I would like to share three very important, very helpful, words:
YOU ARE NOT!
Now, don’t misunderstand, if one actually knows what the true spiritual meaning of that term is, then being that way is not only possible, it is encouraged. But, in my years dealing with folks who label themselves that way, they usually don’t actually understand the real spiritual application.
Normally, one who calls himself “Torah observant,” or “Torah obedient” is speaking specifically of the law of Moses, which is found in the first five books of the Bible. To be “Torah observant” to them is to obey the physical laws that are found there.
BUT, the big problem is that, anyone who claims to be obeying the written law is a hypocrite. Typically, these folks, who are often part of the Hebrew Roots movement, pick some of those laws and claim they obey them, and then try to teach them to others. But, they literally ignore the rest of the written law.
Without fail, they always pick Leviticus 11 (dietary restrictions within the clean vs. unclean laws); but, ask someone like that about Leviticus 15, and that will usually end the conversation. With Leviticus 11, they even change the meaning of the word “unclean” to mean “unhealthy.” That is simply false.
Even those who teach that the Ten Commandments must be obeyed don’t understand the spiritual meaning of it. Picking and choosing laws that you feel you can regularly obey misses the whole point. If you break ONE LAW, you’ve broken them all.
So, how can one be “torah observant” in the proper way? It can be done by knowing what the written law (yes, the Ten Commandments) foreshadowed, and also to know the meaning of the word “torah.” The written law given to the ancient Jewish people was a foreshadow of the giving of the Holy Spirit to the bride. And, the meaning of the word “torah” is “instructions.”
To be “torah observant,” according to the spiritual real substance, is to follow the instructions of the Holy Spirit. That is not performing the details of the written law—it is not even obeying the physical laws of the Ten Commandments. It is to possess the fulfillment of the Law (the Holy Spirit), and to do what He instructs.
Will the Holy Spirit lead true believers to obey the Ten Commandments? Absolutely, that’s a given. But obeying the Ten Commandments will not give you the Holy Spirit. And, teaching the Ten Commandments instead of the Gospel of Yahoshua is a false gospel.
Being born again does not come from obeying the Ten Commandments—that’s not even a step in the proper direction. And, those who are led by the Holy Spirit learn pretty quickly that His focus is on the flesh—the sins listed in Galatians 5:19-21. To be holy is to deny one’s flesh, and that’s where He directs the believer to work.
To “keep the commandments” means to guard them, to watch over them, to hold them in one’s possession. And, what were the commandments? They were the physical covenant—a foreshadow of the spiritual covenant, who is the Holy Spirit—HE is the Law that is written on the hearts and minds of believers (those whom He indwells).
To keep the commandments is to abide in the Holy Spirit and His instruction. And, the Holy Spirit does not lead believers BACK to the clean vs. unclean laws—not any of them.
So, if by “Torah observant,” you mean that you are trying to obey the laws that were given under the old covenant, then you are not “torah observant,” you are actually a hypocrite. That’s why Paul rebuked Peter in Galatians 2.
For more information: Why Not Hebraic Roots?