Ephesians 6:12-17 , a very well known verse of Scripture, goes into describing the warfare that we are in, and the weaponry required for this battle. These weapons are not natural, but spiritual, so if we are to be effective warriors for the Most High, we need to be skilled in the operation of each of them. Among the weaponse given, you can’t help to notice that 90% of this equipment is for the defense, and only 10% for the offense. With this in mind, having only one defensive weapon, being the “Sword of the Spirit”, which, the Apostle Sha’ul describes as the “Word of YHVH”, we must become very skilled in the Word. This is where many of us fall short at. Many of us read the Word daily, and some can even quote Scripture backwards and frontwards. The problem with this is that, in the midst of all that quoting, we lack the full understanding of what we are quoting. Wisdom comes within the word of YHVH, but with all this getting, we need understanding as well Proverbs 4:7 . Therefore, rightly discerning the Word can only be done when we truly understand what we are speaking of. Recalling my early years as an eager believer of Yeshua, growing up in the Christian church, I really felt I had a firm grasp and understanding of the Word. I cited Scripture, and based off of my understandig of it, I broke it down pretty good. I had taught many a people who were eager to learn, and when someone had a faulty understanding of what they read, I broke it down for them to help them get a better grasp. I really thought I had it going on, until the day I stepped onto this side of the fence. This is where it all changed for me. Now, having been on both sides of the fence, I fell I am even in a better position to expound on the Word more clearly, having seen both sides of the argument, as opposed to only seeing one side and trying to defend it. I have since come to realize the extent of this form of error, as I pull from my own personal life as well as experiences from sitting under various ministries.
So, of all of the analogies that Sha’ul could have used to describe the “Word of YHVH”, why would he use the sword? Granted, during that time, the sword was one of the primary weapons of warfare, but why not the bow and arrow? Or maybe even an eating utensil? Yeshua did remark to the disciples that His meat was to do the will of YHVH. For the most part, we understand the purpose of a sword and the way it is used. In Hebrews 4:12 the writer describes the Word as actually being “sharper than any” two edged sword. It goes on to describe how it cuts right through the soul and spirit. The KJV says that “it divides the soul and the spirit”. I want to focus on the word “divide”. According to the dictionary, one of the definitions for divide is to separate into parts, or even to cause to “disagree”. I thought this was interesting. Especially considering the words of Yeshua in Matthew 10:34. According to the very mouth of our Mashiach (Messiah), He did NOT come to bring peace, but a sword. He came to divide. It goes on to say how this sword would divide families, even the people in your very home. But why would He divide rather than unite? The first thing to understand is that from the time of the meeting between YHVH and Moses on Mt Sinai, until the time of Yeshua, so much had happened. The Torah began to be watered down with the traditions of the elders to the point the the traditions of the elders had more weight than the Torah although the sages claimed that their intent was to add an extra layer of protection around Torah to ensure that the people would not violate it in any way. There was a reason why YHVH charged the people not to add to or take away from Torah. Torah was perfect! The moment you try to add to are take away from something already perfect, the less perfect it becomes. In fact, the sages began to be more leagalistic in their traditions to the extent that the keeping of Torah became more of a tedious task than a blessing for life. It is no wonder that Yehsua’s biggest issue was with the religious leaders of the day. These very same people were the ones who were supposed to teach Torah after the manner of Moses, but had watered down the teachings so much that Yeshua had to make a clear distinction between where Torah ended and the traditions of the elders began. Almost every time you see Yeshua encounter the religious leaders, there was a confrontation. And every confrontation ended with the religious being outraged to the point that they sought a way to kill Him. On a few occasions, they even attempted to set Him up so that they could find justification in killing Him, yet they found none. Every opportunity to defy the religious leaders traditions, He would do that at the same time, fully pointing out what Torah said. One such encounter took place in Matthew 23:2-3. However, what went on here gets missed by many due to a translational error. The translated verse states that, “whatever they tell you, do’. To get the full understanding of this, we need to look at the Hebrew manuscript. Yes, I did say Hebrew. I know that is a surprise to many of you because many of us were taught that all of the New Testament was written in Greek, however, there is a lot of evidence that proves contrary. Although there are no Hebrew manuscripts found to make this concrete, the proof is in the context of statements found in many of the Scriptures. In order to catch this, one must have an eastern cultural understanding of the Hebrew language, which many theological schools fail to teach. I could go on and on on that, but that should be a topic for another blog. Getting back to the book of Matthew though, there are actually quite a few Hebrew versions on hand today. And for those who would dispute the validity thereof, i submit that countless church fathers of the first and second century agree as well as attest to the fact that Matthew did indeed write “his” gospel in Hebrew, and that everyone else did their best to translate it. Disputing the writings of these church fathers becomes hard to do, when you consider that for centuries we have considered them as credible, and have cited their writings on many occasions. That being said, in the Hebrew Matthew, that same verse in Matthew 23:2-3 actually stated that the “Sages and Pharisees sit in Moses seat, and whatever he (Moses) says do, but do not do as they (the sages and Pharisees) do.
Now it actually becomes clear why Yeshua said that He came to bring a sword. It was His Word that would bring division, not in a negative sense, but in the sense that in the presence of error, His truth would expose error in the light of truth. For those who refuse to accept the truth, this same Word would bring division, even into the very home of the person speaking this truth. I was watching a teaching recently by 119 Ministries entitle Divided By Truth or United By Error, and it really shed light on a lot of things. The title alone is mind blowing when you think about it. Truth will divide, because it exposes things many prefer not be exposed, which in turn demands immediate changes that many prefer not make. Error unites people because it allows you to remain where you are, and stay comfortable with a clear conscience. I would highly recommend that you view this video. I can honestly say now that I have a deeper understanding on this now. Before I became Messianic Jewish, I was united by error with many of my Christian friends, and we all remained fairly close knit. The moment I switched, I found myself divided by truth. The same people who once were huge Facebook commentators on my page for the positive began to either stop commenting on my posts or opposing me. I have to admit, it really bothered me for some time. I took it a bit hard in the beginning, and just could not understand why everyone seemed to write me off. But as time went on, I realized it was because we no longer had things in common. True enough, we both agree on our love for the Lord, the difference came in the form of how we understand what He expected of us. I was basically experiencing what 119 Ministries was talking about before I even knew it as the case. So when this teaching popped up, it really hit home and I understood it. I can further relate to what Yeshua meant by His statement about bringing a sword and not peace. Bringing peace in most cases requires a mutual compromise on both sides whereby the terms are equally agreeable on both sides, however, when it comes to the gospel, there is no compromise. In fact, it could be said that this is what the religious leaders of the day attempted in Yeshua’s day. The reality of it all is that what YHVH has said, is what he expected, and anything less than that is not acceptable. As believers today, this should be our stand as well. This was the very same stance of the first century church. This is why many considered the Messianic believers to be turning the world upside down. Today’s church is full of error etched in tradition. I am not saying that they are lost, but rather ignorant to truth. As such, we need to continue expounding on the gospel more clearly to them, even as the Apostles did. I do believe that, when we do things out of ignorance, there is a grace to cover us because YHVH never judges us for what we do not know, however, the moment truth has been revealed, whether accepted or rejected by the hearer, there no longer remains a covering because we are now accountable of what we heard. I further submit that, from this moment, if we choose to reject, we are now operating in disobedience, because we have heard, but chose rather to ignore truth. It is this fact, that assures us that truth will always divide where there is a people that refuse to change, just as error will unite as long as there is a people determined to remain the same.
The burden of the Word lies on those of us who fully understand, to teach those who do not. With nearly 4000 variations of the “Christian” faith, now more than ever, we must rightly teach the Word, and expose the traditions that have caused error in the body. It is this teaching that will unite the body, thereby doing away with the division of erroneous traditions that have infected the Bride of Yeshua for over a millennium. Indeed, the sword will bring division and not peace because it challenges what we think we know in the light of what the Word really says. It demands action to be taken in light of the revelation of error. However, most believers are content and comfy where they are, and as long as this is the case, the Word will always bring the Sword of division and not the unity of peace. The question is, which will you choose, to be divided by truth or united in error? I hope this question is received in the right context. I am in no way implying that we stir strife with anyone. The Word teaches us to love all men. I am saying that, in the midst of loving one another, that we must also teach the word in truth, despite the fact that it may cause some to veer away from us. When I look at the ministry of Yeshua, He was radical. He said it like it was, and didn’t sugar coat it, but rather in the spirit of love, corrected those who were in err. So, if you find yourself divided from those you were once close to because of your stance on the Word, don’t feel distraught, this is what the Word is supposed to do. Just keep doing what you are doing, and never stop. In the end, truth will prevail. Blessings!
