Month: April 2013

A little over two thousand years ago, a Jewish man named Yeshua died a horrible death on a wooden execution stake. Christians believe that this Yeshua was the Promised Seed, who would restore all things, and give them eternal life.

Why should Christians put their faith in a Jewish man, who was a convicted criminal? What makes the death of this Jewish man so special? From a human perspective, nothing makes his death special. After all, the Romans executed thousands of Jewish men on execution stakes. In the end, this man died the same way all men die.

Christians say that when this Jewish man died, the veil of the Temple was ripped into. They say that when this Jewish man died, darkness covered the earth for three hours. They say that when the Roman soldier pierced this Jewish man’s side, blood and water poured out. Christians say these supernatural signs testify that the death of this Jewish man was special, and confirm his identity as the Promised Seed. Are these signs the evidence that proves that this Jewish man was the Promised Seed?

No, these signs do not prove that Yeshua was the Promised Seed. People can explain away these “supernatural” signs, as natural events. A person could say that the beams holding the veil broke and ripped it into. A person could say that a rare astrological event occurred and plunged the earth into darkness for three hours. A person could say that Yeshua had a physical defect that mixed water with his blood.

Here is the bottom line: The death of this Jewish man does not prove that he was the Promised Seed. So why do we believe that this Jewish man named Yeshua was the Promised Seed, and put our faith in him to restore all things and give us eternal life?

In Romans 1:4, Paul said that this Jewish man named Yeshua was determined to be the Son of Yahweh (the Promised Seed) because the Spirit of Holiness (the Holy Spirit) resurrected his body from the grave. Moreover, in 1 Corinthians 15:17, Paul said that if the Holy Spirit really did not raise Yeshua from the grave, our faith is in vain. Thus, our belief that the Jewish man called Yeshua was, and is, the Promised Seed, who will restore all things and give us eternal life, rests on the resurrection!

The resurrection of the Jewish man called Yeshua is very, very important, because it establishes His identity as the Promised Seed, and it testifies to the fact that He has overcome death, and it gives us the hope that “in Him” we can overcome death too.

So since the resurrection of Yeshua is central to our faith, we should celebrate it. The only question is how we should celebrate it, and when should we celebrate it.

Yahweh told us how to worship Him, so obviously, we should worship Him how He wants to be worshiped, and worship Him when He says to worship Him. Yahweh knows all things and sees all things. Yahweh’s thoughts are higher than our thoughts. What seems logical and right to us, may not be logical and right to Yahweh. Thus, Scripture must guide our logic and establish what is right and acceptable with Yah.

In 1 Corinthians 11, Paul writes about the Lord’s Supper. Paul reminds us that Yeshua hosted a Passover meal with His disciples where He gave them unleavened bread and wine. Yeshua told His disciples that the bread represented His Body, which was broken for them, and the wine represented His blood, which was shed to establish the New Covenant with them.

Paul said that as often as we eat the Lord’s Supper, we announce Yeshua’s death until He returns to the earth. In essence, Paul says that whenever we assemble together to eat the Lord’s Supper, which was a Passover meal, we remember and celebrate His death until He returns to the earth to rule and reign as its King.

Notice that Paul says that we are to remember and celebrate Yeshua’s death, not His resurrection. Moreover, in 1 Corinthians 5:8, Paul says that we should keep the feast of Passover with sincerity and truth, and says nothing about the resurrection.

Yahweh told Israel (His people) to celebrate Passover. Yeshua (Yahweh in human flesh) celebrated Passover. Paul (the Apostle to the Gentiles) celebrated Passover. The early Church celebrated Passover.

During Spring, the sun resurrects and renews the vegetation on the earth and brings the animals out of hibernation. To the natural mind, it would seem logical and right to focus on Yeshua’s resurrection at the same time the sun is resurrecting the plants and bringing the animals out of hibernation. So why did Yahweh tell His people to celebrate a festival of death (Passover), during Spring?

Long ago, at the Tower of Babel, man started worshiping the gods, who controlled the seasons. The fertility gods were the most worshiped because they gave life to the earth and enabled mankind to live another year. Since then, every culture on earth has celebrated the return of Spring by honoring the gods of fertility. Even today, people all around the world celebrate the return of Spring by honoring their gods.

In some cultures, people believe the fertility god dies in the Winter and comes back to life in the Spring. And when the fertility god comes back to life, he or she brings the earth back to life. The focus of these demonic religions is on resurrection.

Yahweh is Holy and He does not want to be associated with these fertility gods. This is why Yah told His people to celebrate Passover, which is when the lambs died on behalf of the first born in Egypt to redeem them from death. The day after Passover, the feast of Unleavened Bread began and Yah told His people to eat unleavened bread for seven days. The first day of Unleavened Bread was a Sabbath in which His people were not to work. Then, on the day after this Sabbath, the feast of First Fruits began. This is when the first of the harvest was offered to Yah, so He could bless the rest of it and guarantee that it would be gathered into the storehouse.

What does all this mean for us today?

We are to put our faith in Yeshua, who is the the Passover Lamb and then eat His flesh and drink His blood, i,e, we are to keep the Passover so that Yahweh will redeem us from eternal death. Then, we are to cease from our attempts to earn righteousness and accept it by faith and rest in it (enter the Sabbath), and until the day that Yahweh glorifies our body to make us perfect (the number 7 indicates perfection), put off the old man who loved sin and put on the new man who was created in Yeshua Messiah for good works. Then, take comfort in the fact that the Holy Spirit resurrected Yeshua from the grave and glorified His body, so that He could go to the Temple in Heaven to offer Himself to His Father (Yahweh) as the First Fruit of the resurrection, and His Father accepted Him, which means that the Father accepts us also and guarantees our eternal life!

The Torah and its law required Yahweh’s people to meet at a certain place and time and go through appointed authorities to keep Passover, Unleavened Bread and First Fruits. Yeshua fulfilled the Torah and its law, and His Spirit lives in us. Consequently, Yah does not require us to meet at a certain place, during a certain time, and go through appointed authorities to keep Passover, Unleavened Bread and First Fruits. We can keep these feasts where ever, whenever and without a human mediator.

Yeshua fulfilled the Old Testament shadows so that we could worship Him in Spirit and Truth. But does this mean that the old shadows are now useless? No, the old shadows are powerful physical illustrations of spiritual truths. When we assemble together to keep the Passover, our spirit grows and our faith is strengthened.

So, do we have to keep the Passover at Yahweh’s appointed time to be saved? Certainly not. Should we keep the Passover at Yahweh’s appointed time? Absolutely!

Why did the Church set Passover aside and start celebrating Easter?

Ishtar was a female fertility god that a lot of people in the Roman Empire worshiped. The Roman Church integrated the worship of Ishtar in with the worship of a Jesus, who did not require repentance from such activities. This is where the feast of Ishtar (Easter) originated. Easter is a Roman Catholic holy day, and it is not biblical. Remember, our focus should be on Yeshua’s death, not on His resurrection.

Does this mean that the people who celebrate Easter are not born-again? No! Does this mean that they are worshiping the Devil? No! It simply means that they have been deceived into following the ways of the world, and that they have lost their distinctiveness. Paradoxically, we have to be different from the world in order to attract Yahweh’s lost sheep into His fold. During this season, we cannot be like the world and focus on resurrection, we must focus on death.

During this season, we should not waver on the centrality of Yeshua’s resurrection, but our focus should be on His death. Yeshua’s death establishes His covenant with us, and His resurrection transforms us into His image and guarantees our eternal life.