Page 131 - Attractive Deception - The False Hope of the Hebrew Roots Movement

May God bless you and keep you.
May God's light shine upon you, and may God be gracious to you.
May you feel God's Presence within you always, and may you find peace.

There is often so much Hebrew language interspersed in the correspondence from brothers and sisters
in the Messianic and Hebrew Roots movement that I feel the need of a translator. I profess to enjoy
the sound of the Hebrew language being spoken, but I do not understand it. Like Paul, I see the
wisdom in speaking five words in a known tongue rather than ten thousand words in a language the
hearer does not recognize (I Corinthians 14:19).

What is the attraction for so many in the Hebrew Roots movement to adopt Hebrew speech? I believe
the rationale is misplaced. I recently read one person’s comment that since all people will be speaking
Hebrew in the millennial kingdom when Yahshua reigns upon the earth, they want to get a head start
on speaking Hebrew now. A younger sister in the Lord explained her attraction for the Hebrew
language, alphabet, symbols and customs with the following words.

To be drawn to learning Hebrew as I have, and using the Messiah's Hebrew name etc., does not mean
one is committed to an 'old covenant.' My understanding is that it is natural to move in this direction,
as we are grafted as wild branches into the natural tree which is Israel, which is whom the new
covenant that we have entered into by faith, was made with 'The House of Israel and the House of
Judah.' (Jer 31.31, Heb 8.8). So we will be attracted to a Hebraic way of life.

What this young woman very eloquently expressed seems to sum up the thoughts of a great many who
are adopting Hebrew speech, customs and other aspects of Jewish life. They equate a Hebraic way
of life to becoming more like Christ, or of demonstrating a love for the Savior. Some are even going
so far as to move to Israel. Another possible motive for adopting Hebrew speech and customs may
be that the individual believes the Jewish way of life is Yahweh’s ideal for humanity. Such reasons
are predicated upon a basic fallacy.

Yahweh did not choose the Hebrew people because they spoke a heavenly language, or because they
were more spiritual than other people. As was shared in an earlier chapter, Abraham came from a
family of idolaters.

Joshua 24:2-3
And Joshua said to all the people, “Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, ‘From ancient times your
fathers lived beyond the River, namely, Terah, the father of Abraham and the father of Nahor, and