Deborah’s Torah Nuggets

 

Torah Reading-Genesis 6:9-11:32

Haftarah Reading-Isaiah 54:1-55:5

Brit HaDasha Reading-Matthew 34:36-47

 

“Preachers of Righteousness”

 

 

 

 Gen 6:9  These are the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God.

 

2Pe 2:4  For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment;

2Pe 2:5  And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly;

 

1Pe 3:20  Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.

1Pe 3:21  The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:

1Pe 3:22  Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him.

 

Jewish Study Bible

      “The mention of Noah’s righteousness and blamelessness serves as a counterpart to the reports of human wickedness and lawlessness that both precede and follow it.  The favor that Noah found with the Lord derives in part or whole from his lonely role as the one moral man in an immoral society

 

      Can you imagine being the only man on the face of the earth who was moral? This was Noah, in the midst of a perverse generation, he stood for righteousness and purety.

 

Noach warned his generation about judgment to come, and preached repentance as did Yochanan/John The Baptist. In 11 Peter 2:4-5 Noach is called a “Preacher of Righteousness”.   The Flood is a type of baptism, or mikvah that cleansed the earth of the evil that was a stench in G-d’s nostrils, while preserving the righteous in the Ark.

 

Mat 3:1  In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judea,

Mat 3:2  And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

 

Mat 4:17  From that time Jesus/Yeshua began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

 

Mat 10:5  These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not:

Mat 10:6  But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

Mat 10:7  And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Mat 10:8  Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.

(Healing, cleansing, raising the dead, casting out devils were signs that the Kingdom had arrived in their mists)

 

 

What is the message of the Gospel? What is the Good News?  It is, The Kingdom of Heaven Is Near.  The Hebrew word for Kingdom is “Malchut”, in the Kingdom, one must be submitted to the reign of the “Malek” (King).  Yeshua is the promised King of the Kingdom.

 

“The Kingdom of Heaven is near” in the Hebrew, “Near” is Karav, it has a sense of “Already here”. John preached “Repent” because the active reign and rule of God is right now!.  Where there is a King, there is a Kingdom.

 

The Message of Yochanan/John, Yeshua/Jesus and the Talmidim/Disciples is very simple and very constant, “The King is Here”.

 

Acknowledging “The Kingdom” and ‘The King” demands a response and the response is “Repent’, the Hebrew is “Shoo” or Teshuvah, which means to turn around, quit sinning and start doing good.

 

The Hebrew sense of repentance is very active, you stop going in the direction you are going, you turn around and return back to God’s covenant standard, His commandments, His Torah/Teaching and Instructions.

 

1Jo 1:9  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

1Jo 1:10  If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

 

1Jo 3:1  Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.

1Jo 3:2  Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth 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.

1Jo 3:3  And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.

1Jo 3:4  Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.

1Jo 3:5  And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin.

 

 

True return and repentance is a return to Torah/God’s Teaching and Instructions through the Living Torah, Yeshua Ha Mashiach.

 

Tanek 16a – Ada Ben Ahava – Here is an interesting analogy regarding repentance.

 

“One who has sinned and confesses his sin, but does not repent to what can he be compared” He can be compared to a man holding a dead reptile in his hand, for although he may immerse himself in all the waters of the world, his immersion is of no avail to him.  But if he would just throw away the lizard from his hand, than as soon as he immerses himself his immersion becomes effective as it is said, “But who confesseth and forsaketh then shall obtain mercy”

 

So what is he saying?

 

If you are holding a dead lizard, it makes you unclean or impure and the Mikvah/Immersion is useless, because you are still unclean. Stop holding onto your sins, Get rid of the lizard, then go into the water, that is what true repentance is. 

 

This is the message of the Gospel – Repent, then be baptized/Immersed or Mikvah. In other words, “GET RID OF THE LIZARD-QUIT SINNING!

 

Our first priority and our first task at hand is to repent, quit sinning, turn around start doing good by submitting your life to the LIVING TORAH, OUR MESSIAH, YESHUA!

 

We Are To Become, as Noach, John, The Discipes/Talmidim and our Messiah Yeshua “PREACHERS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS, PREACHERS OF THE GOOD NEWS, THE KINGDOM IS HERE BECAUSE THE KING HAS ARRIVED.

 

 

Matthew 28:18  And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.

Matthew 28:19  Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

Matthew 28:20  Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

 

Mark 16:15  And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

Mark 16:16  He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

Mark 16:17  And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;

Mark 16:18  They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

 

 

Luke 24:46  And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behooved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:

Luke 24:47  And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.

 

He (Yeshua) said, to go into ALL the world and preach His Kingdom. This is not a suggestion but a command to all of us who are in His Kingdom.

 

Repent, Be Baptized and Become a Preacher Of Righteousness!