law

Hypocrisy from Politicians and Media

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There have been two events recently that I want to comment on.  Things such as this are happening more and more frequently.  I can’t comment on them all, and as this blog has just started, I have to start somewhere.  So here goes…

The ban of incoming Muslim immigrants has been likened to the internment of Japanese citizens during WWII.  Amazingly, some people and media are keeping the two separate, as they are separate issues.  The one is banning people from entering the USA.  The other is rounding up and interring people, citizens included, that already live in the USA.  (One of the problems here is that both occurred at the same time during WWII, so some people apparently can’t separate the two issues.)  To liken the one to the other is a deliberate flaming of emotions to get a response.  It is the exact type of thing targeted by these words from God,

You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. (Exodus 20:16 – ESV)

Whenever we deliberately twist facts to emphasize the point we want to make, it is the same as bearing false witness.  We need to watch our speech!

The other incident is in the backlash of where the Red Hen restaurant asked the White House press secretary to leave.  She was there with family members.

In the backlash a certain senator from California, a democrat, is calling for people to rise up and protest against them directly.  (Do note, however, that many other Democrats publicly disagreed with her).  Her call to protest is surprising as there are still many incidents of people being refused service for one reason or another, or people refusing to serve.  The incident of the baker refusing to make a special order wedding cake for a gay couple comes to mind.

Aside from the fact that the senator’s call for protest brings to my memory the ugly, and occasionally violent protests from Democrats against Republicans that were happening when President Trump was campaigning and shortly after he was elected, her call is screaming hypocrisy.  It is sad when such a leader in the congress and on the political stage makes such a comment.  It also brings up into light the whole question, again, as to when we, as citizens, can refuse to deal with particular people or groups based on our beliefs.  Courts have ruled several times that public companies must serve people irregardless of lifestyle.  Does this extend to ones political belief?  According to the California senator, not only does it not extend to one’s political belief, but violence is okay when going after those of the opposing political belief.

We are called to pray for, and obey, our Government.  We can protest – that is a right in this country.  But we need to be careful to not step over the line and not commit murder (which, when Yeshua (Jesus) explained, includes even calling one another names – see the sermon on the mount in Matthew chapters 5 to 7), and not bear false witness.

Believers in this country need to repent on behalf of their country and pray for peace in our country.  More then that, we need to start paying attention to both the commandments, “do not bear false witness”, and Yeshua’s words in Matthew 5:22, “whoever insults his brother will be liable to judgement.”

  • Yosef

10 Commandments Series – Intro

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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 ->

Christianity and “The Law”

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Christians have a variety of responses to the “Law of God.”  Almost all of which come down to saying that the Law, either in its entirety or parts of it, do not apply to Christians.  But what exactly is being rejected.

These past weeks, according to the Jewish scripture reading schedule, the first chapters in the book of Leviticus have been read.  These chapters deal with the sacrificial system and various other laws.  These chapters, though, are what most Christians think of as “The Law”, and so are most often ignored, including by those returning to the “Hebrew Roots of their Faith.”  Is there anything in these chapters worth looking at?

These chapters reveal a great deal about God’s character and how he wants us to live.  But you need to look closely.   In these chapters we see several principles come to light.  One is the idea of “Holiness.”   The definition of “holy” is “set apart”.  It does not mean what we typically envision, which is something with some sort of mystical power or some specially pious person.  It means something set apart for service to God.

Law of Christ

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In the book of Matthew, chapter 7 verse 23 (see last post), Jesus is declaring, “I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.”  The problem is that he was address this comment to people who Christianity today would call strong Christians!  So what does “workers of lawlessness” mean?

First, many will try to explain, with hands waving, that the people to whom Jesus is talking weren’t real Christians.  They did not have the “law of Christ” in their hearts.  Or some sort of similar explanation.  Of course, this leaves open the question, “what, then, is the law of Christ?”  To this one will get a more nebulous answer.

Yet the answer is in black and white in the Tanakh (called the “old Testament.”)  God gave us his law (see the book of Exodus, especially chapters 19 and 20).  He gave it to all the people there, which weren’t just Israelites (Exodus chapter 12 verse 38).  It shall be put on our heart (Deuteronomy chapter 6 verse 6).  And these words are for all of those who chose to follow the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (See Deuteronomy chapter 29, especially verses 14 and 15).  There are many, many more verses where God makes it clear that his law if for both Israel and the foreigner among them.  He makes it clear that it is meant to be followed, and not hard (Deuteronomy 11:11 to 14) and (Matthew 11:29 to 30).

Freedom is not being without laws.  True freedom is being able to follow the law of God and rejoice in it.  One of the problems that most Christians will run into with this is the view that the law is something negative, and when one doesn’t keep some part of it, one is almost doomed.  Read the next post to see what the Hebrew viewpoint of the law and keeping the commandments is.

Shalom!  -YTL

Known by God

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In the book of Mathew, chapter 7 verses 22 to 23 (in the Apostolic writings, also called the “New Testament”), in a parable about the judgement day, Jesus says, “On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.” (English Standard Version).

Note a couple things about this passage.  First, who is he saying he is talking to?  The context makes it clear that he is addressing those who are calling themselves Christians.  To use a colloquial term, “on fire Christians.”  Yet he says “I never knew you.”  Not, “You don’t know me”, but “I never knew you.”

This should make you stop and think.  Are you known by God (as Jesus was speaking in the place of God – as a prophet)?  How does one become known by God?  Apparently doing fantastic things “in his name” doesn’t help at all in becoming known by God.  But the passage makes it clear what brings us to be known by him; well, it makes clear what stood in the way of not being known by him.  That is lawlessness (and you can check the Greek; the word is lawless).

Lawlessness means without law.  What?  Christians are supposed to be under a “law”?  Most will answer at this point that the “law of Christ (Jesus)” is meant.  But what, then, is “the law of Christ?”

God never changes.  Jesus said he only speaks what the Father speaks.  The “law of Christ” is then God’s law, that never changes.  More on this in the next post….

-YTL

 

Truth! Does it exist anymore?

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After this recent presidential election the news media is buzzing with the idea that we are now in a ‘post truth’ era.  Social media is making the idea of truth nebulous.   According to Stephan Lewandowsky (via BBC Future) of the University of Bristol, “There is a large proportion of the population in the US living in what we would regard as an alternative reality.  They share things with each other that are completely false.  Any attempt to break through these bubbles is fraught with difficulty…”

This attitude started several decades ago in the Christian church, and has spread throughout society.  Christianity, in the western cultures such as in the USA, decided that the Word of God was subject to individual interpretation and truth could be redefined.  Now we not only do not know what truth is, but there is opposition to the idea that there is a truth.

On the flip side, there is a movement within Christianity to return to God’s word, and a movement in society to figure out what is true (fact checking is becoming more known).

It is written that God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of Yeshua (called Jesus), is the same yesterday, today, and forever.  His word is as true today as it has ever been, and it does not change.  We need to repent and return to God’s ways.  Turn from all the traditions and interpretations that have been built up around God’s words, obscuring and even nullifying His word.

God has said that we are neither to add to nor subtract from His word (Deuteronomy 4:2).  Judaism loves to add to His word.  Christianity loves to subtract from His word.  Repentance is needed.

-Yosef

 

Sabbath and Slavery

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There are two places in the Torah (Pentateuch) where the 10 commandments are listed.  The listings are nearly identical, but there is an interesting difference between the listing for the Sabbath.  God gives two completely (seemingly) independent reasons for keeping and observing the Sabbath.

In the one listing in Deuteronomy chapter 5 states that the we should remember the Sabbath because we were slaves in Egypt, but God brought us out by a mighty hand.

Why this?  Why the change from remembering the six days of creation as listed in Exodus chapter 20?

We as people tend to judge ourselves rather harshly.  At least I do – it is one of the things I struggle with often.  When I’m in the throws of judging myself, I realize that I’m a slave to the oppressing thoughts.  I’m not alone in this.  We so often get trapped (enslaved) by our thoughts.  This is why God tells us to remember weekly – for a whole day – that He brought us out of slavery.  All types of slavery; even that from thoughts.  We would do well to remember that every Sabbath.

The other idea mentioned in Deuteronomy chapter 5 is that we need to remember that we were brought out of the land of Egypt.  What does Egypt represent?  In sort, all manner of paganism.  Throughout the Torah (law of God), He makes it clear that we are to remove ourselves from all manner of paganism.  For you Christians, the apostle Paul states that you are to avoid even the appearance of evil (I know most of you interpret that to mean some sort of vile sin, but in the context of Paul’s life, paganism is included in his comment).

We, both Jews and Christians, would do well to look at our lives and judge it by the word of God.  Judge it to see just where different forms of worship, forms God does not want, have crept in.   God asked us to do this weekly as it is a continuous battle.

-Yosef