"Abba Alaha alHayah Yahuah El Eloh's Prefect Law" Back to the basics, Yahu's Torah...!"
Yahuah's Perfect Law
It is Sunday morning. Minister Johnson climbs onto the podium, turns to Romans 10:4, and proclaims good news by announcing, "The Savior paid it all. We are free from those Old Testament regulations and now are under grace through faith alone!"
Many in nominal worship today believe and proclaim this same message — that Yahuahshua the haMessiYah has "nailed the Law to the cross." How much of this belief is true, however? Has the Law (Torah, Instructions in Righteousness) been nailed to the stake or does Yahuah’s Law (Torah, Instructions in Righteousness) remain in effect for His Renewed Covenant/New Testament believers?
Let us examine some popular Renewed Covenant/New Testament passages cited by those who would abolish Qodesh Scriptures (Tanakh).
What Was Added...?
Many point to a passage in Colossians as proof that Yahuahshua did away with the Tanakh/Old Testament Laws. Here Sha'ul writes, "Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his stake" (Col. 2:14).
With an understanding of the Greek word "ordinances" in this verse, we find another meaning. The Greek word here is No. 1378, dogma. Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance Greek Dictionary defines dogma as: "from the base 1380; a law (civil, cerem., or eccl.): — decree, ordinance." Dogma is found seven times in the Renewed Covenant and refers to "man-made decrees". One authority writes, "As the form of error at Colosse was largely religious, insisting on Yisraelites ceremonial law, the phrase is probably colored by this fact," Word Studies in the New Testament, p. 908.
Thus, dogma here is not signifying Yahuah’s Law, but "man-made decrees or ordinances". Sha'ul was referring to the added law, which the Hellenized Yisraelites tacked on to Yahuah’s Law. We find the Apostle Sha'ul warning Titus of this added law in Titus 1:14: "Not giving heed to Yisraelte fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth."
alHayah Yahuah was not always pleased with these added laws of men. Yahuahshua chastised the Hellenized Yisraelites in Matthew 15 and Mark 8 for their "commandments of men," which here meant eating with unwashed hands. The Yisraelites made many physical commandments, but they neglected the spiritual aspect of Abba Yahuah’s Law, and that is what displeased Yahuahshua.
The Telos of the Law
In Romans 10:4 we have a passage that is misconstrued by a majority of preachers today. "For Yahuahshua haMessiYah is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believes."
On the surface it may appear as if Yahuahshua ended the law for everyone when He died on the stake. Does that harmonize with the rest of Yahuah’s Word/haMashiyakh, however? Are we now living lawlessly? If so, then we have no sin because "sin is not imputed when there is no law," Romans 5:13. But that cannot be, because Sha'ul also wrote, "All have sinned and come short of the glory of Yahuah," Romans 3:23. Is something missing here that most don’t see?
The Greek word for "end" in this passage is telos, and telos is defined in Strong’s Greek Dictionary as: "to set out for a definite point or goal, the point aimed at as a limit" — No. 5056.
This word "end" found in Romans 10:4 could also be translated "goal." We find a better rendition of this verse in the Yisraelite/Jewish Renewed Covenant/New Testament, which reads, "For the goal at which the Torah (instructions in righteousness) aims is the haMessiYah who offers righteousness to everyone who trusts."
The same Greek word telos is translated "end" in James 5:11: "…you have seen the end [telos] of Yahuah." Has Yahuah come to an end? Of course not, and neither has the law (Torah, Instructions in Righteousness). Both Yahuah and the law have goals, not ending points. We will now look at an important goal of the law.
No Longer Under a Schoolmaster
Galatians is one of the most troublesome books for many in today’s religious circles. In Galatians 3 we have a passage that has been misunderstood by the major populace today. "Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto haMessiYah, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster" (Gal. 3:24-25).
This verse is not difficult to understand if we consider some key facts.
We saw in Romans 10:4 that the haMessiYah is not the end of the Law (Torah, Instructions in Righteousness), but the goal at which the law aims. HaMessiYah is the object or purpose for the Law (Torah). Only through the Torah can we know haMessiYah, because Yahuahshua literally represents the Law in flesh. He lived the law in every aspect. If we do the same, we will be like the haMessiYah.
Sha'ul is saying that through the Torah we know haMessiYah, but after we have come to the knowledge of Yahuahshua we no longer need a schoolmaster, because the Torah is part of us now, as is the haMessiYah (because He is the Living Torah, because He Lived Torah...! And we are to live Torah as He Lived Torah. This is done by Ruwakh haQodesh be present in our lives).
In the Greek culture a schoolmaster was a paidagogos, a trustworthy slave who had the guardianship of the boys of a household. They needed him for guidance and instruction in righteousness while they were young. But after they grew up, they lived by the precepts he taught them (for us it would have been, Torah). It became second nature to do what they had been taught. They would no longer need the schoolmaster once they learned "the rules, Torah" This is the point Sha'ul was making with the law.
Through faith we comply with Yahuah’s will automatically. His precepts and laws are now part of us (because now He has written them on our hearts). We no longer need a strict schoolmaster guiding our every thought and action because doing the right thing is second nature.
Lawkeeping in the Renewed Covenant
Yahuahshua and many of His faithful disciples not only show that the Torah (Instructions in Righteousness) has NOT been annulled, but they also express for it a deep love.
In Matthew 5:17-19 Yahuahshua says that those who keep and teach Yahuah’s Torah will have great treasures in Yahuah’s Kingdom: "Think not that I am come to destroy the Torah (Instructions in Righteousness), or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from Torah, till all be fulfilled. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least Commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven."
Yahuahshua came not to destroy the Torah (Instructions in Righteousness), but to fulfill or complete it (Yahuahshua came to live Torah, and to make the crooked way stright), as the Greek indicates. Yahuahshua said those who uphold and teach the Law/Torah will be blessed with honorable positions in the Kingdom, but those who refuse to keep it and teach others the same fallacy of disobedience will not be blessed and will not inherit any position.
Yahuahshua was not the only advocate for Yahuah’s Torah. We find the Apostle Sha'ul, who is usually cited as being against Torah, in Romans 3:31 in fact promoting lawkeeping: "Do we then make void Torah through faith? Yahuah forbid: yea, we establish the law/Torah." Sha'ul never said that Yahuah’s Law (Torah, Instructions in Righteousness) wasn’t important. Many will say that all we need is faith. Sha'ul says that we need both faith and law/Torah. We are not to throw out the Torah (Instructions in Righteousness) because of faith, but as Sha'ul says we are to establish it within our lives. Just stop and think about your child says to themself & you that they don't need instructions in righteousness...! If I don't know better, I believe that your child would be in BIG TROUBLE, LOL...!
In Romans 7 we find the Apostle Sha'ul again promoting Yahuah’s Law/Torah: "Know you not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the Torah,) how that the law/Torah has dominion over a man as long as he lives?...What shall we say then? is the law/Torah sin? Yahuah forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law/Torah: for I had not known lust, except the law (Torah, Instructions in Righteousness) had said, Thou shalt not covet...Wherefore the law/Torah is Qodesh, and the Commandment Qodesh, and Just, and Good" (Rom. 7:1, 7, 12).
Sha'ul Advocates Tanakh Law
Sha'ul says that the Law/Torah has dominion or authority over us till death, just as marriage does between two people. He also says that without the Law/Torah we would not know sin. Sha'ul concludes this passages by not diminishing the Law/Torah, but by giving it the highest honor.
In one Renewed Covenant Passage we find the Apostle Sha'ul using the Law of Moshe to convey his own message to young Timothy. "For the scripture says, You shall not muzzle the ox that treads out the corn. And, The labourer is worthy of his reward" (1Tim. 5:18). His using such an example indicates that Sha'ul taught and promoted the Tanakh Laws as authority, meaning the basis for Renewed Covenant teachings. Both of these laws can be traced back to the Torah:
· "You shalt not muzzle the ox when he treads out the corn" (Deut. 25:4).
· "The wages of him that is hired shall not abide with you all night until the morning" (Lev. 19:13).
In Acts 24 Sha'ul is standing before Felix, the governor of Yahudea. Sha'ul is being accused of following and even promoting a division among the Yisraelites. In truth, Sha'ul never rebuked the Yisraelites faith, but proclaimed that he followed all that his ancestors taught. "But this I confess unto you, that after the way which they call heresy, so worship I the Alaha alHayah of my fathers, believing all things which are written in the law/Torah and in the prophets" (Acts 24:14).
In the governor’s attempt to condemn the Apostle, Sha'ul not only says that he believes, but also unmistakably advocates the Torah and the Prophets. If he believed in the Torah and the Prophets, he clearly would have been observing both. The Law here includes all five books of the Torah, while the Prophets indicates the entire collection of the Tanakh prophets and all that they taught about Yahuah’s will through His Qodesh Scriptures.
Obviously, Sha'ul never uprooted the Torah, but had great respect and love for it. He realized its benefits. He knew that the only way to know right from wrong was by Yahuah’s qodesh standards inspired in the first five books of His Word/haMashiyakh. What would we use for knowing right from wrong if Yahuah’s Law/Torah were annulled?
A Litmus Test for Righteousness
The Law/Torah (Instructions in Righteousness) was not given to mankind to save us, but simply to show us right from wrong. In Romans 3:20 we see that without these standards we would live in a world with utter chaos. "Therefore by the deeds of the law/Torah there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law/Torah is the knowledge of sin."
We are also warned of breaking Yahuah's Law in Hebrews 10: "For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remains no more sacrifice for sins, But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries. He that despised Yahuah's Torah died without mercy under two or three witnesses: Of how much sorer punishment, suppose you, shall he be thought worthy, who has trodden under foot the Son of Alaha, and has counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was set apart, an unqodesh thing, and has done despite unto the Ruwakh of grace? For we know him that has said, Vengeance belongs unto me, I will recompense, says Yahuah. And again, Yahuah shall judge his people" (Heb. 10:26-30).
Notice that the writer of Hebrews very plainly says that once we have come to the knowledge of the truth, there is no more remedy for sins committed thereafter. This is a dreadful thought.
The writer of Hebrews continues by stating that those who break Torah, will have a greater judgment than those of the Tanakh. This contradicts the man-made notion of a Renewed Covenant/New Testament based on grace and faith alone. Salvation involves more than a simple proclaiming faith and grace to all those who believe. Salvation requires an action — obedience.
We find this confirmed in Hebrews 5:9: "And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey Him." Yahuah, the author of salvation, offers the gift of salvation only to those who obey Yahuah’s Word/haMashiyakh. We cannot just believe or say that we have faith, but must act on our faith by obedience.
By observing His Law/Torah we demonstrate to Yahuah that we want to obey and serve Him. In 1John 5:3 we read that if we love Yahuah we will obey His commandments. "For this is the love of Alaha, that we keep his Commandments: and his Commandments are not grievous." Stop and take another look at this verse. Many says that they cannot keep Yahuah's Torah...If that was so, way did Yahuah tell us to keep something that we cannot keep, and why would He send Yahuahshua has an example for us to live Torah, if we could not to have lived Torah the way Yahuahshua lived Torah...?
This passage is important to understand because the message goes much deeper than most realize. We not only show love by keeping Yahuah’s Commandments, but we must also keep them out of a deep-down desire to serve Him. His Commandments must be so desirable that they never seem grievous to us.
If they are grievous, then we have defeated the purpose of observing Yahuah’s Torah. Yahuah’s Law (Instructions in Righteousness) is to shape and mold us into Yahuah’s own character. Any negative feelings toward His law amount to resistance of that goal. Yahuah’s standards are a reflection of His own morals and ethics. Why should He not want us to have the same nature as He does?
Faith Alone Is Not Enough
In the Book of James we find Yahuahshua’s brother unequivocally promoting Torah keeping for Yahuah’s people.
"What does it profit, my brethren, though a man say he has faith, and have not works? can faith save him? If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be warmed and filled; notwithstanding you give them not those things which are needful to the body; what does it profit? Even so faith, if it has not works, is dead, being alone. Yes, a man may say, You have faith, and I have works: show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that there is one Alaha; you do well: the devils also believe, and tremble" (James 2:14-19).
James asks a crucial question for any believer: What good is it if we have faith but no works? It’s like a vehicle with no gasoline, it travels nowhere. Our salvation works the same way. With faith and works we are promised Yahuah’s kingdom; however, without either of the two our salvation comes to a halt, with no gasoline to continue.
James also said that even the demons believe in Yahuah’s and Yahuahshua’s existence, but just having this belief does not make them worthy of Yahuah’s Kingdom. They have neither works nor an obedient heart,
Obedience as Well as Faith
Three noteworthy passages are found in the Book of Revelation. The first is the prophecy of the woman, meaning the Assembly, being taken into the wilderness for protection from the adversary. "And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the Commandments of Alaha, and have the testimony of Yahuahshua the haMessiYah" (Rev. 12:17).
Notice what distinguishes Yahuah’s people. Two characteristics define Yahuah’s saints: keeping of Yahuah’s Commandments, and having faith in Yahuashua. By these two characteristics Yahuah’s expectations for His people are defined.
We find these two attributes again in Revelation 14:12. "Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the Commandments of Alaha, and the faith of Yahuahshua haMashiyakh our haMessiYah."
Yahuah defines His People as those that are keeping His Commandments and having a faith in Yahuahshua the haMessiYah. Very simply, these two elements are essential for a believer, for without them we will not have access to Yahuah’s Kingdom.
In the last chapter of the Qodesh Scripture Yahuah warns us once again of the need for keeping His Commandments. "Blessed are they that do His Commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city" (Rev. 22:14).
Here at the end of the Qodesh Scripture Yahuah clearly says that keeping His Commandments is a requirement for entering His glorious Kingdom. Yahuah will only accept those with an obedient and humble heart. A heart that never wavers from Him, but stays true to the end.
Every word in the entire Bible/Qodesh Script is for our benefit. Sha'ul explains this in 2Timothy 3:16: "All scripture is given by inspiration of Alaha, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness/Torah."
Every utterance that Yahuah has given is profitable in some way. Whether it be reproof, correction, or instruction, Yahuah’s Word/haMashiyakh has a place in each of our lives. It instructs us to righteousness, which is defined by observing Yahuah’s Law/Torah.
Forget Not the Torah of Yahuah
Within the prophets we can find an abundance of prophecies for the Renewed Covenant/New Testament believer. One prophet specifically educates us concerning the Law of Moshe/Torah. His prophecy is a reply from Yahuah.
In Malachi chapter 4, Malachi prophesies of the distant future. He tells of a time when the whole earth shall burn like a furnace, and the wicked shall become stubble. Malachi’s message is vital, for the message does not stop with those in the Tanakh/Old Testament, but continues on for those in the latter days.
He warns that we must not forget the Law of Moshe/Torah: "Remember the law of Moshe my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Yisrael, with the statutes and judgments" (Mal. 4:4). This is important to understand. We in the 21st century learn here that the saints are told to keep ALL the Law, with statutes and judgments (Torah, Instructions in Righteousness).
We must not neglect any of Yahuah’s Law, but observe every inspired Commandment as Yahuah so wishes and instructs us, His people.
Shalom Aleichem
"Zaquaine/Elder" Mufasa Abda Kalil Tzadiq
It is Sunday morning. Minister Johnson climbs onto the podium, turns to Romans 10:4, and proclaims good news by announcing, "The Savior paid it all. We are free from those Old Testament regulations and now are under grace through faith alone!"
Many in nominal worship today believe and proclaim this same message — that Yahuahshua the haMessiYah has "nailed the Law to the cross." How much of this belief is true, however? Has the Law (Torah, Instructions in Righteousness) been nailed to the stake or does Yahuah’s Law (Torah, Instructions in Righteousness) remain in effect for His Renewed Covenant/New Testament believers?
Let us examine some popular Renewed Covenant/New Testament passages cited by those who would abolish Qodesh Scriptures (Tanakh).
What Was Added...?
Many point to a passage in Colossians as proof that Yahuahshua did away with the Tanakh/Old Testament Laws. Here Sha'ul writes, "Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his stake" (Col. 2:14).
With an understanding of the Greek word "ordinances" in this verse, we find another meaning. The Greek word here is No. 1378, dogma. Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance Greek Dictionary defines dogma as: "from the base 1380; a law (civil, cerem., or eccl.): — decree, ordinance." Dogma is found seven times in the Renewed Covenant and refers to "man-made decrees". One authority writes, "As the form of error at Colosse was largely religious, insisting on Yisraelites ceremonial law, the phrase is probably colored by this fact," Word Studies in the New Testament, p. 908.
Thus, dogma here is not signifying Yahuah’s Law, but "man-made decrees or ordinances". Sha'ul was referring to the added law, which the Hellenized Yisraelites tacked on to Yahuah’s Law. We find the Apostle Sha'ul warning Titus of this added law in Titus 1:14: "Not giving heed to Yisraelte fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth."
alHayah Yahuah was not always pleased with these added laws of men. Yahuahshua chastised the Hellenized Yisraelites in Matthew 15 and Mark 8 for their "commandments of men," which here meant eating with unwashed hands. The Yisraelites made many physical commandments, but they neglected the spiritual aspect of Abba Yahuah’s Law, and that is what displeased Yahuahshua.
The Telos of the Law
In Romans 10:4 we have a passage that is misconstrued by a majority of preachers today. "For Yahuahshua haMessiYah is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believes."
On the surface it may appear as if Yahuahshua ended the law for everyone when He died on the stake. Does that harmonize with the rest of Yahuah’s Word/haMashiyakh, however? Are we now living lawlessly? If so, then we have no sin because "sin is not imputed when there is no law," Romans 5:13. But that cannot be, because Sha'ul also wrote, "All have sinned and come short of the glory of Yahuah," Romans 3:23. Is something missing here that most don’t see?
The Greek word for "end" in this passage is telos, and telos is defined in Strong’s Greek Dictionary as: "to set out for a definite point or goal, the point aimed at as a limit" — No. 5056.
This word "end" found in Romans 10:4 could also be translated "goal." We find a better rendition of this verse in the Yisraelite/Jewish Renewed Covenant/New Testament, which reads, "For the goal at which the Torah (instructions in righteousness) aims is the haMessiYah who offers righteousness to everyone who trusts."
The same Greek word telos is translated "end" in James 5:11: "…you have seen the end [telos] of Yahuah." Has Yahuah come to an end? Of course not, and neither has the law (Torah, Instructions in Righteousness). Both Yahuah and the law have goals, not ending points. We will now look at an important goal of the law.
No Longer Under a Schoolmaster
Galatians is one of the most troublesome books for many in today’s religious circles. In Galatians 3 we have a passage that has been misunderstood by the major populace today. "Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto haMessiYah, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster" (Gal. 3:24-25).
This verse is not difficult to understand if we consider some key facts.
We saw in Romans 10:4 that the haMessiYah is not the end of the Law (Torah, Instructions in Righteousness), but the goal at which the law aims. HaMessiYah is the object or purpose for the Law (Torah). Only through the Torah can we know haMessiYah, because Yahuahshua literally represents the Law in flesh. He lived the law in every aspect. If we do the same, we will be like the haMessiYah.
Sha'ul is saying that through the Torah we know haMessiYah, but after we have come to the knowledge of Yahuahshua we no longer need a schoolmaster, because the Torah is part of us now, as is the haMessiYah (because He is the Living Torah, because He Lived Torah...! And we are to live Torah as He Lived Torah. This is done by Ruwakh haQodesh be present in our lives).
In the Greek culture a schoolmaster was a paidagogos, a trustworthy slave who had the guardianship of the boys of a household. They needed him for guidance and instruction in righteousness while they were young. But after they grew up, they lived by the precepts he taught them (for us it would have been, Torah). It became second nature to do what they had been taught. They would no longer need the schoolmaster once they learned "the rules, Torah" This is the point Sha'ul was making with the law.
Through faith we comply with Yahuah’s will automatically. His precepts and laws are now part of us (because now He has written them on our hearts). We no longer need a strict schoolmaster guiding our every thought and action because doing the right thing is second nature.
Lawkeeping in the Renewed Covenant
Yahuahshua and many of His faithful disciples not only show that the Torah (Instructions in Righteousness) has NOT been annulled, but they also express for it a deep love.
In Matthew 5:17-19 Yahuahshua says that those who keep and teach Yahuah’s Torah will have great treasures in Yahuah’s Kingdom: "Think not that I am come to destroy the Torah (Instructions in Righteousness), or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from Torah, till all be fulfilled. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least Commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven."
Yahuahshua came not to destroy the Torah (Instructions in Righteousness), but to fulfill or complete it (Yahuahshua came to live Torah, and to make the crooked way stright), as the Greek indicates. Yahuahshua said those who uphold and teach the Law/Torah will be blessed with honorable positions in the Kingdom, but those who refuse to keep it and teach others the same fallacy of disobedience will not be blessed and will not inherit any position.
Yahuahshua was not the only advocate for Yahuah’s Torah. We find the Apostle Sha'ul, who is usually cited as being against Torah, in Romans 3:31 in fact promoting lawkeeping: "Do we then make void Torah through faith? Yahuah forbid: yea, we establish the law/Torah." Sha'ul never said that Yahuah’s Law (Torah, Instructions in Righteousness) wasn’t important. Many will say that all we need is faith. Sha'ul says that we need both faith and law/Torah. We are not to throw out the Torah (Instructions in Righteousness) because of faith, but as Sha'ul says we are to establish it within our lives. Just stop and think about your child says to themself & you that they don't need instructions in righteousness...! If I don't know better, I believe that your child would be in BIG TROUBLE, LOL...!
In Romans 7 we find the Apostle Sha'ul again promoting Yahuah’s Law/Torah: "Know you not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the Torah,) how that the law/Torah has dominion over a man as long as he lives?...What shall we say then? is the law/Torah sin? Yahuah forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law/Torah: for I had not known lust, except the law (Torah, Instructions in Righteousness) had said, Thou shalt not covet...Wherefore the law/Torah is Qodesh, and the Commandment Qodesh, and Just, and Good" (Rom. 7:1, 7, 12).
Sha'ul Advocates Tanakh Law
Sha'ul says that the Law/Torah has dominion or authority over us till death, just as marriage does between two people. He also says that without the Law/Torah we would not know sin. Sha'ul concludes this passages by not diminishing the Law/Torah, but by giving it the highest honor.
In one Renewed Covenant Passage we find the Apostle Sha'ul using the Law of Moshe to convey his own message to young Timothy. "For the scripture says, You shall not muzzle the ox that treads out the corn. And, The labourer is worthy of his reward" (1Tim. 5:18). His using such an example indicates that Sha'ul taught and promoted the Tanakh Laws as authority, meaning the basis for Renewed Covenant teachings. Both of these laws can be traced back to the Torah:
· "You shalt not muzzle the ox when he treads out the corn" (Deut. 25:4).
· "The wages of him that is hired shall not abide with you all night until the morning" (Lev. 19:13).
In Acts 24 Sha'ul is standing before Felix, the governor of Yahudea. Sha'ul is being accused of following and even promoting a division among the Yisraelites. In truth, Sha'ul never rebuked the Yisraelites faith, but proclaimed that he followed all that his ancestors taught. "But this I confess unto you, that after the way which they call heresy, so worship I the Alaha alHayah of my fathers, believing all things which are written in the law/Torah and in the prophets" (Acts 24:14).
In the governor’s attempt to condemn the Apostle, Sha'ul not only says that he believes, but also unmistakably advocates the Torah and the Prophets. If he believed in the Torah and the Prophets, he clearly would have been observing both. The Law here includes all five books of the Torah, while the Prophets indicates the entire collection of the Tanakh prophets and all that they taught about Yahuah’s will through His Qodesh Scriptures.
Obviously, Sha'ul never uprooted the Torah, but had great respect and love for it. He realized its benefits. He knew that the only way to know right from wrong was by Yahuah’s qodesh standards inspired in the first five books of His Word/haMashiyakh. What would we use for knowing right from wrong if Yahuah’s Law/Torah were annulled?
A Litmus Test for Righteousness
The Law/Torah (Instructions in Righteousness) was not given to mankind to save us, but simply to show us right from wrong. In Romans 3:20 we see that without these standards we would live in a world with utter chaos. "Therefore by the deeds of the law/Torah there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law/Torah is the knowledge of sin."
We are also warned of breaking Yahuah's Law in Hebrews 10: "For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remains no more sacrifice for sins, But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries. He that despised Yahuah's Torah died without mercy under two or three witnesses: Of how much sorer punishment, suppose you, shall he be thought worthy, who has trodden under foot the Son of Alaha, and has counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was set apart, an unqodesh thing, and has done despite unto the Ruwakh of grace? For we know him that has said, Vengeance belongs unto me, I will recompense, says Yahuah. And again, Yahuah shall judge his people" (Heb. 10:26-30).
Notice that the writer of Hebrews very plainly says that once we have come to the knowledge of the truth, there is no more remedy for sins committed thereafter. This is a dreadful thought.
The writer of Hebrews continues by stating that those who break Torah, will have a greater judgment than those of the Tanakh. This contradicts the man-made notion of a Renewed Covenant/New Testament based on grace and faith alone. Salvation involves more than a simple proclaiming faith and grace to all those who believe. Salvation requires an action — obedience.
We find this confirmed in Hebrews 5:9: "And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey Him." Yahuah, the author of salvation, offers the gift of salvation only to those who obey Yahuah’s Word/haMashiyakh. We cannot just believe or say that we have faith, but must act on our faith by obedience.
By observing His Law/Torah we demonstrate to Yahuah that we want to obey and serve Him. In 1John 5:3 we read that if we love Yahuah we will obey His commandments. "For this is the love of Alaha, that we keep his Commandments: and his Commandments are not grievous." Stop and take another look at this verse. Many says that they cannot keep Yahuah's Torah...If that was so, way did Yahuah tell us to keep something that we cannot keep, and why would He send Yahuahshua has an example for us to live Torah, if we could not to have lived Torah the way Yahuahshua lived Torah...?
This passage is important to understand because the message goes much deeper than most realize. We not only show love by keeping Yahuah’s Commandments, but we must also keep them out of a deep-down desire to serve Him. His Commandments must be so desirable that they never seem grievous to us.
If they are grievous, then we have defeated the purpose of observing Yahuah’s Torah. Yahuah’s Law (Instructions in Righteousness) is to shape and mold us into Yahuah’s own character. Any negative feelings toward His law amount to resistance of that goal. Yahuah’s standards are a reflection of His own morals and ethics. Why should He not want us to have the same nature as He does?
Faith Alone Is Not Enough
In the Book of James we find Yahuahshua’s brother unequivocally promoting Torah keeping for Yahuah’s people.
"What does it profit, my brethren, though a man say he has faith, and have not works? can faith save him? If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be warmed and filled; notwithstanding you give them not those things which are needful to the body; what does it profit? Even so faith, if it has not works, is dead, being alone. Yes, a man may say, You have faith, and I have works: show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that there is one Alaha; you do well: the devils also believe, and tremble" (James 2:14-19).
James asks a crucial question for any believer: What good is it if we have faith but no works? It’s like a vehicle with no gasoline, it travels nowhere. Our salvation works the same way. With faith and works we are promised Yahuah’s kingdom; however, without either of the two our salvation comes to a halt, with no gasoline to continue.
James also said that even the demons believe in Yahuah’s and Yahuahshua’s existence, but just having this belief does not make them worthy of Yahuah’s Kingdom. They have neither works nor an obedient heart,
Obedience as Well as Faith
Three noteworthy passages are found in the Book of Revelation. The first is the prophecy of the woman, meaning the Assembly, being taken into the wilderness for protection from the adversary. "And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the Commandments of Alaha, and have the testimony of Yahuahshua the haMessiYah" (Rev. 12:17).
Notice what distinguishes Yahuah’s people. Two characteristics define Yahuah’s saints: keeping of Yahuah’s Commandments, and having faith in Yahuashua. By these two characteristics Yahuah’s expectations for His people are defined.
We find these two attributes again in Revelation 14:12. "Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the Commandments of Alaha, and the faith of Yahuahshua haMashiyakh our haMessiYah."
Yahuah defines His People as those that are keeping His Commandments and having a faith in Yahuahshua the haMessiYah. Very simply, these two elements are essential for a believer, for without them we will not have access to Yahuah’s Kingdom.
In the last chapter of the Qodesh Scripture Yahuah warns us once again of the need for keeping His Commandments. "Blessed are they that do His Commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city" (Rev. 22:14).
Here at the end of the Qodesh Scripture Yahuah clearly says that keeping His Commandments is a requirement for entering His glorious Kingdom. Yahuah will only accept those with an obedient and humble heart. A heart that never wavers from Him, but stays true to the end.
Every word in the entire Bible/Qodesh Script is for our benefit. Sha'ul explains this in 2Timothy 3:16: "All scripture is given by inspiration of Alaha, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness/Torah."
Every utterance that Yahuah has given is profitable in some way. Whether it be reproof, correction, or instruction, Yahuah’s Word/haMashiyakh has a place in each of our lives. It instructs us to righteousness, which is defined by observing Yahuah’s Law/Torah.
Forget Not the Torah of Yahuah
Within the prophets we can find an abundance of prophecies for the Renewed Covenant/New Testament believer. One prophet specifically educates us concerning the Law of Moshe/Torah. His prophecy is a reply from Yahuah.
In Malachi chapter 4, Malachi prophesies of the distant future. He tells of a time when the whole earth shall burn like a furnace, and the wicked shall become stubble. Malachi’s message is vital, for the message does not stop with those in the Tanakh/Old Testament, but continues on for those in the latter days.
He warns that we must not forget the Law of Moshe/Torah: "Remember the law of Moshe my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Yisrael, with the statutes and judgments" (Mal. 4:4). This is important to understand. We in the 21st century learn here that the saints are told to keep ALL the Law, with statutes and judgments (Torah, Instructions in Righteousness).
We must not neglect any of Yahuah’s Law, but observe every inspired Commandment as Yahuah so wishes and instructs us, His people.
Shalom Aleichem
"Zaquaine/Elder" Mufasa Abda Kalil Tzadiq
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