We would like to conclude our book by speaking some personal words to two different groups of people, Jewish believers in Yeshua and non-Jewish believers in Yeshua.

That's right, that's what they call us Jewish people. We have been known throughout the centuries as the People of the Book. What book? What book other than the Torah has been such a source of strength and comfort for our people? What other book has served as the body of teachings which have given us identity as a nation and as a people? What book has been the object of study for our sages, shoemakers, seamstresses, and schoolteachers, but the Torah?

If the Torah has always been the book which held our people together in the past, how much more so should it be for us, the remnant of those who are chosen by grace to believe in the Messiah? This was His book, too! The Torah was the book of all of His early followers. It was the book that formed the basis of all of their teaching as it is reflected in the Brit Hadasha-the best commentary on the Torah ever written, and the only one which is the inspired Word of God.

We have seen how theological error and misinterpretation of the Brit Hadasha have led to an outright neglect of the Torah at best, and a stiff-necked rejection of it at worst. Let us now attempt to do what no other generation has ever done. Let us be the first generation of Jewish believers since the early days of our history to begin turning back the tear-drenched pages of our history and again to follow the covenant which the Holy One made with Moshe Rabbenu. Let us begin to live faithfully the sacred marriage agreement which the Heavenly Bridegroom signed, sealed, and delivered to our ancestors in the wilderness of Sinai. After all, we are His bride! We are redeemed! We are new creations! We have the Spirit of God empowering us to live out the words of life!

One of our goals in this book is to stir in Jewish believers, particularly, a sense of excitement and responsibility in following the Torah, as it is written on the pages of the sacred scrolls. This is not a halachic treatise. It is a book on the basics of the nature of the Torah, striving to remind us of who we are as Jewish people who believe in Yeshua. May this book spur you on to study more and continue to work out a Messianic Jewish halacha which takes into account both the Brit Hadasha and the Torah. We hope to see many more volumes written in this regard. More than that, however, we hope to see many Messianic Jewish believers changed and walking as new creations, whose lives reflect the instructions both in the pages of Torah and in the Brit Hadasha-the way God intended us to walk all along-the way of Yeshua the Messiah, the living Torah. Why? Because it is who we are!

For you, one of our goals is to demonstrate the theological validity of living a Torah-oriented lifestyle for the believer in Yeshua. If you think that it has little to do with you, at least encourage your Jewish brothers and sisters to follow the divine covenant they were given by grace.

But we think that the Torah has much to do with you. We want you to realize that the Torah (as well as the rest of the Tenakh) forms the basis of every teaching found in the Brit Hadasha. Moreover, the Brit Hadasha, because of progressive revelation, most fully explains all of the seed concepts found in the Torah. In short, the two were not meant to be contradictory, but rather to fit hand in glove.

We hope we have demonstrated that the Torah was never intended to be a salvation document. Instead, it was designed by the Holy One to be the basis of the redeemed lifestyle for God's holy community. Where Torah has been used as a means of salvation, we have clearly shown that the only function it can serve, in such cases, is to condemn man by revealing his sin and his need for an atoning Messiah.

What part do you play? You make the decision. Here are the facts concerning yourself: You are a new creation in Yeshua. That means, according to Jeremiah 31:33, that the Torah is written upon your new-creation hearts. Moreover, the Messiah who indwells you is the Torah and His life lived out through man is the Torah lifestyle. Messiah's life in you is the living Torah living out His life through you on earth.

If you are a new creation in Messiah, "these words [the Torah as given on Mount Sinai] are not just idle words for you, they are your life." (Deuteronomy 32:47) In the same way that Yeshua is your life, the words of Torah are your life. How can this be? It is the only thing that can be true, because the written Torah and the living Torah are one and the same! "And the Torah (Word) became flesh and dwelt among us...." (John 1:14, our paraphrase)

When we ask, "Will the true Torah please stand up," what we want to leave with you is the thought that as you live the Torah, Messiah Himself will stand up in you and through you for all to see. When those around you have seen Him, they have seen the Father (John 14:9). Remember, the Torah, both written and living, is a revelation of the righteousness of God to men. Embracing the Torah and living it allows Messiah Himself, the true Torah, to stand up!

Furthermore, you are not Jewish people if your physical ancestry cannot be traced back to Abraham through Isaac and Jacob. But, on the other hand, Rav Sha'ul tells us in Romans 11 and Ephesians 2 that non-Jewish believers in Yeshua are "grafted in" to "the commonwealth of Israel." Certainly, among other things, the teachings which give Israel national identity also give you identity.

It is important to notice in Acts 15 the wisdom of the earliest followers of Yeshua when they were gathered in conference in Jerusalem. They knew it was not necessary or wise to require a complete and instant Torah lifestyle for those who would be new at it, such as the new believers from among the Gentiles. Instead, they made it clear that they understood these new believers would be gathered together in the synagogue, every Shabbat and week by week. There they would hear instruction concerning their new-creation life through the reading and teaching of the Torah. They knew the teaching of their Master. "The sheep hear My voice and follow Me....I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen [the Jewish sheep pen]. I must bring them also [those chosen from among the Gentiles]. They too will listen to My voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd." (John 10:17, 27-explanation ours) One life-His life! One lifestyle-the righteousness of God!

In reality, if we understand the Torah properly, how can anyone resist it? Who would want to miss out on the joys of Passover and Succot? Who would want to be denied the blessings of demonstrating the deep biblical symbolism of affixing a mezuzzah or wearing fringes? Who would ever want to deny any true believer the privileges and blessings of following the Torah?

In addition, do we not all agree with Rav Sha'ul that the Torah is "inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work"? Most think that II Timothy 3:16-17 is speaking about the Brit Hadasha. In reality, however, the only Scripture Sha'ul had available to him was the Tenakh, which included the Torah. The Brit Hadasha had not yet been compiled!

Are you beginning to see that you have more of a practical relationship to the Torah than you ever realized? Dig deeper! Follow it closer, and see how much more it can enrich your life.

When the Torah scroll is taken out of the ark during the synagogue service, it is paraded around as the congregation praises God for giving them such revelation. Then it is read and studied. But just before it is stored away until the next Torah service, someone raises the Torah high above all, for everyone to see, as if raising his hands to the Holy One in worship. As he does this, the entire congregation sings:

"This is the Torah that Moshe placed before the children of Israel; upon the command of the Lord, through Moshe's hand. It is a tree of life for those who grasp it, and its supporters are praiseworthy. Its ways are ways of pleasantness, and all its paths are peace...."

In what way is the Torah a "tree of life"? It has been the intention of this book to lay the foundation for us to discover that secret. With God's help, other volumes will follow which will bring to light that spiritual gold mine. We also hope to produce group study packages as a help to those of you who desire to discover in this "tree of life" the words of life for the redeemed.

Years ago, Hilkiah the high priest rediscovered the Torah as he was rummaging through God's Holy House. He found it there, deep within the confines of the Temple. In the same way, deep within the confines of the temple of our new-creation hearts, we can rediscover that same treasure. "But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us." (II Corinthians 4:7) It is there, inscribed on our hearts forever by the Spirit of God. Just look, and you will also rediscover it for yourself. When you do, may you see it as it truly is, the written revelation of the life of grace in the Messiah, the living embodiment of its pages.

"...I offer you this day life and death,

The Torah reveals the truth, showing us the differences between holy and unholy, clean and unclean, and between life and death. It is therefore, the grace of God