https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/Articles from Torah Awakenings with Mikha'el Ben-Ya'akov.en-us Thu, 29 Oct 2026 12:00:00 GMT https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/what-about-the-sabbath/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/what-about-the-sabbath/Thu, 29 Oct 2026 12:00:00 GMTDo Christians need to keep the Sabbath? Mikha'el Ben-Ya'akov traces how Sunday replaced the seventh day and lets Scripture answer. https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/should-christians-celebrate-halloween/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/should-christians-celebrate-halloween/Thu, 22 Oct 2026 12:00:00 GMTFall festival, trunk-or-treat, or just harmless fun? Mikha'el Ben-Ya'akov lets the Torah, the prophets and Paul answer whether believers should celebrate Halloween. https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/613-laws-objection/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/613-laws-objection/Thu, 22 Oct 2026 12:00:00 GMTChristians often say no one could keep 613 laws. Scripture says His commands are not heavy. A gracious look at what the 613 really are and who each one is for. https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-good-that-i-would-do/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-good-that-i-would-do/Sun, 11 Oct 2026 12:00:00 GMTPraying over the same struggle with no change? Romans 7 shows many battles begin in our thought life, not with the enemy. Build habits of righteousness. https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/wake-up-call/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/wake-up-call/Mon, 05 Oct 2026 12:00:00 GMTI haven't felt the pull to write in a very long time. Lately, though, a feeling has sat on me that I have not been able to shake. I have carried it for months witho… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/when-the-smoke-clears/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/when-the-smoke-clears/Tue, 30 Dec 2025 12:00:00 GMTI remember when I was in the Army, deployed to Iraq. I was riding in a convoy, sitting in the passenger seat with my weapon ready, scanning ahead for vehicles that … https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-cross-and-christianity/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-cross-and-christianity/Thu, 25 Dec 2025 12:00:00 GMTSymbols, History, and How the Church Got Here It was probably about a year ago when I was having lunch with a close friend of mine who happens to be a Christian pa… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/why-jesus-could-not-end-the-law/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/why-jesus-could-not-end-the-law/Sun, 14 Dec 2025 12:00:00 GMTVery seldom do I do any of my teachings using the name Jesus. I prefer to use His Hebrew name, but I thought it fitting to use it in this teaching so that those tha… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/church-leadership/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/church-leadership/Wed, 19 Jun 2024 12:00:00 GMTI was recently preparing a message for church the other day, and as I was writing, my mind fell on church leadership in our current church cultu… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/a-closer-look-at-john-146/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/a-closer-look-at-john-146/Mon, 20 May 2024 12:00:00 GMTJhn 14:6 יהושע said to him, “I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. In today’s Bi… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/change-always-follows-after/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/change-always-follows-after/Thu, 02 May 2024 12:00:00 GMTFor those of you that have been following Torah Awakenings for a while, you guys all know how I like to take in-depth looks into what the Scriptures have to say abo… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/there-was-no-king/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/there-was-no-king/Sat, 21 Oct 2023 12:00:00 GMTAs I was getting ready for work this morning, my mind fell on the war in Israel, and all of the protests around the world that are connected to it. I was utterly am… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/remember-the-sabbath/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/remember-the-sabbath/Thu, 29 Jun 2023 12:00:00 GMTRecently, there was a story in the news about the Supreme Court making a ruling on a case concerning a man that was allegedly a Christian and as such, felt that he … https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/women-in-ministry-a-closer-look/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/women-in-ministry-a-closer-look/Tue, 27 Jun 2023 12:00:00 GMTI know it’s been a minute since I sat down and took the time to blog, but it wasn’t intentional. In fact, I have written quite a few blogs, and I mean, … https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/hypocrites-in-the-church/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/hypocrites-in-the-church/Thu, 01 Jun 2023 12:00:00 GMTIf I had a dollar for every time I heard someone say, “I don’t have to go to church to be saved”, I swear, I would be a millionaire. Throughout my… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/random-thought-the-ways-of-a-man/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/random-thought-the-ways-of-a-man/Wed, 03 May 2023 12:00:00 GMTWe live in an absolutely insane time. It seems that within the past decade, we have begun a downward spiral in the area of morals. If I had to use one word to descr… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/another-confirmation/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/another-confirmation/Wed, 03 May 2023 12:00:00 GMTReading Hebrew has been such a blessing for me. As a result, I find that I am able to read the word, and in many cases translate the text for my… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/are-you-really-in-the-fight-or-are-you-on-the-sideline/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/are-you-really-in-the-fight-or-are-you-on-the-sideline/Mon, 01 May 2023 12:00:00 GMTWhile I was at work today, I had the most wildest thought come across my mind. Initially, it resurfaced from a comment I made during the last time I was before my c… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/a-random-thought-if-it-aint-broke-why-fix-it/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/a-random-thought-if-it-aint-broke-why-fix-it/Fri, 21 Apr 2023 12:00:00 GMTI have noticed a horrible trend within the past few decades. It would seem that we are having countless shooting rampages being committed all over the nation. As th… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-10th-cup/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-10th-cup/Fri, 07 Apr 2023 12:00:00 GMTAlmost everyone on the planet has heard of the Exodus story. We sing songs about Moses speaking to Pharaoh, telling him to “let YHVHs” people go”,… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/let-it-sink/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/let-it-sink/Wed, 05 Apr 2023 12:00:00 GMTIn 1912, one of the worst catastrophes in the history of mankind took place. Approximately 1,500 people lost their lives in the icy waters when the Titanic struck a… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-torah-in-the-messianic-age/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-torah-in-the-messianic-age/Tue, 31 Jan 2023 12:00:00 GMTAs a lay in bed this morning, I thought to myself, “perhaps I should read the Tanakh before reading my non biblical books”. I remembered that I had been… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/a-random-thought-modern-day-apostles/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/a-random-thought-modern-day-apostles/Mon, 30 Jan 2023 12:00:00 GMTThis weekend, I visited a local church in my city. As I was listening to the Pastor speak, I couldn't help but hear one of the members shout out, "preach apostle"! … https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/a-random-thought-church-theology/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/a-random-thought-church-theology/Sat, 28 Jan 2023 12:00:00 GMTSo in the past week or so that I have not been on my blog, I had really been engulfed in the teachings of several Messianic Jewish ministries. It’s almost lik… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/a-simple-hebrew-word-study/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/a-simple-hebrew-word-study/Mon, 16 Jan 2023 12:00:00 GMTI never cease to be amazed at how the church, or rather church leaders are just so content to focus on the english word studies of Hebrew words translated from the … https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/a-random-thought-i-dont-know/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/a-random-thought-i-dont-know/Thu, 15 Dec 2022 12:00:00 GMTI was asked by my Rabbi to do the Torah portion for last Shabbat. During the week, as I read over it, something from one of the daily readings struck me. God had to… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/to-the-jew-first/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/to-the-jew-first/Thu, 17 Nov 2022 12:00:00 GMTSo, I am in a Facebook group that focuses on theological debates, and one of the topics of discussion today is was my motivation for this blog post. Initially, the … https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/covenanted-a-code-of-conduct/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/covenanted-a-code-of-conduct/Sun, 30 Oct 2022 12:00:00 GMTIn the midst of everything I have ever blogged about, this seems to be one I would like to consider myself very passionate about. If you were to Googl… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/unbroken/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/unbroken/Sun, 09 Oct 2022 12:00:00 GMTI have engaged many a people within the church on the topic of Torah and it’s relevance, and for the most part, was not surprised at the views of nine out of … https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-messiah-and-torah/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-messiah-and-torah/Sun, 02 Oct 2022 12:00:00 GMTI find it quite interesting how many believers today erroneously hold that Yeshua broke Torah (The Law). In a conversation I had recently with a Pastor, i found tha… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/returning-to-the-hebrew-roots/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/returning-to-the-hebrew-roots/Sun, 28 Aug 2022 12:00:00 GMTSo, I recently had a conversation with a couple of Christian friends discussing the church and how many are slowly turning from their current theology, back to the … https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/a-random-thought-the-israeli-jews/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/a-random-thought-the-israeli-jews/Sun, 26 Jun 2022 12:00:00 GMTI have noticing the amount of anti-semitism going on world wide. It is really getting crazy, or should I say crazy-er. One Rabbi made a comment that the amount of h… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/seek-and-you-will-find/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/seek-and-you-will-find/Sun, 10 Apr 2022 12:00:00 GMTSoooooo, this blog is gonna be quite interesting. I wasn’t even looking for this but happened to stumble on it. I am curious though, I know none of you can … https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/replacement-theology-the-serpent-in-the-garden/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/replacement-theology-the-serpent-in-the-garden/Sun, 20 Feb 2022 12:00:00 GMTThis blog here will surely be one of my most unusual of any other. I mean, this topic has been on my mind for quite some time now, but today just took the cake. As … https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/grafted-in/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/grafted-in/Sun, 16 Jan 2022 12:00:00 GMTIn Romans 11:17-24 , the Apostle Sha’ul (or Paul, as he is commonly known), speaks about the Gentiles being grafted in. Although I can’t speak for every… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/apostles/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/apostles/Sun, 19 Sep 2021 12:00:00 GMTSo this is one of those topics that will most likely upset quite a few people, although that isn't my intention. I have noticed in "churchianity" that there are qui… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-omer-debate/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-omer-debate/Sun, 01 Aug 2021 12:00:00 GMTI know it has been a good minute since I have gotten on here and posted, but I just had to speak on this topic. Although I am no scholar, have no degree whatsoever … https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/a-random-thought-70th-year-anniversary/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/a-random-thought-70th-year-anniversary/Sun, 27 Jun 2021 12:00:00 GMTSo I was listing to a rabbi doing a teaching on Israel’s 70 year anniversary as a nation, and was just blown away listening to the overall history of the Jews… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/an-interesting-dilemma/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/an-interesting-dilemma/Sun, 14 Feb 2021 12:00:00 GMTThere are so many interesting would-be-dilemma in the Bible, many of which only clear up when you really take the time to closely examine them. Sherlock Holmes once… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/1-corinthians-3/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/1-corinthians-3/Sun, 07 Feb 2021 12:00:00 GMTOk so, before you jump into this blog, I would for you to take a few minutes and read 1 Corinthians 3. While I was at home preparing our Sabbath dinner, out of the … https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/what-is-the-gospel/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/what-is-the-gospel/Wed, 14 Oct 2020 12:00:00 GMTWhen you think about the gospel of Yeshua, what exactly comes to your mind? What is it about this gospel that makes it good news? To be honest, prior to becoming a … https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/in-covenant-relationship/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/in-covenant-relationship/Sun, 11 Oct 2020 12:00:00 GMTSo, I was at work today, and listening to a podcast when suddenly the topic of “Covenant Relationship” hit my mind. It pretty much came out of the blue.… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/honoring-the-day/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/honoring-the-day/Mon, 14 Sep 2020 12:00:00 GMTThese days, there is so much debate over things in the Bible. Is the Law relevant today, should we observe the feast days, can we eat what we want, and then the Sab… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/setting-the-record-straight/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/setting-the-record-straight/Sun, 09 Aug 2020 12:00:00 GMTSo I have begun to notice that there is a trend going on where people are beginning to say that Sabbath is NOT on Saturday or Sunday for that matter. I have seen th… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-christmas-star/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-christmas-star/Sun, 29 Mar 2020 12:00:00 GMTIt is very interesting how this “star” is described as “leading” the Magi to where the child Messiah would be. Without being knowledgeable a… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/should-christians-observe-yom-kippur/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/should-christians-observe-yom-kippur/Sun, 12 Jan 2020 12:00:00 GMTI think this is definitely a good question. Somewhere along the line, we as non-Jews have been convinced that Yom Kippur along with the other 6 holy days are Jewish… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/a-random-thought-the-great-divide/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/a-random-thought-the-great-divide/Sun, 05 May 2019 12:00:00 GMTSo I was posting this random thought to my Facebook page and just felt the urge to share it here but in more depth. For nearly 2 years, I have been on this path lea… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-unseen-parallel/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-unseen-parallel/Sun, 28 Apr 2019 12:00:00 GMTMany of us are familiar with the events of the Exodus from Egypt. We have heard the story in church sermons, seen the Hollywood movies on TV or even the big screen,… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/understanding-the-sabbaths/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/understanding-the-sabbaths/Sat, 20 Apr 2019 12:00:00 GMTSo last night, we attended our first “Passover Seder”. It was totally amazing! But the hours leading up to it, my mind began to think on the Church, and… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/pesach-in-accordance-to-who/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/pesach-in-accordance-to-who/Sun, 14 Apr 2019 12:00:00 GMTAs we near the beginning Pesach (Passover), my mind cannot help but recognize opposing views in which this holy day is observed. I believe everyone has good intenti… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/something-to-consider/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/something-to-consider/Tue, 09 Apr 2019 12:00:00 GMTAs Rosh Chodesh finally arrives, bringing along with it the biblical new year, according to Torah, we find everyone preparing for the first holiday of Spring. For C… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-sword-of-the-spirit/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-sword-of-the-spirit/Sun, 31 Mar 2019 12:00:00 GMTEphesians 6:12-17 , a very well known verse of Scripture, goes into describing the warfare that we are in, and the weaponry required for this battle. These weapons … https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/cain-and-abel-a-church-contrast/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/cain-and-abel-a-church-contrast/Sun, 31 Mar 2019 12:00:00 GMTBefore digging into this blog, lets look at the Word of YHVH so we can lay some ground work. Genesis 4:2-8 Complete Jewish Bible (CJB) 2 In addition s… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/vav-or-waw/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/vav-or-waw/Fri, 15 Mar 2019 12:00:00 GMTOk, as always, I want to preface this article by pointing out that I am no theologian, nor do I hold any degree from any seminary school of any kind. I am however a… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-switchback-theory/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-switchback-theory/Thu, 14 Mar 2019 12:00:00 GMTOk, so it took me a while to find the time for this blog, but this was something I really felt the need to address. My motivation for this comes from various conver… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-judaism-of-yeshua/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-judaism-of-yeshua/Tue, 05 Mar 2019 12:00:00 GMTSo the other day, I was on my facebook, and one of the people on my timeline posted a meme that really had mw thinking. Everyone knows that I am relativeley new to … https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/follow-me-as-i-follow-christ/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/follow-me-as-i-follow-christ/Thu, 28 Feb 2019 12:00:00 GMTSo I was sitting in church today listening to my Rabbi preach, and while he spoke, he began to address what it is to follow Yeshua. As he spoke on this, my mind beg… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/as-it-was-in-the-days-of-noah/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/as-it-was-in-the-days-of-noah/Sat, 16 Feb 2019 12:00:00 GMTIn Matthew 24:37-39, Yeshua lets us know how things will be, and what we can expect as the end draws near. Some people totally miss what is being said here. I … https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-name-of-god/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-name-of-god/Sat, 08 Dec 2018 12:00:00 GMTI am sure quite a few will disagree with this, but having seen several ancient documents online, to include the Aleppo Codex and the Leningraf Codex, both of which … https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-golden-calf/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-golden-calf/Sun, 25 Nov 2018 12:00:00 GMTContrasting Ancient Israel and the modern day Church. At Mt Sinai In the book of Exodus, we read that the children of Israel were with Moses at Mt Sinai. Moses … https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/learn-not-the-ways-of-the-nations-abomination/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/learn-not-the-ways-of-the-nations-abomination/Sun, 28 Oct 2018 12:00:00 GMTI was laying in bed sound asleep, when suddenly this title popped in my head. I really couldn’t fall back to sleep after that, so I just lay there. The time w… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/do-names-really-matter/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/do-names-really-matter/Sun, 23 Sep 2018 12:00:00 GMTSo as it would happen, during a time before my conversion, I was begining to embark on my journey to learn Hebrew. One of the first things I had… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-law-of-se7ens/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-law-of-se7ens/Sun, 09 Sep 2018 12:00:00 GMTFirst off, I’d like to say that The Law of Se7en’s is NOT a biblical term, although after really meditating on it, maybe it should have been. This blog … https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/what-torah-is-and-isnt/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/what-torah-is-and-isnt/Sun, 26 Aug 2018 12:00:00 GMTInitially, I was gonna do this as a facebook post, and my plan was to keep it short and sweet. As I began writing, I found my thoughts just going and going. I event… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/torah-echad-one-torah/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/torah-echad-one-torah/Sun, 12 Aug 2018 12:00:00 GMTIn talking about the topic of Torah, there is a HUGE split between believers as to whether it does or doesn’t apply. Although both sides have very strong view… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/which-is-which/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/which-is-which/Sun, 29 Jul 2018 12:00:00 GMTAs my family and I sat together last night to have our family Bible Study, while observing The Sabbath, an interested thought came into my mind. Usually, as we read… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/echad-or-not-echad-that-is-the-questionin-my-last-blog-i-spoke-on-the-meaning-of-the-hebrew-word-echad-when-speaking-of-people-as-the-act-of-becoming-one-but-when-refering-to-the-character-of-yhvh-one-part-with-many-aspects-for-this-blog/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/echad-or-not-echad-that-is-the-questionin-my-last-blog-i-spoke-on-the-meaning-of-the-hebrew-word-echad-when-speaking-of-people-as-the-act-of-becoming-one-but-when-refering-to-the-character-of-yhvh-one-part-with-many-aspects-for-this-blog/Wed, 20 Jun 2018 12:00:00 GMTIn my last blog, I spoke on the meaning of the Hebrew word “echad”, when speaking of people as the act of becoming “one”, but when referring… https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-birth-of-western-christianity/https://www.torahawakenings.com/blog/the-birth-of-western-christianity/Sun, 29 Apr 2018 12:00:00 GMTEver wonder where the origins of our faith come from? Yes, Yeshua is at the forefront of our faith, but what about all of the intricate details that surround this f…