Good grief, if it isn't the Jews bashing us for our belief in Y'shua, then it's the Christians bashing us for our desire to obey Torah! Check out the nonsensical stuff on the Facebook group, "Joyfully Growing in Grace" which exists to do nothing but trash and berate those of us who wish to be Torah observant! Her latest rant is about the wearing of tzit-tzit (tassels)...Since she thinks "Jesus" came to bring a new religion, she has no clue that Numbers 15 tells us that the people of Israel are to wear tzitzit as a "reminder":
Numbers 15: 37 ADONAI said to Moshe, 38 "Speak to the people of Isra'el, instructing them to make, through all their generations, tzitziyot on the corners of their garments, and to put with the tzitzit on each corner a blue thread. 39 It is to be a tzitzit for you to look at and thereby remember all of ADONAI's mitzvot and obey them, so that you won't go around wherever your own heart and eyes lead you to prostitute yourselves; 40 but it will help you remember and obey all my mitzvot and be holy for your God. 41 I am ADONAI your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt in order to be your God. I am ADONAI your God."
Last time I checked, the "people of Israel" includes ALL who believe in YHWH and Messiah Y'shua....But then, "cherry picking their way through Scripture" is what some people do best.
If we are Gentiles coming into the faith, are we to imitate the Jews in dress, etc.? Aren't we to come as we are from whatever culture we are from, and worship Adonai in spirit and in truth without mimicking other cultures and their traditions? Didn't Adonai send Joan of Arc to keep the culture and country of France alive? He loves all cultures and doesn't want us to mimic other cultures we are not from. We can keep the Sabbath, follows the laws, eat kosher for our health from a science standpoint, even circumcise our sons if we like, knowing that science tells us this brings less infections for them. As we learn we apply, but wearing a tzitzit is mimicking the Jews, and I am sure they do not like the Gentiles doing this.
ReplyDeleteOuch! We don't obey God to "imitate Jews"! We don't obey God because "it makes sense from a health or science standpoint", or "if we like"! We obey to have a closer relationship with God! And God Himself said His laws apply to everyone, not just the Jews! (Exodus 12:49, Leviticus 24:22, Numbers 15:29)
DeleteWhile you are probably right that Jews don't like non-Jews doing ANYTHING they do, wearing tzitzit is not a "fashion thing". The purpose of the tzitzit is "...to look at and thereby remember all of ADONAI's mitzvot and obey them, so that you won't go around wherever your own heart and eyes lead you to prostitute yourselves; but it will help you remember and obey all my mitzvot and be holy for your God." (Numbers 15:38-40)
Are only the Jews to obey God's commandments, and not just wander around committing sins?
We are not "mimicking other cultures and their traditions" when we read a commandment of God, and if it applies to us, we obey it!
Shalom!