Denominations

It is generally agreed by religious scholars that Yahweh is the name of the state God of the ancient Kingdom of Israel, and later, the Kingdom of Judah. His name is composed of four Hebrew consonants,YHWH (known as the Tetragrammaton), which the prophet Moses is said to have revealed to his people.

The meaning of the name Yahweh has been interpreted as “He who makes that which has been made” or “He brings into existence whatever exists” though other interpretations have been proffered. In the late Middle Ages, Yahweh came to be changed to Jehovah by Christian monks.

And while there is much uncertainty about when Yahweh had evolved as an institutional religion, there are many denominations and splinter groups the world over. They include the House of Yahweh, the Assemblies of Yahweh, the Kingdom of Yahweh, the Congregation of Yahweh, and the Yahweh Restoration Ministry, whose beliefs we are briefly focusing today.

Its mission is to “assist in the Great Commission as set forth by our Saviour, Yahshua the Messiah; to restore the standards of biblical morality that have been forgotten; to be a light in an ever-increasingly dark world; to teach the morality of Yahweh’s Word, especially to our young people; to provide a place of refuge and worship for those desiring fellowship”.

They believe that the Old Testament is the foundation for the New Testament. They accept the authority of the Old Testament that both the Old and New testaments are “inspired” and that they are to be used for “teaching, reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness”. Nothing is to be taken from and added to both of them, and they are not open to private interpretations.

At the helm of the beliefs is the Trinity – The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirt. The name of The Father is Yahweh, who is the supreme ruler over everything. He is to be worshipped and adored. And his name is shrouded in reverence.

The intercessor

The Son, The Messiah, is named Yahshua, which means ‘Yahweh saves’ or ‘Yahweh is salvation’, and is a contraction of YAH from Yahweh and SHUA from Hoshua. He came in His Father’s name “and is the only name that offers salvation to all those that would call upon it”. He existed before he came to Earth as a human, born of a virgin through “Yahweh’s own power”. He lived a sinless life and was killed upon a stake. He died to atone our sins, and on the third day He ascended and has become the intercessor between man and Yahweh.

The power of Yahweh is demonstrated through The Holy Spirit, which is an invisible force. This power is also bestowed upon the Son and is received by those who are baptised in the name of Yahshua. Through The Holy Spirit, converts receive Yahweh’s strength to overcome sin and live a repentant life. In opposition to the Holy Spirit there is Satan, a spirit that was cast out of Heaven because of “his pride”, and who will eventually be punished in a “lake of fire” called Gehenna.

Punishment is not reserved only for Satan. Breakers of Yahweh’s laws, statutes, and judgments in both the Old and New testaments will also pay the price for their disobedience. By obeying his commandments, believers are demonstrating their love for Yahweh, thus, sin is the transgression of Yahweh’s Law, and the penalty for such a transgression is death. And when people died, they are not aware of themselves, until they are resurrected.

They do not have immortal souls, but they are rewarded with immortality at the Resurrection for leading a sinless life. People who led a sinful life will not be rewarded with immortality and will not be cast into an eternal lake of fire. Instead, they will be destroyed quickly and completely because Yahweh’s Restoration Ministry affirms that the Bible does not support “an ever-burning hellfire”.

Yahweh’s Restoration Ministry says that love is a critical aspect of the true believer’s life and that Yahweh wants people to demonstrate their love for him and everybody. As such, they say they reject all forms of discrimination “as it relates to natural-born gender, nationality, or ethnicity”.