Shabbat Sabbath
July 22, 2023
Clean Hands And A Pure Heart
For several years now I have been consumed in my spirit with the fact that Christianity takes words and phrases from The Bible and completely redefines them to something different than how Scripture defines them. Now, I do believe for the most part this is done unintentionally, at least in modern Christian religion. Most people are just repeating what they have been taught and it has been this way for so long that truth sounds strange and even blasphemous to the modern-day Christian.
As I have been pondering on these things, I came across the biblical concept of clean hands and a pure heart. With this most turn to Psalm 24:3-4, which we will look at in a moment. But as I was looking at various passages that deal directly with this biblical phrase I was reminded of the words of James, his strong tone directed at sinners and hypocrites.
The Bible defines sin as breaking, transgressing, violating The Torah (1 John 3:4). I know I point this out a lot, but I do not think it can be over-emphasized enough in today’s religious landscape. Thus a sinner would be someone who breaks, transgresses, violates The Torah. This would tell us that the declaration by James to “cleanse your hands” is a call to stop breaking, transgressing, violating The Torah.
BIBLE TEACHINGS
CHAPTER 6: Joseph of Arimathea
First-century Britain was ripe for the Gospel. Though the common people spoke their own local language, their intellectual circles and government officials spoke Greek. Thus, there was no serious language barrier for Greek-speaking apostles.
Likewise, Welsh was a dialect of Hebrew that had been brought by Israelite settlers a thousand years earlier. This is established by D. Simon Evans, M.A., B.D., a lecturer in the Department of Welsh at the University College of Swansea in his article, Similarities Between the Welsh and Hebrew Languages. This is published in the Bible Research Handbook, Volume 2.
When the Apostle Paul arrived in Britain in 63 A.D. to preach the Word, he was met by certain educated Druids (priests) who informed him of their descent from the House of Israel. These Druids had already been converted earlier under the ministry of Joseph of Arimathea and his companions as early as 37 or 38 A.D., though William of Malmesbury, the historian of Glastonbury wrote around 1126 A.D. that Joseph came in 63 A.D. (Hence, that is the date that the Catholic Encyclopedia references in its disdain for the story of Joseph.)
The Epistles of Paul - Romans Part 20: Confirmation of the Promises of the Fathers
In Romans chapter 14 we saw Paul discuss some of the various things that early Christians already disagreed upon in his time. But these particular disagreements were not limited to Roman Christians, and as we noted from 1 Corinthians chapters 8 and 10 they were also among Dorian Christians, and they were apart from the disputes over various aspects of the law which were often being thrust forth by the Judaizers, such as those which concerned circumcision which we see Paul write about in Galatians. From Paul’s words in Romans chapter 14, as well as in others of his epistles such as Colossians and 1 Corinthians, it can be determined that early Christians were at odds concerning the keeping of Sabbaths and feasts and whether it was acceptable to eat food which had been sacrificed to idols. Resolving this dispute, in 1 Corinthians chapter 10 Paul expressed the opinion that one may indeed eat any food sold in the markets, so long as one did not worry about the source of the food. However if it was made known that the food had been sacrificed to an idol then it was better for one to abstain, for the benefit of one’s Christian brethren. Paul’s answer in Romans was not dissimilar but it was not as elaborate.
Paths of Old – Ancient Paths
Jeremiah 6:16; 18:15; Acts 15:21
“Thus said יהוה (Yahweh), “Stand in the ways and see, and ask for the old paths, where the good way is, and walk in it; and find rest for yourselves….” (Jeremiah 6:16)
“But My people have forgotten Me, they have burned incense to what is false, and they have stumbled from their ways, from the ancient paths, to walk in bypaths and not on a highway.” (Jeremiah 18:15)
Regular public reading of the Torah was introduced by Ezra the Scribe after the return of the Jewish people from their Babylonian captivity (c. 537 BCE), as described in the Book of Nehemiah 8. In the modern era, adherents of Orthodox Judaism practice Torah reading according to a set procedure they believe has remained unchanged in the two thousand years since the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem (70 CE).
“For from ancient generations Mosheh has, in every city, those proclaiming him – being read in the congregations every Sabbath.” (Acts 15:21)
Bible readings for July 22, 2023. In the 7th solar month of the Hebrew 5th month of Av (July/August).
Devarim
דְּבָרִים
Words
Torah
- Deuteronomy 1:1—3:22
Haftarah
- Isaiah 1:1-27
Brit Chadashah
- John 15:1-11
Additional Readings
- Acts 7:2-60; Hebrews 3:7—4:11
If you are interested in downloading the annual Torah reading schedule with projected new moon sightings, Feast Days, click HERE.
Three Year Bible Reading Schedule
Genesis to Revelation
Exodus 15:22—16:36 | 2 Samuel 12:26—13:21 | Psalm 72:1-20 | Jeremiah 7:29—9:26 | Luke 14:1—15:32
If you are interested in downloading the complete 3 year Bible reading schedule, click HERE. You can break up your Bible reading into 5 days of your choosing or combine the above readings of your choice.
The Land Before Time—PART 20: The Battle, Past & Future
It is imperative that the reader understands that a war is raging. These entities—fallen angels, Nephilim, Rephaim, demons, and counterfeit aliens—are all playing for the same team: Lucifer’s. He said that he wanted to be “like the Most High,” and his goal has not changed in a myriad of millennia. He is still trying, but failing, to usurp the Creator. But it will not stop him from trying. All of these entities and all of the increasing activity that we are seeing in the world today are leading up to the enemy’s big play. The enemy wants every last human to be destroyed or corrupted, making them a hybrid, in order to prove that the Lord Most High is a liar.
Satan and his army will not be dissuaded, cannot be reasoned with, and are not logical. “Live and let live” is not in their vocabulary! The sooner Christians realize that we are in a war, the better. It is time to stop acquiescing to the schemes of the enemy and call them out for what they are: lies from the pit of hell!
The Land Before Time—PART 21: A Chance Meeting
We (Tom Horn and crew) could hardly have imagined on that mild winter morning in February, 2015, as we packed our all-wheel-drive SUV for the off-roads adventure into the Four-Corners area of the United States (where Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and the tribal governments of the Navajo Nation and Ute Mountain Ute Tribes connect), how much that trip would pay off, or the doors that would be opened and the unanswered questions that would be raised. When all was said and done, and the related best-selling book On the Path of the Immortals was published, we knew we had just scratched the surface and that a more intense investigation necessarily lay ahead. I also must admit, before the SkyWatch TV and Defender Publishing teams departed in 2015, I (Tom) and my group of investigators had not…
The Land Before Time—PART 22: The Truth about the Great Smithsonian Cover-Up
On December 3, 2014, one of the World Wide Web’s most popular and misleading articles of all time was published by World News Daily Report: “Smithsonian Admits to Destruction of Thousands of Giant Human Skeletons in Early 1900s.” In this article, it was claimed that the U.S. Supreme Court had issued a ruling that the Smithsonian was to release classified papers to the public proving their cooperation in the covert concealment/destruction of gigantic human bones in order to uphold our mainstream concepts of human evolution. This so-called evidence—involving, but not limited to, a “1.3 meter long human femur bone” unearthed in Ohio and brought to the court hearing—would, the article said, “help archaeologists and historians to reevaluate current theories about human evolution and help us greater our understanding of the mound builder culture in America and around the world…[and further states that] after over a century of lies, the truth about our giant ancestors shall be revealed.”[i]
The Kings Of The East Are Making A ‘Science Fiction’ Super Warship
China has revealed plans to develop a futuristic warship that would include breakthrough technologies that would bring “science fiction to the real world,” according to a report. “It will completely overturn the combat formation of naval fleets that has been in place for over a hundred years,” People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy Rear Adm. Ma Weiming said in a peer-reviewed paper, the South Morning China Post reported. The Chinese supership would look to adopt new technology such as rail guns, rocket launchers, laser weapons and high-powered microwaves. The technology would “cleverly and effectively transform the energy from the ship’s power source — nuclear energy — into the electromagnetic energy needed to power” the weapons, Ma wrote. The admiral argued that these different capabilities would turn a single ship into an “all-purpose” platform that can perform “the traditional tasks of a fleet of conventional ships…
WHAT’S THE FUSS OVER FEMALE PASTORS—PART 12: Circumstances Requiring...
When the Gospel was first being spread in Ephesus, Demetrius—a wealthy silversmith who made silver idols of Artemis/Diana—instigated a near riot when he perceived his idol-making trade was vulnerable under the increase of Christianity. Acts 19:23–29, 20:1 documents a tumultuous few hours when the entire city was thrown into chaos and many voices in one accord decreed, “Great is Diana of the Ephesians!” A gracious town clerk brought the matter to an end, but not without a lasting impression that this “Christianity” was a powerful force to be reckoned with. The incident concerned Paul, who thereafter headed to Macedonia. But those who remained in Ephesus had already heard that a new religion was forming, and it was one that centered around a Savior who required nothing more from His followers than faith and love.
WHAT’S THE FUSS OVER FEMALE PASTORS—PART 13: Paul Was Responding To...
Several internal consistency clues support the idea that Paul was responding to the Artemis/Diana/Christianity syncretism in Ephesus, and that this false teaching was a threat to the church’s big-picture operation. If this is the correct interpretation, the proof of which we will consider momentarily, then Paul’s prohibition of women in ministry would be a matter of correct theological adherence to the Gospel as he would have taught it, not a matter of permanently silencing all women from teaching. First, the “surrounding text” step of proper interpretation is crucial. All the guidelines listed from 2:1 through 3:13 are related to the same thing: establishing order within the church. Within that box as the dominant category, we can draw the following chart of internal subcategories…
WHAT’S THE FUSS OVER FEMALE PASTORS—PART 14: The KJV’s “Usurp...”
At the time 1 Timothy was written, the common language in the Hellenistic era was Koine Greek. Insight for what the verb authentein might have become by this time can be credited to Dr. Cynthia Long Westfall, exegesis professor at the McMaster Divinity College: “In the Greek corpus, the verb authenteo refers to a range of actions that are not restricted to murder or violence. However, the people who are targets of these actions are harmed, forced against their will (compelled), or at least their self-interest is being overridden, because the actions involve an imposition of the subject’s will, ranging from dishonour to lethal force.”[i]
Don’t miss that… “An imposition of the subject’s will.” Someone’s “self-interest is being overridden.” Such circumstances do not have to be murderous or violent for them to also be inappropriate, and in the moment that a subject’s will is imposed by another to the point that he or she is entirely overridden, a usurpation has most definitely occurred.
An AI Program Is Pretending to Be Jesus and Thousands of Lost Young People Are...
There’s an event recorded in the Gospel of Matthew in which Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, and his disciples asked him what the sign of the end of the age would be.
Jesus replied, “See that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray.”
At least one of those deceivers is turning out to be an AI called “ask_jesus.”
According to The Independent, a Berlin-based tech collective has developed a chatbot resembling Jesus Christ, which already has thousands of followers seeking advice and guidance.
The chatbot, referred to as “AI Jesus,” has the appearance of a bearded white man with a radiant halo and utilizes artificial intelligence reportedly trained on the teachings of Jesus and the Bible.
Doomsday: Is This The Sign Of The End Times?
In today’s world, it is understandable why so many Christians are questioning whether or not they are witnessing the signs of Doomsday. While the Bible does not explicitly specify what these signs will be, it does mention them in Matthew 24, Luke 17, and 21. So, it can be assumed that some form of cataclysmic event is expected which could lead to the end of days. But with the rise of fake news and an uncertain world where we are constantly living in fear of what’s next, what is the veracity of these claims?
First and foremost, it is important to remember that times have changed drastically since biblical prophecies were written. Nowadays with our access to technology and social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook – false news travels quickly and has become a norm in society. People tend to believe what they read online without doing any research or even taking a step back to think critically about their sources. This leads to an even bigger problem when it comes to deciphering if something being stated is actually true or not – leading many people down a dark path of uncertainty when evaluating whether or not we are indeed nearing Doomsday based on certain events throughout the world.
Arrival Of Biblical Red Heifer In Israel Could Bring Millions Of Visitors
Hundreds of visitors flocked to Shiloh in Samaria’s Binyamin region on Thursday to welcome a biblically pure red heifer.
The 22-month-old cow, which was brought to Israel from the United States, found a new home at the Ancient Shiloh heritage site, where the biblical Tabernacle once stood.
In the coming month, two more heifers will be transported to the town, and a center will open there dedicated to researching the phenomenon. The heifers will be kept in a fenced-off area, and visitors will not be able to touch the animals.
The mysterious red heifer, or Parah Adumah, is first mentioned in the Book of Numbers, when God instructs Moses and Aaron to take “a perfectly red unblemished cow, upon which no yoke was laid.” The animal is subsequently slaughtered, and its ashes are used in a purification ritual.
The discovery of an entirely red such heifer is a rarity. Jewish sources state that only nine were slaughtered in the period from Moses to the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 C.E.
WHO Makes Bombshell Announcement Launching ‘Digital Health Certification...
I’m going to share briefly about the big news this week coming out of the World Health Organization.
This is something I’ve been warning was coming for nearly three years and so it’s almost anti-climactic for readers of this site, where we weren’t afraid to shout it from the housetops early and often about the resemblance of the WHO’s “digital health certificate” to the biblical mark of the beast.
- Check out one of my strongest warnings from November 2022.
- Here’s another warning from June 2021.
The U.N. World Health Organization’s director general, the Marxist/communist Dr. Tedros, announced Monday, June 5, that the “WHO is proud to launch the global digital health certification network.”
Incubating The Beast in The Machine? Will Artificial Intelligence “Suddenly”...
There are two reasons that concerns about AGI have become more plausible — and pressing — all of a sudden. The first is the unexpected speed of recent AI advances. “Look at how it was five years ago and how it is now,” Hinton told the New York Times. “Take the difference and propagate it forwards. That’s scary.” The second is uncertainty. When CNN asked Stuart Russell — a computer science professor at the University of California, Berkeley and co-author of Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach — to explain the inner workings of today’s LLMs, he couldn’t. “That sounds weird,” Russell admitted, because “I can tell you how to make one.” But “how they work, we don’t know. We don’t know if they know things. We don’t know if they reason; we don’t know if they have their own internal goals that they’ve learned or what they might be.”
