Walking with God - The Light of Torah Messianic Congregation

The Light of Torah Messianic Congregation

“What Does it Mean When Scripture Tells us to Walk Before Me”

Prepared by P. R. Reid, a bond servant of Yeshua HaMashiach August 31, 2023

Article Fifteen

“What Does it Mean When Scripture Tells us to Walk Before Me”

Ge. 5:24: “And Enoch walked with God (םיה’7אֱnot, for God took him.”הֽ ־תאֶ); and he was
Ge. 6:9: “This is the genealogy of Noah. Noah was a just man, perfectin his generations. Noah walked with God (םיה’7אֱ הֽ ־תאֶ ).”
Ge. 17:1: “When Abram was ninety‐nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be perfect.”
Notice the Aleph Tav is connected to the word Elohim. This tells us that both Enoch and Noah’s walk was connected to their obedience to the “Rules of the Kingdom.” Our “walk” and our “obedience” to the “rules of the kingdom,” is further spoken of with regard to King Solomon.
1 Kings 3:4: “So if you walk in My ways, to keep My statutes and My commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days.”
Our “walk” is manifested in our own forward movement.
The focus of this study is to answer this question, what does it mean, to us, the believing community, to “walk before me.”
The Hebrew word for “walk” is “halach,” -:לַ הָ, which means is to go,walk, come, depart, proceed, move or go away. Walking will eithertake us toward something or away from something.
Walk is spelled with the Hebrew letters Hey, Lamed and Kaph Sofit. The numerical value of “walk” is 55; 5 + 5 = 10. Our “walk” is either going to connect us to The Father through our obedience to His 10 Words via our forward “walk” or not.
In its ancient form, “halach” would read: “Behold, the Son of Yah who comes with His full authority, opens the pathway to eternal life.”
The first mention of the concept of “walk or walking” is found in Ge. 3:8: “And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.”
We immediately see that Adam and Chava hid themselves away from “the Voice,” who is the Aleph Tav, instead of walking toward Him. Doesn’t this mean they were already on the wide path?
Cain’s “walk” is another early example. Instead of repenting, he turned his back away from YaHaVah and “walked” east. East is the direction of the rising sun. Cain chose to “walk” in a forward direction to establish another religion. That religion is sun worship which is alive and well to this day.
I believe we can all agree that sun worship is contrary to the worship of YaHaVah. Any man made religion that tells us to worship on a day other than the seventh day, is inviting us to worship another god.
The Scriptures are clear on the subject of The Fathers appointed times.
We just completed a teaching on “The Tale of Ten Lepers” where we studied the difference between clean or unclean. Ge. 17:1 tells us that Abram was able to “walk” before YaHaVah and be “perfect.”
The Hebrew word for “perfect” is םימִ תָּ. This word is also used for thefollowing definitions: without blemish (44x), perfect (18x), upright(8x), without spot (6x), uprightly (4x), whole (4x), sincerely (2x), complete (1x), full (1x), miscellaneous (3x).
The remnant bride will be “tamim,” without spot or wrinkle. This Scripture tells us that the descendants of Abraham can follow his example and “walk before Him and be perfect.”
Ge. 26:4 ‐5 tells us how Abraham walked: “And I will make your descendants multiply as the stars of heaven; I will give to your descendants all these lands; and in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed; because Abraham obeyed My voice and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws.”
This is the question: Abraham was called by YaHaVah in Ge. 12 and chose to follow Him. Several chapters later we are told that he obeyed, which is past tense. How were the “rules of the Kingdom” conveyed to him and/or others before him, namely Noah and Enoch?
The answer is found in the word obeyed.
The first mention of the word “obey” is also found in Ge. 3:8: “And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.” It’s obvious that Adam and Chava “heard” the Aleph Tav voice but chose to ignore it. Now the plot thickens!
The Hebrew word for hear is Shema,עמַָש. Shema is a word we useevery single day which means o listen, give heed, to consent, agree, to grant request, to listen to, yield to, to obey, be obedient, just to name a few. Basically, we are to “hear” and “obey.” Noah, Enoch and Abraham heard the “rules of the kingdom, orally, and chose to obey them. Adam and Chava also heard the “rules of the kingdom” and chose to “walk their own way.’
To “shema” His word is to both hear and obey. Israels declaration of faith is found in Dt. 6:4: “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one!” This statement changes drastically when viewed in its original Hebrew language.
דחָֽ אֶהוהיְוּניה’7אֱהוהיְלאֵרָ שְׂ יִעמַ שְׁ
The oversized Ayin and Dalet compose the word for witness, among others, such as adi which means ornaments. When we recite this statement we are acting as His witness and His bride wearing her wedding ornaments.
Mark 12:28 – 30: “Now one of the scribes had come up and heard their debate. Noticing how well Yeshua had answered them, he asked Him, which commandment is the most important of all? Yeshua replied, ‘this is the most important: Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.”
This statement of faith is recited at least once a day by every Bible believing person.
This also means that up to this point, His charge, commandments, statutes and law were given orally, they are not documented within the canonized Scripture. This will be the focus of a future teaching. There were no Rabbis at this point in history, rather there were sages. Those men of integrity who wrote down historical facts for future examination and reference.
Recall the Pharisaic Rabbis took the Oral Torah to an entirely new dimension, that being Pharisaic Talmudism and the composition of the Mishna. Pharisaic Judaism was the “doctrine of men” Yeshua spoke against at His first advent.
When we choose to “walk” like Noah, Enoch and Abraham, there is a prescribed destination, one righteous destination. That righteous destination is Yahs eternal kingdom.
In our day and hour, namely the two thousand year period of time between the first and second advent of Messiah Yeshua, our “walk” actually has a name.
Its name is “the way.”
The Way
The Way, the “HaDerek.” The first mention of “way” is found in Ge.3:24: “So He drove out the man (םדָ אָ הָ ־תֶא); and He placed cherubim(םיבִ רֻ כְּ ה־תאֶ ) at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming swordwhich turned every way, to guard “the way” (-:רֶ דּ־תאֶ ) to the tree of life.”
Let me unpack this Scripture for you. The man, actually Adam and Chava were mandated by The Father to “guard and keep” the garden. They were taught the “rules of the kingdom” by the Et Kol, Yeshua and chose to disobey them. They were supposed to walk in covenant.
Their punishment for disobedience was to be expelled from the garden. YaHaVah placed the Aleph Tav “strength of the covenant,” cherubim outside the gate of the garden in order to prevent them from returning to the Tree of Life.
The Aleph Tav cherubim are making this point for us. They were guarding and keeping “the way” from being defiled by disobedience. Obedience and disobedience cannot coexist.
The Aleph Tav “way” is second in mention. Being second in mention connects us to the letter Bet, the second letter of the Aleph Bet. This letter represents Yeshua.
Jn. 14:6: “Yeshua said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
The question for us is this, what is Yeshua “the way” to? What is our ultimate goal.
Our ultimate goal is to find ourselves back in the garden in close proximity to the Tree of Life, the very presence of our Creator. This will be accomplished by our obedience to the “rules o the kingdom.”
The “rules o the kingdom” are cyclical. Each cycle begins anew with the Shabbat HaGadol, The Great Sabbath. This is the Shabbat just prior to the first of Yahs’ festivals, Pesach, Passover.
The day after Pesach is Hag Ha Matza, Unleavened Bread followed by HaBikkurim, First Fruit.
Fifty days from the festival of First Fruit is Shavuot, the Feast of Weeks because is falls seven x’s seven weeks after First Fruit. This is the fourth of Yahs’ festivals.
With the sighting of the seventh new moon the fifth of Yahs’ festivals arrives, Yom Teruah. Ten days later the sixth festival of Yom Kippur occurs followed by the seventh and final festival in Yahs’ annual cycle is Sukkot. An eight day festival that is also referred to as Tabernacles.
His annual cycle of festivals resembles a double helix. Every year we begin with the same festival of Pesach and end with Sukkot. Then our spiritual preparation begins again in the following year, from Covenant to redemption!
As I said, our ultimate goal is to one day reach the garden and His Tree of Life. Our obedience to the “rules of the kingdom” will enable us to reside within the walls of the New Jerusalem.
The Hebrew Scriptures speak thus: they went “the Way” or theywent their “own way.” The Hebrew word for “way” is derech, ְךרֶ דֶּwhich has a variety of definitions. Some of these are way, road, distance, journey or manner.
The numerical value of “derech” is 224; 2 + 2 + 4 = 8. Eight is the number of covenant. To walk His way is to be obedient to His covenant.
In its ancient form “derech” would read: “The pathway from the beginning will be opened for all.” This definition follows the concept that all of mankind was invited to join Israel in covenant with YaHaVah. This was His desire for humanity from the beginning.
The word “derech” stems from the root word -:רַ דָּtread, bend, lead or march.which means to
Its first mention is found in Num. 24:17: “I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near; a Star shall come out of Jacob; a Scepter shall rise out of Israel, and batter the brow of Moab, and destroy all the sons of tumult.”
We recognize this Scripture as a prophetic image of the coming of Yeshua HaMashiach.
Is. 2:3: ‐ 4: “Many people shall come and say, ‘come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, and we shall walk in His paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
In conclusion, we “walk” in a forward motion following the “rules of the kingdom,” which is called “the way.”
Ge. 17:1: “When Abram was ninety‐nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be perfect.”
Part Two
In Part One, we learned that Abram was able to “walk before Him and be perfect. If we are the seed of Abraham, we should follow his example. The question for us is how?
The answer to how is simply this, Abraham “walked in The Way.” The Way is obedience to the “Rules of the Kingdom.”
The Brit Chadasha gives this very clear command:
1 John 2:3 ‐ 6: “Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, ‘I know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.”
How did Yeshua walk? Did he too walk in obedience to the “Rules of the Kingdom?” Or did He tell the population to disregard everything they had been taught in the Torah and the Prophets?
The question before us is how exactly did Yeshua walk?
At His first advent, Yeshua restored the Melchizedek priesthood. This restoration is recorded for us in Mt. 3:13 ‐ 15: “Then Yeshua came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. And John tried to prevent Him, saying, ‘I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?’ But Yeshua answered and said to him, ‘permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness. Then he allowed Him.”
Moses, the last High Priest after the order of Melchizedek, transferred this priesthood to the Aaronic priesthood via the medium of water. It was appropriate then, for the transfer from John the Immerser, the only kosher priest from the line of Aaron, back to the former priesthood, the Order of Melchizedek via the medium of water. Yeshua then walked among them as the High Priest after this order.
Immediately following His mikvah, Yeshua was tempted by the adversary for 40 days.
Heb. 4:15: “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot be touched with the feelings of our infirmities, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.”
Yeshua was tempted by the adversary, just as we are, and was able to remain faithful. If we are in Him, and He is in us, we too should be able to walk His path.
Did Yeshua obey the Law of Moses? Yeshua said He came to fulfil the Law, the Torah of Moses. Does this statement mean obedience to the Law has ended?
This is recorded for us in Mt. 5:17 ‐ 20: “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. 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. For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.
The Greek word for “fulfill” is plēroō. Plēroō is defined as” to make full, to fill up, i.e. to fill to the full, to cause to abound, to furnish or supply liberally, i.e. I abound, I am liberally supplied, to render full, i.e. to complete, to fill to the top: so that nothing shall be wanting to full measure, fill to the brim.
Also: to make complete in every particular, to render perfect, to carry through to the end, to accomplish, carry out, (some undertaking), to carry into effect, bring to realization, realize, of matters of duty: to perform, execute of sayings, promises, prophecies, to bring to pass, ratify, accomplish, to fulfil, i.e. to cause God’s will (as made known in the law) to be obeyed as it should be, and God’s promises (given through the prophets) to receive fulfilment and to consummate a number. **Not one of these definitions means “to bring to an end!”
Yeshua gave us, in abundance, the ability to observe the Torah of YaHaVah and walk in His steps through the ministry of the Spirit of Holiness.
Did Yeshua keep the fourth commandment, i.e. To keep the Sabbath day? Yeshua kept the Shabbat as recorded in Luke 4:16: “So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.
Lk. 13:10: “Now He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath…”
As the Lord of the Sabbath, Yeshua entered Jerusalem for the last time on the Sabbath, and resurrected the following Sabbath. Yes, Yeshua honored the fourth commandment to keep the Sabbath Day. By His own example, Yeshua did not tell the population they no longer had to keep the Sabbath.
Did Yeshua observe the appointed times?
Jn. 2:13: “And the Jews’ Passover was at hand, and Yeshua went up to Jerusalem…”
Lk. 2:41: “His parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover.”
Not to mention we know that Yeshua is our Pascal lamb. By the time of Yeshua the Rabbis had lumped together Pesach, Unleavened Bread and First Fruit. There are also Scriptures regarding all three as they are lumped together.
Jn. 5:1: “After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Yeshua went up to Jerusalem.”
**The “after this” refers to Jn. 4:45, a previous feast. In my opinion the narrative is speaking to the season of Pesach which makes this feast Shavuot. There is a 50 day period of time from the Feast of First Fruit to Shavuot. The Father gave us the Torah on the festival of Shavuot. The Brit Chadasha uses the term Pentecost. The context of this block of Scripture should prove my point.
Jn. 5:2 ‐ 3: “After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Yeshua went up to Jerusalem. Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew, Bethesda, having five porches. In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water.” **There are five books in the Torah. The sick, blind, lame and paralyzed are such because they are not walking in obedience to the Torah.
Jn. 5:4 ‐ 5: “For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had. Now a certain man was there who had an infirmity thirty‐eight years.” **The infirmed man would be following the same spiritually unclean predicament. The numbers thirty and eight equal 11, the number of Yeshua. This man needed the living Torah, Yeshua. Because he believed in what Yeshua told him to do, he repented..
Jn. 5:6 ‐ 9: “When Yeshua saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, ‘do you want to be made well?’ The sick man answered Him, ‘sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another steps down before me.’ Yeshua said to him, ‘rise, take up your bed and walk.’ And immediately the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked. And that day was the Sabbath.” **Shavuot is a festival that lasts for only one day and that one day is a “High Sabbath.”
Yeshua kept the festival of Shavuot. He did not tell any of the population that they no longer had to observe this appointed time.
John 7:1 – 10: “After these things Yeshua walked in Galilee; for He did not want to walk in Judea, because the Jews sought to kill Him. Now the Jews’ Feast of Tabernacles was at hand. His brothers therefore said to Him, ‘depart from here and go into Judea, that Your disciples also may see the works that You are doing. For no one does anything in secret while he himself seeks to be known openly. If You do these things, show Yourself to the world.’ For even His brothers did not believe in Him. Then Yeshua said to them, ‘My time has not yet come, but your time is always ready.’ The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it that its works are evil. You go up to this feast. I am not yet going up to this feast, for My time has not yet fully come.’
When He had said these things to them, He remained in Galilee. But when His brothers had gone up, then He also went up to the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret.”
Yeshua went up to Jerusalem to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. He did not tell the population that they no longer had to keep this festival.
The Brit Chadasha makes it clear to us that Yeshua observed and kept all three of Yahs’ pilgrimage festivals. If this is a new topic for you please read Dt. 16:16: “Three times every year shall your menfolk appear before the Lord your God in the place that He will choose, in the feast of Pesach, in the feast of Shavuot, and in the Feast of Sukkot.”
Did Yeshua come to start a new church?
Dt. 32:2: “Let my teaching (doctrine) drop as the rain, My speech distill as the dew, as raindrops on the tender herb, and as showers on the grass.”
Job 11:4: “For you have said, ‘My doctrine is pure, and I am clean in your eyes.’”
Prov 4:2: “For I give you good doctrine: Do not forsake my law.”
Is. 29:24: “These also who erred in spirit will come to understanding, and those who complained will learn doctrine.”
As I said, through the years, I have heard many pastors teach that Yeshua came to start a new church. Is this a true statement or a false statement?
Mt. 7:28 ‐ 29: “And so it was, when Yeshua had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching (doctrine) for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.”
Mt. 22:33: “And when the multitudes heard this, they were astonished at His teaching (doctrine).”
Mk. 1:22: “And they were astonished at His teaching (doctrine), for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.”
Doctrine
Scripture tells us that the people were astonished at His teaching, i.e. the doctrine that He was explaining.
Again I ask, was Yeshuas’ teaching, doctrine, designed to create a new religious system?
In His own words He answers this question. Jn. 7:15: “Yeshua answered them and said, ‘My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me.’”
Who sent Yeshua to earth? Of course, YaHaVah! The doctrine Yeshua was teaching originated with The Father.
Since it originated from Yah, we need to look at the first mention to understand the context. The first mention is found in Dt. 32:2, a Scripture we have already examined.
The Hebrew word for doctrine is “חקַ ֶל.” This word is comprised of aLamed, Quph and Chet. The numerical value is 138; 1 + 3 + 8 = 12.This shows us that His doctrine is relevant to all twelve tribes.
To expand this thought further, the twelfth letter of the Aleph Bet is the Lamed. The ancient picture of the Lamed is a shepherd staff or goad. The Lamed means control, authority or teach.
If we add the 1 + 2 = 3. Three is a reference to the third day of creation when all seed bearing vegetation was created. Yeshua is the “pure seed.” This number is also a reference to the death, burial and resurrection of Messiah Yeshua.
The number three tells us that it is Yeshua, the pure seed who will administer The Fathers doctrine to all twelve tribes.
In its ancient form, leqach would read: “The one who comes in His authority will lead the least of His into His covenant.” Recall the reason for creation was to create a covenant relationship with mankind.
This covenant relationship means that we choose to “walk” in concert with His doctrine.
Yeshua did not tell the population at large to follow another’s doctrine.
During the time of Messiah Yeshua, many were those who did not follow The Father’s doctrine, the Rules of the Kingdom. Scripture calls these the blind, the lame or the infirmed.
Yeshuas’ teaching of The Fathers doctrine was to remind the populous to repent and return to a covenant relationship which would bring about a healing in their body.
Scripture also tells us what happens when we choose to not follow, or “walk” in the footsteps of Yeshua.
1 Jn. 3:4: “Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness.” Sin is breaking the “Rules of the Kingdom.” Sin is also called willful disobedience.
2 Th. 3:6 : “But we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Yeshua HaMashiach, that you withdraw from every brother who walks disorderly and not according to the tradition which he received from us.
In Part One of this teaching, we examined the Hebrew word for walk, which is halach.
Now let’s examine the Greek word for “walk.” The Greek word for “walk” is peripateō, which is defined as to make one’s way, progress; or to make due use of opportunities. Hebrew for, to live. **The Brit Chadasha teaches the concept of forward movement and backward movement. Walking with Messiah is “life.” This word is used some 96 times in various contexts.
In conclusion, if we are to walk in His footsteps then we should be:
1.) Acting as a priest after the Order of Melchizedek
2.) Check our behavior when we are tempted
3.) Keep the Sabbath Day as well as all of His commandments
4.) Keep the Appointed Times
5.) Obey the Rules of the Kingdom
Yeshua said it very simply in Jn. 14:15: “If you love me, keep my commandments.” Following the Rules of the Kingdom means that we are walking before Him and can likewise be perfect, i.e. spiritually clean in His eyes.