How Do We Live Our Christian Lives?

Philippians 1:2

Grace is yours and peace with God our Father and Lord Master Messiah Y'shua.

At the beginning of last nights Bible Study, I asked the question, "What is Grace?", which prompted Ginger to say, "God's Riches At Christ's Expense.", followed by Debbie adding, "Undeserved Riches.". That's it! Grace is getting some kind of favor that we don't deserve. In our case, we get God's undeserved love, resulting in God going to great extremes to reconcile us back to him. We were indebted to him, because of our disobedience. We owed God a reconciliation sacrifice of ourselves, but God gave his one and only Son for us to offer him up to God, for our sins. Jesus said it.

"There is no greater love than for one to lay down his life for another."

That was the greatest undeserved example of Grace, known to man.

How about Peace? We throw words around, without knowing their true meaning. Peace is tranquility. Joe responded, "It's like a little baby nestled in his mothers arms. Not a care in the world, relying totally on his mother's love." That's a sweet and perfect description of peace with God, our Father. Rick responded with, "It's like the assuredness we get when place our faith, as adults, and coming to God, as children." That's a great Biblical connection to bring it home. Again, Jesus said,

"Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."

Again, Sweet!!!

Now, back to the verse. Notice, in the Word for Word translation, it says,

"Grace is yours."

Wow!! What a very confirming statement, instead of the normal translated, "Grace and Peace, to you."

Rick and I both made the point that it sounds pretty presumptious of Paul, to say this. It sounds almost conditional and that Paul was conveying Grace and Peace, instead of God, everytime he wrote a letter. However, in the Greek, it's a resounding confirmation of Grace belonging to those who have given themselves over to the Lord. You are a saint and you have the Grace of God. Claim it as yours and Run with it. It is a very affirming confirmation of this fact.

"Peace WITH God, our Father", not FROM God, our Father. Again, the normal English almost makes it sound conditional, which it is not. Paul is really saying that you are God's children, showered with the Grace, provided by Jesus, now, live a tranquil child like existence with God, our Father.

"...and Lord Master Messiah Y'shua."

Who is the catalyst to this type of existence? Of course, the one and only Son of God, who was obedient unto death, to freely give his GRACE and PEACE providing sacrifice, on our behalf, Y'shua ha Mashiach, Jesus Christ, our lord. AMEN!!!!

Philippians 1:3-6

Thanking my God, at every thought of you. Every time, within all my prayers, on all your behalf, making requests joyfully, for your communion in the good news, from the first day until now.
Confident this entity that begun it's good work in you unto perfection until the day of Messiah Y'shua .

Look at the intimate Godlike love of Paul, towards the Phippians. This is the same love that you and I should have for each other, always including each other in our prayers. The type of Agape Love through which:

We should joyfully edify, build up each other intimately, as we would build our own self.

We should joyfully care about each other intimately, as we would care about our own self.

If one hurts we should all hurt, as if it was our own self in pain.

If this isn't the type of love that you feel for one another, it's time for a severe self evaluation. Get back to the love that brought our lord Jesus Christ to the cross, the altar of God.

In this verse, notice the word, communion, which is normally translated as partnership or participation, which falls severely short of the meaning the Spirit of God is trying to get across. The Greek word is a familiar word to most Christian. It is Koinonia. Actually, the word, Koinonia surprisingly means intercourse, which is the perfect word. As in intercourse, two people become one. This is the same model for all true Christians. We are one entity. Koinonia goes perfect with Jesus' commandment to love each other as ourselves.

With all that said, it brings us to the how. How do we love each other as ourselves? Honestly, it's not a natural human response. The answer is a supernatural one. Notice verse 6.

Confident this entity that begun it's good work in you unto perfection until the day of Messiah Y'shua .

Most English versions will erroneous and presumtiously insert "Being confident of this very thing, that he...". Almost implying an external influence on us. In reality, the Greek says it correctly. The one who begun IT'S good work, INSIDE YOU, is the Gift of God, his Holy Spirit. It is God's Holy Spirit that gives us the ability to live our lives as God wants us and perfects us until the day, Y'shua/Jesus comes back for us.

Have you ever notice that the one who inspired the men of the Bible, to write the Bible, goes to great lengths not to get the Glory that is due the Father. Why? Because there isn't a separate entity called the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is God, himself, that dwells inside of us all, in the same way that his fulness dwelled and continues to dwell inside, the only man, who sits at God's right hand, Jesus Christ.

Philippians 1:1 The True Model Of The Church

Last night, our small group began the study of the book of Philippians. If you want, please follow along with us. The following is a condensed version of our two hour meeting. Please feel free to comment and interact with our group. The version that I will be using, in this study, is a Word for Word Study Version. I will share your comments and/or questions to the group and visa versa. It'll be nice to have an international participation, so let's get started.

Philippians 1:1a

Paul and Timothy, bondservants of Messiah Y'shua, 

Here we have the beginning salutation or greeting from the apostle Paul and his companion, Timothy. 

As you probably know, Paul, formally known as Saul, was a Jew, who was a citizen of Rome and a Pharisee, in Jerusalem. Upon the death of Y'shua, upon the cross, Paul led a concerted effort, to eliminated or put down the growing heretic band of Jews and gentiles, known as Christians, who believed that Y'shua was the Messiah. During a trip to Damascus, Paul was struck down by Y'shua and converted to a bondservant of Messiah Y'shua. Afterward, Paul spent the rest of his life venturing out into the known world doing missionary trips.

On his second missionary trip, Paul met a young and well respected Christian, Timothy, in the town of Lystra, which is in modern day Turkey. Lystra was a small town, just to the west of Tarsus, where Paul was born. Like so many secular Jews of that day, Timothy was a child of a Jewish mother and Greek gentile father. As a result, Timothy was never circumcised, as a Jew. To make him more acceptable to the Jews, Paul circumcised him. Paul became his mentor and together, they changed many lives for the Lord. 

Both Paul and Timothy were bondservants of the Messiah Y'shua. Messiah Y'shua is better known today by his anglicized name, Jesus. Y'shua, who's name means Yahweh is Salvation or Yahweh Saves, was a man created directly, by the Yahweh's Holy Spirit, in the womb of his mother, Mary. Yahweh is the one and only God and Father of Messiah Y'shua. By doing this, Yahweh avoided the curse of man's sinful nature and set a path for mankind's redemption. This man, Y'shua, was to be the perfect sacrifice for mankind's sins, which is required by God's Holy Righeousness, in order for man to be able to present themselves and live in the presence of God.

What is a Bondservant?

Well, first of all, the Greek word translated here as bondservant is 'Doulos'.

There are three types of servants or slaves presented in the Bible. 

1. Slaves: Those of a people conquered by an army and forced into servitude.

2. Servants: Those people who owed a debt to someone and were either forced or voluntarily entered into servitude. Later, after the debt was paid, they were free to leave and live their lives, as they wished.

3. Bondservants: Servants, who after paying their debt, chose to dedicate their lives to the servitude of their previous masters household.

Paul and Timothy were bondservants of Y'shua, because they chose to give their lives to him, after Y'shua paid the cost of their sin debt to Yahweh, on the cross.

This bondservant relationship is the relationship that all Christians have with Yahweh, through his son, The Messiah Y'shua. We live our lives to serve and please God, according to his will.

Philippians 1:1b

… to Saints, in Messiah Y'shua, living in Philipi, with the overseers and deacons.

This greeting or salutation is directed to the Saints, living in Philipi.

Who are the Saints and what does that mean?

Throughout the Christian church history, the word 'Saint' has gone through a metamorphosis. It has become a word to describe super good people, within the church. People who have shown highly religious aspects, in their daily lives. However, the word, 'Saint', doesn't mean that at all. The word means, "a person set apart for a cause". You and I, as Christians, are saints, because we have been set apart of the cause of the Messiah, which is to be reconciled back to the one and only God, Yahweh. Christians are Messianic Saints. We should not be ashamed or too bashful to grab ahold of the title and claim it as ours, for the mere fact that Y'shua gave his life, so you could obtain the title. So, live it.

Philipi was a town, just north of the Aegean Sea, in modern and ancient Greek province of eastern Macedonia. You can still see the ruins in the modern Greek town of Filipoi, which is part of Kavala, Greece.

Overseers and Deacons

Throughout our Church history, two words, that have been dramatically changed, were the Greek words, 'episkopos' and 'diakonos', which is directly translated here as overseers and deacons. These words are synonymous with the modern versions of Elders, Bishops, Ministers, Priests, Shepherds, etc. However, over the years, the church leadership has morphed these words, into what they mean today, in an effort to rule over the laity. 

What makes this preposterous is the fact that the Bible clearly teaches that no one is to rule over anyone, within the Kingdom of God. We are only to have God, through his Son, The Messiah Y'shua, as our one and only shepherd. Y'shua even stated, in Revelation, that he hates the ways of the Nicolaitans, which means, "Those who rule over the laity".

So, what are overseers and deacons?

Well, the first century church was made up of those who were elders. These were the mature people, who clearly had a relationship with God, through the Messiah. Naturally, the church gravitated towards them for teaching, administration, admonishment, mentoring. These were the overseers. There was no one minister or priest, who taught or preached. There was no sunday school or junior church. The small group of believers and their families would be gathered to the overseers, the Elders. The overseers or Elders would not be elected. The Elders would be elders through a natural symbiosis. 

The deacons were the ones who did the outpouring of help and support for the group. They were the ones that would actually took care of the poor, elderly and so on within the small group community. They are the ones that make up the 20% that does 80% of the work, within the church today and usually directed by the overseers. 

A question was posed, last night, what do we do? My response was to leave the worldly church behind and get back to the original first century church model laid out within the Bible. No more impersonal mega churchs. Get back to the small gatherings of believers and get away from the country club gatherings of today. What do you think?

Yes, Christians Suck At Times. So..Bear With Us. At The Very Least, We Are Committed To You.

To those who wonder why Christians are so adamant about their beliefs and why they don't bend in their beliefs. Well, it all comes down to a committed love, based in the truth of God's Word, towards everyone, including those who are not the most friendly towards them. This committed love is define by the Apostle Paul, in Philippians 1:9-10.

And this I pray, in order that your loving commitment might overflow even more and more, in ethical and divine knowledge and all discernment and perception, that you scrutinize and test all things for authenticity, whether good or evil, so you may be pure and not a stumbling block, until the day of the Messiah.

It's all about authenticity, even though we falter at times. Those who love God and his Word are committed towards spreading the news of God's Love and Truth and his commitment to reconcile mankind back to him through the sacrifice of his Son, Y'shua/Jesus. As seen in the above verses from Philippians, you can see that our love is a commitment and commandment to search out and spread the truth, regardless of your particular set of beliefs. True Christians should receive all the facts and continually check them against God's Word.

They are supposed to do this with brotherly love. If you think about this, the love between brothers can be very frank and perceived as curt and unfriendly at times. As Christians, we strive forward with the thought that it's better to hurt feelings, at times, than to lose anyone to the depths of hell.

Unfortunately, there are also all types of Christians, who are steeped in tradition, rather than the truth of the scriptures. These immature Christians sometimes believe that they possess the truth and don't continually fact check. They believe in a pseudo-truth, which is based in non biblical tradition, self aggrandizing and even a delusional sense of self-worth. Also, along with these impure beliefs, these Christians display tactics, which are not Christ-Like, like ignoring scripture that disagree with their positions, using hate tactics and so on.

So, when dealing with all types of Christians, keep in mind that all true Christians are sinners saved by the Grace of God, through the sacrifice of his Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Yes, we all suck at times. We may even get on your nerves. So...please pray for us or ignore us, because we are not going away. Whether you believe it or not, true Christians do believe that your salvation is between you and God. We are here only to facilitate the process and are committed to the salvation of everyone, whether you accept it or not.

Is This The Book Of Life?

Everyone knows about the Book of Life. It is one of Seven Books mentioned in the Bible. Every True Believers name and actions are in the Book of Life, which is opened on Judgement Day. If your name is there, you are gifted with eternal life, with the Lord. If not, then eternal life, without the Lord. If you ask most people, they will tell you that the Book of Life is guarded closely, by the angels around the throne of God. However, if you read Amos 3:7, we are told:

Our Lord,

Yahweh,

accomplishes his business only 

by first laying out his plans

to his servants, the prophets.

Interestingly, if you take this on the macro level, God does nothing to effect the matters of the nations, Earth and the universe, without telling his prophets first. His prophets then wrote down these plans, within the Bible, before they happen. This is prophecy, the foretelling of things, before they happen. This is done strictly so the readers and the True Believers know that Yahweh is the one and only true omniscient God, who knows all things, from the beginning to the end of time.

Even more interesting, if you take Amos 3:7 to the micro level, God does nothing, with us, on a personal level, without revealing it, to the prophets. Since our individual salvation is the most important thing to him, within our Time/Space, would he reveal our salvation to the prophets? If so, since the prophets wrote down everything told to them by God, would our name appear within the text of the Holy Scriptures?

The plan for our salvation is definitely and clearly laid out, within the pages of the Bible. Why not the results? Since there are many levels of understanding to God's Word, I would not doubt that, on some level, every single name and actions of all True Believers, The Saved, should be written, in some form, within the pages of the Holy Bible. If so, this Book is indeed the True Book of Life. This Book would not only give you the instructions, in order to receive salvation, but also list the outcome of all who would accept this gift. Wouldn't this be just like God, to have hidden the Book of Life, in plain sight and have it passed down in oral and written form, for all to bear witness, since the dawn of man? What do you think?

The 23rd Psalm Revisited

The 23rd Psalm is one of the most well known passages, in the Bible. It has been memorized and restated, by many Faithful Jews and Christians worldwide, as a statement of God's continuing faithfulness and how he give believers rest. However, does the original Hebrew bear witness to this point? A simple revisit of the Hebrew shows that it does not.

Let me stop and say that there are plenty of Biblical passages that testify of God's continuing faithfulness and how he give believers rest. However, here in the 23rd Psalm, we find that it is actually a faithful plea from David, to Yahweh, for Peace, Strength and Assuredness in his personal and public life.

Even though David was known to be a man after God's heart, things didn't come automatically. He always looked for God's approval. In this same manner, Jews and Christians must always be in God's Word and in Prayer, to ensure that they are walking in God's Will and Shadow.

The following is a Word for Word translation of the 23rd Psalm. Please compare it with your translation. Notice how most translators add thoughts to the scriptures. I'm not saying that your translation is a piece of fiction. I only implore you to get back to the original Hebrew, Greek and Sumarian, in order to get back to God's original message, so you can filter out the man made messages in the Synagogues and Church's today.

Psalm 23

A Song of David

Yahweh, a Shepherd/Friend that I sorrowfully desire.

My Restful Compassionate Dwelling,

Sustain me to comfortably rest upon your Word,

Break me down and Rebuild my Spirit and my Soul.

Lead the way to the righteousness of your Name.

Walk me through the

Valley of the Shadow of Death , Fear and Evil.

Your Scepter and Support Consoles and Comforts me.

Prepare my Table to Face my Enemy, 

Anoint my Head with Oil and Make my Cup Run Over.

Allow your Mercy

To follow me the Days of my Life

and My Dwelling to be within

the House of Yahweh

for All Time.