Hebrew Roots Movement Vs. Western Christianity - Who Is Right?
My Thoughts:
Both sides sort of missing the entire picture. Its as if well meaning on both sides are describing the same object from two different angles and then denying the other person's perspective.
With that being said, I think there is dangerous pitfalls on both sides of the debate. Where you can go to an extreme and find yourself in danger of compromising the
Gospel.
Jesus came to fulfill the law. God changes not, but he does change various minor rules (as His Law applies differently to various stages of life, situations, etc).
Matthew 5:17 - "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the
Prophets"
Hebrews 7:12 - "For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law"
http://www.awarenessministry.org/lawofgodtorahinstruction
.htm
TO
PUT IT IN SIMPLEST TERMS:
One
Side:
God's Law does not change.
Other Side: God completely changed his Law.
Both sides being partially right.
IN
REALITY: God's Overall Law does not change, but small laws do change.
So, to say nothing changed at all would be wrong. To say Jesus changed everything would be even more wrong.
I DO
THINK SOME GO A LITTLE OUT THERE WITH THEIR HEBREW
ROOTS MOVEMENT SLANTS:
1. WEARING OF THE TALLIT
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jo62EUXdHi4
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tallit
http://www.jewsforjesus.org/publications/newsletter/september-1993/tallit
The idea being so you do not forget
God's law, the tassels will remind you. And from what I understand it adds up to
613 laws.
So, would a
Christian need to use one today?
I believe this ia an example of a Law that was fulfilled. As in the case with circumcision, the tallit was a
symbol of having
God's Word in your heart.
2. CIRCUMCISION:
Colossians 2:11 - "In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:"
So also, the prayer cloth was to remind you of God's Law, now the Law is written on your hearts. -
Hebrews 10:16 - "I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;"
3. EATING UNCLEAN ANIMALS:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Peter's_vision_of_a_sheet_with_animals
Hebrew Roots Movement leaders, such as "Jim Staley" will tell you that the scripture appears to be going back and forth on whether certain animals (such as pigs) are clean or unclean
.. And will
point to this as a misunderstanding of the context of scripture (which may be the case, not sure)
.
50 minutes - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AcHukVMPC88
With
Mark 7, I believe Jesus was saying it is the violation of God's command that makes you unclean, not the actual physical flesh in your stomach. Jim Staley misses this point by trying to make it as if "food" in of itself is by default only referring to clean animals. However, it is possible Jesus is actually saying it is the violation of
God's Command that makes you spirtually unclean, rather than the physical food itself.
In
Genesis 9:3 -
55 minutes - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AcHukVMPC88
Acts 10:12-16 -
Jim Staley misunderstands this passage, because he believes that Mark 7 must be interpreted a ceratin way, to where Jesus is only refering to "clean food". In reality, Jesus was saying that it is violation of God's law, that is what makes you unclean, not the actual physical flesh in your stomach. So, it is rebelling against God's command to not eat unclean animals that makes you unclean, not the actual flesh itself of the animal. THIS is what Jim does not understand.
So, with that being said, if God changes the law, there is more uncleanness. Because again, it is the sin of the heart, not the food in the stomach that makes one unclean.
So, Jesus was not declaring in Mark 7 that it was OK to eat unclean animals, but rather showing is the actual sin in the act of eating an unclean animal (rebelling against God's
Command).
Yet, if that command was
undone by
Jesus death on the
Cross, and by
Peter's follow up vision, it would mean there is no longer any violation in eating what was called "common" or "unclean".
4. THE SABBATH:
Sabbath
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHV1ONSeBt4
http://www.godrules.net/articles/sabbath.htm
First Day Of The
Week:
http://www.torahtimes.org/
Open%20Directory/Debunking_the_Gender_Argument
.html
http://www.godrules.net/para2/act/paraecfact20-7.htm
ZACHARY BAUER'S
VIDEO: (STEVE ANDERSON EXPOSED PT 1):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uIllc2t-5N8
STANDARD WESTERN
CHRISTIAN RESPONSE TO HEBREW ROOTS (SOME NOT ALL):
1.
We are under
Grace, not the Law.
2. Jesus gave us a "new" law.
3. We are saved by faith, not works (and they have issue with those who keep the Torah).
Terminology
Issues: Torah = Law.
Jesus fulfilled the Law, and did not do away with it. However, somethings were fulfilled in the
New Covenant, so
Moses Law got a "face lift".