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Can you pass the Deuteronomy 13 Test?
I’m guessing the first thing that came to mind, if you are familiar with Deuteronomy 13, is whether or not you are a false prophet.
Am I right?

What if I told you there is a different test?
A test, not for false prophets, but a test for you and a test for me?

The test is right there in the scriptures.
Did you miss it?
Let’s take a close look…

Deuteronomy 13:1-6
13 “Whatever I command you, you must take care to do—you are not to add to it or take away from it.
² “Suppose a prophet or a dreamer of dreams rises up among you and gives you a sign or wonder, ³ and the sign or wonder he spoke to you comes true, while saying, ‘Let’s follow other gods’—that you have not known, and—‘Let’s serve them!’ ⁴ You must not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams—for Yehova your God is testing you, to find out whether you love Yehova your God with all your heart and with all your soul. ⁵ Yehova your God you will follow and Him you will fear. His commandments you will keep, to His voice you will listen, Him you will serve and to Him you will cling. ⁶ That prophet or dreamer of dreams must be put to death! For he has spoken falsehood against Yehova your God, who brought you out from the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of slavery, to entice you from the way Yehova your God commanded you to walk. So you will purge the evil from your midst.

Did you see it?
I’m not talking about the test of a false prophet.
I’m talking about the test that you and I must pass.
Do you see it?

It is right there, in verses 4 and 5
for Yehova your God is testing you, to find out whether you love Yehova your God with all your heart and with all your soul. ⁵ Yehova your God you will follow and Him you will fear. His commandments you will keep, to His voice you will listen, Him you will serve and to Him you will cling.

Yehova, your God, is testing you…
Are you passing this test?
Can you spot a false prophet or a false teacher?
Is it really important to be able to?

According to Yehova, being able to identify a false propeht is a test that we must pass.
If we pass the test, we love Yehova with all our heart and with all our soul.
If we are unable to pass the test, then we will chase after the thoughts and ideas of men, and we do not love Yehova with all our heart and all our soul.

Do you get it?
This is a big deal!!!

Before we even get to “the test” in verse 4 we are given very important instructions in verse 1.
Are you violating this instruction from Yehova?
If He commands it, we are to do it. 
Not only are we to do it, we are not to alter His command.
Does this describe your life?
Does this describe your walk with Yehova?
Are you a person that follows His instructions, without altering them?

Yehova then gives us a scenario to consider:
What if a prophet or teacher encourages us to do something, anything, contrary to following Yehova?
What if this prophet or teacher is even able to perform miracles?
Would we allow miracles to cause us to fail His test?
What about charisma?
What about charm?
What about compassion?
What about a massive ministry, with thousands of followers?
Do these things make someone believable?

Yehova does not care about miracles.
Yehova does not care about charisma or charm or passion.
Yehova cares about His own truth.
He only cares if you will listen to His voice and follow Him.
Would you allow something miraculous to pull you off the narrow path?  Would you chase after someone who can do supernatural, miraculous things?
Don’t fail the test.
Don’t forget your purpose.
Don’t be dazzled by false teachers and false prophets.
Don’t let fancy words, or even fascinating actions distract you from your purpose.
“…love Yehova your God with all your heart and with all your soul.”

What if a vibrant, caring, passionate teacher comes along.
What if he inspires many to improve their lives?
What if he teaches about the good news of the gospel?
What if he feeds the hungry, and takes care of the poor?
So far so good, right?
What if he adds to or takes away from the commandments of Yehova?
Uh-Oh.
Houston, we have a problem.

There are countless millions of mainstream church pastors who seem to care, but they teach against the word of Yehova.
They encourage you to follow and worship and love a Jesus who did away with the commandments of Yehova.

What did God say again?
13 “Whatever I command you, you must take care to do—you are not to add to it or take away from it.

If anyone anywhere anytime adds to or takes away from the commandments of Yehova, then they are a false prophet or a false teacher.
End of story.
No questions asked.
Black and white. 
No gray area here.
A worthy teacher will point you to the words of Yehova, and encourage you to follow Him.
A false teacher will tell you His commands are no longer valid.
Yehova says he is to be put to death, in order to purge the evil from among you.

Do you love Yehova with all your heart and all your soul?
Do you pass His test?
Or do you listen to the teachings of men?
Do you listen to false prophets and false teachers?
If you do, then you have failed the test.

Scripture says a matter is settled on the testimony of two or three witnesses. If that is the case, then we need another test in scripture, just like the first in Deuteronomy.
Is there one?

1John 2:3-6
³ Now we know that we have come to know Him by this—if we keep His commandments. ⁴ The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him. ⁵ But whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God is truly made perfect. We know that we are in Him by this— ⁶ whoever claims to abide in Him must walk just as He walked.

Do you know Yeshua Messiah (Jesus)?
Or are you a liar?
This is not my question to you.
I am simply quoting the inspired word of God.
Do you keep the commandments?

If not, please pray about these things.
God will give you His understanding if you truly seek it.
Will you obey the scriptures, or will you listen to the teachings of men?
Will you listen to men who speak against the word of God?

Installment #3 of summarizing what I’ve learned by writing these blog posts over the last 21 months…

Not everyone who claims to know Jesus actually knows the Messiah described in the scriptures.

What?????????
Ok, this is another very tough subject to deal with.
I’ve learned that saying this out loud instantly makes you the bad guy…

OK, granted, if someone thinks they know Jesus and thinks they are saved, they might get a little hostile if you try to tell them otherwise.

The thoughts and ideas of men are fickle and are prone to error.
So instead, let’s look at what scripture says about it.

Ok, where to start??
First of all, let’s go to this quote from Yeshua Messiah (Jesus):
John 10:24
²⁴ Then the Judean leaders surrounded Him, saying, “How long will You hold us in suspense? If You are the Messiah, tell us outright!”
²⁵ Yeshua answered them, “I told you, but you don’t believe! The works I do in My Father’s name testify concerning Me. ²⁶ But you don’t believe, because you are not My sheep. ²⁷ My sheep hear My voice. I know them, and they follow Me. ²⁸ I give them eternal life! They will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of My hand.

What do we have going on here?
The educated religious leaders of Messiah’s day are asking Him to claim that He is the Messiah.
What can we learn from this?
They don’t recognize Him as the Messiah.
They don’t know Him.
These men are the leaders in their community; they are the teachers of the scriptures.
And they do not recognize their Savior.
Is this common today?
That is what I’m trying to explain to people.
Yes, it is common today.
Our educated religious leaders do not recognize who Messiah is, even though they claim to teach about Him.

Moving on, what else do we learn in John 10?
Messiah says He did tell them, except they do not believe.
We see this today in our churches.
The scriptures tell us all about Messiah.
The scriptures describe His purpose, His character, and His teachings.
The scriptures record His direct quotes.
And yet, our mainstream Christian church doctrine teaches the opposite of what Messiah taught.

Messiah goes on to tell them, “But you don’t believe, because you are not My sheep.”
If this was the case 2000 years ago, then it is the case today.
If people claim to know Jesus, but show they don’t really know Him through their actions, then they are not His sheep.

Messiah then says this, “ ²⁷ My sheep hear My voice. I know them, and they follow Me.”
His sheep listen to Him.
His sheep know Him.
His sheep follow Him.

Backing up, we see this in verse 14 of John 10
¹⁴ “I am the Good Shepherd. I know My own and My own know Me…”

If someone says they know Jesus, how can anyone possible say they actually don’t?
Well, we can figure this out by looking at other direct quotes of Yeshua Messiah.

John 14:15
“If you love Me, keep My commandments.”
John 14:21
“He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me.”
John 15:10
“If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.”

If someone does not keep the commandments, then they do not love Jesus the way He says to love Him.
What commandments are we talking about?
Revelation 14:12 tells us who the saints are:
¹² Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.

This defines which commands we are to keep.
The commandments of God.
The Torah.
The Law.

Should we really have to go to Revelation to figure this out?
Does Jesus just tell us point blank anywhere what is expected of us?
Mainstream doctrine teaches that Jesus fulfilled the law, and that it is done away with.
But what does scripture say?
Matthew 5:17
¹⁷ “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets.”
OK, so He did not come to abolish or destroy the Law.
G2647  katalyō
-to dissolve, disunite (what has been joined together), to destroy, demolish
-metaph. to overthrow i.e. render vain, deprive of success, bring to naught
-to subvert, overthrow; of institutions, forms of government, laws, etc., to deprive of force, annul, abrogate, discard

and the rest of verse 17
 “…I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.”
We see in this phrase that Messiah did fulfill the Law.
But is this a good translation?
G4137  plēroō
to make full, to fill up, i.e. to fill to the full
to cause to abound, to furnish or supply liberally
I abound, I am liberally supplied
to render full, i.e. to complete
to fill to the top: so that nothing shall be wanting to full measure, fill to the brim
to consummate: a number
to make complete in every particular, to render perfect
to carry through to the end, to accomplish, carry out, (some undertaking)
to carry into effect, bring to realization, realize
of matters of duty: to perform, execute
of sayings, promises, prophecies, to bring to pass, ratify, accomplish
to fulfill, i.e. to cause God’s will (as made known in the law) to be obeyed as it should be, and God’s promises (given through the prophets) to receive fulfillment

The English translations of the bible state in Matthew 5:17 that Jesus fulfilled the Law.
But if we study the original language, we see this word actually means to fill completely. It can be said that Jesus came to fully teach the Law.
Another meaning for G4137  plēroō is to accomplish or carry out.
If this is the intended meaning, then it is still true that Jesus accomplished the Law (lived without sin), but still, He did not abolish or destroy it. He did not make it void, or render it not applicable.
Paul said this in Romans 3:31
³¹ Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law.

Another definition of G4137  plēroō  is  to cause God’s will (as made known in the law) to be obeyed as it should be, and God’s promises (given through the prophets) to receive fulfillment
Based on the topic and the context, this seems to be the most applicable definition for plēroō in this case.
If so, the verse would read as this:
 “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to cause God’s will (as made known in the law) to be obeyed as it should be.”

Wow, that isn’t what we’ve been taught about Matthew 5:17, is it?
Just in case we end up confused, Messiah goes on to say this in Matthew 5:18
¹⁸ For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.
What is He saying?
He is telling us that until heaven and earth pass away, not a single pen stroke of the Law will pass away.
(reiterating His statement that He did not come to destroy or abolish).
We see the word fulfilled used again at the end of verse 18.
Is it G4137  plēroō again?
No, it sure isn’t.
It is the correct word for fulfill, as we are accustomed to using the word.
G1096  ginomai
to become, i.e. to come into existence, begin to be, receive being to become, i.e. to come to pass, happen
of events:
to arise, appear in history, come upon the stage
of men appearing in public
to be made, finished
of miracles, to be performed, wrought
to become, be made
In speak of the passing of the heavens and the earth, this word G1096  ginomai is used.
In looking at the definitions, this appears to be the correct word in this context.

Even if we are still confused, Messiah goes on to be even more clear in verse 19 of Matthew 5
¹⁹ Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
Yeshua Messiah, Jesus, goes on to tell us that it is weak-sauce to break the commands, and it is highly esteemed to keep the commands.
I’ve had people tell me that if they break the commands and do not follow Torah, they will still be least in the kingdom of heaven.
They are willing to do the least possible and still get in.
First of all, is this how we want to present ourselves to the Creator of all that there is?
“Oh hello, all mighty and powerful God, the Creator of life and all that has ever been.  I didn’t feel like doing the things you said, but at least I’m still here. Do you have some menial tasks I can do here?”
If you go back and read this verse carefully, you will see it does not say the least are in the kingdom. We see that those who break the commands will be referred to as “the least” by those who are in the kingdom.
Big difference!!
“This just depends on how you interpret verse 19, right?”
That would be true, if it were the only information we have available to us, but it isn’t.
Here is another direct quote of Yeshua Messiah.
Matthew 7:21-23
²¹ “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. ²² Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ ²³ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’

This gives us more clarity.
This passage is not speaking about atheists, or Satanists, or Hindus, or whatever…
It is speaking about people who believe they served Messiah.
They call Him “Lord” or “Master” depending on which translation you use.
What does Jesus say about these people who are quite sure they belong to Him?
He says they will not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

What!!
Now we are back to torches and pitchforks again.
Except these are the words of Messiah, not my words.
Are you going to chase Messiah around with fire and sharp objects, wishing to do Him harm?
I doubt it.
How do we avoid this fate, to be excluded from the kingdom of heaven?
He tells us at the end of verse 21
“…he who does the will of My Father in heaven.”
Just follow the instructions of Yehova, the Father.
Easy enough, right?
But these people protest, and say they did great works in His name.
Of course they can change His mind, right?
How does Messiah respond?
‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
He rejects them.
He does not know them.
He sends them away.

Does Messiah tell us who does get to be in the kingdom of heaven?
Yes, He sure does.
Revelation 22:14
¹⁴ Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city.

Going back earlier in this lesson, we heard this from Messiah:
John 10
²⁷ My sheep hear My voice. I know them, and they follow Me. ²⁸ I give them eternal life!

Do the people in Matthew 7 (who claim to be His) match the description of His people in John 10?
Nope.
They are not His.
Depart from Me.
I don’t know you.
Why not?
Because they are workers of lawlessness.

We can claim to know Jesus, but that does not give us entry into the kingdom of heaven.
We have to hear His voice.
We have to listen to the things He says.

If we don’t then we do not know Him.
Even if we think we know Him.
Do you know Him?
Scripture gives us a simple test to see if we know Jesus, Yeshua Messiah.

1John 2:3-6
³ Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. ⁴ He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. ⁵ But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God ^[a]is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. ⁶ He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.

Do you know Him?
Or do you just claim to know Him?

Continuing on with the things I’ve learned writing these articles.
Jesus is not the destination.

What did I just say?
“Grab yer torches and pitchforks.”
I’ve really stepped in it now…

But really, what do the scriptures say?
What is the point of religion?
What is our goal?

Yeshua Messiah [Jesus] said this:
John 14:6
⁶ Yeshua said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life! No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

Pretty much every Christian is familiar with this verse, as it is used much in our churches.
But do they understand what this verse is saying?
Our churches teach that Jesus is the be-all, end-all.
He is our Savior, and He is everything.
He is all we need in this life and the next.
Churches teach people to go to the cross and sit down.
Just stay there.  Months, years, decades, whole lifetimes.

But did you catch what Messiah ACTUALLY said?
“No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
Jesus does not want us to stay where we meet Him.
Yes, He is vital.
His death and resurrection after living a sinless life is what is able to save us from the wages of sin.
What are the wages of sin?
Romans 6:23
²³ For the wages of sin is death…
And what is sin?
1John 3:4
⁴ Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.
When we violate the law, the Torah, God’s instructions, we have committed sin. Our wages for that sin is death.
But Yeshua Messiah overcame death, and that is why He is able to forgive us and restore us.

So, yes, we must go to Jesus. We must go to Yeshua Messiah.
He is our Savior, and He is our only Savior.
But then what?
According to Him, we do not stay there.
We MUST go on to the Father.
We MUST go on to Yehova, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
“No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

Yeshua Messiah (Jesus) says this:
Matthew 25:34
³⁴ Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.’
“blessed by My Father”
We MUST continue on to the Father.

Yeshua Messiah (Jesus) says this to those who think they serve Him:
Matthew 7:21
²¹ “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord!’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
Those who believe they serve Messiah will be told they are not to enter the kingdom of heaven.
Of those who call Him Lord, who will be allowed?
Those who do the will of the Father, Yehova, The Creator of all that there is, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
Our Savior tells us we must go on to the Father.
We must know the Father.
We must do the will of the Father.

Yeshua Messiah (Jesus) says this:
John 5:24
²⁴ “Amen, amen I tell you, whoever hears My word and trusts the One who sent Me has eternal life.
We must trust in the One who sent Messiah.
We MUST trust in Yehova, Creator of all things and the King of the Universe.

Our Savior, Jesus, Yeshua Messiah has taught us how to pray:
Matthew 6:9-13
⁹ “Therefore, pray in this way:
‘Our Father in heaven,
    sanctified be Your name.
¹⁰ Your kingdom come,
    Your will be done
    on earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹ Give us this day our daily bread.
¹² And forgive us our debts
    as we also have forgiven our debtors.
¹³ And lead us not into temptation,
    but deliver us from the evil one.’

Who is this prayer addressed to?
Jesus?
Nope.
It is addressed to the Father in heaven.
Do we pray that Jesus’ will be done?
Nope.
We pray that the Father’s will be done.
Where do we find the Father’s will?
In the law.
In the Torah.
In His commands, statutes, precepts, and instructions.

Psalm 119:137-144
¹³⁷ Righteous are You, Yehova,
and Your judgments are upright.
¹³⁸ You have commanded righteousness,
Your testimonies, and great faithfulness.
¹³⁹ My zeal has consumed me,
because my foes forgot Your words.
¹⁴⁰ Your word is thoroughly refined,
and Your servant loves it.
¹⁴¹ I am insignificant and despised,
yet I have not forgotten Your precepts.
¹⁴² Your justice is righteousness forever,
and Your Torah is truth.
¹⁴³ Trouble and anguish have overtaken me,
yet Your commands [mitzvot] are my delight.
¹⁴⁴ Your testimonies are righteous forever
—make me understand, so I may live.

Our churches teach that Jesus is what we need (this is the beginning of truth, but not the whole truth).
Messiah is the starting point of our walk in salvation and sanctification.
He is not the destination, but the starting line.

The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob said His commands are forever, perpetual, for all generations, never-ending.
The prophets taught us to turn back to Yehova’s commands.
Messiah taught us to turn back to Yehova’s commands.
The Apostles teach us to turn back to Yehova’s commands.
Our churches teach us to abandon the commands.

Who will you believe?
God?
The Prophets?
Messiah?
The Apostles?
Or some guy who gives speeches at your church each week?

I have learned that what Yehova said is forever, truly is forever.

Deuteronomy 13:1
“Whatever I command you, you must take care to do—you are not to add to it or take away from it.”

Deuteronomy 4:2
You must not add to the word that I am commanding you or take away from it—in order to keep the mitzvot [commands] of Adonai your God that I am commanding you.

Deuteronomy 12:32
 “Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it.”

 Proverbs 30:5-6
⁵ Every word of God is pure;
He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him.
⁶ Do not add to His words,
Lest He rebuke you, and you be found a liar.

Numbers 23:19
¹⁹ God is not a man who lies,
or a son of man who changes his mind!

Malachi 3:6
⁶ For I am Yehova, I change not…

Nothing in scripture changes.
God does not change.
But churches teach that everything changed.
Who will you believe?

In writing these articles over nearly two years, I have learned to start with Messiah, but to continue on to the Father and His ways, and that His ways are forever, perpetual, for all generations, and never-ending.

Wow, am I really going to try to capture what I’ve learned in twenty-one months of studying scripture and praying about it?
I could write thousands of words on this idea, but I’m going to try to keep it fairly simple…
Let’s see how that pans out.

I have learned about life and death.
My ideas about these concepts deviate greatly from what our churches teach, but my current thoughts are based on what scripture says, as opposed to what some guy says each week.

This life.
If we live a long life and die of old age, we’ll probably be here for about 85 years or so. Some die sooner, others live longer.
But what are 85 years in the overall scheme of things?
Scripture says this life is but a vapor.
James 4:14
¹⁴ Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. What is your life? For you are a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes.
Psalm 144:4
Man is like a breath—
his days are like a passing shadow.
We are just a wisp, here for a moment and then gone.
How much stock can we put in this physical, earthly life?
This is a difficult question to answer, since ‘this life’ is all we know.
Everybody has things that are important to them – family, education and career, purpose in life, goals and achievements, making a difference in some way, leaving a legacy.

But really, what is the purpose of this life?
I have realized by studying scripture, this life is just a test. It is an audition.
Will we choose life, or will we choose death?
Deuteronomy 30:19-20
¹⁹ “I call the heavens and the earth to witness about you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. Therefore choose life so that you and your descendants may live, ²⁰ by loving Elohim your God, listening to His voice, and clinging to Him. For He is your life and the length of your days, that you may dwell on the land that Elohim swore to your fathers—to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob—to give them.

This life is a simple test to see if we will love Yehova.
If we love Him and His ways, we will have life.
If we do not love Him and His ways, then we will have death.

How do I know this is all just a test?
Well, scripture tells us it is. Not once, but twice (at least).

Deuteronomy 13:4-5
…for Yehova your God is testing you, to find out whether you love Yehova your God with all your heart and with all your soul. ⁵ Yehova your God you will follow and Him you will fear. His commands [mitzvot] you will keep, to His voice you will listen, Him you will serve and to Him you will cling.

1John 2:3-6
³ Now we know that we have come to know Him by this—if we keep His commandments. ⁴ The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him. ⁵ But whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God is truly made perfect. We know that we are in Him by this— ⁶ whoever claims to abide in Him must walk just as He walked.

A simple test, an audition.
This is why we live.
The Scriptures tell us how things will play out in the end.
Some of it is difficult to understand, and there are many opinions on the matter.
But this we know…
There will come a day when the heaven and earth we know will pass away.  A renewed earth will come about, and those who pass their audition will be granted incorruptible bodies, everlasting life, and will be allowed access to the tree of life in the City of New Jerusalem (heaven on earth).
These people will live for eternity in the presence of Yehova.
Scripture references:
Matthew 24:35
Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away.
2Peter 3:10-13
¹⁰ But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. On that day the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the elements will melt and disintegrate, and the earth and everything done on it shall be exposed. ¹¹ Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what kind of people should you be? Live your lives in holiness and godliness, ¹² looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God. In that day the heavens will be dissolved by fire, and the elements will melt in the intense heat.  ¹³ But in keeping with His promise, we look for new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.
Revelation 21:1
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.
1Corinthians 15:50-56
⁵⁰ Now I say this, brothers and sisters, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, and what decays cannot inherit what does not decay. ⁵¹ Behold, I tell you a mystery:
We shall not all sleep,
but we shall all be changed—
⁵² in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye,
at the last shofar.
For the shofar will sound,
and the dead will be raised incorruptible,
and we will be changed.
⁵³ For this corruptible must put on incorruptibility,
and this mortal must put on immortality.
⁵⁴ But when this corruptible will have put on incorruptibility
and this mortal will have put on immortality,
then shall come to pass the saying that is written:
“Death is swallowed up in victory.”
⁵⁵ “Where, O Death, is your victory?
Where, O Death, is your sting?”
⁵⁶ Now the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the Torah.
John 3:16-21
 “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁷ God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him. ¹⁸ The one who believes in Him is not condemned; but whoever does not believe has been condemned already, because he has not put his trust in the name of the one and only Ben-Elohim.
¹⁹ “Now this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world and men loved the darkness instead of the light, because their deeds were evil. ²⁰ For everyone who does evil hates the light and does not come to the light, so that their deeds will not be exposed. ²¹ But whoever practices the truth comes to the light, so that it may be made known that his deeds have been accomplished in God.”
Revelation 22:14-15
¹⁴ Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city. ¹⁵ But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie.

Solomon, the wisest man to ever live, sums up this life in
Ecclesiastes 12:13-14
¹³ A final word, when all has been heard:
    Fear God and keep His commands [mitzvot]!
For this applies to all mankind.
¹⁴ God will bring every deed into judgment,
including everything that is hidden,
    whether it is good or evil.

What will this eternity look like?
It will be those who loveYehova and His ways, living in eternity in His presence while living out His words and His ways.

This brings up a very interesting question…
Will people who do not love Yehova’s words and His ways want to be there?
Do people who reject the Torah want to end up there, having to live an eternity in accordance with the Torah instructions?

Do we know who gets to decide who is in and who is not in?
It is not me. I would not want such a weight placed on my spirit.
Messiah is the only one who will decide such things…
Matthew 28:18
¹⁸ And Yeshua came up to them and spoke to them, saying, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.”
John 5:22-24
²² The Father does not judge anyone, but has handed over all judgment to the Son ²³ so that all should honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.
²⁴ “Amen, amen I tell you, whoever hears My word and trusts the One who sent Me has eternal life.
Matthew 25:31-34
³¹ “Now when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. ³² All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them from one another, just as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.  ³³ And He will put the sheep on His right, but the goats on His left. ³⁴ Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

Yeshua Messiah will decide who is in and who is out.
Does He reveal any of this to us in scripture?
Absolutely, yes He does.

Matthew 5:17-19
¹⁷ “Do not think that I came to abolish the Torah or the Prophets! I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill [G4137 plēroō; fully teach]. ¹⁸ Amen, I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or serif shall ever pass away from the Torah until all things come to pass [G1096 ginomai; fulfill]. ¹⁹ Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven [how they are called, how they are referred to — not that they will be in the kingdom]. But whoever keeps and teaches them, this one shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 7:21-23
²¹ “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord!’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.²² Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in Your name, and drive out demons in Your name, and perform many miracles in Your name?’ ²³ Then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you. Get away from Me, you workers of lawlessness!’”

And again, Revelation 22:14 quoted earlier in this article tells us that those who keep the commandments of Yehova are the ones allowed into the kingdom of heaven.

Do you know Yeshua Messiah?  Do you know Jesus?
He is the one who decides if you will be in the kingdom of heaven.
Do you know the things He says?
He said this:
John 14:15
“If you love Me, keep My commandments.”
And this:
John 14:21
“He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me.”
And this:
John 15:10
“If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.”

Do you know Him?
If you don’t know Him, then you are not in His kingdom.
Again, as quoted above, here is a test to see if you know Messiah:
1John 2:3-6
³ Now we know that we have come to know Him by this—if we keep His commandments. ⁴ The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him. ⁵ But whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God is truly made perfect. We know that we are in Him by this— ⁶ whoever claims to abide in Him must walk just as He walked.

Will you read and believe the Scriptures?
Will you read and believe the things Messiah said?
Or will you believe what some guy tells you at church?
Your eternity hangs in the balance.
Who you listen to matters.

I have many thoughts in my head, pondering the things I’ve learned writing over 200 articles in this blog. I’d love to just dump them all out of my head at one time, but I cannot…  Other responsibilities call.
Stay tuned for Part 2.

What is more important, truth or passion?
Why do I ask?
I keep seeing a concept coming up in various Torah communities.
[I think I just recently said this, but here we go again…]

Let us not get confused by passion and effort.
Are there millions upon millions of people who chase after an idea with passion?
Yes, there are.
Are there millions upon millions of people who pour great efforts into this passion?
Yes, there are.

But what if their passion is placed into an idea that is not the truth?
Does their passion and effort become more important than the truth?
Does Yehova award brownie points for effort?
Do people get A’s on exams if they try hard, even if they get all the answers wrong?
There was a time when this would have been an easy No.
Today, in 2018, even this simple question is not easy to answer with clarity.
In the realm of participation trophies, anything is possible.

But how does Yehova, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob look at it?
Is passion and zealousness for the wrong things close enough for Him?  Does everyone get a passing grade, even if they are chasing after the wrong things?

Scripture after scripture after scripture says no.
If we have a heart for the ways of the Father, then He will reveal His truth to us.
It is promised in scripture.
If we do not have a heart for the ways of the Father, Yeshua Messiah (Jesus) tells us the truth will be intentionally withheld from us.
It is promised in scripture.

These are not my ideas, but simply what the bible says.
I don’t say these things to be mean, or critical, or condescending, or condemning.
I say these things because Yehova said them, and Yeshua Messiah said them.
I share these thoughts and ideas so people will not one day hear, “I never knew you. Depart from Me.”

No, I did not quote any scriptures in this quick note.
I’ve posted them a hundred times.
Actually over two hundred times.
If this has piqued your curiosity, read some of my many blog posts.
The scriptures are all there.

Read your bibles.
Pray about what you read.
Submit to the Father.

As this modern Torah movement settles into place, I keep hearing a certain idea presented.  From man’s perspective, it sounds great. But is it scriptural?
Let’s find out…

What is the idea that I keep hearing, not only from the mainstream church culture, but also from within the Torah movement?
I keep hearing the idea that people who “get it wrong” are still going to heaven.

In the Christian world, there are approximately 40,000 denominations out there.
They all claim to be correct in their theology and doctrine.
They all acknowledge they are a bit different from all the other denominations.
There is so much diversity in denominations that we even have non-denominations to contend with.  And as you might guess, there are MANY non-denominational churches, each with their own point of view, slightly different from the others.

When does it ever stop?
More importantly, where does it all lead to?
Heaven, right?
It leads to heaven.
Well, that is what they all claim, but is it possible for 40,000 different paths to all end up at the same destination?

And now, we have the Torah movement to throw into the mix.
And as we speak, the Hebrew Roots/Torah movement is in the process of splintering into many different ideas.

It is what man does.
Simple and true is never enough for man.
Mankind needs to debate and evaluate and discuss and present and ponder.  Mankind needs to differentiate and be right.

Is this what the world needs eventually?
40,000 different Torah denominations?
I don’t think so.

But let’s dig into the issue at hand.
Everybody who claims to believe gets to go to heaven, right?

I can’t begin to count the number of times I’ve heard Torah Observant people say how grateful they are to be called out of the false teaching of the church, but then turn right around and talk about their brothers and sisters in Christ —– wait for it…
in the mainstream church.

Is that possible?
If the mainstream church is comprised of our brothers and sisters in Christ, and they will all be saved and go to heaven, then what is the point of being called out of it???

These same people quote Revelation 18:4 with regard to the mainstream church:
““Come out of her, my people,
    lest you participate in her sins
    and receive her plagues!”

Check out all of Revelation 18 in context.
There is no way to refer to the mainstream church as our brothers and sisters in Christ, and also refer to them as fallen Babylon, and that we are to come out of her.
The two are incompatible.

If people do not love the ways of Yehova , then they do not love Yehova. [see the Psalms — David was an example of a man who loved the ways of Yah]
It does not matter how many “tasks of men” people accomplish.  The tasks of men are worthless.  What matters is whether or not we love the ways of Yehova. God wants us to love His ways, and to do them.
[If we strive to live per His ways and mess up, that is what grace is for — I am not anti-grace].
It does not matter how much people claim to love Jesus.
We will not be evaluated/judged by Yeshua Messiah based on the lies we have spoken out loud to other men, claiming our love for God/Jesus when our actions say otherwise.

Here are some direct quotes of Yeshua Messiah (Jesus) – as He tells us how He expects to be loved:
John 14:15
“If you love Me, you shall guard My commands.”
John 14:21
“He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me. He who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and reveal Myself to him.”
John 15:10
“If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.”

The scriptures give us a test, so that we can determine whether or not we know our Messiah and Savior:
1John 2:3-6
³ Now we know that we have come to know Him by this—if we keep His commandments. ⁴ The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him. ⁵ But whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God is truly made perfect. We know that we are in Him by this— ⁶ whoever claims to abide in Him must walk just as He walked.

This mirrors the test given in Deuteronomy 13 to determine whether or not we know and love Yehova, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob:
Deuteronomy 13:4-5
…for Yehova your Elohim is testing you, to find out whether you love Yehova your God with all your heart and with all your soul. ⁵ Yehova your God you will follow and Him you will fear. His commands you will keep, to His voice you will listen, Him you will serve and to Him you will cling. 

The next place this discussion tends to go is my Torah friends will claim the mainstream church folks are just innocent victims.  They don’t know the truth yet.  They are waiting for Yehova to reveal the truth to them.

My question is this:
Why has Yehova not already revealed the truth to these people?
The scriptures promise God’s wisdom and understanding to those who want it.

James 1:5-8
⁵ But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God,^[b] who gives to all without hesitation and without reproach; and it will be given to him. ⁶ But let him ask in faith, without any doubting—for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. ⁷ For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord— ⁸ he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

Matthew 7:7-8
⁷ “Ask, and it shall be given to you. Seek, and you shall find. Knock, and it shall be opened to you. ⁸ For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it shall be opened.

But is Yehova’s understanding given freely, to everyone, no matter what?  What if I show you that His understanding is restricted?
Would you believe it?

Matthew 13:11-15
He replied, “Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. 12 Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. 13 This is why I speak to them in parables:
“Though seeing, they do not see;
though hearing, they do not hear or understand.
14 In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah:
“‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding;
you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.
15 For this people’s heart has become calloused;
they hardly hear with their ears,
and they have closed their eyes.
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
hear with their ears,
understand with their hearts
and turn, and I would heal them.’

Yeshua Messiah says that understanding is intentionally withheld from some.
Who is not allowed to understand?
Those with calloused hearts.
The understanding of scripture is not freely available to everyone.
This seems to be quite important.
Does scripture tell us how to receive understanding, if in fact, it is being withheld from us?

Absolutely.

2Corinthians 3:14-16
¹⁴ But their minds were blinded. For until this day the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament, because the veil is taken away in Christ. ¹⁵ But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart. ¹⁶ Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.

This bit of scripture tells us that our minds are veiled from the truth, just as Messiah was saying in Matthew 13.
How is this veil lifted?
By turning to Yeshua.
By submitting completely to Him.
Bu humbling ourselves before Yehova.

And if we do so, what happens when the veil is lifted?
People are able to understand the writings of Moses.
What are the writings of Moses?
The Torah.
The first five books of the bible.
The law.
The commandments.
The covenants.
The story of His people.

This is a very difficult topic.
I could literally spend hours, days, weeks writing about this very topic.  Countless scriptures warn us about such things.

Instead of making this a mile long, let’s take a look at how the wisest man to ever live summed it up for us:

Ecclesiastes 12:13
¹³ Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:
Fear Yehova and keep His commandments,
For this is the duty of man.

The idea that our churches do not teach sound doctrine is widely accepted in the Torah movement.
The idea that unsound doctrine will result in them not entering into the kingdom of heaven is a much more difficult concept to accept, so it seems.

It is actually quite simple, though.
If someone loves the ways of Yah, then they love the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
If they argue and fight against the ways of Yah, then they do not love and follow the God of the bible.
If they say they love Jesus, but do not understand who He is, then they do not love Messiah.
They may very well love something, but it isn’t Messiah that we see in the scriptures.
Nobody gets bonus points for loving a made up god (See Jeremiah 16:19-20 to learn about made up gods, and why they are made up).
Yeshua says His sheep know His voice and follow Him.
If someone believes that Jesus did away with the law, then they are not hearing His voice, and they are chasing after a made up god.
There is no salvation in made up gods.
Jeremiah warns us of this.
Let’s go ahead and take a look at it again (I’ve posted this many times).
Jeremiah 16:19-20
O Lord, my strength and my fortress,
My refuge in the day of affliction,
The Gentiles shall come to You
From the ends of the earth and say,
“Surely our fathers have inherited lies,
Worthlessness and unprofitable things.”
²⁰ Will a man make gods for himself,
Which are not gods?

So what about the people who are in love with a god of their own making (one who did away with the law)?
Messiah addresses this specific situation.
Matthew 7:21-23
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Master, Master,’ shall enter into the reign of the heavens, but he who is doing the desire of My Father in the heavens. “Many shall say to Me in that day, ‘Master, Master, have we not prophesied in Your Name, and cast out demons in Your Name, and done many mighty works in Your Name?’ “And then I shall declare to them, ‘I never knew you, depart from Me, you who work lawlessness!’

People will claim to know Messiah and follow Him. They will claim to have done things in His name.
But He does not know them, and He rejects them.
He sends them away.

This is a hard lesson to wrap our heads around, but scripture is very clear about it.
I don’t write these posts to criticize or condemn anyone. I don’t have that responsibility or authority, nor would I want it.
I write these things to show people what the scriptures say.
I do not want you to believe any of this, just because I said it here.
I want you to engage, think, study, pray, and research.
I want you to submit to Yehova, then pray for His understanding, and then read and study the scriptures in conjunction with prayer.

It is quite unbelievable that this topic needs to be discussed.
But, here goes…
I have had church pastors tell me that Jesus committed sin.
I see numerous people making this claim today.
Have these people not read their bibles?
How is it possible they do not understand this very basic premise of the scriptures?

For those who might be confused about this issue, I present you with a few quoted scripture verses:

Hosea 4:6
My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.
Since you rejected knowledge,
    I will also reject you from being My kohen.
Since you forgot the Torah of your God,
    just so I will forget your children.

Mankind has given up the responsibility of learning scripture to a select few (church leaders).
Mankind has put their faith regarding all things spiritual in the teachings of men.
Mankind has entrusted their eternity, the greatest possible reward in this life and the next,  to what some guy learned in college.

If these men are teaching the truth, then everyone should be alright.
But what does scripture say about it?
Jeremiah 16:19-20
O Lord, my strength and my fortress,
My refuge in the day of affliction,
The Gentiles shall come to You
From the ends of the earth and say,
“Surely our fathers have inherited lies,
Worthlessness and unprofitable things.”
²⁰ Will a man make gods for himself,
Which are not gods?

Scripture tells us these men are and will get it all wrong.
Not just a little bit wrong, but completely wrong.

What does our Savior have to say about it?
Of course, Messiah will make everything ok.
Matthew 7:21-23
²¹ “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. ²² Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ ²³ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
Did you catch that last part?
‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’

How can we avoid this fate?
Listen to Yeshua Messiah (Jesus) and do as He says.
He even wonders why we do not:
Luke 6:46
⁴⁶ “But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say?”

What is it that He says, that will help us avoid the fate of Matthew 7?
We need to avoid lawlessness.
How do we avoid this?
By listening to His voice and following Him.

John 14:15
“If you love Me, you shall guard My commands.”
John 14:21
“He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me. He who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and reveal Myself to him.”
John 15:10
“If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.”

Are you listening to Him?
It’s just your eternity hanging in the balance…
Will you listen to the Son of the Living Elohim?
Or will you insist on listening to some guy who went to college?

Torah Wheel of Fortune.
Am I creating a Torah based game show?
No, not so much.
I don’t watch television, and I don’t recommend watching television.
I am in the midst of self-evaluation and study to determine what it is we are supposed to do in Yah’s kingdom with regard to our fellow man.

Wow, tough subject, right?
For Tracy and I, Torah is simple.
If we read the Word and learn something new, our decision is to simply say, “Yes, Yehova, we will do as you ask of us.”
It really is that simple.
When we first learned the truth of the Scriptures, we had to make changes in our lives.
We immediately began to observe and honor Shabbat.
It is a sign between Yehova and His people.
We want to be His people.
We own a cafe’, so this required some major changes on our part.  We immediately [as in that very week] changed our cafe’ hours to be closed on Shabbat. Our customers thought we were nuts.
So what?
We did it anyway.
Our hearts’ desire is to obey the Father.

We learned that eating biblically clean is important to Yehova.
Therefore, it became important to us.
We began learning how to eat clean.
We made changes at home, and we also removed unclean foods from our menu at our cafe.
Again, we had some upset customers.
Cest la vie…
Such is life.

We learned about the Feast Days, Yah’s appointed times.
We got rid of our Christmas stuff, our Easter stuff, our Halloween stuff…
We purged all of that from our lives.
It was not easy, because we have three children who have learned and lived the culture of these holidays.  We have extended family who HIGHLY value these holidays.
But we said, “Yes, Yehova, we will celebrate Your appointed times, and we will purge this other nonsense from our lives.”

We made tzitzits and began wearing them.
Not sometimes.
Not just on Shabbat.
We wear them every waking moment.
Is it because we are legalistic?
Nope.
Is it because we think following rules will save us?
Nope.
We do these things, because Yehova desires it of us.
And we say, “Yes, Yehova, I will do this because you desire it of us.”
It really is that simple.

We began walking Torah alone, because no one else was interested.
Our friends and family thought we’d lost our minds.
In time, we learned of Torah fellowships near us, and we met really wonderful people.  After being quite alone in our walk into Torah, we were elated to find others doing the same.
We were excited to no longer be alone in this walk, and we joined them.

But we quickly noticed something.
We quickly realized that people in “Torah Observant” fellowships did not wear tzitzits.  And they work on Shabbat.  And they go out to eat, or go to the movies on Shabbat. Or they go to college football games or baseball games on Shabbat.
And they work on the moedim, Yah’s appointed high Sabbaths.
And they feast on unrighteous, sin-filled entertainment produced by Hollywood and the worldly entertainment industry.  And they still embrace the seeker friendly mainstream church mentality.  Or they left the mainstream, and instead, adopted the Jewish traditions that are not in accordance with the Scriptures.
And on and on and on…

Tracy and I did not understand.
We met groups of people who spoke of being grateful to be called to Torah and to have their veils lifted, but then they had a very nonchalant, non-committal attitude towards the things of Torah.
We were baffled.
How could people read and study the Torah, and not take it seriously???

We addressed our concerns, and eventually left those groups because of their lukewarm behaviors.
So now what?
We know that being partially committed to the things of Yehova is not what He wants from us.
He does not want rebellious complaining followers who long for the things of Egypt (the world) over the things of the Father [if you are unsure about this, read the Exodus story and pay attention to the details].

Are we supposed to separate from the rebellious and the disobedient?
Are we supposed to remain among them, and be a light and an example to them?
Are we supposed to stay and try to motivate them?
Or are we supposed to step away from them, and not get sucked into the earth as happened to Korah in Numbers 16?
Are we to have compassion and pray for them from a safe distance?

These are the things I’m studying, evaluating, and praying through…
We know that the entire Torah is summed up as this:
1. Love God with all that we are (mind, body, soul, strength).
2. Love our neighbor as ourself.

Yeshua defined how it is we are to love Him.
Here is one of many references:
John 14:15
“If you love Me, keep My commandments.”

But how do we love our neighbor as ourself?
Scripture speaks of love, kindness, patience…
But how do we apply these ideas to the willfully disobedient?
How do we apply these ideas to the nonchalant Torah semi-followers?

This is what Yehova says about those who sin while having the full knowledge of the truth (those who learn Torah but continue to violate Torah):
Numbers 15:30-31
 “But the person who sins defiantly, whether native or outsider, reviles Yehova and that person is to be cut off from his people. ³¹ Because he has despised the word of Yehova and has broken His commandment, that person will certainly be cut off—his guilt will remain on him.”
Are these empty words, or is Yah serious about this?
Read Numbers 15:32-41 to find out.

How do we apply the fruits of the spirit to those who have learned Torah, but do not do the things of Torah?
These are difficult ideas and concepts.
I want to honor what Yehova says. I want to love my neighbor as myself.

To me, the ultimate love for my fellow man is to do everything in my power so they do not hear this one day:
“I never knew you. Depart from Me.”
These are the words of Yeshua Messiah.  He is speaking to people who claim to have followed Him, and yet, He does not know them and He rejects them.

In my mind, there is no greater love for my fellow man than to help him avoid this fate.
This means telling them the truth.
This means showing them the warnings in scripture.
This means holding them accountable for the things of Torah that they have learned, but refuse to do. Or only do them when convenient.

I’ve been called unloving and harsh because of these things.
People do not understand my motivation.
People do not realize I approach all of these matters seriously and with intensity, because I do not want them to hear, “I never knew you. Depart from Me.”

I will continue to study and pray.

1Corinthians 13 defines love for us:
⁴ Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; ⁵ does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; ⁶ does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; ⁷ bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. ⁸ Love never fails.

I’ll be doing word studies in scripture on each of these definitions.
Man may define love a certain way in his thoughts and ideas.  I often see this translated into tolerance of rebellious behavior, inclusiveness for the sake of friendship/fellowship, turning a blind eye to willful sin in the hopes they will eventually change.
And these things are labeled as love and patience and kindness.
But is it?
What if a rebellious person is allowed to continue in their rebellion for months, years even?  What if they die in a car wreck tomorrow, and end up hearing, “I never knew you” because of their disobedient behaviors?
Is that love?
These are the types of things I’m trying to sort out.
Bear with me…
And stay tuned…

And lastly, a bit of praise for Yehova.
We recently have met some new friends who want to follow Yehova wholly and completely. They began as new acquaintances, new friends. But they quickly have become new family.
It is a joy to find others who value following Yehova completely.
Our challenge as a group, though, is how do we inspire and encourage others around us to do the same?