Many times I have heard people say that we believe a false doctrine and worse that we are teaching it to others [1]. Just let me share with you in a nutshell what we as Messianic Evangelicals believe and how we strive to live our lives.
What is Christianity? A restoration back to the heart of Yahweh. A New Creation (2 Cor.5:17; Gal.6:15). From selfishness to ahavah (love); from 'me', 'myself', and 'I' to all about Him - Yah'shua (Jesus)!
Paul says:
"Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him" (Colossians 3:9-10, NKJV)
Why does He asks us to deny ourselves? Because we were never made for ourselves! We're made for the image of Yahweh! We are our biggest problem, and yet we think it's our neighbor who's the problem. The only reason we think it's our neighbor is because it's all about self.
Yah'shua (Jesus) said:
"If any man will come after Me, let him first deny himself" (Matthew 16:24, KJV).
Why? Self is the biggest problem. It's not the devil, it's not people; it's living for self, the ability to be offended, discouraged, disappointed, jealous or proud. That wasn't the way Yahweh made us; that's the way man became when he made a choice apart from emet (truth). Every man was born into that lie, and we must be born again. We've turned it into a confession instead of a transformation and many simply live from their heads and follow the letter of the Torah (Law) because their hearts have not been transformed.
We are not called to build anything, but we do.... we build buildings, we build doctrines and clutch onto it all to pay homage to Him, but He doesn't even want that. He wants to manifest Himself through us.
People see Him in our eyes, our face, our words, our life. We are epistles written on the hearts of men. Our life is the sermon! We are not calling people to a denomination or doctrine, but to transformation.
I don't want to be so selfish that I can receive forgiveness and mercy and love without becoming those things for others. Why do I receive mercy? Yahweh gives mercy and pours out mercy so that I become merciful. Why do I receive forgiveness? Yahweh gives me forgiveness, pours out forgiveness, so that I become living forgiveness. Why does He love me unfailingly? So that I become unfailing ahavah (love).
Yahweh can reproduce Himself after His own kind by as many as will believe. We are the embodiment of Yah'shua (Jesus). So how do people know Him? Through you....through me. He says if you forgive, men will be forgiven, if you don't forgive, men will not be forgiven. Because it's through us that they see ahavah (love), it's through us that they see mercy.
If we are in ministry for what others can do for us, we are in trouble. We are in this so we can lay down our life and impart something to someone, and there's nothing expected in return.
We can walk in ahavah (love) and still not completely agree - that is the true test. Do I have to have it my way? Or you, your way? If so, we need to re-examine our hearts because this is not about us but about Him and reflecting Him.
We will carry on in what Yahweh has called us to - and this is pretty much it: death to self so that He can transform us daily into His image so that others might see Him and come to the Father.
Yahweh bless!
Endnotes
[1] For example, see Lev's Hot Potatoes: Hard Truths for the Remnant
Avah BatYah is from Mississippi, USA, and comes from a Baptist background. She has a number of family members in the ministry, is a pastor's wife and is the mother of three adult children. She has been a member of NCAY since 2006.
