God's Signature

Have you ever wondered what Jesus meant when he said, “I am the Alpha and the Omega”? I think we have some idea that this is just another way of saying, “I am the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” And that is correct, certainly, but He is really saying so much more. Jesus is saying, “I am the signature of God.”

As you are aware, most of the New Testament was originally written in the ancient Greek. However, Jesus spoke Aramaic. So, while John writes in Revelation, “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” what Jesus would have said was, “I am the ALEPH and the TAV.”

Alpha is the first letter of the Greek alphabet, Omega is the last. The first letter of the Hebrew alphabet is the Aleph, the last is the Tav. But the essence of what Jesus meant is lost in translation.

This phrase, “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” first appears in Revelation 1:8 and last appears in Revelation 22:13. However, the depiction of Jesus as the Aleph and the Tav is first made in Genesis 1:1. When Jesus says to John before the grand revelation, “I am the Aleph and the Tav,” He is, in fact, referencing the first sentence of the Bible, and, in the process, clarifying a mystery that has existed since the Torah was first written.

The first sentence of the Bible is most frequently translated, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” The original Hebrew reads as follows (remember, Hebrew reads right to left):

Right in the middle is an untranslated word. In fact, it is untranslatable because it is not a word at all. It is simply the ALEPH and the TAV. Why? It seems very strange. This is a mystery to rabbis and mystics as well.

Actually, it is to this ALEPH and TAV that Jesus was referring. Just as the book of Revelation begins and ends with Jesus saying, “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” so too does the Bible.

The Hebrew alphabet has 22 letters or characters. This is reflected in the 22 chapters of Revelation. “I am the Aleph and the Tav” is a clue to this parallel. That there are 22 letters in the Hebrew alphabet necessarily means that 22 letters are sufficient for what God needs to say, otherwise there would be more.

When John writes, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.”John 1:1. Jesus as “the Word” is really Jesus as every word: the ALEPH and the TAV and everything in between (the whole Bible).

In Hebrew, the first sentence in the Bible is comprised of seven words. Within those seven words, the ancient Hebrew pictographs tell the story of the entire Bible. The seven words needed to depict the entire Bible parallel the seven days needed for creation.

The first three words are all about Jesus (1) as Messiah, (2) as creator, and (3) as the shepherd. The last three words contain all of God’s covenants, old and new. However, right in the middle is this untranslatable Aleph-Tav. Actually, this is the most important part.

The ancient Hebrew pictograph for the letter Aleph is an ox head, meaning strength or God, as in “the Lord is my strength”. The pictograph for the letter Tav is two crossed sticks, meaning a mark or covenant. Therefore, when Jesus says, “I am the Aleph and the Tav,” what He is saying is that He is the MARK of GOD, or God’s signature. When God has Moses write the Aleph and the Tav into Genesis 1:1, what God is saying is, “You see, this Jesus, He is the Messiah who is going to die on the cross for your salvation, He is the creator who was in the beginning, He is the shepherd prophesied about in the Old Testament. He is My Word, He is My Covenant, He is My Signature.”

In contract law, it is the signature of the person to be bound that is required. We have God’s contract, and it is signed, sealed and delivered. What more could we ask for.

In The Beginning

In the original Hebrew alphabet, each pictograph represented a letter of the alphabet, a number, and had a symbolic meaning. By looking at those pictographs, a richer, deeper understanding of the text is gained.

Barasheet is spelled in Hebrew BET, RESH, ALEPH, SHIN, YOD & TAV.

BET (the equivalent of our letter B, depicted in the ancient Hebrew pictographs as a house or tent, symbolically meaning “house” as in a lineage; RESH (R), depicted as a man’s head, meaning the first or highest person; ALEPH (A), depicted as an ox head, meaning strength or God, as in, “the Lord is my strength;” SHIN (S or Sh), depicted as two teeth, meaning to consume or destroy; YOD (Y), depicted as an arm from the elbow to the fist, meaning “my” or efforts or works; and TAV (T), depicted as two crossed sticks, meaning mark or covenant.

The first two letters of Barasheet BET and RESH together form the Hebrew/Aramaic word “bar” or “son.” So, when we look at the ancient Hebrew pictographs, we see that “In the beginning” is actually a graphic depiction of the SON of GOD being CONSUMED/DESTROYED with his HANDS on a CROSS. The slides show the modern Hebrew letter, the name of the letter, the symbolic meaning, what is pictured in the pictograph (in parentheses), and the pictograph itself.

The traditional belief that the first prophecy in scripture is in Genesis 3 is actually incorrect, and that it is, “In the beginning.” I believe the most powerful and creative force in the universe is the spoken word of God. If so, by its very nature, it must be prophetic especially in view of God’s creativity. God not only created the universe, but in speaking, He created language, an alphabet, math and science, and everything else.

In Genesis 3, the “first prophecy” is God cursing the serpent saying,

And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.

“In the beginning,” the very nature of the Son’s destruction on the cross is accomplished by the pictograph depicting two teeth, the very manner in which a serpent would “strike.” So, the first prophecy in scripture is both “In the beginning” and in Genesis 3.

The Lord Is My Shepherd - An Ancient Hebrew Alphabetic Pictograph

The first of the many names God gives himself is Elohim. In the first sentence of the Bible, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth,” the Hebrew word translated God is Elohim.

Let's look at what the ancient Hebrew pictographs show us about the name Elohim. The word Elohim is comprised of the Hebrew letters, ALEPH, LAMED, HEY, YOD and MEM.

ALEPH (similar to our letter “A,” and pictured in the ancient Hebrew as an ox head, signifying strength or God – as in the Lord is my strength); LAMED (“L,” pictured as a shepherd’s staff, meaning to shepherd or lead); HEY (“H,” pictured as a man with outstretched arms, meaning God’s grace or to behold); YOD (“Y,” pictured as the arm from the fist to the elbow, meaning my or my hand or works); and MEM (“M,” pictured as waves of water, meaning water or peoples/nations).

In other words, the LORD is my SHEPHERD by his GRACE he provides for MY needs (I SHALL NOT WANT), he takes me by MY HAND and LEADS me by still WATERS. Sounding familiar? That’s right, Psalm 23. So, while the Lord is definitely our strength, I think He primarily wants to be our shepherd.

Too see the visual depiction of Elohim, go to http://beautyofthebible.com/2007/11/14/the-lord-is-my-shepherd/

Thank you note from Judi Clayton, after YA prayed for her Grandson

THANK YOU!!!

To all the young adults who prayed for Chris on friday night. Your prayers broke through powerfully.

Chris was suddenly very sick with Septecimia however the lab has not been able to culture any bug from blood taken!

The break through began after 7:00pm Friday evening, Dr's were unable to control his temp until then (he also has a genetic condition and has no sweat glands). 

This was a noticeable event even to staff and Chris's family. The enemy cannot prevail against the army of God. 

Bless you all, 

Judi  xx

Youth & Young Adults with Andy Harrison

Friday 8th October 2010
7pm - 9pm
Door of Hope
 
Yo get yourself down to Door of Hope on the 8th of October for a combined Friday night youth and young adults event. Special guest Andy Harrison from Planetshakers City Church Melbourne will be sharing, he is an amazing man of God with a heart to see God glorified and all people living in the power of the Spirit of God. Andy grew up in Hobart and is now the High School's Pastor at Planetshakers. Zions will be leading the way in worship, and this night is open to all youth groups across the city, Gateway Baptist, City View, Zion's Hill and Door of Hope youth and young adults will be there...this is a night not to be missed!

Hey Young Adults,

Well it's been an amazing journey so far!! It amazes me how much people have committed to the study of the Word and how everybody seems to draw different revelations out of the same stories and texts. 

 

I am very proud of the dedication you have all made to study. It is not usually a popular practice, 'bible study', especially among young people. 

 

Big shout out to Anna for her active involvement, jim for his cameo appearances, Bek Williams for being like a Berean (Acts 17:11), Luke Bone for stepping up and the Barnes girls for being characterised by faithfulness, as usual. Also all the students who have invested extra time in the courtship series, you permeate the YA ethos....  

 

peace, 

Ps C

The Discipline of Scriptual Meditation Part 3

Adapted from the book 'Celebration of Discipline - The Path to Spiritual Growth' by Richard Foster 2008

"Sitting I am most at rest, and my heart most upward." Richard Rolle

 

 

In preparing to meditate, it is important to set time aside each day even 5 or 10 minutes to begin with. Those who are proficient in the discipline are able to meditate anywhere and at any time. Regardless, it is important to remember that it is not a religious act but more like on-going contemplative prayer. In 1 Thess 5:17, Paul encourages us to 'pray without ceasing.' Thus our aim is to learn to develop this skill until it becomes a natural way of living life.

 

Some tips to help you get started.

1. One of the many benefits of learning to meditate is that it has the capacity to set the tone for the whole day. It also helps us to achieve a sense of balance and peace even when things get busy. This is referred to as 'holy leisure.' To this end it is beneficial that meditation occurs in the early morning in particular as well as at various intervals during the day if desired.

 

2. Find a place which is comfortable, peaceful (turn the phone off!) and which has a pleasing view.

 

3. Our outward posture often reveals our inward state e.g. tension. So concentrate on dropping the shoulders, deep, even breathing, stretching the toes and fingers and relaxing the entire body...and avoid vigorous chewing of gum!

 

4. Position yourself in the most comfortable position and least distracting position and place your open palms on the knees to receive from Him.

 

5. Close your eyes. Focus on one thing in particular. For example the Lord Himself, a flower, a tree etc. Begin to center all the attention of the body, mind, emotions and inner man onto that object of your focus until "the glory of God in the face of Christ" emerges. (2 Cor 4:6)

 

6. Allow the Holy Spirit to bring His Word to you and let your mind and emotions dwell on these. As you concentrate in this way, you will begin to internalise scripture in a wonderfully personal way. Try to avoid analysing and dissecting His words to you and just simply and humbly receive it like Mary did in Luke 2:51. The most important thing is not to rush but be still before God.

 

7. Another method of meditating is taking a verse of your choosing and then bring all of the senses to it-smell, taste, sight, hearing and touch. Experience the verse so it takes root in your inner man and in your emotions. Be an active participant in the verse you have chosen. Don't be afraid to use your imagination eg playing the part of one of the apostles or those whose life Jesus touched in a special way. Let it become your own reality.

 

For some, taking time out in this way is a sacrifice. However it is essential that as believers, we recreate the silences and return to the deeper place of contemplation. Our adversary would have us continue to be too busy. (It has been quoted that 'Hurry is not of the devil, it is the devil.' Carl Jung.) As you practice the skill of meditation daily, you will notice the blessings of His nearness in a new and more intimate way. Learn to activate your being through meditation until the entire Word becomes an autobiography of you.