Glad To Be Back!

Shabbat Shalom! Sure am glad to be back on here!

If you follow my other blog, you know that I have spent weeks trying to get my sites back from being hacked. Sorry it has been so long since I’ve posted!

You may have noticed that the “private” feature to this blog has disappeared, and that you don’t have to log-in with a password anymore. Unfortunately, I had to delete all of my plugins and start fresh. I will be re-installing the privacy feature, though I’m not sure how it will effect you guys. You may have to re-register. I’m hoping that’s not the case, but I wanted to give you  a heads-up.

I’m currently working on a post about Kosher eating. I hope you will do your own studying, and will have questions or comments ready when I get my article up!! I miss the fellowship and discussion here. I hope you’ve all been diligently spending time in His Word… seeking His will for your lives.

Blessings to you all!

Q&A from the Writings of Paul (and more)

Our friend, Noemi, has asked some wonderful questions which I’d like to address. Most of these questions come from the writings of Paul, who is commonly known as the most confusing of all the apostles! If you don’t understand the context of who he is writing to, and what was going on at the time of his writings, you will easily misinterpret what he is saying in his letters.

Even Peter says Paul is confusing! “… even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you; as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.” 2 Peter 3:15-16

Peter warns that if you are “unlearned”, meaning you do not know and understand the law, the writings, and the prophets (our Old Testament writings), you will misinterpret what Paul is saying, even to your own destruction.

Now, I don’t pretend to be “all knowing”; there are still many things I don’t quite understand, yet. And I could be wrong… but I’m going to explain these verses as I understand them, from the studies I’ve done so far. I encourage you to study these things for yourself, and pray for understanding.

Noemi wrote (shown in bold)…

Here’s some cool thought- provoking verses I thought I’d share — related to the law:

Romans 7:4-7

Therefore, my brethren, you also were made to die to the Law through the body of Christ, so that you might be joined to another, to Him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit for God. For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death. But now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter. What shall we say then? Is the Law sin? May it never be! On the contrary, I would not have come to know sin except through the Law;

I don’t know what translation you were quoting from, but it is read a little differently in my King James version. I think it’s interesting to note that the word “law” is not capitalized in my version, as you have indicated above, which seems to erroneously imply that the law that is being spoken of here is “The Law”, or Torah. Paul is not referring to Torah here, he is speaking of one particular law, the law of a marriage covenant, which we’ll discuss below.

As with all things in Scripture, you must start at the beginning of the conversation, and take everything into context. So, let’s start at the beginning of Romans 7 to get the whole story…

Verse 1: “Know ye not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the law,) how that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth?”

First of all, we see here that Paul is specifically speaking to those who know the Torah. Keep in mind that Paul was a Rabbi, and had the entire Torah and the writings of the prophets committed to memory. He is about to refer to a law in Deuteronomy, and realizes that those who do not know the law will not understand what he is speaking about. (Another reason that WE should know the law as well!)

Who was he speaking to? He is speaking to the gentile Israelites- those from the Northern Kingdom, who YHWH says he divorced (Jer. 3: 7-8) and scattered among the nations. These were 10 of the 12 tribes of Israel, who had assimilated into the surrounding cultures. These were the “lost sheep of the house of Israel”.

You absolutely MUST understand the splitting of the 12 tribes to understand the entire reason for Yeshua’s coming. He says himself in Matthew 15:24, “… I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” If you don’t know what he’s talking about, you need to get this before you will be able to completely understand the entire New Testament. (I would love to do a study here on this subject, eventually.)

Jim Staley did a fantastic video on this subject called Identity Crisis- you have got to watch it!! If you don’t know about the divorce of the ten tribes, stop reading and watch the video first, ’cause you aren’t gonna understand the rest of what Paul is saying here in Chapter 7.

Verse 2-3: “For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law (marriage contract) to her husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband. So then if, while her husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband be dead, she is free from that law; so that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man.”

Okay, so here is where the knowledge of the Torah comes into play, because you have to know what it says regarding this marriage law to understand where Paul goes with this. Please read Deut. 24: 1-4. Verse 4 is key here,

“Her former husband, which sent her away, may not take her again to be his wife, after that she is defiled; for that is abomination before YHWH…”

Also read Jeremiah 3:1, “They say, If a man put away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man’s, shall he return unto her again? shall not that land be greatly polluted?”

According to God’s own law, one cannot take his wife back once she has married another man. And since the Northern Kingdom of Israel (the 10 tribes, the “lost sheep”) had been divorced from YHWH (Jer. 3: 7-8), by His own law, He could not take them back… not until her first husband (himself) died and loosed her from the law under which she had become an adulteress.

That is what is so incredibly profound about Yeshua’s death and resurrection! Him dying released the “lost sheep of Israel” from their adultery, and Him coming alive made it possible to reclaim his bride, and they could now come back to him!

So in Romans 7:4 where it says (King James Version),

Wherefore, my brethren, you also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.

Paul is telling the Israelite gentiles that the law which had prevented them from coming back to Yah (the law of marriage, divorce, and adultery) has now been lifted by the death of Yeshua! Their husband had died, and freed them from their adultery, and they were now free to marry Him again, and come back into covenant!!

Does that make sense? Is that not AMAZING?!

Verses 5-6: For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death. But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter.

In our preconversion life, we continued to transgress the Torah, which ultimately led to the penalty of death (the law of sin and death). But now we are freed from the penalty of death, the old man (our preconversion life) being dead. We should now serve in a renewed spirit, and not for salvation (as was being taught).

Verse 7: What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.

The law cannot be done away with, or we will not know what sin is! He gave it to them then, and He gives it to us today, so that we know what He sees as wrong, and we don’t do those things.

Okay, next question…

Romans 10:4

For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.

If you read the verse right before this, it says,

“For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.” (vs. 3)

The Pharisees and other Rabbinic teachers were trying to bring about their own righteousness by following man made doctrines. They were, to a degree, righteous, in that they did good things with their lives, but they could by no means reach a Godly righteousness by themselves. So, when it goes on to say,

“For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth”, he is saying that the law can only bring you so far in your righteousness, and then you need the grace that comes with Yeshua! Only He can bring you to Godly righteousness. It doesn’t say, “For Christ is the end of the law, period.” It says, “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness…”. The law is like a path that leads you to the end of the road, which is Christ. He completes our righteousness.

Galatians 3:10-14, 19, 23-26

For as many as are of the works of the Law are under a curse; for it is written, “CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO DOES NOT ABIDE BY ALL THINGS WRITTEN IN THE BOOK OF THE LAW, TO PERFORM THEM.” Now that no one is justified by the Law before God is evident; for, “THE RIGHTEOUS MAN SHALL LIVE BY FAITH.” However, the Law is not of faith; on the contrary, “HE WHO PRACTICES THEM SHALL LIVE BY THEM.” Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written, “CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE”— in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we would receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

The curse of the law came when we stepped out from the boundaries of the Torah. The law was not the curse, it was there to protect us. The breaking of the law brought on the curse, which is death. We have all sinned, as we know, and we are all under the curse of death. Christ freed us from this curse, by taking it upon himself. It doesn’t say he “redeemed us from the law”, it says he “redeemed us from the curse of the law”.

Paul is saying here that it has always been FAITH which makes us righteous, not the law. The law is not based on faith-you don’t trust in it for salvation, it was a system of instructions on how to keep us from being cursed… it was a set of boundaries to keep us within His blessings!
…
Why the Law then? It was added because of transgressions, having been ordained through angels by the agency of a mediator, until the seed would come to whom the promise had been made.

Does this verse mean that the law was in place only until Yeshua came, and then it was no longer? Absolutely not. I like the analogy that Jim Staley uses for this. He says, the law is like a police officer. It enforces the punishment (death) for breaking the law (sin). But when the Sheriff comes into town, the authority is transferred to the higher official- the one who wrote the law itself. It doesn’t mean that the police officer didn’t have any authority before, it just means that the Sheriff now has supreme authority, and can pardon your punishment. It doesn’t mean there is no more law, but there can be a pardon from the penalty of transgressing the law.
…
But before faith came, we were kept in custody under the law, being shut up to the faith which was later to be revealed. Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor. For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.

Again, we were imprisoned by the curse of the law. Here you see the transfer of authority from the penalty of breaking the law to the grace which the lawgiver has bestowed on those who have faith in Him.

Ephesians 2:14-16

For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall, by abolishing in His flesh the enmity, which is the Law of commandments contained in ordinances, so that in Himself He might make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace, and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by it having put to death the enmity.

The Greek term “fragmos” was used in the 1st Century to identify the oral Torah as a “wall” or “fence” around the written Torah, and the Pharisees as “builders of the wall.” The “dividing wall” spoken of here was the strict separation of the Jew and the Gentile as given by Rabbinic teachings. They were not allowing non-Jews who wished to serve YHWH to come in and worship alongside them unless they adhered to a strict 7 step process. This was in direct opposition to the will of the Father, who specifically said that if a foreigner wished to come in he was to be treated as a native born Israelite.

Again, the bringing together of two men into one goes back to the 2 House thing, the divorce of the ten tribes from the twelve, and the promise to bring them back into one House (Israel).

Yeshua came to abolish the Rabbinic man-made laws, which were being taught as if they were God’s laws and were working contrary to His will.

James 2:10

For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all.

Yes. Praise Yah for providing His all sufficient grace!! We will never be perfect. Only God is perfect. However, it doesn’t mean that we should give up, throw our hands in the air and say, “Oh well. I can’t be perfect. Why should I try?” No! We continue to strive toward obeying Him as perfectly as we possibly can. Why? Because we love Him.

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished” (Matthew 5:17-18).

Please see my post What Did Yeshua Fulfill? for my thoughts on this.

I could not explain this with my own words, so I’ll copy and paste an explanation I read on gotquestions.org:

“It is frequently argued that if Jesus did not “abolish” the law, then it must still be binding. … Christ did not suggest here that the binding nature of the law of Moses would remain forever in effect. Such a view would contradict everything we learn from the balance of the New Testament (Romans 10:4; Galatians 3:23-25; Ephesians 2:15).

Okay, so I have already explained these three referenced verses- all of which the author of this article clearly has no idea of what they truly mean. None of these verses have anything to do with the Torah becoming of none effect, and are absolutely not contradictory. Just because He has decided to show us grace, doesn’t mean that He doesn’t want us to continue to obey His word!

“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. ” Rom. 6: 1 How has Yah defined sin?

1 John 3:4 “Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.”

And I’m not sure what the “binding nature” of the Mosaic law is which this guy refers to. The word “Torah” literally means, “Instructions”. YHWH’s instructions were for our good!! They were seen as the road map to life, not some binding obligation as so many preach it to be today.

“Of special significance in this study is the word rendered “abolish.” It translates the Greek term kataluo, literally meaning “to loosen down.” The word is found seventeen times in the New Testament. It is used, for example, of the destruction of the Jewish temple by the Romans (Matthew 26:61; 27:40; Acts 6:14), and of the dissolving of the human body at death (2 Corinthians 5:1). The term can carry the extended meaning of “to overthrow,” i.e., “to render vain, deprive of success.” In classical Greek, it was used in connection with institutions, laws, etc., to convey the idea of “to invalidate.”

Yes, this word (Strong’s 2647) can also mean to destroy, or to dissolve. Yeshua did NOT come to destroy, dissolve, or overthrow the Torah. He did not come to make it of no consequence for future generations, this would be “overthrowing” the law, as he clearly says he did not do.

I wonder what this author would say if you asked him what it meant when Yeshua said, “If you love me, keep my commandments”? Were Jesus’ commandments something new? Or did He come to show us and teach us the very same commandments we’ve had from the very beginning?

1 John 2:7 says, “Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning.”

“It is especially important to note how the word is used in Matthew 5:17. In this context, “abolish” is set in opposition to “fulfill.” Christ came “…not to abolish, but to fulfill.” Jesus did not come to this earth for the purpose of acting as an opponent of the law. His goal was not to prevent its fulfillment. Rather, He revered it, loved it, obeyed it, and brought it to fruition. He fulfilled the law’s prophetic utterances regarding Himself (Luke 24:44). Christ fulfilled the demands of the Mosaic law, which called for perfect obedience under threat of a “curse” (see Galatians 3:10, 13). In this sense, the law’s divine design will ever have an abiding effect. It will always accomplish the purpose for which it was given. [MY COMMENT HERE: I THINK THE LAW WAS GIVEN TO US NOT IN ORDER TO KEEP IT BUT TO SHOW US WE CAN'T KEEP IT AND THAT WE NEED CHRIST TO KEEP IT FOR US AND TO MAKE US RIGHT WITH GOD - SEE GALATIANS 3]

His purpose in fulfilling the Torah was to show us how to keep it. This word “fulfill” literally means “to satisfy” or “perfect” (Strongs 4137). Him keeping the law did not nullify it.

And I just don’t buy that YHWH would give us laws/instructions with a penalty attached to them, knowing that we will never be able to keep them. What kind of justice would that be? As a parent, I would never tell my children to do something, knowing in my heart that they couldn’t possibly do it, and then punish them for not obeying. Would that not create in them a spirit of resentment? I just don’t believe that a perfect, loving Father would play such a rotten trick. I do, however, believe that He knew we wouldn’t keep it (not that we couldn’t, but that we would be “stiff necked” and go our own ways), and so in His great grace and mercy He gave us a way back to Him.

The law had three purposes: To reveal our sin (or, show us what is wrong so that we stop doing it), for blessings (when we obey), and curses (when we disobey). I believe that sometimes the curses were natural consequences for disobedience, which He allows us to endure, and other times they are a direct punishment from Him, to chastise us and bring us to repentance (much the same as a spanking or a time-out for a disobedient child). The law was NEVER meant for salvation. It has always been FAITH which makes us His children.

“If, however, the law of Moses bears the same relationship to men today, in terms of its binding status, then it was not fulfilled, and Jesus failed at what He came to do. On the other hand, if the Lord did accomplish His goal, then the law was fulfilled, and it is not a binding legal institution today.

Yeshua did not come to put a stop to all future Torah observance. If he did, then the disciples and the apostle Paul would not have continued keeping the Mosaic Law some 30+ years after the death of the Messiah. And if Yeshua didn’t want us to continue to walk in Torah, though he kept it perfectly himself, why would His Word tell us…

“He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk , even as he walked.” 1 John 2:6

If we say we are in Christ, then we should walk (live) as he did… keeping Torah.

The problem with what this guy is saying is that he is looking at Torah as something burdensome. But when you love somebody, you do things that please them because it makes them happy! If you do it strictly out of obligation, the meaning is lost. For instance, if my husband knows that it really blesses me when he does the dishes after dinner, and so he does it for the simple fact that he loves me, then our relationship is strengthened and I have the desire to bless him in return! If he does the dishes begrudgingly, then I’d rather him not do it at all. Does that make sense? I think this is how the Father sees keeping Torah. We do it because we love him, not because we have to! And when we do, we are protected from things which can harm us, we are blessed, and we draw closer to the heart of YHWH.

“And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.” 1 John 2:3-5

We perfect our love of God/Yeshua by keeping His commandments.

Further, if the law of Moses was not fulfilled by Christ—and thus remains as a binding legal system for today—then it is not just partially binding. Rather, it is a totally compelling system. Jesus plainly said that not one “jot or tittle” (representative of the smallest markings of the Hebrew script) would pass away until all was fulfilled. Consequently, nothing of the law was to fail until it had completely accomplished its purpose. Jesus fulfilled the law. Jesus fulfilled all of the law. We cannot say that Jesus fulfilled the sacrificial system, but did not fulfill the other aspects of the law. Jesus either fulfilled all of the law, or none of it. What Jesus’ death means for the sacrificial system, it also means for the other aspects of the law.” ”

Wait a minute… what about the part that says, “For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled”? Matt 5: 18

Are heaven and earth still here?? This guy is saying that Jesus “fulfilled” the law. You show me where he says he came “to fulfill the law”. He never says it!! He said, “Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.” (Matt 5:17) To fulfill what? Not the law… THE PROPHECY!!! (Again, refer back to my article on this for more explanation.)

Still think the law was fulfilled as described by this dude? Then keep reading what Yeshua says here,

“Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” Matt 5:19

He himself tells us very clearly, those who keep the commandments will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. Notice, if you don’t keep them, you still get into heaven! Keeping Torah is not for salvation!! BUT… you will be called the least if you don’t walk in His statutes.

As for the sacrificial system, there is evidence in the Scriptures that there will be sacrificing again in the Millennial Kingdom (Zech. 14:21, Ezek. 41:41-43, Ezek 44:11, Ezek. 46: 24). I don’t believe Yeshua did away with the sacrificial system. The reason we do not sacrifice today is because there is no altar to sacrifice on. (I’ll go into further detail below, in answer to another similar question.)

As for the apostle being zealous for the law, what does that really mean? If it means he was keeping the Torah, do you think he was also still sacrificing animals to God?

Paul was zealous for the law, meaning that he was passionate about it! He lived and breathed Torah, even 30-40 years after the death of the Messiah. Somehow, he missed the memo that Jesus had done away with the law!

In Matthew 8: 1-4, we read of Yeshua healing a man of leprosy, then telling him to go and make a sacrifice as was commanded in Torah (Lev. 1: 3-4). So, we know Jesus upheld the law in that regard.

But, did Paul sacrifice? Short answer, Yes! I’ll just let you read this article for the full scoop on that.

Should Christians require new converts to be circumcised at their conversion as well and bring God offerings for sin? That also is in the Torah.

Here is the command: “And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant.” Gen. 17:14

Peter and the other apostles had this very discussion in Acts 15: 5-21. A Pharisee among them said that they needed to circumcise the new believers, in accordance with the law of Moses. It’s interesting to note that, although this occurred 30-40 years after the resurrection, they did not rebuke the man for suggesting the new believers keep Torah! If Jesus had done away with the law, then this would not have even been a conversation. But it was. It was a very involved discussion. But to understand it fully, you have to remember that there was this “Circumcision Party” of Rabbinic teachers which was trying to tell new believers that they MUST keep the Torah for salvation.

The apostles definitely didn’t want to concur with this teaching, however, they knew that it was a commandment. And so, they decided that the best answer was to tell new believers to abstain from four main things first: pollutions of idols, fornication, from things strangled, and from blood. Why these things out of all the commandments? Remember, these new converts were coming straight out of paganism, and were deeply immersed in the customs and practices of that lifestyle. The apostles chose these four commandments as a starting point because they all had to do with paganism and worship of idols. The gentiles needed to cleanse their lives from these common doings first and foremost, and then the rest would be learned over time as they went to the synagogue to learn Torah; this is why they went on to say, “For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day.” Acts 15:21

Did the apostles mean that new believers ONLY had to do these four things? Absolutely not. If that were the case, then they just threw out everything Yeshua taught! Once they put away these pagan practices (which were the most prevalent and pressing issues in their spiritual lives at that time), they would then be able to move forward in their spiritual growth and begin to transform their lives in other areas as they learned more from God’s word.

Some people today will point to these verses and say something like, “See! The only thing they told the gentiles they had to do was abstain from these four things,” and claim that this is proof that we no longer have to keep the rest of Torah (which, by the way, these four things are from Torah). This is a ridiculous conclusion to come to!! If it were so, then we would be free to covet, lie, take YHWH’s name in vain, and we would no longer have to love our neighbor as our self. Does that make sense? The fact that they went on to say that the new converts would learn the rest from the Torah in the synagogue every sabbath is proof enough that they meant for these believers to learn the rest of the law.

Or, in some passages, people who committed sins against the Law, were to be stoned to death (like an adulterer, for example; and Jesus did not literally ‘keep the law’ in that case, did He ?–if He would have , He should have stoned her to death, no? )

In the case of the woman who was going to be stoned for adultery (John 8: 1-11), the scribes and Pharisees had brought her into the temple where Yeshua was teaching and told him they had just caught her in the act of adultery, and that according to the Torah, she must be stoned. It says in verse 6 that their intention was to trap him (as they constantly tried to do).

But let’s take a close look at what exactly the Torah says regarding this situation,

“And the man that committeth adultery with another man’s wife, even he that committeth adultery with his neighbour’s wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death.” Lev. 20:10

“If a man be found lying with a woman married to an husband, then they shall both of them die, both the man that lay with the woman, and the woman: so shalt thou put away evil from Israel.” Deut. 22:22

You see, these elders weren’t even keeping Torah themselves! For, according to the law, they were supposed to bring the guilty woman AND the man to be stoned.

Yeshua answered them,

“He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.” John 8: 7b

Remember, sin is defined as transgression of the law. He knew that they knew they were not upholding the law, and he called them out on it.

“And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last…” John 8: 9a

What could they say? They knew they were breaking Torah by only bringing the woman to be stoned, and not the man also. And so, they all went away with a guilty conscience.

Yeshua didn’t break the law in any way. Once again, he is seen as UPHOLDING it. And also showing grace to the woman, by telling her to go and sin no more.

In James 2:10 it says “For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all.” So if you keep the Sabbath and the Feasts, why not abide by the sacrificial / offerings system of the law as well? If Christians should keep the Law, meaning the Torah, they should keep all of it, no? Why pick and choose which to keep? Or if we can pick and choose, what is the basis for it?

I have not done an extensive study on the sacrificial system, but I will give my understanding thus far…

As I mentioned above, I do not believe Yeshua did away with the sacrificial system. However, we do not offer sacrifices today because there is no altar today. The law specifies that you cannot offer sacrifices anywhere, it MUST be done in the promised land,

“Take heed to thyself that thou offer not thy burnt offerings in every place that thou seest: But in the place which YHWH shall choose in one of thy tribes, there thou shalt offer thy burnt offerings, and there thou shalt do all that I command thee.” Deut. 12: 13-14

In Deut. 12: 1-14 Hashem tells them that when they go over the Jordan, and into the promised land, they are not to set up altars wherever they want as they did when they were traveling. But that He would set up His place there in the land, and that they were thenceforth to bring their offerings only to that place, and nowhere else.

(by the way, this is a little off tangent, but since you mentioned eating certain foods, why is it that to Noah, God did not give him any restraint in what he could eat, except for not eating blood? Gen 9:3 “3 Every moving thing that is alive shall be food for you; I give all to you, (B)as I gave the green plant.”

In Genesis 1:29 YHWH told Adam and Eve, “Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.”

In the beginning, God only meant for men to eat herbs, fruits and vegetables. But after the flood, He told Noah that he could now eat meat,

“Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things.” Gen. 9:3

Does this mean that EVERYTHING is okay to eat? What about all of the poisonous fish we know we cannot eat? If we just say a blessing over them, are they safe to eat today?

I don’t believe He was being literal when He told Noah “every moving thing that liveth”, and I believe Noah knew what God was saying. Clean and unclean had already been established (as you can see in the clean and unclean animals Noah brought into the ark).

I heard a good explanation which makes a lot of sense to me: If you had guests at your house, and told them to help themselves to anything in your fridge… would you mean the dog’s antibiotics, or the box of baking soda there? Of course not. There is an understanding of what “anything” means. I believe Noah understood that what God was saying here is that meat was now for him to eat. Is seems that his purpose was to make the beasts of the earth fear man (Gen. 9:2)

Also do you not agree with Mark that Jesus declared all foods clean in Mark 7:18-19?)

With regards to Mark 7:19, (when I first learned of this I was horrified!), many of the newer translations have actually added to God’s Word by putting in parenthesis, “(By this he declared all foods clean.)” First of all, the fact that it is within parenthesis, and is not shown in red in those Bibles which show Yeshua’s words in red, is evidence that it has been added. But many people don’t realize this, and take it to be God’s Word. Check out this link, which shows many different translations of this verse- you will see proof that originally this phrase was nowhere to be seen.

If you read the entire account of Mark 7: 1-23 from the beginning, you will realize that the context of the discussion is over unwashed hands. The Scribes and Pharisees (who believed that you have to wash a certain way before you eat, or you are sinning) saw the disciples eating bread without washing as rabbinic law required.

When they came to Yeshua regarding this, he rebuked them for teaching rabbinic law (commandments of men) for salvation, and for not keeping God’s law. And after a thorough scolding, he told them that not washing hands will not make the men unclean, for nothing you put into your body can make you lose your salvation. It is what comes out of a man’s heart which defiles a man.

This has absolutely nothing to do with saying pork is clean.

(I never could quite understand why Yeshua would die to make pork clean.)

I hope that this is helpful to you, Noemi, and to all of you who have asked yourself these same questions. It is incredibly important that whenever you read something which sounds like it contradicts Torah, that you make sure you are reading the entire account, in context, and you refer back to the related Scriptures (which often help to explain in further detail). Nothing in the New Testament contradicts the Old Testament.

We must understand that YHWH does not change,

“For I am YHWH, I do not change,” Malachi 3:6a

God cannot break His own commandments, to do so would be sin,

“Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.” 1 John 3:4

Everything in the New Testament, everything taught by Yeshua and his disciples/apostles pointed back to the Torah- NOT FOR SALVATION, but for instructions.

One last point I’d like to make… an analogy that came to me one day and helped clarify things in my mind:

All throughout the ministry of Yeshua, he is constantly pointing back to the Father. He always wants the glory and honor to go to the Father.

Now, let’s say that a man put his son in charge of his household while he went away for a while. There are very specific rules for the household, which are very important to the father. But while he is away, the son in charge stands up before the family and says, “Father has put me in charge. You are now free from our father’s rules.”

Would that honor his father? Or would it dishonor him?

If Yeshua came to tell us that we no longer had to keep God’s rules (which are the very heart of Yah), that we were “free” to do whatever we wanted, how would that honor the Father?

It wouldn’t. And he didn’t.

My husband and I have been Torah observant for a year now, and have never felt closer to God, have never been closer to each other as a family, and have never understood Scripture so clearly in our lives.

Torah is not bondage. It is freedom.

“But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.” James 1:25

What Did Yeshua Fulfill?

I had a major revelation in my studying tonight.

We’ve all heard, “Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.” Matthew 5:17

I don’t know about you, but I’ve always been taught that this verse says Jesus came to fulfill the law (meaning to do away with it). And since I’ve come to be Torah observant, my focus has been on defining the word “fulfill” as not meaning “to abolish”, but “to make full”, in that he lived it out perfectly.

But tonight, as I read this verse for the millionth time, an incredible, completely different understanding was revealed to me.

Look at the verse again and forget what you’ve always been told. If you read it carefully, you will see that it actually does not say “fulfill the law”, it simply says he came to “fulfill”.

We’ve always assumed he was talking about the law when he said he came to fulfill, but what if he wasn’t? And if you are going to deduct from this verse that Jesus fulfilled the law, then to be fair would you not also have to include ALL of the prophecies in his fulfillment as well? How can you just pick out his fulfillment of  “the law” and not “the prophets”, when he references both in the same breath?

Tonight, I have become fully convinced that Yeshua wasn’t talking about the law or the prophets when he said he came to fulfill. What then, if it wasn’t the law?

It was THE PROPHECY!!

He’s saying he didn’t come to destroy anything. He came to fulfill the prophecy which had been spoken of him! (It was long prophesied that a messiah was coming to save Israel, see Isaiah 49)

With this understanding, the verses that follow make a whole lot more sense! For he goes on to reemphasize the importance of keeping the Torah.

 Matthew 5: 18 “For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.”

(A jot and a tittle are the smallest marks in the Hebrew writings.) Are heaven and earth still here? He is saying that not even the smallest detail will pass away from the law until heaven and earth pass, and ALL things (His entire plan for us) are fulfilled!

But keep reading,

Matthew 5:19 “Whosoever therefore shall break one of the least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”

Jesus himself is telling us that those who do not keep His commandments (as found in the books of Moses) shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven. Note: keeping Torah is NOT for salvation, obviously we’ll still get to see the kingdom if we don’t keep His commandments, BUT we’ll be called the least. And I don’t want to be the least.

My point is this. He still wants us to keep the Sabbath holy. He still wants us to eat “clean” food. He still wants us to celebrate the Feasts of the Lord (as given in Lev. 23), which are incredible prophetic foreshadows of the life, death, resurrection and return of Messiah, and the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.

Jesus never came to do away with the law. He lived it out perfectly, to be an example of how we should live.

“He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.” 1 John 2:4

 “He that saith he abideth in him (Jesus) ought himself also so to walk , even as he walked.” 1 John 2:6

He lived Torah. And we are to live as he lived.

“Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning.” 1 John 2:7

He didn’t come and make up new commandments for us to follow. The commandments have been the same from the very beginning of the book. God doesn’t change.

When he said, “If you love me, keep my commandments,” he was talking about the Torah.

Question of the Day: How Many People Did God Create?

Growing up, I always believed that God created Adam and Eve, and from these two the earth was populated. I thought everyone came from Adam and Eve.

But how could that be? Who did their sons marry?

And when God punished Cain for killing Abel, and told him he would be  a vagabond, Cain cried out that it was more than he could bear, “Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid… and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me.” Genesis 4:14

He was afraid of the people “out there” who would kill him. What people?

Obviously, YHWH created other people outside of the garden on Eden. I wonder, what was their purpose? It seems as if they didn’t know Him. Did He create only a special few to fellowship with, and the rest were just living on the earth without a knowledge of Him? And when were these other people created? Before, or after, Adam and Eve?

I’m curious to hear your thoughts!

Remember The Sabbath Day: Part Two

Okay, so last week in Part One of this study, we talked about what the Sabbath means to the Father. Now that we know how important it is that we take this one day, from sundown on Friday evening to sundown on Saturday evening, and dedicate it to Him as a time to rest and be in His presence, we need to further investigate how we are to do this in a way which is pleasing to the Father.

What exactly are we supposed to do on the sabbath? And what are we not supposed to do? We’ve already established that we are not supposed to work on the sabbath. But what exactly does that include? Let’s look at the Scriptures and see what He says…

1. We are not supposed to prepare or cook food.

When YHWH sent the manna to the children of Israel while they were wandering in the desert, he gave them the instructions that they were to gather the manna every morning, but only to gather enough for each person for that day. They were not supposed to keep any extra for the next day.

Some of the people were afraid that manna may not come the next day, and so decided to keep some extra for the following day, just in case. The next morning, the leftover manna stunk and was filled with worms. It could not be kept overnight. (Exodus 16:20)

However, on the day before the sabbath, YHWH told the people to gather twice as much food as they needed; enough to feed them through Friday and Saturday. They were to do all of their food preparations that day, and refrain on the sabbath. They were not to gather manna on the sabbath; there would be no manna to gather on the sabbath. This was the ONLY day they could collect manna to keep overnight, and it would not spoil.

YHWH made it very clear that no food was to be collected, prepared, or cooked on the sabbath day. And He gave them the provisions they would need to keep this commandment.

“And they gathered it every morning, every man according to his eating: and when the sun waxed hot, it melted. And it came to pass that on the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for one man: and all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses. And he said unto them, This is that which YHWH  hath said, To morrow is the rest of the holy sabbath unto YHWH: bake that which ye will bake to day, and seethe that ye will seethe; and that which remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the morning. And they laid it up till the morning, as Moses bade: and it did not stink, neither was there any worm therein. And Moses  said, Eat that today; for to day is a sabbath unto the LORD: to day ye shall not find it in the field. Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the sabbath, in it there shall be none” Ex 16:21-26

But some of the people still did not obey the voice of the LORD, and went out on the sabbath day to collect manna. But there was no manna to find.

And it came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none. And the LORD said unto Moses, How long refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws? See, for that the LORD hath given you the sabbath, therefore he giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day. So the people rested on the seventh day.” Ex 16:27-30

The word “abide” here means to sit down (in quiet), to remain or dwell; to ease self, settle down or sit down; tarry.

This word “place” can mean either a room, space, or location.

He was telling the people to sit tight and just rest. Don’t go out and about, trying to find more manna, but just to be still.

He is NOT saying that you are not allowed to leave your home on the sabbath day. I have actually heard someone say (mockingly) that what this verse is saying is that even if you had an emergency you could not drive to the hospital. What a ridiculous thing to say, seeing as even Yeshua himself went out, and healed on the sabbath day! The point was not to banish them to their homes during the sabbath. The whole reason for telling the Israelites not to go out, was that they were doing so with the purpose of trying to gather manna.

If we were not meant to leave our homes on the sabbath day, then Yeshua and the disciples would not have been seen or heard telling the believers to go to the synagogue, and the homes of others, on the sabbath day. Which they repeatedly do throughout the scriptures.

So, we are to do all of our food preparations before the sabbath, and not cook on the sabbath day.

This takes some serious planning and getting used to. When I first started keeping the Saturday sabbath, I have to be honest and share that I really struggled with this one. Cooking six square meals from scratch on Friday before sundown was quite a task! But you know what? I was really making it harder than it had to be. I’ve realized it’s just a matter of diligent planning.

Crockpot meals are a great option. Making a double portion some time during the week, and freezing half of it to be served during the sabbath also cuts down the preparation work. There are many ways to make it easier on yourself. And no, we don’t eat our food cold. I don’t believe He intended for our sabbaths to be something that we suffer through. Heating your food, and cooking your food, are two very different things. Some may disagree, but yeah… we have no problem tossing a pre-cooked casserole in the oven to heat up on the sabbath day. And what a joy to not have to cook for a whole day! It really is worth the little bit of planning it takes.

2. We are not supposed to do any kind of work, including harvesting crops.

“Six days thou shalt work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest: in earing time and in harvest thou shalt rest.” Ex 34:21

The phrase “earing time” here is referring to the ploughing season.

Even when our crops are at the peak of harvesting time, we are to take that one day, the sabbath, to rest, and not do any gardening, or harvesting at all. This one has been very hard for me to do, especially on a beautiful day when I feel like I could really get a lot done outside. I just have to remind myself that the LORD will not bless my disobedience, and whatever I sow on the sabbath probably will not flourish anyway.

Of course, the Rabbis who love to expound upon YHWH’s law, made this simple commandment even more burdensome, as you read in Mark 2:23-28:

“And it came to pass, that he (Yeshua) went through the corn fields on the sabbath day; and his disciples began, as they went, to pluck the ears of corn. And the Pharisees said unto him, Behold, why do they on the sabbath day that which is not lawful? And he said unto them, Have ye never read what David did, when he had need, and was an hungred, he, and they that were with him? How he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and did eat the shewbread, which is not lawful to eat but for the priests, and gave also to them which were with him? And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath. Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath.”

The Pharisees rebuked Yeshua for allowing his disciples to pick ears of corn to eat as they went along on the sabbath day. Obviously, there is a huge difference between working in the fields harvesting, and going out and picking an ear of corn to snack on. The disciples weren’t breaking God’s laws, they were breaking the Rabbinic additions to the Torah. Yeshua tells the Pharisees that man wasn’t made to be a slave to the sabbath day and all of these laws they were burdening the people with. The sabbath was made for man- to be blessing to him, not a curse like the Pharisees had made it. He even added that He was “Lord also of the sabbath”, meaning that He created it, and who knew how to keep it better than he?

“Ye shall kindle no fire throughout your habitations upon the sabbath day.” Ex 35:3

Back in those days, to kindle a fire most often meant one of two things: either you were going to cook, or you were going to do work. YHWH is not saying that if it’s snowing outside, and you have no electricity, you must suffer through the sabbath and possibly freeze to death. Of course not. And yet, there are those who would speak such foolishness. Some rabbis even go so far as to say it is unlawful to heat your home, start your car, or even turn on a light switch (the reasoning behind the latter two having to do with creating a spark) on the sabbath day. This sort of teaching is exactly what Yeshua and Paul and the other disciples were condemning and speaking out against in their writings… this burdensome law that man has added to the Torah.

All He was saying was that they were not to make preparations to cook or to work on the sabbath day.

“And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man that gathered sticks upon the sabbath day. And they that found him gathering sticks brought him unto Moses and Aaron, and unto all the congregation. And they put him inward, because it was not declared what should be done to him. And YHWH said unto Moses, The man shall be surely put to death: all the congregation shall stone him with stones without the camp. And all the congregation brought him without the camp, and stoned him with stones, and he died; as YHWH commanded Moses.”  Numbers 15:32-36

At first glance, it seems as if the man was stoned for simply gathering sticks. But when you take the situation into context, you realize that his purpose for gathering sticks was to kindle a fire. He was planning on either cooking, or working… probably working, assuming the women would have been doing the cooking most times.

He was not stoned for the act of gathering sticks. He was stoned for saying in his heart, that he was going to do whatever he wanted to do on the sabbath day. He was rebelling against YHWH.

If you continue reading through the end of Numbers 15, YHWH goes on to tell the children of Israel to put fringes on the borders of their garments (something called tzitzits, which we’ll talk about at another time), “that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the LORD, and do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye used to go a whorring”.

This was exactly what this man was doing- seeking after his own heart and his own eyes. This is why he was stoned. It was an issue of his heart.

So, no, if you go out and pick up a stick to play with your dog on the sabbath day, you are not breaking Torah.

3. We are not to cause others to do work on the sabbath day, which means we shouldn’t buy anything on the sabbath either.

“Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of YHWH: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:” Exodus 20:9-10

We aren’t to do any work, and we are not to have anyone else, including our animals, do any work on the sabbath day either. For this reason, we do not go out to eat on the sabbath day. To do so would cause the waitress, the cook, and the hostess to work by serving us, which is in direct disobedience to this commandment. We do all of our shopping, and fill our gas tanks before sundown on Friday.

I also do not go yard sale-ing anymore on Saturdays. Which was a HUGE thing for me to give up.  However, it has been a blessing in that I’m not out spending money on gas driving around trying to find a yard sale, and buying little things that I really didn’t need. I can find most deals on things I really am looking for and need on Craigslist, so I haven’t truly missed yard sales that much after all. Every now and then, I’ll come upon a yard sale on a Friday or a Sunday, and then I’ll stop and browse.

One day, when my husband and I were first starting to keep the sabbath, we tried to rationalize in our hearts that yard sale-ing was really okay. After all, it wasn’t any work to us… and the people were going to be setting up anyways, right? We got up, got the kids ready, and hit the road. We drove around FOREVER before we finally found a yard sale. And it was nothing but junk. So we drove some more, and found another yard sale, but it was the same story- nothing good to be found. We drove around for a couple of hours, not finding anything worth while, the kids screaming and misbehaving the whole car ride. And by the end of a frustrating morning, which had been a stressful, total waste of time and money, we drove home convinced that this was what we got for breaking the sabbath! And we haven’t tested YHWH again since.

“Thus saith the LORD; Take heed to yourselves, and bear no burden on the sabbath day, nor bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem; Neither carry forth a burden out of your houses on the sabbath day, neither do ye any work, but hallow ye the sabbath day, as I commanded your fathers.” Jeremiah 17:21-22

The word “burden” here literally means “porterage”. Porterage is defined as, “the carrying of burdens, supplies, or goods as done by porters;” having to do with business or commerce. A porter is a person who is hired to carry these goods. So we can see that “burdens” here refers the goods that were meant to be sold or traded.

This verse is not saying that you cannot carry anything on the sabbath day, as many rabbis teach. I was reading an article a while back about some Jewish communities who have been taught that it is unlawful for the women to even carry their babies out of their home on the sabbath day, because they are not allowed to carry anything at all on the sabbath. They aren’t allowed to carry books, or anything else, according to the rabbinic teachings. Talk about making the sabbath a burden! They are nothing but modern day Pharisees.

YHWH is not saying this at all. He is simply reinstating the “no working” and no causing others to work on the sabbath day law.

(If you keep reading through vs. 27 YHWH goes on to explain the blessings that will come from not carrying goods to be sold on the sabbath, and the curses from disobeying this command.)

Nehemiah had trouble with men doing this very thing, setting up shop within the walls and outside the gates of Jerusalem on the sabbath day. He knew they were breaking YHWH’s commandments, and he was well aware of the curses this would bring upon the city! He instructed that the gates be closed before the sabbath so that these vendors could not set up shop on the sabbath day, and he had men guard the gate that they should not enter. He even threatened them with violence if they came back again on the sabbath day!

“In those days saw I in Judah some treading wine presses on the sabbath, and bringing in sheaves, and lading asses; as also wine, grapes, and figs, and all manner of burdens, which they brought into Jerusalem on the sabbath day: and I testified against them in the day wherein they sold victuals. There dwelt men of Tyre also therein, which brought fish, and all manner of ware, and sold on the sabbath unto the children of Judah, and in Jerusalem. Then I contended with the nobles of Judah, and said unto them, What evil thing is this that ye do, and profane the sabbath day? Did not your fathers thus, and did not our God bring all this evil upon us, and upon this city? yet ye bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the sabbath. And it came to pass, that when the gates of Jerusalem began to be dark before the sabbath, I commanded that the gates should be shut, and charged that they should not be opened till after the sabbath: and some of my servants set I at the gates, that there should no burden be brought in on the sabbath day. So the merchants and sellers of all kind of ware lodged without Jerusalem once or twice. Then I testified against them, and said unto them, Why lodge ye about the wall? if ye do so again, I will lay hands on you. From that time forth came they no more on the sabbath.” Nehemiah 13:15-21

So, the Jews agreed amongst themselves that they would not buy anything from any vendors on the sabbath day,

“And if the people of the land bring ware or any victuals on the sabbath day to sell, that we would not buy it of them on the sabbath, or on the holy day,” Nehemiah 10:31a

Of course, the Scribes and Pharisees added to this law, and taught that it was unlawful for anybody to carry anything at all on the sabbath. Yeshua was constantly butting heads with these teachers by breaking their man made laws. And many times they wanted to stone him for it.

John 5: 5-18 tells a story of a crippled man whom Yeshua healed on the sabbath day. Yeshua said to him, “Rise, take up thy bed, and walk.” When the Jews saw the man carrying his bed, they said to him, “It is the sabbath day: it is not lawful for thee to carry thy bed.” When they found out that Yeshua had instructed the man to get up and carry his bed, they sought to kill him.

Yeshua knew he wasn’t breaking God’s law, the Torah, by telling the man to get up and carry his bed on the sabbath day. It was Rabbinic law.

This is exactly the kind of thing that Yeshua and the disciples constantly spoke out against all throughout the New Testament. It wasn’t against YHWH’s perfect law that they taught. They spoke out against the burdensome law that Scribes and Pharisees were teaching the people. It wasn’t YHWH’s law that was bondage, it was man’s additions to the perfect Torah that was enslaving the people.

4. We should do good and minister on the sabbath.

Over and over throughout the ministry of Yeshua you will find him healing on the sabbath day. Of course, the Rabbis accused him of doing that which was unlawful. I guess they considered that working! But he was quick to call them out on their hypocrisy…

“And behold, there was a man which had his hand withered. And they asked him, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath days? that they might accuse him. And he said unto them, What man shall there be among you , that shall have one sheep, and if it fall into a pit on the sabbath day, will he not lay hold on it, and lift it out? How much then is a man better than a sheep? Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days.” Matt 12:10-12 (also similar story in Luke 14:1-5)

5. We should meet with other believers on the sabbath, and study Scripture (which was, back then, only the Old Testament, as the NT wasn’t written yet.)

“Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the sabbath of rest, an holy convocation…” Lev. 23:3

Remember that “convocation” carries the meaning “a public meeting”. It is a time when we should gather with other believers, and worship and minister together. And we should pray together…

“And on the sabbath we went out of the city by a river side, where prayer was wont to be made; and we sat down, and spake unto the women which resorted thither.” Acts 16:13

Many times throughout the scriptures you will read of Yeshua (Jesus) or the disciples going to the synagogue on the sabbath, and teaching.

“And they went into Capernaum; and straightway on the sabbath day he (Yeshua) entered into the synagogue, and taught.” Mark 1:21

“And he (Paul) reasoned in the synagogue every sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks.” Acts 18:4

Why was it so important that they went to the synagogue every sabbath? This was where they were taught the Torah (the books of Moses), and where they learned what the prophets had written.

“And after the reading of the law and the prophets the rulers of the synagogue…” Acts 13:15a

“For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day.” Acts 15:21

There is something called the weekly Torah portion, which is a section from the books of Moses that is read by the Jewish and Messianic communities every sabbath. Everywhere around the world the same scriptures are read on the same sabbath. There is also the Haf Tarah, which consists of the writings and the prophets (the rest of the Old Testament), which can also be read.

Every shabbat at 3:00, me, Jerry, and the kids get together with our neighbors and other believers and read the Torah portion for that week. Then we “midrash” (which is the Hebrew word for “investigate” or “study”), and have a discussion about what we just read.

After we read and discuss the Scriptures for a while, then we have a potluck dinner. Sometimes, if we have a good turnout, we’ll do some Hebrew dancing, which has been really fun to learn (even though I’m totally an introvert when it comes to stuff like that).

6. It is not a day to do whatever we want, or would normally do any other day, but rather, a day to study and honor YHWH.

“If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of YHWH, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: Then shalt thou delight thyself in YHWH; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of YHWH hath spoken it.” Isaiah 58: 13-14

It is a time to set aside to honor Him with our actions and our conversations. Taking a walk outdoors with your children, and talking about His awesomeness, is a perfect example of doing just that!

7. It is NOT for the Jew only… but for EVERYONE who calls himself a child of YHWH.

I’ve often heard that the sabbath was a sign between the Jews and YHWH. But His Word is very clear that the sabbath is to be kept by anyone who joins himself to the Father…

“Thus saith the LORD, Keep ye judgment, and do justice: for my salvation is near to come, and my righteousness to be revealed. Blessed is the man that doeth this, and the son of man that layeth hold on it; that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and keepeth his hand from doing any evil. Neither let the son of the stranger, that hath joined himself to the LORD, speak, saying The LORD hath utterly separated me from his people: neither let the eunuch say, Behold, I am a dry tree. For thus saith the LORD unto the eunuchs that keep my sabbaths, and choose the things that please me, and take hold of my covenant; Even unto them will I give in mine house and within my walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters: I will give  them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off. Also the sons of the stranger, that join themselves to the LORD, to serve him, and to love the name of the LORD, to be his servants, every one that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of my covenant; Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people. The Lord GOD, which gathereth the outcasts of Israel saith, Yet will I gather others to him, beside those that are gathered unto him.” Isaiah 56: 1-8

The term “eunuch” here refers to a castrated male. Hebrews did not practice castration, but other cultures such as Egyptians, Babylonians, Persians, and Romans did.

I love this verse!

YHWH is saying that if a non-Hebrew keeps His sabbaths and His covenants, He will give them a place in his house, and a name better than of sons and daughters! If He intended for it to only be between Him and the Jews or Hebrews, then what sense would this verse make?

8. We should praise YHWH on the Sabbath!

Psalm 92 is titled A Psalm or Song for the sabbath day. It is full of praise and gratefulness, and is a wonderful example of how we should praise Him on Shabbat, and every day!

We have been faithfully keeping sabbath for a little over a year now, and it has become a day that we all look forward to immensely.

On Friday, I spend the day cooking and straightening up the house so that it’s as clean as it can be for shabbat. I usually make a really nice dinner, including a challah bread, and we all sit at the dining room table for a more formal meal than we typically have. At sundown, I light two candles, and the kids know shabbat has begun. We hold hands, pray, Jerry says a blessing over the children, we pass the challah around for every person to pinch a piece off of, and enjoy our meal. The kids go around singing “Shabbat Shalom”, and are glad they don’t have to do any lessons or chores during the sabbath.

On Saturday, we do a lot of resting and studying. Like I said, at 3:00 we have fellowship with other believers. It’s always fun greeting each other with a cheerful “Shabbat Shalom!” We take turns hosting each week, meeting in each other’s homes. And we always enjoy a meal together after our studies.

Some of you have asked what you should do if you absolutely have to work on the sabbath. I’ve heard Jim Staley address this question, and his best answer is to just give away whatever you earned in wages that day. I can’t tell you what is right, but that sounds like a good suggestion to me. But praise Yah this is not a salvation issue!! If you break the sabbath you are not going to be damned for all eternity. We have been redeemed by the blood of Yeshua, and are not slaves to the penalty of sin. It doesn’t mean that we should take this to mean we can break God’s laws… but you do the very best you can do. Why? Because we love Him, we want to please Him, and because He has promised to bless us if we do.

And this is why we keep the sabbath.

We are still adjusting how we celebrate shabbat, and are always eager to learn new ways of making it special. I’d love to hear how some of you keep the sabbath! What does your day typically look like? And what are some of your favorite ways of making it “set apart” from the rest of your week?

If I have missed anything… if you have any questions or anything to add, please don’t hesitate to speak up!!

Question of the Day: How Are We Judged?

Here’s an interesting question for those who may still be under the assumption that, as the church today puts it, “Jesus did away with the law!”

How can God throw anyone into hell on judgment day if there is no more law to judge them by?

What then is the standard for separating His children from those “He never knew”?

Why We’ve Stopped Celebrating Christmas

*Copied here from a post I wrote on Nov. 9, 2011 on my other blog: New Life On A Homestead

I can’t tell you how long I’ve been putting off writing this post. All year, actually. But with Thanksgiving just around the corner, I can’t put it off any longer.

This is gonna be one of those posts. The kind that gets people all hot and bothered. The kind that just begs for criticism and heated rebuttals. And often I like to stir up a nice debate. But this isn’t one of those times.

I simply want to share where our faith has led us. And in all honesty, this is mostly for my family to read, to explain why we won’t be joining them in celebrating this year. Although, I do want to share our thoughts with you all, for the few people who will actually pray about this, too.

Please understand that although I may speak very passionately about our convictions, we do NOT judge anyone who disagrees with our beliefs. Who are we to judge?! Every year of our lives, Jerry and I have celebrated Christmas. We are in no position to judge those who do so. So, please, don’t feel like you have to defend yourself. I do not expect most people to agree with what I’m about to share.

Having said all that, here I go…

I have always loved Christmas. Our extended family is very close, and it is always a joy to be in the company of my loved ones. Every year on the night of Christmas Eve and again on Christmas morning, my entire family (aunts, uncles, cousins, sister, nephews, dad, grandparents, etc.) all get together to enjoy a potluck meal, and open gifts.

It’s a big deal. Like, really big.

And I love it.

So, the decision to stop celebrating Christmas has not come easily. It is not something taken lightly, or without much studying and prayer. This is a really big decision to make, especially as parents. We have to make sure that our convictions are sound before telling the children why we are choosing a different path.

When Jerry and I first got married (at 19 years old), Jerry was a new Christian. Anyone who remembers when they first got saved probably recalls going through a period of fascination with the book of Revelations. Well, that study also led us into the study of the occult.

And in our studying we came across some interesting stuff about the origins of some of the so-called “Christian” holidays that we all celebrate. We learned that many of the traditions that we keep actually have their roots in paganism (those worshiping false gods and nature itself). Concerned, we sought council with our pastor regarding what we had discovered.

We were confused when he brushed it all off as being “too legalistic” to not celebrate these holidays because of their pagan roots. And although his answer did not sit right with us, we surely didn’t want to be bound by legalism… and so, we followed our pastor’s advice and continued with what we had always done, but with our new-found knowledge always in the back of our minds.

If you’ve never researched where our Christmas traditions come from, look into it. I started to share them here, but it would take me FOR.EV.ER. to go through all of the names, dates, traditions, etc. But look into where Dec. 25th came from. And the Yule log, the Christmas tree and its ornaments and lights, holly, mistletoe, wreaths, the Christmas ham… look up Winter Solstice and Saturnalia. If you are really interested in knowing where your traditions come from and what they mean… do some studying.

Suffice it to say, what we are doing when we partake of the traditions of Christmas is nothing more than imitating the pagan’s worship of the sun god. And we no longer can stand to have any part of spitting in the face of God. (Sorry, I know that sounds harsh, but this is how it makes us feel.)

For a long time I tried to rationalize that it was okay to continue enjoying the festivities. After all, we weren’t doing it to worship a sun god, we were honoring the birth of Christ!

Right?

Well, after much prayer and studying God’s word, one day the Lord revealed this analogy to me.

Let’s just say that your spouse has cheated on you. After all, the Lord does call his people an “adulterous bride” after they went chasing pagan gods.

And let’s say that your cheating spouse has come back to you, and asked your forgiveness. All has been made right again.

Now, let’s say it’s your birthday. And your spouse wants to honor you on this day. (Although, in an appropriate analogy the celebration wouldn’t even be on your actual birthday!)

But instead of giving you gifts that you have clearly expressed a desire for, your spouse gives you things that his lover enjoyed! He made her favorite foods, wanted to enjoy her favorite activities with you, lavished you with things that would have delighted her!

Now, would this honor you? Would you feel loved and esteemed in this situation? Of course not! You’d be livid!!

Is this not what we do to Christ, when we say that we are honoring Him by means of pagan traditions?

Being me, I wanted to find something in Scripture to solidify my convictions. Would God see the intentions of my heart, and understand that I’m just trying to please Him? Or would He be angry as I know I would be in this situation?

YHWH brought me to Exodus 32, the story of the Golden Calf. Remember that one? Moses had gone up onto the mountain to speak with God (and bring down the 10 commandments), but he took so long in coming that the people began to wonder what had happened to him. They asked Aaron to make a golden calf for them to worship, and he did so.

But, and I thought this was fascinating, in verse 5 of that same chapter Scripture says, “And when Aaron saw it (the golden calf), he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation, and said, Tomorrow is a feast to the LORD.”

Do you see what he was doing? The people had fallen back into pagan practices, and were worshiping an idol, yet saying it was to honor God!!

The next verse goes on to say,

“And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play.”

Wow. Sounds like they were having a very fun celebration, huh?! Did the Lord look at the rejoicing of their hearts and feel honored? Let’s find out…

In verses 7-9, YHWH speaks to Moses and tells him what the people are doing. He says that they have “corrupted themselves”, and “turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them”.

Then in verse 10, YHWH says, “Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume them…”.

He was SO ANGRY! He was ready to destroy them all! Evidently, He was not pleased at the way they were trying to honor Him… mixing worship with pagan traditions. Mixing the holy with the unholy.

Just. Like. Christmas.

As I continued to study, I also came to 1 Samuel 15…

This is where King Saul went out to destroy the Amalekites. But the Lord specifically told him (through Samuel) that he was to “utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.” (verse 3)

But if you read on, you’ll find in verse 21 that they did not do as the Lord had commanded, and had in fact brought back with them the best of the sheep and oxen instead of killing them. Of course, when Samuel confronts him about it, Saul rationalizes that they did it “to sacrifice unto the LORD”.

Here again, man is disobeying the Lord’s commands, yet saying he is doing so to try to please God. What does the Lord say?

Verse 22-23, “And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.

For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.”

God didn’t want the sacrifices. He wanted obedience.

Here’s another in Deuteronomy 12:29-31; He is speaking to the Israelites before they go into the promised land,

“When Yahweh your Elohim cuts off from before you the nations which you go to dispossess, and you displace them and dwell in their land, take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, `How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.’

You shall not worship Yahweh your Elohim in that way; for every abomination to Yahweh which He hates they have done to their gods…”

We are specifically told NOT to worship God with the ways of the pagans!!

Jesus himself said in Matthew 15:7-9, “Ye hypocrites, well did Isaiah prophesy of you, saying, This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.”

I don’t want to worship in vain, forsaking the commandments of God and clinging to the traditions of men. (also in Matt. 15:3)

I don’t want to have anything to do with the unholy.

Ephesians 5:11, “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.”

In fact, the recurring theme all throughout Scripture is for God’s people to NOT follow the way of the pagans (in other words, go along with what the rest of the unbelieving world does), but to be set apart as holy, and to honor YHWH by obeying His commandments!

If we profess to worship the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, then we cannot ignore the very character of God as repeated to us throughout Scripture. He is a loving God, yes, but He is also a jealous God. He will not share His people with idols.

“For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.” Exodus 34:14

But let’s just say, for the sake of argument, that Christmas traditions don’t really have pagan roots. Let’s just pretend that’s a bunch of baloney.

Even still, nowhere in Scripture is it commanded to remember the birth of Christ. In fact, what we are commanded to celebrate are the Biblical Feasts of the Lord (given in Lev. 23), including Passover in remembrance of Christ’s death. Yet, far too many Christians have never even heard of the seven Feasts of the Lord, or they think they are “Jewish” celebrations. Scripture doesn’t call these holy days (not holidays) “Jewish feasts”, but the LORD’s Feasts. And everyone who calls himself a child of Elohim is to keep them. Forever.

And so, we have chosen to give the Lord the gifts He has specifically requested, and honor Him through celebrating and remembering the Feasts of the Lord.

And although Hanukkah is not a commanded feast, we will be celebrating it every year instead of Christmas. It is a celebration of the miracle of oil (a story passed down through Jewish tradition), and the military victory of the Jews against the pagans desecrating YHWH’s temple,  as told in the book of Maccabees (a historical account from ancient Palestine). This article, The Revolt of the Maccabees, shares the amazing account as it has been recorded.

Loved ones, I know that Christmas is a special time of year, and that people get very caught up in its traditions and festivities. But our hearts yearn to honor the Lord… above all else. And this is something that we feel is non-negotiable.

So, we are saying “No”: to the holiday rush, and fighting over the latest toys for our kids, and inflatable yard decorations, and the lies of a bearded man who claims to have the powers of God (all seeing, all knowing, all present), and the Great Big Toys “R” Us Book, and “Yuletide” carols, and guilt induced credit card spending, and drunken company Christmas parties, and everything else that the world gets so wrapped up in during this time of year.

For us, it really only comes down to one thing:

“If you love me, keep my commandments.” John 14:15

And I think I’ve laid out pretty clearly what we believe the Lord expects from us.

Remember The Sabbath Day: Part One

One of the first things that my husband and I learned as we began studying the Scriptures beyond that which was always taught in Sunday school, was that our way of “keeping the sabbath day holy” didn’t even remotely resemble a truly Biblical sabbath.

We had no idea that YHWH/God was very specific in the directions He gave regarding how the sabbath was to be kept. All we knew was that one of the Ten Commandments said, “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.” And I guess we just assumed going to church on Sunday mornings was fulfilling that commandment.

But there is so much more to it than that, friends.

I’m going to make this a two part series, simply because there is a lot to cover. In this section we will study a bit about what the sabbath means to God. In part two, I will go more into depth on how exactly we are supposed to keep the sabbath; what we are supposed to do, and what we are not supposed to do on the sabbath day.

So, in our studies, the first thing we learned was a real shock to us. We’ve all heard that the sabbath day was to be kept on the 7th day of the week- because God rested on the seventh day, and so should we, right? But did you know that the seventh day of the week is actually Saturday, not Sunday? I seriously had to google that for confirmation! Okay, okay, don’t laugh! I’m sure most of you probably already knew this, but I seriously didn’t. I always thought Sunday was the seventh day of the week. I even remember being taught in elementary school that the week started with Monday! (Thanks, public school system.)

Why, then, do most churches hold services on Sunday, and not on Saturday?

In searching for the answer to this question, I found that the Catholic Church claims responsibility for changing the day of worship from the original Saturday sabbath, to a sacred Sunday, or “The Lord’s Day”…

“The Catholic Church for over one thousand years before the existence of a Protestant, by virtue of her divine mission, changed the day from Saturday to Sunday.” THE CATHOLIC MIRROR, Sept 23,1893

“We observe Sunday instead of Saturday because the Catholic Church, in the Counsel of Laodicea (A.D. 336), transferred the solemnity from Saturday to Sunday.” Peter Geiermann, THE CONVERT’S CATECHISM OF CATHOLIC DOCTRINE, Second Edition, 1910, p.50.

“It was the Catholic Church which, by the authority of Jesus Christ, has transferred this rest to the Sunday in remembrance of the resurrection of our Lord. Thus the observance of Sunday by the Protestants is an homage they pay, in spite of themselves, to the authority of the church.” Mgr. Segur, PLAIN TALK ABOUT THE PROTESTANTISM OF TODAY, p.213.

“In the New Law the observance of the Lord’s day (Sunday) took the place of the observance of the Sabbath (Saturday), not by virtue of the precept (of God), but by the institution of the Roman Church and the custom (Tradition) of Christian people.” Thomas Aquinas, priest of the Dominican order (1225–1274).

They are even on record admitting that nowhere in the Scriptures does it say that the sabbath was changed from Saturday to Sunday.

“is not every Christian obliged to sanctify Sunday and to abstain on that day from unnecessary servile work? Is not the observance of this law among the most prominent of our sacred duties? You may read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, and you will not find a single line authorizing the sanctification of Sunday. The Scriptures enforce the religious observance of Saturday, a day which we never sanctify.” James Cardinal Gibbons, THE FAITH OF OUR FATHERS, p. 111.

“A striking instance of this is the following: The first positive command in the Decalogue is to ‘Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy,’ and this precept was enforced by the Jews for thousands of years. But the Sabbath Day, the observance of which God commanded, was our Saturday. Yet who among either Catholics or Protestants, except a sect or two, like the ‘Seventh Day Baptists,’ ever keep that commandment now? None. Why is this? The Bible, which Protestants claim to obey exclusively, gives no authorization for the substitution of the first day of the week for the seventh. On what authority, therefore, have they done so? Plainly on the authority of that very Catholic Church which they abandoned and whose traditions they con­demn.” John Stoddard, 1826.

There are dozens and dozens of quotes like this, all of which I found to be fascinating. I won’t list them all here, but if you’d like to read more, check out this site.

I don’t know how you feel about this, but I was astonished, quite frankly, that the church would claim to have the divine authority to CHANGE God’s Word!!! Nowhere in the Bible does Christ, or the Father, give authority to the church to change anything. YHWH doesn’t change! He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. To continue to observe the sabbath on Sunday instead of Saturday, is to put more authority in man’s word than in God’s.

This was a huge revelation to me and my husband. And we immediately wanted to begin keeping a Saturday sabbath. But what exactly did it mean to “keep” the Sabbath, anyways?

I’d like to pick apart that commandment, for a moment, and go back to the original Hebrew to gain more insight into what exactly YHWH said here (I’ll be using the Strong’s Concordance, and a KJV Bible). And then we’ll further investigate what He expects us to do.

“Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.” Exodus 20:8

Remember- comes from the root word meaning “to mark”; to remember, to keep in remembrance.

sabbath- comes from the root word meaning “to repose” (which means to take a rest), “celebrate”; intermission. (Strong’s 7676)

keep- means “to hedge about (as with thorns), ie: to guard; observe, preserve, regard, reserve, to watch (like a watchman).

holy- to make, pronounce or observe as clean (ceremonially or morally); set apart, dedicate, hallow, keep, prepare, proclaim, sanctify. (Strong’s 6942)

We are to mark this day and not forget it. It is a time to take a rest, and to celebrate. We are to guard it as a watchman guards something valuable, and observe it. It is to be a day set apart from all other days.

But how exactly do we make this day “set apart”? Let’s keep reading…

“Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of YHWH: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:” Exodus 20:9-10

labour- to work in any sense

work- work, occupation

stranger- foreigner (talking about those who are not born into the House of Israel, but are living among them)

For six days out of the week, we are to do our work. But on the seventh day, every single one of God’s people is to stop all work.

“For in six days the LORD (YHWH) made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.” Exodus 20: 11

rested- settle down, cease, be quiet, rest

blessed- to bless God (as an act of adoration) and to bless man (as a benefit)

hallowed- this is the exact same word as “holy” as defined above, in Ex. 20:8. (Strong’s 6942); to make, pronounce or observe as clean (ceremonially or morally); set apart, dedicate, hallow, keep, prepare, proclaim, sanctify.

In six days Yahweh made all things, and then on the seventh day, he was quiet. He set apart this day for a time when we could show Him our adoration, and that we would be benefited by His blessing.

Side note: If you look back at Gen. 2:2 where it says, “… and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made,” that word “rested” there is actually the same word as sabbath, or Shabbat. So, we can say that not only did he “rest” on the seventh day, He had Shabbat!

Isn’t it amazing how much greater of an understanding we can gain by going back to the original definitions?! So much meaning is lost in translation.

“…and on the seventh day thou shalt rest: that thine ox and thine ass may rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed.” Ex 23:12b

refreshed- from the root word meaning breathe; refreshed (as if by a current of air)

Anyone who has labored outside in the heat of the day knows just how refreshing and invigorating a simple gust of wind can be; this is how the sabbath is to feel to us, it’s that same sensation.

Let’s keep digging…

“Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the sabbath of rest, an holy convocation; ye shall do no work therein: it is the sabbath of the LORD in all your dwellings.” Lev. 23:3

sabbath- same word as used above in Ex. 20:8; to rest, intermission; celebrate

holy- a sacred place or thing (Strong’s 6944); comes from the root word from Strong’s 6942 as defined above.

convocation- something called out, ie: a public meeting; a rehearsal, calling; from the root word meaning to call out those who are bidden, to invite guests.

work- same word as used above in Ex. 20:9-10; work or occupation

dwellings- inhabited place, situation

For six days we work, but the seventh day is a day of rest. It is a sacred meeting which we have been called to (a meeting between us and God). This word “convocation” also carries the meaning “rehearsal”, as so many of the LORD’s Feasts have also been called. What could we be rehearsing while observing the sabbath? We are rehearsing the rest we will have when we are finally with Him in the New Jerusalem; where there will be no work, but we will rest in Him.

“And YHWH spake unto Moses, saying, Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am YHWH that doth sanctify you.” Ex. 31:12-13

sign- from root word meaning to come (in the sense of appearing); a signal, as a flag, beacon, monument, omen, prodigy, evidence

between- a distinction; between

generation- evermore; generation

know- from root word meaning to ascertain by seeing; acknowledge, be acquainted with, be aware, for certainty, comprehend

sanctify- same word as “holy” as used above in Ex. 20:8 (Strong’s 6942); to make, pronounce or observe as clean (ceremonially or morally); set apart, dedicate, hallow, keep, prepare, proclaim, sanctify.

He has made His sabbaths for us to guard and protect, as a way of revealing Himself to us and to our offspring, forever; that we may know as clearly as if we had seen Him that He is YHWH who sets us apart as those He has made “clean”.

“Ye shall keep the sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you: every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death;: for whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. Six days may work be done; but in the seventh is the sabbath of rest, holy to YHWH: whosoever doeth any work in the sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death.” Ex. 31:15-16

defileth- from root word meaning to wound, or to dissolve; to profane, to break (one’s word), prostitute, stain

soul- breathing creature; body

cut off- to destroy, consume, fail, perish

YHWH is saying that whoever profanes his sabbath (in a way that implies making it dirty, as comparable to a prostitute) was to be put to death. Wow. Obviously, He takes this very seriously.

So… are we supposed to kill each other if we don’t keep the sabbath? Isn’t this the next logical question?

I have not done a study on this part of keeping the law, yet. However, it has been explained to me that when YHWH’s people are in exile they are then under the judicial system of another ruler. We are considered in exile right now, and are subject to the judicial authority of our government. Of course, it would be against the law here to stone somebody. And the more I think about the reasoning behind that, the more grace I see in it. If we are in exile, then we are separated from Him and most likely not keeping His commandments. I think, in His mercy, He is sparing us this judgment until our hearts are one with His again, and we know how to please him perfectly. The whole purpose behind stoning the disobedient was to weed out those who would purposely encourage anarchy against YHWH among the camp.

“Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant. ” Ex. 31:17

perpetual- always, eternal, everlasting, without end

covenant- a compact

The sabbath was meant to be kept for the rest of eternity. He didn’t say, “until Jesus dies on the cross and does away with the law.” He said, “forever“. Our Adonai doesn’t lie, and He doesn’t change. And I for one am glad we don’t serve a wishy-washy God.

(You might also read Deut. 5:12-15, which pretty much reiterates all of this.)

I came across this video on keeping the sabbath the other day, and it was SO incredibly interesting, I had to share it with you. Jim covers a ton of stuff, and even explains the often misused Scripture verses that some claim is proof that we either don’t have to keep the sabbath anymore, or that it was changed to Sunday. I encourage every one of you to sit down and watch it.

So, what are your thoughts? Anybody have any questions, or comments to add? I’d love to know what you think so far!