Category: Worship

The Passion of Christ

Nisan 14 – the Passover lamb is Sacrificed

It was the custom since Moses gave the law and the statutes that 3 in the afternoon is the time of the day that the Jewish Priests sacrificed the Passover lamb. It’s no coincidence that this is the time that Jesus – Yeshua said “it is finished” and died on the cross. Nisan 14 is preparation day for the High Sabbath which is the 1st day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, commemorating the time of the Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt.

John 19:28-30 After this, when Yeshua knew that all things were now completed, to fulfill the Scripture He said, “I am thirsty.” 29 A jar full of sour wine was sitting there, so they put a sponge soaked with the sour wine on a hyssop branch and brought it to His mouth. 30 When Yeshua tasted the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.

All four of the Gospels in the New Testament give an account of the time from the arrest to the crucifixion of our Lord and Savior Jesus Messiah – Yeshua Hamashiach: Matthew 26:36—27:56, Mark 14:32—15:41, Luke 22:39 – 23:49, and John 18:1—19:37.

I’ll be taking scriptures from all 4 Gospels to paint a picture of what happened, but equally important is why…

The passion of the Christ was prophesied by Isaiah in the Old Testament:

Isaiah 53:4—12 Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our pains. Yet we esteemed Him stricken, struck by God, and afflicted.5 But He was pierced because of our transgressions, crushed because of our iniquities. The chastisement for our shalom was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.6 We all like sheep have gone astray.Each of us turned to his own way. So Adonai has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted yet He did not open His mouth. Like a lamb led to the slaughter, like a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He did not open His mouth.8 Because of oppression and judgment He was taken away. As for His generation, who considered? For He was cut off from the land of the living, for the transgression of my people—the stroke was theirs9 His grave was given with the wicked, and by a rich man in His death, though He had done no violence, nor was there any deceit in His mouth.10 Yet it pleased Adonai to bruise Him. He caused Him to suffer. If He makes His soul a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, and the will of Adonai will succeed by His hand. 11 As a result of the anguish of His soul He will see it and be satisfied by His knowledge. The Righteous One, My Servant will make many righteous and He will bear their iniquities.12 Therefore I will give Him a portion with the great, and He will divide the spoil with the mighty—because He poured out His soul to death, and was counted with transgressors.For He bore the sin of many, and interceded for the transgressors.

Here’s the WHY:

Isaiah 53:5 But He was pierced because of our transgressions, crushed because of our iniquities. The chastisement for our shalom (peace) was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Scriptures from the TLV – Tree of Life Version (TLV is a new Bible translation produced by Messianic Jewish and Christian Scholars.) I have just recently become acquainted with the Tree of Life Version, so far what I appreciate the most is that is that Jesus is called by His Hebrew name Yeshua.

Here’s what Happened:

John 3:19-20 “Now this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world and men loved the darkness instead of the light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For everyone who does evil hates the light and does not come to the light, so that their deeds will not be exposed.

Matthew 27:45 Now from the sixth hour, darkness fell upon all the land until the ninth hour.

Mark 15:33 When the sixth hour had come, darkness fell over the whole land until the ninth hour.

Luke 23:44-45 It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness fell over the whole land until the ninth hour, 45 for the sun died out.

I marvel at the miracle of darkness that covered the land (earth). It became dark at noon and it wasn’t an eclipse (The darkness cannot have been a solar eclipse, because the full Passover moon is always on the wrong side of the earth for that to be possible). After solemn thought, I recognized that there can only be one reason for the darkness. Jesus – Yeshua is the Light of the world and when He became sin for us and He bore the weight of the sin of the entire world as he hung on the cross, His light was momentarily gone as he was clothed in our dark hideousness called sin. Throughout the Bible, we are told that Sin is darkness and the only light in this world is found in Christ.

Doesn’t it chill you to think of what this world will be without the Light of Christ?

1 John 1:5 Now this is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you – that God is light and in Him there is no darkness at all.

He endured the wrath of God:

2 Corinthians 5:21 He made the One who knew no sin to become a sin offering on our behalf, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.

Because of our sin, the Father couldn’t even look upon His own Son! However, thankfully for us, Jesus’s death on the cross satisfied the wrath of God. He swathed Himself in our sin and paid the price in full! When we believe that He’s the Son of God, we are covered in His blood – His righteousness and Heavenly Father can’t see our sin! In order to continue in His light, we must all repent (turn away from) our sin and trust in the blood of Christ. In Christ we can truly see the light and there is NO darkness anymore…that is unless we seek it out!

Matthew 27:46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?

Doesn’t the pain of Jesus’ anguish when He cried out “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” cause you to fall to your knees and beg forgiveness? Doesn’t it make you want to Live for Jesus – Yeshua because HE died for you?

Before the trial and His crucifixion:

Luke 22:44 And in His anguish, He was praying fervently; and His sweat was like drops of blood falling down on the ground.

Matthew 26:39 Going a little farther, He fell face down and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me! Yet not as I will, but as You will.”

In the beginning Jesus – Yeshua and the Father, who are one, agreed on this plan, because They are “ALL KNOWING”, and They new that man would be tempted and therefore fall away. Jesus – Yeshua had walked this earth as a human and he fully understood what lie before Him! It wasn’t that His pleas fell on deaf ears, it was that once God says this is how it’s going to be, he doesn’t change his mind.

Isaiah 40:8 The grass withers, the flower fades.
But the word of our God stands forever.”

Malachi 3:6 “For I am Adonai. I do not change, So you, children of Jacob, are not consumed.

John 1:1-5 In the beginning was the Word. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 All things were made through Him, and apart from Him nothing was made that has come into being. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overpowered it.

Hebrews 13:8 Yeshua the Messiah is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

The new man who lives for Yeshua:

Romans 6:6-8 knowing our old man was crucified with Him so that the sinful body might be done away with, so we no longer serve sin. 7 For he who has died is set free from sin.8 Now if we have died with Messiah, we believe that we shall also live with Him.

Romans 12:1–2 I urge you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice—holy, acceptable to God—which is your spiritual service. 2 Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Galatians 2:20 and it is no longer I who live, but Messiah lives in me. And the life I now live in the body, I live by trusting in Ben-Elohim—who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

Ephesians 4:24 and put on the new self—created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

What is Evangelism?

Evangelism is the communication of the gospel message that includes a warning, an explanation, and a call to Salvation at the Cross by the blood of Jesus. Evangelism warns people about sin and it’s consequences.

John 16:8 When He comes, He will convict the world about sin, righteousness, and judgment:

Acts 24:25 Now as he spoke about righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come, Felix became afraid and replied, “Leave for now, but when I find time I’ll call for you.”

Revelation 20:11-15 Then I saw a great white throne and One seated on it. Earth and heaven fled from His presence, and no place was found for them. 12 I also saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life, and the dead were judged according to their works by what was written in the books.13 Then the sea gave up its dead, and Death and Hades gave up their dead; all were judged according to their works. 14 Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. 15 And anyone not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.

It includes an explanation of God’s remedy for sin—the gospel

Acts 8:29-35 The Spirit told Philip, “Go and join that chariot.”30 When Philip ran up to it, he heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, “Do you understand what you’re reading?”31 “How can I,” he said, “unless someone guides me?” So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. 32 Now the Scripture passage he was reading was this: He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb is silent before its shearer, so He does not open His mouth. 33 In His humiliation justice was denied Him.
Who will describe His generation? For His life is taken from the earth.

God’s Righteousness through Faith

Romans 3:21-26 But now, apart from the law, God’s righteousness has been revealed—attested by the Law and the Prophets 22 —that is, God’s righteousness through faith in Jesus Christ, to all who believe, since there is no distinction. 23 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. 24 They are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. 25 God presented Him as a propitiation through faith in His blood, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His restraint God passed over the sins previously committed. 26 God presented Him to demonstrate His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be righteous and declare righteous the one who has faith in Jesus.

2 Corinthians 5:21 He made the One who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

And it includes the clear call to REPENT (to turn from sin and to turn toward God) and believe the gospel, by faith.

Repent or Perish

Luke 13:1-5 At that time, some people came and reported to Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. 2 And He responded to them, “Do you think that these Galileans were more sinful than all Galileans because they suffered these things? 3 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as well! 4 Or those 18 that the tower in Siloam fell on and killed—do you think they were more sinful than all the people who live in Jerusalem? 5 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as well!”

Acts 17:29-31 29 Being God’s offspring then, we shouldn’t think that the divine nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image fashioned by human art and imagination.30 “Therefore, having overlooked the times of ignorance, God now commands all people everywhere to repent, 31 because He has set a day when He is going to judge the world in righteousness by the Man He has appointed. He has provided proof of this to everyone by raising Him from the dead.”

Romans 1:17 For in it God’s righteousness is revealed from faith to faith, just as it is written: The righteous will live by faith.

Romans 10:9-13 If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation. 11 Now the Scripture says, Everyone who believes on Him will not be put to shame, 12 for there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, since the same Lord of all is rich to all who call on Him. 13 For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

WE PLANT THE SEEDS! GOD MAKES IT GROW!

The principle of Evangelism is to bring our fellow man to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ as his or her Savior. We must not be complacent…sometimes I think that Americans are the most complacent people on earth. We need to wake up as the day will come when His mercy will end, so we must not take His mercy for granted, share the Gospel while there’s still time!

The entire chapter of Matthew 10 tells the disciples of their commission to go out and preach, He warns them of the pitfalls…

Matthew 10:16 Jesus said…”Look, I’m sending you out like sheep among wolves… so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.”

Matthew 4: 17 And as ye go, preach, saying: The kingdom of heaven is at hand.

As the a member of the body of Christ I’m blessed…I know Jesus died for me and that when I repented (turn away) from my sins and put my trust in Jesus, that by His intercession, He will save me from God’s wrath. 

Here’s the Hitch!

There are many living on this earth, in this country and even in our town that don’t know Jesus. They don’t realize that they’re dead in their sins, because they don’t recognize what sin is.  They may have heard of someone named Jesus, but they have no idea of what He did for mankind or the consequences of their thoughts and actions, because they’ve never heard the Good News. 

The Ten Commandments EXODUS 20: 1-17 (NIV)

And God spoke all these words:

2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

3 “You shall have no other gods before me.

4 “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.

7 “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.

8 “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

12 “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.

13 “You shall not murder.

14 “You shall not commit adultery.

15 “You shall not steal.

16 “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

 “Now once a man has thus been humbled by the Law (10 Commandments) and brought to the knowledge of himself, then he becomes truly repentant for the true repentance begins with the fear and with the judgment of God.  He sees that he is such a great sinner that he cannot find any means to be delivered from his sin by his own strength and effort of works.” (Martin Luther)

Martin Luther, O.S.A. 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German professor of theology, composer, priest, monk, and a seminal figure in the Protestant Reformation. Luther was ordained to the priesthood in 1507. Wikipedia

The Bible teaches that as the church, we are the body of Christ. “We are to love the people of the world.  We are here for this very purpose – to go into the nations and proclaim the Gospel to all who will hear.” (The Gospel Project, Vol 2, p.96) 

***The Gospel Project is an adult Sunday school study program with teacher’s guides and student workbooks.

Creation Glorifies the Creator

Psalm 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.

Isn’t it amazing that even in this fallen world, we really don’t have to look hard to see the GLORY of GOD’S CREATION! When I see something that I consider to be beautiful, whether it’s a newborn baby or a glorious sunset, I’m astounded when I realize that without sin and without the fall of man, just how glorious this earthly existence could be! NO misery of any kind: no pain or death, no deformed and sick babies, no crippled, no thorns or weeds an on and on it goes!

***In my heart and mind, I believe that’s why mankind will never leave this planet and as hard as we try to explore beyond our planet and solar system, He will not allow us to bring our sinful nature into the Heavens. Okay…enough of me trying to make sense out of the state of this world, it’s time to bring Scripture into the equation. I’ll be using the KJV – King James Version for Scriptures.

Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

If you read Genesis 1, you’ll discover that God created everything with mankind in his plans. He declared it all good and perfect before He breathed life into us.

Psalm 24:1 The earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.

He not only created us, but He designed us in His image, therefore, we ALL belong to HIM! But keep in mind, that He loved us so much that he only puts HIS WILL upon us when we ask and pray for HIM to do HIS WILL such as David does in Psalm 23 when he recognizes that God leads us in paths of righteousness…we’re the ones who choose to take another path. In the Lord’s prayer taught to us by Jesus Messiah – Yeshua Hamashiach, He teaches us to pray for the Father’s will to be done and for Him to deliver us from evil.

Ultimately, right from the beginning of creation, He gave us total freedom to choose to obey or disobey Him…today, we still have the choice to exercise that freedom and our choices yield consequences…whether they are good or bad consequences…only you will know the answer.

He gave us the WORD so that we have ALL the knowledge we need to make right choices. He gave us the HOLY SPIRIT to guide us with wisdom and revelation through the WORD and therefore make it possible to navigate through this life, so that our existence could be as peaceful as possible on this fallen Earth. As we can see from what happened in the Garden of Eden, mankind didn’t trust God to be truthful. When Jesus – Yeshua – the Son of God came to earth in the form of a man, he proclaimed that He is the way, the truth and the life…so we’re all at a crossroads again as to whether or not we choose to believe and obey. I mentioned consequences earlier…to be exact, we’re talking about Heaven or Hell…He leaves it up to us to decide. https://jesusamazinggrace.com/2020/03/23/lets-not-soft-peddle-hell/

Throughout Scripture, it’s made very clear that Heavenly Father is our Creator, but He will also be our judge…Believe, Repent and Obey and the Blood of Jesus will cover your sins and you’ll become white as snow in the eyes of God! But that’s not the end of it, when you accept Jesus as your Savior, the Holy Spirit enters into you and your body becomes the Temple of God. The Holy Spirit will guide and you and help you learn God’s will for you.

https://jesusamazinggrace.com/category/the-plan-of-salvation/

Revelation 14:7 Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.

“LOVE” & “HATE”

The two most powerful, yet polar opposite words on the face of this earth!

The word “LOVE” is appears 310 times in the King James Bible, 348 times in the New American Standard Bible, 551 times in the New International Version and 538 times in the New Revised Standard Version. KJV Bible, which was translated from the Greek, has the word LOVE mentioned the least of any other translation. For the sake of this blog, we’re going to use the KJV – King James Version of the Bible.

The word hate is mentioned in the KJV of the Bible 87 times (3.5 times fewer than the word LOVE) and so far from my reading of scripture it doesn’t say that Heavenly Father hates mankind, however; He does make it clear that he hates the actions and deeds of mankind that proliferates evil and idolatry.

I’m starting this blog today to “focus on Biblical LOVE”. The 2nd half of the blog will focus on “Biblical hate”

“LOVE”

It’s pretty obvious to me that Love is a ceaseless conviction and theme throughout the Old and New Testament. And if you believe that Jesus is the WORD made flesh then you must also believe that HE was the ONE who perpetuated this theme called LOVE. The fact that Jesus – Yeshua came to this earth and died for us because He Loved us that much should make those of us who wish the worst for our enemies hang our heads in shame. I’m so sad to say that in today’s world, Christians seem to make more noise about hate than they do LOVE! I believe that some of us have forgotten that Jesus said:

Matthew 5:43-48 Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; 45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.46 For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?47 And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

The Bible translates the Greek word Agape (agapo) for LOVE. It’s a selfless word that originates from God to mankind, it’s meaning is unconditional and springs from a heart of charity. It’s all about seeking to find the best in others and not putting yourself first, but always putting others ahead of yourself. In some ways it truly makes the world go round, because when we “love one another” as Jesus tells us to do when he’s with his disciples in the Upper Room for the “Last Supper”, like when we share the Gospel (GOOD NEWS) we are fulfilling another of God’s great commissions.

John 13:34 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.

John 14:23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

John 15:13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

*** PLEASE NOTE: the day after Jesus told His disciples these things, Jesus Messiah – Yeshua Hamashiach laid down his life for us – for ALL sinners – so that if we believe and trust in HIM we may inherit eternal life with HIM and our FATHER in HEAVEN! Through faith, we become brothers and sisters in Christ. It’s our commission to share that Gospel so that others have the opportunity to accept Jesus as their Savior.

There are 4 other Greek words that translate to a type of Biblical love.

Here are four types of biblical love separate from AGAPO:

1. Phillia Love – A love that is affectionate but not romantic. This love is usually shared between family and friends.
2. Eros love – A love that is romantic between a man and woman.
3. Philautia Love – Is a love and respect we should have for ourselves and the Holy Spirit indwelling within us.
4. Mania Love – This is a love in which we are obsessed. This love leads to false idols and putting things on a pedestal higher than God.

According to Christian thought, Charity is the highest form of love. It’s the love between God and man that is made manifest in unselfish love of one another.

Paul’s description of charity is found in the New Testament (KJV):

1 Corinthians 13:4-8 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.8 Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.

The apostle John, a faithful disciple of Jesus, thought to be the youngest and one of the original 12 disciples had a lot to say about LOVE:

1 John 4:11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.

1 John 4:19 We love him, because he first loved us.

1 John 4:20-21 If any man say, I love God, and hate his brother, he is a liar: for how can he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, love God whom he hath not seen? 21 And this commandment have we of him, that he that loveth God, should love his brother also.

“HATE”

I can only find one place in the Bible that it specifically names a person that God hates; When it came to twin brothers, Jacob and Esau, God makes it perfectly clear why he loves Jacob and harbors a hate for Esau.

This is what God had to say:

Malachi 1:1-3 The burden of the word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi. I have loved you, saith the Lord. Yet ye say, Wherein hast thou loved us? Was not Esau Jacob’s brother? saith the Lord: yet I loved Jacob, 3 And I hated Esau, and laid his mountains and his heritage waste for the dragons of the wilderness.

Hebrews 12:16-17 Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright.17 For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.

Along with the disrespect of his birthright and blessing, Esau had many other vices. He went against the wishes of his parents, Isaac and Rebecca, and married pagan Canaanite wives which Scripture unmistakably forbade. There’s actually not one little bit of good light shown upon Esau in terms of his relationship with God or family (although according to Scripture he was Isaac’s favorite). Many years later, it appeared that he had let go of his anger and his desire to kill his brother for what he considered to be trickery by Jacob when he lost his birthright and blessing.

In Genesis 33 when Jacob (now renamed Israel by God) returns to his homeland of Canaan from Haran where he found his wives, he is wary of Esau and even after their meeting and with the embrace of Esau and the refusal of Esau to take the offering of animals from Jacob as an apology, ultimately Jacob settles in Canaan some distance away from his brother. It’s the generations after Esau, that the Edomites (the descendants of Esau) who are in constant conflict with “ISRAEL” (the descendants of Jacob). The Kings: Saul, David, Solomon, Jehoram, Amaziah, and Uzziah all had conflicts with the Edomites.

However, God says to the Israelites as they are entering the Land of Canaan after their captivity in Egypt:

Deuteronomy 23:7 Thou shalt not abhor an Edomite; for he is thy brother: thou shalt not abhor an Egyptian; because thou wast a stranger in his land.

For more reading about the Edomites and God’s judgement read the book of Amos. For anyone today who harbors a vendetta against the nation of Israel, they need to spend more time reading the Old Testament. Keep in mind, Heavenly Father hardened the hearts of Israel so that there would be time to share the Gospel with the Gentiles, so that we may be saved from His wrath to come.

***In my opinion, God makes it plain that we are not to hate one another for any reason…but that’s not to say that we can’t hate the things that people participate in…

Heavenly Father does make it plain in the Old and New Testaments, exactly what he does hate.

Abomination is the word that we find most that exemplifies what God hates, and some say that’s the improper translation of the Hebrew. I do have a “modern Tanakh” that I use for reference and in most cases, it’s translated the same as our KJV. If you’re not sure what you’re reading in a verse, then put it into context…then it will become VERY clear as to the meaning. If a physical or spiritual death penalty is tied to it, it is definitely something that you shouldn’t be doing.

Deuteronomy 12:31 Thou shalt not do so unto the Lord thy God: for every abomination to the Lord, which he hateth, have they done unto their gods; for even their sons and their daughters they have burnt in the fire to their gods.

Proverbs 6:16-19 There are six things which the Lord hates, Yes, seven which are an abomination to Him: 1.Haughty eyes, 2. a lying tongue, And 3. hands that shed innocent blood, 4. A heart that devises wicked plans, 5. feet that be swift in running to mischief 6.A false witness that speaketh lies, 7. and he that soweth discord among brethren.

Isaiah 1:13-14 Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting.14 Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them.

Zechariah 8:17 17 And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the Lord.

In the New Tesatment, there’s a couple of verses in particular that makes it perfectly clear that Heavenly Father hates certain behaviors and practices:

1 Corinthians 6:9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind (reference to homosexuality),

Garlations 5:19-21 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

As Christians, we have a choice…we can either have a heart filled with “LOVE” or a heart filled with “hate”! We can pray for our brothers and sisters who don’t know Heavenly Father and haven’t accepted the Grace of Jesus – Yeshua and in doing so, we might have the opportunity to plant the seed that changes one heart. We can take the time to gently and lovingly nudge someone to seek God, OR WE can allow the “state of the world” to blind us from what God’s plans are for mankind. We can tear out our hair and scream for God to rain down fire and brimstone on people who practice things like abortion (murder) or homosexuality! However, in doing this, how does this answer the call of Jesus in Matthew 5:44 to love our enemies? God tells us in Deuteronomy 32:35, Romans 12:19 and Hebrews 10:30 Vengeance is Mine! He will take care of it all according to His timing.

Word Count Information from: https://www.christianbiblereference.org/faq_WordCount.htm

Will you Share the Gospel?

The principle of Evangelism is to bring our fellow man to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ as his or her Savior.

The Bible teaches that as the church, we are the body of Christ. “We are to love the people of the world – Jesus Messiah – Yeshua Hamashiach tells us:

Matthew 5:43-48  “You have heard that it was said, Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. For He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward will you have? Don’t even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing out of the ordinary? Don’t even the Gentiles do the same? 48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

We are here for this very purpose – to go into the nations and proclaim the Gospel to all who will hear.

2 Peter 3:9 The Lord does not delay His promise, as some understand delay, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance.

As the a member of the body of Christ I’m thankful that I’ve been blessed…I know Jesus – Yeshua died for me on the cross and that when I repented and turned away from my sins and put my trust in Jesus alone, that by His intercession, He will save me from Heavenly Father’s wrath. 

Here’s the hitch…there are many living on this earth, in this country and even in our town that don’t know Jesus. They don’t realize that they’re dead in their sins, because they don’t recognize what sin is.  They may have heard of someone named Jesus, but they have no idea of what He did for mankind or the consequences of their thoughts and actions, because they’ve never heard the Good News. 

 “Now once a man has thus been humbled by the Law (10 Commandments) and brought to the knowledge of himself, then he becomes truly repentant for the true repentance begins with the fear and with the judgment of God.  He sees that he is such a great sinner that he cannot find any means to be delivered from his sin by his own strength and effort of works.” (Martin Luther)

Martin Luther, O.S.A. 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German professor of theology, composer, priest, monk, and a seminal figure in the Protestant Reformation. Luther was ordained to the priesthood in 1507. Wikipedia

The Ten Commandments EXODUS 20: 1-17 (NIV)

And God spoke all these words:

2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. 3 “You shall have no other gods before me. 4 “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments. 7 “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name. 8 “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. 12 “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you. 13 “You shall not murder. 14 “You shall not commit adultery. 15 “You shall not steal. 16 “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

https://jesusamazinggrace.com/2020/11/18/lets-talk-the-10-commandments/

As I study the Bible I see that God’s plan for the church is much greater than man’s plans.  In the book of Revelation 2, there are 7 angels sent to convey Christ’s letters to 7 churches…when you read these letters to the churches, you realize that they all fall short in one way or another.  I’ve been told by many that these letters only pertain to the churches that existed in the early church or that they’re actually periods of time throughout history starting with the early church. Fast forward to today and I believe that these letters pertain to today’s churches too. How many of us are lukewarm? How many of us make time to read our Bibles and spend time getting to know God? How many of us honor His gifts (including waking up in the morning to have another chance to get right with Him)? How many of us stay home to watch football instead of worshiping Him with the congregation? How many of us stop to smell His roses, stop to enjoy His sunset or sunrise, gasp at the beauty of a new born baby created in His image? All glorious creations of God! Everywhere we look we are surrounded by His magnificence and wonders and the testimony of His creation is before us. When I study the 7 letters to the churches, I find myself desperately praying that as a congregation of followers, we will heed the messages in these letters and try our best to follow His plans for us and the world. 

Rejoice in the Lord

Scripture from HSCB – Holman Christian Standard Bible

Philippians 4:4-9 4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!

5 Let your graciousness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 6 Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

8 Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable—if there is any moral excellence and if there is any praise—dwell on these things. 9 Do what you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

Happy New Year!

Numbers 6:24-27 (NIV)

24 “”The Lord bless you
    and keep you;
25 the Lord make his face shine on you
    and be gracious to you;
26 the Lord turn his face toward you
    and give you peace.””

A few Scriptures to help you keep your focus on Jesus Messiah – Yeshua Hamashiach (Hebrew)! All taken from the NIV – New International Version of the Bible.

Look Back On His Blessings and you will find that they are too numerable to count! Heavenly Father is always faithful, and if we look at the past year, we’ll find that HE has been with us, and has been working in our lives – even when we don’t realize it!

Deuteronomy 23:5 A blessing for you, because the Lord your God loves you.

1 Chronicles 16:8 Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done.

1 Chronicles 16:11-12 Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always. Remember the wonders he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced,…

Lamentations 3: 22-24 Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.

James 1:17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

Heavenly Father has plans for our lives, and they’re plans to help us prosper!

Isaiah 43:18-19 Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.

Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Proverbs 16:9 In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!

Don’t Worry About What Is To Come…

Heavenly Father is with us in the new year, and we don’t need to worry about anything when we focus on HIM. HE is our strength, HE is with us and we have nothing to fear.

Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.

Philippians 4:6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

1 Peter 5:7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

Hebrews 13:6 So we say with confidence,“The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?”

YHWH’s Appointed Holy Days ~ Levitcus 23

Scriptures from the NIV (New International Version)

The Appointed Festivals

23 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘These are my appointed festivals, the appointed festivals of the Lord, which you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies.

The Sabbath

3 “‘There are six days when you may work, but the seventh day is a day of sabbath rest, a day of sacred assembly. You are not to do any work; wherever you live, it is a sabbath to the Lord.

The Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread

4 “‘These are the Lord’s appointed festivals, the sacred assemblies you are to proclaim at their appointed times: 5 The Lord’s Passover begins at twilight on the fourteenth day of the first month. 6 On the fifteenth day of that month the Lord’s Festival of Unleavened Bread begins; for seven days you must eat bread made without yeast. 7 On the first day hold a sacred assembly and do no regular work. 8 For seven days present a food offering to the Lord. And on the seventh day hold a sacred assembly and do no regular work.’”

Offering the Firstfruits

9 The Lord said to Moses, 10 “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When you enter the land I am going to give you and you reap its harvest, bring to the priest a sheaf of the first grain you harvest. 11 He is to wave the sheaf before the Lord so it will be accepted on your behalf; the priest is to wave it on the day after the Sabbath. 12 On the day you wave the sheaf, you must sacrifice as a burnt offering to the Lord a lamb a year old without defect, 13 together with its grain offering of two-tenths of an ephah of the finest flour mixed with olive oil—a food offering presented to the Lord, a pleasing aroma—and its drink offering of a quarter of a hin of wine. 14 You must not eat any bread, or roasted or new grain, until the very day you bring this offering to your God. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live.

The Festival of Weeks

15 “‘From the day after the Sabbath, the day you brought the sheaf of the wave offering, count off seven full weeks. 16 Count off fifty days up to the day after the seventh Sabbath, and then present an offering of new grain to the Lord. 17 From wherever you live, bring two loaves made of two-tenths of an ephah of the finest flour, baked with yeast, as a wave offering of firstfruits to the Lord. 18 Present with this bread seven male lambs, each a year old and without defect, one young bull and two rams. They will be a burnt offering to the Lord, together with their grain offerings and drink offerings—a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord. 19 Then sacrifice one male goat for a sin offering and two lambs, each a year old, for a fellowship offering. 20 The priest is to wave the two lambs before the Lord as a wave offering, together with the bread of the firstfruits. They are a sacred offering to the Lord for the priest. 21 On that same day you are to proclaim a sacred assembly and do no regular work. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live.

22 “‘When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Leave them for the poor and for the foreigner residing among you. I am the Lord your God.’”

The Festival of Trumpets

23 The Lord said to Moses, 24 “Say to the Israelites: ‘On the first day of the seventh month you are to have a day of sabbath rest, a sacred assembly commemorated with trumpet blasts. 25 Do no regular work, but present a food offering to the Lord.’”

The Day of Atonement

26 The Lord said to Moses, 27 “The tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. Hold a sacred assembly and deny yourselves, and present a food offering to the Lord. 28 Do not do any work on that day, because it is the Day of Atonement, when atonement is made for you before the Lord your God. 29 Those who do not deny themselves on that day must be cut off from their people. 30 I will destroy from among their people anyone who does any work on that day. 31 You shall do no work at all. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live. 32 It is a day of sabbath rest for you, and you must deny yourselves. From the evening of the ninth day of the month until the following evening you are to observe your sabbath.”

The Festival of Tabernacles

33 The Lord said to Moses, 34 “Say to the Israelites: ‘On the fifteenth day of the seventh month the Lord’s Festival of Tabernacles begins, and it lasts for seven days. 35 The first day is a sacred assembly; do no regular work. 36 For seven days present food offerings to the Lord, and on the eighth day hold a sacred assembly and present a food offering to the Lord. It is the closing special assembly; do no regular work.

37 (“‘These are the Lord’s appointed festivals, which you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies for bringing food offerings to the Lord—the burnt offerings and grain offerings, sacrifices and drink offerings required for each day. 38 These offerings are in addition to those for the Lord’s Sabbaths and in addition to your gifts and whatever you have vowed and all the freewill offerings you give to the Lord.)

39 “‘So beginning with the fifteenth day of the seventh month, after you have gathered the crops of the land, celebrate the festival to the Lord for seven days; the first day is a day of sabbath rest, and the eighth day also is a day of sabbath rest. 40 On the first day you are to take branches from luxuriant trees—from palms, willows and other leafy trees—and rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days. 41 Celebrate this as a festival to the Lord for seven days each year. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come; celebrate it in the seventh month. 42 Live in temporary shelters for seven days: All native-born Israelites are to live in such shelters 43 so your descendants will know that I had the Israelites live in temporary shelters when I brought them out of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.’”

44 So Moses announced to the Israelites the appointed festivals of the Lord.

Is Your Life about Pursuing Good Things or GOD THINGS?

1 Thessalonians 2:4  (HCSB) Instead, just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please men, but rather God, who examines our hearts.  Galatians 1:10 (KJV) For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ. The Greek translation for the word servant is actually “SLAVE”…not servant. Are there Christians today willing to become Slaves to Christ and the Gospel as Paul was? This is exactly what God expects of us when we confess that Jesus is our Savior.

It seems to me that most of my followers are professing Christians, so some of you may wonder why I feel it vital to give a message of Evangelism and talk about repenting (some call it preaching to the choir). I by no means, consider myself on the same level as Paul, but Paul never stopped reminding the believers in the churches of his time of what God expects of us as his children/slaves.  I’ve said it before and I’m repeating it again today…there’s responsibility in Salvation.  Not just to God, not just to others, but also to ourselves, to honestly spend our life in pursuit of becoming Holy, Blameless and above reproach.  We need to ask ourselves…are we in pursuit of good things or God Things in our lives?  Is everything you do for the Glory of God?  Paul never stopped proclaiming the Gospel to believers as well as unbelievers because he knew that we need to constantly uphold each other and keep our eyes on the prize: eternal life in the Kingdom of God with Jesus. 

Are you a good and faithful servant?  When you enter into the presence of Christ, will you be able to stand before Him?  Will he find you to be Holy, Blameless and above reproach?  Do you live your life for HIM?  Or do you want to continue on in your life as before and stay in condemnation? Do you want to continue on the path you were on before you professed Jesus as your Savior?  In the following letter to the Colossians, (who were already established as a church body) Paul is reminding them of the prerequisite that they signed up for when they became followers of Jesus Christ.  Reminding them that they had walked away from sin and are now engaged to become a servant of Christ.

Colossians 1:19-24 (HCSB) For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him, 20 and through Him to reconcile everything to Himself by making peace through the blood of His cross—whether things on earth or things in heaven. 21 Once you were alienated and hostile in your minds because of your evil actions. 22 But now He has reconciled you by His physical body through His death, to present you holy, faultless, and blameless before Him— 23 if indeed you remain grounded and steadfast in the faith and are not shifted away from the hope of the gospel that you heard. This gospel has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and I, Paul, have become a servant of it.  24 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for you, and I am completing in my flesh what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for His body, that is, the church.

At some point in your life, did you say YES to Jesus with joy and excitement?  You couldn’t get enough of HIS WORD, you couldn’t spend enough time with HIM and you shared your excitement with everyone you met.  Then one day, you noticed that today, HE hadn’t even crossed your mind because you are so wrapped up in the world, that without realizing it you have walked away.  Were you ever truly transformed by His LOVE & GRACE?  Examine your life and see what has actually changed since you became a Christian.  Are you no longer intentional when it comes to your walk with Jesus? 

  

2 Corinthians 5:18-20 (HCSB)   Everything is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 That is, in Christ, God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed the message of reconciliation to us. 20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, certain that God is appealing through us. We plead on Christ’s behalf, “Be reconciled to God.”

Once the Gospel enters into us…and we are born again, we are changed!  We are no longer representatives or ambassadors of this world…we are ambassadors to the Kingdom of God.  Everything we think, do or say is for HIS Glory!  We have died to our old self and are now living for HIM!  When we become HIS, we put on Christ!  We become a light in the dark world.          1. The way we live will make a difference to believers and unbelievers alike.  2. Don’t allow the unbelievers to drag you into the mire, remember in Matthew 26, when Jesus was before the powers that be, he held his tongue.  Don’t allow unbelievers to accuse you by the way you live your life 1 Peter 2:12 Conduct yourselves honorably among the Gentiles, so that in a case where they speak against you as those who do what is evil, they will, by observing your good works, glorify God on the day of visitation. 3. Jesus tells us to turn the other cheek to those who attack us…in Matthew 5:38-40 “You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.39 But I tell you, don’t resistan evildoer. On the contrary, if anyone slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. 40 As for the one who wants to sue you and take away your shirt,let him have your coat as well. 4. Spend time studying as in Psalm 1:2-3 Instead, his delight is in the Lord’s instruction, and he meditates on it day and night. 3 He is like a tree planted beside streams of water that bears its fruit in seasonand whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. 5. Purity is center stage in all things in your life Philippians 4:8 Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable—if there is any moral excellence and if there is any praise—dwell on these things.