Category: A Drash to Start the Day

It’s Between You and God

1 Comment

Comeuppance. What a great word…”comeuppance.”  They say that all people who cheat others or do bad things will, one day, receive their “comeuppance.” It is usually defined as just deserts with the intimation that the person receiving their comeuppance was evil, but it is really just getting what one deserves. Good or bad, we all will have our own comeuppance.

God tells us, in Proverbs, that we should not return evil for evil and that He shall repay. We should wait upon the Lord.

After all, He is the Judge. Yeshua will rule the world, some or many of those who follow Him will be judges in their own right, answering to Yeshua, who answers only to God. God is the Ultimate Judge.

When it comes down to it, what we do, say, and how we live will be judged by God and so everything about your life is, ultimately and finally, between you and God. We all will face our own comeuppance, whether it’s a good one or a bad one.

Have you ever wondered if Gandhi was “saved” because he was such a holy man, even though his holiness was not that defined by the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob? Is Mother Teresa in heaven? I think that many Catholics who are devout Catholics will be gravely disappointed, the same as many devout Jews will be when they come to their comeuppance.

God tells us what He wants from us, and He is pretty easy to understand. This past Shabbat we started the book of Vayikra (Leviticus), which tells us what we are to eat, how we are to act with each other (in intimate relationships) and what the Priestly duties are. It discusses the sacrifices and, even though we cannot sacrifice (because the Temple no longer stands), we should be familiar with the process because we can still make sacrifices today. Not sheep or goats or bulls, but personal sacrifices that are the ones God really wants- to do T’Shuvah, to obey His laws and ordinances, to love each other (even though this one is really hard at times.) How many times does God tell us, through the Psalms and the Prophets, that He doesn’t care for the blood of bulls and lambs but that He wants obedience?

Yeshua said if we love Him we will obey Him; He loved His father and obeyed Him, so it follows that we should obey what God said if we want to be like Yeshua. In fact, if you really want to know the answer to “WWJD” read the Torah, because that’s what Jesus did. Always.

Only God really sees the heart, and he sees us not as we see each other. God told Sh’muel (Samuel) that people see the outer image of a human but God sees their heart- that is how He picked David to be king. And even after David was anointed, it took years, with David running for his life, hiding with his enemies to be protected from his own father-in-law, living in caves like an animal. And he did that for years, then he ruled for 7 years from a small town until he ruled in Yerushalayim. It took many years from when he was first anointed as king until he came to his comeuppance, and all that time his mind was set on what his relationship was with God. He really did know how to wait upon the Lord. He certainly provides a good lesson for all of us.

We are all called to serve God, and we can choose to serve God or serve the Enemy. There is nothing in between, no abstainers in the Kingdom of Heaven, and no gray area. It’s God’s way or the Hell-way. Sorry: that’s the truth about it.

And because it is about you and God, let no one even try to tell you what to believe. However, we who believe that God exists, that Yeshua (Jesus) is the Messiah and that all I say above is true, at least owe it to everyone else to ask them to seriously think about their eternal future. I am not much of a missionary, but I do have a gift for teaching. Maybe that’s why I was such a good salesman, but in any event, I will always talk to people, tell them what I believe and why I believe it, and if they are willing to listen or discuss it, I will inform them about the Good News and how to enter the Kingdom of God. If they disagree I will respect their right to do so, because it is between them and God. The best I can do is tell them what is right for me and why; if it seems right for them, all the better, but they have to decide. You can’t scare someone into believing and you can’t ram God down their throat. The best you may get is a temporary change of heart, but it is seed on rocky soil and will not last. Many of the sales I made were cancelled and the cancellation form was in the office before I even got the contract there. Many times people will renege on their agreements or get “buyers remorse”; it’s expected and happens in all things. Once someone realizes what sacrifices they have to make to follow the Lord they start to talk themselves out of it. That’s why it has to be their decision, made with the full understanding of the sacrifices they will be making, but also reminded of the rewards they can get.

God holds each of us accountable for our actions and decisions, and whether someone else tells us what to believe or not, it is going to be accounted to us as our decision. Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him as righteousness. He chose to believe.

What do you believe? What do those you care about believe? And what are you doing to help them understand what their decision, or lack of decision, is going to result in when they will have their comeuppance?

Building a Belief System

Leave a comment

It sounds so “professional”, doesn’t it? “Building a belief system”- like you are creating some commercial organization, or something.

Despite the stoically cold and unemotional sound of it, it is what we all do during our lives. Whether we are believing in our parent’s trustworthiness (which usually comes as a given), what we are told, what we learn, in Santa Claus, or even whether God exists or not, we depend on our beliefs to help guide us through life.

Hopefully we believe that ethical and moral behaviour, as defined by our society, is the way in which we should act towards others. Isn’t there an old adage that goes something like, “Honesty is what you do when you know no one will ever find out.”? We who have a belief system based on honesty and respect for others (and their property) believe in this.

So how do you build a belief system? You start with something that you believe in. DUH!!

If you believe in God, you have a really good start, but if it is that God doesn’t exist, or that He exists in some way other than what others believe, it is still something. No one can not believe in something, because even total apathy is something you believe in.

The question I was discussing with friends the other night is how do you know what to believe? We hear so many different things from so many different religions (and non-religions which are treated as a religion) that it is really hard to know who is right about what, and that was the question posed to me: “How do I know who to believe?”

My answer was, “You don’t, and that stinks” (I think the actual descriptive adjective I used at that time was somewhat more graphic.) But that is how it is. No one can be absolutely certain what to think or who to believe, at least not when first starting. So what do we do?

We take a leap of faith. We believe in that which seems right to us. I pray that God will be influencing each person’s heart when making that initial choice, but the choices we make are influenced by other things, too. Such as, what we learned from our parents (whether as a positive or a negative experience), what we learned from our friends, our teachers, our religious leaders, and (unfortunately) from TV. I have to include TV (and maybe nowadays I should include YouTube and the Internet) because it is such a major part of our lives now.

So we start with believing what is comfortable for us, and we move on from there. As we discuss our beliefs with others we hear their beliefs, and we compare and we re-evaluate, so on we go through life, constantly learning and adjusting our beliefs.

At some point, though, we have to take a stand. Sooner or later we will conclude that what we believe in is not open to change. I feel that way about my belief in God and Yeshua as my (actually, everyone’s) Messiah. I have always felt a calling to know God better, and I went through many years of not believing in Him at all; I cursed Him and His name often as a child, and I felt torn and confused, I believed we were all our own Messiah and that salvation was an individual thing, that there was no death only reincarnation, that there was no reincarnation, that …well, let’s just say I went through a lot of beliefs. After going through them all, I finally settled on what I truly believe in, what I have had proven (to me) to be the correct belief because of actual, real events in my life, and what I can say is more than a faith-based belief because for me it is a fact, a reality, an unchanging and unchangeable truth upon which I can now feel totally certain.

And here’s the hard part, the part that still stinks…I had to come to this absolute and unmovable position initially by a leap of faith.

In the long run, Brothers, Sisters, Friends, you need to make a leap of faith and choose to believe in something. What you are told, what you learn, what others tell you is true is all part of the process, but ultimately you must choose for yourself what you will believe. And it gets worse- you have to be willing to stand up to others when you choose that belief. You can’t go through life changing your moral and religious beliefs. I am sure there are people that do, and I can only feel pity for them. Without a belief system, you are building a house on sand instead of rock, and you will always be shifting  your moral and ethical position. You will be a leaf blown about in the wind instead of a strong tree upon which others can depend for support. And you will never feel secure in anything.

I believe that God exists, as He is described in the Bible, and that He sent Yeshua to be the Messiah He promised and told us about throughout the Tanakh (The Old Covenant.) I believe that the New Covenant is the continuation of the Old one, not a separate book about a new religion. I believe Yeshua (Jesus) taught the Torah, and the Torah is what He stood for and believed in. He never taught that we should act any way but the way we are told to act in the Torah. And all the other writings in the New Covenant support that.

I also believe that Yeshua died and was resurrected, and that His death allows me to be saved from my own sinfulness, which is a real part of my innate nature. I also believe that I can be a sinful sinner but still be a good person; at least, “good” as society defines “good.”  Which, I also believe, from God’s perspective isn’t good enough. That’s why we all need the Messiah.

I came to this belief system after more than 40 years of searching for it, and now I am totally comfortable with it. As I say above, I am convinced that it is correct because of the events in my life since I chose to accept this belief system for myself, and I am unmovable in it.

If you say I may be wrong, you have the right to believe that- I was where you are. The character Morpheus from “The Matrix” movie at one point had someone say to him that others didn’t believe as he did, and Morpheus answered that what he believes doesn’t require others to believe the same.

I believe, and I would hope that you believe as I believe, but you don’t have to. I respect your right to believe what you do, and am willing to discuss what I believe, but am not willing to allow you or anyone else to tell me what I believe is wrong. Maybe wrong for you, but no one can say it is wrong. Even if I vehemently disagree with what you believe in, I can’t say you are wrong, only that what you believe in is wrong for me.

God gave us all free will, and I respect God’s opinion and His choices. Even if you say there is no God and never was, my answer will be that your belief that God doesn’t exist is because He allows you to make up your own mind.

That’s what this is all about: initially, every belief is a leap of faith, no matter what you believe. Yeshua said we are all a slave to something, and I think we should be a slave to our beliefs; otherwise, what good are they? Let me say this: whatever you believe, make sure it is your choice to believe it. Don’t let anyone else tell you what you should believe, especially about God.

You need to be certain that what you believe is your choice because God will hold each and every one of us accountable for what we believe.

Believe me when I tell you that.

What to Say When You Have Nothing to Say

Leave a comment

Obviously… you say nothing.

You provide a presence that is caring, compassionate, and silent. Think of when you are in God’s presence- do you hear a lot of noise? Maybe there is worship music in the background, maybe there is someone singing, or maybe (as I find it most effective) you are under your Tallit, wrapped around your head as if in a cocoon of worship, and all the background noise is just a whisper to you as you feel God’s warmth, His love, His overwhelming joy being absorbed into your very soul.

There is no way any of us can give that wonderful, totally peaceful experience, but we can take a hint from the Lord and be that quiet presence that soothes and helps. When someone is in pain, either physically or emotionally, people think they should say something. We watch too much TV and too many movies, where someone says something that is a vitally pointed remark, one that empowers and helps the poor wretch to come back to reality, or see the truth; commercial break , and then back to the show where now everyone is happy.

That’s all make-believe! There are many people reviewing the words used, creating the emotional situation, as well as the circumstances- it is all staged, all planned, all fake! TV and movies are not real life.

In real life we have to deal with the idiots who hurt others and don’t care- no amount of talking will make them see the light, and on TV after the commercial it is years later while in real life it is just the very next second- nothing has changed, and we have to continue to suffer with these dolts and bullies just as before we said anything. And the people who we try to help still hurt. Sometimes they never get over it, sometimes they never want to get over it, and more often than not nothing we do will make a difference.

And you can’t change the channel, either!

So what do you do? You stay silent. Yeshua tells us not to throw pearls before swine and not to continue to kick against the goads. I think we owe it to people to try to help with our experience and understanding, but not to nag and not to feel upset or chided when they refuse to listen. Everyone has free will, and if God can teach us anything about treating others, it is to allow them to make their own choices and respect their right to do so enough where we aren’t pridefully insulted if they don’t do what we think is best.

I write email responses that I usually delete because I have learned (and believe me- it took a long time and a lot of chewing out’s before I finally got the message) that when I am not sure what to say, I should say nothing.  And also that when I know exactly what I want to say, it is usually best if I still say nothing.

The most powerful feeling and experience I have ever had is when I am quietly in the presence of God. I cannot give that feeling to anyone because, well, I’m not God. Duh!! But I can “be there” for someone, I can gently hold their hand, put my arm around them, or just sit, quietly, next to them without saying or doing anything other than being there. They will feel my presence, and they will be able to find some small comfort in that.

That’s the best we can do, and more often than not, I think it’s all we should do.

Nothing else to say.

Do You Believe, or Do You Just Agree?

1 Comment

What kind of a question is that? I think one that we need to think about.

I know many people who say they are a “Believer” but they make up their own rules, and they are more like a “Buffet Believer” than a Believer that obeys the Lord. I also know many people, all raised within one of the Christian religions, who say they believe in God and Jesus, and pass it off with as much enthusiasm as when they say they believe the Mets will win the pennant this year.

These people have been brought up being told that Jesus died for their sins, that they are going to heaven so long as they are “good” people (where ‘good’ is what the world says ‘good’ is), and although they all believe in Jesus they are anything but what we who have been “born again” would consider a Believer.

Even the demons believe in Jesus / Yeshua; in fact, they are the most stringent and trusting believers because they have met Him, they have seen His Father, they know His power and that’s why they shake from fear at the very mention of His name. I think the demons have a better chance of getting to Heaven than the vast majority of people I know who say they believe in Jesus.

This is because of the wrongful teachings that have been handed down over the centuries. Too many humans telling other humans what God wants us to do, what is the right way to worship, creating traditions that only enforce their power over others instead of truly bringing glory to God.

Here’s a list from Wikipedia of the different forms of Christian worship (I am presenting it as an example, not as a definite and complete listing):

Catholic Church

The Latin Church

Eastern Catholic Churches

Other churches and movements

Independent (self-identified as Catholic)

Eastern Orthodoxy

Eastern Orthodox Church

Oriental Orthodoxy

Church of the East

Medieval sects

Protestantism

Proto-Protestant Groups

Lutheranism

Anglicanism

Anglican Communion

Other Anglican Churches

Calvinism

Continental Reformed churches

Presbyterianism

Congregationalist Churches

Anabaptists and Schwarzenau Brethren

Plymouth Brethren and Free Evangelical Churches

Methodists

Pietists and Holiness Churches

Baptists

Spiritual Baptists

Apostolic Churches – Irvingites

Pentecostalism

Charismatics

Neo-Charismatic Churches

African Initiated Churches

Messianic Judaism \ Jewish Christians (Ed: really should be under Judaism) 

United and uniting churches

Religious Society of Friends (Quakers)

Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement

Southcottites

Millerites and comparable groups

Adventist (Sunday observing)

Adventist (Seventh Day Sabbath/Saturday observing)

Church of God movements (Sunday observing)

Church of God movements (Seventh Day Sabbath/Saturday observing)

Sabbath-Keeping Movements, Separated from Adventists

Sacred Name groups

Movements not related to the Millerites but comparable to them

Sabbath-Keeping movements, predating the Millerites

Latter Day Saints

Oneness Pentecostalism

Unitarianism and Universalism

Bible Student groups

Swedenborgianism

Christian Science

Other non-Trinitarians

New Thought

Esoteric Christianity

Racialist groups

Syncretistic religions incorporating elements of Christianity

Christian Movements

Internet Churches

LGBT-affirming Christian denominations

Interdenominational (ecumenical) churches and organizations

What’s with that? There is one God, and He gave us the Torah with the Mitzvot, Hukkim and Mishpatim (Laws, ordinances and regulations) and He said to obey these throughout all our generations. If these are the instructions directly from God, then how is it possible to have so many different groups of people worshipping the Lord in all these different ways?  Was God that confusing when He outlined the laws?

Moses said that to obey the Lord isn’t that hard: he said the laws aren’t so far from us that we need to send someone to get them or so high we couldn’t reach them. He also was adamant not to add to or take away from any of these laws, yet how can we have so many different means and ways of worshipping God, all with their own sets of “laws” if we never strayed from God’s Torah as He gave it to us?

Even the Jewish people, the ones that were given the Law and are the protectors and guardians of Torah, have 6 different sects that worship differently.

How can we know the difference between those that agree and those that truly believe? I guess the same way we know who to trust and who not to trust- by their fruit, by their ethics, by the way they live. People don’t mean what they say, they mean what they do, so are you a “believer” or just someone who repeats what you have been told, accepting things blindly because they are easy to live with?

Yakov (James) told us to be doers of the law and not just hearers of it. Decide if you really believe in Yeshua/Jesus; decide to accept the responsibility of knowing that He died so you can have a chance at salvation. The truth, Brothers and Sisters, is that you can’t make it on your own, and just because someone with a theological degree tells you the Spirit of God is in you and you are saved by the blood (after being able to answer three questions correctly) doesn’t mean you are a believer, or saved.

You need to decide that you are going to believe; you need to live your life showing that you are a believer by being a doer of the Word; you need to take possession of your salvation. You need to ask God for forgiveness: you, and only you because no one else can do it for you! If you just agree with what your Priest or Pastor or Rabbi, for that matter, has told you about salvation without deciding for yourself based on your own relationship with God, then you are a blind person being led by another blind person.

If you have decided to believe, halleluya! If you just agree, please please please get on the ball and make up your own mind!

Get real people- we’re talking about Eternity here!

Even When We Know Where We’re Going to End Up, We Don’t Know How We Will Get There

Leave a comment

Yesterday I talked about my bike ride and close brush with wiping out. The question I keep asking myself is why didn’t I know about the cement bumpers? Did I forget they were there or are they a new addition? I haven’t been that route for a month or two, so which is it?

Even though I knew where I was going, I didn’t know about the cement bumper. Whether I forgot or not, the end result is the same- BIG surprise at the last moment!

There is a story of a man who tells Yeshua how he is going to make a larger barn, and then do other things to square away his life, and Yeshua says the man is a fool because he spends all that time working for things that he won’t enjoy because his soul will be demanded of him that very night. It’s like the old expression:

If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans.

When we accept the truth that Yeshua is the Messiah and do T’Shuvah, we are beginning to walk a path that we think we know, since we have an idea of how to act, the Ruach helps us to know what we should do, and the end is eternity in God’s presence. But the sad truth is that the end is the only part we can be certain of, because the path is not straight, it is very narrow, and there are thorns, brambles, and many rocks along the way.  It is a difficult and treacherous road to take, and Yeshua warns us about this.

Even though I know where I am going to end up, I don’t really know how I will get there, meaning I am not sure what the travel itinerary has in store for me. Jonah thought he would go to Tarshish, and we all know how that turned out. Nebuchadnezzar thought he would rule the world, but he ate grass for 7 years, and Herod thought he would be able to keep the Messiah from being born, and I am sure he didn’t expect to end up the way he did.

Once we have accepted God’s grace and walk in His will we know where we will end up, but we really don’t know where we are going. So be prepared for anything; for friends to abandon you, for family to fall away from you, for workers to distrust you and talk against you, for the world, itself, to seem to come against you at every turn.

It ain’t easy being a real Believer, and it is a constant battle with yourself to stay the course. Especially when you don’t know which direction the course takes. It is easy to take a wrong turn, so always look to the Ruach (Spirit) to lead you (a sort of spiritual GPS), take along the Atlas (Bible) which will show you the way to go, and make sure you read it all the time.

And trust in God, who may not tell you where you are going until you are there, but wherever that is, He is already waiting for you.

Watch where you are going, keep an eye on where you are, and never forget what is at the end of the journey. All the troubles along the way will be like a small mist that evaporates in a second once you are in God’s presence.

Keep on Truckin’, Baby!

Leave a comment

I love living in Florida, one reason is that I can ride my bike all year long. I was taking a long ride yesterday, one that has some elevation (a causeway over the Banana River) so I can get a little more of a workout. As I was approaching the causeway there is a spot where I go down hill on a grassy area onto a parking lot. I have done this many times, and as I was zipping along at a brisk 15 MPH or so, I saw a tuft of grass in front of me. I figured I would have a little bump, but just as I got to the grass I saw that it was hiding one of those 8″ high cement bumpers.

Ooops- forgot about those being there.

Well, I pulled up hard on the handlebars and tried to jump it, and even though I got the front wheel over, the back didn’t make it and bumpity-bumpity-bump: I lost control to a large degree, but remarkably, even though the bike took a spill, I didn’t. I managed to walk right over the bike as it went down and maintained my balance.

Any landing you can walk away from is a good one, right?

I did get a nasty bump on one leg from the pedal and some scrapes on the other ankle, but for the most part I escaped unbroken and (mostly) undamaged. I picked up the bike, straightened the fenders and went back on my way.

So, nu? What’s this got to do with God? A lot.

We often read about how the gold must go through the fire to be refined, and Yeshua warns His Talmudim (disciples) that following Him will be like picking up one’s execution stake every day. We read about David’s trials while living as a bandit, in the caves and hills, trying to escape Shaul haMelech (King Saul), and we are preached to, over and over (like now) about having to run the good race and keep our eyes on the prize.

In other words, when you fall, get up. We all know that lesson, right? So what’s different with what happened to me?

What was different is that although I fell, and got back up, I didn’t get as hurt as I have in previous falls because having fallen many times I know what to do.  I knew what was coming. I was able to act so that my reaction allowed me to fall gracefully and maintain my balance. And, yes, after I fell I thanked God for the fact I wasn’t too damaged, then I got back on the bike and continued my journey.

We will all fall at some point on our walk with the Lord. In fact, we should be falling. I found this saying on the Internet, and it helps to make my point:

Ski instructors are taught that if their students aren’t falling at least once per run they are not learning new, improved form.

We need to fall, we need to go through the fire, and we need to know that the more we fall, the better we fall, the less likely we will get damaged, and the faster we can recover. That’s the lesson for today: don’t be afraid of falling; instead, learn how to fall.

When I was studying Judo we learned how to fall so that we would minimize the pain and the damage, and in our walk with the Lord we need to learn how to fall with grace and compassion (for ourselves), then to get up and keep on keepin’ on. Walking with God is hard, and you will have many roadblocks and falls, but you’ve got to keep on truckin’, Baby!

Falling can hurt, and if you let falling slow you down or make you quit, you will be a loser in the most important race of your life, no…make that the most important race of your eternity! Expect to fall, learn how to fall in control, and when you do you will fall with less damage and you will be able to get back up on your feet faster.

Don’t worry about taking a tumble or two, it’s only going to make you stronger. And take comfort in knowing that God is always there to help you back up on your feet.

You Can’t Give Away What You Don’t Own

Leave a comment

We have a column in our local paper that is a forum where people can post short little carps about things that bother them.

I am thinking of writing to that column complaining about the childish and inane complaints that people make.

Today I read someone’s complaint about the fast food tacos and burritos they buy: the issue centered around the wrapper sticking to the food, and how because of that, when eating the food and driving the person sometimes eats the paper.

Stop eating while you are driving! DUH!!

Just like the little old lady who sued McDonalds for burning herself with their coffee. Supposedly she placed the cup between her legs to pull the cover off so she could drink the hot coffee, all the while driving her car. Of course, it spilled and she got burnt, and who paid? We all did. The truth is, as I hear it, she didn’t do as well as everyone thinks, and her lawyers got the best of the suit (no surprise there), but the point is the same.

And what is the point? The point is that today no one is responsible, as a people or as a nation, for what happens to us, even when we are the cause.

Actually, it’s not all that new. Cain was a victim, too. No, really! Didn’t he complain to God that his punishment was too much to bear? And that he might be killed by someone if God sent him all alone into the world? Uh, what about Abel? Hello? Didn’t you just murder him?

Somewhere we lost the understanding that we are responsible for what we do and say. Somewhere we lost that maturity, that sense of ownership for our actions. We want to be recognized for any good deed we do, we want to get raises for simply showing up and doing the minimum, we want medals and trophies for nothing more than being there, but when we screw up it isn’t our fault.

In the parable of the man who hired workers for a denarius, he paid all the same amount, whether they started early in the day or joined just before sundown. The workers who were there all day complained about everyone getting the same pay, no matter how long they had worked. The man said that they (the ones there all day) got what they agreed to, and what he paid others isn’t their business. This has a real lesson for people today, which is that we should not complain about what anyone else gets and be concerned only with what we have.  If we are getting what we agreed to receive, then nothing else matters.

Oh, but that’s not fair! Really? Do you remember this:

Yet the house of Israel says, ‘The way of the Lord is not fair.’ O house of Israel, is it not My ways which are fair, and your ways which are not fair? Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways,’ says the Lord God.” Ezekiel 18:24-30

God will forgive a life-long sinner who does T’Shuvah and turns from his sin, even on his deathbed, and a man who has been righteous all his life, but then becomes a sinner (meaning purposefully turning to the “dark side” ) will be punished, even if this change of heart comes on his deathbed. And the world says that’s not fair. That’s what the story of the man paying the same wage to everyone, no matter when they started working, is all about, isn’t it? God looks to the heart, and what you did yesterday doesn’t really matter as much as what and who you are today.

When I was in Sales, we joked that you might be the top salesperson for the year, 5 years in a row, but what did you sell yesterday? And how many appointments do you have today? History is nice, but we live day to day, and we don’t know what will happen tomorrow, so we need to be in the moment, every moment. What others do or say may impact us, but it is what we do and say that we are responsible for, no matter what others have done.

We need to own up to our own actions. That means we need to “own” our sinfulness, “own” our mistakes, and willingly be accountable for them. When you own something, you have the right and the ability to give it away. If I have a mortgage, I can offer to sell my house but I can’t really sell it until the bank releases the lien. When I go to sell my car, I can’t really close the deal until the holder of the loan is paid because that is the legal entity that releases the registration to transfer the title.

The same is true with our sins- we can’t give them up to God until we own them. And if we keep thinking that we are the victims, that we aren’t accountable for what we do and say, and (ultimately) that it “isn’t our fault”, then how can we really be free of our sin?  If we don’t own it, we can’t get rid of it.

I am sure we all know someone, or some people, who pretend to be Believers, who talk the talk, but they don’t ever really admit their sinfulness, and they always seem to be a victim. I have known people that screw up their lives with foolish and immature decisions, then blame God for the Tsuris they get. I have heard people say that God is punishing them when it is clear that they are just making bad decisions. They don’t own up to their own stupidity and immaturity, so bad things happen. But it’s not their fault, oh no! They are Believers, they are godly people who pray all the time, but yet they must have done something wrong because God is against them, or they say they are under attack (presumably from the Enemy.)

The Enemy won’t attack you unless you are getting closer to God; if you don’t take responsibility for your own actions, there is no way the Enemy will be after you since you already are far from being able to get closer to God. Your sin keeps you away; the sin of irresponsibility, the sin of self-righteousness, the sin of rejecting the very essence of what God is telling us all- that He is the Judge, He is the one whose way is fair, and that He is the one who will repay.

Forget fair, forget what someone else did to you, forget why, just remember this: we are, each and every one of us, accountable to God for what we do and what we say. That’s all that will matter when we are before His Throne of Judgement. If we defend ourselves saying we cursed them out because of what they did to us, God will still hold us accountable for cursing someone out, won’t He? If we “get back” at someone, won’t God, fairly and rightfully, say that He told us not to repay for evil with evil, but wait upon Him? Didn’t He say that He will repay? Aren’t we commanded, over and over, to forgive?

And for those of us who will stand before the Throne with Yeshua at our side as our advocate, how will Yeshua be able to say that He has taken our sins when we haven’t really let go of them? We can’t give our sins to the Lord if we don’t own them. It’s true that Yeshua’s blood can cleanse away all sin, but if we don’t take off our “filthy rags” and place them in the washing machine, how will they be cleaned?

Our sins are our own;  when we are personally and completely accountable for them, only then can we truly be able to give them away.

Are you ready to own your sins? It’s the only way to be rid of them.

Truthful Liars

5 Comments

In the early part of the 15th Century, if you asked a scientist about the world, he would have told you it was flat.

In the 18th Century if you asked a doctor how to cure diseases he would have told you to bleed the patient.

In the 19th Century, the US Government told the Native American’s they would be relocated and left alone forever.

For many centuries, many Christians have been teaching that Jesus fulfilled the law, thereby doing away with it.

Since the 2nd or 3rd Century Jewish teaching has been that Jesus created a new religion.

All lies. Every single one of them. But they were not told by liars; at least, not people who lied on purpose. They were told by people who believed what they said because this is what they had been taught by their professors and their religious leaders. Who learned it from their professors and religious leaders.

But that doesn’t change the truth that it’s a lie.

Today we all know the Earth is round, ultimately because we can view it from God’s perspective. It’s much easier to see how round the Earth is when you are above it. We also know that diseases are caused by germs because we have microscopes that let us see the teensy tiny little bugs that make us sick. Again, we can see it from God’s perspective.

But we still think that the Old Covenant is for Jews and the New Covenant is for Christians. We still believe, in some circles, that the Jews have been rejected by God because they rejected Yeshua, and we still believe that if you are a Jew and believe Yeshua is the Messiah, then you can’t be a Jew, anymore.

Lies! Untruths! Dreck! In fact, if you collected these various teachings, from both Jews and Christians, you could fertilize a rose garden the size of Texas!

Jesus Christ is NOT a name- it is a bad translation of a worse transliteration.  Here’s the etymology of this made-up name, in a nutshell: Yeshua ha Mashiach means the salvation of the Lord, the Messiah. Jesus was never called “Jesus” when He walked the earth, or for a few centuries after that. His name was, and still is, Yeshua. When the first Gospels were written for distribution, the language of the world was Greek, but there is no Greek word for “God’s Salvation.” It didn’t exist, culturally or religiously, so they made up a word that sounded like Yeshua to identify the person. A word that sounds like another word is a transliteration, and for “Yeshua” it was “Jesu”. Jesu, in and of itself, has no meaning. When the Greek was translated into Latin, Jesu was made into Jesus. Maschiach, the Anointed One, also had no Greek counterpart, so the term Cristos was used. This represented rubbing oil on a shield, which is what the Greek soldiers did to keep their leather shields supple. As with Jesu, when Latinized Cristos became Christ.

We have all been taught that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and the Messiah, but the truth is that “Jesus Christ” is a false name;  Yeshua ha Mashiach is our Saviour. Yeshua is the name above all names, and the only name that saves.

But don’t blame these people for the way they have misled us, for they have also been misled. The most difficult lie to ferret out is the one from someone who believes what they are saying is the truth. That’s why they are truthful liars. And these lies have become the truth to so many people, and for so long a time, that it is almost impossible for anyone now to accept the truth that they are lies.

So, how do you know the truth from a lie? Well, we know about the earth and about disease because, as I say above, today we can see them from God’s perspective. The logical course to take if you want to know the truth about Yeshua, what He taught, and what and who He is is to see Him from God’s perspective. We all have that ability and that opportunity, because God gave it to us.

It’s called the Tanakh, and (yes, my Jewish non-believing brothers and sisters), the New Covenant,too. Together they make up the entire Bible.

The Tanakh is the God-inspired writings of eye-witness accounts by Jewish men and women of their interactions with God. From Moses writing what God told him to write, to the history of the kings of Israel and Judea, to the warnings of the Prophets, the Megillot (writings, scrolls) of the people who had individual encounters with God and whose story demonstrates God’s influence and power, to the end of Jewish occupation of their Homeland, taken away captive by Babylonia and still waiting for their promised Messiah.  The New Covenant is the God-inspired writings of the eye-witness accounts of Jewish men and women who wrote down the history of their encounters with God, and with one man who proved Himself to be the Messiah through His miraculous works and His resurrection. The same thing is true of both these books- they are God-inspired, they are written by Jews, about Jews, and for Jews. They are about God and His Messiah, and the New Covenant takes up where the Old Covenant left off. Additionally, the New Covenant takes us to the End of Days, just as the Old Covenant did. Except the New is more detailed.

But it is all one story, one beginning and one end; one God, one Messiah, Jews and Gentiles being saved by God’s love and forgiveness. All the same.

God gave us the Torah, God inspired the writings of the rest of the Tanakh, and God inspired the writings of the B’rit Chadashah (Gospels), as well. Jewish men and women, even as children, are taught the New Covenant is a lie, Jesus was Jewish but created a new religion and, thereby, isn’t Jewish anymore, and if you are a Jew and even think about believing in Jesus, you can’t be a Jew.

Christians also teach that Jesus was a Jewish man, but after He was resurrected He did away with the law (Torah) and that it is only for Jews, because they rejected Jesus. There are “right-wing” Christians, called Replacement Theologists, who go as far as to say that God has now rejected the Jews and that they, the Christians, are the “new” Jews, the Israel of God that Shaul talks about in Galatians. They also say that for a Jew to believe in Jesus that person can’t be a Jew, anymore.

Lies. Lies from the very pit of Sheol. Lies designed to keep those seeking the true Messiah from finding Him, and those who think they are saved from really being saved because they do not follow God’s laws and commandments so they can’t produce any fruit.

Look at this from God’s perspective- He gave it to us. It’s called the Bible- the ENTIRE Bible, which is Genesis through Revelations. Even if you don’t believe Jesus (Yeshua) is your Messiah, read about Him. What can it hurt? He lived His life as a Jewish man, He died for all of us, Jews and Gentiles, and His resurrection was as a Jewish man. He never said a single word against the Torah; in truth, He taught from Torah! There was no other scripture, so if He taught from Torah, then it is logical that He supports Torah. I mean, let’s get real, people: Yeshua taught from the Torah, He supported Torah, his Father told Moshe to write the Torah down, Yeshua did His Father’s will (He says that many times) so He had to teach Torah was right and valid. He even says, in Matthew 5:17, he didn’t come to change anything in the Torah.  The other writings, mostly by Shaul (Paul) all uphold and support the Torah, as well. How could any of the disciples or followers of Yeshua teach anything but what Yeshua taught? Didn’t Yeshua say that a student is not greater than his teacher? Therefor, what the students (Talmudim) of Yeshua taught had to be Torah!

John says the Torah became flesh, that Yeshua was the living Torah! How could Yeshua teach against Himself?

That’s why if you want to know the truth, from God’s perspective, you need to read the entire Bible, from Genesis to Revelations, and back again. Over and over, and to ask God to lead you with His Ruach (Spirit) to see the truth about Him, His Messiah, and the entire plan of creation.

That’s the only way you can know the real truth.

Don’t accept what anyone tells you, not me, not your Rabbi, not your Pastor or Priest, not no one, not no how. Listen to them, sure- they deserve your respect, but respect for them doesn’t mean you should blindly accept from them.

Truthful liars are everywhere: in your family, in your schools, in your government, in your Shul or Church, and they can be anyone. Anyone at all. The only way you can know the truth is to determine it for yourself. And realize that you may be lying to yourself, even now. These people are lying to themselves, but they don’t realize it.

Yeshua tells us that teachers have an extra responsibility, and that when the blind lead the blind they both fall into a hole. Even worse, He says that those that sin and teach others to sin will be least in the kingdom of heaven. There is a promise in that, since He says they will be least, but still, in heaven. However, if you are taught that Jesus isn’t the Messiah, or that the Torah is just for Jews, or that because you are saved by the blood that is all you need, or that as long as you are a “good” person you go to heaven, then you are not being taught the path to salvation; in truth, you are being led to destruction and eternal damnation.

But, don’t take my word for it. Go ahead- read about it yourself in your Bible. I suppose you have one, somewhere. If not, go to Barnes and Noble and get one. If I may, stay away from the King James version- too anti-Semitic for my tastes. Try to find a Messianic version, like the David Stern “Complete Jewish Bible”, especially if you are Jewish. Get to know who Yeshua is, and forget this “Jesus” guy that is some blond haired, blue-eyed Westernized version of the truth. Get to know the real Messiah, whose name is Yeshua, who was born and died a Jewish man teaching the truth about God’s Word, not creating anything new but simply helping us to understand the true meaning of what God tells us in the Torah.

It was the men that followed behind, not immediately behind, but a few centuries later that screwed it all up. Just like in the book of Judges, those that knew Him not did not follow Him correctly. Except for in the book of Judges, God continually forgave the Jewish people when they did T’Shuvah and called to Him for help, but in the B’rit Chadashah we do not see the salvation come over and over. We see now the final salvation, the one that saves all for all time, and what will happen when God finally drops the other shoe.

They are so alike, the Old and the New Covenants. Both tell of God’s works, both tell of a Messiah, both tell of the forgiveness of God, and both tell that there will be a time when all will be judged and only those that have accepted their Messiah will survive the second death. And they both tell us exactly what to look for to know the Messiah.

For over two Millennia we have constantly screwed this up. The Jews saw God on the mountain and saw His miraculous salvation, from Egypt, from their enemies, and yet they still rebelled and only a remnant followed Him as He said they should. The Jews also saw Yeshua, and many, many thousands of Jews recognized Him because they knew their Torah, they knew the Prophets and they could see the truth. Then “mankind” stepped in, restructuring, retelling , retwisting the truth and now we have how many Christian religions?  Just like what we did with the Old Covenant, we have done with the new one. Really- there is no difference, is there? We screwed them both up the exact same way, by interjecting our own rules and placing God’s mitzvot second to Man’s traditions.

Do you get it yet? You have to make up your own mind, and you can’t do that intelligently by just taking what you have been told as the absolute truth. I mean, really? If what you have been told is true, how can there be so many sides to the same story?

Make a decision, and make it an informed decision. All the information you need is in the entire Bible, so read the whole thing. Half-read is half-informed, and you have too much to risk to go into this half-way.

Happy Purim!! Chag S’Meach!! Yom Tov!!

Leave a comment

This is one of the happiest festivals we have. Fairs, games, reading the book of Esther (Hadassah) with groggers and shouting.

For those that don’t know the way we read this book in the Synagogue, groggers (noisemakers) are handed out to everyone, adults and children. When we read the book (it’s short) every time the name of Hamen is said, we use the groggers because his name should be blotted out from memory (he who shall not be named!) When the name of Esther is read, we all say, “aaaahhhhhh” because she was so beautiful, and when Mordecai’s name comes up we all shout, “Yay!!” because he’s the hero.

There is a traditional belief that during the celebration of Purim we are to imbibe so much that we get too drunk to know Mordecai from Hamen, and the favorite food of the night is Hamentashen, a cookie that is shaped like a three-cornered hat (which Hamen is supposed to have worn) and the center is filled with prune (traditional filling), or other fruit jellies, such as apricot or cherry, or even poppy-seed.

One of the more interesting facts about the book of Hadassah (I prefer not to use Esther, because even though that is today considered a “Jewish” name, it is actually a form of the Semitic goddess of fertility, Asherah) is that the name of the Lord is not mentioned anywhere in the book. Not even once. The closest we come to even mentioning there is a God is when Mordecai tells Hadassah, who is trying to avoid going to the king, that if she doesn’t stand up for the people, help will come from another place (implying the Lord.) That’s as close as we get to hearing about God.

I have read that this was done because the book was written in Shushan, and as a form of respect to the royalty they left any specific mention of God out of it. I hope that is wrong; Yeshua told us that if we are ashamed of Him then He will be ashamed of us, and I can’t see someone as fearless as Mordecai, who refused to bow before Hamen, worrying that he might upset the king if he mentions God. I think this lack of God’s name or mention is one mystery that we may never solve.

Another thing I speak out about is that Hadassah, who I have always been taught was brave, wasn’t so brave. When Mordecai asked her to intervene on behalf of the Jewish people the first thing she said was no. True, she didn’t come right out and say, “Hey, Unc: I got mine, so tough for the rest of you.” but she used the excuse that if she went before the king, without being called for, she might die. It was only after Mordecai told her just because she is the queen she won’t escape the fate of the other Jews that she relented. I wonder, reading between the lines, if Mordecai wasn’t saying that somewhere, someone (I don’t think it would ever have been him) who knew Hadassah was a Jew would rat her out in order to try to save their own life. From my perspective, Hadassah had to be coerced into saving her people. That doesn’t detract from the fact that she did risk her life, but she clearly wasn’t up to it without a “push” from good old Uncle Mordecai.

And she isn’t alone. Moses needed more than push, Jonah almost had to drown, and Gideon tested the Lord with sheepskin and morning dew. Twice! Not all the great heros of the Bible were heros right from the start. It reminds me of the parable Yeshua tells of the two sons (it’s in Mattitayu.) The one who first said no but changed his mind is the one that actually did what the father wanted, while the other immediately said he would do as asked, but he never did. The first son, who initially was rebellious and disrespectful, was the one who ended up being the more obedient.

Being a godly person isn’t easy, and often we may find ourselves looking for ways to avoid what God calls us to do. If you see this in yourself, there is no need to berate yourself or feel low, so long as you are working towards obedience. In the end, God wants obedience, and He is more than willing (and He shows this to us throughout the Bible) to overlook any initial reluctance. In the end, it is what we do that counts.

How many times do we read in the Tanakh that God is not pleased with the blood of bulls and rams, but desires obedience over everything else? The answer is: a lot.

When I was in sales I learned that people don’t mean what they say, the mean what they do. God wants us to do, and if we say we don’t want to, so what?  I also know that even when I don’t want to do something I know God wants me to do, and even if I do it kvetching and arguing and whining about it, so long as I do it I am pleasing the Lord.

Of course, it would be even more pleasing to Him if I just did it without all the drama. Or better yet, if I did it willingly and cheerfully. Now that, in my case, would be a miracle!

Enjoy this wonderful holiday, and remember what we Jews always like to say as a “short and sweet” condensing of our history:

They tried to kill us, we killed them. Let’s eat!

Take comfort in knowing that the hero’s in the Bible didn’t always start out that way, just as we didn’t start out as Believers. It isn’t what we say, or even what we want, but what we do that will determine our future.

So, nu? What are you doing to determine your future?

God’s Mercy in Action

Leave a comment

Do you recall what happened when Joshua first attacked Ai?

They had just come from a great triumph at Jericho, defeating the fortified town and destroying all the people and all the booty, just as God commanded.

Oh, but wait! Someone didn’t destroy all the booty, did he? Achan kept some of the spoils, against the commandment of God, and because of that the entire community (God sees the Children of Israel as a single entity) suffered defeat when they attacked Ai. Only a handful of the inhabitants routed the army of 3,000 Israelites, and could have damaged, if not destroyed, the fierce reputation that Israel was beginning to generate.

After the sin was atoned for (at the cost of the life of Achan, his entire family and all their possessions), the next attack at Ai was totally successful.

Here’s the part where, after such a harsh punishment, we see God’s mercy: God told Joshua that after destroying the town and people of Ai, the Israelites could keep the spoils. Achan paid the price for his disobedience, but God saw the weakness of the people, and instead of testing them further He mercifully relented and allowed them to keep the spoils, knowing that they were unable to control themselves.

Often I heard it said that God will never test us beyond our measure, and I believe that. However, I also see in the Bible that God will, initially at least, test us to the full extent of our self-control and obedience.  The man who collected sticks on the Sabbath (in B’midbar/Numbers) was killed for his sin, yet those that collected extra manna were not killed for their sin (to God, sin is sin- there is no little sin or partial sin, so collecting extra manna when told not to is no different than collecting sticks on the Sabbath.) All that happened to them was that the manna did not survive longer than the regular manna.

God showed His mercy to the children of Israel in the desert. How many times did He want to destroy them for their sins? He sent birds to give them meat, but they suffered a plague from it which Aaron stopped. He sent poisonous snakes to kill them, but then he mercifully allowed those bitten to live; I am sure that many died before Moses made the brass snake that kept people alive. He sent a plague against them that Pinchus stopped, He sent a plague against them when David sinned with the census, but then withheld His hand. He was even merciful to Ba’alam by not killing him on the road to curse the Jewish people (Ba’alam got his later, though, for the sin of telling Bilam how to entice the Jewish men into sin.)

God starts out with His laws and commandments, and the first ones to disobey usually are the ones who end up showing that God is serious. The first to disobey get the worst of it, but it seems, as I read the Manual, that God’s mercy will intervene after that and even though others may sin, their punishment is less severe.  God is our King, but His mercy allows us to survive our own disobedience, as a people. Individuals will suffer, but the people will go on. God told Moshe (Exodus 33) that He will show mercy to those whom He will show mercy, and have compassion for those whom He will have compassion for.

Basically, God says that He will choose who gets the full monty and who doesn’t. It’s not our choice, so, in essence, you pays your money and you takes your chances. If we choose to sin, we may get away with our lives, we can be forgiven, but we may end up destroyed in a heartbeat, too.

Do you really want to take that chance? Is the reward we get from any sin worth our life? Our eternal soul? Achan, Saphira, Ananias, the guy who collected sticks- they all died in their sin.

God is King, Judge, and merciful Father. All in one. He will decide what the outcome of a sin is, and we have to decide to try to keep from sinning. He will forgive those who seek forgiveness, over and over. We see that throughout the Tanakh- no matter how often Israel sinned against the Lord, when they did T’Shuvah and cried out to Him, even though they fully deserved their punishment and the suffering they were undergoing, His mercy came forth upon them and He sent them a saviour. The Book of Judges shows this happening, over and over.

Trust God to be merciful, but never, never, NEVER expect Him to be merciful when you want Him to be. It’s His choice, not yours. The best thing to do is be as obedient as you can. God has set the rules and it is up to us to follow them. If  we fail to obey by accident He has shown He is willing , even desiring, to forgive when we come before Him asking forgiveness. However, if we disobey purposefully, well…you are taking your chances with His mercy. Personally, I don’t think there is anything on Earth that is worth having if it means taking a chance on God’s mercy. Therefore, as for me and my family, we choose the Lord and His ways.

I know, because of my sinful nature, I will fail to obey at some point in my life. Probably more than just once, too. Because my heart wishes to obey, I have hope from knowing how God has been merciful, and I pray that God will be merciful in His judgement of my actions. I pray that I will be one of those sinners He chooses to have mercy on and compassion for.

Some of you may be feeling uncomfortable with the idea that God may not be merciful, because the usual teaching is all about God’s mercy and compassion, His love, His son’s love, forgiveness of sins, take you as you are, unconditional salvation, happy-happy-happy, yadda-yadda-yadda. All that is true, but we have to also remember that He is holy, the Holy of Holies, and sin is an anathema to Him. It is a stench in His nostrils and He has no desire to be anywhere near sin. We are told that we should not test the Lord, our God, but if we sin and expect Him to be merciful every single time we sin, we are really telling God what to do, aren’t we? He says it is His choice, and He is, after all, the one who makes the rules. He invented this game called life; He made the rules, He set the board, He determines what is a good roll and what is a bad roll, and He has the final say and judgment on everything that happens while you are playing. Don’t even think of expecting His mercy when you intend to sin; if you sin by accident, if you sin before you realize what you are doing, be penitent, ask forgiveness and pray for His mercy. Don’t expect it, don’t demand it, but plead for it in earnest and heartfelt prayer, with a broken spirit and a contrite heart. David knew how to ask for forgiveness, and he was a man after God’s own heart, so do as David did.

God is merciful, He loves every single one of us, and He wants us to have eternal life. He isn’t just willing to forgive- He wants to forgive. BUT…He is God, He is holy, and He will judge. He didn’t make the rules just so we could break them, and He made the rules for everyone. It’s not what we want the rules to mean, it’s what He says the rules mean, and that will count for us or against us. That’s why you need to read the Bible and see what God says, then measure it against what your ‘religion’ tells you, because ultimately you will stand before Him and you will have no one to blame but yourself.

Yes, we are saved by the sacrificial death of Yeshua, and His life, His death and His resurrection is proof that He is Messiah. And yes, He will stand at our side when we are before the Lord on Judgement Day and speak for us. It is His righteousness that saves us, not our own. Yet we still want to be honored, don’t we? Dont’ you want God to say, “Well done, good and faithful servant” when you are before Him?  I certainly wouldn’t want to hear God say, “Okay, you’re in, but you barely made it; you did a lousy job when you were alive, so you can clean the toilets and dust the stars. And don’t think even think of eating at the adult’s table!”

God is good, all the time. God is righteous and holy, all the time. God is merciful, NOT all the time. God told us this about Himself, so remember that the next time the little red guy with the horns on your shoulder tells you it’s okay to do something because God is merciful. Don’t test God and don’t take His mercy for granted. Do what is right and let righteousness guide your way.