This Week in Newsweek

I don't normally read Newsweek.

OK. I think this is the first time I've bought the magazine. Ever. But there was an interesting cover. It said, "Heaven Is Real - A Doctor's Experience of the Afterlife." That was enough to capture my attention. Kim started flipping through it and said, "Hey, there's an article about Israel in here." So I skimmed through the article about the doctor and his experience, which was interesting, and spent some time reading through the article about Israel. That's what I want to share with you.

The premise of the article was provoking all by itself. Using a team of people to serve as a mock presidential advisory team, in the aftermath of a pre-emptive Israeli strike against Iran, what would the response of the United States be? The details of the strike are not really that important, though I will give them to you. Israel, under the cover of night, strikes 6 Iranian nuclear sites. It involved covert landings in Ethiopia, India and Saudi Arabia, and a complicated electronic jamming scheme. During the attack, one Israeli plane went down, and the whereabouts of the pilot are unknown.

After spending a lot of time discussing the issue, the team concluded that there was a 100% chance of Israeli fatalities in the Iranian retaliatory strike. Following the retaliation, there is a 50% chance that Israel will strike back. At the same time, this panel of experts determined that there was a 50% chance that the United States will be drawn into the war, either to protect US interests, or to simply show support for Israel. They briefly addressed the issue that it is an election year, and that election is looming big right in front of us, but in the end, they didn't believe it would be a factor.

Honestly, I was surprised that the conclusion of this team was that the US would join the game. There is no doubt that the relationship between President Obama and Prime Minister Netanyahu is strained at best, which is indicative of the relationship between our two nations. This fact was also not ignored by the panel, though I don't think they placed enough weight on the lack of trust between us. The bottom line is that in my view, the United States isn't prepared to engage anyone on behalf of Israel any time soon.

There were 5 goals identified by the team that the United States would have to keep in mind. They were, in no particular order,
1. Protect US citizens
2. Avoid war
3. Protect the world economy
4. Prevent Iran from getting nuclear weapons
5. Protect Israel and other US allies from Iranian retaliation
When asked to prioritize them, protecting US citizens was number 1, protecting Israel was number 5. The others were interchangeable. Now this was not surprising.

In fact, several of the goals are conflicting. If protecting the world economy comes before protecting the people of Israel, if avoiding war is a higher priority than protecting the people of Israel, well, we can see where this is going. It really doesn't matter what the expert panel says they concluded when the goals that they establish, and the priority in which they are placed, are clearly not in the interest of US-Israeli relations.

I sincerely hope that the conclusions they draw, (which in my mind don't really match the facts presented in the discussion), turn out to be right, and that in the long run, the US would see the benefit to standing with Israel. I am just not sure that it will turn out that way. I am positive of a few things, though.
1. Those who bless Israel will be blessed.
  וַאֲבָרְכָה, מְבָרְכֶיךָ, וּמְקַלֶּלְךָ, אָאֹר  Genesis 12:3

2. Israel will be victorious in the end, because God will fight on her behalf when all others turn against her.
 וְיָצָא יְהוָה, וְנִלְחַם בַּגּוֹיִם הָהֵם The Lord will go forth, and fight against those nations. Zech. 14:3a

3. While we have our responsibilities here, to vote according to our conscience, to stand for what we believe in, and to represent God until His Son returns to make things right, God is still in control, even if we don't understand what He's doing.
 כִּי לֹא מַחְשְׁבוֹתַי מַחְשְׁבוֹתֵיכֶם, וְלֹא דַרְכֵיכֶם דְּרָכָי  For my thoughts are not your thoughts, and your ways are not my ways. Isaiah 55:8

4. We, as believers, must continue to stand in the gap on behalf of Israel. If we don't, no body will.
 וְאַל-תִּתְּנוּ דֳמִי, לוֹ:  עַד-יְכוֹנֵן וְעַד-יָשִׂים אֶת-יְרוּשָׁלִַם, תְּהִלָּה--בָּאָרֶץ. And give him no rest, until He establishes and until He makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth. Isaiah 62:7

I would love to hear from you. What do you think?

Neal

The Doctrine of Election

This is part of the class that I'm taking right now. There are so many different thoughts about the doctrine of election. But let me try to summarize as best I can. 

Unconditional election - God chooses who will be saved based on His sovereign choice.

Conditional election - God chooses who will be saved based on His foreknowledge of our choice.

Unconditional double election - Not only does God choose who will be saved, but He also chooses who will not be saved.

However, the best reasons I can think of to believe in the doctrine of election as a whole is found in this quote from our text. It is a quote from C.H. Spurgeon, who I don't usually agree with. But this is pretty good.

"I believe the doctrine of election, because I am quite certain that if God had not chosen me I should never have chosen Him; and I am sure He chose me before I was born, or else He never would have chosen me afterwards; and He must have elected me for reasons unknown to me, for I never could find any reason in myself why He should have looked upon me with special love. So I am forced to accept that doctrine."

No matter what version of election you believe in, Spurgeon has it down. If God hadn't chosen me, and given me the grace to believe in Him, I am positive that I wouldn't be where I am today. Thank you, Lord, for the grace You have given us to believe.

Who is Messiah?

That is the subject of the second class. Who is Messiah? Christology seeks to answer that question. Not just who He is, but what is His nature? Divine? Deity? And how can we know? Class starts tomorrow, and in preparation I just finished 100 pages in the first text, "The Person of Christ." But that isn't really what I am focused on right this minute.

The focus of my thoughts right now are on a passage from the Bible, specifically, Philippians 2:5-11.

     5 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. 8 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

It is part of our weekly meditation requirements, to read and ponder over this passage, and let the Holy Spirit speak to us through it. I have read it several times already. What really stands out to me right now is the nature of Yeshua. He had a right to call Himself equal with God. But He didn't.
     How many times in the course of our lives do we have the right to bring attention to a status or a position? I'm the boss. I have such-and-such a degree. I'm whatever. I'm Batman. And whether it is true or not, deserved or not, there was someone who truly had the right to say, "Yeah? Well, I'm God. Top that." And He didn't say a thing.
     We are called in Philippians 2 to "have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Messiah Yeshua." It wasn't even that He didn't claim what was rightfully His. It had never even occurred to Him that it was His right. He "did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped." I know that I don't have that attitude yet, because I constantly have to tell myself that I am called to give up my rights. I won't be there until I stop thinking it's my right to begin with.
     

Holy Time Warp! It's Wednesday!

Holy time warp, Batman! It's Wednesday!

So I am right now sitting in class on a break, having just completed Exam 2. I feel like I am in a state of academic bulimia. Learn and purge. Learn and purge.

So what's left? Study questions each day, still have to finish the reading for the critical book review that's due tomorrow, and then the final exam on Friday. That's it. Hard to believe. A full semester almost done.

Anyway, more later. Class is starting again.

Pre? Post? A? Huh?

So at the end of last week, I had set out the plan for this coming week. So far, I am actually a little bit ahead of schedule! I know! Go figure. I was able to get the study questions done that are due for today AND for tomorrow last night. That will give me time to study for the next test, which is tomorrow, and possibly get the other book read that I need to finish and write a review on by Thursday.

Last week we covered mostly the differences between some heady theological terms. They are terms that people have probably heard before, but may not really know what they mean. Although, to be honest, it has been my experience that just because people don't know what the words mean, doesn't mean they aren't experts on the subject!! I am talking about premillennialism, postmillennialism, and amillennialism.

Before you jump into the water, let me say that these things have nothing to do with the tribulation. That is, pre-trib or post-trib or mid-trib or whatever-trib addresses a different situation in eschatology. They all relate to the rapture and whether or not believers will be around to experience the tribulation. No, those other terms don't have anything to do with the tribulation or the rapture.

Rather, simply put, will there be a 1,000-year reign (a millennium) on the earth, and if so, when does that happen in history? That is the major talking point from the first week here. If you believe that there is going to be a 1,000-year reign of Messiah on earth, and you believe that said reign is still to come, you are premillennial. That is, you believe that we are living in a time, right now, that comes before a millennial kingdom. On the other hand, if you believe that there is going to be a millennium, but that the millennium has already begun and we are living in it right now, you are postmillennial. That is, you believe that we are living right now in a time that is after the start of the millennium. And of course, if you happen to believe that there is no such thing as a millennium, and there will be no reign of Messiah on earth for any period of time, you are amillennial.

Of course, this is a VERY simplified view, and there are scriptural discussions behind each one. I had always said that I was premillennial, though I admit I was probably one of those people who said it and really had no idea what I was talking about. However, I can tell you for sure, 100%, that I now KNOW that I am premillennial, and I can tell you why, though that is a topic for another time. I will simply share with you this fact. The only way that post- and amillennialism works is if you factor out Israel and the Jewish people altogether. I don't believe that, and frankly neither should you. I am not telling you what to believe (or maybe I am) but I know this. If God were able to toss aside the promises and prophecies regarding Israel, then there is no hope for any of the promises that He has made to us. And that isn't the God I serve. 

Anyway, it's just about time to head out for breakfast before class. Please remember us in your prayers, and be blessed!P

Looking Ahead

Shabbat is over, we've just finished a sweet havdalah service with the other students, and we were blessed to have had Michael and Heather join us for it as well. They have headed on back to Twenty-Nine Palms, the other students have retired back to their apartments, and Kim and I have retreated back to ours to get ready for bed.

This week looks something like this. Tomorrow is going to have to be a reading day. There are study questions that are due on Monday, and there is another exam that we are taking on Tuesday. There is a book report (critical book review, actually) that is due on Thursday, for which I need to read a complete book, and that will take up a lot of any "extra" time that might creep into the schedule over the next few days.

The focus for this past week has been on eschatology, that is, a study of the last things. End times prophecy kind of stuff. And I have really had the opportunity to consider what I believed about it. My thoughts on the matter haven't changed. In fact, I am more confident of my position now than before I started. And that is a good things. To have your beliefs challenged, be required to defend them, and come out with an increased confidence in your belief is a good thing, especially when your defense is found in the Scripture. I am not saying that everyone will agree, I am simply saying that I know what I believe and why I believe it.

This coming week, the focus I think is shifting from eschatology to ecclesiology, which is a look at what the body of Messiah is supposed to be. I am really looking forward to it. I am also very grateful that the research paper that is due for this class, which was originally supposed to be due this coming week, was postponed until later this summer. This will give me the chance to be able to really put the time and effort into it that I think it deserves. And of course, when it's finished, I will try to make it available to you.

Kim's plans this week, if I can speak for her, I think are to spend some time with her friend Misti early on, perhaps even go over to Harvest Church with her tomorrow. Later this week, Michael is due to have another test to evaluate an ongoing medical concern, so Kim may end up heading back out to Twenty-Nine Palms mid-week. And in the meantime, I will have MORE than enough work reading, writing study questions, and a critical book review to keep me busy if she goes away.

Kim and I both are going to try to commit to a more regular video blog, and those will be shown at KSS on Shabbat, I believe. We will also try to make them available here, though I don't think I have ever tried to do that before. It should be interesting!

Kim and I really appreciate your prayers. Please continue to lift up Michael and Heather, Kim, me, the other students here, and the Feinberg program. For now, I need to get some sleep. Have to start reading right after breakfast. Good night.

Shabbat Update

Well, I guess that the last part of this week got away from me a little. There was a lot of reading, had to finish that Scripture reading paper on the restoration of Israel, and then there was our first exam that we took yesterday. So here is what's going on.

The professor had given us a study question list for the exam. The other students and I divided them among us and we answered 1 or 2 questions each. Then we got together to make sure that we understood each others' answers. That was on Wednesday. After that, which went until about 8:00pm, I finished the reading that due for Thursday and the paper that was due. That took me straight up until 1:00am. Fun!

Thursday evening, Kim helped me and another student to study. I have always found that the small group environment, where I can just talk about a subject, has helped me prepare for an exam better than any other kind of venue. And that was how the other student felt, as well. So for about 3 hours, Kim served as a moderator of a discussion that spanned the subjects of the purpose of God's creation, the covenants of God in the Old Testament and how they have been developed in the new, and the overall purpose of Israel and how she accomplishes that purpose both now and in the future. It was really a great conversation. And Kim was amazing!!!

Friday morning we took the first exam. There were 19 true/false questions, 3 multiple choice, and 6 short paragraph answers (not really short answer questions and not really essay questions, but somewhere in between). Following the exam, I asked the professor about his policy on returning papers and grades. He said that we should have the grades back Monday. Funny that about 3 hours later, sitting at lunch, one of the other students blurted out, "Hey. Did you see that the grades are posted?" So I went and checked. And while I don't like to be boastful, in the interest of keeping you up to date on how I'm doing, I should tell you that I received a 100 on the exam. (Which I did.)

So the pressure is off, at least for the day. Last night, the Talbot students had a nice little Kabbalat Shabbat service to start the Sabbath off right. A little bit of singing, a challah, some grape juice, and bunch of theology students kicking their shoes off and just celebrating God and each other on His day of rest. It was really nice.

Michael and Heather drove down last night, as well, and will be hanging out with us today, driving back tonight to Twenty-Nine Palms. We are going to visit Shuvah Yisrael Messianic Congregation in Irvine this morning for Shabbat, and then not sure what we are going to do. I do know that we are planning on having lunch with Steve and Misti Wiggins, friends of ours who also happen to lead the worship at Shuvah. So that's our plan, we are going to stick to it as much as the Lord will allow, and I will check back in either tonight or tomorrow.

Have a wonderful Shabbat!

A Summary of the Restoration of Israel

So after many hours last night compiling, and condensing, and summarizing, here is the final result of my look at the restoration of Israel as described in the prophets in the Old Testament. It is far from complete in the list of references, however, it is, I believe, a good start at understand the length and breadth of the plan of God to restore the nation of Israel.

The Restoration of Israel According to the Prophets of the OT

Morning Day 3

So we are on break from class, and thought that I would take the opportunity to update. As I knew would happen, class is getting more spirited as we all start to get know one another and become more familiar and comfortable in sharing out thoughts. Questions about the continuity of the Mosaic covenant  in the New Testament have created a lot more tangential conversations than I think the professor was anticipating! But go figure.

Kim spent last night in Twenty-Nine Palms with Michael and Heather, but will be on her way back this afternoon. Please continue to pray for each of them.

Spent a lot of hours last night reading the Scripture. Fascinating stuff. :-) Reading the prophets with a specific eye toward the prophecies of the restoration of Israel in the end times, and the purpose for that restoration. Will be writing that paper tonight, and hopefully posting here tomorrow.

Back to class!

Praises and Prayers after 1 Day

So we have completed the first day of class, and things are going pretty good. I have found that in the often-controversial realm of eschatology, after 4 hours, I am amazed that I still agree with 90% of what the professor is teaching. At some point, I will have to teach him why he is wrong.

Was able to get the reading done that was due for today, primarily because the study questions that were due I had completed before coming out here. That will change moving forward, though, because that was the only work that I was able to complete before coming out here. From this point forward, all of the reading and study questions will need to be completed here, as well.

I have almost completed the Scripture reading that is due for Thursday. It involves reading Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Micah, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and large sections from Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel. All of this is with an eye on three topics.
1. The restoration of the nation of Israel,
2. The purpose of the restoration of the nation, and
3. The relationship of Israel and/or Israel's Messiah to the other nations
Fascinating stuff. I still need to read about half of Zechariah and then Zephaniah, and then the reading is complete. However, I have to also write a two-page summary paper due Thursday as well. I have found that as I have been reading, I have been taking copious notes. Not including whatever notes I take on the second half of Zechariah and Zephaniah, I already have 14 pages of notes. It should be interesting trying to summarize 14+ pages of notes into 2 pages. But I will let you know how it goes. (I might even post the results here!)

So those are the praises.

Please pray for our son, Michael. He is having some health concerns right now. Kim will be driving out to Twenty-Nine Palms this morning to see him. We really don't know exactly what is going on, but should have more information later on. For now, just keep him in your prayers.

Anyway, need to get ready for class, shoot the video blog, and head out for the morning. Would love to hear from y'all!

Another Summer at Feinberg

Kim and I arrived in California this morning for another round of classes at the Feinberg Center for Messianic Jewish Studies. It was an early morning, the second early morning in a row for both of us, though I was up several hours earlier than Kim on Saturday, which is fairly standard for us. So we were up at 3:15am, to finish packing toiletries and such, and a good friend came by at 4:15am to take us to the airport.

The ride down was smooth, which was a good indicator for the rest of the morning. Our flight from Dulles to Long Beach was uneventful, though the person sitting behind Kim was quite rude. Or so she tells me, since I, apparently, was not conscious at the time. I have been blessed with the ability to sleep on planes. Often whether I want to or not.

We got into Long Beach about a half hour early. No problems with the bags, no problems with the rental car, really no problems at all. If you were reading this hoping to hear about all the problems, all of the things that went wrong so far on this trip, you will be disappointed. In fact, this is really a huge praise report.

After checking into the apartment that we will call home for the next month, (which also went smoothly, by the way), we went out to Walmart and purchased all of the things we are going to need for the apartment. This included food and beverage, and also dishwashing detergent, a sponge, paper towels, that sort of thing. We stopped and grabbed some lunch, and then went back to the apartment. However, by this time, to say that we were running out of steam would have been an understatement. Not only wasn't there any steam left, there was no more water to make more steam. Get it? We were tired. So we did what people in that circumstance usually do. We took a nap!

We lay down for about an hour or so. We had to set the alarm, because we didn't want to sleep too long and throw our schedules off too badly. After all, we are three hours behind where we were, so our bodies feel like it is three hours later than it is. It's almost 10:00pm here in La Mirada, California, but our bodies feel like it is 1:00am. No wonder I'm yawning!

Once we got up, we had a really nice conversation by phone with our son, Michael, who is stationed out here in Twenty-Nine Palms. It's about two and a half hours from where we are. So hopefully we will be able to spend a bunch of time with him before he deploys to Afghanistan. At the very least, Kim will be able to do that, even if I am unable because of school work.

Classes begin tomorrow. And I have to say that this is probably the LEAST prepared I have felt for a class in quite some time. The last few weeks have been truly crazy, and events played out in such a way as to prevent me from reading ahead, and preparing any of the work that will be due this week. But do not feel badly, because the priorities I have set are in the right order. My family has, and always will come first. So if the same things happen again, the same choices will be made, and I have no regrets about making them. None. And God will take care of the rest of it, even the school work. I am confident that He is in control.

So this is the place where you can stay connected with us while we are here. I would love to hear your comments about my comments, though I cannot guarantee that I will be able to respond to them all. But I will try. Much will depend on how the course work goes. Hope to hear from you soon!

Where does our happiness come from?

You know how sometimes a phrase or a verse will come up over and over again, and you just know that there is something that the Lord is trying to impress upon you? Well, that's what is going on with me right now. He continues to bring up Psalm 1 in ways that I would never expect to see it. It appears in a movie we watched (Flywheel), it shows up handwritten in a greeting card, Dr. Al Reichman uses it as the basis for last week's message. So I thought I would look more closely at it, and this is what I realized in the first verse, and I felt like I needed to share it.

So many people are wondering about where to find happiness. And I am not going to tell you that all the answers are to be found in this verse. But I can tell you that if we don't heed this verse, we WILL NOT find happiness. Psalm 1:1 says, in the NASB, "How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers!" Let's look at the Hebrew, though.

אַשְׁרֵי הָאִישׁ - Ashrei ha-ish - Commonly translated as "Blessed is the man," the Hebrew for "bless," ברך isn't found in this section. Ashrei is from the word אֶשֶׁר esher which means happiness. Therefore, ashrei ha-ish is "Happy is the man."

אֲשֶׁר לֹא הָלַךְ בַּעֲצַת רְשָׁעִים - asher lo halach ba-atzat r'shanim - who did not walk in the counsel of the wicked.

וּבְדֶרֶךְ חַטָּאִים לֹא עָמָד - u'v'derech chatah'im lo amad - and in the way of the sinners did not stand

וּבְמוֹשַׁב לֵצִים לֹא יָשָׁב - u'v'moshav lay-tzim lo yashav - and in the seat of the scornful did not sit

As Dr. Reichman pointed out this past Shabbat, there is clearly a progression in this first verse. It moves from הלך, to walk, to עמד, to stand, and ends up with ישב, to sit. If we can say, as in the first section, happy is the person who doesn't do these things, then the converse is also true, unhappy is the person who does these things. And the unfortunate fact is that the more unhappy one gets, the more likely they are to engage in these activities, creating a cycle of unhappiness. It would therefore be impossible to find true happiness while in the midst of the cycle. Getting out of the cycle doesn't guarantee happiness, however, remaining there DOES, in fact, guarantee UNhappiness. And who wants to live in THAT place?

There is a reason that Rabbi Sha'ul teaches us that we are to WALK in the newness of life (Romans 6:4), and STAND by faith in His grace (Romans 5:2, 11:20). In this, we will find happiness.

The Believer and the Jewish Community

So Kim and I are back now, and we are half way through the week, already. But since it is Wednesday, I remembered that I hadn't finished my comments from the Wednesday of the symposium. So here we go.

So after the conversation about the Jewish believer and the church, we heard three papers on the Jewish believer and the Jewish community. If you have already read my paper, you will know that it is my contention that the Jewish believer is, inherently, part of BOTH the body of Messiah and the Jewish community. While I also believe that we share more theologically with the body of Messiah, the Jewish believer shares a history that the non-Jew will not be able to relate to in most cases. Therefore, being part of the Jewish community is something that should not be frowned upon for cultural connection. For spiritual formation and edification, however, the body of Messiah MUST remain the community of reference.

One speaker said, "Many Messianic Jews still claim a Jewish identity but through faith in Messiah have lost all meaningful contact with the Jewish community." Unfortunately, I can't disagree with her. Though there are those in the Messianic community who feel that the Jewish believer should be intimately involved, not just in the Jewish community, but in the synagogue as well. However, I disagree with this, as this places the believer under the spiritual authority of someone who is not filled with the רוּחַ הַקּוֹדֶשׁ Ruach Hakodesh, the Holy Spirit. And that is not acceptable.

Which brings me to the next topic, the Jewish Believer and Rabbinic Tradition. I was surprised by the fact that the three speakers were so close in their presentations. I really would have thought that there would have been one person who was really against the keeping of Rabbinic tradition, one who was really for it, and one who was somewhere in the middle. All three papers were pro-Rabbinic tradition for the Jewish believer. Though there was clearly one speaker who was clearly more emphatic about it than the others.

Without getting into too much detail, the one speaker said exactly what I was afraid would be said. Essentially, he said that we shouldn't believe that the rabbis and sages, in writing down the Talmud, weren't being led by the Holy Spirit. This flies in the face of everything that the New Testament teaches about the Spirit. Once Messiah came, died, was buried, and resurrected, the Holy Spirit is only given to believers. This doesn't mean that God can't use unbelievers. God can use ANYONE. However, to claim that the rabbis and sages of the second, third and fourth centuries were acting under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit is, in essence, heresy.

I do believe that there is clearly good lessons to learn from the Rabbinic tradition. However, to place it as authoritative in one's life is to nullify the work of Messiah. Now Messiah never reprimanded men for keeping traditions. He reprimanded them for placing them at the level of Scripture. What makes us think that we can do it now?

So what do you think? Should the Jewish believer be a part of the Church? Should the Jewish believer be a part of the Jewish community? And what role, if any, should rabbinic tradition play in the life of a Jewish believer?

Blessings!

Jewish Believers and Being Jewish

First, let me say שָׁבַּת שָׁלוֹם. Kim and I are still down in Florida, resting after a heavy week. In fact, part of the reason I'm writing this today is because the discussions on Wednesday were so meaty, I really need some time to digest them. They were mainly focused on the relationship between the Jewish believer in Yeshua and Jewish things.

The first topic Wednesday morning was titled, "The Jewish Believer and the Church." This was the topic on which I was presenting. A copy of my paper can be found here. The general task was to discuss the following eight subjects:

·         Develop a Biblical Theology of the Jewish Believers and the Universal Church?

·         Should Jewish Believers Be Part of Local Evangelical Churches or Messianic Congregations…or Both?

·         Is There a Theological Distinction Between the Jewish and Gentile Believers in the Universal Church?

·         When, How and Why Did Messianic Judaism and Rabbinical Judaism Go Their Separate Ways

·         In What Ways Can the 21^st Century Church Identify and Appreciate Her Jewish Roots?

·         Should Local Churches Celebrate the Jewish Festivals or Other Elements of the Torah…How and Why?

·         What is the Unique Value of the Jewish Believer to the local Evangelical The Church

·         The Contributions of the Jewish Believer to the 21^st Century Church

It seemed as if I were the only one to actually follow this outline. The other two presenters did address some of them, however, the vast majority of the discussion centered on whether or not a Jewish believer should be a member in what we will call the Gentile church. And if so, what role should they have?

Please read my paper for my complete thoughts on the subject. Briefly, my view is that if there is a healthy Messianic congregation that is accessible to the Jewish believer, that is where they belong. The church doesn't have the ability to allow the Jewish believer to worship in the cultural and historical manner of the Jewish people. At least not yet. This includes Shabbat, song styles, feasts and festivals, and all sorts of other culturally important elements, many of them, in fact, not Jewish at all, but rather biblical.

Only in the circumstance where there is no healthy Messianic congregation would it be preferable to attend a church. It is my view that under no circumstances should the Jewish believer become a member of a traditional synagogue. This separates a member from the body of Messiah, and submits a follower of Yeshua under the authority of someone not filled with the Holy Spirit. More on this later.

The other presenters took the position that there was absolutely no problem with a Jewish believer being a member at a church. Some of the folks in attendance even said that it might be preferable, though I still am at a loss to understand why. Perhaps this will be addressed in a future symposium.

I would really be interested to know two things. How would you answer the 8 questions listed above? And I would love to hear your comments on the paper that I presented, both the things that you agreed with, and the things that you disagreed with.

I'll write about the other topics from Wednesday later. Right now, going to keep resting. Shabbat shalom.

Believers and the Torah part 2

So after the three presenters on Jewish believers and the Torah, three other presenters spoke on the relationship between Gentile believers and the Torah. This was really interesting, because more than any other topic so far, the three speakers represented three wholly different opinions on the subject.

The first presenter took the stand that the Torah is applicable to everyone, and should be adhered to by all believers. However, he was also very quick to state that biblical salvation is by faith alone, and always has been. So observance is for everyone, with the understanding that the heart intent and motivation must be in the proper place, and faith must be at the core of any obedience.

In the second slot, the presenter took the position that it was up to the person whether they choose to follow Torah or not. However, she made an incredible insightful statement. She said, "The Spirit-filled life will certainly reflect the Jewish Torah observant life of Moses' day in many respects, as God's character has not changed." She continued on to say that the key principles of unity and love must be the overarching guiding forces in the life of the believer. This should lead to the practice that one places the needs and desires of others over and above one's own preferences. But then she added that one's own convictions should also be secondary to those of others. This, for me, created a paradox. If the Spirit-filled life leads to Torah observance, and there are times when those convictions are tossed aside, isn't that operating outside the guiding of the Holy Spirit?

The third and final presenter held the position that Gentiles should have nothing to do with the Torah. I believe that this view came almost entirely from his personal testimony, in which he spent a great deal of time in the Jewish community in Israel. He learned Hebrew, learned the culture, observed the Torah, and to all intents and purposes, became Jewish. In fact, he mentioned that he had considered conversion. All this while, he never spoke about the Messiah at all, especially not to his Jewish friends. All of this led him to the conclusion, years later, that it is far better to just be yourself, and not get caught in the same trap that he did.

It was fascinating that there were parts of each presentation that I agreed with. In the first case, I agreed with much of what he said. There is a biblical case for the continued adherence to Torah, as many had noted in the presentations on Jewish Believers and the Torah. (See my other post.) Yet, it has nothing to do with salvation, and everything to do with a response to salvation. It becomes our expression of love and thanksgiving, in other words, worship, because of what God has done for us in sending His Son. This is the proper heart intent and motive that was referred to in the first presentation.

Paradox not withstanding, the second presenter really had a lot of good things to say. It is rare that one combines Torah observance with unity. More common, it is connected with the command to love. I would say that love and unity are intimately related. And as she put it, our freedom under the new covenant must always desire to promote unity within the body of Messiah.

And you might guess that I disagreed with most of the third position, and you would be right. However, I think that he was correct in the need to never hide who you really are. If you are Gentile, be Gentile. This does not, however, preclude Torah observance. Nor can Torah observance make a Gentile Jewish.

One last comment. Once again, Kim had a very insightful comment regarding all of this. In a faith community that is trying very hard to figure out the Jewish/Gentile relationship, and not make anyone feel second-best, separating these topics on relation to Torah into Jew and Gentile is in some ways contrary to our overall goal of unity, and the promotion of the one new man of Ephesians.

Therefore, regardless of being physical or spiritual seed of Abraham, what should the believer's relationship to Torah be?

Believers and the Torah

This morning, there were two topics presented. The first was on the Jewish Believer and the Torah, and the second was titled the Gentile Believer, the Torah and a Jewish Lifestyle.

The first topic brought up some good points. The first question asked was whether or not Yeshua had instructed Jewish believers to continue to follow the Torah, and how did He intend for them to do it. There were two take-away points from this first presentation. One, that the Messianic community has yet to really define what is meant by Torah, and two, that while believers are free to observe or not observe select miscellaneous laws, the sacrificial and moral laws are still applicable.

The second presenter gave his presentation in absentia, by video. His main point was that the Torah is how God had established His covenant with the nation of Israel, and therefore reflects His desire to preserve them as His people. He added, "Torah is not the means by which God’s people earn his favor, but the way his people learn how to live in a right covenantal relationship with him." Because it isn't a way to earn a right standing with God, it is something that shouldn't be divisive in the body, and this was the main point of his paper.

The final presenter on the Jewish Believer and the Torah focused on an exegetical view of Matthew 5:17-48. In this study, it is revealed that Yeshua never abrogated Torah observance. On the contrary, He took the physical observance and raised the bar to the n-th degree by turning it into a spiritual issue. This deepening of the Torah cannot stand in contradiction to it, but rather intensifies it.

Therefore, all three presenters gave basis for Jewish believers continuing to follow the Torah in some way, shape or form, though not all agreed on the reasons for continued observance.

We're getting ready for the afternoon session, so I will continue this later.

Thoughts on Jewish Identity presentation

I sat in a room tonight with about 80 people from all over the country. In fact, there were people there from all over the world. It was the opening night of the Jewish Identity Symposium. I will be speaking on Wednesday morning, but tonight, three other people presented papers with the topic, "A Biblical Basis for Jewish Identity."

I will admit that I didn't read the papers ahead of time. I tried to follow along, comparing the papers that I had electronically downloaded on the computer with the presentations that were being given. However, since the papers that were written were 4,000 words each, or about 18 pages, and the presentations were only allowed to be 15 minutes, there was a lot that had to be trimmed from the papers, which made it difficult to follow along.

My wife brought up a very good point that I think should be stated from the very start. As believers in the Jewish Messiah, Yeshua, our identities are wrapped up in Him, and in Him alone. So the question of a Biblical basis for Jewish identity is really not an accurate reflection of biblical, particularly New Covenant theology. However, for the sake of this discussion, we will move ahead.

The first presenter for this evening began with the premise that the Jewish people are a communal people. Therefore, rather than asking the question, "Who am I?" the Jewish people ask the question, "Who are we?" As such, Jewish identity is the identity of Biblical Israel as a nation. And Israel's identity, biblically, is marked by the call to be different, set apart, holy, קָדוֹשׁ (kadosh). His final conclusion was that the Tanakh describes this set-apartness, and the New Covenant, while not necessarily providing explicit basis for such an identity, it does, however, assume its continuation.

The second presenter on this subject was somewhat more confusing. His initial statements included a comment that Hebrew Christians and Messianic Jews have contributed to the assimilation and silent disappearance of the Jewish community into the greater church. He continued on to say that Galatians 3:26-28 is Paul's defense of Gentiles remaining Gentiles. Confused yet? Isn't this supposed to be a discussion of the continuation of Jewish identity?

The final presenter tonight seemed to begin with the presumption that the continuation and maintenance of Jewish identity is a given. With that assumption being made, there are a number of consequences to maintaining a Jewish identity, which she illustrated through personal testimony. There is no doubt that the persecution and anti-semitism that have been experienced throughout the past centuries have contributed to many Jewish people assimilating, and giving up their Jewish identity. However, as she pointed out, the same persecution and anti-semitism can be a solidifying force within the Jewish community, something along the lines of, "If we can stick together, we can get through this." And while all this is true, it really doesn't address the issue of a biblical basis for Jewish identity.

The biblical basis for Jewish identity is scattered throughout the New Testament, but not in a dogmatic way. It is revealed in the way that the first century followers of Yeshua lived. It is clear they went to the Temple, just like Jewish people did in those days. It is clear that they honored the Sabbath. It is clear that there were additional things that were part of the Jewish community that were being followed. And in many cases, these things were also being followed by Yeshua, Himself. That seems like a good reason to maintain a Jewish identity if you were Jewish to begin with. The question of Gentiles living a Jewish lifestyle will be part of a future blog later this week.

The issue of Jewish identity, as it applies in this discussion, is one of practice rather than heritage. If Jewish identity is decided solely by birth, that is, by whether or not one is of the lineage of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, then the continuation of Jewish identity is not an issue at all. If you are, you are, and there is no maintenance required. And there is nothing that you can do to change it. If, on the other hand, it is a reference to the practices that were associated with the Jewish community, and those practices are delineated by the Torah, then continuity in the New Covenant is a valid question. Especially since there are so many who believe that everything in the Tanakh was done away with when Yeshua came.

There were no conclusions that were made, and I think that was intentional. I do think that the point is to start a discussion about the subject. So let's start one. I would really be interested to hear about what you think about this. So here are the questions. 1. Is there truly such a thing as a Jewish identity in the Tanakh, and what is it? 2. If there is a Jewish identity, should it continue in and beyond the New Covenant, and what does it look like?

Remember that this is not saying anything about the role or identity of the non-Jew. We will talk about that later. Tomorrow, "The Jewish Believer and the Torah," "The Gentile Believer, the Torah and a Jewish Lifestyle," and "The Messianic Jewish Home." Going to be an interesting day.

It's late, I'm tired, and heading to bed. 

What did Sarah's Key unlock for you?

Kim and I recently watched the movie,  Sarah's Key. I must admit, that I really didn't know much about the movie to being with. I knew that it had a Holocaust theme, but it sounded more like a thriller than what it turned out to be. I like thrillers!

This movie was a really sad story about a Jewish family during the Holocaust. Unlike most films of this genre, it was not set in Germany. It was set in France. If you haven't seen it, I won't spoil it for you. However, if you know me at all, you will understand what I mean when I say that this movie left me thinking. But to be honest with you, I am not sure what conclusions I have come to about it. I would love to hear from anyone who has seen it.

And here is what I would like to know. Most of the time movies have an underlying message that the writer is trying to get across. What was that underlying message for you? Comment here and let's get this conversation started.