A Daily Word

The Name

2011-11-06T06:36:00.000-08:00

There is power in names. Acts 4:12 says: "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." Philippians 3: 9-10 read: "Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Yeshua every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth..." You can see that salvation is in the name; that everything that has a name must bow to The Name. Remember that we need to think Hebrew even if we are reading Greek.

The Hebrew word for "name" is shem. It is composed of two Hebrew letters: sheen which means teeth or destroy and mem which means water. Read together, the word picture is to destroy chaos. If you have chaos is your health, finances, relationships, or any other aspect of your life, the Name will destroy it. Now you can see why such emphasis was placed on teaching in the name of Yeshua. Everything that has a name must bow to the name of Yeshua. Now you can understand why we are told in Colossians 3:17: "And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Master Yeshua, giving thanks to Elohim the Father by him." There is power in His name and we should destroy chaos everywhere we find it.

We as followers of the Way have been granted authority to use the Name. The Name that will destroy chaos. People need this truth. Take the Name with you today.

Are Mormans Christians?

2011-11-02T11:47:00.001-07:00

This question seems to be asked a lot lately. Perhaps, it is because of several presidential candidates are of the Mormon faith. I find the question really interesting. The reason I do is because it presupposes that a correct understanding of doctrine is essential to salvation. That certainly seems like a work-based righteousness. If I don't believe intellectually correct, then I am lost. That seems to take away from the finished work of Yeshua on the cross. Read the following statement from the Mormon faith: "The fundamental principles of our religion are the testimony of the Apostles and Prophets, concerning Jesus Christ, that He died, was buried, and rose again the third day, and ascended into heaven; and all other things which pertain to our religion are only appendages to it" (TPJS, p. 121). I wonder if the Christians who condemn all Mormons have read the above quote.

Being a follower of YHWH is about relationship, not intellect. You are right with YHWH if you are in relationship with Him. You may have some specific teachings that fall outside the mainline churches, but they will not destroy relationship. Being in a relationship is about loving each other, communicating with each other, spending time with each other, and wanting to be with each other. We can look at the marriage relationship to gain an understanding of what a relationship should look like. A Mormon, a Catholic, a Baptist, or any other denomination can have a relationship with YHWH even though there is disagreement over specific teachings.

If we think about it, the Mormons do have some strange doctrines. However, the Catholics do also, e.g. the communion wafer becoming the real body and blood of Jesus Christ. Most all followers of the Way have some quirky ideas. Perhaps, it is time to focus on the body of Yeshua as composed of many different people in a relationship with Him yet with different ideas about how to worship Him. Would not it be great if the body would quit shooting its other parts?

Uncommon Faith

2011-11-01T12:11:00.000-07:00

Faith seems to have become an excuse for events not adhering to Biblical standards. By this I refer to many stating that they have faith that the sickness, disease, or poverty they find themselves in must have some higher purpose. Can you find an example in the Bible where someone came to Yeshua for healing and was turned away? Can you find an example that the disciples ever suffered from lack? No, in fact they had enough provision to have their own treasurer to manage it. If Bible days demonstrate the will and power of God to heal and meet the needs of the followers of the Way, where did the idea come from that we should accept by faith our circumstances without question?

I suggest that it is insulting to YHWH to intimate that He is either powerless or uncaring in the treatment of His children. If one thinks in the natural for a moment, ask yourself what parent would deny his or her child health or provision for material needs? YHWH has the ability and desire to take care of His followers. Our faith should reflect our belief that the preceding statement is true. This is not limited to an intellectual faith, but should be seen in our actions as we live our lives each day. Faith is about action.

Faith should be seen as well as heard. It should be demonstrated by our walk. We should frighten the spirits of sickness and disease. While I acknowledge that some sickness comes from natural causes, I also suggest that some sickness has a spiritual basis. By uncommon faith, I mean a faith that is a "show and tell" faith. One that is supernatural in its approach and results. A faith that speaks to the mountain and causes it to be cast into the sea. A faith that brings fear to the forces of darkness. It can be a reality in our lives. Is that type of faith available to us? I say it is.

Doubt and Unbelief

2011-10-27T07:50:00.000-07:00

There are times that one may have faith and at the same time doubt. The presence of faith not not exclude unbelief. True faith is not the absence of doubt, it is the presence of trust. When one has trust that YHWH's word creates the ultimate reality, then the physical reality observed through the five senses will submit to the superior power. Too many "Christians" want to debate "doctrine" and argue over correct teachings. While they are doing that, watch how powerless their religion is. It is a religion based on intellectual satisfaction. Shaul (Paul) spoke of coming with a word of power.

Does your word have power? Or, are you merely debating theological correctness? There is a hurting world that needs the followers of YHWH to have a "show and tell" faith walk. If you can walk in the supernatural, then you can share the message of Yeshua and they will listen. Too often, the message preached is an attempt to get someone to agree with your 10 points of doctrine. If they do, they are part of the club. If not, they are labeled heretics.

How would a ministry change if they did not share the message of salvation until the power of YHWH had been demonstrated first? How can we walk in the supernatural? The answer is not that complicated. However, the price is not cheap. Tomorrow, we look at paying the price. You can bring any doubts with you because doubt will not stop you from walking in the supernatural.

Violent Faith

2011-10-26T06:47:00.000-07:00

Faith needs to be aggressive. I know some might take offense to such an approach. However, when one remembers what is behind the pain and suffering we endure in this life, the need to be in attack mode with our faith becomes readily apparent. John 10:10 becomes a dividing line. Yeshua comes to bring us life while the devil comes to bring death and destruction. Yeshua's life is not just any life. It is a life of abundance. It is not characterized by being the victim of murder, theft, or destruction. If someone came to your home with the purpose to kill your family, steal your possessions, and destroy your abundant life, how would you greet him? I would greet him with every weapon I had. I would be as aggressive as I needed be to end the threat against my family.

I received an E-Mail today from a group that was arguing that God does not heal today, and that the age of miracles has past. No thanks! My first response was that in my example, I would have no way to defeat the enemy from entering my home to take away from me my loved ones. The E-Mail came from a group that believes in a powerless God. They see the greatest testimony being the tribute to God that He gets from the way we endure suffering. Again, no thanks! I believe the greater testimony is when we take dominion over evil and defeat it with the authority and power that has been granted to the follower of the Way, i.e Yeshua.

It is time to get violent. No, I am not talking about physical violence like a protester. Instead, I am talking about a spiritual violence that defeats the work of the devil at every turn and every opportunity. This is not a fight for the faint at heart. This is a fight for those who want to mount up and win.

A True Description of Faith

2011-10-25T07:47:00.000-07:00

It has been almost six months since I have made a blog post. I wanted to break free from feeling like I had to post. I wanted to wait until I had something to say. That time is now. I have been asking the question: "Why do the experiences of Bible followers of Yeshua differ so much from ours?" This will be my purpose in writing for the immediate future. Our faith seems to be too balanced. It seems to be an unoffensive neutral approach to life. My position is that faith should be excessive. It should be on the edge. It should be willing to take a chance because to the one with faith, it is not chance. There is real evidence that the object of faith exists. That evidence is proof that the object sought not only only exists, but will become a reality in the life of the one who has true faith.

We need to reach a point that our faith is reaching toward that which natural reality says is unreachable. It is at the very point that reality attempts to crush your faith that true faith must take the higher reality of the unseen world and thrust the seen reality underneath the supernatural power of true faith. If this sounds like I am describing a fight, it is because I am. Faith is the good fight we fight. We do not wrestle with flesh and blood, but we do wrestle with the unseen forces that help support the reality we seek to alter.

It is time to rise up with the hand of faith and seize the supernatural reality of the unseen world and bring into our natural world the divine power that comes by faith. The sick will be healed. Shattered lives will be repaired. The forces of darkness will flee. The power of true faith brings supernatural results when applied by men and women who have determined to reign as a king in this life. It is time to become militant.

The Power of Your Desire

2011-05-03T06:07:00.000-07:00

Psalm 37:4 says: "And delight yourself in YHWH, And let Him give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to YHWH, And trust in Him, and He does it." (ISR) The Amplified Version translates the passage as: "Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He will give you the desires and secret petitions of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord [roll and repose each care of your load on Him]; trust (lean on, rely on, and be confident) also in Him and He will bring it to pass." The word "desire" is a verb and usually means "to long for," "to ask for," "to demand," and may be used in a good or bad sense (compare Dt 7:25 in the King James Version). The Scriptures tell us what we long for shall be ours. It is easy to confuse the word desire for wish. You may wish to lose 20 pounds. However, if your desire is to eat more cake, your wish to lose weight will remain just that, i.e. a wish. Your desire is what motivates and controls your actions. Do you desire the ways of sin more than the ways of YHWH. The answer is found by observing your life. Your life reveals your desires.

Notice that the Word includes the secret petitions of your heart. No one else may know what you secretly desire; however, YHWH does and He will bring to pass what you really want. If there is something about your life that you don't like, review your previous desires. You may wish to graduate from college. However, until you really desire to graduate from college it wil not happen. Desire coupled with actions in pursuit of that desire will provide the materials necessary for YHWH to bring it about. You can say you have a desire to make $250000 a year salary, but if you stay at home and sleep all day, it will never happen. If you desire to be a success, and you are willing to take constructive steps to accomplish your goal, YHWH will create the circumstances to bring it about. He may give you an idea or business solution that can bring your desire into manifestation. It all starts with desire.

What do you desire? Better yet, what does your current situation reveal about your past desires. I once knew a man that wanted to make just enough money to go to bars and drink and sing karaoke. That was all he really wanted. Look at your life and write down what you see. Then, write what you desire to change. Writing is important. Habaqquo (Habakkuk) 2:2 says: "And YHWH answered me and said, 'Write the vision and inscribe it on tablets, so that he who reads it runs." Write your desires down and carry them with you wherever you go. They will stay fresh. They will always be before you and this will help you run. Now, run with your desires and He will cause them to manifest.

The Power of Desire

2011-04-30T09:00:00.000-07:00

In John 2, Yahshua performs His first recorded miracle: "And when they wanted wine, the mother of Yahshua saith unto Him, They have no wine. Yahshua saith unto her, Woman, What have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come. His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever He saith unto you, do it....Yahshua saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim." Miraculously, the water was turned to wine, and not just any wine but the best wine. Ask yourself, "What happened?" The servants fill the pots with water and they draw out the best wine. When did Yahshua ask for the miracle? When did He pray for it? When did He command anything to happen? The only logical conclusion is that His desire was sufficient to bring about the molecular alteration of the water to wine. Someone might suggest that the words were left from the text; however, that makes no sense. The words of Yahshua are very powerful and were not likely to be disregarded, especially when they were the instrument of a miracle. The truth is that Yahshua's desire was sufficient to bring about an interruption of the natural laws in existence. He desired the water to made wine and it happened.

This is not an isolated incident. Consider John 11. Yahshua has come to Bethany after hearing the news of His sick friend Lazarus. Lazarus has died and in verse 41 Yahshua says: "Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Yahshua lifted up His eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me." Heard what? Yahshua has not spoken anything to the Father about raising Lazarus from the dead. However, it would be logical to infer that Yahshua desired him to be resurrected. It was the thoughts of desire that the Father heard. He responded to that desire and a miracle occurred.

Yahshua said in John 14:12: "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father." The Father hears our desires. Greater works shall we do and that includes those things that we desire. Psalm 37:4 says: "Delight thyself also in Yahweh; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart." Since we will receive the desires of our heart when we delight in Yahweh, we should be careful about what we desire. Our desires will attract the reality of those desires. This is not "The Law of Attraction." This is the law of the Scriptures,i.e. when we meet the conditions of delight in Yahweh. Your desires are powerful. They are heard. They will manifest in reality. They can alter the reality of yourself and others. Are you thirsty for the best wine yet?

Easter Sunday

2011-04-25T10:40:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, the church celebrated Easter Sunday. It was a celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. You know the story; because He lives, we can live. Because Jesus died, we can live. Because He rose from the dead, we also will rise from the dead. My family celebrated the day by attending a private service that I conducted. I spoke of the pagan roots of "Easter." I taught that it was not the best approach to select one day of the year and celebrate the resurrection. Instead, I suggested that we should celebrate the resurrection of Yeshua every day of the year. We should approach each day with excitement that Yeshua lives; that He has conquered death and hell. It should not be restricted to a single occurrence in a 365 day period.

After the service, our family attended a theme park near by. While waiting for a show to begin in a packed auditorium, the woman behind me said to her friend, "Here it is Easter Sunday and all these people are going to hell." I wanted to ask her, "Does that include you?" Further, I wanted to ask her did she really believe what she said? If you really believed that, why would you not shout at the top of your lungs that everyone was in danger? If the theater was on fire, you would have no problem in yelling, "Fire!" Then, I wanted to ask her why everyone was going to hell? Does God not like Celtic dancing? Or, was it because it was taking place on Easter Sunday? The celebration of the holiday "Easter" is a pagan holiday. It is about fertility rites. That is why the symbols of bunnies and eggs are prominent. I am convinced that Elohim would not send anyone to hell because they did not celebrate Easter Sunday. The true holidays are Passover, Feast of Unleavened Bread, and First Fruits. They are Biblical; Easter is not.

A further question I had was, "What type of God did the woman behind me worship?" Was He a loving God that extends grace and mercy up to a point, and immediately upon the death of the person transform into an angry, violent, and vengeful deity? What you believe about people who don't agree with your faith tells others about the God you believe in. So, what does your God look like?

Be Set Apart Because He Is Set Apart

2011-04-17T12:09:00.000-07:00

Leviticus 19:1-2 is typically translated as, "You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy." What is real holiness? In the late 1800's and early 1900's churches were started that called themselves "Holiness Churches." They focused on separating from the world. Whenever a new idea or invention came into being, there was a tendency to require the holiness people to abstain from participation in whatever the new invention involved. I remember reading about one preacher who said, "I wish we had not preached against the automobile. I would have liked to have had one." Some made a stand against telephones, televisions, and movies. It seemed that whatever brought entertainment was frowned upon. Today, these groups still exist with their dress codes, hair requirements for women, and bans on sporting events, bowling, and working on Sunday. Are these what YHWH had in mind when He proclaimed that we were to be set apart?

True holiness is being set apart from the common or profane. The Hebrew word is kedushah and it means sanctity or "set-apartness." Being holy implies being different. How should we be different? We don't have to guess or make up man made rules to form a denomination. The answer is found in Leviticus. The following will set you apart from the world and YHWH will be pleased:
1. Honor your parents and keep the Sabbath (Lev. 19:3);
2. Honor YHWH by abstaining from idolatry (Lev. 19:4);
3. Leave gleanings of your harvest for the poor, i.e. give money to help the poor (Lev. 19:10);
4. Do not steal, do not lie, do not deceive one another (Lev. 19:11);
5. Do not curse others (Lev. 19:12);
6. Judge others favorably and avoid gossip (Lev. (Lev. 19:15,16);
7. Do not hate your brother (Lev. 19:17); and
8. Love your neighbor as yourself (Lev. 19:18).

There are others, but the above are a good start. Notice that to YHWH, holiness is about what you do or don't do. It is not a feeling or emotion. It is a duty. We have been commanded to be set apart. When our actions follow Torah, you will be set apart. You will stand out and be prepared because the world will not embrace you. However, that is the price to being set apart.

How To Pray

2011-04-08T13:47:00.000-07:00

The Christian church taught me to pray using specifics. I was to find a Biblical passage to support my request and bring it to God in prayer. I was to detail what I wanted God to do because if I didn't, I would not receive a specific answer. I have found such an approach to make prayer a burdensome activity. It reminds me of preparing a case for the courtroom to present to a judge or a jury. Such approach makes God a legalistic entity that requires that you jump through theological hoops to get what you desire.

I have discovered a better approach that yields more effective results. It sounds like this: "Elohim, I need a miracle for _____________." This may sound simple, but break down the prayer. First, I am addressing Elohim. Elohim means Mighty One in Hebrew. I am talking to the One that can perform a miracle for me. He is Mighty and no hand can prevent Him from doing what He wants. Second, I am asking for a miracle. My prayer recognizes that my situation needs a Divine touch. If man could perform the activity, God's hand could be stayed. However, what I seek needs His hand active in my situation. Third, notice what is not prayed. I have not sought to manipulate Him. I have not told Him how to do what I seek. Instead, I am as a small child that asks his father for help. Prayer becomes a real joy, the way it should be.

Is your prayer life burdened by rules? Do you enjoy praying? If you enjoy your prayer life and you see results, don't bother with a change. However, if your prayer life needs freshness, consider the simple request of, "Elohim, I need a miracle for _______________."

Has Salvation Come To Your House? Part 2

2011-04-01T14:51:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, we considered Yeshua's statement that salvation had come to Zacchaeus's house when he made restitution to those he had wronged. Today, we look at Yeshua's statement to the rich man about eternal life. Mark 10:17-21 reads: "And when he was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? And Yeshua said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, Elohim. Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother. And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth. Then Yeshua beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me." First, I want you to notice the commandments Yeshua referenced as essential to obtaining eternal life. You won't find anything about taking Elohim's name in vain. Neither is there any reference to idolatry or Sabbath observance. Yeshua answers the question with the commandments that have to do with how we treat each other. Second, I want you to notice that Yeshua connects eternal life with assisting the poor. What passes for salvation in most churches today is not even close to the teachings of Yeshua. Do you not find it strange that those who claim to follow Jesus teach so differently from what He taught?

Consider the events at the Tower of Babel. Genesis 11:4 records: "And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth." The people intended to build a tower that would reach heaven. This action was very disrespectful to Elohim. How does YHWH respond? He confuses their language and scatters them. Was there any loss of life because the people had disrespected Him? The answer is no. However, consider the wickedness of Sodom. Ezekiel 16:49 reads: "Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy." How did YHWH respond to the people of Sodom who were guilty of pride, idleness, and neglect of the poor? They were destroyed completely. It seems clear that YHWH responds differently depending who the wronged party is. He is more forceful when the poor are being mistreated than He is when He is being mistreated.

We would do well to consider salvation from YHWH's and Yeshua's perspective. They both connect eternal life with the taking care of others, especially the poor. Perhaps this is why Yeshua taught: "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of Elohim." Whatever you have, remember the poor. Take care of them; if you have no money, find something to give. When you do, the Scriptures say that salvation will come to your house.

Has Salvation Come To Your House?

2011-03-31T11:17:00.000-07:00

Luqas (Luke) 19:1-10 says: Yeshua entered Jericho and was passing through. A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. He wanted to see who Yeshua was, but because he was short he could not see over the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Yeshua was coming that way. When Yeshua reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly. All the people saw this and began to mutter, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.” But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.” Yeshua said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” How does Yeshua's concept of salvation compare with that of most churches today? Yeshua says salvation has come when Zacchaeus has repented as demonstrated by his making restitution to those he had wronged. There is no mention of believing in Yeshua or His mission. The emphasis is on repentance. Now consider the modern evangelical service. There is soft music playing and the minister will ask for those that want to be saved to first raise their hands. He will make sure that no one is looking around because he doesn't want them to be embarrassed. Then they will be asked to come forward and repeat the sinner's prayer. That prayer will acknowledge certain beliefs about "Jesus." After repeating the prayer, the new believer will be told to receive in faith God's gift of salvation. Depending on the particular church, the person may be told that his salvation is permanent and can't be lost even if one willfully sins thereafter.

Some may argue that "Jesus" was speaking to Zacchaeus under the "Old Covenant." The argument goes that since Jesus had not gone to the cross, died, and rose again, then Zacchaeus could not be saved under "New Testament" grace. This is an anti-Semitic approach. The covenant with the Hebrews was also a covenant of grace. It is only Christian theology that creates a salvation by law versus a salvation by grace dichotomy. The truth is that salvation to the Jews was always by grace. The Torah was given after they were redeemed from Egypt. The Torah was provided to separate the Hebrews from the world and to teach them to live in a matter that would please YHWH. Yeshua is the mediator of the Renewed Covenant that provides for the Torah to be written on hearts as opposed to stone. Under the Renewed Covenant, Gentiles can become citizens of the Commonwealth of Israel without converting to Judaism. However, repentance is still the first step a person takes to receive the blessings of the Renewed Covenant.

Don't allow yourself to be deceived by the "cheap grace" offered by the modern church. There is no salvation by saying a prayer. Salvation comes from the act of repentance from a believing heart. We, as Gentiles, are grafted onto the branch of Israel. We do not become Jews; however, we do obey the teachings of Torah. If you ever have wondered why the modern church is so mixed up, now you know. If you disregard repentance and Torah, sin will abound.

Justice Versus Trial

2011-03-30T11:25:00.000-07:00

When we look at two events in the life of Abraham, we are confronted with events that are very confusing. In other words, something just doesn't make sense. In Bereshith (Genesis) 18, Abraham pleads for the inhabitants of Sedom (Sodom) and Amorah. You know the story: because of the wickedness of these two cities, YHWH has sent His angels to destroy them. Abraham bargains with YHWH for their lives. However, in Bereshith 22, when YHWH asks Abraham to offer his son Issac as a sacrifice, there is no bargaining at all. It would seem to me that it would make more sense for Abraham to argue for the son he loves than for the wicked inhabitants in Sedom and Amorah. Can these passages be interpreted in a way that makes logical sense? I think so, but it requires understanding the Hebraic approach to the Scriptures.

In the cases of Sedom and Amorah, their fate is tied to the realm of din, i.e. justice. YHWH has declared that the inhabitants are wicked and because of that justice demands that they be destroyed. When in the realm of din, things make sense. Therefore, Abraham can argue his case for mercy. It is in the area of din that man can arise and confront YHWH for the defense of the wicked. However, in the case of Issac, it takes place in the realm of nissayon, i.e. trial. In matters that are trials or tests, man's challenge is to pass the test. One does not seek to escape; instead, one seeks to respond with faith and dignity. Now we can understand why Abraham could plead for the wicked, but not for his son. Abraham was able to know the difference between din and nissayon.

Our challenge is to do the same. We must comprehend the difference between a matter of justice and a matter of trial. Abraham was flesh and blood and he was able to do so. We must do our best to do likewise. If you find yourself in a trial, the best advice is to pray, believe, and act in faith. When you have exhausted your efforts, turn to YHWH and accept His all encompassing love and Divine will.

Biblical Leprosy

2011-03-29T06:23:00.000-07:00

In Vayikra (Leviticus) 12:1-15:33, the Scriptues review ritual purity and impurity. After a discussion of the laws of impurity from childbirth, the Word instructs the reader on the diagnosis of Biblical leprosy. There are several views about these passages. Are they referring to a contagious skin disease or something that is inconsistent with a communicable disease? I think the latter makes the compelling case. In support, consider the following:
1. The priests would make his diagnosis only on the parts of the body they could see. There was no examination of the "folds of the body."
2. If leprosy was suspected in a dwelling, the Torah commanded that everything be removed from the house before the examination. This is inconsistent with the handling of a communicable disease. Following this procedure could expose the neighbors to potentially infected material.
3. The laws concerning leprosy applied only to houses in the land of Israel and only after the land had been divided into individual holdings. The laws did not apply to non-Jews or to dwellings of any ownership in the city of Jerusalem.
4. The laws did not apply to non-Jews. Leprosy contracted by a convert before conversion to Judaism was of no consequence.
5. After the nation's entry into the land, the infected person was only excluded from walled cities. He would be allowed to remain in unwalled cities and to roam free. He would not be excluded from the community.

The above points arguably stand for the proposition that something other than sanitary issues were being addressed. What then is Biblical leprosy? Is it natural, physical illness, or supernatural phenomenon? The Talmud lists seven sins that can cause Biblical leprosy: evil speech, murder, perjury, sexual immorality, arrogance, robbery, and miserliness. The rabbis would link the punishment of leprosy with slander, i.e. saying something false about someone, and evil speech, i.e saying something damaging about someone even if it was true. In support, they cite the following:
1. Moses contracts temporary leprosy at the burning bush when he casts aspersions on the Israelites by questioning their desire to respond to God's call to leave Egypt. "And if they do not believe me, nor listen to my voice, and say YHWH has not appeared to you?"
2. Miriam is punished with leprosy when she maligns her brother Moses.
3. According to the passage in Leviticus, leprosy results in the punishment of exclusion from the community. The infected person must distance himself from the community because his words have created distance between couples, friends, or business associates.

A strong case can be made that Biblical leprosy is related to improper speech. Onkelos translated Genesis 2:7 as: "and man became a speaking spirit." We have not fully comprehended the power of words. They have the power to heal, or to kill. Perhaps, they also have a connection to Biblical leprosy. No wonder David said, "Put a guard over my mouth."

Strange Fire Part 2

2011-03-28T11:44:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, we looked at what "strange fire" actually meant. Based upon what happened to the sons of Aaron when they attempted to add some man made fire to the set apart fire provided by YHWH, it is safe to conclude that man made fire is not desired by YHWH. It cost the sons of Aaron their lives. While it may not cost us our physical lives today, it could be spiritually dangerous. I have seen many types of man made fire. I was aware of one denomination that created an entire list of do's and don'ts that were considered standards of holiness. For example, woman could not cut their hair, could not wear pants or shorts, could not use make up, or go outside without a pair of hose on. Men could not attend sporting events, bowling alleys, or wear shorts or shirts that exposed their elbows. Neither men or women could own a television, go to movies, or wear wedding rings if they were married. These were considered standards of holiness. Will you find them in the Set Apart Scriptures? The answer is "no." You have to do a lot of manipulation of texts and ignore the Hebraic root of the Scriptures to reach such conclusions.

Some might think it is just harmless to make up these type of rules. However, if you believe these man made rules are signs of being set apart to YHWH, you have created strange fire. When these type of rules are created, they become the standard by which people are admitted into fellowship as members. Most every denomination that ignores the standards set by YHWH have their own. What are the standards of being set apart established by YHWH? They are Sabbath remembrance, Torah study, keeping the Biblical feasts, keeping the dietary laws, loving Him with your entire person, and loving your neighbor as yourself. When YHWH says, "You shall be set apart because I am set apart," does He not have the right to determine what being set apart actually means? What right does man have to determine what being set apart is? Does the substitution of man's ideas for YHWH's commands ring any bells? Hint: Think about Eve in the Garden of Eden formulating her opinion in place of YHWH's command concerning the forbidden fruit.

Do not be fooled into thinking that man can create rules for "holiness." It is YHWH's standard that we should seek to obey. We will find those standards in His Word, and not in a church manual.

Strange Fire

2011-03-27T06:28:00.000-07:00

Wayyiqra (Leviticus) 10:1-2 says: "And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before YHWH, which he commanded them not. And there went out fire from YHWH, and devoured them, and they died before YHWH." Does this seem harsh to you? Nadab and Abihu have a place of prominence. They are sons of Aaron and they are part of the ministry. They have been receiving instruction and now they on their own bring incense to worship YHWH and they are struck dead. This is not just a story; this is a truth that the modern "church" has neglected. YHWH dictates when we may come to Him and how we may come to Him. There does not appear to be a "sliding scale" or "grading on a curve." YHWH has instructed us in the Torah how we are to worship Him. Remember the entire book of Leviticus takes place at the foot of Mount Sinai. The Hebrews have been set free from the bondage of Egypt and YHWH is instructing them how to worship Him. The lesson from Nadab and Abihu is that we are not free to make our own rituals. We are to follow YHWH's clear instructions.

Consider the church today. How much of what takes place follows the patterns set forth in the Torah? Now the Temple has been destroyed so that eliminates many of the 613 laws. However, there remains many that serve to demonstrate ritual purity neglected by the church today. Dietary laws set apart eating as an act of worship to YHWH. Celebrating the Biblical feasts as commanded result in our worshipping YHWH how He wants. What has the church substituted? The church has given us the teaching that love is a fulfillment of the 613 commands. It has given us Easter and Christmas in place of Passover and Hanukkah. Now Hanukkah is not a Biblical feast, but Yeshua (Jesus) would have attended the celebrations. The law tells us to: "thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am YHWH." Yet, the church tells us how we can get ahead and be prosperous for ourselves. We are to prosper, but we are to do it YHWH's way.

Offering strange fire can kill you. Strange fire is worshipping YHWH in a method of your choosing as opposed to His. We need to examine our methods of worship to see if they line up with His Torah. It is only by grace that most of us have not ended up like the sons of Aaron. However, it is now time to reconnect with our Hebraic roots and be a part of the Commonwealth of Israel as Sha'ul (Paul) wrote. It is time that our lives are governed by His Word and not our own.

Truly Humble

2011-03-25T11:18:00.000-07:00

Tzi Freeman wrote: "The truly humble person is not one who feels worthless or inferior. True smallness is what happens when a person stops thinking, 'What will be with me?' and instead thinks, 'What is needed of me right now?'" The quote challenges us to think of others as opposed to self. The world encourages you to "look out for number one." The focus is on your happiness, your prosperity, or your well-being. However, the Hebraic approach focuses on assisting others. Yeshua (Jesus) was the master of Hebraic thought and practice. He said, "The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, all your body shall be enlightened. But if you eye is evil, all your body shall be darkened. If, then, the light that is within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" Yeshua is speaking idioms. He is saying that if you are stingy, you are in darkness. To the contrary, if you are generous with others, you are full of light. Yeshua also said, "Give to him who asks of you, and from him who wishes to borrow from you, do not turn away." He is advocating a lifestyle of focusing on the needs of others.

Rabbi Akiva and Rabbi Hillel both believed in the importance of the command found in Wayyiqra (Leviticus) 19:18: "And you shall love your neighbor as yourself. I am YHWH." Yeshua taught that it was the second greatest commandment: "And the second is like it, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commands hang all the Torah and the Prophets." Yeshua was not eliminating the balance of the Torah and Prophets by His declaration. He was teaching that loving YHWH with all your being and loving your neighbor as yourself were like a curtain rod from which everything was hung from. When we obey the dietary rules, we do so because we are showing our love to YHWH. When we take care of the injured like the Samaritan did, we are demonstrating our love for our fellow man. The emphasis must be on caring for others and not ourselves.

If followers of YHWH would obey this command, we would see real evangelism. Forget the fancy evangelism kits and the "flavor of the month" gimmicks to lure the unchurched to hear the gospel; if we will just obey the commandments, our light will reveal the truth of the gospel to all that are within our scope of influence. The challenge is: what is needed of me right now? Look around. It will not be difficult to answer, The difficulty will be whether we are willing to live it.

The Real Spring Celebrations

2011-03-24T06:59:00.000-07:00

"Christianity" is preparing for its Easter celebration next month. You will not find any commandment in the Scriptures to celebrate Easter. However, there is a celebration commanded in Shemoth (Exodus) that is an everlasting law. Shemoth 12:14-15 says: "And this day shall become to you a remembrance. And you shall celebrate it as a festival to YHWH throughout your generations--celebrate it as a festival, an everlasting law. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. Indeed on the first day you cause leaven to cease from your houses. For whoever eats leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that being shall be cut off from Yisra'el." Verse 24 says: "And you shall guard this word as a law for you and your sons, forever." A fair reading of these verses reveal that this celebration is not an option. There are five "shalls" in the verses indicating that YHWH is giving commands, not options. Yet, how many churches will even discuss Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread? Please don't fall into the anti-Semitic trap that says that Jesus did away with the eternal everlasting commands of His Father. He never would have been disobedient to a command of the Father. He only did what He saw the Father doing. The Father would not have said that the festival was everlasting and to be celebrated forever if He did not intend it to be so.

Another argument against the keeping of the festivals is that they were "Old Testament" and we are "New Testament" believers. You will not find that designation in the Scriptures. I find it interesting that the same preachers that will disregard the "Old Testament" will quickly quote verses in Malachi about tithing. They will use Numbers 13 to teach faith. This approach is like some food menus. You take one from column A and one from column B for your meal. You can't treat YHWH's Word in that manner. An honest reading of the Scriptures concerning Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread will lead you to the conclusion that they are permanent commands. Whatever Yeshua taught the disciples during the forty days, it did not include eliminating the festivals. How do we know? We know because the early church continued the celebrations. Sha'ul testified, "Truly, then, all the Yehudim (Jews) know my way of life from youth, which I led from the beginning among my own nation at Yerushalayim (Jerusalem), since they have known me from the first, if they wish to witness, that I lived as a Pharisee according to the strictest sect of our observance." Ma'asei (Acts) 26:4-5 Pharisees kept the festivals. Sha'ul was a Pharisee. Therefore, Sha'ul kept the festivals.

If you want to be a disciple of Yeshua (Jesus), then you need to do what He did when He walked the earth. In fact, we are instructed to walk as He walked. That walk included Passover and keeping the Biblical feasts. So, who are you following?

Jesus Didn't Eat Pork

2011-03-23T07:53:00.001-07:00

I wanted to write about the dietary laws found in the Hebrew Scriptures. Most of the Christians I know do not consider them binding on them because they are not Jewish. Sha'ul wrote in Eph'siym (Ephesians) 2:12: "That at that time you were without Messiah, excluded from the citizenship of Yisra'el and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no expectation and without Elohim in the world." Sha'ul is instructing the Gentiles that it was through Yeshua that they became partakers in the covenant to Israel. That covenant includes limitations on what you eat. While I don't think that the dietary restrictions were related to one's physical health, I do consider a disregard of them to be dangerous to one's spiritual health.

According to Shmuel Golden's Unlocking The Torah Text, the following reasons are suggested for the Kosher laws:
1. [They] "help maintain a clear separation between the Jewish people and surrounding cultures.
2. [They] train each Jew toward a disciplined lifestyle marked by the acceptance of God's will.
3. [They] connect the ordinary act of eating to Jewish law, thereby injecting God-awareness into the daily life of each Jew.
4.[They] cultivate the people's recognition of their own powers of self-control."

Goldin further explains, "To live a sanctified life, we must always be in control of, rather than controlled by, our passions. Through continued abstinence from those foods prohibited by the Torah, the Jew learns to control his own desires by bending them to God's will." We live in an age of entitlement. People, especially in the "church," believe that they are free to pick and choose what part of YHWH's word applies to them. The far better approach is to see the world as a gift from YHWH and man is "entitled" to only which YHWH allows. As I honor the Kosher laws, I am reminded three times a day who is in charge of my life. Three meals a day remind me to be submissive to Him and obey His word. Yeshua didn't eat pork. Yeshua doesn't eat pork today. And, Yeshua will not be eating pork tomorrow. So, why do you want to? Who is the real authority in your life? Remember, do not sow mingled seed.

Are You Proof?

2011-03-22T06:58:00.000-07:00

Yirmeyahu (Jeremiah) 31:33 says: "For this is the covenant I shall make with the house of Yisra'el after those days, declares YHWH: I shall put forth My Torah in their inward parts, and write it on their hearts. And I shall be their Elohim, and they shall be My people." If you are a Gentile follower of Yeshua, then YHWH has written His Torah on your heart. If you desire to keep the Sabbath, obey the dietary laws, and keep the Biblical feasts, where do you think that desire came from? The Gentile believer that seeks to obey the Torah is the proof to Israel that Yeshua (Jesus) is the Jewish Messiah. The words of Sha'ul that the Gentiles would provoke Israel to jealousy make more sense now. Jews love the Torah. We should love the Torah. When we do, we testify that Yeshua is the Jewish Messiah.

Most churches claim that "Jesus" has cancelled the Law by His sacrifice. They further teach that we are bound only to fulfill the law of love. In addition, they toss out the dietary laws, change the Sabbath to Sun-Day, and create Easter and Christmas in place of the Biblical festivals. Those changes will not provoke the Jews to jealousy; those changes will chase the Jews away. This makes so much sense that when you see, you find it difficult to believe that you were so blinded before. Church history reveals that beginning in approximately 115CE, some began to change the day of worship to Sun-Day to make it more comfortable for the pagans to "convert" to "Christianity." By the fourth century, the disconnect was complete. Centuries upon centuries of anti-Semitism has served to have the church rendered ineffective in its evangelism. Saying the "sinner's prayer" will not save anyone. Salvation comes from believing from the heart, i.e. correct believing that impacts our living. What is that impact? That impact is obedience to Torah.

Now back to the question, "Are you proof?" What does your life prove to the Jews about your faith? Do you provoke jealousy? Does your church teach the necessity of Torah observance? If not, what does that tell you about them? Our lives should provoke the Jews to jealousy, and until they do, we are missing the mark. And yes, that is the definition of sin.

Did You Celebrate Purim Today?

2011-03-20T15:15:00.001-07:00

I am of the opinion that most followers of "Jesus" did not know that this was a special day for the Jews. It is most likely that Yeshua in the first century would have participated in the festive holiday. It is a remembrance of the victory of the Jews over Haman and his plot to exterminate them. In case you thought Judaism was an organized religion, Purim comes to eliminate that notion. Think of it: For Chanukah, Jews get eight days, and they just light some candles and eat donuts. On Purim, they have to hear a Megillah (twice), i.e the Book of Esther; give out cash to the needy; shuttle packages of edibles to all their friends; fix broken zippers, lost buttons, messy makeup and broken masks on their kids'costumes; and hold a wild and wonderful Purim feast to boot. In how much time? Twenty-four hours flat. Go figure. In fact, there is support in the Talmud that you are to drink so much alcohol that you can not distinguish blessings from curses.

That seems strange to "Christians." A religion that understands the importance of ritual, study, prayer, and having a good time. When you come to a place of understanding that following Yeshua is to do so while within the umbrella of Judaism, you have made the leap to Nazirite Judaism. This means that you obey Torah, remember the Sabbath, and believe that Yeshua is the Jewish Messiah. He came, died, and rose again to be the mediator of the renewed covenant. The renewed covenant was the promise of Jeremiah 31 that YHWH would write the law of Mount Sinai on the hearts of His followers. If the Torah has been written on your heart, then you are a follower of YHWH. If it hasn't been written there, then you are following someone or something else.

It is not to late to join the festivities. As a family, I read the book of Esther and every time the name of Haman was read everyone made lots of noise. The idea was to drown out his name forever. By the end of the reading, we understood more about the bravery of Esther, the commitment of Mordecai, and the providence of YHWH. If you think that Esther is not important, remember that if all the Jews had been destroyed, Yeshua could not have been born. He had to come from a Jewish mother. Israel had to be preserved.

Tablet of the Heart

2011-03-19T13:34:00.000-07:00

Sha'ul (Paul)wrote in 2 Qorintiyim Bet (2nd Corinthians) 3:3: "Making it obvious that you are a letter of Messiah, served by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living Elohim, not on tablets of stone but on fleshly tablets of the heart." Shau'ul is using the testimony of the Qorintiyims to validate his ministry. The point to be emphasized is his knowledge of the Law being written on the hearts of Yeshua's followers. Sha'ul is making an obvious reference to Jeremiah 31:33: "For this is the covenant I shall make with the house of Yisra'el after those days, declares YHWH: I will put my Torah in their inward parts, and write it on their hearts. And I shall be their Elohim, and they shall be My people." YHWH promised a renewed covenant; it would involve the same Law as given at Mount Sinai. The only difference would be the location of the writing. At Sinai, it was written on tablets of stone. After the resurrection of Yeshua and the descent of the Set-apart Spirit on Shabu'ot (Pentecost), the Law was written on the heart of the followers of the Way of Yeshua.

Sha'ul confirms the heart faith of the renewed covenant in verse 3. Our hearts are the writing tablet of the Spirit. Yeshua taught that it was out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth would speak. If you have been filled with the Set-apart Spirit, you should have an abundance of the Torah coming from your lips. Some denominations believe that "speaking in tongues" is proof of the Spirit's infilling. According to the renewed covenant, the evidence of the infilling of the Set-apart Spirit is an abundance of Torah written on the heart. What is written on your heart? In times of stress when circumstances look difficult, what is your default? Is it Torah? Or, is it anger, self-reliance, or fear? To those who truly know what it means to have the Pentecostal experience, there is a peace and resting that exists because of the Torah.

YHWH could have chose to describe His renewed covenant anyway He wanted; however, He chose the method of writing the Torah on the hearts of His followers. We should make it our daily study to read the Torah. Commit your way of living to His way of living. It is found in the Torah. If you do and put the Torah into action, you will be like the man Yeshua described when the rain and floods came as a "wise man."

A Call to Separate

2011-03-16T07:11:00.000-07:00

We are to live lives set apart to YHWH. We need to know His name and follow His commands. However, there is still a "white elephant" in the room that continues to be ignored. That "white elephant" is pornography. Christianity Today wrote in 2008: "Seventy percent of American men ages 18–34 view Internet pornography once a month. This shocking fact is one of many that CT consulting editor John W. Kennedy found during his research for this month's cover story, "Help for the Sexually Desperate" (page 28). Don't assume that porn isn't a problem in the church. One evangelical leader was skeptical of survey findings that said 50 percent of Christian men have looked at porn recently. So he surveyed his own congregation. He found that 60 percent had done so within the past year, and 25 percent within the past 30 days. Other surveys reveal that one in three visitors to adult websites are women." We need to confront this tool of the enemy since it is enlarging, not shrinking. Women and men are both being drawn into the web of deceit that can destroy marriages, injure men and women, and hinder normal relationships. The porn industry destroys lives. Recently, a famous actor was partying with a 22 year old porn star. Afterward, she attempted suicide. It really struck me that this young woman was only 22. How tragic that her young life has taken the turn it has. I wondered about her parents and how they must feel. However, the truth is, that if people would cease creating a market for porn there would be no 22 year old destroying their lives. The followers of YHWH need to stand and proclaim in the language of Scriptures that pornography is not victimless. It is not OK to look. We need to call a sin a sin.

Being set apart includes honoring YHWH's special days and festivals. Purim begins following the close of Shabbat this week. How many attendees of "churches" this week even know this? If they don't, why don't they know? Our beloved Yeshua would have likely participated in the celebration of the victory of the Jews as told in the book of Esther. Further, if we are going to be set apart to YHWH, we should celebrate His festivals. He did not tell us to celebrate "Easter"; He told us to celebrate Passover. Who are you following? What are you celebrating? We don't want pornography to be a part of our lives because it doesn't bring esteem to YHWH. We don't want to celebrate pagan customs because they do not bring esteem to YHWH either.

Are you willing to live a life set apart to YHWH? If so, you have the opportunity to put actions with thoughts and words. Read and learn about Purim and Passover. If you are a Gentile follower of Yeshua, you have been grafted into the Commonwealth of Israel. The church does not replace Israel; it is grafted into Israel. Enjoy the rich heritage of living set apart to YHWH and His son Yeshua.

The Fourth Commandment

2011-03-15T05:42:00.000-07:00

The Fourth Commandment is: "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it set apart. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work: But in the seventh day is the sabbath of YHWH thy Elohim: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days YHWH made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested on the seventh day: wherefore YHWH blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it." In Biblical times, the Hebrew letters were also used for numbers. Dalet was the fourth letter of the Hebrew alphabet. In ancient Hebrew the word meant a door. It symbolized a door or path of life.

The word picture for Sabbath or rest is to return to the covenant or return to the stake, i.e. the cross. We return to the covenant when we destroy the previous house. This means to leave nothing in the other kingdom that might tempt us to return. We are to "burn all our bridges" so there is nothing to return to. After we "burn the bridges," we have to go forward because we can't go back. The Fourth Commandment instructs us to continually walk in Elohim's covenant which includes remembering the Sabbath. The Sabbath is the seventh day of the week, not the first. We return to the covenant as we keep the Sabbath. If you have been raised in either a Catholic or Protestant denomination, this will require a change of mindset. Sun-Day is not the day of the covenant. The Sabbath is. If we are going to follow YHWH and His son Yeshua, we need to follow Him and keep the Sabbath. Isn't it logical that if Yeshua had a custom or practice of attending worship on the Sabbath that we should do so also? Yeshua was a Sabbath keeper; are you?

We are living in difficult times. We need to follow the Words and commands of YHWH as best we can. Part of that obedience is remembering the Sabbath. Who would dare change the Sabbath to Sun-Day? The answer is really obvious, isn't it?

The Pagan Origin of Easter

2011-03-14T15:13:00.000-07:00

The holiday known as Easter is just over a month away. Churches are preparing for one of their biggest attendance days of the year. Activities are being planned for the children, choir rehearsals for special music, and pastors are preparing special messages celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ. However, is Easter appropriate for followers of YHWH and His son Yeshua to celebrate? The short answer is, "No." Easter is a conspiracy plot against the true faith. This may be difficult to accept, but the truth must be told.

The first thing to be understood is that professing believers were not the only ones who celebrated a festival called "Easter.""Ishtar", which is pronounced "Easter" was a day that commemorated the resurrection of one of the pagan gods called "Tammuz", who was believed to be the only begotten son of the moon-goddess and the sun-god. In those ancient times, there was a man named Nimrod, who was the grandson of one of Noah's sons named Ham. Ham had a son named Cush who married a woman named Semiramis. Cush and Semiramis then had a son named him "Nimrod." After the death of his father, Nimrod married his own mother and became a powerful King. The Bible speaks of this man, Nimrod, in Genesis 10:8-10 as follows: "And Cush begat Nimrod: he began to be a mighty one in the earth. He was a mighty hunter before YHWH: wherefore it is said, even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before YHWH. And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad,and Calneh, in the land of Shinar." Nimrod became a god-man to the people and Semiramis, his wife and mother, became the powerful Queen of ancient Babylon. Nimrod was eventually killed by an enemy, and his body was cut in pieces and sent to various parts of his kingdom. Semiramis had all of the parts gathered, except for one part that could not be found. That missing part was his reproductive organ. Semiramis claimed that Nimrod could not come back to life without it and told the people of Babylon that Nimrod had ascended to the sun and was now to be called "Baal", the sun god. Queen Semiramis also proclaimed that Baal would be present on earth in the form of a flame, whether candle or lamp, when used in worship. Semiramis was creating a mystery religion, and with the help of Satan, she set herself up as a goddess. Semiramis claimed that she was immaculately conceived. She taught that the moon was a goddess that went through a 28 day cycle and ovulated when full. She further claimed that she came down from the moon in a giant moon egg that fell into the Euphrates River. This was to have happened at the time of the first full moon after the spring equinox. Semiramis became known as "Ishtar" which is pronounced "Easter", and her moon egg became known as "Ishtar's" egg." Ishtar soon became pregnant and claimed that it was the rays of the sun-god Baal that caused her to conceive. The son that she brought forth was named Tammuz. Tammuz was noted to be especially fond of rabbits, and they became sacred in the ancient religion, because Tammuz was believed to be the son of the sun-god, Baal. Tammuz, like his supposed father, became a hunter. The day came when Tammuz was killed by a wild pig. Queen Ishtar told the people that Tammuz was now ascended to his father, Baal, and that the two of them would be with the worshippers in the sacred candle or lamp flame as Father, Son and Spirit. Ishtar, who was now worshipped as the "Mother of God and Queen of Heaven", continued to build her mystery religion. The queen told the worshippers that when Tammuz was killed by the wild pig, some of his blood fell on the stump of an evergreen tree, and the stump grew into a full new tree overnight. This made the evergreen tree sacred by the blood of Tammuz. She also proclaimed a forty day period of time of sorrow each year prior to the anniversary of the death of Tammuz (Does this not sound like "Lent"?). During this time, no meat was to be eaten. Worshippers were to meditate upon the sacred mysteries of Baal and Tammuz, and to make the sign of the "T" in front of their hearts as they worshipped. They also ate sacred cakes with the marking of a "T" or cross on the top. Every year, on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the spring equinox, a celebration was made. It was Ishtar's Sunday and was celebrated with rabbits and eggs. Ishtar also proclaimed that because Tammuz was killed by a pig, that a pig must be eaten on that Sunday (Did you ever wonder why the traditional Easter meal for "Christians" is ham when Yeshua would never have eaten swine?). By now, the connection between Easter and paganism should be clear. Paganism has infiltrated the contemporary "Christian" churches. The truth is that Easter has nothing whatsoever to do with the resurrection of our Yeshua.

You can easily research the truth of the above. I have taken a majority of the facts from a tract found on line. The real issue is, "What are you going to celebrate?" Will be Easter? Or, will you do what Yeshua always did and celebrate the Passover?

True Separation

2011-03-13T17:09:00.000-07:00

It is time for the followers of YHWH to separate from the world. Most of the time, "Christianity" tries to work within the secular culture. The church tries to influence the world while working within its confines. Many church models are based on business models that have proven successful. This must cease. True followers need to separate from worldly thinking and speaking. The world says that homosexuality is a lifestyle decision. The Word says it is an abomination. The world calls abortion "pro-choice." The Word calls it murder. It is time that the church stop trying to get along with secular culture; instead, the church offers an alternative. The true followers of YHWH should cease trying to influence culture, and instead be a separate culture.

This is not a recommendation to live in seclusion like the Amish, nor to live frozen in a 1950's dress code or entertainment restricted lifestyle, i.e. no television or movies. It is a recommendation to present discipleship in place of the world. This is not semantics; this is radical living. Yeshua called us to a life of separation. He said, "Let the dead bury the dead." Our society would disapprove of such an approach because it appears anti-family. Yes, the liberal thinkers will promote family values if it fits their agenda. We are called to live a life of complete abandonment to His Word. Yeshua has shown us the way. The question is, will we follow?

Are you a "lukewarm" follower of Yeshua? Do you say one thing and do another? Does your life reveal a Sun-Day morning Christianity? If the answer to any of these is yes, know that you are in grave danger. Such a life will not prepare you for the one to come. Become radical like Yeshua. It may cost you your life like it did Him, but it is the only way to follow YHWH.

First Things First

2011-03-12T06:06:00.000-08:00

Rabbi Israel Salanter said, "A person should first put one's house together, then one's town, then the world." What does it take to, "Put one's house together"? According to Sacred Intentions, "Kind words, unconditional love, nurturing guidance" will be a good start. Yeshua said, "For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?" (NIV) There is priority established before you begin to correct the behavior of others. That priority begins with a mirror. You need to examine your own life before you criticize others. Moreover, if one claims to be a follower of Yeshua one should desire this type of self examination. We should seek to obey His words to the fullest extent possible.

It seems that in the "church" today, we see a number of people that want to provide "words from the LORD." They want to remove specks from people's eyes. They want to be what I call "pretend prophets." Abraham Heschel said: "The words of a prophet are stern, sour, stinging. But behind his austerity is love and compassion for mankind...." The man or woman who has gone through the process of removing the planks from their lives will develop love and compassion for others. Whether it is a word of prophecy that involves correction or encouragement, it needs to come from the lips of one who has been broken through the process of self examination under the search light of YHWH.

This is a path necessary for usage in the kingdom. While it may not be an enjoyable process in the natural, it is a joy to be molded into the image of Yeshua. Sometimes being molded will require some cutting away and reshaping. However, know that as it is occurring the end product will reflect the image of the Master.

The Value of Prayer and Study

2011-03-11T09:01:00.000-08:00

Rabbi Louis Finkelstein said: "When I pray, I speak to God; when I study, God speaks to me." Prayer is a time of developing your relationship with YHWH. It is an opportunity to bask in the presence of your Creator. I once knew a man that prayed an hour every day. He would pace and pray. For a solid hour he talked nonstop. There was no time for YHWH to communicate with him. Have you ever had a conversation with someone who monopolized the conversation? You get bored quickly. I wonder does YHWH feel the same? I suggest that prayer should be a time of worship, adoration, and praise for all that YHWH has done for you. I ask Him for something one time and thereafter thank Him that it is done. If I have faith to believe that what I am asking for is His will, I should believe that the answer is complete and settled even if if I don't see the manifestation. To continue to ask YHWH for something that He has already promised to do is to doubt His Word. It is almost as if you think that if you annoy Him long enough, He will give in and give you what you want. That is a work based prayer. One's prayer life can be enjoyed when one does not think that he or she is trying to convince YHWH to do His will. You will not have to spend an hour asking for the same thing day in and day out. Ask once, ask in faith, and act on that faith and spend the rest of the time in worship and praise.

When you are studying, you should be attentive to hear YHWH's voice. When you open the sacred text, be mindful of what you hold in your hands. We need a real appreciation of the importance of the Word. Too often, we read in a hurry never searching for the real meaning behind the text. We are privileged to be able to have the sacred words of YHWH in our possession. As we begin to meditate on them, i.e. in Hebrew this means to mutter to one self, they will begin to challenge, change, an convict us. We will be challenged to be more obedient. We will change our behavior to conform to the Word. Finally, we will be convicted of attitudes and actions that need to change in our lives.

Speak to YHWH and allow Him to speak to you. In prayer, allow your heart to open to Him. Release your inner most thoughts and feelings. Do not be ashamed to be honest with Him. In study, view every opportunity as a divine encounter with the living YHWH. He has been speaking to His children for thousands of years and He still has plenty to say to you.

The Still Small Voice

2011-03-10T11:42:00.000-08:00

1 Kings 19:12 tells us that YHWH was in the still small voice: "And after the earthquake a fire--YHWH was not in the fire, and after the fire a still small voice." Too often, we want the demonstration of fire falling from heaven. We want something large and noticeable. However, the miracle is still found in the fact that YHWH, the Creator of the universe, will communicate through a still small voice to His creations. Perhaps we should be as grateful for the small things as we are for the large manifestations of His Presence. Every moment should be spent basking in His presence.

Today, I took my wife's car to drop off our four year old at his grandmother's house. My car did not have a car seat so I had to take hers and she drove mine. My wife was the featured speaker at a seminar and I had promised to bring her a cup of her favorite Starbucks before she started. I arrived right as she was beginning her presentation. It was my intent to switch automobiles because I prefer my sports car to my wife's SUV. As I was entering the building where the seminar was being presented, I heard the still small voice, "Don't switch cars." I didn't and left the seminar shortly after it began. Thirty minutes later I received a call from my sister-in-law that my mother-in-law was being taken to the hospital and I needed to pick up our four year old. Since I had not traded cars, I was able to do so. If I had ignored the small voice, I would have had to go back to the seminar, interrupt and upset my wife, to exchange car keys. The still small voice was a real miracle to me. YHWH cared enough about my wife and myself to speak that word to me. It may not seem like much, but to me it demonstrates His true love for us.

Can you hear His still small voice? Do you know His voice? If you want to improve your reception, I suggest the following:
1. Check your obedience. If there is any area of your life walking in disobedience, repent and obey;
2. Confess any sins that have not been forgiven;
3. Learn to be quiet before Him;
4. Don't talk too much in prayer;
5. Read, study, and meditate on His Word.

If you will practice these simple steps, you will hear the still small voice.

Another Look At The Ten Spies

2011-03-09T11:20:00.001-08:00

When the ten spies from Numbers 13 are discussed, it is generally done in a manner as to point out their faithlessness. I'm sure you can recall hearing a sermon about the faith of Joshua and Caleb. They had heard from YHWH and they wanted to "take the land." However, the ten spies said, "The land through which we have gone as spies is a land eating up its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great size. And we saw there the Nephilim, sons of Anaq, of the Nephilim. And we were like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and so we were in their eyes." Their lack of faith kept them out of the Promised Land. It is so easy to condemn them as faithless. However, maybe we should look at them again in light of our facing our own "Promised Lands."

Have you ever been faced with adversity and doubted in your ability to hear YHWH? Most people have faced a problem and just were not sure that what YHWH had promised would really happen. I have seen this with people facing a promise of healing, financial breakthrough, or an answer to prayer. If we were to be honest, I think we would admit that there are times that we don't sense YHWH in our lives. The times of silence cause us to experience doubt. I have a picture of the ten spies who want to believe, but they just can't overcome what they see. I think they want to, but they are afraid. I think this is how we are sometimes. We might want to judge these ten spies with a little more compassion and mercy.

If you are facing a season of doubt, it is time to immerse yourself in YHWH's Word. Meditate on it and embrace it as a life line to heaven. Know that what He has said is true, but don't be so hard on those that see their "smallness." Let us try to uplift each other and not bury those in difficulty. Revisiting the ten spies is a good place to start.

Finding the Oil

2011-03-08T06:50:00.000-08:00

In the Book of Second Kings, we are told of the story of a widow woman that came to the prophet Elisha for help. Her husband had died and she had a ruthless creditor that intended to take her two sons as slaves for payment of the debt. Elisha says to her, "What should I do for you? Inform me, what do you have in the house?" The widow replied that she only had a pot of oil. Elisha tells her to borrow pots and vessels from everywhere. Then, she is to pour her oil into those containers. The oil does not stop pouring until every vessel she has is filled. Elisha then tells her to sell the oil, pay off the debt, and her and her two sons can live the rest of their lives on the remainder of the proceeds. Nice story, but is there a deeper message? I think so.

Elisha asks the widow what she had to work with it. I believe the message is that you already possess what you need to be a success. What we have to do, is find our "oil." YHWH has given every one of us talents. We need to discover those talents and trust Him to give us the determination to make happen our hearts desire. The widow did not want her sons to be slaves. That was her main desire in life. Elisha, as a prophet of YHWH, took what she had and gave her instruction. We need prophets of instruction today. Men and women of YHWH that will teach the truth, not for personal gain, but for the gain of others. If the widow had not believed the instruction she would have only had her small pot of oil. However, because of her faith in the words of the prophet, she ended up with an overflow of abundance. Think about it; she went from a place of debt about ready to lose her two sons to retirement in one day.

How do we find our oil? First, hear the words of the prophet. Find someone that you believe to have the prophetic words of YHWH operating in his or her life. Second, receive and act on the instruction. You may look foolish now, but know that you will be the one laughing when the abundance arrives. Third, do not be selfish. Share the truth of what you have learned with others. Remember that you have inside you everything you need to walk in abundance. Now, go and find it.

The Importance of Words

2011-03-07T12:00:00.000-08:00

The Talmud says: "Do not speak one thing with the mouth and another with the heart." Rabbi Kerry Olitzky explains in the devotional Sacred Intentions: "Some people say that we are what we eat. Judaism spins this idea a little differently. To the Rabbis, we are what we say. And what we say is very important. Words are among our most powerful tools. According to the Torah, the world was created with words spoken by God, the Holy One of Blessing. We all know the powerful effect that words can have on us, whether they be kind words or harsh words. Reading the Torah's discussion on leprosy, the Rabbis suggest that leprosy is really an acronym in Hebrew for evil speech and that speaking disparagingly about others and engaging in gossip is like leprosy."

You will eat the fruit of your speech. You have a choice to create a world of blessing or a world of cursing. The words you speak today will shape your tomorrows. To some, this may seem strange. However, the reality of the power of words is throughout the Sacred Scriptures. Words spoken have continuing force. The deceptive blessing of Jacob could not be withdrawn even through it rewarded deceit. Mankind could accomplish whatever it set its mind to do because only one language existed. That is why Elohim confused speech at the Tower of Babel. The confused speech impaired the power of man. In the same way, if we can align our words with Elohim's Words, nothing shall be impossible to us.

Guard your mouth. Consider every word that leaves your lips. Believe that everything you say will actually happen. When you do, you will begin to harness the power of speech as understood by the Rabbis. And that includes Yeshua, i.e. Jesus!

Physical First, Then the Spiritual

2011-03-06T12:21:00.000-08:00

Ezekiel 28:25-26 says: Thus says the YHWH, "When I gather the house of Israel from the peoples among whom they are scattered, and will manifest My being set apart in them in the sight of the nations, then they will live in their land which I gave to My servant Jacob. They will live in it securely; and they will build houses, plant vineyards and live securely when I execute judgments upon all who scorn them round about them. Then they will know that I am YHWH their Elohim." There is a two step process involved in YHWH's deliverance of His children. Physical safety, bodily, and economic well-being come first. Then, spiritual wholeness is manifested. He knows our needs and our wants. He knows that it will be difficult to get our full attention if we are concerned about our ability to make a living. Elohim cares about our economics. That is why He brought the children out of Egypt before He gave them the Torah.

One of the many problems with Greek thinking is that it ignores the sacred nature of every day tasks. Abraham Heschel said, "In our relations to the immediate, we touch upon the most distant. Even the satisfaction of physical needs can be a sacred act. Perhaps the most essential message of Judaism is that in doing the finite we may perceive the infinite." We need to understand that economics is not dirty. Yes, some use religion to "fleece the flock." However, to Elohim, He cares about our standard of living. The psalmist said that he had not seen the righteous forsaken nor their seed begging bread. When we embrace the position that YHWH considers the satisfaction of physical needs as something sacred, we will understand why He desires to meet our needs.

I hear too often people embrace poverty. They speak of it as an instructional method to teach a life lesson. They dare not speak of prosperity as they fear they will appear to be irreligious. YHWH wants to move in your life to set you free; He wants you free from sin, poverty, and sickness. Look at how He treated the children of Israel in their deliverance from Egypt and you will understand His will. Were they poor when they left? No, they had Egypt's silver and gold. Were they sick or diseased? No, they were in good health. They had to be for the journey ahead. Remember that it was after physical well-being was achieved that the Torah was given. The physical preceded the spiritual. That is YHWH's plan.

Finding Peace

2011-03-05T04:04:00.000-08:00

Isaiah 26:3 says: Thou dost keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee, because he trusts in thee. (RSV) The Hebrew word for "peace" is shalom. In Hebrew, this is a standard greeting. On the Sabbath, you will hear, "Shabbot Shalom." What does the word shalom actually mean? It is composed of the following letters: Sheen, Lamed, Vav, and Mem. Sheen means to destroy. Lam means authority. Vav has the picture of establish. Finally, Mem refers to chaos. When read together, the word picture for shalom is to destroy the authority that establishes chaos. This is a beautiful picture for the word translated as "peace" in English Bibles. When that which brings chaos is destroyed, peace will rule in our lives.

One obtains shalom as the mind is stayed on Elohim. The Hebrew word for "mind" is yēṣer. It means something thought of in the mind, such as wickedness in people's hearts (Gen. 6:5); or something treasured or stored in the heart (1 Chr. 29:18). The Hebrew word for "stayed" is sāmak. It refers to supporting or sustaining someone. Read together, one way to have peace in your life is to have your thought life be supported or sustained by Elohim. How is this accomplished? It is achieved by immersing oneself in the very Words of Elohim as found in the Scriptures. You will find shalom manifesting in your life as you read both the Hebrew Scriptures and the Second Writings, i.e. New Testament. Chaos will be destroyed as the Word of Elohim becomes dominant in your thought life.

When you find peace absent in your life, consider what you have been thinking about. Ask what has been sustaining you? You will quickly notice that if peace is absent, so has been the sustaining thoughts of the Word of Elohim. He has given us the power to have peace in our lives. Chaos can be destroyed. Peace will manifest as we focus our thoughts on Him and His Word.

Responding to Seekers

2011-03-04T11:21:00.000-08:00

How do you respond to those that are seeking the truth? A rabbinical story is told in the Talmud about how different rabbis responded to one seeking to convert to Judaism. "There was another case of a gentile who came before Shammai. He said to him, 'Convert me on the stipulation that you teach me the entire Torah while I am standing on one foot.' He drove him off with the building cubit that he had in his hand. He came before Hillel: 'Convert me.' He said to him,‘What is hateful to you, to your fellow don’t do.’ That’s the entirety of the Torah; everything else is elaboration. So go, study." Shammai is much like some Christian workers today that seek to make it difficult to follow Yeshua. Contrary to Shammai, Hillel sought a method to make conversion as easy as possible. He understood that the journey of discipleship was a process. Yeshua followed the method of Hillel. He said, "Come unto me all that labor and are burdened down. Take my yoke upon you because it is easy." Now Yeshua also said that His followers had to deny themselves, take up their cross, and follow Him. There is no contradiction. There is a difference between starting the journey of faith and being mature in faith. Too often, we want new believers to be fully born and knowledgeable about all aspects of the faith.

We need to embrace the gentle approach of Yeshua. He is kind to those that seek Him. He promises to not turn away those that seek Him. What is our approach to new opportunities to share our faith? I have seen the "hell fire and brimstone" approach of the Westboro Baptist Church and I have seen the "seeker sensitive" method that places no requirements for discipleship. Neither is Yeshua's method. He taught that His followers had to repent. We have previously seen that the word picture for "repent" is "to destroy the house." Repentance is about changing the kingdom you reside in. The one following Yeshua has changed from darkness to light. There is a relationship with YHWH founded on the renewed covenant meditated by Yeshua. It is a better covenant because the Torah is now written on our hearts instead of tablets of stone. However, the Torah has not changed.

We need to respond to those in spirtual need like Hillel and Yeshua. Hillel went against the norm of the day by making conversion to Judaism as easy as possible. In the same way, Yeshua made discipleship as easy as it could be. You had to change your address, i.e. from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light, but that was it. There is much to learn and it will take time to mature. We need to place as few barriers as possible between the seeker and YHWH. As someone once said, "We catch the fish, but He cleans them."

Sabbath Observance

2011-03-03T05:45:00.000-08:00

At one time, I was a member of a denomination that observed the "Christian Sabbath," i.e. Sunday. The problem is that Yeshua (Jesus), nor any apostle changed the day of rest from the Sabbath to the first day of the week. Exodus 20:8-10 says: "Remember the Sabbath day, to set it apart. Six days you labor, and shall do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of YHWH your Elohim. You do not do any work--you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates." The change in the day of worship occurred as a result of decrees made in the fourth century when the new religion of "Christianity" was created and severed from its real foundation of Judaism. YHWH has commanded us to remember the Sabbath. Who dares to defy Him? The obvious answer is the one that has been fighting Him all along, i.e Satan.

Think about how twisted things have become. Today, Christians fight for the right to be off work on Sunday so they can attend church. What concession do they make? Generally, they agree to work the other day of the weekend, i.e the Sabbath. The deception becomes clear. YHWH has commanded Sabbath observance. The enemy deceives the followers of Yeshua to change the day of worship to Sunday. Now, believers work on the Sabbath to be free to attend services on the incorrect day and violate one of YHWH's commandments.

There is a blessing for obedience. It follows that there is a blessing in remembering the Sabbath. We must follow YHWH's commands if we are going to be His followers. The Second Writings, i.e. the New Testament, records that it was Yeshua's custom to attend services on the Sabbath. Is it your custom? If not, who are you following? If we are going to claim to be followers of Yeshua, should we not follow His practices? Your actions will reveal what you believe and who you believe.

Getting Blessed

2011-03-02T09:36:00.000-08:00

I hear much about financial needs these days. It seems that many are trying to raise money to pay bills, expand their building, or buy more property. The economy seems to still be in trouble, and people are hurting. I want to be kind, yet I sense a duty to tell the complete truth regarding blessings. Deuteronomy 28:1-8 says: "If you fully obey the YHWH your Elohim and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, YHWH your Elohim will set you high above all the nations on earth. All these blessings will come on you and accompany you if you obey YHWH your Elohim: You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country. The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock—the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed. You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out. YHWH will grant that the enemies who rise up against you will be defeated before you. They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven. The YHWH will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to. The YHWH your Elohim will bless you in the land he is giving you." These verses promise the blessings of Elohim to be on and overtake who? The promise is to those that obey the commands of YHWH as set forth by Moses.

If I was living a life that was lacking in blessings, the first place I would look would be at the commandments taught by Moses in Deuteronomy. A brief survey of what Moses taught is as follows:
1. The Ten Commandments explained (5:1-21);
2. Ceremonial Laws (12:1-16:17);
3. Destroying idols (12:1-3);
4. Tithing (14:22-29);
5. Clean and unclean things (14:21);
6. Treatment of poor and needy (15:1-11);
7. Social laws (21:1-26:19).

Too often, we don't want to hear about the Laws of YHWH. We don't want restrictions on our lives. However, if you want the blessings of YHWH to run you over you need to place yourself in a position to receive. You are not earning His favor; instead, you are placing yourself in a place to receive His blessings. Now this is not an individual blessing. It is a communal blessing. If you are part of a group that ignores the commandments of Elohim, you will not have the benefit of Deuteronomy 28. Find a community that shares your commitment to the Laws of YHWH and prepare to be overtaken!

The Renewed Covenant

2011-03-01T06:36:00.000-08:00

Jeremiah 31:33 says: "For this is the covenant I shall make with the house of Yisra'el after those days, declares YHWH: I shall put My Torah in their inward parts, and write it on their hearts. And I shall be their Elohim, and they shall be My people." Jeremiah calls this "a renewed covenant." When we get a "new moon" every thirty days, do you think it is really a "new moon" or a renewed lunar cycle? In the same way, YHWH has made a renewed covenant with Yeshua (Jesus) as the mediator. The Torah has been placed in our hearts as opposed to on tablets of stone. Jews understood that we each have a good and an evil influence inside us. They can war with each other. When the Torah of YHWH is written on our hearts, we are to submit to it and act accordingly.

The Torah is YHWH's instruction to His people in how to live. Note that the behavior required to be His children is the same under both the Hebrew Scriptures and the renewed covenant. The blessings of obedience found in Deuteronomy 28 are for correct behavior. In the same way, the curses are for disobedient behavior. It would seem wise to know what behavior He requires. This is not "doing the best you can" or hoping that your sincerity will be sufficient. This is a matter of obedience to the Word of YHWH.

As we continue to press on in a world that is showing birth pangs for some climatic event, we want to make sure that we are obedient to YHWH's Words. Words are powerful. They have creative power. We want to act with His wisdom in all our dealings. We want to immerse ourselves in His Words. We want to speak them. We want to act on them. When we do, we will be ready for whatever the future brings.

Whom Do You Worship?

2011-02-28T13:11:00.000-08:00

What is the name of the Supreme Deity that you worship? This is a very important question. Isaiah 42: 8 says: "I am YHWH, that is My Name, and My esteem I do not give to another, nor My praise to idols." (The Scriptures) YHWH is very jealous and He does not want you giving your praise and worship to a false god. English Bibles from the King James to the present modern versions translate YHWH as "LORD" or "GOD." Those are incorrect translations. Gott, Goda, Gode, God, Gud, and Gade were found in ancient German languages as translations for Ba'al Gad. The astrologers of Babel called Jupiter (Zeus) by the name "Gad." Psalm 68:4 says: "Sing to Elohim, sing praises to His Name. Raise up a highway for Him. Who rides through the deserts, By His Name Yah." We are instructed to sing praises to His Name; we are not instructed to sing praises to a translated name. Think about it; your name remains the same regardless of the country you are in. Your name is not changed because the language spoken changes. Why should YHWH be treated differently?

His Name is very powerful. In that Name is found healing, deliverance, faith, power, salvation, and holiness. Isaiah 43: 11 says: "I, I am YHWH, and besides Me there is no saviour." We must get the Name correct as He says says that salvation depends on it. His Name is YHWH. The four letters are called The Tetragrammaton. His Name is not Jehovah. First, there was no "J" in Biblical Hebrew. It was pronounced as a "Y." Second, the word Jehovah was created by placing the vowels of Adonai between the Hebrew letters YHWH. Jehovah is a made up word. Most "Christians" would quickly condemn the calling of "God" by the name of Allah. They would protest that "God's" name is not Allah. However, when the true Name of YHWH is at issue, there appears to not be the sense of urgency to get the Name correct.

We are headed into some dark days ahead. We need to know upon Whom we are praying to. This is a very serious issue; one that we must get right. What is the name of the one you pray to? Is He the Elohim of the Hebrew Scriptures? Is He the One known as YHWH? YHWH is One and there is none beside Him. He will not share His glory with another.

Walking On The Right Path

2011-02-27T08:12:00.000-08:00

Dr. W. T. Purkiser said in the May, 1959, Bible School Journal, speaking of the fall of Solomon: "The first steps away from God might not be large ones, but the direction is wrong and disaster follows." We must maintain a Christian walk that is ever drawing closer to God and His Word. It is only a small step in the wrong direction that takes you away from where you were in your relationship with God. Disaster is the destination of even the smallest step away from God and His Word. His Word is our instruction manual; it provides the answer to life's questions. We don't need man's traditions to guide us; we need the Word applied to our lives under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

What does a life look like that is headed in the wrong direction? First, the Word does not maintain the place of highest priority. Second, the desire to pray and worship God is absent. Third, the love of God has grown cold both toward Him and your fellow man. Fourth, there is a sense of drifting without a foundation. Fifth, there is denial that the wrong direction has become the destination. Sixth, there is a tendency to believe that everything depends on your actions without the aid of the Holy Spirit. Finally, there is a denial of sin. Everything will become relative to the one that has begun the journey to disaster. Now understand that these seven characteristics do not occur simultaneously. They are progressive steps in a downward spiral of spiritual death.

What is the answer to such a plight? The Hebrew word for "repent" is shoov. The word picture is to "destroy the house." This means to destroy all that is opposed to the Word of God in your house. Repentance always deals with the changing of addresses. You leave the kingdom of darkness and return to the Kingdom of light, i.e. God. We change where we live. We leave the land of worldly thinking, worldly speaking, and worldly living. We can joyfully return with singing knowing that Yeshua (Jesus) will never turn anyone away that comes to Him. Destroy everything that does not draw you closer to God. Walk the path of true holiness and righteousness. It is found in His Word. There is a highway there. Walk on it.

Sinking the Ship

2011-02-24T03:54:00.000-08:00

Someone once said, "The water outside the ship may toss it, but it is the water in the ship that sinks it." We live in a world that attempts to crush our faith at every turn. Those circumstances that attempt to destroy us are like the water outside the ship; they may toss us, but they can't sink us. It is only when we allow the events of life to become our way of thinking, speaking, and acting that we are in danger of sinking. 1 John 2:16 says: For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. (KJV) The world has lust and pride as its steady diet. Our food should be the Word of God. As we think, speak, and act on the Word of God, our ship will never sink.

We may be in the world, but we are not of the world. Our citizenship is in heaven and we have already been seated with Yeshua (Jesus). He is the unseen guest at every conversation and meal. He hears all we say. He silently sits observing all we do and say. If we could remember that fact, how might it change us? We need to live lives of faith that include Yeshua at every step. He said He would never leave or or forsake us, yet how many live their lives as if He was not present? Every moment, every hour, every day, should be lived in His presence. The world can not stop us unless we invite it into our lives and crowd out His presence.

Let us protect our ship. We guard it by keeping the influences of the world outside, where they belong. We are to be holy vessels of faith that think, speak, and act on the Word of God. As we do so, we will sail through this life in preparation for the future one. However, don't so focus on the future that you ignore the present. God intends us to live for Him now, in this lustful and prideful world. That is when He can show us off to the unbelieving ones. That is our true purpose: to sail our ship victoriously.

God's Hearing

2011-02-23T05:26:00.000-08:00

What does God actually hear? Now remember that we are talking from a Hebraic point of view. The question is not, "What sounds God hears." We are talking about what He will respond to, i.e what causes Him to act. S.B. Shaw wrote the following in 1893: "But let it be remembered, that 'prayer rises far above a mere form of good words. These, of themselves, are nothing, and be much worse than nothing. The soul of the reader or utterer must be in them to give them life and power. God hears not my words, He hears me. I rise to Him upon the wings of prayer. I might recite good words forever, but unless my spirit is in them, they are nothing.' Yea, nothing but idle words, and mockery before God." It is not just the right words, but the right words with our spirit in them that God hears. This means that our inner person is fully persuaded as to the truth of which we speak. The words must be spoken from a believing heart.

God will most likely not respond to the words spoken from the lips of one following a formula. Confessing the word is not about ritual. It is about life giving words spoken from a heart fully persuaded of their truth. You can tell what people really care about. Just listen to their speech. You can hear the emotion, i.e. pathos, in their voices. In the Unites States, the Super Bowl was just played between the Steelers and the Packers. If you heard the fans from the respective teams before the big game, you could hear the emotion and love they felt for their teams. Oh, that we might have that same emotion for the Words of God. When we do, God will surely act.

What has your heart? Is it is another person, a church, a profession, money, or the Words of the living God? You can quote the Bible all day; however, until your spirit is in your speech you are just making noise. If we want God to respond to our words, we need to bathe those words in praise and worship of the One who created them. When our level of worship reaches a point of explosion, then our words will have meaning.

The Indwelling Law

2011-02-22T04:15:00.000-08:00

Jeremiah 31:33 says: But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it upon their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. (RSV) The ability to walk in love is found in the above verse. Before, God's law was written on tablets of stone. Now, God has promised to do something different. This is the renewed covenant. The law of God will now be on your heart. The "heart" in Hebrew is the word leb. It means the seat of feelings, affections, emotions, mode of thinking, and acting. God is going to place His laws into our thinking and emotions. When this happens, walking in faith should be as natural as breathing. The law on our hearts will control our actions as we yield to the indwelling law.

We have previously seen that the word picture for lev is what controls the insides. Something controls your thinking and believing. Perhaps it is your own independence. Maybe it is some academic discipline. You may have a certain world view that dominates your perspective. However, for those that follow Yeshua (Jesus), our worldview should be His worldview and His worldview is the Father's will. God's will is found in His word. That word is placed in our hearts by Him directly. We have it in our hearts and our duty is to yield completely to it. If we allow the law to control us, we will be men and women of faith. Consider the following verse: And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee. (KJV) Exodus 15:26 If God's law has been written on your heart, that verse is included. God is your healer. Does the verse contain any exceptions? Further, can you find one verse in the Word that tells you that God wants you sick or ill?

When the Word is inside you, it will impact how you live. As you yield to its controlling influences, your life will manifest love. Since faith works by love, the increased love will result in increased faith. The faith walk is about love and love is connected directly to obedience. Is there something that you need to obey? Is there an area of your life in rebellion? If so, find the law and yield to it. If you are a child of God, it is already inside you. Now, go and find it.

Getting Your Breakthrough

2011-02-21T05:53:00.000-08:00

2 Samuel 5:20 says: And David came to Baalperazim, and David defeated them there; and he said, "The LORD has broken through my enemies before me, like a bursting flood." Therefore the name of that place is called Baalperazim. (RSV) The battle referenced is with the Philistines and it comes at a critical point for David. It marks the time when Jerusalem became a royal city. David had started his work of king at the age of 30,and he had already reigned over Judah seven years and six months from Hebron, and his "breakthrough" marks the beginning of his reign at Jerusalem, where he reigned over all Israel and Judah thirty-three years. David’s move to Jerusalem brought the Philistines against the city, and it was the response of God to David's prayer (2 Sam 5:19) that brought the victory. God is the "God of the breakthrough."

The Hebrew word for "breakthrough" is pereṣ and it means "a gap, a break. It refers to a rupture, a tear, a breaking up or shattering of something: a breach created in a wall of an enemy (2 Sam. 5:20); the breaking or rupture occurring in the process of childbirth (Gen. 38:29). It is used figuratively of separation created between persons or groups." Perhaps you need the God of the breakthrough to explode in your life. Is there some obstacle, i.e. mountain, that blocks your way from walking in all that God has desired for your life? If so, you need to first get a Word from Him concerning His will on the subject. God wanted David to defeat the Philistines. David knew that and brought the matter before Him in prayer. After you know God's will, bring it to the throne of grace in prayer. Then, you need to act on that Word. This will vary from situation to situation. If there is a financial lack in your life, find something to give to someone in need. If you have no money, sell something and give the money way. If you don't have something to sell, find something to give away. Make sure that it is your best that you give. Don't give something you don't really want. Give your best because you are giving it to God as an offering. After giving something, begin to confess that God is breaking through in your situation. Make it present tense, not future tense. God is the God of the breakthrough today, not the God of the breakthrough some day in the future. Faith is now. Faith is present tense.

Our God is the God of the breakthrough. There is nothing that can stop Him. Our duty is to invite Him to participate in our problems. Forget religious thinking that God wants you to suffer. Come to know Him as the breakthrough God. He will tear your problem to shreds. Find a word, bring it to Him in prayer, act on the Word, and begin to confess the breakthrough. Hold fast to your confession and don't let any devil from hell, or church member talk you out of it.

Real Hope

2011-02-20T06:22:00.000-08:00

Romans 5:24 says: "For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?" (KJV) What is hope? Hope can be defined as the feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best. The emphasis on hope is the feeling you have about a situation. However, this is not Biblical hope. The word "hope" in the verse is the Greek word elpis and it means desire of some good with expectation of obtaining it. The expectation is the difference. Worldly hope is feeling good; Biblical hope is the existence of expectation based on something outside of yourself. Worldly hope focuses on your emotions, whereas Biblical hope focuses on the goodness of God. Real hope is found in the Word of God. The Scriptures contain within them "hope." That hope is based on what the Word says. If it is healing you need, the Scriptures abound with promises that God wills to heal. Therefore, your hope of healing is an expectation to receive healing. The Scriptures promise that God will meet the needs of His children. Therefore, you can boldly proclaim, "My God meets all my needs through Jesus Christ who lives within me." Hope believes in the manifestation of the object hoped for.

God is a good God. He loves us and desires that we live lives according to His Word. Deuteronomy 28 promises many blessings for obedience, and many curses for disobedience. As we live our lives, we should consume the Word of God by reading, studying, meditating, and memorizing it. As we do, we partake of hope. Hope becomes very real in our lives. It is not a feeling that is being obtained; instead, it is expectation in the goodness of God that is known. As hope grows, expectation increases. As the Word is thought about, spoken from our lips, and acted on, we have increased hope.

The world is looking for answers. The economy is on dangerous ground. The world faces many problems. There is rioting on the streets of many cities around the world. It is time for the people of God to stand up with the hope we have and proclaim it from the housetops. The world can spot a phony, so what you have needs to be real. It will be real for you when the Word of God is your true reality. When the Word is truth to you and not what your senses tell you, you will be ready to climb the ladder.

To Hear Is To Obey

2011-02-19T05:07:00.000-08:00

Yeshua (Jesus) said in Matthew 11:15: "He that hath ears to hear, let him hear." (KJV) Shaul (Paul) wrote in Romans 10:17: "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." (KJV) Remember that although you read these verses in English, they were originally spoken from a Hebraic world view. Regardless of the translation, to understand these verses you must think in Hebrew. The word for "hear" in Hebrew is shamea. it means to listen, to hear and obey, to understand, and to cause to hear, and that with acceptance. The word for "obey" is shama. It means to listen and to understand distinctly. We can see that hearing is tied to obeying what you heard. It is not passing a hearing test. It is not that you heard an audio sound. It is acting on what you have heard. Yeshua says in effect: "He that hath the ability to hear and obey, let him obey." Shaul is saying: "Faith comes by hearing and obeying the word of God." You have not heard the word unless you obey it. It must impact on your life.

Faith is not real in your life until you act on it. The cripple man at Lystra had the faith to be healed but he had not acted on it. Acts 14:9 says: "The same heard Paul speak: who stedfastly beholding him, and perceiving that he had faith to be healed...." Faith isn't faith unless it is acted on. Consider Philippians 4:19: "And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus." (RSV) Do you have faith in this verse? If so, have you acted on that faith? To the world, it is seeing is believing. However, if you can see something, you don't need to have faith for it because you have it. To the follower of Yeshua, believing is seeing. Once I cross the line into faith, I possess that for which I have believed. Then, I act on it.

Faith is not mental assent. It is alive. It is now. I appropriate the promises of God today. I fear not because I have heard the word of God that says, "Fear not." I do not worry about the future because I have heard the word, "Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. (RSV) As I take hold of the word of God and obey it, I walk in faith regardless of what it looks like to others. I should be more concerned about what it looks like to God.

Your First Response

2011-02-18T06:01:00.000-08:00

What is your first response to a problem? Do you think of how bad the situation is, or is your first response faith? We should so train our minds and mouth to think and speak faith at the first sign of a difficulty. Recently, I received a call in the middle of the night that a close family member was being rushed to the hospital with a serious medical issue. I immediately began to speak, "(her name) shall live and not die. She shall live out her number of days in health." Once you start the Biblical confession, you have to stay with it. It is very easy when things look bad, or even turn worse to abandon your faith. Jairus faced the same problem in Mark 5. In verse 23, Jairus pleads with Yeshua (Jesus): "My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well, and live." (RSV) That is a clear statement of faith in the power of Yeshua to heal as opposed to He might heal. In the interim, the woman with the issue of blood slows Yeshua from getting to Jairus' house. Then comes some bad news. Verse 35 says: While he was still speaking, there came from the ruler's house some who said, "Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?" (RSV) Yeshua looks at Jairus and says: "Do not fear, only believe." (RSV)

The word "believe" is in the present tense, imperative mood, and active voice. This means that Yeshua is telling him to continue to believe as an on going action. The imperative mood means that Yeshua is commanding Jairus to continue to believe. The active voice means that Jairus is causing the verbal action. How can Yeshua command Jairus to believe? If "belief" is an internal conviction alone, then what Yeshua commands can't be done. You can't command an emotion or feeling. However, if "belief" is based on action then Yeshua could command Jairus to believe. Jairus continues to believe by continuing to escort Yeshua to his home. His daughter is healed because he continued to believe in the power of Yeshua to heal based on his actions.

Our first response to every crisis should be faith in action. Don't worry if your inside thoughts seem to have doubt. Ignore them and continue to act in faith. It begins with the right confession and then sticking to it. Like Jairus, those that continue to believe will see the manifestation of their faith.

Faith Works By Love

2011-02-17T04:21:00.000-08:00

Shaul (Paul) writes in Galatians 5:6: For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love. (KJV) The Hebrew word for "love" is a-hav. It is composed of the Hebrew letters Alef and Hey. The word picture for Alef is father. The word picture for Hey to behold or to be revealed. When read together, the Hebrew word picture for "love" is the father revealed. Now Yeshua's (Jesus') words of doing what He saw the Father doing makes more sense. Yeshua loves us; because He does, He will reveal the Father to us. That is true love is; it is the love of the Father. True love is not a feeling, it is about doing. When we perform acts of love, then we love. It is not an emotion. It is action. The verse in Galatians now begins to beccome more alive to us. Faith works when we act the way the Father loves.

What do Yeshua's actions tell us about the Father's love? Yeshua had compassion on those that needed healing and so He healed them. This demonstrates the Father's will to heal based on compassion. Yeshua had mercy on the woman caught in adultery. This reveals the Father's love to extend mercy to those in sin. Yeshua met the physical needs of the five thousand when He feed them with a few loaves and a few fish. This shows the Father's love to meet the physical needs of His children. By dying on the stake for us, Yeshua teaches us the Father's love to redeem all His children.

What do your actions reveal about the Father's love? Do they manifest compassion, mercy, and forgiveness? Or, are they judgmental, critical, and faultfinding? Yeshua is our example of the Father's love in action. We must approach each day as a wondrous opportunity to manifest the Father's love to somebody? As we walk in love, faith will work. When we walk in love, we will see the sick healed and demons cast off. We will see the miraculous. That is living way above the faith line!

Thought Faith Versus Spoken Faith

2011-02-16T05:32:00.000-08:00

In Mark 5, the story is told of Jairus and his very sick daughter. Jairus requests that Yeshua (Jesus) come to his house and lay hands on her so that she will be healed. Along the way, the woman with the issue of blood for twelve years touches the border of Yeshua's talit and is healed. Mark 5:28 can be translated several ways. The King James says: "For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole." The Amplified says: "For she kept saying." The New American Standard version says: "For she thought." The New International Version says: "Because she thought." So which is it: thinking or saying? The Greek word being translated is legō and it means "to lay or let lie down for sleep, to lay together, i.e., to collect. Finally to lay before, i.e., to relate, recount; and hence the prevailing Attic and later meaning of to say, speak, i.e., to utter definite words, connected and significant speech equal to discourse." The original meaning seems to favor the translation as a thought. The word developed to mean to speak. Does it really matter?

The key is found in verse 33: But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth.(KJV) Whether the woman originally only thought faith, at some point it came from her lips. It is of interest to note that legō is in the imperfect tense. This refers to continual action in the past. Whether it was thinking or speaking, she kept at it. The process of thinking or speaking faith built something up on the inside of her that caused her to press through the crowd to get to the tassels on Yeshua's talit. It is also of interest to note that the tassels represented the 613 commandments found in the Hebrew Scriptures. The woman knew that God would, as opposed to could, heal her. She acted on her faith.

It was the woman's faith that brought her healing. Mark 5:34 says: And he said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease." (RSV) Faith without action does not generally produce manifested results. We must act on our faith. We need corresponding actions with our thoughts or spoken faith. What do our actions tell us about what we believe? Are we willing to press through the crowd to touch the tassels of His talit? Or, are we afraid of what others will think?

Living Below the Faith Line

2011-02-15T05:48:00.001-08:00

I have previously written that John 10:10 is a dividing line. In that verse, Yeshua says, "The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." (KJV) If you are living below the faith line, you will find an abundance of theft, death, and destruction. On the other hand, if you are living above the faith line, you will have the God kind of life in abundance. What is the God kind of life? It is a life of faith and love. Yeshua said in John 14:15-17: "If ye love me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you." (KJV) What commandments is Yeshua speaking about? Love is tied to obedience. Yeshua is talking about the Torah. The word "Torah" is made up of the Hebrew letters Tav, Vav, Reyesh and Hey. Tav means cross. Vav means hook or nail. Reyesh means head or man. Hey means what comes from. When placed together, Torah has a word picture of, "What comes from the man nailed to the cross."

This may be a shock to those who believe that the Torah has passed away and of no force and effect. Perhaps Yeshua is teaching His disciples in John, that if you love Him, keep the Torah. This would have made perfect sense to His early followers. After the resurrection and ascension, they continued attending temple services, observed the feasts, and sacrifices. Doctrines such as the Trinity and atoning sacrifice would not be developed for centuries. If we are going to be an obedient people, we need to know what to obey. Yeshua tells us; it is Torah. Now some may argue that Yeshua replaced the Torah with the law of love, i.e. love God and love each other. However, this explanation forgets a rabbinical practice of attempting to reduce the original 613 commandments to as few as possible. This does not mean that the 613 are abolished. Yeshua, and no Torah observant Jew, would ever even suggest the eradication of God's 613 commandments.

To summarize, there is a faith line. Live in faith and obedience, and you will live the abundant life. If you fail to live the obedient life, you will most likely find yourself living on the theft, death, and destruction avenue. Yeshua was a Torah observant Jew. If we are His followers, should not we also make that claim? Don't settle for any thing less than the abundant life. We have previously taught to think the Word, speak the Word, and act on the Word. Today, we have seen what it can mean to act on the Word. Act on what comes from the man nailed to the cross, i.e. the Torah. Note this is not a works based blessing. Instead, it is
obeying what God says about how to live. The Torah contains within it, the blessing. There was an old television show titled, "Father Knows Best." In the same way, our heavenly Father knows best and we should follow His method of living. Yeshua knew that and now so do we.

Dealing With Thoughts

2011-02-14T04:01:00.000-08:00

Shaul (Paul) writes in 2 Corinthians 10:5: We destroy arguments and every proud obstacle to the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, (RSV) We are instructed to take every thought captive to Yeshua (Jesus). "Take every thought" is a present active participle. This means that continuous action is required. This is not something you do once like being born again. It is something that needs to be done on a continual basis. The active mood means that the subject is performing or causing the verbal action. This means that taking thoughts captive is something you do. While it is proper to ask God's help, it is something that you have to do for yourself. You take thoughts captive.

The Greek word for taking captive is aichmalōtizō and it means to take a prisoner, or captive. Further, it is to lead something into captivity. By implication, it is to subdue, or bring into subjection. Sometimes prisoners will try to escape. The way you stop them is to keep a guard on them. The guard we are to use is the Word of God. We are to keep our thoughts in line with God's Words. If the thought tries to step out of line, we force it back into place by speaking God's Word on the subject. This is an ongoing battle. The present tense means that this is something we must constantly be doing as long as we live. However, the good news is that the longer you take every thought captive, the easier it becomes.

Training the thought life is a continual process. Begin today to make it a daily practice of being very aware of what you are thinking. Ask yourself, where do I think this thought originated? John 10:10 is the dividing line: The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. (RSV) The thought that brings the abundant life comes from Yeshua; if the thought will lead to stealing, killing, or destruction, it is from the thief. Seek the abundant life by taking your thoughts captive to the One who brings abundant life.

Your Words Can Be A Snare

2011-02-13T05:03:00.000-08:00

Proverbs 6:2 says: Thou art snared with the words of thy mouth, thou art taken (or caught) with the words of thy mouth. (KJV) Hebraic thought places great emphasis on the power of words. When Jacob stole his brother's blessing from their father Isaac, there was nothing that could be done about it. When it was discovered by Isaac, he said: Then Isaac trembled violently, and said, "Who was it then that hunted game and brought it to me, and I ate it all before you came, and I have blessed him? --yes, and he shall be blessed." (RSV) Once the words of blessing were spoken, even though lies and deceit were the foundation of receiving them, they could not be rescinded. That is the power of Hebraic speech.

The Hebrew word for "snared" is yaqash and it always refers figuratively to the catching of a person or people in an undesirable situation. Your words can place you in a good or bad situation. The Hebrew word for "words" is emer and it means "word, speech, saying. The primary meaning is something said." The passage is not speaking of what you think; it speaks of what it is said. Your thoughts may not snare you, but your words will. Many times in business, I will watch a sales representative talk a possible sale into failure. "I just know that they are going to back out." "What if something goes wrong with the financing?" These type of negative comments create a snare for that which you do not desire to actually manifest itself in reality. Words need to be carefully chosen to bring about the desired end.

Words have real power in Hebraic thought. They can snare you, or they can be a source of blessing to you. The choice is yours. The best words to speak are those from the Scriptures. You will not fall into error by saying God's will on a subject. His Word is His will. It has been made plain and simple for us. Let us not neglect His ways and will for ours.

What You Say Is What You Get Part 2

2011-02-12T08:55:00.000-08:00

Mark 11:23 says: For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. (KJV) We are focusing on the bold portion of the text. Yeshua is establishing a law of speech. That which is spoken from the lips from a believing heart will become truth in your life. Consider the following negative applications of this law:
1. This will not work (and for you it won't);
2. I am just so tired (and you will continue to be tired);
3. I can't get ahead no matter how hard I try (and you never will);
4. I feel like I'm getting the flu (and you will);
5. I will not be able to make ends meet (and you won't);

Having what you say is a legal principle established from Genesis to Revelation. David proclaimed his victory over Goliath before it happened in the natural. God called, "Light be," and before it was. It is a principle to proclaim before manifestation. The world says, "Seeing is believing." God says, "Believing before seeing." The reality of your life is composed of those believing words spoken from your lips based on the Word of God. It is not what the doctors' say. It is not what it looks like. It is the eternal that is unseen; the temporal is the seen world. Your five senses can easily be deceived by Satan. However, when focusing on the unseen, you may rest that what the Word says is true. You are what the Word says you are. You can do what the Word says you can do. And, you can have what the Word says is yours. If you can get these principles deep down on the inside of you, your life will be revolutionized.

Look at today as a great opportunity to sow words of faith. During your waking hours sow as much of the Word of God from your mouth as you can. Speak words of faith while driving, resting, or even watching television. Be consumed with the Word. It is the beginning, middle, and end of the matter.

What You Say Is What You Get

2011-02-11T09:12:00.000-08:00

Mark 11:23 says: For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. (KJV)Notice the bold portion of the Scripture. Yeshua (Jesus) is setting forth a law of speech. What comes out of your mouth from a believing heart, will come to pass in your life. Remember that the heart's word picture is that which controls your inside. Just like there is the law of gravity or the law of aviation that enables a plane to fly, there is a law of speech. The word "saith" is in the aorist tense, subjunctive mood, and active voice. The aorist tense denotes simple completed action as opposed to continuous action. The subjunctive mood refers to the realm of possibility or probability. The active voice means that the subject is performing or causing the verbal action. When we understand the grammar, we can see that the law of speech allows us to shape and define our future. As God's children, we have a limitless supply of His ability inside us. That is why Yeshua told us to lay hands on the sick and cast out demons. Through the law of speech we may be His representatives on earth.

What do your present circumstances tell someone about your speech? What words have brought you to your current position in life? Faith filled words that are acted on will bring you success and prosperity in God. What did Yeshua tell us about how to pray? Matthew 6:10 says: Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. (RSV) Yeshua is telling us that we are to pray that God's will be done on earth as there is in heaven. Is there anybody sick in heaven? Any body losing their mansion because they can't pay the mortgage? Are there even mortgages in heaven? Read the book! God paves the roads with gold. God does not have a problem with wealth as long as it is used to bring about His will. If someone thinks that God uses sickness and lack to teach you something, where will He find it? Surely, there is none in heaven. Religious thinking really does show itself for what it is when you scrutinize it.

Yeshua has given every one of us the law of speech. When used properly it will bring glory to His name. In fact, if what you are saying does not bring glory to Him, be quiet. Listen to your words. If they do not honor God and bring His will into the situation, do not say them. Find God's Words on a subject and speak them. When you do, the glory will eventually come.

Praying For Healing

2011-02-10T05:20:00.000-08:00

Recently, I read of a parent's cry for people of faith to pray for his child because of a life threatening physical condition. The doctors' had pronounced the curse of cancer and the outlook was very bleak. The parent had written, "I know Jesus can heal his body. Please pray." As I read that, my heart sank. I thought how many people really understand how to pray for the healing. 1 Peter 2:24 says: Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed. (KJV) The Greek word translated "were healed" is in the aorist tense, indicative mood, and passive voice. In the indicative mood, the aorist tense generally refers to past time. Thus, the use of the word "were" in the verse. Further, the passive voice tells us that subject is receiving the action, as opposed to causing the action. The fact is, Yeshua (Jesus) has done all He is going to do about healing. He has provided for healing at the cross and it is up to us to draw from the healing that already exists. Can you imagine someone saying, "I know Jesus can save me. I'm praying to be saved and I am hopeful that before I die He saves me." You would tell that person, "Jesus has already done everything necessary to save you. He isn't going to do anymore. You need to receive Jesus as your Savior by faith and confess you are saved." It is the same with healing. People need to receive Yeshua as their healer. He has already made provision. To use an example, if my children needed me to put money in their bank account and I deposited the funds as requested, what would they need to do to access them? What good would it do to keep coming back to me begging for the money? I would say, "Child, I have already made the deposit for you. Just go to the bank and draw the money you need out." In the same way, Yeshua has already deposited the grace of healing in the child of God's account. We simply need to access it.

Our prayer should be: "Father, I know that by the blood of Yeshua I am saved and His stripes have provided for my healing. I now draw on that healing virtue and I claim it as mine. Thank God that by the stripes of Yeshua, I am healed." Now begin to praise and thank Him for His grace and mercy. If you are praying for others, know that you will not be able to over come their will. It is best to give the truth of God's Word and let them see that Yeshua has already done what He needs to do for their healing. He is not going back to the cross again; He does not need to. For children, you may take authority over the sickness and disease, and draw on the healing power on their behalf. There were several examples in the Gospels where a parent successfully interceded for their sick child.

"But it doesn't seem to be working." How often has this been the cry of one who tried this method of praying? You can't try this; you have to believe it from the heart. Remember yesterday? To believe from the heart is to allow what you believe to control your insides. You have to get it on the inside that healing has already been provided and accomplished in Yeshua. If you are waiting for the manifestation, you do so with a confidence that it has been done (as opposed to secretly hoping it might happen). Faith is now; faith is action. Do you believe that?

From the Heart

2011-02-09T05:59:00.000-08:00

Romans 10:9-10 says: That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. (KJV) What does it mean to believe from the heart? Too many try to convince others just to mentally agree that Yeshua (Jesus) is the Savior. However, that will not help anyone break additions or turn from sin. What enables a person to confess Yeshua as Adonai (Lord) is believing from the heart. When the Hebrew is examined the verse makes perfect sense. The Hebrew word for "heart" is lev. It is composed of the Hebrew letters Lamed and Bet. Lamed has the word picture of control. Bet has the word picture of house, family, or inside. When they are put together, it means to control the inside. Now Shaul's (Paul's) writing becomes clear. If you confess with your mouth that Yeshua is Lord and allow Him to control your inside, then you will be saved. It is about control. Your inside determines your outside. If you are exercising, your foot cannot make you run. It is the inside that controls the body. When Yeshua controls your actions, then you are believing from the heart.

Too often you will hear in the church, "It was my flesh that made me fall." Now compare that thinking with the word picture of the heart. If something other than Yeshua is controlling the inside, you have left the state of believing. Nothing should control you but Yeshua and the written Word of God. Yeshua is the living Word and the Bible is the written Word of God. Yeshua came to earth to show us what it meant to be controlled by the Word. He demonstrated the power of the Word to overcome the world, sin, and the devil. When we believe, we have the same authority and power. We do not become a "god." However, we have His power controlling our inner person that will control the outer behavior.

Shaul's writings are the opposite of "easy believeism." To believe from the heart is not a matter of mentally agreeing to a statement of doctrine. It is allowing yourself to be at the control of God and the teachings of Yeshua. What controls you? When you answer that question, you will know what you really believe.

The Word is Truth

2011-02-08T05:36:00.000-08:00

Yeshua (Jesus) said in John 14:6: Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. (NIV) The Hebrew word for "truth" is e-met. It is composed of the letters Alef, Mem, and Tav. The word picture is, "The mother of the covenant (what nurtures the covenant)." Rabbis used the letters of this word to teach that the truth was the beginning, the middle, and the end. Alef is the first letter in the Hebrew alphabet. Mem is in the middle. Tav is the last letter. Now when we hear Yeshua say that He is the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, we can see the connection to "truth." Yeshua is the Word and the Word is truth. It does not just describe what is truth; it is truth.

As we live our lives, we are to start the day in the truth of God's Word. As our day progresses, we are to not depart from the Word. Finally, we are to conclude our day in the Word. Some may question how this can be done, specifically with the demands of "secular work." I suggest to you that there is no such thing as secular work. If you are where God has placed you, then what you do is an act of worship even if the world would call it secular. Whatever you do, do it for the glory of God. As you perform the tasks of work, be mindful of the blessings of having work. Be thankful that you are able to work. Remember your work is not your provider; it is God who is your provider. Your employment only provides a seed for you to sow for the Kingdom. It is not your ultimate source.

The Word is the truth. As we make it a part of our every waking moment we will notice changes. We will have confidence in the ultimate outcome of whatever we seek. Those around us will sense something different. There is hope abounding in those who have the truth of the Word. I have seen this many times. When someone comes into alignment with God's Word by speaking it and doing it, he or she will draw a crowd. It most likely will not be overnight, but if your motive is right (Doing all for the Glory of God as opposed to personal gain), success will accompany the Word. And that is the beginning, the middle, and the end of the matter.

The "Rich" Blessing

2011-02-07T04:26:00.000-08:00

Proverbs 10:22 says: The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it. (KJV) The Hebrew word for blessing is berākâ and it means in general terms "good favor bestowed on another. This may be expressed in the giving of a tangible gift (Gen. 33:11; 1 Sam. 25:27) or in the pronouncing of a verbal blessing (Gen. 27:36; 49:28). Most often, however, this word speaks of God's favor on the righteous." This is a tangible blessing. The result of having this blessing is something that can be known by one of the five senses. In other words, this is not just a spiritual feeling good; it is receiving something that is good. The word "rich" is the Hebrew word ʿāshar and it means "to become rich. It means to be or to become wealthy in money, possessions, or influence. Its simple meaning is to become rich." So the blessing brings riches. This is not limited to monetary matters. It is to be rich in God's blessings and favor.

Notice that the verse also says that the blessing of the Lord comes with no sorrow. If you are at a job that you detest, around people that seek to harm you with gossip and backbiting, you can be sure that you are not blessed. This is different from persecution for your faith. I'm talking about a place of sorrow. If you are in that place, check what brought you there because it wasn't the blessing of God. Determine where you may have missed it and adjust accordingly. Again, if you are being persecuted for your faith that is an entirely separate issue.

You need to know that God wants to give you His blessing. He is not trying to hide it from you; He is trying to bless you with His "blessing." Get to a place where you can receive it. The path to that place is paved with obedience. Obey His Word and the blessing will come. Know that it is not based on your works. However, your actions can block the blessing from coming. Obedience to His Word opens the gates to the "rich" blessing.

Mustard Seed Faith

2011-02-06T04:54:00.000-08:00

Matthew 17:20 says: And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you. (KJV) You will often hear this verse used to demonstrate how you only need a small amount of faith. You will hear that the mustard seed was a very small seed in the Middle East and that is what Yeshua (Jesus) is teaching. However, when we explore the Greek text, something different presents itself. The Greek word translated "as" is the word hos. It means how or in what manner or way. Specifically, when it is before a noun or adjective, it means as, like as, or like. Perhaps Yeshua is not teaching us about the size of the seed. Perhaps He is teaching us about the nature of a seed.

A seed has within it everything it needs to produce after its own kind. It was made that way. That is its purpose. In the same way, when we are born again, we have everything inside of us to be a success for God. The seed is planted in the soil. That soil has the nutrients necessary to cause the seed to grow into its purpose. Likewise, the Word of God has everything we need to grow into our purpose for God. The seed merely reacts to the soil. It rests in the soil. Similarly, we are to rest in the truth of God's Word. Then the seed receives the moisture from above to aid in the growth process and produces a harvest. We are to allow the Holy Spirit to have free rein in our lives to apply the Word of God to every aspect of our existence. When we do, we will have faith like a seed that allowed the soil and water to cause it to produce.

Yeshua wants us to have faith like a seed. Life teaches us that having a little faith really doesn't work. A "little faith" was the disciples' problem. We need faith like a seed. We need to allow the Word of God to shape us and not fight against the truth it contains. The seed doesn't fight the truth; it merely responds. We are not to fight the truth of the Word. We are to submit to it and allow it to produce a harvest in our lives for God.

The Meaning of Trust

2011-02-05T04:58:00.000-08:00

Proverbs 3:5 says: Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. (KJV) The Hebrew word for "trust" is batach. It is composed of three letters: Bet, Tet, and Chet. The word picture for Bet is inside, or house. The word picture for Tet is to surround. The word picture for Chet is a fence. Together, trust has the word picture of "inside the surrounding fence." When we trust in God, we are to stay inside His Word. His Word becomes our reality, our provision, and our protection. His Word serves to keep us fenced into His promises when we obey it.

The world attempts to limit you to its fence. It tells you that the economy is so bad that you will not make it. It tells you that it sounds like you are taking the flu. Have you ever listened to what people say when they talk about illness. They say, "He has a cold. He has cancer." They describe the person as having ownership of the sickness. You do not have to own sickness as God has given you good health and healing. The fence that God provides through His Word for finances in difficult times is found in Jeremiah 17:7-8: Blessed is the man that trusteth (batach) in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit. (KJV) The fence that God provides for healing is found in Exodus 15:26: And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee. (KJV)

The truth is that you are going to be fenced in by some power. You are not free from influences no matter how independent you think you are. You have a choice: to be fenced in by God and His Word or to be fenced in by the world and its beliefs. Unbelief in God is just trust in the world's system of thinking. Trusting in God is allowing your self to be fenced in to the Word. Choose wisely.

The Power of Letters Part 3

2011-02-04T08:40:00.000-08:00

We will continue to look at the Hebrew word rapha. Isaiah 53:5 says: "But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed." (NIV) Yesterday, we saw that the number total for the three Hebrew letters that make up rapha was 39. Today, we want to look at the word picture for the three letters. The word picture for Reysh is a "person, the head, or the highest." The word picture for Pey is "to speak, a word, or to open." The word picture for Alef is "strength, leader, or first." When we put them together, the word picture for rapha is a person who speaks first. Now we can understand why speaking the Word brings healing. The word "healed" means to speak first. If someone talks health, they will obtain health. If they talk sickness and disease, that is what they will have. It begins with the talking.

This is not to be confused with the "Law of Attraction." That principle is that one can bring to themselves what they think. Think wealth and you will have wealth. Think health and you will have health. In the "Law of Attraction," the individual is the center of their lives. They control. This is very different from the Hebraic method of speaking the word. In Hebraic speaking of the word, God is at the center. By speaking His word, we are bringing Him and His desires into the situation. It is like standing in your room by the window with the curtains down. It is bright and sunny outside but the curtains block the sun's rays. However, as you lift the curtain the sun's rays fill the room where you are standing. Similarly, as you speak God's word over a situation you are bringing His light upon it. He is the Master not us; however, we can choose to bring His will in or remain in darkness.

Rapha is healing. That healing begins with your speaking. Begin the journey to health and well-being by speaking God's words on the subject. His will is His Word. As you speak His Word, you will be lifting the curtain of darkness and be enveloped in the light of His goodness.

The Power of Letters Part 2

2011-02-03T07:21:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, we examined the power of Hebrew letters. We saw that each letter is both a number and a picture. Today, we will look at a Hebrew word for healing. Isaiah 53:5says: But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that made us whole, and with his stripes we are healed. (RSV) The Hebrew word for "healed" is rapha. It is composed of the following letters: Reyesh, Alef, and Pey. The total number for rapha is 39. It is believed that the number of stripes inflicted by the Roman guards prior to crucifying their victim was also 39. We see the link between Yeshua's suffering and divine healing. I Peter 2:24 says: He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. (RSV) Some will argue that the verse in Peter refers to spiritual healing. I suggest that God desires us to be completely well. He desires our inner person to praise and worship Him; He also desires that our physical bodies be an instrument of that praise and worship.

The study of Hebrew opens the Scriptures to new heights. From Isaiah we can see that rapha is connected to the number 39 which is the number of stripes inflicted by the Roman soldiers. Rapha is "a verb meaning to heal, to make fresh. It describes the process of healing, being restored to health, made healthy, usable." Yeshua has paid the price by His stripes to enable us to be fresh and usable. It is difficult to be usable when one is ill. Healing is in the atonement, just like salvation. Sometimes that healing comes through our faith, through the faith of others, or doctors. The main point is that healing has been provided for by the stripes of Yeshua.

If you find yourself in need of healing, go the Father in the name of Yeshua, and stand on Isaiah 53:5 and 1 Peter 2:24. Read the Scriptures out loud. You need to hear them. As you do, faith will grow because faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. Remember that letters make up words and words have power.

The Power of Letters

2011-02-02T06:45:00.001-08:00

God created the heavens and the earth with words. He said, "Light be," and light was. Everything God did, He did with words. Everything Yeshua (Jesus) did, He spoke it first. We have previously studied the power of words by looking at the speech of David as he approached Goliath. Today, we look at letters. What are words composed of? They are made up of letters. If words have power, and they do, then we should expect their letters to likewise contain power. In Hebrew, every letter is a number and a picture. When we begin to compare the sum of different words, we learn something. Consider a Hebrew word for love which is ahebah. It is made up of the Hebrew letters Alef, Heh, Beth, and Heh. Their number total is 13. A Hebrew word for unity is achad. It is composed of the Hebrew letters Alef, Cheth, and Daleth. Its numbers also total 13. Since they have the same number, we can look to see the connection between the two words. Immediately we can see that love and unity are related. If unity is destroyed, it will impact the love relationship.

The Scriptures tell us that faith works by love. Love is the force that causes faith to have action. By comparing the words love and unity, we can pinpoint a potential cause if faith is not working. One may believe that they have love for their neighbor, but if there is strife and disunity in his or her life, love will be negatively impacted. We are to seek to be at peace with all men. It is one way we demonstrate love. There have been times in my life that I have separated from an associate to keep peace. I have explained that in the separation, peace can be maintained. It is better to love with unity than to separate to obtain peace; however, sometimes it is the only option.

Today, if you want to walk in a faith that moves mountains, strive to be in unity with all. That does not require you to loose your individuality. You can disagree without breaking unity. You don't have to agree with something that you think is incorrect; however, it does require you to love without fighting. Mountain moving faith works by love. If your faith is not producing Biblical fruit, check your relationships. See if there is strife, un-forgiveness, or anger toward another. If there is, repent, make restitution, i.e try to make it right, and walk in love. Then you can lay hands on the sick and they shall recover. You will cast out demons. That is the faith walk we need to bring true revival in our land.

We Need Some Cursing! Part 2

2011-02-01T04:13:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, I wrote about the need to curse the works of Satan. If something steals, kills, or destroys, it comes from him. We have the authority of Yeshua (Jesus) and the use of His name. Power is in His name. That power will cause sickness, disease, lack, depression, discouragement, and fear to depart. However, we need to use the weapons He has given us. Yeshua is not going to do it because He has already done it. God's Word is forever settled in heaven, but it is up to us to establish it here. We do that by thinking, speaking, and doing the Word of God. Last night one of my children became sick. He began to throw up and was very tired. He was laying on our bed. I gently put my hand on him and said, "Sickness, I command you to leave and depart from his body." I didn't yell or work up some emotion. It was very matter of fact. Immediately, he sat up and threw up for 5 seconds. He had a burst of energy. He wanted some of the chili I had made the night before. He had 2 helpings. Hardly a wise choice for someone with a stomach illness. I knew he was fine, so I gave it to him. He played for several hours without incident before falling asleep.

The body of Christ needs to start exercising its authority over sickness and disease. We would see revival if people saw the Word of God in action. We have too much talk without results. The power of the Word of God is real. The Word changes circumstances. Too often we allow the circumstance to change the Word. What is your reality? Is it what you see with your senses or is it the higher revelation knowledge? Your reality should be what YHVH says through the Word and not what your senses tell you. If you allow sense knowledge to rule your life, you will be battered and defeated. However, when the Word of God rules you will walk in victory.

Do you read or hear news that frightens you? Is fear knocking at your door? Take authority over it and curse the works of the devil. Yeshua has granted His followers the power of the Word to heal the sick, cast out demons, and raise the dead. It is time we beat Satan back with the Word. Defeat him at every turn and concede nothing.

We Need Some Cursing!

2011-01-31T08:40:00.001-08:00

No, I am not talking about "cussing." I am talking about cursing those things that that should be cursed. Peter said in Mark 11:21: And Peter calling to remembrance saith unto him, Master, behold, the fig tree which thou cursedst is withered away. (KJV) Yeshua had cursed the fig tree and it withered from the roots. The word "cursedst" is the Greek word kataraomai and it means to wish evil or to ruin. It carries the sense of proclaiming doom on something or someone. What should we be cursing? John 10:10 says: The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. (KJV) Draw a line on the floor. If something steals from you, kills, or destroys, it comes from the thief. The thief is Satan. On the other side are those things that come from God; the things that give us life and life more abundantly. Where would cancer fit? What about financial lack? What about good health and money in the bank to pay your bills? It is really quite simple; curse the things that come from Satan and bless God for those things that come from him.

We have seen that words have power. Yeshua's words contained the power to wither the fig tree. When we speak anointed words from a believing heart, they have the power to curse the works of Satan. We need to look at the events of our lives and determine which category that they are in? Are they life producing words or words of destruction? We need to become more aware of our authority to curse the works of Satan. Too often we just accept sickness, disease, or lack. We should be actively engaged in using the power of God's word to defeat the enemy at every opportunity. We should concede nothing.

Start cursing those things that belong to the enemy. If something is giving life and life more abundantly, speak words of blessing. Give thanks to God who gives us the good things in life. Do not accept theft, killing, or destruction in your life. Speak words of power. Speak words of cursing when you confront the works of darkness.

The Beginning

2011-01-30T04:41:00.001-08:00

An Hebraic approach to living the abundant life is found in the book of Genesis. We need to start at the beginning to see what YHVH had planned for His creations. There are three principles found in the first chapter that if followed will bring you to a place of abundant living. First, there is the principle of dominion. Genesis 1:26 says: Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth." (RSV)God gave man dominion over the earth, Man (and woman) are to be in control. We are to take action as opposed to being the helpless victim to random chance. Second, there is the principle of blessing. Genesis 1:28 says: And God blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth." (RSV) The first words heard by Adam was the blessing YHVH gave Him. It was a blessing contained in the words of YHVH. Man is blessed. If we are blessed, why don't we act like it? We need to confess that we are a blessed people. We have no lack, no want, and the enemy has no power over us. Third, there is the principle of seed time and harvest. Genesis 1:29 says: And God said, "Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food. (RSV) This last principle governs how the dominion and blessing will become operational in your life. We plant seeds and they produce after their own kind. You plant love; you reap love. You plant hate and discontent; you reap hate and discontent. Whatever you want in life can be obtained by planting the right seed for it.

We have previously learned that you plant a seed of faith by speaking it. Matthew 17:20 says: He said to them, "Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you." (RSV) We plant seeds of faith and we reap the results. We speak to the problem, not about the problem. This is the opposite of most believers. They seem to emphasis the problem. Listen to prayer requests. They are more about the problem than they are about the solution. Speak the answer not the mountain. We are to command the mountains to flee. They have to if spoken from the lips of one who believes in his heart the truth of the words spoken.

The start of every answer to every problem is found when you act on knowledge received. You have dominion over your circumstances. You are blessed by YHVH. You can plant the seed that will produce the harvest for that you seek. Read and meditate on the Word of God. Speak the Word of God. Act as if the Word of God is true. The principles from the first chapter of Genesis will put you over and you are already a success (perhaps you just didn't know it).

Your Confession

2011-01-29T05:43:00.000-08:00

Hebrews 3:1 says: Therefore, holy brethren, who share in a heavenly call, consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession. (RSV) The word "apostle" is the Greek word apostolos and it means to send. In this verse, who is the sent one? It is Yeshua (Jesus Christ). He is sent with what? He is sent with your confession. The word "confession" is the Greek word homologia and it means "to agree, confess, say the same. A confession, profession, or recognition." The word means that when you make a statement of confession, you are saying the same thing as another. Yeshua is taking your words (when they agree with His) and bringing them to the Father. That is why confessing God's Word is so vital to abundant living. If you speak doubt, unbelief, and fear, Satan takes those words and wrecks havoc in your life. Yeshua won't take those faithless words with Him. He is the Word and faith comes from the Word.

Yeshua is also our High Priest. The High Priest would take the sacrifices brought to Him by the people. He would then offer the sacrifice to YHVH on the altar. In the same way, Yeshua, as your High Priest, brings your words of confession to the Father for action. Faithless words will not be presented. Faithless words are an offering to Satan. He takes faithless words and will assist them to become a permanent reality in your life. Faith filled words will put you over and cause YHVH to move mightily on your behalf. Words of doubt or fear will bring greater doubt and greater fear in your life. Yeshua said you can have what you say. So, what are you saying?

Words come from thoughts. Actions come from words. You begin with confessing the Word of God. I have seen addictions broken by one who repeated the words: "I am the righteousness of Jesus Christ. I can do all things through Jesus Christ who gives me strength." A man who was addicted to drugs and alcohol was set free within seven days of repeating that confession. He said it while he was still drinking and doing drugs. However, those words eventually got on the inside of him. It became real to him. The power of God set him free. Your confession is powerful. It can work either for you or against you because it is a law. The law of confession can cause you to be victorious or it can cause you to fail. The choice, as always, is yours.

Do You Have Any Strong Holds?

2011-01-28T14:16:00.000-08:00

2 Corinthians 10:4 says: "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds...." The Greek word for "strong holds" is ochyrōma and it means "to hold fast. A stronghold, fortification, fortress. Used metaphorically of any strong points or arguments in which one trusts." We normally think about a strong hold as a negative. However, we should have some positive strong holds for God. We should believe with all our heart and mind that the Word of God is true and then live it out each day. We should be so convinced that what God says about us is true that no one or no spirit could convince us otherwise. We should be so convinced that we walk in abundance and not lack, that nothing (including our bank book) could change our minds. We should so believe it is God's will to heal that we can not be convinced otherwise by symptoms or doctors' reports.

How can we develop this type of strong hold for God? First, look how a negative strong hold develops. It begins with a thought. That thought is dwelt upon until it becomes a fixed imagination. Finally, that imagination becomes so strong that it begins to control the person. What starts with a thought eventually becomes an addiction that overpowers the individual. Second, begin to think about the Word of God continually. Get it fixed in your inner person that His Word is truth. Let that imagination become an addiction to you. Become so convinced in the truth that no force will be stronger to uproot your convictions. Become addicted to God and His Word.

You can develop a faith that can withstand all attacks. However, you must first develop a strong hold for God' Word. When it is so settled in your inner person that what God has said about something is the truth then your stronghold will enable you to defeat the enemy, failure, lack, sickness, disease, and want.

Worry: The Child of Fear and Unbelief

2011-01-27T04:21:00.000-08:00

Worry is the offspring of fear and unbelief. Where you find fear and unbelief, worry will soon be forthcoming. Worry says that you believe that you have remembered something that YHVH has forgotten. Do you see that worry is an offense to Him? He has promised you certain things that if you believe Him, you would not worry. Isaiah 41:10 says: "Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness." If you believe that YHVH said that and if you believe He can do it, why would you worry? Peter wrote: "Cast all your anxieties on him, for he cares about you." (RSV) The word "cast" is the Greek word epiriptō and it means to throw or cast upon. Envision playing catch with someone; you throw them a ball and they catch it. That is how we are to treat worry. We are to throw it to YHVH. Trust that He will catch it and never throw it back.

You are commanded not to steal. To steal something is to take something that does not belong to you. Worry, fear, and unbelief do not belong to you. They belong to Satan. They aren't yours and you have no business taking the enemy's stuff. The opposite of worry is trust. Proverbs 3:5 says: "Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding." The word trust is the Hebrew word bāṭaḥ and it means "to trust, to be confident. It expresses the feeling of safety and security that is felt when one can rely on someone or something else." If you feel secure in God, you will feel safe and secure.

We live in difficult times. However, we need not worry. We should not take something that does not belong to us and worry, fear, and unbelief do not belong to a child of God.

The Force of Words

2011-01-26T07:22:00.000-08:00

Job 6:25 says: "How forcible are right words!" If the followers of YHVH (God) could ever truly grasp the power of words, the world would take notice. You would not have to beg and plead people to come to Yeshua (Jesus). People would be driven to the truth of who He is. His words are spirit and life (John 6:63). Ours should be also. The word "forcible" is the Hebrew word maras and it means "to be sick, painful. It describes a curse as hurtful, pernicious (1 Ki. 2:8); destruction or punishment as painful (Mic. 2:10); words as unsettling, irritating (Job 6:25); an unknown motivation or cause as provoking an argument." Word can hurt. They can bring curses, but they can also heal. Right words spoken from believing hearts can make a difference in our lives. The husband that thinks he is a failure can be revived by a few words from a supportive wife. With her words behind him, he can face the day and obtain a victory. He will be a success because of her words to him. In the same way, a spouse can destroy the confidence of the other by condemning and criticizing them.

Job understood the power of words. David understood the power of words. Certainly, Yeshua knew their power. Everything that is seen was created by words. Our world was created by words. With that knowledge, why do we discount what we say. Our words will make a difference in our lives. Your tomorrow is going to be shaped by your words today. Do you want a better marriage? Speak words of love to your husband or wife. Do you want more money? Confess that you live in abundance and do not lack because Jesus Christ meets your needs according His riches in glory. Do you think you can't succeed? Declare that you can do all things through Christ who gives you strength. Your tomorrow is being shaped today.

Watch your words. Words spoken make a sound. That sound is a vibration and it affects things. Everything around you is composed of atoms and they are moving. Your vibrating words will impact the matter that you encounter. Let your words be pleasing to God and they will eventually be pleasing to man. Shape your tomorrow by speaking success today.

You Are What You Think

2011-01-25T04:27:00.000-08:00

Proverbs 23:7 says: For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee. (KJV) Now this translation, while typical, is not exactly correct. A better version is from the Jewish Study Bible: He is like one keeping accounts; "Eat and drink," he says to you, But he does not really mean it. (JPS) The study notes reveal: "Dinner with a stingy man is an occasion of hypocrisy on all sides and is nauseating." The point is that the stingy man says one thing, but really thinks another. However, there is a principle still here. The Hebrew word for "think" is sa ar and it means "to cleave, to divide, but it took on the meaning of to calculate, to estimate, to set a price on. The meaning was transferred to the sense of judging something, thereby setting a price to it." The word means to separate. You separate one thing from another in your mind.

You can think success or failure. You can think overcoming or defeat. You can think that you can do all things through Jesus Christ, or you can think you can't. You can think Jesus has defeated the enemy or you can think the battle is still in play. You can think that you have the power of Jesus' name and His authority or you can think you don't. You see that you have a choice. Your thoughts will divide one thing from another. You can think success or you can think failure. Your words will be the child of your thoughts. Yeshua (Jesus) said: "Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks." There are no accidents on the lips. You may have not meant to say it, but it still what you were thinking.

If we are going to be shining lights for God, we need to clean up our thinking. We do this by having our thoughts agree with God's thoughts. God's thoughts are found in His Word. By reading and meditating, i.e muttering, His Word throughout the day our minds will be transformed. Our thoughts will become His thoughts. When that happens, it is the Word of God that will proceed from our mouths. We are what we think. I would prefer to be in line with God. The choice is before us.

Serving Your Thoughts

2011-01-24T04:12:00.001-08:00

Actions are the children of words. Words are the children of thoughts. Our thought life was important in the teachings of Yeshua (Jesus). In Matthew 6:24-25, Yeshua said: No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? (KJV) Yeshua was teaching that you can't serve both God and wealth. How did Yeshua think people would serve either one? The answer is in verse 25: "Take no thought." The Greek word for thought is merimnaō and it means to care, be anxious, troubled, or to take thought. Thoughts are those impressions formed in the mind. Thoughts guide us. They can be positive and based on God's Word, or they can be negative and grounded in the ideology of the world's system of thinking.

Yeshua teaches that our thoughts are not to be based on anything except seeking God's kingdom first. He says: But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Let the day's own trouble be sufficient for the day. (RSV) We are not to allow our thought life to lead us away from faith in God. Thoughts are very powerful. They can be controlling and decisive in determining how we approach our spouses, our children, our business and friends.

The truth is that we serve our thoughts. Yeshua knew that (He could even read thoughts while He walked the earth) and He wanted our thought life to be pure. The Apostle Saul (Paul) stated: Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. (RSV) Yeshua understood that we would serve our thoughts. Saul knew we served our thoughts. The real questions are: (1) Do you understand that you serve your thoughts? and (2) What are you thinking about?

Planting Your Faith

2011-01-23T05:31:00.000-08:00

Yeshua (Jesus) said in Matthew 17:20: And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you. (KJV) Yeshua was responding to His disciples' questions about their failure to remove a demon that was afflicting a man. First, notice that Yeshua compares faith to a mustard seed. Every farmer knows that a seed must be planted in the ground before it will produce a harvest. If you don't plant the seed, you will see no results. You could place the seed in a special place in your home and protect it; however, it would do nothing. This is one of the reasons that so many believers live in a land of discouragement and failure. They don't understand that faith is like a seed.

Second, notice Yeshua's explanation of how to plant the faith seed: If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place...." Faith is planted by speaking it. People do not seem to have any problems talking doubt and unbelief. If someone says, "I believe I am coming down with the flu," they will most likely receive comforting words. However, if that same person upon manifesting early symptoms of the flu says, "By the stripes of Yeshua I am healed," they will be considered odd or strange. The reason that negative doubt and unbelief is acceptable is that that is the way of the world. The world talks failure and sickness. The believer in Yeshua should talk positive and have faith-filled words.

Finally, notice the result of speaking faith-filled words: "and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you." The word "impossible" is the Greek word adynateō and it means the opposite of weak and unable. If someone plants their seed of faith, they will see a harvest that is the opposite of weakness and being unable. The faith-filled walk is one of power in God. Yeshua did not leave us defenseless in this world. He has given us everything we need to be a success for Him. One great thing about planting our faith is that we don't have to wait for a special season to plant. Everyday is a good day to begin sowing seeds of faith. Plant your faith by speaking it and expect a harvest.

Looking Back Running Forward

2011-01-22T06:15:00.000-08:00

Previously, I have discussed the Hebraic approach to the future. It is like rowing a boat. You focus on where you have been as you approach where you are headed. In other words, your back is facing the direction you are rowing. "Looking Back Running Forward" is the way to encounter any problem or difficulty you face. Most everyone knows the story of David and Goliath. The young shepherd boy defeats the giant with nothing but his sling and five smooth stones. On closer examination, we can see five steps David took to defeat the giant. I call them the five steps of "Looking Back Running Forward":

1. Step 1: Look back. 1 Samuel 17:37 says: And David said, "The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine." And Saul said to David, "Go, and the LORD be with you!" (RSV) David looked back at the past protection and deliverance from God. By looking back, he was able to face the future with confidence. He knew he would be a success because God would not fail.

2. Step 2: Say it. 1 Samuel 17:45-46 says: Then David said to the Philistine, "You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin; but I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the LORD will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down, and cut off your head; and I will give the dead bodies of the host of the Philistines this day to the birds of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.... (RSV) David understood the power of words. He didn't speak the problem, he spoke the desired end. Oh, that we might speak the solution and not the problem. Too many prayer meetings are glowing tributes to the power of the enemy. We need to focus on the solution.

3. Step 3: Do it. 1 Samuel 17:48 says: And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came and drew nigh to meet David, that David hasted, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. (KJV) Once David had spoken the desired end, he ran toward the problem. Once we have heard from God, we need not fear. We can with confidence run toward the difficulty with confidence that we will prevail.

4. Step 4: Receive it. 1 Samuel 17:51 says: Then David ran and stood over the Philistine, and took his sword and drew it out of its sheath, and killed him, and cut off his head with it. When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled. (RSV) David received the victory. He had spoken he would take the giant's head, but he had no sword. After striking Goliath with the stone, David took his sword and fulfilled his words in verse 46: This day the LORD will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down, and cut off your head; and I will give the dead bodies of the host of the Philistines this day to the birds of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.... (RSV) He received the victory.

5. Step 5: Proclaim it. 1 Samuel 17:54 says: And David took the head of the Philistine and brought it to Jerusalem; but he put his armor in his tent. (RSV) David proclaimed the victory by bringing the giant's head to Jerusalem. You know that they had a celebration!

David's actions teach us how to be a success in the face of any giants that are standing before us. We need not fear. Look back and then run forward!

Decree A Thing

2011-01-21T06:02:00.000-08:00

Job 22:28 says: Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee: and the light shall shine upon thy ways. (KJV) The word translated "decree" is the Hebrew word gazar and it means to cut, to divide, to separate. The basic meaning of this word can be seen in Solomon's command to divide the baby in two pieces (1 Ki. 3:25, 26); in the act of cutting down trees (2 Ki. 6:4); or when God divided the Red Sea. Simply put, the word means to divide something or to separate from something. The verb has the connotation of making a pronouncement. This verse is informing us that we have the authority to make a decree that can separate things. Do you want to be separated from sickness, disease, poverty, or lack? If so, decree or make a pronouncement that you are free from such afflictions.

Can you make any decree? No, you are to only make decrees consistent with the Word of God. If you say the same thing, i.e. have the same language as God on a subject, you can accomplish anything. In Genesis 11:6, God says the following: And the LORD said, "Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language; and this is only the beginning of what they will do; and nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them." (RSV) God has established a principle that if people speak the same language, "nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them." This would include you and God's Word. If God's Word says you are healed and you agree with Him, are you healed? If God's Word says that He supplies your needs, are they met?

God has given you the power of speech and the power of agreement. Too often we look for another person to agree with. While that is fine, we always have a God who will agree with us if we speak His Words. Are you walking with God and His Word, or are you speaking a man's opinion. Why would you ever choose man's word over God's Words? It just doesn't make good sense.

Making God Happy

2011-01-20T04:14:00.000-08:00

Did you know that you can make God happy? Psalm 35:27 says: "Let them shout for joy, and be glad, that favour my righteous cause: yea, let them say continually, Let the LORD be magnified, which hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servant." (KJV) Read that slowly. God has pleasure when we are prosperous. The Hebrew word for pleasure is hapes and it means having delight in, or having pleasure in. The word is an adjective. This means that it is describing how God feels. He feels pleasure when what occurs? When His children are prosperous. What does the word prosperous mean? The Hebrew word is shalom and it means peace or tranquility. Another good definition for shalom is "nothing broken and nothing missing."

God wants His servants to live a life of nothing broken and nothing missing. If you are ill, something is missing, i.e. health. If you can't pay your bills, something is missing, i.e. money. If you are worrying about something, something is missing, i.e. peace. Do you think that God is able to create the circumstances in your life that would enable you to have peace? Yes, He can and will do that for you. God desires to make you an object of His blessing. Look back at Genesis. What were the first words Adam heard? They were words of blessing. God wants His children blessed, i.e. prosperous, so He can reveal His true nature to those that do not know Him. Somewhere the church got off track when it began to make an idol out of suffering. The Hebraic mindset was to avoid being a martyr. The reason is that to the Hebrew, life was sacred and intended to be enjoyed.

Today, confess that your prosperity will bring pleasure to God. Now understand, you have a part to play in the equation. You can't just sit back and wait. God does not reward laziness. Tell yourself that God wants you prosperous and go make it happen. If that means studying more, do it. If that means working harder, do it. Whatever He tells you to do, just do it. You will find shalom overtaking you and surrounding like the brilliance of the Son.

The Key to Success

2011-01-19T05:41:00.000-08:00

Joshua 1:8 says: This book of the law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall have good success. (RSV) The Hebrew word for "mouth" is peh and it used as the instrument of speech and figuratively for speech itself. The Hebrew word for "meditate" is haga and it means to growl, to groan, to sigh, to mutter, to speak; used figuratively: to meditate, to ponder. When we breakdown the verse we see that speech plus meditation (i.e. muttering) plus obedience equals prosperity plus success. It is quite easy to be a success even though the economy is difficult. Speak the word of God to others; mutter the word of God to yourself throughout the day and obey it.

The Hebrew word for "prosperity" is salah and it means to prosper, to succeed, and to be victorious. It is used of causing something to turn out successfully. The Hebrew word for "good success" is sakal and it means to act with insight, to be prudent, to give insight, to teach, to prosper, to consider, to ponder, to understand, to act prudently, or to act with devotion. The primary meaning of the word is to be prudent. To be a good success is to act with Godly wisdom in all your dealings, whether personal or business.

The passage in Joshua is giving clear instruction in how to be prosperous. It is great advice. It is as good advice today as it was when it was written for the first time. If you don't consider yourself a success, pay attention to what you are saying throughout the day. Grant permission to those close to you to call your attention to negative words coming from your lips. If you want a turn around, start by speaking what God says on the subject. You can be prosperous and successful. The choice is yours.

Being Afraid

2011-01-18T04:12:00.000-08:00

I do not think we fully comprehend the power that God has granted to His creations. Job 3:25 says: "For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me." The literal Hebrew is: "I feared a fear and it came upon me." The events of Job's life had a start in his fears. We must guard ourselves from fear because what we fear will manifest in our lives. Sometimes, we have greater faith in our fears than we do in God's Word. The word "feared" is the Hebrew word pahad and it means to dread, to be in dread, or to be in awe. The word "afraid" is the Hebrew word yagor and it means to fear a specific occurrence such as catching a disease; being reproached or scorned; or being delivered into the power of specific people. While the first word speaks to a general sense of fear, the second word involves a specific thing being feared. Fear will attract the object of fear.

How do we stop fear? We stop fear with faith. Faith comes by hearing the Word of God. The more Word you have in you, the less fear you will have. We need to be people of "The Book." God's Word on a subject should settle the issue. How can you fear sickness and disease when the Isaiah says, "By His stripes you have been healed." How can you fear financial lack when the Word says, "My God shall supply all your needs." How can you fear when people come against you when the Word says, "No weapon formed against you shall prosper." How can you fear the economic recession when Jeremiah says, "You shall be like trees planted by the river and you will not wither."

The choice is between faith and fear. If you concentrate on fear, like Job it will come upon you. If you have faith in the Word of God, His promises will become true in your life. Again, it comes down to choices. You can have either faith or fear. Which do you have?

Do Thee Good

2011-01-17T04:25:00.000-08:00

Do you deep down know that God wants to "do thee good?" Or, have you accepted traditional teaching that God might send you cancer or some other dreaded disease just to teach you something? No, God wants to do good for you. Deuteronomy 8:16 says: Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end.... (KJV) The word "good" is the Hebrew word yatab and it means to be well, to be pleasing. In the causative stem, as it is in this verse, it means to do good, to do well, to please, or to make pleasing. It is often used in idiomatic expressions with heart meaning to be pleased or to be happy. According to the Hebrew grammar, this verse means that God is going to cause you to be happy.

If this is the case, why do so many believers live far below this standard. Notice the typical church service; it looks like a funeral. People can't wait to leave. God wants to do us good, but we need to begin to speak that goodness. We need to be people with a smile on our faces. We can approach each day knowing that God intends to do me good today. Whatever you may face today, God is working (sometimes behind the scenes) to do you good. That is my confession. If you speak it long enough you will get this on the inside of you. God wants to do me good!

Today, say the following: I am a child of the King. I have no worries because I have cast them over to Him. God wants to do me good today and I receive His goodness. I walk in abundance and have no lack.

The Possibility of the Impossible

2011-01-16T04:51:00.000-08:00

Do you face a situation that seems impossible? Is there a mountain of doubt and unbelief that prevents you from seeing the power of God in your life? Or, have you reached a place that God is too small to really do something in your life? In the 9TH chapter of Mark, a man brings his son who has a spirit possession problem to Yeshua's (Jesus') disciples. They are not able to deliver the son. Then Yeshua gets involved. The father asked could Yeshua do anything about his impossible situation. Yeshua said in Mark 9:23: And Yeshua said to him, "If you can! All things are possible to him who believes." (RSV) Yeshua sets a standard for receiving from Him. The standard is one has to believe. The Greek word is pisteuo and it means to be firmly persuaded as to something, and when spoken in reference to God to trust in Him as able and willing to help and answer prayer. That is where so many miss the possibility of the impossible. They think God is able, but they question His willingness.

While preaching a revival service on the will of God to heal, I was approached by an older leader of the church who said to me: "Pastor Jenkins, I wish you would not talk so much about healing. The devil does a lot of healing today to mislead people." I looked at him and said that things sure have changed from Bible days. "Back then," I said, "Yeshua used to heal and the devil made people ill. But now, you are telling me that God makes people sick and the devil heals them." This man could not see the possibility of the impossible. Yeshua has told us that "All things" are possible; He didn't say, "All things except what the doctor said is impossible." He carved out no exceptions. If we can be firmly persuaded that something is possible, then it is possible. That was the difference between Yeshua and the disciples. They really didn't believe the son could be set free. Yeshua knew that the realm of impossibility could be brought into the possible through faith.

Can you see the impossible becoming possible? Better yet, can you see the impossible becoming probable? If we believe and act on the proposition that God can and will answer prayer, we will see the impossible pass away to the possible! We have the authority and right to use Yeshua's name to command spirits, sickness, and disease to depart. Do you believe?

He is Watchful

2011-01-15T05:40:00.000-08:00

Have you ever taken a small child to a public park? How would you describe your watching the child? Do you only occasionally check on the child while you talk with someone? Or, do you keep your eyes glued on the child to make sure that nothing happens to him or her? Most people are very attentive to their small children. They don't take their eyes off them. They do this to make sure the child is safe. In the Jewish Study Bible, Jeremiah 1:12 says in part: "For I am watchful to bring My word to pass." If God has spoken something in His Word, He is going to keep an eye on that word to make sure that it comes about.

It should be obvious why we are to speak God's Word on a subject. If there is sickness or lack, we need to speak God's Word over the circumstances so there is something for God to watch over. It is our duty to impose His Word on the situation. We do that by our confessing, i.e. saying the same thing He says, His Words. We make His Words our words. The two are in alignment and now He will make sure that His Words come to pass. Contrary, if we speak doubt and fear, there is nothing for Him to watch over. Our speech will demonstrate faith in His Words or faith in the world's words. The world speaks fear and unbelief. God's Word is faith-filled. God's Word is full of faith. Some say that God's Word is pregnant with faith. Our speech should reflect the "now" of faith. Faith is now. We speak it, live it, and God will bring the end result to pass.

What do your words say about your circumstances? Does your speech provide something for God to watch over? Or, does your speech reflect failure, doubt, and fear? God wants you to talk like Him. He wants you to have the same opinion about your circumstances as He does. He speaks words of faith and so should you. The choice is yours. Choose wisely.

Words of Life

2011-01-14T05:41:00.000-08:00

John 6:63 says: It is the spirit that gives life, the flesh is of no avail; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. (RSV) The Greek word for "life" is zoe. Zoe can be defined as the "God-kind of life." This is not some ordinary existence. This is the type of life that is full of action and compassion. This is seen in the person who understands and acts on the knowledge that words can contain either life or death. The words of Yeshua (Jesus) contain life. They still do. They have loss none of their power since they were uttered from the lips of the Master. When we speak the same words of life they can contain the same power.

Yeshua instructed His disciples in Matthew 10: And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every infirmity.... And preach as you go, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying, give without pay. (RSV) What the body of Christ needs today is men and women that understand the power of words just like the early disciples. Do you think that Yeshua was instructing them to use natural means to heal the sick, raise the dead, and cast out every infirmity? No! He was instructing them to use the power of words to accomplish the task. The "church" doesn't need another building or program. It needs people who will accept the Great Commission with the power of words.

Words can put you over, or they can defeat you. Words will dictate your tomorrow. If you don't like where you are today, consider your words that brought you to today. What do your words contain? Do they contain life or death? Create your future of success by speaking words of life today.

Keep At It

2011-01-13T04:19:00.000-08:00

You have heard the old saying: "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again." There is more Biblical truth in this saying than one might expect. Mark 5 tells us about the woman who had an issue of blood for twelve years. She had spent all her money on doctors and treatment. All her efforts had failed. She was just as sick as she ever was. However, when she heard Yeshua (Jesus) was coming to town, she made the following confession: "For she kept saying, If I only touch the hem of His tallit (prayer shawl), I shall be restored to health." Notice that she had been continually saying the confession to herself. Don't bother confessing to others who don't understand faith. You will become frustrated and discouraged. Others may laugh at your confession of the Word of God over your life. Let them; you can't control them. They may call you crazy, or laugh at you. They laughed at Yeshua when He went to heal the girl and said she was only sleeping. They laughed at Him and He put them out of the room. You don't want unbelievers around you when you are standing on faith. You need to be around those who can support your confession.

As important as confession is, you must add corresponding actions. The woman was not healed just from her confession; she was healed because she had faith in action. She pressed through the crowd. She risked public humiliation. She risked being injured. However, her faith had legs. She was on the move and she pressed through and touched Yeshua's tallit. Just like she said, when she touched it, she was healed instantly. Her confession became reality. Do you think she doubted? Of course not; if she had doubted, she would never had the required action to see it through.

Is there something you need God to do in your life? Find a Scriptural promise and begin to confess it continually. Put corresponding action with the confession. Keep at it and don't quit. The only thing that can stop you is you. The devil can't stop you. He is powerless against a man or woman who knows and confesses the Word of God with action. Talk your faith and walk your faith. Keep at it. Your miracle will come.

Getting a Rhema Word

2011-01-12T05:45:00.000-08:00

There are several Greek words in the New Testament that are translated as "word" in our English Bibles. One is rhema. Rhema means "that which is spoken, which uttered in speech or writing." Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary explains the difference between logos (another Greek word translated "word") and rhema: "The significance of rhema (as distinct from logos) is exemplified in the injunction to take 'the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,' Eph. 6:17; here the reference is not to the whole Bible as such, but to the individual scripture which the Spirit brings to our remembrance for use in a time of need...." The rhema word is alive. It has been spoken to your inner person. It has power in your life. Sometimes it is a specific Scripture and other times it may be a Biblical principle. It is something that can be used in a spiritual battle with darkness.

I was looking at one of my Bibles I used during the time period of 2005-2006 when I preached number of revivals across the USA. I found the following rhema words that I had recorded and I wanted to share them with you. They may speak to you and become a rhema word to you.

1. January, 2006 "What you talk, you walk."
2. December 1, 2006 (right after the birth of my son Seth) "If the Word says its done, IT'S DONE!"
3. December 5, 2006 "Nothing is impossible with God. Nothing is impossible to us." To accomplish this, (a) our faith links us to God; (b) we have the Name that gives us the authority; and (c) we use the Word as the source of power (word of His power) to accomplish the impossible."
4. June 28, 2005 "You live today, what you said yesterday."
5. May 31, 2005 "If Satan can deceive you, he can defeat you. Stay in the Word!
6. April 30, 2005 "You can possess what you confess when it it is the Word you profess!"

These words were very powerful when spoken to me. You might want to consider getting a journal and recording rhema words that are spoken to you. They are a source of faith and a reminder that God still speaks to His children.

Overcoming Fear

2011-01-11T05:29:00.000-08:00

In our day, there is much to be afraid of. There is economic instability. Many are out of work. Real estate values have plummeted. Inflation is around the corner. Gas prices are almost $3.00 a gallon. Plus, there is the uncertainty of living in a fallen world. Just this past weekend a senseless act of gun violence took the lives of six people and wounded many more. How can we overcome the fear that comes knocking at our door with facts, i.e. reasons to be afraid? The opposite of fear is faith. Faith is believing what God says about the situation and fear is believing what evil says about the situation. It again comes down to our choice. Who or what are we going to believe about the situation?

This is not about denying reality. I do not deny sickness, disease, poverty, lack and violence. However, I do believe in a higher reality. Jeremiah 17:5-6 say: "Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his arm, and whose heart turns away from YHVH (LORD). For he shall be like a shrub in the desert, and not see when good comes, and shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, a salt land that is not inhabited." These verses describe the person who looks to man to solve all the problems and be the protector. He looks to others to meet his needs. The Word says you are cursed, because you have not trusted in God. Verses 7-8 say: "Blessed is the man who trusts in YHVH, and whose trust is YHVH. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and does not see when heat comes. And his leaf shall be green, and in the year of drought he is not anxious, nor does he cease from yielding fruit.

Let us compare the two people:

1. The man who trusts in man
a. He is in a dry desert with no water. If he stays here too long he will die.
b. He does not even see good when it comes. This person is so negative. Everything is falling apart to this person. He is difficult to be around.
c. He inhabits the wilderness in despair.

2. The man who trusts in YHVH
a. He is planted by the river. There is water. He is alive and refreshed. He has a bounce in his step. He is not afraid.
b. He does see heat when it comes. He is protected from the heat that could kill.
c. His leaf is green. He is alive and full of energy. He cannot be stopped. He is fully equipped for whatever task he undertakes.
d. He is not anxious. He can sleep at night. He is not afraid of tomorrow. He embraces each new day as an opportunity to be present with YHVH.
f. He continually yields fruit. He is productive. While others may be failing around him, he is a success.

So, which one looks good to you?

Divine Protection

2011-01-10T03:25:00.000-08:00

Are you of the opinion that believers must suffer the same sorrows as those of the world? While it is true that some things happen to both believers and non-believers, e.g. death, aging, and sorrow at the loss of a loved one, does this mean that we are subject to the world's economy? If we as a nation are in a recession, do we have to be in one? The short answer is, "No." Exodus 9:4-6 says: But the LORD will make a distinction between the cattle of Israel and the cattle of Egypt, so that nothing shall die of all that belongs to the people of Israel. And the LORD set a time, saying, "Tomorrow the LORD will do this thing in the land. And on the morrow the LORD did this thing; all the cattle of the Egyptians died, but of the cattle of the people of Israel not one died. (RSV) Exodus 9: 25-26 says: The hail struck down everything that was in the field throughout all the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and the hail struck down every plant of the field, and shattered every tree of the field. Only in the land of Goshen, where the people of Israel were, there was no hail. (RSV) Finally, we see in Exodus 10: 22-23: So Moses stretched out his hand toward heaven, and there was thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days; they did not see one another, nor did any rise from his place for three days; but all the people of Israel had light where they dwelt. (RSV)

The above passages clearly demonstrate God's ability to protect His people from the effect of sin on those who disobey Him. This should be a great comfort to us that live in a struggling economy. Just because the world says things are bad, we don't have to accept that for ourselves. God is well able to protect and prosper His children. Let me go a step further. I think God wants to set His children apart in the midst of trouble so His Name will be glorified. A problem is His opportunity to show Himself strong on our behalf. However, we can stop Him.

We can stop Him by buying what the world is selling. It is selling gloom, despair, and excessive misery (from "Hee-Haw"). If that is your song, you would be like an Israelite that left the secure land of Goshen to spend a night with the dying cattle, hail, and in the dark. On the other hand, we can proclaim in faith God's provision for us. The righteous are not forsaken; their seed does not beg for bread. Stand firm on the Word of God. You can be a success even when the world says you can't. Take God's Word for it and not the world's.

You Need To Forget*

2011-01-09T06:48:00.000-08:00

The title contains an asterisk (*). The reason is that while we need to forget somethings to be a success in in life, there are some things we should never forget. The Hebraic method of addressing the future is to act the way you do when you row a boat. When rowing, you face the direction you are coming from as you back into where you are headed. To the Hebrew, you should remember God's faithfulness in the past as you face the present and future. So, while we should remember God's past, we need to forget some our own.

Too often, what holds someone back from being all they are capable of being is that they remember their past failures. Those memories of trying and failing can cause one to become so negative about their future that they are defeated before they start. I John 4:4 says: "Greater is he (God) that is in you, than he that is in the world (Satan)." Do you believe this? Do you believe that the Greater One is inside you. Try standing in front of a mirror and proclaiming, "The Greater One is inside me!" If the Greater One is inside you, how can you fail? You can do all things through Yeshua the Messiah (Jesus Christ) who gives you strength! Notice that it is He who gives you the strength to succeed; however, it is you who has to work through to that place of success. You have inside you every thing you need to succeed in life. There is no lack on the inside. We need to forget our past failures and mistakes and focus on God's past faithfulness. That faithfulness is inside you. He will not let you down. Don't you let Him down.

Determine your dream. Make sure it is Scriptural. Then believe and act that you can accomplish it. Don't allow your past to hinder your present and destroy your future. The world awaits for men and women who are full of God and can't be stopped. Don't allow "you" to stop "you!." You can succeed.

Faith in the Present

2011-01-08T05:22:00.000-08:00

In Hebrew thought, you don't know something until it shows in your actions. It is not enough to speak what you know, the knowledge must manifest itself in your life. That is the way faith is. Hebrews 11:1 begins: "Now faith is...." Faith is present tense. It is in the present moment. It is not a "hope so," it is a "know so." The word "is" in the Greek text of Hebrews 11:1 is in the present tense indicative mood and active voice. This means that the act of faith is occurring while the speaker is making the statement. The indicative mood means that it is a statement of fact. The active voice means that the subject is performing or causing the verbal action. The writer of Hebrews is telling us that faith is happening now and we are causing it to come about.

If we are going to be people of faith, it should be seen in our lives. We should demonstrate the power of faith in our walk. We should approach each day with an attitude of, "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength." Further, we should never allow ourselves to feel or act defeated. Our words and actions should demonstrate a present day faith. "If God be for us, who can be against us," should be our battle cry. We do not survive the day; we seize the day. Every day should be a testimony to the power of God in our lives!

How do you see today? Are you looking to just get by? Or, do you anticipate the great things that may occur because you walk in a present day faith? The choice is yours. Choose wisely.

Settle The Question

2011-01-07T05:27:00.000-08:00

You need to settle the issue for yourself that you can be a success even when the world's system is failing. There is a theology that God brings evil and sickness upon you to teach you faith. Would you send cancer to your child to teach him or her a lesson? Are you more righteous than God? However, there is still a place of weeping. You may be there today, or it may be tomorrow. We need to know how to address the issue of being in a valley of suffering. Psalm 84:6-7 in the Amplified Version states: "Passing through the Valley of Weeping (Baca), they make it a place of springs; the early rain also fills [the pools] with blessings. They go from strength to strength [increasing in victorious power]; each of them appears before God in Zion."

Notice the following:
1. There is a place of sorry and sadness that we may pass through.
2. That we can travel through the valley and make it a place of springs. Rain meant that the people would have a harvest. In the valley, you can have a harvest.
3. That in the valley, you can increase in victorious power. This is not a "getting by." This is winning!
4. Finally, there is a blessing in the valley. Based on the harvest and the increase in victory, I don't think this is a place of misery that you convince yourself is a blessing. This is not the place for a "pity party." This is a place of rejoicing.

You need to have a mindset that even if you are in a place of weeping, you will pass through it. While you are there, you can still experience a harvest of blessings. You can have increasing victorious power. You can be blessed even the world's economy is in trouble. God intends to take you through and put you over. If you have the right mindset, correct actions will follow. Remember that thoughts, words, and actions must be consistent.

The Power of Spoken Faith

2011-01-06T05:26:00.001-08:00

Yeshua (Jesus) is approached by a Roman Centurion. The centurion was a Roman soldier and he had a servant that was paralyzed and suffering. He sought healing. Yeshua offers to come to his home and heal the servant. The centurion replied that he understood authority. As a leader of soldiers, he knew his words of command would be obeyed because he had authority over his men. The centurion knew that Yeshua had authority over the sickness; he knew that Yeshua could speak the word and healing would occur because of His authority. Yeshua marvels at his faith and actually calls it, "Great faith." Yeshua tells the centurion to go and it is done just as he believed it would. The servant was healed from that very hour.

Some points of observation:
1. The Roman centurion was not part of the covenant with Israel. He had no right to ask Yeshua for anything. However, that issue was separate from the issue of authority. This healing was about authority and faith not covenant.
2. The centurion understood the power of the spoken word. He knew that words contained authority when spoken from the lips of someone who possessed authority.
3. The centurion understood that Yeshua had authority over sickness and disease. Since He did, when Yeshua spoke, the sickness or disease had to obey the spoken word of healing.

How does this apply to us today? Yeshua has been raised from the dead and seated at the Father's right hand, far above all rule and authority, and every name that is named. Yeshua is the authority over anything that has a name. Once I was preaching a revival and woman who had been given less than 30 days to live contacted the pastor hosting the meetings. She was too weak to come to the services. She had a very serious disease that was to take her life in less than a month. She wanted prayer. I came to her hospital room and spoke faith to her. I told her that her disease had a name and since it had a name, it had to bow to the authority of the name of Yeshua. I prayed in the name of Yeshua and commanded the disease to depart. I lost touch with her two years later, but she had long outlived her 30 day death sentence. There is power in the spoken word of faith.

So what do you speak? Do you speak words of doubt and failure? Begin to trust in the power of the name of Yeshua. If your problem has a name, then the power of the spoken word will prevail.

Dealing With Delay

2011-01-05T07:25:00.000-08:00

Are there things in your life that you want to change? Is there something you have been praying for, but you have not seen the answer. Do you feel discouraged because of the delay between the time of your request and the answer you sought? Many face this problem. It can cause one to become depressed and lose faith in the God who hears and answers prayers. Sometimes I ask God, "Why have you not done that for me?" I don't want a theological answer from someone who tells me that God doesn't do miracles anymore. Neither do I want someone to tell me that it is my fault. I want God in action. Yet, I am confronted with delay.

Delay can be crushing. However, when we focus on the Word of God, the problem begins to disappear. Hebrews 11:1 says, "Now, faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Faith is evidence. The Greek word for "substance" refers to the residue of an experiment that has been performed. Our faith is evidence that we will receive that for which we have sought from God. Now of course, the request must be consistent with God's will. His will is His Word. He exalts His Word above all else. He watches over His Word to insure that it comes to past. While I am in delay stage, I do the following:
1. I verify that my request is according to the will of God. I find a Bible passage and read it to God.
2. I speak my faith that I believe and act on the passage I have just read to God.
3. I believe that I receive what I have spoken.
4. I thank God for His answer.

That is the key to dealing with delay; we are to have faith in God's Word. To the Hebrew, words are tangible. As I speak faith, faith exists. As I continue to speak the result of faith, I shall possess that which I seek. Remember, this is not some "name it, claim it," because it is based on specific provisions in the Word of God. It is declaring that I have what God says I have. It is speaking that I am what God says I am. If God says it, then it is now. And, there is plenty of evidence to support it.

Your Belief System

2011-01-04T06:02:00.000-08:00

Years ago, I taught martial arts classes. People would come to learn how to defend themselves. I would explain the importance of their belief system in self defense. For example, if I believed that could defeat anyone who was no larger than 6 foot 4 inches and weighed no more than 275 pounds, as soon as an adversary appeared at 6 foot 5 inches weighing 300 pounds, I would be defeated. My belief system would serve as a limit on my abilities. It is the same in the spiritual. Yeshua (Jesus) said in Matthew 12:34: For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. (RSV) Your belief system is in your heart. In other words, what you really believe from the heart is going to set the ceiling of God's work in your life. We need to examine our confessions.

Consider the following statements:
1. I will always be in debt.
2. I think I'm coming down with something.
3. Bad things seem to always happen to me.
4. If something can go wrong, it will for me.
5. I just know we will get into an accident.
6. I am a failure.
7. Nothing goes right for me.
8. We will just have to put up with the situation.
9. My folks had poor health, so I probably will also.
10. We will not have enough money to pay our bills this month.
11. It seems we can't get ahead, and when we do, we get knocked down.

In Mark 11:23, Yeshua said: He shall have whatsoever he saith. (KJV) What are you saying? What is your confession? Take a few days and listen to what comes out of your mouth. Confession is powerful. It can bring good or bad. The choice is yours.

Make A Stand

2011-01-03T04:17:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, we saw that the children of Israel chose to believe their opinions about their abilities instead of God's Words of promise to them. God said to take the land because He was giving it to them. They said, "Thanks, but no thanks." Their faith was overcome by fear. However, there were two that made a stand. Numbers 14 also says: And Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had spied out the land, rent their clothes, and said to all the congregation of the people of Israel, "The land, which we passed through to spy it out, is an exceedingly good land. If the LORD delights in us, he will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land which flows with milk and honey. Only, do not rebel against the LORD; and do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us; their protection is removed from them, and the LORD is with us; do not fear them." (RSV) Notice that to lose faith was considered an act of rebellion.

Joshua and Caleb took a stand for God's Word. They were out numbered. They were subject to threats, i.e. the crowd wanted to stone them. They were walking in faith not fear. What are you willing to make a stand for? Has God promised something to you in His Word and yet you are afraid of making a stand? Do not be afraid. You can trust God. He loves you. His Word is secure. It is settled in heaven. However, it is up to us to settle that Word on earth. We settle it by speaking it.

Today, don't be afraid to make a stand for God's Word. If He has said it, it is secure. Fear will flee when confronted with faith. Faith will put you over, but you are going to have to speak it. Joshua and Caleb spoke faith to the crowd. They heard them. This is not the time to be silent. It is a time to proclaim the truth of God's Word. It is time to make a stand!

Don't Limit God

2011-01-02T07:14:00.000-08:00

As we begin our journey, let us be mindful that we can limit God in our lives. There is a theological position that maintains that everything that happens is God's will. It is just that we can't see how it is the best thing for us; however, in the sweet bye and bye, it will all make sense. Six million Jews died in the Holocaust of which one and one half million were children. Was that God's will? Of course not! Man can limit God and prevent His best for our lives. Consider the following.

The Hebrews had just been delivered from over 400 years of bondage at the ruthless hands of the Egyptians. God tells them to take the land He has provided for them. They send spies and bring back a report that agrees that the land is full of milk and honey, but the people who occupy the land are too strong for them to overcome. There is a generally a "but" whenever people begin to limit God. Numbers 14 reads: Then all the congregation raised a loud cry; and the people wept that night. And all the people of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron; the whole congregation said to them, "Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness! Why does the LORD bring us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become a prey; would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?" And they said to one another, "Let us choose a captain, and go back to Egypt." (RSV) The people have a choice to believe God or believe their opinions about themselves. God has said "Go!" and they have said "No!" Notice the bold portion. They spoke a death sentence over their lives. Hear what God Almighty said a few verses later: "How long shall this wicked congregation murmur against me? I have heard the murmurings of the people of Israel, which they murmur against me. Say to them, 'As I live,' says the LORD, 'what you have said in my hearing I will do to you: (RSV) They spoke it; God heard it; and He gave them the fruit of their words.

Let me summarize:
1. God is listening to what you say;
2. You can speak faith and get the blessing or you can speak unbelief and write your own ticket;
3. You can limit God by your speech, but you don't have to; and
4. Death and live is in the power of the tongue.

Starting Right

2011-01-01T03:34:00.000-08:00

Today, some will awake with a headache from too much celebration last night. Others, have made resolutions that they believe will make them better in 2011. Generally, they involve commitments to lose weight, stop smoking or drinking, and to exercise more. Notice that many resolutions involve the physical body. What about spiritual resolutions? Are you resolved to improve your spiritual side this year? You are composed of two parts: the physical and the spiritual. They are interconnected. This means that they are not two separate parts; there is one you composed of an inner person and a physical body. So, what spiritual resolutions should you make. I have three for you to start with.

First, control your anger. Proverbs 16:32 says: "He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city." (RSV) Learn to control your emotions. If you allow someone to "get under your skin," you are giving that person rule over your life. The one that angers you controls you. On the other hand, if you control your anger, you are controlling the situation. Who would you rather be in control: the one that angers you, or yourself? The answer is obvious.

Second, understand the power of your speech. Proverbs 18:21 says: "Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits." (RSV) Notice that you are going to eat the fruit of your speech. It will either be death or life. That is like choosing between a terminal disease or health. Your tomorrow is going to be based on your speech today. You get to decide which you will have. God says to His people: "I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse; therefore choose life, that you and your descendants may live...." (RSV) God has placed before you death and life and it begins with the tongue. Choose wisely.

Third, remove the wrong fear from your life. We can fear many things: failure, other people, and loneliness. Fear can paralyze you and cause you to miss the blessing that could exist. Yesterday, I saw a number of birds searching for food by our home. There was still snow on the ground so I decided to throw some bread out for them to eat. Most of the birds were too afraid to come close enough to the front door to eat. I was trying to help them, but they were too afraid to come forward. Finally, one came close enough to take some bread. Then, others began to inch forward to eat. Sadly, most of the birds were too afraid to get close enough to the house where the bread was. This is our problem sometime; we are too afraid to take a chance. Don't allow fear to rule your life. Instead, trust in God's Word on the subject. I like the quote: "God is who He says He is. I am who God says I am. God can do what He says He can do. I can do what He says I can do. God has what He says He has. I have what God says I have." If that is your confession, you should never be afraid of anything except God because that is the beginning of wisdom.

It is a New Year. Make it a great one.

New Years Eve 2010

2010-12-31T08:11:00.000-08:00

As we approach another "new year," there seems to be another round of what I call, "Help is just around the corner" messages. You know the type: things have been not been going too good, but the New Year is going to be different. Is that because we move from December 31ST to January 1ST? Is there some magic that takes place in the dropping of the big ball? Is God really going to do something great in 2011? One definition of insanity is to continue to do the same thing over and over and expect a different result. If you keep doing what you did in 2010 in 2011, why should you expect a different result? I suggest that God doesn't need a "new year" to start doing something great in your life. If you need a "start up" date, then use today. How should you make a different result in your future?

The Hebrew sages tell us that the soul has three garments: thoughts, words, and actions. If you want a different result than your present circumstances, start with your thought life. Consider your thoughts. Do you find your mind naturally drifting toward the negative? If so, grab the reins and redirect to the positive influence of the Holy Scriptures. God is not a negative God. He has made provision for your success in His Word. You need to meditate on it. Joshua 1:8 tells us to meditate on God's Word. Meditate means to mutter to yourself. Joshua wants us to mutter to ourselves God's Word all day. Don't you think that might make your thought life different? One Hebrew rabbi said: "You are present where your thoughts are, so be careful what you think." A proper thought life will lead to the next garment.

The second garment is your words. Yeshua said that we would be judged by the words of our mouths. He said that what was in our hearts will be spoken from our lips. Your words can help you achieve success. Words alone won't do it, but it is part of the success package. Words do matter. They matter a lot. You can create with your words. No, I'm not talking about creating a tree or some inanimate object. However, your words can create love; they can create hate. You get to choose what type of creative power you will have. Do you want success; talk success. Do you want failure; talk failure. The choice is yours.

Finally, let your actions express your thoughts and words. They need to be consistent. Talk success and live success. Talk failure and live failure. This is not an overnight process. One character trait is to "keep at it." Determine that no matter what occurs, you will not quit. You will see it through until success manifests itself. You will need to understand that everything you need to be a success is inside of you right now. Just like gold is not on the surface of the earth (you have to dig for it), the thing on the inside of you that will put you over may have to be found after doing some digging. Remember that the only thing holding you back is you. Make every action count. Start with your self and then show kindness, love, and respect to all that God brings across your path.

If you follow the above, you can expect success in 2011, not because of the new year but because of your new approach to life. Guard your thoughts, watch your words, and live a life in obedience to God and you will be a success!

Christmas Eve 2010

2010-12-24T12:17:00.000-08:00

As we approach Christmas day 2010, I wonder how many well meaning Christians will totally miss the "reason for the season." The Internet has many historical accounts of the true reason for the season. It is not the Hebrew Yeshua; the holiday is a pagan celebration of the winter solistice. Almost every major religion has some type of holiday this time of the year. All the time we have been fighting to keep "Christ in Christmas," we have been engaging the wrong battle. Yeshua has nothing to do with the season, despite what you have been taught in Sunday School. This season is about greed and money. It is about finding the best gift at the right price to make our loved ones and friends happy. Everybody does the same thing and the retailers hope to benefit from our efforts to some how believe that Jesus is happy with all this mess.

All of this must make G-d sick. The typical Christmas story contains so many errors. The wise men didn't show up in the stable. Actually, neither did Joseph or Mary for that matter. They were in a home with an attached area with privacy. They were not in an inn, but they were not out in a cold stable either. Joseph was from the lineage of David. He would have been well received in Bethlehem and would not have been turned away. Yet, we have created a Christmas story that we seek to fight for that is just plain wrong.

We need the truth, but from the line in a "Few Good Men," can we handle the truth? The truth is that Yeshua is the Jewish Messiah. His mission was to renew the covenant as promised in Jeremiah 31. The law was to be written on the hearts of mankind and not on tablets of stone. Every new covenant required a sacrifice and Yeshua was the ultimate sacrifice for this covenant. Yes, He was born; however, it was not on December 25TH. He is not the reason for this season, but He is the reason that we as Gentiles can be grafted into the Olive Branch of Israel and we can have salvation. Now that is something to rejoice over, but Christmas isn't.

Dealing with Confrontation

2010-10-31T08:16:00.000-07:00

A quote concerning Jacob and his preparation to meet Esau (who had years ago desired to kill him):
"Jacob prepared himself for his confrontation with Esau in three ways: he sent Esau a gift to appease him, he prayed, and he made ready for war."

The above quote provides with good instruction on dealing with those that oppose us. Whether spiritually, in business, or among those who at one time we considered close to us, but now stood in opposition. First, send an act of kindness. Perform some good deed for the one who may oppose you. Treat them the way you would like to be treated. Demonstrate the love of YHWH to them. Second, you should pray. Pray for G-d's blessing on their life and on yours. It is not wrong to pray that you would be blessed. It is not an act of selfishness; it is an act of good sense. Finally, prepare for war. Every one has freedom of choice. We may not always be able to anticipate the choices of others. In all cases, the final act to prepare for war is an act of self preservation. Life is precious, and that includes yours. So prepare for war, and prepare well.

Follow these three suggestions and you will be prepared to deal with all opposition, no matter where it originates.

Daily Word: Meditating on the Hebrew Alphabet (Ayin)

2010-10-21T13:49:00.000-07:00

The sixteenth letter of the Hebrew alphabet is called Ayin. In ancient Hebrew, Ayin meant an eye. The pictograph of an eye symbolizes to see, to understand, to experience, and to be seen. Words with Ayin demonstrate some aspect of the eye or sight. The Hebrew word for to continue or forever is ad. The word picture tells us that you can continue when you see the door. The Hebrew word for pleasant or the garden of Eden is e-den. The word picture for e-den informs us that it was where you could see or to experience the door of life. The word for weep is da-ma. The word picture describes weeping as the blood of the eye. The word for to hear, to understand, and to obey is sha-ma. The word picture tells us that to hear is to see the name.

Psalm 119 verses 121-128 all begin with the letter Ayin. Since the letter Ayin is the eye, these eight verses speak of seeing or understanding. It is to the G-d of lovingkindness (v.124) and precepts (v.128) that we place our trust. Verse 127 says: "Therefore I love Thy commandments above gold, yes, above fine gold." Can you make that declaration? Do you love G-d's commandments more than gold?

Today is a good day for considering what you love above all else. What controls your heart? Is it the commandments of G-d or something else? It doesn't matter what the something else is; if it is not G-d's commandments, you have erred.