Believer in Messiah

One of the religion scholars spoke to Him, posing a question he hoped would show Messiah up: "Teacher, which command in God's Law is the most important?" Jesus Yeshua said, "'Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence.' This is the most important, the first on any list. But there is a second to set alongside it: 'Love others as well as you love yourself.' These two commands are pegs; everything in God's Law and the Prophets hangs from them." But in our time something new has been added. What Moses and the prophets witnessed to all those years has happened. The G-d-setting-things-right that we read about has become Jesus Yeshua-setting-things-right for us. And not only for us, but for everyone who believes in Him. For there is no difference between Jew and non-Jew in this. Since all of us have compiled this long and sorry record as sinners and proved that we are utterly incapable of living the glorious lives G-d wills for us, G-d did it for us. Out of sheer generosity He put us in right standing with Himself. A pure gift. He got us out of the mess we're in and restored us to where He always wanted us to be. And He did it by means of Yeshua Messiah Jesus Christ. G-d sacrificed Jesus Yeshua on the altar of the world to clear that world of sin. Having faith in Him sets us in the clear. G-d decided on this course of action in full view of the public—to set the world in the clear with Himself through the sacrifice of Jesus Yeshua, finally taking care of the sins He had so patiently endured. This is not only clear, but it's now—this is current history! G-d sets things right. He also makes it possible for us to live in His rightness. So where does that leave our proud Jewish insider claims and non-Jewish counter-claims? Canceled? Yes, canceled. What we've learned is this: G-d does not respond to what we do; we respond to what G-d does. We've finally figured it out. Our lives get in step with G-d and all others by letting Him set the pace, not by proudly or anxiously trying to run the parade. And where does that leave our proud Jewish claim of having a corner on G-d? Also canceled. G-d is the G-d of outsider non-Jews as well as insider Jews. How could it be otherwise since there is only one G-d? G-d sets right all who welcome His action and enter into it, both those who follow our religious system and those who have never heard of our religion. But by shifting our focus from what we do to what G-d does, don't we cancel out all our careful keeping of the rules and ways G-d commanded? Not at all. What happens, in fact, is that by putting that entire way of life in its proper place, we confirm it. "Blessed are those whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered over; Adonai will not reckon against his account." For He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways...Are you deaf, can't you hear; look, you who act as if you were blind, can't you see? This Messianic prophecy concerning the suffering of Messiah that was written 700 years before the birth of Yeshua Jesus. It is as a great light to those who are walking in darkness or the shadow of death. Stop, grab hold and look at the book called 'Isaiah' in the 53rd chapter and realize that it does not take a genius to see that the image above, melds or blends with this ancient writing..."Who hath believed our report? And to whom is the arm of the L-rd revealed? For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: He hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from Him; He was despised, and we esteemed Him not. Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem Him stricken, smitten of G-d, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the L-rd hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth: He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb so He openeth not His mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgement: and who shall declare His generation? For He was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was He stricken. And He made His grave with the wicked, and with the rich in His death; because He had done no violence, neither was any deceit in His mouth. Yet it pleased the L-rd to bruise Him; He hath put Him to grief: when Thou shalt make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the L-rd shall prosper in His hand. He shall see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied: by His knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for He shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide Him a portion with the great, and He shall divide the spoil with the strong; because He hath poured out His soul unto death: and He was numbered with the transgressors; and He bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors." Pages of my life... Now T'oma (Thomas), (the name means "twin), one of the Twelve, was not with them when Yeshua Jesus came. When the other tilmidim (disciples) told him, "We have seen the L-rd," T'oma replied, "Unless I see the nail marks in His hands, put my finger into the place where the nails were and put my hand into His side, I refuse to believe it." A week later His talmidin (disciples) were once more in the room, and this time T'oma was with them. Although the doors were locked, Yeshua came, stood among them and said, "Shalom aleikhem!" Then He said to T'oma, "Put your finger here, look at my hands, take your hand and put it into my side. Don't be lacking in trust, but have trust!" T'oma answered Him, "My L-rd and my G-d!" Yeshua said to Him, "Have you trusted because you have seen me? How blessed are those who do not see, but trust anyway!" "For there will be trouble then worse than there has ever been from the beginning of the world until now, and there will be nothing like it again! Indeed if the length of time had not been limited, no one would survive; but for the sake of those who have been chosen, its length will be limited. At that time, if someone says to you,'Look! Here's the Messiah!' or, 'There He is!' don't believe him; for there will appear false prophets performing great miracles- amazing things! - so as to fool even the chosen, if possible. There! I have told you in advance! So if people say to you, 'Listen! He's out in the desert!' don't go; or, 'look! He's hidden away in a secret room!' don't believe it. For when the Son of Man does come, it will be like lightning that flashes out of the east and fills the sky to the western horizon. Wherever there's a dead body, that's where you find the vultures. But immediatly following the trouble of those times, the sun will grow dark, the moon will stop shining, the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers in heaven will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, all the tribes of the Land will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with tremendous power and glory. He will send out His angels with a shofar (trumpet); and they will gather together His chosen people from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other." Thank you my sister Linda; for I too love Israel and pray for the peace of Jerusalem. I am so sorry too, for those who have been mistreated or hurt because of religious hatred. I pray for G-d's will to be done on this earth with you, my beloved Achot in Yeshua. Oh what a miserable man that I am: "I cried because I had no shoes, until I met a man who had no feet"...forgive this man for the absence of gratitude. Cause my heart to be content with these naked feet. 1 Thessalonians 5:18: Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is Adonai's will for you who belong to Yeshua Jesus. Watchfulness: "Be dressed and ready for service. Keep your lamps burning, waiting for your Messiah to return for the wedding banquet, so that when He comes and knocks, we can immediately open the door for Him. It will be good for those servants who the Messiah finds watching when he comes. I tell you the truth, He will dress Himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. It will be good for those servants whose Messiah finds them ready, even if He comes in the second or third watch of the night. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect Him." Everyone who hears these words and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the Rock.