INSPIRED (DEUT.18)
THE PREVIOUS CHAPTER OUTLINED THE GENERAL BOUNDARIES AND LIMITATIONS FOR TWO OF THE FOUR CLASSES OF GOVERNMENT LEADERS OF YISHARAL: JUDGES AND KINGS. THIS CHAPTER NOW DOES THE SAME FOR THE REMAINING TWO CLASSES, PRIESTS AND PROPHETS.
The people of the Levi tribe, including the priests, will not receive any land but instead they’ll receive part of the sacrifices that are offered to Yahuah, because He’s promised to provide for them in this way. So when you sacrifice a bull or sheep, the priests will be given the shoulder, the jaws, and the stomach, as well as the first part of your grain harvest and part of your first batches of wine and olive oil too. You must also give them the first wool that is cut from your sheep each year. Give these gifts to the priests, because Yahuah has chosen them and their descendants out of all the tribes of Yisharal to be special servants standing in the place where He’s chosen to rest His Name. Any Levite can leave his hometown, and go to the Tabernacle to be a special servant of Yahuah there, just like all the other Levites. Some Levites may have money from selling family possessions, and others may not. But all Levites serving at the Tabernacle will receive the same amount of food from the sacrifices and gifts brought by the people.
THE POSITION OF PRIEST WAS RELISHED BY THE FIRSTBORN OF EACH FAMILY WHO HELD IT. SO WHEN MOSES TOLD THE 12 TRIBES THAT YAHUSHA HAS ORDERED THAT THIS “FIRSTBORN” SYSTEM WAS TO COME TO AN END, TO BE REPLACED BY MEMBERS OF THE TRIBE OF LEVI, IT WAS NATURALLY MET WITH STIFF RESISTANCE. AS WE’VE TALKED ABOUT MANKIND’S PROPENSITY TO BE IN A NEVER-ENDING SEARCH FOR LOOPHOLES NO MATTER WHAT THE BELIEF OR CREED HE ADHERES TO, THE TRIBES OF YISHARAL DID THEIR BEST TO PUNCH HOLES IN THE DIVINE LAWS CONCERNING WHO COULD BE PRIESTS. THEREFORE WE’LL FIND THE PHRASE “LEVITICAL PRIESTS” USED REPEATEDLY TO MAKE IT ABUNDANTLY CLEAR THAT ONLY LEVITES FORMED THE PRIESTHOOD FOR YISHARAL.
ANOTHER REMINDER IS CONTAINED WITHIN THE FIRST VERSE: IT IS THAT WHILE THE LEVITES WERE BLESSED WITH THE HIGHER-THAN-EVERYONE-ELSE SET-APART STATUS (NEEDED TO BE YAHUSHA’S SERVANTS AND PRIESTS) THEY ALSO PAID A HEAVY PRICE FOR THAT ELECTION. THEY WERE NOT GIVEN ANY HEREDITARY TRIBAL LAND HOLDINGS IN YISHARAL AS WERE THE OTHER 12 TRIBES. LOOKING ON A MAP FROM THE DAYS OF JOSHUA AND FOR SEVERAL HUNDRED YEARS AFTER, WE’LL FIND FAIRLY WELL DEFINED DISTRICTS THAT WERE ASSIGNED AS “FOREVER” LAND HOLDINGS TO EACH TRIBE; BUT NOWHERE IS THERE A TERRITORY OF LEVI. INSTEAD THE LEVITES WERE ASSIGNED 48 CITIES SCATTERED AMONG THE 12 TRIBAL DISTRICTS ALONG WITH A FEW ACRES OF PASTURELAND JUST OUTSIDE THE WALLS OF THOSE CITIES. IT IS THIS UNDERSTANDING OF BOTH THE LEVITES’ STATUS AND THEY’RE LACK OF LAND THAT YISHARAL IS TO RESPOND BY MEANS OF THEIR CORPORATE DUTY TO ECONOMICALLY SUPPORT THE TRIBE OF LEVI IN EXCHANGE FOR THE LEVITE’S DUTIES TO THE CENTRAL SANCTUARY, THE LOCAL COURTS, AND AS TEACHERS OF THE DIVINE LAWS.
INTERESTING THAT JUST AS THE LEVITICAL PRIESTS WERE NOT TO FIND THEIR INHERITANCE OR ETERNAL REWARD HERE ON EARTH, FOR THEY HAD A HIGHER CALLING IN SERVICE TO YAHUSHA, AND THEY WERE NOT TO PUT THEIR HEARTS OR FOCUS ON EARTHLY POSSESSIONS, THE SAME GOES FOR YAHUSHA’S MELCHIZEDEK PRIESTHOOD TOO (HIS BRIDE HERE IN THE 21st CENTURY).
Soon you will go into the land that Yahuah your Alahim is giving you, but the nations that already live there do things that are a disgusting abomination to Yahuah, and you must not follow their example. Don’t sacrifice your sons or daughters in the fire (TO THE DEITY MOLOCK) and don’t try to use any kind of magic, witchcraft, divination or tell fortunes or to cast spells like a sorcerer, or mediums talking with spirits of the dead (NECROMANCY) because Yahuah is disgusted with anyone who does these abominable behaviours, and that’s why He’ll help you destroy and drive out the nations that are in the land. So be perfect and never be guilty of doing any of these disgusting things that the nations do, for you will indeed go in and take the land from these nations that practice magic and witchcraft. But Yahuah your Alahim won’t allow you to do those things, for He’s set you apart. Instead, He will choose one of your own people to be a prophet just like Me, and you must do what that prophet says (STEPHEN QUOTES THIS IN ACTS 7). You were asking for a prophet the day you were gathered at Mount Sinai and said to Yahuah, “Please don’t let us hear Your voice or see this terrible fire again, cause if we do, we’re dead meat for sure!”
So Yahuah told me, “Moses, they’ve said the right thing. So when I want to speak to them, I’ll choose one of them to be a prophet like you. I will give My message to that prophet and put My Living Words in His mouth, and they will then tell the people exactly what I’ve said. And since the message comes from Me, anyone who doesn’t obey the message will also have to answer to Me. But if I haven’t spoken, and a prophet claims to have a message from Me, you must kill that prophet, and you must also kill any prophet who claims to have a message from another deity".
But you may be asking yourselves, “How can we tell if a prophet’s message really comes from Yahuah?” You will know, because if Yahuah says something will happen, IT WILL HAPPEN! And if it doesn’t, you’ll know that the prophet was falsely claiming to speak for Yahuah. So don’t be afraid of any prophet whose message doesn’t come true.
AND IT IS INTERESTING THAT WHAT HAS BEEN SET DOWN AS LIMITATIONS AND WARNINGS FOR JUDGES AND KINGS NOT TO ABUSE THEIR POWER, AND THEN THE INSTRUCTION FOR YISHARAL TO MAKE PROVISIONS FOR PRIESTS AND LEVITES, NOW TURNS TO THE DUTY OF THE PEOPLE TO PAY CLOSE HEED TO THE PROPHETS. AND IN THIS CASE IT IS THAT ALL YISHARAL IS TO LISTEN TO THESE PROPHETS: JUDGES, KINGS, PRIESTS AND CITIZENS AT LARGE. PROPHETS REPRESENTED AN OFFICIAL OFFICE WITHIN YISHARAL. THESE PEOPLE WERE NOT SELF-APPOINTED PER SE. WHILE PRIESTS WERE TO OBSERVE AND TEACH AND IN SOME CASES ADJUDICATE THE WRITTEN WORD OF YAHUSHA (THE DIVINE LAW, THE TURAH/INSTRUCTIONS), THE PROPHETS WERE MORE MOSES-LIKE (OR MAYBE MORE SAMUEL-LIKE). THE PROPHETS WERE THOSE WHO HAD A LEGITIMATE LINE OF COMMUNICATION DIRECTLY WITH YAHUSHA. AND SINCE PROPHETS ARE YAHUSHA’S MESSENGERS TO YISHARAL AND TO YISHARAL’S LEADERS, THEN YISHARAL IS OF COURSE TO OBEY THE WORDS OF THE PROPHETS BECAUSE THEY ARE ACTUALLY YAHUSHA’S WORDS.
THEN A COUPLE OF SCENARIOS ARE LAID OUT FOR YISHARAL: FIRST IS WHAT YISHARAL’S ATTITUDE IS TO BE TOWARD THE “ABOMINABLE PRACTICES OF THE NATIONS”; THAT IS, PAGAN PRACTICES LIKE COMMUNICATING WITH OTHER FALSE DEITIES. WHAT PAGANS WERE USUALLY DOING IN ATTEMPTING TO COMMUNICATE WITH THE SPIRIT WORLD WAS TO FIND OUT ABOUT THE FUTURE. I’M NOT SURE THAT THERE IS A GREATER TEMPTATION AMONG MEN THAN TO FIND SOME WAY, ANY WAY, TO FIND OUT ABOUT WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS THAT MIGHT DIRECTLY AFFECT THEM. NOSTRADAMUS, EDGAR CASEY, AND SO MANY OTHER PSYCHICS AND FORTUNE-TELLERS ARE HELD IN HIGH REGARD IN EVERY PART OF THE WORLD BECAUSE IT SEEMS EVERYONE HAS REASON TO WANT TO KNOW WHAT LIES AHEAD. YAHUSHA HAS AUTHORISED EXACTLY ONE WAY FOR US TO KNOW ABOUT THE FUTURE: AND IT IS ONLY THROUGH HIM. IF IT ISN’T FROM HIM, WE’RE NOT TO SEEK IT. FURTHER HE SAYS THAT THE WAY HE LETS US KNOW WHAT PART OF FUTURE EVENTS WE ARE TO KNOW, IS ONLY BY MEANS OF HIS PROPHETS AND/OR HIS WORD. (REMEMBER A FEW EPISODES AGO WE DISCUSSED THAT THE WITNESS OF YAHUSHA IS ACTUALLY THE SAME SPIRIT OF PROPHECY - IE IF WE’RE LISTENING TO HIS DIVINE, SET-APART RUACH THROUGH PORTAL CONNECTION ON OUR HEARTS, THEN WE ARE RECEIVING ALL THAT WE NEED IN ORDER TO NAVIGATE ALL FUTURE EVENTS AND CIRCUMSTANCES.
SO YAHUSHA SAYS THAT ANYONE WHO PRACTICES WITCHCRAFT AND IDOLATRY ARE A DISGUSTING, DETESTABLE ABOMINATION TO HIM. LET’S BE CLEAR: YOU KNOW THOSE CUTE LITTLE PSYCHIC HOTLINES ADVERTISED ON TV? TAROT CARDS WE CAN BUY AT LOCAL SHOP? PALM READERS NEXT TO THE TATTOO PARLORS? WE MIGHT JOKE ABOUT THEM, BUT THOSE FOLKS ARE SERIOUS ABOUT WHAT THEY DO. AND YAHUSHA IS SERIOUS ABOUT IT TOO. AND FOR YAHUSHA’S PEOPLE TO EVEN GET CLOSE TO DEALING WITH FOLKS WHO DO SUCH THINGS (EVEN AS A JOKE) PUTS US INTO A DIRECT CONFRONTATION WITH YAHUSHA. IT’S NOT A GOOD IDEA AND YAHUSHA SAYS THAT THIS IS THE REASON HE’S KICKING THE CANAANITES OUT OF THEIR LAND AND GIVING IT TO YISHARAL. THEREFORE YISHARAL IS NOT TO DO WHAT THE CANAANITES HAVE BEEN DOING IN TRYING TO DIVINE THE FUTURE EITHER. RATHER YAHUSHA SAYS THAT HE WILL RAISE UP A PROPHET FOR YISHARAL FOR THIS PURPOSE, SO THAT WHEN IT’S YAHUSHA’S WILL FOR YISHARAL TO KNOW THINGS ABOUT THE FUTURE, HE’LL ANOINT A PROPHET TO TELL THEM. AND IN THAT QUOTE IT IS MADE CRYSTAL CLEAR THAT WHEN A PROPHET SPEAKS, YISHARAL IS TO OBEY.
THERE WAS ANOTHER FACET TO THIS PREDICAMENT AS WELL: PROPHETS UNDERSTOOD YAHUSHA’S SOVEREIGNTY TO A POINT THAT WE GENERALLY DON’T. THEY KNEW FULL-WELL THAT YAHUSHA MIGHT SEND THEM WITH A MESSAGE THAT IF THE PEOPLE DIDN’T STOP BEHAVING DISOBEDIENTLY AND REPENT, THAT YAHUSHA WAS GOING TO DESTROY THEM. THE PROPHETS ALSO UNDERSTOOD THAT IT WAS YAHUSHA WHO WOULD DETERMINE IF THE PEOPLE COMPLIED; YAHUSHA DIDN’T CONSIDER THE VIEWS OF HUMANS WHO MERELY STOOD BACK AND OBSERVED. SO LIKE THE STORY OF JONAH AT NINEVAH, JONAH WAS CONCERNED THAT THE PEOPLE OF NINEVAH MIGHT ACTUALLY LISTEN TO YAHUSHA’S ULTIMATUM, REPENT IN THEIR HEARTS (INVISIBLY TO HUMANS BUT EXACTLY WHAT YAHUSHA WAS LOOKING FOR) AND AVOID THE PROPHESY OF DESTRUCTION JONAH PRONOUNCED TO THEM. THE RESULT WOULD BE THAT YAHUSHA WOULD OVERTURN HIS DECISION TO ANNIHILATE THE CITY AND WITHHOLD HIS WRATH. FROM JONAH’S STANDPOINT THE PROPHECY OF DESTRUCTION THAT HE DELIVERED THEN MIGHT NOT OCCUR AND THAT WOULD HAVE MADE HIM A FALSE PROPHET IN THE PEOPLE’S EYES; AND AT THE LEAST HIS OWN PEOPLE WOULD NO LONGER HEAR HIM, AND AT WORST HE MIGHT BE EXECUTED FOR BEING A FALSE PROPHET. HE WAS SO CONCERNED ABOUT ANTICIPATING HIS OWN FATE AND PROSPECTS THAT HE FLED AND TRIED TO HIDE FROM YAHUSHA, WHO THEN HAD TO RETRIEVE HIM AND THREATEN HIM TO DELIVER THE MESSAGE TO THE PEOPLE OF NINEVAH.
ALL OF THIS ANXIETY AND TROUBLE THAT JONAH FACED WAS COMPLETELY STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE FOR YAHUSHA’S PROPHETS IN THE SCRIPTURE, AND SO IT IS FOR US, YAHUSHA’S BRIDE, WHO ARE LEARNING TO TUNE INTO THE DIVINE FREQUENCY OF YAHUSHA’S VOICE, RECOGNISING IT ABOVE THEIR OWN BRIGHT IDEAS, INCLINATIONS AND DESIRES AND CERTAINLY KNOWING IT IN COMPARISON TO THE VOICE OF THE ENEMY. THIS IS THE TRUE SPIRIT OF PROPHESY GUYS, CHECKING OUR THOUGHTS AND BEING OBEDIENT TO WHAT YAHUSHA TELL US TO DO, IGNORING THE DRAGON, AND SEEKING TO PLEASE YAHUSHA.
THERE'S NO POWER-PLAYS, TITLES OR POSITIONS IN THE TRUE BRIDE OF YAHUSHA, JUST THOSE WHO AREN'T INSPIRED THROUGH DIVINE CONNECTION AND THOSE WHO ARE (NOT JUST TO WRITE OR SPEAK ABOUT YAHUSHA, BUT TO DO THE SIMPLE DAY-DAY TASKS INVOLVED WITH RUNNING A HOME, A BUSINESS, WORKING A 9-5 JOB, RAISING KIDS, BUILDING A LIFE ETC ETC) . . . ARE YOU LIVING A RUACH-INSPIRED EXISTENCE, SUSTAINED BY THE TREE OF LIFE, THROUGH THE DIVINE PORTAL ON YOUR HEART, OR IS YOUR CONNECTION LIMITED ONLY TO WHEN YOU FEEL LIKE IT?
YAHUSHA WILL MEET YOU, FILL YOU AND INSPIRE YOU TO WHATEVER DEGREE YOU WISH TO APPROACH. THE MORE WE OVERCOME EVIL AND START BEHAVING LIKE HIM, THE CLOSER WE GET TO HIM AND THE MORE OF HIM WE RECEIVE IN EVERY WAY POSSIBLE . . .
