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Revelations 20:4-6
Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Yeshua and for the word of Hashem, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Mashiach for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of Hashem and of Mashiach, and they will reign with him for a thousand years. About this time of future restoration and reorganization of the world, Paul, our Master’s apostle also specified, Do you not know that we are to judge angels? How much more, then, matters pertaining to this life (1 Corinthians 6:3)! We are not given too many details about this judging of angels (and the secret things belong to God (Deuteronomy 29:29)); we are simply told in that and other passages that at the time when Messiah will physically reign on earth the faithful will share in His exaltation and judging of the universe which therefore implies judging angels. This idea of mankind judging angels birthed from the Book of Enoch, as Enoch, the first scribe was established over the judgment of the disobedient fallen angels (Genesis 6:1-5). The narrative of Enoch was a widespread Jewish writing from the 1st century C.E. the early believers seem to have been familiar with (Jude 1.14). What is revealed to us though, (and the things that are revealed belong to us and our children forever Moses also said (Deuteronomy 29:29)), is that if we are to judge angels in the future, we should also today be able to righteously judge in earthly disputes between ourselves (Isaiah 11:3-5 on how to judge righteously). In essence, our training for judging angels tomorrow starts today with learning to maturely take care of our own issues between ourselves. The problem is that today, as with many other things, we are not encouraged to manage our own issues and disagreements. We are told to go to the police, to get a lawyer, or worst: a psychologist! As far as I can understand from his epistles, to Paul the fact that those who called themselves by the name of Yeshua could not manage their own problems by themselves was a disgrace and a bad representation of Messiah’s congregation in front of the non-believers. He said that it would be more valuable to be defrauded by others than to allow such a poor testimony in front of others (1 Corinthians 6:7). It is high time that we take control of our lives; that we take responsibility of our affairs. We, as Messianic congregations, must organize ourselves into a coherent movement that is self sufficient in every way, self-legislated just as the Hebrew nation was taught to be by Moses in ancient times. Then and only then, we will ever be able to fulfill our destiny of entering the Promised Land of His divine will, and be an example to all nations of life under the rulership of Mashiach.
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Acts 6:3
Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. After the destruction of Jerusalem, two academies were formed in Israel; in Jerusalem that of the followers of the Rabi from Nazareth, and in Yavneh the school of Rabbi Yochanan Ben Zacchai. These two academies lived in mutual respect and acceptance. They had learned from the sectarian wars that became the downfall of Jerusalem. The first thing these two academies did was to establish leadership for their respective communities of disciples. They followed the instruction of Moses found in Deuteronomy 16:28 to appoint judges in all cities to be final authorities over disputes and matters of religious observance. This decision was essential to the preservation of their respective remnants. The chosen judges would be required to be honest and upright people from among the congregants. We can see from this that no-one ever believed that the Body of Messiah should be a disjointed federation of independent individuals but rather a synchronized cohesive group working under authority. Clerical leadership was actually the Father's idea because fathers know that kids don't do well without leadership. He also knows it is better for them to have bad leadership than no leadership at all! I consider one of the most pathetic verses in the whole Bible, In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes (Judges 17:6). Yeshua appointed His disciples as judges over Israel. They were to become the new Sanhedrin (Matthew 19:28; Luke 22:30). This is why Peter felt he did not have to answer to the old Sanhedrin: he was himself part of the Master's appointed Sanhedrin. It was not because he thought that human leadership was now obsolete (Acts 5:29)! That is also why Paul, who was very high in the old Sanhedrin, came to the disciples to check that he was on the right track in his mission (Galatians 2:2). Both Peter and Paul give us instructions on how to choose congregational leaders (Acts 6:3; 1 Timothy 3:1-13). The matter of clergy is very touchy for Americans. Other cultures are more willing to submit themselves to the Torah command to establish leadership. In the absence of appointed leaders though, we should be able to submit ourselves to the authority of the ones we know: Peter, James, and John who were apostles to the Jewish community of believers; and Paul, the apostle for the Gentile believers (2 Timothy 1:11). Their writings contain much relevant instructions concerning judicial and religious observance. One day the Master will return and He will help us to again observe this commandment to establish judges in all our cities. Many only want to listen to God, but how will one submit to God when he can't even submit to one made in the image of God? Even so, the Master came to us in the appearance of a man. He knows that just like sheep who cannot follow a man because he is not one of their own, we cannot follow God who is spirit. But like sheep who can follow the bell-weather (the big sheep with the bell who follows the shepherd everywhere he goes) we can follow Yeshua, our 'Bell-Weather'. The Son of man follows God, and we follow the Son of Man, who teaches us to appoint judges over ourselves. Revelation 19:11
Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. Moses foresaw that the establishment of Judges was not enough for the governance of the emerging country of Israel. A king would also be needed to enforce Torah and the ruling of the judges. There is nothing wrong with authority as long as that authority rules by the Torah. Under the inspiration of the Almighty, Moses commanded the people that any king appointed to rule over them should be a descendant from Jacob (Deuteronomy 17:14-15). It was later understood that the king of Judea should even be a descendant of Judah, maybe because of the prophetic blessing Jacob uttered upon His son Judah (Genesis 49:10). These form a background that is essential if we wish to properly understand the religious politics behind the life, death and resurrection of Yeshua, the true King of the Jews from the lineage of Judah. The king, though the legislative authority of the country, was not above the Torah. He himself had to be obedient to the rulings established by the Great One over whose people he ruled. To remind him of his responsibilities towards God, Moses commands, "… he shall write for himself in a book a copy of this law, approved by the Levitical priests. And it shall be with him, and he shall read in it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the LORD his God by keeping all the words of this law and these statutes, and doing them, that his heart may not be lifted up above his brothers, and that he may not turn aside from the commandment, either to the right hand or to the left, … (Deuteronomy 17: 18-20). Along with being a legislator and a soldier, this king of Israel was to be an expert on Torah matters; he was to live and rule by it. None of the kings of Israel or Judah have attained this level of obedience. The closest one would be David who as a soldier was also a legislator, a prophet, and a priest. The Father led him to build a new Tabernacle on Mt Zion, to revamp the priesthood and create liturgy. This was known as the ‘Tabernacle of David’ (Acts 15:16). But even king David broke the Torah, as we all do. Yeshua is the only One true King of the Jews who is sinless and is the Torah written in flesh. He is the One who did not come to His will but solely the will of the Father. When He comes to judge the world, he will do it according to torah law and He will not take bribes (Deuteronomy 16:19). Even the devil tried it and it didn’t work (Luke 4). Behold, the only true and legitimate King of Israel is coming and He will judge the world in the righteousness and justice of God’s Torah. May it be soon Abba, even in our days. "Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay everyone for what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega (The Aleph and the Tav), the first and the last, the beginning and the end" (Revelations 22:12-13). Matthew 19:28
"Truly, I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” When Moses arrived near the borders of the Promised Land, the aged leader knew that the time for him to be gathered with his people had come near. As a father does before the moment of his death, Moses gathered the people of Israel around him, a people that had grown as numerous as the stars in the sky (Deuteronomy 1:10), to give them his final word of advice. Except for himself, Caleb, and Joshua who was to succeed him, the whole generation that came out of Egypt had now died. Moses was surrounded by a people who had been raised in the desert under the sole nurture and admonition of God through Moses. Their only diet was manna; their sole drinking water came from the Rock that ‘followed’ them. Egypt was a distant echo they had only heard of. Moses knew that the people were difficult to lead (Deuteronomy 1:12). He knew that after his departure they still needed leadership so he reminded them of their leadership structure. These had been trained under Moses top take charge over the different matters between people, and they would need to continue to do so when in the Land. The Father has often compared us His people to sheep. Sheep need human leadership and so do we. We may rebel and chaff against it but we do need leaders to define the right way for us and even enforce it at times. The saddest words in the Tanach could be, In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes (Judges 17:6). The Book of Judges is s sad testament to what happens to us when we are left to our own devices, without authoritative earthly central leadership. Today our congregations and communities are scattered and divided, and like in the days of the Book of Judges, everyone does that which is right in his own eyes, trying to obey the Word each one according to his own perspective. This has caused deep divisions, problems and hurts within the congregational body of Messiah. Hopefully, this state of affairs may not be long, for soon One day the King will return and along with his disciples as the appointed Sanhedrin, as Moses did in the desert, He will sit and judge the twelve tribes of Israel (Matthew 19:28) and their myriads of disciples throughout the nations (Matthew 28:20). May it be soon Abba, even in our days! |
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