Sermon on Unorthodox Marriages

CHAPTER 24

Yeshua is invited to read the scriptures at the synagogue in Capernaum, but instead teaches them about acting in the light of Elohim verses following the letter of the law. He speaks about the “Great Commandment” to be good stewards and replenish the Earth, which leads him to speaking about homosexuality and how homosexuals can have a relationship sanctified by God as well. He also speaks about the sacred covenant of a righteous marriage. After leaving the synagogue, Yeshua, Miriam, and some of his disciples go to the home of Cephas in Bethsaida and find Cephas’ mother sick with a great fever. Yeshua heals her completely, and she immediately gets up to accommodate her guests. Many people arrive at Cephas’ home, bringing diseased and possessed people for Yeshua to heal, and he heals those who repent of the sins of their past, but does not heal those who do not.

 1 On the Sabbath of that week, Yeshua went to the synagogue at Capernaum and was given a time to read the scriptures aloud.

 2 But he read not a single word from the scrolls. Instead, he taught them with his light, saying, “In the synagogue, much is spoken about the law, much is spoken about keeping the commandments of Sinai, and this is from sincere devotions to Elohim and honest desires to do that which is pleasing to God.

 3 But in seeking to be devout, do not be led into the pit of obeying the law but being empty of the spirit and the Celestine Light of Elohim.

 4 To obey the law without the spirit is like casting a net for fish on dry land. You are making an effort, but it will gain you only frustration.

 5 But the man who casts his net into the lake with vigor, even when done in ignorance as to the proper way to fish or the correct place to cast his net, will still catch fish because of his enthusiasm and effort, even as the man with a true spirit will find the favor of Elohim, while the man who obeys every law without spirit will never know God.

 6 So it is in your life. Within the commandments of Sinai are found all the law Elohim asks of you, save the Great Commandment. Live these simple principles with spirit and you will gain the fullest blessings of Elohim, both in this life and the life to come.

 7 Know that all other laws are given by men or added to by men, even if they are read from the scrolls in the synagogue.

 8 Decide for yourself with the spirit of God as your guide, which laws serve God and help you have the light of Elohim in your heart, and which serve the Caesars, both the grand and the petty, by keeping you passive and controlled like a flock of sheep.”

 9 Hearing his teachings, many of those present started murmuring, for this was doctrine such as they had never heard before.

 10 But Yeshua continued to instruct them, asking, “Who among you knows the Great Commandment of which I spoke?”

 11 Again there was murmuring as they conferred one with another to agree upon the answer to his question. Silias the Elder answered, “It is to marry many wives and bring many children into the world.” And there were chuckles and even laughter at his reply.

 12 Yeshua said unto them, “You have answered correctly in part, but the response of levity is not in keeping with the weight of this law.

 13 Before the commandments of Sinai came the Great Commandment. When this commandment is lived in wholeness and purity, it is a blessing upon the Children of Light. But it is more often lived in perversion, which brings a darkness upon the soul.

 14 When the progenitors of man first came upon the Earth, Elohim blessed them with the Great Commandment that the righteous might inherit the bounties of Earth and Heaven, saying, ‘Be fruitful, and multiply; replenish the Earth and be good stewards over it.

 15 Have sacred dominion over the fish of the sea and over the fowl of the air and over every living thing that moves or grows upon the Earth, that in your stewardship, they also might be fruitful and multiply and spread forth over the Earth in abundance.’

 16 And Elohim said, ‘Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the Earth, and every tree whose seed bears fruit of sweetness or meat, and the milk of the beasts, and the non-fertile eggs of the fowls, and the honey of the bees, and these shall be your food.

 17 And to every beast of the Earth and to every fowl of the air and to everything that creeps upon the Earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb from the smallest to the largest, for their meat.’

 18 And you will say that these are not the words of the Great Commandment have been read in the synagogue all of your life, and I say unto you that you have not even lived the portion of the Great Commandment that you have.

 19 But now I ask you to be more than you have been and to live the Great Commandment in its fullness that you might receive an inheritance of light in this life and the next.

 20 And what is that fullness? Look closely, for there is much given in the first commandment of God for the children of men.

 21 Consider what it means for men and women to multiply and replenish the Earth.

 22 Obviously, a man cannot do it by himself when we speak of children, but only with a woman may he procreate.

 23 Does that then mean that a man or a woman with uncommon affections for their own should be scorned and whipped and even put to death as sometimes occurs among the religious zealots?

 24 Why do you think those with uncommon affections are the way they are? Did not Elohim make them so? Will you scorn and whip and put Elohim to death?

 25 Unless they were irresistibly compelled by their nature from God to be as they are, do you think they would choose to be reviled and beaten throughout their lives?

 26 But if they have uncommon affections one for another, how then can they obey the Great Commandment? In truth, they cannot in the way of a man and a woman create children.

 27 But there is far more to the great commandment than bringing new children into the world, for what is missed when those with uncommon affections do not have children is more than compensated by the men and women who have a great abundance of children.

 28 The central point of the Great Commandment is not merely to have children, but to be good stewards and multiply and replenish the Earth and all life therein, in all aspects, of which children are but one.

 29 If two people with uncommon affections have love one for another and sanctify it and are faithful to it within the covenant of marriage and are good stewards of the Earth, helping to protect it and all the life therein and helping to increase and magnify it and all life therein, they have fulfilled the Great Commandment far more than the man and the woman who have many children, but are so taxed with so many that they are unable to give them either their time or love or meet their most basic of temporal needs.”

 30 At this last pronouncement, many stood up, yelling in anger at that which Yeshua taught, and even some of his disciples looked at one another questioningly.

 31 Yeshua raised his hands and motioned for everyone to sit down and listen to all he had to say.

 32 Then he continued saying, “You see in my words the fulfillment of that which I have said from the beginning. I have not come to uphold the law, but to destroy it, save for the Great Commandment and the true commandments of Sinai, for the laws of Elohim have been perverted by the desires of men.

 33 Hear me now. I come not just to destroy, but to bring you a new light far greater than you have known, even the sacred light, Celestine.

 34 Before you tear me asunder or turn me over to the persecution of the Romans, hear all that I have to say and weigh my words with the sense of your head and the feeling of your heart.

 35 In commanding man to multiply and replenish the Earth, Elohim gave men and women a righteous desire for one another and pleasure in fulfilling the desire.

 36 But this was countered by the commandments to not commit fornication or adultery. Therefore, only in a bonded relationship, publicly acknowledged in marriage, could a man and woman virtuously fulfill the carnal desire for one another that dwelt within them.

 37 Why should men and women not just be like so many of the animals who rut with who they will? The animals’ rut, and they are no different after than before. They rut again, and still they change not.

 38 Hear me, men and women of Gennesaret. You are spirit sons and daughters of Elohim, of a living Father and Mother in Heaven.

 39 Verily, you are here on this Earth for more than pleasure and sensual fulfillment. You are here to show God that you can become more than you began and to help others to do likewise.

 40 Conquer your lust, keep it virtuous and in your marriage bed where it is sanctified by God.

 41 Be a good steward of yourself first, then of the Earth and all that is upon it, and Elohim will make you an eternal steward of much more.

 42 Unite in the sacred covenant of marriage. Bring forth children, such as you can care for with your time and coin, into the world through love in your marriage bed and teach them by precept and example in the ways of righteousness that they may walk in the light.

 43 In this, you are good stewards, helping your children to become more than they began.

 44 And you are also a good steward of your own life, for having children helps you to overcome selfishness, one of the most poisonous darts the adversary will embed in your heart and mind.

 45 Children teach you patience; they give you a window to see Heaven; they help your weaknesses to become your strengths.

 46 For a man to live his life with a woman and a woman with a man, in devotion to one another, and for them to bear and raise children, sacrificing their time and treasure for the well-being of their children, this is a light that overcomes the darkness of selfishness.

 47 And once overcome, dealings with all others become more cordial; criminal acts less common and wars less likely.

 48 Righteous marriage with children teaches selflessness and compromise by each individual for the happiness of one another and the good of the family, and these lessons carry forth into the wider world of community and nations.

 49 Striving to live a righteous marriage with children forges the weaknesses of men and women into their strengths, even as fornication and adultery or a life without marriage and children brings a forgetfulness of the light and opens the transgressor to greater susceptibility to further darkness.

 50 These principals of light are so important and needful for expansion of the light within you that the man and woman who are barren should always adopt children who are without parents, so both may be filled with the love and growth that only a parent and child can bring to one another.

 51 Consider again now the men who have affections for men and the women who have affections for women.

 52 Elohim made them as they are, by their request, before they were born of woman, that they might have the opportunity in life to be sorely tested and grow great in stature as they overcome their challenges, but also that they might more easily embody the balance of male and female that can lead to becoming a living testament of the Celestine Light.

 53 Do you think then that Elohim would condemn them for the nature that was given to them and disdain their righteous desire to have greater burdens and greater potential for reward any more than the fish would be condemned for swimming or the bird for flying?

 54 But there is a trap laid for them of selfishness, and many are those that are caught by it, for as they are scorned and cast away from those who rebuke them, they may be enticed into their lusts and begin to live for their lust and pleasure and comfort, thus are led step by step down the path to damnation instead of the exaltation they sought.

 55 I say unto you, do not, by your actions of condemnation, encourage them down that path.

 56 Verily, there are many alternatives within the Great Commandment, and if they accept a stewardship of the Earth and the life therein and fulfill it, they have lived the Great Commandment as fully as any husband and wife who cared well for their children.

 57 Like with children, fulfilling a stewardship to the Earth and all the life therein requires a continued and prolonged sacrifice of your time and your treasure. And in this, you overcome selfishness and become far greater than you were.

 58 Therefore, I say clearly unto you: It is not a sin for a man to have affections for a man or a woman for a woman, if it comes not from carnal lust, but from virtuous love, for such was not forbidden by Elohim in the Great Commandment or the commandments of Sinai.

 59 But with those who love their own kind, let them lust not after one another into fornication, but remain virtuous and only have intimacy within the bonds of marriage, even as it is for a man and a woman.

 60 But there are also differences that must be respected. Where a man may have two or more wives and they may love one another even as they love their husband, let there be no other men but two in a marriage with one another, for beyond this men are given to purely carnal lusts over love.

 61 Let all marriages be in public. Let the unmarried keep their chastity before marriage and guard their virtue zealously once married.

 62 And I say unto you, let any who would commit fornication before marriage or adultery after marriage suffer the full weight of their transgression before man and God until they have repented and asked forgiveness and made restitution to all they have wronged.”

 63 Again there arose a great hue and cry and much consternation among the people in the temple at the words of Yeshua, for never had they heard anything similar to what he had said unto them, and it was vastly different from all they had ever been taught.

 64 Yet they were astonished at his doctrine and the power of his words, and despite their shock at his teachings, many were not as angry as they supposed they should have been and some found themselves nodding in agreement, for his teachings made sense in their heads and resonated in their hearts.

 65 Then a man stood up and yelled, “You are a false teacher! You would undermine the sanctity of our homes and marriages with your words of perversion. Truly, evil must dwell within you to say such things.”

 66 Yeshua answered him, saying, “It is your actions to put aside and persecute those who are not like you that weakens the fabric of your home and marriage, for cast away and reviled, they are more likely to be angry and revengeful and fall onto the paths of lust and fornication, as the path of virtue and honor is forbidden by those who condemn them.

 67 Let each be as they were created within the boundaries of a righteous marriage, given the opportunity to be good stewards and live lives of virtue and honor, and your home and marriage will be far more protected.”

 68 Then Yeshua spoke commandingly, pointing into the crowd, “That you may see the truth that I am the light and not be offended by my teachings, but uplifted, bring that man to me.”

 69 Now the man he spoke of had glared at him in silence through all he had said. But when everyone looked at him because Yeshua pointed to him, his face contorted in rage and he growled like a wild animal.

 70 He turned to quickly depart, but Yeshua spoke forcibly to him, saying, “Turn and face the Celestine Light, demon of darkness.”

 71 The man turned to face Yeshua, drool now coming from his mouth, his face twisted in anger, and his voice garbled and growling, and said, “Let me alone! What have I to do with you, Yeshua of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy me? I know who you are, Holy Son of Elohim. Leave me be!”

 72 Yeshua commanded, “Speak no more! Depart this instant! Let the light near every darkness thwart you to ever again dwell in man.”

 73 The man fell to the floor with a piercing scream and began to thrash about for a few seconds, and then he was still.

 74 Slowly, he opened his eyes and, gingerly feeling his body, found that he was unhurt. And his face, which was full of dirt, shone with a countenance of light.

 75 All who witnessed it were amazed. And the men and women in the synagogue spoke among themselves, saying, “What power is this? What can this new doctrine be, for with authority and power even the unclean spirits obey him and depart at his command?”

 76 As the people departed the synagogue, they separated hurriedly each to their own path, anxious to tell their friends everything they had seen and heard. And Yeshua’s fame soon spread throughout all the region of Galilee.

 77 After leaving the synagogue, Yeshua and Miriam went with Cephas and Amram to Cephas’ home in Bethsaida, and Ya’akov and Yohhanan went with them.

 78 Upon arriving, they found that the mother of Cephas was sick with a great fever.

 79 Yeshua came and held his hands above her body for a moment, moving them slightly, with his eyes closed as if in silent prayer.

 80 Then laying his hands upon her head, he rebuked the fever and took her by the hand, lifting her up from her bed.

 81 She arose well and whole with a great smile and words of gratitude and immediately went to the string hanging from the ceiling and brought dates out for them to eat.

 82 In the evening, as the Sun set, many of the people of the town came to the house of Cephas, for everyone had heard of the earlier events at the synagogue and they desired to see and hear Yeshua.

 83 They brought many who were diseased and others who were possessed of devils to Yeshua.

 84 And those who were diseased and attested in sincerity to repent of their sins and walk in the light, he healed of many diverse sicknesses.

 85 But he rebuked those who would not repent in sincerity, saying, “Only the pure in heart can be healed by the Celestine Light of Elohim.

 86 Repent first of your sins that the light may find a place in you. When the light is in your heart, all things are possible.”

 87 From five men and two women, he cast out demons, but he did not allow the demons to speak, because he did not want them to say who he was as the demon in the synagogue had. The darkness unmistakably knew the light, but the common people were not yet prepared to receive this knowledge.

 88 From this day forth, a Community of Light began to form in the region of the three towns of the delta on Lake Gennesaret.

 89 And in the weeks to come, many were baptized by the disciples called by Yeshua, and when they came out of the water, in their hearts was a light brighter than the Sun.