Romans Chapter 15:1-13

If you've read my previous post for chapter 14 then the first few verses of Chapter 15 can certainly be read with that in mind and so I won't be going down that path. I will however look at the Old Testament (hereafter Tanach) passages Paul uses in support of his escatalogical position regarding the inclusion of Gentiles.

I believe that this letter was circulated throughout Rome and was read at the believing fellowships, and in some cases in Synagogues. It is with this in mind that he chastises those strong- and weak-faithed Jews while encouraging the Gentiles in what I would call an undercurrent.

Rom 15:8-13 ESV (8) For I tell you that Christ became a servant to the circumcised to show God's truthfulness, in order to confirm the promises given to the patriarchs, (9) and in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written, "Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles, and sing to your name." (10) And again it is said, "Rejoice, O Gentiles, with his people." (11) And again, "Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles, and let all the peoples extol him." (12) And again Isaiah says, "The root of Jesse will come, even he who arises to rule the Gentiles; in him will the Gentiles hope." (13) May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

Paul uses the example of HIS Master Y'shua the Messiah to illustrate how the strong-faithed ones should seek to honor and defer to the opinions of the weak-faithed ones in order to 1) show G-D's truthfulness, 2) confirm the patriarchal promises and to 3) cause the Gentiles to glorify G-D for HIS mercy.

Paul then quotes Genesis, Psalms and Isaiah. In essence, he surveys the Tanach and illustrates how the scriptures have always made room for the Gentiles to be attached and to Israel by the Messiah and through the mercy of G-D.

I believe this is easily understood as a way to speak the truth about the inclusion of Gentiles so as to speak the truth to the Jewish weak-faith-ers, correction (regarding attitudes toward the weaker) to the Jewish strong-faith-ers, and encouragement for the marginalized Gentiles.

His final prayer sums up his exhortation: He prays that G-D will fill each with joy, peace and hope. I think Paul desires the joy, peace and hope of G-D for all of them, but it is interesting to note what may or may not have been parallelism on Paul's part or by inspiration:

1. Weak in faith: May G-D of hope fill you with all joy... (salvation by faith)
2. Strong in faith: May G-D of hope fill you with all ... peace (unity by faith)
3. Gentiles: May the G-D of hope fill you with all ... hope (assurance by faith)

For sure, a believer - whether Jew or Gentile - today needs all of these. The cynical seeker needs to receive the Joy of salvation. The maturing believer who is seeking to do all that G-D commands needs to fully receive and understand the Peace that is now given between G-D and himself so that he, like Messiah, will seek that peace between he and his brother regarding debatable issues. The downcast person with a checkered past needs the assurance of the scriptures which when believed give him hope. You may need one or more of these today. May He richly bless you in accordance with your needs. Bless His Name!

Romans Chapter 14

Rom 14:1-3 ESV (1) As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. (2) One person believes he may eat anything, while the weak person eats only vegetables. (3) Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed him. (4) Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make him stand.

Paul here speaks of the one weak in faith. The question that comes to my mind immediately is faith in what or who? I would say that this one would be weak in faith toward the theological idea of Jesus (hereafter Y'shua) as Messiah or King for everyone who believes.

If Y'shua is the King and he is letting you into the Kingdom what is the Kingdom? The Kingdom is the spiritual and eventually the physical Kingdom of Israel. Elsewhere Paul says as much that the Gentiles are being grafted into the olive branch and are to be received as Israelites with equal standing in the Kingdom with Jews who also have genuine faith.

Paul says elsewhere in his writings that just as Abraham gained entry into the proto or first covenant by faith so do all those who are true descendants of Abraham gain their entry. Paul says it is not by proselyte conversion and circumcision (a rabbinic ruling but not explicitly delineated in the Law or Torah) or by merely being born a Jew. While the Jews by ethnicity were chosen by G-D to keep and transfer HIS message and text, their acceptance by G-D is only by Faith in HIS Messiah.

Continuing then. Paul says to welcome this weak one and not so as to discuss opinions. Now, I'll get to the opinions issue momentarily. But first, the over-arching idea here is to welcome Jewish individuals into the believing fellowship meals and/or meetings who have not fully embraced the idea of salvation by faith in Messiah Y'shua. These are Jewish seekers to whom Paul says the reader should defer for Christ's (hereafter Messiah's) sake.

Paul says that quarreling should not be over opinions. But, most assuredly Paul is not saying that opinions are things which are clearly delineated in the Text of scripture. Opinions are the rabbinic rulings that have been derived from the Torah but are not explicitly given in the Torah.

For example, the Torah clearly indicates that should one touch something dead they would be made unclean. But the sages had derived that if even your shadow fell upon the grave of someone dead, you were considered to have been made unclean and unfit for temple worship.

Another example is that of Gentiles who were considered unclean because of their pagan practices in general. This meant that even meat which would have been considered kosher according to the strict statutes of the Torah, if handled by an idol-worshiping Gentile, would be considered unclean.

I believe that the weak in faith Jews were those that were not completely convinced of the gentiles being included in Israel by their faith in Messiah Y'shua alone. They were having a hard time accepting this change of what they had known as the only accepted way of entry into the people of G-D as derived by the sages - that of a proselyte service (otherwise called works of the Law). This was called salvation or entry by the works of the Torah.

I think this explains why Paul says that some are vegetarians. The argument isn't over whether the believers are to eat kosher or not - that was clearly delineated in Torah and not up for debate or opinion. Kosher does not equate to vegetarianism. The question is whether the observant Jewish person who is weak in his faith regarding Y'shua should be marginalized by the observant Jewish person who believes and fellowships with believing observant Gentiles.

Apparently the strong in faith Jews were judging the weak in faith Jews for not eating foods handled or served by observant believing Gentiles. And the weak in faith Jews were judging the strong in faith for eating.

Paul, in my opinion, is not trying to start a new religion free from the observance or submission to the Torah as it is written. But rather he is trying to reform the rabbinic rulings and derivations from the Text which would hinder fellowship and love and ultimately the Gospel of Y'shua the Messiah

He demonstrates this reformed thinking by the final statement in the above passage. He says that G-D is our ultimate Master and we are HIS servants. One servant doesn't determine another servant's standing based on opinions, but the Master determines his standing.

Rom 14:5-6 ESV (5) One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. (6) The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. The one who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God.

Next Paul launches into a discussion about days. Again, he can certainly not be discussing which day is the day of worship as clearly delineated in the Torah (Exodus 20:9-10). The reason he cannot be standing up for a Sunday versus Saturday argument is at least three-fold. First because Adonai explicitly says that his people should not listen to any prophet (truth teller) who does miracles but would lead them away from HIS commandments (Deut. 13:1-8).

Secondly, the debate about what day to worship was a much later phenomenon according to historians. Most historians believe, and the Apostolic Scriptures affirm, that the believers (Jewish and Gentile believers) were attending Synagogues in the first century. They say this because that was the only place where one could hear the Text being read (Acts15:21). There weren't copies readily available for anyone and everyone to read and use. It demonstrates the question: What wasn't around for 1st Century New Testament Church? Answer: Neither the New Testament nor the Church.

And third, the textual context is that of eating. After mentioning the issue of days, Paul continues with issues of eating. The question of whether to observe certain days is sandwiched between the issues of eating.

So, what is Paul speaking of with regard to these days? I believe that he is referring to a matter in the 1st century of fast days held by the more strict sects of Judaism. Depending on your sect of 1st century Judaism, you derived different days of the normal work week as set apart or holy for fasting (Mk. 2:18). This position also ties in nicely to the topic at hand for Paul - eating.

Paul is saying don't judge another's Kingdom status or "salvation" by opinions. Paul is not supporting Christian Relativism which says, "As long as you thank G-D for whatever you do, it doesn't matter if you obey his Torah or not" or some say "Our freedom in Christ is freedom from the Torah".

If anything we should realize from the testimony of the Torah that the freedom HaShem or G-D offers is freedom to obey HIS Word or Torah.

The picture of salvation for Israel from Egypt is instructive: 1) G-D delivers Israel (by HIS sovereign hand) out of their slavery to "the enemy" and 2) G-D draws HIS people to himself to give them HIS commands thereby making them HIS. He frees them to obey HIM (Romans 6:15-18).

What is sad to me, is that in the Christian mindset this passage is often used to say that those who seek to be obedient to G-D's Torah are the weak in their faith! While those the exercise their freedom in Christ realize that their deeds are inconsequential and therefore unnecessary. Never mind the call throughout the Apostolic Scriptures to live Godly (Matt.5). If you are striving to live Godly, some Christians theorize, you are somehow trying to earn your salvation.

The two things are separate by equal and one is the result of the other. No one is righteous. That is by his deeds without faith in the one who is to come. We are brought into the covenant of Abraham by our faith in the seed of Abraham. We are then sanctified as we obey the Text by faith and with the empowering of the Holy Spirit (Ruach HaKodesh).

Bless His Wonderful Name!

Blogg Entry Number One

It is amazing to me how far we've strayed. I suppose it has been two thousand years and so some change was inevitable.

It is my strong belief that the path of the Christian Church and her Theology is dangerously wrong-headed. Granted, I stand in a long line of others with that claim. The first one that most people think of is Martin Luther.

All of the theology of his time, said that being a physical member in the Catholic Church established one's salvation or inclusion in G-D's Israel. But Luther changed that. Of course, that was almost all that he changed. He still kept most of their doctrine and theology.

In my thinking, if you consider what Martin Luther and all of the reformers after him were trying to do, it was ultimately about getting us back to what is really true "Christianity". And that means doing our best to get back to the "Christianity" of Jesus.

And the best way to know who Jesus was is by studying the Apostolic Writings (New Testament).

Of course, Y'shua (Jesus) would not have considered himself a Christian at all, but rather a part of Judaism. And that is problematic for Christians. To say that Christianity is really or should really be a part of Judaism stirs up hornet nests in both camps - Jewish and Christian.

Most Jews, I think, would say that Jesus was a decent teacher who fell along the lines of Hillel but they can't believe that He could be the Messiah of Israel. And most Christians would say that while Judaism is a great "study", Christ did away with the Law for righteousness and so he, in effect, did away with Judaism as a religion.

This is the problem (generally speaking): To the Jewish folks out there, if Jesus is who the traditional Christian Church has said he is, He cannot be the Messiah. Why? Because the Messiah will not do away with the Law of G-D, but rather will do it correctly so as to establish it. He will reign His kingdom by that Law.

Now, I have stated that I believe the Y'shua is the Messiah of G-D. I have also stated that I believe that in HIS name is salvation - literally. Where I differ with the current and most of the past theology is that I believe that I should align my life with Torah or the Law of G-D.

I do not subscribe to theology which proposes that the Messiah of G-D, Y'shua, encouraged His followers to break the Law. He believed in the weights of the Law. He believed that compassion and mercy were weighter when up against submission to strict observance - but that does not mean He made the Law of no use. It is the sanctifying word. Jesus is not the man of Lawlessness. Even though, the traditional church has painted Him as such.

But, the above is only foundational. It is not my desire to use this blog for the purpose of this debate. My real desire is to make comments about the Bible Study I am involved in.

The Bible Study is called Bible Study Fellowship, International. While I don't agree with some of their theology, I highly recommend the study! Especially, since I'll be addressing the theology of the study in light of my premise that Christianity should actually be a sect of Judaism.

Well, thats all for now.