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Sanctification

In the Torah portion Vayishlach, one finds history of Esau.  In examining Hebrews 12:14-17, one is reminded of an important aspect of Esau’s history one should not forget, lest he repeat it!

Ivrim [Hebrews] 12:14-17 
14  Follow after peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no man shall see YHWH;
15  looking carefully lest there be any man that falls short of the grace of Elohim; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby the many be defiled;
16  lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one mess of meat sold his own birthright.
17  For you know that even when he afterward desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected; for he found no place for a change of mind in his father, though he sought is diligently with tears.

The focus of this study is on verse 14 above.

Ivrim [Hebrews] 12:14 
Follow after peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no man shall see YHWH;

According to this verse, no one will see YHWH without being sanctified.  Therefore, it seems one should know what sanctification is; and even more importantly, that he needs it!  Each person needs to know what sanctification is and how to get it, if he truly wants eternal life; for how could a person be in eternity with YHWH and not see Him, since Scripture teaches that we shall see Him?

Mattithyah 5:8 
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see Elohim.

The individual is to seek two things according to the verse above:  1) peace with all men; and 2) sanctification.  First, peace with all men will be briefly examined, and then sanctification will be examined in some detail.

Romans 12:18 
If it be possible, as much as it depends on you, be at peace with all men.

One should do what he can to be at peace, especially with the brethren.  Scripture spells out very specific guidelines on how to do this.  However, when one thinks he knows better than Scripture, and reasons away, or just simply disregards, what Scripture teaches, so he can do what is in his own heart, it is not possible then, to be at peace with such a person.  One can still have a spirit of forgiveness towards those who do wrong, but until, and unless, the one doing wrong truly repents and seeks to make things right, then the peace that exists is truly only one-sided.  A person can truly be at peace with everyone, and still others may hold animosity towards him for any number of reasons over which he may have no control, or he may not even be aware such animosity exists.  It should be noted that this peace should not be placed over one’s peace with Elohim, for peace with Him must be preeminent at all times.  This is one of the central truths about sanctification – being at peace with YHWH.

This next section will examine sanctification.  Some translations render this word as “holiness” in this next passage.

Thessalonians Aleph 4:3 
For this is the will of Elohim, even your sanctification, that you abstain from fornication;

One finds in the above passage, that whatever this thing called “sanctification” is, it is Elohim’s will that a person should have it and walk in it.

In the talmid’s (disciple’s) life, there are two crisis moments of decision.  The first crisis moment is that moment of decision when a person repents of his/her sins and asks YHWH to forgive them and to save them.  The second one has several names; but basically, the second crisis moment of decision comes when a person completely consecrates his life to YHWH, and then YHWH comes and fills that person with His Spirit.

Yochanan [John] 14:17 
“even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive; for it beholds Him not, neither knows Him; you know Him; for He abides with you, and shall be in you.”

Yeshua taught that there was coming a time when the Spirit of truth would not only be with His followers, but the Spirit of truth would also be in them.  This is only one passage that shows that there are two crisis moments of decision:  one decision to follow Mashiach, and the other decision to have Him fill the individual with His Spirit.

Ma’aseh (Acts) 19:2
And he said to them, "Did you receive the Set-apart Spirit since you believed?" And they said to him, "No, we have not even heard whether there is a Set-apart Spirit."

This passage asks a question that each and every person should ask himself; i.e., has he received the Set-apart Spirit since he came to believe on the Master Yeshua Mashiach?

Some scholars translate the word "since" in the above passage as “when,” suggesting that a person automatically receives the Set-apart Spirit “when” he first believes.  However, not only does the word “when” not harmonize with the rest of the Scriptures, but the word in the Aramaic Peshitta is לאחר , meaning “after” or “since.”

What is the significance of this word “after”?  What kind of impact does it have on one’s walk as a follower of Mashiach, that this word should be “after” (or “since”), and not “when”?  Indeed, the difference has significant importance.

So, again the question is:  have you received the Set-apart Spirit since you first came to believe on our Master, Yeshua HaMashiach?

These talmidim at Ephesus were followers of Yeshua, but they were not filled with the Set-apart Spirit, yet.  They had repented of their sins and had been immersed in water, but had not received the Set-apart Spirit.  This further indicates that translating the question with the word “when” does not fit the context of the question, for the answer of those to whom the question was given was a resounding “no!”  No, they had not yet received the infilling of His Spirit, even though they were currently His talmidim.  This passage clearly shows that the infilling of His spirit is subsequent to one’s repentance of his sins and becoming a follower of Mashiach Yeshua.

The Problem of Double-mindedness

Yeshayahu [Isaiah] 29:13
Then YHWH said, "Because this people draw near with their words and honor Me with their lip service, but they remove their hearts far from Me, and their reverence for Me consists of tradition learned.

The question each person needs to ask himself and honestly answer is:  “Who owns my heart?”  Do you still retain ownership of your heart?  Or have you given it wholly to YHWH?

Ya’aqov [James] 4:8
Draw near to YHWH and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you doubleminded.

Notice here the two distinct things the reader is being admonished to do.  First, he is admonished to "cleanse" his hands.  This is a reference to the actions or works of the person.   This is how a person lives - what he does.  Is one’s daily living filled with Torah keeping, or is it filled with Torah breaking?

Next, the reader is admonished to "purify" his heart.  This is a reference to the condition of the heart, a person’s motives, thoughts, and intentions.  This is “why” a person does what he does.  Please do not make the mistake that so many before have made; one can deceive many people, one can even deceive himself, but no one can deceive YHWH!  He knows why each person does what he does!

What is the Source of this Double-mindedness?

Ephesians 2:12
That you were at that time separate from Mashiach, excluded from the commonwealth of Yisrael [Israel], and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without YHWH in the world.

Before a person comes to YHWH through Yeshua by having his sins forgiven, that person is outside the camp.  That person is estranged from the Kingdom of YHWH.  However, when a person comes to YHWH through the Blood of Mashiach by asking and receiving the forgiveness of his personal sins, that person now has conflict in his being.  This person has been forgiven of his actions (sin works) against YHWH and His Torah.  But this person’s heart still has the stain of the previous Torah breaking life, which was inherited from father Adam.

This is the source of the double-mindedness. 

Romiyah [Romans] 7:15-24
15 For that which I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate.
16 But if I do the very thing I do not desire to do, I agree with the Torah, confessing that it is good.
17 So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me.
18 For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the desiring is present in me, but the doing of the good is not.
19 For the good that I desire, I do not do; but I practice the very evil that I do not desire.
20 But if I am doing the very thing I do not desire, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me.
21 I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who desires to do good.
22 For I joyfully concur with the Torah of YHWH in the inner man,
23 but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind, and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members.
24 Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death?
25 Thanks be to YHWH through Yeshua Mashiach our Master! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the Torah of YHWH, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin.

In this passage, Shaul very clearly describes this conflict in the heart of a person who has the strong desire to do right (keep Torah), but does wrong (breaks Torah) instead.  This is an example of a person who has two minds, double-mindedness; this is a description of a person who has repented of his sins, but does not have the actual power to do right.
 
What dwells in you?  Sin?  Does this passage describe you?

Which law are you obeying?  The law of sin?  Or the Torah (Law) of YHWH?

Please look at an example of this double problem below.

Once there was a young lad who just loved to be outside every chance he got.  He would rather be outside than inside.  One Shabbat, his mother got him ready to go to Shabbat meeting.  Then his mother and father were getting ready.  He did not have anything to do but to wait.  He asked if he could go outside and play while he was waiting.  His parents were reluctant because it had just rained the night before, and knowing their son, they thought it would be best to have him wait inside.  But the young boy’s pleadings and persistence prevailed and his parents let him go outside under the condition that he would not get dirty.  So, filled with joy, out he went.  However, when his parents came out the door all ready to go to the Synagogue, their son was sitting on the steps crying his eyes out, for he was covered from head to toe in mud.  He was very sorry for getting all muddy, for he did not mean to do this.  His parents forgave him, of course.

But, here is the thing one needs to see.  Even though his parents had forgiven him, he was still all muddy.  He needed something more than just being forgiven; he needed to be cleaned up as well.

Likewise, when YHWH forgives a person of his sins, he still has the “mud” (stain) of sin covering him that needs to be cleansed.
 
 
The Double Cure

Tehillim [Psalm] 51:2
Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.

In this passage, there are two pairs of words that are exceedingly important. The first pair is dealing with the person:  iniquity and sin. The second pair:  wash and cleanse, is teaching us about the action of the Almighty upon the repentant.

First, the word "sin" comes from the Hebrew root word "chata," which means to “miss the mark,” or “miss the path”; while the root word for Torah, means to “hit the mark.”  YHWH’s cure for this is for a person to ask Him to be cleansed by Him.  The Hebrew word translated as "cleanse" in this passage is "taher," which means to be physically, morally, and ceremonially clean.  Both the problem and the cure are dealing with the (wrong) actions or Torah breaking life of a person.  This is what is known in other places as forgiveness.

The English word "iniquity" comes from the Hebrew root word "avah."  This means to “be bent, twisted, or distorted.”  This word is dealing with the condition of the inner man, the heart.  The cure for this is to be washed, which comes from the Hebrew root "kabac," which is a picture of a fuller. This is dealing with the deepest possible cleaning, into the very heart or the inner being of man.

Yochanan [John] 1:9
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Notice here the reference to this two-fold problem of man and the double cure of the Blood of Mashiach.  How is this cure attained?  For both problems, the sin actions, and the sin condition, of the inner man, it is the same.  One must confess with his mouth that he is in need of the cure for his problem.  In the first place, a person asks for forgiveness of the sin and wrongdoing he has done.  YHWH graciously gives this to all without reproach.  Then, subsequently to that first act, a person comes to realize he is still stained with sin in his heart, and asks to be cleansed of that sin stain.  Once again, YHWH graciously cleanses each person totally and completely without reproach.

Ma’aseh [Acts] 15:6-9
6 And the apostles and the elders came together to look into this matter.
7 And after there had been much debate, Kepha stood up and said to them, "Brethren, you know that in the early days YHWH made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe.
8 "And YHWH, who knows the heart, bore witness to them, giving them the Set-apart Spirit, just as He also did to us;
9 and He made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith."

Acts chapter fifteen contains a record of the ruling of the council at Jerusalem regarding the inclusion of early non-Jewish followers of Mashiach into the life of the body.  There is much discussion in our day, as well there should be, about verses 20 and 21 of this same chapter concerning the four (five) points of returning to Torah through Mashiach.  May I be so bold as to say that perhaps we are guilty of putting the cart before the horse?

Please consider that before the actual ruling concerning those four points, there was discussion concerning the infilling of the Set-apart Spirit in Cornelius and his household.  Please read Ma’aseh [Acts] 10 to refresh your memory.  In this discussion by the Council at Jerusalem, Kepha makes the very profound statement that these new believers (who were formerly Gentiles) were filled with the Set-apart Spirit just as were the Hebrew believers at Shavuot (Pentecost) in Jerusalem.  Kepha could have pointed out how these believers spoke in another language, just as the Hebrew believers did.  But he didn’t.  Rather, he says their hearts were cleansed by faith, just like on the day of Shavuot.

This is the primary evidence of the infilling of the Set-apart Spirit:  a clean heart.

The primary evidence of being filled with His Spirit is not speaking in another language.

Yochanan Aleph [1 John] 1:7
If we walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the Blood of Yeshua His Son cleanses us from all sin.

Here one finds a conditional promise to be cleansed, provided he walks in the light as He is in the light.  If one does not fulfill this condition, then that one should not expect to be filled with His Spirit.  In order to be filled with His Spirit, one needs to walk in the fullness of all the understanding YHWH gives to him personally.  Make no mistake about it, He knows how much light He has given to each person.
 

To Be Filled With the Set-apart Spirit Is Normal!

Ma’aseh [Acts] 1:8
"You shall receive power when the Set-apart Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Yerushalayim (Jerusalem), and in all Yehuda (Judea) and Shomron (Samaria), and even to the remotest part of the Earth."

Please note that the Person speaking here is Yeshua Mashiach.  He is teaching His talmidim (that includes us) that they shall receive the power to witness for Mashiach when the Set-apart Spirit comes upon them.  The implication is that a person does not have the power to be a witness for Mashiach without the Set-apart Spirit.  Why?

When a person functions outside the Set-apart Spirit, that person is operating in the flesh.  And the things of the flesh are at odds with the things of YHWH (see Rom. 8:7).  It is only the Set-apart Spirit that is able to give life.  As such, a person must walk in obedience to the Set-apart Spirit if others are going to be brought into His Kingdom.  Otherwise, something other than His Kingdom is being built, like one’s own personal empire.

Ephesians 5:18
And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Set-apart Spirit.

Drunkenness is sin.  When a person is filled with wine, the spirit of the wine is in control.  If a person gets drunk, then the spirit which inhabits that wine takes control.  Rather, Scripture admonishes the follower of Mashiach to be filled with the Set-apart Spirit, in order that He can be in control.
 
1 Thessalonians 3:9-4:8
9 For what thanks can we render to YHWH for you in return for all the joy with which we rejoice before our Elohim on your account,
10 as we night and day keep praying most earnestly that we may see your face, and may complete what is lacking in your faith?

What is lacking in your faith?  Do you have everything YHWH desires to give to you and with which to bless you?  Perhaps you desire more?  Each person should ask himself the following question:  “Am I set-apart in a way that is pleasing to my Heavenly Father?”

11 Now may our Elohim and Father Himself and Yeshua our Master direct our way to you;
12 and may YHWH cause you to increase and abound in love for one another, and for all men, just as we also do for you;

The fruit of the Spirit is love.  How can one say he loves YHWH and treat his brothers in the faith badly?  Brethren, these things ought not to be so!

13 so that He may establish your hearts unblamable in set-apartness before our Elohim and Father at the coming of our Master Yeshua with all His saints.

Are you set-apart to serve YHWH?  Shaul is addressing all the believers in Teslonqyah.  This means that this can and should be applied to believers today as well.  If one cannot say that his heart is pure and blameless, then he probably should get on his face before YHWH and stay there until he can say this in all confidence.

4:1 Finally then, brethren, we request and exhort you in the Master Yeshua, that, as you received from us as to how you ought to walk and please YHWH, just as you actually do walk, that you may excel still more.

Each person should have the desire to excel still more in his walk with the Master Yeshua Mashiach. 

2 For you know what commandments we gave you by the Master Yeshua.
3 For this is the will of YHWH, your sanctification; that you abstain from sexual immorality;

It is YHWH’s will for each person to be sanctified (set-apart) for service in His Kingdom.  If he is not, then he is not because that is the choice he has made.  Perhaps this is new information.  But now it requires the reader to seek YHWH in this matter.  Do not take this writer’s word for it, seek YHWH for yourself.

4 that each of you know how to possess his own vessel in set-apartness and honor,

Each person should know how to walk in such a way that it is pleasing to YHWH.  Each person should have self-control of his desires.

5 not in lustful passion, like the Gentiles who do not know YHWH;
6 that no man transgress and defraud his brother in the matter because the Master is Avenger in all these things, just as we also told you before and solemnly warned.

Be cautious, my brethren, that you do not harden your hearts against the Set-apart Spirit in this matter.  It is YHWH’s will for you to be filled with His Set-apart Spirit.  Do not make the mistake of resisting Him or His will, for doing so can only lead to your destruction.

7 For YHWH has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification.

Impurity is when a pure substance is mixed with something dissimilar, as when a person takes the pure Word of YHWH and mixes in the worship of idols with it.  Was not the nation of Ephrayim carried away into captivity for this very reason?  What makes a person think he can be properly and completely restored if the impurities are not completely removed from his life and heart?

8 Consequently, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but YHWH who gives His Set-apart Spirit to you.

Today if you hear His Voice do not harden your hearts.  Ivrim 4:7
 

What Do I Do to Be Filled with His Set-apart Spirit?

I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of YHWH, to present your bodies a living and set-apart sacrifice, acceptable to YHWH, which is your spiritual service of worship.    Romans 12:1

A person must totally and completely consecrate (submit) his life to YHWH to be filled with His Set-apart Spirit. That means a person must give up control of every aspect of his life:  the past, the present, and the future.  A person must surrender to YHWH all of his possessions, including his money, his job, his house, and his family: everything.  If anything is held back, then it is not a total consecration, and what will fill that person is something other than YHWH’s Set-apart Spirit.

Ma’aseh [Acts] 4:31
And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Set-apart Spirit, and began to speak the Word of YHWH with boldness.

A person must pray and ask YHWH to fill him with His Set-apart Spirit.  As Ya’aqov [James] 4:2 teaches, a person does not have, because he has not asked.  One cannot just expect YHWH to fill him with His Spirit.  YHWH is waiting for each person to ask to be filled.  And when he asks, he must ask with right motives.  Please prayerfully consider this next passage.

Ma’aseh [Acts] 8:9-23
9  But there was a certain man, Simon by name, who beforetime in the city used sorcery, and amazed the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one;
10  to whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is that power of Elohim which is called Great.”
11  And they gave heed to him, because that of long time he had amazed them with his sorceries.
12  But when they believed Philip preaching good tidings concerning the kingdom of Elohim and the name of Yeshua Mashiach, they were baptized, both men and women.
13  And Simon also himself believed; and being immersed, he continued with Philip; and beholding signs and great miracles wrought, he was amazed.
14  Now when the apostles that were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of Elohim, they sent unto them Kepha and Yochanan;
15  who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Spirit;
16  for as yet it was fallen upon none of them; only they had been immersed into the name of the Master Yeshua.
17  Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.
18  Now when Simon saw that through the laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Spirit was given, he offered them money,
19  saying, “Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay my hands, he may receive the Holy Spirit.”
20  But Kepha said unto him, “Thy silver perish with you, because you have thought to obtain the gift of Elohim with money.
21  You have neither part nor lot in this matter; for your heart is not right before Elohim.
22  Repent therefore of this your wickedness, and pray YHWH, if perhaps the thought of your heart shall be forgiven you.
23  For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity.”
 
Please notice that this gift cannot be purchased.  In fact, the love of money and possessions will always interfere with being filled with His Spirit.  One cannot be filled with the love of money and possessions and also be filled with His Spirit!  Anything a person wholly pursues will stand in the way of his being filled with His Spirit, unless that pursuit is the pursuit of YHWH!

Now What Happens?

Yochanan [John] 14:16-17
"And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever, the Spirit of Truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not behold Him or know Him, you know Him because He abides with you, and will be in you.

When an individual repents of his sins (Torah breaking acts) and confesses Yeshua as Mashiach, he comes into a relationship with the Heavenly Father.  He is saved.  At that time, the Set-apart Spirit is with him.  However, when he takes that new life YHWH has given him in Mashiach, and he gives it back to YHWH in complete consecration, the Set-apart Spirit is not just with him, but now He is in him.

Has your heart been cleansed of the stain of sin and does His Spirit fill you?  If not, then now you know how to receive this wonderful blessing.  Just ask YHWH in the name of Yeshua to come in all of His cleansing power and fill you and cleanse your heart.  This, too, is by faith.  You simply believe YHWH will do just as He has promised He will do and you act upon that truth. 

Be filled with the Set-Apart Spirit.  Ephesians 5:18

ABBA YHWH, please cleanse my heart and fill me with Your Spirit; in the Name of Yeshua our Mashiach I pray.  Amein!

Shabbat Shalom
Zerubbabel ben Emunah
www.onetorahforall.com
zerubbabel@onetorahforall.com

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