The Modern Day Symbol of the Cross: By Commandment or Inference?

My greatest fear is that much of the symbolism used in expressing our faith comes from inference or teachings and tradition alone.  This is dangerous in that there is no Scriptural support to uphold our claim to the validity of the expression of the symbol we are wearing or touting.  We cannot say with 100% certainty that that symbol represents what we are claiming it does. 

Now you don’t have to be a Greek or Hebrew scholar to search the Scripture and see that we are not commanded to associate the Son of Elohim with the cross or that the modern day picture of a cross is even what He died upon.  Here are some examples:

Matthew 10:38

³⁸ And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.

The Greek word for cross here is “stauros” and it means an upright stake.  Nowhere is the definition does it define it as the modern day symbol of the cross.

Luke 23:26

Simon Bears the Cross

²⁶ When they led Him away, they seized a man, Simon of Cyrene, coming in from the country, and placed on him the cross to carry behind Jesus.

Again in this verse, the word for cross used in the Greek is “stauros” meaning an upright stake.

Acts 10:39

³⁹ We are witnesses of all the things He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They also put Him to death by hanging Him on a cross.

The Greek word used here is “xylon” and it can mean that which is made of wood or a tree.  Again, not a clear definition citing the modern day symbol.

So if Scripture does not define the cross like the modern day cross then where did it come from?  I would argue it has its roots in the traditions of men and while this is not inherently bad, we must ask ourselves if it is truly pleasing and honoring to Elohim.

We have to come to the point as believers where we stop settling for “pretty close” and start obeying the actual commands of YHVH while avoiding the things that are adulterous to our relationship with Him.  The cross has a history in paganism that predates Christianity starting with the Egyptians.  Do we really need a symbol so badly that we are willing to marry pagan practices with the worship of our Elohim?

I would argue that symbolism is something we should be wary of and test because it is an expression of our beliefs whether you believe it or not.  A little leaven ruins the whole lump of dough.  A tiny drop of poison in a gallon of water can kill you.  A little paganism mixed in our belief is still adultery.

The modern day cross is an inferred symbol of faith, not a commanded one and being so, we cannot build theology on it.  The cross is worshipped today more than Yeshua or His Father.  All I ever hear is how wonderful the cross is and how thankful for it we should be.

Well, the fact is that Yeshua did not stay on the stake; He rose from the dead and that is the real joy we should celebrate.  He is the real joy we should celebrate, laying aside our idols, letting go of the hand of the world and placing our hands firmly in the Father’s. 

You want a symbol to show your faith?  Keep the Torah and others will know whose people you are.

Why Ron Paul is the the Right Candidate That Cannot Win

If we want Ron Paul as president then we must necessarily turn back the hands of time.  Why?  Because America has done more damage abroad than Ron Paul’s policies can repair.  We cannot just go cold turkey and think we can quit global occupation and war mongering.  We have helped to build a global superpower model built on “shows of force” and “troop occupation” as means of protecting our “interests”.  To pull troops completely out of from abroad at this point is certain to be seen as a sign of weakness by the rest of the world who is just waiting for us to fall. 

For those in the dark, the world does not like us as a country.  Stop listening to your television; it lies.  We are the bullies in the sandbox of the world.  We control economies and leaders of countries and thus control the people in those countries’ way of life.  Now I must say at this point that yes I am aware that there are an ever increasing number of people whose whole Modus Operands is the death of others for the glory of themselves.  We will always have to be on guard for these people because our death is their victory. 

I personally think that America occupying some countries is the only hope the ones who do not follow that fatalist belief system have of living a somewhat normal life.  They cannot afford to move or leave their country.   My complaint is the same complaint I have with modern day missionary systems:  Why are we so arrogant to think that the rest of the world wants to be a copy of the American Christian church?  All I ever see is an attempt to make the people of other countries look like us.  Democracy simply does not work when you do not have true freedom for all individuals of that country. 

This is America!  You cannot duplicate it somewhere else.  It is like moving away from your hometown with all your fond memories and moving back years later only to be disenchanted because you cannot recreate those fond memories.  Things change; the river you step in is never the same river, structurally, each time you step in it.  It is in a constant state of flux. 

Likewise, electing Ron Paul will not change what has been done and could endanger many lives because of where we are globally.  I love his ideas and completely agree with some of his policies, but it is simply too late to go back.  Besides that I am not so sure most of America wants to go back.  Americans are an arrogant people by nature and they are proud of having the biggest guns and running the world.  We stood up to the British didn’t we?  We dropped an atomic bomb on Japan and killed thousands of non-combatants didn’t we?  Pearl Harbor was a military base. 

I am ex-military so I have a right to speak on things military.  I did my time serving our country and would have given my life for her had the need arose.  I am a Patriot and proud of being American.  I am not proud of what we have become today.  I think we have forgotten that with freedom comes responsibility to be a protector of the greater good of all people.  We have used our power greedily instead of wisely.  Therefore, I am not proud of where our government has taken this once great nation. 

I wish Ron Paul had a chance.  My fear is that Ron Paul supporters will force us into another socialism session with Obama by detracting votes away from the nominee by not voting.  The time for that is not now, but I respect that one must vote their conscious. 

Four more years of Obama and who we vote for will not matter.  The questions will be: Where can I find food for my family?  How am I going to protect them from the weather because I lost my home?  How will I get treatment for my illness when the government decides what is right for my body?  How can I say I am free when the government controls most aspects of my life and makes the choices for me? 

THAT IS NOT FREEDOM!

Threshold Covenant: Never Walk Through a Door the Same.

I must preface this blog with the fact that most of this information came from a teaching by Rico Cortes (http://www.wisdomintorah.com/) on Threshold Covenants.  Because of his hard work and study, I have been blessed with more depth of the Scriptures and our Elohim.  Please give thought to joining his blog and I promise you will be blessed. 

Exodus 12:21-27

²¹ Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go and take for yourselves lambs according to your families, and slay the Passover lamb. ²² You shall take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood which is in the basin, and apply some of the blood that is in the basin to the lintel and the two doorposts; and none of you shall go outside the door of his house until morning.

A Memorial of Redemption

²³ For the LORD will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when He sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the LORD will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to come in to your houses to smite you. ²⁴ And you shall observe this event as an ordinance for you and your children forever. ²⁵ When you enter the land which the LORD will give you, as He has promised, you shall observe this rite. ²⁶ And when your children say to you, ‘What does this rite mean to you?’ ²⁷ you shall say, ‘It is a Passover sacrifice to the LORD who passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt when He smote the Egyptians, but spared our homes.’” And the people bowed low and worshiped. 

Look closely at verse 23 above and you will see that Adonai passed over the door of the houses of the Israelites.  Traditionally we have been taught that He passed over the houses of the Israelites.  This is true and Scripture says this, but it is more of a generality where verse 23 gives you specifics of how Adonai passed over their houses.  What is the significance of this? 

Threshold Covenant.  The Spirit of Elohim passed over the threshold of their houses and entered into covenant with the Israelites.  Here is some imagery that I bet you have never heard of: 1) the doorway of their houses with the blood all around it looks like the womb of a virgin, 2) Elohim comes into the womb establishing a Threshold Covenant much the way the Holy Spirit came into Mary in covenant for the birth of Yeshua, and 3) the parted waters of the Dead Sea symbolize the birth canal for the “Children of Israel” 

YHVH intimately entered into a Threshold Covenant with the Hebrews in the land of Egypt, brought them through the waters of birth, and now they are His children. 

Deuteronomy 1:3

³ In the fortieth year, on the first day of the eleventh month, Moses spoke to the children of Israel, according to all that the LORD had commanded him to give to them, 

This is the first time I found it used doing a search for the use of the term “children of Israel” and it confirms that they were not called that till after they passed through the Red Sea.  I just thought about this:  it was called the “Red Sea” which also plays into the explanation of a birth.  YHVH is amazing in His detail and order. 

Judges 16:1-3

Samson’s Weakness

¹ Now Samson went to Gaza and saw a harlot there, and went in to her. ² When it was told to the Gazites, saying, “Samson has come here,” they surrounded the place and lay in wait for him all night at the gate of the city. And they kept silent all night, saying, “Let us wait until the morning light, then we will kill him.” ³ Now Samson lay until midnight, and at midnight he arose and took hold of the doors of the city gate and the two posts and pulled them up along with the bars; then he put them on his shoulders and carried them up to the top of the mountain which is opposite Hebron. 

Now why did Gazites not kill Samson when he was carrying the city gates?  It would have been the perfect opportunity because he was busy carrying the city gates.  It was because they understood Threshold Covenant.  As long as Samson was in the inside the city gates, they were under obligation to protect him with their life.  Once morning came and he passed over the threshold, he was fair game.  So what does Samson do?  He moves the threshold and expands the city limits to the top of a mountain.  Samson understood Threshold Covenant. 

John 10:1

Parable of the Good Shepherd

¹ “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbs up some other way, he is a thief and a robber. 

Remember the story about the Palestinian murders I posted who entered another way besides the door. 

John 10:9

⁹ I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. 

Yeshua is the door.  When we cross over Threshold, we enter into covenant with YHVH.  There is so much more to this but it would have to be another blog post.  The significance of where He died, the ground His blood fell on when He was pierced on the cross, the direction He was facing when He died, etc. 

Do some research on Threshold Covenants and I am sure you will find Scripture open up in a new way you have never seen before.

Are You a Berean with an Educated Mind?

It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.
-Aristotle

Where have all the thinkers gone?  Where have the men and women who are not afraid to entertain ideas because they are strong enough in conviction and the truth of Elohim’s word to weigh the information and make a judgment?  Have we been taught that the way to making correct life choices is to avoid thoughts, ideologies, and practices?

Unfortunately, this may be the case.  If we look at the church, a great many forbid drinking alcohol through unspoken sanctions when the Scripture speaks against drunkenness alone.  Why drunkenness?  Because drunkenness takes control of your body out of your will and allows opportunity for your members to be used to dishonor YHVH.

What is done when you take the commandment and add unto it is you set your congregation up for guilt and failure.  Sin thrives on man-made rules and laws.  You tell a child not to cross the street and their compulsion becomes to find out why they should not cross the street.  Without proper backing and explanation, they will obsess about it and eventually venture into the street to find out why.

Ideas are dangerous when they become practices and rise to the level of being worshipped without being test by Scripture.  The quote from Aristotle agrees with Paul in Acts chapter 17:

Acts 17:10-11

Paul at Berea

¹⁰ The brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. ¹¹ Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so.

Notice what the Bereans did with the information they heard.  They examined the Scriptures to see if it is true.  Do you know that a great many people that I speak about Hebraic roots with never even look at the Scripture to see if what I say is true?  How can you reject that which you have not tested merely because you think you have a knowledge base sufficient enough to make a knee-jerk judgment?  That is neither biblical nor wise.

I never say what I am saying and hope that you just accept it.  Why?  Because only YHVH can make it yours as you search His word and seek His truth.  Your hope does not lie in me or any other teacher; it is solely in Yeshua HaMashiach and the promises of His Father.  Do you know what He promises in the Scripture?

If Scripture is the ruler, why are so few churchmen measuring with it?  What are they using to build their house on?  I know their foundation may be Yeshua, but a building with bolts and no nuts tightened is bound to fall in the day of trouble.

So much of the Scripture in the church has been taught to be about anyone other than themselves.  Example:  Mattthew 7 is not about the Jews who do not believe in Yeshua primarily.  Yes they could hear depart from Me, but at the same time, what about those who do not walk like Yeshua’s sheep?  Those who are lawless?  To be lawless is to be lacking a law or Torah.  To be lawless is to be teaching in a way to be closing up the way to the kingdom of heaven for people.

Please shake the stereotype that law is bad.  You follow them every day without complaint and are glad for some of them when bad things happen.  The law that is bad is the one that does not come from God and takes you away from His ways; the traditions of men whether it be Pharisaical oral tradition or church doctrines and traditions.  Torah and grace are brothers.  They are not in conflict with each other.  They both come from Elohim.

Bottom line is that you must test all things against what is real (the Scripture) and make a judgment about it wisely.  Therefore, you must know the word and be able to entertain ideologies, thoughts, practices without being taken captive by them.  You must be wise.  Being wise is having knowledge and knowing how to use it.  And the beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord.

When you obey Torah, you show that you fear Adonai and that you are wise in the way that you walk.  Who are you O man to say His statutes have passed and the age of the church is what He is doing now?  He is King, not you. 

Now go see in His word if His Torah has been done away with or not and make a wise judgment because the alternative is willful disobedience (choosing to disobey whilst knowing the truth) and there is no sacrifice for that.  You will have to repent and turn back to Elohim to be forgiven for willful disobedience.

Awake O Sleeper: Complacency and False Security vs. Preparedness

I have never been fond of too much physical order in my life because I believe it breeds complacency and a false sense of security.  Having a totally ordered world leaves no room for flexibility and adaptation to changing conditions.  Being ex-military, I strive to enjoy life while maintaing a sense of military readiness.  Not paranoid, but prepared.

To believe that tomorrow is guaranteed to come just like today without leaving room for a little doubt and preparedness is both foolhearty and dangerous for those you love and care about.  Live life today like it is your last day and you will not regret if tomorrow never comes.
 
I am very disturbed when I hear people making 5 year, even 10 year plans without seasoning it with a little planning for today and learning from yesterday.  The wisest people learn from the mistakes of others while not repeating them.  Nothing inherently wrong with planning.  There is a problem with preparing blindly in a state of complete comfort and false safety.

It is a very different landscape ahead of us today and we had best move out of suburban-life mode where we are too remote to be affected by the majority of the problems in our world.  This has made us lazy as a society.  What happens when the storm comes?

I will tell you what happens because a storm came to my neighborhood in the form of a possible tornado and flooding yesterday.  What happened?  Peopl were out of their houses starring in disbelief.  We have been lulled to sleep with the American way of life.  As long as it does not affect us directly, we tend to "ostrich" the atrocities happening and the problems of society.

Iran is enriching Uranium as I write this.  President Obama has vowed to stop them.  A nuclear Iran is a game changer for Islamic Terrorism.  Gone will be the days of relatively small human bombs and the age of decimating entire cities will be ushered in.  The government is made up of human beings and they will be just as scared as us if things go badly.

YHVH the Elohim of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, I pray that You open hearts this day if it please You to the coming storms and that You incline our ear to Your whole word and the instruction that You have given us about the days ahead.  On the promises You made to our forefathers, will You act and save Your remnant from the days ahead.  For the glory and restoration of Your name in the land.  Amein

Are You Being Willfully Disobedient?

In America we call it the land of the free yet there are over 4,000,000 laws in effect.  Do we revolt and say we are not going to keep these laws?  Some do and they are punished accordingly.  But for the most part we obey them.  Why?  Simply put because we are Americans and those are American laws for Americans.  We keep the laws of the physical land without much of a thought, but when YHVH  asks us to obey, we say, "no, that has been done away with!" like an immature and ungrateful child.


YHVH has 613 commandments (for those not seeing the connection 613 < 4,000,000).  Of these 613, some only apply to women, some only apply to priests, and some only apply in certain situations.  You may ask why do I keep Torah when I have been saved by grace.  Simply put, I am a citizen of Israel and the kingdom of heaven so I keep the laws of that kingdom.  In essence my Elohim is asking me to keep roughly 250 commandments out of the 613.

Salvation came to me by grace through faith and that not of myself.  Blessing comes to my by keeping the Instruction (Torah) of my Elohim.   I walk in His statutes because He is King, not I.  He makes the rules of the Kingdom, not I.

Rest assured it is not burden because the commandments of YHVH are sweet instruction that are for my good.  Kosher alone keeps me from all the diseases associated with eating those unclean foods.  Do the research and you will see how bad pork and shellfish really are for you.  These are not things that are hidden.

The question you must ask is:  what Kingdom and King do I serve?  The answer lies in what laws you obey.  Show me what commandments you keep and I will show you what God you serve.  This is what James was getting at in the book of James.  It is not hard to reconcile that faith that is alive bears fruit until that repentance.  If you keep Torah, you evidence that your salvation has come from YHVH, the Elohim of the Torah.

You are only accountable to Elohim for what you know.  Once you have heard the information and choose to disbey, then that is willful disobedience and there is no sacrifice for that.  You must choose life or death.  Elohim does not force obedience.  He gives you the instruction and you must choose blessings or curses.

Hebrews 10:26-30
26 For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a terrifying expectation of judgment and THE FURY OF A FIRE WHICH WILL CONSUME THE ADVERSARIES
28 Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29 How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know Him who said, “VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY.” And again, “THE LORD WILL JUDGE HIS PEOPLE.”

FOUNDATIONAL: Non-Jewish Believers are the Alien Among the Native-Born

Exodus 12:37-39

³⁷ Now the sons of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, aside from children. ³⁸ A mixed multitude also went up with them, along with flocks and herds, a very large number of livestock. ³⁹ They baked the dough which they had brought out of Egypt into cakes of unleavened bread. For it had not become leavened, since they were driven out of Egypt and could not delay, nor had they prepared any provisions for themselves. 

Take note of who went with the Hebrews out of Egypt to Sukkot in verse 38.  It was a mixed multitude.  These were not native born Hebrews but people who grafted themselves into Hebrew households that night partaking of Passover and walked out of Egypt with the Hebrews. 

Numbers 15:13-15

¹³ All who are native shall do these things in this manner, in presenting an offering by fire, as a soothing aroma to the LORD.  ¹⁴ If an alien sojourns with you, or one who may be among you throughout your generations, and he wishes to make an offering by fire, as a soothing aroma to the LORD, just as you do so he shall do. ¹⁵ As for the assembly, there shall be one statute for you and for the alien who sojourns with you, a perpetual statute throughout your generations; as you are, so shall the alien be before the LORD. 

Notice in verse 14 that YHVH makes provision for those who are aliens, non-native-born Hebrews, to make offerings to Adonai.  And it is counted the same as the native-born just as the statute is to be one for the native and the alien in verse 15.  There has always been a mixture of native born and grafted in peoples in the children of Israel.

This is why it should not be hard to understand that believers today, like the ones before us, are part of the commonwealth of Israel and privilege to all of the promises given to our forefathers. 

Exodus 12:19

¹⁹ Seven days there shall be no leaven found in your houses; for whoever eats what is leavened, that person shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is an alien or a native of the land. 

The Feast of Unleavened Bread is for both the native and the alien. 

Leviticus 16:29

²⁹ “This shall be a permanent statute for you: in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall humble your souls and not do any work, whether the native, or the alien who sojourns among you; 

Yom Kippur is for both the alien and the native-born. 

Leviticus 18:26

²⁶ But as for you, you are to keep My statutes and My judgments and shall not do any of these abominations, neither the native, nor the alien who sojourns among you 

All of Elohim’s commandments and judgments are for both the alien and the native-born. 

Numbers 9:14

¹⁴ If an alien sojourns among you and observes the Passover to the LORD, according to the statute of the Passover and according to its ordinance, so he shall do; you shall have one statute, both for the alien and for the native of the land.’” 

Celebrating Passover is for both the native-born and the alien. 

Ezekiel 47:22-23

²² You shall divide it by lot for an inheritance among yourselves and among the aliens who stay in your midst, who bring forth sons in your midst. And they shall be to you as the native-born among the sons of Israel; they shall be allotted an inheritance with you among the tribes of Israel. ²³ And in the tribe with which the alien stays, there you shall give him his inheritance,” declares the Lord GOD. 

The inheritance is for the alien and they are to be treated as native-born in the tribe in which they stay.

The fact is and Scripture supports this:  We who believe in Messiah simply are Israel.