LAW VS. GRACE – an Oxymoron
LAW vs. GRACE – an Oxymoron
By Kerrie French
If you grew up anything like me, you attended church weekly and were taught one of two belief systems, that if we loved (Jesus Christ) Yahusha, the Messiah: 1) We were to keep His Ten Commandments; or that 2) We were no longer under the LAW but under Grace.
My church taught that only those who honored and kept the Ten Commandments, which included the seventh-day [Saturday] Sabbath, would be exempt from receiving the Mark of the Beast. Yet, in contrast, there is an assortment of church denominations that believe quite the opposite. So for both sentiments, I am asserting a new and third paradigm for reflection since we are all on a journey into greater TRUTH . . . So this article is aimed at getting to the bottom of the controversy over the Law vs. Grace, “Saved by grace and not by the Law,” or as some would say, “we are no longer under the Law, but under grace.” But is this really true, and how can we be certain?
From the pages of Scripture, it will be revealed what was intended by the Commandments, and the Torah Law, as well as what is meant by the term Grace. Stunningly, it is my firm belief that the truth of “Law and Grace” has NOT been fully or accurately taught on purpose. The empirical reality is that the TORAH (LAW) can NEVER be at odds with GRACE and vice versa. This revelation brings the reader to reconsider how TIME was originally measured and how the authentic and original time-measuring model of Scripture shall be restored and once again be utilized to vet His true followers from the impostors just prior to His return. So, this subject carries eternal weight.
Law-Abiding Citizens
In your country of origin, would you consider yourself a law-abiding citizen? Meaning do you seek to live in freedom, not breaking your traffic, domestic, or civil laws? No doubt, you will attest that you do.
For perspective on this subject of LAW vs. GRACE, are you aware that in the United States of America, there are an estimated 40,000 laws? Wow! Compare that figure to the 613 Laws contained in the TORAH, the first five Books recorded by Moses in Scripture. Doesn’t that seem incomprehensible to try to keep all 40,000 laws faithfully? Yes. But the reality is most of them do not apply to our everyday lives. But even then, we may break some of them without even knowing it. Then there are the traffic laws that some of us have broken knowingly or unknowingly, such as speeding above the posted 65 mph speed limit or coasting through a stop sign without stopping.
Some of us may have even been pulled over by a traffic cop and then given GRACE without a ticket. The law required that a traffic ticket be given to offenders, but in such a case, GRACE was extended in its place. Of particular notice is that GRACE is not GRACE and cannot be provided if there is no LAW in place to break and for which to extend GRACE. The TORAH LAW and GRACE cannot be separated from each other. GRACE cannot exist without the continual living reality of the LAW.
It is simply impossible for anyone, under any circumstances, whether regarding civil law or TORAH LAW, to live under the umbrella of GRACE without the abiding presence of the law. The law is the guide that leads us to compliance and obedience, and GRACE is only given as a replacement when the law requires a penalty for breaking it.
If You Love Me?
Have you ever wondered which commandments Yahusha the Messiah was speaking of when He said in YAHchanan (John) 14:15 – “If you love Me, keep My commandments?” Does this refer only to the Ten Commandments found in Exodus 20 or Deuteronomy 5? Have you ever considered that He meant for His followers to “keep ALL His commands that you heard from the beginning that you should walk in them,” all 613, as referred to in 2 John 1:6?”
There are millions of folks in church denominations who believe that only nine or ten commandments are required by Bible believers to keep their foot in salvation’s door? Many Saturday Sabbatarians believe Saturday as the Sabbath of the fourth commandment along with the other nine commandments are the antidote to never receiving the Mark of the Beast, which they believe will be given to all Sunday keepers, atheists, and unbelievers alike. On the flip side, the Sunday keepers believe and teach that they’re not “under the Law, but under Grace,” which excuses them from all commands of the Torah Law (O.T.). Yet, isn’t this, in reality, promoting lawlessness? So what if neither view is correct? Again, I ask, what if there is a third view for consideration?
And This is Love
Strikingly, the New Testament verse from 2 John 1:6, identifies the COMMANDMENTS in question, as “the ones we have heard from the beginning to WALK IN.” Astonishingly, this includes much more than just the Ten Commandments.
“And this is love that we walk after HIS COMMANDMENTS. This is the COMMANDMENT THAT YOU HAVE HEARD FROM THE BEGINNING THAT YOU SHOULD WALK IN IT.” 2 John 1:6
What are the Commands We Heard from the Beginning to Walk-In?
The following six verses from the TORAH and the Prophets (entire Old Testament) give all the details of precisely what is included in the COMMANDMENTS THAT WE HAVE HEARD FROM THE BEGINNING TO WALK IN. Folks, this is SHOCKING! All the COMMANDS given in the TORAH are the ones that His faithful followers will walk according to, and these include: 1) His Ten Commandments, 2) His statutes, 3) His judgments, 4) and His testimonies.
“But as for you, stand here by me, and I will speak unto thee all the 1) commandments, and 2) the statutes, and 3) the judgments, which thou shalt teach them, that they may do them in the land which I give them to possess it. You shall observe to do therefore as Yahuah your Alahim/Elohim has commanded you: You shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left. You shall walk in all the ways which Yahuah your Alahim/Elohim has commanded you, that you may live, and that it may be well with you, and that you may prolong your days in the land which you shall possess.” Deuteronomy 5:31-33
“In that I command you this day to love Yahuah your Alahim/Elohim, to walk in His ways, and to keep 1) His commandments and 2) His statutes and 3) His judgments, that you may live and multiply: and Yahuah your Alahim/Elohim shall bless you in the land whither you go to possess it.” Deuteronomy 30:16
“And keep the charge of Yahuah your Alahim/Elohim, to walk in His ways, to keep 1) His statutes, and 2) His commandments, and 3) His judgments, and 4) His testimonies, as it is written in the TORAH LAW of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do, and whither soever you turn yourself.” 1 Kings 2:3
“And it shall be, if you will hearken unto all that I command you, and will walk in My ways, and do that is right in My sight, to keep 1) my statutes and 2) my commandments, as David my servant did; that I will be with you, and build you a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto you.” 1 Kings11:38
“But this thing commanded I them, saying, Obey my voice, and I will be your Alahim/Elohim, and you shall be my people: and walk you in ALL THE WAYS that I have commanded you, that it may be well unto you.” Jeremiah 7:23
“REMEMBER you the TORAH LAW of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel with the statues and judgments. Malachi 4:4
If this line-up is not impressive enough, re-read Psalms 119. King David devoted this entire chapter to the theme of YAHUAH’S TORAH LAWS, for it is nothing less than the Bridal Covenant, which includes 1) His Ten Commandments, 2) His statutes, 3) His judgments, 4) and His testimonies. Isn’t it true that the Bridegroom will return solely for His covenant Bride? All the non-covenant keepers wait for His Return for them, in vain. While all have been invited, only a few have chosen to remain chaste and faithful. Choosing to honor Him, they remain separate from the world in the face of exclusion, derision, and even persecution, all because of their great love for their Messiah, in that He laid down His life as the atonement for their sins.
Each of these verses carries the eternal theme of LOVE and OBEDIENCE, the complete Bridal Covenant requirements. For love produces obedience, not out of legalism, but for opposite reasons, out of respect, honor, reverence, and love.
Torah (Law) Promise and Brit Hadasha Provision
This same Yahuah Alahim/Elohim of the Hebrew Torah (O.T.) continues today to manifest His PROMISE AND PROVISION OF SALVATION through His only begotten Son, Yahusha haMashiach (the Messiah) in the Brit Hadasha (N.T.). The Torah (O.T.) carries the PROMISE, while the Brit Hadasha (N.T.) provides the PROVISION of SALVATION by way of His Son, recorded by eyewitness testimonies, completing one harmonious whole. No breaks in thought or purpose, but only a break in the language, from Hebrew to Greek. But I believe this was not how it was originally. I have come to believe that all were initially written in the Hebrew language. But you do not need to agree with me.
Torah Treasure Map
The Torah is the treasure map guiding us to the TREASURE, which is SALVATION by way of our long promised Messiah. He (the treasure) cannot be found, fully comprehended, or honored without the map and its discovered pathway. Each person who lives and seeks truth, forgiveness, and righteousness needs the treasure map, as it identifies how far we have fallen and reveals the path and direction by which to find it and experience its/His fullness. Simply because the treasure was provided 2,000 years ago does not mean those living today do not need the map. The evil plot to undermine the eternal value of the TORAH LAW was to cause it to appear that the TORAH LAW is at constant war with the Messiah and His provision of GRACE. Yet, the Torah Law and Grace represent two ends of the same life-saving rope of salvation.
“The handwriting that has been against us” (Colossians 2:14) is none other than the recorded FACT that “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). All mankind has been destined unto eternal death since the point when sin entered the scene in the garden. If not for the Bridal Covenant, Torah Law, and its institution of the Plan of Salvation, and the provision of saving GRACE provided by that first slain lamb, representing the ultimate and final sacrifice of Yahusha, our Messiah, all would be lost.
Because of advancements in technology, knowledge of all things is increasing rapidly, including a deeper understanding of Scripture and what it is Yahuah our Alahim/Elohim requires of His faithful followers who seek an eternal home with Him.
The Bridal Covenant, the Torah, and the Prophets
Folks, although the loudest voices in the Christian world today declare that the Brit Hadasha (New Testament) was originally written in Greek, this is simply not true. It is my belief that this theory carries with it many distorted views of our Messiah’s doctrines. Both the Romans and the Yahudim (Jews) were motivated for different reasons to have the N.T. quickly translated into an alternate language, anything other than Hebrew. While the Romans hated the Jews and wanted nothing in common with them, the Rabbinical Pharisees, who were rising in power over Yasharal (Israel), wanted no commonality with the Messiah’s followers. So as a result of translating the Hebrew New Testament into Greek, it afforded the disconnect from the Old Testament Torah that each faction desired.
Much later, the New Testament was translated from Greek into all the languages of the world, perpetuating this “disconnect.” As a result, it caused a loss of continuity with regard to the requirements of the Torah Law and the Prophetic fulfillments unto the Salvation of mankind by the long promised Messiah.
However, all was not lost. It appears Yahuah Alahim allowed this so that at the very end of time, He could restore the unadulterated truths of the Torah Law (Bridal Covenant) as a vetting system for those who seek Him and His eternal reward.
What has been done with the original Hebrew manuscripts can only be surmised. Perhaps they will one day resurface. Yet, this changing of the language is responsible for a certain level of damage to the harmony and continuity from the beginning of Genesis to the end of Revelation. This includes breaking the ties that were ordained to forever bind the TORAH LAW with GRACE.
“On these two commandments hang ALL the [TORAH] LAW and the PROPHETS.” Matthew 22:40
Misunderstanding the fundamental and foundational platform of the Torah Law and the Prophets containing the Bridal Covenant, given here by the Messiah, Himself, leads to a multiplicity of views. These clarifying words of our Messiah are a perfect example of this: “On these two commandments [principles] hang ALL the TORAH LAW and the Prophets.” He is literally declaring the ongoing FOUNDATIONAL AND BINDING REALITY OF THESE TWO PRINCIPLES and how they confirm the continued living reality of all the Old Testament Scripture:
- “Loving Yahuah Alahim with all your heart,”
- “And our neighbor as ourselves,”
Although this is summed up in the Ten Commandments, it includes all the Torah Law, which remains fully endowed and commissioned in its completeness for all eternity, and not just the Ten Commandments. The laws pertaining to the Sanctuary Temple continue to be fulfilled in their perfection by our Messiah in the courts above.
If our Messiah were doing away with the TORAH LAW and the prophets, this was undoubtedly His opportunity and place to do so. But the opposite is true, and His declaration defines the continued and elevated position of the TORAH LAW and of the Prophets. This is nothing short of an everlasting prescription for all humankind in every generation. Why? Because it contains the Bridal Covenant, the Torah Law, and the Testimony. Luke 24:44 provides additional evidence and a second witness that neither the Torah Law nor the sacred lunar calendar were scheduled to end at the cross:
Then He [the Messiah] said to them, “These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that ALL THINGS must be fulfilled which were written in the TORAH LAW of Moses, and the Prophets, and the Psalms, concerning Me.” Luke 24:44
This passage from Luke 24:44, spoken from the mouth of Yahusha the Messiah, defines that the entire Old Testament remains viable and status quo until all things are fulfilled. As a result, neither the Torah Law nor its inherent sacred lunar calendar time-measuring model ended at the cross but proactively extends to the Second Coming and beyond to the recreation of earth, when all things are fulfilled.
Yahusha’s obedient followers are alone the Covenant Bride, the wedding of which shall be consummated at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. Did our Messiah, the bride-groom, cancel the Bridal Covenant with His Bride just after he was betrothed? No! No! A thousand times, No! This is because He is faithful and true and requires the same of His Bride to remain chaste and faithful to the end.
Restoring the Hebrew Meaning to the Greek Text
But all is not lost, as it is a snap to put it all back into perspective. You see, in the 4th century B.C., the Greeks translated the entire Berashit/Tanakh (Old Testament) from Hebrew into Greek in what is referred to as the Septuagint or LXX. This reality affords us the ability to reverse what is referred to as the New Testament from Greek back into Hebrew by utilizing the translated text of the Greek Septuagint as a guide.
As a result, several New Testament translations have been restored and published in their original Hebrew Text. There are many things discovered in this restored Hebrew N.T. that were not previously recognized or understood because the harmonious TRUTH had been literally translated right out of it, and Matthew 22:40 is no exception. Add to this that most Christian churches follow in the footsteps of their Roman Catholic mother’s traditions and not the Old Testament principles. They teach that the Torah Laws, along with the New Moons, weekly seventh-day worship assemblies, and annual Feast Day worship assemblies (all things considered Hebraic or Jewish), were each done away with at the cross/stake of our Messiah. Why?
The Cost of Constantine’s Hatred
Following the destruction of Yarushalom (Jerusalem) and the Temple in A.D. 70, the Yasharalites (Israelites) were taken into Roman captivity. And in the absence of obedience to Yahuah Alahim or receiving Yahusha haMashiach as their long promised Savior, Yahuah allowed the Rabbinical Pharisee Jews to rise to power from within during their long years of captivity. Essentially, over the next 300 years, the Pharisee’s Babylonian teachings and oral traditions utterly corrupted Yasharal (Israel) and caused their Roman captors to hate them even more. It may have been the very method Yahuah Alahim chose to allow some rays of truth (the Good News of the Messiah) to go to the Gentiles, although it lacked many essential elements from the abolished Torah Law. Absent from the Christian paradigm is the prophetic application of the Tabernacle of the Testimony and how it highlights the parameters of the “TIMES & EVENTS” of the Messiah’s work of salvation for sinners.
This teaching that all things Jewish ended at the cross became the norm because the Roman Emperor Constantine (321-325 A.D. at the Council of Nicaea) hated the Rabbinical Pharisees (Jews). He alone crafted “Christianity” as the New Religion of his then-far-reaching Roman Empire. Because it was essential that nothing Jewish remained, he changed all the Hebrew names and replaced Scripture’s lunar-based calendar model with his own devious solar impostor (Julian calendar) with its continuous weekly cycle, fully divorced from the lunar cycles. This has caused the entire world to believe Roman time-measuring is either the master time system or, at the very least, in sync with Scripture. But nothing could be further from the truth.
The following quote is attributed to Emperor Constantine when he established his new Christian religion. From that point forward, none of the Torah Law truths have been carried forward beyond what has remained in the New Testament.
“I renounce all customs, rites, legalisms, unleavened breads and sacrifices of lambs of the Hebrews, and all the other feasts of the Hebrews, sacrifices, prayers, aspirations, purifications, sanctifications, and propitiations, and fasts and New Moons, and Sabbaths, and superstitions, and hymns and chants and observances, and synagogues.
Absolutely everything Jewish, every [TORAH] Law, rite and custom and if afterwards I shall wish to deny and return to Jewish superstition, or shall be found eating with Jews, or feasting with them, or secretly conversing and condemning the Christian religion instead of openly confuting them and condemning their vain faith, then let the trembling of Cain and the leprosy of Gehazi cleave to me, as well as the legal punishments to which I acknowledge myself liable. And may I be an anathema in the world to come, and may my soul be set down with Satan and the devils.” Translation by: Stefano Assemani, Acta Sanctorium Martyrum Orientalium at Occidentalium, Vol. 1, Rome 1748, page 105. [Emphasis mine]
I currently believe Constantine’s Creed, with its far-reaching parameters (circa 4th century A.D.), may actually be the abomination that makes desolate, spoken of twice by Daniel the prophet in Daniel 11:31-32 and 12:11.
Replacing the Creator’s Original Calendar
By replacing the Creator’s Calendar, containing the preordained New Moons, lunar Sabbaths, and lunar appointed Feast Days, with Roman time-measuring, it caused a shift in all worship assembly schedules. For 1,700 years, they have remained hopelessly out of sync with what the divine required for reckoning time. But this was no accident. Additionally, he crafted his own unique Roman holidays to replace all those provided in the TORAH (LAW), which were ordained to keep Yahuah’s faithful and obedient synchronized with the PROPHETIC appointed Feast Days, the Messiah’s path of Salvation.
Appointed Feast Days of YAH were replaced with the new,
Passover became “Easter” on a counterfeit day, too.
While Sunday has never been the Sabbath, it’s true,
Neither Friday night nor Saturday, as kept by the Jew.
Exodus 12:1-8; Leviticus 23:5; Psalms 74:3, Psalms 74:7-8; Isaiah 66:23; Ezekiel 46:1
Patrick Madrid, Catholic Priest on EWTN, Global Catholic Radio Network;
The term “LAW” was designed to replace the term for TORAH LAW of Instruction (five books of Moses), which hides the imperial and eternal comprehensive reality of what TORAH represents, causing millions to believe “LAW” refers only to the Ten Commandments.
Additionally, all the Hebrew names were changed, including that of our Messiah, “the name above all names.” (Acts 4:12). Thus eliminating the entire point that He came in the name of His Father Yahuah in fulfillment of His divine promise!
Everything that was associated with the fallen Rabbinical Pharisee Jews was sponged from this new Christian religion. In hindsight, we can see why it was done, for even Yahusha haMashiach (the Messiah) called them “the brood of vipers.” So, at the end of the day, what has really occurred is “the baby was thrown out with the bathwater.” Meaning that what was pure and sacred in the Torah Law, because of its association with the Rabbinical Pharisee Jews, was wholly discarded and removed. This was done in the name of the new religion “Christianity.” Its purpose was to separate Rome’s new religion far away from its Hebrew roots, and it succeeded.
Constantine’s new replacement calendar system, which the world continues to utilize for the most part today, was proactively designed in opposition to the Torah Law’s requirements:
- New Year’s Day (H#7218 – Rosh and H#8141 – Hashanah) commences in spring (Exodus 12:1-3);
- Lunar months (H#2320- חדשׁ – chodesh – New Moon, lunar month), were ordained to begin on the New Moon Day (Exodus 12:2, Isaiah 66:23, Ezekiel 46:1-3);
- Lunar Sabbaths were to be counted from each New Moon Day;
- The annual Feast Days were lunar appointed times (H#4150 mo’edim – lunar appointed time) Ps. 89:37; Ps. 104:19; Gen. 1:14; Lev. 23:2-4);
- And the demarcation of days was ordained according to each unique lunar phase from 1-29 or 30.
- In this way, all units of time are perfectly harmonized divisions of the larger units of time.
Did Types and Shadows Really End at the Cross?
Something did end at the cross, as it was only useful as it prefigured the pure, perfect life of the promised LAMB, our Messiah, who was to lay down His life so that all humanity may be restored to the Eternal Father. He alone is the Bride Groom.
Only the earthly Temple, with its Levitical Priesthood and animal sacrifices for the forgiveness of sin, ended at the crucifixion of our Messiah. Each of these had played their part on the earthly stage daily, weekly, lunar monthly, and lunar yearly to present the story of SALVATION, with the correct application of TIME & EVENT with the PROMISE and PROVISION to be performed in real-time in the heavenlies by the Messiah. They illustrate, as nothing else could, the ETERNAL FATHER’S LOVE AND COMPASSION for humankind through the mechanism of prophetic types and shadows of salvation by way of the Messiah alone. While He was the true Shepherd, LAMB, and Priest, even the PROMISE of Him before His birth was born of GRACE.
Thus, the prophetic types and shadows of PASSOVER (a grand portion of the TORAH LAW and GRACE) met their fulfillment in Yahusha haMashiach, the Bride Groom of the Covenant. But the real temple “not made with hands” was determined to continue on in the hearts and souls of mankind and the courts above, entirely performed by the Messiah, Himself, unto the forgiveness of sins to everyone who confesses from His first coming unto His Second Coming and beyond. Our role in all of this is to follow the lamb by celebrating His magnificent work on our behalf on each of the annual lunar appointed Feast Days according to His lunar appointed time schedule. All of the Torah Law and the Testimony will not be entirely fulfilled until the earth is transformed for His elect. Here’s what the Apostle Paul said in the book of Hebrews.
“Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens; a minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which Yahuah pitched, and not man.
For every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices: wherefore it is of necessity that this man [Messiah] have somewhat also to offer. For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the law: Who serve unto the example and shadows of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of Alahim when he was about to make the tabernacle:
For, See, says He, that thou make all things according to the pattern shown to thee in the mount. But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also He is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises.
For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second. For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith Yahuah, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith Yahuah.
For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith Yahuah; I will put my LAWS into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them an Alahim, and they shall be to me a people:
And they shall not teach every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know Yahuah: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more. In that He says, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decays and waxes old is ready to vanish away.” Hebrews 8:1-13
But what about the Doctrines of our Messiah?
Just to set the foundation for this section, 1 John 3:4 tells us that “Sin is the transgression of the LAW.” But here again, the deeper truth is that sin is the transgression (breaking) of the TORAH LAW, which includes 1) His Ten Commandments, 2) His statutes, 3) His judgments, 4) and His testimonies.
Returning to 2 John 1, the first verse in this article, we read on to verse 9, which it is shown below as it was translated first from Hebrew to Greek, then to English and all the other languages:
“Whosoever transgresses, and abides not in the doctrine of Messiah, has not Alahim (God). He that abides in the doctrine of Messiah, he has both the Father and the Son.” 2 John 1:9 KJV
Next, we discover that the word “doctrine” in this same verse, referring to the doctrine of our Messiah, originated from the Hebrew word “TORAH” (Law). The Greek word “διδαχή” G#1322, translated as “doctrine,” is one of several replacement terms for the TORAH LAW, which was hidden from view and camouflaged in the Greek text.
“Whosoever transgresses [sins by breaking the TORAH LAW], and abides not in the TORAH LAW of Messiah, has not Alahim [the Father]. He that abides in the TORAH LAW of Messiah, he has both the Father and the Son.“ 2 John 1:9
From this evidence alone, there is nothing legalistic about adhering to the testimony of our Messiah, to both love and obey Him by honoring and seeking to keep all His Commandments as presented in the TORAH and the PROPHETS of the Old Testament. For it is found that the DOCTRINES OF OUR MESSIAH are the TORAH LAW, which includes the entire Old Testament.
To Redeem Those Who are Under the TORAH LAW
Here, I am adding one more example. The Brit Hadasha (New Testament) fully teaches that the Torah Law was to be honored, revered, and kept sacred. Although hidden behind the Greek word for “law,” the Hebrew word was “TORAH LAW.”
“But when the fullness of the time was come, Alahim sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the TORAH LAW, to redeem them that were under the TORAH LAW, that we might receive the adoption of sons.” Galatians 4:4-5
- What Law was the Son of Yahuah made under? The TORAH LAW.
- Who did the Messiah come to redeem and restore to His Father by His GRACE? Those who were also abiding under the TORAH LAW.
- Did our Messiah come to save those who are NOT abiding under the TORAH LAW? No! He redeems only those who show their love and honor for Him with their obedience to all the TORAH LAW.
- Does our risen and ascended Messiah continue to honor and abide by the TORAH LAW in the holy city? Absolutely!
- In what way does GRACE present itself in the verse above? Alahim sent His only Son to redeem mankind who abide under the TORAH LAW that they may receive adoption as sons. This is as simple as “one plus one equals two.” Because they seek obedience they are adopted as sons and daughters.
So now, it should leave the average church attendee with serious questions about who they will believe. Will it be their Messiah, the anointed Bride Groom, who came to redeem those that are under the TORAH LAW, or their modern Pope, presumed Prophet, Reformer, Church Pastor, or Rabbi, who in opposition to the Messiah declares “we are no longer under the TORAH LAW, but under GRACE?” All of whom are on varying grades of coming out of darkness into the light or holding fast to the traditions of their forefathers. Certainly, none have reached full light in these last 1,700 years. And among these, the Messiah has no equal. Therefore, this is evidence of Church fraud and Fake News!
One’s decision on this subject is sure to affect their Eternal Reward.
Law vs. Grace
Throughout this article, we have seen hints at the reality of GRACE, but now its definition can be more vividly understood. GRACE is the comprehensive provision of KIND FAVOR provided by Yahuah Alahim through His PROMISED only begotten Son, on behalf of fallen mankind unto Salvation.
As mentioned before, the TORAH LAW of the Old Testament was our Eternal Father’s prescribed road map to the greatest TREASURE ever found. It was the only method to recognize the true Messiah from the counterfeits. It identifies our part in showing that we are His true and obedient followers.
To ignore, delete, or do away with the TORAH map, which alone holds the details of WHO, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE, WHY, and HOW of SALVATION, is to not know YAHUAH ALAHIM or His Son YAHUSHA HAMASHIACH (the Messiah). These were provided in the TORAH LAW in their fullness.
Here, you can see it is the TORAH (LAW) of the O.T. alone that defines the meaning of GRACE in the New Testament. Therefore, these two are not at odds with each other, as most proclaim, but are a comprehensive and complete whole. Therefore, there is simply no such thing as “Saved by grace and not by the Law,” or as some would say, “We are no longer under the Law, but under grace.”
The Torah Law and Grace cannot be separated, as they each serve the other’s reality to restore humankind back to the favor of the Eternal Father. The TORAH LAW is the provision promised, while GRACE is the guaranteed provision provided.
This Hebrew word, “chesed/kheh-sed,” was initially translated from Hebrew into Greek and then to English. This resulted in eliminating all connection between our Messiah’s provision of GRACE and the reality that the wages of SIN are death, putting its new definition entirely at odds with the TORAH LAW.
Here are They Who Keep the Commandments
If the COMMANDMENTS referred to by our Messiah in John 14:15 and clarified in 2 John 1:6 as “ALL THE COMMANDMENTS YOU HAVE HEARD FROM THE BEGINNING THAT YOU SHOULD WALK IN THEM,” then what commandments do you suppose His righteous followers will be keeping and guarding at the end of time? Refer to the following verses of Revelation. Is it only the Ten Commandments or the entire Torah Law?
“And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the COMMANDMENTS of Alahim/Elohim and have the testimony of [Yahusha the Messiah] Jesus Christ.” Revelation 12:17
“Here is the shalom (peace) of the zadek (righteous); here are those who keep the COMMANDMENTS of Alahim/Elohim and trust in [Yahusha the Messiah] Jesus.” Revelation 14:12
“Blessed are those who do His COMMANDMENTS that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city.” Revelation 22:14
The Commandments the Obedient Keep at the End of Time
This takes us to the last point, which answers the question above. What Commandments will the obedient be keeping at the very end of time? You guessed it! These obedient of Yahuah Alahim and Yahusha haMashiach, the Son, which were spoken of in Revelation just before the Second Coming, will be KEEPING “ALL THE COMMANDMENTS THAT THEY HAVE HEARD FROM THE BEGINNING THAT THEY SHOULD WALK IN THEM (2 John 1:6) !!!” These are unequivocally:
- His Ten Commandments
- His statutes
- His judgments
- His testimonies, which are all given in the TORAH (LAW of instructions), as found in the entire Old Testament.
Friends and family, this includes not only His 1) Ten Commandments, 2) His statutes, 3) His judgments, and 4) His testimonies, but contained in these are also the Kadosh (sacred) New Moons, lunar seventh-day Sabbaths, and lunar Feast Days of Leviticus 23. Because these alone are neatly wrapped up in the Bridal Covenant. These alone identify both the true Bride Groom as well as His Bride.
For these, together with the entire TORAH LAW, were never abolished by our Messiah in either word or deed and were faithfully kept by the disciples, apostles, and early believers long after the cross and into the 4th century A.D.
Calendar Cover-up
There are two reasons the lunar calendar of Scripture has been hidden. First, this time-measuring model is antagonistic to and cannot be harmonized with Julius Caesar’s or Constantine’s Roman solar-only calendar inventions, with weeks that cycle without end, entirely divorced from the lunar phases. Secondly, when in captivity and pressured by the Romans in the 4th century A.D., the Rabbinical Pharisee Jews adopted the Roman week and Babylonian dark New Moons. To this day, they honor and keep an entirely different calendar model. Thus, neither faction wants you to discover their secret of how far they have fallen from the original and authentic Creator’s Calendar and its time-centric prophetic worship rhythm. Like a pied piper, these two organizations make up the BEAST referred to in Revelation. They have led ALL THE WORLD TO WANDER AFTER THE BEAST.
“…and all the world wondered after the beast.” Revelation 13:3
Two-fold Entrance Pass into the Eternal City
We hear a lot today in the news in North America about illegal aliens seeking entrance into our beloved country without taking the time to learn about our Constitution or the nearly 40,000 laws that have protected this country for so long. It appears they desire the benefits of a stable country but naively contribute to its financial instability by ignoring the process to gain entrance legally.
By the same token, there will be NO illegal aliens in the Kadosh (Holy) City of the New Yarushalom (Jerusalem). Why? Because that is one of the foundational pillars of the TORAH LAW and Bridal Covenant. Those who seek entrance, whether into an organization, church, synagogue, State, or Country, are vetted and must agree to live by the rules and laws of that domain. If one is not willing to agree to walk in the established laws, and in this case, the TORAH LAWS of the ETERNAL FATHER, YAHUAH Alahim, they will never be granted admittance into His Kingdom government and enter at the gates to the Kadosh (Holy) City. This is His stated vetting system for all who love Him. Only the faithful and obedient will seek to enter His Holy City LEGALLY. They will seek to keep “all His commandments that we heard from the beginning.” This alone is the Bridal Covenant.
Those who say they will abide by the laws but secretly have a contrary agenda will be discovered. Those who have been presented the Torah Law as viable along with the Testimony of the Messiah, yet continue to deny that it applies to them, grieve away the Ruach ha Kadosh (Holy Spirit). For Yahuah knows the mind of men and reads the thoughts and intents of the heart. Both belief systems, 1) Under grace and not the Law, 2) Torah Laws ended at the cross, but the Ten Commandments are the only remaining rule of faith and are by their very nature excuses not to be obedient to Yahuah Alahim or His original worship rhythm. Those who try to enter the Kadosh (Holy) City by any other method than the LEGAL STANDARD are like thieves and robbers, seeking what is unlawfully theirs.
“To the TORAH LAW and to the TESTIMONY: If they speak not according this word, there is no light (truth) in them.” Isaiah 8:20.
Lower the Law and Dim the Light
Any other arrangement or creed that reduces these preordained “COMMANDS THAT WE HAVE HEARD FROM THE BEGINNING THAT WE SHOULD WALK IN THEM“ to only nine or ten Commandments is ignoring the elements of obedience to our Eternal Father. In so doing, they have torn up the Bridal Covenant and thrown it in the proverbial trash. All the while, it is the very entrance ticket provided by the Bride Groom.
So it is that the TORAH LAW has never existed without GRACE. Law and Grace are NOT an oxymoron, as many have taught. The O.T. Torah Law provided Grace through the promises told and retold in the Temple’s time-centric yearly, monthly, weekly, and daily sacrificial services and Kadosh (holy) appointed assemblies, all beaconed by the east-west time continuum of the moon. And all prophetic of time and event to be fulfilled by our Messiah on our behalf, unto Salvation.
The guarantees and promises of GRACE met their fulfillment in the New Testament in the person of our Messiah, YAHUSHA HAMASHIACH. But this fulfillment of the PROMISE did not discharge the TORAH LAW’S TESTIMONY OR THE PROMISE OF SALVATION. FOR GRACE CAN NOT EXIST WITHOUT THE CONTINUANCE OF THE TORAH LAW!
Nineteenth-century Baptist minister and theologian Charles H. Spurgeon captured the gravity and the necessity of the Law in his quote:
“Lower the Law and you dim the light by which man perceives his guilt; this is a very serious loss to the sinner rather than a gain; for it lessens the likelihood of his conviction and conversion. I say you have deprived the gospel of its ablest auxiliary [its most powerful weapon] when you have set aside the [Torah] Law. You have taken away from it the schoolmaster that is to bring men to Christ [Messiah] . . . They will never accept grace till they tremble before a just and holy [Torah] Law. Therefore the [Torah] Law serves a most necessary purpose, and it must not be removed from its place.” Charles H. Spurgeon
Restoring the Balance between Law and Grace
The ENEMY OF SOULS (Satan) has been working long and hard through the unauthorized Greek translation of the Brit Hadasha (N.T.). He has been the force behind the falsified calendars of both the Romans and the Rabbinical Pharisees (Jews), causing all mankind to submit their allegiance and worship to himself.
These teachings were then carried to all corners of the earth by naive and willing subjects, all members of the Roman Catholic (Universal) Christian Church, or her daughter protestant churches of both Saturday and Sunday-keeping persuasions. While it is true that many never had the chance to know the truth and won’t be judged in their ignorance, many will be lost as they cling tenaciously to these false paradigms and doctrines of men in the presence of revealed truth. All because they flat-out REJECT THE TRUTH when it brilliantly shines all around them, even at their door.
“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; Because you have forgotten the TORAH LAW of your Alahim (God), I also will forget your children.” Hosea 4:6
Let it not be lost upon the reader that the TORAH LAW of Instruction was proactively removed by Emperor Constantine (circa A.D. 325) and not at the cross of our Messiah. He did this because of his hatred for all things Jewish, which is fully outlined in the article “The Creed of Constantine.” We must remember, too, that the enemy of souls was behind this as well, as it has long been his goal to receive the worship due to YAHUAH Alahim and YAHUSHA haMashiach (the Messiah), as he proclaimed in Isaiah 14:12-14. All he had to do was to remove the association of the New Moons, lunar seventh-day Sabbaths, and lunar-appointed yearly Feast Days as YAHUAH’S ordained worship assemblies that detail the Plan of Salvation. He could then receive all the worship due to Yahuah Alahim on a replacement calendar crafted after his own heart.
Constantine’s Creed: “I renounce all customs, rites, legalisms, unleavened breads and sacrifices of lambs of the Hebrews, and all the other Feast Days of the Hebrews …New Moons, and Sabbaths …Absolutely everything Jewish, every [TORAH] LAW …” Stefano Assemani, Acta Sanctorium Martyrum Orientalium at Occidentalium, Vol. 1, Rome 1748, p. 105.
The FACT is that Constantine could only renounce things that EXISTED!!! The reason the New Moons, lunar Sabbaths, and sacred Feast Days, together with the TORAH LAW, are no longer on our radar today is directly attributed to how well they were renounced and eradicated from the face of the earth by Constantine. Remember, “The Messiah did not come to abolish the TORAH LAW but to fulfill it.” Matthew 5:17 Therefore, it was not at the cross that it was terminated from the minds of would-be followers, but 300 years later through the legislation of Constantine. Refer to the article “The Creed of Constantine.”
My prayer is that both the Eternal Father and Son grant you FAVOR, GRACE FULL, AND FREE as you come to terms with the disparity between this TRUTH of the TORAH LAW and its ETERNAL TIES to GRACE. Consider that your Pope, perceived prophet, Reformer, Pastor, Rabbi, synagogue, or church organization has bought into the deep-seated lie that targeted the removal of YAHUAH’s original calendar model set in the heavens.
The promised Lamb laid down His life and rose again so that you may have the option of eternal life. He is now writing the names unto salvation in the Lamb’s Book of Life. Only the names of those who honor Him and abide under His Eternal Kingdom Laws will be written there. These alone are willing to walk away from their professed modern prophets, churches, and synagogues and not give heed to Jewish fables and commandments of men (Titus 1:14). This will no doubt be a test of who we really love and serve.
Responding to His Boundless Love
Through the Bridal Covenant, the Eternal Father’s love has been presented to mankind in two ways simultaneously since the fall in Eden. These are through obedience to the Torah Law and through the saving Grace of our Messiah laying down His life for mankind. It was a package deal. Each cannot exist without the other.
In turn, our loving response to this boundless love is all about our continued honor and reverence, seeking obedience to His preset and ordained guidelines defined in the Torah Law, and trusting in the sacrificial testimony of the Lamb Messiah (Isaiah 8:20 and Revelation 14:12). No other method will provide the results of Salvation and eternal life.
So it is that if any changes or replacements are made to this preset plan, the reward of Salvation and eternal life will not be realized. For example, if The Creed of Constantine, the Forgotten Foundation of All Christian Churches, is honored above the Torah Law, with its New Year’s Day in spring, its New Moons, lunar seventh-day Sabbaths, and annual lunar appointed Feast Days, they will see no need for obedience. Some will even believe they are being obedient and faithful stewards when all along they are following a false narrative and remain radically defiant and unwilling to see the light.
When the Torah Law and/or any portion of Yahuah’s time-centric worship calendar rhythms unto Salvation are declared by these as “having ended at the cross,” then the entire worship schedule becomes irrelevant in the minds of these lawless ones. This is outright rebellion and disobedience, which creates chaos and disharmony. The following verse is one of several outlining how Yahuah Alahim deals with rebellion against His Torah Laws.
“But the house of Yasharal (Israel) rebelled against me in the wilderness: they walked not in my statutes, and they despised my judgments, which if a man do, he shall even live in them; and my sabbaths they greatly polluted: then I said, I would pour out my fury upon them in the wilderness, to consume them.” Ezekiel 20:13
This is not a one-time hypothetical ideology, but it occurred again in part within thirty years following the Roman Council of Nicaea in A.D. 325 and was spread throughout the world. No one is saying that Sunday is not the first day or Saturday, the seventh day of the Roman Gregorian calendar, because they are. The tragedy is that the entire lunar calendar of the Most High has been strategically replaced by the Roman solar calendar in a full-out rebellion against all things in the Torah Law of Yahuah Alahim. This historical reality has left those Christian believers lost somewhere in space, not grounded on a sure foundation.
Yet, this Roman solar paradigm of a counterfeit replacement calendar and worship schedule is deeply cemented in the minds of these would-be followers. It has prevented them from entering into obedience to the Torah Law, which was its preordained purpose. The paradigm contained in the fraudulent replacement calendar has placed these would-be followers outside the circle of the Father’s elect and remnant. Those who refuse to restore the original Creator’s calendar so that their soul temple may be synchronized to that of Yahuah’s will never glimpse beyond the portals of their wilderness tomb to see or experience the Promised Land.
How can we turn this all around? How? By waking up to this egregious lie masterminded by the enemy of souls and sounding the alarm. We must seek to disentangle ourselves from all peer pressure of worldly compromise and status quo. Manifesting our faith, trust, and obedience in the two-fold Bridal Covenant remedy. It is by disengaging from the strongholds of long-standing worldly and pagan paradigms, customs, and traditions of men that we may dwell in the fullness of the Eternal Father’s power and love here on earth and for eternity.
Together, both the Eternal Father and His Son have made provision for you and me to “enter in through the gates into the city,” but the choice is ours. It is contingent upon obedience to “all His commandments that we have heard from the beginning to walk in.” The Bridal Covenant includes the:
Ten Commandments,
Statutes,
Judgments,
Testimonies,
Rosh Hashanah (New Year’s Day) in Spring,
Full New Moon Days,
lunar Sabbaths,
lunar appointed Feast Days (H4150 – mo’edim – Ps. 104:19),
and Grace.
It is a momentous occasion to consider what will be gained or lost in eternity based on one’s decision regarding this subject.
“For verily I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the [Torah] Law, till all be fulfilled.” Matthew 5:18