So wow, I’ve just been banned by a major Messianic site on Reddit.
The reason in their own words is that I violated this doctrine:
The Deity of Yeshua: There are approximately zero Orthonormative Messianic Organizations that deny that the Brit Chadesha states that Yeshua was God incarnate, many who oppose this idea have even gone as far as to claim that “real Messiancs” don’t believe this in spite of the demonstrable fact that the vast majority do.
The above is what I copied and pasted from their site.
I know I shouldn’t be surprised and that such a thing is to be expected…
But it always hurts a little when it happens.
I’ve also received some kind follow-ups from folks who told me they were sad to see me banned.
One good friend, who happens to be a Messianic Jew, said:
“I know it hurts a little, but all I can say is…Mazel tov!
Just like we are told in the Bible when we are being persecuted for doing what is right in following Yeshua,
it is a blessing.”
I wasn’t going to share that this happened, but it ties in very well with our discussion of why God struck down Uzah when he put out his hand to steady the Ark.
So lemme preach a bit for a second here.
Christianity and Judaism share a lot of history, especially regarding how they worship and follow traditions.
Both started strong, focused on God’s Word and His way—no compromises.
But within a generation, things started to shift.
Over time, social customs, popular ideas, and man-made rules sneaked in, making things feel more familiar and easier to blend with the world around them.
Within just two or three generations, those mixed-up traditions became the norm.
Things reached the point where the original Messianic faith became unrecognizable.
Interestingly, this phenomenon is precisely what Yeshua criticized:
“Why do you break the command of God
for the sake of your tradition? …
Thus you nullify the word of God
for the sake of your tradition.
You hypocrites!
Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you: ‘
These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
They worship me in vain;
their teachings are merely human rules.’”
–Matthew 15:3-9
Judaism went down that road, and modern Christianity followed suit.
Most of what we call “Christian” today is a freakin’ bizarre mix of the Bible, pagan leftovers, and modern social ideas.
Honestly, if Paul or Yeshua walked into any church today, they probably wouldn’t even recognize it as a legitimate place of worship of the God of Israel.
The problem?
Churches treat the Bible like it’s a side dish while their own rules and traditions take center stage.
Most believers don’t even realize how far off course we are.
And if you dare suggest they take a closer look at their worship or beliefs?
Get ready for some serious pushback, homies.
Leaders and members dig in, defending their cherished traditions like their lives depend on it.
Point out what the Bible actually says to a Pastor or Elder, and you’ll probably hear,
“Maybe this ain’t the place for you.”
This is what has happened to me on numerous occasions.
Sorry for the rant…
But I’m feeling a little ticked off right now.
Anyway, thanks to all those who reached out in private.
It seems like the Lord always puts comforting souls in my path whenever persecution strikes.
See ya all next time!
The Church started drifting into error after the last of the original apostles died, although it’s not clear exactly how and when this came about, and which doctrines and basic truths were the first to go off track. One of the first apostasies I suspect was the idea that Jesus, not God the Father, was the actual Creator. This was worded deceptively as Jesus having been the “agent” or “instrumentality” of creation while the Father “planned”, told His son what to create, and got credit for creation without actually doing the creating. The underlying idea became that God never directly does anything, He always “works through” an agent or intermediary of some kind. This idea came from the philosophy that the creation is inherently “evil”, and since God is inherently “good”, God cannot interact directly with His own creation and needs intermediaries for everything. While it is true that God the Father does indeed work through his son, angels and humans for some things, creation above all else identifies God as in charge of everything, which is why God gave us the Sabbath commandment, to constantly remind us that He is Creator and Sovereign, and this can be delegated to no one else. Once Jesus became the Creator he then became God incarnate which was only logical. The idea was conceived that only the Creator could die for his sinful human creatures, and so ipso facto Jesus became the Creator since he was the one who came and died for humanity. Nowhere does the Bible say that “only the Creator could die for His created humans”, but it had an intellectual appeal to the masses and almost all Christianity believes this today. The original apostles would have been thoroughly appalled at all of this.
Hi Cory,
Some interesting stuff you shared there. I’m going to have to read it a couple of times to digest everything properly.
Thanks for sharing.
Be blessed and SHABBAT SHALOM!
YaHchanan (John) –
“10:34 YAHshua answered them: Is not it written in your Torah: I have said – you are elohim? [Ps 82:6]
10:35 If HE called them elohim, to whom the davar of ELOHIM came, and the sephar cannot be broken,
10:36 do you say of Him Whom the ABBA sanctified and shalach into the world: You blaspheme, because I said – I Am the Son of ELOHIM?[50]”.
Footnote [50]:
“50] Vs 10:34-36 – elohim, son of ELOHIM. YAHshua quotes from Ps 82:6 to show that there are ‘elohim’ and ‘sons of ELYON’ (mighty ones, judges, rulers, angels) over which ABBA-YHWH is the supreme ‘ELOHIM of elohim’ (Ex 15:11; Deu 10:17). Thus, even if YAHshua had openly claimed to be an ‘elohim’ or ‘Son of ELYON’ (Lk 1:32), it would still be understood in such Hebraic context that these titles do not imply equality (in any sense) with YHWH-ELOHIM. Thus, YAHshua prudently avoided the title ‘elohim’ but referred to Himself as ‘Son of ELOHIM’ (v 36); Son of man, etc. Despite this, His accusers maliciously charged Him for blasphemy. In addition to His role as the ‘Lamb of ELOHIM’, His future return as the ‘Lion of YAHudah’ (Rev 5:5) will clearly demonstrate His status as Elohim (Mighty One; Jn 1:1c). YAHshua is the ‘only begotten Elohim'(Jn 1:18) Who sits at the right hand of YHWH-ELOHIM, above all other ‘elohim’. Notwithstanding, He should not be conflated with YHWH’s singular ‘ELOHIM of elohim’ status, WHO alone is the one true EL ELYON (Most High ELOHIM). See Gen 14:22; Ps 47:2; Mk 5:7, etc.”
Excerpt From
BTC epub 17Dec24
Thank you, Gimel.
I especially appreciate your comment since I know it’s supported by sound scholarship!
Be blessed!
I have heard it claimed that Jesus had to have been the actual Creator to have redeemed fallen humanity, because as Creator his life was “worth” more than the lives of all of humanity combined. This does in fact sound logical if you have already decided that God the Father was not the hands on Creator. Once Jesus became the hands on Creator and then became the “God-Man”, it then became truly “all about Jesus”. The Father became a secondary figure, shrouded in mystery, unknowable and utterly unfathomable to humans. I have heard it claimed that Jesus was the “God of the Old Testament”, the only God known to ancient Israel, and that the Father is only mentioned a few times in the Old Testament. Yet in John 8:54, Jesus told the Jews of his day that his father was the exact same God that the Jews had always claimed as their God! And since those Jews claimed their God to be Creator, then Jesus agreed with them, that his Father, not Jesus himself, was Creator! It was as if Jesus had anticipated that there would be confusion about who he was and who God was, and tried to dispel any misconceptions. But apparently he didn’t make it plain enough for the vast majority. After all, John 8:54 is the only place where Jesus spelled it out in this fashion, and one little old verse is pretty easy to overlook. In Mark 13:19 Jesus refers to God as the Creator, but the “all about Jesus” pundits claim that Jesus here was simply “crediting” his Father with being the “ultimate” Creator which in no way argues with Jesus having been the “hands on Creator”. Jesus, then, was a most humble Creator, not wanting to take any credit. Yet over and over in the Old Testament someone claiming to be “God” takes great credit and makes no bones about being Creator. It has been claimed that this was the pre-incarnate Jesus speaking but if so he doesn’t sound so humble. Others claim that this actually was God the Father claiming to be Creator but that He did not, in Old Testament times, reveal that His son was the actual hands on Creator. Not until the Apostle Paul cleared it all up for us did anyone truly know who God was and who the Creator was. All those ancient Israelites, and even Mary Jesus’ mother, were utterly clueless about who the Creator actually was. I have read it claimed that Jesus had to have been the God of the Old Testament because people would be forgiven for sinning against Jesus. If God the Father had actually been the God of Abraham,Isaac and Jacob, we’d all be toast.
But hey hey hey, whoa whoa whoa, what about “God created all things by (through) Jesus Christ? Doesn’t that slam dunk the issue right there? No it does not. What was meant by the Greek word translated “by” and better translated “through” in other places does not slam dunk Jesus as being the Creator. Some deeper thought is required here as to what was meant. But this, I believe, is where it all went off the rails. Once those original apostles were gone, their successors were taken by philosophy to explain things, and it just got more and more philosophical as the years, decades and centuries went by.
Amen.
YaHchanan (John) >
“8:58 YAHshua said to them: Most certainly, I tell you, before Abraham was, I Am He.[44]”
Footnote [44]:
“[44] Vs 8:58 – I Am He (eigo eimi). YAHshua is saying that before Abraham was called or came into being, Himself was already in the sovereign plan of ELOHIM as that future Seed of Abraham – the Mashiach. ELOHIM declares the end of HIS salvation plan/ work from the very beginning (before Abraham’s existence). Ref Isa 41:4; 46:10; 48:3-8; Jer 29:11; Act 2:23; Rm 8:29-30; Eph 1:11. Refer similar ‘I Am He’ statements in Jn 4:25-26; 8:24, 28; 13:19; Mk 14:62. Refer Rev 13:8 on ‘the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world’. Note that Mashiach always use the common ‘eigo eimi’, and not the unique ‘eyeh asher eyeh’ (eigo eimi ho on), used by YHWH only, in Ex 3:14.”
Excerpt From
BTC epub
It’s their loss – they are blind leaders of the blind.
Thank you for the kind support, Helena! And so happy you can join me here. Welcome!