Category Archives: Scripture

Scripture Studies

How are you saved?

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John 3:16–18,

For Elohim so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For Elohim did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of Elohim.

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So How Then Are We Saved?

The Christian church has come up with various formulas to “get a person saved” such as altar calls and saying the sinners prayer. There are no examples these kinds of things in the Bible. Instead, the Scriptures give us general guidelines and examples to follow. There are no formulas. What follows is a list of examples from the apostolic writers of how people were saved in early church era.

For example, in Acts 2:14–37 we read that Peter preached the gospel and that the hearers were pricked in their hearts (verse 37). This resulted in a spontaneous, Holy Spirit-led response on the part of the hearers of the gospel or good news message of salvation. After this, the people were baptized for the remission of sins in the name of Yeshua and subsequently received the Holy Spirit (verse 38). All this happened on the same day (verse 41). When directed by the Holy Spirit, spiritual transformations can happen quickly!

A little later in Acts chapter three (verses 11 to 26), Peter preached another short sermon and then invited the people to “repent and be converted that your sins may be blotted out.” This resulted in about 5000 people coming to faith in Yeshua (Acts 4:4).

Next in Acts 8:4–17, we find that the gospel was preached (in Samaria) and people believed it and were baptized. There were no altar calls; only a spontaneous reaction to the preaching of the good news of the message of salvation through Continue reading →

 

What happens when you die?

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John 3:13, No one has ascended to heaven. Most Christians believe that when they die, they immediately go to heaven in spite of Yeshua’s clear statement in this verse. Many believers see this verse as referring to saints who died before his resurrection, but not true of those who died afterwards, even though Yeshua doesn’t say this. Therefore, they reason, this is why, according to Peter, David, who was born before Yeshua, is still resting in his grave awaiting the last days resurrection (Acts 2:29).

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If what the majority Christians believe on this subject is true, then the saints of old are second class citizens and YHVH is a respecter persons (which he is not, see Acts 10:34; Rom 2:11) in that they have to wait for resurrection day and for their ultimate reward of eternal life, while saints born since Yeshua receive their glorified bodies immediately upon death.

Laying aside all the church traditions and doctrines of men, what does the Bible in the simplest and clearest terms say about the timing of the saints receiving immortality? Paul states that the resurrection of all the dead saints and their receiving immortality occurs not at the time of their physical death, but at the second coming of Yeshua at the last trumpet (1 Cor 15:51–54; 1 Thess 4:13–18 cp. Rev 11:15, 18).

In reality, men’s eternal inheritance isn’t heaven, but the New Jerusalem, which is coming down from heaven to the new earth (Rev 21:2).

 

The Top Seven Reasons Why Yeshua Couldn’t Have Died for Your Sins REFUTED

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Have you seen this meme making the rounds? Someone sent it  to me and asked how I would answer it. Like most of the lies from the evil one, these arguments seem convincing on the surface, but in reality they are easy to answer. For those who know the Scriptures, it can be done blindfolded with both tied behind the back, while hanging upside-down and eating an ice cream cone!

No Need

  1. Liars and deceivers often will take one scripture verse out of context and try to make a doctrine out of it, while ignoring many other verses on the same subject. Those who are novices in understanding the Scriptures will often fall for this ploy. Don’t be a novice, but study the Word of Elohim daily, and sit under Bible teachers who aren’t themselves novices! To understand what the Bible is really saying, you have to read all the verses on a subject. In this case, the author ignores all the verses that speak of a ram or a bull being offered up as an atonement for sin, which prophetically points to the salvific death of Yeshua (e.g., Gen 15:19; 22:13; Exod 29:15–31; 29:36; Lev 4:3–21; 5:16, 18; Lev 16:11 and  about 50 other verses as well that I could give!)
  2. This argument so ridiculous that it defies common logic. The Torah stipulates that a sin offering had to be free of injury or blemish BEFORE being sacrificed, not while being sacrificed. How do you sacrifice something without injuring it? Give me a break!
  3. Same answer as #2.
  4. Yes, Yeshua was killed outside the city walls of Jerusalem, yet his blood was sprinkled or spilled inside of Jerusalem near the temple when the Romans scourged him and placed the crown of thorns on his head. Not only that, the writer of Hebrews likens Yeshua’s death to the that of the red heifer which was killed OUTSIDE the Tabernacle of Moses and later outside of Jerusalem. As I have stated numerous times before in my studies on the tabernacle, the red heifer speaks of Yeshua’s initial death for sinners on cross, while the sacrifices that occurred inside the tabernacle speak of our need, once initially redeemed, of having to stay under the blood of Yeshua by continually repenting of the sins we commit subsequent to our initial salvation.
  5. Again, the idiocy and deception of the arguments of those who speak against the death of Yeshua! Yeshua’s death wasn’t human sacrifice! He gave his life up willingly by his choice as a ransom or atonement for sin. The Romans weren’t looking at his death as a human sacrifice, but as capital punishment. That’s like saying that every time the government kills a criminal it is human sacrifice, or that when the Torah stipulates capital punishment for certain crimes, it’s human sacrifice. The Bible condemns human sacrifice, since it involves doing so in the worship of pagan deities. Furthermore, to call Yeshua’s death human sacrifice is to accuse Yeshua’s Father—YHVH Elohim—of murder and human sacrifice. This is blasphemy! May it never be so!!
  6. Yes, no man can die for another man—only for himself because a life is only worth a life. But Yeshua was no ordinary man. The Scriptures reveal that he was the Creator—the one who created all men, and that he was Elohim/God in the flesh. This means that his life was worth more than all that of all humans  combined, which is why he could die for everyone. This cannot be said of any ordinary human.
  7. Yes, everyone is accountable for his own sins, but Yeshua was different than any ordinary man. First, he never sinned, so he never came under the death penalty for sin like all normal men have. Second, he willingly chose to lay down his life for sinners (that you and me) as a sin offering in our place to pay for the death penalty we all have incurred for our sins. Because he was sinless, and because, was the Creator, and because his life was worth more than all the humans he had created, he was in a position, by his choice, to pay the price (the death penalty) for all of men’s sins.

It took me about 15 minutes to answer these questions! That’s how easy they are to debunk.

Don’t fall for the lies of the evil one, and don’t let them shake your faith!

 

Golden Calf Worship Among YHVH’s People Today

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Let’s look at the series of events that occurred as the children of Israel were leaving Egypt, which have major relevance to what is occurring in mainstream Christianity in our day. If we fail to learn the lessons of history, we’ll likely repeat the mistakes of history. It has to do with golden calf worship.

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YHVH redeemed the children of Israel out of Egypt and set the slaves free. He blessed them not only by giving them their freedom, but by giving them the wealth (gold and silver) of Egypt as well. We read that the Israelites exited of Egypt with a high hand. They were victorious, free and wealthy.

YHVH led them into the wilderness en route to the Promised Land — normally an eleven day journey. They had some difficulties: Pharaoh tried to kill them at the Red Sea, they lacked clean drinking water, and they had food issues, but YHVH provided them deliverance from Pharaoh, gave them clean water, manna and meat, and they overcame these trials.

Next, YHVH led the Israelites to the foot of Mount Sinai, and on Shavuot he made a covenantal agreement with them and gave them his Torah as their national constitution. They agreed to obey him and to keep his commandments. He promised to bless them if they remained faithful to him.

Moses went up to Mount Sinai to receive the Torah-covenant on two tablets of stone. While he was gone for 40 days, the people grew worried and anxious and become weary Continue reading →

 

Two Choices: Money and Power or the Anointing of Elohim

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Exodus 32:2, Break off the golden earrings.The Christian people have generously given the mainstream church much gold and other wealth over the past 1900 years. In the mean time, with that wealth, the church system has constructed many huge religious monuments. These are monuments the gods of materialism—to golden calf worship. Neither Yeshua nor his disciples needed vast sums of money, resources or monuments to spread the gospel message. What they lacked in material resources they made up with passion for the gospel message and with the anointing of YHVH to proclaim that gospel with miraculous power. What the mainstream church largely lacks in passion and the anointing to spread the gospel, they now, sadly, compensate for via wealth and religious monuments.

Given the choice, some of us have chosen the anointing and favor of Elohim over money and power and the approval of men.

City. Indoor interior

 

The Christians are almost right about who Yeshua is!

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Please note: When I first posted this article, I titled it, “The Christians are right about who Yeshua is!” Then I had a second thought, and changed the title to “The Christians are ALMOST right about who Yeshua is!” Here’s why I added the word “almost”:

The Christians are right about the deity, incarnation, virgin birth and his atonement death on the cross. They aren’t right, however, in recognizing him to the the “God” of the Old Testament who gave the Torah-law to the Israelites. Most believe that this was the Father.

When I wrote the first title, I was thinking about the first part of what I say above. When I changed the title adding the word “almost” I was thinking about the second part of what I say above.   Natan

John 1:1, The Word was Elohim. Is Yeshua or the Father the God (Elohim) of the Old Testament (Tanakh)? For many believers in Yeshua, there is confusion as to who it was in the Godhead who interacted with the Israelites in the Tankah. Was it the Father or the Son? In the minds of the apostolic writers, there was no confusion about this. Yeshua, in his preincarnate state, was the One that YHVH Elohim the Father used to both create (John 1:3; Col 1:16; Heb 11:3), and then to interact with mankind. He was the Word of YHVH Elohim, the Father, who become flesh and dwelt among men (verse 14). This truth is easily confirmed in several passages in the Testimony of Yeshua (New Testament).

Powerful Healing Vortex

First, Yeshua himself claims to be YHVH or the I Am of the burning bush (see John 8:58 cp. Exod 3:14). The Jews viewed Yeshua’s claim to be deity as blasphemous, which is why they picked up stones to kill him (John 8:59). Next, Yeshua in declaring to the Jewish religious leaders that “I send you prophets, wise men and scribes: some you will kill…” (Matt 23:34), he is claiming the rights and prerogatives of YHVH — a right and role that Continue reading →

 

What America Would Look Like Under Sanders’ Socialism

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From http://www.investors.com/politics/capital-hill/what-america-would-look-like-under-sanders-socialism/

We would be seeing more of these in Bernie Sanders' socialist America. (iStock)

We would be seeing more of these in Bernie Sanders’ socialist America. (iStock)

To celebrate the Monthly Labor Review’s centennial, the Bureau of Labor Statistics is taking a look back at the last 100 years. One of the articles in this series — “The life of American workers in 1915” — is eminently fascinating and shows in stark relief just how far we have come in America since then.

Life in the U.S. certainly was not nasty, brutish and short a century ago. But it was almost primitive relative to what we have in front of us today. And it’s the sort of crushing existence that socialism — yes, even Bernie Sanders’ “democratic” version of that poisonous system of government — would take us back to.

Don’t think so? Below is a glimpse of how things looked back then, according the article. Consider the contrasts with today’s life in America, and then rejoin us at the bottom of this post.

• “If you were alive in 1915, chances are you rented your house or apartment; the ratio of renters to homeowners was about 4-1 in 1920.”

• “The typical home of a working-class family was crowded, somewhat disorderly, and without modern conveniences.”

• A “family of nine has a boarder to help pay the rent. He is a night worker, and in the daytime can always be seen asleep in one of the beds. … There is a bath tub, but the clothes wringer and last winter’s sleds are always kept in it. This is not the home of a very poor family.”

• “Apparently, several children in the described family shared a bed, and the family members may have all shared the same bedroom. Few of the homes of working-class families had running water, and almost none had running hot water.”

• “Whether or not your abode was a single-family home or a crowded tenement, it probably was heated by a potbelly stove or by a coal furnace in the basement.”

• “Your home probably wasn’t yet wired for electricity; less than a third of homes had electric lights rather than gas or kerosene lamps.”

• “If your home had an indoor toilet, the toilet likely was located in a closet or a storage area. It would be a few more years until it was common for toilets, sinks, and bathtubs to share a room.”

• “If you didn’t work at home, you also may have traveled to your job by foot, or you may have gotten there on horseback or by mule.”

• “The predominant occupation group was that of craftsmen, laborers, and operatives, and professional and technical workers — today’s largest group — made up less than 5% of all workers.”

Things are quite different now, and none of the advances we enjoy — take for granted, even — has been brought to us by socialism, not even today’s better working conditions, for which the socialist labor movement takes credit. All have been the products of free-market capitalism. It is the lone system that has the structural incentive — the profit motive — that drives people to produce the advances we’ve seen.

Socialism has the exact opposite effect. It motivates people to live off of others, and requires coercion and force. That’s a plan for disaster, as any reading of the history of the last 100 years will show. It’s not coincidental that the Cubas, North Koreas, Venezuelas, Greeces of 2016 look a lot like the America of 1915.