Faith and Works

Paul was a man who knew the Torah, and understood the way of the Pharisees. He destroyed many Christian lives before (we are told) he encountered Jesus. Since he was of the Pharisaical Order he had the training and knowledge (though distorted) to understand what it means to be under the law. His transformation led him to understand the Grace and Mercy of God in a light that he had never experienced before. But the transcribers of his letters and speeches left out important facts which leads to much confusion.   

The Problem of Translation
The mere fact of being lost in translation has severe ramifications on the human soul. Words have been changed or omitted because someone skipped a day in school or were taught the wrong way to translate a Hebraic or Aramaic phrase. Emperors and religious leaders have intentionally changed portions of Scripture to suite their needs and we are still victims of their intentions. Because these things happened let us look at today's results. 

Many Christians are unfortunately taught lukewarm Christianity where you have Christ and that is all you need. They have faith that Jesus has their eternal soul taken care of and all they have to do is live. This becomes Jesus worship which is not what the Gospels teach, but from the translated words attributed to Paul. This belief places Jesus above the Father God and does not allow for a Trinitarian understanding. God is the one who saves us and Jesus was the instrument of our salvation. Look at Galatians 2:16. 

even so, we have come to realize that a person is not declared righteous by God on the ground of his legalistic observance of Torah commands, but through the Messiah Yeshua’s trusting faithfulness. Therefore, we too have put our trust in Messiah Yeshua and become faithful to him, in order that we might be declared righteous on the ground of the Messiah’s trusting faithfulness and not on the ground of our legalistic observance of Torah commands. For on the ground of legalistic observance of Torah commands, no one will be declared righteous. Galatians 2:16 (CJB)

A person without extra guidance in the truth would misinterpret this as Jesus is all we need and the God Creator of the universe is made to be unnecessary. This is so not the truth. 

The Need to Know the Pentateuch
The first five books of the Bible are what the entire belief is based on. It is where right from wrong is explained and taught through stories of God's interaction and influence in the lives of the people. It teaches about the ramification of making bad choices while rejoices in the good.

Within the Pentateuch are the 10 Commandments of God which are not guidelines but rules for living. These 10 Commandments teach about faith and the works that come from being a faithful servant. A person of faith will work to not disobey the rules but the works come from having faith. This is why we see in the Book of James, "Faith apart from works is dead" (James 2:26). Without knowledge of the Commandments and the Moral/Ethical Statutes, we would not know what faithful works is. Just depending on Jesus without knowing the full Bible could be deadlier than living in sin. 

So What Do We Need To Do? 
We need to understand that Faith and Works actually work in conjunction with each other. You cannot have blind faith and do nothing nor can you be the best most helpful person in the world doing your best to follow but not believe. The Hebraic word that we translate to faith is actually translated to trust.
Trusting in the Lord our God that He had, through His Grace and Mercy, desired a relationship with us so much that taken a part of Himself and made it flesh to be the last atoning sacrifice that the world would ever need. We Trust that He will guide and protect us, and that we are dependent on God to provide us with the means to be able to survive in this world while we strive to be with Him in the next. Through our Trust in God we show our Faith in Him to others by doing the things He requires of us. That is Active Faith which is what God looks for us to do. 
 Brothers and Sisters, even if your faith is no bigger than a mustard seed, if you do as God commands you will see your faith grow and your relationship with God be ever closer. Jesus is the King and He will come again but be careful to not treat Him as above the Father. May the Word of God carry you through this life, trusting in His Mercy and Grace. Love others as God Loves all of us, and may you feel joy even in suffering in the these dark times.

In His Arms,
Rob, His Servant