A Distracting, Deceptive Practice...

If I could sit down with a Jewish scholar, I’d love to ask them about their written and oral traditions. They have some 600+ written laws that they adhere to. When I read through the first 5 books of the OT (their Bible) I read of God clearly telling them not to add to His decrees or take away from any of them. These 600+ regulations is one thing Jesus opposed through His earthly ministry. I think the reason or answer I would get would be that in fear of God killing more Jews (like He did in the wilderness), the Israelites feared God so much that they built a hedge of protection around God’s law. Evidence of this was when the people heard God’s voice, they trembled. They pleaded with Moses to go talk to God, and promised to do everything He told them to do. They didn’t want any direct contact with God, direct contact was Moses’ job. So they built up these 600+ regulations out of respect and fear of God, to keep people from sinning (thus God destroying them). Unfortunately, they turned a good attempt to save people, into a religious, self-righteous works-based ritual. The very thing they wanted to protect people from God, ended up keeping God from them. God has His plan, we don’t need to add to it, or take away from it. That’s exactly what Satan does, he distorts, distracts, and twists God’s desires for us, to keep us from experiencing Him (personally). Fortunately, for those who truly pursue God, Jesus freed us from this distracting deceptive practice. We can freely come to the throne of God, because Jesus uprooted these hedges, His ancestors placed between man and His Father. Praise Him for this. Pursue Him because of this. And worship and serve Him because He knows and loves us enough to pay the penalty of sin on our behalf.

32 “So be careful to obey all the commands I give you. You must not add anything to them or subtract anything from them. Deuteronomy 12:32