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Tree of LifePart 2

Life study 1

Yochanan 3 (John 3)

Wordofwisdom.co.uk

SummaryLife study 1 is a detailed look at John Ch3. In John there are two imperatives for gaining life: You must be born again and you must lift up the son of man. Life study one examines these foundational topocs and how they tie in with the Gan Eden story.

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Content

S’Mikhah

Identification

First Imperative

Revolution

Second Imperative

Tree of Life – Part 2

Life study 1: Yochanan 3

S’Mikhah

Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Judeans. The same came to him by night, and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do, unless God is with him.” John 3:1-2

Nakdimon (Nicodemus) night visit at the superficial level is a reflection of the fierceness of the division about Yeshua in the Sanhedrin. He came hidden by the cover of night, whilst other members of the Sanhedrin would challenge Yeshua openly about his legitimacy to teach.

He went into the Temple area; and as he was teaching, the head cohanim and the elders of the people approached him and demanded, "What s'mikhah do you have that authorizes you to do these things? And who gave you this s'mikhah?" Mat 21:23 CJB

Whilst Yeshua for his part in teaching and performing miracles without S’mikhah1 was seen to be undermining the foundations and the structure of Judaism. Ripping away at the fabric and the cohesion that held the Jewish people together. Nakdimon visit was not only a reflection of the division in the Sanhedrin it was a reflection of divisions in Yudah.

S’Mikhah is the transfer of spiritual power through the procedure known in Christianity as laying on of hands. It is at the heart of Judaism. S’mikhah was so powerfully demonstrated when used by Yischak (Isaac) to pass on the spiritual inherited line to Yaakov (Jacob), and bypassing his elder son Esau. The importance of S’Mikhah was reinforced by the Torah when it included the transference of sin from one creature to the other as seen in the principles of the scapegoat and other sin sacrifices.

The relationship between Nakdimon and Yeshua is one of S’Mikhah. When Moshe found the burden of rule and judgement too great to bear he appealed to the Almighty who ordered him to select seventy men and perform S’mikhah, whereupon, He would transfer some of the power that was upon Moshe on to the seventy men who would then be able to assist Moshe with the government and the judgement of Isra’el.

The names of the seventy were recorded and therein began what came to be known as ‘The great succession’. The people of Isra’el would turn to these seventy for advice on everything from crop planting, official times of the calendar for Sabbaths and feasts, to the

1 See article ‘S’Mikhah’ on www.wordofwisdom.co.uk

interpretations of the law. Because their judgements were held to be of a divine nature these men were accorded with respect as anointed of the Almighty. The seventy men were among the Sanhedrin as judges and rulers of Isra’el. Each member of the great succession would perform S’Mikhah on someone held to be worthy of his office before he died so that, in Isra’el, there would always be seventy men to support the people. And from one generation to the next the great succession maintained stability and continuity for Isra’el.

On this fateful night Nakdimon was being told about a very radical change in the structure and administration of the power of the spirit upon man. Nakdimon is of the order where the spirit is upon him individually and also upon his sixty-nine succession companions. It was an external affair, each man acting independently according to the understanding of the gift of the spirit, including the power to pass it on.

That power, which is the spirit of the Almighty was to be transferred from an external source (upon man) to the spirit within man, which started with Yeshua and would extend to his talmidim.

Nakdimon did not know, how could he? It is unlikely that anyone knew or understood the significance of Yeshua’s declaration that ‘he’ the source of all power must be lifted up. Even today most continue see the fulfilment in that statement when Yeshua was lifted up on the stake and killed. But it extended beyond his death into his resurrection as the one new man into whom all power is given by the Almighty, the source and the power of s’mikhah, without whom there is simply no transference of power.

After the resurrection it will be Yeshua that is lifted up, like Moshe lifted up the serpent in the desert. All power flow from him, without him nothing can be done. Believers in Yeshua are joined to him in immersion to become what is called a body1, his body. That body is manifested in a spiritual way, as gifts of the spirit2. Whereas before the individual with the spirit upon him may act in an individual way. Now in the body functions carried out by an individual is seen as the functions of a member or a part of the body. The body being Yeshua, to whom we have been joined as members. The action of a member is not an individual act it is the action of the whole body, for the body is one. In this construct, Yeshua is the head and we collectively are the members that make up his body. Hence it is a single, living, spiritual creature having one spirit, one body, and one hope.

The manifestation of the body would not come into being until after Yeshua’s resurrection. When it did, it came into immediate conflict with those of the Great succession and the Priesthood. They, who were the power of the Sanhedrin wanted members of the body, who had by that time began to call themselves ‘The Way’, to identify where their power to perform miracles came from, and having being told that it was through Yeshua. They forbade the use of the name Yeshua by members of The Way3.

The expansion of the expression of the spirit among ordinary unlearned folks. The spirit manifesting itself as miracles or as wisdom, increased the tension about divine legitimisation. In the end the long successors change the name from ‘S’Mikhah’ to ‘Minuuy’ to preserve their continuance. In doing so they rejected the expressed power of the spirit as not originating from the Almighty. The body / The Way maintained the title S’Mikhah as the

expression of the spirit through its members. S’mikhah is used within the body at such times when transference of power is required. It is used by an individual or as a group it is an expression of the whole body because the body is one.

Identification

The same came to him by night, and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do, unless God is with him.” John 3:2

All Isra’el were waiting for the Mashiach, whom Moshe and the prophets had declared would come. Nakdimon would have heard of the testimony of Yochanan the immerser, who declared Yeshua to be the lamb sent by the Almighty to take away the sins of mankind.4 He may even have heard Yeshua teach. Nakdimon interest as a teacher of Isra’el would certainly have been raised, but he was not convicted by the teachings or by the prophet Yochanan. He was convicted by the signs.

Even though the Almighty sent a prophet to make clear the way of the Mashiach, he had no need for any man to testify about him, his identification is the work of the spirit.5 According to the scriptures, there is an understandings that the knowledge of man is the output of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and, since the tree of the knowledge of good and evil has no understandings of the things pertaining to the tree of life, it follows that man could bear witness to the Mashiach, saying this is he, but that is as far as it goes. The Almighty had reserved the right to speak for himself.

It is conviction by the miracles that led Nakdimon to Yeshua. When the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is confronted with the tree of life and it cannot find an explanation for the workings of the tree of life, it expresses it as a miracle. After exploration and enquiry, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil will say “I do not know, I cannot explain it, it is a miraculous work”.

There are very many wondrous things done by man based on the knowledge that he has acquired and passed on. Before the onslaught of Christianity on magic based religions, magic was a key institutional part of most societies, it was intrinsic to their religions and their social order.6 It remains active within many of today’s societies.7 The magical fabric of the ancient Babylonian ziggurats8, the political reliance upon it among the Egyptians as seen in the time of Moshe when the magicians stood up against the Almighty, 9 are examples of the central place magic occupied10.

It was not solely the witch hunts and purges of the church that shifted Western societies away from magic, it was the reasoning and the enlightenment of the 17th Century leading to the Renaissance in art, in literature and in philosophical thought that gave rise to scientific rationalisation. Rationality pushed back the boundaries of religion and created new avenues of exploration, manifesting in the growth of technology which is the companion to science. Through science and technology, the accumulative learning, and the testing of, rather than,

resisting hypothesis has seen a phenomenal growth and acceleration in human understanding and knowhow.

In other words, science and technology has pushed the tree of the knowledge of good and evil into a vast expansion. It is the belief of many that everything is possible, everything is knowable. Either now or in the future as science continue to breakdown the doors of ignorance and darkness. But there remains the problem of the expressions of the tree of life which the tree of knowledge of good and evil cannot penetrate not through its magic or through science and technology.

The workings of the tree of life is profound and its mechanisms are obscured beyond the reasoning of hypothesis and magic can only mimic so far.11 Each of its manifestations operate at several levels providing information as a teacher throughout the generations of man, whilst meeting some local need. For example; Manna is an object, and an event prophecy speaking of the nature of provisions made not by might, nor by power but by the spirit. It is an expression of the Spirit of the Almighty. The tree of life is an expression of the spirit of the Almighty. Every time the tree of the knowledge of good and evil shout ‘miracle’, it is saying I do not understand the Almighty. The demonstrations of the spirit go beyond possibilities to the realm where everything is possible. When Moshe lifted up his rod, the sea parted and the seabed dried up for safe pedestrian traffic. When Yohushua (Joshua) lifted up his hands the sun and the moon stood still in the skies and defied all the laws of nature. At Isaiah command the sundial moved back one hour, every explanation of this event errs on the ridiculous. There are no scientific explanation of a man entering a room through stone walls. The raising of a man from the edge of death are now frequent observations in operating theatres and casualty departments but all laws of physical understanding cannot comprehend the renewing of a man whose rotten corpse is beginning to stink as in the case of Lazarus. Neither the physics nor the economics of feeding 5000 people with a few loaves and fishes.

It is on this premise that wise Nakdimon, teacher of Isra’el stood, when he crept out by night to see Yeshua. His thoughts reduced to the simple facts “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do, unless God is with him”.

First ImperativeYeshua answered him, “Most certainly, I tell you, unless one is born anew, he can’t see God’s Kingdom.” John 3:3

Nakdimon lived long before the emergence of the scientific and technological age. He would have been aware of magic that was common place, but the Torah requires that he shunned it. His high office meant that he would have been one of the great successor that had received S’mikhah. His office would have been honoured by the Almighty whose spirit would have upheld him as a teacher.

This meeting by night must not be underestimated. Nakdimon was the equivalent of a Minister of State, who for political reasons came by night to consult someone whom he believes to be a messenger of the Almighty. He gets straight to the point by declaring that the signs that Yeshua does confirms to him that Yeshua is a messenger from the Almighty. “Now what has the messenger of the Almighty got to tell me?

What Yeshua tells him, throws him into utter confusion because although Nakdimon receives of the spirit of the Almighty as a teacher, his teachings are limited to earthly things. His own reasoning is from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He is thrown immediately out of his depth. He needs help from the tree of life to make sense of what is being said. Unknown to Nakdimon, Yeshua has opened his conversation by speaking about resolving the loss life to mankind when he was barred from Gan Eden. For mankind there is simply no subject of more importance. The few words that Yeshua speaks escalates the discussion to one of the most important in human history.

“Most certainly I tell you, unless one is born of water and spirit, he can’t enter into God’s Kingdom. That which is born of the flesh is flesh. That which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Don’t marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born anew.’ The wind blows where it wants to, and you hear its sound, but don’t know where it comes from and where it is going. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” John 3: 5-8

Previous prophets have pointed to the Mashiach and urged Isra’el to hear him when he comes. The first message of the Mashiach is that in order for man to enter into the everlasting kingdom the condition of Gan Eden must be fulfilled and upheld. When man was barred from Gan Eden his flesh had been quickened unto life through the eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil through which sin came alive in him and reigned through his flesh. He was barred from the garden as a living soul with a sin activated flesh and a spirit lacking the resources necessary for it to give or sustain eternal life.

There was no remedy, all mankind was sold to death. What Yeshua is saying to Nakdimon is, the Almighty has a solution. The conditions have not changed, man’s spirit must be activated, in order that he may have life, his spirit must come to life. Man must be born again. First man was a living soul, then his flesh was born to sin, now the message is that his spirit must be born also. This is the third development in man. The development of his spirit. The tree of life as he understood it, is not standing before him. The messenger is saying that the Spirit of the Almighty has become the means whereby the spirit of man may be activated into life. Therefore, in every way for man the Spirit of the Almighty has become the Tree of life. From the day Adam was barred from Gan Eden until Yeshua spoke to Nakdimon, there was no availability of life, no tree, no solution for death. But the moment Yeshua uttered those words he fired the beginning of a revolution, a torch was lit and a pathway to life was opened.

In Gan Eden the Almighty acted very quickly to put a barricade between man and the tree of life so that he could not have life. Now his messenger is saying, it is possible for man to have life. The mechanism to give birth to the spirit of man is being made available by the Almighty, who has poured his spirit, without measure into a man, whom he called his

unique son. This man, his son, has been sent as the life of man. He has become the objective tree of life.12

The mechanism is all important, its implications are that the spirit of the Almighty without measure has been joined to the spirit of a man, which suggest that the Almighty himself is occupying the man in order to give man the life. He is making available the life, which is himself. He has joined himself to the spirit of one man and is ready to join himself to other men. The first man that he joined himself to, became the son of the Most High. As is the prototype so likewise everyone that the spirit of the Almighty joins himself, will become a son.

But there remains the condition of Gan Eden, a condition of trust. The advice of the prophets was that when the Mashiach comes, ‘hear him’. Adam in Gan Eden did not trust the Almighty, he was swayed by the arguments of the serpent. Now the same condition applies ‘He that believes in me, though he were dead yet shall he live’. The failure of the first man Adam was a lack of belief. The basis of deliverance from death is belief.

As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life. John 3:14-15

Adam’s failure of belief to the categorical statement that the day you eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you will die. He ate of it and sin slew him. Now the Almighty puts deliverance before man by saying whosoever believes in his unique son, who is filled without measure with the Ruach HaKodesh. Proven to be his son by the miracles performed by the spirit within him. If we believe in him, we will live. If we don’t believe in him, we deny the life that overcomes the spirit of death and sin. Our condemnation is complete we have rejected the life given by the Almighty 13.

Revolution

The conventions of S’mikhah had served its purpose in providing a visual display in the administration and transfer of spiritual power. It is intertwined in the life of Isra’el, in family life, in the declarations of inheritance and in the procedure and performance of sin offerings by the father or (in the fathers’ absence) the eldest son, with the placing of the hand on the offered sacrifice. It is expressed in the anointing of the priesthood. And it is the entry into the administrative process of the senior judiciary that is maintained by the long succession. Now the whole concept of s’mikhah is set to undergo transformation.

The declaration by Yeshua that the spirit of man is to be activated by the Ruach HaKodesh has far reaching implications for all mankind, for Nakdimon and for Isra’el. The belief in Yeshua as a condition for the Ruach HaKodesh is a significant barrier. This barrier is managed exclusively by the Ruach HaKodesh and is immediately detrimental to the long succession. The spiritual power that operated upon man will from Yeshua onwards operate from within the spirit of man, thus rendering the long succession powerless.

A greater work is afoot. By shifting the power of S’mikhah to the prerequisite of belief it becomes a potential gift to all mankind; no longer just a paradigm of Isra’el. It is a revolutionary step in the transition from Isra’el the nation created by linage, to a new spiritual nation made up of both Jews and Gentiles that are believers in Yeshua14. The division that existed between Jews and Gentile shifts in the sight of the Almighty to a division of ‘belief and unbelief’ regardless of race, creed or origins. With a stark declaration that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life. Unbelief stands behind a blockade which denies the unbeliever access to the tree of life.

And yet it is not the Almighty’s will that any should perish, on the contrary he sent his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life. We do not stand in judgement of the Judges of Isra’el, the men of the long succession, gifted with the gift of judgement by the Almighty. That is just not our place. But, it is hard to understand such hardness of heart, when, after Yeshua’s resurrection his talmidim started to express the power of the Ruach HaKodesh in ways that far transcended the gift of judgement which the long succession was given. The talmidim were healing the sick, raising the dead and doing wonderful miracles in Yeshua’ name. The response of the long successors was to marginalise ‘The Way’ and try to destroy it, and turn Isra’el against it. The least understandable of all their actions was that they wanted to, and did, make a differentiation between the S’mikhah of the long succession and the expressed power in Yeshua’s name by changing the name of the laying on of hands that they perform from S’mikhah to Minuuy. Thus rejecting the Ruach HaKodesh and his power.

Second imperative

If I told you earthly things and you don’t believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven but he who descended out of heaven, the Son of Man, who is in heaven. As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life. John 3: 12-15

There are two imperatives in Yochanan 3. The first is that we must be born again. The second is that the Son of Man must be lifted up. Herein the scriptures define Son of Man as heavenly and clarifies itself by making clear that no man has ascended into heaven, for heaven is not the domain of human flesh, it is a spiritual entity. Nothing has gone up into heaven, but someone has descended from heaven, and given that heaven is a spiritual place it follows, that which descended is spiritual. The spiritual has come down from heaven and joined himself to a man whom he calls his only and unique son. The man Yeshua was human and divine. This is the fulfilment of the paradox of Isaiah ch9:

For to us a child is born. To us a son is given; and the government will be on his shoulders. His name will be called Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there shall be no end, on David’s throne, and on his kingdom, to establish it, and to uphold it with justice and with

righteousness from that time on, even forever. The zeal of the LORD of Hosts will perform this. Isa 9:6-7

A human child who is identified by name holding the titles of, Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. To lift up the Son of Man is to lift up the Everlasting Father, the Almighty and the role occupied by Yeshua as Prince of peace. For forty years Isra’el had no difficulty accepting that the Almighty could be in the cloud by day and the fire by night which they followed. Now Isra’el and the whole world is being told that the Almighty has attached his spirit without measure to a man15.

To lift up the Son of Man is to lift up the man Yeshua with the Ruach as a single entity. The tripartite man of Gan Eden is completed. The flesh has been activated, the spirit of the man is brought to life with the Spirit of the Almighty, And the control which is the prerogative of the living soul has submitted himself completely to the spirit. The promise of life to man hitherto unobtainable because of sin within the flesh and the absence of a spirit of life is resolved in Yeshua. This is the only man, in the history of mankind, that fulfils the criterion for life. If he is lifted up as the life and he does not resurrect from the dead, never to die again, then he would have been an absolute failure. Mankind has had enough of the supply of death, he needed at least one person to rise from the dead to give hope and assurance in the tree of life. That being done Yeshua has accomplished his mission to draw all men to him. As many as believed in him he has given the promise of life.

Raising the spectacle

Lifting up a tortured body nailed onto a post for all the world to see is the manifest power of the State. It is the legal and legitimate expression of crime management. Under the laws of Rome, the raising of Yeshua was controversial because he was declared to be innocent by the man who washed his hands, in symbolic gesture, to satisfy himself of his own innocence in the conviction; before he turned Yeshua over to the Jews to slay him.

Under the Torah the hanging upon a tree is a curse, as such the rulers of Yudah should have done all that was in their power to deliver Yeshua from the stake, instead they demanded it. And although no guilt was found worthy of death. Yet still, Yeshua, as does all mankind, carry within their bodies the sin of Adam and the wages of sin is inexcusable, unpardonable, death. It is inescapable, if we are born, we will die because of the sin committed in Gan Eden. So there was no protest from Yeshua, in his body that was lifted up there was sin and therefore he was guilty of death. As the scriptures declared he was like a lamb to the slaughter. Without defence, without protestation, without hesitation he paid the price for the sin of the flesh, which is death of the body of sin. And he was staked and lifted up.

Although the spirit of the Almighty, which is the spirit of life, was joined to him. Without the payment of the debt of sin, there could be no resolve. So the spectacle, an open show, a body lifted upon a stake with fierce angry men making demands for his death. But as the scriptures declare he was bruised for our transgressions, he himself did not transgress but he bore our shame, our curses and our sins upon the stake. It was an open declaration, for if one man dies and he is raised back to life from the dead, there would be a solution to the problem of death. A door would be opened for all mankind to also rise up from the dead.

The conversation with Nakdimon goes beyond the raising of the dead. For all men will be raised from the dead to face a judgement.16 But not all men will be given the life. The principle of Gan Eden is also applied to the everlasting kingdom, the key to enter is ‘The life’. Without The life man is barred from entry. To receive the life, the Son of Man must be lifted up, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life. The lifting up of Yeshua to slay him was a grotesque struggle for power. But lifting him like Moshe lifted up the serpent is a struggle for life.

The people spoke against God and against Moses: “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no bread, there is no water, and our soul loathes this disgusting food! ” The LORD sent venomous snakes among the people, and they bit the people. Many people of Israel died. The people came to Moses, and said, “We have sinned, because we have spoken against the LORD and against you. Pray to the LORD, that he takes away the serpents from us.” Moses prayed for the people. The LORD said to Moses, “Make a venomous snake, and set it on a pole. It shall happen that everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” Moses made a serpent of bronze, and set it on the pole. If a serpent had bitten any man, when he looked at the serpent of bronze, he lived. Num 21:5-9

Isra’el knew that it was their sin that brought death into the camp. Many searching conversations about the problem of the snakes among them and a way forward to resolve the problem left them with the only solution, to own up to their sins and seek help from the Almighty. The making of the brazen serpent and the ordering of the team of men to keep the serpent continuously elevated, would have been carried out with great expediency; It was a matter of life and death. Likewise, the urgency in the camp when someone was struck by the serpent. There would be no greater urgency to clear a pathway for the victim to have access of view. Either obstacles would be hurriedly removed or the victim would be quickly brought to the point where a clear visual path and contact would be made. Then the miracle occurred. Through no effort on the part of the victim apart from belief and obedience to look upon the serpent, his life would be spared.

The illustration is clear. The elevated serpent was an object prophecy that spared life but could not actually give life because all those that were spared were to die again. The lifting up of Yeshua is to elevate him so that they that believe in him may have the life. Even though they die, yet shall they live. This is the true life, the everlasting life, the that came down from heaven. The Almighty’s great gift to mankind.

1 There is one body and one Spirit, even as you also were called in one hope of your calling, Eph 4:42

For even as we have many members in one body, and all the members don’t have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Messiah, and individually members of one another, having gifts differing according to the grace that was given to us: if prophecy, let’s prophesy according to the proportion of our faith; or service, let’s give ourselves to service; or he who teaches, to his teaching; or he who exhorts, to his exhorting; he who gives, let him do it with generosity; he who rules, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness. Rom 12:4-83

In the morning, their rulers, elders, and scribes were gathered together in Jerusalem. Annas the high priest was there, with Caiaphas, Yochanan, Alexander, and as many as were relatives of the high priest. When they had stood Peter and Yochanan in the middle of them, they inquired, “By what power, or in what name, have you done this?”Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “You rulers of the people, and elders of Israel, if we are examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, may it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that in the name of Yeshua the Messiah of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, in him does this man stand here before you whole. He is ‘the stone which was regarded as worthless by you, the builders, which has become the head of the corner.’ There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven that is given among men, by which we must be saved!” Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and Yochanan, and had perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled. They recognized that they had been with Yeshua. Seeing the man who was healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it. But when they had commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred among themselves, saying, “What shall we do to these men? Because indeed a notable miracle has been done through them, as can be plainly seen by all who dwell in Jerusalem, and we can’t deny it. But so that this spreads no further among the people, let’s threaten them, that from now on they don’t speak to anyone in this name.” They called them, and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Yeshua. But Peter and Yochanan answered them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, judge for yourselves, for we can’t help telling the things which we saw and heard.” Acts 4:5-204

The next day, he saw Yeshua coming to him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who is preferred before me, for he was before me.’ I didn’t know him, but for this reason I came immersing in water: that he would be revealed to Israel.” Yochanan testified, saying, “I have seen the Spirit descending like a dove out of heaven, and it remained on him. I didn’t recognize him, but he who sent me to immerse in water said to me, ‘On whomever you will see the Spirit descending and remaining on him is he who immerses in the Holy Spirit.’ I have seen, and have testified that this is the Son of God.” John 1:29-345

“When the Counsellor has come, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will testify about me. John 15:266

But there was a certain man, Simon by name, who used to practice sorcery in the city and amazed the people of Samaria, making himself out to be some great one, to whom they all listened, from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is that great power of God.” They listened to him, because for a long time he had amazed them with his sorceries. Acts 8:9-117

They didn’t repent of their murders, their sorceries, their sexual immorality, or their thefts. Rev 9:218

In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams; and his spirit was troubled, and his sleep went from him. Then the king commanded that the magicians, the enchanters, the sorcerers, and the Kasdim be called to tell the king his dreams. Dan 2:1-29

” The LORD said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Stretch out your hand with your rod over the rivers, over the streams, and over the pools, and cause frogs to come up on the land of Egypt.’ ” Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt; and the frogs came up, and covered the land of Egypt. The magicians did the same thing with their enchantments, and brought up frogs on the land of Egypt. Exo 8:5-710

The evil spirit answered, “Yeshua I know, and Paul I know, but who are you?” The man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. This became known to all, both Jews and Greeks, who lived at Ephesus. Fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Yeshua was magnified. Many also of those who had believed came, confessing, and declaring their deeds. Many of those who practiced magical arts brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. They counted their price, and found it to be fifty thousand pieces of silver. So the word of the Lord was growing and

becoming mighty. Acts 19:15-2011

The LORD said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Stretch out your rod, and strike the dust of the earth, that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt.’ ” They did so; and Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod, and struck the dust of the earth, and there were lice on man, and on animal; all the dust of the earth became lice throughout all the land of Egypt. The magicians tried with their enchantments to produce lice, but they couldn’t. There were lice on man, and on animal. Then the magicians said to Pharaoh, “This is God’s finger;” but Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he didn’t listen to them, as the LORD had spoken. Exo 8:16-1912

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the farmer. John 15:113

He who believes in him is not judged. He who doesn’t believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God. This is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light; for their works were evil. John 3:18-1914

Therefore, remember your former state: you Gentiles by birth - called the Uncircumcised by those who, merely because of an operation on their flesh, are called the Circumcised - at that time had no Messiah. You were estranged from the national life of Isra'el. You were foreigners to the covenants embodying God's promise. You were in this world without hope and without God. But now, you who were once far off have been brought near through the shedding of the Messiah's blood. For he himself is our shalom - he has made us both one and has broken down the m'chitzah which divided us by destroying in his own body the enmity occasioned by the Torah, with its commands set forth in the form of ordinances. He did this in order to create in union with himself from the two groups a single new humanity and thus make shalom, Eph 2:11-15 CJB15

Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us.” Yeshua said to him, “Have I been with you such a long time, and do you not know me, Philip? He who has seen me has seen the Father. How do you say, ‘Show us the Father?’ Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? The words that I tell you, I speak not from myself; but the Father who lives in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me; or else believe me for the very works’ sake. John 14: 8-1116

I saw a great white throne, and him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. There was found no place for them. I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and they opened books. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged out of the things which were written in the books, according to their works. The sea gave up the dead who were in it. Death and Sheol gave up the dead who were in them. They were judged, each one according to his works. Rev 20:11-13