REMEMBER THE SABBATH

Thus the heavens and the earth were finished; and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had made; and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which had made. And God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it: because that in it He had rested form all is work which God created and made. Gen.2:1-3

God was the first being to keep the Sabbath.

Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of YHVH your God: in it you shall not do any work, you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor the stranger that is within your gates: for in six days YHVH made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore YHVH blessed the Sabbath day, and set it apart. (Ex. 20:8-11)
Did you know: This is one of the ten commandments

What shouldn't you do on the Sabbath?
You shall kindle no fire throughout your habitations on the sabbath day. (Ex. 35:3)

Thus says YHVH: “Take heed to yourselves, and bear no burden on the Sabbath day, nor bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem; nor carry a burden out of your houses on the Sabbath day, nor do any work, but hallow the Sabbath day, as I commanded your fathers. (Jeremiah 17:21-22)

For YHVH has given you the Sabbath; therefore He gives you on the sixth day bread for two days. Let every man remain in his place; let no man go out of his place on the seventh day. (Exodus 16:29)

If the people of the land bring merchandise or food to sell on the Sabbath, we should not buy from them on the Sabbath or on a holy day. (Nehemiah 10:31)

If you hold back your foot on the Sabbath from pursuing your own interests on My holy day; if you call the Sabbath a delight, YHVH's holy day, worth honoring; then honor it by not doing your usual things or pursuing your interests or speaking about them. If you do, you will find delight in YHVH. (Isaiah 58:13)

Who should keep the Sabbath?
Thus says YHVH, “Observe justice, do what is right , for my salvation is close to coming, my righteousness to being revealed.” Happy is the person who does this, anyone who grasps it firmly, who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it, and keeps himself from evil.
A foreigner [non-Jew] joining to YHVH should not say, “YHVH will separate me from his people.” likewise the eunuch should not say, “I am only a dried-up tree.”
For here is what YHVH says: “As for the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths, who choose what pleases me and hold fast to my covenant: in my house, within my walls,I will give them power and a name greater than sons and daughters; I will give him an everlasting name that will no be cut off.
“And the foreigners [non-Jews]who join themselves to YHVH to serve him, to love the Name of YHVH and to be his workers, all who keep the Sabbath and do not profane it, and hold fast to my covenant, I will bring them to my holy mountain and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house will be called a house of prayer for all peoples.” (Is. 56:1-7)
When is it ok to work on the Sabbath?
And he saith unto them, Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath days, or to do evil? to save life, or to kill? But they held their peace. (Mark 3:4)

And the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because that Jesus had healed on the sabbath day, and said unto the people, There are six days in which men ought to work: in them therefore come and be healed, and not on the sabbath day. The Lord then answered him, and said, Thou hypocrite, doth not each one of you on the sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead him away to watering? (Luke 13:14-15)

And answered them, saying, Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fallen into a pit, and will not straightway pull him out on the sabbath day? Luke 14:5

The Hem of His Garment

Speak to the children of Israel, and instruct them they should make, through all their generations, Tzizityot[tzizityot is the plural form of the noun Tzizit] on the corners [KaN'Fey or KaNoF] of their garments, and to put with the Tzitzit on each corner a thread of blue. It is to be a Tzitzit for you to look at and thereby remember all of YHVH's commandments and obey them, so that you won't go around wherever your own heart and eyes lead you to prostitute yourselves; but it will help you remember and obey all My commandments and be holy for your God. Numbers 15:38

We find in the book of Luke 8:43-48, Yeshua was on His way to the house of Yairus. Yairus was the president of the synagogue and his daughter had fallen very ill, to the point of death. As the Great Rabbi was pressed in the crowd, he stopped and looked around and asked, “Who touched Me?” A woman, who had been suffering for twelve years with a continual hemorrhage of blood, fell at His feet and said, “I knew if I could just touch the Tzitzit of your garment, I would be healed.”

She had most likely heard her father and her husband recite the commandment about Tzizit many times.  She had also heard the rabbis read a passage from the prophet Mal'akhi. Mal'akhi the prophet had prophesied, “The Sun of Righteousness will arise with healing in His wings.” In looking at the word, corner in Hebrew, we find it has the same definition as wings. The Hebrew root word is KaNoF. We find the Apostle Sha'ul or Paul saying, "Faith comes by hearing, and hearing of the Word of God." Romans 10:17

In Matthew 23, Yeshua condemns the acts of some of the Pharisees. He starts by condemning for lengthening their Tzitzit and making their Tefillin [Phylacteries] broad. The Tzitziyot are meant as reminders to keep the commandments. Much the same as tying a red ribbon around your finger so that you won't forget and appointment. The Pharisees, however, felt that the Tzitziyot would be more effective if they were longer. But rather than doing it for a pure reason, they were lengthening the fringes only to be seen by men as “holier than thou”.

The way the Tzitziyot are tied in Orthodox Judaism is in four sections. The string is wrapped so many times between each section to equal a Hebrew number which is equivalent to a Hebrew letter. In mainstream Orthodoxy, this spells the Name of God in Hebrew YHVH. So, when the woman with the issue of blood reached out to touch the hem of His garment, she was in essence touching the Name of God, by faith in the Word of God.

Blessed are the Meek - a Parable

There once lived a very wise man in a small village. Because his attire was not gay and gaudy and that he dressed in rags, the people of the town assumed he was poor. However, because of his great wisdom, he had amassed great wealth and distributed it discretely to those in need.

Now, the governor of the town was a rich man. And because of his great riches, he had imagined that his city was invincible. He threw many a banquet and always invited the finest of guests, but never once did he invite the poor commoners to sit at his table.

However, it happened that a great king came to attack the city. He surrounded the city with his archers and horsemen, built massive bulwarks to scale the walls and take the city. Now, when the watchmen on the tower sounded the alarm, the people of the city were unprepared. They sought among themselves who would be mighty and brave. Word traveled up from the paupers that the poor hermit was also wise. Therefore, the governor of the city came to him and offered him great riches if he could amass the people and lead them to battle.

During the night, while the people sat huddled in the meeting hall dicussing their plan of attack, the wise man schlepped under the walls and caused the king's horses to stampede his army. On the morrow, the watchman announced joyfully that the governor had defeated the king and his army.

People praised the governor year after year and held a banquet to remember his victory. As always, the poor wise man was invited, but never was he recognized for his deed which had saved the city. He always sat at the lower tables by the door and his feet were never washed.


How often do we spend a few hours working on a project for work, for the community or for friends and then get no thanks. No one recalls that it was OUR idea that turned out to be such a success. So, in turn, we pout and think of all the malicious things we will do to get back at those who stole our idea or benefited from our endeavors without ever taking the time to recognize us.

The Great Rabbu said, “Blessed are the meek for the will inherit the land.” Yahshua was Hebrew and spoke a dialect of Hebrew known as Aramaic. The word, Blessed, would not have been the same as we use – as if to say, “blessed be the Name of the Almighty.” However, the word in Hebrew is “Ash'Rei” It means Happy. Often we view MEEK people as those with low self-esteem. But in truth, those who are sincerely meek are happy. They don't have a false since of humility. When someone else gets the credit that the meek deserve, they are the first to congratulate them and pat them on the back for their hard work, and not in a sarcastic manner.

This parable is derived from Kohelet (Ecclesiastes 9:13-16)

In Blessing, I will bless thee - A Parable

A certain disciple was studying with his fellows and came across the verse, “When the righteous prosper, the city rejoices, and when the wicked perish there is shouting.” He asked his Master [teacher], “What does this mean?”

The replied, “The Almighty, blessed be He, promised Abraham 'that in blessing I will bless thee.' When the Almighty blesses a righteous man, the city is exalted. Not only does his very being there bless the city, but he shares his increase with the poor. For 'he who satisfies others, shall himself be satisfied.' And does it not also say that 'one is repaid in kind for his own deeds.' Therefore, when the righteous prosper, so to does the city.

“Now, concerning the wicked it is said, 'the words of the wicked tear down the city' for 'the wicked are like chaff driven by the wind'. They have no plan nor intent, but to do evil. Concerning the sinner, it is said in the Torah, 'Cursed shall you be in the city'.

“So then,” continued the master, “A city is blessed because of the righteous ones who dwell in the city. Sodom was not cursed because of immorality, rather they were cursed because they turned their ears from the cry of the poor. But the Almighty could not destroy the city for the righteousness of Lot.”

Another disciple, who was also at the table asked the master, “Wherefore does it mean, 'He who is kind to the poor is lending to YHVH'?”

The master answered him, “We must remember the words of the Great Master, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.' And, 'The one who waters others, shall be watered also, himself.' For when one shows favor to the poor, he is rewarded that which he favored, plus interest from the Almighty. For that which a man sows, that shall he also reap.”

A Time to Love - Parable

A certain disciple asked his teacher, one day, “The Kohelet (Ecclesiastes 'the Preacher') said ' to every thing there is a season and a time a time to every purpose under heaven... A time to love and a time to hate.' So, when, therefore is the time to love?”

The wise man sat pondering, as he stroked his beard. After much thought he answered in the words of the Great Rabbi, “'You have heard the saying, 'You shall love your neighbor, and hate your enemy.' I say unto you, 'Love your enemies, bless them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you' and he said again, 'if you love them that love you, what does it profit you; do not the pagans do likewise?' And 'love keeps no record of wrongs... love never ends.' Therefore, it is always the time to love.

God is Light - Part 2

In the beginning... darkness was on the face of the deep. Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. God saw the light was good, and God divided the light from the darkness. Genesis 1:1,2,3,4

“I am YHVH; there is no other. I form light, I create darkness.”Isaiah 45:7 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not suppressed it. I John 1:5 God is light, and there is no darkness in Him. I John 1:5 Yahshua said, “ I am the light of the world; whoever follows Me, will never walk in darkness but will have the light which gives life. John 8:12 This was the true Light, which gives light to everyone entering into the world. John 1:9 For God, Who commanded to the light to shine out of darkness has shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Yahshua the Moshiach. II Corinthians 4:6

In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.... All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made.

Before God divided the light from the darkness, there was only one entity. The darkness was unable to suppress the light, therefore it was one great light. In I John 1:5 we read “God is light”. So, when God divided the light from the Darkness, He dispersed Himself into Creation, as it is written “which gives light to everyone entering the world.”

Now, we find written in the book of Ecclesiastes (or Kohelet in Hebrew), “There is nothing new under the sun” and “that which has been is now and that which shall be is already.” Therefore, whatever things are on the earth were created in the six days of Creation. For it says that “on the seventh day, God ended His work.” This means that every tree that we see in the field, every flower in the meadow or rose in the garden existed in the first six days of Creation. For does it not say, “whose seed is in itself?”

So, if God divided Himself and emanated His Light into creation, there is a spark of the Divine in every human being, in every tree, in every animal. Does that mean we worship man or beast, tree or stone? No. But we should love one another, all the more. We should show respect to His creation even greater by not wasting, littering, or showing cruelty to animals. It doesn't mean we must become vegetarians or PITA people, but we should strive to be more respectful of the creation.

The Great Garden and Man

The waterfall spilled over the mountain side crashing down like a thunderbolt into the river below. The river sparkled like a million diamonds as the sun rays warmed the swirling water. Down into the lush green valley, the water brought life to the Great Garden, through the orchards which lay like pomegranate quilts upon the earth.

The sheep were grazing in the pastures, as a lioness lazed out in the meadow. A wolf gave playful chase to a butterfly, while the wildebeest waded into the cool, swirling Tigris. It was a typical day in the Garden for Havah, as she lay in the grass frolicking with her mate, Man. Life had continued on with such majesty for the past twenty-five years of Havah's life. She and Man had named all the animals in their domain.

They had free access to the upper levels of the universe, without any restrictions as to where they might travel. However, they never ventured outside the Great Garden. Not out of fear. Fear was a foreign word, not yet conceived in the human gene. Their was nothing, but unconditional love inside this great kingdom that the Creator called Earth. He taught Man the uses for herbs, the meaning of the stars, the language of the animals. Without question, Man and Havah followed His divine decree – only that they eat not of the tree in the midst of the Garden.

Now, out of all the animals of the field, the serpent was far superior. Unlike the other beasts, he walked on two feet. His skin was most attractive and pleasing to the eye. Most of all, he was cunning and wise. He was the king of the animal kingdom, second only to Man.

As Havah lay giggling in the grass, Man got to his feet. “I must be going,” he said, “for I would not keep the Creator waiting.” It was his custom to walk in the cool of the evening with the Creator. They discussed the creatures of the kingdom and mysteries of the universe. Man always anticipated this walk, for he learned so much from the Creator and he knew how much the walks meant to the Creator.

Havah dozed off into a peaceful sleep until a shadow passed over the light of the sun. “Splendor, to you, my lady,” said a deep, husky voice.

Havah awoke somewhat sluggish and smiled. “And splendor to the Creator, Serpent.” She replied. “What brings you into the midst of the Garden, Serpent?”

“Only tender grapes, my lady” he said, as he smiled mischievously through his dark eyes. “As fair and tender as your skin. Delicate as your fingertips.”

Havah felt an odd tingle rise in her cheeks. She had never heard words so pleasing to the ears, nor seen a beast so pleasing to the eyes. His cheeks were high and his chest was thick with muscle. He held his head proud on his broad shoulders.

“You're arms are like boughs of the great tree in the mist of the garden,” he continued, “You're hair is like a flock of goats on the mountain. You're eyes are as the eyes of a dove. Where is this great tree?”

Havah knew quite well that the tree was forbidden. For it contained the mysteries of the knowledge of good and evil. Opposite it, the Creator had planted the most fruitful tree ever planted in the Great Garden. This tree contained twelve kinds of fruit and its leaves dripped of power and might.

Havah quickly said, “We may eat of any of the fruit trees in the garden, of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, the Creator has said, 'You shall not eat of it, nor will you touch it, or you will die.”

But the serpent replied, “Surely, you will not die. For the Creator knows that when the day comes that you eat of it, your eyes will be enlightened, and you will be as gods, knowing both good and evil.”

Havah again felt the unfamiliar tingle rise up in her cheeks, as the serpent's hand caressed her shoulder. She felt vulnerable, which was very new for her. She had only felt this way in the presence of Man and the Creator. His hand brushed her side and she melted into his arms.

When Havah awoke, she knew that she was in the midst of the Garden, under the branches of the great tree of the knowledge of good and evil. She was alone. Her heart raced and she ran to find Man. However, as she ran, she was aware that the animals were looking at her and she felt a tingle in her cheeks. Yet, this tingle was not like before. This tingle made her feel ashamed.

She found Man under a great oak and told him, “Come, Man. I found a great treasure in the midst of the Garden.” Man followed her wondering where she could be leading him. When he arrived at the tree, he saw a leaf falling to the ground. That was when he noticed. There were more, many more leaves lying about the tree. This was unusual. He had never seen anything like this before.

Suddenly, he turned to see that Havah was handing him fruit. “What have you done?” he asked. “Have you not heard the Creator say that this fruit is forbidden. He gave us all the fruits in the field, the apple, the orange, the fig, the olive, the grape and countless more. But He only restricted us to this one tree. How could you have disobeyed Him.”

Havah again felt a tingle arise in her cheeks. But this time, the tingle came much faster and much hotter. She felt anger. “Man, you were not here. The serpent seduced me and brought me here. I told him of the Creator's commandment, but he continued to press me. I could not overpower him.”

Man suddenly realized the plight. The Creator would kill his mate and he would be alone. He could not bear that feeling again. He could not stand the feeling of being alone as he was before the Creator had created Havah. So, he reached out his hand and embraced her with all of his heart, with all of the love in the universe. Even the rays of the sun bent around her as he held her. She was his love.

Suddenly, the leaves began to fade from the tree and Man looked down. He was ashamed of himself and hid himself among the bushes. Havah took fig leaves from a nearby tree and a vine. She began to weave an apron.

The night was dark and much cooler. Man snuggled closer to Havah for comfort. She could feel his warm breath on her delicate skin.

The wind began to moan. Man awoke with a start. He was unaccustomed to this rapid feeling in his chest. Fear. Was that the Creator calling? Maybe it was a screech owl. Man tried to relax, but the sound of his own heartbeat only produced only more fear.

Man awoke to a beautiful sun, but anxiety filled his heart. What would he tell the Master of the universe? Surely, he would be brave and explain that he did this to cover for his mate. Surely, his bravery would touch the heart of the Creator. Throughout the day, he continued to rehearse his defense to the Divine One.

The sun sank low in the western sky, as Man crouched in the shadow of the mountain. He heard the voice tenderly calling, “Man, where are you?”

Man stood to his feet, his head hanging guiltily over. “I heard you calling in the garden and I was afraid. So I hid myself, because I was naked,” he said

“Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree that I commanded you not to eat of?”

Suddenly, Man's heart trembled with unbridled fear. All of the bravery, all of the heroism he had rehearsed was forgotten in a moment. “The mate that you gave me to be with me, she gave me fruit from the tree and I ate it.”

So the Creator turned and spoke to the woman, “What is this that you have done?”

But Havah replied, “The serpent seduced me, and I did eat.”

To this, the Creator turned to the serpent and said, “You are cursed above all beast and cattle. You will from now on crawl upon your belly and lick the dust of the earth. And there will be hatred between you and the woman forever. You will strike at her heal, but her seed shall crush your head.” And Havah, He said, “Your pain and anguish will be multiplied during childbirth and conception and your desire will be for your husband and he will rule over you.”

Then He turned to Man and said, “Because you listened to the voice of your wife and did partake of her sin, you will reap thorns and thistles in the earth and eat vegetables of the field, and will sweat as you eat your bread, until you return to the ground that you came from.”

Yet in His love, the Creator found a ram that had caught it's horn's in a bush. He then slaughtered the ram and made robes for Man and Havah. It was then that He decided man must leave the Great Garden forever. For Man and Havah had tasted the knowledge of both good and evil and if they then ate of the tree of twelve fruits and healing leaves, they would live forever.

Death was the atonement for their sins and they could never atone without blood. Therefore, the Creator drove them out of the Great Garden toward the west. He then placed two of His magnificent swordsmen at the gate, with glittering swords, which looked in every direction. They were placed there to guard the way to the Tree of Life.

God is Light – Part 1

Where is the way where light dwells, and as for darkness, where is it's abode? Job 38:19

In the beginning... darkness was on the face of the deep. Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. God saw the light was good, and God divided the light from the darkness. Genesis 1:1,2,3,4

“I am YHVH; there is no other. I form light, I create darkness.”Isaiah 45:7 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not suppressed it. John 1:5 God is light, and there is no darkness in Him. I John 1:5

We find that in the beginning, the Light and the Darkness were one. Light was not the opposite of darkness. In fact, light was darkness. However, God separated the light from the darkness in the beginning of time, just as He separated male from female. Now, one cannot exist without the other. Chaos is not chaos, unless there is order and vice versa. In order for there to be a positive, there has to be a negative.

Now, according to the Scriptures, God is Light and in Him there is no darkness at all. One rendition of the ancient Hebrew translates the word, Light as Order and Darkness as Chaos. So let's look at this verse in that light: God is Order and in Him there is no Chaos at all. How can that be? If one cannot exist without the other, how can there be no chaos or darkness, in God?

The Torah plainly states, “Hear, O Israel, YHVH is our God, YHVH is ONE.” He is complete. There is no division in Him. In Him, the light is one with the darkness. Order is one with chaos. So what caused the separation, then, in the beginning? Could it have been Time?

Time is everything. Time is a dividing factor. And only on the seventh day was there a completion of all things. In other words, on the seventh day Darkness was again reunited with Light. The Sabbath is a 24 hour glimpse of Eternity. It is an island in time. The sages of old talked about “the fullness of times” when all things would “gather together in one”. This is the spiritual Sabbath. It is a time when there is no division.

But we find that the Word of God is also a dividing factor. For it “divides asunder the soul and spirit.” And it was by the Word of God that all things came into existence, including Time. For “in the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.... All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made.” Also, we read, “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God...” So, then it was the Word of God that divided the Order from the chaos or the Light from the darkness. And so, the Word of God which reunites the chaos with the Order.