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The Price of Sin

B’reshit (Genesis) 2:16-17 
16 And YHWH Elohim commanded the man, saying, “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat;
17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat of it; for in the day that you eat thereof you shall surely die.”  

There are many who have wondered at the reason why YHWH planted a tree in the middle of the garden where He placed man and then told him not to eat of that particular tree.  Man could eat of any other tree, but of the tree of knowledge of good and evil he could not eat.  The whole purpose of this particular tree was to test man to see if he would love His Creator and love and obey Him or whether he would just simply love himself and do his own selfish will.  As man ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil in the garden, so man is still eating of that same tree today as he seeks to do his own will rather than loving YHWH as his Elohim and doing His will.

Yochanan (John) 14:15 
“If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.”

The principle of keeping the commandments of YHWH is found throughout Scripture from beginning to end.  Tied to the keeping of His commandments is loving Him.  If a person truly loves YHWH and makes Him his own Elohim, then such a person will keep His commandments.  However, if a person is just giving lip service to the idea of loving Elohim, then he will not wholeheartedly keep His commandments.

Yochanan Aleph (1st John) 5:3 
For this is the love of Elohim, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not grievous.

YHWH’s commandments are not a burden upon His people.  In fact, keeping His commandments gives a person freedom from sin and death.  This is the type of freedom that each one of us so desperately needs.  But this freedom will only come to those who love YHWH as their own Elohim so much that they are willing to obey Him in all things, including keeping His commandments.

D’varim (Deuteronomy) 11:1 
“Therefore you shall love YHWH your Elohim, and keep His charge, and His statutes, and His ordinances, and His commandments, always.”

The whole tenor of Scripture is obedience to YHWH our Elohim.  It is the one major theme of all that is written in this wonderful letter of love from a heavenly Father to His estranged children in an attempt to get them to see the error of their ways and get them to return to His house and obey Him.

In order for us to understand the price of sin, we must first examine what the definition of sin is according to Scripture.  There are three aspects of disobedience to Elohim that we need to look into.  These three aspects are sin, transgression and iniquity.  What we are going to find is that these three are not the same and they are not interchangeable in Scripture.

The word “sin” comes from the Hebrew root word חטא – “chata” which means to remove from the source of life, hence death is tied to sin.  “Chata” also means “to miss the mark.”  It is this word that stands in direct opposition to Torah.  “Torah” comes from the root word ירה – “yarah,” which means “to throw, cast or hit the mark.”  Torah is the mark at which we are to be aiming.  “Chata” then is when one is aiming at that mark but misses it.  One’s intent is to hit the mark, Torah; but sometimes even though the intent is correct, the aim is bad and Torah is missed.  This is sin (chata).

The word “transgression” comes from the Hebrew root word פשע – “pasha” which means “to misuse a relationship, to revolt.”  Within this word is the idea of rebellion.  While “chata” means to miss the mark when one had the intention of hitting the mark because one was actually aiming at the mark (Torah), “pasha” means to miss the mark because one was not aiming at the mark of Torah.  Within the meaning of this word is the idea that one knows what the mark is and where the mark is, but chooses not to aim at the mark.  Rather, one chooses to aim somewhere else, hence the idea of rebellion.  “Pasha” is intentionally aiming at anything other than the mark because one has no desire to hit the mark.  Such is the aim of Christianity, for they are not aiming at the mark of Torah.

Both “chata” and “pasha” are dealing with the choices and actions of a person.  The word “iniquity” is not dealing with the choices or actions of a person; rather, it is dealing with the condition of the heart.  “Iniquity” comes from the Hebrew word עון – “avon” which means “perversion or perverseness.”  The root word is עוה – “avah” which means “to deviate from the proper way.”  It is this perversion or deviation from Torah that YHWH visits upon our children down to the third and forth generations.  This condition of the heart is the specific sin and transgression that each person struggles to master and overcome.  It is the root cause of one’s sin and rebellion.

Understanding these three particular words from Scripture then gives one a clearer understanding of what it is that we all struggle against in one’s own flesh.  The only true remedy for each one of these is the Blood of Mashiach.  Please note this next passage and the use of sin and unrighteousness in it and what happens to each one of these in one’s life who will confess these to our heavenly Father.

Yochanan Aleph (1st 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.
 
We all pretty well understand the need to confess our sins (and transgressions) to YHWH and seek forgiveness in Mashiach Yeshua.  However, do we also understand the need to confess our iniquities, those sins and perverted tendencies we have inherited from our forefathers?  Please note that our sins are forgiven; but on the other hand, the condition of one’s heart is cleansed, rather than forgiven.

It is like the little boy whose parents were getting ready to go to Shabbat meeting; and he asked to go out and sit on the porch while his parents finished getting ready.  Now, his mother sternly warned him to stay on the porch, for it had rained the night before.  But as things are, the lure of mud puddles was more than the little boy could overcome.  So, when his parents came out to go, he was sitting on the steps of the porch weeping, for he was covered in mud.  He was very sorry for disobeying his parents.  The parents quickly forgave their son.  However, this forgiveness did nothing to change the reality that he was still covered in mud.  He needed a good scrubbing.  He needed to be cleansed.  Likewise, after we have been forgiven of all our sins (one’s actions), we also need to be cleansed of all those things that are against Torah, one’s iniquities, the condition of one’s heart.  One needs to be cleansed of those things which are the root cause of one’s sin and rebellion against YHWH.

With this foundation then, let us examine some examples from Scripture of sin and rebellion that YHWH may teach each one of us to walk in His path of righteousness.

Our first example is Pharaoh.  YHWH sent Moshe to Pharaoh with a message to let His people go so that they would be able to serve Him.  YHWH knew that Pharaoh would not let the people go, but that Pharaoh would harden his heart against YHWH.  Now in the whole process of YHWH dealing with Pharaoh, the plagues that YHWH sent upon Pharaoh and upon Egypt were for the express purpose of getting Pharaoh to repent and obey YHWH.  Each one of these signs was more severe than the one before it as Pharaoh hardened his heart.

The last plague to be poured out upon Pharaoh and Egypt was the death of all the firstborn of Egypt.  This included the death of Pharaoh’s own son.  Even in spite of this, by which YHWH was clearly speaking to Pharaoh, Pharaoh still refused to repent and obey YHWH.  As a result of the great hardness in the heart of Pharaoh, YHWH hardened Pharaoh’s heart one last time; and as a result of this, YHWH took the life of Pharaoh, and drowned him in the sea as he pursued Israel to take them into captivity once again.

B’reshit (Genesis) 6:3 
And YHWH said, “My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh; yet shall his days be a hundred and twenty years.”
    
The plain teaching of Scripture is that there is a limit to the time in which one may come to YHWH.  YHWH, speaking through the prophet Yeshayah, says this.

Yeshayah (Isaiah) 55:6-7 
6 “Seek YHWH while He may be found; you call upon Him while He is near;
7 let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return to YHWH, and He will have mercy upon him; and to our Elohim, for He will abundantly pardon.”

The clear indication of this passage is that there will come a time in each person’s life that he will not be able to find YHWH if he continues to harden his heart against Him and if he continues to rebel against the pricks of His Spirit in his life.  This is one of the lessons of our example of Pharaoh.  When YHWH speaks to us, we should respond right away to His Spirit in order that our hearts do not become hardened against Him.  For this is one of the terrible aspects of sin: it hardens the heart towards YHWH.

Ivrim (Hebrews) 3:15 
While it is said,
To-day if you shall hear His Voice,
Do not harden your hearts, as in the provocation.

Brothers and sisters, we must be very diligent to respond in a favorable way to the pricks of His Spirit so that our hearts do not become hard against Him.  No matter how small or insignificant we may think something is, if we do not respond in obedience, it adds hardness to one’s heart.  And if this hardness is added to repeatedly, the final end will be destruction just as it was in Pharaoh’s life.

This same destruction came to another man, but this man was within Israel.  His name was Qorach (Korah).  Qorach openly rebelled against YHWH and against YHWH’s chosen leader.  The seriousness of this was revealed by YHWH for all to see as YHWH did a “new thing” in Israel.

B’midbar (Numbers) 16:31 
31 And it came to pass, as he made an end of speaking all these words, that the ground split open that was under them;
32 and the earth opened its mouth, and swallowed them up, and their households, and all the men that had sided with Qorach, and all their goods.
33 So they, and all that belonged to them, went down alive into Sheol; and the earth closed upon them, and they perished from among the assembly.

One of the things that the talmidim of Yeshua seem to have lost sight of is that there is a definite price to pay when there is sin in one’s life.  And just because one is made aware of his sin and he repents, does not mean that the consequences of that sin are going to go away.  There is a price to pay for sin.  In this case, the price of the sin of this one man was that it cost all those who stood with him, including his wife and children, to also lose their lives as well.  Sin is a very terrible thing.  Sin brings death.  Not sometimes, but always. 

Sin also stops the flow of blessings from YHWH to the one in sin.  In some cases, when the sin is so great, that flow of blessings may include all of Israel.  Such was the incident concerning the twelve spies spying out the land, and then the ten with the evil report causing all of Israel to rebel against the word of YHWH.

B’midbar (Numbers) 14:22-23 
22 “because all those men that have seen My glory, and My signs, which I wrought in Egypt and in the wilderness, yet have tempted Me these ten times, and have not hearkened to My Voice;
23 surely they shall not see the land which I swore to their fathers, neither shall any of them that despised Me see it.”

And so it came to pass that YHWH killed the ten spies that day who caused Israel to sin against YHWH.  All those who believed this evil report and refused to enter into the land, YHWH laid low in the wilderness over the course of the next thirty-eight years.  Not one man who sinned against YHWH that day entered into the land which YHWH had promised to Avraham, Yitzchaq and Ya’aqov.

It is important and instructive for us to note that Israel tested YHWH ten times.  This is the same number of plagues that YHWH poured out upon Pharaoh and upon all Egypt.  This teaches us something very important about YHWH’s dealings with sinful man.  It is one thing if a person is trying his best to hear and obey His Voice.  YHWH will continue to work with and deal with such a person as this.  However, those who refuse to hear and obey His Voice time after time, but actually test YHWH such as Pharaoh did and as Israel did in the wilderness, YHWH will only put up with so many times.  In fact, Scripture seems to indicate to us that He will only tolerate this ten times.

This message seems to be particularly pointed at Ephrayim, the ten tribe kingdom of northern Israel.  Ephrayim has a very long history of trying and testing YHWH with their worship of false gods.  Each person and each generation of Ephrayim is given ten opportunities to repent and return to YHWH and worship Him alone.  If a person or generation hardens his heart against YHWH ten times and refuses to repent, then YHWH will leave him to die in the wilderness.  It is YHWH who counts these ten times, not man!  Man has no business even attempting to count them.

Now mind you, all those who died in the wilderness were still a part of Israel.  However, they were not allowed to enter into His land.  If a person desires to receive the full blessings of YHWH, then the only way to receive them is to hear and obey His Voice.  Only in this way may we enter into His rest.

In another example of selfish sinful behavior recorded in Scripture to teach us that there is a price to pay when one sins, is the story of Achan. 

Yehoshua (Joshua) 7:1-5 
1 But the children of Israel covered up a deception concerning a banned thing; for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zavdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took of the banned thing; and the anger of YHWH was kindled against the children of Israel.
2 And Yehoshua sent men from Yericho to Ai, which is beside Beit-Aven, on the east side of Beit-El, and spoke to them, saying, “Go up and spy out the land.”  And the men went up and spied out Ai.
3 And they returned to Yehoshua, and said to him, “Let not all the people go up; but let about two or three thousand men go up and smite Ai; make not all the people to toil there; for they are but few.”
4 So there went up there of the people about three thousand men; and they fled before the men of Ai.
5 And the men of Ai smote of them about thirty-six men; and they chased them from before the gate even to Shevarim, and smote them at the descent; and the hearts of the people melted, and became as water.

When Yehoshua sent spies to spy out Ai they returned with a report that there was not much there and the people were not many.  Please note that the name of the city, “Ai,” means “ruins.”  Apparently this city had been captured by other raiding armies before and had never really been rebuilt.  The people just simply lived in the ruins.  It was not a fortified city.

However, because Achan had taken things from Yericho which YHWH had placed under the ban, it did not matter how many people went up against Ai, Israel could not have victory.  Israel would not have victory until this sin was removed from the camp.

When Israel sent these three thousand men against Ai, they fled before them and about 36 men died as a result.  These thirty-six men died because of one man’s sin.  These thirty-six men did not know about the sin of Achan.  These thirty-six men most likely had families: wives and children.  These thirty-six men paid a price for the sin of Achan.

And so it is when a person sins, any person, that sin and wrongdoing affects others who may not even know about it.  The effect of that sin can be devastating in other people’s lives.  The truth of the matter is this.  Sin brings death.  Sin always brings death.  Sin brings nothing but death.

Romans 6:23a  
For the wages of sin is death;
 
King David experienced this in his own family with his sin with Bat Sheva.  YHWH took the first son between the union of Bat Sheva and David.

Sh’muel Bet (2nd Samuel) 12:14 
“However, because by this deed you have given great occasion to the enemies of YHWH to blaspheme, the child also that is born to you shall surely die.”

YHWH did not require the life of David, for He had a plan for David’s life that David needed to fulfill.  But a price still must be paid.  Death still comes with sin.  In David’s case, it cost him the life of his son.

One of the things that we see in this case is that, while David surely knew that what he was doing was wrong, when passions rise up in a man (or woman), then reason tends to fly away from him.  In particular, sound Scriptural reason tends to flee away when strong passions rise up and one begins to entertain those passions.  When this happens, sin is surely at the door.

Ya’aqov (James) 1:14-15 
14 but each man is tempted, when he is drawn away by his own lust, and enticed.
15 Then the lust, when it has conceived, bears sin; and the sin, when it is full grown, brings forth death.

The price of sin is death.  It has been so from the Garden.  When Adam and Chavah took and ate of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, then they also died.  They have passed this heritage down to each and every one of their offspring; both the eating of this forbidden fruit and the heritage of death.

When the passions of a person wax hot, then it should be a warning to him to remove himself from whatever he is facing.  For if he does not, then sin is sure to follow, for a man cannot control such hot passions if he entertains them and allows them to grow and take root in his heart.

In the case with King David, YHWH took away his sin.  However, the price was extracted elsewhere.  So just because YHWH may forgive us of a sin does not mean that its price will not be paid in some other way.  Sin brings death.  Let us never forget this eternal truth!

In some cases, as we saw with Qorach, a man will pay the price of death himself.  In Qorach’s case not only did he pay that price, but those with him also paid that price.  However, there are times in which only the person who sins pays that price.  Such is the case of Ananias and Sapphira.

Ma’aseh (Acts) 5:1-6
1 But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession,
2 and kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles' feet.
3 But Kepha said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit, and to keep back part of the price of the land?
4 While it remained, did it not remain your own?  And after it was sold, was it not in your power?  How is it that you have conceived this thing in your heart?  You have not lied to men, but to Elohim.”
5 And Ananias hearing these words fell down and gave up the spirit; and great fear came upon all that heard it.
6 And the young men arose and wrapped him round, and they carried him out and buried him.

To deceive another intentionally for the purpose of self-gain is sin.  Such was the sin of Ananias.  There were those of the early talmidim who were selling their possessions and bringing the full price and laying it at the apostles’ feet to be used as YHWH directed.  However, the property that Ananias sold was worth a lot and he did not desire to give the full price to the apostles.  So, he decided to give only part of it.  This was fully within his right to do as the owner of that property.  What his sin consisted of was that he chose to say that he was giving the full price, when, in fact, he was not giving the full price.  This sin of lying to the Spirit of YHWH cost him his life.

But he was not alone in this lie for he conspired with his wife to perpetrate this deception.

Ma’aseh (Acts) 5:7-10
7 And it was about the space of three hours after, when his wife, not knowing what was done, came in.
8 And Kepha answered her, “Tell me whether you sold the land for so much.”  And she said, “Yes, for so much.”
9 But Kepha said to her, “How is it that you have agreed together to try the Spirit of YHWH?  Behold, the feet of them that have buried your husband are at the door, and they shall carry you out.”
10 And she fell down immediately at his feet, and gave up the spirit; and the young men came in and found her dead, and they carried her out and buried her by her husband.

Brothers and sisters, we cannot afford the price of sin!

Each and every one of us needs to get out of the sin business!  There is no profit in it whatsoever.  The only thing that is found in sin is death and destruction.  Satan lies to us that there is anything other than death and destruction in sin.

Yes, there is physical pleasure in sin.  But it is only temporary.  Such pleasures that this world can offer are all passing away and count for nothing in the world to come. 

Qorintyah Aleph (1st Corinthians) 10:11-12 
11 Now these things happened to them by way of example; and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.
12 Therefore let him that thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.

We have considered many examples from Scripture concerning the price of sin.  We could examine many more.  But these should suffice to teach us that sin is something that we should stay away from.  These examples should teach us that when a person sins, there is a price to pay.  No one is exempt from this price.

Now, in modern day Christianity, there is this idea that because of the Blood of Mashiach, one can do whatever one wants to do and that he can live however he wants to live and it is okay.  He will be forgiven for his sin.  This is a very dangerous and deadly mindset.  It will lead one right straight into damnation and death.  Please note in one of the examples above, Ananias’s and Sapphira’s sin occurred after the death and resurrection of Mashiach.  These two were talmidim of Yeshua.  They believed Him to be the Mashiach.  But the price of sin is death and they paid this price for their sin.

Ivrim (Hebrews) 10:26-29
26 For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remains no more a sacrifice for sins,
27 but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and a fierceness of fire which shall devour the adversaries.
28 A man that has set aside the Torah Moshe dies without compassion on the word of two or three witnesses;
29 of how much sorer punishment, do you think shall he be judged worthy, who has trodden underfoot the Son of Elohim, and has counted the Blood of the covenant wherewith he was sanctified an unholy thing, and has done despite to the Spirit of grace?

Any person who takes upon himself the attitude that he can sin and Elohim must forgive him through Mashiach Yeshua, is being foolish and does not understand what YHWH has taught us in His written word.  Surely such a person will die in his own sin.

B’midbar (Numbers) 15:28-31 
28 “And the priest shall make atonement for the soul that errs, when he sins unwittingly, before YHWH, to make atonement for him; and he shall be forgiven.
29 You shall have one Torah for him that does aught unwittingly, for him that is home-born among the children of Israel, and for the stranger that sojourns among them.
30 But the soul that does aught with a high hand, whether he be home-born or a sojourner, the same blasphemes YHWH; and that soul shall be cut off from among his people.
31 Because he has despised the word of YHWH, and has broken His commandment, that soul shall utterly be cut off; his iniquity shall be upon him.”

It is one thing to sin when one is attempting to live according to His commandments.  Sometimes our passions just get the better of us and we do things that later we realize we should not have done.  For all of these there is forgiveness.

However, for those who do something that they not only know to be wrong, but to whom YHWH has sent a messenger in order to warn that person to stop doing it, and that person basically shakes his fist in the face of YHWH and does it anyway, that person will find that there is no sacrifice for such a sin as that.  What he will find is that there is only death.

As we pointed out earlier in this study, sin is missing the mark when one is attempting to hit the mark.  The mark is Torah.  When a person does his best to live according to Torah, then he is hitting the mark.  But because of one’s flaws and imperfections, hitting the mark one hundred percent of the time is most likely not going to happen.  What will happen is that there will be occasions in which one unintentionally misses the mark of Torah.  For these instances YHWH stands ready and willing to forgive in Mashiach Yeshua.

The problem enters into a person’s life when he thinks that he can do whatever he pleases to do and that somehow YHWH has to forgive him upon demand.  Scripture calls this pride.  Pride is never a good thing.  Pride is always sin.  Pride is one of the major root causes of all sin and rebellion against YHWH.

Mishle (Proverbs) 16:18 
Pride goes before destruction,
And a haughty spirit before a fall.

This is one of the most common sins among the people of Elohim today.  It is a sin that must be put away.  The truth is that this walk is not about me.  It is not about you.  It is about Him.  We are to do His will.  We are to be His servants, serving one another in love.  Pride will not allow this to happen in the way that is pleasing to YHWH.  Pride elevates self.  His Spirit humbles self.  When self is elevated, then destruction is not far away.

Vayyiqra (Leviticus) 26:18-21
18 “And if you will not yet for these things hear and obey Me, then I will chastise you seven times more for your sins.
19 And I will break the pride of your power; and I will make your heaven as iron, and your earth as brass;
20 and your strength shall be spent in vain; for your land shall not yield its increase, neither shall the trees of the land yield their fruit.
21 And if you walk contrary to Me, and will not hear and obey Me, I will bring seven times more plagues upon you according to your sins.”

YHWH is serious about sin.  He has taught us in His written word that He is serious about sin, and in particular, getting us out of it.  If a person sins he will suffer punishment.  That punishment will be increased seven times if he refuses to repent.  YHWH can and will put the pressure upon a person to repent like no one else can do.  Look at how YHWH dealt with Pharaoh, sending plague after plague upon him and his people.  Likewise, YHWH not only will send plagues upon a person for sinning and refusing to repent, but very likely those plagues will engulf those whom he loves and cares for as well.  This is all for the purpose of getting a person to turn his face towards YHWH and to return to Him and obey His Voice.

B’midbar (Numbers) 18:1 
And YHWH said to Aharon, “You and your sons and your fathers' house with you shall bear the iniquity of the sanctuary; and you and your sons with you shall bear the iniquity of your priesthood.”

In the economy of Israel YHWH has arranged things so that there would be those who bear the sin of the many.  While Yeshua has done this as our Mashiach and Redeemer, YHWH has placed within the body of Mashiach those who also do this.  Not in a sense of replacing Yeshua as Mashiach and not in the sense that His Blood is not sufficient, but rather in the sense that He must teach us that sin has a price and that price is an awful price. 

Gentlemen (excuse me ladies while I address us men for just a moment), it is one of our responsibilities as the heads of our homes, for we stand as a priest before YHWH in that office, to bear the sin of our families.  It is a responsibility that is both awesome and frightening.  YHWH calls upon us to step into the fullness of this role and as Mashiach treats His bride, so too are we to treat our wife (and her children) in which we give up our own life to provide for her and to bear her sins and iniquities.  At times it is not a pleasant task as we silently bear the sin of those in our care.  But this is what we are called to do before YHWH.  Bearing this sin means in part that we lift up those whom we love and cherish before the throne and seek to intercede for them.

B’midbar (Numbers) 30:15 
But if he shall make them null and void after that he has heard them, then he shall bear her iniquity.

Ladies, please allow me to address you now concerning the seriousness of your words.  Yes, one’s father or husband does have the right and authority, yea, the responsibility to undo a vow or promise that his daughter or wife may make which is not wise.  But if he does, then he bears the sin of that upon himself.  So please, ladies, be very careful of your words so that your father or your husband does not ever have to undo what you have said, and thus you bring sin upon him.  If you could show your father or husband this great love and respect and watch over the words of your mouth, YHWH will greatly bless you and your husband or father as a result of your guarding your words.  Remember that one reaps what one sows.

YHWH desires to bless His people.  However, in order for His blessings to flow upon His people, then His people must respond to Him in a favorable way, namely by obeying Him.

Devarim (Deuteronomy) 28:1-2 
1 “And it shall come to pass, if you shall hear and obey diligently the Voice of YHWH your Elohim, to observe to do all His commandments which I command you this day, that YHWH your Elohim will set you on high above all the nations of the earth;
2 and all these blessings shall come upon you, and overtake you, if you shall hear and obey the Voice of YHWH your Elohim.”

If a person desires to be part of the people of YHWH our Elohim, then he must hear and obey His Voice.  Only in this way will the blessings of YHWH flow in abundance upon him.

Devarim (Deuteronomy) 28:15 
“But it shall come to pass, if you will not hear and obey the Voice of YHWH your Elohim, to observe to do all His commandments and His statutes which I command you this day, that all these curses shall come upon you, and overtake you.”

Each person has only one of two options available.  One may choose to obey the Voice of YHWH our Elohim and be blessed.  Or, one may choose to not obey the Voice of YHWH our Elohim and be cursed.  These are the only two choices available to each and every person.  To help us in this choice, to make the choice easier for us, YHWH has listed for us in this chapter in Devarim the blessings and the curses.  Please take the time to read them over.  There are also additional curses in the previous chapter (27). 

YHWH cannot and will not bless a person living in sin and rebellion.  If there is sin and rebellion present in a person’s life, then YHWH will send discipline into his life.  If the discipline He sends is not heeded, then at some point YHWH will begin to pour out His curses upon that person.  These curses may very well have an effect upon those he loves and cares about.

Blessings come with obedience.  Curses come with disobedience and sin.  Each one of us needs to learn how to live in obedience to Him so that His blessings are abundant in our lives.

2nd Thessalonians 2:10-11
10 And with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved.
11 And for this reason Elohim will send upon them a deluding influence so that they might believe the lie.

When a person receives a love of His truth then he will order his life according to YHWH.  He will submit to Him in all areas of his life.  As YHWH reveals more and more truth to him, he will simply change what needs to be changed and continue to live his life for YHWH.  Such a person hears and obeys His Voice.  He lives in obedience to Him.

However, when a person does not have a love of His truth, then he will not live in obedience to Him.  When this is true in a person’s life, then YHWH will send a deluding influence into that person’s life and he will believe the lie and follow after the dictates of his own heart.  When a person is living in disobedience to a direct command from YHWH, then he will not receive guidance and direction from YHWH, but rather delusion in which the person will think that YHWH is directing him.  In fact, this deluding influence is leading a person directly away from YHWH our Elohim.  For YHWH will not allow disobedience into His presence but rather send it away.  At some point this will end in death, unless repentance is full and complete.  This means in part that the person will begin to obey YHWH.  We see this in Yonah’s life.  At the point that he repented and was willing to obey YHWH and deliver the message to Nineveh from YHWH, then he was no longer headed for death and destruction.  Had he refused to repent, the great fish would not have vomited him out and he would have died in the belly of that great fish.

Romans 5:12 
Therefore, through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin; and so death passed unto all men, because all have sinned.

Each and every person comes under this sentence of death inherited from our father Adam.  We all come under this sentence of death because we have all sinned.  Therefore, each person is responsible for removing this death and coming into life.  However, while each one of us has this responsibility, we do not personally have the means in which to do this.  This is where Mashiach Yeshua enters the picture.  It is through His Blood that we may enter into life and not be under the sentence of death.

Each person will die.  Not every person will have eternal life.  Each person will choose whether he has eternal life or not.  For a person to have eternal life in the world to come he must choose to die now, rather than die later when it is not his choice.  The choice of when to die is up to the individual.  We are not speaking of committing suicide, but rather of putting to death the lusts of the flesh.  We can put to death the self-will and take up His burden and do His will rather than our own will.  In this way we can die a daily death.  In this way one chooses life rather than death.

The death of Mashiach Yeshua, and the forgiveness and cleansing through His Blood, is a wonderful gift made available to each one of us.  As wonderful as this gift is in making available to each one of us forgiveness of sins and the cleansing of our hearts, it does not remove the consequences of those sins and wrongdoings.  Those one still must face and deal with, whatever they may be.

Perhaps, if we realize the awfulness of sin and that there truly are consequences to disobeying His Voice, then perhaps we will not be so quick to follow after the flesh. 

Perhaps…?

It is our own choice!

ABBA YHWH, open our eyes to the awfulness of sin and the consequences thereof; in Yeshua our Mashiach’s name.  

Amein and Amein.

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

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