Conviction and Commandment

Messianic Homeschooling & Hebrew Roots Homeschool Curriculum 0 Conviction or Commandment Part 1 Posted on May 26, 2015 by Joel Allen 26 MAY An article by Joel Allen One of the biggest subjects I deal with as a Pastor is over the confusion of conviction or commandment. What do I mean by that you may ask? Well there are times that certain people feel really strongly about certain things, even things concerning faith and their interpretation of the Bible. For example; Someone may feel strongly that television should not be allowed in the home, due to rank commercials and shows that could portray violence, bad language, or sexual material. However another person may feel strongly that television is ok as long as safeguards are put in place to limit the exposure to the afore mentioned things. Who is right? Which of these people mentioned are breaking commandments of God? Is there a scripture in the Bible that states, “thou shalt not watch TV?” How do we make judgments about what we allow in our homes? Is this a conviction or a commandment of God? Situations like these fall into a category I like to call convictions. There is nothing wrong with convictions. I have strong convictions for myself and my household as well. We as a family do not listen to secular or worldly music and in fact we only listen to Christian or Messianic Worship songs. Some other families we know do not have televisions in their home. Some do not allow internet access. Other common convictions I have encountered are: How to keep the Sabbath day holy- Some people light candles and say blessings to open the Shabbat but some do not. How to keep Feast Days- Aside from what the Bible plainly says about them, every family has different traditions and special things they like to do. How to pray- Again besides some guidelines seen in the Bible we have no commandment as to how to pray only that we should pray. How to worship God- We have some examples of worship and guidelines in the Bible but people worship God in different ways. Some like to dance, some play instruments, and yet there are so many ways to show your worship to God. The use of doctors & medicine- Some people are on medications while others feel using doctors and medications are not the best course of action. Being involved in politics & government- Some believe strongly that politics & government involvement is evil and we should not get involved while others feel just as strongly that it is our duty as believers to be active and vote and strive to better our communities. Being involved in the military- Again strong feelings on both sides of the fence. Whose right and whose wrong? Which opinion will God stand by? Well the fact of the matter is that it is these things that we fight about the most. The problem comes when one family has a strong conviction about something but another family may not and so a fight ensues throwing scriptures back and forth trying to sway the other family to their point of view. Sometimes good friends separate as a result of not agreeing about convictions. Should this be? If we can’t find the commandment in black and white should we be fighting and breaking off relationships? For instance is it really that important how you keep the Sabbath day holy or that you are actually trying to guard and cherish it? Now that being said, commandment is commandment. Period. Keeping the Sabbath day holy and not profaning it, is not a conviction but a commandment. Commandment is something that we have to stand by no matter what. It is concrete and without compromise but convictions can change and that’s okay. I have had strong convictions about certain things and after a few years those convictions didn’t matter as much. Sin is the breaking of God’s commandments not breaking your personal convictions. [1Jo 3:4 KJV] 4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. Our convictions may be good and beneficial to us but they are not the definition for sin so why do we treat people as though they are sinning when they don’t agree with your conviction? Our diet is another area of contention as there are convictions galore about what is kosher and what is not. Some people spend more time reading labels than reading God’s word; more time worrying about physical diet than spiritual welfare. Should we eat organic non-GMO foods only? What about the person who can’t afford organic non-GMO foods? Even though it may be a healthier choice doesn’t make it commandment! So all of the disgusted looks to make that less fortunate person who can’t afford that healthy choice leave that person feeling dirty and almost like they are displeasing God. Remember a dispute that Yeshua and His disciples had with the Pharisees about eating with unwashed hands. This was a strong conviction by them that they were passionate about but they crossed the line when they accused Yeshua and His disciples as sinning. This was crossing the line making their conviction into God’s commandments. [Mar 7:5-9 KJV] 5 Then the Pharisees and scribes asked him, Why walk not thy disciples according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashen hands? 6 He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with [their] lips, but their heart is far from me. 7 Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching [for] doctrines the commandments of men. 8 For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, [as] the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do. 9 And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition. Let me make this very clear! I am not saying that tradition or even personal convictions are bad or evil. The problem comes when people, like the Scribes and Pharisees, begin treating their own traditions and convictions as “thus sayeth the Lord.” And worse yet you reject your fellow brother over this conviction while breaking the commandment to love your neighbor as yourself. By this you are holding onto your conviction (even if it is a good habit or beneficial to you) while breaking God’s commandments. In Mark 7 the Greek word used for tradition is παράδοσις paradosis and this word is also used in Colossians 2:8 [Col 2:8 KJV] 8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. Not only did Yeshua spend a large portion of His ministry disputing people over convictions but the Apostle Paul (Shaul) also spent a large part of his ministry as well. In Romans 14 we read about a dispute between groups of people fighting about whether it was God’s will for us to eat only vegetables or meat as well. It’s funny how this chapter is used quite often to say that Paul advocated the eating of any kinds of meats including that which the Bible commands as unclean. This is not an argument about eating clean or unclean meats but about vegetarian diets versus eating clean meats. This was a struggle over convictions and not commandments. Paul also addresses conviction issues over special holidays or days revered over another. Clearly, as we can see throughout the entirety of the scripture that Paul is not advocating that it doesn’t matter what day the Sabbath is. He is addressing convictions about other national holidays or cultural holidays. For instance in the United States we celebrate the 4th of July as Independence Day while others may not celebrate. Since it is only a national holiday it is not commandment to keep or not to keep. Israel has many days that fit this description and although we are grafted in to the commonwealth of Israel we are not obligated by God to celebrate special days like Yom Hashoah or Tu B’shevat, or the fast days mentioned in Zechariah 7:5-6. • The fast of the fourth month- remembering the destruction of the wall in Jerusalem • The fast of the fifth month- remembering the burning of the great temple in Jerusalem • The fast of the seventh month- remembering the killing of Gedaliah that sent them into exile into the nations • The fast of the tenth month- remembering the siege of Jerusalem If you feel you want to celebrate these days, GREAT! But don’t make others feel like they are less holy or somehow breaking God’s commandments if they don’t share your enthusiasm. Listen to Paul’s arguments and frustration: I am convinced that the reason YHVH made the Biblical Feasts shadows is that there is only an outline in a shadow and no detail. Think about it, have you ever seen details in a shadow? So we can’t judge one another as to the details but that we stay in that shadow outline. I believe this is what Paul the Apostle was getting at in Colossians: [Col 2:16-17 KJV] 16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath [days]: 17 Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body [is] of Christ. One thing is for sure though, we should be in the shadow of the Messiah. We should walk just as He walked by keeping the Sabbath day, the Feasts of the Lord, and keeping the Biblical diet. We also must remember that Yeshua is the substance and the details. In Him we breath and move and have our being. He is the Lord of the Sabbath . A large portion of His ministry on Earth was defending what He was doing on the Sabbath day and why He did not honor certain customs or convictions that the religious elite followed during that time. We have the same issues today and it consumes a large portion of the ministry time and effort. Ok I am going to have to close this article today so next week look out for the Part 2 of Conviction or Commandment. May YHVH’s wisdom guide you through these difficult subjects. This entry was posted in Apostolic Writings, Gospels, Torah and tagged conviction or commandment, keeping traditions as commandments, part 1, personal convictions, traditions of men. JOEL ALLEN Nasso | נשא | “Take up “ Parsha Nasso: Homeschool Helps RECENT POSTS Recent Posts FREE NEWSLETTER SIGNUP! Email address: Your email address SIGN UP POPULAR PRODUCTS Joshua to Revelation- Youth Bible Reading Program $12.00 Noach's Math: Multiplication 1 $2.00 On My Way to Learning the Letter Tav $1.00 Hinei Ma Tov Reader (Hebrew with nikkud) $1.00 FREE TORAH PORTION SCHEDULE LOOKING FOR A LOCAL CONGREGATION? 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