Sermon Video: The threefold office of the Messiah: Priest - Psalm 110:4

The second of the threefold offices of the Messiah (Prophet, Priest, and King), prophet, is expounded by King David himself in Psalm 110 where he writes that God's Messiah will combine his kingly duties with that of the priesthood.  At first this makes no sense, the Law of Moses requires that only those descended from Aaron and the tribe of Levi can be priest and serve at the Temple, so what gives?  David answers the question by explaining that this future priest will be, "in the order of Melchizedek."  The name Melchizedek harkens back to a priest of the LORD who served in what would become Jerusalem during Abraham's lifetime.  He is brought into Abraham's story in Genesis only briefly, but the precedent is understood by David as an exception to the rule of the Law (since it preceded it).  The book of Hebrews expounds upon this topic (chapters 5-7), but we ought to be able to reason out that the God who wrote the Law is capable of setting it aside (abrogating, expanding, modifying, take your pick) to fulfill his purpose.  His purpose in this case?  That Jesus Christ might not only be the priest who makes the once-for-all offering to bring salvation, but the Lamb of God being sacrificed as well.

Hebrews 7:11-12 puts an end to the lie that God cannot change the Law of Moses, for Jesus is the final High Priest

 

Hebrews 7:11-12  New International Version

11 If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood—and indeed the law given to the people established that priesthood—why was there still need for another priest to come, one in the order of Melchizedek, not in the order of Aaron? 12 For when the priesthood is changed, the law must be changed also.

At the heart of the Hebrew Roots Movement, and First Fruits of Zion in particular, is a particularly pernicious and dangerous lie: The Torah (Law of Moses) was intended to be for all-time, and even God (in particular Jesus) can't change/update/modify it.

One example from my research this past year into FFOZ's teachings will illustrate that they teach this: "The commands of the Master cannot be different from the commands of the Torah any more than the Word of the Master is different from the Word of the Father." - Jesus, My Rabbi, Lesson 36, Volume 2, page 11.

According to FFOZ, Jesus cannot have taught anything different that what was already revealed in the Torah.  That's their position, and they build their entire false version of the Gospel on this premise.

But what did the author of Hebrews say?  This is holy scripture, inspired by the Holy Spirit, and authoritative for all who claim to be disciples of Jesus Christ.  The author of Hebrews points out, purposefully and in great detail, that the Aaronic and Levitical priesthoods, mandated by Torah because they were necessary for that time, place, and people, were superseded permanently by Jesus who came as a priest after the fashion of Melchizedek.  Jesus was born of the tribe of Judah and the line of King David, ensuring his right to sit upon the throne of David.  But Jesus was NOT capable of fulfilling the role of priest according to the Law of Moses, that is unless Jesus had the authority to change/update/modify the Law.  Which he did.  Of course he did.  Jesus is the Word of God, the eternal Logos.  As a member of the Trinity, fully God along with the Father and the Holy Spirit, Jesus was equally the author of the Mosaic Law, its originator.  God, that is Jesus, the Father, and the Holy Spirit, is the ONLY one with the authority to abrogate the Law of Moses, but to deny this prerogative to God is to place the Law over God, a form of idolatry.

In the end, traditional and orthodox Christianity can demonstrate (as we have done this past year in exhaustive fashion) how and why the teachings of the First Fruits of Zion are heretical and dangerous, but you don't need to understand the full length and breadth of these defenses of the Gospel (although in my humble opinion it is good for Christians to understand the defenses of their faith, i.e. apologetics, so I encourage you to put in the effort) to see that the HRM in general, and the FFOZ in particular, have rejected the clear teaching and plain meaning of God's Word.

Jesus is our High Priest, after the order of Melchizedek.

Sermon Video: The threefold office of the Messiah (part 1 of 3) - Prophet, Deuteronomy 18:14-22

For this Advent season, we will take a look at the three roles of leadership in Israel that the long-awaited Messiah would fulfill and perfect: prophet, priest, and king.  

With respect to being the greatest prophet, we turn to Deuteronomy 18:14-22 to hear the words of Moses, himself a prophet of great renown, promise that God would one day send another like him to lead his people.

Ultimately, Jesus became the greatest of the prophets by predicting, accurately, his own suffering, death, and resurrection.

Sermon Video: "Everything that does not come from faith is sin." - Romans 14:22-23

Having established the grace we need to give each other in disputable matters, Paul ends the discussion with a warning toward those who might act against their own conscience, and thus do so without faith.

Along the way, we also have the important advice to "not condemn ourselves" by approving of things that we should not, and the clarification that it is not with respect to faith in God or his will that we should hesitate to act on faith if we doubt (in that case we ought to "dare Great things for God") but our own understanding, when we doubt ourselves Paul is telling us to err on the side of caution.

Elon Musk, antisemitism, and ignoring the wisdom of Romans 14:22 "Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves."

 

Romans 14:22  So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves.

After buying Twitter, the world's richest man, Elon Musk, has numerous times "condemned himself" by approving of racist and antisemitic statements and conspiracy theories.  While Musk has insisted that, "nothing could be further from the truth," much of the world isn't buying it, not when it keeps happening, not when he seems to have so little interest in repairing the damage he is causing.

Elon Musk addresses claims of antisemitism: ‘Nothing could be further from the truth’ - by Sarah Fortinsky, 11/19/23, The Hill

The latest example was Elon Musk's reply, "You have said the actual truth" in response to this tweet:

I’m deeply disinterested in giving the tiniest shit now about western Jewish populations coming to the disturbing realization that those hordes of minorities that support flooding their country don’t exactly like them too much. - The tweet on X (formerly Twitter) to which Musk replied.

This of course comes in the context of the horrific mass murders in Israel on October 7th, and is a repetition of the deeply antisemitic conspiracy theory that inspired the Pittsburgh Synagogue shooter and the Charlottesville wanna-be Nazis who shouted, "Jews will not replace us" known as the Great Replacement Theory.  

{Here is a post I wrote in the wake of the Pittsburgh shooting that examined the support of the Great Replacement Theory by Tucker Carlson: Another Mass Murder inspired by the Evil of the "Great Replacement" theory}

The point is, by now, anyone who has an opinion worth hearing on the subject of immigration, Jews, and racism is aware of how dangerous the White Supremacist's conspiracy that Jews are financing global migration to eradicate white people really is.  And yet, Elon Musk felt the need to lend his support to this idea and share that "opinion" will his 100 million + followers.

Whatever the outcome is down the road for Elon Musk, X (Twitter), and the rising tide of antisemitism that we must once again confront, there is a profound lesson for all of us to be learned from watching Musk try to defend himself against his own words: If you support evil, don't be surprised when people associate you with evil.

If you share, promote, and like antisemitic tropes and conspiracy theories, the world is going to conclude that you yourself are an antisemite.  That's not unfair, it isn't unwarranted, it is an application of Jesus' wisdom, 

Luke 6:45  A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.