We do realize that what we believe and practice is not in alignment with traditional/orthodox Christianity, or what I may call from time to time  churchianity, popular Christianity, denominationalism, organizational Christianity, and denominational Christianity. In fact, we are not naive to the likelihood that we will be looked upon by some in churchianity as heretics, cultists, evil, and so-on. That is fine and we accept that. Yeshua was called much worse in His day and we purpose to be like Him. The point is not to drive a wedge between us and churchianity, nor do we seek to villainize churchianity–although we may from time-to-time say disparaging words against those in churchianity who knowingly seek to hold her members hostage through the teaching of lies and the enforcement of doctrines, practices, and traditions that are diametrically in opposition to Yehovah and His Torah and Yeshua’s teachings. I will be honest: I get passionate when I see sincere people who are seeking truth and wish to be true Children of God, who are caught in the snare of organizational Christianity through the assertiveness of those organizations’ leaders. A couple of months ago Hilary and I were visited by three Jehovah’s Witnesses who expressed a desire to share their faith with us and we felt it was also a great opportunity to share ours with them as well. Without getting into specifics–and I do go into specifics of our encounter with the JW’s in episodes 29 and 30 of itsnotasyouperceive.com. After presenting to Hilary and I some of the principle doctrines and teachings of their faith, I asked them to provide me with Biblical support of those beliefs. What we received was not Biblical support of those beliefs, but rhetoric and religion that they’d received from their church leaders. When we challenged them on this and asked for true Biblical support of their message, they dismissed themselves with the promise of returning after consulting their church leaders for the more indepth Biblical instruction. To date they have not delivered on that promise with the exception of a quick visit with Hilary to present a written treatise on their teachings, again without any true Biblical support.

The JW’s who visited us are victims of an establishment that is built upon man-made doctrines, traditions, and teachings and an establishment that is headed and run by evil men who should (and in many cases do) know better. Yet like so many men throughout the centuries who preyed upon the true faith once delivered, who seized opportunities to provide for themselves livelihoods and in some cases fame, fortune and power, the leadership of the JW’s have from the beginning sought to control their adherents through fleecing and misleading. They know, like most other denominational leaders, that if their adherents were to receive and fully grasp the true message of the Gospel and Torah, they would be out of jobs and out of power over a select group of people. It’s a mess and it will take the Master to sort it all out once He returns to this world to establish His millennial kingdom.

In the interim, we are here to offer refuge to those who have come out of churchianity and have come to the knowledge of the True Faith. We are here to provide a forum and community to those who are ever seeking and ever learning about Yehovah and His Word and way of life. We are here to provide fellowship as we seek Yehovah’s kingdom and His righteousness. We are here to provide support and council as need to those who have chosen to become disciples of Yeshua. This is our purpose and this is our passion.

• We are not traditional, orthodox Christians. Although we may observe and practice some Christian principles and utilize some of the verbiage of the Christian religion, our mindset and world view is more in alignment with the Hebraic roots and foundations of the original faith once delivered. We hold that the Christian religion/faith is a westernized version of the original faith once delivered. We do not cast judgment upon those who are Christians; however, we realize that many of the two or so billion souls around the world who embrace Christianity are sincere in their search for truth and in their desire to have a relationship with the Creator of all. We realize then, that these souls are in need of deliverance from the bondage of churchianity and all her trappings.

• We are not Jews nor are we Messianic Jews. We hold in high regard the Jewish people and believe that they will some day-in the future- come to fully understand and embrace Yeshua as their Messiah and return to Torah (…and so all Israel shall be saved: even as it is written, There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer; He shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: (Rom 11:26 ASV; cf. Isa. 59:20 and Isa. 45:17). We further contend that Judaism, and Messianic Judaism in particular, are religions. Like Christianity, Judaism is an altered version of the true faith that was embodied in Torah. Judaism, however, is the Jews’ attempt to rationalize and control Torah and thusly the Hebrew Faith (reference Mk. 7:8-13; Col. 2:8). This is NOT what Yeshua taught nor was it what He envisioned for His disciples. Consequently, it was Yeshua’s standing up to Judaism that ultimately led to Judaism’s leaders having Him crucified. Contrary to pop-Christianity, Yeshua did not challenge nor did He seek to dismiss Torah. On the contrary, Yeshua challenged the religion of Judaism, a hijacked version of the Hebrew Faith.

As it relates to God–

• We believe in One and only one true and living God whose name is Yehovah
• Yehovah is the creator of all there is
• There is no other God in heaven nor on earth but Yehovah– Hear, Israel: Jehovah our God is one Jehovah; (Deu 6:4 DBY) Thus, Yehovah is not a Triune or Binary set (or as I’ve heard it expressed-family) of God beings. Although many will attempt to add to Deuteronomy 6:4 using other misinterpreted passages of the Holy Writ to prove that God is a family of beings, the proponderance of evidence solidly proves that Yehovah is God alone
• Thus Yehovah alone is who we must worship, pray to, and obey

• We believe that the Messiah is the second Adam who was foretold by Yehovah, would atone for the sins of mankind and re-establish the broken relationship between Yehovah and man as a result of the first Adam’s transgression in the Garden of Eden. The first Adam brought  death to man while the second Adam brought life
• Although Yeshua was prophesied throughout the Tanakh (the Old Covenant or Testament) as being the Messiah and in whom rested all of Yehovah’s plans for mankind, Yeshua is NOT God. Yeshua did not pre-exist His birth, except existing in the mind and plans of the Almighty. Yeshua was not a God-man who was born of a virgin
• Yeshua is NOT Yehovah. There is no Biblical basis whatsoever to suggest that Yeshua plays three roles–the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Yeshua was born a man just as the first Adam was born a man. Yeshua was born in a perfect state of mind, body, and soul
• Being a man, Yeshua had the choice of sinning but through obedience to the Father, He chose not to sin and thus through His obedience  and suffering He was made perfect–reference Hebrews 5:8,9; 2:10.
• We believe that Yeshua died on the cross for our sins, Yehovah’s perfect sacrifice and atonement for our sins
• We believe that Yeshua has been exhalted above all creation and now sits at the right hand of the Father, who has given Him power and authority and His name–Yehovah Sabaoth–reference Psalms 2; 110; Zechariah 14:16. 
• It is Yehovah Sabaoth–Yeshua HaMashiach–who will return to this world and establish His appointed millennial kingdom-reference Revelation 20:4,6. Yeshua will rule this earth with a rod of iron, destroying and engulfing all man made nations and kingdoms–reference Psalms 2:9; Revelation 19:15; 22:5; Matthew 19:28; Daniel 7:9.
• We believe that Yeshua will gather His elect–those who follow His commandments and have His testimony–from the four-corners of the world as well as resurrect those saints who had fallen asleep–died throughout the ages–provide them with bodies like His, and install them to be kings and priests in His kingdom here on earth–Revelation 1:6; 5:10; 20:6; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18.
• We believe that Yeshua is the only human example by which we are called to imitate and follow–reference the whole of the Gospel record

• We believe that we are separated from Yehovah because of sin. The wages for sin is always death–reference 6:23. In order that we may commune and live with Yehovah, that sin must be atoned for and Yeshua provided that perfect sacrifice–reference John 1:29,36.

• We believe that the Bible contains the thoughts and commandments of Yehovah. Can we say with certainty that the Bible we have today hasn’t been tampered with or mistranslated in some way or another? Of course we can’t. But the essence of Yehovah’s will and commandments is contained in the words of this book. It may not be the direct Words of God, but it is the Word of God, His Truth, as far as we are concerned. It is the only source and foundation of our Faith–reference 2 Timothy 3:16,17.

This special Torah Living episode post will address the question of who and what The Messianic Torah Observer is and what it is that we believe and practice. The idea for this post actually came about as a result of me updating The Messianic Torah Observer website, putting together a written synopsis of who we are, or in a more focused sense, I thought of developing and posting a written statement of beliefs or articles of faith. I’ll be transparent here: I had never planned to publish a statement of belief for this website nor for this ministry. Why? Because I know that statements of beliefs/articles of faith have become a commonly published explanation what what virtually every Christian denomination believes, and in some cases, what that denomination requires of its members based upon those established beliefs.  Conceding that statements of beliefs/articles of faith have become so prominent amongst the Christian denominations, there has arisen in recent years an expectation of self-professing Christians that every organization that calls itself a church or ministry will have such statements and articles. Thus, any organization that follows any semblance of perceived Christianity that fails to have a statement of belief then, would likely be viewed with cautious, jaundiced eyes by those who want to know what that organization believes and practices.

The biggest downfall to statements of beliefs/articles of faith is that they only serve to perpetuate the human practice of categorizing people and organizations. People naturally want to examine people’s actions and thoughts and then place them into loosely defined boxes or groups so that they can easily identify who and what you are. We all do this on a regular basis whether we realize it or not. We do this especially as it relates to races, cultures, the opposite sex, politicians, cars, books, and the list goes on without end. Many times when this is done, the organizations and peoples that we categorize are inaccurately judged if you will. This happens for a myriad of reasons, but the biggest reasons are that our categorizing of peoples and organizations are often based upon our personal experiences and knowledge base, and thus biases play a keen role in this process. This process when practiced over the centuries by the arrogant, prejudiced, hateful, and evil of our race, has led to persecution, ostracizing, and genocides of the individuals who comprise those groups. This has invaded religion more than any other segment of the human experience apart from race.

Statements of beliefs may have positive benefits as well. They can serve to foment what the organization believes and mitigate aberrant beliefs or practices that may creep into the organization from outside forces or even internal forces who may seek to alter or challenge the denomination’s status quo. We saw this clearly displayed as early as the second century church when various sects began to flex their muscles and assert dominance over the other sects in an attempt to unify the overall Christian Faith by force. Ultimately, the early church fathers convened various synods and councils in order to codify central questions of the Christian Faith and thus settle once and for all the questions that prevented complete unity of the Faith. Once developed, the beliefs and doctrines of the church became law so to speak. This law was ultimately enforced by the power of the Roman government that backed the church. Later, when Rome’s powers waned, the church had gain sufficient power to enforce her own beliefs and doctrines. Untold millions have thus died as a result of statements of beliefs that held the tenor of law around the civilized world. These doctrinal laws have thus  been enforced by the church; in many cases, even to the point of death.

So I have been reluctant to provide a statement of belief for the above stated reasons, which I will concede has likely limited our appeal to many would be followers of this ministry. Oh, I am not at all afraid for my safety nor the safety of my family. Indeed, we still enjoy in this country a modicum of religious freedoms. My reluctance, however, had more to do with the fear that simply stating our beliefs and practices would only result in confusing the reader or listener who would not be provided the full explanation of our beliefs and practices and who would then not get the opportunity to get to know us and fully and fairly understand the Faith from our perspective. Thus we’d be prematurely judged as heretics, enemies of the Faith, dangerous cultists, satanists, fools, unlearned, liars, and this list could go on. But today I am led to lay before you the chief tenets of our Faith. The very interesting aspect of this effort is that everything we here at Qumran and the Torah Observer believe and practice is contained in the Holy Writ. If you believe what is contained in the Bible, then you know pretty much know what it is that we believe. Plain and simple. Nothing is added. There are no denominational influences. No rabbinic takanot. No special revelation. We advocate an organic Faith that is modeled after that of the apostolic fathers. I guess the popular descriptor being floated around in Messianic circles is Hebraic Roots and certainly, we are all about advocating and providing a forum by which we may practice our Faith based upon the Hebraic Roots that birthed and support our Faith. Most importantly, we attempt to follow, practice, teach, embrace and love the Faith that was delivered to the saints by Yeshua Hamaschiach in the first century. Beyond this, then, for me to spell out for you the specifics of our Faith is really an endeavour of uncertain purposes.

Regardless, I will do my best to outline for you the basics of the Faith that we embrace: the basis that we believe constitutes the true Faith that was once delivered to the first century saints (Jude 1:3).

Where to start. Well, to begin with: who am I and what gives me the horsepower to do this that I am doing?

I am Rodney Thomas, co-founder of Qumran Family Church. We are not a Church in the sense of existing in a brick and mortar edifice. On the contrary, this ministry at this juncture is solely internet-based. You see, we (Hilary and I), left traditional churchianity a few years ago after decades of being churched (in one form or way, after another}. This is not to say that we didn’t value those periods or that we see those years as lost and wasted years. Our church years provided us invaluable experiences and a training ground, so to speak. Although we didn’t gain much in the way of knowledge of the Scriptures and the Faith, we saw firsthand the process of being churched and what being churched does to a believer. What do I mean by this? Well, the process of being churched simply means that one goes through a process of being educated and indoctrinated by a denomination or church in to that denomination’s or church’s beliefs, traditions, rules, and culture. Thus, the churched believer becomes a disciple of a denomination/church as opposed to becoming a disciple of Messiah. The churched believer becomes obedient to the church/denomination as opposed to Torah and the teachings of Messiah. He or she grows in to the very image and stature of the denomination/church under which they are members. Churched believers then are defined or given the title of whatever church or denomination become married to: Catholic, Baptist, Presbyterians, a member of this or that mega-church, a 7th-Day Adventist, a Jehovah’s Witness, an Episcopalian, etc. Occasionally, the churched believer will identify themselves in a larger sense as a Christian, but we know that there are some 20,000 or more Christian denominations in the world today. So being identified as a Christian in this day and age only muddies the waters of this issue a great deal more.

So where does Qumran Family Church come in to this very complicated equation? Well, the only reason we chose to add “Church” at the end of our title, was to provide ourselves with an easier means by which to establish this faith-based organization. Obtaining EIN’s from the government and even a simple bank account for the faith-based organization are virtually impossible unless the leaders of the organization can prove that they are a church-type organization and not some type of villainous organization, laying in wait to snag unwary victims’ moneys and souls. Thus we reluctantly chose to go the route we did for establishment purposes and not for purposes of growing a church. In fact, we drew the line at going the 501c3 route because we did not wish to be beholden to the United States Government and her rules and laws on what we can or can not say or practice. We will stay true to the Word of Yehovah and the teachings of Yeshua HaMashiach. Our purpose here at The Messianic Torah Observer is to provide you, the truth seeking, Torah-observing believer in Messiah, with the tools and resources you need to live powerful, righteous, and abundant lives. We are not of any denomination. We do not adhere to rules and doctrines that are not wholly Biblically-based. We do not answer to any organization or hierarchy, but only to the Father.

What about me you ask? Well, I am not a preacher nor am I minister in the sense of being a minister under the Nicolaitan system of churchianity. I am simply someone who loves with all my heart, soul, and might Yehovah, His Word, and this Faith–the Faith that Yeshua gave to us via His apostles in the first century. I am an investigator with a county law-enforcement agency by trade, so I have a natural bent towards questioning the validity of information that is passed on to us by churchianity and denominationalism that is called truth, the Gospel, or the word of God. I believe that we are individually called in to the true faith to become disciples of Yeshua HaMashiach. We are not called to become members of a church and become churched. Formerly, much of the world did not have the ability to practice the Faith once delivered without the institutional church lurking over them; for the institutional church possessed the Bibles and the supposed interpretation of the Bible and the church of course used that reality to her advantage. Thus millions throughout the ages have been at the mercy of the church and have relied upon the church to provide them the teaching and knowledge to earn them the title of Christian. I believe that this was not at all what the Master intended when He gave His disciples the great commission–which sadly has been grossly misinterpreted and abused–Yeshua said: Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptising them to the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit; (Mat 28:19 DBY) teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have enjoined you. And behold, *I* am with you all the days, until the completion of the age. (Mat 28:20 DBY) This is the heart, soul and spirit of The Messianic Torah Observer and Qumran Family Church. If you read this passage carefully, you will find nowhere that Yeshua told us to church people. Our purpose is to do what Yeshua has instructed us to do. This is my partial obedience to the great commission. There is so much more that the Lord has placed upon my heart to do and Yehovah willing, we will accomplished those things before the end of this age.