How do we follow Yeshua correctly? Do we simply rely on the Spirit? Do we simply rely on our knowledge of the scriptures? Do we rely on what the man in the pulpit tells us? Tea leaves? Parents? Friends? Culture?
There are many voices coming to you and many voices can tell that they have the answer to this question. Many of these voices can be very convincing particularly if we deem the person speaking to be"smarter" than we are. A person may say that he is unlearned in the scriptures and not scholastically inclined so he relies more on the Spirit of G-d to lead him. This point of view does hold merit, after all, there are millions of people who have never had the opportunity to learn to read much less study the Word. How are they led between right and wrong? How will they be judged? There are wise men on both sides of an aisle that can argue convincingly till the cows come home and at the end of the day one says clockwise and the other counterclockwise. Which one is to be believed?
This brings me to the "windmill paradigm". Once upon a time, while deer hunting in Western Oklahoma, G-d taught me a lesson about perspective. I was seated near a windmill and as I looked toward the windmill is was facing me and turning clockwise. Suddenly the wind shifted directions and I was looking at the backside of the windmill and it was now turning counterclockwise. Hmmm, I thought. Isn't that interesting. Aren't counterclockwise and clockwise completely opposing views? Well, depending on your perspective they can be the exact same thing. If you were on one side and I on the other, we could argue from our respective positions about the windmill and both of us would be correct. Yet in direct opposition to each other. How can this be? Doesn't our culture teach us that if one person is correct about something, that, by definition, makes the other guy wrong. This my friend is Greek thinking at it's finest. Either/Or instead of Both/And. In my example both you and I would be correct based upon our perspectives. So......one could say that for me to understand you, I need to come to where you are and look at the windmill from you perspective and this would be true.
Back to the original question; How do we follow Yeshua correctly? My answer.........Both/And
What say you????
I'm open for suggestion....
Great thought with the windmill!!! I have seen the same truth in this fashion... If we were to drive a car in England some would say we were driving on the "wrong" side of the road when in fact we would be driving on the "opposite" side. Having an opposite opinion about something is not a matter of being "right" or "wrong" but see it according to our perspective. We need to see things & especially matters of theology with ALL perspectives in order to glean the Truth. I am reminded if the scripture..be SLOW to speak & QUICK to hear.
ReplyDeleteHello!
ReplyDeleteMy name is Anders and I found your blog through another blog.
You wrote: “How do we follow Yeshua correctly? Do we simply rely on the Spirit? Do we simply rely on our knowledge of the scriptures? “
There are indeed “many voices” as you say. A solid foundation of how to follow the Messiah can be found in the Hebrew Bible.
According to Yeshayahu [”Isaiah”] 9:6 [don’t rely on a translation –they even get the numbers of the verse wrong] in Hebrew reads according to etymology -science of the origins of words and their meaning- prophecies that ha-Mashiakh [“the Messiah”] and his followers will keep the directives of the Torah -“the books of Moses”- and teach others that they must do likewise. The person looking up all instances of the Hebrew word ‘mishpat’, used in that verse, in a concordance will find that the term includes non-selective Torah-observance to ones utmost. This is how one can discern of how to follow the Messiah.
So lets’ see what the Torah teaches about salvation.
As stipulated in Devarim ["Deuteronomy"] 6:4-9,11:13-21 one is required to keep all of the directives of Torâh′ to one’s utmost—viz., “with all one’s heart, psyche and might [lit. "very"]“—”for the purpose of extending your days and the days of your children… like the days of the heavens above the earth” (i.e., eternal life). According to the Tan’’kh -Yekhezeqeil ["Ezekiel"] chapter 18 et.al – the Creator confer His atonement in His loving kindness to those and only those turning away from their Torah-transgressions and (re)turning to non-selectively Torah-observance including mishpat. [Further documentation]
That is, contradictory to what is traditionally assumed persons rejecting the Torah will not be forgiven by the Creator in His loving kindness. The NT-teaching of ‘salvation’ constitutes an addition to Torah prohibited in Devarim 4:2, 13:1 et.al. Proven above was that the Messiah would teach Torah, and thus the NT-addition can impossibly have been taught by the Messiah.
Persons, whom love the Creator and want to do His Will, will (re)turn to doing their best to observe the directives of the Torah non-selectively, which includes and is the requirements for an immensely meaningful relationship with the Creator.
Anders Branderud