October 7 was supposed to be a nice day.
It was supposed to be a day for concluding the Feast of Sukkot, resting for Shabbat, and enjoying a day with family.
Instead, I woke up to see a message from my father: “Israel caught off guard; under attack.” Read more
Believers in Messiah today are increasingly declining in their stand for biblical truth. Collectively, we are less likely to believe in and live by the absolute standard of Scripture, and more likely to compromise on, tolerate, and embrace unbiblical beliefs and sinful behaviors. We have lost ground and influence in the society outside us, while we have been slowly losing our future generations from within. According to nearly every metric, we are a Body that is atrophying, splintered, malnourished, and weak. Read more
In his 2020 American Worldview Inventory, Christian researcher George Barna concluded that biblical belief in the United States was an at all-time low. Three short years later in 2023, his repeat of the same survey revealed the reality that things have only gotten shockingly worse. Here is what the research shows, and what we as the last of the biblical believers can do about it. Read more
When you walk into a Messianic synagogue service on Shabbat, you’re highly likely to hear and see things like head coverings, prayer shawls, liturgy and siddurs, the reading of the Torah portion, a Torah scroll processional, the kiddush, the hamotzi, and the traditional Jewish blessings. Throughout Messianic Judaism and the various Jewish/Hebraic roots movements, such elements—adopted from traditional, rabbinic Judaism—have become inseparably blended into Messianic culture and expression. But what do these traditions and customs accomplish for us as disciples of Messiah? Read more
In today’s abortion debate, one side maintains that abortion is wrong because killing a baby (at any stage of life) is murder, which the Bible clearly condemns (Ex. 20:13, De. 5:17). The other side, however, argues that abortion is not murder since an unborn baby is not a person, but nothing more than a clump of cells, a parasite, or a tumor. While Scripture has nothing to say whatsoever on the topic of elective abortion, God’s word does teach us whether an unborn baby has any value, and, more than that, whether God considers it a person. It is this instruction that we can then apply to the subject of abortion.
Communion is one of the main sacramental rites of Christianity, believed to have been instituted by Yeshua Himself at His last supper. But when the Master said to His disciples that the bread is “My body” and that the cup is “the New Covenant in My blood” (Luke 22:19), was He really initiating a new ordinance for believers? What did He actually mean? The context gives us our answer.
The Master Yeshua clearly stated that one of His purposes for coming as the Messiah was to teach, uphold, and fulfill the Torah (Matthew 5:17-19). Yet not only do many believers maintain just the opposite, but some also believe that Yeshua condoned breaking and violating the Shabbat (Sabbath)—just as the Pharisees accused Him. Let’s see if that’s true. Read more
Through our many and varied faith traditions, we believers in Yeshua have each had implanted within us an idea of what “church” is supposed to look like. Whether we come from the congregation of Christianity or the synagogue of Messianic Judaism, we typically view “church” as a sacred, physical place set apart for the purpose of hosting people in group ritual, rites and worship. Yet, as revealed in our exploration of this topic throughout previous teachings, today’s typical view of “church” actually bears little resemblance to the “church” concept of Scripture. And this reality is especially true in regard to how the Bible depicts the corporate gathering of the believers.
What is the purpose of the Church? Most people think of church as buildings and worship services, in which case the goal of church is obvious: to praise and worship God, and to hear the teaching of His word. But while there is unquestionably a time and place for these very important things, that is not the primary pattern and purpose that we see in Scripture for gatherings of the Church—the Called-Forth. On the contrary, the believers’ gathering has another, more fundamental collective purpose—one that tells us how we’re meant to function together as the Body of Messiah.
How often are we supposed to gather together as the Church—as the Called-Forth of God? For most active Christians and Messianics, the standard practice is to attend at least one weekend worship service. But should that weekly meeting really be our goal? Does participating in a once-a-week worship event truly reflect the Bible’s example for when we should gather ourselves together? Read more
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