A Case of Severe ‘yada
“And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’” Matthew 7:23 NASB
Never knew you – Rosh Hashanah is gone. Yom Kippur is over. The Feasts will wait for another year. We have studied many words, examined many concepts, learned some theological truths. There is a new book on the shelf and hours of new lectures, hundreds of new friends, thousands of added miles.
But far too often it seems like the thirteen-year drought of Abraham. Yes, God is there–but He is hidden, waiting, watching. The road goes on because His hand plans it, but I don’t see Him on the horizon anymore. He is distant, managing the cosmos and asking me to participate but His footsteps are light years from me, lost to me among the stars. I see the prints in the sand, but I can’t hear His voice. I see the marks on the trail, but they are nearly obscured by the brokenness of the bush.
I am lonely. In my loneliness I seek comfort in familiar escapes only to discover they are as empty as the rest of the desert that I tread. I realize there is no turning back, but there is no oasis on the way either. I long to stumble across Him at the campfire, share a meal, hear wonderful things, be amazed. But I am left only with His afterward, the signs in the sky, the design in a flower, the mark of the beast – glory passed by. No wonder Moses asked. It is a terrible, frightening thing to be without the pillar and the cloud.
When Abraham Heschel observes, “the presence of God is the absence of despair,”[1] I know the source of my angst. But knowing that I am in desperate need of His presence does not mean I experience it. The cure is not apparent in spite of the acute awareness of the disease. I am not at home in the universe.
Then Heschel reminds me that neither is God at home in the universe. “He is not at home in a universe where His will is defied and where His kingship is denied. God is in exile; the world is corrupt. The universe itself is not at home. To pray means to bring God back into the world, to establish His kingship for a second at least.”[2]
Whenever I refuse to make His purposes absolutely supreme in my life, whenever my desires trump His desires, I contribute to the strangeness of a universe fashioned by the Creator but not responsive to its Creator. In fact, the problem is far more acute since the Creator actually tells me what He demands of me in order to restore His kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. But I refuse to listen. I dismiss His instructions as ethnically dependent, culturally irrelevant, theologically unnecessary. I choose my own means of restoring a sense of being at home. My arrogance is shattering. Who am I to say to my Maker, “I will interpret Your directions as I see fit”?
“The truth of being human is gratitude, the secret of existence is appreciation, its significance is revealed in reciprocity.”[3]
“. . . the essence of human being is not in what he is, but in what he is able to be.”[4]
Yeshua’s words are even more unsettling. Applying allusions to Psalm 6:8 and 119:115, He clearly says that the ones who are sent away are the ones who practice anomia, lawlessness. But He wasn’t speaking Greek, was He? And what does anomia become in Hebrew? What is lawlessness in Hebraic thought? It can only be one thing—whatever is contrary to Torah. Torah is nomos. Whatever is not Torah is anomos.
This is absolutely devastating! Who must depart? Who are the ones He never knew. Those who do not live out Torah! That includes all those people who claim to be Christians but who have been taught, and consequently believe, that Torah does not apply to them. That’s millions who will be turned away. Shockingly. Utterly flabbergasted. Horrified. And, except for grace, that’s me. I believed the lie. I lived the lie. I earned being sent away. A case of severe yada’. What I did not know would have killed me.
Topical Index: Matthew 7:23, yada’, nomos, anomos, lawlessness, Torah
Powerful word today Skip!
Words that describe most, if not all, of us. Caused me to pause, wonder, breath deeply, ponder, and then I know I must decide. Maybe tomorrow.
Oh, but for the grace of God!
As you mentioned, Skip, “except for grace”.
New mercies every morning.
Everyday, he gives us the grace to chose.
“…chose for yourselves this day
whom you will serve…” Joshua 24:15
This day!
Isn’t learning to live in God’s presence and then bringing that presence to people and situations, through prayer and mitzvot the very thing God has called us to do? Whether we “feel” something or not. What a privilege and responsibility!
Do you think there might be a difference between “practicing” lawlessness and being ignorant and therefore not following ALL of Torah. “Practicing lawlessness” sounds intentional. Many Christians love God and their neighbor( which was Yeshua’s summary of Torah), they don’t murder, steal, lie, etc.They know that’s wrong. They give, serve, pray, and share the Lord with others. They do practice parts of the Torah, but they don’t celebrate festivals, keep Sabbath, etc…because they don’t have a clue. Are they going to be told to depart? Or are we talking about the preachers and followers who bluntly say that Jesus’ death has taken care of the sin problem in such a way that now we can do whatever we want; it’s covered?
I’d appreciate anyone’s thoughts.
That’s a great question. When I have this discussion with Christians, I typically point them to the mitzvot and ask if they’ve ever read them. Sadly, 99.9% have never read them except casually if they happened to ever read Torah — which, frankly, most have not read through completely, even once.
But if they do read after my suggestion and if we do discuss it again, most will agree that there are very few mitzvot that they don’t already attempt to keep. That’s not very reassuring though, except to say that they are not really in ignorance about what God requires. And perhaps that is the very issue — it’s not ignorance as much as it is unwillingness to change their lives to conform with Torah.
Something happens when you keep Shabbat. Your life view changes. I don’t know how else to explain it. (But Heschel does so beautifully in “The Sabbath”.) Keeping the dietary laws is part of my worship, as are saying the shema and the ha motzi. It’s not rote practice. Something changes in your relationship with the Lord and you don’t get that by giving mental assent to some of the mitzvot.
Much of the church today is big on mental assent, because it’s just as valid as physical action in their way of thinking. They agree the Bible is true but only with their minds. These are the people who might really consider murder in some circumstances. How many first time murderers are a normal part of their community but the circumstance ruled over their “conviction”? There is a difference between mental assent /conviction and daily practice of God’s mitzvot. Perhaps that difference is that some things really become unthinkable.
Hi Ingela, (what a beautiful name!!)
I’ll only add this to Suzanne’s thoughts, these last few months it has become ever more clear to me that the fundamental issue is in regards to covenant. I “attempt” to explain it to those I interact with in a parable form.
If a young man makes an agreement with a home owner for a certain sum of money, to clean his yard, mow, etc..and after making this agreement, he runs and tells a friend about the opportunity of making some money, the “friend” 🙂 decides that he’ll beat him to the punch and runs over to the neigbor’s house and does the work. The question is, is the homeowner obligated to pay him for the work? Obviously not.
It would seem to be the same in the Kingdom, the covenant is made with YHWH, and it has any number of conditions. Just because a “Christian” or anyone else for that matter lives a “biblically” moral life doesn’t place them “in covenant” with the God of the bible.
It’s a tough issue and we (I 🙂 ) need to approach it in the most gracious way, with out offence if at all possible. It would seem that many are wont to shove these issues down other’s throats and there’s a great danger there for all parties involved. God Himself draws each of us in the correct way, the best we can do is point. However, somewhere along the line the decision has to be addressed. We chose to remain lawless or we practice what God both desires and requires according to His covenant.
Surely we all stand by Grace alone, if any of us was judged on perfection instead of seeking we would all be on a sinking ship. Bless His holy Name.
YHWH bless you and keep you……….
Ingela, I agree with some of your thoughts. They have been my thoughts also. Before I was open or even understood that Torah was for me, I still had a wonderful relationship with The Father and His Son, Yeshua. I knew that I knew Him! No one could tell me that The Father would say depart from me. Hopefully, my eyes are being opened maybe a little at a time. But my parents loved The LORD and they didn’t understand or Keep Torah. As much as I am trying to be led by The Spirit of the Lord and keep Torah; I know that I fail so many times. The scriptures tell us that we need to know that we have eternal life. I know that I have eternal life through The Messiah. My church friends know the Lord, maybe not with keeping all of Torah, but they love Him and follow Him in the light that they have. I am desperate to know Him better!
Maybe the reason they don’t know or do these things is because they don’t seek what pleases God and just follow the leader that leads them. When you are in a relationship with someone you grow in intimacy through getting to know how they tick. The scriptures are clear to what pleases The Lord, maybe it’s us that decides what we want yo do and not seek what we need to do in response to our relationship with Him. Skip said something profound recently in the UK when he described The Lord in the garden looking for Adam. The reason why Adam was absent was because He wasn’t in his usual place walking alongside The Lord, he was walking in a different place. Correct me if that was wrong Skip, but it showed me that our place is to walk alongside Him on His path right by His side.
One thing The Lord has done with His word that I just love is to allow us to see real people struggling with real life, making tragic errors in judgement, with horrible consequences, yet He still works with them. I mean, if you are an ancient guy just making up a story you probably wouldn’t want to mention that that one of the chief patriarchs of your faith pimped out his wife to save his own skin, or that the guy you venerate as your greatest king had a guy killed so he could sleep with the guy’s wife. I don’t know where or what happens but all I know is I never want to hear from Him “I never knew you.”
BLESSED NEW YEAR TO ALL!
Gen. 1:14 Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years…”
Exodus 12:1 “Now Yahweh (the LORD) said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt,
2 “This month shall be the beginning of months for you; it is to be the first month of the year to you.”
(first new moon after the vernal equinox, during the time of the grains ripening)
Just a quick note to share with you that today is the REAL New Year’s Day, because it is New Moon Day, the first day of the first biblical month of Aviv (later renamed “Nisan” during the Babylonian Captivity). New Moon Day is “day one” of a lunar cycle, so today is “day one” of the new yearly cycle according to the Almighty in the above Bible verses.
Personally, I do not feel a need to celebrate like the paganized world does at midnight on Dec. 31st every year. But, I do feel a need to PREPARE. To prepare not only physically, but most importantly, spiritually as well.
The world is in very tumultuous times right now, possibly in the “birth pangs” that Yahshua spoke of in Matthew 24:8, Mark 13:8, and Paul mentioned in 1 Thes. 5:3. I think that the next 18 months are going to build up to “hell on earth”. If I’m wrong, I’m wrong, but there is wisdom in being prepared.
I am fasting and praying today on this New Moon Day, this New Year’s Day. I already live in “the wilderness”, and am just subsiding on very little, and am happy with that, but Yahweh is prompting me to clean up my act, to become “chodesh” (set apart) from any worldly and Torahless ways that are putting walls between me and Him. I am asking, no begging, Him to reveal to me my faults, and to help me overcome them. I am refocusing my efforts to live a life that is pleasing to him, and that means only one thing… strict Torah observance. There are 3 ways of being obedient to God’s Torah; all, nothing, or partial.
James 4:8 “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”
James 1:22-25 “But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty (Torah), and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man shall be blessed in what he does.”
May you, your family and loved ones, and friends and associates be blessed with good health, provision in every way, God’s guidance and direction in this new year!
1Thess. 5:6-24 “Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is Yahweh’s will for you in Yahshua haMashiach. Do not quench the Spirit; do not despise prophetic utterances. But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil. Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Yahshua haMashiach. Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass.”
HALLELUYAH!!!
Tom
Chag Sameach Rosh HaShanah, Tom (and Everyone here)! 🙂
“New Moon Day is “day one” of a lunar cycle, so today is “day one” of the new yearly cycle …” Spot on. New Moon is set-apart from the days of the month.
Day after New Moon from evening starts the counting of First Day of the week.
New Year’s blessings to you and yours too, into a yet deeper yada with YHWH! Shalom!
Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment (Psalm 51:4).
Words and judgments can only refer to the Law, both in terminology and by context of both Romans 3 and Psalm 51. YHWH’s faithfulness means that He will always act according to His true and righteous Word, which in this context means His law or commands. He will always do what He says He will do, and He is always just in doing so. He is faithful.
We might be tempted to partially dismiss the role of the Torah in this section, claiming faithfulness is purely relational and not bound up in commandments or law. Certainly, there can be no doubt that faithfulness is relational. Yet, within the relationship, there are agreements made so that it can function as intended. Let’s consider marriage. At the start of marriage, there needs to be something said / promised, some type of agreement that is made. These are the wedding vows. If I am faithful to my wife it is because I am keeping my vows that I made at our wedding – that she would be the only one, ’til death do us part, etc. If I break my vows, then I am unfaithful and our relationship suffers. In Jewish weddings, there is always a ketubah, or marriage contract that specifies the duties of a husband and wife to each other. In the case of Israel, the Torah is the marital contract, or ketubah. The giving of the Torah at Sinai is understood to be a marriage ceremony by both Jews and many Christian Torah scholars. Thus, the law specifies the duties of YHWH and His people within their covenant relationship. Without the torah [ law ], there is not a standard to which we promise to be faithful. Therefore, when discussing faithfulness, we cannot dismiss the role of the law.
YHWH demonstrates His faithfulness by upholding His word and performing His promises (blessings or cursings), which, in this case, are contained in the “oracles of YHWH” , or Torah. Romans 3:2 Much in every way! Because firstly indeed, that they were entrusted with the Words of Elohim “. YHWH goes out of His way to show He is faithful to His Word. We see the writer of Hebrews making this same case, when he writes, “For when YHWH made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself.” (Heb 6:13) YHWH’s Word is His standard of righteousness to which He is faithful.
But at Sinai, it wasn’t only YHWH that made a promise to be faitful. Israel also pledged, All that the YHWH our Master has said, we will do and be obedient.” (Ex 24:7) Israel, sadly, demonstrated unfaithfulness to their word, to their promise. Paul, realizing this, contrasts them and asks, “Does their faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of YHWH?” Put another way, “What if some were unfaithful in keeping YHWH’s commands? Does their law-breaking somehow make YHWH unfaithful, or unrighteous, in the giving of these commands?” to which he answers,
By no means! Let YHWH be true though every one were a liar, as as it is written, “That you may be justified in your words, and prevail when you are judged. But if our unrighteousness serves to show the righteousness of YHWH, what shall we say? That YHWH is unrighteous to inflict wrath on us? (I speak in a human way.) By no means! For then how could YHWH judge the world? (4-6)
YHWH’s commands are true and justified, regardless of whether or not we obey them, and our disobedience only serves to show the goodness of the law. Let’s say, for example, that you tell your child not to hit a sibling, and if they do, they will receive a time-out. You gave a command, and specified the consequence. Then, if your child hits their sibling, you are justified (righteous; same word in the Greek) in punishing your child; you are blameless in your judgment to send him or her to time-out. The child cannot come back and justifiably say you are unfair or mean. The fault rests with them and you are faithful to your word.
The Torah [ Law ] should not be considered a burden .. or a legislative bunch of do’s and don’ts .., they just define a REALITY placed against a standard / benchmark by which our Covenant Marriage Vows are measured in accordance to the Inner ( Spiritual ) man/woman. It is the FRUITS of our Covenant relationship with Abba YHWH.
shalom and blessings
Michael
Willingly Ignorant??
~ For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water: whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: but the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men ~ (2 Peter 3.5-7)
Ignorance (contrary to popular belief) is not “bliss.” Ignorance is costly. And (amazingly) there are some (carbon units) among us who remain “willingly ignorant.” How anyone would want to remain “willingly ignorant” is beyond my limited understanding.. I just don’t “get it..” These two words from the word of God “willingly ignorant” are a speed-bump to my soul- a flare on the surface of the sun. How can these things be? If the answers are there for “whosoever will,”- why would “any man” (willingly) choose to be ignorant? Maybe we could profit by this and sell some bumper stickers: “Ignorant and Proud of It!” Yes, Paul, – I agree.. – “I would not have you ignorant brothers” ~ But I would not have you to be ignorant, brothers, concerning them which are asleep, that your “sorrow not,” even as others which have no hope ~ It takes hope to cope. (Amen)
What is (scriptural-Biblical) hope? Shall we? Should we? Ignorance and your close cousin, Apathy- you may now depart our company. We now have a more sure word of prophecy, – the written word(s) of God. (Formerly) ignorant friends, (Hallelujah!) – “it is written!” We have now, (in our formerly sin-stained hands..) the word of truth, a lamp for our feet and a light for our path- the word of the LORD, – the Torah (instructions) of YHWH.
God has spoken. (Notice the tense and we won’t be so tense!) He has spoken.
~ God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spoke in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken unto us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made the worlds..~
Who is the Son of God? He is God the Son. He is (the) Christ, (the Anointed) the crucified, resurrected, (now reigning) and interceding Son of the living God. ~ He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God ~ (Revelation 19.13) Be ignorant no more..- the written word reveals to “whosoever will” -the Living Word. ~ Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?”
~ Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures ~ (Luke 24.27)
Wooomp! There it is!
The Bible, the living God-breathed Word of God is our “Him-Book!” Shall we? ~ Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away! ~ And the words of the LORD? “endure forever..”
This has been my struggle for a very long time. I find it hard to judge another mans servant when I read Lev. 4 and compare it with 1Tim.1:13.
Perhaps I don’t understand the text correctly but of all the people in the 1st century we have to choose from, Paul would be my last choice to label ignorant.
I’m grateful he did not leave me ignorant but I’m not yet willing to say that those who are will all be judged harshly on that day. Teachers? Maybe! I’m also not willing to say that I personally have yet attained to anything knowing my own short comings all to well.
What I am willing to say at this point in time is that grace covers ignorance and mercy is extended to the repentant but I’m not at all sure I really know what that means nor do I understand how that will work out in the end. I don’t use this as an excuse to keep my mouth shut either. If I did I’m sure my tongue would burn up inside it.
But I know that my Redeemer lives, and that He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth;
and though after my skin, worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God,
whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another, though my heart be consumed within me.
“It is a terrible, frightening thing to be without the pillar and the cloud” -signs of YHWH’s Presence with us on the journey, for direction.
“Who must depart? Who are the ones He never knew. Those who do not live out Torah!”….or, those who live contrary to Torah ways, claiming they believe, but do not tremble, nor desire to walk in His ways, nor digging deep into His Word to hunger for His righteousness, to be in His Presence in a truly life-changing relationship.
Thank You, ABBA for Your grace in bringing us into this exciting process of learning and growth to mature in Your ways.
Love the two beautiful quotes, Skip.
Shalom!
Enjoyed this message. Thank you.