Sunday, March 17, 2024

Did you know that many of our believing brethren are duped into rejecting Messiah Yeshua?

IT’S TRUE! There are many folks on the Internet who are busy trying to get people to reject the entire “New Testament” and “convert” to Judaism…

They first start out by attacking the often-misunderstood teachings of Paul; then point out that this “mere man,” Jesus (whom they call an “idol”) has failed to fulfill ALL the prophecies outlined in Torah, which makes him a FALSE messiah. (They refuse to refer to Yeshua’s given, Hebrew name, which means “YAHWEH is Salvation, thus purposely detracting from his true character and nature!)

Ultimately, they will point out that the entire “New Testament” is an anti-Torah farce concocted by Christian churches which has helped to fan the flames of anti-Semitism…

MY RESPONSE TO THEIR ALLEGATIONS:

FIRST OF ALL, YAHWEH’s TIMING IS NOT LIKE OURS, and NOTHING says Messiah would HAVE to fulfill ALL of them in a certain time frame! However, he DID fulfill at least 300 prophecies, and there are just a few more to go (including the last three of the seven mo'edim/High Holy Days/Appointed Times), which will be fulfilled after his Second Coming, when EVERY knee will bow! (See Isaiah 45:23-24; Philippians 2:10-11; Romans 14:11 and my article on The Refiner’s Fire.)

AS FOR YESHUA, he said he came to do HIS FATHER's will; not his own!

Luke 4: 43 "But he (Yeshua) said, "I must preach the good news of the Kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent."

YHWH said HE would send a prophet who was to do everything He ordered him to do:

Deuteronomy 18: 15 "ADONAI will raise up for you a prophet like me from among yourselves, from your own kinsmen. You are to pay attention to him, 16 just as when you were assembled at Horev and requested ADONAI your God, 'Don't let me hear the voice of ADONAI my God any more, or let me see this great fire ever again; if I do, I will die!' 17 On that occasion ADONAI said to me, 'They are right in what they are saying. 18 I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their kinsmen. I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I order him.

John 6: 35. Y'shua said to them, I am the Bread of Life. Whoever comes to me will not hunger. And whoever believes in me will not ever thirst. 36. But I have said to you that you have seen me, and you do not believe. 37. All who my Father has given to me will come, and whoever comes not to me I will cast outside! 38. For I came down from heaven,[*] not to do my will, but to do the will of Him who sent me. 39. And this is His will, that of Him who sent me, that all that He has given to me I do not lose even one. 40. For this is the will of my Father, that all who see the Son and believe in him, will have life that is eternal. And I will raise him up on the last day. (AENT)

[*] As in the context of Miltha (the Word) or the "Manifestation" or the "Will of" YHWH coming down from heaven to do the Will of YHWH upon earth; his Spirit is of YHWH but his nephesh (soul) and body are human and temporal. This shows that Yeshua was NOT in charge; HIS FATHER WAS!

AS TO YOUR FALSE ACCUSATIONS ABOUT RAV SHA’UL (PAUL) – he was simply trying to explain hard-to-grasp Hebrew concepts to pagans. Unlike Yeshua, our Messiah imbued with a Divine Nature, Paul was but a mere man … who didn’t dare, nor have the right to speak against YHWH’s Torah – and, fact is, HE NEVER DID!

Acts 28: 23 "From morning till evening the Apostle Paul explained and declared the Kingdom of G-d and tried to convince people about Yeshua from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets."

Acts 24: 14. But this indeed I (Paul) acknowledge, that in that same doctrine of which they speak, I do serve the Elohim of my fathers, believing all the things written in Torah and in the prophets.

Romans 3:31 Do we then nullify the Law through faith? May it never be! On the contrary, we ESTABLISH the Law....

IN CLOSING, HERE IS AN ACTUAL EXAMPLE of one of the many ways that Messiah rejecters attempt to disprove Yeshua:

“God doesn't demand blood to atone for our sins anymore, and He especially never required human sacrifice! Furthermore, mere men can’t atone for the sins of others, anyway. Prayer and repentance are ALL that's required. Therefore, your sacrificed Jesus died for nothing. See Hosea 6:6; Jeremiah 7:22; and 1 Samuel 15:22.”

WELL, LET’S SEE WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS…

Eternal life" always required that substitution or redemption of one nephesh for yours. The possibility of that substitution of an animal at the Temple is gone. You can't get that anymore. It has been replaced by your acceptance that the Messiah died for you and was redeemed for you, so you can be saved.

Leviticus 17: 11 "For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for our souls; for it is the blood by reason of the life that makes atonement."

If your assumptions are correct, then we would ask you to answer this: If prayer and repentance was all that's needed, then why didn't YHWH simply have Adam and Eve pray and repent?

Truth is, blood sacrifices began to be required fairly quickly after the incident that got Adam and Eve kicked out of the Garden - which is why Yeshua ultimately martyred himself! … against which there is no law. (Leviticus 4:35, 5:10, 16:15 and 17:11; 2 Chronicles 7:14, Acts 3:19, etc.)

Furthermore, Yeshua wasn't sacrificed. He offered/martyred himself, against which there is NO law! How many mere men do you know whose death caused an earthquake and the sun the quit shining, darkness, with graves opening, after their resurrection? Even the demons knew who he was, as did the Roman soldier….

SO, ALL YOU “MESSIAH REJECTERS” since you believe “mere man” cannot atone for the sins of others, then please explain the following scriptures:

Exodus 28: 36 "You are to make an ornament of pure gold and engrave on it as on a seal, 'Set apart for ADONAI.' 37 Fasten it to the turban with a blue cord, on the front of the turban, 38 over Aharon's forehead. Because Aharon bears the guilt for any errors committed by the people of Isra'el in consecrating their holy gifts, this ornament is always to be on his forehead, so that the gifts for ADONAI will be accepted by him.

Leviticus 6: 25 "Speak to Aaron and to his sons, saying, 'This is the law of the sin offering: in the place where the burnt offering is slain the sin offering shall be slain before the LORD; it is most holy. 26'The priest who offers it for sin shall eat it. It shall be eaten in a holy place, in the court of the tent of meeting. 27'Anyone who touches its flesh will become consecrated; and when any of its blood splashes on a garment, in a holy place you shall wash what was splashed on.…

Leviticus 10: 16 Then Moshe carefully investigated what had happened to the goat of the sin offering and discovered that it had been burned up. He became angry with El'azar and Itamar, the remaining sons of Aharon, and asked, 17 "Why didn't you eat the sin offering in the area of the sanctuary, since it is especially holy? He gave it to you to take away the guilt of the community, to make atonement for them before ADONAI.

BOTTOM LINE: Yeshua has already fulfilled many Messianic prophecies .. AND constantly upheld Torah! He was the living manifestation of the Ruach haKodesh (Holy Spirit) within Messiah!

WARNING: (“COUNTER-MISSIONARY” RHETORIC IS AKIN TO THE SERPENT SPEAKING TO EVE IN GENESIS 3: “DID GOD REALLY SAY….?” So, if you're contemplating rejecting Yeshua, please re-read the entire Bible first!)

Wednesday, March 13, 2024

Let’s talk about the “F-bomb” and those who defend the use of foul language…

QUESTION: Can we truly call ourselves holy whenever we allow cusswords to glide across our tongues? Is it really okay for filthy language to come out of the SAME mouth that confesses YHWH and Yeshua?

For any true Believer, the answer to both of the above questions can only be a resounding NO!

YHWH has set the standards for moral, holy living!  Torah constantly warns us to "be holy for I am holy" - Leviticus 11:44-45; 19:2; 20:7, 26, etc.); 1 Peter 1:16 reiterates this: ...because it is written, "YOU SHALL BE HOLY, FOR I AM HOLY"; and Romans 10:10 says: “For the heart that believes in him is made righteous; and the mouth that confess him is restored to life.”

Ephesians 4:29 tells us, "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen." First Peter 3:10 declares, "For, whoever would love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech."

James 3 brings home the fact that “our tongue can at once be a friend and enemy.”

James 3: 6. Now the tongue is a fire, and the world of sin is like a forest. And this tongue, which is one among our members, corrupts our whole body; and it inflames the series of our generations that roll on like a wheel; and it is itself on fire. 7. For all natures of beasts and birds and reptiles of the sea or land are dominated by the nature of man.

8. But the tongue has no one been able to tame: it is an evil thing, unruly and full of deadly poison. 9. For with it, we bless Master YHWH and Father; and with it we curse men who were made in the image of Elohim: 10. and from the same mouth issues forth curses and blessings. My Brothers, these things should not be.

11. Can there flow from the same fountain, sweet and bitter waters? 12. Or can the fig-tree, my Brothers, bear olives? or the vine, figs? So also salt waters cannot be made sweet. 13. Who is wise and instructed among you? Let him show his works in praiseworthy actions, with modest wisdom. (AENT)

Yeshua explained that what comes out of our mouths is that which fills our hearts. Our speech will always indicate what is in our hearts. “From a good man the treasures that are in his good heart brings forth good things, and an evil man the evil treasures that are in his heart brings forth evil things. For the abundance of the heart speak the lips.” (Luke 6:45).

Why is it a sin to cuss /swear /curse? Sin is a condition of the heart, the mind, and “the inner man” (Romans 7:22), which is manifested in our thoughts, actions and words. When we use “bad language,” we are giving evidence of the polluting sin in our hearts that must be confessed and repented of.

Thankfully, our ELOHIM is merciful and “faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). The truth is, we CANNOT have the Holy Spirit within while refusing the command to “BE HOLY BECAUSE I AM HOLY!” and choosing to continue living “in the world!” Doing so is considered deliberate sinning” – for which there is no sacrifice!

Hebrews 10: 26 For if we deliberately continue to sin after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but only the terrifying prospect of Judgment, or raging fire that will consume the enemies. (CJB)

The key is to use some common sense and ask ourselves if we would use a certain word in YHWH’s or Yeshua's presence. If the answer is “Sure, we can, because there’s no Torah command against it,” then it’s high time for us to re-read the Bible as “one entity” instead of the erroneous two separate “Testaments” - because the “two” are an ECHAD that cannot be separated or cherry-picked!

For those who attempt to defend their actions by saying things like, “Well, we do see some cussing in the Bible – and besides, Torah does NOT say that we can’t cuss!” – I offer the following food for thought:

The Bible cannot possibly "define" foul language since words come and go. Some words become obsolete, and fade from the human vocabulary (in any language) with the passing of time, and new "words" become the norm.

However, filthy words such as the “F-bomb” are DESPICABLE and downright DISGUSTING as it degrades the sex act YHWH created for humanity to pro-create beings that reflect HIS IMAGE!  (See Genesis 1:26-30, 2:7, Psalm 139:14; and John 1:12.) That particular word, unfortunately has forced its way into becoming the norm in the English language – so much so, that even supposed “Believers” think nothing of using it. 

YHWH is surely NOT very happy with that behavior!  Why?  Read on.

Bottom line:  There are plenty of Bible passages that speak to “filthy” talk. (The term “filthy” means “behavior that flouts social and moral standards, shamefulness, obscenity” while “shameful speech” denotes “speech of a kind that is generally considered in poor taste, obscene speech, dirty talk.”)  Here is one perfect example:

Ephesians 5: 1 So imitate God, as his dear children; 2 and live a life of love, just as also the Messiah loved us, indeed, on our behalf gave himself up as an offering, as a slaughtered sacrifice to God with a pleasing fragrance. 3 Among you there should not even be mentioned sexual immorality, or any kind of impurity, or greed; these are utterly inappropriate for God’s holy people.

4 Also out of place are obscenity and stupid talk or coarse language; instead, you should be giving thanks. 5 For of this you can be sure: every sexually immoral, impure or greedy person — that is, every idol-worshipper — has no share in the Kingdom of the Messiah and of God. 6 Let no one deceive you with empty talk; for it is because of these things that God’s judgment is coming on those who disobey him. 7 So don’t become partners with them! (CJB)

If foul language is your “idol” then you are in trouble!  When one cannot express themselves without the use of the latest common “gutter words” then they are guilty of using "foul" language, and consequently come across as rude, crude and ungodly … plain and simple!

No matter how much the “pro-cussers” will argue and defend their usage of gutter language, the bottom line is that NO ONE unclean can appear before YHWH!  Matthew 15:11, Mark 7:15 make it clear that we “own” what comes out of our mouths, and it is that which makes us unclean.

Matthew 15:18 makes the stinging addition: "But what comes out of your mouth is actually coming from your heart, and that is what makes a person unclean."  Would we really want Yeshua telling us that he knows our heart by the language we used during our life on earth?

Few today seem to realize that their language expresses the darkness of their heart…

2 Peter 2: 19 They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption; for a person is slave to whatever has defeated him. 20 Indeed, if they have once escaped the pollutions of the world through knowing our Lord and Deliverer, Yeshua the Messiah, and then have again become entangled and defeated by them, their latter condition has become worse than their former. 21 It would have been better for them not to have known the Way of righteousness than, fully knowing, to turn from the holy command delivered to them.  22 What has happened to them accords with the true proverb, “A dog returns to its own vomit.” Yes, “The pig washed itself, only to wallow in the mud!” (CJB).

Hebrews 10: 28. For if he who transgressed the Torah of Moshe, died without mercies at the mouth of two or three witnesses; 29. 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 grace in an insulting manner? 30. For we know him who has said, Retribution is mine and I will repay: and again, Master YHWH will judge his people. 31. It is very terrible to fall into the hands of the living Elohim. (AENT)

Tuesday, March 12, 2024

Why we named our website “The Refiner’s Fire”

THE STORY OF "REFINING SILVER" is part of the reason why I decided to call my website "The Refiner's Fire"...

I remember praying really hard back in 2001, when YHWH (Hebrew: most likely pronounced "Yah-way") caused me to quit my job and build a website (with no "donate" buttons!) designed to explain what Scripture was really all about. This website was to lead Jews to Yeshua, Christians to Torah, and introduce the truth of ADONAI ELOHIM and His Divine Messiah to atheists.

Having been "Messianic" for only about 5 years at the time, I had no clue what to call this kind of a website - much less try to figure out how to actually build one!

All I knew was that I wanted YHWH to be involved in every detail, right down to the name of the website. And so my late husband (Bill Welker) and I prayed hard about it.

During that time a Messianic song entitled, "Refiner's Fire" which we knew from the congregation we were attending, kept coming to mind - and, ironically, at the same time, a certain e-mail kept reappearing in my e-mail inbox, entitled, "Refining Silver."

Its meaning - though simple -was extremely powerful. In short, it was a quick lesson on how a silversmith refines silver - a message that can be applied to the many ways YHWH "refines" His own Creations.

HERE IS THE STORY contained in the email that ultimately became the reason for the name of my website:

REFINING SILVER: Some time ago, a few ladies met in a certain city to read the scriptures, and make them the subject of conversation. While reading the third chapter of Malachi they came upon a remarkable expression in the third verse: "And He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver." One lady's opinion was that is was intended to convey the view of the sanctifying influence of the grace of Christ. Then she proposed to visit a silversmith and report to them what he said on the subject.

She went accordingly and without telling the object of her errand, begged to know the process of refining silver, which he fully described to her. "But Sir" she said, "do you sit while the work of refining is going on?" "Oh, yes, madam," replied the silversmith; "I must sit with my eye steadily fixed on the furnace, for if the time necessary for refining be exceeded in the slightest degree, the silver will be injured."

The lady at once saw the beauty, and comfort too, of the expression, "He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver." Christ sees it needful to put His children into a furnace; His eye is steadily intent on the work of purifying, and His wisdom and love are both engaged in the best manner for them. Their trials do not come at random; "the very hairs of your head are all numbered."

As the lady was leaving the shop, the silversmith called her back, and said he had forgotten to mention that the only way that he knows when the process of purifying is complete when he sees his own image reflected in the silver....

--Author Unknown

SO, THERE IT WAS IN A NUTSHELL! As YHWH's Creations, most of us have gone through "fire" in one way or another and, hopefully, we learned from the experience. Through our trials and tribulations, rough edges were smoothed and sharp edges were sluffed off, until we more closely resembled what we were meant to be.

God allows us to go through hard times so that we may grow and become smooth and shiny. His goal is for us to become a reflection of Him that not only He can see, but also so others can see Him in us. The sooner we realize that, the quicker we become a valuable member of the Family of God....

WAIT! HANG ON! There's one more thing:

Ironically, when my husband tried to buy the domain name "Refiner's Fire," we discovered, to our dismay, that it was taken, and that there were hundreds of "Refiner's Fire" websites on the internet, ALL of which were Christian (not Messianic) sites.

BUT YHWH CAME THROUGH! After a lot of diligent searching, Bill found the domain name "THE Refiner's Fire" ... and the rest is history....

After 23 years, The Refiner's Fire is still going strong - and we've never asked for, or received, one dime for it, because we've always made it all about HIM. Halleluyah! All glory goes to our amazing CREATOR!

Sunday, March 10, 2024

How do we know that Saturday is the “seventh day on our Gregorian calendars?

HOW DO WE KNOW THAT SATURDAY on our Gregorian calendar is the "seventh day of the week?" The answer is just one click away - Here is the answer on our website!

Seventh Day Sabbath keeping is a great way to start your journey toward becoming Torah observant!

FOR THOSE WHO ARE NEW TO TORAH, one of the first things you can do to “become Torah observant” is to start keeping God’s Seventh Day Sabbath. Why the Seventh Day? Because ADONAI Himself commanded it! (Please check out our website’s article - and read all the pertinent Scripture references at the end of this article.)

Be aware, however, that your pastor, friends and family will do their level best to keep you from doing this, because they cannot understand that the Torah (first five Books of the Bible that contain all of God’s original commandments – His “do’s and don’t’s) is our ONLY blueprint for moral, holy, set-apart living; and that He COMMANDED us to keep His Seventh Day Sabbath Rest and the seven yearly High Holy Days (Festivals - all of which foreshadow Messiah Yeshua, whom Christians call “Jesus”)…

Learning to become Torah observant will require you to not only read, but also STUDY the Bible (in sequence, from Genesis to Revelation) so you can get a true grasp of what it actually says.

It will also require you to stay strong and try your best to NOT listen to your detractors, who will attempt to convince you that “you’re putting yourself back under the Law”; or that “It doesn’t matter what day you keep the Sabbath because Jesus was our Sabbath rest!”; or that “Jesus rose on a Sunday, and that’s why WE worship on Sunday”…

Truth is, YES, you CAN “worship on Sunday!” In all honesty, you can and SHOULD “worship” EVERY day! But YAHWEH's Sabbath - His commanded day of rest - always was and will continue to be the SEVENTH Day! That is, after all, one of the major things that sets us apart from the rest of the world…

REMEMBER: NO “religion” can claim they have the right to change ADONAI’s Sabbaths or Festivals/Feasts - His Appointed Times! After all, it's the "anti-Messiah" who does these things:

Daniel 7: 25 He will speak words against the Most High and try to exhaust the holy ones of the Most High. He will attempt to alter the seasons and the law; and [the holy ones] will be handed over to him for a time, times and half a time. (CJB)

Who are "the holy ones"? YOU are! Those who obey His Torah are “holy” because they obey His Divine Instructions in Righteousness (1 John 3:4).

So, stay strong and simply learn to recognize that the people who try to prevent you from keeping the Seventh Day Sabbath (or any of the other Torah commands that apply to us today) don’t realize that it’s not only a blessing, but a wonderful feeling to actually DO something for our Awesome Creator!

SO, WHY SHOULD YOU KEEP THE SEVENTH DAY SABBATH AND HOW CAN YOU DO IT? It’s not very hard. Please read the scripture passages below, and then check out our website’s article for some suggestions ... and then prepare to be BLESSED!

(All Bible passages were borrowed from Stern’s Complete Jewish Bible.)


Genesis 2:
1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, along with everything in them. 2 On the seventh day God was finished with his work which he had made, so he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. 3 God blessed the seventh day and separated it as holy; because on that day God rested from all his work which he had created, so that it itself could produce.

Exodus 20:8 "Remember the day, Shabbat, to set it apart for God. 9 You have six days to labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Shabbat for ADONAI your God. On it, you are not to do any kind of work -not you, your son or your daughter, not your male or female slave, not your livestock, and not the foreigner staying with you inside the gates to your property. 11 For in six days, ADONAI made heaven and earth, the sea and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. This is why ADONAI blessed the day, Shabbat, and separated it for himself.

Exodus 31:16 The people of Isra'el are to keep the Shabbat, to observe Shabbat through all their generations as a perpetual covenant. 17 It is a sign between me and the people of Isra'el forever; for in six days ADONAI made heaven and earth, but on the seventh day he stopped working and rested.'"


Daniel 7:
25 He will speak words against the Most High and try to exhaust the holy ones of the Most High. (The "holy ones" are those who obey His Torah!) He will attempt to alter the seasons and the law; and [the holy ones] will be handed over to him for a time, times and half a time.

Ezekiel 20:11 I gave them my laws and showed them my rulings; if a person obeys them, he will have life through them. 12 I gave them my shabbats as a sign between me and them, so that they would know that I, ADONAI, am the one who makes them holy.

Isaiah 56: 2 Happy is the person who does this, anyone who grasps it firmly, who keeps Shabbat and does not profane it, and keeps himself from doing any evil. 3 A foreigner joining ADONAI should not say, "ADONAI will separate me from his people"; likewise the eunuch should not say, "I am only a dried-up tree." 4 For here is what ADONAI says: "As for the eunuchs who keep my Shabbats, who choose what pleases me and hold fast to my covenant: 5 in my house, within my walls, I will give them power and a name greater than sons and daughters; I will give him an everlasting name that will not be cut off.

6 "And the foreigners who join themselves to ADONAI to serve him, to love the name of ADONAI, and to be his workers, all who keep Shabbat and do not profane it, and hold fast to my covenant, 7 I will bring them to my holy mountain and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house will be called a house of prayer for all peoples."

Isaiah 58: 13 If you hold back your foot on Shabbat from pursuing your own interests on my holy day; if you call Shabbat a delight, ADONAI'S holy day, worth honoring; then honor it by not doing your usual things or pursuing your interests or speaking about them. 14 If you do, you will find delight in ADONAI - I will make you ride on the heights of the land and feed you with the heritage of your ancestor Ya'akov, for the mouth of ADONAI has spoken."

Isaiah 66: 23 And it shall be that from one New Moon to another New Moon and from one Sabbath to another Sabbath, all flesh shall come to worship before Me, says the Lord.

Jeremiah 17: 21 Here is what ADONAI says: "If you value your lives, don't carry anything on Shabbat or bring it in through the gates of Yerushalayim; 22 don't carry anything out of your houses on Shabbat; and don't do any work. Instead, make Shabbat a holy day. I ordered your ancestors to do this, 23 but they neither listened nor paid attention; rather, they stiffened their necks, so that they wouldn't have to hear or receive instruction. 24 However, if you will pay careful heed to me," says ADONAI "and carry nothing through the gates of this city on Shabbat, but instead make Shabbat a day which is holy and not for doing work…

Sunday, February 18, 2024

DON'T ALLOW YOUR "OLD NATURE" TO HAVE ITS WAY!

Galatians 5: 13 For, brothers, you were called to be free. Only do not let that freedom become an excuse for allowing your old nature to have its way. Instead, serve one another in love. 14 For the whole of the Torah is summed up in this one sentence: “Love your neighbor as yourself”;[a] 15 but if you go on snapping at each other and tearing each other to pieces, watch out, or you will be destroyed by each other!

16 What I am saying is this: run your lives by the Spirit. Then you will not do what your old nature wants. 17 For the old nature wants what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit wants what is contrary to the old nature. These oppose each other, so that you find yourselves unable to carry out your good intentions. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, then you are not in subjection to the system that results from perverting the Torah into legalism. [*]

19 And it is perfectly evident what the old nature does. It expresses itself in sexual immorality, impurity and indecency; 20 involvement with the occult and with drugs; in feuding, fighting, becoming jealous and getting angry; in selfish ambition, factionalism, intrigue 21 and envy; in drunkenness, orgies and things like these. I warn you now as I have warned you before: those who do such things will have no share in the Kingdom of God!

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 humility, self control. Nothing in the Torah stands against such things.

24 Moreover, those who belong to the Messiah Yeshua have put their old nature to death on the stake, along with its passions and desires. 25 Since it is through the Spirit that we have Life, let it also be through the Spirit that we order our lives day by day.

26 Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other. (CJB)

* NOTE: The idiomatic expression “under the Torah” refers to a false teaching that has never been true. The Dead Sea Scrolls confirm that this phrase “under the Torah” refers to strict religious halacha, not obedience to Torah itself. Torah has not at any time saved anyone! YHWH saves when His people demonstrate a sincere obedience to His Righteous Instructions (Torah).

Blind ritual (or religion) alone without the love of YHWH profits nothing. YHWH is “the Spirit” of the Renewed Covenant that writes Torah upon the heart.

A LITTLE REMINDER FOR THOSE WHO HATE THE JEWS

When we were led into the gas chamber, YOU said nothing.

When we were forcibly converted, YOU said nothing.

When we were thrown out of a country just for being Jews, YOU said nothing.

When we now defend ourselves all of a sudden, YOU have something to say.

How did we take our revenge on the Germans for their Final Solution?

How did we take revenge on the Spanish for their Inquisition?

How did we take revenge on Islam for being Dhimmis?

How did we take revenge on the lies of the Protocols of Zion?

We studied our Torah.

We innovated in medicine.

We innovated in defense systems.

We innovated in technology.

We innovated in agriculture.

We made music.

We wrote poetry.

We made the desert bloom.

We won Nobel prizes.

We founded the movie industry.

We financed democracy.

We fulfilled the word of Hashem by becoming a light unto the Nations of the Earth.

So World, when you criticize us for defending our heritage and our ancestral homeland, we the Jews of the world do exactly what you did, we ignore you.

You have proven to us for the last 2,000 years that when the chips are down you don’t care.

Now leave us alone and go sort out your own backyard whilst we continue our 5784-year-old mission, enhancing the world we share.

--by Howard Klineberg, in the Jerusalem Post of February 2, 2015.

A QUICK COMMENT FROM CARMEN:

On October 7, Hamas terrorists not only perpetrated their usual harassment of Israelis; but, they actually started an outright WAR with Israel when they viciously forced their way into the Land and killed at least 1,200 innocent people, and brutally took many hostages.

And now, when Israel has FINALLY had enough and began to defend itself in earnest, much of the world has turned against her.

Those who are protesting and yelling the loudest, and even suggesting a "two-state" solution, in my humble opinion, are a bunch of brainless, clueless Troglodytes; aping the liberal powers-that-be who don't know the history of the Land given to Abraham by the Creator of the Universe Himself: YHWH, ADONAI ELOHIM!

The Land belongs to Yahweh's Chosen People. God gave the Land to Abraham and his descendants in Genesis 15:18-19. Abraham bought a large burial site at Hebron (Genesis 23:1-20); David bought the Temple Mount (1 Chronicles 21:25).

And who was the Land ever sold to? NOBODY! Only in recent years has anyone even been able to TAKE it from the Jews forcefully, thanks to "the world" (including the United States which sticks its collective nose into everything) insisting on dividing Israel! But, unless the Muslims are willing to buy the Land (which, as it happens, is not for sale!) then NOBODY has a right to it except for the people group that is blanketly referred to as "the Jews!"

Genesis 15: 18 That day ADONAI made a covenant with Avram: "I have given this land to your descendants - from the Vadi of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates River - 19 the territory of the Keni, the K'nizi, the Kadmoni, 20 the Hitti, the P'rizi, the Refa'im, 21 the Emori, the Kena'ani, the Girgashi and the Y'vusi."

Leviticus 25: 23 "The land is not to be sold in perpetuity, because the land belongs to me -you are only foreigners and temporary residents with me."

SO HERE IS A DIRE WARNING: ELOHIM is in charge - NOT you; not anyone else, except HIM! Go up against YHWH, and guess who will win...