Our Hebrew Roots

The Hebrew roots of our faith

I was awoken in the early hours of this morning with a message from the Father pertaining to the ‘roots’ of our faith – more specifically our Hebrew roots . 

The words that came into my head were ‘the roots are in the ground. They are  in the dark‘.

I immediately percieved in my spirit and understood this to be a warning of sorts. Although at the time I did not have a clear understanding of the meaning. After a while the meaning seemed to become clearer until I understood what was being shared with me. The verse that came to my mind following the understanding was from the book of Revelaation – a warning from our Messiaah Yahushua:

 Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.

Revelation 2:4-5

In summary, my understanding was that we had left our love for the gospel message of deliverence and salvation and were returning to the ways of the ‘lesser light’ – the time of darkness i.e. the nightime when the moon (Moses/Torah) provided the light.

Believers are supposed to children of the day/light.

Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.

1 Thessalonians 5:5

Yahushua stated:

Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

John 8:12

To conclude this brief summary then, I believe that believers are required to study and embrace the Toraah and the Tenakh but we must do so using the lens of the ‘Greater light’ i.e. the teachings and insight provided by our Messiah Yahushua. We must not simply return to the ways of old and adopt the errors of the time before Yahushua. Many believers are naivly embracing the errors of the Rabbinial authorities based on the Old Testament teachings. This is a huge mistake.

……………………..

Now let me delve a little deeper:

There appears to be more and more faithful believers, during this end time, who have been prompted in their spirit to return to what has been termed the ‘Hebrew roots’ of the Christian faith. There are now a number of new movements who have aligned themselves with this term and more specifically to the Torah of Moses i.e. the first five books of Scripture.  

Many are embracing the Torah and the rest of the Old Testament writings with excitement and renewed enthusiasm for these roots of our faith which have to a large extent been lost for the past two thousand years. To Christianity anyhow. 

Whilst I too have found and embraced this essential ‘lost treasure’ I would like to share my insight on this move from what the Father has recently revealed to me.  

My overall objective in this message is to caution those who are, from what I perceive, too focused on the root i.e. our Hebrew Roots and are paying too little attention to our ultimate goal of maturing into fruit bearing trees. 

In order to convey my message across to you – the reader, I will first need to outline with a few foundational terms.

 

Repentance 

 

Most readers will understand that the word ‘repentance’ means to have a change of mind and to turn from sin to the way of righteousness. Since the Bible states that ‘sin’ is the transgression of the law, and that this law  referred to is the Torah, then to repent would imply a return to the Torah: 

Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. 

 

 1 John n 3:4

I found the following extract whilst reviewing the word ‘repent’. You may want to read the rest of the content – if so follow the link below. 

 

In the Hebrew of the Old Covenant two words are used in the concept of repentance, they are – 

1. NACHAM – to lament, to grieve. This word is describing the emotions that are aroused when motivated to take a different course of action.

2. SHUB – This word expresses a radical change of mind toward sin and implies a conscious moral separation from sin and a decision to forsake it and agree with God. 

In the Greek of the New Covenant, there are also two words used which parallel the Hebrew usage.

1. METAMELOMAI – to have feeling or care, concern or regret which is akin to remorse. 

2. METANOEO – to have another mind, which describes that radical change whereby a sinner turns from the idols of sin and of self to God. 

Repentance then is the informing and changing of the MIND stirring and directing the EMOTIONS to urge the required change, and the action of the yielded WILL in turning away from sin and to God. 

https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Hebrew_Roots/The_original_foundation/Repentance

 

It appears to me that most ‘churchy’ Christians have not been taught that one needs to ‘repent’. The common teaching or doctrine seems to be:

 ‘all one needs for salvation is to have faith and believe’.

Well my Bible reveals to me that we first need to repent and only then can we be baptised. Repentance is an absolute pre-condition for conversion. 

There are many verses in the New Testament calling people to repent. Here are some from the mouth of our Messiah Y’Shua:

 

Mark 1:15  And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel. 

Luke 13:3  I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. 

Luke 13:5  I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. 

Luke 16:30  And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. 

Luke 17:3  Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him.

Revelation 2:5  Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent. 

Revelation 2:16  Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth. 

Revelation 2:21  And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not

Revelation 2:22  Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds. 

Revelation 3:3  Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee. 

Revelation 3:19  As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. 

 

And then there are some other examples: 

 

Acts 2:38  Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

Acts 3:19  Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; 

 

It would seem to me from these passages that one should first repent i.e. change one’s mind towards sin, before one is baptised in the spirit as a new convert. Repentance is therefore a prerequisite for conversion into the new faith. This principle can also be gleaned from the illustration of Passover where one first cleans out the leaven from the house before partaking of the Passover meal. One is also required to be circumcised i.e. have a change of heart – removal of the carnal/flesh. This is ‘repentance’. This is a prerequisite for conversion as mentioned above,

I have briefly outlined my thoughts  on repentance to illustrate that I am in full agreement with a return to the Torah – the Law of Moses. This was also to lay the foundation for what the Father revealed to me this morning concerning this return to Torah observance – the old path. 

I suppose that I should clarify my belief and my understanding that one is not ‘saved’ through any Torah observance but rather that we return to Torah as a result of our salvation. One is saved through faith and favour from our heavenly, loving Father alone. Part of this process is the change in mindset i.e. repentance.

I do however believe that works through obedience to the Torah should follow faith. 

Anyway the message I received pertained to the root i.e. the Hebrew Root. I understand the Hebrew root to be the teachings of the Scriptures – the Old Testament. The books of the Tanakh. 

 

……………………………………

 

Tanakh is an acronym of the first Hebrew letter of each of the Masoretic Text’s three traditional subdivisions: Torah (‘Teaching’, also known as the Five Books of Moses), Nevi’im (‘Prophets’) and Ketuvim (‘Writings’)—hence TaNaKh. … In modern spoken Hebrew, they are interchangeable.

 

……………………………………

 

The word ’root’ can mean ‘origin’ but more typically relates to the part of a plant. 

When one considers the ‘root’ of a plant one should understand that this part of the plant is buried within the soil beneath the surface. Please allow yourself to see the spiritual significance in what I am about to share here. The Scriptures are written using physical matter from this world to teach us spiritual lessons. The Scriptures are a tapestry of parables, similitudes and metaphors etc that we need to review and understand to see the greater Spiritual picture/message.

 

Back to the point: 

 

There are three primary requirements for the root and plant to thrive and grow. First is the need for fertile soil. Second is water/rain and thirdly the plant requires sunlight.

 

The Good Ground (fertile soil) 

 

The root system must be firmly embodied in fertile soil. In order to understand this aspect we should consider the type of ground required for the seed to grow mentioned in the parable of the sower in Matthew chapter 13. It was only the seed that fell on the ‘good ground’ that grew and eventually brought forth fruit:

 

The Parable of the Sower Explained: 

 

Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower. 

When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side. 

But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it; 

Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended

He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.

But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 

Matthew 13:18-23 

 

As we are shown, it is only the ones who receive the seed i.e. that hear and understand, that bear fruit. The ‘good ground’ is a reference to fertile and prepared soil. In other words one’s willingness to receive and faithfully follow the Words of Truth. 

This fertile soil does not come naturally. This parable was told in this way because the people of the day would have understood the farming process and the ground preparations required prior to sowing seed. Repentance and prayerful, diligent study of the Word is part of the preparation process for the ‘good ground’ . One must also yield to the divine cultivation process (the refiners fire) which produces a change in character i.e. a more suitable ground.

Clearly, we are the ground that this parable is referring to. In some believers the seed will grow and thrive and yet in others the seed will die off. In others the seed does not even penetrate the hardened ground.

 

 

The water of life 

 

In order to grow, the root requires water. Not just any water either. Maybe a plant can filter dirty water and still grow but we are certainly in need of the pure/living water to grow.

The following is an extract from my article on Baptism – sub heading ‘The Symbolism in Living Water’. Please consult the article for the full content regarding the symbolism of water in Scripture: 

Living Water in Scripture is a ‘symbolic’ reference to doctrinal Truth and enlightenment, which is the Word of YHWH.

 

The meaning of Doctrine: 

 

– a belief or set of beliefs held and taught by a Church, political party, or other group. 

– a principle or position or the body of principles in a branch of knowledge or system of belief – something that is taught 

synonyms: creed, credo, dogma, belief, set of beliefs, code of belief, conviction, teaching;

One can either drink the ‘living water’ of Truth from the Word of YHWH or one can drink of the water of the secular, godless world. 

Yet again one could also drink polluted water from the church pulpit. 

 

Even drinking what one believes to be ‘living water’ can be suspect if it is not drawn direct from the ‘fountain of living waters’ i.e. YHWH. Most ‘living water’ which is routed through institutionalised religion often becomes polluted with the doctrines of men and is toxic to one’s spiritual wellbeing. The further downstream you draw your water the more polluted it will become. There are literally thousands of Christian denominations in the world today each having their own ‘doctrines’. They have polluted the ‘living water’ and offer it to their congregations to drink.

 

’Living water’ is also water on the move. Water that pools up often stagnates and becomes toxic. This is why one needs to challenge one’s doctrines/beliefs continually against the Word of YHWH and to refresh with the ‘living water’. Let your belief be on the move. 

 

This is true in a literal sense with river water and city water as well. Mountain stream water at source is fresh and nutritious but as it proceeds downstream the pollutants enter and its life giving value diminishes.

 

 

Sunlight 

 

The root will not grow if there is no access to sunlight. The root is buried in darkness beneath the ground surface. 

I have an article entitled The Greater Light which I highly recommend that you read to fully understand the symbolism contained within Scripture pertaining to the lights in the sky i.e. the sun, moon and the stars. I will not attempt to duplicate that article in this one but will offer the following to keep this short: 

In Genesis 1:16 we see that YHWH made two lights – one for the daytime and the other for the night: 

 

1:16  And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also. 

 

In John 8:12  Y’Shua shows that following the light leads to life: 

 

Y’Shua said in John 9:5 that as long as He was in the world that He was the light of the world: 

 

‘As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world’. 

 

We are supposed to be as 1 Thessalonians 5 suggests – children of light and not in darkness:

 

But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.

1Thessalonians 5:4-5

 

The sun in the daytime sky, which brings joy, warmth and brings life producing energy,  is a symbol of our Messiah Y’Shua. Without the sun/Y’Shua there can be no life on earth. 

 

Please read the article (The Greater Light)mentioned above to understand this symbolism.

 

 

It’s all in the name 

 

The name Adam – from the ground 

 

Adam (Strong’s H121) was the name given to the first man but the Hebrew word ‘adam’ (see Strong’s H120) is also a general term for a human being or person. 

The noun ‘adam’ is also the masculine form of the word adamah which means ‘ground’ (Strongs H127) and is related to the words: adom (red), admoni (ruddy), and dam (blood).]

 

 Genesis 2:7  And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground (adamah  – H127), and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. 

 

It is understood that Adam was called by this name because he was formed from the ground. Another derivative word ‘adam’ (Strong’sH119) means ‘To show blood (in the face), that is, flush or turn rosy: – be (dyed, made) red (ruddy). 

We also read that our Creator YHWH  formed every other beast and fowl from the ground as well: 

 

And out of the ground (H127) the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.

Genesis 2:19

 

The difference however was that the Father ‘breathed’ the breath of life i.e. His Spirit, into man and man became a living soul. Man had the Spirit of the Father breathed into him.

 

 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. 

Genesis 2:7 

 

The Hebrew word for spirit is ‘ruach’ (Strong’s H7307), and it means ‘breath’. It can be understood as air in motion. 

In the New Testament where Y’Shua references the Spirit. He says: 

 

 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. 

 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit. 

  John 3:6-8

 

Y’Shua is talking about the Spirit, and He’s saying it is like wind. The Greek word is pneuma (Strong’s G4151) which means ‘a current of air, that is, breath (blast) or a breeze; by analogy or figuratively a spirit’. So both the Hebrew and the Greek word are talking about breath. 

The name Adam is a reference to our earthly nature but also describes a being that exists with the Spirit of the Father. 

The reference used in the name of Adam and mankind to the ‘adamah’ ground must not be viewed without understanding the tremendous potential that comes from the ground. The ground is where plants grow and produce new life and fruit . Man’s link to the ground therefore reflects on mankind’s enormous potential to generate new life and to be fruitful.  It was always the Father’s will for mankind to reproduce after it’s kind as we see from Genesis 1:26. 

 

In Genesis 2 we read that YHWH made trees grow from the ground: 

 

And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. 

Genesis 2:9 

 

The tree in Scripture is a symbolic reference to ‘prominent’ men. The ‘tree of life’ is a reference to the righteous man producing good fruit whereas the ‘tree of knowledge of good and evil’ is a reference to the carnal man producing carnal works/fruit. We should endeavour to become the tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. Y’shua is the realisation of this ‘Tree of Life’.

Just like the ‘adamah’ (ground), man has the ability to bring forth a vast bounty of fruits. But mankind has the freedom to choose. We can become useless good for nothing, infertile or hard ground, or we can become ground that can be used for Kingdom purposes. 

The name Adam contains the Hebrew letter Alef followed by the dalet and mem. The dalet and mem spell the word ‘dam’ (Strong’s H1818) which means blood. The blood component of man maintains physical life on earth and represents earthly life and carnality.

In Leviticus 17: 11 we read that the life/soul (nephesh H5315) is in the blood:

 

H5315   (Brown-Driver-Briggs)
soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion 

 

The ‘Outline of Biblical Usage’ (created by Larry Pierce) adds the following:

 

The letter ‘Alef’ represents an ox – strength and leader. The word ‘aluf’ derived from the name of the letter ‘alef’ means ‘master’ or ‘lord’. 

 

So much more could be said about this letter ‘alef’ (read: https://www.hebrew4christians.com/Grammar/Unit_One/Aleph-Bet/Aleph/aleph.html) 

 

Let me suggest that the appearance of the Alef before the blood (dam) portion of Adam should convey the meaning that we have the created ability to rule over our carnal nature through the Alef component of our makeup. 

The ‘dam’ component of Adam is the soul that contains the lusts and appetites of the flesh. This part is essential for man to experience the fullness of life in a physical world but left unchecked to lead to sinful actions as we have witnessed and experience ourselves.

Man was created by the Almighty with many fleshly/carnal desires but also with the essential capability to rule over these desires. Unfortunately both Adam and adam (mankind) have fallen victim to the ‘dam’ of the name and succumb to failure. We were all born with  a propensity to sin but we were provided with an ability to rule and overcome this sinful desire of the flesh.

Fortunately we have someone, our Messiah Y’Shua, who achieved this for us all, freeing us from the penalty of death introduced by the first Adam. 

And so we see that the name Adam contains attributes of the lower beast instincts/lusts but also alludes to our ability to rule this beast nature. It is only through this combination of letters, our make-up, that we have the ability and opportunity to accommodate the seed of Truth and to ultimately produce fruit. 

Man’s upright posture distinguishes us from other beasts. Unlike other mammals which naturally look downwards and only connect with their instinctual and physical nature, humans stand up straight and look ahead. We can choose whether to look up, to grow from the ground, or look down, and focus our attention on a life dominated by our lower, carnal side i.e. the flesh. 

Each one of us is created in the image of our Father with unbelievable potential, and the name Adam alludes to both the pitfalls we must recognise and avoid/rule over and the tremendous spiritual growth we could realise.

 

 

The ‘dam’ soul of man 

 

Just as man joins with his wife and becomes an inseparable ‘one’ (Ephesians 5:31, Mark 10:8), so is the ‘Alef’ ‘one’ with the ‘dam’ of mankind – Adam. The two are necessary in order to be fruitful and multiply. 

 

Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. 

For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. 

Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing. 

Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; 

That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, 

That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.

So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself. 

For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church: 

For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. 

For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh. 

This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church 

Nevertheless let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and the wife seethat she reverence her husband.

Ephesians 5:22-33 

 

Eve was not another human formed from the dust of the earth. Eve was taken out of Adam. She was part of Adam. She was the ‘dam’‘adamah’ part of the Adam. 

 Both ‘Adam’ and ‘Adamah’ have the same root i.e. the same origin. Both the words Adam and Adamah are derived from the same Hebrew root word ‘aw-dam’ (Strong’s H119) which means:

 ‘To show blood (in the face), that is, flush or turn rosy: – be (dyed, made) red (ruddy).’ 

 

The masculine ‘Alef’ component of the man Adam, the strength/master/leader, is the spirit portion of ‘man’ and was created as such to rule the feminine soul i.e. the ‘adamah’ component.

The picture contained in the relationship of Adam and Eve is one that illustrates the relationship between the male ‘Alef’ and the female ‘dam’‘Adamah’ of Adam/mankind. 

 

Alef was to contain the spirit designed to be in a relationship with the Creator and adamah: the sensual soul. As a result of the fall of Adam, he was left with little to no spiritual connection with the Father and therefore was left to rule with no spiritual guidance from his Creator. 

In Genesis 2:5 we read that man was required to till the ground. Plants and shrubs could not grow without man and the rain. 

The adamah is to man as a woman is to her husband. Man has a duty to cultivate the earth in the same way that a husband has a duty to be fruitful with his wife. 

Both components are required to maintain a physical, fruitful existence in this world. The adamah/ground requires the Adam to grow the plants but Adam/mankind also requires the fruit of the ground in order to survive in a physical world. The two are co-dependant.

Both the Alef and the Adamah however have a duty of respect and love to one another in terms of their created roles – being separate but also as ‘one’. Adam, the Alef, failed with regards to his role that was to rule his ‘soul’ or feminine ‘adamah’ – the part of him which experiences ‘lusts of the flesh’ and brings forth the fruit of their joint existence. 

In Genesis 3:17 we read that the ground was cursed because Adam did not overrule and guide his wife according to the Father’s instructions to him. Adam lost his spiritual connection with his Father and also mankind therafter, until our Messiah restored the way. 

This relationship between man and his wife is provided in much greater detail in my article ‘The Woman’. 

 

So in summary, what is my message to you from the above? 

 

I may have gone off on a bit of a tangent with this article but somehow I feel that this was a necessary framework to make my point. 

We are the ‘adamah’ ground/soil that the Scripture is referring to. The seed is the Word of the Father contained in Scripture and manifested by Y’Shua through his life/death/resurrection. When one repents and returns to the Truth of Scripture with a humbled and circumcised heart, then ones ‘ground’ is ready to bring forth life from the seed of Truth. The Father’s Spirit will water your ground and the Greater Light – Y’Shua the Messiah will provide the sunlight necessary for growth. 

Without the water of Truth  and the Greater Light it is impossible to grow into maturity and bring forth fruit. 

One also needs to bear in mind that although there seems to be a focus on bearing fruit, what is actually required is the seed that is contained within your fruit. This seed will again find itself planted in some other  ‘good ground’ and will therafter bring forth multiplied fruit and multiplied seed. 

This is how the Father intends to build His family. 

While many are returning with much excitement and enthusiasm to the Old Testament and specifically the Torah (our Hebrew Roots), one must understand that this is not the destination. This is only the return to the root system from where one needs to grow.

Too many faithful believers are being led to believe that the Torah of Moses is the ultimate place to be and reside. This is only the ‘root’ of our faith and not the part growing towards the heavenlies i.e. the plant portion which penetrates through the surface  and rises up in the sunlight towards heaven. The plant that ultimately matures into a ‘tree of life’ full of fruit. 

Please don’t get stuck in the ground, in darkness, holding on to the root system when you should be looking to grow into a full and mature – fruit bearing tree. 

 

John 12:46 I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness. 

 

The Torah is the ‘root’, it is the lesser light to rule the night. The root alone resides in a place of darkness. The root itself will never bear fruit. It was never meant to.  We need the root to feed the plant and to provide the plant with stability but the root itself is just that – the root. The root requires the light and the water otherwise it will just wither and perish. 

Don’t become too focused on religious or for that matter Rabbinical doctrine pertaining to the ‘root’ of our heritage. Returning to the root is the correct thing to do. It is the place from where we need to grow. Embrace the root, seek the heart of our Messiah Y’Shua and our heavenly Father in the root and grow into full maturity. 

Absorb the ‘Greater Light’ (Messiah Yahushua), soak up the ‘living water’ (Yahushua’s teaching/Truth) and break through the ground. 

Too many people are returning to the root and are just decaying in the ground. 

We have the created ability to rise up from the ground and produce a fruitful life. 

Strengthen your ‘Alef’ through prayer. Lead your ‘Adamah’ to become the overcomer that the book of Revelation mentions multiple times as the one who inherits all things.

Let us follow the second Adam, who ruled his adamah, and tells us to follow him.