I've started an ecommerce business where I sell products on Amazon.com and I really enjoy this business venture.
Amazons platform essentially makes my products available to anyone who has an amazon account in the USA & at the same time allows me to work normal hours to have time left over for family/other things. My old business was all consuming so this new career/ life style change as been great for my family and I.

The lingering question I have in the back of my mind is about Amazons views on Abortion and miscellaneous other things. Example: I've read they compensate employees for abortion travel and I'm sure there are other things I don't agree with that they support/practice.

The question I have is, is there any Biblical / Moral issue with Christians selling products on Amazon/Doing business with amazon (or any other business for that matter) when we are aware of practices they partake in that are against our beliefs?

I'm just looking for some other Christian's biblical perspective on this.

Thank you!

To Singles struggling:

Truths:
We know it's never too late.
If it doesn't happen then that's good, I was called to a different path.
There will always be singles available.
There's a lot to be thankful for & enjoy.
It is wrong to be upset, not because it makes us feel bad, but because it is sin & unfaithful to God.
We know God works miracles. Maybe it's just a little bit longer. Good things take time.
We know marriage doesn't satisfy.
We know God has called everyone to different paths according to his beautiful design we may not understand in the moment.
We know we should do everything without complaining, but with joy as a form of praise & thankfulness.
We know we were chosen by God & promised to him & that is sufficient.
We know God is always good.
We know there will still be a hole even if married, although maybe it'd be a smaller hole.
We know we don't know if I never date & get married, so there's no use pretending I know better than God.
We know God's immense love for us even tho we feel inadequate.
We know how he has given people to love us & us to love so we can experience love even tho we want marriage love.
We know he has given us other things to enjoy than love.
Everything works for God's glory, & because we are united to him in Christ, our glory.

How will we know when the great tribulation will start?

Hello all

I just wanted to put a few of my thoughts down here on the forums taught to me by God, I don't mind if others dont agree but i just want to share my point of view and what ive learned...

God is almighty. He loves us all no matter what sins we've done in the past.

I feel that love and understanding of others should be our top priority in life, we should never judge others because we haven't lived their life, we don't understand the complexity of their minds, their experiences, their feelings, their fears and why they do the things they do. Remember that we are not our thoughts we are higher than our thoughts. Just because we think something, does not make it so. We should respect one another and not pull others down we do not agree with, we're all human no one is better than anyone else. People do things we don't agree with, all we can do is live our life and trust God's plan for ourselves. We should never compare ourselves to others, we're all special. We all have something to give to others, we're all good at something. Some are smarter in some ways than others, but we all have a speciality we should use for good and God.

Don't assume things about others, always find out facts before jumping to conclusions as sometimes, (I don't know if this happens to anyone else by the way), but I feel God tests others I meet through me... im very quiet and sometimes people, I feel,mistake my quietness for ignorance or that I'm hiding something sinister. I'm quiet because im shy, respectful to others and I value others opinion, I like listening to others, im humble and sometimes silence speaks more than words.

Ive looked into narcisistic personality disorder and how it affects people with it. These poor souls have convinced themselves into thinking their's is the only opinion that matters and have an unreasonable sense of their own importance, they can be very selfish, they need Gods help very much so, its very hard to reverse and they dont listen to other's opinion as they're always looking for their version of perfection. Hopefully because God IS perfect they'd listen to him. I want to help others and the first step is understanding their problems. We all have unique battles to face both in the world and within ourselves, and God helps us along the way. I feel a good first step is to remember your thoughts arnt always facts, just because a lot of people hold the same opinion they feel it adds more weight to something, however sometimes everyone is wrong...only God is right.

Things happen in our lives that we don't like. Life is grossly unfair sometimes...we have the rich living their best life and we have a lot of poor people suffering in silence and in poverty. God can't control our actions or the actions of others and sometimes things happen without warning. I know God watches over all of us. We're not all robots under Gods command...we wouldnt be free. He gave us all free will, he guides us all if we love one another and him, he shows us things to test us sometimes and he tries to help us become more like his son Jesus. If everything was perfect in our lives and if we lived forever here on Earth we wouldn't need to go to heaven, we'd already be there.

Life is a test of our faith, those who push themselves to the top at the expense of others will be judged unfavourably, if you love others and put God first, its like a guarantee that your life has meaning and purpose. By sinning your whole life and not listening to what God trys to tell you, its a risk, a very big risk. Its a risk we shouldn't take, no one is sure about what happens when we die, wouldn't it be wiser to inherit a place in heaven through Jesus Christ then to cast it all away and not listen to God's message of love and peace. Jesus loves us all so much that he died for our sins in the most brutal and painful way possible, he was blameless and he made the ultimate sacrifice for us, not because of greed or selfishness but because he loves us all! And then he rose again! no man can do this only God can do this!

God forgives all sins you just have to realise this and stop sinning willingly, if you know full well what you are doing is wrong, why do it? No one is beyond redemption...no one. Everyone has the power to be strong in faith even if your body is weak. You can accomplish anything with God...if you are pure hearted and your motives are true to God. Let God strengthen you, no harm can come to your soul with God at your side, your body will wither away and die but your soul will live forever with God, you don't have to be afraid of anything. Suffering is temporary, you dont have to be scared once God is in your life, it may not seem like it, but the reward at the end is worth it, we have no idea how much love and warmth and belonging you have with God, all are welcome...he knows everything about each and every one of us, he created us all, after all, he knows our pasts, our futures, our feelings, what we choose and why... everything. He wants us all to be by his side, but he knows many will reject him but those that join him in the kingdom of heaven he will cherish forever, he knows the outcome of everything, God planned it all from the start of existence, God is perfect, God is love. Praise the almighty God and his Son Jesus Christ Hallelujah!

The devil influences people on Earth but with God nothing can harm you. Gods armour is impenetrable. Innocents suffer, why? how can God let this happen? it is not God it is the sin we let into the world. Why do we sin? to impress others? to fit in? selfishness? Its not worth it in the end, make a stand and be unlike what is in 'fashion' at the time and dont pay attention to what others are doing. These days a lot of people generally do whatever they want regardless of whether they should... life without God is chaos. People influence others. People can justify anything in their minds on issues regarding what's morally right and wrong. Remember, God is perfect, no man or woman can compare. God is always right. He should always come first in everything we do. He made us all and he's very real, not just in our minds, trust me! What is seen on Earth comes from the transient world we let sin into, what is unseen is eternal. We could never conclusively prove God exists or doesn't exist through science, God has thought of everything he is perfect.

Never harm others...physically, emotionally in anyway. Put yourself in others shoes not because God tells you to in scripture but because you could have been the other person in that position, how would you feel if roles were reversed? When you sin it affects not only youself but the other person on the recieving end...revenge, hate and anger may be on the minds of the victim this is the aftermath of sin. Learn to forgive and forget, understand when you're in that position on the recieving end of sin to turn the other cheek...God is forgiving and we should be too.

That thing you've been thriving for your whole life, that one thing that slips through your fingers everytime...you don't need it, all you need is God's love. In heaven, that thing you wanted here on Earth can't even compare. Life is hard, it would be nice with that thing you wanted, but do you really need it? try to think that if situations were different the thing might never have been there to recieve in the first place, so dont worry that you dont get what you want on Earth. Others have lived before you without it, what makes you more privileged than them...we are all children of God.

When you are feeble you are strong, when you have nothing and life has taken everything from you...God is at his closest to you. When you see no hope of a better future, God protects you...hes always there he won't let you take a burden alone. He loves us so much...we are his children, he'll NEVER leave us. Your relationship with God should be that he's the Father and we are the child, he knows better than us...he sees what we do not see, we know it is to protect us, he should be respected and feared to prevent us from sinning becuase he doesnt want us to fail and make mistakes.

I've made mistakes, anger at others has sometimes overwhelmed me, and im far too hard on myself, i havn't been well in the last few weeks but with God at the core of my life now I have great understanding and peace. My love for my wife and our daugther and all my family members shines through, I never want to stray from God and I know I dont have to worry about anything because God is watching over me and my family at all times.

God is perfect you can't deny him, with his help I'm becoming wiser everyday, God never changes and neither should we once we've found him in our lives. I feel the world overcomplicates things, i just want to put my opinion accross to share what ive been through and shown by God in my life. He has given me so much wisdom everything I've said here God has shown me in some way or another, hes shown me some amazing things, I'm just spreading his word....I dont want wealth or fame, i dont want anything in return, I just want to help God save his children in these dark times. I hope this helps someone and makes them realise there's more than what we see here on Earth.

I get these religious experiences from time to time usually when I'm tired, sort of like visions gifted to me. I don't know who I am or if I'm special to other Christians, I know im James and I know I love God and everyone he has made regardeless of their actions, afterall hate the sin not the sinner, I pray for all who are suffering in the world at the moment and I wish everyone the best.

God bless

Spreading love and happiness to all

James

How do you make sense of life when life doesn't make much sense? What do you do when the events of life just seem so stupid and nonsensical that they don't seem to have much of a point and you're just longing for your far better heavenly home? Sometimes it's so hard to understand what God is doing and what His will is, despite praying so much for His will to be done. How do you come to terms with what is His will and let go of the "what if this or that had happened?" and the self-blame that accompanies you when things seem to go not so well?

SACRAMENTO —
Gov. Gavin Newsom took his feud with Gov. Ron DeSantis to new heights on Monday, seemingly threatening him with kidnapping charges after California officials say South American migrants were sent to Sacramento by the state of Florida

Sixteen migrants from Venezuela and Colombia were transported from Texas to New Mexico and flown on a chartered jet to Sacramento, where they were dropped off Friday at a church, Newsom said.

On Monday, a plane carrying 20 migrants arrived in Sacramento. Both groups were flown by the same contractor and were carrying documents indicating that their transportation involved the state of Florida, according to officials with the California Department of Justice.


I think labelling it as "kidnapping" is a bit of a stretch.

If the US Federal government is allowed to do catch & release style programs and dump people off in red states in a van with no prospects and nowhere to go and that's not called kidnapping...it's even less so for people to flown via private charter jet and dropped off in a city that boasts being a "sanctuary city" and has gone on records as welcoming migrants.

Dirty move by the GOP?, yes.

But is it highlighting the hypocrisy of blue cities that are far removed from the problem?, also yes.

“They have built the high places of Baal to burn their sons in the fire as offerings to Baal—something I did not command or mention, nor did it enter my mind.” (Jeremiah 19:5)

Question for the controversial theology forum: How did something that happened not enter God's mind in advance?

• Gas-Light - manipulate (someone) using psychological methods into questioning their own sanity or powers of reasoning.


I wanted to ask in this section how some of you personally deal with Sociopaths that use gaslighting and deceptive mind games to make you question your reality and harass you. Satanic / witchcraft people love to do this and also people who have really suppressed their conscience past the point of no return. They think that they are being slick and sneaky because they are doing it covertly.

(The worst is when someone in The Church does it to you. I had a young priest when I was Eastern Orthodox who did this to me. He would make fun of me in a low key mocking way and so would some of the parishioners. It Was Soul Crushing and disappointing.)

Do you call them out ?

How do you confront it and win in a Christian way etc ?


It even happens on this forum sometimes.
Any advice or personal experiences would be appreciated. Thanks.

I think we can all agree that God is sovereign. This thread is meant to try to explore the extent of His sovereignty. So to start, I pose these questions.

Does God know every action man might freely choose? If so, can He let man do that action if it suits His purpose? Also, can He intervene to prevent man from performing that action?

I've been saying this until I was blue in the face for years, and people would roll their eyes and think to themselves, "This guy is a right-wing conspiracy nut---totally off his rocker."

Well, here's an article written by a former Congressman, that tells the story much, much better than I ever could:

This one is Catholic.

Fortunately, the anticipated surge in illegal border crossings with the lifting of Title 42 didn't happened.

Since the CDC’s Title 42 public health Order lifted and the Biden-Harris Administration’s comprehensive plan to manage the border went into full effect on May 12, DHS has continued to experience a significant reduction in encounters at the Southwest Border.

As a result of planning and execution—which combined stiffer consequences for unlawful entry with a historic expansion of lawful pathways and processes—unlawful entries between ports of entry along the Southwest Border have decreased by more than 70 percent since May 11. DHS has overseen significant expansions in lawful pathways even as we have repatriated a significant number of migrants.

From May 12 to June 2, 2023, DHS repatriated over 38,400 noncitizens under Title 8 authorities, including single adults and families, to more than 80 countries.

...

Was thinking about it, yesterday, and a little today, took only a few seconds today for it to hit me, you can send out some invisble dust in front of the light-beam, a countinous spray of dust, non-harmful, and the light hits it, it was there in front of me all the time, was a little hard to find a solution for it, a way to sort of, stop the light-beam

The topic's passage is a little bit difficult to deal with. It says Nebuchadnezzar will level the fortress island of Tyre and that Tyre will never be rebuilt, but neither thing happened.

Ezekiel 26:1-14 On the first day of the...month of the eleventh year of our exile, the LORD spoke to me. 2 "Son of man," he said, "this is what the people in the city of Tyre are cheering about. They shout, 'Jerusalem is shattered! Her commercial power is gone! She won't be our rival any more!'

3 "Now then, this is what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying: I am your enemy, city of Tyre. I will bring many nations to attack you, and they will come like the waves of the sea. 4 They will destroy your city walls and tear down your towers. Then I will sweep away all the dust and leave only a bare rock. 5 Fishermen will dry their nets on it, there where it stands in the sea. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken. The nations will plunder Tyre, 6 and with their swords they will kill those who live in her towns on the mainland. Then Tyre will know that I am the LORD." 7 The Sovereign LORD says, "I am going to bring the greatest king of all—King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia—to attack Tyre. He will come from the north with a huge army, with horses and chariots and with cavalry. 8 Those who live in the towns on the mainland will be killed in the fighting. The enemy will dig trenches, build earthworks, and make a solid wall of shields against you. 9 They will pound in your walls with battering rams and tear down your towers with iron bars. 10 The clouds of dust raised by their horses will cover you. The noise of their horses pulling wagons and chariots will shake your walls as they pass through the gates of the ruined city. 11 Their cavalry will storm through your streets, killing your people with their swords. Your mighty pillars will be thrown to the ground. 12 Your enemies will help themselves to your wealth and merchandise. They will pull down your walls and shatter your luxurious houses. They will take the stones and wood and all the rubble, and dump them into the sea. 13 I will put an end to all your songs, and I will silence the music of your harps. 14 I will leave only a bare rock where fishermen can dry their nets. The city will never be rebuilt. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken."

I have a question - not intending to be an argument, nor criticism. Just seeking information from Catholics.

Has there ever been a Pope who resigned from the Catholic faith, to no longer be a Catholic ?

Or left Christianity ? Or left and chose another religion?

Thanks for any information.

Thank you.

Jeremiah 31:33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.

God isn't making a covenant with the world, He is only making the covenant with the House of Israel/the Twelve Tribes. If the world does not change citizenship to become part of Israel, they will not be given the Holy Spirit. Also when Christ returns, he's not coming to save the world, He is returning to save Israel--and Israel only.

Jeremiah 16:14-15 “Therefore behold, the days are coming,” says the LORD, “that it shall no more be said, ‘The LORD lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of Egypt,’ but, ‘The LORD lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north and from all the lands where He had driven them.’ For I will bring them back into their land which I gave to their fathers.'

Matthew 24:22; Ezekiel 37:16-24

The Exodus and End Times are book ends. The entire Bible is Israel-centric; it only ever has to do with Israel and nations that come in contact with Israel. But just like during the Exodus, a great mixed multitude came out with Israel.

How does this set with people who are against the Hebrew Roots movements, or those from the past who accused Christians of Judaizing and persecuted them for it? If you're not Israel, you won't be rescued. You don't have to be blood Israel anymore, but how does one know your citizenship, except by your culture and behavior? You can't continue in man-made traditions and the culture of the world if you're an Israelite by birth or adoption. If the world doesn't recognize you as an Israelite, a Spiritual Jew, or a "Judaizer", as some mock, then it's unlikely God does as well.

Hey, everyone, remember that dam that people always said the russians would blow up to flood Kherson after they lost control of it? Guess what.

"Everything is quiet and calm, there is nothing at all," RIA Novosti, one of Russia's state-owned news agencies, cited the mayor, Vladimir Leontiev, as saying. He later said that only "the upper part of the power plant" had been damaged, but the dam itself was intact. Leontiev later claimed that the dam was destroyed by Ukrainian shelling.

Click to expand...

On the upside, the dam was also responsible for crimeas main fresh water supply.

2 Corinthians 12:14-18 ESV


I am reading today in 2 Corinthians, chapter 12. Paul was under some kind of false accusations and persecutions and rejections, and so he was coming to his own defense, not only for his own sake, but for the sake of the gospel of Jesus Christ. For if he could be discredited, it would also discredit what he was teaching, too. So, he was defending his own honor and his calling of God and his own character and purpose and motives, as well. And he was letting them know that he was not in this for himself but for them, and for their good. And he said he would most gladly be spent for their souls.

So, another reason why it was important for Paul to defend his own honor was for the salvation of souls, and it was for the spiritual growth and maturity of those who claimed to be followers of Christ. And it was to prove his genuine love for the people and to demonstrate how he loved them. But the love that he had for them was not a fleshly and worldly love which is based in emotions, but the love he had for them was love that comes from God and that prefers what God prefers, which is what is righteous, holy, upright, morally pure, honest, and faithful.

And so he asked them, “If I love you more, am I to be loved less?”

Now he was concerned that they were misinterpreting his motives and that they were being led astray by false apostles, and that they were not seeing him through the correct spiritual lens. For perhaps they were being influenced by the false apostles to take Paul to task. Or perhaps it was because some of them were still living in sin, and they had not repented of their impurity, sexual immorality, and sensuality that they had practiced, and so they attacked Paul because he was teaching against how they were living. And this is not unusual for this type of thing to take place.

Now, what is standing out to me here is the love that Paul had for those who had professed faith in Jesus Christ. And his love for them was demonstrated by his commitment to them and to their walks of faith, and by the fact that he was teaching them the truth, and that he was exhorting them to live holy and morally pure and upright lives for the glory of God. And this is how God loves us, too. In fact, we read in Hebrews 12 that God disciplines us for our good, because he loves us, and that discipline is painful, but that it will yield what is righteous in the lives of those trained by the discipline.

But many people professing faith in Jesus Christ today don’t want discipline, and they do not see discipline as God’s love. And they do not see instructions on holiness and warnings against continuing in sin as God’s love. And so they are being drawn to false teachers who are telling them “pleasant things,” the kinds of things which make them feel good about themselves, and that do not confront them with God and with his word and with his commands and with his instructions to us in holy living and in the forsaking of our sins. And so they will see love as what makes them feel good and not necessarily as what is for their good.

Now, I am certainly not suggesting that we must go around always talking about sin and judgment. But we need to understand that the love of God is not permissive. His love does not overlook habitual and deliberate and rebellious sinning against him and against other humans. His love is defined for us in Hebrews 12 as the love of a father who disciplines his children for their good. And he trains us in righteousness and holiness. But many people are getting this idea that God’s love just makes us feel good about ourselves, even if we are deliberately and habitually sinning against the Lord. And that is just wrong!

But is the love of God all discipline? No! He encourages us in many different ways, but his encouragements are based largely on our relationships with him and our actions and our obedience to him. Like he promises to be with us and to not leave us or forsake us, and that he will give us strength and courage, and the joy of the Lord will be our strength. And he lifts us up when we are downcast and when we need encouragement. But this isn’t for everyone who just says, “Lord, Lord.” This is for those who are walking according to the Spirit and no longer according to the flesh and who are honoring God with their lives.

So, back to what Paul was saying about his love for his spiritual children and his concern that they were loving him less, or not at all, in reality, for love does not treat people like some of them were treating Paul. We do need to understand that love is not all this feel good stuff that many are dishing out today. For these false teachers can make you feel good about yourself, and that can make you feel loved, but if they then lie to you and deceive you and so you believe their lies, and so you don’t repent of your sins, and thus you don’t end up in heaven, but in hell, then is that true love? NO! It isn’t!

But if we are truly loving people with the love of God, and so we will gladly spend our lives for their souls, even if we are not loved in return, then that is true love, for it is sacrificial love that is willing to be misunderstood and hated and judged unfairly in order to tell the people the truth which will save their souls from hell and which will lead them to walks of holiness and righteousness in the power of God. And this is how God loves us, for he is willing to have us hate him and to reject him in order to tell us the truth and in order to discipline us for our good in hopes that we will follow him and that we will have the hope of salvation from sin and eternal life with God.

Do You Love Me?

An Original Work / July 24, 2013

Do you love Me now?
Will you seek My face?
I have given you
My love and My grace.
Will you walk with Me
Ev’rywhere I lead?
Will you find in Me
All of what you need?

Won’t you meet with Me
Down upon your knees?
Will you obey Me,
And do what I please?
Will you hear My voice
Speaking now to you?
I am couns’ling you
To abide in truth.

I have died for you;
Taken all your sins –
Crucified with Me,
You have been forgiv’n.
I have set you free
From your slavery,
So that you can now
Live in victory.

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PARASHA: “Nasso” (Elevate) NUMBERS 4:21-7:89

God has us all counted, and is counting on us to take part in ministry. As the Levites served, so we as believers serve using our spiritual gifts. Don't let HIM down!


We will see various themes in this Parashah study. In Chapter 4, the duties of some of the important Levite families; “B’nei Kohat” “B’nei Gershon” and “B’nei Merari” (sons of). Their jobs consisted in taking down, transporting, and setting up the Mishkan (Tabernacle) throughout the wilderness journeys. Each family member had an important task to do within the Tabernacle and its furnishings. Interesting note that all the furnishings had to be covered by blue cloth. Blue symbolizes “HaShamayim” (The Heavenlies) This was their service in ministering to the LORD and to the other tribes in Israel. We also have jobs to do in ministry.

It is interesting to understand the root meanings of these names; “Gershon” (Ger) means “sojourner” a visitor and not a permanent resident. “Merari” (Maror) means, “sad” or “bitterness”. And then “Kohat” meaning “togetherness in a congregation (Kahal). So these family members transported the furnishings of the Tabernacle from one site to another for the 40 years they were in the wilderness. (perhaps one site per year, since there were 40 encampment sites).

By the meanings of these names, we can see; “We move together as a congregation, but as sojourners, not permanent residents, and even though sometimes moving can be sad, and we go through bitter times, we must remember that YHVH is with us and will never abandon us”

We are all “sojourners” on planet Earth, and at times, we run into bitter experiences such as job losses, perhaps untimely deaths, divorces, lost friendships, etc…yet we must remember that we are all part of the Body of Messiah, which is our main “Adat” (Body) but we have many “Kehilot” (congregations, assemblies) and we must encourage each other to stay firm and keep our eyes and hopes on the World to Come, Eternity, The New Jerusalem, we all have our permanent residence there, and there we will no longer be “sojourners” and there will be no more “bitterness” and this earth will be re-made, re-fashioned into, perhaps, what it was at the beginning of time, before sin and corruption, and the New Jerusalem will come down to sit on the “New Earth” forever. “Baruch HaShem!”

In the service to Adonai, we each have different jobs and ministries to perform. The Body of Messiah consists of many members, some preachers/pastors/rabbis, teachers of the Torah, of Hebrew, Youth ministers, musicians, praise and worship members and leaders, finance personnel, maintenance personnel, prayer warriors, intercessors, counselors, and the list could go on, HaShem has put his Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit) on each and every born-again believer and has given each member different gifts and jobs to do in the body of Mashiach. We have all been “elevated” to perform our different ministries in the Body of Messiah Yeshua.

It is very interesting that in this Parashah, there are the repeated letters “Ayin and dalet” In this case the two letters are pronounced “ED” which in Hebrew means “witness’. The word for “congregation” is “Adat” which has the letters “Ayin and dalet” the other word “Avodah” which means “service” also has the letters “Ayin and Dalet”.

We can look at it in this way; When we “serve” or do “service” in our “congregations” we should be good “witnesses” to those who observe us, as also, there are “witnesses” in the heavenlies who observe our service to our LORD and God. Just as the different families of the Levites served in the Tabernacle and later in the temple, so we also should serve in our congregations using our spiritual gifts and abilities.

There should be no laziness in the body. We were not appointed just to show up on the sabbath and/or on Sundays just to sit in the pews, listen to the message, drop some money in the box, and leave. It is much, much more than that, anyone can do just that, what are you doing with YOUR gifts of the spirit?

It is interesting to note that service in the Mishkan started at 30 years old and ended at 50. (4:29) Each Levite family member had a twenty-year commitment to serve. When did Yeshua begin his ministry? When he was 30 years old! Coincidence? Or obedience to Torah?

Chapter 5; Unclean persons isolated! Anyone who was physically unclean had to be put outside the camp until the uncleanliness had passed. When we sin, can we consider ourselves spiritually “outside the camp?” out of fellowship with YHVH? I would say yes, our spiritual condition is much more important than our physical condition, as Adonai looks upon the heart and not upon the flesh. But once we repent and get right again with our LORD, we are back in fellowship and in the right standing. We could be physically inside the synagogue or church, going through the “praise” motions, yet spiritually miles away, yet through true confession and “Teshuvah” when we “Shoov” (return) to Adonai, He accepts us again. He never leaves us, we leave HIM!

(5:5) Confession and Restitution; Part of our lives is “confession and restitution” If we have wronged our brother or sister in Messiah, we must confess that “wrong” and if possible, make up the “wrong” if it is possible. If not, when all we can offer is a sincere “I am sorry for what I did” then, it is up to the person wronged to be mature enough to accept that and leave the event in the past, and not mention it at all, forevermore.

(5:11) Concerning unfaithful wives; it the days of old in Israel, if a wife was accused by her husband of adultery, she had to either confess or take an oath of “not guilty” a prayer was written with the name YHVH on it, and washed off into a bit of muddy water, if the woman told the truth, nothing would happen to her and the husband would have to accept her and HE would have to confess his “jealous spirit” BUT If the woman were guilty, then, her thigh would rot and her belly would swell. that would be a horrible punishment, sounds like her womb would never again harbor a child.

However, this might be a psychological measure. If the woman were indeed guilty of adultery, she could admit her guilt, knowing what would happen to her if she covered her sin. The worse that could happen would be that the husband would issue her a letter of divorcement. Stoning happened only if the man and woman were caught in the act, and/or there were witnesses to the said act.

A lesson to all marriages to be faithful one to the other. Not that the same thing would happen, but where there is adultery, there is the spirit of jealousy, the spirit of HaSatan, and many times, broken marriages and lives, marriage is a covenant, and a broken covenant leads to the curse.

Chap 6. The Law of the Nazarite. After reading this chapter, we ask ourselves, are there Nazarites today? Is there any prohibition of undergoing a Nazarite vow? Torah does not prohibit it, if a person feels compelled to take a Nazarite vow, then, that person should honor that vow and stay away from raisins and grape juice, and grape wine. If one could remember the 1960s, in the “hippie era” one could think; “a lot of Nazarites, everyone has long hair” but not so, I don’t think that hippies had long hair because they were Nazarites. One can take an “oath” to serve HaShem completely for “X” amount of years, perhaps on the mission field, without undertaking a Nazarite vow, remember it is the heart that matters, not so much the “hair”

The Priestly Blessing; a very important blessing that says a lot: MAY YHVH BLESS YOU AND KEEP YOU

This is written in the Hebrew “singular” YOU not the plural YOU, because Israel, and all believers today are as ONE (Echad) in unity and ONE in fellowship, Adonai KEEPS us by “guarding us against curses and calamity, against sickness, poverty, He delivered our souls from the curse of sin, through Yeshua HaMashiach. However, we can, through rebellion, bring on to ourselves these curses!

MAY YHVH MAKE HIS FACE SHINE UPON YOU AND BE GRACIOUS UNTO YOU. The idea of “shine” is happiness, purity, and friendship so, May “P’nei Adonai” bring happiness to you and keep you pure “tahor” and bring you many friends, also GRACIOUS is from the Hebrew “Chen” (grace) something that is not merited, by GRACE we are saved, not by our own merit, He showed us the “Face of Grace” in YESHUA HaMASHIACH who is our YESHUAH (salvation)

LIFT UP HIS COUNTENANCE UPON YOU AND GIVE YOU PEACE. May YHVH give his “attention” to you and direct it to you, and may you rest in HIS SHALOM! When we have Yeshua as Mashiach, we have that internal shalom, in spite of the world around us being in a lot of “unrest”

So THEY SHALL PUT MY NAME ON THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL AND I WILL BLESS THEM. We can see that one of the names of God which is EL, is part of the name “YisraEL” and the most sacred name; YHVH is part of “Y’HUdaH (Judah)

Chap 7 “The offerings of the leaders” The leaders of the Tribes of Israel brought offerings to the Mishkan, great offerings of silver, gold, and other items, for the maintenance of the Tabernacle. Today, we bring tithes and offerings, yet our offerings can also be the offering up of our Time and Talent as well as our finances, it all goes back to using our spiritual gifts to edify the body of Messiah.

So remember, we can ALL participate in ministry. We ALL have something to contribute.

"Researchers have uncovered evidence that members of a mysterious archaic human species buried their dead and carved symbols on cave walls long before the earliest evidence of burials by modern humans.

The brains belonging to the extinct species, known as Homo naledi, were around one-third the size of a modern human brain.

The revelations could change the understanding of human evolution, because until now such behaviors only have been associated with larger-brained Homo sapiens and Neanderthals."

https://www.cnn.com/2023/06/05/world/homo-naledi-burials-carvings-scn/index.html

Hi Guys.

I just saw a video that made sense as I have been guilty of it too. (Goes only for about 1 min)
For a long time as a believer, I was stuck in habitual sin. This sin made me feel like I was a hypocrite. Which I was. Because of this feeling, I felt guilty telling the Gospel. I felt like a liar. So, leave your sin. Every time you sin, you will then put off sharing the Gospel with others for even longer. Sin will stop you from doing what Christ has called you into.
But the longer you are away from sin, the more you feel renewed. And the more you push into his word, the more you will love Him. The more you love Him, the more you will be excited about Him and then you will want to tell everyone.
So, stop sinning. It is hindering/stopping your ministry. Love God with all your heart. Then go and preach the Gospel. Become a weapon for God.
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