Faith> Grace> Works

A study I've been working on compelled me to look up the definition of 'Grace' in the Webster dictionary:

Pleasing quality; favor; thanks; A sense of what is right and proper; the unmerited love and favor of The Creator towards mankind; divine influence acting in a person to make the person pure (righteous/clean/set apart); morally strong; a special virtue, gift or help given to a person by Elohim.

Grace is a gift from Elohim that does not replace Torah. Torah is the set of instructions to show us what is right and proper. Grace shows His favor towards us, in that through His Set Apart Spirit He helps us to understand His commands and how to apply them to our lives that we may be righteous, morally strong.   YHWH, by His Grace, gave us the gift of His Laws and free will to choose Life eternal by obeying, keeping, observing and living by them.

There is a point of contention among 'believers' in regards to being 'saved'. There is the 'once saved always saved' mindset along with being 'saved by grace' and the 'saved by faith' and the 'saved by works' facets of this one topic.  

Acts 2:38 tells us in order to be saved (from the curse of eternal death) that we are to repent (return to Yah, turn from our sinful ways) and be immersed (mikveh/baptised/ritually cleansed) so that we may receive the Ruach haKodesh (Holy Spirit). 

If we do turn away from our sinful ways and return to the Creator and His Teachings and be immersed symbolizing our intentions, then we are ready to receive the gift of His Set Apart Spirit.  If we make the first move then Yah will follow up, giving us His unmerited love and favor.  It is a process, not an end-all.  We never stop learning until the day He restores all things!

2 Thessalonians 2:16

And may our Master Y'shua the Mashiyach himself, and Elohim our Father who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and a good hope through His grace, comfort your hearts and establish yourselves in every good word and in every good work.

In the letter to the Romans, Paul refers to himself as a servant of Y'shua, who was called, sent and separated to the Good News of Elohim and acknowledges it is from Him whom we have received grace and a mission... to the end that all may obey the faith among whom are called by Y'shua.

Grace doesn't just happen - it is a result of our Faith.  Faith is our belief, our trust in YHWH Elohim.  In trusting Him we choose to obey His Instructions. The result is Righteousness - we become morally justified and freed from sin.

Hebrews 11

Now faith is the persuasion of the things that are in hope as if they were an actual fact, and it is the manifesting of the things not seen. For by faith we understand that the worlds were shaped by the Word of Elohim and that things seen originated from those that are not seen.

By faith, Abel offered to Elohim a better sacrifice ... and on account of it he is testified of being righteous... By faith, Enoch was translated and did not taste death ... there was testimony of him that he pleased Elohim.

Without faith, man cannot please Elohim.

He who draws near to Elohim must believe His existence

and that He will recompense those who seek Him.

By faith, Noah when he was told of the things not seen, obeyed Yahweh and made an ark... and became righteous which is by faith.  By faith, Abraham, when called, obeyed... departed to the place of his inheritance while he had no idea where he was going. By faith he became a resident in the land that was promised... All these died in faith and did not receive their promise but they saw it from a distance and rejoiced in it, and they confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

1 Peter 1:6-9 ... when you are under some pressure by the various trials that pass over you (it is) so that the proof of your faith may appear more precious than refined gold that is tested by fire, to glory and honor and praise at the manifestation of Y'shua: whom having not seen, you love; and in the faith of whom you rejoice with the joy that is glorious and beyond expression, that you many receive the reward of your faith, the life of your souls...

Faith and Grace are part of a harmonious connection between us and YHWH.

Paul's desire is to give the gift of the Spirit through which we become established and find comfort together in faith. The Good News reveals the righteousness of Elohim, from faith to faith, as it is written, 'The righteous by faith will live.'

We find in the writings of James chapter 2:

What is the use if a man says 'I have faith' yet he has no works? Can his faith restore life?" James continues to give the example of a fellow believer who is cold and hungry and another says to him, 'go in peace...warm yourself and be full', then he does not give him the necessities (clothing and food), what is the use? Consoling a person without providing the need is faith without works... whereas providing the need, whether food, clothing or shelter, is 'works' which reveals faith.

James 2:17 reads: 

"So also faith alone, without works, is dead. For a man may say you have faith and I have works; show me your faith that is without works and I will show you my faith by my works."

James 2:24 

You see that by works a man is justified and not by faith alone.

Galatians 3:23 

"But before faith came, Torah was guarding us while we were confined from the faith about to be revealed." 

Andrew Gabriel Roth offers insight: 

In this regard "Torah" can be compared with any righteous values a soul voluntarily imposes upon himself. However, as a spiritual relationship is established with YHWH and Y'shua, a soul is elevated to much higher levels of spiritual awareness and accountability.

Galatians 3:12 

Thus Torah is not made by faith, but whosoever will do the things that are written in it, will live in it. (Leviticus 18:5: You shall therefore keep my statutes and my ordinances; which if a man does, he shall live in them...) 

John 20:29 

Y'shua said to him, "Now that you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who do not see me and believe."

If you continue to study Scripture then Knowledge and Understanding will increase, baggage falls away, the narrow gate opens and the straight path is revealed. Halleluyah! and praise Elohim for His steadfast love that all would have the opportunity and choose to turn from sin and return to Him - the One who created us!  This is the path we journey along towards our real home. We come across many stepping stones as well as stumbling blocks, but our Faith keeps us steady.

By our Faith we receive His Grace as we live by His Instructions.  It is just natural to follow up caring for fellow believers and by doing these good works we are morally justified, accounted as righteous.

Love

Lovely definitions of Love:
 

Mark 12:29 - Y'shua said the 1st Commandment is 'Shema (hear and obey) O Israel! Master YHWH is one - Love Him with all your heart, with all your soul, all your mind and strength. The 2nd is like it - Love your neighbor as yourself' (Leviticus 19:18)
 

Luke 6:35 - Love your enemies and do good to them and lend a hand and do not cut off the hope of man. Be merciful as your Father is merciful... for the measure with which you measure, it will be measured to you. Take the beam out of your own eye then you will be able to see to take out the straw that is in the eye of your brother.
 

Romans 12:9 - Let not your love be full of deceit, but be haters of evil things and adhere to good things. Love one another, honor one another, be active and not slothful. Be fervent in spirit. Work for Y'shua. Be joyful in your hope/Good News. Be patient under your afflictions and preserving in prayer. Be communicators to the wants of the Set Apart believers. Be kind to strangers. Bless your persecutors, bless and do not curse. Rejoice with them who rejoice and weep with them who weep. Do not indulge in arrogant thoughts, but unite yourselves with the humble minded. Be not wise in your own estimations. Repay no man evil for evil but let it be to your study to do good before all men.
 

1 Corinthians 13:4 - Love is patient and kind. Love is not envious, does not shout loudly and is not boastful. Love does nothing that causes shame, and seeks not her own (ego-strokers). Love is not passionate, and thinks no evil. It does not rejoice in iniquity but rejoices in truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes for all and endures all. Love will never cease (His steadfast love is eternal). These three things are abiding: Faith, Hope and Love, but the greatest of these is Love.

Sorceries of Babylon

Open Scroll

Quote from the above link: 
Drugs induce changes in our body chemistry. These effect our body's function, metabolic processes. They influence how we feel, think and act, our personality, responses and reactions. These changes may be temporary but may also last a very long time. Some cause our DNA to be rewritten, which changes us quite tangibly into a different "us." Because the life of the flesh is in the blood (Leviticus 17:11) and our blood is subject to pharmakeia's effects, there is a direct impact on our souls! The influence is also supernatural, with the very real effect of opening a door or gateway, a dimensional portal through which demons may pass. Our thoughts and actions are then given over to their control. These entities are referred to as familiar spirits. The supernatural activity of angels and demons is the effectual power, which do work through natural agencies. Pharmakeia can hinder people from receiving the holy spirit, or can isolate those who have it from the Lord and deny them what benefit would otherwise be enjoyed.

Hebrew Letter Numbers

I'm certain I am not the first to 'discover' this, 

but it is the first time I've looked at it this way.

The Hebrew language is a beautiful perfect language. 

The letters of the alphabet also have numeric values. 

 I was looking for the meaning of certain numbers 

and printed out a table with the corresponding information. 

 This is what came to mind...

Six hundred Sixty Six 

(the end times mark of the beast, the number of his name), 

and here are the numbers and their meanings:

400 - Cross, Sign, Eternity, End of Existence
200 - Emerging Head, Insufficient
60 - Satan, Serpent, Snake
6 - Hook, Connect, Sin, Flesh

Hebrew is read from right to left,
so here is the sentence I got from the numerical meanings,
from 6 to 400:

Sin is connected as if by a hook in the flesh
as Satan, that old serpent/snake
emerges as the insufficient Head/leader/savior
and as the sign of the end of existence
(of the world as we know it)

Tradition

YHWH has told us to remember and observe His Set Apart times for us: 

Passover/Unleavened Bread, Feast of the Harvest/Weeks (Shavuot/Pentecost), Day of Trumpets, Day of Atonement, and Tabernacles (Leviticus 23). 

These are not 'Jewish Holidays' as there were no such people back in that day -- His People were Hebrews and the mixed multitude that came with them out of Egypt. Jewish Holidays are the man made traditions of celebrating Hanukkah and Purim for example. 

Quoted from Judaism 101: 

Chanukkah is probably one of the best known Jewish holidays, not because of any great religious significance, but because of its proximity to Christmas. Many non-Jews (and even many assimilated Jews!) think of this holiday as the Jewish Christmas, adopting many of the Christmas customs, such as elaborate gift-giving and decoration. It is bitterly ironic that this holiday, which has its roots in a revolution against assimilation and the suppression of Jewish religion, has become the most assimilated, secular holiday on our calendar. (end quote). 

The Chanukkah tradition, as recorded in the Talmud: at the time of the rededication, there was very little oil left that had not been defiled by the Greeks. Oil was needed for the menorah in the Temple, which was supposed to burn throughout the night every night. There was only enough oil to burn for one day, yet miraculously, it burned for eight days, the time needed to prepare a fresh supply of oil for the menorah. An eight day festival was declared to commemorate this miracle of the oil.

(note: the Talmud is a collection of oral tradition of Torah interpretation according to Rabbinic Judaism.)

Our Creator was never about religions. His perfect governing system was for our health and well being, fair and just. Remembering important events is not the issue - it's the celebrations of them year after year as holidays that goes against what God said especially when His appointments for us are ignored by most.

Nothing Has Changed

Right off the bat we are told it is Satan 
who causes us to doubt the Word of Yah. 

This doubt causes division among His People. 

If we aren't of one mind how can we be a Light unto others?

If we won't accept the written word as truth, 

if we doubt that Yahweh says what He means 
and does what He says, 

then we fall into that same trap Satan 
set in the Garden of long ago.

Nothing has changed. 

The rules are the same and the consequences are the same.

It is up to us to seek Him as if looking for treasure. 
By seeking YHWH we follow the trail 
and avoid those stumbling blocks
of bad translations, doctrines of man 
and those wolves in sheep's clothing.

Scripture, from Genesis to Revelation, 
is our road map out of the world system
that we may find our way back home 
returning to our Creator.

We know God speaks to His People as it is written in Scriptures. We also know even those who witnessed His Works first hand eventually fell away from following His Teachings.

In the beginning Yahweh established Himself as the Creator of: Light; Sky; Earth; Lights in the Sky; Sea Creatures; Birds that Fly; Animals, insects and man. Then He blesses the 7th day and rests. Many years later He tells us to remember the 7th day, to rest and do no work on that day (commandment #4 of the 10.) We obey this instruction as a 'sign' that we have chosen to be Set Apart because our Creator is Set Apart.

YHWH has told us the end from the beginning so we will recognize that when these events occur, it was He, the Living Elohim, who told us beforehand. We can trust that Yah is the One True God. 

YHWH Elohim provides the instructions needed that all will be well for us. His Instructions are recorded in Genesis through Deuteronomy.  If we read Scriptures every day His Spirit will begin to reveal the Truth of His Word and we shall gain understanding. This is the path of righteousness we choose to travel.

God placed man in the Garden to tend it. He put us in His Creation to take care of things until the Time of the End (of life as we know it.)   The Adversary, Satan, has been corrupting the system ever since he caused Eve to doubt the Word of God by asking: Did God really say...? Doubt causes division and Satan uses that same tactic against us in this day and age.

If we continue to read and study Scriptures our understanding will increase and give way to wisdom that we may discern the times we are in and not fall victim to Satan's deceits. Satan has a counterfeit for everything God put in place.

We can say anything, profess to be believers, but it is the intentions of our heart that will be eventually revealed. YHWH's People are recognized as Set Apart because not only do they 'talk the talk' by they 'walk the walk'.

Our lifestyle becomes Set Apart by our choice to obey YHWH and live according to His rules. This is what it means to be a Light unto the Nations (other peoples).

If we love Elohim the Creator whose name is YHWH, then we obey His Instructions. He, in turn, keeps His promise made to Abraham so many years ago: Yah will gather us from the corners of the earth, from the places we have been scattered and set us on the Promised Land of Canaan.

We trust our Heavenly Father that we will find ourselves back in that Garden.

Just for You

Lets say Yahweh Elohim wrote Scriptures just for you.

He is the Beginning and the End and knows everything that will happen to you, all the trials and tribulation, all the good times and the bad.

He loves and cares about you so much that He will not let you go through your life alone. He has established Himself as a living entity, all powerful and all knowing and asks you to trust Him and follow His Plan. In doing so He keeps His Promise to bless you that things will go well with you right up until the time of His earthy kingdom, and beyond to the time He restores everything!

You know of these things because you read what He had written - you can feel His Words in your heart - no matter what is happening in the world around you you feel His Love and Peace within and there you stand strong in Faith trusting His Plan that has been there before you were born.

Live according to His Instructions and become a Light to others who are struggling in darkness as you once were.