I’m headed out of town for Thanksgiving and a few days off work. I'm just hoping the wife, now with 19 days left until due date, doesn't get any idea-ers about squirting out baby while we're out of town. 
Hope you fine blog readers in the US have a great holiday, hope you spend some time with your families and give thanks to the Lord.
Shalom.
You, a gentile Christian, are on trial for your faith in Messiah, standing in front of a religious court, pleading your case.
Your prosecutors are learned, educated men. Jewish scribes of renown, devoutly religious Jews who have studied the Scriptures their entire lives.
They are accusing you of speaking against the Torah.
If they are proven right, you will be sentenced to death.
What is your defense? Do you:
Your accusers shout at you,
"We heard you speak against the Torah!"
Is this accusation true?
In a short moment of introspection, you think back to all those times you chided your Jewish friends, “God doesn’t care whether we keep that old ugly Law anymore, so don’t worry, share this Easter ham dinner with me.”
You remember the times you told people how Jesus is all about grace, and not at all about law or those people who try to be saved by works. Jesus = grace, Law = ugly damning works-based religion. “Nobody can follow the law perfectly, so I’m not even gonna try!” was your old mantra.
You think back to those times you said Jesus did away with the Law… “Jesus nailed the Law on the cross.” Or even, “Jesus took the Torah and slew it on the cross.”
Quietly in your mind you concede that, yes, I have spoken against the Torah, but it’s because Jesus abolished it. Paul said so.
But you’re a smart, cool-headed Christian. You know your New Testament. “These charges against me -- I’ve heard them before!”, you think to yourself as you grab your handy little pocket New Testament. You flip over to Acts 6 and 7, remembering the story of Stephen, a man in the same predicament as yourself. You scold them,
“Foolish Jews, you are repeating history! Long ago, a man named Stephen was put on trial by your ancestors for speaking against the Law. Yet God counted him as righteous!”
You begin to read aloud the 2 millennia-old charges against Stephen,
"We heard Stephen speak blasphemously against Moses and against God." They stirred up the people, as well as the elders and the Torah-teachers; so they came and arrested him and led him before the Sanhedrin.
One foolish Jew from the council responds,
“What was Stephen’s defense? How did he justify his speaking against Torah?”
You read on to discover Stephen didn’t actually speak against Torah. To your surprise, Stephen recites the Torah to his accusers, upholding it as righteous, and even chides his accusers for not keeping the Torah.
Woops.
Stephen’s face may have been glowing white, but yours is now a full-blush red!
Regaining your composure, you sheepishly respond,
“Stephen’s defense was reciting the Torah and upholding it. He ended his defense by chiding his accusers for disobeying the Torah.
But you see, foolish Jews, I am not like Stephen.”
Embarrassed by your self-prosecution, you search your thoughts and remember the same thing was spoken against Paul. Ah, yes! Paul! A Christian theologian’s favorite apostle! We can show how Paul put the Torah down low and and still defended himself!
“Teachers of the Law, don’t you know your ancestors accused Paul of the same thing? You put me on trial and repeat history! Yet God counted Paul as righteous.”
You flip over a few pages to show that this same accusation was made against Paul. You read aloud to the court,
They said to Paul: "You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews have believed in Messiah, and all of them are zealous for the Torah. But we’ve heard that you teach all the Jews who live among the Gentiles to turn away from Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or live according to our customs.”
A teacher of the Law responds,
“What was Paul’s defense? How did he justify his speaking against the Torah?
You read on to discover Paul didn’t actually speak against the Torah, and to prove it, even took a Nazirite vow in Jerusalem according to the commandment! Shoot, strike two!
You humbly reply,
“Paul’s defense was upholding and practicing the Torah in the sight of the whole community.
But you see, teachers of the Law, I am not like Paul.”
Things are looking down for you, but not to worry, you have an ace up your sleeve.
“My dear friends, don’t you know your ancestors accused the Christ of the very thing you accuse me? You put me on trail and repeat history. Yet the Christ is the source of all righteousness!”
One of the dear friends responds,
“What was Messiah’s defense? How did he justify speaking against the Torah?”
You read on to discover Messiah didn’t actually speak against the Torah. Instead, he rebuked his accusers for missing the important matters of the Torah!
"Woe to you hypocritical scribes and Pharisees! You pay your tithes of mint, dill and cumin; but you have neglected the weightier matters of the Torah -- justice, mercy, trust. These are the things you should have attended to -- without neglecting the others!
You respond to the court and concede it:
“Messiah upheld the Torah and chided the Pharisees for not keeping the important matters of the Torah.
But you see, dear friends, I am not like Messiah.”
My brother guest posts by-proxy today, as he sends from the deserts of Israel his thoughts and his interpretations and traditions (halacha), on using the name of God.
"You shall not take the name of YHVH Eloheicha in vain, for YHVH will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain."
-Shemot 20:7=D'varim 5:11
In a world where some use The Name regularly, in regular speech at any given time, and others who strictly forbid the utterance of the Name - where is the truth? What is the right halacha for this issue? Should one use The Name? If so, when?
Take a closer look at the mitzvah here, to read and understand the Hebrew and sense that is given in the text.
It reads in Hebrew: '"Lo tisa et-Shem-YHVH Eloheicha lashav'..."
Literally: "No raise~you et-Name-YHVH your El for/to-desolation/uselessness/(figuratively:)idolatry..."
So we should not raise/use the Name for/to desolation and/or idolatry. Anyone who breaks this mitzvah will not go guiltless from it, it is a very serious thing. So, here are most of the possible ways this verse could be taken to mean:
There are a few ways to read this, a few valid ways. Therefore, every one of them should be taken with caution. Many Rabbis have banned the use of the Name entirely. This is good and bad, and so is the choice to use the Name commonly.
There are pros and cons to each side.
First, what is done by censoring the Name entirely? (Except some Orthodox and especially Chasidim who study Kabbalah utter the Name).
Second, what is done by using the Name freely?
Here, one should see a problem with each. On one hand, the counterparts to us Netzarim, our modern Pharisaic brothers' restricting of the Name is not of the Tanakh, since it is used throughout in the speech of many individuals. Also, the restricting of the Name for the use of the Hebrew/Israelite people is fairly plainly not the desired outcome for the Name.
On the other hand, using the Name freely gives way to the possibility of sinning against YHVH. It gives way to making common the Name, which does not maintain its sanctity. One who freely uses to Name to and fro does not recognize its power and the extreme caution one must take when uttering it.
What is the right way to utilize the Name? What should the halacha be? The list above of most/all possibilities to interpret the verse should all be included in the safeguards around this mitzvah - this includes the Yehudim Netzarim to not censor the Name and to not use it in a common, every-day manner. So here is the halacha:
Throughout the Tanakh, titles are used for the One True El, YHVH. Their use is not restricted, their use is not condemned anywhere in the Torah. There are some in the "sacred-Name" movement who are hostile toward the use of titles.
This kind of restriction and prohibition is wrong. All titles used in the Tanakh for YHVH are free to be utilized, and have different meanings based on certain emanations/spirits of Elohim which are revealed to the user. For example, we see the Patriarchs sometimes use "El Shaddai" which basically means El of Breasts, or Many Breasted El.
[Judah's insertion: some interpret Shaddai to mean "almighty", but an alternative theory is that name is connected to shadayim which means "breasts" in Hebrew. It may thus be connected to the notion of God’s fertility and blessings of the human race. In several instances it is connected with fruitfulness: "May God Almighty [El Shaddai] bless you and make you fruitful and increase your numbers…" (Gen. 28:3). "I am God Almighty [El Shaddai]: be fruitful and increase in number" (Gen. 35:11). "By the Almighty [El Shaddai] who will bless you with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that lies beneath, blessings of the breasts [shadayim] and of the womb [racham]" (Gen. 49:25). ^
No, it doesn't mean YHVH is a female fertility goddess (although he is neither solely masculine or solely feminine), it means he is a provider as a mother provides life-building milk for her child. And it was a form of praise for these Patriarchs to call YHVH by this title, and it was for very good reasons - because he had provided for them.
Here are some of the Names and Titles used in the Tanakh:
These are just among some of the most common titles used for the One True El used in the Tanakh. Most of these have varying significance and are reflective of different personalities, manifestations, Emanations, and/or Spirits of YHVH.
It should be established for all Yehudim Netzarim that these titles should be utilized, and used appropriately in the right context. We see use of different Names/Titles for HaShem used by some in the Tanakh for reasons - they usually do not just use a certain title for no reason. Although, in different time periods, certain Names are used for basic mention of the Most High.
In Kabbalah [mystical Judaism], different Names/Titles for YHVH are assigned to each of the Sephirot (Emanations) of the Etz Chayim (i.e. the different Spirits of Elohim). The list, accordingly, from upper Sephirot to lower Sephirot:
In Kabbalah, it would be beneficial to the pray-er that whenever he prays for something in particular, or prays and needs to be endowed with a certain Spirit of Elohim (such as Wisdom, or Understanding), then ideally, calling on one of the assigned Names has an impact.
The Kabbalist Rabbis have assigned the Name Y-H-V-H to each of these Sephirot, with a different vowel structure (attached to the same consonants Y-H-V-H) for each one. Unfortunately, I don't have the knowledge for all these, but for Chesed/Mercy, if I am not mistaken, they pronounce the Name as "Yih'vih", assigning a chirik ("ee" vowel in Hebrew) to Y-H-V-H.
In summation, the halacha should be to use these Names and Titles when appropriate.
Some tunes for Messiah as we enter His shabbat,
Yeshua HaMoshiach
Is the name above every name
Alpha, Omega
Beginning and the endYeshua HaMoshiach
Offspring of David
Holy One of Israel
Son of Abraham
I love how this song just lays on Him these pronouncements: anointed one, first, last, beginning, end, David’s offspring, Holy One, Abraham’s seed. Amen amen.
Shabbat shalom, fine blog readers.
You, a former gentile who believes in Messiah, are no longer foreign to the covenants God made with Israel. You used to be alienated from Israel, now you’re not. No longer an alien/foreigner, but a first-class member of God’s people.
The other week, we critically dissected the first part of Ephesians 2, where Paul makes this claim of gentiles-as-first class citizens, in God’s kingdom, no longer foreigners to Israel and the covenants God made with his people; now part of the commonwealth of Israel.
Enjoy your first class seat!
Since then, we’ve had a lot of vehement debate.
The initial post generated a 15 responses as folks interpreted Paul’s letter in light of their own theologies.
A week later as we discussed this in more detail, wondering just exactly what Paul meant by this mutation:
Initial state:
New state:
Beware the mutant gentiles!
That means gentiles have been brought near to God through Messiah, are no longer aliens to Israel, and are no longer strangers to the covenants God made with Israel.
That's some pretty deep theology there.
We finally looked at the last half of Ephesians 2. Sweet goodness, did you guys have a lot to say on this! As of this writing, we’ve have 49 comments of debate discussing this last bit where Paul tells us a mystery: this metamorphosis has come because Messiah broke down the wall dividing Jew and gentile. By abolishing the Torah on the cross.
Yeah, about that last part. As much as some Christians want that to be true, it just doesn’t pan out, as we’ll shortly see.
Let’s get out our scalpel and finish this sucker! Here is the last bit of Ephesians 2: it’s nice and short, but contains some real doozies!
He is our peace, who made both one.
He broke down the middle wall, the enmity in his flesh, the law of the commands in ordinances having done away, that the two he might create in himself into one new man, making peace, to reconcile both in one body to God through the cross, having slain the enmity in it.
He came and proclaimed good news – peace to you – both far off and near, because through him we have the access – we both – in one Spirit unto the Father.
Then, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow-citizens of the house of God, being built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Yeshua Messiah himself being chief corner-[stone], in whom all the building fitly framed together increases to an holy sanctuary in the Lord, in whom also you are built together, for a home of God in the Spirit.
-Paul, in his letter to Ephesus
Whew. Let’s dissect this and see what comes out.
He is our peace, who made both one.
Who’s he talking about when he says “both”? Because we’ve studied this thing in context, we know he’s talking about Israel and the gentiles.
Ok, so to paraphrase, here’s conclusion #1: “Messiah is our peace who made Israel and the gentiles as one.”
Paul explains this a bit:
He broke down the middle wall, the enmity in his flesh, the law of the commands in ordinances having done away, that the two he might create in himself into one new man, making peace, to reconcile both in one body to God through the cross, having slain the enmity in it.
He broke down the wall that divided us. Ok, good good good. Don’t know what the enmity in his flesh is. Skipping… He did away with the enmity, which is the Torah, slaying it on the cross. Good good…erhm, wait, WHAT?!
Many Christians interpret this verse in this way: “Jesus Christ slew the Torah on the cross.”
Slew. To slay. That means, “destroy with violence”.
= 
Is that how you interpret this, dear blog reader?
Here Paul just finished saying how gentiles are no longer foreigners to Israel and the covenants (including the Mosaic covenant!). But then Paul supposedly says, “Oh, and Messiah destroyed the covenants by slaying them on the cross.”
Folks, it ain’t addin’ up! </southern drawl>
Joking aside, there’s a deeply-rooted flaw with such an interpretation. If Paul is saying what some wish him to be saying, then Paul is contrary to Messiah, contrary to the prophets, contrary to the Psalms, contrary to pretty much all of Scripture. If Paul is saying, “Jesus violently destroyed and abolished the Torah on the cross”, then Paul’s writings would have the need to be violently ripped from the New Testament!
Fortunately, Paul is not saying that.
Fortunately, Paul is in alignment with Messiah.
And we don’t have to perform any airy spiritual acrobatics to interpret in such a way that Messiand and Paul are not at odds with each other.
After discussing this verse with you fine blog readers and hearing your own interpretations, my own interpretation comes to this, conclusion #2:
As Israel was kept separate from the nations through Torah, hostility abounded. Messiah destroyed the hostility-wall.
Simple.
And no Scriptural acrobatics required.
So Messiah destroyed the hostility between Jew and gentile, Israel and the nations. Ok, how exactly is that accomplished? Since Torah is still here (as Messiah said, “until heaven and earth pass away”), how is it that there’s no hostility between Jew and gentile?
Well, truth be told, there is still hostility. I sense it even on this blog, in the comments. I sense it in the religion of Messianic Judaism.
But if we are walking perfectly with Messiah, that hostility would not exist. And this is Paul’s next point:
He came and proclaimed good news – peace to you – both far off and near, because through him we have the access – we both – in one Spirit unto the Father.
This hostility is broken down because we both have equal access to God through Messiah. If I could paraphrase, I’d say, “Messiah brought good news to both Israel and the gentiles: through Him, both have access to God.”
Makes sense.
And Paul ties it all together – why was he talking about “former gentiles” before? How does this fit?
Therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow-citizens of the house of God, being built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Yeshua Messiah himself being chief corner-[stone], in whom all the building framed together increases to an holy sanctuary in the Lord, in whom also you are built together, for a home of God in the Spirit.
Gentiles are no longer strangers to the things of God: Israel or the covenants with Israel. Instead, you’re fellow-citizens with Israel. You’re built on Messiah, the prophets, the apostles. You’re the Temple.
To summarize and paraphrase, this is what Ephesians 2 is all about:
You gentiles used to follow the ways of the world, sinning without remorse. Rebels against God. You were dead. You were separate from Israel. A complete foreigner to all of the covenants God made with His people Israel --no Torah, no God, no life!
But God loved all humanity; he saved us by giving Messiah. He did it to show how great He is. It's all Him, we sure didn't warrant it!
Now even gentiles can be set right with God.
In doing this, Messiah became that shalom that makes Jew and gentile as one.
Because of the Torah, there was hostility between Israel and the gentiles. But He destroyed this hostility by bringing peace to both Jew and gentile, giving both of us access to God.
Because of that, you gentiles are fellow citizens with Israel in God’s house, you each have become a Temple to house God’s Spirit, a Temple built on the prophets and the apostles, with Messiah himself as the bedrock.
-My summarized, simplified interpretation of Ephesians 2
After weeks of Scriptural study and having heard the opinions and interpretations of you fine blog readers, this is the conclusion I’ve drawn.
One thing I was hoping this study would do is give us a better idea of how Torah applies to gentiles, and whether gentiles become Jews.
It’s shed a little light, I think:
Does that mean Torah applies to gentiles?
If you are not a foreigner, but a fellow citizen of the commonwealth of Israel, Torah applies to even the gentiles who were once far off but now are near.
It makes sense, doesn’t it? If God wants even the previously-unclean gentiles to be clean, wouldn’t He apply the same standard of cleanliness to both Jew and gentile?
He told Israel how to be holy in a day-to-day life using very practical and concise commandments about what’s right and what’s wrong. Christian blog reader, you may be surprised to know these day-to-day instructions exist in the first half of your Bible.
There exists but one standard of right and wrong for God’s people, whether native born Israelites or you former gentiles who are fellow citizens, joined to the commonwealth of Israel, no longer foreigners to God’s covenants with Israel. That standard is Torah, embodied by Messiah who showed us how to live. Messiah made Jew and gentile as equals before God not by destroying the Torah, but by giving both Jews and gentiles access to God through himself.
Back in 2006, I predicted that in 2 years time, a Democratic ticket of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton will go up against a Republican ticket of John McCain and Joe Lieberman.
Well, I was close.
Now, after billions of dollars spent in political ads in a year when Republicans are supposed to lose in a big way thanks to the economy, high gas prices, and an unpopular war, here are my predictions:
McCain/Palin will pick up Florida but lose in Pennsylvania and Ohio, putting Barack Obama into the White House.
Republicans will lose 3 Senate seats, causing a big Democratic majority.
You heard it here first!
*Update* Ok, so I was wrong on the Florida prediction. PA and Ohio predictions were right. Obama prediction was right. The Dems have a +5 gain in the Senate at the time of this writing.
