Author: Steven R. Bruck

Is the Sacrificial System Done Away With?

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The sacrificial system was designed by God to allow us to have a means of coming into his presence. There are many different types of sacrifice that are defined in the Torah, but only two types of sacrifice are for sin.

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The main types of sacrifices are:

  • The burnt offering.
  • The grain offering.
  • The peace offering.
  • The sin offering.
  • The guilt offering.

The most important sacrifices are to be made in a specific order, which is we first sacrifice innocent blood so that we can be forgiven of our sins, followed by a wholly burnt offering (representing a total recommitment to God), and ending with a friendship/thanksgiving offering which reunites us with God; this is the only offering where the one bringing the sacrifice gets to share eating the meat of the sacrifice then and there, in a holy place.

A guilt offering is a type of sacrifice made as a compensation payment for unintentional and certain intentional transgressions and is distinct from the sin offering. For example, if someone had borrowed a cow and the cow was killed as a result of the borrower’s negligence, he would be required to compensate the owner with the value of the cow, plus 20%.

The sacrificial system also included the types of offerings made that had nothing to do with sin. There are the offerings made for a woman who was declared clean after her time of Niddah (menstrual cycle), for being found clean from tzara’at (leprosy), voluntary offerings, offerings for after completing a Nazarene vow, and others.

So, when Christians have been taught that Yeshua’s sacrifice was a once-and-for-all sacrifice, that is true, but only with regards to the requirement to bring a sin sacrifice to the temple in Jerusalem, which was the only place where any sacrifice could be made, according to the Torah (Deuteronomy 12:5).

This is why the destruction of the temple in 73 A.D. by Rome was so devastating to the Jewish population- without the temple, there could be no forgiveness of sin! And that is why it is so important for my Jewish brothers and sisters to recognize and accept Yeshua as the Messiah, because his substitutionary sacrifice is the only way we can now be forgiven of sin.

The traditional Jewish belief of one of the things the Messiah will do when he comes is to rebuild the temple, and thereby reinstitute the sacrificial system so that we can be forgiven of sin- this is the way that the Messiah will bring us back into communion with God.

I believe that after all things are done, after HaSatan is completely and finally defeated, those of us who belong to Yeshua will once again be able to bring our sacrifices to the temple.

Those sacrifices will not be for the removal of sin, because at that time we will have come into the complete fulfillment of the new covenant God told us about in Jeremiah 31:31, when the Torah will be written on our hearts. There will be korbanot (offerings) to God as a means of showing our love and thanksgiving to him, but not as a means to be forgiven because Yeshua took care of that one.

So, the next time someone tells you that Yeshua did away with the sacrificial system, you can tell them they are correct, but only with regard to the sacrifice for sin.

Thank you for being here and please subscribe to this ministry on my website, as well as my YouTube channel. I also have a Facebook page and a group called “Just God’s Word” which I invite you to join, but please ensure you agree to the rules to be let in.

I also ask that you share these messages with everyone you know and remember that I always welcome your comments, which I try to answer in a reasonable time.

That’s it for this week, so l’hitraot and (an early) Shabbat Shalom!

Let’s Talk Trinity

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As those of you who have been following me for years (which I truly appreciate), you know I have often stated that, as far as I am concerned, whether Yeshua is God or not, for the purposes of salvation it doesn’t really matter because we are not saved by belief that Yeshua is God but by our acceptance of him as the Messiah God promised to send.

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The reason I say this is simple: God has a plan, and the Messiah is part of that plan. If God wanted to do it all as himself, he would have without confusing the issue by coming in a separate form.

We know from the Tanakh references to God that when he uses angels, they often speak in the first person because they are his messengers and are speaking for him, so when Yeshua does that (and he only does that in the one Gospel, the Gospel of John) he is not claiming to be God but speaking for God. In fact, when we look at the couple of times Yeshua says things such as when we see him, we see God, and if we knew him, we would know the Father, for anyone not already conditioned otherwise it is clear that he is speaking figuratively, not literally.

But let’s not stop there- what about the fact that throughout the Gospels (again, John being the sole exception, which by that very fact renders it questionable) Yeshua never takes any credit for himself, but instead he gives all the credit and glory to God.

There is only one exception that I can recall where Yeshua came close to taking credit for a healing, and that is in Luke 5:12, when the man with leprosy says if Yeshua is willing, he can heal him, and Yeshua says, “I am willing; be healed.”

Let’s also remember that Yeshua tells the Sanhedrin at his (illegal) trial that one day they will see him sitting at the right hand of God (Matthew 26:64). Well, I think that makes it pretty clear that Yeshua thinks he is a separate entity from God.

And then we have the testimony from Stephen (Acts 7:55), who, as he was being stoned to death, declared that he saw the Holy One and Yeshua standing at his side. Two separate entities.

It is documented that the first use of the term “trinity” was by Tertullian (160-225 AD) and there are other writings from biblical and religious historians that indicate the references in the letters from Shaul (Paul) and John regarding false teachings that were damaging the faith of the neophyte believers had to do with this idea of three-in-one. The religious doctrine that God is not unique but three entities in one form, which denies the Jewish belief that God is a totally unique entity (as stated in our most foundational prayer, the Shema), would cause all Jews to reject Yeshua as the Messiah because he was said to be God in the flesh.

My personal opinion about the Trinity is that it was created by a man, probably Tertullian, for two reasons:

  1. To make Yeshua more appealing to the masses, who were used to believing in multiple gods and demigods; and
  2. To further separate this new religion called Christianity from its Jewish roots by making it less appealing to Jews, who would never, and never will, accept that God-Adonai- is anything other than the one and only, unique, separate, omniscient, and omnipotent spirit that he is.

If we backtrack to why I said this whole issue of Trinity vs. Unity is irrelevant with regards to salvation, there is one aspect which makes it VERY relevant: if someone prays to and worships Yeshua instead of God, asking Yeshua for forgiveness and thanking Yeshua for blessings, by replacing God with Yeshua they have committed a terrible sin- it is idolatry, and I doubt it will go over well with either God or Yeshua.

Bad enough when you go into many churches (especially the RC’s) and see people bowing down and praying to graven images, well… how can that possibly be explained in light of the 2nd Commandment, which even the staunchest Christian admits is still something they have to follow?

The worst part of this argument about Trinity vs. Unity is that its sole use is not to edify anyone or to bring anyone closer to the proper worship of God or help anyone become more righteous. No! The only thing this age-old argument does is to serve the Enemy of God by creating a wedge between people within the body of Believers. It doesn’t bring us closer to God or closer to each other, but quite the opposite: it is a religious civil war, causing disunity and confusion, and giving the Devil a strong handhold in separating us from God.

So, nu! Believe what you want- it is, as it always has been and always will be, your choice to believe what you want to. But remember this: God doesn’t care why you believe what you do, or why you do what you do, but he does care about what you believe and what you do.

In other words, when you come before God (which we will all have to do) and you tell him that you believed what they told you to believe and so did what they told you to do, I believe that God will say something to the effect of:

“I understand you only did what they told you to do, but it is what I say that counts.”

Thank you for being here and please share these messages with everyone you know, even if they aren’t believers- maybe it will get them thinking? Also, if you haven’t already done so, please subscribe to my website (messianicmoment.com) and on my YouTube channel, as well. I invite you to join my Facebook discussion group called “Just God’s Word”, but please ensure you agree to the rules to be let in.

One other thing: did you know I have written 4 books? There is a link to them on my website or go to the Amazon Book Store; they are available in both paperback and Kindle formats.

And remember that I always welcome your comments.

Okay, that’s it for this week, so l’hitraot and (an early) Shabbat Shalom!

Just What is Salvation?

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Of course, we all know that when we accept Yeshua (Jesus) as the Messiah and ask forgiveness of our sins by means of the sacrifice he performed for us, we have found “salvation in Christ”, or another way to put it is that we are “saved”.

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The Internet dictionary defines salvation as “preservation or deliverance from harm, ruin, or loss…”, which doesn’t sound like something that we are, but something we end up being.

I often hear people save they are saved, and I wonder if they really know what they are saved from, or if they realize they aren’t really saved…at least, not yet.

Salvation and being saved result in the same condition, but that is not something that we are, it is where we end up.

For instance, let’s say that you are in the desert, and dying of thirst. In the distance, you see an oasis, and you say to yourself, “I am saved!”

But then you die before you can get to the oasis, so were you really saved?

No, of course not- BUT you had the potential to be saved.

Think of a battery- in its normal, unconnected state it doesn’t have any electrical power, but when you connect the terminals, that is when the electricity is created. By itself, the battery has no electricity, but what it does have is called electrical potential.

When we accept Yeshua as our Messiah, and we ask forgiveness by means of his sacrifice, we will be forgiven. At that very moment, we are saved. If we die immediately after asking for forgiveness- assuming our repentance is genuine- we will die in a state of righteousness and be saved. But I am sure, at least I am sure about myself, that the very next time I drive anywhere I will have sinned at least a few times (driving, especially here in Florida, is the ultimate test of a godly use of language- a test I continually fail).

So, what are we saved from? We are saved from the consequence of our sins, which is- simply put- spending eternity out of the presence of God.

Frankly, there are a couple of different versions of what the afterlife is like when you go through the Bible, so I don’t think anyone can say, for certain, what will happen, other than some will be in the presence of the Lord forever, and some won’t.

So, nu? What is my point of all this?

It’s this: Don’t become complacent after you have accepted Yeshua as your Messiah because you are not saved, yet. You are still in the desert, but now you can see that oasis called Salvation, and you know that when you get there you will be saved.

The road to that salvation is difficult, and there are many mirages along the way to cause you to steer away from the real oasis, thinking you are heading for salvation but, in fact, you are heading further away from it.

Those mirages are called “religion”, which has for millennia steered people away from salvation while telling them they are on the right track.

So how do you know which path to walk? God has provided the roadmap and a compass to help you stay on the right path to that oasis; the map is called the Torah and the compass is called the Ruach HaKodesh, the Holy Spirit.

When you read the map to know which way to go, and then use the compass to make sure you are staying on the proper azimuth (that is the direction you are heading in) that the map tells you to go, you will be utilizing your salvation potential to its fullest, and you will be saved in the end.

There is no such thing as OSAS (once saved, always saved)- that is a religious detour that leads to the wrong place if for no other reason, it will eventually lead to unrepentance. How? Well, when you think you are automatically forgiven, why bother to confess it or ask for forgiveness- you already have it, right? Therefore, OSAS leads, ultimately, to unrepentant sinning, and God will NOT allow an unrepentant sinner into his presence. Guaranteed!

God has given us the way he wants us to walk (Torah) and the compass to guide us (Ruach) so that as we strive towards salvation, we will not lose our way.

Thank you for being here and please share these messages with everyone you know. Subscribe to my website and YouTube channel and join my Facebook group called “Just God’s Word” (please make sure you agree to the rules so that I can let you in).

And remember that I always welcome your comments.

By the way, did you know I have written 4 books? You can find them on my website, and they are available in paperback and Kindle formats.

That’s it for today, so l’hitraot and Baruch HaShem!

To Torah, or Not to Torah.

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So many people have no idea what the Torah really is. They think it is just a bunch of laws, and to some degree that is accurate, but those laws define more than just ceremonies or rituals- they define a total way of life.

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Recently, I was in a discussion with someone who was trying to convince me that the 10 Commandments are for everyone, but the Mosaic laws (I really think she thought they were Moses’ laws and not God’s) were only for Jews. I told her that the Big Ten were really just a condensed version of the Torah, but not all the laws God wants us to obey. I gave her examples of some Torah commandments not mentioned, at all, in the Big Ten but apply to God-fearing people, such as the Torah rules against sexual perversity within a family, homosexuality, and other penal code violations. I asked if she thought those activities are acceptable for Christians to do?

Can a Christian son sleep with his Christian Mother-in-law? Can a Christian father sleep with his Christian daughter-in-law? Can Christians be absolved from punishment if they commit acts of violence against each other (what are legally defined as torts)?

I don’t think so, do you?

These are covered in the Torah, but not mentioned at all in the Big Ten.

Here is the real scoop about the Torah- it was given by God to the Jewish people, but not JUST for the Jewish people. In Exodus 19:6, God tells Moses that the Israelites- the descendants of Abraham- will be his (God’s) nation of priests.

Now, what do priests do? Well, they do more than just run the services. Their job, overall, is to act as intermediary between the people and God, teaching the people how they are to live in accordance with the way God says we should.

God chose the descendants of Abraham to be his nation of priests; now, priests don’t serve other priests, so it is pretty obvious that the ones we Jews are to be priests to have to be the rest of the world.

Do you remember that Shaul said God made salvation available to all: to the Jew first, then to the Gentile? (Romans 1:16)

The Torah is God’s instructions on how to live a righteous life, and a righteous life leads to salvation. These instructions were given to his chosen people, chosen (I really should say “commissioned”) to be God’s Cohanim (priests) to the world, first to learn for themselves, and then to teach to the rest of humanity.

Yeah, that means Christians, too!

Now let’s talk about Yeshua and the Torah.

Yeshua was God’s anointed Messiah, and he lived a sinless life, which is why he was resurrected. According to God, the only way to be sinless was to be in 100% accordance with the Torah, so we can know, absolutely, that Yeshua lived a Torah observant life.

Christianity has stated that because Yeshua lived the Torah perfectly, anyone following him is not required to observe the Torah- in essence, Christianity says by doing something correctly, that makes it obsolete.

Does that really make any sense?

If I come to a stop sign while driving, and the person ahead of me stops completely, looks both ways twice, then slowly continues on their way, having completed the law for stop signs, can I now just go right through the intersection every time I come to a stop sign?

If someone stops at a red light and doesn’t go again until the light turns green, does that mean I can just continue driving through every red light I ever see, for the rest of my life?

You may say traffic laws aren’t like the Torah, but are they really that different? Aren’t the traffic laws created to protect us from being hurt?

Don’t the rules God gave in the Torah protect us? I am not talking about protection from being T-boned in an intersection, but protection from spending eternity in hell!

No one, no human, that is, can live 100% in accordance with the Torah, 100% of the time. That is why God created the sacrificial system: he knew we couldn’t do it right, so he gave us an escape clause to protect us from ourselves. But, when the temple in Jerusalem was destroyed, that put an end (at least, until the next temple) to the sacrificial system, so now what? God’s escape clause from eternal damnation has been erased!

But wait! God sent Yeshua, the Messiah, so that through our belief in him as the Messiah, and by means of his sacrificial death, we could now find forgiveness from sin without the temple. And beyond that, Christianity tells us that Yeshua did more than make forgiveness available- he did away with the Torah!

Um… uh… hold it a minute. Shaul tells us that the Torah created sin (Romans 7:7), and Christianity says that Yeshua did away with the Torah, so doesn’t that mean there is no more sin? And if there is no more sin, then why do we need to follow any rules, ceremonies, or rituals? If there is no Torah, then there is no sin, and everyone is automatically saved without having to do anything! Hallelujah!!

What? You mean that’s not right? Are you telling me that when Yeshua did away with the Torah, which should mean there is no more sin, there is still sin? Shaul lied? God tricked us? Yeshua didn’t do away with sin?

But, but, but… if sin still exists, then the Torah is still valid, so how can Christians say the Torah is not valid for them? Are Christians automatically righteous in God’s eyes?

I don’t really need to answer that, do I?

Christians say that they don’t follow the Torah, they follow Yeshua, but Yeshua lived in accordance with the Torah and Christians don’t, so how can they say they follow him?

Here’s what it all boils down to, folks- if you REALLY want to follow Yeshua, then you need to live in accordance with the Torah, to the best of your abilities. And when you fail, as we all do, you still have Yeshua to fall back on to receive forgiveness.

On the other hand, if you choose to live according to one of the many Christian religions, all of which are composed of man-made rules, tenets, and ceremonies and (for the most part) reject God’s Torah, then I think you will have a hard time convincing God that you want to be righteous in his eyes.

Thank you for being here and please share these messages, subscribe to this ministry on my messianicmoment.com website, and also on my YouTube channel, “Like” my Messianic Moment Facebook page, and join my Facebook group called “Just God’s Word” (but please ensure you agree to the rules to be let in).

And remember that I always welcome your comments.

That’s it for this week, so l’hitraot and (an early) Shabbat Shalom!

Seven Times Seventy? Not Really.

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In the gospel of Matthew, Chapter 18, verses 21-22, Kefa (Peter) asks Yeshua (Jesus) if he should forgive his brother for sinning against him as many as 7 times. Yeshua answered not just 7 times, but 70 times 7 times.

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I understand the point Yeshua wanted to make, but I think this verse is misleading. Here’s what I mean- if someone has sinned against me that many times, regardless of whether or not I forgive them, I have to be pretty stupid to keep falling for it!

In the original Star Trek TV series, there is a situation where Scotty tells Sulu:

“Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.”

We are warned that if we do not forgive on earth, we will not be forgiven in heaven (Matthew 6:14); however, it should be understood that forgiving someone doesn’t mean we should automatically trust them, nor should we allow them to continue to sin against us. That is just foolish; remember that Yeshua told his disciples they should be wise as serpents, yet gentle as doves (Matthew 10:16). Continuing to place yourself in a position where people can hurt you is not being very wise.

With wisdom comes understanding, and if someone continually sins against you, you need to understand that even if they apologize every single time, their apology is empty. I learned a long time ago that people do not mean what they say, they mean what they do.

If someone continually sins against you, whether it be the same sin or a different one, their apology must be taken with more than a grain of salt- you’ll need an entire 50 lb. block of the stuff!

The way I handle this is to automatically forgive someone who sins against me because whether or not they ask for it is irrelevant. If they are truly repentant, they will ask for forgiveness and that’s a good thing; and if they never ask for forgiveness, that’s OK with me. My forgiveness of them makes me right with God, but it has no influence on their relationship with God. They need to repent of their sin and ask God for forgiveness, as well as asking me.

So, I forgive those who sin against me and, if they continue to do so, apology or not, I will put them away from me. Yes, I will continue to forgive the sins, but to prevent myself from being a fool I will put that person out of my life.

In other words, I ain’t giving them the chance to get anywhere near the point of 7 times 70.

“Turning the other cheek” is not to be taken literally, and since I have a limited number of cheeks to begin with, the smart thing for me to do is when I realize someone sinning against me won’t stop, I need to take myself out of that relationship.

So, forgive those who sin against you, and do so automatically, but do not allow someone to have the opportunity to continue to sin against you. That isn’t Godly, it’s just plain stupid.

Thank you for being here. Please share these messages with everyone you know to help this ministry grow. Subscribe to this ministry here and on my YouTube channel, as well, and join my Facebook group called “Just God’s Word”, but please ensure you agree to the rules, or you cannot be allowed in.

And remember that I always welcome your comments.

That’s it for today, so l’hitraot and Baruch HaShem!

No One Listened

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No one listened to what? Who was supposed to listen to what, and when?

Well, let’s get one thing straight right now- there is a difference between hearing and listening.

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Hearing is nothing more than physically recognizing a sound, maybe even recognizing the words, but not necessarily acting on them.

But when you listen to someone, that means not only do you recognize they are speaking, but you are paying attention, you are taking in what they say and, if what they say is edifying and helpful, you then act upon it.

To answer the question, the early leaders of the movement that accepted Yeshua as the Messiah made up of Gentiles are the people I am talking about, and what they heard was a warning from Shaul (Paul) in many of his letters, about not being drawn away from proper worship and the truth of the Messiah that Shaul had taught them by false prophets, false messiahs, and false teachings.

In fact, going through my Concordance to see how many times Shaul warned of falling prey to false teachings and prophets, there are no less than 11 times I found he warned against this.

And not warned against false teachings from outside the believing community, but also from within the congregations, themselves!

You may be thinking, “What false teachings are you talking about, Steve?”

To answer that lets first observe how those early Jewish followers of Yeshua lived and worshiped.

That is an easy thing- just think of any Jewish person you know, and that is pretty close to how the First Century Jews lived and worshiped, as well, except for the addition of modern conveniences. The early followers of Yeshua lived as he did- as Torah observant worshipers of God, recognizing that Yeshua was a human being with divine powers given to him through the Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit) because he was the Messiah.

The false teachings came much later and were not from any of the Jewish leaders because they had all died or been martyred, but from Gentile believers who were now leading this Jewish sect away from Judaism, for both political reasons (to avoid persecution from the Romans) and- this is my opinion- for personal reasons.

The personal reasons (again, this is what I believe) were simply that to become totally observant to the Torah, even though Shaul was taking them there a little at a time, was too much for them. The sacrifices they had to make, the changes from their previous way of life, and the pressures from outside sources (think of the Parable of the Sower in Matthew 13) was more than they could take.

They didn’t want to stop believing in Yeshua, but they also didn’t want to be associated with the Jews who were being persecuted by Rome because at that time they were rebelling against the Roman rule of Judea.

So, they decided to change some things around, such as the Shabbat now was on Sunday, the leadership of this movement (now called Christianity) rejected the Moedim (Holy Days) God told us to celebrate (Leviticus 23), and actually came against the Jews by siding with Rome during the Bar Kochba rebellion in the mid-2nd Century. When the Jews were not allowed (by Rome) to live in the Holy City, the Bishop of Jerusalem was a Christian!

Once the Jewish rebellion was put down, and the temple was destroyed, Rome turned against the Christians who were doing something, in Rome’s eyes, just as bad as revolting- they were creating a new religion. By the time Constantine legalized Christianity (not that he ever really converted, himself), Christianity was now totally separated from its Jewish roots.

Hence, the false teachings that Shaul warned would take his congregations of Yeshua-following Gentiles away from proper worship, were ignored.

What was originally a sect within Judaism had mutated to a totally different religion, following nothing but man-made tenets, observing man-made holidays, praying to graven images and statues, deifying the Messiah, and rejecting almost every commandment of the father!

As far as living the way Yeshua lived? Not even close! It is a sad thing that so many Christians have been taught they should follow in the footsteps of their savior, yet their religion teaches them to ignore exactly what they should be doing- living a Torah observant life as Yeshua did.

They even stopped calling him Yeshua ha Mashiach (Yeshua, the Messiah); he was now Jesus Christ, their savior, another way to separate themselves from anything “Jewish” about him, and later to declare that Jesus is also God.

So, there you have it. They had been warned and warned, and warned, again, not to listen to false teachings or false prophets. Did they? Nah! That is why there are so many Christian denominations, nearly all of which profess to worship God and live as Yeshua did, but in truth, don’t even come close.

I pray that someday their ears will be opened, their hearts will be touched, and they will do t’shuvah, turning from their man-made drek and worshiping God the way Yeshua (and Shaul, and James, and all the other Apostles) taught them how they should.

Thank you for being here and please subscribe to both this website ministry and my Facebook page, also to my YouTube channel, and join my Facebook group called “Just God’s Word” (but please make sure you agree to the rules, or I cannot let you in).

That’s it for this week, so l’hitraot and an early Shabbat Shalom!