242 Obedience | nazareneisrael2house

Obedience.

We live at a time during which lawlessness and disobedience is the order of the day. Things have changed drastically over the past thirty to forty years and older folks like me remember a time when people had respect for authority. But somehow that has changed due to the mindset of modern society, where no one is allowed to give disobedient children a good spanking any longer. Similarly criminals continue to rape and murder because the punishment meted out to them by the law courts is limited, as they are required to take the human rights of such perpetrators into account. As a result criminals are no longer punished proportionate to their crimes. Murderers and rapists are not allowed to be executed in countries like South Africa and many are permitted back into society after only a few years in prison. Instead of learning from their incarceration most of them go right back to committing the same crime as soon as they are released. This past weekend alone there were 47 murders in Cape Town, with members of the army deployed to assist police in parts of the Cape Flats plagued by crime, gangs and drugs. Today, by the time children are ready to go to the first grade, most have seen numerous animated movies where people are either chased or killed by monsters. They play video games and watch animated TV shows especially made for children, which in our days could not be aired because of the violent natures of such games and movies. Somehow, young children are not scared by such movies any longer. We as grown-ups have become even more de-sensitized to violent movies and TV shows. We see hundreds of people being killed in movies and TV shows annually, without even batting an eyelid. This only worsened mankind’s rebellious attitude and lack of fear.

We are actually warned by Rav Shaul that this will happen during the latter days in 2 Timothy 3: 1 – 5, as follows: ‘But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. (2) For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, (3) unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, (4) treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of Elohim; (5) holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; and avoid such men as these.’ No right thinking person alive will disagree that we are in fact living during the days described in the above passage. Since the late 1980’s the universities in United States and Britton have been churning out liberal student who changed the face of society where things unheard of a number of years ago have become the order of the day. As a result it has become illegal to publish the ten commandments or open meetings with prayer and despite knowing Elohim or about Him, people do not honor or give thanks to Him any longer and became futile in their speculations about His existence as witnessed by Rav Shaul in Romans 1: 21, saying: ‘and their foolish heart was darkened.’ Continuing in Romans 1: 22 – 32 we see almost as a prophecy how our society has changed over the past number of years, in this way: ‘Professing to be wise, they became fools, (23) and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible Elohim for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures. (24) Therefore Elohim gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, that their bodies might be dishonored among them. (25) For they exchanged the truth of Elohim for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amein. (26) For this reason Elohim gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, (27) and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error. (28) And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge Elohim any longer, Elohim gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, (29) being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips, (30) slanderers, haters of Elohim, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, (31) without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful; (32) and, although they know the ordinance of Elohim, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.’ From reading recent newspapers we know from articles published by some of the churches in South Africa that what we are warned about in verse 32 is in fact happening in amongst the most conservative Christian churches here, but also in most so-called Christian countries.

The Scriptures repeatedly state how we show our love to Elohim; and it is definitely not acceptable to just know and feel in your heart that you love Him, the way some in the biggest group of believers in G-d say they do. Elohim created mankind to have a loving relationship with Him and reveals Himself to those of us who love Him as our heavenly Father. Rav Shaul wrote in detail how those of us from the lost sheep of the house of Israel who have returned to Elohim through Abraham’s one seed Yahshua should conduct our lives in 2 Timothy 2: 2 – 19, saying: ‘And the things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, these entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also. (3) Suffer hardship with me, as a good soldier of Messiah Yahshua. (4) No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier. (5) And also if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not win the prize unless he competes according to the rules. (6) The hard-working farmer ought to be the first to receive his share of the crops. (7) Consider what I say, for the Master will give you understanding in everything. (8) Remember Yahshua Messiah, risen from the dead, descendant of David, according to my gospel, (9) for which I suffer hardship even to imprisonment as a criminal; but the word of Elohim is not imprisoned. (10) For this reason I endure all things for the sake of those who are chosen, that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Messiah Yahshua and with it eternal glory. (11) It is a trustworthy statement: For if we died with Him, we shall also live with Him; (12) if we endure, we shall also reign with Him; if we deny (or contradict) Him, He also will deny us; (13) if we are faithless, He remains faithful; for He cannot deny Himself. (14) Remind them of these things, and solemnly charge them in the presence of Elohim not to wrangle about words, which is useless and leads to the ruin of the hearers. (15) Be diligent to present yourself approved to Elohim as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth. (16) But avoid worldly and empty chatter, for it will lead to further ungodliness, (17) and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, (18) men who have gone astray from the truth saying the resurrection has already taken place, and thus they upset the faith of some. (19) Nevertheless, the firm foundation of Elohim stands, having this seal, “Adonai knows those who are His,” and “Let anyone who names the name of Adonai abstain from wickedness.”’

We also need to recall that when Yahshua was on earth He taught His disciples a model prayer known in English as the ‘Our Father’ which is transliterated in Hebrew as ‘Avinu’. The title Avinu is reserved for our heavenly Father only, since the title for our earthly fathers, transliterated in Hebrew would simply be ‘Abba’. It is for this reason that Jewish people disapprove of the way that some refers to YHVH as our Abba instead of Avinu. Obedience is a main component of true faithfulness in the way of Elohim and YHVH our Elohim is not interested in our offerings and sacrifices, since everything belongs to Him anyway. As Israelites YHVH tells us through Moses in Deuteronomy 10: 12 & 13 saying: “And now, Israel, what does YHVH your Elohim require from you, but to fear YHVH your Elohim, to walk in all His ways and love Him, and to serve YHVH your Elohim with all your heart and with all your soul, (13) and to keep (YHVH)’s commandments and His statutes which I am commanding you today for your good?” Similarly, when you ask any parent how they know their children love them, they will tell you they know, because their children usually do what they tell them to. We read from Hebrews 2: 10 & 11, ‘For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things, and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to perfect the author of their salvation through sufferings. (11) For both He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified are all from one Father; for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren.’ Yes, YHVH is presently busy ‘bringing many sons to glory’ so that we will eventually be of the same family.

Many people who confess faith in Messiah regard this close Elohim-mankind loving relationship, exclusively as a ‘New Testament’ idea and simultaneously believe the ‘Old Testament’ to be strictly a relationship of commandments and enforced obedience. However, if we truly know YHVH the Elohim of our fathers in the faith, we will understand that love and obedience are not two mutually exclusive concepts. When a certain lawyer asked Yahshua in Luke 10: 25, saying: “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” Yahshua answered in verse 26, saying to him: “What is written in the Law? How does it read to you?” Knowing the Torah, the lawyer quoted Deuteronomy 6: 5, saying (in verse 27): “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.’ Yahshua’s reply in verse 28 was: “You have answered correctly; DO THIS AND YOU WILL LIVE.” So, it is clear, if we want to inherit eternal life in the kingdom of Elohim as His children we must love Elohim. But what does that mean? One thing is certain, love is not only a fuzzy warm feeling toward Elohim, but it involves action. A perfect example showing how action is involved in love, is in the way Elohim has already proven His love for us as witnessed in John 3: 16 & 17, in this way: “For Elohim so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. (17) For Elohim did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world should be saved through Him.”

Even though love can be both a noun and a verb, it is clear from the above that love is shown by an action – something has to be done. If we love someone, we show our love by spending time with the one we love. We get to know the person better and try to do things that are pleasing to him/her. How do we know that we love Elohim? By getting to know Him; finding out from His word what is pleasing to Him and to obey Him as our loving Father. Elohim begins the Ten Commandments in both Exodus 20: 2 and Deuteronomy 5: 6, saying: ‘I am YHVH your Elohim, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.’ Here YHVH tells us that because of His love for the ancient nation of Israel, He freed them from slavery in Egypt to establish a new nation out of them. Elohim offered kindness to Israel, by doing something for them, which they did not earn. However, as with most lovers we also read from verses 7 - 10 of Deuteronomy 5, ‘You shall have no other gods before (or besides) Me. (8) You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. (9) You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, YHVH your Elohim, am a jealous Elohim, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, and on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, (10) but showing loving-kindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.’

Here we see a theme found throughout the Scriptures; that loving Elohim is clearly linked with obedience to His commandments. Elohim informs us that we show our love for Him by obedience to His Torah teachings. Yahshua our Messiah, who is the image of the invisible Elohim, told believers in Him the same thing in John 14: 15, saying: “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” Even though the exhortation is clear, there is a great deal of confusion regarding this verse. The confusion about this verse is not because Yahshua told believers to observe something, but it has to do with which commandments was He talking about here. Prophecies in the Tanach describe what will occur when Messiah returns to earth. YHVH described through the prophet Isaiah how Messiah will ensure that justice will return to the nations in Isaiah 42: 1, saying: “Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen one in whom My soul delights. I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations.” We read about the fantastic work that Yahshua came specifically to do for returning Israelites from the lost ten tribes as in verses 16 – 21, as follows: “And I will lead the blind by a way they do not know, in paths they do not know I will guide them. I will make darkness into light before them and rugged places into plains. These are the things I will do, and I will not leave them undone.” (17) They shall be turned back and be utterly put to shame, who trust in idols, who say to molten images, “You are our gods.” (18) Hear, you deaf! And look, you blind, that you may see. (19) Who is blind but My servant (note this is talking about a different servant to the One mentioned in verse 1, since this one is written using the lower case‘s’), or so deaf as My messenger whom I send? Who is so blind as he that is at peace with Me, or so blind as the servant of YHVH? (20) You have seen many things, but you do not observe them; your ears are open, but none hears. (21) YHVH was pleased for His righteousness’ sake to make the law great and glorious.' Yahshua had to come and do this simply because the house of Israel had adopted the wrong view of Elohim’s Torah and was not obeying it. He was prophesied to come and lead a remnant from the lost ten tribes, who were excluded from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants and promise, to reconcile us with Brother Judah and ultimately back to the Father as explained in Ephesians 2: 11 – 19. In addition He was prophesied to come specifically to magnify the Torah for those of us returning to the way of Elohim, so that in keeping it better than the scribes and Pharisees, we will make our Jewish Brothers jealous, as explained in Romans 11: 5 – 11, in this way: ‘In the same way then, there has also come to be at the present time a remnant according to Elohim’s gracious choice. (6) But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace. (7) What then? That which (Jewish) Israel is seeking for, it has not obtained, but those who were chosen obtained it, and the rest were hardened; (8) just as it is written, “ELOHIM GAVE THEM A SPIRIT OF STUPOR, EYES TO SEE NOT AND EARS TO HEAR NOT, DOWN TO THIS VERY DAY.” (9) And David says, “LET THEIR TABLE BECOME A SNARE AND A TRAP, AND A STUMBLING BLOCK AND A RETRIBUTION TO THEM. (10) LET THEIR EYES BE DARKENED TO SEE NOT, AND BEND THEIR BACKS FOREVER.” (11) I say then, they did not stumble so as to fall, did they? May it never be! But by their transgressions salvation has come to the Gentiles (called by Elohim’s name as confirmed in Acts 15: 17[1]), to make them jealous.

The prophet Ezekiel typifies the common view the house of Israel had of Elohim’s law in Ezekiel 18: 25, saying: “Yet you say, ‘The way of YHVH is not right.’ Hear now, O house of Israel! Is My way not right? Is it not your ways that are not right? YHVH continues to exhort the house of Israel to return in verses 26 – 32, saying through Ezekiel: “When a righteous man turns away from his righteousness, commits iniquity, and dies because of it, for his iniquity which he has committed he will die. (27) Again, when a wicked man turns away from his wickedness which he has committed and practices (do over a period of time) justice and righteousness (Torah), he will save his life. (28) Because he considered and turned away from all his transgressions which he had committed, he shall surely live; he shall not die. (29) But the house of Israel says, ‘The way of YHVH is not right.’ Are My ways not right, O house of Israel? Is it not your ways that are not right? (30) Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, each according to his conduct,” declares YHVH Elohim. “Repent and turn away from all your transgressions, so that iniquity may not become a stumbling block to you. (31) Cast away from you all your transgressions which you have committed, and make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! For why will you die, O house of Israel? (32) For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies, declares YHVH Elohim. “Therefore, repent and live.” Ezekiel writes about this conspiracy by the house of Israel’s wicked leaders in Ezekiel 22: 26, saying: “Her priests have done violence to My law and have profaned My holy things; they have made no distinction between the holy and the profane, and they have not taught the difference between the unclean and the clean; and they hide their eyes from My Sabbaths, and I am profaned among them.” Is this not exactly what they do in Christianity? Yet, there are those who try and defend what they do!

Elohim gave the prophets in the Tanach visions regarding Messiah’s ministry, but also how He will successfully accomplish this magnification process when He returns. Rav Shaul quoting from Jeremiah 31 wrote in Hebrews 8: 7 – 19, saying: ‘For if the first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion sought for a second. (8) For finding fault with them, He says, “BEHOLD, DAYS ARE COMING, SAYS YHVH, WHEN I WILL EFFECT A NEW COVENANT WITH THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL AND WITH THE HOUSE OF JUDAH; (9) NOT LIKE THE COVENANT WHICH I MADE WITH THEIR FATHERS ON THE DAY WHEN I TOOK THEM BY THE HAND TO LEAD THEM OUT OF THE LAND OF EGYPT; FOR THEY DID NOT CONTINUE IN MY COVENANT, AND I DID NOT CARE FOR THEM, SAYS YHVH. (10) FOR THIS IS THE COVENANT THAT IS WILL MAKE WITH THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL AFTER THOSE DAYS, SAYS YHVH: I WILL PUT MY LAWS INTO THEIR MINDS, AND I WILL WRITE THEM UPON THEIR HEARTS, AND I WILL BE THER ELOHIM, AND THEY SHALL BE MY PEOPLE.” From this we understand that YHVH regarded the covenant that He made with both houses of Israel at Mount Sinai, as a marriage covenant. Secondly, we notice that YHVH will make a new (marriage) covenant with both houses at Messiah’s return. However, we see from verse 33 that He will only write His Torah (as specified in Deuteronomy, which is essentially the renewed covenant) on the hearts of the house of Israel, since the Jews who remained faithful are already Torah observant and because He only gave the house of Israel a writ of divorce (as per Jeremiah 3: 8). But, we also know that Yahshua is already busy writing His Torah on the hearts of the remnant of the returning lost ten tribes, who repented and were suitably immersed into His saving name[2], and partake of His annual Passover – His blood ratified the new covenant (as He said in Luke 22: 20) similar to the way the blood of young bulls ratified the original covenant in Genesis 24: 5 – 8.

We see from Hebrews 8: 6 and 9: 15 that obedience to this new covenant, will result in better promises including eternal life, in this way: ‘But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, by as much as He is also the mediator of a better covenant, which has been enacted on better promises. (9: 15) And for this reason He is the mediator of a new covenant, in order that since a death has taken place for the redemption of the transgressions that were committed under the first covenant, those who have been called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.’ What is noteworthy here is that there is not a single scripture that states that the New Covenant is based on new laws. Rather, the New Covenant is based on the same laws that were given in the Tanach! However, also notice that the New Covenant is the availability of Elohim’s Set-apart Spirit, which enables us to understand the deeper spiritual intent of Elohim’s law and obey it. Elohim explains this through Ezekiel in chapter 36: 21 - 27, saying: “But I had concern for My holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the nations where they went. (22) Therefore, say to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says YHVH Elohim, “It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for My holy name, which you have profaned among the nations where you went. (23) And I will vindicate the holiness of My great name which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned in their midst, Then the nations will know that I am YHVH,” declares YHVH Elohim, "when I prove Myself holy among you in their sight. (24) For I will take you from the nations, gather you from all the lands, and bring you into your own land. (25) Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. (Note: It is the house of Israel who is prone to uncleanness due to eating unclean foods and fornication, as well as idol worship) (26) Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. (27) And I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.”

In His Sermon on the Mount Yahshua laid the foundation for separation of His followers from the lost ten tribes specifically, from the pagan ways they accepted over time from their neighbors. From the start of His ministry He introduced repentance as a fundamental shift in the direction of the theology of the day and so prevalent in society today, saying in Mark 1: 15, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of Elohim is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” What did Yahshua mean when He said ‘the kingdom of Elohim is at hand?’ Yes, we all know that when Yahshua returns one day in the now near future, He is going to establish Elohim’s Kingdom on earth, but He also meant that if we believe that the Kingdom of Elohim is at hand, we will start making YHVH King in our lives and make His rule of law applicable in our lives right now – not wait until Yahshua returns one day. Our Jewish Brothers have ever since their return from captivity in Babylon, started addressing YHVH as the King of the universe, commencing most of their prayers with the words: “Blessed are You, Adonai, our Elohim, King of the universe …” Yahshua in a similar way to the other Rabbis of His day, build hedges around Elohim’s commandments in Matthew 5,6 & 7 to teach His followers and especially those of us who are from the lost ten tribes that a mere letter-of-the-law approach with its focus on minimal standards are simply not acceptable. In Matthew 5: 17, Yahshua as the word of YHVH made flesh could perceive attitudes and it was for this reason that He said: “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill.” Even though the meaning of destroy is easy to understand, Yahshua’s use of the word ‘fulfill’ has been a source of confusion for many readers of the Scriptures. But, as Yahshua continued to teach in Matthew 5, He clarified what He meant by ‘fulfill’. The word ‘fulfill’ as used in verse 17 of Matthew 5, comes from the Greek word ‘pluperf’ meaning fill. Some believe this meant that Yahshua somehow fulfilled the need to keep the law for His followers, thus freeing them to obey it in the future. Because Churchianity teach that Yahshua abolished His Father’s strict commandments and introduced new commandments for His followers, some believe that when He told His disciples in the Sermon on the Mount (in Matthew 5 – 7) that He came to ‘fulfill’ the Torah and the prophets, He essentially did away with them. However, Messiah’s Sermon on the Mount was in fact His stricter way of interpreting Elohim’s Torah for the returning lost ten tribe believers in Him, than the way the scribes and the Pharisees interpreted the same. The reason for this was not because the interpretation of Jewish believers were too lax, but since returning Israelites need to keep a great deal closer to Elohim due to their proclivity to commit idolatry and their craving for unclean foods. Messiah’s comments on the Law and the Prophets are the higher standards that He expected from His followers from the lost ten tribes and laid the foundation for understanding His instructions to keep Elohim’s commandments, statutes and judgments.

It is also because of this belief that such people do not ever take the rest of what is written in the Tanach seriously and somehow neglect to understand or even read prophecies such as the one given by Isaiah in chapter 42: 21 (KJV), where he foretold that Yahshua ‘will magnify the law, and make it honorable.’ Even so, the remainder of Yahshua’s words in Matthew 5 clearly show that by using the word ‘fulfill’ he confirmed the meaning of Torah and made it more binding, by adding the necessary hedges required to keep the remnant of the lost ten tribes from missing the mark. In fact in Matthew 5: 21 – 48 we find the crux of the magnification of the law, filling up the meaning that Elohim intended from the beginning. Yahshua therefore concluded with the words: “Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” This means that we from the lost ten tribes need to follow Messiah’s way of obeying Torah in order to eventually conform to the image of Elohim. Notice some of the many examples that show the connection between love and obedience. We read from Deuteronomy 6: 5 & 6, YHVH saying: ‘And you shall love YHVH your Elohim with all your heart (belief system) and with all your soul (the way you live) and with all your might. (6) And these words, which I am commanding you today (refers to the commandment given in Deuteronomy 5), shall be on your heart.’ This is the verse quoted by the lawyer when he spoke to Messiah mentioned earlier. Continuing in Deuteronomy 11: 1, Moses says: “You shall therefore love YHVH your Elohim, and always keep His charge, His statutes, His ordinances, and His commandments.” The theme of loving Elohim by obeying His commandments are continued in verses 13 and 22, in this way: “And it shall come about, if you listen obediently to my commandments which I am commanding you today, to love YHVH your Elohim and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul. (22) For if you are careful to keep all this commandment which I am commanding you, to do it, to love YHVH your Elohim, to walk in all His ways and hold fast to Him.” From verse 22 we get to understand that we need to be careful to keep all the commandments – it takes conscious effort on our part to know that what we are doing conforms to what YHVH requires in Torah. We need to become aware of everything we do and say, to make sure that we live in accordance with (YHVH)’s requirements. If we become more aware of our every action and word in life; we will recognize the bad habits that we allowed to slip into our way of life and slowly but surely start replacing it with good habits.

Deuteronomy 13: 1 - 4 warns us about false prophets (and messiahs) who even if they are able to predict something to come to pass, or are able to perform miracles like healing the sick, if they say we need not obey Elohim’s Torah, then we as Elohim’s people should not pay attention to them. Elohim tells us in the last part of verse 3 that He uses such false prophets to prove and test us, ‘to find out if you love YHVH your Elohim with all your heart and with all your soul.’ It is no wonder that our Jewish Brothers reject the C*h*r*i*s*t* of Christianity, who believe he taught his followers that he came to abolish Torah. But, how then do we prove to Elohim that we love Him? We find the answer in verse 4 of Deuteronomy 13, as follows: “You shall follow YHVH your Elohim and fear Him; and you shall keep His commandments, listen to His voice, serve Him, and cling to Him.” The theme of love by obedience is continued in Deuteronomy 30: 6 & 8, in this way: “Moreover YHVH your Elohim will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love YHVH your Elohim with all your heart and with all your soul, in order that you may live. (8) And you shall again obey YHVH, and observe all His commandments which I command you today.” Circumcising the heart is also spoken about in Ezekiel 44 and means conversion of the mind by immersion as may be understood from Colossians 2: 11 & 12. We see in verses 7 & 9 of Ezekiel 44 that those men from the house of Israel who will become priests during the millennium will need to be circumcised in both the heart and the flesh. We see from the last part of Deuteronomy 30: 9 and verse 10, that: ‘YHVH will again rejoice over you for good, just as He rejoiced over your fathers; (10) if you obey YHVH your Elohim to keep His commandments and His statutes which are written in this book of the law, if you turn to YHVH your Elohim with all your heart and soul.’

Love is a two way street and should accordingly flow both ways. The reason why we are required to love Elohim is given in first John 4: 19, as follows: “We love, because He first loved us.” Rav Yochanan explained further in verses 9 – 11 of this chapter, saying: ‘By this the love of Elohim was manifested in us, that Elohim has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. (10) In this is love, not that we loved Elohim, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. (11) Beloved, if Elohim so loved us, we also ought to love one another.’ In fact Rav Yochanan defined love exactly the same way as it was defined in the Tanach, by stating in first John 5: 3, ‘For this is the love of Elohim, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.’ We see here that love requires action; we know that we love Elohim, if we obey His commandments! Think about it!

[1] Acts 15: 17, “IN ORDER THAT THE REST OF MANKIND MAY SEEK YHVH, AND ALL THE GENTILES WHO ARE CALLED BY MY NAME.”

[2] At Immersion we are betrothed to Messiah in that He set us apart for His use only and if we remain faithful to the end, He will remarry us as His bride at His return.