FAITH & LOVE [SW-28] - 12 December 2017 (From the desk of Celia Joy Martins)
The BEGINNING POINT OF FAITH is to KNOW WHO YAH (G-D) IS - TO REALLY REALLY REALLY KNOW HIM - to WALK IN AN INTIMATE RELATIONSHIP WITH HIM - to LIVE in HIS LOVE and to LOVE HIM - the CREATOR of our SOULS.
THE WORD OF GOD:
According to Scripture (1 John 2:3-5) - it is the ONE WHO TREASURES (cherishes, adores, values and OBEY) the WORD of YAH, the one who OBESERVES HIS MESSIAGE IN ITS ENTIRETY (ALL of MESSIAH'S TEACHINGS - ALL the COMMANDS/COMMANDMENTS - not only ONE OR TWO or THREE of the COMMANDMENTS - NO - ALL of it) - that HAS THE LOVE OF AND FOR GOD BEEN PERFECTED IN him, and that is the ONE WHO KNOWS FOR SURE that he/she is IN HIM - DWELLING IN Him - Him dwelling in him/her. (1 John 2:3-5 "And THIS is how we may discern DAILY by EXPERIENCE that we are COMING to KNOW HIM [to perceive, recognize, understand, and become better acquainted with Him]: IF WE KEEP (bear in mind, OBSERVE, PRACTICE) HIS TEACHINGS (PRECEPTS, COMMANDMENTS). WHOEVER SAYS, I KNOW HIM [I perceive, recognize, understand and am acquainted with Him] BUT FAILS TO KEEP AND OBEY HIS COMMANDMENTS (TEACHINGS) IS A LIAR, and the TRUTH IS NOT IN him. But HE WHO KEEPS (TREASURES) HIS WORD [who BEARS IN MIND HIS PRECEPTS, who OBSERVES HIS MESSAGE IN ITS ENTIRETY] TRULY IN HIM has the LOVE of and for God BEEN PERFECTED (COMPLETED, REACHED MATURITY). BY THIS we may PERCEIVE (KNOW, RECOGNIZE, and BE SURE) THAT WE ARE IN HIM.")
LOVE:
GOD IS LOVE: (1 John 4:8)
YHWH'S LOVE IS UNCONDITIONAL.
LOVE is not SOMETHING YAH CHOOSES to GIVE to US or to DO - it IS THE VERY ESSENCE OF WHO HE IS.
HIS HEART IS PURE LOVE -
LOVE MOTIVATES HIS EVERY ACTION -
LOVE REFLECTS HIS DESIRES -
LOVE DIRECTS HIS EVERY ACTIVITY -
IT IS A LOVE THAT NEVER FAILS (Ps. 52:8)
YAH'S LOVE ENDURES FOREVER (Ps. 106:1)
HIS LOVE IS UNCALCULATING (Prov. 30:5)
It is NOT MOTIVATED BY PERSONAL GAIN (1 John 3:16).
YAH'S LOVE for us does not mean that HE LOVES EVERYTHING we do - but rather means that HE LOVES EVERYONE the SAME.
THE other "SIDE" of LOVE:
The world's LOVE is a LOVE OF EGO and CONVENIENCE - it is CHEAP LOVE.
IT IS CONDITIONAL LOVE.
It has conditional sub-clauses attached to it - "AS LONG AS you do this or that" - It is a "As long as you "PLEASE" me love, and when you do not please me anymore, I don't love you anymore.
It is a love to BE EARNED.
It is a love to let "ME FEEL BETTER about MYSELF" and when you say something that disturbs my false peace - I don't love you anymore.
1 John 4:8 "He who does not love has not become acquainted with YHWH [DOES NOT AND NEVER DID KNOW Him], for GOD IS LOVE."
1 John 3:1 "See what GREAT LOVE the FATHER HAS LAVISHED ON US, that WE should be CALLED CHILDREN OF YHWH! AND THAT IS WHAT WE ARE! ..."
LOVE, HOPE AND FAITH:
1 Cor. 13:13 "And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love."
Rom. 13:10 "Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law"
FAITH WITHOUT LOVE IS DEAD:
Gal. 5:6 "... in Messiah ... the ONLY thing that COUNTS is FAITH EXPRESSING ITSELF through LOVE." (Faith is ACTIVATED AND ENERGIZED AND EXPRESSED through LOVE).
GENUINE FAITH is a THING OF LOVE -
FAITH is ACTIVATED AND ENERGIZED AND EXPRESSED AND WORKING THROUGH LOVE.
THE LOVE OF MESSIAH:
MESSIAH YAHSHUA SAYS in the GOSPEL of John:
John 14:15 "If you [REALLY] LOVE Me, you WILL KEEP (OBEY) My COMMANDS (commandments)."
John 14:23 "... IF a PERSON [REALLY] LOVES Me, HE WILL KEEP MY WORD [OBEY My TEACHING] and My FATHER will LOVE him, and WE WILL COME TO HIM AND MAKE OUR HOME (special DWELLING PLACE) IN him."
John 15:9-10 " I HAVE LOVED you [just] as the Father HAS LOVED Me; ABIDE IN MY LOVE [CONTINUE IN HIS LOVE with Me]. If YOU KEEP MY COMMANDMENTS [if you CONTINUE to OBEY My INSTRUCTIONS] YOU WILL ABIDE IN MY LOVE AND LOVE ON IT IT, just as I have OBEYED MY FATHER'S COMMANDMENTS and LIVE ON IN HIS LOVE"
WE NEED to OBEY HIM:
Now, if we are children of the LIVING YAH (G-D) we NEED to BE OBEDIENT to HIS WORD - DO WHAT IT SAYS - DO WHAT YAHSHUA SAID - KEEPING HIS COMMANDMENTS IN FULL - ALL OF IT.
THE TEN COMMANDMENTS:
Ex. 20:1 "Then YAH spoke all these words:
:2 I AM the Elohim (Lord) your YAH (God), who has brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the HOUSE OF BONDAGE. (We are today still in bondage - bondage through strongholds in our lives - addictions - jealousy - bitterness - hatred - religion - tradition - culture - anxiety - and many many other strongholds in our lives. The TIME IS NOW to LEAVE our EGYPT behind, and FOLLOW our MESSIAH in FULLNESS).
:3-6 YOU SHALL HAVE NO OTHER GODS BEFORE OR BESIDES ME. YOU SHALL NOT MAKE YOURSELF ANY GRAVEN IMAGE or ANY LIKENESS OF ANYTHING that is IN THE HEAVENS ABOVE, or that is IN THE EARTH BENEATH, or that is IN THE WATER UNDER the EARTH; YOU SHALL NOT BOW YOURSELF to them or SERVE them; for I the Elohim your Yah am a jealous God, visiting the INIQUITY of the FATHERS UPON the CHILDREN to the THIRD AND FOURTH GENERATION of those who hate Me, [Is. 42:8; 48:11], But showing MERCY and STEADFAST LOVE to a THOUSAND GENERATIONS of THOSE WHO LOVE ME AND KEEP MY COMMANDMENTS. (The key here to Abba's heart - to experience His mercy and loving kindness - is LOVING HIM and KEEPING and OBEYING HIS COMMANDMENTS - and if we do HE would show His mercy and loving-kindness to us up to a thousand generations - how absolute amazing is the God we serve!)
:7 You shall NOT USE or REPEAT the NAME of the Lord your God in VAIN [that is, lightly or frivolously, in false affirmations (statements) or profanely (blasphemously, irreverently, wickedly)]; for Yahweh will not hold him guiltless who takes HIS NAME IN VAIN.
:8-11 [EARNESTLY (SERIOUSLY - SERIOUS IN INTENTION and PURPOSE or EFFORT, sincerely ZEALOUS)] ** REMEMBER the SABBATH DAY, to KEEP IT HOLY (as set-apart - withdrawn from common employment and DEDICATED to YHWH). SIX DAYS you shall LABOR and do ALL YOUR WORK, But the SEVENTH DAY is a SABBATH to the LORD YOUR GOD; IN IT YOU SHALL NOT DO ANY WORK, you or your son, your daughter, your manservant, your maidservant, your domestic animals, or the sojourner within your gates. For in SIX DAYS YHWH made the HEAVENS AND EARTH, the SEA, and ALL THAT IS IN THEM, AND RESTED the SEVENTH DAY. That is why YHWH BLESSED the SEVENTH DAY and HALLOWED IT [SET IT APART FOR HIS PURPOSES].
:12 REGARD (treat with honor, due OBEDIENCE, and courtesy) your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land Elohim Yahweh gives you.
:13 You shall not COMMIT MURDER.
:14 YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY.
:15 YOU SHALL NOT STEAL.
:16 YOU SHALL NOT WITNESS FALSELY AGAINST YOUR NEIGHBOR.
:17 You shall NOT COVET your neighbor's house, your neighbor's wife, or his manservant, or his maidservant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor's.
:18 Now ALL the PEOPLE PERCIVED the THUNDERINGS AND THE LIGHTNINGS and the NOISE OF THE TRUMPET and the SMOKING MOUNTAIN, and as [they] LOOKED they TREMBLED WITH FEAR AND FELL BACK AND STOOD AFAR OFF.
** THE SABBATH DAY:
Sabbath defined: To STOP, to CEASE, to KEEP
When YHWH created the heavens and earth and everything in, and on it, HE HIMSELF - DIVINELY named the days: FIRST day - SECOND day - THIRD day - FOURTH day - FIFTH day - SIXTH day and SEVENTH day. He created everything in SIX days and RESTED on the SEVENTH day - declaring it as HIS SABBATH day of rest.
Gen. 1:23 "And there was evening and there was morning, a FIFTH day" -
Gen. 1:31 "And YHWH SAW everything that HE HAD MADE, and behold, it was VERY GOOD (suitable, pleasant) and He APPROVED it COMPLETELY. And there was evening and there was morning, a SIXTH day" ).
Gen 2:2 "And ON THE SEVENTH day YHWH ENDED HIS WORK which He had done; and HE RESTED on the SEVENTH DAY from ALL His work which He HAD DONE" [Heb. 4:9,10].
Gen. 2:3 "And YHWH BLESSED the SEVENTH day, SET IT APART as HIS OWN, and HALLOWED it, because ON IT YHWH RESTED from ALL His WORK which HE HAD CREATED and DONE."
The DAYS of the WEEK in HEBREW:
YHWH'S FIRST DAY - The Hebrew First day - YOM RISHON -
The pagan SUN-DAY [dies solis] - Named after the pagan sun-god - the "sun's" day - a pagan holiday (the 'father'- and re-incarnated 'father'-son-sun-god worshiping day - (Nimrod/Tammuz of Babel).
YHWH'S SECOND DAY - The Hebrew Second day - YOM SHEINI -
The pagan MOON-DAY - (MON-DAY) [dies lunae] - Named after the pagan moon-goddess "the moon's day" or day of the moon - worshiping the moon day [the pagan holy-spirit-god - the fertility goddess - the holy mother etc].) - (Semiramis - Queen Ishtar/Easter of Babel)
YHWH'S THIRD DAY - The Hebrew Third day - YOM SHLISHI
The pagan TIU-day or TYR-day (TUES-DAY - Named after the pagan god of war Tiu or Tyr the son of the pagan god Odin.
YHWH'S FOURTH DAY - The Hebrew Fourth day -YOM RIVEE-EE -
The pagan WODEN-DAY (WEDNES-DAY) named after a chief pagan god Odin or Woden - named in his honor to worship him.
YHWH'S FIFTH DAY - The Hebrew Fifth day - YOM CHAMISHI -
The pagan THOR-DAY (Thursday) Named after Thor the pagan god of thunder as his worshiping day.
YHWH'S SIXTH DAY - The Hebrew Sixth day - YOM SHISHI -
The pagan FRIGG or FRIJADAY (FRIDAY) - Named after the pagan goddess of love, Frigg or Frija - named in her honor and to worship the goddess of love.
YHWH'S SEVENTH day - The Hebrew Seventh day - YOM SHIVEE (SHABBAT) -
The pagan SATURN-DAY (Saturday) - Named in honor of the pagan god Saturn and as his worshiping day.
The ancient pagan calendar (Babylonian) was heavily connected to ASTROLOGY (fortune-telling, soothsaying, forecasting - starry-host prediction and prophecy) - believing that their Hybrid-Nephilim deities (gods) went up into the heavens (after their deaths) as the SUN (SUNgod) - MOON (MOONgod/gess) - MARS (god) - JUPITER (god) - VENUS (god) - SATURN (god) etc. and these gods were worshiped by sacrifices and orgies often.
The Babylonians - in their starry host worshiping, marked time with LUNAR (moon) MONTHS. Each lunar month was made up of several different cycles - On approximately
Day 1 - the first visible crescent appeared and
Day 7 the waxing (growing - put a shine on it) half-moon could be seen -
Day 14 - the Full moon
Day 21 - the waning (disappearing) half-moon
Day 28 the last visible crescent (loop, horseshoe curve).
These days were only an approximate calculation - and in the times of the EXILE of the Jews in Babylon, the Babylonians would sometimes followed a 8-9 week day week in an attempt to re-synchronize the start and the end of the weeks to match the phases of the moon. In a 'normal' seven day week, the Babylonians held the seventh day as 'holy' but also as "UNLUCKY". Only the SEVENTH day of the MONTH was a day of rest for the Babylonians.
For the Jewish people the SEVENTH DAY was a SET-APART DAY as the SABBATH of REST - a DAY to THINK of the GREAT WORKS the ALMIGHTY CREATOR HAD DONE. A Day of TOTAL REST as COMMANDED by YAHWEH throughout the Scriptures. The ROMANS on the other hand had their days numbered from one to EIGHT, with the eight day a "shopping day". At this time their days were numbered A-H.
When the Romish JULIAN CALENDAR was introduced in 46 BC - the eight day were diminished in favor for the seven day week. Happening over centuries, the change were made officially in 321 AD when CONSTANTINE the ROMAN king (Emperor) made the seven day week official. With his 'new' religion (Paganism and Messianic beliefs) Christianity (named after "Christos Helios" - Christ (the Anointed) Son-Sun-god) he moved the 'holy' day from the seventh day (The GOD-PROCLAIMED SABBATH day) to the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK - SUNDAY - the DAY of the SUN - "worshiping the sun day"
In Greece the days of the weeks were called the "DAYS of the gods" and the days of the week followed the trend as the months of the year of which many - inclusive of January and March - are named after gods from several different pantheons (gods).
Abba's PROCLAIMED HIS SABBATH DAY - the SEVENTH DAY (YOM SHIVEE -Saturday)
Jewish SABBATH DAY - the SEVENTH DAY (Saturday)
Moslem SABBATH DAY - FRIDAY
CATHOLIC "CHRISTIAN" SABBATH DAY - SUNDAY
LET'S GO DEEPER:
The SEVENTH DAY is VERY IMPORTANT to ABBA - it is a JUBILEE DAY proclaimed by YHWH God Himself as a JUBILEE. The Book of Jubilees (that was again taken out of the Bible by man - just like the Books of Enoch and Jasher - that are not even under the Apocrypha anymore) tells us all about Genesis - with a more in-depth explanation of the JUBILEE DAY, JUBILEE YEAR and 50th YEAR JUBILEE from where the name "The BOOK of "JUBILEES" came from.
Jubilees 2:30 says: "On the 7th DAY the SABBATH WAS KEPT in HEAVENS BEFORE IT WAS MADE KNOWN to ANY FLESH to KEEP SHABBAT thereon ON the EARTH".
According to the Book of Jubilees:
EVERY 7th DAY IS A JUBILEE
EVERY 7th YEAR is A JUBILEE
EVERY 7 x 7 YEARS is A JUBILEE YEAR (50th YEAR)
Jubilees 2:28 says that if we ARE OBEDIENT to KEEPING this SABBATH COMMAND - we will be BLESSED THROUGHOUT ALL DAYS
Jubilees 2:28 "AND EVERY ONE WHO OBSERVES it AND KEEP SHABBAT THEREON FROM ALL HIS WORK, WILL BE SET-APART (KODESH) AND BLESSED THROUGHOUT ALL DAYS LIKE UNTO US."
Jubilees 2:26 "Wherefore do you command the children of Israel to OBSERVE THIS DAY that THEY MAY KEEP IT SET-APART (KODESH) and NOT DO THEREON ANY WORK, and NOT TO DEFILE IT, as it is MORE SET-APART (KODESH) than ALL OTHER DAYS.
:27 And whoever PROFANES IT SHALL SURELY DIE (spiritually), and whoever DOES THEREON ANY WORK SHALL SURELY DIE ETERNALLY, that the children of Israel may observe this day throughout their generations, and NOT BE ROOTED OUT OF THE LAND; for it is a SET-APART (KODESH) and a BLESSED DAY."
:29 "Declare and say to the children of Israel the Law (Torah) of this day both that they should keep Shabbat thereon, and that they should not forsake it in the ERROR OF THEIR HEARTS; (and) that it is NOT LAWFUL to DO ANY WORK THEREON WHICH IS UNSEEMLY, to DO THEREON THEIR OWN PLEASURE, and that they SHOULD NOT PREPARE THEREON ANYTHING to BE EATEN OR DRUNK, and (that is not lawful) to DRAW WATER or BRING in or TAKE OUT THEREONE THROUGH their GATES ANY BUERDEN, WHICH THEY HAD NOT PREPARED FOR THEMSELVES ON THE SIXTH DAY in their DWELLINGS."
:30 "And they shall not bring in nor take out from house to house on that day; for that day is MORE SET-APART (holy - kodesh) and BLESSED than ANY JUBILEE DAY of the JUBILEES; ON THIS WE KEPT SHABBAT IN THE HEAVENS BEFORE IT WAS MADE KNOWN to ANY FLESH to KEEP SHABBAT THEREON ON THE EARTH."
:31 "And Elohim YHWH, the CREATOR OF ALL THINGS BLESSED IT, but he DID NOT SANCTIFY ALL PEOPLES AND NATIONS to keep Shabbat thereon, but Israel alone; them ALONE he permitted to EAT AND DRINK AND TO KEEP SHABBAT THEREON ON THE EARTH."
Now I can hear you say, " it is back to the Law" - or " it was meant just for the Israelites". Child of YAH - if you are a GENTILE you are GRAFTED IN - a WILD-ROOT into THE TRUE OLIVE (YAHSHUA - Who was of JEWISH DESCENT) and it MAKES YOU PART of the SPIRITUAL ISRAEL.
Beside, many of us may well be from the "LOST TRIBES OF ISRAEL" - those scattered throughout the world in the times of the exile. It takes only a few generations to lose track of where you come from. There are no certainty of our REAL ROOTS. Think about it, why is the GOD of ISRAEL (ELOHIM YAHWEH) ROOTED in YOUR SOUL and HEART?
I myself went back into my roots and discovered the possibility that my ancestors came from the tribe of Levi - the priestly tribe (my mother's side) and from the tribe of Judah on my father's side. How sure are you that you are not rooted from there too?