It saddens me to consider this topic, but consider it I must.
It would seem that our Torah community is suffering from a plague of disobedience.
I cannot even begin to count the number of self-proclaimed Torah keepers I’ve met, who openly and willingly defy the words of Yahweh, and do not keep the Torah.
It happens all the time, and every fellowship I’ve attended (including a national Torah conference) includes the willfully disobedient.

Consider this photo of my favorite cheese grater:

What’s the first thing that comes to mind?
Probably: “That’s not a cheese grater.”
It is quite obvious, isn’t it?
No, this is clearly not a cheese grater. It is a spatula.
The same concept applies to Torah Keepers.
If someone labels themselves as a Torah Keeper, and then blatantly and willingly violates the Torah, the first thing that comes to mind is this:
“That’s not a Torah Keeper.”

Most of us have come out of the mainstream church with the concept that close enough is good enough. Most of us have all been there, done that.
“Do your best, even if your best is terrible.”
It will all be ok in the end.
Failure is ok, even expected.
What does Yeshua say?
Luke 6:46-49
46 “But why do you call Me ‘Master, Master,’ and do not do what I say?
47 “Everyone who is coming to Me, and is hearing My words and is doing them, I shall show you whom he is like:
48 “He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock. And when a flood came, the stream burst against that house, but was unable to shake it, for it was founded on the rock.
49 But the one hearing and not doing, is like a man who built a house on the earth without a foundation, against which the stream burst, and immediately it fell. And the ruin of that house was great.

In verse 46, Yeshua is giving the same example as my cheese grater/spatula idea above.
To paraphrase: “Why do you call yourself My follower, but you do not follow Me?”
He goes on to say that the one who does this will come to great ruin.
In other words, this is serious.
This scripture tells us the same, and backs up this idea:
1John 2:3-6
3 And by this we know that we know Him, if we guard His commands.
4 The one who says, “I know Him,” and does not guard His commands, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
5 But whoever guards His Word, truly the love of Elohim has been perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him.
6 The one who says he stays in Him ought himself also to walk, even as He walked.

According to 1John 2, one who claims to be a Torah follower, but willfully violates the Torah, is a liar and the truth is not in him. This is a very harsh accusation. All of us need to do self-evaluation in comparison to this idea, and do so regularly [yes, myself included].
Am I the Torah Police, demanding perfection for myself and others, without grace?
No, I am not.
Grace is fundamental, and we are all lost without it.
1John 2 also tells us this:
1My little children, I write this to you, so that you do not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Intercessor with the Father, יהושע Messiah, a righteous One.

We are given instruction so that we will not sin.
But…
If we do sin by accident, we have an advocate/intercessor with Yahweh the Father, and that is Yeshua Messiah our Savior.
Yes, I believe in grace and forgiveness wholeheartedly.
But I believe it within the boundaries of scripture.
Hebrews 10:26-31 tells us serious warnings about willful sin:
²⁶ For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, ²⁷ but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries. ²⁸ Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. ²⁹ Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace? ³⁰ For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says Yahweh. And again, “Yahweh will judge His people.” ³¹ It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living Elohim.

Grace is for unintentional sin, which we also see illustrated in Numbers 15.
Willful sin has no sacrifice to cover it, but instead is replaced by a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries.
This should scare us!! This should make us want to never sin on purpose.
James 4 tells us this:
17 To him, then, who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.
If we know the good works of the Father, His Torah instructions, and do not do them, it is sin to us.

During my time in Torah, I have found one of the easiest commands to keep is to wear tzitzits.
They are simple strings attached to my belt loops. It requires practically no effort to obey this command. Let’s take a look at it:
Numbers 15:37-40
37 And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying,
38 Speak to the children of Yisra’ĕl, and you shall say to them to make tzitzit on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a blue cord in the tzitzit of the corners.
39 And it shall be to you for a tzitzit, and you shall see it, and shall remember all the commands of יהוה and shall do them, and not search after your own heart and your own eyes after which you went whoring,
40 so that you remember, and shall do all My commands, and be set-apart unto your Elohim.

Please note that I am not the tzitzit police, nor am I legalistic about wearing tzitzits. It is not my business if others wear them (or not), although I encourage people to do so.

I choose to wear them all day every day, not out of legalism, but simply because I want to comply with what Yahweh the Father has commanded.
It is for my benefit.
In reading this passage, we see very strong language from Yahweh.
He gave us tzitzits so that we do not go whoring after the desires of our own hearts and our own eyes, in defiance of His commands.
The strength of language here suggests the level of seriousness of this command.
In the preceding verses in Numbers 15, we see a man is stoned to death by the nation for living in disobedience.
Is there anything more serious than death?
The death of this man helps to define just how serious Yahweh is regarding tzitzits.
To paraphrase: Do this simple thing that I give you in mercy, to avoid being stoned to death for your disobedience.
How do we see this play out in Torah community today?
I can only speak from my own experience, but this is what I have observed in every single situation:
In typical Torah fellowships (multiple that I’ve attended), few tend to wear tzitzits. While there are some who are obedient to this, and take it seriously, the majority typically either ignore this entirely, or only wear them occasionally. Even worse, there are some who make a show of wearing them on Shabbat, but do not wear them any other time (as evidenced by running into them during the work week).

Out of sincere curiosity, I’ve asked those who do not wear them for their reasons why.
Again, not to be the tzitzit police, but to try to understand their reasoning.
While the reasons vary, it always boils down to this: People simply choose to not obey the Father.

One gentleman told me he does not wear them because “God told him not to.”
Really?
I quoted above the very words of Yahweh, and He tells us to wear them.
Does it make any sense for Yah to tell someone to NOT do what He already has commanded everyone for all generations to do?
No, this does not pass the common sense test.
This man proclaims himself to be a mature Torah Keeper.
How can one call himself a Torah Keeper if He ignores the words of Yahweh and disobeys the Torah?
And ironically, the purpose of tzitzits is to remind us to keep Yah’s commands.
If one does not obey this command — to remember the commands — just how ironic is this? That’s about an 11 of a scale of 1 to 10.

I know a self-proclaimed Torah teacher of more than 20 years who does not wear tzitzits.
When I asked about it, he said tzitzits are for the spiritually immature. He said he knows the Torah so well that he does not need to wear them. I then observed this Torah teacher and his wife willfully and intentionally disobey Yahweh, neglecting to keep His commands, in much that they do.
Their business, not mine, but it makes me sad for them.

Very many times I’ve been told by self-proclaimed Torah keepers that they do not wear tzitzits because they have moved on to the weightier matters of the Torah. They claim to have matured beyond the simple things, and are now concentrating on the concepts that truly matter, the most important things. They are referring to the words of Yeshua Messiah in Matthew 23:23
23“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Because you tithe the mint and the anise and the cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the Torah: the right-ruling and the compassion and the belief. These need to have been done, without neglecting the others.
These folks always quote this verse partially, speaking of Yeshua’s insistence that we pay particular attention to the weightier matters, and they NEVER include the final few words:
“without neglecting the others.”
Sticking with the theme of the entire bible from front to back, Yeshua instructs us to do ALL in the Torah, and to not leave the simple things undone.

Another reason I get for people not wearing tzitzits is that we don’t know how to wear them properly.
They say the original method of wearing tzitzits is unknown to us.
Maybe it is fringe like we see in Native American traditional dress.
Maybe there was a special outer garment from that era in time that we no longer wear today.
Is this a good reason to not wear tzitzits, because we do not know how?
Did Yah command us to wear tzitzits exactly in a certain way, otherwise don’t do it?
No, He did not.
He made this command very simple to accomplish.
Make tzitzits containing a blue thread, and wear them on the corners/borders of your garment.
Easy-peasy.
I made some to include a blue thread, and I wear them.
How hard is that?
Not hard at all, but there are people who refuse to do so, for a number of different reasons, all while proclaiming their great love for Yahweh and their steadfastness in keeping His commands.
Except… the evidence shows they are not as steadfast as they claim.
Tzitzits are just one of many examples. I chose this example because it is commanded for good reason, Yahweh is serious about it, and it is very easy to accomplish.

Another disobedience that is rampant in Torah community is defiling/profaning the Sabbath.
Here is what Yahweh says about it:
Exodus 31
12 And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying,
13 And you, speak to the children of Yisra’ĕl, saying, ‘My Sabbaths you are to guard, by all means, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, to know that I, יהוה, am setting you apart.
14 ‘And you shall guard the Sabbath, for it is set-apart to you. Everyone who profanes it shall certainly be put to death, for anyone who does work on it, that being shall be cut off from among his people.
15 ‘Six days work is done, and on the seventh is a Sabbath of rest, set-apart to יהוה. Everyone doing work on the Sabbath day shall certainly be put to death.
16 ‘And the children of Yisra’ĕl shall guard the Sabbath, to perform the Sabbath throughout their generations as an everlasting covenant.
17 ‘Between Me and the children of Yisra’ĕl it is a sign forever. For in six days יהוה made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed.’ ”

Did you notice this part:
“Everyone who profanes it shall certainly be put to death.”
Once again, we are dealing with an issue that is highly important to Yahweh.
What is more important than death?
And yet, every single Torah fellowship I’ve attended has people willfully and intentionally profaning the Sabbath.
Do they not care what Yah says about it?
Do they not understand the seriousness of this offense?
Do they not fear Yah, as we are commanded to do?

Many have said they must work on the Sabbath in order to provide for their family.
Yah tells us that He will provide. While I understand the difficulty in this, and that keeping the Sabbath may cost someone their job, Yah will provide.
If someone steps out in faith to keep the Sabbath (by all means as we are instructed, which also could mean at any cost), then I have faith that Yahweh will provide a solution, even if they lose their job because of it.
One self proclaimed Torah keeper, who claims to walk upright in all the ways of Yah, openly and proudly proclaims that they go shopping on the Sabbath, does house chores on the Sabbath, and assigns chores to their children on the Sabbath.
How do these things profane the Sabbath?

From Exodus 31 above: “‘My Sabbaths you are to guard, by all means”
Are they guarding the Sabbath, by all means?
No, sadly not. Instead of guarding it, they are trampling it.
Also from above: “Everyone doing work on the Sabbath day shall certainly be put to death.”
How important can house chores be that one is willing to suffer death to get them done?

And from Exodus 20, we see this: “You do not do any work”
Same as we see in Exodus 31, but it continues with this clarification:” you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates.”
We are told not to cause our sons or daughters to do work on the Sabbath, which means we should not assign our children chores on Sabbath.
This is profaning the Sabbath.
We are told not to cause the strangers in our gates to work on Sabbath, and shopping on the Sabbath does exactly this.
This is profaning the Sabbath.
These violations are punishable by death, and yet, we see many in Torah community violating the Sabbath instructions constantly, and without worry.
Is it my business if someone violates the Sabbath?
No, but it is my concern, because I have concern for my friends.
If I know the consequences of violating the Sabbath instruction and I take them seriously, then I need to warn others about their transgression, hence very difficult articles like this (not to mention very difficult conversations with people I love and care about).
Am I just a Torah terrorist, a legalistic jerk who wants to criticize others?
Am I just one who wants to impose difficult expectations upon others?
Why does this even matter to me?
Romans 15:1-2 advises this with regard to our interaction with others:
1 But we who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves.
2 Let each one of us please his neighbour for his good, to build him up.
And in verses 5-7
⁵ Now may the Elohim of patience and comfort grant you to be like-minded toward one another, according to Yeshua Messiah, ⁶ that you may with one mind and one mouth glorify the Elohim and Father of our Yeshua Messiah.
⁷ Therefore receive one another, just as Messiah also received us, to the glory of Yahweh.

What is this saying?
Paul is telling us to encourage our neighbors if they are weak.
If we have strength of conviction, strength of commitment, strength of obedience – whatever – then we should stand firm and help others who are not strong.
Do we do this by condoning their disobedience and their sin?
Do we do this by pretending everything is ok, when it is not ok?
No, I don’t think so.
We do this by telling them what Yahweh says.
We do this by telling them what Yeshua says.
We do this by showing them the truth, and encouraging them in the truth.
Some respond well to the truth and grow.
Others hate it and fight against it.
But I must do my part, when Yah provides opportunity to do so, as should we all.

We see this in Romans 15:4
⁴ For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.

And the same idea in much more detail in 1Corinthians 10:1-12
10 Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea, ² all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, ³ all ate the same spiritual food, ⁴ and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ. ⁵ But with most of them God was not well pleased, for their bodies were scattered in the wilderness.
⁶ Now these things became our examples, to the intent that we should not lust after evil things as they also lusted. ⁷ And do not become idolaters as were some of them. As it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.” ⁸ Nor let us commit sexual immorality, as some of them did, and in one day twenty-three thousand fell; ⁹ nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed by serpents; ¹⁰ nor complain, as some of them also complained, and were destroyed by the destroyer. ¹¹ Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.
¹² Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.

What was written before is for our learning and instruction.
Romans 15 and 1Corinthians tell us this, and specifically show us what happened to the first generation of the Exodus. They all fell in the wilderness (as in dead) because they did not follow Yahweh. They were disobedient.
Only two men from the rebellious generation made it into the promise land, and Yah tells us it is because they followed Him wholly and completely.
This is important!!
Let this next statement sink in…
The Exodus generation that fell dead in the wilderness, not receiving the promise, was Torah observant.
If asked, they all would have said, “Yes, of course we are Torah Keepers. We are a Covenant Nation, governed by Torah.”
And yet, they all fell dead, not attaining the promise.
Being called “Torah Observant” does not attain the promise.
Being obedient does.
Following Yahweh wholly and completely is what is rewarded.

Yahweh said this about Caleb:
Numbers 14:24
24“But My servant Kalĕḇ, because he has a different spirit in him and has followed Me completely, I shall bring into the land where he went, and his seed shall inherit it.”
And we see this in Numbers 32:11-12
11 Not one of the men who came up from Mitsrayim, from twenty years old and above, is to see the land of which I swore to Aḇraham, Yitsḥaq, and Ya‛aqoḇ, because they did not follow Me completely,
12 except Kalĕḇ son of Yephunneh, the Qenizzite, and Yehoshua son of Nun, for they have followed יהוה completely.’
This is exactly why I make a big deal about obedience.
It is not because I am legalistic.
It is not because I am arrogant or critical of others.
It is because of the examples recorded in scripture, that we are told are for our learning.
Those who do not follow Yahweh wholly and completely will not inherit the promise.
Again, I am not speaking against grace.
Grace exists and is necessary for us.
The expectation is not to attain perfection.
The expectation is that we desire to attain perfection, even if we fail at times.
It is a matter of the heart.
We see this in David’s Psalms.
He said over and over again how much he loves the commands of the Father.
He failed at keeping them, sometimes epically!!
But he was considered “a man after God’s own heart” because of his love for the words and the ways of the Father.

So let’s take a look at expectations in the scriptures.
Is it a big deal for us to obey everything, or is it ok if we just get the important things right?
Here are a couple examples of instruction given to us:
Leviticus 19:37
37 ‘And you shall guard all My laws and all My right-rulings, and do them. I am יהוה.’
Deuteronomy 6:5-8
5 “And you shall love יהוה your Elohim with all your heart, and with all your being, and with all your might. 6And these Words which I am commanding you today shall be in your heart, 7and you shall impress them upon your children, and shall speak of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise up, 8and shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.
Deuteronomy 6:25
25 And it is righteousness for us when we guard to do all this command before יהוה our Elohim, as He has commanded us.’
Deuteronomy 8:1
1 Guard to do every command which I command you today, that you might live, and shall increase…’
Deuteronomy 11:8
8 “And you shall guard every command which I command you today, so that you are strong…
Deuteronomy 11:32
32 and shall guard to do all the laws and right-rulings which I am setting before you today.’
Deuteronomy 12:28
28 “Guard, and obey all these words which I command you, that it might be well with you and your children after you forever, when you do what is good and right in the eyes of יהוה your Elohim.

These are just a few examples of many, where the scriptures tell us to do ALL of the commands. We are to keep EVERY command. Not just the ones we like, or the ones “we don’t mind doing.”

Does Yahweh allow for deviation from this idea?
Dueteronomy 5:32
32 “And you shall guard to do as יהוה your Elohim has commanded you – do not turn aside, to the right or to the left.
Nope, we are not to stray from keeping His commands.
Is this because Yahweh wants to be a dictator?
Is this because He wants to control us against our will?
Yahweh tells us why this is, in the very next verse:
Deuteronomy 5:33
33 “Walk in all the ways which יהוה your Elohim has commanded you, so that you live and it be well with you.
He gives us His commands and tells us to keep ALL of them so that:
— we may live
— and that it will be well with us.
It is for our own well-being.
It is so that we live, and not die.

We can view His commands and instruction in two ways:
1. We “have to” keep His commands.
2. We “get to” keep His commands.
I have found that when we submit our will to Yah’s will, keeping the commands is a joy. As stated above, David speaks of this often throughout the Psalms.
David ‘gets to’ keep the commands and takes pleasure in it, as opposed to “having to” keep the commands, in disdain and against his will.
Do you see the difference?
As a Torah keeper, how do you look at it?
Do you have to?
Or do you get to?

Let’s look at other instruction to not turn aside from His commands and His path:
Proverbs 4:25-27
25 Let your eyes look forward, And your eyelids look straight before you.
26 Consider the path of your feet, And all your ways are established.
27 Do not turn to the right or the left; Turn your foot away from evil.
Joshua 1:7-8
7 “Only be strong and very courageous, to guard to do according to all the Torah which Mosheh My servant commanded you. Do not turn from it right or left, so that you act wisely wherever you go.
8 “Do not let this Book of the Torah depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you guard to do according to all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and act wisely.
Joshua 23:6
6 “And you shall be very strong to guard and to do all that is written in the Book of the Torah of Mosheh, so as not to turn aside from it right or left,
Deuteronomy 17:11-13
11 “Do according to the Torah in which they teach you, according to the right-ruling which they say to you. You do not turn to the right or to the left from the word which they declare to you.
12 “And the man who acts arrogantly, so as not to listen to the priest who stands to serve there before יהוה your Elohim, or to the judge, that man shall die. So you shall purge the evil from Yisra’ĕl.
13 “And let all the people hear and fear, and no longer do arrogantly.
In this passage, we see the seriousness of not turning to the left or to the right.
It is attributed to our own arrogance if we do.
And the penalty?
Death, to purge the arrogant, disobedient attitudes from among the nation.
Not only does it purge the evil from among us, but it also allows people to hear and fear [this consequence] and encourages and inspires them to act in obedience themselves.
Deuteronomy 28:14-15
14 “And do not turn aside from any of the Words which I am commanding you today, right or left, to go after other mighty ones to serve them.
15 And it shall be, if you do not obey the voice of יהוה your Elohim, to guard to do all His commands and His laws which I command you today, that all these curses shall come upon you and overtake you.”
In this passage, we are told that turning to the left or to the right, deviating from Yah’s commands, is akin to serving other gods.
Let that sink in for a moment.
What if you do some of the things in Torah, but not others?
According to Yahweh, He considers this a departure from serving Him, and entering into the realm of serving false gods. Even if you do some things right, intentionally not doing other things right is the same as serving a false god.
This is terrible!!!
And yet, our Torah community is filled with people turning to the left or the right, willfully disobeying Yahweh our Elohim.
Yah says they are serving false gods, and not serving Him.

Remember Yeshua’s words:
46“But why do you call Me ‘Master, Master,’ and do not do what I say?
Having a heart of disobedience, even in some things, means you are not following Yahweh and you are not following Yeshua.
Messiah confirms this in Matthew 7:21-23 (which we’ve looked at in many of my blog articles).
21 “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.
22 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?’
23 “And then I shall declare to them, ‘I never knew you, depart from Me, you who work lawlessness!’
Let’s break this down:
It does not matter if we call Him Master.
It does not matter if we proclaim ourselves to be followers of Him.
Only those who do the will of the Father will be included in the Kingdom of Heaven.
What is the will of the Father?
It is His will that we choose life, and do so by obeying His instructions.
Deuteronomy 30:19-20
…therefore you shall choose life, so that you live, both you and your seed,
20 “to love יהוה your Elohim, to obey His voice, and to cling to Him – for He is your life and the length of your days…

What does it mean to cling to Him?
— Love Him with all your heart
— Love Him with all your being
— Walk after Him
— Fear Him
— Guard His commands
— Obey His voice
— Serve Him
Deuteronomy 13:3-4
“…for יהוה your Elohim is testing you to know whether you love יהוה your Elohim with all your heart and with all your being. 4“Walk after יהוה your Elohim and fear Him, and guard His commands and obey His voice, and serve Him and cling to Him.

This life is just a wisp, a vapor.
James 4:14
For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.
Eternity is forever, though.
This life is simply an audition for eternity.
While this life is everything to us here in the moment, from Yahweh’s perspective it is just a blink, a moment in time.
Are you completing your audition with eternity in mind, walking in the ways of the Father so that you might be included in His kingdom?
Or have you already decided you’ve made the team, based upon criteria set forth by men?
Do not be fooled.
Do not be one who labels himself/herself in a way that does not match your actions or your heart.
Don’t call yourself a cheese grater when you are a spatula.
Do not call yourself a Torah Keeper if you are living in willful disobedience.
Do not allow yourself to be one of these, spoken of by Messiah:
“And then I shall declare to them, ‘I never knew you, depart from Me, you who work lawlessness!’

I say these things, not to be critical of others, but so that:

The standards of scripture as established by Yahweh and Yeshua are known and

So the warnings regarding the standards might be understood and taken seriously.

The Book of the Law and the Book of the Covenant

I’ve heard this concept presented a number of times over the last several years, and I’ve not really spent much time looking into it.
As always, my goal is to simply pass my test:
Deuteronomy 13:3-4
“…for Yahweh your Elohim is testing you to know whether you love Yahweh your Elohim with all your heart and with all your soul. 4 You shall walk after Yahweh your Elohim and fear Him, and keep His commandments and obey His voice; you shall serve Him and hold fast to Him.”

This simple idea should be the goal of every person who wants to be in the Kingdom of Heaven one day…
Ecclesiastes tells us the purpose of mankind:
Ecclesiastes 12:13-14
13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:
Fear God and keep His commandments,
For this is man’s all.
14 For God will bring every work into judgment,
Including every secret thing,
Whether good or evil.

All of my basic doctrine beliefs and behaviors are based on this concept:
If Yahweh said it, then I do my best to understand and obey.
If Yeshua said it, then I do my best to understand and obey.

For many centuries, the Roman Catholic church and her many ‘daughters’ [40,000 plus Christian denominations] have presented to humanity the idea that the Old Testament Law is obsolete and done away with.
We can walk into any church and ask the leader there to show us in scripture that the law is done away with — and they will do exactly that.
They will show us a series of verses that, when isolated from the rest of scripture, will prove that the Law is very much done away with.
There is just one problem with this idea (and it is a very big problem).
We have to depart from the things Yahweh said in order to believe this idea.
We have to depart from the things Yeshua Messiah said to believe this idea.
Just because a concept can be developed and “proven” by quoting scriptures does not make it true.  It needs to line up with the whole of scripture, and it needs to line up with the Words of Yahweh (God) and the Words of Yeshua (Jesus).
Don’t forget what Yahweh said in Deuteronomy 13.
He is testing us.
Are we able to pass this test?
He said His perfect Law is forever, and that it is for both the native born Hebrew and for the strangers among them.
Do we believe Him?
Do we listen to His voice?
Or do we depart from it?
Yeshua Messiah said He did not come to abolish the Law or the prophets.
Do we believe Him?
Do we listen to His voice?
Or do we depart from it?
I have made the decision for myself and my family that we will cling to the words of Yahweh and the words of Messiah.
We will not depart from them, even if most people think we are foolish for doing so.

Within the Torah community, there is a doctrine being taught that the Torah instructions of Yahweh are separated into the Book of the Covenant and the Book of the Law.
The idea is that the Book of the Covenant is comprised of the stone tablets that Yahweh wrote with His own finger — the Ten Words or the Ten Commandments.
This idea says the remainder of the Torah [Old Testament Law] is given as a punishment to Israel because of their Golden Calf incident.  They say the Book of the Law is only applicable to the rebellious first generation of the Exodus.  And as such, they say the Book of the Law is obsolete and no longer applicable.
Here is how they break it down:
Genesis 1:1 thru Exodus 24:8 is the Book of the Covenant, and is to be obeyed forever.
Exodus 24:9 to Deuteronomy 34:12 is the Book of the Law and is no longer applicable.

If this is true, it means that the majority of Yahweh’s commands and instructions are obsolete and need not be obeyed today.
Before we look at scripture, does this pass the ‘sniff test’?
Does this even make sense?
I say no right off the bat, without even looking into it.

We are told countless times to “obey all that I have commanded” as spoken by Yahweh.
Why would He tell us to obey all that He has commanded if we are not supposed to obey all that He commanded?
Even Yeshua Messiah said the same…
In Matthew 23, we are told to obey all that is stated from the Seat of Moses.  A little research will show that the Torah was read word for word from the Seat of Moses — Yeshua says to do it.  In addition, Yeshua Messiah tells us how to make disciples — “teaching them to obey all that I have commanded.”  What did Yeshua teach and command?  He says His teaching is not His own, but the Father’s who sent Him.  He taught the same thing the Father taught — to obey the Torah.  And specifically, to obey ALL the Torah.
Matthew 23:1-3
1Then יהושע spoke to the crowds and to His taught ones,
2saying, “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on the seat of Mosheh.
3Therefore, whatever they say to you to guard, guard and do. 

No, this obsolete Book of the Law does not pass the sniff test.
It already requires us to ignore the words of Yahweh and Yeshua.

Let’s take a look at some of the information in the “Book of the Law”, which some believe is obsolete:

Exodus 25 thru Exodus 31 gives details about the Dwelling Place of Yahweh and its appointments (the Tabernacle), as well as the priestly garments and instructions.  There are some problematic words in these chapters having to do with:
— a law forever to their generations
— continually
— a law forever to him, and to his seed after him.
— And the priesthood shall be theirs for an everlasting law. So you shall ordain Aharon and his sons.
— “And it shall be from the children of Yisra’ĕl for Aharon and his sons by a law forever…”
— a continual incense before יהוה throughout your generations.
— once a year he makes atonement upon it throughout your generations.
— And it shall be a law forever to them, to him and his seed throughout their generations.”
— ‘This is a set-apart anointing oil to Me throughout your generations.

Exodus 27:21
21“In the Tent of Appointment, outside the veil which is before the Witness, Aharon and his sons are to tend it from evening until morning before יהוה – a law forever to their generations, from the children of Yisra’ĕl.

Exodus 28:29-30, 43
29“And Aharon shall bear the names of the sons of Yisra’ĕl on the breastplate of right-ruling over his heart, when he goes into the set-apart place, for a remembrance before יהוה, continually.
30“And into the breastplate of right-ruling you shall put the Urim and the Tummim, and they shall be on the heart of Aharon when he goes in before יהוה. And Aharon shall bear the right-ruling of the children of Yisra’ĕl on his heart before יהוה, continually.

43“And they shall be on Aharon and on his sons when they come into the Tent of Appointment, or when they come near the slaughter-place to attend in the Set-apart Place, so that they do not bear crookedness and die – a law forever to him, and to his seed after him.

Exodus 29:8-9, 28
8Then you shall bring his sons and put long shirts on them,” 9and shall gird them with girdles – Aharon and his sons – and put the turbans on them. And the priesthood shall be theirs for an everlasting law. So you shall ordain Aharon and his sons.

28“And it shall be from the children of Yisra’ĕl for Aharon and his sons by a law forever, for it is a contribution. And it is a contribution from the children of Yisra’ĕl from the slaughters of their peace offerings – their contribution to יהוה.

Exodus 30:8, 10, 21, 31
8“And when Aharon lights the lamps between the evenings, he shall burn incense on it – a continual incense before יהוה throughout your generations.

10“And Aharon shall make atonement upon its horns once a year with the blood of the sin offering of atonement – once a year he makes atonement upon it throughout your generations. It is most set-apart to יהוה.”

21“And they shall wash their hands and their feet, lest they die. And it shall be a law forever to them, to him and his seed throughout their generations.”

31“And speak to the children of Yisra’ĕl, saying, ‘This is a set-apart anointing oil to Me throughout your generations.

Without even digging too much, we have already debunked this idea using direct quotes of Yahweh.
If Yahweh said it, then we know it is truth.
If Yahweh said things in the Book of the Law and called them forever, everlasting, continual, and throughout their generations, then we must believe what He says.
The book of the law is not added instructions just for the rebellious first generation of the Exodus.  Again, from Exodus 30:21 we see this statement made by Yahweh:
“…to him and his seed throughout their generations.”
We need not go any further to debunk this idea, but let us do so anyway, just to be sure.

Let us look at some more instructions from Yahweh, contained within the ‘so-called-obsolete’ Book of the Law:
Exodus 34
— do not make covenants with the Nations
— do not bow down to other mighty ones (other gods) for יהוה is a jealous El
— do not take daughters from the Nations as wives for you sons
— Do not make a carved mighty one for yourselves.
— Keep the feast day of Unleavened Bread
— All first born, man and beast, belong to Yahweh
— Keep the Sabbath
— Keep the feast day of Shavuot
— Instructions for the feast day of Passover
Do these instructions sound temporary? No, I don’t think so…

Let’s take a look at Leviticus:
Leviticus 1-5 give instructions for various types of offerings.
We see evidence of this continuing for many centuries and many generations throughout the scriptures, so these instructions are not just for the first generation of the Exodus.
We see this in Leviticus 3:17
17 ‘This shall be a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all your dwellings: you shall eat neither fat nor blood.’
Perpetual.
Throughout your generations.

Leviticus 6 gives us instructions about lying to our neighbor for personal gain.
Do we think this instruction is obsolete?
Can we now do this?
We see this in Leviticus 6:18
It shall be a statute forever in your generations concerning the offerings made by fire to the Lord.
Does that sound temporary and obsolete?

Leviticus 11 tells us about clean animals permitted for food, and unclean animals which are not food.
We see in Isaiah 66 that those eating unclean animals in the Millennial Reign (still in the future) will be destroyed.
Does this instruction sound temporary and obsolete?
Nope.

In Leviticus 16:29, 31, 34 we see this instruction regarding the feast day of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement:
29And this shall be for you a law forever: In the seventh new chodesh, on the tenth day of the new chodesh, you afflict your beings, and do no work, the native or the stranger who sojourns among you. 31“It is a Sabbath of rest for you, and you shall afflict your beings – a law forever.  34“And this shall be for you a law forever, to make atonement for the children of Yisra’ĕl, for all their sins, once a year.” And he did as יהוה commanded Mosheh.
Does this sound temporary and obsolete?
Nope.

Leviticus 17 Instructions:
7And let them no longer slaughter their slaughterings to demons, after whom they whored. This is a law forever for them throughout their generations.”
Are we now allowed to make sacrifices to demons, and whore after them?
Nope, I don’t think so.

Leviticus 18 tells us this:
4‘Do My right-rulings and guard My laws, to walk in them. I am יהוה your Elohim. 5‘And you shall guard My laws and My right-rulings, which a man does and lives by them. I am יהוה.
Shall we stop doing His laws, commands, instructions, right-rulings, and statutes?
Or shall we keep doing them and so live?

Leviticus 18 tells us not to commit incest.
Are we to believe incest is now allowed, since this instruction was temporary and obsolete, only applying to the rebellious first generation of the Exodus?
Nope.

Leviticus 18 tells us this:
20‘And do not have intercourse with the wife of your neighbor, to defile yourself with her.
Are we now allowed to have sex with our neighbor’s wife?
Nope, I do not believe so.

And we get this in Leviticus 18
21‘And do not give any of your offspring to pass through to Moleḵ. And do not profane the Name of your Elohim. I am יהוה.
Are we now allowed to sacrifice our children to false gods?
No, I do not think this instruction is temporary nor obsolete.
What about this one, also in chapter 18?
22‘And do not lie with a male as with a woman, it is an abomination.
Or this:
23‘And do not have intercourse with any beast, to defile yourself with it. And a woman does not stand before a beast to mate with it, it is a perversion.
Are homosexuality and beastiality now allowed?
Were these temporary and obsolete commands, only applying to the rebellious first generation of the Exodus?
Nope.

With regard to these acts of sexual immorality, Yahweh ends Leviticus 18 with this statement:
30‘And you shall guard My Charge, so as not to do any of these abominable laws which were done before you, so as not to defile yourselves by them. I am יהוה your Elohim.’ ”
Is this obsolete?
Are we now allowed to defile ourselves?
Yeshua (Jesus) can answer this for us.
Is יהוה no longer our Elohim?

Let’s look at a direct quote of Yeshua Messiah, far in the future. He is speaking of who will NOT be in His Kingdom of Heaven:
Revelation 22:15
But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie.
Hmmm, it sounds to me like the commands given in Leviticus 18 are serious and forever.  People who break these commands about sexual immorality are not allowed into the Kingdom.
This does not sound temporary to me, nor obsolete.

On to Leviticus 19
10‘And do not glean your vineyard or gather every grape of your vineyard, leave them for the poor and the stranger. I am יהוה your Elohim.
Are we no longer allowed to help the poor?
11‘Do not steal, do not lie, do not deceive one another.
Are we now allowed to steal and lie, and to deceive one another?
Nope, I don’t think so.

12‘And do not swear falsely by My Name and so profane the Name of your Elohim. I am יהוה.
Can we now profane the name of Yahweh?
Nope, I would not recommend it.

14‘Do not curse the deaf or put a stumbling-block before the blind, but fear your Elohim. I am יהוה.
Are we now allowed to play tricks on the deaf and the blind, to injure and ridicule them?
No, probably not.

29‘Do not profane your daughter by making her a whore, so that the land does not whore, and the land becomes filled with wickedness.
Shall we force our daughters into prostitution?
I’m gonna go ahead and say no to this one.

31‘Do not turn to mediums, and do not seek after spiritists to be defiled by them. I am יהוה your Elohim.
Shall we engage in witchcraft and divination?
No, I don’t believe this is allowed now.

35‘Do no unrighteousness in right-ruling, in measurement of length, in weight, or in measuring liquids.
36‘Have right scales, right weights, a right ĕphah, and a right hin. I am יהוה your Elohim, who brought you out of the land of Mitsrayim.
If we are merchants, are we now allowed to cheat our customers?
Nope, I’m going to avoid that…

Leviticus 20
In case we missed it the first time, this chapter reiterates that we are not to sacrifice our children to false gods, and we are not to commit incest, beastiality, nor other sexually immoral actions. We are not to eat unclean animals, we are not to perform witchcraft.

Leviticus 23 gives us details pertaining to Yah’s feast days, His appointed times.
Are these obsolete?
No, they are not.

Leviticus 24 gives us more forever, everlasting, and throughout their generations statements.
This is not obsolete.

I won’t go into this level of detail for Numbers and Deuteronomy, but let’s take a quick look at Numbers 15 regarding the making and wearing of tzitzits:
37And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying,
38Speak to the children of Yisra’ĕl, and you shall say to them to make tzitzit on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a blue cord in the tzitzit of the corners.
39And it shall be to you for a tzitzit, and you shall see it, and shall remember all the commands of יהוה and shall do them, and not search after your own heart and your own eyes after which you went whoring, 40so that you remember, and shall do all My commands, and be set-apart unto your Elohim.

A man had just died for sinning with a high-hand against Yahweh.
This command is then given in mercy, intended to be helpful to those in covenant with Yah.
We are told to:
— remember ALL of the commands of הוה
— and shall do them
— throughout their generations

Does this sound like a command given only to the rebellious first generation of the Exodus, which is now obsolete and no longer in effect?
No, it sounds pretty permanent to me.
Are we now allowed to forget Yah’s commands and go whoring after the sinful desires of our own hearts?  No, I’m going to avoid that.


Let’s set all of this aside for a moment.
Let’s assume I’m wrong about every single thing so far.
Let’s assume that the Book of the Law (Exo 24:9 to Deut 34:12) is obsolete.
Let’s assume this very large chunk of the Torah Instructions is only for the first rebellious generation of the Exodus.

What do we do with this?
Deuteronomy 29:10-15
10“All of you are standing today before יהוה your Elohim: your leaders, your tribes, your elders and your officers, all the men of Yisra’ĕl,
11your little ones, your wives, and your sojourner who is in the midst of your camp, from the one who cuts your wood to the one who draws your water,
12so that you should enter into covenant with יהוה your Elohim, and into His oath, which יהוה your Elohim makes with you today,
13in order to establish you today as a people for Himself, and He Himself be your Elohim, as He has spoken to you, and as He has sworn to your fathers, to Aḇraham, to Yitsḥaq, and to Ya‛aqoḇ.
14And not with you alone I am making this covenant and this oath,”
15but with him who stands here with us today before יהוה our Elohim, as well as with him who is not here with us today.

Much of this Book of the Covenant/Law doctrine is based on the idea that the nation of Israel was only held to the contract [covenant] made at Mount Sinai, which was blood ratified in Exodus 24.
This idea requires us to believe the remainder of the Torah is given as punishment to the rebellious first generation of Israel after the Golden Calf incident.

EVEN IF WE BELIEVE ALL OF THIS TO BE TRUE—–
We see a new covenant made with Israel in Deuteronomy 24.
This new covenant is made with the native born Hebrews, as well as the strangers among them.
This new covenant is made with those standing there that day, as well as those not standing there [future generations].
Even if we believe the Book of the Law/Book of the Covenant division and theory, a new covenant is made with the people and their future generations.
And the gist of it?
Deuteronomy 29:29
29“The secret matters belong to יהוה our Elohim, but what is revealed belongs to us and to our children forever, to do all the Words of this Torah.
They are not expected to know and understand everything.
They are simply expected to do all the words of this Torah.
Not some of it, but all of it.

Yahweh gives us a glimpse into the future in Deuteronomy 29 and 30, telling us about how Israel would turn their backs on Him and serve other false gods. They will be divorced from the covenant (Jeremiah 3:8) and scattered among all the nations of the earth.
And then afterwards, we see this in Deuteronomy 30 speaking of a far future generation of people who return to the Torah (today this is happening!):

1“And it shall be, when all these words come upon you, the blessing and the curse which I have set before you, and you shall bring them back to your heart among all the nations where יהוה your Elohim drives you,
2and shall turn back to יהוה your Elohim and obey His voice, according to all that I command you today, with all your heart and with all your being, you and your children,
3then יהוה your Elohim shall turn back your captivity, and shall have compassion on you, and He shall turn back and gather you from all the peoples where יהוה your Elohim has scattered you.
4“If any of you are driven out to the farthest parts under the heavens, from there יהוה your Elohim does gather you, and from there He does take you.
5“And יהוה your Elohim shall bring you to the land which your fathers possessed, and you shall possess it. And He shall do good to you, and increase you more than your fathers.
6“And יהוה your Elohim shall circumcise your heart and the heart of your seed, to love יהוה your Elohim with all your heart and with all your being, so that you might live,
7and יהוה your Elohim shall put all these curses on your enemies and on those who hate you, who persecuted you.
8“And you shall turn back and obey the voice of יהוה and do all His commands which I command you today.
9“And יהוה your Elohim shall make you have excess in all the work of your hand, in the fruit of your body, and in the fruit of your livestock, and in the fruit of your ground for good. For יהוה turns back to rejoice over you for good as He rejoiced over your fathers,
10if you obey the voice of יהוה your Elohim, to guard His commands and His laws which are written in this Book of the Torah, if you turn back to יהוה your Elohim with all your heart and with all your being.
11“For this command which I am commanding you today, it is not too hard for you, nor is it far off.
12“It is not in the heavens, to say, ‘Who shall ascend into the heavens for us, and bring it to us, and cause us to hear it, so that we do it?’
13Nor is it beyond the sea, to say, ‘Who shall go over the sea for us, and bring it to us, and cause us to hear it, so that we do it?’ ”
14“For the Word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart – to do it.
15See, I have set before you today life and good, and death and evil,”
16in that I am commanding you today to love יהוה your Elohim, to walk in His ways, and to guard His commands, and His laws, and His right-rulings. And you shall live and increase, and יהוה your Elohim shall bless you in the land which you go to possess.

Yahweh makes it clear that today’s generation is to return to His Torah instructions.
Not the Book of the Covenant, but all that He has commanded, and it specifically states the Book of the Torah, not the Book of the Covenant.

Just prior to his death, Moses gives this advice to the people in Deuteronomy 31
10And Mosheh commanded them, saying, “At the end of seven years, at the appointed time, the year of release, at the Festival of Sukkot,
11when all Yisra’ĕl comes to appear before יהוה your Elohim in the place which He chooses, read this Torah before all Yisra’ĕl in their hearing.
12“Assemble the people, the men and the women and the little ones, and your sojourner who is within your gates, so that they hear, and so that they learn to fear יהוה your Elohim and guard to do all the Words of this Torah.
They are warned that in the future they are to read the entire Torah every seven years at the feast day of Sukkot. It is to include young and old, both the Hebrews and the strangers among them [everyone who wants to be in covenant with Yahweh]. 
Why is this to be done?
— so that they hear [the Torah]
— so they learn
— to fear Yahweh our Elohim
— to guard
— to do ALL the Words of this Torah

There are countless scriptures throughout the writings of the prophets that warn us to keep all that Yahweh commanded.
I won’t go through all of them, but here is one such example in the very first book after the Torah:
Joshua 1:7-9
7“Only be strong and very courageous, to guard to do according to all the Torah which Mosheh My servant commanded you. Do not turn from it right or left, so that you act wisely wherever you go.
What do we learn?
— Be strong
— Be courageous
— To guard
— and to do
— ACCORDING TO ALL THE TORAH
— To not turn right or left
— SO that you may act wisely
8“Do not let this Book of the Torah depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you guard to do according to all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and act wisely.
What do we learn?
— Do not let
— this Book of Torah
— Depart from your mouth
— Meditate on it day and night
— so that you guard
— to do
— ACCORDING TO ALL THAT IS WRITTEN IN IT.
— To be prosperous and wise
9“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid, nor be discouraged, for יהוה your Elohim is with you wherever you go.”
What do we learn?
— REMINDER – Have I not commanded?
— Be strong and courageous
— Do not be afraid or discouraged
— Yahweh is with us.

Let’s again assume I am wrong about everything.
Let’s again assume that the Book of the Covenant is in effect, and the Book of the Law is not in effect.
Let’s take a look at some direct quotes of Yeshua Messiah:

Matthew 22:34-40
34But the Pharisees, having heard that He had silenced the Sadducees, were gathered together,
35and one of them, one learned in the Torah, did question, trying Him, and saying,
36Teacher, which is the great command in the Torah?
37And יהושע said to him, “‘You shall love יהוה your Elohim with all your heart, and with all your being, and with all your mind.’
38“This is the first and great command.
39And the second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’
40On these two commands hang all the Torah and the Prophets.

Messiah is being tested, as the Pharisees are trying to ‘trip Him up’.
They asked about the Torah.
Not the Book of the Covenant, but the whole Torah.
What is the greatest commandment in the Torah?
How did Yeshua answer?
Did He quote from the Book of the Covenant?
Did Messiah keep His answer confined to the information held in Genesis 1:1 to Exodus 24:8?
No, He did not.
He quoted Deuteronomy 6:5
5“And you shall love יהוה your Elohim with all your heart, and with all your being, and with all your might.’

If Deuteronomy 6 is part of the obsolete Book of the Law, then why is Yeshua Messiah quoting it, saying that it is the greatest command?
This tells me it is not obsolete, and is still in effect.
What did Yeshua say about the second greatest command in the Torah?
Again, He quoted from the section of Torah that is supposed to be obsolete and no longer applicable.
He quoted Leviticus 19:18
And you shall love your neighbor as yourself. I am יהוה.
Why is Yeshua Messiah quoting from obsolete information, and even saying these concepts are the greatest?
He is not.
He is quoting from the Words of יהוה your Elohim, Words that He said are forever and for all people.

Let’s wrap things up here…
If you have been swayed by the idea that the “Book of the Law” is obsolete and not in effect, please study this out for yourself.
I’ve given you a good start here in this article, but do not take my word for anything.
Study and show yourself approved.
Know, recognize, listen to, and obey the Voice of Yahweh and the Voice of Yeshua Messiah.
Cling to your Elohim!!
Do not depart from Him.

Men have been developing doctrine based on isolating a few scriptures, out of context with the rest of Scripture, since Yeshua’s days on this earth.  It does not matter if they can string together a few scriptures and make complete logical sense of an idea.
If the idea requires you to deviate from the Words of Yahweh, then simply say no.
Walk away.
Take a stand for your Creator and your Savior.
Listen to their Voices.
Be sure to pass your test:
Deuteronomy 13:3-4
“…for Yahweh your Elohim is testing you to know whether you love Yahweh your Elohim with all your heart and with all your soul. 4 You shall walk after Yahweh your Elohim and fear Him, and keep His commandments and obey His voice; you shall serve Him and hold fast to Him.”

There are many more scriptures that debunk this concept and this doctrine.
Please do not be deceived by this, allowing yourself to stop listening to Yahweh’s voice.
Do not be deceived into failing your test.
Do not turn away from doing His commandments.
Pray about this, and spend some time studying for yourself.
Do not look in the scriptures for ways to validate this idea/doctrine.
Look to see if this idea aligns with the Words of Yahweh.

Who says there is no humor in the bible?
The people said this to Moses:
‘And now why should we die? For this great fire is consuming us. If we hear the voice of יהוה our Elohim any more, then we shall die. You go near and hear all that יהוה our Elohim says, and speak to us all that יהוה our Elohim says to you, and we shall hear and do it.’

Paraphrased:
We will die if we listen to the Voice of Yahweh.
Solution – let’s tell Moses to do it.
LOL, I guess they don’t care if Moses dies.

Another one…
Exodus 19
20And יהוה came down upon Mount Sinai, on the top of the mountain. And יהוה called Mosheh to the top of the mountain, and Mosheh went up.
21And יהוה said to Mosheh, “Go down…

LOL
Mosheh:
“Come on, make up your mind!!!
Up the mountain, down the mountain.
I’m an old man!!
I can’t be doing this all day long!”

Matthew 24:12
“And because of the increase in lawlessness, the love of many shall become cold.”

Most people think this lack of love is how people treat one another.
There may be some truth in this idea, but it doesn’t fully define the meaning of this statement by Yeshua Messiah.

Consider these verses:
Deuteronomy 13
“…for יהוה your Elohim is testing you to know whether you love יהוה your Elohim with all your heart and with all your being. Walk after יהוה your Elohim and fear Him, and guard His commands and obey His voice, and serve Him and cling to Him.”

John 14
15 “If you love Me, you shall guard My commands.”
21“He who keeps My commands and guards them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me shall be loved by My Father, and I shall love him and manifest Myself to him.”

John 15
“If you guard My commands, you shall stay in My love even as I have guarded My Father’s commands and stay in His love.”

1John 5
By this we know that we love the children of Elohim, when we love Elohim and guard His commands. For this is the love for Elohim, that we guard His commands, and His commands are not heavy.

A lack of obedience to the commands of the God of the bible is what Matthew 24:12 is referring to.
1John 5 specifically tells us that not following God’s commands results in us having a lack of love for our fellow man.

There are many more scriptures that show us obedience equals love in the eyes of Yahweh and Messiah.

How’s your obedience?

Let’s take a look at examples of disobedience and consequences in the scriptures.
Even if Yahweh is for us and with us, He will allow us to suffer consequences because of our thoughts, words, and actions — if we so choose to disobey His instructions and commands.

In the book of Joshua Chapter 1, Yahweh says this:
Joshua 1:5-6
5 “No man is going to stand before you all the days of your life. As I was with Mosheh, so I am with you. I do not fail you nor forsake you.
6 Be strong and courageous, for you are to let this people inherit the land which I swore to their fathers to give them.”

As Joshua and the nation of Israel enter into the  promise land…
We see evidence of their supernatural victory at times with Yahweh leading the cause…
And we also see their defeat and failure because they did not obey the voice of Yahweh.

With regard to the siege of Jericho, the Army of Israel is reminded of the instructions of Yahweh pertaining to this city:
Joshua 6:18-19
18 “And you, by all means guard yourselves from that which is under the ban, lest you come under the ban when you take of that which is under the ban, and make the camp of Yisra’ĕl a curse, and shall trouble it. 19“But all the silver and gold, and vessels of bronze and iron, are set-apart to יהוה, they go into the treasury of יהוה.”
Yahweh then gives Israel the victory over Jericho, as He had promised.

A problem arises, though, unbeknownst to Joshua. 
Akan of the tribe of Yehudah kept some of the spoils of war in Jericho [that which was under the ban], defying what Yahweh had commanded concerning this battle:
Joshua 7:1
1 But the children of Yisra’ĕl committed a trespass regarding that which is under the ban, for Aḵan son of Karmi, son of Zaḇdi, son of Zeraḥ, of the tribe of Yehuḏah, took of that which is under the ban. And the displeasure of יהוה burned against the children of Yisra’ĕl.

As a result of this transgression, Israel was then defeated by Ai, a city of the Amorites, and it caused much dismay and hardship for Joshua.
Joshua 7:7-9
7 And Yehoshua said, “Oh Master יהוה, why have You brought this people over the Yardĕn at all, to give us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us? If only we had been content to stay beyond the Yardĕn!
8 “O יהוה, what do I say when Yisra’ĕl turns its back before its enemies,
9 and the Kena‛anites and all the inhabitants of the land hear, and shall surround us, and cut off our name from the earth. What then do You do for Your great Name?”

Sadly, this defeat caused Joshua to doubt his faith in the promises of Yahweh.
Instead of simply inquiring why Yah allowed them to be defeated, Joshua shows fear and lack of faith.
Just as the rebellious generation of the Exodus wanted to return to Mitsrayim instead of dealing with the difficulties in the wilderness and trusting in Yahweh, Joshua begins wondering why they crossed the Jordan River at all!!
He fears for the future of Israel, and fears for the reputation and renown of the Name of Yahweh before the nations!!

Yahweh explains this circumstance to Joshua, saying:
Joshua 7:11-12
11 “Yisra’ĕl has sinned, and they have also transgressed My covenant which I commanded them. And they have even taken some of that which is under the ban, and have both stolen and deceived, and also put it among their own goods.
12 “And the sons of Yisra’ĕl shall not be able to stand before their enemies. 

Yahweh and Joshua then identify the one who transgressed the commands of Yahweh.  Akan and all that he has were stoned to death and then burned with fire, just as Yahweh directed.
Does this show that the God of the Old Testament is unmerciful?
No, it shows that He is just, and that He does not lie.
The army was commanded to not take of the spoils of Jericho.  They were told that all in Jericho belongs to Yahweh, and to not take any of it.
Akan, having been warned and with full understanding, chose to ignore the warning and proceed with the evil intent of his heart. It caused problems for the nation of Israel, and ultimately cost him his life, and the lives of all in his household.

In Joshua Chapter nine, one of the nations to be destroyed executed a plan to deceive Joshua and the nation of Israel.  They wore old tattered clothing and sandals, carried old cracked wineskins, and had with them dry and crumbled food.  They had the appearances of people who had travelled a very long distance, but in fact, they were from a land close by (Gibon).  With the misunderstanding about their home land, Joshua entered into a covenant with these people, promising to not attack or destroy them.
This was not in accordance with the instructions Israel had been given by Yahweh.
Exodus 23:20-33
20 “See, I am sending a Messenger before you to guard you in the way and to bring you into the place which I have prepared.
21 “Be on guard before Him and obey His voice. Do not rebel against Him, for He is not going to pardon your transgression, for My Name is in Him.
22 “But if you diligently obey His voice and shall do all that I speak, then I shall be an enemy to your enemies and a distresser to those who distress you.
23 “For My Messenger shall go before you and shall bring you in to the Amorites and the Ḥittites and the Perizzites and the Kena‛anites and the Ḥiwwites and the Yeḇusites, and I shall cut them off.
24 “Do not bow down to their mighty ones, nor serve them, nor do according to their works, but without fail overthrow them and without fail break down their pillars.
25 “And you shall serve יהוה your Elohim, and He shall bless your bread and your water. And I shall remove sickness from your midst.
26 “None shall miscarry or be barren in your land. I shall fill the number of your days.
27 “I shall send My fear before you, and cause confusion among all the people to whom you come, and make all your enemies turn their backs to you.
28 “And I shall send hornets before you, which shall drive out the Ḥiwwite, the Kena‛anite, and the Ḥittite from before you.
29 “I shall not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become a waste and the beast of the field become too numerous for you.
30 “Little by little I shall drive them out from before you, until you have increased, and you inherit the land.
31 “And I shall set your border from the Sea of Reeds to the Sea of the Philistines, and from the wilderness to the River, for I shall give the inhabitants of the land into your hand, and you shall drive them out before you.
32 “Do not make a covenant with them nor with their mighty ones.
33 Let them not dwell in your land, lest they make you sin against Me when you serve their mighty ones, when it becomes a snare to you.

We see this story unfold in Joshua 9:3-16, 22
3And the inhabitants of Giḇ‛on heard what Yehoshua had done to Yeriḥo and Ai, 4 and they acted slyly and went and pretended to be envoys. And they took old sacks on their donkeys, old wineskins torn and mended, 5 and old and patched sandals on their feet, and old garments on themselves. And all the bread of their provision was dry, it was crumbs. 6 And they went to Yehoshua, to the camp at Gilgal, and said to him and to the men of Yisra’ĕl, “We have come from a far land, and now, make a covenant with us.” 7 But the men of Yisra’ĕl said to the Ḥiwwites, “It could be that you dwell in our midst, so how would we make a covenant with you?” 8 And they said to Yehoshua, “We are your servants.” And Yehoshua said to them, “Who are you, and where do you come from?” 
9 So they said to him, “From a land very far off your servants have come, because of the Name of יהוה your Elohim. For we have heard the report of Him, and all that He did in Mitsrayim, 10 and all that He had done to the two sovereigns of the Amorites who were beyond the Yardĕn, to Siḥon sovereign of Ḥeshbon, and Oḡ sovereign of Bashan, who was at Ashtaroth. 11 “So our elders and all the inhabitants of our land spoke to us, saying, ‘Take food with you for the journey, and go to meet them, and say to them, “We are your servants, and now, make a covenant with us.” ’ 12 “This bread of ours we took hot for our provision from our houses on the day that we left to come to you. But now, see, it is dry and it is crumby. 13 “And these wineskins which we filled were new, and see, they are torn. And these our garments and our sandals have become old because of the very long journey.” 14 And the men of Yisra’ĕl took some of their food, but they did not ask the mouth of יהוה.  15And Yehoshua made peace with them, and made a covenant with them to let them live, and the rulers of the congregation swore to them. 16 And it came to be at the end of three days, after they had made a covenant with them, that they heard that they were their neighbours who dwelt near them. 
22 Then Yehoshua called for them, and he spoke to them, saying, “Why have you deceived us, saying, ‘We are very far from you,’ yet you are dwelling in our midst?”

I wondered why Yahweh would allow this deceit to happen, and to be pulled off successfully, when He had made promises to be with and be for Joshua and Israel.
First of all, they had already been told to not make a covenant with any of the nations.
As soon as an envoy arrived wishing to make a covenant, they should have immediately declined.
Instead, they exposed themselves to the deceit of these men, allowing them to tell their tale.
We also see this in the fall of man.  When the serpent began speaking to Eve in the garden, she should have remembered and obeyed the instructions that Yahweh had given to her and Adam.  But instead, she engaged the enemy in discussion. She allowed the serpent to speak into her life, and he caused her to doubt and forget, and to even twist the words of Yahweh.
In this scenario in Joshua, we see the reason that Yahweh allowed them to fail:
From Joshua 9:14
“…but they did not ask the mouth of יהוה.”
Joshua and Israel went down a path contrary to the instructions given to them by Yahweh.
When presented with a difficult situation, they relied on their own reasoning and understanding.  All they had to do was either obey Yahweh’s original instructions to not make a covenant with the nations, or just ask Yahweh in this moment.  But they did neither…
What is the long term result of this mistake?
Believe it or not, the scriptures tell us!!

Judges 2:1-4
1And the Messenger of יהוה came up from Gilgal to Boḵim, and said, “I led you up from Mitsrayim and brought you to the land of which I swore to your fathers, and I said, ‘I do not break My covenant with you, 2 and as for you, do not make a covenant with the inhabitants of this land – break down their slaughter-places.’ But you have not obeyed My voice. What is this you have done? 3 “Therefore I also said, ‘I am not driving them out before you, and they shall be adversaries to you, and their mighty ones shall be a snare to you.’ ” 4 And it came to be, when the Messenger of יהוה spoke these words to all the children of Yisra’ĕl, that the people lifted up their voice and wept.

Because of this transgression, the nation of Israel then had to contend with pagan nations living in their midst. Israel eventually took on their ways, seeking out their pagan gods to worship.  After much patience, Yahweh divorced them from the covenant and scattered them among all the nations of the earth. The northern ten tribes of Israel were separated from the promise land physically, but were also separated from Yahweh and His Torah instructions!

Jeremiah 5:13
19“And it shall be, when they say, ‘Why does יהוה our Elohim do all this to us?’ then you shall answer them, ‘As you have forsaken Me and served foreign mighty ones in your land, so you shall serve foreigners in a land that is not yours.’
Amos 8:11-12
11“See, days are coming,” declares the Master יהוה, “that I shall send a hunger in the land, not a hunger for bread, nor a thirst for water, but for hearing the Words of יהוה.
12“And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from north to east – they shall diligently search, seeking the Word of יהוה, but they shall not find it.

There are numerous examples in the scriptures regarding disobedience and consequences.
But what can we learn from this series of events that I’ve shared today?

ONE
Yahweh knows what is best for us.
He is our Creator, and He has given us instructions to live by.
He says that obedience to His instructions will bring life and blessing, and disobedience will bring death and curses.
Dueteronomy 28:1-2
1“And it shall be, if you diligently obey the voice of יהוה your Elohim, to guard to do all His commands which I command you today, that יהוה your Elohim shall set you high above all nations of the earth. 2 “And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, if you obey the voice of יהוה your Elohim: (see Deut 28 to read the blessings)
Deuteronomy 28:15
15And it shall be, if you do not obey the voice of יהוה your Elohim, to guard to do all His commands and His laws which I command you today, that all these curses shall come upon you and overtake you.” (see Deut 28 to read the curses)
Deuteronomy 30:19-20
19“I have called the heavens and the earth as witnesses today against you: I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. Therefore you shall choose life, so that you live, both you and your seed, 20 “to love יהוה your Elohim, to obey His voice, and to cling to Him – for He is your life and the length of your days – to dwell in the land which יהוה swore to your fathers, to Aḇraham, to Yitsḥaq, and to Ya‛aqoḇ, to give them.
Remember His Words that He says are forever.
Choose life!!

TWO
If Yahweh has given us commands or instructions, we are to remember them. When a situation arises in our life, we need to remember what He has said. The passing of time does not make His instructions obsolete.
For example, if our parents told us not to play in the street when we were five years old, does that mean we get to play in the street when we are six?  No, absolutely not. It is still unsafe.  We are not allowed to abandon good instruction and sound teaching just because some time has passed.
Israel was told to NOT make any covenant with the foreign nations when they entered the promise land.
Instead of listening to the Voice of Yahweh, they instead listened to the deceitful voice of their enemy.
This caused them to disobey Yah, and it caused them difficulty and hardship beyond imagination later on.
Dueteronomy 12:28
28“Guard, and obey all these words which I command you, that it might be well with you and your children after you forever, when you do what is good and right in the eyes of יהוה your Elohim.”

THREE
If you find yourself in a situation in life where you are unsure, simply ask Yahweh.
Pray.
Even if it is something you once knew, or once had been told.
Simply ask. 
Yahweh is patient, kind, and loving.
He will not chastise us for seeking His word and His will in our lives.
If we have forgotten, or have become confused, or are being deceived by the enemy, simply pray and ask of Yahweh. He will make our paths straight before us.
Proverbs 3:5-7
5 Trust in יהוה with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding;
6 Know Him in all your ways, And He makes all your paths straight.
7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear יהוה and turn away from evil.

FOUR
Yahweh will allow us to fail.
He gave us free will, and He will allow us to pursue that free will, even to our own detriment.  In difficult trials, He will always give us a way out. 
He will provide a solution.
We just need to trust Him and watch for it.
1Corinthians 10:13
13No trial has overtaken you except such as is common to man, and Elohim is trustworthy, who shall not allow you to be tried beyond what you are able, but with the trial shall also make the way of escape, enabling you to bear it.

Let’s take another look at Joshua and Israel being deceived by the inhabitants of Gibon.
The nation of Gibon was slated to be destroyed, but they deceived Joshua into making a covenant with them.
Joshua/Israel just needed to inquire of Yahweh in this matter, and He would have made their paths straight.
But they did not.
End of story, right?
Nope.
Yahweh provides a way out of their disobedience.
Israel made a covenant with the people of Gibon, and as a result, they were unable to destroy them.
But look at what happens in Joshua 10:3-5
3And Aḏoni-Tseḏeq sovereign of Yerushalayim sent to Hoham sovereign of Ḥeḇron, and to Piram sovereign of Yarmuth, and to Yaphiya sovereign of Laḵish, and to Deḇir sovereign of Eḡlon, saying, 4 “Come up to me and help me, and let us strike Giḇ‛on, for it has made peace with Yehoshua and with the children of Yisra’ĕl.” 5 So the five sovereigns of the Amorites – the sovereign of Yerushalayim, the sovereign of Ḥeḇron, the sovereign of Yarmuth, the sovereign of Laḵish, the sovereign of Eḡlon – gathered together and went up, they and all their armies, and camped before Giḇ‛on and fought against it.

As ‘fate’ would have it, the people they were supposed to destroy, but could not because of the covenant they made, are being attacked by five nations of Amorites.
Yahweh has provided a way out for their transgression.
Yahweh has provided a way for His will to be accomplished, even though Joshua and Israel had failed to obey His instructions.
But what happens?
Joshua and the Army of Israel go up from Gilad and defend the people of Gibon, saving them from the Amorites!!!
Seriously????
Believe it or not, this is exactly what happens.
And Yahweh gives them the victory, even killing the Amorites with large hailstones.
If we find ourselves in a bad situation and Yahweh provides a way out, we need to recognize it. We need to pay attention and seek His way and His will.
Do not act in a manner to destroy the way out that Yahweh has provided!!!

FIVE
The actions of one can affect many.
In the siege and battle of Jericho, Israel was told to not take any spoils of war.
Anak coveted gold, silver, and fine garments, and did take of the spoils.
This resulted in Joshua questioning his faith, and to have doubts in the promises of Yahweh.
This resulted in the Army of Israel being defeated at Ai. Some of the Israel soldiers were struck down, because Yahweh was not with them.
Make no mistake about it…
Our disobedience can affect others.
Our poor choices will sometimes have a negative effect on our family, our friends, our property, our place of employment, etc.
We do not live in a bubble.  Our actions have consequences, and sometimes innocent people are adversely affected.

SIX
Choose life.
This is what Yahweh told Israel, and since then has continued to tell everyone that has ever existed to do the same through His written scriptures.
Our churches teach that we ‘choose life’ one time and that is it.
Once saved, always saved.
But that is not what we see in the scriptures.
We are to choose life.
Day by day, minute by minute, situation by situation, and circumstance by circumstance.
We must choose life in all that we do.
Succeeding at this in one scenario does not mean we won’t fail in another.
Be diligent!!
Meditate upon His Word.
Filter all of your thoughts, words, and actions through Yah’s instructions for living.
Psalms 1:1-6
1Blessed is the man who shall not walk in the counsel of the wrong, And shall not stand in the path of sinners, And shall not sit in the seat of scoffers, 2 But his delight is in the Torah of יהוה, And he meditates in His Torah day and night. 3 For he shall be as a tree planted by the rivers of water, That yields its fruit in its season, And whose leaf does not wither, And whatever he does prospers. 4 The wrong are not so, But are like the chaff which the wind blows away. 5 Therefore the wrong shall not rise in the judgment, Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. 6 For יהוה knows the way of the righteous, But the way of the wrong comes to naught.

Please keep in mind that ancient stories are not just historical information.
The character of Yahweh is packed into these stories.
We can learn from them, even today.
Often times, we can learn much about ourselves through the mistakes of others in ancient times!!

Romans 15:4
For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.
1Corinthians 10:11
Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.
2Timothy 3:16-17
All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

All throughout the bible, we see evidence of ancient miracles. Some are extraordinary feats and are quite famous stories, well known by the public at large regardless of whether or not they believe these events actually occurred. Some examples are the Parting of the Red Sea, Noah’s Flood, and one of the greatest – the resurrection and ascension of Yeshua Messiah (Jesus).
Other miracles are less well known such as the talking donkey of Balaam, the water from the rock of Horeb, casting demons into a herd of pigs, three men not harmed in a burning furnace, and the death of Korah – as he was sucked deep into the earth while still alive! There are many more and each is fascinating in its own way.
But what about today?
Are there modern miracles occurring as we speak, or were miracles reserved only for ‘biblical times’?
Has God gone silent?
Today I Googled ‘modern miracles’ and received 39,800,000 search results.
People are talking about such things.
The internet is flooded with information and/or speculation regarding the idea of current, modern miracles.
But is there truth in any of it?

Let’s first start by discussing “biblical times.”
Many people refer to ancient times, thousands of years ago, as biblical times.
This concept requires us to set chronological boundaries based on the authorship of our biblical canon.
When I read my bible, I see ‘all of time’ spoken of:
–Past
–Present
–Future
–Not to to mention all of eternity!!
I believe that ALL times are biblical times.
There are no boundaries that men can establish; not successfully anyway. We can try, but this is foolish. We can’t put God in a box, nor can we put time in a box.
If today and tomorrow are referred to in scripture, then we live in biblical times.
Right now, as we live!!
I have great faith that Yahweh (God) can accomplish miracles today just as we read about in times 2000 to 6000 years ago.
In fact, I have witnessed such things with my own eyes.
In my small family of five, we have experienced extraordinary things.
Here is a brief summary:
JD Anderson (me): When I was three years old, a bright white light ‘visited’ me. This was witnessed by my mother and sister as well, and they remember this event in great detail, as do I. In 2013, I prayed to Yah for confirmation of my understanding of some scriptures. That same day, I was again visited by a similar ball of white light. I have since learned these balls of light are angels, and when photographed (the second occurrence) they look exactly the same as close-up photographs of stars in the night sky (which leads me to believe the stars are angels, and angels are stars).
I was a US Navy Diver and served on submarines. I was unconscious 140 feet under water in 1989 on scuba equipment (not hard hat diving, but with a regulator in my mouth). I was in this condition for 8 to 9 minutes until another diver found me and brought me to the surface. Surviving this event is (to me) a complete miracle, and professional divers will say this is not a survivable event. And yet, here I am…
Tracy (my wife): When our first son was born, Tracy had a very difficult labor, and our son ended up in neo-natal intensive care (more about this later). I went to NICU with Josh, while Tracy was moved from the Labor and Delivery wing to the Maternity wing in the hospital.
A nurse came to me in NICU and asked me to come and see Tracy. I explained to the nurse that she and I had agreed we would not leave our baby alone, ever. I let her know I needed to remain in NICU with Josh. She told me that Tracy was hemorrhaging to death, and may not make it. She said I needed to “say my goodbyes” before it was too late. Tracy was rushed into emergency surgery and she survived, praise Yah! She had been placed under the care of a recent nursing school graduate who was working her very first shift as a nurse. This young lady was unsupervised on her very first day and had absolutely no idea what she was doing as Tracy bled to death under her care. She did not even recognize that Tracy was faltering.
The labor and delivery nurse (with 30 years of experience) finished her shift and had left the hospital. She felt ‘compelled’ to return to the hospital to check on Tracy. She found Tracy near death with internal bleeding. Had this woman not inexplicably returned to the hospital, Tracy would not have survived.
Josh (our oldest of three sons): As I mentioned above, Tracy had a very difficult labor with Josh and nearly lost her own life. During the last 4 to 6 weeks of this pregnancy, Tracy had to see her doctor multiple times due to failed ‘stress tests’. No baby movement was noted on multiple occasions, and there was concern for the baby’s health. As it turns out, the placenta was degrading and the umbilical cord was damaged and partially detached from the uterus wall. He was born alive and without any defects. The doctor, after seeing the condition of the placenta and umbilical cord, declared that Josh was a miracle baby. He said it is not possible for Josh to have survived the pregnancy, and yet he did.
Fast forward to 2014, and Josh ended up in ICU in a coma and on life support at the very same hospital. A CAT scan showed that he was brain dead, with absolutely no neural activity. Homicide detectives showed up and declared his body a crime scene at about 2:30am on February 1, 2014. Homicide detectives began their investigation of his death. Twelve hours later, Josh was conscious and awake, in perfect health, with no loss in brain function or cognitive ability. For the second time in his life, doctors in the same hospital referred to him as an unexplained miracle. I have witnessed the raising of the dead, at the will and at the hand of Yahweh!!
Jonah (our second born son): In December 2015, Josh and Jonah were walking to high school. They had to cross one of the busiest streets in downtown Colorado Springs. Josh had his learner’s permit and was driving at this point, and he had become accustomed to watching other cars. Jonah was not yet driving, and had not developed this habit to generally be alert with regard to traffic.
When the light changed and the crosswalk sign came on, Josh and Jonah began to cross the street. Josh noticed that a car was going to run a red light at approximately 40mph and jumped back, but Jonah did not notice. Jonah was struck in the middle of the cross walk dead center of the car, shattered the windshield, flew in the air, and landed in the street about 30 feet away. He was struck so hard that his shoes were missing, and they were never located or found, even though people looked for them!!
It was expected that he had suffered severe injuries. First responders arrived and an ambulance transported him to the Level 1 Trauma Center instead of the typical emergency room.
After many tests, we learned that he had no broken bones, no internal injuries, and did not even have any visible scratches or bruising. He was sore for a few days, but miraculously was not injured!! Again, praise Yah!
And that leaves our third and last son Ethan: While he has not experienced any miraculous events during his life, the fact that he exists at all is spectacular. Tracy and I decided that two children were enough and that we were finished, but Yah had other plans. Even though I had a vasectomy, Ethan was conceived and born afterwards by the will of Yah!!

I could go into much greater detail regarding each of these stories/events, but I just wanted to summarize some of the things that we’ve experienced as a family.
Some people believe all of these things are coincidental.
Some people simply think that I am lying about these circumstances, and that they never actually occurred.
We have witnessed each of these unusual events, as have others.
They actually happened!
But, are they miracles?
Or are they just quirky life anomalies?

I for one consider these events to show the hand of Yahweh at work in our lives. As a man of great faith, I have no other explanation for it than supernatural intervention at times.
After Josh’s death and then inexplicable survival, I began to reach out to other families going through similar events with their children. This type of thing happens everyday somewhere. Many families deal with the tragedy of a lost or severely injured child, resulting in waiting out a coma in ICU while on life support.
Sadly, I have found that most families do not have a storybook ending.
Most families do not get their kids back.
And this left me perplexed for a number of years.

I’ve prayed about it many times.
I’ve prayed for other kids on life support and in a coma.
I’ve pleaded for other families to get their miracle.
On a couple of rare occasions, I’ve seen it happen. But mostly, these kids pass on from this life, and families are left shattered and broken.

For the last five years, I’ve wondered why?
Why has my family received not one, but several miracles, while other families experience disaster?
The only thing I’ve had to settle on is Yah’s will.
I know that He is a just God, and that His will is perfect to accomplish His plan.
Always.
As a human being, I do not get to question why He does what He does.
I am just the dirt of the earth, and He is the Creator and Author of life, and He knows the number of each of our days.
He knows how many breaths and how many heart beats is allotted for each and every one of us. Nothing is outside of His knowledge or His control.
Isaiah 46 tells us this:
I am God, and there is none like Me—
declaring the end from the beginning,
from ancient time, what is yet to come,
saying, “My purpose will stand,
and I will accomplish all that I please.

Yahweh knows the end from the beginning.
He knows the end results of all that will ever occur, and He’s known in advance, since the beginning of time!
Nothing is secret to Him.
Nothing is unknown to Him.
He does not need to see it play out as we do. He already knows the end result before it has happened.
He knows who will be His, and who will not be His.

We see this in John 6:44-45
44 No one can come to Me unless My Father who sent Me draws him—and I will raise him up on the last day. 45 It is written in the Prophets, ‘They will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has listened and learned from the Father comes to Me.

And in Romans 8, we see a similar statement:
Now we know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to His purpose. 29 For those whom He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And those whom He predestined, He also called; and those whom He called, He also justified; and those whom He justified, He also glorified.
31 What then shall we say in view of these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

And John 6 again
37 Everyone the Father gives Me will come to Me, and anyone coming to Me I will never reject. 38 For I have come down from heaven not to do My own will but the will of the One who sent Me. 39 Now this is the will of the One who sent Me, that I lose not one of all He has given Me, but raise each one on the last day.

And in 2Thessalonians 2
13 But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth…

I’m not trying to turn this idea into a discussion of ‘predestination’.
What I am trying to say is that Yah knows who are His, and He has known from the beginning who will be His.
Whether we call it predestination/pre-selection without free will, or simply that Yah knows who will end up choosing Him is irrelevant.
The end result is what matters.
Yahweh knows and has always known who are His, who will be His.
Yahweh knows who is in His Kingdom and who is not in His Kingdom, regardless of timeframe.
And now for a difficult question…
Does this information, knowing who are His, affect who might get a miracle and who does not?
In difficult and tragic times, a few people/families get miracles, while many lose loved ones under what seem to be the exact same circumstances.
Is the reason beyond us, and not available to us?
That is where I’ve been settled for a number of years.
I am forever grateful for the actions Yah has taken in our lives, and I’m saddened when I see others experience loss and hardship.
But I’m faithful in both circumstances.
I’m trusting and faithful that Yah is just in all things, even if I do not understand them.
That is a good note to finish up on these thoughts…
Be faithful, no matter what.
Be trusting, no matter what.

But there is more.
A friend recently showed me one simple verse in the scriptures that may explain why some get a miracle and some do not.
I absolutely believe the outcome of all things, good or bad, is orchestrated and that Yah is in control of all, even if we can’t see the intricate workings of His will.
And that literally is enough.
Faith and trust.
I don’t need more than these.

But in Hebrews chapter 1, we see the angels are spoken of, and it seems to relate to this very idea of miracles on earth.
I’d like to concentrate on verse 14, but I’ll post the entire section for context:
Hebrews 1:1-14
Superiority of the Son
1 At many times and in many ways, Yahweh [God] spoke long ago to the fathers through the prophets. 2 In these last days He has spoken to us through a Son, whom He appointed heir of all things and through whom He created the universe. 3 This Son is the radiance of His glory and the imprint of His being, upholding all things by His powerful word. When He had made purification for our sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. 4 Thus He became as far above the angels as the name He has inherited is more excellent than theirs.
5 For to which of the angels did Yahweh [God] ever say,
“You are My Son. Today I have become Your Father”?
And again,
“I will be to Him a Father, and He will be to Me a Son”?
6 And again, when He brings the firstborn into the world, He says,
“Let all the angels of God worship Him.”
7 And regarding the angels He says,
“He makes His angels winds, and His servants a flame of fire.”
8 But regarding the Son He says,
“Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, and a scepter of uprightness is the scepter of Your Kingdom. 9 You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; therefore God, Your God, has anointed You with the oil of gladness above Your companions.”
10 And, “In the beginning, Yahweh, You laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the works of Your hands. 11 They shall pass away, but You remain. And they will all wear out like clothing. 12 And like a robe You will roll them up, and like clothing they will be changed; but You are the same, and Your years shall never end.”
13 But to which of the angels has He ever said, “Sit at My right hand, until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet”?
14 Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out for service to those about to inherit salvation?

In this passage, Paul is quoting various scriptures in reference to Yeshua Messiah. He goes to great lengths here to differentiate Yeshua from the angels.
That is the point of this passage, but verse 14 gives us a bit of insight into the purpose of angels (or at least one of their purposes).
Hebrews 1:14
14 Are they [angels] not all ministering spirits, sent out for service to those about to inherit salvation?

I try to make it a point to NOT read into things.
I try NOT to include speculation with my thoughts and words.
In this case, though, verse 14 seems to refer to what mankind commonly calls “Guardian Angels.”
We are clearly told that the angels minister to those who will inherit salvation.

And this might very well be (and I clarify maybe) the answer to my question above.
Why do some people get a miracle and others do not?
What if…
[And I clarify this is a what if…]
What if angels are sent to minister to (intervene in the affairs of men)…
…those who will end up in the Kingdom?

What if Yahweh knows who will be His in the end, and He sends angels to ‘minister’ to them during the events of their lives?
And in this case, I don’t mean ‘counselling, advising, or doing a bible study together’ when I say ministering.
I’m speaking of supernatural intervention in the affairs of men.
Intervention in the affairs of life and death, and protection, and health.
What if miracles are Yahweh sending angels to ‘minister’ to the ones that He knows will be His, the ones who are to inherit salvation as it is stated in Hebrews 1:14?

I find this concept/idea to be absolutely fascinating.
For one, I survived the unsurvivable long before I came to an understanding of Torah.
I received a miracle, and then even more within my family, long before I began loving the ways of the Father.
But what if He knew that is where I [and others] would end up?
What if Yahweh knew that I’d get there, that I would submit my heart and my life to Him?
And for that reason, angels ‘ministered’ in my life [and in the lives of others], allowing me to survive until the day I chose to walk in the ways of the Father?

Does Hebrews 1:14 tell us this?
No. I’m asking a bunch of what-if questions.
Verse 14 states as fact that angels do minister to those who will have salvation, so I don’t think this concept is a stretch.
So I looked into the scriptures to find evidence this idea might be true.
Yes, it is there…
Acts 15:5-11
5 Peter was therefore kept in prison, but constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church. 6 And when Herod was about to bring him out, that night Peter was sleeping, bound with two chains between two soldiers; and the guards before the door were ]keeping the prison. 7 Now behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him, and a light shone in the prison; and he struck Peter on the side and raised him up, saying, “Arise quickly!” And his chains fell off his hands. 8 Then the angel said to him, “Gird yourself and tie on your sandals”; and so he did. And he said to him, “Put on your garment and follow me.” 9 So he went out and followed him, and did not know that what was done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. 10 When they were past the first and the second guard posts, they came to the iron gate that leads to the city, which opened to them of its own accord; and they went out and went down one street, and immediately the angel departed from him.
11 And when Peter had come to himself, he said, “Now I know for certain that the Lord has sent His angel, and has delivered me from the hand of Herod and from all the expectation of the Jewish people.”

And we see this in Isaiah 63
7 I will remember the loving kindnesses of Adonai, the praises of Adonai, according to all that Adonai has granted us, and the great goodness toward the house of Israel, which He has granted them according to His compassion, and according to the abundance of His loving kindnesses.
8 For He said, “Surely they are My people,
children who will not deal falsely.”
So He became their Savior.
9 In all their affliction He was afflicted.
So the angel of His presence saved them.
In His love and in His mercy He redeemed them,
then He lifted them and carried them
all the days of old.
Daniel 6:20-24
20 At dawn the king got up and hurried to the lions’ den. 21 As he reached the den, he cried out to Daniel with a voice of anguish. The king spoke out to Daniel saying: “Daniel, servant of the living God, was your God, whom you serve continually, able to rescue you from the lions?”
22 Daniel spoke to the king: “May the king live forever! 23 My God sent His angel to shut the lions’ mouths[a] so that they haven’t harmed me, because I was found innocent before Him. Nor have I committed any crime against you, O king.”
24 Then the king was overjoyed, and ordered Daniel taken up out of the den.
Daniel 3:26-29
26 Nebuchadnezzar then approached the door of the furnace of blazing fire and exclaimed, “Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, servants of the Most High God, come out and come here!”
So Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego came out from the middle of the fire. 27 When the satraps, administrators, governors and royal ministers had gathered around, they saw that the fire had no effect on the bodies of these men. Not a hair of their head was singed, nor were their robes scorched, nor was there a smell of fire on them.
28 Nebuchadnezzar exclaimed, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, who has sent His angel and delivered His servants who trusted in Him! They defied the king’s edict and to gave up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God. 29 Therefore I hereby decree that any people, nation or language that says anything slanderous against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego will be torn limb from limb and their house made a pile of rubble, because there is no other god that is able to deliver in this way.”
Matthew 18:10
¹⁰ “See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I tell you that their angels in heaven continually see the face of My Father in heaven.
Psalm 91:11-16
11 For He will give His angels charge over you,
to guard you in all your ways.
12 Upon their hands they will lift you up,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.[a]
13 You will tread upon the lion and cobra,
trample the young lion and serpent.
14 “Because he has devoted his love to Me,
I will deliver him.
I will set him securely on high,
because he knows My Name.
15 When he calls on Me, I will answer him.
I will be with him in trouble, rescue him, and honor him.
16 With long life will I satisfy him
and show him My salvation.”
Psalm 34:7-10
⁷ This poor man cried, and Adonai heard,
and saved him out of all his troubles.
⁸ The angel of Adonai encamps around those who fear Him,
and delivers them.
⁹ Taste and see how good Adonai is.
Blessed is the one who takes refuge in Him.
¹⁰ Fear Adonai, His kedoshim,
For those who fear Him lack nothing.
2Kings 6:15-17
15 Now when the attendant of the man of God had risen early and gone out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was surrounding the city. So his attendant said to him, “Alas, my master! What are we going to do?”
16 “Fear not,” he replied, “for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” 17 Then Elisha prayed and said, “Adonai, please open his eyes that he may see.” Then Adonai opened the eyes of the young man and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

There are more references in the scriptures such as these, showing that angels do in fact visit the earth and intervene in the affairs of men, in order to accomplish the will of Yahweh. There is evidence in the scriptures that angels (seen and unseen) have executed miracles in the lives of men.

The idea that miracles do occur today is much easier to believe, having reviewed these scriptures.
Figuring out why some people get a miracle while others do not is still a mystery, although we’ve scratched the surface in exploring the idea.
In the end, all that matters is that Yahweh is in control and He will accomplish His purposes.
We can have trust in that.
Yahweh can accomplish His good and perfect will with events that seem eiterh good or bad from the perspective of men.
What do I take away from these thoughts?
1. I am grateful each and everyday for the wonderful things that have occurred in my life, and in the lives of my wife and children.
2. I am grateful and thankful each day that Yah has lifted my veil and given me understanding of His Torah. This is described in 2Corinthians 3:14-16
¹⁴ But their minds were hardened. For up to this very day the same veil remains unlifted at the reading of the ancient covenant, since in Messiah it is passing away. ¹⁵ But to this day, whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their heart. ¹⁶ But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.
3. I am grateful that if this idea is true [or even if it isn’t], that Yahweh has protected me from certain death at a time when I had not yet submitted my heart to Him, thus allowing me to continue living until I did so.
4. This idea/concept gives me great faith and great hope for two of my children who currently reject the Torah and reject Yahweh. If Yah saved them because He knows where they will end up, then it gives me great comfort to know they will eventually turn their hearts to Yah. I do pray this idea is true for this reason… My kids and many countless others throughout the world.

The things I’ve written in this article are very difficult things.
They smash the boundary between normal and expected vs. extraordinary and unbelievable.
I’m not trying to hype a strange idea here.
I’m just spilling my thoughts out in an effort to process these events that I have experienced and the scriptures that might explain these events.
I don’t know everything.
In fact, I think I know very little.
But I have faith.
And I have trust.
I know that Yahweh my Creator is sovereign over all that there is, including time, physics, and even life and death. And I know that His perfect will shall be accomplished, regardless of what that means for all of us as individuals.

I’ve learned that people have created their own ideas of who God is, or who Jesus is.
Sadly, their ideas do not match who They really are, but are instead a version of God created in their own imaginations.  This false idea is perpetuated in our churches, taught to generation after generation until the truth is no longer known, and is not even recognized when presented to others.
Jeremiah warned of this long, long ago…
Jeremiah 16:19-20
¹⁹ 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?

Verse 20 confirms this idea for us, telling us the results of the errors made in verse 19.  Man will make up their own gods.
But Jeremiah tells us their made-up versions of gods are not actually gods.

My blog posts are primarily centered upon direct quotes of Yahweh [God] and Yeshua Messiah [Jesus].  I made this graphic of negative connotation words from the list of things I’ve been called for quoting Yahweh and Yeshua.  Sadly, people reject the words of our Elohim, and cling instead to their fantasy versions of God and Jesus, the inaccurate versions that do not match the whole of Scripture.
They do not even recognize the things that Yahweh and Yeshua said, even though I quote Them directly from scripture.

Yahweh is a just God.
He gave His instructions for us to live by, and informed us that He will be testing us according to those instructions, to see how well we know them and adhere to them.
We see this test in Deuteronomy 13
“…for the Lord your God is testing you to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. ⁴ You shall walk after the Lord your God and fear Him, and keep His commandments and obey His voice; you shall serve Him and hold fast to Him.”

Yahweh [God] wants us to know His Voice.
He wants us to know the things He said.
He wants us to obey the things that He said.
This is how He will know if we love Him.
Yeshua Messiah [Jesus] wants exactly the same thing from us:
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.”

In the same way that Yahweh gave us His test in Deuteronomy 13 quoted above, we are given the same test in the New Testament (for anyone who believes the Old Testament scriptures are no longer applicable).
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 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.
John goes on to say this in 1John 3:4-9
⁴ Everyone practicing sin also practices lawlessness—indeed, sin is lawlessness. ⁵ You know that Yeshua appeared in order to take away sins, and in Him there is no sin. ⁶ No one who abides in Him keeps on sinning; no one who sins has seen Him or known Him. ⁷ Children, let no one mislead you! The one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as Yeshua is righteous. ⁸ The one who practices sin is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. Ben-Elohim appeared for this purpose—to destroy the works of the devil. ⁹ No one born of God practices sin, because God’s seed remains in him. He cannot sin, because he is born of God.

The expectation from ancient times is the same expectation that we are given today.
However, this idea does not line up with the ‘made-up-gods’ of modern church culture.
When presented with this information, the typical response is rejection of this idea, and often times hostility towards the messenger.

I’d like to ask if you [or your friends, family, and loved ones] would consider the direct quotes of Yeshua Messiah [Jesus] to be:
-Dangerous
_Heretical
-Condemning
-Arrogant
-Hurtful
-Animosity
-Unloving
-Judgmental
-Exclusionary
-Divisive
-Malicious
-Harmful
-Intolerant
-Evil
-Hateful
-Close-minded
-Self-righteous
-Offensive
-Adversarial
-Negative
-False
-Prejudicial
-Critical

DIRECT QUOTES OF JESUS:
Matthew 7:13-14
¹³ “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.¹⁴ Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”

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!’”

Matthew 7:26-27
²⁶ “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: ²⁷ and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”

Luke 11:39
³⁹ Then the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup and dish clean, but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness.”

Matthew 10:11-15
¹¹ “Now whatever city or town you enter, inquire who in it is worthy, and stay there till you go out. ¹² And when you go into a household, greet it.¹³ If the household is worthy, let your peace come upon it. But if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. ¹⁴ And whoever will not receive you nor hear your words, when you depart from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet. ¹⁵ Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!

John 8:19, 25
Jesus answered, “You know neither Me nor My Father. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also. And Jesus said to them, “Just what I have been saying to you from the beginning. ²⁶ I have many things to say and to judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I heard from Him.”

Matthew 10:34-39
“Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. ³⁵ For I have come to ‘set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’; ³⁶ and ‘a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.’ ³⁷ He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. ³⁸ And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. ³⁹ He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.

Luke 6:24-26
²⁴ But woe to you who are rich,
for you are receiving your comfort in full.
²⁵ Woe to you who are full,
    for you shall be hungry.
Woe to you who are laughing now,
    for you shall mourn and weep.
²⁶ Woe to you when all men speak well of you,
for their fathers used to treat the false prophets the same way.”

John 8:42-27
⁴² Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me. ⁴³ Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word. ⁴⁴ You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it. ⁴⁵ But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me. ⁴⁶ Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me? ⁴⁷ He who is of God hears God’s words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God.”

John 8:54-55
⁵⁴ Jesus answered, “If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing. It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is your God. ⁵⁵ Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him. And if I say, ‘I do not know Him,’ I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and keep His word.”

Matthew 23:13, 33
¹³ “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in. ³³ Serpents, brood of vipers! How can you escape the condemnation of hell?”

Matthew 23:25-28
²⁵ “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and^[l]self-indulgence. ²⁶ Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also.
²⁷ “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. ²⁸ Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

Mark 9:42
⁴² “But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea.”

Matthew 25:11-13
¹¹ “Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’ ¹² But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’ ¹³ “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.”

Matthew 25:29-30
²⁹ ‘For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. ³⁰ And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

Luke 19:26-27
²⁶ ‘For I say to you, that to everyone who has will be given; and from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. ²⁷ But bring here those enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, and slay them before me.’ 

Matthew 15:7-9
⁷ Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying:
⁸ ‘These people draw near to Me with their mouth,
And honor Me with their lips,
But their heart is far from Me.
⁹ And in vain they worship Me,
Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ ”

Luke 13:22-28
²² And He went through the cities and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem. ²³ Then one said to Him, “Lord, are there few who are saved?”
And He said to them, ²⁴ “Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able. ²⁵ When once the Master of the house has risen up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open for us,’ and He will answer and say to you, ‘I do not know you, where you are from,’ ²⁶ then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets.’ ²⁷ But He will say, ‘I tell you I do not know you, where you are from. Depart from Me, all you workers of iniquity.’²⁸ There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves thrust out. 

Matthew 15:14
^{14 “}Let them alone. They are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch.”

Matthew 7:6
⁶ “Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.”

Matthew 25:41, 46
⁴¹ “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels.  ⁴⁶ And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Luke 6:46-49
“Why do you call Me ‘Master, Master’ and do not do what I say? ⁴⁷ Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and does them, I will show you what he is like. ⁴⁸ He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock. And when a flood came, the torrent burst against that house but could not shake it, because it had been well built.
⁴⁹ “But the one who hears yet does not do is like a man who built a house upon land without a foundation. When the torrent burst against it, immediately it collapsed—and the destruction of that house was great!”

This is just a sampling of the things Yeshua Messiah [Jesus] said, which are recorded for us in the Scriptures as direct quotes.
It is obvious that Messiah is SERIOUS about such things.
He is not playing games.
He is not to be conformed to an imaginary version of Jesus.
We are not to misrepresent His character, who He is, His Voice, by altering Him to match our own desires.
He is who He is, and we are not allowed to change who He is.
Revelation 1:8
⁸ “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says Adonai Elohim, “Who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty!”
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.”
Exodus 3:14-15
¹⁴ Yahweh [God] answered Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” Then He said, “You are to say to Bnei-Yisrael, ‘I AM’ has sent me to you.” ¹⁵ God also said to Moses: “You are to say to Bnei-Yisrael, Adonai, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My Name forever, and the Name by which I should be remembered from generation to generation.

KNOW HIS VOICE
We must know Him.
We must know His Voice.
We must know the things He said.
Not just our favorite things, but ALL OF THE THINGS THAT HE SAID.
We must know His Character and His Justice along with His mercy and His grace.
All aspects of His Character are vital and important, not just the parts we like the best.

Yeshua Messiah says His sheep know His voice.
If we do not know His voice (all of it, the sum total of all He said) then we are not His sheep.
John 10, 14-15, 26-28
¹⁴ “I am the Good Shepherd. I know My own and My own know Me, ¹⁵ just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father. 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.

Please take the time to study and pray about this idea.
Please take the time to find out if you know Jesus [Yeshua Messiah] of the scriptures, or if you only know mainstream Jesus from church culture.  They are not one and the same…