Are Torah observant believers in Messiah Yeshua in a cult?

	Tenets of Christianity	Score	Tenets of Netzari (Torah Observance)	Score
1	The Bible is the inspired, infallible, and inerrant Word of God	+	The Bible is the inspired, infallible, and inerrant Word of Yahweh - yes, in this the two faiths agree! However! One must be careful to rely on the oldest, most original and complete translation. All modern translations not only suffer from changes required to obtain copyright, but from mistranslations between languages as well! The Netzari use the entire Bible as translated directly into English from the oldest known sources which were in Hebrew or Aramaic.	+
2	No other writings, revelations or prophecies are to be considered as an authoritative source of truth and/or interpretation of the Bible	+	No other writings, revelations or prophecies are to be considered as an authoritative source of truth and/or interpretation of the Bible. Agree.	+
3	No organization, individual and/or group of individuals is to be considered as a (or the) primary source of Bible interpretation	+	No organization, individual and/or group of individuals is to be considered as a (or the) primary source of Bible interpretation. Agree.	+
4	No organization, individual and/or group of individuals is to be considered as inspired on a par with those who, inspired by the Holy Spirit, wrote the Scriptures	+	No organization, individual and/or group of individuals is to be considered as inspired on a par with those who, inspired by the Ruach HaKodesh, wrote the Scriptures. Agree.	+
5	No organization, individual and/or group of individuals is to be considered as apostles on a par with the apostles mentioned in the Bible	-	No organization, individual and/or group of individuals is to be compared with the apostles. Period. The apostles were 12 who knew Yeshua personally! So any other individual or group being "on par" is not even possible. Unfortunately, Paul (Apostle Paul) is himself terribly misunderstood and one must interpret his writings carefully in the context of who he was and who he writes to. Paul did not have any authority to alter the Word of Yahweh or Yeshua. We are even warned of the difficulties of understanding Paul in the writings of Apostle Peter! "...as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom conferred on him, wrote to you; as also in all his letters speaking in them of these things in which there is something difficult to be understood; (and) which they who are ignorant and unstable pervert, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction." (2 Peter 3:15-16).	+
6	Jesus is both fully God and fully Man.	-	Yeshua was an *arm of Yahweh* (imagine YHWH with a body and Yeshua being the "arm" extending down onto the earth - Father and Son are thus "one"). And though possessing a divine nature - pure, sinless, and blemish-free - *Yeshua was a separate Being* attached to Yahweh in a way no other human could be; who ultimately gets to "sit at the right hand of God" (there is no way to "sit next to God" unless you are a "separate" Being - Philippians 2:5-11; see also Mark 16:19, Acts 2:32-34, Acts 5:31, Matthew 28:18, Ephesians 1:20-23, 1 Peter 3:22). Yeshua "emanated" from Yahweh...Remember, Yahweh Himself cannot be birthed, pierced, or killed on a cross or by any other mechanism. Further, one cannot look upon the face of Yahweh without dying! (Exodus 33:20-23).	+
7	Trinity - one God in three distinct persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.	-	Yahweh is not a "person" nor is the Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit); and there is no such thing as "trinity" anywhere in the Bible! One God - Yahweh - yes, but many manifestations.	+
8	"Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death- even death on a cross!" (Philippians 2:5-8)	-	The quotation of this tenet is from Philippians and is not about Yeshua's attitude, it is about our attitudes toward each other. Yeshua's "attitude" was one of obedience to His Father. ("I and the Father are one" - John 10:30.) We are to be obedient also. ("My sheep listen to my voice, I recognize them, they follow me, and I give them eternal life." - John 10: 27-28). A more appropriate and sound Christian tenet would be "He that says 'I am in him' is bound to walk according to his halakha." (1 John 2:6). In other words "If you claim to be in union with the Messiah, you need to conduct your life the way He did!" (Yeshua was Torah observant!)	+
9	Man is sinful and in need of salvation. The Bible says that "All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23).	-	But Romans 3 is not about the simple fact that "All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God." What is sin? Sin is disobedience to /transgression from Torah - see Romans 3:20. Why not read on, as Romans 3 goes on to say that Yeshua freed us from our enslavement to sin; that is, from our current and past sin - not our future sin! Once we accept that Yeshua died for our sins, we are to sin no more! ("And by this we will be sensible that we know him, if we keep his Commandments." - 1 John 2:3.) If you continue to sin after accepting Yeshua's death you are not covered! (Hebrews 10:26).	+
10	"The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 6:23) Jesus died a substitutionary atoning death for our sins	-	Yes "The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" - taken from Romans 6:23. But look back at Romans 6:1! It says "What will we then say? Will we continue in sin that grace may abound? Far be it: for if we are persons that have died to sin, how can we again live in it?" Please continue to read in Romans 6-7 which goes on so say that we died with him so that our sinful propensities might be destroyed! Sin is measured by disobedience to Torah! Paul echoes this in his letter to the Galatians: "For by Torah I am dead, that I might live to Elohim. And I am executed on a stake with Mashiyach, so it is not I that live but Mashiyach lives in me; and the life I live now in the flesh in faith of the Son of Elohim who loves me and give his life/soul for me. And I do not frustrate the grace of Elohim, for if righteousness came by Torah, then Mashiyach died for nothing." (Galatians 2:19-21) The Messiah's death was a substitutionary atonement for our sins - but only the sins as measured against the "bill of charges against us" (Colossians 2:14), i.e., "...they are based on man-made rules and teachings." (Colossians 2:22). The rules of Torah were not and could not have been abolished! ("For truly I say to you that until heaven and earth pass away not one Yodh or one stroke will pass from Torah until everything happens." - Matthew 5:18). (The words of the Messiah himself!)	+
11	Jesus died in our place for our sins.	-	Yeshua died in our place only for our current sins, up to the moment we accept that he came to give us eternal life. His death did not remove the obligation to obey Yahweh! (John 17:2-3).	+
12	Jesus physically rose from the dead.	+	Yeshua physically rose from the dead. But no scripture commands the celebratory observance of the resurrection as "Easter". The importance of the resurrection is that Yeshua, the arm of Yahweh, did not die! This is the meaning of "eternal life" which is offered to us all by the Messiah! "Amen, amen: I say to you that whoever hears my word and believes in Him who sent me has life that is eternal, and does not come into judgment but has passed from death into life. Amen, amen I say to you that the hour is coming, even now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of Elohim, and those who hear will live. For as to the Father, there is life in his Qnoma. And He gave him authority to also execute judgment, because he is the Son of man. Do not marvel at this for the hour is coming when all those who are in the grave will hear his voice! And those who have done good things will go forth to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil things to the resurrection of judgment.." - Yeshua's very words in John 5:24-29.	+
13	The Bible teaches that the faith of those who deny Jesus physically rose from the dead is useless (1 Cor. 15:14,17).	-	But read on! There is more! "But each in his own order: the Messiah is the firstfruits; then those who belong to the Messiah, at the time of his coming." (1 Cor 15:23). Who belong to the Messiah? "My sheep listen to my voice, I recognize them, they follow me, and I give them eternal life." (John 10:27-28). It is not only that you have faith that Yeshua rose from the dead, you must also obey Him!	+
14	The Gospel ('Good News') is this: the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. (1 Cor. 15:1-4; Gal. 1:8-9)	-	*No!!!!* The Good News is the Kingdom of Yahweh! (Luke 8:1). So what is this "good news? Eternal life! *In the Messiah's own words:* "Just as you have given him authority over all flesh that whomever You have given him, he will give to him life that is eternal. Now this is life that is eternal, that they might know You, that You are the Elohim of Truth, and he alone whom You have sent, the Mashiyach Y'shua." (John 17:2-3) The Messiah did NOT go around saying "The good news is I will die, be buried, and resurrected for you!" Instead He said "I must announce the Good News of the Kingdom of God ... this is why I was sent." (Luke 4:43). The GOOD NEWS is the KINGDOM OF GOD!	+
15	Salvation is by grace through faith. Salvation is a gift from God. It cannot be earned by good works or any other efforts on our part. The Bible says, "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9).	-	Grace Yes - but how and where did grace replace the need to obey God? Does a parent extend "grace" to their child when that child strays from the parental rules? Yahweh is abundant in grace from the time of the Garden! But please read on in Ephesians! "For we are of Yahweh's making, created in union with the Messiah Yeshua for a life of good actions already prepared by Yahweh for us to do." What is a "life of good actions" if not obedience to the teachings of the Father in the form of obedience to His Torah? Can Torah be bad? Or abandoned altogether? If so then why would Proverbs 4:2 say "for I give you good instruction; do not forsake my Torah"? (See Proverbs from the Tanach - in its original Hebrew). By grace you have been saved yes, but this is not carte-blanche release from Torah!	+
16	[Salvation] is obtained by faith - not by works, nor by baptism (an act of obedience that symbolizes ones commitment to God). The Bible says, "If you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." (Romans 10:9)	-	Again - continue reading in Romans! The confession of the mouth is of the utmost importance, but understand that Romans is all about the *conduct of your life in your new-found faith in the Messiah's death for your sins! Romans 13:14: "But clothe yourselves with our Master Y'shua the Mashiyach: and pay no concern about your flesh for the indulgence of appetites.." What is your "indulgence of appetites"? Our willful disobedience! Read Romans! Paul's letter to the Romans says: "All those in Rome whom Yahweh loves, who have been called, who have been set apart for him..." (Romans 1:7). This letter is to Torah OBEDIENT followers of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob*!	+
17	"He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy." (Titus 3:5a)	-	Read Titus in context, to whom it was written! Paul says: "PAUL, a servant of Elohim and an apostle of Y'shua the Mashiyach; according to the Faith of the elect of Elohim, and the knowledge of the Truth which is in the Fear of Elohim.," "To Titus, a real son after the common faith: Grace and peace from Elohim our Father and from our Master Y'shua the Mashiyach, our Life-Giver." (Titus 1: 1 & 4). Paul is not writing to just "anyone"; he is writing to the "sons of the true faith." Paul says grace "teaches us to deny that which is without Elohim and worldly lusts, and to live in this world in sobriety and in uprightness and in the Fear of Elohim" (Titus 2:12). By the time we read Titus 3:5, we see that the context means that we "might be made righteous by His grace and become heirs in the hope of eternal life" (Titus 3:7) - not by abandoning Torah, but by the death of the Messiah on the cross who bore our sins for our inability to live 100% within Torah and its man-made added rules. Titus 3:5 goes on to say: "not by works of righteousness which we had done, but according to his mercy, he revived us by the washing of the new birth and by the renovation of the Ruach haKodesh." So it is not just "his mercy" that saved us, but the Ruach haKodesh which must enter us to be a part of the deliverance offered by the Messiah.	+
18	"But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe." (Romans 3:21-22)	-	The scripture at the left is out of context and intended to convey that all that is necessary in Christianity for righteousness is "faith in Jesus Christ." However, in-context, in Romans 3:19-20, immediately preceding this verse, Paul explains that though Torah does not "produce righteousness"; that it is Torah which establishes the boundaries between good and bad behavior. Paul explains this in more detail in Romans chapter 7. And note in Romans 7, verse 1 just to whom Paul is writing - those who know Torah! Paul says this right there in his letter! Though we all "sin and have failed of the glory of Elohim" (Romans 3:23), verse 22, interpreted as a Christian tenet, is actually saying that all (Jew & Gentile alike) have the righteousness of Elohim through the faith that the Messiah died for them too. Paul never says the faith in the Messiah ends our responsibility to obey Yahweh!	+
19	There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. (Romans 3:22-25).	-	The scripture at left is the continuation of Romans 3:22 and continues through verse 25 and is again taken out of context. Verse 25, expressed here as "God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood", actually says (when translated from the original Aramaic): "Whom Elohim has ordained in advance an atonement by faith in his blood, because of our previous sins." This is a very different meaning! Yeshua died for our previous sin, not for "all" of our sin! Once we have accepted the gift of the Messiah dying for our past sin, we are obligated to abide in a sinless life - and sin is measured by Torah! See the last verse of Romans 3: "Do we then nullify Torah by faith? May it never be! On the contrary, we establish Torah." See also Hebrews 10:26: "For if man sin voluntarily after he has received a knowledge of the truth, there is no longer a sacrifice which may be offered for sins."	+

After studying the table above we see that of the 19 statements of the "tenets of Christianity", 5 are "sound"; that is, defensible or supportable in the Bible, but 14 are incomplete or false. We see from the explanations of these same statements as interpreted in the Netzari Faith, how these same 14 false or erred teachings are corrected when interpreted in-context of the scriptures from which they were drawn.

Returning now to the thesis of this article - that the Netzari Faith and Torah Observance is often cited as a "cult", we see now that Christianity is instead the religious faith which likely merits that charge!

Let us now look at several of the other most common Christian observances and compare them to the Netzari faith.

	Christianity	Score	Netzari (Torah Observance)	Score
20	Calls the creator "God"	-	Calls the creator by the name He himself said He is to be called: Yud-Hey-Vav-Hey, (transliterated into English as "YHWH" and pronounced "Yahweh"). See Exodus 3:15. Please read it in context! *Yahweh says this is His name "forever"*. "God" is a title. "Yahweh" is His NAME!	+
21	Calls the Messiah "Jesus"	-	The Messiah's name is "Yeshua" and means "YHWH is Salvation". The word "Jesus" comes from the English translation from Greek which, in turn, was from Latin and actually has no meaning! Why would the translators change the name from a meaningful "Yeshua" to a meaningless "Jesus"?	+
22	Claim "Jesus nailed it to the cross" - implying that Torah was "nailed to the cross"	-	This is taken from Colossians 2:14: "By His mandate, he blotted out the handwriting of our debts which (handwriting) existed against us, and took (it) from the midst and affixed (it) to his stake." However, simply continuing on with the rest of Colossians 2 you see that Paul was teaching that "what" the Messiah "nailed to the cross" was the man-made laws and rules which twisted, replaced, or conditionalized Torah! This is one of the most vulgar of the teachings of Christianity! Nearly all of Christianity revolves around this *one idea* that the "Torah was nailed to the cross", yet by simply reading the remainder of Colossians 2, this myth is quickly dispelled!	+
23	Celebrate "Christmas" and "Easter"	-	One will not find "Christmas" or "Easter" in *any* Bible! (Yes, the King James Version inserted the word "Easter" into Acts 12 but it should have said "Pesach". Who knows why King James' biases caused him to insert the word "Easter"?) Neither Christmas nor Easter are Yahweh-commanded observances and both contain traditions steeped in paganism. Yahweh says over and over not to adopt the ways of the pagans. If you truly believe in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, you cannot pretend He has changed His mind about paganism just because "Jesus died"...	+
24	Ignore the commanded Holy-days and Feasts - they are all "Old Testament"	-	Netzarim observe the commanded Holy-days and Feasts since they are all "FOREVER" commands and Yahweh was very clear that *ALL* are to do as his chosen do (see Numbers 15:14-16).	+
25	Worship on Sunday -the 1st day of the week	-	Netzarim worship on the 7th day (Saturday), as Yahweh commanded. This is another "forever" command and is one of the "Ten Commandments." See Exodus 20:8-11, Exodus 31:16-17. As a "sign" between Yahweh and his people *forever*, why would this change to Sunday (the "first day")?	+
26	Carry figures of "Jesus" nailed to the cross	-	Yahweh said: "So watch yourselves carefully, since you did not see any form on the day the LORD spoke to you at Horeb from the midst of the fire, so that you *do not* act corruptly and *make a graven image* for yourselves *in the form of any figure*, the likeness of male or female...." (Deut 4:15-16).	+
27	Claims there are only "two commandments"	-	This is a good example where even the Gospels are badly misinterpreted. This refers to Matthew 22:37-39 where Yeshua is asked by a Pharisee knowledgeable of the Torah "which of the mitzvot is the *most important?" Yeshua answers with: "'You should love Master YHWH your Elohim with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might and with all your mind'. This is the first and the greatest Commandment. And the second is like it. That 'You should love your neighbor as yourself.'" Here, the Christian stops reading* and concludes "Jesus said there are only 2 commandments." Had they simply read the *very next verse* (Matthew 22:40) they would see Yeshua explained: "On these two commandments hang Torah and the prophets." You see, Yeshua did as he was asked! He answered which commandment was the greatest! He did not say "...and there are no others." Yeshua was an *arm of Yahweh, and would never* have negated his Father's teaching!	+
28	Argue that Torah cannot be kept	-	Actually much of the Torah *can* be kept! Indeed, what is so hard about keeping the 7th day Sabbath? The removal of leaven at Passover? Eating only Matzah for a week? Counting the Omer? The observance of Yom Kippur? Sukkot? 1 Tishri? The Ten Commandments? None of these are hard to obey! Much of Torah was issued in "forever" imperatives, and some commands apply only to women, others to men, and some only to the priests. So to claim "Torah cannot be kept today" is simply and utterly false! In fact, if you read the Bible front-to-back, there is a *theme* which emerges. That theme is that all He asks is *obedience*! Imagine how bad you would feel if your own children, at some arbitrary point in their lives, say 12 years old, suddenly ignored all the good rules you taught them as they were growing up which kept them safe from harm! (Sadly, in our Godless society, this is pretty much exactly what children do!)	+
29	Argue that Torah was "abolished"	-	Yeshua himself said this is not the case. "Don't think that I have come to abolish the Torah or the Prophets. I have come not to abolish but to complete. Yes indeed! I tell you that until heaven and earth pass away, not so much as a yud or a stroke will pass from the Torah - not until everything that must happen has happened. So whoever disobeys the least of these mitzvot (words/commands) and teaches others to do so will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But whoever obeys them and so teaches will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven." (Matthew 5:17-19)	+
30	Claim the "Good News" is their salvation by believing in "Jesus"	-	Again, Yeshua himself tells us exactly what he came for, which became the "Good News": "My Father the hour has come. Glorify your Son so that your Son might glorify you. Just as you have given him authority over all flesh that whomever You have given him, he will give to him life that is eternal. Now this is life that is eternal, that they might know you, that You are the Elohim of Truth, and he alone whom You have sent, the Machiyach Yeshua." (John 17-1-3). One's salvation is obtained by believing in Yeshua as our Final SIN Sacrifice, and then going on to obey the Father!	+

This table of comparison could go on and on. Many of the teachings of Christianity are simply not sound! So herein lies the reason that the Netzari faith is so often challenged as a "cult". Establishing sound interpretation and teachings from the Bible is not easy! There are so many failures in the Christian faith, leading so many so far from the truth that they - Christians - are far closer to the definition of a "cult" than the Torah observant Netzarim whose sole purpose is to "simply obey Yahweh to the best of their ability - as He asks". The entire Bible is nothing but Yahweh attempting to show us the proper way to live! It was so important to Him that he sent an aspect of Himself (arm - Isaiah 53:1) down to earth to clarify it and offer a sacrifice for us so we could have the eternal life he promised and offered to all.

Those who are Torah observant, as Yahweh asked, deeply understand Matthew 7:14 when Yeshua taught "How narrow the door and straight the road that leads to life, and few are they, those who find it." Please! If you are one of those who condemn the Netzari Faith and Torah observance as a "cult" - ponder this scripture for a great while - the very words of the Messiah!

No, the Netzarim Faith and Torah Observance is not a cult! The Renewed Covenant [New Testament] Scriptures clearly reveal that Y'shua and his followers were Torah observant and entrusted with YHWH's Commandments."

A part of a footnote from the Aramaic-English New Testament at the end of the Book of Galatians tells us that Paul rebukes those who turn Torah and Circumcision into idols; however, Christians are equally as culpable when their religious traditions become idols and truth becomes the stumbling block. Y'shua restored the Ancient Path spoken of in Jeremiah 6:16. YHWH offered the Brit Chadasha (Renewed Covenant) so that both Jew and Gentile can fully embrace Torah in Mashiyach. The downside is the same for Christians as it is for Jews: those living among Christians are persecuted for observing Torah; those living among Jews are persecuted for proclaiming Y'shua! Religion is much more comfortable than Truth; nothing has changed in 2,000 years."

Christianity has changed the Name of our Savior along with the dates of His birth, death and resurrection, and completely ignored the commanded Seventh Day Sabbath and the Feasts to follow their own "holy days" of Christmas and Easter - both of which are steeped in paganism. It is therefore extremely hypocritical of any Christian to refer to Netzarim/Messianic Judaism as a "cult."