In-depth Study
Starters
Popular Topics
General
|
Sermons Series 3:40a, 13 May 2006
The Spirit of Elijah
Part 1: The Road to Carmel
Main Themes:
Minor Themes:
"In the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, Ahab son of Omri became king of Israel, and he reigned in Samaria over Israel twenty-two years. Ahab son of Omri did more evil in the eyes of Yahweh than any of those before him. He not only considered it trivial to commit the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, but he also married Jezebel daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and began to serve Baal and worship him. He set up an altar for Baal in the temple of Baal that he built in Samaria. Ahab also made an Asherah pole and did more to provoke Yahweh, the Elohim of Israel, to anger than did all the kings of Israel before him" (1 Kings 16:29-33, NIV).
At the very conclusion of the Old Testament Yahweh spoke to the prophet Malachi and made this very important prophecy:
"See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of Yahweh comes. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers; or else I will come and strike the land with a curse" (Mal.4:5-6, NIV).
And then four hundred years of silence before the Ruach haQodesh once again inspired the writing of holy scripture through the apostles in what is sometimes called the 'inter-testamental gap' between the books of Malachi and Matthew. Four hundred years later John the Baptist came and ministered "in the spirit and power of Elijah" (Lk.1:17; Mt.11:13-14; 17:12-13; Mk.9:11-13). John the Baptist attempted to "turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to the fathers" by calling Judea to national repentance and make their lives right with Yahweh on a one-to-one and family basis, symbolised by baptism. This ministry was superceeded by Yah'shua the Messiah Himself who called people not only to repentance and spiritual reformation but to trust and adhere to Him as their life-giving and delivering Messiah from sin and death. For the most part, they misinterpreted Him, supposing that He would be a national and political Messiah who would deliver Judea from the oppression of Roman occupation and restore the glory of the former Davidic and Solomonic Empires. But Yah'shua new that had He gone about making such a restoration, such a Kingdom, in a hostile climate with the Roman military machine controlling most of the known world, such an empire would have been overwhelmed and destroyed without the much more important reformation of the soul. The Spirit of Elijah or Ruach haEliYah had, and has, nothing to do with building empires or theocracies but with turning hearts, and specifically a turning that leads to the close and intimate binding of families together according to the patriarchal pattern. Yahweh said to His servant Abraham:
"For I have chosen him [Abraham], so that he will direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of Yahweh by doing what is right and just, so that Yahweh will bring about for Abraham what He has promised him" (Gen.18:19,NIV).
The promises of scripture, which Christians love so much to claim, are contingent upon a number of things, and these things include first and foremost a father directing his chidlren and household and consistently doing what is right and just. When he has fulfilled this commission faithfully, then the promises will be fulfilled, but not before. Thus we are reminded that the fulfilment of promise is a function of our obedience as fathers and husbands. The fathers are called to direct - that is, to lead, in the same way Paul reminds us that Yah'shua directs the Messianic Community or Church; and those who are directed - the children and wives - are to lovingly submit to this ordinance, understanding that this is Yahweh's pattern and the only way that Yahweh's promises can be fulfilled in them too.
The Ruach haEliYah or Spirit of Elijah is first and foremost about restoring the shattered bonds between fathers and sons, putting back into place the divine continuity of the spiritual and literal nation of Israel in its proper spiritual and practical order. This is carefully underlined by Yahweh in His Torah when He declared most solemnly:
"Know therefore that Yahweh your Elohim is El; he is the faithful El, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love Him and keep His commands. But those who hate Him He will repay to their face by destruction; He will not be slow to repay to their face those who hate Him. Therefore, take care to follow the commands, decrees and laws I give you today" (Deut.7:9-11, NIV).
People have stopped believing in the power or force of Yahweh's promises today because they no longer keep His commandments. And when the miraculous dies out, they re-interpret scripture to accommodate their own laziness and disobedience, allowing the devil to counterfeit miracles with hiw own fleshy ones. The promises in this extract of Torah are incredible: not only does He promise blessings of love to a thousand generations of those who obey the Torah but also promises to destroy those who hate Him. The two are linked together.
Now by way of a footnote, please note that this instruction in Deuteronomy was written about 1,400 B.C. Today is the year 2006, which is about 3½ thousand years on. The New Covenant began 2,000 years ago. The time span of a generation is 40 years. Yahweh here promises blessings to Torah-obedient Israelites lasting a thousand generations which is 40 multiplied by 1,000 years, or 40,000 years. From this we can deduce that at a very minimum Torah-observance will be going on for the next 40,000 years and not just 1,400 years as most lawless Christians teach, in other words, into the Millennium and way beyond it. As each generation obeys the commandments, so blessings accrue to their decendants who are imitating their godly parents by doing the same.
These blessings are also accompanied by promises of destruction against Yahweh's enemies and the enemies of those who obey His Torah. Now clearly, as we look at the history of Israel and Judah in the Old Testament period, we see not only destruction being sent to Israel's enemies when Israel was obedient, but also against Israel and Judah when they rebelled and became disobedient. Yahweh gave strict instructions to Moses:
"If you carefully observe all these commands I am giving you to follow -- to loveYahweh your Elohim, to walk in all His ways and to hold fast to Him -- Yahweh will drive out all these nations before you, and you will dispossess nations larger and stronger than you. Every place where you set your foot will be yours: Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the Euphrates River to the western sea. No man will be able to stand against you. Yahweh your Elohim, as He promised you, will put the terror and fear of you on the whole land, wherever you go. See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse -- the blessing if you obey the commands of Yahweh your Elohim that I am giving you today; the curse if you disobey the commands of Yahweh your Elohim and turn from the way that I command you today by following other gods, which you have not known. When Yahweh your Elohim has brought you into the land you are entering to possess, you are to proclaim on Mount Gerizim the blessings, and on Mount Ebal the curses" (Deut.11:22-30, NIV).
When Joshua entered the Promised Land these instructions were followed precisely:
"Then Joshua built on Mount Ebal an altar to Yahweh, the Elohim of Israel, as Moses the servant of Yahweh had commanded the Israelites. He built it according to what is written in the Book of the Law of Moses - an altar of uncut stones, on which no iron tool had been used. On it they offered to Yahweh burnt offerings and sacrificed fellowship offerings. There, in the presence of the Israelites, Joshua copied on stones the Torah of Moses, which he had written. All Israel, aliens and citizens alike, with their elders, officials and judges, were standing on both sides of the ark of the covenant of Yahweh, facing those who carried it - the priests, who were Levites. Half of the people stood in front of Mount Gerizim and half of them in front of Mount Ebal, as Moses the servant of Yahweh had formerly commanded when he gave instructions to bless the people of Israel. Afterward, Joshua read all the words of the Torah - the blessings and the curses - just as it is written in the Book of the Law. There was not a word of all that Moses had commanded that Joshua did not read to the whole assembly of Israel, including the women and children, and the aliens who lived among them" (Josh.8:30-35, NIV).
This is a very graphic symbol to remind everyone that there is a counterpart of a blessing which called a curse. It is up to us, when we have entered into covenants with Yahweh through baptism, whether we bring blessings or cursings down upon ourselves. If we choose to bring down blessings, by being obedient to Yahweh, then those who come against us are automatically cursed. Consider the promises that Yahweh gave to Abraham:
"I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you" (Gen.12:2-3, NIV).
Yah'shua taught His disciples to understand the heart of Yahweh in this by also admonishing them in this way:
"Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you" (Luke 6:27-28, NIV).
We are not to harbour revenge for our enemies - those who abuse and do evil to us - because "vengeance is mine; I will repay, says Yahweh" (Rom.12:19, KJV). The punishment of the enemies of the righteous and the obedient is in Yahweh's hands and we are not to go and execute it ourselves. The events of the last two months are proof of that. We have prayed for our enemies - for all of them, but especially those who would be saved and who are the children of Yahweh in captivity - and Yahweh has taken care of cursing those who have cursed us to the extent that every single person who has cursed us in prayer, or who has lifted a hand against us, has been destroyed supernaturally by Him. And it's still going on. The fact that we are to love our enemies, bless those who curse us, and pray for those who mistreat us, does not annull the curses that Yahweh has promised He will send to those who attack His faithful servants, and we should not try to hinder Him. His Justice must be executed. Please remember this: you focus on loving, blessing and praying and let Him take care of our enemies. We need no militias, assassins or such as the enemy has sent against us, we need only to be true to our calling and to let Yahweh take care of the rest. BUT - and this is a big 'but' - if we are not true to our calling - if we do not obey His Torah in gratitude for His salvation through Yah'shua the Messiah, do not expect to be delivered from your enemies!
Why do you suppose millions of Christians are going to be slaughtered in the end-time? Is it because Yahweh likes martyrs? Is it because He delights in mass offerings of believers, perhaps to 'prove' that they love Him? Is that what you would want of your children? Yes, it is true, that we should lay down our lives for our brothers (fellow Messianic Israelites) when called to by Him, and it is true that there is no greater love than to do this, even as Yah'shua did for us (Jn.10:15,17; 13:37-38; 15:13; 1 Jn.3:16); but it is not true that this is the only way we can love Him with all our hearts. It is often a lot more difficult to live for our brethren, and to suffer alongside them - day after day all our lives - than to offer ourselves as martyrs and have our lives snuffed out. Was it Yahweh's will that we offer ourselves up as martyrs during the last attacks made on us? No, obviously not, or He would not have personally intervened and fulfilled His promises in Torah and slaughtered hundreds of the enemy. They're still falling today as they pray to Satan or to other gods for our misfortune or destruction.
So why are millions of Christians going to die during the anti-Christ rule - during the Great Tribulation? It is simple - it is because they are lawless. They have rejected Torah and so can neither enjoy its special blessings or cursings against those who come up against them to hurt them or take their lives.
People often complain to me saying: "Why don't we have miracles like they did anciently?" and are tempted to conclude that it was, perhaps after all, just myth or hyperbole (exaggeration). But you and I - those of you who have been here in headquarters the last month or two - known better. We know because we are witnessing precisely these miracles. You have seen incredible things! We have learned to confidently declare, with King David:
"I will not fear the tens of thousands drawn up against me on every side" (Ps.3:6. NIV).
Today we are going back in time to the days of the prophet Elijah to the reign of King Ahab of the northern Kingdom of Israel who married a pagan called Jezebel and made her his queen. He outlawed Yahweh worship, much as is slowly happening in our Western 'democracies' today and instituted Baal worship much as neo-paganism is infecing our nations. Last Tuesday I went into our local book shop and was disgusted to see that they were now selling pagan idols - images of Kali, the Hindu goddess of destruction, and other idols from Africa and elsewhere. There were no crosses or other Christian insignia for sale. I looked at the comic books that children are having their minds filled with and it was all raw occult filled with immorality and violence. It's all white vs. black withchraft - everywhere the young are being taught the good cop / bad cop techniques of the demons of this age. It is not hard to see how the next generation will be totally paganised and ripe for absorption into the end-time anti-Christ system. In our time we are witnessing the near end of Christianity, not because Christianity is powerless of false, but because Christians will not repent of their lawlessness! They have sealed their own fate. And it remains for a tiny remnant who are holding out against the legions of the damned who are even now witnessing a full restoration of the power and glory of ancient Israel under the New Covenant.
I have chosen the time period of Ahab, Jezebel and Elijah as the subject material of my sermon precisely because that situation has direct application to us, today, and for tomorrow when our children must fully operate in the Spirit of Elijah, day and night, if they are to overcome and be victorious. They will be facing, not David's tens of thousands, but millions if not billions. And do you know what? It won't matter that they face even greater odds than we are in this generation because the result will be the same - total destruction of the enemy, not in a few hundreds or thousands, but in billions when Yah'shua returns. Our end-time colonies will survive and be triumphant.
If I seem to be boasting, understand that it is not in me, or my strength, or our strength, because we have none. We boast in Yahweh our Elohim and proclaim loudly and unapologetically to a world steeped in sin, and to a Christendom dancing to the tune of Jezebel in order to supposedly be 'left alone', that all power is His through Yah'shua our Messiah. But it is true we cannot sit around idly - there is a price to pay, and that is the total surrender of self-management and self-sovereignty which leads to full and total obedience in genuine heart-love for our Saviour. It means that we have to be people of action, not merely 'confessing' our faith' but 'professing' it as I told you recently. The faith of the New Covenant is dyanamic, not passive. It's those who are passive or who refuse to do as Yahweh says who will be seized, tortured and murdered, even as our enemies wanted to do to us.
We now look back at Elijah the Prophet, the man who thought that he was alone but who did, in fact, have company - many others who had not bowed the knee to Baal. And Paul reitterated this fact to the believers in his day, saying:
"I say then, has Yahweh cast away His people? Certainly not! For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. Yahweh has not cast away His people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with Yahweh against Israel, saying, 'Yahweh, they have killed Your prophets and torn down Your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life'? But what does the divine response say to him? 'I have reserved for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.' Even so then, at this present time there is a remnant according to the election of grace" (Rom.11:1-5, NKJV).
Seven thousand men - seven thousand true-worshippers, family heads or patriarchs - these were around, even though they were visible to the prophet. In the first enemy attacks there was only one man, myself - I know how Elijah felt. The point is, out there are true men of Yahweh who have not bowed their knees to Baal. They are true, they love Yahweh with all their might, mind and strength, they have the testimony of Yah'shua, and they obey the commandments in Torah. Satan seeks to exterminate them because they alone constitute any real threat to his Kingdom. Know, though, that they are there, and know that they will be inspired by what has happened here and will come to us build Zion in the end. It will happen and has already begun.
Satan, in attacking his remnant, pursues two main lines of attack which are clearely illustrated in the life of Elijah the prophet. Those who are called to resist the Kingdom of Satan by actually attacking it must first undergo severe training which tries the. First of all, Yahweh gave Elijah a spiritual key which he alone carried. Once Ahab ascended the throne and broke Yahweh's covenant with David, setting up Baal worship and persecuting the true followers of the Most High, Elijah was given a message to deliver to the king which he did not want to hear:
"Now Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, 'As Yahweh, the Elohim of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word" (1 Kings 17:1, NIV).
These were neither idle words nor vain imaginings. They were not the mumblings of some deluded charismatic preacher operating under a false Ruach. There was no dew or rain! It actually happened. It was perfectly clear to those who had any sense that Yahweh had given authority to this man - not power, because all power is Yahweh's - but authority to be a prophetic executor of that power. Several times Yahweh has told me to cut satanists' silver cords - the power was delegated and for the duration of that operation alone. The rest of the time Yahweh has done all the slaying Himself without my even being aware of it. Why does He do this? So that His enemies will respect His servants and therefore Him. But it is so done that all glory goes to Yahweh.
The disciplining of Elijah occurred in the midst of tribulation, not before it. He did not start out as some hermit in some monastery. Yahweh called Him and told him to deliver a message to Ahab. Ahab could have killed him. I doubt the meeting was pleasant. Nevertheless, Yahweh send a man out in his weakness. He was not sent out because he was strong but because of three things; (1) He loved Yahweh; (2) He loved and obeyed His Torah; and (3) He had faith. Those were the qualifications, not some 'mystical' or 'charismatic' power. Paul also did miracles, but by all accounts he was anything but charismatic in appearance and not a particularly good talker though his sermons were Ruach-packed. Elijah's qualities were not the sort that the world would pay much attention to, let alone the rebellious Kingdom of Israel, until they felt the squeeze. And that squeeze was drout followed by famine. The wicked rarely respond until calamity hits them and they are forced to wake up and make a choice.
So you see, suffering does serve a useful purpose. However, that suffering is not the result of a capricious God but the result of deliberate rebellion and breach of covenant. It may have been started by our ancestors, but that's the whole point - we are connected by covenant and it is the Spirit of Elijah that connects us. Arguing from a disconnected position of separated fathers and sons is not a valid excuse because the disconnection itself - revolt against patriarchal authority in Yahweh - is the primary issue, because it is here that the troubles invariably originate. Yahweh did not make individualists but families, clans, tribes and nations to be integrated, cohesive units, bound by love for Him, given to Torah-obedience, and disposed to faith in Messiah.
So what happened next to Elijah? He was told to head off towards the desert:
"Then the word of the Yahweh came to Elijah: 'Leave here, turn eastward and hide in the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan. You will drink from the brook, and I have ordered the ravens to feed you there.' So he did what Yahweh had told him. He went to the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan, and stayed there. The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook" (1 Kings 17:2-6, NIV).
Please notice that He did not give him a large mansion in California with swimming pools, cavalcades of expensive cars, or an executive jet. He did not get a palace, hundreds of servants, thousands of head of cattle, chariots and horses. And if he had, you would have known that he was not a true prophet. Todays health-and-wealth frauds are not 'the Lord's anointed', neither has He given them authority to threaten you with calamity if you speak against their lies. You need not be intimidated by them, nor their spirirtualist signs and wonders which come out of the pit of hell. Yahweh's servants don't behave like this. They behave in a totally different manner as we shall see.
I am sure sitting by a brook and being fed morsels of bread all day by a raven was not quite the Five Star Hôtel Treatment that modern ministers expect. And it was to get worse, wasn't it?
"Some time later the brook dried up because there had been no rain in the land" (v.7).
Now that's happened to us more than once, hasn't it? Our resources have dried up, and then our enemies have gleefully proclaimed: "See, you're a sinner! Yahweh isn't blessing you! Repent, then you'll be prosperous!" And they quote scriptures to back themselves up. And yes, they may have a modicum of wealth and sufficiency, but they know - and we know - that the hand of belssing is not upon them. We know, and perhaps they might know (though I doubt it), that if the enemy came against them, they would be cut down. I hope not, for our hope is that they will repent and become useful workers instead, submitting themself to proper authority.
Yahweh told Elijah to move on and to work a miracle, the second, we suppose, of his ministry. He went to Zarephath near Sidon, in Phoenicia, to an old widow and her young son, and was told by Yahweh to ask her for some bread and water at a time when she was starving to death. She protested, saying she only had a little oil and flour left which she had planned to use for her last meal and then die (1 Ki.17:8-12).
Now seen through worldly eyes, this demand made by the prophet must have sounded merciless, cruel, selfish, and heartless. And indeed sometimes when Yahweh asks us to make sacrifices with the last thing we have, we can often balk and complain. But this is not the world. We are not of the world, and if we profess not to be - but to belong to Him - we had better start seeing our life situations through the eye of faith and not through the eye of the flesh, because Yahweh can neither reveal Himself to you, nor use you mightly, until you are willing to crucify the flesh with all its passions and trust Him. Elijah replied to the woman, whom he had never seen before, and who did not know him, one supposed:
"'Don't be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small cake of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. For this is what Yahweh, the Elohim of Israel, says: 'The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day Yahweh gives rain on the land'" (1 Kings 17:13-14, NIV).
Here is Yahweh asking a woman to make the final sacrifice - to feed his prophet - and gives her a promise to do a miracle until her natural supply of food and water can be resumed. Like the miracles Yah'shua did multiplying fish and loaves, so Yahweh promises to multiply oil and flour. Now those of you who know our circumstances know that is is more or less how Yahweh has been feeding us here. We went without any sort of income for a year and have been with without one now for several months. He provides - not much - but enough to see us by. We do not live in a grand Californian palace in San Diego or a district of Hollywood but in a crumbling old school house in the middle of nowhere in the Swedish wilderness. It might not be much to look at but nearly 70 satanists have died trying to attack it. Our place is protected and blessed just as the little hut of the woman of Zarephath was for her faith.
She, her son, and Elijah had plenty to eat and drink. The oil and flour just kept multiplying, didn't it? (v.15-16) But that was not the end of the trial of her faith. For all her trust and loving kindness, tragedy struck her little home and her one and only son got ill and died. Oh, what a temptation to accuse Yahweh of being uncaring, even spiteful! But you see, Yahweh permitted this for a reason - to show even more of His power and care, and to make her faith even stronger!
"Some time later the son of the woman who owned the house became ill. He grew worse and worse, and finally stopped breathing. She said to Elijah, 'What do you have against me, man of Elohim? Did you come to remind me of my sin and kill my son?' 'Give me your son,' Elijah replied. He took him from her arms, carried him to the upper room where he was staying, and laid him on his bed. Then he cried out to Yahweh, "O Yahweh my Elohim, have you brought tragedy also upon this widow I am staying with, by causing her son to die?' Then he stretched himself out on the boy three times and cried to Yahweh, O Yahweh my Elohim, let this boy's life return to him!' Yahweh heard Elijah's cry, and the boy's life returned to him, and he lived. Elijah picked up the child and carried him down from the room into the house. He gave him to his mother and said, 'Look, your son is alive!' Then the woman said to Elijah, 'Now I know that you are a man of Elohim and that the word of Yahweh from your mouth is the truth'" (1 Kings 17:17-24, NIV).
Now there are many important things to observe here. Firstly, that until this moment of thaumaturgy - of raising from the dead - this woman had not been 100% sure that Elijah was a man of Yahweh. Yes, she had had a degree of faith, but it was not full. She needed to witness more, just as we in our turn have had to witness more to know that Yahweh is actually taking care of us. All doubt had to be purged. And not, we suppose, just from the woman, but from the prophet himself who would be required to do an even greater miracles requiring even more faith subsequently. Remember that. If Yahweh is showing you great miracles to strengthen your faith, then that strengthening has not been for you to consume upon your lusts and boast, but because He will required even greater faith for even greater works and miracles to come! And if Yahweh has called you to the ministry, He must and will take you through these faith-promoting trials that involve deprivation, the stretching of your faith, and possibly even tragedy. Everyone's trial will be different but similar in action and purpose. The result, though, if you are true, will be glorious.
There are thousands of Christians today calling themselves 'prophets' who are operating presumptuously, outside of Yahweh's call, and in a false spirit. Israel and Judah were full of them, saying what the itching eares of the rebellious and sinful people wanted to hear, particularly in times of national calamity. We read much about them in the days of Jeremiah. We are seeing now how the true prophets of Yahweh operate and what the Spirit of Elijah consists of and why it is important today. Because foremost in that calling will be the promotion of proper patriarchal headship and the turning of the children's hearts. Please notice that Yahweh said the 'turning' was bidirectional - this is not just about fathers assuming their rightly position of headship in a family coup d'état but about operating in love and faith so that the children are drawn to them of their own free wills, as well as the fathers being drawn to their sons' hearts to understand and feel with them. This is a healing process that brings the parties into echad communion with Yahweh. It is not something arbitrarily imposed from without.
By now the famine is severe in Israel and Yahweh sends Elijah back to Ahab and we are introduced to a man called Obadiah, a true believer in charge of Ahab's palace (1 Ki.18). Jezebel, in the meantime, is murdering Yahweh's prophets, whilst Obadiah is hiding them away. Elijah and Obadiah meet while Obadiah is out on an assignment to fine pasture land for the king's animals. What does Elijah do? He sends Obadiah back to Ahab with a message from Elijah and Obadiah reacts terrified, convinced the king will be enraged by the message and have him killed. Obadiah, moreover, complains vigorously against the prophet, criticising him for not helping out in other situations such as when he helped hide and feed the fugitive prophets.
It's easy to complain. It's easy to say that we should have been here or there doing this or that. But the point is that we must do what Yahweh tells us, not what other belivers expect of us based on their own narrow perception and limited spiritual discernment. Yes, Elijah could have gone and helped Obadiah out, but what for? Not only did Obadiah do his job perfectly well, however tough it may have been, but Elijah was able to go through the faith-building experiences at the Kerith Ravine and at Zarepthath. For Elijah was being called to an ever more important assignment now that would break the power of Jezebel in the land. Anyway, Obadiah's main fear was that Elijah would not turn up at the palace after he had delivered the prophet's rebuking message. Having got his assurance, he went and faithfully did as he was bidden, though no doubt with considerable trepidation of soul.
Next week we are going to look not only at the great contest between Yahweh and the prophets of Baal at Mount Carmel but we will learn how Satan switches tactics after suffering losses in a direct confrontation. We will see how we must prepare not only for open warfare but also for the guerilla warfare of defamation and character assassination. When your opponent switches tactics, turning from principles to personalities, you know that he is facing imminent and total defeat. And whilst we may be tempted to think that the second phase is 'easy' compared to the first, in many respects it is worse, because your targets are hiding in the shadows, not showing themselves, and do not easily present themselves as targets, and we have entered the phase of the 'coward's war' much as in our day age we have shifted from conventional field warfare where armies contested one another and settled matters fairly, to terrorism where the targets are always the non-combattants and innocents. Yahweh takes care of both type of attack.
May Yahweh bless you as you brace for the next form of attack, resting in Him and trusting, as always, His providence, staying true to Him and continuing to trust in His promises. Amen.
Click here for Part 2
Author: Lev-Tsiyon
Glossary of MLT Hebraic, Greek and English Terms For other terms and full details please see the Micropedia
A
Adon(ai) = Master, a pagan fertility god, Adonis; used by many Messianics but not MLT
(a)eon(ian) = 7 dispensation- or age-long time periods, not forever (see le-olam-va-ed)
Alef-Tav = Alpha-Omega, A-Z, first and last letters of the Hebrew alphabet = Yah'shua
Amen = truly, let it be so, written Amein by some Messianics
Apocrypha = Hebraic Scriptures not a part of the Protestant canon (e.g. Baruch)
Anti-Messiah = Hebraic term for the end-time Antichrist or anyone opposed to the Messiah
antinomian = lawless Christian who disregards all or part of Torah/commandments
Ashkenazi Jew = East European Jew descended from the Turkic-Japhethite Khazars
Assembly = church, congregation, ekklesia, community, fellowship, koinonia, gathering
Azazel = the Yom Kippur scapegoat
B
Baal, Ba'al = any other master than Yahweh, usually demonic in MLT terminology
Bachor(im) = firstborn son(s)
Bar/Bat Mitzvah = Son/Daughter of Commandment, covenant to obey Torah at age 12
being = soul, the whole person (spirit and body), e.g. "my whole being"
Beit, bet, beth = house, e.g. Beit Yisrael (House of Israel), Beth Lechem (House of Bread)
Beit haMikdash = Yahweh's Temple in Yerushalayim
B'rit Chadashah = the New Covenant; B'rit Chadashah Scriptures = New Testament
B'rit Milah = circumcision - abolished in the B'rit Chadashah, replaced by Mikvah
C
canon = authoritative Scripture (Heb. qaneh, Gk. kanôn = measuring instrument)
Catechumen = a serious, covenanted investigator seeking Mikvah or Baptism in MLT
Chag haMatzah = Feast of Unleavened Bread, second of the annual feasts of Yahweh
Chavurat Bekorot = MLT's Priesthood Order, Holy Order and Assembly of the Firstborn
Cohen = priest; Cohen Gadol = High Priest (also spelled Kohen)
Council of Yah's elohim = the heavenly Assembly of the Firstborn or Chavurat Bekorot
D
demon = fallen malek or angel in rebellion against Yahweh (Heb. shad; see Êl-Shaddai)
derech = the Way, Path or Road - Yah'shua and the Gospel are the Way
Drash = moral or homiletic interpretation of Scripture - see PaRDeS
E
Echad = One, Union of two or more in one (as opposed to Yachid) - see Elohim
Echad Godhead Doctrine = Father Yahweh, Son Yah'shua and Sevenfold Ruach (Mother)
Êl, Eloah, Elah = God the Father, Yahweh
Êl-Elyon = Most High God, Yahweh
Êl-Shaddai = Master/Lord over all shads or demons
Elohim = God, the Godhead (Father, Son & Holy Spirit), lit. 'Mighty One(s)', 'Ruler(s)'
elohim = Israelite judges, rulers, angels or gods (false deities, idols, demons)
emunah = faith, actively trusting, clinging or adhering to (especially Yahweh or Yah'shua)
emet = truth, Yah'shua is the Emet
Ephraimite = descendant of the patriarch Ephraim and head of Messsianic Israel
F
Feasts of Yahweh = the 7 annual Moedim (Pesach, Chag haMatzah, Yom haBikkurim, Shavu'ot, Yom Teruah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot)
G
Gan-Eden = Garden of Eden, Paradise and state of the purified heart in Messiah
goy(im) = nation(s), Israelites or gentiles not born in or converted to the Covenant
H
hallelu-Yah = praise Yah(weh)!
Heylel = proper name of Satan or haSatan = the Adversary, the devil
Sabbath = Yom Shabbat (Friday to Saturday sunset, add 1 day in IDL Zone)
Hochmah = Wisdom, title of the 7-fold Ruach haQodesh
I
IDL = International Date Line, false man-made time division in Pacific Ocean
IDL Zone = Area between the true Divine Date Line (Lake Van/Eden) and the false one
Israeli = citizen of the modern Edomite-Khazar Republic of Israel (not Biblical Israel)
Israelite = citizen of biblical state of Israel or a modern follower of the Messiah
J
Jew = post-biblical term describing descendants of Edomite and Khazar converts to Judaism
Johannine = pertaining to the Apostle Yochanan (e.g. Gospel of John)
Josephite = descendant of the patriarch Joseph, the head of Messianic Israel
Judahite = a person in direct descent from the patriarch Judah, forefather of the Messiah
Judaism = a Talmudic-based religion rejecting Yah'shua the Messiah
Judean = a citizen of the Kingdom or Province of Judah until the 2nd Century diaspora
K
Kadosh la Yahweh = set-apart or dedicated to Yahweh, 'Holiness to the Lord', MLT motto
Karaites = Jews (from 700 AD) who reject the Talmud and accept only the Tanakh
kashrut = keeping kosher, food laws of Yahweh and correspinding lifestyle
Ketuvim = Writings or Hagiographa of the Tanakh
Khazar = a Turkic convert to Judaism ~700 AD forming the Ashkenazi Jewish community
kosher = clean foods authorised by Yahweh for human consumption
L
Lashon Hara = evil-speaking, gossip or slander
legalism = false route to salvation through works (self-salvation)
le-olam-va-ed = dispensation- or age-long, aeonian, not eternal, forever or for eternity
Lev = heart, as in Lev-Tsiyon = heart of Zion
Lev-Tsiyon = Heart of the Fortress [of Yahweh], Hebrew name of MLT's founder
M
Master = Lord, Sir, Adon(ai) - (one in authority, a ruler - a king, husband, prophet, judge)
Malak(im) = Angel(s), heavenly supernatural messenger(s)
manna = wafers of honey, bread from heaven (lit. 'what is this?')
matzah = unleavened bread, see Chag haMatzah
Menorah = 7-armed candlearbra = the 7 annual Moedim and 7-fold Ruach haQodesh
Messiah = Christ; Anti-Messiah = Antichrist
Messianic Community = Body of Christ, sum total of all true believers; all true fellowships
Messianic Israel = all who worship Yahweh, trust in Yah'shua, obey Torah and overcome
Messianic Jew = Messianic convert from Judaism still clinging to Talmudic traditions
Midrash = aggadic interpretation of scripture viâ Drash, a scriptural discussion
Mikvah = baptism by immersion of convert into Yah'shua or of wife into husband
Mishpachah = family: nuclear, congregational, tribal or the whole of Messianic Israel
MLT = Mishpachah Lev-Tsiyon = family of the heart of the fortress [of Yahweh]
Mishpat = right-ruling or judgement
mitzvah/mitzvot = commandment(s)
moed(im) = appointment(s) of Yahweh, 7 Annual Feasts, Sabbath and Rosh Chodesh
N
Nefilim, Nephilim = giant offspring of materialised demons and human women
Nevi'im = prophetic writings of the Old Testament or Tanakh
New Birth = spiritual conversion in the Ruach haRishon, being 'born again' with new heart
Nidah = a woman's menstruation period during which no intercourse is permitted
O
Olive Branch = collection of revelations, prophecies and visions published by MLT
P
Paraclete = Comforter, Advocate (NEB), Counsellor, Ruach haQodesh (Gk. paraklêtos)
PaRDeS = method of textual interpretation (homiletics) - see P'shat, Remez, Drash, Sod
Patriarch = a father who is head of his family, clan or tribe (lit. 'father-ruler')
Pentateuch = first five books of the Tanakh (Genesis-Deuteronomy), also called Torah
peribolaion = headcovering worn by daughters/wives in submission to fathers/husbands
Pesach = Passover, first of the annual feasts of Yahweh
Peshitta = an Aramaic version of the Bible
Prototrinitarianism = early, simplified MLT formulation of the Echad Godhead Doctrine
Prush(im) = Pharisee(s)
Pseudepigrapha = Non-canonical Hebrew writings additional to the Apocrypha
P'shat = literal, contextual, philological, exoteric, outer meaning of Scripture - see PaRDeS
Q
Qadosh Qadoshim = Holy of Holies, most sacred set-apart room of the Beit haMikdash
Qodesh, Kodesh = set-apart, holy (see Ruach haQodesh)
R
Rabbi = Teacher, term used by Messianic Jews and some Messianic Israelites = Pastor
Refuge, the 12 Cities of = divinely protected MLT fortresses during the 7-year Tribulation
Remez = hint or allegorical level of Hebraic understanding of Scripture - see PaRDeS
Rosh Chodesh = monthly New Moon appointment of Yahweh
ruach = spirit of a person (lit.'breath')
Ruach Elohim = Spirit of God (the Spirit of the collective Godhead or Elohim)
Ruach haChamashee = 5th Ruach presides over Yom Teruah and Yom Chamashee
Ruach haQodesh = the Sevenfold Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost (lit. 'Set-Apart Breath')
Ruach haRevee = 4th Ruach presides over Shavu'ot, Yom Revee and Bar Mitzvah
Ruach haRishon = 1st Ruach presides over Pesach, Yom Rishon and the New Birth
Ruach haShanee = 2nd Ruach presides over Chag haMatzah and Yom Shanee
Ruach haSheshi = 6th Ruach presides over Yom Kippur and Yom Sheshi
Ruach haShleshi = 3rd Ruach presides over Yom haBikkurim, Yom Shleshi and Mikvah
S
Sabbath = Yom Shabbat (Friday to Saturday sunset, add 1 day in IDL Zone)
Satan = rebel archangel Heylel, father of lies, devil, chief demon (lit.'Adversary')
Sephardic Jew = West European Jew of mixed blood containing many Judahites
Septuagint = Greek translation of the Tanakh, LXX
Shegal haShabbat = 7th Ruach (Sabbath Queen) presides over Sukkot and Yom Shabbat
Shekinah = Divine Presence and Glory of Yahweh-Elohim
Set-apart = holy, sanctified, consecrated, dedicated, separated (to and by Yahweh)
Shabbat-Shabbaton = High Sabbath (e.g. Yom Kippur)
Shalom = heavenly peace, standard Hebraic greeting invoking Yahweh's peace
Shamash(im) = servant(s), deacon(s), attendant(s)
Shavu'ot = Pentecost or Weeks, fourth of the annual feasts of Yahweh
Sheol = grave or pit, euphamism for Hades or hell - also see Tartarus
shofar = ram's horn, blown during Yahweh's Moedim
simcha = joy, keynote of Sukkot
Sod = mystical, anagogic, inner or esoteric understanding of Scripture - see PaRDeS
Sukkot = Tabernacles or Booths, seventh of the annual feasts of Yahweh
Synagogue = Greek word used by Jews and Messianics (but not MLT) for a meeting house
T
talmid(a) = male/female disciple or student
Talmud = scriptures, teachings and commentaries belonging to non-Messianic Judaism
Tanakh = acronym for Old Testament Scriptures - Torah, Nevi'im & Ketuvim
Tartarus = place of imprisonment under the earth for rebellious angels and Nephilim
teshuvah = repentance, remorse and contrition leading back to Torah obedience
Torah = Yahweh's teachings or Law; New Covenant Torah includes Yah'shua's teachings
Tribulation, the Great = the final 7 years of the present aeon when Anti-Messiah rules
Trinity = Catholic Godhead formula - see Echad Godhead Doctrine and Prototrinitarianism
Tsiyon = Zion, a fortress, a name of Jerusalem and a prominent hill
Tzitzit/Tizitziyot = tassel(s) worn by men in remembrance of Torah
U
Universalism = salvation of all at the cosmic Yovel, with different rewards and punishments
Y
Yachid = one, single person or item, as opposed to Echad (many in one, unity)
Yah'shua the Messiah = Jesus Christ (the Son)
Yahudah = Judah - see Judahite
Yahweh, Yah, YHWH = the true Name of our Heavenly Father, also carried by Yah'shua
Yahweh-Elohim = LORD God (the Father, Yahweh as Head of the Godhead or Elohim)
Yahweh haQatan = the sent Yahweh = Yah(weh)'shua, Malak of Yahweh's Presence
Yam Suf = Sea of Reeds, the true Israelite Exodus water crossing, not the Red Sea
Yarden = Jordan River (lit. 'meanderer')
Yerushalayim = Jerusalem
Yisrael = Israel (lit. 'ruling with Êl') = true believers under the New Covenant
Yom Chamashee = 5th day of the week (Thursday, Friday in IDL Zone)
Yom Din, Yom haDin = (the) Day of Judgement
Yom haBikkurim = Feast of Firstfruits, third of the annual feasts of Yahweh
Yom Revee = 4th day of the week (Wednesday, Thursday in IDL Zone)
Yom Rishon = 1st day of the week (Sunday, Monday in IDL Zone)
Yom Kippur = Day of Atonement, sixth of the annual feasts of Yahweh
Yom Shabbat = 7th day of the week and Sabbath Rest (Saturday, Sunday in IDL Zone)
Yom Shanee = 2nd day of the week (Monday, Tuesday in IDL Zone)
Yom Sheshi = 6th day of the week (Friday, Saturday in IDL Zone)
Yom Shleshi = 3rd day of the week (Tuesday, Wednesday in IDL Zone)
Yom Teruah = Day of Trumpets, fifth of the annual feasts of Yahweh
Yosef = Joseph - see Josephite
Yovel = Jubilee or Year of Jubilee
Z
Zaqen(im) = elder(s) of an assembly or congregation, or senior members of a community
Zoë Life = Greek term for spiritual life in the Messiah
Commonly Used MLT Abbreviations
For additional abbreviations and explanations, please see the Micropedia
A
Amp.V(er). = Amplified Version of the Bible
Aram. = Aramaic
AV = Authorised Version of the Bible - see KJV
B
BCAY = B'rit Chadashah Assembly of Yahweh - see NCCG
BoA = Books of Abraham (e.g. 1Abr., 2Abr., etc.)
C
cp, cf = compare with
CB(Q) = Chavurat Bekorot
CEV = Contemporary English Version of the Bible
ch. = chapter
CJB = Complete Jewish Bible
CLNT = Concordant Literal New Testament
CYe = Council of Yah's elohim
E
Eng. = English
F
ff. = and onwards/forwards
fn = footnote
G
Gk. = Greek
GNB = Good News Bible - see TEV
H
Heb. = Hebrew, Hebraic
HEM = Holy Echad Marriage, eternal marriage
HO = Holy Order - see Chavurat Bekorot
HOC = Holy Order Collection of revelations - see OB
HRV = Hebraic-Roots Version of the Bible
I
ibid. = ibidem (lit. 'in the same place'), referring to a book previously cited
ICJC = Independent Church of Jesus Christ, earlier name of NCCF
ISRV = Institute for Scripture Research Version of the Bible
J
JB = Jerusalem Bible
JBP/Phillips = J.B.Phillips translation of the New Testament
JNT = Jewish New Testament
K
KJV = King James Version of the Bible - see AV
L
LB = Living Bible
lit. = literally or literature
LXX = Septuagint, Greek translation of the OT
M
MLT = Mishpachah Lev-Tsiyon
Moff. = Moffatt translation of the Bible
MRC = Messianic Renewed Covenant Version of the NT
MS(S) = Manuscript(s)
N
NASB, NASV = New American Standard Bible/Version
NC&C = New Covenants & Commandments - see OB
NCCF = New Covenant Christian Fellowship, earlier name of NCCG
NCCG = New Covenant Church of God, earlier name of MLT - see BCAY
NCP = New Covenant Press, publishing arm of MLT
NCW = New Covenant Witness, MLT magazine
NEB = New English Bible
NIV = New International Version of the Bible
NKJV = New King James Version of the Bible
Nor. = Norwegian
NT = New Testament, B'rit Chadashah
NWT = New World Translation of the Bible, unreliable Jehovah's Witness version
O
OB = Olive Branch - see NC&C
op.cit. = opere citato (lit. in the work cited)
OT = Old Testament, Tanakh
P
p(p). = page(s)
pl. = plural - see s.
PWNC = Prophetic Words of the New Covenant, revelation cataloging system - see OB
Q
QED = quod erat demonstrandum (lit. which was shown to be proved)
R
RCF = Restoration Christian Fellowship, earlier name of ICJC
RhQ = Ruach haQodesh, Holy Spirit
RSTNE = Restoration Scriptures True Name Edition of the Bible
RSV = Revised Standard Version of the Bible
RV = Revised Version of the Bible
S
s. = singular - see pl.
S&G = Smith & Goodspeed Version of the Bible
T
TEV = Today's English Version of the Bible - see GNB
V
Vulg. = Biblia Vulgata, Latin Vulgate translation of the Bible
W
WEB = World English Bible
Glossary Copyright ©2007 Mishpachah Lev-Tsiyon (MLT) - All Rights Reserved
|
This page was first created on 7 March 2007
Last updated on 7 March 2007
Copyright ©2006 Mishpachah Lev-Tsiyon (MLT) - All Rights Reserved
|
|