Seminar Notes:  LIFE and DEATH

Gen / Bereshith 2:7:  “And יהוה (Yahuah) Alahim formed the man out of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils breath (neshamah, wind) of life (kai, alive, living).

And the man became a living being (nephesh, living creature).”

Gen 2:17:  “but do not eat of (feed on) the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for in the day that you eat of (feed on) it you shall certainly die.”

 DIE:  MUTH;  death  

Conclusion:  What we “feed on” matters a great deal.

LIFE and DEATH

     Torah is the Tree of Life

The meaning of

LIFE and DEATH

Mat 19:16-19:  “And see, one came and said to Him, “Good Teacher, what good shall I do to have everlasting life?”

And He said to him, “Why do you call Me good?  No one is good except One – Alahim.  But if you wish to enter into life, guard the commands.”  He said to Him, “Which?” And יהושע said, “ ‘You shall not murder,’ ‘You shall not commit adultery,’ ‘You shall not steal,’ ‘You shall not bear false witness,’

 ‘Respect your father and your mother,’ and ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.’ ”

Rev. 22:14:   “Blessed are those doing His commands, so that the authority shall be theirs unto the tree of life, and to enter through the gates into the city.”

Mat 7:15-23:  “But beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are savage wolves.

“By their fruits you shall know them.  Are grapes gathered from thornbushes or figs from thistles?

 “So every good tree yields good fruit, but a rotten tree yields wicked fruit.

 “A good tree is unable to yield wicked fruit, and a rotten tree to yield good fruit.

 “Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

 “So then, by their fruits you shall know them –

 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Master, Master,’ shall enter into the reign of the heavens, but he who is doing the desire of My Father in the heavens.

 “Many shall say to Me in that day, ‘Master, Master, have we not prophesied in Your Name, and cast out demons in Your Name, and done many mighty works in Your Name?’

 “And then I shall declare to them, ‘I never knew you, depart from Me, you who work lawlessness!”

Why won’t Yahusha claim to “know” them?

They are not obeying Him, so are not in a Covenant relationship with Him.

They are taught to not obey the Torah, but only to "believe" in the atoning death and resurrection of Yahusha, which haSHATAN also believes!

1Jn 2:3-5:  “And by this we know that we know Him, if we guard His commands.

The one who says, “I know Him,” and does not guard His commands, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.

But whoever guards His Word, truly the love of Alahim has been perfected in Him.  By this we know that we are in Him.^”

^Metaphor:  n.   a transference where one thing is represented by another thing. 

1.              A figure of speech in which a word or phrase that ordinarily designates one thing is used to designate another, thus making an implicit comparison, as in "a sea of troubles" or "All the world's a stage" (Shakespeare).

Deut./Debarim 30:15:

“See, I have set before you today life and good, and death and evil,  in that I am commanding you today to love Yahuah your Alahim, to walk in His ways, and to guard His commands, and His laws, and His right-rulings.

And you shall live and increase, and Yahuah your Alahim shall bless you in the land which you go to possess.   

But if your heart turns away, and you do not obey, and shall be drawn away, and shall bow down to other mighty ones and serve them,

I have declared to you today that you shall certainly perish, you shall not prolong your days in the land which you are passing over the Yardĕn to enter and possess.

I have called the heavens and the earth as witnesses today against you: I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. Therefore you shall choose life, so that you live, both you and your seed, to love Yahuah your Alahim, to obey His voice, and to cling to Him – for He is your life and the length of your days – to dwell in the land which Yahuah swore to your fathers, to Aḇraham, to Yitsḥaq, and to Yaʽaqoḇ, to give them.”

PRAYER:  (concerning a recent death)

We ask Yahusha to please take to Himself Yohanan Albert Hartig, a beloved son and brother who fell asleep this past October 27, 2007.  We ask that forgiveness and mercy be granted to him, and that he be allowed to repent even while we that live can no longer reach out to him.  We ask that Yahusha reach out to him, and save him, and give his family, left here to grieve for him, great peace and healing.

The question about whether or not to pray for the dead is one that I have always had, but could never quite put to rest  -  until I tested it according to what Torah would allow.  In Torah I find no limits for “when” we can pray, or “when” those we pray for may have been, are, or will be in time.  We have all gleaned the impression that once a person “dies in their sins”, that’s it  -  no more chance to repent or accept the Truth.  What if they never were presented with the Truth?  All have sinned, and fall short;  our Redeemer is the only hope any of us have in any way, shape, or form.  True, after the “second death”, we could all agree that a person is beyond hope, and they “died in their sins” for sure.  We know that prayer is communication with Yahusha, and an important part of our relationship with Him.  He wants it very much to happen;  but if we are always asking for Him to consider helping us, and we ask little else, then we are very self-centered and don’t know His heart. 

Can we pray for someone after their death?  We understand that the dead know nothing of this world, under the sun where we live our lives.  We pass through time from moment to moment.  From our perspective, time is only in the "present".  From Yahusha's point of view, eternity is always before Him.  He prayed, for those yet unborn, while He was alive.  Since we are passing through time, often we impose the limitations we have upon our Creator.  What if we were to not limit His wonders to only the present and future?  If I pray for the sick, injured, imprisoned, lonely, and needy, would it not be even better to include all these throughout all time, past, present, and future?  Yahusha sees all time before Him, and I know of no limitation that He imposed for us about praying for those in any particular span of time. 

If we further consider that Yahusha Himself spoke (or preached) to those who died before the flood and were waiting in sheol (the grave) for the day of their redemption (or judgment), then He Who is the resurrection and the life can not only hear our intercession for the living, but also for those who have passed from this life and await their redemption (see 1 Kepha/Peter 3:18-22).  He can still reach them, but we cannot.  We are not to address or contact the dead ourselves, but as long as we recognize that it is not outside His ability to reach them, why not ask Him? 

 John/Yahuchanon 11:25:  ”Yahusha said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life.

He who believes in Me, though he dies, he shall live.”

Yahusha told His students to go and teach all nations to obey everything He had commanded Israel to “obey”, not only what to “believe”.

Christianity, from the beginning, separated itself from the 10 Commandments, the Covenant, yet accepting the Messiah of Israel, void of the Covenant.

Yahusha  told us that we live not by bread only, but by “every Word” that proceeds from the mouth of Yahuah. 

We are literally what we eat.

If we feed on what is dead, we will not have life.

If we feed on what is alive, we can expect to be sustained by it with life. 

The Torah (10 Commandments) are “living and active” (Hebrews 4). 

Heb 4:1-13:  “Therefore, since a promise remains of entering into His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it.

For indeed the Good News was brought to us as well as to them, but the Word which they heard did not profit them, not having been mixed with belief in those who heard it.

For we who have believed do enter into that rest, as He has said, 'As I swore in My wrath, if they shall enter into My rest...'   And yet His works have come into being from the foundation of the world.

For somewhere He has said thus about the seventh day, 'And Alahim rested on the seventh day from all His works,'

and in this again, 'If they shall enter into My rest...'

Since then it remains for some to enter into it, and those who formerly received the Good News did not enter in because of disobedience,

He again defines a certain day, 'Today,' saying through Daud so much later, as it has been said, 'Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.'

For if Yahusha had given them rest, He would not have spoken of another day after that.

So there remains a Sabbath-keeping for the people of Alahim.

For the one, having entered into His rest, has himself also rested from his works, as Alahim rested from His own.

Let us therefore do our utmost to enter into that rest, lest anyone fall after the same example of disobedience.

For the Word of Alahim is living, and working, and sharper than any two-edged sword, cutting through even to the dividing of being and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all are naked and laid bare before the eyes of Him with whom is our account.”

If we “eat” ONLY dead food, we will die.  If we “eat” living food, we will live.

Christianity seeks to live by dead food, i.e., Sun-day, Christmas, Easter, All Saints Day, Lent, the “Mass”, the “sacraments” . . . ,  none of which are mentioned in Scripture, but are DEAD, formerly Pagan traditions, bringing only a curse upon anyone practicing them.

Death will be what is reaped from these, because what is sewn will be reaped.

On the other hand, if a person lives by the Torah, they are living by the Words spoken by Yahuah, and He has promised we will LIVE if we do so.  We either accept His Word and His promises because He said so, or we ignore Him and live the way we “choose”.  Choose LIFE, and obey the Covenant.

ENZYMES & HORMONES

FROM THE FOODS WE CHOOSE TO EAT

UNCOOKED (RAW) FRESH FRUITS & VEGETABLES ARE ALIVE.  THEY CONTAIN LIVING ENZYMES AND HORMONES.

OUR BODIES THRIVE ON THESE LIVING FOODS AND WHAT THEY PROVIDE IN THE FORM OF ENZYMES & HORMONES.

   For your health concerns, try eating mostly RAW vegetables and fruits, and completely eliminate sugar, dairy (milk & eggs), and meat for a month or so.  Drink 8 to 10 8oz. glasses of water (without chlorine or fluoride) each day.  You will “hydrate” your cells and joints, and activate your immune system to a higher level.  You’ll begin to feel better within a couple of weeks, and even look better.  Our bodies are so full of toxins (poisons), it’s a miracle we can survive at all.  Our spiritual lives were also filled with toxins at one time.  Our grocery stores a literally killing us.  We must have enzymes from our foods, yet if we heat (cook) our food above 107 degrees, we kill the enzymes we so desperately need.  The right food, rest, water, and exercise will restore our bodies to their optimum operating condition. 

What we feed our bodies either helps make us well, or helps make us sick.

 LIFE and DEATH

COOKED FOODS ARE DEAD.

THE ENZYMES ARE DESTROYED. 

YOUR BODY DRAWS ITS LIFE FROM LIVING ENZYMES, AND SO SEEKS WHAT IS IN THE FOOD YOU EAT. 

FINDING NONE, IT TURNS ON ITSELF FOR SUSTENANCE. 

THIS IS, IN GREAT PART, WHAT AGING IS.

Yahusha is the WAY, THE TRUTH, AND THE LIFE.

He brings LIFE to us by giving us His Torah.

We “eat” and “drink” of His life when we live according to Torah.

Torah provides the “enzymes” and “hormones” our spirits need to live.

Yahuchanan 15:10

“If you guard My commands, you shall stay in My love, even as I have guarded My Father's commands and stay in His love.”

In Yahuchanan 14:15 He said:

“If you love Me, you shall guard My commands.”

Again, notice I Yahuchanan 1:4:

“The one who says “I know Him,” and does not guard His commands, is liar, and the Truth is not in him.”

What does it mean to obey the WORD of Yahuah?

TORAH:  INSTRUCTION, TEACHING

The Covenant /Marriage Contract (BRITH)  Ex 20:1-17

ASERETH HA’DABARIM (10 WORDS)  Yahuah’s Covenant, our wedding vows:

LITERAL TRANSLATION:

“And Alahim spoke all these Words:

1.  ‘I am Yahuah your Alahim, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

You shall have no other Alahim before My face.

2. You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the Earth beneath or in the waters below.   You shall not bow down to them or worship them;  for I, Yahuah your Alahim, am a jealous Alahim, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand [ generations] of those who love Me and keep My Commandments.

3. You shall not cast the Name of Yahuah your Alahim to ruin, for Yahuah will not hold anyone guiltless who casts His Name to ruin,  (SHOAH = RUIN, DESTROY, LAY-WASTE)

4. Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it qodesh. 

Six days you shall labor and do all your work,  but the seventh day is a Sabbath to Yahuah your Alahim.

On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates.  For in six days Yahuah made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and He rested on the seventh day.

Therefore Yahuah blessed (commended) the Sabbath day and made it qodesh.

5. Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land Yahuah your Alahim is giving you.

6. You shall not murder.

7. You shall not adulterate.

8. You shall not steal.

9. You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

10. You shall not covet your neighbor's house.

You shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

There is a work you’ve been given to do here on Earth that is the primary reason you were created; it wasn’t just to exist, manage a household, or pursue a profession you thought you selected.

The sum of our experiences is the training behind our real mission in life.   

We are all to be living offerings, sweet fragrances

to our Father Yahuah.   The sum of our lives is for Him alone. 

He has sent us into the world as His Living Words, because His Word is alive inside each of us.

Isa 55:10 “For as the rain comes down, and the snow from the heavens, and do not return there, but water the earth, and make it bring forth and bud, and give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so is My Word that goes forth from My mouth – it does not return to Me empty, but shall do what I please, and shall certainly accomplish what I sent it for.”

Heb 4:12 “For the Word of Alahim is living, and working, and sharper than any two-edged sword, cutting through even to the dividing of being and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all are naked and laid bare before the eyes of Him with whom is our account.”

WISDOM  is  Torah

Pro 3:1-4  “My son, do not forget My Torah, And let your heart watch over My commands;

For length of days and long life and peace they add to you.

Let not kindness and Truth forsake you – Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet of your heart,

Thus finding favour and good insight In the eyes of Alahim and man.”

Pro 8:1-36  “Does not wisdom call, And understanding lift up her voice?

On the top of the heights along the way, Between the paths she has taken her stand.

Beside the gates, leading to the city, At the entrances, she shouts:

O men, I call, to you, And my voice is to the sons of men.

You simple ones, understand insight, And you fools, be of an understanding heart.

Listen, for I speak noble words, And the opening of my lips is about straightness;

For my mouth speaks truth; And wrongness is an abomination to my lips.

All the words of my mouth are in righteousness, None of them twisted or crooked,

All of them plain to him who understands, And straight to those who find knowledge.

Accept my discipline, and not silver, And knowledge rather than choice gold;

For wisdom is better than rubies, And all delights are not comparable to her.

 “I, wisdom, have dwelt with insight, And I find knowledge, foresight.

The fear of יהוה is to hate evil. I have hated pride and arrogance, And the evil way, And the perverse mouth.

Counsel is mine, and sound wisdom; I am understanding, mightiness is mine.

By me sovereigns reign, And rulers make righteous decrees.

By me princes rule, and nobles, All the judges of the earth.

I love those who love me, And those who earnestly seek me do find me.

Riches and esteem are with me, Enduring wealth and righteousness.

My fruit is better than gold and fine gold, And my increase than choice silver.

I walk in the way of righteousness, In the midst of the paths of right- ruling,

To bestow substance on those who love me, And to fill their treasuries.

 “יהוה possessed me, The beginning of His way, As the first of His works of old.

 “I was set up ages ago, at the first, Before the earth ever was.

When there were no depths I was brought forth, When there were no springs heavy with water.

Before mountains were sunk, Before the hills, I was brought forth,

Before He had made the earth and the fields, Or the first dust of the world.

When He prepared the heavens, I was there, When He decreed a vault on the face of the deep,

When He set the clouds above, When He made the fountains of the deep strong,

When He gave to the sea its limit, So that the waters would not transgress His command, When He decreed the foundations of the earth,

Then I was beside Him, a master workman, And I was His delight, day by day Rejoicing before Him all the time,

Rejoicing in the world, His earth; And my delights were with the sons of men.

And now, listen to me, you children, For blessed are they who guard my ways.

Listen to discipline and become wise, And do not refuse it.

Blessed is the man who listens to me, Watching daily at my gates, Waiting at the posts of my doors.

For whoever finds me shall find life, And obtain favour from יהוה,

But he who sins against me injures himself; All who hate me love death!”

Ecc 12:13:   “Let us hear the conclusion of the entire matter: Fear Alahim and guard His commands, for this applies to all mankind!

For Alahim shall bring every work into right-ruling, including all that is hidden, whether good or whether evil.”

Isa 56:2 “Blessed is the man who does this, and the son of man who lays hold on it, guarding the Sabbath lest he profane it, and guarding his hand from doing any evil.

 “And let not the son of the foreigner who has joined himself to יהוה speak, saying, ‘יהוה has certainly separated me from His people,’ nor let the eunuch say, ‘Look I am a dry tree.’ ”

For thus said יהוה, “To the eunuchs who guard My Sabbaths, and have chosen what pleases Me, and hold fast to My covenant:

to them I shall give in My house and within My walls a place and a name better than that of sons and daughters – I give them an everlasting name that is not cut off.

 “Also the sons of the foreigner who join themselves to יהוה, to serve Him, and to love the Name of יהוה, to be His servants, all who guard the Sabbath, and not profane it, and hold fast to My Covenant –

them I shall bring to My set-apart mountain, and let them rejoice in My house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and their slaughterings are accepted on My altar, for My house is called a house of prayer for all the peoples.”

The Master יהוה, who gathers the outcasts of Yisra’ĕl, declares, “I gather still others to him besides those who are gathered to him.”

The meaning of life is:

LOVE  

Perfected through the COVENANT OF LOVE

Joh 14:6-15   יהושע said to him, “I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me.

If you had known Me, you would have known My Father too.  From now on you know Him, and have seen.”

Philip said to Him, “Master, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.”

יהושע said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father, and how do you say, ‘Show us the Father’?

Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak from Myself. But the Father who stays in Me does His works.

Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, otherwise believe Me because of the works themselves.

Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he shall do also. And greater works than these he shall do, because I go to My Father.

And whatever you ask in My Name, that I shall do, in order that the Father might be esteemed in the Son.

If you ask whatever in My Name, I shall do it.

If you love Me, you shall guard My commands.”

The identity of the Father:  Yahusha

 Joh 3:13-21  “And no one has gone up into the heaven except He who came down from the heaven – the Son of Aḏam.

And as Mosheh lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so the Son of Aḏam has to be lifted up,

so that whoever is believing in Him should not perish but possess everlasting life.

For Alahim so loved the world that He gave His only brought-forth Son, so that everyone who believes in Him should not perish but possess everlasting life.

For Alahim did not send His Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

He who believes in Him is not judged, but he who does not believe is judged already, because he has not believed in the Name of the only brought-forth Son of Alahim.

And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light, for their works were wicked.

For everyone who is practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.

But the one doing the truth comes to the light, so that his works are clearly seen, that they have been wrought in Alahim.”

Wisdom is written on the “mezuzah” (doorpost),

Pro 8:32-36:  “Now⁶²⁵⁸ therefore hearken⁸⁰⁸⁵ unto Me, O you children:¹¹²¹ for blessed⁸³⁵ are they that keep⁸¹⁰⁴ My ways.¹⁸⁷⁰

Hear⁸⁰⁸⁵ instruction,⁴¹⁴⁸ and be wise,²⁴⁴⁹ and refuse⁶⁵⁴⁴ it not.⁴⁰⁸

Blessed⁸³⁵ is the man¹²⁰ that hears⁸⁰⁸⁵ Me, watching⁸²⁴⁵ daily^{3117, 3117} at⁵⁹²¹ My gates,¹⁸¹⁷ waiting⁸¹⁰⁴ at the posts⁴²⁰¹ of My doors.⁶⁶⁰⁷

For³⁵⁸⁸ whoso findeth⁴⁶⁷² me findeth⁴⁶⁷² life,²⁴¹⁶ and shall obtain⁶³²⁹ favor⁷⁵²² of Yahuah.^{4480, 3068}

But he that sins against²³⁹⁸ Me wrongs²⁵⁵⁴ his own soul:⁵³¹⁵

all³⁶⁰⁵ they that hate⁸¹³⁰ Me love¹⁵⁷ death.⁴¹⁹⁴

Deu 6:4-9:  “Hear,⁸⁰⁸⁵ O Israel:³⁴⁷⁸ Yahuah³⁰⁶⁸ our Alahim⁴³⁰ is one²⁵⁹

And you shall love^{157 (853)} Yahuah³⁰⁶⁸ your Alahim⁴³⁰ with all³⁶⁰⁵ your heart,³⁸²⁴ and with all³⁶⁰⁵ your soul,⁵³¹⁵ and with all³⁶⁰⁵ your might.³⁹⁶⁶

And these⁴²⁸ Words,¹⁶⁹⁷ which⁸³⁴ I⁵⁹⁵ command⁶⁶⁸⁰ you this day,³¹¹⁷ shall be¹⁹⁶¹ in⁵⁹²¹ your heart:³⁸²⁴

And you shall teach them diligently⁸¹⁵⁰ to your children,¹¹²¹ and shall talk¹⁶⁹⁶ of them when you sit³⁴²⁷ in your house,¹⁰⁰⁴ and when you walk¹⁹⁸⁰ by the way,¹⁸⁷⁰ and when you lie down,⁷⁹⁰¹ and when you rise up.”⁶⁹⁶⁵

And you shall bind⁷¹⁹⁴ them for a sign²²⁶ upon⁵⁹²¹ your hand,³⁰²⁷ and they shall be¹⁹⁶¹ as frontlets²⁹⁰³ between⁹⁹⁶ your eyes.⁵⁸⁶⁹

And you shall write³⁷⁸⁹ them upon⁵⁹²¹ the posts⁴²⁰¹ of your house,¹⁰⁰⁴ and on thy gates.⁸¹⁷⁹

"This is the Way, walk in it".   

False teachers will tell you this is not the way.  Test and prove what you accept as Truth.

Yahuah's Word does not change.