A couple weeks ago I was sworn into my new job position. I’ve been dreading this for a long time, because Matthew 5:34-37 talks about how you should not swear on anything, and your yes should just be yes, and your no should just be no, and anything beyond yes or no is from the evil one.
So when I found out that the state I live in uses the word “affirm,” instead of “swear,” both for being sworn into office, and being sworn in to give testimony at a hearing or trial, it made me very relieved. (I live in a swing state, in case anyone is wondering).
I was all set to write this post and pretty much end here, then I decided to check with my new friend, Strong’s Lexicon.
Turns out, swear, affirm, whatever…it’s not the original translation. The original translation says not to make any oaths to anyone other than God.
Am I a sinner for working in a career God sent me to, because I had to take an oath of office, and repeatedly take an oath every time I will testify in court? Serious question.
I guess there’s a reason why there is a traditional Jewish prayer that is said on Yom Kippur every year that breaks all the oaths we’ve made over the last year (called “Kol Nidre.”) As believers, we can always pray prayers of deliverance to break off oaths made to anyone other than God. We always strive to come out of agreement with the devil and his schemes.
But here is something else to consider…another oath made to someone other than God is wedding vows. Read that again.
I am going to save my thoughts on what makes you married in the eyes of God for another post, as I don’t want to go off on too much of a tangent here, but consider the words you speak to people, and whether or not you are honoring God with what you promise.
This post is going to offend a lot of people; but I am not here to make friends; I am here to speak the truth, even when nobody wants to hear it. And I want to use this platform to talk about some things I can’t stop thinking about.
First of all, I just want to re-iterate that there is nothing that anyone in Israel has done to deserve being hunted, slaughtered, raped, kidnapped, or kept as a hostage. NOTHING.
But I do want to talk about the consequences of being somewhere you’re not supposed to be/doing things you’re not supposed to be doing.
There’s a traditional Jewish liturgical prayer of repentance that’s spoken corporately several times throughout Yom Kippur, called the “Al Chet.” This prayer goes through a list of sins, some of which you would never even think about asking forgiveness for. But one of the sins listed in the prayer is “the sin of running to do evil.”
The sin of running to do evil. The sin of being excited to sin.
On the morning of October 7th, there was a large music festival happening in Israel. Nearly 300 attendees were murdered by Hamas, with an unknown number taken hostage, and the rest traumatized for life. According Wikipedia, the massacre at the music festival is the largest terror attack in Israel’s history, and the worst Israeli civilian massacre ever.
I’ve heard a lot of people speak about the festival, and they all say the same things…it was about love, it was about being happy, it was about dancing and being with your friends, etc.
But that’s not what I see.
I’ve seen pictures from the festival where there was a giant Buddha statue there. One of the bands playing there was called “Astral Projection.” The festival was referred to as a “psychedelic trance festival,” which usually goes hand in hand with mind altering substances. It was a party all night and all weekend party. There was a story of a woman in her 40s that was there that left her husband and children home to go party after her husband asked her not to go. What other kinds of debauchery was happening there? In addition, it was intentionally scheduled on Shemini Atzeret/Shabbat, which God asks for the day to be a holy convocation, and this convocation was anything but holy.
It feels like Nineveh. When God asked Jonah to go to the town and tell everyone to repent. I’m not saying what was happening at this music festival is exactly what was happening in Nineveh, but it was an entire community of people who were chasing after sin when they should have been chasing after God. A gathering of running to do evil. I know that’s an unpopular opinion, because the world sees evil as murder and rape, and not as leaving your family overnight to dance in front of a giant Buddha statue with your friends. And I know not everyone there was there with the intention to sin, but that’s how you fall into sin. You go with the wrong people and visit the wrong places.
And that doesn’t mean you deserve to be shot or raped or kidnapped or watch your friends be murdered or raped or tortured, but where would they be if they hadn’t gone to this festival? Where would they be if they had planned to be in Synagogue for the holiday?
There are just so many sad things about this situation, and this is one thing nobody is talking about, and I feel like someone needs to say it. Show the world to be very careful about where you go, what you do, and who you hang out with, so that you are not led astray. (Matthew 24:4, Luke 21:8a, Proverbs 4:23a).
The other thing that keeps repeating in my head over and over and over again is this:
On continuing my high holiday posts, here are my thoughts on Yom Kippur, especially about fasting.
Here is what a typical Yom Kippur looks like in a Messianic Congregation:
Everyone 13 and older does a full food fast, unless pregnant, or other medical condition prevents them from doing so. Some people give you a hard time for even drinking water. The fast lasts approximately 25 hours. And during those 25 hours, you have:
1) An evening Yom Kippur service
2) A morning Yom Kippur service
3) A service to remember those who’ve died
4) A study on the book of Jonah
5) A short evening service, followed by a communal breaking of the fast
6) Lots of guilt about if your name isn’t in the Book of Life by the end of Yom Kippur, you’re toast
Here’s the thing…pretty much none of this is in The Bible.
Here’s what Leviticus 23 says about how to observe Yom Kippur: it is to be a day of rest with no work, it is to be a holy convocation, you are to present an offering by fire, and you are to afflict yourself/your soul/deny yourself. This is for atonement with God.
It doesn’t actually say to fast from food. Or water.
It doesn’t actually say anyone under 13 is exempt from afflicting themselves.
It doesn’t actually say pregnant women are exempt from afflicting themselves.
It doesn’t actually say anyone with a medical condition is exempt from afflicting themselves.
It doesn’t actually say you get to decide for someone else how they afflict themselves, and give them a hard time if it doesn’t look the same as what you’re doing.
I agree that fasting can definitely be a form of afflicting yourself, so please do not hear that I am discouraging anyone from fasting. I am absolutely not. I am simply pointing out, it does not say this is black and white.
What it does say, is anyone who does not deny themselves on this day will be cut off from their people. ANYONE. This includes children under 13, pregnant women, and those with medical conditions. Everyone afflict yourselves.
What people don’t realize, is fasting can come in many forms.
You can absolutely do a full food fast, if you’re able to. You can also do a partial food fast, where you don’t eat x, y, and z, but you’re still eating. You can fast from social media. You can fast from watching TV. You can fast from playing video games. There are a lot of things you can do, and if you’re not teaching this to your children, then you will be held accountable for teaching them that they are exempt from afflicting themselves on this day because they haven’t had a Bar/Bat Mitzvah yet, when that is absolutely not true at all.
I want to encourage you to pray about this and consider the best way to afflict yourselves.
For me, personally, I fast so often for prayer (Matthew 17:21), that giving up food for a day is no longer a challenge for me, and feels like nothing. It would be more of a challenge/hassle for me to go an entire day without eating dairy. And definitely hard for an entire day without social media. Am I sinning for not following tradition? I can’t find any Bible verse to back that up. Affliction looks different for everyone.
If you have questions about fasting, please feel free to send me an e-mail messianicmeow@gmail.com
Some people also like to put out a blanket statement on Facebook right before Yom Kippur asking forgiveness from anyone they may have wronged/hurt/offended. This always feels forced, obligated, and phoned in, possibly out of guilt for being inscribed in the Book of Life, and feeling anxiety over a man made deadline for this.
I want to reiterate that Rosh Hashanah/Yom Kippur/the Days of Awe is not the be all end all of getting your name in the Book of Life. It’s also not the only time you can repent.
Thank God we have a Messiah who died, so that we can be inscribed in the Book of Life. And He is available to hear our sin confessions 24/7! (John 3:16, Isaiah 53:5, Psalms 121:4).
Also, it is customary to have a study on the Book of Jonah on Yom Kippur, as an example of Teshuvah (turning back to God).
I wrote a thought for thought translation on the book of Jonah specifically for millennials. Side note: I am not a millennial myself, and had to look most of these words up on Urban Dictionary, but I still had a lot of fun writing this a few years ago!
Thanks for reading. I’ll be back next week with a Sukkot/Shemini Atzeret/Simchat Torah post next week!
Oh, and please never wish me or anyone else an easy fast, as is customary. Fasting is not supposed to be easy, and neither is afflicting yourself! You can wish a meaningful fast or a difficult fast, but never say have an easy fast. Otherwise, you’ve missed the point entirely!
Acts 2 Jew: My Journey Away from Messianic Judaism and Towards Yeshua 