Stats from Polls taken since 2000:
“In 2012- The American Bible Society conducted a study and found that although 85% of American households own at least one Bible, 36% of Americans read from the Bible less than once a year. Of those polled, 79% saw themselves as “knowledgeable about the Bible.” Even so, 54% could not identify the first five books of the Bible.”
“In 2010- The Pew Survey found that those who score highest on religious knowledge tests are not at all mainline or evangelical Christians, but atheists and agnostics.”
“In 2007, Stephen Prothero (a Boston University professor) wrote that “Americans are both deeply religious and profoundly ignorant about religion,”
“In 2005- Newsweek Magazine noted that whereas 45% respondents to the survey say they read once a week or more, only 2% associate reading the Bible with their closest connection to God, falling behind personal prayer, nature, a house of worship, and praying with others.”
“Yet many Christians, insist that the Bible comprises “the very words of God.”
“In 2005- George Barna of the Barna Group, as a result of extensive review of the top trends in 2005, made the following comment: “American Christians are biblically illiterate. Although most of them contend that the Bible contains truth and is worth knowing, and most of them argue that they know all of the relevant truths and principles, our research shows otherwise. And the trend line is frightening: the younger a person is, the less they understand about the Christian faith.”
Psalm 1:1-6 (2) (Written in 432 BC – While Nehemiah is cleaning out the temple. –Nehemiah 13:7-9).
The Hebrew word translated “Law” in verse 2 is the word “Torah”.
An interesting note is that if you take the Torah (the first 5 books of the Bible, also called the Books of Moses in Nehemiah 13) in the Hebrew you can see something really cool.
The word Law/Troah in Hebrew is spelled Tet, Vav, Resh, Hey.
The number 7 is consider to be God’s number.
If you take Genesis (Bereshit in Hebrew) chapter 1 in the Hebrew and start counting after you find the first leter Tet 49 (7x7) letters the 50th letter will be a Vav, then do it again for 49 and the next letter will be a Resh and then one more time and you will hit a Hey; spelling Torah.
This can be repeated again in Exodus chapter 1, however not at the first occurrence of a Tet.
Then in Leviticus this does not work. You won’t find it here.
However, If you start with the letter Yod and count 7 then you will run into a Hey. Do it again and you will hit a Vav and one more time and you will get the letter Hey.
In Hebrew Yod Hey Vav Hey spells Yahway (God).
Then back to the 49 spacing in Numbers and Exodus.
However, in these two books Torah is spelled backwards (Hey, Resh Vav, Tet).
So what you end up with is:
Genesis Exodus Levitates Numbers Deuteronomy
Torah Torah Yahway haroT haroT
The Torah always points toward God!
Very cool. Nothing to build doctrine on, but interesting none the less.
In the New Testament the Hebrew word “Torah” is translated into the Greek word “Na-mos” the English word Law.
Matthew 7:12 “Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law G3551 and the prophets.”
Matthew 22:36 “36- Master, which is the great commandment in the law? G3551 37- Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38- This is the first and great commandment. 39- And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 40- On these two commandments hang all the law G3551 and the prophets.”
Matthew 23:23 “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, G3551 judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.”
Luke 24:44 “And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law G3551 of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.”
John 1:17 “For the law G3551 was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.”
Luke 16:16-17 “16- The law G3551 and the prophets were until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it. 17- And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle [Small mark at the top of a Hebrew letter] of the law G3551 to fail.”
Matthew 5:17-18 “17- Think not that I am come to destroy the law, G3551 or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. 18- For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot [Hebrew letter yod, the smallest of the letters] or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, G3551 till all be fulfilled.”
Jesus fulfilled the Torah/Law both its letter and its spirit.
We are the grafted-in children of Abraham.
And we know from Genesis 26:5 that Abraham keep the spirit/intent of Torah/Law 430 years before the letter of the law was given to Moses on Mt. Sinai based/rooted out of the Genesis 3:15 promise.
Genesis 26:5 “Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws. H8451”
Galatians 3:13 “Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law G3551, being made a curse for us…”
The letter of the law = Death.
I Corinthians 15:56 “The sting of death is sin; and the strength [power] of sin is the law G3551.”
Galatians 2:16 “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law G3551, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law G3551: for by the works of the law G3551 shall no flesh be justified.”
Therefore we are the children of Abraham and not the children of Moses.
Galatians 3:17 “And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law G3551, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect.”
Ephesians 2:15 Jesus “Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law G3551 of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;”
Galatians 6:2 “Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law G3551 of Christ.”
James 2:8 “If ye fulfil the royal law G3551 according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well:”
The Greek word anoima G458 is from the root word a-na-mos G459 meaning without Torah.
Without the spirit/intent (faith… Hebrews 11:6 “…For without faith it is impossible to please [God]…”) you get…
Matthew 7:23 “And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. G458”
Without the spirit/intent/faith of the Torah/Royal Law of Christ.
Matthew 13:41 “The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; G458”
Without the spirit/intent/faith of the Torah/Royal Law of Christ.
*The Hebrew word for sin is defined as one who misses the mark (bulls-eye) when shooting an arrow.
*The Hebrew word for Torah is defined as one who hits the mark (bulls-eye) when shooting an arrow.
Make sure you are hitting the mark!
Faith in Jesus Christ.
