One may argue that it is not possible to keep the Law of Elohim and continually abide in the experience of the Holy Place. This statement is both true and false at the same time. While it is true that it is beyond human ability to keep the Law of Elohim, even our most deeply ingrained sins may be overcome with the power of YHWH. Through heaven’s strength, we can keep the Law.

A good illustration of this point is found in the story of Peter, who walked on water. Can a man stride upon the sea? Of course we know that the laws of physics prevent mortal man from walking upon the waves. Yet Peter did stand upon the sea. Peter did walk upon the finite film that separates air from ocean. How is it that Peter defied the laws of the physical universe? He kept His eyes focused upon Christ, thereby tapping into heaven’s power. So long as his eyes were focused upon Christ, Peter was empowered to do the impossible.

Now let us consider the spiritual applications of this illustration. Can a man live without sinning? We know that the laws of sin and death prevent mortal man from living without sin. Yet, through the same power that upheld Peter on the waves, we may walk in harmony with Elohim’s will! The key is to keep our eyes spiritually upon Christ, our Saviour and sinless Example. It is His power that enables us to walk without falling.

To believe that man cannot live in harmony with Elohim’s holy Standard is to believe that it is acceptable for Elohim to abide in an unfit temple. Through our lack of faith in the power of YHWH to transform us we cast our heavenly Father in a disparaging light. He appears weak. Apparently He cannot free us from sin after all. Then the idea that we are to be measured, in the judgment, by the holy Law seems entirely unfair. For how can we be judged by a Standard to which we cannot hope to attain?

But the Bible does not teach that we cannot obey the Law of Elohim. Rather, it teaches that obedience is the mark of true discipleship. Through obedience the butterfly is revealed to be genuine. By obedience, the heavenly Father identifies us as belonging to Him. For it is only through faith in His power that we keep our eyes focused upon Him, totally depending upon YHWH to enable us to do His will.

This is exactly why the Bible teaches that it is through the presence of "fruit" that the true Christians will be recognized. Empowered by Christ, the life is likened to a branch connected to the living Vine. If the branch is connected, the life-giving sap from the Vine will flow into the branch. Fruit will result. (See Galatians 5:22-23.) Our lives bear fruit spiritually, when we remain connected to and focused upon Christ and His character, which is beautifully expressed in His holy Law.

A story is told of a man with a bent back. Now in his late fifties, the gentleman’s life-long carelessness about his posture had left him stooped before his time. Having befriended a gifted sculptor, the stooped man was one day asked to sit as the artist’s subject.

The man with the bent back agreed, under one condition. He asked if the sculptor would make his likeness accurate in every detail except that it was to stand perfectly straight. The man’s sloped shoulders should be replaced with broad, well-shaped ones. And his stooped head would, on the statue, be sculpted erect. Glad to oblige his friend, the sculptor masterfully created a statue that perfectly met these specifications.

Thanking the artist, the stooped man took his new figurine home. There, he hid it amid the trees and bushes in a quiet corner of his garden. Every day the bent man went alone to the place where the statue was hidden. Standing before its perfection, he would endeavor to straighten his bent form just a little. Desiring to be the tall, straight gentlemen he beheld in the statue, the man daily focused on becoming a bit more and more like its pattern.

The days, weeks and months passed. Still the man continued to exercise and study the pattern, striving to emulate it. Gradually, the man’s friends began to comment that he was walking better. His shoulders seemed a bit less stooped. One day, as the man left his house to stand before his pattern and do his daily exercises, his young granddaughter followed him. Standing motionless and completely quiet, the child observed her grandfather going through his daily routine.

Fascinated, the girl noticed something her grandfather hadn’t. Both the statue and her grandfather were standing straight and tall.

"Grandpa," she cried out, "you are standing straight! You are not bent, Grandpa. You are straight like the statue!"

And he was. By focusing on the perfect pattern, the man had become changed. (This story is taken from the devotional book, God’s Minutes, by C.L. Paddock.)

The key to experiencing the process of true sanctification and to living a fruit-filled, Spirit-empowered life is beholding the Divine Pattern. For in beholding, just as it was for Peter on the waves, is given the power we need to do the impossible.

But we are not changed merely by generally beholding. The Bible’s instructions are more specific. This text teaches that what we behold is also a significant factor in our transformation. Paul tells us in this text that the object of our focused attention is to be the "glory of YHWH." He further explains that by beholding His glory we will be changed into His glorious image. But what is Elohim’s glory and how can we behold it? The Bible says that sinful man cannot endure the sight of our Holy YHWH. "Thou canst not see My face: for there shall no man see Me, and live" (Exodus 33:20).

Does this mean that we cannot be changed into the image of YHWH here on earth? Are we to wait until Y’shua returns, at which time we’ll begin our new life, for only then can we behold His glory? This idea is actually a very dangerous one. It has paralyzed many professed Christians into continuing to live their lives of weakness and spiritual failure without feeling any need for change. It comes from a serious misunderstanding of Scripture. The Bible does teach that we will be changed at the Second Coming of Christ. But the only change, which takes place at Y’shua’s return, is the physical transformation in becoming physically perfect, forever young, immortals. The text, which talks about the transformation at Christ’s return, is found in Paul’s writings:

Being careful to not add words to the Scripture, we find that there is no transformation of character at the last trump. That will have taken place long before. (See the chapter on the Seal, the Sealing and the Sealed to learn more about this.)

Since beholding YHWH’s glory changes us, and since we have read that the only change to take place at the Second Coming is a physical one, we must consider that YHWH’s glory is not only His face or His physical Being. What, then, is this glory we are instructed to behold?

Moses asked the same question long ago. He had come to develop an intimate relationship with YHWH. He had come to understand that YHWH’s glory was significant. One day, on the clefts of Mount Sinai, Moses begged Elohim, "…I beseech Thee, show me Thy glory" (Exodus 33:18). And YHWH did as Moses has asked of Him. He showed Moses His glory. But first YHWH told Moses exactly what he would see. The glory of Elohim, which would pass before Moses, was His character. YHWH was going to show Moses what He was really like as a Person.

Perhaps now the concept of beholding Elohim’s glory seems almost as immediately unattainable as seeing His glorious face. We are not standing in the clefts of a holy mountain with YHWH’s physical presence and thunderous voice. How can we, like Moses, behold Elohim’s glory?

YHWH knew that we would not be able to see or directly talk to Him as did Adam. And YHWH had a plan. He gave His servant Moses a record of His glory in written form, so that every man might behold it and become changed. The glory of Elohim is His character, as He Himself explained to Moses. And the holy Law of Elohim is the written transcript of His beautiful character. This statement becomes a supported Biblical truth, when we compare the descriptions the Bible gives of Elohim with the descriptions given of His Law. They are characteristically the same. Every aspect of what YHWH is described to be like is identical to what His Law is portrayed to be.

No wonder David extolled the Law of YHWH throughout the Psalms. It is as beautiful as YHWH Himself, for it is the written transcript of His glory. Beholding YHWH through the lens of His holy Law transforms us into His lovely image. By examining doctrine against the Divine Law, we are rooted deeply into the truth and the winds of error cannot destroy us. Through YHWH’s perfect Standard, the Christian is made wise. As the Psalmist put it so eloquently, the Law of YHWH is a blessing indeed!

Christ, when He came to earth, also revealed YHWH’s glory. Through His complete obedience to this perfect Standard, the Divine character was revealed. Thus, the Christ-like life is inextricably intertwined with obedience to the holy Law.

Having presented the Law of Elohim as a vital part of every stage in the Christian life, it is now time to examine the content of this Divine Standard by which we are measured, brought to repentance, and transformed into YHWH’s image. What is the Law of Elohim? Initially, this question may seem remedial. Of course the Law of Elohim is the Ten Commandments, as found in Exodus chapter twenty and in Deuteronomy chapter five. But could there be more meaning to the word "Law" or, are the Ten Commandments the totality of this divine Standard?

By simply looking at the word "Law" in the Strong’s Concordance, one will find that this word has levels of depths and meaning, which one may not have previously plumbed. Most often in the Old Testament, the term "Law of Elohim" is translated from the original Hebrew word Torah (to-raw), meaning:

From this definition, the word "Decalogue" clearly encompasses the Ten Commandments. Very definitely, the Ten Commandments are a part of the Law. However, the words "statute" and "Pentateuch" point to a far broader definition of the term "Law of Elohim."

"Pentateuch," according to Noah Webster’s American Dictionary of the English Language (1828 edition), means "The first five books of the Old Testament." The first five books were written by Moses and have often been referred to as "the books of Moses." These books, from Genesis to Deuteronomy, are all included in the word Torah. The Torah is not merely the Decalogue. It is also the Pentateuch. This means that the Law of Elohim includes all the commandments, statutes, and judgments found in these five books.

David’s praise of the Law in Psalm 19 is now cast in a new light. What might have appeared to be merely a redundant listing about the beauty in the Ten Commandments is clearly much more. David is not restating the word "Law" in as many ways as he can. Rather, he is listing each part of the Law and praising the virtues of them all.

• The Law of YHWH is perfect, converting the soul.
• The Statutes of YHWH are right, rejoicing the heart.
• The Commandment of YHWH is pure, enlightening the eyes.

In Psalm chapter nineteen, The word "Law" is translated from the Hebrew word Torah. As has already been explained, this term encompasses the entire first five books of the Bible. Thus, David was teaching that the written Word found in Genesis through Deuteronomy was all the Law, and was "perfect, converting the soul."

With this understanding of the Torah, texts referring to Elohim’s Law take on new meaning. Here are a few examples of texts in which the word "Law" is from the Hebrew word Torah:

Thus far, it has been presented that the word "Law" in the Old Testament includes much more than Exodus chapter twenty and Deuteronomy chapter five. The entire first five books of the Bible are all included in Elohim’s holy Law. But does this concept of what is included in Elohim’s Law hold true in the New Testament? Perhaps the word "Law" in the New Testament is less encompassing.

In the New Testament, one original word, which is translated as "Law", is the Greek word Nomos. Nomos, according to Strong’s Concordance (#3551), means: "Law, regulation, specifications of Moses, also of the Gospel, a principle".

By definition then, the term Law, as translated from the Greek word Nomos, is not less encompassing than the Old Testament Torah. Rather, the New Testament word for Law it is more expanded for it not only includes the first five books of the Bible (which are the writings of Moses), but also the Gospel. This certainly sheds a new light on the words of Christ:

These powerful words of Christ point to the eternal nature of the holy Law. Not even the slightest dot of an "i" or cross of a "t" will pass from it until heaven and earth are passed away. In other words, the holy Law of YHWH is as eternal as He is. And this is no wonder, for YHWH can no more do away with this transcript of His Divine character, than He can do away with Himself.

Many Christians have had a wrong view of Elohim’s divine Law. Perhaps we have not understood that our view of it is also our view of YHWH. Through it coupled with YHWH’s power, we may see Him, become like Him, and thus prepare one day to live with Him. Just as YHWH is a loving Being, so His holy Law is about love.

Sadly, rather than see the holy Law as a blessing, most of the Christian world has viewed it is as an unbearable burden. But this deformed view has arisen because we are still trying to see ourselves as our own saviors. Like Peter, who walked on water and then doubted and took his eyes off Christ, we are tempted to look upon our own inabilities instead of Elohim’s power.

Without our eyes focused upon Christ, we sink again into the mire of sin, just as Peter sank beneath the tossing waves. But, rather than reaching out to Christ and re-focusing upon Him and His strength, we often seem content to thrash about in our sin-sunk condition. Have we become so focused on what we cannot do, that we are blinded to what He can accomplish through us? Within all of Elohim’s commands, heaven’s enabling to accomplish it is implied. He does not ask anymore of us than He can empower us to do. And what does He ask of us?

Yes, it is a high calling. We are called to be living, breathing, new creatures. We are called to be fit temples in which the Holy Spirit delights to dwell. And the wonderful news about this high calling is that YHWH is powerful enough to do it in us! We must simply behold His glory. By studying His divine Pattern, by loving His holy Law and by continuing to keep our focus on Christ, we are empowered to defy the laws of sin and death. Salvation never was about what we were able to do. It has always been about what He is able to do in us. Praise, Elohim! He IS able!

He healed the broken hearted.

And He set the captives free.

He made the lame to walk again.

And He caused the blind to see.

• The Law is the transcript of Elohim’s character.
• The Law is as eternal as YHWH Himself.
• The Law of Elohim is the first five books of the Bible – the entire Pentateuch (not only Ex. 20 or Deut. 5).
• Just as Peter walked upon water by keeping his eyes on Christ, so we may walk in obedience to the Law.