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      Do YOU, as a member of the body of Messiah, have a truly WILLING spirit? Do you have that ongoing, yielding, GIVING attitude of which Messiah spoke so often? It’s time to CHECK UP on ourselves! Read this searching article and find out about YOU!

      Greed! Jealousy! Hate! THESE are the words that characterize the society in which you live today!

       Brethren of Yahweh’s true Congregation: just how much of the callousness, the suspicion, the jealousy and the hostility of this world have you carried over into the Congregation WITH you?

What is FIRST with You?

Think for a moment. What is truly the BIGGEST thing in your life today? Is it your husband, your wife, or your children? Is it your paycheck, your home or your car? To the people in the world, these are the big things. MOST Americans, when questioned about their problems, and what they thought it would take to solve them, answered, “About one third more INCOME!” They thought about one third more MONEY than they are presently making would SOLVE THEIR PROBLEMS!

Most all of us will immediately think of Yahshua’s command to “Seek FIRST the Kingdom of YAHWEH and HIS righteousness, and all these things {these material necessities} will be added to you!” (Mat 6:33). Yes, most of us would THINK of this scripture – but how many of us actually APPLY it?

IS the KINGDOM OF YAHWEH, the family of Yahweh, the opportunity to be born of Yahweh, into His very own family, and to RULE THIS WORLD with Yahshua in the millennium really FIRST with us? Is the WORK, which Yahshua said must be done before His kingdom will reign on this earth, an all-consuming, all-important, urgent, driving, powerful PART OF YOUR LIFE? Is it really? Are you sure? If it is, you will really know it is by the time you finish reading this article. And if it is not, you should really KNOW it is not.

The WORK of Yahweh

If (and this is the biggest “IF” in your life) you are really converted, then you are a part of the very BODY of Messiah! (1st Cor 12:13). Yahshua is the HEAD, the Chief, the Leader of that body (Col 1:18). When Yahshua was on this earth as a man, He accomplished the WORK of His Father in His physical body. He said, “I have finished the work that You gave Me to do.

But He admitted He could do nothing of Himself, that it was the Father who dwelt IN Him that actually did the work! (John 14:10). Yahshua certainly knew the scripture in Zechariah that says, “Not by might, nor by power, but by MY SPIRIT, says YAHWEH of Hosts” (Zech 4:6) since He had directly inspired it!

But Yahshua had merely finished the work which He, personally, through the power of the Spirit of the Father dwelling in Him, had done! HE DID NOT FINISH ALL THE WORK OF YAHWEH!

He commissioned His disciples, ordering them to go to all nations (Mat 28:19) and saying He would be continuously WITH them, guiding, leading, directing, controlling them (Mat 28:20).

Earlier, He had prophesied, “And THIS GOOD NEWS of the KINGDOM shall be published in all the earth for a testimony to all the nations, and THEN, the end will come (Mat 24:14). The preaching of the Good News was continuing the WORK that He had only begun! He prepared His disciples to CONTINUE THAT WORK! He had said, “If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me. But if I do, even if you do not believe Me, BELIEVE THE WORKS, that you may PERCEIVE and may BELIEVE that the Father is in Me, and I in Him!” (John 10:37-38).

Yahshua pointed to what was being accomplished. He pointed to what was being DONE! That’s where YOU ought to look!

You should have really taken the time to PROVE to yourself, once and for all, and beyond the shadow of a doubt, that THIS IS that very BODY OF MESSIAH, part of the ONE and the ONLY true Congregation of Yahweh on the face of this earth!

Yahshua said look to the WORK, find out where His true GOOD NEWS is being preached.

How to Really GROW!

“I am the Vine and YOU are the branches!” said Messiah (John 15:5). He said, unless you ABIDE in Him, you can bear no fruit! But He said, “Unless one remains in Me, he is cast out as the branch and is dried up; and they gather and throw them into a fire, and they are burned” (John 15:6).

Do you see? Either you ABIDE IN MESSIAH, in HIS BODY, HIS CONGREGATION DOING HIS OWN WORK, or you will be BURNED!

That’s why Yahshua said the WORK is so important! That’s why it is emphasized over the years that each member will continue to GROW, and to DEVELOP in spiritual character, only to the degree that his WHOLE HEART and BEING are in the WORK of Yahweh!

There is no middle ground! Either you are IN YAHWEH’S CONGREGATION, and therefore doing the WORK of that Congregation or you are NOT a real Believer, NOT really converted. Yahshua said so!

What is YOUR PART?

The Apostle was inspired to describe the body of Messiah in minute detail as to FUNCTION in the 12th chapter of First Corinthians. Notice it! “…and there are diversities of ministries (jobs, duties, functions) yet YAHWEH is first. And there are diversity of powers, but the same Elohim is working all things in all (or everything in each one)” (1st Cor 12:5, 6).

Paul then goes on to explain about the different outward appearances of each member, that while some seem to be less “honorable” or important, they are actually vitally necessary! This wonderful chapter is a real lesson in HUMILITY, in learning to PROPERLY EVALUATE each job of each individual member of Yahweh’s Congregation! Yahweh tells us, whether we be seemingly helpless, feeble, unable to do anything, that we are really necessary, really IMPORTANT, really vital to the body as a whole!

 “I can’t do much!” complain some of you widows! “What can I do?” asks a farmer, clerk, salesman, housewife or office worker.

Brethren begin feeling “left out!” They feel inadequate somehow, as if they are expendable, unnecessary and really useless to the body as a whole! But WHY, brethren?

The real reason is only a total lack of understanding, coupled with lack of real living FAITH, and mixed with a lot of SELF-PITY! It’s only when people become embroiled in their own personal problems that they feel this way! How MANY articles, broadcasts, sermons have you heard, showing what YOUR PART is in the work of Yahweh? Surely it isn’t necessary to REPEAT, word for word, all this teaching here!

YOUR PART is to PRAY. Pray fervently, earnestly, zealously! Pray particularly, getting down to DETAIL about it. Pray for the WORK, for different facets of the work, for rulers, for brethren, for the sick, for unconverted ones for whom you need to intervene! There is so MUCH to pray for! Simply giving prayers of THANKS could take hours and hours when we really count our blessings!

YOUR PART is to BE A LIGHT! It’s to LIVE such a shining example in your own life, in your own area, that others are AMAZED by it. They will want to KNOW what suddenly made you so HAPPY, so VITAL, so filled with ZEST and real ENTHUSIASM! They’ll be interested in what makes you this way!

YOUR PART IS TO GIVE! It’s to GIVE of your TIME in prayer, in concern for others, in helping others directly. It’s to GIVE of your SUBSTANCE in helping the poor, the lonely, the widows and orphans, and especially to GIVE to the very work of Yahweh!

YOUR PART, then, is to do exactly what any one part of YOUR BODY does for all other parts! Notice it! “But the one and the same Spirit works all these things (different jobs, offices and responsibilities), distributing separately to each as He (Yahweh) wills. Even as the body is ONE, and has many members, but all the members of the one body, being many, are one body, so also is Messiah!” (1st Cor 12:11, 12).

Your part is also recognizing the spiritual gifts given to you by the Holy Spirit of Yahweh and using those gifts for ministry in the body of Messiah for bearing fruit for the Kingdom. We are all members of the one body and we all work in unison to bring more fruit into the congregation of Yahweh.

Since the body of Messiah is to be zealously accomplishing the work of Yahweh, and YOU are, if converted, a member of that body, then YOUR WHOLE LIFE IS ABSORBED in the work of Yahweh! Every facet of it.

It means you are really BEHIND each project, really enthusiastic about each new radio station acquired, each new piece of property purchased, each minister ordained, each new congregation raised up, each new project begun.

How Responsive are YOU?

But ARE you, really this responsive to Yahweh’s work?

Actually brethren, many of you are not! Without realizing it, some have permitted themselves to harbor the same basic mistrust, jealousies, suspicions and resentments that characterized their natures BEFORE they were baptized.

Brethren! If you really MEANT it when you were plunged into the water, then Yahweh says to you, “And He has quickened you also {renewed in Spirit} who were dead because of your sins and trespasses, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the will of the ruler of the authority of the air, the spirit which is active in the sons of disobedience” (Eph 2:1-2).

All of us lived in this attitude in times past! We were prideful, envious, jealous, attributing WRONG MOTIVES to other people. But read the rest of this scripture! “In those very deeds {conduct} in which we also were corrupted from the very beginning through the lusts of our flesh, doing the things willed of the flesh and of the mind, and were BY NATURE the children of wrath, even as the rest” (Eph 2:3).

But NOW, Yahweh says, we have been “quickened” by receiving His Spirit; renewed, changed, made different! “Even when we were dead in our sins, He made us alive together with Messiah by whose grace we are saved; and raised us up together and seated us together in heaven {heavenly responsibilities, jobs, offices, duties delegated from heaven} through Messiah Yahshua” (Eph 2:5-6).

The job Yahweh has given us to do is varied. It is composed of many different duties, many different areas of endeavor, many different programs, fields, projects.

Today, as Yahweh gives more and more real growth to His work, and as it becomes better and better organized, it is expanding into ever-increasing departments.

But what about it, brethren, are you really with, for, behind, responsive toward, enthusiastic about each PHASE OF YAHWEH’S WORK?

How Some Wither Away!

Look at the athlete for a moment. The brain, the nerve center of the body, is much like the physical leaders Yahweh has placed in His Congregation. The arms, legs, hands and feet, the torso and all parts of it might be likened to all the various MEMBERS of Yahweh’s Congregation. In the body, they are actually called “members.”

What does the athlete who is playing a complicated game DO when he needs a burst of speed and agility? What actually happens? Simply defined, there is an instantaneous communication from the brain, via the nervous system, to the muscles in all the limbs. They respond. The legs drive, the arms swing rhythmically, the whole body reacts! His WHOLE BODY, like one smoothly-functioning, well-oiled machine, simply reacts automatically! He doesn’t have to slowly ponder, think, and reason out each move he makes.

But observe the totally uncoordinated novice. He might have a real grimace of determination on his face! He’s trying to play the game. He grips the racquet in his hand, and with a look of fierce concentration, makes a pitiful stab at the ball.

He misses! His legs can’t react in time, his arms simply don’t DO what he wants them to do, even though he wants to play the game with all his heart. His EYE is not really “on” the ball, he simply can’t SEE it part of the time. The poor fellow is so uncoordinated, so unprofessional-appearing that it’s laughable.

What’s the difference here?

The one responds AUTOMATICALLY! Why? Because he’s USED to it. He’s accustomed to the sport, he’s really PRACTICED! The other can’t respond to his own desires. Why? Because he’s simply a NOVICE at the game. He’s never tried before; he’s never really practiced until it became automatic.

Can you see how this affects the BODY OF MESSIAH? Yahshua, by directly INSPIRING HIS MINISTERS, is the brain! He communicates to all parts of the body through the nervous system of radio, the printed page, or sermons and counsel, or co-worker and member letters.

The body, if it is really RESPONSIVE TO MESSIAH, should RESPOND IMMEDIATELY! It should really ACT! Then, with a burst of real ENERGY, with the smoothly flowing, automatic ability that comes with real PRACTICE, the body accomplishes the task the brain has set for it!

Misused, or unused muscles soon wither away! Someone who is not AN ACTIVE MEMBER of Yahweh’s Congregation, that is UNCOORDINATED with the body will become stiff from disuse. Finally, it will simply be UNABLE to be used. Remember, if you are really a part of the body of Messiah, then you’ll be responding AUTOMATICALLY to what He, Messiah, says! And He says it THROUGH HIS MINISTERS!

Our Forefathers’ Example

Perhaps you have all read the example of our forefathers during Moses’ time. Then, as now, Yahweh’s work on earth had an energetic BUILDING program. They were asked to make offerings for that program. “And Moses said to all the congregation of the sons of Israel, saying, This is the thing which YAHWEH commanded, saying, Take from among you an offering to YAHWEH. Everyone WILLING OF HEART, shall bring it…” (Exo 35:4-5).

After hearing the detailed instructions, on the type materials that were needed, they left Moses, “And they came, everyone whose heart was lifted up, and everyone whose spirit made him willing.” They brought the offering of YAHWEH for the work of the tabernacle of the congregation…And the men came in together with the women, everyone willing of heart” (Exo 35:21-22).

Later, Yahweh caused it to be repeated yet a third time that the people were really WILLING to help (Exo 35:29). They really became responsive! Somehow, even though converted, the very thought of doing something together, something really FINE, of erecting and decorating a FINE TABERNACLE for the glory of Yahweh, really INSPIRED our forefathers!

What about US, today? Are we, as CONVERTED people, in whom is the very mind and Spirit of Messiah, even as willing as they were?

Finally, some of the foremen over the work told Moses, “The people are bringing MORE THAN ENOUGH for the service of the work…And Moses commanded, and they caused it to be voiced in the camp, saying, Let neither man nor woman make any more offering for the sanctuary; and the people were held back from bringing. And their property was sufficient for all the work, to make it, and it was TOO MUCH!” (Exo 36:5-7).

What a wonderful example!

WHERE Can You Really HELP?

Today, the body of Messiah is energetically, actively, systematically accomplishing MANY different tasks! Yahweh’s people, as the various members of that body, just as the athlete in the final moments of the game, must be called upon for extra effort, for that spark of energy, of real ZEAL that is needed to WIN!

Brethren, you should be really ENTHUSIASTICALLY and ZEALOUSLY behind the Matthew 24 program! You should see the really CRITICAL NEED! You should be ONE in mind and spirit in wanting to see real accomplishment in all phases of Yahweh’s work! Many are. But, sad enough, many are not.

Today, with the expanding radio work, the burgeoning publishing work, many new offices being opened up, the hundreds being baptized and brought into the body of Messiah, the new congregations being raised up, the Ambassador school program, the building projects, there are MANY phases of Yahweh’s work in which you should take an ACTIVE INTEREST!

During David’s time, the cry went out to the people to give offerings for the time when Solomon would build the temple. The inspiring record tells us, “And the chiefs of the fathers, and the chiefs of the tribes of Israel, and the commanders of the thousands, and the hundreds, even the chiefs of the king’s work, offered willingly, and GAVE for the service of the house of The Elohim of gold five thousand talents, and a myriad of darics, and ten thousand talents of silver, and eighteen thousand talents of bronze, and one hundred thousand talents of iron.

And he having stones gave them to the treasury of the house of YAHWEH…And the people rejoiced, because of their WILLING offering, for they offered WILLINGLY to YAHWEH with a PERFECT HEART {NOT suspicious, doubting, jealous; filled with carnal greed and selfish lust}; and David the king also rejoiced with great joy.” (1st Chron 29:6-9)

Brethren, what those people gave is astounding! They gave TWO HUNDRED AND NINETY- FOUR MILLION DOLLARS’ WORTH OF GOLD; NINETEEN AND ONE-HALF MILLION DOLLARS’ WORTH OF SILVER, AND ABOUT SEVEN THOUSAND TONS OF BRASS AND IRON!

David himself had already given over ONE HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS’ worth of gold and silver! (verses 3-5)

This was an offering of a NATION, however, not just a small, scattered group of called out ones! But regardless of the size of the offering, the SPIRIT was really willing!

What about us, today? Are we really WILLING to give as Yahweh has commanded?

Do we receive co-worker and member letters about the Matthew 24 program, and about new plans, with real RESPONSIVENESS, with ENTHUSIASM and with a really willing spirit? Or do we think there is something “fishy” here, and become suspicious? Yahweh says, through Solomon, “There is one who scatters yet increases more; but a withholder of just due comes only to poverty” (Pro 11:24).

Yes, it truly is more blessed to GIVE than to receive!

Some of us need to really PRAY for forgiveness! We need to ask Yahweh to search and TRY our hearts, cleansing us completely from any of these carnal, suspicious motives and attitudes we have had in the past. We need to become so totally yielded and linked together that we really ARE just like ONE WELL TRAINED BODY!

Brethren, let’s DO it! Let’s not just put this article down, and think it was either a “nice article” or “interesting,” or some such thing! Let’s search our own hearts, let’s awake to the times, let’s realize NOTHING is as important now as the work of Yahweh! Let’s use our spiritual gifts and really start bearing fruit for the soon coming Kingdom of Yahweh.

Only then will Yahweh really BLESS US!