This post first appeared on Kineti and is authored by Judah Gabriel Himango, one of Tabernacle of David’s teachers.
In this new episode of Messianic Walk, John and Judah tackle the book of Romans and its pressing questions for Messianic believers:
Specifically,
- 08:35 When Paul says, “A true Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is of the heart, in spirit and not in letter” (Rom 2), is he saying Gentiles are spiritual Jews?
- 18:32 Digging deeper on “a true Jew…”: if it speaks only to Jews, why is Paul talking about Jews and Gentiles in the previous verses and context of Romans 2?
- 24:12 Paul speaks about the righteousness of “Gentiles who do by nature the things of the Torah” (Rom 2): is this the moral law, the full Mosaic law, or something else?
- 37:09 Paul tells the Romans, “We are released from the Torah” (Rom 7). Does this mean the Torah has no relevance the lives of Messianic believers?
- 49:05 Sidebar, a relevant example of why we need scholarship in the Messianic movement.
- 54:49 Paul writes, “Let every person submit himself to the governing authorities” (Rom 13). In the coronavirus era, how should this play out? Governors are issuing mandates to wear masks, quarantine for indefinite periods of time, close churches and social gatherings. Should Messianic believers submit themselves to these authorities, or are these issues going beyond what Paul had in view?
- 1:16:00 Romans 13 speaks about not causing others to stumble over issues of food. Can this be applied to kosher standards today in the Messianic movement? Is it wise use of Romans 13 to discourage Messianic folks from taking a stand over kosher issues? Or can we cite Paul’s “the Kingdom of God is not about eating and drinking” and tell people that food ultimately doesn’t matter to God?
- 1:31:20 So many missteps with Paul’s letters began with misapplying or overapplying Paul’s words in a specific context to a broader context. How can Messianics apply Scripture today without over-applying it; without getting off on erroneous tangents by misapplying Scripture to overly broad contexts?
I learned a lot just by chatting with John about these issues. I think you will too, fine Kineti reader.
