Tag: Yahoshua

Podcast Episode: Navigating Life with Zeal and Purpose

Podcast Episode: Navigating Life with Zeal and Purpose

Pip: There's a particular kind of person who takes notes at church camp in junior high — not because anyone told them to, but because someone they admired was doing it. That person grew up to write for The Way of the Rabbi, and honestly, the notes never stopped.

Mara: This episode follows cj through one post that doubles as a live notebook — questions written during a Sabbath teaching, worked through in public, on the theme of zeal, purpose, and what it actually costs to lead with passion. Let's start with that question: who are you a hero to?

Navigating Life with Zeal and Purpose

Pip: The post opens with a question a pastor asked mid-sermon, and it lands differently than most sermon prompts because the writer admits it cracked something open — a lifelong hero complex, relationships damaged by the need to fix, and the double-edged nature of passion itself.

Mara: The post frames it directly: "Passion and zeal are a double-edged sword. You will either be admired or despised because of it."

Pip: That's the honest tension at the center of everything that follows — zeal is not automatically a virtue. The motivation is what determines whether passion serves God or serves the self.

Mara: David becomes the pivot point here. The post quotes Psalm 119:57 — "Indignation has taken hold of me because of the wicked who forsake Your Torah!" — and the argument is that David's passion was finally oriented toward what God desired, not toward David's own need to be the hero. That reorientation is what earns him the "heart after God's own heart" description.

Pip: So the question shifts from "am I zealous?" to "what is my zeal actually for?" And the post works through that honestly — naming gossip, hurtful speech, the temptation to enforce rather than witness.

Mara: The temple scene from John 2 does real work in that argument. Yahoshua's action there wasn't impulsive; it was proportional to the location, the violation, and the stakes. Time and place matter, the post says. Zeal without that discernment is just force.

Pip: And then the post turns inward — fear of failure, fear of other people's opinions, doubt in past failures. The quip writes itself, but the list is genuinely searching.

Mara: It lands on legacy. The closing questions are for the children watching: not followers, but servant leaders. "Act Justly, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly." And the final line leans on Proverbs — trust, submit, and the path gets made straight.

Pip: Zeal pointed inward corrodes; zeal surrendered outward builds something. That's the distinction worth sitting with.

Mara: The questions in this post aren't rhetorical — they're the kind you write down and carry home.

Pip: Right. A junior high kid saw someone taking notes and started taking notes. That's how it spreads. More from The Way of the Rabbi next time.

Navigating Life with Zeal and Purpose

Navigating Life with Zeal and Purpose

I am a learner. When people are teaching or I think they have knowledge that will help me, I listen. I don’t pretend to have all the answers or that I know everything. I will challenge someone and their thoughts if they are using passages out of context or making arguments for something with no new information than I already have. But I am teachable, if you are right I will prayerfully change my mind with new understanding. However, I am not one to be whisked away, blown about by every wind of doctrine or “new revelation” someone one has.

When in a teaching service I take notes. I have always taken notes. Something I learned from my jr. high camp counselor. I don’t remember much about him but I do know that I looked up to him, I admired him. So much so that when I saw him taking notes during chapel, I took notes during chapel. One thing that he told me was “write questions” if you want to learn, write down questions that stir in your mind as you listen. Then after, find the answers. This is how you grow.

This past Sabbath while I sat and listened my mind was full of questions. The first question that I wrote down was given by the Pastor. “Who are you a hero to?” I need to be totally honest here, although I was listening and relating to the message, many of my thoughts and attention were drawn to more and more questions. Some admittedly prompted by the message others prompted by the questions themselves.

This post is going to be different than the majority of my posts because I am going to ask you the questions I was prompted to write. I will include the answers that I wrote, even the partial answers, if I have them. I am still working through these thoughts, after all this was just yesterday that I wrote them down.

The message text was the Torah portion Numbers 25-29. The hero in the text is Phineas. The prompt, “Who are you a hero to?” My next note was ‘who do I want to be a hero for/to?’ This resinated with me because I have for much of my life had a hero complex. I wanted to be the hero. I tried to fix problems even if the person didn’t want me doing anything. My desire to be needed and a hero won out every time and it killed many relationships. Passion and zeal are a double-edged sword. You will either be admired or despised because of it.

David was passionate in many areas some good and some not so good, depending on human nature. In the end king David was said to have a heart after Gods own heart. That’s pretty high praise. David writes in Psalm 119:57, “Indignation has taken hold of me because of the wicked who forsake Your Torah!” The thing about David is in the end his desire was for what God desired. This puts into perspective the idea of being a hero and answers what being a hero looks like. The motivation is key, am I the motivation or is God the motivation?

What am I indignant about? Do I have a zeal and passion for Torah? Does it motivate me? Certainly, the majority of my posts since 2020 have revolved around being observant of Gods instruction rooted in the Tanakh. What stirs my passion and zeal in the Kingdom of God? Clearly, a desire for those who call themselves Christian to walk in the ancient paths. In life there are times when heroism is needed. A train is speeding down the rails and someone is stuck on the track. A hero is needed, get the person off the track! Someone is struggling in their understanding, struggling in a sin or rebellious spirit, instruct, persuade, but you cannot force someone. Let your own zeal and passion be a witness not the enforcer.

This begs the question: “What topics does one hear coming out of my mouth?” When in conversation am I joining in on the gossip? Am I adding to hurtful speech? What is my response to these things happening around me? It depends on the location, and the circumstances, as it does in most instances. In John 2 we read about Yahoshua’s visit to the Temple. “In the temple courts He found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. 15 So He made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; He scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. 16 To those who sold doves He said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning My Father’s house into a market!” 17 His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for Your house will consume Me.“

Time and place matter. Here in the above passage they are in the Temple. In the Torah, how we are to treat the Temple and use the Temple is explained in detail. They weren’t even close and Yahoshua acted on the zeal He had for His Father’s house. We read in Acts 21:20 that those coming to faith in Yahoshua, were, “all zealous for the Torah.” In a letter to Titus, Paul writes, “. . . who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every Torah-less deed, and purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.”

So what keeps me from being zealous today? What keeps me from observing Torah? Is it temptation, surely, the temptation of the flesh. As the Scriptures say, our spirit and our flesh are at odds. Do we give into the flesh? We shouldn’t. In fact we should do what we can to die to ourselves and put on the new man. For we are new creations in Messiah Yahoshua. Does that mean temptations stop, that the great seducer just stops whispering in our ear? Absolutely not, if anything he fights even harder. Therefore we must fight harder by surrendering to the will of God in Messiah Yahoshua. “If you love Me, obey My commandments.” This can be a fearful thing which brings us to another question.

What fears are keeping me down? For me right now I would say, fear of failure, fear of other’s opinions, doubt in myself, in my knowledge and ability. Even fear of and in my past failures. Are these fears stronger than my Messiah? “Fear not for I am with you.” That’s what Yahoshua says. So why am I running from my fears rather than chasing them off? “I can do all things through Messiah who strengthens me.”

Who have we been made to be? Revelation 5:9-10 says; “. . . with Your blood You purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.” We are in Messiah Yahoshua a kingdom of priests to serve our God! We are to lead others in honoring the Sabbath Day, the Feast Days, the Torah!

What legacy am I leaving for my children? What I hope is to leave them an example: Don’t be a simple follower of Yahoshua, but servant leaders. Love God, Love your neighbor. Act Justly, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly. This is what I hope my kids see in me. When life knocks you down, when temptation grips your heart, when the spiritual battle around you seems too over whelming: “Trust in Adonai with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.”

You are loved,
cj

Podcast Episode: The Ancient Paths: Following God’s Word in Modern Times

Podcast Episode: The Ancient Paths: Following God’s Word in Modern Times

Pip: There is a woman in a crowd who interrupts a sermon to compliment the speaker's mother, and somehow that two-thousand-year-old moment becomes the sharpest possible diagnosis of where religious attention goes wrong. That is the kind of move cj makes on The Way of the Rabbi.

Mara: This episode follows one extended argument about obedience, distraction, and what it actually means to believe — tracing from the Gospels through the Torah and back to a crossroads in Jeremiah. Let's start with the ancient paths themselves.

The Ancient Paths: Hearing, Believing, Doing

Pip: The post opens with a scene most readers would gloss over — a woman in the crowd praising the mother of Yahoshua — and uses it to ask a harder question: what pulls our attention away from the instruction itself and toward the person delivering it?

Mara: The anchor is Luke 11:28, and the post frames it as a corrective: "blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it." That word "keep" is doing real work here, and the post unpacks exactly why.

Pip: The upshot is that hearing alone is not enough. The post argues that Yahoshua is consistently calling people back to active obedience — not passive acknowledgment — and that the distractions are everywhere, from elevated figures to misread letters.

Mara: The linguistic argument is where this gets precise. The Aramaic word for "believe" used by Yahoshua is "haymen," rooted in the Hebrew "aman" — the same root that gives us "amen." The post defines it plainly: "to support, prop up, or make firm. It is NOT passive, rather it is indeed, active."

Pip: So when Yahoshua says "believe," he is not describing a feeling. He is describing something you do with your feet.

Mara: Exactly, and the post applies that reading across several passages in John — 6:29, 6:38 through 40, and 6:47 — each time returning to the same Aramaic root to make the case consistent. The companion piece, Understanding Faith Beyond Faith and Action, develops this thread further for readers who want to stay in it.

Pip: The Jeremiah crossroads image is where it lands — stand at the ancient paths, ask which is the good way, take it. The post notes the answer given in Jeremiah is not a triumphant yes. It is "We will not take it."

Mara: And that refusal is what the post calls the real distraction: not wickedness in some dramatic sense, but simply declining to seek the instruction and walk in it.

Pip: A crowd shouts praise at the wrong thing, and the Teacher redirects to the Word. That tension has not resolved in two thousand years.

Mara: More to come from The Way of the Rabbi — same crossroads, next episode.

The Ancient Paths: Following God’s Word in Modern Times

The Ancient Paths: Following God’s Word in Modern Times

“. . . more than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it.” Luke 11:28

This short statement was made by Yahoshua. It was in response to a woman who essentially interrupted His teaching with her own statement. “As Yahoshua was saying these things, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said, “Blessed is the womb that bore You, and blessed are the breasts that nursed You!” Recorded in the previous verse. This statement is clearly a distraction from the intention of the passage. It takes the eyes and ears off the intended purpose, “hear and obey,” and places them on a person.

This reminds me of when Yahoshua was taken into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan. Satan says, “if you bow down to me, all this can be yours.” The temptation to look away from the Father. Many have fallen for this distraction. As it is presented in many different ways today. Anything that keeps one from hearing the word of God and keeping it, is that distraction. Whether it be in the person of Mary; Yahoshua’s mother, as something otherworldly. Or Paul the Apostle, as somehow greater than Yahoshua, carrying in him greater authority. Elevating his words, twisting them, and holding those misinterpreted, above that of Gods instruction.

In John 5:24 Yahoshua is recorded as saying; “Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.” Yahoshua spoke Aramaic, it is rooted in the same Semitic language structure and meaning as Hebrew. The word ‘believe’ in Aramaic is ‘haymen’ ܗܝܡܢ which has its root in the Hebrew word ‘aman’ אָܡܢ. Where we get the word amen, said following a prayer or in agreement with a statement. It means, ‘so be it’ or ‘let it be’, the idea of putting action to the statement, in support, to prop up, to make firm. (i recently wrote some similar thoughts on faith here: Understanding Faith Beyond Faith and Action, or if you prefer to listen to an overview listen here: Podcast Episode).

Here is the idea, we are called by Yahoshua to both hear and obey, believe, do, the Word of God. The Word of God whenever referenced in Scripture by Yahoshua or even Paul, is the Tanakh, with emphasis on the Torah. The title most have come to know is “the law.” In the gospels it is repeatedly called the “Law of Moses,” or referenced, “Moses wrote.” In the Gospels, if one reads them with this understanding it becomes clear that Yahoshua not only was the Word made flesh. He was calling Israel back to it, the Word, and therefore to Himself.

Luke chapter eleven is all about stepping into covenant, guarding your house, hearing Gods word and obeying it. Standing in the ancient path. Jeremiah 6:16 says, “Here is what Yahweh says: ‘Stand at the crossroads and look; ask about the ancient paths, ‘which one is the good way?’ Take it, and you will find rest for your souls. But they said, ‘We will not take it.”” The distraction comes from the world crying out, blessed is this thing or that thing, rather than Blessed be the One from Whom it was created.

In the Luke 11 Yahoshua had just finished talking about cleaning your house, and warning that if it isn’t filled with the Light of the Word but only swept out. The demon which was cast out may return with others and the state of that man will be worse than it was at first. Right here is where the woman cries out, “Blessed is the womb . . .”. Immediately, Yahoshua states, “blessed are those who hear the Word, and keep it.” The focus of Yahoshua’s teachings has always been obedience to Gods Word, nothing more and certainly nothing less.

Clearly, Paul, understood this for he wrote to the Thessalonians, “When this man who avoids Torah (Lawless One, Torahless One) comes, the Adversary will gibe him the power to work all kinds of false miracles, signs and wonders. He will enable him to deceive, in all kinds of wicked ways, those who are headed for destruction because they would not receive the love of the truth that could have saved them. This is why God is causing them to go astray, so that they will believe the Lie. The result will be that all who have not believed the truth, but have taken their pleasure in wickedness (lawlessness), will be condemned.”

The mark of those in darkness is that they practice lawlessness, in other words they do not practice, the Torah. They refuse to walk on the ancient paths; “But they said, ‘We will not take it.'” It really boils down to whether or not one is willing to seek out the instruction of God, believe it and thereby keep it. In so doing they put that belief into action, supporting the Scriptures through their daily walk. Propping the Word up, not tearing it down and calling it “Old” or “obsolete.” They indeed make firm the covenant by walking in its statutes and commands. Seeking with their whole heart the Father and His Kingdom, becoming ambassadors to the King in a fallen world.

Let me wrap this up by looking at a couple verses in the Gospel of John. (John 6:29, 38-40, and 47) –

29 Yahoshua answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.” Again Yahoshua speaking Aramaic would have used the word ‘haymen’ ܗܝܡܢ which again has its root in the Hebrew word ‘aman’ אָܡܢ. Simply, it means to support, prop up, or make firm. It is NOT passive, rather it is indeed, active.

38 For I have come down from heaven not to do My will but to do the will of Him who sent Me. 39 And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given Me, but raise them up at the last day. 40 For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.” Again Yahoshua speaking Aramaic would have used the word ‘haymen’ ܗܝܡܢ which again has its root in the Hebrew word ‘aman’ אָܡܢ. Simply, it means to support, prop up, or make firm. It is NOT passive, rather it is indeed, active.

47 “Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life.” Again Yahoshua speaking Aramaic would have used the word ‘haymen’ ܗܝܡܢ which again has its root in the Hebrew word ‘aman’ אָܡܢ. Simply, it means to support, prop up, or make firm. It is NOT passive, rather it is indeed, active.

A calling to seek with your whole heart the Father and His Kingdom, becoming an ambassador to the King in a fallen world. The question, is will you listen and obey? Will you hear the word, and keep it? Will you sweep out the old life and fill the house with light of the world?

You are loved,
cj

Reflections on Family and Faith in Daily Life

Reflections on Family and Faith in Daily Life

Quick life update before we dive into the current post. i took a vacation. A much needed visit to see two out of my three adult sons. As well, their amazing wives and my now three grandchildren, with a fourth on the way. It was an amazing week in a beautiful part of the world. The grandkids are growing like weeds. my boys continue to make me proud, as they have grown into great men, husbands, and fathers. They help each other out on projects as they live 15 minutes apart. While i was there my middle son helped by oldest put up a new stove pipe for a wood stove and my oldest son helped my middle son with some landscaping work, putting in a pad for a fifth wheel trailer with full hookups. The way they worked together, communicated, asked questions, gave advice, and sought outside input from others was so impressive and inspiring to me.

The earliest “Christians” as you may know were not call themselves Christians. Although, the term Christian means “little christ” it was used as a mocking term. An insult. Believers, were known in Judaism as the Sect of the Nazarene. “Followers of the Way”, was another name in which one would be known by within the early Church. It was a family. Sabbaths, began with a meal at sundown on Friday, known then as the “day of preparation.” These meals were in homes with like minded family, friends, and neighbors. They then would attend Synagogue on the Sabbath day, we call Saturday. This was the custom. It didn’t stop there as they were all excited for life in Messiah they met as often as they could.

We read in Acts 2 this description; “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. A sense of awe came over everyone, and the apostles performed many wonders and signs. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they shared with anyone who was in need. With one accord they continued to meet daily in the temple courts/ and to break bread from house to house, sharing their meals with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And Adonai added to their number daily those who were being saved.”

This eagerness to be apart and to learn and grow in Messiah was infectious. As we read, “And Adonai added to their number daily those who were being saved.” A desire to be like Messiah was the heart of those in Berea, as we read in Act 17 (which I have shared numerous times over the past few posts) “Now the Bereans were more noble-minded than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if these teachings were true.”

This is what i was reminded of this past week and a half. i watched my boys (now men), live out early Ekklesia life. Throughout history, culture, and community, there have been pockets that mirror this life. There is a glimmer of The Way. It sparks a desire within those partaking to commitment, one to one another, as a collective. While simultaneously sparking the interest of those on the outside looking in.

They say old habits die hard. It isn’t because there isn’t a desire for change, but routine is comfortable. Braking out of routine was the problem the Pharisee’s and the Religious leaders had. Their way of life was being challenged, their understanding was being challenged, their traditions were being challenged. When Yahoshua (Jesus) was talking about why His disciples didn’t fast He says this in particular to make His point: “Besides that, after drinking old wine, people don’t want new: because they say, ‘The old is better.'”

This is true with many things in life. Recently, the company that I work for as means to pay bills has been updating their computer system. With every update it will be heard, “I liked it better the old way!” I have probably said it a time or two. Yet, the more I use the new system the less I feel that way. The Pharisee’s had been doing things one way their whole lives, and in so doing adding more and more man made traditions. It is the same with the Church today, they have been doing things one way their entire lives, and following the traditions of man in the process.

my desire has always been to strip away the pomp and circumstance for simplicity. To look beyond the torn veil into the perfect instruction of God. To test what I have been taught and to seek Gods truth above all else. And to do it in community with other Followers of the Way, the sect of the Nazarene. To mirror the early Ekklesia, in fellowship and in attractiveness. So that those who see from the outside, see a group of people, loving God with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength. And likewise, loving their neighbor as themselves. Seeking to live lives pleasing to the Father by imitating the Son.

What is your desire? How do you want to be seen? And who do you want others to see in you?
For me– simplicity, just, loving, humble, a reflection of my Messiah.

You are loved,
cj

Podcast Episode: Embracing a Lifestyle Beyond Religion

Podcast Episode: Embracing a Lifestyle Beyond Religion

Pip: Religion, relationship, or something else entirely — cj has been working through a question that sounds simple until you actually sit with it.

Mara: The Way of the Rabbi this week lands on a third option: lifestyle. We're looking at what that word does that the other two can't, and why it matters for how faith actually gets lived.

Pip: Let's start with the case for moving past both labels.

Embracing a Lifestyle Beyond Religion

Mara: The tension here is one most people in Christian circles have heard: "not a religion, a relationship." The post takes that motto seriously before pushing past it — asking whether relationship alone captures what following Yahoshua actually demands.

Pip: The turn comes through John 15:15, which the post reads closely: "I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you."

Mara: That verse does real work. Friendship implies mutuality, knowing, being let in on something. It's a different posture than mere compliance.

Pip: But the post doesn't stop there — because friendship, as the post illustrates with a casual exchange between two friends deciding their evening, implies autonomy. Two people, two wills, loose plans. And the question the post is quietly raising is whether that's quite right either.

Mara: Right — and the post surfaces the complication directly. Just before verse fifteen, Jesus says "you are my friends if you do what I command." So the friendship is real, but it's not without shape.

Pip: Which is where the post reaches back through Scripture — Adam recognizing God's footsteps in the garden, the Angel sharing a meal with Abraham, Moses at the burning bush, David's raw plea in Psalm 4. The throughline is that God has always wanted proximity, but proximity with purpose.

Mara: Micah gets quoted on exactly that tension: "O man, you have already been told what is good, what Adonai requires of you — no more than to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God." That's not a checklist. It's a way of moving through the world.

Pip: So religion gives you rules, relationship gives you warmth, and the post argues neither word carries the full weight. Lifestyle does — because a lifestyle is the habits, attitudes, and moral standards that together constitute how someone actually lives.

Mara: The post lands it this way: entering covenant means agreeing to live by a set standard, taking on the lifestyle of Yahoshua — ambassador, royal priesthood, set apart, marked by obedience. The phrase the post settles on is "a lifestyle not a religion," and it's deliberate: a lifestyle, unlike a label, outlives every era it moves through.

Pip: That's the practical upshot — if what you're carrying is a lifestyle, it travels with you into every room, every relationship, every ordinary Tuesday.

Mara: Which is exactly the kind of whole-life integration the next territory opens up.

Pip: What stays with me is that third word — lifestyle — doing the work that the other two couldn't quite finish.

Mara: Act justly, love mercy, walk humbly. That's the shape of it. More on how it gets lived, next time.

Embracing a Lifestyle Beyond Religion

Embracing a Lifestyle Beyond Religion

Religion, relationship, or lifestyle? The motto for many Christians is; “Christianity isn’t a religion, it’s a relationship.” And they get this idea from Jesus Himself. He calls His followers, friends and brothers. The “Church” is described as the “Bride of Christ.” So there is good reason to use a motto that pulls on the idea of relationship. Religion in our culture has become a byword for rigidity, ritual, rules and regulations, requiring strict adherence. So yes when you put the two side-by-side, relationship is far more appealing than religion.

The definition of religion is: a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, especially when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs; the practice of religious beliefs; ritual observance of faith; strict faithfulness; devotion.

The definition of relationship is: a connection, association, or involvement; connection between persons by blood or marriage; an emotional or other connection between people.

When one reads John 15:15; “I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.” It is easy to see the idea of relationship. Also, the idea of relationship makes it feel like a partnership. In a partnership there are two-sides, generally equal and therefore autonomous, moving freely, within the relationship.

Two friends are having a conversation, “What are you doing tonight?” friend one asks friend two. “I don’t have any plans, just gonna go home and watch TV, maybe get takeout on my way.” Friend two reply’s. “You want to grab a bite together and then hit up downtown, there’s a block party tonight?” He asks, adding, “And I don’t want to go alone.” Friend two hesitates, “Come on, it will be fun.” Friend one pushes. Finally, friend two relents, “Ok, I’ll go.” Regardless of how this conversation ends up it is two individuals, making individual decisions.

Religion is as defined a rigid devotion to the rules. If the religious leader says, do this, a good devout religious person, will do it. Wash your hands this way, before eating. In order to join our order you must do this or that in this order, no exception. You must follow these rules precisely or you will need to ritually cleanse yourself. It is focused and it is one-way. One is simply an observer in a collective observance of said religious practices. A participant in the pre-ordained ritualistic rites. No conversation, no friendship, just instruction.

But what does Scripture teach us about the dynamics of this faith that we have? In the beginning, we read that there was a relationship so close-knit that Adam recognized the footsteps of God in the garden. We see the Angel of the God having a meal with Abraham. Even disclosing what was about to take place, the judgement of Sodom and Gomorrah. We see a burning bush and Moses, then later a pillar of fire by night and cloud by day. We see a covenant established between God and the people of Israel. A set of instructions given that if they obeyed them they would be blessed. But, if they did not obey them they would be cursed.

Israel was to be the Nation to the nations, a city set on a hill that drew all nations to God. A priestly nation, each with a particular part based on the tribe they were from. Yet, even it what appears to be the establishment of Religion we see that it was still wrapped in a fundamental desire to have a relationship. David, who is said, “a man after God’s own heart,” writes in Psalm 4 a plea.

“O God, my vindicator! Answer me when I call! When I was distressed, you set me free; now have mercy on me, and hear my prayer.” This is not the cry of religion this is the cry of a relationship. He continues, “Men of rank, how long will you shame my honor, love what is vain, case after lies? Understand that Adonai sets apart the godly person for Himself; Adonai will hear when I call to Him. You can be angry, but do not sin! Think about this as you lie in bed, and calm down. Offer sacrifices rightly, and put your trust in Adonai.”

This reminds me of what the Prophet Micah wrote; “With what can I come before Adonai to bow down before God on high? Should I come before Him with burnt offerings? with calves in their first year? Would Adonai take delight in thousand of rams with ten thousand rivers of olive oil? Could I give my firstborn to pay for my sin, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? O man, you have already been told what is good, what Adonai requires of you – no more than to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God.”

David finishes Psalm 4 with this: “Many ask, ‘Who can show us some good?’ Adonai, lift the light of Your face over us! You have filled my heart with more joy than all their grain and new wine. I will lie down and sleep in peace; for, Adonai, you alone make me live securely.“

Adonai Elohim, has always desired relationship with His creation. He does however do so with a purpose. There is order, there is righteousness, there is Holiness. He being loving, made away for Israel and later to all the world through Messiah Yahoshua. So this beings us back to the religion or relationship? And to that I say, yes! We began with John 15:15 “I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.” However, just before this He says, “You are my friends if you do what I command.“

If we take religion and relationship we get a lifestyle. The definition of lifestyle is: the habits, attitudes, tastes, moral standards, economic level, etc., that together constitute the mode of living of an individual or group.

This is why I have chosen “a lifestyle not a religion” over the common catchphrase, “not religion but a relationship.” Some would say this is simply semantics, and they wouldn’t be entirely wrong. However, like the conversation between two individual friends, there is autonomy. However, when we enter into covenant with the Father we are agreeing to live by a set standard. We are taking on the lifestyle of Yahoshua, “fixing our eyes on the Initiator and Completer of that Faith, Yahoshua – who, in exchange for obtaining the joy set before Him, endured death on a tree as a criminal, scorning the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of Elohim.”

It is His lifestyle that we are to carry. We are called to be Ambassadors of the Kingdom. Living in the world but not of the world. We are to be the shining city on a hill, that beacon of light that draws the nations back to Elohim. We are His chosen people, a royal priesthood, ministering to the poor and needy, the nobles and the kings. Living set apart lives as Adonai instructed in His Word. That same Word taught by the Apostles. One continuous letter to humanity, from the Creator of all things. His call for us to return to His Way. Dying to ourselves we put on the new self, the lifestyle of our King Yahoshua, that is marked by obedience.

John 15:9-14 –
“As the Father has loved Me, so have I loved you. Now remain in My love. If you keep My commands, you will remain in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commands and remain in His love. I have told you this so that My joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command.”

The way of the Rabbi, a lifestyle not a religion, for a lifestyle outlives every label.

You are loved,
cj

Profound Life Advice: Stay Teachable and Discern Truth

Profound Life Advice: Stay Teachable and Discern Truth

my grandfather was a minister. He served the Church in many capacities, pastor, evangelist, director of interracial evangelism, conference superintendent, and editor of the denominations preachers monthly magazine, ‘The Sermon Builder’. He was also an author of several books. Finally he was a devoted husband, father, grandfather, and above all a servant. my grandfather gave me a lot of great advice over the years but one particular bit of advice stands out over the rest.

i was in my early 20’s. We had just been discussing life and what the future holds for me over a game of Rummy. We played Rummy a lot my grandfather and i, and it was over those games many profound conversations took place. i wish i could remember them all. However, the one i believe he wanted me to take to heart, to make a part of who i was and who i was becoming was this; “Don’t ever think that you know everything about anything so that you remain teachable. However, know your stuff so that you can discern truth from lies.”

In a world of A.I. and content being created faster than anytime in known human history, no advice is of greater importance. Especially, if you are a follower of The Way. If you call yourself a Christian. If you want to follow Jesus it is absolutely imperative that you heed the advice of my grandfather, especially that last part. “However, know your stuff so that you can discern truth from lies.”

The Church, perhaps more so than anytime in its history, must be discerning. Why? Because the deception talked about in Revelation and by Yahoshua (Jesus) in Matthew 24, is without a doubt approaching. We must be like the Berean’s in Acts 17 (v11-12). “Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so. Therefore many of them believed, along with a number of prominent Greek women and men.”

Paul reiterates this to a young preacher named Timothy. In a letter to him he gives the following advice: “But evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Messiah Yahoshua. All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.“

We must know the Word inside and out. We must take the notes from the messages we are being taught and search out the Scriptures to see whether or not what is being taught is truth. The “All Scripture” that Paul is referring to is the Tanakh, what is known unfortunately as the “Old Testament”. i say unfortunately, because, ‘Old’ gives the impression that it is outdated or unnecessary and that couldn’t be farther from the truth. It is in fact where we test things. Does it lineup with what the Father has already revealed?

It is important to remain open-minded however even more so it is important to remain rooted in Scripture. “Don’t ever think that you know everything about anything so that you remain teachable. However, know your stuff so that you can discern truth from lies.”

You are loved,
cj

Podcast Episode: Light vs Darkness: The True Meaning of God’s Instruction

Podcast Episode: Light vs Darkness: The True Meaning of God’s Instruction

Pip: If you’ve ever wondered whether “let your light shine” was secretly a Torah study prompt, cj at The Way of the Rabbi has thoughts — and citations.

Mara: This episode works through one sustained argument: that light and darkness in Scripture are symbolic language for Torah and the absence of it, and that the stakes of misreading that language are higher than most churches acknowledge.

Pip: Let’s get into what Isaiah 5:20 is actually saying — and who it might be aimed at.

—

Light vs Darkness: Torah as the True Instruction

Mara: The post opens with a familiar cultural reference — Isaiah 5:20 and the idea that good is called evil and evil good — then immediately pivots: the argument is that the church has been reading this verse too narrowly, missing that it describes the rejection of Torah itself.

Pip: And the verse lands hard in context. The setup is “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil,” and the post defines evil through 1 John 3:4: “Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness” — where lawlessness means outside the Torah.

Mara: That definition does real work here. If sin is lawlessness and lawlessness means outside God’s instruction, then calling Torah obsolete isn’t a minor theological quibble — it’s the very inversion Isaiah is warning against.

Pip: The post goes further and names the problem directly inside the church. It argues that mainstream Christianity rejects Torah while claiming Paul as the authority for doing so — and then quotes Peter pushing back on exactly that reading.

Mara: The quote is pointed: “the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction.” That’s 2 Peter 3:16, and the post uses it to argue that Paul has been systematically misread, that he upheld Torah, taught it, and instructed Timothy to hold fast to it.

Pip: So the light-darkness imagery isn’t decoration — it’s load-bearing. The post walks through passages from John, Ephesians, and 1 Peter and asks the reader to substitute “Torah” for “light” in each one.

Mara: The substitution exercise is the heart of the argument. “He that follows me shall not walk in darkness” becomes “he that follows me shall not walk outside of instruction.” The post’s claim is that Yahoshua as the Word made flesh makes this reading not just poetic but literal.

Pip: And the bitter-to-sweet axis from Isaiah 5:20 gets the same treatment — Psalm 119:103, Hebrews 6:5, the honey imagery — all pointing to Torah as something to be tasted, not discarded.

Mara: The post closes with a direct challenge: “Did God change so we wouldn’t have to?” It cites Isaiah 29:13 and Matthew 15:7-9 on lips-versus-heart worship, and ends with a single question — are you following the instruction of the Father, or the commandments of men?

Pip: That question doesn’t resolve neatly, which is probably the point.

—

Mara: The through-line here is that language carries theology — and that reading light as instruction rather than sentiment changes what obedience actually looks like.

Pip: Next time, we’ll see what else that thread pulls on.

Read the Post: Light vs Darkness, here.

Understanding Repentance and Return in Faith

Understanding Repentance and Return in Faith

“Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of Adonai.” Acts 3:19

Repent: repentance is not only seeking forgiveness but also turning around. It is a 180 degree life course correction, from a life of sin. Peter in his second sermon found in Acts also states return, return to what? It is a return to righteousness, it is the opposite direction of sin. If sin is the transgression of the law, one can have confidence that to return means to return to the instruction of God. A return not to law as we define it today but to what the word law means, Torah, Instruction, the things commanded by God to be obeyed by man. Perhaps this point could be debated if we only read this verse however, Peter continues.

“And that He may send Yahoshua (Jesus), the Messiah appointed for you, whom heaven must receive until the period of restoration of all things about which God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient time.” Acts 3:20-21

Peter is giving continued validity to the Tanakh and its teachings on repentance. From the pages of Torah to the writings of the prophets, the message is “IF”, if you will turn from your wicked ways and follow Yahweh’s commandments, He will bless you and the land. As Peter says, “that times of refreshing may come from the presence of Adonai.” You see Peter is referring to the time between Yahoshua’s coming, his death, resurrection, and His ascension into the heavens, until He returns in the clouds to rule and reign from Jerusalem as King.

What did Yahoshua declare to Pilate? “You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.” (John 18:37). What is truth? His Word is Truth! And therefore if we are of His Word then we hear His voice, and if you hear His voice do not harden your heart but repent of your sin. What is sin? John writes in 1 John 3:4 – “Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness.” Lawless, without or outside of Torah, the instruction, the things commanded by God to be obeyed by man.

For the entirety of my ministry I preached repentance, and to believe in the Name of Jesus for salvation. Although, now I use His Hebraic name Yahoshua, the message is still the same. However, with one major change, ‘IF’. For roughly three and a half years Yahoshua taught repentance and walking in humility with the Father. What does it mean to walk in humility? It is to set aside yourself and live for Him, by His instruction. Yahoshua came to present the Torah as a living, breathing, instruction manual of how to live righteously, set apart for the kingdom. One must ask the question, “What is one to repent of?” The answer of course is sin. That begs the question, “What is sin?” If sin is Torahlessness which John states than repentance is by its very definition observance of Torah.

In Luke 13 Yahoshua tells this parable: “A man had a fig tree which had been planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and did not find any. And he said to the vineyard-keeper, ‘Behold, for three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree without finding any. Cut it down! Why does it even use up the ground?’ And he answered and said to him, ‘let it alone, sir, for this year too, until I dig around it and put in fertilizer; and if it bears fruit next year, fine; but if not, cut it down.'” Luke 13:6-9

If we compare this parable and the scene Mark tells in 11:12-14 we will see something striking. “On the next day, when they had left Bethany, He became hungry. Seeing at a distance a fig tree in leaf, He went to see if perhaps He would find anything on it; and when He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. He said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again!” And His disciples were listening.” This scene takes place at the end of Yahoshua’s earthly ministry just after His Triumphal entry into Jerusalem. He went straight to the Temple looked around and departed.

What is the significance you ask? There was no fruit in the lives of the Pharisees or other ‘Religious’ leaders. They had replaced much of Torah with their own traditions of man. It is the same thing the western church has done today. The Word calls us back to Himself throughout its pages from Genesis to Revelation. Yet, most will separate the ‘Old’ from the ‘New’ and miss the whole point of the story. The Torah was not found in the people. They were void of righteousness i.e. the righteous acts of the saints, which is obedience to the Ways of God. “The beginning of wisdom is: Acquire wisdom; And with all your acquiring, get understanding.” Proverbs 4:7 – The whole passage is on gaining and keeping wisdom, about faith and the heart. It is and always has been a heart issue!

“The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; Who can understand it? I, Yahweh, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give to each man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doing.” Jeremiah 17:9-10

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and sustain me with a willing spirit.” Psalm 51:10-12

“Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxious thoughts; And see if there be any hurtful way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way.” Psalm 139:23-24

We have a promise in all of this spiritual battling that rages for our very souls. “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28

We read in Act 5:32 – “And we are witnesses of these things; and so is the Holy Spirit, whom Elohim has given to those who obey Him.” To whom is the Holy Spirit given? To those who obey Him. Are you obeying God or man? Are you seeking His ways or are you trapped in a man made religion that is on the wrong side of the spiritual battle?

“If you love Me, you will obey My commandments.” John 14:15

“So you shall keep My commandments, and do them; I am Yahweh. You shall not profane My Holy Name, but I will be sanctified among the sons of Israel; I am Yahweh who sanctifies you.” Leviticus 22:31-32

“So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh– for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.” Romans 8:12-14

We who are under grace are not devoid of Torah, by no means! We are to put on Messiah who is the Word made flesh. The one who sanctifies us and puts us on the good path. As the Proverb states: “He who turns away his ear from listening to the Torah, Even his prayer is an abomination.” Proverbs 28:9 – Psalm 119:53 states, “Righteous indignation has seized me because of the wicked, who forsake Your Torah.” Those who know God’s commands but choose not to obey them, that is the one being described here. As a reminder again 1 John 3:4 tells us what is sin. “Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is Torahlessness.“

My hope is that you will be challenged in heart and mind to search out the Scriptures. To seek what the good way is and to walk in it. That you will desire good works that have been prepared for you to do and that you will do them. Deuteronomy 6:17 “You should diligently keep the commandments of Yahweh your Elohim, and His testimonies and His statutes which He has commanded you.” To put to death the old self and put on the new self, this is repentance, turning from sin (outside of Torah) to righteousness (in Torah).

“All who sin apart from the Torah will also perish apart from the Torah, and all who sin under the Torah will be judged by the Torah. For it is not the hearers of the Torah who are righteous before God, but it is the doers of the Torah who will be declared righteous. Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the Torah, do by nature what the Torah requires, they are a Torah to themselves, even though they do not have the Torah. So they show that the work of the Torah is written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts either accusing or defending them on the day when God will judge men’s secrets through Messiah Yahoshua, as proclaimed by my gospel.” Romans 2:12-16

“I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Messiah Yahoshua, who testified the good confession before Pontius Pilate, that you keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearing of our Adon Yahoshua Messiah.” 1 Timothy 6:13-14

“For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.” 1 John 5:3

The lawless one, the deceiver of nations, the prince of this world, is a lier and a thief. Yahoshua came to present Himself the living Word and as He declared to Pilate, “and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the Truth.” Yahoshua already told us what Truth is; “Your Word is Truth.” (John 17:17; 18:37) – Yahoshua said, “I am door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”

“IF My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14 – Wickedness is being outside of Torah, sin is Torahlessness, the repentant heart will humble itself and pray and seek the Face of God through Yahoshua, turning from wickedness and sin (rebellion to the Torah for those with Torah and for the Gentile born outside of Torah but by nature turning and doing the work of Torah as it is written on the heart through faith) to righteousness in Messiah by faith that He who began a good work in you will see it through to completion.

Humbly return to His Ways, this is the Way of the Rabbi.

You are loved,
cj