Really, what is The Way to go?

The first five books of the Bible are called the TORAH which in Hebrew means INSTRUCTIONS. The Mosaic Law is IN the TORAH, and how many times does YHVH GOD have to say that there is ONE LAW for His people and the FOREIGNER living among them. There are not two sets of rules for the Jew and the Gentile, there is but ONE set of rules for all of us to live by. The Law fell short in that it could not obtain eternal life for us. When Jesus/Yeshua came and defeated death, that is what he did do that the Law could not do. He did not come to end the Law, he came to complete YHVH's plan. We obtain eternal life by our faith and trust in Jesus, but we are INSTRUCTED to live by the INSTRUCTIONS after that.

 

Exodus 12:49

The same teaching is to apply equally to the citizen and to the foreigner living among you.”

 

Exodus 20:10

but the seventh day is a Shabbat for Adonai your God. On it, you are not to do any kind of work — not you, your son or your daughter, not your male or female slave, not your livestock, and not the foreigner staying with you inside the gates to your property.

 

Leviticus 16:29

“It is to be a permanent regulation for you that on the tenth day of the seventh month you are to deny yourselves and not do any kind of work, both the citizen and the foreigner living with you.

 

Leviticus 18:26

But you are to keep my laws and rulings and not engage in any of these disgusting practices, neither the citizen nor the foreigner living with you;

 

Leviticus 24:22

You are to apply the same standard of judgment to the foreigner as to the citizen, because I am Adonai your God.”

 

Numbers 9:14

If a foreigner is staying with you and wants to observe Pesach for Adonai, he is to do it according to the regulations and rules of Pesach — you are to have the same law for the foreigner as for the citizen of the land.’”

 

Numbers 15:15

For this community there will be the same law for you as for the foreigner living with you; this is a permanent regulation through all your generations; the foreigner is to be treated the same way before Adonai as yourselves.

 

Numbers 15:16

The same Torah and standard of judgment will apply to both you and the foreigner living with you.’”

 

Numbers 15:29

no matter whether he is a citizen of Isra’el or a foreigner living with them. You are to have one law for whoever it is that does something wrong by mistake.

 

Deuteronomy 5:14

but the seventh day is a Shabbat for Adonai your God. On it you are not to do any kind of work — not you, your son or your daughter, not your male or female slave, not your ox, your donkey or any of your other livestock, and not the foreigner staying with you inside the gates to your property — so that your male and female servants can rest just as you do.

 

Deuteronomy 31:12

Assemble the people — the men, the women, the little ones and the foreigners you have in your towns — so that they can hear, learn, fear Adonai your God and take care to obey all the words of this Torah;

   So, I ask, how many times does YHVH GOD have to tell us there there is One LAW for all peoples?  

 Is is possible to live by ALL of the Law?  No, but is it possible to STUDY all of the LAW? 

 When Is Deception Okay with GOD?

 

I used to think that deception was never appropriate, but now, I’m starting to wonder if there is ever a time where the “sin of omission” is called for.  As usual, I decided to look into the Scriptures to see if deception was ever used by one of GOD’s servants, and I found one where GOD blessed it.  When war is declared upon one of GOD’s servants, no matter how imperfect they are, if that servant is a man or woman after GOD’s own heart then that person who declared war on them also declared war on GOD.  Today's story comes from 2^nd Samuel chapter 15-18.  King David was enjoying the perks of being king and ignoring his subjects who were being treated unfairly.  His next born son, Absalon, who had already killed first born and next in line for the throne, Amnon, and he saw this as an opportunity to usurp the king and declare himself king. So, for four years, at the king’s gate, he intercepted King David’s subjects who came with a complaint seeking justice, and Absalom saw that the victim was vindicated.  In doing this, he won the favor of many people.  David’s servants likely saw what was happening and warned the King, but the King, being the passive father that he was, ignored the warnings.  It wasn’t until it was too late that King David realized that he screwed up, again. 

Here now we have King David, on the run, again with about 600 loyal men and women fleeing the city as Absalom had gone to Hebron to declare himself king.  I have learned so much about the Bible from my favorite Torah teacher (TORAH Class playlists) who explains the cultures and thought patterns of these ancient peoples, and one of the points he brought out was that back then, people went to different territories because they wanted the blessing of the  god of that territory. At that particular time in Israelite history, Hebron was the capital city of the God of the Israelites. Whenever you see a pattern or shadow in the Hebrew Scriptures, you can usually find it in the world or the Christian church today.   Many Christians go to “The LORD’s House” where they think GOD is most influential and the blessings of GOD are obviously there, to them.  Of course, man’s corrupted thought is, the bigger the church, the more GOD is blessing it.  In other words, those Mega churches must be doing something right, so we’ll go there, right?  WRONG.  Mega churches are created by men using man-made techniques and marketing tools, not the Word of GOD or by the Power of the Holy Spirit.  YHVH GOD is just as powerful alone in our hiding places as people think He is on any given Sunday at the local church no matter how big the campus. Sin is so easily hidden in a mega church, but when we are alone in our room with GOD, our sin will find us out, and it’s between GOD and us and the Holy Spirit whether we confess and turn from it. 

2 Samuel 15-18 New Living Translation

So, where do you find the sin of omission or deception used by King David and his loyal servants?  I can spoon feed you the Bible, or you can seek GOD’s truth on your own.  I will leave you the link to the story, which is four chapters long, and you can decide for yourself whether what deception King David did was blessed by GOD or not. I don’t like to just pick out one or two Scriptures and twist them to agree with me. What I’d rather do is include the whole story and let you make your own interpretations with the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  It is my personal opinion, that in times of war, deception is sometimes needed. 

If we need another example, we can look to the Scriptures again, but this time with a corrupt king, Ahab.  That evil king was hell bent on doing things his way even when YHVH GOD sent a good and honest prophet, Micaiah his way to warn him. So what did YHVH do?  He sent a deceiving spirit to end King Ahab's evil ways, because he refuse to repent like he did earlier and had gained three more years. When King Ahab repented  It is too bad that King Ahab did not appreciate the mercy of GOD the next time he was warned. That story I have included for you: 

 1 Kings: 19 Then Micaiah said, “Therefore hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing by, on His right hand and on His left. 20 And the Lord said, ‘Who will persuade Ahab to go up, that he may fall at Ramoth Gilead?’ So one spoke in this manner, and another spoke in that manner. 21 Then a spirit came forward and stood before the Lord, and said, ‘I will persuade him.’ 22 The Lord said to him, ‘In what way?’ So he said, ‘I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And the Lord said, ‘You shall persuade him, and also prevail. Go out and do so.’ 23 Therefore look! The Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these prophets of yours, and the Lord has declared disaster against you.”

So, when is deception okay? Only if it has a righteous outcome.  We humans deceive ourselves and others all the time not for a righteous outcome, but for our own benefit, which is hardly ever righteous.  Scripture is clear, that if a person digs a pit, eventually, he will fall into it.  It was when I was describing this verse to a friend who also has a relative digging herself into a pit that I saw in the metaphor of that person digging throwing dirt on the innocent. Both of us have suffered harm from relatives throwing dirt on us while digging their pits, and I know that GOD put that picture in my head.  I have tried to keep the stone from rolling over on that man’s head long enough, and it’s time to just let the ground above cave in on him.  I finally have reached the point of acceptance that you cannot save a person who doesn’t want to be saved.  You can’t help a man who doesn’t want to help himself out of the pit he dug.  If he chooses not to climb out of that pit, it’s a choice he made.  Eventually, the hole caves in and the stones fall on the one digging, and GOD will be the Savior who cleans the dirt of His loyal subjects. Sometimes, there is nothing we can do to help others, we just have to let GOD's will take its course, even if it takes decades.  

613 Ropes 613 Laws

Each Has It's Own Purpose

  As a Mayflower descendant, I'm particularly interested in the ship that brought my ancestors over here and the reason why they came.  We all know they were called Separatists.  They wanted to separate from the established institution that overtook the governing of the people. When the state marries a religious institution, religious freedom becomes bondage.  We found this out back in Constantine's day.  Anyone who has truly studied the history will know that the Roman Emperor, Constantine forced people to convert or face death.  He had forced baptisms whether the person had a heart change or not. He persecuted the Jews who refused to convert.  We also know that the Roman church did the same thing with the Crusades and the Inquisition. It was either convert or be persecuted or executed.  The Gospel was never intended to force people to convert to anything, it was freedom, and it still is freedom.  In the same way there is more freedom in the 613 Laws of Moses than the thousands of unspoken and spoken rules the church has since written and taught, because the rules of Christianity are subject to man's interpretation thereby not objective but subjective. 

    As many of my readers know, I am what some call a TORAH observer.  Many Christians will say that I have put myself back under the bondage of the Law, but that is absolutely not the case.  Let's define the terms observe and TORAH. The Hebrew word TORAH translated means INSTRUCTIONS, the Law of Moses is in the TORAH but not the whole of TORAH.  When we observe something we study it, watch it, try to learn something about it.  I have spent the last eight years or so trying to learn about the TORAH. I know that GOD's instructions are for my good, but what about His Laws, are they for my good also? 

  It is fairly common knowledge that there are allegedly 613 Laws in the Mosaic Law.  Of those 613 not everyone can obey all of them, including Jesus himself.  He could not obey the Laws concerning women.  When he left the disciples his last words were, "Go and make disciples of all nations, teaching them to OBSERVE all that I have commanded."  Let's explore the purpose of Jesus coming here. Was it just to die for our sins? No, it was to teach TORAH and purpose behind it.  What he did was complete the TORAH by dying so we could obtain eternal life, because the Law was never able to grant us eternal life.  He fulfilled the TORAH he did not abolish it. (Matthew 5:17-20) In other words, what we are all called to do is to trust in Yeshua/Jesus who observed and taught the  TORAH, the instructions. We are not all called to obey 613 Laws. it is impossible, but that does not mean they are now abolished. When we set rules for our children's good and they break them, do we abolished the rules?  

   Lately, I've been studying the 613 Laws of Moses and what I've learned is that there are specific reason for each Law and each one was given for our benefit and not because YHVH GOD is some kind of tryrannical deity.  I'll use the food laws as one example, which seems to be the one most people get upset about.  YHVH God designed certain of His creation for certain purposes.  In other words, vegetation for food, and then after the flood, Noah and his descendants were given animals as food, also.  I can't begin to explain why the change came, but I'm going to assume it has something to do with the change in the earth's atmosphere and ecology after the flood.  We know that before the flood, 600-900 years of living was the norm, but after the flood the human life span dropped to around 100 or so years.  With that in mind, there was obviously something missing in plant life that animals could now produce in terms of nutrition for the human body. Clean and unclean animals did not start with Moses, by the way, even Noah knew which were clean and unclean animals.   Genesis 7: (Clean and unclean animals even in Noah's day ) 

    What does clean and unclean mean? It means their purpose on this planet were for the good of man and the good for the ecology. Clean animals were for good of the human body, whereas,  unclean means that they are good for the ecology.  Of course, there is a much more spiritual meaning with clean and unclean, but I'm just sticking to biology here in this post.  Seeing how pork is the issue here, I'll tell you that swine was considered unclean because it was never created for the purpose of human consumption, but to be environmental agents to clean the earth.  A pig will eat anything, including its own waste, whereas, cattle eats only vegetation.  It is the same with the sea creatures.  Scavengers, i.e, lobster and clams (which used to be my favorite food) along with shrimp are on the bottom of the sea to keep it clean by eating what other fish defecate. To put is simply, do you want to eat a creature that eats the waste products of what other animals or humans eliminate from their bodies? From my persepective it's the same as eating out of the garbage or the septic tank if you really want to be grossed out. 

  Another reason why pork is bad for you is the parasites that are in its system. Many are not elimated by cooking. Microscopic parasites survive the high temperatures in cooking.  I don't often quote from Joel Osteen, but his was the plainest explanation I have heard.  Joel Osteen explains pork was never food  Although I had already decided to obey YHVH about not eating what He said not to eat, I loved his explanation and it made so much sense to me. (Video quality not so great, but the words are clear as day).  

   So what do the 613 Laws of Moses have to do with the the hundreds of ropes on the Mayflower? PURPOSE. My ancestor came here as a separatist to live out freedom in worshiping YHVH GOD. He could not do that without those ropes.  I'm not a sailor by any means, I'm just a beneficiary of what those early sailors knew and did.  Each of those ropes has a purpose. In the little research I did do, I found that each rope has a name and a purpose. If one of those ropes is cut it is the difference between arriving at one's destination and sinking or adrift forever on an endless sea.  It's the same with the 613 Laws of Moses, each had a purpose. 

    Now, we know that with the Temple having been destroyed in AD 70 and the Levitical Priesthood all but abolished, many of those 613 cannot be obeyed or followed, but does that mean we should not observe the reason or purpose for them? My opinion is that if YHVH GOD wrote it, Jesus taught it, then by golly, I'm going to investigate the purpose of it.

  

   My daughter once asked me about animal sacrifice and why we do not go back to that, and I told her that we still do when we eat animal protein. She was shocked to find out that the animal sacrifices were not just for spilling the blood of the animals but they were food for the priesthood. Sacrificing the animal over the altar was the priesthood dedicating the animal's nourishment to their body in gratefulness to YHVH GOD. The difference today and back then is we do not do it over an altar to sacrifice it to YHVH, but we pray over it before we eat it. I enjoyed watching her eyes pop open when that truth hit her.  

    When the Pilgrims came here, they put off the ways of the institutional church.  They did not obsereve the church's sacraments or holy days.  In other words, they did not celebrate Christmas or Easter. They were in fact Hebrew roots Christians. I find the irony kind of crazy that my ancestor was a TORAH observer.  I grew up in institutional Christianity and now, I am a TORAH observer.  I've come full circle and I am grateful for the purpose of both the 613 and however many ropes on the Mayflower that brought him here to begin my family in this wonderf land of the free and home of the brave. 

   I did not come to this knowledge all at once because learning is progressive and so is revelation from YHVH.  I do not expect my readers to go through their freezers and toss all their pork, but I hope I have stirred in them questions, enough questions for them to go find the answers.  Answers come from Scripture and the work of the Holy Spirit.  Only the Holy Spirit can spark a true revival, and from what I'm seeing these past eight years or so, is that a huge world-wide revival is happening, bringing people back to the the purpose of the TORAH, GOD's instructions. 

    

The Second Biggest Lie in Christianity -Maybe!

  About a year ago, I wrote the blog post that I had been contemplating and waiting to write for a year. It was about the lie of eternal conscious torment and a place we've learned about called Hell.  (The Biggest Most Egregious Lie )   I had spent over a year looking for this place called hell in the Bible, and I could not find it as we've been described.  I searched the Scriptures and did numerous searches from Bible teachers.  The only thing I found were twisted Scriptures taken out of context which were never meant to devise this place called Hell that man made up.  Today, many more people are finding out the truth about this lie.  Sadly, too many people want this lie to be the truth.  I have to admit there are times when I see someone's evil activity under the sun and wish there was a hell with eternal concious torment, but wishing something to be true does not make it true.  

    Well, I'm on a new quest this year to find out if there really is a heaven as we know it.  Now, I know the Bible speaks of heaven, but it speaks of it in three different means.  There's the sky above, outer space, and the place where YHVH GOD dwells, but is it a place where humans go when they die.  I've searched again and again, and I cannot find where Jesus/Yeshua said that we go there right after we die.  Sure, there's that place called Paradise that he mentioned to the thief on the cross next to him, however, the Greek language back then had no punctuation, so if you read the Scripture with the correct grammar it could say, And Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you today,  you will be with Me in Paradise.”  In other words, today meant the day he said it, not that he would be in Paradise that day with him, because we all know that Jesus did NOT go to Paradise that day.  In fact, three days later, after he was resurrected, he told Mary in "John 20:17 Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.’  So, the thief on the cross could not have been with Jesus in Paradise on that day because we know Jesus did not ascend until 40 days after He was resurrected.  

    Paul said over and over again he was persecuted for speaking about "the Resurrection" as if it not had happened yet.  The Bible says in Revelation that there will be a first resurrection after the Tribulation and the wrath of GOD and before the 1,000 year reign of Christ.  How can there be a first resurrection if there's been millions with each passing death?  Sure, there's those two passages Paul speaks of when he says, "To die is gain to live is Christ," or that he wish to depart and be with the LORD."  Who doesn't wish to depart and be with GOD?  Apart from the body does mean to be with GOD, consciously, but is it immediate.  Yet, he also said that those who died have "fallen asleep."  So what does this fallen asleep mean?  I asked YHVH GOD this question, and I think I got the answer.  Now, I'm not saying this is the absolute truth, facts, and divine revelation, however, I was reminded of the 10-plus times that I've had general anesthesia.  Immediately, a memory flashed before me and I evaluated that memory as if maybe the Holy Spirit was having me do that.  

   Every time I go to sleep, I dream. I am not exaggerating, I thought this was normal, but apparantly not everyone who closes their eyes starts to dream, but I always have.  I am aware of time when I am dreaming. I am semi-conscious.  I wake up several times a night, remember my dream for a few seconds before I go back to sleep and dream some more.  Sometimes, I even know when I am dreaming. Let me tell you, those are scarier moments, because I'm aware this dream could turn into a night terror to which I've been plagued all of my life.  Most times during those night terrors where I am aware that I am dreaming I am unable to wake myself up.  Many a night terror when I realized I was having a nightmare I have tried over and over to wake myself up.  So, while I'm asleep, I am aware of time and space.  What does this have to do with general anesthesia?  Well, all the  times that I have had general anesthesia I remember being given the drugs to fall asleep.  I remember fighting the effects, the last seconds before I sleep, then I only remember waking up in the recovery room.  I have been put out for as short as 30 minutes to as long as six hours.  Maybe the Holy Spirit was telling me that falling asleep under general anesthesia is like dying.  There is only the memory of the last few seconds until we wake up at The Resurrection. Ecclesiastes tells us that the dead know nothing, they remember nothing. 

   We've all heard story after story of people who have died and had a memory of going to heaven or hell, but those are people's stories of dying and coming back.  Maybe they weren't truly dead.  I honestly do not know.  I know one person whose heart stopped and was brought back, and she said all she remember was seeing total pitch dark.  But, the point is she remembers and she lived another four years before she died permanently.  Ecclesiastes says that the dead have no memory. 

  The point of this blog post to get you to think, not to answer your questions, because I too have questions.  Scripture does not say that we immediately go to heaven. It says that we obtain eternal life for trusting in Jesus, but it does not say when.  Christianity has implicated that we do go immediately based on a few Scriptures that do not expressly say that.  It is interpretation by a religion, not absolute fact written in words.  Paul once mentions going to the third heaven whether in the body or not.  Maybe he did die and was given a brief explanation of what is to come in the Resurrection or maybe it was a dream.  I know that I have had two such dreams and one was similar to Paul's.  I knew it was a dream after I woke up, however, it was too incredible to describe in mere words.  Maybe in my dream YHVH GOD was giving me a glimpse of the Resurrection, because at the time, I was in a very dark and depressed time of my life where all I wanted to do was die.  Maybe, He was showing me what to live for, that my reward would come, but there's is no promise that the reward is immediate.  The other dream I had I was conscious of the fact that the end of my life was coming, but there was no heaven at the end, just a blank space of peace.  (The Best Dream I Ever Had ). 

   Scripture tells us a parable, and that is all it truly is, a parable of Lazarus and the rich man, where Lazarus is comforted in Abraham's bosom. There is no mention of Paradise. There were so many reasons for him to tell that parable based on their present culture. It wasn't about whether there is a hell or heaven, but who was eligible for eternal life. In those days, those ancient people assumed only the rich would be resurrected to Paradise just because blessings in this life meant blessings in the after life. They assumed that the poor were cursed. Jesus was telling them what they thought was wrong. 

  I am still in the research stages, but to tell you the truth, I am comforted at the fact that when I do die, whether or not I remember the days, months, or years that I am in the grave, one day I will wake up to be with my GOD and my Savior.  Soul sleep sounds pretty good to me if it's anything like general anesthesia, because right now, my memories of what has been are pretty painful because of what this mama of 8 has lost.  I've lost those precious little babies and children to some full grown wonderful adults, but I still miss those babies who are gone forever.  

NO SUCH THING AS FAILING GOD!

     As a former leftist, liberal, feminist, then uppity church pew dweller, then prodigal, and all around screw-up, I know about as much about YHVH GOD, who created the universe as the average human screw-up. I'm far from an expert, but I have studied the Bible inside, outside, and upside down. I've studied the historicity of it and how GOD dealt with His people throughout the ages, especially His heroes who were total screw-ups. (They were all men, by the way, no women screw-ups in his heroine list that I could find!) I have lived in the fiery furnace of affliction for decades, some by my own doing, some not, and there is one thing that keeps coming back to me, and it's as old as Genesis. GOD predicted man's downfall and need for redemption before he even created the first man. He foreknew of their need deliverance. There is not one event or period of apostasy that GOD did not predict and even anticipate for his people and for each individual. The plan was set, but man being a dense as he is, he had to learn the hard way. I'm like that. I learn by trial and error, mostly error. What I'm going to tell you isn't rocket science, so it is not going to require a very long explanation. (But don't count on that from a writer!)

       GOD IS OMNISCIENT!

   What does Omniscient mean?  Well, it means that before you were born, GOD knew every mistake you would make. He knew about that mathematical error on your first grade math paper, to the low score on your SAT's because you were out partying the night before the exam.  He knew about the D you got in Geology 101 as a college freshman, because you skipped class that was the maps portion of the course and you turned in a blank final exam.  He also knew about that girl or boy that you would charm into bed because, well, they were hot, and you were dumped by the love of your life. He knew about that bad marriage and all the mistakes you would make in it.  He knew that child you screwed up the first time around parenting because you had awful parents and you had no idea what you were doing as a new parent.  He knew about that guy you fell head-over-heals in love with right after your husband dumped you.  He knew that you'd cave into your heart's desire even though you knew how wrong it was.  He also knew the pain you would suffer for that decision for years to come, and that's what brought real spiritual growth in your life.  He knew that after the biggest mistake of your life you would dedicate your life to Him, even if that meant a lonely existence with no new love in your life for the rest of your days.  

  Are you catching on?  He knew all the mistakes you were going to make. As a matter of fact, He actually weaved the lessons you would learn from them into your life to teach you how to be a better person and servant.  He loved and corrected you like a son or a daughter, because He knew that you would be a devoted one.  GOD knew that all your mistakes would get you a PhD in the college of Hard Knocks, and you would turn it all around and write a block buster book that would go viral after you left this earth.  The whole time you were screwing up, He knew that there would be other screw-ups who would someday need a screw-up to look up to!  Learn this one fact, there is no way to fail GOD, because even if you did not do all those things like I did,  He knew that He had a purpose for your life, and He was going to accomplish it whether you wanted Him to or not.  And, here's the kicker, for those outside the family of GOD, you did not fail Him either, because He knew that you would never turn to Him and want to turn your life around to do something good for the Kingdom.  It's impossible to fail someone who knows your every thought, word and deed before you were even born.  

     If you are a parent, tell me, do you love your children?  Are they perfect?  Did you ever stop loving them with each mistake they made?  When they were born did you expect them to be perfect, or did you know that there would be a lifetime of mistakes that they would make before they turned thirty? It is just like you understand your rebellious teen because it's a phase, one you yourself went through.  Your child did not fail you when they went through that awkward stage of thinking they knew more than you at the ripe old age of fourteen.  We cannot fail the Omniscient Creator who knew long before you took your first breath that you would be total screw-up, but one that He loved enough to send His Son for so you could live with Him forever in Paradise.  The next time you see a post where someone confesses to fail GOD, send them my way, so I can straighten them out, because that's my job.