Hebrew Roots Movement

The Hebrew Roots Movement

 The Hebrew Roots Movement is a contemporary global spiritual movement that advocates the return and adherence to the first century faith of Jesus Christ by seeking a better understanding of the culture, history, and religio-political backdrop of that era which led to the core differences with both the Jewish, and later, Christian communities.[1]The term “Hebrew Roots” resulted from the journey to investigate and discover the first century faith, but also to distinguish and differentiate itself from other religious organizations that may have common beliefs, which could cause identity confusion in the public eye.  The premise of the Hebrew Roots movement is the belief that the Church has veered far from the true teachings and Hebrew concepts of the Bible. The movement maintains that Christianity has been indoctrinated with the culture and beliefs of Greek and Roman philosophy and that ultimately biblical Christianity, taught in churches today, has been corrupted with a pagan imitation of the New Testament gospels.

Where did the Hebrew Roots Movement (HRM) get started?
One of the earliest forms  of the Hebrew Roots Movement is seen in the Ebionites, a sect the early church deemed to be a heretical group of Judaizers. They regarded Jesus as the Messiah, but also insisted on the necessity of following Jewish religious law and rites. Since the early 20th century, different religious organizations have been teaching a belief in Jesus Christ as one's personal savior and in keeping the Sabbath and the annual Feasts or Holy Days. In other words they preach Christ as Savior but you must keep laws to maintain your salvation. This is a contradiction and not a biblical definition of salvation, which is by grace alone not by our works. These include Messianic Judaism (to a very limited degree), starting in 1916 and the Sacred Name Movement (SCM) starting in 1937, and the Worldwide Church of God (WCG) in the 1930s. Aater they formed what is known today as the Hebrew Roots Movement. Thus far, the WCG has had the greatest impact among all organizations in teaching these beliefs, including obedience to much of the Old Testament law, both nationally and internationally. [2],[3]

 What does the Hebrew Roots Movement teach?
 It should be noted that Hebrew Roots Movement theology includes at least seven distinct core differences from Protestantism, Seventh-day Adventism, Rabbinic Judaism, and Messianic Judaism[4]

 The HRM teaches that both the Old and New Testaments are held as holy books, but the Old testament takes president over the New Testament. The "Torah" (what they typically call the first five books of the Old Testament) serves as the foundation to all subsequent understanding and interpretation of Scripture. A foundational distinction of the Hebrew Roots movement is the manner in which Scripture is translated and interpreted so that later testimony or the New Testament  does not conflict with Torah commandments. It is believed by those in HRM that Jesus Christ did not come to establish a new religion or to “do away” with the law, even though the New Testament clearly teaches that Jesus was "abolishing the law" just as the death of a spouse abolishes a marriage (Ephesians 2:15).  They also do not believe that in the advent of the New Covenant through Jesus death on the cross, the Old covenant was made "obsolete" and with the destruction of the temple the Old Covenant would "vanish away"  (Hebrews 8:13).  Followers of the Hebrew Roots movement advocate a return to total Torah/Christian Torah-submission.

The Hebrew Roots Movement also teaches that Salvation derives from the belief in Jesus Christ as personal savior, not from commandment/Torah keeping; however, believers are rewarded according to their fruits, works, and obedience. Hebrew Roots followers believe that sin is breaking the written Torah (1 John 3:4), all of the purity laws such as dietary restrictions and Sabbath keeping are in the written Torah, thus it is sin to not keep Sabbath and to eat forbidden food.  In the HRM the Law overwrites the Grace and the atoning work of Jesus Christ on the Cross. In other words, Law trumps Grace. It is also true, according to Hebrew Roots Movement followers, that those who are truly born of God will not continue in sin ( 1John 3:9), therefore, if you are not moved to keep Sabbath or keep dietary restrictions, you must not truly be born of God.

This movement also teaches that Old Testament and the Torah Laws teachings of the New Testament are to be obeyed by both Jews and Gentiles. This is paired with a basic lack of understanding that it is impossible to keep the Old Covenant without a tabernacle or temple. This movement relies heavily on the teaching of the law and not the grace of Christ found in the New Testament.

Read more --> HERE.

Quote

Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. ~ Ephesians 5:16

Most men spend the greatest part of their time

on things that are that are of little or no value;

as Domitian, the Roman emperor, who spent his

time in catching of flies.

Time would be a precious

commodity in hell, and the use of it most

gainful; where for one day a man would give

ten thousand worlds if he had them.

When men trifle away their precious time, and golden

opportunities, playing and toying with this vanity

and that vanity; we may ask whether these men

have—no Christ, no Scripture, no promises, no

blessed experiences, no hopes of heavenly glories

—to enjoy and take delight in?

~ Thomas Brooks

Billy Graham - Apostasy

Courtesy of Sola Sisters

Billy Graham: "There's so much that we have in common (with the Roman Catholic church)."

Posted by Christine Pack

On Brannon Howse's 1/16/12 Worldview Radio show, host Brannon Howse discussed how he slowly, over  time, came to the shocking realization that the revered and well regarded pastor Billy Graham had strong ties to the Roman Catholic church, as well as some startling views on the exclusivity of Christ in salvation. From his upcoming book Religious Trojan Horse:

"Hosting a national radio program five days a week for many years allows me to hear from lots of people that called in to the program, as well as from those that email me. For many years, I wrongfully ignored the warnings that many people would send concerning the need to look into Billy Graham's history. To be honest, I just did not want to believe that the man that I'd watched on television since the age of 3 had chinks in his armor.....Perhaps even now, you as you read this chapter, you're feeling the same way I once did. If so, I completely understand. However, I finally came to the point where I knew that the importance of the gospel, and the protection of the gospel, must outweigh my personal feelings. In other words, I must be committed to biblical principles above personalities." (Brannon Howse, Religious Trojan Horse) Howse's guest Chris Pinto, a former Roman Catholic, explains that linking with Roman Catholics simply must not be done. Yes, the Roman Catholic Church teaches about God and Jesus and the Cross and Salvation, but they also add to the finished work of Christ on the Cross by requiring works of their adherents. This is no small thing. In the book of Galatians, Paul rebuked as Peter for allowing the Judaizers to add the "works" of circumcision and law-keeping as additional requirements for salvation.

“When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas (Peter) in front of them all, 'You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs? We who are Jews by birth and not sinful Gentiles know that a person is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no one will be justified.'” (Galatians 2:14-16)

Read more --> HERE. 

Confessions of a Recovering Legalist

Religious “Legalism” with a capital “L” is heresy. It’s the belief that one’s personal virtue and obedience to religious norms or standards merits God’s favor and/or salvation. This “do-it-yourself” religion is antithetical to the gospel of Christ and the Bible’s grace-based religion. “For by grace you have been saved through faith,” writes the apostle Paul. He goes on to remark, “This is not your own doing; it is the gift of God” (Eph 2:8). When asked what deeds God requires of men as a condition for eternal life, Jesus surprised his audience with the reply, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent” (John 6:29; see also John 3:16, 36; Acts 4:12; 16:30-31; Rom 10:9-13).
Hardcore Legalism

I used to think that I could earn God’s favor and salvation on the basis of my inherent virtue and good works. Of course, I admitted I wasn’t perfect. But I foolishly presumed that my good deeds would somehow outweigh my bad deeds. In this respect, I thought and behaved much like the Pharisees, scribes, and Jewish people of Jesus’ day who trusted in their own inherent virtue and religious performance to merit their acceptance before God (Matt 5:20; Luke 16:14-15; 18:9-12, 14; Rom 10:1-3).

Thankfully, God helped me realize that my sinfulness was heart-deep (Gen 6:5; Jer 17:9; Matt 15:19-20) and that the best of my moral or religious deeds were worthless for earning His favor (Isa 64:6; Rom 3:20; Phil 3:4-9). By His saving grace, I repented of my sin and self-righteousness, placing my confidence and hope in the person and work of Jesus Christ alone. That’s when “Bob the Legalist” died.
Remaining Legalism

Conversion freed me from the penalty and dominion of sin, but sinful tendencies were not completely eradicated from my heart. I still struggled with some of the old tendencies of “Bob the Legalist.” Though I was no longer a Legalist, I still tended at times to think and behave like a legalist (lower-case “l”).

Read more -->HERE.

Divorce = Unclean

I've been prayerful about this topic for a while...several posts/articles have caused me to think long and hard about divorce and the Christian.

I've cried about it...had to release my 'I'm annoyed with those I perceive as being legalistic' to God...prayed and will continue to pray, specifically that the Bride would be of one mind, HIS mind concerning the issue.

The gist of the argument seems to be that if a person is divorced, they are ineligible to remarry.

If you hold this position, you are affirming:

• Families should be lead by single moms versus a male (step-dad);
• Statistically families should remain at (and sometimes below) poverty level;
• Children should be deprived the benefit of a two parent household;
• Children should be 'shelved' either in daycare centers or indoctrination camps;
• Elderly family members should be 'shelved' into holding centers.

(See the statistics below for details on single mother/father households and income information.) 

Additionally, there are a plethora of study resources available, many for free.  I use E-Sword. Another resource (a video clip of the author is below) is The Complete Word Study New Testament by Spiros Zodhiates.  We are without excuse for not learning and/or knowing what the words are/mean in the original language.  Additionally, mood, voice, tense play an important role in deciphering the context of the verses.

The verses I've commonly seen, heard or used about divorce and NOT remarrying are:

Mat 5:31  It hath been said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement:

Mat 5:32  But I say unto you, That whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery: and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced committeth adultery.

Mat 19:9  And I say unto you, Whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery: and whoso marrieth her which is put away doth commit adultery.

Fornication - G4202 - From G4203; harlotry (including adultery and incest); figuratively idolatry: - fornication.

• G4203 - From G4204; to act the harlot, that is, (literally) indulge unlawful lust (of either sex), or (figuratively) practise idolatry: - commit (fornication).
• G4204 - Feminine of G4205; a strumpet; figuratively an idolater: - harlot, whore.
• G4205 - From πέρνημι pernēmi (to sell; akin to the base of G4097); a (male) prostitute (as venal), that is, (by analogy) a debauchee (libertine): - fornicator, whoremonger.

Fornication can be any type of sexual sin, including those delineated in the OT...not just a 'betrothed woman' whose having relations with someone other than her betrothed.

The Matthew passages cross reference to Deuteronomy 24:1-4:


Deu 24:1  When a man hath taken a wife, and married her, and it come to pass that she find no favour in his eyes, because he hath found some uncleanness in her: then let him write her a bill of divorcement, and give it in her hand, and send her out of his house.

Deu 24:2  And when she is departed out of his house, she may go and be another man's wife.

Deu 24:3  And if the latter husband hate her, and write her a bill of divorcement, and giveth it in her hand, and sendeth her out of his house; or if the latter husband die, which took her to be his wife;

Deu 24:4  Her former husband, which sent her away, may not take her again to be his wife, after that she is defiled; for that is abomination before the LORD: and thou shalt not cause the land to sin, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance.

Which clearly shows that the woman was not 'unclean' but, rather that she had not found 'favor' any longer in his sight.  She, as the INNOCENT party, was free to remarry without any restrictions.

Jesus specifically addresses WHY the woman was put aside, because of the hardness of the man's heart - he had already been looking and possibly touching another woman.

Women in the OT times, without the benefit of a husband (or family to return to) would have been destitute.  God, in His infinite mercy and grace, made provision for those who were cast out.

His loving provision is now, in NT times, somehow mitigated and become more stringent for those whose spouses have the same hardness of heart?

The other passage:

Luk 16:18  Whosoever putteth away his wife, and marrieth another, committeth adultery: and whosoever marrieth her that is put away from her husband committeth adultery.

Cross referenced to 1 Corinthians 7:10-15:


1Co 7:10  And unto the married I command, yet not I, but the Lord, Let not the wife depart from her husband:

1Co 7:11  But and if she depart, let her remain unmarried, or be reconciled to her husband: and let not the husband put away his wife.

1Co 7:12  But to the rest speak I, not the Lord: If any brother hath a wife that believeth not, and she be pleased to dwell with him, let him not put her away.

1Co 7:13  And the woman which hath an husband that believeth not, and if he be pleased to dwell with her, let her not leave him.

1Co 7:14  For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband: else were your children unclean; but now are they holy.

1Co 7:15  But if the unbelieving depart, let him depart. A brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases: but God hath called us to peace.

Bondage - G1402 - From G1401; to enslave (literally or figuratively): - bring into (be under) bondage, X given, become (make) servant.

• G1401 - From G1210; a slave (literally or figuratively, involuntarily or voluntarily; frequently therefore in a qualified sense of subjection or subserviency): - bond (-man), servant.
• G1210 - A primary verb; to bind (in various applications, literally or figuratively): - bind, be in bonds, knit, tie, wind. See also G1163, G1189.

Which is the same word used in the Roman's passage:

Rom 7:1  Know ye not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the law,) how that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth?

Rom 7:2  For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband.

Rom 7:3  So then if, while her husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband be dead, she is free from that law; so that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man.

Taking 1 Corinthians would clearly indicate that God, in His infinite mercy and grace is STILL making provision for those who have been 'cast out' or whose spouses have chosen to not dwell with them.  They are at liberty to remarry.

While researching I found this video series and found it be thought provoking and informative, especially as it relates to the word tenses in how someone could/would be perceived as being in adultery if they remarried..  I would ask that you view the entire series prior to voicing an opinion.

Divorce (Session 1) - Spiros Zodhiates & Wayne Barber

~~~ Statistical Information ~~~

The Single Mother Guide provided some of the statistics below:

Update: As of 2011, 11.7 million families in the US were headed by a single parent, 85.2% of which were headed by a female.¹

Update: In 2011, there were 2.3 million women with children under 18 years old who unemployed, according to a recent report from the Labor Department. Single mothers account for more than half — 1.2 million — of the total number of unemployed mothers.

Income: Half of single mother families have an annual income less than $25,000. Median income for single mother families ($24,487) is only one third the median for married couple families ($77,749). Only one third of single mothers receive any child support, and the average amount these mothers receive is only about $300 a month.²

Poverty: Two fifths of single mother families are poor, triple the poverty rate for the rest of the population. Single-mother families are nearly five times as likely to be poor than married-couple families.

The poverty rate for single-mother families is 40.7% compared to 8.8% for married-couple families.³ The majority of poor children are in single mother families with 24% of children now living in such households.⁴

Less generous income support programs in the U.S. help explain the exceptionally high poverty rate for single mother families in the U.S.⁶

A few more statistics:

About dot com had some overall figures:

• 69.4% of American children live with both parents
• 23.1% of American children live with their mother only
• 3.4% of American children live with their father only
• 4.1% of American children live with neither parent

Single Parent Magazine had these 6 employment statistics about single parents:

• 79% of custodial single mothers are gainfully employed
• 50% work full time, year round
• 29% work part-time or part-year
• 92% of custodial single fathers are gainfully employed
• 74% work full time, year round
• 18% work part-time or part-year

Fear of Man’s Opinion

“It is terrible to observe the power which the fear of man has over most minds, and especially over the minds of the young. Few seem to have any opinions of their own, or to think for themselves. Like dead fish, they go with the stream and tide. What others think is right, they think is right; and what others call wrong, they call wrong too. There are not many original thinkers in the world. Most men are like sheep, they follow a leader. If it was the fashion of the day to be Roman Catholics, they would be Roman Catholics, if it was to be Islamic, they would be Islamic. They dread the idea of going against the current of the times. In a word, the opinion of the day becomes their religion, their creed, their Bible, and their God.”

~ J.C. Ryle

Should Christians Refuse to Pay Taxes When They Are Used to Finance Abortions?

FROM R.C. Sproul Jr. Jul 14, 2012 Category: Articles

It is one of my great passions, the desire to see me, and the evangelical church take the evil of abortion more seriously, to have our hearts more deeply broken, and our actions more faithful. We have all, I fear, come to accept the status quo. We are content to vote for Republicans hoping they will give us justices that will slow down the horror. What we are generally unwilling to do is go through any kind of hardship to stop abortion. When I am asked about this, should we stop paying taxes, I am at least heartened to know that there are some willing to pay dearly to win this battle. Not paying taxes rarely ends up comfortably for those who won’t pay.

That said I can say with confidence that Christians should in fact pay whatever taxes they owe even when that money ends up financing abortions. The Christian who pays such taxes has no need to feel guilty, while the Christian that refuses to pay, however well intentioned, ought to feel guilty.

Theologians have long understood the principle that must be applied here- we are responsible for our own actions, not the actions of others. In this instance, the Bible is quite clear about our obligation to pay our taxes (Mark 12:17). It is also clear that the proper function of the state is not to finance evil, but to punish it (Romans 13). Their failure to do what God calls them to do, however, does not mean I am free to not do what I am commanded to do. That they have so horribly misused the taxes that I have paid doesn’t mean I am guilty of what they have done. I have been taxed, and when those taxes are paid, they are no longer mine. What the state does with them may be something I should speak against. It may be something I should condemn. But I am not guilty.

Remember that the same Caesar to whom Jesus commanded taxes be paid used those taxes for what may be the only thing worse than abortion. Those tax moneys financed the judgment of Pilate. They paid the salaries of the Roman soldiers. They purchased the nails that held our Lord on the cross. Those taxes crucified the Lord of Glory.

Read more -->HERE.

Quote

Those who understand the nature of the

Gospel, and live under its power, can enter

into its blessed design. All its doctrines,

precepts, and promises, are calculated . . .

to abase the pride of man,

to exalt the glory of Christ,

to reveal . . .

the malignity of sin,

the beauty of holiness,

the vanity of the world,

the bliss of heaven;

to show the sinner his utter helplessness,

to reveal Jesus as an all sufficient Savior.

Pride wants its share of merit in the work

of redemption, but Truth levels the proud

pretension in the dust.

Proud man must be humbled, the

idol SELF must be dethroned!

~ Thomas Reade

Quotes

~ Thomas Brooks ~

Friends, these things must have first place in your thoughts:

1. Your sins—to humble you and abase you before God.

2. God's free and rich and sovereign grace—to soften and melt you down into submission to His holy will.

3. The Lord Jesus Christ—to assist, help, strengthen, and  influence you in all your duties and services.

4. The blessed Scriptures—to guide you and lead you, "and to be a lamp unto your feet, and a light unto your paths."

5. The afflictions of the godly—to draw out your charity, mercy, pity, sympathy and compassion to men in misery.

6. The glory and happiness of the eternal world—to arm you and steel you against all your sins, snares and temptations.