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i was wandering about Matthew 23:3
Therefore pay attention to what they tell you and do it. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they teach.

and also in the deuteronomy G-d tells Moses

Deuteronomy 17:9-12
You will go to the Levitical priests and the judge in office in those days and seek a solution; they will render a verdict.
You must then do as they have determined at that place the Lord chooses. Be careful to do just as you are taught.
You must do what you are instructed, and the verdict they pronounce to you, without fail. Do not deviate right or left from what they tell you.
The person who pays no attention to the priest currently serving the Lord your God there, or to the verdict – that person must die, so that you may purge evil from Israel.

and then also interesting verse that catholics like to mention and support popes

Matt 18:18 “I tell you the truth, whatever you bind on earth will have been bound in heaven, and whatever you release on earth will have been released in heaven.

so Apostles kind of became Rabbis but still Jesus tells them to listen to the Rabbis or the Sanhedrin and Oral Torah i guess!
so do you think that someone has to have authority like orthodox Rabbi , or should we listen to them and why so many christians ignore this??? or how do you interpret this i wnder????

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Hear, O Israel: The Lord our G-d, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your G-d with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.

I have no Jewish background but as a Christian I have a high regard for rabbis. I esteem them as scholarly professionals and I would give them the same respect I give any professor or other scholar.

Personally, I have, on occasion, used information from various rabbis such as Harold Kuchner, J.H. Hertz and Joseph Telushkin. I have used them frequently when studying the Old Testament. I have going through Hertz's book "The Pentateuch and Haftorahs for the second time.

I have found that many Christians are unaware of Jewish culture and tradition or others simply avoid it since they have little understanding of Judaism. I am by no means an expert but I try to teach or preach using a number of sources and if quoting a rabbi is relevant to what I am saying I would not hesitate in quoting him and of course giving him credit.

Alexy

this is part of the Bible's teaching about being respectful of those (lawfully) in authority over us ....

Now, for the Jews as for us as Christians, this does not absolve us of taking the time and effort to know the Scriptures, and the God that the Scriptures speak of, to be able to discern when what they are teaching has strayed (either willfully or accidentally) from what is true and right.

This was Jesus' problem with many of the religious leaders, they had come to the place where they put their own rules on the same level (or even higher) than God's clear commands.

something we humans are prone to

in Christ

Dinah

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All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe Take note of what they say
that observe and do hold that thought and do what they tell you
but do not ye after their works but watch out
for they say, and do not they talk the talk but don't walk the walk

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Reasonable faith needs
reasonable doubt.
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"Saying what we think gives us a wider
conversational range than saying
what we know." ~Cullen Hightower

I really don't understand your statement. Matt 23:3 "therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things and do not do them." NASB This verse and the whole chapter was against the hypocrisy of the religious leaders scribes and Pharisees. Certainly all rabbis did not fall into this chapter and I know of devoted men who are rabbis such as the ones I listed, whose books I've read, and I have found them to be sound biblically and spiritually. True they have not all accepted Jesus as the Messiah but as men of the OT the do have some significant insight into the OT passages.

so do you think because of this we dont want to be taught by rabbis? or the issue is different bcs we want to be in authority (either it is protestant pastors or catholic priests)

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Hear, O Israel: The Lord our G-d, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your G-d with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.

so how does it look in practice ? in any protestant or catholic church , i very rarely see someone respecting even one rabbi in the church

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Hear, O Israel: The Lord our G-d, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your G-d with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.

On regards to respecting a rabbi, it probably depends on what church you go to or attend. Personally, my pastor and I both have an esteem for Israel and the Jewish people. I have referred to the writings of rabbis in my lessons and sermons; one day I quoted so many rabbis that a visiting missionary referred to me as a rabbi - he was only joking. I think that not only should we respect rabbis but we should also develop apologetics against Israel revisionism which says the church has become Israel. As I stated earlier, I have read 4 books by rabbis and have found them enlightening and uplifting.

Christ seems to strike a cautionary note about rabbibical teaching, at least during His time on earth; see Matt. 16:6-12, saying...."they understood that he had not told them to be on guard against the yeast in bread, but against the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees".

I take it the concern expressed on this thread regards Rabbis who have rejected Jesus as Messiah. That being the case it seems unlikely they would be able to teach the truth about Jesus in the OT, to say nothing about the NT. I hear they forbid their congregations to read Isa. 53, for instance.

no Alexy

I read the early church Fathers, I read commentaries both old and new ..... I listen to the wisdom of the church, so there is no problem with listening to godly teachers.

But

they are not the final authority, you must be like the Bereans (someone help me out with reference ) ... when Paul preached to them, they did not just accept what he said, they searched the Scriptures to see if what Paul was saying matched up with what the Scriptures said ....

for us it is the same, learn from people, from creation .... but always check it against what the Bible says.

in Christ

Dinah

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Acts 17:10-14 10 The brothers sent Paul and Silas off to Berea at once, during the night. When they arrived, they went to the Jewish synagogue. 11 These Jews were more open-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they eagerly received the message, examining the scriptures carefully every day to see if these things were so. 12 Therefore many of them believed, along with quite a few prominent Greek women and men. 13 But when the Jews from Thessalonica heard that Paul had also proclaimed the word of God in Berea, they came there too, inciting and disturbing the crowds. 14 Then the brothers sent Paul away to the coast at once, but Silas and Timothy remained in Berea. Context (NET)

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Not all those who wander are lost.

are you guys here just to post something ??? just anything
here actually i want to find out how christians listen to rabbis and obey them?? how do they do that on practice > or if you dont agree explain your view please

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Hear, O Israel: The Lord our G-d, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your G-d with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.

Well, we have wandered a bit from the original topic.

I listen to rabbis on occasion, but I do not obey them. I don't disobey them either. I follow what Christian teachers teach me, and I compare what they teach me to scripture. (Hence the reference Dinah made to the Bereans).

I have a great deal of respect for the discipline with which many Rabbis take their studies. I wish we Christians were a little more disciplined that way, ourselves. Particularly me.

There. Are we back on topic?

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Not all those who wander are lost.

I listen to Rabbi's as I listen to any wise teacher, I check out what they have to say, as I do with anything I read (from whatever source), and then I add it to my story of knowledge - all of which helps me to live as a better Christian, which is to say, as a better, more whole, person.

in what way do you mean to obey?

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What "rabbis" do you mean, Alex?

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Avid Reader

“Lord, in my zeal for love of truth, let me not forget the truth about love.” - Thomas Aquinas
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