[Sinaites VAN and BAN respond to “CP”s letter; if you have not followed this exchange between two couples who have been long-time friends as well as former co-workers in a Christian ministry/Church, please read these previous posts:
- Discourse – Sinaite and Christian Pastor – 4
- Discourse – Sinaite and Christian Pastor – 3
- Discourse : Sinaite and Christian Pastor – 2
- Discourse: Sinaite and Christian Pastor– 1
—Admin1]
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Dear “CP” and “D”,
Reading your letter of the 10th December brings back to mind the never-ending disputes as to who Jesus was. The same issues which started the formation of the first church council, the Council of Nicea in 325 CE, in order to resolve these issues.
- Is Jesus man or God ?
- Has he risen from from the dead or did God raise him from the dead?
- The apostles could not even agree whether he rose from the dead or did God raise him from the dead?
- We see also the Pharisees and the Sadducees arguing on the issue of the resurrection for there are those who believe and those who do not.
- And, even to those who believe still the problem was whether the resurrection is bodily or spiritually?
Everybody seems to be focusing on the man and not on his message. While everyone is arguing Jesus was saying, feed the hungry, give water to the thirsty, visit the sick! In other words, he was saying, if you believe in God, obey His commandments.
Teaching from the Torah, he was saying,
“Love God with all your heart, with all your soul,
and with all your might”.
“Love one another…”.
Simply put, stop arguing and start doing what God has commanded us to do. Arguing with one another is a waste of time and instead start doing something to help one another. The world would be a better world to live in.
Christianity is founded on the claim that Jesus was raised from the dead. This belief in the resurrection is what made Jesus unique from any other religious belief. It is this belief in the resurrection that made his followers eventually claim that he was God. And, this is what made Christianity different from other religions teaching the same message. It is in the uniqueness of the teacher and not the message. This is why Paul, I believe, was persistent in proclaiming that Jesus was raised from the dead,when he said,
“And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins”
(1Cor.15:14-17).
I can believe that Jesus lived, died, and was buried. However with the resurrection one has to prove that there was a tomb and the tomb was empty. And this is where the problem starts . . . If he was buried nobody knows where the grave or tomb was. Up to now, people are still looking for the grave or tomb where he was buried and point to an empty tomb. Some even claim that if Jesus was crucified for a crime committed against the State then he could have been buried in a common grave with the rest of the criminals, which is harder to prove. If ever a grave is found as his burial place, and again one can say that he resurrected spiritually. Anything is always acceptable when convenient. One can even invoke “convenience” for “personal knowledge” known only to the person claiming it, and for which, no other person would ever know. This is what is commonly known as “faith” or “religious faith.” This is where eyewitnesses of the same “religious faith” come in handy. Evidence of this nature is allowed in our judicial courts. It is ordinary for a lawyer to gather as many eyewitnesses of the same “faith” to prove his case. There’s nothing spectacular about that.
I am sorry if I did not make it clear to you on my position on the Book of Leviticus. The Book of Leviticus provides specific details regarding “sacrifices and offerings.” It also gives specific requirements for every offence or “sin,” a specific sacrifice or offering, from animal to non-animal. Although the book prescribes a type of animal for every sacrifice or offering, it does not and it has not required a human sacrifice. There is no scriptural support for a human sacrifice in the entire Hebrew Scriptures (Tanach), from the Torah ( 5 books of Moses), to the Prophets, and the Writings. A human sacrifice is absolutely prohibited as it is an abomination to the LORD (YHVH).
Leviticus 17:11. It is clear from this verse that animal (not human) blood only “makes atonement” when applied or sprinkled on the altar. It does say that blood is used to obtain atonement but does not say it is the only means of obtaining atonement. However, this verse 11 should be read as a continuation and forming part of verses 10 and 12. In this context the passage simply says not to eat blood because it is used in the rituals. So, is blood sacrifice required to obtained forgiveness? Of course not! GOD’s answer is always REPENTANCE, a turning away from sin and a new commitment to obey His commandments — obedience.
The book of Jonah tells us of an entire community condemned yet were forgiven when they simply repented and fasted. Forgiveness is obtained through—
- PRAYER,
- REPENTANCE,
- and CHARITY or GOOD DEEDS.
Please refer to my letter of the 10th October for a list of scriptural support on this subject. I am referring to the Hebrew Scriptures( the Old Testament book in the Christian bible ).
I would no longer take up the issue on Psalms 22 and Isaiah 53 here but just let me say that these passages points to Israel, the nation, and its people. Definitely, not to Jesus! In the Tanach the concept of the Messiah is a person, a human being, if you please, not a god or God. And, this person comes from the line of King David. And, according to the scriptures, he is still expected to come for the actual, physical deliverance of the entire people, the nation of Israel. An entirely different concept from Christianity. According to the New Testament of the Christian bible, Jesus the Messiah is man and also God; he came, lived, died, resurrected; and is coming again to redeem his people. Certainly two different concepts!
As a Christian then, my understanding of my faith was founded on the New Testament.
In Romans 10:8-11—
“But was does it say?”
The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart (Deuteronomy 30:14),
”that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, , that if you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved; for with the heart man believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses resulting in salvation. For the Scriptures say,
“Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed” (Isaiah 28:16).
As a Messianic Christian I started going back to the foundation of my faith, re-examining the passages in support of my belief. The cross-reference on the side margin on the passage, Rom.10, quoted above, namely, Deut.30;14 and Isa. 28:16, do not support nor validate. Both of the passages from the Old Testament refer to the Torah and not to any person. The reference to the OT was out of context, purposely done for convenience to support or fit into the NT doctrine.
This is a problem I usually encounter when a message in scripture is found only in the reading of specific isolated passages. An understanding of the message of scripture must be based on the totality of scripture. This is also done in claiming the Christian’s position that the New Testament is the fulfillment of the Old Testament.
In the Torah, Deut. 4:2
“You shall not add to the word
which I am commanding you,
nor take away from it,
that you may keep the commandments
of the Lord your God which I command you.”
Also in Deut. 12:32
“Whatever I command you,
you shall be careful to do;
you shall not add nor take away from it.”
The Torah, the five books of Moses, is all that we need on how to live in His way. It is the Tree of Life!
We were told that the ‘ Old Testament’ was obsolete and was already superseded by the ‘New Testament’. And for many years we hardly read, not even seriously studied, the Old Testament because there was enough to study in the New Testament. If we ever go to the Old Testament it is to check out “prophecies” that would point to Jesus as the Messiah of Israel. It is at this point that I would like thank my missionary teacher for leading me to the Messianic Christianity that brought me to seriously study the Hebrew Scriptures, the Old Testament book in the Christian bible.
In my desire to learn I got myself a Stone Edition, Artscroll series of The Tanakh, which is an English translation of the Hebrew Scriptures and also a good commentary on the Torah (The Five Books of Moses) by Dr. J.H. Hertz, C.H. the late Chief Rabbi of the British Empire, The Pentateuch and Haftorahs.
Here is where I started to notice some glaring and some not so glaring differences. The Christian bible has 27 in the New Testament and 39 books or a total of 66. In the Hebrew Scriptures only 22 to 24.
I came to know in my studies that the Christian bible was first translated from the original Hebrew to Greek, to Latin, German, then to English which we know now as the King James version. The King James version became the basis for all other Christian bible translations. This is where I noticed that some verses were tampered with, changed, mistranslated, most probably as the result of the translating process.
I choose to believe in YHVH, the GOD Who revealed Himself to the ‘multitudes’ on Mt. Sinai, Who gave us the Commandments to obey. And He said,
“if you obey my commandments
I will bless you
and if you disobey
I will curse you.”
(Deut. 28).
He also said,
“love your neighbor
as you love yourself.”
(Lev.19:18)
I was reminded of something that your father told me in one of those times when I was down in Manila coming from Baguio and usually stayed in your home. You usually put me in the same room with your father so I could talk to him about Jesus. I still remember what he told me. He said, “What we need to do is learn how to live with one another.” Expressed in another way would be “love your neighbor as yourself.”
What he said crossed my mind only when I started studying the Torah. This makes a lot of sense, doesn’t it?
Without the Torah how can we learn to live His way. We would probably have a better world today if we would only learn how to live with one another. “Tolerance” is the word we need, and which we seem to have forgotten. Instead we often hear the word “arrogance.”
Your father is truly a “grand old man” and he will continue to have a place in my heart.
I would close by quoting this prayer from the website of sinai6000.net on the 2nd Sabbath of December 2014 Sabbath Liturgy;
As we enter into this season of joy
that the world celebrates for different reasons,
may the words we hear at this time of the year
not only reverberate in the minds and hearts of all humankind,
but be lived out in the context of all relationships:
“Peace on earth, good will to men.”
May love and compassion, forgiveness and reconciliation,
tolerance and respect for one another, and specially the ‘other’
be part of this season’s gatherings—
for Torah life prescribed by the Source and Giver of Life
is what will ultimately bring
‘Joy to the world!’
Please extend my best wishes to your father.
May YHVH bless you and your love ones!
HAPPY HOLIDAYS ! ! !
VAN & BAN
