Bear in mind, regardless of what resources you have today, few people in history have been able to read, let alone understand, or keep Torah. Therefore it cannot be required for salvation or any other reason on men apart from the nation of ancient Israel (and for them it was only having to do with staying as God’s nation in the land of Canaan). HTH

On understanding Torah,
For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day. Acts 15:21.

Like even today I can go to el shaddai ministries.US and get a messianic torah message from each sabbath. Also, the Hebrew lessons from Monday Nights are outstanding. Also, the guest speakers are great.

In my local town there are messianic congregations as well as Jewish congregations. Enough resources are around, that we are without excuse.

So Tim, If we are to repent, what are we to repent from? Breaking Torah?

And how do we understand it?

James 1:5
If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all [men] liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

- 1769 Oxford King James Bible ‘Authorized Version

We are supposed to take up our cross daily.

G

Do you understand what it takes in God’s eyes to become accountable to a command to the point of punishment like Israel had? Just being written in a dusty old book is not enough. That’s where we’re at today with the Torah. It’s only written down and not taught or even possible to keep, let alone understand without the prophets, priests, Levites, judges, etc. that went along with it the first time. Enough said on this.

What about where Yehoshua says “if you love me keep the commandments.”

Also there is the letter of the law and the spirit of the law. Yehoshua addressed also the spirit of the law for He said that even if we look upon a woman to lust after her in that way we have already committed adultery in our heart and have broken the law whereas in past times it was considered a breaking of the law only if the act of adultery was actually committed. So to even look upon a woman to lust after her is a breaking of the commandment and thus one who looks upon a woman to lust after her has broken the whole law including the Sabbath day.

You know the principle – break a single commandment and all the commandments are broken.

Are the commandments still in effect today? Yes – Remember Ananias and Sophira who held back some of the price of the land that they sold. They sinned and dropped dead. bill

But even if they did the clear message of several explicit statements in Acts 15 is that Torah/Moses Law/Circumcision were not to be kept by Gentiles for ANY reason, even if the original reason presented was “to be saved.” James plainly said Torah was a yoke that the ancestors failed at and would be a burden on the Gentiles, too. http://www.gci.org/acts/decree1

If we do not have to keep Torah for salvation then the only other reason would be if we are in a nation God told to keep it so they are set apart/holy (Ex 19:6). Ancient Israel was told exactly this and had stonings and finally exile for not obeying. This will return in Millennium but it is not so today. There is no penalty, no incentive and no instruction on keeping Torah today. The bottom line is that no one can keep it today with no altar, judges, priests, Levites, temple, sacrifices, etc.. This matters because it has been an all or nothing proposition.

In the Millennium they’ll get no rain just for not keeping Tabernacles. Obviously that is not the case today so again, there is no reason to say anyone “should” keep it. Acts 15 is very very clear on the heresy of saying that. If you want to learn it and practice what you can of it, that’s fine and there is benefit to that, no doubt. But I would never say anymore that “we should learn it and live it out as much as possible.” Acts 15 categorically disagrees with that.

Acts 15:
19Wherefore my sentence is, that we trouble not them, which from among the Gentiles are turned to God:

20But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood.

21For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day.

This corresponds to the following chapters in Leviticus:

pollutions of idols: Leviticus 18 proper worship:

from fornication: Leviticus 18:
from things strangled, Leviticus 19:26

and from blood: Levitcus 17:

Then they talk about the law of moses being read every day in the synagogues.

The Point I would like to make is this.
Our salvation does not depend on keeping the law because that is impossible. The Mathew 5 reference makes a distinction between greatest and least in the kingdom of heaven. Jesus Christ is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. The rest of us including the apostles have failed in some way. Christ talked about taking the least spot at the marriage supper and maybe we would be asked to take a better seat. We should not think to highly of ourselves and try to take a better seat and then get embarrassed by being asked to move. We definitely do not want to be one who has no clothes. We a clothed in the righteousness of Jesus Christ through faith. And if we have faith then works will follow according to James.

The torah is the way we live out loving God and Loving others. Though some things do not apply any more. Christ was the perfect sacrifice for Sin. That sacrifice is no longer needed…ever. In the millenium, there will be sacrifices.( I believe peace offerings.)
The feast of tabernacles will be celebrated each year. As far as I know the other festivals that required representation in Jerusalem are not needed. I wont know for sure until the millenium gets here.

The law is relevant even today. We should learn it and live it out as much as possible, but our salvation does not depend on it.