Prosperity and Arrogance

Can Success Lead Us Away from the Creator?

by with No Comment Biblical Studies
If our children hear us take full credit for every success, they may learn to see life as a pursuit of recognition. If they see us work diligently while remaining grateful, they will understand that achievement is an opportunity to honor Yehovah.

Yehovah warns His people about a quiet danger that often appears when hardship gives way to abundance: forgetting the One who provided it.

Scripture says:

When you have eaten and are satisfied, you shall bless Yehovah your Elohim for the good land He has given you… You may say in your heart, ‘My power and the strength of my hand have produced this wealth for me.’ But you shall remember Yehovah your Elohim, for it is He who gives you the power to produce wealth.

Deuteronomy 8:10–18

When resources are scarce and the future is uncertain, we often call upon the Creator daily. Once financial stability arrives, a promotion is secured, or a long-awaited goal is achieved, however, it becomes easy to think, “I accomplished this through my own strength.”

Hard work matters. Scripture does not encourage laziness or deny personal responsibility. It reminds us that our ability to work, learn, persevere, and prosper ultimately comes from Yehovah. He gives us life, health, understanding, strength, and opportunity.

Our achievements may require discipline and sacrifice, but they are never entirely self-created.

Recognizing the Source

Yosef, the son of Ya’akov, went from being sold into slavery to becoming second in authority over Egypt. When Pharaoh asked him to interpret his dreams, Yosef could have used the opportunity to promote himself. Instead, he answered:

It is not in me; Elohim will give Pharaoh an answer of peace.

Genesis 41:16

Yosef did not deny his gift; he identified its Source. He understood that wisdom and discernment had been entrusted to him by the Most High.

This is the proper response to success. We should develop our abilities, pursue excellence, and accept responsibility while remembering that we could accomplish nothing without the life and capacity Yehovah first gave us.

Grace and Human Effort

Yeshua demonstrated perfect dependence upon the Father:

The Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do.

John 5:19

Although Yeshua performed extraordinary signs and wonders, He never used His authority for self-glorification. His works revealed the Father and advanced His purposes.

The apostle Paul expressed the same principle:

By the grace of Elohim I am what I am… I labored more abundantly than they all—yet not I, but the grace of Elohim which was with me.

1 Corinthians 15:10

Paul worked diligently, but he understood that grace empowered his labor. Biblical gratitude is not passive. It does not mean waiting for Yehovah to do everything for us. It means working faithfully with the strength, opportunity, and grace He provides.

Blessed for a Purpose

Esther was placed in a position of influence “for such a time as this” (Esther 4:14). Her privilege was not merely a reward for personal enjoyment; it carried responsibility. She risked her life to protect her people because she recognized that her position served a purpose greater than herself.

Our blessings also carry responsibility. Financial prosperity can enable generosity. Professional influence can help us defend what is right. Education can equip us to teach others. A personal testimony can encourage someone facing the same trial we once endured.

The question is not simply, “What have I achieved?” but, “Why has Yehovah entrusted this to me, and how can I use it faithfully?”

Teaching the Next Generation

We must also pass this understanding to our children. If they hear us take full credit for every success, they may learn to see life as a pursuit of recognition. If they see us work diligently while remaining grateful, they will understand that achievement is an opportunity to honor Yehovah.

We can teach this by praying together when a goal is reached, thanking the Creator during important celebrations, sharing biblical examples of gratitude, and using our blessings to serve others.

A final thought

Prosperity becomes dangerous when it convinces us that we no longer need the One who made it possible. But it becomes an act of worship when every achievement leads us toward greater humility, generosity, and faithfulness.

As Proverbs 3:6 teaches:

In all your ways acknowledge Him,
and He shall direct your paths.

May success never cause us to forget Yehovah. Instead, may every blessing become another opportunity to declare:

To Him be all the glory!

Shalom!

Escaping from the Beast

How to Escape the Beast System

by with No Comment Biblical StudiesHebrew Insights
When the Beast system tightens its grip, believers must discern when to fight, when to flee, and how to overcome fear by placing their trust in the eternal Kingdom of Yehovah.

With governments imposing increasing regulations and restrictions on people around the world—conditions that more closely resemble the dystopian nightmare portrayed in George Orwell’s 1984 with each passing day—it can be difficult to hold on to the hope that things will get better.

Those of us who believe in biblical prophecy know that good ultimately triumphs, although we sometimes forget this or fail to remain fully aware of it. Another point to consider is exactly how long evil will be allowed to reign: how long the night will last before daylight comes, and how long we will endure tribulation before reaching that Promised Land, metaphorically speaking.

First, to Put Things into Perspective: There Is Nothing New Under the Sun

For each of us, our own trials and challenges are “the most difficult.” We experience life from a first-person perspective and tend to think that our problems are the worst. This same distortion in perspective can be projected onto a community or even the entire world.

As a result, we assume that the problems affecting us today are the worst in human history: the most tyrannical governments, the most violent climate events, the greatest levels of moral depravity, and so forth. But the truth is that there is nothing new under the sun. The evils afflicting the world today have existed since the earliest days of human history!

As soon as there were two human beings, envy and jealousy were born. With the rise of the first communities came hierarchies of power, which were later corrupted by the carnal ambition for power and dominion. This eventually produced the desire to conquer and control other communities.

Nations and empires were established, and during the past 250 years, we have developed the more familiar concept of the State. It resembles the systems mentioned above, except that we live under a democratic system in which, in my opinion, there is an illusion of choice—and the hope of positive change that people continue expecting will arrive someday.

Three Types of Responses

Whenever we face a threat, there are three ways in which we respond: fight, flight, or freeze. These responses involve involuntary physiological changes in the body and mind when a person feels threatened. They exist to keep people safe by preparing them to confront, escape, or hide from danger.

I want to examine these three responses in relation to the threat we currently face.

Fight

If we decide to fight against the Beast system, the desire is a noble one. Many people throughout history have fought physically to preserve freedom and fundamental rights, whether at the family, community, or national level.

This does not always mean overthrowing an entire government. It may simply mean preserving order within our own neighborhood, defending the helpless, and promoting justice.

An important point to remember with this response is that we must choose our battles. Although there are many righteous causes, we should invest our time in fighting for the things to which we are directly connected—situations in which we actually have the power to bring about tangible change.

Flight

It is wise to recognize when there are no more battles to fight, when we are hopelessly outnumbered, or when the war has simply been lost. If we were to face another crisis like the one we experienced in years past, and we were living with our family in New York City, San Francisco, or a similar place where vaccination mandates without exemptions were imposed for attending school, sporting events, or even entering a restaurant, it would be sensible to develop a plan for changing our circumstances.

This might include moving to another city, withdrawing our children from the conventional school system, or taking other appropriate measures. In such a situation, “flight” might be precisely what the moment requires. A family or individual may also flee a country where they are under threat, whether in search of economic opportunity or simply to preserve their physical safety. This is one of the primary reasons people have migrated from one place to another throughout the generations.

I want to emphasize that these two responses—fight and flight—are not mutually exclusive. Our response to a threat may change according to the circumstances. Yeshua instructed His disciples to buy a sword, and later rebuked Peter for using one. There is a time for peace and a time for war.

Freeze

This type of response to a threat is really the absence of a response. When confronted by fear, confusion, shock, or a lack of motivation, our nervous system can freeze, leaving us motionless and defenseless before the threat.

This is the reaction that those in power want to impose upon the population. That is why the news broadcasts fear and uncertainty. That is why, during the two years of the pandemic, information released by government sources was consistently confusing, fatalistic, or both. And that is why it is no coincidence that paralysis is the state in which much of the population now finds itself.

Escaping the System

When Yeshua walked through Judea and Galilee, the Roman Empire exercised control over the land. It collected taxes, controlled transportation and movement, imposed restrictions of every kind, and decided who lived and who died.

It was within this very setting that Yeshua preached about the Kingdom of Heaven. Everyone expected redemption to take place at that moment, delivering them from unbearable Roman oppression through political change and the coronation of a Jewish king—Yeshua—over Israel. The Messiah, however, was speaking about another Kingdom.

It was a Kingdom that could be entered at that very moment, regardless of who might be the emperor or president of a nation. It is a Kingdom that cannot be harmed by human hands or weakened by the passage of time. It existed before Creation and will continue to exist when everything else has come to an end: the Kingdom of Heaven, the Kingdom of God.

To escape the Beast system, we must first become conscious of the fact that whatever may happen around us on planet Earth, within this physical world, does not diminish in the slightest the Creator’s power and sovereignty over the entire universe.

Second, it is imperative that we do not fear. This is a COMMANDMENT that appears dozens of times throughout Scripture, often accompanied by the means through which we overcome fear: courage.

“Be strong and courageous!” the Creator told Joshua before he entered the Promised Land.

Fear is a mechanism through which our brain helps protect us from danger. But there are moments when overcoming that fear is the only way to defeat the obstacle before us. Overcoming fear and adversity is precisely what makes us stronger, wiser, and more resilient.

Conclusion

Good times create weak men;

weak men create hard times;

hard times create strong men;

strong men create good times.

What afflicts us is not only the Beast system, but also our own helplessness and passivity in confronting it.

Whether we must fight—through physical, legal, mental, or spiritual means—or whether we must flee, it is important to take an honest look at our circumstances and then make the appropriate decisions based on prayer, wise counsel, and rational thought.

For others, however, all that may be required to escape the system is simply turning off the television and limiting their use of phones and social media.

Obey before understand

Returning to Eden’s Choice

by with No Comment Biblical Studies
In many respects, the entire story of Scripture is the account of what Yehovah has done to give humanity another opportunity to return to the place where our forefather Adam first turned away from Him.

Throughout Scripture—but especially in the Torah (the Pentateuch)—we find laws and commandments that, at first glance, seem difficult to understand. Some may even appear arbitrary. Indeed, many of the decrees Yehovah gave His people are not fully explained. Yet every one of them has a purpose. Even when we cannot immediately understand that purpose, we can be certain that, at the very least, they reveal something about our willingness to obey—that is, our willingness to follow the instructions of our Creator.

We need only return to the Garden of Eden. There, Yehovah gave Adam a simple command:

And Yehovah Elohim commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

Genesis 2:16–17

Now imagine for a moment what today’s culture might have said had it witnessed that scene. Some would argue, “If the tree is there, why shouldn’t he eat from it?” Others might call it psychological abuse to deny access to something desirable. Some would even claim that warning Adam of death was manipulation or bullying.

Yet there was a reason for that command. Humanity was created to live in dependence upon Yehovah, trusting Him completely. Adam needed the opportunity to demonstrate that trust by choosing whether or not to follow his Creator’s instructions. After all, Yehovah had given him life and provided everything he could possibly need. Obedience was never intended to limit his freedom; it was the natural expression of his trust in the One who had created him. Sadly, we know the rest of the story. Instead of trusting Yehovah, mankind chose independence from its Creator.

The Purpose of Learning Obedience

In many respects, the entire story of Scripture is the account of what Yehovah has done to give humanity another opportunity to return to the place where our forefather Adam first turned away from Him. Through the work of Yeshua, each of us is now invited to make a different choice—to place our own ideas of good and evil back into Yehovah’s hands and acknowledge that His wisdom is greater than ours.

That restoration includes something many people find difficult to accept: learning to obey instructions whose purpose we do not yet fully understand.

For example, why was the fire on the altar to burn continually even when no sacrifices were being offered (Leviticus 6:12)? Why was the grain offering to consist of one-tenth of an ephah of flour (Leviticus 6:20) instead of one-quarter, one-half, or a full ephah? What is wrong with eating pork when modern farming follows strict sanitary standards? Why should we observe the Shabbat or Yehovah’s appointed times? Wouldn’t sincere intentions be enough?

Questions like these can be raised about almost every commandment in the Torah. Yet they all overlook the central issue. As Yehovah’s people, we must be trained to follow His instructions. We must learn obedience.

This is far more important than many realize, because the entire universe operates according to the order Yehovah established. Every part of creation functions within that order and faithfully follows the boundaries He has set. The only exceptions are HaSatan, the rebellious hosts that followed him, and fallen humanity.

The principle is no different from raising children. Loving parents teach their children to obey and respect authority, not because they enjoy imposing rules, but because they understand that a child who is never taught self-control eventually becomes a danger both to himself and to everyone around him.

Free Will and Our Ultimate Choice

Free will was given to us for precisely this reason: so that we might have the opportunity to make the right choices. But those choices cannot be based on our own opinions about what is good or evil. We must learn to discern right from wrong according to the standards Yehovah established in His Torah. Our opinions are not the measure of truth.

As our Creator, the Owner of all things, and the Supreme Judge of the universe, Yehovah has every right to establish the rules by which those who live in His creation should live. More than that, He lovingly tells us what the consequences of our choices will be, because as the Designer of life itself, He alone understands the cause-and-effect relationship built into everything He has made. When we choose not to obey Him, we do not harm Him—we only harm ourselves.

In the end, the choice remains ours. We can embrace His instructions and walk according to His standards, or we can dismiss them as unreasonable—even label them as bullying—and create standards of our own.

What cannot be avoided, however, is that one day every one of us will stand before Him. And if we have chosen the latter path, we will have to convince the Creator of the universe that He was wrong, that His laws were unjust, and that our judgment was wiser than His.

That will be an argument no one will ever win.

The choice is yours.