One of my teen friends is struggling, trying to determine if God exists…
He asked me for my testimony. I gave it to him, and decided to share it here as well…  This was my response to Tyler:

You asked for my testimony. Well, put on your seat belt. Here it is.

I got baptized when I was 17, the same day I graduated from high school. I wasn’t quite sure what it all meant, but I didn’t want to go out into the world without being a Christian.
For the next 30 or so years, I went to various churches. During that time, I had lots of questions about the bible that church leaders could never answer. Even worse, they didn’t seem to care that they couldn’t answer the questions. They often said, “Maybe we’ll understand these things once we get to heaven.” Or I’d get this one, “We don’t always understand God, but we’ll give Him the benefit of the doubt.” I’m sorry, but even though there were things I didn’t understand, I thought it was ridiculous that church leaders, the experts, decided we have to give God the benefit of the doubt. I don’t think God needs that from us…

I had lots of years with unanswered questions. When I read scripture, there were things that didn’t make any sense. I would stop, read it again, think about it, and try to fit what scripture was saying into what I had been taught. Usually, I couldn’t make it fit, and I’d give up and move on…  I wasn’t willing to give up my faith over unanswered questions, though.

Throughout those years, I remember people talking about loving Jesus or loving God. I wanted to love God, except I had no idea what that meant. I was grateful for the blessings in my life. I was grateful for my salvation. But who was God? How do I love an abstract idea that I don’t fully understand?
Instead of giving up, I just did my best. I went to church. I taught Sunday School. I went to men’s bible studies. I served on the church board. I did lots of things. I tried to be helpful. I gave money to church. I donated money to charities. I met some really wonderful people along the way. There are some amazing people in the church. A few crummy people, too, but that is not the norm.
But through all of it, I still wondered how to love a divine being that I didn’t know or understand. Sometimes, I would wonder, what if none of it is true? What if God doesn’t really exist? I didn’t like that possibility, so I just did my best to believe and continue on…

It took an absolute and complete crisis for me to get on the path to figuring things out. At 2am on February 1, 2014, I got a call from the police. They told me my oldest son was in the hospital. I didn’t understand. Our whole family had watched a movie on a Friday night, then we all went to bed. My son was safe in his bedroom…

Except he wasn’t.

He had met a girl at school, and she became his first girlfriend. She talked him into sneaking out of the house at night, after we went to bed. She knew a 20 year old wanna-be drug dealer, and he gave them some Molly/MDMA. Josh ended up brain dead, in a medically induced coma, on life support.
When I got to the hospital, the paramedic who treated him and transported him to the hospital talked to me. He told me Josh was blue from head to toe, and had not been breathing for approximately 20 minutes by the time he arrived. Josh’s body temperature was swinging wildly between 89F and 109F. Josh was a bloody mess from having violent seizures. His lungs were full of blood and vomit that he aspirated during the seizures. The paramedic intubated and treated him anyway. They got him to the hospital, and machines stabilized his body. This man had tears running down his face as he told me he’d pray for me. He didn’t say he would pray for Josh. He said he would pray for me, because he knew I had lost my son.
A formal cat scan showed that Josh was brain dead.
At about 3am, homicide detectives showed up and declared his fifteen year old body a crime scene.

Up to this point in my life, I didn’t understand God. I had spent thirty years praying to a divine being that I was pretty sure existed, but not positive of it. My prayers were a hopeful request, sprinkled with a bit of doubt.
But for the first time in my life, I was in a situation where I needed God to be real. I needed God to exist, and I needed Him to give me a miracle.
I got on my knees, and I learned about absolute and complete submission. I was nothing and He was everything. I was dirt of the earth, and He was, is, and always will be the Creator and Caretaker of all that there is.

      I learned to pray that night.

I learned to pray with faith, and with expectation. I learned to pray with complete awe and belief that God was sovereign over everything, including the very laws of physics and life and death. I believed that God was capable of anything and everything. I closed my eyes and I imagined God inside of Josh’s head and body, repairing the damage. I visualized it and I believed it was happening.
I didn’t pray with hope. I prayed with belief and expectation, that what I needed was happening. I didn’t pray for God to consider my request. I prayed with thanks that He had already granted my request. But I prayed that His will be done, not mine, no matter what that meant.

At about 12pm, the neuro physician in ICU explained that she would stop the coma inducing sedatives. She prepared us to not expect anything. This was a process they followed… Lift Josh from the medically induced coma, check for signs of brain activity, go back under a coma, try again in twelve hours…
After several attempts, we would need to prepare ourselves to make a decision…
She and the nurse stopped the coma inducing medicine, and told us it would take 30-45 minutes for the medication to wear off enough to check for signs of neurological activity (they expected none).
Within about 15 minutes, Josh opened his eyes and tried to sit up. He still had tubes in his throat, a machine breathing for him, and he wanted to pull them out. The ICU MD and nurse were SHOCKED!! They scrambled to check vitals, and then removed the breathing tubes. Josh was conscious and awake, and they could not believe it.
They asked him a few questions, and he got the answers right!! His mind was intact.
The neuro physician said he was a miracle. She said he was not alive and well due to any medical treatment, but only because of a miracle that she could not explain.
Once they realized Josh was stable, they disconnected all the life support and left us alone. As soon as we were by ourselves, Josh grabbed me by the shirt, pulled me close, and exclaimed, “Dad, I know God exists now!!” He had been struggling with his faith, and had decided that he could not follow God.
Josh remembers dying. He remembers seeing his body lying in the hospital bed. He remembers leaving… He doesn’t know where he went, but he met a spiritual entity. The only words he could think of to describe this entity was a beautiful, constantly moving and changing, blue and green fractal… The most beautiful thing he had ever seen.
He said he had a lengthy conversation with this entity (he has never disclosed the content of that conversation, even now). He said the spiritual entity told him they had to repair the damage to his brain and body. This being held his head for a few minutes, then told him it was time to go back. Josh felt himself receding from that place, like exiting a maze. After leaving this place, he saw the entrance seal up and close. And then he opened his eyes and woke up in the hospital…
[I don’t have an explanation for his story ~ I’m just sharing it, as he described it]

They kept Josh overnight for observation, and discharged him the next morning. I asked the ICU doctor what follow-up was required and when he could return to school. She said he could go back to school the next day, and that no follow-up was required. She said he was unresponsive, in a coma, with no brain activity one minute, and in perfect health the next. She could not find a single thing wrong with him.

I don’t know why God chose to spare Josh, but I am eternally grateful. As bad as this experience was for me and my family, I cherish it. Because this happened, I learned that God is real, and I learned that I am nothing, and I learned how to pray.

I don’t think God exists. I know that God exists.

I ran across this passage in the book of James:
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.

No way. Can it really be that simple?
If I pray and believe, God will give me His understanding?
Yes.
It is that easy. But it requires belief and faith, and no doubting.
In the last several years, I have studied scripture and I have prayed as James told us to pray.
And God has revealed His understanding to me.
Thirty years of questions and doubts were cleared up in a very short time.
But, the understanding I have been given does not match mainstream doctrine.
But I don’t care.
Truth is more important than fitting in with the majority.

The words of Jesus:

Matthew 7:13-14
13 “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.”

When learning and understanding His truth, instead of false teaching, I have found that scripture is fascinating!!! It is exhilarating. The truth turns the world upside down.

1 Corinthians 3:18-19
Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. 19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God.

If you want to know God for real, forget what you think you know. Start praying for His understanding, the way James says to pray, and God will reveal much to you. But do not doubt, as we are warned.

Let go of religion and churchianity. Start getting to know the real God (YHVH, yod hay vav hay in Hebrew) and the real Jesus (Yeshua in transliterated Hebrew).
I make great efforts to tell others the truth I have learned. Most reject it, because it is not what they have been taught by the church. But my truth comes from God and His word, not from a college operated by men. Check out Matthew 23 if you want to see what Yeshua (Jesus) thought of educated religious leaders of His time.

I will answer any and all questions you have, if you are interested.

Matthew 7:13-14
The Narrow Way
¹³ “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.

[Mainstream Doctrine teaches us that everyone who believes in Jesus will go to Heaven.  While there are scriptures that seem to indicate this is true, they have to be isolated from all other scripture in order to create this doctrine.  Jesus’ words in Matthew 7 inform us that few will find the narrow path. Yes, Jesus really said this.]

Matthew 7:21-23
I Never Knew You
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!’

[Just a few verses later, Jesus tells us this bit of scary scripture.  While all scripture is important, I think we should pay very close attention to the words of Jesus, especially when He is providing a warning.  In this passage, Jesus tells us only those who do the will of His Father in heaven will enter the kingdom of heaven.  What is the will of the Father?  He gave it to us in Torah instruction, even writing some of it in stone tablets with His own finger. Yes, I’m talking about ‘the law’.
Many claim to have done good works in the name of Jesus, but how does He respond?
“I never knew you.”
“Depart from me,”
“you who practice lawlessness.”
Whoa… That is harsh.
Jesus does not say depart from me you who follow the law.
He sends away those who do not follow the law.
We are not taught this in church.
But, yes, Jesus really said that.]

Matthew 19:16-22
Jesus Counsels the Rich Young Ruler
¹⁶ Now behold, one came and said to Him, “Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?” ¹⁷ So He said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.” ¹⁸ He said to Him, “Which ones?” Jesus said, “‘You shall not murder,’ ‘You shall not commit adultery,’ ‘You shall not steal,’ ‘You shall not bear false witness,’ ¹⁹ ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ ” ²⁰ The young man said to Him, “All these things I have kept from my youth. What do I still lack?” ²¹ Jesus said to him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” ²² But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

[In this story, a young man asks Jesus what he must do to have eternal life.
Did you catch how Jesus answered His question?
“But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”
What do you think? Should we listen to Jesus?
Should we obey the commandments?
I say yes, we should.]

Matthew 23:1-3
Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, ² saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. ³ Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do. 

[Matthew 23 is one of the harshest chapters in the whole bible. It consists of Jesus rebuking the Pharisees for turning away from the word of God and burdening the people with their own traditions.
But He begins by telling the people to “observe and do” what the Pharisees teach from Moses’ seat.  Through research, we learn that teaching from the seat of Moses consisted of reading from the Torah scroll word for word.  Jesus is telling the people to observe and do the law given in Torah, but then He goes on to tell them not to do what the Pharisees teach and do of their own accord.
Yes, Jesus just told the people of His time, and every person to read this afterwards to follow Torah.]

John 14:15
“If you love Me, keep My commandments.”

[This one is short and sweet. Jesus tells us to keep His commandments, as that shows our love for Him.]

John 14:
“He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me.”

[Just a few verses later, we get a very similar statement.  It must be important for Jesus to tell us this twice, in rapid succession.  Maybe we should do it?  I vote yes.]

John 5:45-47
 Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you—Moses, in whom you trust. ⁴⁶ For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me. ⁴⁷ But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?”

[Again, Jesus tells us that the words of Moses’ are valid. Jesus goes so far to ask why would we believe Him if we don’t believe the words of Moses?
If Jesus thinks this is important, then maybe WE should think this is important.  Have you read the words of Moses, with the idea that they are valid, as Jesus indicates multiple times?]

Matthew 28:16-20
The Great Commission
¹⁶ Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. ¹⁷ When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted. ¹⁸ And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. ¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

[Ahhh, yes, the Great Commission…
Everybody knows this one, right?  Can you quote it word for word?
Don’t forget verse 20:  “teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you.”
Refer to Matthew  23:2-3
Yes, Jesus just told us to teach our disciples to follow the law.]

Luke 16:19-31
The Rich Man and Lazarus
¹⁹ “There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day. ²⁰ But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, ²¹ desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. ²² So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. ²³ And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. ²⁴ “Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.’ ²⁵ But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented. ²⁶ And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.’ ²⁷ “Then he said, ‘I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house, ²⁸ for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’ ²⁹ Abraham said to him, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’ ³⁰ And he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ ³¹ But he said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’”

[Did you catch that in verse 31? In this story, Jesus tells us we need to listen to Moses and the prophets.  What did they teach us?]

Matthew 5:17-19
¹⁷ “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. ¹⁸ 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. ¹⁹ 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. ²⁰ For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.

[These verses are Jesus’ preface to the Sermon on the Mount, where He directs people to follow Torah law instead of the man-made doctrine that the Pharisees teach.
Did you catch that in verse 18?
Not one pen stroke of the law will pass until heaven and earth have passed away. That hasn’t happened yet, but it will happen…
Did you catch that in verse 19?
If you break the least of one of these commandments, and teach to break – will be considered the least.
If you do and teach to do the commandments of the Torah law, you will be considered the greatest.
Straight from the mouth of Jesus.
Do you want to be considered great or least by Jesus?]

Revelation 14:12
Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.

[Church doctrine has made a mess of things, going back many centuries and many generations.  Thankfully, Jesus gave us some instructions for the future, just in case we get confused along the way.
In Rev 14:12, Jesus tells us who the saints are…
Did you catch that? He gave us two criteria.
1.  Keep the commandments of God
2.  Have faith in Jesus
Whoa…
Churches do a great job of teaching #2.  But what about #1??
They teach the exact opposite!!
What warning does Jesus give us in Revelation about not following what He says in the book of Revelation?
Revelation 22:19
^“ and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.”
Do you want to be removed from the Book of Life?  Do you want to be excluded from the city of New Jerusalem?
You might want to start working on #1 above, as Jesus tells us it takes two criteria to be a saint.]

Revelation 12:17
 And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

[In this passage, Jesus tells us about the remnant of the church in end times.  It is this remnant that Satan will attempt to destroy.  How is the remnant described?
1.  Keep the commandments of God
2.  Have the testimony of Jesus
This is the second time Jesus has made this point. Should we listen?
What was the punishment for removing words from the book of Revelation?
Should we teach and do both #1 and #2?
I think yes.]

Revelation 22:12-15
Jesus Testifies to the Churches
¹² “And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work. ¹³ I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.”  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. ¹⁵ But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie.

[Again, a third time, when Jesus testifies to the churches, He tells us to do His commandments.  Three times, in one book.  Maybe we should listen to Him. Do you want to have the right to the tree of life?  You had better not be loving and practicing a lie.
Is it a lie to teach and practice to NOT follow the commandments of God?
According to Jesus, yes, it is.
What do you practice?]

In case you missed it, these are the words of your Messiah.
Direct quotes of Jesus.
Will you obey what He says?

You may be thinking this is not what you have been taught.  I also was not taught these things…
But we can clearly see what is important to Jesus.
Will you follow Him?
Or will you reject His words and continue to believe the mainstream church message?
If you are wondering how the church has gotten this wrong, check out 2 Peter 3:14-18.
We are warned against what the mainstream church teaches.

Be Steadfast
¹⁴ 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 long suffering 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.

We are taught by the mainstream message that we are saved by faith in Jesus (yes, that is half of it), and that we are not required to “do” anything, except believe in Grace…
Does this teaching pass the test of comparing it to what Jesus said?

Who will you believe and follow?
Your pastor, who bases His doctrine off the misunderstood writings of Paul (via Seminary teachings)?
Or will you believe and follow Jesus?

 

When I was about nine or ten years old, I decided I wanted to be a “trash-truck man” when I grew up.
Most young boys in 1975 would say they wanted to be a policeman, fireman, doctor, maybe even a cowboy…  There were (and still are) lots of choices.
Did I have a passion for garbage?
No, I did not.
Why was such a profession my first choice?
I had noticed that the trash pick-up guys only worked one day a week.  While I recognized it was a dirty job and cold in the winter, I wanted a job where I could take care of myself and my family while only working one day a week, even if the work wasn’t very appealing.
While my logic seemed pretty solid at the time, I soon learned that these guys worked all week long, not just one day, and their pay wasn’t all that great. I went on to learn about education and wages and how providing for yourself and a family actually works.  I learned of other opportunities.  No disrespect for trash pick-up guys, but I ended up choosing other things to do…

When I was in kindergarten, there was a bright blue bus that came through our neighborhood on Sunday mornings.  I would get on that bus, and travel to a local Baptist Church in our area.  They fed us breakfast and we played games.  We also had a bible lesson, where a teacher would tell us a story from the bible.
In middle school, I occasionally attended church with a friend.  There were still some games and fun, but the bible lessons were a little more serious. Again, one individual would teach us something about the bible.
During high school, I attended church as well, more regularly than I did in middle school.  The games were pretty much over, and I would sit in church and listen to the sermon.  Again, one man, week after week, would teach us about the bible.
Over the next thirty plus years, I continued in this same church model.  As an adult, I would go to church and listen to an expert tell me what the bible says.  Tracy and I even became the teachers, volunteering in children’s ministry for many years.
Sometimes, I would feel especially motivated, and I would read some scripture for myself.  While I would find some nuggets of inspiration, I mostly became confused.  I didn’t understand scripture much of the time, so I would just stop. For over three decades of my life, I based my Christian doctrine on whatever I was told by others.

In the same way that I didn’t have all the information when I wanted to be a trash pick-up man, I recently learned that I have not had all the information I’ve needed to be a Christian. I discovered this passage in 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.

Really?  No one ever told me I could just pray, and God would give me His understanding. Is it really that simple?  Pretty much, so long as I do not doubt, as we are warned against in the second half of that passage.

And so, I began to do just this…
I prayed for God’s understanding and wisdom as I studied scripture. And just as He promised, He gave me His understanding.
This is a good thing, yes?
Absolutely.
Except for one thing…
The things I had been taught my whole life did not agree with the understanding that God was giving me.

What to do next??
Obviously, I should reject what I thought I was understanding, and continue to believe what experts had taught me my entire life.

Uuummmm, no…
I put my trust and my faith in what God was revealing to me. And the more I trusted and believed, the more He revealed.

Matthew 25:29
‘For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away.

I now find myself in a place of sharing what I understand to be true.
Practically no one agrees with me.
Most of my friends have been very respectful, even though they disagree with me. We’ve had much debate. Iron sharpens iron.

But, I have been called a heretic, and have been told that my ideas are dangerous and offensive.
One pastor offered to teach me how to use my bible the right way. I believe I’ll stick with God’s way of doing things, instead of relying on Seminary teachings.
1 Corinthians 3:18-19
Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. 19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God.

You can also check out Matthew 23 to see what Jesus thought of educated religious leaders in His day. Ecclesiastes says this:
Ecclesiastes 1:9-10
That which has been is what will be,
That which is done is what will be done,
And there is nothing new under the sun.
¹⁰ Is there anything of which it may be said,
“See, this is new”?
It has already been in ancient times before us.

One pastor sarcastically asked how it is possible that millions upon millions have been “wrong” for 2000 years, while I somehow managed to stumble upon “real truth.”
Jesus told us this:
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.

Jesus followed that up with this:
 “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!’

And Jesus told us this:
“Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. ¹⁸ 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. ¹⁹ 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.”

At first, I was fearful and confused. 
Choosing to believe ideas that go against the mainstream is difficult.  And yet, God’s word has hints like 1Corinthians 3 and Matthew 7 (and many more) to encourage me.  God’s word has the warning in James 1 to not doubt what He reveals.  My confidence, trust, faith, and belief are grounded in God’s word and God’s promises. I’m ok being the fool in mans’ eyes.

If you choose to read my mini-teachings in this blog, I challenge you to do this:
Don’t believe a word I say. (When is the last time a church leader told you that??)
Pray in accordance with James 1:5-8, and study for yourselves the things I’m writing about.

Consider this very basic premise:
1.  God gave us His instructions (the law) in Torah, and told us it is forever, never ending, for all generations, a perpetual covenant.
2.  When the people strayed from God’s instructions, the prophets warned them to turn back to the instructions.
3.  The poetic/wisdom writings (Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, etc) tell us all about God’s instructions and how to follow them.
4.  Jesus taught us to follow God’s instructions, and lived them out perfectly as our example.
5.  The apostles teach what Jesus taught.
6.  Prophecy for the future tells us God’s instructions, the law, will be fully implemented again when Jesus returns.

We’ve been taught all our lives that we are NOT to follow the law, based upon the writings of Paul.  We are warned against making this mistake in 2Peter 3:14-18, and yet the masses travel this path.

I will continue to share scripture here, and write about the truths that God reveals to me through study and prayer.
Please pray and study these things for yourselves, because not everything is as it seems…

Do so as 1Corinthians 3:18 tells us:
Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise.
Study these things with a clean slate. Forget what you think you know, and pray on these matters.

Ephesians 2:8-9
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.

John 14:21
He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me.

James 2:14-26
What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? ¹⁵ If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, ¹⁶ and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? ¹⁷ Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. ¹⁸ But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my^[e]works. ¹⁹ You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! ²⁰ But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? ²¹ Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? ²² Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? ²³ And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God. ²⁴ You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only. ²⁵ Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way? ²⁶ For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

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. 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!’

1John 3:4-6
Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. 5 And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin. 6 Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him.

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. 18 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. 19 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.

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.

John 14:23-24
Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. 24 He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me.

John 14:31
But that the world may know that I love the Father, and as the Father gave Me commandment, so I do.

1John 2:3-6
Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. 4 He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. 6 He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.

1John 3:24
Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.

1John 5:2-3
By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments. 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.

1John 5:18-20
We know that whoever is born of God does not sin; but he who has been born of God keeps himself, and the wicked one does not touch him. 19 We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. 20 And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us an understanding, that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.

2John 1:4-6
I rejoiced greatly that I have found some of your children walking in truth, as we received commandment from the Father. 5 And now I plead with you, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment to you, but that which we have had from the beginning: that we love one another. 6 This is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, that as you have heard from the beginning, you should walk in it.

2John 1:9-11
Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son. 10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house nor greet him; 11 for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds.

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.

Revelation 12:17
And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

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.

Who is Jesus, Messiah, Yeshua?
I could grab a blank journal and begin writing many thoughts in answering this question.  I could spend hours, days, or weeks doing so. I could fill journal after journal with my thoughts.
But blog posts are typically short, so I need to find a quicker answer to share with you…
As always, let’s answer this question with scripture.

Let’s begin with John 1:1-2
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 

I believe it is important for us to observe and consider subtle details in scripture, for all words have meaning.  We see in this very simple scripture that not only has the Word existed since the beginning, but it is referred to as “He”.

Before we dig into that idea, when was the beginning?
Genesis 1:1
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

The beginning was before Creation. Even before Creation, the Word existed.  The Word did not come after…  I also believe that Creation is  in accordance with the Word, as it came before.

What does John 1:14 tell us?
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.

We are told that Jesus, Yeshua, Messiah is a fleshly manifestation of the Word.  “The only begotten of the Father” is the Word.  Jesus is the living Word, and this is what is referenced in John 1:2 with “He”.

The Torah is the first five books of the bible, and it is where we find the commandments (or ‘the law’) of God.  Torah is part of the Word. Since Yeshua is the Word become flesh, that means Yeshua is the Torah.

Before we go on, I’d like to pose a question:
If Jesus is the Torah, is it possible for Jesus to do away with or change the Torah?  Hmmm, that’s a good question.
Our minds can quickly fill with thoughts and ideas, but let’s see what scripture says.

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

Wow, the same, always and forever. Unchanging. That also means Torah is unchanging, since Jesus is the word become flesh.

James 1:17
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.

Numbers 23:19
God is not a man who lies, or a son of man who changes his mind! Does He speak and then not do it, or promise and not fulfill it?

Matthew 24:35
Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away.

While there are many other scriptures about the unchanging nature of God, and the fact that the Word does not change, I think we get the idea…

Does Jesus Himself ever say anything about ‘the law’ not changing?

Matthew 5:17-20
“Do not think that I came to abolish the Torah or the Prophets! I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. 18 Amen, I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or serif shall ever pass away from the Torah until all things come to pass. 19 Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever keeps and teaches them, this one shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness exceeds that of the Pharisees and Torah scholars, you shall never enter the kingdom of heaven!

Not only does Jesus Himself tell us that not even a pen stroke of the law will change until Heaven and Earth pass away, He goes on to tell us the fate of those who teach and do the law. Would you like to be the greatest or the least?

Let’s consider another well known verse in scripture:
John 14:6
Yeshua said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life! No one comes to the Father except through Me. 

I’d guess most of us have heard this passage many times. We already know Jesus is the Word become flesh, but here we see He is also the way, the truth, and the life.  How does that relate to Torah?

Psalm 119:1
Blessed are the undefiled in the way,
Who walk in the law of the Lord!

Psalm 119:142
Your righteousness is an everlasting righteousness,
And Your law is truth.

Proverbs 13:14
The law of the wise is a fountain of life,
To turn one away from the snares of death.

Did you catch that?  Scripture equates the way, the truth, and the life to Torah, the law.
And Jesus is the Torah become flesh.
And Jesus never changes. Ever.
The Word never changes. Ever.

Just in case we missed all of these details in scripture, we are reminded what is expected of us at the end of the book.

Revelation 14:12
Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.

And Revelation 12:17 tells us who the remnant of the church is:
And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

Are there any other scriptures that tell us Jesus is the Torah?

John 8:12
Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”

Where do we find the key in scripture to tie this idea together?

Proverbs 6:23
For the commandment is a lamp, And the law a light; Reproofs of instruction are the way of life,

If you intend to be a follower of Jesus Yeshua Messiah, then you are also a follower of Torah, the law.

Who is authorized to enter into New Jerusalem after the return of 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.

 

 

The Chicken or the Egg?

We’ve all heard this light-hearted philosophical question, right? No one ever decides on a correct answer, although we could certainly speculate.  My guess is that God created chickens, and then they laid eggs and made more chickens. Evolution says we don’t even need chickens or eggs. We just need primordial soup, and it will get struck by lightning and turn into chickens.  I don’t put much stock in that idea…
There is a much more important question to answer, I believe.  Which came first, The New Testament or the Old Testament?  That’s an easy question to answer. The very names tell us which is correct, so we don’t have to put much effort or thought into this riddle.
But, do we believe it?  Let that sink in for a second.  Give it a bit of thought.
When we are in school, do we start with Algebra 2, or do we begin with Algebra 1?  When we are toddlers and we are taught to count to ten, where do we start?  Five? Seven?  No, we start at One.  We start at the beginning. Do we teach young children to read Shakespeare right off the bat, or do we start with learning the alphabet?
Pretty much everything in life starts at a beginning, and then moves on to the middle, and then we finish up with the end. Why are new Christians typically told to begin reading the bible in Matthew/Mark/Luke/John?  Does that even make sense? No, but that is where most of us start, right?
Just to ‘test’ this idea, I am going to Google “where to start reading the bible.’  I will click on the first link shown and copy whatever advice is given:

Where to Start
Since the Old Testament foreshadows Jesus Christ and the New Testament is sharply focused on Jesus Christ, it makes good sense for a new Christian or a non-believer to start reading the Bible with any of the four gospels.  My personal preference is the Gospel of John.

I set myself up for failure there, but the Mainstream Message didn’t let me down…  I had a feeling that would be the case.

I have a new idea to consider.  What do you think of this?
I’d like to tear out the pages of my bible that say Old Testament and New Testament.  What if we just read The Testament?  I propose that scripture has one whole truth, and this truth is the same from start to finish.

1.  In the Torah (first five books of the bible), God gave us the history of creation and His instructions on how to live (referred to by most as ‘the law’), and tells us His instructions are forever, for all generations, a perpetual covenant.
2. We have many historical books that chronicle what happens to Israel when they follow and when they don’t follow God’s instructions.
3. The writings of the prophets document God’s spoken words through the prophets to warn and steer Israel back to following His instructions.
4. We have a group of poetic writings that tell us the goodness of His instructions, and how to follow them.
5. Once Jesus Messiah arrived, we have writings that document His ministry and teachings, all of which reiterate Torah instruction, and He lived as an example of how to follow the instructions.
6. The Apostles wrote many letters that continued to advise and correct people about how to follow Torah instruction.
7. Revelation, as well as other prophetic writings sprinkled throughout the bible speak of how Torah instruction will be fully implemented upon Jesus’ return.

Let’s review.  God gave His instructions, we see Israel following and not following the instructions, the prophets warn us to follow the instructions, the poets tell us how to follow the instructions, Jesus teaches us to follow the instructions, the Apostles teach what Jesus taught, and prophecy says we’ll all follow the instructions in the end.

If that is the case, how is it possible that the mainstream message is to NOT follow God’s instructions?  We are taught that Jesus fulfilled the instructions and that is why we don’t have to follow them anymore.

We get this concept from the various writings of Paul the Apostle.  My first question is this: How did Paul obtain the authority to change what God said was forever?

Wow, that is a really good question.

If you study ALL of Paul’s writings, you will find that he promoted following Torah instructions. Paul observed the Sabbath (as did Jesus); he celebrated God’s feast days, and he kept the commandments.
Paul was accused multiple times of teaching against Torah instructions, and he defended himself against those accusations, even travelling to Jerusalem to do so.

Many of Paul’s writings seem to say to not follow the law, but his other writings say to follow the law.  Was he schizophrenic? No, he was just simply misunderstood.

How do I know this?  Because we are warned of this very thing by Peter:

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.

Did you catch that in verse 16?
Untaught and unstable.

He is referring to people who do not have a solid understanding of scripture at the time, which means the Torah and Tanakh (Old Testament).
His and the other apostles’ letters were just letters at that point in time.  When the apostles refer to scripture, they are traditionally speaking of the Torah scroll and the other writings of the Tanakh (Old Testament).  The New Testament did not exist yet, except in the form of various letters that had not yet been compiled.

Peter says that people who do not understand Torah will misunderstand Paul’s writings.
Is this a light-hearted warning, or is it serious?
Verse 16 says it will result in their destruction.

Every man must choose for himself what he will believe.  But God has lead me to an understanding that the whole bible is comprised of one whole truth.  Start to finish.  Never changing. Forever. Amen.
Please pray about this idea.  Don’t take my word for it. Let God show you the way.  When you pray, do so like James tells us:

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.

I’ve been told by many Christians that ‘the law’ is for Israel only (ancient Israel in scripture and modern day Jews), and not for themselves as Gentile believers.  Sounds good, right?  But what does scripture say about it?

Yeshua (Jesus) says this to us, for all to see, in Matthew 15:24
“But He answered and said, “I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

Hmmm…..
Really?  Jesus said that?  Yes, He did.

The same Christians I mentioned above also claim that the law does not apply to them because they are in the New Covenant.

Well, once again, let’s see what scripture has to say about it.

In prophecy, Jeremiah tells us this about the coming New Covenant in Jeremiah 31:31
“Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah— ^“

And Hebrews 8:8 also speaks of the New Covenant:
“Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah—“

No gentiles are mentioned.  If you are in the New Covenant, then you are of Israel (Judah and Israel will be restored as one).

Still don’t believe me?  We are also told this in Galatians 3:26-29

For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. ²⁷ For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. ²⁸ There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. ²⁹ And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

Are we starting to see a theme here?
The New Covenant is with the house of Judah and the house of Israel.
Yeshua (Jesus) came ONLY for the lost sheep of Israel.
If we are Christ’s then we are Abraham’s seed.

Moving on to End Times, Revelation tells us about the city of New Jerusalem, which will come to earth from heaven.  The city has twelve gates of entry, each guarded by an angel.  The twelve gates are named after the twelve tribes of Israel.  There is no thirteenth gate for the Gentiles. In fact, Gentiles are not even mentioned.

Revelation 3:12
He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God. And I will write on him My new name.

Revelation 21:2-3
Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. ³ And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.

Revelation 21:12-13
Also she had a great and high wall with twelve gates, and twelve angels at the gates, and names written on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:¹³ three gates on the east, three gates on the north, three gates on the south, and three gates on the west.

Who will have the authority to enter into the city?  We are told in Revelation 21:27
²⁷ But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

And who might that be?
Revelation 22:14
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. 

Whoa… Could somebody please explain this better???
Nope, no need for that, because scripture already has explained it.
Check out Romans 11:11-36

¹¹ I say then, have they stumbled that they should fall? Certainly not! But through their fall, to provoke them to jealousy, salvation has come to the Gentiles. ¹² Now if their fall is riches for the world, and their failure riches for the Gentiles, how much more their fullness!

¹³ For I speak to you Gentiles; inasmuch as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, ¹⁴ if by any means I may provoke to jealousy those who are my flesh and save some of them. ¹⁵ For if their being cast away is the reconciling of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?

¹⁶ For if the first fruit is holy, the lump is also holy; and if the root is holy, so are the branches. ¹⁷ And if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them, and with them became a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree, ¹⁸ do not boast against the branches. But if you do boast, remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you.

¹⁹ You will say then, “Branches were broken off that I might be grafted in.” ²⁰ Well said. Because of unbelief they were broken off, and you stand by faith. Do not be haughty, but fear. ²¹ For if God did not spare the natural branches, He may not spare you either. ²² Therefore consider the goodness and severity of God: on those who fell, severity; but toward you, goodness, if you continue in His goodness. Otherwise you also will be cut off. ²³ And they also, if they do not continue in unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. ²⁴ For if you were cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these, who are natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree?

²⁵ For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. ²⁶ And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written:

“The Deliverer will come out of Zion,
And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob;
²⁷ For this is My covenant with them,
When I take away their sins.”

²⁸ Concerning the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but concerning the election they are beloved for the sake of the fathers. ²⁹ For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. ³⁰ For as you were once disobedient to God, yet have now obtained mercy through their disobedience, ³¹ even so these also have now been disobedient, that through the mercy shown you they also may obtain mercy. ³² For God has committed them all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all.

³³ Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!

³⁴ “For who has known the mind of the Lord?
Or who has become His counselor?”
³⁵ “Or who has first given to Him
And it shall be repaid to him?”

³⁶ For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.

Not only does Romans 11 tell us that Gentiles are grafted into Israel, but it also clears up the misconception of “Once-Saved-Always-Saved”.  We are told in verses 19-24 that the natural Israelites were broken off due to unbelief, but they may be grafted in again with a change of heart.
Gentiles, while now grafted in, may be broken off, if they change their ways.
Verse 22 contrasts the severity and goodness of God.  Severity for those who do not walk in His ways, goodness for those who do.
Receiving His goodness is conditional, and can be granted out of His goodness, or taken away by His severity.

You will notice I’ve chosen to use only New Testament scripture to support this mini-teaching (except for the Jeremiah reference to the New Covenant).

There are many Old Testament scriptures (and more New Testament scriptures) that also support this idea.  Feel free to carry on with your study, but the few New Testament verses listed above clearly indicate that we, as believers, ARE Israel.

Has God always considered Israel and the Gentiles as one and the same?

Exodus 12:38 tells us who came out of Egypt during the exodus:
A mixed multitude went up with them also, and flocks and herds—a great deal of livestock.

It was not just the nation of Israel, but men and women from many nations, a mixed multitude.  Does other scripture confirm this?

Exodus 12:48
And when a stranger dwells with you and wants to keep the Passover to the Lord, let all his males be circumcised, and then let him come near and keep it; and he shall be as a native of the land. For no uncircumcised person shall eat it.

This passage specifically tells us that non-Israel strangers who choose to follow YHVH (God) are to be included, and that he shall be considered a native of the land.  They become Israel, and are no longer considered a foreigner, sojourner, or stranger.
And what does the very next verse say?

Exodus 12:49
One law shall be for the native-born and for the stranger who dwells among you.”

Wow, ‘the law’ is for both Israel and for any strangers who dwell among them.  The law is not just for Israel, but for all who choose to be a part of YHVH’s people.

Leviticus 16:29 shows us a similar concept regarding atonement:
“This shall be a statute forever for you: In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether a native of your own country or a stranger who dwells among you.

One last idea to consider…
YHVH punished the nation of Israel (and the foreigners among them) for not trusting him. They were fearful of the giants in the promise land (see Numbers).  Their punishment was to wander in the wilderness for forty years, until the adult generation had died.   There were only two adults who were allowed to enter the promise land, because they had great faith:  Joshua and Caleb.
If you study who they were, Joshua represented the nation of Israel, and Caleb represented the Gentile.  Both were considered heirs to the promise, both received the inheritance, and ‘the law’ applied to both.

If you claim to NOT be Israel, you are rejecting the New Covenant and you are rejecting the promise of Abraham.  You are claiming that you are NOT Christ’s (Galatians 3:29 – And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise).

If as a ‘believer’ you agree that you ARE Israel, which scripture indicates from front cover to back cover, then God’s instruction to Israel in Torah applies to you, this very day, as God said those instructions are forever, for all generations, a perpetual covenant.

Building the best relationship with your spouse and kids…

If you want to have the very best relationship with your family, how do you go about it?
Well, first of all, don’t live with them. Go somewhere else, to a community with an events center.
Go to the community building once a week, and a mature neighbor will tell you all about your family. You will want to arrive early, though, because they have a coffee shop at the events center. Some communities offer free drinks, and some charge for the drinks, so choose wisely where you will live.
You can spend a bit of time saying hello to other neighbors who also came to hear about their families. You should smile quite a bit while doing this, regardless of how you are feeling.  At the appropriate time, you should go and sit down. There will be songs, which is kind of fun and gets you in the mood to hear about your spouse and kids.
When the songs are finished, your most mature neighbor will get up and tell you all about your family, if he feels like it. Sometimes he will talk more about himself than your family, but that is ok, because he is mature and very smart, and he might even have a degree. He will know what you need to hear.
At the end of hearing about your family (or about other things he decides to tell you), you will be expected to give him 10% of your income (pre-tax income, of course). Now, that might sound a bit demanding, but it IS for your family. If you don’t give at least 10% of your income, you are STEALING from your family, and your kids will suffer. None of us want that…
The very mature neighbor will take your money, and the money of others, and he will pay the mortgage for the community center. He can’t tell you about your family without a building to sit in, right? And he’ll take some of that money and keep it for himself. He needs to feed his family and pay his own mortgage, right? He will also take some of your money and purchase a sound system, and a grand piano (maybe, depends on how many people come to hear about their families each week), and pay the utilities, and maybe he’ll share some of your money with the people who sing songs. And if there is money left over the very mature neighbor will take some of the money and send neighborhood children to summer camp (but not your kids, you probably have to pay for them to go).
Now, if you REALLY want to have a great relationship with your family, you’ll come to hear about them on Wednesday night too. And if you REALLY, REALLY want to have the best relationship with your family, you’ll volunteer to work in the coffee shop, or come in the evenings and clean the community center, or you’ll volunteer to stand near the coffee shop and say hi to other people coming to hear about their families…
Keep in mind, you will not actually get to speak with your spouse or children, but you get to hear about them pretty frequently, depending on how dedicated you are. And maybe your very mature neighbor will tell you the truth about your family, and maybe sometimes he will make stuff up. Or he might be making stuff up, even though he believes he has accurate facts…

Is this how you want to establish a relationship with the most important people in your life? Absolutely not; this is absurd. So why would you want to use this model to define your relationship with God?
The mainstream church has developed a model where we come each week (typically on the wrong day), maybe more than once a week for the go-getters, and one man will tell us all about God. This one man will know exactly what we need to hear, and he will use his education and special skills to make sure we hear exactly what God wants us to hear. Songs will be sung, pot-lucks will be had, and many of the kids will get to go to camp for free. The building will get paid for, but in times of trouble, there will be special-giving opportunities to make ends meet. If you truly love God, you’ll do your part…

Now don’t get me wrong… I’m not saying you won’t find nice people doing some nice things at church. You absolutely will. If this ‘system’ works for you, then I’m guessing my words above are irritating, or even offensive.

But if you are thinking there must be more to knowing God, there is another way. Break free of the spoon-fed baby food, and open your bible. Go to James 1:5-8 and read that.

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.

Remember what you learned in James 1:5-8 each time you study your bible. God will open your eyes and your ears, and you will learn and understand much. As you draw close to God through study and prayer, He will draw close to you. You will find in a short time that you actually know who God is, and what it feels like to be in relationship with Him. Give it a try. What can it hurt?
Can you still donate money to God? Of course you can. But instead of paying for the church to own a commercial property, or to buy new carpet and padded chairs, look around you. Every single day of your life, you will have opportunities to serve God. Not by donating to a church business, but by loving the people around you. Do you see that single mom at the grocery store putting some things back, trying to get her total bill down to how much money she has? Feel free to intervene and help her with her groceries that week. Do you notice your elderly neighbor who doesn’t get out much? Stop and see if they need something. Do you see a friend of a friend who had an unexpected tragedy in their life? Pop open their go-fund-me page and make an anonymous donation. God will cross your path every single day with people you can love on. Sometimes they are total strangers and sometimes they are friends, family, and neighbors. But trust me, they are everywhere. You can’t miss them if you are watching for them.

If you are struggling with church, thinking “there must be more to this”, try what I’ve suggested. Try it for one day, one week, one month. Whatever you choose… I think it will change your life.
If you love your church and the people in it, and you are having a great experience in church, please don’t take my comments here as an offense.
There are many people who are not having a great experience in church, and this is for them.

I was baptized by Roy Norville on May 22, 1983 at Fall Creek Christian Church in Pendleton, Indiana.  It was the morning of the day I graduated from high school.  I decided I did not want to go out into the ‘adult’ world without Yeshua (Jesus).

I then spent the next 32 plus years in the Mainstream Church.  I met many wonderful people, and I had many wonderful experiences.
I also met a few crummy people, but they were the exceptions.

I am not saying what I say and writing what I write in order to attack the church.
I do what I do out of love for the people of the church, and for anyone who will listen.

As I stated in my “Vital Lesson in Revelation” post, The Church does an incredible job of preaching and teaching the gospel story, and for us to have faith in Yeshua.  But, they teach the exact opposite of the other half of Yeshua’s words in Revelation.  Please read that blog post for more details. Here is the link:
http://the2000yearfix.com/index.php/2016/11/15/vital-lesson-in-revelation/

If you disagree, your argument is not with me, but with scripture.
Here are just a few of the reasons I share what I share:

John 14:15
If you love me, you will keep My commandments.

1 John 2:3-6
Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. ⁴ He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. ⁵ But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. ⁶ He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.

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 14:23-24
Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.²⁴ He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me.

John 14:31
 But that the world may know that I love the Father, and as the Father gave Me commandment, so I do.

Matthew 7:12
Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.

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.

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. 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!’

Matthew 7:24-26
 “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: ²⁵ and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. ²⁶ “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: ²⁷ and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”

Matthew 5:17-20
 “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. ¹⁸ 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. ¹⁹ 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. ²⁰ For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.

Proverbs 28:9
One who turns away his ear from hearing the law, Even his prayer is an abomination.

Luke 16:15
And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.

Luke 16:17
¹⁷ And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one tittle of the law to fail.

Matthew 13:15
‘Hearing you will hear and shall not understand,
And seeing you will see and not perceive;
¹⁵ For the hearts of this people have grown dull.
Their ears are hard of hearing,
And their eyes they have closed,
Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears,
Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn,
So that I should heal them.

Matthew 23:1-3
Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples,² saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat.³ Therefore whatever they tell you to observe,^[a] that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do.
[If you study what it means to sit in the seat of Moses, you will find the Torah (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy) was read from the scroll, word for word, without commentary.  Jesus says to do what is read from Torah].

Matthew 23:27-28
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. ²⁸ Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

Matthew 24:12
And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. [Have we removed the Ten Commandments from all of our public buildings?]

2 Corinthians 6:14
Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?

2 Thessalonians 2:7
For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way.

Psalm 119:142
Your righteousness is an everlasting righteousness,
And Your law is truth.

Psalm 119:160
The entirety of Your word is truth,
And every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever.

Psalm 119:174-176
I long for Your salvation, O Lord,
And Your law is my delight.
¹⁷⁵ Let my soul live, and it shall praise You;
And let Your judgments help me.
¹⁷⁶ I have gone astray like a lost sheep;
Seek Your servant,
For I do not forget Your commandments.

Hebrews 1:9
You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of gladness more than Your companions.”

1 John 3:4
Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness.

John 15:9-10
“As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.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.

Revelation 14:12
Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.

1 John 2:24-27
Therefore let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father. ²⁵ And this is the promise that He has promised us—eternal life. ²⁶ These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you. ²⁷ But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.

1 John 2:28-29
And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming. ²⁹ If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him.

1 John 3:4-9
 Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. ⁵ And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin. ⁶ Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him.

⁷ Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. ⁸ He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. ⁹ Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.

Revelation 12:17
And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

1 John 3:24
Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.

2 John 1:9-11
Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son. ¹⁰ If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house nor greet him; ¹¹ for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds.

Revelation 22:18-19
¹⁸ For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; ¹⁹ and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.

Proverbs 3:13-18
Happy is the man who finds wisdom,
And the man who gains understanding;
¹⁴ For her proceeds are better than the profits of silver,
And her gain than fine gold.
¹⁵ She is more precious than rubies,
And all the things you may desire cannot compare with her.
¹⁶ Length of days is in her right hand,
In her left hand riches and honor.
¹⁷ Her ways are ways of pleasantness,
And all her paths are peace.
¹⁸ She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her,
And happy are all who retain her.

Matthew 22:35-40
³⁵ Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, ³⁶ “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?” ³⁷ Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ ³⁸ This is the first and great commandment. ³⁹ And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ ⁴⁰ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”

Psalm 119:1-8
Blessed are the undefiled in the way,
Who walk in the law of the Lord!
² Blessed are those who keep His testimonies,
Who seek Him with the whole heart!
³ They also do no iniquity;
They walk in His ways.
⁴ You have commanded us
To keep Your precepts diligently.
⁵ Oh, that my ways were directed
To keep Your statutes!
⁶ Then I would not be ashamed,
When I look into all Your commandments.
⁷ I will praise You with uprightness of heart,
When I learn Your righteous judgments.
⁸ I will keep Your statutes;
Oh, do not forsake me utterly!

Psalm 119:9-16
How can a young man cleanse his way?
By taking heed according to Your word.
¹⁰ With my whole heart I have sought You;
Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments!
¹¹ Your word I have hidden in my heart,
That I might not sin against You.
¹² Blessed are You, O Lord!
Teach me Your statutes.
¹³ With my lips I have declared
All the judgments of Your mouth.
¹⁴ I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies,
As much as in all riches.
¹⁵ I will meditate on Your precepts,
And contemplate Your ways.
¹⁶ I will delight myself in Your statutes;
I will not forget Your word.

Psalm 119:17-24
Deal bountifully with Your servant,
That I may live and keep Your word.
¹⁸ Open my eyes, that I may see
Wondrous things from Your law.
¹⁹ I am a stranger in the earth;
Do not hide Your commandments from me.
²⁰ My soul breaks with longing
For Your judgments at all times.
²¹ You rebuke the proud—the cursed,
Who stray from Your commandments.
²² Remove from me reproach and contempt,
For I have kept Your testimonies.
²³ Princes also sit and speak against me,
But Your servant meditates on Your statutes.
²⁴ Your testimonies also are my delight
And my counselors.

Psalm 119:25-32
My soul clings to the dust;
Revive me according to Your word.
²⁶ I have declared my ways, and You answered me;
Teach me Your statutes.
²⁷ Make me understand the way of Your precepts;
So shall I meditate on Your wonderful works.
²⁸ My soul melts from heaviness;
Strengthen me according to Your word.
²⁹ Remove from me the way of lying,
And grant me Your law graciously.
³⁰ I have chosen the way of truth;
Your judgments I have laid before me.
³¹ I cling to Your testimonies;
O Lord, do not put me to shame!
³² I will run the course of Your commandments,
For You shall enlarge my heart.

Psalm 119:33-40
Teach me, O Lord, the way of Your statutes,
And I shall keep it to the end.
³⁴ Give me understanding, and I shall keep Your law;
Indeed, I shall observe it with my whole heart.
³⁵ Make me walk in the path of Your commandments,
For I delight in it.
³⁶ Incline my heart to Your testimonies,
And not to covetousness.
³⁷ Turn away my eyes from looking at worthless things,
And revive me in Your way.^[a]
38 Establish Your word to Your servant,
Who is devoted to fearing You.
³⁹ Turn away my reproach which I dread,
For Your judgments are good.
⁴⁰ Behold, I long for Your precepts;
Revive me in Your righteousness.

Psalm 119:41-48
Let Your mercies come also to me, O Lord—
Your salvation according to Your word.
⁴² So shall I have an answer for him who reproaches me,
For I trust in Your word.
⁴³ And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth,
For I have hoped in Your ordinances.
⁴⁴ So shall I keep Your law continually,
Forever and ever.
⁴⁵ And I will walk at liberty,
For I seek Your precepts.
⁴⁶ I will speak of Your testimonies also before kings,
And will not be ashamed.
⁴⁷ And I will delight myself in Your commandments,
Which I love.
⁴⁸ My hands also I will lift up to Your commandments,
Which I love,
And I will meditate on Your statutes.

Psalm 119:49-56
Remember the word to Your servant,
Upon which You have caused me to hope.
⁵⁰ This is my comfort in my affliction,
For Your word has given me life.
⁵¹ The proud have me in great derision,
Yet I do not turn aside from Your law.
⁵² I remembered Your judgments of old, O Lord,
And have comforted myself.
⁵³ Indignation has taken hold of me
Because of the wicked, who forsake Your law.
⁵⁴ Your statutes have been my songs
In the house of my pilgrimage.
⁵⁵ I remember Your name in the night, O Lord,
And I keep Your law.
⁵⁶ This has become mine,
Because I kept Your precepts.

And on and on…
I could spend all day quoting scripture that tells us to keep God’s commandments.
I could post pages and pages of additional verses.
Give me time, and I will…