Torah, Torah, Torah Part 2

The next area I will discuss is that of dietary laws. Now, many of my Christian friends declare that God did away with dietary laws when He gave Peter the dream about eating unclean animals. Of course, only people that don’t actually read their bible would believe that. Yes, Peter had a dream about unclean foods being set before him and that God told Peter that nothing He made was unclean. However Peter, having walked with Yahoshua himself, realized he needed some clarification. So, he ASKED for the meaning of the dream. The answer he got wasn’t “oh, I was just letting you know I did away with the dietary laws”. No, the dream was in response to a Jewish man made custom of not entering into the home of non-Jews. Yahowah clearly told Peter there was a non-Jew that loved Him and needed some instruction – God was sending Peter to the man to instruct him on the ways of following God. God was saying that PEOPLE are not “clean” or “unclean” based on their racial or cultural make-up – it is the heart and the ways of a man that determines whether or not he belongs to God, not His DNA. How people got eating pig, bat, rat, and horse were now good from that Scripture I will never know.

No, one doesn’t have to be “legalistic” about what we eat, we can simply ponder and study why God made the dietary rules He did to discover if they still need to be followed. There is ample information to know that God, who made all the animals, knew exactly what He was doing when He decided between “clean” and “unclean” animals. He also was clear in not eating things that had been sacrificed to idols (where the pronouncement to not eating a lamb boiled in its mother’s milk comes from). Now, will eating unclean animals make you unfit for eternal life? I don’t think so, but I am not the final authority on who goes where after death. However, scientific research today is conclusive that every animal deemed “unclean” by Yahowah in the Torah is a food that isn’t fit for human consumption. Many illnesses that we battle with today are a direct result of eating unclean foods, with pig being one of the worst culprits. God is smarter than man, no matter what we think. He came up with some very good instructions and it is up to us to decide whether or not we chose to follow them.

However, whether one follows the dietary guidelines established by Yahowah in His Torah isn’t the issue, it is knowing them and understanding why they are there and what He was saying that we must ponder. Now, I have heard the concept that the dietary laws were put into place because there wasn’t refrigeration back then. However, this statement is intellectually dishonest – okay, it’s just stupid! While refrigeration is great, drying of meat and salt preservation are 1000% better. So, there was a way of preserving meat and not getting sick. So no, God wasn’t saying don’t eat pork or bat or horse until man invents the GE frost free freezer.

The designation between clean and unclean animals is just that – some animals are clean and some animals are NOT clean. In fact, exactly the animals He said were clean are clean – He didn’t make any mistakes. What makes pigs unclean is the nature of the pig and the purpose the pig serves on the earth. Pigs are garbage dumps. No matter how “clean” we try to make them by free range farming or feeding them a corn based diet – they will still eat ANYTHING. I have seen reports of cancerous pigs needed to be separated from other pigs (all still going to slaughter for human consumption mind you) because the pigs will eat the tumors right off of their fellow pigs. Not only are pigs nasty, their digestive systems are simple. A simple digestive system is NOT good for cleaning. Because pigs have such a simple digestive simple, insects, worms, and other parasites that rest in their digestive tracts are still there – alive, well, and kicking after they go to slaughter. These parasites continue to live through the slaughtering process. In fact, they survive through much of our cooking processes; it takes a pork chop being cooked dry and burnt for those parasites to die. This isn’t the case for a cow. The cow’s digestive system is so complex that even a cow fed a corn based diet (which tends to harbor ecoli bacteria), if fed a grass based diet (otherwise known as the food they were created to eat) for seven days before slaughter – all that ecoli bacteria would be processed out of their body before slaughter. Unfortunately, many of the food manufacturers in the US love money so much they won’t feed cows grass for seven days before slaughter – which is why we still have many ecoli outbreaks even in beef. Which tells us a lot – including man is so stupid we even have the ability to turn what God made clean into something unfit for human consumption.  The point is, Yahowah didn’t create these instructions to punish you – He designed them out of His love for you and being a Loving Father He is giving you good advice to live by. You can ignore Him if you like, it won’t keep you out of eternal life; however, you should really consider “why” you are choosing to ignore Him.

As for unclean fish – oh man. Believe me, seafood is yummy. Well, it was until I really started to study what the big deal was in eating things like catfish and shrimp. Again, these creatures were designed to be garbage dumps and help to keep the oceans, rivers, and streams clean. They keep them clean by eating all the crap that falls into them. And again, they also have uncomplicated digestive systems. So simple that you can open the back of a shrimp and get a good look at its digestive system. It’s all black with filth – filth that is still sitting in there as you take a big bite. As I found this information out I asked myself a simple question – if someone told me roaches tasted good, would I be tempted to take a bite? No! Then why was I so quick to drop the instructions of my loving Father because shrimp taste good? They eat the exact same diet as roaches, crap! Again, eat whatever you want, but don’t allow any religious leader to keep you away from understanding the absolute love and GRACE Yahowah was providing for us in His Torah. He wanted His children healthy, strong, and full of life.

Then there is food sacrificed to idols. Think we don’t have to worry about that today – think again! Just Google “halel meat” and see how many of your local grocers carry it. Some won’t even label it as such. Also, check some of the logos your favorite foods are wearing. Everyone who knows me knows I drank a Starbucks Mocha Frappucino EVERYDAY for over seven years. That all stopped when I found out the truth of their logo. I was surprised when I found out that innocent looking bare chest lady was really a pagan goddess. Yes, look it up for yourself (you need to do some of this work yourself). Now, some people will say that it doesn’t make a difference now and we can eat whatever we want. However, why not spend some time with Yahowah and figure out why He didn’t want you eating foods sacrificed to idols. I choose not to consume foods boldly dedicated to idols (like Starbucks) because my goal is not to enrich those who willingly chose to stick their middle finger up at God and mock Him openly.

And, just to be clear – eating as Yahowah advised in the Torah is NOT the same as eating Kosher. Kosher dietary laws added immensely to the words of Yahowah. They added burdens on to the people and turned loving advice from the Father into mindless rituals having nothing to do with relationship. This is why you must read the Torah for yourself and find what Yahowah had to say to you.

Torah, Torah, Torah Part 1

Yes, here is the difference between where I am and what I do and probably 99% of all Christians. I believe the Torah of God is perfect and wonderful and wasn’t done away with the work of Yahoshua on the upright pillar. I know, I know – this is the exact opposite of everything you have ever been told. However, I have Scripture for my conclusion. I know, I know – you have Saul/Paul. Well, it seems we have to decide if we are going to believe Yahoshua and Yahowah or if we are going to believe Paul. Me, I think I will stick with God Himself.

I think the first thing to do is to look at what is “Torah”; contrary to popular belief Torah doesn’t mean “law” – it means instructions and commands for living. It was pertinent advice that God gave to man so that we would know how to have success in this life and be prepared to live with Him in eternity. I was always told as a Christian that the Torah was hard, oppressive, unforgiving, and imperfect. I never considered the irony of that stupid statement – the Torah was given ONLY to the people of God. It wasn’t exclusive, anyone who wanted to join with the people of God needed only to follow the Torah as well – and they too were considered one of God’s children. Why would God give His own children something oppressive that could never be followed? I never took the time to actually read the Torah, I just believed the words of pastors, preachers, teachers, and fellow Christians.  It wasn’t until I actually started on my journey that I found out 1) What the Torah was, 2) What God said to do with it, and 3) What it really contained.

When you spend a bit of time reading the Torah, you find immediately how silly it is to believe it was “done away with” by the work of Yahoshua.  Let’s take a look at what the Torah really discusses. The Torah discusses our relationship with God – how we are to present ourselves to Him, how we are to relate to Him, how we are to interact with Him. The second thing the Torah does is discuss how we are to interact with our fellow man – those in covenant relationship with God and those outside of covenant relationship with God. Why would that be done away with? For instance, the only place incest, child molestation, and rape are dealt with in the Scriptures is in the Torah – it specifically says “don’t do that”. If the Torah was done away with, what does that mean for these things? Also, there are some things that aren’t forbidden according to Torah – like drinking alcohol; however, you will find many Christian denominations that forbid the consumption of alcohol.

The first thing many jump to when discussing the Torah is the animal sin sacrifices – well, if you actually read the Torah there is only one authorized place for animal sacrifices – in the Temple in Jerusalem. So, no temple – no animal sacrifices. However, when we are told to “keep” the Torah – the word “keep” means to think about, consider, ponder, and understand. Those in Yahowah’s family should absolutely know the sacrifices, what they were, and why there were done. You cannot understand the work of Yahoshua without understanding the sacrifices. What did those sacrifices mean? What did they represent? What things needed sacrifices? How were those sacrifices to be offered? By studying those things we understand more about God, what He wants, what He requires, what His character is like.

When it comes to some things we consider controversial in the Torah, it definitely takes us pondering and thinking – let’s look at some of those things.  One such area is that of multiple wives. First, Yahowah never commanded multiple wives. What His Torah says is that if one is going to take an additional wife – she MUST be taken care of financially, have a home, and get appropriate “conjugal” visits. Basically – a man was not allowed to collect women as trophies and not take care of them or leave them in despair, one could not take a wife to punish her or treat her wrongly. However, when we read the ENTIRE Torah (considered the first five books of Moses) we see God showed us very clearly what happens when a man takes additional wives. In EVERY case – one wife was wonderful and multiple wives caused multiple problems. God was showing us clearly that if man chooses to think himself some sort of super hero and take on more than one wife – it will be nothing but heartache and pain. God showed us the pattern for a perfect marriage – Adam and Hawwah. Even when Hawwah led Adam to fall, God didn’t say “okay lady – I’m going to make Him another woman who will fill his needs better” – nope, they stayed together in the good times and the bad as one unit. Also, the whole “therefore shall a man leave his father and mother and cleave to his wife” loses its touch when you start taking more than one wife – you already left your parents, how does one do that again? In the Torah, a man was supposed to have one year free from work and even military service to dedicate to getting to know his new bride. That cannot happen when one takes multiple wives because he is still required to provide food, clothing, housing, and sex to all his wives. See – when we actually read the Torah we see that even in His instructions He gives us free will. And, that free will may just lead to our destruction – take more than one wife if you wish, but it won’t end pretty. God was just declaring that if you do chose more than one wife – you had darn sure better take care of ALL of His wonderful daughters. Now, some will try to point out that all of the “important” men in the Scriptures had more than one wife – okay. What God did through Abraham, Issac, Jacob, Moses, David, etc. wasn’t about “them” it was about Him. God had a plan and that plan was going to be done – in spite of the imperfections of men. It also proves that God never required perfection for relationship.

 

It’s funny that the two areas of Torah that many have the biggest problem with are Set Apart Times and dietary rules. I will never understand the rejection of the Sabbath. The Sabbath was to be a continuous reminder of the plan of God 6 + 1, six days of work and one day of rest. It shows us that we cannot work our way into eternity, only God can give us eternity. It also reminds us weekly that the work of God was completely at the foundation of the world. It reminds us to consider that He rested because He was finished – He did it ALL, it is done, there is nothing more to be done. It also reminds us that He is God and we are not. If we belong to Him than we do what He says. There were very few rules associated with the Sabbath in the Torah (there are hundreds of rules in the Jewish Talmud, but that is not the Torah). To reject the Torah is to reject the plans of God. And if God was going to change the Sabbath, I am pretty confident He would have written extensively about it. The early “church” still honored the Sabbath until Constantine took over the Christian religion. In order to appease pagans and get them to join the Christian religion, the Sabbath was changed to coincide with the “holy” day of the pagans – Sunday, the day of sun god worship. Yes, the New Testament says the disciples met together on the first day of the week – what does that have to do with what God said? Is this a relationship with God or man? In Acts, the disciples also clearly indicated people were expected in the synagog on the Sabbath - indicating they still adhered to the Sabbath, but that is neither here nor there. God said the Sabbath was to be a continuous sign and he declared that at the foundation of the earth. He blessed it and declared it “Set Aside” and to change it is to spit in His face. Trying to change the Sabbath is akin to the act of changing His personal name to “Lord” and changing the name of Yahoshua to “Jesus” – man did that to try and prove Himself equal to God. To follow it is to follow man and not God. 

Lost in Translation

In my last blog posting, I recommended that some people throw their bible in the trash. I wasn’t kidding. It isn't that I think the Word of YHWH isn’t accurate, relevant, inspired, perfect, and true – it’s that many of the translations of men are not. Some of the problems are unintentional – man is flawed and limited. Some of the flaws of man is that, well – many people are evil. That is one of the reasons why so many English translations are so poor, it is a wonder anyone could ever find YHWH from reading them. They could read the book from cover-to-cover and never once see the name of God, when knowing His Name is a big part of salvation. The other flaw of English translations is the English language itself. The Scriptures were originally given by God in Hebrew, a language perfectly suited to convey the perfect, multilayer, dense, and amazing Words of YHWH. It takes entire paragraphs in English to convey the real meaning behind one or two very important Hebrew words. Hebrew is dynamic, with messages being timeless – so when YHWH gave one promise to one individual, the promise would be timeless and open to any individual to come into covenant relationship with Him. This is why the fallacy of two covenants or an “old” covenant and a “new” covenant are so devastating – the Word of YHWH was always timeless and across generations. Hebrew was originally a pictorial language and seeing some of the attempts to recreate those pictographs is amazing, we get to see the perfection of the Word and how YHWH had His ultimate plan in place from the very beginning.

Some of the biggest problems with English translations of the bible is that they aren’t translations of the original Hebrew scriptures, they are translations of the Latin Vulgate, which was a translation of the Greek Septuagint.  Why is that a problem? Well, Greek is not Hebrew for one. The second is that the Greek Septuagint wasn’t a pure translation from Hebrew. The first reason is that because some Hebrew words could not be translated into Greek – including the name of God, YHWH (or Yahoshua or the Set Apart Spirit). As a result, divine placeholders were put in place to let people know the names had not be translated. However, those placeholders were eventually removed and other names (some pagan and some simply made up) were put into those places. The second problem is that Greece and the Greek language had a history of something called “Hellenism”. This is the practice of taking lots of different religions and blending them together. This is why when you open your King James bible and read Numbers 23:22, Job 39:9, and even Psalm 29:6 you will see the word “unicorn”. You will not find the word “unicorn” in Hebrew, because unicorns exist only in Greek mythology. In a bible translated from Hebrew you will find the word “wild ox” or simply “ox”. However, the Greek Septuagint was filled with Greek mythology and paganism mixed in with Hebrew Scripture. So, when someone tells you the King James Bible is the most “accurate” translations, they are talking about the best translation from the Greek and they are talking about a book which isn’t simply about the Hebrew God, the Creator of the universe who was kind enough to extend to all humanity a chance of eternal life and relationship; they are talking about a book that mixed this Hebrew God in with some Greek gods, some sun god worship, and a bit of paganism. I know, it’s hard to swallow – look it up for yourself.

One HUGE problem that can be find in most English bibles is the disturbing act of translating from Hebrew, then transliterating from Greek names found in the Scripture. See, words are translated – that means a word in one language is given an equivalent word in the new language. For instance, we translate the Spanish word “uno” into “one” in English. However, names are supposed to be transliterated. That means the name stays the same, it is just spelled in such a way that it can be accurately pronounced in the new language. So a Spanish man named Eduardo will still be called Eduardo in English; we don’t go and change his name to Edward. However, all through the Bible Hebrew individuals were stripped of their Hebrew and God given name and given a Greek name. The first time this was done with an individual was Hawwah. Hawwah was Adam’s wife, her name means “life giver”. Instead of transliterating her name so it could be accurately spoken in Greek, then English – they simply renamed her “Eve”, which means “life giver” in Greek. However, instead of translating her name as “Life Giver” into English, they then began again to transliterate. So, we adamantly call her by a Greek name as if that is the one given to her by her husband. The problem with not transliterating her name is that part of her name, Hawwah, is also a part of God’s Name YHWH (pronounced Yahowah). See, if we could say “Hawwah” we could easily say God’s true and personal name “Yahowah”. This stripping of Hebrew names took place throughout the bible, including with the names of books of the bible. For instance, the book in English known as “Exodus” is really the book “Shemoth”. Ironically, Shemoth does NOT mean “Exodus”, it means NAMES! God was so adamant about the importance on names he had Mosheh (that would be Moses in your English bible) let us know the book should be called Names. Instead, in arrogance that could only come from Greece and Rome itself – they stripped the Scriptures of the significance of names – see the problem?

The problem with stripping people of the Hebrew names they were given is that it stripes away some of the very clear messages YHWH was trying to give us. For instance, Yahoshua is the name of the ha Ma'aseyah. That is right, it isn’t “Messiah”, it is ha Ma’aseyah, which means the “Work of Yah”. Yahoshua means “Yah saves” – that message isn’t conveyed in the slightest through the Greek and Latin made of name of Iesus which was later changed to “Jesus”. We know the name Jesus is completely made up since the letter “J” didn’t exist until the 1500’s. In fact, if they were going to translate the name of Yahoshua into English as spoken today (and anytime after the 1550's) – His name would be rendered Joshua (exactly as Joshua, son of Nun). At least if they would have done that it would have been much easier for people to transition to His actual name of Yahoshua. Instead, as I have been told by many they aren’t willing to “give us their Jesus”.  To that, I have to say you can hold on to whatever name you want, just don’t think that YHWH has to respect human corruptions of His Word – especially those that were done intentionally to disrespect Him, mock Him, and test Him. The name changes were not done out of ignorance, they were done out of arrogance. They were done because man thought himself equal enough to God to change His Name, the Name of His Son, and the name of anyone else they chose. Unlike the scene in roots, where Kunta Kentee finally relinquishes from the beating and declares that his name is indeed Toby; God will do NO SUCH THING! He gave us His Name, YHWH (pronounced Yahowah), 7,000 times in Scripture. He told us His Son would come in HIS NAME, Yahoshua is coming in the name of Yahowah; Jesus has absolutely NO connection to Yahowah.

My advice to you is to look up for yourself and verify the things I have written. My best advice is to visit the website Yada Yahweh http://www.yadayahweh.com/ to get some of the best and well researched information in regards to the Scriptures you can find. The next thing is that as you are probably at the mercy of English translations of the Scriptures for now – find some that were translated from the original Hebrew for what is commonly called the “Old Testament” and those based on Aramaic and Hebrew origins of the Greek for the “New Testament”. However, be aware that the “New Testament” has a lot of translation issues among other pretty big issues. Advice again – start with the BEGINNING of your Bible – in Genesis (Bereshith). I would recommend getting a copy of The Scriptures, a translation of the bible from the Institute for Scripture Research. The http://www.halleluyahscriptures.com/ scriptures would be even better and can be downloaded for free on your computer. Get truth. It will make you uncomfortable, stretch you, and you will end up questioning everything. Good! In the end you will realize the God really is the Creator of the universe, He had a plan for your salvation from the beginning, and you can KNOW HIM!

Stolen Identity

I would like to report a crime. This is a crime of the greatest case of identity theft to ever be perpetuated on mankind. This crime was absolutely heinous and the groups that did it pretty much got away with it - mostly. It would be wrong for me not to do my part to try and correct this crime against humanity - so here goes.
Remember the movie "the Net" with Sandra Bullock? Remember how with one keystroke her identity was completely wiped away - taking from her all the things that made her unique, that said to the world that she did indeed exist? That happened in real life to someone I know. It wasn't recent, it happened before computers; it can't be contributed to an innocent keystroke error. This crime took place well over 2,000 years ago.
The One whose identity was stripped was not a man, it was the identity of God Himself. Not only did this happen once, it has been happening continuously and it needs to stop.
The first time this crime was committed, it was done by Jewish Rabbi's. They created a false myth, found no where in Scripture, that the name of God was not to be spoken. This commandment against speaking God's proper name cannot be found anywhere in Scripture. It is erroneously based on the 3rd Commandment in which it is written to not take the name of God in vain. The irony is that like Hawwah (I know, your "bible" says Eve, but that wasn't her name), they added to the Scriptures. See, God told Adam not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, by the time Hawwah was speaking with satan in the garden she said they were not even to "touch" the tree. Of course, shortly after she added to the Word of God - she not only touched the tree violating a man made commandment - she also ate from the tree violating God's Commandment. So too is the story of the Rabbis'. Shortly after they added to the Commandment by saying one could not even speak the name of God, they violated their man made commandment. To keep from violating their made up commandment even further, they kept piling on more and more ridiculous rules. First they added letters over the name of God so that people wouldn't pronounce it correctly. When people, in pronouncing the new made up name, still said some of the actual name of God - they took the name out of Scripture completely. They then replaced the name of God with the name "Adoni" - which means master. Of course, God never told us to call him "Master", but this word is also the proper name of a false god - baal. They even went so far a to say people couldn't speak or write the name Elohim - which means God. This is not God's name, but His title - however, they wouldn't even let people say that. When Jewish people write God today they will often write "G-d" so as not to violate a commandment that never even existed. Others will say only "HaShem" which means "the Name" or intentionally mispronounce Elohim by saying elokim. Of course, all this gymnastics has led Jewish people for thousands of years to follow firmly in the footsteps of Hawwah; you see, part of not taking the name of God in vain is to not let is be seen as nothingness. However, that is just what they have done - the proper and personal name of God hasn't been spoken in a synagog or from the mouth of a devout Jew in thousands of years. The Rabbis went so far as the change the way the Hebrew language was written and spoken to keep people away from God's proper and personal name.
While that is a sad and terrible account, Christianity isn't one iota better on this matter. While they have had every opportunity to correct this error of Judaism, they have chosen to keep the error and ratchet it up even more. Instead of using the proper and personal name of God in scripture - every English Bible with the exception of 2 or 3 obscure ones you must search for like a detective, they have chosen to substitute the name of God AND His Son the Messiah with not only the name of the false god baal, but also made up names that have absolutely NO connection with their honest rendering. For instance, turn in your bible to Exodus 15:3 and if your bible says "the Lord is a man of battle, the Lord is His Name - go to the garbage and throw it away. Okay, is that too much. Turn to Isaiah 42:8, if your bible starts out with "I am the Lord, that is My Name" - now throw it away. Why? Well, read the rest of that scripture - if you don't think your bible replacing the name of God with the name of an idol violates that very scripture; Houston, we have a problem!
So, what is God's name? I am glad you asked! God wrote His name for us almost 7,000 times in scripture. An English rendering of His Name is spelled YHWH. While English pronunciations vary (mainly because Christian and Jewish leaders for thousands of years have intentionally suppressed the name for a number of reasons), the most well researched phonetic pronunciation I have found is "Yah-O-Wah".
So, whats wrong with saying "Lord"? Well, number one - that isn't His Name. He told us His Name almost 7,000 times, He introduced Himself to us in the most beautiful, wonderful, caring, loving, and amazing ways - how could we not be respectful enough to use His Name? Imagine if your spouse insisted on calling you by the name of the last person they dated before they met you? Would you be okay with that? What about if parents called you a nickname you detested and told them you detested? What if your children decided to forsake the traditional "mom" or "dad" and simply call you "fart face"?
The other, and most important, reason for using His Name is that we were clearly told in Scripture that salvation depends on 1)Knowing His Name, and 2) Calling upon His Name. Do you really want to take the chance of getting His Name wrong? If your okay with that, I will start calling you "dumb ass" and I am sure you will be okay with that - after all, its just a name.
And since I mentioned it briefly - the name of the Messiah, YHWH's only begotten Son is not "Jesus" or "Christ" or "Lord", His name is Yahoshua which means "Yah Saves". If translated into English (which it shouldn't be because names are not translated, they are transliterated) it would be Joshua. Yes, the exact same name used for Joshua, Son of Nun - with the same meaning. The name Jesus (which started as Iesus because the letter "J" was invented until the 1500's) is at best a made up name. At worst, it is the name of a Greek sun god. Every time you call upon the names of "Jesus" and "Lord" - no matter how your heart feels, you are disrespecting God. He was the victim of a crime, as was all of humanity when His Name was taken from us. If the people in the movie Roots had enough respect to go back to calling the main character "Kunta Kentee" instead of the false slavery imposed name of "Toby", surely we can give as much respect to the creator of the Universe. Revelations clearly says to the messenger of the assembly in Philadelphia in Revelation (Hazon) 3:8 "I know your works - see, I have set before you an open door, and no one is able to shut it - that you have little power, yet have guarded My Word, and have not denied My Name." Philadelphia gets welcomed with an open arm. However, Laodikeia is lukewarm, neither hot nor cold - a little wishy washy. Sound a little like people who think that any old name will do? Ones that think the Creator of the Universe can be renamed at will by any rabbi, priest, pope, preacher, or teacher who decides His name is too hard, too sacred, too Jewish - so they will just call him whatever they please? Maybe its time for a choice. Maybe its time to decide if you are going to be a Philadelphian or a dumb ass.

My REAL Journey Home

When I started this blog, I thought the focus would be on my quitting my full time job to stay home with my kids. I had no idea this journey would be so much bigger. This isn’t just about me finding my place as wife and mother; it is about me truly finding God.

Those who know me are probably wondering if I have lost my mind! What do I mean “finding God”, I have been a practicing Christian since I was a young teenager. For over 20 years I thought I knew God, boy was I wrong. Here I was, worshiping a God and I didn’t even know His name! Oh, I thought I knew His name – it was “God” right? Maybe His name was “Lord”. At least that is what my Bible said.  I never actually read those beginning notes – you know all those pages before Genesis 1:1. I had no idea that the true name of God had been removed from the scriptures, first by Jewish Rabbis, then by Catholic Priests. God has a name and He declared it almost 7,000 times in scripture – His name is YHWH and it is pronounced “Ya Ho Weh”. He was so clear about His name being known that He gave us a commandment about it. We say “don’t take the name of “the Lord” in vain, but the Commandment is more than that – we are to not let His name come to naught. And, His name is not “the Lord”. In fact, in additional to the title “Lord” mean master, it also means “baal” – you know that false god the children is Israel often got in trouble for worshiping? Yes indeed, whenever we magnify “the Lord” we are more accurately calling on a false pagan god than on the One True God – YHWH.

As I did more digging and studying, I found out that most of my religious walk as a Christian consisted of openly breaking Commandments YHWH had been clear about as well as outright pagan worship. Oh yes, it was dressed up to look pretty and had nice “Christian” words associated with it – like “Christmas”, but all those things were pagan through and through. The more I dug the more I realized I wasn’t worshiping YHWH at all, in fact – the steeped I got in the practice of my religion the more I was twisting scripture. Everything from Sunday worship to Easter was purely pagan to the core. My heart was right, my motivations were right – but I had been deceived! The deception was thousands of years old and intentional. I stood in horror as I looked at my feet sure in the foundations of my faith – only to find they were on sinking sand. I looked in horror as I found that even the Bible I held in my hand had been corrupted by men.

So, this blog will be dedicated to my journey home – home to my Father YHWH as I learn more and grow more. Now, for those still reading and not already fasting and praying for my deliverance – here are some things I will explain right up front. Here are the things that I believe are true:

1.       There is one true and living God and His name is YHWH

2.       He has one begotten Son and His name is Yahoshua (we will get to this name later)

3.       There is but ONE way to God, and that is through His Son; you cannot work your way into heaven, you cannot be good enough or perfect enough

4.       The Word of God is TRUE and infallible; however, translation errors and intentional corruption of scripture makes our learning of that True Word take more than just a passive approach. We must study hard, look at multiple translations, go to as close to the original sources as possible, and make our beliefs line up with the Word instead of trying to make the Word line up with our beliefs.

5.       The “Old Testament” is still valid today and the plan of salvation was laid out for us even through the words of Moses. The “New Testament” is valid in that is confirms the prophecies about the Messiah and His coming. The NT is also the most challenging because it has been subject to a lot of corruption due to several issues 1)Language – the Greek language, which is what the oldest found manuscripts of the NT were written in was plagued by pagan names and Hellenistic  work, 2) Incomplete Manuscripts – there has been NO intact manuscript of the NT found and there are over 3,000 discrepancies found in many of the letters between texts that have been used to translate the NT; these discrepancies are not found in the OT 3) Forgeries – some of the biggest forgeries are found in the writings attributed to Paul with most of the books attributed to Paul now being considered by Biblical scholars to be “questionable”.

So, the next big question is “am I a Christian”? This one is a hard one. Christianity has been such a HUGE part of who I am, most of my friends are Christians, I know the language and lingo, I know the customs and traditions, many of the most important aspects of my life and my most important moments in life were defined in my Christian faith, and even though I had an incomplete view of God – I met Him through Christianity. With that said, there are many defining aspects of Christianity that I no longer accept. For instance, the Christian holy days of Christmas and Easter I can no longer participate in. I believe man had no right to change the Sabbath nor to discontinue the practice of the Set Apart Times declared by God (like Passover). And most importantly, my Savior is named Yahoshua, not Jesus; Christ my God is named YHWH, not Lord. This is more than changing from Baptist to Methodist.

So, do I have a church? Right now we are still on the rolls at our Primitive Baptist Church, we still attend on many Sunday’s and we still regularly pay our tithes there. So no, I am not just trying to “get out of tithing”. Like I said, this is a journey. I would say we are moving closer to a more Messianic walk in our faith, but not so much “Orthodox Jews that believe in Jesus”. It’s really quite hard to define, so I will say this is more about relationship than religion. I can’t say how this will all play out – heck our church’s pastor may read this blog and kick us out, after all – I would be a Christian that doesn’t celebrate Easter!

So, again, welcome to my journey home. I think it will be an exciting one!