=mailmandan;3441461]
Many people set out to follow God's instructions on THEIR terms and not His. Judaism was not 100% their own religion with their own laws and traditions with no connection to the law of Moses or the rest of God's word whatsoever.
The Serpent also recognized and used some of God's Words when it tricked Eve into disobeying the instructions of her creator. Paul SAID SATAN DISGUISES ITSELF AS "MINISTERS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS", Apostles of Christ. So we know the deceiver hides itself behind some of God's Words. But must also twist and omit many of God's Words in order to deceive. Since Jesus said the Pharisees were "Children of satan" it's no big surprise that they had some connections to God's Words. How could they deceive a believer if they didn't?
Matthew 12:2 - But when the Pharisees saw this, they said to Him, "Look, Your disciples do what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath." So the Sabbath is their own religion?
Jesus never disobeyed His Fathers Sabbath Commandment. He disobeyed your churches Sabbath, and the Sabbath the Pharisees created where you couldn't eat a strawberry on a Sabbath Walk, or help a brother in need. God's Sabbath prohibited neither, and it seems if you knew God or the Biblical Jesus,, you would know this truth. But you don't.
Acts 23:8 - The Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, and that there are neither angels nor spirits, but the Pharisees believe all these things. Is the resurrection, angels and spirits traditions of men?
You believe man can create a High Day, place it on an ancient pagan festival and place Jesus name on it to make it Holy. You preach that God's Salvation plan which starts with Passover and ends with "the Last Great day" are "Jewish" traditions and unworthy of your respect. What difference does it make what the "children of satan" called the Pharisees believe or not believe. We know these mainstream preachers of Christ's time were deceivers, Liars, hypocrites because they "Taught for Doctrines the Commandments of Men". Only a fool would believe anything they said.
What's your point?
Matt. 15:
7 Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying,
8 This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with
their lips; but their heart is far from me.
9 But in vain they do worship me,
teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
Take your unbelief in the Jesus of the Bible up with Him. I didn't inspire these Words, I just believe them.
The Judaizers taught that in order to truly be right with God, one must conform to the Mosaic Law. Circumcision, especially, was promoted as necessary for salvation. Gentiles had to become Jewish proselytes first, and then they could come to Christ.
At the Jerusalem Council in Acts 15, a group of Judaizers opposed Paul and Barnabas. Some men who belonged to the party of the Pharisees insisted that Gentiles could not be saved unless they were first circumcised and obeyed the Law of Moses.
Because you preach the lie that the "Children of satan" called the Pharisees were trying to earn salvation by following God's Instructions, you preach that in Acts 15 the Pharisees were trying to get the new converts to follow God's instruction given by Moses. But Jesus, the Prophets, and Paul said over and over that they were not following the Law of Moses, that they were liars, hypocrites. They called their religion "circumcision and the Law of Moses" but it was not. Peter and James knew better having been taught by Jesus Himself.
Matt. 23:
4
For
they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay
them on men's shoulders; but they
themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.
Peter knew who they were.
Acts 15:
10 Now therefore why tempt ye God,
to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither
our fathers nor we were able to bear?
You preach this is talking about God's Instructions and not the "Commandments of men" that the Pharisees had placed on the backs of people for centuries. James set them straight.
Acts 15:
19 Wherefore my sentence is,
that we trouble not them, which from among the Gentiles are
turned to God:
But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and
from fornication, and
from things strangled, and
from blood.
James didn't want to trouble them with religious traditions that cost the Pharisees their Salvation, so he just told them a few of God's Laws they were still transgressing. All 4 Commandments of God given through Moses. No mention of the First and Greatest commandments here because the Gentiles already knew that. They still had some activities to turn from that James exposed, then he sent them to hear directly from Moses to learn the rest.
Acts 15:
21 For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day.
Just like Jesus instructed His disciples to do.
Matt. 23:
1 Then spake Jesus to the multitude,
and to his disciples,
2 Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat:
3 All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe,
that observe and do; but do not ye after their works:
for they say,
and do not
Now you preach James is being a legalist by telling these Gentiles to change their eating habits according to God's Instructions He gave through Moses. You refuse to accept that both the Pharisees and the Apostles were telling the Gentiles to do and learn "Works". The Pharisees, who we know had created their own religion they called "Circumcision and the Law of Moses" were trying to "Bewitch" the Disciples and Gentile converts as they did later on to the Galatians, into following
their version of the gospel which included their version of the Levitical Priesthood "works of the Law" for remission of sins. Peter rejected their religion flat out and chose to follow the instructions of Jesus and sent them to Moses to learn what God really said, not the "Commandments of Men" being taught by the Pharisees. The Gentiles didn't magically know what to do like you all preach, James had to point out God's Instructions to them, and sent them to learn the rest from Moses, like Jesus instructed them to do. "The foolishness of preaching".
This is true, but you have been deceived into believing and preaching that the Pharisees were trying to earn Salvation by following the "burdensome" Laws of God. This leads to preaching another lie that the Pharisees were trying to get the Gentile converts to follow the Laws of God. Which leads to another lie, That the disciples turned the Gentile converts away from the Laws of God in Acts 15. Which leads to another lie you preach, that God's Laws are a "Yoke" and Against us. This leads you to preaching another lie that God's Laws are "Rudiments of the world", and in Col. 2 Jesus battled against God over His Laws you preach are against us and nailed His Laws to the Cross, triumphing over God, make a show of God openly in this battle.
The children of satan were not trying to earn Salvation by following His Instructions. They were deceivers. But you preach these deceivers were trying to earn salvation by following God's Instructions like Zechariahs and Abraham did.
If you can't accept these simple Biblical Truths, then how are you any different than the Pharisees who taught lies about God, or the Catholic's who teach lies about God?
There is no reason to continue. You care more about religious traditions and doctrines and defending them than trying to understand the truth about the Scriptures.
We all, like the Disciples, have to choose between the religion we are born into, (Broad Path) and the true teachings of the God of the Bible. (Narrow Path)