|
I have seen what happens to people when taught the GRACE vs. LAW false doctrine. They become Christians who think they are
free from morality. They abuse alcohol, live with sex partner, have children out of wedlock, mistreat their parents, they
hate Israel and Jews, and all while they still regularly attend church on Sunday.
We must pursue SANCTIFICATION in our daily living. Grace and Mercy are the tools for our sanctification.
The Torah, the instruction given at Sinai, is a form of God's grace.
The Torah is a title given to the first five books of the Bible. B'reshit (Genesis) Shm'ot (Exodus) Yayikra (Leviticus)
B'midbar (Numbers) Devarim (Deuteronomy)
But more precisely, the Torah is the instruction given little by little to Adam until Joshua. The Jews and gentiles, form
the mixed multitude which forms the Commonwealth of Israel.
The Torah is worst translated into "law", it is more correct to define as Divine Constitution, or the "instructions
on how to please God".
Torah literally means, as in archery... "to hit the target".
This is rather poignant, as in archery, to Sin means "to miss the target".
In Hebrew, to Sin means to miss the goal, to miss the mark.
In Hebrew, the remedy for sin, is to hit the target, to hit the mark.
I will still use the word Law to denote Torah, even though it is a bad habit. It is a short word, so Law it is.
The law is not the opposite of GRACE. The law is not diametrically opposed to Grace. It is a huge mistake to believe that
Jews of the Bible, or even Jews of today, think that they are saved by submitting to the Law. It was only a small group of
Judaizers, who were actually Christians, who thought that in order to be saved, one had to convert to Judaism first.
My point is... every time Paul or anyone writes "we are not under law but under Grace" such a statement has
been COMPLETELY misunderstood by mainstream Christianity. "We are not under law but we are under Grace" has no application
today, since there ARE NO JUDAIZERS.
Mainstream Judaism has never been UNDER THE LAW, it was only the Christian Judaizers, who were UNDER THE LAW.
No one on earth is telling any Christian, you must convert to Judaism, swear to adhere to all the law of Moses, before
you can recieve the Holy Spirit. Such a preacher would be a Judaizer, and no such preacher exists on earth today. No such
person has existed for 1,800 years.
No Christian should tell a Born again Jew, who obeys the Torah, Law of Moses, that he/she is not under the law, but under
Grace. Even Orthodox Jews who are not Born again know this, since they know Grace is God's Torah instruction. It is so simple,
yet I know I have to repeat myself.
The whole GRACE versus LAW doctrine in Romans, Galatians, and every other epistle, is not a problem that has existed in
over 1,800 years. The doctrine does NOT APPLY to "legalistic" Jews who accept Jesus, and stay Jewish.
The concept of Salvation is not by works, but by faith, and Torah being God's GRACE, has always been the doctrine of mainstream
Judaism.
The Judaizers were a really small Christian sect of gentiles, probably numbering only in several hundred. Judaizers were
mostly NON-JEWS who thought that in order to receive the HOLY SPIRIT one had to convert to Judaism first. (This explains the
jealousy, they were gentile converts who were jealous that new Christians did not have to take on the whole Law of Moses.)
It is an interesting note, that all Judaizers had faith in Yahshua the Messiah and that he was YAHWEH God.
Again, just one more time, because this is important.
Do NOT tell a Jew who practices Judaism and also believes in Jesus, that "Jewish Christians are free from the law,
we are not slaves to the law anymore, we should not be legalistic."
Jews know they have never been saved Torah, not today, not in Jesus' day, not in Moses' day.... NOT EVER!!!
They know they fail to observe Torah. They are not so silly to think they can observe it with perfection.
It was the Christian Judaizers who were silly.
Calling Torah observance "legalism" is a total misunderstanding of the context of the Bible. Legalism is obeying
the instructions of Man rather than the instructions of God.
Legalism is obeying the invented traditions of a Man.
Right?
Man did not create the Torah.
God created the Torah.
Obeying Torah can never be legalism.
Obeying the instructions of God is called SANCTIFICATION.
Why are Christians supposed to obey the ten commandments?
Why don't Christians obey the 4th commandment if they are not supposed to murder or covet or break any other laws?
Are the Ten Commandments different than any other commandments?
Wasn't the Torah given to Jews only, since only they agreed to accept the covenant?
Then why do Christians saw they keep the TEN COMMANDMENTS?
It makes sense that Rabbi Paul's biblical meaning of GRACE: God's instructions, be the same as Judaism's meaning of Grace
(Hesed), Rabbi Paul was a Pharisee until the day he died!!
Here is the proof.
Acts 23:6, 26:5, Phillipians 3:5,6
Acts 21:20, Acts 21:24, 25:8. 1 Tim 1:8
In Acts 21... you may notice.. Paul sacrifices animals in the Temple at Yerushalayim. All the Christain Jews alive during
that time offered animal sacrifices, because that is what it means to be Jewish! Jews observe the Torah.
Acts 21:20
And when they (Jerusalem leaders) heard, they glorified the Lord (Kurios), and said to Paul, You see brother, how many
thousands (myriads) of Jews there are which believe, and they are all zealous for the Torah;
and they are informed that you teach all the Jews which are among the gentiles to forsake Moses, saying they ought not
to circumcize their children, neither walk in our customs.
What is it therefore? The multitude must come together; for they (all Jerusalem) will hear that you have come.
Do this that we say to you (Shaul, Paul) We have four men which have a vow (Nazirite) on them.;
Take them, and purify yourself with them (sacrifice animals), and pay their charge with them (pay for the animals), that
they may shave their heads: and all may know that those things which they (Jerusalem) had been informed concerning you (Shaul),
are nothing, but you yourself also walk orderly (halachah, walk) AND KEEP THE TORAH.
This was the life style of Paul the Pharisee, the Apostle to the Gentiles.
Bet you don't hear this truth on TBN.
|
