Most Christians have no idea what Torah is. Many will know that it has something to do with "the Jews" and assume, because that is what their priests have taught them, that it is something that belongs to 'Judaism' and not to them. It may come as a surprise to you to learn that millions of Christians, influenced by the earliest teachings of Martin Luther, have been taught that there is something 'bad' about 'law', 'commandments', or 'rules' of any kind. There isn't. Obedience to the Torah (which in Hebrew means 'Teaching' but which has come to mean' the Law') is seen to be a very clear fruit of salvation in Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus Christ). Thus the end-time believers, we learn will have a two-fold characteristic about them: they will have faith in Yah'shua (Jesus) as their Redeemer and be law-keepers:
"Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of Eloah (God) and the faith of Yah'shua (Jesus)" (Rev 14:12, NKJV).
Who are the people whom Satan is angry with?
"And the dragon [Satan] was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of Eloah (God) and have the testimony of Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus Christ)" (Rev.12:17, NKJV).
The Gospel of Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus Christ) is the Good News that we can be saved from our sins by trusting in His Name and in the blood of His atonement. When we are saved, the immediate response will be a heart-desire to be obedient to all of our Heavenly Father's commandments, because this is pleasing to Him, good for us, and good for our neighbour. It is only then that we can partake of the Tree of Life:
"Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city" (Rev.22:14, NKJV).
When others like myself discovered we had been lied to by priests and pastors about plural marriage it was not long before we discovered we had been lied to in almost every other aspect of the Gospel. Indeed, what we discovered so profoundly shocked us that we wondered how it was these things had been kept hidden for so many hundreds of years.
Firstly, it will interest you to learn that there is no such thing as the 'Old Testament' or the 'New Testament'. These terms were invented by Catholics and added to our Bibles. The Bible, in fact, has four divisions of Scripture and all of these are one organic whole:
- 1. The Torah (Teaching or Law - Genesis-Deuteronomy)
- 2. The Nebi'im (Prophets - e.g. Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, etc.)
- 3. The Kethubim (Writings - e.g. Proverbs, Chronicles, Psalms, etc.)
- 4. The Messianic Scriptures ('New Testament' - e.g. John, Galatians, etc.)
When Martin Luther, the founder of Protestantism, wrote:
"If Moses should try to intimidate you with his stupid Ten Commandments, tell him right out - chase yourself to the Jews" (from a Lecture at Wittenberg)
he was lying, and you only have to see what Yah'shua (Jesus) said to know that this is so:
"Now behold, one came and said to Him, "Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?" So He said to him, "Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, Eloah (God). But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments." He said to Him, "Which ones?" Yah'shua (Jesus) said, " 'You shall not murder,' 'You shall not commit adultery,' 'You shall not steal,' 'You shall not bear false witness,' 'Honor your father and your mother,' and, 'You shall love your neighbour as yourself'" (Matt.19:16-19, NKJV).
So who will you believe? Martin Luther and the priests who teach what Martin Luther taught, or the very Son of God, Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus Christ)? Make a decision: Are the Ten Commandments stupid or do they in fact enable you to "enter into life"? Who was stupid: Luther or the Messiah (Christ)?
What I am challenging you to do is to decide something very simple: to believe the teachings of God or the teachings of men? What will you choose? Dare you risk following men? For if you do, see what Yah'shua (Jesus) says will happen to you:
"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' "And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'" (Matt.7:21-23, NKJV).
If this is true - as we know it must be because Yahweh never lies (see Chapter 4) - then we are in grave danger of losing our souls if we say that believing in Christ is enough and that obeying Torah - the Commandments - doesn't matter. We have seen what the Messiah (Christ) has said about lawlessness, haven't we? Those who are lawless - who reject law - are commanded to depart from Him because they never knew Him.
This is the Word of God - these are not my words - but the words of the Saviour. If you believe them, and have received the salvation of His Son, then you are obliged to be obedient to Torah. If this is your heart-desire, then come with me as we run through a simple outline of the Gospel of Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus Christ).
