Are We Enslaving Ourselves?

by Christopher from Schtix and Stones

To quote my friend Ed Harris of the radio program ConfrontNation, "sometimes we get too messianic".   I am starting to see what Ed means by that.  I recently put up something on my facebook asking, where I should get my snack after work.  The choices were a chain of restaurants known for it's roast beef sandwiches and another that has awesome buffalo tenders.  Seems pretty innocent right?  WRONG!!!!!  It seems that many of us in the hebraic roots movement are more paranoid than Alex Jones on a meth-bender, and more afraid than Scooby and  Shaggy of EVERYTHING!! 
    This is not how Yeshua wanted us to live, we have abandoned that man made doctrines of the church and for some coming out of orthodox judaism you are abandoning the torah made by men and given to the sheep being lead to the slaughter (aka the Tamlud).  So why in the world are we reverting back to such false claims such as, "we should all be vegan, it is biblical".  Really?  Where in Scriptures does it say that?  As a matter of fact notice the most consumed food by the prophets, the talmidim and followers of the almighty Yah was.....MEAT!!! 
    Then you have some in another group that will say you cannot eat at a certain place because, a man who dated a girl who's cousin works with a guy who's brother works at Halal foods is the CEO of this particular company.  That sounds ridiculous but I have actually seen the 7 degrees of separation from Kevin Bacon tactic used when it comes to certain eateries.
    Many of us are becoming legalistic just like those Yeshua spoke out against.  I even had one such person tell me that there is no way I am keeping Torah because I take a 70/30 insulin for my diabetes.  I was told by this person that my insulin contained pork.  I then took a picture of the vile with the ingredients showing that it was 100% humalin.  Then I was told, that the pharmaceutical companies are trying to trick me and that there is some sort of grand conspiracy.  This is utter insanity.
    So what in the world are we doing people?  I will tell you what we are doing, we are in danger of becoming everything Yeshua spoke against, we are becoming the authors of confusion, we are adding to Yahweh's Word, we are trying to over intellectualize the Scriptures, and I do not remember Yeshua traveling with doctors and lawyers and rocket scientists.  His talmidim were people after Yahweh's heart, who were broken in their own way.  But at times we act like the Pharisees and say "look at me I keep Shabbat, I eat only vegetarian foods, I do not even look at someone who works at McDonalds etc".  This is not spiritually healthy.  If you read Galatians 2:19-21, you will see the Apostle Paul speak against this very sort of legalism.  We are focused on things like enzymes in foods, who makes it etc, that is the very legalism that the Apostle Paul talked about and it is the same legalism that Yeshua spoke against.  Man's interpretation building and adding to Scripture through the implied is what will cause the Nazarene/Messianic/Hebrew Roots movement to be no better than the Christians because we follow the same trend.  By worrying about who made our foods if they are Halal certified, we are then giving those false, false and blasphemous gods credence, and saying they have power over us, which they do not. 
    A cheeseburger made by whomever that does not have bacon on it, ladies and gentlemen is kosher.  Lets stop being so legalistic, and lets keep the Torah, and stop adding to it.  We will then become the very thing we detest.  Shalom  

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