While James Pyles and I do not agree on the place of the Torah in the life of a non-Jew (I believe there is One Law for the native and the ger), we definitely agree that Christendom needs to rethink some foundational doctrines that simply do not hold up to the Light of all Scripture.
Paragons of Christian theology and their doctrines are easily exposed and disassembled. Here, Pyles demonstrates that one of my former heroes, R.C. Sproul, is simply ignoring Scripture contrary to his cherished doctri…, er, tradition.
After reading the link, please comment
R.C. Sproul, Jesus, and the Doctrine of Active Obedience – http://wp.me/p1AE3F-c36
natsab 
Thanks for the “shout out,” Pete.
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Thanks for sharing the link and article. The author appears to be on that Journey toward Truth too. I was saying to my wife on Shabbat, we are listening for the Good Shepherd’s voice and one of the characteristics of being ‘lost’ so to speak is we look a little confused – we don’t all agree on all things. That’s ok. He is looking (and calling) for us; we’re calling (and looking) for Him. We really are sheep!:-) Beautiful thought (for us) from this Past couple of week – YAH call, ‘Shama, Hear’; Yochanan (John) replies, ‘We have Heard!’ (You all probably already heard that:-) Shalom.
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I consider the author, James Pyles, a friend, though we’ve crossed swords on a number of occasions. He is a non-Jews married to a Jew. He believes in the Messiah, his bride dies not. He has been in the Messianic/Hebrew roots, then basically backtracked into an MJAA type if position that says Jews need to keep Torah, Gentiles (or, Messianic Gentiles, as James calls them) do not need to keep Torah. It is here that James and I would strongly disagree.
Personally, I think James’ position is the untenable result of arrogance and misunderstanding in the Messianic that hasn’t figured out the need to approach Judah with humility and grace. Further, his position us strongly influenced by MJAA and Rabbinic thought that believes the Jews are ‘Kol Yisrael’ (all Israel) contrary to Scripture and unfulfilled prophecy.
Never the less, James is much closer to us than we are to Christendom. He is an ally.
My journey, as evidenced recently on this blog, has led me to connections with Orthodox and Reform Jewish rabbis who unequivocally say that Ephraim, the stick of Joseph, has NOT come home and is largely sitting oblivious in church pews.
It is a complicated period in HIStory as we see the Father working out His plan in the world and awakening Christians to their Hebrew Roots and the Torah while simultaneously enlivening the hearts of Jews in unprecedented numbers toward Yeshua, the Jew who is King of Kol Yisrael. One nation. One Torah.
Amazing time to be alive, and dun to see allies fearlessly take on supposed bastions of truth like the misguided Sproul.
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Pardon a couple typos. Fat thumbs on a not so smart phone.
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I cannot speak to everything you said but I think Abba YAH could get (all) our attention quickly as we ‘see these events unfold’. What is confusing for US (the big us) is perfectly clear to Him. I came across this note recently that has me thinking: “It is very contrary to the Spirit of Mashiyach to harbor inter-religious hatred between persons of Christian, Jewish or Muslim religions because of each one’s observance and personal disciplines. Rav Shaul taught, “Who are you to judge a servant not yours…” (Romans 14:4)” We shall be ready to share The Good News and The Faith Once Delivered to those who will listen – YAH willing. Exciting times.
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Pete said:
“Crossed swords,” eh?
“My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.”
Sorry. Couldn’t resist. 😉
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As you wish.
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Phil, it is true that we are all on a journey that lasts our entire life. We reach completion in the resurrection and in the service of our King.
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I suppose if my bio is to be listed here, I should make a few corrections and modifications.
My wife and I were married almost 33 years ago. I was agnostic/atheist at the time and she was Jewish agnostic/atheist, so we didn’t really experience a “mixed marriage” as such.
We both became Christians about 20 years ago, but that very quickly morphed into Hebrew Roots/One Law (way back when First Fruits of Zion – FFOZ – was One Law). Congregations split and we went from one group to another, but it eventually became important for my wife to explore her Jewish heritage more fully (her mother was Jewish and Dad was a Goy), so she started associating with the local Reform/Conservative synaogue, and then Chabad when they came to town.
I left and then went back to my little One Law group and eventually a friend of mine and I were asked to fill the gap in leadership, and I started doing a lot of research and teaching.
So as I started deepening my knowledge in Yeshua-faith, my wife broke with that faith and became more traditionally Jewish (Now, there are certain subjects we don’t discuss).
Two main things changed my perspective on Torah and Gentiles: The first was trying to understand why FFOZ would basically alienate a large part of its customer base by shifting from One Law to a more traditional understanding of how Torah applies to Jews vs. Gentiles. The second was watching my wife explore what it is for her to be a Jew and how unique and special that is for her.
Ultimately, I had to resign my teaching position and association with my former congregation, because it wasn’t fair of me to teach them my changing theology and doctrine while they remained One Law.
I did a lot of reading and reviewing of FFOZ material but finally decided that I couldn’t let one organization, no matter how I like their teachings, be the only source of information guiding my theological outlook. Also, there was a lot of “talk” about who and what I was associated with and I became a little tired of people choosing to define me by organizations and acronyms.
Being unaffiliated provides me with a lot of freedom.
I did go back to a church for two years, a fundamentalist Baptist church, and I had a personal relationship with the Pastor where we would meet weekly one-on-one to discuss our perspectives, but when he gave a public sermon denouncing the study of Torah and continuing Jewish obligation to Torah as being a misapplication of the Law, I decided it was time to leave.
I don’t think I’ve had anything to do with MJAA or any other formal Messianic Jewish oversight group. All of my opinions are my own and while Pete believes my viewpoint is Biblically unsustainable, I don’t see any other interpretation that makes any sort of sense. Certainly men like Sproul have a view on the Bible that contains a major disconnect between the Tanakh and the Apostolic Scriptures, but after years of study, and because of my unique perspective at being married to a (non-Messianic) Jew, I find I cannot justify behaving “Jewishly” and not being Jewish.
All that said, I don’t need to have everyone agree with me, so I’m not bent on convincing the world to listen to what I have to say. I have a blog. There are hundreds of millions of blogs on the web. Anyone who wants to read mine is welcome, but I’m under no illusion that I’m the last word in Biblical exegesis.
Hope that clarifies a few things.
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Thanks for taking the time to introduce yourself. I am amazed at Father YAH’s Goodness beyond anything we (I) deserve. I am learning to say “Thank You”. My wife and I celebrate 30 years married this June. Blessings.
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