Manariwa

“But the fruit of the Ruach is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.”

– Gal. 5:22-23

WEEK 34 (16^th to 22^nd of Tevet, the 10^th Month, in the Hebrew Religious Calendar)

What really formed in the inscrutable Divine Mind of Elohim when They cursed the Earth and then promised The Seed to Adam and Havah as the antidote to the curse They had put upon all Creation? Seeing a good and perfect Creation that was once pleasing now deserving to be a cursed, fallen Creation must have caused Elohim to grieve and weep. Perhaps, they grieved and wept even more later when They sent the Flood and let what was still a beautiful and wonderful world become a desolate planet. So why did They not just make a new one when Adam and Havah sinned? How easy it must have been to destroy it and start all over again. But how can the Supreme Creator create a “more perfect” Creation? They had perfected Creation and that was it! The only alternative left to do was to redeem it or restore it to its original state and then, later on, create a better or an “upgraded” Creation based upon it.

For humans were created in the image of Yah, making them perfect in every sense of the word. Yah could destroy the Earth and the Universe along with it; it would not cause Him one drop of sweat. But to destroy a part of His Being would be literal suicide. He could gladly kill creatures made by fallen angels in their image (as we discussed previously and which was the whole purpose for the Flood) but not humans He made in His image. Not that He loved Himself that much but that He loved humans so much for being His children and inheritors of His Creation, which we all are.

People who still do not accept the literal nature of a Global Flood do not appreciate the extent that the hybrid creatures had polluted life on the Earth. It might not have been so widespread in the beginning, as we can imagine on a single super-continent that may have had already millions of humans and probably tens or hundreds times more as many animals on the Land. But after a few centuries or within a millennia, the whole surface of the Earth would have been totally contaminated by the Nephilim seed. And that is why we can understand why Yah had to expand the Earth and, in the process, break up the one continent Pangaea into thousands of land masses that we now have. It was a way to prevent such a contamination from occurring in the future and overrunning the world, whether by creatures or peoples and their cultures and their ways of thinking. The breaking-up of Babel’s language was part of that preventive goal, apparently. An unbounded and centralized form of governance and social interaction was never meant to serve fallen humans prone to greed, hatred and rebellion.

Why “Seed”?

Adam and Havah had a limited working vocabulary that was mainly based on biological or agricultural processes; hence, the promise of a coming Seed was meant to reinforce in their youthful and immature minds the first lesson they had learned during Creation: to take care of the Garden and the animals over which they had full dominion. The concept of a “seed” in their minds was not just the visible seed of plants that germinated but the “invisible” seed within each animal which reproduced the parents, including that within their own bodies that would reproduce and multiply humankind as living organisms. Now, the Seed that was to come would be an Avenger against the serpent (which enticed humans to sin) and all that he stood for. He would produce new creatures after His own divine image, just as Adam would reproduce his own kind after his physical image. Humans were cursed and bound to die. Even the Seed would “die” (His heel bitten by the serpent); but He will overcome death. We know this is true and has been fulfilled.

Hence, unlike Adam and Havah and their children who will be born and then die after, the Seed will give us life everlasting. He would crush the head of the serpent. The head is where the brain and the mouth of the serpent and of all land creatures can be found. Crushing the head means destroying a way of thinking and acting, as well as destroying the means of passing on knowledge of evil. Maiming the forces of Satan, therefore, has been done. Death has been condemned, although not yet eradicated through the resurrection of the Seed. The seed of Adam and Havah (their one unified seed, that is) has continued to thrive and to be reproduced till this day. That pictures the eternal nature of Creation — not the physical but the spiritual nature — being the original and enduring handiwork of Elohim.

The seed of the Seed, therefore, will thrive for Eternity. It is a promise still unfulfilled. The curse of death in the Garden continues to apply in our times. However, the power of the resurrection already works within those who have accepted the terms of the New Covenant made between Yah and those redeemed by Yahusha. The Head of the Seed was only stung by thorns but not crushed; and He succeeded in proclaiming and teaching thousands and thousands to accept the gift of redemption promised to Adam and Havah.        

The Flood, a Picture of a Cosmic Salvation

The Ark and the Flood, as we said, signified the process of cleansing and redemption Yah accomplished through literal, cosmic events performed by Yah. The prophets and the apostles took that image to explain the real deed Yah was going to accomplish for humans, and did accomplish to bless millions of humans through a truly rebuilt Earth we chronicled in graphic terms. For us to think the prophets used a mere metaphor or allegory to teach Yah’s present and coming visible, majestic works comes close to blasphemy. Noah’s job had to do with the physical cleansing and rebuilding of the Earth for a more magnificent coming cleansing and rebuilding of ALL THINGS. For again, as we keep saying, the deed is not complete; for we now live in Noah’s Days Part 2.

Using the picture of the Flood to find parallelisms of that time with the present age has been our primary goal in this series. Nothing has changed much; even the characters who play major roles in this universal drama remain essentially the same, particularly the spiritual protagonists, along with multitudes of departed humans and the growing numbers of living humans who all comprise the valuable prize and over which the battle is being waged. Of course, along with it the redemption of the physical world that has been corrupted and once refreshed through a cosmic cleansing. It will, however, undergo a total rebuilding or refreshing that will usher in a New Earth and a New Heaven. Nothing we can do will save the planet or rectify so-called changes in the global climate. The Kingdom dwells within each person’s heart. The enemy seeks to prevent that knowledge and realization from ever awakening the multitudes. We know where the real battle rages: within each one of us. It is either we fight for our own salvation or we forfeit the fight in favor of Yah’s enemy.

How the Spiritual Cleansing was Done (And How the Eternal Rebuilding will be Done)

First of all, we must remember that when the Seed finally came, He did so in real, flesh-and-blood manner. “The Word became flesh and we beheld His glory”, as one of the closest witnesses of the Seed had written. (John 1:14) Yes, just as Adam came in the flesh upon this literal and real world, Yahusha became a human just like us. True, scriptures may tell stories of invisible spirits; but they do so because they do exist and were even there before humans existed. Telling the story of Creation then requires telling it in the point-of-view and in the words of the Creator. But only a human who had seen and talked to Yah can tell such a story. Enoch, Moses, Noah, and the apostles were some of those faithful witnesses we either choose to believe or not.

Hence, the story of the Seed coming and being planted has been completed and available to anyone who cares to read and understand. And because He came in the flesh, we must struggle to comprehend every aspect of His life and words that we may avail of the blessings He brings to us. The cleansing and rebuilding of the Earth had been finished through the Great Flood. But the cleansing and rebuilding of individual lives caught in the battle between rebel angels and humans being waged through the help of Heaven’s righteous angels requires that we must do so in a spiritual manner. Noah may have had to build a literal Ark to implement the destruction of actual wicked beings; but the present battle requires heavenly weapons we cannot see, we cannot buy and we cannot hold with our hands. (Eph. 6:10-16). Yes, we also need an upgrade in our manner of warfare through the use of the most potent and effective weapons made available to us by the Great Commander in Heaven. And not so many are really into this intense struggle; many nominal believers simply join along for the “worship-joy ride”. Somehow, the message that once turned the world upsidedown has become a social gathering, a weekly, feel-good habit, or an outward badge of religiosity to further one’s economic or political ambitions.

Enter Ruach Ha Kodesh! The gift of Yahusha is not material or visible. We talked about being reborn of water and of spirit already. This rebirth is, likewise, neither physical nor biological. The Seed was indeed planted and grew and bore fruit. That is why a believer must manifest  the “fruit of Ruach”: love, joy, peace, gentleness, etc. . . . ,“ (Gal. 5:22-23) Even the Law has nothing to do with what Ruach can and must truly accomplish in our lives. For the Law is for the offender; Ruach is for the righteous. For us to become effective vessels of Ruach, we must also be thoroughly spiritual that no room must be left for the enemy to find any weaknesses within us. An armor is only effective if it has no holes or weak parts which the enemy can exploit. Many of us fail and are easily led astray because we drift away from the saving and powerful Presence of Ruach. Any small display of evil and error presented to us by the world is a bait that can entice us to turn aside from the path of righteousness. The true warrior needs strict discipline at all times. Noah, along with many other heroes of faith, showed great discipline and fortitude we must emulate.

Ruach Came in Spirit

Ruach did come in Spirit — or “in our physical breath” (since Adam took his first breath upon his Creation) and “in our spiritual breath” (when we believe the teachings of Yahusha revealed by Ruach, effectively taking Him in through our breath when we openly confess Yahusha as Lord and Savior). Flesh and Ruach, Seed and Fruit. The first converts were rightly called the “firstfruits”, as represented by the pair of Pentecost Leavened Bread offered at the Temple. Why a pair? Because One was the Bread of Life (the Seed Who came and went, pure and sinless through the metaphor of unleavened bread) and the other One is the Breath of Life (the Fruit Who was given to dwell in our bodies, pure and seeking to sanctify us as we bear and manifest Him in and through our lives, as pictured in the Law by the leavened “bread of the firstfruits” or the Wave-Offering of the Bread on Pentecost). So many today try to reenact the old elements of the Law, such as sounding of the trumpets and invoking Ruach’s Presence in their prayers and songs; but many forget the leavened bread. Why? Because they are stuck on the paradigm of the Passover Meal, not knowing any better. Not to say we must revive the requirements of the Law; but that a big shadow of the Law has remained upon their minds and their hearts. Unless they will see and understand . . . .

What will be the end of this entire process then? With the Seed already bearing fruit in so many humans in the past and in the present, what will Yah do with all these abundant “planting of Yahuah”? (Isa. 61)

“To console those who mourn in Zion,
To give them beauty for ashes,
The oil of joy for mourning,
The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;
That they may be called trees of righteousness,
The planting of the Yahuah, that He may be glorified.”

– Isa. 61:3

Our whole lives, after the resurrection and judgment, will be translated or transplanted in the heavenly realms that we might become one with the Seed and the Fruit to meet and dwell with Abba Yahuah, the Planter in Heaven, when He will come in the shared glory and in the unity of Elohim (the Yah-Head) forever and ever. Thus, as it was in the beginning, Elohim will ultimately reign supreme over all cleansed and refreshed Creation in the Heavenly City of New Yerushalem beyond the Pearlly Gates and through the Streets of Gold and along the River of Life flowing from the throne of Elohim that waters the Tree of Life. thus, we will come full-circle to our final and eternal destination.

We only know that plants on Earth begin as seeds and grow to become plants that bear fruits we can eat and also plant to produce more fruits. But how is it there in Heaven? There, the ground, the trees and the rivers are totally different, although they sound similar to what we are familiar with. We have been given a glimpse of its beauty and majesty. But that will be for a future discussion. Let your mind and spirit then dwell upon what salvation through the Seed is all about. For unless that Seed is in your heart, your body remains fallow soil not capable of bearing any fruit worthy to be sown in heavenly places. But it is never too late to turn back. Reserve your special place on the Judgment Day where you stand on the side of the Savior, the Advocate and the Great Judge. Why choose the side of the condemned?

ALL GLORY TO ELOHIM! AMEN!