Circumcision

The teaching of Scripture on circumcision is very clear in the Old Testament and not always so clear in the New Testament, mostly because of what Paul seems to say. Paul was a Torah teacher, a Torah lawyer it seemed, extremely skilled in knowledge of the Law of YHVH as well as in the human tradition/religion of Judaism. Peter states that Paul said some things which those who were unlearned in Torah (Gentiles), or unstable in faith (Jews) twisted and perverted. Paul never said he came to start yet another religion. He urged his readers to follow him as He followed Yeshua. If he followed Yeshua, then he followed the One who walked perfectly in the commandments, not twisting them. Paul bases his teaching on the Torah. That is the best place to begin learning about circumcision.

And God said to Abraham, "As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations. This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised. Every male throughout your generations, whether born in your house or bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring, both he who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money, shall surely be circumcised. So shall my covenant be in your flesh an everlasting covenant. Any uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin shall be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant." Genesis 17:9-14

Note that this is a covenant between Abraham, who was not a ‘Jew’ or even an ‘Israelite’, and YHVH. Remember, this predates the Torah being given at Mt Sinai/Horeb. It shows us some of the many elements of the Torah that were already there before it was formally given to the Israelites as a whole.

Note that in this passage in Genesis; it is only those born into Abraham’s family that belonged in the covenant, as well as those foreigners who were ‘bought with his money’ as servants, and those born to him from those servants.

And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "This is the statute of the Passover: no foreigner shall eat of it, but every slave that is bought for money may eat of it after you have circumcised him. No foreigner or hired servant may eat of it. It shall be eaten in one house; you shall not take any of the flesh outside the house, and you shall not break any of its bones. All the congregation of Israel shall keep it. If a stranger shall sojourn with you and would keep the Passover to the LORD, let all his males be circumcised. Then he may come near and keep it; he shall be as a native of the land. But no uncircumcised person shall eat of it. There shall be one law for the native and for the stranger who sojourns among you." Exodus 12:44-49

Here we find provision made for the foreigner (stranger) who lived among the native born Israelites as one of them. He was not to be treated differently. He didn’t have to observe the Passover, in order to live among the Israelites. But he was not called one of God’s people then either. IF he wanted to honour YHVH in observing the Passover, THEN he had to first become as one of them. ONE LAW for all God’s people.

Deuteronomy 10 and 11 speak about the faith that must be present and precede ritual observance. Note all the times the people are warned to keep all the commandments, and for how long they are to observe them all…

"And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments and statutes of the LORD, which I am commanding you today for your good? Behold, to the LORD your God belong heaven and the heaven of heavens, the earth with all that is in it. Yet the LORD set his heart in love on your fathers and chose their offspring after them, you above all peoples, as you are this day. Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stubborn. For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe. He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing. Love the sojourner, therefore, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt…"

You shall therefore love the LORD your God and keep his charge, his statutes, his rules, and his commandments always…

You shall therefore keep the whole commandment that I command you today, that you may be strong…

And if you will indeed obey my commandments that I command you today…"

You shall therefore lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall teach them to your children, talking of them when you are sitting in your house, and when you are walking by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates…

For if you will be careful to do all this commandment that I command you to do, loving the LORD your God, walking in all his ways, and holding fast to him…

"See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse: the blessing, if you obey the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you today, and the curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the LORD your God, but turn aside from the way that I am commanding you today…

…you shall be careful to do all the statutes and the rules that I am setting before you today.

Now note this in Deuteronomy 30:6

And the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live.

You can also read Jeremiah 4:4, 9:25 and John 7:22 (where Yeshua talks about the 8^th day circumcision not being given by Moses, but from ‘the fathers’ or Abraham, Isaac and Jacob). There were two customs, the one from the fathers (which Yeshua referred to) and the one from Moses (or supposedly from Moses) which had added human custom. See Acts 15:1. Paul made a distinction.

Yet remember, Paul had Timothy circumcised. So we cannot say he was against circumcision. We could say he spoke strongly against the misuse or misinterpretation of circumcision. It was not a commitment made to serve human religious tradition. It was never meant to show acceptance by Israel of foreigners, but by YHVH of the foreigners. Paul says:

Do not present your members (parts of your body) to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members (parts of the body) to God as instruments for righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. Romans 6:13-18

Sheep or Goats?

"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right (the sheep), 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.' Then the righteous will answer him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?' And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.'

"Then he will say to those on his left (the goats), 'Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.' Then they also will answer, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?' Then he will answer them, saying, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.' And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life." Matthew 25:31-46

There are clear similarities between sheep and goats. They are both given as ‘clean’ animals by God, for sacrifice and for food. They pasture together and they are both cared for by the same shepherd. The Middle Eastern sheep and goats even look remarkably similar.

Yet there are distinct differences too.

Sheep are compliant and easily handled, they are trusting and easily led. Sheep love to follow the shepherd, and will even follow an irresponsible one. When fed properly in a lush green field, sheep will lie down in an attitude of submission and trust. They have a strong flocking instinct, can seem distant and aloof, yet will recognize a familiar face, both human and sheep. They become agitated if separated from their flock, as they know their only protection from predators is to band closely together. If a predator is threatening the flock, sheep do not act independently!

Sheep are not likely to be where there is agitation and discord; they are skittish in those situations. 

Goats, on the other hand, are by nature pushy, independent, headstrong and self-sufficient. They do not graze, they browse; a little here and a little there, they wander. They are naturally curious. They easily revert back to a wild condition if given a chance. They are naturally quarrelsome and have short tempers. They rear and butt to establish dominance. They would rather lead than follow. 

Most of us probably have some characteristics of both sheep and goats. But at the heart, we are really either one or the other. Do we follow the Shepherd and His way, trusting completely in Him for our physical and spiritual care? Or do we follow only somewhat, preferring to blaze our own ultimately self sufficient trail of re-interpretation and independence?

We know that we cannot please God without faith. Faith is trust in Him that is actively lived out in our daily life: in our thoughts, in our words, in our actions. The faith/trust must come first; our actions are acceptable to Him only when they flow from trust in Him. So it is well worth considering just how much and how far do we trust Him? Are we sheep…or goats?

Eve

We can learn much by taking a closer look at how Eve sinned. How did Eve sin, and how can we learn to be overcomers against sin?

God gave Adam and Eve everything they needed for health and happiness. They were created to know good, to continually be enjoying the presence of God with no cares or sorrows, to know the joy of freedom, and to choose life. He wanted them to love Him willingly, not as robots, so He gave them choice to obey His good Law or not. The choice came in the form of one tree which they were told not to eat from. We are told the tree was called the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. The Hebrew word here translated ‘knowledge’ describes a personal and profound knowledge of both good AND evil. They were not meant to have the burden of knowing such things.

So if they had everything they could ever hope for, what would make them want to risk that? If we look closely at the words of Satan, the Deceiver, we get some clues. Satan chose to approach Eve. Was that perhaps because women in general are more spiritually sensitive? It was appealing to Eve that she could be more like God if she ate the fruit, that maybe it possessed something special that could make her even better than she was. It is quite possible she saw this as only a good thing. There was something in her that responded to the words of the Deceiver. Maybe she wasn’t good enough? Maybe she could be even better? Eve chose to believe the words of the Deceiver rather than the words of her Creator. He DID make her good enough. When she chose to disbelieve God and the rule of His good law, she chose to believe the Deceiver and accept the rule of sin over her life; she chose to willfully disobey God. What a mistake.

God has given us all the ability to trust in Him alone. He expects us all to do that, and live it out by obeying Him. It isn’t too hard to do that, as Moses says in Deuteronomy 30:11-20. We can each do that directly, we don’t need someone to teach us how to do it. We trust. And trust always obeys. It’s just that simple! And yet it is the hardest thing we are called to do, isn’t it? We will continue to battle against that voice that speaks lies. But battle we must! James says in chapter 4 of his excellent letter that if we resist Satan, he will flee from us. It does get easier.

When we turn against God and believe Satan, we are actually rejecting God and His rule over us. He made us, and of course He has the right to rule over us! He doesn’t rule in harshness, He rules fairly and His ways are for our ultimate good. If we accept them! In right judgment, He will eventually allow those who persist in rejecting His ways and His right to rule over them, to go their own way. The way that they have chosen leads to eternal separation from Him.

Christians generally know the Saviour as ‘Jesus’. That is an English form of a Greek translation of a Hebrew name. The documents we have of the New Testament are written in Greek, and the Hebrew name of the Messiah was changed to Greek (Iesous) and then changed again to English (Jesus). The Hebrew name means ‘salvation’. Doesn’t that fit?

When we trust in God, we receive Yeshua (Jesus) - we receive salvation from our sin. Full and complete! We are delivered from sin. So it is as if once again we are standing in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve, looking at those two trees. What will we choose? Will we resist the temptation to choose another rule over us? Or will we stand firm and trust, and in trusting, obey?

In Micah 6:8 the question is asked: What does God want from His people? And the answer is: to love mercy, to love what is right, and to never put ourselves equal to or ahead of God, but to walk with Him humbly! That is what Adam and Eve did every day in the Garden. We have been brought back into that relationship with Him through faith in His salvation (in the person of Yeshua – Jesus).

But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.

For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through Adonai Yeshua Messiah, who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep (whether we have died as believers, and will be resurrected, or whether we are still living) we might live with him (for eternity).

Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.

(1 Thessalonians 5:8-11)

Simple Bible Study

Some steps to getting started or digging a little deeper

1. Pray! Thank God for His Word, ask for His blessing on your time of study, and for His Spirit to

teach you.

For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the LORD, and to do it… Ezra 7:10

2. Where to start? At the beginning! Genesis 1:1…

a) If you have some time, read an entire book (all of Genesis, for example) in a few sittings. Look, in a general sense, for how God expresses Himself, and how He accepts our worship of Him.

b) Or, try reading the same section (start with a chapter or two) in several different translations. You might want to compare the English Standard Version (ESV), the New American Standard Bible (NASB) and the Amplified Version (AMP) to begin. You can find these online at www.biblegateway.com or find book copies at a second hand store (or look in your church library).

Then, if you want to dig deeper, look up the passage online at a site like http://bible.cc/

Use the Interlinear translation (the Hebrew/English) for Old Testament readings, and the Apostolic Polyglot (Greek/English) for New Testament readings. Remember Hebrew is read right to left, don’t let it confuse you! Instead, use this step mostly for clicking on specific words you’d like more information on, and searching out the expanded meanings. Then, with a fuller understanding, read the Bible section again.

c) After you’ve read a book, for example, Genesis, go back and study the lives of the godly people in it. In Genesis that would include Enoch, Noah, Shem and Abraham. Look up their names on a site like www.biblegateway.com on a word search, then study all the verses/passages that apply. Look for what pleased God in the lives of these people. How was their faith and trust in God lived out in their lives?

The fear (reverence, awe) of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. (Proverbs 9:10)

3. Once you’ve read through a section, you can use a ‘chain’ bible or an online website like www.biblegateway.com to study cross referenced verses in any sections you’d like more

information on.

4. Depending on how much depth or organization you are comfortable with, you might want to keep

a simple notebook as you read. Use one page to write down questions that come up. Leave room to note passages or insights as you continue study. You could use another page to keep track of

the date and what you’ve read.

5. This is the most important step: as you learn what pleases God…think and pray about how

best to live that out in a way that honours HIM. Then...do it!

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 5:3-4)

6. If you find it difficult to read and comprehend, if it is easier to listen instead of read, use software or CD’s of the Bible. If you feel most comfortable with a teacher, download lessons from a site like www.torahclass.com. These are excellent lessons which teach the Bible from the Bible, and you will hear a lot of Scripture read in each lesson.

WHAT EXACTLY IS 'THE EMERGING CHURCH'?

The 'emerging' or 'emergent' church, in general, is a response to a postmodern-thinking generation that likes to believe as each one sees fit. 

There is no single authourity recognized, each defines "God" in his own way, according to his own needs or desires. 

As Rob Bell (an emergent preacher) puts it, "I need a God who's now." You can see from that statement (among many he makes) that the emphasis is on 'me' and God accommodating Himself to 'my' needs, not the other way around. 

There is little talk of repentance in the emergent church, though much about our perceived needs that are not being met. 

It has a veneer of respectability, but its message is often subversive, with emphasis on subjective interpretation. 

It is, however, very appealing to many people who feel that 'church' isn't working for them, and who want something new (2 Timothy 4:3-4). 

It's not new of course. It was also the religion of choice in the time before Samuel (Judges 21:25) when there was no one authourity, but 'each man did what was right in his own eyes.' We are in that time again. We know from Romans 15:4 and 1 Corinthians 10:11 that the examples recorded in the Scriptures (Old Testament) were given for US who live in these last days. We also see from these examples in the Old Testament that a king (Saul) would rise up and be welcomed by the people, after their heart, and then a king (David) after the heart of God would replace him. 

This is a pattern for what is coming. The emergent church movement is working in, and together with the world, to demand that first king after the heart of the people. 

Rick Warren (authour of Purpose Driven books, the global P.E.A.C.E. plan, he is also a spiritual adviser to U.S. President Obama) is working hard on his global peace initiative, along with many other very influential people. 

We don't know who the people's 'king' is, only that the beginnings are happening. We are told in Matthew 24 that the end (return of Messiah) will not come until many will come and deceive many people in the name of world peace. We know from the Bible that we cannot have true world peace without Messiah's return, but that is not the message being preached now. A message preached today says that we can establish peace FOR Messiah, and so hasten His return, to our benefit! 

Read the Word...study to be approved to God...learn to wield the weapon of Truth correctly. 'See that no one leads you astray'. Matthew 24:4

ON PRAYER

Recently we’ve seen a huge increase in teachers and teachings on prayer. These teachings have been around a while, but only now is it coming into mainstream churches in force.

You know, there are few specifics on how to pray that are taught in Scripture. The disciples asked Yahshua how to pray, and He gave them the most basic of instructions as well a model for prayer that was astounding (some might have found it insulting) in its simplicity. Also interesting is that He taught a 'one-way’ prayer that did not assume or expect God to speak back! The instructions were to pray simply, directly and privately to our Father, in confidence, faith and trust that He hears. That kind of faith is not necessary if it is expected that our answers will be received in prayer.

In questioning the many different teachings on prayer, and wondering how it was that God wanted us to pray, I turned to the Bible. In reading through the gospels, I did not find any instances where Yahshua prayed to the Father, and the Father answered back! Even and most notably in His longest recorded prayer in John 17, there is NO recorded response from the Father! Is that not something to bear in mind? Popular teaching claims that if we, at our initiation, clear our minds of distractions and make solitude our physical presence, that WE will hear the voice of God, that He will speak as we desire? If Yahshua did not pray in order to hear this voice should we be entering into this?

Are we meant to go beyond what is clearly taught in Scripture in this way? Or to spiritualize and reinterpret the literal meanings of Scripture verses, taking them out of their intended context to fit a teaching? Does this please God, or make us feel more connected to Him (or what we think is Him)?

I searched the Scriptures to find instances of a person praying in certain ways, and listening, and God responding in the stillness of that prayer, and did not find any. I also looked up any Scripture verses given in these teachings on prayer, and found the vast majority of them were spiritualized often completely out of context. There is great warning here, these are not clean’ things.

An obedient life and a washed clean pure heart coupled with knowledge of spiritual light and darkness, the understanding that comes from diligent study, the wisdom that comes from above, and a heart yielded to His will, will enable and equip us with power to test everything we hear, and to come into a right prayer relationship with Him. And to rest in confidence in that. While it is definitely true (biblical) that the Spirit of God will counsel, guide and direct us, nowhere are we told that God requires our stillness or silence in order for this counsel to be ‘heard’.

He is God, He will be heard.

Colossians 2 - Part 1

When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. (from Colossians 2, New International Version)

Most Christian believers understand this passage to mean that Paul is teaching the ‘Jewish’ things of the Old Testament, including the Law of Moses, ended with the arrival of Christ. And that we actually sin now if we hold to any of them, as they have 'only the appearance of wisdom, with their false humility and harsh treatment of the body' (verse 23).

But is that really what Paul is saying? 

The above passage is from the New International Version, a very popular modern Bible. There are translation word choices made in this passage that affect its overall meaning. Let’s compare a couple of the verses in this passage with some from the Apostolic Bible, which is a more literal word for word rendering from Greek to English, beginning in this Part 1 with verse 14:

....having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. (NIV)

....having wiped away the (against us handwriting by the decrees) which was contrary to us, and he has lifted it from out of the midst, having fastened it with a nail to the cross: (Apostolic Bible Polyglot)

The words translated ‘wiped away’ is the Greek word exaleiphó. In Strong’s Greek Lexicon (a fancy word for dictionary) it is listed as G1813, G stands for Greek and 1813 is the numerical value Strong’s has assigned to it, in its dictionary of word translations. Strong’s renders this word as ‘blot out, to wipe out, erase, obliterate, to smear out, to erase tears, figuratively to pardon sin.’ 

Now what exactly was the ‘written code’ that was wiped out or pardoned? Where the NIV uses ‘written code’ the Greek word here is cheirographon, which is Strong’s 5498, translated by them as ‘manuscript, a (handwritten) document, legal note, bond, certificate of debt, record of debt’. This is the only occurrence of this word in the entire Bible!

So we can see immediately that it cannot be the Law that was canceled or blotted out, for the word ‘Law’ appears many times in the New Testament. What it says here was canceled, blotted out, forgiven…was the legal record of debt against us.

We know that ‘the soul that sins shall die’ (Ezekiel 18:4 and 20) and that Adam and Eve were told that if they disobeyed the Law God gave them and ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they would ‘surely die’ (Genesis 2:17). We also know that the sentence of death, the record of debt which hung over everyone before it was canceled, was not immediately carried out. In other words, it remained outstanding. People continued to live, Adam and Eve did not die immediately. The legal note and its sentence of death remained in force. Until Yeshua canceled it!

The NIV translates the phrase (against us handwriting by the decrees) used in the Polyglot as ‘the written code, with its regulations’. This makes it sound like the Law, doesn’t it? We know so far that the ‘written code’ was the legal record of debt against us, not the Law. But what are the ‘regulations’ the NIV is referring to?

This word (in Greek) is dogma. It is also a word used in English, though its English use is different. The Greek word is Strong’s G1378, and is rendered ‘decree, an opinion, a (public) decree, a civil, ceremonial or ecclesiastical law or ordinance’. This word is used (though in slightly different forms) twice in the Bible. 

The next part of the verse says (NIV) ‘that was against us and stood opposed to us’ and (Polyglot) ‘which was contrary to us’. The word ‘contrary’ is hupenantios, Strong’s G5227, and is rendered ‘adversary, set over against, opposite, contrary to, opposed to, as an opponent or adversary’. It has one other similar use in the entire Bible, translated ‘adversary’ in Hebrews 10:27. In that use, it refers to the adversaries who will be judged and devoured by fire. There is no reference anywhere in Scripture that it is the Law of God which is our adversary and which God will judge and devour with His fire!

So far, we could rephrase this verse in an expanded form, as:

…having wiped out, obliterated, pardoned the sin of the legal record of debt, with its decree, that was our adversary and stood against us.