Transfiguration Movement #9: Transform by Renewing Your Mind

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by Miykael Qorbanyahu

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O how I love Your Torah! It is my study all day long. Your commandments make me wiser than my enemies; they always stand by me. I have gained more insight than all my teachers,
for Your decrees are my meditation. I have gained more understanding than my elders,
for I observe Your precepts.
Psalm 119.97-100
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There was a time I walked in darkness, though, of course, I didn’t know it at the time. That darkness in which I walked wasn’t dramatic or violent, it was subtle, seductive, simple but strong. It was the quiet haze of misbehavior, inherited tradition, the weight of dogmatic and opiatic religion, the thick fog of miseducation and the lack of identity. I had some sense and some character, but not accurate knowledge. And because of that, my understanding of the Most High, His will, my identity and my purpose were all blurred.

It was after my initial wake up call prompted by Ecclesiastes 3 during that foggy season of my life that I was challenged by another Scripture, 2 Thessalonians 2:3, which warns us of a wide-spread delusion that sweep over the earth that results in the great falling away. I realized even then as a new born believer that it wasn’t just about people leaving congregations; it was about a mass abandonment of truth, a turning of backs to the light and walking boldly into the darkness. I realized that this wasn’t something that my generation wasn’t waiting on its coming, because it’s been here; it’s been ongoing for millennia. This also had me realize that in order to not get washed away in the delusion that I had to dig deep. What began as an awakening turned into a devotional, and what had shifted into a devotional has become a continuous spiritual excavation. The deeper I dig, the more I uncover. The more I uncover, the more it changes me. The more it changes, the more I realize that what I have found isn’t just information; it’s transfiguration.

Reflecting back on my early years of spiritual development, the first major turning point of my reorientation of truth was the rediscovery of the true Sabbath. Up until that point, roughly 22 years of life, I had never questioned why Sunday was the designated day of rest and worship. But when I read the book Anti-Christ 666 by William Josiah Sutton, my understanding was forever changed about the Seventh Day. After finishing that book, it lead me to then read Exodus 20:8-11 and Leviticus 23, where I found something entirely different from the church calendar and hollow daze I had earlier grown up with and accepted as truth. These eternal memorials given to humanity by El Elyon, I came to find out, were not manmade observances; these were appointments with the Creator. The Sabbath wasn’t optional; it was ordained; perpetually ordained. Covenantally conditioned for the children of Israel.

Next came the discovery of the true name of our Redeemer, Yahoshua ben Yoseph. Already indignant from my earlier discovery and reorientation, when I found out that the name of histsory’s most polarizing and, arguably, most significant figure ever had a name that was not “Jesus,” a major tipping point appeared for me. Through my studies, I came to find out that the name he is commonly called was crafted through a Greco-Roman translation and ultimately codified in the 4th century under Emperor Constantine at the Council of Nicaea. It was later Englicized in the name that most of the world today calls upon as a result of the letter J, which is just 501 years old, was created by Gian Trissino. When I uncovered this buried bit of information, it didn’t shake my faith, it clarified it. For me it was easy to accept that the identity of the Messiah was not Roman, but Israelite. Not European, but Eastern. He didn’t come to start a religion. He came to fulfill a covenant.

And then came the most personal realization of all: that I am an Israelite. Not symbolically, not theologically, but literally; ancestrally. Yes, I am a descendant of those to whom the covenants, the promises, and the Torah were first given. That revelation brought me face to face with Deuteronomy 28, and suddenly, history made more sense. So did prophecy. My ahk in faith, rav Zion Lexx, recently revealed on his YouTube platform that a statement released by a board of rabbis has been given in confirmation of the reality of African-American have been recognized as members of the lost Tribes of Israel..

But knowing was not enough. And this was something that for years I struggled with; converting knowledge into action. For this to happen, the knowledge I learned needed to take root; It needed to become understanding.

Understanding is not simply memorizing facts or repeating teachings. It’s perceiving connections. It’s seeing how the Sabbath links to creation, how the Holy Days foreshadow redemption, how every line of Torah points to the life and mission of Yahoshua. Understanding is when information becomes revelation.

In a recent piece that I wrote called Why We Study, a poetic reflection on this very process, I expressed that study is more than learning. It’s how we climb out of the pit of confusion and rise into the light of clarity. Study helps us discern who we are, whose we are, and how we are to live.

We study to be transformed by the renewing of our minds.

We study to circumcise our hearts.

We study to have the Torah written on our mind and put in our heart.

We study to incarnate the Word of Torah in our flesh.

We study to receive the mind of the Messiah.

We study to learn the thoughts and ways of Elohim.

We study to reflect the image and likeness of Elohim.

We study to manifest the oneness of YaH…

Study is the foundation of our walk of faith. It builds us up with knowledge and secures our position with understanding. But even understanding isn’t the endpoint; this is because wisdom is understanding in motion. It’s obedience informed by clarity. As Proverbs 4:7 says, “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.”

Wisdom means keeping the Appointed Times, not just studying them. It means ordering your household according to Torah, not just teaching it. It means living in the fear of YaH, which is the beginning of wisdom (Psalm 111:10). Wisdom is redesigning your entire life according to the Torah; individually, family wise, community wise and nationally. This is why Deuteronomy 4.6 states,

Observe them faithfully, for that will be proof of your wisdom and discernment to other peoples, who on hearing of all these laws will say, “Surely, that great nation is a wise and discerning people.”

Once wisdom becomes lifestyle, something else begins to stir: a prophetic Messianic consciousness. Again, this is not mysticism, it’s not elitism; it’s awareness, Universal, Cosmic, Comprehensive Awareness. You begin to sense the times and the seasons, the rhythm of the Spirit and the alignment of Heaven and Earth. Your thoughts align with the mind of Mashiach. You speak less, but what you say is weighty. You see the future in seed form and are willing to labor for it.

This is where transformation becomes transfiguration. This is when your mind is no longer being conformed to this world, but renewed by the Word. As Romans 12:2 instructs, “Be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” This is where the old you dies, not just once, but daily, and the new you, shaped in the image and likeness of Elohim, begins to take form.

One thing that we should note as we embark on our journey; this path should not be walked alone. In fact, it was never meant to be. Teachers (morim) help us rightly divide the Word, guiding us through the layered meanings of Scripture and showing us how to apply it with integrity. Masters (rabbim)—those who are seasoned in wisdom, character, and action—serve as living templates of covenant living. They offer counsel, correction, and lived example. And we, the talmidim (students or disciples), must posture ourselves in humility, remaining teachable and hungry to grow.

In ancient Hebrew culture, discipleship was not optional—it was the foundation of how both knowledge and derekh (way of life) were transmitted. To be a talmid was not merely to attend a rabbi’s teachings, but to follow closely, observe deeply, and imitate faithfully. The rabbi was expected to embody Torah, to walk it out visibly and consistently, so that the student would know how to embody the Word not just intellectually, but in everyday life. The highest honor a student could give their rabbi was not flattery, but to live in such a way that the rabbi’s teachings bore fruit in character, home, and community.

This cultural reality helps us better understand Yahoshua’s words in Luke 6:40:

“A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher.”

Yahoshua was not only a teacher—He was the Rabbi of rabbis, the living Torah, the express image of the invisible Elohim. To follow Him meant more than belief—it meant total transformation. The phrase “in His name” took on immense weight in this context. To pray or act in the name of a rabbi was to move under their authority and to reflect their character and reputation. So when we pray “in the name of Yahoshua”, we are not merely invoking a title—we are declaring that we stand under His authority, committed to reflect His character, and aligned with His teachings.

In this light, discipleship is not simply theological—it is embodied loyalty. The rabbi-talmid relationship models what it means to walk as Yahoshua walked (1 John 2:6)—to live so faithfully that our lives themselves bring honor to the One we claim to follow. Our words, habits, relationships, and decisions all serve as evidence of whose teachings have shaped us.

If we truly desire transformation, we must submit to discipleship. If we truly want to reflect Yahoshua, we must walk as His students did—watching, learning, and becoming like our Rabbi in every thought, word, and deed.

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The Transformative Power of Torah

Romans 10:4 says, “For Messiah is the goal of the Torah for righteousness to everyone who believes.”
The goal of Torah is not legalism—it’s alignment.
The Torah is the roadmap that leads us to Messiah. Every command, every instruction, every pattern draws our hearts and minds into union with the character of Elohim revealed in Yahoshua.

Psalm 119 is a testimony to this. Over and over, it proclaims the joy and clarity that comes from the Torah:

“The unfolding of Your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.” (Psalm 119:130)

Study isn’t a burden. It’s liberation. It is the discipline through which the soul awakens.

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A Call to Renew and Rise

Too many claim faith but fear study. Too many want the crown without the yoke of learning. But there is no true transformation without mental renovation. The path to spiritual maturity is paved with scrolls, not slogans.

2 Timothy 2:15 exhorts us:
“Study to show yourself approved unto Elohim, a workman who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

The enemy thrives in our ignorance. But the sons and daughters of light rise through wisdom. We are called to be awake, aware, and armed with understanding.

So I challenge us—starting with iself:

• Carve out time to study daily.
• Reflect deeply on what we read.
• Ask questions. Seek answers. Meditate on the Word.
• Be humble enough to be taught, and bold enough to teach others.

May our minds be renewed, our spirits awakened, and our lives transformed.
Let us be not only believers, but students, builders, and reflectors of supernal light.

The transfiguration is not just coming.
It has already begun—in those willing to renew their minds and walk in truth.

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