Faith is one of those ambiguous things in life; it is like describing an emotion or a feeling. You cannot touch it, smell it, taste it, see it, or hear it. Yet, like love, heartache, gravity or the wind, you know it is there, you can see the effects it has on people or things around you. Faith begins when you believe in YHWH, who you cannot see with your physical eyes; faith begins when you accept the sacrifice of His son Yahusha` HaMashiyach, who died about 2000 years ago and rose from the dead, who you have never personally seen either. Faith is believing, trusting and having a conviction about something.  YeshaYahu 43:10,11,  " 'you are my witnesses,' says YHWH; 'and my servant whom i have elected; that you may know and believe me, and understand that i am he. before me there was no el formed; nor will any be after me.  11 i, i am YHWH; and there is no savior besides me.' "

 

The Hebrew for faith is dpen` emunah, defined as firmness, steadfastness, fidelity. The root is pn` Aman meaning to be firm, trustworthy, truth. This is where the word, amen, comes from – truth, so be it, let it be established.

 

II Corinthians 4:18, " 'so we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. for what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.' "   Further in II Corinthians 5:7, it states, "we live by faith, not by sight."   Our relationship with YHWH is not one of sight, but in believing, trusting, having  faith in Him. Ibriym [Hebrews] 11:1,6,  " 'now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.  6 and without faith it is impossible to please YHWH, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.' "  This belief is first spoken in the Tanak, this is not a NT idea.  I Shemuel 26:23,  " 'YHWH will return to each man his righteousness and his faithfulness,' "

 

One of Yahusha`’s thalmiydiym [disciples, students] was a man named Toma [Thomas]. Many have heard him referred to as “Doubting Thomas”. In the book of Yahuchanan [John], 20:24—31, Yahusha` has risen from the dead and has been seen by the women and a group of the disciples, but Toma [Thomas] was not present at that time. When the thalmiydiym [disciples] told him of seeing Yahusha`, he replied, " 'unless i see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, i will not believe it.' "  Yahusha` appears to the thalmiydiym [disciples] a week later and Toma was with them. Yahusha` remarks to Toma,  " 'put your finger here; see my hands. reach out your hand and put it into my side. stop doubting and believe. because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.' "

 

Waiting

 

Many of us are impatient for the things of YHWH to be done quickly, I know I have been. Looking back at times, I am so glad that YHWH did things His way and in His timing, rather than when I thought things should have been done. I'm still learning to be patient, knowing that YHWH always knows best and He has never let me down.  Waiting is very important. Chabaqquq [Habakkuk] 2:2-4,  " then YHWH replied, 'write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it. for the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end  and will not prove false. though it linger, wait for it;  it will certainly come and will not delay.' see, he is puffed up; his desires are not upright; but the righteous will live by his faith.' " 

 

Let’s take a look at Abraham, a man of faith. In Bereshiyth [Genesis] 12, YHWH calls Abram to leave his country, his people and his family and go to a land that He would show him. Then YHWH would make Abram into a great nation. Now Abram is 75  years old and he and his wife Saray have never had any children. In chapter 15, Abram starts to get a little worried about having a child. He tells YHWH that since no son has been forthcoming, that a servant will inherit all that belongs to Abram. YHWH tells him not to worry, that he will have offspring from his own body. In chapter 16, Saray and Abram decide to help YHWH out by having Hagar, Saray’s maidservant from Mitsrayim [Egypt], sleep with Abram and start a family that way. When Yishmael is born, Abram is 86 years old. In chapter 17, Abram is 99 years old and YHWH tells him that He will confirm His beriyth [covenant] with Abram and greatly increase his numbers. This is when YHWH changes Abram’s (great father) name to Abraham (father of multitudes). YHWH also changes the name of Saray (dominate) to Sarah (princess). He tells them that a son will be born to them. Abraham points out that he will be a 100 and Sarah 90. Chapter 21 records the birth of Yitschaq [Isaac], as YHWH  promised; though it lingers, wait for it.

 

The lesson of Abraham is there for us to learn. See, Abraham tried to jump ahead of the timing of YHWH and produced  Yishmael. This child grew up to become a nation that was a thorn in the side of the Ibriym [Hebrews].  Yitschaq [Isaac], the son of the promise rose to become a mighty nation, to dwell with and be a keeper of His words and ways. The story does not end there. In chapter 23 of Bereshiyth [Genesis], we see the death of Sarah. In chapter 25, Abraham takes another wife named Qeturah. From her descend tribes that settle all of Arabia, while Yishmael, to the land north of them, from Mitsrayim [Egypt] toward Ashshur [Asshur]. These people also were a thorn to Yisrael. The lesson to be learned: don’t jump ahead of YHWH and don’t add in the flesh, what He has already done by the ruach [spirit]. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay!

 

 

Faith of Goyim

 

Many times in the Testimony [Gospels], Yahusha` reprimanded the thalmiydiym [disciples] for their lack of faith and pointed out those who showed faith, as an example. Let’s take a look at one goy [gentile] who was commended by Yahusha` for his faith. Luke 7:1-9,  " when yahusha` had finished saying all this in the hearing of the people, he entered kefer nachum [capernaum]. there a servant of the centurion, whom his master valued highly, was sick and about to die. the centurion heard of yahusha` and sent some elders of the yahudiym [jews] to him, asking him to come and heal his servant. when they came to yahusha`, they pleaded earnestly with him, 'this man deserves to have you do this, because he loves our nation and has built our qehillah.' so yahusha` went with them. he was not far from the house when the centurion sent friends to say to him, 'adonay, don't trouble yourself, for i do not deserve to have you come under my roof.  that is why i did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. but say the word, and my servant will be healed.  for i myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. i tell this one, "go," and he goes; and that one, "come," and he comes. i say to my servant, "do this," and he does it.' when yahusha` heard this, he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following him, he said, 'i tell you, i have not found such great faith even in yisrael.' "

 

This man understood authority. He knew that all Yahusha` had to do was to send his word (YeshaYahu [Isaiah] 55:9-11 the word will not come back empty, but will achieve the purpose for which it was sent) and it would be done. Yahusha` was so impressed with this man’s faith that he healed the man’s son, not because he deserved it, as the elders of the Yahudiym [Jews] stated, but because of his faith. Another example of this is in Luke 8:42-48, Mark 5:25-34 and MaththiYahu [Matthew] 9:20-22. There was a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. She reached out to touch Yahusha`’s tsiytsiyth on his cloak, believing that if she just touched him she would be healed. She was healed and Yahusha` told her that her faith had healed her. Another example is a Kenaaniy  [Canaanite] woman in MaththiYahu 15:22-28. She went to him begging him to heal her daughter of demon possession. Yahusha` replied that he was sent only to the lost sheep of Yisrael. But, through a wise and humble reply, he granted her request and her daughter was healed. He commented that she had great faith.

 

Another example is in the book of Yonah [Jonah]. YHWH was going to destroy Niynweh [Ninevah] because of their evil. YHWH sent Yonah ben Amithay to pronounce judgment on them. After Yanah running in the other direction, being cast into the sea, swallowed by a whale, spit up on shore, he finally goes to Niynweh, reluctantly and declares tha they will be destroyed in 40 days.  "and the men of niynweh believed in elohiym, and they called a fast and put on sackclothes, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.  6 and the word touched even to the king of niynweh, and he arose from his throne, and he took his robe from him and covered himself with sackcloth and sat on the ashes.  7 and he cried and said in niynweh by the decree of the king and of his great ones, saying, 'do not let man or beast, herd or flock, taste anything; do not let them feed nor let them drink water.  8 but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth. and let them call with strength to elohiym. and let them each one turn from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands.  9 who knows? he may turn, and the elohiym may have pity and turn away from the glow of his anger, that we do not perish.'  10 and the elohiym saw their works, that they turned from their evil way. and the elohiym was compassionate over the evil that he had spoken to do to them, and he did not do it."

 

YeshaYahu 26:1-4,  " 'in that day this song will be sung in the land of yahudah, a strong city is ours; he sets up salvation as our walls and rampart.  2 open the gates, and the righteous goy will come in, observing faithfulness.  3 you will keep in perfect shalom the mind stayed on you, for he trusts in you.  4 trust in YHWH forever, for in yah YHWH is everlasting strength.' "

 

 

Lack of Faith/Unbelief

 

In all of these cases, and many more not sited, it is the trusting and belief that YHWH and Yahusha` would and could do, that which they needed done. Let’s turn to MaththiYahu [Matthew] 17:14-21 and see a case of lack of faith. A man has brought his son, who suffers from seizures, to the thalmiydiym to be healed. The boy is not healed and the father takes him to Yahusha`. Yahusha` says, " 'unbelieving and perverse generation, how long will i stay with you? how long will i put up with you? bring the boy here to me.' "  The boy is healed and later in private, the thalmiydiym [disciples] come and ask Yahusha` why they couldn’t heal the boy. He replies,  " 'because you have so little faith. i tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, "move from here to there" and it will move. nothing will be impossible for you.' "

 

Another example is that of Mosheh. BeMidbar [Numbers] 20:12,  "and YHWH said to mosheh, and to aharon, 'because you have not believed [aman] in me, to set apart me before the eyes of the sons of yisrael, therefore you will not bring in this assembly to the land which i have given to them.' "  That unbelief cost Mosheh and Aharon dearly. They were not allowed to enter into the land that was promised. They both died before entering and Yahusha` ben Nun [Joshua] led Yisrael in.

 

Doubting is unbelief, unfaith. YHWH is not joking when He says that without faith it is impossible to please Him. It is tantamount to calling YHWH a liar. If you believe that the Word of YHWH is true, and it states that YHWH does not lie, that He is truth, then we must believe Him and His word and act on it because faith without deeds is dead (we will get to that in a minute). Thehillah 78,  "1 a mashkiyl of asaf. 'give ear, my people, to my thorath; bow your ears to the words of my mouth.  2 i will open my mouth in a mashal; i will pour forth dark sayings of old.  3 those which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us.  4 we will not hide them from their sons; to declare to the coming generation the praises of YHWH; yes, his strength and his wonderful works that he has done.  5 for he raised a testimony in yaaqob, and he set a thorah in yisrael; which he commanded our fathers to make them known to their sons;  6 so that a coming generation may know; sons will be born; they will rise up and tell their sons,  7 so that they might set their hope in elohiym, and not forget the works of el, but keep his commands.  8 and they will not be like their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that prepared not its heart; yes, whose ruach was not faithful with el.  9 the sons of efrayim, armed shooters of bows, turned back in the day of battle.  10 they did not keep the beriyth of elohiym and refused to walk in his thorath.  11 and they forgot his works and his wonders which he had shown them.  12 he did wonders before their fathers in the land of mitsrayim, the field of tsoan.  13 he divided the yam and passed them through; and he caused the waters to stand in a heap.  14 and he led them by a cloud in the day, and all the night with a light of fire.  15 he split the rocks in the wilderness and made them drink, as from great floods.  16 and he brought streams out of the rock, and caused waters to go down like rivers.  17 yet they sinned still more against him, to provoke the elyon in the desert.  18 and they tested el in their heart, by asking food for their nafesh.  19 and they spoke against elohiym, saying, will el be able to set a table in the wilderness?  20 look. he struck the rock and the waters gushed out, and the torrents were overflowing. can he also give bread? will he provide flesh for his people?  21 so YHWH heard and he passed over, and a fire was kindled against yaaqob, and also anger went up against yisrael,  22 because they did not believe in elohiym and trusted not in his salvation.  23 and he commanded the fine clouds above; and he opened the doors of the heavens.  24 and he rained on them manna to eat; yes, he gave the grain of the heavens to them.  25 man ate the bread of the mighty; he sent them food to the full.  26 he made an east wind blow in the heavens; and he led out the south wind by his power.  27 and he rained flesh on them like dust, and winged birds as the sand of the seas.  28 and he made them fall amidst their camp, all around to their tents.  29 they ate and were filled full; for their own lust he brought to them.  30 they were not estranged from their lust; their food was still in their mouths,  31 and the wrath of elohiym came on them and killed the fattest of them; and he struck down the choice ones of yisrael.  32 in all this they sinned still; and they did not believe in his wonderful works.  33 and he ended their days in vanity, and their years in sudden terror.  34 when he killed them, then they sought him; and they turned and searched for el.  35 so they remembered that elohiym was their rock, and el elyon their redeemer.  36 but they flattered him with their mouths, and with their tongues lied to him.  37 for their heart was not steadfast with him; and they were not faithful in his beriyth.  38 but he being merciful, atoned for iniquity and did not destroy; and he added to turn away his anger, and did not stir up all his wrath.  39 for he remembered that they were flesh, a breath passing away, and not returning.  40 how often they disobeyed him in the wilderness, angering him in the desert.  41 and they turned back and tested el, and pained the set apart one of yisrael.  42 they did not remember his hand, on the day he redeemed them from the enemy;  43 who set his signs in mitsrayim, and his wonders in the field of tsoan.  44 he turned their rivers into blood, also their streams that they might not drink.  45 he sent swarms of flies against them, and they devoured them; also frogs, and they destroyed them.  46 he also gave their crops to the stripping locust, and their labor to the locust.  47 he killed their vines with hail, and their sycamore trees with sleet.  48 he gave their cattle up to the hail, and their flocks to bolts of fire.  49 he sent the heat of his anger on them, fury and indignation and distress, a sending of malakiy of evils.  50 he leveled a path for his anger; he did not keep back their nafesh from death, but gave their life over to the plague.  51 and he struck all the firstborn in mitsrayim, the firstfruits of strength in the tents of cham.  52 and he led his people forth like sheep; and he led them like a flock in the wilderness.  53 and he led them on safely, and they did not fear; but the yam flooded over their enemies.  54 he brought them to the border of his set apart place; this mountain that his right hand had gained.  55 and he cast out the goyim before them; and by a line he made a possession fall to them; and he made the tribes of yisrael to live in their tents.  56 yet they tested and provoked elohiym  elyon; and they did not keep his testimonies;  57 but they turned back and betrayed, like their fathers; they veered aside like a deceitful bow.  58 for they enraged him with their high places; and they provoked him to jealousy with their molten images.  59 when elohiym heard, and he passed over, and he utterly rejected yisrael.  60 and he left the mishkan of shiloh, the tent he lived in among men;  61 and delivered his strength into captivity, and his honor into the hands of the enemy.  62 and he gave his people to the sword, and was angry with his inheritance.  63 the fire burned up their young men; and their virgins were not praised.  64 their kohaniym fell by the sword; and their widows were not able to weep.' "   

 

 

 Ibriym [Hebrews] 10:37-39,  " 'for in just a very little while, "he who is coming will come and will not delay. but my righteous one will live by faith. and if he shrinks back, i will not be pleased with him." but we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved.' "

 

YHWH, unlike many of us, does what He says He will do. He does not lie, He does not forget, He does not procrastinate. He speaks the truth, fulfills His word and does it at the perfect time. YeshaYahu [Isaiah] 55:9-11,  " 'as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: it will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what i desire and achieve the purpose for which i sent it.' "  YHWH is faithful.

 

 

Cloud of Witnesses

 

So how do you get faith? Ah, this is the easy part. You read the word of YHWH and hear it spoken/taught. In Romans 10:17,  "consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of mashiyach."   You see, when you read the word of YHWH, you are reading of all the times when YHWH and Yahusha` saved, helped, healed, vindicated, fulfilled Their word, provided for, rescued, set free Their people. The more you read the word, the more you know Their character and believe and trust-faith, that They will fulfill what They have said concerning you, whether it is the written word applied to you or YHWH speaking directly to you on a matter.

 

 

 Ibriym [Hebrews] 11 is a chapter about those in the Tanak [Old Testament] who exhibited faith. It begins with Hebel [Abel] and after awhile, the writer quickly realizes that they could write forever and still not list everyone. Verse 32,  " 'and what more will i say? i do not have time to tell about gidown [gideon], barak, shimshown [samson], yifthach [jephthah], dawiyd, shemuel [samuel] and the nebiyym [prophets],  who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lion, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies.' "  This passage goes on, so please read this chapter, it is excellent. Ibriym [Hebrews] 12:1-3, " 'therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.  let us fix our eyes on yahusha`, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the stake, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of YHWH.  consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.' "  The Scriptures are a cloud of witnesses giving testimony of the character of YHWH and Yahusha`. You are a work in progress. Yahusha` is the author ( the one who begins the work) and the perfecter (or finisher) of our faith. YHWH is the potter and we are the clay, YirmeYahu [Jeremiah] 18:1-10 and YeshaYahu [Isaiah]29:16. He is creating a vessel to be useful for His purposes.

 

Reading the word of YHWH, hearing it read and taught, hearing the testimonies of other believers in YHWH and Yahusha`, His son, builds your faith. We should do this for ourselves and others. I truly wish to be pleasing in the eyes of YHWH and not suffer His rebuke for disbelief. Thehillah [Psalm] 42: 6(5),  " 'why are you downcast, my nafesh [being],  and moan within me? wait for elohiym, for yet i will praise him; the salvation of his face.' "   I have actually spoken to myself and told my soul to rise up and put my trust in YHWH, reminding myself of all the times in the past He has helped and of the Scriptures. It may sound silly, but it has worked every time and my faith has risen.

 

Faith is just the beginning. II Kefa [Peter] 1:5-9,  " 'for this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith, goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, righteousness;  and to righteousness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.  for if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our adonay yahusha` hamashiyach.  but if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins."   Galatians 5:5,6,  " 'but by faith we eagerly await through the ruach [spirit] the righteousness for which we hope.  for in yahusha` ha mashiyach neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. the only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.' "

 

 Faith is like a muscle; you have to feed your body the word ( the bread of life, the living water) to nourish it so it will grow and you have to exercise it or it will become atrophied. Yaaqob [James] 2:14-26,  " 'what good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? can such faith save him?  suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. if one of you says to him, "go, i wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?  in the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. but someone will say, "you have faith; i have deeds." show me your faith without deeds, and i will show you my faith by what i do. you believe that there is one el. good. even the demons believe that, and shudder. you foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless?  was not our ancestor abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son yitschaq [Isaac] on the altar?  you see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did.  and the scripture was fulfilled that says, "abraham believed YHWH, and it was credited to him as righteousness," and he was called a friend of YHWH (II dibrey hayamiym [chronicles] 20:7).  you see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone. in the same way, was not even rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction?  as the body without the ruach is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.' "

 

 

Hypocrisy

 

Do you know what hypocrisy is? Hypocrisy is saying or believing one thing and doing something else. Yahusef [Joseph] believed that the child conceived in Miryam [Mary] was from YHWH, otherwise he would have divorced her as he intended. The thalmiydiym [disciples] believed that Yahusha` was the Mashiyach [Messiah] or they would have continued with their fishing, tax collecting or what have you. Kefa [Peter] believed Yahusha` when He instructed Kefa to catch a fish and take the coin out of it’s mouth to pay their tax, or he wouldn’t have caught it. If any of these people and many more, did not believe or have faith in YHWH  and Yahusha`, they would have done things differently than they did.

 

Who did Yahusha` accuse of hypocrisy? The Farushiym [Pharisees] and Tsaddukiym [Saducees]. Look at MaththiYahu [Matthew] 23, it is the Seven Woes. "woe to you, soferiym [teachers] of the thorah [law] and farushiym, you hypocrites."  What did he accuse them of hypocrisy for? They do not practice what they preach;  everything they do is for men to see;  they shut the kingdom of YHWH in the faces of  men and they don’t enter themselves;  they go to great lengths to make a ger [convert] and make him twice the son of geyhinnom [hell] that they are;  they are blind guides;  they neglect the more important matters of the Thorah, such as justice, mercy and faithfulness;  they care about the outside not the inside, they appear righteous, but they are full of wickedness;  they kill the nebiyym [prophets] that are sent by YHWH. Yahusha` warned the thalmiydiym [disciples] not to eat the yeast of the Farushiym and Tsaddukiym which is hypocrisy, Luke 12:1. In Luke 13:1 he called them hypocrites for rescuing a donkey on the Shabbath and yet condemning Yahusha` for healing on the Shabbath. Faith is believing and acting on that belief, otherwise we are hypocrites. I Kefa [Peter] 2:1 says to get rid of all hypocrisy. Without faith it is impossible to please YHWH.

 

One Faith, Different Measures

 

Ephesians 4:1-6,  " 'as a prisoner for YHWH (zekaryahu [zechariah] 9:12), then, i urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. make every effort to keep the unity of the ruach [spirit] through the bond of shalom [wholeness/peace]. there is one body and one ruach [spirit]; just as you were called to one hope when you were called,  one el, one faith, one tebiylah [immersion -miqweh];  one elohiym and father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.' "  Where there is one faith, there are different measures for different people. We do not all mature in the same areas of our relationships with YHWH, at the same time. One may have become mature about forgiveness and bitterness, yet not have grasped the truth of patience or self-control. While at the same time, someone else has a great understanding of faith, yet has no control over their tongue. We are individuals, yet we also make up a family and a number of families form a Qehillah [Assembly], and all the assemblies form The Qehillah [The Assembly]- the body of Mashiyach. The individual in relation to the body is like a cell and many cells form and organ and many organs comprise the body as a whole with Yahusha` HaMashiyach as the head. This is why YHWH says not to judge ( this is not the same judging that the assembly does), because at some point we are all in need of maturity in some area. Romans 12:3-8,  " 'for by the favor given me i say to every one of you, do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith YHWH has given you. just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in mashiyach we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. we have different gifts, according to the favor given us. if a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. if it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach;  if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.' "

 

 

Gift of Faith

 

We have covered a lot of the scriptures pertaining to faith on a personal level, but there is also faith as one of the nine gifts of the ruach YHWH . I Corinthians 12:9, " 'to another faith by the same ruach [spirit],' "  This is an outpouring of the ruach YHWH that is different than personal faith. It is grouped with the word of wisdom, word of knowledge, gifts of healing, miraculous powers, prophecy, discerning spirits, tongues and the interpretation of tongues. I Corinthians 12:11,  " 'all these are the work of one and the same ruach [spirit], and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.' "  Personal faith is much like the personal prayer tongue you receive when you are immersed [baptized] with the ruach YHWH and the gift of faith like the gift of tongues. The two should not be confused. One is for you personally and one is for use when the body of Yahusha` HaMashiyach is assembled corporately. But remember the admonition of I Corinthians 13:2, " 'if i have the gift of foretelling and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if i have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, i am nothing.' "   No matter the gift or level of maturity, make sure you have love.

 

 

Faith as armor

 

Now let’s take a look at faith as part of the armor of YHWH. In Ephesians 6:10-18, we see a list of the armor, that we as believers are supposed to be clothed with,  " 'finally, be strong in adonay and in his mighty power.  put on the full armor of YHWH so that you can take your stand against the schemes of the devil. for our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.  therefore put on the full armor of YHWH, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.  stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the testimony [good news] of shalom [peace].  in addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.  take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the ruach [spirit], which is the word of YHWH. and pray in the ruach on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. with this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the faithful.' "

 

Again, this is not a NT idea: Thehillah [Psalm] 7:10, " 'my shield is elohiym, who saves the upright in heart.' "    Thehillah [Psalm] 28:7,  " 'YHWH is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and i am helped. my heart leaps for joy and i will give thanks to him in song.' "  Mishley [Proverbs] 30:5,  " 'every word of YHWH is refined; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.' "

 

The sword of the ruach YHWH is the word of YHWH -Truth. HaSatan is not original, but counterfeits the things of YHWH. Therefore, the counterfeit to truth and the Word,  is lies and deception, these are the flaming arrows and darts of the enemy (Thehillah [Psalm] 91:5, YermeYahu [Jeremiah] 9:8, Thehillah 57:4, Mishley [Proverbs] 26:18). The shield of faith gives you the faith to withstand those lies, slander, mocking, and accusations, knowing that YHWH will vindicate you, protect you and deliver you from the enemy.

 

In our relationship with YHWH, faith is crucial. It is such a simple matter to read and listen to the word of YHWH and be strengthened and built up by it, yet so few do. Everyone feeds their physical body and yet many do not feed their ruach. Feast on the word of YHWH and your nafesh will delight in the richest of fare. You may say that it is boring to read, you don’t like to read, whatever the problem, go to YHWH and ask Him to give you a desire for His Word. Pray that your spiritual eyes and ears be opened that you may see and perceive, hear and understand (Mishley [Proverbs] 20:12, YeshaYahu [Isaiah] 6:9-pray that you are) . Ask YHWH to give you a ruach of wisdom and revelation that you may know Him better (Ephesians 1:17). These are all scriptures and He answers these prayers. Just pick up the Scriptures and read and you will begin to build your faith.

 

I leave you with one of my many favorite passages, Thehillah [Psalm] 19:7-11,14,  " 'the thorah [law] of YHWH is perfect, reviving the nafesh [being]. the testimony of YHWH is trustworthy, making wise the simple. the orders of YHWH are right, giving joy to the heart. the mitswoth [commands] of YHWH are radiant, giving light to the eyes. the fear (yireh) of YHWH is pure, enduring forever. the mishfatiym [judgments] of YHWH are sure and altogether righteous. they are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb. by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward. may the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, YHWH, my rock and my redeemer.' "   I pray that you will find great delight in the Scriptures, the Living Word, as the only and best source for answers, even for the problems of modern times, for there is nothing new under the sun, Qoheleth [Ecclesiastes] 1:9.