End of the Line (1)
we have sinned, committed iniquity, acted wickedly and rebelled, even turning aside from Your commandments and ordinances. Daniel 9:5 NASB
Wickedly – “Do you think God will forgive us for the things we’ve done?” asks Denzel Washington in the movie Man on Fire. It’s a rhetorical question. Of course He won’t. Why would He? Even I can’t forgive myself for the things I’ve done. So Denzel and I try to atone. In Man on Fire this means giving up his life to save another. For me it’s more complicated. I haven’t taken a life so that I might replace one. I have insulted the honor of the King, ignored His desire and instructions and chosen my own way. How am I to atone for that? Yes, I know that John speaks of confession and forgiveness, but it hardly seems sufficient. Mine is repeated damage. For example, think of all those Sabbaths when I violated the “no creative fashioning” prohibition. So many I can’t count. What do I do about that? Even if I start right now with intense desire to never commit the same offense again, I know that these patterns are deeply ingrained from years of mistaken practice. In all likelihood, I will fail. I will experience once again the regret, remorse, humiliation and despair over failing to live up to the standards of my loving Father. My actions will cause Him heartache. How I would love to prevent that! But I know the sin that so easily besets me—and I am sure you know yours as well.
The Hebrew root of “be wicked, act wickedly” is ra’sha. It is associated with both acting wickedly and condemning as guilty. But what does this mean? Does it mean that our failures put us in the category of the wicked? Scripture certainly suggests that those who violate, ignore and trod under the mitzvot of the Lord are guilty and will be treated as wicked. It doesn’t take heinous acts to qualify. Denzel and I can both be wicked with just the simplest repetitive disobedience. In Hebrew thought, wickedness is often associated with actions that break down social structures and relationships. “In contrast to ṣdq it denotes the negative behavior of evil thoughts, words and deeds, a behavior not only contrary to God’s character, but also hostile to the community and which at the same time betrays the inner disharmony and unrest of a man (cf. Isa 57:20; cf. J. Pedersen, Israel I–II (London) p. 418f.)”[1] Wickedness arises from inner unrest. The wicked man is a man of seared consciousness, to deep turmoil—a man who lacks shalom as a fundamental aspect of his existence. Today we send these people to therapists. Perhaps they should rather go to the Temple for sacrifices. The real issue is the failure to know and love the one true God who loves them. Wickedness is a symptom of emptiness.
I am truly Greek—compartmentalized, internalized, rationalized. I find that emotional instability is the cause of my emptiness. I know God as Sovereign and Creator, but I often do not experience Him as Father. Such a lapse creates the tossing waves of unrest that plague my nights and strain my days. Yeshua says He did not come to judge you or me, but rather to demonstrate the heart of the Father toward those He loves. I don’t think this is intellectually acquired. Love is not a theoretical construct. It is a feeling filled with content. If I cry out, will He hear and respond? And what if I don’t cry out? What if I can’t cry out? What if all that theory becomes a psychological bulwark against emotion? Will He still forgive? Will I know Him as the lover of my soul?
“Do you think God will forgive us for the things we’ve done?”
Topical Index: wickedly, ra’sha, forgive, Daniel 9:5
[1] Livingston, G. H. (1999). 2222 רָשַׁע. In R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer, Jr. & B. K. Waltke (Eds.), Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer, Jr. & B. K. Waltke, Ed.) (electronic ed.) (863). Chicago: Moody Press.
There is purpose in the fall. Having walked the wrong path lets us walk the right path with humility, gratitude, conviction,fervency,passion, and whole heartedness. Those misspent sabbaths make the rightly spent sabbaths more meaningful and joyful.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Z8WRdGIZoU
“Chronic remorse, as all the moralists are agreed, is a most undesirable sentiment. If you have behaved badly, repent, make what amends you can and address yourself to the task of behaving better next time. On no account brood over your wrongdoing. Rolling in the muck is not the best way of getting clean.”― Aldous Huxley
Teshuva as we know it…
“Do you think God will forgive us for the things we’ve done?”
I’m pretty sure 99% of your readers would answer that question with a, “YES, if we have a truly repentant heart, turn away from sin and toward Him.”
Are you having doubts about that?
No, I’m not doubting the graciousness of God, but there are certainly times when I not only feel completely unworthy but also can’t imagine how He could forgive me–even if He does.
Yes, I get that. We live in a culture that SO fosters the yetzer ha’ra, (in addition to our own inclinations to do so,) that many of us are in shock when God taps us on the shoulder (sometimes in an airplane 🙂 ) and opens our eyes to our sin. It can be hard and painful to look back but I’m pretty sure that once we do so and repent and acknowledge our desire to live according to His instructions, God wants us to forget the past, focus on Him and KEEP WALKING!!!
That said, I know is can be easier said than done. I’m not trying to minimize what you are feeling “today,” but I’m confident He will bring you out of that dark place. Perhaps for starters you could reflect on the untold numbers of people YOU (through Him) have brought out of dark places because of your relentless desire to know and understand the God of the Universe better. He has called you for a purpose. Praise Adonai!!!
Thanks Judi. See you and John soon.
God would rather have an imperfect gift from a passionate heart than a perfect gift from a passionless heart. You have a passionate heart Skip.
“Behold the Lamb of YAH, which taketh away the sin of the world!” You are part of the world, Skip.
“In the apostasy, man alienated himself from Elohim; earth was cut off from heaven. Across the gulf that lay between there could be no communion. But through Yahshua, earth is again linked with heaven. With his own merits, Yahshua has bridged the gulf which sin had made, so that the ministering angels can hold communion with man. Yahshua connects fallen man, in his weakness and helplessness, with the source of infinite power.”
What more could Yah have done? He poured out all heaven in the gift of His only Begotten Son in order to redeem us. That Son became sin for us that we may be made the righteousness of Yah in Him. Our sins are no longer an excuse to keep us from Him. Yes, our arch-enemy would like us to think they do but if we have been made the righteousness of YAH in Him, there remains nothing to separate us if we so choose. Today, each moment, I choose to be made the righteousness of YAH, knowing that my sins no longer have dominion over me. And, now I can live His life – a life without sin. Halleluyah!! Thank you so much dearest Yahshua – my High Priest in heaven’s sanctuary, my near Kinsman and my soon coming King.
Vocationally my job is, in part, to investigate and uncover people’s pasts. Couples wanting to adopt a child must be certifiable and the state requires specialists like me to ask probing questions about the places people have lived, the things they have done, why they did them, and with whom they did them. I ask specific questions. I ask intimate questions. Then, I get to write a report that in turn a judge will review and render a decision.
My investigations often lead to tough conversations with men and women who have things in their past for which they have sought forgiveness. Most of whom before would have said “yes” to Skip’s question; “Do you think God will forgive us for the things we’ve done?” Yet, my questions not only drudge up their past and reignite their memories; but in some instances causes them to doubt whether or not they’ve been forgiven. In one case the wife said to me, “I thought forgiveness covered up everything.”
If we are not careful we will gloss over Skip’s question like we gloss over our sin. Yes. Forgiveness is available to us. Yes. There is an aspect of covering that’s involved. Yes. There is a means to canceling our debt; BUT forgiveness is a journey – a return from where we’ve gone. There may be some sin that is only a step or two off track; but I have some that are miles and miles deep into the back country. Getting on track may take the rest of this life and the life to come. In the meantime FORGIVENESS bumper stickers don’t quell my emotions or alleviate the impact of what David said was “ever before me”.
Sidebar: The word used to identify the covering over the Ark of the Covenant and the substance used to waterproof Noah’s ark is the same word. Perhaps what us sinners need – more than platitudes – is a good smearing of tar to waterproof us from the oncoming storms.
I’m not sure how much I like the phrase “God showed me”, but I do kinda feel like God showed me that the main reason I go to church and have an interest in spiritual things – is to appease my own conscience. When he tears away the fig leaves I’ve woven together – I see my deeper motivation is to feel like I’m “on the right side”. It’s selfish arrogance that keeps me studying the Bible. With the Bible, I can have knowledge above the rich man, above the doctor, above the politician, and certainly above the stars of Hollywood. I can’t stand being wrong.
So now what? Well, I continue on. I am still broken – but He is still the only physician that can possibly heal my wounds. I don’t know how much self-deception I’ve cleared away – but the only chance I have is to keep seeking after the source of all Truth.
and since you are aware of del-deception and able to admit it, you are in the company of the talmudic
Do you suppose the prodigal son suddenly became “goody two shoes” when he returned to his father? Or is it more likely that he loved his father far more and sought ways to please his father, not by obeying the rules his father had given him as he grew up, but through the understanding of why those rules existed in the first place.
There was a second son, who never broke the rules. We get a sense from the story that he feared his father, wanted to placate his father, in a relationship like that how can you truly love your father?
David, is rather the same story.
Better by far to be a man of passion, to step outside yourself, focus on helping others, be the person you were created to be than to live your life wondering if the horrible things you’ve done in the past can be forgiven.
Paul, who was a “chief sinner”, felt he had run the race well. We all stumble, sometimes we are running down the wrong path all together, the thing is, and it is a pattern in the Word, get back on track and keep moving forward.
God is not a man. He does not think like a man. We can have confidence in his love and acceptance and yes, even forgiveness, because of His actions in the past. Time and again, He forgives and remembers their sin no more.
So, Skip I pray this for you:
The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace…Amen.
yes, and the same too all those who are aware of their true unrighteousness
Skip,
As I read your bog today, Romans 8 kept popping into my mind.
I know that you well know what I am about to write but I will express it anyway (for my own need and edification!)
You know that God “has all our sins and weaknesses covered” through the salvation work of His Son. Lambs and bulls on the alter will not atone for our sins. Our own “good works”, or anything else we try will not do it. You have a problem, Skip, and so do the rest of us! Our rebelliousness (sins) have brought the death penalty on all of us. God knows it and so do we! So what do we do? As we stand trembling in the judicial court of heaven, in faith, we play the “Yahshua Card” and God accepts our argument that His Son has redeemed ALL humanity. (Romans 8:1) Do we walk away without any obligations? No way! Our God is not so foolish.
Paul tells us that “we were bought with a price.”- that is, the Law of redemption by a near Kinsman found in Leviticus 25 kicks in! As condition of our redemption we agree to become a “bond slave” of our redeemer as He now legally owns us according to Torah! Leading a life of total surrender of our will to HIS will is now the battle we are all in! Paul eloquently describes that battle in Romans 8. I quote a part of it here:
LIFE IN THE SPIRIT
” There is therefore now NO CONDEMNATION for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set me free from the law of sin and death. 3 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do: sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin,[a] he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the just requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. 5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 6 To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, indeed it cannot; 8 and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
9 But you are not in the flesh, you are in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Any one who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. 10 But if Christ is in you, although your bodies are dead because of sin, your spirits are alive because of righteousness. 11 If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit which dwells in you.
12 So then, brethren, WE ARE DEBTORS, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh— 13 for if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body you will live. 14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the spirit of sonship. When we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 it is the Spirit himself bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, PROVIDED WE SUFFER WITH HIM in order that we may also be glorified with him.” (Rom.8:1-17) RSV emphasis mine.
As we see here in Romans 8 and elsewhere in his letters, Paul shows that God eventually will raise his bond slaves to sons in His household – legally granting us a fabulous inheritance that includes Kingship. Is our God gracious or what? Our goal for now is to live as our Redeemer lived, suffering as HE suffered, and modelling our lives after HIM – the Living Torah.
Peter tells us to cast all our guilt, all our burdens on HIM and live a life of “freedom in Christ”.
“Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that IN DUE TIME HE MAY EXALT YOU. Cast all your anxieties on HIM, for He cares about you.”
(1Peter 5:7)
“Live as free men, yet without using your freedom as a pretext for evil; but live as bond slaves (Gk. doulos) of God.” (1Peter 2:16) RSV emphasis mine
Shalom
Thanks Roderick — this is a good word. We do need to take care not to gloss over the question. I think God leads us to the dry uncomfortable places so that we take time to examine our hearts – again – and remember (not wallow in) those things in our past that should bring remorse. Perhaps that helps us remember that grace is to be passed on to others as well as received.
PS – tar also has medicinal uses, particularly for skin problems. Tzara`at anyone?
Thanks, everybody.
Good stuff.
YES MICHAEL…it is all good stuff… but is it not all good TREASURES from HEAVEN?
Praise the LORD.. keep on keeping on…ONE DAY CLOSER..
~ In Him we have redemption through His blood, – the forgiveness of sins -, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace ~ (Ephesians 1.7)
Forgiveness? ~ Ask, and you will receive.. – Seek, and you will find.. – Knock, and it shall be opened unto you~
The prayer of the prodigal son? ~ “Father, forgive me for I have sinned.. (and am no longer “worthy” to be called your son)
And the response of the Father? – “and the Father ran to meet him, (and embraced him!”)
And? ~ But with you there is forgiveness, so that we can, with reverence, serve You ~ (Psalm 130.4)
And again? ~ For You, ADONAI, are good, and ready to forgive and abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon You ~ (Psalm 85.5)
And again? ~ as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us ~ (Psalm 103.12)
Interesting topic with Today’s Word Mr. Skip Moen.
To answer the best that i can with Scripture and whenever the topic of sin, forgiveness and judgement comes to mind …., i immediately pan over these Scriptures:
Matthew 5: 48. You therefore be perfect as your Father in heaven who is perfect.(Ref: Genesis 17:1/ Mat. 5:48 ; 1 Kings 8:61; Psalm 101:2-8)
Then i think upon the the Christian conditioning i received when i was much younger in my walk. Many people insist that Grace covers all sins.Example – “But my Christian brother John is such a good guy. Okay, he committed adultery a couple of times, but he’s repented and quit since then!” Well, good for John! Let’s hope and pray YHWH has forgiven him. He forgives whomever He pleases because He knows our hearts.
Then i look to Torah – But we need to remember also that YHWH is clear that those who know His Torah are NOT to engage in deliberate sinning and that there is no sin sacrifice for continued, deliberate sinning….so the “good guy” John may have jeopardized his eternal life by “committing adultery” – a deliberate act that took some thinking before doing.
Planning to have an extra-marital affair is not a “mistake” nor “unintentional” sin, such as accidentally letting a cussword slip while angry.See Romans 1:18-32.
Numbers 15: 30 “‘But an individual who does something wrong intentionally, whether a citizen or a foreigner, is blaspheming ADONAI. That person will be cut off from his people.
Hebrews 6: 4. But they who have once descended to immersion and have tasted the gift from heaven and have received the Ruach haKodesh 5. and have tasted the good Word of Elohim and the power of the world to come, 6. cannot again sin and a second time be renewed to repentance; or a second time execute him on a stake and insult the Son of Elohim. 7. For the earth that drinks the rain which comes often upon it and produces the herb that is of use to those for whom it is cultivated, receives a blessing from Elohim. 8. But if it should put forth thorns and briers, it would be discarded and be approaching closely to a curse, and its end would be a conflagration. (AENT)
Huge contrast between Aramaic and Greek. The Greek reads: “once having been enlightened…” This “enlightening” seems logical until we look at Aramaic: “But they who have once descended to immersion…” The difference is acute, since baptism is clearly a subject being introduced just two verses earlier. The reason for the Greek redaction to “enlightenment” may well have been due to early Gnostic influence that stressed Mashiyach’s knowledge over his actual power and incarnation of Deity. See also Hebrews 10:32.
Hebrews 10: 26 For if we deliberately continue to sin after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but only the terrifying prospect of Judgment, or raging fire that will consume the enemies.
The above Scripture is not referring to those unclean bondages that dwell in our flesh but to the conscious choices believers make. It refers not to our unintentional sins but to those we pursue knowingly and willingly.
Okay …, now i ask —> haven’t we ALL done this a time or two [ be honest with yourselves ] ? ? 🙁
2 Peter 2: 19 They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption; for a person is slave to whatever has defeated him. 20 Indeed, if they have once escaped the pollutions of the world through knowing our Lord and Deliverer, Yeshua the Messiah, and then have again become entangled and defeated by them, their latter condition has become worse than their former. 21 It would have been better for them not to have known the Way of righteousness than, fully knowing, to turn from the holy command delivered to them.
How many of today’s believers behave in a way they know is sinful and yet they go ahead and do what they feel like doing, anyway? That’s because they mistakenly think Divine grace covers intentional sin. This seems to me to BE a huge misconception. Divine grace has made wonderful provision for unintentional sin. But there is no provision for intentional sin. The Bible tells us so.
Deliberate, premeditated sin is willful disobedience and rebellion against God. It results in severe punishment or even loss of our salvation.
Leviticus 26: 23 If, in spite of all this, you refuse my correction and still go against me; then I too will go against you; and I, yes I, will strike you seven times over for your sins.
1 Corinthians 6: 9. Or don’t you know, that the unrighteous will not inherit the Kingdom of Elohim?* Make no mistake! Neither sexual sinners, nor idol-worshippers, nor adulterers, nor the corrupt, nor men who lay down with other men, 10. Nor the oppressors, nor thieves, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, will inherit the Kingdom of Elohim. (AENT)
Compare this to Matthew 5:17-20, where we are told that breaking the least commandment of Torah and teaching others to do the same makes a person “least in the kingdom” but they still get in. Y’shua implies that those with more serious sins won’t make it in: “Depart from me, workers of iniquity, I never knew you”; but here, Rav Shaul gives a more specific list of what will keep them out.
1 Corinthians 6: 17. But he that joins himself to our Master (Y’shua), is with him one spirit. 18. Flee from sexual sin. For every (other) sin which a man commits, is external to his body*; but he that commits sexual sin, sins against his own body. (AENT)
Actually the sexual sin goes deeper than the body, as Romans 1:26 shows. But the other point is also that a sexual sinner brings sin upon himself rather than his partner, and vice versa, unless rape or abuse is involved.
It is not sin per se that causes a person who professes to be a believer to be eternally estranged from God but, rather, it is our surrender to sin which causes our faith and faithfulness to dim or completely die out. We flirt with spiritual disaster if we – by our thoughts, words, and conduct – deny Christ, reject grace, spurn redemption, and push away the Holy Spirit.
Under the aka ” Old Covenant ” , YHWH put to death people who willingly disobeyed His commands or offered “strange fire” (Lev. 10:1-2). There was no atonement for >>> intentional sin <<>> unintentional sin <<>still <<has my knees a knocking and that is the raw honest truth.
The last part of my previous comment needs to be edited … :/ . EDIT : “Under the ‘ aka ‘; Old Covenant, YHWH put to death people who willingly disobeyed His commands or offered “strange fire” (Lev. 10:1-2). There was no atonement for >>intentional sin <>unintentional sin.<<"
Case in point, Numbers 15:32-35 tells us: While the Israelites were in the desert, a man was found gathering wood on the Sabbath day. Those who found him gathering wood brought him to Moses and Aaron and the whole assembly, and they kept him in custody because it was not clear what should be done to him. Then YHWH said to Moses, "The man must die. The whole assembly must stone him outside the camp".
The man who sinned willingly was not deceived in any way. He was not driven by uncontrollable impulses. He simply decided to ignore what God had said about the Sabbath. His reward was death.
Leviticus 4: 27 If an individual among the people commits a sin inadvertently, doing something against any of the mitzvot of ADONAI concerning things which should not be done, he is guilty.
One might say : I've been a believer for many years, but I just can't seem to quit the sinning in my life. Am I saved, or is it too late? What can I do to "get myself right with God" now?
If one claims to be a believer and yet continues deliberate and purposeful sinning, chances are good that they were never "saved" in the first place. Those who have the Holy Spirit living within do not want to, nor will they sin purposely/deliberately because to do so would be to force the Holy Spirit to sin with them…This cannot happen because the Holy Spirit is not inside those who are engaged in deliberate, continued sinning. Holiness cannot reside next to sin, period.
Is ALL not lost? Everybody strays at some point. The key is to recognize it and then get back on track and then do their best to STAY there. The enemy wants us to believe we are too "bad" to ever return to YHWH. That's why we must remember that every one of the patriarchs were guilty of sinning at some point.
Cases in point: Abraham asked his wife to lie for him so that his life would be spared (Genesis 12:11-20). Isaac did basically the same thing in Genesis 26:6-11. In Genesis 27 Jacob deceived his father into believing he (Jacob) was the first-born who should have the blessing of the first-born. And let's not forget that Paul, the most prolific writer of the Gospels, was a murderer (Acts 8:1-5, Acts 9:1-2).
If we were perfect, sinless human beings, Yeshua wouldn't have had to die on our behalf….. would he?
What we need to remember is that once we turn and repent because we know "right from wrong" is that there is no sin sacrifice for continued, deliberate sinning. Accidentally letting a cussword slip when we are angry is not considered "deliberate" or "continued" choice. But knowing, for instance that the Bible tells us homosexuality or adultery is a sin and then going ahead and engaging in it, anyway – that is definitely "purposeful" choice /sinning….
Returning to YHWH has consequences that require some responsibility on our part. "Believing" in God doesn't automatically make us immune from satan's wiles. YHWH gives us all the choice to do things HIS way, or satan's. If we refuse to obey that "small, still voice" in the back of our mind that says, "I know I shouldn't do this," then we need to HEED it and refrain from giving in to our sin natures.
We are to learn what constitutes sin and practice some self control to STOP the sinning….
It is also good to remember this: Since YHWH wants no one to perish, and He DOES "know our hearts," who is to say one cannot ever be forgiven, especially since the ONLY unforgivable sin is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit (Mark 3:28-29; Matthew 12:31-32)?
What did "blasphemy against the Ruach haKodesh" (Holy Spirit) mean? Scripture itself explains!
Mark 3: 21. And when his own family heard, they went out to seize him, for they were saying he was crazy. 22. And those scribes who had come down from Urishlim were saying, "Beelzebub is in him", and "He casts out demons by the chief of demons. 23. And Y'shua called them and by parables told them, How is Satan able to cast out Satan?
If a person committed one of the capital offenses that are mentioned in Torah, but confessed and pleaded for forgiveness, their death could provide atonement. But those who blaspheme against the Spirit of YHWH have nothing to make atonement for themselves, nor can they make an appeal in the name of Y'shua; see also Acts 5:1-11; Hebrews 10:28-30. The Ruach persuades and enables mankind to accept YHWH and His Torah (John 16:8; 1 Corinthians 2:12-14; Acts 7:51).
According to the Word ..if you or me denies that the Ruach is working and attribute the work of God to someone/something else, we would be guilty of blasphemy against the Ruach and of rejecting YHWH/Y'shua and His grace….If we know we have been sinning and we truly wish to repent and return to YHWH's Divine Instructions, chances are good that we are forgiven! [ ? } He knows who is sincere and who isn't.
After reading your comment, it’s quite revealing about myself after looking inwardly. A sincere thank you for your wisdom/self evaluation, much needed for myself as well.
You sure pick the difficult topics don’t you Skip? I would suggest Christianity and Judaism are sister faiths not identical. Christianity is not Judaism per se. Levitical Judaism represents Rabbinical thought It follows the Law of Moses. Patriarchal Judaism represents Christianity – a parallel covenant worship which follows a different law than Moses. Yeshua is a Melchizedekian highpriest who has restored the Sinai covenant after Israel lost it at the golden calf incident. The Levitical priesthood was a military coup that imposed itself through force of arms. Its purpose is to restore Israel to its Sinaitic Covenant. It functions as a form of corrective service. Israel lost the state of covenant sonship and instead received one of servitude. The Law of Moses is as much a government constitution as it is a religious ideology.
In terms of Christianity, what applies or doesn’t apply is a matter of the Davidic descendents who have been adopted into the tribe of David. To my knowledge the Catholic Church is the only religious organization that has the claim of direct descent to Peter the Apostle. That would technically make it the religious authority over all Christians just as the Pharisees were the religious authority over all Jews under the 2nd temple – with some of the same caveats and failures apparently.
What comes to mind is the recent discussion between PM Netanyahu and pope Francis about whether or not Yeshua spoke Hebrew. That fact that the pope insisted he spoke Aramaic underlies the nature of the conflict. The pope was inadvertly advancing the doctrine of sola scriptura – which Catholic faith explicitly rejects. There is a monadology which can be derived from the text by using Occam’s Razor as a troubleshooting tool. If one accepts the reality that buying livestock and equipping it requires both time and significant resources and that Joseph had kin in Bethlehem then it follows that Herod’s men would have discovered Joseph’s flight and pursued by some form unless it appeared to be a wholly ordinary and routine action not viewed as unusual. Probability theory can calculate the variables for the most probable outcome in classical probability theory that follows this causative model. It happens that the most likely outcome is that Joseph’s extended family had sufficient wealth to support his flight into Egypt and that Joseph had kin there to support his period of acclimation for re-establishing his household and business. In Egypt (and Israel) Joseph would need to speak and write Hebrew in order to receive commissions for temple and synagogue work. Only a Jew of the highest Halachic standing could receive such commissions. It is necessary for Joseph to be commercially successful in Egypt to afford the costly trip back to Israel. A poor and impoverished carpenter would have stayed stuck in Egypt by financial considerations. Textual evidence states that Joseph left Egypt and returned to Israel after the death of Herod and choose Galilee to remain incognito to Herod’s children. We know that he was successful enough to outfit his family with animals and provisions for the journey and have enough left over to settle in a small house in Nazareth. His exact lineage and relevant abilities would have been hidden out of fear of discovery. This follows the textual evidence cited in Luke that suggests that Yeshua had rabbinical training in Egypt – i.e. “did you not know I would be in my father’s house?” The Christian interpretation that suggests Hashem was the father does not exclude the argument that Yeshua stayed at the home of his Rabbinical father – it is a deliberate parallelism which Luke suggests. We can now calculate the probabilities that Yeshua was taught his trade under the Law of Moses by Joseph in Egypt which follow into the following categories – i.e. Yeshua knew Hebrew, Aramaic, Egyptian, Latin, Greek, and Pre-Sinaitic script. Hebrew literacy for synagogue and Rabbinical studies; Aramaic for conversations with the common people of Israel, Egyptian from his father to be able to travel in Egypt to work the carpenter’s trade as well as service wealthy Egyptian nobles; Latin to negotiate Roman law and observe its requirements; Greek and Pre-Sinaitic script as part of his Rabbinical training in Egypt. We see contextual evidence that supports these probabilities: Greek to speak with the Phoenician woman; Egyptian for the writing in the sand – i.e. Yeshua would have written the names of the Pharisees in the sand in Egyptian. Especially if he knew that the roman centurion who has authority either had an Egyptian wife or spent time in Egypt. Hieroglyphics would have appeared to be doodles or drawings to those not conversant in the language. Finally we have substantial evidence of Yeshua’s Rabbinical training in the gospels where he debates the scribes and pharisees. This approach may be novel but it has a rigorous mathematical foundation to support it, as I have posted previously concerning Pre-Sinaitic script.
“state of covenant sonship” is too strong a word. Status is a more proper usage.