Professor Toto - I’m addressing a recent controversy head-on — the photo, the accusations, and the truth

I’m addressing a recent controversy head-on — the photo, the accusations, and the truth - YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QpTEfqxYD8Y Transcript: (00:01) Hello everybody. Pastor Shane Vaugh, Professor Toto. I want to talk to you tonight. I hope you'll give me a few minutes of your time to listen. To truly hear my heart. Uh I want to share some things that have been bothering me for quite a long time. I also want to address a recent controversy. Um, and just see if we can't all, even if we don't agree, at least listen. (00:32) Have you ever wondered, especially when the Supreme Court makes a ruling, how you can have nine judges all trained in the same constitution and yet interpret it so differently. If you're not careful, you can become disillusioned with the whole concept of truth. What is truth? How can two people watch the same news story and yet come away with two total different interpretations? How can two people read the Bible? One sees freedom while the other sees bondage. (01:28) And yet both sides are absolutely convinced that they are right and you can't change their mind. They'll go to battle over it. same document, same facts, if you will, different outcomes. Now, what I had to learn, because I'll be honest with you, during the 2020 election, I called my mother and we were talking and I said, "I've never in my life as an American been so disillusioned with the judicial system because how can you see the law, which is so plainly written, and yet see it so differently?" And that's when I learned a very (02:25) important word or at least the meaning of it. It's the word perspective. Every one of us, me and you, all have a perspective, a way we look at things. The lens on our camera, that perspective has been shaped from our childhood up. How we look at anything is through that lens. For example, if you were molested as a child, then you will grow up all your life seeing things from that perspective. (03:10) Your your lens is shaped by the economic system you grew up in. If you grew up in poverty, it's very hard for you to see things that's not negative from a negative perspective. Uh perhaps your family culture, everything around you shapes how you see something. So you get two people both looking at the same thing and you get two different perspective. (03:41) For example, the black community, their history is a history of distrust. Uh their history is one of uh abuse, horrible history and it has shaped their worldview, the way they see things. And uh you know we don't understand sometimes why uh they stand up for the things they stand up for but it's from their perspective. (04:13) Now that's a problem. That's a real big problem in the search for truth. Because if there is your perspective, which is your truth, and if there's my perspective, which is my truth, then where is truth? If it's your truth and my truth, where is truth? But you see, I've come to find out that truth, it's like a mountain. (04:51) It's immovable. It's always there. It is in the bedrock of the earth. The principles are timeless. But here's the problem with a mountain. Remember, truth is the mountain. But the problem with the mountain is what side of the mountain are you standing on? If you're standing on the south side of the mountain and I tell you, look at that beautiful uh arch of trees, you're not going to see the arch of trees. (05:27) We're on two different sides of the same mountain. We're both looking at the mountain, but we're seeing it from different perspectives. Your view changes depending on what side of the mountain you're on. But there's one thing we need to all remember. The mountain does not change. That mountain is truth. And that mountain absolutely unequivocally never changes. (05:57) No matter how much we would like for it to, it absolutely never changes. So we have the left, we have the right. two sides of one mountain politically, socially, theologically. And what happens is we begin to think that the people on both sides of the mountain have to become enemies. But the truth is, they're not enemies. They're part of what I call the tension. (06:34) Because if the whole world was as right as I am, if the whole world was right, far right, then you realize we would be stoning sinners in the streets. And if the whole world was left, then there would be mercy with no law. Society would fall apart. There'd be no such thing as sin if everything was all the way left. (07:09) If everything was all the way right, we would be like the Muslims, our women wearing burkas. So the left sort of balances the right and the right sort of balances the left. It's the natural tension and together they hold each other accountable. It's sort of like your muscle and your bone. There's this constant tension that is necessary for them to create structure. (07:41) So, what does this do for truth? Very simple. Oh, I know you're anxious for me to get to the controversy, the good stuff. I get that. We'll get there. Give me one moment. All right. Let me set the record straight. Truth is absolute. There is no my truth, your truth. There is only the truth. (08:05) Truth does not bend to our perspective. We bend towards it. When two people read the same Bible and see two different meanings, I want you to hear me and hear me well. Somebody is wrong. Somebody's wrong. If you read the Bible and you have two different opinions, you are going to have to acknowledge somebody is wrong because truth is not relative. (08:38) That mountain called the word of God is not going to move. It's going to be the truth. No matter how you see it or I see it, it's going to be the truth. Somebody is wrong. And if you've got the right and the left, both are not right. Now, here's where pride comes in. Nobody wants to be wrong. Do you know the greatest fear of all humans? You, I'm talking to you. (09:11) Do you know your greatest fear? All of us is the fear of being wrong. Because if we're wrong, then everything we've ever believed about everything falls apart. We lose control of what we think we have control of. So therefore to keep that from happening of being wrong about everything then we must not be wrong about anything because if you can prove I'm wrong about anything you might can prove that I'm wrong about everything and that would be doomsday for me. (10:01) So therefore, I can't let you prove me wrong about anything. And you and I become natural enemies because now I see you and you see me as trying to penetrate your security. Pain, pride, and politics is what messes up our perspective. Remember, truth is not a philosophy. All right? Somebody's wrong not because their heart is evil. (10:37) And that's something that we've got to learn in America. Again, just because someone has a different perspective does not make them evil. Okay? It just means their lens is dirty. Many times my glasses like right now actually they get dirty. Let me wipe them. And it doesn't make me someone's enemy. I just need you to come and clean my glasses is all I need. (11:11) Why? Because then the fog is removed. We don't need to defend the fog. We need to clean the window. And that's where we are in America today. We are not in a political war. We are in a respect crisis. We have lost the ability to disagree without desecrating one another. We used to say, "I just see it differently." And that was okay. (11:44) But now you're the enemy. No longer do we defend ideas. We now defend egos. We no longer debate. We destroy. And the moment conversation becomes confrontation is the moment community collapses. And make no mistake, my fellow Americans, that's where we are right now. Families are fractured. Churches are divided. (12:22) Neighbors are now enemies. Not because of truth, but because of tone. You can you can be right about the issue and be wrong about the attitude because truth without love is brutality and love without truth is perversion. I'd like to give you an example. I want to bring it home. I want to make it personal. Recently, our ministry, First Harvest Ministries, became the subject of some online controversy. (13:00) A picture began to circulate about uh from one of our recent church services at the Feast of Tabernacles. In that photo, it looked like our congregation was kneeling before the ark of the covenant. And some folks sincerely thought we were worshiping a golden idol. Okay, I have to make a choice at this point. Are those people my enemies? Because they saw the picture from their perspective. (13:52) If they are, we have a problem that cannot be resolved. Now, vice versa. To those people that saw the picture, are we now their enemy because they think we're idol worshippers? Now before I continue, some people are genuinely concerned, rightfully so. Their hearts are sincere. They love Yahweh. They love truth. And from their perspective on their side of the mountain, that looked bad. (14:31) And if I would have seen that picture from their side of the camera, I might have thought the very same thing myself. So therefore, I have to stop myself from responding that they're my enemies. But let me make something very clear that we need to address. There is another crowd of people on Facebook and around the social media world. They're not concerned. (15:02) They're consumed with hate. They don't see it differently. They despise you entirely. And you have to learn to categorize those people correctly. They go in a box called haters. What is the difference in a hater and someone that just sees it differently? Someone that sees it differently will allow you the opportunity to tell them what the other side of the mountain looks like. (15:38) Haters, they hope you hang from that mountain. They couldn't care less what you were doing or not doing. They just hate you. and everything you do gets on their nerves. Everything you do is despised. Don't waste one moment on those people because there's nothing you will ever do to make them like you. They hate you, okay? They despise you. (16:09) Now, the other people sincerely are trying to understand. Your job as a human is to know who those people are versus the other people. Those that are haters, they will call evil good and good evil. No matter what you do, literally. So don't confuse a seeker with a slanderer. The seeker deserves an explanation. (16:41) The other deserves your silence. And normally that's what they get from me. But in this situation, there were sincere seekers. Now, what I'd like to do is take you to our side of the mountain at First Harvest Ministries. We've already seen the other side of the mountain. A bunch of people worshiping an idol. Got it. No problem. (17:06) Now, if you don't mind, if you're a true seeker of truth, let's come to the other side of the mountain and I'll give you this perspective. And when we're finished, we will abolish both perspectives because neither one matter. And we will go stand on the mountain itself of the word of God, and we will find truth and we will both alter our perspectives to align with truth. (17:33) So, here's what really happened that night. There were hundreds of us that gathered for the great feast of tabernacles. For nearly a year, I taught on the tabernacle of Moses. It's one of my favorite subjects because it's such a profound shadow of the third temple, which is the body of Christ, you and I. So I I have invested hours and hours and hours of teaching about this tabernacle. (18:12) So then we thought that we would begin collecting the furniture that was in the tabernacle for teaching visuals to be able to point to because humans are able to learn with their eyes better than their ears. Just like a stop sign, you know, if you come to a four-way stop, you need to stop. But that stop sign gives you a visual reminder of what you already know. (18:44) I don't need this wedding ring to be married. I know I'm married, but that is a visual reminder of what I already know. So, we started collecting all the pieces of the tabernacle. Quite a costly adventure. And we uh we just fell so in love with the perfection of what the meaning of the tabernacle was. So we got the manora, we got the altar of incense, the table of shoebre and we were missing the last item because it was so costly and uh it was very difficult to find. (19:23) They're they don't make these everywhere. And so, um, we were at the Feast of Tabernacles and we had obtained that final beautiful representation of the throne of God, the Ark of the Covenant. However, the people, the congregation did not know that we had it physically. They knew we were getting it, but they didn't know we had it physically. (19:53) And I thought to myself, what a wonderful surprise it would be on the night of tabernacles to finally show them the last piece of art that we had collected in our collection, not as relics, but as visual reminders of Yahweh's covenant and our identity as the Melchzdc priesthood in the third temple. So here we are. (20:22) Let's come to my side of the mountain. Right, we are in a worship service already. There is no ark in the room. Now we're standing there. We're we're singing a song called Holy, Holy, Holy. My wife is singing. The saints are already worshiping. We are already in reverential awe of Almighty Yahweh. People are already weeping in the spirit when suddenly we open the back doors and we escort this last piece of teaching visuals into the sanctuary while the people are already worshiping. (21:12) Now these particular people are very aware from my teachings that the ark represents the throne of Yahweh. So we bring it in and we are overwhelmed with reverence not for the gold but for the glory. From our perspective, that was reverence, not idolatry. Okay? Now, many people stood, some bowed, but we bowed. And the ark just happened to be in the room that we were bowing in, which we bow every time we worship at our church. (21:59) We bow on the floor. And it just so happened there's an ark in the room this time. Okay, now that's our perspective. To another person, they saw it totally different. So here we are. We have two different sides of the mountain, the north, the south. Now both sides have to decide if they're enemies or they have to decide do they want to go to the mountain of the Lord which is the word and both shape their perspective to the truth not your truth not my truth because I gave you our perspective and I gave you their perspective but let's go (22:45) to the mountain right now the word of Yahweh and let every man be a liar and let the word stand true. Exodus 25 verse 18. You shall make two cherubams of gold and there I will meet with you. Yahweh created the ark. Yahweh gave the exact dimensions. This did not come from man's mind. This came from heaven, from the God of heaven himself. (23:26) He told him how to make it and said, "This would be my throne. This is where I will meet with you." He gave Moses the exact pattern, the measurements, the gold, the cherubam, the poles. Yahe designed that ark, not man. It was not made for worship. It was made as a witness, a visible witness that God's presence is always with his worshshiping people. (24:02) It represents it represents the throne of God. The ark was a shadow of Yesua himself, the living meeting place between divinity and humanity. Now, here is where discernment must come in. We're standing on the mountain of truth tonight. All right. Exodus 24 and5 says, "You shall not make for yourself a grave image." Amen. I agree. (24:35) And that's the scripture everybody's throwing at me. But I didn't make this one. Yahweh did. Amen. He said, "You shall not make for yourself or of yourself from your own imagination like the golden calf. You are not allowed to create a golden image." I am, says God, but you're not. And I've already made one. It's called the ark of the covenant. (25:10) It is the symbol of my presence among the people. You shall not bow down to them. What? Any image made of yourself. Images created by man to represent Yahweh are pagan. They come from man's imagination, not divine revelation. They try to make God visible on man's terms. But images created by Yahweh are holy and worthy of reverence. (25:57) It would be as if I was to give my wife a locket of gold that I that I created. I formed it. I shaped it and I gave it to her. And she carried that locket in her hand, in her purse. Many people could say she loves the locket more than me. No, no, no, no, no, no. To love me is to love what I gave you. To love me is to love the locket because we are one. (26:29) The locket is my image if you will, my creation, something from my mind, my heart. When Yahweh commands a symbol, just like the golden snake that he commanded Moses to raise up and told the children of Israel to bow before it. The reason that was not paganism and idolatry, Yahe created that and commanded that. (27:01) It was a symbol that carried his name and his authority. When Yahweh creates an image, it bears his nature. He created another image called Jesus Yesua. He said that Yeshua was the very image of the invisible God. That's why Yesua is not a man-made idol. If you bow down and worship him because he is Yahweh's selfrevelation. Yahweh prepared him that body. (27:41) Paganism says, "Let us make God in our image." But Yahweh said, "Let us make man in our image." When the word become flesh, that was Yahweh creating and anointing and appointing and making worthy of all reverence and honor something he created, the body of Yesua. Now, we're standing on the mountain right now. We're looking at the word. (28:09) It's what we're doing. We're not doing my perspective or yours. What does the word say? The ark, just like Yeshua, was a divinely authorized image, a visible lesson from an invisible king. It was meant not for the object to be adored, but for Yahweh to be adored through the object. It pointed beyond itself. Just like Yosua always pointed us beyond himself. (28:49) Yesua said in his word, "It's my father. Look to my father. Do not look to me. Honor me. Accept me. Respect me. But look past me, past the image, past the object, and see my father in heaven. The ark of the covenant was never for itself. It was to guide our vision above the ark of the covenant. The ark lifts our vision to the real throne of God. That's what we were celebrating. (29:34) Not a golden box, but a golden truth that Yahweh dwells among his people and his covenant was alive in our midst. So no, according to the truth, we did not worship an object. We honored a pattern. We didn't bow to gold. We bowed to glory. It was not idolatry. It was alignment. And let's be honest, if we're just going to be real, real honest today, how many of you watching me has ever bowed down at an oldfashioned altar and lifted your hands in the air and cried out to God? Were you worshiping the altar? That object? No, that object pointed you (30:29) to the message behind the altar. Repentance. And let's be even more honest, shall we? Kneel at the cross. Christ will meet you there. Is the cross not an object? Is it not a wooden object? We could actually cover it with gold and now say don't you know don't kneel at the cross. Now when a congregation kneels in awe while the symbolic ark is present, that's not paganism. (31:07) But I will tell you what is pagan that none of you have ever thought twice about. You go out in the woods, you chop down a tree, you bring it in your house, you set it up and say that it represents the birth of Christ. And then you bow down before it. Give it gifts. Bow down to pull gifts out from under it. (31:32) You bring your children and sing, "Oh Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree, how lovely are thy branches." But you want to say something to us about bowing down before something Yahweh created and commanded his people to honor. No friend, that's not idolatry. That's reverence. And that's what happens when presence meets posture. (32:00) So here's what I've done tonight. I took your perspective. They're worshiping idols. took our perspective and said, "No, we were just giving God reverence." And then we went to the word, the mountain, and found out what he meant when he said not to bow before them. We found out what the word says concerning honoring things that Yahweh created. (32:23) And now there is no more your truth or my truth. There is only the truth. And we've read that truth. Now either you have to surrender to it, I have to surrender to it. and we dissolve our perspectives. Our job on the right, me and you, is not to beat people over the head with truth, just teach the truth, present the truth, and help them clean up their glasses. (32:54) Because if you force truth, you create resistance. If you reveal truth, you create clarity. We don't have to scream louder than the left. We just have to see clearer than the crowd. Yahweh doesn't need soldiers with sharper swords. He needs saints with clean lenses that can see the mountain while standing on the mountain. (33:22) So here's the lesson tonight. Perspective explains why people see things differently. We need to learn to honor perspectives, respect perspectives, and don't see an opposing perspective as the enemy. Just go to the mountain together and clear up your perspectives. Truth is not a perspective. Truth is a mountain. (33:54) So, let's stop shouting at each other from opposite sides of the mountain and start climbing it together where truth lives. Smoke the peace pipe together and find truth. Because the mountain doesn't move, the truth never changes, but our perspective can if we let him open our eyes. Thank you for listening to me tonight. May Yahweh bless you and keep you. Good night.