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M F I R S T H A R V E S T M I N I S T R I E S I N T E R N AT I O N A L   •   T H E A P O S T O L I C A S S E M B L I E S O F T H E H O U S E O F I S R A E L F R O M T H E D E S K O F T H E F O U N D E R & A P O S T O L I C O V E R S E E R ALL IN ALL Why No Number Can Hold YAHWEH — From the Shema to ELOHIM M O N T H LY T E A C H I N G L E T T E RH I S C O M I N G K I N G D O M . C O M A L E T T E R F R O M Rev. John Shane Vaughn Founder & Apostolic Overseer, First Harvest Ministries International Author of Before the Beginning Beloved of the House of Israel — last month I showed you that the war between Law and Grace never existed. This month I want to take you past an even older war: the war over HOW MANY YAHWEH is. Before you can see the FAMILY He is bringing forth, you must settle the FOUNDATION He laid at Sinai. Read it slowly. Read it twice. And when it opens to you, do not be surprised if it shocks you — it shocked me. Every creed is an attempt to count the Almighty an has always been uncomfortable with a YAHWEH he cannot measure. So he does what men do with everything too large to hold. He COUNTS it. He gives it a number, prints the number in a creed, and then calls the creed the faith. Three. One. Two. One again. Every century produces a new tally, a new title, and a new council to enforce it. And every one of them falls short of the glory, because the ALL IN ALL OF YAHWEH was never a math problem. That is not a criticism of honest seekers. It is a diagnosis of a method. The moment you reduce YAHWEH to a number, the number becomes the boundary of your faith — and YAHWEH has no boundary. 1. The Arithmetic of Men Open any seminary catalog and you will find the doctrine of the Almighty filed under titles. TRINITARIAN. ONENESS. BINITARIAN. UNITARIAN. Each title is an attempt to answer one question: HOW MANY? But look at what each answer does. It draws a circle. It says, "This is the shape of the Almighty, and nothing outside this circle belongs to Him." The Trinitarian draws a triangle. The Oneness believer draws a single point that changes masks. The Binitarian draws two. The Unitarian draws one and stops drawing. Every label is a fence. YAHWEH is the field — and the field has no edge. I am going to walk you through each fence. Not to mock the men who built them, but so you can see why not one of them can contain what Scripture actually reveals. 2. Four Calculators, One Mistake THE TRINITY — the triangle. The Trinity teaches one God in three co-equal, co-eternal persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. You will not find that sentence in the Bible. You will find it in Nicaea in 325, where the Son was declared to be of the same substance as the Father, and at Constantinople in 381, where the Spirit was added as the third person. FHMI accepts no authority from Rome's councils, but we can call them as hostile witnesses — and their own record shows that the triangle was not received from Moses. It was VOTED. The Trinity took the Son YAHWEH promised and made Him the Father's equal from eternity — and in doing so, it erased the very thing that makes the Son glorious: that He was a MAN who OVERCAME. ONENESS — the single actor in many masks. Oneness teaching, revived in the early twentieth century, rightly rejected the triangle — but it ran to the opposite ditch. It teaches that the Father, the Son, and the Spirit are one single person appearing in different modes. In that system the Father IS the Son. But then who did the Son pray to in the garden? Who said, "Not my will, but thine"? Who said, "My Father is greater than I"? Oneness tore down the second floor of Constantinople — the Spirit as a third person — but it left the foundation of Nicaea standing: that the Almighty Himself came down and died. YAHWEH CANNOT DIE. Only the man YAHSHUA died. BINITARIAN — the pair. The Binitarian rejects the Spirit as a third person — the Spirit is the power and mind of YAHWEH, and on that point he is right. But he counts TWO eternal divine beings: the Father, and a pre-existent Word who later became the Son. The moment you give the Son a biography before Miriam's womb, you have two Creators — and Scripture will not allow two Creators. YAHSHUA was BEGOTTEN. He had a beginning. He did not decide to come; He was SENT. UNITARIAN — the one who stops counting. The Unitarian gets the foundation right. One Creator. The Father alone is the Most High. YAHSHUA is a man, the Son, the last Adam. On the Creator, we stand together. But historic Unitarianism stopped at the arithmetic. Having proven the number one, it had nothing left to say — and many who wore the label drifted until YAHSHUA was reduced to a good teacher who lived and died and stayed beneath the dust of opinion. That is not our Messiah. The man who died was RAISED, EXALTED, and SEATED at the right hand of power, and He is bringing MANY sons behind Him. A doctrine that can count to one but cannot see the FAMILY has the foundation and no house. ONE THE TRINITY Counts three — co-equal, co-eternal, voted at Nicaea and Constantinople. TWO ONENESS Counts one — a single actor changing masks. THREE BINITARIAN Counts two — a Father and a pre-existent Word. FOUR UNITARIAN Counts one — and closes the book. Four calculators. One mistake. Every one of them is asking the same question. Every one of them is asking HOW MANY — and the Scriptures are asking WHAT IS HE DOING? 3. The Foundation: Hear, O Israel Before you can build, you must lay the stone that cannot move. YAHWEH laid it Himself, and He laid it in one sentence. “Hear, O Israel: YAHWEH our Elohim is one YAHWEH.” — Deuteronomy 6:4 When the scribe asked YAHSHUA which commandment was first of all, YAHSHUA did not reach for a new formula. He quoted Moses — the Shema — word for word (Mark 12:29). The Messiah Himself prayed to "the only true Elohim" (John 17:3) and named Himself as the one SENT by Him. He never once counted Himself into the Creator. The Hebrew word is ECHAD — one. Not a committee. Not a compound of persons. The same word that closes the first day of creation: "the evening and the morning were the first day" — yom echad, ONE day. One day is one day. And the plural word Elohim does not undo it. Genesis 1:1 says "In the beginning Elohim CREATED" — and the Hebrew verb bara is SINGULAR. One Creator acting. Even when Elohim says "Let us make man in our image" (Genesis 1:26), the very next verse tells you who did the making: “So Elohim created man in his own image, in the image of Elohim created he him; male and female created he them.” — Genesis 1:27 HIS image. HE created. The council may have witnessed it. Only ONE performed it. Now hear YAHWEH testify about His own work, and listen for the word ALONE: “I am YAHWEH that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself.” — Isaiah 44:24 “For thus saith YAHWEH that created the heavens; Elohim himself that formed the earth and made it... I am YAHWEH; and there is none else.” — Isaiah 45:18 “Have we not all one father? hath not one Elohim created us?” — Malachi 2:10 ALONE. BY MYSELF. NONE ELSE. ONE FATHER. Scripture does not leave room for a co-Creator standing beside Him, before Him, or behind Him. ◆ FOUNDATIONALLY, YAHWEH IS ONE. THERE IS NO OTHER CREATOR BESIDE HIM. ◆ 4. Other Gods — But No Other Creator Here is where most people stop reading the Bible and start reciting a creed. Because if YAHWEH is the ONLY Creator, why does He keep talking about OTHER GODS? “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” — Exodus 20:3 Think about that commandment. YAHWEH does not say, "There are no other gods." He says, "Thou shalt have no other gods BEFORE ME." A command not to put anything before Him only makes sense if there are things that COULD be put before Him. You do not forbid a man to bow to something that does not exist. And Moses did not leave it to inference: “For YAHWEH your Elohim is Elohim of elohim, and Lord of lords, a great El, a mighty, and a terrible...” — Deuteronomy 10:17 ELOHIM OF ELOHIM. Not "the only elohim" — the ELOHIM OF elohim. The Most High over all the mighty ones. The Psalmist saw the courtroom of heaven and wrote down what he saw: “Elohim standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the elohim.” — Psalm 82:1 “I have said, Ye are elohim; and all of you are children of the most High.” — Psalm 82:6 And YAHSHUA quoted that very Psalm to the men trying to stone Him — "If he called them elohim, unto whom the word of Elohim came, and the scripture cannot be broken" (John 10:34–35). The Messiah did not explain the verse away. He said the Scripture CANNOT BE BROKEN. Paul puts the whole picture in two verses: “For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth, (as there be gods many, and lords many,) but to us there is but one Elohim, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord YAHSHUA Messiah, by whom are all things, and we by him.” — 1 Corinthians 8:5–6 Gods MANY. Lords MANY. But ONE Elohim, THE FATHER, OF WHOM are all things. Paul names the Father as the SOURCE — the one OF whom everything comes. The Son is the one BY whom the Father works. Paul uses the very same pattern when he speaks of the new creation: "all things are OF Elohim, who hath reconciled us to himself BY YAHSHUA Messiah" (2 Corinthians 5:18). The Source is one. The Son is His instrument of reconciliation and the head of the new creation — not a second Source. The writer of Hebrews even says the FATHER is the one "for whom are all things, and by whom are all things" (Hebrews 2:10). There is no co-Creator hiding in that grammar. There are other gods. There is NO OTHER CREATOR. If there were no other mighty ones, YAHWEH would never have commanded you to have none before Him. 5. "Neither Shall There Be After Me" Somebody is already reaching for Isaiah 43, so let us read it together. “Ye are my witnesses, saith YAHWEH, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no El formed, neither shall there be after me. I, even I, am YAHWEH; and beside me there is no saviour.” — Isaiah 43:10–11 Read the whole thought. YAHWEH is not denying that mighty ones exist — He has just told you He judges among them. He is declaring that no rival SOURCE was ever FORMED before Him, and no rival SOURCE will ever be formed after Him. No idol carved by a craftsman, no god of the nations, will ever stand up and claim to be the Creator and the Saviour. "Beside me there is no saviour." The sons of Elohim are not RIVALS formed beside Him. They are CHILDREN brought forth FROM Him, bearing HIS name, sitting on thrones HE gives, under HIS authority. A son who carries his father's name does not make a second father. He proves there is ONE. 6. The Next Concept: ELOHIM Now — and only now — you are ready for the next door. Because once the Shema is settled in your mind, you are free to follow the word YAHWEH chose to describe Himself in the very first verse of the Bible. Not His NAME. His FAMILY NAME. YAHWEH is His personal Name — "this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations" (Exodus 3:15). ELOHIM is something else. Elohim simply means MIGHTY ONES, or STRONG ONES. It is the plural of Eloah, the Mighty One. And in our teaching it is the FAMILY NAME — the household of YAHWEH. Paul bowed his knees to that household: “For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord YAHSHUA Messiah, of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named.” — Ephesians 3:14–15 The WHOLE FAMILY. In HEAVEN and in EARTH. NAMED from the Father. In heaven, that family already has members. When YAHWEH laid the foundations of the earth, "the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of Elohim shouted for joy" (Job 38:7). The angels are mighty ones — members of the heavenly household — yet not one of them is equal to YAHWEH, and not one of them is the Creator. On earth, YAHWEH has been showing us the pattern all along. He told Moses, "See, I have made thee an elohim to Pharaoh" (Exodus 7:1). Moses did not become a second Creator. He became a man who carried YAHWEH's authority so fully that Pharaoh was facing the hand of the Almighty when he faced Moses. The judges of Israel were called elohim for the same reason. ELOHIM is the word for one who bears YAHWEH's name and authority. ◆ YAHWEH IS THE FATHER. ELOHIM IS THE FAMILY. THERE IS ONE YAHWEH — AND HE IS BRINGING FORTH MANY SONS. ◆ This is what the counters miss. They are so busy asking how many persons are inside the Almighty that they never notice the Almighty is REPRODUCING Himself. The Elohim is YAHWEH reproducing His own character, nature, and authority in many sons of Elohim. Not by dividing Himself. By BEGETTING. 7. The Firstborn Among Many Brethren At the head of that family stands one Man. Not a second YAHWEH. Not an eternal co-Creator. A MAN — begotten in Miriam's womb by the power of the Most High, who learned obedience by the things which He suffered and was made perfect (Hebrews 5:8–9). “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.” — Romans 8:29 FIRSTBORN — which means there are more births to come. AMONG MANY BRETHREN — which means He is not alone in the family; He is the ELDEST. “For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren.” — Hebrews 2:10–11 The Father is BRINGING MANY SONS TO GLORY. YAHSHUA is the CAPTAIN — the first one through the door. And He is not ashamed to call you His BROTHER. Where did His glory come from? He told you Himself: "the glory which THOU GAVEST ME I have given them" (John 17:22). The glory was GIVEN to Him. The Kavod that departed the temple in Ezekiel's day waited for a Man worthy to carry it — and when it filled that Man, the eldest Son of YAHWEH was enthroned as Elohim. He is "the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence" (Colossians 1:18). And what was given to Him, He gives to His brethren. YAHSHUA is not the second number in a sum. He is the FIRSTBORN of a family. Count Him into the Creator, and you rob Him of His victory. Make Him only a man who stayed in the grave, and you rob YOURSELF of your destiny. 8. The Name Written on the Overcomer Here is where the truth turns personal — and here is where it should shock you. “Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my Elohim, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my Elohim...” — Revelation 3:12 “To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.” — Revelation 3:21 THE NAME OF MY ELOHIM — written on the overcomer. A THRONE — given to the overcomer. The same pattern YAHSHUA walked, His brethren walk behind Him. He overcame, and sat with the Father. They overcome, and sit with Him. “Beloved, now are we the sons of Elohim, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” — 1 John 3:2 You are not an animal. You are a SON IN TRAINING. This is not a promise that men will become independent gods. Hear me carefully. The family SHARES what YAHWEH GIVES — His name, His glory, His authority, His throne — but NO MEMBER OF THE FAMILY BECOMES ANOTHER YAHWEH. The sons are elohim by GIVEN GLORY, never by their own nature. The overcomers of the first resurrection will sit in the council of the Most High because He seats them there. The source never changes. The family never stops growing. You are being trained for that council right now. That is why the Sabbath matters. That is why the Feasts matter. That is why obedience matters. You are not being prepared to sit on a cloud. You are being prepared to sit on a THRONE. 9. ALL IN ALL So why can no number control Him? Because the ONE YAHWEH is not a closed sum. He is the SOURCE of a family that will never stop increasing. "Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end" (Isaiah 9:7). You cannot write a final number over a Kingdom that has no end. Watch how Paul finishes the story: “And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that Elohim may be all in all.” — 1 Corinthians 15:28 The Son reigns until every enemy is under His feet. Then the Son — the firstborn, the eldest, the captain of the family — presents the finished work to the Father, and the Father becomes ALL IN ALL. Not all in three. Not all in one Man. ALL IN ALL. Present in every son, flowing through every throne, filling every member of the household. “One Elohim and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.” — Ephesians 4:6 ONE ABOVE ALL He is the one Creator, the Most High, the Source. TWO THROUGH ALL He works through the Son and through His sons. THREE IN YOU ALL He fills the whole family with Himself. The Shema is the foundation. The family is the house. All in all is the house filled. That is what the creeds could never contain. The Trinitarian put Him in a triangle. The Oneness believer put Him in a single mask. The Binitarian put Him in a pair. The Unitarian put Him in a single digit and walked away. But YAHWEH was never trying to tell us HOW MANY He is. He was telling us WHO HE IS — the ONE Creator — and WHAT HE IS DOING — filling a family with Himself until He is ALL IN ALL. ◆ FIRST THE SHEMA: YAHWEH IS ONE. THEN THE FAMILY: ELOHIM. THEN THE FULLNESS: ALL IN ALL. ◆ “And YAHWEH shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one YAHWEH, and his name one.” — Zechariah 14:9 ONE YAHWEH. ONE NAME. And that one Name written on the foreheads of a family whose increase shall have no end. Settle the Shema, and no creed can shrink Him. Learn the word Elohim, and no grave can hold you. See Him as ALL IN ALL, and you will never again ask HOW MANY — you will only ask, "How soon?" GO DEEPER THIS MONTH Echad Means One: Let the Hebrew Define Itself — the full treatise on the Shema and the word echad. Before the Beginning — YAHWEH's purpose to reproduce Himself, before the first day. The People of the Presence — the Kavod, the heavenly family, and why the glory is GIVEN. Free ebooks at HisComingKingdom.com · Search the teaching archive at SearchTheMessage.com Until He comes, Pastor John Shane Vaughn Founder & Apostolic Overseer • First Harvest Ministries International The Apostolic Assemblies of the House of Israel C O N T I N U E I N T H E W O R D Follow Pastor Vaughn & Receive More Teaching  Free Teaching & Books www.HisComingKingdom.com Find all of our FREE EBOOKS here. www.AskPastorVaughn.com Search Pastor Vaughn’s massive teaching archive. On Amazon: search John Shane Vaughn Every published book in one place — including Before the Beginning. ✚ Support This End-Time Work Ways to send your donation: CashApp$Drvaughn45 PayPalpaypal.me/FirstHarvestMin Venmovenmo.com/Shane-Vaughn-16 By MailFirst Harvest Ministries P.O. 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