2 Timothy 1:6,Stir up. What in us needs stirring up from time to time? Simply this: boldness to share the gospel with those around us as we discuss in the next verse.
2 Timothy 1:7, Spirit of fear [Gr. deilia]. Deilia denotes “timidity or cowardice.” The opposite of deilia is shame (v. 8), but shame of what? The context is clear here. It shame of the testimony or gospel of Yeshua and of standing up for those who are being persecuted for preaching the gospel (v. 8). For fear of what others will think, too many believers fail to share the gospel with those around them. Yeshua referred to this as putting one’s lamp under a bushel basket when, instead, he called his disciples to be like light on a hill (Matt 5:13–15) and commissioned them to take the gospel to the world (Matt 28:18–20; Mark 16:14–18). For too many saints, the great commission has become the great omission!
For the sons of Elohim, there is nothing to fear!
What have the saints to fear when Yeshua has given them the victory over sin and death (1 Cor 15:54–56)? Nay, through Yeshua the Messiah, the saint can do all things (Phil 4:13), and has become more than a conqueror (Rom 8:37), for greater is he that is in us than he that is in the world (1 John 4:4). After all, if Elohim is for us, who can be against us (Rom 8:31)? This means that YHVH will give us the boldness to share the gospel message with those around us, even as he gave the early disciples the boldness to do so when they asked him for it in the face of life threatening persecution (Acts 4:23–31).
Power [Gr. dunamis]…love [Gr. agapē]…sound mind [Gr. sōphronismos]. Dunamis refers to miraculous power or strength. Agape denotes “affection or benevolence” and, in Scripture, refers to the love of Elohim for his Son, for the human race, believers for Yeshua, the saints for one another, and is a fruit of the Spirit.
Sōphronismos denotes “a well-balanced, self-controlled or disciplined mind.” In other words, YHVH has equipped the saint with everything he needs to counteract the natural tendency toward fear in difficult situations. We have the miraculous power of the Spirit of Elohim working within us, the fruit of the Spirit of love, and a well-balanced and self disciplined mental state that will give in neither to irrational nor to naturally occurring human fear in the face of difficult situations.
What is Paul saying here in contrast to the spirit of fear or timidity and being ashamed of the testimony of Yeshua (v. 8)? He is declaring that Elohim has given his saints the means, power and ability to share the gospel with those around them and to stand up for the testimony of Yeshua in the face of persecution rather than succumbing to the natural tendency to pull away in timidity or cowardice.
Elsewhere, John declare that there is no fear in love, that perfect love casts out fear, and that the saint’s source of love is from the Father in heaven (1 John 4:18–19). If we are full of the love of Yeshua for others, then we will neither be afraid of what they think nor will we be ashamed to share the gospel with them, for our desire to see them saved will override all fear including that of criticism, mocking or rejection by others. The example of this can be illustrated by a house that is on fire and that contains sleeping occupants who are unaware of the fire that is about to kill them. Without thinking and in total boldness, a good Samaritan will break into the house, rush in yelling and screaming for the people to wake up and escape. He will do so boldly and without concern for what those in the house may think. In a sense, this should be our approach to those around us who are spiritually lost and in danger of being cast into the lake of fire.
2 Timothy 1:9, Before time began.YHVH Elohim established his plan of salvation for mankind through the redemptive life and death of Yeshua the Messiah before the world began (Rev 17:8; Acts 15:18; Rom 16:25; Tit 1:2; 1 Pet 1:20). Additionally, YHVH has chosen each saint through Yeshua before the foundation of the world (Eph 1:14; Rom 87:29–30; 11:2; Acts 18:38). That is, he knew each person by name who would accept his gift of salvation (Rev 13:8; 17:8) and, by implication, he also knew those who wouldn’t. Moreover, the kingdom of Elohim or heaven has been prepared for the saints from or before the foundation of the world (Matt 25:35).
2 Timothy 1:10, Life [Gr. zoe] and immortality [Gr. aphtharsia]. Zoe refers to life in it all of its aspects both in physical and spiritual dimensions. Aphtharsia denotes “incorruptibility or generally unending existence.” Through Yeshua, the saint has both physical and spiritual life that will extend past the final curtain of physical death and will continue unendingly into eternity. This is the message and power of the gospel in a person’s life through a relationship with Yeshua.
1 Timothy 4:1–3 Doctrines of demons…forbidding to marry…abstain from foods [Gr. broma].
Asceticism—A Doctrine of Demons
When Paul speaks of “doctrines of demons” and then goes on to mention “to abstain from foods which Elohim created” is he referring to the biblical dietary laws as many Christians scholars assert? If not, that what social and cultural forces of that day were affecting the saints such that Paul had to instruct them to beware of “doctrines of demons” that were encouraging them not to marry and to abstain from eating certain types of food?
To answer this question, we must first define some terms. Is the Greek word food (Gr. broma) as used in verse three a reference to “articles allowed or forbidden by the Jewish law” (i.e. Elohim’s Torah-law or law of Moses) as the well known Strong’s Concordance claims? Is The Theological Dictionary of the New Testament (The TDNT)correct in its definition of this Greek word, when it declares that broma relates to the “cultic and ascetic prescriptions of Judaism which are declared to be religiously indifferent by Jesus and early Christianity…[thus the] distinction between clean and unclean meats is done away” (vol 1. p. 642)—a claim that Arndt and Gingrich do not even make in their touted Greek lexicon (nor do the lexicons by Vine or Thayer)?
Clearly, contrary to what some biblical scholars assert, Paul cannot be referring to the Torah here, since the Torah-law of Elohim neither prohibits marriage, but encourages it, nor does it command the abstention of eating biblically approved meats. In fact, the whole Levitical and tabernacle system revolved around the sacrifice and eating of kosher animals. To say these are doctrines of demons (as some Christian teachers claim) is blasphemy against YHVH Elohim’s Torah, which is the Creator’s very instructions to humans on how to live righteously and without sin (Ps 119:172; Deut 10:12; 1 John 3:4; 2:3–6; John 14:15) .
The word foods or meats as found in 1 Tim 4:3 is the Greek word broma referring to “food in general.” However, contextually, Paul is using a narrower definition of foods or meats based on his statement in verse four where he refers to “every creature of Elohim” (v. 4). Creature is the Greek word ktisma, which literally means “creature,” and, as used in the NT, refers to living and breathing creatures as opposed to all other creations of Elohim such as plants and rocks (i.e. ibid.; also see Jas 1:18; Rev 5:13; 8:9). Therefore, Paul is not referring to food in general (plants and animals) but specifically to food which edible animal meat as biblically defined.
Once again, if Paul is not referring to the Torah when he is condemning these doctrines of demons that are calling for celibacy and the abstention of meat eating, then to what is he referring?
Ecclesiastes 5:1,Walk prudently [keep thy foot, KJV]. Once again, the Preacher teases the reader by inserting another “God principle” into his monologue on the ultimate meaninglessness of life. It is as if he is toying with us by, on the one hand, repeatedly demonstrating to his reader the vanity of life, yet, on the other hand, giving his reader a glimpse into another reality, another dimension that is outside of this time-space continuum—this prison spaceship called life on earth. He is telling us in bits and pieces that there is a bigger picture, a better way, but one has to factor Elohim into the equation for that picture to come into view. As long as one does not, then there is no hope, purpose or meaning to life. If one does, however, then a whole new picture begins to emerge out of the obscurity of the dark fog of this physical existence.
So how does one walk prudently, or keep one’s foot, so that one does not stumble over the conundrums of trying to squeeze meaning out of one’s physical, seemingly pointless life?
Go to the house of Elohim. When we think of the “house of God” what immediately comes to mind? Probably the ancient temple of Elohim in Jerusalem. But that temple is long gone. So what is the house of Elohim now? A church? A cathedral? Some manmade chapel somewhere where one is surrounding by religious icons and an artist’s conception of God that somehow stirs the emotions of man into a state of worship and awe? Or is it something much deeper and simpler than that? What if one does not have a church building to go to? Then what? Is it impossible to find Elohim because some man or men somewhere have not constructed a physical building and placed a label on it called “a church”?
The fact is that if one digs deeply into the meaning and purpose of the biblical concept of “the house of Elohim” one will find that the Tabernacle of Moses and the Temple of Solomon were representations of the composite human being comprised of a physical body housing a soul (the mind, will and emotions) and a spirit (the deep, inner part of man that is immaterial and connects us to Elohim who is a Spirit). In the Testimony of Yeshua, we learn that the saint is now the temple of the Spirit of Elohim or “the house of God.” As the ancient Israelite temple was “the house of Elohim” on this earth housing the glory of Elohim’s presence within its inner most chamber (the holy of holies), even so the presence of Elohim now resides in the innermost part of man—his personal spirit.
Draw near to hear. So when the Preacher tells us to go into the house of Elohim and “to draw near to hear,” he is telling us to go carefully, prudently and not to rush in. Stop, quiet down one’s continuos roiling thoughts and emotions, and listen. Listen to the Spirit of Elohim speaking to us through our personal spirit.
Ecclesiastes 5:2,Do not be rash. Once again, the Preacher continues to give us more clues on how to find Elohim—how to escape the endless hamster wheel called life which ends in death, which is vanity or ultimately meaningless emptiness. Slow down! Think before you speak. Say less. Stay humble and small before Elohim. These are keys to finding Elohim. These instructions seem overly simplistic, yet how elusive they really are in this modern world—especially for those who live and work in urban settings.
Ecclesiastes 5:3,Dreams. Anyone can dream big ideas and con people into thinking that they are on track to achieving great things. In reality, many words and a multitude of dreamy ideas mean little or nothing.
Ecclesiastes 5:4–5,Do not make a vow. Elohim is not impressed by talkers; he wants doers. It is better not to open one’s mouth, to give one’s word and to make commitments, than to spout off grandiose promises and ideas that will never come to fruition.
Ecclesiastes 5:6–7,Do not let your mouth. The proper control and use of one’s mouth is a key to finding Elohim, for it is the mouth’s misuse that engenders much grief and conflict that makes this somewhat life on this earth even more difficult, stressful, full of conflict and ultimately meaningless. Moreover, as stated elsewhere, in the multitude of words there is no lack of sin, which only takes us further away from Elohim and our only escape from this wearisome and tedious physical existence. A foolish and godless person gives little thought to the words that come from his mouth, which only leads him little-by-little deeper into the pit of despair of this physical life.
Fear Elohim. The Preacher continues to give us clues in the form of a trail of delectable bread crumbs that will lead us upward and out of the vanity of vanities of this physical existence. In the Psalms and Proverbs we learn that the fear of Elohim is the beginning of both knowledge and wisdom. Fear is a safety mechanism that preserves life. The fear of death keeps one from stepping off a tall ledge or from ingesting a poisonous substance. Likewise, the fear of Elohim will keep us on the straight and narrow path morally and spiritually, so that we are less likely to sin and bring the miserable consequences thereof upon ourselves in this life and the next life.
Ecclesiastes 5:8–9,The oppression of the poor. Do not be overly worked up over the oppression of the poor and social injustice. , for these are part of the human condition. It always has been and always will be, and there is little or nothing one can do about it, so why stress yourself out over it and make your already vain life more meaningless? After all, it is to the advantage of government officials to address oppression and injustice , or else they will lose their lofty and lucrative positions of power from which they rule their people. Disgruntled people eventually rise up and overthrow their rulers.
Ecclesiastes 5:10–17,He who loves silver. In this section of his discourse, the Preacher continues to demonstrate the ultimated empty meaninglessness of making the acquisition of wealth and material possessions one’s chief goal. While such a person pursues riches, he is actually impoverishing himself in many ways. On the other hand, the one who humbly labors in his profession will sleep well at night, for he has worked hard and honestly and can feel good about it (v. 12).
Ecclesiastes 5:18–20,Here is what I have seen. At this point in his discourse, the Preacher gives a summary of what he has learned and preliminary conclusion to finding some measure of happiness in life without factoring in Elohim. Work hard and enjoy the fruits of your labor including good food and drink. These are gifts from Elohim to all humans to blunt the ultimately reality of the meaninglessness of this life. So rejoice in these things and be grateful. Even thought the Preacher does not spell this exactly, perhaps one can read between the lines and surmise that a few thoughtful and grateful individuals will stop for a moment form their labors, and in gratitude look upward to heaven and discover Elohim. In so doing, they have taken a first step to finding an escape from the endless and seemingly pointless cycles of life on this earth.
Ecclesiastes 6
Ecclesiastes 6:1–12,More hopeless despair over the seeming pointlessness of life. The next twelve verses are a continuation of the main theme of Ecclesiastes: the pointlessness of life without Elohim.
Ecclesiastes 6:9,Better is the sight of the eyes. One in the hand is worth two in the bush. Enjoy and be thankful for what you have now instead of always wanting more and never being satisfied.
Numbers 30:2 (3), Vows. A vow (Heb. neder) is literally “a pledge to do something.” It places upon oneself or others or upon objects of one’s choice a status equivalent to that of a commandment of the Torah (The ArtScroll Stone Edition Chumash, p. 900).
One’s word is one’s bond. A neder is so strong that a person violating it can suffer the court-imposed penalty of lashes (ibid.) The Set-Apart One of Israel is not a man that he should lie (Num 23:19). If we are to be set-apart or kadosh as YHVH is kadosh (1 Pet 1:16; 2:9; Heb 12:14), then we must be people of our word not only in large matters, but in the smallest of matters too. Are you too casual with your words? Do you make commitments in order to sound good to others, yet you have no real intention of fulfilling your obligations? Liars will have no part in the New Jerusalem (Rev 21:8).
YHVH established order in the family structure. The man, as the head of the family, holds veto power over promises made by those under him in his family. This may be politically incorrect nowadays in a society characterized by egalitarianism, and feminism and children’s “rights,” but the Word of YHVH in the Torah is clear on this matter. This is given because the husband and father holds responsibility for promises made by those in his family (Num 30:15). To what degree are you swayed by the mores of society in this regard as opposed to the Word of Elohim? What rules do you play by in your marriage and family—society’s or YHVH’s?
Numbers 31
Numbers 31:3,Take vengeance on the Midianites. YHVH is vehemently opposed to moral looseness. Midian, through its seductive women, nearly destroyed Israel. The decisive actions of a morally straight leadership prevented Israel from going the way of so many nations that have since collapsed due to moral decay. What can we learn from this ancient account?
Sexual looseness and perversion must not be allowed to gain even a momentary toehold into our lives. Do you aggressively resist and fight against the spiritual Midianites that would destroy your life, your family, your marriage and your spiritual destiny, or do you even slightly countenance the enemies of your soul in the secret or hidden areas of your life just to placate the passions of your carnal and sin-bent nature? The spirit of Midian is to be found everywhere from the magazine rack at the checkout stand to the morning newspaper advertising women’s undergarments, from bumper stickers to billboards, from television ads (not to mention the television shows themselves) to the internet, and among political, religious leaders and entertainment celebrities. How about the modern immodest and decadent clothing styles of our youth, which barely cover the body, and where little is left to the imagination?
How does one defend oneself against this incessant onslaught of sexual immorality? Remember, the best defense is a strong offense. Resolve and settle in your heart and mind ahead of time how you will react against the darts of the enemy when you suddenly find them aimed at you, and then stick to your defense plan! Set inviolate moral boundaries for yourself that you will not cross. Pull down every mental stronghold and take every thought captive to the mind of Yeshua, and flee all lusts. (Strengthen yourself spiritually by reading the following scriptures: 1 Cor 6:18; 10:14; 2 Cor 10:3–6; 2 Tim 2:22.)
Numbers 31:4,A thousand from a tribe. All the tribes were equally represented in this fighting force to punish Midian for its culpability in causing Israel to fall into the sins of idolatry and immorality resulting in the death of 24,000 Israelites (Num 25:1–9). What can we learn from this? Each person in the spiritual body of Yeshua (or “the camp of Israel”) must take an equal role in fighting wickedness and immorality. What are you actively doing to combat these things around you? Whether you think you will make a difference or not, do you still vote, write letters to your political representatives, pray, take righteous stands against evil when and wherever possible, or support those who do so with your finances? If you are a parent, what is your responsibility to your children in this regard?
Numbers 31:8,Balaam…they slew with the sword. Jude 11 talks about Balaam being greedy for money and indicates that there are those in the end times in the body of Yeshua who will follow after this sin. How is this possible? What will be the ultimate fate of these “tares”? (See Matt 13:40.) Had Balaam believed his own good prophecies concerning Israel and not have sided with Israel’s enemies, would he no doubt would have been spared the sword of YHVH’s justice. What were his motives for siding with them? Greed and materialism blind one from YHVH’s truth and cause one to side with YHVH’s enemies. What is the end result of this action? Balaam was a deceiver and a hypocrite. He spoke one thing and did something else. Are we ever guilty of this? How rampant is the sin of duplicity within the body of believers in Yeshua today? There are people who claim to be prophets in the church who, like Balaam, speak soothing and ear-tickling prophetic words in order to profit from the people. How can we know the difference between true and false prophets? A true prophet is not greedy like Balaam. (Read Deut 18:20–22 and Matt 7:15–20.) Can a true prophet of Elohim prophesy out of the flesh something false, and if he repents, when he finds he was in error, be spared from the death penalty? (Read 2 Sam 7:1–17.)
Numbers 31:7, 17,They slew all the males … every male among the little ones … and kill every woman that has known man by lying with him. Do you suppose that every Midianite who was slain was directly culpable for causing Israel to fall into idolatry and sexual immorality? If not, why were they slain? We see a similar situation with Korah and his malcontents where the earth swallowed up not only Korah, Dathan and Abiram, but their families as well (Num 16:31–33). Even those who are not directly culpable for a particular sin, if they maintain company with sinners they will become morally tainted (1 Cor 5:6; 15:33; Gal 5:9). If the righteous dwell near the wicked is it possible for YHVH’s judgments against the wicked to overlap onto the righteous? If this were not possible then why did YHVH instruct the righteous Israelites to separate themselves from the environs of Korah’s camp (Num 16:23–27), and why does YHVH call his people to come out of Babylon the Great in the end times? (Read Rev 18:4 for the answer.) How do we separate from the wicked? In the examples just cited, we see two kinds of separation from evil: physical and spiritual. We can start by separating spiritually without separating physically, but will there ever come a time when YHVH’s people will have to separate physically? (See Rev 12:14.) How will the spiritual woman of Revelation 14 know when to do this and where to go? Will the Good Shepherd abandon or lead his sheep in the day of trouble? (Note John 10:1–5.) May we always be pressed into Yeshua, our spiritual Shepherd, so that we will always hear his voice concerning what to do and where to go and when.
Numbers 31:49,Not a man of us is missing. The remarkable grace of YHVH is evidenced in the fact that only one-fiftieth of Israel’s fighting force (12,000 of 600,000 men) took part in the campaign to defeat Midian and that not a single man was lost. What promise of YHVH was this a fulfillment of if Israel would walk in Torah-obedience? (See Lev 26:8; Deut 32:30.) What principles can we learn from this when applied to spiritual warfare? When our spiritual battles against evil are just, righteous and in accordance with YHVH’s perfect will what results can we expect? (Look up Mark 16:17–18; Luke 9:1; 10:19; Rom 8:31, 37; 1 John 4:4.)
When the world all around you is like a toilet swirling and flushing out of control on its way down to hell (literally), and you feel powerless to do anything about it, all you can do is to tend your own garden. Try to make the world a better place where YOU are living.
Tending the garden is a fundamental principle of the Bible. In fact, it is the third command of the Torah that the Creator gave to man at the beginning(Gen 2:15). This command is one of five original key commands that Elohim gave to the first humans and are basic keys to human happiness and to fulfilling man’s godly mission on earth. Fulfilling these commands were the basic keys to maintaining the idyllic state of man’s happiness and to communing with Elohim in the pre-fall world. These five fundamental commands were:
Be fruitful and multiply: Sex and procreation (Gen 1:28)
Govern or exercise stewardship over the animals (Gen 1:28)
Tend and keep the garden (Gen 2:15).
Do not eat from the tree of knowledge (Gen 2:17).
Marriage and family (Gen 2:24).
At the exact center of these five commands—between command three and four—was the example Elohim gave us of resting on the Sabbath (Gen 2:2–3). Though not a direct command, it was an implicit command in that man is to follow the Creator’s example by resting on the seventh day. It later became a direct command (Exod 16:23–30 and 20:8–11). What this seems to teach us is that the Sabbath (or Shabbat in Hebrew) is at the center of learning about how to fulfill the other five commands and learning about their higher spiritual implications. In the post-fall world after man had sinned by eating from the tree of knowledge, man corrupted the five basic commands and the Sabbath. Illicit sex, exploitation and abuse of animals, the exploitation and abuse of the earth for greedy and covetous purposes and human attempts to destroy marriage and the family was the result. Satan was then and still is on a mission to kill, steal and destroy these five areas and to get humans away from them by perverting or counterfeiting them.
When humans dedicate themselves to fulfilling these five commands as well as resting on the seventh day Sabbath, there is a basic and deep joy and fulfillment that will occur in one’s life that can be achieved in no other way.
Being in nature and tending the garden of this world is a fundamental key for man to finding Elohim, the Creator, and to discover the deep mysteries about him (Rom 1:20).
For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead…
Beside tending the physical garden, the Creator gave man four other Torah-instructions or laws as revealed in Genesis chapters one and two. These five laws, along with the Sabbath, are fundamental keys to happiness, joy and blessing in this physical life. They will also bring a person to an understanding of YHVH as well. Orientating our lives around marriage, procreation, family, caring for animals, resting on the seventh day, and abstaining from the tree of knowledge [i.e. secular humanism]) are the keys to a fulfilled life on this earth.
Fulfilling these five laws in one’s life is a key to staying connected to Elohim, staying grounded spiritually and not getting sucked into the technocratic, mind-controlling and enslaving matrix that Satan and his human minions are endeavoring to impose on humanity like an invisible net as the Bible prophesied will come upon the earth in the last days (Rev 13, 17, 18).
As the world becomes more evil spinning out of control around me, all I want to do is to tend my own garden, which is YHVH’s garden—to pull out the weeds and make it a more beautiful place for him to inhabit. It starts with my own life. My life is the garden of YHVH. We are reminded of this in the Song of Solomon,
A garden inclosed is my sister, my spouse; a spring shut up, a fountain sealed. Thy plants are an orchard of pomegranates, with pleasant fruits; camphire, with spikenard, spikenard and saffron; calamus and cinnamon, with all trees of frankincense; myrrh and aloes, with all the chief spices: a fountain of gardens, a well of living waters, and streams from Lebanon. Awake, O north wind; and come, thou south; blow upon my garden, that the spices thereof may flow out. Let my beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleasant fruits. (Song 4:12–14)
Is my life a garden that YHVH Elohim wants to inhabit? Or am I just an inflated ball of head knowledge filled with facts about him, but the garden of my life is a mess and my heart is who knows where?
Consider this. Elohim planted the first humans in a garden long ago and told them (and us) to take care of it. Our forefather and foremother walked with him in the cool of the day in perfect harmony and unity until they disobeyed him and ate from the tree of knowledge—the first sin. In their minds, they were deceived to believe that his was permissible. O how our own mental reasoning or head knowledge can leads us astray and away from him if we are not careful!
We started in a garden, and we are going to end up there. The garden from heaven to which we look forward is called the New Jerusalem. In the mean time, Elohim told us to tend our garden—the third command in the Torah (Gen 2:15-16). Ask yourself this: How well am I tending the garden of my life both physically and spiritually? Do we really have a clue what this means or are we so busy filling our heads with facts and satiating the lusts of the flesh and eyes, the pride of life that we forgot about holiness, righteousness, pulling up the weeds out of the soil of our lives, pruning the trees and plants, fertilizing and caring for them so that they will bear fruit for him, and so that Yeshua our Bridegroom wants to visit our garden?
Personally, I want my life to be a resting place for my Creator or a merkabah, which is the Hebrew word for a chariot-throne of Elohim’s presence. The psalmist said that Elohim is enthroned on the praises of Israel, not the head knowledge of Israel (Ps 22:3). Let us worship the King, while tending our garden! When we do this, maybe Isaiah 4:4–5:1 will be fulfilled in our lives:
When Adonai shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning. And YHVH will create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: for upon all the glory shall be a defence. And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the daytime from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain. Now will I sing to my wellbeloved a song of my beloved touching his vineyard. My well-beloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill. (Isa 4:4–5:1)
When this prophecy begins to be fulfilled in the garden of our lives, it will be a glorious day for us, for those around us and for the world!
Our society is falling apart. There is little or no fear of Elohim among anyone anywhere anymore. The Bible tells us that the fear of Elohim is the beginning of wisdom and knowledge. When there is no fear of Elohim, the opposite prevails: foolishness and ignorance.
Because so many people are refusing to follow even the basic tenets of Elohim’s laws, their lives are a mess. Let me give you an example of this. I own a company and I have employees. One of my employees is a young single father with a child born out of wedlock who is less than two years old. Where is the mother in the picture? The father is struggling to make ends meet financially. He is presently renting a room in a house from a gal whose fiancé—in his early 30s—just died unexpectedly a month ago. The medical authorities ruled it as a drug overdose, but no one knows for sure. My gal and the deceased fiancé both have children from previous relationships. Now the gal is alone trying to raise her children and the guy’s children. She has a medical condition, so presently she can’t work and earn any income to make the house payment. Meanwhile, the house was in the guy’s name, but now he’s dead. Who owns the house now? The guy and the gal weren’t married, so it’s not legally her house. Legally, it should go to his decedents heirs, and now a legal battle is ensuing over this. Meanwhile, my employee’s daughter’s mother just moved into the house. They’re not planning on getting married. What’s going on here? Why does the dad have custody of the baby? Why was the mom not living with them before, but now she is? If the house situation isn’t resolved, then where will they all live? In the mean time, who is paying the house payments? You get the picture…it tangled mess of issues goes on and on.
Most of these problems is a result of young unmarried people hoping into bed with each other with little or no forethought with children resulting from their fling.
The problem is that society now says that such behavior is acceptable. In fact, it’s the norm. If you don’t have sex before marriage, you’re considered bizarre. Everybody is doing it, so it must be okay. Yet no one is thinking of the consequences of sex outside of a legal family structure.
All of this is an example of the lack of the fear of Elohim resulting in foolishness and ignorance with the consequences being broken families and children being raised without moral and spiritual values. Society pays a heavy price for such egregious and thoughtless behavior. Taxes go up so big brother government can help take care of these innocent children and their miscreant parents.
Society’s moral and spiritual compass is broken. Too many people operate by their emotions of the moment without thinking of the long term consequences of their immoral and ungodly actions. And all around them, society, the media, movies, music, the educational systems, the government and their peers are telling them that evil is good and good is evil and that biblical values are ridiculous. The Bible has been thrown out, the church as discredited itself as a relevant purveyor of Truth and righteousness, and the list of the society’s fundamental ills goes on and on. Yet no one can figure out why we have such a mess on our hands!
So what is the answer? It’s time for men and women to step and become the godly priest of their own homes by teaching their children the fear of Elohim and obedience to his Word. The same is true for pastors and Bible teachers. It’s time for them to start teaching the pure word of Elohim instead of watering down the Truth and teaching the unbiblical doctrines and traditions of men. But they won’t. Preaching watered down and ear-tickling doctrines of men has been too lucrative and popular.
Numbers 3
Numbers 2:33, TheLevites were not numbered. The Levites were not numbered among the counting of the Israelite warriors. Why was this? There was a likely good reason for this. The Scriptures do not tell us, so we can only speculate why this was so.
Perhaps the reason is that the Levites were divinely commissioned to minister in the tabernacle before the altar and holy of holies, which was a symbolic earthly representation of Elohim’s heavenly throne room. As such, it was their job to act as intermediaries and intercessors between the Israelites and Elohim, even as Yeshua is now fulfilling that role at the right hand of Elohim in heaven as the saints’ Great High Priest.
In this divinely commissioned role, the Levites were called to engage in spiritual “battle” for Israel by teaching the people to walk in YHVH’s Torah instructions in righteousness, and by spiritually cleansing the people from their sins by offering up sacrifices and incense. If they had had to spend their time fighting Israel’s physical battles, they would have had less time to fight her spiritual battles.
Moreover, when Israel was in a right relationship with Elohim and walking obediently in his ways thanks largely to the efforts of the Levites’ spiritual leadership and example, then YHVH promised to protect that nation from her physical enemies, and so there would be little need for a physical defensive army.
The same is true in our day. When the ministers of Elohim, who are leaders of the present day “royal priesthood” of Yeshua (1 Pet 2:9), are preaching the Truth to their people and instructing them in the ways of Torah-righteousness, then YHVH will protect his people from enemies foreign and domestic, and there will be little need for physical militaries.
Similarly on a smaller scale, the same is true for a righteous father who is called to be the priest of his own home. As such, it is his duty to cover his family spiritually under a protective shield of prayer, intercession, confession of sin and by leading them spiritually in the ways of Elohim, so that they will be less vulnerable or even impervious to the attacks of the world, the flesh and devil.
Numbers 3
Numbers 3:11–13, I myself have taken. Here YHVH chooses the tribe of Levi instead of the firstborn male of each Israelite family to be Israel’s spiritual leaders. When the Israelites exited Egypt, YHVH chose and sanctified the firstborn male of each family to the be spiritual leader of his home in what is called the law of the firstborn (Exod 13:2, 11–16). As it had been the responsibility of the firstborn to lead his family spiritually, and, as the patriarch of his family, to pass down the family legacy and spiritual traditions to the next generation, YHVH now placed this mantle on the shoulders of the Levites. It was now their responsibility to teach the Israelites what YHVH had commanded them to do (Deut 24:8). They became the Torah teachers in Israel (Deut 33:10; Neh 8:7, 9, 13; 2 Chron 30:22) along with the priests (Lev 10:11; Mal 2:7). They were scattered throughout the land of Israel for this purpose (2 Chron 17:8–9). The reason that YHVH gave this responsibility over to the sons of Levi was because the firstborn of each family had failed to lead their families in YHVH’s paths of righteousness, and they failed to prevent the Israelites from golden calf worship (Exod 32). Only Levi remained faithful to YHVH during the golden calf incident, and thus YHVH granted them the blessing of the priestly service (Exod 32:26–29).
Originally, it had been YHVH’s intent for the entire nation of Israel to be a kingdom of priests (Exod 19:6) in order to be a light to the nations and lead the nations to YHVH and his Torah by their righteous example (Deut 4:6–8). This is why YHVH placed the land of Israel, and specifically Jerusalem, at the center of the major trade routes of the ancient world between Africa, Asia and Europe.
The Levitical priesthood (along with the elaborate tabernacle sacrificial system) was a temporary institution that YHVH added (Gal 3:19 cp. Jer 7:21–22) to the nation of Israel’s legal system because of the firstborn’s failure to prevent Israel from worshipping the golden calf idol. In a general sense, YHVH didn’t give the Israelites the Torah at this time—the principles of which they and their forefathers already had been given (e.g., Gen 26:5). So what other law was added? At Mount Sinai, the Torah was codified into a legal system (with civil penalties including the institution of a sacrificial system as a penalty for sin) and became the constitution of the nation of Israel, and YHVH also gave them the institution of the Levitical priesthood and the sacrificial system (Gal 3:19), which (along with the rest of the Torah) pointed them to Yeshua (Gal 4:16, 2). The sacrificial and Levitical systems were completely fulfilled by the Messiah as the writer of Hebrews goes into great detail to explain to us (Heb 5–11).
As already noted, it was YHVH’s intention for all Israel to become a kingdom of priests (not just the tribe of Levi) to teach the nations his spiritual truths. YHVH’s original purpose for Israel is now being fulfilled in the royal priesthood of all redeemed believers to which Peter makes reference in his first epistle (1 Pet 2:9). When the Romans destroyed the temple in Jerusalem, the Levitical priesthood along with the sacrificial system ceased to exist. This occurred some forty years after the death and resurrection of Yeshua who, at that time, became man’s sacrifice for sin once and for all and is now in heaven officiating as our Great High Priest as the writer of Hebrews reveals to us. When the temple priesthood was destroyed, YHVH’s royal priesthood of all believers was ready to take its place. In a sense, the present priesthood model defaults to the original priesthood model where the leader of each family was the priest of his home. The only difference is that the patriarchal priesthood model has been expanded and now all redeemed believers have the opportunity to become a priest in Yeshua’s eternal kingdom regardless of gender and family birth order.
Presently, the saints are preparing to be a kingdom of priest as they learn to live out and to teach others YHVH’s Torah truths. This learning process is preparing them to become kings and priests (or a kingdom of priests, Exod 19:6) in Yeshua’s millennial kingdom after his second coming where they will teach the nations the truth of YHVH (Rev 1:6; 5:10; 20:6), even as the Levites of old taught the nation of Israel YHVH’s Torah.
1 Peter 1:2, Sprinkling of blood. Also see Matt 26:28; Eph 1:7; Heb 9:12;10:19–22; 12:24; 1 Pet 1:19; 1 Jhn 1:9; Rev 1:5.
1 Peter 1:5,Salvation…revealed in the last time. Likely Peter has Yeshua in view here, since the name Yeshua means “salvation.”
1 Peter 1:11,Spirit of Messiah…He. This is a faulty if not disingenuous translation. Spirit in the Greek is a neutered gender noun, so He should properly be translated as It. This is not the only place where the NT translators, trying to push the masculine gender of the Ruach haKodesh, have mistranslated Scripture. See also Acts 8:16 and 1 Cor 12:11.
1 Peter 1:16,Be holy, for I am holy. See Lev 11:44; see also Exod 22:31; Lev 11:45; 19:2; 20:7, 26; 21:28; 1 Pet 1:16
How Do YOU Become Holy?
How does a person become holy? Does holy water make you holy? Does a robed priest sporting a goofy headdress and wearing a giant charm around his pencil thin neck while waving his gaunt and delicate hand over you make you holy? Does stepping into a gilded and ornately decorated church and performing some religious mumbo-jumbo exercise make you holy? NO! The Bible declares how a person becomes holy, and it is NOT what most people think! It has to do with lifestyle and obedience, NOT religiosity!
For starters, most well-meaning but deceived folks do not even know what the word holy means. It comes from the Hebrew word kadash, a verb meaning “to be pure, undefiled, unpolluted, set-apart or sanctified.” The Hebrew word kodesh is the biblical adjective to describe Elohim who is totally pure and sinless and without any pollution or defilement. Kodesh also describes those things which YHVH has made holy or declared to be holy such as certain times (such as his Sabbath and feasts), certain places (such as the Tabernacle of Moses), and certain people (such as his priests and saints). No matter how elaborate and convincing the efforts humans cannot make or declare anything holy regardless of the ceremonialism and religious activities. These efforts are merely futile, vain and, quite frankly, laughable! Many unbelieving pagans see this religious charade for what it is and are not convinced. Some even mock and scorn such efforts. Religiosity is NOT the way to bring people to Elohim—to bring unholy man into the presence of a holy Elohim.
