Most
people who know me know that I am a Jewish Christian. When I think of
myself, I am Christian – I am a follower of Christ. The fact that I was
born a Jew remains until my final breath; I did not cross over some line
to become a Christian while leaving my Jewishness behind. It’s quite
impossible to do that. I am a Christian who also happens to be an ethnic
Jew.
I met another Christian Jewish woman years ago. She attended a
Messianic congregation and was shocked and appalled that I did not. I
told her that I’ve never felt the Lord urging me to do that. I find it
clannish. I don’t want to only worship with other Messianic Jews. I want
to worship with the Body of Christ. This woman was not happy with my
reasoning, but I felt a conviction about my decision. I did not feel the
need to hold onto Jewish customs. I felt free. Free to worship my
Savior Jesus Christ!
One of the most ironic things that happened to me on Facebook was
being repeatedly thrown out of Messianic groups. I thought that the
group members would be like me – Jewish Christians. I was sadly
mistaken. They spoke of Torah observance, the Jewish feasts, the keeping
of the Law etc., etc. There was an occasional mention of Yeshua, but no
emphasis on salvation through Christ alone. And most of the time I was
the only Jew in the group!
From
gotquestions.org
Question: “What is the Hebrew Roots movement?”
Answer: The premise of the Hebrew Roots movement is the belief that
the Church has veered far from the true teachings and Hebrew concepts of
the Bible. The movement maintains that Christianity has been
indoctrinated with the culture and beliefs of Greek and Roman philosophy
and that ultimately biblical Christianity, taught in churches today,
has been corrupted with a pagan imitation of the New Testament gospels.
Those of the Hebrew Roots belief hold to the teaching that Christ’s
death on the cross did not end the Mosaic Covenant, but instead renewed
it, expanded its message, and wrote it on the hearts of His true
followers. They teach that the understanding of the New Testament can
only come from a Hebrew perspective and that the teachings of the
Apostle Paul are not understood clearly or taught correctly by Christian
pastors today. Many affirm the existence of an original Hebrew-language
New Testament and, in some cases, denigrate the existing New Testament
text written in Greek. This becomes a subtle attack on the reliability
of the text of our Bible. If the Greek text is unreliable and has been
corrupted, as is charged by some, the Church no longer has a standard of
truth.
Although there are many different and diverse Hebrew Roots assemblies
with variations in their teachings, they all adhere to a common
emphasis on recovering the “original” Jewishness of Christianity. Their
assumption is that the Church has lost its Jewish roots and is unaware
that Jesus and His disciples were Jews living in obedience to the Torah.
For the most part, those involved advocate the need for every believer
to walk a Torah-observant life. This means that the ordinances of the
Mosaic Covenant must be a central focus in the lifestyle of believers
today as it was with the Old Testament Jews of Israel. Keeping the Torah
includes keeping the Sabbath on the seventh day of the week (Saturday),
celebrating the Jewish feasts and festivals, keeping the dietary laws,
avoiding the “paganism” of Christianity (Christmas, Easter, etc.), and
learning to understand the Scriptures from a Hebrew mindset. They teach
that Gentile Christians have been grafted into Israel, and this is one
reason every born-again believer in Jesus the Messiah is to participate
in these observances. It is expressed that doing this is not required
out of legalistic bondage, but out of a heart of love and obedience.
However, they teach that to live a life that pleases God, this
Torah-observant walk must be part of that life.
The Hebrew Roots assemblies are often made up of a majority of
Gentiles, including Gentile rabbis. Usually they prefer to be identified
as “Messianic Christians.” Many have come to the conclusion that God
has “called” them to be Jewish and have accepted the theological
position that the Torah (Old Testament law) is equally binding on
Gentiles and Jews alike. They often wear articles of traditional Jewish
clothing, practice Davidic dancing, and incorporate Hebrew names and
phrases into their writing and conversations. Most reject the use of the
name “Jesus” in favor of Yeshua or YHWH, claiming that these are the
“true” names that God desires for Himself. In most cases, they elevate
the Torah as the foundational teaching for the Church, which brings
about the demotion of the New Testament, causing it to become secondary
in importance and only to be understood in light of the Old Testament.
The idea that the New Testament is faulty and relevant only in light of
the Old Testament has also brought the doctrine of the Trinity under
attack by many advocates of the Hebrew Roots beliefs.
As opposed to what the Hebrew Roots movement claims, the New
Testament teachings of the Apostle Paul are perfectly clear and
self-explanatory.
Colossians 2:16,
17
says, “Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or
drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day –
things which are a shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs
to Christ.”
Romans 14:5
states, “One person regards one day above another, another regards
every day alike. Each person must be fully convinced in his own mind.”
Scripture clearly indicates that these issues are a matter of personal
choice. These verses and many others give clear evidence that the Mosaic
Covenant laws and ordinances have ended. Continuing to teach that the
Old Covenant is still in effect in spite of what the New Testament
teaches, or twisting the New Testament to agree with the Hebrew Roots
beliefs, is false teaching.
There are aspects of the Hebrew Roots teachings that certainly can be
beneficial. Seeking to explore the Jewish culture and perspective,
within which most of the Bible was written, opens and enriches our
understanding of the Scriptures, adding insight and depth to many of the
passages, parables and idioms. There is nothing wrong with Gentiles and
Jews joining together in celebrating the feasts and enjoying a
Messianic style of worship. Taking part in these events and learning the
way in which the Jews understood the teachings of our Lord can be a
tool, giving us greater effectiveness in reaching the unbelieving Jew
with the gospel. It is good for Gentiles, in the body of the Messiah, to
identify in our fellowship with Israel. However, to identify with
Israel is different from identifying “as” Israel.
Gentile believers are not grafted into the Judaism of the Mosaic
Covenant; they are grafted into the seed and faith of Abraham, which
preceded the Law and Jewish customs. They are fellow citizens with the
saints (
Ephesians 2:19),
but they are not Jews. Paul explains this clearly when he tells those
who were circumcised (the Jews) “not to seek to be uncircumcised” and
those who were uncircumcised (the Gentiles) “not to become circumcised” (
1 Corinthians 7:18).
There is no need for either group to feel they must become what they
are not. Instead, God has made Jews and Gentiles into “one new man” in
Christ Jesus (
Ephesians 2:15). This “new man” is referring to the Church, the body of Christ, which is made up of neither Jew nor Gentile (
Galatians 3:27-29).
It’s important for Jews and Gentiles to remain authentic in their own
identity. In this way a clear picture of the unity of the body of Christ
can be seen as Jews and Gentiles are united by one Lord, one faith, one
baptism. If Gentiles are grafted into Israel, becoming Jews, the
purpose and picture of both Jew and Gentile, coming together as one new
man, is lost. God never intended Gentiles to become one in Israel, but
one in Christ.
The influence of this movement is working its way into our churches
and seminaries. It’s dangerous in its implication that keeping the Old
Covenant law is walking a “higher path” and is the only way to please
God and receive His blessings. Nowhere in the Bible do we find Gentile
believers being instructed to follow Levitical laws or Jewish customs;
in fact, the opposite is taught.
Romans 7:6
says, “But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released
from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in
the old way of the written code.” Christ, in keeping perfectly every
ordinance of the Mosaic Law, completely fulfilled it. Just as making the
final payment on a home fulfills that contract and ends one’s
obligation to it, so also Christ has made the final payment and has
fulfilled the law, bringing it to an end for us all.
– source
In the groups on Facebook I would site this Scripture
: “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill” (Matthew 5:17).
The leaders of the “Messianic groups” would wholeheartedly agree with
me, and use that Scripture to support and defend their doctrine. I used
it to show them the legalism and hypocrisy they were preaching.
The prophets of God in the Old Testament cried out in the lands to
which God sent them, “REPENT and turn from your wicked ways.” Invariably
they were stoned or thrown out of that land. People knew that they were
guilty as charged, but loved the darkness more than the light.
Do we actually believe that God thought that we are able to keep all
of His Commandments? His Commandments were given to Moses to:
Show that God is holy.
His standards are perfection.
Man is not able to keep all of His Commandments.
Jesus brought the Commandments to a whole new level. He said in Matthew 5:27-28:
“You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not
commit adultery.’ But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust
for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”
Clearly, our sin begins in our hearts. God sees this sin in us. For
God to reconcile us to Himself, He had to deal with this sin, which
separated us from Him. He sent His own Son—the Word made flesh—Jesus.
“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His
glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace
and truth” (John 1:14).
The PERFECT SINLESS SACRIFICE was the Son of God, Jesus. His death
was the ONE Atonement for all sin. It was His blood spilled for us that
brought us forgiveness. God sent His Son so that whosoever believes in
Him would be reconciled to the Father and have eternal life. GLORIOUS!
“For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21).
So my question to the leaders of the groups was why would you want to
go back under the Law that brought death, when you have been given the
better Covenant of Grace by which the Spirit gives life? That was
usually when my expulsion took place. One leader wrote to me privately,
saying that I must have a demon and he would pray for me!
When we were under the law, the consequences of being judged by the
law was death. If we broke one law, we broke them all. We who are saved
are under Grace – a better Covenant! Jesus
fulfilled the law, and He gave us
His righteousness if we would repent and place our trust in Him! We cannot save ourselves.
Here is another excellent article on HRM from
thebereancall.org:
Read Article here
“Who also hath made
us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the
spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life” (2
Corinthians 3:6).
Are members of the Hebrew Roots
Movement modern day Judaizers? I would say that is accurate, except for
the fact that most are not Jews. Are they dangerous? Most assuredly so.
The teachings of these groups diminish the finished work of Christ on
the Cross; making Him a liar. They are in essence saying “Christ lived
and died as an example to us, but we must keep the law to be saved.”
HERESY!! We are not able to keep the whole Law of God!
We are all precious to the Lord. It does not matter from where we
came; what matters is will we repent and trust Yeshua for the
forgiveness of our sins? I was a born a Jew—so what? God’s plan from the
beginning was that salvation would be offered to the whole world. And
read about the partial hardening of the Jews (Romans 11) to make way for
the Gentiles to come into the Kingdom. We are all blessed!
Are you in the Hebrew Roots Cult? Come out from there and experience freedom in Christ!
You will
want to keep His Law. Our good works after we are born again in Him come naturally out of our grateful hearts to the Lord.
Our good works before we are born-again are as follows:
“But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are
as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like
the wind, have taken us away” (Isaiah 64:6).
JESUS IS OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.
SHALOM!