Thou Shalt Not Judaise
By
Gary Primo
July 22, 2010
Thou shall not Judaise! Although never spoken or written, this is the first and greatest commandment of the Christian faith. Few Christians know this. It is based on a 1st century law passed by the Roman Empire to restrict Roman citizens from joining and participating in the Jewish faith and following the new Jewish Messiah. Why did they see the need to do this?
The Jewish custom for gaining Gentiles to their ranks was through a system called proselytizing and began in the days of Moses. The potential convert was called a proselyte. They would remain outside the Temple worshiping until all the criteria for becoming a full proselyte were met. Basically this included being circumcised (for men) and learning and coming under obedience to the 613 laws of the Hebrew faith. Until that time they were not allowed to speak to or eat a meal with a Hebrew. Once they became a full proselyte, they were considered the exact same as one born a Hebrew.
After the death and resurrection of Yahshua, the first new Believers were predominantly Jewish, from the tribe and nation of Judah. The first record of a non-Jewish convert in the New Testament was the Roman centurion, Cornelius. Perhaps this was the reason for the Roman authorities to pass a law that forbade Judaising. There may have also been a great deal of concern that so many Gentile, Roman citizens were flocking in droves to follow after a Jewish messiah. After all, the Romans already had a pagan messiah for all of its citizens to worship. Why would there be a need for a Jewish one? Was the Empire in any danger because of this Jewish Messiah? Let’s examine this question.
The Roman Empire had become accustomed to uprisings. They had dealt with many during its history. They did not seem to care when many of the Jews became Believers; they saw them simply as one more Jewish sect, but when their own citizens started converting in large numbers, and complaints started pour in from the Gentile leaders of various communities, they became concerned. They knew that the Jews were expecting a Savior. They knew that the Jews expected this Savior to free them from their slavery to Rome. The Romans knew how such religious ramblings could easily turn into something much more serious and intended to stop it before it got any more out of control.
The Emperor liked to think that he was at the center of worship and adoration by his citizens. He hated any competition. And here was one man being called the King of the Jews and the Son of YHVH, who although dead, was threatening to depose the Emperor from his seat of adoration. It was humiliating and had to be stopped. Therefore, the Emperor, in his grand wisdom, passed a law forbidding any Roman citizen from Judaising, or following the customs and traditions of the Jews. If found guilty, the defendant faced any number of punishments - such as losing their livelihood, property and savings, or being tortured, imprisoned and executed. Judging from the large numbers of Believers who were fed to the lions, one can assume that these Gentile followers had violated this law. Therefore, the most prominent identifying factor of whether one was a follower of the Jewish Messiah was their following the customs of the Jewish faith. There is strong evidence of this fact throughout the New Testament. Not one of the apostles or any of the Believers ever deviated from following these customs and traditions. Those who attempted to subvert this practice were strongly condemned by the apostles. YHVH, himself, saw and recognized such impostors joining the assemblies and condemns them in the seven letters to the seven churches of the Book of Revelation. Read these letters for yourself to see what the punishment for such individuals will be. (Also be sure to read my study on the seven letters). In these seven letters we are all admonished to return to what was taught in the beginning and to the faith once delivered. Those who allow themselves to be beguiled and beguile others will find the promise of salvation taken from them and be cast into the lake of fire and eternal death.
So, for 3 centuries the early Believers suffered intense persecution because of their religious practices. Then, suddenly in the 4th century a big change occurred. Suddenly the Christians, as they were labeled by the Romans, were no longer Judaising. Rather they were following the customs and traditions that the Emperor followed. Those customs and traditions were exactly the same as the then current state religion – that of Mithraism. Some of the priests of Mithra had long before infiltrated the church and had gained positions of prominence in the assemblies. They secretly introduced doctrines that were strange to the Jewish faith and, since these strange doctrines seemed to align with those of the state’s, they looked forward to an easing of the persecution that tormented them.
Then the church came up with the amazing tale of how the Emperor, Constantine, had been converted to a Christian. The truth is that Constantine was not even baptized into the faith until upon his death bed. It cannot even be verified if he were alive at the time of his baptism. He was responsible for the murders of his mother and son after his supposed conversion. Can anyone truly believe that he converted? The simple fact is that it was the church, not Constantine, who converted. Since Constantine could not halt the overwhelming numbers of his citizens who were converting, and they were not really doing the Empire any harm, he sought a way around the law forbidding Judaising. If the Christian church would simply stop Judaising and obey the Roman decree, he would end the persecution, and officially recognize it as a state approved religious organization.
It seems that the Gentile converts were quite happy with this development. They would no longer be persecuted. They got to keep their property and wealth. They got to keep their good name and prominence in the community. It did not seem to bother them that they were no longer following the Messiah or his apostles. They simply transferred all the attributes of their former pagan messiahs onto the Jewish one. The problem was solved. Later they transferred all their artwork, statues and pagan temples into symbols of Christianity.
What about the apostles? Did they not also follow the Jewish customs and traditions? What would the impostors do about them? Easy – they picked one apostle to champion, which was Saul (or Paul, as he was renamed). Since his teachings were difficult to understand anyway, the Roman translators could easily twist and interpret his words to mean what they wanted them to mean. That is how Saul became the champion of the new Gentile church. He supposedly taught that the old Jewish law was done away with – that simple belief in the new Messiah was all that was necessary –that obedience to the law, which defined sin, was no longer a factor. They eliminated sin by eliminating the laws that defined sin. They were now free to worship as they pleased.
However, Saul did no such thing. He openly declared at his various trials that he had done nothing against the Temple, the Jews or the Romans – that he was innocent of all their lying accusations. He himself partook in all the Jewish customs and traditions. He never taught against the doctrines or laws of the Jewish faith. He was a Jew through and through and even though he was known as the apostle to the Gentiles, he fully expected his followers to follow in his footsteps, at all times obedient to the Jewish faith and the Jewish Messiah. There is absolutely no mention in the New Testament that Saul ever deviated from this course.
There are, of course, a number of passages that the liars have read into their own interpretations. For the sake of this study, lets just study the question about circumcision.
Acts 15:1 - And certain men which came down from Judea taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved.
2 - When therefore Saul and Barnabas had no small dissension and disputation with them, they determined that Saul and Barnabas, and certain other of them, should go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question.
The very first act of becoming a Jewish proselyte was that all males were to be circumcised. Saul had not been promoting this custom because he could plainly see that the new Gentile converts had already received of YHVH the saving power of YHVH’s Holy Spirit. He felt that they should only be circumcised when they fully learned the law of YHVH and offered themselves of their own free will up to be circumcised. Circumcision was the ritual that signified the person’s free will choice to enter into the covenant (contract) with YHVH that would put that person on the road to salvation. If not given freely, the contract was useless. It was like a bride consenting to marry only as a result of pressure from her family. Love did not enter the picture. It was all about money and power. The woman was basically sold into a situation of slavery rather than one of true heart-felt love. Saul saw the need of all new converts to have this heart-felt love for the covenant before entering into it and signifying their consent through circumcision. He may have also had in mind the curse for anyone, once they know the Way of YHVH, to turn their backs on it and return to their former ways (which is what the Roman church did). He may not have wanted anyone entering this very critical covenant with YHVH until they absolutely understood and believed.
At the time, Jewish custom forbade any circumcised Jew from fellowshipping or eating with an uncircumcised Gentile. They saw Gentiles as being a lower life species than a dog. They would hold onto this view until the custom of proselytizing was complete. Saul saw YHVH’s gift of His Holy Spirit being given to the Gentiles immediately upon hearing the word as a sign that YHVH was accepting them into the fellowship without having to be circumcised first. This may have been partially due to the dream Simon (Peter) had concerning the clean and unclean meat in regards to Cornelius. The bottom line of that story was that what YHVH had made clean, let no man call unclean.
But still, the devout Jews insisted upon sending Saul and Barnabas to the counsel in Jerusalem to get an official declaration confirming or denying Saul’s perception.
Acts 15:4 - And when they were come to Jerusalem, they were received of the church, and of the apostles and elders, and they declared all things that God had done with them.
5 - But there rose up certain of the sect of the Pharisees which believed, saying, That it was needful to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses.
When Saul and Barnabas arrived in Jerusalem they were quickly confronted by the Pharisees who were demanding that all new Gentile converts be circumcised and be made to keep all of the law of Moses right from the start. Again, this is like a shotgun wedding. The Gentiles were being expected to enter the covenant without any true understanding of what it was all about. The only thing they had going for them at the time was their strong belief that Yahshua was the Son of YHVH and the promised Messiah. They were almost totally ignorant of the 613 laws of Moses and did not understand the need to be circumcised.
6 - And the apostles and elders came together for to consider of this matter.
7 - And when there had been much disputing, Simon (Peter} rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago Elohim made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe.
8 - And Elohim which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them his Holy Spirit, even as he did unto us;
9 - And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.
Simon’s contention was that if YHVH desired that the Gentiles should be circumcised and know all the law before accepting them into the fellowship of Believers, He would have not granted them His Holy Spirit before hand. He further contended that YHVH saw no distinction between the circumcised and uncircumcised, but rather looked only upon the heart to determine if the person’s faith was genuine. After all, how many of the Jews were circumcised but did not believe in Yahshua when He came and proved who He was? Obviously the act of circumcision did not necessarily purify one’s heart.
10 - Now therefore why tempt ye Elohim, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?
I believe that Simon was talking about Abraham here. Abraham had believed in and faithfully followed YHVH since he was old enough to understand the mysteries of our Creator. He was not circumcised until he was quite old, and only after he had been tested to ensure that his faith was solid and unwavering. We are in a very similar testing stage right now.
11 - But we believe that through the grace of our Master Yahshua HaMashiyack we shall be saved, even as they.
Notice that Simon did not declare that they were already saved as most Christian denomination teach. He said they “shall be saved”, a yet future event. He was declaring here that the Gentiles had the exact same shot at salvation as any circumcised Jew. The qualifying factor was the state of one’s heart, not presence or absence of a man’s foreskin.
12 - Then all the multitude kept silence, and gave audience to Barnabas and Saul, declaring what miracles and wonders Elohim had wrought among the Gentiles by them.
13 - And after they had held their peace, Yaakov (James) answered, saying, Men and brethren, hearken unto me:
14 - Simeon hath declared how Elohim at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name.
15 - And to this agree the words of the prophets; as it is written,
16 - After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up:
17 - That the residue of men might seek after YHVH, and all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is called, saith YHVH, who doeth all these things.
18 - Known unto Elohim are all his works from the beginning of the world.
19 - Wherefore my sentence is, that we trouble not them, which from among the Gentiles are turned to Elohim:
Now it is Yaakov (James) that stands up to speak. It was not only Saul, therefore, that thought there was no immediate need to circumcise the Gentiles. We have seen here that both Simon and Yaakov were in agreement with Saul’s teachings. Basically the people YHVH sought from amongst the Gentiles were the Lost Sheep of Israel or the remnant of the Northern 10 tribes who went early into captivity and never returned to Israel. YHVH was offering them one final chance to repent and turn their hearts again to Him. Remember that YHVH promised Abraham that his seed would be as numerous as the grains of sand on the sea shores. That is quite a lot of people. Of course, if any Gentiles of non-Israeli origin wished to turn their hearts to YHVH, they’d be welcome too. After all we are all descendants of Adam and Eve, and therefore all children of YHVH. Even though the Jews were chosen of YHVH to be a special people to Him, they had violated the covenant and rejected YHVH many, many times, and were no more worthy of salvation than any of the Gentiles. They may have been born into this select group, but they often proved that their hearts were not truly turned toward YHVH. Therefore, when they found a Gentile whose heart was truly turned toward YHVH, who were they to condemn them simply because they were not yet circumcised or knowledgeable concerning all of the law? The Jews were circumcised and knew all of the law and yet were no better off or any closer to salvation than the Gentiles who believed and were of a pure heart in their love and devotion toward YHVH.
20 - But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood.
Yaakov declares here that even though the Gentiles needed not know all of the law or be circumcised to enter into the fellowship, they were required to forsake all their former, pagan practices. They could no longer worship idols or commit spiritual fornication with false pagan gods. They were to abstain from all their former customs and traditions that were an abomination to YHVH. This seems like a simple request, but imagine being born and brought up as a Gentile and then forsaking all your former ways. What effect would that have had on their family relationships, friends and business associates? Their absences in their former pagan temples would have been quickly realized. They would have been excommunicated not only from their former pagan temples but also from the society that they had been a part of for so many years. YHVH perhaps saw this as a far greater test of their faith than being forced into a covenant agreement without knowing what they were getting into. At least they did know that what they were being called out from had been wrong all along, and they were turning back to YHVH with truly repentant hearts eagerly seeking to learn the true path to salvation.
21 - For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every Sabbath day.
They new Gentile converts now had no other place to go to worship other than the temple and/or the synagogues. The law of the Sabbath was likely the first that they learned. There they would have the teachings of Moses taught to them. There they would learn all of the law and the reason for circumcision. At some point in the future, when they knew what they were “signing” and were fully committed and of a pure heart they would be expected to confirm their contract with YHVH through the act of circumcision.
Genesis 17:7 - And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be an Elohim unto thee, and to thy seed after thee.
8 - And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their Elohim.
9 - And Elohim said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations.
10 -This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised.
11 - And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you.
12 - And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every man child in your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any stranger, which is not of thy seed.
13 - He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant.
14 - And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant.
This is the original circumcision commandment. YHVH leaves no room for misunderstanding it. If we wish to enter this covenant with YHVH we must be circumcised. This is an everlasting covenant and sign thereof. YHVH is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. The rules for entering into this covenant have never and will never change. Any who refuse to take this symbol upon themselves and the flesh of their foreskin reject the covenant and the One with whom the covenant is made. A servant is a slave to the one he serves. If not serving YHVH in all truth, one is automatically serving HaSatan.
And so, the elders sent witnesses back with Saul and Barnabas to confirm what they had decreed. The question was settled. Yet there is one more episode I would like to call to mind in this regard.
Acts 16:1 - Then came he to Derbe and Lystra: and, behold, a certain disciple was there, named Timotheus, the son of a certain woman, which was a Jewess, and believed; but his father was a Greek:
2 - Which was well reported of by the brethren that were at Lystra and Iconium.
3 - Him would Saul have to go forth with him; and took and circumcised him because of the Jews which were in those quarters: for they knew all that his father was a Greek.
4 - And as they went through the cities, they delivered them the decrees for to keep, that were ordained of the apostles and elders which were at Jerusalem.
5 - And so were the churches established in the faith, and increased in number daily.
Timothy was born to a Jewish mother and a Greek father. It is mentioned only that the mother believed. It can therefore be assumed that the father did not. However, if Timothy was brought up in the Jewish faith, he would have already known all of the teachings of Moses and the reason for circumcision. Therefore, it was high time that he be circumcised. And, since Saul desired to take Timothy on his travels with him, Saul felt that he should be circumcised so as to not disturb the Jews who knew of his circumstances. This passage proves that Saul did not teach that the circumcision was done away with altogether. It was merely put off until the person could do so with full knowledge of what he was doing. Of course in doing so, the convert was in open violation of the Emperor’s decree forbidding any Roman citizen from Judaising.
It would have been very easy to find out if a citizen was Judaising in those days. First of all the former pagan worshiper would be quickly missed from pagan, Sunday worship services at whichever pagan temple they had attended. They would instead be attending Sabbath services at the local synagogues on Saturday. Families that usually worshiped and celebrated common, pagan festivals together, would definitely miss any family member not in attendance. Such individuals would be considered to have abandoned their families. Naturally, Gentile Believers would have been keeping the Jewish Holy Days instead. In the work place, these individuals would be taking Saturday off instead of Sunday to worship. If a business owner, their businesses would be closed on Saturday and opened Sunday. They would have been taking time off or closing their businesses down on annual Holy Days. Their family members would be told by their priests to turn in those members to “save them from themselves”. Anti-Semitism would likely be another factor in turning a Judaiser in. The act of Judaising was the single most convicting evidence that sent thousands to poverty, prison and their deaths. This was the identifying factor of a Believer and there can be no doubt that Believers in the first 3 centuries were convicted for keeping these Jewish customs and traditions.
This is clearly what Yahshua and His apostles expected them to do. So, at what point was it decided that they should instead start keeping all of the traditions and customs of Mithra? At what point was it decided that the law of YHVH was “done away with”? Who was it that made these decisions?
You can read the New Testament from one end to the other and not find one statement authorizing these changes. In fact, quite the opposite is true. Yes, the Christian counterfeiters have interpreted certain questionable verses to mean what they want them to, but all are taken out of context and do not harmonize with the rest of the Scriptures. They have also added and taken away from the Scriptures, a crime for which they are cursed.
When I study a certain topic I look for harmonization with all Scriptures pertaining to that subject – from both testaments. I really do believe that YHVH does not change and that He is the same yesterday, today and in the future. His plan was clear in His mind before He began the process of creation. Just like Judge Judy, He is a lot smarter than us. He has always known the end from the beginning. He would not create a people for Himself, teach them for 4 thousand years the way to worship Him and gain salvation, only to pull a complete reversal afterward. One day all pagan worship is an abomination to YHVH and the next it is ok. Does that really make sense to anyone?
Even the lowliest, uneducated person in the world with even an ounce of common sense and reasoning power should be able to see through such hypocrisy. And yet we find highly educated and respected individuals at the controls of this counterfeit conspiracy. Such is the way of HaSatan. He beguiles the wisest, the most intellectual, the highly esteemed; then he knows that the rest of mankind will blindly follow. And, that is why YHVH does not call many from those ranks. He knows that those individuals already belong to HaSatan and that there is little chance of changing them. They are too drunk with power. Remember what the Master told us, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to make it into the Kingdom of YHVH.
There are numerous examples that I can continue with, but I will save them for another study. I am working on keeping these studies short. I know I get a little long winded at times. LOL. But I personally delve as deeply as I can into these studies to find that harmonization of Scriptures I was talking about earlier and that often results in many pages of research.
I do implore all readers to take on this study yourselves, and seek any harmonization with the rest of Scriptures. I am sure when you do this you will see that the Christian faith has been led down a crooked path leading away from salvation rather than toward it. Also, that none of the laws of YHVH were ever done away with. The Sabbath day was never changed. The annual Holy Days were never replaced. No authority was ever given to the pope. He is not “God on Earth”. In fact, he is more so the anti-Christ. His church is the office of the False Prophet; and all the Christian denominations that came out of her are her harlot daughters. To call oneself a Christian is to call oneself a follower of Rome.
Let us instead work together to restore the attributes of the first century Believers and those who were eye witnesses to the greatest event to take place in all history, since the creation itself. They lived, walked, ate and slept with the Savior of mankind. They witnessed the miracles of the Son of YHVH, his death and his resurrection to glory; that of being the Son of YHVH and having preeminence in all things and all stages of the creation process. He is now the firstborn of a entirely new creation to which no creature has yet attained. We must follow in His exact footsteps if we also are to be a part of the new creation. Christians follow a 4th century Roman Emperor. Believers follow YHVH.
YHVH Bless
G.P.