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OPEN LETTER TO Ken Ham.

WE DON'T HAVE ALL THE RIGHT ANSWERS. WE AREN'T PERFECT. WE'VE MADE PLENTY OF MISTAKES.

An Open Letter in response to Ken Ham's:
      "Millennials Are Becoming Skeptics Over Old Testament Law"

After reading Ken Ham's article, I felt led to reach out to him in love with an open letter. We pray that this letter makes an impact on both Ken and many others that desire to be children of the Most High under the grace of his perfect son, Yeshua our Messiah (Jesus Christ). We respect Ken and reach out to him in peace and truth and hope our message is received with brotherly love. 

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You can read Ken Ham's full article here.

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Ham, Ken. "Millennials Are Becoming Skeptics Over Old Testament Law." AnswersInGenesis.com. Answers In Genesis, 12 Aug. 2009. Web. 9 Nov. 2017.

Ken Ham,

I reach out to you as a brother in Messiah with a very important warning that you and the world need to hear. I write to you in love in the name of our Messiah Yeshua (Christ Jesus). I speak to you as a fan who has enjoyed the Creation Museum, looks forward to visiting the Ark Encounter someday, and has personally benefited from your ministry Answers In Genesis. I have much respect for you and all your ministry has done to quash the lie of evolution—a lie that I once fully subscribed to but have since abandoned with fervor. In fact, your ministry helped open my eyes to the reality of a Creator and aided me in abandoning my position on the theory of evolution and the big bang. However, as a brother I see it as my duty of love to warn you of the perspective you portray in your ministry regarding the truth of scripture. The warning I bring you is not mine, but has been shared since before the foot of Mount Sinai, was lived and taught by our Messiah Yeshua (Christ Jesus), passionately preached and taught by all the Apostles, and has been reverberated by believers throughout time. This warning is a quote from Holy Scripture. Specifically, I have an answer to your frustrations that you shared in your recently reposted article: "Millennials Are Becoming Skeptics Over Old Testament Law." I realize that this was written in 2016, but it was my first time being exposed to it and I felt led to reach out to you immediately. This article struck a chord with me because you touch on the very reasons I, being categorized as a “Millennial,” once rejected the truth found in the perfect and Holy Word of יהוה and deemed myself as an Atheist for so long in my young life. However, my warning comes not only through loving criticism of your article, but loving criticism of the erroneous theology proliferated by the Christian Church today. Again, this is not a new warning, but a warning that is encapsulated by the Holy Word and has been proclaimed by many sincere believers throughout history. I bring it to you out of love and respect of you as a brother, and for my love and respect for our Messiah, the Holy Spirit, and our Heavenly Father.

 

As an Atheist, I too saw the contradictions in the scriptures that you mentioned in your article. I too recognized that what many call the “Old Testament” contradicted the “New Testament” on several accounts. Most contradictions encompass the same subject: The Law of Moses. For example, where the “Old Testament” instructs the people of God as to what they were to consider as food in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14, the “New Testament” taught contrary to these very instructions in Acts 10, Mark 7 & Matthew 14, Romans 14, and 1 Timothy 4:4. Furthermore, I too recognized that those who called themselves believers and Christians did not keep the instructions (Law of Moses/Law of God/Torah) that were given by God himself and instead continued to live very similarly to how I did—which was living in sin. As a person who sought truth no matter the cost, the only logical conclusion was that these contradictions and the testimonies of Christians through how they lived their lives were not only hypocritical—as you recognized in your article—but also left me to conclude that the Christian faith had to be manmade. In other words, contradictions in the Bible that painted a God that changed, especially when the very scriptures themselves said He does not change, logically caused me to reject the Bible and Christianity as a whole. This was because the theology and doctrine of the Christian church depicted a Creator who changed and made mistakes just as man did. Simply put, the inconsistencies in the Bible were my excuse to reject a Creator God because if God contradicted himself in his own Holy Word, then it was an obvious sign that it was written by man and not inspired by a Supreme Being due to all the errors. A Creator such as the one described in scripture, cannot make mistakes and does not change. A Creator that our souls know exists, even if we call ourselves an Atheist, does not make errors. He is Supreme. And that is an understatement.

 

However, later in my life after further study of the scripture, I realized that my assessment was wrong and that our Creator was in fact real and that the Bible was sound and true without contradictions. Unfortunately, I eventually realized that the Christian church and its leaders were majorly to blame for proliferating false contradictions that had caused so many to reject the Bible and our Messiah. Ultimately, when the church paints an incorrect picture that does not line up with what our spirit knows to be true about the Creator (that he is perfect and does not change), we have handed a golden platter of excuses for people to continue to live in the pleasures of their sin. Those excuses help dull the conscience and ignore the truth that is in all our hearts.

 

Since the root of your article lies in the perspective that Millennials reject God because believers today are giving mixed messages about the “Old Testament” and especially what you call the “Old Testament Laws,” I find it important to focus my response in that arena. Calling the Law of Moses “Old Testament Laws” is a fruit of the problem, as this distinction cannot be found anywhere in scripture. But again, this is just the fruit of the issue at hand.

The following statement that you made in your article shines light on the greater issue. In fact, it is the exact reason that many people of all ages and backgrounds—not only Millennials—reject the Bible as sound truth:

 

“Because they lack a proper understanding, many millennials will accuse the church of being hypocritical for what they perceive as following some laws and not others.”

-Ken Ham

 

Ken, my brother in Messiah, you hit the nail on the head! There is no doubt a lack of understanding! You are right again when you point out that such an understanding lies in the laps of believers and nonbelievers alike. Nonbelievers misunderstand the Bible because of their lack of knowledge and believers do not know their Bibles in any way that can provide a sound defense of scripture. Both parties fail to share in the truth of what the Word says because of their lack of knowledge and understanding. It does not help that they are given a faulty hermeneutic by professing believers, preachers, and teachers. I pray that you consider that this issue is rooted in the fact that for decades the Christian church has been teaching against the scriptures of the Bible, twisting them to their own destruction.

 

As you know, we are called to check the fruit. The fruit of this truth is felt in the very frustration you convey in your article: That believers, even with the most abundant resources available in the history of time regarding apologetics and scripture, cannot even name three disciples let alone defend the Bible. I too, echo your frustrations. However, most of the fault lies at the Christian pulpit. It lies in your very statement: Christians today pick and choose which laws they want to follow. Therefore, there are 45,000 Christian denominations and growing—each denomination differing on their interpretation of the Law of Moses as well as their interpretation of scripture and how it is to be relevantly displayed in the world after what our Messiah did on the cross. I know we both would agree that this was not the intention of the Father—to have a divided Body of over 45,000 denominations. If anyone calls this unity, they have not spoken with devout Baptists, Pentecostals, or Christians of all denominations claiming that their path is the correct one. The reality is that there is only one true path, and it does not need a single denomination. It is the Whole Word of God being relevant in the lives of believers today—with every single command of the Torah being 100% true and standing firm until the new heavens and new earth come about after our Messiah’s return.

 

Here is the solution to the problem you presented in your article. It is the message given in scripture that was taught by the Father, our Messiah, and his Apostles: The whole Word of God is relevant and applicable in the lives of believers today. 2 Timothy 3:16 says it best:

 

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness…

 

You see, as created beings made in the image of the Most High, we have the ability to sense truth. Adam and Eve’s partaking of the tree of knowledge of good and evil consequently gave each of us a sense to know the difference between good and evil. Even though our sin dulls our senses and causes us to desire a life of sin, many Millennials today are obviously truth seekers that can easily sense that the Bible teaches an unchanging doctrine. We can also sense the many hypocrisies in the Christian body that teach contrary to the whole of Scripture. In this instance, 2 Timothy 3:16 is clear: All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness. That can only mean one thing: that all the commands in the Law of Moses are for correction, teaching, and training in righteousness. All the commands. However, just as you recognize, the church comes off as picking and choosing—because that is exactly what they do. This is where many believers fail to realize that scripture is clear about the Law of Moses: it cannot change. Unfortunately, the Christian church today opposes scripture by saying that what Jesus did on the cross did change the Law of Moses. It is an idea that erroneously proclaims that Messiah’s life, ministry, death, and resurrection impacted the Law of Moses in a way that renders it irrelevant to believers today. Millennials can sense that this flawed theology does not line up and that it does not make sense. In fact, this perspective creates real contradiction that is not overlooked. It is the contradiction that you, among every Christian Pastor I have ever heard speak, dedicates their life to clearing it up. Brother, the truth clears up any and all contradictions and solidifies the Bible exactly the way it was intended to be when the cannon was established: Scripture that was meant to be read from front to back and understood as a whole piece of unchanging doctrine and recorded promises from our Creator.

 

In fact, if believers had a better knowledge of scripture, they would come to realize that the Bible teaches that the Law of Moses cannot change because it is the image of our Creator and the image of his perfect son Jesus Christ (Yeshua Messiah). Our lack of knowledge causes us to misunderstand what scripture truthfully teaches. Furthermore, we have teachers that date back all the way to the “Church Fathers” that taught contrary to this very scriptural truth: The Law of Moses is the revealed image of our heavenly Father and His son, both of whom called us to walk in this image. Scripture instructs believers that the Laws of Moses are the ways of God and that we are to walk in those ways since we were created in His image:

 

So you shall keep the commandments of יהוה (the LORD) your God by walking in his ways and by fearing him. Deuteronomy 8:6

 

And now, Israel, what does יהוה (the LORD) your God require of you, but to fear יהוה (the LORD) your God, to walk in his ways, to love him, to serve יהוה (the LORD) your God with all your heart and with all your soul. Deuteronomy 10:12

 

Only be very careful to observe the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of יהוה (the LORD) commanded you, to love יהוה (the LORD) your God, and to walk in all his ways and to keep his commandments and to cling to him and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul.” Joshua 22:5

Scripture after scripture proclaims that the instructions given to Moses to write down at Mount Sinai (the Torah), were given to all the people of Israel so that they may walk in the image they were created: YHVH’s image. You see, if the Law of Moses illustrates the image of our Father, it cannot change. Malachi 3:6 proclaims that our Creator and Father does not change. If the Law of Moses is the image of God and He does not change, then the Law of Moses can never change. In fact, scripture warns us that if any prophet or dreamer of dreams comes and teaches that there is a change in the Law of Moses, that even if they did amazing miracles that came true, they must be put to death as a false prophet. This includes anyone claiming to be the son of the Most High:

 

If a prophet or dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder that he tells you comes to pass, and if he says, ‘Let us go after other gods,’ which you have not known, ‘and let us serve them,’ you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams. For יהוה (the LORD) your God is testing you, to know whether you love יהוה (the LORD) your God with all your heart and with all your soul. You shall walk after יהוה (the LORD) your God and fear him and keep his commandments and obey his voice, and you shall serve him and hold fast to him. But that prophet or that dreamer of dreams shall be put to death, because he has taught rebellion against יהוה (the LORD) your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt and redeemed you out of the house of slavery, to make you leave the way in which יהוה (the LORD) your God commanded you to walk. So you shall purge the evil from your midst. Deuteronomy 13:1-5

 

If Jesus Christ taught one single word that was against the Law of Moses, he would be sinning against his Father and would need to be put to death according to His command. In fact, this is exactly what the Pharisees were waiting for Jesus to do! They wanted to kill him and tried many times to get him to speak against the Law of Moses. They put him to death because of a false account that he was teaching against the Law of Moses and the Temple! Our Messiah was put to death on a lie! In retrospect, our Messiah Yeshua kept and taught the Torah to all who would listen. Matthew 23:1-4 captures the clear command for believers to keep the Torah:

 

Then Yeshua (Jesus) said to the crowds and to his disciples, “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat, so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach, but do not practice. They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger. Matthew 23:1-4

 

Right here in the “New Testament,” our Messiah is teaching believers to listen and do exactly what the Pharisees and scribes tell them! Most readers are shocked when they read this and say, “What?? But we know that Jesus made a fool of the Pharisees at every encounter with him!”  Exactly! That is why this passage is so powerful! What exactly does Yeshua teach his disciples and the crowds to do? When the scribes and Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat—speaking from the authority and words of Moses—so do and observe whatever they tell you. In other words, do what Moses told you to do! In this time period, on every Sabbath, the scribes and the Pharisees would read from the Law of Moses in every synagogue. This was done because only the synagogues could really afford to have a written copy of the Word of God. So, all who wanted to be obedient to the Creator would have to learn scripture from the reading of the Torah each Shabbat. In this recorded account by Matthew, our Messiah is commanding us to do everything that they tell us when they read from the Torah! In other words, our Messiah is clearly teaching us to keep the Torah! Jesus breathes clarity by telling his audience not to do the works that the Pharisees and scribes do, for they preach (the Law of Moses) but do not practice it. This is true! The scribes and Pharisees would in fact preach the Law of Moses, but they would keep their oral law called the Talmud. They would keep the Talmud and not honor the Law of Moses. The burdens that the Pharisees and Scribes laid on the people’s shoulders was this very Talmud! It cannot be the Torah because scripture is clear: YHVH’s commands are not burdensome! Therefore, in every single encounter with Messiah, there was a clash between the Law of Moses and the Talmud (oral law). In every instance, Messiah taught that we should keep the Law of Moses and reject the traditions of men found in the Talmud. Mark 7 is an excellent example as it deals with ceremonial hand washing and our Messiah says that that is a faulty tradition of men and that we are not to wash our hands the way the Pharisees did according to their Talmud. Succinctly, our Messiah taught his people to keep the Law of Moses but to avoid any and all traditions of men. Why? Because the Messiah rightly knew that the Law of Moses teaches YHVH’s people how to walk in His image and not sin! He also knew that the man-made traditions of the Talmud kept people from truly worshiping the Father and were a burden too hard to bear. It should be no surprise that a perfectly obedient son of the Most High did everything that was necessary to separate the Torah from the Talmud. One of the major intentions was to bring the people back into obedience of the Father under instructions (Law of Moses) that were not too difficult for them.

 

Believers today do not realize that the Law of Moses teaches them what sin is. If you break the Law of Moses, you are committing a sin against the Most High. John is clear: sin is lawlessness—the breaking of the Law of God. Not only did our Messiah teach that we are to keep the Law of Moses, but each and every book in the New Testament teaches the same message. Every Apostle kept and taught the Law of Moses. The problem is that many believers reject the Law of Moses and even demonize it because of what they were taught in church or by other Christians. Even in your article, you proclaim the exact error: that believers cannot keep the Law of Moses. Christianity echoes the same erroneous message:

 

“The Law of Moses is too difficult and cannot be kept by believers, which is why Jesus came and kept it for us so that we do not have to.” - Mainstream Christian theology

Brother Ken, with all due respect, this statement is complete and utter blasphemy in the highest degree! When anyone, knowingly or unknowingly, makes this statement that the Law of God is too difficult, they are blaspheming against the very words of our Creator. Deuteronomy 30 is just one of many examples that shine the light on this blasphemy:

 

For this commandment that I command you today is not too hard for you, neither is it far off. It is not in heaven, that you should say, “Who will ascend to heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ But the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart so that you can do it.” Deuteronomy 30:11-14

 

When we say that the Law is too difficult, and that believers cannot keep it, we send a false message to the world. This message is in error in so many ways, but the worst is blasphemy by indirectly calling our Heavenly Father a liar. On top of that, we forget the recorded testimony of scripture itself! Think of the record of Enoch who kept our Creator’s commands and did not die but was taken up by יהוה because he walked with God (Genesis 5:24). Abraham was counted righteous because he believed the Father, which meant he was obedient in every way keeping all his statutes, commands, and instructions (Genesis 26:5). David was also a man after YHVH’s heart, which the scriptures proclaim his obedience (1 Kings 15:5). The problem is that many misunderstand the fact that these are all imperfect men and that they all committed sin in their lives—including Enoch. However, believers forget that the sacrificial system יהוה put in place coupled with their obedience to connect them to our Messiah, his life, death, resurrection, and provided atonement for all sin. Enoch, Abraham, and David are just a few examples of people who kept the Law of Moses just as we are commanded to keep it: under the grace of our Heavenly Father which gives us peace as we grow in truth! Even though they may not have known of the coming Messiah, their faith and obedience to the Father connected them to the Messiah. The Apostles are our most recent example, calling all believers not to commit any sin and to be found without spot or blemish upon our Messiah’s return. If they made one single change to the Law of Moses, they were to be rejected! But they were accepted because they taught believers to keep those instructions of God!

 

Our Father has always provided a means for his people to walk according to his instructions. You know better than most that if it was not for Noah’s righteousness, his walking in the Father’s image, that all humanity may have been lost in the flood. YHVH’s amazing grace is not new with our Messiah but has always been exemplified throughout history.

 

The very idea that the Law of Moses is too difficult goes against the words of John recorded in 1 John 3. He calls believers to walk away from sin and that true followers of Messiah must be righteous as he is righteous. The only way we know what righteousness is, is by the Torah. We know that Messiah was perfect and righteous because he kept the Torah flawlessly. The Law of Moses is the opposite of sin. The opposite of sin is righteousness. We can know if we are children of יהוה only if we are obedient and keep the Law of God, repenting of our sins. That is what John instructs us:

 

See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure. Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. 1 John 3:1-8

 

John is clear, whoever does not keep the Law of Moses is practicing lawlessness and is living a life contrary to our Messiah. Whoever practices righteousness by keeping the Law of Moses is righteous as our Messiah is righteous. Simply put, we are to walk in the image of our Messiah who kept the instructions perfectly as an obedient son of the Most High. We are not to keep the Law of Moses in order to attain our salvation, but because we love the Father. We cannot earn salvation in any way because we have all fallen short of the glory of God and all deserve the punishment of death. I echo your quoting of Paul, that believers are saved by the gift of God through our faith and belief in Yeshua Messiah (Jesus Christ). That is our only means of salvation, through Yeshua (Ephesians 2:8). However, our Messiah and our Father call us to live a life that is holy and pure and in full repentance of all sin. In other words, we are to keep the Law of Moses because of our faith and belief in Messiah. Believers are called to keep the Torah because of their love of the Father! The idea that the Law of Moses is too difficult contradicts the very words of John as he echoes Deuteronomy 30 in 1 John 5:

 

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome. For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. 1 John 5:1-4

 

John makes it clear that he is not writing of a new commandment, but of an old commandment that God’s people have had from the beginning:

 

My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Yeshua Messiah (Jesus Christ) the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says, “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.

 

Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard. 1 John 2:1-7

John is not talking about an empty faith that is merely just one’s belief that Jesus lived, died, and resurrected. No. He is speaking of the same faith that James spoke of; a faith that is proven by works and obedience to the law of liberty—the Law of Moses. Just as James said, even the demons believe and shudder. Your faith is proven by your works.

 

There is so much to say. The church does in fact contradict themselves and the whole Word of God by their current message. Millennials are not ignoring the contradictions but are instead making a decision based on the false message being proliferated from the pulpit of Christianity. As believers, we need to recognize this and act accordingly. We need to audit our beliefs and compare them to scripture just as the Bereans did with Paul’s message (Acts 17). The only scriptures the Bereans had to test Paul and his message, was the “Old Testament.” Their conclusion that moved them to accept Paul and Messiah? There are no contradictions because Messiah lived, kept, and taught others to keep the Law of Moses. Both Paul and Messiah passed the Deuteronomy 13 test.

 

As people who claim to be believers in Messiah, we must make sure that we are not contradicting the Word. Erroneous contradictions bring forth bad fruit: the same fruit we recognize that alienates people from our Father and His perfect son. The fact is, there are no contradictions in scripture when it is understood correctly. The “Old Testament” is just as relevant as the “New Testament.” The Law of Moses is just as true today as it was yesterday. The problem is that we have created stumbling blocks within the Church. Here are a few that must be addressed:

 

  • Scripture proves that the Law of Moses is still applicable today. In fact, the new covenant described in Hebrews 8 is actually the Law of Moses written on our hearts and minds. Hebrews is quoting the “Old Testament” prophecy in Jeremiah 31:31.

  • We have projected a false understanding that the Law of Moses is Jewish, when in fact it was given to all 12 tribes, not just the tribe of Judah (Jews).

    • The Law of God has always been for His people, whom He calls Israel. Paul makes it crystal clear that believers today are grafted into Israel and are thus to be called native born Israel.

    • This carries over into a false thinking that the Sabbath, Feast Days, and Law of God are all Jewish. However, Apostle Paul makes it crystal clear that there is no distinction between Jew and Gentile converts but that they are all considered Israel (Galatians 3:28). Therefore, the Sabbath, Feast Days, and Law of God are all Israel’s, including those grafted in.

  • The Church teaches contradictions to scripture and even blasphemes the Word of God unknowingly.

  • The Church has erroneously changed the Sabbath Day from the 7th day to the first day of the week (Sunday) based on a miniscule amount of inference in the “New Testament.”

    • One of the most misrepresented passages used to claim the “Lord’s Day” as Sunday is Acts 20:7, which says in the KJV “And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread…” In the Greek, it actually says: “mia sabbaton,” which literally translates in context that the disciples met on “one of the Sabbaths.”

    • The reality is that the seventh day Sabbath was established at creation before sin entered into the World. It is the true “Lord’s Day,” exemplified in YHVH’s action to keep it Himself as our example and that our Messiah himself kept it perfectly so we knew how to do it honorably. God’s people have been constantly called to keep the Sabbath from the beginning and were punished severely when they chose not to. The Messiah kept the Sabbath perfectly and so did his Apostles. There can be no change, and if there was, it would be blatantly spelled out in scripture with no means for dispute. Yet again, Deuteronomy 4:2 and Deuteronomy 13 give no room for any changes to the Law of Moses—forever. So there is no dispute: The Sabbath for Israel, the children of יהוה, is still the seventh day of the week—just as scripture makes clear.

    • YHVH’s redemption is always to bring us back to the perfect way he created all things, which means keeping the Sabbath he established and kept himself.

    • If sin never entered the world, we would still be keeping the seventh day Sabbath (Friday evening to Saturday evening today).

    • Scripture says the seventh day Sabbath is our wedding ring and sign to the world that we belong to him. Those that keep his Sabbath according to the Word are called his children.

    • The Catholic church unashamedly takes credit for changing the Sabbath to Sunday. They even admit that their change was under no authority from scripture but under the authority, they erroneously believe their leaders received from God.

  • Most Christian error lies in the reality that we misinterpret Apostle Paul.

    • Peter warns us that we will misunderstand and misrepresent Paul in 2 Peter 3:11-18. His warning is that believers, after the resurrection of Messiah, are to be found without spot or blemish and at peace when our Messiah returns. We are not to twist Paul’s letters as the ignorant and unstable do. But we are to understand that Paul is consistent in all his letters. The crux of Peter’s warning is found here: “Therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability.” In fact, if Paul is consistent and does not contradict himself, then his statement in Romans 3:31 stands true forever. Paul instructs believers with a question and answer: because of our faith in Messiah, do we abandon the Law of Moses? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the Law of Moses!

    • The truth is that every Apostle kept and taught the Torah out of their love for Messiah. They accepted grace and rejected any and all incorrect doctrines that taught that the Law of Moses was a means of salvation. The Circumcision Party targeted in Galatians is one example of a salvation by works gospel, stating that unless one is circumcised according to the Torah, then they could not receive salvation. Paul makes it clear to remind the Galatians that one is only saved through Messiah. This Circumcision Party was leading people away from Messiah. Again, the Law of Moses is not a means for salvation, but the revealed image of our Creator and his Son. Believers are commanded to keep the Law of Moses because their Messiah commands them to go and sin no more. We show our love to our Father when we obey His and our Messiah’s command to become obedient children before Him and keep his instructions (Law of Moses/Law of God/Torah).

 

To the point, the reason people—especially Millennials—are leaving the church is because the church teaches a contradictory image of the Bible and what our Messiah lived and taught. Many people can sense that the Christian message is twisted and instead of seeking the scriptures for truth most look around at those who call themselves believers and see all the hypocrisy. Until the church repents of their error and returns to the whole Word of the Most High, we will continue to see more and more people reject the truth and reject the true Messiah. In fact, the Jewish people themselves reject Messiah for the very reason many are turning away from the Church. The Christian church teaches a doctrine contrary to the Tanakh (“Old Testament”), teaching incorrectly a Messiah named Jesus Christ who taught against the Torah and taught a change to the Law of God. Devout Jews recognize the Tanakh to be 100% true and see this Christian Jesus as failing the test in Deuteronomy 13 which causes them to quickly and easily reject him—just as all are commanded to do! Christian theology is the stumbling block that keeps most Jewish people from accepting their Messiah by painting him in the lie that he was put to death by: that he taught contrary to the Law of Moses. The truth is that the whole Bible is true and relevant in the lives of believers today. The Law of Moses is and has always been for Israel, the children of יהוה our Creator. Gentiles who come into the faith are no longer gentiles, but are grafted into the olive tree and are to be considered native-born Israel. Believers in the Messiah and the whole truth of the Bible, accepting the free gift of God through Messiah, receive salvation. They prove out their faith by loving יהוה through obedience of his perfect instructions and strive to walk in His image just as they were created to do. When they walk in this image, preaching and teaching the true image of Messiah and the whole Gospel, they are a light to the world.

 

Yeshua gives us one of the most unsettling warnings in his Sermon on the Mount, which we find in Matthew 7. Our Messiah warns believers that not everyone who calls him their Lord—not everyone who says they believe in Messiah—will enter the kingdom of heaven. Only those who do the will of the Father, which he clarifies is the Torah (Law of Moses).

 

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day, many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ did we not prophesy in your name, cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’ Matthew 7:21-23

 

Scripture is clear, but many have missed the whole truth. Unfortunately, the popular preachers, speakers, and teachers today have provided many stumbling blocks and excuses for people to continue in their life of sin. Many put on the Lord Jesus just as a blanket for their salvation. However, Jesus and scripture as a whole is clear: true believers live out their faith through their works. Belief has always been supported by a person’s action—which is true in any circumstance. True believers love their Father and prove their love by being obedient children to his perfect and unchanging instructions (Law). The grace and gift seen in Messiah is truly received and proven by the fruit of one striving to walk in his image. In the image that we were created to be: one holy, pure, and without blemish. When Messiah returns and brings his people into the promised new heavens and new earth, only righteousness will dwell there. People will be keeping the Law of Moses and walking in the image they were created to be in the first place: sinless and reflecting the Father. The new covenant is clear that the Law will be the same Law of Moses written on our hearts, and that the new covenant is founded on better promises, not a better Law (Hebrews 8).  Scripture makes it clear that Law is already perfect, and anything added to or taken away from perfection makes it imperfect (Deuteronomy 4:2, Psalm 19:7). The image of יהוה and our Messiah is perfect, nothing can be added to or taken away from it. True believers will worship in Spirit and in truth, accepting the free gift of God found in Messiah and striving to walk without spot, without blemish, and at peace as we anticipate his return. This is true sanctification: A believer who accepts the precious and free gift of God that was given through our Messiah Yeshua, is cleaned up through what he did on the cross and through his resurrection, and then takes that gift and walks a worthy life of righteousness as an obedient son or daughter of the Most High. Messiah is clear when he said:

 

“Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 18:2-4

 

Will you ask the Father for eyes to see and ears to hear? Will you humble yourself as an obedient child of יהוה and turn back to the whole truth? Will you recognize the stumbling blocks placed before the world by the Christian church? Will you recognize and return to the Whole truth of the entire Bible?

 

 

I will leave you with some scripture and just a few clarifications regarding typical instructions that people try and argue in order to avoid the truth: that the Law of Moses stands today and all true believers will desire to keep it.

 

  • Israelites, those who are believers today, are still commanded to only eat what the Bible defines as food. The definition is found in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14 of what we can and cannot eat. The contradictory scriptures used to argue a change, which cannot happen according to the very words of יהוה, are commonly misinterpreted.

    • Acts 10: Peter’s vision of the tapestry of clean and unclean animals. Peter clearly says that he has not and will not eat anything unclean. He has not, even after the death, burial, and resurrection of Messiah. This is extremely telling. He even has enough courage to tell the Father: “NO! I have never eaten unclean animals and never will.” The reality is that the context of Acts 10 reveals what יהוה was truly saying: go preach to the gentiles. Peter needed a vision to be told that he needed to share the truth with the nations. The Talmud and ways of the Jewish people had clouded his vision and kept him from sharing the gospel to gentiles because flawed Jewish thought considered them unclean. In fact, gentiles have always been allowed into faith with יהוה. We see the example in Exodus 12:38 which illustrates the mixed multitude that included Egyptians who came out of Egypt alongside Israel because they witnessed the unmistakable power of יהוה through the plagues. Moses asked God what he was to do with theses strangers. YHVH’s response was that if they became circumcised and kept the Passover—if you keep the Law of God—consider them a native-born Israelite. Their obedience to the Torah allowed them to enter into covenant with יהוה and become a native part of Israel.

    • In truth, Acts 10 provides us Peter’s testimony of what יהוה taught him with the vision and it had nothing to do with food:

      • “You yourselves know how unlawful (according to the Talmud, there is no Torah command about this) it is for a Jew to associate with or to visit anyone of another nation, but God has shown me that I should not call any person common or unclean.” Acts 10:28. יהוה showed Peter he should not call any person—not animal—unclean.

      • He repeats his testimony of what the vision meant in the following chapter (Acts 11), again, nothing about dietary instructions changing. If he did this, his audience would have had him brought to the Levitical Judges and had him stoned according to Deuteronomy 13. His audience comes to the same conclusion: “When they heard all these things they fell silent. And they glorified God, saying, “Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life.” Acts 11:18.

      • Acts 10 has nothing to do with a change in the definition of sin. The vision has nothing to do with declaring all animals clean for food. יהוה used an unchanging command of His to teach Peter a valuable lesson. Peter explains his vision clearly and we are not to twist his testimony.

    • Mark 7 and Matthew 14 are identical eyewitness accounts from two different perspectives. They both have nothing to do with a change in the definition of sin. In other words, they do change the definition of what יהוה has deemed as food. The context proves that this lesson is about the man-made Talmudic tradition of ceremonial hand washing. Yeshua’s lesson is to distinguish the Law of God from the false and erroneous manmade traditions of the Talmud.

      • The portion in parenthesis that says Jesus “thus declared all foods clean,” was added by the translators. Furthermore, it does not appear in the identical account in Matthew 14.

        • However, it is still a truthful piece of commentary but is twisted for destruction. “Thus declaring all foods clean” does not change the Bible’s translation of what food is. The Bible must define itself. If food is defined at Leviticus 11, and witnessed again in Deuteronomy 14, then that is the Bible’s definition of food. Food means something specific to a person and or their culture and heritage. In some nations, many consider cat, dog, and rat as food whereas most of America would not label those animals as food. The Bible is crystal clear on what YHVH’s people are to define and consider as food: Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14.

        • Besides, if Jesus was in fact declaring all animals clean for food, then he would have been seized and put to death, just as his audience was hoping he would do. The Pharisees wanted Jesus to talk against the Law of God so they could put him to death.

        • On top of all that, if Jesus did in fact make all animals clean for food, why can we still not eat poisonous tree frog, vulture, and many other poisonous animals without becoming ill or even dying? Because Yeshua did not change what sin was, he took the punishment for sin away so that we would have the freedom to strive and walk in holiness and pureness!

    • Romans 14 is about vegetarianism and fasting. It goes on to talk about specific days of fasting because in the time there was a debate on which days of the week were better to fast. Paul’s conclusion is based on the fact that fasting is important but the day of the week is only important to each individual and their relationship with the Father. There is no torah on what day is important to fast.

    • 1 Timothy 4:2, which says, “For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving,” typically involves one failing to read the rest of the verse because of their desire to argue that if we accept pork or shellfish with thanksgiving we can now eat it. The verse continues, “for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer.” The only food made holy by the Word of God is found in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14.

  • Stoning and death penalty instructions: The instructions for the death penalty cannot be carried out today according to the Law because each case must be presented to the Levitical Judges to be heard and must include sound testimony of two or three witnesses. We cannot keep this command today because we do not have Levitical Judges.

    • These types of instructions were put in place just as any just government has laws of the land in place: to deter crime against the nation’s laws. Torah about stoning and putting one to death for breaking the Torah are blessings because their penalty encourages those that do not care to keep the Torah to keep it in fear of the penalty alone. Consequences for crimes against a nation’s Law deter crime and help keep a nation pure.

  • Homosexuality is still a sin and is echoed even in the New Testament. Again, the definition of sin has never changed since the beginning of time. Sin has always been what is contrary to the Most High and his intent for creation. We only know the image of יהוה because he lovingly revealed it to us. We were blessed that he called upon Moses so that we would write this revelation down at Mount Sinai so that it would never be lost. It is recorded and well known as the Law of Moses and we still have it today—just as יהוה promised.

  • Every single command in the New Testament is a quote of a command in the Old Testament. There is not one single new command. This aligns with Deuteronomy 4:2 that nothing could be added or taken away.

  • The Sabbath is the same yesterday, today, and forever, just as Yeshua is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8). The Sabbath was instituted on the 7th day of the week and there is not a single valid scripture that changes it—and if there was it would not be considered scripture, again because it violates the Torah.

  • The misunderstood command in Leviticus 19:19 that many quote to say that we are not to wear a garment of mixed fabric overlooks the details. The command literally states that we are not to mix wool and linen or wear a garment mixed with wool or linen specifically. That command stands. Believers should not wear a garment of wool or linen. Why? Simple, “I am יהוה your Elohim.”

  • The sacrificial system can no longer be honored according to the Law of Moses because we do not have a Tabernacle or Temple, which is where the sacrifice must take place. Also, we do not have a Levitical Priesthood who must administer each sacrifice. If anyone tries to offer a sacrifice on their own, it is just like the unauthorized fire of Nadab and Abihu: it would be a violation of the Torah.

    • Matter of fact, Paul is actually recorded honoring the sacrificial system by paying for a sacrifice to be done on his behalf when he takes a Nazarite vow in Acts 21. Yes, Apostle Paul offered sacrifices after Messiah’s resurrection. He took this Nazarite vow to prove to those that misunderstood him that he keeps the Law of Moses and accepts Yeshua as Messiah.

      • “We have four men who are under a vow; take these men and purify yourself along with them and pay their expenses, so that they may shave their heads. Thus, all will know that there is nothing in what they have been told about you, but that you yourself also live in observance of the law… Then Paul took the men, and the next day he purified himself along with them and went into the Temple, giving notice when the days of purification would be fulfilled and the offering presented for each one of them.”

 

 

It is important to restate that one is not saved by keeping the Torah, as there is nothing anyone can do to merit or earn salvation. Again, salvation is a free gift from our Father, not of ourselves. It is not by any works, meaning one does not keep the Torah for salvific purposes because not one person can earn salvation.

 

All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God and deserve the due penalty of death. For by grace we have been saved through our faith in Messiah Yeshua. It is not our own doing, but the gift from Almighty Elohim (God). But we are his workmanship, created in Messiah Yeshua for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them! We are to walk in his perfect image—The Torah—his perfect instructions (Ephesians 2).

 

However, when we continue in our sin and do not strive to walk in the image of God, we trample this very grace! When one continues in their disobedience and sin, they forsake the free gift through this trampling.

 

Does one truly "believe" in the Messiah if they continue to walk in disobedience against his instructions?

 

 

Any misunderstanding or apparent contradiction is accounted for and easily defended by a sound understanding of Holy Scripture. Again, I reach out to you as a brother with love and respect. If you have any questions, concerns, or comments, please reach out to me. It would be my pleasure to discuss these matters in greater detail, allowing iron to sharpen iron. Brothers are always blessed by learning from one another. As ministers of the perfect and Holy Word of our Father, we are responsible for how we call for the lost sheep as well as how we lead His flock. May we both continue to strive to give Him honor and glory and test everything we do to his Perfect Word. I leave you with scripture, and look forward to hearing from you. Know that thousands and thousands that call Yeshua (Jesus) their Messiah are coming into the very truth I presented to you today—and it is transforming their lives! Many have found freedom in the Law of God under the amazing grace we witness in our Messiah! This very freedom is exactly why James calls it the law of liberty! I pray that you humbly go before our Father in prayer and sincerely ask if the warning I have given to you is of Him and of his perfect Word. Again, test everything I have given to you today to the whole of Scripture.

 

And the word of יהוה came to me: “Son of Man, say to her, you are a land that is not cleansed or rained upon in the day of indignation. The conspiracy of her prophets in her midst is like a roaring lion tearing the prey; they have devoured human lives; they have taken treasure and precious things; they have made many widows in her midst. Her priests have done violence to my law and have profaned my holy things. They have made no distinction between the holy and the common, neither have they taught the difference between the unclean and the clean, and they have disregarded my Sabbaths, so that I am profaned among them… Ezekiel 22:23-26

 

Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them (fulfill cannot mean to end or abolish according to Jesus’ referent). For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot will pass from the Law until all is accomplished (All will be accomplished when Yeshua returns and the new heaven and new earth come into the picture). Therefore, whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:17-20 (explanation provided)

 

This is YHVH’s warning, not mine. As people who put their faith in Yeshua (Jesus) as their Messiah, we are to become obedient children just as he was—walking in his flawless obedience.

 

As a fellow brother, written with Peace and Love towards you under the grace of our glorious Messiah Yeshua. Amen.

 

 Sean Esposito
 

Read the Bible. Obey God. Be like Messiah by keeping Torah.

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