YOU CAN’T BE JEWISH AND BELIEVE IN JESUS JEWISH OBJECTIONS ANSWERED SPECIAL EDITION | THE CHOSEN PEOPLE | 5 I was raised to believe that Jews can’t believe in Jesus and remain Jews. The vast majority of Jewish people would call this a “no brainer!” But how did this type of thinking come about? The historical facts of the case would actually lead to the opposite conclusion. Jesus Himself was Jewish! Also, His disciples and nearly all the writers of the New Testament were Jewish. One of the very first controversies discussed by Yeshua’s followers was whether non-Jews could believe in Jesus the Messiah and be viewed as equal citizens in the kingdom of God! The answer, of course, was a heartfelt and resounding “Yes!” As these early Jewish Jesusfollowers shared the message of His death and resurrection, Gentiles began to embrace the message in far greater numbers than Jewish people. Within two centuries, the communities of Yeshua’s followers lost their Jewish character, as Gentiles became the dominant force within the community. Increased polarization on both sides fueled the belief that Jews cannot believe in Jesus and that Jewish people who did believe must abandon Jewish customs. These positions became matters of Jewish and Christian law (in the Talmud, Roman Law, and Canon Law), leading to today’s status quo. Nevertheless, some Jewish people did believe and continue to believe in Yeshua while remaining Jewish. They celebrate the Jewish holidays, identify with the Jewish past, present, and future, and keep many of the Jewish traditions that remain consistent with both the Hebrew Scriptures and New Testament message. Whether we speak of rabbis like Rabbi Cohn, or politicians like British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli, or Messianic Jews in Israel or North America, we find that it is indeed possible for Jewish people to believe in Jesus. There are also hundreds of Messianic Jewish congregations around the globe, and they are growing in number and vitality, without abandoning their Jewish identity. From the New Testament until today, Jewish people have believed in Jesus while maintaining their Jewish heritage. They believe in Him despite the pressure of a growing secular culture, where neither being Jewish nor following Jesus is very popular. When asked why they believe in the Jewish Messiah, most of today’s Jewish followers of Yeshua would simply say it is because He fulfills the Messianic prophecies found in the Hebrew Scriptures. And even more so, these Messianic Jews have experienced God in ways they never had before they embraced Yeshua as their Messiah. It is hard to argue with another person’s experience! BY BRUCE KLEINBERG, A JEWISH BELIEVER FROM DALLAS, TEXAS IF JESUS IS THE MESSIAH, WHY ISN’T THERE PEACE IN THE WORLD? If the Messiah snaps his fingers and, “poof,” world peace is suddenly here, how long do you think it would last? Probably not too long based upon thousands of years of human experience. Ask yourself, “How quickly would the bickering start? How long would it take for wars, even small interpersonal ones, to heat up?” Clearly, humans are not naturally inclined toward maintaining shalom (peace). What good would this finger snapping messiah have really done in the long run? What is the point, if he had only quelled a few skirmishes, but left the human heart unchanged? As the great Jewish prophet Isaiah wrote, “…And they will hammer their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not lift up sword against nation, and never again will they learn war.” (Isaiah 2:4) How will this transformation happen? The only hope for sustainable world peace is to change the hearts and the spirits of individuals and communities—not by solving all of the world’s political disputes in an instant, because instants are over instantaneously! This is why the idea of two comings of the Messiah makes sense. The Messiah will bring inner peace to human hearts through His death and resurrection and then will come again to bring external peace. The heart of an individual must be changed before the global community can be transformed. The idea of two comings lines up with the biblical hope of the Messiah who comes to die for sin, rise from the dead to give power to change, and will return again to judge the nations and transform the world. True peace comes one heart at a time, and it starts with you and me. BY ERIC MATTSON, A JEWISH BELIEVER FROM ATLANTA, GEORGIA
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