Eph 5:27  in order to present it to Himself a splendid assembly, not having spot or wrinkle or any of this sort, but that it might be set-apart and blameless.

taw-meem’  Hebrew

perfect, without blemish, undefiled (means spiritually mature)

Genesis 24 (gives us the marriage of Isaac & Rebekah)  Abraham desired a bride for his son

1.  Abraham (spiritual pic of God the Father)

2.  Eliezer (spiritual pic of Holy Spirit)

3.  Rebekah (spiritual pic of Bride of Christ)

4.  Isaac (spiritual pic off Jesus the Bridegroom)

Spiritual Characteristics of the Bride

1.  They lodged at a house which was prepared for them

(Jn 14:1-3  in my Father’s house there are many mansions, I go to prepare a place or you)

(chupah (wedding canopy) = in Jesus’ day a Hebrew wedding the father of the bridegroom prepared a room)

2.  The wife was taken from among Abraham’s people

3.  Rebekah was a damsel (girl from infancy to adolescense; spiritually mature)

-she begins as a spiritual babe (carnal christian) but grows into a spiritual mature adult (a believer that is fully intimate with               Yahweh)

4.  She was willing to follow (pleasing Yahweh is a consuming desire of the Bride; she loves Yahweh with all her heart, mind, soul, & strength)

5.  She comes out of Babylon (pic of world, spiritual idolatry, spiritual whoredom)

6.  She will be a virgin & holy (2 Cor 11:2 For I am jealous for you with a jealousy according to Elohim. For I gave you in marriage to one husband, to present you as an innocent maiden to Messiah.)

7.  She walks in the ways of Yahweh (Israel knew the acts of Yahweh but Mosheh or Moses knew the ways of Yahweh)

-she doesnt commit spiritual idolatry (one foot in the world and the other in the things of Yahweh)

8.  She endures the trials and tribulations of life

9.  She is the servant of Yahweh

10. She will serve Elohim in truth (we will look at truth in a minute)

11. She will reign (in marriage) with Yahshua during the Messianic Age

12. She will be a nation of Kings of Priests

Many of us have preached that salvation was the ultimate goal of Christianity & once saved, you have met that goal.

Heb 6:1  Therefore, having left the word of the beginning of the Messiah, let us go on to perfection (completeness, consumation, high calling, spiritual maturity), not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of belief toward Elohim,

Rom 12:1-2  I call upon you, therefore, brothers, through the compassion of Elohim, to present your bodies a living offering – set-apart, well-pleasing to Elohim – your reasonable worship.  And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you prove what is that good and well-pleasing and perfect desire of Elohim.  (3 levels of Yahweh’s will)  good, acceptable or well pleasing, & perfect and the Bride passes through each one of these thus walking in the perfect will of Yahweh

How do we walk in the perfect will (high calling) of Yahweh

-the goal of believers is to grow from a babe to a full grown son or daughter in Yahshua

-the goal of every believer is to think like Yahshua, look like him, talk like him, act like him, so @ the end of your life you have a Yahshua life & Yahshua ministry

-fulilling Eph 2:22 in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of Elohim in the Spirit.

IS EVERY BELIEVER EQUAL IN ETERNITY????

2 Tim 4:8  For the rest, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Master, the righteous Judge, shall give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all those loving His appearing.

-crown of salvation that every believer will receive

Matt 20     the 11th hour worker gets same wages as those who worked the full day

-this crown will look exactly the same for every believer

James 1:12  Blessed is the man who does endure trial, for when he has been proved, he shall receive the crown of life which the Master has promised to those who love Him.

Rev 2:10  ”Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. See, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, in order to try you, and you shall have pressure ten days. Be trustworthy until death, and I shall give you the crown of life.

-life (zoe = abundant life, fullness of spirutual maturity, high calling of Yahweh, plateau of life)

Mat 19:16  And see, one came and said to Him, “Good Teacher, what good shall I do to have everlasting life (zoe = to reach the fullness of spiritual maturity)?”

Yahshua responded

Math 19:21

יהושע  said to him, “If you wish to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven. And come, follow Me.”

-Yahshua didnt respond by saying if you will be saved….  but if you will be perfect (complete or spiritually mature)

-we can see from this story that those who obtain eternal life (zoe) arent only saved and in heaven but will also be those with the highest rewards in heaven (b/c the disciples were told they would be sitting on 12 thrones judging the 12 tribes of Israel)

-so no not everyone is equal in eternity

Mat 5:17-19  ”Do not think that I came to destroy (add to or subtract from) the Torah (teaching or instructions) or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy (add to or subtract rom) but to complete (give full meaning to or fill up completely with meaning). “For truly, I say to you, till the heaven and the earth pass away, one jot or one tittle shall by no means pass from the Torah till all be done. “Whoever, then, breaks one of the least of these commands, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the reign of the heavens; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the reign of the heavens.

-again we see that there will be those great and those who are least in the reign of heaven

Let’s examine Torah

Isa 26:2  ”Open the gates, let the righteous nation which guards the truth enter in.

-the righteous nation w/h keeps truth (Torah) will enter into the gates of heaven to be married to Yahshua

Psa 119:142  Your righteousness is righteousness forever, And Your Torah is truth.

Rom 7:7  What, then, shall we say? Is the Torah sin? Let it not be! However, I did not know sin except through the Torah.

-Torah is not a book of do’s and donts

-it teaches us what is sin and leads & guides us along with the Holy Spirit into all righteousness

-Torah was never intended for salvation but for instruction after salvation; teaching us how to love Yahweh & live obedient to Him, pleasing Him in everything

Why do Believers need to keep TORAH AFTER salvation?

There are several reasons:

1.  In Psalm 119:1, the undefiled, (“Taw-meem” = Spiritually mature) walk in the Torah of God. Being undefiled is a priestly term that is associated with being “sanctified and clean” before God. The Bride of Christ is a priest before God (I Peter 2:5,9).

2.  Since the TORAH is truth (Psalm 119:142, Malachi 2:1, 6-7), Yahshua       Prayed that we would be “sanctified through truth” (John 17:17).

3.  The Bride of Christ is “sanctified and cleansed” by the washing of water by the word (TORAH) and is spiritually mature and “without blemish” (Ephesians 5:26-27)

Torah was given by God to not only “make clean or sanctify” Yahweh’s people,

(Psalm 119:9-11,17-19, John 15:3, John 17:7) but Yahweh’s Torah is “truth” (Psalm 119:142, Malachi 2:1, 6-7) and by walking in His Torah, His people become “undefiled” (Psalm 119:1) which is the Hebrew word, “Taw-meem” = without blemish”). Through this, we can understand what is being spoken in Ephesians 5:26-27 when it tells us that the Bride of Christ will be “sanctified and without blemish.”

What happens when we dont keep the teachings/instructions of YHVH (Torah)

-we are doing the same as the rich young ruler

-we are choosing to remain a babe in Yahshua, never growing to spiritual maturity, never doing the perfect will of Yahweh; thus disqualifying ourselves in becoming the bride

The temple is a prophetic type and shadow of 3 types of believers

-the outer court, holy place, holy of holies

OUTER COURT BELIEVERS

1.  largest area of the temple (majority of people in eternity will be outer court believers)

2.  had the brazen altar (represents the cross, when we receive Yahshua & die to our old        nature)

3.  had the brazen laver (represents the cleansing of sin by the washing of the Word)

-outer court believers are saved but live their lives according to the natural ways of the world

-they know the acts of Yahweh but dont know the ways of Yahweh

HOLY PLACE BELIEVERS

1.  had the menorah or lampstand (represents the Holy Spirit)

2.  had the table of shewbread (represents the daily bread of Yahweh’s Word)

3.  had the altar of incense (represents the prayers of the believers)

-holy place believers have a deeper understanding of the Word, have a prayer life, & are led by the Spirit and walk in some of Torah

HOLY OF HOLIES

1.  had the ark of the covenant (represents the presence of Yahweh)

2.  had the mercy seat (represents the glory of Yahweh)

-holy of holy believers are saved, have a deeper understranding of the Word, have a prayer life, are led by the Holy Spirit, & keep   Torah

-holy of holies believers are the Bride of Yahshua

THE SPIRITUAL APPLICATION TO THE 3 AREAS IN THE TABERNACLE

1 Jn 2:12-14   I write to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven on account of His Name.  I write to you, fathers, because you have known Him from the beginning.  I wrote to you, young men, because you are strong, and the Word of Elohim stays in you, and you have overcome the wicked one.

little children (sins forgiven), young men (know the Word), & fathers (know Him)

Joh 14:6  יהושע  said to him, “I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. (outer court = way;    holy place = truth;     holy of holies = life )

Way, Truth, & Life

Acts 3:19-21  ”Repent therefore and turn back, for the blotting out of your sins, in order that times of refreshing might come from the presence of the Master,   and that He sends יהושע  Messiah, pre-appointed for you, whom heaven needs to receive until the times of restoration of all matters, of which Elohim spoke through the mouth of all His set-apart prophets since of old.

-before Yahweh returns for the believers; He is coming to the believers revealing Himsel in the believers; so He can flow through the believers

1st Yahweh brought the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt (revealing Himself to them)

2nd Yahweh gave them Torah (revealing Himsel in them)

3rd Yahweh helped the children of Israel conquer their enemies in the Promised Land (revealing Himself through them)

To You, In You, & Through You

Mar 4:13-20  (parable of the sower)

-there are 3 levels of fruit that are brought forth in this parable  (30, 60, 100)

Rom 12:1-2 (read this earlier; good, acceptable, & perect will of Yahweh)

passover (coming to you) = outer court; by accepting Yahshua into our lives he is our passover lamb

pentecost (revealing in you) = holy place; the Torah & Holy Spirit was given on this feast

tabernacles (revealing through you) = holy of holies; conquering the Promise Land & Holy of Holies believers walk in the promised land of Yahweh

PASSOVER, PENTECOST, TABERNACLES

1st column is Outer Court, 2nd is Inner Court, 3rd Holy of Holies

Little Children                   Young Men                                Fathers

Way                                     Truth                                            Life

Passover                          Pentecost                                Tabernacles

30 fold                                60 fold                                      100 fold

To You                                In You                                   Through You

Sins forgiven                     Know Word                                Know Him

Good Will                       Acceptable Will                         Perfect Will

Ok back to the parable. Let’s focus on the fourth soil. It was good soil that produced 100, 60, & 30 fold. Naturally we would say 30, 60, & 100 fold but why does it say it in reverse order? I believe there is a specific reason that Matthew gives it to us in reverse order. Shaul (Paul) tells us we’re heirs to Abraham’s seed according to the promise (Gal 3:29).

Let me be very clear here that the physical seed wasn’t what Yahweh was speaking of. He was speaking of those of ‘faith’ who will bless all the families of the earth. Abraham’s seed is an Hebrew idiom referring to those who come forth or the fruit of Abraham. Remember Gen 1:11 tells us the seed is in the fruit, so if we don’t produce the fruit, the seed is only in the fruit. This is why it’s important that it produces fruit because the seed is only in the fruit. So Abraham’s seed is in his fruit. We go and see when Abraham’s seed was produced and there you have it, Isaac. And Abraham was a hundred years old, when his son Yitzak (Isaac) was born unto him (Gen 21:5).

Abraham was 100 years old when Isaac was reproduced. Next, we see Yitzak producing a son named Yacov (Jacob) when he was 60. His name was called Jacob: and Isaac was threescore (60) years old when she bore them (Gen 25:26b).

Lastly, Yacov had twelve sons but what is interesting is we don’t see them producing fruit. The one son we do see that produces fruit is Yosef (Joseph). We remember that Yosef was later placed with the house of Yisrael and we also see that Yosef was the one that produced the fruit when he was in the land. Yosef, whose name means to multiply, he was Yacov’s fruit. Remember Yosef was thrown into a pit, sold into slavery and placed in jail. He didn’t produce fruit during this time. It was when he interpreted the King’s dream and had the Egyptians save up in the land for he famine that fruit came forth. Now Scripture doesn’t just give us the ages of folks to just fill up space on the pages of the Bible.

There is a specific purpose for this. So when Yosef goes into the land and begins to produce the same faith (fruit) that his fathers had it says and Yosef was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh… (Gen 41:46). So there you have it 100, 60, & 30. So if we are Abraham’s seed, are we producing the fruit he produced? Yahweh’s fruit is the fruit of Abraham, Yitzak, and Yacov. Abraham believed, Yitzak was called and Yosef produced the fruit. Now we see why the parable says the true seeds (the one’s producing Yah’s Word) produce 100, 60, & 30. He’s never called the God of Jacob, Isaac, and Abraham. No He is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob because this was the order when they produced their fruit. So what does this mean for us today? It means the true believers in the end times will be restored back to the faith of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and produce the fruit i.e. faith they produced.

Meaning you will be able to distinguish the tares amongst the wheat because the only way to distinguish which is wheat and which is a tare is by the fruit. Wheat produces fruit and bows itself over i.e. humility and the tare sticks straight up i.e. pride, arrogance, stiff necked. The tares don’t obey fully God’s Word and try to take away from the wheat and keep the wheat from producing or fully obeying God’s Word. You want to be wheat that produces fruit because remember it’s the tares who are taken out of here first and thrown into the fire and burnt up (Matt 13:30).

Torah : Numbers 19:1-22:1/Numbers 22:2-25:9

Haftarah : Judges 11:1-33/Michah 5:6-6:8

Brit Hadasha : I John 5:1-21/ I John 4:16

Thought for the Week:

“And you shall remember that יהוה  your Elohim led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you, prove you (i.e. to test you), to know what is in your heart, whether you guard His commands or not. “And He humbled you, and let you suffer hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, to make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but by every Word that comes from the mouth of יהוה. Deut 8:2-3

Commentary:

It has been a long long time since I wrote a commentary due to being gone so much from home, but I really wanted to write this week about this portion since it deals with mixing and how this is one of the main issues we as believers will face in the tribulation not only from our ‘new covenant brethren’ who don’t know about all this “Jewish” stuff as they call it (i.e. Torah, Feasts, Sabbath, & Dietary Instructions) but also from so called Torah observant believers in Messiah Yahshua.  One thing that is interesting about the ‘thought of the week scripture’ is that the Eternal tested Am Yisrael (the children of Israel) in the wilderness not the enemy but the Eternal Father.  Why in the world did He do this?  Well verse 2 gives us the answer when it tells us to see if Israel would keep the commandments or not keep them.  We all know the outcome and if they kept them or not.  We are still swimming around in the great Ocean of the wilderness today and it still is a heated debate with our new covenant bretheren whether or not to keep the commandments of Yahweh.

So what is this portion all about.  One word MIXING.  Some would say that this doctrine only applies to eating of foods sacraficed to idols and sexual sin but these are just manifestations and not the root of Balaam’s doctrine.  We all know that the Brit Chadasha (Newer Test.) doesn’t speak very highly of Balaam, matter of fact it always condems him or his actions or better stated his doctrine.1 We will see just exactly what is the doctrine of Balaam later but for now we can state that this doctrine has been thought out and planned by the enemy originating in his heart since the beginning (the Garden).  The problem with this doctrine is that it causes Israel (all believers in Messiah) to stumble.  Balaam and his doctrine is so alive and well today amongst us and Scripture teaches that this end time generation is full of it (see Rev 2).  It will affect you and I as end time believers becasue we find a pattern in the Tanak (Older Test.) and that pattern is that every time Am Yisrael gets ready to turn back to Yahweh or go into the Land, good ole doctrine of Balaam is right there to thwart them in their quest.  So for us being this end time generation who will go back to the Land, we need to look back to the Tanak and find out how Am Yisrael stumbled so that we will not commit the same errors. We should be learning from our forefathers mistakes.2 Remember Biblical history is prophecy and what happened to the forefathers will happen to the descendants.  This is a principal and you can take it to the bank.  The Tanak (Older Test.) has MORE to say about our future than does the Brit Chadasha (Newer Test) so now do you see why the enemy is so hard pressed to keep us away from studying the beginning?

So lets get into what is the doctrine of Balaam.  You would think that we need to start with the story of Balaam to find this, right?  Well we actually can find this all over the Tanak in places like the Garden of Eden and Hamor’s temptation of Jacob.3 We see Satan there right in the middle giving advice and this advice was against what the Word said.  Mixing his agenda into Yahweh’s agenda.  Satan was using Hamor to present the doctrine of assimilation to Jacob.  In others words Hamor said stay here live with us eat, marry and be happy don’t fully go all the way with Yahweh.  What we have is sufficient and where you are at is good enough.  We know that this clearly goes against the covenant that Yahweh made with Abraham several chapters earlier in Genesis 12 to start a special nation to bring forth and demonstrate the glory and speldour of Yahweh to all the gentiles (heathens & heathen nations outside the covenant of the God of Abraham, Isaac & Jacob).

While Israel remained at Shittim, the people began to play the harlot with the daughters of Moab. For they invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. So Israel joined themselves to Baal of Peor, and the LORD was angry against Israel. And the LORD said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of the people and execute them in broad daylight before the LORD, so that the fierce anger of the LORD may turn away from Israel.” So Moses said to the judges of Israel, “Each of you slay his men who have joined themselves to Baal of Peor.” Then behold, one of the sons of Israel came and brought to his relatives a Midianite woman, in the sight of Moses and in the sight of all the congregation of the sons of Israel, while they were weeping at the doorway of the tent of meeting. When Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he arose from the midst of the congregation, and took a spear in his hand; and he went after the man of Israel into the tent, and pierced both of them through, the man of Israel and the woman, through the body. So the plague on the sons of Israel was checked. And those who died by the plague were 24,000. Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned away My wrath from the sons of Israel, in that he was jealous with My jealousy among them, so that I did not destroy the sons of Israel in My jealousy. “Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give him My covenant of peace; and it shall be for him and his descendants after him, a covenant of a perpetual priesthood, because he was jealous for his God, and made atonement for the sons of Israel.’” Now the name of the slain man of Israel who was slain with the Midianite woman, was Zimri the son of Salu, a leader of a father’s household among the Simeonites. And the name of the Midianite woman who was slain was Cozbi the daughter of Zur, who was head of the people of a father’s household in Midian. Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Be hostile to the Midianites and strike them;  Num 25:1-17

So lets take a look at the five things above that occured at Baal Peor:

1.  Worship of other gods (idolatry)

2.  Joined themselves to Baal Peor (idolatry)

3.  Ate with them (forming a covenant with them)

4.   Harlotry  (idolatry)

5.   Sexual immorality  (idolatry)

One aspect of the doctrine of Balaam is ha Satan’s doctirne to defeat Yahweh’s people before they receive thier inheritance or make it into the land.  It places a stumbling block of greed and wealth in front of us causing us to sell out short of fully doing what the Eternal wants us to do or has commanded us to do.  We see this in the story of Hamor and Jacob.  I know I kind of jumped the track from Numbers but wanted to throw those Scriptures out there so we could see how Balaam’s doctrine plays out.  We are laying a foundation right now with this doctrine and how the enemy tries to weave it into our lives.  Lets look at Ezra 9.

Now when these things had been completed, the princes approached me, saying, “The people of Israel and the priests and the Levites have not separated themselves from the peoples of the lands, according to their abominations, those of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites. “For they have taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and for their sons, so that the holy race has intermingled with the peoples of the lands; indeed, the hands of the princes and the rulers have been foremost in this unfaithfulness.” And when I heard about this matter, I tore my garment and my robe, and pulled some of the hair from my head and my beard, and sat down appalled. Then everyone who trembled at the words of the God of Israel on account of the unfaithfulness of the exiles gathered to me, and I sat appalled until the evening offering. But at the evening offering I arose from my humiliation, even with my garment and my robe torn, and I fell on my knees and stretched out my hands to the LORD my God; and I said, “O my God, I am ashamed and embarrassed to lift up my face to Thee, my God, for our iniquities have risen above our heads, and our guilt has grown even to the heavens. “Since the days of our fathers to this day we have been in great guilt, and on account of our iniquities we, our kings and our priests have been given into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, and to plunder and to open shame, as it is this day. “But now for a brief moment grace has been shown from the LORD our God, to leave us an escaped remnant and to give us a peg in His holy place, that our God may enlighten our eyes and grant us a little reviving in our bondage. “For we are slaves; yet in our bondage, our God has not forsaken us, but has extended lovingkindness to us in the sight of the kings of Persia, to give us reviving to raise up the house of our God, to restore its ruins, and to give us a wall in Judah and Jerusalem. “And now, our God, what shall we say after this? For we have forsaken Thy commandments, which Thou hast commanded by Thy servants the prophets, saying, ‘The land which you are entering to possess is an unclean land with the uncleanness of the peoples of the lands, with their abominations which have filled it from end to end and with their impurity. ‘So now do not give your daughters to their sons nor take their daughters to your sons, and never seek their peace or their prosperity, that you may be strong and eat the good things of the land and leave it as an inheritance to your sons forever.’ “And after all that has come upon us for our evil deeds and our great guilt, since Thou our God hast requited us less than our iniquities deserve, and hast given us an escaped remnant as this, shall we again break Thy commandments and intermarry with the peoples who commit these abominations? Wouldst Thou not be angry with us to the point of destruction, until there is no remnant nor any who escape? Ezra 9:1-14

Here we see the root of Balaam’s doctrine.  It is about intermarriage here but verse 14 lays it out for us as to where the hidden root is found.  The doctrine of Balaam is purposed by the enemy for us to break (not keep or say they have been done away with and no longer apply to us) the commandments so that Yahweh will be in disfavor with us because we are disobeying His Word thus keeping us from completing our destiny.  So there you have it folks the root of the doctrine of Balaam is mixing the false with the truth to keep believers from obeying the Eternal fully or completly.  As a friend of mine teaches, Its a Satanic message promoted by the culture around us given to lure the saints using greed, lusts & so forth, into assimilation with the pagan culture around them to such an extent that it causes us break Yahweh’s commandments whether we know it or not.  Thats what it is all about.

Lets bring this into todays culture.

‘But I have a few things against you, because you have there some who hold the teaching of Balaam, who kept teaching Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit acts of immorality. ‘Thus you also have some who in the same way hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans. Rev 2:14-15

Shaul (Paul) talks about this issue and lets us know that these idols that are being sacraficed to are basically nothing because there is only One True God.

Now concerning things sacrificed to idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge makes arrogant, but love edifies. If anyone supposes that he knows anything, he has not yet known as he ought to know; but if anyone loves God, he is known by Him. Therefore concerning the eating of things sacrificed to idols, we know that there is no such thing as an idol in the world, and that there is no God but one. 1 Cor 8:1-4

Lets see what Shaul goes on to say about this same subject though.

But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils.  1 Cor 10:20

Shaul is saying here that we know they aren’t sacraficing to the True God but what is actually happening here when they offer sacrafices to these idols, they are sacraficing to devils of false religions.  Did Shaul just make a new doctrine here as many teach?  No, he got it straight from the Torah as he did with the rest of his teachings.4 Its because we have never studied the Tanak (Older Test.) to find out where the Brit Chadasha (Newer Test) writers were referencing and writing from.  The Brit Chadasha is written from a perspective that doesn’t formulate beliefs it assumes beliefs.  What do I mean by that?  I mean that the writers of the Newer Test. assume that you, the reader, have read and understand what is written in the Older Test. Scriptures so they don’t go into details on explaining the Torah all over again.  We err when we believe and teach faslely that ‘new’ beliefs are taught or ‘formulated’ in the Newer Test.  Scripture teaches us that there is nothing ‘new’ under the sun,5 it has been there since the beginning of time.  As a friend of mine says, “There is nothing ‘New’ in the ‘New Test.’, its only True.

Back to Lev 17:1-4.  What Scripture teaches us here is if you went and sacraficed an animal and offered it to the Eternal and you didn’t bring it to where He said to offer it, He counted that animals blood against you.  You are probably thinking right now, Joel, why in the world did you jump track here.  Well, I didn’t what Yahweh is trying to teach us is that we have to do it His way not our way.  This is the main problem with ‘religion’ today and yes ‘Christianity’ falls in under that catageory.  The problem is that we have thousands of different denominations all saying they have the corner market on ‘truth’ and claiming to have perfect doctrine but many are doing things ‘THEIR’ own way and not how Yahweh perscribed it.  Thus this is why there are thousands of different denominations and yes the Non Denomination, ‘denomination’ falls in under a denomination also.  I can say that because I was a part of a non denominational fellowship one time and we ‘prided’ ourselves on the fact that we were non denominational and not a part of any other denomination.  How we forget to look at ourselves in the mirror.  The point here that I want to make and have made in past commentaries is the old adage of well God knows my heart (many times used to not deal with Scriptures or justify disobedience) doesnt work and make it right.  We are 100% correct God does know our hearts as Jeremiah 17:9 tells us The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? Also, take time to read Rev. 2 to see what Scripture says.  He knows their works and it never mentions I know your hearts.  We have allowed our pagan culture to define what the Word of Yahweh means.  We better get back to His ways or else suffer the consequences.  Folks, the issue that I am trying to point out here is PROPER worship.  Do we just worship Him the way we want to and feel like.  I submit to you that many are doing this today and saying they worship in spirit and truth but we clearly know that the true spirit of Yahweh does not tell us to do  something that contradicts His Word.  So the point I am making here is that we can’t say that we worship the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob using methods that He doesn’t approve of.  It just doesn’t work.  Well it may work for a seared conscience but for those who want to do it Yahweh’s way MUST do it according to the Book and not traditions or mans false doctrines.

What do we find then in the story of Baal Peor?  We find Am Yisrael forsaking the true worship of Yahweh and following the commandments of the demons who inspired the false worship.  Point blank no room for justifying or debating here.  FALSE WORSHIP not by my standards but by Yahweh’s standards!!!

So again the root of the doctrine of Balaam is mixing the false with the truth to keep believers from obeying the Eternal fully or completly.  Its a Satanic message promoted by the culture around us given to lure the saints using greed, lusts & so forth, into assimilation with the pagan culture around them to such an extent that it causes us break Yahweh’s commandments whether we know it or not.

I just want to mention something here that I have written on extensively in the past.  If our current holidays i.e. Christmas or Christ’s mass and Easter cant be found in the Word then we shouldn’t be doing those.  I will leave you with two Scriptures that we all need to meditate on.  Daniel 7:25 speaks of the anti Messiah changing the appointed times of Yahweh in the end of days and Jeremiah 16:19 about the lies the gentiles have inherited that profit nothing.

May we stop following the doctrines that have been formed in the imagination of man and begin to follow the doctrines that are written in the Scriptures so that we can worship the Father, the way He said He wants to be worshipped and not they way men say.  Blessings and Shalom.

I welcome your comments and thoughts about this commentary.    Email    admin@crucifiedlifemin.com

Endnotes

1  II Peter 2:15, Jude 1:11, Rev 2:14-15

2  I Cor 10:1-12

3  Genesis 34

4  Leviticus 17:1-9

5  Ecclesiastes 1:9

Bond servants (apostles) teaching: The book of Acts is the best place to see community in action. We see that the 12 bond servants formed a natural link in the chain to pass the teaching of Yahshua onto a new generation of believers. So devoting themselves to the bond servants teaching means they devoted themselves to the Messiah’s teaching. Do we need this today! One reason there are thousands of denominations in the U.S. all teaching different things with most confessing to have the corner market on “truth”, is because man has gone ’his way’ instead of going His way. We must repent or “return” to where we began going astray and start again to obey the bond servants doctrine (Yahshua’s teaching).

Acts 6:2-4 So the twelve summoned the group of the taught ones and said, “It is not pleasing for us to leave the Word of Elohim and serve tables. “Therefore, brothers, seek out from among you seven men who are known to be filled with the Set-apart Spirit and wisdom, whom we shall appoint for this duty, but we shall give ourselves continually to prayer and to serving the Word.” This is good advice for ministers today. We have been so consumed with visiting folks running here and there doing this and that in where we have neglected the study of the Word thus producing wrongly dividing the Word this thousands of denominations. Folks nowadays in fellowships want preachers who are good but not Godley. Folks don’t want someone who will open up the Scriptures and start to peel the fleshly things away and out of our lives. Folks want someone who will go visit and do all sorts of good deeds. Folks we need Godley men and not just good men. Father give us Godley men who aren’t afraid to take a stand for Your Word. I am not against visiting and doing ‘good’ deeds but many ministers are run down and come in and just throw something together in order to be able to preach. This wasn’t and still isn’t the plan of the Father. We as believers should study to learn so that we learn to do. The study of the Word should be the very center of who we are not only as individuals but as a community of believers. Are we devoting ourselves to the bond servants doctrine or our denominations doctrine? If the bond servants doctrine was good enough for the believers in the early church then I would think that it would also be good enough for us as believers today.

Fellowship: This a word in our Western Society that could mean something different to each person you asked. My opinion of fellowship is more than just getting together once every three months or so in the mess hall and having a lets pig out meal. When speaking of fellowship in the essence of community, I see it as an interdependency of people. It truly is about family. It’s a close knit society. You know you have ‘true’ fellowship in a community when you can fellowship with others that you don’t get along with. If it’s just that we like the people around us, we really don’t know that we have fellowship because they could just be our friends. Fellowship isn’t just hanging out together. It’s iron sharpening iron. It’s opening ourselves up to one another and not hiding the bad and ugly within ourselves. It’s allowing others to speak into our lives and using the Scriptures to bring correction to us. I know that word correction is an ugly word in modern day ‘churchyanity’, but we don’t have fellowship without being able to speak into each others lives whether it be giving council, correction, or exhortation. Scripture gives us a clear idea of fellowship in all of the ‘one another’ verses. I encourage you to not just read through the ‘ one another’ verses but pray your way through them. Take the ‘one another’ test to see how well you score. In order to have community we must devote ourselves to the bond servants doctrine & fellowship.
Continued Next Month…

Torah : Exodus 30:11-34:35

Haftarah : 1 Kings 18:1-39

Torah : Exodus 27:20-30:10

Haftarah : Ezekiel 43:10-27

Brit Hadasha : Ephesians 6:11-18

Thought for the Week:

“I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me, and I in him, he bears much fruit; for apart from Me you can do nothing.  John 15:5

Commentary:

This portion begins with an interesting verse.  YHVH commands the children of Israel to bring ‘beaten olive oil’.  Interesting ‘beaten olive oil’.  Why in the world are we being told about beaten olive oil?  Well, before I answer that one lets back up for a moment or better put lets tie this in with the Brit Hadasha.  The olive oil represents the Messiah, the anoinnted One, and He represents Israel as a whole.  We are told that the olive oil has to be beaten or pressed could be subsituted here also.  It is very interesting that we find Messiah in the garden of Gethsemane being pressed under the weight of the sin of the world for what He was going to have to do and eventually physically beaten for the redemption of Israel.1  Also, we know that oil went into the lampstand or menorah.  That is what fueled the light and also we know that Messiah is the light of the world2 and has passed that light onto you and I, Israel.3  Lets take a detour for a second since we are talking about passing that light on to you and I.  

We are all familiar with John the Immerser’s famous statement about him having to decrease and Messiah must increase.4  Many have preached this verse in stating that we must do like John the Immerser and decrease.  I fully agree that we are to walk in humility and lift up Messiah, but I would like to present to you a different angle on the meaning of this verse.  John the Immerser said that I must decrease and He must increase.  What John the Immerser was saying here was it is time for me to pass the baton or torch on to the Messiah.  Hold on though, it doesn’t stop there because Messiah said he was the light of the world and then turns around and tells His followers YOU are the light of the world.  So just as John the Immerser passed the torch on to Messiah now Messiah has passed that torch on to you and I.  Now is not the time for us to decrease, NO WAY, now is the time that you and I increase and allow that light that was passed to you and I to shine brighter than ever before.  We know that light disperses darkness and there is plenty of darkness covering the face of the earth today so we as children of the Light should be dispelling that darkness.

Ok, back to the olive oil.  I digress.  Olive oil comes from olive trees, of course, but something interesting about olive trees is that they almost never die, the leaves are always green, and they never cease from giving their fruit.  Yes, you got it that is why Scripture refers to Israel as an olive tree5.  Also, remember in the story of Noah, where the dove goes out and comes back to the ark with the olive leaf in its mouth.  This also gives witness that no matter how extreme the judgment of YHVH, the true Israel will survive.6  Another fact about olive trees is that when the older branches stop producing, they are cutt off so that new branches can come forth that will give fruit.  Seems like Messiah mentioned something or other about what happens to trees and vines that don’t produce fruit.  Lastly, to bring something prophetic out from olive trees.  It has been documented that some olive trees take up to ten years to begin to bear fruit but the most fruitful time begins when FORTY years have passed.  Remember Israel captured Jerusalem in 1967 so you add forty years to that and yep you got.  We are seeing this unfold right before our eyes; Israel is beginning to produce the most fruit it has ever produced and according to the Scripture what does this fruit look like?  Well you have to go to Genesis to see what that seed of Messiah brought forth in Abraham.7  Thats right the seed was YHVH promising him to multiply his descendants like the stars.  

So how is our light shining today in this dark world.  Do we have that light under a bushel?8  Are we producing the same fruit as Abraham produced and if not then which seed is inside of us?  Or stated in another way, is our field sown with wheat or with tares?  Tares don’t produce fruit but wheat does.  Go back and read the parable of wheat and tares very slowly and carefully and use the fruit of Abraham as a guideline to see if your field is producing the same fruit as Abraham produced and if not then what needs to happen for your field to produce wheat instead of tares?    

I welcome your comments and thoughts about this commentary.    

Endnotes

1.  Luke 22:39-44 & Isaiah 53:5.

2.  John 8:12.

3.  Matthew 5:14

4.  John 3:30

5.  Jeremiah 11:16

6.  Genesis 8:11

7.  Genesis 26:4-5

8.  Matthew 5:15

Gaby, Joel’s wife, has developed a new program that will be used to meet poor people’s needs and witness to them at the same time.  There are kindergarden children at their daughter’s school whose families need help.  They aren’t able to buy books or other materials for their studies.

What Gaby has come up with is 10 dollars a month for each child.  This would cover all of their materials monthly and cover field trips and extra expenses.  There are 30 kids in the class but 15 have needs and 7 of these 15 are super poor and need any help they can get.  Consider this in your prayer time and if you are interested, please feel free to comment on this or use the contact us link on our site to email us.  Thanks and blessings.   

If we read Genesis 37 we see the story of Jacob, Joseph, and his brothers.  We see a father grieved by the division and separation of his family.  Jacob, which is a type of the Eternal Father, is grieved over the death of his child just as YHVH is grieved over the death and absence of his child the House of Israel.  Jacob would love nothing more than to see his whole family together again especially his son Joseph who was ’dead’ but now is alive.  YHVH longs to see His children the House of Israel who was dead in transgression come alive again.  This is what Messiah was making a reference to in His parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32).  Take time to please read the passages that I post here because I don’t have enough space to place all of them in the teaching.  So what can we see prophetically from what Messiah was teaching to His disciples.  We see clearly a beautiful picture of the two Houses of Israel and Judah.  Ok take off your Greco/Roman mindset and put on your Hebraic mindset, which I think we are told to have the mind of Messiah and not the mind of a Greco/Roman philosopher.  More on that later on.  

So Hebraically speaking the younger son represents the House of Israel.  He leaves the Promised Land to go be a part of a defiled land.  The older son represents the House of Judah who stays in the Promised Land obeying what the Father (Torah) teaches.  The younger son finally repents and returns to the Covenant obeying Torah.  The older son we see begins to become jealous over the rejoicing of the ’return’ of the younger son.  Gen 37:32 tells us just how Jacob felt when he was reunited with Joseph.  Not only how Jacob felt but how Yahweh feels when His children who have been in foreign lands repent and return to the Covenant and obey.  So can you see now just how prophetic the information in the first part of the Bible is.  

The enemy has lied to folks telling them that the first five books have been done away with and no longer pertain to us.  Why though?  The answer is the first five books of the Bible have more to say about our future than any of the Brit Chadasha books and according to Isa 46:10 we can learn about the end by studying the beginning.  Read Genesis 42 now and have your Hebraic mindset on while you are reading it and see if you see the prophetic meaning in this story.  Yep, you got it!  It is a picture of the reunification of the two Houses in the end times.  Joseph’s brothers come down to Egypt to buy grain in the land and they come face to face with Joseph & don’t recognize him.  Right now many people in the House of Israel (Christianity) are recognizing their brother Judah but Judah isn’t recognizing them.  One reason why is because Joseph had assimilated into Egypt just like many of the Israelites have done today (assimilated into other cultures).  Our brothers Judah don’t recognize us because we too have assimilated into the culture of a foreign land and look too much like the culture where we are at but there is a restoration taking place and folks are returning to their Hebraic roots just as Joseph returned to his Hebraic roots.  Remember the roots sustain a tree!   Continued next month…

Thought for the Week:

And what agreement hath the temple of YHVH with idols? for ye are the temple of the living YHVH; as YHVH hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their YHVH, and they shall be my people.   2 Corinthians 6:16 

Commentary:

Again I have been out of town but have returned and would like to share with you what is on my heart for this week’s portion.  In this week’s portion we are beginning to see the pattern being lain out for the House of YHVH.  So without delay lets jump right in to the portion.  We see that the Eternal Father isn’t interested so much in building a tabernacle where He can dwell but getting it built so He can dwell among His people.  Yahweh wasn’t homeless.  He was clearly putting in place a way for Him to be able to be relational with His people.  Nothing has changed to this day, just as it was ALL about relationship with Yahweh beginning in the garden even until today, it’s ALL about our relationship.  Nothing has changed and never will.1  Many have misinterpreted the Torah as being a way of salvation for the Older Test. saints but that is so false.  It never was meant for salvation.  Salvation only comes through our faith in Yahweh/Yahshua thus leading to our relationship with Him.2  Shaul lets us know in the book of Hebrews that the gospel was preached to those in the wilderness.3  So why are we running around and making the God of the Older Test. someone different than the God in the Newer Test?  He is the same, nothing has changed and it is still about relationship.

Ok, I digress.  The Father was wanting to dwell in His people.  This was His main purpose of having Israel build the tabernacle.4  Now with that said what would have happened if Israel would have delayed in building the tabernacle?  Would Yahweh have changed His mind and come up with another plan?  I don’t think so.  Yahweh is super patient. He let the children wander around for 40 years until they got on the same page with Him not the other way around.  So lets bring this to present day.  Just as the Father had put in the hands of Israel to build Him a Set Apart Place, He has put in our hands to prepare Him a dwelling place.  With that said, I believe the million dollar question is are we waiting for Yahweh or is He waiting for us to create a Set Apart Place?  The Father isn’t looking for just any old place to dwell.5  No, He is looking for a Set Apart Place.  Shaul in the reference above is pointing us right back to the Torah teaching us that nothing has changed.  He is teaching us that the Father still wants to dwell IN us just as He dwelled IN the children of Israel.  The heart of the Father has and will always be to not just dwell in a tabernacle but to dwell in His people.  So what does He do.  Well the pattern is in Exodus 29:46.  The Eternal Father has to get Israel out of Egypt (setting them apart or removing them from the profane or common).  My belief is that there was no Set Apart or holy place in Egypt so Yahweh had to remove them from that profane place and bring them into a Set Apart Place in order to dwell in them.  Does this sound like an aspect of the gospel to you?  It certainly does to me and oh my it is right there revealed to us in the beginning.  As a friend of mine says, “There is nothing ‘new’ in the ‘New Test.’, it is only true!”  

Back to the portion.  If we would like for the Eternal to dwell in us then wouldn’t it make sense that WE must prepare or create a Set Apart Place?  He couldn’t and didn’t want to dwell in Israel in Egypt but wanted to dwell in them in the Promised Land!!!  So He gives us free will and it is our choice to prepare a place for Him to dwell in.  Yahweh took six days getting everything ready in creating a beautiful place for us to dwell in and all He is asking of us today is to create within us a beautiful place that is Set Apart in order for Him to dwell in.  Think about this.  The creator of the Universe is asking us to created a little space in our lives so that He might dwell within us.  Our Father is so awesome.  

I worked several summers in high school in construction and there are different terms for lumber.  For example, number one lumber is very good lumber with little or no imperfections in it, number two is a little lesser quality, and number three being full of imperfections and basically used as just ole utility lumber (making concrete forms and so forth).  So I guess one of the questions that we should be asking ourselves today should be along these lines.  In our lives what type of lumber are we using to build that Set Apart place?  Are we just using just any old lumber lying around or maybe lumber that has been out in the rain and sun and gotten warped?  Are we using this lumber because it is convenient and easier to use because it costs less or because it is eaisly available and we don’t have to go spending time, energy, and money looking for the better material?  If this is the case, can or would the Father, who has given us everything, want to dwell in something that we just half way threw together just to get the job done?  I don’t think so.  He is looking for a Set Apart place where we have gone the extra mile in cleansing, preparing, and building with the best materials out there for Him.  He is looking for those who aren’t focused on how much it costs or how hard it might be in constructing this Set Apart place.  He is looking for that place that has been prepared cautiously and that place that has been prepared according to the pattern or instructions that He gave.  So I finish with this what does your and my Set Apart place look like?  Is it a Set Apart place where Yahweh can dwell?  If not, why?                                          

I welcome your comments and thoughts about this commentary.    
     
Endnotes

1.  Ecclesiastes 1:9-10, Hebrews 13:8.
2.  Hebrews 11.
3.  Hebrews 4:1-7.
4.  Exodus 25:8.
5.  2 Corinthians 6:16.