THE ASSEMBLING OF THE BELIEVERS

I was listening to a friend of mine who is very concerned that her family is not attending Sunday services. Every Christian had been taught that Sunday service is a commandment of Yehovah. However, this is not so. To give power to their concern they quote the following verse of Scriptures.

Ivrim/Hebrews 10:25 “And let us consider one another  in order to stir up love and good works, 25 not forsaking the  assembling of ourselves together, as in the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the day approaching.”

The apostle Rav Shaul wrote this book long before the church began around the year 300AD. He was writing to Hebrew Torah believing people. The Sunday or Wednesday services did not exist. The believers followed the teachings of Yehoshua and went to the synagogue to learn Torah every Sabbath. Acts 15:21 “For Moses has had throughout many generations those who preach him in every city, being read in the synagogues every Sabbath.”

Ma’aseh/Acts 15 is written in the ‘Bible because the Jews wanted to impose the Circumcision to the new believers, and the Paul and Barnabas went to discuss this situation with the elders in Jerusalem. It was decided that the circumcision did not save anyone, and they give them some immediate things they needed to observe; to abstain from things polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from thing strangled, and blood. Those things were what they did as gentiles, now they had to let go of doing the sins of the past, for now they expect them to go to the synagogue every Sabbath to learn torah, or the Commandments of Yehovah. If they wanted to do the circumcision they would do it, but not because they needed to do it to be saved, for we all are saved the grace of Yehoshua haMashiach. 

The church has taken out the Sabbath which Yehovah has given us as a rest day.

Bereshith/Genesis 2:1-3 “Thus the Heaven and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished. 2 And on the seventh day Elohim Ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. 3 Then Elohim barakh (blessed) the seventh day and made it qodesh (holy), because in it He rested from all His work which Elohim had created and made.”

The Scriptures are very clear and specific. Adam was the first man created and he rested and kept the first Sabbath day. He continued to do so and taught all his descendents for we know that Abram also taught his sons. When they went into Egypt to get food, they were well treated because Joseph had become very powerful in Egypt. But after his death and the death of that Pharaoh, an evil person came into power, and he did not know their history. He made them slaves. Yu can read their story in the book of Bereshith/ After 430 years beginning in chapter 3 of Shemoth we read of Israel been mistreated in Egypt. But in Shemoth 12 we read the account of  the Passover and of the calendar Yehovah gave them. The month of the Passover is the month the barley also is usually aviv, which means it will be ready to harvest for the Feast of First Fruits which is during the Feast of Unleavened. You may want to read the whole chapter and also Wayyiqra/Leviticus 23 for more understanding.

Shemoth /Exodus 12:1-2 Now Yehovah spoke to Mosheh/Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, “This month shall be your beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to you.”

Then Yehovah continues to give instructions on the Passover  and the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

Shemoth 12:13 “Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall remove leaven from your houses. For whoever eats leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off  from Israel.  16 On the first day shall be a holy convocation, and on the seventh day there shall be a holy convocation for you. No manner of work shall be done on them; but that which everyone must eat-that only may be prepared by you.”

I wrote this passage for the reader to see how much Yehovah cares for the seven day and the seventh day.  From the beginning He wanted all of us, to know about the Sabbath. The feast of unleavened bread and the Feast of Sukkoth, in the Seventh Biblical month, have both seven days celebration. Yehovah was not speaking to the blood descendants of Abraham alone at that time, but to a mixed congregation.

Shemoth 12: 37-38 Then the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand  men on foot, besides children. 38 A mixed multitude went up with them also, and flocks and herds-a great deal of livestock.

When Israel run out of food, they cry out to Moses, and Yehovah answered them and provided food to them.

Shemoth 16:4 -5, 22,26 Then Yehovah said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for y9u. And the people shall go out and gather a certain quota every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in My law or not. 5 And it shall be on  the sixth day that they shall prepare what they bring, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily. 22  And so it was, on the sixth day, that they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for each one. And all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses. 23 Then he said to them, “This is what Yehovah  has said; Tomorrow is Sabbath rest, a holy Sabbath rest to Yehovah.”

When they first had gotten the manna they went out on the Sabbath to gather some, but it bread worms and stank. (verse 20. But now when they kept the Sabbath day holy the manna they got on the sixth day did not bread worms.

26 Six days  you shall gather it , but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will be none.” He was helping them to obey Him. “And now let us read the Commandment on the Sabbath.

Shemoth 20:8-11 Remember Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days  you shall labor and do all your work, 10 But the seventh day is the Sabbath of Yehovah. In it  you shall not work; nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor our cattle, nor our stranger who is within  your gates. 11 For in six days Yehovah made the heaven and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore  Yehovah blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.  

The Scriptures continue to remind us to Keep the Sabbath all over the first five books of the bible, and we read in the other books as well. I will continue on my next message, but for today I wanted to remind you to keep the “Sabbath, no matter what race you belong.
The Sabbath is for everyone who is serving Yehovah.  I will talk more about the apostle Paul and his life in my next message. The Feasts were the Time Israel was commanded to gather together, not Sundays.

Exodus 23:14 “Three times you shall keep a feast to Me in the year: You shall keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread, (you shall eat unleavened bread seven days , as I commanded you , at the time appointed in eh month of Aviv, for in it you came out of Egypt. “

Mal’aki/Malachi 3:6 “For I am Yehovah, I do not change.”

Yehovah has not changed Him mind on anything. Man is the one who tries to discredit Yehovah’s Word by teaching He has changed His Commandment, or worse yet they say are god and can change His Word.

Shabbath shalom