When Yehova revealed the truth of His Torah to me, it was an exciting time.  Scripture became absolutely fascinating!!
I was so excited to share with anyone and everyone…

I have learned that most people do not share my excitement.
I have learned that most people reject what scripture says in favor of what their church teaches them.
And why wouldn’t they?
Educated religious leaders have been teaching us a consistent message for generation upon generation.

Here is the problem, though…
Malachi 3:6 tells us one aspect of the nature of Yehova (God):

Do you understand the significance of this?
God does not change.
Not in ancient times.
Not now.
Not in the future.
The nature of God is unchanging.

We are told that Yeshua (Jesus) is the Word become flesh:
John 1:14
“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us…”

And Hebrews 13:8 tells us this about Yeshua (Jesus):
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”

If Jesus is the Word, and Jesus is the same in the past, present, and future, then that means the Word is the same in the past, present, and future.

God never changes.
Jesus never changes.
The Word never changes.

So how is it possible that the church leaders teach that the Word has changed?
How is it possible that the church leaders teach that God has changed?

It is because they begin developing doctrine using the New Testament, while seeing the Old Testament as obsolete.

But that is not what scripture says. In fact, scripture tells us the exact opposite.

Before we do anything, we have to understand the very basic and simple concept that God does not change, Jesus does not change, and the Word does not change.

It is impossible to understand the writings of Paul without knowing this basic premise.

Why do I bring up the writings of Paul?
Because church leaders use the writings of Paul to teach a new doctrine, one that forces God to change, Jesus to change, and the word to change.

How can this be, when we know from scripture they do not change??
We are warned not to make this mistake:

2Peter 3:14-18

Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless; ¹⁵ and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation—as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, ¹⁶ as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures.
¹⁷ You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked; ¹⁸ but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.

This bit of scripture has some bite to it…
“…people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures.”

Making this mistake is not something to brush off, and just say ‘oh well.’
Did you catch the part about “their own destruction”?
Let’s zero in just a bit more:  “DESTRUCTION”

Anytime scripture mentions our possible destruction, it is HIGHLY imperative that we evaluate and understand the warning.
Please evaluate the things that Yehova (God) said in the Torah (first five books of the bible).
He said some things are forever, never-ending, perpetual, and for all generations.

The mainstream church message tells us those things are:
NOT forever
NOT never-ending
NOT perpetual
NOT for all generations

Houston, we have a problem…
Actually, the problem is world wide, and it spans across many centuries, and has affected many millions of people.
Church leaders are teaching what they were told in seminary.
What they are saying makes Yehova (God) a liar and makes the Word a liar, which makes Yeshua (Jesus) a liar by association, since He is the Word become flesh.

Who will you believe?
Scripture?
OR
Your pastor?

 

Here are three teachings to review (click on links to see):
Edomites in Jerusalem??

Am I Israel??

Who is Israel??

I know this is very controversial, so if you made it past the blog title and are still reading, I congratulate you.

We all know how to be religious…
Confess our sins.  Accept Jesus as our Savior.  Pray Him into our heart.  Go to church for the rest of our life. Volunteer in the kids’ ministry. Go to Mexico during Spring Break and build a home for someone.  Get dunked in a hot tub. Go to Thursday night bible study.  Help in the church coffee shop.  Go see Fireproof and War Room and God’s Not Dead.  Might even go see The Shack.  Invite someone to Easter or Christmas service.  Give 10% of your money to your pastor.  Nice and simple, right?

If you’ve read any of my blog posts, you know I disagree with this basic model.

But let’s not beat around the bush.
Does mainstream doctrine bring life or death?

Yes, this image that I Photoshopped is offensive and a horrible visual to behold.  People with hands raised in the air to God, doing their best with what they know…
Why on earth would I ever depict this as a bad thing??  I must be really awful.

Well, let’s go to scripture to evaluate this idea.
MATTHEW 7:21-23 — “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’

These are the words of our Messiah.  He is quite clear that some who call on His name will not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Before we go on, think about that.  Let it settle just a bit.
If you are serious about your faith and your salvation, this warning must be discussed and understood.

First of all, what is the qualifer in this bit of scripture?
“but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.”

Is there any scripture that identifies the will of the Father?
Psalm 40:8 — “I delight to do Your will, O my God, And Your law is within my heart.”

That can’t be the will of the Father, because churches teach the law is done away with. Well, what does your Messiah think about that?

Matthew 5:17-19 —  “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.  For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.  Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

What are some key points here?
1. Yeshua (Jesus) did not come to destroy, but to fulfill. If you study the original text, you’ll see that ‘fulfill’ in this case means to fully teach.  Even if we consider the translation as is, to fulfill means to accomplish.  It does not mean to abolish or do away with…
2. Till heaven or earth pass away, the law will not change. Prophecy tells us that this heaven and earth will pass away.  But it has not yet.
3. Who ever breaks the law and teaches others to break the law will be considered the least…
4. Whoever keeps the law and teaches others to keep the law will be considered great…

But that isn’t what my pastor teaches…
More words from Yeshua (Jesus):
John 14:15 — “If you love Me, keep My commandments.”
John 14:21 — “He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”
John 15:9-10 — “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.  If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.”
Revelation 14:12 — Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.

Yes, those are the words of Messiah, but still, that is not what my pastor teaches…

Another quote from Yeshua, Messiah, Jesus:
Revelation 22:14 — Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city.

Do you want to have the right to the tree of life?
Your Messiah just told you what it takes.  Are you doing what He says?
Do you want to enter the city of New Jerusalem, which is described in Revelation 21?
Are you doing as your Savior asks?

But… Still…  My pastor taught me John 3:16
John 3:16 —  For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

Yes, we all love John 3:16, but it is not a stand-alone truth.
Did your pastor teach you John 3:36?
John 3:36 — He who trusts in the Son has eternal life. He who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.

But… But, John 3:16
How about this one:
James 2:18-20 —  But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith without works and I will show you faith by my works.  You believe that God is one. You do well. The demons also believe—and shudder!  But do you want to know, you empty person, that faith without works is dead?

Yes, we must believe, as John 3:16 states. But that is not the end of the matter. It is just the start.

Don’t get me wrong here…
I absolutely believe that salvation comes through faith.  Grace is a gift, so that no man should boast.
But after you have received the gift of grace, something has to happen within our heart.  We have to know our Messiah and do the things He said, as that is evidence of our faith.
He tells us over and over to obey the commandments of God.
Not to gain salvation, but because of our salvation.

Have you read Hebrews 10:26?
Hebrews 10:26-31 — For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins,  but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries. ²⁸ Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.  Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace?  For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,”says the Lord. And again, “The Lord will judge His people.”  It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

Catch that? If “we sin willfully” then we are hosed (yes, I paraphrased just a bit).
So, what is sin?
1John 3:4 — Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness.

Wow, sin is not keeping the law?  My pastor says we don’t have to worry about that anymore.
Do you believe your pastor, or do you believe Hebrews 10?

In case you haven’t noticed, I am not giving my opinions here. I am quoting the words of our Messiah. Do you believe Him?
I am quoting scripture. Does your pastor teach you these things?  Do these direct quotes of your Messiah make you wonder about these things?

I ask you this.  In your religious walk, are you doing the things everyone else does?
If so, you must have it right.
It is good to be in the majority.

More words from our Messiah:
Matthew 7:13-14 — “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”

“few who find it”  —  that does not sound like a majority. That does not sound like doing what everyone else is doing.

I ask again…
Does the Mainstream doctrine bring life or death?

Deuteronomy 30:15 — “See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil, in that I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments, His statutes, and His judgments…”

Deuteronomy 28:1 — “Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that the Lord your God will set you high above all nations of the earth.”
Deuteronomy 28:15 — ¹⁵ “But it shall come to pass, if you do not obey the voice of the Lord your God, to observe carefully all His commandments and His statutes which I command you today, that all these curses will come upon you and overtake you

Deuteronomy 11:26-28 — “Behold, I set before you today a blessing and a curse:  the blessing, if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you today;  and the curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside from the way which I command you today, to go after other gods which you have not known.

Be careful to study scripture regarding the things you believe and support…
Debate with men on various topics is a good thing, as iron sharpens iron.
Proverbs 27:17
As iron sharpens iron,
So a man sharpens the countenance of his friend.

Most people have heard the phrase ‘iron sharpens iron’ —but please do not forget the second half of this verse.
Discussion of scripture occurs between and among friends.
Be kind to others as you debate and discuss.
But in the end, be sure to adhere to scripture and not the traditions of man.

Sometimes scripture is not definitive, and we have to rely on this future promise:
Revelation 10:7
^“but in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound, then is finished the mystery of God, according to the good tidings which he declared to his servants the prophets.”

 

Sometimes you have to look up from your path to see where you are actually headed.
Make adjustments.
Turn around and go the other way, if that is what is required…
Sometimes you have to look for a different path, even.
Never stop adjusting your course.

Matthew 7:13-14
“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.

Yes, I grew up in a time when Styx was a popular band, but this post is not about them or their song Grand Illusions…

I went to church regularly through high school, even though my family did not typically attend.
I was baptized at 17, on the same day I graduated from high school in May of 1983.
Sweet.  I was all set, right?

I spent the next 33 years in the mainstream church.  Just like most, I obtained my scriptural knowledge from the experts.  I was taught what scripture says and what it means by men who had theology degrees.
There is nothing wrong with that, right?

Well, I had questions.
Whenever I cracked open my bible and read scripture for myself, I found things that I couldn’t understand.  I found things that seemed to contradict what my church leaders said week in and week out.

Good news, though…
They pretty much all had open door policies.  I could approach our church leaders at any time and ask all the questions I wanted.  And I did.
There was just one problem, though.  If I didn’t accept and believe ‘their explanation’ then the open door got slammed pretty quickly.
Continuing to have questions, or God forbid, not believing their answers was simply not tolerated.  Not accepting their answers (and often times, non-answers, since they simply don’t know much about the difficult topics) meant that ‘my heart was not right with God.’
I was never given an explanation of what it meant for my heart to not be right with God.  It just seemed like they were angry because my heart was not right with their line of reasoning.

Then a not-so-funny thing happened. I had a severe crisis in my life.  My oldest son was on life support at the age of 15.  Homicide detectives declared his body a crime scene because a cat scan showed he was brain dead.

You can read all the details of this story here:
My Testimony

To make a long story short, I learned for the very first time in my life how to be wretchedly humble before my Creator.  I learned how to fully submit to Him. I learned how to pray that night.

As a result of complete and total submission, and desperate prayer to know and understand God, I started to understand scripture.  I prayed as James 1:5-8 tells us to pray.
James 1:5-8
If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. ⁶ But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. ⁷ For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; ⁸ he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

And God kept His promise.  He began to reveal His understanding to me.
For the first time in my life, scripture made sense.  All of it.
And the more I understood, the more foolish the mainstream message appeared.
I received understanding of the difficult topics.  The questions I had that the church leaders could not answer… God revealed His understanding to me, and it is fascinating.
I learned that God’s word was understood by the men of the bible, ancient men.  But 400 years of captivity in Egypt caused them to lose much of their knowledge and understanding.  As a result, God gave it back to them, via Moses.
“The Law” was not new..  It was just newly learned again.
All throughout Torah, God says His word is forever, never-ending, unchanging, and that it is for all generations.
New Testament scripture supports Torah completely, as does prophecy for future events that have not yet happened.

John 1:1
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

Numbers 23:19
God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind.

James 1:17
Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

Malachi 3:6
“For I am the Lord, I do not change;

John 1:14 tells us that Jesus is the Word in the flesh:
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

And Hebrews 13:8 tells us that He does not and has not changed.
Ever. 
And that means the Word does not and has not changed.
Ever.

Hebrews 13:8
 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. 

But…
The mainstream church teaches us that God’s word is not forever.
Mainstream doctrine uses the writings of Paul to say the Torah instruction (The Law) is done away with. (If you wonder how this could be an issue, read 2Peter 3:14-18).

That is not possible.
For if it were true, God is a liar.

The mainstream message is a grand illusion.
It is spoken of in Hebrews 13:9
Do not be carried about with various and strange doctrines.

If a teaching is not in accordance with Torah, which God said is ever-lasting and does not change, then it is a various and strange doctrine.

Do we see this warning anywhere else in scripture?
2Timothy 4:3-5
For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; ⁴ and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. ⁵ But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

Yes, we live in the time that Paul described to Timothy so long ago.
Popular doctrine teaches against Torah, not for it.

How do we know a false prophet?  Deuteronomy explains to us how we will know:
Deuteronomy 13
“If there arises among you a prophet or a dreamer of dreams, and he gives you a sign or a wonder, ² and the sign or the wonder comes to pass, of which he spoke to you, saying, ‘Let us go after other gods’—which you have not known—‘and let us serve them,’ ³ you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams, for the Lord your God is testing you to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. ⁴ You shall walk after the Lord your God and fear Him, and keep His commandments and obey His voice; you shall serve Him and hold fast to Him. ⁵ But that prophet or that dreamer of dreams shall be put to death, because he has spoken in order to turn you away from the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of bondage, to entice you from the way in which the Lord your God commanded you to walk. So you shall put away the evil from your midst.

Mainstream doctrine turns us away from the commandments of God.  Anyone who teaches such a thing is a false prophet, according to Deuteronomy 13.
This is a disaster of epic proportions.

Is there anyway to know if what I’m saying is true??
Consider these direct quotes of your Messiah:

Revelation 14:12
Here is the patience of the saints; here are those^[g] who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.
See that? Jesus says it takes two criteria, not one.

Revelation 22:14
Blessed are those who do His commandments,^[g] that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city.
Yes, Jesus said that.  Keep the commandments.

John 14:15
“If you love Me, keep My commandments.
Yes, that is Jesus speaking again.

John 14:21
He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”
Yes, still Jesus…

John 15:10
 If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.
Jesus said that?  Yes, He did.
Are you seeing a pattern here?
Does your church teach you these things, straight out of scripture?

Do you “go after other gods”?
You may answer that with a resounding “No!!!”
But do you?
Yes, you may proclaim the gospel of Jesus.  But how well do you know Him?
Do you know him from scripture, or do you know what your mainstream teacher has told you about Him?

Please read these articles before you answer this question.
Which Jesus Do You Love?
Things Jesus Ever Said #1
Things Jesus Ever Said #2
Things Jesus Ever Said #3

I ask these questions because it is important to ask these questions.
Your eternal life may depend on it.

The church tells us that anyone who believes in Jesus and prays Him into their heart will have everlasting life. (Show me in scripture where it says to pray Jesus into your heart.  I’ll give you a hint… It doesn’t).

We hear John  3:16 often:
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

Who doesn’t love John 3:16?
The thing to remember is that it does not stand alone. It is true, but it is just one of thousands of small pieces that make up an overall truth.
Are you familiar with John 3:36?
He who trusts in the Son has eternal life. He who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.

How can these two verses in the same book seem to be contradictory?
3:16 says all we have to do is believe in Jesus and we are saved.
And then, 3:36 says we won’t be saved if we do not obey what Jesus said.

I say they are not contradictory.  If we truly know, believe in, and trust Yeshua (Jesus’ real Hebrew name), then we WILL know Him, we WILL trust Him, we WILL obey the things He said.
The two verses go hand in hand.
It is impossible to TRULY know and trust Messiah and not hear Him and not obey Him.

Does your church teach what our Messiah said?
Or does your church teach the traditions of man?
If your church does not encourage you to learn and do Torah instruction (which God said is forever, for all generations), then your church is teaching the traditions of man.
If you’d like to know what Yeshua (Jesus) thinks of men teaching traditions, read Matthew 23.
Are you set apart? Are you hated by the world?
Or are you streaming along with the majority?

What else does Yeshua (Jesus) say?
Matthew 7:13-14
“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.¹⁴ Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”

If you think my ideas here are foolish and offensive, please consider His words about the narrow path and the wide path.
Take the time to study scripture to find out which path you are on.
If you are on the path with the majority, you might want to reconsider.

Are you ready?
Here comes a controversial statement:
There is no such thing as ‘the church’ or Gentile believers…
Either you are Israel, or you are not Israel.
Read Romans 11 to learn about being grafted into Israel.

But, wait, what does Jesus say about this??? Because He is my authority…

Have you listened to your Messiah?
Have you listened to your Savior?
Do His words match what your church teaches?
Have questions about Torah? Ask me…

Before you decide, be sure to review Matthew 7:21-23 (the words of Messiah). Pay particular attention to verse 23.

21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’