The reasons for my recent decision to leave the institutionalized church can be summed up in 2 parts:
#1 Because I can no longer serve YHVH (the way He wants me to as prescribed in the entire Bible) in the institutionalized church
and
#2 Because in my heart, I left a long time ago.
ONE OF THESE THINGS IS NOT LIKE THE OTHERS
Once I set my heart to really understand God's Word from a Hebraic perspective about a year and a half ago, I woke up to the truth of His Word, the whole thing, and I crossed over from pagan idolatry to the worship of the One True God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, through the shed blood of His Son Yeshua of Nazareth, or otherwise known by His Greek nickname, Jesus Christ. (Christ simply means Messiah, or anointed one). I have described this experience to friends as having been given a pair of 3-D or decoder glasses for a magazine I had been trying to read without them and could not understand its content. Now, as the metaphor would have it, the colors come LEAPING off the page and I see the scriptures so clearly now, the way they were meant to be seen. I even understand the Renewed Covenant (New Testament) so much more clearly whereas I could not before. Before it was murky and esoteric. Now it is wonderfully clear.
It is as if someone turned on the lights in a previously darkened room. I understand my Savior so much better now! I understand Him as Creator, Father, Husband, all those analogies we were told to see Him through but just could only see fragmented glimpses here and there.
I no longer see the Bible as this fragmented and cut up picture of God: old and grumpy in the Old Testament and all loving and dripping with syrupy sloppy agape in the New. I now see the entire counsel of the Word and the will of YHVH, He who lives forever and is to be praised. HalleluYah!
But before long, a problem arose. As I was entering deeply into His will for my life, walking in His feasts and Sabbaths and enjoying an intimacy with Him which I never knew possible (a feeling of He now knows me as friend, not just servant), I started to see the disconnect between my new-found life walking in His Torah and the beliefs, traditions, and practices of the church. Not just my church in paritcular, but the entire system known as the western institutionalized church. I had been taught Torahlessness (lawlessness) in that church system. I had been taught that His Torah (Hebrew for teachings, oftentimes translated into the Greek as Law) was not for believers in Jesus today. I had been taught in the institutionalized church that those (the laws of Moses) were for the Jews back then and that THE LAW had been "nailed to the cross". However, in my discovery of the truth of God's Word, I learned that the law is good and the commandment holy (Romans 7:12). I learned that, in fact, it was our transgressions, our inability to follow the teachings of YHVH and keep His commandments and the injunction against us for not doing so that was actually nailed to the cross. For it was our sin which was nailed to the execution stake of Yeshua, and the biblical definition of sin is transgression of the Torah. 1 John 3:4 states what the definition of sin is: Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. (emphasis mine).
I learned that the whole Word of Elohim (God) was forever. No part was ever meant to be done away with, contrary to doctrine in the Christian institutionalized church. Yeshua said this out of His own mouth. He said in Matthew 15:7, "Do not think that I came to abolish the law and the prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them." And in Matthew 24:35, Mark 13:31, and Luke 21:33, Yeshua said, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but my word will never pass away". What word was He talking about?? The entire thing!! For "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness..." (2 Timothy 3:16).
And yet, I learned in the institutionalized church (again I emphasize this is man's tradition, which is in contradiction to the scriptures) that Jesus did away with The Law in favor of a 2-command replacement called, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself" (a looser, more nebulous and subjective interpretation of the Lord's words).
In Matthew 5:18 Yeshua said, "For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled." Now, last time I looked, heaven and earth was still here. I suppose not one punctuation mark has passed away from the Law from God's perspective. So why does the church say it has? Could it be that the church has taught us wrong? That the traditions in church doctrine do not line up with the Word, the express will of Elohim? Proverbs 28:9 says, "He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer [shall be] abomination." I know of some praying churches that are lawless. What does this say about all our desires and efforts, our prayers, if we will not endure sound teaching or even be willing to hear it? 2 Timothy 4:3 says, "For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear."
I learned that there was a serious schism between what the church teaches and what the scripture actually says. Most of this schism stems from anti-semitism, replacement theology (and the related dispensational theology taught in every evangelical seminary in the western world). Not to mention the rudiments of Greek philosophy (such as Gnosticism) and the reasonings of man, which have intertwined themselves with the pure gospel, like a gnarly weed growing up to kill the good fruit of a vociferous tree. The roots of this in the church go back to Constantine the Roman emperor who detested the Jews and replaced all of YHVH's holy feast days (Leviticus 23) with the pagan practices of Easter (and subsequently Christmas as well), even though the scriptures are clear that God HATES idolatry. And also the tenets of Gnosticism which teach MENTAL ASCENT (or the importance of our BELIEF or CREED), rather than works or deeds. Some of the lies institutionalized by Constantine have been done away with in some segments of the body of Messiah. However, I have not found that the practice of idolatry or dispensational theology has been rooted out or corrected in any institutionalized church, even those churches who love the nation and people of Israel!
So if the church teaches by way of their tradition of sanctioning Easter and Christmas (see Jeremiah 10), as religious holidays, they do what Yeshua chastized the pharisees for. The pharisees were following and teaching a tradition in violation of the Word of God called the "Oral Torah". Jesus said to them, "And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?" (Matthew 15:3). The institutionalized church actually teaches me to break the commandment of God, and yes, to break even their 2-command replacement which they say is to love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength. For if the institutionalized church, by way of their doctrines and practices were to teach me to love God with everything that is within me, they would encourage me toward OBEDIENCE to the will of God, and NOT ENCOURAGE me toward the practice of idolatry with their annual Christmas parties and Easter egg hunts and Easter Sunday sunrise services. You can do just a minimal amount of searching on the internet to find out that the roots of these practices are indeed pagan. In some humorous attempts, even the pagans are telling Christians they want their holidays back!
To view an excellent article on the American Christian's favorite pagan holiday, check out this link: http://atschool.eduweb.co.uk/sbs777/vital/xmas.html
Or read "Too Long in the Sun" By Richard Reeves.
And read Jeremiah chapter 10 on the explicit instructions of how to cut down and decorate a Christmas tree! (And what the Almighty thinks of it).
There is another doctrine in the institutionalized church called "we are under grace, not under law", which is how the institutionalized Christian rationalizes all these things. They get this doctrine, in part, by taking a quote from Romans 8:2. Yes, it is true that in Messiah, you are free from a law, but what law are you freed from? NOT the LAW of Moses or the Torah, whether it be God's moral, ceremonial, or civil law. According to Jesus, those have not been doen away with! What Paul is talking about here is being freed (in Messiah by His atoning blood) from the law of sin and death....When you sin, you break God's law and are handed over to the enemy and subject to another "law" called the law of sin and death. It is THAT law (the penalty of sin) which Yeshua has freed us from. Paul is using a play on words here. Paul never spoke against following the Laws of God or any other such nonsense. Look at his actions! He observed Sabbath, he observed all of the commanded feasts of the Lord, (and not just because he was born Jewish), he circumcised Timothy, preached in the synagogues, and even silenced his accusers with His love of Torah. And yet, the modern institution known as the church teaches that Paul taught we are not to follow the Law. Truly Peter was right when he said of Paul in 2 Peter 3:16, "His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction."
The church also taught me not to keep the fourth commandment which is to honor the Sabbath (which is Saturday- the seventh day), in favor of a man-made tradition instituted by Constantine which honors SUNDAY above all other days, which in actuality is in honor of the sun god. Now, we can worship God on any day. And we can gather together on any day. You and I can gather on any given day, but that does not make it the Sabbath. There is only ONE day which He made holy (set apart) for rest. That is the seventh day. He never changed it. In fact, in scripture, it is a DAY (the Sabbath-Saturday), not a man, not a position, not a nation, not an article of clothing, which was the first thing that was mentioned which was called holy. Try throwing that one out at a church potluck!
Surely, those who changed the set-apart feast days of YHVH (Leviticus 23), replacing them with pagan festivals such as Easter and child-mass, which later became known as Christmas, as led by the charge of Constantine, had no authority from the Creator whatsoever to do this. Since almost every denomination of the western institutionalized church has not reversed such a wicked decree, they are equally as guilty for taking part.
Moreover, the fact that the institutionalized church is run as a corporate money-making, revenue-turning business that must “grow” in quantity in order to succeed (nevermind the mandate Yeshua gave to make disciples, not converts or patrons and that Shaul, the apostle Paul charged Timothy to teach a faithful man to be effective for the kingdom, not to create pew warmers), that is enough to turn off the true seeker of the truth, not to mention make the assembly so lukewarm as to make the Master want to spew that assembly out of His mouth! Perhaps this is why warnings against judges taking bribes (monetary gain in exchange for their services) were given in the desert to the children of Israel. The Pharisees of Yeshua’s day (a paid position in society) certainly were guilty of this practice which has the tendency to deceive men. It seems this leaven of mammon has tried to gain its way into the holy community from the beginning and it is large and in charge of the corporate-run church today.
Suffice it to say, the church I attended and was involved in leadership with was not in agreement with what were for me, these new-found truths. (Although they are not new at all, but have been the intent of the Creator from the beginning). Although I spoke the truth from scripture every chance I got, I never got a direct rebuke, however, I heard the word "legalism" from the pulpit more times than I care to count, as well as general references to a "religious spirit" (isn't someone who has a religious spirit in favor of man-made religion, rather than the Word of God, which is the perfect teaching of liberty? That is the quintessential pot calling the kettle black) Nevertheless, when I gently and lovingly confronted leadership about these incongruencies, I was met with blank stares or disagreement. Just as I knew I would be, I had been marginalized. Although a visiting evangelist friend of this church prophesied over me that I was to "speak the vision" to (them), which I did share the message which YHVH had made clear I was to give. It has (thus far) fallen on deaf ears. I am very hopeful that with the Lord everything is possible and that many of them will come to have their spiritual eyes opened, as He has done for me, and that they will be like the servant in the parable who started off saying no, but ultimately said yes. He who has an ear let him hear. May he who has a love of the truth not be deceived by the grand delusion which the Almighty will be sending in the last days to those who loved not the truth.
I love my friends at my old church. I am saddened, in a way that I had to part ways with them. And it was due to nothing personal, but rather a vast doctrinal differences which I have enumerated here. I could no longer go against my conscience by participating in the things they are in agreement with. It is like I said to them in my resignation from leadership: if I had been in the Lutheran, Pentacostal, Methodist, community, covenant, AG church....you name it, I would be leaving any of those churches as well.
The fact of the matter is I am not in agreement with the tenets of the institutionalized church. Period. And I haven't been for quite some time. I have felt this difference and this separateness for more than a couple seasons and can no longer condone. To do so would only cause confusion and disorder. It is not fair to others nor myself. And I certainly cannot continue to serve the YHVH in such a manner.
THE URGENCY OF TIME
Now more than ever it is of the utmost importance that we serve YHVH and Him alone (His Son Yeshua, who is YHVH in the flesh/ WHO wrote the 10 commandments with His finger? None other than the Holy One of Israel, Yeshua Ha Mashiach, Jesus the Messiah).
We stand on the precipice of a period of time known as Daniel's prophetic week, or the 7 year period prior to Messiah Yeshua's return. It is imperative NOW more than ever to obey Him and for Him to find us watching and waiting, serving Him faithfully, when He comes! It is of the utmost importance that we serve Him and Him alone, doing ALL He has said to do and occupying until He comes. If that means we separate ourselves from doctrinal error, man's traditions, even friends and/or family in order to do that, then so be it. I think there are many in the church who think this separating out which is going on, between those who want to follow Yeshua and His Torah with everything that is within them, and those who just want us all to get along in unity, is of the enemy. Well, I ask you to remember the words of Yeshua Himself who said, "Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword." (Matthew 10:34). Many times in scripture, the Word (Torah, instructions) is referred to as a sword. Also, Yeshua said if we do not hate our (various family members) in comparison to HIM, we are not worthy of Him. Moreover, He said if our right eye causes us to sin, we are to gauge it out! That's pretty harsh. The message remains, however, that if something causes us to transgress His Law, go against His instructions/commandments, we are to get rid of it.
In my impassioned and idealistic, albeit naive way, I tried to change the system. Or in my case, my local church congregation. However, there is a greater spiritual reality at work when a church is not only run by leaders who have been trained in seminary with all of the man-made traditions and doctrines I have mentioned above, but also when the body is incorporated with the government and/or has 501 c3 status. They are hooked into the system, part of which is Babylon, with this financial and logistical umbilical cord. The church or ministry in question must pull the plug or else it continues to open itself up to attack from the head. From the head of WHAT? From the head of government which belongs to Cesar. (Render unto Cesar what is Cesar, unto Elohim what is Elohim’s) When the church submits to Cesar, rather than to Elohim (God), it is not easy to transform it into the image of the incorruptible Elohim. In order to receive the new wine, a new wineskin must be created. I cannot change the old wineskin nor can new wine be poured in, lest it break. It is like trying to change the stripes on a tiger. It does not work. That is why Jesus said we had to COME OUT OF HER [Babylon] (Rev. 18:4). He did not say rehabilitate her.
Remember, Jesus Himself said "he who endures til the end, the same shall be saved". There is also described a great "Falling Away" from truth in the last days. And as we are living in the end times, it is important to note the description of those in the book of Revelation (14:12 and also 12:17) who obey God's commanments and remain faithful to Jesus (or who hold the testimony of Yeshua). Now, I used to view this scripture from my Greek philosophy/dispensationanalist glasses and think this was talking about 2 separate groups: the Jews being one group and those gentiles who come to believe in Jesus during the tribulation period as a separate group. I have since changed my thinking on this: this is not 2 separate groups, but ONE GROUP. Both of these defining characteristics apply to them.
Moreover, over and over in the letters to the churches in Revelation, Yeshua Himself addresses the theme of each church's "works". A case could be made that even in the last days, Yeshua is looking at our works (not just what we believe, say, feel, or sing) and, in fact, our obedience. Such works or obedience, as Revelation makes clear, determines our rewards. While He was on the earth, Yeshua said it like this in Matthew 5:19, "Anyone who breaks 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 practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven." He is talking here of REWARDS, not SALVATION, for those who are in the kingdom of God already have salvation. I have made this point over and over again. Walking in Torah has nothing to do with earning salvation through our works. We have salvation through the blood of the Lamb of God (Yeshua/Jesus) ONLY. But even the Lamb of God said to "follow Him". We are to walk as He walked. We are to do as He did. We are to obey all of God's commandments. Salvation is the beginning point. He set us free from sin so that we could serve Him as outlined in His instructions.
BUT, BUT, BUT.....
I have heard so many objections to observing all of the Lord's commandments today in Messiah. I have even heard people say, well, it says to stone your children outside the camp if they disobey...are you saying we should do THAT TOO?! My answer to that is some will be fulfilled in the millenial kingdom. If God said it, just because we are not doing it today, or because we don't fully understand it yet, does not mean it is not His intent. Yeah, I am sure there are things that will be re-instituted in Yeshua's Millenial kingdom such as the strict and fair punishments which He decreed in His Word. It says He will rule the nations with a rod of iron. I am sure He has provisions for all of His Word to be fulfilled, even if we do not understand it right now. (the above punishment was not the first resort, by the way. It is my understanding that it was enacted when willfull and unrepentant rebellion took root). However, when our modern conceptions of what we think ought to be conflict with the Words of Yeshua Himself, we should be willing to re-examine our understanding of things, not blindly accept others' opinions or interpretations, or likewise, not find the most extreme example in order to discredit the whole.
NOW WHAT?
Since I have decided to leave the institutionalized church, I have not decided to take myself out of fellowship with the Body of Messiah. That would be contrary to His instructions to "assemble yourselves together and all the more as you see That Day approaching". In fact, there is a vast growing movement of people who have come to similar conclusions as I have and who gather themselves together on a regular basis. Such are part of a movement of the Holy Spirit of which He is restoring His Torah in this hour, in our generation. Many of these people are part of the greater messianic movement, attend messianic congregations, but many of them opt to meet in homes instead, in a loosely-organized group, just as the believers did in the first century. The people I have been connecting with and fellowshipping with have a great love for the Torah and study it, holding everything in the scriptures up to its foundation and even endeavor to interpret the prophecies, which are being fulfilled in our times, according to this Torah perspective. After all, it is through the Torah that YHVH provided for and promised redemption, restoration, and His future kingdom. All teachings, and interpretations of prophecy must undergo the rigorous exam of lining up with the truths of the Torah. Yeshua was the Torah made flesh (John 1:14). He followed every commandment. He fulfilled the spring feasts of the Lord in His first coming. He is about to fulfill the fall feasts in His soon return.
To know the times and seasons, as we are commanded to do to watch for His return, we must not only know the feasts (Hebrew moedim-appontments) of Elohim, but we are to be walking in them, making them part of our lives and indeed our service to Him. We will not know the times and seasons as He commanded us to do, if we do not follow the Creator's calendar. His calendar, as marked by His spring and fall festivals, which are according to the lunar cycle, is the time markers by which He does anything. He does not do things according to the Gregorian solar calendar, of which the anti-christ system goes by. If we want to know His will for the times and seasons, we must become familiar with his calendar which are outlined in the scriptures. Additionally, he has promised to not do anything unlesss He first tells His servants, the prophets. The prophets of YHVH, by His own definition, will NOT be those who participate in the worship of other gods. Which is why I do not listen to those professed "prophets" in the Body of Messiah who participate in the church's celebrations of Christmas and Easter. By the Torah's definition, these are false teachers and I am not to follow or heed what they say. The prophets of YHVH will be those who foretell accurately AND refuse to bow down to idols. They will teach the Word of Yah in its entirety, not according to a dispensational view. They will not set out to do ear-tickling. They will probably offend the sensibilities of every single one of us. They will hold fast to the Word of Elohim, for let God be true and every man a liar.
How important is it that we do not follow wrong teaching and/or voices or opinions, or even our own feelings and spiritual experiences-which can deceive us- in these last days? EXTREMELY! Yeshua told us in Matthew 24 to not let any man deceive us. He said this during His discussion of the last days with His disciples. We have been sorely deceived! We have been utterly DUPED!- into thinking lawlessness is ok with God, that He forgives, no matter what (don't forget what He will say on That Day to the workers of iniquity- those who transgress the Law- He will say 'Depart from me...I never knew you').
In order to follow the Messiah with my whole heart, mind, and soul in this very important hour, I can come to no other conclusion than to join hundreds of other believers who have seen the truth of His Word to begin to "Come out of her [Babylon] my people, lest ye partake of her sins and receive of her plagues" (Revelation 18:4). I have found it to be an important step in order to shake off the sins which so easily beset (us) and to make myself ready for the very difficult days ahead preceeding His coming.
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