Hell, Gehenna,

Go to Hell?

Who's Going to Hell?

The Valley of Gehenna as it looks today.

Valley of Gehenna (One Hell?)

Going to hell has been quite a fear for thousands of years and it has been a major reason that people have unflinchingly followed their religions teachings.

What is hell and where does the word come from.  According to many academic sources, there are several words that were in original Biblical texts written separately, but were all translated in the King James version as hell.  The words are hades, tartaros and gehenna and all of them have different meanings. 

To complicate maters more, there is also the Hebrew word sheol which like hades, means grave or pit, which can also be mixed up in this debate, because it is used in the Old Testament in place of the word hades.

First of all "hell" is an old English word that originally meant a hole in the ground.  At the time the King James version of the Bible was translated, people in England reportedly spoke of putting their potatoes in hell for the winter to keep them from rotting, it meant a hole in the ground and also may have meant a grave.

Starting with the word hades, which is used 11 times in the New Testament, we see a pattern of possible mis-translation.  Hades, is a Greek word  which like sheol is more accurately translated as a pit or hole in the ground where the dead are placed.  Neither the word hades or the word sheol refers to a place of fire or of eternal punishment, but both are translated as hell in the King James version, which to Bible readers means the place of eternal damnation.

The word "tartaros" is translated as the word "hell" in II Peter 2:4.  "For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell (tartaroo in the original texts), and delivered them into chains of darkness to be reserved unto judgement..."  The Greeks used this word to describe the place where Zeus confined the rebellious Titans and the Bible refers to it in II Peter 2:4 as where the angels that followed Satan were cast, but it does not refer to it as a place where humans are cast.  In SRSR's opinion, tartaroos (translated as hell in King James Verson) is probably meant as the place where Satan and his legions are said to be cast, not humans who have missed the mark.

A third word that has been translated as hell is "gehenna", coming from the Hebrew words      Gai Hinnom, meaning "valley of Hinnom." This valley of Hinnom is a real place located south by southwest of Jerusalem.   Today Gai Hinnom is reported to be a fairly nice place, with at least some grass and flowers growing there.  In Biblical times however it was a place where pagan rites, possibly even infant sacrifices may have occured.

It was thus considered an unclean place by the Israelites and was used as a dump for the bodies of criminals, animals, garbage and sewage.  Fires are said to have burned there continuously because of the supply of "fuel" and to reduce the foul odor.  It is natural that became known as a place of evil and ruination.

SRSR believes that serious study shows that when the Bible talks about destruction in hell (gehenna) it means complete and final destruction, but not necessarily eternal or constant torture.  The Bible, SRSR believes, does speak of eternal life, but not eternal punishment, instead it speaks of final and permanent destruction of the souls and bodies of the "wicked."

In Matthew 10:28 Jesus says, "fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell."  Originally the word gehenna was used here and the word hell was used starting with the King James version.   Similarly gehenna is translated as hell in Mathew 23:33, "Ye serpents...how can ye escape the damnation of hell?", here he is talking about the Pharasees.

In Malachi 4:1-3, this prophet speaking of the Day of the Lord, says,"For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble; and the day that cometh shall burn them up saith the Lord of hosts, that it will leave them neither root nor branch..."  SRSR see's this as more evidence that the Bible may originally have meant that the "damned" will be permanently terminated, not eternally tortured and this is perhaps more in tune with a loving and just God. Source:

'Hell' as an invention of the church

  

"So where did the teaching of "Hellfire and damnation" come from?

As the Nicene Church was establishing its official doctrines and replacing biblical Judaism with Catholicism ("Universalism"), it is a well known and easily established fact that they incorporated the teachings of many different religious systems. These early "church fathers" were attempting to establish a new and global political and religious authority in order to control every aspect of human life. Whatever their motives, the Vatican created dogma of eternal torture as a powerful stick to wield against its opponents.

To this end the Catholic Bishops incorporated the Roman Pagan teaching of Hades: A subterranean place of eternal fiery torment and damnation. Never mind that the dogma has no biblical basis, the Magisterium of the Church declared it so. The threat of eternal damnation made their subjects docile and the collection plates rang with tithes, offerings and indulgences as deceived people sought to purchase their salvation.

The imagery of the Nicene Hell is largely taken from the underworld abode of the god Hades and his part time lover Persephone.

Present day Nicene Christians vary on why people go to Hell. Some teach that the "lost" are condemned to Hell because they fail to make the one decision necessary to achieve salvation: they refuse to accept the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus as taught by the Church. Others teach that if ones good deeds do not outweigh the negatives one goes there. Calvinists believe people have no choice in the matter at all. They say that the God of love and justice created most human being as fodder for Hell and only a few will be allowed to enter "Heaven." Catholicism is more clear: people go to Hell because they fail to accept Catholic Communion and authority. All Nicene Christians are quick to point out that Hell is not something God "does to us," it is something we do to ourselves.

This is known as blaming the victim! There is nothing just nor loving about this doctrine nor about a god that who create billions of beings solely to torture them throughout eternity. This is NOT the God of the Bible!"
source:

The Facts

• There is no biblical basis for this teaching.
• God can do anything and He could easily make another option for those who do not accept His gift of salvation.
• No Believers from the Abrahamic traditions living in the first century C.E. conceived of such a post-life torture.
• Many Pagans did believe in such horrors and they were viewed as savages because it.
• Not a single person in the Gospel accounts ever challenge Jesus as to the origins of this non-Jewish teaching he allegedly taught.
• The doctrine directly challenges the Torah claims that God is Loving and Just 
• Many "Bible believing Christians" believe many unbiblical heresies. The near universality of the belief does not make it biblical

For more information see Hell, Gilgul Neshamot and Ibbur Neshamot: http://www.allfaith.com/ 

What Happens When We Die?

Caesar's Messiah - The Roman Conspiracy to Invent Jesus

Caesar's Messiah | The Roman Conspiracy to Invent Jesus

Update : Video removed? http://setyoufree.lefora.com/2012/02/20/joseph-atwill-hour-1-caesars-messiah-the-roman-con/
"Feel free to leave your comments, good or bad. I am not saying I believe one way or the other, I'm simply presenting the information. You decide for yourself!"

"The Roman Emperor had many titles - one of them was Jesus Christ."

-- Joseph Atwill, author of the book "Caesar's Messiah"

Who was Jesus?
Why is there no historic archaeological evidence of his existence?

Who wrote the Gospels? 

Why were they written in Greek, rather than Hebrew or Aramaic?
How did the Christian religion come to be centered in Rome? Why were the
first Christian pope and earliest saints all members of the Flavius Caesar
ruling family?

This latest ground-breaking work in Christian scholarship reveals a new and revolutionary understanding of the origin of Christianity, explaining what is the New Testament, who is the real Jesus, and how Christ's second coming already occurred. The book Caesar's Messiah shows that Jesus was the invention of the Roman Imperial Court. Their purpose: to offer a vision of a “peaceful Messiah” who would serve as an alternative to the revolutionary leaders who were rocking first-century Israel and threatening Rome. This discovery is based on the parallels found between the Gospels and the works of the historian Josephus, which occur IN SEQUENCE. 

Some readers will find this analysis disorienting. Joseph Atwill, author of Caesar's Messiah, says, “My book is in no way a criticism of the faith of contemporary Christians. I felt required to present my findings because of the light they shed on the origin and purpose both of anti-Semitism and the way that governments use propaganda to control their subjects.”
“Challenging and provocative! If what Joseph Atwill is saying is only partially true, we are looking into the abyss.” 

— Robert Eisenman,
Professor of Middle East Religions and Archaeology, California State University,
and author of James the Brother of Jesus

Source: http://caesarsmessiah.com/

 http://youtu.be/Efj-LYCzIjk

'Hell' as an invention of the church

'Hell' as an invention of the church

 

"So where did the teaching of "Hellfire and damnation" come from?

As the Nicene Church was establishing its official doctrines and replacing biblical Judaism with Catholicism ("Universalism"), it is a well known and easily established fact that they incorporated the teachings of many different religious systems. These early "church fathers" were attempting to establish a new and global political and religious authority in order to control every aspect of human life. Whatever their motives, the Vatican created dogma of eternal torture as a powerful stick to wield against its opponents.

To this end the Catholic Bishops incorporated the Roman Pagan teaching of Hades: A subterranean place of eternal fiery torment and damnation. Never mind that the dogma has no biblical basis, the Magisterium of the Church declared it so. The threat of eternal damnation made their subjects docile and the collection plates rang with tithes, offerings and indulgences as deceived people sought to purchase their salvation.

The imagery of the Nicene Hell is largely taken from the underworld abode of the god Hades and his part time lover Persephone.

Present day Nicene Christians vary on why people go to Hell. Some teach that the "lost" are condemned to Hell because they fail to make the one decision necessary to achieve salvation: they refuse to accept the death, burial and resurrection of Y'shua as taught by the Church. Others teach that if ones good deeds do not outweigh the negatives one goes there. Calvinists believe people have no choice in the matter at all. They say that the God of love and justice created most human being as fodder for Hell and only a few will be allowed to enter "Heaven." Catholicism is more clear: people go to Hell because they fail to accept Catholic Communion and authority. All Nicene Christians are quick to point out that Hell is not something God "does to us," it is something we do to ourselves.

This is known as blaming the victim! There is nothing just nor loving about this doctrine nor about a god that who create billions of beings solely to torture them throughout eternity. This is NOT the God of the Bible!"
source:

The Facts

• There is no biblical basis for this teaching.
• God can do anything and He could easily make another option for those who do not accept His gift of salvation.
• No Believers from the Abrahamic traditions living in the first century C.E. conceived of such a post-life torture.
• Many Pagans did believe in such horrors and they were viewed as savages because it.
• Not a single person in the Gospel accounts ever challenge Jesus as to the origins of this non-Jewish teaching he allegedly taught.
• The doctrine directly challenges the Torah claims that God is Loving and Just (compare Romans 2:24).
• Many "Bible believing Christians" believe many unbiblical heresies. The near universality of the belief does not make it biblical

For more information see Rabbi Yochanan Levine's article; Hell, Gilgul Neshamot and Ibbur Neshamot: http://jewtoo.org/hell.html

What Happens When We Die?
See also: Olam Ha-Ba: The Afterlife
"The righteous of all nations have a share in the Olam Ha-Ba."
http://www.jewfaq.org/olamhaba.htm

Judaism says man is a sinner because he sins.

Christianity says man sins because he is a sinner. 

The Research Materials of Kabbalah

The Research Materials of Kabbalah

The Research Materials of Kabbalah

"The Book of Zohar is not a book through which one can attain spirituality; it was written for those who have already attained spirituality." 

Kabbalah has always been taught through books. The first books about Kabbalah were written thousands of years ago. Adam wrote the book, Raziel Hamalaach (The Angel Raziel), and Abraham the Patriarch wr

ote the book Sefer Yetzira (Book of Creation). The Zohar was written some 1900 years ago. All of these books are still available today.

The principal, fundamental book that we study is called Talmud Eser Sefirot (The Study of the Ten Sefirot). It consists of six volumes and more than 2000 pages that depict the laws of the system of creation in scientific terms. When we study them, we receive a special illumination, a special Providence from Above.

The reason for studying this great work is because it is written in a manner meant for people in this generation. Throughout history, Kabbalists have written materials that were meant for a specific generation. The materials from different generations actually provide the same material, but are presented in a manner that is easiest for that generation to understand.

But even if we still do not understand a single word we read, even if we haven’t got a clue about the spiritual world, approaching the Creator begins from the very first lesson. When Kabbalists write books, they have already reached a certain spiritual level. When we read the books, wanting to somehow make contact with that world from which the Kabbalist wrote, we are enfolded in an illumination from that place. We do not feel it, but it slowly prepares us for the phase when we begin to feel more and more of what the books describe.

This is how one begins the process of entering the spiritual world. Of course, it is not as simple as presented here. For instance, at Bnei Baruch, there is a whole system that involves studying specific articles and lessons and following a specific syllabus.

In short, we have an entire system, the System of Creation awaiting us. The system of creation is everything around us: what is perceived, misperceived, and not perceived. Our emotions contain what we perceive by our five senses as well as something extra. That something extra is what we cannot feel today—a “sixth sense”—an additional sense that will be developed in us in the future. We call the information perceived in that sense, “The System of Creation.”

The text in genuine books of Kabbalah precisely describes how the mechanism that operates reality works. Using charts and formulas, it depicts the “control room of reality” in a form much like a user’s manual. These visuals teach us how the laws work in spirituality, and how we can influence them with mind and will, consequently affecting the results that will return to affect us.
The Zohar

In Hebrew, Zohar means “splendor,” as in: “The righteous sit with their crowns on their heads, and delight in the splendor of Divinity.” The sensation of the Creator (the Light) in the collective soul is called “Divinity,” according to The Zohar. In any place where the books of Kabbalah say, “So it was written in the book…” this always refers to The Zohar. All the others are seemingly not considered books because the word “book” (Sefer in Hebrew) comes from the word Sefira, which comes from the word “sapphire,” radiance, a revelation (of the Light, the Creator). This is found only in The Zohar.

The Zohar is an important Kabbalistic book, but it is written in a concealed way, making it impossible to understand until a person has attained the spiritual world. Because of that, today we do not start with The Book of Zohar. Instead, there are introductions and books by Yehuda Ashlag (who is also known as Baal HaSulam) that teach us how to understand what is written in The Zohar.

The Book of Zohar is not a book through which one can attain spirituality; it was written for those who have already attained spirituality. In order to understand it properly, we need to study several other books first, such as: The Science of Kabbalah, Introduction to The Book of Zohar, Preface to The Book of Zohar and Foreword to The Book of Zohar. Without first acquiring clear and correct knowledge through those introductions, the book will remain incomprehensible to us.

Baal HaSulam considers this question in the Introduction to The Book of Zohar (item 61): “We must also ask why was the commentary to The Zohar not revealed before the time of the Ari. Why was it not revealed to his predecessors? And most perplexing of all, why were the words of the Ari and the commentary to The Zohar not revealed until today?”

First, why was The Zohar hidden? The answer is that the world has gone through three phases of development during its 6000 years of existence. The first 2000 are called Tohu, the middle 2000, Torah, and the last 2000, The Days of the Messiah. It is important to note here that the 6,000 years of existence have nothing to do with the age of the world. They pertain to the period during which humans have been spiritually evolving.

During the first 2000 years, the souls that descended were sublime souls with small desires and small Lights. Desire was pretty much limited to physical existence. They were not even given the Torah because for these souls, simply existing was enough to correct them.

In the next 2000 years, souls descended with more evolved desires that needed a greater Light for their correction, the Light of the Torah. Toward the end of the 6000 years, in the remaining third, the coarsest souls descend. Those souls need the greatest Lights for their correction - the Light of the Kabbalah. Kabbalah was not needed prior to that, just as the Torah was not needed in the first two thousand years.

During the time of the Ari (end of the 16th century), we grew closer to the end of the correction of the main part, the third and last phase of the development of the souls. As a result, the sublime wisdom was revealed through the soul of the Ari. The souls of the first generations were higher than those of the last, but the greater the correction that is needed, the greater the consequent attainment and adhesion to the Creator.

During the last 2000 years, especially from the time of the Ari, the souls that descend to this world become increasingly coarser and more egotistical. They must therefore study and implement Kabbalah for their correction. This is easy to see, as today our desires run rampant even compared to just a few hundred years ago.

The Zohar was written as it was on purpose, as the book itself will tell you. Only those who have already grasped the spiritual reality can know what is written there and see the text as a depiction of spiritual situations. They see the pictures and identify the spiritual states they pertain to. We cannot do that because we still don’t have the spiritual vision.

The writings of the Ari, however, aim at more developed souls from later cycles, and therefore appear different to us. But the most suitable for us are the writings of Yehuda Ashlag, Baal HaSulam. These are intended for our generation, which is why they appear to us as systematic textbooks, just as for any science, much like the texts we study at a university. They offer questions and answers, interpretations of the meaning of the words, and a clear division of issues, which differ by topic. They also show how to perform the relevant topic of discussion. There are special articles that go along with these books that specify how one should personally relate to one’s study.

Our generation has no problem approaching the immediate study of Kabbalah. Unlike all other sciences, this wisdom demands no prior study. It is enough for a person to feel that life is difficult, to have a sense of restlessness, to see life as meaningless, or to just begin to question the meaning of life. Then, one can start studying the books and begin to advance.

In the second item in his Introduction to The Study of the Ten Sefirot, the most complex text in the study of Kabbalah, Baal HaSulam specifies the person to whom he is writing the book. He aims it at only those who feel the burning question, “What is the meaning of my life?”

He adds further in item 155 that by studying, even though the student does not understand the content of the book, the text will reveal to the student ways to behave in order to attain spirituality.
The Study of the Ten Sefirot

The book, Shaar HaGilgulim, describes how the Ari at his deathbed forbade all his disciples except Chaim Vital to study Kabbalah. Chaim Vital did not fully attain Kabbalah at that time, and therefore decided not to edit or publish the writings of the Ari.

Three generations later, Rav Tzemach, Rav Paprish and Chaim Vital’s son, Shmuel, began to dig out the Ari’s writings little by little, sort them out and publish them in book form. However, none of them possessed the entire collection, and therefore could not correctly understand and compile the Ari’s system of Kabbalah.

Only in The Study of the Ten Sefirot was the system rendered complete. For that reason, we do not study the other books that Rav Tzemach, Rav Paprish, and Shmuel Vital published, although we sometimes take an excerpt from them, as was done by Baal HaSulam in The Study of the Ten Sefirot. Besides The Study of the Ten Sefirot, no other books (here I don’t mean articles and letters on the spiritual work) contain any systematic compilation of the science of Kabbalah.

From - "Wondrous Wisdom" by - Mike Kellogg
"photo courtesy of Flickr"

Rabbi Yehuda Ashlag (1885—1954) or Yehuda Leib Ha-Levi Ashlag (Hebrew: רַבִּי יְהוּדָה לֵיבּ הַלֵּוִי אַשְׁלַג‎) also known as the Baal Ha-Sulam

source:
http://www.kabbalah.info
http://tv.kabbalah.info
http://edu.kabbalah.info
http://www.laitman.com
http://www.kabbalahblog.info
http://www.kab.tv

The World Was Created with 10 Sayings

http://www.nanach.org/

Saved By The Blood of Jesus

Shalom, Chag Semeach Sukkot!

Before Sukkot this year I shared a little about the Festival of Tabernacles with a close relative of mine. 

I wrote:

Today is the Festival of Sukkot (at sunset Sept 30th this year)  Sukkot may be the actual birthday of Jesus (Yeshua) The Catholic Church celebrates HIS birthday on December 25^th.

It is a big day for both Jews and those who follow the messianic teachings of Messiach ben David (Yeshua) 

Tabernacles: Yeshua was born the first day of Tabernacles, and He was circumcised the eighth day of Tabernacles. (Sukkot)

What I really want to bring to your attention is that Tabernacles was a feast of the ingathering of the Harvest. His first coming was when he was born on the 15th of Tishri, the first day of Tabernacles, so then would it be quite reasonable to presume that the Harvest of this earth, the ingathering of the Second Coming of Yeshua, will occur precisely the same day? I am not talking about the rapture of the saints. I am talking about His Second Coming.

Luke 2:6 And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were

accomplished that she should be delivered. 

7And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in

swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room

for them in the inn.

And as fate would have it, they ended up in a sukkah of sorts anyway!

Have you ever noticed most nativity scene? The figurines are usually

under a 3 sided structure with a straw like roof… in other words, a sukkah! For the Messiah to be qualified as Messiah He had to obey the Torah in every way, and G-d caused it so that Yeshua was born in a sukkah!

Yeshua said Himself that He is the Bread of Life (John 6:48). Yeshua

was born in Beyt-Lechem, Bethlehem, being translated, the House of

Bread. And when He was born He was laid in, of all things, a feeding

trough, a manger, in which grain, which is used to make bread, was put

to feed the livestock. And in the Scriptures, especially in Psalm 23,

we are likened as unto sheep, who at times eat grain.

Pretty amazing, right?  Think about how God is. He has done everything about the Messiah through His festivals.

I pray you too will get hungry to learn more of what HaShem (God) has in store for you.

My friends response was:

"“You are causing confusion. We are Apostolic by our belief. Pentecostal by our experience. And saved by the blood of Jesus."

“It is important to me that you come back to the truth. You must have a love for the truth. These are the last days!”

My brother, God love him, belongs to a sister denomination of the Catholic Universal Church, known as the United Pentecostal Church International, a oneness (Jesus Only) form of Christianity. As sincere as many of these followers are in their beliefs about the deity of Jesus as being God and their heretical belief that the UPCI has taken the place of the Jews (the Tribe of Judah) as the elect of HaShem, they totally miss the understanding of the oneness of God, the role of the Jews in the last days and where their beliefs and doctrines actually come.

I've placed links on his sentence for anyone wanting a better understanding how the Oneness denominations DO NOT go back to the original doctrine of the Talmidim (Disciples) of the first century but, are theories of men from the late 1800'sand early nineteenth century. (1914) Here I will address Saved by the blood of Jesus.

The UPCI emerged out of the Pentecostal Movement, which traces its origins to the teachings of Charles Parham in Topeka, Kansas, and the Azuza Street Revival led by William J. Seymour in 1906. Rejected by the mainline churches, Pentecostals began to form organizations of their own. One of these new groups was the Assemblies of God, which formed in 1914. In 1925, three new Oneness churches were formed: the Apostolic Churches of Jesus Christ, the Pentecostal Ministerial Alliance, and Emmanuel's Church in Jesus Christ. In 1927, steps were taken toward reunifying these organizations. In 1932, the Pentecostal Ministerial Alliance changed its name to the Pentecostal Church, Incorporated to reflect its organizational structure. In 1936, Pentecostal Church, Incorporated ministers voted to work toward an amalgamation with the Pentecostal Assemblies of Jesus Christ. Final union, however, proved elusive until 1945 when these two Oneness Pentecostal organizations combined to form the United Pentecostal Church International. [1]

Pentecost: A feast of the universal Church -the Catholic doctrine, [2]

“We are Apostolic by our belief. Pentecostal by our experience. And saved by the blood of Jesus?”

Note: NOWHERE* does the Bible use the term "Saved by the blood of Jesus".

"Will I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats? Offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the most High: And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me. ."

God makes it clear that it's good deeds, not sacrifice that counts:

""With what shall I come before the LORD, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my first-born for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?" He has showed you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? ."

(Micah 6:6-8)

So it is clear that whereas the Nicene Christian system believes that blood effects atonement, in the Hebrew system it's repentance, contrition and prayer.

As far as Jesus being the "Lamb of God", this again is solely a NT concept.

According to the Hebrew Scriptures, the only animals permitted for sacrificial purposes are those that have split hooves and chew their cud. The carcass of an unclean animal defiles (Leviticus 11:26). On these grounds alone, human beings are disqualified for sacrificial purposes. Jesus, as a human being, was unfit for sacrificial purposes.

An animal blood atonement offering must be physically unblemished (Leviticus 22:18-25). According to the evangelists, Jesus was physically abused prior to his execution (Matthew 27:26, Mark 15:15, John 19:1; John 20:25; Matthew 27:29, Mark 15:17, John 19:2). According to Paul, Jesus' circumcision constituted "mutilation" (Philippians 3:2) and is likened to "castration" (Galatians 5:12). As a result, Jesus would again be disqualified as a valid sacrifice.

The New Testament's claim that Jesus' death was "one sacrifice for sin for all time" (Hebrews 10:12) is not supported by the Hebrew Scriptures. Mere death, no matter what was the extent of the preceding violence or pain, does not satisfy the biblical requirements for those times when a blood atonement sacrifice is offered. In a blood atonement offering the animal (clean species and unblemished) must actually die as a result of blood loss. That is why it is called "a blood atonement sacrifice."

Jesus (unclean human species and blemished) did not die within the Temple precinct, at the hands of an Aaronic priest, or through the shedding of blood. Jesus' blood was not sprinkled on the altar by the Aaronic high priest (Leviticus 16:18-19). Animal sacrifice, offered as a blood atonement, must conform to the biblical guidelines set down in Leviticus 17:11: (a) Bloodshed (by means of shechitah--Deuteronomy 12:21), (b) Given solely to the Jewish people, (c) Blood sprinkled upon the Temple altar.

Jesus' humanity, the physical state of his body, and the manner of his death (crucifixion) do not satisfy any blood atonement provisions found in the Hebrew Scriptures.

Summary:

Both beliefs agree:

a) God commanded that literal goat and sheep sacrifices are part of atonement for some (not all) sins.
b) Presently, the literal goat and sheep sacrifices are not necessary, and nor are they possible, and they've been replaced with some other means of achieving the same.

They disagree as to WHAT they are replaced with.

Nicene Christians believe it's the figurative sacrifice of Jesus. (Human sacrifice is not supported by OT scripture, and is called an “abomination” in Jeremiah 32:35)

Hebrew Scripture teaches that it's repentance, prayer, and contrition.

What Nicene Christians making the claim that the Old Testament would demand sacrifices are trying to do is on one hand state that they acknowledge that literal goat and sheep sacrifices are not necessary, as they have been replaced by another figurative means, while holding Old Testament believers to the premise that there is no substitute.

This is using different measures for each of the two groups.

The Nicene Christian Concept of "the Blood"

There are some Nicene heresies that are so deeply rooted in the Christian psyche that for those seeking authentic biblical religion getting beyond them is very difficult, even with the Light of Torah. One of these is the "Blood of Jesus" dogma. The famous Christian hymn declares this central Nicene dogma clearly:

What can wash away my sin?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus
What can make me white as snow?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

The Nicene dogma of "the blood atonement" causes many to question and even reject the clear word of Torah! Some even claim that the Torah of HaShem has been "nailed to the cross" and made irrelevant!

The Bible Clarifies Everything:

Deuteronomy 24:16 The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, neither shall the children be put to death for the fathers: every man shall be put to death for his own sin.

That this truth has never changed.
It has always been this way:

Ezekiel 18:4 Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die.

18:20 The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.

There are two impulses that drive the human race: yetzer tov and yetzer ra. As Prophet Ezekiel says, the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him. The idea of an atonement in the Nicene sense would completely undermine this vital human responsibly and denigrate the very purpose of human existence.
The notion that another person might bear our sins for us is ridiculed by Prophet Micah when he says:

Micah 6:6 Wherewith shall I come before Adonai, and bow myself before the high G-d? shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old?
6:7 Will Adonai be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
6:8 He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth Adonai require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy G-d?

You and I are responsible for our actions, be they positive or negative. No one else can answer for nor for atone for our sins. The Bible is clear on this.

Are humans so sinful that they need a sinless agent to redeem them?

Question: Isn't it true that humans are so innately sinful that they need an outside sinless agent to redeem them from sin?

 Answer: God says of sin, "you may rule over it" (Genesis 4:7). Yet, "there is no man that does not sin" (1 Kings 8:45). Indeed, "Who can say, 'I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin'?" (Proverbs 20:9). That is why God provided Israel with the means of cleansing itself from sin through the sacrificial system, which includes blood offering and repentance. By God's grace, when the system cannot be fully utilized repentance alone suffices (Psalms 69:31-32, 1 Samuel 15:22). The remedy for sin is clear, "But if the wicked turn from all his sins that he has committed, and keep all My statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die" (Ezekiel 18:21). An individual that sins can utilize those statutes that provide for reestablishing a right relationship with God.

According to the Jewish Scriptures, repentance is open to Jew and non-Jew alike (Jonah 3:5-10, Daniel 4:27). The repentant sinner undergoes genuine remorse for his past misdeeds and pledges himself to improve his ways in the future. He is to make every effort to keep away from all past transgressions. However, if righteous acts are done insincerely as an attempt to hide unrepentant iniquities, "all our righteousnesses are as a polluted garment" (Isaiah 64:5).

The Christian concept is that man is hopelessly entrapped in innate original sin. However, the Jewish Scriptures provide ample testimony that although man may have an inclination towards evil (Genesis 8:21) the means of reestablishing a right relationship with God are always at hand for Jew and non-Jew alike through sincere repentance (Psalms 32:5).

There is no innate sin that separates the individual from God and forgiveness of sin is not dependent on a sinless sacrifice. Even when sacrifices were offered in the Temple the sinless animal's blood did not automatically redeem from sin. Blood sacrifice was part of a process that was primarily dependent on confessionary prayer to achieve reconciliation between the repentant sinner and God.   

A KNOCK-OUT PUNCH:THE "LAST AND FINAL SACRIFICE" TAKES THE TEN-COUNT

I. INTRODUCTION

Christian missionaries claim that those who do not accept Jesus as their lord and

savior, which includes the Jewish people, are doomed to burn in “hell” because

they cannot have their sins forgiven by God. This claim is rationalized with the

allegation that, in Biblical times, the only way to bring about the remission of sins

was via the blood of a certain animal. This animal had to be brought to the priest

to be slaughtered at the altar in the Sanctuary, first while in the portable

Sanctuary and later in the Temple, as a sacrificial offering. According to this

claim, since there has been no Temple standing in Jerusalem since the year 70

C.E., valid sacrificial offerings can no longer be made and, therefore, the only

way for Jews to have their sins forgiven is through the blood shed by Jesus in his

"sacrificial" death on the cross. In other words, the claim is that the blood of

Jesus, who was allegedly sacrificed by God (the "Father") as a demonstration of

his great love for mankind,

has once and for all removed the stain of “Original

Sin" from those who follow Jesus (the "Son"). This act of love by God allegedly

made Jesus the "last and final sacrifice" forever.

There are two main aspects to the claim that Jesus was "the last and final

sacrifice". The first concerns the suitability of Jesus and his death as a sacrificial

offering for the remission of sins. The second aspect, which was investigated in

another essay, concerns the need for blood in the atonement process.

This essay examines the suitability of Jesus and the manner in which he died as

a sacrificial offering for the remission of sins.

II. THE CHRISTIAN PERSPECTIVE VERSUS THE SPECIFICATIONS IN THE HEBREW BIBLE

The process for testing this claim by Christian missionaries consists of

contrasting the requirements concerning sacrificial offerings, as specified in the

Hebrew Bible, against the accounts in the New Testament that describe the

death of Jesus on the cross as a sacrificial offering. As part of this analysis, it is

important to bear in mind the following two conditions that existed during the life

of Jesus, at the time of his death, and for several decades following his death:

 The Second Temple was still standing in Jerusalem

 The Hebrew Bible was the Scripture in force

The salient issue to be addressed, and answered, is:

According to the requirements set forth in the Hebrew Bible, was Jesus a valid sacrificial

offering, and was his death by crucifixion an acceptable process, for remission of sins?

The analytical phase of the testing process identifies ten elements for which the

respective accounts in the New Testament are compared with the specifications

provided in the Hebrew Bible, primarily in the Torah.

One

According to the accounts in the New Testament, Jesus was crucified by

Roman soldiers:

John 19:18,23(KJV) – (18) Where they crucified him, and two other with him, on either

side one, and Jesus in the midst.

(23) Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took his garments, and made

four parts, to every soldier a part; and also his coat: now the coat was without seam,

woven from the top throughout. [See also Matthew 27:35; Mark 15:24; Luke 23:33.]

According to the Levitical Law of Sacrifice in the Torah, the animal brought as

a sin sacrifice had to be slaughtered by the person who offered it:

Leviticus 4:27-29 - (27) And if any one person from among the common people sins

unwittingly, by performing one of the commandments of the Lord which may not be

done, and incurs guilt; (28) Or if his sin, which he has committed, is made known to

him, then he shall bring his sacrifice, an unblemished female goat, for his sin which he

has sinned. (29) And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the sin offering, and he

shall slaughter the sin offering in the place of the burnt offering.

Two

According to the Levitical Law of Sacrifice in the Torah, some of the blood of

the (sin) sacrifice had to be rubbed by the priest with his finger on the horns of

the altar in the Temple, and the rest had to be poured out at the base of the

sacrificial altar. The fat of the sacrifice had to be removed and burnt:

Leviticus 4:30-31 - (30) And the priest shall take some of its blood with his finger, and

put [it] upon the horns of the altar [used] for the burnt offering; and [then] he shall

pour out all of [the rest of] its blood at the base of the altar. (31) And he shall remove

all of its fat, as was removed the fat from the sacrificial peace offerings; and the priest

shall burn it upon the altar for a pleasant fragrance to the Lord; and [thus] shall the

priest make an atonement for him, and he shall be forgiven.

 The New Testament is silent on what was done with the blood of Jesus and

with the fat of his body.

Three

According to the accounts in the New Testament, Jesus was beaten,

whipped, and dragged on the ground before being crucified:

Matthew 26:67(KJV) - Then did they spit in his face, and buffeted him; and others

smote him with the palms of their hands, [See also Mark 14:65; Luke 22:63; John 18:22.]

Matthew 27:26,30-31(KJV) – (26)Then released he Barabbas unto them: and when he

had scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.

(30) And they spit upon him, and took the reed, and smote him on the head. (31) And

after that they had mocked him, they took the robe off from him, and put his own

raiment on him, and led him away to crucify him. [See also Mark 15:15-20; John 19:1-3.]

According to the Torah, a sacrificial animal had to be without any physical

defects or blemishes:

Deuteronomy 17:1 - You shall not sacrifice to the Lord your God an ox or a sheep that

has in it a blemish or any bad thing, for that is an abomination to the Lord, your God.

Sidebar Note: As a born Jew, Jesus was circumcised on the eighth day following

his birth, a ritual that leaves a scar (Genesis 17:10-13; the “sign of the covenant”).

The circumcision of Jesus is mentioned in the New Testament (Luke 2:21), yet Paul

refers to circumcision as being tantamount to mutilation (Galatians 5:11-12;

Philippians 3:2).

Four

 According to the New Testament, Jesus was "the Lamb of God" whose bones

may not be broken [a reference to the Paschal Lamb of Exodus 12:46 and

Numbers 9:12]:

John 1:29(KJV) – The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold

the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.

John 19:36(KJV) - For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A

bone of him shall not be broken.

 According to the Torah, the Paschal Lamb was not offered for the removal of

sins. Rather, it was a festive, or commemorative, offering. Yom Kippur (the

Day of Atonement) would have been a more appropriate time for a sin

offering:

Numbers 29:11 - One young male goat for a sin offering, beside the sin offering of

atonement, and the continual burnt offering, and its meal offering, and their drink

offerings. [Yom Kippur – Individual sin offering]

Leviticus 16:15 - He shall then slaughter the he goat of the people's sin offering and

bring its blood inside the dividing curtain, and he shall do with its blood as he did with

the blood of the bull and sprinkle it upon the cover of the ark, and before the cover of

the ark. [Yom Kippur – Communal sin offering]

Five

 According to the Torah, the Paschal Lamb had to be slaughtered and its

blood used to place markings on the side-posts and lintels of the entrances to

the dwelling. Moreover, the meat had to be roasted and eaten, and whatever

was not consumed by the time the Israelites were to leave their homes, had

to be burnt and destroyed:

Exodus 12:6-10 - (6) And you shall keep it under watch until the fourteenth day of this

month; and the entire congregation of the community of Israel shall slaughter it at

dusk. (7) And they shall take [some] of its blood, and place it on the two doorposts and

on the lintel, on the houses in which they will eat it. (8) And they shall eat the meat in

that night, roasted over fire, and [with] unleavened bread; with bitter herbs they shall

eat it. (9) You shall not eat from it raw, nor boiled in water; but roasted over fire, its

head with its legs, and with its inner parts. (10) And you shall not leave any of it until

morning; and that which left over until the morning you shall burn in the fire.

 According to the accounts in the New Testament this was not done with

Jesus after his death. In fact, Jesus was buried.

Matthew 27:57-60(KJV) – (57) When the even was come, there came a rich man of

Arimathaea, named Joseph, who also himself was Jesus' disciple: (58) He went to

Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be

delivered. (59) And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen

cloth, (60) And laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock: and he

rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre, and departed. [See also Mark 15:42-46;

Luke 23:50-53; John 19:38-42.]

Six

 According to the New Testament, the death of Jesus was a sacrificial offering

that expiated the sins of mankind for all times:

Hebrews 10:10,18(KJV) – (10) By the which will we are sanctified through the offering

of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

(18) Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin. [See also

Romans 6:10; Hebrews 9:12.]

 According to the Torah, the Passover (sin) sacrifice, a male-goat, had to be

offered on an individual (per household) basis, not as a communal offering:

Numbers 28:22 - And one young male goat for a sin offering, to make atonement for

you.

Seven

 According to the New Testament, the death and blood of Jesus took care of

(almost) all sins:

Hebrews 9:22(KJV) – And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and

without shedding of blood is no remission.

 According to the Levitical Law of Sacrifice in the Torah, the sacrificial sin

offering brought atonement only for unintentional sins, except as noted in

Leviticus 5:1-6, 20-26[Leviticus 5:1-6, 6:1-7 in Christian Bibles]:

Numbers 15:27-31 - (27) And if a person sins inadvertently, then he shall offer a female

goat in its first year as a sin offering. (28) And the priest shall atone for the erring

person who sinned inadvertently before the Lord in order to make atonement on his

behalf; and it shall be forgiven him. (29) For the native born of the children of Israel

and the stranger who resides among them, one law shall apply to him who sins

inadvertently. (30) And the person who does anything presumptuously, whether he is a

native born or a stranger, that person blasphemes the Lord; and that person shall be

cut off from among his people. (31) Because he has scorned the word of the Lord, and

has violated his commandment; that person shall surely be cut off, for his iniquity is

upon him.

Eight

 According to the New Testament, the death of Jesus brought about the

remission of sins yet uncommitted, and of sins of those yet to be born:

Hebrews 10:18(KJV) – Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for

sin.

 According to the Levitical Law of Sacrifice in the Torah, sacrifices could bring

atonement only for sins committed prior to the offering of the sacrifice. No

sacrifice was provided for the atonement of sins committed after the sacrifice

was offered and, thus, no sacrifice can bring atonement for sins of people

born after it was offered. This includes both טּאתָחַ (haTAT)], a sin offering,

described in Leviticus 4:1-5:13, and שׁםָאָ (aSHAM), a guilt offering,

described in Leviticus 5:14-26. Had there been, among the listed sacrifices,

even one kind of sin or guilt offering that could bring atonement for future

sins, the person who would have offered that particular sacrifice would not

have had to do so again for the rest of his life. Moreover, Yom Kippur (the

Day of Atonement), which is ordained by the Torah as an annual Holy Day

(Leviticus 16:29-34), would have had to be celebrated by the Israelites only

the very first time after the giving of the Torah at Mt. Sinai, had they used one

of those "super" sacrificial offerings that could atone for sins of the future.

The claim by the author of Hebrews, that there are no more sin offerings

required following the death of Jesus, is false for other reasons as well:

 The Second Temple stood in Jerusalem for nearly 40 years following the death of

Jesus, during which time literally thousands of animals were offered as sacrifices

of all sorts, including sin and guilt offerings, as prescribed by the Torah.

 The Hebrew Bible contains prophecies about the building of the Third Temple in

the messianic era, and of the resumption of the sacrificial system at that time. All

the types of sacrificial offerings described in the Hebrew Bible will be made on the

sacrificial altar [חַ בֵּזְמִ (mizBE'ah)] in the Temple, including both the טּאתָחַ and

שׁםָאָ sacrificial offerings. In other words, the sacrificial system, which has been

in a state of suspension since the year 70 C.E., when the Romans destroyed the

Second Temple, will be completely restored in the messianic era:

Ezekiel 43:21-22 - And you shall take the bull of the sin offering, and he [the priest]

shall burn it at the edge of the Temple, outside the Sanctuary. (22) And on the

second day you shall offer an unblemished he-goat for a sin offering, and they [the

priests] shall purify the altar as they purified it with the bull. [See also: Isaiah 56:7;

Jeremiah 33:17-18; Ezekiel 40:39,46-47, 41:42, 42:13, 43:13,15,18-19,22,25-27,

44:27,29, 45:17,19,22-23,25, 46:20, 47:1; Zechariah 14:21.]

Nine

 According to the New Testament, God's "only begotten son" died on the cross

for the sins of mankind, and all who accept this belief are "saved" (i.e., get

salvation) and will go to heaven:

Romans 5:8-11(KJV) – (8) But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we

were yet sinners, Christ died for us. (9) Much more then, being now justified by his

blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. (10) For if, when we were enemies,

we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we

shall be saved by his life.(11) And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord

Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement. [See also Acts 10:43;

1Corinthians 15:3; 1Peter 3:18.]

 The Hebrew Bible strictly prohibits (human) vicarious atonement, and

mandates that everyone is responsible for his or her own sins:

Deuteronomy 24:16 - Fathers shall not be put to death because of children, nor shall

children be put to death for fathers; each person shall be put to death for his own sin.

[See also Exodus 32:31-33; Numbers 35:33.]

Ten

 According to the New Testament, Jesus was "God manifest in the flesh" (this

would make it a human sacrifice):

Romans 8:3(KJV) - For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh,

God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in

the flesh: [See also 1Timothy 3:16; 1John 4:2.]

 The Hebrew Bible strictly prohibits human sacrifices. The concept of human

sacrifices to a deity is foreign to Judaism. Human sacrifice is a pagan rite:

Leviticus 18:21 – And you shall not give any of your offspring to pass through the fire

for Molech, and shall not profane the name of your God; I am the Lord. [See also

Deuteronomy 18:10; Jeremiah 7:31, 19:32; Ezekiel 23:37-39.]  

Shalom aliekhem

Sources
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Pentecostal_Church_International

[2] http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15614b.htm

      http://www.jewsforjudaism.org/

[*] http://www.shalombewithyou.com/scripture-verses/spiritual-warfare-verses/verses-on-the-blood-of-christ/verses-on-the-blood-of-jesus-christ/


Pastor Robin Almeida-Casting out demons by the blood of Jesus-live

See Who is Lucifer?

 http://natzrim.blogspot.com/2012/08/who-is-lucifer.html

Rabbi Nachman of Breslov taught (Likutay Moharan 64) that every Wisdom and Intellect has it's own specific tune and melody. It is from the melody that the wisdom is produced and extended (as can be discerned in Psalms (47) 'sing enlighten'). Even the the wisdom of heresy has it's own specific tune and melody unique to the wisdom of heresy.