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My apologies for accidentally sending this article to my email list before it was completed. Here is the full and complete article... "Love Bade Me Welcome"  Law vs Love or the Law of Love? I guess this article is about a Love Letter as opposed to one without Love. Without Love, without the Spirit, the truth hurts and the Letter Kills. And without the Spirit and without love the Torah is dead, and so are we. On the other hand, with the Love of the Spirit of Life and Joy from the Father, we have a true connection to the Father and the Son and to one another. The Word is vivified, and we are alive to God because the Spirit of the Lord has breathed His life into the Word through His Holy Spirit. The Word is Alive as long as the Spirit Breathes upon our Heart. We are told that "the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ", John 1:17. So we can see that Mercy was made known through Yeshua the Mashiach in a way that was not so clearly demonstrated in the Torah of Moses, משה. Yeshua shined a light on the Torah in such a way as to highlight the mercy that was hidden within it. He was the Torah incarnate, the Word of God made flesh. And in His Divine Humanity He manifested kindness and mercy and pointed towards truth in the inward parts, Ps 51:6, 5:9. Without the Messiah, the Torah was incomplete. It pointed to Him and was completed by Him. Or to put it another way, Yeshua revealed the Heart of God, and the Mercy of God that was within the Torah. The Torah was not a means of self salvation for sinful man. It was a sign post to the perfect man, Yeshua HaMashiach. During Yeshua's ministry there were Jews who put their trust in their knowledge of Torah, but they did not know the Lord! In fact they were in complete rebellion to יהוה, and it merely took Yeshua to shine a light upon their hypocritical hearts to bring their rebellion and venom clearly to the surface, Luke 11:39. To be a student of Torah is no guarantee of salvation. Our salvation is actually dependent upon the grace of God and His election. Romans 9:15-16 For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. 16 So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy. The New Testament is filled with examples of religious Jews who thought that they were guides to the blind but they were lost themselves Rom 2:17-24. The Lord Yeshua had the worst condemnation for religious hypocrites, Mat 23:13, 15, 23. Thankfully there were many Jews that believed Moses and thus believed Yeshua. And there is plenty of hypocrisy in our day, not only in Christendom but also in our own hearts. We are a piece of work for sure. If it were not for the kindness of the Lord then we would be without hope. We are His workmanship, Eph 2:10. Our salvation is based upon the Lord showing mercy upon us and bringing us to repentance. It is not based upon our personal merit. So God's part is in showing mercy, and thus we are His elect, chosen by Him. Saved by grace and not works of the Law. Our part is simply to believe His Word and trust in Him. Galatians 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. By His Spirit we are able to walk in His ways and keep His commandments, John 15:10, 1 John 2:3. The Torah is made up of Hebrew words made from 22 Hebrew letters. The word for letter, as in Hebrew letter is ,'ot', אות. We will talk more about this shortly. The Lord has been awakening us to His Sabbath, Feasts, Law and Hebrew language. But has our heart grown cold as we have sought the truth of the letter of the Torah? How is our prayer life? How is our worship? Is it as dry as a biscuit tin? Have we become so focused on facts and meanings of words that our hearts have been left behind? Is our head enjoying the ride while our heart feels sick and alone? Have we become so set on understanding things that we have lost that intimate Love connection with the Father? This is a trap that I fell into for a long time. It takes time to begin to understand Hebrew or Torah insights. So I guess we have to put time aside to learn and unlearn. But as I studied I became bitter and hurt because I was alone in my journey. I disconnected my heart from God as I studied His word. Now my heart longs for a real divine connection, words will only take me so far. I need the Holy Spirit for the rest of the journey. I do not let go of the Torah, but I much more take hold of God my Father by His Spirit. A living sacrifice is the only way to enter in through the veil, not the veil of His Flesh, but our own. This is why the New Testament writings concentrate so much on putting the old carnal life to death and walking in purity of Body, Soul & Spirit, 1 Thess 5:23. It's the only way to draw near to the Lord and really begin to enter into the spiritual inheritance that the Torah points to and only Messiah Yeshua can give us. We need to die that He may live His life in our broken body. There is no resurrection without death. Studying Torah all day without a fundamental dying to self will lead us no where but round and round the mountain. I guess I have come full circle, back to the Giver of Life. If the first half of my Hebrew Roots journey was about discovering the Hebrew Yeshua and the Hebrew Torah basis of the Word of God, the last half of my Hebrew Roots journey is about discovering the Spirit of Life that raised Yeshua from the Dead. I want to walk with Him. And strangely death is the path to new life. Isn't that what the sacrificial system represents? A Sign, a Letter & Love  The Letter (tav, t) killeth, but the Spirit given Life. I am so grateful to the Lord Yeshua, יהוה ישוע, for graciously revealing the Torah and Shabbat to me. Though misunderstood by many Christians, my life is enriched to know where I come from and to whom I belong. How wonderful to also be a member of the commonwealth of Israel and a descendant of the 10 lost tribes. What an inheritance. And added to that I also have a high and heavenly calling! Yet in this world it is also a lonely path for many, including myself. However I am finding that even the loneliness and isolation is somehow making my heart better, if I surrender my pain to the Lord. The Lord gets me through, and He makes my heart better. If I fight Him and argue with how life pans out then I lose, just like argumentative Israel in the wilderness. And like Israel in the wilderness I am slowly being undone. Outwardly my life is coming to nothing, but inwardly I am being broken down (and rebuilt upon Him). Having our heart broken is part of the journey if you want to enter in behind the veil. Thankfully, it is with the broken hearted that the Lord dwells, Isaiah 57:15. He is with those who mourn, Isaiah 61:2, Mathew 5:4. Sometimes when we seem to obtain no favour, we secretly are obtaining the greatest favour. We are in the pit but we are His firstborn. The key to overcoming is dying to self. The western 'Church' including messianic 'Hebrew Roots' type folks can be outwardly overly bubbly and often very superficial. I am not against being positive, I am all for it. But we need reality, and a good and broken heart is hard to find. We live in a very plastic and instant sort of world. A world where the outward appearances of things are what counts. 7 steps to victory. Easy as pie. Everything is gonna get better and shinier. A cheesy grin will see you through. Yet when I read my bible I see suffering as an integral part of discipleship. Reality is far grittier than some Disney fairy tale, the believers walk is a warfare. The spiritual life is a battle. Our struggle is spiritual. A life where everything just hums along without any wrestling of the heart is a life that is not spiritually growing. Sadly away from the lights and YouTube the Hebrew Roots life can be gloomy at times, especially when isolated. We have such joy in what we find and often we are misunderstood or rejected. This however can be a time where the Lord works on our character. He can take years of various heart breaks in the great work of unmaking us. All this unmaking and breaking down is for a purpose. He is pulling us apart in order to rebuild us upon Him, upon the Rock. Then it is no longer lip service to say "It is no longer I that liveth but Messiah that liveth in me". During such times we need to submit ourselves to the Lord and just hang on. He is refining us. It's not pleasant and it is not instant. Loneliness hurts as do other afflictions that we would rather not endure. What is God doing? Why doesn't He answer? He's getting to our hearts. Let Him in. I myself am a slow learner! Sharpen me on the cold anvil of loneliness or whatever it takes. Break my iron will and fold the steel of my heart. I fall at Thy feet Oh God. I am Thy lamb, send me into the battle when I am dead enough to be of use to Thee. Help me to rejoice in Thee, even when I suffer, even when I know that you allow it. I thank Thee for Thy kindness Father. Break me and remake me. Now let's get back to the topic at hand, the Sabbath. For Christians the very word Sabbath seems to conjure up some dark, foul, legalistic demon. For me, I am grateful for a day off. Six days work are enough, and there's always more to do. You made the Sabbath for man, and I sure need it. I am also grateful to enter into His rest spiritually every day. I am also glad that I can draw a line in the sand against the Roman Catholic whore religion and stand on the promises of God. The Sabbath is the seventh day and no church has the right to change it. The Sabbath is a sign between the Lord God יהוה אלהים, and Israel. When the Edomite Roman NWO comes against the Sabbath they are coming against the God of Israel. Let us take our positions and strengthen ourselves in our God. Rome cannot win. But Oh what a battle. I wish to God that Protestants made that stand in years past. But the Sabbath is our fight for this generation. Hallelujah, Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition. The Sabbath is actually the most powerful weapon that the faithful have against the New World Order (which is just the Jesuit run Vatican Rome/Babylon/Freemasonry/Edom). The Sabbath is Ring that binds the Lord to Israel, more about that later. For now we will find that the Sabbath will separate us from our brethren, from apostate Protestantism and from the Vatican that controls America and the west. The Sabbath is our fight. But an unbroken people cannot win. Israel had to be broken in the wilderness. Our Sabbath advantage is all undone through our own spiritual immaturity and fleshy carnality. You cannot conquer Canaan if you cannot wait upon the Lord and be led by Him. (But I wont dwell on this for now). The Sabbath is like a signet ring between the Lord and Israel or more particularly between Yeshua and His Israelite Bride with 12 stars about her head. It is ironic that the Sabbath breaking Roman church uses that same symbology to represent herself. But she is no bride and sadly neither are the protestants that break Sabbath. They may be saved but they are not the bride. The Sabbath is a signet ring because it is the only commandment of the 10 commandments that is described as a SIGN between the Lord and Israel! A ring on the finger is a sign of betrothal. The Sabbath is the Sign! The very thing that the gentile church has prided itself in breaking, is its greatest shame! Exodus 31:16-17 Exodus 31:13 It is amazing to think that not only is this sign a token of true love and connection, but the very word for sign in Hebrew, אֹות, contains the Aleph-Tav, את. Yeshua of course is the Aleph-Tav, (the Alpha and Omega in Greek), And the middle letter of the word for sign is the vav, ו, which represents man and the nail. The letter vav is the sixth letter and man was created on the sixth day. Vav also means to attach and looks like a nail. Vav joins us to our Lord. What greater sign could there be in these last days than that the Israelite remnant of the 'Church' returns to the Sabbath in believing faith and obedience? If the jews seek a sign then surely the Lord is beginning to provide the greatest sign of all, that is, the followers of Yeshua are actually keeping the Sabbath day holy. 1 Corinthians 1:22-24 For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: 23 But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; 24 But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. So if the Lord has revealed to you to keep Torah and Sabbath etc as a believer in Yeshua, then you are on the forefront of a revolution in the Spirit. You are part of the awakening of Israel in the last days. The days where the Church prides itself in its Sabbath breaking and lawlessness are drawing to a close. Sabbath keeping is not salvation, but it is a SIGN of Salvation and connection to the Father, the God of Israel. However let us not become proud because we keep Sabbath. We have merely come to a very basic reformation on a very simple fact. The Sabbath is the seventh day not Sunday. But although outwardly small it is not small at all. It is symbolic of the Lordship of Messiah and the Father over all creation. Satan hates that. The Lord has a thing called a Sabbath. Let us be glad. There is no place for pride, but much place for humility. Let's not stop at the Sabbath. Let's keep going. What is on my heart is that we continue on to perfection. Although we can start in the spirit we can end up in the flesh. The following warnings in the New Testament show us that we need to walk in the spirit and not become carnal and legalistic which was the trap that the Pharisees fell into. The flesh likes extremes. Either all Spirit and no Word or all Word and no Spirit. Let's get it together. Both our head and heart need to be informed by God's Law/Word and His Spirit. Head and Heart must work together, Word and Spirit are One. Here are some scriptures to always keep in mind as we follow torah... Romans 2:29 But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God. Hopefully you can understand what Paul is driving at spiritually, it is not an argument against Torah as some Christians foolishly think. What Paul is talking about is that it is the Spirit of God that gives us life. The Word of God merely points to the Messiah. It is the Spirit that gives us life. Then we obey the word once the Spirit enters into us. Only through living relationship by the Spirit can we walk in His commandments. Where Christians stumble is that they assume that the Law is bad. No what is bad is our heart, that's what needs circumcising. The Law is good and Holy. As we follow the Lord He writes the Law on our hearts. Sin is transgression of the Law, 1 John 3:4. (If we break the Sabbath we sin, irrespective of how we 'feel'). The Word without the Spirit is Dead. It is like the tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. It shows us right from wrong but does not give us the power to do it. It is only through living vital union with the Messiah by the Holy Spirit that we can fulfill the Law as we naturally follow the Lord as His son or daughter. Not only does the Torah letter kill, so does the new testament letter or word kill. Only the Spirit can join us with the Father and make the Deadness of the Letter come alive. Because God's word and Torah is not at fault, it is the motions of Sin within us. So God's Torah is good. Read Romans properly, you'll get it if the Spirit dwells in you! Set your mind on Heavenly things  Unlike some messianic/ Hebrew Roots folks, I believe that there are Christians that are genuinely saved and don't keep the Sabbath. They should, but they just aren't there yet in their thinking, they are still learning to walk by faith by the grace of Yeshua (Aren't we all!). This has been true for most of the 'Church Age' since about 300 years after Pentecost in Acts 2. First the Sabbath was ditched then the feasts. It's church history. It isn't biblical. It's just gentile rebellion to God's Holy Word. I have had some arguments with well meaning Hebrew Roots folks who think all that break the Sabbath are damned. However the rule for gentile converts in the Torah were that they were to learn of the God of Israel and they would draw closer to the congregation by stages as their understanding was enlightened. Eventually they would be circumcised and come into the congregation proper. The Church has been too immature to do this. What the Lord has been concentrating on is character and cleanness during this time. But the Sabbath was overlooked. Thankfully the Lord knows peoples hearts and knows where they are at. We are saved by grace not works of the Law. If we were saved by works of the Law then we wouldn't need a Saviour. However the 'Church' took a grace and turned into a license and grievously sinned against the Lord by changing the Sabbath to Sunday through various church councils including the Council of Nicea and the Council of Laodicea. This is something that must be repented of otherwise the Laodicean Church will perish. I don't think the connection between the church council and the seventh church in Revelation is an accident. The Sabbath celebrates the Lord as creator. And the Church of Laodicea is reminded that He is the creator for this very reason! Rev 3:14. Our evolution believing generation needs to be reminded of the Lord God as creator. The rediscovery of the true Sabbath day is just such a reminder. Now the Holy Spirit is beginning to convict some that are listening to Him to keep Shabbat. This is hardly noticeable here in Australia except in very small holy huddles. But in the USA it is far more pronounced. I do not look down on my Sabbath breaking fellow Christians. But I do gently instruct if they have an ear to listen. I have not lost my spiritual walk with the Lord, I have deepened it. I have potentially so much more than what Sabbath breaking, Torahless Christians settle for. I have the Covenants of Israel including the New Covenant. I am loving Yeshua by keeping His Commandments, John 14:15, 15:10. So to repeat, I have potentially more. Again, the word is 'potentially' because although I am beginning to the meet the conditions for true discipleship by obeying His commandments, there is much suffering involved. We are misunderstood. We are isolated. But this suffering helps to bring my will into a deep and abiding submission to my Lord that bought me with His precious blood. The suffering I get because few understand where I am coming from feels like Joseph's suffering in the pit. It can be very lonely. But like Joseph we need to trust in God because we are being fitted for greatness in the Spirit. The understanding of the Sabbath is sweet, but walking it out can be bitter because of the darkness within the 'Church'. We have begun a journey but it is just the beginning. Joseph was a spiritual man, like Jacob his father, Joseph was a dreamer. And He dreamed both earthly and heavenly things. The Hebrew Roots movement is hardly at a stage I could call spiritual or heavenly. But the 'potential' is there. Suffering will refine the gross character that I see within it. When I look at the Hebrew Roots / Two House movement I see a great deal of pain and spiritual immaturity and a strong tendency to miss the heavenly aspect of our calling. Good things take time and it may take a few generations before the Bride makes herself ready. (I can hear people groaning and complaining already and saying the tribulation is right around the corner. No you are wrong. World War 3 and the breakup of America is just around the corner. Am I a Grinch or am I telling the truth? I don't think we have that long to wait before we find out.) Anyway the bride is not ready. But at least she is taking off her Sunday clothes of prostitution. The wedding dress and the bride may not be ready but at least she's not dressing like a hooker any more. So now she is at the stage where she is just taking off her Babylonian/Egyptian pagan gentile makeup. Now she is becoming acquainted with her Hebrew earthly origin. In the future she will be prepared to meet the King and be truly spiritual and heavenly in her understanding and conduct. First comes the natural then the spiritual. We are getting acquainted with the physical Sabbath before the bride is made ready. This is all to do with believing Israel. God is removing the gentile trappings of the 'Church' to bring it back to its biblical Israelite origins, so that it can be properly grounded in the Torah and actually reach far higher than the flighty Pentecostal's of today. For now let us rediscover the Hebrew Torah, Shabbat, Feasts, Kosher etc etc. But there is far, far, far more for us in the future, in the secret place of the Most High. Let us let the spirit wash us through His word. Esther was not known as a Jew, but she was one. And like Esther the hidden Israelite bride must go through many washings and purifications and tribulations before she is ready to meet the King. The bride will make herself ready according to the Hebrew Calendar and Feasts. Those that will not meet this condition, are not the bride. They may be saved but they are not the bride. It is my hope of living long enough to see the regathering of the 10 lost tribes of the House of Israel. First we must return to the North Country. Then to the Land of Israel itself. Then the bride can make herself ready. We have a long way to go. I hope to see all 12 tribes of believing Israel, living in the land of Israel and becoming truly spiritual in nature, rooted in the Torah and espoused to one master, Yeshua. She will be shining like the Sun on that day, Rev 12. God help me to draw closer to the Lord in the mean time. May God help us all. Now that we have an understanding of the basics of Torah etc. Let us continue to learn. But let us also realize that the hard times are there for our instruction too. There is a corporate spanking coming to our world. If He is trying our hearts now, there may be hope in our latter end, not just for this world, but more importantly for the world to come. We are His workmanship created for good works in Messiah Yeshua. He has filled us with His Holy Spirit and if we are truly led by the Spirit of the Living God then He will reveal much more to our hearts that will bring us tangibly closer to Him and help us to live by the sight of His Eyes and not our own carnal vision. John 20:22 The Spirit of God has not finished with the Hebrew Roots movement. We have not arrived. We have barely begun. But He will lead us on 'come Hell or high water'. Much of what we think is solid and abiding will be ripped apart from us. If we cannot keep 'things' because war and destruction is coming then surely we need to be more spiritually minded anyway. Are we not to seek those things that are above? Is not the Law Spiritual? Don't be discouraged if you are 'going through the wringer' for doing what is right. Let the Lord have His way and surrender. Seek those things above! Romans 7:14 Let the Lord break your heart, He will be there with you and you can fellowship in the broken but Holy place. The way to Zion is in your heart, but to get to our heart He has to break it and that hurts. The Letters that make up the words of Torah are love letters. The New Testament actually has very personal general epistles which are also love letters. If the Lord is breaking your heart, then surrender and let Him in. He loves you so much that He won't let you go. Surrender. Here is a song that summarizes a Heavenly and heart felt walk to Zion.  Set your mind on things above.
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