The Rituals

Rituals are religious expressions of an outward sign of what is “supposed” to be going-on [sic] inside the congregants. This is operating in the flesh and not the Holy Spirit. [sic] Rituals stir up the emotions and that [sic] also is not “Spirit.” Rituals make you “feel” like you’re holy, and that’s not the Holy Spirit either.

Sacrificial offerings under the Old Covenant were ritualistic and as they were nailed to the cross with Jesus, so were the rest of the rituals in Judaism. When the Levitical Priesthood went – so went the rituals. The only sacrifice G-d accepts before Him is “self” – not burnt upon an altar, but “self” in a broken and surrendered spirit. Physical sacrifice went to the grave when Jesus did, and thus resurrected into existence were “spiritual sacrifices.” [sic]

Given that Jews see these Messianic Jews as no longer Jews, one of the ways these so-called Messianic Jews prove to Judaism that they are yet Jews, but are now “Completed Jews” is that, in their services they still hold on to repetitious prayers when the Word of G-d says that these kinds of prayers are what pagans use and they get nowhere. In their services, they parade around with the Torah Scroll, which is nothing more than “show.” These are rituals, and these rituals are works – they are superficial, and the Holy Spirit is not there. Just like there is no need to carry a big Bible everywhere to show that you are a Christian, there is no need to parade the Torah around. The Word of G-d tells you that the Word is in you, on the fleshly tables of your heart (should be). Yes, Christianity has its roots in Judaism, but Christianity is a new thing – it’s different, and the rituals are out and the Holy Spirit is in.

In so doing, the Messianic Jewish Movement makes the Word of G-d of non-effect because of their hold onto Synagogue tradition. They hold tightly so that they will not be mistaken for Christians and thus cast aside as non-Jews. These Messianic Jews would much rather not transgress the traditions of Judaism than be labeled a non-Jew, even at the risk of missing out on the kingdom of G-d coming near them. What a pity! All for the sake of being identified outwardly as a Jew.

Any member of any church of any denomination, please answer these questions as honestly as you can:

Can you set your watch by the “order of service” in your church? What time does the service start? Does your choir have a processional and/or recessional? Do all of your Deacons sit together on the front pew before the offering is taken? How many songs are sung before (or after) the opening prayer? How many are sung between the opening prayer and the Scripture reading? How many between the Scripture Reading and the Lord’s Table and/or offering? How many between the offering/Lord’s Table and the sermon? How many repetitions of “Just As I Am” are recited at the “Altar Call”?

Does your pastor/minister/priest wear a business suit or some form of ecclesiastical garb? A collar? A robe? A hassock? A stole? Other vestments? Does your choir wear robes? Do you wear “Christian” jewelry such as a cross necklace or a WWJD bracelet? Do you have a fish emblem on the bumper of your car?

How often does your congregation observe the Lord’s Supper? Weekly? Monthly? Quarterly? Annually? Only on Passover? Does your congregation or denomination follow a particular pattern or sequence in your Scripture readings from week to week? Does your congregation or denomination follow a particular ecclesiastical calendar [Christmas, Lent, Easter, Pentecost]?

Does your congregation meet on Sunday for Worship, when the Bible clearly teaches over and over again that the day that G-d established for His people to worship Him was the seventh day? The only reason that your church meets on the “Sun’s day” instead of on the Sabbath (Saturday) is because the Roman Emperor Constantine (the first apostate Catholic Pope) in the third century decreed that “Christians” were required to worship on the day set aside for worship of the Roman sun G-d and only a handful have ever dared stand against that decree. Do you observe the pagan fertility festival of Ishtar during Passover season? Do you celebrate the birthday of “Jesus” on December 25, when He was actually born during the autumn feast of Succot?

Does your congregation recite “the Lord’s Prayer,” the “Apostles’ Creed,” or a particular psalm on a regular basis? Does your order of service include regular “responsive readings” from the back of your hymnal?

Do you respect the Book that contains the Word of G-d, or is it just another bunch of paper with a leather cover?

What does your congregation believe is the “proper formula” to be recited as a new believer is being baptized?

The only difference between your “ritual” and Messianic “ritual” is that you are familiar with your form of worship and unfamiliar with Messianic worship.

Farewell, Gentile Christian Terms

Those in the Messianic Jewish Movement want their worship and evangelization to be more Jewish than their counterpart, “Gentile Christians.” They emphasize using original Hebrew Terms such as …

There you have it. The MJM has “just gotta be different”! They cannot be deprived of Judaism, even though the New Testament is in Greek and not Hebrew which [sic] is sending a message about the difference between the Old and the New.
 

If Ruach HaKodesh (the Holy Spirit) inspired the writers of the Bible to use very specific words, where does Ms. Nero get off thinking that English words that are understood only within the boundaries of the British Empire (and that are not even correct translations of the original words) are superior to the original Spirit-inspired words? She would set her own opinions and traditions over the inspiration of Ruach HaKodesh! So who is the true apostate? The one who clings tenaciously to false human tradition, or the one who seeks and strives for “the restoration of all things spoken of by the prophets”? And why in the world does Ms. Nero assume that all Christians of all nationalities must use only the English terms that she uses (for instance, her instance that all Believers in Messiah must either refer to themselves by the Anglicized Geek word “Christians” or deny the Messiah and be branded as heretics, regardless of their native language [73])? She is either totally ignorant of the fact that not everyone in the world speaks English, or she is only interested in “Jew-bashing!”

[74] Yeshua addressed His Father (and our Father) as “Abba” [Mark 14:36] and Rav Sha'ul indicates that we should also call Him “Abba” [Romans 8:15, Galatians 4:6]

[75] The terms “God” and “Lord” are titles, not names, for the Holy One of Israel, and not all Messianic Jews use the hyphenated forms. Those forms are used mostly by Messianic Orthodox Jews who used those forms long before coming to Messiah, and by those who do not wish to place yet another “stumbling block” in the path of those Rabbinic Jews who have not yet come to know Yeshua as HaMashiach.

[76] “Jesus Christ” is not Messiah's name; it never was, and it will never be. It is grammatically impossible to say the word “Jesus” in either Hebrew or Aramaic. He is a Jew with a Hebrew name, Yeshua. If I know that your name is “George,” just where do I get off calling you “Fred” just because I like that name better than your real name? And why is it that the Bible is the only book in all the world that attempts to “translate” names? If a book is written in Spanish about a man named Juan Rodriguez, and the book is then translated into English, no attempt is made to “translate” his name as “John Rogers.” The only reason that “Yeshua” is translated as “Jesus” and that the name of his brother Ya'akov is translated as “James” is because of the anti-Semetic translators who resented the fact they were both Jews! If it were ever the intent of the translators to actually translate their names into English, they would have been translated as “Salvation” and “Heel Holder” or “Supplanter” respectively! Ditto for the names Yohanan (“Yawheh Has Graced”), Miriam (“Rebellion”), and Sha'ul (“Desired”)!

[77] Properly understood, the collection of documents that is called the “New Testament” by Gentile Christians is neither “new” nor a “testament.” It is actually a collection of pastoral commentaries that were written to teach Believers in Messiah how to “rightly divide the Word of Truth” — that is, how to properly interpret the Tanakh, or the Hebrew Bible — the only “Scriptures” that the “Apostles” knew anything about! The terms “Old Testament” and “New Testament” were specifically designed by an anti-Semitic Roman cult to make people believe exactly what Ms. Nero has been deceived into believing, that the “old” thing is no longer valid and has been replaced by the “new” one.

The so-called “New Testament” was very probably originally written in Hebrew by Hebrew-speaking Jews, and then immediately copied into Koine (common, or everyday) Greek [Koine Greek is to Classical Greek as American English is to British English] for distribution to the various Messianic Communities because Greek was the lingua franca of the Greek and Roman empires, and could therefore be understood by every educated person in the world (both Jewish and non-Jewish) without need of translation or interpretation. It had absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with any alleged “difference between the Old and the New.”

Additionally, Hebrew is now the universal language understood by almost all Jews everywhere in the world. Does it not only make sense for Jews to communicate with each other in a language that works both inside and outside of the boundaries of the British Empire?

[78] Rhach HaKodesh is not unique to the “New Testament.” He has been around since Genesis 1:2 which, according to Ms. Nero, occurred 6,000 years ago. In addition to being the active Agent in creation, He is also the one who gave all the prophets their prophetic sight. Since He was has called Ruach HaKodesh for at least 6,000 years (on Ms. Nero's calendar), why does she find it necessary to change His name?

[79] “Baptism” and “baptize” are not English words at all; they are transliterations of the two Greek words that should accurately be translated as “immersion” and “immerse,” respectively. Like many other Greek terms in the B'rit Chadasha, it was deliberately mis-“translated” to allow for the establishment of sprinkling and pouring as alternatives to the immersion of new Believers in Messiah, and is the source of much doctrinal error. The Hebrew term mikvah has been understood for about 4,000 years to signify complete immersion in “living water,” and is therefore a much more accurate term.

[80] As pointed out above ad nausium, there is simply no linguistic support for translating the word word ekklesia (ekklesia) as “church.[82] In fact, Spanish-speaking Christians us a transliteration of ekklesia (eglasia) instead of the word “church.”

[81] The term “reverend” is simply not a biblical term at all, but speaks of one who wishes to be “revered” or “worshipped” because of his “elevated position” above the common Believer. The word “pastor” is a somewhat inaccurate translation of the Greek word for “herdsman” or “shepherd.” The Hebrew word rabbi simply means “teacher.” Within most Messianic Jewish congregations, the congregation leader is referred to as a Messianic Rabbi if he is Jewish, and as a Messianic Pastor if he is non-Jewish. It is a simple recognition by those who are “grafted in” that the faith and practice of Yeshua and the Shliachim (Apostles) is, and has always rightfully been, Jewish in nature.
 

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