jesus – Harbor Lights Ministries

Horseshoes And Hand Grenades

Do we face consequences for our actions? Are punishments given to fit crimes? Does God, Himself, issue forth punishments today? Let’s face it, we can look at the statistics of crime today and see that in most cases the criminals are not getting “what they deserve” anymore. And when it comes to God above handing out punishment, if you listen to the modern Sunday churchianity crowds you would think that grace and mercy are so prevalent since the “new testament” times that everyone is being fast tracked to heaven! But, is this Biblically true? Well…no. It is not.

In a world solely driven by opinions, feelings, perspectives, and personal ideologies, one doesn’t have to look far beyond their day to day encounters with people to be bombarded with a myriad of differences in thought and view. In other words; what’s right to you is not necessarily right to me anymore, and it doesn’t have to be…as long as you agree me in the end…regardless of your views. We hear the phrases “that’s your opinion” or “well, I have a different perspective on that” or “you do you and I’ll do me.” It is becoming harder and harder to get people to all agree on any one topic at any time anymore! Whether or not you and your neighbor see eye to eye on a variety of topics should be irrelevant as to how you get along with each other. Grown adults should have the capacity to appreciate and respect differing opinions without throwing tantrums or inciting violence at those who seemingly “disagree” with you. I mean, small matters that were once never a dividing line between people have now grown to be the most contentious in today’s human behavior. This goes beyond governmental differences around the world these days. This has become neighbor against neighbor, culture against culture, and even dividing once close families!

When it comes to “religion” these days, we find that most outfits can have their differences without a major fear of violence being inflicted upon people who disagree. Of course, with anything, there are always an exception or two of groups that take their ideologies to extremes against those who don’t want to participate in their way of life. The term “proselytize” means to induce someone to convert to one’s faith; to recruit someone to join one’s party, institution, or cause. All religions practice some sort of proselytizing. What sets each of these groups apart is how they go about it. Some religions are very low-key and discreet about sharing their faith with those outside their circles. While others are very forward, even demanding, and push their beliefs with ultimatums attached. I think we can distinguish a who’s who when we look around and pay a little attention. But, I’m not here to criticize or condemn. In actuality, I find that those who do live a particular religious lifestyle and proselytize others are often the ones most guilty of violating their own deity’s rules and guidelines!

I think the term I am looking for here is “hypocrisy”! When a particular set of instructions tell you to do A, B, and C, for example…and yet you ignore B, sometimes practice C, and feel that A doesn’t apply anymore to today’s culture, you have essentially told the author of the instructions that “you know a better way” or that His rules need a re-write, or something. To skip, re-define, alter, or ignore altogether, and yet tell others to “follow the instructions” is what is termed hypocritical. Not only do I see this prevalent in today’s social and governmental practices, but it permeates every fiber of religious institutions that claim themselves to be in the “right.” When it comes to the Word of God contained within the pages of the Scriptures, the Bible, the world has long been teetering at the edge of destruction for its disregard of God’s Words. I don’t mean to say that everyone on the planet is either thumbing their nose at the Bible or that absolutely no one even believes in the Elohim of Scriptures. We know that there are a number of folks who do claim to believe in the Bible or the words within. But…are they practicing what they preach?

History lesson: the nation of Israel came into existence because Adonai instructed Abram to “cross-over” to a new land, that his offspring would spawn a new nation, and that nation would be instructed by God above through His words as to how they are to live and be “set apart”, Holy, so as to be a light, a beacon, to all the other nations of the planet and to point us all to the one true God…YHWH Adonai. Simple. Though this process has taken millennia, it is all within God’s plans. The people of Israel though, like you and I often when it comes to following laws and rules, didn’t always follow the “instructions” that were laid out for them. Many times they strayed, wandered, complained, altered, and even disregarded the rules, so to speak. And, like children who violate the rules, punishments were handed out from their Father above. God would use various nations surrounding the Israelites to wreck havoc on the people because of their grievous defiance to follow Adonai’s instructions. In God’s patience, he always allowed time for His children to repent of their ways and to correct their path, and yet, after a period of time, punishment would eventually be given out. The problem is timing. Many think that if they do something bad and don’t see a negative response to their actions right away that they “got away with it” and there is no consequence for their crime. The Israelites were often warned by the prophets or events to turn back to God and repent. But if nothing happened right away, most would just keep on doing what they were doing.

The United States as well as most of the countries of the western world have all claimed themselves to be “Godly” nations…formed under the banner of being Christian in foundation. And yet, like the nation of Israel throughout history, their walk does not match their talk. In other words, the claims of origin they say they hold true to are yet very different than their actions today. If we hold that the Scriptures are the Words of God, and believe that it is important to follow them…and yet walk a completely different walk in actuality…then we are hypocrites and lying to ourselves and God. Now…I know…there are many who will say “but no one is perfect and can follow everything in the Bible” to which I will agree. Many will even say that “we are under grace and are allowed to deviate and falter.” Again, to some degree, true. But in the same breath you cannot just pick and choose what to follow and what not to follow because grace abounds. His commands are not “let’s see how close you can get.” So many folks have this mentality that if you’re somewhat close and it appears that your trying, that it will all work out in the end anyway. But truly following God and His commands isn’t like horseshoes or hand grenades. Getting it “somewhere in the ballpark” is not obeying the Word of God. And, He doesn’t give prizes out to second place. Remember the words hot, cold, lukewarm?

If you look at chapters 40 through 48 of Ezekiel, you see something very intriguing about God’s words to the prophet regarding the coming millennial reign of Yeshua and the new temple. The author hears the words “and he measured” countless times when describing the dimensions of every wall, gate, doorway, room, and courtyard of the temple. He also spells out very specific details of the sacrifices and offerings and how the attendants are to conduct themselves. What this shows is that God doesn’t generalize. He is very specific and very detailed about what He expects! If God is going to spell out these things with such detail…His commands, instructions, His Torah to the people that He says are applicable and to be followed, not only in the time before, but also the time to come…than you would think that we all would want to make sure that we are following every word, jot, and tittle that He says! Now, I don’t purport to know exactly how and when the temple will be in the future, but for this writing the point is in the details that God above delivers to the people. He gives specifics that are obviously important enough to Him that He wants us to know! Which means that even in the future, before heaven and earth pass away, that “not a jot or tittle will pass from the law, till all is fulfilled.” (Matthew 5:18) Thus…His Torah is still intact!

So, punishment? Well, we know from history and His Word that the children of Israel were often in turmoil and even run out of their land because of improprieties with following the commands (Torah). And as Israel continued their downward slide into disfavor with God by taking foreign idols, following and worshiping pagan ways, and incorporating additional customs and practices into the commands of God, so has the many “christian nations” around the world. They have not only defiled the Word of God by twisting, adding, and/or subtracting commands and instructions, but they have even added numerous pagan practices to their worship and created idols. All this is testing and provoking God to anger by our constant defying of His Words of instruction to the World through Israel. And now? Now we are starting to see the rise of other nations coming against not only Israel (more so now than ever), but we are seeing very anti-Jewish, anti-Christian, anti-Messiah groups rising up from outside and within the borders of the so-called free Christian-based nations.

As anti-semitism and violence erupt more and more from people who have invaded these western nations through immigration and border crossings, all with the sole intent of pushing their anti-Biblical agendas, we see how the hand of God is in play. After all, He puts leaders into power and He also removes leaders from power, all to enact His plans and will. He stirred the Babylonians and Assyrians over time to each take captive the people of Israel and Judah because of their flagrant disregard of Torah. Israel has never had rest from outside forces simply because they disobeyed. And now, centuries later, the goyim, the gentile nations, that have seemingly embraced the God of Israel, have also, like the Israelites, continued with their disregard of His commands and instructions. God didn’t write a variety pack of rules and regulations for various groups and cultures. Nor did He put in various clauses and contingencies that allowed these folks to ignore those portions and the other folks to abide by the first half of the rules, but not the second. Nor did He throw up His hands in defeat and start from scratch a new set of instructions for the people on earth because they didn’t obey the first set! If God is the same yesterday, today, and forever…if His Word stands forever…if it is written from Genesis to Revelation by a variety of inspired Godly men that we are to keep His commandments…then who are we to thumb our noses at God and do our own thing?

Just because God hasn’t immediately punished the many nations who claim themselves followers, and yet live life their way, doesn’t mean that it isn’t going to ever happen. We can say that we are in the end times, but that doesn’t mean that things get easier. In fact, our end times might be to the degree (or worse) than the Israelites suffered at the hands of other nations. We in the US of A might think that we are immune to many things, but one thing we are not is the hand of God punishing us for altering and changing and even disregarding His Word! You might run a stop sign 50 times and not get in trouble, but eventually you will have to face the consequences of your actions. God’s grace and mercy is beyond anything we deserve, and yet we continue to test Him which will only result in punishment. God is a jealous God who commands and demands that we follow His instructions, His Torah. Just doing some of it is akin to just following some of the traffic laws. All laws are to be followed, not just what you feel like. All commands have been given to all people of the earth, not some to this group and some to that group. ALL COMMANDS to ALL PEOPLE.

People say that Torah is not in the New Testament, that Christ did away with the law. Yet, how do you account for the fact that He, and His disciples, and Paul all kept the Torah completely…up to their deaths? If we are to emulate the Messiah, then shouldn’t we do as he asked us when He said…”if you love me, keep my commandments.” His commands were those of His father above. His words are from His Scriptures, the TANAHK, our Old Testament. Yeshua/Jesus would often begin His answers to questions with the phrase “It is written,” followed by quotes from His Scriptures. When you read through Matthew, Mark, Luke and John…Yeshua not only emphasizes the Torah teachings to answer questions about holy living, but also explains how the Word of God’s prophecies point to Himself as being the Messiah. At least 16 times he quotes out of the Psalms! Countless times He speaks from Deuteronomy. Multiple prophetic books are spoken from by Yeshua. So, the New Testament is essentially the Torah explained! Messiah points us back to the Old Testament because that is where the Words and instructions of His Father, God above, are written. Yeshua simply wanted to make sure that we stripped away the extra-biblical instructions and rules and interpretations that man had attached, and keeps attaching, to His Father’s words!

The times are drawing close and the end times are going to be turbulent and crazy. We need not fear the ever increasing hostility toward those who hold onto their faith. Like Yeshua, like the apostles, we will be persecuted for His name’s sake, but, we have a hope, as promised in His Word! And, to avoid the wrath to come, it is important now, more than ever, to make sure that we are holding fast to His complete Word! It is written “Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations, and repays to their face those who hate him, by destroying them. He will not be slack with one who hates him. He will repay him to his face. You shall therefore be careful to do the commandment and the statutes and the rules that I command you today.” Deuteronomy 7:9-11.

Don’t go by what everyone else is doing or saying. If you love Him, you will keep all HIS commandments.

Amen

Rest Stops

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” ~Jesus (Matthew 11)

So…an invitation from Messiah. We are often invited to a variety of things throughout our lives. Whether it is to family events, work meetings, social gatherings, religious groups, or just the myriad of other settings where we are given the opportunity to participate with others, the invitation is the request to “go” and be part of something outside our normal day to day. Sometimes the invitation is tempting and exciting. Sometimes it is something that taxes our heart, soul and mind. There are times when the invitation is a blessing, while other times we view it as a curse. No matter the invitation, we are being called to do something.

I, for one, am not the most adventurous person these days when it comes to participating in gatherings. I’ve found that as I’ve grown into my “older” years that I tend to enjoy more quiet routines rather than I do large crowds. So when an invitation comes my way I always have to take a deep breath, gather my priorities, and respond accordingly, often outside of my comfort zone. But there are many times that I also find the invitation turns out to be a blessing in disguise. I may end up going somewhere and really enjoy myself. It may be that the gathering I attend turns out to be the very thing my soul needed! And yet there are those rare moments when you take an invitation in the light of “this should be fun” only to later realize that you will spend the next several days or weeks in regret of accepting the invite.

One thing I do notice most is the importance to take time out of our routines for the sake of others. If someone has offered you an invite, they obviously took the time to think of you…to request your presence…and that they value your time with them. You might not want to go, but it isn’t always about what you want now, is it? In life, we often have to do things for the benefit of others. This is what that whole ‘you shall love your neighbor as yourself’ concept is about that Jesus was telling the crowds when he was quoting the two greatest commandments given from God above. Obviously, if they are important to God, they should be important to us…right?

Yet, as humans, we can also get to a point of feeling over-burdened when we are bombarded with lots of invitations, or for the sake of clarity, demands on us that are being made quite regularly. Between work and family and social commitments, we can easily become overwhelmed with too many requests for our attention. Overloaded, we can reach a breaking point and a variety of responses or reactions can occur. Sometimes those reactions can be adverse and even have a negative affect on our mental, emotional, and even physical well being. From mood disorders, anxieties, depression, ulcers, and other potential ailments, being overwhelmed can take us out of the game, so to speak, and cause us to shut down. There has to be a balance. There has to be a lighter load.

When we drive our car a lot, we depend on it to daily keep us moving to the necessary destinations. In order to do that, we must maintain the engine and other mechanical parts by routine oil changes and tune ups, keeping good tires on it, and being attentive to other aspects of the vehicle. If we drive it hard and don’t take care of it, it could very well break down and that will cause even greater issues. The same goes for humans. If we don’t maintain our bodies, our minds, and even our spirits, we can neglect ourselves to the point where something breaks down and we are out of commission. We, like our vehicles, can only go so long, so far, without a break for rest and maintenance. Driving long distances, for example on a road trip, we often need to stop and fuel up, stretch our legs, rest our bodies and our cars. This is so important! If our minds cloud, our joints ache, the vehicle starts to make weird sounds, or gas levels get too low, we are going to be out of commission. Those rest stops along the highways and byways are there for a reason! We all need to take breaks!

The Jews in Jesus’ day were burdened. They were over taxed, over worked, and were being pulled in a multitude of directions by demands from not only the Romans, but also the various religious leaders of the day. These people were originally called by God above to keep the Torah, His instructions or commandments, that He gave Moses in the wilderness. That was it. Nothing more, nothing less. But the leaders of that time had added so many extra duties, rules, and other things, that it was near impossible to keep them all. They were so overwhelmed by all the demands from so many all around them that folks were at a breaking point. Like the overload of invitations and burdens, if they didn’t find relief, take time to maintain and rest, they would break down. Yeshua (Jesus), the Messiah, came to free them, and us, from that!

His first words were to “come” to Him. In order to fix a problem we need to go and get the remedy. It is a first-step action on our part. We are already laden with a burden, a yoke around our necks, that weighs us down and makes our daily walk difficult. And if we keep going the way we have been going and don’t get rest, don’t get some relief, don’t get the proper repairs needed, and lighten our load, we are going to break down! Yet, here, Messiah is telling us that He will exchange our heavy yoke for His, that His yoke is light compared to the demands and weight the world currently is laying on us. He is also offering us rest…in Him! He also says that we are to learn from Him. At this point He is telling the people that He came to turn us away from the world’s ways, from man’s ways, and point us back to God’s ways. That the world’s ways were the heavy burden and yoke! He tells us exactly what we need to know…from God Himself. He is giving us the freedom to walk away from man-made rules and simply follow God’s ways.

Can you imagine how you would feel if you were in a position that required you to do, for example, one hundred various tasks every day at work, but you discover that more than half of those tasks were not only unnecessary for the end result, but that they were also not even part of the original job description? Now, can you imagine how freeing it would be if you were to get a new boss that did away with all those extra, unnecessary duties? Well, that is what Messiah is telling the people, telling us. He is telling us it is ok to stop, rest, get rid of the unnecessary baggage and walk in the freedom that He offers us! He is not saying that we can sit back and do nothing. He’s not saying that we don’t need to follow God’s Torah, His commands. Nor is He giving us the green light to start living life and faith in any way we want to. No, He is telling us to cast aside the ways of man and follow Him…who, followed God’s instructions perfectly. This is an invitation that should not be a burden, but one that we can readily accept and be blessed by!

It’s ok to take breaks. We all need them. And what is more freeing is when we can lighten our loads so as to allow us a better life balance! We need those rest stops along the way on our journey. We need to take time for necessary preventative maintenance. And most of all, we need to put aside all the excess commands, demands, and baggage that gets in the way from our having a proper relationship with God above through His Son Yeshua (Jesus). When faith through God’s instructions (Torah) is muddled and clouded by the many added “ways and means” that man has heaped on over the centuries, people tend to become overwhelmed with superfluous things and the excess heavy load causes them to loose sight of God and His original Words. It was happening in the days of Jesus, and it is definitely happening in the world of “churchianity” today.

Folks, there are so many schools of thought and practices that people think are necessary to follow in order to properly worship and walk with Yahweh Adonai (our Lord God above), but are in fact all overflowing with unnecessary additional doctrines and decrees that man conceived and/or invented so as to fit their personal ideology of what they believe faith in God above should be. That is why there are so many faith practices and orders of religion existing out there. Jesus knew this when He said in Matthew 15 (quoting Isaiah 29) “These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and respect Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. But in vain do they worship Me, teaching as teachings commands of men.” This was happening back then, and it still happens today! And yet the Bible is very clear that there is only one way to the Father above, and that is through His Son Yeshua (Jesus) and His keeping of the law (or Torah) perfectly. The Bible also says clearly that we are to follow Him, copy Him, walk in His ways as His disciples! Are we following Jesus and His ways or are we following the rules, precepts, and doctrines of man?

“For, let this mind be in you which was also in Messiah Yeshua, who, being in the very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death – even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus (Yeshua) every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth, and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Messiah is master, to the glory of God the father. (Philippians 2:6-11)

I hope that it is obvious that there is the way of Christ Messiah and there are the ways that man has prescribed and defined when it comes to walking in the footsteps of Yeshua (Jesus). We cannot straddle the two worlds, because the two worlds are quite different (if you read the Scriptures). The yoke of men is quite confusing, burdensome, and often weighs down people to the point of giving up. The yoke of following Messiah is clearly spelled out and given in His Word. He helps us on that walk all the way and it brings us peace and joy and happiness! So, let us therefore walk in the freedom He has invited us to…by following Him! And “let us lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race set before us, looking to the Prince and Perfecter of our belief, Yeshua (Jesus)..”!

Amen