Free Sample Chapter: The Jewish Truth Secret

 C H A P T E R   2

The Jewish Truth Secret

"HOW DO I DETERMINE whether it is God's will to drink alcoholic beverages? There are scholars who have expressed their opinions on both sides of the argument-and they both have good points. Now I am more confused than ever?"

Have you ever found yourself saying something similar to the above statement? I know I have. I have literally spent hundreds of hours studying certain topics in the Bible only to walk away more confused than I was when started. This happens because often we spend too much time seeking the wisdom of men instead of what God says on the subject. However, there are even times when we can take what God said and twist it to where we no longer have the truth in the matter.

            In this chapter, we will discover some imperative matters in our quest for understanding whether God wants us to drink. At times, this section may seem to veer off the path of our topic of alcoholic beverage consumption; however, what you are about to read is absolutely vital in our investigation in not only this matter, but so many others in Scripture.

The first component that needs to be stressed is the supremacy and authority of Scripture.  It is imperative that we realize that the Bible is paramount to all other information available to us on any subject. Secondly, establishing the validity of the truth about Christians and drinking must be filtered through what I call the "Jewish Truth Secret." You'll learn about that secret later in this chapter. But first, let's look at the first component-the supremacy of Scripture-and someone who understood and upheld God's Word as the ultimate authority.

MARTIN LUTHER

It's been almost five centuries since one of the most famed Christian reformers named Martin Luther emerged from obscurity and established the beginnings of what we now call the Protestant Church.* Luther's reforming teachings in his work entitled Ninety-Five Theses aided a mass rebellion against the wide-spread Catholic Church and their dogma-or religious beliefs. Luther had become increasingly distressed that the common people were being led astray by some of the Catholic Church's corrupt teachings that had no scriptural backing. Because of his heart-wrenching dilemma, he sparked a reformation that changed the world.

 Essentially, Martin Luther's message was that no one has a monopoly on the truth except God Himself, a theological point he believed was made evident in the Scriptures (2 Tim. 3:16). Luther alleged that no one person or organization represented truth solely by what they believe or their opinion of what is right or wrong. He even applied this viewpoint to what the clergy taught in church and the religious universities of his day.

Undoubtedly, Luther had an intense desire to conduct the affairs of life and the Church through the guide of God's inherent Word. He boldly exclaimed that the definition of truth is what God has declared in the Bible. 

Martin Luther was someone who stumbled onto the truth when he began reading the Bible for himself. In his day, the Bible was made available only to the learned clergy and hierarchy in the Catholic Church, but even when the common believer could get access they could not read it since the text had yet to be translated into their common language. Because Luther believed that making the Bible accessible and readable to everyone was a crucial matter, he eventually translated the Latin Bible (the version that was used in his day) into the German language so the ordinary layperson could read it. Although the Catholic Church officially condemned Luther's translation, it was later used to help

translate the most recognized English Bible translation, the 1611 King James Version.[ii]

Unfortunately, like every believer, Luther made some mistakes in his ministry-including, placing an alcohol brewery in his own monastery and his outspoken disdain for the Jews; [iii] however, he did set a necessary precedence that Christians should follow today. He believed that Christians should not accept truth based solely on what someone else says we should believe.

 In Luther's search for the truth, he bravely challenged those who were seemingly unchallengeable, and this ideology prompted a Christian revolution that spread like wild fire. It was because of his stand for the supremacy of the Scriptures that his reforming successors coined a theological truth and doctrine after him-a doctrine still taught in most seminaries and Bible schools today called Sola Scriptura. The basis of his teaching was that the Scriptures alone should be the ultimate source for the truth, not necessarily some old men with white hair and long red robes debating theology behind stained glass. He believed and taught that the Bible was paramount to any teaching conceived in the minds of men.

Luther believed, and we should as well, that if we do not turn to the Scriptures alone for our final exhortation on every moral matter, we will inadvertently idolize someone or something else. If we do not give precedence to the Scriptures then we open ourselves up to false teachings and corrupt counsel. Remember, there is always someone (especially ourselves) that will give a "green flag" for what we want to do if we look hard enough.[iv] There is always an excuse available if we seek one. This is why there are so many churches and religious affiliations even today.

We must turn to the Scriptures alone to be our guide in all matters in this life. We should never be content to simply apply Scripture to our personal beliefs and opinions, but should allow our worldview to line up with Scripture. Unmistakably, God is a God of right or wrong; gray areas, middle grounds, and being held in limbo in a theoretical purgatory are merely unscriptural notions concocted by silly, self-titled, scholars doodling on tithing envelopes at a boring church service. I cannot imagine anyone ever intending for their wild imaginations to actually be taught as doctrine.

LUTHER'S TARNISHED LEGACY

Did you know that the Bible contains 66 books, 1,189 chapters, 31,302 verses, and over 783,000 words? It would not be too difficult to find a verse to back up just about any activity, whether it is something good or sinful.[v]  Regrettably, countless churches have been split and millions of lives murdered because someone misinterpreted or used the Bible to their own evil benefit. In almost every case, someone took one Scripture and built an entire teaching out of it-teachings void of love that wreaked havoc on the people. This is precisely where Luther went wrong in his theology. (Note: although this section will not directly deal with the drinking question, it will provide an unparalleled insight that will be the foundation for the rest of this book.)

Although Luther held to the Supremacy of the Scripture and made monumental progress in the Church, he developed a bitter disdain for the Jewish people. He displayed this contempt in one of his books, On the Jews and their Lies-a book Adolf Hitler used to develop his ideology to persecute the Jews during World War II:

[Our goal should be] First to set fire to their [Jewish] synagogues or schools... This is to be done in honor of our Lord and of Christendom, so that God might see that we are Christians... Second, I advise that [Jew] houses also be razed and destroyed...Third, I advise that all their prayer books and Talmudic writings, in which such idolatry, lies, cursing and blasphemy are taught, be taken from them. Fifth, I advise that safe ­conduct on the highways be abolished completely for the Jews...Sixth, I advise that usury be prohibited to them, and that all cash and treasure of silver and gold be taken from them... force them to work, and deal harshly with them, as Moses did in the wilderness, slaying three thousand lest the whole people perish.[vi]

By this point, you might be asking yourself what went wrong with Luther-what influenced his crazy rhetoric? Well, unfortunately, he got it from the Bible. Luther probably took a few Scriptures from one book of the Bible (Acts 2:36; Acts 2:22, 3; Acts 3:12-15 & Acts 8:30) to teach that the Jews had killed Christ. It may have been from these very Scriptures that he wrote an entire book about how Christians should persecute the Jews in the honor of the Lord. He employed one "witness" (Luke: the author of Acts) to base his whole theology-and he did it outside the intended context. Luther did not understand the secret to uncovering the truth-something the Jews knew very well.

The Jews knew it was never wise to use one witness to prove or validate any action. It was written in their law from God Himself. This was their secret-one that has been locked away for too long. It is also this secret that will help us unlock the mysteries in the wine case.

What you will read next is quite possibly the most important step in hermeneutics-the science of properly interpreting the Bible. This principle will literally revolutionize the way you read and understand the Scriptures.

THE TRUTH SECRET

God gave the Jewish people a very important principle-one that is intertwined from Genesis to Revelation.  It was through this principle that they were able to understand the necessary components to establishing the truthfulness of any matter. God said that in order to establish truth it must be based...(to read more please purchase the full book at Amazon.com or by clicking on the link below.)

Click here to order this book: www.createspace.com/3398473

* Protestant comes from the word "protest." Protestants were those who went against the doctrines and teachings of Catholicism. Protestant churches today are described as any Bible believing church that holds to the foundational doctrines of the early church.

[1] Jesus raised Lazarus to life on the fourth day. Had Jesus raised Lazarus on the third day, Lazarus would have fulfilled a part of an Old Testament prophecy (Matt. 12:40).

[i] Lionel Casson, Everyday Life in Ancient Rome (The Johns Hopkins University Press © 1998). p. 18.

[ii] Lightfoot, Neil. How We Got the Bible (Grand Rapids, MI. 2003) p. 177.

[iii]Olsen, Ted. The Drink Debate. http://christianitytoday.com/ct/2000/aprilweb-only/52.0.html?start=2 (Accessed September 22, 2009.)

[iv] The following are quotes from Charles Spurgeon on Alcoholic beverage consumption. Notice that a person could quote Spurgeon on any side of the issue-probably because he never made a firm stand either way:" I don't need it[alcoholic beverages] for myself, but if it will strengthen and encourage a single soul among the 5,000 that are here, I will put it [a blue ribbon] on." "Next to the preaching of the Gospel, the most necessary thing to be done in England is to induce our people to become abstainers." (These quotes are from, pg. 440, Spurgeon: Prince of Preachers, Lewis Drummond).

CHAPTER 3

Should Christians Drink or Not?

[v] Cameron, Kirk & Comfort, Ray. School of Biblical Evangelism (Gainsville, Fl. Bridge-Logos Pub. ©2004) p. 341.

[vi] Luther, Martin. The Jews and their Lies. http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/anti-semitism/Luther_on_Jews.html (American-Israeli Cooperative Interprise ©2009).

[vii] Winston, William. The Complete Works of Jospehus. Antiquities 4.8.15 (Nashville, TN Thomas Nelson Pub. 2001). p. 139

[viii] Unterman, Alan. Dictionary of Jewish Lore and Legend. (©1991 Thames and Hudson) pp. 205-205.

[ix] Freeman, James M. Manners and Customs of the Bible (New Kensington, PA. Ó1996). p. 431

[x] Lockyer, Herbert. All the 3's of the Bible. (Revell Books ©1973) p. 7-9

[xi] West, Jim. (March /April 2000). "A Sober Assessment of Reformational Drinking". Modern Reformation 9 (2).