Which Came First? The Old Testament or the New Testament?

One of the first things I had to do when I started asking hard questions and heading down the Torah-Observant road was to shift my perspective. I was brought up and taught to look at the Old Testament through the lens of the New Testament. We could glance back to the Old to see where the prophesies were fulfilled, see the lineage of Jesus, check the history and maybe even pull out a proverb or psalm to live by, but the Old Testament was just that - old. I viewed the New Testament as the Scripture for today. I turned to the New Testament for my spiritual food, to meet Jesus and seek guidance on how to live out my faith.

Then one day it dawned on me. Why don’t we study the Old Testament - I mean really study it in depth? Not to just gain a moral tidbit from a nice story in the same way we look at, say...Aesop’s fables.  You should ask yourself the following questions.  Aren’t the OT writings the very same writings that the Jewish people in Jesus day used to identify Him as the Messiah? Why do you believe the Messiah was who He said He was? Did the Old Testament really testify of who He was? What do the New Testament writers have to say about the Old Testament Scriptures? I asked myself these questions and found some surprising answers. For example, a huge portion of the New Testament quotes the Old Testament. All you have to do is do a quick search of the word “written” to see that the New Testament writers used the Old Testament to reveal God’s Truth (http://www.blueletterbible.org/search/translationResults.cfm?Criteria=written&t=NASB&page=6). And why wouldn’t they? After all, the Old Testament did come first; it is the foundation that all else was built on.

So why do we rely so heavily on the New Testament in the church today? Why not read the foundation before trying to understand a text that was written as commentary and explanation of the foundation? That would be like reading the cliff notes without reading the book, although I have been guilty of this very thing in the past. Yet, I have much more respect for God’s Word and we all know that when we only read the cliff notes we sometimes miss some really important points!

So that being said, I want to challenge my fellow Christians to go back and read the OT books beginning with the first 5 books of the Bible (known as the Torah). Until we have done this we have no business interpreting the New Testament. We need the lenses of the Old Testament to understand the New Testament teachings. I think this is why there are so many erroneous and differing interpretations amongst the body of believers. If we would just learn our foundation we would understand the New Testament so much more fully.

When I began to do this I finally realized that on the surface there appear to be things written in the NT that seem to contradict what is taught in the Old Testament. This is no light issue; a contradiction to the Old Testament could call into question the entire New Testament and even call into question the truth of Messiah! There should absolutely be no contradiction. Ignoring even the slightest contradiction would be like eating chocolate chip cookies while holding a peanut butter cookie recipe and claiming that the cookies were made with the recipe. It is just not so. The Jewish Messiah could not be Jesus if the New Testament taught anything in contradiction to the Old.

So again I ask: why do we blindly accept the writings of the New Testament as Scripture without testing them? Is it because of tradition? I submit to you that we need to readjust our perspective. If our Messiah is truly who He said He was then He needs to have taught and exemplified exactly what was taught in the Torah. And therefore the Torah is superior to the New Testament in that it needs to be our measuring stick which we test the Scriptures by. Think I’m crazy? What Scriptures do you think the following texts are speaking of in light of the fact that the New Testament did not exist at the time these books were written?

2 Timothy 3:16 “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness;”

Acts 17:11 “Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so.”

I am sure you are now asking your self the following questions. So are you saying that the New Testament is not Scripture? That Jesus is not the Messiah? Absolutely not. But I am saying that the New Testament has been corrupted by interpretation of men who decided the Torah was obsolete. This is something that the Torah testifies could not be. But when you begin to approach the New Testament through the eyes of the Torah being binding and unchangeable a different picture of our Messiah and the way we are to live our lives appears. You now begin to see the pages of the New Testament in new light, or should I say old light? When you read statements that seem to say that the Torah has been modified or changed red flags go up and you immediately study deeper. You seek for the true meaning of the text by studying who is speaking, who is being spoke to and what the words meant in the original language instead of in the interpretation put forth by the English translators. What you find is that Jesus was a Torah-Observant Jew who kept every point of the Torah. He did this not so that we could forsake it but because man has, since the beginning of time, failed at keeping it.

It amazes me today that so many Christians walk around wearing WWJD (What would Jesus do) bracelets. Do you really strive to do what Jesus did? Is He truly the example that you should follow? If so, why is the majority of Christianity disregarding so much of what He did? He followed Torah, why don’t you!?

Matthew 5:17-19 “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”

Shalom!

Do 1 Corinthians 16:1-4 and Revelation 1:10 prove the Sabbath has been changed?

The following passage is often used in order to prove that the early believers were meeting on the first day of the week as opposed to the 7th day Sabbath.

1 Corinthians 16:1-4 “Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I directed the churches of Galatia, so do you also. On the first day of every week each one of you is to put aside and save, as he may prosper, so that no collections be made when I come. When I arrive, whomever you may approve, I will send them with letters to carry your gift to Jerusalem; and if it is fitting for me to go also, they will go with me.”

Does the text tell us that the Sabbath has shifted to Sunday? I don’t see anywhere in the text the idea that this was a weekly meeting that took place amongst the believers. So what was going on?

Really this text is quite simple to explain. The misunderstanding of this passage comes from a misunderstanding of Jewish culture during Paul’s day. The Jewish people never handled money on the Sabbath unless there was a life threatening emergency. There were never tithes collected on the Sabbath. Tithes could be brought any of the other six days of the week, but never on the Sabbath. This idea comes from the Scriptures:

Nehemiah 13:15-19 “In those days I saw in Judah some who were treading wine presses on the Sabbath, and bringing sacks of grain and loading them on donkeys, as well as wine, grapes, figs and all kinds of loads, and they brought them into Jerusalem on the Sabbath day. So I admonished them on the day they sold food. Also men of Tyre were living there who imported fish and all kinds of merchandise, and sold them to the sons of Judah on the Sabbath, even in Jerusalem. Then I reprimanded the nobles of Judah and said to them, "What is this evil thing you are doing, by profaning the Sabbath day?”

Whether or not these verses actually teach us that we should not change money on the Sabbath is irrelevant for our discussion. What is relevant is that the Jewish people of Paul’s day would have never changed money on the Sabbath. And therefore Paul would not have either as he was a Pharisee of Pharisees!

Furthermore the text says nothing about doing anything other than collecting money on the first day of the week. Just because most churches today take up collections on the first day of the week does not mean that the believers in Paul’s time did this. In fact why would they? They would have been used to the Jewish customs of observing the Sabbath. They also would have been together at sundown on the 7^th day as was the custom and could have easily taken up a collection after the Sabbath was over. The Jewish Sabbath runs from Friday sundown to Saturday sundown at which time the first day of the week begins.

This passage certainly does not indicate in any way that the first day of the week had become the normal meeting day of the early believers. It does indicate that they kept the Sabbath by not exchanging money on that day instead waiting until the sun went down to take up their collections.

There is one more verse used to prove a change to the first day of the week, but I don’t think it even deserves its own post as it is so easy to debunk so I am going to throw it in here just so I have covered all the texts brought up by advocates against the 7^th day Sabbath. So the last verse I hear is the following:

Revelations 1:10 “I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like the sound of a trumpet,”

The argument basically states that the Lord’s day is a reference to Sunday. Yet, there are no specifics in the text about which day this is. It could have been the 7^th day, or simply a day that John came before the Lord. Or it could have been a reference to the day of trumpets, Yom Teruah. We just don’t know what day is referred to in this verse. So to use this as a proof of Sunday worship is just unfounded.

I think that I have now covered all of the Biblical texts that are used to show a shift from Sabbath to Sunday and/or a doing away of the 7^th day Sabbath commandment. Please do feel free to point out any other texts that might cause confusion as I would love to discuss them.

So again I will ask you. Why don’t Christians observe the 7^th day Sabbath? I urge all Christians to do there own studying, ask yourself the hard questions, pray without ceasing. And let God’s Spirit reveal to you the Truth through His word!

Shalom in Yeshua Hamashiach!

Is Romans 14:5-6 discussing the Sabbath?

The following verses are often used by those that do not advocate keeping the 7^th day Sabbath.  But are these verses even discussing the Sabbath or was Paul discussing something else?

“One person regards one day above another, another regards every day alike. Each person must be fully convinced in his own mind. He who observes the day, observes it for the Lord, and he who eats, does so for the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who eats not, for the Lord he does not eat, and gives thanks to God.”

When Christians read these verses they tend to place their own definition into the days that Paul is referring to. Since Christians today don’t observe the 7^th day Sabbath, the assumption is that this must have been the days being discussed. But is this the case? Was the 7^th day Sabbath something that needed discussion in Paul’s time? Wouldn’t there have been an uproar from the Jewish believers if Paul was actually denouncing the sacred Sabbath (that I have established in previous posts was an everlasting covenant between them and God)? See http://messianicmama.blogspot.com/2010/11/sabbath-as-described-in-bible.html

I think that there may be more to this passage than first meets the eye. The first thing I want to point out is that the congregation in Rome was made up of predominately Gentile converts with a handful of Jews among them. The Jews came with baggage, so to speak. They learned about historical events that were taught to them from childhood. Many of these events were observed by fasting for a designated day in memory of the event. Some of these fast days included:

1. The fast day in the 4th month of the Jewish calendar was in remembrance of the destruction of the Wall of Yerusalem.
2. The fast day in the 5th month was in remembrance of the burning of the Great Temple in Yerusalem.
3. The fast day in the 7th month was in remembrance of the killing of Gedaliah which brought about their ancestors’ exile into the nations.
4. The fast day in the 10th month was in remembrance of the siege of Yerusalem.

Taken from this link: http://www.shabbat-kallah.org/romans14.htm

These fast days were not commanded by the Torah; they were days that had been added on to the commanded feasts. There was nothing wrong with these fast days, they commemorated important events in Jewish history and were very meaningful to the Jewish believers. However, the Gentiles were coming in by the droves and had no knowledge of Jewish history. They were being judged and pressured to fast on these days. Yet, they had no meaning to the Gentiles, and were not commanded of God.

Another thing I want to point out was that there was a controversy on which day the festival of First Fruits (and consequentially Shavuot since it is fifty days later) would be observed. The Jewish believers would have been aware of this controversy and many had decided upon what day they would observe these feasts. Yet, the Gentile converts may have come in without knowledge of the Scriptures, not knowing the controversy present. The Jewish factions may have been pulling the Gentiles in either direction in regards to which day to observe these festivals.

So we have two much more likely candidates for what Paul was addressing in this passage. Please notice that Paul makes no mention of the Sabbath in Romans 14. He only makes mention of “days”. If he meant Sabbath I think he would have said Sabbath.  He uses the Greek sabbaton in other places where he refers to the Sabbath, but doesn't here.  


So, I personally think that the first of these two scenarios makes the most sense. Let me tell you why. If you back up to the beginning of Romans 14 you have the following:

Romans 14:1-6 “Now accept the one who is weak in faith, but not for the purpose of passing judgment on his opinions. One person has faith that he may eat all things, but he who is weak eats vegetables only. The one who eats is not to regard with contempt the one who does not eat, and the one who does not eat is not to judge the one who eats, for God has accepted him. Who are you to judge the servant of another? To his own master he stands or falls; and he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand. One person regards one day above another, another regards every day alike. Each person must be fully convinced in his own mind. He who observes the day, observes it for the Lord, and he who eats, does so for the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who eats not, for the Lord he does not eat, and gives thanks to God.”

So what was the subject at the beginning of this chapter? It was food, not feasts days or Sabbath. The Jewish believers, who ate meat according to the dietary laws found in Torah, were judging the “weak in their faith” aka Gentile converts for eating only vegetables. There was nothing wrong with eating only vegetables; in fact that was the diet in the Garden of Eden. Yet, we were given freedom to eat meat according to the Torah. Paul understood that the Gentile converts had come out of paganism and had been eating meat from animals that had been strangled, drinking blood, etc. So, when they abandoned their paganism after they chose to follow God, they may have quickly abandoned meat (which was often from questionable sources such as pagan sacrifices at the pagan temples) as well in an effort to please God with their dietary choices. Their zeal to follow God's dietary laws may have pushed them to forsake meat altogether.  Paul tells us there is nothing wrong with this as long as it is done for the Lord and without judging other's decisions. As an aside, some use this scripture to argue that Paul condones the eating of all (including unclean) meat.  I disagree, but that is for another topic entirely! 


My point is that the context of this passage is about dietary choices. He starts talking about food choices.  And notice that when Paul sums up his discussion, he again brings it back around to food and compares observing days to eating. Since the context is eating, doesn’t it make sense that the days being observed would be days without eating (fasting days)? He says:

Romans 14:6 “He who observes the day, observes it for the Lord, and he who eats, does so for the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who eats not, for the Lord he does not eat, and gives thanks to God.”

So the person eating is not observing the fasts while the person not eating is observing the fasts. Therefore it fits right in with the context to assume that Paul was referring to the fast days being observed by the Jewish believers.

In conclusion:

There is no contextual evidence that supports the idea that Romans 14:5-6 is referring to the 7^th day Sabbath. It doesn’t make sense to say that Paul is referring to the Sabbath in these verses considering the Sabbath was not a debate in his time; it was always kept on the 7^th day. There would have been uproar from the Jewish believers if Paul was referring to Sabbath. There are at least two other explanations of what days could be referring to in the text that were controversies in Paul’s time. The text seems to be pointing to food as the main subject, so for Paul to interject a one liner about the Sabbath does not fit.

There, again, is no evidence in scripture that any believer kept any day other than the 7^th day as Sabbath. There is also no evidence in Scripture that the 7^th day Sabbath had been made obsolete. These ideas did not come into existence until much later into the 2^nd century. See my post on the history of the Sabbath for more info on why it was abandoned or changed. http://messianicmama.blogspot.com/2010/11/history-of-sabbath-how-it-was-changed.html

So the question remains, still unanswered by Scripture, why don’t Christians observe the 7^th day Sabbath as outlined in Scripture?

Shalom!

Is Jesus the reason for the season?

I decided to take a break from my Sabbath discussion in order to discuss a topic that has really been on my mind lately.  We have officially entered the Christmas season, so I thought it appropriate to discuss the holiday a bit.  Growing up, I loved Christmas! I couldn’t wait for this season. I loved everything about it - the tree, the lights, Santa Claus, presents, spiced cider and vacation. Was Jesus a part of my Christmas? Sure, my mom tried really hard to get our attention as kids. She would gather us and make us listen to the story of Christ’s birth; we had nativity scenes around the house and participated in church plays etc. But that was never what I looked forward to. It was the family get together, the food, the presents and the décor that attracted my attention as a kid. As I grew and began to establish my own family I saw myself doing the same thing as my mom. I tried to force Jesus into Christmas. I tried to teach my kids that, amidst all the décor and fun, Jesus was the real reason for the season.  But, even as an adult He just never seemed to take center stage. Maybe that is the fault of our materialistic culture, but no matter how hard I tried I could not elevate Jesus to the place I thought He should be in the holiday. Why? I don’t know, maybe some Christians are successful, but I never was.

As I began to study the feasts of the Lord and to participate in them I saw a different picture. These celebrations were so centered on God that there was no mistaking the reason for the feast. It was so intertwined with the fun and food and traditions. What a stark difference! Why couldn’t Christmas be like this? So I started to question the reason for the Christmas season. I started to look into the historical and biblical reason we celebrate Christmas. I started asking really hard questions. My journey led me away from the Christmas season as I realized that Jesus is not the real reason for the season. 


Instead, paganism is the reason for the season. The Christians stole the pagan traditions, renamed them Christmas, and tried to insert Jesus as the reason for the season. No wonder He never fit! The motivation for this blog post is to explore what God thinks of Christmas.

As I began to study the origins of what we do at Christmas, I was over and over again led to pagan origins. The Christmas tree, décor, food, Santa, the advent wreath and candles, etc. Everything I loved about Christmas came directly out of paganism. This should not surprise any one; it is not hard information to find if you look for it. I don’t think there are any studied individuals that deny that these things come from paganism.  Once I discovered this fact I wanted to know if these things were still connected to paganism today. 


So I started looking at pagan sources to see what they had to say for themselves. Sure enough Paganism in the form of Wicca, Druidism and other forms are growing movements today. They are a throw back to the very same paganism that many ceremonies and traditions of Christianity were born. And almost all of the things Christians do at Christmas are identical to what is done in paganism. You have the evergreen tree with the five pointed pentagram on top. The advent wreath, also called an advent wreath by pagans complete with candles that are lit as they approach the winter solstice. You have the Yule log, which is thrown in the fire and believed to reappear as a tree the following morning. Even the colors of red and green are used for the pagan yule celebration. Santa is a compilation of many pagan god myths. As I studied, one thing after another kept popping up as originating in paganism. And not only did these traditions originate as pagan practices, but they are still being practiced by modern day pagans today.

So, I had established that paganism is present in the modern world and that most of the activities we participated in during the Christmas season were stolen from paganism. Now what? How did that happen? So I began to look into church history.  What I found was that the birth of Christ was not mentioned as a feast until the 4^th century.  The early believers did not celebrate it. It seems that paganism was chosen by the church fathers to commemorate the birth of our Messiah on purpose. The idea was that it would draw more pagans into Christianity if they did not have to give up their pagan ways entirely, so the church ‘redeemed’ the pagan ways for God and syncretized the birth of the Messiah with the Pagan festivals revolving around the birth of the sun at the winter solstice. If you are questioning these origins right now, I suggest you do some study on the matter. Don’t believe me, check it out. Do a couple searches online for the pagan origins of Christmas; you will find an abundance of info.  Don’t trust the internet? Look it up at your local library, pull out your encyclopedias, or check out the history channel, they tend to run specials on the origins of Christmas this time of year. There is no shortage of sources to verify this information. This is not what I want to focus on in this blog. The origins of Christmas are documented and well established in Paganism. 


What I want to discuss is does this matter: Can we worship God in any way we desire? Is it okay to worship Him using pagan ways? Can pagan ways be redeemed for God? What does scripture tell us about this topic?

Here are a few verses pertaining to the way God views paganism:

Leviticus 18:1-5
Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, "Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, I am the LORD your God. You shall not do what is done in the land of Egypt where you lived, nor are you to do what is done in the land of Canaan where I am bringing you; you shall not walk in their statutes. You are to perform My judgments and keep My statutes, to live in accord with them; I am the LORD your God. So you shall keep My statutes and My judgments, by which a man may live if he does them; I am the LORD…”

We are not to do what the pagan nations (Egypt) do.

Leviticus 18:24-30
“…Do not defile yourselves by any of these things; for by all these the nations which I am casting out before you have become defiled.’for the land has become defiled, therefore I have brought its punishment upon it, so the land has spewed out its inhabitants. But as for you, you are to keep My statutes and My judgments and shall not do any of these abominations, {neither} the native, nor the alien who sojourns among you (for the men of the land who have been before you have done all these abominations, and the land has become defiled); so that the land will not spew you out, should you defile it, as it has spewed out the nation which has been before you. For whoever does any of these abominations, those persons who do {so} shall be cut off from among their people. Thus you are to keep My charge, that you do not practice any of the abominable customs which have been practiced before you, so as not to defile yourselves with them; I am the LORD your God.' "

We become defiled when we practice the ways of the pagans.

Deuteronomy 12:29-32
"When the LORD your God cuts off before you the nations which you are going in to dispossess, and you dispossess them and dwell in their land, beware that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, 'How do these nations serve their gods, that I also may do likewise? You shall not behave thus toward the LORD your God, for every abominable act which the LORD hates they have done for their gods; for they even burn their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods. "Whatever I command you, you shall be careful to do; you shall not add to nor take away from it.

We are not to mimic the ways that pagans worship their gods and redeem that type of worship for the LORD!

Jeremiah 10:1-5
“Hear the word which the LORD speaks to you, O house of Israel. Thus says the LORD: "Do not learn the way of the Gentiles; Do not be dismayed at the signs of heaven, For the Gentiles are dismayed at them. For the customs of the peoples are futile; For one cuts a tree from the forest, The work of the hands of the workman, with the ax. They decorate it with silver and gold; They fasten it with nails and hammers So that it will not topple. They are upright, like a palm tree, And they cannot speak; They must be carried, Because they cannot go by themselves. Do not be afraid of them, For they cannot do evil, Nor can they do any good.”

Here is a great article on why this verse may actually be a reference to the modern day Christmas tree: http://www.askelm.com/doctrine/d911101.htm  We are not to learn the ways of the pagans, and we are not to participate in the ways of the pagans. 

The following are messages to the churches mentioned in the prophetic book of Revelation and commentary from the NASB study bible explaining how these churches were rebuked for their mixing with paganism.

Message to Pergamum: Revelation 2:14-15
“But I have a few things against you, because you have there some who hold the teaching of Balaam, who kept teaching Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit {acts of} immorality. So you also have some who in the same way hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans.”

“Nicolatians. A heretical sect within the church that had worked out a compromise with the pagan society. They apparently taught that spiritual liberty gave them sufficient leeway to practice idolatry and immorality. Tradition identifies them with Nicolas, the proselyte of Antioch who was one of the first seven deacons in the Jerusalem church (Acts 6:5), though the evidence is merely circumstantial. A similar group at Pergamum held the teachings of Balaam (vv. 14-15), and some at Thyatira were followers of the woman Jezebel (v. 20). From their heretical tendencies it would appear that all three groups were Nicolatians.” 
NASB Zondervan Study Bible notes on Rev. 2:6

Message to Thyatira: Revelations 2:20
“But I have {this} against you, that you tolerate the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, and she teaches and leads My bond-servants astray so that they commit {acts of} immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols.”

“Jezebel. See 1 Kin 16:31; 2 Kin 9:22’30-37. The name is used here as an epithet for a prominent woman in the congregation who undermined loyalty to god by promoting tolerance toward pagan practices.”
NASB Zondervan Study Bible notes on Rev. 2:20

These are just a few examples in scripture of how God views the idea of redeeming pagan ways for worship of Him. We are not to do it! Pagan ways cannot be redeemed for God!

This is the reason my family has decided not to participate in Christmas. We do however celebrate the birth of our Messiah. But it is very clear that He was not born on December 25^th.  I personally believe that Yeshua was born during the feast of Sukkoth for numerous reasons that can be found in the Bible. It is so fitting that He was born during this time of year as Jesus/Yeshua is God dwelling amongst man - which is exactly what is celebrated at Sukkoth. It is a remembrance of God indwelling the Tabernacle. Yeshua is the Tabernacle that God dwelled in, He is the Sukkah, the tent, the dwelling place of God. For more info on when Yeshua was born according to scripture here is a great article: http://biblelight.net/sukkoth.htm

I know some Christians today are not aware of the pagan origins of the season, or maybe they are but don’t really understand why it matters. I used to be in this latter category. But, then I began to ask questions, and study God’s Word and history a little closer.  I encourage those of you in one of these two categories to study to show yourself approved (2 Tim 2:15).  Ask yourself what God desires, seek to please Him alone! Are our fond memories of Christmas enough to redeem it for God? I have wondered if Lot’s wife didn’t have the same fond memories of the customs of Sodom as she looked back and turned to salt.

I will leave you with the following analogy. Let’s suppose you meet and marry a man whom was previously married. You have told your husband that you love yellow roses. You have made it clear to him that you want yellow roses on your anniversary. You have also told him you hate sunflowers. You have told him that you know that sunflowers are the flowers he used to bring to his ex-wife. His ex-wife loves sunflowers, they were her favorite flower. Your husband decides to bring you sunflowers on the anniversary of him and his ex-wife’s marriage. He tells you that he  thought he would redeem those things his ex liked by giving them to you, because he loves you so much. And He also decides to ignore your real anniversary, saying that it’s not really important which date you celebrate. You can just celebrate your anniversary on his ex's and his anniversary. How would you feel? Would you want to accept his gift? God has told us how we are to worship Him, so why would we try to worship Him in the way that we worshipped our ex-gods?

Shalom!