The Partial Deception

How do some religious professionals deceive people?

Some religious professionals are sincere in all of their efforts, even if they are not always right about everything.  However, other religious professionals are purposely deceptive in what they do.

These religious professionals are not just making human errors, but are purposely teaching the Doctrine of Lies.  One way that they do this, is by considering only a part of a passage in the Book of Truth (The Bible) in an incomplete way.

For example, consider some of the various deceptive teachings that people have taught, by doing this with the Sermon on the Mount.  They usually consider only one section of the Sermon of the Mount - and do not even consider that part in a complete way.  Only a really skewed view of the meaning of the Sermon of the Mount can come from a view, that only considers a part of the Sermon of the Mount in an incomplete way.

For example, a very modern view is the one used by Celebrate Recovery.  This view says that their Twelve Step program is found in the Sermon on the Mount, specifically the section called The Blessings (aka The Beatitudes) (Matthew 5:3-12).  They offer the following explanation of this:

Celebrate Recovery's Eight Recovery Principles

The Road to Recovery Based on the Beatitudes

Realize I’m not God; I admit that I am powerless to control my tendency to do the wrong thing and that my life is unmanageable. (Step 1)
          “Happy are those who know that they are spiritually poor.” Matthew 5:3a TEV

Earnestly believe that God exists, that I matter to Him and that He has the power to help me recover. (Step 2)
          “Happy are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” Matthew 5:4 TEV, NIV

Consciously choose to commit all my life and will to Christ’s care and control. (Step 3)
          “Happy are the meek.” Matthew 5:5a TEV

Openly examine and confess my faults to myself, to God, and to someone I trust. (Steps 4 and 5)
          “Happy are the pure in heart.” Matthew 5:8a TEV

Voluntarily submit to any and all changes God wants to make in my life and humbly ask Him to remove my character defects. (Steps 6 and 7)
          “Happy are those whose greatest desire is to do what God requires” Matthew 5:6a TEV

Evaluate all my relationships. Offer forgiveness to those who have hurt me and make amends for harm I’ve done to others when possible, except when to do so would harm them or others. (Steps 8 and 9)
          “Happy are the merciful.” Matthew 5:7a TEV; “Happy are the peacemakers” Matthew 5:9 TEV

Reserve a daily time with God for self-examination, Bible reading, and prayer in order to know God and His will for my life and to gain the power to follow His will. (Steps 10 and 11)

Yield myself to God to be used to bring this Good News to others, both by my example and my words. (Step 12)
          “Happy are those who are persecuted because they do what God requires.” Matthew 5:10 TEV

There are at least eight problems with their mapping of the Celebrate Recovery eight principles to the Sermon on the Mount.

1) Even a casual observation would show that they are only considering a small part of the Sermon on the Mount known as the Blessings.  However, there are other problems as well.

2) Only the first "E" (#2) principle includes the entire verse of their version of The Blessings.  The rest of the verses of The Blessings used for the Acrostic (#1, #3-#6, #8) are all missing the reasons that people are blessed for the conditions listed in them.  In all of these cases, people are blessed because of a future reward that will come when the Kingdom of the Father of Truth is established on the Earth (Matthew 5:3, Matthew 5:5-10).

3) The NIV translation for the Beatitude is referenced for the first "E" (#2) of the acrostic, instead of the TEV translation as co-listed.  In fact, the NIV is only used in this one instance, for the TEV translation of the verse indicates a future fulfillment by the Father of Truth in the second part, like all of the verses where the second part is ignored (Matthew 5:4).

4) The second verse of the second "E" (#6) and "Y" (#8) principles in the acrostic do not even indicate that they are only including the first part of their verses with an "a", like the other verses that are only including the first part of their verse.

5) There is no corresponding Beatitude for the second "R" (#7) in the principles acrostic.  This means that The Blessings only cover seven of their eight recovery principles.  It also means that The Blessings do not apply to steps ten and eleven of their Twelve Step program.

6) Their abbreviated version of The Blessings does not include the last two verses of The Blessings, which promise reward with the Prophets of Truth from the Original Covenant (B'rit Chadashah aka The New Testament) in the future Kingdom, for suffering persecution while following the Man of Truth in this world (Matthew 5:11-12).

7) Only questionable "thought for thought" translations are used for their abbreviated version of The Blessings.  The one disturbing sentence is found in these translations, but not in any ancient manuscripts used to make these translations.  Can translations by people, who literally edited the Word of Truth, be trusted?

8) The TEV (aka GNT) translation they used includes some of the so-called missing books of the Bible used by the False Church of Rome to preach another gospel that was given by another spirit and tells about another Jesus, who is not the Man of Truth found in the Book of Truth.

So, this is a really skewed vision of the Sermon on the Mount.  All of the obviously future references to the Kingdom of the Father of Truth are purposely ignored, and questionable translations are used to try to force Scriptural authority for the Twelve Step program of Celebrate Recovery from The Blessings.  This is part of an effort to provide a false alternative to The One Step Program.  This is an extreme case of scripture being taken out of context .

However, this is hardly an isolated incident by one group for one reason, but rather a common practice by many different groups for a variety of reasons.  There are examples for each section of the Sermon on the Mount.

The next section is about being Salt and Light in this world (Matthew 5:13-16).  It is frequently twisted to say the very opposite of the actual words in it.

There are entire denominations that deny that the Children of Truth (those who obey The Father of Truth because they love Him) can be cast out for not being fit for the Kingdom, by ceasing to produce good works as plainly stated in this section.

Many others define the good works in this section by a definition other than the one given by the Man of Truth (Yeshua HaMashiach aka Jesus Christ) in other sections of the Sermon on the Mount.  Some of them will even define these good works to only be acts of social justice, in order to preach a Social Gospel.

None of this is surprising, considering that many denominations and religious professionals completely ignore the next section that tells people to Obey The Law of Truth (Torah aka The Law) And Believe the Prophets of Truth (Matthew 5:17-20).

Yet, other religious professionals consider only parts of this next section, and ignore the rest of the Sermon on the Mount.  They teach obedience to the Law of Truth according to the teachings and practices of the scribes and Pharisees, which is the basis for Rabbinic Judaism.

Since many denominations and religious professionals completely ignore Obey The Law of Truth And Believe The Prophets of Truth, they mistakenly call the next section The Antitheses, instead of the Contrasted Teachings (Matthew 5:21-48).

They claim, that the Man of Truth is contrasting what the Law of Truth says is right, with what he says is right.  They then go on to explain how people can ignore everything that the Law of Truth commands.  This ranges from deciding what is for dinner to people living like they were married in Sodom.

However, it is obvious if you look at everything the section says, and consider the entire Sermon on the Mount, that the Man of Truth is contrasting what the scribes and Pharisees teach about how to obey the Law of Truth, with what he teaches about how to obey the Law of Truth.  He is in no way contradicting what he taught in Obey The Law of Truth And Believe The Prophets of Truth in the very next section!

Also, those who teach obedience to the Law of Truth according to the teachings of the scribes and Pharisees, completely ignore this section.  They seek to deceive the Children of Truth with Rabbinic Distort.

In like manner, many of these same people do not recognize that the next section is The Contrasted Practices (Matthew 6:1-18).

They do not consider this section as a whole, or that it needs to be understood in the context of everything else in the Sermon of the Mount.  They cannot see that this section is a contrast between how the scribes and Pharisees put into practice the commands of the Law of Truth concerning alms, prayer, and fasting, with how the Man of Truth put these same commands into practice.

So, they have turned the model of how to structure a prayer that the Man of Truth taught, into a ritual of just repeating words from what is commonly called the Lord's Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13).

Also, those who teach obedience to the Law of Truth according to the practices of the scribes and Pharisees, completely ignore this section.  They seek to spread these practices that came from the source of Jewish trouble.

Also, many religious professionals abuse The Call to Righteousness (Matthew 6:19-24).

Since they do not consider this call in the context of the whole Sermon on the Mount, then they cannot discern, that the way people are to answer this call and store up treasure in Heaven, is by obeying the Law of Truth according to the teachings and practices of the Man of Truth.  Instead, they ignore parts of this section to twist the first two verses in it to teach that people store up treasure in Heaven by giving money to their "ministry".

They completely ignore the warning at the end of this section, that no one can both pursue the Father of Truth and accumulating wealth.  Instead, they teach people that they need to be endlessly pursuing bigger, better, newer things, as proof that they are experiencing the blessing of the Father of Truth.  They do this, so people will be giving to get stuff, instead of giving to expand His Kingdom.  Of course, this giving is to directed to their "ministry".

In like manner, they abuse The Promise of Provision (Matthew 6:25-34).

Again, the rest of the Sermon on the Mount, and parts of this section, are ignored to mislead people.

Many religious professionals use only one verse as "proof" to people, that the Father of Truth will give them whatever they decide that they need, if they will seek His kingdom first, usually by giving money to their "ministry".  It is easy to see by looking at the entire section, that the Father of Truth is only promising to always provide for their basic needs like food and clothing, if they will seek His kingdom first.

Other religious professionals completely ignore this section in order to create FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt) to sell Tribulation survival kits.  They do not want their people to believe that the Father of Truth will always feed and clothe them during the Tribulation, if they will seek after His Kingdom first during the Tribulation.  This is as bad for business as people knowing that they can avoid the entire Tribulation by heeding the warning of "People Get Ready".

Many religious professionals completely twist the Command To Rebuke (Matthew 7:1-6).

They ignore everything after the first two verses, along with the rest of the Sermon on the Mount, to let people continue in every kind of evil without feeling any condemnation.  Their feel-good-about-yourself message completely ignores the command to rebuke others for sin, after repenting of sin yourself.  They ignore the warnings of the Prophets of Truth and the Man of Truth, that people cannot enter the Kingdom, unless they repent of their rebellion against the King.  They deceive people with feelings of love and acceptance, but in reality they hate these people with the worst kind of hatred.

Others likewise twist what it means to Seek With Confidence (Matthew 7:7-12).

They ignore the verses that specify that there are three different levels of efforts in the seeking, and focus on only the easiest one, that of asking.  They ignore the warning at the end, that ties this section to Obey The Law of Truth And Believe The Prophets of Truth.

They make this section about the Father of Truth giving people the things that they think are good, instead of trusting the Father of Truth to give them the things that He thinks are good. 

So this section is twisted, so that it is no longer be about seeking the Father of Truth for good things in order to build up His kingdom.  They ignore that they are to treat people with goodness as an act of love, because love is the most important thing.  They ignore that the point of this section is to bring people into the Kingdom of the Father of Truth, because that is all that really matters.

The last section of the Sermon on the Mount is The Contrasted Destinies (Matthew 7:13-27)

This might be the section that denominations and religious professionals misrepresent the most.  This section can be misrepresented in so many ways, if the rest of the Sermon on the Mount is ignored.   There are countless ways that people are deceived by others using only parts of this section.

The deceptions start with the first two verses that speak of the broad way to destruction and the narrow way to life (Matthew 7:13-14).

Some will try to define the broad and narrow ways in terms of something other than Obey The Law of Truth And Believe The Prophets of Truth.  Typically, they define the narrow way that leads to life as becoming a member of their denomination, organization, or "ministry".  They then claim, everyone who does not, is on the broad way that leads to death.  They manage to say this with a straight face, knowing that their "narrow way" did not even exist, until almost two thousand years after the Man of Truth gave the Sermon on the Mount.

Some will completely twist these verses to say, that the narrow way is defined by the path taken by the few, who were predestined to eternal life.  This is the exact opposite of what these verses actually say.  The narrow way is predestined in this section, and the few, who come to eternal life, are defined by finding it.  This agrees with the rest of this section and the rest of the Sermon on the Mount.

Since some will try to define the broad and narrow ways in terms of something other than Obey The Law of Truth And Believe The Prophets of Truth, these verses are followed by a warning against the Prophets of Lies (Matthew 7:15).  Those who seek to redefine these verses, either leave this warning off, or try to apply it to anyone, who questions their twisted definition of the narrow way.

These Prophets of Lies might appear to be kind and grandfatherly, but they are preying upon the Children of Truth.  Some of these Prophets of Lies frequently play on the fears of the Children of Truth to sell them things like Tribulation Survival Kits, or other materials to "prepare" them for the latest approaching crisis - that will never materialize.

These Prophets of Lies want to drag the Children of Truth into the Stupid Zone.  They are part of the Grand Conspiracy to keep people from discovering the truth.

Some of these Prophets of Lies will even tell people something like, "Jesus never told people to be fruit inspectors".  In reality, the Man of Truth literally told people in the very next verses after this warning, to inspect the fruit of others to determine if they are Prophets of Lies (Matthew 7:16-20).  So, whenever someone tells people to not inspect the fruit of their lives, it is a sure indicator that their fruit is not good.

Other denominations and religious professionals will try to get people to inspect the fruit of the lives of others, using a standard other than Obey The Law of Truth And Believe The Prophets of Truth, to determine if their fruit is good.  This alternative standard will always be one that makes their fruit appear to be good.

Some of them will use miraculous signs that they have performed in the name of the Man of Truth as that standard.  They will not bring up the next few verses, which plainly state, that this does not mean that their fruit was good (Matthew 7:21-23).

In fact, the Man of Truth will tell these people that they never knew him, because their fruit was not good by the standard of doing the will of the Father of Truth.  The will of the Father of Truth is to Obey The Law of Truth And Believe The Prophets of Truth, in the manner taught and practiced by the Man of Truth.

Still, others will teach, that the standard of doing the will of the Father of Truth means to Obey The Law of Truth And Believe The Prophets of Truth, in the manner taught and practiced by the Rabbis, who came from the scribes and Pharisees.  They seek to cause others to miss the point of the Law of Truth.

In like manner, many denominations and religious professionals will ignore the point of the closing parable of this final section of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 7:24-27). They do this to deceive people into a false sense of eternal security, that is independent of their actions.

They do not tell people, that their destiny of salvation or destruction is determined solely by their actions.  They do not tell people that they must be living to please the King to be saved.  They do not tell people, that their destiny is determined by whether or not they do what the Man of Truth taught and practiced as the right way to Obey The Law of Truth And Believe The Prophets of Truth.

So, many different groups have used parts of the Sermon on the Mount in an incomplete way to justify a variety of teachings and practices.

They have not only used this technique of the partial deception on the Sermon on the Mount, but on all parts of the Book of Truth.  These religious professionals have been able to use this technique to justify just about any teaching or practice that they want.  They have used this technique to skillfully guide people to any conclusion that they want.

Some of them do this out of tradition, to lead the Children of Truth in obey the Law of Truth in a Rabbinic manner, that is contrary to the manner taught by the Man of Truth (1 Timothy 1:3-7).   Some of them do this out of a desire to be popular, so they never rebuke others for sin, but instead tell the Children of Truth a fable - that the Father of Truth will not judged them according to their obedience to the Man of Truth (2 Timothy 4:1-4).  Some of them do this out of greed, to make merchandise of the Children of Truth (2 Peter 2:1-3).

These religious professionals operate right in the midst of the Children of Truth like a snake in the leaves.  They are the hidden danger that the Apostles of Truth warned about.  They have corrupted the American Spirit.  They are the reason that many of the Children of Truth feel like they are drowning in a lukewarm sea.

The Children of Truth should not be alarmed by this, for it is one of the signs of the times, that the Man of Truth will soon be returning to reward them in the Kingdom of His Father. 

These religious professionals must cause many to leave the House of Truth, so the Man of Lies (The Antichrist aka The Beast) can rise to power (2 Thessalonians 2:1-4).  The Children of Truth must be taken off of this Earth first, for they are preventing this from happening (2 Thessalonians 2:5-7).  Only after this, can the Man of Truth back come to the Earth with the Children of Truth to destroy the wicked from the face of the Earth (2 Thessalonians 2:8-10).

However, the Children of Truth must remain on guard against these religious professionals, as they were warned in the Sermon on the Mount.

The Children of Truth must learn how to put the principles of rightly dividing the Word of Truth into practice, so they will not be deceived by the partial deception.  They must strive to always be walking in truth, so that they cannot be lead away from the truth.  They must learn how to stay in the House of Truth, so they will be saved from the wrath of the Father of Truth.  They must learn how to fully carry out the Great Commission, so they will do the will of the Father of Truth.

The Children of Truth must help people become part of His Forever Family.  They must not forget the simplicity of the Gospel.  They must do what they can to rescue those living a burning house.  They must tell people about the deal offered by the Father of Truth.  They must lead people into the House of Truth.

They must tell people, that they must repent completely of their sins, to come into the House of Truth (Matthew 4:17).  They must tell people, that they must surrender control of their lives to the Man of Truth, because they believe that the Father of Truth raised him from the dead, to come into the House of Truth (Romans 10:9).  They must tell people, that there is no salvation without repentance - and there is no repentance without total surrender (2 Corinthians 7:9-10).

Come into the House of Truth!

Sermon On The Mount

What is the Sermon On The Mount really about?

In the Gospel of Matthew in chapters 5, 6, and 7 is the longest discourse given by the Man of Truth (Yeshua HaMashiach aka Jesus Christ) in the entire Renewed Covenant (B'rit Chadashah aka The New Testament).  Since the discourse begins after the Man of Truth led his disciples up to a mountain, and he leads them down from the mountain after he is done, this discourse is commonly called "The Sermon on the Mount".

The Sermon on the Mount is considered to be the most comprehensive collection of the central tenets of how the Children of Truth (those who obey The Father of Truth because they love Him) are to live out their lives to be like the Man of Truth.

The structure of the Sermon of the Mount can both be seen as simple and complex at the same time.  It is truly one sermon.  It exemplifies the principle of the whole being greater than the sum of the parts.

Yet, it does not go off subject, but remains consistent in content.  It says a lot, but uses the minimal amount of words necessary to say it.

For these reasons, it is also considered to be one of the greatest speeches ever given by literary critics.

However, there is not consistent agreement over what the Sermon on the Mount is about.

There has been much written about this over the centuries.  Craig S. Keener has done an excellent job of identifying thirty-six of the most prevalent views since medieval times, and grouping them into eight categories:

1. The medieval view - it is a higher ethic for clergy, especially in monastic orders
2. Martin Luther's view - it is an impossible ethic to meet like the Law of Moses
3. The Anabaptist view - it is a literal ethic which must be directly applied to every day life
4. The Social Gospel view - it is an ethnic focused on carrying out social justice
5. The Christian existentialism view - it is an ethic that allows man to experience a relationship with the Father of Truth (YHVH aka God aka THE LORD)
6. Schweitzer's view - it is an interim ethic until the Kingdom of God, which was possible to come any day after the Man of Truth returned to Heaven
7. Dispensational view - it is about a future Kingdom of God
8. Inaugurated view - it contains ethics that remain a goal to be approached, yet realized later in the future Kingdom of God

All of these views focus on some aspect of the Sermon on the Mount, but none of them consider all aspects of the Sermon on the Mount.  So while there is merit to many of them with regard to some aspects of the Sermon on the Mount, none of them provide a complete view of all aspects of the Sermon on the Mount.  None of these views can be applied to every part of the Sermon of the Mount, but instead emphasize some parts while ignoring others.

This can lead to a very skewed view of the Sermon of the Mount, that can even lead people away from the rest of the commandments of the Man of Truth.  For example, while the Book of Truth (The Bible) commands that we practice Social Justice, we are to never preach a Social Gospel.

No one who puts the principles of rightly dividing the Word of Truth into practice, could ever come to such a conclusion that this is what the Sermon on the Mount is really about.

However, what the Sermon on the Mount is really about becomes apparent when those principles are applied to it.

As is often the case, the answer is right in the actual text. We do not not have to wonder what the Sermon on the Mount is really about, because the Sermon on the Mount tells us what it is really about.  We can have the correct view of the Sermon on the Mount, because the Man of Truth tells us his view of the Sermon on the Mount, in the text of the Sermon on the Mount.

The Sermon on the Mount starts off with promises of future blessings for those who do the will of the Father of Truth in this life (Matthew 5:3-12).  The future blessings are commonly called the Beatitudes, which just means "The Blessings".  So this section can be called "The Blessings".

It is certain that these are future blessings by their nature.

For example, one is the blessing of those who hunger and thirst for righteousness being filled (Matthew 5:6).  There will be nothing but righteousness in the New Heaven and New Earth (2 Peter 3:13).

For another example, one is the blessing that the pure in heart will see the Father of Truth (Matthew 5:8).  No one in this present world has ever seen the Father of Truth, except for the Man of Truth (John 1:18).  However, the Father of Truth will come down in the New Jerusalem to dwell among people in the New Earth (Revelation 21:1-3).  Only those with a heart made pure by faith in the Man of Truth will be able to see the Father of Truth in the New Jerusalem (Revelation 21:24-27).

All of these promises of future blessings for those who do the will of the Father of Truth in this life, did not originate in the Sermon on the Mount.  Those who heard the Man of Truth give the Sermon on the Mount would have recognized, that he was reminding them of the promises already spoken by the Prophets of Truth in the Original Covenant (Tanakh aka The Old Testament).  For example, Isaiah the Prophet of Truth had already been given the promise of the Father of Truth for a New Heaven and New Earth (Isaiah 65:16-19).  In like manner, Daniel the Prophet of Truth had already told them that the Father of Truth would establish the kingdom of Heaven on Earth (Daniel 2:44).

So, the Man of Truth ends the Blessings by emphasizing this, when he reminds the listeners that they will share in the blessings promised to the Prophets of Truth, if they suffer for doing what is right like the Prophets of Truth (Matthew 5:11-12).

The next section of the Sermon of the Mount can be called Salt and Light (Matthew 5:13-16).

In this section the Man of Truth exhorts people to live as Salt and Light on this Earth, so they can receive these blessings (Matthew 5:13-15).  He ends this exhortation with an explanation that people do this by doing what the Father of Truth calls good (Matthew 5:16).

The next section of the Sermon of the Mount explains what the Father of Truth calls good.  This section can be called Obey the Law of Truth (Torah aka The Law) and Believe the Prophets of Truth (Matthew 5:17-20).

The Man of Truth begins with a warning against thinking that he has come to do away with the words of the Law of Truth or the Prophets of Truth, because he came to fully bring what they say to pass (Matthew 5:17).  He continues with a promise that everything in the Law of Truth is still in effect, until the New Heaven and New Earth replace the current Heaven and Earth as spoken of by the Prophets of Truth (Matthew 5:18).  He continues to explain, that the position which people will occupy in that future kingdom, is completely dependent upon what they teach others about obeying the commandments of the Law of Truth through both deeds and words in this present world (Matthew 5:19).  He ends with a warning, that people must exceed the efforts of the scribes and Pharisees in meeting the righteous commands of the Law of Truth to even enter that future kingdom, which will exist in the New Heaven and New Earth (Matthew 5:20).

The Man of Truth then begins to explain what he means by exceeding the efforts of the scribes and Pharisees in meeting the righteous commands of the Law of Truth.

The Man of Truth begins this explanation with a section that is commonly called the Antitheses (Matthew 5:21-48).  This is because people commonly claim that he is stating what the Law of Truth says first, and then saying something different that replaces what the Law of Truth says.  This is absurd in view of that he had just said in Obey the Law of Truth and Believe the Prophets of Truth.

In fact, the Man of Truth in no way contradicts the Law of Truth in his teachings in this section.

For example, the Law of Truth forbids taking revenge, but commands showing love to others instead (Leviticus 19:18).  The Man of Truth only expounds upon how to fulfill that commandment in the way the Father of Truth intended (Matthew 5:39-42).

In order to correctly understand the next section of the Sermon on the Mount, it helps to understand that the language of the Renewed Covenant for the Gospel of Matthew was Hebrew originally.  The Hebrew phrase at the beginning of each of these six comparisons is (שןמע אני), (Sh'ma Ani) which is literally "let me hear".  It is correctly translated into Greek as various forms of  ἀκούω  (akouo) in the Greek translations of these verses.  However, the significance of this phrase is lost in translation, unless you understand how it was used by Jews in discussion of the Law of Truth, when the Sermon on the Mount was given.

This phrase was used to indicate a comparison of contrasting understandings of a commandment given in the Law of Truth, where the wrong understanding was stated first, and the right understanding was stated last.

This comparison followed a formula of "let me hear" (similar to saying, "Did I hear you right?"), followed by the opinion of the other person, followed by "Now I am saying what is correct", followed by the contrasting opinion of the speaker.  It would convey the idea more clearly, if the verses with these comparisons were translated into English more like this:  You have heard it said, {some understanding of a commandment}, but I am telling you the correct understanding is { a contrasting understanding of the same commandment}.

The teachings of the scribes and Pharisees were what people heard that it was said from them of old  (Matthew 5:21).  These sayings of old were the traditions supposedly handed down to the scribes and Pharisees from the seventy elders, who went up with Moses (Moishe), but they actually caused people to transgress the Law of Truth (Matthew 15:1-3).

So, the verses in this section are not contrasts between what the Law of Truth says, and what the Man of Truth says.  These verses are contrasts between about how certain commandments of the Law of Truth should be understood according to the scribes and Pharisees, and how those same commandments of the Law of Truth should be understood according to the Man of Truth.

So this section should be called the Contrasted Teachings, instead of the Antitheses.  For that is what the Man of Truth is actually doing in this section.

The Contrasted Teachings completely agrees with Obey the Law of Truth and Believe the Prophets of Truth, which began with the Man of Truth warning against thinking that he was doing away with any part of the Law of Truth, and ended with a warning against the teachings of the scribes and Pharisees about how meet the righteous standard of the commandments in the Law of Truth.

So, the Man of Truth is telling people how to correctly understand the commandments of the Law of Truth in this section, so they can be more righteous in carrying out those commandments than the scribes and Pharisees.

The Contrasted Teachings cover six subjects: murder (Matthew 5:21-26), adultery (Matthew 5:27-30), divorce (Matthew 5:31-32), oaths (Matthew 5:33-37), revenge (Matthew 5:38-42), and love (Matthew 5:43-48).

All but one of these Contrasted Teachings begin with the contrast of teachings, and then continues on with an explanation of how to put the teaching of the Man of Truth into practice.

For example, the contrast between the teaching of the scribes and Pharisees on who to show love, and the teaching of the Man of Truth on who to show love, is given first (Matthew 5:43-44).  Then the explanation of how to put into action the teaching of the Man of Truth on who to show love, is given (Matthew 5:45-48).

The Contrasted Teachings is followed by a section contrasting the public practices of the scribes and Pharisees in carrying out commandments concerning religious acts, with the private practices of the Man of Truth in carrying out commandments concerning those same religious acts (Matthew 6:1-18).

Again, the contrast is not between the teachings of the Man of Truth and the Law of Truth, but a contrast between the practices of the scribes and Pharisees in carrying out these commandments of the Law of Truth, and the practices of the Man of Truth in carrying out these same commandments of the Law of Truth.  This section can be called The Contrasted Practices.

The Contrasted Practices starts off with contrasting the public practices of giving alms and prayer by the scribes and Pharisees, with the private practices of giving alms and prayer by the Man of Truth (Matthew 6:1-6).

The Contrasted Practices then gives an explanation of the right way to pray.

This explanation begins, by contrasting the practices of idol worshipers in praying to idols with the practices of the Man of Truth in praying to the Father of Truth (Matthew 6:7-8).  The explanation continues with an example prayer, that people should use as a template for their own prayers, which focuses on carrying out the will of the Father on this Earth until His kingdom comes in the New Heavens and New Earth (Matthew 6:9-13).  Finally, the explanation ends with a warning against not forgiving the sins of others, because that will cause their prayers to not be heard by the Father of Truth (Matthew 6:14-15).

The Contrasted Practices ends, by contrasting the public practices of fasting by the scribes and Pharisees, with the private practices of fasting by the Man of Truth (Matthew 6:16-18).

The Contrasted Practices is followed by a section calling people to pursue only the will of the Father of Truth (Matthew 6:19-24).  This section can be called The Call to Righteousness.

The Call to Righteousness begins with an warning to avoid storing up temporary treasure on this Earth, but to instead store up permanent treasure in the New Heaven, since your heart can only belong to one of those places (Matthew 6:19-21).  It then contrasts an undivided eye that sees the light that comes for the Father of Truth, with a divided eye that can only see the darkness that comes from this world (Matthew 6:22-23).  It ends with a warning that no one can stay divided between pursuing what the Father of Truth offers, and pursuing what this world offers (Matthew 6:24).

The Call to Righteousness is followed by a section promising that the Father of Truth will provide for those who pursue His will (Matthew 6:25-34).  The section can be called The Promise of Provision.

The Promise of Provision begins with an admonition for the Children of Truth to take no thought about how they will be provided for, because the Father of Truth takes provides the birds and the grass, so they should have faith that He will take care of them (Matthew 6:25-30).  It continues with a promise that they do not need to give this any thought, because the Father of Truth will provide for those who  first pursue after His kingdom, and answer the call to righteousness (Matthew 6:31-33).  It ends with a command to take no thought for the troubles of tomorrow, but to only focus on dealing with the troubles of today (Matthew 6:34).

The Promise of Provision is followed by a section explaining the right way for the Children of Truth to rebuke others for their sins (Matthew 7:1-6).  This section can be called The Command to Rebuke.

The Command to Rebuke begins with a warning about not judging other people by a standard that we cannot meet ourselves (Matthew 7:1-2).  It continues with a warning to repent of any sin in our own lives, before helping others remove the sin from their lives (Matthew 7:3-5).  It ends with a warning to not continue rebuking those who reject righteousness (Matthew 7:6).

Frequently, the first verse of this section taken out of context by people to say that we should never judge that someone else is committing sin (Matthew 7:1).  It should be obvious from the sections of the Sermon on the Mount that came before this section, that this cannot be the case.

Consider these examples from each section.

In the Blessings, the Man of Truth judged that people were speaking evil lies against the Children of Truth (Matthew 5:11). In Salt and Light, he judged that the Children of Truth would become worthless if they did not continue to live righteously in this Earth (Matthew 5:13).  In Obey the Law of Truth and Believe the Prophets of Truth, he said that the Children of Truth would be judged on what they did and taught about obeying the Law of Truth, and that the scribes and Pharisees were not righteous enough to enter the Kingdom that will exist in the New Heaven and New Earth (Matthew 5:19-20).  In the Contrasted Teachings, he judges that men who look upon women (other than their own wives) with sexual lust are worthy to be cast into Hell (Matthew 5:28-30).  In the Contrasted Practices, he judges that the scribes and Pharisees are hypocrites for sounding a trumpet when they give alms (Matthew 6:2).  In the Call to Righteousness, he judges that the heart of people is a reflection of where they put their treasure (Matthew 6:21).  In the Promise of Provision, he judges that the Gentiles are seeking only after the things of this world (Matthew 6:32).

In the sections that follow this section, the Man of Truth will actually command the Children of Truth to judge people by their actions!

However, the Man of Truth did warn them to not to judge people by their own standard, which they could not meet themselves (Matthew 7:2).  This is what the scribes and Pharisees did, when they created a standard that was based on their skewed view of the Law of Truth (Matthew 23:2-4).

What people really mean when they take this verse out of context, is that they do not want anyone to rebuke them for the sin in their lives.  The Man of Truth did not tell the Children of Truth to not rebuke other people for their sin in this passage, but to repent of their owns sin before rebuking others (Matthew 7:5).

In fact, he taught that to not rebuke others for their sin was to hate them with the worst kind of hatred.  They are to give the same warning that the Prophets of Truth gave about the judgment, which the Father of Truth has already made about their sin.  This warning is to be given, so people might repent of their disobedience to the Law of Truth.

Finally, the Man of Truth reminded the Children of Truth of the advice of Solomon to to be careful to rebuke only those wise enough to repent, but avoid rebuking those who too foolish to repent (Proverbs 9:7-10).   This means that if someone will not repent after being rebuked twice, then reject them because they are too foolish to repent (Titus 3:10-11).

So, the Children of Truth were not to give the holy commandments of the Law of Truth to dogs too foolish to obey them.  The Children of Truth were not to cast pearls of wisdom from the Law of Truth before swine, who would not only seek to crush those pearls, but also attack the Children of Truth for casting them.

So the point of this section is, that people are not to pass judgment on others in the place of the Father of Truth, based on some standard other than the Law of Truth.  Instead, people are to repent of their own sin, and then warn others to turn from their sin.  However, they are to avoid continuing to rebuke those, who will not repent.

So in this section, the Man of Truth was explaining how to carry out the commandment of the Law of Truth to rebuke others for their sin, in the way that the Father of Truth always intended (Leviticus 19:17).

The Command to Rebuke is followed by a section about seeking good things from the Father of Truth with confidence (Matthew 7:7-12).  This section can be called Seek With Confidence.

Seek With Confidence begins with a promise that the Children of Truth will be rewarded when they seek the Father of Truth for their needs (Matthew 7:7-8).  It continues with a promise that the Father of Truth will only give the Children of Truth good things, when they seek Him for them (Matthew 7:9-11).  It ends with a warning for the Children of Truth to treat others like they want the Father of Truth to treat them, so they will fulfill the righteousness of the Law of Truth and the Prophets of Truth (Matthew 7:12).

Seek With Confidence is followed by the last section that contrasts the two destinies of people who heard the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 7:13-27).  This section can be called the Contrasted Destinies.

The Contrasted Destinies begins with a contrast between the easy path which leads to destruction that most people choose, and the difficult path that leads to life that few people choose (Matthew 7:13-14).  It then warns to look out for the Prophets of Lies, who seem to be kind and gentle souls on the outside, but are really vicious predators on the inside (Matthew 7:15).  It continues with a command to judge people by their actions, to determine if they are Prophets of Lies (Matthew 7:16-20)!  It then issues another warning, that people will not be part of the Kingdom of Heaven, which will be on the New Earth, just because they called the Man of Truth their Lord, and even did miracles in his name, but only those who actually do what the Father of Truth says is right, will be part of that kingdom (Matthew 7:21-23).  It ends with a parable that shows, those who heard what what the Man of Truth taught about the Law of Truth and the Prophets of Truth in the Sermon on the Mount, and put it into action, will have an eternal destiny of salvation, while those who heard the Sermon on the Mount, but did not put those things into practice, will have an eternal destiny of destruction (Matthew 7:24-27).

So, the Sermon on the Mount could be summarized like this:

The Blessings of the kingdom in the New Heaven and New Earth are for the Salt and Light, who Obey the Law of Truth and Believe the Prophets of Truth.  The Contrasted Teachings and Contrasted Practices of the scribes and the Pharisees with those of the Man of Truth, show us how to answer The Call to Righteousness.  The Promise of Provision is for those, who obey the Command to Rebuke, so they should Seek With Confidence everything that they need from the Father of Truth, to carry out His will.  So heed what the Man of Truth says about the Law of Truth and the Prophets of Truth, for there are Contrasted Destines for the many who only hear, and the few who put into practice what they hear.

So what the Sermon on the Mount is really about, is how people can obey the Law of Truth in the way that the Father of Truth always intended, so they can be part of His Kingdom in the New Heaven and New Earth, that was foretold by the Prophets of Truth.

It is obvious that the Sermon on the Mount in no way contradicted the Law of Truth or the Prophets of Truth, but only made what they said clearer.

The Law of Truth said, that people can only obey the commandments of the Law of Truth by loving the Father of Truth with all their heart (Deuteronomy 10:12-13).  The Man of Truth likewise taught, that if people loved the Father of Truth and others with their hearts, then they would be able to keep all of the commandments of the Law of Truth (Matthew 22:37-40).

The Father of Truth said through Jeremiah the Prophet of Truth, that He gives everyone according to the fruit of their doings, because their deeds show what is in their heart (Jeremiah 17:10).  In like manner, the Man of Truth said in the Sermon on the Mount, that the heart of people determines whether they produce the good fruit of keeping the commandments of the Law of Truth, or the bad fruit of breaking those commandments (Matthew 7:16-19).

So obeying the Law of Truth in the way that the Father of Truth has always intended, has always been about the heart.

This is why the Man of Truth said in the Sermon on the Mount, that only those with a heart that was like that of the Father of Truth, would experience The Blessings (Matthew 5:3-8).  This why he said in the Sermon on the Mount, that the heart would be focused on Heaven, when people stored their treasures there (Matthew 6:20-21).

However, the Law of Truth also says that people have do not have righteous hearts (Deuteronomy 9:4-6).  In fact, it says that the heart of people is wicked, so that it is inclined to not keep the commandments (Deuteronomy 15:9).  In like manner, Jeremiah the Prophet of Truth says, that the human heart is more deceitful and wicked than people can know (Jeremiah 17:9).

This is why the Man of Truth said in the Sermon on the Mount, that every sin, including adultery, starts in the heart (Matthew 5:28).

It is for this reason the Father of Truth said in the Law of Truth, that He would have to circumcise the hearts of people, so they could love Him with all their heart (Deuteronomy 30:6).  This is why He said through Ezekiel the Prophet of Truth, that He would replace their heart of stone, which could not keep the commandments of the Law of Truth, with a heart of flesh that could (Ezekiel 11:19-20).  For this same reason, He said through that same Prophet of Truth, that He would put the Spirit of Truth (Ruach HaQodesh aka The Holy Spirit aka The Holy Ghost) in them as well (Ezekiel 36:26-27).  The Spirit of Truth can only write upon this new heart of flesh (2 Corinthians 3:3).

It is for this reason the Man of Truth said, that people must be born again through the Spirit of Truth to enter the kingdom, which would exist in the New Heaven and New Earth (John 3:3-5).  No one can love with the same love as the Father of Truth, without the Spirit of Truth being placed in their heart (Romans 5:5).

The Father of Truth spoke through Jeremiah the Prophet of Truth, that He would make a Renewed Covenant, where the Law of Truth would be written on the hearts of people (Jeremiah 31:31-34).  This Renewed Covenant makes it possible for people to keep those commandments in the way that He always intended (Hebrews 8:8-11).

The Renewed Covenant gives life through the Spirit of Truth helping people to keep these commandments, in the way that He always intended, instead the mere letters that killed, because they gave people no power to obey what was written (2 Corinthians 3:6).

The Man of Truth said in the Sermon on the Mount, that he came fulfill what was written in the Law of Truth and by the Prophets of Truth, without changing any of it in any way (Matthew 5:17-18).  

The Man of Truth shed his blood on the cross to make the Renewed Covenant possible (Matthew 26:28).  He had to die, so people could keep the commandments of the Law of Truth in the way the Father of Truth always intended (Hebrews 9:14-16).

He had to die and rise again from the dead, to fulfill what had been written in the Law of Truth and by the Prophets of Truth (Luke 24:44-46).  His death, burial, and resurrection were all done in accordance with these scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:3-4).

The Man of Truth also said in the Sermon on the Mount, that who suffered on His behalf would be rewarded in the same way as the Prophets of Truth (Matthew 5:10-12).  So those who suffer for obeying the Man of Truth, will reign with him in the kingdom promised through the Prophets of Truth, in the New Heaven and New Earth (2 Timothy 2:12).

This will only happen to those who come into the House of Truth, by surrendering control of their lives to the Man of Truth, because they believe in their heart, that the Father of Truth raised him from the dead (Romans 10:9).

Come into the House of Truth!

Celebrate Recovery

Is Celebrate Recovery Biblical?

There are about 35,000 churches that use Celebrate Recovery to help people overcome their addictions.  However, not every church is convinced that Celebrate Recovery is from the Father of Truth (YHVH aka God aka THE LORD).  There are some very serious accusations made against Celebrate Recovery by these churches.

I understand both sides because I am very familiar with Celebrate Recovery.

I attended the first church in Tulsa to start a Celebrate Recovery (CR) program in Oklahoma.  Eventually, I went with a friend to see what it was.

This church went all out in sponsoring a Celebrate Recovery program.  CR had its own paid pastor to run just it.  Also many members of the congregation volunteered to help out in many ways.

Celebrate Recovery had its own place to meet.  Inside this place were interesting things, like child care for those attending CR.

My favorite was the He Brews coffee bar.  Coffee was the closest thing I had to an addiction, and there was an excellent volunteer barrister serving up some great brews.  He told me the secret was all in the wrist.

Soon the meeting started.  The CR pastor explained how everyone had hurts, habits, and hangups.  He further explained that CR was not just for helping people over come addictions to alcohol or drugs, but just about any kind of addiction there was.  Then we were broken into smaller groups that sat in a circle.  Generally, men were in some groups while women were in other groups.

In our circle, there was a trained CR leader, who conducted this part of the meeting.  The CR leader told each person to say the following when it was their turn:  "Hi, my name is "your name" and I am a grateful believer in Jesus Christ.  I am struggling with ....".  The person was then to spend three to five minutes explaining what they were struggling with, the challenges they faced that week, and confess to any time when what they were struggling with, had overcame them.

As we went around the circle, some men were quite dramatic and detailed in their talks, especially about their failings.  These people got a lot of attention from the regulars.  Other people, basically said that they had no failings to report, and lacked the drama of those who had failed.  These people got very little attention.  It was obvious, if you wanted to get attention from the group, then you had better have had a failure in the last week - the bigger the better.

While I was waiting for my turn, I noticed that those who reported failings seemed to be almost bragging about their failings.  The first would be like, "I got drunk once this week".  Then next would be like, "I got drunk, and took a hit of marijuana". The next would be like, "I drank, took drugs, and possibly got my girlfriend pregnant".  The next would be like, "I went to a party one night, was so wasted on drugs and alcohol, that I am not sure how many women I slept with".  The next would be like, "I went to two of those parties last week, and did worse".

I thought about all of their garden variety sins, that they almost seemed proud to have committed to show how bad they had been, then compared them to the sick and twisted things that I had done before the One Step program changed my life.  Then I thought, "Amateurs!".

Finally, it was my turn to speak.  I introduced myself, said that I was a grateful believer in Jesus Christ, and that I was not struggling with any addictions.  Then I proceeded to tell them about the One Step program, and how I had completely overcome all of my addictions instantly and permanently.

The regulars sat there stunned.  Finally, the awkward silence was broken with one of the sin braggers saying, "Get real".  There was soon a chorus of similar expressions from most in the circle.  Basically, they were saying, "liar".  They could not believe what they had just heard.

There was a big difference between my talk and their talks.  My talk barely mentioned my past addictions, but made a big deal about what the Father of Truth had done in my life through the One Step program.  Their talks barely mentioned what the Father of Truth was doing in their lives, but made a big deal about their addictions.

Later, I told my wife what had happened.  She had went to one of the women circles. She said that she had a similar experience.

I went to several more Celebrate Recovery meetings, ended up in new circles with different men, and each time I had the same reaction to the One Step program.

It seemed that the One Step program was in complete conflict with Celebrate Recover.  While both agreed on some important things, like the Man of Truth (Yeshua HaMashiach aka Jesus Christ) being the only hope for not being controlled by addictions, they were polar opposites about exactly what people had to do for the Man of Truth to accomplish this.  So, I stopped going to their meetings.

However, this did not get me away from Celebrate Recovery.  Our church had tremendous growth.  A large part of that growth was from people who had not been attending church, until they came to CR.

Some the CR users began to resent our members that did not attend CR, even though those people were the ones paying the bills to keep Celebrate Recovery going.  Soon, many of the CR users were separating themselves from the CR enablers, with CR users sitting in one area of the church and CR enablers sitting in another area.  There was a noticeable rift between the CR users and the CR enablers forming.  It got to the point of having almost two congregations meeting together in the same building at the same time.

The CR users enjoyed the comradery that they had at their meetings.  In fact, their meetings had some great music supplied by their own band, great coffee, and fun events.  There was no doubt that they were celebrating.

A few years after CR had started, most of the original CR users were still CR users, instead of becoming part of the CR enablers.  In fact, most of them were still struggling with the exact same issues that they had when they started.  At best, some of them had made great improvement, but had not completely recovered from their additions and became CR enablers.  Some of them were actually worse off than when they started.  It seemed to the CR enablers that the CR users were celebrating, but not recovering.

Many of the CR users had become addicted to Celebrate Recovery.  They did not want to completely recover and become CR enablers.  Their incomplete recovery was their means of remaining in Celebrate Recovery.

Eventually, the CR enablers got tired of paying for the celebrating, without seeing much recovery.  It was not that the CR enablers had lost a desire to help people recover from addictions, but that they needed to see people recover from their addictions, and then join them in helping other people recover from their addictions.

Eventually, the number of CR users began outpacing the ability of the CR enablers to keep paying the bills for Celebrate Recovery.  The constant growth of CR users outpacing the growth of CR enablers was causing financial hardship for the church.  This was simply unsustainable.

The situation was worsened by many of the CR enablers leaving the church eventually.  This constant paying to help people recover from their addictions, without seeing people actually recover from their addictions, had burned them out on Celebrate Recovery. They were burned out by this apparently futile effort to help people recover from addictions.  They left to find a place where they could see results.

Finally, the church could no longer bear the financial burden of sponsoring Celebrate Recovery.  Many of the pillars of the congregation were gone because they were burned out from being CR enablers.  The rift between the CR users and the remaining CR enablers was getting worse.  This church was effectively shut down completely, and had to merge with another congregation to survive.  So, it was forced to stop sponsoring Celebrate Recovery.

Even though it quit sponsoring Celebrate Recovery, it will still be a while before that church is celebrating its own recovery, from sponsoring Celebrate Recovery.

In order to understand how this could have happened, requires understanding Celebrate Recovery.

Celebrate Recovery was started as a Christian alternative to Alcoholics Anonymous, that covered other addictions as well.

Celebrate Recovery was created by John Baker.  He had been attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and going through the Twelve Step program, but it just did not feel right to him.  This is probably because Alcoholics Anonymous was started by Bill Wilson, a man who consulted with Spirits of Lies (devils aka demons aka unclean spirits aka gods) and the dead (Spirits of Lies impersonating the spirits of dead people) to create the Twelve Step program.

So Baker wanted a Christian alternative that would cover all kinds of addictions besides just alcoholism.  So with the support of Rick Warren, he started Celebrate Recovery at Saddleback Church in California.

Baker began by modifying the Twelve Step program created by Alcoholics Anonymous to create a Twelve Step program for Celebrate Recovery that was unmistakably Christian in its wording, if you include the supporting scriptures.   The twelve steps of the program (with scriptures) are: 


1. We admitted we were powerless over our addictions and compulsive behaviors, that our lives had become unmanageable.
I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature.
For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. Romans 7:18 NIV

2. We came to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
For it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. Philippians 2:13 NIV

3. We made a decision to turn our lives and our wills over to the care of God.
Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your  spiritual act of worship. Romans 12:1 NIV

4. We made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the Lord. Lamentations 3:40 NIV

5. We admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. James 5:16a NIV

6. We were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.
Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up. James 4:10 NIV

7. We humbly asked Him to remove all our shortcomings.
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9 NIV

8. We made a list of all persons we had harmed and became willing to make amends to them all.
Do to others as you would have them do to you. Luke 6:31 NIV

9. We made direct amends to such people whenever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift. Matthew 5:23-24 NIV

10. We continue to take personal inventory and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it.
So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall! 1 Corinthians 10:12

11. We sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, praying only for knowledge of His will for us, and power to carry that out.
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly. Colossians 3:16a NIV

12. Having had a spiritual experience as the result of these steps, we try to carry this message to others and practice these principles in all our affairs.
Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore them gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. Galatians 6:1 NIV

The twelve steps of Alcoholics Anonymous are almost word for word the same as the twelve steps of Celebrate Recovery (without the supporting scriptures).  There are these differences:  1) The word "alcohol" has been replaced with "addictions and compulsive behaviors" in step one.  2) The implied "We" for steps two through eleven is explicitly included.  3) The phrase "as we understood Him" has been removed from steps three and eleven.  4) The word "alcoholics" is replaced with "others" in step twelve.

So these twelve steps of Celebrate Recovery are essentially the same twelve steps that Wilson got from consulting with Spirit of Lies. 

However, the supporting scriptures make it very plain that the higher power involved is the Father of Truth.

Yet, no matter how sincere Baker was in his efforts to "Christianize" the twelve step of Alcoholics Anonymous, it is still the product of consulting with the dead.  We are explicitly told to not have anything to do with consulting with Spirits of Lies or the dead (Deuteronomy 18:10-12).

The Twelve Steps of Celebrate Recovery also mention sin in an inconsistent way.  The scriptures for steps one, five, seven, and twelve, connect sin to addictions, compulsive behavior, wrongs, shortcomings, and restoration.  Yet the scriptures for steps four, six, and ten, do not connect sin to a moral inventory, defects of character, a personal inventory, or being wrong.

The biggest problem is, that the mapping of between these steps and their accompanying scriptures do not clearly define sin, nor distinguish between sin and just being human.  They elevate addictions (like say to Celebrate Recovery), compulsive behavior (like tapping on something while thinking), and short comings (like being math challenged) to the level of sins by the mention of sin.

In like manner, they do not specify what to take a moral or personal inventory against, so it can be anything.  In like manner, "defects of character" is subjective, and not necessarily sin.  For example, some people believe that my insistence on sticking to the truth in all circumstances, is a defect in character.  Finally, without a connection to sin, being wrong could include giving a wrong answer to any question.

So, if they mean sin, then they should just modify the twelve steps to say sin, instead of retaining the vague language that a man got from consulting the dead in his basement.  Also, they should be including the definition of sin given in the Renewed Covenant (B'rit Chadashah aka The New Testament) - transgression of the Law of Truth (Torah aka The Law) (1 John 3:4).

Also, this not distinguishing between sin and being human, makes it plain that Celebrate Recovery is treating alcoholism and other sinful addictions as a physical allergy and a mental obsession, like Doctor Silkworth.  They are following his lead in ignoring that these things are fundamentally spiritual problems.

The Book of Truth never speaks about addictions and compulsive behaviors.  It speaks about sin (1 John 5:17).

Those who have compulsive behaviors like pornography, sex outside of marriage, transgender behavior, homosexuality, obsession with money, and getting drunk, will be kept out of the kingdom of the Father of Truth by their sin (1 Corinthians 6:9-10).  Those who are addicted to sex outside of marriage, pornography, drugs, hatred, violence, alcohol, and going to parties to do these things, will have no part in the kingdom of the Father of Truth (Galatians 5:19-21).  Those who remain addicted to these things will not enter His kingdom, even if they call themselves followers of the Man of Truth (Ephesians 5:5).

The Children of Truth (those who obey The Father of Truth because they love Him) are to have nothing to do with violence, getting drunk, or sexual immorality, and are to give no place in their lives for falling back into these things (Romans 13:12-14).  They are not to even so much as eat with someone who calls themselves a follower of the Man of Truth, but continues to be addicted to sexual sin, money, or alcohol (1 Corinthians 5:11).

The Children of Truth should be ashamed that they ever sinned against the Father of Truth (Romans 6:20-21).  They should be ashamed to even speak about these sinful acts (Ephesians 5:11-12).

All of this is quite contrary to a group of people meeting each week to tell each other about how they are followers of the Man of Truth, and then bragging about how much they sinned!  They should not be celebrating recovery.  They should be mourning that they sinned!

What if instead of being addicted to alcohol, one of them was addicted to killing children?  Would they be celebrating that the addict killed only one child this week instead of four?  Yet, this is no different than celebrating that someone got drunk only once instead of four times.

They should be mourning, that those who have continued in sin might be taken out of their midst (1 Corinthians 5:1-2).  They should be mourning over their failure in sinning against the Father of Truth at all, instead of celebrating that they sinned against Him less than before (James 4:8-10).

They should be willing to hand over the one who continues in sin, including getting drunk, to the Father of Lies to suffer physical harm, that they might stop committing the sin, so they can enter the kingdom of the Father of Truth (1 Corinthians 5:3-5).

Anyone who tells people that they can remain in some addiction that the Book of Truth calls sin, without suffering the wrath of the Father of Truth is a deceiver (Ephesians 5:6-7).

The Man of Truth was born into this world to save people from their sins, not just the penalty of their sins (Matthew 1:21).  The Man of Truth died, was buried, and was resurrected, so people could be free from their sins, not just the penalty of their sins (Romans 6:4-7).  The Father of Truth gave the Man of Truth, so people could be free from their sins, not just the penalty of their sins (Romans 6:21-23).

The Man of Truth commands that people sin no more after being healed by him (John 5:14).  He commands that those he has delivered from the penalty of sin to sin no more (John 8:9-11).

The Man of Truth says that people must repent to enter his kingdom (Matthew 4:17).  He came to call sinners to repentance (Matthew 9:13).

The Children of Truth therefore are to preach repentance, not recovery (Luke 24:47).  The Father of Truth has granted repentance unto life, not recovery that takes a lifetime (Acts 11:18).  There is no recovery without repentance (2 Timothy 2:25-26).

In Heaven, it is Celebrate Repentance, not Celebrate Recovery (Luke 15:7).  The Angels of Truth are part of Celebrate Repentance (Luke 15:10).

So, it is completely against the message of the Book of Truth (The Bible) to teach that people are to slowly recover from sin, step by step, celebrating each step along the way.  Celebrate Recovery is contrary to one of the foundational teachings of the Man of Truth - immediate and permanent repentance from sin, which leads to death, through faith in the Father of Truth (Hebrews 6:1).

Those who come into the House of Truth are to abandon sin completely, not to be in continual recovery from sin (Romans 6:1-2).  They are not to repent of their repentance from sin (2 Corinthians 7:10).
 
The Father of Truth does not want you to perish, so He has been holding off judgment to give you time to repent, and come into the House of Truth (2 Peter 3:9).

The Father of Truth says that now is the time for repentance (Acts 17:30).  Today is the day, to come into the House of Truth and be saved (2 Corinthians 6:2).

So come into the House of Truth, by surrendering control of your life to the Man of Truth, because you believe that the Father of Truth raised him from the dead (Romans 10:9).

Come into the House of Truth!

Alcoholics Anonymous

Is Alcoholics Anonymous Biblical?

Alcohol Anonymous is based on the Twelve Step program that it has defined.  The twelve steps of the program are:

1. We admitted we were powerless over alcohol—that our lives had become unmanageable.
2. Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.
4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
5. Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
6. Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.
7. Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.
8. Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.
9. Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
10. Continued to take personal inventory, and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it.
11. Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.
12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.

At first glance, these twelve steps have some similarity to certain principles found in the Book of Truth (The Bible), and might even appear to have been derived from the Book of Truth.  However, a little scrutiny of these steps shows that there is some very serious conflict with the Book of Truth.

Step two says, "Power greater than ourselves", which could be any kind of supernatural power, including Spirits of Lies (devils aka demons aka unclean spirits aka gods), Angels of Lies, and the Father of Lies (HaShatan aka Satan Aka The Devil).

Steps three and eleven say, "God as we understood Him", which could include any understanding of God based on anything including the Koran, the Vedas, the Talmud, the Book of Mormon, the writings of the Gnostics, the teachings of the False Church of Rome, and any number of other sources.  So, while someone of a Christian background might mentally substitute in the Father of Truth in these steps, these steps are not pointing anyone else to the Father of Truth.

Steps four and ten allows a person to use any standard they want to make a moral inventory of themselves, which does not have to be the standard in the Book of Truth.

Steps six and seven, only speak of "defects of character" and "shortcomings".  These are not the same thing as sin, which is transgressing the Law of Truth (Torah aka The Law) (1 John 3:4).

Step twelve says to take the message of these twelve steps to alcoholics.  This is very different than the command of the Man of Truth (Yeshua HaMashiach aka Jesus Christ) to carry the message of the Good News to all the world (Mark 16:15).

So, in reality, these twelve steps are contrary to the Book of Truth.

The reason that these steps could be understood by someone of a Christian background is that the founders of Alcoholics Anonymous got many of these concepts from an informal Christian fellowship called the Oxford Group.

In 1934 AD, a friend of Bill Wilson had been a drunk, but had found sobriety through the Man of Truth with the help of the Oxford Group.  This friend told Wilson that the only way to sobriety was through the Man of Truth.

Then Wilson went on a drinking binge again, and was admitted for treatment for the fourth time to Towns hospital under the care of Doctor Silkworth.  While there Wilson cried out, that he would totally surrender to the Father of Truth, if He would deliver him from alcoholism.  Instantly, Wilson had no more symptoms, and indeed never drank alcohol again.

Doctor Silkworth did not understand it when Wilson was suddenly sober, and had no more need for treatment.  However, he had told Wilson to keep doing it, if it was working. 

Doctor Bob Smith had also learned how to overcome being a drunk from the Oxford Group, but was relapsing.  Bill Wilson then reached out to Doctor Bob Smith to help the doctor stay sober.  They applied what they had learned from The Oxford Group to stay sober.

Bill Wilson and Doctor Bob Smith in turned sought to do the same for other alcoholics.

All might have been well, if it had not been for the influence of Doctor Silkworth.

Doctor Silkworth had previously convinced Wilson that alcoholism was a physical allergy and a mental obsession.  Doctor Silkworth did not see any spiritual dimension at all to alcoholism, so he had told Wilson that alcoholism could only be treated, but never permanently cured.  So, despite his own experience, Wilson came to the conclusion of "once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic".

Soon Wilson and Doctor Smith found that many alcoholics did not want to hear that the Man of Truth was the only source of overcoming alcoholism, as the Oxford group had taught them.

So, Wilson and Doctor Smith began changing the wording of what they were taught, as well as the root cause of the alcoholism, and how to deal with it.  Most importantly, they changed the goal from permanent deliverance from alcoholism, to continual recovery from alcoholism.

Soon, they had a group of one hundred men seeking help to recover from alcoholism, who referred to themselves as "a nameless squad of drunkards".  Inspired by their success, Wilson wrote a book called "Alcoholics Anonymous", that featured the Twelve Steps in 1938 AD.

The group took on the title of the book as the name for their organization, and Alcoholics Anonymous became the first twelve step program.

According to Wilson, he had consulted the dead and Spirits of Lies in writing this book.  In particular, he stated that a 15th century monk named "Saint Boniface", had been the most help.  In fact, Wilson and his wife built a "spook room" in their house, where they continued to consult the dead and Spirits of Lies for the rest of their lives.

Wilson also had at least one adulterous affair with a woman for a number of years, and even left ten percent of his estate to her in his will.  He also experimented with LSD and other drugs.

Wilson also became a heavy smoker, and this is what brought about his death in 1971 AD.

So the Twelve Step program was the work of a wicked man under the influence of Spirits of Lies.  There can be no doubt that the Twelve Step program was not from the Father of Truth.

There is complete deliverance from alcoholism through the Father of Truth like Wilson experienced, even though Wilson did not keep his promise to the Father of Truth.

This deliverance begins with understanding what the Book of Truth says about alcoholism.  The Book of Truth says that alcoholism is primarily a spiritual problem with a spiritual solution.

The Book of Truth does not call getting drunk, "alcoholism", it calls getting drunk, "sin" (1 Corinthians 6:9-10).  It says that those who get drunk will have no part in the kingdom of the Father of Truth (Galatians 5:19-21).

People get drunk because of the sinfulness of their flesh (Romans 7:5).  The sin that lives in their flesh causes them to keep getting drunk (Romans 7:17-20).  They can never free themselves from the constant internal desire of their flesh to get drunk (Romans 7:21-23).

The only means to be delivered from the sin that causes them to keep getting drunk is through the Man of Truth (Romans 7:24-25).  The Man of Truth will set them free from the sin that causes them to get drunk through the work of the Spirit of Truth (Ruach HaQodesh aka The Holy Spirit aka The Holy Ghost) (Romans 8:1-4).  The Spirit of Truth is given to everyone who comes into the House of Truth to deliver them from the sin that lives in their flesh (Romans 8:5-10).

So, deliverance from alcoholism comes from the One Step program of coming into the House of Truth.

So come into the House of Truth, by surrendering control of your life to the Man of Truth, because you believe that the Father of Truth raised him from the dead (Romans 10:9).

Come into the House of Truth!