Understanding:

We have a responsibility to search out the scriptures, to verify and to know that what we’ve been taught is accurate and correct.  From a Hebrew perspective the questions in in this book were the kinds of questions that I had to start asking myself when I first started looking at the scriptures from a Hebrew/Jewish perspective. 

I do not wish to throw the baby out with the bathwater, however, from a Christian perspective the scriptures left me with more questions than answers.  I would notice that the church leaders would twist and make the scriptures fit their point of view and to fit their traditions.  Without understanding the Hebrew culture and traditions, not to mention the fact that we are separated by more than 2000 years from the time of the first century teachings, it is just next to impossible to fully comprehend the written message that the Messiah and his disciples were teaching in that time period.

My beautiful wife is from the country Burma and while she has been in this country for more than 10 years, there are still times that we fail to communicate in such a way that we fully understand each other.  We have a good understanding of how each other thanks and we live during the same time period.  Our cultural differences are very evident and make life very interesting, but we have not been separated by 2000 years in our understanding of each other. 

Now try to understand or comprehend the differences between our “modern American culture”, and the differences in the culture of the Hebrew people 2000 years ago.  They had a far different way of looking at life not to mention their language, “Hebrew”. The way they used the words in Hebrew then was far different in understanding then how we understand Hebrew here today, not to mention the translation into the English language. 

Here is a very powerful and moving thought…  The Law was not the covenant that the Father made with His people; it is the result of the covenant or the evidence of the covenant.  So, if the Law was and is not the covenant, what was it or what is it, “The Covenant”?  Therefore, as we read in what is called the New Testament were the Messiah says, “If you love me, keep my Commandments”, it would mean that by keeping the Torah, the Law, His Commandments, we then are grafted into His covenant with His people, and by keeping His Torah, it is the evidence that we love Him and are His people. Loyalty to the Father is doing His will, and His will is for us to be in His covenant, and to be in His covenant, we are obligated to keep His Torah.

So how can anyone ever say the Torah has been done away with?  Without Torah living, there is no evidence of our being saved and of our love for Him, and therefore there is not any covenant of any kind.  We are doomed for a forever death without His Torah, and so, keeping His Torah is a sign that we are saved by His grace as a sign that we Love Him, and that He loves us as well by His death for our sins.  This is the Covenant…

Could it be that we are so arrogant to think that we have no responsibility in the concept of being saved?  That all that is needed is that He would die for us and we would be saved without us having any part to play in this action.  Remember what James “the Messiah’s brother” said; “Faith without works is dead”?  What did he mean by this statement? 

Let’s scrutinize what James had to say. 

Ø  James 1:21  The Scriptures 1998+)  Therefore put away all filthiness and overflow of evil, and receive with meekness the implanted Word,¹ which is able to save your lives. Footnote: ¹See Mt. 13:4-23.  :22  And become doers of the Word, and not hearers only,¹ deceiving yourselves. Footnote: ¹See Mt. 7:24-27, Lk. 6:46-49, Lk. 8:21, Rom. 2:13, Heb. 4:11, Rev. 22:14.  :23  Because if anyone is a hearer of the Word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror, :24  for he looks at himself, and goes away, and immediately forgets what he was like.

Ø  Jamss 1:25  But he that looked into the perfect Torah, that of freedom,¹ and continues in it, not becoming a hearer that forgets, but a doer of work, this one shall be blessed in his doing of the Torah. Footnote: ¹See 2:12.

And also:

Ø  (James 2:14 The Scriptures 1998+)  My brothers, what use is it for anyone to say he has belief but does not have works? This belief is unable to save him.  :15  And if a brother or sister is naked and in need of daily food, :16 but one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,” but you do not give them the bodily needs, what use is it?   :17 So also belief, if it does not have works, is in itself dead.  :18 But someone might say, “You have belief, and I have works.” Show me your belief without your works, and I shall show you my belief by my works.  :19 You believe that Elohim is one. You do well. The demons also believe – and shudder!  :20 But do you wish to know, O foolish man, that the belief without the works is dead?  :21 Was not Abraham our father declared right by works when he offered Yitsḥaq his son on the altar?  :22 Do you see that the belief was working with his works, and by the works the belief was perfected?  :23 And the Scripture was filled which says, “Abraham believed Elohim, and it was reckoned to him for righteousness.” And he was called, “Elohim’s friend.”  :24 You see, then, that a man is declared right by works, and not by belief alone.  :25 In the same way, was not Rahaḇ the whore also declared right by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way?  :26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so also the belief is dead without the works.

It is personally interesting to me that I am able to quote from what is called the New Testament and from the teachers there-in to show we need to keep the Torah.  Furthermore, we also need to come to the understanding that at the time of the first century Fathers, including the Messiah and Paul, what we call the “New Testament” as we now understand it had not been written yet.  So what Scriptures were they reading and teaching from?  The only possible answer to this would be what we commonly refer to as the Old Testament, and more to the point, the Torah or Law.

Here are some strong key Scripture points the church seems to disregard: 

Ø  (John 14:15 MKJV)  If you love Me, keep My commandments.

And also in a different translation:

Ø  (John 14:15 The Scriptures 1998+)  “If you love Me, you shall guard My commands.¹ Footnote: ¹See Ex. 20:6, vv. 21&23, 1 John 5:2-3, 2 John v. 6.

Ø  (2 John 1:6 The Scriptures 1998+)  And this is the love, that we walk according to His commands.¹ This is the command, that as you have heard from the beginning, you should walk in it. Footnote: ¹See 1 John 5:3, and John 14:15.   :7 Because many who are leading astray went out into the world who do not confess יהושע Messiah as coming in the flesh. This one is he who is leading astray and the anti-messiah.   :8 See to yourselves, that we do not lose what we worked for, but that we might receive a complete reward.   :9 Everyone who is transgressing and not staying in the teaching of Messiah does not possess Elohim.¹ The one who stays in the teaching of Messiah possesses both the Father and the Son.² Footnotes: ¹1 Tim. 6:3. ²See 1 John 1:3, 1 John 2:22, 1 John 5:20.   :10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house nor greet him,   :11 for he who greets him shares in his wicked works.

John here is speaking of anyone who comes saying we do not need to keep the Fathers Torah, or saying it, “The Torah or the Law” has been done away with.  To say he was speaking of anything different would be totally irresponsible because that view would not be supported with-in the Scriptures, and furthermore, what else could John be speaking of when he states:

Ø  “(2 John 1:6 The Scriptures 1998+)  And this is the love, that we walk according to His commands”?

Ø  (1 John 5:2 The Scriptures 1998+)  By this we know that we love the children of Elohim, when we love Elohim and guard His commands.   :3 For this is the love for Elohim, that we guard His commands,¹ and His commands are not heavy, Footnote: ¹See 5:2, 2 John v. 6, John 14:15.

And also in a different translation:

Ø  (1 John 5:2 MKJV)  By this we know that we love the children of God, whenever we love God and keep His commandments.   :3 For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments, and His commandments are not burdensome.

What are His Commandments?  Hmmm.  I can think of at least 10 of them, can you?

Here is a question, if the Torah or the Law had been done away with, why wasn’t there a decree that was prominently revealed in the New Testament?  Rather, the church has to make that statement in cryptic ways, little sound bites, “verses” to support their teachings all of which are taken out of context without understanding the Hebrew language or the culture of the time.