| THE THREE SECTIONS OF TORAH
The Sacrificial Section
There is a distinction between the three kinds of ‘laws’ in the Old Covenant. The first kind is the Sacrificial ‘Laws’, also known as the Ceremonial/Ritual ‘Laws.’ These are the laws governing the Temple worship and the way we are to approach YHWH. They have to do with the layout of the Temple, the ways a person must be purified and the sacrificial system. We don’t sacrifice animals today because Y’shua has become the perfect sacrifice. He, in His death on the cross, fulfilled the Sacrificial/Ceremonial section. Today, each and every offering and sacrifice in the Torah is understood as a shadow/type of Messiah Y’shua, His work and how He fulfilled it. This is what He meant by the concept, “Think not that I am come to destroy the law (Torah), or the prophets (Nevi’im): I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.” (Matt 5:17). Y’shua literally came to fulfill this specific Section of the Torah. Believers do not have to offer or sacrifice anything anymore as Y’shua has done the full atonement for us with His precious blood. What is extremely important to note is that Y’shua fulfilled this Section, but He never discarded the Moral or Civil Sections, they still remain to this very day! When Rabbi Sha’ul (Paul) wrote to the various Assemblies of Galatians and the Romans he had this in mind. Rabbi Sha’ul never implied that the whole of the Torah is done away with at all, as that will directly contradict Y’shua’s teachings on Torah which He said we must keep! (Verses further below). The general Christian tends to read things into the Scripture which are not there and jump to conclusions which are not based on sound Hebraic thinking and doctrine.
The Civil Section
The second kind is Civil ‘Laws,’ also known as the Judicial ‘Laws.’ They are about taxes, charging interest, punishing sin. When Rabbi Sha’ul wrote to Titus, he said we must adhere to the authorities who rule over us: “Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to be ready to every good work,” (Titus 3:1 and also Heb 13:7). He quoted directly from the Torah: “And the man that will do presumptuously, and will not hearken unto the priest that standeth to minister there before the LORD thy God, or unto the judge, even that man shall die: and thou shalt put away the evil from Israel.” (Deut 17:5), and Sha’ul also quoted from the Chetuvim: “My son, fear thou the LORD and the king: and meddle not with them that are given to change:” (Prov 24:21), which means that the Civil/Judicial Torah teachings and instructions are still applicable to the Believer today!
The Moral Section
The third kind is the Moral Laws. The Ten Commandments fall into this category. These ‘Laws’ are also still in effect, because they are a reflection of YHWH’s moral character, and that does not change. The Moral Section of the Torah deals with issues such as, “Do not prostitute thy daughter, to cause her to be a whore” (Lev 19:29), and “Neither shalt thou steal” (Deut 5:19), etc. This Section of Torah still remains firmly in place today—both in the TaNaCh and Brit Hadassah (New Covenant – N.T.), and there is no Scriptural information from the Old or Renewed Covenant that we are allowed to break any part of this Moral Torah Section!
The Ceremonial, Moral and Civil Instructions
As said, there are three kinds of biblical precepts: ceremonial, civil, and moral. It is very important to note that YHWH had the civil and the moral in force even before the ‘Law’ was given at Mount Sinai! Since they (the civil and moral precepts) are part of the law of nature; i.e., you must rest on the Shabbat (seventh day). The land must therefore rest every seventh year, and the application of the laws must be consistent with the character of YHWH; i.e., you are not allowed to murder, or prostitute your daughter, etc.
On the other hand, the ceremonial precepts deal with the forms of worshipping YHWH as well as ritual cleanness. The ceremonial commands were "ordained to the Divine worship for that particular time and to the foreshadowing of Messiah". They are all “shadows and types” of Y’shua’s work which He fulfilled. Accordingly, upon the coming of Messiah Y’shua, they ceased to bind—and to observe them now would be equivalent to declaring falsely that Messiah has not yet come. This would then be a mortal sin for the Believer.
But did YHWH establish three different kinds of ‘Laws’ in the Old Covenant? It is interesting to note that there is no place given in Scripture where the terms Ceremonial, Moral, and Civil Laws are found—but that they are there is factual. The bottom line is that it is extremely difficult to divide the Torah of YHWH into these three categories.
In summary, there are 613 Commandments in the Torah of Moshe. These are divided into 248 Affirmative Laws and 365 Negative Laws. Moses Margoliouth was one of the translators of the English Revised Version, and published a catalogue of the 613 commandments in English in 1743.
It is also common to divide the Mosaic Law into three other parts:
1) The Ten Commandments (often called the heart of the Moral Law),
2) The ordinances, and
3) The judgments.
The ordinances are the laws governing Israel’s religious life, while the judgments are the civil laws. These divisions are sometimes helpful for analysis and study but actually have no Scriptural authority. Many of Israel’s laws would belong in two of the suggested divisions. For example, the law of the tithe is both religious and civil. The Ten Commandments have a prominent place in the Torah, but Y’shua taught that the greatest commandment was not one of the ten. A summary of the greatest commandment of the Torah is given below. Each of the 613 Laws can be classified into the two areas above.
But the entire Torah can be wrapped up in Two Commandments: “Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” (Matt 22:36-37). Why—because the heart of the Torah is Love and Grace!!! Y’shua quoted direct from the heart of the Torah: “And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might” (Deut 6:5) and "Love your neighbor as yourself" (Lev 19:18). This is the core of Torah! The Moral Law is more clearly revealed in the New Covenant. The Believer’s standard of conduct should be holiness (Col 3:1). We are not without law but we are under “the law of Christ” (Gal 6:2), the law of love (James 2:8), and “the law of liberty” (James 2:12)—and if you love YHWH you will want to do His Torah willingly.
Conclusion
The dividing of the Mosaic Law into Civil, Ceremonial, and Moral Laws violates proper Hebraic hermeneutical method, for it is inconsistent and illogical; and as said, the Old Covenant gives no hint of such distinctions. Sometimes one “Law” can be categorized in two or all three sections. We also need to be reminded that all Scripture is "useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness" (2 Tim 3:16).
Do you still need the Law? Absolutely, you need the Moral and Civil Law sections of YHWH!
Now, my beloved no-law Preacher and Believer, I challenge you to give a literal interpretation of the following verses and reason YHWH and Y’shua’s words away from a literal context.
This is Y’shua giving instructions on His Father YHWH’s Laws:
Matt 5:18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law (Torah), till all be fulfilled.
Matt 5:19 Whosoever therefore shall break (which is a verb, an act/deed) one of these least commandments (of Torah), and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do (which is a verb, an act/deed) and teach (which is a verb, an act/deed) them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
Matt 19:17 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep (which is a verb, an act/deed) the commandments (Torah).
Matt 22:40 On these two commandments hang all the law (Torah) and the prophets. (These two Laws are the core of the Torah, love God – Deut 6:5, and love your neighbour – Lev 19:18, if you will do these two passionately, then you will automatically want to do the rest of the Laws (because of your sincere love))
John 14:15 If ye love me, keep (which is a verb, an act/deed) my commandments (Torah).
John 14:21 He that hath my commandments (Torah), and keepeth them (which is a verb, an act/deed), he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. (If you want Y’shua to manifest Himself to you, do Torah!)
Rabbi Sha’ul gave the same instructions on YHWH’s and Y’shua’s Laws …
Rom 3:20 Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law (Torah) is the knowledge of sin. (You can only identify sin by using YHWH’s standard, and that is His Laws in the Torah!)
Rom 13:8 Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. (Rabbi Sha’ul is quoting from the core of the Torah and Y’shua’s words.)
Rom 13:10 Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law. (Rabbi Sha’ul is again quoting from the core of the Torah and Y’shua’s words.)
Jas 2:11 For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law. (Because sin can only be indentified by the Torah as Rabbi Sha’ul clearly stated in Rom 3:20 above. How else can you identify sin if there is no Law?)
1 Cor 7:19 Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but the keeping (which is a verb, an act/deed) of the commandments (Torah) of God.
1 Cor 14:37 If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments (Torah Laws) of the Lord. (Rabbi Sha’ul distinctly says that he only teach and write the Torah Laws to the Gentiles!)
Now there are a host of other verses that could be quoted, but the point is YHWH and Y’shua are definitely not schizophrenic; and Rabbi Sha’ul’s teachings can never, ever violate YHWH and Y’shua’s teachings on the Torah. The problem is not what Rabbi Sha’ul taught, it is how the church has raped the teachings of both Y’shua and Rabbi Sha’ul to enhance a satanic doctrine that violates just about everything in the Bible.
Yes, it is a very harsh statement—but YHWH says distinctly, “And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments (Torah). He that saith, I know him, and keepeth (which is a verb, an act/deed) not his commandments (Torah), is a liar, and the truth is not in him.” (1 John 2:3-4). Ponder on this verse for a moment and take what God said literally, and you should.
Now the alarming question arises, is there any truth in a preacher who has enslaved himself for the Gospel for years, and consistently taught that, “you have nothing to do with the Law anymore”? You answer that question …
YHWH further goes to say that if you truly love Him you will willfully want to keep His Torah…
If ye love me, keep my commandments (His Torah). (John 14:15)
He that hath my commandments (His Torah), and keepeth them (which is a verb, an act/deed), he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. (John 14:21)
If ye keep (which is a verb, an act/deed) my commandments (Torah), ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept (which is a verb, an act/deed) my Father's commandments (Torah), and abide in his love. (John 15:10)
From the verses above we can clearly see that Y’shua says over and over that if you love Him and YHWH, you will want to keep YHWH’s Laws even as He has kept His Father’s Laws.
Y’shua takes it further and makes it clear that the only way we can get to know Him is by studying and keeping His Torah...
And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep (which is a verb, an act/deed) his commandments. (1 John 2:3)
He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not (which is a verb, an act/deed) his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. (1 John 2:4)
And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep (which is a verb, an act/deed) his commandments, and do (which is a verb, an act/deed) those things that are pleasing in his sight. (1 John 3:22)
Once you’ve complied with the above-mentioned by loving to keep and do YHWH’s Laws, then Y’shua will dwell in you by YHWH’s Spirit.
And he that keepeth his commandments (Torah) dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us. (1 John 3:24)
But then there is another spirit in our days: the spirit of the Antichrist, the Lawless one, the Torahless one…
And then "the Lawless One" will be revealed, "whom" "the Lord" "will consume" "by the spirit of His mouth," and will bring to nought by the brightness of His presence. (also in Isaiah 11:4) (2 Thes 2:8 LITV)
The "Lawless One" is one of the names of the Antichrist. He is so-called because he will totally go against YHWH’s Laws, YHWH’s Torah when he appears. This spirit of Lawlessness is already rampant in the church today!
Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient (to point out sin), for the ungodly and for sinners, for unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, (1 Tim 1:9)
Beloved friend, if you sincerely love YHWH and Y’shua, then you will want to keep His Laws willingly and freely…
By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments. (1 John 5:2)
As YHWH’s Laws are not grievous—meaning terrible or hard to do:
For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not heavy. (1 John 5:3)
This is the way YHWH desires us to walk, because it is the ancient path to righteousness and the only way Y’shua taught.
And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it. (2 John 1:6)
The keeping and doing of YHWH’s Laws, His Commandments and His Torah, is all part of the holiness plan for you to stay on the narrow road (Mat 7:13-14) to ensure you enter into the New Jerusalem City for everlasting life…
Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. (Rev 22:14)
Now read the following words of Y’shua on the Torah in context:
13 Go in through the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many are the ones entering in through it.
14 For narrow is the gate, and constricted is the way that leads away into life, and few are the ones finding it.
15 But beware of the false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inside they are plundering wolves.
16 From their fruits you shall know them. Do they gather grapes from thorns, or figs from thistles?
17 So every good tree produces good fruits, but the corrupt tree produces evil fruits.
18 A good tree cannot produce evil fruits, nor a corrupt tree produce good fruits.
19 Every tree not producing good fruit is cut down and is thrown into the fire.
20 Then surely from their fruits you shall know them.
21 Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord, will enter into the kingdom of Heaven, but the ones who do (which is a verb, an act/deed) the will of My Father in Heaven.
22 Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name do many works of power?
23 And then I will declare to them, I never knew you; "depart from Me, those working lawlessness!" (Ps 6:8)
24 Then everyone who hears these Words from Me, and does them, I will compare him to a wise man who built his house on the rock; (Matt 7:13-24)
My beloved Christian friend, taken literally, is “lawlessness” not Torahlessness? And did Y’shua not distinctly say that we must keep and do Torah, the will of His Father in Heaven?
We are all going to stand before a literal God one day … that literal God will ask you the question, “Why did you not take my words literally?” These words may ring in your ears for eternity…
From what we have just seen from a literal context is that you have to do YHWH’s Torah, all of the Torah except for the Sacrificial Laws—also known as the Ritual Laws. This cannot be reasoned away. By trying to reason it away through spiritualizing of Scripture which enforces keeping Torah, you are violently transgressing YHWH’s instructions, and Y’shua said…
The one who rejects Me and does not receive My Words has that judging him: the Word which I spoke, that will judge him in the last Day. (John 12:48)
We notice the same pattern as Y’shua teaches for the last days during the Tribulation Period. It must be brought to the reader’s attention that Torah was relevant in the TaNaCH, Torah is relevant today according to Y’shua Himself, and Torah will be relevant until the end.
Listen to what the Book of Revelation says:
“And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments (Torah) of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” (Rev 12:17)
“Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments (Torah) of God, and the faith of Jesus.” (Rev 14:12)
From the verses quoted above, we can clearly deduce that the Torah was applicable in the past, is still applicable today, and will be applicable in the future. Now meditate on the next verse and see YHWH’s beautiful promise for the active Doer of the Word, not just the reader or listener:
“Blessed are they that do his commandments (Torah), that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.” (Rev 22:14)
From this verse alone, we clearly see that YHWH is a God of conditions. This means, if you want access to the Tree of Life and the New Jerusalem City (as I am sure every Believer wants), then you must “do his commandments”. Do is a verb and requires an action. Are you blatantly ignoring Torah altogether, or are you just reading the Torah and not actively doing it, or are you an active Doer (Executor) of Torah?
The courses and our products listed on this Website will undoubtedly prove that it is YHWH’s will for every Believer in Messiah Y’shua to study, understand and live Torah.
He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law (Torah),
even his prayer shall be abomination. (Prov 28:9)
PS. Oh my shiny blue shoes I will rather live under the Old Covenant’s 613 Laws… BECAUSE THERE ARE 1050 LAWS IN THE NEW COVENANT! – Click here
========================
We are Hebrew Rooted, Torah-observant Messianic Believers: Meaning, we believe Y’shua is THE ONLY Messiah and salvation is only through Him; and we take YHWH’s Word, both the Old Covenant and New Covenant literally and live Torah. Please see "WHAT WE BELIEVE" for more details.
Order this teaching in the booklet "The True Doctrine of Law and Grace" as well as its follow-up also in a A5 booklet format, "How should Believers apply the Law (Torah) today?" You can also order "The Rape of the Torah in the New Covenant". It is an A4 soft cover book with 245 pages, which explains the correct interpretation of every verse in the New Covenant dealing with the "Law". Please see "ONLINE SHOP".
Your comments will be appreciated - admin@hrti.co.za |