by Rod Thomas | Nov 18, 2014 | Blog
My Torah studies brought me today to The Shema, which remains the pearl–the gem–the beacon that stands out in the whole of the Holy Writ. It certifies that Yehovah is the one and only True God of the universe. It crushes (in my mind) any doctrine that insists that God is a trinity or a binary. The Shema remains Yisra’el’s acclamation that Yehovah is the only one and there is no one other God. Allow me to site various translations of this passage:
ASV Deuteronomy 6:4 Hear, O Israel: Jehovah our God is one Jehovah:
(Deu 6:4 ASV)
CJB Deuteronomy 6:4 “Sh’ma, Yisra’el! ADONAI Eloheinu, ADONAI echad [Hear, Isra’el! ADONAI our God, ADONAI is one]; (Deu 6:4 CJB)
DBY Deuteronomy 6:4 Hear, Israel: Jehovah our God is one Jehovah;
(Deu 6:4 DBY)
GNV Deuteronomy 6:4 Heare, O Israel, The Lord our God is Lord onely,
(Deu 6:4 GNV)
KJV Deuteronomy 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: (Deu 6:4 KJV)
LEE Deuteronomy 6:4 Hear, O Israel! The Lord, our God, is the One Eternal Being. (Deu 6:4 LEE)
NJB Deuteronomy 6:4 ‘Listen, Israel: Yahweh our God is the one, the only Yahweh. (Deu 6:4 NJB)
YLT Deuteronomy 6:4 ‘Hear, O Israel, Jehovah our God is one Jehovah;
(Deu 6:4 YLT)
Yet, at times I feel like a lone wolf in the spiritual wilderness when it comes to this issue. Orthodox-traditional-popular Christianity believes fully that God is either a triune or binary entity. Even some Messianics and Hebraic Roots folks contend that Jesus is God of the Old Testament who created all that has ever existed. Indeed, this great spiritual debate has existed for centuries. The primary challenger to the Shema seems to be the Apostle Yochanan who records in his gospel and epistle:
KJV John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (Joh 1:1 KJV)
KJV 1 John 1:1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; (1Jo 1:1 KJV)
Now I do NOT believe that Yochanan believed in the pre-existence and eternal divinity of Yeshua; well not in the sense that Christianity has come to believe and teach. But I’ll touch upon the reasons why I believe Yochanan is saying something entirely different in future writings and audioblogs.
The true identities of the Father and the Son have plagued me for most of my life. Growing up in the Baptist Church, the Trinitarian concept of God was pounded in my head for years. By the time I left home and embarked upon a life of my own, I was a hard and steadfast trinitarian. In my mind there could be no other existence for God. And if by chance a question of the Shema was brought up in a discussion, opposing the godhead, any doubt could be easily explained away by debating the oneness of God from a “substance” perspective; the same approach used by the trinitarian bishops who fought against Arius at the Council of Nicea in 325 CE. And to this day, the vast majority of believers hold to one form or another of a polytheistic godhead. It wasn’t until just a few years ago (about 6-years to be more precise) that I began to question the logic of a godhead comprised of 2 or 3 equal gods, especially when one really reads this passage in Deuteronomy and understands how the Hebrew conceived of Yehovah. I then wondered to myself how the first century saints conceived of Yehovah and Yeshua; did they see Yeshua as every much Yehovah as the Father is considered Yehovah? We know that the first century saints adhered to the Hebraic Roots of the Faith and the teachings of Yeshua HaMaschiyach, so to imagine that these folks conceived of a triune or binary godhead is quite frankly: inconceivable. I consider myself to be of the Hebrew Roots of the Faith, so how can I believe in a godhead? It just doesn’t jive with the tenets of Torah and the Hebraic worldview.
Oh, I get it! Progressive revelation! Quack! I do believe that the Ruach Kodesh reveals certain things to His people through His chosen teachers in His set time throughout the ages. But one must ask one’s self: Does Yehovah change? Well the answer is no (Mal. 3:6). Thus, if the Ruach Kodesh were to reveal things to us that weren’t understood by folks in previous ages, He must do so within the framework of His “changeless” persona. And oh, by the way, don’t bother throwing at me God’s sovereignty and that He can do whatever He choses to do. That is a clever ploy of hasatan that believers for centuries have fallen for lock-stock-and barrel. Yes, Yehovah is sovereign, but He does NOT change nor does He lie! He is NOT a frail human being who would do such a thing. He remains as He has throughout all eternity. If He were to change, let’s say on a whim, then our salvation would be in jeopardy. What would prevent Him from changing His mind about us and condemn us to eternal damnation? Oh, the average Christian would bauk at that prospect I tell you. Yehovah, according to the Christian, can change His mind on anything else but He best not tamper with the Christian’s salvation!
This issue is of such great importance that I am in the process of putting together an audioblog series to address this very issue. I’m certain that I will ruffle some feathers and that is fine. It is an issue that must be addressed and a question that must be answered, otherwise we go on with our spirit lives in darkness and in lies. Have a blessed day in Messiah! Shalom!
by Rod Thomas | Nov 14, 2014 | Blog
Continuing my Torah studies, I come to Deuteronomy 5: 24 (the corresponding Complete Jewish Bible’s verse is 21). The CJB reads as follows:
and said, ‘Here, ADONAI our God has shown us his glory and his greatness! We have heard his voice coming from the fire, and we have seen today that God does speak with human beings, and they stay alive. (Deu 5:21 CJB) (cf. Deu 5:5 I stood between the LORD and you at that time, to shew you the word of the LORD: for ye were afraid by reason of the fire, and went not up into the mount;)
Moshe reiterated to the nation that the apparent longstanding myth that Yehovah never communicates with His creation unless He meant them harm or if He were to communicate with His creation by happenstance it would not occur without dire consequences, was indeed a big ole lie. What a trick of hasatan upon the human race that he would cajole men to distance themselves even further from their Creator out of fear that they would die if they had a personal interaction with Him.
I guess there is a 180-degree difference today whereby humans are flippant about communicating with the Creator. We see numerous examples of evangelists who make a spectacle out of communicating with the Almighty and then attempting to tap into the supernatural through self-serving works of healing, slaying folks in the spirit and speaking in ecstatic tongues. It’s as if hasatan has flipped the whole thing on its head where once humans feared God to death and avoided interacting with HIm but today we treat God as if He is like one of us. I remember attending a United Church of God service one Sabbath and one of the senior men in the congregation got up to pray and the first words out of His mouth was: “hello God.” Now, I’m not trying to be hypersensitive on this issue, but this to me was just another example of man’s ubber-familiarity with the Almighty. Churchianity has convinced us that we need to have a “personal relationship with the Lord” and we take that inference to the greatest limits.
This passage reminds us (a recurring theme throughout Torah–that of being reminded) that indeed Yehovah does communicate with His creation. The reality of the matter is that Yehovah has and continues to communicate with His creation in a number of ways. Sadly, He doesn’t always choose to do so via a burning mountain event as He did at Horeb. But He is known to communicate to His creation via dreams and visions, nature, natural events, prophets, His Word, His Ruach Kodesh, day-to-day happenstances and even direct utterances to our spirit. Have you ever heard the voice of the Almighty speak to you directly on a particular issue, clear as if it was another human being speaking to you? I’ve had such things happen to me. Sometimes I’ve heard the utterances and other times I’ve not. I think the Spirit of the Most High speaks to all of His chosen ones. Yet, obviously, most of us don’t hear Him when He speaks. The cares of life drown out the oft-times wee small voice of the Ruach Kodesh and we miss tremendous opportunities to hear what the Lord has to say to us. Sometimes we simply don’t believe that Yehovah cares enough about our individual situations to intervene and provide us instruction and direction. Thus, we falter along in this life, often heading the wrong way and sometimes even towards destruction. I’ve had this happen to me a million-times over. I tune Father out and effectively take life (that is matters) into my own hands. I’ll even admit that there have been times when I really didn’t want Yehovah’s input, out of fear that He would instruct or direct me to do something that I really didn’t want to do. In those cases, when we actually fear the direct intervention of the Almighty in our lives, we become no better than the Children of Israel at Horeb, fearing the presence of the Almighty; essentially rejecting His direct influence in our lives. It was that event–that one-time key event–that set the tone for how the Father would interact with His creation from that day forward. No longer would He manifest Himself to His people in such greatness and glory. He would henceforth interact with His people via other, less overt means. How sad! How disappointing! Oh what I wouldn’t give to have been at Horeb that day. I would venture to guess that many of you feel the same way. To experience and see Father’s unmatchable wonders and hear His voice speak directly to me His Torah would have been the capstone to my life.
I guess it goes without saying that the Children of Promise in general did not have a full understanding of who they were and their ultimate potential through Yehovah. If one were to maintain a mindset that there’s this God out there doing a whole-bunch of things that are fantastical and at times scary, and I’m this poor, unwitting soul who is being somewhat forced and thrust into these events that are completely beyond one’s control, then a Horeb event might be just a little overwhelming. But when one realizes just who they are (or who they can be) in the Lord and that Yehovah so desperately wants to have a relationship with His creation, then a Horeb event would be very much desired and invited. I long for a Horeb event in my life. I long each day to hear the voice of Yehovah speak to me in whatever form or manner He chooses for me at the time. I want to communicate with Him beyond prayer and through His Word. I want to experience His glory in every aspect of my being. How about you? Well, it’s not out of the question. I believe if we seek Him constantly with a pure and righteous heart, abandoning all other gods (be they real idols or idols that are the cares of this life) for Him and Him alone, He will manifest Himself to us in great glory. There is coming a day though, when we will see His immense glory. It will come when Yeshua, cracks the sky and gathers His chosen from the 4-corners of the earth, and assembles us together with Him on the sea of fire and glass. Then, we will begin to witness forever more, the glory of Yehovah and reclaim that opportunity that was once offered to the Children of Promise at Horeb. Come even now Lord Yeshua…Come now! Be blessed Saints.
by Rod Thomas | Nov 4, 2014 | Blog
As I continue my daily Torah studies, I come to Deuteronomy 4:9-40. What follows is a summary for your reference and review, followed by commentary and application:
- vs 13–He proclaimed His covenant to you which He ordered you to obey, the Ten Words which He wrote on two stone tablets
- vs 14-Moshe taught the people laws and rulings so that they would live by them in the land of promise and avoid adopting the ways of the heathen/the religions and practices of the nations that would surround them
- vss 15-19–Moshe warns the people not to be taken by the fact that they’ve never seen Yehovah, especially when he came down to them at Horeb (reference Exo 19). Human nature often leads men to want to visualize or depict that which they’ve experienced and have come in contact with in some form of another (graven image which becomes and idol). Thus Moshe warns the people not to make unto themselves carved images of created thing and be so inclined to worship those things
- vs 20–Yehovah selected for Himself a people that He called a “people of inheritance;” and delivered them out of Egypt (what parallels are there for us today; us who have been selected for Him to be a people of inheritance, we were delivered from religion and sin–our personal Egypts)
- vss 21-24–don’t forget the covenant that Yehovah made with you–(don’t forget the covenant that Yehovah has made with us–spiritual Israelites). When we break that marriage covenant with Yehovah by abandoning the tenets of the true Faith once delivered for another Yeshua and another Yehovah–a neoplatonist conception of the Father and Maschiyach, we invoke within Him jealousy and we place ourselves in jeopardy and harm’s way
- vss 25-26–time and time again Moshe warns the people to stay true to the covenant between He and them. Indeed, the temptation to adopt the ways of the former inhabitants of the land that they would ultimately conquer and inhabit would be extremely great. But the covenant that existed between Yehovah and Israel required the people of promise to remain faithful to that covenant promise and avoid idolatry at any level and in any form. Otherwise, violations of that covenant would be grounds for them to be expelled from the land
- vss 25-31–Moshe prophecizes that the people would indeed violate the covenant with Yehovah and ultimately they would be scattered among the nations of the world, yet just a few would remain. Those who would be scattered would adopt the ways of those with whom they were led away by, turning to the ways of those people. I’ve always wondered why Yehovah continued on with His plans for Israel despite knowing that Israel would violate the covenant many times over. I don’t think we can fully understand the reasons why, but suffice to say that He is a God of promises and He promised this inheritance to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and He would without fail deliver on that promise
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- Yet there will come a time when Israel will return to Yehovah and Shemah Him. Yehovah will then be merciful unto them and remember the covenant which He made with them. This in the time of acharit-hayamin
- vss 32-40-Moshe admonishes the people to examine their history and why they were where they were at that time. Every step of their journey had been orchestrated by the Almighty for purposes of providing them and their progeny reminders and to ensure that they knew without a shadow of doubt that Yehovah was THE one true God. And if they would simply obey that which Yehovah taught them through Moshe, then life would go well with them and their off-spring and they would live prolonged lives in the land and be a light to the world
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- Interesting that the focus was on their temporal existence as human beings. There was a promise ahead of them, thousands of years down the road, in which eternal life would be ultimate goal of mankind as well as being a light to the world through obedience to Torah and affiliation with Yeshua HaMaschiyach. But for now, it was only for them to live prosperous and healthy lives in the land that Yehovah provided them and be that light to the world
- What does that say about us today? We’ve now entered in to the era where our focus is more on a time when we will live with Yeshua here on earth forever and ever. Yet we are called to focus on that which we can do today to further the Kingdom of Yehovah. Yeshua said that the harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few (Luk 10:2)
Commentary and Application
What does it mean to take heed of one’s self and keep one’s soul diligently? Heed in Hebrew is “shamar” which means to guard, keep, observe. In other words, always monitor and assess one’s self. We are to constantly do this. This we are to do thoughout our lives. Make sure that we are constantly measuring ourselves in accordance to that which we’ve experienced, heard and learned. It’s so easy to slip in to things that are not of Yehovah (cf. Dt. 4:23; Rom 4:23). We must be obsessive and meticulous, perpetual in our self-awareness and self-assessments; to the point of teaching these principles to our progeny.
Matthew Henry paints a context of Moshe’s admonitions here to that of idolatry. Why? Becauise this would ultimately be the nation’s Achilles heel, as well as idolatry was especially irksome to Yehovah and would ultimately lead to harsh punishment. I like Matthew Henry’s examination of this issue of idolatry as it is here being spoken by Moshe. Henry sees the issue in two veins: (1) the creation of graven images that would not only violate the 2nd of the 10-commandments, but in the spirit of this commandment diminish or subtract from the truth that is Yehovah and shame His glory. This harkens back to the golden calf incident in Horeb as documented in the Book of Exodus. One has to seriously question the thoughts of the people who coaxed Aaron in to creating the idol after witnessing the unfathomable exhibit of Yehovah’s glory coming down from heaven on to Mount Sinai (this being the shadow picture of the Feast of Shavuot or Pentecost). That incident was done, according to Yehovah Himself, to become an indelible image in the minds of the people forever and serve as a certification that Moshe was indeed Yehovah’s elect to lead and teach the people (i.e., the people were to Shama Moshe) as well as capture the attention of the people when He, Yehovah, would shout down His commandments to the nation (Exo. 19:9). This event, the likes as has never been seen by the human since, as well as the admonishment and commandment never to make or worship before any idol (Hebrew=pecel), quickly vanished from the hearts and minds of the people as they compelled Aaron to make for them the idol of the Golden Calf. This incident so enraged Yehovah that He was set to destroy the nation and start over with Moshe alone. Israel that day was spared utter and total destruction because Moshe mediated on behalf of the people–11 And Moses besought the LORD his God, and said: ‘LORD, why doth Thy wrath wax hot against Thy people, that Thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? 12 Wherefore should the Egyptians speak, saying: For evil did He bring them forth, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from Thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against Thy people. 13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Thy servants, to whom Thou didst swear by Thine own self, and saidst unto them: I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give unto your seed, and they shall inherit it for ever.’ 14 And the LORD repented of the evil which He said He would do unto His people. (Exo 32:11-14 JPS) Here, in the most glaring and beautiful manner, we see through Moshe’s actions a shadow picture of the Messiah, of Yeshua HaMaschiyach, who has since His ascension in to heaven, mediated before Yehovah on behalf of His elect. How dare we, the elect of Yehovah, assume with pompous and self-righteous assertiveness that grace has blinded the eyes of Yehovah to our idolatrous and sinful behavior. Churchianity has taught us that our sins are covered by the blood of Yeshua and thus our eternal destiny is assured and we have free license to live as our flesh dictates. This mindset dear Saints, is nothing more than spiritual idolatry, which is Matthew Henry’s second point. How Churchianity has fashioned, not only in graven images such as paintings and statutes that litter Catholic and even some protestant Churches, humanly contrived perceptions and idealizations of Yehovah and Yeshua and we, like Israel, blindly and boldly accept and structure our lives in accordance with those perceptions and idealizations. This is one of the many reasons why Torah is so vital to the Believer in Messiah. It serves as a record of the history of Israel and the many events and things that they experienced. Many of those events and things translate in to sad but sobering reminders of how depraved we as humans are, despite having a clear understanding of what Yehovah has accomplished in us through His Son, Yeshua HaMaschiyach.
I truly believe that it is the Messianic Believer’s true calling to take up Ancient Israel’s mantle and be that light to the nations. How do we do that. By living Torah. As the world sees that we are meticulously but joyously following the ways of Torah while acknowledging that Yeshua is our Redeemer that has given to us His Ruach Kodesh, we naturally become an object of curiosity to the world. Yes, many will villainize us and attempt to discredit us as simply another cult that is obtuse to the ways of popular Christianity. But eventually, if we continue in the ways of Yehovah and we show forth in our lives wonders and blessings that are not realized in Christianity or in Judaism for that matter, then the people will be drawn to the simple truth of our Faith and to Yeshua HaMaschiyach. We must not squander this opportunity. We possess the truth and a dying world desperately needs that truth. And no matter how hard and persistently the establishment of our day seeks to suppress this Message of the Kingdom of Yehovah and His righteousness, the truth will still peek through–just as sprigs of grass pop through cracks in a sidewalk or driveway, there is no way to entirely suppress the truth that comes directly from the Word of God. We don’t all have to have huge and prosperous ministries to bring that light and further the true Gospel. We simply must avail ourselves to the calling and employ of Yehovah and the Ruach as we walk daily with Messiah. It may come down to simply living to the best of our ability Torah and that alone will facilitate the work. Invariably, many will ask why we do what we do and seek to understand who and what we are. These interactions provide us the opportunity to evangelize and spread to the world the True Gospel Message. That old gospel song from the 70’s rings so ever true here: “It only takes a spark to get a fire going–then all those around are warmed by its glowing–That’s how it is with God’s love–once you experience it…you want to pass it on.” May you walk in the power and might of the Ruach Kodesh and may you and family be most blessed fellow Saints. Shalom.
by Rod Thomas | Oct 29, 2014 | Blog
7 For what nation [goy=nation=gentiles] is there so great, who hath God [elohim] so nigh unto them, as the LORD [Yehovah] our God [elohim] is in all things that we call upon him for?
8 And what nation is there so great, that hath *statutes [choq] and judgments [misphat] so righteous as all this law [torah], which I set before you this day? 9 Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons’ sons; (Deu 4:7-9 KJV)
(cf 2Sa 7:23 And what one nation in the earth is like thy people, even like Israel, whom God went to redeem for a people to himself, and to make him a name, and to do for you great things and terrible, for thy land, before thy people, which thou redeemedst to thee from Egypt, from the nations and their gods? )
America is said to have been built upon Biblical Principles, especially when it comes down to its laws and treatment of her people. Indeed, the founding Fathers clearly instilled within the constitutional make-up of this nation, many Biblical principles that are ocassionally apparent even to the casual observer today.
Yehovah in His infinite wisdom knew that the eyes of the nation of Israel would wander and lust after the perceived greatness of other nations. We see very clearly from the Biblical record that soon after being settled in the land, the people demanded a human king so that they would be like the other nations that they had observed or even heard about ( 5 And said unto him, Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways: now make us a king to judge us like all the nations. (1Sa 8:5 KJV)). Yet Yehovah, through Moshe’s teachings, sought to capture the attention and hearts of the people, and bring them to a firm knowledge, understanding and commitment that what they had in terms of organization. government and way of life, was far greater and more relevant than any nation on the planet. There was no need for their hearts and minds to wander and desire after other nations. In fact, the Children of Promise were to embrace and diligently hold to the things that they’ve been taught and the experiences they’ve endured so as to not be swayed towards adopting or observing the ways of the surrounding nations. Furthermore, these principles were to be taught to each generation; tenaciously guarded and instillled in to the minds of their children so that they would know nothing other than what Yehovah had provided them nor would they venture and seek out the ways of other nations.
This same principle so very much applies to us here in America today. Indeed, the world in which we live is like the nations that surrounded ancient Israel. We are like as Israel was at that time so to speak. The world in which we live has inticements that would draw even the most ardent and zealous of our faith. Television, movies, the printed media, all spend huge sums of money to study and analyze our base wants and desires in order to ultimately turn a profit for the great commercialists and globalists of our world. Thus they peddle their wares to us by appealing to our basest nature and our need for instant gratification. Simply watch a half-hour television show and you will see commercials that appeal to our perceived need to be up with the in-crowd and in tune with the latest and greatest products and services. Scantily dressed, thin and attractive women and shirtless, cut men tramp about our television and movie screens in meticulously crafted veniets, carefully designed to capture our attention and imaginations, prompting us to immediately run out and purchase whatever item is being advertised at that moment. Industry has identified the things that they’ve determined people want and desire and they then proceed to craft methods to convert our collective wants in to perceived needs. Cars, gadgets, services and the like, are presented to the nation in such a way that one could not possibly do without these things, these trinkets, these distractions if you will.
On the other hand the governments of the West seek to pacify the nation’s people with the things, laws and services that will keep them out of government’s hair, so to speak, and thus provide those who govern over us a lucrative and long-term income. Thus, our government appeals to the basest of our nation’s desires and perceived needs by enacting laws and programs that place the population in perpetual bondage. Sadly the people of the West have absolutely no idea what they have in terms of a life. Oh, we in America have the absolute highest standard of living of any other nation on the planet. We have an abundance of food and clean water and luxury items that keep us in line and in bondage to our government. Our government led industrial-military complex has given us television and video games and iPhones that consume our every waking hour; ultimately taking our attention away from Him who seeks after our attention and desires that we devote our lives to Him and Him alone.
All of this that I’ve mentioned is exactly what Yehovah didn’t want to see happen to His people. It goes beyond not wanting to see His people fall prey to lifestyles of pagan nations. Yehovah’s holiness and conversely His demand for holiness from His chosen people, could no, will not, shall not, co-exist with the ways of the nations round about them.
There are many parallels between ancient Israel and America the Beautiful. Israel was given statutes and judgments (i.e., collectively Torah), which would set her apart from the nations of the world. America was founded upon similar principles which also set her apart from the rest of the world. Both nations were blessed and grew as a result of adhering to these God given principles. However, both (i.e., Israel and America) moved away from the purity of the original message. In Israel’s case, she created through the Pharisaical system, a set of laws around the Torah. These laws were not of Yehovah and in many instances were in complete opposition to Torah. It was not the intent of the sages who created these additional laws (1,000’s of additional laws) that was the problem per se, but moreso it was the disobedience and the religious leaders’ refusal to point the people back to the original Laws of Yehovah that was the greatest offense. Yehovah clearly instructed that Torah was complete and not to be tampered with: Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you. (Deu 4:2 KJV) Like Israel, America has strayed from its Godly heritage and the people have placed over them evil men who have dismissed the Yehovah-centerness of our early nation and replaced those laws with self-serving laws and ordinances that exist only to enslave and control the people. Indeed, this is a terrible terrible state to be in. Yet today, after the passage of so much time, the citizens know nothing more than what they have now. In fact, the people demand these oversights and contrived laws and ordinances in order that they may feel safe and provide each individual assurances that their government is taking good care of them. America is simply repeating the same gross mistake that Israel did two and three-millennia ago. Yehovah admonished the people to understand what it was they were asking for when they demanded to have a king just like the other nations. The only king that should be over Israel was Yehovah. Just like the only government that we, the Believers in Messiah must acknowledge, is that of Yehovah. Why would we look elsewhere for our governance? Those same judgments and statutes are sufficient to meet all our needs today. Torah was composed of some 613 laws, ordinances and statutes and when ancient Israel lived according to these prescribed rules, they flourished. In the West, we have millions of ordinances and statutes and our nation continues to plummet into chaos. Why is this so? Torah’s origin was of Yehovah. The laws of the West are of man. Man can not save himself from himself. What makes him think that he can govern himself?
Brilliant Bible Commentator Matthew Henry wrote of the Law: “…that were so agreeable to reason (referring to the law), truth, jusice, and equity…” The laws of man when developed in a vacuum apart from the Bible, are self-serving and myopic. Many times these manmade laws are inspired by the enemy in order to facilitate continued stoking of the one-world government and the prosperity of the globalists. As conspiratorial as this may sound to many, and indeed it may very well be, we must ask ourselves why is the West in so much trouble despite the millions of laws and systems of oversight? All that appears left is more laws and more oversight, wouldn’t you think? Or wouldn’t the governments think that? Elections will be held in many areas of the United States next week. On may of the local ballots are dozens of new laws to be added to the already bursting at the seams catalogue of laws already on the books. Will these additional laws stem the tide of our nation’s slip and slide into chaos and even pending judgment from on-high? I don’t have to be a prophet to answer “no” to that question. One thing is certain: if the West (namely the United States) does not come to terms with her situation and she does not repent of her sinful ways and abandon her eivl ways, she will indeed be judged and judged harshly by the Great I Am.The prescription for America’s ills is found in 2 Chronicles 7:14 which reads:
14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.1 (2Ch 7:14 KJV)
The Hebraic Roots/Messianic Faith has a huge mandate to fulfill. We must take the place of Israel until their blindness is healed ( 5 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. 6 In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.1
(Jer 23:5-6 KJV)) and become a people who understands and realizes the brilliance and perfection of Torah and through our obedience to Torah and our reliance upon Yehovah be that light to the nations. Christianity had a shot at this, but dropped the ball once she gave over her leadership and governance to traditions and doctrines and teachings of men. It’s a tall order and only a precious few will willingly take on this task. This thing is not just a calling (as Christianity would have the world believe that all 2.5 billion adherents have been called) but a selection. Just as Yehovah selected Israel to be the conduit whereby He would reveal Himself to the world and send His only begotten son, so we find that through Israel’s disobedience and non-belief we have been chosen to usher in the Kingdom of Yehovah here on earth.
How do we accomplish this thing? I believe verse 9 holds the key: 9 Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons’ sons; (Deu 4:9 KJV) It requires that we shamar (guard) ourselves (our eyes, minds, and souls) and stay focused on the ways that Yehovah has prescribed that we must walk. It is so easy to be caught up with the cares of this life and completely forget that which we are supposed to do. I know myself much better than I’ve ever known myself (as strange as this statement may read to you). I know that I am shiny objects kind of guy. I know initially what I’m supposed to do, but can easily be distracted. This applies ever so much in my walk with Messiah. The things of this world at times captures my full attention and before I know it, my day has gone by and my focus on Yehovah and His ways have been parked on the “shoulder” of life. For instance, I go to work each day. Before going to work, I devote my morning to Torah study and prayer. I seek Yehovah’s will and direction for my life as well as I offer petitions to Him as it relates to whatever needs and issues need taking care of. Once I walk through the doors of my office, the onslaught begins and before I know it, I’m caught up with one thing after another and into discussions and debates and a laundry list of concerns that diminish my spiritual focus and degrade my guard or shamar. Sometimes I will go the entire day and emerge from my office and it dawns on me that I didn’t even give Yehovah the time of day while I dealt with the issues of “work.” That’s crazy. That I realize must change. How many missed opportunities were there to receive critical direction and guidance from Yehovah? How many missed opportunities to be commune with the Creator of the Universe? There are times, however, where my tzitzits come in quite handy and by virtue of me simply feeling the fringes touching my arm or hands I’m reminded to come to center and think about Father and Torah and that which Yeshua HaMaschiach has done for us. It is those ocassions when I’m brought back full circle that I can say within myself: “what individual in this place is so great that he/she has statutes and judgments so righteous as the Torah that Yeshua taught us about and lived perfectly?”
It’s high time that we realize our uncomparable heritage and mandate and live in accordance with both. I pledge to do just that. It won’t be easy, but it is more than doable, especially with the help of the Ruach Kodesh. May Yehovah lead you to great things as you live the life of Torah and in the power and might of His Ruach Kodesh dear Saint. Be most blessed.
*choq=statutes=that which is prescribed by Yehovah for Israel to do. The Law is made up of statutes and judgments (vs 8)
by Rod Thomas | Oct 23, 2014 | Blog
6 Keep [shamar-guard, observe, give heed] therefore and do [asah] them; for this is your wisdom [chokmah] and your understanding [biynah] in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people. (Dt 4: 6)
[Note: chokmah=prudence in religious affairs; and biynah=We are to be the object of knowledge to the people. We are to be the point of insight to a lost world.]
We often hear tacit complaint and even distain from the world over our observance and keeping of Torah. Jesus did away with Torah. The Law was nailed to the cross. I personally believe in my heart that when one comes in to a knowledge of the Messiah, whether it be orthodox, tradition or popular Christianity, he or she knows inherently that they must be obedient to the Lord. Tradition and religion has drilled in to our heads that we are not to have anything to do with the Law. In fact, if we even entertain even observing the Sabbath for instance, we are labelled heretic and other offensive names. And then the people rejoice inwardly because they then believe that they will not held responsible for obeying the Laws of the Almighty. It’s almost a relief of sorts. But when you think about this, you may come to the conclusion that this whole issue of whether one should or should not keep the Law (or Torah), it is nothing more than a self-centered selfish cognitive process. It’s all about us. It is not at all about the Father and what He desires or moreso what He demands of us.
I recall back in March of 2013 when my boss was dismissed from her position how the staff rejoiced (and to a large extent so did I) because the staff saw that by her departure they we were no longer going to be subjected to a bunch of harsh and cumbersome rules. The two-decades that she commanded our division, she enacted rule after rule, policy after policy, a great deal of those being petty and ultimately pointless and in many cases created in a spirit of paranoia and spite. There was a steep price to pay when one of those rules was broken. Now being honest and objective, many of the rules and policies that she enacted were actually brilliant and it was those rules that made our operation run competently and smoothly and there were few incidents of error or oversight by the staff since there were incorporated redundancies, checks and balances. In total, I must admit, those rules and policies–minus the spiteful, pointless and petty ones–served our organization well. Our organization assumed a leadership role in the State of California as the Coroner’s Office who did things properly and competently. It was our organization that became the go-to organization in the state for doing things in the realm of medicolegal death investigations the best way possible. It’s been 18-months since she was forcibly retired. It was her overbearing enforcement of those rules and policies that got her in hot water with the Department’s administration. Nevertheless, today we’ve departed far from most of the rules and policies that she enacted. Consequently, our work-product and effectiveness as a death investigation entity has sorely suffered. Has really improved as a result of this swing of the pendulum towards less rules and policies? Nope. In fact, morale has remained low and severaly of us long for those times when we held tight to those rules and policies. I am now working to bring us back to some semblance of those days when things operated like a well-oiled machine and narry was there a disruption of operations.
I mentioned this personal example because I see an interesting parallel here with the rules and policies of my organization back in the day and Moshe’s admonishment to the People of Promise. Indeed, by my staff’s adherence and obedience to the many rules and policies enacted by my former boss, we became sort of “wisdom and understanding in the sight of the nations;” well at the very least, the nations that comprised the thirty-something coroner organizations in the state of California. I look back on those days today and see great spiritual parallels here. And this is what the Ruach Kodesh does for us when we open our hearts, minds and eyes to the truth. Many of the trials and tribulations and even many of the mundane things that transpire throughout our lives have rich spiritual meaning and application. It’s what we do with that information and those experiences that ultimately matters. If we don’t become better people of Yehovah, all those experiences and the gained information we’ve accumulated are for naught. Unfortunately, Israel often failed to recognize the rich, spiritual relevance of all of the events that transpired in their history. Instead of taking those experiences and information and living according to Yah’s prescribed manner, they chose rather to whore after other gods or even erect their own system of holiness and righteousness that effectively resulted in their abandonment of Torah (…Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition. (Mat 15:6 KJV)).
Yehovah had greater purpose in delivering His Torah to His people than simply coralling and controlling a stiff-necked group of people such as the Israelites. It was to be, through their obedience and adherence to Torah, that they would be a light–a beacon–and savor (i.e., salt) to a lost and dying world. Israel failed, despite repeated attempts by the Creator to bring the nation back on task. But you see, the Creator always has a back-up. What Israel lost through her disobedience and migration over to religion and tradition, we in the Hebraic Roots/Believers in Messiah assumed and now must work. Paul touched upon this in his letter to the Roman congregation, likening us to wild olive branches:
13 For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office:
14 If by any means I may provoke to emulation them which are my flesh, and might save some of them.
15 For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the dead?
16 For if the firstfruit be holy, the lump is also holy: and if the root be holy, so are the branches.
17 And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert graffed in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree;
18 Boast not against the branches. But if thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but the root thee.
19 Thou wilt say then, The branches were broken off, that I might be graffed in.
20 Well; because of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear:
21 For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee.
22 Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off.
23 And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be graffed in: for God is able to graff them in again.
24 For if thou wert cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and wert graffed contrary to nature into a good olive tree: how much more shall these, which be the natural branches, be graffed into their own olive tree?
25 For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. (Rom 11:13-25 KJV)
Is it over for Israel? Well, according to the author and finisher of our Faith, absolutely not. Paul continues:
26 And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:
27 For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.
28 As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers’ sakes. (Rom 11:26-28 KJV)
May we assume our duties as the graffed-in ones and the redeemed of the Most High, with zeal and joy so that the nations that surround us in our individual lives will have a reference point whereby they may come to the One True God-Yehovah-through our example of Torah Living. Be Most Blessed Saints.
