Get the Greek and Hebrew Fonts here...
The Structure...
It will be hard to condense this journey into such a short writing but I plan on giving the "Cliffs Notes" version here, expanding things as time allows.
Background
I was originally raised as a Protestant Christian of the Southern Baptist variety. I was taught that the law (Torah) had been finally done away with at the death of Christ ("nailed to the cross", Colossians 2:14) and that the Sabbath was then changed to Sunday. (I was taught many other things as well, but these two are the ones I want to focus on right now.)
The 12 Points of Why we Believe What we Believe
It has been decided that the 12 points will be posted to the website before all the evidence has been edited, proofread, and typeset. Over time, we will continue to add the evidence references so that all points can be authenticated by those who desire.
A familiarity with Early Christian History (Early Church Fathers writings, Protestant Reformation, etc.) will be needed to grasp some of the points made here. Most, if not all, of these writings are available for free on the Internet.
I say this is needed because trying to talk about World War II in our day with someone who has never heard of Adolf Hitler, Winston Churchill, or
The Final Solution to the Jewish Question would be quite difficult.
There is a
summary statement at the end of the 12 points for those who want to quickly get an idea of where we are, theologically speaking, and why we are here. The 12 points themselves are like the road signs for a trip, each providing key information for the journey. They will explain how we got to where we are today.
We are searching for the truth and invite response to the individual points found below. However, a response
is not an opinion. Many in my past have said:
"I believe what I believe and if I were wrong about anything, I believe the Spirit would inform me. Since that hasn't happened, then I can't be wrong on anything. So, since you and I don't agree, then you must be wrong."
Logic like that has no place here. If you want to respond to a particular point, your goal is to show where I have erred. Evidence
MUST BE PROVIDED or your response will be marked as hearsay.
Here are seven examples (and certainly more exist):
- Have I mistranslated the Hebrew or Greek text? Explain how and give your translation.
- Have I misinterpreted what the text is saying? Explain how and give your interpretation.
- Have I misunderstood what the writer was trying to say? Tell me what and then explain what you think the writer was really saying.
- Are my pieces of evidence actually nonexistent or quoted out of context? Provide evidence that the references do not exist or demonstrate the context I missed.
- Has my reasoning missed the mark? Explain how.
- Have I read too much into the text or texts I am referencing? Explain what I did wrong.
- Is my conclusion faulty based on my evidence? Explain why.
We are all trying to find the truth. Here is a chance to respond to 12 well reasoned and evidenced points that have brought me to where I am today. I don't care what the truth is. I just want to find it so I can walk in it. Do you???
Note:Yahweh (
hw"hy ) is the Hebrew name of the Father and Yeshua [
[;Wvy ) is the Hebrew name for His only begotten son.
Two mottos we always try to follow:
1Thes 5:21 Test everything! Grasp a hold of that which is true.
Proverb 18:17 The first to present his case seems right, until another comes forward and examines him.
Thank you
House of David Fellowship, Richmond, Virginia USA
These are 12 points of the Hebrew Roots of Christianity that evaluate the long held doctrine that when Yeshua uttered "It is finished", the law as given to Moses was completely done away with.
1. The Millennial Kingdom
Summary
When Yeshua returns at the second coming, he will inaugurate the Millennial Kingdom and there are several Old Testament passages that speak to things going on. One of the things that seems consistent is that the Torah will be the law of the land and not just for the Commonwealth of Israel but for all humanity on planet earth.
More...
2. Moses and the Exodus
Summary
During the time of Moses, when a sojourner desired to become a citizen of the Commonwealth of Israel, they started with the four in Lev 17-18 and moved on to learning and obeying all.
More...
3. Believing Jews Keep Torah?
Why wasn't the Torah
done away for them too?
Summary
If the law was done away with for gentiles, why wasn't it done away with for the Jews too? History and the New Testament are clear that it wasn't.
More...
4. Sabbath to Sunday,
Augsburg and Trent
Summary
If the Sabbath was changed to Sunday, why is it not mentioned specifically in the New Testament?
More...
5. NT says "Gentiles in 1st century
required to keep non-moral laws."
Really?
Summary
If the law was done away with except for the moral law, why are the new Gentiles required to obey non-moral laws out of Leviticus?
More...
6. Protestant Christian Scholarship
of the 20th century
speak out about the law
Summary
If the law was done away with, why do the leading scholars of the 20
th century state the opposite, that is, that
- Christ DID NOT COME to do away with the law but the traditions of men attached to it
- Christ came to explain how to obey the law properly - why, if it was going to be gone in a year or two? Who cares?
- The Law of Christ (Galatians 6:2) was really the Torah minus man's traditions but interpreted correctly by Yeshua
- The will of God is revealed in the law - How can that be if it's done away with???
- To be a member of God's people is to find oneself obligated to adhere to the norms articulated in the Mosaic Torah
- Only the doers of the Law will be Justified
- The New Perspective on Paul will finally correct all the misinterpretations that have existed for so many centuries
More...
7. What does God, David, and Paul
have to say about the Torah?
Summary
Doesn't it seem odd that God (who changes not), King David, and Paul all speak so highly of the Torah. I wonder how something so wonderful could become so flawed, especially in light of the fact that the perfect God created it?
More...
8. Is there a practical side of
Torah Observance
Summary
Did you know that many of the instructions our Heavenly Father gave us have practical benefits including health?
More...
9. OT prophecies and
the writing of the
Torah on the heart =
the New Covenant?
Summary
It was our Heavenly Father's desire all along that we have His character embedded on our heart. With the first coming of Yeshua, as he says, "Even the Spirit of truth; ...he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you." With the indwelling spirit, the change takes place supernaturally if we just allow Him to do it.
More...
10. Deut 4:9 vs 1Cor 7:39 =
?The One New Man?
Summary
In the first century, if the Jews are still keeping the commandments and Gentiles are not required to, then Yeshua's "I will build my ekklesia" stops being a commonwealth without distinctions, leading to a bi-lateral ecclesiology. How does 1Corinthians 7:39 solve this dilemma?
More...
11. The Holy Days and his birthday vs
Christmas
Summary
It is commonly taught that Christ fulfilled all the types and shadows prophesied in the Old Testament. Does the New Testament confirm this?
More...
12. Polycrates, the Gospel,
and The Torah
Summary
It is most unfortunate that a faulty exegesis of Colossians 2:14-17 has for centuries misled Christians into believing that the Sabbath and the Holy Days were nailed to the Cross. Fortunately, recent research has exposed the fallacies of this traditional interpretation. In addition, a critical reading of the Early Church Fathers in the second century clearly demonstrates that they understood apostolic teaching to be that obedience to the required feasts was not an option and to replace the appointed times with man-made traditions was a violation of what God required for believers.
More...
- During the Millenium, everyone on the planet keeps Torah
- Gentiles who joined the Commonwealth of Israel under Moses were eventually responsibile to learn and follow all of the Torah (law)
- The Torah clearly wasn't done away with for the Jews
- The Sabbath was never changed to Sunday in the Scriptures
- Gentiles were required to keep at least some non-moral Torah laws
- Leading Protestant Christian Scholars support that the Torah is still in effect today
- God, David, and Paul all speak highly of the Torah
- Is there a more practical constitution anywhere?
- The OT prophesies that the Torah will be written on the heart in the New Covenant so that the instructions of our Heavenly Father can be rightly obeyed
- One New Man cannot be reconciled with Deut. 4:9 and 1Cor 7:39 if the law was done away with only for the Gentiles
- And we are moving his birthday from a Scriptually appointed feast day to the birthday of false gods why?
- Who would have thought that the gospel is the
Torah interpreted by Yeshua?!
Paul, the Apostle John, and all the churches in Asia!
The evidence is simply overwhelming. Every comment of Paul that appears to disparage the Torah can be satisfactorily dealt (see the
New Perspective on Paul)
with if his writings are placed back into the context of the first century in Judea and a few foundational concepts are established. This must be done so that the Torah as interpreted by Yeshua can be contrasted with the Torah bogged down with man-made tradition.
Yeshua spent a good portion of his teaching ministry not contradicting the law but sorting out the traditions that had made the law void. This and much more is all explained on this website.
