The Christian Letter, Volume One: Chapter 63
Number Eleven
“Thus He declared all foods clean.” (3 Revisions 15:4). Okay, so this one does not even belong in the list, as it is not in a single text of any Gospel in Hebrew, Greek, or Aramaic. Translators, or as I call people like these, adulterators, admit to adding this to the Scriptures. Where did I get this information? I spoke with the translators themselves, and they told me they added it. This is also stated clearly in the footnotes of some Bibles at Mark 7:18-19. Do not add to, and remove from, the Scriptures, by accepting this text, or wasting time arguing it. “Thus He declared all foods clean,” does not exist.
Number Ten
“But keep away from foolish questions, and genealogies, and strife and quarrels about the Torah, for they are unprofitable and useless. Reject a divisive man after the first and second warning, knowing that such a one has been perverted, and sins, being self-condemned.” (Titus 3:9-11).
Too often have I had these verses, mixed with angry spit, thrown at my face. If these passages had been written before the Messiah, then we would read of them being thrown in His face as well. However, what happens if we examine the keynotes in these passages:
Avoid foolish questions.
Avoid debate about genealogies, as it does not affect how we live.
Avoid strife and quarrels, as they do not help anyone. (This does not say to avoid sharing and living the Truth.)
Avoid a disruptive trouble seeking man after warning him more than once. Embrace a man who rocks the boat, seeking our betterment.
My questions have but one goal: That we walk with Him. I have not once debated about genealogies. I would avoid all strife and quarrels, but not at the cost of silence—I will share the Good News! I do not advocate sin. I speak against perversion. … You know the devil would make a great preacher. He believes in the reality of the Messiah. However, I doubt very much that the old devil would preach a sermon on actually following Yahoshuah. What do your sermons, or the preacher’s sermons, sound like to you? Indeed, he is still masquerading as an angel of light. Are we full of pride and dead men’s bones? Are the men we listen to believers, just like Satan? Keep away from foolish questions, but these are not foolish questions: Do we love the Word enough to live by Him? Will we walk in the fruit of the Spirit? Will we praise Him … no matter how different it makes us?
Number Nine
“But, beloved ones, let not this one matter be hidden from you: that with Yahoweh one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.” (2 Peter 3:8).
People who toy with numbers do so to try and make the Bible say whatever they want to believe, and whatever they can dupe the masses into believing.
Those who twist this verse refuse to look at the next verse to obtain clarity. What do those who toy with numbers attempt to pervert this passage into: The lie that this means creation was not seven days, but rather thousands of years. They would have you believe that Yahoweh cannot tell time … but they can.
I admit it: I get mad when people try to use the Bible to appease other religions, especially the religion of evolution. These people think it is possible that the Creator used evolution to create, but why would we need a different religion to explain Yahoweh when Yahoweh has already explained it Himself? Furthermore, why twist the Scriptures and try to make such a lie sound possible?
You would never associate this Passage with Creation if it were not for the religion of evolution. All you have to do is read the next passage to see what He is speaking about. Ladies and gentlemen, the Truth: “Yahoweh is not slow in regard to the promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward us, not wishing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9). … Did you notice anything about Creation? Or did you notice His patience? Come, therefore, to repentance.
Number Eight
“What shall we say then? That gentiles not following after righteousness, have obtained righteousness, even the righteousness of belief, but Yisra’el following after the Torah of righteousness, has not arrived at the Torah of righteousness. (Romans 9:30-31).
These two Scriptures, if taken out of context, might compel one to think it is a bad thing to concern ourselves with keeping Yahoweh’s Torah. For the gentiles, who were law-breakers, were able to attain righteousness, while the supposed law-keeping Israelites were not. However, the reason Paul explains as to why the Israelites were not able to attain to righteousness is in the next verses. “Why? Because it was not of belief, but as by works of Torah. For they stumbled at the Stone of stumbling. As it has been written, ‘See, I lay in Tsiyon a Stone of stumbling and a Rock that makes for falling, and everyone who is believing on Him shall not be put to shame.’” (Romans 9:32-33). They sought Torah, but not by faith. We must have faith. We must be humble. Humble enough to love Yahoweh’s Torah without pride in our walking in the Messiah’s footsteps, for I assure you, Yahoshuah never once walked in pride, while even the most humble of all, Moses, did. It is through Yahoshuah we enter the Promise Land. I have written to you nothing else.
Number Seven
“Let no one therefore judge you in eating or in drinking, or in respect of a festival or a new moon or Sabbaths—which are a shadow of what is to come—but the Body of the Messiah. (Colossians 2:16-17).
Those who do not keep the Sabbath cannot even claim to understand this passage. Until I kept Sabbath, the Christians had never judged me. And why would they? I was acting like everyone else in the world. Those who do keep the Sabbath are judged furiously by the world, but, according to this passage, we are not to accept their judgment, rather we are to accept the Messiah and every one of His footsteps.
This is also referring to drinking, eating flesh, and festivals, such as Passover. I worked at factory farms many years ago, before my eyes and heart were opened, and I know full well the lamb people buy for Passover is never roasted whole, is never without blemish, was never tested, and it isn’t rare, but rather impossible, that his bones weren’t broken. There is no Law in Torah that is not broken concerning this if you have lamb for Passover. There is no Law concerning this that is not fulfilled if you do not have lamb, but rather the Lamb. Paul did not say, “Allegorically He is our Passover Lamb.” No! He is our Passover Lamb! I warn you sternly by what is to come with Messiah, whether you’re vegan now or not: Do not replace Him!
For fun, I looked at over ten different translations of this verse, and many different commentaries. Every one of them was written in a way that could be differently understood, and every commentary had a different view. It was like reading books on end times or the mythology of evolution. Nothing was the same except the confusion the authors called clarity.
Verse 17 shows us that the shadows (Sabbath, vegan living, set times for set amounts of wine, Festivals, and New Moons) are cast from the body of the Messiah, and that He shall return with His Way. And bear ye this in mind, all you who seek to judge:
When He returns, those who judge will see the One True Judge! The body of Messiah Judges us! His scars for our sins will pierce the stoniest of hearts. … Lo, He will not judge a woman any differently than He will a man. (Why then do we?) Nor will He judge a Gentile any differently than He will a Jew. (Why then do people think the Torah is just for the Jews?). “For there is no partiality with Elohim.” (Romans 2:11).
We really need to grow up as believers by stopping the insanity of taking one or two verses out of context, and using them to do away with walking as the Messiah walked, while ignoring the thousand plus pages of Scripture that admonishes us to follow Him. Let us never forget, or ignore, Deuteronomy 29:13-20! For these are a shadow of what is to come with the body of the Messiah!
Number Six
“One indeed judges one day above another, another judges every day alike. Let each one be completely persuaded in his own mind.” (Romans 14:5).
I have met people convinced in their own mind that adultery was not sinful. I am not lying. I have met Christians who claim this openly. Let us be fully convinced in our mind that Yahoweh keeps the Sabbath, and that everyday is His gift to us; so let us worship Him always, in labour and rest. This passage has to do with fasting and faith, not church bylaws, or an alleged right to alter His Word.
Intermission
This intermission is to consider a question asked more than all others: How are we saved?
“And it shall be that everyone who calls on the Name of Yahoweh shall be delivered. For on Mount Tsiyon and in Yerushalayim there shall be an escape as Yahoweh has said, and among the survivors whom Yahoweh calls.” (Joel 2:32). To be saved we call on His Name. How do we call on His Name? Sure, we do our best to call Him by His real Name, but the key is to call on His Name with a yearning heart in unbridled longing, in deep felt love, and in the purest friendship.
“That if you confess with your mouth the Master Yahoshuah and believe in your heart that Elohim has raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved.” (Romans 10:9). We do not have two masters, but One, for we cannot serve the master of lawlessness, of sin, and the Master of Sabbath. I will call on Yahoweh Saviour, on Yahoshuah, and I believe Elohim has raised Him from the dead … but am I saved by belief alone?
“He who has believed and has been immersed, shall be saved, but he who has not believed shall be condemned.” (Mark 16:16). And immersed? What must one do to be saved? Are we saved even if we do all this? Salvation is often an issue raised by those who fear they do not have it. To be saved is this: In a continual effort, we truly love Him back. The Messiah paid our debts. Have faith and love enough for actions. That is salvation. “For this is the love for Elohim, that we guard His commands, and His commands are not heavy,” (1 John 5:3). Love your First true Love, and be glad in Him. Yet know, He loved you first.
Number Five
“And Elohim blessed them, and Elohim said to them, ‘Bear fruit and increase, and fill the earth and subdue it, and rule over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over all creatures moving on the earth.’” (Genesis 1:28). “And Elohim blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them, ‘Bear fruit and increase, and fill the earth.” (Genesis 9:1).
This is held so firmly by Christianity, while commandments such as standing in the presence of the elderly, are completely ignored. Why isn’t there just as much attention to, “Take your sandals off”? Actually, most Christians would adhere to this command if they were standing in front of a burning bush—that isn’t burning. Therein lies my point. Could it be that, “Be fruitful and multiply.” is taken out of its context entirely? This was only said when there were two people on earth, and once when there were eight people on earth, and each time it was so they could have dominion, or care, for the earth (much like a man has dominion over his wife). Makes sense. Eight people left, not billions of people, many without parents or food.
An adopted child is in every way as much yours as one you bore. Not once have I heard an adoptive parent say otherwise, only fools who hate the idea of it, and I do not use the word, “fool” lightly. However, for you who desire this command: Take off your sandals and stand in humility to this calling. Care! Care for the earth and all upon it. Adopt, by bringing a child home, or keeping a child in his home. This is a never-ending commandment. … Care.
Number Four
“Therefore I judge that we should not trouble those from among the gentiles who are turning to Elohim, but that we write to them to abstain from the defilements of idols, and from whoring, and from what is strangled, and from blood.” (Acts 15:19-20).
I get this one quoted to me often. “This,” the infamous “they” say, “shows we only need to keep these Laws.” (I have never, not even once, met a Christian who abstains from all these things.) The above verse was given to those who were new to the faith, not old in the faith, so as to not be repulsive to the assembly. This is what a person just starting out can begin with. The passage goes on, after all, but I am never presented the next verse. Yet, before we look at the next verse, let us consider these, or we may become one who disregards the first for the second.
1. Abstain from the defilements of idols
2. Abstain from whoring
3. Abstain from what is strangled
4. Abstain from blood
Abstain means to “give it up in detest.”
1. To be honest, I do not think any of us even realize just how many idols are in our lives. From dolls to models, from cars to electronics, from animation to false sciences, there are many idols in our lives, including the indulgence of doctrine over Scripture.
2. Oh, how sorrowful it is to see dear brothers and sweet sisters today within the assembly seek to be desirable in the flesh, so much so it eats their heart. To be healthy, filled with good works out of love of the Spirit, and to be wise, oh, hear me, these are worth more than all the ideas of worldly beauty.
3. Kosher slaughter involves the animal being strangled to death by his or her own blood. Can we really claim peace if what we eat suffered needlessly? Can we claim to be known by our love, if we are this overtly violent and wicked?
4. The fourth is like the third, only now we are asked to go a step further and abstain from blood. All flesh has blood, and the act of eating it is repulsive to many people. If you have not read the Letter titled For the Love of Animals, and even if you have, kindly read the last two paragraphs of it.
Do it. … Please.
Just because you think it isn’t an idol, or that tight fitting revealing clothing and make up is perfectly fine for today, or that slaughter can somehow be compassionate, or that cooking blood somehow changes His Word—this is not the path that leads to life! … Life?
All these things are a form of gluttony, the sin upon which I have never, in over three decades, heard a single sermon against. For if a minister preached against gluttony, then half the people would leave.
I cannot explain to you just how much my eyes, as well as ears, opened up when I gave up idols (even the Christian ones), lusts, animal abuse, and meat. If I were able to pen it, and send it to myself before I gave up these things—I was so blind that I would not believe such a light could exist! … Oh, but my dear brothers and my sweet sisters, it does.
It has come to this: I know many women and men who are stricken with diabetes, and who have severe back and knee problems, caused solely by consumption of typical fast food, with extra soda and animal fat. Gluttony is not who these people are, but that sin tears away each of their lives inasmuch as whiskey would—if not more! In the end, each will die from it, as many already have. Why do they never give health a chance? Why is life an opportunity seldom chosen?
Ah, but now that we know what to flee from, so we may be able to truly see, what does the next verse show that can open our eyes to a door before us all: “For from ancient generations Mosheh has, in every city, those proclaiming him—being read in the congregations every Sabbath.” (Acts 15:21). The Torah and the Sabbath!
You know, it was never the religious leader who got it right, it was never the broad path that had the answers. Perhaps it is time to open the door of our heart unto the Messiah Who keeps Sabbath. What do you say to the Word commanding us to abstain from what can destroy, not only ourselves, but also others? It is time to pray for His Spirit’s leading in our lives, and mean it.
Number Three
“‘Two shall be in the field, the one shall be taken and the other shall be left.’ And they answering, said to Him, ‘Where, Master?’ And He said to them, ‘Where the body is, there also the eagles shall be gathered together.’” (Luke 17:36-37).
Many translations read vultures rather than eagles; regardless, the Messiah answers the disciples question about where the one taken is taken too, and we are told they are taken to a place of death. So many stories have arisen, so many doctrines, by these verses. A misused verse in the Bible is, quite possibly, at its worst when we take a hard thing, and try to make it soft. This is done for children’s Bibles and novels, but the truth of the follower’s life is a bed of roses, complete with thorns. We, the believers, are the ones who shall remain.
Number Two
“One who eats only vegetables like Daniel, Peter, and Paul, is weak.” (2 Opinions 2:12). Okay, that isn’t the verse, but that is how some folks like to read several verses. You are not weak if you eat only vegetables. “One indeed believes to eat all food, but he who is weak eats only vegetables.” (Romans 14:2). (Some texts say food, some meat, most just the word “all”). Paul clearly meant that a weak person could only have the basics of Scripture. A strong person desires more and more. I am glad Paul did not say, “A weak person eats everything, and a strong person eats tulips.” I cannot imagine the outcome. … Okay, I can imagine it, but it ain’t pretty.
“I fed you with milk and not with solid food, for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able,” (1 Corinthians 3:2). No one would envision Paul going about the assembly with a jar of breast milk, saying, “Come on now, you have got to eat this baby food before you can eat anything solid. … Now, now, don’t you throw a tempter tantrum young man.” This was clearly, as is Romans 14:2 above, a means to show how little the assembly was ready or willing to hear and do. Scripture is an accounting of how Yahoweh will bring man back to the purpose for which he was created. Do not let man’s faulty understanding, or even your own, rob you of this joy realized.
Now for the most misunderstood of all verses, for never before has there been such confusion, such a masterwork—twisted by Satan himself—to separate us from our Friend.
Number One
“And she shall give birth to a Son, and you shall call His Name Yahoshuah for He shall save His people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:21).
Okay, so no one has a problem with this verse, or at least this translation and transliteration of this verse. Other texts say, “Gabriel said to Mary, ‘You shall call his name Jesus.’” For many that proves that His Name was not Yahoshuah, but rather Jesus. They place their faith in a tradition of adulterators. To not fall into this trap, all one must do is place more faith in reality than translators, to place more faith in Yahoshuah than the doctrines of men. Few men or women have that mustered seed of faith. Do you? If you do not, then I know Someone Who does, and my Father has promised to give those who ask in His Name, the Holy Spirit. Have that mustard seed. You do not have to obey the Babylonian Talmud, which tells you to deny His Name with silent lips and adulterous words.
I simply cannot believe (and I doubt very much that there is anyone who could) any man who claims to love his wife, but refuses to celebrate their anniversary, call her by name, or even take out the trash when she asks him to. Today there are thousands of Bible believing faiths, and none them are similar. However, there are thousands of happy marriages, and all of them are similar. When we truly accept the Messiah, then we accept Him as the Bridegroom, yes, but we also need to accept ourselves as the bride, willing to lay down our sin to pick up His yoke. Few do this. Most make excuses as to why the trash does not stink and can stay in the house.
Do you wish to continue in fake worship?
Or is enough … enough?
Some say, “I am saved without doing this, so, therefore, I am not going to.” Yet, one must know that this is identical to saying, “I have my spouse’s love without giving him / her a hug, so I am not going to.” That is stupid, yes, but it is also undeniably unloving. Can you honestly continue to live apart from living as the Word shows? Can you honestly continue to hide? The truth has found you, and the truth is about to ask a question that will reverberate for forever in your heart:
“Do you really love Me?”
Be Blessed and be a Blessing
Shalom
-Valentine Thalken Billingsley
If this blessed you, please share it.
Additional Scripture References:
Psalms 119:77-78, 2 Timothy 2:15
