Many
have been watching for the Bridegroom and His messengers. Like Rebekah,
many are on the lookout for the Master's Servant to approach, having
ten camels loaded with gifts and provision, and ten servants to assist
in bringing the Bride to her final destination. Rebekah was
one
who
remained in a state of readiness, so that when the Servant came, she
was ready to leave. Had she not been ready, she would not be able to
leave with the Servant.
This short writing is
addressed to those Believers who may not be ready when
the Master's Servant arrives.
Many today who call
themselves Believers fall into this category. Many believe in Yahushua,
but have been deceived by their leaders, who have taught them a
non-Biblical
understanding of Messiah's
Covenant and of His
Grace. The Believers have been redeemed by Messiah's
shed Blood, and having begun repentance, have received His
forgiveness. They have received His Grace, but because of the
deceit they have been taught, they refuse to know Messiah (Jer
9:6), and thus prevent Messiah from producing the fruit of
Righteousness within them (Isaiah 26:10; Php 1:11).
As
a result they actively refuse Messiah, by not allowing Him to live
within them, to walk in obedience to the Torah, just as Messiah did on
earth 2,000 years ago, when He was in His own body. They do not celebrate the Bread and
Wine of Passover, but instead practice a counterfeit ('substitute') Passover
initiated by the Daughter of Babylon, called by many 'The Lord's
Supper' or 'Communion.' They refuse to keep Messiah's Sabbaths, and
though they are His children, they are considered evil-doers who
practice
iniquity ('Lawlessness'), of whom Messiah will say in that day (the
Bride-selection day), "I never knew you" (Matt 7:23).
But
these can take heart! According to the Bible, they have been as disobedient children, but yet
they are still Messiah's own children—so He
will not cast them
away! They will first be chastened, then received at a later
time (Psalms
89:27-33). There are several
harvests of Yahuweh's people, and the harvest that not ready
in the
first
phase,
may become ready in the
next.
The
critical item of
ones readiness is seen in many Scriptures, and can be summed
up in the following passage:
Watch ye therefore, and
pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy
to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to
stand before the Son of man. (Luke 21:36)
The
Bridegroom's carrying away of the Bride-company appears to
occur almost concurrent
with these things that Yahushua mentioned in the preceding passages,
and
summed up in verse 36 above.
The word
watch
in the
passage is
keyed to one of many Hebrew words for
watch,
and includes
keeping
or observing, as keeping or observing of all of Yahuweh's
Commandments—His Sabbaths, Ordinances, Laws, and Judgments,
or
mishpatim. Many who miss out on the
first
Harvest
phase
will miss for this reason, for they have broken the provisions
of
the Everlasting Covenant, and in doing so, have refused to abide
('remain') in Messiah (Heb 13:20; Isaiah 24:5; John 15:9-10). These will be taken in a later part of the Harvest.
The
Bride is chosen, then taken by the Bridegroom, simply because she
passed the
first Love Test given in
Scripture—she kept all His Commandments (John
14:15).
The Remaining Believers will now be given
the opportunity to pass the
second Love
Test—to "Lay down ones life for his friends"
(John 15:13).
Beloved, if you missed the first test,
you will now have the
opportunity to take the second test (For details of these two Love
Tests, see
Entering the Kingdom: The Two Love Tests).
But as you read this, if you have
not
missed the first test, and there is yet time remaining to take
the test, put
all your time and effort possible
into studying for this test! Do whatever it takes!
Choose
You This Day
When
you are confronted, and given a choice to live or
die — a choice to deny
Yahushua by giving allegiance to another king or kingdom, or lose your
temporal life — you may then choose between the two.
Famine
is not
pretty. Shall we deny
Yahushua, in order to eat, and live? Or, shall we hold fast to
Yahushua, and not eat, in the face of death?
Shall
we deny
Yahushua, in order to take the mark, and buy groceries, and do
business? Or, shall we hold fast to Yahushua, and refuse the mark, in
the face of death?
These are the choices.
After
missing the first, small harvest phase, holding fast to the
Master, even in the face of temporal death, will allow entry
into His Kingdom. Denying Him results in separation
from the Master.
Just because you miss the first
threshing, is no reason to let go of the Master. He has plans for
all
of His people!
Remember Shadrach, Mesach, and
Abednego in the
furnace. The Master was with them,
and He will be with
you!
A Check List
Here is a
running check list of items
to consider
- Come
out from among them! They are the ones who have prevented you from
entering in the first harvest phase!
- Maintain close fellowship with other Believers.
- Encourage one another daily.
- Pray fervently for each other!
- Pray that Father would open your eyes, and the
eyes of your companions, as in 2Kings 6:17.
- Pray that Father would blind the appropriate
people, as in 2Kings 6:18.
- Do NOT take the mark, for any reason. Better
to sleep now, and hasten the day of reunion, than to prevent it.
-
New If
there is enough time, review the Bride's Preparation and
Testing. Purpose in your heart to become an Overcomer!
This
list will be amended as time allows!
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