THE NEW COVENANT PASSOVER

This is the first year we will be observing the new covenant Passover. What is different about this observance and what have we done in the past?

Previously we have observed the supper Messiah had with his disciples with unleavened bread, and called it Passover. However, this was not the Passover of the Jews.  It was the new covenant Passover that Yahshua introduced that night before he died as the Passover Lamb of Yahweh.  The Jews’ Passover began in Exodus 12 with the killing of the lambs on the afternoon of the 14th, and the Passover meal the evening of the 15th.  They celebrated with unleavened bread.  Messiah died as part of the Jews’ Passover. 

After much study and prayer, this has been revealed to be incorrect. Jude has admonished us to “earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.” (Jude 3)

Our membership has come from many different assemblies and churches. We have been taught that the Passover lambs were killed before the supper that Messiah had the night he was betrayed. Others have said the Passover lambs killed by the Jews in preparation for Passover occurred on the date of the 14th, the same day Messiah died on the tree.

The one fact that most sources support is that Messiah died on the 14th of Nisan at 3 PM.  However, there are those who insist that he died on the 15th, which is the first high day of unleavened bread. This cannot be correct because it would not have been permitted by the Jews.  It was totally against the Jewish tradition to execute criminals or have criminal proceedings on a high day. This is why the Pharisees hurried to remove the Messiah from the tree and place Him in the tomb before the first high day began at sunset, which would be the 15th of Nisan.

Messiah’s supper with his disciples occurred on our Tuesday evening, which was their evening of the fourteenth. This was the night before the Messiah would die, which coincided with the time the Levitical priests killed the Passover lambs in preparation for the Passover meal on the evening of the fifteenth.  Messiah would not have used unleavened bread.  The Greek scriptures consistently say, artos, which is the Greek word for bread, not unleavened bread. The Messiah ate a traditional pre-Passover meal with his disciples, which included leavened bread. (artos)   No unleavened bread was used that evening.  The Jews did not begin to remove leavening from their homes until the day portion of the fourteenth. According to tradition, this removal began after 11 AM.  It was after this removal that Messiah died, and not beforehand.  The bread Messiah gave to his disciples was legal and scriptural.  It was eaten outside of the Days of Unleavened Bread and before the leaven was required to be removed from their households.

This may be shocking to you. The Christian churches today celebrate an unscriptural communion with unleavened bread. However, this has not always been so.  The Greek Orthodox and Catholic churches for the first 900 years following the Messiah’s death used leavened bread. It was not until 1054 CE that the Catholic Church demanded the use of unleavened bread and coerced the Orthodox churches to submit to their new teaching.

We are able to trace the correct observance of Messiah’s supper as well as the Jewish Passover back to a group that was called the Quartodecimans, by the Latin or Catholic Church. This name was given to them because they celebrated the Passover on the 14th to commemorate that day as the death of Messiah.

They began their count of seven days from the date of the 14th until the 20th.

The Jews kept Passover to commemorate the Exodus for seven days from the 15th to the 21st day.

It is of note that the historian, Philip Shaff, in his history of the Christian church included a reference to a visit between Polycarp, leader of the eastern or Asiatic assemblies, and Anicetus, a leader of the Catholic or western churches in Rome.

Rome was teaching the celebration of Easter which was calculated differently than the scriptural Passover. Polycarp disagreed with this significant deviation of what was “once delivered unto the saints.” They were able to agree to disagree without bloodshed. The pressure from Rome would continue for several hundred years, but at least Polycarp kept the Asian assemblies free from this false doctrine for a period of time.

Who was this Polycarp?  He was a disciple of the apostle John, who had observed Passover under John’s guidance. This apostle was there the night of Messiah’s dinner before he was betrayed and witnessed the execution of the Messiah. John was the disciple loved by Messiah and whom he chose to be responsible for his mother. At the time of his death at the approximate age of 100, he resided in Ephesus. He had been the source of scriptural teaching in the east.

It is interesting that Polycarp was involved in the controversy between Passover and Easter. However, no discussion was recorded regarding what type of bread was used by Messiah on the night of the fourteenth. The early assemblies and churches used leavened bread for several hundred years.  They were able to successfully do this because the meal they celebrated was not the Jew’s Passover, nor was it within the Days of Unleavened Bread.

It was within the Days of Unleavened Bread that the wave sheaf offering was presented. This occurred on the morrow after the weekday Sabbath within the days of unleavened bread. It was on this day that the count towards Shavuoth began. The 50th day or Pentecost was also known as the feast of the firstfruits. This is the day that the Spirit of Yahweh fell on the disciples and thousands of others on the day of Pentecost.

It is interesting that the offering of two loaves during Shavuoth, or Pentecost, was of leavened bread. In Leviticus 23:20, these two loaves of leavened bread were called “the bread of the first fruits.” This is the same kind of bread Messiah used when he introduced the emblems for the new covenant Passover on the night he was betrayed.

Messiah gave the same leavened bread to his disciples who would be the firstfruits of the new covenant. Messiah himself was the firstfruit, as Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 15: 20, 23.  By using leavened bread instead of unleavened, Messiah was revealing the significant difference between that meal and the Passover of the Jews.  He was foretelling the creation of the firstfruits with the celebration of Pentecost after his resurrection.  He was alerting us to a new event, which was coming at Pentecost:  the beginning of a new creation, the firstfruits.

James tells us we are a kind of firstfruits.  (James 1:18)  The firstfruits are the same people as those called saints. In Revelation 14, we are introduced to 144,000 firstfruits that stand with Messiah on Mount Zion.  

The new covenant Passover is when leavened bread is first introduced as a symbol for His body. Messiah told us in John 6:56 that we must eat his flesh (the bread) for him to dwell in us. The correct type of bread is consistent with the two leavened loaves offered at the feast of firstfruits. We must continue to remember him with the correct emblems or symbols. The correct symbols are leavened bread and the fruit of the vine, and not wine.

To correctly keep the new covenant Passover, you must be circumcised. Circumcision was also a requirement for the first Passover; however, the new covenant circumcision is of the heart, not of the flesh. This circumcision is without hands. (Colossians 2: 11)  You must be baptized to partake of this event worthily. (1 Corinthians 11:27)

We, of the Light of YahwehShua, baptize only in the inherited name of Messiah, YahwehShua, which is the name of life. That name provides us with the down payment of Yahweh’s spirit.  This spirit brings with it the seed of the Spirit of Messiah. This seed of Messiah spreads through us over time, just as leavening spreads through dough. Leavening is not sin of itself. Leavening is an influence that brings about change, positive or negative. In Matthew 13:33, we see the positive influence of leaven. Similarly, the Spirit of Messiah infuses the body of the firstfruits and prepares them for the better resurrection.

Now is the time to prepare for the new covenant Passover. Passover is at the end of April this spring. The first step you must take is baptism.  For assistance, please contact our elders. Baptism is the first step, the narrow way, the path to the light. Join us and become the light of YahwehShua.

 If you wish to submit a question or comment, please email our Elder at john12e4567@gmail.com.  

THE NEW COVENANT PASSOVER GLOSSARY

1.     The exodus of the Israelites from Egypt begins with the Passover in Exodus 12.

A.   A lamb for each household selected on the tenth of that first month. (Nisan/Abib)

B.   That lamb is held until the fourteenth day, killed in the evening of that day, and eaten “in that night.” (Exodus 12:8)

C.    The Israelites are told to eat with loins girded, shoes on their feet, staff in their hands and in haste. Why?  They eat the night of the fourteenth, and the destroyer passes over the dwellings of the Israelites at midnight. They are to stay inside until it is time to depart. According to Numbers 33:3, they depart on the next day after the Passover, or on the fifteenth.

D.   All males who eat the Passover must be circumcised in the flesh. (Exodus 12:48) 

E.    This is the Passover of the Jews.  (John 6:4, 11:55)

2.    The Hebrew concept of a day is very different than the Roman concept, which we follow today. The Hebrew day begins in the evening at sunset and continues through the daylight portion until the sunset.

A.   The Roman concept of the day begins at 9 PM or midnight and continues through the next day.

B.   We are not used to thinking in terms of a day being from sunset to sunset. This is important to grasp for a full understanding of the timing of the Passover.

3.    The concept of between the evenings is introduced in Exodus 12:6. The English translation of the Hebrew is in the evening. The Hebrew is

Ben ha-arbayim.

A.   The Jewish Encyclopedia says this about ben ha-arbayim:

The time between the two evenings was considered to be after noon until nightfall.

B.   The period of the afternoon refers to the time that the sun begins to descend after the high noon. Anytime after the high noon the Passover lambs could be killed.

4.    The Passover season had not begun at the time of Messiah’s supper with his disciples on the night in which he was betrayed.

(Matthew 26:20; Mark 14:17; Luke 22:14; John 13:1)

A.   A very important understanding is that Messiah died on the tree as the Passover lambs were sacrificed at 3 PM (our time) during the daylight portion of the fourteenth.  The Pharisees did not want to defile the first high day of unleavened bread by leaving him on the tree so they hurried to remove him and placed him in a tomb. The first high day of unleavened bread began after sunset following his death, which was the fifteenth.

B.   The Jews did not begin to remove the leavening from their households until 11:00 AM and completed by noon the same day the lambs were sacrificed for Passover.

C.    The supper Messiah had with his disciples before his death was not part of the Jewish Passover observance. It was before the leavening was removed, before the killing of the lambs, and before the Days of Unleavened Bread even began.

D.   This meal would have been served with leavened bread. The Greek word used for the bread Messiah used on that night is always artos. (Strong’s 740).   The authors of the Scriptures could have used another Greek word for this bread if it had been anything else. That word could have been azymos (Strong’s 106), which means unleavened bread.  However, this Greek word is never used for the bread that was used that evening. The bread used during the days of unleavened bread, as recorded in the Greek, is azymos.  The Hebrew word for unleavened bread is matzah. (Strong’s 4682)  The bread Messiah gave to his disciples was artos.  (Strong’s 740)

5.    It is very important to understand that the concept of leaven being sin is not scriptural.  It is an invention of man.  The Talmud teaches that leaven is sin, but this is not found in the scriptures.

6.    It is important to understand what the bread of the firstfruits is, as well as the bread of affliction.  Please see an article on this topic on the website.  This false teaching that leaven is sin has obscured a correct understanding about the firstfruits and their becoming a new creation through the pervasive infusion of Messiah’s spirit. 

7.    The New Covenant Passover Service

A.   To participate you must be baptized in the name of YahwehShua.

B.   The observance is held after sunset at the beginning of the evening of the fourteenth of Abib or Nisan.  For 2018, it goes from sunset of 4/30 to sunset of 5/1 according to the Gregorian calendar.  Our corresponding night for Messiah’s supper was Tuesday evening.  He then died on Wednesday afternoon at 3:00 PM.  He was placed in the tomb before the beginning of the High Day and remained there three days and three nights (the sign of Jonah) until his resurrection just before sunset on the weekly Sabbath.  This is why Mary visited his empty tomb on the morning of the first day of the Hebrew week.  

C.    Our observance begins with a prayer.  Next, there is the footwashing. During the footwashing, read from John 13:1-17.  After the footwashing, we partake of the new emblems that Messiah introduced:  the leavened bread and the fruit of the vine (not wine, but juice). During the dispensing of the emblems, read from Matthew 26:26-29.  Next, we have prayer and sing a song of praise.  The service is then ended.  For the disciples, this was a joyous occasion because they did not understand what was about to happen to Messiah.  For us also, it is a time of joy and hope.  We have the opportunity to learn from the marital failures of the Israelites, to better prepare ourselves as the espoused bride of Messiah.  During the Days of Unleavened Bread, we better understand the affliction that began with the exodus from Egypt.

8.    The members of the Light of YahwehShua observe the Days of Unleavened Bread.  The leaven is removed by noon of the 14th and we eat unleavened bread for seven days from the 15th to the 21st.  Just as there is a Passover of the Jews, the Days of Unleavened Bread were kept by the Jews to commemorate their release from bondage in Egypt.  However, we observe these days for a different reason.  The bread eaten during this period is known as the bread of affliction.  (Deuteronomy 16:3)

What does this affliction refer to?  It was the affliction that the Messiah endured during his first marriages.  His first wives, the northern kingdom (Samaria) and the southern Kingdom (Jerusalem/Judah) betrayed Messiah and broke their marriage vows.  (Exodus 19)  They disobeyed the marriage covenant, which was confirmed on Mt. Sinai.  Yahweh (Messiah, or the Son) divorced the northern kingdom, but remained married to the southern kingdom. It was Judah that killed her husband.  With his death, the marriage covenant was terminated.  We of the new covenant have much to learn from the affliction that Messiah endured.  The disobedience of the old covenant can teach us about the dangers of disobedience in the new covenant.  There are serious consequences involved.  Please refer to Hebrews 10:26-27.  We have some important lessons to learn during these days.

If you wish to submit a comment or a question, please email our Elder at john12e4567@gmail.com. 

THE BREAD OF THE FIRSTFRUITS vs THE BREAD OF AFFLICTION

We are introduced to the bread of the firstfruits in Leviticus 23:17-20. Yahweh of Hosts, who is the Son, revealed that two loaves of leavened bread were to represent the firstfruits.  This bread was a new offering initiated during Shavuoth of the Old Covenant. The symbolism of this bread would eventually be fulfilled during Pentecost (Greek) or in Hebrew, Shavuoth, of the New Covenant.

What is the bread of affliction? This was the description of unleavened bread given to Moses in Deuteronomy 16:3. Moses was told this:

Thou shalt eat no unleavened bread with it; seven days shalt thou eat unleavened bread therewith, (even) the bread of affliction; for thou camest forth out of the land of Egypt in haste; that thou mayest remember the day when thou camest out of the land of Egypt all the days of your life.

Physical Israel that was rescued from oppression in Egypt would eventually become the wife of Yahweh’s son at Mount Sinai. (Isaiah 54: 5)  Yahweh gives Moses his proposal to the nation of Israel in Exodus 19: 3-7. The Israelites accepted his proposal in verse 8. The marriage covenant at Mount Sinai was confirmed by a marriage supper described in Exodus 24:11. Representatives of all physical Israel attended this supper. (Exodus 24:9)

The representation of the marital relationship between Yahweh and the nation of Israel is done with unleavened bread. It was initiated during Passover because this was when Messiah, Yahweh of Hosts, passed over Israel and killed the first-born Egyptians.  The first-born of Israel were saved on this night.

The first-born Egyptians had to die to free the first-born Israelites from the affliction of Israel. Lambs were sacrificed at Passover as a representation of the Lamb of Yahweh, who would be sacrificed by his wife to end the marriage covenant.  The end of this marriage covenant would allow for the beginning of a new marriage covenant.

The bread of affliction is a reminder of the marriage that went wrong. Israel’s husband killed the first-born Egyptians to secure the freedom of his future wife, the Israelite nation, from their affliction. The unleavened bread is also a reminder of the affliction Messiah would suffer as a result of this marriage.

Just as Messiah, the Son of Yahweh, would initiate unleavened bread as a symbol for his first marriage, he would initiate leavened bread as a symbol of the new marriage. The two loaves of leavened bread were a prophecy of what would happen on the day of Pentecost, following the Messiah’s death.

The Spirit of Yahweh came upon the disciples and thousands of others at Pentecost, as revealed in Acts 2. Yahweh’s Spirit was freely given to thousands of firstfruits and would result in the down payment of the seed of Messiah’s Spirit.  This seed of Messiah’s spirit would develop over time. Paul describes this process in Galatians 4:19:  “My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Messiah be formed in you.”

In Revelation 2 and 3, John tells the seven assemblies that they must overcome to receive the promises that are offered to the firstfruits. The full development of the Spirit of Messiah is required for the baptized to be eligible for the resurrection when Messiah returns, and that baptism must be in the name of YahwehShua.

Paul informs us in 2 Corinthians 11:2 that the firstfruits are espoused to Messiah as a chaste virgin.  Paul is indicating that the marriage has not yet occurred. This relationship between Messiah and the firstfruits will be confirmed by the marriage supper after the resurrection.

The meal attended by Messiah and his disciples before his death was not an old covenant Passover. It was a new covenant Passover.  The old covenant Passover required unleavened bread. That type of bread symbolized the old marriage covenant and was considered the bread of affliction. This reference to affliction relates to the oppression of the Israelites, the death of the Egyptians, a difficult marriage and the eventual death of Messiah.

Out of that disastrous marriage with the nation of Israel will come a new marriage.  The symbol for this new marriage is leavened bread. The unleavened bread of affliction does not have much flavor and is in reality “dead bread”. The leavened loaves of Pentecost are infused with a bubbling, lively force of fermentation, which allows for the raising of the bread. This is a symbol of the raising of Messiah and the firstfruits from death.

Remember, that Messiah said he was, “the bread of life.” (John 6:48)   Messiah has life in him. He is the bread that has been raised (fermented) by the Spirit of his Father, Yahweh. (In the same way as leaven.)  Yahweh will also raise the firstfruits, the bride of Messiah. The firstfruits are the 144,000 saints, introduced to us in Revelation 14, and are symbolized by the bread of the firstfruits.

This coming Passover will be celebrated with a deeper understanding of who the firstfruits are and how the bread given to the disciples was leavened, and not unleavened. The meal Messiah had with his disciples the night before he died was outside of the days of the old covenant Days of Unleavened Bread. The unleavened bread represents a former marriage covenant that ended with the death of the husband. The leavened bread represents the resurrected body of Messiah, as well as his saints or firstfruits.  Eleven of the twelve disciples who were at that dinner that night were to become firstfruits on the Pentecost after his resurrection.

From that day forward until his return only 144,000 saints or firstfruits are created. Yes, the firstfruits are a new creation that is in process, but not yet completed. (2 Corinthians 5: 17) All the firstfruits will be resurrected when Messiah returns. They will reign with Messiah for 1000 years, judge a resurrected mankind, as well as angels, on the Last Great Day, and will “ follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth.” (Revelation 12: 4)

The old covenant Passover and Days of Unleavened Bread are reminders of the time of affliction. But out of that affliction a new covenant and a new creation is born.

John gives the firstfruits a joyous message that must be remembered when we eat the leavened bread and drink the fruit of the vine:  “Beloved, now are we the sons of Yahweh, and it does not yet appear what we shall be:  but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.”

As Eve was created out of Adam (Genesis 3:22), the firstfruits are created from the Spirit of Messiah. Eve became the wife of Adam. The firstfruits are espoused to Messiah.

The marriage of Adam and Eve led to affliction. Messiah’s marriage with Israel was one of affliction.  The outcome of this afflicted marriage was the death of the husband at the hands of the wife.

The new covenant is represented by the bread of life, rather than the bread of affliction. Messiah has chosen those who will receive his life and become his bride.

The new covenant Passover and the Days of Unleavened Bread are days of celebration and joy for the firstfruits. The old covenant Passover and Days of Unleavened Bread are a somber reminder of what the husband of the firstfruits had to endure to create his bride.

 If you wish to submit a question or comment, please email our Elder at john12e4567@gmail.com.

REVELATIONS YOU SHOULD KNOW

Several years ago, I was given a dream that amplified my understanding of the significance of those who are called firstfruits. The firstfruits are mentioned in a number of scriptures in the New Testament.  We should look at some of these before I reveal more about the dream.

 Revelation 14:4

There are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, (being) the firstfruits unto Yahweh and to the Lamb.

This verse follows what we are told in the first verse of this chapter. In the first verse we are told that 144,000 beings are standing with the Lamb on Mount Sion. The King James Version tells us they have the name of their Father written in their foreheads.

However, when the Greek is examined for this verse it tells a different story. The text actually reads, “his name and his Father’s name.” The correct rendering of the Greek makes a significant difference. The name on their foreheads was not just the name of the Father, but a name that included the name of the Lamb and the Father of the lamb.

More can be learned about these 144,000 firstfruits by reading Revelation 20:4-6. Here we are told these firstfruits are resurrected when Messiah returns. They will reign 1,000 years with the Lamb and will be priests to Yahweh and the Messiah.

James 1:18:  “We should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.”  The “we” is referring to those who have repented, been baptized in the inherited name of YahwehShua, and are faithfully overcoming.

The apostle Paul knew the firstfruits that lived during his lifetime. He introduces us to the firstfruits who lived in Achaia. (Romans 16:5; 1 Corinthians 16: 15)

This was a small town in a Roman province located in Greece. It is of interest that Paul also calls these firstfruits of Achaia saints. (2 Corinthians 1:1)  This is also confirmation that the firstfruits are designated as saints. For example, in Jude 1:14 we are told that when Messiah returns he will be accompanied by 10,000 of his saints.  We now know that the 144,000 firstfruits in Revelation 14:14 are also saints. This understanding explains why Messiah told us in Luke 12:32 that his flock was very small.

Christians are taught that when they die they will go to heaven or hell. However, scripture does not support this. Scripture compares death to sleep. Everyone that has died will be awakened. There will be two resurrections of the dead. The first will occur when Messiah returns. This will be the first resurrection. John tells us this about that resurrection in Revelation 20:6:  “Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death has no power, they shall be priests of Yahweh and of Messiah, and shall reign with him thousand years.”

When combining what we know about saints with the firstfruits, the 144,000 mentioned in Revelation 14, we learn that they are small in number as well as being with Messiah in the first resurrection.  These firstfruits will be resurrected as spiritual beings.  John tells us in 1 John 3:2 that they will see Messiah as he is in his spiritual state, and they shall be like him:  spiritual beings without any further death to face.

What about the rest of mankind? After a thousand years, there is a second resurrection. All of mankind who are not firstfruits will be resurrected as physical human beings. They will then receive the Spirit of Yahweh and have a similar opportunity that the firstfruits enjoyed in this age. They will have Yahweh’s truth as well as an opportunity to be in Yahweh’s kingdom.

There will be many who will not take this opportunity to enter the kingdom. What will happen to them?  They will be thrown into the Gehenna fire.  However, they will not be left there for eternity. After a period of time, they will be resurrected from that fire and allowed to enter the new heaven and new earth. They will not live in the Kingdom, as will the firstfruits. The apostle John describes their circumstances in Revelation 22:15:  “For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.”  Please note that not one human being is lost. Satan is not victorious. Everyone who died is resurrected and will live on the spiritual level with Yahweh in the new heaven and earth. Yahweh is all about love and mercy. He is not filled with hatred like man who is willing to teach eternal torture.

The first revelation I was given was the name of the Father and his family, Yahweh. I was raised in the Christian tradition and was familiar with its beliefs. I was taught that God is the creator and sustainer of all things, and the name I was taught for his son was Jesus.

However, several years ago I was driving on a major interstate highway and noticed a billboard that proclaimed that the name of the Creator is Yahweh. I had never encountered this information before. This experience was reinforced by my reading an advertisement later in a biblical archaeology magazine that proclaimed Yahweh as the name of the Creator.

I then contacted the organization that had placed the ad in the magazine. During my several years there, I learned more about Father Yahweh and His Son, Yahshua.  

I left that organization after a dispute among the leadership ended in a very unsatisfactory resolution. I was cast adrift for about two weeks when, while searching the Internet, I was led to a website that proclaimed Yahweh’s name and a name for his Son I had never heard before, YahwehShua.  This website declared that Yahshua was the prophetic or human name of the Messiah. However, Messiah had to inherit a new name after his death

I was introduced to Deuteronomy 29:20 that revealed that the man who was cursed and died had his name blotted out.  In Galatians 3:13, we are told that Messiah became a curse for us.  Messiah was the only human being who died in sin, was cursed, and therefore had his name blotted out.  This stunned me as I had read and studied the Bible for many years and could not recall ever having seen that verse or any reference to the blotting out of a name.

Another insight that I learned from that website was that the Levitical high priest had the name of Yahweh on his forehead when he entered the holy of holies on Yom Kippurim. Since Messiah was the high priest of the order of Melchizedek, he too would have to have the name of Yahweh when he appeared before his Father after his death.  This website declared that Messiah’s inherited name (Hebrews 1:4) to be YahwehShua, Yahweh Saviour. After learning more about the importance of the inherited name, I was baptized in the name of YahwehShua. Since my baptism, my understanding and dedication have greatly increased.  The only way to become a firstfruit is to be baptized in the inherited name of YahwehShua. This is when you receive the down payment of Messiah’s Spirit that is needed to help you overcome.

The Scriptures are a great source of truth and joy. However, translations are often a hindrance to learning the truth. For example, I never heard of the name of Yahweh until late in life when I saw the billboard. Study revealed that the Hebrew, from which the King James Version was translated, declared Yahweh as the true name, not LORD. The key to salvation was hidden by poor translations. This is only the beginning. There are many truths hidden by poor translations.

Now, let me tell you more about the dream regarding the revelation of the firstfruits. I awoke one morning while attending a religious gathering with the understanding that the first verse in Genesis revealed the first mention of the firstfruits in the Scriptures. At first I thought that someone had taught me about this, but I could not remember who or when.  After asking many people about this new understanding, I realized that there was no one there who had shared this information with me. I finally acknowledged that this information came by my dream.

I was raised to know the first verse in Genesis: “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.”  However, my dream revealed that the Hebrew word, bereshith, from which the word beginning was translated, had an alternative meaning. The Strong’s number for this word was 7225. After study and prayer, it was made clear to me that the first verse of Genesis actually should read as:  “For the sake of the firstfruits, Elohim created the heaven and earth.”  The word translated as God was actually Elohim in the Hebrew language, which is a plural word meaning mighty ones.

This revelation led me to further study who the firstfruits are. This led me to Revelation 14 where more is revealed in verse 4 about the firstfruits.  Since my encounter with Revelation 14, I knew that the number being called to the first resurrection would be small. The 144,000 mentioned in verse one was a very small number when compared to the billions of people who have and will be born. The firstfruits are very unique.

Another interesting fact that I learned during my study was that the rendering of Revelation 14:1 in the King James Version was not correct. Instead of, “having his Father’s name written in their foreheads” the Greek actually should be translated as, “His name and his Father’s name.”

The name on the foreheads of the firstfruits was not just the name of the Father, Yahweh, but of the Son as well. I have since learned more about the inherited name, YahwehShua. This inherited name has the full Tetragrammaton (yod, hey, waw, hey) that is the Father’s name.   By adding Shua, savior, this combination is a name that belongs to both the Father and Son. It is this name of the Father and Son that is on the foreheads of the firstfruits.

The firstfruits are a creation that requires baptism in the shared name of the Father and Son. This name is the same name that Peter declared during Pentecost. Acts 2: 21 quotes Peter as saying: “And it shall come to pass that whosoever shall call upon the name the Lord [Sovereign, the Messiah] shall be saved.”

Do you wish to be among the small flock of firstfruits? The first step is to be baptized in the name of YahwehShua. However, baptism is only the beginning. You must be obedient to the Commandments of Yahweh and overcome until the end.

Translations of the Bible must be read and studied carefully. For example, the word church, which is used throughout the New Testament, is a wrong translation. The Greek word is ekklesia, and means the called out ones.  This has nothing to do with a building or an organization. It is a description of individuals who were called by Yahweh to become firstfruits.

The apostle John reveals in John 6:44 and 65 that, “no man can come unto me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him...” The Father selects the called out ones. This calling Is not based on knowledge, lineage, race, intelligence or desire. It is totally the prerogative of the Father. If this website is of interest, and you are reading this article, then perhaps you too are also being called.

You will not know this is your calling unless you pray to Yahweh for truth, study this website and the scriptures that are revealed, and contact us for guidance. Your intentions are not good enough. You must take the first step which is baptism in the name of YahwehShua.

You must consider what your desire truly is and whether you are willing to do whatever it takes. Do you wish to be a firstfruit in the first resurrection or just wait until the second resurrection? There is much to consider in taking this first step and preparing for baptism. We have been through this whole process ourselves and are available to assist you. We are the firstfruits of Messiah as well as the light of YahwehShua. What is YOUR next step?

 If you wish to submit a question or comment, please email our Elder at john12e4567@gmail.com. 

Have You Been Deceived by Matthew 28:19?

You may recall that the King James Version of Matthew 28:19 reads as follows: “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.”

This verse is used as the basis for Christian baptism. It also supports the Trinitarian belief of many Christian groups. Many, if not most, accept the guidance of this verse because it is found in the King James Bible. This has become accepted tradition because major Christian denominations use this formula for baptism, and for the simple reason that this verse is given additional credibility by its existence in the mainstream translations.  Most Christians follow this tradition without dispute.

However, when one examines what the biblical scholars know about the history of this verse, the validity of the wording is not as certain. For example, there is a gap of over 300 years between when Matthew wrote his account and our earliest manuscript copies.

One of the earliest citations of this verse in extra biblical writings is that quoted by the early church father, Eusebius. He lived between 270 and 340 of this Common Era.  He had access to one of the greatest Christian libraries in the world.

A leading scholar, F.C. Conybeare, says this about what he found when he read the commentary of Eusebius on Matthew 28:19:

“Eusebius cites this text (Matthew 28:19) again and again in works written in between 300 and 336, namely in his long commentaries on the Psalms, on Isaiah, his Demonstrato Evangelica, his Theophany… in his famous history of the church, and in his panagyric of the emperor Constantine.  I have, after a moderate search in these works of Eusebius, found 18 citations of Matthew 28:19, and always in the following form: ‘Go ye and make disciples of all the nations in my name, teaching them to observe all things, whatsoever I commanded you.’”

For additional information about the validity of the King James Version of Matthew 28:19, please consider these websites as well:

http:// everlasting kingdom. Info/ article/127/constantine- wrote- matthew 2819- into- our- bible-html

http://www.trinity truth.org/matthew 28_19 added text.html

http://www.apostolic- voice.org/no- trinity- in- the- bible

http://www.glorified. com/eusebius.htm

In these articles, you will find scholarship that will support what F.C. Conybeare has attested to.  For example, there is a lack of Greek manuscript references that support this verse in the King James Version of Matthew 28:19. However, these articles do have other problems.  You will read them as is, but remember that the Light of YahwehShua proclaims the name of the Father as Yahweh and not g-d.  The human birth name of the Son is Yahshua and not Jesus.

Did Yahshua use the phrase “in my name” on other occasions?  Yes, he used it at least 17 times. These are some examples for your review:  Matthew 18:20; Mark 9:37, 39, 41; Mark 16: 17; John 14:14, 26; John 15:16 and 16:23.

Did the disciples ever immerse in the Trinity? Not one time is that recorded. They always immersed in His name.  For examples, please review the following verses:

Acts 2:38, 8:16, 10:48, and 19:5.

One other false Trinitarian verse is found in the King James Version of 1 John 5:7-8:  “For there are three that bear witness in heaven:  the Father, the Word and the Holy Ghost:  and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth, the spirit, the water, and the blood:  and these three agree in one.”

A search of references regarding these verses revealed this quote from scholar, Daniel B. Wallace PhD:

“This [altered] reading [in 1 John] is found only in late manuscripts, four of which have the words in a marginal note. Most of these manuscripts (2318, 221, and (with minor variations) 61, 88, 429, 629, 636, and 918) originate from the 16th century; the earliest manuscript, codex 221 (10th-century), includes the reading in a marginal note, which was added sometime after the original composition.  Thus, there is no sure evidence of this reading in any Greek manuscript until the 1500s; each such reading was apparently composed after Erasmus’ Greek New Testament was published in 1516. Indeed, the reading appears in no Greek witness of any kind (either manuscript, patristic, or Greek translation of some other version) until AD 1215 (in a Greek translation of the Acts of the Lateran Council, a work originally written in Latin). This is all the more significant, since many a Greek Father would have loved such a reading, for it so succinctly affirms the doctrine of the Trinity.  The reading seems to have arisen in a fourth century Latin homily in which the text was allegorized to refer to members of the Trinity.  From there, it made its way into copies of the Latin Vulgate, the text used by the Roman Catholic Church.”

Should you examine the more recent translations such as Rotherham, the Diaglott or the NIV, you will find 1 John 5:7-8 in this form:  “For there are three which testify; the Spirit, and the water, and the blood; and the three are one.”

These verses as found in the King James Version are examples of “fake news.”  There is truly nothing new under the sun.

According to Deuteronomy 29:20, he who dies in sin has their name blotted out. There is only one human who died in sin and that was the Messiah Yahshua. (1 John 1: 7) This is why we are told in Hebrews 1:4 that the Messiah inherited a more excellent name.  What is that more excellent name?  That name is Yahweh! (Psalm 148:13)  Messiah could not use his human name when he appeared before Yahweh, the Father, because absorbing all the sin of the world defiled that name.

Baptism in the triune declaration is not valid.  Baptism in any name other than the inherited name, YahwehShua, is also not valid. Immersion (baptism) is only the first part of a valid baptism. The second is to have hands laid upon you by an elder in YahwehShua. (Acts 8:17-18)

If you have been baptized in any other name than YahwehShua, what do you do? Paul gives us an example of what to do in Acts 19: 1-6. It is recorded that Paul encountered 12 men who had been baptized only in the manner that John the Baptist baptized. He therefore immersed them in the name of YahwehShua and then followed this with the laying on of hands. It was following this that the Holy Spirit came upon them.

Please note two problems with this passage. First is the word ghost. The Greek is pneuma or spirit.  This should read as Holy Spirit not Holy Ghost. Second, we are informed that Paul baptized in the name of Jesus. This cannot be true. Messiah had a Hebrew name and there is no “J” in Greek or Hebrew. Most significant is that, according to Deuteronomy 29:20, the Messiah’s human name was already blotted out when Paul performed this baptism. The name Paul would have had to use was YahwehShua.

Yahweh’s word is clear once you have a valid translation. Remember, in Luke 11:52 when Messiah said to the Pharisees:  “Woe unto you, lawyers!  For ye have taken away the key of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered.”

The Messiah would have the same message today to all those who profess the triune formula for baptism or use any other name than his inherited name, YahwehShua. This is why only 144,000 saints are resurrected when Messiah returns.  Satan has almost successfully deceived the whole world. (Revelation 12:9)  Only a few saints have been given the truth and will successfully overcome into the better resurrection. (Hebrews 11:35)

Do you wish to be one of the few? Pray to Yahweh for truth. Study our website and contact our elders for guidance in pursuing the key of knowledge and a valid baptism.

May Yahweh call you into all His truth.

 If you wish to submit a question or comment, please email our Elder at john12e4567@gmail.com.