We are often questioned concerning our belief in the keeping of Torah, also known as the Law of God and most often this is in regard to our keeping of the Sabbath and Kosher commandments. I want to clarify our position, so that it will not be assumed that we believe the works of the Law to be saving in nature.

While the majority of the modern, professing Church claims that the Torah has been done away with by the atonement provided through Yeshua’s Blood, Yeshua Himself said in Matthew 5: 17-19, “Don't think that I came to destroy the law or the prophets. I didn't come to destroy, but to fulfill. For most assuredly, I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not even one smallest letter or one tiny pen stroke shall in any way pass away from the law, until all things are accomplished. Whoever, therefore, shall break one of these least commandments, and teach others to do so, shall be called least in the Kingdom of Heaven; but whoever shall do and teach them shall be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. ” and in John 14: 15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments.”

Therefore, if we claim to be the Children of God, it follows logically that we should strive to be the very best, most obedient Children we can be. Perhaps this is most evident when we consider that Paul’s statement in Galatians 3: 29, “If you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed and heirs according to promise,” is a direct reference to Genesis 17: 9, which reads “And God said to Abraham, And you shall keep My covenant, you and your seed after you in their generations.”

In order to truly understand this subject, we must first look at the several passages of Scripture which are commonly used by individuals attempting to prove the mainline position. Let us begin by looking at the words of Jesus Christ on the issue.

Mark 7: 14-16 says clearly, “He called all the multitude to himself, and said to them, "Hear me, all of you, and understand. There is nothing from outside of the man, that going into him can defile him; but the things which proceed out of the man are those that defile the man. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!" To the average, Sunday morning Christian these three verses are enough proof upon which to hang the entire doctrine of the food laws contained in the Torah having been done away with.

However, upon closer study, the context of the situation in which Yeshua made this statement, it quickly becomes very clear that the topic He was discussing was not the food laws which are contained in the Torah.

Mark 7 reads, “Then the Pharisees, and some of the scribes gathered together to him, having come from Jerusalem. Now when they saw some of his disciples eating bread with defiled, that is, unwashed, hands, they found fault. (For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, don't eat unless they wash their hands and forearms, holding to the tradition of the elders. They don't eat when they come from the marketplace, unless they bathe themselves, and there are many other things, which they have received to hold to: washings of cups, pitchers, bronze vessels, and couches.) The Pharisees and the scribes asked him, "Why don't your disciples walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat their bread with unwashed hands?" He answered them, "Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, 'This people honors me with their lips, But their heart is far from me. But in vain do they worship me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.' "For you set aside the commandment of God, and hold tightly to the tradition of men -- the washing of pitchers and cups, and you do many other such things." He said to them, "Full well do you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition. For Moses said, 'Honor your father and your mother;' and, 'He who speaks evil of father or mother, let him be put to death.' But you say, 'If a man tells his father or his mother, "Whatever profit you might have received from me is Corban, that is to say, given to God;"' then you no longer allow him to do anything for his father or his mother, making void the word of God by your tradition, which you have handed down. You do many things like this." He called all the multitude to himself, and said to them, "Hear me, all of you, and understand. There is nothing from outside of the man, that going into him can defile him; but the things which proceed out of the man are those that defile the man. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!" When he had entered into a house away from the multitude, his disciples asked him about the parable. He said to them, "Are you thus without understanding also? Don't you perceive that whatever goes into the man from outside can't defile him, because it doesn't go into his heart, but into his stomach, then into the latrine, thus making all foods clean?" He said, "That which proceeds out of the man, that defiles the man. For from within, out of the hearts of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, sexual sins, murders, thefts, covetings, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, and foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and defile the man." So it is that we see several reasons why this passage cannot be properly used to teach disobedience of the food laws.

First, Yeshua never said “do not obey the Law,” but was condemning those who taught the doctrines of men instead of adherence to the Law. Secondly, the question which was asked had to do with the proper method of washing hands, the “clean” and “unclean” of which has nothing at all to do with what foods YHWH has said His children are allowed to consume.

Thirdly, the question was asked about a specific type of food - bread. The food laws pertain only to what meats we are and are not allowed to eat, because Genesis 1: 29 says “God said, "Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree, which bears fruit yielding seed. It will be your food,” which tells us that there is no such thing as an unclean plant.

Another common passage used to attempt to circumvent the food laws is Acts 10: 9-16 which says, “Now on the next day as they were on their journey, and got close to the city, Peter went up on the housetop to pray at about noon. He became hungry and desired to eat, but while they were preparing, he fell into a trance. He saw heaven opened and a certain container descending to him, like a great sheet let down by four corners on the earth, in which were all kinds of four-footed animals of the earth, wild animals, reptiles, and birds of the sky. A voice came to him, "Rise, Peter, kill and eat!" But Peter said, "Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean." A voice came to him again the second time, "What God has cleansed, you must not call unclean." This was done three times, and immediately the vessel was received up into heaven.” Upon first glance this vision does appear to mean that YHWH is saying it is no longer necessary for His Children to obey the food laws.

However, if we look a little later in the same chapter beginning in verse 28, Peter gives the interpretation of his vision, “He said to them, "You yourselves know how it is an unlawful thing for a man who is a Jew to join himself or come to one of another nation, but God has shown me that I shouldn't call any man unholy or unclean. Therefore also I came without complaint when I was sent for. I ask therefore, why did you send for me?" Cornelius said, "Four days ago, I was fasting until this hour, and at the ninth hour, I prayed in my house, and behold, a man stood before me in bright clothing, and said, 'Cornelius, your prayer is heard, and your gifts to the needy are remembered in the sight of God. Send therefore to Joppa, and summon Simon, who is surnamed Peter. He lodges in the house of Simon a tanner, by the seaside. When he comes, he will speak to you.' Therefore I sent to you at once, and it was good of you to come. Now therefore we are all here present in the sight of God to hear all things that have been commanded you by God." Peter opened his mouth and said, "Truly I perceive that God doesn't show favoritism; but in every nation he who fears him and works righteousness is acceptable to him. In the following chapter, beginning in verse 4, we read “But Peter began, and explained to them in order, saying, "I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision: a certain container descending, like it was a great sheet let down from heaven by four corners. It came as far as me. When I had looked intently at it, I considered, and saw the four-footed animals of the earth, wild animals, creeping things, and birds of the sky. I also heard a voice saying to me, 'Rise, Peter, kill and eat!' But I said, 'Not so, Lord, for nothing unholy or unclean has ever entered into my mouth.' But a voice answered me the second time out of heaven, 'What God has cleansed, don't you call unclean.' This was done three times, and all were drawn up again into heaven. Behold, immediately three men stood before the house where I was, having been sent from Caesarea to me. The Spirit told me to go with them, without discriminating. These six brothers also accompanied me, and we entered into the man's house. He told us how he had seen the angel standing in his house, and saying to him, 'Send to Joppa, and get Simon, whose surname is Peter, who will speak to you words by which you will be saved, you and all your house.' As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them, even as on us at the beginning. I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, 'John indeed baptized in water, but you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit.' If then God gave to them the same gift as us, when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I, that I could withstand God?" So it is that we see that Peter himself did not believe that the meaning of the vision was that he should not continue to obey the commandments of YHWH, but that the Salvation which He had promised of old was in fact coming not only to the Israelites, but to anyone from any country who would believe and enter into the Covenant.

It is interesting to note here that Peter later wrote to the Churches in I Peter 1: 13-16 “Therefore, prepare your minds for action, be sober and set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ -- as children of obedience, not conforming yourselves according to your former lusts as in your ignorance, but just as he who called you is holy, you yourselves also be holy in all of your behavior; because it is written, "You shall be holy; for I am holy."” Sadly, most professing Christians, if they ever read this passage at all, pass over it without ever considering the meaning of the quoted line.

A study of the Scriptures shows us exactly where the line came from as we find it in Leviticus 11, which reads “Yahweh spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying to them, "Speak to the children of Israel, saying, 'These are the living things which you may eat among all the animals that are on the earth. Whatever parts the hoof, and is cloven-footed, and chews the cud among the animals, that you may eat. Nevertheless these you shall not eat of those that chew the cud, or of those who part the hoof: the camel, because he chews the cud but doesn't have a parted hoof, he is unclean to you. The coney, because he chews the cud but doesn't have a parted hoof, he is unclean to you. The hare, because she chews the cud but doesn't part the hoof, she is unclean to you. The pig, because he has a split hoof, and is cloven-footed, but doesn't chew the cud, he is unclean to you. Of their flesh you shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall not touch; they are unclean to you. These you may eat of all that are in the waters: whatever has fins and scales in the waters, in the seas, and in the rivers, that you may eat. All that don't have fins and scales in the seas, and in the rivers, of all that move in the waters, and of all the living creatures that are in the waters, they are an abomination to you, and you detest them. You shall not eat of their flesh, and you shall detest their carcasses. Whatever has no fins nor scales in the waters, that is an abomination to you. These you shall detest among the birds; they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination: the eagle, and the vulture, and the black vulture, and the red kite, any kind of black kite, any kind of raven, the horned owl, the screech owl, and the gull, any kind of hawk, the little owl, the cormorant, the great owl, the white owl, the desert owl, the osprey, the stork, any kind of heron, the hoopoe, and the bat. All flying insects that walk on all fours are an abomination to you. Yet you may eat these: of all winged creeping things that go on all fours, which have legs above their feet, with which to hop on the earth. Even of these you may eat: any kind of locust, any kind of katydid, any kind of cricket, and any kind of grasshopper. But all winged creeping things which have four feet, are an abomination to you. "'By these you will become unclean: whoever touches the carcass of them shall be unclean until the evening. Whoever carries any part of their carcass shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the evening. Every animal which parts the hoof, and is not cloven-footed, nor chews the cud, is unclean to you. Everyone who touches them shall be unclean. Whatever goes on its paws, among all animals that go on all fours, they are unclean to you. Whoever touches their carcass shall be unclean until the evening. He who carries their carcass shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the evening. They are unclean to you. "'These are they which are unclean to you among the creeping things that creep on the earth: the weasel, the rat, any kind of great lizard, the gecko, and the monitor lizard, the wall lizard, the skink, and the chameleon. These are they which are unclean to you among all that creep. Whoever touches them when they are dead, shall be unclean until the evening. On whatever any of them falls when they are dead, it shall be unclean; whether it is any vessel of wood, or clothing, or skin, or sack, whatever vessel it is, with which any work is done, it must be put into water, and it shall be unclean until the evening; then it will be clean. Every earthen vessel, into which any of them falls, all that is in it shall be unclean, and you shall break it. All food which may be eaten, that on which water comes, shall be unclean; and all drink that may be drunk in every such vessel shall be unclean. Everything whereupon part of their carcass falls shall be unclean; whether oven, or range for pots, it shall be broken in pieces: they are unclean, and shall be unclean to you. Nevertheless a spring or a cistern in which water is a gathered shall be clean: but that which touches their carcass shall be unclean. If part of their carcass falls on any sowing seed which is to be sown, it is clean. But if water is put on the seed, and part of their carcass falls on it, it is unclean to you. If any animal, of which you may eat, dies; he who touches its carcass shall be unclean until the evening. He who eats of its carcass shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the evening. He also who carries its carcass shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the evening. "'Every creeping thing that creeps on the earth is an abomination. It shall not be eaten. Whatever goes on its belly, and whatever goes on all fours, or whatever has many feet, even all creeping things that creep on the earth, them you shall not eat; for they are an abomination. You shall not make yourselves abominable with any creeping thing that creeps, neither shall you make yourselves unclean with them, that you should be defiled thereby. For I am Yahweh your God. Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be holy; for I am holy: neither shall you defile yourselves with any kind of creeping thing that moves on the earth. For I am Yahweh who brought you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God. You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy. This is the law of the animal, and of the bird, and of every living creature that moves in the waters, and of every creature that creeps on the earth, to make a distinction between the unclean and the clean, and between the living thing that may be eaten and the living thing that may not be eaten.” Later, we find the same commandment reiterated and in Deuteronomy 14: 2 we read, “For you are a holy people to Yahweh your God, and Yahweh has chosen you to be a people for his own possession, above all peoples who are on the face of the earth,” and we come to understand that the food laws are in fact a sign by which we are to show the world that we belong to Him and thus are separate from them.

Likewise the Apostle Paul told us in II Corinthians 2: 14, “Don't be unequally yoked with unbelievers, for what fellowship have righteousness and iniquity? Or what communion has light with darkness?” This is interesting in light of the fact that Paul is the Apostle whom we are most often told “did away with the Law.”

One of the verses of Paul’s writings most often used to back up this thinking is Romans 14: 13-14, “Therefore let's not judge one another any more, but judge this rather, that no man put a stumbling block in his brother's way, or an occasion for falling. I know, and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean of itself; except that to him who considers anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean.” However, Paul wrote earlier in the same letter in Romans 2: 13, “ For it isn't the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law will be justified” and again in Romans 3: 31, “Do we then nullify the law through faith? May it never be! No, we establish the law.”

So it is that a simple reading of Paul’s writings in their entirety renders the claim of his having put aside the Law as utter non-sense. Nevertheless, most professing Christians today are quick to claim that Paul’s having “done away with the law” is the reason why they are “free to practice Sabbath on which ever day we pick.”

Before we go any further, let us point out that the same passages which have proven the former claims regarding the food laws to be false can easily prove the same in these latter claims. Also, consider that most individuals who claim to keep another, alternative Sabbath, cannot even explain what Sabbath is according to Scriptural mandates.

Secondly, one has only to open he Book of Acts to find out on which day Paul made a habit of preaching the Gospel.

While many take the statement in Acts 20: 7 that “On the first day of the week, when the disciples were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the next day, and continued his speech until midnight,” to mean that the Apostles were meeting for worship services on Sunday, a literal and contextual study of the situation tells us something quite different.

Consider first that the biblical calendar begins each new day at sunset. This means that for Paul to have preached until midnight at a gathering on the first day of the week, he would have had to do so by starting after sunset on what is today thought of as Saturday night.

Secondly, many who wish to uphold modern traditions of Sunday morning worship have misconstrued the words “break bread” to fit the modern method of taking communion. In fact, history tells us that the early church did not partake of the modern practice of regular communion services, but continued the biblically commanded memorial of Passover.

This makes sense, considering that it was at Passover that Yeshua celebrated what is commonly called The Last Supper. If the text in Acts 20 said that the Apostles had gathered for Passover, then it would make sense to claim this was a worship service, but even then the fact that Passover falls on a different day of the week every year would still make void the claim that Paul had changed the Sabbath commandment.

It should be noted that a common Jewish practice of the time period which is still kept to this day, is to gather after Sabbath for a meal and fellowship. The details of the context in this passage seems to indicate that following the Sabbath worship during which Paul undoubtedly taught, the believers gathered together for such a meal and Paul took the last opportunity he would have to speak to them as a congregation.

In similar manner, many people have attempted to use Romans 14: 5-6, “One man esteems one day as more important. Another esteems every day alike. Let each man be fully assured in his own mind. He who observes the day, observes it to the Lord; and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it. He who eats, eats to the Lord, for he gives God thanks. He who doesn't eat, to the Lord he doesn't eat, and gives God thanks,” to justify the celebration of Sabbath on a day other than that commanded in Scripture. In fact, a close look at the situation at the time shows us that this portion of the Apostle’s writing is not even speaking of the Sabbath day, but of the Pharisees’ commanded days of fasting.

In Luke 18, Yeshua told the story of the Pharisee and the tax collector who both stood praying in the Temple. In verse 18, the Pharisee said, “I fast twice a week. I give tithes of all that I get,” meaning that he faithfully kept the manmade commandment to fast every Tuesday and Thursday. In Rome, as in many cities to which the Gospel had been carried, there was a sect of saved Israelites who were still concerned about keeping the manmade laws and were attempting to force these rules upon the new converts, when in fact only the Law of God was and is important.

There are many today who claim that only certain of the commandments apply to the “Gentile Church” and that among those which no longer apply are the commandments concerning the keeping of the Sabbath day and the adherence to the biblical food laws. However, in prophesying of the time when many non-Israelites would be grafted into the Covenant, Isaiah 56 says, “Thus says Yahweh, Keep you justice, and do righteousness; for my salvation is near to come, and my righteousness to be revealed. Blessed is the man who does this, and the son of man who holds it fast; who keeps the Sabbath from profaning it, and keeps his hand from doing any evil. Neither let the foreigner, who has joined himself to Yahweh, speak, saying, Yahweh will surely separate me from his people; neither let the eunuch say, Behold, I am a dry tree. For thus says Yahweh of the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths, and choose the things that please me, and hold fast my covenant: To them will I give in my house and within my walls a memorial and a name better than of sons and of daughters; I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off. Also the foreigners who join themselves to Yahweh, to minister to him, and to love the name of Yahweh, to be his servants, everyone who keeps the Sabbath from profaning it, and holds fast my covenant; even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted on my altar; for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.” It should be noted that Yeshua quoted this very passage in Matthew 21: 12-13, when He drove the money changers from the Temple.

Just ten short chapters later, in Isaiah 66 we read, “Those who sanctify themselves and purify themselves to go to the gardens, behind one in the midst, eating pig's flesh, and the abomination, and the mouse, they shall come to an end together, says Yahweh. For I know their works and their thoughts: the time comes, that I will gather all nations and languages; and they shall come, and shall see my glory. I will set a sign among them, and I will send such as escape of them to the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, who draw the bow, to Tubal and Javan, to the isles afar off, who have not heard my fame, neither have seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the nations. They shall bring all your brothers out of all the nations for an offering to Yahweh, on horses, and in chariots, and in litters, and on mules, and on dromedaries, to my holy mountain Jerusalem, says Yahweh, as the children of Israel bring their offering in a clean vessel into the house of Yahweh. Of them also will I take for priests and for Levites, says Yahweh. For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, says Yahweh, so shall your seed and your name remain. It shall happen, that from one new moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, says Yahweh. They shall go forth, and look on the dead bodies of the men who have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring to all flesh.” Again, here is a passage from which Yeshua quoted numerous times in reference to the coming Judgment and few professing Christians would fail to see the correlation between this passage and Revelation 21: 1, which says “I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth have passed away, and the sea is no more,” though most of those same individuals fail completely to note that in the New Heavens and New Earth time will be told by the counting of the Sabbaths and those who enter in will be observant of the food laws. We also see here that, just as is the case with the food laws, the Sabbath commandment is given to YHWH’s Children as a sign between Him and us. This is probably nowhere better indicated than in Revelation 14: 12, which reads “Here is the patience of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus."

So where then did the practice of the “Sunday Sabbath” originate? History records that it was the Roman Emperor Constantine who mandated that the whole of the known world should rest on Sunday, or as he said Dei Solis, the “Day of the Sun.”

Constantine claimed to have converted to Christianity, though history shows plainly that he continued practicing his heathen sun worship. His choice of Sunday as the “New Sabbath” was nothing less than an attempt to replace the things of YHWH with the things of Satan.

While most people today seem to believe that this is of little importance and that YHWH does not care on which day we keep Sabbath, in Deuteronomy 12: 28-31 we are told “Observe and hear all these words which I command you, that it may go well with you, and with your children after you forever, when you do that which is good and right in the eyes of Yahweh your God. When Yahweh your God shall cut off the nations from before you, where you go in to dispossess them, and you dispossess them, and dwell in their land; take heed to yourself that you not be ensnared to follow them, after that they are destroyed from before you; and that you not inquire after their gods, saying, How do these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise. You shall not do so to Yahweh your God: for every abomination to Yahweh, which he hates, have they done to their gods; for even their sons and their daughters do they burn in the fire to their gods. Whatever thing I command you, that shall you observe to do: you shall not add thereto, nor diminish from it.” The keeping of the “Sunday Sabbath” is a topic which will be discussed in greater detail at a later time, though every believer should know that it is a practice of the heathens, is derive from ancient Satanic sun worship and dishonors YHWH.

We must also consider that I John 2: 3-4 states, “This is how we know that we know him: if we keep his commandments. One who says, ‘I know him,’ and doesn't keep his commandments, is a liar, and the truth isn't in him.” Likewise, I John 5: 2-3 reads, “ By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. His commandments are not grievous.”

So it is then, that we have come face to face with the question which has, for many years, left countless Christians scratching their heads. Just how is it that the modern Church has come to a point at which millions around the world are being taught that it is possible to be a “Gentile Church” who are going to the New Heavens and the New Earth foretold by the Jewish Prophets because we are saved by the Blood of a Jewish Messiah, who we boldly claim fulfilled every Messianic prophesy but, somehow we are told that we are not expected to obey the Jewish commandments which were laid down by the God of the Jews and which will still be in effect in the New Heavens and New Earth which He will create?

In Matthew 21: 28-31, Yeshua told a story to the Pharisees which has become known as the “Parable of the Two Sons.” He said, “But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first, and said, 'Son, go work today in my vineyard.' He answered, 'I will not,' but afterward he changed his mind, and went. He came to the second, and said the same thing. He answered, 'I go, sir,' but he didn't go. Which of the two did the will of his father?" They said to him, "The first." Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly I tell you that the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering into the Kingdom of God before you.” He was telling them that although they claimed to be servants of YHWH, the fact that they did not even attempt to obey Him showed that they were not really His Children.

Today, as we have said, most “Christians” are disregarding the majority of YHWH’s Law and, sadly, this is a sign that those do not love Him with all of their heart, soul, mind and strength, as we are commanded in Deuteronomy 6: 4-5 and of which Yeshua reminded us in Mark 12: 29-30. Those of us who claim to be His Children can either be the good son who obeys or the rebellious son who says we will obey, but then does otherwise.

Which one are you?

For more information, please feel free to contact us. We look forward to hearing from you.