HHMI - Paul's Life and Letters ~ Pt 7 ~ What Does the Torah Teach about How we become Righteous?

Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved. For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. Romans 10:1-3 Their zeal for the Torah comes through what they are taught through Judaism. They were trying to establish their own righteousness through works and through following man made decrees and doctrines from the Talmud rather than submit to the righteousness of God. Mainstream Christianity interprets verse 3 that we are saved by grace through faith in Christ and that trying to establish your own righteousness is seeking to follow the Torah, therefore we should not follow the Torah. That is NOT what this verse is saying. The Torah teaches that we have no righteousness on our own merit. The Torah and the Prophets teaches us that our righteousness comes by grace through faith. This is also what Paul taught. We see this in Exodus 3:21: And I will give this people favor (grace) in the sight of the Egyptians: and it shall come to pass, that, when ye go, ye shall not go empty. But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD. Genesis 6:8 When the children of Israel put the blood of the lamb on the doorposts of their homes, they were demonstrating faith in the God of Israel to deliver them and they were being obedient to what He asked them to do. Their salvation and deliverance from the Egyptians came by grace, through faith. This is Torah righteousness. This is also stated in the prophets. What Paul was getting at in Romans 10:1-3 was that he was warning them not to put the Oral Torah (the Talmud and the teachings of the Pharisees) above the written Torah, in trying to establish their own righteousness. This is what Paul was addressing. For more of Eddie Chumney teachings and to listen to beautiful Messianic worship music, visit us at our internet streaming radio station, http://www.hebrootsradio.com/. Please visit our home page at: http://hebroots.org/