The question then
becomes, " Why should I try to keep a law that was not only not meant for
me, but a law that even those that it was meant for could not keep."
I would be doing something both unnecessary and
impossible.
This logic
is circular and is far below you, Terry. Reread Luke 1:6 and Deuteronomy
30:11-14 again. Do you see how these two passages do not contradict each
other yet they call you a liar? Checked out both. They were
instructions for people under the law,(Jewish folk) They could be
considered righteous even after breaking the law by offering a sin
sacrifice. Paul says, "All have sinned". I take that to include
every one. The only reason that God has to see me as righteous is
that a sin sacrifice has been made for
me.
I can see why you, being
Jewish, might try to keep some of the traditions in order to keep peace in
the family, but to keep them because you feel that they are
necessary for salvation makes no sense to me.
I do not keep them in order to keep peace in the family. I do it
out of love and respect for my God and Messiah who said, "If you love me
keep my commandments." I am unable to separate the commandments like
fishermen catch and release fish. If God the Father said something in the
Older Testament Scriptures and Messiah said something in the Newer
Testament, I believe they came out of the same mouth. It is good
to know that though you are hung up on keeping the law, you are hung up
for an honorable reason.
Those laws were
not there in the beginning, and they are not here
now.
What part of "perpetual commandment" and "commandment throughout
your generations" do you not understand? Do you need me to list them for
you or can I trust in the accuracy of your concordance? A
covenant can be renewed just as a contract can be rewritten. When
that happens, the old version is void. If you get a mortgage at
twelve percent for thirty years, and five years later, get a better one
for six percent, you do not go on paying twelve percent. You go by
the terms in the new agreement.
They were here
for a time, to show you that you cannot possibly keep them and to show
that without a Savior you are totally lost.
I must insist that you stop contradicting Scripture. Please read
Luke 1:6 and Deuteronomy 30:11-14 once again. However, I will agree with
your last phrase ,"without a Savior you are totally lost. See the
above.
You cannot save
yourself. That is what Jesus found so frustrating about most
Pharisees. They were SELF righteous and needed no
Savior.
Save myself? You are comparing colors and tastes. Where do you
get the idea the Pharisees were self righteous and needed no Messiah?
From a bunch of places in the NT
They could do it
by keeping the law.
You don't seem to understand
that in the Jewish mindset, one did not NEED to keep the Teachings of
Moses as a substitution for a Savior. They are God's chosen People. WHY do
they need to do anything when it's guaranteed anyway? If there is anything
you understand from our dialogues, please know that it is impossible for
the Chosen People to misinterpret Scripture to read that they MUST keep
Torah as a substitute for a suffering Messiah. God chose this stiff
necked bunch to show that He could do very much with very little. We
look and see a great God, not a great
tribe.
People who
believed this did not just stumble into sin. Some of them wallowed
in it, and got so far off course as to end up sacrificing their own
children to idols. The law said "don't worship another god, and the
law said don't murder, but people under the law did both on many
occasions, so it is certainly no guarantee that living under a bunch of
rules will do anything except show you how sorry a bunch of people can
be.
SO WHAT!! SO WHAT!!! Your inability and your unwillingness to
submit to God's rules does not make His Just Teachings less significant.
However, be assured that when the books are opened during the Great White
Throne Judgment, your deeds since the recognition of Messiah will be
compared to Torah. How do you think you will fare? I pray you do better
than I will. I will stand there clothed with the righteousness of
Jesus Christ!
Even King David,
who loved the law, committed adultery and murder, so where is the
benefit? Why cling to something that is no longer useful? Why
not adopt the two commandments that Jesus gave every
believer?
Are you so much greater than David? He was a man
after God's own heart. If only you [and I] were HALF the man he was.
Again, you have fallen prey to that judgmental attitude so prevalent in
Christianity. By concentrating on David's weaknesses, you artificially
elevate your dreary walk with Messiah. Instead, may I suggest you compare
the time you spend walking the high road with David's so you can see just
how far you need to go to reach the dangling ends of his shoelaces?
David was an even worse husband than Abraham, and a far worse
father. I would put myself up against him in those two areas any
time, any where. When it comes to shooting a sling, he probably has
me hands down.
I know this is the raving of a madman to both you
and Jeff, but I am trying to understand why Jesus is not enough for you as
He is for me. What am I missing? How in the world can I get
you to see what I see as a great truth?
Why do you think that? Yeshua is all I need to gain
entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven. What you are missing and what you are
unable to see is that out of LOVE and ADORATION for the God of Avraham,
Isaac, and Jacob is the only reason I keep the
commandments. Interesting concept, isn't It. The reason Slade LIVES
is because Messiah loved him first and died for him. In response, the
Newer Testament tells me, "If you love me, keep my commandments." This, in
my opinion, includes them all. Messiah's culmination of the commandments
into two is a completely misunderstood concept to you. In a future email,
I will attempt to explain it to you. I must prayerfully request the Holy
Spirit to open your heart to what I write. Great idea. We will
pray for each other.
I am not trying to win an argument with either of
you. I am simply concerned that you cannot seem to comprehend
something so basic.
Thank you for your concern, Terry. Likewise, we are concerned for
you because you cannot seem to grasp something so
basic.
Terry
slade
