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  Message 6728 of 8034  |  Previous | Next  [ Up Thread ] Message Index
 
 Msg #
From:  "Glen Penton" <abe3@m...>
Date:  Mon Jul 22, 2002  9:48 pm
Subject:  Why is Nazarene Judaism prosylitizing here?

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B"H

Shalom, chaverim.

In case anyone is confused by Trimm's unethical and dishonest attack on our
faith using our e-mail forum, I'll respond to some of the issues he raises.

First, He uses the logical error of equivocation to argue that we cannot be
declared righteous before G-d by Yeshua's righteousness, but only by our own
self-efforts. He slices and dices the meaning of the Hebrew word "tsedakah",
'righteousness', to make it say different and conflicting things in various
biblical texts. His levels of confusion just keep getting deeper and deeper
ad nauseum.

Perhaps if you could be absolutely, sinlessly perfect from the cradle to the
grave, Trimm's offer of justification by self-righteousness might have some
merit. But what could G-d do with you then? If G-d were to let you into His
Heaven based on your own righteousness, everybody else would be singing,
"Glory to G-d because He loved me and forgave my sins through the
righteousness of Messiah!", while you would be singing, "Glory to me,
because I was such a fine person G-d just *had* to reward me!" You would
spoil the harmony. The head angel would kick you right out. :=)

G-d offers only one way for a mere human being to have righteousness. It is
either a gift from G-d through Yeshua or it is unacceptable and no
righteousness that G-d can accept. The Torah says that "whoever does not
enter...by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a
robber." (Yochanan 10:1) So Trimm clearly declares himself to be that thief
and robber. The Torah adds in that same context, "The thief does not come
except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have
life, and that they may have it more abundantly." (Yochanan 10:10)

In wiggling his illogical way around some texts in the Renewed Covenant
Scriptures, Trimm says Messianics are...

> misunderstanding the Semitic text. The Hebrew and Aramaic word

It is important for you to know that G-d's Spirit has preserved the Renewed
Covenant Scriptures a for us in Greek, not in any Semitic language. There is
no Hebrew or Aramaic original. Never has been. Never will be. Anything
written in Hebrew or Aramaic is not the original text of the Renewed
Covenant Scriptures. Any copy of the original text of the Renewed Covenant
Scriptures *cannot* be in Hebrew or Aramaic. I realize that this point may
sound a little academic to you if you don't read Hebrew or Greek. But it is
actually very important. The demons writing through Trimm have made up a new
Bible (supposedly with Semitic originals, but even Trimm does not seem to
know if they are in Hebrew or Aramaic) and a new religion to lure you off to
hell with him. That's what all his articles on our list are about.

If you accept Trimm's Bible, his new religion, and his path of
self-righteousness in defiance of G-d and His Messiah, you will be forever
lost along with him. If you accept Yeshua's perfect righteousness for you,
as taught in the Bible G-d wrote, He will protect you from folx like Trimm.

One of Trimm's main arguments against Messianic Judaism is that we do not
hate Christians enough for him. His point is well taken. Although some
individual Messianics happen to be hateful ppl, Messianic Judaism is not a
hate religion. Those who wish to be a part of a hate religion should
probably not be Messianic. Nazarene Judaism may be appropriate for them.

Trimm also claims that Christians...
> place a steeple (phallic symbol) on their building etc.

That may tells us something important about Trimm's personal psychology, but
it tells us nothing at all about Christianity or the real symbolism of that
religious community.

After the destruction of the Second Temple and the death of the Shlichim
(apostles), Christianity and Judaism diverged and became separate religions.
Both left G-d's Way and took many wrong paths. Mainstream Christianity, for
the most part, rejected Torah. Mainstream Judaism rejected the Jewish
Messiah and in doing so, in effect, rejected both G-d and Torah. Messianic
Judaism seeks to recover the truth that both religions started out with.

Both religions may justly be criticized. Only G-d is good. But if we were to
compare the two, we would have to admit that for the past 19 centuries, the
vast majority of ppl who have known G-d and had their sins forgiven were in
the Christian religion. Mainstream Judaism has no place for such ppl.
Christianity does. But Trimm calls his new religion Jewish and claims that
Christians are all evil.

Not good. But since it's Trimm, not surprising. He can control you more
easily if you hate everyone who knows and loves G-d.

He also takes issue with us because many Messianics see Torah observance as
a "Jewish" thing to do and do not encourage believers of non-Jewish heritage
to keep it. It is unfortunate that not all of us see the importance of
Torah. Those who have been made perfectly righteous in Messiah should walk
in that righteousness by seeking to obey Torah to the best of our ability
and understanding. But we do not exclude those who do not see this matter
the same way we do.
I would argue that this tolerance is a strength of ours rather than a
weakness. But perhaps I am mistaken on that issue.

Trimm also notes that Messianic Judaism has real weaknesses in not having a
formal "process to produce proselyte Jews" and in the ambivalent attitude of
our movement towards Messianics who are not Jewish by natural birth. On that
issue he is right. This is a serious error on our part which we need to
correct immediately.

Least important, Trimm plays some childish word games with the terms
"Nazarene" and "Messianic", but he isn't entirely wrong. As he points out,
our leaders have indeed made some careless statements that can be twisted by
our enemies. That's unfortunate. And the term "Messianic" is also
unfortunate, but not for the reasons he has in mind. "Messianic" is a term
some folx confuse with "Masonic." That isn't good for the Messianic movement
or for the Gospel.

On the other hand, "Nazarene" is already the name of well-established a
Christian denomination. And besides, it sounds a lot like the ugly Hebrew
word, "Notsrim". But if Trimm shoots himself in the foot, so to speak, maybe
its good for the Gospel and for us.

Your brother,

Glen Penton
www.beth-abraham.org
"May the Lord bless you and keep you......"



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