A typical encounter hightlights the problemJune 22nd, 2010 I recently had lunch with some friends outside the community centre in Earl Bales Park. At a table next to ours was a 92 year old holocaust survivor. (I know his age because he was advertising to all and sundry.) He was talking to a couple of ladies, telling them that he did not believe in God and complaining that religion was mostly a way of getting money. At that point I asked if I could interject, and he beckoned me over to speak. I began to share with him the story of a rabbi who was standing in the temple in the days before it was destroyed. He saw many people putting in money into the offering jars, but he was struck by an old woman who put only two very small coins in the jar. He exclaimed at her faith, for while others gave out of their excess, she gave out of her poverty. I then explained to the old man that God was not interested in religion (or money) but that what was important was faith – a relationship with the living God. I then explained that the rabbi was Yeshua. You can read about this encounter of Yeshua’s in the Gospel of Mark 12:41-44. The man reiterated that he didn’t believe in God, and then began to state that my books were not valid. I asked him on what basis he said this? Had he read them for himself? Had he studied them? Had he done research into the matter to back up his assertions? The answer to all of these questions was, “no.” My challenge is this. How can you claim that you know the Gospel message – the Good News that Jesus is the Messiah – is untrue, or that the New Testament is untrue, without looking into the matter? How can you turn down the message, when you don’t give it a chance to be heard? I’m not asking you to take my word for it. I am asking you to check it out and then ask God for His truth! Contributed by Daniel Muller, General Director of New Covenant Forum. Posted in Blog, Evangelism, Jesus and Jews, Jews and Jesus, Knowing God, New Covenant, Personal Stories, Uncategorized | No Comments » Sure, she can cook … but is she Jewish?June 10th, 2010 My wife Lynda is a wonderful Jewish cook. Friday nights are always best when she makes her home baked challah. (Store-bought is ok, but you don’t know what you’re missing till you taste hers.) Hanukkah means a chance to sample her delicious latkes, and I can’t wait for Purim to get a taste of her exquisite hamentaschen. Sure, she cooks other things as well, but there is no denying that she is a good Jewish cook. What makes this even more wonderful to me is that my wife is not Jewish. In this day and age, many Jewish people like me have non-Jewish spouses. My wife has also learned to say the b’rachah (blessing) over the festival candles and has learned to make our Erev Shabbat meal special. Why does she do it? Why does she care? It is because we are a family who believe in Jesus (Yeshua) and believe that he came for the salvation of Jew and Gentile alike. Would she be doing these things if she hadn’t married me? Probably not, but that’s what a good marriage is all about: sharing and caring and learning how to please God and one another. Is my family a Jewish home in the sense the rabbis mean it? Certainly not, but then, who says that Jewish is equal to rabbinic? How many of you who read this, I wonder, lead rabbinic lives? No, our house is Jewish, because I am Jewish, and my faith in Jesus has done nothing to change that. In fact, it was not until I became a believer in Jesus, that I really came to appreciate what being Jewish was all about. In many ways I feel like another Jewish man, who married a non-Jewish women, not only to his benefit but to the benefit of the entire Jewish nation. His name was Boaz and his wife was Ruth. She has a whole book in the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament or Tanakh) named after her. Through her came King David and the royal line, right down to Messiah Jesus. Most importantly, Lynda and I share a bond with each other, a love for God, and a regard for His Word as found in the Bible (both Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament). In mutual love we can proclaim the words of Ruth,
Contributed by Daniel Muller, General Director of New Covenant Forum. Posted in Blog, Goyim for God, Jesus and Jews, Jewish Tradition, Jews and Jesus, Personal Stories, This, That, The Other Thing | No Comments » Walking with Israel. Walking with ChristJune 4th, 2010 This year I had the opportunity to help raise money for the UJA Walk with Israel, as a sponsored walker. I walked the 7km course with thousands, and had a great time with the rest of my team (called New Covenant in Messiah). I wore a t-shirt with a Magen David (Star of David) inside of which were the words, “JESUS LOVES YOU.” Three encounters clearly come to mind while I was on the walk. The first occurred even before the walk was started – when I went to sit next to my friends before the start of the opening ceremonies in the Ricoh Coliseum. Two older gentlemen who let me by, and next to whom I would then sit seemed pretty hot under the collar about the shirt I was wearing. They asked why I was wearing it, and I told them that it was because Jesus loved them. They asked me who Jesus was, and I began to tell them that I believed he is the Messiah of Israel, and that he loves them. This made them angrier. I asked them how a message of love can bring out so much anger and hatred, when the person who brings the message (myself, in this case,) only has love for them. The conversation did not go much farther, and I pray that they will see past two thousand years of history to recognize the message of love that was offered them. The second encounter was with a woman who saw the shirt and agreed with me. She was a believer (not Jewish) and goes to one of the messianic congregations in the city. We discussed some of the issues of law and what is to be followed, and we talked of our common faith in Yeshua. It was encouraging to talk to a believer and I thanked God for that encounter. Perhaps He gave me that interchange to bolster my spirits before my third memorable meeting – that with Jews for Judaism, the counter-missionaries who try to keep the word of the Gospel from reaching Jewish ears. A couple of them began following us, one with a camera. It was somewhat flattering to think that, as we simply walked along with the crowd, they felt the need to give us escort. By doing so they helped to raise the issue of Messiah by adding their presence to ours – they have always been very helpful in that way. As the walk came to a close and we were preparing to head home, I had one of their number come and ask me what the first gentlemen asked – why I was wearing that shirt? His question was neither sincere nor interested – in fact he seemed to be trying to allow the photographer to get a picture of us. We had a little discussion, but then I remembered the verse from Proverbs 26:4, “Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you will be like him yourself,” and so I ended the discussion and went home. Our purpose in attending such events is to raise the image of Christ as the loving Jewish Messiah, and to show our solidarity as Christ-believers with the Jewish community, even if we don’t agree with them on religious grounds. Occasionally we have the blessing of speaking with those who respond to that message, whether out of interest or out of anger. Unfortunately, prejudice against Christ and Christianity is still strong among many Jewish people. Having said all that, we had a pretty good time of it this year. In previous years I have been spat at, pushed around and been kicked. I’ve had people scream in my face and call me all sorts of names. As a Jew, I have never been treated as badly as I have from my own Jewish people. It is easy to say, “let’s not go out and antagonize them,” but Christ’s message needs to be told even if it means we are sometimes misunderstood or even vilified. And while my friends and I were walking with Israel, we were also walking with Christ. He was also misunderstood and vilified. He also unswervingly spoke God’s truth in love, and despite opposition. We at New Covenant Forum can do no less. Contributed by Daniel Muller, General Director of New Covenant Forum. Posted in Evangelism, Personal Stories, This, That, The Other Thing, Uncategorized | 1 Comment » Walk with Israel, but what about God?June 2nd, 2010 This past weekend I went on the Walk with Israel sponsored by the UJA (United Jewish Appeal). I was at the opening ceremonies with a number of speakers, the most celebrated of whom was Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel. It was the first time that an Israeli Prime Minister spoke to a crowd in Toronto since Menachem Begin did in 1978. There were many speakers, all of them well spoken, but none was as erudite as the Israeli Prime Minister. Mr. Netanyahu spoke about the common bonds between Israel and Canada: a regard for rule of law, freedom and pluralism. (He didn’t mention that pluralism does not extend to those Jews who believe in Jesus, but I didn’t expect that he would.) He also spoke about Israel’s accomplishments. He talked about the fact that Israel’s regard for the Land came from the bible and he mentioned the promises of the prophets. But there was one thing missing in his speech. In fact throughout the long ceremony with its many speakers, one issue was ignored and left unmentioned. No one talked about God. I have always believed that the will of God is the vital reason that Israel exists and has survived the past 62 years. It is also my belief that what makes Jews different from the rest of the world is the fact that we are the only nation of people who have a special relationship with God. Here was a Jewish event in which God was given the cold shoulder. You can talk about Jews and you can talk about Judaism, but you can’t talk about God. To those who regard the first two and ignore the last, I direct you to these Scriptures (which talks about God a lot): Jeremiah 5:20-31. Idolatry comes in many forms. God is the only refuge of the righteous. Contributed by Daniel Muller, General Director of New Covenant Forum. Posted in Knowing God, Personal Stories, This, That, The Other Thing, Uncategorized, Zionism and Israel | No Comments » Unpuzzling the Jewish JesusMay 18th, 2010 I like doing puzzles. The more pieces the better. I don’t get to do them very often, but when I get a chance, I enjoy the pastime very much. To do a puzzle, certain steps are required in order to succeed.
Recently I was speaking with a colleague over coffee. He was expressing how much of the pieces of the Gospel truth (the truth of Jesus as Messiah) there was, not only in the Tanakh (Old Testament), but even in rabbinic writings. I agreed with him and we both wished (and prayed) that the Jewish religious leaders would just put the pieces together. In truth, some have put the pieces together. Rabbi Isaac Lichtenstein, Alfred Edersheim, Rabbi Leopold Cohn, Paul Levertoff, Rabbi Joseph Rabinowitz, Arnold Fruchtenbaum, Rabbi Isidor Zwirn: these are just a few names among the many more who looked at the pieces of the puzzle and began to understand that Yeshua (Jesus) was, indeed, the Messiah of Israel come as promised by Moses and the Prophets. Though there are many more names that could be added to the list, most religious Jewish leaders have not puzzled the Gospel out. Most do not want to take the time and effort to do so. Others do not want to order the pieces so that they can be understood – they will leave pieces upside down or in various orders of disarray. In the end, the pieces do not get put together so as to make the picture. And, of course, the rabbis refuse to look at the picture so that they have it before them. The picture is found in the B’rit Hadashah – the New Testament. It, and it alone, makes sense of the Tanakh. Nevertheless the picture can be solved without it. One of the best testimonies of a Jewish believer I have ever read was the story of Isidor Zwirn, a Haredi rabbi who was hired by his synagogue to study Zionism. His studies brought him to understand that Jesus was the Messiah and he became a believer, without ever having read the B’rit Hadashah or having heard the Gospel. The book of his testimony is called The Rabbi from Burbank, written by Isidor Zwirn and Bob Owen (Tyndale House Publishers, 1986). The truth of Jesus as the Messiah is available to every Jewish person who wishes to puzzle it out. Don’t take my word for it! Read the Scriptures and check it out for yourself! If you honestly seek to solve the puzzle, God will help you. We would also be happy to help you if you like. Just contact us! Contributed by Daniel Muller, General Director of New Covenant Forum. Posted in Jesus and Jews, Jews and Jesus, Messiah in the Tanach, Personal Stories, This, That, The Other Thing | No Comments » The Genius Artist From VitebskApril 20th, 2010 The art world of Marc Chagall is unique. Just as most people would immediately recognize the paintings of Norman Rockwell, the paintings of Marc Chagall are also distinct and recognizable once you acquaint yourself with them. His many works abound in Jewish symbolism, Biblical stories, and his beloved childhood town of Vitebsk in Belarus. Chagall painted fanciful visions depicting floating, dream-like images as well as sinuous figures of people and animals that are most times out of proportion in size. A goat or a fish may appear much larger than a man. His inexhaustible palette of vibrant and rich colours are his trademark and his distinct and whimsical images have set him apart as one of the world’s greatest Jewish artists. Marc Chagall was born in 1887, eldest of nine children into the home of a poor Hasidic family. Chagall told his mother that he wanted to be a painter but she could never comprehend why he would set his heart on such an impractical vocation. Nonetheless, in 1906 at age sixteen, Chagall began to study at the art school of Yehuda Pen in his hometown. A year later he left for St. Petersburg to further his studies under various known artists, eventually going to Paris in 1910. He returned to Vitebsk in 1914 to marry his fiancé, Bella Rosenfed. World War I broke out while he was home and Chagall became a participant in the Russian Revolution of 1917. Bella and Marc moved to Paris in 1923 where he later became a French citizen. The Nazi occupation of France during World War II led Chagall and his wife to flee Paris. American journalist, Varian Fry assisted their escape from France through Spain and Portugal and in 1941 they settled in the United States. Unfortunately, his beloved Bella died in 1944. Chagall returned to Paris where he began to work in ceramics, sculptures and stained glass windows. The synagogue of the Hebrew University Hadassah Medical Centre in Jerusalem boasts one of Chagall’s greatest achievements, twelve stained-glass windows each depicting one of the tribes of Jacob. Perhaps the most remarkable painting Chagall ever painted was in 1938 entitled ‘White Crucifixion’, the first of his many paintings of the crucifixion. For 1900 years no well-known Jewish artist dared to paint the figure of Jesus on the cross and yet Chagall did; he painted Jesus as a suffering Jewish Saviour. Amid much symbolism of Jewish persecution, the painting portrays Jesus nailed to the cross with a lighted menorah at his feet. His loins are covered with a Jewish prayer shawl and over his head written in Hebrew, ‘Jesus of Nazareth King of the Jews’. Chagall painted yet another picture that has been declared by some to be the most unusual self-portrait in the history of art, ‘Self-Portrait with a Clock’. Chagall has painted himself standing with brushes and palette in front of a picture of the crucifixion which he has just painted. His demeanor in the picture is melancholy as he contemplates the cross while his head is bowed over a sad-eyed donkey. A clock rests above Chagall’s head and interestingly, the time is set at three o’clock and above the head of Jesus is a rooster. Why a rooster? One can only speculate but perhaps there is an answer to the question. A custom that has been observed for centuries by Eastern European Jews is called kapparah from the Hebrew root ‘to cover.’ It is a traditional right that is supposed to be atoning as a substitute for the temple sacrifice. The male of the household takes a rooster on Yom Kippur and swinging it over his head three times will declare: ‘This is my substitute, my atonement, it shall meet death but I shall find long life’ and then the rooster is slaughtered. Was Chagall bowing to his kapparah? We will never know but this we do know, Marc Chagall painted a Jewish Jesus for the world to see, and he painted him as a suffering Savior. Chagall died in 1985 at the age of 97 leaving behind his legacy and art works worldwide. Today a museum sits at 29 Pokrovskaia Street in his home town of Vitebsk, a tribute to ‘the genius artist of Viebsk.’ Contributed by Marilyn Duguid, Secretary/Treasurer on the Board of Directors of New Covenant Forum. Posted in A Gentile perspective, Atonement, Personal Stories, Uncategorized | No Comments » The question of Talmud and its authorityApril 9th, 2010 For many years now, I have talked to a number of rabbis and Orthodox Jews about the question of the Talmud’s authority. Where does it come from? From what can I deduce divine approval or support for that authority? When the Scriptures explicitly state that, “Moses wrote down all the words of the LORD (Exodus 24:4),” it doesn’t leave much room for an oral Torah. So what is the basis for the halachic traditions found in the Talmud and the writings of the later rabbis, especially when we are told by God, “You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God that I command you (Deuteronomy 4:2).” To date I have not received one satisfactory explanation to this question about the Talmud’s authority. Perhaps you have an answer? Then again, perhaps the answer is that the Talmud is not divinely inspired or authoritative and that the best thing to do is to read the Word of God as it is written. There have been many Talmudically learned rabbis who have done just that and came to realize that the Tanakh points not to the Talmud for gaining entrance into the Olam Habah, but to the Messiah Yeshua (Jesus). (For examples go to this site.) If you agree or disagree, we would love to hear what you have to say. Contributed by Daniel Muller, General Director of New Covenant Forum. Posted in Blog, Messiah in the Tanach, Personal Stories, This, That, The Other Thing | No Comments » Facing DeathApril 7th, 2010 Recently, the mother of a dear friend of mine passed away, and I attended the memorial service. Although there was much sadness among those who knew her well and much sympathy among those of us who knew the bereaved, nevertheless the proceedings had an undercurrent of joy. You see, this lady was a believer in Yeshua (Jesus). Her husband, her children – all of us who also know Yeshua – recognized that she is most certainly in a place that brings her joy and that we will all have the opportunity to see her again on some glorious day when we go to our heavenly home. As I approach the end of my first half-century of life (a prosaic way of saying I will soon be fifty), I can’t help but think of my own mortality, and to look introspectively at how the thought of my death effects me emotionally. Now I can’t say how I would respond if I had some dire news from my doctor telling me that my time was up, but I can say that as I look at death I can face it without concern and with not a little anticipation. My excitement in the afterlife doesn’t come from any presumption that I’m good enough for God in regard to deeds or thoughts. I have no doubt that there are atheists out there who are ‘better people’ then I am. Still I know – and the Scriptures confirm – that nothing I do can make me right with God. Yet I have the same sense of surety that I am going to be with God that I had for my friend’s mother. This is because I know God through Messiah Yeshua – because of his righteousness which is imparted to me and that I am now clothed with, having accepted his sacrifice on my behalf. Now you might say this is wishful thinking – but before coming to faith in Yeshua, although I couldn’t say for sure what the afterlife held out for me, I would have said what many of my Jewish people (and many other people) say: I am basically a good person, and so I should be ok. I did not really feel a need for certainty. My certainty did not come out of my need, but out of my knowledge as I came to know who God was and what His Word said. That is why another Jewish believer, Saul of Tarsus also known as the Apostle Paul, could rejoice with these words: There is a way to be certain of your eternal destiny, and that is by having a relationship with God through our Messiah Yeshua. You don’t have to take my word for it. Check it out for yourself. Read the Scriptures – the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament – and see what it says. If you have any questions feel free to make your comment, or you can contact us directly. Contributed by Daniel Muller, General Director of New Covenant Forum. Posted in Knowing God, Personal Stories, Resurrection, This, That, The Other Thing, Uncategorized | No Comments » You can be Jewish and believe in Jesus!December 2nd, 2009
The most common objection I get, when sharing Messiah Yeshua (Jesus Christ) with my Jewish people, is this very simple one: you can’t be Jewish and believe in Jesus. I have received this response from the religious and the unreligious; by the old and by the young. And to each one I have a very simple question: Why not?
The most typical answer I receive is that Jews don’t believe in Jesus, but that is clearly a faulty argument. I grew up Jewish and I became a believer in Him. Not only that, but I know of many Jews who have come to believe in Yeshua, and there are many, many more that I don’t know. Some of them were very religious Orthodox Jews, some of them were observant Jews in the Conservative or Reform movements and some were completely secular: die-hard atheists or not so die-hard agnostics. The one thing they have in common is that they are Jewish.
I use the present tense when I say we are Jewish because, as far as we are concerned, believing in Jesus is a very Jewish thing to do. You see, I believe that this statement – you can’t be Jewish and believe in Jesus – really means – Jesus is not the Jewish Messiah, he is not Saviour and he is not Lord.
The problem is that the response is almost always based, not on what the objectors know, but only on what they’ve been told. When I challenge Jewish people to tell me how they know Jesus is not the Messiah, they don’t really have a response. Most Jewish people have not investigated the claims of Jesus as found both in the Tanakh (the Hebrew Scriptures) or the B’rit Hadashah (the New Testament). Many have made half-hearted attempts to read some of the B’rit Hadashah (or, for that matter, the Tanakh), but not really done a critical and honest investigation.
Recently I spoke with a Haredi rabbi, and in the midst of our discussions I challenged him to do just that. To look at the New Testament text, not in a cynical way, but in a critical way, honestly seeking to understand what it says. He said he would, but a month or so later he had barely done any reading. He said he was happy with the Judaism he had – but again, he has not honestly looked at the text that tells us about the Messianic claims of Yeshua.
I came to believe in Yeshua because I recognized that the promise of Yeshua is in the Tanakh. I have come to understand that there is a picture of a lowly Messiah in the Hebrew Scriptures (Psalm 22:1-31; Isaiah 53:1-12; Zechariah 12:10), that this picture was recognized by the rabbis in his day (though they did not recognize him when he came), and is even recorded in the Talmud (b. Sanhedrin 98a; b. Sukkah 52a). Over the years I am more and more amazed at the Jewish sensibilities in the B’rit Hadashah, and how consistent it is with the Tanakh.
And I know that everything that is written in the Tanakh is a preparation for the time of Yeshua’s coming – the promises to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; the covenant at Sinai with its sacrificial system and its laws of sanctification; the promises to David and through the Prophets. Ultimately the Hebrew Scriptures are about Messiah Yeshua.
But if you won’t read the book, you can’t know the truth. The truth that I have found, that many Jewish people have found, is that the most Jewish thing you can do is to believe in the Messiah promised by Moses and the Prophets – and that Messiah is Yeshua. For if he is not the Messiah to the Jews then he can be nobody’s Messiah.
Why not check out the truth for yourself. Read the Hebrew Scriptures. Read the New Testament as well. If you need a copy we would be happy to provide you with one – just email us. Then ask the Lord of all Creation to show you His truth. Not my truth – and not the rabbis’ truth – but His truth.
“Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known. (Jeremiah 33:3)”
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. (Matthew 7:7-8)”
If you want, give us a call and we’ll talk! Call 647-439-2936 and ask for Daniel. Or email us at info@newcovenantforum.org. Or check out our website at www.newcovenantforum.org.
You don’t have to agree with us. But, at least, make your decision from an informed perspective. I would love to receive your instructive and constructive response. Contributed by Daniel Muller, General Director of New Covenant Forum. Posted in Jesus and Jews, Jews and Jesus, Knowing God, Messiah in the Tanach, Personal Stories, This, That, The Other Thing | No Comments » |
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