Hebrews 3:1-6
A New Covenant assembly which honors the true name of the Son of God; observes God's commandments, among them the seventh day Sabbath and His annual Holy Days; and believes in the consistent, logical, and non-contradictory nature of our God and His word.
Site last updated November 30, 2008
Month 10, Day 1
Yahweh:
"And in very deed for this [cause] have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee My power; and that My name may be declared throughout all the earth." (Ex. 9:16)
"Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." (Acts 4:12)
Psalms 118
"Observe and hear all these words which I command thee, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee for ever, when thou doest [that which is] good and right in the sight of Yahweh thy God.
"When Yahweh thy God shall cut off the nations from before thee, whither thou goest to possess them, and thou succeedest them, and dwellest in their land;
"Take heed to thyself that thou be not snared by following them, after that they be destroyed from before thee; and that thou enquire not after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise.
"Thou shalt not do so unto Yahweh thy God: for every abomination to Yahweh, which He hateth, have they done unto their gods; for even their sons and their daughters they have burnt in the fire to their gods.
"What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it."
AND GOD SPAKE ALL THESE WORDS, SAYING,
- I [am] Yahweh thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage,
- Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.
- Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness [of any thing] that [is] in heaven above, or that [is] in the earth beneath, or that [is] in the water under the earth:
- Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I Yahweh thy God [am] a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth [generation] of them that hate Me;
- And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love Me, and keep My commandments.
- Thou shalt not consider the name of Yahweh thy God to be a vain thing: for Yahweh will not hold him guiltless that considers His name meaningless.
- Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
- Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
- But the seventh day [is] the Sabbath of Yahweh thy God: [in it] thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that [is] within thy gates:
- For [in] six days Yahweh made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them [is], and rested the seventh day: wherefore Yahweh blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.
- Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which Yahweh thy God giveth thee.
- Thou shalt not kill.
- Thou shalt not commit adultery.
- Thou shalt not steal.
- Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.
- Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that [is] thy neighbour's.
Oh My G_d?
For over two decades our assembly has studied a multitude of Bible versions, searched reference books, and participated in countless discussions and Bible studies in order to understand the will of our Creator. Over the years, the subject of how we refer to and address Him has arisen again and again. For most of us, our exposure to the name of our Messiah was limited to “Jesus” in our early lives, and we never heard the Creator of the Old Testament called by any name except maybe “Jehovah”: only after thirty years on this earth did I personally come to the knowledge that the true names were “Yahweh” and “Yahshua”, something I’ve clung to ever since.
When we look at the titles use to refer to Yahshua and the Father, we find articles using the words “God” and “Lord”, entire magazines which use the euphemisms “G_d” and “L_rd”, and we've all spoken with people who will only use the word “elohim”. Our assembly has debated these things and researched the subject in order to come to our best understanding, and our decision is clearly apparent in the pages of our Bible version, The Word of Yah, where we use the word “god” as the most common title applied to our Creator in the Old Testament and to the Father and Father/Son combination in the New Testament.
Throughout the years, our main focus has been on the revelation of the true names Yahshua and Yahweh; which titles to use were necessarily a secondary consideration to the actual names of the Beings those titles were applied to. As a result, it never seemed important that we set down clearly our position on the subject of the titles we use and our reasoning behind it. This has changed.
Many individuals and assemblies hold to the opinion that the only appropriate title to use in reference to Yahshua or the Father is “elohim”. Some say that the word “god” is of pagan origin and should not be used to refer to our Creator, resorting to the stricture of Ex. 23:13: "Make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth.” Others confuse the concept of titles with that of names and claim that we should not use the word “god” because it is a substitute name. Many believe that only the word “elohim” is acceptable because it is the Hebrew word used in the Old Testament when referring to Yahweh. Some say we should use no titles at all, but simply the names alone.
Let us examine these arguments against the testimony of Scripture and reason and come to the truth.
A search of the etymology of the word “god” gives us these results:
“The root-meaning of the name [god] (from Gothic root gheu; Sanskrit hub or emu, "to invoke or to sacrifice to") is either "the one invoked" or "the one sacrificed to." (The Catholic Encyclopedia)
"The earliest written form of the Germanic word god comes from the 6th century Christian Codex Argenteus. The English word itself is derived from the Proto-Germanic * gudan. Most linguists agree that the reconstructed Proto-Indo-European form * [g]hu-tó-m was based on the root * [g]hau([schwa])-, which meant either "to call" or "to invoke". (Wikipedia)
“O.E. god "supreme being, deity," from P.Gmc. *guthan (cf. Du. god, Ger. Gott, O.N. guð, Goth. guþ), from PIE *ghut- "that which is invoked" (cf. Skt. huta- "invoked," an epithet of Indra), from root *gheu(e)- "to call, invoke." But some trace it to PIE *ghu-to- "poured," from root *gheu- "to pour, pour a libation" (source of Gk. khein "to pour," khoane "funnel" and khymos "juice;" also in the phrase khute gaia "poured earth," referring to a burial mound). "Given the Greek facts, the Germanic form may have referred in the first instance to the spirit immanent in a burial mound" [Watkins]. Cf. also Zeus. Not related to “good”. Originally neut. in Gmc., the gender shifted to masc. after the coming of Christianity. O.E. god was probably closer in sense to L. numen.” (www.etymonline.com)
“Etymology: Middle English, from Old English; akin to Old High German got god. Date: before 12th century” (Webster’s Dictionary)
One source (from Wikipedia) claims that “a significant number of scholars have connected this root with the names of three related Germanic tribes: the Geats, the Goths and the Gutar. These names may be derived from an eponymous chieftain Gaut, who was subsequently deified.”
From this we can see that the origins of the word “god” are unclear at best, but that it is probably of either early Indo-European or early Germanic origin and based on the idea of worship or invocation among pagan peoples. While all of this is interesting, what have we learned from it? That a word commonly used as part of the English language has non-English (and presumably pagan) origins – something which comes as no surprise to anyone at all. At least one source (bibleanswerstand.org) does try to trace the word back to Hebrew:
“The ancient Hebrew language best explains the origin and derivation of the common English word for deity, which is, “God,” or, “god.” The typical path sought to ascertain the radical or primary signification for the English word, “God,” does not work for the student in this case, but against. Our English word for “god” or “God” develops from repetitious vocalization of a Hebrew word, “Gaad,” (transliterated “Gad” & pronounced “gawd”)…"
The link between the word "god" and "gad" seems tenuous, but even if it exists, the fact remains that one of the twelve tribes of Israel was called by the name Gad, as well as a prophet of Yahweh (2 Sam. 24:11, etc.) - an indication that use of the name/word is acceptable as long as the intent behind the use is acceptable.
In point of fact, it appears that many people believe that any word that does not spring from Hebrew should be considered of “pagan origins”. With this in mind, let us look at the relationship between the Hebrew and Canaanite languages:
“Abraham, a descendent of the clan of Eber, was called by God from Ur of the Chaldees c. 1800 BCE? to the land of Canaan. The language in Canaan at that time has been called “proto-Canaanite,” the parent language of Hittites, Amorites, Hivites, Jebusites, Perizites. In relation to the Hebrews, proto-Canaanite script may be called ketav Ivri [paleo-Hebrew or ancient Hebrew]” (hebrew4christians.com)
With knowledge of this linguistic connection in hand, let us examine the word "el(ohim)" itself:
“The most likely derivation comes from the word Elohim ('lhm) found in the Ugarit archives, meaning the family or pantheon associated with the Canaanite father God El.” (Wikipedia)
"'El', a word for "God" in the Semitic languages...As a proper noun, El refers to a god in the pantheons of the Canaanite world...The Ugaritic literature produced in the north Canaanite city-state of Ugarite (second millenium B.C.) reveals much of what we know about the Canaanite god El...." (Harper Collins Bible Dictionary)
“In Canaan there was a tendency to employ the plural forms of deities Ashtoreth (Ashtoroth), Asherah (Asherim), Anath (Anathoth) to summarize all the various manifestations of this deity. In like fashion the Canaanite plural Elohim ("gods") was adopted by the Hebrews to express all the excellencies and attributes of the one true God.“ (Unger's Bible Dictionary, Moody Press 1966 Third Edition, p. 412)
Despite the resistance of many religious writers and commentators to admit the fact, the word “elohim” has much older and as many clear connections to paganism as the word “god”. One source (yrm.org) appeals to the Dead Sea Scrolls as evidence of the earliest Hebrew use of the word “elohim” – however the Dead Sea Scrolls only date back to the third century B.E. (300-201 B.C.), while we find use of the word “elohim” in the Ugarit archives, which date back to 1450-1200 B.C. - a thousand years earlier.
With this in mind, some people will go on to ask whether it is even permissible to refer to our Creator as “elohim”, let alone “god”. Our response to the foolishness of this question is simply to point out that Scripture itself uses the words "el" and “elohim” in reference to the Creator hundreds of times. Why not let Scripture guide us rather than the dogma of misguided human teachers?
It is absolutely imperative that we understand that these words – god, elohim, lord, etc. – are merely words. They are not names and are no more substitutes for names than the word “woman” is a substitute for my given name Ruth. They are simply more generalized terms for the specific beings of Yahweh, Yahshua, and our Father. If we understand this, we can understand that the passage quoted earlier from Ex. 23:13 has nothing to do with this particular argument: when we use the words god and elohim, we are not invoking specific names, but simply using generalized terms. It is very obvious that the reference in Ex. 23:13 is addressing the specific names of other gods in worship – something no true believer would ever consider doing.
The truth is that if anyone actually attempted to fulfill the common interpretation of Ex. 23:13 and attempted to purge the names of pagan deities from their conversation, this person would never again speak the names of the days of the week and most of the months of the year; most of the planets; many people’s given names; or the names of popular tennis shoes, cars, and hundreds of thousands of other commonplace names, phrases, and items: a multitude of these words and names are based on the names of pagan deities. Such an attempt is not only ludicrous, it is impossible.
Evidence that the word elohim is simply a general term is found in the fact that this word is used to refer to pagan deities and human beings in the Old Testament as well as to Yahweh:
Ex. 21:6 - "Then his master shall bring him unto the judges..." - the word rendered "judges" here is Strong's number 430 - elohim
Ex. 22:28 - "Thou shalt not revile the gods, nor curse the ruler of thy people." - again in reference to the judges of the people
I Sam. 5:7 - "And when the men of Ashdod saw that [it was] so, they said, The ark of the God of Israel shall not abide with us: for His hand is sore upon us, and upon Dagon our god." - elohim
Psalms 82:6 - "I have said, Ye [are] gods, and all of you [are] children of the Most High." - elohim
A similar study into the origins and uses of the words "lord", "adonai", "ba'al" will yield similar information.
It is obvious that what matters most is not what word that we use in referring to our Creator, but what we mean within ourselves as we use it – what our intention is in using it as we speak. In this we can completely trust Scripture as it tells us that God knows our hearts.
We at the House of Yahshua believe that what is of primary importance is the revelation of the true names YAHSHUA and YAHWEH. We believe that it makes no difference what generalized words are used to refer to our Creator - in any language - as long as knowledge of His true names drives that use. We believe that the word "god" is a completely acceptable term to use, and while we feel completely correct in referring to Yahshua and our Father as God, we do not criticize those who prefer the equally proper use of the word "elohim", or those who attempt to use no titles at all: it is not our business to criticize how others address our Maker. We seek instead to address the much more important subjects of the Names, the Sabbath, the Holy Days, and other deep subjects contained in Scripture.
I hope this presents clearly and finally the position of the House of Yahshua on this subject, and I pray that it will be of help to all who read it.
THE WORD OF THE WATCHMAN
"...Go, get thee unto the house of Israel, and speak with My words to them. For thou art not sent to a people of a strange speech and of an hard language, but to the house of Israel; Not to many people of a strange speech and of an hard language, whose words thou canst not understand. Surely, had I sent thee to them, they would have hearkened unto thee.
"And go, get thee to them of the captivity, unto the children of thy people, and speak unto them, and tell them, 'Thus saith the Lord Yahweh'; whether they hear or whether they will forbear.
"Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at My mouth, and give them warning from Me." (Eze. 3:4-6, 11, 17)
This is the word of the watchman:
Awake, awake! The day of Yahweh is fast approaching. This day is a day of furious anger, a day of trouble and distress, a day of storm and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness. It is a day of the trumpet and alarm against the defended cities, and against the high towers. And I, Yahweh, will bring distress upon men, that they shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against Yahweh; and their blood shall be poured out as dust, and their flesh as excrement. Neither their lesser nor their greater idols shall be able to save them in the day of Yahweh's furious anger; but the whole land shall be eaten up by the fire of His jealousy; for He shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.
Awake, all who read these words! The day of our God's judgment is at hand. Look around you at the world you live in. Look at your city, your state, your country, your government - look at your neighbors and close friends. Look at the newspapers and television. Open your eyes to the sin and corruption running rampant in the world today. See how mankind has transgressed against God's commandments and brought judgment upon themselves.
The watchman's task is to tell God's people and the world their sins, so that they might recognize their doom and turn from it. Look at everything occurring in the world today. Homosexuals brazenly and stridently petition to partake of the God-given ceremony of marriage even as they defy His condemnation of homosexuality. Mothers and fathers murder their children in their own beds. Religious leaders shamelessly give their support and sanction to murderers, child molesters, active homosexuals, bigots, and racist causes. Millions around the world proclaim their belief in God while existing in a state of abysmal ignorance of even the simplest of His laws. Adultery and fornication are more common than marriage, and one half of all marriages end in divorce. Helpless prisoners are tortured in the name of democracy. Murders walk free in the streets with innocent blood on their hands.
The world around us is filled with corruption and sin - a single glance at any news source reveals the evils of this generation. Governments attack and murder their own citizens. Around the world people are abused and murdered in the name of Jesus, Allah, Mother Earth, Satan, and every other deity imaginable. Drug use soars and addicts prey on family and friends in order to support their habits. Government officials, law enforcement agencies, and courts of law unite to oppress and enslave citizens through intimidation and unjust application of unrighteous laws. In the name of anti-terrorism, human rights and freedoms are trampled on and destroyed. Every form of paganism and idolatry is encouraged while unwavering devotion to God's truth is labeled dangerous fanaticism. No matter where we look, sin abounds.
Throughout the Old Testament Yahweh's laws were clearly stated. Our Creator God gave us His laws, statutes, and judgments, and then, amazingly, He was gracious enough to reveal the just reasoning behind many of those laws. With the most righteous laws ever to exist given into our hands, along with the reasoning behind those laws, mankind has gone on to twist and ignore those laws in favor of their own will. Christianity and Judaism in particular have done exactly what God warned against - in an effort to show how much more righteous they are than their Creator, they have supplanted His laws with their own traditions. How often has this resulted in those "righteous" people doing exactly what God commanded them not to do: they have wrested justice, calling that which is right wrong and that which is wrong right, and they have tolerated and even encouraged behaviour which is clearly condemned by God.
Everywhere we look today we find predictions of the end of the world or the end of the human race or the end of civilization as we know it. These predictions hang on a multitude of causes: global warming, political unrest, asteroids from outer space, terrorism, a coming ice age, nuclear holocaust - the list goes on and on. When we examine all of these causes, however, we discover one glaring fact: All of these predicted catastrophes arise from natural events due to either human mismanagement of natural resources or an evolutionary cycle of balance and imbalance; or they arise from socio-political conflict between different countries, governments, or religions. Every one of these predictions totally ignores God and the disregard of His laws as a cause of the coming cataclysm.
Even more distressing is the fact that in each of these scenarios, we find one of two outcomes: either mankind - completely apart from God - saves itself through its own determination and ingenuity; or mankind is simply extinguished, falling prey to the evolutionary cycle in favor of a more hardy species: plants, reptiles, microbes, etc. Nowhere do we find the concept of God interposing Himself in these events, stepping in as the one and only salvation of His created offspring.
Look to Scripture to find the truth of the cause of this world's destruction: "Why criest thou for thine affliction? Thy sorrow is incurable for the multitude of thine iniquity: because thy sins were increased, I have done these things unto thee" (Jer. 30:15). "Also, thou son of man, thus saith the Lord Yahweh unto the land of Israel; An end is come upon the four corners of the land. Now is the end come upon thee, and I will send Mine anger upon thee, and will judge thee according to thy ways, and will recompense upon thee all thine abominations. And Mine eye shall not spare thee, neither will I have pity: but I will recompense thy ways upon thee, and thine abominations shall be in the midst of thee: and ye shall know that I AM Yahweh" (Eze. 7:2-4). "Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity; ye have eaten the fruit of lies: because thou didst trust in thy way...therefore shall a tumult arise among thy people, and all thy fortresses shall be spoiled..." (Hos. 10:13-14).
And even as we know that God Himself is the cause of the coming destruction, we know also that He is our only hope of salvation from that destruction. "And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of Yahweh come. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of Yahweh shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as Yahweh hath said, and in the remnant whom Yahweh shall call" (Joel 2:30-32). "...Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads" (Rev. 7:3). "And Yahweh shall be seen over them, and His arrow shall go forth as the lightning...Yahweh of Hosts shall defend them: and they shall devour, and subdue with sling stones...And Yahweh their God shall save them in that day as the flock of His people...How great is His goodness, and how great is His beauty!" (Zech. 9:14-17)
Wake up, my beloved brothers! The time is now for people everywhere to understand some basic truths, the most primary of which is this: Throughout history, God has intervened in human events for two reasons. The first reason God intervenes is because of the sinfulness of mankind: "And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented Yahweh that He had made man on the earth, and it grieved Him at His heart. And Yahweh said, 'I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth...'" (Gen. 6:5-7), and "But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full" (Gen 15:16), and "And Yahweh said, 'Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous; I will go down now, and see whether they have done according to the cry of it, which is come unto Me...'" (Gen. 18:20-21), and "But they rebelled, and vexed His holy Spirit: therefore He was turned to be their enemy, and He fought against them" (Is. 63:10). We see very clearly that our God intervenes, even to the point of becoming an enemy of mankind, when the their sins become unbearable to Him.
The second reason we find our Creator intervening is to prevent the total extermination of mankind: "Thus saith Yahweh, 'As the new wine is found in the cluster, and one saith, 'Destroy it not; for a blessing is in it;' so will I do for My servants sakes, that I may not destroy them all'" (Is 65:8), and "Fear thou not, O Jacob my servant, saith Yahweh: for I am with thee; for I will make a full end of all the nations whither I have driven thee: but I will not make a full end of thee..." (Jer. 46:28), and "For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, or ever shall be. And except those days be shortened, there should no flesh be saved; but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened" (Matt. 24:21-22). We see here that no matter what the transgressions of mankind in general, our God will always intervene in order to save those people who cleave unto Him and His truth.
The word of the watchman is clear: Awake, you sons of man, from your transgressions against God's laws, in order that you might receive the blessings of His mercy in the days of His judgment. The end of this world comes not because of random natural disaster or because of mankind has brought itself to the brink of destruction. The end of this world comes because mankind has transgressed the laws of our Creator God: our hope lies not in the indomitable spirit of mankind, but in the gracious Spirit of our Father who will shorten the days of our tribulation in order that a remnant of His people might survive.
"Seek ye Yahweh, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought His judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of Yahweh's anger." (Zeph. 2:3)
JUDGING GOD
How many of us have been in discussion with a friend or acquaintance, and heard the conversation go something like this:
"If homosexuals are born that way, how can God condemn them?"
"If it's wrong to kill people, then why does the Bible tell us to execute murderers?"
"Marriage is just a civil agreement between two people, so why does God say divorce is morally wrong?"
"If there is a God, why does He allow all the suffering in this world?"
The examples could go on endlessly: people form their opinions about life and death, how to worship God, how to interact with their fellow man, etc., and then go on to criticize God because His rules and actions don't agree with their opinions. As time progresses and this world races toward its final meeting with our Creator, it seems that mankind is determined to deny, nullify, and condemn everything upon which the majority of people claim to base their faith. The question is: How much will God tolerate when mankind presumes to judge Him?
We find examples in Scripture of men and women disbelieving, disagreeing with, judging, and criticizing God and His emissaries. Even in the beginning, Adam and Eve chose to disbelieve and disobey Yahweh's warning concerning eating of tree which He commanded them to refrain from. We know the punishment for this was dire, as it condemned not only Adam and Eve, but the whole human race to toil, sorrow, and eventual physical death. In this example, we find a common theme for events in the rest of Scripture and in human reasoning: Although Yahweh clearly ordered Adam and Eve not to eat of this tree, explaining the punishment for disobedience, He did not enter into a detailed explanation of why this tree wasn't good to eat. When the serpent entered in and offered a plausible (human) motivation for God's actions, Adam and Eve accepted it as justification for disobeying their Creator. Rather than trusting Yahweh and accepting His commandment in this case, they chose instead to invoke their own flawed reasoning under Satan's urging in order to do what they wished to do all along.
If we examine many people's arguments against God, we often find among their motivations some personal agenda which will suffer if they accept God's rules. People who judge God's condemnation of homosexuals are usually associating with one or more people who cling to this lifestyle where it would inconvenience them to reject and condemn this lifestyle, perhaps costing them a relationship or even money. People who argue against God's condemnation of divorce are usually either divorced themselves or related to someone divorced. Those who bewail the suffering which "God allows" in this world are not only suffering themselves, but are almost certainly living their lives in total denial of His laws, statutes, and judgments: they hate the suffering, but they hate even more the restrictions they would have to submit to in order to ease their suffering. Opponents of the death penalty thrive on their self-righteous claim to love human life indiscriminately, but they reject the righteous concept of justice for those whose lives have been taken.
We see this pattern played out again and again in Scripture - people would rather justify themselves than justify their God. If we look to the case of Job and his friends, we find this fact demonstrated very clearly. Throughout Job's discourse with his friends, he continually justifies himself, even to the point of saying, "Oh that One would hear me! behold, my desire [is that] the Almighty would answer me, and [that] mine adversary had written a book." (Job. 31:35) This man has sunk to the level of calling God his adversary! We know that this is true, because 32:1 tells us that the three friends stopped talking to him because Job "[was] righteous in his own eyes" - more righteous even than God!
Finally Elihu - literally, "He is God" - appears on the scene, tells Job, "Behold, I [am] according to thy wish in God's stead..." (33:6), and proceeds to harshly rebuke Job for his attitude and words. "Behold, [in] this thou art not just: I will answer thee, that God is greater than man." (33:12) Elihu goes on to say, "Yea, surely God will not do wickedly, neither will the Almighty pervert judgment," (34:12), and "Thinkest thou this to be right, [that] thou saidst, My righteousness [is] more than God's?" (35:2). Elihu cuts to the heart of the matter with these words: so many people believe that they know more than God, that their judgment is more righteous than God's, that their generosity and mercy are greater than God's, and that therefore God is somehow wicked and they are so very righteous. It is this attitude which is destroying our morals and our world today.
So many other examples exist in Scripture which demonstrate this attitude of rebellion and superiority: Sarah's laughter and disbelief as she hid behind the door listening to Yahweh assure Abraham that he and Sarah would be blessed with a son (Gen. 18:9-15); Abraham's false belief that he could save Sodom and Gomorrah where God could not, by lowering to ten the number of righteous souls to be found in those cities for their salvation (Gen 18:20-33); the rebellion and disbelief of the ten spies after they had searched out Canaan, and then the subsequent rebellion of all Israel as they disobeyed Yahweh's order and went up into the land without His blessing (Num. 13 & 14); the presumption of the sons of Korah, who proclaimed their own holiness in defiance of Yahweh's selection of Moses and Aaron as His agents (Num. 16); Saul's disobedience of Yahweh's orders to utterly defeat the Amalekites and refuse their spoil (I Sam. 15:1-26); the self-righteousness and multiple offenses of those who condemned Yahshua for healing a man on the Sabbath (Matt. 12:10-14; Mark 3:1-6; etc.); the list could go on and on.
In searching these examples, we find different levels of punishment for these transgressions - in Sarah's case, there was a simple rebuke; in Abraham's case Yahweh withheld rebuke and even allowed some bargaining to go on; with the Israelites and the sons of Korah, death was the penalty exacted; and with Saul there was the loss of his position as king of Israel. From each context it becomes clear that while Yahweh will countenance mistakes and false assumptions when they spring from an underlying foundation of faith and obedience, He will not tolerate rebellion and disobedience when their motivation is disbelief and self-aggrandizement.
If this is true, then our world is positioned to encounter the very harshest punishment possible upon Yahshua's return: we wantonly criticize God's rules, statutes, judgment, laws, and commands because they encroach on our desires; we exalt ourselves over God by claiming our greater justice, understanding, righteousness, or mercy; we condemn the principles dictated by Him as too rigorous, too fanatical, too fundamentalist, or too extreme while substituting nothing besides "do what feels right" to guide ourselves through life; we ignore His rules and then cry because He refuses to intervene and save us from ourselves, thereby allowing our actions to cause all of the suffering that disturbs us so; we tolerate every deviant behaviour possible, making excuses for this behaviour and condemning God for setting standards for deviance in the first place; we refuse His mercy because of the requirements that would ensue if we accepted - then we complain that God is ignoring us. All of this springs from hearts hardened into cement by selfishness, cruelty, childish egoism, and simple rebellion against God's authority.
Scripture tells us clearly what happens when we reject or bypass God and do what is right in our own eyes: if we read the book of Judges, we see a nation falling into moral destruction and terminal sinfulness and reaping the consequences of such a culture. Even when God intervenes and sends a judge/saviour, after several have come and gone we begin to realize that the people are reprieved only as long as any one judge is in place: once the judge departs, the people are incapable of continuing on their own and immediately fall back into the moral quagmire they've created for themselves.
Judging God is more than risky business - it can be a deadly business. Job's example tells us that we can escape from this error only by self-examination and heartfelt repentance, something this world is in dire need of. When we read prophecy which tells us of the coming judgment and punishment of mankind, we can know for sure that what is bringing this judgment upon us is our blind willingness to judge and condemn the One who created us and this world in the first place. Now is the time to stop judging God, and exalt Him instead: only when we first justify our Creator can we then justify ourselves before Him and perhaps save ourselves from the punishment to come.
"Wilt thou also disannul My judgment? wilt thou condemn Me, that thou mayest be righteous?"
(Job 40:8)
A Memorial of Our Loved Ones
In past years many of us in Yahshua's family have lost family members and friends, and in many cases these losses have only added to similar losses we've already sustained. In addition, some of us have been left alone and without any way to truly mourn or honor those we loved so well. In an effort to address this situation, provide a means to honor our beloved dead, and perhaps ease the pain of our losses, the House of Yahshua has created this memorial section, which will be be added to and preserved indefinitely. We remember here the family and friends no longer with us, honoring their memories and celebrating their lives:
Jeannine T. Touchton
Mary Stollings
Paul Griffin Amman
Anita Amman
Bennie Amman
Bob Samm
Legett Nash
Jason Wright
Jonathan Wagner
Tony Owens
Mattie George
Edith Weddle
Thelma Nanney
James Nanney
Marie Moore
Dr. & Elder Alex D. Ratnam
Mr. Y. D. David
Mrs. Deena David
Glenn Ross
R. P. Touchton
Preston David Touchton, Sr.
"The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth [it] to heart: and merciful men [are] taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil [to come]. He shall enter into peace: they shall rest in their beds, [each one] walking [in] his uprightness." (Isa. 57:1-2)
Never Forgotten
THE TRUTH IS...
In John 18:38, Pontius Pilate asked Yahshua, "What is truth?" Earlier Yahshua Himself said, "Thy word is truth" (John 17:17). Unbeliever that he was, Pilate couldn't know that he was speaking to the Word of God made flesh (John 1:14) when he asked that question - in effect, Pilate was speaking to the embodiment of truth, a fact which escaped him.
In addition to the fleshly Word, who was available to the world for only about 33 1/2 years, we have the enduring word of Scripture - a spiritual testimony breathed by God Himself in order for us to learn about Him, His will for us, and how to live our lives in a manner pleasing to Him. Authorities say that the Bible is the book most widely purchased and most seldom read. Even among those who read and study this Book faithfully, there are points of truth and facts contained in it which may have escaped them. A few of those points, and some practical observations and Scriptural facts, are offered here.
The seventh day Sabbath was instituted in Genesis 2:2-3 by the fiat of God, with no mention of any relationship to the sun, moon, or any other physical phenomenon or point of reference. This God-given seven day cycle is reinforced in Exodus 20:8-11, again with no mention of any point of reference besides Yahweh's six days of creation and one day of rest. Again, it is reinforced in Exodus 31:14-17 only with reference to the Creation week; likewise in Hebrews 4:4. Our Creator is the only point of reference for His sanctified Sabbath, not any heavenly body or any other part of His creation.
In Numbers 3:28, the males of Kohath are numbered at 8,300 - which when added to the other Levite males yields 22,300 rather than the 22,000 recorded in verse 39. According to Wycliffe's Bible Commentary, this is due to a scribal error, where one letter was omitted: sh-sh (six hundred) written instead of sh-l-sh (three hundred).
While many people claim that Eliyah was caught up by a whirlwind to God's throne in heaven, "translated" and never seeing death, this is impossible. Besides the clear Scriptural testimony that "no man has ascended to heaven, except He that came down from heaven", there is the simple fact that Eliyah wrote a letter to King Jehoram (II Chron 21:12) somewhere between five and ten years after his disappearance, a letter we can safely presume was sent from somewhere on earth and not from Paradise.
In the Old Testament, all offerings presented to Yahweh were to be unleavened - Lev. 2:11 - however, the two wave loaves offered at Pentecost (Lev. 23:17) were offered with leaven. Leaven is the classic Scriptural symbol for sin, which explains why Yahweh's offerings were to be leaven-free, but the wave loaves were offered with leaven because they represent the firstfruits redeemed from among mankind (Acts 2:41, etc). Mankind, being fleshly or "carnal", is weak and naturally at odds with God (Rom. 8:7), co-existing with sin in spite of our best efforts (Rom. 7:17-19). It is only through our spiritual redemption and conversion through Yahshua that we present ourselves to God in spite of the "body of death" (Rom. 7:24-25) in which we exist: hence, the symbolism of the wave loaves - a type of firstfruit acceptable to God in spite of being leavened.
In Revelation 17, the "great whore" of verse one is identified in verse 18 as that "great city" - a term used to identify Jerusalem in ch. 11:8: "And their dead bodies [shall lie] in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified", as well as in ch. 21:10 - "And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem..."
If we follow the trail of references from Exodus 12:12 to Exodus 12:27 to Exodus 13:2 and 11-15 to Numbers 3:12-13; we find that Yahweh redeemed the deaths of the firstborn of Egypt by claiming for Himself the firstborn of Israel, whom He subsequently traded for the tribe of Levi. If we understand that the Passover lamb was slain - not as a sin sacrifice, but in order to save the lives of the firstborn of Israel - we then see that Passover was the beginning of a process by which Yahweh purchased to Himself a physical priesthood from His chosen physical nation. In like manner, when Yahshua instituted the New Covenant at Passover in the New Testament, He set in motion a process by which He began to create for Himself a new priesthood, this time spiritual (1 Peter 1:5, 9), from all those He has chosen out of the world to become His spiritual people.
The name "Yahweh" appears from Genesis 2:4 through Genesis 39:23 some 158 times, an average of more than 4 occurrences per chapter in 38 chapters. The name appears only once in the remaining eleven chapters from Genesis 40:1 through Genesis 50:26. The next occurrence of the name Yahweh is three chapters into the next book, in Exodus 3:2. The first time that name is spoken by a human being in Exodus is in Ex. 4:1, by Moses.
The "Old Covenant" - the covenant made with the children of Israel, mediated by Moses at Mount Sinai in Exodus 19:24 thru 24:8, and sealed with blood - had nothing to do with the "Levitical law" or "Levitical priesthood". A careful reading of this covenant will show no mention of the Levites or many of the laws commonly perceived as Levitical laws - i.e. ritual washings, specific sacrificial laws, purification rules, etc. The Sinai covenant was made in the third month after the exodus (Ex. 19:1), while the tribe of Levi was first formally spoken of as separated for service to Yahweh in Numbers 1:49-53 on or after the first day of the second month in the second year after the exodus (Num. 1:1) - well after the Sinai covenant was instituted. (Even the early reference in Exodus 38:21 is a forward looking reference to the passage in Numbers.) In truth, the Old Covenant was as personal and non-ritualistic as was Yahweh's first covenant with Abraham, which was made with him before the ritual of circumcision was introduced (Rom. 4:9-10), and was just as personal as the New Covenant is now.
The word rendered "wormwood" in Rev. 8:11 is the Greek word "apsinthos", the equivalent of "absinthe" in English. Derived from the plant Artemesia absinthium, wormwood liqueur (absinthe) is a bitter, emerald green, addictive drug. Absinthe has been outlawed in many countries due to the fact that it is hallucinogenic and toxic.
The Hebrew word for atonement, as in the Day of Atonement, is kippur - Strong's #3725 - meaning expiation. It comes from Strong's #3722, which reads "kaphar: a primitive root; to cover". With the understanding that blood is given to us for a covering (Lev. 17:11), we realize that our Saviour's blood was shed as a covering for the sins of His people in order to reconcile them to Himself. It is because of this covering that our Father, who cannot look upon evil (Hab. 1:13), is able to turn His face to us and regard us as we strive to obey His words and live according to His will.
The Levitical priesthood of the Old Testament consisted of the all the male descendants of Levi, who was one of the sons of Jacob (Gen. 29:34; Num. 3:12). This tribe became the priests who performed the sacrifices and services within the tabernacle and the temple. The "sons of Aaron" were the descendants of Aaron, who was a member of the tribe of Levi (Ex. 4:14): it is this family of Aaron that directly served Yahweh as the high priests of Israel, primarily because of the actions of Aaron's son Phinehas in Number 25. While all sons of Aaron were Levites, not all Levites were sons of Aaron, and the duties of each group were widely and specifically different. In Ezekiel it is the descendents of Phineas - the "sons of Zadok" (1 Chron. 6:4-12) - who continue the direct service to Yahweh (Ez. 44:15-16, 23-24; etc.), while the Levites fulfill the lesser functions of the priesthood (Eze. 44:10-14).
The primary passage in the Bible which supposedly supports the concept of a triune God - "For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth..." (I John 5:7-8) - never appeared in any Greek manuscripts before the 16th century. This passage first appeared as a marginal comment in some Latin manuscripts and later was added into the text.
The Feast of Trumpets is the only Holy Day that is already upon us by the time that we know for certain that it has begun. In keeping with the idea behind the day, we must therefore be prepared and watch for the new moon that signals the beginning of this Feast, lest we be taken unawares by its arrival.
The word translated "pale" in Rev. 6:8 is "chloros", which means "green".
Homosexuality is condemned both in the Old Testament (Lev. 18:22 & 20:13; Deut 23:17; II Ki. 23:7, etc.) and the New Testament (Rom. 1:26 & 27; I Cor. 6:9; I Tim. 1:10). Active homosexuality is rebellion against God's word; claiming to know and obey God's will while practicing such a lifestyle is rebellion against God Himself.
The Day of Atonement is an interactive event, with us suffering hunger pangs throughout the day and faithfully enduring as the day goes on, and our Father noting each pang, our faithful endurance, and the obedience to His will which leads us to keep the day in the first place.
The first occurrence of the proper name Yahweh occurs in Genesis 2:4 - the entire Creation Hymn is couched only in terms of the plural noun "elohim".
Lev. 20:13 - "If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them" - is perfectly mirrored in Rom. 1:26 & 27 - "For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: and likewise also men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meet (appropriate)."
Yahshua cleared the Temple twice during His ministry: once at the beginning (John 2:11-17), and once at the end (Matt. 21:12-13; Mark 11:15-17; Luke 19:45-46).
Yahshua's definition of marriage is this: "...Have ye not read, that He which made them at the beginning made them male and female, and said, 'For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they two shall become one flesh?'" (Matt. 19:4 & 5; Mark 10:6-8)
There are four women included in Yahshua's genealogy in Matthew: Thamar, Rachab, Ruth, and Bathsheba, though Bathsheba is not mentioned by name.
Our calling is not "eye for eye", "tooth for tooth", "stroke for stroke", or "life for life". Our existence as individuals and as a nation is not defined by our ability to take vengeance: Yahweh says, "To Me belongeth vengeance, and recompense." Rather, our calling and existence is defined by this: "But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also...Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away...Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you; That ye may be the sons of your Father which is in heaven."
In Rev. 6:5, the reference to "a pair of balances" comes from Strong's number 2218 - "zugos" - which is the same word translated as "yoke" in Matt. 11:29 & 30; Acts 15:10; Gal. 5:1; and 1 Tim. 6:1.
The word translated "martyr(s)" - Strong's #3144 - in Acts 22:20, Rev. 2:13, and Rev. 17:6 literally means "a witness" or "witnesses" (as in one witnessing an event and therefore able to testify to it), and is translated as such in the KJV everywhere else except 2 Cor. 1:23 and Phil. 1:8, where it is translated "record".
Although Yahshua pre-existed as God and was our Creator, it was absolutely imperative that He give up that existence as God and become a human being in order to offer salvation to mankind. Why? Because we know that our salvation is based on the shed blood of the Messiah (Eph. 2:13; Heb. 9:13-14; 1 Peter 1:18-20; 1 John 1:7; Rev. 1:5), and that only physical beings can shed blood. God is spirit (John 4:24), and a spirit being has no blood to shed. If Yahshua had remained God and not become flesh and blood, there would have been no blood worthy enough to shed for the salvation of mankind.
Think about it.
"Then they that feared Yahweh spake often one to another: and Yahweh hearkened, and heard [it], and a book of remembrance was written before Him for them that feared Yahweh, and that thought upon His name.
"And they shall be Mine, saith Yahweh of hosts, in that day when I make up My jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth Him."
(Malachi 3:16-17)
In loving memory of Jeannine Touchton: mother, sister, wife, minister, and devoted son of God:
one of our Father's precious jewels.
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If you have any comments or questions you'd like answered, please e-mail us at houseofyahshua@hotmail.com