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17th of the 2nd month 2022/2023.

Shalom all,

Just a gentle reminder that we are now in …. Day 31 of the counting up to 50 to Shaḇuoth!!!

The more that we consider the reality of making the daily conscious decision, to walk in the ways of our Master יהושע Messiah, the more we are aware of our need to stay in the light and not allow any form of compromise to cause us to be found dwelling in the shadows of the darkness of sin..

Kěpha Aleph/1Peter 2:9But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a set-apart nation, a people for a possession, that you should proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvellous light.

Being called out of darkness means exactly that: called out to stay out!!!

And the only way to ‘stay out’ of darkness, that we have been called out from, is to ‘stay in’, or remain in, His Light! .

In a short message, to encourage us to stay in our Master and walk as He walked, let us look at the clear words from Yoḥanan Aleph, in a message called:

KEEP WALKING… IN THE LIGHT!.

Please read Yoḥanan Aleph/1 John 1:5-10.

These are very simple enough instructions indeed, yet so easily and quickly overlooked and misunderstood by so many people who are sadly still dwelling ‘in the dark’, so to speak. The clear message here, is that we are to be walking in the Light and not in darkness! .

Here we can see, straight up, in verse 5, that Elohim is light – in which there is no darkness:

Tehillah/Psalm 27:1 “יהוה is my light and my deliverance; whom should I fear? יהוה is the refuge of my life; whom should I dread?

Dawiḏ says that יהוה is his light and his deliverance and that יהוה is his refuge.

Having said that, let me show you the essence of what he is expressing here as a very bold statement at a very testing time of his life..

The Hebrew word for ‘my light’ is אוֹרִי ôriy which, at its root, is the word אוֹר or – Strong’s H215 which means, to be or become light, give light, shine and this infinitely profound Name of Elohim, as his light, is only found here in this passage, of which there is only one other expression, in the Scriptures, that can be compared to it, which is found in Yeshayahu/Isaiah 60:1 in the phrase “… your light has come…”, which is written in the Hebrew text as follows:

בָא אוֹרֵךְ

ḇa ôrekha

This is a clear reference to Messiah – the Light of the world, which our Master declares to us in:

Yoḥanan/John 12:46 I have come as a light into the world, so that no one who believes in Me should stay in darkness..

The plural of the word אוּר ur – Strong’s H217 is used in:

Shemoth/Exodus 28:30 “And into the breastplate of right-ruling you shall put the Urim and the Tummim, and they shall be on the heart of Aharon when he goes in before יהוה. And Aharon shall bear the right-ruling of the children of Yisra’ĕl on his heart before יהוה, continually.

The Hebrew word אוּרִים Urim – Strong’s H224 means, ‘lights, illuminations’ and was that which was placed in the breastplate of right-ruling of the High Priest, together with the תֻּמִּים Tummim, which is the plural of the word תֹּם tom, which carries the meaning of ‘perfections.

While there is no evidence to clearly tell us what the Urim and Tummim consisted of, be it stones or any other substance, what we can see is that the High Priest would use these in order to get right-ruling and so speaks of seeking the perfect truth from יהוה. .

What is very interesting, and worthy of noting, is that the first letter of the word אוּרִים Urim – Strong’s H224 is the letter א ‘aleph’, which is the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet, and the first letter of the word תֻּמִּים Tummim is the letter תtaw’, which is the last letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

Ḥazon/Revelation 1:8 “I am the ‘Aleph’ and the ‘Taw’, beginning and end,” says יהוה “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.

Yeshayahu/Isaiah 44:6 “Thus said יהוה, Sovereign of Yisra’ĕl, and his Redeemer, יהוה of hosts, ‘I am the First and I am the Last, besides Me there is no Elohim..

What are the urim and tummim?

They are the things that illuminate and perfect. .

We know that יהושע is the Light and He was the Perfect Lamb, and so this represents for us our need to hunger and thirst for righteousness and be perfect before Elohim, for He is perfect and we are called to be the salt and light, which we can only be when we seek out His Right-Ruling and walk according to that which is to be upon our heart – His Torah (notice the positioning of the Urim and Tummim in the breastplate – by the heart!!!)

He writes His Torah on our hearts and so it is our hearts and mouths that we may do it!.

In our Master, יהושע Messiah, is life and the life is the light of men!!! (Yoḥanan/John 1:4)

Those who are in the Master and stay in Him have life and life abundantly and need not fear the darkness of evil..

Whoever believes in the Master יהושע Messiah, never needs to stay in darkness anymore.

Many times, it may feel like we are in some of the darkest times of our lives, yet what we need to continually be reminded of, is that we have His Light: His Word which lights our path, to lead us in every step that we take!

And יהושע Messiah has revealed The Way to us, through His life, death and resurrection, in order that we can be confident, in boldly walking in the Light and being done with sin, which breeds in the darkness!.

What is worth taking note of, in terms of the Hebrew word for light, we are able to see a powerful Truth being given to us through the ancient pictographic of this word:.

The Hebrew words that are translated as ‘light, which is אוֹר oor – Strong’s H216 and ‘to shinewhich is אוֹר or – Strong’s H215, is written in the ancient pictographic script, as follows:.

      .

Aleph – א:

This is the letter ‘aleph’, in the ancient script is pictured as , the head of an ox, and represents ‘strength’, meaning ‘muscle’ as the ox is the strongest of the livestock animals. This also carries the meaning of ‘yoke’, as an ox is placed in a yoke in order to plough or pull a heavy load in the right direction.

This can also picture for us the ‘red heifer’ sacrifice, that יהושע Messiah fulfilled!.

Waw/Vav – וֹ:

This is the Hebrew letter ‘waw’ or ‘vav’ which in the ancient script is pictured as , which is a peg or ‘tent peg’, which was used for securing or tying the tent or other items. The possibility of it having a Y-shape is to show that it prevents the rope from slipping off. The root meaning of this letter is ‘to add, secure or hook’ as well as ‘bind’..

Reshרִ:

The ancient script has this letter as and is pictured as ‘the head of a man’ and has the meaning of the head of a man as well as ‘chief, top, begging or first’.

It has the meaning of ‘top’, as in the top or head of a body, and ‘chief’, as in a head of a tribe or people; as well as the one who rules the people. Every House has a head of the home, and all in the House submit to the instructions of the One who is head of the home, listening to and obeying the words that the Head speaks!.

When we consider these ancient pictographic letters, that render the word for ‘light, we can clearly see a powerful lesson, in terms of our Master, the Light of the world, giving us the rendering:.

STRENGTH SECURED IN THE HEAD!.

We have great confidence and security, in being able to be strong and courageous, as we walk in the Light, as our Master, who is our Head, is in the Light and in Him, we have been secured into His Covenants of promise, having called us out of darkness into His marvellous light, for His Word lights our path in a dark and depraved world! ..

What we can clearly see from the words of Yoḥanan, is that fellowship involves walking – and to have fellowship with Elohim, involves a walking in the Truth and ‘doing’ what we are instructed to do, according to His Torah, as given through Mosheh and revealed or rather, ‘lit’ for us, through the life, death and resurrection of Messiah!.

As we cling to יהושע Messiah and walk in Him, we need to meditate on His Torah, day and night so that we may be able to keep our feet walking in the light!

Mishlĕ/proverbs 6:23For the command is a lamp, and the Torah a light, and reproofs of discipline a way of life.

Anyone who rejects the Torah and commands of Elohim, is, in essence, throwing away their lamp/torch to help them find their way through the wilderness journeys of life, as we eagerly await with great expectation the soon return of our King. .

In our King, there is no darkness at all – and the Greek root word that is used here for darkness is σκοτία scotia – Strong’s G4653 which means, darknessand is, in essence, used to describe metaphorically, sadness and ruin as well as a clear reference to describing, ignorance of truth and its associated wickedness that works death, as opposed to ‘light’ that is associated with knowledge and joy that is beneficial to life!.

יהושע Messiah tells us, in Yoḥanan/John 12:35, that he who walks in ‘darkness’ does not know where he is going, and he told the crowd to believe in the Light that had come, in order that they may become sons of light, yet still so many did not believe in Him, so that the words of the prophet be filled as it says in:

Yoḥanan/John 12: 37-38But though He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him, 38 that the word of Yeshayahu the prophet might be filled, which he spoke, “יהוה, who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of יהוה been revealed?.

The very Light that Dawiḏ declared יהוה to be, had been revealed before the crowds – right there in the flesh, and they did not believe the report of the Mighty Arm of יהוה being shown to them, through the life of יהושע Messiah, and so their hearts were hardened and their eyes veiled, as they would not turn to The Light of the world..

Sha’ul tells us, in Romiyim/Romans 13:12, to put off the works of darkness and put on the armour of light, and again, in his letter to the Ephesians, he writes:

Eph’siyim/Ephesians 5:11 “And have no fellowship with the fruitless works of darkness, but rather reprove them..

Sha’ul makes it very clear to us, that we are to walk as children of light and have nothing to do with the fruitless works of darkness and the Greek word that is used here for ‘walk’ is περιπατέω peripateō – Strong’s G4043 and carries the meaning, ‘to walk, behaviour, to conduct one’s self, to make one’s way, to tread with the feet, to make one’s life’.

This is the Greek equivalent to the Hebrew root word הָלַךְ hā∙lǎḵ – Strong’s H1980 which means, ‘to walk, to live, manner of life, cause to live’, which literally speaks of how one lives.

It is used as a verb, indicating that it is an active expression of one’s life.

the meaning, to go, to walk, come, proceed, depart, move, go away, to die, live, manner of life (figuratively).

When one look at this root word in the ancient pictographic text, we are able to get a clearer understanding of how we are able to walk in complete obedience!.

The Hebrew root word for walk: הָלַךְ halaḵ – Strong’s H1980, in the ancient pictographic script, looks like this:.

    .

Hey – הָ:

The ancient script has this letter pictured as , which is ‘a man standing with his arms raised out’. The meaning of the letter is behold, look, breath, sigh and reveal or revelation, from the idea of revealing a great sight by pointing it out.

It also carries for us the meaning of surrender, as we lift up our hands and submit to יהוה as we lift our hands in praise, declaring His authority under which we humbly submit!.

Lamed – לַ:

The ancient script has this letter as , and is pictured as a shepherd’s staff, can give the meaning of to or toward and can represent that which pushes or pulls a flock in a direction, and can speak of authority or a yoke that is used to lead and guide, as well as the ability to bring back by Authority. ..

Kaph – ךְ:

The ancient form of this letter is – meaning ‘the open palm of a hand’. The meaning behind this letter is ‘to bend and curve’ from the shape of a palm as well as ‘to tame or subdue’ as one has been bent to another’s will (under their hand), as an open hand symbolises submission.

This also can picture for us a palm or palm branch from the curved palm shape. The hand also speaks of one’s work, or under whose hand you submit and obey!.

When we look at the letters that spell out the root word that for ‘walk’ we are able to see a great declaration:

BEHOLD THE STAFF IN THE PALM!.

With the picture of the shepherd’s staff, and the open palm of the hand, we are able to see the concept of ‘staff in the palm’ and we take note that a nomad that travelled on foot would have a staff in his hand in order to provide proper support in walking, as well as having a weapon in his hand to defend against predators and thieves!.

We are to actively, and continually, be walking in Messiah, Our Good Shepherd, who leads us by the Authority of His Word:

Yoḥanan Aleph/1 John 2:6 “The one who says he stays in Him ought himself also to walk, even as He walked..

Have no fellowship with that which is not of the Truth!!!

The Greek word that is translated asfellowship, in Eph’siyim/Ephesians 5:11, is συγκοινωνέω sugkoinōneō – Strong’s G4790 which means, to have fellowship with, participate, share, partake and comes from two words:

1) σύν sun – Strong’s G4862 which is a primary preposition which expresses ‘an association with, together’; and

2) the verb κοινωνέω koinōneō – Strong’s G2841 which means, to have a share of, contribute’. .

Now, we are able to see that these words are very clear: do not participate in, have a share of, or even contribute to, the works of darkness – because if you do, while claiming to have fellowship in the Master, then you are simply lying and are not doing the Truth!.

The Greek word that is used for fellowship, here in Yoḥanan aleph/1 John, is the noun κοινωνία koinōnia – Strong’s G2842 which means, contribution, participation, sharing’..

So, in essence, what we see very clearly being set before us in the Renewed Writings, is that fellowship is determined by one’s walk, as seen through one’s works, whether of darkness or of light. .

When we walk in the light and guard to do all we are commanded to, through our Master’s Torah, then we not only have fellowship with Him, but we also have fellowship with each other, as we earnestly contribute to the building up of the body, through walking in, and continuing in, the Good Works that have been prepared beforehand for us to do – and that is to walk in His Truth, obeying His Word that lights our way! .

When this happens, then the blood of יהושע Messiah cleanses us from all sin.

The Greek word that is used here for sin is ἁμαρτία hamartia – Strong’s G266 which means, sin, failure, miss the mark, to miss or wander from the path of uprightness and honour, to do or go wrong, and also carries the meaning of, wandering from the law of Elohim, violate the law of Elohim.

We also know, yet I will once again remind you, that the Greek word that is used for ‘lawlessness’ is ἀνομία anomia – Strong’s G458 which means, lawlessness or lawless deeds, unrighteousness and comes from the word ἄνομος anomos – Strong’s G459 meaning, lawless or without law, transgressors.

Yoḥanan Aleph/1 John 3:4Everyone doing sin also does lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness..

When we have fellowship with each other, as we walk in the Light of the Truth and hear, guard and do the Torah, יהושע Messiah cleanses us from our sin, which is lawlessness!

In other words, He cleanses us and makes us ritually pure again, so that we may boldly approach the throne of favour, enabled to serve in the body of Messiah! .

When looking at the torah of cleansing for the leper, what is interesting to take note of, is that the Hebrew word that is used for cleansing, in regards to the torah of cleansing, is טָֽהֳרָה tahorah – Strong’s H2893 which means, ‘purifying, cleansing, becomes clean, purification’ and comes from the word טָהֵר taher – Strong’s H2891 which means, ‘to be clean or pure, pronounce clean, purge, become cleansed, brightness’. .

As we look at the Hebrew word טָֽהֳרָה tahorah – Strong’s H2893, we see a wonderful picture in this word alone, that speaks of our need to come to Messiah, who cleanses us from all sin.

Why I say this, is because, when we look at the ancient symbols of these letters, we get a clearer picture of the very message of this total and complete cleansing that is given to us, by the Blood of Messiah, contained in just one word!.

This word טָֽהֳרָה tahorah – Strong’s H2893 is pictured in the ancient pictograph script, as follows:.

    .

Tet – טָֽ:

The original pictograph for this letter is , ‘a container made of wicker or clay’. Containers were a very important item among the nomadic Hebrews. They were used for storing grains and other items. Wicker baskets were used as nets for catching fish.

The meanings of this letter are ‘basket, contain, store and clay’..

Hey – הֳ:

The original pictograph for this letter is , a man standing with his arms raised out. The meaning of the letter is ‘behold, look, breath, sigh and reveal or revelation’ from the idea of revealing a great sight by pointing it out. It also carries for us the meaning of surrender as we lift up our hands and submit to יהוה as we lift our hands in praise, declaring His authority under which we humbly submit!.

Resh רָ:

The Ancient picture for this letter is , ‘the head of a man’.

This letter has the meanings of ‘head or man’ as well as ‘chief, top, beginning or first’.

Now, in terms of the cleansing we have in the Blood of Messiah, we see through this pictograph lettering of טָֽהֳרָה tahorah – Strong’s H2893, the following message:.

We, as ‘CLAY BASKETS’ come and surrender to Him, and ‘RAISE OUR HANDS’ in acknowledgement of His perfect atonement, and confess our sins/lawlessness before our ‘HEAD’ and High Priest, יהושע Messiah; and put our lives into the hands of Him who ‘LIFTS US UP’ from the miry clay, and makes us clean and purifies us from all unrighteousness!.

What is also worthy of noting, is that this root word טָֽהֳרָה tahorah is used 13 times in the Tanak (O.T.)!

And as we know, the number 13, in Hebrew, is also symbolic of unity, as the numerical value of the root word אֶחָד eḥa which means, one or unified, is 13.

יהושע Himself prayed that we would be one!

The closer we get together, through obedient living and fellowship, the more refined we become and the more unified we become..

The verses that contain this word for cleansing, all speak of being ritually cleansed and able to enter in and serve in the Tabernacle/Temple.

And what we can recognise and learn, through all these cleansings, be it for a woman after giving birth, or the cleansing of infections, discharges, or the 7th day cleansing of a Nazirite at the end of the vow of separation, as well as the duty of cleansing that was to be done by the priests of all that was to be set-apart, to the singers and gatekeepers who guarded the charge of the cleansing, so that no uncleanness would enter the assembly, is that all of these cleansings are a great shadow picture, and clear pointing to, our Messiah who cleanses us in His Blood, as we come to Him and acknowledge our sin and lawlessness and for walking in, and participating in, works of darkness..

Yoḥanan makes it clear: that our Light has come and we must walk in the light, and have fellowship in the light, guarding to stay out of darkness, in every form, and as we do this, we allow The Word to reveal to us any darkness that we may have worked or are ignorantly walking in, so that we can bring the darkness to light, confess, repent and be cleaned up, and become fit and ready to fervently serve one another, through obedient love, as we contribute and partake in the life of the body, each and every day..

In this very brief message, I want us to simply be reminded of the Light that we are to walk in! That is: we are to walk in Messiah, and we are to do so, by walking in His Truth, so that the words of our mouths and the meditation of our hearts are pleasing before our Master – for יהוה our Elohim is our Light and our deliverance, and so whom should we dread!

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There are many people who claim to have fellowship with the Light of the World yet, by their lawless works of darkness, hidden under the veil of traditions, they are not doing the truth, but are rather doing works that are based on inherited lies, and we must guard ourselves from falling into the trap, and darkness, that we have been called out of..

As children of light, we must walk as such and:

KEEP WALKING… IN THE LIGHT!.

In light of this ‘counting’ season, perhaps you have, through the Light of The Word, recognised some areas of the workings of darkness that have not been totally put off, and in the process, has hindered you in being fully dressed and armed in the Torah!

This can often cause a disruption to proper fellowship, and can cause true fellowship to be lacking, where your willingness to be a fervent partaker and contributor to this family/ body of Messiah can be snuffed out. .

If you have found yourself struggling with any darkness that has not been properly put off, then hear the call to put off ALL darkness and put on the armour of light and:

KEEP WALKING… IN THE LIGHT!.

Tehillah/Psalm 56:13 “For You have delivered my life from death, my feet from stumbling, that I might walk before Elohim, in the light of the living!.

Tehillah/Psalm 89:15 “Blessed are the people Who know the sounding! They walk, O יהוה, in the light of Your face..

Yeshayahu/Isaiah 2:5 “O house of Ya‛aqoḇ, come and let us walk in the light of יהוה..

Mishlĕ/Proverbs 4:18But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, that shines ever brighter unto the perfect day. 

The Hebrew word that is translated as ‘ever brighter’ comes from the root word הָלַךְ hā∙lǎḵ – Strong’s H1980 which means, ‘to walk, to live, manner of life, cause to live..

In contrast to the path of the wicked, what is made perfectly clear here is that the path of the righteous shines brighter and brighter.

The Hebrew word for righteous is צַדִּיק tsaddiq –Strong’s H6662 which means, just, righteous, blameless, lawful and comes from the primitive root צָדֵק tsaeq – Strong’s H6663 which means, to be just or righteous, justified, properly restored.

The Hebrew word רָשָׁע rasha – Strong’s H7563, which means, wicked, criminal, evil, offender’, is frequently placed in Scripture, especially in Proverbs, as being in direct and unequivocal opposition to צַדִּיק tsaddiq –Strong’s H6662..

The book of Mishlĕ/Proverbs contains a great deal of antithetical parallelism, which contrasts the רָשָׁע rasha and the צַדִּיק tsaddiq in black and white terms. The focus is on both the quality of lifestyle and the results of these two ways of living. Whereas the wicked forsake יהוה, the righteous cling to him.

Though the wicked are oppressive and dishonest, the righteous are upright and lovers of truth, etc. .

Here, in this verse 18, Shelomoh praises the brightness of the way of righteousness, after having warned the hearer to not be enticed or led astray by the ways of the wrong, which is evil and dark.

This verse echoes a clear picture of growth and a continual growing of a true set-apart one, from day to day.

Deḇarim/Deuteronomy 6:25And it is righteousness for us when we guard to do all this command before יהוה our Elohim, as He has commanded us.

Why I have mentioned this verse, from Deḇarim, is to point out that ‘righteousness’ is clearly explained to us here very plainly and simply as ‘guarding to do’ all the commands of Elohim! .

Therefore, the way we ‘walk in righteousness’ or rather, the ‘path of the righteous’ – that is the way that the righteous walk – is like the dawning of a new day that just gets brighter and brighter! .

As we diligently walk in the commands of Elohim, our walk shines brighter and brighter amidst a dark world, and we are able to shine the light of the Truth as we walk in our Master and guard His commands! .

As we grow in our knowledge and understanding of His Word, by guarding the path of righteousness, we shine more and more and grow in our perfecting of set-apartness until the perfect day comes when our Master and Elohim comes to fetch His ready and perfected Bride!.

As we walk in the Master, the Light of the World, we shall by no means walk in darkness!

Yoḥanan/John 8:12Therefore יהושע spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall by no means walk in darkness, but possess the light of life..

And when we understand that darkness is a picture/metaphor of folly, and that light is a picture/metaphor of wisdom, then we are able to see that His Word shows us the clear difference by separation; and the need to separate all that is of folly or foolishness from that which is of wisdom:

Qoheleth/Ecclesiastes 2:13 “Then I saw that wisdom is better than folly, as light is better than darkness..

As we walk in the Light of the Torah of Elohim, we, as children of light, shine the light of that Truth more and more as we grow in the wisdom and understanding of Elohim.....

THE PERFECT DAY!

The Hebrew word for ‘perfect’ here in Mishlĕ/proverbs 4:18 is the root word כּוּן kun – Strong’s H3559 which means, ready, steadfast, established, firm, set up, determined, prepared, and it is written in the ‘niphal passive’ tense, rendering it to mean, be prepared, be ready, be steadfast, be secure, be enduring, be stable, be settled. .

The perfect, ready and established day of יהוה is coming – a perfect day, of which we are shining the light of, as we sojourn faithfully as ambassadors of the coming reign of our Master and Elohim.

That perfect day will be prefect, in the sense that The Light of the world will be the light and lamp among us, having no need for the sun or the moon that is given to us for the Appointed Times! .

What Shelomoh is clearly reminding us of here, in Mishlĕ/Proverbs 4:18, is that we are on a righteous path – a path that leads to the perfect day, and as we stay on the narrow path of righteousness, we will shine brighter and brighter, perfecting our set-apartness as a Bride that makes herself ready!.

As we consider our need to be a counting people who are walking in the light of our Master’s face, in these very darkened days, may we all be continually encouraged to:.

KEEP WALKING… IN THE LIGHT!.

יהוה bless you and guard you; יהוה make His face shine upon you and show you favour; יהוה lift up His face upon you and give you Shalom!