B E N B O R N A G A I N . F A I T H

HEBREW ROOTS DECEPTION

JESUS CHRIST FULFILLED THE OLD COVENANT 

The Book of Hebrews strongly warns against returning to Jewish ceremonial laws and rituals, teaching that they were temporary types and shadows pointing to Christ. The New Testament repeatedly emphasizes that Christ has fulfilled the Old Covenant, making its ceremonies obsolete.

  1. The Old Covenant Was Temporary and Inferior

    • Hebrews 8:13 – "In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away."
    • The writer of Hebrews declares that the Old Covenant, including its feasts, sacrifices, and rituals, is obsolete because Christ has fulfilled it.

  2. The Jewish Feasts and Rituals Were Shadows of Christ

    • Hebrews 10:1 – "For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered every year, make perfect those who draw near."
    • The sacrificial system, the festivals, and the priesthood were shadows pointing to Christ. Now that Christ has come, clinging to these shadows is both unnecessary and a form of spiritual regression.

  3. Jesus Is the Fulfillment of the Feasts and the True Sabbath

    • Colossians 2:16-17 – "Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ."
    • Paul explicitly warns against treating Jewish feast days, dietary laws, and Sabbaths as if they were still spiritually binding. They were symbols pointing to Christ, and to continue observing them in a religious manner denies the sufficiency of His finished work.

  4. Fasting on Yom Kippur Ignores Christ’s Completed Atonement

    • Hebrews 9:12 – "He entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption."
    • Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement) was a foreshadowing of Christ's perfect atonement. To continue observing it as though it were still spiritually necessary is to diminish the sufficiency of Christ’s once-for-all sacrifice.

THE UNIVERSAL PRIESTHOOD IN CHRIST

Because the Levitical Priesthood no longer exists, many of the 613 Mosaic laws cannot be practiced as commanded in the Old Testament. Because of this fact, Hebrew Roots groups practice a revised and customized version of the Mosaic Law, adding and subtracting from "The Torah" and therefore create their own man made traditions. 
In Numbers 25:13 we are promised a covenant of a lasting priesthood and yet Hebrew Roots Groups claim there hasn't been a priesthood for almost 2,000 years. But they fail to understand that this issue is reconciled by Jesus Christ.
Hebrews 7:12 points to a change in the priesthood. This change is connected to the inclusion of Gentiles in the priesthood through their identification with Christ as the true high priest in the order of Melchizedek. The book of Hebrews highlights the superiority of Jesus' priesthood in comparison to the Levitical priesthood. Jesus is a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek, as mentioned in Psalm 110:4, which transcends the genealogical and tribal limitations of the Levitical priesthood. 

This change in the priesthood signifies a transition from the Old Covenant to the New Covenant, which is characterized by a universal priesthood that includes both Jews and Gentiles. The New Testament teaches that all believers, regardless of their ethnic background, become part of a "royal priesthood" (1 Peter 2:9) through their faith in Jesus Christ. This priesthood of all believers is founded on the unique and eternal priesthood of Jesus, who is the mediator of the New Covenant (Hebrews 9:15).

The inclusion of Gentiles in the priesthood through their identification with Christ as the true high priest in the order of Melchizedek demonstrates the fulfillment of the Old Testament promises and prophecies about the expanding scope of God's blessings to all nations. This shift from the Levitical priesthood to the universal priesthood in Christ also signifies the fulfillment and transformation of the priesthood, as the eternal nature of the Levitical priesthood is ultimately realized in the eternal priesthood of Jesus.

In this way, the change in the priesthood, as mentioned in Hebrews 7:12, can be understood as the opening up of the priesthood to all believers, including Gentiles, through their union with Christ, who is the ultimate high priest. This change reflects the broader redemptive plan of God to include both Jews and Gentiles as his people and extends the blessings of the priesthood to all nations.