In each person’s life, there are forks in the road that call for decisions with far-reaching consequences. Choosing one way or the other opens up a whole new set of decisions and circumstances stretching into the unknown future. The circumstances and opportunities with following one path are different than those available on the other path of choice. Very few forks in the road of life have greater potential, for either success or disaster, than the decision of whom to worship.
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"Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--, I took the one less traveled by, |
A person must decide whether he will worship and be loyal to his Creator, or simply flow unresisting with the current of life’s circumstances. When one chooses to be loyal to Yahuwah, no matter what the cost, an additional choice confronts him when he learns of the original Biblical seventh-day Sabbath: Do I follow truth even if it means I lose my job and my ability to support a family? Do I follow truth even if it means I lose my marriage and, possibly, the custody of my children?
These are questions that confront all who come face to face with the reality of the Creator’s Sabbath not “fitting” in the modern work-a-day world. The dangers are very real. All who would be faithful must be crucified to self (in other words, surrender their will to the Saviour’s will).
I am crucified with Yahushua, therefore “I” no longer live. Yahushua my Saviour now lives in me. The life I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of Yah, Who loved me and gave Himself for me. (See Galatians 2:20.)
Only when this is done, is one prepared to take up his cross to follow the Saviour. “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” (Matthew 16:24, KJV) This cross is well-known to those who have followed truth, regardless of the cost. It is the cross of obedience.
Many of Yahushua’s parables explain that the kingdom of Heaven will be gained only at the cost of everything. 
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it. (Matthew 13:44-46, NKJV)
Everything is the cost that must be paid to obtain eternal life. And this is just, for did not Yahuwah sacrifice everything when He gave up His own Son to die for sinners? But even in this, there is great hope for all facing the heart-wrenching decision of giving up everything for the sake of carrying the cross of obedience.
If Yahuwah is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? (See Romans 8:31, 32.)
The Father has pledged to help all who will honor Him by obedience.
Therefore Yahuwah, Elohim of Israel, says: . . . “Those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me shall be lightly esteemed.” (See 1 Samuel 2:30.)
Worshipping on the true seventh-day Sabbath of the Biblical calendar can be an extremely heavy cross in some situations. Some have sacrificed their careers; some have lost their marriages or other family relationships. All have experienced the loneliness of walking alone with few, if any, to share their beliefs. However, Heaven has made abundant provision to help all who choose to accept the cross of obedience. Yahuwah’s gracious words are full of assurance:
Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of Yahuwah and of Yahushua our Master, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and piety, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. (See 2 Peter 1:2-4.)
When we trust Yahuwah as it is our privilege to trust Him, we will not worry about the future. Knowing His will and knowing His promise, we will obey the one and trust the other. Yahuwah has promised to provide everything necessary for 1) protection; 2) salvation; 3) food; and, 4) water. Protection for all His children and a full, abundant salvation has been provided for everyone on earth.
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Because those who worship on the true Sabbath are faced with possible loss of employment, this article will cover the promises given for the preservation of life.
Can you live without money, a chequing account or credit cards? Can you live without a car? Can you live without a job? Can you live without a house, the latest fashions or the high opinion of others? Yes! Yes, indeed. It may not be the way you like to live or even the way you want to live, but it is possible to live without money, a job, a car, a house, or the admiration of others.
Much of what is considered important in life is not essential to the preservation of life. Yahuwah has not promised the job of your dreams. He has not promised physical luxury or a life of ease. He has promised only the essentials for the preservation of life.
“He will dwell on high; his place of defense will be the fortress of rocks; bread will be given him, his water will be sure.” (Isaiah 33:16, NKJV)
By the time Yahushua comes, all who follow Him will be reduced to abject poverty. The troubles coming upon the earth are such as to cause “men’s hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth.” (Luke 21:26, NKJV) “But he that shall endure to the end, the same shall be saved.” (Matthew 24:13, KJV)
NASA has announced that solar flare activity will reach its height in 2012-2013. In addition to that, Nouriel Rubini, Professor of Economics and International Business at New York University’s Business School, has stated that the Economic “Perfect Storm” is soon to burst upon the world. A “perfect storm” is rare. It occurs when a unique combination of various very negative factors all combine to produce a storm from which no one escapes unscathed. Rubini’s accurate predictions have led some to call him the “Prophet of the Economy.”
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Elijah was highly honored to do a great work for Yahuwah. Image copyright: Darrel Tank, darreltank.com |
The world’s economy is a house of cards that is collapsing with greater speed with every passing week. A combination of natural disasters and economic disasters create a “perfect storm” that will soon make everyone desperate to restore prosperity. Our whole way of life, not just that of lunar Sabbath-keepers, but everyone on earth, will be majorly impacted very soon.
For many people, finding work that allows them to keep Yahuwah’s holy days will require an adjustment to living a simpler, even austere lifestyle. It may mean obtaining jobs that, previously, seemed “beneath” them or for which they are really over-qualified. There is no humiliation in a job well-done, however humble. The Son of Yah Himself faithfully labored as a carpenter until He was 30.
Worldly honor and acclaim, luxury and ease of living have never accompanied Yahuwah’s faithful workers. Elijah was very highly honored of Heaven by being entrusted to do a great work. In the face of national apostasy, he stood alone for the truth. He braved king and army, ekklesia and priesthood, nobleman and commoner, to denounce sin and call for repentance. His life was miraculously spared . . . but not in luxury.
The word of Yahuwah came to Elijah, saying, “Get away from here and turn eastward, and hide by the Brook Cherith, which flows into the Jordan. And it will be that you shall drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.” (See 1 Kings 17:2, 3.)
Yahuwah preserved Elijah’s life. All that had been promised: protection, food and water, was given to Elijah.
Protection. Food. Water. Period.
There may have been a cave there for Elijah to sleep in. Maybe not. He may have had to make a hut of reeds. Shelter has not been promised because shelter is something people can provide for themselves, even if it be only a snow cave. Elijah’s living circumstances could not be more humble. He drank creek water and ate whatever food the birds brought him. But he survived! He lived when many others in Israel died of starvation.
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Elijah’s needs were met as promised, Image copyright: Darrel Tank, darreltank.com |
Elijah knew the one great truth that the word of Yahuwah contains the creative power needed to do just what it says. This is an extremely important point. Elijah lived by faith in Yahuwah and what had been promised was provided. Elijah did not need the morning birds to bring him food for his evening meal . . . or tomorrow’s meals. Having Yahuwah’s promise of food was as good to Elijah as having the food in hand.
When the Creator made the world, He spoke and it was so. The very power that called the universe into existence is contained in every one of Yahuwah’s promises. That same power is offered to all who will meet the conditions of the promises: faith and obedience.
“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” says Yahuwah. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, and do not return there, but water the earth, and make it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it [My word] shall accomplish what I please, and it [My word] shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.” (See Isaiah 55:8-11.)
It was to teach the Israelites this truth that Yahuwah allowed them to get hungry in the Wilderness before providing them with manna. Yahushua also understood the divine power contained in the word of Yahuwah. When He was tempted by Satan, He quoted His own words from centuries before:
So Yahuwah humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of Yahuwah. (See Deuteronomy 8:3 and Matthew 4:4.)
Because entrance into Heaven will require the surrender of everything, it is vitally important that all who would worship on the true Sabbath have implicit trust in the promises. Finding or keeping a job in a world that is united in using the Gregorian calendar is an endeavor fraught with many challenges. It is important to study and find the promises applicable to your particular situation and claim them!
In His sermon on the mount, Yahushua provided loving reassurance that the heavenly Father knows your needs and will provide for them.
“I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
“. . . why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
“Now if . . . [Yahuwah] so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you,O you of little faith?
“Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘what shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.
“But seek first the kingdom of . . . [Yah] and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” (Matthew 6:25, 26, 28-33, NKJV)
Elijah had made it the governing rule of his life to seek first and foremost the kingdom of Yahuwah and His righteousness. Therefore, having met the condition of obedience, the promises of Yah were his to claim. The same is true for you and every other child of Yah. When you determine to honor your Maker and keep holy His Sabbath day, the promises of His word are yours to claim.
You do not need to feel that your prayer is heard. Feeling is entirely separate and different from faith. Faith is simply choosing to believe that Yahuwah will keep His promise because of who and what He is: all-powerful, 
all-loving and ever faithful. Read words of faith; speak words of confidence because your words will influence your own emotions. Say, “I believe it is so. It is so, not because I feel it, but because Yahuwah has promised.”
The safest course of action for anyone is the path of obedience, no matter what the cost. Yahuwah sees the future. He has made provision for any and all circumstances that may face His obedient child. Knowing the future, He will often arrange a way of deliverance before the person realizes there is a need! He has promised that “before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.” (Isaiah 65:24)
Acquaint yourself with the promises.
Trust in Yahuwah, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness. Delight yourself also in Yahuwah, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.
Commit your way to Yahuwah, trust also in Him, and He shall bright it to pass. . . . Rest in Yahuwah, and wait patiently for Him. (See Psalm 37:3-5, 7.)
If you cannot think of a specific promise to meet your current need, go on a Bible Promise Treasure Hunt!
Yahuwah knows the days of the upright, and their inheritance shall be forever. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time, and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied. . . . I have been young, and now am old; yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his descendants begging bread. . . . For Yahuwah loves justice, and does not forsake His saints; they are preserved forever. (See Psalm 37:18, 19, 25, 28.)
Satan will seek to frighten you with a multitude of “what ifs”: What if I can’t keep my job? What if I can’t get another? What if I can’t get an education? What if my spouse leaves me? Close your ears to Satan’s “what ifs.” Deliberately choose to trust the promises!
Trust in Yahuwah with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. (See Proverbs 3:5.)
Yahuwah stands back of every promise He has ever made. Because He is good, He is safe to trust. He cares about every circumstance of your life. No particular is too small for His attention; no problem too complex for Him to solve.
The eyes of Yahuwah are upon the righteous, and His ears are open to their cry. The righteous cry out, and Yahuwah hears, and delivers them out of all their troubles. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but Yahuwah delivers him out of them all. (See Psalm 34:15, 17 and 19.)
You may face injustice. You may battle prejudice. In this, as in any other problem, Yahuwah is your defense.
Thus saith . . . [Yahuwah], Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: but let him who glories glory in this, that he understandethand knoweth me, that I am . . . [Yahuwah] which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith . . . [Yahuwah]. (Jeremiah 9:23, 23, KJV)
For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith . . . [Yahuwah], thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. (Jeremiah 29:11, KJV)
Commit to follow the Saviour, no matter what the cost. Bear the cross of obedience faithfully and cheerfully. He knows your needs and has pledged to provide for you.
“And lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.” (Matthew 28:20, KJV)