Author Archives: prodigal101

There is a portion of Scripture that convicts me deeply. Jesus said, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away; and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. . . If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them and cast them into the fire, and they are burned” (John 15:2, 6).

I have read and re-read these powerful words of Christ, and I cannot escape their convicting power. The Holy Spirit has impressed upon me the importance of understanding these words, “My Father is the husbandman . . . every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away.”

This matter of Christians bearing fruit is not optional with God. He watches over His vine and all the engrafted branches with great jealousy and concern, patiently waiting for the branches to bring forth fruit. He stands beside it with pruning knife in hand, lovingly watching for the slightest evidence of corruption, blight or disease which could hinder growth. God expects fruit from every branch. Without fruit, it is impossible to honor and glorify Him or be a true disciple of Christ. Jesus said: “Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples” (John 15:8).

Bearing fruit has everything to do with pleasing God—fulfilling our mission in Christ— and with having our prayers and petitions answered. Jesus said, “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain; that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you” (verse 16).

Actually, bearing fruit concerns what we are becoming, rather than simply what we are doing. I am bearing fruit when there is nothing hindering the flow of the life of Christ into me. That is what Jesus meant when He said, “Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you” (John 15:3). He is saying, “Because you believed My word—trembling over it, letting it reveal every hidden secret, bringing to light every dark thing, allowing the Word of God to purge you—the hindrances are all gone!”

The last few weeks have been extremely trying and challenging ( now there’s an understatement ) for many that we have talked with as well as for us.  Well, remember the old adage – ‘you can’t see the forest for the trees’ ? Sometimes we are so involved in what’s going on we lose sight of what is actually going on.

WE will celebrating our Passover together this year on tuesday evening March 26th at 6:00pm at the congregational meeting place.  There is no charge for this gathering ( we will accept free-will donations ) . All that accept Jesus – Yeshua as Messiah, Lord and Saviour are welcome and invited . . . RSVP is a MUST . . . Shalom & Blessings –

We have a limited supply of the teaching and worship materials listed below.

Enmity Between the Seeds by Bill Cloud   $ 10.00

YAHWEH REIGNS 2 CD SET by Jimmie Black   $ 25.00

INTIMATE WORSHIP CD by Jimmie Black     $ 15.00

Songs of Ascents by Jimmie Black     $ 15.00

COMING BACK TO YOU by Jimmie Black    $ 15.00

WE DO NOT DO PAYPAL OR CREDIT CARD . . . I KNOW, HOW OUT-OF-THE-LOOP CAN ONE BE . . .? WE WILL TAKE YOUR PERSONAL CHECK OR CASH AND WILL SHIP UPON RECEIPT OF YOUR ORDER, TRUSTING THAT PAYMENT WILL ARRIVE . . .

AND ALSO, OTHER MATERIALS WILL BE COMING SOON !!   AND WATCH ( OR LISTEN ) FOR OUR UPCOMING BLOG-TALK RADIO TEACHINGS  . . . . SHALOM TO YOU AND YOURS –

There is much spoken of in ‘teaching circles’ in regards to the comparison
between the ‘first & Second exodus’.  1 Cor 10:11 says we are to learn and benefit
from the example of the first. Yet Yeshua compares the ‘coming of the Son of Man’
to the ‘days of Noah and righteous Lot’ . There are many parallels we can see in
these two events . . . global vs regional judgement, among others. But one glaring observation is the difference in the degree of preparation ( or lack thereof ) for what was to come. Both survived . . . both by the Grace of God.  One did exactly as directed by Father  . . . the other ‘got out’ by the ‘skin of his teeth’ with the shirt on his back . . .and lost family in the process. One was preparing for others as well as for his family in addition to those that would come after. Lot wasn’t even prepared for himself, let alone his own family. One prepared for what was to come, under the leadership of the Spirit of God, and the other was in the wrong place at the wrong time. And when Lot was directed to ‘go to the hills’, he chose the city instead.
And we all know how that turned out. 

In the last two days we have read two articles reflecting on the concept of ‘getting off the grid’ and ‘going to a safe place’ and ‘hiding out with your beans, bullets and salt.’ These articles are telling us that you can’t be a ‘light’ and ‘hide’ or ‘head for the hills’ at the same time . . . that doing these things shows that you are focused on personal preservation and not focused on being ‘light and salt’.

So, what do you do with those believers that Abba has called to get a place ready for His people to have a safe refuge when the hard times come?
How do we speak to folks about the greatness of our God when we, as his
children, are standing at the back of the government bread line with our hands
stuck out like everybody else ?
     I recently heard a teaching that stated we can either be a servant or a survivor.
Is it not possible to be both ? What do you do with Noah or Joseph ?
What were they ? Servants or survivors ?  Shame on Noah . . . taking his beans and salt     ( and I’m sure he had a weapon or two ) and high-tailin’ it into that boat and hiding. He should have been standing out in the rain handing out rafts and tracts.  How dare him put back food and provisions in that boat for the animals and any people that might come. Didn’t anybody tell him that doing that showed a lack of faith ? But wait a minute . . . I forgot . . . Noah was doing exactly what GOD directed him to do. I wonder how a similar act would be perceived by the leadership of today ?  Remember – Yeshua said ” . . . as in the days of Noah . . .”  Do I sound angry ? Good . . . I am . . . I’m tired of being painted with that ‘broad brush’ that covers everyone that mentions ‘getting prepared’.

WE AGREE . . . there is no one safe geographical spot on the map that is ‘SAFE’. Not Costa Rica, not Australia, not New Zealand or Greenland . . . not even ISRAEL . . .unless our Father has sent you there. And that is the key. The ONLY safe place is in the Palm of His Hand, in the center of HIS will for you. He can make you invisible to the enemy in the middle of the battle or keep you safe in the middle of the wilderness. But only if that is where you are supposed to be.

Servants or survivors . . .Beans and bullets or Salt and Light . . . Is that the only options ? There IS a third category . . .
     There are those that Abba has called to prepare places of transition for the
‘birth pangs’ period until we get to go HOME . . . safe places, covered by the Father,
guarded by his angels, prepared for His people that will be led to these havens by HIs SPIRIT.
      These people have given of themselves, their resources, finances, blood, sweat, tears and prayers ( ALL provided by our loving Father ) to the doing of the work
of our Father. To lump these in with the ones that are ‘planning to take the country
back after the smoke clears and the dust settles’ is demeaning to the calling of the
LORD and hurtful to those that sh’ma this calling.
     You are correct. There IS a sifting coming . . . and in some places and respects  it is already here. The organized church is NOT, for the most part, dealing with this fact. And, as a rule, it is sorely lacking in the messianic / hebrew roots camp as well. When was the last time someone heard a teaching concerning the period of time that Satan will be given power to wear down the saints ? Are the sheep prepared for this time physically ?  Spiritually ? Emotionally ?
Sadly, for the most part, the answer is NO . . . And we, the leadership, will stand and
give an account for our failure to prepare the people for what is coming on the earth.
Father forgive us . . . B’shem Yeshua – Jerry

So then, what is ‘Peace’ ? Well, when the Apostle Paul states “HE Himself (Yeshua) is our Peace” – Eph. 2:14 – he ( Paul ) is not speaking of a sense or time of calm, quiet and ‘warm & fuzzy’. He is making a reference to a Torah principle . . . the ‘Shelem’.

The ‘shelem’ is the ‘Peace Offering’. The first time we actually recognize it in Scripture it is as the ‘Passover Lamb’. Paul makes reference to the concept of the need for the ‘Shelem’ in his wording in Ephesians 2 when he speaks of a division between the nations and Israel . . . a division that was not meant to be. Israel was to be a light to the nations, to take Salvation to the ends of the earth. But a man-made division entered in.

But here’s the principle of ‘Shelem’.  Here’s the picture . . .you’ve got two individuals or entities that are separated. Something has caused a breach in the relationship. The ‘shelem’ is that which ‘heals the breach’ . . . It ( HE ) reconciles the two that are separated by standing in the gap, repairing the break and making the two become one again.  Romans 5:10 “For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.”  Yeshua is our Peace – the Shelem – that which reconciles us to the Father, as well as to one another . ..   OK . . . got it.

So, what’s all that got to do with ‘breakin’ eggs to make the Peace Omelet.’   Well,remember the reference we made to the Prophets being the ‘peacemakers’ in Matthew 5 ?  In our next little snippet we will take a look at that thought and how ‘peace and division’ go hand in hand . . . until tomorrow – Shalom – Peace . . .

As far back as I can remember we have heard, read, sung, and preached  this phrase –  ‘pray for peace’.  So what’s that all about, anyway ?

King David admonishes us to ‘pray for the peace of Jerusalem’ . Yeshua is the Sar Shalom – the Prince of Peace. He tells us that the ‘peacemakers are blessed’ . . . The Apostle Paul reminds us that Yeshua IS our ‘Peace’ . . . And yet King David was a man of war and blood  ( 1Chron 28:3 ) , Paul was constantly in a ‘tussle’ with somebody,  and Yeshua said ” I bring a sword . . .”  ( Matt 10:34 ).   And what about the ‘peacemakers’ ? Did you catch the fact that ‘they’ – the Peacemakers – are compared to the Prophets ? And there is a BIG difference between ‘peacemakers’ and ‘peacekeepers’ . . . And HE called us to be which one ?  I find it ironic that one of the most famous weapons ever produced by COLT was the ‘Peacemaker’ . Maybe they understood something that we have yet to figure out. NO, I’m not speaking of ‘taking up arms’, but it DOES have to do with ‘taking a stance’ . . .

     PEACE is more than merely the absence of conflict. Peace – Shalom – is the picture of wholeness, completeness, ‘one-ness’ . . . everything being the way it is intended to be. So, what is all this talk of ‘Peace’ in the Scripture by those that are constantly involved in conflict ? Ever heard the phrase   ‘if you’re gonna make an omelet, you gotta break some eggs’ ?  Well, let’s look at this concept of ‘Peace’ from hopefully a different and little deeper perspective . . . ( to be continued )   Blessings –

By the way, for the record, the same ‘unequally yoked’ principle would hold true if the ‘teachers’ were a ‘Believing’ Jewish Teacher and a ‘Non-Believing’ Jewish Teacher, or Belieivng pastor and a non-believing pastor ( yeah, I know ) or a ‘believing baptist and a non-believing muslim or any other combo that you can think of that mixes two kingdoms together that have different ‘natures’ . . .j ust in case you thought we were pickin’ on anybody in particular . . .

Just in case someone might have misunderstood, I want to clarify a point. Sometime back we posted a ‘question’ about an article that came across our desk concerning a ‘radical new idea’ proposing a “one new man worship group” being led by a believing pastor and a non-believing jewish teacher . . . ( ‘believing’ and ‘non-believing’ being defined in the context of acceptance of Jesus – Yeshua – of Nazareth as the promised Messiah of Israel that came in the flesh and will come again )

Let’s make it simple. Do we think it will work ?  No .So why not ? Which one don’t we like – pastors or Jews ?  We like both. So what’s the problem ? It’s a violation of the Apostle Paul’s teaching in 2 Corinthians 6:14            ( mixing light and darkness ) WHICH is based in the Torah principles about mixing things together that are of differing natures. ( For in Christ, I am a new creation, 1 Cor 5:17 . . . my nature is changed ) Leviticus 19:19 and Deut 22:9-11 teaching us this principle in the day-to-day things, such as mixing seed in the same field or plowing with an ox and donkey, or mixing fabrics from differing ‘kingdoms; . Exodus 34:16 and Deut 7:2-3 take the principles to a deeper level.

Yeshua said that the disciples ( and us ) are in the world but not of the world. Isaiah tells us that Israel ( that includes you and me ) are to be a ‘light to the nations’.

God showed Peter that we should not call any man common or unclean Acts 10 ), since Yeshua died for ALL that would come to Him. BUT – if they will not accept Him, they will find themselves ‘outside the city’ in the end. To ‘yoke’ myself together in the teaching of the Gospel of GOD and the whole counsel of the Word with a person who openly denies the personhood and office of Yeshua – the ONE  who brings me life and light, is to violate the very foundation on which I am to stand that enables me to be the LIGHT and SALT He has called me to be.

Please understand that this stance is NOT being anti-semitic, or ant-Israel or anti- jewish, for Paul reminds us that ‘not all Israel is Israel’ ( Rom. 9:6-ff , and if I am in Messiah, then I am Abraham’s seed – a hebrew – Galatians 3:29 ) . . . This truth has been from the beginning and cannot be changed just because it offends my sensibilities or seems ‘not nice’. I didn’t write it, GOD did . . .And Yes, I love my brother Judah  . . . and my brother ‘bubba’ . . .

Shabbat Shalom – J