Religious Traditions Summary

Improper Worship

One of the greatest battle grounds between righteousness and evil comes in the form of true worship. Elohim has stated how mankind is to have a relationship with Himself. The religious traditions of man (whether Christian, Rabbinical, or secular in origin) cause separation of mankind from the Almighty and the loss of blessing in life.

Philosophy

Philosophy, the love of logic, is a mortal enemy to religion and to faith and often limits itself to only the physical aspects of life and often tries to define it's own code of morality, honor, good & evil and is the basis for many secular forms of governments, science, and cultures. It is also the basis for many religions or sets of rites and ceremonies.

Clergy and Laity

For thousands of years, the modern church has had a clergy and laity format where the clergy, whatever their title, has placed themselves equal or superior to the Scriptures and made rules, customs, practices, and denominations of worship to their own liking. These customs, rites, and practices are passed from one generation to the next. It is time to end this broken system of clergy and laity and to return Scripture to it's rightful place of authority in leading our beliefs and doctrine, to restore our faith in the commandments of Elohim rather than following the traditions of men, and stop the artificial separation of the members of the Kingdom of Heaven.

• Traditions of the Rabbis
• Traditions of the Bishops

Pagan and Occult Worship

Within the Scriptures, it is often and in many ways stated not to worship false gods or follow the ordinances of the surrounding nations such as Egypt or Canaan. The Messiah also states that people are to obey the commandments. Sadly, through the centuries this has not been applied to the body of believers. Sometimes quickly and sometimes slowly, false forms of worship have crept into religious practices and some have even become commonplace. This often occurs through absorbing man made rituals and traditions from other cultures or religions, while adding a surface layer of meaning toward the Almighty, and then mixing it with true worship. Although Scripture warns not to worship as the pagans worship, many pagan, occult, and new age practices have been absorbed into the church and branded as good by merely masking them a new title and a veneer of symbolic meaning.

Dispensationalism

The battle with evil comes from many directions. One of the strongest attacks against the covenant relationship is the theology of dispensation. A dispensation is when an authority temporarily releases or exempts those under it from an obligation or rule. The primary dispensation that is used is the release from the commandments and laws of the Sinai Covenant. Instead, a series of man made laws and regulations are set in place to guide how worship and relationship with the Almighty is to be accomplished.

Cult Heresies

Usually associated with a single leader who has 'the truth' or a new revelation as a 'prophet', religious cults tend to be an elitist group, have intense control of their members, will place the writings of their leader above the Scriptures, and most importantly minimize Yahshuah as Savior by teaching that some form of good works or a respectable place in their organization is needed to get into Heaven.

Another set of groups to be wary of are those claiming to be Christian in their belief, but which do not actually accept the Messiah as Savior or as all that is needed for eternal life. They might accept Yahshuah as a great prophet, or even as the Messiah, but then they say He was a created being, or the Arch-Angel Michael. Furthermore, they make His sacrificial death of lesser meaning by suggesting such things as it paying a ransom price for Adam's sin but then adding it does not apply for each person and that eternal life must still be earned by doing works. Similarly, the effects of the Messiah’s sacrificial death are limited by suggesting that the Messiah came to grant only physical resurrection and then eternal life must still be earned by works of righteousness and obedience to the law. These are dangerous groups which must be avoided.