Paul’s Writings and Life – Intro

/ / Leave a comment

The apostle Peter writes in 2 Pet. 3:16, “…there are some things in them that are hard to understand [in Paul’s letters], which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures.”  (ESV)  Peter wrote this for a good reason.  Paul’s writings are often hard to understand, especially when the ‘other Scriptures’ are ignored.  Those ‘other Scriptures’ that Peter is referring to are the Tanakh (the “old Testament”).  If one losses sight of who Paul was, and what he grew up with, and both the Jewish culture and the cultures Paul was working with, one can twist Paul’s words to mean just about anything.  This blog will attempt to set the record straight on quite a bit of what Paul wrote, but I’m not claiming I understand all either.  Thus comments are welcome and wanted!

There are a couple facts that one has to be able to accept before even beginning to undergo such an adventure.  The first fact has to do with the English translations of the Bible.

Translations are just that: translations.  They are not the originals.  Translating text from one language to another is difficult enough to do without changing meanings and thoughts.  It becomes harder when poetry and religious texts are involved.  And it is even harder when the originating culture’s world view is different then the target culture.  All of this comes together in our English translations, and on top of everything, the translators often have an agenda they either consciously or unconsciously promote.

Even worse is that Paul’s letters bridge several cultures.

Paul is a Hebrew, and the Hebrew language and culture is diametrically opposite to the Greek and Roman cultures. 

For one thing, Greek is very much about philosophy and thought, and Hebrew is more about action.  This, and other background info, will be brought up as the series progresses.

As for the translations themselves, the first thing to understand is that the titles over sections in the Bible are not actually there.  They are added by the translators to “help” people understand what is going on.  Often, though, the translators add their own bias to what they think is going on.

Turn your Bible to the book of Acts, chapter 9.  Most Bibles will have the title, “The Conversion of Saul” above the beginning of Acts 9:1.  And this is pretty much accepted as fact.  But it isn’t true.  Saul didn’t convert to anything.  Read the entire book of Acts closely.   Even at the end of the book he is stating how he continues being a Pharisee and living the Jewish traditions.  He didn’t convert.  He did, however, come to know Yeshua (Jesus) as the promised Messiah.

Neither did Paul suddenly change his name. 

Just about every Jew has a Hebrew name, and if born or living in a non-Jewish country, then they have a gentile name.  Consider Daniel, who was giving the name Beltshazzar, and Esther, whose real name is Hadassah.  It’s a long standing tradition.

To sum up, this series will be dealing with Paul and his teachings, keeping all in the context of the cultures and languages used.   There are some surprising, and even some humorous differences between the traditional Christian understandings and this view.

As always, this is meant to ignite a love for God’s word, and for us to grow closer to Him.

  • Yosef

[The Apostle Paul Series]      Next ->

The Bronze Serpent – Numbers 21

/ / Leave a comment

This weeks reading includes Numbers 21, where we find the Israelites again complaining about food, water, and even the manna God continuously gives them!  God says, ‘enough is enough’ and gave them something to really complain about: serpents whose bite was fatal.

After Moses prayed, the LORD had Moses make a bronze serpent and put it up on a pole where anyone could look at it.  And anyone who was bitten, and didn’t want to die, could look at the serpent on the pole and be healed.

One of the surprising things about this story comes much, much later.  In fact, several hundred years (give or take) later.   Long after this event, when Israel has been in the land for a long time, and there are kings over Israel, we find King Hezekiah reigning, and we are told that ‘he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD.’ (2 Kings 18:1-4).  One of the things King Hezekiah did was to destroy the serpent.  Yes, it was still there!  And over time, it had become an object of worship to the Israelites.  A blessing of God had been turned into a snare!  How could this have happened?  Yet we see the same sort of thing today in our churches and synagogues.

Over time, we take God’s silence about something as an indirect approval. 

God never told them not to keep the serpent after it had served its purpose, and no one, not a single leader prior, ever mentioned it.  After all, it was God ordained, wasn’t it?

In the same way, we take teachings and traditions that may or may not have made sense at the time of their authorship, and over time, incorporate them into our worship, even though God’s word may speak against such practices.  This practice is ripe throughout Christianity and Judaism.  Christianity takes away from God’s word as Judaism adds to it, yet we find God saying, “do not add to or take away from my Word”  (Deut. 4:2, echoed by Yeshua (Jesus) in Matt. 5:18-19).

In the same way, we can easily become insensitive to God’s blessing and even dislike it (the manna in the story).  This should not be!  That is why God tells us to remember His works.  Over and over He tells us (even in the “10 commandments” – Exo. 20:8-11 as one example).  That is why He gave us His calendar (see Lev. 23), which, unfortunately, Christianity has completely thrown out.  This led, among other things, to modern Christianity’s focus only on the here and now, and sometimes the future.

To sum up, we need to always be willing to judge our own actions, traditions, and teachings by the word of God, and to be willing to change when we see something that isn’t in line with His word, even if goes against a centuries old teaching or tradition!

That God hasn’t judged all that we do that is against His word, and often even done “in His name,” is a wonderful manifestation of His grace and forgiveness through Yeshua.  But that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t follow His word.

  • Yosef

 

 

 

 

10 Commandments Series – Intro

/ / 3 Comments

This is the first entry in a series looking at the 10 “commandments”.  I’ll go through all the “commandments” and discuss their meaning and their application to us today, and look at their context in the Bible.  I’ll try to keep each posting short, so there may be more then one posting for each “commandment.”

The 10 “commandments” are perhaps the greatest things ever written.  They are the only words directly written by God Himself, and that in stone.  This alone makes them special and unique and worth looking closely at.

The phrase “the 10 commandments” does not actually appear anywhere in the Tanakh (“Old” Testament).

Rather, they are called the 10 statements.  The Hebrew word used for “statements” means words or things.  (The fact that in Hebrew, the word for “words” and “things” is the same word is a hint at how the Hebrews looked at life – but that isn’t for now).

The 10 statements appear in two places in the Bible.  In Exodus 20:1-17 and in Deuteronomy 5:6-21.  Both lists are nearly the same, but the differences that do exist are quite interesting to look at.  For example, in the Exodus version, we are told to “remember” and in Deuteronomy we are told to “observe” the Sabbath.  The two different words imply different action and give rise to some fun understandings and traditions.  (More when we get to that commandment.)

Interestingly, Christianity lists as the first commandment something different then Judaism.  I’ll go with Judaism’s numbering as it frames all 10.

The first statement starts with “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.”

Without this statement being first, there is no foundation for the following statements (commandments).  Leaving this statement out allows the idea that that there are no absolutes, as, without a foundation, things can change.  One must start with God stating who He is and what He has done, otherwise its just a list of rules that anyone can (and has) change.

In the next posting, we’ll start looking at the text closer and see what gems we can get out of it.  And we’ll start with “I am the LORD.”

I’ll close with this question for each of you reading this.  Do you have the 10 statements (commandments) posted somewhere in your house or memorized?  If not, I’d encourage you to do so.  Remember, these are the only words God ever wrote, and He wrote them in stone, implying permanence.

  • Shalom from Yosef

P.S.: I know that many people believe that the 10 commandments, or some subset thereof, have been ‘fulfilled’ and no longer need to be followed (the Sabbath command is typical of those called ‘fulfilled’).  If anyone wants to discuss that, leave a comment and I’ll start a new blog thread.

Next ->

Requiem for a Saint

/ / Leave a comment

I recently attended the memorial service for a friend.  To summarize his life, he loved people, loved to help others, and loved God’s word, and it showed throughout his life.  Even in his old age, when problems were making it difficult for him to get around, he would go help those in need; take part in Bible studies for people in trouble (drugs, etc); and simply always be available.  I didn’t know him long, but what struck me almost immediately was his attitude of accepting people as who they were, with any and all baggage they had, and his ability to connect with just about anyone.  And he thirsted for the word of God, and was not afraid to ask questions of God, and listen to various interpretations of His word.  He lived a righteous life.

I also knew some of his darkest secrets, yet those did not define the man.  ‘Righteous’ does not mean perfect, but it does mean living one’s life with God in the forefront.  And he certainly did so.  I will always have him in mind when I think about what it truly means to walk as God wanted us to, as summarized in this verse from the Bible: “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart; with all your soul; and with all your strength.”

When we encounter such people, or have them in our lives, we typically do not recognize all that they are.  Perhaps that is why God tells us several times that He does not see us as we see others and ourselves.  And I’m fairly certain that people like this do not want recognition.  They live as they do as it gives them joy.

So, George is now with Yeshua (Jesus), but his family is with us, grieving his loss.  Yet I hope and pray that they will take comfort in knowing that they were privileged to know this man who knew how to enjoy life and live for God through his actions.  His fruit will live on for years to come, and it will multiply.

(And I finally learned, during the memorial service, why he had an old school bus sitting in his backyard!)

  • Yosef

Numbers 16 – Korah’s Rebellion

/ / Leave a comment

In Numbers chapter 16 we find Korah, a Levite, and a number of other leaders of the people of Israel, rising up and challenging Moses.

God had already ordained how the Israelite society was to run, and had given specific jobs to the Levites and to the priests (who were also Levites, but descendants of Aaron).  Korah and those others thought that they should have more responsibility as they regarded themselves as also “chosen”, though they veiled their complaint by saying that the entire community was holy (set apart to God) and therefore all should have more privileges in drawing near to the tabernacle.

It’s interesting to note God’s response.  He had every one of them bring a censor to burn before the LORD.  At first, this doesn’t sound odd as burning incense before the LORD is one of the things that is done in worship (service) to God.  Numbers 16:49 reminds us, however, that no one other then the priests are to do so.  Korah and the others knew this, yet they figured that should also be allowed to serve God in that way anyway.  They wanted to choose themselves.  If they had paid attention to God’s words, they would not (hopefully) have done what they did.

This isn’t the only place in scripture where God apparently tests people by asking them to do something against His word.  In the other three places I can think of, though, the situation was not people rebelling against God, but person’s following God, and He asks them to do something odd anyway.  The three situations I can think of are:

Abraham was asked to offer up Isaac.  Human sacrifice is abominable to God yet he asked Abraham to do so.  Interestingly, Abraham was about to do just that, but God did not allow it as that would have been an anathema to Him.  In this instance though, Abraham never questioned why God was asking Him to do something abominable.  He just started to do it.

The next situation is God asking Ezekiel to bake bread on human dung.  Ezekiel objects and God then says to use cow dung.  This is a very interesting situation and worthy of its own study.

The last situation is known as “Peter’s Vision” where God lets down a sheet full of animals and tells Peter to rise, kill, and eat.  Peter counters that he has never eaten anything unclean.  God goes on to use this incident to make a very powerful lesson to Peter and to us (and that lesson has nothing to do with food!).

Why do I bring up these situations?  Does God really test people?  What do you think?

From the story of Korah we can learn the following.  God is not a reed blown about in the wind depending on human desires and wants.  His way is set and He wants us to follow it.  I know many Christians will counter that “we are under grace, not law.”  But does freedom truly mean that we can do things as we see fit, as long as we say “the Spirit showed me” or add “in Jesus’ name” to it?  I find the story of Korah a strong caution against such rationalizations.  Of course we need to be led by the Spirit of the living God, but Korah and his group were using a similar comment (saying all were holy) to justify their actions.  Korah did not fool God, and neither can we when we try to go against His word by using “Jesus” as a justification.

  • Yosef

 

 

 

Craving God

/ / 2 Comments

What do you crave, really?

In Psalm 42, the author writes that as a deer craves or longs for water, so his soul craves after God, even though the situation at the moment may be dire.

What does it mean to “crave after God?”  Interestingly, God gives us the answer in His word.  Deuteronomy 6:4-9 is a key, fundamental passage in Judaism, and Yeshua (Jesus) quoted from it when asked “what is the greatest commandment?”  Yeshua quoted the part that says, “Hear O Israel, The LORD our God, the LORD is one.  You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, soul and strength.”  Any Jew, then or now, would recognize that verse as part of the entire passage that goes on to clarify what it means to “crave” after God.  The rest of the passage is this:

“And these words which I command you today shall be on your heart.  You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.  You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.  You shall write them on the door posts of your house and on your gates.”  (ESV)

Craving God would have us teaching our children (not just taking them to Sunday school), and talking of His ways and laws all the time, and writing reminders of His law (and grace) on our houses.

And yet when we gather or take a trip with our families or friends, what is our conversation mostly about?  Rarely do I find people who live these words.  Not even in the churches do I find a craving for God.  People would rather discuss anything but His word.   Try it.  At a ‘Christian’ gathering, try to start a discussion about the Bible or even a recent sermon.  You may be surprised at the result.

As one of many examples, the topic of having the 10 commandments displayed in public or in schools has been in the news off and on for years.  When it does hit the news, I often hear of Christians objecting to the removal of the display.  And yet, how many of those objecting have the “10 commandments” displayed in their own houses?  In their churches?  Unfortunately, very few.  We simply do not crave God.

Many crave what is seen as “outpourings of God’s spirit” as a substitute for actually craving God himself.  I refer you to Yeshua’s (Jesus’) words in Matt. 7:21-23 (see this blog post on Matt. 7:21-23, as well as the comments to it).

Many ‘modern’ Christians would call this fanaticism, yet God often calls to us in His word to remember what He has done and said.  If that is fanaticism, then this world needs more of it!

  • Yosef

LORD – God’s Name

/ / Leave a comment

When I ask people, “what is God’s name”, I get many different responses.  Almost never do I get the answer as given almost 7000 times in the “old Testament”.

God clearly gives his name, and explains it, in Exodus 3:14-16:

“God said to Moses,  I AM WHO I AM.”  And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel, “I AM has sent me to you.'”  God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob has sent me to you.’  This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all your generations.

In the Christian world there is much debate and discussion as to what those verses actually mean.  Many come up with saying that his name is “I AM”.  Many scholars¹ agree that this is more a definition or clarification of who He is, and not his proper name.  There is also the interesting fact that he Hebrew grammar here implies past, present and future tense.  But it is more interesting to note that His name, as represented by the four Hebrew letters, yud, hey, vav, hey, (YHVH in English) is obscured by the use of the word, in all capitals, “LORD”.  It is this word, “LORD”, that appears over 6800 times and has the letters YHVH behind it in the original Hebrew.  Interestingly, this replacement occurs in both Christian and Jewish texts.  Most Jews, though, know what lies behind the word.  Those four letters are commonly called the “Tetragrammaton”.

Confusion does not exist in the Jewish world.  It is clear in the Hebrew what God’s name is.   (No, I am not a Hebrew scholar and will not try to give Hebrew lessons.  However, there are many linguistic scholars out there that can explain it, and even some Christian scholars.  For example, Nehemia Gordon is a Jewish linguist and Keith Johnson is a Christian scholar.  Both Keith Johnson and Nehemia Gordon have web sites promoting God’s name²).

There may be differences on how to pronounce His name, and I’m not going into that here, but what His name is is clear.  I go with Yehovah mostly.  Most Christians have heard of “Yahweh”, which is a mostly Christian attempt at pronouncing His name.

Does it matter if we know His name?  Throughout scripture God refers to His name (one minor example: Isaiah 52:6).  Do a search on the phrase ‘my name’ in the Bible.  It’s an interesting quick study.

Both in the Christian and Jewish worlds, many different words are used in place of His name.  LORD, HaShem, ADONAI – are some of them.  In scripture, there is a shortened form of His name that is used.  It is, “Yah”.  Most often you will find this name tacked on to the back or front of a word or person’s or place’s name.  Most people know the word, “Hallelujah”, which means ‘praise to Yah.’

In this blog, I will most often use LORD, as this blog is mostly targeted to Christians.  However, I may at times also use “Yah”, or spell out His name as YHVH.

  • Yosef

¹Some of the commentators that support this idea:  Elliott’s Commentary;  Benson Commentary;  Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary

²Keith Johnson’s site about the name of God:  “Tetragrammaton“;    Nehemia Gordon’s site about the name of God:  “YEHOVA Studies”

 

Knowledge vs Thankfulness

/ / Leave a comment

This is the first posting after the “official” launch of the blog, so I thought I’d keep it upbeat.

In our world we are inundated with all the woes of life and our society.  It is often so much that we simply want to retreat and block it all out.  But what should our response be?  God’s answer is for us to be thankful.   Take a look at Psalm 100 or 1 Chronicles 16 or 1 Thessalonians 5:18, which are a small sampling of the places we are encouraged to give thanks.

I often run into people who are down or overwhelmed.  Actually, it happens to me quite a bit.  I remind them (and myself) to remember the things God has done and thank Him for them.  Remembering God’s deeds is even in the “10 commandments” (see Deuteronomy 4:15).  By the way, did you know that the “10 commandments” are not called “commandments” in the Bible, and that they are listed in two places with some very seemingly minor, but important differences?  (See this posting, or the blog tag, “commandments”).

But what about knowledge?  The author of the blog “Help Me Believe” makes an interesting point about knowledge (see his posting about apologetics).  Knowledge is important and of great benefit.  But knowledge alone doesn’t bridge the gap to faith.  Consider the apostle Peter and the others when they were in the boat crossing the lake and a storm came up (see Mark chapter 6).  The disciples of Yeshua (Jesus) ‘knew’ about the recent miracle of the loaves and the fish but they didn’t remember about it or, apparently, give thanks about it.  If they had, perhaps more of them would have “stepped out of the boat!”).

This blog is about knowledge and faith.  The two go together.

To sum up, here is what Jeremiah 9:23-24 says, “Thus says the LORD: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice and righteousness in the earth.  For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.”  (ESV – English Standard Version – emphasis mine).

  • Yosef

Blog Launching

/ / Leave a comment

The Perspectives (Discuss-life) blog is active (hopefully)!  One guest author is already active, and there are a few other guest authors lined up.  We’ll see their posts soon.

Some of the topics that will be coming up very soon are things such as the recent supreme court decision to allow the baker to refuse to bake a wedding cake for a gay couple; the ongoing violence between the Palestinians and Israel; and “does God want Christians to keep kosher?”

The one guest author (at this time) is going to be doing a series on his experiences of God’s grace and love while in jail.  The first entry is already on the site, under ‘stories’ (here).  Some of the stories to come reveal some deep truths about faith and life.

Initially, only the blog, articles and stories are active.  The forum will become ‘active’ in July of this year (if I can get the registration issues cleared up).  In the mean time, if you want to join in or start a discussion, email me (use the form here).   (Note: you have to be 18 or older to join in the forums).

Shalom!

  • Yosef

Registration

/ / Leave a comment

My apologies to anyone that has registered in the last month.  Due to a high volume of spam registrations, I have had to delete most registrations.  If your registration got deleted, I apologize.  Registration will be back online, with appropriate filters, when the site is officially started in June.   Sorry for any inconvenience.

  • Yosef