Atom
Servant
Joined: 02 Sep 2004
Posts: 578
Location: Abaddon
|
 Posted: Thu Nov 22, 2007 1:20 pm Post subject: The Meaning of Messiah |
 |
|
If I had only one opportunity to speak with you about anything and have you listen with an open mind, I would use that opportunity to tell you about Messiah. While other issues are important to me, no other is as important.
Messiah literally means "Anointed One", which is another way of saying "Chosen One." I'll get to that in a minute, because before I introduce the hero of the story, I must explain the need for a hero.
Man was designed and formed by G-d. If you have not come to this realization or think it is nonsense, then stop reading here. You will be held responsible for all truth revealed to you, and it will condemn you to know more truth than you're ready for. Instead, get a clearer grasp of the situation here, here, and here. Come back when you're ready.
If you're reading this, I'll assume you recognize the truth that human beings were created by G-d. When humans were made, they were designed perfectly, but with the ability to choose and change. In addition to the capacity for voluntary choices they were given the dignity to see their choices carried out. As perfect beings, any choice or change would lead to either an equally perfect state or one that was less than perfect. Through a series of choices, man choose to become less than perfect. And from that early history mankind began to rebel against his creator.
As the designer of the system, G-d was free to choose the proper function and goals of the system. So he made laws for the elements to obey (physics) and for man to obey (ethics and morals). Each of these provided the framework in which the system could function properly to carry out its designed purpose. While the elements were given no freedom in their ability to obey the rules, man was different. As mentioned before, he was allowed the freedom to either submit to the rules of not; when he chose not to, the system would not function as designed and inevitably destruction and chaos would follow.
This is why adultery (a moral prohibition) leads to destroyed families; why lying leads to broken relationships. Murder destroys lives as well as communities. Children disobeying their parents allows them to make poor choices, which often ruin lives. All these moral laws were designed to protect us. When we don't follow them, we must endure the consequences.
G-d does not want his system destroyed nor does he want to see his beings within the system destroyed. Furthermore, as a perfect being, G-d embodies perfect justice. So to counter the destruction wrought by the breaking of moral laws, G-d acted. He declared that he would carry out justice on earth and judge every human being according to whether or not they had brought destruction into his system. The punishment for the crime would be equal, life for life. Since law-breaking would bring destruction into the the system of G-d, destroying the life within, G-d would bring destruction into the life of those who committed such acts. This is what justice requires and what Hell is.
As dark as the story has become, it gets somewhat darker. We become the villians of the story because we have all have broken the moral laws. In the language of G-d, we have all sinned. G-d laws are simple and easy to understand:
Do not worship anything on heaven or earth other than G-d.
Do not make any physical representations of G-d for worship.
Do not speak lightly of your creator or mention his name without reverence.
Set aside the seventh day to rest from work.
Obey your parents and honor them.
Do not murder.
Join with only one person during life and stay with that person until death.
Do not steal.
Do not lie.
Do not covet what belongs to someone else or have greedy desire.
Yet we have all broken those laws, most of us repeatedly. If you were judged according to that standard would you be judged innocent or a law-breaker?
As law-breakers, a sentence of punishment hangs over our heads. We are guilty of the same crimes our ancestors were guilty of, each bringing chaos and destruction into G-d's perfect system by our choices. We have all earned punishment and could be left here without hope, to die and receive our own destruction.
But G-d did not abandon us.
Much as an angered parent still loves the child that is ruining their own life, G-d, even in his anger, took pity on fallen man. G-d's love for us was so great that he sent us a savior, a hero, to rescue us from our self-caused destruction. This savior's name was Yeshua (Jesus) and he was born roughly 4 BC in Judea, under Roman rule. This man was unique, sharing in G-d's essence and being one with him in a way we do not fully understand. G-d called him his only begotten son. This Messiah, chosen by G-d, was sent to lead mankind and to save us. We, the sheep without a shepherd, were given someone to watch over us at last.
Yeshua openly confronted the religious and political authorities of his day, speaking truth. Because of this, he was sentenced to death by crucifixtion around 32 AD. Though he was innocent and could muster forces to fight on his behalf, he went silently to his death; because only through his death could he pay the price for our sins.
Yeshua willingly offered himself as a sacrifice on our behalf, taking the punishment we deserved, because of his pity and his great mercy for us. The destruction of his life fulfilled the demands of justice for the destruction we had caused by our actions. He took our place in G-d's courtroom to save us from the destruction that awaited us.
After his death, he came back from death three days later, startling and completely shocking his downcast followers. He had one message, that they were to go into the world and repeat to them what had happened and what they had seen firsthand. They were to teach people from all races and nations who Messiah was and what he had done on their behalf. This small group of followers, emboldened by Messiah's apparent power over death itself, quickly spread the good news to all the known world. It cost almost every one of them their lives, as men hate to be confronted with truth, but those left continued to spread the message. The message has been passed down faithfully even to our day, when someone many years ago shared the message with me. And I now pass it on to you.
Through Messiah, you can have forgiveness. Your sins can be wiped away and G-d will not remember any of the former evil deeds you have done. Yeshua came to bring life and provide a path back to G-d.
In his words: "I am The Way, The Truth and The Life. No one comes to the Father except by me."
To this day, man still has the ability to choose. The penalty for sin is real and judgment is coming. If you identify with Yeshua, and become one with Messiah through confession of your sins to him and asking him to enter in your life, becoming baptised as one of his followers, then his death becomes yours and your sins will become forgiven. If not, then you must pay for your own sins at the cost of your destruction.
May you come to know the same Messiah I have known. There is much, much more to say about him, about Resurrection, his Coming Kingdom, prophecy, the spiritual reality, and many more things concerning the life he brings, but until you make that decision, I can only leave you here.
"Go in through the narrow gate, for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many there are who go in through it. But narrow is the gate and constricted is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it."
(Mat 7:13-14)
I've shown you the gate; where you go from here is your own choice.
-Atom
PS If you decide you want to follow Messiah, contact me and I'll tell you what to do next.
_________________
Atom at GuerrillaIndustry.com
Secta 7 - Defenders of tha Underground |
|
FAQ 
Search 
Memberlist 
Usergroups
Register
Profile 
P.M. 
Log in
