Parasha Vayakhel Pekudei 5784 (2024) reading:
Shemote (Exodus) 35:1-40:38
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 22-23
Yochanan (John) 14, Ma’asei (Acts) 15, Yochanan Aleph (1 John) 2, 5
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The following text is a written version and may differ slightly from the video dialogue.
In B’reisheet 35:11, we see the great nation of Judah surrounded by a cluster of Josephite Christian nations (both Ephraimite and Manassite).
B’reisheet (Genesis) 35:11
11 Also Elohim said to him: “I am Elohim Almighty. Be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall proceed from you, and kings shall come from your body.”
But one big problem is that the Orthodox rabbis of the Sanhedrin complain that Joseph looks like Esav to them, because they continue to practice Esavite-Christian church structure, and also Esavite-Christian disorder, which is not a characteristic of Elohim’s people. And partly because the Orthodox rabbis cannot differentiate between Joseph and Esav, they pray 936 times each year for our deaths in the Birkhat HaMinim.
“For the apostates [meaning anyone who has left Orthodox Judaism, such as Yeshua (or Jesus), and everyone who follows Him] let there be no hope! And uproot the kingdom of arrogance speedily and in our days! May the Nazarenes and [all] the [other] sectarians [or the other “minim”] perish, as in a moment! Let them be blotted out of the Book of Life, and not be written together with the righteous! You are praised, O Adonai, who subdues the arrogant!”
[Wikipedia, Jerusalem Talmud-Birkat haMinim]
And as we saw before, they are seeking to destroy the lead tribe of Ephraim’s homeland in the USA—which Elohim plans to allow, so that Ephraim will finally go home to the land of Israel, instead of staying in the comfortable land of Babylon. Except right now, the Orthodox rabbis will not allow Joseph to come home.
And as we saw last week in Parasha Ki Tisa, in Yehezqel chapter 37, the solution is that Ephraim needs to form the commanded stick of Ephraim, which is a political organization.
Yehezqel (Ezekiel) 37:16-17
16 “As for you, son of man, take a stick for yourself and write on it: ‘For Judah and for the children of Israel, his companions.’ Then take another stick and write on it, ‘For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel, his companions.’
17 Then join the two sticks one to another for yourself into one stick, and they will become one in your hand.”
Except that it needs to be one better than Judah’s schtick. It needs to be a Fivefold unity stick of Ephraim which refines itself upon a single Foundation of Apostles and Prophets. And with a political organization, we can finally represent our people, so that we can come home.
While some things are getting better, at the exact same time, other things are going to get a whole lot worse. And everyone knows, the best way to stay safe is to stay in Elohim’s will.
But do we realize that His will is that we obey all of His commandments, because that is how we will build the stick of Ephraim, which will be used to represent those of us who will live? And do we realize obedience is Yeshua’s love language? And that doing everything Yeshua asks out of genuine commitment and heartfelt love shows Elohim our true loyalty and commitment to His cause?
It shows Him that we have defected back to Him—and this is the wedding garment, without which, no one will enter into the wedding—but we will go into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping, and gnashing of teeth.
So, let’s talk about how to make ourselves a wedding garment that is without spot, wrinkle, or blemish.
Introduction
Welcome to Nazarene Israel. My name is Norman Willis, and this is our midrash on Parasha Vayakhel – Pekudei. And throughout this parasha-midrash series we have been talking about how the Lost Ten Tribes of Israel are lost among all of Christendom (and truthfully, in every nation of the world.) And how they are going to come back to the land of Israel in the end-times, in keeping with Scripture prophecy.
So, we are looking at organization in the written Torah of Moshe, because the same principles and precepts of organization will still apply in the Order of Melchi-Tzedek, just as they do in the Order of Levi, and just as they did in the Priesthood of the Firstborn.
(And if you want the full top-lining study on that, I can recommend the Torah Government Study. And if you want something more practical, for the congregation and for the family that wants to help start a fellowship, I can recommend Acts 15 Order, and the Set-apart Communities series on YouTube.)
But in his first letter to the Corinthians, at Qorintim Aleph 14:40 (and many other places), Shaliach Shaul (or the Apostle Paul) tells us that everything is to be done decently, and in order, because Elohim is an Elohim of order.
Qorintim Aleph (1 Corinthians) 14:40
40 Let all things be done decently and in order.
He likes everything well regulated, and well structured. (He does not like mobs!) So, we are studying the principles and the precepts of how Elohim likes His people to be ordered and organized, because we are going to see the exact same principles show up in the Renewed Covenant as well.
Surprise, surprise!
Messianic movement, open your eyes, and read what is on the page. And stop listening to your buddies, who tell you it is okay to be a mob. If you are listening to Esav, it is okay to be disorganized. But if you are listening to Elohim, no, it is not! And there are going to be a lot of people surprised in that day.
Torah Portion
In Shemote 35:1, Moshe gathered all the congregation of the children of Israel together, and spoke to them.
Shemote (Exodus) 35:2
2 “Work shall be done for six days, but the seventh day shall be a set-apart day for you, a Sabbath of rest to Yahweh. Whoever does any work on it shall be put to death.”
And here is where the questions come in, is verse 3:
Shemote (Exodus) 35:3
3 “You shall kindle no fire throughout your dwellings on the Sabbath day.”
‘Work’ fires prohibited on Shabbat
This is a common question. And we give a drash on this in several places, but probably the best one to refer you to is the Torah Calendar study (in the chapter on Shabbat).
Basically, what is being prohibited here is a ‘work’ fire, and a ‘cooking’ fire (because cooking is also a type of work). The Talmud reads differently, but as we explain in that chapter, we do not believe that Yahweh is prohibiting us from burning a fire to keep from freezing to death.
(I have lived some mighty cold places in winter, and if you do not make some kind of heat, you are going to freeze to death, and have busted pipes. And that is not going to be restful, or refreshing!) So, check the study out. And if you have not read the studies on the Nazarene Israel website, I highly recommend it.
And if you are new to Nazarene Israel, we are very different from the mass of the Messianic mess. As we will show in the Abraham Accords series, the Messianic mess is still part of Mystery Babylon. Nazarene Israel comes out of Mystery Babylon, and from the Messianic mess.
And our studies can help you come out of the Greco-Roman Babylonian church (including the Messianic movement). Our studies can help you to come out of the amphitheater-entertainment mindset, and help you to make the all-necessary commitment to love and serve Mashiach Nagid the way we should all love and serve Mashiach Nagid.
And no joke. Our studies explain the original first century Jewish (or Israelite) faith that Mashiach Yeshua came to teach. And we explain why the goal of the faith was to bring back that 10% remnant of the lost 10 (or 12) tribes, who would decide that it was important enough first to learn what Elohim wanted them to do, and then make the decision to actually do it.
Not just talk about it! And not just ‘want to’ do it! But truly to do it, and to despise the excuses that the fleshly come up with, to get out of implementing Elohim’s plan for the restoration of mankind.
Priesthood of Firstfruits defiled
Before we continue in Shemote 35:4, first let us recall our historical context from Parasha Ki Tisa.
When our forefathers requested a visible idol to worship, the Priesthood of the Firstfruits allowed it, thereby defiling themselves. (And in Elohim’s world, when you defile yourself, you are done! You are washed up! It is over!) And as a result, Yahweh wanted to destroy all of us, and make a new nation out of Moshe’s more-faithful seed. If we as Avraham’s seed would not be faithful, Yahweh was thinking, maybe Moshe’s seed would be faithful (even though our forefathers were not)?
Thankfully, Moshe talked Yahweh out of destroying our ancestors in the tribes, or else we would not be here! However, since the Priesthood of the Firstfruits had defiled itself, Yahweh chose to decommission the Firstfruits Priesthood, and establish a new internal priesthood out of the tribe of Levi—because at least back in those days, Levi was guarding Yahweh’s commandments. Instead of how they do today, making up their own rabbinic commandments in the Talmud and the make-believe ‘oral’ Torah.
If Levi and the southern house want to survive what is coming in the next 30-40-50 years, we can strongly recommend and urge Levi to seriously reconsider his assumptions. Because especially when serving Elohim, false assumptions can get you killed. (And as we will see, that goes for Ephraim also.)
Sadly, after our ancestors decided to make up their own worship, and no longer listen for His voice (basically), Yahweh said that He would no longer come into our camp, lest He get mad, and consume us on the way, basically because of our disrespect (meaning our disobedience.)
We gladly take all the good from Him–but then we do not want to do what He says!—And how is He supposed to run an army, or a kingdom that way? (My assistant Rivkah says that maybe Yahweh did not consume our ancestors, because He does not want an unclean meal?) (That is a joke!)
But as we saw last week in Parasha Ki Tisa, in Shemote 33:7, since Yahweh had said that He would no longer come inside of our camp (because we ignored Him and His commandments), now Moshe must take his tent and go outside the camp, and meet with Yahweh there (in the tent of meeting), so that our forefathers would not get consumed along the way.
Shemote (Exodus) 33:7
7 Moshe took his tent and pitched it outside the camp, far from the camp, and called it the tabernacle of meeting. And it came to pass that everyone who sought Yahweh went out to the tabernacle of meeting which was outside the camp.
As we saw before, this extra tent outside the camp can be seen as a prophetic foreshadowing of the Tabernacle of David. And this additional tent is where our ancestor Joshua the son of Nun lived—outside the camp. And that is a prophetic foreshadowing all its own, because Joshua was from the tribe of Ephraim, and our forefathers in Ephraim also had to go outside the camp for disobedience.
And because our forefathers disobeyed, and ignored Elohim, Yeshua also had to go outside the camp, to reach us. And that is why it says in Ivrim 13:11 that the bodies of those animals, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned outside the camp.
Ivrim (Hebrews) 13:11-13
11 For the bodies of those animals, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned outside the camp.
12 therefore Yeshua also, that He might set the people apart with His own blood, suffered outside the gate.
[And we have gone out into every nation on earth, to find and then bring back those with the lost Abrahamic and Israelite sparks.]13 Therefore let us go forth to Him, outside the camp, bearing His reproach.
Our ancestors agreed to the wedding contract!
But right now, we are talking about the original tabernacle that was supposed to be inside the camp. And when Yahweh said He would no longer enter our camp, our forefathers were extremely grieved. He jail-broke us from Egypt, and we were supposed to be making Him a special portable Garden of Eden brasserie (according to His exact specifications, to show Him our love and our faithfulness, by obeying what He said to do exactly!
And we made the public announcement of the wedding at Shavuot (Pentecost). In parasha Yitro, in Shemote 19:8, our forefathers gave their “I do’s”, which means that we also are committed!
Shemote (Exodus) 19:8
8 Then all the people answered together and said, “All that Yahweh has spoken [or will speak] we will do.”
[“We will follow Him like a bride follows her husband!”]
So, Moshe brought back the words of the people to Yahweh.
So, Moshe brought back our forefathers’ words of consent and total submission to Yahweh’s voice and His commandments. And so now we are supposed to build Him this portable fine-dining roadhouse, so we can spread His fame worldwide! And we are to host a place where anyone in the nations who wants to come worship the Elohim of the heavens can come, and offer sacrifices, and worship. And in this way, mankind can be won back to giving their loyalty to Yahweh, so they will not have to get killed!
And the thing we always forget is that this is our reward, is that we get to help glorify and magnify our Husband, and spread His fame and knowledge of His true ways all across the globe! And that is not easy!
We get to learn how to refine ourselves into becoming His energetic, motivated Proverbs 31 war bride, who is so thankful for being jailbroke from Egypt after being unified as a single nation that she wants to refine herself by His will, to help him get the kingdom he deserves. She understands that Yahweh has been trying to win mankind back ever since the fall in the Garden of Eden—and so she herself needs to be altered, and transformed from the inside out! And this kind of spiritual calling is a gift from Elohim that is almost inconceivable!
Who among us would ever have guessed that the living Elohim was looking to take a war bride from mankind? The creator of heaven and earth is going to ask a people to become His purified eternal bride? We cannot even wrap our minds around it, but He asked us! And we publicly accepted His wedding proposal in Shemote 19:8.
Shemote (Exodus) 19:8
8 Then all the people answered together and said, “All that Yahweh has spoken we will do.” So Moshe brought back the words of the people to Yahweh.
And now the whole world knows that Yahweh wants the children of Israel to listen for His voice, and obey everything He ever says, and if we will do that, He will take us and transform us, and turn us into the purified spiritual government of the world. (Not like Judah is trying to do it, by the strength of their own right hand.)
(And Judah is pretty strong. But in a wrestling match, not even Judah can pull off a successful rebellion against Elohim! Just give it up before you get killed, or worse!)
So, Yahweh has us set up to be the new spiritual government of the world, and He would be our king—but then we ignored Him—and now it is like, it is off! He is ready to consume us! (That is how bad!)
Whoever is of a ‘willing heart’
Do you know how, when you are a child, and you do something that really makes mom and dad angry, and now you know you are in big trouble? (Like that time you set fire to the hillside playing with matches, and almost burned down the neighborhood? Or, stuff that if you were thinking about it, you would know that what you were doing is super seriously wrong?)
So… do you not try to do good, and try to make it better with dad? Do you not try to go waaay out of your way for a long time, trying to show him that you do know that he is the dad? Jew know what I mean?
With this picture, now let us rejoin our history in Shemote 35:4, where Moshe spoke to our ancestors, the children of Israel, Judah and Joseph, saying,
Shemote (Exodus) 35:4-5
4 And Moshe spoke to all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying, “This is the thing which Yahweh commanded, saying:
5 ‘Take from among you an offering to Yahweh. Whoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it as an offering to Yahweh: gold, silver, and bronze;…’”[“Whoever wants to set himself apart, and show his heart worthy can donate all the things that are required to build the portable Garden of Eden safe-date space!”]
And if you do not really care, then do not give! Do not set yourself apart! No problem! No problem at all! Just remember that Yahweh has watchers and scribes who record absolutely everything, and it can [and probably will] bear on the discussion of your legal case in the day of judgment! (If we get His meaning!)
Because all of us are up on charges of rebellion ever since the garden of Eden. And in the day of judgment, Yahweh will review our case, to see what kinds of evidences and fruits there are that indicate true and genuine repentance, (teshuvah).
Who will pass the test?
Yahweh does not always advertise the fact that this life is given to us as a test, and that we will have to answer for absolutely everything that we either do or fail to do for Him and His Son.) And we do not know, but maybe Yahweh is trying to “sus out” who are the future 10% who will survive the coming destruction of Yeshayahu 10:22.
Yeshayahu (Isaiah) 10:22
22 For though your people, O Israel, be as the sand of the sea, a remnant of them will return; the destruction decreed shall overflow with righteousness.
Maybe Yahweh wants to see who truly loves Him, and who want to do whatever it takes to become His proverbs 31 helper bride—because they love him, and they believe in His cause. And they want to help their husband succeed!
…ehhh…
And then on the other hand, you have the 90% that only pretend to love him, and who only pretends to care, and they give lip service. They pay lip Torah. And really, that is who He wants to screen out the most, is the hypocrites, who claim His name, but not out of love for Him—but rather, out of camouflage. And out of shamming. And out of disloyal, continued rebellion against His eternal authority.
And it is in this light, (in Shemote 35:5) that Moshe said to our forefathers, that whoever wanted to be generous toward Him, that he could contribute, and help Him win mankind back to Him by first building Him a portable Garden of Eden trattoria, where He could meet with His bride, if she was doing things exactly His way.
Shemote (Exodus) 35:5
5 ‘Take from among you an offering to Yahweh. Whoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it as an offering to Yahweh: gold, silver, and bronze;…’
And although we were not supposed to need something visible, this would give the rest of mankind something visible to focus on. Now the rest of mankind could scratch their heads and ask themselves:
“How come both houses of Israel have a temple to their Elohim Yahweh, and they are stronger than us, and more prosperous than us, and they have more civic goodwill amongst the people than all the rest of the nations put together? It is almost like that Yahweh character is a real Elohim! It is almost like Yahweh is blessing them for worshipping Him! Hmm… if we want that kind of prosperity, maybe we should check it out!”
(Kind of like what they are doing with the Abraham Accords today, only on a larger scale! And kind of like how everyone wants to move to the United States, because it has a relatively good economy, and the people are generally more orderly, and at least in the Protestant areas, they still cooperate with each other. (This is all before the destabilization!))
Contributing as a part of Yahweh’s rescue mission
The idea is, Ephraim needs to form a stick to fulfill Yehezqel 37:16, and then Ephraim can hook up with Judah, and then we can move Ephraim and his double portion blessing to the Middle East. (Of course, that is only after Judah stops praying for Yahweh to kill Joseph, and Judah comes to full repentance.)
Yehezqel (Ezekiel) 37:16
16 “As for you, son of man, take a stick for yourself and write on it: ‘For Judah and for the children of Israel, his companions.’ Then take another stick and write on it, ‘For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel, his companions.’
And there are many steps to this plan. And there are many things to do during the Millennium. But here in Shemote 35:5, Yahweh is just sayin’, if you want to help Him win the rest of mankind back to Him, step by step, then you can contribute!
Shemote (Exodus) 35:5
5 ‘Take from among you an offering to Yahweh. Whoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it as an offering to Yahweh: gold, silver, and bronze;…
If you appreciate that Yahweh called us to become worthy to become His chosen Proverbs 31 war bride, you can contribute to His cause. And if you want to encourage Yahweh to come back inside the camp, you can contribute—and it all gets written down in a book!
And if you do not have a burning desire to help Yahweh win the rest of mankind back to Him, then no problem! Only, His watchers and scribes will record that! And we can talk about it on the day of judgment when He is handing out punishments and rewards. (…If you get His drift.)
Shemote (Exodus) 35:5
5 ‘Take from among you an offering to Yahweh. Whoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it as an offering to Yahweh: gold, silver, and bronze;…’
Those of our forefathers who wanted to help Yahweh bring fallen mankind back into subjection could bring gold or silver or bronze. And in verse six, our ancestors could also give all manner of quality yarns and fine linen, olive and other oils, kaneh bohs and all of the other aromatic spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrance incense, and also precious stones. Because we needed everything for a fine dining and worship establishment.
Shemote (Exodus) 35:6-9
6 blue, purple, and scarlet thread, fine linen, and goats’ hair;
7 ram skins dyed red, badger skins, and acacia wood;
8 oil for the light, and spices for the anointing oil and for the sweet incense;
9 onyx stones, and stones to be set in the ephod and in the breastplate.
Quick mention: Hebrewgospels.com
And while we are here, please let me give a quick plug for a new translation: This is Hebrewgospels.com. They have found what they believe are authentic manuscripts for James, Jude, and Revelation.
I made it to page 92 learning about how they validate manuscripts, and decide which is older, and which is younger, and that is very interesting. Also, it seems like a serious academic work done by some Sabbath keepers. They had a passage on “The leaves of the trees (plural) being used for the healing of the nations.”
Apparently, they also have four Hebrew gospels, although I did not get a clear read on whether they believe they are authentic or not. It should be noted that NI is not able to promote any work without full evaluation. However, it seems like a very interesting project.
Freewill offerings in Ephraim are a rare thing
Coming back to our history, in Shemote 35:10, Yahweh allowed all the skillful craftsman of our people who wanted to set themselves apart (in love) to volunteer to do the work to help make this portable Garden of Eden bistro into a world class witness for Yahweh.
Shemote (Exodus) 35:10
10 ‘All who are gifted artisans among you shall come and make all that Yahweh has commanded:’
And verse 21 tells us that everyone whose heart stirred him, and everyone whose spirit moved him to help Yahweh get what He wants, contributed all that was needed for the portable Garden of Eden, and for all its service, and for the set-apart garments for the priestly wait staff.
Shemote (Exodus) 35:21
21 Then everyone came whose heart was stirred, and everyone whose spirit was willing, and they brought Yahweh’s offering for the work of the tabernacle of meeting, for all its service, and for the set-apart garments.
Now let us come to Shemote 36:3. And apparently our ancestors must have been scared, because they kept bringing free will offerings every morning (and that is just not like us, brothers! We are not normally faithful like that, so I am guessing that reality set in). (And May Yahweh grant that it sets in today in the hearts of His elect.)
Shemote (Exodus) 36:3
3 And they received from Moshe all the offering which the children of Israel had brought for the work of the service of making the sanctuary. So they continued bringing to him freewill offerings every morning.
Then in 36:5, the craftsman who were doing the work said, “The people bring much more than enough for doing the work that Yahweh has commanded us to do.”
Shemote (Exodus) 36:5
5 And they spoke to Moshe, saying, “The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work which Yahweh commanded us to do.”
And praise Yah! But you kind of have to wonder if the reason our forefathers kept giving is because they had just gotten in the biggest trouble of their lives! Yahweh had left the camp, and maybe people started to realize just how serious the situation was? Sometimes I wonder if people understand today just how serious our situation is. Do we realize that we also are in a situation with the same level of seriousness?
The commandment to fulfill the Great Commission is effectively the commandment to build Yeshua a kingdom in His absence. (That is what the parable of the minas is all about!) Or you could look at it with the living Tabernacle of David analogy, and say that He asks us to unify five elements of ministry on a single unified Foundation of His Apostles and His Prophets.
And if we will follow His instructions exactly, it will build Him a unified house worldwide (which is what He wants). And that is the stick of Ephraim He wants us to build—but we need brothers who love Him, who want to serve Him and His cause for real! (And not just make an income stream for yourself—but to truly do the job for Him!)
And the parable of the minas tells us that Yeshua’s Father sent Him to get us to build Him this kingdom in His absence. And just like with the Levitical tabernacle, He only wants contributions from those who are of a generous heart towards Him and His Father, because that is the only kind He wants to take as His bride! He does not want any lazy Susans or any La-Z-Boy armchair warriors! (If you get my meaning!)
What He wants is to find out who loves Him enough to convert himself into a Proverbs 31 war bride, so as to belong to the future 10% that it will be worthwhile to try to save. And sadly, tragically, who refuses to care. And who belongs to the 90% that it is just not worth it to try with them, because they do not really care, to start with. And He lets us be the ones to make the decision for Him. He just observes the fruit, and has His watchers and scribes write everything down in books.
Are we going to seek out His voice, and try to do better for Him each day? Or are we going to say, “Check! Done! Yahweh called me—therefore I am already chosen! And we do not need any Acts 6:4 Priesthood!”
Ma’asei (Acts) 6:4
4 “But we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”
“What do we want that for? What??? Just because Yeshua wants it?? Get real!!”
Rebuilding the Taberancle of David
Brothers, we also are commanded to build Him a tabernacle. We are commanded to build a living Tabernacle of David for Yeshua. We do not have a blood altar, but there is nonetheless much to do. And all of it essential, if we want to please Him (and not be found unfaithful in that day!)
Yeshua also gave us instructions as to how to build Him a Fivefold tabernacle unified on a single Foundation of Apostles and Prophets, as mentioned in Ephesim 2:20.
Ephesim (Ephesians) 2:20
20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Yeshua Mashiach Himself being the chief cornerstone,
Our Rock is the cornerstone of that foundation! And to build on the Rock, we must do everything that our Rock says! Tell me something, Ephraim. How is it you can do everything that your Rock says, and build on the Rock, without doing everything that your Rock says? (I do not get it!)
Headcoverings: Exodus 39 and Shaliach Shaul
And in Shemote 39:27–28, just to point something out, the skilled artisans of our people also made the coats woven of fine linen for Aharon and his sons and they also made the turban of fine linen and caps of fine linen, and all the other things. I bring this up because we always get this question.
Shemote (Exodus) 39:27-28
27 They made tunics, artistically woven of fine linen, for Aharon and his sons,
28 a turban of fine linen, exquisite hats of fine linen, short trousers of fine woven linen,
In Qorintim Aleph chapter 11:2, Shaliach Shaul (or the Apostle Paul) praised the Corinthians because they remembered to keep the Hebraic traditions just as he showed them. The problem is that we have some bad translation in this passage.
Qorintim Aleph (1 Corinthians) 11:2
2 Now I praise you, brethren, that you remember me in all things and keep the traditions [ordinances] just as I delivered them to you.
The standard Esavite Red and Pink Horse versions tell us that Shaul says that he wants us to know that the head of every man is Messiah, whereas the head of the woman is man, and the head of Messiah is Elohim. Therefore, “Every man who prays or prophesies while having his head covered (says the standard mis-translation), dishonors his head.”
Qorintim Aleph (1 Corinthians) 11:4 [Esavite Version]
4 Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonors his head.
But the problem is, if that was hypothetically an accurate translation (which it is not), then you have Yahweh commanding the priesthood to dishonor Him by covering their heads. And in fact, Yahweh commands the priests to cover their heads twice.
So, where Esav goes with that is that he uses Shaul’s writings to try to say that the Torah has been ‘done away with’. (Classic Esav!) And the reason why is that Greeks and Romans did not cover their heads for worship. Greeks, Romans (and other Babylonians) always worshipped bare headed.
In contrast, Hebrews always covered their heads for worship, to symbolize being under His covering. And this was especially true for the priestly class. And if you want to know the full details, please check out our study on Head-coverings for men and women, which is in Nazarene Scripture Studies, volume 2.
The point is that Yahweh is not going to command His priests to dishonor Him. As we explain in the study, what is really being prohibited in that passage is men ‘veiling their heads’ like a woman. Corinth was a port town, kind of like San Francisco. And they also had a large center of temple cult prostitution, which used to be big in the ancient world. And Corinth had every moral problem you might expect, so Shaul had to establish the Hebraic male and female customs.
And still our people can be tremendously against head coverings. There are some brothers and sisters who I think would almost prefer World War 3 to covering their heads.
But the thing is, joining Yahweh’s service is like joining the army. And in the army, you wear symbols of authority and a covering on your head. (And when we get to study the Watchers and Enoch 1, we will see that it is indeed important for women to cover their heads against angelic or demonic influence.)
Wholly holy in the flesh
Yahweh is our sole patron, and He owns the restaurant, and He wants His wait staff dressed a certain way. He is the king, and that is it! But if it is important to Elohim to have special rules and procedures for your restaurant and for your priestly wait staff, then does it really make sense to think that there should be no rules for the Renewed Covenant tabernacle?
You know, Esav teaches that there is nothing to do, and no need to do it, right? Oh… “Just adore Yeshua!” That is all! Just adore him! Done! No fuss! No muss! No pesky Great Commission and no limiting Fivefold unity on a single Foundation of Apostles and Prophets! Nothing! Just claim to be His disciple, and you are! (Says Esav!)
I think I told you already, but the Catholic church drives down the street here, and the priest is standing in the back of some beat up old pickup truck, he is driving down Main Street throwing holy water on everyone. You are coming out of the liquor store in an Esavite town, and you are holy (without doing anything else)! You just bought oil for your motorcycle and >> splash!! << You are holy without doing anything else!
You are talking with your friends and >> splash!! <<, you are a priest! And as much as we might not like to hear it, is it possible that we in Ephraim still have many the same holdover attitudes? You are texting your friends on Facebook, you are qodesh! You are watching videos on YouTube without dedicating yourself to Yeshua, and you are qodesh!
You are hanging out in your friends’ living room on Shabbat, eating lunch and talking about something other than how to further the unified Great Commission in your area, and you are qodesh without having to do anything else!
It is like living our lives in the world is enough, so long as we stop for some good old-fashioned Esavite adoration once a week! (No need to obey all of His commandments—just adore Him on Shabbat over lunch! Right??)
Where is Ephraim’s zeal for Elohim?
Do we understand that our job as Yeshua’s people is to organize ourselves to build Him a living house, by setting back up the Tabernacle of David (which has fallen down)? And that everything we do, and everything we fail to do gets recorded in books? (You know, you thought it was that for Santa Claus. But guess what?) Do we realize that Yeshua’s Tabernacle of David also calls for a physical place of worship that is set-apart from our lives in the world?
Judah understands that you need a physical place of worship that is set-apart from the homes of the people. And that you can start in a living room, but it is a much better witness to have a physical brick-and-mortar synagogue.
But here in Ma’asei 6, we see the call for at least two separated, full-time, physical wait staffs. One for the first tithe ministry (which is the ministry of the word and corporate prayer), and the other is for the third tithe ministry.
Ma’asei (Acts) 6:3-4
3 “Therefore, brethren, seek out from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Set-apart Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business;
[3rd tithe ministry]4 but we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”
[1st tithe ministry]
As we show in the Nazarene Israel study, what this means is that in the first century, they had a majority of disciples inside the land of Israel who were zealous for the Torah. And that is what you call Hebrew Notzrim, is when they are zealous for Torah. (Zealous. Not just mouthing it, like most of Ephraim and Judah.) And that is our goal, is to establish more Torah-obedient Hebrew Notzrim. (We will take Hellenistic Notzrim, but they do not teach, because Hellenist is not the example to set.)
In the Land, they also had a minority of Hellenists (Greek) Notzrim who were not zealous for the Torah. And as kind of a loose parallel, today you might think of a conservative or a reform Jew. (Conservative and reform Jews do not think Torah is inspired, so they are not sticklers for all of the points of instruction.)
And just for contrast, Ephraim claims to believe that the Torah is inspired, but then most Ephraimites do not obey it, so that is what you call hypocrisy (and that counts against you, bigtime!) And sadly, today more than 99.9% of Ephraim seems to fall into this category, of calling the Torah “inspired”, but then they do not do it. (So, that is false).
Hebraic vs Hellenistic Ephraim
This will not sound nice, but our goal in Nazarene Israel is to get 10% of us to quit lying, and to become true Hebrews (who not only read what Elohim commands in His word—but they are careful to do it!) We need to hear His voice continually, and then we need to do all that He ever said.
And notice that in the first century, prior to the Great Falling Away, the Torah-zealous Hebrews were still in the majority. Notice what they say in Ma’asei 15:2.
Ma’asei (Acts) 6:2
2 Then the twelve summoned the multitude of the disciples and said, “It is not desirable that we should leave the word of Yahweh and serve tables.
How many in Ephraim believe that it is valuable (even essential) for us to have a standing Priesthood (wait staff if you prefer) to represent us as a nation to Elohim, like it says in the Torah, and like it says in the Brit Chadasha, to the point of supporting it, and making it a priority in their lives, to honor and exalt their Elohim? Those are your Hebrews.
Hebrew Ephraimites:
• Believe the need for a standing Melchizedekian priesthood, as Torah and Brit Chadasha commands.
• Supports the priesthood.
• Honoring and exalting Elohim is their priority in life.
And now check this carefully. On the other hand, how many of us in Ephraim believe that, yes, it is valuable (even essential) for us to have a standing first tithe and third tithe priesthood, even though we may not believe every Torah commandment applies to us (and yet, still, we support it financially, and with good works)? Okay, they do not believe that the Torah applies to us 100%, but still, they are willing to pay Yahweh their three tithes. Those are your Hellenists.
Hellenistic Ephraimites:
• Believe the need for a 1st and 3rd tithe priesthood.
• May not believe that every Torah commandment applies to them.
• Still willing to support the priesthood.
Did you catch that? To be a Hellenist, you still pay all three tithes—you just cannot teach.
Those are the only two groups that the Renewed Covenant pertains to, and both of them pay their three tithes! (Plus gifts, plus offerings!) And in the synagogues, you could maybe come in and check things out. But if you want a place, then you need to contribute your fair share, like it says also in Ephesim 4:16.
Ephesim (Ephesians) 4:16
16 From whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.
The branch that does not bear
So, you do not want to hammer on any particular message too much, but you need to help people understand what it is that we are reading. And what we read here is that if you do not contribute or otherwise help, it is not really your place. If you are not contributing to the growth of the body, then you are kind of in the way, and you need to get out. Because in Yochanan 15:2, Yeshua tells us that every branch in Him that does not bear fruit, He takes away. (Not that we will take it away, but that He will take it away, if it does not bear good fruit.)
Yochanan (John) 15:2
2 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.
How many in Ephraim presently believe that it is not worth giving and not worth supporting a standing priesthood of Melchi-Tzedek, even though the Brit Chadasha clearly indicates that we need to do that? Something like 99.x%, right? And it is a trick question, because in context, what we are talking about here is the third tithe distribution for the poor, the widow, and the orphan, and only a handful of Ephraimites even pay third tithe. So, we must be paying third tithe even to qualify for this.
Do you understand what I am saying? But people have other priorities.
Brothers, Elohim wanted a single family, that listens to Him both as individuals and as a family. And He wants us to place Him first, and to take care of our poor. But if people have other priorities than Elohim, and no one pays in to third tithes, then what does the priesthood distribute to our poor, as it says our forerunners did here in Ma’asei? Or are the poor only Elohim’s concern? Only Elohim cares about them? Meaning His concerns are not also our concerns?
Ma’asei (Acts) 6:3-4
3 “Therefore, brethren, seek out from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Set-apart Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business;
[3rd tithe ministry]
4 but we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”
[1st tithe ministry]
A show of hands
Does anyone in Ephraim think there is any benefit in having a separated priesthood, like it says in Ma’asei 6? Raise your hand if you think there is a benefit to obeying the Renewed Covenant, and re-establishing the same kind of worship that we had in Ma’asei 6 before we all took the great big wrong turn into the house of Esav (in the Great Falling Away)! Do not be shy—raise your hand up high!
Okay, and now raise your hand if you think,
“Support a first tithe priesthood? What do we need that for? What? Are we in the first century still? Do we not know all of that has been done away with?”
“I mean, this is the Hebrew Roots Movement, come on! We do not need no stinking priesthood! Because we are all the separated priesthood now, like in Korach’s rebellion!”
“And just like the Pope said, we are all disciples, even if we do not discipline ourselves to do everything that Yeshua said! Because we all are led 100% by the Set-apart Spirit, even when we are not obeying Yeshua and the Renewed Covenant, right?”
“That is not some false, demonic, Babylonian spirit masquerading as the Set-apart Spirit! No! No! No! So, we are just going to wait and keep our time and our money to ourselves, and live our lives in the world (in Yeshua’s name)! And then we are going to wait for Yahweh to do everything for us!”
“And we believe He will do everything for us, even though we are not obeying His word! Because the Pope is right–we are all disciples now! We are all set-apart now, even though we are not doing all that Yeshua said to do!”
How many believe that way? (Stick your hand way up high!)
Because those are your two choices. Either we believe in the need to do things the way Scripture says, or we do not believe in the need to do things the way Scripture says. (And guess which one gets a reward, and which one gets thrown into the outer darkness?)
Ok, how many of us believe that we do not need a standing priesthood like it says in Ma’asei chapter 6:4?
Ma’asei (Acts) 6:4
4 “but we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”
Raise your hand!
And how many of us believe that we do not need to appoint qualified leadership, like it says in places like Timotheus Aleph 3, and Titus 1:5?
Timotheus Aleph (1 Timothy) 3:2
2 A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach;Titus 1:5
5 For this reason I left you in Crete, that you should set in order the things that are lacking, and appoint elders in every city as I commanded you—
But that we can just hide out, and lay low, and do basically as little as we can get away with, and hope that Elohim will not see it as the rebellion to His authority that is. Raise your hand! (Almost all of Ephraim, right?)
And how many of us believe that we are supposed to start in our friend’s living room, and stay in our friend’s living room forever, because there is no need and no benefit to standing the Tabernacle of David back up in a real kind of a way, like it was in the first century, before the Great Falling Away into Esav’s house in Rome?
How many of us believe that the commanded structure and organization are not worth it, because they provide no extra witness for Yeshua—and so it is much easier to dial 911, and then cut out the middleman, and just keep your time and your money to yourself? And that way there is also no pesky doctrinal or interpersonal accountability! That way it is closer to true anarchy, which they think the Elohim of order and organization loves!
If you think we are better off disobeying the Renewed Covenant example, let me see your hands way up high!
Sorry to be so direct, but there is no time to waste.
Haftarah portion
Okay, let us now jump to our Haftarah prophetic portion. Let us come to Melachim Bet 22:8, where Josiah had become king, and he ordered repair work to the house of Yahweh. (Because over time, any house wears down, and you must fix it back up.)
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 22:8
8 Then Hilkiyah the high priest said to Shaphan the scribe, “I have found the Book of the Law in the house of Yahweh.” And Hilkiyah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it.
As verse 8 says, Hilkiyah the priest found an old cassette tape recording of the oral Torah in the house of Yahweh, and he played it for King Josiah.
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 22:8 [Talmudistan Version]
8 Then Hilkiyah the high priest found an old cassette tape recording of the oral Torah in the house of Yahweh, and he played it for King Josiah.
Oh no, wait! It cannot be that, because even though the written Torah had been lost and forgotten before king Josiah’s time, the oral Torah was never forgotten, right, Levi? You lost the written Torah, but you never lost the oral Torah, right? (Uh-huh! Unbelievable, but you got to believe it! A bunch of jokers is Levi.)
In verse 11, when the righteous King Josiah heard the words of the book of the Torah, he realized that something was dreadfully wrong. And so, he tore his clothes, and took action.
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 22:11
11 Now it happened, when the king heard the words of the Book of the Law, that he tore his clothes.
Repentance like King Josiah
And brothers, what about us? When we learn that the Torah of Moshe still applies to us, even if we cannot do all of the parts of it in the dispersion, and that we are also supposed to be obeying all the commandments of Mashiach Nagid in the Renewed Covenant, what do we do? Are we grieved because we have not been obeying everything, and now we vow to make a commitment to Elohim, to keep all of His words?
Or do we perhaps think we do not need to obey what Yeshua said? (Be honest with yourself, because Yahweh will be honest with us all in the judgment! And that is the wrong place to be finding out about your sins!)
And then in verse 13, King Josiah was concerned, so he told the standing priesthood to go inquire of Yahweh on behalf of all of the people, and all of the house of Judah. Because he realized that it is not a small thing to disobey the commandments of Elohim, and that it merits both individual and corporate punishment, even if your fathers never taught it to you!
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 22:13
13 “Go, inquire of Yahweh for me, for the people and for all Judah, concerning the words of this book that has been found; for great is the wrath of Yahweh that is aroused against us, because our fathers have not obeyed the words of this book, to do according to all that is written concerning us.”
(And how many of us today would speak with our mouths that it is not a small thing to disobey the commandments of Elohim–and yet we still do? Hello??)
Ephraim—do we not celebrate the righteous King Josiah for believing that the word of Yahweh was true, and that it was a good thing that king Josiah ordered reparations to Elohim’s house? And do we not intuitively recognize that it was a righteous act to consult Yahweh, and to ask Him what needed to be done to atone for the mistake, and to set things right, both for Himself, and for the people?
Or if the King of the universe is your only private restaurant customer, and you just happen to be closed for a few decades, what are you going to do? Are you just going to reopen your doors and not say anything to your one and only customer? Or are you going to try to make it up to Him?
Brothers, when you realized that we are supposed to be keeping all of the written Torah that we can keep in the dispersion, and that we are supposed to be organizing and operating according to the rules for Fivefold unity that Yeshua gave to His order of kings and priests, was it a big deal with you?
When you realized that we in Ephraim have not been doing everything that we are supposed to be doing, did you tear your garments? Or what did you do? Were you grieved to learn that we have not been doing things the right way? Or were you grieved, and bummed to learn that there is still much more to do? And that Esav was lying to us, because we do need to do everything Yeshua said!?
Brit Chadasha portion
With that thought, let us come to Ma’asei 15:6 in the so-called “Jerusalem council”, which was in reality just a meeting of the Nazarene Beit Din Gadol (or the Nazarene Sanhedrin).
Ma’asei (Acts) 15:6
6 Now the apostles and elders came together to consider this matter.
And the thing we need to understand is that Esav does not want us organizing. And that is because Esav knows (and HaSatan knows) that we will have a lot more power and authority as an organized stick, and as a nation–so he is trying to stall it, by telling us that we can be lazy. Because look at what they said.
Ma’asei (Acts) 15:16
16 ‘AFTER THIS I WILL RETURN AND WILL REBUILD THE TABERNACLE OF DAVID, WHICH HAS FALLEN DOWN; I WILL REBUILD ITS RUINS, AND I WILL SET IT UP;
We are His hands and His feet! When He does something among men, He oftentimes does it through His people. (But to be effective, they must be organized!) Why does he do this? So that the rest of fallen mankind may seek Yahweh, even all the gentile Notzrim who are called by His name, says Yahweh, who does all these things through His Spirit operating in His people.
Ma’asei (Acts) 15:17
17 SO THAT THE REST OF MANKIND MAY SEEK YAHWEH, EVEN ALL THE GENTILES WHO ARE CALLED BY MY NAME, SAYS YAHWEH WHO DOES ALL THESE THINGS.’
First-century Jerusalem council
The whole point of the so-called “Jerusalem BDG meeting” was so that the body could stay united, by having one (and only one) doctrine. Because in the language of Scripture, if you have more than one doctrine, you are more than one people. (And that is it!) (“Zeh-u!”)
Yet despite this, there are all sorts of Ephraimite ministers saying that, “We just need to agree to disagree!“, even though Timotheus Bet 3:16 tells us that all Scripture which is given by inspiration of Elohim is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in righteousness (or commandment keeping).
Timotheus Bet (2 Timothy) 3:16
16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of Elohim, and is profitable for doctrine [your Halachah, how you walk], for reproof, and for correction, for instruction in righteousness [obeying the commandments that our Commander gave us to obey Him in].
But these ministers do not want to hear that! And with that mind, now let us come to Yochanan Aleph 2:1.
Yochanan Aleph (1 John) 2:1
1 My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Yeshua HaMashiach the righteous.
Yochanan writes to us as little children, so that we may not break the Torah. And if anyone breaks the Torah, we have an advocate with the Father, Yeshua HaMashiach, HaTzaddik (“The Commandment Keeper.”) (Because in Scripture, righteousness is keeping His commandments!)
Verse 2. And He Himself gave His life to atone for our commandment breaking and commandment neglecting. And not for our commandment breaking and commandment ignoring only, but His sacrifice also atones for the commandment neglecting and ignoring of the whole world, if they will turn from their sins, and their wicked ways, and come back to His commandments.
Yochanan Aleph (1 John) 2:2
2 And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.
Verse 3,
Yochanan Aleph (1 John) 2:3 [Esavite Version]
3 “Now by this we know that we know the righteous Commandment Keeper, if we want to keep His commandments, but we never really get around to it—you know how it is!”
(Oh no, wait! Let us try that again!)
Yochanan Aleph 2:3
3 By this we know that we know [the Commandment Keeper], if we keep His commandments.
4 He who says, “I know Him!” but who does not keep [guard] His commandments, is a liar—and the truth is not him!
[Are we getting this?]
Ephraim thinks he can escape Yahweh’s commandments
We are talking about the Great Commission, and the commandment to form a Fivefold spiritual and governmental unity upon a single Foundation of Apostles and Prophets (or Apostles and Elders). And this is how we form the kingdom for Yeshua. First, we form a righteous stick of Joseph in the hand of Ephraim, which will be used to unify Ephraim with Judah. And then later, we will be able to work with Manasseh—and also help bring in Ishmael throughout the Millennium.
And this message is about as popular as dental work, and a lot of Ephraimites do not want to hear this, because most Ephraimites are spiritually drunk. But the truth is that there is a big game going on in the house of Joseph right now, and it needs to stop! The big game is to pretend that we are to keep the pertinent commandments in the Levitical Torah only, and then we will pretend that there are no requirements from the Brit Chadasha.
And this is how we plan to get out of keeping the commandments that Yeshua gave to His people in the Renewed Covenant. Is to pretend that we are under the Levitical instructions right now, even though we are not in the land, and there is not a cleansed Levitical temple, and there will not be one until after Armageddon.
So, that is our plan to get out of Fivefold unity built on the Rock. That is our plan to get out of the marital covenant. That is our plan to not have to put on the wedding garment of Proverbs 31 war-bridal candidate behavior.
And we say in our hearts, “Yahweh is so stupid, He will not even notice the difference! And Yeshua is so stupid, He will still intercede for us even though we did not do what He said! We did not build Him a house, His way! We did not organize and pool our resources to stand the Tabernacle of David back up worldwide (to give the best witness possible to Yeshua), because that would have cost our money, and our time!”
“But mind you, we are dead to the flesh, (no longer carnal)! We are sold out servants who know we were bought with a price, and try to live that way, right? Even though we are not taking care to hear His voice, and do everything His voice ever said?”
(Is this like with our forefathers? Is it déjà vu all over again?) “Mucha delinquencia!”
Yochanan Aleph (1 John) 2:5
5 But whoever keeps His word [meaning not just read it, but whoever actually disciplines himself to do the things that He says to do, especially when they cost time and money], truly the love of Elohim is perfected in him.
By this we know that we are in Him.
[That we have handed Him the steering wheel and the keys, and we are doing what His Spirit says!]
That is why He who says He is abiding in the vine needs to show fruits worthy of abiding in the vine, by walking (meaning living and worshipping) just as He walked. With all of his heart, and with all of his soul, and with all of his strength, to form Him a global spiritual government, so we can be reunited with Judah, and then be used to help Ishmael.
Yochanan Aleph (1 John) 2:6
6 He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.
If “we do” then “we need to do” (the tree is known by it’s fruit)
Do we love Yeshua enough to put His Father’s desires over our own?
Yochanan Aleph 2:15
15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
Every time I read this, I see Ephraimites taking their motorhomes and their ATVS on vacation—but they do not have time or money for Yeshua. I see Ephraimites riding motorcycles, or horses, or nice cars, or airplanes, and going here, and going there, but they do not have time or money for Yeshua. I see people playing cards with their buddies, and they do not understand that there is work to do.
And I must ask myself, is that because we in Ephraim are not reading Scripture? Or is that because we are not taking what we read seriously? (Because maybe we believe it does not apply to us? It only applied in the first century, as Esav teaches?)
Men and brethren in Ephraim (and you know who you are), ask yourselves: Is there any possibility that you secretly believe in your heart that the requirements of Yahweh and Yeshua do not apply to you? That somehow, all of those requirements are for the past (like Esav teaches)?
Or is it possible that someone has stolen your crown by misleading you, telling you that watching a bunch of videos for free and texting your friends on Facebook helps Yeshua to get the kind of unified, global ministry house that He wants us all to gather together and build for him? And that by necessity, it cannot be easy, or free, because the point is to show Yahweh that we love Him enough to sacrifice for Him?
Are we perhaps not willing to lay down our lives, a living sacrifice? Are we perhaps insisting on keeping one foot in the world, while we dip a few toes in the water with Yeshua?
Brother, sisters, if you are still living your life in the world, how are you showing Him that you love Him enough to lay down your life and your activities in the world, so that you can have more time, and more money to help build His kingdom? Or is tv more important to you than Him? Is going to the water park more important to you, than serving His Son?
And if you are one of the book and tape salesmen, or one of the disorganization salesmen, ask yourself: Are we gathering together with Him on a unified Fivefold Foundation of Apostles and Prophets? Or are we only pretending to gather together with Him — which means that the reality is that we are remaining independent, which scatters the flock?
And like Yaakov HaTzaddik tells us in Yaakov 1:22, we need to be doers of His words, and not just hearers only, deceiving ourselves.
Yaakov (James) 1:22
22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
And brothers, if we do not want to receive the love of the truth, and live by it, He will give us a deception. And the grievous thing is that 90% of Ephraim is going to die, because they do not want to take Him seriously. (And we do not know exactly what percentage of Judah.) And our prayer here today is that you will become one of the future 10% that takes His words seriously, and bears fruit worthy of repentance unto eternal life.
Yochanan Aleph (1 John) 5:2 [Esavite version]
2 By this we know that we love the children of Elohim, when we love Elohim and read His commandments, but do not do them.
(Oh no, wait! That was the Esavite version!) Here is the real version.
Yochanan Aleph (1 John) 5:2-3
2 By this we know that we love the children of Elohim, when we love Elohim and keep [or perform] His commandments.”
3 For this is the love of Elohim, that we [perform] His commandments.
And we do not find His commandments burdensome. We do not find His commandments burdensome to keep, because we love our Husband, and want to do everything we can, to help Him get His kingdom. And we want to see Him happy, and so that is why we are eager to lay down our lives in the world, to make more time and more money to help serve our Husband as His Proverbs 31 bride.
We want that, because we want to make him happy. Because what husband does not love a Proverbs 31 war bride, who is helping her Husband fulfill His Father’s desire that a literal kingdom be built for His Son? And what father does not love His Son’s Proverbs 31 war bride, who disciplines herself to see how much she can do to help her Husband sit on the throne?
Fruit worthy of repentance
Brothers, are you hearing what I am saying? In case no one had noticed, we are living in the time of the end. And we are living in a time when we (like King Josiah) are realizing that there is more to do for Elohim than we thought.
And we are living in a time when we are realizing that 90% of us are not going to make it, because we do not really care. 90% of us are not going to come home, because we did not want to build the King a portable Garden of Eden restaurant and furnish it with the appropriate wait staff, to serve our One and Only paying patron Customer, and to serve the poor among us.
Judah understands the benefits of having a standing priesthood. Judah understands the benefit of collecting money for the poor. Judah understands the benefits of organizing, to form a stick of Judah. What about Joseph, brothers?
No matter what happens in the next 30, 40, or 50 years, the day will come when all of us will stand before the throne and answer for everything that we did, and everything that we failed to do for Him and His Son.
And I do not know, but I just imagine, He is going to ask us, “Did you read my book? And did you do everything that I and My Son asked you to do–whether directly, or through My servants the prophets, or through the shaliachim?” And if the answer is, “No, it was too hard. It cost too much money. And I did not really have time. IT was not top priority in my life.”, how is that going to go, brothers?
Never forget the day of judgment. Always hold it before your eyes.
Prayers for the remnant
Please pray with us that Elohim will put true teshuvah repentance into the hearts and the souls of the 10% that He wishes to save. Please pray that He will cause the future 10% to dedicate themselves to Him, that we might be found worthy to live.
And please pray that He will help us all to prepare oil for our lamps, as we work on our wedding dresses, that we might present ourselves to Him a glorious Proverbs 31 war bride, without spot, wrinkle, or blemish. That the name of Yahweh Elohim and His son Yeshua might be made known in all the earth—and that we might slowly begin to recover Cousin Ishmael also.
Let us do it for His name.
Shabbat shalom.
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We thank Yahweh Elohim for your love for His kingdom.
