Saturday, November 26, 2016

Reader question: Impressed with your website but still wondering....


READER QUESTION:

I was quite impressed whilst browsing your site and some of the interpretations were closely relevant to my church and I just wanted a few answers.

What is the difference between the 10 commandments (written by God's finger on two stone tablets) and the Mosaic Law regarding the feasts and the sacrificial system.

Why is there a distinction between the two sets of laws? 10 were written on stone tablets by God himself and the other 600+ laws were written by Moses who was guided by God.

What is your ministry's view on the relevance of the temple curtain being torn in two from top to bottom at the exact time of Jesus' death at the cross? Matthew 27.

What does this represent in light of the holy and most holy places of the temple?

Doesn't it mean that at that precise moment, the sacrificial system of feasts and keeping of special sabbaths which foreshadowed the messiah was null and void? This supernatural event had to have some significant meaning concerning the future of the earthly temple/sanctuary.

RESPONSE FROM THE REFINER'S FIRE:

Thank you for writing to The Refiner's Fire. Let's get right to your questions:

YOU SAID: What is the difference between the 10 commandments (written by God's finger on two stone tablets) and the Mosaic Law regarding the feasts and the sacrificial system.

OUR RESPONSE: Absolutely nothing. The Ten Commandments were a condensed version of the 613 which are "forever" commandments directed at every believer. The Ten Commandments - which are a part of Torah - in no way negated the Torah nor did they abolish the feasts or the sacrificial system. As a matter of fact, the Ten Commandments came way before Yeshua did, and so the sacrificial system was still in effect then.

YOU SAID: Why is there a distinction between the two sets of laws? 10 were written on stone tablets by God himself and the other 600+ laws were written by Moses who was guided by God.

OUR RESPONSE: There really is no distinctionTorah - God's original teaching and instruction - has been in effect since Adam and Eve and is still in effect today. The rules given to Moshe were COMMANDED (not guided) by God and most of them were for the priests and kings of the day; some were for men; some for women. Some were FOREVER laws - i.e., the seventh day Sabbath and feasts, kosher, etc.  There was no point in YHWH speaking ALL His rules when he spoke directly to the people (Exodus 20), so what you see recorded is simply YHWH's overview!  Only Christianity has interpreted the Ten Commandments as somehow separate from Torah, but all of Torah is contained in this "overview" which was, heard by those present at that time.  See the end of Exodus 20, vs 6: "...displaying grace to the thousandth generation of those who love me and obey my mitzvot." That "obey my mitzvot" part is ALL of Torah!

Think of it this way:  If you were presenting the rules of baseball to a group of kids, you'd provide a summary of the essential rules to get them started - the essence of the game, if you will.  But you would not provide ALL the rules of the game at that time, because it would take lots of time.  But what you told the kids would not mean that the rules you spoke, negated the whole list of baseball rules in the "official" rulebook! 

YOU SAID: What is this ministry's view on the relevance of the temple curtain being torn in two from top to bottom at the exact time of Jesus' death at the cross? Matthew 27.

OUR RESPONSE: The renting ("tearing") of clothing or curtains has many meanings.  It was done to express strong emotion, such as shame, anger, or mourning.  Could we assume that this supernatural event (marked also with earthquakes) was YHWH's anger or emotion released?  Note that YHWH gave mankind exactly ONE GENERATION to humanity to accept His gift of salvation before He destroyed the Temple.  So perhaps the renting of the temple curtain was YHWH's enormous mourning over most of humanity, most of whom would turn from Him?  Yeshua's death on the cross marked the end of the need for SIN SACRIFICES, nothing else. It did NOT render void God's original teaching/instruction (Torah). Yeshua, was the Final Sin Sacrifice who said He came not to abolish but to fulfill:

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.

Has everything happened that must happen? Have heaven and earth passed away yet? If not, then Torah is still valid. When Yeshua said He came to "complete"; it did NOT mean "put an end to"....

YOU SAID: What does this represent in light of the holy and most holy places of the temple? Doesn't it mean that at that precise moment, the sacrificial system of feasts and keeping of special sabbaths which foreshadowed the messiah was null and void? This supernatural event had to have some significant meaning concerning the future of the earthly temple/sanctuary.

OUR RESPONSE: In a word: NO! If Yeshua was undoubtedly our FINAL SIN SACRIFICE, how does that render null and void God's original teachings, without which, the world would have no blueprint for moral and Godly living? Please read the following articles which provide in-depth answers to all your questions:





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