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Sermons Series 3:26, 17 February 2006
Free Agency
Yes, Yes and No, No
Main Themes:
Minor Themes:
"But as surely as Elohim is faithful, our message to you is not 'Yes' and 'No.' For the Son of Elohim, Messiah Yah'shua, who was preached among you by me and Silas and Timothy, was not 'Yes' and 'No,' but in him it has always been 'Yes.' For no matter how many promises Elohim has made, they are 'Yes' in Messiah. And so through him the 'Amen' is spoken by us to the glory of Elohim" (2 Cor.1:18-20, NIV).
About 12 years ago I gave an interview on the subject of free agency in which I made the claim that we have genuine free choice and are not the prisoners of some merciless fate or karma as the Hindu-derived religions would have us believe. At that time I attempted to take a close look at the kinds of choice we make in life. A dozen years on and I have come to greatly simplify my belief on this subject and whilst I am by no means a Calvinist I have definitely moved a little closer to Calvinism than I was back then.
One of the touchstones of modern plural liberal democracy is supposedly freedom of choice. Reality it is very different. The menu of things we are 'allowed' to choose from is actually already determined by someone else. Many of these restrictions we gladly accept like the state denying us the choice to murder or steal (even though most states do it themselves one way or another) but we disagree on many of the other restrictions imposed upon us. Twenty years ago I could freely criticise anyone I wanted to but today I can become guilty of committing a thought-crime by simply disagreeing with someone's lifestyle and speaking my mind on it.
Over the last few years I had have done a lot of thinking about free agency especially in the light of the experiences gained in deliverance ministry and I have been forced to simplify things. I used to believe that we had the freedom to make lots of micro-choices that would keep us in Yahweh's grace and which would take us in the right direction no matter how many mistakes we made along the Way that leads to eternal life. I think I had this idea that the many 'no's' I said to Yah'shua somehow didn't affect the original 'Yes' I said when I accepted Him as my Lord and Saviour. Today I have a very different picture that I want to talk to you about. Indeed before I start talking about this in more detail I want to suggest the following: every wilful and unrepented 'little no' we say to Him along the Way cancels the original 'Big Yes' we said when we started our Christian walk and turns it into a 'Big No'. I want to suggest to you that that original 'Big Yes' remains a 'Big No' until we have repented of the 'little no' that cancelled the original 'Big Yes' and done what He commanded us. And the sign that this is so is the entrenched determination by our flesh to embrace worldly ways.
In case you think I am proposing some new outlandish doctrine I would like to remind you of what the apostle James said in relation to any kind of Torah-disobedience: "For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all" (James 2:10, NKJV). The context of this passage is believers showing partiality, in other words, showing favouritism to other people. One of the problems we ourselves often have is showing partiality to the commandments, sifting out the ones we don't like or downgrading them. When we do that we are arrogantly telling Yahweh that He has somehow made a 'mistake' and that these things don't pertain to us anymore. And so we 'rearrange' scripture to suit our carnal preferences. What that means is that we are, by our actions, rejecting the whole Torah.
I realise that a lot of people balk at this suggestion so let me give you an illustration. Let us say that I am a publisher of Bibles committed to preserving the original texts and I hire some people to typeset the Bibles for printing on that basis. One of the typesetters decides he does not like John 20:28 where doubting Thomas says to the resurrected Messiah: "My Lord and my God" (NIV) or "My Master and my Elohim" (RSTNE) and changes it to "My Lord and my Prophet" because he refuses to accept that Yah'shua is Deity. Now He has typeset everything else correctly but not this verse. Does his faithfulness to all the other passages of the Bible justify him making this corruption? Has he been true and faithful to the terms of the contract of employment he signed? No of course not. Should I keep him in employment if he refuses to carry out my instruction to render the text as it is in fact written? Of course not! He has broken the terms of the contract and must be fired! Letting him make such a far-reaching doctrinal mutilation of scripture based on a lie is intolerable and he is no longer faithfully representing his employer - indeed, he is defrauding him.
Now if I go and deliberately break a commandment, knowing what Yahweh expects of me, does that make me a faithful representative of the Master because I keep all the others? Indeed, is He even my Master any more? Of course not! If I say; right, I refuse to obey the commandment which says: 'You shall not commit adultery' and go and wilfully commit that sin anyway, yet observe the Sabbath, obey all the other commandments, and so on, does that me make me a servant of Yahweh or His enemy? The answer is obvious. I am in open rebellion and calling him 'Lord, 'Master', 'Saviour' or even 'my Elohim' is mockery. So then what if I say: "I have free choice, don't I?" Well what if I do? What if I choose to flagrantly disobey one commandment yet obey all the others? What does that make me? A believer? No, brethren and sisters, it makes me a rebel and an enemy of Yahweh and my original 'Yes' in accepting as Lord and Saviour becomes null and void. And if you want proof of this radical doctrine you only have to go to the account of the rich young ruler who faithfully obeyed Torah all his life but who balked and walked away from Yah'shua and from salvation when he refused to distribute his wealth (Lk.18:18-25). That one carnal lust destroyed everything else.
Now I guarantee that if you go and preach this doctrine in a modern Church you will stir the very devil up in people. They will be filled with the spirit of murder because such a suggestion is intolerable to them especially if they claim to be "once saved, always saved". That's like saying, "once obedient, always obedient" or "once delivered, always delivered" because the words mean the same thing. Do delivered people get redemonised? Yes they do! I have seen it thousands of times yet sometimes they have the gall to claim they are immune to a fall. They will say "but I love Yah'shua" when their actions prove they hate Him, for if you love Him you will obey His commandments - your obedience is the proof of your love, not some feeling or a memory of what you did yesterday before you rebelled (Jn.14:15).
Now if there is one thing I hate it is hypocrisy and lies, and like Pietro Arentino I say to everyone: "I love you, and because I love you, I would sooner have you hate me for telling you the truth, than adore me for telling you lies." So I am telling you in Yah'shua's Name if you 'choose' to disobey a commandment, knowing what Yahweh tells you to do, don't come and tell me that you're a Christian or Messianic Israelite, or that you love Yah'shua, because I will call you a liar to your face, come what may - and this because I love your soul too much to let you go around in your delusion. The world may call it 'unloving' but then the world never did 'love', which is why Yahweh says the world system, and anyone who loves the world system, is His enemy and the love of the Father is not in him (1 Jn.2:15; Jas.4:4). That's right, if you love the world in any form and feel 'love' it is not of the Father but of something or someone else. In a word, it isn't heavenly. It's from the enemy.
I am speaking today of wilful rebellion. Yahweh is merciful in the days of our ignorance (Ac.17:30) and gives us much space for repentance. And what is wilful rebellion? Refusing point-blankedly to do what Yahweh tells you and hiding behind some lie like it's your free choice. Yes you have free choice to lie and disobey but then you have negated and rendered null and void that original choice to follow Yah'shua. The Torah makes this perfectly plain when it pronounces the death sentence or exclusion from Israel for numerous offences such as Sabbath-breaking (because that day is Yahweh's, not ours), rebelling against parents (because they represent Yahweh), adultery (because what Yahweh has bound together let no man break asunder), etc.. If there is a death sentence in Torah for a sin and you wilfully commit it and don't repent then, brother or sister, you're headed for hell. You're cut off from Yahweh. You're in big trouble no matter what the liberals and atheists tell you.
The Gospel of Yah'shua the Messiah is no-nonsense. He does not nullify Torah or weaken it - ever. He does, however, offer to pay the price or penalty for our Torah rebellion if we genuinely repent. And I underline the word if. This is not a little thing. He paid for our sin with His life's blood, coming from a place of glory to one of servanthood, the Almighty Elohim and Creator. Yes, He suffered for you and I to ransom us. Yah'shua charts a plain and easy to follow course of action in discipleship and it consists of two words: trust and obey. He says "simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one" (Matt.5:37, NIV) when it comes to making promises. If we say we love Him, then He expects us to obey Him. When He gives us a commandment He expects us to obey it, not make a contrary choice of rebellion. Now he won't stop us if we choose to rebel but neither will His promises hold any more because you have broken the covenant. And if you think your life is 'yours', wake up! It isn't. It was made by Yahweh and He is your owner. You have the free choice to acknowledge the truth that He is or accept Satan's lie that you belong to yourself and pay the price for that choice. There are no other choices. And your life consists of maintaining the choice you have made or changing sides. That's all.
Paul said to the Corinthians: "But as surely as Elohim is faithful, our message to you is not 'Yes' and 'No.' For the Son of Elohim, Messiah Yah'shua, who was preached among you by me and Silas and Timothy, was not 'Yes' and 'No,' but in him it has always been 'Yes.'"
Now in the context of what we are saying we cannot say, "YES Yah'shua is my Lord and Saviour" and with the next breath declare, "NO I will not do what He tells me". And even if I say: "Not now, I am not ready, I will say YES later" it is still a NO to Him. And then we're on our own. We have rejected Him as Master of our lives and appointed ourselves as master or mistress instead. We have become heathen again and declared for a new master. And that is why, brethren and sisters, people get demonised. They may say: "Oh, I follow Yah'shua!" yet by their deeds demonstrate that they follow Satan. Such a person is double-minded and James has much to say about these kinds of people. Such, he says, cannot expect to receive anything from Yahweh (Jas.1:5-8). Moreover, Yah'shua says you can't follow two Masters but must choose one or the other, because you'll end up loving one and hating the other (Mt.6:24). So why don't we believe these things? How come we delude ourselves into believing we can go down opposite roads? You can't! And that is why so many people drift away from Yahweh and are shocked to discover that Satan has trapped them again.
About a month ago one of my daughters was of this mind frame. She claimed she loved Yah'shua even though she refused to do what He said, and even accused Him to His face of being cruel for telling her she had to go down a path she did not want to go. The demons forced her out of the Garden and when I finally came for her I found she was in the original deep pit that I had rescued her from the first time round before she became a believer. The once blood-cleansed and sin-purified girl was again dirty, bruised and cold, and all this time she claimed to love Yah'shua and myself even though she had rebelled against both of us and refused to accept that her 'choices' were not pleasing to Him. So she 'chose' to reject what He said and ended up back in Satan's Kingdom. Did Yahweh throw her out of the Garden? Not at all. People like to blame Yahweh for their own sins, don't they? She was not thrown out but taken by Satan because she had said 'yes' to Satan and 'no' to Yah'shua. Satan had legal grounds spiritually and Satan being the legalist that he is, showed no mercy to her and seized what was rightly his property because of her 'choice'. When you reject Yah'shua, friends, believing you have thereby become your own master and are able to plot your own independent destiny, you make the biggest mistake of your life, because what you in fact do is cast your vote for the enemy of your soul.
The liberal Jesus is a myth, brethren and sisters - He doesn't let you do whatever you want because He is bound by His Father's LAW - by Torah - He has not cancelled or nailed it to the cross as the lying evangelicals and others teach but paid the price for its penalty. Self-ownership is a myth too. Don't believe the ignorant and the liars who tell you to become self-reliant, self-protective, or self-anything because self is dead. Yet whole religions have been made around self - there is the religion of self-salvation ... you have to supposedly fix your own karma by toiling for millions of years and getting reincarnated again and again until you finally get it right. It's a lie. Then there's the secular religion of evolution which excludes all deity and declares that some untouchable thing called 'chance' made us. They, and others, teach an existentialist doctrine that you make your own truth and so you can do your 'own thing'. And, O, what music that is to the ears if the unredeemed carnal man or woman! They start believing they own the world but soon discover reality. What a lot of misery they could spare themselves if only someone loved them enough to tell them the truth.
So if the doctrine of free agency is really as simple as choosing between Yahweh and Satan, and maintaining that choice throughout life, what, ultimately, does it mean for us? It means quite simply that Yahweh has conferred upon us a stewardship or responsibility to not only choose Him in the general sense but to choose all the details for our life that He has already mapped out for us. When I was young and before I met Yah'shua, I had mapped out a career for myself as a Biochemist. This was the culmination of many other choices, some forced by circumstances and others made personally by me. Before I met Him I always loved nature and so it was 'natural' for me to choose a career around animals and plants. And since I loved systems and the complexity of things, it was also 'natural' for me to choose the chemistry of living things. By the time I had finished University I knew that this was not a career for me - my heart was not in it and that I had somehow missed the way. I also knew that I had a teaching gift, so my 'natural' man concluded that He wanted me as a teacher of natural science. I was not ultimately happy in this either (though I loved it for a short time) and knew something was missing and so He kept nudging and nudging me to make the right choice - His choice - to become a minister. Even then I had my own 'ideas' about what kind of ministry I should be in and when He called me to be a deliverance minister my whole soul balked.
Now I made my choice for Yah'shua - my 'Big Yes' - years before but I was still on the wrong track. Thereafter Yahweh presented me with lots of smaller choices so that I could get onto the track of my life that He had chosen. When I resisted I went into darkness and with it my 'Big Yes' which turned into a 'Big No'. When I accepted each calling along the way, the 'Big Yes' was re-installed, as it were, and I was once more moving along the Path. When I balked, I either stopped dead in my spiritual tracks, went backwards, or started going off the Way altogether. So you see, I have been guilty of this too.
The moment you choose Yah'shua as your Master, He sets about making adjustments to your life in every detail so that you are headed in the right direction. And as I tirelessly keep reminding my children, if you deviate even by a tiny fraction, given enough time and distance you can soon find yourself way off course. Therefore life consists of millions of micro-adjustments to make sure we are on the right course. These are the choices we have if we claim to be a follower of Messiah - the choices to adjust and stay on the Way.
As I look back at the mistakes I have made in my life - and yes, even open rebellions - I am struck by many things. It took me a long time to yield sovereignty of my marriage life to Yahweh, for instance. I had my own ideas and plans based on the expectations of the worldly culture around me. I knew what Yahweh wanted - I knew it beyond a shadow of a doubt - but I yielded to pressure around me and my spiritual life ground to a halt. Seven years later, after a severe chastening, I repented of that and the Ruach haQodesh returned to me. The choice has been hard and painful because Yahweh's ways are not liked by the world, but the blessings incalculable. I also rebelled when He ordered me to leave my job because it had become an idol to me - I did not trust that He would provide for me - so He had to make me so ill that I was forced to leave. Thereafter, in spite of the physical suffering, I have flourished in the ministry to which I was originally called and I have been working feverishly ever since to make up for that lost time and be a good steward. The cost of rebellion, hesitation, and procrastination has been high and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. Learn while you are young and prosper in Him. Let your 'Yes' really be a 'yes' and not some half-hearted or insincere thing mixed with a bunch of 'no's' that will make you stumble and injure yourself again and again. Learn single-mindedness, do not fear to be an obedient servant in a world filled with the spirit of rebellion, and trust yourself to Him.
Submit to Him, to your parents in Yahweh and to your teachers so that you may be blessed by them and be fully equipped for the Way. "Save yourselves from this corrupt generation" (Ac.2:40, NIV) so that you may avoid the disasters coming to it and from which they cannot save themselves (Micah 2:3), and turn to the Saviour of your souls. Commit yourself in your hearts by really meaning it when you say 'Yes' to Him and seal that commitment - that covenant - in water baptism as He has commanded, in the presence of witnesses to initialise accountablity, so that you don't become double-minded and self-defeating. This is your eternal 'life insurance' so make sure you understand the policy before you 'sign' it - know exactly what the Master requires by finding an experienced teacher of the Word who can help you understand both its scope and details as well as set you an example by living it himself. For we learn first and foremost by example.
Above all, be encouraged. If you are having trials, or have had trials, realise that Yahweh permits these for a positive purpose. "... though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith - of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire-may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honour when Yah'shua the Messiah is revealed. Though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and even though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls" (1 Peter 1:6-9, NIV). And finally, brethren and sisters, if your trials are not bringing you spiritual growth, if they are not bringing you joy as Peter writes about here, then somewhere a long the line you have missed something important and need to find out what it is, whether you are at the beginning of your life or towards its end. Remember that "Yahweh knows how to rescue godly men from trials" (2 Peter 2:9, NIV) so call upon Him, and your spiritual teachers, and you will be shown what you must do. Amen.
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
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This page was first created on 7 March 2007
Last updated on 7 March 2007
Copyright ©2006 Mishpachah Lev-Tsiyon (MLT) - All Rights Reserved
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