The nation has repudiated–rejected–every call to teshuvah–to repentance–to accept Yeshua as her Messiah. Yet she continues to reject her Elohim and violate the terms of her covenant agreement with Him. Instead, she has embraced wholeheartedly the LBGTQ agenda, abortion on demand; she has rejected true Torah living for secularism, humanism, and every “ism” known to man, in particular Zionism. She has essentially become America’s little brother. And like her big brother, the United States of America, she finds herself at a place in time where she is prime for Yah’s wrath, judgment, and terrible tribulation.

 

And so she must get her spiritual house in order more sooner than later. But we know from prophecy that she will not get her act together, at least not anytime soon. In fact, according to Yeshua and the prophets of old, it won’t be until her utter annihilation is just about certain that Yah and His Messiah will step forward and fight for and rescue Yisra’el from the evil nations of this world who will purpose in their hearts to wipe Yisra’el off the face of the earth. And it won’t be until that crucial moment in time that she will finally look upon Him whom they’ve pierced with their words, their actions, and being, and shall mourn for Him as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for Him (Zec. 12:10; Mat. 24:30; Rev. 1:7).

 

Despite her persistent obstinance towards her Elohim, according to the Apostle, “all Yisra’el will be saved” for “out of Tziyon will come the Redeemer. He will turn away ungodliness from Ya’achov” (Rom. 11:26; CJB).

 

Father Yah continues to call out to Yisra’el to return to Him so that He may love on them and restore His Arm of Protection round about her. Through the Prophet Isaiah, Yah calls:

 

Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.

2 Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.

3 Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.

4 Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people.

5 Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee because of the LORD thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he hath glorified thee.

6 Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:

7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.

9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

10 For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:

11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

12 For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.

13 Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the LORD for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.

(Isa 55:1-13 KJV)

 

Ye see beloved, Yisra’el, and for that matter, any who would be a child of Yehovah are going to have to do things Yah’s way, or they’re going to have to do things Yah’s way. There’s no two ways about this.

 

Yisra’el Has Yet Again the World’s Attention

 

Despite all of Yisra’el spiritual failures, Yah said of her that she would be an irresistible burden upon all the people-nations of the world:

 

“Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem” (Zec. 12:2; ESV).

 

In other words, the world’s nations will be forced to take sides as Yisra’el struggles to survive. These will mostly side with Yisra’el’s enemies, unfortunately. And we see it happening right now before our very eyes, beloved. Despite the Western world at large being appalled at what has befallen Yisra’el this past week, the nation peoples of the world are being forced to take sides on the issue being for or against Israel. Regardless of where you or I may fall out on this issue, we are today seeing a growing backlash against the nation and her people, even to the point of some condoning the heinous, barbaric acts that were perpetrated by the Hamas terrorists against the innocents of Yisra’el. But this was inevitable. Because although the nation-state of Yisra’el is Zionist based and secular in its form and function, the country does, just as in the United States of America, possess many Messianic and Torah-observant Jews. And if anything, the enemy–hasatan and his ilk–will always remain focused on destroying Yehovah’s set-apart people. Therefore, the hearts and minds of the world are being purposely turned against anything and any individuals that are in any way tied to Yisra’el. Great persecution of Yah’s set-apart people–not explicitly talking about religious Jews–but true Israelites–remnant Israel–is most certainly at hand.

 

So, Yisra’el, the nation-state, and remnant Yisra’el have a tough road ahead. At the very least, we are called to pray for the peace of Yerushalayim (Psa. 122:6).

 

Why I Avoid Teaching or Discussing Eschatology

 

If you’ve been following me for any appreciable length of time, beloved, you will likely recognize that I avoid, when possible, delving into eschatology and teachings about the end times. There are a number of reasons why I avoid the topic on this platform. One of the main reasons is that most of the prophesies that are attributed to the end times are truly hard to impossible for us to decipher, especially today, because they tend to list nations and peoples who will come against Yisra’el that we no longer have a definitive as to who, what, or where they are today. Yet, we have countless eschatologists who boldly teach, write books, and conduct conferences, assigning present-day nations and peoples to those elements listed in the various prophetic passages of scripture.

 

The specifics related to the players and elements of the end times right now belong to Yehovah, not us. And I believe we should be careful not to read too much into what we see happening in the Land of Yisra’el in terms of End Time prophesies.

 

When asked by His disciples if He would be restoring the Kingdom of Yisra’el at the time of His ascension to Abba Yah, Yeshua responded as follows:

 

“You are not permitted to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority.

8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the farthest parts of the earth.”

(Act 1:7-8 NET)

 

In other words, beloved, how and when the end times will play out, especially as it relates to when Yeshua will return and when He will bring about the Malchut Elohim, is frankly none of our business. Our business, however, is the assignments and tasks that He has given every disciple of His to complete before He returns (reference the parable of the talents in Matthew 24:14-30). He promised to gift them the power and authority of the Paraclete, the Comforter, and the Holy Spirit (aka, the Ruach Kodesh). And, of course, He delivered on that promise in the grandest fashion on that epic, historic Day of Shavuot or Pentecost 10 days after He ascended on high. And from that point in time moving forward, until His return and establishment of His millennial Kingdom headquartered in Yerushalayim, it is the unwavering, uncompromising responsibility and duty of every disciple of Yeshua to be His witnesses to “the farthest parts of the earth.”

 

But What About the Tanach Prophesies: The Tanach Prophesies Serve as a Prophetic Heads-up with Yisra’el as its Focus

 

Father, in His grace and mercy, gave us prophetic mile-markers that we can sort of look at and recognize when the end times are upon us, such as Yeshua’s Olivet Discourse, Paul’s various admonishments about the end times, and John’s Revelation. Beyond these, I feel it’s a waste of time debating and speculating on the who, when, and where of the Last Days as recorded in the prophecies of Ezekiel and Isaiah and others.

 

Furthermore, things–end-times events, if you will-shall transpire according to Yah’s timing and purpose and will probably not happen at all in the manner that the eschatologists have postulated they will occur. Don’t get me wrong, beloved: There’s nothing wrong with studying the Prophets and contemplating what the end times will look like based on ours or someone else’s interpretation of those prophesies. However, I take the position that we are to focus more on getting our spiritual houses in order, doing that which our Master Yeshua left for us to do, which includes doing our part in the Great Commission and living by walking out our Faith (Hab. 2:4; Heb. 10:38).

 

Is what is happening to the nation-state of Yisra’el today the start of the so-called Ezekiel 38 and 39 War? No, I do not. I re-read these prophecies over the last weekend and immediately recognized that there are a great number of nations and peoples named and numbered in that prophecy that Ezekiel foretold will come upon Yisra’el in an End Time battle that will ultimately result in Yisra’el being delivered from her enemies and the enemies of Yisra’el and of Yehovah being utterly decimated.

 

However, what I believe we’re seeing happening to Yisra’el this past week is more akin to what the Psalmist wrote about in chapter 83:

 

O God, do not be silent! Do not ignore us! Do not be inactive, O God!

2 For look, your enemies are making a commotion; those who hate you are hostile.

3 They carefully plot against your people, and make plans to harm the ones you cherish.

4 They say, “Come on, let’s annihilate them so they are no longer a nation! Then the name of Israel will be remembered no more.”

5 Yes, they devise a unified strategy; they form an alliance against you.

6 It includes the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites, Moab and the Hagrites,

7 Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek, Philistia and the inhabitants of Tyre.

8 Even Assyria has allied with them, lending its strength to the descendants of Lot. (Selah)

9 Do to them as you did to Midian– as you did to Sisera and Jabin at the Kishon River!

10 They were destroyed at Endor; their corpses were like manure on the ground.

11 Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb, and all their rulers like Zebah and Zalmunna,

12 who said, “Let’s take over the pastures of God!”

(Psa 83:1-12 NET)

 

Yeshua Gave us a Prophetic Framework in Which to Discern the Signs of the Times.

 

I believe that the nation-state of Yisra’el will survive this heinous attack, but not without a tremendous amount of bloodshed on all sides: Israelis, the so-called non-terrorist Palestinians, and the various Islamic Terrorist combatants. However, I do not believe this is the great Gog and Magog War written about in Ezekiel 38 and Revelation 20.

 

Now, a few of our cousins in denominationalism and at least one prominent Messianic leader over this last week have come out and declared that what we see happening to Yisra’el is at the very least a precursor to this Gog and Magog War. I will not contradict or challenge these eschatologists on their assertions. They could be right, I just don’t see it for myself. Scripture doesn’t support their ideas.

 

I will, however, bring to your attention what has been famously called by some Bible scholars as the “Olivet Discourse,” which is found in Matthew 24 and 25. (Let us remember that Yeshua delivered this prophetic framework from an Israel-centric perspective.) We are blessed of Yah to have this record despite it not being America-centric in its focus. Instead, it provides us an understanding of the signs of the times, with Yisra’el being the center of all these events so that we may be prepared to face the dark days ahead of us and prepare to receive the coming Kingdom/Malchut Elohim.

 

In this lengthy passage of the Gospel record, Yeshua distills down to His disciples (which today includes us) a general framework of how the End Times will play out. I believe, as disciples of Yeshua Messiah, that it is our responsibility to take to heart this framework and not concern ourselves with the nuances of who, when, and where that so many spend so much time ruminating over in their understanding of the “Ezekiel 38-39 War.”

 

I don’t have the time today to go into the particulars of the Olivet Discourse, but suffice it to say, Abba willing and the crick don’t rise, we will unwrap this critical framework in future posts.

 

But for now, as it relates to this week’s horrific events and now Yisra’el’s impending incursion into Gaza with all the political, moral, and historic handwringing that it is bringing to the world stage, we find in the opening of Master Yeshua’s Olivet Discourse (24:3-8) a general overview of certain events that He declares will lead to the End of the Age (i.e., the end of the age when the fullness of the Gentiles will have come to an end–Rom. 11:25).

 

Master Yeshua gives us just four general events that we should take note of when they occur and not fall prey to deception. Those events are as follows:

 

1. There will be a Great Deception of the Church (aka the Church Triumphant), which we see happening in ways inconceivable just a few decades ago.
2. Wars and rumors of wars with nations rising up against nations and kingdoms against kingdoms are part and parcel of what we see happening in Yisra’el this week.
3. Famines, which the globalists today blame on Climate Change or Global Warming, which those with eyes to see and ears to hear know is not true. The incidents of famine we’re seeing transpire throughout the world today are manufactured by man through the agency of the enemy and the fallen ones. It’s an intentional eradication of humanity by the power brokers of this world.
4. Earthquakes in various places. Indeed, earthquakes are occurring worldwide in greater frequencies and intensities.

 

Master Yeshua warns us, His disciples, that these are the beginning of birth pangs, which we are not to become alarmed over as we see the world at large doing. Instead, the Netsari Disciple of Yeshua is called to remain focused on His assignments and not be led astray by the various talking heads of our Western World and our governments. Yah is in control, beloved.

 

If Yeshua’s prophetic framework is accurate and truly sequential, which I believe it is, some form of the Abomination of Desolation and an invasion of Yisra’el by the nations of this world will take place sometime in the near future, which I personally believe will be the Ezekiel 38-39 War that all of the religious pundits are falling all over themselves to declare is happening over in Gaza and Yisra’el today. According to Yeshua, these two events will precipitate His glorious return and the establishment of His millennial kingdom here on earth.

 

But before this Abomination of Desolation and the invasion of Yisra’el by the nations of this world takes place, Master Yeshua warns that the Body of Mashiyach must endure great persecution that will lead to the deaths of many Netsarim (24:9-14). According to Master, lawlessness (aka, Torahlessness) will reach unfathomable heights amid a worldwide spreading of the true Gospel of the Kingdom. It will be during that time that the chosen of Messiah will be targeted for destruction as the dark hearts of the unredeemed go out of their way to hinder the spread of the true Gospel. I believe that the Church Triumphant will largely be behind that persecution, siding with globalists to shut down the great revival that will come upon the earth, including the spread of the true Messianic message among the Jews that are scattered throughout the world and in Yisra’el proper.

 

This persecution of our Faith Community, beloved, is the next shoe to drop in the prophetic timeline, and it is the very thing we must prepare ourselves to face. Yes, we must prepare ourselves to receive our Master Yeshua when He returns, but we must also prepare ourselves and our families for the dark days ahead. We’ve been given ample warning.

 

 

What Should the Netsari’s Response to These Heinous Events of this Past Week Be?

 

And so, it falls to us, as I mentioned previously, to uphold the innocent ones who are caught up in this terrible maelstrom over in Yisra’el in prayer, in particular, to hold the righteous remnant of Yehovah in prayer. Indeed, many true Yisra’elites in the nation-state of Yisra’el right now are in harm’s way. These desperately need our prayers and petitions. These are the ones that Yah’s loving arms of protection need to remain steadfastly around them.

 

As it relates to prayer, beloved, if we are not firm in our understanding of how to stand by the innocents, especially remnant Yisra’el, I would strongly suggest approaching Yah and asking that He reveal to us, through His Holy Spirit, how to pray and what to pray for. Many are no doubt praying for a speedy defeat of the enemy and that the enemies of Yah and His people be utterly routed and destroyed. And indeed, there’s nothing wrong with praying for and through these critical situations. But part of the elect’s responsibility is that they are effective in their prayers, and part of being an effective prayer warrior (and make no mistakes about it, beloved, this thing is more about a spiritual war than it is about a flesh and blood battle) is knowing how and what to pray for regarding a situation. It’s so easy to fall in line with the manner in which our Faith Community has engaged in prayer, and that level of devotion is fine. But those of us who earnestly desire to cause heaven to respond favorably to our petitions must understand how and what to pray for as it relates to this particular situation. And this is why I have been led to focus my prayers on the innocent, remnant Yisra’elites in harm’s way. The Spirit may lead you to pray for or pray in an entirely different way about this crisis. This is why it is important to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, even in prayer (1 The. 5:19).

 

I have also seen, posted on various online platforms, calls for people of Faith to contribute financially to multiple organizations that have pledged to address specific identified needs of Israeli citizens caught up in this crisis. I have always been leery about organizations that pop up amid specific crises and tug on people of Faith’s heartstrings to entice them to give. The problem with such giving is that you have no idea whether or not your hard-earned monies will be used to help those these organizations claim to be helping. I would only suggest, beloved, that we first hear from Yah before we turn over any of God’s money to such organizations. Let Him lead our steps and guide our actions (Gal. 5:16). When we let go and let Yah in every aspect of our lives, we can’t and will not go wrong in anything we do.

 

Lastly, beloved, let us remain ever so introspective and watchful in these perilous times (2 Timothy 3:1-5). May this horrific ordeal cause us to take serious account of our own walk with Messiah to ensure that we are, in fact, within Yah’s protective embrace. As we saw previously, unaddressed and pervasive sin allowed to operate in a Netsar’s life can precipitate the removal of Yah’s protection and indwelling presence. Let us learn from Israel of the past and Israel of the present and avoid making the same mistakes she has repeatedly made.

 

Let me just say that Yah holds His chosen ones–that includes natively culturally born Yisra’el and those who are engrafted into the commonwealth of Yisra’el–especially culpable for their actions. Why? Because both groups should know better. And those that know better are expected to do better. Period. So, Yah’s chosen ones are held to higher standards of behavior than the rest of the world. The Orthodox Jews are generally exposed to Torah from birth. Thus, they know right from wrong and will be judged within the framework of Torah. We who are engrafted into the commonwealth of Yisra’el and our wayward denominationalist brothers and sisters will also be judged within the framework of Torah. Why? Because we have been taught and know right from wrong, even if some of us aren’t Torah observant. (See my teaching series entitled “What Did Paul Mean by Being Under the Law” for a more in-depth discussion on this concept of being judged within the framework versus outside the framework of Torah.)

 

So, we are called–Yah’s righteous ones–to live by our Faith (Hab. 2:2-4; Gal. 3:10-14; Heb. 10:38), which means that we must get our spiritual houses in order and maintain that order, wearing the righteous garments that our Master gifted us, so that we may be of use to Him in the here and now.

 

Let us remain hopeful, always giving Yah the praise, worship, and obedience He so justly deserves. Let us be watchful, keeping track of what is happening around us, preparing for the tough days that are no doubt ahead of us, spiritually and physically. Let us work while it is still day, beloved because the night cometh when no man or woman may work (Joh. 9:4). Let us pray without ceasing (1 The. 5:16-18). Let us love one another and bless any who may come within our sphere of influence (Joh. 13:34-35). Let us guard the words that come forth from our mouths so that they may edify and exhort but not bring down or cause harm. Let us take captive every thought to the obedience of Messiah (2 Cor. 10:5). All this so that we may remain in Yah’s perfect shalom, as we await our Messiah’s glorious return.

 

Above all, beloved, never lose hope and always know that you know that you know, that our Elohim, Yehovah Jireh, Yehovah Nissi, Yehovah Sabaoth, Yehovah El-Shaddai is still on the throne! Praise Yah.

 

We’ll revisit this subject of the Olivet Discourse, Abba willing, in coming installments of TMTO.