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Jewish
Heritage Revival's Statement of Beliefs:
What
Jewish Heritage Revival believes:
| One God |
One Messiah |
One Book |
One Heritage |
One Body of
Believers |
One Way |
One Purpose |
"There is one body and one Spirit, just as
when you were called you were called to one hope. And there is one Lord,
one trust, one immersion, and one God, the Father of all, who rules over all,
works through all and is in all." Ephesians 4:4 - 6
The
Power of One
- One
God
From before the beginning of time
God was one.
Comprised of three very distinct manifestations, each individual, yet one God – A
plurality.
Our God – the Father,
creator of the universe and everything in it:
| Sh'ma,
Yisra'el! ADONAI Eloheinu, ADONAI echad [Hear, Isra'el! ADONAI our God,
ADONAI is one]" Deuteronomy 6:4
|
| "Then
God said, "Let us make humankind in our image, in the likeness of
ourselves; and let them rule over the fish in the sea, the birds in the
air, the animals, and over all the earth, and over every crawling
creature that crawls on the earth."" Genesis
1:26
|
| “And
there is one Lord, one trust, one immersion, 6 and one God,
the Father of all, who rules over all, works through all and is in all.”
Ephesians
4:5 - 6
|
| “Don't
you believe that I am united with the Father, and the Father united with
me? What I am telling you, I am not saying on my own initiative; the
Father living in me is doing his own works. Trust me, that I am united
with the Father, and the Father united with me. But if you can't, then
trust because of the works themselves.” John
14:10 - 11 |
Our God – the Son, our
Messiah who tabernacled (dwelt) among us, is worshipped as God and is our
Passover Lamb, for the remission of our sins and those of the world:
| “Shim`on
Kefa answered, "You are the Mashiach, the Son of the living
God." Matthew
16:16
|
| "Let
your attitude toward one another be governed by your being in union with
the Messiah Yeshua: Though he was in the form of God, he did not
regard equality with God something to be possessed by force. On
the contrary, he emptied himself, in that he took the form of a slave by
becoming like human beings are. And when he appeared as a human being,
he humbled himself still more by becoming obedient even to death - death
on a stake as a criminal! Therefore God raised him to the highest
place and gave him the name above every name; that in honor of the
name given Yeshua, every knee will bow - in heaven, on earth and under
the earth and every tongue will acknowledgeb that Yeshua the
Messiah is ADONAI - to the glory of God the Father."
Philippians 2:5 - 11
|
| "For
God so loved the world that he gave his only and unique Son, so that
everyone who trusts in him may have eternal life, instead of being
utterly destroyed. For God did not send the Son into the world to
judge the world, but rather so that through him, the world might be
saved." John 3:16 - 17
|
| " Get
rid of the old hametz, so that you can be a new batch of dough, because
in reality you are unleavened. For our Pesach lamb, the Messiah, has
been sacrificed."
1 Corinthinans 5:7
|
| "The
next day, Yochanan saw Yeshua coming toward him and said, "Look!
God's lamb! The one who is taking away the sin of the world!" John
1:29 |
Our God – the Holy
Spirit (Ruach Hakodesh), who resides with us, lives inside of every believer -
the power that brought to life, everything created.
| "The
earth was unformed and void, darkness was on the face of the deep, and
the Spirit of God hovered over the surface of the water." Genesis
1:2
|
| "Then
God said, "Let us make humankind in our image, in the likeness of
ourselves; and let them rule over the fish in the sea, the birds in the
air, the animals, and over all the earth, and over every crawling
creature that crawls on the earth." Genesis
1:26
|
| "Then
ADONAI, God, formed a person [Hebrew: adam] from the dust of the ground
[Hebrew: adamah] and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, so
that he became a living being."
Genesis 2:7 |
Before our Messiah’s
ascension God’s Holy Spirit fell upon those who were anointed by God (Samson,
David, Moses) – an outward anointing.
| "Shimshon
went down with his father and mother to Timnah. When they came to the
vineyards of Timnah, a young lion roared at him. The Spirit of
ADONAI came powerfully upon Shimshon, and barehanded he tore the lion to
pieces as easily as if it had been a young goat. But he didn't tell his
father or mother what he had done."
Judges 14:5 - 6
|
| "Then
the Spirit of ADONAI came over him powerfully. He went down to Ashkelon,
killed thirty of their men, took their good clothes, and gave them to
the men who had "solved" the riddle. He was boiling with rage,
so he went straight up to his father's house,..." Judges
14:19
|
| "Then
the Spirit of ADONAI will fall on you; you will prophesy with them and
be turned into another man!
"When they
arrived at the hill, and there in front of him was a group of prophets,
the Spirit of God fell on him and he prophesied along with them.:
1 Samuel 10:6 & 10:10 (Saul)
|
| "Here
are David's last words: "This is the speech of David the son of
Yishai, the speech of the man who has been raised up, the one anointed
by the God of Ya'akov, the sweet singer of Isra'el. "The
Spirit of ADONAI spoke through me, his word was on my tongue. The
God of Isra'el spoke; the Rock of Isra'el said to me, 'A ruler over
people must be upright, ruling in the fear of God"
2 Samuel 23:1 - 3
|
| " But
as soon as I leave you, the Spirit of ADONAI will carry you off to I
don't know where; so that when I come and tell Ach'av, and he can't find
you, he will kill me. But I your servant have revered ADONAI from my
youth - ."
1 Kings 18:12 (Elijah)
|
| "The
Spirit of God covered Z'kharyah the son of Y'hoyada the cohen; he stood
above the people and addressed them: "Thus says God: 'Why are you
transgressing the mitzvot of ADONAI and courting disaster? Because you
have abandoned ADONAI, he has abandoned you.""
2 Chronicles 24:20
|
| "The
Spirit of Adonai ELOHIM is upon me, because ADONAI has anointed me to
announce good news to the poor. He has sent me to heal the
brokenhearted; to proclaim freedom to the captives, to let out into
light those bound in the dark" Isaiah 61:1 |
Today, as believers, our
bodies are where God’s Holy Spirit resides – an inward anointing.
Guiding us, teaching us, sealing us:
| "and
I will ask the Father, and he will give you another comforting Counselor
like me, the Spirit of Truth, to be with you forever. The world
cannot receive him, because it neither sees nor knows him. You know him,
because he is staying with you and will be united with you."
John 14:16 - 17
|
| "But
the Counselor, the Ruach HaKodesh, whom the Father will send in my name,
will teach you everything; that is, he will remind you of everything I
have said to you." John
14:26
|
| "However,
when the Spirit of Truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth;
for he will not speak on his own initiative but will say only what he
hears. He will also announce to you the events of the future. He
will glorify me, because he will receive from what is mine and announce
it to you." John 16:13 - 14
|
| "But
you will receive power when the Ruach HaKodesh comes upon you; you will
be my witnesses both in Yerushalayim and in all Y'hudah and Shomron,
indeed to the ends of the earth!" Acts 1:8
"They
were all filled with the Ruach HaKodesh and began to talk in different
languages, as the Spirit enabled them to speak." Acts
2:4
|
| "But
you, you do not identify with your old nature but with the Spirit -
provided the Spirit of God is living inside you, for anyone who doesn't
have the Spirit of the Messiah doesn't belong to him." Romans 8:9
|
| "All
who are led by God's Spirit are God's sons. For you did not
receive a spirit of slavery to bring you back again into fear; on the
contrary, you received the Spirit, who makes us sons and by whose power
we cry out, "Abba!" (that is, "Dear Father!").
The Spirit himself bears witness with our own spirits that we are
children of God"
Romans 8:14 - 16
|
| "Don't
cause grief to God's Ruach HaKodesh, for he has stamped you as his
property until the day of final redemption." Ephesians 4:30
|
| "Kefa
answered them, "Turn from sin, return to God, and each of you be
immersed on the authority of Yeshua the Messiah into forgiveness of your
sins, and you will receive the gift of the Ruach HaKodesh!" Acts 2:38 |
- One
Messiah
Who:
- Was
born of a virgin
- Lived
a sinless life as deemed by God’s Word, given to the children of Israel
- Was
falsely accused and sentenced to death
- Suffered
greatly
- Died
a painful death on a Roman Cross
- Was
the first fruit of the resurrection
- Ascended
to Heaven and is seated at the right hand of God
- Has
promised to return again
To see
these and other prophecies fulfilled by our Messiah, please view our article on Prophecies
Fulfilled by Yeshua
No other person in history
comes close to fulfilling the promises of the Messiah, as found in scripture, by
our Messiah Yeshua. Therefore, He is and can be the only one promised by
God.
Many prophecies have yet to
be fulfilled, but, that will be accomplished with our Messiah's second coming.
Our Messiah has promised to return again:
| "Don't
let yourselves be disturbed. Trust in God and trust in me. In my
Father's house are many places to live. If there weren't, I would have
told you; because I am going there to prepare a place for you. Since
I am going and preparing a place for you, I will return to take you with
me; so that where I am, you may be also. Furthermore,
you know where I'm going; and you know the way there." T'oma
said to him, "Lord, we don't know where you're going; so how can we
know the way?" Yeshua said,
"I AM the Way -- and the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the
Father except through me." John 14:1 - 6
|
| "Look,
I will tell you a secret - not all of us will die! But we will all be
changed! It will take but a moment, the blink of an eye, at the
final shofar. For the shofar will sound, and the dead will be raised to
live forever, and we too will be changed. For this material which
can decay must be clothed with imperishability, this which is mortal
must be clothed with immortality."
1 Corinthians 15:51 - 53
|
| "Now,
brothers, we want you to know the truth about those who have died;
otherwise, you might become sad the way other people do who have
nothing to hope for. For since we believe that Yeshua died and rose
again, we also believe that in the same way God, through Yeshua, will
take with him those who have died. When we say this, we base it on
the Lord's own word: we who remain alive when the Lord comes will
certainly not take precedence over those who have died. For the
Lord himself will come down from heaven with a rousing cry, with a call
from one of the ruling angels, and with God's shofar; those who died
united with the Messiah will be the first to rise; then we who are
left still alive will be caught up with them in the clouds to meet the
Lord in the air; and thus we will always be with the Lord. So
encourage each other with these words." 1
Thessalonians 4:13 - 18 |
- One
Book
God's
Word, comprised of the Jewish Bible - Tenach (old testament), that includes
Torah, Haftorah (history, prophets and wisdom books) and the Brith Hadoshah -
Messianic writings (new testament). Both are equally valid today as they
were 2000 years ago. Portions of the Jewish Bible have been fulfilled by
our Messiah, in terms of the requirements for the remission of our sin through
His blood sacrifice, once and for all, who accept. Many of God's commands
still apply today. First commanded to Israel as they were to enter
their land, and now for all believers in Messiah.
| "Now
this is the mitzvah, the laws and rulings which ADONAI your God ordered
me to teach you for you to obey in the land you are crossing over to
possess, so that you will fear ADONAI your God and observe all his
regulations and mitzvot that I am giving you - you, your child and your
grandchild - as long as you live, and so that you will have long life.
Therefore listen, Isra'el, and take care to obey, so that things
will go well with you, and so that you will increase greatly, as ADONAI,
the God of your ancestors, promised you by giving you a land flowing
with milk and honey. "Sh'ma,
Yisra'el! ADONAI Eloheinu, ADONAI echad [Hear, Isra'el! ADONAI our God,
ADONAI is one]; and you are to love ADONAI your God with all your
heart, all your being and all your resources. These words, which I
am ordering you today, are to be on your heart; and you are to
teach them carefully to your children. You are to talk about them when
you sit at home, when you are traveling on the road, when you lie down
and when you get up. Tie them on your hand as a sign, put them at
the front of a headband around your forehead, and write them on
the door-frames of your house and on your gates. "When ADONAI
your God has brought you into the land he swore to your ancestors
Avraham, Yitz'chak and Ya'akov that he would give you - cities great and
prosperous, which you didn't build; houses full of all sorts of
good things, which you didn't fill; water cisterns dug out, which you
didn't dig; vineyards and olive trees, which you didn't plant - and you
have eaten your fill; then be careful not to forget ADONAI, who
brought you out of the land of Egypt, where you lived as slaves. You
are to fear ADONAI your God, serve him and swear by his name. You
are not to follow other gods, chosen from the gods of the peoples around
you; because ADONAI, your God, who is here with you, is a jealous
God. If you do, the anger of ADONAI your God will flare up against you
and he will destroy you from the face of the earth.
Deuteronomy 6:1 - 15
|
| "Do
all you can to present yourself to God as someone worthy of his
approval, as a worker with no need to be ashamed, because he deals
straightforwardly with the Word of the Truth." 2
Timothy 2:15 (anything taken out of context can be misapplied - including
God's Word)
|
| "All
Scripture is God-breathed and is valuable for teaching the truth,
convicting of sin, correcting faults and training in right living;
thus anyone who belongs to God may be fully equipped for every
good work."
2 Timothy 3:16 - 17 (At the time of this writing, Paul was referring to the
Tenach, for there were no New Testament writings at the time. However,
this does apply to the Messianic Writings we have today, in that they have
been inspired by God.)
|
| ""Here,
the days are coming," says ADONAI, "when I will make a new
covenant with the house of Isra'el and with the house of Y'hudah. It
will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers on the day I
took them by their hand and brought them out of the land of Egypt;
because they, for their part, violated my covenant, even though I, for
my part, was a husband to them," says ADONAI. "For this
is the covenant I will make with the house of Isra'el after those
days," says ADONAI: "I will put my Torah within them and write
it on their hearts; I will be their God, and they will be my people.
No longer will any of them teach his fellow community member or
his brother, 'Know ADONAI'; for all will know me, from the least of them
to the greatest; because I will forgive their wickednesses and remember
their sins no more.""
Jeremiah 31:31 - 34 |
The
Messianic writings refer / quote the Tenach hundreds of times. The Tenach
is the text for which the New Testament's foundation is applied. In
essence, the New Testament writings are our application notes. The
foundation of these references are Torah. Our
Messiah actually correctly interprets for us the true intention of God's
instructions found in Torah. Does He raise the bar or is He instructing us
how to go over the bar? A few examples:
| ""You
have heard that our fathers were told, `Do not murder,'l and that anyone
who commits murder will be subject to judgment. But I tell you
that anyone who nurses anger against his brother will be subject to
judgment; that whoever calls his brother, `You good-for-nothing!' will
be brought before the Sanhedrin; that whoever says, `Fool!' incurs the
penalty of burning in the fire of Gei-Hinnom! So if you are
offering your gift at the Temple altar and you remember there that your
brother has something against you, leave your gift where it is by
the altar, and go, make peace with your brother. Then come back and
offer your gift."
Matthew 5:21 - 24
|
| "You
have heard that our fathers were told, `Do not commit adultery.'m 28 But
I tell you that a man who even looks at a woman with the purpose of
lusting after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart."
Matthew 5:27 - 28
|
| ""Again,
you have heard that our fathers were told, `Do not break your oath,' and
`Keep your vows to ADONAI.' 34 But I tell you not to swear
at all -- not `by heaven,' because it is God's throne; 35 not
`by the earth,' because it is his footstool;p and not `by Yerushalayim,'
because it is the city of the Great King. 36 And don't swear
by your head, because you can't make a single hair white or black. 37 Just
let your `Yes' be a simple `Yes,' and your `No' a simple `No'; anything
more than this has its origin in evil."
Matthew 5:33 - 37 |
Our
Messiah quotes from the Torah and the Prophets many times during His 3 1/2 year
ministry in preparing us for the Kingdom of God.
| "Don't
think that I have come to abolish the Torah or the Prophets. I have come
not to abolish but to complete. 18 Yes indeed! I tell you
that until heaven and earth pass away, not so much as a yud or a stroke
will pass from the Torah -- not until everything that must happen has
happened. 19 So whoever disobeys the least of these mitzvot
and teaches others to do so will be called the least in the Kingdom of
Heaven. But whoever obeys them and so teaches will be called great in
the Kingdom of Heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your
righteousness is far greater than that of the Torah-teachers and
P'rushim, you will certainly not enter the Kingdom of Heaven!" Matthew
5:17 - 20
|
| "Dear
Theophilos: In the first book, I wrote about everything Yeshua set out
to do and teach, until the day when, after giving instructions
through the Ruach HaKodesh to the emissaries whom he had chosen, he was
taken up into heaven. After his death he showed himself to them
and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. During a period of
forty days they saw him, and he spoke with them about the Kingdom of
God." Acts 1:1 - 3 What was our
Messiah's text book? It was the Tenach. |
- One
Heritage
A
heritage created by God through His covenant with Abraham that would bring forth
our inheritance to the Kingdom of God. This same heritage brought forth
the only one who would redeem us of our sins...the Messiah. A heritage
that was originally a closed club, for the Jewish people only, is now a heritage
for all who believe in the God of Abraham and our Passover Lamb, Jesus, the
Messiah.
A
heritage that is extensively documented in the Tenach,
A
heritage that majestically foretells of our Messiah,
Throughout
our Messiah's ministry, He was obedient to God's commandments as found in the
Jewish Bible. His obedience included honoring God's Feasts as found in
Leviticus 23, as well as the Feast of Dedication (Hanukkah).
| The Sabbath - Then
he said to them,
"Shabbat was made for mankind, not mankind for Shabbat; So
the Son of Man is Lord even of Shabbat"
Mark 2:27 - 28
|
| Feast of the Dedications - "Then
came Hanukkah in Yerushalayim. It was winter, and Yeshua was
walking around inside the Temple area, in Shlomo's Colonnade."
John 10:22 - 23
|
| Feast of Passover (also Unleavened Bread)-
John 2:13 - 25; Matthew 26; Luke 22; John 13; Mark 14
|
| Feast of Tabernacles - "But
the festival of Sukkot in Y'hudah was near; so his brothers said
to him, "Leave here and go into Y'hudah, so that your talmidim can
see the miracles you do;" John
7:2 - 3
"But after
his brothers had gone up to the festival, he too went up, not publicly
but in secret." John 7:10
|
| Unknown Feast - "After
this, there was a Judean festival; and Yeshua went up to Yerushalayim.".
John 5:1 (There are three Feasts that are specifically held in Jerusalem -
The Passover (including Unleavened Bread and First Fruits), Feast of Weeks
(Pentecost) and Feast of Tabernacles. Therefore, by stating our
Messiah was in Jerusalem specifically leads us to believe that it was one of
these three Feasts. |
As
such, we as believers, should continue to honor God through His Feasts, as our
Messiah did, faithfully. For the heritage we refer to is the heritage of
God...given to the Jewish people first...and now through our Messiah, for
everyone who accepts and believes in Him.
As for
believers in Messiah who are Jewish, we do not stop being Jewish (or convert to
something else as many are lead to believe, through various denominations)
because we have accepted, and therefore believe in our Jewish Messiah.
| "For
the real Jew is not merely Jewish outwardly: true circumcision is not
only external and physical. On the contrary, the real Jew is one
inwardly; and true circumcision is of the heart, spiritual not literal;
so that his praise comes not from other people but from God.." Romans 2:28 - 29 |
We
become born again, as our Messiah teaches Nicodemus:
|
There
was a man among the P'rushim, named Nakdimon, who was a ruler of the Judeans.
This man came to Yeshua by night and said to him, "Rabbi, we know it
is from God that you have come as a teacher; for no one can do these miracles
you perform unless God is with him." "Yes, indeed," Yeshua
answered him, "I tell you that unless a person is born again from above, he
cannot see the Kingdom of God." Nakdimon said to him, "How can a
grown man be `born'? Can he go back into his mother's womb and be born a second
time?" Yeshua answered, "Yes,
indeed, I tell you that unless a person is born from water and the Spirit, he
cannot enter the Kingdom of God. 6 What
is born from the flesh is flesh, and what is born from the Spirit is spirit.
Stop being amazed at my telling you that you must be born again from
above! The wind blows where it wants to, and you hear its sound, but you
don't know where it comes from or where it's going. That's how it is with
everyone who has been born from the Spirit." Nakdimon
replied, "How can this happen?" Yeshua answered him, "You
hold the office of teacher in Isra'el, and you don't know this? Yes,
indeed! I tell you that what we speak about, we know; and what we give evidence
of, we have seen; but you people don't accept our evidence! If you people
don't believe me when I tell you about the things of the world, how will you
believe me when I tell you about the things of heaven? No one has gone up
into heaven; there is only the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of
Man." John 3:1 - 13
|
- One
Body of Believers
Under the commonwealth of
Israel, comprises both Jewish and non-Jewish believers in Messiah. One as
a Jewish believer doesn't lose their Jewish identity while at the same time the
non-Jewish believer is not required to become Jewish. Yet the foundation,
found in Messiah are throughout God's Word. Not all apply to non-Jewish
belivers however, nothing has been abolished, including Torah as presented
earlier.
| "For
just as the body is one but has many parts; and all the parts of the
body, though many, constitute one body; so it is with the Messiah.
For it was by one Spirit that we were all immersed into one body,
whether Jews or Gentiles, slaves or free; and we were all given the one
Spirit to drink. For indeed the body is not one part but many."
1 Corinthians 12:12 - 14
|
| "For
in union with the Messiah, you are all children of God through this
trusting faithfulness; because as many of you as were immersed
into the Messiah have clothed yourselves with the Messiah, in whom
there is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor freeman,
neither male nor female; for in union with the Messiah Yeshua, you are
all one. Also, if you belong to the Messiah, you are seed of
Avraham and heirs according to the promise." Galatians 3:26 - 29 |
- One
Way
Sin entered the world
through one man:
| ADONAI,
God, took the person and put him in the garden of 'Eden to cultivate and
care for it. ADONAI,
God, gave the person this order: "You may freely eat from every
tree in the garden except the tree of the knowledge of good and
evil. You are not to eat from it, because on the day that you eat from
it, it will become certain that you will die."" Genesis 2:15 - 17
|
| "When
the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it had a pleasing
appearance and that the tree was desirable for making one wise, she took
some of its fruit and ate. She also gave some to her husband, who was
with her; and he ate. Then the eyes of both of them were opened,
and they realized that they were naked."
Genesis 3:6 - 7
|
| "ADONAI,
God, said, "See, the man has become like one of us, knowing good
and evil. Now, to prevent his putting out his hand and taking also from
the tree of life, eating, and living forever -" therefore
ADONAI, God, sent him out of the garden of 'Eden to cultivate the ground
from which he was taken. So he drove the man out, and he placed at
the east of the garden of 'Eden the k'ruvim and a flaming sword which
turned in every direction to guard the way to the tree of life." Genesis
3:22 - 24 |
Therefore if one man has
sinned, then we all have sinned, being born into sin.
| "But
now, quite apart from Torah, God's way of making people righteous in his
sight has been made clear - although the Torah and the Prophets give
their witness to it as well - and it is a righteousness that comes
from God, through the faithfulness of Yeshua the Messiah, to all who
continue trusting. For it makes no difference whether one is a Jew or a
Gentile, since all have sinned and come short of earning God's
praise...."
Romans 3: 21 - 23 |
God requires a blood
sacrifice for the remission of sin:
| "When
someone from the community of Isra'el or one of the foreigners living
with you eats any kind of blood, I will set myself against that person
who eats blood and cut him off from his people. For the life of a
creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to
make atonement for yourselves; for it is the blood that makes atonement
because of the life.'"
Leviticus 17:10 - 11
|
| "But Messiah being
come as a high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect
tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;
Neither by the blood of goats or calves, but by his own blood He entered in
once, into the Holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.
For if the blood of bulls and goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling
the unclean, sanctified to the purifying of the flesh, How much more shall
the blood of Messiah who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself, without
spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living
God?" Hebrews 9:11 - 14 |
| "This
is why the first covenant too was inaugurated with blood. After
Moshe had proclaimed every command of the Torah to all the people, he
took the blood of the calves with some water and used scarlet wool and
hyssop to sprinkle both the scroll itself and all the people; and
he said, "This is the blood of the covenant which God has ordained
for you." Likewise, he sprinkled with the blood both the Tent
and all the things used in its ceremonies. In fact, according to
the Torah, almost everything is purified with blood; indeed, without the
shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins." Hebrews
9:18 - 22 |
God also requires repentance (teshuvah)
from our sin. We must turn away from our transgressions and live according
to His Word. It is not only a transformation internally that is done by
the Ruach Ha Kodesh, but the results should be seen outwardly, in how we now
live our lives.
| "It
was during those days that Yochanan the Immerser arrived in the desert
of Y'hudah and began proclaiming the message, "Turn from your sins
(repent) to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near!"
Matthew 3:1 - 2 |
| "Kefa
answered them, "Turn from sin, return to God, and each of you be
immersed on the authority of Yeshua the Messiah into forgiveness of your
sins, and you will receive the gift of the Ruach HaKodesh!"
Acts 2:38 |
Part one of this equation is
God's responsibility, for which has been accomplished through our Messiah.
Part two (repentance) is our responsibility for which as a believer and follower
of Messiah, we are equipped through His Ruach Ha Kodesh to do this.
Our only hope is through our
Messiah's provision for the atonement of our sin. It has always been by
faith, from the beginning of time, through Abraham for which God made a covenant
that would bring forth the coming of Messiah. And now when we believe in
Him, it is also by faith.
| "Trustingt
is being confident of what we hope for, convinced about things we do not
see. It was for this that Scripture attested the merit of the
people of old. By trusting, we understand that the universe was
created through a spoken word of God, so that what is seen did not come
into being out of existing phenomena."
Hebrews 11:1 - 3
|
| "Furthermore,
we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of
those who love God and are called in accordance with his purpose; because
those whom he knew in advance, he also determined in advance would be
conformed to the pattern of his Son, so that he might be the firstborn
among many brothers; and those whom he thus determined in advance,
he also called; and those whom he called, he also caused to be
considered righteous; and those whom he caused to be considered
righteous he also glorified! What, then, are we to say to these
things? If God is for us, who can be against us? Romans 8:28 - 31 |
He lived an obedient life,
according to the scriptures, and therefore was deemed by God, a worthy and
acceptable sacrifice for the remission of our sin. Our Messiah further
instructed us to "follow Him". There are no qualifications, as
to how we are to follow Him, but rather a simple, yet all inclusive statement -
"Follow Me".
| "As
Yeshua walked by Lake Kinneret, he saw two brothers who were fishermen
-- Shim`on, known as Kefa, and his brother Andrew -- throwing their net
into the lake. Yeshua said to them, "Come
after me (Follow Me),
and I will make you
fishers for men!"
At once they left their nets and went with him" Matthew
4:18 - 20
|
| "When
Yeshua saw the crowd around him, he gave orders to cross to the other
side of the lake. A Torah-teacher approached and said to him,
"Rabbi, I will follow you wherever you go." Yeshua said to
him, "The foxes
have holes, and the birds flying about have nests, but the Son of Man
has no home of his own." Another
of the talmidim said to him, "Sir, first let me go and bury my
father." But Yeshua replied,
"Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead."
Matthew 8:18 - 22
|
| "As
Yeshua passed on from there he spotted a tax-collector named Mattityahu
sitting in his collection booth. He said to him, "Follow
me!" and he got
up and followed him."
Matthew 9:9
|
| Jesus
said to him (Thomas) "I
am the way, the truth and the life: No man comes to the Father, but by
Me." John 14:6 |
| "Then
Yeshua told his talmidim, "If anyone
wants to come after me, let him say `No' to himself, take up his
execution-stake, and keep following me. For
whoever wants to save his own life will destroy it, but whoever destroys
his life for my sake will find it." Matthew 16:24
- 25 |
- One
Purpose
To Serve God.
| "Therefore,
go and make people from all nations into talmidim, immersing them into
the reality of the Father, the Son and the Ruach HaKodesh, 20 and
teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And
remember! I will be with you always, yes, even until the end of the
age."
Matthew 28:19 - 20
|
| "I
exhort you, therefore, brothers, in view of God's mercies, to offer
yourselves as a sacrifice, living and set apart for God. This will
please him; it is the logical "Temple worship" for you. In
other words, do not let yourselves be conformed to the standards of the
'olam hazeh. Instead, keep letting yourselves be transformed by the
renewing of your minds; so that you will know what God wants and will
agree that what he wants is good, satisfying and able to succeed." Romans
12:1 - 2 |
Permission
has been granted to Jewish Heritage Revival for the use of Scripture quotations
in its articles, taken from the Complete Jewish Bible, copyright 1998 by David
H. Stern. Published by Jewish New Testament Publications, Inc., 6120
Day Long Lane, Clarksville, Maryland 21029. www.messianicjewish.net/jntp
Copyright © 2010,
Jewish Heritage Revival All rights reserved. With our blessing, please use what
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