QTM 402What Does MTOI & Other Hebrew Root Movements Really Believe?
What Does the Hebrew Roots Movement Believe?
To the reader:
What does the Hebrew Roots movement believe? If you are reading this and you are a member of MTOI (Messianic Torah Observant Israel) or the broader Hebrew Roots Movement, I want to start by validating something important about you.
You are not a casual believer. You are likely someone who saw a modern church that looked watered-down, compromised, and disconnected from its biblical roots. You wanted more. You wanted the "meat" of the Word. You wanted to walk like Jesus (Yeshua) walked. You wanted to obey the Father out of love, not just lip service.
That zeal is beautiful. It is commendable.
But in logic, it is possible to be sincere and yet be mistaken. The Apostle Paul spoke of his own Jewish brothers in Romans 10:2: "For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge."
In this paper, we are going to look at the claims of MTOI. We will look at the teaching of "Torah Observance," the claims about the history of the Church, and the way leadership is understood. We are not attacking your love for God; we are asking whether the map you have been given actually leads where you think it does.
1. THE CORE CLAIM: "IF YOU LOVE ME, KEEP MY COMMANDS"
The foundational logic of MTOI is built on a specific interpretation of John 14:15: "If you love me, keep my commands."
The logic flows like this:
- Yeshua (Jesus) was Jewish.
- He kept the Torah (The Law of Moses).
- He defines "Sin" as "Lawlessness" (Torah-breaking) (1 John 3:4).
- Therefore, if we want to be like Him, we must keep the Torah (Sabbath, Feasts, Dietary Laws).
1.1 What "commands" means
The mistake here is assuming that when Jesus said "My commands," He simply meant "The Law of Moses." If you look at what the Bible says, Jesus explicitly gave a new command that set a standard different from Moses.
In John 13:34, Jesus says: "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another."
Furthermore, in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5), Jesus repeatedly contrasts the written Torah with His new standard:
- The Torah (Exodus 21:24): "Eye for eye, tooth for tooth."
- Jesus (Matthew 5:39): "But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other also."
If Jesus was simply teaching us to keep the Torah perfectly, He would have enforced "Eye for Eye." Instead, He raised the standard. He moved from "eye for eye" (Torah) to grace and mercy (Kingdom).
1.2 The "forever" argument (the priesthood question)
You are often taught that the Torah statutes are "forever" (Hebrew: olam). The logic is simple: God does not change, so His law cannot change. But look at what the Bible actually says. In the Torah, God used the word "forever" for the Aaronic priesthood just as clearly as He did for the Sabbath.
The Command (Exodus 40:15):
"Anoint them just as you anointed their father, so that they may serve me as priests. Their anointing will be to a priesthood that will continue throughout their generations forever."
If "forever" (olam) means nothing can ever change, then Messiah cannot be our High Priest. Under the Torah’s own rules, the priesthood tied to the altar is Levitical. Messiah is from the tribe of Judah—which is exactly why Hebrews says the priesthood had to change.
What Hebrews says:
Hebrews teaches that the priesthood did change—from Aaron to Messiah, in the order of Melchizedek—and that meant the law governing that priesthood had to change too.
Hebrews 7:12: "For when the priesthood is changed, the law must be changed also."
The verdict:
We are not saying the Torah stops being Scripture. It is still God’s wisdom and reveals His character. But Hebrews says that the Sinai covenant—as the binding way to approach God—could not bring perfection and has been replaced by a better covenant through Messiah (Hebrews 7:18–19; 10:1).
2. THE "BUFFET" PROBLEM
This is the most serious logical problem in the MTOI teaching. You are taught to keep the Torah. But an honest look shows that you are not actually keeping the whole Torah.
2.1 The partial compliance problem
James 2:10 states: "For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it."
The point here is that the Torah is not a buffet where you pick the parts you like (Feasts, Sabbath, Food). It is a single system. The question is not whether Torah is wise and holy (it is), but whether the Sinai covenant is still the binding standard for God’s people after Messiah.
When you say you "keep Torah" as a binding covenant, you are saying you are under a system that clearly requires:
- A working Levitical priesthood: (Numbers 18) — The priests who served at the sanctuary and offered sacrifices under that covenant.
- A working altar and sacrifices: (Leviticus 1–7) — The way that covenant provided atonement and purification.
- Required pilgrimage: (Deuteronomy 16:16) — The command for all males to appear three times a year "at the place the LORD your God will choose" (Jerusalem).
The verdict:
If those parts of the covenant are not in place, then what is being practiced is not "Torah observance" as a full covenant, but a selective set of Torah commands. Picking and choosing requires someone to decide. Who gave that authority?
2.2 What sin means (1 John 3:4)
MTOI doctrine relies heavily on 1 John 3:4: "Sin is lawlessness."
The argument is: If sin is defined as lawlessness, and "law" means Torah, then to stop sinning we must keep the Torah.
The logic:
This conclusion assumes—without proving—that "law" in 1 John 3:4 means specifically the Law of Moses (Sinai) as binding on believers. But the Greek word anomia ("lawlessness") often means rebellion or disregard for God's authority, not only breaking the Law of Moses.
If "sin" simply meant "breaking the Sinai covenant code," then Paul’s statement that he is "not under the law" and "released from the law" becomes incoherent. He would be saying he is not under the Sinai covenant as his standard, yet still accountable to God—which is why he says he is "under the law of Christ."
What are Messiah's commands?
We don't have to guess. In a letter specifically about the lifestyle of those abiding in Messiah, John defines what he means by "commandment" in the very same chapter:
- 1 John 3:23: "And this is his commandment: that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us."
3. THE "CONSTANTINE MYTH"
A common theme in MTOI teaching is that "Mainstream Christianity" is paganism in disguise. You are often taught that the Emperor Constantine (4th Century) hijacked the true faith, mixed it with Roman religious culture, and institutionalized a shift away from Sabbath toward Sunday.
3.1 What history shows about Sunday
You are taught that Sunday gathering is a pagan ritual started by Rome in 321 AD. History does not support that. We have early evidence that Christians were already gathering on the first day of the week long before Constantine was born.
- New Testament Evidence (1st Century):
- Acts 20:7: "On the first day of the week we came together to break bread."
- 1 Corinthians 16:2: "On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money..."
- Early Christian Witnesses (Pre-Constantine):
- The Didache (approx. 100 AD): "But every Lord's day gather yourselves together, and break bread, and give thanksgiving."
- Justin Martyr (approx. 150 AD):
"But Sunday is the day on which we all hold our common assembly, because it is the first day on which God... made the world; and Jesus Christ our Saviour on the same day rose from the dead."
The conclusion:
These documents are not Scripture, but they are real historical evidence of what Christians were doing. Whatever Constantine later did politically, he did not invent Sunday gatherings. The evidence shows they existed long before him.
3.2 The "Babylon" story
By labeling the historical Church as "Babylon" or "Pagan," the movement creates a theological dilemma. Jesus gave a specific promise regarding His Church:
"I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it." (Matthew 16:18).
If the "Babylon" story is true—if the church as a whole became a false system with no faithful remnant for 1,600 years—then Jesus's promise would be meaningless.
4. THE LEADERSHIP QUESTION
We need to look honestly at how leadership works. Rabbi Steve Berkson is the main public teacher and defining voice of MTOI. But we need to look at how authority is used, not just at one person.
4.1 The "Rabbi" title
Jesus gave a specific warning regarding religious titles and spiritual hierarchy:
Matthew 23:8: "But you are not to be called 'Rabbi,' for you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers."
When a movement puts a teacher-title at the center of authority, it raises questions. A move from "brothers helping each other" to "one teacher as the final authority" can make people depend on the leader instead of on Scripture and the Spirit.
4.2 The isolation risk
A healthy church connects believers to the wider Body of Christ. An unhealthy movement can encourage separation by framing itself as the faithful remnant while portraying others as compromised, pagan, or deceived.
Questions to consider:
- Do you feel superior to Christians who gather on Sunday?
- Do you judge them over food, holidays, or traditions?
- Do you feel pressure to withdraw from family or longtime Christian relationships?
The verdict:
If your theology leads to more pride, suspicion, harshness, and cutting yourself off from others, it is failing the test of love. True discipleship builds bridges; it does not burn them.
5. THE GALATIAN WARNING
There is an entire book of the Bible written to refute the message that Gentile believers must take on the Law of Moses—especially circumcision—as a covenant obligation to be complete. It is the Book of Galatians.
5.1 What Paul said
How did the Apostle Paul react to this message? He issued his harshest warning:
"I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel..." (Galatians 1:6)
"Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?" (Galatians 3:3)
5.2 The Decisive Warning (Galatians 5)
Paul’s argument culminates in a breaking point in Chapter 5. He warns that accepting the Sinai Covenant as a binding obligation has catastrophic spiritual consequences.
"Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace."
5.3 The yoke of slavery
Paul concludes in Galatians 5:1: "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery."
The "yoke" is not God's law in general; it is putting yourself under the Sinai covenant as a binding obligation. You would be submitting to a system that Jesus has already fulfilled—so that believers are no longer under the Sinai covenant as their standard.
6. CONCLUSION
One danger of the Hebrew Roots Movement is that it can take sincere believers—people like you who genuinely want to please God—and place them under a performance framework that Scripture describes as a "yoke."
SUMMARY
A core claim in MTOI teaching is that the Sinai covenant is still the binding standard for believers. But what the Bible says points the other way:
- The priesthood: Hebrews 7:12 says that when the priesthood changed to Jesus, the law had to change. You cannot keep the old law with the new priesthood.
- The reality: Without a temple, priesthood, or sacrifices, you are only keeping a selective set of rules. You are holding to the shadow while the reality (Christ) is right in front of you.
- The "pagan church" myth: History shows that Christians gathered on the first day of the week centuries before Constantine. The "Babylon" story clashes with Jesus's promise about His Church.
- What sin means: "Sin is lawlessness" means rejecting God's authority as revealed in Messiah. God has now told us to listen to His Son (Hebrews 1:1-2), who brought a better covenant.
The choice:
You are standing at a crossroads.
- Path A: Keep trying to rebuild a covenant system that is no longer in place, isolate yourself from the rest of Christ's body, and live under the constant weight of a "yoke."
- Path B: Accept that the shadow has done its job. Accept that the reality has come. Accept that you are justified by faith and made holy by the Spirit.
You don't need to learn Hebrew to know God. You don't need to wear tassels to be holy. The New Covenant marker is faith working through love, by the Spirit.
Read the Book of Galatians. Read it in one sitting. And ask yourself:
"If Paul is right, where do I stand?"