Most of this week’s blog discussion points will be on these passages. If you have general comments or questions on the weekly Scripture readings not addressed in a blog post, here’s a place for you to post those. Just use the “leave a reply” link or the “share your thoughts” box below.
The full “Read Through The Scriptures In A Year” schedule, broken down by each day, can be found on the right sidebar under “Helpful Links.” There are 4 sections of scripture to read each day: one each from the Torah, the Prophets, the Writings, and from the Testimony of Yeshua. Each week, the Torah and haftarah readings will follow the traditional one-year reading cycle.
Weekly Blog Scripture Readings for 8/18/19 through 8/24/19.
Colossians 2:14, Having wiped out. Here Paul mentions that Yeshua blotted out the handwritings of legal decrees that were against us when he died on the cross (Col 2:12–15). What was against us? It was the Torah law that specified that the sin of adultery carried the death penalty (Lev 20:10). For those who are washed in Yeshua’s redeeming blood and have been buried with him by water immersion or baptism (Col 2:12 cp. Rom 6:3–11), the devil, who is the accuser of the brethren (Rev 12:10), no longer has any legal basis against which to lay the charges of the sin of unfaithfulness against us before the Almighty (Col 2:15). Likely, there is a heavenly record of each man’s sins written in one of the books (which are in addition to the book of life) mentioned in Revelation 20:12. These books be opened at the last judgement and will be used to determine one’s eternal rewards based on one’s works of righteousness (v. 12). Some will be granted eternal life, while others will be destroyed in the lake of fire (v. 15). As mentioned, those who are under the blood of Yeshua and whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life, there is no condemnation.
In this passage, Paul may be alluding to the law of the jealous regarding an unfaithful woman (Num 5:11–31). In this case, the Torah instructs a man to bring his wife whom he suspects of adultery before the priests along with an offering of barley meal. What follows is one of the Torah’s more curious rituals. The priests, in front of the woman, sprinkle some dirt from the door of the tabernacle into an earthen vessel filled with holy water. Her head is uncovered, and she is then made to hold the barley meal, while she is put under oath and questioned about her alleged extramarital sexual activities. A curse is put on her if she has been unfaithful, and the curses are written in a book. The words are then scraped from the book and put into the water. The woman is then made to drink the bitter waters. If she is guilty, the curse takes effect causing her belly to swell and her thigh to rot.
The sad thing is that not only was ancient Israel guilty before Elohim of spiritual adultery (see Ezek 16:1ff), but all humans, like an adulterous woman, have followed in Adam and Eve’s unfaithfulness and sinned (tantamount to spiritual adultery) by being unfaithful to the Creator by going his Torah-laws. The good news is that Yeshua took the curse of the adulterous woman upon himself when he died on the cross. He was given cup of bitter gall to drink, which he refused, but he drank symbolically from the bitter cup of death and even his side was split open by the Roman soldier’s spear.
Deuteronomy 6:7, 10–16, 20–25, Instruct your children in the Torah, so they don’t fall into idolatry. YHVH is constantly warning his people against idolatry; idol worship is anything that gets in the way of our relationship with him.
If you’re not sure whether you have idols in your life, then ask yourself this question: What is of higher priority in your life than serving YHVH? What in your life takes more of your time, energy and money than serving YHVH? What draws your heart away from the study of his written Word, from prayer and fellowship? What or who hinders you from moving forward in your spiritual walk? What in your life keeps YHVH from getting out of a spiritual box in your life? This is idolatry!
Our children follow our example more than our words. By our actions, if YHVH isn’t first in our life our children will follow our example and will be prone to perpetuate our idolatrous ways down the generational line.
Several times YHVH instructs the children of Israel to be certain to instruct their children in the ways of Torah-righteousness. In the Shema, YHVH commands, “And you shall teach them [i.e. his Word] diligently to your children, and talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise up” (6:7). Then in verses 20–25 of the same chapter we read,
“When your son asks you in time to come, saying, ‘What is the meaning of the testimonies, the statutes, and the judgments which YHVH our Elohim has commanded you?’ Then you shall say to your son: ‘We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt, and YHVH brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand; and YHVH showed signs and wonders before our eyes, great and severe, against Egypt, Pharaoh, and all his household. Then He brought us out from there, that He might bring us in, to give us the land of which He swore to our fathers. And YHVH commanded us to observe all these statutes, to fear YHVH our Elohim, for our good always, that He might preserve us alive, as it is this day. Then it will be righteousness for us, if we are careful to observe all these commandments before YHVH our Elohim, as He has commanded us.’”
Too often in the church-system the children have had to take the backseat when it comes to discipleship and ministry. They get a few table scraps thrown at them called “Vacation Bible School” (once a year) and a little “Jonah and the Whale” type teaching on Sunday morning accompanied by some, often inane, craft project. Seldom does the head pastor of the church bother with the children’s ministry. Usually, this function is relegated to the younger associate pastor. Typically, the position of “Youth Pastor” is viewed as nothing more than a stepping stone to the “top dog” position of “Head Pastor.” Furthermore, seldom do parents spend any meaningful time during the week instructing their children in the ways of YHVH. As redeemed Israelites, it is our opportunity to follow the Torah and to place the highest ministry priority on instructing our children in the truths of the written Torah, in the truth of Yeshua the Living Torah, and in the fundamentals of who they are as members of the commonwealth of Israel (Eph 2:12) and in preparing them for the kingdom of Elohim. If we don’t, who will? As parents, what are you doing on a regular basis to diligently instruct your children all day, every day? As grandparents, aunts and uncles and members of gospel-orientated Torah community, what are you doing to help in teaching the children? What was the attitude of the disciples when they attempted to shoo the children away from Yeshua. What was Yeshua’s response? Read and compare Matthew 19:13–15 with 18:1–5 and go and do likewise, for they are our future and our legacy!
Philippians 1:11, The fruits of righteousness which are by Yeshua the Messiah.
It is impossible for a man to keep the Torah on his own strength as Yeshua’s encounter with the rich young ruler proves (Matt 19:16–22). When the young man asked Yeshua what he must do to have eternal life, Yeshua seems to set the man up for a fall when he declares, “If you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.” Yeshua is not being disingenuous here. Were one to keep the Torah perfectly without sinning, hypothetically, one would not fall under the death penalty for violating the laws of Elohim (i.e. sin). Presumably one could earn eternal life by one’s own good works. But no man has ever accomplished this superhuman feat except the superhuman Yeshua! Continuing, when the young ruler proudly declares his perfect Torah obedience, Yeshua shows him that he was, in fact, violating the Torah in at least one area—covetousness and greed. Yeshua shows him how to come into Torah compliance, and then admonishes him to come and to follow him. What Yeshua is teaching here is that it’s impossible to keep the Torah perfectly without factoring Yeshua, the Living Torah, into the equation. The point that we can’t keep the Torah without Yeshua directly intervening in our lives, I hope to conclusively demonstrate below.
One way that Yeshua helps his followers obey the Torah is by sending us his Spirit as an internal spiritual force into our hearts to nudge and lead us into Torah-obedience.
What’s more, Yeshua also gives us the divine gift of his grace to accomplish the same thing. His grace removes the guilt, stain and penalties for our past sins, and with a clear conscience and a clean spiritual slate before YHVH, minus the past baggage of sin weighing us down, we are able to go forward under the power of YHVH’s Spirit to walk in accordance with his Torah. Praise Yeshua! An illustration of this would be a runner who trains wearing a backpack filled with rocks. Once the weight is removed from his back, when he runs, he feels as if he were flying through the air.
Ephesians 6:12, Principalities/rulers/authorities…powers/authorities/rulers/potentates/magistrates…rulers of the darkness of this world/world rulers of this darkness /worldly prince, a power paramount in the world…spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.In the demonic realms of darkness, there exist hierarchies of authority even as there are the same in Elohim’s kingdom.
The Scriptures reveal that there are territorial demonic spirits over nations like Tyre and Persia, even as Michael the archangel was over Israel. The evil territorial demons are the spirit behind the governments of those nations, and they influence the leaders of those nations. They are also behind big business and big religious systems. For example, Satan himself is behind the Babylon the Great New World Order, and he will eventually possess the beast leader of that system (Rev 13:2).
There are also demonic powers that exercise power over people and placing people in bondage through addictions (drugs, alcohol, pornography, sex, power, money, witchcraft).
Rulers of darkness keep men blinded in spiritual darkness. They operate in the shadows and men from the light of the truth. They are in charge of secret doctrines, hidden knowledge and ritual practices.
Wicked spirits in heavenly realms influence humans in high positions of authority (e.g. government, religious, business) who are at the top of hierarchial human institutions. The highest evil spirits will influence the highest human authorities. The higher up the human hierarchy one goes, the more evil and powerful the spirits and the more wickedness that occurs. This was the case in Ezekiel 8 when YHVH took the prophet on a tour of the temple. The deeper into the temple Ezekiel when (or the higher up the hierarchial ladder YHVH took him) the greater the spiritual darkness and evil acts that were being committed.
NO! This is totally wrong. More godless fools giving godless and foolish advice and lies!!! What people need is Elohim and the Bible. Forget the Christian church…it’s sick too; it also needs Elohim and the Bible. Psychiatrists and psychologists are to a godless, Antichrist, materialistic and secular humanist, post-biblical society what true, Bible-teaching men and women of Elohim used to be to our societies before people turned their backs on Elohim. — Natan
The State With the Highest Suicide Rate Desperately Needs Shrinks Monte Reel Aug 15 2019, 2:00 AM Aug 15 2019, 5:53 AM (Bloomberg Businessweek) — 1. The mental health unit inside the Glendive Medical Center is dark, and when Jaime Shanks declares that a light switch surely must be around here somewhere, a faint echo chases the words down an empty hall. “Here it is,” she says. The lobby flickers…
Michael Foust | ChristianHeadlines.com Contributor | Wednesday, August 14, 2019
89 PERCENT OF BRITISH YOUNG ADULTS SAY LIFE HAS NO MEANING, POLL FINDS
A new United Kingdom survey showing an overwhelming majority of 16-29-year-olds believe life has no purpose or meaning can be directly attributed to the decline of Christianity in the country, says the founder of Answers In Genesis.
The poll of 1,500 British people by Yakult UK showed 89 percent of those ages 16-29 say life lacks purpose or meaning, compared to 55 percent of those over 60 who answered that way. The Sun newspaper was the first media outlet to report the survey.
Answers In Genesis founder and CEO Ken Ham blamed a lack of faith among young people for the tragic data. A separate 2018 poll showed only 2 percent of those ages 18-24 are affiliated with the Church of England.
“When we understand and embrace God’s Word, we will know the difference between the truth and the lies, and we won’t be deceived,” Ham wrote in an online analysis.
“Where do meaning and purpose come from?” Ham asked, rhetorically. “It comes from our Creator! It comes from having a proper perspective on the history of the universe and humanity — one that starts with God’s Word. We’re not accidents, the result of millions of years of random, chance processes.
“We’re fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14) in the image of our Creator (Genesis 1:27). He has given us his Word, which clearly tells us our purpose and meaning.”
Among all age groups, 80 percent in Britain said life has no meaning or purpose. The teaching of evolutionary theory as fact, Ham says, also is to blame for the data.
“This belief that life has no meaning or purpose is the outworking of the religion of evolutionary secularism that permeates the education system and the media throughout the UK, and here in the United States,” Ham wrote. “When you adopt the religion of atheism, you have to deal with the consequences — and one consequence is that ultimately there’s absolutely no meaning or purpose to life!”
Humans, Ham said, were created “to bring glory to our Creator and enjoy him forever.”
In the Bible, when Elohim’s people turned away from Elohim, they invariably began to murder their babies. People haven’t changed from then until now in their regard. Here’s another tragic story from the UK—a society that has largely turned its back on Elohim.
Nearly a quarter of babies are aborted in England and Wales, shocking new statistics reveal.
Excluding stillbirths and miscarriages, 23.8 per cent of pregnancies were cut short by abortions in 2018.
While there were 657,076 live births last year, 205,295 unborn babies were killed – meaning that for every three babies born, there was one abortion.
Huge increase
Despite claims from activists that “criminalising abortion does not stop abortions”, the number has risen dramatically since the 1967 Abortion Act came into force in England and Wales.
In 1969, the first full year for which data was available, 6.4 per cent of pregnancies ended in abortion. This represents a 270 per cent increase over the last 50 years.
In Northern Ireland, the figure is much lower, as one in twenty pregnancies were ended by abortions last year.
Almost all of these abortions took place among those who travelled to England or Wales, as Northern Ireland’s strong pro-life laws only permit abortion in cases where the mother’s life is at risk.
‘National tragedy’
Catherine Robinson, a spokesperson for Right to Life UK, which compiled the figures, said it was a “national tragedy” that so many pregnancies end in abortion.
“Every one of these abortions represents a failure of our society to protect the lives of babies in the womb and a failure to offer full support to women with unplanned pregnancies.
“On the other hand, these figures show the dramatic difference that laws surrounding abortion make.”
‘No legal safeguards’
Robinson said that if Westminster’s new abortion regime for Northern Ireland comes into force in October, there will likely be “a rapid increase” in the number of abortions in the province.
She called the new laws “extreme” as it will introduce abortion on demand.
