Ralph Woodrow debates with Lew White  DO CHRISTIANS WORSHIP BAAL?

If your eternal salvation depended on it, which teachings would you feel more secure following;

A.  The observances practiced by Yahusha of Natsarith (now considered "legalism" or "toxic faith").

B.  The observances and sacraments invented slowly over the centuries by Catholicism and Christian leaders?

These two men are currently in very different camps in their practices and teachings.  Ralph Woodrow is a kind man, and he asks Lew to answer various questions that pertain to the differences in the two camps.  

The two "camps" represented here are those who "believe" but set aside certain Commandments (particularly Sabbaths, eating clean food), and those who believe AND obey the commanded Sabbaths, and the forsaking of Pagan elements that encroached into the true faith within a few centuries after Yahusha came to us.  The idea that believers would want to restore the original Sabbath, the true, authentic Name of the One they serve, and expose the Pagan elements found in Christianity is considered "toxic faith" and "legalism" to those of the "believe-only" camp.  Many believe Yahusha saved them from the Torah that defines sin.

                             

Lew White is the author of FOSSILIZED CUSTOMS, IN THE TWINKLING OF AN EYE - THE END OF DAYS, AND TORAH ZONE.  Ralph Woodrow is the author of the book BABYLON MYSTERY RELIGION.  Many of you know that he has since reversed many of his viewpoints (since 1998), and written a new book entitled THE BABYLON CONNECTION? -  basically an apologetic defense of the "coincidences" that Christian traditions are derived from Pagan culture.  In his newer book, Ralph "debunks" the work of another author, Alexander Hislop, the author of THE TWO BABYLONS.  The Pagan idol worship which involved the father, mother, and child in Babylonian culture is exposed by Alexander Hislop, but Ralph has reconsidered the origins of such patterns, and feels the similarities of them in modern Christianity are weird coincidences.  Ralph's other apologetic work, CHRISTMAS RECONSIDERED, endorses Christmas as being a valid Christian holiday.  As the following debate unfolds, we can only wait to see if the "sacraments" of Catholicism hold any relevance to Ralph's theology.  As you know, I (Lew) can't find any "sacraments" of any kind in the Word of Yahuah, and Yahusha certainly did not add or take away from the Torah, because it is written:

Deut 4:2
"You shall not add to the word which I am commanding you, nor take away from it, that you may keep the commandments of (Yahuah) your (Alahim) which I command you."  And a second witness is:

Deut 12:32
"Whatever I command you, you shall be careful to do; you shall not add to nor take away from it."  

From these clear instructions, we have fallen so far as to observe NONE of Yahuah's Commandments concerning the Sabbaths and annual appointments, and we see added sacraments and formerly Pagan festivals, "re-invented" to seem Scriptural.  One example is "Easter", the authentic personal name of a Pagan deity, Asherah, from Ishtar, and her impregnation celebration in springtime.

We now begin the debate with Ralph's initial question to Lew:

Ralph Woodrow:  Do you keep Sabbath by Jerusalem time?
 

Lew White:  Good to hear from you brother Ralph.

 
There are some who do observe the weekly Sabbath in their time zone
according to what time it is in Yerushaliyim, but I recommend doing
that only when a person is actually in Yerushaliyim.  The reason for
this is because the thing used in Gen./Bereshith chapter 1 for determining
the arrival of Sabbath is the "darkness" and "light"  -  first evening, then morning,
defining a "day" for us all.  There is not a location given for this determination
to orient a person to another location in this chapter, or in any other chapter.
Yerushaliyim did not exist during the first week of creation, yet the Sabbath did.
 
The Sabbath is a day of the week that was blessed by Yahuah, Yahusha honored it
and even referred to it eschatologically at Mt. 24:20, and it seems to
play a part in discerning the "mark of the beast" at Rev. 13's riddle,
because "buying and selling" is only something that those free of
Sabbath observance would be able to do (at least for that one day of
each week).   Only those with "wisdom" (Torah) would be able to determine the
mark of the beast, and so knowing there is only one day when we do not
buy and sell, the riddle is easy to solve.
The future world-to-come is described to us all at Is./YeshaYahu 66:23:
 
"And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another,
and from Sabbath to Sabbath, all flesh shall come to worship before Me, says Yahuah."
 
It's improbable that Yahuah is acknowledging Constantine's change of the Sabbath in any
context, since He gave the Sabbath to be a "sign" between Him and His people (Israel) forever
(Ex. 31:13, 31:17, Ez. 20:12, Ez. 20:20).  An Israelite who accepts His own Messiah would
not have to change his "walk" (religion), other than to cease making atoning sacrifices.
Gentiles who enter into the Covenant through the Mediator become Israelites (Eph. 2:8-13).
It's always good to discuss Yahuah and His Torah, thank you for caring.

 

 Ralph Woodrow:    Thanks for your response.  One more question, if I may.  Alright, you believe Sabbath is to be kept by the sun "when the day gets to us," and not by Jerusalem time. Why, then, would not Passover, etc. be kept, say in South America, according to when the sun brings the season to them? If Jerusalem time is not used, then feast days would need to tie in with harvest seasons there, say in South America, and that could be an opposite time of year. I hope this is not a juvenile question, this is probably a routine question for you, but it is not clear to me. Please clarify your belief in using the sun in the case of the weekly Sabbath, but not the sun in the case of annual sabbaths, if that be the case. Thanks!
 
Lew White:  Dear brother Ralph,
 
You are a wise man, and we both know that all we can turn to is Scripture to rebuke, correct, and train in what is right.
But, I don't know everything there is to know;  but I can tell you that I pant for His Commandments, and love to obey them.
Because of this, Yahuah gives more of His wisdom  -  I'm very glad to say that I can answer you in this from the Scriptures.
 
Your new question is very good, and the answer is also derived from Gen./Bereshith chapter 1.
The human mind seeks to find wrinkles or a way to exclude/exempt them from obeying, which
Yahusha explains as being an "eye of darkness".  Looking for a way around Yahuah's Commands
is often done through craft and schemes, which are all the "bad seed" sown by the enemy.
 
The lights of the heavens were given for mankind to determine Yahuah's Sabbaths (He calls them "His" Sabbaths).
 
"And (Alahim) said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years,  and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth."  And it was so.  (Alahim) made two great lights--the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night.  He also made the stars.  (Alahim) set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth,  to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness.  And (Alahim) saw that it was good.   And there was evening, and there was morning--the fourth day."   Gen 1:14-19
 
At first glance, an untaught person could miss something very critical here.  The "shadows" of things to come, seen as
the seven moed'im / festivals which portray Israel's redemption through the work of Yahusha are referred to in these
passages.  The sun and moon were partly used for light, but something more:
 
"let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years"
 
The word "seasons" above refers to the appointed times, not the "4 seasons" of spring, summer, fall, and winter. 
The word used is "moed'im", the festival appointments, some of which were given (like Sabbath), and more were
added as the need for redemption developed later.

Tilt of the Earth and the moed'im

 
The key to knowing when the first moon (month) arrives is given for the whole Earth according to when it
was spring for the Israelites when Yahuah told Mosheh these words:

"This month shall be the beginning of months for you; it is to be the first month of the year to you."  Ex 12:2-3
The moon would be used for this, along with the sun (when winter ends at the tequfah, or equinox).  There is not a
separate, upside-down perspective for those living in New Zealand regarding the festivals, or moed'im.
No time has been lost since this instruction was given, but most importantly Yahuah did not provide exceptions or
adjustments for the moed'im south of the equator.  The same time-frame above, at, or below the equator applies to
where the moon is, and has nothing to do with the tilt of the Earth, which is really what your question applies to.
Either you are testing me, or you really want to know  -- either way, I hope you feel love for Yahuah's Torah as I do.
 
"My son, do not forget My teaching, but keep My Commands in your heart,
for they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity."   Prov 3:1-2
 
Your book Babylon Mystery Religion helped me see the Pagan rituals of Catholicism, and I was raised a Catholic.
If you ever return to your original point of view, as a publisher of Messianic books I can be some help in getting them
into many hands - the hands of people currently steeped in idolatry and destined for bursting into flames in the extreme last days.
 
Ralph Woodrow:  Let me thank you in advance for your patience with me.  I am not sure I understand what you are saying.
 
I am looking at Deuteronomy 16.  "...number the seven weeks from such time as you begin to put the sickle to the grain." "Observe the feast of tabernacles seven days, after that you have gathered in your corn and wine." Verses like these definitely link the feast days with seasonal harvests, etc.
 
While these things would all fit "in the land" where the Israelites settled, in another part of the world there could be snow and ice covering the ground during that same month (moon). I guess the question is: how would someone there put the sickle to the grain when there was snow and ice, when it was not time for harvest?
 
Am I testing you?  Perhaps; but not in an unfriendly way.  I simply do not understand how localized customs, linked with harvests in Palestine, etc. can apply worldwide. At least not in a strict or literal sense.  Maybe that is not what you are saying.  I have known several people who have actually moved to Israel, trying to get all this right.  Thank you for your input.
 
Lew White:  Yahuah told His people, when they entered the land of promise, to take an omer (sheaf) of the first-fruits from the land and "WAVE it".  This FF (first-fruits) was a shadow of Yahusha's resurrection, during the 7-day period of Unleavened Bread, which Shaul (Paul) and Luke spoke of in their writings.   Certain things were to be done "in the land", but not anywhere else in the world, at the appointed time (the moon regulates these appointed times, not the tilt of the Earth).  If we were together in a space station for 2 years, we could have some problems understanding when to observe an appointed time, so in that situation we would have to decide on some convention to use, but only for day and night  -  not the moon that regulates the appointed times.
 
Another important point to remember is that everyone did not put a sickle to the grain.  This was done by the kohenim (priests), who in turn presented the sheaf to the kohen ha'gadol (highest priest, what we might call the "Big Kahuna").  Yahusha could be referred to as the Big Kahuna (Kahuna is derived from the Hebrew word kohen).
 
These patterns and activities (Sabbaths, moed'im) you are searching-out are shadowy-pictures of the redemption plan of Israel, provided and performed by our Creator, Yahusha ha'Mashiach, our kohen ha'gadol.  They are agricultural metaphors representing spiritual matters.  If you were at Antarctica, you can work out a convention to rest every seventh day using the International Date Line (entirely a human convention), and Yahuah would honor your obedience even if you were not in perfect conformity to the way He may prefer it.
He may prefer that you set your watch by the time in Yerushaliyim in an extreme case like that, and so would I.  But if a person was doing their best to sort it out, then their conscience becomes "Torah" for them, until they can receive better, more accurate training in the ways of Torah.
For this reason we have elders who study Torah diligently in order to "forbid" and "permit" (bind and loose).
At one time, the Sanhedrin was established for this purpose to assist Mosheh in governing all Israel. 
Now we have the Spirit of Yahusha in us to do that, Who councils us as we study His Word.
 
"Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of a festival, or of the new moon, or of the Sabbath days which are a shadow of things to come for the body of (Mashiach)." Col 2:16-17 * further details below
 
Ralph Woodrow:  But suppose a person "doing their best" kept Sunday--could you accept that?

Lew White:   Yahusha will use His Word to judge us, so if we modify His instructions, He'll be the One that needs to accept or reject our actions.   As far as I know, There is no one "doing their best" to keep Sun-day for anything in Scripture, other than get back to work.  We are all going to be faced with various degrees of "correction" when we

are in the resurrection, some more than others.  When we know to do what is right,
and do not do it, we are in serious trouble.  However, if a person does not know
the Truth of what Yahuah expects, but they are misled by traditions of men, they
will receive "few" blows.  Those who bear the responsibility for misleading others
as teachers are going to be held to account for their actions.  If we obey and teach others
the Commandments, great reward awaits us.  If we fail to obey, and teach others to also
disregard the Commandments, great loss awaits us.
 

Ralph Woodrow:  Correct me if I have misunderstood: you believe the Sabbath should be kept by the sun, not Jerusalem time. But you believe the feast days, while figured by the moon, are based on what the sun does at Jerusalem (ripened harvests, etc). So for the one you do not use Jerusalem time; in the other you do?

 
I believe you said in an earlier message that you figure a day as 24 hours, with night coming first. How do you get this from Genesis? The first day started when God said, “Let there be light”--light, not night.  “Evening” brought about the end of the day, night followed, and ended with “morning.” Then the second day followed, etc. So, if we figure a day as including day and night (what we call a 24-hour day), did not day come first--not night? It seems to me you are saying that God started the days of creation with night first. How could that be?

Lew White:  Days begin with sunset, or the darkening, based on the verses in Bereshith/Genesis, and many examples throughout the TaNaKh, and even the Brith Chadasha (called the "New Testament").  Actually, the first act of creation was not the statement "Let there be light" ("hayah or")  --  that occurred later the first day.   First, Yahuah created the shamayim (heavens, space) and the eretz (earth).  The eretz was desolate, an empty wilderness, and DARKNESS was upon the abyss of waters.  There was quite a bit in existence at this point of creation, and it was done in the "dark".  Then, still the first day, came the second part of that day, the creation of light.  This pattern is seen in the rest of the first chapter, and in many other places we can investigate if necessary.  

So, at the end of the sixth day, we rest from "evening to evening" until the first day of the following week arrives, at sunset.
 
For the moed'im, we wait for winter to end (tequfah, or equinox) for the northern hemisphere, then watch for the next new moon (dark moon).  Upon the arrival of the 14th day (as the 13th ends), we observe the commanded remembrance of Yahusha's death, Pesach ("Pascha" in the text at Acts 12:4, not "Easter").  The following first day of the week is the festival of "First-fruits", and it was at this time Yahusha presented His resurrected body to His Father, as the "wave-sheaf" offering.

 

Ralph Woodrow:  According to The international Standard Bible Encyclopedia, article "Day,"  "The Israelites regarded the morning as the beginning of the day...not till post-exilic times do we find traces of a new mode of reckoning which makes day begin at sunset and continue till the sunset following." If this is correct, then this custom came from "Babylon"! I think you will agree the Israelites picked up names for some of their months during their Babylonian captivity, like Tammuz.
 

Lew White:  It's quite true that the Yahudim brought the names for many of the moons from Babylon.  However, the The international Standard Bible Encyclopedia is not the authority on the matter of day and night.  The Roman system certainly isn't correct, yet most of the world follows it.  We have Scripture to tell us when the day begins:

 
1.  The verses in Bereshith we've looked at.
2.  Neh 13:19  "When evening shadows fell on the gates of Jerusalem before the Sabbath, I ordered the doors to be shut and not opened until the Sabbath was over."
3.  In the clear directions given to us (Israel) to observe Yom Kaphar (Yom Kippur, the 10th day of the seventh moon), we see that the "day" (24 hours) is:
"From the evening of the ninth day of the moon until the following evening you are to observe your Sabbath."  Lev 23:32  This is not a weekly Sabbath, but a Sabbath of Sabbaths, calculated from the 1st day of the seventh moon.  It is definitely a "shadow" of things to come, and for observing it we will be blessed incredibly.
There are more witnesses, such as the rush to get the bodies down from the trees before the arrival of the first day of Unleavened Bread (Jn. 19:31).
 
If the Yahudim picked up the custom from the Babylonians, then they must have been doing it correctly in Babylon;  but I'm certain Mosheh knew when the Sabbath arrived while in the wilderness with Israel for 40 years.  The manna lesson was all about teaching Israel to remember the Sabbath;  it had been forgotten while in Mitsrayim (Egypt).  Now, the Roman world has forgotten it again  -- and I hope you are finding it, because it is the sign of the everlasting Covenant with Israel  -  the bond of the Covenant rests upon the Sabbath observance, a remembrance of Creation itself.
Replacement theology would have us believe that Israel is replaced, or that there are "two bodies" of faith in operation.  But the Sabbath is spoken of eschatologically by Yahusha at Mt. 24:20 at the end of this short list of verses:
 
Ex 31:13   "Say to the Israelites, 'You must observe My Sabbaths. This will be a sign between Me and you for the generations to come, so you may know that I am (Yahuah), who makes you (qodesh)."
Ex 31:16-17   "The Israelites are to observe the Sabbath, celebrating it for the generations to come as a lasting covenant.  It will be a sign between Me and the Israelites forever, for in six days (Yahuah) made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he abstained from work and rested.'"
 
Heb 4:4-6   "For somewhere He has spoken about the seventh day in these words: 'And on the seventh day (Yahuah) rested from all His work.'   And again in the passage above He says, 'They shall never enter my rest.'   It still remains that some will enter that rest, and those who formerly had the (besorah) preached to them did not go in, because of their disobedience."
Heb 4:9-11:  "There remains, then, a Sabbath for the people of (Alahim);  for anyone who enters (Alahim's) rest also rests from his own work, just as (Alahim) did from His.  Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following their example of disobedience."
Ezek 20:12   "Also I gave them My Sabbaths as a sign between us, so they would know that I (Yahuah) made them (qodesh)."
Ezek 20:20:  "Keep My Sabbaths (qodesh), that they may be a sign between us. Then you will know that I am (Yahuah) your (Alahim)."
 
Matt 24:20:   "Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath."
 
We also find that in the world-to-come the Sabbath is the sign or mark (Is. 66), and how important it is in deciding who comes to Yahuah and who does not:
 
Isa 56:6-7:  "And foreigners who bind themselves to (Yahuah) to serve Him, to love the Name of (Yahuah), and to worship Him,
all who keep the Sabbath without desecrating it and who hold fast to My Covenant--
these I will bring to My (qodesh) mountain and give them joy in My house of prayer."
 
So, it would appear that keeping and teaching this Truth would only upset other people, placing a "mark" on us.  Those who ignore the Sabbath
can "buy and sell", but we who observe the Sabbath may not buy and sell, so we have not received the mark of the beast (Rev. 13).
 
It's actually a delight, and a great deal of fun, to obey Yahuah.
Anti-Sabbath folks are certainly the majority, but we know Yahuah isn't interested in mob-rule, or even democracy.
He's a King, and it's not only a blessing to obey Him, but it's gangs of fun.  I'd love to send you a copy of
my latest edition of Fossilized Customs, if you'll Email your address to me.  It's not perfect, but if it's even 10%
correct, the majority of people following traditions are in deep, deep trouble.
 
Deceivers are deceived themselves, otherwise they would change.  They have to hop from text-to-text in
order to prove what they believe, hunting-down the verses that seem to uphold how they have chosen to "see".
The Truth is abhorent to them, so they are sent a strong delusion to believe the lie.
 
Of course, the big verse the anti-Sabbath folks use is Romans 14:5, and
this is easily debunked when a person realizes the text is only speaking of fasting on
certain days, as the tradition developed among the Yahudim to fast twice each week (Luke 18:12).
Yahusha was asked why His talmidim did not fast (Luke 5:33).
 
Other places that are popular with the "dark-eye" view of Scripture (looking for ways to disobey) are:
 
Gal 4:8-11:   "Formerly, when you did not know (Alahim), you were slaves to those who by nature are not (Alahim).  But now that you know (Alahim)-or rather are known by (Alahim)-how is it that you are turning back to those weak and miserable principles?  Do you wish to be enslaved by them all over again?   You are observing special days and months and seasons and years!  I fear for you, that somehow I have wasted my efforts on you."
 
Here, Shaul is speaking of the converts slipping back into their Pagan observances.  Surely Shaul would not speak against obeying Torah.
 
Acts 20:7-8:   "On the first day of the week we came together to break bread.  Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight.  There were many lamps in the upstairs room where we were meeting."
 
Here, Luke is describing a parting meeting with Shaul, just after Sabbath.  The Greek text says "the first of the Sabbaths", however many agree that he is referring to the first Sabbath in the count to Shabuoth, because he mentions this was immediately following the "days of unleavened bread".   The word "week" is an inappropriate translation in this sentence, because the word Sabbath is transliterated into the Greek;  it is not the word "shabua", which means week.  In fact, I'm not aware of any Greek text that transliterates the Hebrew word "shabua".
 
Rev 1:10-11  "On the Lord's Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, which said: 'Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.'"
 
"On the Lord's Day" is a "sound-byte" taken out of context, and used to "prove" that it was a "Sun-day".  This is blatant misdirection, and a magic trick to make people "think" what they are told to think.  The "day" in this sentence is a period of tribulation which Yahuchanon was enabled to witness, the awesome "Day of Yahuah", the tribulation.  People are mesmerized into believing a lie, so their consciences will become seared and not warn them they are out-of-bounds. 
 
These are the big ones, but there are others used to mislead.  Yahusha spoke of the tribulation (MattithYahu 24) concerning the time of the end, and even refers directly to the Sabbath as He told us to pray we would not have to flee.  This is openly stating that the Sabbath is still in effect during the tribulation:
 
Matt 24:20-23  "Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath.  For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now-and never to be equaled again.  If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened." 

It's a blessing to be able to uphold Yahuah's Word.

You can help people get straightened out.

You know many of the things contained in this Email, but I thought if they were presented to you anew,

you may agree with the unquestionable conclusion that the world has strayed far from the faith once delivered to the saints.

But if you honestly feel these facts are incorrect, point out the mistakes and I'll receive a true blessing for having learned the Truth. 

Or, if Yahuah doesn't mind that we've changed a few things, then all I really need is the Scriptural evidence,

and I'll fall right in line behind what those Scriptures teach us.

Piecing together the true facts on the development of what we have come to believe is often not pursued by the average person.

We can see what's wrong with the other religions of the world easily, because we look at their development;  but what about

Christianity?  Are there facts to uncover that may reveal any errors of the past?

Well, yes there are.  Some foundational errors may be found in the writings of Constantine's

"historian", Eusebius, who wrote the Ecclesiastical History, and recorded the "Life of the Blessed Emperor Constantine".

The RCC (and the Protestants) consider Eusebius to be a "Church Father".

Their official outlawing of the 7th day Sabbath was through the Council of Laodicea in Phrygia Pacatiana 364 A.D.   

Canon XXIX.: "Christians must not judaize by resting on the Sabbath, but must work on that day, rather honouring the Lord's Day; and, if they can, resting then as Christians.  But if any shall be found to be judaizers, let them be anathema from Christ."

Judaize?  Is Yahusha a "Judaizer"?  Did He not give Israel the Torah?  There's only one body of Messiah, not two.  And, Yahusha is the Messiah of Israel, so why would an Israelite have to change their way of living (religion) to accept their own Messiah?  If we are to walk as Yahusha walked, it would be hard to explain why we would not have a Passover, or Sabbath day (the real one), or the appointed festivals He lived by (and as Alahim, He gave them to Israel).  Also, it is far more likely that Goliath of Gath had an Easter basket and solstice tree than our Messiah;  after all, these items are rooted in idolatry, not the Torah of Yahuah. 

The "universalizing" of the religions of the Romans have had their effect. 

Constantine started the ball rolling, the goal being to purge the "new" faith of all remnants of the Ioudim (Yahudim).

It was altered beyond all recognition. 

From the writings of Eusebius, we have the result of Constantine's edict (321 CE) clearly shown to us:

"All things whatsoever that it was duty to do on the Sabbath, these we have transferred to the Lord's day." ("Lord" being Baal).

(Eusebius, Commentary on the Psalms, quoted by Moses Stuart, Commentary on the Apocalypse, vol. II, 9.40.)

That statement shows that Constantine indeed was "transferring" the "duties" of the Sabbath to Sun-day.

It was an edict enforced under pain of death.

Constantine did not outlaw Pagan practices in the least, but "universalized" the diverse beliefs of his empire.

Ralph Woodrow:  Thanks for your input. I will print out all your thoughts. 
 
Am I also correct that you oppose all churches--because of pronunciation of the sacred name, ideas that Lord means Baal, Sunday or holiday issues, etc. Most groups like yours (and maybe, hopefully, you are an exception) are small and divided among themselves, seldom if ever win any souls to Christ. People who come into their groups were initially converted in other churches.
 
I have been in (and preached in) a lot of passover services, tabernacles, etc. This is alright, but in my experience none of these compare with the victory, rejoicing, etc. when people gather on Easter to celebrate the risen Christ!  Unlike some you may encounter, I have been in both camps, consider people in both camps as friends, etc. My hunch is that you believe Christians who may attend an Easter Sunrise Service (I have never been to one myself) are worshipping Baal! Wow.
 
Do you actually believe that Christians who have a Christmas tree as a seasonal decoration worship the tree? If so why burn it up or put it out for the trash pickup?
 
I understand what you say about the origin of the word chapel--the cape of St. Martin, etc. However, I have learned that words in time can acquire meanings that move away from their roots, etc. This is the normal development of language. I could give you many, many examples of this. Janitor comes from the god Janus, god of doors and gates. That does not make it a bad word. Cereal comes from Ceres the goddess of grains, but this does not cause me to refrain from eating breakfast cereal. After all, cereals, as you know, developed among SDA Sabbath keepers! Here is a list of words--all of which came from the names of pagan gods or goddesses, but have now acquired a normal, non-pagan meaning: panic, atlas, money, capitol, cloth, flower, ocean, insomnia, morphine, echo, fury, circle, museum, music, siren, thunder, Corinth, Ephesus, Amazon, martial, Milky Way, stimulate fortune, virtue, honor, concord, victory, and of course days of week and names for months! I can supply any documentation on these if desired.
 
I know you don't want to believe misinformation--how about Nimrod was the first Santa Claus, that Santa and Satan are one and the same because of similar letters; or that Easter was the name of a pagan goddess, the wife of Nimrod (according to Hislop)!
 
In my thinking, I certainly don't "throw away" the Old Testament; but consider the New Testament, the greater revelation in the progression of things. There is an old saying, The New is in the Old contained; the Old is in the New explained. I hold to this. For example, I see Christ as the final sacrifice in God's plan for sins forever. I don't see God turning backwards to a carnal temple in Jerusalem, to Judaism, to the old Levitical priesthood, the offering of animal sacrifices, etc. There are Sabbatarian groups, in Africa at least, that still circumcise, may offer a goat as a sacrifice, in their zeal to promote the Old Testament over the New Testament.
 
Your translation of Colossians 2:17 is interesting. But I find no translation whatsoever that goes along with this. All, so far as I know, point out that some things were shadows of things to come, but that now the reality (the "body" as it were, as compared to a mere "shadow") is found in Christ. "The law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ." Hopefully, brother, you believe in grace!
 
Sorry to load you down with so many thoughts, but all are in response, it seems to me, to what you have written. I would say "God bless you," in closing, but I realize this is probably not acceptable to you. In order not to offend, some of my sacred name friends simply say "Hallelujah" at the end of their public prayers or letters. I have compiled a list of the various ways, including yours, of the spelling of YHVH, the sacred name. So let me just say, HalleluYAH, using a Y (not that dreaded J) in closing!

Lew White:  You had mentioned Christmas trees and words that are derived from Pagan idols’ names. When I can, I use Yahuah’s inspired words to expose the work of the adversary, and only this “sword” is effective. To convince me of the innocence of one or another human tradition, all I really need is to be directed to those Scriptures that inform us that we can perform traditions that are either formerly Pagan, re-invented, camouflaged with new meanings, or simply made up out of thin air - to worship Yahuah with them. Follow your heart, and you will be deceived.  Notice the context this phrase is embedded in: 

"The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; who can understand it?

‘I, (Yahuah), search the heart, I test the mind, even to give to each man according to his ways, according to the results of his deeds.’” Jer 17:9-10

Fact:  All things that offend Yahuah will one day be no more. So, if we have 20,000 words that are derived from the names for Pagan idols, they will no longer be used. Many of us have already begun to purge these as we learn about them, because we wish to please Yahuah, not ourselves or other men. Yahuah will judge every act, and we will either suffer loss, or be rewarded for what we have done. It’s all a matter of personal commitment toward Yahuah’s will, pitted against the pattern the world embraces. Without Torah (Yahuah’s instructions), we walk in darkness, not knowing right or wrong. If we seek the approval of men, then Easter egg hunts and Christmas trees are likely to be found in our actions. If these things are wickedness in Yahuah’s eyes, and we’ve taught little children to do them, Yahusha said it would be better that we had a large millstone drag us into the depths:

“But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.” Matt 18:6

“Seek (Yahuah) while He may be found; call on Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to (Yahuah), and He will have mercy on him, and to our (Alahim), for He will freely pardon.

‘For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,’ declares (Yahuah). ‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts. As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is My Word that goes out from My mouth: It will not return to Me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” Isa / YeshaYahu 55:6-11

Our problem is mostly our point-of-view.  Seeing how things are from another’s perspective is very difficult. If we accept the “mind” of Messiah Yahusha, we should also “see” the things we do from His point-of-view.  Human traditions easily become “law” among us, and we judge one another based on how much we participate in them.  Teaching children about Old Saint Nick (lying to them) is divisive, yet even those who won’t lie to their children often embrace “the season” of Christmas, another more insidious way of camouflaging an ancient Pagan practice.  Our thoughts, or point-of-view (flesh), is perhaps our main stumbling block. When we are enabled to see things from our Creator’s point-of-view, we change.

Enthusiasm, devotion, intense emotionalism, or zeal that is seen in Christian assemblies is not a sign they have anything right; just look at the level of devotion the priests of Baal had (1 Kings 18:28) as they were challenged by ElYahu (Elijah) at Mount Carmel.  The priests of Baal and Asherah (LINK) were so zealous they cut themselves and their blood gushed-out upon them!

Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage-with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” 2 Tim 4:2-4

Most people, even those who appear very spiritual, are not going to make it, mostly because they have refused to “see” the Truth from Yahusha’s perspective. They cling to their traditions and “feel” that their great numbers affirm what they have is the correct way, yet it is the broad road, not the narrow one. Yahusha’s affirmation is all that matters.  The Pagans at Galatia were converted, yet they still had "special days" and other Pagan customs calling them back like a dog returning to what it had vomited:

"Formerly, when you did not know (Alahim), you were slaves to those who by nature are not (Alahim).  But now that you know (Alahim)-or rather are known by (Alahim)-how is it that you are turning back to those weak and miserable principles?  Do you wish to be enslaved by them all over again?  You are observing special days and months and seasons and years!  I fear for you, that somehow I have wasted my efforts on you."  Gal 4:8-11

Ralph Woodrow:  My hunch is that you believe all Christians are really BAAL worshipers!  Please correct me if I am wrong on this!  What might the proof be?  They meet on Sun-day, the sun is round like a ball, "ball" has the same letters as Baal?

Lew White:  My proof must always be based in Yahuah's Word.  Scripture tells us we are the servant of the one whom we obey.  People intend to worship the Creator, yet they are tricked into performing that worship in a false way.  Yahusha described false worship as a broad road that leads to destruction, and it is cheered-on by messengers, masquerading as workers of righteousness.  We are warned of the false teachings by false teachers.  From the point-of-view of the flesh, we look upon our "intentions".  An example is the intention of the Israelites when they made the golden calf.  They intended it to honor Yahuah, the text says so.  But, it was according to a Pagan format, learned previously in Egypt.  3000 died that day.  If we perform the teachings of Jezebel (Rev. 2:20-23), our intentions (point-of-view) will not make what is Pagan acceptable.

We are the servants of the one we OBEY.  If we obey traditions of men, or worse, satan, then we serve that entity.  If I obey the Sabbath, then whose servant might I be?
 
"What then?  Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be!  Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness?  But thanks be to (Alahim) that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed,  and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.  I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh.  For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, resulting in further lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in sanctification.  For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness."  Rom 6:15-20
 
Jezebel taught Israel the Asherah tree worship.  We see this in today's world as Christmas trees.  Our intentions (thoughts, point-of-view) are focused on our own "mind" (flesh), not the direction/instruction of Torah (Spirit's point-of-view), the mind of Yahusha's Spirit.  So, if we are "walking" in the flesh, the thoughts and intentions (cares) of our flesh will matter more to us, and Torah can take a hike.  Yahuah searches out our hearts and minds.  If we are not living for Him, He knows.
 
"Nevertheless, I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess.  By her teaching she misleads my servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food sacrificed to idols.  I have given her time to repent of her immorality, but she is unwilling.  So I will cast her on a bed of suffering, and I will make those who commit adultery with her suffer intensely, unless they repent of her ways.  I will strike her children dead.  Then all the (assemblies) will know that I am He who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds."  Rev 2:20-23
 
Intentions and deeds are contrasted in the above text.  You know that the Greek culture is thought-based, so "intentions" merit great importance.  Yahusha is interested more in deeds, and is a rewarder of those who obey Him.  We can't obey Him in our thoughts only.  If Christians think they are obeying Yahuah, but in fact are obeying (practicing) rituals established by anyone other than Yahuah, then logic dictates that they are not obeying Yahuah, but rather as you said it, BAAL (satan).  Reasoning this to be at least a possibility, who is a Christian obeying if they:
 
Rest on Sun-day?
     A.  Constantine, and the Council of Laodicea (i.e., satan, the beast)
     B.  Yahuah
 
On the other hand, who are we obeying if we rest on the Sabbath day:
     A.  Constantine, and the Council of Laodicea  (i.e., satan, the beast)
     B.  Yahuah
 
The 4th beast of Daniel 7 thinks to change times (appointments) and law.  If the 4th beast is Catholicism, we've solved the riddle of Rev. 13 also.
Those who have NOT received the "mark" of the beast are not going to buy and sell (because that would break Sabbath).  Those buying and selling when they should not be have received the sign on their right hand (actions) that they are obeying the beast, and not obeying Yahuah.
 
It's really that simple.  You see, "wisdom" is Torah  -  and only he that has it can determine the mark of the beast.  The beast's mark is seen in the actions of its servants.
If we follow the teachings of the beast, we may perform awesome "works" with the greatest of intentions;  but in the end these works will be stubble.  Yahuah will test our works according to His standards, and His standards will always be His Torah.  Men-pleasers have no interest in Torah observance. 
 
The Jesuits are at work in the world, and are disguised as all sorts of people  -  even ministers working against the pope.  I was trained by Jesuits (Xaverian brothers), but I did not fall for their brainwashing techniques, by Yahusha's sovereign will.  You may have been influenced by Jesuitism to a larger extent than you realize, so my advice is to test yourself for being in "the faith" of the original Natsarim.  The original Natsarim were zealous for "the Torah", not the "sacraments" or being pig-eating Sun-day worshippers.
 
"You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews have believed, and all of them are zealous for the law."  Acts 21:20
I'm amazed at how people can read this, and then turn back to what they were doing before.

Ralph Woodrow:  Apparently the Sabbath keeping church you mentioned in Revelation 2:20,21 was in bad condition, spiritually. Committing fornication and eating things sacrificed to idols! I have preached in hundreds of churches--fortunately none of them had this as a doctrine. Let's face it, strict Sabbath keeping does not, in itself, have a sanctifying effect. Think how those strict Sabbath keepers cried out, "Crucify him, crucify him!" Some of the original Adventists felt their new-found truth about the restoration of the Sabbath was God's seal. They were disappointed to find out that Saturday strictness did not produce this fruit. A leader in the Worldwide Church of God told me they used to be highly critical of Christmas observance--they pointed out that for many it was just party time, a time of drunkenness, etc. Of course for some people that is true. But then, he went on to say, they were not very consistent because their own feast days, like their Feast of Tabernacles, was not that spiritual either, pointing out that there was drunkenness, immorality occurred, and even pregnancies out of wedlock. I have mentioned grace to you several times; somehow you talk about law, do you not believe in grace?  

Lew White:  Yahuah has always shown loving-kindness (chasid, translated "grace", a Pagan deity's name).
If you will define what you understand to be "grace" that allows us to continue to
ignore Yahuah's Commandments that define sin (1 Yn. 3:4), present them for discussion.
Not using the Word to guide us will cause us to lose our way.
Romans chapters 6 through 8 illustrate how the "Renewed Covenant" operates in our lives.
A love for the Torah is literally inscribed on our hearts by the Spirit of Yahusha.  We must be convicted of being sinners, then repent of our sins.  Yahuah does not offer chasid to those who will not repent.
Rom 6:1-18:
"What shall we say then?  Shall we continue in sin, that (chasid) may abound?
(Alahim) forbid.  How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?
Know you not, that so many of us as were baptized into (Yahusha ha'Mashiach) were baptized into His death?
Therefore we are buried with Him by baptism into death: that like (Mashiach) was raised up from the dead to the (esteem) of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
For if we have been planted together in the likeness of His death, we shall be also in the likeness of His resurrection:
Knowing this, that our old man is (impaled) with Him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.
For he that is dead is freed from sin.
Now if we be dead with (Mashiach), we believe that we shall also live with Him:
Knowing that (Mashiach) being raised from the dead dies no more; death has no more dominion over Him.
For in that He died, He died for sin once: but in that He lives, He lives for (Alahim).
Likewise reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to (Alahim) through (Yahusha ha'Mashiach our Master).
Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in the lusts thereof.
Neither yield your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin: but yield yourselves to (Alahim), as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to (Alahim).
For sin shall not have dominion over you: for you are not under the law, but under (chasid) .
What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under (chasid)?  (Alahim) forbid.
Know you not, that to whom you yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants you are to whom you obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
But (Alahim) be thanked, that you were the servants of sin, but you have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.
Being then made free from sin, you became the servants of righteousness."
 
1 John 3:4-10:
"Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness.  But you know that He appeared so that He might take away our sins. And in Him is no sin.  

No one who lives in Him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen Him or known Him.

Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. He who does what is right is righteous, just as He is righteous.  He who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of (Alahim) appeared was to destroy the devil's work.  No one who is born of (Alahim) will continue to sin, because (Alahim)'s seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of (Alahim).  This is how we know who the children of (Alahim) are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of (Alahim); nor is anyone who does not love his brother."
This informs us that we can identify who is not of Yahuah if they continue sinning against Yahuah's Commandments.
The "children of the devil" teach against obeying Yahuah's Torah.  The work I'm engaged in is to teach Torah to
those who don't believe they have to obey.  It's primarily in this area which they are deceived by the deceiver.

Even the elect can be seduced (Mk. 13:22).

The "law" we are not under refers to the penalty of death the law required, which was hanging over each of us.

We now are convicted of our sin by the Torah, and we "repent" (turn around) and obey through the action of Yahusha coming to us to change our hearts.  Apparently, most people are not yet convicted, and have not understood what repentance is;  Yahuah does not offer chasid to those who will not repent.   One who is born of Yahuah despises sin. 

The deceiver is not teaching people to obey the Torah, so it's not brain surgery to figure out what's been going on for centuries.

Scripture calls it "apostasy", or "falling away".  What is it they are falling away from?  Torah, the original faith (walk) of
the disciples.  We were commissioned to go and teach all nations everything Israel was commanded to obey, and
now we're doing that after having Yahusha's Spirit poured into us.
 
My first experience or training in spirituality was Catholicism  -  from birth.  I came close to making a decision to enter their priesthood.  Then at age 18 I became involved in the larger world through the Vietnam War, then the university, and so on.  Science became an obsessive hobby for me, but at the age of 35 I gave up on it because of all the conflicts and dead-ends.  At this point, I discovered the real Truth.  I read the Scriptures for the first time.  They answered every important question for me.  The first time I picked up the Word, I read Psalm 53.  Then I read the "Preface", and discovered the translators had replaced the Creator's Name with a "device": the four capital letters "LORD".  This sent me swooning in anger to the university library-  they had hidden, no DESTROYED the Name, and I had to find out what it was (and is).  I listened to excuse after excuse, but the brainwashing to put me back to sleep was not working.  Then I found that I had neglected His Sabbaths.  My heart was aflame with shame and sorrow for having lived the way I had.  My life changed, and I repented from my errors as I found them.
The only way you will awaken from the dream is to either be frightened or become very angry. 
 
Many people are asleep, and often need to be awakened by either becoming angry or frightened  -  the same things
that awaken us when we are dreaming.   Your teacher is waiting to speak to you, but you have to unstop your ears, and listen.
 
Jer (YermeYahu) 6:16-19
"This is what (Yahuah) says:
"Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.  But you said, 'We will not walk in it.'  I appointed watchmen (NATSARIM) over you and said, 'Listen to the sound of the trumpet!'  But you said, 'We will not listen.'  Therefore hear, O nations; observe, O witnesses, what will happen to them.  Hear, O earth:  I am bringing disaster on this people, the fruit of their schemes, because they have not listened to My Words and have rejected My law (TORAH)."
 
Isa (YeshaYahu) 30:19-22
"How gracious He will be when you cry for help!  As soon as He hears, He will answer you.  Although the (Sovereign) gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, your teachers will be hidden no more; with your own eyes you will see them.  Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, 'This is the Way; walk in it.'"
 
"This is the Way, walk in it."  The Covenant.  Yahusha is your Teacher of Torah, and the Mediator of the Covenant. 
It is a limited-time offer.  Refuse it, and there will be hell to pay, quite literally.  Receive a love for the Truth, or a strong delusion to believe the lie.  

In essence, the world has been taught:  "This is NOT the Way, DON'T walk in it."

They always pull out the writings of Shaul, and are especially fond of Galatians.  Galatians is a letter written to address the teaching of male converts' "need" for physical circumcision for salvation.  "The law" (Greek word, "NOMIA or NOMOS") that we read about in this letter is commonly misapplied to refer to the ASERET HADABARIM (Ten Words of the Covenant).  Once a person is shown what "law" is being described, it is easy to see that the Ten Commandments are certainly not being set aside in any way.  Opening a concordance, and looking up the words "circumcise", "circumcised", and "circumcision", it's apparent that the book of Galatians is the winner for having the most uses of these words.  

That's because circumcision is the topic of the letter to the Galatians!  

Our circumcision is of the heart, performed on us by Yahusha;  that's the Renewed Covenant promised at YermeYahu 31, quoted at Hebrews chapters 8 & 10.  Without the 10 Commandments, we would not know how to define a sin (1 Yn. 3:4).  The main trouble is, men have been programmed to search the Scriptures for excuses to disobey, which is having a "dark eye".  An eye filled with light seeks out those texts which enable us to understand better, and how to guard Yahuah's teachings out of our love for them, and Him.  

Receiving a love for the Truth, or rejecting a love for the Truth, is where our eternity hinges:

 
Thess 2:9-12:
"Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the Truth, that they might be saved.
And for this cause (Alahim) shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
That they all might be damned who believed not the Truth, but had pleasure in lawlessness (anomia)."
 
The Renewed Covenant is offered (which involves receiving a love for Yahuah's Torah written on our hearts), but some must wrestle with Yahusha before it gets inscribed.  Yahusha offers to inscribe it, we must receive and submit.
Those who reject it resolutely will perish, living their life believing the "lie".  

Satan is a believer too;  but he won't obey.  So, they become like him, rather than like Yahusha.

 
A friend may give up on you, but you don't have to give up on him/her.  If he/she debates (wrestles) with the Truth, some of it will rub off on him/her each time.
They will not be wrestling with you, but with Yahusha.  Keep it to one topic at a time if you can, and encourage him/her to use Scripture to correct you.  Use questions as Yahusha taught with.  They have programming to overcome which has inoculated them against understanding, as we all had to overcome.
After all, how did we awaken?  Yahusha prepared our hearts for the Truth, and then brought it to us.

Tickling the ears with the concept of “unconditional love” is part of the “lie”, a strong delusion sent because people have refused to receive a love for the Truth.

The false teacher will teach that Yahuah loves “unconditionally”, right up to the point He tosses them into the lake of fire. 

There are conditions, and Scripture is a long record of those conditions. 

How could they miss the point?   Wrath and love are mutually exclusive.      

Yahusha repeated these words from Yahuah:

"Love Me, and keep My Commandments."
One day, everyone will do just that.

*  "Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of a festival, or of the new moon, or of the Sabbath days which are a shadow of things to come for the body of (Mashiach)." Col 2:16-17

  FURTHER EXPLANATION:

Normally we see the word but in the last phrase.  However, these "shadows" are intended to be for the body of Mashiach, not ignored as Christianity has done.

The word commonly translated as but instead of for is the Greek word “de”, #1161, and can mean a variety of things in English.

It is a primary particle that can mean:  but, and, or, also, yet, however, then, so, or FOR.

(In the last phrase, the word is does not exist in any of the received Greek texts; it is in italics in the KJV because is was added, and not in the Greek Received Text).

I had always wondered why this verse seemed to end so strangely - it never made any sense when it was rendered "but the body (is) of Christ". (KJV contains this mistranslation)

These festivals are shadows of things to come, and certainly are for the body of (Mashiach).

The body of Mashiach is Israel.
Read Psalm 80, and you will see that we are something completely new that Yahuah is doing, that He planned long ago.

  ~  After quite a period of no contact, Ralph responded with this Email message:

Dear brother Lew, 

I appreciate your good spirit, even with differences, etc. I think a lot of Jack. He has been to see me at least three times, we did some hiking, once when his wife was with him went to a place called Painted Canyon for a picnic, etc. Another time I spoke at the church he attended in Indianapolis, etc. He and I are the same age, born in 1939. I continue to do double duty, as it were, ministry and caring for my mother who is 91. She has many needs and there is stress. I get behind on emails and other things. So pardon my brief message. Without taking time right now to look up things, I don’t recall what it was I did not give you scripture for. I seem to recall you did not give me any scripture for placing the International Date Line in the middle or the Pacific Ocean (making a difference how a day is figured for millions of people). I may have asked you also for scripture for using sunset tables from one part of the world for those who live in Alaska. I may have asked you for the scripture that says keep the day as the day gets to you. Best wishes. HalleluYAH.

Ralph

Dear brother Ralph,

   Thank you for taking time to say hi again, I completely understand the time limitations.  My time is severely curtailed for my regular work because we are in the process of moving, which is something I would wish on no one!  At least we are still in the same city.

   You’re right about the International Date Line, that is a human convention that arose under the old British Empire.  Nevertheless, our Savior Yahusha could still calculate which day it was each time He awoke each day, and made this statement concerning the times of the end (which we now live in):

 Mat 24:19-31: “And woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing children in those days!

 “And pray that your flight does not take place in winter or on the Sabbath.  

(The Sabbath is the sign of the Everlasting Covenant, and appears to be prophetically unaltered).

 “For then there shall be great distress, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be

 “And if those days were not shortened, no flesh would be saved, but for the sake of the chosen ones those days shall be shortened.

 “If anyone then says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or ‘There!’ do not believe.

 “For false messiahs and false prophets shall arise, and they shall show great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the chosen ones.

 “See, I have forewarned you.

 “So if they say to you, ‘Look, He is in the desert!’ do not go out; or ‘Look, He is in the inner rooms!’ do not believe.

 “For as the lightning comes from the east and shines to the west, so also shall the coming of the Son of Aḏam be.

 “For wherever the dead body is, there the eagles shall be gathered together.

 “And immediately after the distress1 of those days the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give its light, and the stars shall fall from the heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken.

 “And then the sign of the Son of Aḏam shall appear in the heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth shall mourn, and they shall see the Son of Aḏam coming on the clouds of the heaven with power and much esteem.

 “And He shall send His messengers with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together His chosen ones from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.”

 

   Although He didn’t give us the International Date Line, He gave us the sun (for night and day), the moon (for the appointed times, the “shadows” of things to come for the body of Mashiach, Israel), and the warning to return to the bond of the Covenant.  The texts above and what follows pertain to the “stress” or great tribulation period, just prior to Yahusha’s return.  He scattered Israel (the 10 northern tribes, or “house of Israel” approximately 2730 years ago:

 

Eze 20:34-38:  “And I shall bring you out from the peoples and gather you out of the lands where you are scattered, with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with wrath poured out.

“And I shall bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and shall enter into judgment with you face to face there.

“As I entered into judgment with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Mitsrayim, so I shall enter into judgment with you,” declares the Master יהוה.

“And I shall make you pass under the rod, and shall bring you into the bond of the covenant,

and purge the rebels from among you, and those who transgress against Me. From the land where they sojourn I bring them out, but they shall not come into the land of Yisra’ĕl.  And you shall know that I am יהוה.

 

 He will be concerned with a single matter at the time of His return:  who will be in the Covenant, and who will not be.   This is what He meant when He spoke about "belief":

Luk 18:7,8:   “And shall Alahim not do right by all means to His own chosen ones who are crying out day and night to Him, and being patient over them?

“I say to you that He shall do right to them speedily.   But when the Son of Aḏam comes, shall He find the belief on the earth?”

 

Belief (faith, enumah, or faithfulness) involves acting on what is believed, so it extends to obedience.  The “bonds” of the Covenant are what we are to go and teach all nations, because when He spoke the following words, He wasn’t addressing post-Nicene church fathers or Christians, but rather Israelites in the Covenant, who were also Natsarim:

 

Mat 28:19,20:   “Therefore, go and make taught ones of all the nations, immersing them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Set-apart Spirit,

teaching them to guard  (obey) all that I have commanded you.   And see, I am with you always, until the end of the age.” Amĕn.

 

What had He always taught them to obey?  A Rabbi teaches Torah, the Covenant.  It is also called “the Word”.  He is the “Living Word” made flesh.  Naturally, the Natsarim of today hear His Words, and obey them.  We definitely know when the Sabbath arrives, and it is our hope that Yahuah accepts some human conventions such as the International Date Line.  As a body, the Natsarim may determine such things:

 

Col 2:16,17:   “Let no one therefore judge you in eating or in drinking, or in respect of a festival or a new moon or Sabbaths –

which are a shadow of what is to come – for the Body of the Messiah.”

These “shadows” of things to come are the “redemption plan” for His body, Israel, and they are all about Him as Deliverer:

Passover  (the Lamb of Alahim, Yahusha)

Matsah      (Unleavened Bread, deliverance from bondage of sin)

First-fruits  (the resurrection of Yahusha, the “wave offering”)

Shabuoth   (Giving of Torah at Sinai, then again at Acts 2, the writing of Torah on the hearts of men,  not a “birthday”, but a wedding anniversary for Yahuah & His wife Israel)

Yom Teruah  (forerunner of “last Trump”, preparing us for the arrival of Yahusha as our King)

Yom Kaphar   (Judgment Day;  our names must be inscribed in the Scroll of Life, and this is not possible if we are not in the bonds of His Covenant)

Sukkoth     (Pictures the final dwelling of Yahusha among His Covenant people on Earth, forevermore)

 

Gentiles are all those who choose to remain outside His Covenant.  All those who choose to obey His Word (Covenant), He calls “Israel of Yahuah”.

 Sacraments and denominations are irrelevant, since the “relationship” we each must have is through His Covenant (the one given at Ex. 20, & Dt. 5).

 May Yahusha perfect His Covenant in our hearts (Yahusha writing it upon our hearts is what the “New Covenant” is),

brother Lew

NEW EMAIL CORRESPONDENCE 6-10-10:

Ralph Woodrow writes:

I find this email misleading and offensive, like numerous others that have gone before with the same misinformation. The President of the United States is not an American?

Lew White responds:

Dear brother Ralph,

  The email that you found offensive was forwarded, I didn’t do anything but share it;  I’m sorry it offended you.

Your question, “The president of the United States is not an American?” is problematic, since there is no sovereign nation named “America”;  citizens of various sovereign nations may be called “Americans” because they live on the north or south American continents.

  The media has repeatedly used the term “American” to distinguish citizens of the United States from all others, even those who are “Americans” living in Peru, Canada, Mexico, Venezuela, and so on.  U.S. presidents come and go, and when their origins are mischaracterized or unknown, the citizens should take some notice of it.  The current president is a Marxist, more like Hugo Chavez of Venezuela;  Chavez is an “American”, but it is unlikely that Obama is an “American”.  Even if Obama’s family records are all wrong, and he was not born in Kenya, the story of his being born in Hawaii would make him a Polynesian to some degree, of African, White, and Arab descent.  Throughout his youth, he was a Muslim living in Indonesia.  So, if I had to answer your question, without guile, it would certainly have to be “No, the current president of the United States is not an American.”

  When I forward emails to anyone, my intention is not to offend, but rather engage people in a factual, thoughtful, and truthful way.  The last email may have not been “neutral”, but should not have overly offended you.  I’m personally not a flag-worshipper as so many seem to be, since my allegiance and citizenship is in Yisrael (not the land, but the people of the Covenant) under King Yahusha.

He will cause Babel to fall, and all kingdoms of men will become the one Kingdom under Him at His coming.

  The picture embedded at the bottom of this email is one which I use to illustrate Truth, and we both know that Truth can be offensive to some.  Rather than using flags or their absence to “prove” anything, the picture puts several false beliefs on display together.

  It’s always wonderful to hear from you, and I apologize if I have ever been unkind toward you personally.  I have great respect and concern for you.

 Always remember, love never fails ~  Yahusha just LOVES to see us loving one another!  

brother Lew

 

TORAH INSTITUTE

PO BOX 436044

Louisville, KY 40253-6044

phone:  502-261-9833

google: BYNV

 

 

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