If you’re in the mood to read a good book, or wish to get one as a gift, why not books with a real message? I have written several Messianic books covering everything from why we ALL should be Torah observant, to why homosexuality is a sin, to discussing the end times.
Simply visit Be Torah Observant and click on the book or books you want (you can purchase the Kindle versions as well).
Thank you, in advance and God bless!
- Rabbi Carmen Welker
Many who have found their way to Torah will immediately cling to the false teaching that “Sunday worship” is pagan, and “the church is wrong by having Sunday worship sessions.” They will try to tell you, “Saturday is God’s day of worship; Sunday is not!” Well … that’s not exactly true.
You see, Saturday is YHWH’s Day of REST, not just “worship”; it’s His “weekly date” with us. According to Scripture, we’re supposed to REST on Shabbat (which, on our Gregorian calendars happens to fall on Saturday). And, yes, we are also to worship – but, really, aren’t we supposed to worship Him EVERY day and all the time? (Romans 12:1–2).
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. (CJB)
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.'" (CJB)
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. (CJB)
If you want to accuse Christians of something, then accuse them of not RESTING on the Sabbath, and of committing commerce on the Sabbath, which is also forbidden (see Nehemiah 10:28-39). But don’t ever tell them they shouldn’t “worship” on Sunday or any other day…
And for those who attempt to suggest that this Old Testament Jewish stuff doesn’t apply to them because Jesus somehow abolished it, here’s a little history:
No matter who instituted Sunday worship, in Yeshua's time, both Jews and Gentiles alike, regularly attended the synagogue for worship on the seventh day - which, on our Gregorian calendars falls on Saturday), and the fact that interested Gentiles in Antioch requested further instruction of Paul "on the next Sabbath" is irrefutable evidence that no separate Sunday (1st day) meetings were being held there by those early Christians.
The Gentiles were willing to wait an entire week, till the next Saturday, for a meeting because they knew that Paul and his companions did not normally meet for worship on a Sunday. Acts 13:42-44 tells us that, on the next Sabbath (Saturday) almost the whole city arrived for the meeting.
And by the way, some insist that Acts 20:7 reveals “Sunday worship,” but this is not true. Fact is, Jewish believers in Yeshua continued meeting at synagogue (or the Temple) for Sabbath. Common practice would be havdallah - meeting in homes after sundown on Saturday to continue discussions and praise from the Sabbath, which explains Paul "preaching until midnight" in Acts 20:7. The first day of the week for Jews (like Paul) began at sundown at the end of the Sabbath - Saturday evening - not "Sunday."
Furthermore, the SEVENTH DAY Sabbath is a HOLY day! Fact is, neither the Father nor the Son has ever claimed the first day as His own in any higher sense than He has each or any of the other laboring days. Neither of them has ever placed any blessing upon it, or attached any sanctity to it. The Bible tells us God expressly reserved the seventh day to Himself, placing His blessing upon it, and claimed it as His holy day. (Genesis 2:1-3.) Moses told Israel in the wilderness of Sin of the sixth day of the week, "Tomorrow is the rest of the holy Sabbath unto the Lord." (Exodus 16:23)
BOTTOM LINE: There’s not a thing wrong with “worshiping” on Sunday. Christians need to learn that when YHWH says to REST on HIS Sabbath, He means REST! Cease from doing your weekly “stuff”; your income-producing work and anything else that your mind and body needs REST from.
These rules were never meant to be “just for the Jews.” Since we are “one in Messiah” (Galatians 3:28 and Numbers 15:13-16) we are to do exactly as HIS people do! And HIS people (which includes YOU) REST on His WEEKLY and YEARLY Shabbats….
Shabbat shalom, mishpocah! Time to unwind, stop working and REST. As always, you can find the weekly Torah portion on our website.
In last week's portion we saw that Ya'akov (the younger of Yitz'chak's twins) bought the birthright from his brother Esav in exchange for a bowl of lentil soup, and then tricked his aging father Yitz'chak into thinking he was Esav so he could also receive the blessing of the firstborn. Thus, Ya'akov became our third Patriarch. AND saw YHWH condoning it!
This week's Torah portion, however, is a true "soap opera" of human behavior as we learn the history of Ya'akov (Jacob), the son of Yitz'chak (Isaac), who - in order to escape the wrath of Esav - was sent to live with his grandfather B'tu'el (his maternal grandfather) and told to choose a wife from the daughters of his Uncle Lavan, Rivkah's brother (who, although he was "family" did not worship the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob).....
OUR LOST WORLD TODAY:
This photo was seen at the "Burning Man" festival in 2017 - the annual gathering of folks at the Black Rock Desert of northwest Nevada (100 miles NNE of Reno), to "express themselves" and basically be stupid. Description: "Burning Man is an annual experiment in temporary community dedicated to radical self-expression and radical self-reliance." For more, see this web page.
Deuteronomy 32:28 "For they are a nation lacking in counsel, And there is no understanding in them.
Psalm 53:3 Every one of them has turned aside; together they have become corrupt; There is no one who does good, not even one.
Proverbs 4:19 The way of the wicked is like darkness; They do not know over what they stumble.
Isaiah 59:7-8 Their feet run to evil, And they hasten to shed innocent blood; Their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity, Devastation and destruction are in their highways. They do not know the way of peace, And there is no justice in their tracks; They have made their paths crooked, Whoever treads on them does not know peace.
BOTTOM LINE: If you mess with God, guess who wins!
A new book that promotes transgenderism is receiving accolades from our godless world. This book promoting transsexuality to toddlers and preschoolers, is about a transgender man and his horse who claims to be a dog, has been published in Sweden.
The articles goes on to descrube that the stars of Hästen & Husse are a man and a horse that lives with him. The man is depicted as a transgender who wears women’s clothing and lipstick when he returns home from work, while the horse is “trans-species” and believes that he is a dog.
Author and university lecturer Susanne Pelger says that she hopes the book will allow toddlers and preschoolers to “be who they want”, SVT reports.
Pelger, who has a PhD in genetics and biology, says she was inspired to write the 32-page picture book after meeting several students at Lund University who had gone through gender transition.
For more, please click on the link above.
Folks, this is just one more sign of the “end times!” If you are tolerant of, or in any way engaged in things YHWH calls “an abomination” then you have chosen where you will spend eternity. There is no “gray area” when it comes to God!
Oh my goodness, this passage hit me right between the eyes while I was doing a Bible search on another subject!
Matthew 13:31. He spoke another parable in figure to them and said. The Kingdom of Heaven is likened to a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. 32. And it is smaller than all the small seeds, but when it grows, it is greater than all the small herbs, and becomes a tree so that the birds of heaven come and nest in its branches. (AENT)
WOW! Even though I've read this passage a gazillion times, what came to me as I read it this morning was that we humans are like that tiny mustard seed. We all have the ability to grow and bloom right where we are planted, and thus become a "tree" where the "birds of heaven" can come to nest.
Trees, no matter what kind or size they are, have their roots firmly planted in the earth (which is their physical sustenance) as they relentlessly strive to grow upward, toward the heavens. They are symbols of life and strength and steadfastness. Children climb them, people admire them; they provide fruit, nuts, homes for certain animals and insects; shade, or simple conversation for old folks sitting on their porch reminiscing.
They've been used to build houses and strong fortresses and boats, wagons, tools and toys.
A tree, through no fault of its own, helped cause the downfall of man (Genesis 3:5-7), but Y'shua died on a tree - and the death of our perfect and sinless Messiah ultimately resulted in the salvation of mankind (Matthew 27, Acts 10:34-39, etc.)....
With all the sexual harassment allegations making daily headlines, I'd like to remind everyone that I wrote my autobiography, Rags to Rabbi, to expose the most heinous sex crime of all - pedophelia. While my life as a sexually abused baby, child and teenager was heartbreaking, it has a happy ending, thanks to the healing that only God Himself could bring! Here is a quick synopsis, taken from the back of the book (which, by the way, also features suggestions on how to heal from abuse):
This autobiography by author and webmaster, Carmen Welker, is a straight-forward, no-nonsense expose about the ramifications of childhood sexual abuse. Her story, which unfolds chronologically from early childhood on, is one of rejection, abuse and indescribable horrors at the hands of her mother and adoptive father.
Born in post-war Germany near the Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp, Carmen was given away at birth and lived with a poor but loving foster family until the age of nine, when she was literally ripped from her foster home by her natural mother who had to get Carmen back in order to be able to leave Germany with her new, American soldier husband.
Unbeknownst to Carmen, whose young life had been violently shaken, the real horrors were yet to come, because her new "father"– a respected Army First Sergeant – happened to be a raving pedophile.
Seeking to escape her abusive past, Carmen joined the U.S. Army at age 18 where she ultimately made it to the top in the field of journalism.
Her personal life, however (thanks to haSatan, who ensures that our "baggage" follows us around) never got off the ground.
She was 44 years old before she found YAHWEH, who completely delivered her from the horrors of her past and provided healing from the inside out.
"Rags to Rabbi" reveals the struggle between YAHWEH and Satan in our lives, and shows that there IS healing through faith and obedience!
(My book can be found at Amazon.)
“Trophy hunting is the selective hunting of wild game for human recreation. The trophy is the animal or part of the animal kept, and usually displayed, to represent the success of the hunt.” - Wikipedia
You’ve all seen photos of some smiling, kill-happy “hunters” kneeling by their dead giraffe or lion, or some other exotic animal – scenarios that make normal human beings angry and sick to their stomachs. The thing is, we see these “heroes” every once in awhile - proud “game hunters” posing next to their “trophy kill.” Recently, one of these sickos posed next to a giraffe he had just killed – a docile animal that wasn’t bothering anyone, but would certainly look great stuffed and mounted on a wall….
What bothers me is that some have the audacity to use scripture to suggest that “trophy killing” is perfectly fine because “God gave us dominion over animals.”
Well, not so fast! If you’re going to quote the Bible, you had BETTER know what you’re talking about because Scripture doesn’t say one word about “trophy killing!” YHWH gave us the right to kill and EAT – NOT to kill for the sheer joy of killing so you can get your name into the Guiness World Book of Records!
Here’s proof:
In Genesis 6:5-8, we discover that the Fall brought man to new depths. YHWH was sorry that He created mankind and planned to destroy every living thing (which He repeated in verses 17-19):
Genesis 6: 5 ADONAI saw that the people on earth were very wicked, that all the imaginings of their hearts were always of evil only. 6 ADONAI regretted that he had made humankind on the earth; it grieved his heart. 7 ADONAI said, "I will wipe out humankind, whom I have created, from the whole earth; and not only human beings, but animals, creeping things and birds in the air; for I regret that I ever made them." 8 But Noach found grace in the sight of ADONAI. (CJB)
Now, pay close attention to this: Most children's stories center around the idea that Noah took two of every animal onto the ark. However, Genesis 7:2-4 reveals that He did ordered "two of every kind" of UNCLEAN animal, and "seven of every CLEAN animal!" Why? Well, the answer lies in Genesis 8:17-22. Noah's first act, upon setting foot on dry land, was to sacrifice one of every clean animal. With "clean" animals being sacrificed, it seems that more were needed so that they could survive and reproduce….
In Genesis 9:1-5, we see YHWH making His covenant with Noah, wherein Noah is reminded of the elements of the covenant with Adam - and we discover that this new covenant did not "replace" the old; rather, it augmented it. BUT NOW, we also discover the reason why animals suddenly came to FEAR MAN: Because animals now "became food" for man:
Genesis 9:2 The fear and dread of you will be upon every wild animal, every bird in the air, every creature populating the ground, and all the fish in the sea; they have been handed over to you. 3 Every moving thing that lives will be food for you; just as I gave you green plants before, so now I give you everything - 4 only flesh with its life, which is its blood, you are not to eat. 5 I will certainly demand an accounting for the blood of your lives: I will demand it from every animal and from every human being. I will demand from every human being an accounting for the life of his fellow human being. 6 Whoever sheds human blood, by a human being will his own blood be shed; for God made human beings in his image." (CJB)
And check this out, as we also discover, to our utter amazement, that YHWH established His covenant not just with MAN but also with the ANIMALS and BIRDS and EVERY LIVING CREATURE!
Genesis 9:9 "As for me - I am herewith establishing my covenant with you, with your descendants after you, 10 and with every living creature that is with you - the birds, the livestock and every wild animal with you, all going out of the ark, every animal on earth. 11 I will establish my covenant with you that never again will all living beings be destroyed by the waters of a flood, and there will never again be a flood to destroy the earth." (CJB)
If animals were of no consequence, then WHY would our Creator have bothered to include them in a covenant? He clearly viewed them as living, breathing beings with the ability to THINK and COMPREHEND and UNDERSTAND! (After all, they are able to live their entire lives outside in the elements, eating, breeding and taking care of their young.)
Take, for instance, the story about Balaam's donkey in Numbers 22, which certainly seems to suggest that animals THINK and have a "sense of self."
In this story we are told that the donkey sees an angel while its master, Balaam, does not. While there is no mention of YHWH "opening the eyes of the donkey to see the angel"; the passage says that Balaam did not see the angel until God opened his eyes. Why? Could this be because animals have a different awareness, or spirit?
Anyone who has ever owned a pet knows they have some special, uncanny "senses" that sometimes leave us wondering, "How did it KNOW?" ... But, obviously, no one can say for sure - except, of course, for YHWH - who cared enough for the animals that they were allowed to enter the post-flood world AND to, in the future, enter the "new heaven and new earth!"
By the way, note that when YHWH "opened the mouth of the donkey", the donkey didn't speak God's words. Instead, it complained of the ill treatment at the hands of Balaam! The donkey let Balaam know in no uncertain terms that it has always been an obedient donkey, and did not deserve to be mistreated! This would seem to allude to the fact that the donkey had "a sense of self".
So, Mr. and Ms. Trophy Hunter – please consider the above the next time you callously take an animal’s life, just to make a name for yourself!
Here are some examples of men proud of their “killing” drive. Even though deer are considered “clean” animals, it is sickening to know that there are people killing for the sheer JOY of killing and getting a trophy! They aren’t hunting to “eat”; they’re hunting to get their names into the Guiness World Book of Records!
Check out this “brave hunter” who, after four years of stalking a 39-point buck, finally managed to “bag him”… And this “trophy buck” was a 47-point. And just for good measure, here are tons of photos of “brave hunters” with their “trophy kills.”
Okay, the illustrious Hebrew Roots "pagan police" are crawling out of their holes again - this time, to (like every year) bash Thanksgiving. SIGH! No surprise, we're seeing the usual plague of gnat-straining camel-swallowers rising up to insist Thanksgiving is "pagan" and providing all kinds of "historical proof" for their idea that present-day Americans should all be crucified for "taking this land away from the Native Americans."
Fine. Then every modern-day German should be burned alive in mass ovens for what their ancestors did to the Jews.
My goodness. It never ends....
Here's the thing from my perspective. Thanksgiving doesn't masquerade as one of YHWH's Holy Days, and it doesn't cater to the forces of darkness, as does Halloween. So, what's your problem with it?
There is NOTHING wrong with a NATION getting together as a NATION to thank God for what we have, so snap out of it!
While the story of Jacob and Esau (Genesis 25-28), seems to make it appear that Jacob is a scheming person who “stole” Esau’s birthright and blessing, it is important to remember that all is not as it seems, when viewed through the Hebrew mindset. We need to recognize that Esau was a very passionate and sensual person (hence, his name which means “red”). He lived in the moment, not caring what the future held; while Jacob, sat in the tent, thinking and planning his future.
To understand the story, we must go back to the beginning of the saga where ADONAI Himself TOLD Rebecca (Rivkah) Isaac’s (Yitz’chak’s) wife, that the older will serve the younger! (As the saga winds down, we see that Mom made sure this would come to pass!)
Genesis 25:20 Yitz'chak was forty years old when he took Rivkah, the daughter of B'tu'el the Arami from Paddan-Aram and sister of Lavan the Arami, to be his wife. 21 Yitz'chak prayed to ADONAI on behalf of his wife, because she was childless. ADONAI heeded his prayer, and Rivkah became pregnant. 22 The children fought with each other inside her so much that she said, "If it's going to be like this, why go on living?" So she went to inquire of ADONAI, 23 who answered her, "There are two nations in your womb. From birth they will be two rival peoples. One of these peoples will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger." (CJB)
We see the babies emerging with the firstborn, very hairy Esau (who seemed to be the stronger and more aggressive of the two), and clasping his heel was his brother Jacob. The story then immediately continues with the boys as adults. Dad, Isaac, favored the firstborn Esau because he was a skilled hunter and had a taste for game (v. 27-28). Mom Rebecca preferred Jacob, the quiet, thoughtful, young man.
What we must understand also is that Esau was a passionate, boisterous womanizer (he took a total of 3 wives (Genesis 26:34 & 28:9), two pagan Caananites and one from the line of Ishmael, who is the forefather of today’s Arab nations), “lived in the moment” and liked instant gratification. Hence – because he was starving one day, he simply sold his birthright when Jacob mentioned it to him….
Here’s what author Avigdor Boncheck asserts in his book, Studying the Torah: A Guide to In-Depth Interpretation, concerning the two issues about how Jacob got the birthright and the blessing:
In adumbrated fashion our story now looks like this:
+ And Jacob made pottage.
+ And Esau came from the field.
+ And Esau said, Let me devour. And Jacob said, Sell me today.
+ And Esau said, Behold I am going to die.
+ And Jacob said, Swear to me today.
+ And he swore and he sold his birthright.
+ Now Jacob had given Esau bread and pottage.
+ And Esau ate and drank and rose and went away.
+ And Esau despised the birthright.
The sense here is that Jacob had already given the food to Esau before their discussion of the birthright and its sale. Needless to say, this is radically different from our first impression of the events of this story. The picture we now get is that when Esau came in from the field and asked to devour the red, red stuff, Jacob gave it to him immediately, with bread and drink to boot.
And while Esau was engrossed in wolfing down his food, Jacob brought up the topic of the birthright and offered to buy it from his brother (for cash, we can assume). Esau couldn’t be bothered with such inanities for he was going to die, in any event. So he cavalierly sold it to Jacob. And thus Esau “despised” his birthright!
With this interpretation, offered by the Hak’tav V’Ha-kabbalah, the question of the morality of the pottage/birthright sale evaporates. Not only had Jacob not taken advantage of the desperate Esau, he had, instead, graciously served him. Only later did they work out a deal about the birthright. The fact that Esau would sell his birthright while under no duress only highlights the last words of our text, “And Esau did despise the birthright.”
The reader might protest that we have prettified the story. But this interpretation, in fact, has told it as it is. The text bears it out. That this jars our accustomed way of understanding the story only highlights the importance of approaching the Torah-text with openness and without preconceived notions. Well, you say, if Jacob was really in the right in this case, what can we say about him deceiving his blind father, Isaac, and stealing the blessing intended for Esau? Ah … but that’s another story!
And here it is:
The biblical story of Esau selling his birthright (Genesis 25:19–34) to his younger brother Jacob for a pot of porridge is proverbial. Several chapters later (chapter 27), we read of Isaac blessing Jacob, who had come in disguised as Esau:
“And the lads grew up; and Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field; but Jacob was a plain man, abiding in tents. And Isaac loved Esau, because he did eat of his venison; but Rebecca loves Jacob. And Jacob sod pottage; and Esau came from the field, and he was faint. And Esau said to Jacob, Let me devour, I pray thee, from this red, red thing, for I am faint: therefore his name is called Edom. And Jacob said, Sell me this day your birthright. And Esau said, Behold I am going to die; and what is this birthright to me? And Jacob said, Swear to me this day; and he swore to him; and he sold his birthright to Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentils, and he did eat and drink, and he rose, and went, and Esau despised the birthright.” (Genesis 25:27–34)
The key word in chapter 25 is “birthright” or “firstborn” (both in Hebrew have the same root “bechor”) but it appears only four times. When we cross over (chapters and years) to the culmination of the birthright sale, when Jacob comes to take the fruits of his earlier purchase as Isaac blesses his son (chapter 27), we find the word “firstborn” (or birthright) again.
“. . . And he (Jacob) came to his father and said, My father; and he said, Here I am; who are you, my son? And Jacob said to his father, I am Esau your firstborn; I have done as you have spoken to me: arise, I pray you, sit and eat of my venison, that your soul may bless me. And Isaac said to his son, How is it that you found it so quickly, my son? And he said, Because the Lord God has caused it to happen before me. And Isaac said to Jacob, Step near, I pray you, that I may feel you, my son, whether you are my son Esau himself or not. … And he stepped near, and kissed him, and he smelled the odor of his garments, and blessed him, and said, See, the odor of my son is as the odor of a field which the Lord has blessed. … And it came to pass, as soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob was yet scarce gone out from the face of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting.
“And he also made savory meats, and brought them to his father, and said to his father, Let my father rise and eat from his son’s venison, that your soul may bless me. And Isaac his father said to him, Who are you? And he said, I am your son, the firstborn, Esau. And Isaac trembled with an exceedingly great trembling, and said, Who then is he that has hunted venison and brought it to me, and I have eaten of all before you came, and have blessed him? Yea, and he shall be blessed. And when Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with a great and exceedingly bitter cry, and said to his father, Bless me, even me also, O my father. And he said, Your brother came subtly, and has taken your blessing. And he said, Is it because he was called Jacob that he has supplanted me these two times? he took my birthright and, behold, now he has taken my blessing.” (Genesis 27:18–36)
Here the code word in Hebrew, bechor, is repeated three times. The “Seven Key”[*] clues us in to the connection between the two events: four plus three equals seven. Jacob receiving his father’s blessing as a grown man is the ineluctable denouement of the childhood barter between the rash, impetuous Esau and the farsighted Jacob.
[*] In numerous passages throughout the Torah, we find that individual words or word combinations are repeated in patterns of seven or multiples of seven. This is done with an encompassing consistency and a fascinating ingenuity. The Seven Code can be found in every one of the five Books of Moses.
(You can learn more in Avigdor Boncheck’s book, Studying the Torah: A Guide to In-Depth Interpretation.)
Shabbat shalom, everyone. Click here for a synopsis of this week’s teaching (Parsha 6). This week we learn the history of Yitz'chak (Isaac), Avraham's son - and discover that YHWH doesn't choose those who believe themselves to be qualified; but rather, He qualifies the chosen....
Brothers and sisters, even though I don't "do" Christmas because it's not a biblical holy day, it always pains me to see people writing "Christmas" as "X-mas". When you do that, you take the Messiah completely out of the equation!
... Which, in a way, is what "Christmas" is, anyway - a man-made holiday that seems to be all about "us" and buying and going into senseless debt. Christ is usually nowhere in sight. The stores are all about their sales; and most households seem to be all about giving presents to each other. Messiah Y'shua is the last thing on anybody's mind.
I don't say this maliciously; that's just the way it is. Some people don't even go to church (much less, do their own Bible studies), except on "X-mas Eve." How hypocritical is that?
Nobody seems realize that our Messiah wasn't even born in December, or that nothing says we're to celebrate his birth, at all. Nobody seems to realize that sheep are NOT in the fields in December, or that "the three Wise Men" didn't give presents to each other; they came to give them to the baby Messiah. (And truth be told, they weren't even there in time for his birth.)
Oh! And, let's not forget "Santa" - who has NOTHING whatsoever to do with X's birth, or that he's the first LIE we tell to our children. (Isn't lying a sin, no matter how it's cloaked?)
It's not even Thanksgiving, but yet, "X-mas" lights are up and stores are playing "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire " -
all just ploys to get YOU to part with your money. Old "X" himself is nowhere in sight....
Be careful about what you see, read or hear! Many "ear-tickling" teachings are concocted by those who don't necessarily know what they're talking about. They "hear" or "read" something, then put their own twist on it - and, suddenly, it becomes "doctrine."
For instance, there's a "teaching" on the Internet that suggests YHWH's Name supposedly means "Behold hand, behold nail" - and they post the attached meme to "prove" it.
According to Hebrew and Aramaic scholar Andrew Gabriel Roth, the "Behold the Hand Behold the Nail" assertion is not really about YHWH; but rather, it is symbolism and meanings that some Paleo folks think is hidden in the arrangement of the letters.
The VAV/WAW means "hook, hang, nail" - and in the ancient Hebrew form it actually looks kind of like a nail and the reference to it is made in the Torah, where a hook or nail in the Tabernacle is called VAV.
"Yahweh" however, is THIRD person whereas "Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh" (I am that I am) is FIRST person. The latter is what Yahweh calls HIMSELF; the former is what we are supposed to call Him, as it parses out to "Yah Who is" or "Yah, He Who exists".
But the third person Name (Yahweh) is on another level "targummed/understood" as referring to the other Name; hence, "I am that I am" when the other Name is linked to it.
What a sick, liberal society we live in, when someone like Kaepernick can make the cover of GQ and be considered "an inspiration." Someone who “makes a statement” by stepping on our flag and our veterans – the very people who fought and died for our freedoms. The Kaepernicks of this world are nothing but rich, spoiled-rotten, liberal loudmouths who push the idea of rioting to get their way.
Unfortunately, many brain-dead types who blame everyone else for their self-made problems, are ready, willing and able to jump on Kaepernick’s bandwagon.
2 Timothy 3: 1. But know this: That in the latter days hard times will come: 2. and men will be lovers of themselves and lovers of money, boasters, proud, revilers, unyielding towards their own people, deniers of grace, wicked, 3. unloving, addicted to irreconcilable malicious gossips, ferocious, haters of the good, 4. treacherous, rash, inflated, attached to pleasure more than to the love of Elohim, 5. having a form of respect for Elohim but wide from the power of Elohim. Them who are such, repel from you. 6. For of them are they who creep into this and that house and captivate the women who are plunged in sins and led away by divers lusts, 7. who are always learning, and can never come to the knowledge of the truth. (AENT)
So, what can we do about it?
Keep clinging to the TRUTH and never allow “the world” to steal our morals or our shalom. We must continue to "keep on keeping on", enduring until the end because the same will be saved (Matt 24:13).
BOYCOTT THE NFL! Let them get a real job, like the rest of us!
READER COMMENT:
Hello,
I recently ran into a group of men who claim that African Americans were/are the original Hebrews. That Jesus skin color was black as well as everyone in the old testament. I simply told them, that's not so. Miriam was punished by Almighty God for mocking Moses Ethiopian wife who was dark skinned.
What does Refiner's Fire say about this fallacy?
OUR RESPONSE:
In short: Nonsense.
Since the first "Hebrew" (meaning "to cross over") mentioned in scripture was Avram, a Caldean from the middle east, it is folly for anyone except extremely biased, arrogant, and opinionated people to say they were "black"! Further, since Avram was the ancestor of all the 12 tribes, which were subsequently scattered, it is additional folly to argue a "black" origin! All peoples on earth today descended from Noah's three sons: Shem, Ham and Japheth, as recorded in Genesis 10. To argue a "skin color" today, and claim they are the original Hebrews is the epitome of folly!
We believe The Refiner’s Fire is one of the few on-line ministries that will actually take time to answer questions from our readers. We take pride in providing Biblically-based and defended answers to legitimate questions and try to answer them all. (It is our observation that not many ministries do that – and, by the way, we don’t ever ask for a dime...)
Unfortunately, we have found that when we answer, a large number of correspondents suddenly seem to believe we are “their new best-friend,” and begin barrage us with endless additional questions! Inevitably, we will begin to realize that the person doesn’t have a good grasp of Scripture at all, and we may be wasting our time doing research and providing answers to someone who doesn’t really understand our responses. When that happens, we usually come right out and ask: “Have you read the Bible cover-to-cover (Genesis to Revelation)?” And “If so, how many times?”
The reason we ask is this:
Many ask questions about Scripture, having only preconceived ideas from what they’ve “heard”. They’ve either never read the Bible, or read only snippets here and there; yet they feel qualified to inundate us with tons of questions – many of which take a lot of time to research … which then prompts more questions. Once we figure out that they really don’t know much about the Bible, we will ask them to discuss the novel, “War and Peace” with us – to which they reply that they can’t, because they’ve never read it. “Okay,” we reply, “you’ve never read the Bible, either, so why are you posing all these questions for us to research?”
Somehow, it seems the Bible is a “free-for-all” that can be picked apart by those with absolutely NO knowledge of Scripture, but they don’t hesitate to argue their opinion on it, regardless. It can be quite maddening!
So, why would we ask “how many times” someone has read the whole Bible? Because it’s critically important! First of all, if someone has never read the Bible, or only picked through a few verses, they are wasting our time. And reading through the whole Bible only one time can only leave one with many (seriously: MANY) unanswered questions. It’s no secret that each time you read through, you’ll gain a bit more understanding. In fact, we at The Refiner’s Fire continue to read through scripture year after year, even though we have done so many times already. There is so much to learn! Everyone who claims to be a Believer should do this.
Christians are, unfortunately, the worst. They often quote a scripture, out of context, from the New Testament; and attempt to tell us what it means (because they’re challenging us concerning the NT); or they’ll ask what we think it means, and then become belligerent when we refer to the proper understanding drawn from the Tanakh (Old Testament) to clarify why their preconceived (i.e., erred) understanding was incorrect.
But here is a fact to any and all people, including Christians: If you have NOT read the Tanakh, then you simply don’t understand the New Testament. You can’t understand the New Testament UNTIL you’ve studied the “Old Testament.” Period! It simply is not possible to understand the New Testament without the foundation of the Torah!
Jews, on the other hand, hardly bother to write to us, but those who have rejected Jesus and joined other “counter-missionaries” in their attempts to bash Jesus and the New Testament, certainly do! And they do exactly as Christians do: Twist Scripture to suit their own purposes, and challenge us to prove them wrong. Well, it’s easy to allow Scripture to explain Scripture – but whenever someone’s heart is set on trying to force Scripture to line up according to their present understanding, there’s really nothing much you can say. It’s fruitless to argue with someone whose mind is made up.
That being said, while we DO appreciate your correspondence, we would ask you to be aware that sometimes our answer may not be what you were expecting. If it’s not, please don’t hound us to death about it. A couple of emails will suffice. In the end, if you don’t agree with our response, let it go.
In the meantime we would ask that people start taking responsibility for their own spiritual growth by studying the Word on their own. Get into Scripture for yourself so you can KNOW what it says or doesn’t say. That way, you will at least be able to come from a knowledgeable viewpoint, and not waste anyone’s time with frivolous questions.
Every once in a while on Facebook, I see someone's drawing or meme depicting Jesus hugging some woman in a very intimate way - and I cringe because that is NOT what the actual Y'shua would have done! Y'shua, a Jewish Rabbi, the Divine Son of YHWH, would never have touched a woman in a sensual way because in the Orthodox Jewish culture the behavior is strictly prohibited.
I especially dislike pictures depicting the "wedding feast" where Mashyiach is hugging his "female bride" – because, while "we" ARE metaphorically his "bride", the "wedding" has absolutely NOTHING whatsoever to do with sex or intimate, bodily contact. It won’t be a free-for-all orgy; it will simply be a joyous gathering together of YHWH’s people who, by that time, will have received their “new, heavenly bodies” (2 Corinthians 5:1-10 and Revelation 21:1-4) which have no use for sex or procreation.
Matthew 22: 30. For in the resurrection of the dead, men do not marry women, nor are women given to husbands. Rather, they are as the Messengers (angels) of Elohim in Heaven. (AENT)
Being intimate in the way we humans think of intimacy, is NOT what YHWH is all about. I don’t care how “beautiful” the paintings or memes of the “wedding” (or any other “picture” depicting a loving Jesus hugging some woman) might be; it’s offensive to think that Y’shua will be fondling women (or men, who are also part of the “bride”) when he returns as the Lion of Judah (Revelation 5:5)!
Deuteronomy 4: 15 "Therefore, watch out for yourselves! Since you did not see a shape of any kind on the day ADONAI spoke to you in Horev from the fire, 16 do not become corrupt and make yourselves a carved image having the shape of any figure - not a representation of a human being, male or female, 17 or a representation of any animal on earth, or a representation of any bird that flies in the air, 18 or a representation of anything that creeps along on the ground, or a representation of any fish in the water below the shoreline. (CJB)
Proverbs 16:18 Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.
The most recent Hollywood sex scandals reveal that Scripture is absolutely correct about man’s “fallen nature,” and how secrets always have a way of coming out. Although it took decades for some of the secrets to come to light, we suddenly see an avalanche of filth coming out of the closets of Hollywood’s “elite” – those whom America has idolized to the point where we've even allowed these hooligans to influence our political decisions.
Daniel 2:22 He reveals deep and secret things; he knows what lies in the darkness; and light dwells with him. (CJB)
Luke 8:17. For there is not anything that is hidden that will not be revealed, nor that which is concealed that will not be known and come out openly. (AENT)
Luke 12:2 And whatever is concealed shall be revealed, and whatever is hidden shall be known. 3 So, whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have spoken in the ear in inner rooms shall be proclaimed on the house-tops. (ISR)
Throughout history we’ve seen empires crumble and powerful, decadent people brought to their knees. Scripture makes no secret about the fact that ALL the arrogant will be brought down, in the end. No one can hide!
Psalm 46:6 The gentiles shall rage, Reigns shall topple; He shall give forth His voice, The earth melts. 7 יהוה of hosts is with us; The Elohim of Yaʽaqoḇ is our refuge. Selah. 8 Come, see the works of יהוה, The ruins He has wrought on the earth, 9 Causing all fighting to cease, Unto the end of the earth. He breaks the bow and shatters the spear; He burns the chariot with fire. 10 Be still, and know that I am Elohim; I am exalted among nations, I am exalted in the earth! 11 יהוה of hosts is with us; The Elohim of Yaʽaqoḇ is our refuge. Selah. (ISR)
Isaiah 2:11 The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, the pride of men shall be bowed down, and יהוה alone shall be exalted in that day. :12 For יהוה of hosts has a day against all that is proud and lofty, against all that is lifted up, so that it is brought low; 13 and against all the cedars of Leḇanon that are high and lifted up, and against all the oaks of Bashan; 14 and against all the high mountains, and against all the hills that are lifted up; 15 and against every lofty tower, and against every strong wall; 16 and against all the ships of Tarshish, and against all the desirable craft. 17 And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the pride of men shall be brought low. And יהוה alone shall be exalted in that day, 18 and the idols completely pass away. (ISR)
We cannot fool YHWH! He knows our hearts. He knows those who are truly His – and “His” refers to the humble, meek and broken; those who live by His Divine Instructions because they have realized that the ONLY way to live a proper and fulfilling life on earth is to become a holy/set apart servant of YHWH …
Take a look at this awesome parable which perfectly illustrates that truth:
Luke 18:9 And He also spoke this parable to some who relied on themselves that they were righteous, and looking down on others: 10 “Two men went up to the Set-apart Place to pray – the one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.:11 “The Pharisee stood and began to pray with himself this way, ‘Elohim, I thank You that I am not like the rest of men, swindlers, unrighteous, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. 12 ‘I fast twice a week, I give tithes of all that I possess.’ 13 “But the tax collector standing at a distance would not even raise his eyes to the heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘Elohim, show favour unto me, a sinner!’ 14 “I say to you, this man went down to his house declared right, rather than the other. For everyone who is exalting himself shall be humbled, and he who is humbling himself shall be exalted.” (ISR)
YHWH isn’t looking for perfection. He isn’t looking for those who view themselves holy in their own eyes. He is looking for those who are willing to drop their silly, human pride and recognize that "they” are NOT in charge of anything except their God-given free will which allows them the choice to do things according to HIS Holy Ways … or not.
The following scriptures illustrate what happens to those whose lives are centered on "the ways of the world":
Isaiah 13:11 And I shall punish the world for its evil, and the wrong for their crookedness, and shall put an end to the arrogance of the proud, and lay low the pride of the ruthless. 12 “I shall make mortal man scarcer than fine gold, and mankind scarcer than the gold of Ophir. 13 “So I shall make the heavens tremble, and the earth shall shake from her place, in the wrath of יהוה of hosts and in the day of the heat of His displeasure. (ISR)
Galatians 5: 19. For you know the works of the flesh, which are these: adultery, impurity and lasciviousness, 20. idolatry, witchcraft, enmity, strife, jealousy, anger, stubbornness, treacheries, heresies, 21. Envy, murder, drunkenness, revelry and all like things. Those who do things like these, they will not inherit the Kingdom of Elohim. (AENT)
Galatians 6: 7. Do not deceive yourselves, as Elohim is not deceived; for what the sons of men sow, they will also reap. 8. That which is from the flesh, sowed from the flesh, reaps corruption. But for those who are sown in the Spirit, from the Spirit eternal life is given. (AENT)
The Apostle Paul summed it up thusly:
Romans 12:1. I plead to you, therefore, my brothers, by the mercies of Elohim, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, Set Apart and acceptable to Elohim by a rational service (of him). 2. And be not conformed to this world; but be you transformed by the renovation of your minds: and discern you what is the good and acceptable and perfect pleasure of Elohim. 3. And, by the grace given to me, I say to you all: Do not carry thoughts beyond what you should think; but think with modesty, as Elohim has distributed to each one his measure of faith. (AENT)
My prayer for all who are reading this little teaching is that you would choose to follow YHWH and not the world whose sinful pleasures will eventually reap carnal rewards with a less than desirable ending…. Let what is happening right now in Hollywood be a lesson for you! There will be NO sinners in Heaven!
Shabbat shalom, everyone. A synopsis of this week’s Torah portion can be found on our website. In this week's lesson we discover that Sarah has died and that Avraham - our first Patriarch, whom YHWH has blessed greatly for his obedience in becoming a "Hebrew" (which means, "to cross over") - is actually the first person we know of in the Torah to bury anyone.
We are told that he purchased a grave site from "the sons of Het" to bury Sarah's remains - and a huge deal was made out of his insistence that he buy the land, instead of accepting it as a gift. (Please note, although YHWH promised Avraham that all the land he walked over during his lifetime would be given to him and to his descendants forever (Genesis 15:18), by the end of his life Avraham owned only one small field at Hebron - a transaction that was recorded in Genesis 23. For more, please click on the link above!
Every year around this time, we get new Torah observant believers writing to our website to ask for suggestions on how to handle their “unbelieving” families during the holiday season. My husband and I always cringe whenever we see these questions because, in all honesty, it varies from family to family. Some slide into it very easily, while for others, it’s the start of World War III. We have known some who actually ended up divorced because their spouses refused to accept the idea of Torah observance!
It’s hard, folks. And the bottom line is, you can’t just force Torah on someone who doesn’t “get it.” All you can do is be as loving and gentle as possible, while at the same time consistently continuing your own Torah walk. Chances are, your spouse/family is going to take a long time to “come around.” Some never accept it….
If you have a spouse, family members or relatives who believe you’ve “put yourself back under the law,” then all you can really do when the Christmas (or Easter) holidays come around is to tread lightly, while remaining firm in your belief and gently explaining why you don’t wish to participate - all while allowing them the leeway to bring that Christmas tree in and buying presents.
First, and foremost, you MUST remember that, just because you found your way to Torah, it does not give you the right to become a raging dictator who makes "overnight" changes. The change in your home has to happen gradually. If you suddenly forbid Christmas at your house and scream bloody murder at the thought of them bringing in a tree to decorate, you may risk losing your family!
On the other hand, don't be a "shrinking violet," either. Go ahead and explain that "Christmas" is NOT the birth of our Savior and that "Santa Claus" has nothing, whatsoever to do with his birth. If someone suggests that "it's just fun for the kids," and "it doesn't matter when we celebrate the birth, as long as we celebrate it," then ask if they've ever seen "Santa and his reindeer" in a "manger scene"; and whether or not it would be okay if, from now on, if the family celebrates their own birthdays on some day other than on the day they were born... Chances are, this will initiate some conversation....
But yes, by all means, let them do Christmas - especially if you have young children, because they won’t understand your sudden aversion toward this man-made, gift-giving, debt-creating holiday. When the holidays are over, have a family gathering to educate them on God’s commanded Holy Days, explaining that Christmas and Easter are not biblical and have nothing, whatsoever to do with the birth or death of Jesus. Explain that Jesus was born on the first day of Sukkot/Feast of Tabernacles, and circumcised on the 8th day (see Luke 2:21-23); and he died and rose on the High Holy Days of Passover (1 Cor 5:7 and 1 Cor 15:20-23).
This year Hanukah starts at sunset, December 12 and ends at sunset, December 20th, so, buy or make a Hanukiah (9-branch candle holder) and “do” Hanukah in your home. (Hanukah normally falls around, or within a few weeks of "Christmas" though the holiday is not related to Christmas in any way.) Explain that, while it’s not one of the seven Biblical feasts, it is a remembrance of the victory of a small band of Jews over the occupying army of Syrian king Antiochus Epiphanes. Antiochus, who came to power in 175 B.C.E. forbade the Jews to practice their religion, and desecrated their Temple....
If you have young children, give them a little surprise gift throughout the Hanukah week (doesn't have to be much, just a little something - candy, cookies, a little toy, books or whatever) and simply use this time as a teaching tool about God and His Appointed times.
You could read the story of Hanukah to them on the first night while letting them help you light the candles. (Here's our shortened version, if you like: https: About Hanukah. We also feature a short article explaining the difference between the "daily" menorah and the Hanukah menorah. Also, check out our longer version of how to handle your family during the holidays.)
May YHWH be with you and your family as you attempt to make it through these upcoming holidays in a way that will be edifying for everyone! And may your whole family eventually come to realize the importance of the "echad-ness" of YHWH/Yeshua/Torah.
"Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! (Isaiah 5:20, 24 KJVA)
I recently saw the above on the wall of a Y’shua rejecter and thought of several ways this applies to many of today’s supposed “believers”:
What a stupid, liberal society we live in! I hope Bergdahl doesn't get any POW medal, because he is a TRAITOR who PUT HIMSELF into that situation by deserting!!! He deserves to spend the rest of his life in prison!
Some soldiers were seriously hurt while they were out hunting for him when he deserted. I don't care how much he has apologized, he needs to be punished, not molly-coddled! Giving him a POW medal will only serve to pour salt in the wounds of not only those who were hurt and maimed because of him, but it's a slap in the face of all those who have served HONORABLY!
What's really sickening is that this little weasel will probably get a book and movie deal out of this!
When asked if he was an “atheist” in an interview in 1982, Asimov replied:
“I am an atheist, out and out. It took me a long time to say it. I've been an atheist for years and years, but somehow I felt it was intellectually unrespectable to say one was an atheist, because it assumed knowledge that one didn't have. Somehow it was better to say one was a humanist or an agnostic. I finally decided that I'm a creature of emotion as well as of reason. Emotionally I am an atheist. I don't have the evidence to prove that God doesn't exist, but I so strongly suspect he doesn't that I don't want to waste my time.”
“I don't have the evidence to prove that God doesn't exist, but I so strongly suspect he doesn't that I don't want to waste my time.”
How sad that an educated, otherwise well-rounded intellect would be willing to make such an ignorant statement! It makes one wonder whether or not he “believed” in wind, because you can’t “see” it. You can feel it, you can hear it rustling through the trees, and you can see leaves trembling in a breeze, etc., but you can’t SEE wind. Therefore, “wind” must not exist…
Asimov admitted he didn’t have the evidence to prove that God doesn’t exit, yet he chose to go with his “gut feeling” that it wasn’t worth his time - which reveals unbelievable arrogance on his part, because he was, in reality, too dense to recognize the “Master Engineer” of a well-oiled universe where everything works in perfect tandem.
If Asimov were alive today, I would have this to say to him: “If there is the 100 gazillion in 1 chance that this universe is a result of something akin to the "big bang" theory, then there must also be a respective equal chance that there exists a God who created it. As each probability is evaluated, we would surely see that the evidence is in more favor of a Master Engineer being responsible for Creation, rather than dice rolling "lucky seven" a gazillion times in a row”….
Asimov said about religious education:
"I would not be satisfied to have my kids choose to be religious without trying to argue them out of it, just as I would not be satisfied to have them decide to smoke regularly or engage in any other practice I consider detrimental to mind or body."
How is the idea of a Creator “detrimental to the mind or body”? What a ludicrous and disgusting statement! In other words what this “genius” was saying was, “I control my children and their every thought, and I insist they believe what I believe because, unless they believe what I believe, they’ll get sick.”
Even YHWH didn’t do THAT to us! He GAVE us “free will.” (See Deuteronomy 30:19, 20; Isaiah 48:18; Ecclesiastes 9:10; Proverbs 21:5 and Matthew 22:37, to mention a few!)
In his last volume of autobiography, Asimov wrote,
“If I were not an atheist, I would believe in a God who would choose to save people on the basis of the totality of their lives and not the pattern of their words. I think he would prefer an honest and righteous atheist to a TV preacher whose every word is God, God, God, and whose every deed is foul, foul, foul.”
That last sentence is ironically, almost correct. “Almost” in that there is no such thing as a “righteous atheist.” YHWH made the Rules for holy living, and unless an atheist follows those Rules, he isn’t righteous! Period.
And yes, God DOESN’T like money-grubbing, hypocritical preachers who wouldn’t know The Word if they fell on it. Those preachers don’t belong to Him. But, judging from what one can see throughout Scripture, God ALSO couldn’t care less about atheists. He once wiped out the entire world by flood - a world that was busy ignoring Him!
“If I were not an atheist, I would believe in a God who would choose to save people on the basis of the totality of their lives and not the pattern of their words….”
Well, how lucky for Asimov that God gave him a brain with which to THINK and CHOOSE “what” to believe! Yes, we ARE free to “believe” in whatever “god” we wish – but that doesn’t negate the fact that YHWH, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is THE CREATOR and everything else is make-believe!
According to Scripture (Genesis 1) YHWH made the universe and everything in it, including human life. He set some Divine Rules for humans to follow – and if those rules are followed by those who know and “believe” in Him, they get to have eternal life. Everyone else gets to be worm fodder – a thing Asimov will discover when he is awakened on Judgment Day, long enough to find out just how badly he messed up by thinking he was smarter that the One who made him!
YHWH gave us all free will … the free will to “believe” in Him and do HIS will … or not.
I used to love to read Asimov before I became a Believer. Looking back, I wish I hadn’t helped to make this atheist rich – but then, at least I helped to make his brief earthly life a happy one and I hope he enjoyed it while it lasted because, for Asimov, that was it; his life was just a tiny blip in eternity. He is dead and gone.
YHWH is still here, and will be forever.
This lunacy has obviously become the norm in the United States. If some nutcase isn't shooting people, then they're knifing them or mowing them down with cars or trucks. This is just another sign of the end times! Scripture warns us that people would be out of control! https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/several-casualties-reported-texas-church-shooting-n817751
Jude 1:18-19 “In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions. It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit.”
Matthew 24:21-22 “For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.”
Matthew 24:10-12 “And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold.”
Those who mock YHWH are in for a RUDE awakening!
Isaiah 13:11 Thus I will punish the world for its evil And the wicked for their iniquity; I will also put an end to the arrogance of the proud And abase the haughtiness of the ruthless.
Isaiah 3:11 Woe to the wicked! It will go badly with him, For what he deserves will be done to him.
Psalm 34:21 Evil shall slay the wicked, And those who hate the righteous will be condemned.
So, what can we do about the evil that walks among us right now? Pray for YHWH to keep His people safe. Continue to pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding. (Romans 14:19) and "keep on keeping on" - stand strong against ALL evil, enduring until the end because the same will be saved (Matt 24:13).
Time to stop kidding ourselves when it comes to Muslims and Islam! While most Muslims are peace-loving people just like you and me, there are the lunatics who take that devilish Koran seriously .. Yes, that entity that commands everyone to “kill the infidel.” And make no mistake, as evidenced by the latest attack in New York by a MUSLIM, they ARE being allowed to enter our country! Let me tell you a little story:
I've been watching this influx of Muslims happening in Europe for at least 45 years. I was born and raised in Germany for the first ten years of my life, until my mother married an American and moved us to the US.in 1960. I joined the US Army in 1969 and was stationed in Germany from '73 - 76. And WHOAH! - Muslims were everywhere! No biggie, I thought. They were just looking for a better life.
Got stationed in Stuttgart in '78-80. MORE Muslims. Hmm...Looked like Germany was being overrun.....Oh well. Still, I couldn’t help but wonder why they didn't bother to assimilate into German society....
Got stationed in Heidelberg from '85-Dec. 89. WOW! Even as a "unsaved" person at the time, I could tell SOMETHING was going on. No clue as to what, though. No assimilation on their part to be seen... As a matter of fact, they seemed to HATE everybody who wasn’t Muslim.
Got "saved" in January 1995. Married my “forever” husband in 2000. In 2001 we had our European honeymoon, and the truth of this endless Muslim “invasion” FINALLY hit me when I discovered that Muslims had even started invading my tiny little hometown, population 8.000! They were everywhere, glaring at any non-Muslims. The men looked mean, the women looked unhappy, and the kids were being trained up as typical Muslim, with the little boys bullying the little girls:
Yes - this was a Muslim invasion into Europe! NO DOUBT about it!
Muslims in Europe are very unfriendly, giving "dagger-eyes" to everyone who isn't Muslim. My cousin, Uschi, recently told me that these days in her hometown of Dortmund, Muslim youths were shoving old German ladies off the sidewalks if they dared come out at night. She said Muslims are out of control, buying up old churches to use as mosques so all of Dortmund can hear their daily prayers! They've even managed to weasel their way into the government leadership!
Stupid, stupid Germany! Did anybody ever notice? Naaah! So, guess what, Liberal America! You need to wake up because the same thing is going to happen in the United States! Mark my words. Their plan is to one day be in every city and town on earth so they can all gang up at once and hold knives to everyone’s throat, uttering the words, “Convert of Die!”
America - so tolerant and blind. While blind Believers are busy trying to tell the world that the Pope is the Antichrist and the cause of the world's problems, Muslims are creeping into the back door getting ready for jihad and giving you the choice to "convert or die!"
Revelation 20:4 tells us that believers will be BEHEADED for their belief. Not shot, stabbed or hanged, but BEHEADED! Who are the ONLY people today who still behead? MUSLIMS!
One wonders why YHWH "tested" Avraham in Genesis 22 when He commanded him to "sacrifice" Isaac. Well, the answer can actually be found as far back as Genesis 15, where we see our first Patriarch complaining to YHWH that he had no heirs to pass an inheritance on to - and YHWH TOLD him he would one day have a child of his own. But neither Avraham nor Sarah believed it! Take a look:
Genesis 15: 1 Some time later the word of ADONAI came to Avram in a vision: "Don't be afraid, Avram. I am your protector; your reward will be very great." 2 Avram replied, "ADONAI, God, what good will your gifts be to me if I continue childless; and Eli'ezer from Dammesek inherits my possessions? 3 You haven't given me a child," Avram continued, "so someone born in my house will be my heir."
4 But the word of ADONAI came to him: "This man will not be your heir. No, your heir will be a child from your own body." 5 Then he brought him outside and said, "Look up at the sky, and count the stars - if you can count them! Your descendants will be that many!" 6 He believed in ADONAI, and he credited it to him as righteousness. (CJB)
Did you notice verse 4? Hello! The typical human reaction! "Naaaah! Surely we can't get pregnant at our age!" And so in Genesis 16 we see Abraham and his wife Sarah panicking about not having an heir yet, and (at the urging of Sarah) they took matters into their own hands to have Avraham sleep with his wife's pagan/Egyptian servant Hagar, the result of which was a son they named Ishmael (who was the forefather of today's Arab nations, most of which are Muslim...).
But YHWH, filled with patience, grace and mercy, continued to work in Avraham, constantly revealing that He could and should be trusted. And then one day, He "tested" Avraham - for the purpose of showing Avraham just how much he (Avraham) had grown when it came to his belief in God. This "testing" resulted in Avraham being so trusting of, and dependent on YHWH in ALL things, that he was even willing to kill his own son! If YHWH commanded it, the Avraham was DOING it - no questions asked!
THAT is how YHWH wants us all to be!
This was a hard Torah portion to comprehend, wasn't it? So many things happening; so many questions.
To begin with, we see the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah being so vile and wicked that the occupants were determined to have their way with the "men" (messengers/angels) who came to visit Lot:
Genesis 19: 4 But before they could go to bed, the men of the city surrounded the house - young and old, everyone from every neighborhood of S'dom. 5 They called Lot and said to him, "Where are the men who came to stay with you tonight? Bring them out to us! We want to have sex with them!" (CJB)
"We want to have sex with them." WOW! Perverted people have been around since the beginning! And this type of behavior is still with us today! The Bible tells us that Yeshua would return when the world was once again as it was in the days of Noah (Matthew 24:37-39; Luke 17:26-27)....
Atheists love to use these particular passages to show that we have a "mean" God and that believers can be "perverts" and "hypocrites" because in Genesis 19:6-8 we see Lot offering his virgin daughters to the throng who demanded to have sex with the angels. "What kind of a man would offer his virgin daughters to a gang of sex-crazed men?" one atheist asked of us via our website, The Refiner's Fire.
Our reply:
The kind who feared God! This man, Lot, knew that the angels were holy beings, and that Lot and his entire household would be doomed forever if he allowed the angels to be sexually molested while under his roof. (Of course, the angels would never have allowed these perverts to get near them, in the first place; but be that as it may, Lot knew he HAD to try to prevent harm to them, at ANY cost!) Even though it would have killed him to see his daughters defiled, maimed or even murdered, Lot's fear of, and respect for, YHWH overrode everything in this particular situation!
This is a perfect example where "Fear of God" must override everything else because, in the end, HE is ALL that matters....
Shabbat shalom, mishpocah! A synopsis of this week's Torah portion can be found on our website. In this lesson we learn more about Avraham, who, in the last Parashah, had learned he had been chosen to receive a covenant from YHWH, to be the father of a great, obedient nation. Despite the magnitude of this great honor, we learn that Avraham is but an ordinary man, a frail human, with all the associated human desires, and human erring and human lack of faith....
READER COMMENT:
One interesting to contemplate: Christians "insist" that "Jesus abolished the Torah." At least since the late 1700s, Christians have compromised Scripture (mainly Genesis 1-11) through such beliefs as the gap theory and theistic evolution. Do you think this is why so-called believers accept evolution and millions of years?
OUR RESPONSE:
Absolutely! The main problem, IMHO, is that most are lukewarm, knowing ABOUT God and the Bible, but not really KNOWING Him (because, at most, they read the last third of the Bible only and yet believe themselves to have the market cornered on Truth). Most don't seem to notice or care that Scripture has been watered down by "intellects" who have come up with supposed explanations for Creation. They're not that much into God. Too much of a hassle. For those types I always like to ask: "If you knew someone was putting just a little horse manure into the brownie dough, would you still be willing to eat it?"
Of course, they always say, "NO!" And then I come out with the clincher: "So, why are you so ready, willing and able to depart from Scriptural Truth, just because someone suggests some scientist can disprove what the Bible contains?"
The Bible - no matter what version you use - contains the basics about God, His commands, His Son and what is expected of mankind. The Bible tells us GOD created the Universe and everything in it.
We may not know exactly how long a "day" was "in the beginning," but we know there were seven of them, and that the last was when He rested from creating. We may not know exactly how the universe was formed, but we see there was a process that continued until Man was formed and commanded to be "fruitful and multiply."
That's ALL we know concerning what happened "in the beginning." Scientists have no actual proof that the universe is is billions of years old. That's simply the "scale" they have chosen to estimate the physical appearance of things. They also have no proof about how planets were formed. They can only speculate based on theory. But we also don't have proof that the Garden of Eden existed! All we have is what we read in the Bible! We either believe what read see in there, or we don't.
Conjecture doesn't equate to proof. Fact of the matter is that the opening chapters in Genesis were never meant to be a scientifically accurate description of the creation yet nothing it says there contradicts what we see today as the physical universe. Some years ago we wrote an article about this.
We recently had a wonderful reader question to our website:
Was Yeshua sinless? If he was a man, which I believe, and he was tempted, would he have been able to never sin? People like to throw out Matthew 5:48. But they leave out the previous words leading up to 48. Yeshua was speaking about LOVING perfectly NOT LIVING perfectly.
I feel a huge nudge from YHWH to find an answer to this question. I prayed and "accidentally" found your website just now. How incredibly joyous was I when I read your blog on the trinity!!! HALLELUYAH IM NOT CRAZY. Anyway, did Yeshua sin? Please help!!
Our response:
Thanks for taking the time to write to The Refiner's Fire! Excellent question: Did Yeshua sin.
The answer is NO! First of all, he wasn't "Just a man." He was a human with a divine qnoma/nature since He came straight from YHWH for the purpose of presenting God to Israel "face-to-face" and do everything His Father commanded:
Luke 4:43 "But he (Yeshua/Jesus) said, "I must preach the good news of the Kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent."
Luke 8:1 And it happened after these things that Y'shua was going around in the cities and in the villages and was preaching and declaring the Kingdom of Elohim.
Acts 28:23 "From morning till evening the Apostle Paul explained and declared the Kingdom of God and tried to convince people about Yeshua from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets."
As the Son of YHWH, put into the womb of Miriam supernaturally (untouched by the sin of the world, Miriam's hymen was broken from the inside-out when Yeshua was born!). A mere man could never have gone through life without committing some sins; but Yeshua wasn't a mere man....
We don't adhere to the "He was God in the flesh" mantra, necessarily, because YHWH is God. Yeshua was/is His Divine Messiah. Yeshua, however IS a part of YHWH because he is the Word (John 1:1, 14). He is YHWH's "arm" (Isaiah 53:1), and an arm is part of the body. Explaining Yeshua, as you can see, is complicated!
We're never told of any incidences wherein Yeshua sinned. As a matter of fact, Luke 2:41-52 tells us he taught the Rabbis in Temple when he was just a boy! Boys who are able to keep the Rabbis mesmerized concerning Torah, wouldn't dare to commit purposeful sins....
As far as we know, he never would have sinned in ANY situation, whatsoever, because he adhered to Torah - as we see when he was "tempted by the devil" in Matthew 4:1-11. It must have been a HUGE temptation to see someone offering you the whole world (and sparing the awful death on the cross that he knew would one day come).
Matthew 4:8 Once more, the Adversary took him up to the summit of a very high mountain, showed him all the kingdoms of the world in all their glory, 9 and said to him, "All this I will give you if you will bow down and worship me." 10 "Away with you, Satan!" Yeshua told him, "For the Tanakh says, `Worship ADONAI your God, and serve only him.'" (CJB)
As a human being, Yeshua encountered the same situations we all do, and he had the CHOICE to follow YHWH, or not - just as we all do. He knew who he was and therefore surely never gave into his fleshly desires. If he had, then he would have been "blemished" in his soul, and could NOT have become our Final SIN Sacrifice!
As for your mention of Matthew 5:48, which says: "You therefore be perfect as your Father in heaven who is perfect." Nothing about "loving perfectly"; YHWH is all about LIVING a holy/set apart life. Take a look at what King David wrote:
Psalm 101: 1 A psalm of David: I am singing of grace and justice; I am singing to you, ADONAI. 2 I will follow the path of integrity; when will you come to me? I will run my life with a sincere heart inside my own house. 3 I will not allow before my eyes any shameful thing. I hate those who act crookedly; what they do does not attract me. 4 Deviousness will depart from me; I will not tolerate evil. 5 If someone slanders another in secret, I will cut him off. Haughty eyes and proud hearts I cannot abide. 6 I look to the faithful of the land, so that they can be my companions; those who live lives of integrity can be servants of mine. 7 No deceitful person can live in my house; no liar can be my advisor. 8 Every morning I will destroy all the wicked of the land, cutting off all evildoers from the city of ADONAI. (CJB)
See? "Grace" in no way negated obedience to YHWH's commands on how to be holy.
And no, you are NOT crazy! There is no such thing as "trinity." King James made that one up by adding to the Word.
Thanks again for writing! Please don't hesitate to write, should you have any more questions!
Well, surprise, surprise, the Internet continues to teem with loud-mouthed, government-hating, riot-seeking types who know nothing about anything, yet love to stand on their soap boxes to shout out their narrow-minded thoughts designed to terrorize the gullible. This is no different from the "blood moon" and "rapture happening on a certain date" hypes, yet many are falling for their nonsense.
So here’s the scoop, people - and please use some common sense to discern the LIES this woman is spreading, with what's actually going to happen:
NOTHING is going to happen to the USA! With that N. Korean lunatic threatening nuclear war, there's going to a military exercise that will SIMULATE a massive power disruption. That's ALL. The US military is constantly performing simulations. It's what they do to remain prepared for any emergency.
The US is simply conducting a test of a communication plan as if there had been a nationwide disruption of the power grid by a giant solar storm. It is a TEST so radio operators would know which frequencies to use to receive and send information should such a disaster ever happen.
It is only the untrustworthy conspiracy websites and YouTube videos spinning this into a frenzy of LIES. Nothing is going to happen! It's a military exercise and only SIMULATES a massive power disruption.
