85 What must we do to obtain eternal lif

What must we do to obtain eternal life?

During the past year, we have had numerous requests from people interested in joining our small congregation here in Port Elizabeth. People are hungry for the word of Elohim and are seeking truth like never before. Many of them realize that they were taught ‘nothing but falsehood, futility and things of no profit’ by their fathers and the ministers of religion in their previous religious affiliations, in agreement with the prophecy by Jeremiah in Jeremiah 16: 19 about what would happen to returnees of the lost ten tribes, when they will begin to understand the distress in which the Israelites living in South Africa, the USA, the UK and other Israelite nations would find ourselves in during the last days, before our Messiah will come to rule us from Jerusalem.

We read the specific prophecy about how YHVH is slowly but surely getting us ready for a second exodus during the latter days from Jeremiah 16: 14 – 19, as follows: “Therefore behold, days are coming,” declares YHVH, “when it will no longer be said, ‘As YHVH lives, who brought up the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt,’ (15) but, ‘As YHVH lives, who brought up the sons of Israel from the land of the north and from all the countries where He had banished them.” For I will restore them to their own land which I gave to their fathers. (16) Behold, I am going to send for many fishermen,” declares YHVH, “and they will fish for them; and afterwards I shall send for many hunters, and they will hunt them from every mountain and every hill, and from the clefts of the rocks. (17) For My eyes are on all their ways; they are not hidden from My face, nor is their iniquity concealed from My eyes. (Since Elohim’s people are beginning to notice the trouble brewing in the world, but also here in South Africa, they are beginning to understand that we as a people need to get closer to our Creator, if we ultimately want to be saved alive.) (18) And I will first doubly repay their iniquity and their sin, because they have polluted My land; they have filled My inheritance with the carcasses of their detestable idols and with their abominations.” (However, we need to understand that we are being punished for our collective sins at present, and we seriously need to seek for Elohim with all our hearts {meaning our belief systems} and all our souls {the way we live our lives} as YHVH prophesied about us in Deuteronomy 4: 27 – 31[1].) (19) O YHVH, my strength and my stronghold, and my refuge in the day of distress, to Thee the nations (the Israelites who used to believe that they are nothing but Gentiles) will come from the ends of the earth and say, “Our fathers have inherited nothing but falsehood, futility and things of not profit.” Our heavenly Father YHVH is busy calling a remnant from the lost ten tribes to come out of the churches of the world to return to Him and His way, and to ultimately be reconciled with our Jewish Brothers, in order for Him to reestablish the commonwealth of Israel consisting of a remnant of both houses of Israel to facilitate the rebuilding the tabernacle of David which has fallen, and to bring about the Kingdom of Elohim over Israel.

However, returnees who are leaving the churches of the world as per Elohim’s instruction in Revelation 18: 4 & 5[2], need to make very sure that they are not deceived again to follow another counterfeit of the faith once delivered to the saints (meaning true believers), As Rav Jude warns us in Jude 3 & 4, saying: ‘Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. (4) For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our Elohim into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Rabbi, Yahshua Messiah.’ This is exactly what Yahshua warned those of us whom YHVH is calling from the churches of the world to return to the covenant relationship we made with Him, together with the house of Judah at Mount Sinai about, in Matthew 24: 4 & 5, saying: “See to it that no one misleads you. (5) For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will mislead many.” Even though there are two ways to eternal life[3], as YHVH also promised our father in the faith Abraham, we as returning Israelites from the lost ten tribes can only return to YHVH through Yahshua our Messiah, who as our kinsman redeemer who bought back the piece of the Promised Land which we lost because of idolatry and paid the penalty due to us for breaking His commandments, when we did not even know what sin was. Yes, our Jewish Brothers may attain eternal life by remaining loyal to Elohim and His Torah, as Yahshua explained to the Jewish man who asked Him this very question in Luke 10: 25, saying: “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” We read Yahshua’s answer to him in the discussion in verses 26 – 28, as follows: “What is written in the Law? How does it read to you?” (27) And he answered and said, “YOU SHALL LOVE YHVH YOUR ELOHIM WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND; AND YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.” (28) And He said to him, “You have answered correctly; DO THIS, AND YOU WILL LIVE.” For our Jewish Brothers who know what sin is because they remained loyal to Elohim and His Torah ever since Ezra and Nehemiah returned to the Promised Land, after their captivity by the king of Babylon for not keeping the land Sabbath, they only need to repent and return to full Torah observance every time they sin, and they will inherit eternal life. But, I hear some saying: ‘If this is true, why did Yahshua say that He is the door and no one can enter eternal life, but through Him.’ Those who ask questions like that need to remember the following three realities regarding our Jewish Brothers:

According to Romans 11: 25 – 29 YHVH blinded their minds to the identity of Yahshua the Messiah, until the pre-determined number of Israelites who used to believe that they are Gentiles, including some real Gentiles have come in, then He will save all Israel from both houses, as follows: ‘For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery, lest you be wise in your own estimation, that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; (26) and thus all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, “THE DELIVERER WILL COME FROM ZION (meaning Yahshua Messiah as a Jew by birth), HE WILL REMOVE UNGODLINESS FROM JACOB. (27) AND THIS IS MY COVENANT WITH THEM, WHEN I TAKE AWAY THEIR SINS.” (28) From the standpoint of the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but from the standpoint of Elohim’s choice they are beloved for the sake of the fathers; (29) for the gifts and the calling of Elohim are irrevocable.’
Yahshua’s death atoned for both our Jewish Brothers and for the lost ten tribes, scattered abroad, as witnessed in John 11: 49 – 52, in this way: ‘But a certain one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all, (50) nor do you take into account that it is expedient for you that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation should not perish.” (51) Now this he did not say on his own initiative; but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Yahshua was going to die for the nation (of Judah), (52) and not for the nation only, but that He might also gather together into one the children of Elohim who are scattered abroad (meaning the lost sheep of the house of Israel).’
When Messiah returns one day on Yom Teruah, He is going to save the tents of Judah first, as described in Zechariah 12: 7 – 10, as follows: “YHVH also will save the tents of Judah first in order that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem may not be magnified above Judah. (8) In that day YHVH will defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the one who is feeble among them in that day will be like David, and the house of David will be like Elohim, like the angel of YHVH before them. (9) And it will come about in that day that I will set about to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem (10) And I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace (by which we, including our Jewish Brothers are saved) and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him, like the bitter weeping over a first-born.”

Let’s now look at what the Scriptures reveal about this important subject, for us who are returning from the churches of the world. Notice Yahshua’s own words in this regard in John 6: 44, saying: “No one can come to Me, unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day.” Clearly, our returning to Elohim is a process that He initiates, and it is up to us to accept or reject His way when offered to us. If we accept Elohim’s way, we have a specific route that we have to follow, and no other way will ensure our salvation. We read Rav Kepha’s instructions specifically aimed at the house of Israel in Acts 2: 36 – 39, in this way: “Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that Elohim has made Him both Master and Messiah—this Yahshua whom you crucified.” (37) Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Kepha and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?” (38) And Kepha said to them, “Repent, and let each of you be immersed in the name of Yahshua Messiah for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Set-apart Spirit. (39) For the promise (to return to YHVH through Messiah Yahshua) is for you and your children, and for all who are far off[4], as many as YHVH our Elohim shall call to Himself.” The last part of verse 39 shows clearly that we should only immerse returnees from the house of Israel whom Elohim shall call during this age, and not Jews, or people like our friends and family whom we would like to convert. YHVH gives those Israelites who are immersed into Yahshua’s saving name a portion of His Set-apart Spirit, thus empowering them to understand His word and the teachings they receive from a teacher who have gone through the same discipleship program Yahshua’s first disciples went through.

Immersion represents the most significant commitment a believer can make in this life. Immersion, as it is explained in the Scriptures, is a lot more than joining a local church on the street corner, and it is definitely not a ceremony for infants. It signifies a decision made by a mature individual, who only after careful consideration will request to be immersed into Messiah’s saving name. Yahshua aptly warned anyone who wants to follow Him in Luke 14: 26 – 33, saying: “If anyone comes to Me, and does hate (in comparison to his love for Messiah) his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. (27) Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. (28) For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost, to see if he has enough to complete it? (29) Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation, and is not able to finish, all who observe it begin to ridicule him, (30) saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ (31) Or what king, when he sets out to meet another king in battle, will not first sit down and take counsel whether he is strong enough with ten thousand men to encounter the one coming against him with twenty thousand? (32) Or else, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks terms of peace. (33) So therefore, no one of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions.” This is telling us that we must be prepared to give up everything we have, if we truly want to follow Elohim. We need not hate our family, but they should come second after YHVH – He must be the controlling factor in our lives, since only that will be worth something in the Kingdom of Elohim. Immersion is an act symbolizing a major step on a narrow, lonely road.

Once Elohim calls us, the very first step in our walk with Him is to repent of our past Torah breaking and to return to becoming obedient to His Torah teachings once again, as witnessed in 2 Peter 3: 9, as follows: ‘YHVH is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.’ But, before this could happen, Elohim in His mercy begins to lead us to repentance as recorded in Romans 2: 4, in this way: ‘Or do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that the kindness of Elohim leads you to repentance? But what does it mean to repent? According to the Scriptures repentance is the profound realization of our sins, resulting in sorrow that leads us to change our thoughts and actions, as Rav Shaul wrote in 2 Corinthians 7: 10, saying: ‘For the sorrow that is according to the will of Elohim produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation; but the sorrow of the world produces death.’ The sorrow that Elohim requires of us allows us to see how totally corrupt we as humans are and causes us to place our hope in Him as opposed to worldly sorrow which is superficial and produces no real permanent change in us. Repentance in the Hebrew sense is transliterated as ‘Teshuvah’ meaning that we stop breaking Elohim’s commandments and return to full Torah observance once again. We need to understand that sin is the transgression of the Law as defined in 1 John 3: 4, in this way: ‘Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness.’ Many in especially the churches of the world claim to Love G-d (the one we refer to as Elohim), but also rejects His Torah, since they believe that J*e*s*u*s* has somehow fulfilled it for them. The question is; to what law was Yochanan referring in the quoted verse above? Yochanan clarifies this for us in 1 John 5: 2 & 3, saying: ‘By this we know that we love the children of Elohim, when we love Elohim and observe His commandments. (4) For this is the love of Elohim, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.’ We should be very concerned about transgressing Elohim’s laws, because our eternal life is at stake. We readily see sins like murder, theft and adultery, but we from the lost ten tribes were never aware of the fact that keeping Xmas, Easter and attending worship services on Sundays instead of on Elohim’s annual and weekly Sabbaths as given in Leviticus 23 and Deuteronomy 16, are all breaking Elohim’s Torah commandments. But so is the eating of unclean meats such as pork, crayfish, oysters and calamari, all declared as unfit for human consumption in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14, and an abomination to YHVH. Even though we confessed faith in G-d and His Messiah, we never proved our faith by our actions, like Abraham did. It is because we have forgotten that we are Israelites and assumed that we are nothing but Gentiles, that Christianity (Esau) could deceive us to contradict everything the Word of YHVH tell us to do. But it is also for this reason that we need to return to YHVH through Abraham’s one seed Yahshua, before we are reconciled with our heavenly Father (transliterated as ‘Avinu Sheba’shamayim’ in Hebrew).

In our case as returnees from the lost ten tribes, repentance can be described as a personal expression of deep and heartfelt surrender to Elohim, as a result of recognizing and acknowledging what Yahshua as our personal Savior and Passover did to reconcile us to the Father, as Rav Shaul wrote in Ephesians 2: 11 – 16, saying: ‘Therefore remember, that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called “Un-circumcision” by the so-called “Circumcision,” which is performed in the flesh by human hands— (12) remember that you were at that time separate from Messiah, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants (made to Abraham and David) of promise, having no hope and without Elohim in the world. (13) But now in Messiah Yahshua you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Messiah. (14) For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one, and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall, (15) by abolishing in His flesh the enmity (the punishment of the Law due to us for breaking Elohim’s commandments), which is the Law of commandments contained in ordinances (or judgments payable for breaking the commandments and statutes), that in Himself He might make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace, (16) and might reconcile them both in one body (the congregation of YHVH or body of Messiah) to Elohim through the cross, by having put to death the enmity.’ The point is that we need a portion of the Set-apart Spirit to dwell in us if we want to inherit eternal life, as Rav Shaul told the Nazarene Israelite congregation in Rome in Romans 8: 9 - 11, saying: ‘However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of Elohim dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Messiah, he does not belong to Him. (10) And if Messiah is in you though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness. (11) But if the Spirit of Him who raised Yahshua from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Messiah Yahshua from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who indwells you.’ Rav Yaa’cov confirmed this in James 2: 26, saying: ‘For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.’ Even so, we need to understand that repentance is a miracle and that is impossible for anyone, acting alone, to completely surrender his/her will to Elohim. That is why Elohim grants us repentance, as witnessed in Acts 11: 18, in this way: ‘And when they heard this, they quieted down, and glorified Elohim, saying, “Well then, Elohim has granted to the Gentiles also the repentance that leads to life.” Even though YHVH desires all men to be saved (as per 1 Timothy 2: 4), He never forces anyone to repent.

Elohim is not unsympathetic, even though He knows we are sinners, but He does require that we surrender our will to Him. He expects us to align our lives with His will and way as revealed in the Scriptures. He wants us to get rid of our former ways of thinking and become ‘a new man’ in attitude, thought and character, as we read from Ephesians 4: 22 - 24, as follows: ‘That, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, (23) and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, (24) and put on the new self, which in the likeness of Elohim has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.’ These warnings mean a lifetime of growth and change for the better, starting with repentance, before immersion. Elohim’s mercy is so great that he will forgive us, if we forsake our old sinful ways and thoughts, as He promised through the Prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 55: 7 & 8, in this way: ‘Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return to YHVH, and He will have compassion on him; and to our Elohim, for He will abundantly pardon. (8) For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways.” declares YHVH.’ This applies to our Jewish brothers who are fully aware what sin is, but also to us, after we have returned to Elohim through Yahshua our personal Passover and are beginning to learn His Torah teachings once again. The question is; how can we learn to think like our heavenly Father? Elohim reveals His thoughts and mind to us through His Word, the Scriptures. Rav Shaul tells us to study Torah on an annual basis in order to learn what we should and should not do after we are immersed into Yahshua’s saving name, 1 Corinthians 10: 1 – 12, saying: ‘For I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, (2) and all were immersed into Moses in the cloud and in the sea; (3) and all ate the same spiritual food; (4) and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Messiah. (5) Nevertheless, with most of them Elohim was not well-pleased; for they were laid low in the wilderness. (6) Now these things happened as examples for us, that we should not crave evil things, as they also craved. (7) And do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written, “THE PEOPLE SAT DOWN TO EAT AND DRINK, AND STOOD UP TO PLAY.” (This is quoted from Exodus 6 at the incident of the golden calve, when Aaron proclaimed ‘a Feast to YHVH’ not ordained by YHVH, similar to what Christianity does when they keep Xmas and have a party on the so-called birthday of Messiah, during which they also eat and drink and play.) (8) Nor let us act immorally, as some of them did, and twenty three thousand fell in one day. (9) Nor let us try Adonai, as some of them did, and were destroyed by the serpents. (10) Nor grumble, as some of them did, and were destroyed by the destroyer. (11) Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. (12) Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.” Without studying the Torah annually, we will quickly forget the things that happened to our forefathers and what Elohim require of us and we might fall into the same traps our forefathers did and lose out on eternal life.

Now, let’s briefly discuss how we as Nazarene Israelites should be immersed to receive the Set-apart Spirit. Those of us who wish to embark upon the road that leads to eternal life, must understand and take part in two ceremonies, namely immersion in water and the laying on of hands, to receive the Set-apart Spirit as a deposit to our inheritance, as Rav Shaul explains in Ephesians 1: 13 & 14, saying: ‘In Him (meaning Yahshua), you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Set-apart Spirit of promise, (14) who is given as a pledge (or deposit) of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of Elohim’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.’ The word baptize is derived from the Greek word ‘baptizo’, meaning to dip or immerse completely in a body of water. Immersion symbolizes our death and burial, and rising out of the waters of immersion symbolizes a resurrection to a new life in Messiah as described in Romans 6: 3 – 5. Our immersion symbolizes our being united with Messiah in death, as well as our own death and burial, as witnessed in verses 3 & 4 of Romans 6, as follows: ‘Or do you not know that all of us who have been immersed into Messiah Yahshua have been immersed into His death? (4) Therefore we have been buried with Him through immersion into death, in order that as Messiah was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.’ We see from verses 5 - 7 of Romans 6, ‘For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall be also in the likeness of His resurrection, (6) knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, that our body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin; (7) for he who has died is freed from sin.’ We from the lost ten tribes who are returning to Elohim through Abraham’s one seed Yahshua, have been redeemed from enslavement to sin by the sacrifice of Yahshua, as recorded in 1 Peter 1: 17 - 19, in this way: ‘And if you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each man’s work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay upon earth; (18) knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, (19) but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Messiah.’ Rav Shaul admonish the teachers among us to remain on guard in Acts 20: 28, saying: “Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Set-apart Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the congregation of Elohim which He purchased with His own blood.” Since we have been purchased by Elohim, we now belong to Him, as Rav Shaul explains in 1 Corinthians 6: 20, saying: ‘For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify Elohim in your body.’

Our new way of thinking should bear the fruit of the Spirit described in Galatians 5: 22 & 23, as follows: ‘But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, (23) gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no (punishment in the) law.’ Immersion not only pictures death to sin, but also our being resurrected to a new life in Messiah. Once we are immersed we must have hands laid on us, by a teaching elder, at which time Elohim gives us a portion of His Set-apart Spirit as a deposit to eternal life, as confirmed in 2 Corinthians 1: 21 & 22, in this way: ‘Now He who establishes us with you in Messiah and anointed us is Elohim, (22) who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge.’ Our new life puts us on the road that eventually leads to eternal life and our entrance into the Kingdom of Elohim when we are resurrected or changed at Messiah’s return, as Rav Shaul explained in 1 Corinthians 15: 50 - 52, saying: ‘Now I say this, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of Elohim; nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. (51) Behold, I tell you a mystery: we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, (52) in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.’ Rav Yochanan adds to this in 1 John 3: 2, saying: ‘Beloved, now we are children of Elohim, and it has not appeared as yet what we shall be. We know that, when He appears, we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him just as He is.’ The next step on the way to eternal life is the receiving of Elohim’s Set-apart Spirit, which is given through the laying on of hands, as described in Hebrews 6: 2, as follows: ‘Of Instruction about washings, and laying on of hands, and the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.’

The Scriptures clearly show that our immersion into water must be followed by the laying on of hands, in order for us to receive the Set-apart Spirit, as described in Acts 8: 12 & 14 – 17, in this way: ‘But when they believed Philip preaching the good news about the kingdom of Elohim and the name of Yahshua Messiah, they were being immersed, men and women alike. (14) Now when the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of Elohim, they sent them Kepha and Yochanan, (15) who came down and prayed for them, that they might receive the Set-apart Spirit. (16) For He had not yet fallen upon any of them; they had simply been immersed in the name of the Master Yahshua. (17) Then they began laying their hands on them, and they were receiving the Set-apart Spirit.’ We need the same Set-apart Spirit that led us to repentance, to work in us to help us overcome all our sins and shortcomings. We are immersed in Yahshua’s saving name because Yahshua told us in John 14: 16, 17 & 26, saying: “And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; (17) that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not behold Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you, and will be in you. (26) But the Helper, the Set-apart Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” Overcoming our habitual sin, that so besets us does not happen instantly. It is a lifelong process involving great effort. Once we have a portion of the Set-apart Spirit indwelling us, YHVH will slowly but surely open our minds to understand the Scriptures, through the help of a teacher who have gone through the same Discipleship program Messiah’s disciples went through.

It is for this reason that Yahshua commissioned his disciples (including us His modern day disciples) saying in Matthew 28: 18 -20: “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. (19) Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, immersing them in the (saving) name of the Father and the Son and the Set-apart Spirit, (20) teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’ The reason that we have to go to all nations is because the lost ten tribes of Israel were scattered into all the nations of the world, and to be able to reach them, we have to virtually travel throughout the world to teach them the good news about the coming kingdom of Elohim. This is also in accordance with the instruction Yahshua gave His disciples after He sent them out in Matthew 10: 5 – 7, saying: “Do not go in the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter any city of the Samaritans; (6) but rather go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. (7) And as you go, preach, saying ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Some people believe that once we are immersed into Yahshua’s saving name, Elohim takes over and we need not do anything any longer. Fact is Elohim expects us to resist sin and strive to make His Spirit an active part in our lives. It was for this reason that Rav Shaul urged Timothy in 2 Timothy 1: 6, saying: ‘And for this reason I remind you to kindle afresh the gift of Elohim which is in you through the laying on of my hands.’ Elohim’s Set-apart Spirit in us, helps us to change and begin producing the right fruits in our lives.

It is important for us to realize that we need to give Elohim credit for that fruit, as Rav Shaul explained in Philippians 3: 7 - 9, saying: ‘But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Messiah. (8) More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Messiah Yahshua my Master, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish in order that I may gain Messiah, (9) and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Messiah, the righteousness which comes from Elohim on the basis of faith.’ Once we are immersed we need to study the Scriptures under guidance of the teaching elder who immersed us, in order for us to grow in grace and knowledge, as Rav Kepha taught in 2 Peter 3: 17 & 18, saying: ‘You therefore, beloved, knowing this (talking about those who distort the letters of Rav Shaul and other Scriptures to their own destruction) beforehand, be on your guard lest, being carried away by the error of unprincipled men, you fall from your own steadfastness, (18) but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Master and Savior Yahshua Messiah. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amein.’ We need knowledge of the word of Elohim, so that we are not easily misled by the craftiness of unprincipled men, but also to grow in faith, since our faith is based on knowledge of the word of Elohim, to enable us to trust in the promises that YHVH made to us through our fathers in the faith, so much so that we become obedient to His teachings throughout the Scriptures.

The symbolic meaning of immersion is absolutely profound, as it signifies both forgiveness of sins and newness of life in Messiah, as Rav Shaul explained in Romans 5: 10, saying: ‘For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to Elohim through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. ’ Yes, we are saved by the life Messiah now lives in us as we aim to conform to His image, as Rav Shaul taught in Romans 8: 28 & 29, saying: ‘And we know that Elohim causes all things to work together for good to those who love Elohim, to those who are called according to His purpose. (29) For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the first-born among many brethren.’ Baruch HaShem YHVH!

[1] Deuteronomy 4: 27 – 31: “And YHVH will scatter you among the peoples, and you shall be left few in number among the nations, where YHVH shall drive you. And There you will serve gods, the work of man’s hands, wood and stone (images of a man wearing a thorn crown on a cross), which neither see nor hear nor eat nor smell. But from there you will seek YHVH your Elohim, and you will find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and all your soul. When you are in distress and all these things have come upon you, in the latter days, you will return to YHVH your Elohim and listen to His voice. For YHVH your Elohim is a compassionate Elohim; He will not fail you nor destroy you nor forget the covenant with your fathers which He swore to them.”

[2] Revelation 18: 4 & 5 : ‘And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, “Come out of her, my people, that you may not participate in her sins and that you may not receive of her plagues; for her sins have piled up as high as heaven, and Elohim has remembered her iniquities.”

[3]YHVH made a twofold promise to Abraham in Genesis 17, telling him that he and his descendants through Isaac and Jacob will inherit eternal life in the Promised Land, provided they remain obedient to Him and His Torah throughout their lives, but also that they circumcise their male children at the age of eight days old, as a sign to this everlasting covenant. The second part of the promise that YHVH made to Abraham was that He would bring a remnant of those from the house of Israel whom He will scatter into the nations of the world because of idolatry, back to the covenant relationship they made with YHVH, together with the house of Judah at Mount Sinai, through Abraham’s one seed, namely: Yahshua Messiah, through whom He will also eventually save the rest of mankind, after the second resurrection.’

[4] The phrase ‘far off’ is how the prophet Daniel described the house of Israel in Daniel 9: 7, saying: “Righteousness belongs to Thee, O Adonai, but to us open shame, as it is this day—to the men of Judah, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and all Israel, those who are nearby and those who are far away in all the countries to which Thou hast driven them, because of their unfaithful deeds which they have committed against Thee.”