A morning rant:
There
sure is a lot of discussion over this and some of it seems almost
hostile or perhaps I'm overly sensitive but when people make comments
calling Christianity a “pagan religion”, I get a little put off.
I do understand there has been a lot of error within the church over
the centuries, mostly because it's composed of men who are - after
all – sinners, we have an enemy who wants to destroy us and a world
that's trying to mold us into it's own likeness BUT I also see some
error within the “messianic community” as well and I wish we
could all just stop judging each other.
I
have always been drawn toward my Hebraic roots – long before it
became so popular and I really do appreciate all that I've learned
and believe it has been of great benefit in my spiritual growth. As
the saying goes - The
New is in the Old Concealed, the Old is in the New Revealed – to
really understand, you need both. Someone once said it's like walking
into a dark room and turning on a light. I have found this to be
true.
The
problem for me is when I see something being added to the finished
work of Christ – a belief in Jesus plus something. Is there
benefit in observing Sabbath? Absolutely – it certainly
demonstrates for us the blessing we have of being able to “rest in
the Lord” but it is not necessary
as a basis for my relationship with the Father. God's law has not
changed, but how it is applied has – we are to love God and to love
each other – and that has never changed - But we no longer have to
do it through a sacrificial system – Christ took care of all that,
He is the fulfillment and we can now rest in what He has done.
This
does not mean that I can go out and do what ever I want – what
motivates my actions is my love for the Father – and to seek to
understand and live my life by His definition of what love is
because that is Who He is.
One
of the greatest gifts we now have is His Spirit, which is freely
given to those who genuinely
ask but the ability to know who is genuinely asking is not mine to
judge. There are certain indicators but ultimately only the Father
knows the heart. We are to love one another and leave the judging to
God. So please stop calling me a “pagan” and I'll try to not
imply that you are a judaizer – can we keep our eyes focused
on Jesus/Yeshua and let Him complete the work He has begun in each
us.
No comments:
Post a Comment