Keep The Faith

We are part of God’s body, and Yeshua (Jesus) is the Head. When His body is healthy, every part listens to Him and works in harmony. But when we stop listening, the body becomes sick. This is how I’ve come to understand sin. Picture a human body. Each one of us is a part of that body, receiving our directives from the Head — Yeshua. In a healthy body, every part responds to the signals it receives. But when a cell stops listening and begins doing its own thing, the body becomes sick. That sickness is cancer. And spiritually, that sickness is sin. Romans 12:4–5 “For just as each of us has one body with many members… so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.” Sin behaves the same way: self‑directed, self‑sufficient, ignoring the signals of the Head. We go off on our own, following our own impulses instead of Yeshua’s instructions. But I believe with all my heart t...

Just yesterday as I was e-mailing my cousins, I came to realize that June 6, 2014 will be exactly three years that I have written to this blog. So many things with this blog have been associated with the number three. I sense my work here may be drawing to an end and certainly the last post "God is Love!!!!!" would be very appropriate. I always remember some words of my dad from oh so long ago just before he punished me; "This is going to hurt me more than it does you." Isn't this Father God?

As I was sitting in my quit family room this morning drinking my coffee, I was thinking about “God is Love” and how His great love fits what we read in the Bible and with what is going on in our world today. It is difficult to piece this together but I believe I understand how it does fit. I thought about Adam and Eve. I don’t know if there was actually a fruit they ate that opened there eyes to know what is good and evil or if it is just a way to show our downfall. What happened was that man began to judge. This judgment was putting self at the top. It didn’t care about others; it only cared about self and what was good for self and believing that what is good for self is good for others. I guess this wanting to judge, or wanting to be god or be like God started with Satan or Lucifer as he was once called. Isaiah 14:12-14 New International Version (NIV) 12 How you have fallen from heaven, morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you wh...

We have had this idea of hell being a place of unending torment for so long it has become ingrained in us; it will be difficult to think of it in any other way. I know I have struggled with this for several years now and even today I ask myself sometimes, “Am I wrong? Am I not seeing this correctly?” I know that in my heart I believe that this hell talked about in the Bible is SHAME; shame that will come to most all of us when God judges justly. Because Father God knows me perfectly, whatever shame I must endure will be my just reward. I trust Him to judge me fairly. I know that there are many Christians who will disagree with me venomously and adhere to traditional teaching. I have a great burden in this and wish we could all see this in the same way but in my small faith, I don’t see that happening. God is bigger than my small faith and I know that whatever I do or say does not change His truths. I know He WILL accomplish His wonderful plan. When you study the scriptures,...

I want to ask you something. By your present beliefs and knowledge of the Bible, are any of your close family members going to hell? .................... Does it appear that just a few people in the world today are going to hell or a great number? .................. Do you have the traditional belief that all who go to hell will never get out and live in torment for eternity? Does this give you great joy knowing this? So, where is this great joy told by the angle to the shepherds when Jesus was born? Luke 2:8-10 New International Version (NIV) 8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Do you actually believe that our Loving Father God would hinge everything on your acce...

As I’ve been studying God’s Word, I have found that our English translation seems inadequate to me to get what the writers of the original text meant to say; especially the words used where we are to ascertain God’s character and how we are to meet with Him. The words like wrath, vengeance, hate, anger, fear, etc used to give us a picture of God; I believe they are sending us the wrong impression of Him. Why do you think that when Yeshua (Jesus), God’s Son, was here on earth with us that He referred to God as Father; Matthew 23:9 “Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.” In the Gentile “Old Testament” (Jewish or Hebrew Bible “Torah”), God is also referred to as “Father” Malachi 2:10 Yeshayahu- Isaiah 64:7 . There is great confusion also as to who are God’s children and again, there is reason for us to be confused because of the wording used in our English translations. Personally, I believe we all are His children because of scri...

Who Do You Pray To? A short reflection on prayer, clarity, and the relationship between Yeshua and the Father. Christians often pray without ever stopping to consider who they are addressing. It may seem like a strange question, but for many believers, this is a very real point of confusion. I know it was for me. For years, I struggled with whether I was praying to Yeshua (Jesus) or to Father God. Sometimes my prayers felt directed toward Jesus; other times toward the Father. It wasn’t until a profound vision—an experience I’ve shared before—that I finally understood with clarity: I pray to Father God, YAHUAH, YAHWEH, HaAv. Scripture gives us a complex but beautiful picture of the relationship between Yeshua and the Father. Many passages teach their oneness— John 14:9–11 , John 10:38 , John 8:58 , John 5:17–18 , John 10:30–33 . Yet Yeshua Himself says the Father is greater than He ( John 14:28 ). In John 14:6–7 , we see both truths held together: unity and distinction...

Father God has been teaching me about giving; His giving to us and our giving to others. A few days ago, my wife talked with our young grandson, we’ll just call him Tim. After their conversation, my wife tells me that Tim heard from his mom that PopPop (me) could use some help cleaning out my garden beds and he was willing to help. My wife told Tim that it was very nice of him to offer his help and maybe PopPop would reward you. Tim perked up and asked, “Do you really think he would reward me, grandma?” Well, Tim had told me several days before that there was a new toy he wanted to buy and he was saving up his money, so I though he wanted to earn money to buy it. I asked my wife what she thought I should give him and she told me that it doesn’t matter that he was just wanting to help his PopPop; just give what I thought would be appropriate; he would accept any reward I give him. Now I’m starting to wander, was Tim’s original thought, help his PopPop and not expect anythin...

Our mother passed away recently, Feb. 1st to be exact. She left to my sister, my brother, and I an inheritance of equal portions of all that she had. Because of some things that happened in the past, my sister made a comment about not feeling deserving of her portion. It made me think a lot this morning about this whole inheritance thing. I think I understand more clearly now about the story in the Bible about Jacob and Esau . Esau didn't put much value on his birthright, same thing as inheritance . In a way I have not put much value in my inheritance from mom, so I count myself as not being deserving. You know, it was mom's good pleasure to give the three of us equal portions of all that she had. She could have given it to someone more deserving but she loved us equally to divide what she had equally. I think it matters most how I honor mom and dad (dad passed 44 years ago) by how much I value it or by what I do with it. This has taught me so much a...

Why wait until the day Father God lifts the veil and reveals our true selves — the way He sees us and the way others have seen us? Why carry baggage into that moment that we could lay down now? You and I still have time to work on these things while we are here. Ask Father God to soften your heart. Ask Him to reveal the wrongs you’ve done to others, and the wrongs others have done to you. Ask Him for the strength to go — while they are still alive — and seek forgiveness. And ask Him for the grace to forgive those who have wounded you. For those we have wronged who have already passed on, we will have to wait to see whether they forgave us. If not, we will bear that grief and shame ourselves. Better to settle matters now, while mercy is still within reach. Luke 12:57–59 Yeshua (Jesus) spoke directly to this, urging us to settle our accounts before we stand before the Judge. He warns that if we ref...

What did Jesus mean by “the sign of Jonah”? A deep study of Jonah, repentance, divine compassion, and God’s intention for all humanity. Explore prophetic themes, mercy, and the heart of God revealed in both Jonah and Jesus. The Sign of Jonah: What Jesus Meant and Why It Matters When Jesus walked the earth, the religious leaders demanded a sign from Him—something dramatic that would prove His authority. Their request wasn’t born of faith but of testing. Jesus answered them with a mysterious phrase: “No sign will be given except the sign of Jonah.” He repeated this message to the crowds as well. Here are the gospel references: Gospel References to the Sign of Jonah Matthew 12:39 “An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet.” Matthew 16:4 “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign; and a sign will not be given it, except the sign of Jonah.” Then He left them and went away. Luke 11:29...

How Does One Come to the Place of Repentance? How does a person come to the place in life where they truly want to repent? It seems to me that God Himself must open the eyes of one’s heart to see the wrong they have done. Without His mercy, we remain blind to our own condition. This is why I’ve come to believe that God is saving this deep awakening for the time just before Yeshua returns to rule. When that moment comes, none of us will be able to judge or question God by saying, “Why are You saving so‑and‑so?” Instead, the only honest question will be, “Why are You saving me?” We all find it easy to judge others, yet we struggle to see our own wretched condition. We think wrong thoughts, we do wrong things, and even the good that comes from us is not truly from us. It is from God — yet we often take the credit. Scripture Witness The Bible teaches that we are to be holy because God is holy ( Leviticus 19:2 ). But it also teaches that none of us is r...