Page 151 - Attractive Deception - The False Hope of the Hebrew Roots Movement

Everywhere one turns today they find substitutes for pure Christian discipleship. None of these
substitutes will result in the child of God coming to spiritual maturity. This is what Yahshua declared
to the rich young ruler.

Matthew 19:20-21
The young man said to him..., “What do I still lack?” Yahshua said to him, “If you would be perfect,
go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow
me.”

The Greek word translated as “perfect” is “teleios.” This word means “perfect, entire, mature, lacking
in nothing.” It is the will of Yahweh that He would have full stature sons and daughters who are
conformed to the image and likeness of Yahshua.

Romans 8:29
For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, that
He might be the first-born among many brethren.

Ephesians 4:11-13
And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors
and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of
Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a
mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fulness of Christ.

If all God wanted to do was bring men and women to a confession of belief in His Son as the atoning
sacrifice for their sins, He could very well rapture all people into heaven as soon as they profess faith
in Christ. He does not do so, however. Yahweh’s plan is not merely to bring people to faith in His
Son, but to transform them from the selfish, sensual creatures they have been into selfless, spiritual
creations who manifest His character in their words and actions. This requires a process of
transformation where the old nature is progressively brought under subjection to the authority of the
indwelling Holy Spirit. Yahweh will lead each person down a path specifically designed for them
with the goal in mind that they might eventually come forth in the image of His firstborn Son.

The path Yahweh will lead every man and woman down is by necessity a path that includes
experiences of suffering, along with numerous trials and sacrifices. It is as we encounter these
experiences, responding to them in the power of the Spirit, putting the flesh and its selfish response
to death, that we are transformed measure by measure into the image of Christ. Walking the path
Yahweh chooses for each person is indispensable for their maturation. We cannot choose our own