Roots שורשים
We like cut flowers may look pretty for a while,
but are slowly dying if not rooted in eternity.
We like smart phones can be quite impressive,
but require a power source beyond ourselves.
יָבֵשׁ חָצִיר נָבֵל צִיץ
וּדְבַר-אֱלֹהֵינוּ יָקוּם לְעוֹלָם
ישעיה מ:ח
"The grass withers, the flower fades;
and the Word of our God will endure forever."
Isaiah 40:8
וְאֵלֶּה הֵם חַיֵּי עוֹלָם
שֶׁיַּכִּירוּ אוֹתְךָ
שֶׁאַתָּה הוּא אֱלֹהֵי הָאֱמֶת לְבַדְּךָ
וְאֶת מִי שֶׁשָּׁלַחְתָּ
אֶת יֵשׁוּעַ הַמָּשִׁיחַ
הכרזת יוחנן יז:ג
"And this is eternal life:
that they may know You,
that You are the only true God,
and the one that you sent,
Yeshua the Messiah."
John 17:3
וְיָסְפָה פְּלֵיטַת בֵּית-יְהוּדָה הַנִּשְׁאָרָה
שֹׁרֶשׁ לְמָטָּה
וְעָשָׂה פְרִי לְמָעְלָה
מלכים ב יט:ל
"The surviving remnant of the house of Judah will again
take root downward
and bear fruit upward."
2 Kings 19:30
Eternity אין סוף
-
God was (before the universe), is (now), will be (forever).
-
None of us truly know what is beyond this life.
-
Instead of embracing mystery, we tend to cling to comforting constructs, quote Bible verses that fit our formulas, and imagine that we are God's favorite people compared to others who build their beliefs on different Bible verses.
-
God's love is big enough for all His people! Would you want to choose between your own children or body parts?
-
Yeshua calls us to be born anew into the Kingdom of Heaven with childlike hearts. A child enters a garden eager to explore every plant and rock, and reads a book with receptive curiosity.
גַּל־עֵינַ֥י וְאַבִּ֑יטָה
נִ֝פְלָא֗וֹת מִתּוֹרָתֶֽךָ
תהילים קיט:יח
"Open my eyes that I may perceive,
the wonders of Your teaching."
Psalms 119:18
אָמַר לוֹ יֵשׁוּעַ
אֲנִי הַדֶּרֶךְ וְהָאֱמֶת וְהַחַיִּים
אֵין אִישׁ בָּא אֶל הָאָב אֶלָּא בִּי.
הכרזת יוחנן יד:ו
"Yeshua (Word made flesh) said to him:
'I am the Way and the Truth and the Life.
No man comes to the Father except by me.'"
John14:6
לָכֵן כְּפִי שֶׁקִּבַּלְתֶם
אֶת יֵשׁוּעַ הַמָּשִׁיחַ אֲדוֹנֵנוּ
בּוֹ הִתְהַלְּכוּ
כְּשֶׁאַתֶּם מְחַזְּקִים אֶת שָׁרְשֵׁיכֶם
וְנִבְנִים בּוֹ
וְקַיָּמִים בָּאֱמוּנָה שֶׁלְּמַדְתֶּם
אֲשֶׁר בָּהּ תִּשְׁפְּעוּ בְּהוֹדָיָה
אגרת שאול אל הקולוסים ב:ו-ז
"Therefore as you have received
Yeshua the Messiah our master,
walk in him,
strengthening your roots
and building up yourselves in him
and existing in the faith which you have learned
in which you will abound in thanksgiving."
Colossians 2:6-7
Grafted In
Gentiles through Yeshua are "grafted in" to the "olive tree" of the Jews, the people chosen to know the one true God, live according to His Word, and shine this light to the world.
וְאִם נִכְרְתוּ מִן הָעֲנָפִים
וְאַתָּה שֶׁזֵּית בָּר
אַתָּה הֻרְכַּבְתָּ בִּמְקוֹמָם
וְנַעֲשֵׂיתָ שֻׁתָּף
לְשֹׁרֶשׁ הַזַּיִת וּלְשֻׁמָּנוֹת
אַל תִּתְגָּאֶה עַל הָעֲנָפִים
אִם תִּתְגָּאֶה
לֹא אַתָּה נוֹשֵׂא אֶת הַשֹּׁרֶשׁ
אֶלָּא הוּא הַשֹּׁרֶשׁ נוֹשֵׂא אוֹתְךָ
אגרת שאול אל הרומים יא:יז-יח
"And if some of the branches
were broken off,
and you, being a wild olive,
were grafted in among them
and became partaker with them
of the root of the olive tree and its oil,
do not be arrogant toward the branches;
if you are arrogant,
it is not you who supports the root,
but it is the root who supports you."
Romans 11:17-18
Growing
A new believer is like a spiritually homeless person welcomed into the family of God who then needs to learn to live by Word and Spirit. Cleansing from sin is just the beginning!
כִּי בְּרִיאָה שֶׁלּוֹ אֲנַחְנוּ
אֲשֶׁר נִבְרֵאנוּ בְּיֵשׁוּעַ הַמָּשִׁיחַ
לַמַּעֲשִׂים הַטּוֹבִים
אֲשֶׁר הֵכִין הָאֱלֹהִים מִקֶּדֶם
לְמַעַן נִתְהַלֵּךְ בָּהֶם
אגרת שאול אל האפסים ב:י
"For we are His creation,
who are created in Yeshua the Messiah
for the good works
which God has prepared from ancient times
for us to walk in."
Ephesians 2:10
By Design - Beyond Coincidence?
Each Hebrew letter contains intrinsic meaning and number. Gematria is a method of interpreting scripture by considering the numerical value of each Hebrew letter. Words and phrases with identical numerical values are believed to bear significant relationship to each other. This gets quite complex, but here is something simple:
The Name of God (too holy to be spoken aloud)
י+ה+ו+ה
10+5+6+5 = 26 = 8
Ruach Hakodesh (the Holy Spirit)
רוח הקודש
200+6+8+5+100+6+4+300 = 629 = 17 = 8
Davar (Word)
דבר
4+2+200 = 206 = 8
Tov (good)
טוב
9+6+2=17= 8
Etz HaChayim (the Tree of Life)
עץ החיים
70+90+5+8+10+10+40 = 233 = 8
Torah (teachings of God)
תורה
400+6+200+5 = 611 = 8
Dam (blood)
דם
4+40 = 44 = 8
Seh (lamb)
שה
300+5 = 305 = 8
Yeshua (Jesus)
ישוע
10+300+6+70 = 386 = 17 = 8
Please ponder:
The probability of any random nine words adding up to the same numerical value is 1/(9x9x9x9x9x9x9x9) = 1/43,046,721 = 0.000000023 = 0.0000023%
The number 7 in scripture represents completion and holiness within a cycle. The number 8 signifies new beginnings, moving beyond the physical to the spiritual realm. Each of these nine words with numerical value of 8 names an aspect of our connection with eternal life.
End of Days אחרית הימים
Jews and Christians await the same Messiah who will establish the kingdom of heaven on earth:
וְהַמַּלְאָךְ הַשְּׁבִיעִי הֵרִיעַ
וְהָיוּ קוֹלוֹת גְּדוֹלִים בַּשָּׁמַיִם
אוֹמְרִים
הָיְתָה מַלְכוּת הָעוֹלָם
לַאֲדוֹנֵינוּ וְלִמְשִׁיחוֹ
וְיִמְלֹךְ לְעוֹלְמֵי עוֹלָמִים
התגלות יא:טו
"And the seventh angel sounded;
and there were great voices in the heavens,
saying:
'The kingdom of the world has become
for our God and his Messiah
and He will reign forever and ever.'"
Revelation 11:15
כִּי מִצִּיּוֹן תֵּצֵא תוֹרָה
וּדְבַר-יְהוָה מִירוּשָׁלִָם
ישעיה ב:ג
"for from Zion will go forth Torah,
and the Word of HaShem from Jerusalem."
Isaiah 2:3
So who is Yeshua? What are the roots that support faith in the Word of God?
כָּל כָּתוּב שֶׁנִּכְתַּב בָּרוּחַ
מוֹעִיל הוּא
לְהוֹרָאָה וּלְתוֹכֵחָה
וּלְתִקּוּן וּלְחִנּוּךְ בַּצֶּדֶק
אגרת שאול השניה אל טימותיאוס ג:טז-יז
"All Scripture which is written by the Spirit
is beneficial
for teaching and for admonishment
and for correction and for education in righteousness"
2 Timothy 3:16
What Scripture is this referring to? The Tanakh (Old Covenant/Testament) was all that existed at the time of Yeshua. The living Word (the perfect, complete Torah in the spiritual realm from before creation) is eternally with God and reveals the power...
אֲשֶׁר הוּא פָּעַל בַּמָּשִׁיחַ
וֶהֱקִימוֹ מִבֵּין הַמֵּתִים
וְהוֹשִׁיבוֹ לִימִינוֹ בַּשָּׁמַיִם
אגרת שאול אל האפסים י:כ
"which He has worked in Messiah,
and has raised him from the dead
and has seated him at His right hand in the heavens"
Ephesians 1:20