Salvation

Many religions claim rite of passage into the World to Come, and some even believe that if you say the “sinners’ prayer” or follow certain “salvation doctrines” that you will be “saved.” Thankfully, there was a man who posed the question to Y’shua: “Good teacher, what is good that I should do that I should have eternal life?” (Matthew 19:16). Some theologians feel this man was a misguided soul because he suggested that he had to “do” something rather than just “believe.” We’ll look at Y’shua’s answer in a moment, but first let’s find out what Keefa (Shimon Peter) was preaching, shortly after Y’shua was resurrected.

“And when they heard these things they were touched in their hearts, and they said to Shimon and to the rest of the Schlichim, “what should we do, our brothers?” Shimon said to them, “Repent and be immersed each of you in the name of Master YHWH-Y’shua for the forgiveness of sins, that you may receive the gift of the Ruach haKodesh. For to you was the promise, and to your children, and to all those who are far away from Elohim will call. And with many other words he would witness to them and he would beseech them while saying, Save (yourselves) from this perverse generation.” And some of them readily received his word and believed and were immersed. And there were added in that day about three thousand souls” (Acts 2:37-41).

Notice that Keefa preached both repentance and immersion in the name of Master YHWH-Y’shua. In this verse MarYah and Y’shua appeared right next to one another; therefore, we know that it is the Spirit of YHWH in Y’shua Who ultimately provides Salvation. Notice also there is not only the required action of repentance and immersion for the forgiveness of sins; but this is done in order to receive the gift of the Ruach haKodesh (Set Apart Spirit). The Ruach haKodesh will not indwell someone who is living in rebellion. The work of the Ruach haKodesh is to write Torah in the inward parts, which is confirmed by the appearance of “fruits” of the Spirit. In other words, each one of us must prepare a place in our hearts to welcome the Ruach haKodesh.

Repentance is an extremely important concept to understand and apply to our lives if we are planning to enter into eternal life. Repentance means “turn to YHWH,” which also means one must turn from sin and keep the Commandments. Getting back to the question about eternal life, here’s Y’shua’s answer: “Now if you desire to enter into life, keep the Commandments” (Matthew 19:17). The answer applies to everyone who has ever drawn a breath. But the fellow wanted a quick fix and asked, “Which ones?” So Y’shua began listing Commandments from Torah (including the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20) and the fellow replied, “All these things I have obeyed them from my youth. What do I lack?” Now, how many have actually kept all the Ten Commandments from their youth, in the original context? Imagine being there yourself; could you respond as this fellow did? Y’shua is clearly teaching that the first prerequisite for salvation is keeping the Commandments!

In Mark 12:29-31 Mashiyach Y’shua teaches: “The first of all the Commandments is “Hear O Israel. Master YHWH our Elohim is one. And you should love Master YHWH your Elohim with all your heart, and with all of your soul, and with all of your mind, and with all of your strength.” This is the first Commandment. And the second that is like it is that. “You should love your neighbour as yourself.” There is no other Commandment greater than these.” Mashiyach taught the central theme of Torah (Deut 6:4-5, Lev 19:18); that all of Torah revolves around love toward YHWH and our fellow man. This Commandment is so primary that Rabbis have suggested that all the rest of Torah is “commentary” – that the rest of Torah provides the details about how to love YHWH and our fellow man. Clearly everyone must keep these two greatest Commandments for salvation; but we must keep them according to the Word of YHWH, not the traditions of men!

Yochanan (John) explains how we are to keep these great Commandments: “And by this we shall be sensible that we know Him, if we keep His Commandments. For he that says I know Him, and does not keep His Commandments, is a liar and the truth is not in him. But he that keeps His Word, in him is the love of Elohim truly completed: for by this we know that we are in Him. He that says I am in Him is bound to walk according to His Halakha. My beloved, I write no new commandment to you, but the old Commandment which you had from the beginning; and the old Commandment is the Word which you have heard” (1 Yochanan 2:3-7). Insisting that we “love YHWH” or that we “know Him” can be two very different things. Notice that those who say they “know Him” and don’t keep His Commandments are liars! How much more then are they liars who say they “love Him” and yet don’t bother to keep His Commandments? Yochanan says he that “keeps His Word” has the love of Elohim truly completed, and this is how we know that we are in Him! Make no mistake, this is the same WORD that David spoke when he declared, “My tongue shall speak of Your Word: for all Your Commandments are righteousness.” (Psalm 119:172).

Rav Shaul (Paul) preached the same message; he emphasized, “circumcision is nothing, neither is uncircumcision; nut the keeping of Elohim’s Commands [is what counts!]” (1 Corinthians 7:19). Shaul also taught that it’s very easy to be seduced by sin, but through the Commandments we are able to recognize what sin is: “For sin, by the occasion which it found by means of the Commandment, seduced me and thereby slew me. Wherefore, Torah is Set Apart; and the Commandment is Set Apart, and righteous, and good” (Romans 7:11-12).

As we approach the end of the Scriptures there is a beautiful promise for all who expect eternal life: “Blessed are they who do His (YHWH’s) Commandments, that they may have a right to the tree of life and may enter through the gates into the city” (Rev 22:14). Is it any surprise that the Commandments of YHWH are tied together with the Tree of Life? At the end of Revelation we return to Gan Eden before original sin, where we see that the Tree of Life is the eternal Kingdom of Elohim. So, if you’ve heard religious people teach that we “don’t have to keep the Commandments” of YHWH for salvation, then ask yourself this: Do those who teach that we don’t have to keep the Commandments keep the Commandments themselves? Probably not – because they want you to join with them in what they do…

Most insist they “don’t have to keep the Commandments” because “Jesus Christ” kept them perfectly for them. Herein is the “Mystery of Iniquity” revealed (2 Thessalonians 2:3-15). The lawless one, also known as ant-Mashiyach, heads the charge against keeping the Commandments in the name of the false Mashiyach. We can therefore clearly determine that this is the “other Jesus” Paul spoke of, who has inspired many souls into disobedience. We must be very careful about any false parallel, since Rav Shaul says that if anyone else, including a heavenly messenger, teaches a Good News other than the original one, that person is cursed! (Galatians 1:9-10).

Those who don’t obey the Commandments don’t want you obeying them either. Some “Christians” even teach that if you keep the Commandments you will go to hell because you’ve fallen from “Grace.” The truth is that Grace (Favour is the correct word, Grace is not the correct translation) is the girt of the Ruach haKodesh that empowers us to keep the Commandments of YHWH by Faith! Nearly everyone who keeps the Commandments of YHWH and observes Torah according to Mashiyach will testify that it is a miracle to be spiritually sustained and keep the Commandments in a world of people who’ve come to hate them for doing so.

In order to truly please our Creator, we must place our trust in Mashiyach Y’shua who teaches: “If you desire to enter into life. Keep the Commandments” (Matthew 19:17). On this same theme Rav Shaul teaches: “When we were dead in our sins, (Elohim) gave us life with the Mashiyach and rescued us by His favour” (Eph 2:5). Dead in our sins mean that we stop breaking the Commandments. The word rescued here literally means “saved.” A variant of this word is what we call “Saviour” in English. In Hebrew the concept of a saviour is literally: “giver of life.”

Y’shua to Zeus

While it is true that Iesous became the Greek substitute for Yehoshua (Greek Septuagint translation of the Tanakh), it is also true that the Greek language is very capable of reproducing the name of Yehoshua (Y’shua) with exact sonic pronunciation. However, an etymological link evolved between Iesous, Zeus, and Jesus, pronounced: Ie-soos, Zoos; and Jee-zuhs. Regardless as to whether one recognizes sonic similarities or not, there are many other factors that connect the Christian worship of Jesus to Zeus. Notice “Elizeus” in the 1611 King James Version (Luke 4:27), spelled exactly as seen here, is a name that weds the pagan deity Zeus with the Elohim of Israel. While this is clear evidence of a blatant pagan connection to Zeus worship, we’ve only begun to scratch the surface.

Historians have noted that for many centuries busts of Zeus were prominently displayed in many Christian churches throughout Europe – not only Catholic Churches where idolatry is a normative, but also in “Orthodox” churches. The original busts of Zeus were imported into the most prominent front and center parts of “Christian sanctuaries.” Rav Shaul’s letters had not been heeded by the Church. In the year 230 C.E. the Christian “Church Founder” Tertullian wrote: “By us [Gentile Christians] who are strangers to (Jewish) Sabbaths, and new moons, and festivals, once acceptable to God, the Saturnalia, the feasts of January, the Brumalia, and Matronalia are now frequented, with gifts being carried to and fro.”

Early in Roman church history it was very fashionable to syncretize pagan worship into Christianity. One of the most evident pagan elements is the sun-child of December 25^th who became the son-child of “Mary the mother of God.” Ishtar, from where the fish symbol originated, was also a carry-over into Christianity, and transubstantiation is another pagan right that was ripped right out of paganism and dropped into the Easter wafer, in which most Christians indulge.

As mentioned before, the Vatican sports a huge brazen obelisk at the center of St. Peter’s square that was brought to the Church from Heliopolis, Egypt, by the Roman emperor Caligula. The obelisk is a phallic symbol (penis) that dedicates the Roman Catholic Church to sun worship in the name of Ishtar (Easter). Caligula considered himself god and demanded worship as a physical god – not unlike the Catholic Pope who postures himself as being infallible and in the place of god. The difference between modern Catholicism and paganism is mere semantics. The Catholic Church demonstrates all manner of demonic spirit that Caligula himself “enjoyed,” including an abundance of extremely high level paedophile sex crimes. Those who are not Catholic, however, need not point their fingers, because every Christian who erects a Christmas tree or attends church on Sunday or celebrates Easter or Valentines Day is blindly following Roman Catholic authority.

Y’shua Mashiyach is the Government of YHWH, he is altogether Righteous, Just and Lawful, but most Christians are adamant that “Jesus did away with the Law.” There is plenty of evidence that proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that Mashiyach Y’shua has been utterly betrayed by the vast majority of Christianity. But the greatest “slap in the face” to Mashiyach, is that when Christians are Scripturally presented with the truth about Mashiyach Y’shua, rather than repenting and turning to YHWH, most choose to ignore the Truth, and continue to follow pagan customs. Most Christians ask, “What difference does it make?” because they see no difference between the absolute Truth of the Perfect Mashiyach verses a false religious system that invented Je-Zeus according to a mixture of truth and paganism.

The distinctions of Mashiyach’s Government are universal and unchanging regardless of how he is personified by Christians, Jews, Muslims and all other religions, Although Christians may posture a Jesus deity according to Greco-Roman and pagan traditions, and may even give themselves exclusivity to the Kingdom of Elohim, the fact remains that Y’shua gave plenty of warnings against man’s traditions when he said: “It will not be that just anyone who says to me “My master, my master.” Will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but whoever does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, “My master, my master. By your name, have we not prophesied? And by your name have we cast out demons? And by your name have we done many miracles?” And then I will profess to them that from everlasting, I have not known you. Depart from me, you workers of iniquity! Anyone, therefore, who hears my words, these, and does them, will be likened to a wise man who built his house upon a stone” (Matthew 7:21-24).

Y’shua used many parables and metaphors to bring the point across that the carnal nature of man must die so the spiritual man can live within him. There are no religious substitutes that can be given in exchange for living a righteous lifestyle in Mashiyach. Everyone who has put forth an effort to live a life pleasing to Master YHWH, regardless of religion, has experienced what it means to bear the infamy of truth and make war against the carnal nature; which is why Y’shua said, “… I say to you, that unless you eat the body of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in Qnoma. And he who eats from my body and drinks from my blood has life that is everlasting, and I will raise him up on the last day. For truly my body is food and truly my blood is drink. He who eats my body and drinks my blood abides in me and I in him. As the Living Father has sent me, and I live because of the Father, and whoever eats of me he also will live because of me. This is the Bread that has descended from Heaven. It is not as manna your forefathers ate and died. He who eats this Bread will live forever!” (John 6:53-58).

They Repented Not

 Revelation 9:20-21

Multitudes of religious people are under the erroneous impression that they are “saved” in their sins and have been forgiven, simply because they have “repented” according to traditional guidelines. This is because they don’t realize there is an extreme difference between religious status quo repentance and reality. The “religious status quo repentance” theology is famous for making people feel guilty about their sin and then providing religious “comfort food” to put them at ease. Many Catholics, for instance, believe that confession to a man in a booth takes care of their need for repentance – but this is simply a tradition. Most Christians categorically believe repentance means “to change your mind,” to “accept Jesus” or to “believe upon the shed blood at the cross.” Hardly anyone stops to think that religious tradition interprets Scripture according to tradition and that they might just be “missing the mark” by blindly following their religious leaders. The thing is, there is a vast gulf between religious and true repentance.

There are two Hebrew words that translate into the English word “repent.” In Moshe’s appeal to YHWH both words appear in the same verse: “Turn (shuv) from thy fierce wrath, and repent (nacham) of this evil against thy people” (Exodus 32:12). The Jewish world predominantly focuses on the word shuv as in Teshuva, whereas the Christian world functionally adopts nacham – two very different words. “shuv” appears 1,066 times in Scripture but is almost entirely negated by modern Christian theology. The first mention of shuv is: “In the sweat of your face shall you eat bread, until you return (shuv) unto the ground…” (Gen 3:19). Clearly shuv means to return to where you’ve come from and this is the key to true repentance.

Teshuva (repentance) means return to YHWH. “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return (shuv) unto YHWH, and He will have mercy upon him; and to our Elohim, for He will abundantly pardon” (Isaiah 55:7).

How can a person return to YHWH if they’ve never known His Ways or experienced the Kingdom of Elohim? It would seem that in order to return to something, you would have to have been there before. In reality, the neshama (spirit) of each individual belongs to YHWH and by surrendering and returning to YHWH every soul is, in fact, returning to their spiritual origin. This is also what it means to be “born from the beginning,” whereas being “born again” is a bit of a misnomer. In reality when a person makes teshuva and returns to YHWH they come to know the Spirit of Mashiyach (the Ruach haKodesh), but they also experience their own neshama. Not only has the unrepentant person not come to know the Ways of YHWH, but in reality they have not come unto their own spirit until they make teshuva.

Teshuva or returning to YHWH is an absolute requirement to obtain pardon; there is no other way to Salvation. Sin first entered into man through Adam and Chawwah, but whether Jew or Gentile, man’s destiny lies outside of sin. Our Creator created us according to His purpose. By returning to Him our true purpose is revealed, but we must also return to Him on His terms and conditions.

Nacham is translated as; comfort (57), repent (41), comforter (9), ease (1), for a total of only 108 occurrences. Christian theology weighs in very heavily on comforting the sinners by teaching them that “Jesus did it all” or “you don’t have to keep the law” or “you are saved by grace” or “all your sins past, present and future are forgiven” or “say the sinners prayer and be saved” or “it doesn’t make any difference if you keep the law” or “Jesus did away with the law” …on and on; there are literally hundreds of other religious clichés that make sinners feel comfortable in their sin. Religious comforts are also extended by theology like Justification, Grace only, Dispensationalism and Replacement Theologies which gives “the Church” the power to forgive sins and make void the requirement of teshuva. Christianity has given itself a theological license to transgress Torah; invented, of course, by the post-apostolic founders of the all-Gentile church.

In reality Nacham (repent of comfort) refers to the Spirit of YHWH bringing comfort after a person does Teshuva and takes back the ground they lost through sin. The comfort aspect occurs when we return to YHWH and He draws us close to Himself. However, most Christians are content with the social gratification of church membership and being comforted by religious traditions. Modern religion copes with sin. Social transgressions such as gossip, backbiting, condemnation, finger pointing, evil imaginations, slander, adultery, lawlessness and covetousness are normative in most churches because, “Hey, nobody can keep the law perfectly, only Jesus, and he died to forgive us our sins.” There is a massive gulf between false religion that comforts a person in their sins verses turning to YHWH and His Mashiyach and making things right. Unfortunately, when many Christians hear true repentance being preached they are quick to condemn the preacher as a “legalist;” because the truth about repentance feels to them like harassment or embarrassment.

Most of the religious world sees repentance as something you do after you sin. Many sin and “repent” over and over simply because they have never known the true nature of Teshuva (repentance). Teshuva is a daily turning to YHWH; every thought is subjugate to obedience to the Mashiyach (2 Cor 10:5), implying that our words and actions are done in the Spirit of YHWH. Throughout the Renewed Covenant we see Y’hoshua our Mashiyach, Peter, James, John and Paul ministering “perfection” which is a state of completion in one’s spirit. Mashiyach is the life of Torah that brings perfection. We humans know that we are not “perfect” beings, yet we are called to be tamiym (perfect, complete, clean). Noah and Awraham were perfect long before Torah was given at Sinai and before Y’hoshua came to Earth as Mashiyach.

To make Teshuva (repentance) is to empower the spiritual man. “Draw near to Elohim, and He will draw near to you, Cleanse your hands, you sinners: sanctify your hearts, you divided in mind.” (James 4:8). Teshuva is the basis of how we draw near to YHWH, and it is only realized through Torah observance. Torah is the Will of YHWH, His Love Letter, His Promise, and His Covenant. Torah contains the Terms and Conditions of YHWH’s Love towards His Creation.

The Torah of YHWH is perfect converting the soul, yet many are quick to reject Torah even when they have little or no understanding of how it reveals the Kingdome of Elohim according to Mashiyach. The rabbinical world may have kept Torah from the Gentiles, but Mashiyach who is the “Light unto the Gentiles” (Isaiah 42:6, 49:6, 60:3), did the very opposite. The prophets foretold of the Gentiles being drawn unto YHWH in Mashiyach. Rav Shaul taught the Gentile world about the “inner spiritual man” which is the foundation of Torah that guides us according to the Image of Elohim. This is also one of the reasons why the Pharisaic elite wanted to kill him, they were threatened because he was “stealing their thunder” and bringing Torah to the Gentiles. The more the Gentile world has Torah written upon their hearts the more redundant the various religious traditions become; indeed the religious hierarchies would become irrelevant.

A very common tradition within Gentile Churches  is that neither Y’shua nor Paul expected Gentiles to live like Jews; and Acts 15 records the dispute among those “who believed from the teaching of the Pharisees”. Here again it was clearly a matter of the traditions of the Pharisees being in conflict with the Way of Mashiyach, not a matter of “living like Jews.” However, Shimon Peter set the record straight: “And He differentiates nothing between them and us because He cleansed their hearts by faith” (Acts 15:9). The Renewed Covenant requires that Torah be written upon the heart – this is what it means to have a clean heart, whether a person is Jewish or not in this matter is irrelevant. It was a watershed concept for most Jews and Gentiles that, “He differentiates nothing between them,” but in reality authentic Jewish identity has always been defined by Mashiyach; not by various hierarchical religions of Jews.

In other words when you make teshuva and truly follow in the footsteps of Mashiyach, others will most certainly scorn you for living like a Jew because Christianity has done an extensive makeover to take the Jew out of their version of Y’hoshua. The resistance against you for making true repentance will come from church people, family, friends, pastors and those who habitually accuse followers of Mashiyach of being “legalists” and “Judaizers” because they prefer their own traditional worldly lifestyles. But Mashiyach says: “Whoever finds his soul will loses it, and whoever loses his soul for my sake will find it” (Matthew 10:39).

Another component of repentance is to enter into the Government of Mashiyach, rather than talk about it. Every dominion, government and authority that has not entered into the perfection of Mashiyach is not of him. Mashiyach is begotten of YHWH which means he is the Firstborn and head of YHWH’s Government. “Misrah” (government; Isaiah 9:6-7, 22:21) comes from the root word “Sarah”. It is through the descendant of Awraham and Sarah that the Promise and heavenly Government was established. The Promise was given in Gan Eden; “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; it shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel” (Gen 3:15). YHWH ordained that the “Seed of Woman” would bruise the head of the serpent which is Mashiyach’s Government. Therefore the Government of Mashiyach has been a continuum from the Garden of Eden right through to the World to Come, and every generation is called to depart from iniquity, turn away from all false dominions and subscribe to Mashiyach. To do this a person must stop adhering to the teachings of man and turn to YHWH to observe His Torah – His Heavenly Instructions – and begin to learn about Justice, Peace and Righteousness according to Mashiyach.

One of the very first words on the lips of Mashiyach Y’hoshua was “repent” (Matt 4:17). It is imperative that we understand how to repent (make Teshuva) and turn to YHWH and keep His Commandments. Rav Shaul gives testimony to King Agrippa of a “heavenly vision” saying: “…I preached from the first to them in Damascus, and to them in Urishlim and in all the villages of Judea; and I preached also to the Gentiles, that they should repent, and should turn to Elohim, and should do the works suitable to repentance” (Acts 26:20). There is no doubt, whatsoever, that Rav Shaul spoke with the full weight and authority of Mashiyach Y’hoshua and Torah. Paul taught “repent and turn to Elohim” which is very Hebraic, very commonly understood among Jews, and a very ancient understanding which means to observe Torah! Paul commanded Gentiles (who, like the original Jewish followers of Y’hoshua, adhere to the Elohim of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob) to: “Do the works suitable to repentance.” Same Heavenly Father, same rules! Y’hoshua Mashiyach did not come to replace YHWH or to start a new, Torah-less religion. He came to show us in person how to do it right.

The Cross or the Pole

Although Christianity has long employed “the cross” as a symbol of Messiah’s sufferings it bears neither Hebrew nor Greek support; nor does it carry the prophetic significance of the pole or stake which was the shadow of Y’hoshua’s sufferings. The cross of Christianity was borrowed from the symbol of the Babylonian, then Greek and then Roman sun god, which was depicted by cruciform shaped buildings and graven cruciform images. Julius Caesar and his heir struck coins with symbols of the cross (solar wheel) to commemorate their sun god. The Roman Emperor Constantine was a sun worshipper who became a Christo-Pagan and advanced his version of ongoing pagan cultural events that included Sun-day and Ishtar (Easter) worship. Christian folklore suggests that Constantine saw a cross formed by the light of sun which directed him to become a Christian.

From a Biblical perspective the Greek word “stauros” denotes an upright stake; the verb “stauroo” means to drive stakes. The Greek “xulon” denotes a timber or a log or any piece of dead wood. Bullinger’s Companion Bible notes: “Our English word “cross” is the translation of the Latin crux; but the Greek “stauros” no more means a crux than the word “stick” means a “crutch.”” Therefore, it is very plain to see that the departure from the original meaning occurred in the Latin language, as did many other pagan contributions to Western Christianity.

Both Aramaic, Hebrew and Greek agree that is was an upright stake or pole on which Mashiyach suffered, which is also seen by the Symbol of the pole in Numbers with the use of the term “neis” (pronounced nace): “And YHWH said unto Moshe, make a fiery serpent, and set it upon a “neis” (pole): and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten , when he looks upon it, shall live. And Moshe made a serpent of copper, and put it upon a “neis” (pole), and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of copper, he lived” (Numbers 21:8-9). When mankind is “bitten” by the serpent (haShatan) of Genesis 3:15 we are to look to Mashiyach for healing and deliverance.

The Hebrew word "neis" (pole) is also used by the Prophet Isaiah to depict Mashiyach as a sign to all nations: “And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand (neis) for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles (nations) seek: and his rest shall be Esteem” (Isaiah 11:10). The pole or stake on which Mashiyach suffered is most certainly not the object of importance, it is simply the instrument of torture that received the blood of many people before and after his blood was shed.

Again the prophet Isaiah equates Y’hoshua with the standard (neis) that YHWH has lifted up: “Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people; cast up, cast up the highway; gather out the stones; lift up a standard (neis) for the people. Behold, YHWH has proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, your yeshua (salvation) comes; behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him. And they shall call them, The set apart people, The redeemed of YHWH: and you shall be called, sought out, A city not forsaken” (Isaiah 62:10-12). Mashiyach is the standard who is the salvation of YHWH and the goal of every true Believer who is born of the Ruach haKodesh. The prime Hebrew word for “neis” means to be lifted up as Y’hoshua states: “And when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all men to me.” (John 12:32).

In the hands of the post-apostolic founders of the Gentile church “the cross” became a license to break Torah without consequences. In reality Favour (“Grace”) is the gift of the Ruach haKodesh that empowers followers of Y’hoshua to be set free from the slavery of sin. Favour is the empowerment to stop sinning and live a wholesome and righteous life in Mashiyach. A person who has not received Favour continues to break Torah; they are slaves to sin because they cannot stop and have no intention of stopping their sin. Those without Favour refuse to live according to the Word of YHWH, much like a smoker addicted to cigarettes cannot stop smoking, but little “voices” tell them it brings hardship, cancer and even death. The “cross-ified Jesus” does not provide Christians the power to stop breaking the Torah because the Harlot Church system that preaches a false “Jesus” is strictly anti-Torah. One would never expect the board of directors of a cigarette manufacturing company to research, demonstrate and report to the public all the ill effects of smoking; neither can we realistically expect the Church leaders to take up the cause of righteousness and the importance of having Torah written upon the heart! As a matter of fact, theologians within the Church system are the ones who devised a “cross theology” which teaches that Torah was nailed to the cross, and insist the sinner who believes in “the cross” can break Torah without consequence. This is a very popular and convenient religious lie because it caters to sins of the weak human flesh.

The certificate of Debts or the sins of the repentant sinner were metaphorically nailed to the torture stake (Matthew 6:12, Luke 7:36-50, Colossians 2:14). The penalty for sin is, in fact, set aside only for those who repent and turn from sin, but YHWH’s Word that requires punishment for sin has never been removed from the books. The will of YHWH and His Mashiyach is for mankind to stop sinning, but the will of Satan is, and always has been, for mankind to ramp up all manner of sin which leads to destruction. This is the difference between “Favour (Grace)” and “licence.” “Favour will find you guilty as charged, but your sincere repentance and efforts to turn from sin is rewarded with spiritual strength from Mashiyach. Those who look to Mashiyach are delivered and saved from the traps of Satan who desires to seduce you into breaking Torah. “Licence” is the opposite of Favour; it teaches that a person who believes in “Jesus” can continue in sin and all the consequences of their sin are put upon Messiah so that the sinner goes free. This, of course, is the central theme of false religion and the root of all Christian wickedness.

For many Christians the symbol of the cross brings comfort even though it is widely believed to be the instrument of torture used against their innocent “best friend.” The cross is also used by Christians to ward off demons; crosses are routinely placed where loved ones were killed and where they were buried. By doing so the Harlot Church has made void the Fear of YHWH and turned their version of the cross into a Christian icon and the license to sin.

The symbols YHWH gave His people are much different, however. For example, the Menorah is a seven (Sheva) branched lamp that represents the eternal Light of Mashiyach. The number seven (Sheva) represents completion and each of the branches denotes an attribute of the Spirit of Mashiyach that indwells YHWH’s people (see Isaiah 11:1-4). The Aron “Ark” of the Covenant is laid with pure gold inside and outside and represents purity on the inside and outside of each soul who is in Mashiyach. The Ten Commandments that are placed inside the Aron represents the Mind of Mashiyach, written by the finger of YHWH Himself, whose immutable Commandments will be used to Judge the whole earth (see Rev 11:19). These symbols in the Temple represent the Government of Mashiyach that indwells the physical temple of each individual who turns to him, and are representative of the spiritual man. These eternal symbols are YHWH ordained, whereas the cross is merely a man-made icon. If Christians were to take the time to research the origin of the cross symbol they would be shocked  and surprised to discover that it is far from what the post-apostolic church founders want them to believe; but these important elements of truth differentiate the One True Faith from the Mystery religion of fallen Babylon.

Humanism – Relativism – Materialism

“Elohim saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth” Genesis 6:5

Man has been very impressed with himself and his own accomplishments since the dawn of time, to the point of man worship as the measure of all things. Believing himself to be in control, the carnal man employs humanism, relativism and materialism to convince himself that he is his own god.

Today, however, the earthlings are racing towards perilous times because of a growing concern about environmental sustainability, global warming, chemtrails, world poverty and hunger, global destruction, war, deadly pharmaceutical drugs, depleted uranium, capitalism, the insatiable greed of the “Bilderberg power mongers”, polluted air, water and food, along with all form of toxic immorality and injustice – pure products of humanism fuelled by an insatiable desire for instant gratification. Hardly anyone seems to be aware of the fact (or cares) that these things have been predicted within the writings of the Renewed Covenant which contains many prophetic declarations against those who are destroying the earth: “And the nations were angry; and your anger is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged: and that You should give a reward to your servants, the prophets, and the set apart believers, and to them that Fear Your Name, the small and the great; and that You should destroy them who destroy the earth” (Revelations 11:18)

Individual stewardship of the material world is a major component of man’s inherent responsibility by which he is being judged and yet the vast majority of religious people continue to make significant contributions to the Humanist, Relativist Materialist (HRM) agendas. It’s their “right” after all and so, many (if not most) mock and scorn the very idea that YHWH will require us to give an account for the life we’ve lived. The wickedness of man is great in the earth yet mankind resents absolute demands upon his “rights and freedoms” and prefers to escalate his transgression.

The “sciences” and modern philosophies of life have attempted to reverse the criterion of Justice, Faith and Judgement, so it is up to each individual to choose and decide who will win. Will rebellious men who hold the value of human life in contempt win and destroy everything, or will YHWH do battle against all the forces of evil and finally wipe them off the face of the Earth? Is it a reasonable conclusion to think that YHWH would create all life and the purpose of life, only to then watch it all go up in a nuclear mushroom cloud?

Evil cannot triumph over good because it is constrained by time and space, the domain of humanism, relativism and materialism is temporary and finite. Peter put it this way, “Because all flesh is as grass and all its beauty like the flower of the field. The grass dries up and the flower withers away; but the Word of our Elohim abides forever: and this is the Word that is announced to you” (1 Peter 1:25-25).

Definition of Love

Although the Scriptures clearly define love, it has been given all manner of modern definition by various institutions and religions. Most souls think of love according to its attributes because love is rather difficult to define. Many Christians assert that “God is Love” and one of the popular clichés is to “just love the Lord.” But the manner of how one “loves the Lord” brings up much opinion and debate, especially since Christians often teach a love that is quite the opposite of what Scripture teaches. For example, “And by this we know that we love the children of Elohim, when we love Elohim and follow His Commandments. For this is the love of Elohim, that we keep his Commandments: and His Commandments are not burdensome. Because, whoever is born of Elohim overcomes the world: and this is the victory that overcomes the world, our faith” (1 John 5:2-4).

The definition of love is best understood through Mashiyach’s life and teachings: “If you love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15); and, “He who has my commandments with him and keeps them, he is who loves me and he who loves me will be loved by my Father. And I will love him and reveal myself to him” (John 14:21); and, “If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept the commandments of my Father, and I abide in His love” (John 15:10).

Abiding in His love is clearly connected to “keeping the commandments.” The “commandments of my Father” always refers to Torah; and Y’hoshua taught that “if you love” him, you will keep the Commandments. In other words love has everything to do with Sanctifying the Name of YHWH, which means to Set His Name and His Word (Torah) apart from all other authorities.

Mashiyach Y’hoshua clearly kept the Commandments of his Father, but yet only a tiny minority of Christians would ever consider the importance of these same Commandments – even though the name “Christian” comes from the Greek equivalent of the same root haMishchah (the anointing) which means too be “Mashiyach like.” Y’hoshua is the Word of YHWH, and about this Spirit of Mashiyach Moshe wrote: “And showing mercy unto thousands of them that love Me, and keep My Commandments” (Ex 20:6); and, “Therefore you shall love YHWH your Elohim and keep His charge and His Statutes and His Judgements and His Commandments, always” (Deut 11:1).

There are dozens of places in Scripture where “love” is tied in with keeping the Commandments. Unfortunately, those Christians who truly “love the Lord” according to Scripture are labelled as Legalists and Judaizers for keeping the Commandments, and often encounter persecution from “the Church.”  This is because in Christianity “love” is defined by status quo, so to be a good Christian each one must fashion their “love” according to the values of a core group or denomination. In recent times, many good, YHWH-fearing Christians have become ashamed to even be called “Christians” after being attacked by so many Christians for keeping the Commandments. Many opt instead to be labelled as “Believers” because they realize that love requires sacrifice, and that love is not a cerebral ideology that neglects the Commandments.

“And owe nothing to anyone; but to love one another. For he that loves his neighbour has fulfilled Torah. For this likewise, which it says: You shall not kill; nor commit adultery; nor steal; nor covet; and if there is any other commandment, it is completed in this sentence: You shall love you neighbour as yourself. Love does no evil to one’s neighbour because love is the fulfillment of Torah” (Romans 13:8-10). Rav Shaul is clearly teaching that these four Commandments are examples of how a person demonstrates love to their neighbour; this kind of love is the fulfillment of Torah. “For the entire Torah is properly understood in one Miltha (Word / Manifestation): ‘You will love your neighbour as you would yourself’” (Galatians 5:14). The many other definitions of love that lack the Commandments also lack the connection to Justice and Righteousness. Man’s interpretation of “love” often reverts to carnal instincts like anarchy, excess, sensuality, emotionalism etc.

The Brit Chadashah (“New Testamant”) literally means Covenant Renewed, a “making anew” of the Covenant of Love that YHWH had formerly established between Himself and His people. Although there is a change of priesthood in the Renewed Covenant, YHWH’s Word and Commandments remain eternal, love has never changed; if anything love has been magnified. “You have heard that it has been said that you should not commit adultery. But I say to you that all who that looks at a woman as lustfully at once has committed adultery in his heart” (Matt 5:27-28). Y’hoshua “raised the bar” but he also said, “And because of the growth of iniquity, the love of many will grow cold” (Matt 24:12). Therefore, as the Commandments grow within the heart, true love will also grow. Love, therefore, is a voluntary and personal choice to do the right thing and keep the Commandments.

Joshua (Yehoshua son of Nun) teaches that loving YHWH means “to walk in His ways and to keep His Commandments”: “But take diligent heed to do the Commandment and the Torah, which Moshe the servant of YHWH charged you, to love YHWH your Elohim, and to walk in all His ways, and to keep His Commandments, and to cleave unto Him, and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul” (Joshua 22:5). He declared “…as for me and my house, we will serve YHWH” (Joshua 25:15). To love YHWH means to keep His Commandments. There is no other substitute a person can make to demonstrate their love to YHWH or to each other, because true love is righteous; it is Set-Apart and does good towards YHWH and all His creation. We are to become as “little children” who can put trust in Mashiyach and simply do what he asks, rather than be rebellious and find religious loopholes that make us feel better about breaking the Commandments.

“Consider how I love your precepts: quicken me, O YHWH, according to your lovingkindness” (Psalm 119:159). Love is a reciprocal giving and sharing that is based on being true to the Word of YHWH, and “great peace have they which love your Torah: and nothing shall offend them” (Psalm 119:165). Peace is established by love because love is the action of doing what is Right, Set Apart, Just and Good.

One of the greatest perversions accomplished against the Word of YHWH was to superimpose a false religious definition of love based on church theology which, in the eyes of millions of Christians, has rendered the Torah null and void. The unpleasant realities of “Christian love” through the centuries have spoken volumes in times when “Christian nations” like Spain, Germany and Poland brought hatred upon Jews and other races or religions that were not “Christian.” Today members of the World Council of Churches are launching new crusades against the Jewish “occupation” of their homeland of Israel – the very lands YHWH gave to the Jewish people as an “everlasting possession” (Gen 15:18); and from which He promised they would never again be removed (Amos 9:15).

Christian love is fashioned after “tolerance,” rather than temperance and self control and discipline and accountability to one another and the Word of YHWH. Crime and decadence has escalated in “Christian nations” like the USA that would embarrass Sodom and Gomorrah. Y’hoshua said that the land of Sodom would fair better than some cities that had the truth presented to them but rejected it (Matthew 11:23-24). The United States claims to be led by “Christian” Presidents and approximately 65 percent of the nation claims to be Christian. The reality is that Christian America has one of the largest per capita crime rates in the world and twice the homicide and rape statistics of many European countries, under “Christian” leadership and “Christian” government.

What’s more, Christians have an extremely high divorce rate simply because Christianity has defined love according to man’s opinions. Most Christian leaders teach that Torah is taboo because “Jesus nailed it to the cross” and gave them the Commandment to love, so they teach carte blanche Torahlesness for the “forgiven.” Sin is hidden under “Christian grace” because the new “Christian definition” of love provides unlimited pardon of wilful and repetitive sin. Religious “Christian” love is based on doublethink that replaces YHWH’s love with a religious tradition about love, but in reality this has desensitized people’s hearts to one another and to Mashiyach. In reality this kind of Christian love is tyranny because it is simply love of the status quo; it is certainly not love according to Mashiyach and the Set Apart Scriptures!

The prophet Daniel wrote, “And I prayed unto YHWH my Elohim, and made my confession, and said, O YHWH, the great and dreadful Elohim, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love Him, and to them that keep His Commandments” (Daniel 9:4). Israel broke the Covenant that YWHW gave, just like Christianity is breaking the Renewed Covenant that is offered in Mashiyach. The Covenant is evidenced by an exchange of love between YHWH and His people, but it is incumbent upon mankind to love YHWH and to demonstrate love to others by keeping the Commandments. James wrote, “And if in this you fulfill the Torah of Elohim, as it is written, ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself,’ you will do well” (James 2:8). The majority of Christian theologians translate the word “fulfill” as “bring to an end” but it clearly means to bring to a reality, perform and do, as in a person’s duty to love their spouse by their actions, where the actions of love is love demonstrated. To fulfill Torah means to have the love of the Father dwelling within the soul, and this means to not only welcome His Commandments but to delight in them as obedient children.

“There is no love that is greater than this that a man lay down his life for the sake of his friends. You are my friends if you do all that I commanded you” (John 15:13-14) Y’hoshua speaks according to the Spirit of YHWH in him rather than his own soul; therefore, “all that I commanded you” is specifically referring to Torah

Conversion

“Truly I say to you, that unless you change and become like children, you will not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.” (Matthew 18:3)

In the religious worlds much energy is put into conversion – becoming Jew or Christian, or “converting” from one sect or denomination into another. Many are baptized, re-baptized and dedicated, re-dedicated and consecrated and initiated and given all manner of recognition by various peer groups as they jump through the “religious hoops” of whatever religion they have chosen. Unfortunately, many souls don’t seem to realize that there is only one conversion that will ever matter when it comes to eternity, and that is to be converted from the carnal man into the spiritual man according to trusting in Y’hoshua Mashiyach.

Throughout Scripture the burden of change is upon Israel, not upon Heaven. In Matthew 18:3 Y’hoshua instructs us to change and become like children – teachable, forgiving and trusting. The inner man must change from his personal carnal agendas and be transformed into the “likeness of Elohim,” which is a virtual impossibility unless a person has a spiritual relationship with Mashiyach. As in every healthy relationship both parties have unique qualities, experiences, gifts and abilities that they bring into a relationship and so it is that each one of us presents ourdelves to Mashiyach in a very unique way.

We are made in the “Image of Elohim” which means that there is a portion of the Master inside each one of us, and it is this “point of contact” that allows us to know we have changed and converted and passed from death to life in Mashiyach. It is, however, a fatal error to judge one’s conversion on the merits of someone else’s experiences or doctrine’s. Paul explains: “For we dare not value or compare ourselves with those who vaunt: but they, because they compare themselves with themselves are not wise” (2 Corinthians 10:12)

Perhaps you’ve noticed that your own soul doesn’t cope well with religious formulas for “conversion” and, of course, this is because you were not created to fit into a man-made mould. If we were to remove all the external factors of conversion, we would be left only with a conversion into Perfection. The spiritual man is made in the Likeness of Elohim which is Mashiyach, and in this regard each person is called to be a Mashiyach. Therefore, that Perfection we all look for in conversion is already planted within us, but we must first take hold of it and then walk in it.

Change is good, but Perfection is better because we are each created by YHWH according to His Perfection. He will lead and guide. As Yochanan stated, “And you also, if the anointing which you have received from him remains in you, you need not that any one should teach you; but as that anointing is from Elohim, it teaches you all things; and it is true, and no falsehood is in it. And as it has taught you, remain you in Him” (1 John 2:27). In other words you are free in Mashiyach and don’t need any “religious baggage,” but not free to transgress against your own anointing that sustains your spirit being. Yochanan said: “And now, my children, remain you in him; that so, when he will be manifested, we may not be ashamed before Him, but may have an open countenance at His coming. If you know that he is righteous, you also know that whoever does righteousness is from Him” (1 John 2:28-29).

Gentiles

Y’hoshua stated in Matthew 21:43 that the Kingdom is given to “a people” who bear fruit. This “people,” which obviously include Gentiles, is known as “kedoshim” (Set Apart People), who keep the Commandments (Torah) of Elohim and have the testimony of Mashiyach Y’hoshua (Rev 12:17). Gentiles originally met along with Netzari Jews in the synagogues as shown in Acts 13:42; 14:1; 17:1-4;18:4; and 19:8-10, and are equals in the Malchut Elohim as “Fearers of Elohim” It would seem that such basic facts would be very evident to anyone who has ever studied a bible, but in the world of religion many prejudices exist between Jew and Gentile.

The “light” of Mashiyach was presented to Adam and Chawwah (Eve) who were neither Jewish nor Gentile. From their first breath of life, Adam and Chawwah enjoyed spiritual intimacy with YHWH and after their transgression atonement (Kippur) was provided for them according to Mashiyach. However, since YHWH set a Covenant Standard through the line of Judah and within tribes of Israel. However, all who belong to Mashiyach are the Israel of Elohim, and are therefore no longer Gentile, per se, but “Fearers of Elohim.”

Neither Jews nor Gentiles have their own exclusive Covenant with YHWH. There is no discrimination in Torah or the Renewed Covenant against non-Jewish converts of Mashiyach; but neither is it acceptable for Gentiles to discriminate against Jews. These important directives are found in Jeremiah 50:6, Isaiah 42:1-6; 49:6; 60:3; Jeremiah 16:19; Hosea 8:8; Micah 5:8; Matthew 15:24, and in many other places in Torah. Because Mashiyach Y’hoshua presented “light” to the Jews first, it is important for non-Jews to comprehend the “roots” of Mashiyach and the Renewed Covenant according to Torah in the original Hebrew language. This is important because counterfeit religions have attempted to displace the original Faith by removing Y’hoshua and his teachings out from the original context of Torah and reinventing a different Messiah within an anti-Torah culture. Therefore, the challenge today for both Jew and Gentile is to depart from all manner of man’s religion and turn to Mashiyach according to Torah.

Scripturally speaking, the term “Gentile” bears heavier weight regarding a spiritual state (heathen) rather than one’s birth lineage; as a matter of fact, there is no such thing as a “Gentile” in the Kingdom of Elohim. When a person comes to Mashiyach and has Torah written upon their heart they become a new creation in Mashiyach. Old things have past away and behold, all things are made new, which is why Gentiles who follow Mashiyach are referred to as “fearers of Elohim.” It is utterly futile for Gentiles to believe that because they are not born Jewish that they are not required to have Torah written upon their hearts. In reality the first Gentile who put his Faith in Mashiyach Y’hoshua was Qurnelius who “was righteous and feared Elohim, he and all his household” (Acts 10:2) and many “Greeks who feared Elohim” were also observing Torah (Acts 17:4). See also Acts 2:5; 10:2,7; 13:43; 16:14; 17:7; 18:7; Hebrews 11:7.

Book of the Torah

The Word of YHWH teaches that Moshe wrote the “Book of the Torah.” “And it shall be, when he sits upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write for himself a copy of this Torah in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites: And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life: that he may learn to fear YHWH his Elohim, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them” (Deut 17:18,19). Moshe wrote the Torah, and it was first “before the priests and the Levites.” YHWH commanded Torah to be written (Ex 34:27). “And Moshe wrote their goings out according to their journeys by the commandment of YHWH: and these are their journeys according to their goings out” (Num 33:2). Torah is not complicated or difficult for the average person to understand; it is provided for everyone. It represents the “character” of YHWH and His values according to His Will and it elevates human life by establishing Justice and Equality for everyone. Torah was revealed to a “mixed multitude” of people from every race and creed; however, it was the Jewish people who were given the responsibility to preserve and establish Torah for each generation. “On this side Jordan, in the land of Moab, began Moshe to ba’ar (make plain) this Torah…” (Deut 1:5). YHWH commanded that after crossing over the Yarden river that the “people of YHWH” “shall write upon the stones all the words of this Torah very plainly” (Deut 27:8). This indicates that everyone should have access to the Torah, and that according to Torah everyone is responsible to observe and do Torah.

Torah instructs us on how to have a Covenant relationship with YHWH. It contains specific commandments for men only, for women only, for priests and for Nazerites, while other commandments are specifically for the nation; therefore, not all commandments are given to every individual. For those who do not have a relationship with YHWH, Torah might be viewed as a book of do’s and don’ts, but in reality Torah is a love letter from a Father to His children that provides instruction and wisdom for life.

Moshe wrote most of the “Book of the Torah” which was successfully copied by his descendants. Joshua also wrote in the Book of the Torah (Joshua 24:26) and David charged his son Solomon to do “as it is in the Torah of Moshe” (1 Kings 2:4). Jehoshaphat brought a revival to his people after the Book of Torah had been neglected for many years, “And they taught in Judah, and had the book of the Torah of YHWH with them, and went about throughout all the cities of Judah, and taught the people.” In 2 Kings 17:37 we read, “the statutes, and the ordinances, and the law, and the commandment, which He (YHWH) wrote for you, you shall observe to do for evermore; and you shall not fear other elohim.” YHWH directed His prophets to write the Book of the Torah as YHWH directed; therefore, it is the Word of YHWH. 2 Kings 22:8 says, “Hilkiah the high priest said unto Shaphan the scribe, I have found the book of the Torah in the house of YHWH”; Hilkiah brought revival to his people from the “book of the Torah of YHWH given by Moshe” (2 Cron 34:14).

“So the read in the book of the Torah of Elohim distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading” (Nehemiah 8:8). “And all the congregation of them that were come again out of the captivity made booths and sat under the booths: for since the days of Yeshua the son of Nun unto that day had not the children of Israel done so. And there was very great gladness. Also day by day, from the first day unto the last day, he read in the book of the Torah of Elohim. And they kept the feast seven days; and on the eighth day was a solemn assembly, according unto the manner” (Nehemiah 8:17-18). The Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkoth) is a time for everyone to learn Torah; it represents a time when all the nations of the earth will come together in Mashiyach’s government and learn of his ways, and walk in Torah. “And they stood up in their place, and read in the book of the Torah of YHWH their Elohim one fourth part of the day; and another fourth part they confessed, and worshipped YHWH their Elohim” (Nehemiah 9:3).

YHWH says, “Remember the Torah of Moshe my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgements. Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of YHWH: And he shall turn  the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse” (Malachi 4:4-6). Notice the “great and dreadful day of YHWH” refers to the coming of Mashiyach be David, NOT to Y’shua’s first coming as Y’shua ben Yoseph. Here we can see that the book of the Torah was known in Malachi’s day. YHWH instructed us to remember the Torah of Moshe BEFORE the coming of the “great and dreadful day of YHWH” till Mashiyach returns again, at his second coming.

“Now concerning the dead who (you say) will not rise, Have you read in the book of Moshe of how from the bush Elohim said to him, ‘I AM the Elohim of Awraham and the Elohim of Yitz’chak and the Elohim of Ya’akov. And he is not the Elohim of the dead, but of the living’” (Mark 12:26-27). Y’shua not only expects the Sadducees to understand the “book of Moshe” but he tells all the people, “For if only you had believed in Moshe, you would also be believers in me, for Moshe wrote concerning me. And, if you do not believe the writings of that man, how will you believe my words?” (John 5:46-47) After Y’shua heals a man from leprosy he commands “show yourself to the priests, and offer the offering as Moshe commanded, for their testimony” (Matthew 8:4) which are given in Lev 13:2, 49; 14:2, and clearly demonstrates that Mashiyach upheld very intricate aspects of Torah.

Y’shua taught that the Word of Elohim came through Moshe: “For Moshe said to honour your father and your mother, and anyone who reviles his father and his mother, “Let them be put to death!” But you say, “If a man says to his father or to his mother, ‘My offering is what you have gained from me’” then you do not allow him to do anything for his father or for his mother. And you despise the Word of Elohim because of the tradition” (Mark 7:10-13). Here Y’shua is quoting the Book of the Torah from Exodus 20:12; Deut 5:16 and Exodus 21:17; Lev 20:9 and he is upholding Torah but rejecting the traditions of the Pharisees.

After Y’shua arose from the grave, he taught from the book of Torah: “Then Y’shua said to them, Oh fools and of hardened heart and slow to believe in all these things that the prophets spoke! Were not these things necessary that the Mashiyach endured and to enter into his esteem? And he did begin from Moshe and from all the prophets and did expound to them about himself from all the Scriptures” (Luke 24:25-27). From these words we recognise that a foundational understanding of “the Scriptures” is expected of all of Y’shua’s followers. Additionally, “he opened their mind to understand the Scriptures” (Luke 24:45). Y’shua also levies a stern charge against the Pharisees. “Did not Moshe give you the Torah, yet not a man among you kept the Torah?” (John 7:19) This would be a ridiculous and redundant statement if it were impossible to keep Torah and if Y’shua himself didn’t keep Torah!

Peter stood up and declared from the Book of Torah, “For Moshe said [that] A prophet will raise up for you from Master YHWH from your brothers. Hear him like me in everything that he speaks to you, and it will be [that] every soul which does not hear that prophet, that soul will perish from his people” (Acts 3:22-23). Peter quotes Deut 18:15-16 as an authoritative prophetic commandment and Stephen quotes this same passage from the Book of the Torah in Acts 7:37.

The Gentiles who were first being introduced to Mashiyach learned from the Book of the Torah, “For from ancient generations in all cities Moshe had preachers in the synagogues that on every Shabbat they read him” (Acts 15:21). This was written for the benefit of those who are not Jewish. The Gentiles were instructed by the leading of the Ruach haKodesh, according to the Book of the Torah to “abstain from uncleanness of sacrifices (idols) and from adultery and from things that are strangled and from blood” (Acts 15:20). Mashiyach himself is a continuum of the Book of the Torah, and this continuum extends into the World to Come.

Shaliach Paul (the Apostle) taught the Kingdom of Elohim, testifying of Mashiyach and the Book of the Torah and persuading many souls to believe in Y’shua, “out of the Torah of Moshe, and out of the prophets, “from morning till evening (Acts 28:23). Rav Shaul gives a very stern warning when he says, “For if he who transgressed the Torah of Moshe, died without mercies at the mouth of two or three witnesses; how much more, do you think, will he receive capital punishment who has trodden upon the Son of Elohim and has accounted the blood of his covenant by which he is sanctified, as the blood of all men and has treated the Spirit of favour in an insulting manner?” (Hebrews 10:28-29) By comparing YHWH’s capital punishment from the Torah of Moshe with violations against the “blood of his covenant” or against the “Spirit of favour,” Rav Shaul clearly teaches that Torah is a Living Covenant.

As Malachi contains an exhortation to remember the Torah of Moshe and keep the commandments of YHWH, so does Revelation close with several similar exhortations including; “ And the dragon was enraged against the woman; and he went to make war upon the residue of her seed who keep the Commandments of Elohim and have the testimony of Y’shua” (Rev 12:17). “Here is the patience of the set apart believers who keep the Commandments of Elohim and the faith of Y’shua” (Rev 14:12). “Blessed are they who do His (YHWH’s) Mitzvot, that they may have a right to the tree of life and may enter through the gates into the city” (Rev 22:14).

The Book of the Torah contains the Commandments of Elohim which are a continuum from the time YHWH gave to Adam and Chawwah (Eve), until the World to Come. Mashiyach offered the Renewed Covenant in his blood so that many who accept his offering could open their hearts to YHWH and allow the Ruach haKodesh to write Torah upon their hearts. Those who try to enter the wedding feast but they have no wedding garments are as the five foolish virgins who have no oil; their garments are stained because they wilfully choose to break the Commandments and violate the “Book of Torah.”

A Prophet like Moshe

“YHWH will raise up a prophet like me from among yourselves, from your own kinsmen. You are to pay attention to him…” Deuteronomy 18:15

Contrary to popular opinion, Moshe was not “the Lawgiver”, he was the man whom YHWH chose to reveal His Torah. Y’shua Mashiyach was not “the Lawgiver” either; he was and is the Word of YHWH who cam from the Father in physical bodily form to “reveal the Father.”

Many of the commandments that Moshe taught were clearly given before the flood, specifically the “Eser haDibrot” (Ten Commandments). In the same fashion Mashiyach Y’shua did not bring any of his own “new” commandments, but rather, he brought a Renewed Covenant. In Aramaic “khawdata” literally means “renewal” or “to make new,” therefore the New Covenant is a “renewal” or a “making new” of the Covenant YHWH had formerly established between Himself and His people. Every commandment that Y’shua taught had its origin in Torah, and Mashiyach magnified the Torah. Torah is a book of Love, Favour, Esteem and Mercy which is the basis for all Justice on earth and in heaven; but it is Mashiyach who is a prophet like Moshe who harmonizes Torah and Covenant according to the original Truth and intent of Torah.

“The Torah” which Mashiyach revealed is “very broad” – far beyond the boundaries of human intellect. Rav Shaul taught that “the Torah is Spiritual”; therefore to have Torah written upon our hearts means to have the Spirit of Mashiyach within us. Mashiyach is the focal point of life; everything is harmonized and unified in the spiritual and physical worlds according to Mashiyach. As Moshe clearly spelled out the “blessings and curses,” Mashiyach elucidated mankind on how to draw close to YHWH – or how to deny Him by turning away from Torah.

Torah is a universe within itself, with dimensions that mankind has not begun to either plumb or comprehend; yet many foolishly “brush off” both Torah and Y’shua because they erroneously believe they are intellectually and spiritually equipped to asses the Word of Elohim according to their own “higher criticism.” Y’shua said “…if you desire to enter into life, keep the Commandments” (Matthew 19:17); in other words, life begins when we surrender ourselves and keep YHWH’s Commandments. “He who desires to do His will can comprehend my teaching, if it is from Elohim, or if from my own will I speak” (John 7:17). Therefore, if we do not “do His will” neither will we understand or experience how Mashiyach and Torah unify all things.

“I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto you, and will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I shall command him” (Deut 18:18). (See also John 6:14.) Torah came and dwelt among us in the body of Mashiyach ben Yoseph who is the Salvation of YHWH. Through the Mashiyach, “Messiah Consciousness” is accessible to bring humankind into harmony with each other, with Creation around us and to the Father. A careful examination of Torah reveals that mankind has been endowed with limitless potential, but we have struggled to bring harmony to ourselves and to the worlds over which we were given responsibility – which is why Mashiyach came to bring redemption.

If mankind is enslaved by justice, we can only blame ourselves for choosing to live contrary to Mashiyach who is the Prophet like Moshe. Though most of the world is busy remodelling the tower of Babel, the followers of Mashiyach recognize the futility of man’s rebellion against the Perfection of Mashiyach which is able to preserve humankind and ensure abundant prosperity for everyone. Even while mankind continues to destroy the “pale blue dot,” leaving devastating moral poverty, famine, injustice and horror in his wake, Mashiyach is setting forth the Standard that judges all manner of unrighteousness.

Moshe demanded of Pharaoh to “Let my people go” (Ex 5:1), but it is Mashiyach who vests his followers with the power of freedom from within to stop sinning, and stop rebellion, and to turn from all manner of destructive habit to be conformed into the “Image of Elohim.” Y’shua came in the authority of his Father, he said “These words that I speak, I do not speak of myself but He who dwells in me, my Father does these works” (John 14:10).

Is Valentine's Day Good or Bad?

Valentine’s Day is Pagan and hated by YHWH

What do the Scriptures say about love?

1 Cor 13:4-8 Love is patient, and is kind; love is not envious; love does not shout loudly; and is not boastful; and does nothing that causes shame; and seeks not her own; is not passionate; and thinks no evil; it does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; it bears all things, believes all things, hopes for all, and endures all. Love will never cease…

Joh 14:21  He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.

1Jo 2:4  He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.

1Jo 2:5  But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of Elohim perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.

Let us look at a certain commandment that we are to keep if we love the Almighty:

Deut 18:9 “When you come into the land which YHWH your Elohim has given you, do not learn to do according to the abominations of those gentiles.

Is valentines day good to keep or is it an abomination of the gentiles?

Let us have a look at where it comes from:

The Romans celebrated a holiday on February 14th to honour Juno Fructifier, Queen of the Roman gods and goddesses as well as goddess of marriage. In one ritual, women would submit their names to a common box and men would each draw one out. These two would be a couple for the duration of the festival (and at times for the entire following year). Both rituals were designed to promote not only fertility, but also life generally.

February 15th & Feast of Lupercalia:

On February 15, Romans celebrated Luperaclia, honoring Faunus, god of fertility. Men would go to a grotto dedicated to Lupercal, the wolf god, located at the foot of Palatine Hill and where Romans believed that the founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus, were suckled by a she-wolf. The men would sacrifice a goat, don its skin, and run around, hitting women with small whips, an act which was supposed to ensure fertility.

St. Valentine, Christian Priest:

According to one story, Roman emperor Claudius II imposed a ban on marriages because too many young men were dodging the draft by getting married (only single men had to enter the army). A Christian priest named Valentinus was caught performing secret marriages and sentenced to death. While awaiting execution, young lovers visited him with notes about how much better love is than war — the first “valentines.” The execution occurred in 269 CE on February 14th.

St. Valentine, Second and Third:
Another Valentinus was a priest jailed for helping Christians. During his stay he fell in love with the jailer’s daughter and sent her notes signed “from your Valentine.” He was eventually beheaded and buried on the Via Flaminia. Reportedly Pope Julius I built a basilica over his grave. A third and final Valentinius was the bishop of Terni and he was also martyred, with his relics being taken back to Terni.

Christianity Takes Over Valentine’s Day:

In 469, emperor Gelasius declared February 14th a holy day in honor of Valentinus instead of the pagan god Lupercus. This allowed Christianity to take over some of the celebrations of love and fertility which had perviously occurred in the context of paganism. Pagan celebrations were reworked to fit the martyr theme — Christianity did not approve of rituals that encouraged sexuality. Instead of pulling girls’ names from boxes, both boys and girls chose the names of martyred saints from a box.

Valentine’s Day Turns to Love:
It wasn’t until the Renaissance of 14th century that customs returned to celebrations of love and life rather than faith and death. People began to break free of some of the bonds imposed upon them by the Church and move towards a humanistic view of nature, society, and the individual. Moving towards more sensual art and literature, there was no shortage of poets and authors connecting the dawning of Spring with love, sexuality, and procreation.

Valentine’s Day & Divination:
As with so many other holidays that have pagan roots, divination came to play an important role in the development of modern Valentine’s Day. People looked to all sorts of things, primarily in nature, in order to find some sign about who might become their mate for life — their One True Love. There were also, of course, things which came to be used to induce love or lust.

Commercialization of Valentine’s Day:
Today, capitalist commercialism is the biggest aspect of Valentine’s Day. Hundreds of millions of dollars are spent on chocolate, candies, flowers, dinners, hotel rooms, jewellery, and other gifts used to celebrate February 14th. There’s a lot of money to be made from people’s desire to commemorate the day. Only Christmas and Halloween come close in the way that modern commercialism has transformed and adopted an ancient pagan celebration.

Valentine’s Day as a Pagan, Commercial Holiday:
Valentine’s Day is no longer part of the official liturgical calendar of any Christian church; it was dropped from the Catholic calendar in 1969. It’s not a feast, a celebration, or a memorial of any martyrs. A return to more pagan-like celebrations of February 14th is not surprising — and neither is the overall commercialization of the day. Millions of people all over the world celebrate Valentine’s Day in one fashion or another, but it’s unlikely that even one of them celebrates it in an even remotely religious manner.

Commercial interests make so much money from Valentine’s Day that they aren’t going to accept any changes that won’t lead to even more profits. Christians helped make Valentine’s Day a cultural holiday, and now it’s entirely out of their hands.

Symbols of Valentine's Day

Red Roses
Red roses were said to be the favourite flower of Venus, the Roman goddess of love. Red is also a colour that signifies strong feelings.
Cupid
In Roman mythology, Cupid is the god of desire, affection and erotic love. Today, Cupid is frequently shown shooting his bow to inspire romantic love.

Heart Symbol

The shape of the heart is an IVY LEAF, the symbol of Bacchus, the male deity of wine and love (orgiastic). He corresponds to Nimrod and Tammuz, and also the archer, Sagittarius or “Cupid”. Another name for him is Orion, the hunter. The arrow penetrating the “heart” symbol represented mating. Bacchus is seen in art wearing a wreath of ivy leaves on his head during his mating rituals. So, even the familiar “heart” symbol comes from Pagan Rome, and echoes their idolatry, as the symbol of Bacchus

So we can clearly see that Valentine’s Day is of Pagan (Gentile) origins. The Scriptures forbid us to partake in such rituals

1Jo 2:15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

Shalom

Greek Jesus OR Hebrew Yeshua

Who do we follow.

Do we really know who we are following; do we “know” from what we have been taught or have we “tested all words (“things”).

Jesus

The English name Jesus derives from the Late Latin name Iesus, which transliterates the Koine Greek name ησο ςIēsoûs.

In the Septuagint and other Greek-language Jewish texts, such as the writings of Josephus and Philo of Alexandria, ησο ς Iēsoûs is the standard Koine Greek form used to translate both of the Hebrew names: Yehoshua and Yeshua. Greek  ησο ς or Iēsoûs is also used to represent the name of Joshua son of Nun in the New Testament passages Acts 7:45 and Hebrews 4:8. (It was even used in the Septuagint to translate the name Hoshea in one of the three verses where this referred to Joshua the son of Nun—Deut. 32:44.)

Is it correct to translate a name? “Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text.”  Therefore a translation cannot always be 100% accurate as our sources indicate. Names, especially in the Hebrew language have specific meaning to them and when we translate a name we lose some or all of the meaning.

Following is one of the most important names that has been translated, (rather it has been replaced by a totally different name).

Iaso (pronounced /ˈaɪ.əsoʊ/; Greek:  ασώ, Iasō) or Ieso (/aɪˈiːsoʊ/; Greek:  ησώ, Iēsō) was the Greek goddess of recuperation from illness. The daughter of Asclepius, she had five sisters: Aceso, Aglæa/Ægle, Hygieia, Panacea, and Meditrina (Roman). All six were associated with some aspect of health or healing.

Very little is actually known about Iaso. She was probably considered a demigod, unlike her sister Panacea, who was given full "god" status. She did, however, have followers, the Iasides ("sons of Iaso").

IASIUS. [lASION.]

IASO ('Icurw), i. e. Recovery, a daughter of As- clepius or Amphiaraus, and sister of Hygieia, was worshipped as the goddess of recovery ; and in the temple of Amphiaraus at Oropus a part of the altar was dedicated to her, in common with Aphrodite, Panaceia, Hygieia, and Athena Paeonia. (Paus. i. 34. § 2 ; Aristoph. Pint. 701, with the Schol.; Hesych. s. v.) [L. S.]

Yeshua

The name יֵוֹשֻׁשׁוּעַ "Yeshua" (transliterated in the English Old Testament as Jeshua) is a late form of the Biblical Hebrew name יְהוֹשֻׁעַ Yehoshua (Joshua), and spelled with a waw in the second syllable. The Late Biblical Hebrew spellings for earlier names often contracted the theophoric elementYeho- to Yo-. Thus יהוחנן Yehochanan contracted to יוחנן Yochanan.^[7]However, there is no name (aside from Yehoshua`) in which Yeho- became Ye-.

The name ישוע occurs in the Hebrew of the Old Testament at verses Ezra 2:2, 2:6, 2:36, 2:40, 3:2, 3:8, 3:9, 3:10, 3:18, 4:3, 8:33; Nehemiah 3:19, 7:7, 7:11, 7:39, 7:43, 8:7, 8:17, 9:4, 9:5, 11:26, 12:1, 12:7, 12:8, 12:10, 12:24, 12:26; 1 Chronicles 24:11; and 2 Chronicles 31:15, and also in Aramaic at Ezra 5:2. In Nehemiah 8:17 this name refers to Joshua son of Nun, the successor of Moses, as leader of the Israelites. Note that in earlier English (where adaptations of names of Biblical figures were generally based on the Latin Vulgate forms), Yeshua was generally transcribed identically to "Jesus" in English. It was only when the Protestant Bible translators of ca. 1600 went back to the original languages that a distinction between Jesus and Jeshua appeared in English.

The name Yehoshua has the form of a compound of "Yeho-" and "shua": Yeho- יְהוֹ is another form of יָהו Yahu, a theophoric element standing for the personal name of God YHWH, and שׁוּוֹשֻׁעַ shua‘ is a noun meaning "a cry for help", "a saving cry",^[8][9][10] that is to say, a shout given when in need of rescue. Together, the name would then literally mean, "God is a saving-cry," that is to say, shout to God when in need of help.

Mat 1:21 “And she will bear a son and will call his name Y’shua, for he will save his people from their sin.”

John 5:43 “I have come in the name of my Father, and you have not received me. Yet, if another should come in his own name, you will receive him.”

Firstly the name given to him is the same meaning of what he was going to do. How can “Iesus” which is a Greek god of healing be given to a son of the tribe of Judah. They were Jews and would never give a Greek name, especially of a Greek god to their children.

Secondly; If the Messiah were to come in the name of YHWH, then the Father’s name would have to be part of the name he received; remember that YHWH named him not his mother- that is - Yehoshua, meaning “the salvation of YHWH”

Isa 43:11  I, I, am YHWH; and beside me there is no saviour.

Isa 52:10  YHWH has made bare his set apart arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our Elohim.

This Would be His son Yehoshau “the Salvation of YHWH” and through him YHWH saves us and NOT in the name of Iasus (Jesus) the Greek god of healing.

Shalom