Parashah 40: Balak Numbers 22:2 through 25:9

Shabbat shalom, mishpocah!  As always, a synopsis of this week’s Torah portion can be found on our website.

Not too long ago, we saw that those who tried to set up an alternate priesthood other than the Aaronic priesthood established by YHWH (which is what Korach did), were dealt with very harshly. As the last few parashahs unfolded, we saw YHWH clearly paving the way for the Aaronic priesthood to serve Him. In this Torah portion, we will see what happens when someone decides to come against the Israelites by trying to bring curses on them....

For more, click on the link above!

Scripture states we should all work toward a common goal

I've always loved this passage! It clearly states that we all need each other and we need to work together for the good of the Kingdom of YHWH. We are His conduits.

1 Corinthians 12:12. For as the body is one, and in it are many members; and all those members of the body, though many, are one body; so also is the Mashiyach.[1] 13. For all of us, likewise, by one Spirit, have been immersed into one body, whether Jews or Arameans,[2] whether slaves or free; and all of us have been nourished in one Spirit. 14. For a body also is not one member, but many. 15. For if the foot should say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it, on that account, not of the body?

16. Or if the ear should say, because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it, on that account, not of the body? 17. And if the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? Or if it were all hearing, where would be the smelling? 18. But now has Elohim placed every one of the members in the body, according to His will. 19. And if they were all one member, where would be the body? 20. But now they are many members, yet but one body.

21. The eye cannot say to the hand, You are not needful to me: nor can the head say to the feet, You are not needful to me. 22. But rather, those members which are accounted weak, are indispensable. 23. And those which we think dishonorable in the body, on them we heap more honor; and those that are not beautiful, on them we put the more decoration. 24. For the honorable members in us, have no need of honor: for Elohim has tempered the body, and given more honor to the member which is inferior;

25. That there might be no conflict in the body, but that all the members, equally, might care for one another; 26. So that, when one member is in pain, they will all sympathize; and if one member is exalted, all the members will be exalted. 27. Now you are the body of Mashiyach, and members in your place. 28. For Elohim has placed in his assembly, first, Shlichim; after them, prophets; after them, teachers;[3] after them, workers of miracles;[4] after them, the gifts of healing, and helpers, and leaders, and (various) kinds of tongues.

29. Are they all Shlichim? Are they all prophets? Are they all teachers? Are they all workers of miracles? 30. Have all of them the gifts of healing? Do they all speak with tongues? Or do they all interpret? 31. And if you are searching for superior gifts, on the other hand, I show to you a better way. (AENT)

FOOTNOTES:

[1] One the clearest statements about “Godhead” in the entire NT. The relationship between YHWH and Y’shua is like that of the mind/head to a limb of the body. The arm is not a separate entity from the body, nor does it move in any way other than with the full power and intent of the mind. Y’shua is literally the arm of YHWH in this manner (Exodus 6:6, 23:20-22, Isaiah 53:1). This statement by Rav Shaul proves this idea is not some modernized Nazarene doctrine, but the original doctrine of Mashiyach which is founded in the Tanakh; not the expansion of this in verses 14-28.

[2] Again the word is “Armaya”—Arameans. All the tribes of Israel are comprised of Hebrews and Arameans. Others are grafted into the faith, first through Torah observance (before Mashiyach came) and then through Mashiyach according to the Renewed Covenant of Torah being written upon the heart. Rav Shaul is assuming his audience is similarly grafted in.

[3] The word here for “teacher” is malpana, which denotes a person of high intelligence and disciplined study, but who has done so informally, outside of the rabbinical schools. Many people in First Century Israel functioned in this unofficial role, either as village elders or, in Y’shua’s case, as itinerant Torah lecturers. Y’shua was frequently called by this title, as well as the more familiar “rabbi”. In many cases, malpana was meant perjoratively by his critics, as they held his lack of formal training against him. On the other hand, the rich man in Matthew 19 used it as a compliment asking, “Malpana tava (good teacher), what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

[4] Literally, “workers of power.” All miracles come from the power of YHWH; His people are conduits.

Four Texans boast about rejecting YHWH’s Messiah!

Scripture tells us that, in the end times, the love of many will grow cold because of distance from the faith. These four Texans are a perfect example of that, as they recently vowed on Temple Mount to uphold Noahide Laws …  laws that are not explicitly mentioned in the Bible but are listed in the Talmud (Tractate Sanhedrin 107a) as being incumbent on all of mankind. “We don’t define ourselves as Christian and no longer believe in Jesus,” these Texans said.

Well, too bad for them, because they are now officially HOSED! They apparently never read the Bible before, or else they would have known that Y’shua said HE is the way, the truth and the life and NOBODY comes to His Father except through him! (John 14:6) 

Matthew 24: 10 At that time many will be trapped into betraying and hating each other, 11 many false prophets will appear and fool many people; 12 and many people's love will grow cold because of increased distance from Torah. 13 But whoever holds out till the end will be delivered. 14 And this Good News about the Kingdom will be announced throughout the whole world as a witness to all the Goyim. It is then that the end will come. (CJB)

America has lost all common sense

America has lost all common sense. There is no more “middle ground” – those with common sense, who can make intelligent, informed and educated decisions based on facts and not emotions. The “middle ground” is being drowned out on one side by the entitled, liberal, me-oriented, anything-goes, government handout-demanding, perpetual victim types; and, on the other, by heartless, vicious, do-it-my-way-or-die, left-is-wrong-and-right-is-right elitists that include hate-mongering lunatics such as Neo-Nazis and Antifa nut jobs who seek to control of everybody and everything.

I see all this as getting worse as time goes on. It’s that proverbial snowball headed downhill effect that only Y’shua’s return can put an end to.

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)

Y’shua is YHWH’s Messiah!

With all the bad things going on in our world today, we must continue to concentrate on passages such as this one:

Luke 22: 67. And they said to him, “If you are the Mashiyach, tell us!” He said to them, If I tell you, you will not believe me. 68. And if I ask you, you will not give me an answer, nor will you release me. 69. From now on, the Son of man will be seated at the right hand of the power of Elohim. 70. And all of them said, “Are you therefore the Son of Elohim? Y’shua said to them, You say, that I am![#] 71. They said, “Why are witnesses needed anymore by us, for we have heard it from his mouth?” (AENT)

FOOTNOTE:

The Apostle Paul explains this in 1 Corinthians 15:24 when he teaches; “And then will be the completion (of this phase), when he will have delivered up the Kingdom to Elohim the Father; when every prince, and every sovereign, and all powers will have come to nothing.”

This distinction is critically important not only to understand the nature of Mashiyach but to understand our place in the Kingdom of Heaven through haMashiyach. What Y’shua is teaching is perfectly consistent with how Mashiyach is revealed in Tanakh, one example of many is elucidated by the prophet Daniel who wrote:

“I saw in the night visions, and, behold, there came with the clouds of heaven one like unto a son of man, and he came even to the Ancient of days, and he was brought near before Him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.” (Daniel 7:13-14 JPS 1917)

This revelation of the Ancient of days is also confirmed in Micah 5; “But thou, Beth-lehem Ephrathah, which art little to be among the thousands of Judah, out of thee shall one come forth unto Me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth are from of old, from ancient days.” (Micah 5:2 JPS 1917)

As well-meaning and sincere as any great person or famous rabbi might be, there isn’t a human on earth who could ever qualify as coming from the clouds of heaven, from the Ancient of days - but of course this will be the claim of the anti-Christ who will make a move for dominion over the kingdoms of this world, just before Y’shua returns.

Some reasons as to why Moshe and Aharon did not get to enter the Promised Land

What a powerful Torah portion we just read in Parasha 39!  In it, we learned one of the reasons why Moshe and the High Priest Aharon - the holiest men on earth at the time – did NOT get to enter the Promised Land. Take a look:

Numbers 20: 8 "Take the staff, assemble the community, you and Aharon your brother; and before their eyes, tell the rock to produce its water. You will bring them water out of the rock and thus enable the community and their livestock to drink." 9 Moshe took the staff from the presence of ADONAI, as he had ordered him. 10 But after Moshe and Aharon had assembled the community in front of the rock, he said to them, "Listen here, you rebels! Are we supposed to bring you water from this rock?"

11 Then Moshe raised his hand and hit the rock twice with his staff. Water flowed out in abundance, and the community and their livestock drank. 12 But ADONAI said to Moshe and Aharon, "Because you did not trust in me, so as to cause me to be regarded as holy by the people of Isra'el, you will not bring this community into the land I have given them." 13 This is M'rivah Spring [Disputation Spring], where the people of Isra'el disputed with ADONAI, and he was caused to be regarded as holy by them.

Notice, Moshe HIT the rock with his staff. He didn’t “tell the rock to produce its water,” as ordered. And what was this “WE” stuff in verse 10?

While it's certainly understandable why Moshe said "we" (after all, he was chosen by YHWH Himself to communicate "face-to-face"/in His Presence - which had to be a huge ego builder!), YHWH didn't appreciate Moshe trying to take ANY glory for himself. MOSHE didn't produce the water; YHWH did....

Yet, despite of the lessons we see in Torah, for some reason, people today believe they can get away with anything, just because they "believe in Jesus." They tend to forget that "they" are NOT in charge, and that obedience to YHWH’s commands is also required in order to please our Creator.

We must never lose sight of that! Just take a look at what happened to Aharon (and let's not forget that, in the end, Moshe didn't get to enter the Promise Land, either)....

Numbers 20: 23 At Mount Hor, by the border of the land of Edom, ADONAI said to Moshe and Aharon, 24 "Aharon is about to be gathered to his people, because he is not to enter the land I have given to the people of Isra'el, inasmuch as you rebelled against what I said at the M'rivah Spring. 25 Take Aharon and El'azar his son, bring them up to Mount Hor, 26 remove the garments from Aharon and put them on El'azar his son. Aharon will be gathered to his people - he will die there."

This parashah is truly a powerful example of the high expectation YHWH has for His leaders, and His people, in general.

Parashah 39: Hukkat (Regulation) Numbers 19:1 through 22:1

Shabbat shalom, everyone!  As always, synopsis of this week’s Torah portion, Parasha 39, can be found on our website.

This week's  Torah portion begins with Moshe being taught the laws of the red heifer whose ashes purify a person who has been contaminated by contact with a dead body. We also witness the death of both Miriam and Aharon (Moshe's sister and brother); and see Moshe leading the people in battles against the Emorite kings Sichon and Og (who seek to prevent Israel's passage through their territory) and conquering their lands, which lie east of the Jordan.

It is interesting to note the "Red Heifer" sacrifice was extremely unique, for several reasons:

• It was the only sacrifice that specifically required an animal of a particular color. This animal was extremely rare and unique of its kind (in fact, Maimonides wrote, "Nine Parot Adumot were prepared from the time the Commandment was given until the destruction of the Second Temple. Moses our Teacher prepared one, Ezra prepared one and seven more were prepared until the Destruction of the Temple. The tenth will prepared by the Mashiach.")
• It was the only sacrifice where all the rituals were carried out outside of the camp / outside the Temple precincts.
• It was the only sacrifice that ritually contaminated the priest who offered it, but made the one who was sprinkled by it clean.
• It was the only sacrifice where the ashes were preserved and used (other sacrifices required the ashes be disposed outside of the camp).

Yeshua, our Mashiyach, is the perfect fulfillment of the Red Heifer sacrifice, since He was completely without sin or defect (2 Corinthians 5:21; John 8:46); He was sacrificed outside the camp (Hebrews 13:13); He made Himself sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21); His blood makes us clean (1 Peter 1:2; Hebrews 12:24; Revelation 1:5); and the "water of separation" that His sacrifice created is the means by which we are made clean from the impurity of sin (Ephesians 5:25-6; Heb 10:22).

For more, please click on the Torah portion link above.

The dangers of perfumes and scented products

Remember that old slogan, "Having a smoking section in a restaurant is like having a peeing section in a swimming pool?" While funny, it was very true. Except for the last two or three years of my military career when indoor smoking began to be prohibited, I had no choice but to work alongside people puffing on their precious cigarettes all day long. While stationed in Heidelberg, Germany, I was cooped up with a cigar smoker for eight hours a day over a three-year time span. It’s a miracle I never got lung cancer!

Things are a lot easier with today's "no smoking” policies, but now society has a new and growing problem: Perfumes, colognes, and fragranced hygiene and cleaning products. These products include man-made scents which are toxic to thousands of people. Ironically, these scents have a worse effect on me than cigarettes. The chemicals and compounds which comprise these fragrances can put me in the hospital because they literally take my breath away.

This new scourge in society is that fragrances are in EVERYTHING! You can’t escape them. People shower with scented soaps and shampoos; and, afterwards, they use scented deodorants, lotions and hairspray – and to top it all off, they then spritz on their favorite perfume. Even trash bags are scented! People are completely oblivious to the fact that every single, scented product they use can make sensitive people deathly ill. (And every year the number of "sensitive people" keeps getting larger....)

Most don't know these fragrances are man-made and toxic to human beings! And, unlike with natural allergens (such as pollens, dust mite excretions and pet dander), there is no antidote to perfume allergies. You cannot simply “take shots” to desensitize yourself. All you can do is to remove yourself from the offending person or product. (To find out more, please check out this link at WebMD.)

In my case, I immediately suffer swollen sinuses, headaches, sore throat and sore, “fluttering” lungs (which my allergist dubbed “perfume-induced asthma” resulting from “multiple chemical sensitivities” (MCS) which is also known as “idiopathic environmental intolerance.” One whiff of someone’s scented hairspray or favorite perfume is as toxic for me as inhaling Clorox bleach. As a result, I use only fragrance-free products in my house – which is the ONLY place I am truly safe from today’s toxic-scent-laden environment.

What I’m trying to illustrate here is that, basically, we've replaced the smoking scourge with a chemical scourge which is just as bad or worse for the millions of MCS sufferers (most of whom suffer in silence). I “suffered in silence” again recently, while sitting in a doctor’s office waiting room when someone guy’s cologne walked in ahead of him and crawled up my nose like burning cinders, which gave me an instant, violent headache.

As always, I didn't say anything because I know from experience that commenting only provokes hard feelings and/or the "deer in the headlights look - so, as usual, I immediately left and waited for my appointment standing outside the waiting room.

I’m thinking that, perhaps it’s time the “silent sufferers” band together and demand that public places offer closed rooms for people with MCS, because – as with the smoking scourge – it’s going to take decades of begging and pleading and protests and outrage directed against the perfume and fragrance industries to induce any changes.

In the meantime, I guess, people like me will just have to continue suffering and doing our best to get away from the clueless hordes who don’t realize they are walking, talking, toxic chemical dumps who literally make people sick with their favorite scents by their mere presence. They just don't get it. I know that from experience.

Y’shua is NOT a vampire!

"Counter-missionaries" (traditional Jews and/or converts who attempt to "prove" that Yeshua is NOT the Messiah and that the New Testament is a farce) will often use the following scripture to show "Jesus" can't be real because God would never demand that you eat His flesh or drink His blood - something that supposedly suggests he is a "vampire."

Let's put this outrageously ridiculous MISUNDERSTOOD scripture into its proper context with the help of footnotes from Andrew Gabriel Roth's Aramaic English New Testament:

John 6:53 And Y'shua said to them, Amen, amen I say to you, that unless you eat the body of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in Qnoma. 54. And he who eats from my body and drinks from my blood has life that is everlasting, and I will raise him up on the last day. 55. For truly my body is food and truly my blood is drink. 56. He who eats my body and drinks my blood abides in me and I in him.

57. As the Living Father has sent me, and I live because of the Father, and whoever eats of me he also will live because of me. 58. This is the Bread that has descended from Heaven. It is not as manna your forefathers ate and died. He who eats this Bread will live forever! 59. He said these things while he taught in the assembly in Capurnakhum. 60. And many who heard it of his disciples said, "This saying is hard! Who is able to do it?"

61. But Y'shua knew in himself that his disciples were argueing about this, and he said to them, This offends you! 62. What if, therefore, you see the Son of man ascending to the place that he was before? 63. It is the Spirit that makes alive; the body does not profit anything. The words that I speak with you are spirit and are life. (Aramaic English New Testament)

FOOTNOTE:

Qnoma, usually translated here as "you", "self", or "yourselves", but literally means "Underlying substance." The body/blood imagery is metaphoric. Y'shua, of course, knows very well that it is an abomination to drink any kind of blood, let alone human blood (Leviticus 17:11). Consuming human flesh is also an abomination that is strictly prohibited. Rabbis even suggest that part of the reason swine's flesh is forbidden is because it resembles human skin.

There are two underlying parts: Part 1 recalls the imagery of Ezekiel 3:1-15 where the prophet actually ate a Torah scroll; the imagery symbolizing the prophet being sustained by and proclaiming Torah, which is the essence of what Y'shua is teaching. Y'shua's example and teaching are to be part of our innermost being, literally taken in and ingested into our hearts.

This imagery is also seen in Mark 7:19 which distinguishes between physical food and spiritual (heart) "food", and Jeremiah 31:33 which speaks of writing Torah upon the heart.

Part 2, is the life which Y'shua refers to; it is not physicality, as "self", but the core essence of being, literally of the neshama, (spirit of man).

"He who eats this Bread will live forever!" is clear evidence that opposes the "communion" model of mainstream Christian institutions. Nothing is being eaten while Y'shua is making this statement; he had just levied a rebuke for their desire of physical rather than spiritual "bread." It is Faith in Y'shua as Mashiyach which causes a person to "eat the flesh and drink the blood."

The "wafer" (transubstitution) is a Pagan adulteration against Y'shua's teaching. Y'shua observed Torah to perfection; his perfect atoning sacrifice would be remembered specifically on the Moedim (YHWH's feasts) as the Word of YHWH instructs.

As the "body does not profit anything," then neither can ingesting a wafer that symbolizes the body! Sin is violation of Torah. The absolution of sin begins with Teshuva (turning to YHWH). Faith in Mashiyach is evidence that the Ruach haKodesh has begun to write Torah upon the heart. Obedience to Torah as the Word of YHWH is the process of Sanctification, which is the setting apart of YHWH's people unto Himself, from all manner of worldliness and false religion. No volume of wafer-ism or canned prayer in or about Mashiyach will provide an acceptable substitute to being born into the Image of Elohim!

What is the solution to the “illegal immigrant” problem?

Every day the media inundates us with endless horror stories about the illegal immigrants that keep flocking into the United States. We are constantly reminded about how “badly” the US government is handling the situation, bombarding us with images of the “hideous and inhumane treatment” these illegals receive.

It’s no secret that these poor unfortunates are fleeing hardships of various kinds and/or persecution from their own weak governments consisting of corrupt or impotent leaders; and demanding the U.S. take them in because they’ve heard we are a “tolerant” nation…

However, the illustrious leftist, liberal media types are very careful to keep from mentioning and driving home the obvious: That these people (consisting of a mixture of decent, honorable people intermingled with criminals and homeless, etc.) are crossing the borders ILLEGALLY, FORCING their way into the United States, EXPECTING and DEMANDING asylum and the basic necessities of life!

Nobody ever presents any remedies or solutions. They’re all too busy pointing fingers and inciting riots against the supposed injustice. Nobody ever bothers to mention the USA is among the very FEW countries to actually allow illegals to stick around, once they’ve crossed the border….

What these “talking heads” ALSO fail to mention is that, it’s one thing to allow foreigners to enter the United States LEGALLY; but to attempt to take on an endless string of ILLEGALS that have to be fed, clothed and housed on tax-payer dollars, is national suicide!

While we should certainly feel sorry and be compassionate for all those fleeing hardships, death and persecution, we MUST remember that civilized countries HAVE to have rules and regulations that exist to enforce laws and ensure fair and equal treatment for every citizen.

For instance, the U.S. government exists to "establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our posterity."

Without these rules and regulations, the ensuing chaos would result in our extinction! Unfortunately, many seem unable to grasp that fact…

Since our government officials and the liberals (including the bleeding heart media) haven’t bothered to come up with any viable solutions, and cannot even compromise on a possible solution, I’m going to posit the following:

SOLUTION 1:

Continue to allow the media to skew the facts as illegals continue to force their way across ours borders, and make sure to provide them free food, clothes, housing, medical care and counseling - AND let hard-working American tax payers continue to foot the bill while the illegals sit in camps on the borders for however many years it takes.

SOLUTION 2:

• BUILD that wall to keep them out, thus sending a signal that the USA has stopped being the world’s “sugar-daddy.”

• Assign a family of illegals to every bleeding-heart liberal in the U.S. Said liberal must sign legal documents assuming responsibility for every aspect of the welfare of their adopted illegal family, for as long as it takes. They will be responsible for helping their illegal family find jobs, and generally tend to all their needs until the illegals become financially independent enough to receive their American citizenship and can prove they are able to become productive members of American society.

SOLUTION 3:

Encourage the world’s governments to form a coalition with one goal in mind: To forcibly oust the leaders/government of EVERY country causing its citizens to flee wars, terrorism, unbearable hardships and persecution, etc., and then RESTORE that government to properly “manage the population and ensure fair and equal treatment for every citizen, establish Justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty.”

The bottom line is: We need SOLUTIONS; not endless accusations, in-fighting, whining or finger-pointing against our own government! We have our own problems in this country, too numerous to mention here....

Recommended reading….

If you like books about survivors of sexual abuse, then you’ll love my autobiography, Rags to Rabbi.  It’s a true survivor story about a little Jewish girl (me), born into extreme poverty in post-war Germany, given away at birth, and then forcefully removed from a loving foster home at age nine and taken to the United States by my natural mother - a prostitute who had married an American soldier, who happened to be a raving pedophile.

Of course, there were many hard times and after high school I joined the US Army to get away from everything. Unfortunately, "the enemy" has a way of keeping us subdued and bogged down with the baggage of our past. Suffice it to say, there was a huge behind-the-scenes struggle for my soul, but YHWH won, and today I spend ALL my time working for Him, to the best of my ability. (Halleluyah - He gets ALL the glory!) You can find a more comprehensive outline of my book by clicking on this link.

Our job as believers….

Not to equate our own work with that of Ezekiel, but should we be any less than Ezekiel and not warn both the righteous who have turned away and the wicked who were not aware?

Ezekiel 3:

17 "Human being, I have appointed you to be a watchman for the house of Isra'el. When you hear a word from my mouth, you are to warn them for me.

18 If I say to a wicked person, 'You will certainly die'; and you fail to warn him, to speak and warn the wicked person to leave his wicked way and save his life; then that wicked person will die guilty; and I will hold you responsible for his death.

19 On the other hand, if you warn the wicked person, and he doesn't turn from his wickedness or his wicked way, then he will still die guilty; but you will have saved your own life.

20 Similarly, when a righteous person turns away from his righteousness and commits wickedness, I will place a stumblingblock before him - he will die; because you failed to warn him, he will die in his sin; his righteous acts which he did will not be remembered; and I will hold you responsible for his death.

21 But if you warn the righteous person that a righteous person should not sin, and he doesn't sin; then he will certainly live, because he took the warning; and you too will have saved your life."  (CJB)

Parashah 38: Korach (Korah) Numbers 16:1 through 18:32

Shabbat shalom, mishpocah/friends/family!  As always, a synopsis of this week’s Torah portion can be found on our website.

This lesson reveals exactly who is in charge! We see what happens when people rebel against YHWH, and we see Him choosing Aharon as the High Priest of the Redeemed Community. And we also see Him confirming the appointment of the Levi'im as Aharon's assistants, and explaining the ways in which the priests, the Levi'im and the rest of the tribes were to interact.

Numbers 16 unfolds with Korach rebelling against Moshe and causing others to rebel with him - some who were "leaders of the community, key members of the council, men of reputation" (vs. 1-3). BIG MISTAKE! (This reflects Yeshua's warning in Mark 13:22: For false Messiahs and lying prophets will give signs and wonders and will deceive even the elect if it is possible.)

Korach of the Tribe of the Levi family of K'hat was an ambitious, talented, self confident, aggressive individual who felt that the community did not appreciate his talents and abilities. He clearly believed that he has been slighted by his assigned position of levitical duty. After all, each time the instruction to break camp arose, it was Aharon and his sons who would go into the Tabernacle and cover the holy furnishings and utensils for transport, while Korach couldn't even touch them, and could only carry them on poles.

Now watch what happens when Moshe's righteous anger explodes at Korach's insolence:

Numbers 16: 1 Now Korach the son of Yitz'har, the son of K'hat, the son of Levi, along with Datan and Aviram, the sons of Eli'av, and On, the son of Pelet, descendants of Re'uven, took men and 2 rebelled against Moshe. Siding with them were 250 men of Isra'el, leaders of the community, key members of the council, men of reputation. 3 They assembled themselves against Moshe and Aharon and said to them, "You take too much on yourselves! After all, the entire community is holy, every one of them, and ADONAI is among them. So why do you lift yourselves up above ADONAI's assembly?"

For more, please click on the link above!

How can I hear God's voice?

READER QUESTION: I was curious to know if there are any scriptures relating to hearing YHWH's (Yahweh's) voice and distinguishing his voice from your own line of thinking. For some reason I struggle with that notion. How would I know if I am using my own line of thinking or YHWH's?

OUR RESPONSE:

GREAT QUESTION! We see in the Scriptures that YHWH occasionally spoke with an audible voice:

Exodus 33:11 tells us that he spoke to Moshe (Moses) "face to face" (see, also, Numbers 12:7-8, Deuteronomy 34:10). He also spoke to Joshua (Joshua 1:1) and Samuel (1 Sam. 3:1-14). A voice from the heavens was heard when Yeshua was baptized by John (Matt. 3:17, Mark 1:11, Luke 3:22) and from a cloud that appeared when Yeshua was transfigured on a high mountain (Matt. 17:5, Mark 9:7).

And Paul and his traveling companions heard his voice when Paul was struck blind on his way to Damascus to murder Messianic believers (Acts 9:4).

The Bible offers the only written words/messages from YHWH to us today. Unlike in ancient times, no one today (especially in the "Western World") has the excuse of not being able to read, and therefore, not knowing what the Bible says.

(Unfortunately, many listen to all kinds of false teachers and teachings and "prophets" whose messages are designed to lead us astray, and they are consequently left in the dark about the real messages in the Bible!) The Bible is our ONLY blueprint for moral, holy living!

People can receive messages through the Ruach haKodesh (Holy Spirit) as YHWH speaks to us in various ways:

• Through the Bible: The Bible is YHWH's living word. Sometimes a passage "jumps out at us" which seems to be exactly "what we needed to hear" at a certain point in time. Often, particular verses come to mind while we read and/or pray, and God uses some of them to speak to us. Hebrews 4:12-13 reminds us that "the word of YHWH is alive" and "sharper than any double edged sword!" This suggests we must continually be reading the Bible if we are seeking God's wisdom and Will in our lives.

• Through prayer: YHWH's Voice is similar to the "voice" of our conscience. Over time we learn to recognize His Voice as He places thoughts into our minds. Of course, we must learn to weigh against the Scriptures whatever we feel we are "hearing"....

• Through others: YHWH often uses others either directly (by causing them to "hear" a message for us), or sometimes in more subtle ways such that they themselves are often unaware that they're being used. For instance, during the course of a conversation with someone, we "suddenly" recognize they gave us the answer to something we had been seeking. Again, whatever is said MUST be weighed against the Scriptures! If someone says, "God gave me a word for you: I think you should go ahead with that divorce of yours and not bother to try to reconcile with your spouse" - then you know that did NOT come from God, because YHWH says He HATES divorce (Malachi 2:16)!

• Through visions or dreams. Through the Ruach, God often gives us certain visions or dreams containing, perhaps just some words that "stick with us"; or entire scenarios that we "just know" were meant for us. Again, these visions/dreams MUST line up with the Bible!

It cannot be reiterated enough that, before relying on words, visions or dreams to guide or direct our lives, they should be carefully tested and clearly applicable. If you "hear" or "feel" a message from God, it HAS to line up 100 percent with what the Bible says. If you "hear" or "dream" that you are supposed to murder your neighbor or seduce your neighbor's wife, that is obviously NOT a message from YHWH!

Biblical proof that the “lunar Shabbat” idea is completely inaccurate

John 7: 19. Did not Moshe give you Torah, yet not a man among you kept Torah?[1] 20. Why do you want to kill me? The crowd answered and said, “You have a demon! Who wants to kill you?” 21. Y’shua answered and said to them, One work I have done and all of you marvel! 22. Because of this, Moshe gave circumcision to you. It was not because it was from him, Moshe, but from the patriarchs; yet you circumcise a man on the day of the Shabbat. 23. If a man is circumcised on the day of the Shabbat so that the Torah of Moshe not be loosed, why do you argue against me because the man I have made whole on the day[2] of the Shabbat? 24. Do not be judging by hypocrisy, rather judge with a just judgment. (AENT)

FOOTNOTES:

[1] The Pharisees face a very stern rebuke here from Y’shua for not keeping the Torah of Moshe; his language could not be stronger. Y’shua’s teaching comes from the “divine” side (qnoma) within him. It is YHWH who is speaking through Mashiyach Y’shua. By contrast, “not a man among you,” not one Pharisee, is keeping Torah. The message is clear; Y’shua in effect is saying, “who are you to judge me when you don’t practice what you preach?” Even as a child from Galeela, Y’shua had a flawless understanding of Torah. Y’shua never lived one standard for himself while teaching another to the Pharisees, and another to his Jewish followers, and yet another for non-Jews. See Matthew 5:20.

[2] This event is in active participle form in Aramaic, indicating that it is unfolding into the immediate present. As a result, this verse clearly invalidates the false theory of a lunar Shabbat. This cannot be referring to a miracle on any other time but, rather, at that moment on that day – since that selfsame moment is called the Shabbat day!

Y’shua states that a day between the first and last days of Sukkot is the Shabbat. That being the case, the Shabbat is by definition, falling on a day other than the 1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd or 29th day of the month. This imperative clearly nullifies the lunar Shabbat falsehood; it is validated by Aramaicists and authoritative Aramaic grammars of both Christian and Jewish persuasion. Neither is there any historical documentation among Netzarim followers of Y’shua regarding the observance of a lunar Shabbat.

Nor do Jewish historians such as Yoseph ben Mattathias (Josephus) support the theory that Y’shua’s talmidim observed a lunar Shabbat. Had Y’shua or his talmidim adopted lunar Shabbat observance, the Rabbinical world would have raked them over the coals, but no such thing is evidenced in Jewish writings.

Here's MORE proof that the lunar Shabbat is WRONG!

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. (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)

Leviticus 23: 3 " 'There are six days when you may work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, a day of sacred assembly. You are not to do any work; wherever you live, it is a Sabbath to the LORD. (CJB)

Exodus 16: 23 He told them, "This is what ADONAI has said: 'Tomorrow is a holy Shabbat for ADONAI. Bake what you want to bake; boil what you want to boil; and whatever is left over, set aside and keep for the morning.'" 24 They set it aside till morning, as Moshe had ordered; and it didn't rot or have worms.

25 Moshe said, "Today, eat that; because today is a Shabbat for ADONAI - today you won't find it in the field. 26 Gather it six days, but the seventh day is the Shabbat - on that day there won't be any."

27 However, on the seventh day, some of the people went out to gather and found none. 28 ADONAI said to Moshe, "How long will you refuse to observe my mitzvot and teachings?

29 Look, ADONAI has given you the Shabbat. This is why he is providing bread for two days on the sixth day. Each of you, stay where you are; no one is to leave his place on the seventh day." 30 So the people rested on the seventh day. (CJB)

Father, thank You for the storms of life!

You know "the enemy" hates you, right? He especially hates those who are on YHWH's Path and refuse to veer from it. That's why so many "bad things happen to good people." There's a constant battle going on, and YOU are standing at the center of the battle field, whether you like it or not.

True Believers WILL stand strong, no matter what the enemy throws at us. Just like Job, we know that YHWH's got our back, and we're told that "those who endure to the end will be saved!" (Matthew 24:13)

So, keep your eyes on YHWH/Yeshua/Torah and never, ever let the enemy get you down. He's knocking himself out to take as many as possible away from Truth - because he knows how The Book ends! HALLELUYAH!

STAND STRONG, brothers and sisters! Check out this passage which pretty much explains it all:

Ecclesiastes 9:1 I applied myself to all of this, sifted through it and concluded that the righteous and the wise, along with their deeds, are in God's hands - a person cannot know whether these people and deeds will be rewarded with love or with hatred; all options are open. 2 Anything can happen to anyone; the same thing can happen to the righteous as to the wicked, to the good and clean and to the unclean, to someone who offers a sacrifice and to someone who doesn't offer a sacrifice; it is the same for a good person as for a sinner, for someone who takes an oath rashly as for someone who fears to take an oath.

3 This is another evil among all those done under the sun, that the same events can occur to anyone. Truly, the human mind is full of evil; and as long as people live, folly is in their hearts; after which they go to be with the dead. 4 For as long as a person is linked with the living, there is hope - better to be a living dog than a dead lion! 5 For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing; there is no longer any reward for them, because all memory of them is lost. 6 What they loved, what they hated and what they envied all disappeared long ago, and they no longer have a share in anything done under the sun. 7 So go, eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a happy heart, for God has already accepted your deeds.

8 Let your clothing always be white, and never fail to perfume your head. 9 Enjoy life with the wife you have loved throughout your meaningless life that he has given you under the sun, all the days of your futility; for that is your allotted portion in life and in your labor that you work at under the sun. 10 Whatever task comes your way to do, do it with all your strength; because in Sh'ol, where you will go, there is neither working nor planning, neither knowledge nor wisdom. 11 Yet another thing I observed under the sun is that races aren't won by the swift or battles by the strong, and that food doesn't go to the wise or wealth to the intelligent or favor to the experts; rather, time and chance rule them all.

12 For people don't know when their time will come any more than fish taken in the fatal net or birds caught in a snare; similarly, people are snared at an unfortunate time, when suddenly it falls on them. 13 Here is something else I have seen as wisdom under the sun, and it seemed important to me: 14 there was a small town with few people in it; and a great king came to attack it; he surrounded it and built massive siege-works against it. 15 Now there was found in it a man who was poor but wise, and by his wisdom he saved the city; yet afterwards, nobody remembered that poor man. 16 So, although I say that wisdom is better than strength, nevertheless the poor man's wisdom is despised; nobody pays attention to what he says. 17 A wise man speaking quietly is more worth heeding than the shouts of a ruler commanding fools. 18 Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but a person who makes a mistake can destroy much good. (CJB)

For more, please read my article, called, Lord, thank You for the storm!

Y’shua’s teachings did not come from himself!

Some are under the false impression that Y'shua brought "his own commandments," and that these are somehow “new and improved” over the ones given in Torah. But that is simply not true. How can we know this? By re-reading what he said. Y'shua's words, commandments and commands, were ALL according to, and validated by, Torah! Take a look:

Luke 24:44 Yeshua said to them, "This is what I meant when I was still with you and told you that everything written about me in the Torah of Moshe, the Prophets and the Psalms had to be fulfilled." (CJB)

John 5:39 You search the Scriptures, because you think you possess everlasting life in them. And these are the ones that bear witness of Me. 40 “But you do not desire to come to Me in order to possess life. 

41 I do not receive esteem from men, 42 but I know you, that you do not have the love of Elohim in you. 43 I have come in My Father’s Name and you do not receive Me, if another comes in his own name, him you would receive. 44 How are you able to believe, when you are receiving esteem from one another, and the esteem that is from the only Elohim you do not seek?

45 Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you: Mosheh, in whom you have set your expectation. 46 For if you believed Mosheh, you would have believed Me, since he wrote about Me. 47 But if you do not believe his writings, how shall you believe My words? (ISR)

Y'shua constantly makes it very clear that his teachings do not come from himself.

John 7:16. Y’shua answered and said, My teaching is not mine, rather it is of He who has sent me. 17. He who desires to do His will can comprehend my teaching, if it is from Elohim, or if from my own will I speak. 18. He who speaks from his own mind seeks glory for himself, but he who seeks the glory of He who sent him is true and there is no iniquity in his heart. (AENT)

John 12:49 For I have not spoken on my own initiative, but the Father who sent me has given me a command, namely, what to say and how to say it. 50 And I know that his command is eternal life. So what I say is simply what the Father has told me to say." (CJB)

John 14::10 Don't you believe that I am united with the Father, and the Father united with me? What I am telling you, I am not saying on my own initiative; the Father living in me is doing his own works. 11 Trust me, that I am united with the Father, and the Father united with me. But if you can't, then trust because of the works themselves. (CJB)

John 14: 24 Someone who doesn't love me doesn't keep my words -- and the word you are hearing is not my own but that of the Father who sent me. 25 "I have told you these things while I am still with you. 26 But the Counselor, the Ruach HaKodesh, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything; that is, he will remind you of everything I have said to you. 27 "What I am leaving with you is shalom -- I am giving you my shalom. I don't give the way the world gives. Don't let yourselves be upset or frightened. (CJB)

Matthew 24:35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.(AENT)

Mark 8:38 38 For if someone is ashamed of me and of what I say in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man also will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels. (CJB)

John 15: 7. Now if you abide in me and my words abide in you, anything that you desire to ask will be given to you. (AENT)

John 15: 12 "This is my command: that you keep on loving each other just as I have loved you. (CJB)

John 10: 30. I and the Father are one. (AENT)

Parashah 37: Shlach L'kha (Send on your behalf) Numbers 13:1 through 15:41

Shabbat shalom, everyone!  A synopsis of this week’s Torah portion, as always, can be found on our website.  This portion is all about TRUST in YHWH … and what happens when He finally loses patience!

In this Torah portion we discover why the Israelites ended up in the desert for 40 years: They didn't trust YHWH! So, instead of just FOUR years of learning to live under His Divine Guidance, they reaped a sentence of FORTY years!

This reading describes the sin of the spies who entered the Land and brought back a negative report of obstacles they feared could not be overcome. Only Caleb and Joshua returned with the encouraging words; they had complete faith and understood that if God desired Israel, He would give them the Land, and no power could stand in His way.

Beginning in Numbers 13:1, we see that YHWH, recognizing that Moshe couldn't possibly do everything himself, ordered Moshe to "send men on your behalf to reconnoiter the land of Kena'an,which I am giving to the people of Isra'el. From each ancestral Tribe send someone who is the leader of his tribe."

These leaders then went to check out the land, knowing full well that YHWH had already promised it to them! But rather than trusting that YHWH was going to keep His promise and help them conquer the land, they came back full of fear about the huge, fierce Nephilim who lived there. All but Kalev/Caleb and Y'Hoshua/Joshua voiced their fear and reported their opinions (sounds much like today's politicians who operate completely without God), thus sending the entire community of Isra'el into dismay.

Numbers 14: 1 At this all the people of Isra'el cried out in dismay and wept all night long. 2 Moreover, all the people of Isra'el began grumbling against Moshe and Aharon; the whole community told them, "We wish we had died in the land of Egypt! or that we had died here in the desert! 3 Why is ADONAI bringing us to this land, where we will die by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will be taken as booty! Wouldn't it be better for us to return to Egypt?" 4 And they said to each other, "Let's appoint a leader and return to Egypt!"

And so, naturally, YHWH once again becomes angry with his people:

Numbers 14: 10 But just as the whole community were saying they should be stoned to death, the glory of ADONAI appeared in the tent of meeting to all the people of Isra'el. 11 ADONAI said to Moshe, "How much longer is this people going to treat me with contempt? How much longer will they not trust me, especially considering all the signs I have performed among them? 12 I am going to strike them with sickness, destroy them and make from you a nation greater and stronger than they are!"

And, as usual, Moshe interceded on their behalf (see Numbers 14: 13-19)....But watch what happens!

Numbers 14: 26 ADONAI said to Moshe and Aharon, 27 "How long am I to put up with this evil community who keep grumbling about me? I have heard the complaints of the people of Isra'el, which they continue to raise against me….

Numbers 14: 31 But your little ones, who you said would be taken as booty - them I will bring in. They will know the land you have rejected. 32 But you, your carcasses will fall in this desert; 33 and your children will wander about in the desert for forty years bearing the consequences of your prostitutions until the desert eats up your carcasses. 34 It will be a year for every day you spent reconnoitering the land that you will bear the consequences of your offenses - forty days, forty years. Then you will know what it means to oppose me! 35 I, ADONAI, have spoken.' I will certainly do this to this whole evil community who have assembled together against me - they will be destroyed in this desert and die there."  (CJB)

For more, please click on the link above!

A word about homosexual decadence

Here's part of why America is going down the tubes! I have nothing against homosexuals as human beings created by YHWH. But, I am truly incensed by the homosexuals’ insistence on shoving their perversion into the world's collective face.

It's bad enough that heterosexual decadence, for almost a century now, has been part of our lives, thanks to the movie industry. What God created to be the most loving form of intimacy between husbands and wives has been exploited, perverted and abused and turned into something filthy and vile - something that belongs in the underworld where demons reside.

And today, the same America that has readily accepted and glorified heterosexual decadence without batting an eye, has allowed itself to be brainwashed into believing that homosexual perversion is completely normal and should be proudly paraded around like some prize race horse that has just won a Triple Crown.

SHAME ON AMERICA!. Shame on this “gay” Democrat! No matter what “the world” thinks, YHWH calls this kind of behavior an ABOMINATION!

Leviticus 18: 22 - You are not to go to bed with a man as with a woman; it is an abomination.

Romans 1: 22 Claiming to be wise, they have become fools! 23 In fact, they have exchanged the glory of the immortal God for mere images, like a mortal human being, or like birds, animals or reptiles! 24 This is why God has given them up to the vileness of their hearts' lusts, to the shameful misuse of each other's bodies. 25 They have exchanged the truth of God for falsehood, by worshiping and serving created things, rather than the Creator - praised be he for ever. Amen.

26 This is why God has given them up to degrading passions; so that their women exchange natural sexual relations for unnatural; 27 and likewise the men, giving up natural relations with the opposite sex, burn with passion for one another, men committing shameful acts with other men and receiving in their own persons the penalty appropriate to their perversion.

28 In other words, since they have not considered God worth knowing, God has given them up to worthless ways of thinking; so that they do improper things. 29 They are filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and vice; stuffed with jealousy, murder, quarreling, dishonesty and ill-will; they are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God; they are insolent, arrogant and boastful; they plan evil schemes; they disobey their parents; 31 they are brainless, faithless, heartless and ruthless.

32 They know well enough God's righteous decree that people who do such things deserve to die; yet not only do they keep doing them, but they applaud others who do the same. (CJB)

A mini-lesson on “clean” and “unclean” meats

I recently saw someone making the comment that Gentiles can eat whatever they want because God had Noah include both “clean” and “unclean” animals on the ark. This train of thought is not correct, and Scripture, when read in context, reveals why.

You see, first of all, when we accept YHWH as our God and His Son as our Messiah, we are actually no longer considered “Gentiles.” We are “Hebrew” (which, in Hebrew means, “to cross over” – which is what Abraham did back in Genesis 12 when he accepted YHWH as his God and thus “crossed over” both spiritually and physically into the Land God told him to move to).

This means, we ALL must obey His Torah - Divine Instruction in Righteousness, without which we would have no blueprint for moral, holy living. (See Numbers 15:13-16, where He says four times in a row that ALL who accept Him must do exactly as His people do...)

Secondly, YHWH is very clear about the types of meat He considers “clean” and “unclean.” (See Leviticus 11 to discover what separates "clean" and "unclean" meats.). He made both clean and unclean animals, sea life and birds for a purpose; but He also made it clear that His people are NOT to eat anything "unclean."

The purpose of "unclean" animals is to be the "garbage disposals" of the world. Crabs, lobsters and other shellfish are designed to clean up the waters of the world. Crows and hawks and other carnivorous birds eat whatever they want, including roadkill, which helps to rid the land of any dead and decaying wildlife.

YHWH doesn't want us eating those types of things, in part, because, by eating them, we ingest whatever they have eaten which, in turn, makes US unclean...

Everything ADONAI ever commanded is for our own good, and therefore, those who belong to Him MUST obey His dietary laws. If they don’t, then whom are they worshiping?

Let’s discuss Matthew 2:23 in context

Matthew 2:23 tells us Messiah would be called “Nazarene” and the prophet Isaiah gave us a hint about this. Isaiah 11:1 says: “But a branch will emerge from the trunk of Yishai, a shoot will grow from his roots.”

Aramaic scholar and author Andrew Gabriel Roth of the website One Faith One People Ministries explains that the word netzer is Hebrew for “young shoot” or “sprout” and it does refer to the Messiah because Isaiah 11, verses 2 through 4 go on to reveal the “spiritual branches” of the Menorah as attributes of Messiah! Even in the Talmud, Sanhedrin 43a, recognizes Isaiah 11:1 as a prophecy of the Messiah and renders the word netzer as a branch – netzer being the key to this whole mystery.

Without going into a deep word study, other prophets reveal Messiah, as the “Branch” but use the Hebrew term tzemach, thus eliminating the obvious wordplay by Matthew. The prophet Daniel uses the word netzer, but not in the context of Messianic prophecy. Still, netzer is the basis for the name Nazareth, which at that time was a very small village in the Land of Israel.

Here is what Roth says concerning this issue:

Y’shua (as opposed to "Jesus") means "Yahweh is salvation". It is the shortened form of YEHOSHUA (Joshua in English, again, not "Jesus"). Moshe told the nation that THE PROPHET would come after him that the people must listen to, so is it any coincidence that THE PROPHET has the SAME NAME as Moshe's successor? In Zechariah 6:1-12 we are told (actually starting in chapter 3, and then into 6) that the high priest and his colleagues are "symbols of things to come" and of the high priest, "here is the man WHOSE NAME IS THE BRANCH", not that he IS the branch, but his NAME is the branch.

Well, it so happens that Messiah is from "Branch City", NETZER-ET (Nazareth), and Messiah is called the RIGHTEOUS BRANCH (see Isaiah 11:1-2 and Jeremiah 23:5-6). So the name of the branch and the name of the Messiah are ONE AND THE SAME, and the name of the high priest? YEHOSHUA! Fast forward 500 years later and the Hebrew dialect changed to shorten the name to Y'shua.

This is an integral part of Messianic prophecy. In Exodus 23:20-22 YHWH warns the Israelites of a messenger who will lead them. He gives a proviso for this messenger: He will NOT forgive your sin. Now why say this? Has any “messenger” EVER been able to forgive sin? No, but as Y'shua said, "Which is easier to say? That your sins are forgiven or to the paralyzed, "Arise and walk, take up your pallet and go home? BUT SO YOU WILL KNOW THE SON OF MAN HAS THE AUTHORITY TO FORGIVE SINS, I say, Arise and walk." (See Daniel 7:1-14). In Hebrew the word for MESSENGER--malakh--can also be pointed to mean MELECH (king). This is a remez (a hint).

So, understanding all that, also understand that since only YHWH can forgive sin, Y'shua must be God to do so also, and it is this role conducting YHWH's Ruach that Messiah filtered through his human voice to proclaim YHWH's kingdom on earth. (In other words, the Son of Man/Messiah, is given authority on earth to forgive sin by His Father in a way no angel, prophet or other messenger was. Such is apparent from Daniel chapter 7 and the two thrones. Y'shua comes in the Name and therefore in the power of his Father but his authority is NOT independent from his Father.)

This messenger/king then COULD forgive sin (or why warn that he won't?), and the reason he can is that, UNLIKE the ANGELS who have only the TITLE of ELOHIM within their own names (such as Gabri-EL, Rapha-EL and Micha-EL), Y’shua HAS THE NAME ABOVE ALL NAMES within HIS Name - Exodus 23:20-22 says clearly 'FOR MY NAME IS IN HIM". Yahweh has ONE NAME and there is ONE NAME under heaven by which men are saved, as seen in Acts 4:12.

Messiah Y’shua comes in the NAME, and therefore POWER, of his Father YHWH. As the Word of YHWH, He was with the Father in the beginning (John 1:1, 17:5 and Revelation 19:13). The Father gives life to the Son (John 10) and the Son then has the power to lay that life down freely and pick it up again, thus allowing the rest of us access to eternal life.

Y'shua came to bring glory to his Father YHWH, to show the proper interpretation (fulfillment, if you will) of the Torah and to bring Pharisee and tax collector alike back to the WRITTEN CODE of Moshe and away from Oral Law, making statements such as: "You have heard that it was SAID, but I SAY TO YOU....If you believed Moshe, you would have believed me, for he wrote of me, but if you do not believe Moshe, how will you believe what I say?--Did not Moshe give you the Torah? Yet not ONE MAN AMONG YOU KEEPS THE TORAH!")

It’s quite understandable that Judaism would reject the Torah-less “Jesus” described by most of Christianity; but it’s incomprehensible to think that ANYONE would reject the Torah-observant “Y’shua” who came proclaim the Kingdom of YHWH and to do everything his Father commanded! (Luke 4:43, 8:1; Acts 24:14)  Consider Exodus 23 verses 20 – 23 where YHWH talks about a special messenger who has HIS Name residing within his own. This can only be referring to Y’shua because Y’shua is the ONLY Heavenly Being who has YHWH’s Name within His own name! All the angels/messengers only have His Title (ELOHIM) within their names: Micha-EL, Rapha-El, Gabri-El….)

John 17: 11. Henceforth, I will not be in the world, and these are in the world. And I am coming to Your presence. Kadosh Father, keep them by your Name, that which you have given to me, that they may be one as We are. 12. I was with them while I was in the world. I have kept them in your Name; those whom you have given to me, I have kept. And not a man of them is lost except for the son of perdition, that the Scriptures might be fulfilled. 13. And now I come to Your presence, and these things I speak in the world that my joy may be full in them. 14. I have given to them Your Word and the world hates them because they are not of the world as I am not of the world. world. (AENT)

Footnote: Y’shua keeps them in YHWH’s name so when we call upon YHWH in Y’shua’s name, we are calling on YHWH for Salvation. As the Name of YHWH is in Mashiyach, so are we to have the name of Mashiyach in us, which means that as followers of Y’shua we are to walk according to his righteousness, observe Torah and walk in the anointing of the Ruach haKodesh as Mashiyach demonstrated to us.

A mini-teaching on John 3:16 and related passages:

John 3:16 For Elohim so loved the world that He gave His only brought-forth Son, so that everyone who believes in Him should not perish but possess everlasting life. (ISR)

And what is “everlasting life?”

John 17:3 And this is everlasting life, that they should know You, the only true Elohim, and יהושע Messiah whom You have sent. (ISR)

And how can we know him?

1 John 2:6 He that says I am in him, is bound to walk according to his halacha. 7. My beloved, I write no new commandment to you, but the old Commandment which you had from the beginning; and the old Commandment is the Word which you have heard. (AENT)

… In other words, someone who claims to be continuing in union with Y’shua ought to conduct his life the way he did – by walking in Torah!

1 John 2:4. He who says I know Him and does not keep His Commandments (poqadona) is a liar and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word (miltha) in him, verily is the love of Elohim perfected; hereby we know that we are in Him. (AENT)

Let’s tie the verses above together using a footnote from the Aramaic English New Testament:

“Elohim is light” (1 John 1:5). Therefore, it can be argued that at Creation when YHWH said, “Let there be light” ( Genesis 1:3), that He in effect brought a part of Himself out to accomplish the creative act. The “Word” does this same feat, Psalm 33:6; John 1:1; a few lines earlier we read the “Word of Life.”

We have also seen before the direct linguistic relationship between the Hebrew and Aramaic roots for “Light” and “Torah” such as: “Your word (davar) is a lamp to my feet, a light (aur) to my path.” (Psalm 119:105) “For the commandment is a lamp. The teaching is a light (aur), and the way to life is the rebuke that disciplines.” (Proverbs 6:23) What makes this citation in Proverbs most profound is the word mitzvah (commandment), since tradition commonly calls the revelation at Sinai the Ten Commandments when in fact the Tanakh uses davarim (words)!

Keep this in mind while considering 1 John 2:4. Aramaic could not make a more forceful point. The fact is, poqadona and miltha are exceedingly close matches for their Hebrew counterparts mitzvah in Proverbs, and davar in Psalms. However, it is in this next passage that the full measure of John’s brilliance is shown:

1 John 2:7 My beloved, I do not write a new commandment to you, but an old commandment that you have had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard from the beginning. (AENT)

The Commandment is the Word, which comes from the beginning! We must now realize that to translate this as “his Commandments” is wrong, but “His Commandments” is correct. “His Commandments” is the WORD which came from the very beginning of time. Many fail to understand this truth: It is impossible for Torah to have passed away during the lifetime of the Shlichim if John himself writes about the Word they have heard from the beginning. What else could this WORD be, except the living Torah!

John is a native Aramaic speaker and follower of Y’shua who knows that the WORD (or the Torah of YHWH) comes from the “Light”; he states that Elohim is Light and that we abide in that Light when we do His Mitzvot/Poqadona/Commandments.

Furthermore, the interchanging of “Word” and “Commandment” simply does not happen in any other language except Hebrew and Aramaic, the “word that you have heard” is the Shema!

After all God did for them, they complained….

Our ELOHIM truly is patient, isn't He? My goodness, in this week's Torah portion - after all YHWH had done for His people - we saw the beginning of some whining by the Hebrews and the "mixed crowd" who had ultimately followed Moshe out of Egypt!

These people who had personally witnessed the Ten Plagues, and the parting the sea, etc., and who had all been receiving supernatural sustenance in the form of manna, were now lamenting that they missed the meat and goodies they used to enjoy in Egypt ... never mind that they had just been liberated from 400 years of slavery!

How very human! Aren't we all guilty of this? We pray for YHWH to "do" something for us; and then, when He does it, we become dissatisfied and want more or "better".....We humans are often a thankless, bottomless pit of needs and wants!

Anyway, note, in the following passage how "the mixed crowd" - the Gentiles - not only participated in the whining, but they actually instigated it and caused YHWH's people to incur His wrath.

Numbers 11: 1 But the people began complaining about their hardships to ADONAI. When ADONAI heard it, his anger flared up, so that fire from ADONAI broke out against them and consumed the outskirts of the camp. 2 Then the people cried to Moshe, Moshe prayed to ADONAI, and the fire abated. 3 That place was called Tav'erah [burning] because ADONAI's fire broke out against them.

4 Next, the mixed crowd that was with them grew greedy for an easier life; while the people of Isra'el, for their part, also renewed their weeping and said, "If only we had meat to eat! 5 We remember the fish we used to eat in Egypt - it cost us nothing! -and the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, the garlic! 6 But now we're withering away, we have nothing to look at but this man." (CJB)

So, yes, YHWH was VERY angry! Not only were they whining about their hardships and lack of meat, but they were also guilty of committing gossip against Moshe in the midst of their grumbling. And so, no one can blame Him for saying this:

Numbers 11: 18 "Tell the people, 'Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, and you will eat meat; because you cried in the ears of ADONAI, "If only we had meat to eat! We had the good life in Egypt!" All right, ADONAI is going to give you meat, and you will eat it. 19 You won't eat it just one day, or two days, or five, or ten, or twenty days, 20 but a whole month! -until it comes out of your nose and you hate it! -because you have rejected ADONAI, who is here with you, and distressed him with your crying and asking, "Why did we ever leave Egypt?"'" (CJB)

Wouldn't it be interesting to be able to time travel back to those days and personally SEE what YHWH's people endured, and to personally see the pillars of cloud and fire, etc.?

Parashah 36: B'ha'alotkha (When you set up) Numbers 8:1 through 12:16

Shabbat shalom, mishpocah!  A synopsis of this week’s Torah portion - Parashah 36: B'ha'alotkha (When you set up) Numbers 8:1 through 12:16 - can be found on our website on our Weekly Torah Studies page.

This week's parsha begins with God commanding Aaron the High Priest (Moses' brother) to light the Menorah every day in the Tabernacle. The Menorah's seven branches are bedecked with decorative cups, knobs and flowers – all fashioned from a single, solid piece of gold.

But then the Torah adds an interesting detail: "When you light the Menorah, be sure that the [six] outer lamps face the center" (Numbers 8:2). What do the six outer lamps represent, and why must they all face the seventh center stem?  To find out, please click on the link above!

Just two commandments?

Many folks seem to be under the erroneous impression that they don't have to bother keeping the Ten Commandments anymore (let alone the original "613"); but, rather, just TWO. And they will proudly cite a passage out of Matthew 22 as "proof":

Matthew 22: 36. "Teacher, which Commandment in Torah is the greatest?" 37. And Y'shua said to him, that "You should love Master YHWH your Elohim with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might and with all your mind." 38. This is the first and the greatest Commandment. 39. And the second is like it. That "You should love your neighbor as yourself." 40. On these two commandments hang Torah and the prophets. (AENT)

We would ask those who insist they only need to keep two commandments to please re-read verse 40 with the help of the Ruach haKodesh (Holy Spirit). Does verse 40 imply that all of God's original instructions have magically been done away with, or can be ignored, just because Jesus died? NO! The Torah and the Prophets HANG/ARE DEPENDENT ON those two commands!
There's more to it than just "loving God and loving your neighbor!" If you LOVE God, then stop trying to figure out ways to ignore His commands!

YHWH (Yahweh) gave us many rules/commands/"laws" that can be found scattered throughout the Torah, the first five Books of the Bible, which contains His Divine Instructions in Righteousness. We must understand, however, that the "numbering" of the original commandments was done by man, not by YHWH (Yahweh) Himself, which means there is no reason to worry about trying to keep "all 613 commands."

Not to mention that most of those "613" commands were directed at the cohens (priests) of the day; some were only for men; some only for women, and some were only for a certain time frame.
But some were meant to last FOREVER - and those are the ones that believers must pay attention to. For instance, please consider the Seventh Day Sabbath which is a SIGN between YHWH and His people:

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.'"
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.

People – Shabbat is one of the loving things we do for ADONAI that sets us apart from the rest of the world! He commanded His people to keep it! If you’re not keeping YHWH’s Shabbat, then WHO are you worshiping?

So, yes, while YHWH eventually recorded the TEN commandments in stone, (which encompass all commandments), we must remember, these ten are only part of the larger picture taken from YHWH's Torah which He said would stand forever – and forever hasn’t ended yet.