Community Participation Guidelines

In becoming a set apart community, we understand that everyone is not at the same level of Torah understanding. As the early leaders of The Way in Acts 15 established minimal standards for the Gentiles coming out of their paganistic lifestyles, so do we set standards for those coming out of the world system.

As such, we expect:

1. A desire to learn about maturity in Yahshua and a willingness to be exhorted, encouraged and held accountable. Participation in the Life Model* and Covenant Relationships** classes is strongly encouraged.

2. A desire to enter into worship with a humble and God-centered focus.

3. A desire to continue learning what Torah observance means and moving forward to a Messianic Torah lifestyle. Despite what many of us considered to be a strong working knowledge of Biblical concepts, we soon learned that there was much that was far beyond our knowledge when we came into Messianic Torah study. This is a significant shift of focus and requires a period of time to become acclimated to a Hebrew worldview of Scripture and of life. Just as our Messiah did not begin His ministry until the accustomed age of 30, following years of preparation and as He prepared His disciples over a three-year period, so do we anticipate that there will be a time period during which new members of our group wil go through the re-adjustment necessary before they more fully grasp the significance of the differences of understanding. Despite previous status as a Teacher of Scripture, we still see the need for a period of re-training before according the status of teacher among Messianic Believers. We acknowledge that this may be difficult for some to tolerate but point out that a teachable spirit is one pre-requisite of humility and maturity that is necessary for a Teacher of Torah.

Our Shabbat study is not just a group of people who get together once a week to study. We are a developing Torah observant community and we have acquired a body of knowledge through years of study together. Our study incorporates an interactive style of teaching and learning which is possible due to the expectation that our members will have studied the Torah portion and the appropriate designated commentaries throughout the week prior to the study so that we can all share whatever insights the Ruach has provided.

We welcome guests to our worship and study times, however, we do have some requests and expectations of them. We know that it will take some time for many to become acquainted with the Hebrew worship songs and we are happy to assist you as we are able.

Initially, we had learned songs one at a time with frequent instruction in pronunciation. We no longer need to do that as a group but will help individually as requested. Participation in worship--song, banners and dance--can begin almost immediately and we do try to offer regular opportunities prior to worship for instruction.

During the study, however, we ask that our guests and newer members hold their questions until the weekly study has concluded. Then, a number of our members and leadership will be very happy to talk over any concerns. When a guest decides that they would like to join us in our community on a regular basis, we will schedule a personal meeting between them and two leadership people. We have found this the best way to be certain that there is understanding of what is involved in become a part of Set Apart Ministries and for us to understand the expectations and goals of those who join with us.

By this time, the guest/new member will likely have begun to obtain the commentaries and be familiar in advance with each week's parasha, making interaction during the study more productive for all.

4.  When participating in fellowship with the community, we ask that everyone adhere to the food guidelines as outlined in Leviticus (Wayyiqra) 11. Our fellowship grows out of our relationship with Messiah, not the other way around. It is our belief that our mainspring is our mutual desire to praise YHWH and to study His Word. Because the inappropriate use of food and fellowship can be a reflection of maturity issues, we monitor how we as a group are doing. When we have seen that the focus was beginning to shift toward an inappropriate emphasis on the type of food, the amount or quality of food and/or the fun things that happen when we are together, we have pulled back on the food and fellowship. As a result, we have a group of people who enjoy one another's company, fellowship and sharing food, but who are also united in our mutual purpose and focus on Messiah.

5. That our speech and actions should reflect a Biblical lifestyle, including respectful speech to one another and avoiding gossip.

*Life Model: Living from the Heart Jesus Gave You Copyright 2000 The Shepherd's House
**Covenant Relationships by Keith (Asher) Intrator Copyright 1989 Keith Intrater Destiny Image Publishers.