A Vision for the Kingdom

05/25/13 (03/14) Video Broadcast

Without a vision, the people cast of restraint and perish. We need a vision for accomplishing Yahushua’s command to “Go therefore.”

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This is a direct transcript of a teaching that was presented via video. Due to the fact that we often speak differently than we write, the written text may not flow and/or sound strange in some places. There may also be grammatical errors and unintended mistakes. It is encouraged that you to watch the video to complement this written transcript.

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And so, we are, of course, ready to get started here once again as we share a topic very close to my heart. It is something I believe Yahweh revealed to me a few years ago and something I feel may be one of the most important studies I have ever done toward those who are believers.

I say this because Messiah Himself puts such a great amount of emphasis on this and even speaks to us in our generation today about this very thing. And so, it is extremely important.

We shared last week a study called “Thy Kingdom Come.” If you missed that study, please, go back and watch it before you watch this one if you can. But, you know, if you missed it and you don’t want to go back, that is fine, too.

But I am just saying, there are going to be some things in the previous study that are very important (and I am going to cover them briefly here before we get started) that you really need to see, I feel. It is my conviction here. So, please, do that. This is so, so important.

And today’s study– if you have a family, if you have children– I cannot emphasize enough the importance of watching this broadcast here (this particular study, at least) to the end. Because there are some things here toward the end that I am really going to put emphasis on that can really, really help your family.

Anyway, our study today is entitled: “A Vision for the Kingdom.” We need to have a vision. We need to have a vision for Yahweh’s Kingdom in our hearts. We need to see the end. We need to see the goal before us. We need to recognize Yahweh’s plan for our life individually.

We talk about the importance of observing Yahweh’s commandments. That is the will of our Father in heaven. But how many of us recognize that Yahweh also leads us by His Spirit in a specific plan for our life, not just something necessarily written down in Scripture for the general masses, but something written for you, something written on your hearts?

He wants to write this plan, this goal, this vision on your heart. He wants you for Yahweh’s Army. Forget the US Army and the militaries and all the things of this world. That won’t mean anything in the age to come.

What is going to matter in the age to come is whether or not you realized how drafted you were in the vision He has called you to observe and to walk out. We are created with a vision.

Adam was created for a purpose. In Genesis chapter 1 and verse 26, it says:

 Genesis 1:26 - Then Elohim said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”


27 – So Elohim created man in His [own] image; in the image of Elohim He created him; male and female He created them.


28 – Then Elohim blessed them, and Elohim said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

It needed to be subdued. And so, when He created man, He gave man four mandates in the book of Genesis.

He said: 1. Fill the Earth. 2. Subdue the Earth. 3. Have dominion over all living things. 4. Be Fruitful and Multiply.

So, this is the earth. This is the place of our dominion. This is the place of our personal dominion, this globe that we live on today. We fulfill these four mandates. Yahweh gave us reign over the earth.

Now, He is ultimately our King. We have a King we answer to. But when Messiah comes and reigns for a thousand years and we reign with Him, that is because we were created to rule over this planet. This is our place of dominion right here.

And so, when Yahushua comes, in Matthew 28, and He speaks to His disciples, He says:

 Matthew 28:18 - And Yahushua came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.


19 – “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,


20 – teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

Do we realize this is one of the reasons we know the writings which are called the New Testament are a direct link and a direct correlation with what is called the Old Testament, because it says in 2 Corinthians 5:17:

 2Corinthians 5:17 - Therefore, if anyone [is] in Messiah, [he is] a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

We are a new creation, and He is giving us a mandate as part of who we are. When we die in the watery grave (the baptismal grave of immersion) and we are baptized, we have a mandate as a new creation.

It says, “Go, therefore and MAKE DISCIPLES of all the nations…” (Matthew 28:19). If we are “making disciples,” and we are disciples ourselves, this means we are being fruitful and we are multiplying (Genesis 1:28). “Be fruitful and MULTIPLY; fill the earth and SUBDUE it; have dominion…”

There is more than one of us now. Now there is four. Now there is eight. Now there is sixteen… Do you understand? The dominion mandate Yahweh gave Adam in Genesis is related to what Yahushua told us to do. And we are called to subdue the earth.

We are from the earth. We are created from the dust of the ground. We have areas in our life that need to be subdued under the King of kings. And so, when we begin to follow the instructions of our Father in heaven, we are taking a part of the ground from which we were made and we are causing it to be subdued under Yahweh’s Kingship.

There is a divine connection between these two scriptures (Matthew 28:19 and Genesis 1:28), and it is AWESOME! I think it is just awesome. That revelation right there amazes me. I stand in awe of that, that we have this Word in front of us– Matthew and other scriptures– and how it just all comes together and blends so beautifully and so awesomely.

Listen, if you have children, I cannot stress this enough: You need to hear and you need to apply this message today to your life. At least the foundations we are talking about.

If you are training your children to do the right thing, that is all well and good, but training alone, unless it is trained in a certain way, may not motivate them to righteousness.

There are so many competing forces in the world. Now I am not coming to you as “Mr. Expert Child Trainer.” I am coming to you from one who has learned things out of mistakes, out of failures, out of errors, out of misunderstandings– of not realizing how important this really is.

And so, I am going to share with you the importance and the blessing of having a vision and how a vision can motivate us to accomplish purposes for which we were created.

You know, He didn’t just create Adam and Eve, put them in a glass case, and say, “Wow, look at this beautiful thing I made.” No, they are living. They are breathing. They are vibrant. There is life to them.

He created you the same way. Not to sit in your little houses and look pretty. He created you to take dominion, to subdue the earth, to tend to HIS garden and to keep HIS garden. It says:

 Genesis 2:15 - Then YAHWEH Elohim took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it.

This was an illustration. He had a vision for them. And He has a vision for all of us as a new creation in Messiah Yahushua. He desires that we would tend to His spiritual garden– the planting of Yahweh, the trees of righteousness– that He might be glorified.

He desires us to be fruitful ones in our garden, bearing the fruits of His Spirit and multiplying by going therefore. But it takes death for that wheat seed to go into the ground and die. Only then can it bear much fruit.

I mean a dying of the old ways and a renewal of the mind, a transformation that will cause us to bear fruit.

Yahushua told His disciples:

 Matthew 9:35 - Then Yahushua went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.

I don’t like to say “gospel” by the way. Do you ever wonder why I always say “good news” instead of “gospel”? It is because “gospel” comes from two words: God-spell. That is where it comes from, so I don’t say “gospel.” Besides, it means “good news.” That is what it means.

He is taking dominion, isn’t He?

 Matthew 9:36 - But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd.

Do we have compassion on the multitudes like He has compassion? Does His compassion flow through us?

 Matthew 9:37 - Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest truly [is] plentiful, but the laborers [are] few.


38 – “Therefore pray the Master of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.”

Yahweh has a harvest. Do we see that? He has a harvest, and He wants us to go out and bring them in. He needs laborers.

We have a garden to keep and tend. Yahushua wants us to be a laborer in this harvest. As Yahweh wanted Adam to tend and keep the garden of Eden, so it is for us. He wants us to tend to His garden.

And the Pentecost (the Shavuot) we celebrated this past week, that is the reminder. We are the wheat harvest. He desires that we would go out and plant the seed of His Word in the hearts of other men so He can accomplish His good pleasure with it.

The word “Eden” is “ay’-den” in Hebrew, and it means “pleasure.” It means “delight.” And so, Yahushua has gone, and He did His part. Now He lives in us. All power and authority has been given to Him, but the inhabitants of the earth are given over to His enemy. And we, as a people of Yahweh, have been sent on this “search, rescue and recovery” mission.

And do you know something? Most people are sitting in their easy chairs while He sent you out.

Now how did He send you out? In what manner does He send you out and what calling does He have for you? What vision has He placed in your heart? Not everybody is going to be teachers. “Let not many of you become teachers.”

I tell you what, I have a stricter judgment on me, but I cannot help it. This is what Yahweh has called me to do. So, I have to be courageous and do it, and trust that Yahweh is not really a hard Elohim. He is a merciful Elohim.

But we all have a part in this, and we are going to get more into that as we go along, but we go out. And we might lose a few battles, a few skirmishes, but, ultimately, we win the war.

As soldiers, we have been called to go out and do exploits for the King of kings. As a people who are in exile now (we are living in Babylon and we are trying to raise children of Jerusalem in Babylon), that is not an easy task. But we have to get in the war. We have to get the army of foot soldiers and warriors.

We are not in a time of peace. We are not in a time of rest. There is a war going on, and it is the most important war in the world today. And the ramifications of this war have eternal consequences. Eternal consequences!

I have an example for you here. How many of you can see this little tiny dot I have placed here on the screen? If you cannot see it, maybe you have a different quality connection, but I have a dot sitting right here in the middle.

Imagine this little dot that is on your screen and compare the size of that dot to the room that you are in. Pretty small dot compared to the room that you are in, right? But compare the size of that dot to your house. Now that dot really seems small.

How about the size of that dot compared to the county you live in? Wow, that dot is very small. Now compare the size of the dot to the country that you live in. Okay, now we are getting into the microscopic level. Compare the size of the dot to the whole planet.

Or, how about this? Compare the size of that dot to the entire universe of planets– all of the solar systems, all of the galaxies… the size of that dot to all of the heavenly bodies. A pretty insignificant little dot there, isn’t it?

Well, I am going to tell you– that dot is the time that you are living in right now compared to eternity. And what you do with this little dot, right here, what you do will impact what will happen outside the dot into the time of eternity.

Do we realize, we have this tiny little speck of time compared to eternity? Now most people in this world, they are looking at the little speck, and saying, “What can I get here in this speck? What can I get for myself in this speck?”

It’s nothing. There is nothing here that is going to last, but just a little speck of time. In fact, our lives are nothing compared to eternity. And so, my question for you: Are you Focused on the little dot? Or are you focused on Eternity? That is a question for me, too.

Where are we focused? What are we building our lives around? You know, in the age to come, this dot will just be a distant memory, this speck of time that we have lived in. And eventually, Yahweh says, the former things will not be remembered anymore. And so, what we need, my brothers and sisters, what we need is: A Vision for the Kingdom.

I want to inspire this in you today. I want you to seek the vision Yahweh has for YOU personally. We don’t all have the same roles in this, but we need a vision, individually. And what Yahweh wants from us is our time. That is what He wants. He wants our time.

We need to realize how the things that we do in this age will affect eternity. Are we spending our time working toward serving people and turning them to righteousness? That is an important question. What are we doing with our time?

Are we acting as if the treasures that Yahweh offers us are insignificant? Do we really value and love our fellow man as much as we say we do? Everything we do can either advance the Kingdom of Yahweh or the kingdom of His enemy.

What the enemy wants is “do nothing” believers– do nothing, say nothing, sit down and watch his junk that he has for us, his entertainments. That is what he wants. “Do nothing” believers. He wants “not now” believers– “I don’t have time right now.” The enemy wants “not now” believers.

I tell you what, he is not a “not now” devil. He is active. He is after you. He is after your children. He is after every soul on this planet. What are you doing about it? Are you a “not now” believer? Are you a “do nothing” believer? Where are your priorities?

I am challenging you, because it challenges me. I am not saying, “I have arrived. I am here. Come up higher where I sit.” I am saying, “Look at the Word here.”

Look at the Word here:

 Daniel 12:1 - “At that time Michael shall stand up, The great prince who stands [watch] over the sons of your people; And there shall be a time of trouble, Such as never was since there was a nation, [Even] to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, Every one who is found written in the book.

This is coming. There is a time of trouble coming. And who will be delivered? Every one who is found written.

 Daniel 12:2 - And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, Some to everlasting life, Some to shame [and] everlasting contempt.


3 – Those who are wise shall shine Like the brightness of the firmament, And those who turn many to righteousness Like the stars forever and ever.

Those who are making disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things Yahushua commanded– will shine like the stars forever and ever.

Now, brothers and sisters, wouldn’t it be lovely to be known in the age to come as one of those who turned many to righteousness, and to see the faces of those that you impacted for righteousness and to enjoy fellowship with them, knowing that Yahweh worked through you?

He used you. Little ol’ you. And you will shine like the stars forever and ever.

Well, someone says, “Okay, I shine like the stars. Okay, what is so great about that?”

Listen, do we value the blessing of Yahweh? I want to shine like the stars forever and ever. How about you?

Someone might say, “Well, then isn’t that kind of prideful, Tom, EliYah? Are you trying to exalt yourself?”

Look. Listen. It is never prideful to desire the blessing of Yahweh. It is never prideful to seek to be exalted in the age to come. It is okay to do that.

Do you know what Yahushua told His disciples? He said:

 Luke 14:8 - “When you are invited by anyone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in the best place, lest one more honorable than you be invited by him;


9 – “and he who invited you and him come and say to you, `Give place to this man,’ and then you begin with shame to take the lowest place.


10 – “But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest place, so that when he who invited you comes he may say to you, `Friend, go up higher.’ Then you will have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you.

That is where we are now. We are sitting in the lowest place, the lowest place of a servant.

Look, He is telling us, be motivated by it. Go, humble yourself. And then, someone may say, “Come up higher.” And then, you will be glorified. It is okay to desire that.

 Luke 14:11 - “For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

So our goal today, our goal in this age we live in, is to humble ourselves. But we see here, the goal is that we would be glorified. And let Yahweh choose to glorify whom He glorifies. But we humble ourselves.

And we see other scriptures. 1 Peter 5:6 says– “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of Elohim.” Why? It says– “That He may exalt you in due time.” He tells you why.

 1Peter 5:6 - Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of Elohim, that He may exalt you in due time,


7 – casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.


8 – Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.


 1Peter 5:9 - Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.

So it is not a bad thing to desire to be exalted in due time. It is not a bad thing. It is a good thing. So it is not bad to want one to desire to shine like the stars in the Kingdom of Yahweh.

Now it doesn’t say you will be a star. It says you will shine like them. And the reason why it says you will shine like the stars… here is some scripture here. These are futuristic prophecies in the age to come. It says:

 Isaiah 30:26 - Moreover the light of the moon will be as the light of the sun, And the light of the sun will be sevenfold, As the light of seven days, In the day that YAHWEH binds up the bruise of His people And heals the stroke of their wound.

In the age to come, everything will be seven times brighter– the sun, the moon, and therefore the earth– because:

 Zechariah 14:7 - It shall be one day Which is known to YAHWEH — Neither day nor night. But at evening time it shall happen [That] it will be light.

And so, the brightness of the age to come will exceed the brightness of the present world sevenfold. And there is over and over again, in Scripture, a biblical association between righteousness and brightness– between righteousness, Torah observance, and light. There is a connection.

And it says that those who have turned many to righteousness will shine like the stars.

Now some people have this “doorkeeper” mentality, you know. They say, “Well, if I just make it as a doorkeeper, I will be happy.”

That sounds like the humble thing to say, but, listen, let’s not seek doorkeeper jobs, brothers. I mean, okay, if that is where you end up. I will be satisfied, too, if that is where I end up, but I want to be kings and priests. I want to desire the greater things. And it is not prideful to desire that.

In fact, it is a wicked, wicked thing to not desire that. I said it. I will repeat it again. It is a wicked thing not to desire the greater blessings, and to just say, “Ah, I’ll just settle for a little bit. I’ll escape by the skin of my teeth here, you know. I will just barely make it in.”

Listen, if you aim for the doorkeeper job, you may not make it. But if you aim to be seated next to Messiah as one of the kings and priests, then you may end up as a doorkeeper, but at least you are in. So, listen, it is not a bad thing to desire the greater rewards.

In fact, it is a wicked thing not to, because if we remember one of the differences between Jacob and Esau– Jacob wrestled the angel all night and would not let him go until he got the blessing. I mean, he even did some underhanded things that I really would not recommend to get the blessing and, you know, the birthright.

But listen, Yahweh still honored him, because Yahweh knew Jacob wanted to be blessed. He valued being blessed by Yahweh. Esau? You know, he seemed like he was more concerned about riches. And Jacob knew that. That is why when he met Esau with four hundred men, he said, “Here, you can have all this stuff.” And it appeased him.

But we see what Yahweh said about Esau was that: Esau He hated.

 Genesis 25:34 - And Jacob gave Esau bread and stew of lentils; then he ate and drank, arose, and went his way. Thus Esau despised [his] birthright.

Did he really despise it or did he just want something to eat? He thought he was going to die.

It says he despised it, he hated it– because he put a mess of pottage ahead of the birthright, which was, “Unto your children I will give this land. Unto you and your descendants, Abraham, I give this great blessing.” And he traded it for a bowl of soup.

And so, Romans 9:13 says:

 Romans 9:13 - As it is written, “Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated.”

Now ask yourself the question: Do you value the blessing of Yahweh like Jacob? Are you seeking to actively participate in what He has called you to do? Or are we focusing on the “here and now” like Esau? Are we selling our birthright for a mess of pottage that will be consumed? We will enjoy it, but that will be it.

If we do not value Yahweh’s blessings and we are like Esau, more concerned about “this world” riches and what we gain here, it is a wicked thing. And Yahweh hates it. I cannot stress that enough.

In Luke 12:31, Yahushua stressed this very thing. He said:

 Luke 12:31 - “But seek the kingdom of Elohim, and all these things shall be added to you.

All these other things. You know, what we need. What we will wear.

 Luke 12:32 - “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.


33 – “Sell what you have and give alms; provide yourselves money bags which do not grow old, a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches nor moth destroys.

He is talking to the generation at the end of the age.

 Luke 12:34 - “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

I will tell you what. Where your heart is, is where your time is spent, where your thoughts reside.

Are we seeking riches in the temporary things of this age and ignoring the blessings of Yahweh? Is most of our time spent building an empire and kingdom that will not stand? Or is most of our time and thoughts spent in building a Kingdom that shall never fail?

When Yahweh gave Adam the command to take dominion, to tend to the garden, and so on, Adam was actually building an eternal kingdom. Yahweh’s desire was that Adam would rule the earth forever and multiply, and all would be under Yahweh’s authority.

But when death entered the world, everything changed. Now, everything we seek to build in this age today will ultimately be destroyed. It is like building a castle along the beach. You go to the effort to build this huge sandcastle and it is beautiful, but then the tide comes and washes it all away.

And so, it is– the bank accounts, the houses, the cars, the furniture, the jobs, the income, the businesses, the corporations, the big beautiful buildings– nothing more than castles made of sand.

Ecclesiastes 2:11– A very rich man said:

 Ecclesiastes 2:11 - Then I looked on all the works that my hands had done And on the labor in which I had toiled; And indeed all [was] vanity and grasping for the wind. [There was] no profit under the sun.

Vanity, vanity, all is vanity.

Yahushua taught us:

 Luke 12:15 - And He said to them, “Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.”


16 – Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully.


17 – “And he thought within himself, saying, `What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’


 Luke 12:18 - “So he said, `I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods.


19 – `And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, [and] be merry.”‘


20 – “But Elohim said to him, `Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’


 Luke 12:21 - “So [is] he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward Elohim.”

A lot of people talk about “estate planning,” the goal of managing and accumulating property and wealth. There are shows on Christian radio dedicated just to that alone. The idiocy of the prosperity gospel has produced this kind of mentality.

But Yahweh calls those who are putting their trust in their retirements and taking ease “fools.” If you are putting your trust in a nest egg– He said it, not me– He said, “Fool! This night your soul will be required of you.” Yet, it is amazing the amount of effort that men will go to in order to gain this.

Years and years of labor in college; years and years of labor at various places of employment; late nights; endless toil; blood, sweat and tears– all so they can attain something they may never receive. We don’t know if we will die in five minutes from now.

Now hear me out on this. I am not against retirement, but hear me out on this. James says:

 James 4:13 - Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”;


14 – whereas you do not know what [will happen] tomorrow. For what [is] your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.


15 – Instead you [ought] to say, “If YAHWEH wills, we shall live and do this or that.”

You don’t even know whether you are going to live another day.

 James 4:16 - But now you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.

If we make any plans, we need to acknowledge the Giver of life and realize our life is nothing but a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. That is our life on this earth.

And so, where are our priorities? Where are our eyes focused? Well, He doesn’t say you can’t have a retirement program. He is saying, “So is he who lays up treasure for himself.” Whatever treasures that we happen to accumulate, we need to make sure that we are rich toward Elohim with them.

So where are our priorities? Where is our focus? Where are our eyes really looking toward? If it is toward riches, we are told in Proverbs:

 Proverbs 23:4 - Do not overwork to be rich; Because of your own understanding, cease!


5 – Will you set your eyes on that which is not? For [riches] certainly make themselves wings; They fly away like an eagle [toward] heaven.

I have seen that so many times.

And here is a command from Yahushua:

 Matthew 6:19 - “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal;


20 – “but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.


21 – “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

This is a command. We must lay up treasures in heaven. He commands us: “Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven.”

And so, this treasure from heaven is hidden from the eyes of men. No one can really see it. No one on earth knows what treasures we have in store for us in the age to come.

And so, let me ask you the question: If you were to die today and you entered into the heavenly places, you were with Messiah (I believe we will have access to the heavenlies, as well as on the earth), if you were to die today and Yahweh was to open your hidden treasure, would there be anything inside? Would He find much in there?

If we have been living like Esau, there won’t be too much there, sorry to say. And so, what will He find when He opens up the treasure box for you? I am not saying literally. I am saying spiritually.

The spiritual treasure box– what is there? What is residing inside? Well, I can’t answer that for you. This is an individual question. For each soul listening to the broadcast, this is a question for you that only you can answer. Where are your treasures? Where are the talents?

And so, Yahushua says:

 Matthew 25:29 - `For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away.

If you do not have a whole lot in there– He says, if you have it, you will be given more, and you will have an abundance, but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taking away.

So if you think you have enough, even though it is a little bit, even what you have will be taken away. And so, we need to be among those who have, don’t we?

And what we need to do– and this is what I want to encourage you in– is to do some spiritual estate planning, not just physical estate planning. I am talking about the spiritual estate planning with the specified goal being to build up, to manage and to accumulate spiritual wealth, accumulating spiritual acreage and ground.

Sometimes that means giving up some of your earthly things.

 Proverbs 13:7 - There is one who makes himself rich, yet [has] nothing; [And] one who makes himself poor, yet [has] great riches.

Yahweh wants to build our spiritual estate in such a way that we have eternal riches that will never perish. And He wants to be the director of your estate. He wants to be the One building your house, because unless Yahweh builds the house, they labor in vain who build it.

 Psalms 127:1 - <> Unless YAHWEH builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless YAHWEH guards the city, The watchman stays awake in vain.

The only treasure He is going to guard for you is going to be the spiritual treasures. The rest are all going to go out. They will all burn up with everything else.

Now, does this mean that Yahweh wants all believers to be poor as dirt? Not necessarily. He does say:

 Proverbs 3:9 - Honor YAHWEH with your possessions, And with the firstfruits of all your increase;


10 – So your barns will be filled with plenty, And your vats will overflow with new wine.

To the fellow who decided to store up all that grain, all the good crop for many years, he should have honored Yahweh with his possessions, and then Yahweh would replenish what was taken away.

And so, with the temporary riches we are given, what we want to do is we want to invest with those possessions in things that honor Yahweh. That is what we want.

Our goal is not to make a bunch of money that will one day perish with us. Our goal is to use the physical money that we are given to lay up spiritual wealth that lasts into all eternity. It is called the exchange. And He has a pretty awesome exchange rate. A dollar in the Kingdom goes a long way in the age to come.

I know a brother who had a very good job making very, very good money. And he got his retirement, and what he did was he decided to buy himself a trailer house. And he is living in it. And he takes most of his money and he invests it into spiritual things.

Most of it you never know where it goes. It goes to different places. But I think his spiritual retirement account is going to be out of this world, literally.

And so, we are called to buy wisdom at all costs, to buy things that invest in the Kingdom of Yahweh.

 Proverbs 23:23 - Buy the truth, and do not sell [it, Also] wisdom and instruction and understanding.

That is what we are called to do.

This is where we are at today. We are in this age of Laodicea, you know– not really enough spiritual focus for many of us because of the things that are competing forces in our life.

And Yahushua talked to the assembly at Laodicea. He said:

 Revelation 3:14 - “And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write, `These things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of Elohim:


15 – “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot.


16 – “So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.

What has caused them to be lukewarm and not really be where they are supposed to be?

 Revelation 3:17 - “Because you say, `I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’ — and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked —

We live in a wealthy nation, most of us listening. If you have Internet connection, you probably have a pretty good amount of wealth even if you are considered poor in our society.

“Well, because you say, ‘I am rich,'” He says. See, the dangers of riches are that they cause us to marginalize our faith in Yahweh. So, He counsels to buy from Him gold refined in fire, that you may be rich.

 Revelation 3:18 - “I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, [that] the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see.

We need to seek to be a refined people with white garments. We need to see beyond the things of this age. We need to look into eternity and build up our treasures there.

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

Brothers, this is the age we live in. We are in an age of plenty. The tendency in our age is to neither be cold nor to be hot. Neither one.

We must be careful we are not assuming something. We must be careful we are not assuming that the heat we have is actually hot in Yahweh’s eyes. It may only be lukewarm to Him.

You know, when I get in the shower, my wife feels the water temperature, and says, “That is not very hot.” Now, if I were to take a shower with the kind of water temperature she takes one, I would walk out with second degree burns. It is all relative.

So, the question is: Is our heat that we are producing really hot in Yahweh’s eyes? We may think it is, but what standard is He holding us to? That is the question.

Well, I think it is safe to assume that the heat the disciples were projecting in the first century would have been qualified as hot. Are we there?

You know, they set the tone for us as Yahweh’s people in this age. Their enemies were saying they came in and turned the world upside down. They took Yahushua’s command to go and take dominion seriously. And they are the pattern for us to look at.

Yahushua said that we would do greater works than Him. Well, what are we waiting on? Let’s do it!

How do we get started? How do we build up and accumulate this wealth in an age where temporary wealth is the focus? Well, we have to value Yahweh’s blessing. We have talked about that. That is the number one thing. And don’t be afraid to suffer.

Yahushua tells the Laodiceans:

 Revelation 3:20 - “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.


21 – “To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.

“To him who overcomes…” Overcomes what? Temptations, struggles, trials, suffering. “I will grant to sit with Me on My throne.” Wow!

 Revelation 3:22 - “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”‘”

To sit with Messiah on His throne, at His table– what an awesome honor for people like us who don’t deserve that, to take a pile of junk and turn it into something awesome. That is the power of Elohim. That is the power of His grace.

But we can’t be afraid to suffer, because Yahushua did. Luke 6:22– He said:

 Luke 6:22 - Blessed are you when men hate you, And when they exclude you, And revile [you], and cast out your name as evil, For the Son of Man’s sake.

You are blessed. Wow! All these people hate you? Man, you are so blessed. And they are excluding you, too? And they are reviling you? And they are casting out your name as if you are evil? Because of the Son of Man that you follow? Because of the Savior that you are seeking to walk and live as? He says:

 Luke 6:23 - Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For indeed your reward [is] great in heaven, For in like manner their fathers did to the prophets.

Do you get this? Rejoice and leap for joy!

Leap for joy when you are hated? Leap for joy when they exclude you? Leap for joy when they mock you and revile you? Leap for joy when they cast your name as evil?

Yes! Rejoice and leap, leap, LEAP for joy He says. Now, why? He must know something. And He can’t really explain to us what Yahweh has in store.

It would kind of be like trying to explain to a man who the only thing he ever ate in his whole life was a pile of corn mush– that was his breakfast, lunch and dinner– and try to explain to him what apple pie tasted like. “All right, tell you what, I am going to give you something that is so great that you will leap for joy when you taste it.”

Try to explain to him what it tastes like. Try to relate to him. He has no reference point. Like I was sharing last week about the bird in the cage. The cage is all he has ever known. He does not realize the joys of flying around and going from tree branch to tree branch and the blessing that is waiting for him if he were to be set free.

It is a very dangerous world, but it is worth it. Maybe we don’t really value the blessing because we cannot relate to anything better, or how much better it could be. But, you know, listen, I am sure some of us have had just a taste of the sweetness of Yahweh, just a taste of it– a moment where the cup “overfloweth.”

Can we be like Jacob and believe His Word that Yahweh’s blessings are worth it? Can we put value in His blessing and not rest until we have it? Can we? Can we leap for joy?

He goes on to say:

 Luke 6:24 - “But woe to you who are rich, For you have received your consolation.


25 – Woe to you who are full, For you shall hunger. Woe to you who laugh now, For you shall mourn and weep.

If there ever was an accurate picture of the United States, it is a people who are full and a people who laugh now. Our country is full of overeating rich people who are sitting and laughing their heads off at the entertainments of the world. We can’t be among them.

Let’s be among those who value what Yahweh’s rewards truly are and are willing to go through persecution– people who cast our name as evil, and so on. So much emphasis is placed on the things which are not, the things which will simply fly away like an eagle toward heaven.

And so little effort goes into that which will remain for trillions and trillions and trillions and quadrillions and quintillions and septillions, and however high you can go– years and years and years. Where are we going to put our focus? Are you motivated, yet?

I just want to finish well. I don’t want to lose my reward. As Yahushua says, “Don’t lose your reward.”

How do you get started on this? How do you get started on a spiritual retirement program? You know, the typical church model is that only certain people are called into ministry.

“Oh, so and so, he had a child and he grew up, and the child felt ‘called into ministry.’ And he decided to go to seminary (cemetery).” And they will get trained and they will get hired by some church that, hopefully, has a good pension so they can retire at age 65.

That is the Catholic Church mentality. That is the Catholic Church model. That is the “Leave the ministry to us. Don’t try this at home. We are experts.”

That is not Yahweh’s model. It never was. Yahweh’s model is that every single one of us has a function in the body of Messiah. And therefore, every single one of us is called into ministry.

That is you. You are called into ministry. Does that mean every one of you? Yes, every one of you listening to the sound of my voice is called into ministry. Every one of you are ministers. The word “minister” means “to serve.” That is what it means. Call me a minister. I am a minister. I want to serve.

Now does that mean that everybody that listens to the broadcast today needs to get up and give a teaching? No. Does that mean that everybody has to be a pastor? No. Sadly, the pastors are the “do-all.” You know, the one-man band having to do everything. That is not Yahweh’s model.

Does that mean everybody is an evangelist? No, not at all.

We all have gifts and talents that should be used for accumulating spiritual wealth, all of which are essential and an important part of the goal of fulfilling the great commission. All we have to do is read Matthew 25 and you will find out there is a whole lot more than just being a pastor or a minister.

Everybody is called into ministry. Every single one of you is called into ministry.

In Matthew 24, Yahushua spends a whole lot of time explaining what is going to happen at the end of the age and at the time just before He returns. And after He explains all that, He says this:

 Matthew 24:45 - “Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food in due season?


46 – “Blessed [is] that servant whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing.


47 – “Assuredly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all his goods.


 Matthew 24:48 - “But if that evil servant says in his heart, `My master is delaying his coming,’

He is not going to come tomorrow. It is going to be sometime way far off.

 Matthew 24:49 - “and begins to beat [his] fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards,

“You have to believe this doctrine, or else.” (False doctrines.)

 Matthew 24:50 - “the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for [him] and at an hour that he is not aware of,


51 – “and will cut him in two and appoint [him] his portion with the hypocrites. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

And He goes on to say in Matthew 25:

 Matthew 25:1 - “Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.


2 – “Now five of them were wise, and five [were] foolish.


3 – “Those who [were] foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them,


 Matthew 25:4 - “but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.


5 – “But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.


6 – “And at midnight a cry was [heard]: `Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’


 Matthew 25:7 - “Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps.


8 – “And the foolish said to the wise, `Give us [some] of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’


9 – “But the wise answered, saying, `[No], lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’


 Matthew 25:10 - “And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.

He is talking about the end of the age.

 Matthew 25:11 - “Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, `Master, Master, open to us!’


12 – “But he answered and said, `Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’


13 – “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.

Whom is He talking to? He is talking to the final generation, which could very well be us. You do not know the day or the hour in which the Son of Man is coming. It is the generation where the Son of Man is coming to meet His Bride.

Are we filling our lamps with oil right now or are we like Joseph who took the extra grain and stored it for later? Are we filling our hearts and our minds with the Word of Yahweh rather than the words of man on TVs and Internets and blogs and Twitters and Facebooks?

Are we so busy checking our Facebook messages we forget to check the Bible’s messages– Yahweh’s messages?

 Matthew 25:14 - “For [the kingdom of heaven is] like a man traveling to a far country, [who] called his own servants and delivered his goods to them.


15 – “And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey.


16 – “Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents.


 Matthew 25:17 - “And likewise he who [had received] two gained two more also.


18 – “But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord’s money.


19 – “After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.


 Matthew 25:20 - “So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, `Master, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.’


21 – “His lord said to him, `Well [done], good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’

Lovely!

 Matthew 25:22 - “He also who had received two talents came and said, `Master, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.’


23 – “His lord said to him, `Well [done], good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’


24 – “Then he who had received the one talent came and said, `Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed.

You are a hard man.

 Matthew 25:25 - `And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, [there] you have [what is] yours.’


26 – “But his lord answered and said to him, `You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed.

Wicked and lazy.

 Matthew 25:27 - `So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest.

In other words, if you are not going to use your talent, give it to someone who will.

 Matthew 25:28 - `Therefore take the talent from him, and give [it] to him who has ten talents.


29 – `For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away.

There is that saying again.

 Matthew 25:30 - `And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

He is talking about talents, and He goes on to explain deeper here:

 Matthew 25:31 - “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory.


32 – “All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides [his] sheep from the goats.


33 – “And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left.


 Matthew 25:34 - “Then the King will say to those on His right hand, `Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:


35 – `for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in;


36 – `I [was] naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’

You cared! You cared about Me! You loved Me!

 Matthew 25:37 - “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, `Master, when did we see You hungry and feed [You], or thirsty and give [You] drink?


38 – `When did we see You a stranger and take [You] in, or naked and clothe [You]?


39 – `Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’


 Matthew 25:40 - “And the King will answer and say to them, `Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did [it] to one of the least of these My brethren, you did [it] to Me.’

We need to call the strangers into the body of Messiah, don’t we? We need to care for those who need the robe of righteousness, don’t we? We need to care for those who are hungry and thirsty for all that is right– spiritually and physically.

 Matthew 25:41 - “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, `Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels:

“Get away from Me!”

 Matthew 25:42 - `for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink;


43 – `I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’


44 – “Then they also will answer Him, saying, `Master, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’


 Matthew 25:45 - “Then He will answer them, saying, `Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do [it] to one of the least of these, you did not do [it] to Me.’


46 – “And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

See, the righteous care about the needs of people around them. The wicked do not. And that is why they are not motivated. They are focused on their own needs, their own desires, building their own kingdoms.

But my point here is that there is a whole lot more going on here than just teaching and being a pastor and being what is commonly called a minister.

The sheep were those who were busy with spiritual investments in a personal ministry of some kind, helping the poor and needy. The goats did not make the spiritual investments, but they ignored the people around them.

What we need to do is realize that we have been trained and hardwired since we were infants and babies and toddlers and young children, and so on, like children of Babylon– dog-eat-dog, eat what you can. We need to retrain our minds.

You know, we have been Greekized. We are so Greekized, we do not even realize how Greekized we are. But what we need to do is we need to think Hebraically. We need to not be in a rut, and if you are in a rut, it is because you lack something. You lack a vision.

Proverbs 29:18 – Where [there is] no revelation, the people cast off restraint; But happy [is] he who keeps the law.

One of the things I have learned is how important it is to have this vision. And I am going to detail this now.

Having a vision is an important part of being a believer, and without that vision, we are going to have this tendency to struggle with sin, with the weight of the world. And remember what I shared earlier about that little dot. Remember that. We focused on that little dot or we focused on eternity.

Ask yourself this question: Where are you focused? On having a vision and applying that vision of the Kingdom? Or are you focused on the little dot?

Do you know that Scripture that says, “With no vision the people perish”? Do you know what it actually reads in the Hebrew? “Where there is no vision, the people cast off restraint.”

And this is the danger for our children. If we don’t instill in them a vision, a reason to live, the enemy has no shortage of alternative visions they can pursue. We need to instill in our children a vision for ministry.

Please learn from the mistakes of others. Call to invite a vision in your children’s hearts for ministry at a young age. Learn what their gifts are. Learn what their callings are. And let these gifts and callings be used for the glory of Yahweh early. Get them in the habit. Train their minds to serve.

So many times we see Yahweh working with families: Noah and his wife, and their three sons and their wives; Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; Moshe, Aaron and Miriam; King David and Solomon; Elizabeth, Zacharias and John the Baptist; Joseph and Mary, Yahushua the Messiah and James, His brother; Andrew and Peter; Sons of Zebedee, James and John.

I have seen this so many times in my own personal walk. There are some families that catch the vision, some that don’t, and we want to be families that do. And when you develop a vision together and understand how and why Yahweh has put you on this earth together, you will begin to develop an identity as a family.

You know, if you went and told your child, your son, or somebody, “Go out there and dig a hole five feet in the ground– five-feet by five-feet by five-feet– dig a five-foot deep hole,” he would go out there with a shovel, and then go, “All right… here we go.”

But if you told them there was a treasure underneath that thing that he could retire on, well, he would be out there with a shovel digging as fast as he could to get to the bottom, wouldn’t he?

Work is work, but a lot of it, the drudgery of it, has to do with whether or not you are inspired, whether you have a vision or some goal you are trying to attain here at the bottom of this pile of dirt. And so, we need that.

Now, what kind of vision? There are multiple places where we can develop a vision… or we need to find what Yahweh’s vision is for us.

I learned from a man named Geoff Botkin a very good model (I shared this at the Feast last year, and I will just share here briefly), but there are four areas in where we need to develop a vision (at least four areas), and they are like this: 1. Estate Management 2. Business Development 3. Nation Building 4. Body Building.

“Managing our Estate.” The place we happen to live, the home life and how it will function: our family, our children, our husband or wife, how the husband is going to treat the wife, how the wife is going to treat the husband, how the parents are going to raise the children, what kind of outside influences are going to be permitted in the home.

Stewardship of resources: how we are going to steward our finances.

We need to write all this down. If you are newly married, do it now. If you have been married a long time, you and your wife, you need to come and discuss this together. There may be areas of disagreement, areas of struggle. It has to happen.

You have to have a vision for your family– Yahweh’s vision for you, His leading in your life. His specific leading in your life individually and together as a family. What are you called to do?

Secondly: “Business Development.” That would be how income is going to be generated for the purpose is ultimately of developing resources for building Yahweh’s Kingdom.

Now does that mean you can never ever have any entertainments or never go on a vacation or go and do things together? No, because even that in and of itself is building the Kingdom.

Why? Because even Yahushua took His disciples away from the crowds every once in a while, and said, “Here, let’s go and relax. Let’s go and take it easy because we are getting overwhelmed.”

We all need that. You need a time of reprieve. Nothing wrong with that, but our vision and our goal is: “How much is too much? Where do we place value here? Where do we place value there?” Are we getting this?

Imagine writing all this stuff down. What kind of job are you going to have? Are you going to try to work from home and be with your family or are you going to go out into the work world? What are you going to do?

The third area: “Nation Building.” How are we going to turn the nations we live in to Yahweh? We need to identify the areas that we feel Yahweh wants us to subdue. He wants us to take dominion. He wants us to have influence in the world. Find out what those areas are and do it, and write it down. What area do you feel called in?

And I want to get more into what those areas are here in just a minute. But we need to reach the heathen. We need to bring the stranger into the flock and cause him to no longer be a stranger and a foreigner, but to be a part of the commonwealth of Israel.

And so, that is the third area. Where is Yahweh calling you in ministry to the world, because He is calling everybody into this to some degree? Some will be the helpers behind the scenes. I will get more into that in a minute.

And then there is “Body Building.” I am not talking about you go out and lift weights. I am talking about the body of Messiah, using our spiritual gifts for edifying the assembly– for the assembly, for the congregation, for the people of Yahweh– to be strong enough to face our culture that we live in.

We need each other. And we want to identity the areas of influence where Yahweh would be instructing us and causing us to build up and edify the body of the Messiah.

These are the four areas we need a vision. And write it down. Go into great detail. What are our children called to? What are their gifts? What are their callings?

Yahweh put us together for some reason. For some reason we are all together in this family. He is the One who decided these children would be in my home. He created these children.

And so, in some fashion, our visions are going to complement one another. They might not all be the same, but they are going to complement each other. And we want to set up multiple generations of visions, of something that would motivate us, of something that would just drive us.

When we look at the world and we see some area of ground taken over by the enemy, then we are like, “Oh, man, I really wish this would change. What is happening in the world today, really… I just have this drive in me. I want to go do something about it.”

We see some area where the enemy is wreaking havoc in the world, causing major problems, and it really bothers us.

Some examples: “Ministry to the Fatherless”– the children/youth. We talked a couple of months ago about the organization. Even if you do not have children (you have to minister to your own children first), but the children that are out there who are fatherless, we need to care about them.

There is the Big Brothers/Big Sisters organization. There are people in your community that maybe have a fatherless child or even a motherless child. You can come in and you can minister to them. And you would be ministering to Messiah Himself when you do that.

There is: “Ministry of influence against abortions,” the murder of little innocent children. I couldn’t believe the testimony I heard this week of how a second trimester abortion is done. They literally rip the arms and legs off the children while they are still alive. It is sick. And that is one area I feel strongly in.

“Ministry to the aged, the widows, the elderly”, who are locked away in nursing homes– and especially in the big cities, more so– and no one goes to them.

No one says, “Here, I will be what your son was supposed to be or what your children were supposed to be. I will come in. I will bless you,” and lead them to Messiah– because they are in the last throws of their life.

There is the “Ministry to the poor,” the giving of alms. There are people who, for one reason or another, are down and out in their finances, and they are barely surviving– third world countries, and even some homeless here in the United States. And they don’t just need money all the time. Sometimes they need more than that. They need other things.

If you pour money into it, it may not help them permanently. There are other needs that they really have. A lot of the homeless out there today actually have some kind of medical condition.

“Ministry to those who are in prison.” That is awesome– prison ministries. We have heard about those.

“Ministry to the sick,” and this is what I talked about– mentally and physically. Some people have skills in the physical healing. Some people have the gift of healing. They lay hands on them and they get well.

Some people are able to heal people with their mental issues and work with them and bring Yahushua into those places where He needs to reign and subdue.

“Ministry of Prayer and Fasting.” Some people just have that. They are prayer warriors. And they could spend hours upon hours every day praying and fasting. And that is a very important part of the body of Messiah. There are certain people that that is their calling. That is what they want to do.

They want to know what the prayer needs are– “Give me a prayer list. Somewhere, somewhere, give me a prayer list. I will set it in front of me, and I will pray for these people. I will fast for them.” There are some people who are in that in a strong way. And I am thankful for them.

“Ministry of music” would be one. The Levites, they had certain people that were of Levi who had musical talents and they were functioning in the temple as the “temple choir,” so to speak, with the instruments, and so on. And today we have the blessing of being able to record the music and have it replayed in other people’s homes.

I have a recording studio right here. It is part of the broadcast studio. It also functions as a music recording studio. If you have that gift, I can record you.

“Ministry of elders.” Boy, does the body of Messiah ever need elders. I mean qualified elders. I don’t mean just older people. I mean people who are qualified to function in that capacity. There are multiple things that elders do. They make decisions. They have some level of authority in the body, and we need qualified people in that role.

“Ministry of Teaching.” That is where Yahweh has me right now.

“Ministry of Helps and Administration.” There are certain people that are helpers. They just love to help. They get their joy out of helping. My daughter, Leanna, is a big one on that. She’s a big helper. She loves to help. I tell her all the time, “You have the gift of helps.” It is actually one of the gifts mentioned in the Bible– the gift of helps.

And so, we can all develop visions centered around our services toward others. We can build our estate, our business, our calling in the world, our calling in the body of Messiah around these areas that motivate us.

And these are not the only four areas. There are lots of areas besides these. It is not a complete list, but I tell you, when you develop your vision, you can have specific objectives that you are trying to reach within that mission and that vision.

And if you follow out those objectives, that will ensure that you have an area of focus, little by little, that will motivate you and inspire you until that task is completed.

And, again, that list I gave you is not necessarily a complete list. If there is nothing there that does stand out to you, that is all right. Pray for Yahweh to show you something that does.

Maybe there is something that stands out. Great! Then do it. Sit down with your family. If you are single, then maybe with a trusted elder, or just sit with a piece of paper on one side and a Bible on the other and start praying for Yahweh to show you His vision for you, and write it down.

My passion is proclaiming Yahweh’s name, bringing Christians to the Torah, building up the body of Messiah. Maybe your area of interest is a little different. That is perfectly normal and acceptable. Maybe your area of interest is completely in a different area. But, you know, on the earth, we all own different pieces of land, don’t we?

We all have different areas that we live in– where we rent, where we live, where we buy, whatever– and yet, this whole earth is Yahweh’s in all its fullness. You may have certain areas of ground where He is calling you to take, which is different than the ground I am taking (and that is all right) and different than the ground someone else is taking.

And so, we have our spiritual estate planning that we need to develop here, and you may have a different area of ground to conquer. And that is all right. But with families, there are inheritances involved, and families have one estate together in a bigger way.

But, you know, if we all just work alone, then we won’t be nearly as effective as we all– parents, children, grandparents, grandchildren… If everybody worked together as a cohesive unit for Yahweh’s Kingdom– Wow! And if you have children, or even if you don’t, maybe you and your family could even have this chart I drew up.

Remember the chart? You have the chart, and something happened today and you rejoice in it. And so, this whole area (the whole world) is full of darkness, and you go forth and you shine a little brightness into the one area over here up in the corner of the world.

And you say, “Praise Yahweh! We have this chart and we are going to start filling this little chart, with these little yellow squares, with stickers,” or however you want to do it. And start adding things.

But this is not about self-glory. It is about what Yahweh is doing through you.

 Acts 15:12 - Then all the multitude kept silent and listened to Barnabas and Paul declaring how many miracles and wonders Elohim had worked through them among the Gentiles.

How many miracles and wonders Paul did? Barnabas did? No! Elohim has worked through them. So, it is not just patting yourself on the back. That is not really what it is about, honestly. It is about keeping our eyes focused on what is important.

And hang that chart in a prominent place. Put it on a wall or on the refrigerator, or whatever, and just start adding squares. If your children go talk to somebody and turn them to do the right thing, put the square up there.

If you share a testimony on what Elohim has done through you (at work today, or somewhere else you were today… at the grocery store) add a little square to the chart, taking ground for Yahweh.

We are adding more and more ground. We are bringing light into where darkness may dwell. And as a family, the potential is awesome!

It is not about tooting our own horns or bragging about what we have done. It is for recounting what Yahweh has done in you and glorifying what He is doing, encouraging each other in the way.

I tell you what, our children get motivated by these kinds of things. You know, we want our children to see themselves as arrows ready to be shot out at the enemy. And, you know, if we have a multiple generation of estates that we pull resources together to help, it is more than an estate, brothers. It is more than just this estate. It is an EMPIRE!

And as we go forth and we start to build our empire, with the goal being world conquest, and we start pulling our resources together as believers, as multiple families– AWESOME! Awesome, Awesome!

We want our families to be known in the gates in the age to come, don’t we? Don’t you want your family to be known in the gates? And, you know, when you are done with one chart, start another chart.

We ought to have pages and pages of squares of things He has called us to speak life into, a pile of spiritual wealth in the age to come, or even in the times present. When we are having difficult times and we are struggling spiritually, look back at that chart, and say, “Boy, I don’t want to lose all those rewards.”

And that is okay to be motivated by that. Yahushua says do “this, this, this” and surely you will not lose your reward. Because, do you know something? There are blessings in this age, too, not just future.

How many of you listening today have had moments where you have suffered from depression or fear and anxiety or a feeling of worthlessness? And you know what the Word says. You know the Bible says that you are special to Yahweh, but somehow you just don’t feel it.

Sometimes we feel worthless because we are not doing anything worthwhile.

Years ago, we used to visit an elder who had been keeping the Sabbath and the Torah and using “Yahweh.” Since the 1960’s he had been doing this. His dad taught him to do it. And he was suffering from depression and anxiety (his wife had died), and we would try to go over there and cheer him up.

We would sing songs and we would read the Word with him and try to bear his burden in Messiah. But nothing seemed to help. This man was very knowledgeable. He had written a number of Scripture studies that blessed a number of people over the years. He was an elderly man. He was in his 60’s. And he couldn’t seem to pull out of depression.

Well, he decided to go attend a gathering, and when he was there, there were other people in the body of Messiah who recognized him and greeted him, and said, “You know, that one article really blessed me” or “This thing you wrote years ago, that really helped me.” And he began to look around and he started seeing all the needs that were there.

People had an appreciation for what he had done, and he was encouraged to get back into ministry again. Well, he did. He started writing articles. He started serving the body of Messiah. And you know what? All my talking, all my music, all my whatever– none of that worked.

But when he started getting off his can and started being about his Father’s business, and he started serving people, when he started blessing people and he started to see the fruits of how he was blessing people, the anxiety, the feeling of worthlessness, the depression– all disappeared! It was gone. The smile was back on his face.

Because when you are only focused on yourself, that is the most miserable existence there is. And so many of our problems stem from a lifestyle that focuses on self.

But the more focused we are in serving others, the less self-focused we will be and the happier we will be. And the busier we are serving others, the more we are doing what we are actually created to do.

You know, what Yahushua said in Matthew 5:19, He said:

 Matthew 5:19 - “Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches [them], he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

Whoever DOES and TEACHES them.

And He, also, said later:

 Matthew 23:11 - “But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.

Do you see a connection here between the two “greats”?

The more we are focused on others and serving others, the easier it will be to do and teach the commands, because we are not self-focused. When we are self-focused, it is really hard to overcome sin, to overcome temptations. But when we are others-focused, we are already used to laying down our lives. We are already used to giving things up.

And the busier we are serving Yahweh and others, the more victory we will gain over temptations and trials. Serving takes the focus off ourselves.

I have been going through a trial the last… I don’t know how long. If it wasn’t for me serving you every week, I don’t know where I would be. I would be a mess. Because there is a connection between serving others and overcoming temptations and overcoming trials and difficulties. There is a connection between these two scriptures.

So we need to understand. We want to become great. We want to be the stars in the Kingdom, right? We want to shine like the brightness of the firmament. Well, we need to be about serving.

We get the warriors mindset on and get the “consume and enjoy” mindset obliterated. And so many of our personal problems would go away when we do that if we just step out in faith and start being about our Father’s business and walking in the vision He places in our hearts.

And so, it says:

 2Timothy 1:7 - For Elohim has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.


8 – Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Master, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of Elohim,

Have faith. Believers do not retreat in fear of the enemy. Believers do not retreat at fear of the enemy. We attack. But we have to get off the American playground and go forth into the spiritual battleground making exploits. We are in a war. You are not on the sidelines. You are not a spectator. And you are not a cheerleader. You are in it.

We are all participants on one side or the other. We are pushing one way or the other. Some of us are supply men. Some are foot soldiers. Others might be officers. But we are all needed. We all have a function in the body, and Yahweh does not need a big army to do a great work.

Paul, Apollos, Luke, Barnabas, Aquila, Priscilla, Timothy, Titus– they did a lot together to bring the good news of Yahushua to the Gentile world. Yahushua chose just twelve men. And they were all homeless. Every single one of them were homeless men.

We see what a small number of men can do and accomplish by the power of Yahweh’s Spirit. They testified before kings. They established communities of believers in various cities throughout the world. I have no doubt that Yahweh can accomplish a lot with a small number of people, because the battle is Yahweh’s.

So the only question is: Who wants to go forth and subdue the earth taking dominion? There are many ways to accomplish it. Draw up the vision for you and your family. Find the things that inspire you. Find out the talent He has given you, so that you can cause it to double the increase. He will be with you.

Now next week, I want to share a study on how we can discover what our spiritual gifts are, what our callings are. If you feel like you need some clarity on that, where Yahweh has you in His vision for you and you want a deeper understanding of how to seek out what that is, I encourage you to tune in next week and we will talk about that.

But, you know, if we can catch a vision for ministry of others and seek to be known in the gates, seek to walk in love, seek to walk in compassion, faithfulness and service– and in truth– with passion, with a vision before us, walking with Yahweh, being about our Father’s business, putting down our toys and picking up the armor of Yahweh.

And going forth as bold warriors to take ground for Him that we might bring all this world to a place of love and peace and joy, and be seated next to our Savior, the Savior of men, that fills us with an unmatchable, awesome love… hmm!

Yahweh, help us. Fill each one within the sound of my voice with Your vision, Abba Yahweh, for their life, Your calling on their life. Open their eyes to see it. Show all of us why we are here on the earth. Show us our purpose. Show us Your plan for us. Show us, Father, Your will for us.

Help us, Father, to know what You want us to do, how You have called us to love. We know You have called us to love, but how have You called us love and what manner have You called us to love? And what service have You called us to? Open our eyes to see the needs that are in the world we live, in the community that we live.

We don’t want to be lazy and unprofitable servants. We want You to say to us, “You have been faithful over a few things. Now you will be granted many things. Enter into the joy of your Master.” We want to hear from You, “Fear not, little flock, it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom.”

As we use the things that we have, to honor You with them, Father, glorify Your name. Through and by Your great Son, Yahushua Ha Mashiach, may Your Kingdom and Your will be established on the earth through us. For truly Yours is the Kingdom and the power and the glory and the majesty.

And all praise and honor and worship belongs to You, Yahweh Elohenu, Yahweh our Mighty One, forever and ever. In Yahushua’s name.

May Yahweh bless you, and may Yahweh have mercy on us all.