December 21, 2007
First of all I must apologize for an assumption that I made in last week's letter. I was quoting from Romans chapter 6, where Paul says that "we are no longer under the law". My comment was that "indeed we are not under law but that the law is under us". However, after checking the context in which the Apostle was using the word "law" – "nomos" in Greek - I discovered that he was speaking there very specifically of the "law of sin and death": "For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law [of sin] but under grace" (Romans 6:14). Seeing that it is the "law of sin and death" that he was talking about in that passage, not only are we not "under it", but it cannot and should not be our foundation either, as I had incorrectly written. Instead we are under the law of grace in Messiah Yeshua. His righteousness has dominion in our life, as we walk by faith in what our Heavenly Father had accomplished judicially through the death, burial and resurrection of His Son. The writings of the apostles, at least in the form in which they have been handed down to us, only use this one Greek word to describe commandments, laws and Torah. In the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Tanach which preceded the writing of the New Covenant books) Torah is translated "nomos" – law, a fact which became the precedence to perceiving the meaning of the Hebrew word, "Torah", as strictly law. However, the Septuagint, unlike the writers of the New Covenant books, does distinguish between "laws", "ordinances", "commandments" etc.; for example the Ten Commandments are translated as the "Ten Words" which is the literal translation of the Hebrew.
Paul's main concern was that we understand that man is either under the rule or dominion of Sin, which is lawlessness and its consequences, that is the curses; or the dominion of Righteousness, which is the obedience of faith leading to the laws of blessings. In other words, there are two spiritual kingdoms that man is subject to. If we have received by faith the truth of the Gospel and continue to live accordingly, we will be living under the law of life in Messiah, that is, by the instructions (Torah) of the Word of Elohim from Genesis to Revelation. The Word of YHVH governs His Kingdom, thus we must get to know every statute, ordinance, commandment and law that is apropos to His rule.
Paul mentions two laws that are working in him as a Believer: "I find then a law [of Sin and death], that evil [power of Sin] is present within me, the one who wills to do good. For I delight in the law [Torah/Word] of Elohim according to the inward man. But I see another law [of Sin] in my members, warring against the law [instructions of Righteousness] of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank Elohim -- through Yeshua the Messiah our ruler! So then, with the mind I myself serve the law [Torah-instructions] of Elohim, but with the flesh the law of sin" (Romans 7: 21-25).
After this, comes the grand finale of Paul's dissertation about the reality of a Believer's life of faith in the law of grace: "There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Messiah Yeshua, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit" (Romans 8:1 NKJV). In this particular translation "no condemnation" is conditional. If we walk according to the flesh then we are under the laws of sin and its verdict is condemnation. But if we walk according to the Spirit that is, by faith believing what is true about ourselves in Messiah Yeshua, and draw our life/nature from His Righteousness (fruit of the Spirit), then "the righteous requirement of the law [Torah/His instructions] might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit" (Romans 8:4).
The Apostle is always making a reference to a war that is waging inside of us. He explains that the nature of Sin lusts for the power to rule, especially over us who are governed by the Spirit. It wants to use us in order to express its nature through our flesh and thus to set up its kingdom. We have therefore been given spiritual armor for protection. This armor is the life of Yeshua. He is the Truth around our waist/loins, He is our breastplate of Righteousness, He is our Peace that we walk in, He is our shield of Faith, our helmet of Salvation and He is the Word of Elohim, our sword (ref. Ephesians 6: 14-17). Hence the Word instructs us not to obey the lusts of the flesh but to present our members as (literally) weapons of righteousness to Elohim (Romans 6: 12-13).
Many people are looking for, or are predicting war in the Middle East. My beloved brothers and sisters, we are already at war and the whole creation is groaning in waiting for a body of Believers that will emerge victoriously from this battle and set the creation free. Let us run the race and exercise our weapons of righteousness, so that we will be fit when YHVH gathers us together as a mighty army (ref. Ezekiel 37: 10).
Ephraim
First of all I must apologize for an assumption that I made in last week's letter. I was quoting from Romans chapter 6, where Paul says that "we are no longer under the law". My comment was that "indeed we are not under law but that the law is under us". However, after checking the context in which the Apostle was using the word "law" – "nomos" in Greek - I discovered that he was speaking there very specifically of the "law of sin and death": "For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law [of sin] but under grace" (Romans 6:14). Seeing that it is the "law of sin and death" that he was talking about in that passage, not only are we not "under it", but it cannot and should not be our foundation either, as I had incorrectly written. Instead we are under the law of grace in Messiah Yeshua. His righteousness has dominion in our life, as we walk by faith in what our Heavenly Father had accomplished judicially through the death, burial and resurrection of His Son. The writings of the apostles, at least in the form in which they have been handed down to us, only use this one Greek word to describe commandments, laws and Torah. In the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Tanach which preceded the writing of the New Covenant books) Torah is translated "nomos" – law, a fact which became the precedence to perceiving the meaning of the Hebrew word, "Torah", as strictly law. However, the Septuagint, unlike the writers of the New Covenant books, does distinguish between "laws", "ordinances", "commandments" etc.; for example the Ten Commandments are translated as the "Ten Words" which is the literal translation of the Hebrew.
Paul's main concern was that we understand that man is either under the rule or dominion of Sin, which is lawlessness and its consequences, that is the curses; or the dominion of Righteousness, which is the obedience of faith leading to the laws of blessings. In other words, there are two spiritual kingdoms that man is subject to. If we have received by faith the truth of the Gospel and continue to live accordingly, we will be living under the law of life in Messiah, that is, by the instructions (Torah) of the Word of Elohim from Genesis to Revelation. The Word of YHVH governs His Kingdom, thus we must get to know every statute, ordinance, commandment and law that is apropos to His rule.
Paul mentions two laws that are working in him as a Believer: "I find then a law [of Sin and death], that evil [power of Sin] is present within me, the one who wills to do good. For I delight in the law [Torah/Word] of Elohim according to the inward man. But I see another law [of Sin] in my members, warring against the law [instructions of Righteousness] of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank Elohim -- through Yeshua the Messiah our ruler! So then, with the mind I myself serve the law [Torah-instructions] of Elohim, but with the flesh the law of sin" (Romans 7: 21-25).
After this, comes the grand finale of Paul's dissertation about the reality of a Believer's life of faith in the law of grace: "There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Messiah Yeshua, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit" (Romans 8:1 NKJV). In this particular translation "no condemnation" is conditional. If we walk according to the flesh then we are under the laws of sin and its verdict is condemnation. But if we walk according to the Spirit that is, by faith believing what is true about ourselves in Messiah Yeshua, and draw our life/nature from His Righteousness (fruit of the Spirit), then "the righteous requirement of the law [Torah/His instructions] might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit" (Romans 8:4).
The Apostle is always making a reference to a war that is waging inside of us. He explains that the nature of Sin lusts for the power to rule, especially over us who are governed by the Spirit. It wants to use us in order to express its nature through our flesh and thus to set up its kingdom. We have therefore been given spiritual armor for protection. This armor is the life of Yeshua. He is the Truth around our waist/loins, He is our breastplate of Righteousness, He is our Peace that we walk in, He is our shield of Faith, our helmet of Salvation and He is the Word of Elohim, our sword (ref. Ephesians 6: 14-17). Hence the Word instructs us not to obey the lusts of the flesh but to present our members as (literally) weapons of righteousness to Elohim (Romans 6: 12-13).
Many people are looking for, or are predicting war in the Middle East. My beloved brothers and sisters, we are already at war and the whole creation is groaning in waiting for a body of Believers that will emerge victoriously from this battle and set the creation free. Let us run the race and exercise our weapons of righteousness, so that we will be fit when YHVH gathers us together as a mighty army (ref. Ezekiel 37: 10).
Ephraim
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