Posts
Have I made
Paul greater than Jesus?
God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers through the
prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us
through His Son “Paul” Hebrews 1:1-2
"Jesus said: Therefore, everyone who hears these
words of mine “Paul” and puts them into practice is like a
wise man who built his house on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of
mine “Paul”
and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built
his house on sand. Mat
7:24,26
In my
journey to understand why I and mainstream Christianity have jettisoned the Torah
I discovered that I was clinging to my understanding of the words of Paul even
if they contradicted the clear words of Jesus, the clear word of YAHWEH or Paul
himself. Whenever I read the words of Paul and they seem to contradict the Torah,
the Prophets and Jesus who are all in agreement, I always chose to believe the contradicting
words of Paul and ignore or reinterpret everything else. I simply believed that
Paul had some kind of direct revelation, that Jesus chose not to teach, and it
changed everything. The details and effect of this direct revelation were codified
later in Christianity from cross referencing writings of Paul. At its most basic,
it goes like this. If I accept Jesus, If I love others, I have fulfilled the Law
and if the Law is fulfilled I do not need to really know, really understand or really
follow God’s Law as long as I love others. The problem is, that is not how God
described His plan, or how the Prophets presented it nor how Jesus presented
it.
Jesus
says:
Man shall live by every word that comes out
of the mouth of YAHWEH. Mat 4:4
Whoever nullifies one of the least of
these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called
least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them,
he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. Mat 5:19
Nothing in the Torah will pass away until heaven
and earth pass away Mat 5:18
He specifically says He did not come to abolish the
Torah. Mat 5:17
Pay special attention to the more important parts of
the Torah but do not neglect the smallest parts Mat 23:23
He will reject those who are Lawless. Mat 7:23
If you love me, you will keep My commandments and I
always have the same words (commands) that my Father has. John 14:10,15
The Torah of YHWH is perfect, restoring the soul; Psalms 19:7
Forever,
YHWH, Your word stands in heaven. I will never forget Your commandments; How I love Your Torah! It is my meditation all
day. Psa 119:89,93,97
You are near, YHWH, and all Your commandments
are truth. From long ago I have known from Your testimonies That You have
founded them forever Psa 119:151-152
The sum of Your word is truth, and every one of Your
righteous ordinances is everlasting. Psa 119:160
"God is not a man, that He would lie, Nor a human,
that He would change His mind; Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He
spoken, and will He not make it good? Num 23:19
Certainly, YWHW GOD does nothing Unless He reveals His
secret plan to His servants the prophets. Amo 3:7
The
Prophets say.
“I will give them an undivided heart and put a new
spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a
heart of flesh. Then they will follow my decrees and be careful
to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God.” Eze 11:19-20
"This is the covenant I will make with the people
of Israel after that time," declares YHWH. I will put my Torah in
their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they
will be my people.” Jer
31:33
The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the commandments
(word) of our God endures forever. Isa 40:8
The
other Apostles say.
By this we know that we have come to know Him if we
keep His commandments. 1John
2:3
The one who says, "I have come to know Him,"
and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him;
1John 2:4
Those who obey God's commandments remain in fellowship
with Him, and He with them. 1 John 3:24
For this is the love of God, that we keep His
commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome. 1John 5:3
To this you were called, because the Messiah suffered
for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. "He
committed no sin, and no deceit was found in His mouth. 1Pe 2:22
Many times,
the Apostles, including Paul, quote the Torah when they want to show that they
have authority to say what they are saying. There are about 342 OT quotes in
the NT. They appeal to the Torah’s authority to validate what they were writing.
Paul quotes the Torah as authoritative, but does Paul then say the Torah is no
longer needed, fading out of sight, been abolished, replaced, or set aside? Especially
when the Torah he is quoting says it will not be abolished, replaced, or set
aside. That would be contradicting the very thing he says is his authority.
Do I say this merely on human authority? Doesn't the
Law say the same thing? 1Cor. 9:8
Peter warns against
taking Paul's words and making them mean lawlessness.
There are some things in them that are
hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist
to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures. You, therefore,
beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away
with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability. 2 Peter 3:15-17
So, was Paul a hypocrite in what he taught
compared to what he lived?
Are my
Christian teachers and preachers correct that Paul had revelations that overrule
YAHWEH’s words and contradict Jesus and even Paul himself.
Luke records
how noble people received Paul’s teachings.
Now these Jews (Bereans) were more noble than those in
Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the
Scriptures daily to see if these things were so. Acts 17:11
What were the
“Scriptures” that the Bereans examined to compare Paul’s teachings to?
The only
Scriptures the first Christians had was the Old Testament.
So, for the
Bereans, everything Paul said HAD to be in 100% agreement with the Old
Testament. Such as...
You shall walk after the YHWH your God and fear Him and
keep His commandments and obey his voice, and you shall serve Him and hold fast
to Him. Deut 13:4
Otherwise,
they would have considered Paul a false prophet.
The Bereans show
me that Paul preached in agreement to the Law of God. As mentioned in Acts 17.
The New Testament
scriptures testify that Paul lived in accordance to the Law of God.
take these men and purify yourself along with them and
pay their expenses, so that they may shave their heads. Thus, all will know
that there is nothing in what they have been told about you, but that you
yourself also live in observance of the law. Acts 21:24
Paul lived God’s
Law and he taught God’s Law.
Why does my
pastor interpret Paul’s teachings as doing away with the Law of God? ... even
though the Bereans proved he was in agreement with it?
Is my pastor
making Paul out to be a hypocrite by implying that Paul was saying “Do as I say
and not as I do”. Paul told the Church in Corinth, those who were born as
gentiles, to ..
Be imitators of me, as I am of the Messiah. 1 Cor 11:1
Paul
also says:
You know what God wants; you know what is right
because you have been taught His Law. You are so proud of knowing the Torah,
but you dishonor God by breaking it. Rom 2:18,23
through the Torah comes knowledge of sin. Romans 3:20
Is there any value in the ceremony of circumcision?
Yes, there are great benefits! Rom 3:1-2
Do we then nullify the law through
faith? Absolutely not! On the contrary, we
uphold the law. Rom
3:31
What should we say then? Should we continue in sin so
that grace may multiply? Absolutely not! How can we who died to sin still
live in it? Rom 6:1-2
What shall we say, then? Is the law sinful?
Certainly not! Nevertheless, I would not have known what sin was had it
not been for the Law. Rom 7:7
Paul
said “I love God's Law with all my heart.”
Rom 7:22
So then, I myself, in my mind am a servant to God's Law,
but in my sinful nature a servant to the law of sin. Rom 7:25
The mind governed by the flesh is hostile
to God; it does not submit to God's Law, nor can it do
so. For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit
you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live. For those who are led
by the Spirit of God are the children of God.
Rom 8:7,13,14
(OT
prophesied that God would give us new hearts and new spirit that would want to
obey his Laws Eze 11:19)
The Bereans
show in Acts 17, that Paul taught in accordance with the Old Testament. And Acts
24 testifies he lived by God’s Law and Paul’s own testimony was that he loves
and follows God’s Law.
Maybe people
who take Paul’s letters and interpret them that God no longer wants us to
follow His instructions (Torah), have become those of who Peter warned me. If I
listen to them Peter says “I will lose my own stability”
Which do I
follow? The Eternal word of God or the excerpted words of Paul? Words quoted
many times devoid of any historical or narrative context but repeated so much
they seem normal to me. Even though, they contradict the rest of the Bible.
The whole of
God’s word does not teach that, If we love God, we do not and will not
obey His commandments. God’s Word constantly says “IF I truly love, Then I will
truly keep His commandments”. It does not say, IF I keep His commandments, Then
I will love. It says, only when I truly love God first will I want to obey His
commandments. Obedience does not bring Love. Love brings obedience. God loves
me and when I accept His free love and forgiveness and love Him in return, I
want to obey my loving parent. Not out of fear, not to win acceptance, but out
of love and respect, trusting what He tells me to do (even if I do not understand) is for my best interest.
Blessed is the one whose delight is in the Torah of YAHWEH,
and who meditates on His Torah day and night. That person is like a tree
planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf
does not wither--whatever they do prospers. Psalms 1:1-3
Those who love Your Law have great peace (shalom), And
nothing causes them to stumble. Psa 119:165
I hope for Your salvation (Yeshua), YHWH, and do
Your commandments. Psa
119:166
May YAHWEH
bless you and keep you!
