FUNDAMENTALS OF DISCIPLESHIP
THE FIRST
PRINCIPLES - II
Hebrews 1:6 Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of
Messiah, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of
repentance from dead works, and of faith toward IAUE,
2 Of the doctrine of baptisms, and
of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal
judgment.
REPENTANCE
FROM DEAD WORKS - 1
Last week we introduced a new topic of study, the foundation of the first principles of Messiah. We noted that this is not intended to be a “doctrinal” study, though there will be considerable instruction. Our purpose is to reveal the person of Yahushua Messiah; for no other foundation can be laid.
Messiah
shared an illustration at the end of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 7:24-27)
to explain that if you have a foundation, your building will survive the
onslaught of the wind and rain and floods; but if you build upon the sand
(which is ever shifting) what you erect will not survive because it had no
foundation.
Remember
the words of Messiah to the apostle Peter?
Matthew
16:13 When Yahushua came into
the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men
say that I the Son of man am?
14 And they said, Some say
that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of
the prophets.
15 He saith unto them, But
whom say ye that I am?
16 And Simon Peter answered
and said, Thou art the Messiah, the
Son of the living Elohim.
17 And Yahushua answered
and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which
is in heaven.
18 And I say also unto
thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church;
and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
Many
have been taught that Messiah was referring to Peter as the rock upon which he
would build his church; but that is not at all what he is saying, here. Yahushua was referring to the revelation of
Himself that was given to Peter from IAUE.
It is the revelation of the person of Yahushua Messiah upon which the
church would be built. This is confirmed
by Paul’s words:
1 Corinthians 3:11 For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid,
which is Yahushua Messiah.
So,
with this in mind, let us look at the first of the First Principles.
Hebrews 6:1
Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of
Messiah, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance
from dead works, and of faith toward IAUE,
2 Of the doctrine of baptisms, and
of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal
judgment.
First,
we must recognize that the word “doctrine”
in this passage is not the typical word translated as doctrine (didasche).
These are not the principles (arche =
beginning, original) teachings of Messiah.
This word is “logos,” and it means
the “word.” This term “logos” literally means the spoken word; but often
is associated with the very essence of who Messiah is personally.
There
are six principles that form the foundation of the revelation of the person of
Yahushua Messiah.
- Repentance from dead works
- Faith toward IAUE
- Doctrine of baptisms
- Laying on of hands
- Resurrection of the dead
- Eternal Judgment
At
a glance, this would appear to be an odd collection of concepts. How many of us would have drafted a
comparable list when asked to define the top six things we should know in our
discipleship to Messiah? (It might be an interesting task to think about the
list we would have prepared, and compare it to what is set forth for us in
Scripture.) These represent six separate
mediums through which a separate revelation of the person of Yahushua Messiah is
found. It is much like the story of the
four blind men who described what an elephant was. One blind man feeling the leg of the elephant
said it was like a tree. The blind man
touching the tail could not understand that because to him the elephant was
like a rope. The third blind man
touching the trunk said the elephant was like a branch, and the fourth touching
the ear said the elephant was like a fan.
Each of the blind men had a revelation of the elephant, but none
understood what an elephant actually is.
It takes the combined revelations of all of them to know the fullness of
the elephant. In the same way, it takes
the revelation of the person of Messiah contained in these six principles
before we can truly understand who Yahushua Messiah is.
In
order to leave the principles of the doctrines of Messiah, they first must be
solidly laid; otherwise, how can we move on unto perfection, as the Scripture
instructs? The first of these First Principles
is “repentance
from dead works.”
Repentance
is a subject we have covered quite well already. It basically means “to turn around” leaving
behind you forever that to which you have turned your back. Repentance is not feeling sorry for
something. It isn’t feelings of guilt or
regret. It isn’t a feeling at all. It is a choice that changes the entire course
of your life’s direction by burning the bridge behind you making a retreat
impractical if not impossible.
Repentance
is always associated with a negative.
The reason we repent of something is because it is the wrong thing for
our life. Repentance removes us from the
wrong thing, so it is no longer a part of our life. So, what is the wrong thing, here? It is “dead works.”
It
is important for us to note that this passage of First Principles is in the
book of Hebrews, which serves quite literally as a spiritual manual for the
Jews. Though its truths are universal and
applicable to all; some of its content has a unique application to the Jews. Repentance from dead works is just such a
matter.
From
the day that IAUE gave Abraham circumcision, there has been the temptation to
equate the act itself, and the resulting condition, as being sufficient for man
to rely upon for his relationship with IAUE…of being the people of IAUE. 400 years later, when IAUE gave the law
through Moses, the Hebrew people compounded their confusion about circumcision
with trust in obedience to the Law as not just being sufficient, but mandatory
to establish and maintain the relationship with IAUE they desired. Neither has ever been true. IAUE gave Abraham circumcision as a sign of
that which already existed in his heart…faith toward IAUE (the second of the
First Principles).
You
will recall the episode in Galatians 2 where Paul explains that he opposed
Peter to his face in Antioch because he behaved as one liberated from the law
unto grace until James, the pastor of the church in Jerusalem, sent certain
disciples to Antioch. Peter withdrew
from eating with the Gentiles because he feared the repercussions of a report
getting back to James that he was not keeping the law by eating with the
Gentiles.
This
was a desperately persistent problem with the early church. The Jews feared leaving their obedience to
the Law because for centuries their people had wrongly trusted in the Law
believing that it was necessary to obtain IAUE’s favor.
The
apostle Paul had a clear revelation of the person of Yahushua Messiah in this
regard.
Romans 4:3 For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed IAUE, and
it was counted unto him for righteousness.
4 Now
to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt.
5 But to him that worketh not, but
believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for
righteousness.
Abraham
did not trust in his circumcision. He
trusted in IAUE.
Titus 3:5 Not by works of righteousness
which we have done, but according to his mercy he
saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Spirit;
6 Which he shed on us abundantly through Yahushua Messiah our Saviour;
Paul
explained to Titus that our relationship with IAUE was not on the basis of our
works in obedience to the Law. It was
based on the person of Yahushua Messiah.
We
have just introduced this issue of dead works.
Next week it is my desire to connect this issue in such a way with the
person of Yahushua Messiah that IAUE will provide us with a revelation of the
person of Messiah that will enable us to lay a foundation stone.
Kingdom heart: a heart that offers no resistance to the performance
of the will of IAUE.
Even
though we have moved on to a different subject matter, we can never leave this
basic concept; for this is what IAUE desires more than anything else in all His
creation.
No comments:
Post a Comment