Let’s all pray for ministries that teach against Torah!

One such ministry, “The Biblical Roots” belongs to Pastor R.L. Solberg, who appears to dedicate most of his energy NOT to promoting God and His Word; but rather to spend time bashing the Torah (the first five Books of the Bible that contain all of God’s original Divine Instructions in Righteousness). 

Prolific on Facebook, he’s very cunning in his posts because he pretends to be FOR the Torah, while at the same time, negating it via a lot of scripture twisting.  

Below is just one example from the mind of R.L. Solberg:

“To be clear, I do not believe or teach that God’s law (his unchanging moral will) is invalid. Rather, I believe the Bible teaches that the Law of Moses as covenantal legislation has found to its God-ordained fulfillment in Christ. ‘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.’

(Rom‬ ‭7‬:‭6‬). We still serve and obey God. And we do so under his new covenant.

Shalom!

MY RESPONSE:

First, I must note that I find it odd that Solberg likes to throw around Hebrew words and terms – perhaps to impress his clueless Christian audience with his “vast knowledge”…

Be that as it may, here was my response to him – and please note that you, my readers - are free to make up your own mind as to whom you wish to believe:

Pastor Solberg -  I’m truly baffled as to why you constantly insist on bashing Yahweh’s Divine Instructions, as if they are garbage. How and when were we released from obeying His Torah instructions (which you call “the law”) when the entire New Testament makes it clear that  Yeshua and all his Apostles UPHELD the law!  (Remember, Yeshua came to be our Redemption, our FINAL SIN SACRIFICE, not as someone who was sent to abolish His Father’s Divine Instructions!)

It is imperative to recognize that Yeshua was the "arm"  of Yahweh.  The arm doesn't control the "brain", and Yeshua never suggested that he came to replace Yahweh/his "Father" in any way! He even said he came to do His Father's will and NOT his own; and that he would do everything His Father commanded. Check it out for yourself:

Luke 4:43 "But he (Yeshua/Jesus) said, "I must preach the good news of the Kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent." (CJB)

(The “good news” Kingdom of God refers to YHWH and His Torah and everything YHWH is and does.)

Luke 8:1 And it happened after these things that Y'shua was going around in the cities and in the villages and was preaching and declaring the Kingdom of Elohim. (CJB)

Does that sound like he came to negate His Father’s Divine Instructions to mankind?

Check out some passages from both the “old” and “new” Testaments wherein Yahweh reiterates the fact that ALL are to obey His Divine Instructions, without which we would have NO blueprint for moral, holy living:

Numbers 15: 13 "'Everyone who is native-born must do these things in this way when he brings an offering made by fire as an aroma pleasing to the LORD. 14 For the generations to come, whenever an alien or anyone else living among you presents an offering made by fire as an aroma pleasing to the LORD, he must do exactly as you do. 15 The community is to have the same rules for you and for the alien living among you; this is a lasting ordinance for the generations to come. You and the alien shall be the same before the LORD: 16 The same laws and regulations will apply both to you and to the alien living among you.'" (CJB)

Deuteronomy 31: 11 when all Isra'el have come to appear in the presence of ADONAI at the place he will choose, you are to read this Torah before all Isra'el, so that they can hear it. 12 Assemble the people-the men, the women, the little ones and the foreigners (which includes ANYONE who wishes to believe in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob) you have in your towns -so that they can hear, learn, fear ADONAI your God and take care to obey all the words of this Torah… (CJB)

Romans 3:31 Do we then nullify the Law through faith? May it never be! On the contrary, we ESTABLISH the Law." (CJB)

Matthew 5:17 Don't think that I have come to abolish the Torah or the Prophets. I have come not to abolish but to complete. 18 Yes indeed! I tell you that until heaven and earth pass away, not so much as a yud or a stroke will pass from the Torah - not until everything that must happen has happened. 19 So whoever disobeys the least of these mitzvot (words/commands) and teaches others to do so will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But whoever obeys them and so teaches will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness is far greater than that of the Torah-teachers and P'rushim, you will certainly not enter the Kingdom of Heaven. (CJB)

Has everything happened that must happen? Have heaven and earth passed away? If not, then it seems we are obliged to continue to obey Torah - our Creator's divine teachings/instruction!

Moving on, Proverbs 28:9 tells us that if one turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer is an abomination! The Holy One of Israel is NOT impressed with prayer if you refuse to hear and obey His Divine Instructions!

1 Samuel 15:22 tells us that obedience is better than sacrifice.

John 9:31 tells us: “We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him.”

Isaiah 1:15 says, “When you spread out your hands, I will hide my eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I won’t be listening.”

Deuteronomy 28 reveals the myriad blessings if we obey… and the curses if we don’t.

Yahweh said His law is good and perfect, so why do you and so many others hate it? Because it’s a mirror, and people smash mirrors when they don’t like what they see!

Check out and really THINK about the following passages, because they are important:

Psalm 19:8(7) The Torah of Adonai is perfect, restoring the inner person. The instruction of Adonai is sure, making wise the thoughtless. ^{9 (8)} The precepts of Adonai are right, rejoicing the heart. The mitzvah of Adonai is pure, enlightening the eyes. ^{10 (9)} The fear of Adonai is clean, enduring forever. The rulings of Adonai are true, they are righteous altogether, ^{11 (10)} more desirable than gold, than much fine gold, also sweeter than honey or drippings from the honeycomb. ^{12 (11)} Through them your servant is warned; in obeying them there is great reward. (CJB)

Romans 7:12 So the Torah is holy; that is, the commandment is holy, just and good. (CJB)

The Bible tells us that the flesh hates “the law”…

Romans 8:7 For the mind controlled by the old nature is hostile to God, because it does not submit itself to God’s Torah — indeed, it cannot. 8 Thus, those who identify with their old nature cannot please God. (CJB)

The carnal mind is at war with God. It "cannot" submit to His law. The law exposes sin. Romans 7:7, “I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, ‘You shall not covet.’”

John 3:20 For everyone who does evil things hates the light and avoids it, so that his actions won’t be exposed. ²¹ But everyone who does what is true comes to the light, so that all may see that his actions are accomplished through God.” (CJB)

Messiah warns in Matthew 24:12, “And because LAWLESSNESS will abound, the love of many will grow cold.” Lawlessness equals hatred of Torah. When Torah is thrown out, love dies.

2 Timothy 4:3 For the time is coming when people will not have patience for sound teaching, but will cater to their passions and gather around themselves teachers who say whatever their ears itch to hear. ⁴ Yes, they will stop listening to the truth, but will turn aside to follow myths. (CJB)

Ask yourself this:  Why would Yahweh’s Messiah Yeshua (known in the Christian world as “Jesus”) have abolished everything his Father ever commanded, just so those who call themselves "Christians" would be exempt from following His commandments and do nothing except "believe in Jesus?"  

Why do you refuse to keep the "forever" commands, such as the Seventh Day Sabbath which is a SIGN between God and His people? (See Exodus 31:16; Ezekiel 20:11-12; Exodus 20:8-11, etc) Why do you reject His seven commanded festivals (Leviticus 23), all of which foreshadow Messiah Yeshua? Where does GOD ever say that after his Son died, people would no longer have to obey anything He commanded for our own good, or that they could make up their own holy days and ways, supposedly designed to honor Him? (Remember the sons of Aaron?)

May God open your spiritual eyes so that you can finally understand that Yeshua didn't come to abolish everything His Father ever commanded, nor to bring any "religion" or "denomination. He came to demolish the nonsense men had added to His Divine Instructions (without which we would have no blueprint for moral, holy living); and to teach the original commands – all of which are designed to keep HIS PEOPLE set apart/holy, and then to die as our Final SIN Sacrifice so that we would no longer have to kill millions of innocent animals to atone for our sins...

You would do well to remember that, according to Scripture, it is a sin to teach that God's Torah is no longer relevant ... as it WILL render you "lukewarm" and cause Yeshua to vomit you from his mouth upon his return. (Revelation 3:16)

I pray you will ponder these things before continuing the lie that Torah is irrelevant!

What was the very first thing that God called “holy”?

The following amazing message was borrowed from “Humble Disciple” on facebook.

One thing that has always fascinated me is what God first called holy.

It wasn't a mountain.

It wasn't a city.

It wasn't a temple.

It wasn't even a people.

Before Israel existed. Before there was a priesthood. Before there were sacrifices, feasts, kings, prophets, or a Tabernacle, God sanctified a day.

"The seventh day God blessed and sanctified, because in it He ceased from all His work that God created for the purpose of preparing." (Genesis 2:3 TLV)

The first thing in Scripture called holy is time. I don't think that's an accident. God could have made a holy place first. He could have marked out sacred ground. Instead, He set apart a recurring appointment woven into creation itself. Every seven days, time itself carries His signature.

Long before Sinai, the Sabbath was already there.

Long before there was a Jew or Gentile.

Long before there was a nation called Israel.

The Sabbath begins in the same chapter as marriage. Both are creation gifts. Both were established before sin entered the world. Maybe that's why the Sabbath has never felt like a burden to me.

When Friday evening arrives and the noise of the week begins to fade, it feels less like keeping a rule and more like returning to something that was always meant to be part of life. A weekly reminder that I am not defined by productivity. That the world keeps turning while I rest. That Yehovah is God and I am not.

It's interesting that when Scripture describes the coming Kingdom, the Sabbath is still there (Isaiah 66:23). What began in Genesis is still present at the end.

The first thing God called holy wasn't a building people had to travel to. It was time that came to them. Every week. Like an invitation. Waiting to be received.

Tidbits about the “Red Heifer” sacrifice

It is interesting to note the "Red Heifer" sacrifice was extremely unique, for several reasons:

• It was the only sacrifice that specifically required an animal of a particular color. This animal was extremely rare and unique of its kind (in fact, Maimonides wrote, "Nine Parot Adumot were prepared from the time the Commandment was given until the destruction of the Second Temple. Moses our Teacher prepared one, Ezra prepared one and seven more were prepared until the Destruction of the Temple. The tenth will be prepared by the Mashiach.")
  
  
• It was the only sacrifice where all the rituals were carried out outside of the camp / outside the Temple precincts.
  
  
• It was the only sacrifice that ritually contaminated the priest who offered it, but made the one who was sprinkled by it clean.
  
  
• It was the only sacrifice where the ashes were preserved and used (other sacrifices required the ashes be disposed outside of the camp).

NOTE: The Red Heifer is a mystery - a "type" of Yeshua, in that Yeshua cleanses uncleanness. The Heifer is used specifically for Temple purification and the purification of someone who has touched a dead body. According to Scripture, a Red Heifer must be found to purify the Third Temple.

What does “You are gods” refer to in Psalm 82?

QUESTION ON FACEBOOK:  Can someone help me understand Psalm 82?  When HaShem says, "I said, 'You are gods, sons of the Most High, all of you,'" who is He speaking to?

Is HaShem referring to human judges and rulers who were given authority to judge on His behalf, or is He speaking to spiritual beings? I've heard both interpretations and I'm trying to understand which fits the context best.

Also, when the Psalm refers to "gods" (elohim), is that title being used because judging is an authority that belongs to HaShem, or is there something deeper going on in the Hebrew that I'm missing?

Jeremy Chance Springfield of Random Groovy Bible Facts responds:

You are familiar with the concept of “principalities and powers” that Paul wrote about in Ephesians 6, which were not “flesh and blood,” ie, human rulers?

That is what is being referenced in Psalm 82—the spiritual entities who are set over nations. This is mentioned in a few other places. The book of Daniel references the notion when he is greeted by the Angel Gabriel, who tells him he would have arrived sooner to speak with him, if not for the “prince” of Persia who opposed him, and who was eventually sidetracked by the coming of the angel Michael to fight and allow him to pass through to Daniel.

You see them in the first part of the book of Job, when they go to appear before the Creator, and of course the Satan goes along with them and essentially boasts of his authority to control the peoples of the world.

The end goal is stated in Psalm 82—all the spiritual powers will be judged and removed from their authoritative positions, and the Creator will once again be in full control of this earthly realm.

Something serious for Torah rejecters to contemplate

For those who don’t believe Torah pertains to you, please explain and respond to just two of many other examples that could be cited:

(1)  If you believe the Torah doesn’t pertain to you, why do you tithe?

Deuteronomy 16:17 “Every man is to give what he can, in accordance with the blessing Adonai your God has given you.”  (CJB)

(2)  Why are you bothering with the Ten Commandments, since they come straight out of Exodus 20?

Exodus 20: 1 Then God said all these words:

^{2  א} “I am Adonai your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the abode of slavery.

ב ³ “You are to have no other gods before me.

⁴ You are not to make for yourselves a carved image or any kind of representation of anything in heaven above, on the earth beneath or in the water below the shoreline.

⁵ You are not to bow down to them or serve them; for I, Adonai your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sins of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, ⁶ but displaying grace to the thousandth generation of those who love me and obey my mitzvot.

ג ⁷ “You are not to use lightly the name of Adonai your God, because Adonai will not leave unpunished someone who uses his name lightly.

^{8 ד} “Remember the day, Shabbat, to set it apart for God. ⁹ You have six days to labor and do all your work, ¹⁰ but the seventh day is a Shabbat for Adonai your God. On it, you are not to do any kind of work — not you, your son or your daughter, not your male or female slave, not your livestock, and not the foreigner staying with you inside the gates to your property. ¹¹ For in six days, Adonai made heaven and earth, the sea and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. This is why Adonai blessed the day, Shabbat, and separated it for himself.

ה ¹² “Honor your father and mother, so that you may live long in the land which Adonai your God is giving you.

ו ¹³ “Do not murder.

^{(14) ז} “Do not commit adultery.

^{(15)  ט} “Do not steal.

^{(16) ט} “Do not give false evidence against your neighbor.

י ^{14 (17) י} “Do not covet your neighbor’s house; do not covet your neighbor’s wife, his male or female slave, his ox, his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

^{15 (18)} All the people experienced the thunder, the lightning, the sound of the shofar, and the mountain smoking. When the people saw it, they trembled. Standing at a distance, ^{16 (19)} they said to Moshe, “You, speak with us; and we will listen. But don’t let God speak with us, or we will die.” ^{17 (20)} Moshe answered the people, “Don’t be afraid, because God has come only to test you and make you fear him, so that you won’t commit sins.” ^{18 (21)} So the people stood at a distance, but Moshe approached the thick darkness where God was. (CJB)

What The Church Taught Me…

By Sue Francis

~ What The Church Taught Me ~

The church taught me

sin is missing the mark.

But here’s what nobody asked…

Whose mark?

Defined by whom?

Based on what standard?

Because the honest answer

depended entirely on which church you attended.

Which denomination.

Which pastor.

Which tradition.

And if I’m being completely honest…

the mark I was most often

trying to hit wasn’t even YHWH’s standard.

It was people’s.

The pastor’s approval.

The congregation’s expectations.

The unwritten rules of the community I belonged to.

Looking right.

Sounding right.

Being seen doing the right things

by the right people.

Pleasing the church more than seeking to actually know what pleasing YHWH looked like.

And those two things

are not always the same.

One church’s mark, looked different from another’s.

And underneath all of it…

the actual standard YHWH established was rarely the foundation.

And I felt the confusion, but never quite knowing exactly what I was failing against.

And here’s what the church didn’t teach me…

The Hebrew word for sin

is “chata”.

And chata DOES mean

missing the mark.

But SCRIPTURE doesn’t leave

the mark undefined.

IT DEFINES IT.

Precisely.

Clearly.

Without ambiguity.

1 John 3:4.

Sin IS the transgression of Torah.

That’s not a feeling.

That’s not a denomination’s standard.

That’s not a pastor’s opinion.

That’s not what the congregation expects.

That’s a definition.

Torah is the mark.

The measuring line.

The boundary marker.

The covenant instruction

that tells you exactly

where the line is.

And without Torah?

You’re trying to hit a target

that keeps moving

depending on who’s defining it.

Feeling guilty

without knowing why.

Striving to measure up

without knowing what up looks like.

That’s an exhausting way to live.

And I lived it for years.

Genuine love for Him.

Genuine desire to please Him.

But no clear foundation

beneath my feet.

Torah gives that foundation.

Not as a burden.

Not as a performance checklist.

But as a Father saying ….

here is the path.

Here is what love looks like

walked out in real life.

Here is where the line is

so you don’t have to guess anymore.

YHWH never intended

for sin to be mysterious.

He gave us Torah

so we would know

exactly what He was asking.

And exactly what

we were walking away from

when we chose our own way.

And why does this matter?

Because vague conviction

without clear direction

produces one of two things.

Either shame without solution —

always feeling like you’re falling short

but never knowing what to change.

Or license without boundaries —

deciding the standard is unclear

so anything goes.

Torah removes both traps.

It gives you the standard clearly.

And it gives you the path back

when you miss it.

That’s not legalism.

That’s clarity.

And clarity is an act of love

from a Father who never wanted you

stumbling in the dark trying to hit a target that kept moving

depending on who was defining it.

The church taught me

sin was missing the mark.

YHWH showed me

Torah is the mark.

Same story.

The REST of the story.

A great reminder about the commanded Sabbath Rest

The following article was written by a Facebook friend called “Humble Disciple.”

I struggled with this verse in the past. Not because it was difficult to understand. Because it was difficult to explain away.

The book of Hebrews spends chapter after chapter showing what has changed. The Levitical priesthood changed. The sacrificial system changed. The earthly sanctuary pointed to a greater reality. Hebrews is not afraid to tell us when something has reached its fulfillment.

Yet when the writer arrives at the Sabbath, he doesn't say it ended. He doesn't say it was replaced. He doesn't say it became Sunday. He says it remains. Remains. Not remained. Not used to exist. Not fulfilled away. Remains. Something cannot remain if it has ceased to exist.

I was told Hebrews proves the Sabbath was replaced by Jesus. That the rest is now purely spiritual. But the more I read the chapter, the more that explanation felt forced. The author never says the Sabbath ended. He never says it was abolished. He says it remains. Not because the weekly Sabbath is the final destination, but because it points forward to a greater rest still ahead.

What struck me even more was who this promise is for. "There remains, therefore, a Sabbath rest for the people of God." Not for the world in general. For the people of God. The people who hear His voice. The people who trust Him. The people who refuse to harden their hearts. The people who are pressing toward the Kingdom.

Hebrews is using the Sabbath as a picture of something even greater.

The weekly Sabbath reminds us that our work is not our salvation. Every seventh day we stop striving, stop chasing, stop producing, and remember that everything comes from Yehovah. And every Sabbath points beyond itself. Back to creation, where God rested. Forward to the Kingdom, where His people will finally enter the fullness of that rest.

That's why the Sabbath appears everywhere in Scripture. It begins in Genesis before there was a Jew. It is written into the covenant at Sinai. The prophets see it in the age to come. Yeshua kept it. The apostles kept it. Revelation describes a people who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Yeshua.

One story. One God. One people. One consistent witness from beginning to end.

Hebrews 4:9 is a promise:

• A promise that the gift given at creation still stands.
• A promise that the weekly Sabbath still points somewhere.
• A promise that after all the wandering, striving, suffering, and waiting...
• …there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God.

PS: Many comments say, "Jesus is now our Sabbath rest," so before you feel compelled making that same comment, note, I agree that our rest is found in Messiah.

The question is whether Scripture says that because Messiah is our rest, the Sabbath no longer matters. Hebrews never says that.

The author doesn't conclude, "The Sabbath has ended." He concludes, "There remains, therefore, a Sabbath rest for the people of God."

Messiah and the Sabbath are not competitors. The Sabbath points to Him. It reminds us weekly that salvation is not by our works and points forward to the greater rest still ahead.

That's why I find it difficult to believe the Sabbath was abolished. Yeshua spoke of His followers caring about the Sabbath long after His resurrection (Matthew 24:20). Isaiah sees all flesh worshipping before Yehovah from Sabbath to Sabbath in the age to come (Isaiah 66:23).

The Sabbath points to Messiah. But pointing to something greater is not the same as disappearing because of it.