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.