FIRE - Now Think On This by Steve Martin

FIRE

Now Think On This

Steve Martin

“After this, I will pour out my Spirit on all humanity. Your sons and daughters will prophesy,

your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions;  and also on male and female slaves in those days I will pour out my Spirit. I will show wonders in the sky and on earth —

blood, fire and columns of smoke.” (Joel 3:1-3, Complete Jewish Bible)

Fire is an amazing creation of the Lord. When mankind discovered how to make it, and keep it burning, he was able to heat his body and home, cook his food, and scare off marauding enemies that tried to attack him and his community. As knowledge increased, fire was harnessed and used for constructive purposes, by generating power to operate machinery, and in time, electricity.

Destructive fire can burn down populated areas and destroy years of growth in forests. In the later part of 2016, we have seen fires consume vast amounts of acreage in some areas that are not usually known for wildfires, such as in the mountains of North Carolina and the land of Israel. These fires can remove accumulations of underbrush and overgrowth, which is a good thing, but if not gotten under control, they will also emblaze people’s habitations and livelihood.

Arsonists, such as those responsible for the Israeli fires, are bent on destroying that which good people have spent years planting and building up. The hell fire of hell itself lives within their hearts. They seek to kill and destroy, just as their god does.

In the scriptural context of Joel’s prophetic words (verses above), he wrote of both the natural and spiritual fires that were to come upon the earth. In recent decades those fires have already begun to be released, both as a consuming fire for destruction, and a consuming fire for revitalization of human spirits.

"It will come about after this (Note: the return of the Jews to the Promised Land in Joel 1-3) that I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; and your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. Even on the male and female servants I will pour out My Spirit in those days. "I will display wonders in the sky and on the earth, blood, fire and columns of smoke." 

The sun will be turned into darkness and the moon into blood before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. "And it will come about that whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be delivered; for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be those who escape, as the Lord has said, even among the survivors whom the Lord calls.” (Joel 2:28-3:1 NASU)

On the day of Pentecost, as recorded in Acts 2:3-4, Peter exclaimed that the spiritual fire that had come upon them (…and there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance) was a fulfillment of that very declaration of Joel’s prophecy, about that baptism of fire that was coming.

“But Peter, taking his stand with the eleven, raised his voice and declared to them: "Men of Judea and all you who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you and give heed to my words.  For these men are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only the third hour of the day; but this is what was spoken of through the prophet Joel:

'AND IT SHALL BE IN THE LAST DAYS,' God says,

'THAT I WILL POUR FORTH OF MY SPIRIT ON ALL MANKIND;

AND YOUR SONS AND YOUR DAUGHTERS SHALL PROPHESY,

AND YOUR YOUNG MEN SHALL SEE VISIONS,

AND YOUR OLD MEN SHALL DREAM DREAMS;

EVEN ON MY BONDSLAVES, BOTH MEN AND WOMEN,

I WILL IN THOSE DAYS POUR FORTH OF MY SPIRIT

And they shall prophesy.

'AND I WILL GRANT WONDERS IN THE SKY ABOVE.” (Acts 2:14-19, NASU)

As it happened in Peter’s time, during the birth of the church, so again it has happened, and will continue to happen, in our time, in these end times, as the fire of the Lord has once again come in spiritual power. This consuming fire is to empower His people for the fulfillment of His perfect plan and purpose – that of salvation for both Jew and Gentile in all nations of the world.

While we pray for protection from the natural, destructive fires, at the same time we must pray for the full release of the God of Israel’s supernatural fire – to bring His kingdom upon the earth.

Now think on this,

Steve Martin

Founder

Love For His People, Inc.

  

P.S. I would be most grateful if you'd share this encouraging word with your family and friends. They might need it. You can easily use the social media icons below. Thanks! Steve

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Now Think On This - In the Year of our Lord 11.25.16 - #269 –“FIRE” – Friday 1:30 pm

All previous editions of Now Think On This can be found on this Blog, and on the website: Now Think On This

Again, I would be most grateful if you'd share this encouraging word with your family and friends. You can easily use the social media icons below. Thanks! Steve

The Connection Between Christians and the Jewish High Holidays - TOBY JANICKI CHARISMA NEWS

Hundreds of Israelis celebrate Yom Kippur at the Western Wall. (Flickr )

The Connection Between Christians and the Jewish High Holidays

 9/29/2016 TOBY JANICKI  CHARISMA NEWS

With Rosh HaShanah and the beginning of the High Holidays only a few days away, I thought I would review some of my material on this from the perspective of a Christ follower.

It should be of no shock that the early believers, both Jew and Gentile, celebrated the festivals of Israel even after coming to Messiah. This included the celebration of Rosh HaShanah and fasting on Yom Kippur.

Yom Kippur is to Judaism what Christmas is to Christianity; just as many Christians go to church on Christmas—even if they never enter a church throughout the rest of the year—so too, most Jews fast on Yom Kippur and attend synagogue services. It is a cultural and spiritual landmark. Not surprisingly then, we find a passing reference to this fast in the book of Acts:

"Now when much time had been spent, and sailing was now dangerous because the Fast was already over, Paul advised them, saying, "Men, I perceive that this voyage will be with disaster and much loss, not only of the cargo and ship, but also our lives"(Acts 27:9–10, NKJV).

"The Fast" referenced here is Yom Kippur. Daniel Stökl Ben Ezra assumes that Luke would not have used the term "the Fast" as a calendaric reference unless he himself was keeping the fast and assumed that his readers were as well:

I cannot help but draw the conclusion that Luke himself and his implied readers observed Yom Kippur. Why else would Luke use a "Jewish calendaric reference for a secular problem?" He clearly presumes that his readers will understand what he is referring to.

Scholars speculate that the readers of Acts were Gentiles like Luke himself. In order for Luke's readers to understand such a passing reference, they must have been observing Yom Kippur. Indirect evidence can be found in the book of Revelation.

The book of Revelation is packed with allusions to the rituals and themes of the high holidays. The apocalyptic imagery—the day of judgment, the books of judgment, the blast of trumpets, the Temple scenes, and so forth—are all borrowed directly from the traditional observance of Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur. John addressed the book of Revelation to seven communities in Asia Minor, constituted predominantly of Gentiles.

If those communities were not celebrating the high holidays along with the Jewish community, they would have been ill-prepared to decipher the book of Revelation, just as the church is today. Records of Gentile believers celebrating Yom Kippur appear in later church literature. The late second-century Epistle to Diognetus rails against Christians who observe Jewish laws such as "the Fast." Origen mentions Christians fasting on Yom Kippur:

Whence also we must say something now to those who think that in virtue of the commandments of the Law they must practice the fast of the Jews (Homily on Leviticus 12:2 [Barkley]).

He mentions another case, again involving Caesarean Christians, in his Homilies on Jeremiah, proving that this is not an isolated instance; there must have been at least several groups of Gentile Christians in the third century still celebrating this major feast day of Judaism. In the late fourth century, John Chrysostom is still denouncing those who "join the Jews in keeping their festivals and observing their fasts."

Further witness to this phenomenon can be found in the fifth-century medieval church practice of the Fast of the Seventh Month. This fast formed part of the Ember Days and was one of the most solemn days of the church's liturgical year. Scholars see this fast as the result of the Christianization of Yom Kippur.

In other words, because many Christian Gentiles were celebrating Yom Kippur, as the church began to split from Judaism, Christianity slowly transformed it into a solely Christian fast in the month of September. This is similar to the transformation of Passover into Easter.

The fifth-century theologian and pope Leo the Great wrote: "We proclaim the holy Fast of the Seventh Month, dearly-beloved, for the exercise of common devotions, confidently inciting you with fatherly exhortations to make Christian by your observance that which was formerly Jewish" (Sermon 90:1).

In this we once again see that many Gentile believers celebrated Yom Kippur, so much so that it remained even after the parting of the ways began to take place between Judaism and Christianity. 

Toby Janicki is a teacher, writer, and project manager for First Fruits of Zion(ffoz.org). He contributes regularly to Messiah Journal and has written several books including God Fearers: Gentiles and the God of Israel.

It's often said, "There is only one race—the human race." While the phrase has become almost cliché in repetition, it happens to be 100 percent accurate, both scientifically and theologically speaking.

From Ferguson to Baltimore, Tulsa to Charlotte—and on college campuses from coast-to-coast—a great divide is sweeping America. It is fueled largely, if not entirely, by half-truths and outright lies. Truth is irrelevant. Only the narrative matters. When "Hands Up Don't Shoot™" can do so very much to further "the cause," it matters not that it represents a holocaust-denial-level of detachment from reality.

Which tells you everything you need to know about the cause.

This is by design. These embers of racial division are purposely fanned to a red-hot flame by certain political leaders, "social justice" warriors and "community organizers"—cut principally from the same ideological cloth—in order to permanently ingrain a turbulent level of cultural division based solely upon the varying shades of people's skin. This, in turn, is intended to provoke widespread governmental dependency and, thus, one-party political control in perpetuity.

Yet, even at its core the idea of racial division—of race itself—is a myth. To sub-divide humanity based upon nothing more than varying levels of skin pigmentation is to rely upon the weakest of genetic markers.

And "race" really does signify nothing more than skin color.

Science dispels the Myth of 'Race'

In a Feb. 5 Scientific American article titled, "Race Is a Social Construct, Scientists Argue," journalist Megan Gannon writes, "Today, the mainstream belief among scientists is that race is a social construct without biological meaning. And yet, you might still open a study on genetics in a major scientific journal and find categories like 'white' and 'black' being used as biological variables."

"In an article published today (Feb. 4) in the journal Science," continues Gannon, "four scholars say racial categories are weak proxies for genetic diversity and need to be phased out."

"It's a concept we think is too crude to provide useful information. It's a concept that has social meaning that interferes in the scientific understanding of human genetic diversity, and it's a concept that we are not the first to call upon moving away from," notes Michael Yudell, professor of public health at Drexel University in Philadelphia. Under the latest genetic research, race is "understood to be a poorly defined marker of that diversity and an imprecise proxy for the relationship between ancestry and genetics," he adds.

While not directly involved with the research, Dr. Svante Pääbo, a biologist and director of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany, agrees wholeheartedly with its findings. "What the study of complete genomes from different parts of the world has shown is that even between Africa and Europe, for example, there is not a single absolute genetic difference, meaning no single variant where all Africans have one variant and all Europeans another one, even when recent migration is disregarded."

Still, as the researchers likewise note, "Assumptions about genetic differences between people of different races have had obvious social and historical repercussions." Indeed, there are those on both extremes of the political spectrum with a vested interest in making sure these social and historical repercussions remain as inflamed and catastrophic as possible.

"Race" is a divisive means to a selfish political end.

It is not a scientific reality.

God's Final Word on 'Race'

We love labels. We love to pit people against one another and lump them into neat, fixed little categories of put-upons, most often based upon outward appearances: black vs. white; Hispanic vs. Asian; tall vs. short; skinny vs. fat; old vs. young; abled vs. disabled, and so on.

Yet these divisions are artificial. They're man-made. Every human being is created by a holy God, in His image and likeness, and imbued by Him with infinite worth and import. There is only one true and transcendent physical division, and that division was both created and intended by God to become reconciled as one flesh through the holy bonds of marriage—this, to propagate the human race: "So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them" (Gen. 1:27).

Male and female. The XY and the XX. Immutable distinctions with a beautiful and bountiful difference. That's it. All other physical divisions, especially racial divisions, remain artificial.

Our bodies, you see, are merely outward shells. As the great Scottish author and theologian George MacDonald once wrote, "Never tell a child 'you have a soul.' Teach him, 'you are a soul; you have a body.'"

We are souls. We have a body—an outward shell or "Earth suit" as one of my favorite professors used to say. Why on God's Earth are we so deceived to believe that we must separate ourselves and hate one another based upon superficial, almost cosmetic outward appearances?

"Now I urge you, brothers, to closely watch those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the teaching which you have learned, and avoid them" (Rom. 16:17).

To be sure, Christ Jesus alone can dissolve these divisions. "For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is generous toward all who call upon Him" (Rom. 10:12).

These are not financial riches, but riches of love, life, spirit and salvation.

As a man with an Italian wife, a black sister-in-law, a Filipino uncle and biologically-related half Filipino cousins, a step-grandmother who illegally immigrated from Mexico, biologically-related half Mexican aunts and uncles, and dozens of foster brothers and sisters from across the globe, I have learned firsthand throughout my life that "race" is truly meaningless—it's less than skin deep.

Until we learn this as a nation, we will remain a nation divided.

Yes, love is the answer. "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another" (John 13:34).

There is no political fix to this problem.

It's a spiritual problem, requiring a spiritual fix.

And His name is Jesus.

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The Honor God Has Bestowed Upon the End-Times Church - GRANT BERRY CHARISMA NEWS

The church has a big responsibility when it comes to Israel in these end times. (Facebook )

The Honor God Has Bestowed Upon the End-Times Church

 8/10/2016 GRANT BERRY  CHARISMA NEWS

Nowhere is the relationship between G-d's family, as Jews and Gentile believers, more clearly seen in Scripture than in the story of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32). For a moment, let us reflect upon it, with G-d being the father and the two sons being Jew and Gentile, in order to help us see the changes that we need to make in these times.

Sometimes, when looking at this story, it is hard for us in the church to see ourselves as the older brother, because Israel is the one who came first. However, except for the apostles and many of the first Jewish believers who helped to establish the church in the first century, the rest of the Jewish people have still to come into the New Covenant. This is one of the reasons Jesus said, "So the last will be first, and the first last" (Matt. 20:16).

We must be clear here to hold onto G-d's Word, as salvation only comes through faith in Yeshua (Rom. 11:23). That means apart from the Jewish remnant, Israel is still to experience redemption through Messiah alone. As a result, what was once completely Jewish before the New Covenant was given has been handed over to Gentile believers, who now run and operate our Father's house. So when we read the story of the prodigal son, we can understand how the faithful brother feels. He thought he was being obedient, he did everything he was supposed to do, and part of him was probably happy because he knew he would end up in control. After all, it was his inheritance, and he had worked for it for years.

Now faced with his brother's return, he does not respond like his father, who is full of compassion and mercy, but rather with anger, hostility and jealousy. How dare he even think about returning here! he thinks to himself. His brother, who went his own way, who squandered everything he had and then realized the error of his ways, being truly humbled by life, returned home in the hope he could become one of his father's servants.

On the other hand, the father's response is completely different from that of the elder brother. After all, he was a loving father who stood in the gap for his lost son. He was faithful to love him, despite his rejection. He was grieved and heartbroken that his son walked away from him in the first place, and he never stopped feeling the pain of this separation—he wept and he mourned. But he never lost hope while waiting patiently for his son to return, as he knew it was only a matter of time.

Time as we know it seems endless, but the father said, "I will never give up. I will never surrender until my lost son is properly restored." Then all of a sudden, an incredible thing happens and the fullness of joy sweeps over the father's heart and the love of G-d consumes his soul like a river flowing at springtime. Suddenly, from his rocking chair on his front porch, he can see his lost son at a distance down the path leading up to the front of the house. He immediately knows and understands what has happened, except now his heart is filled with compassion as tears of joy are running down his face as he cries, "My son! My son! My son!"

Full of overwhelming excitement, he runs down the path to greet his son. When they meet, he throws his arms around him and hugs him like a bear, kissing him all over his face. His son humbles himself and seeks his father's forgiveness, even asking to become like one of his servants. Yet none of that seemed to matter now, because today, his son who was lost, his son who was dead has been found and is alive again. His son, whom he never stopped waiting for, whom he never stopped praying for, has returned.

Immediately, and without question, the father restored him to his rightful place as an heir along with the obedient son.

The son's loving father is filled with compassion, his heart filled with mercy and grace. He lovingly embraces him and immediately restores him to his place in his family—something the older brother cannot even fathom or understand, as he asks, "How could you do this to me?"

Yet we know our Father in heaven is full of mercy and grace, and His gospel is the same. He is able to wash away all of our sins, even as He has already done, so we could come into the kingdom in the first place, all as a result of His great love for us. Didn't the veil of sin also blind us before His grace supernaturally lifted it from our souls?

Spoken Prophetically to Gentile Believers

The Father says to the Gentile believers: "For I have promised to restore Israel. I have given My word, I have covenanted with him in the same way I have covenanted with you. And all I have already belongs to you. I am willing to forgive him, the same way I am willing to forgive you. For just as he was unfaithful to Me by rejecting Me, so you have been unfaithful to Me by rejecting them."

So who should we be like in the church? We should be like our Father in heaven. But in reality we are often not, instead having been like the elder brother in this story. It has been impossible for the church to love the Jews in our own humanity without the supernatural love of G-d. Yet they are elected as a result of the patriarchs (Rom. 11:28), which has been a dichotomy for the church.

But because our Father loves Israel and has chosen it, just like He has chosen His other children, He is able to look on them with compassion. Even in their disobedience and resistance, and even in their blindness and deafness, He still loves them because they are His children. And His Word and covenants must be accomplished through them because of His own integrity as a holy and righteous G-d. Look how they have suffered as a result.

And remember, by the time he came home, the prodigal son had truly learned his lesson. It is only in the Father's love that we could even come close to moving in this. However, this is exactly what it will take to get this job done and nothing else short of it will work. So what are we to do? And how should we act to move in this direction, if we believe it to be G-d's Word and call for us?

Search Your Heart

First, we need to be honest with our own hearts and to the Holy Spirit, as well as become honest with the prior actions of our families in past generations that may have affected us without our knowing. Have we felt like the brother in the prodigal story feels toward Israel and the Jews? Have we lacked G-d's mercy toward them? Have we been anti-Semitic toward them? Have we been indifferent or cold, or are we jealous of them? Does the thought of their restoration make us angry or even insecure?

You may be a lover and supporter of Israel, but you know that something is still not right. You may understand Israel in your mind because of the Word of G-d, but your heart still needs to be cleansed because of the past. We also need to come to terms with how the church has sinned against our Jewish brethren from the past. Ultimately, Israel needs to come to terms with its past as well. As already mentioned, cleansing is needed all around (both Jew and Gentile), but it must start with us first! Does not judgment begin in the house?

The moment we confess, the moment we renounce, the moment we repent, G-d is more than able to purify us so that we can receive His heart. I truly believe that the Holy Spirit is waiting eagerly for us to get this right and allow His cleansing healing touch to wash away any past influences. This is so that His unconditional love can pour through us, that He would open our spirits as well as our minds to move into the fullness of His direction and plans in these last days. It would be to fulfill the unique role He has given to us as His other sheep in His spiritual family, to help breathe spiritual life back into them through prayer and intercession. And this is all in order that Israel may fulfill its own unique role in the earth to glorify G-d in fulfilling His Word so that the kingdom can come. For in our Father's end time sovereign plan we are intricately linked and must begin to see ourselves as such, so the end may actually come.

Receiving the Father's Heart

As already discussed, it is simply not possible to fully love the Jewish people in our own strength in light of their continued rejection of Jesus. Without a doubt, G-d's supernatural love is needed to flow through us for this to happen. I call this the Father's heart, and our receiving it is one of the main reasons for me writing The Ezekiel Generation. I believe His heart for His spiritual family will truly change us and give us what we need to help Him achieve His plans through us in order to redeem Israel and restore His kingdom.

I also believe this calling of the end-time generations of the church have a unique and distinct role to play to assist G-d to rebirth Israel spiritually, which is why we must not be ignorant about this mystery. We have a major part to play in it, which, up to this point, we have not seen too clearly, with corrections needed in our theology, because the ancestral acts of our lineage, most of which has not even been repented of, have blinded us to G-d's end-time plan. In good conscience how could G-d give the church the fullness of His end-time plans theologically regarding Israel and the church, when our ancestry who was called to love them despite their rejection, fell for some despicable plans of the enemy to help persecute and destroy them. Don't we need to fully break off the past first, so we can get it right?

While we may actually love Israel, the bloodline still needs to be cleaned to rid it of any current influence the enemy may still have over us. So breaking of generational anti-Semitism and receiving G-d's heart are vital to our spiritual health and well being concerning Israel and the church and the last days, and it is time for us to address these areas and reconnect as a spiritual family as Jew and Gentile, to help be the catalyst in G-d end time mercy plan to redeem his first born son and our first born brother, so our L-rd can finally return and take dominion of the earth.

That is what is at stake here! What an honor G-d is actually bestowing on His end-time church, to help give life back to Israel spiritually (Ezek. 37:9-11). 

Grant Berry is a Jewish believer in Yeshua/Jesus and author of The New Covenant Prophecy and The Ezekiel Generation. He has founded Reconnecting Ministries with the specific focus to help the church reconnect spiritually to Israel and considers it vital to the kingdom of G-d in the last days. His message focuses on the unity, love and healing that the Father wants to bring between Jew and Gentile yet clearly points out the differences and misunderstandings between the two groups. Now is the time to look more carefully into this mystery to make way for healing and reconnection in the Spirit. For more information, please visit reconnectingministries.org.

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Are 'Gentile Believers' Still Gentiles? Monday, August 08, 2016 | Brian Hennessy ISRAEL TODAY

Are 'Gentile Believers' Still Gentiles?

Monday, August 08, 2016 |  Brian Hennessy  ISRAEL TODAY

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It was Yeshua’s greatest desire that all his followers, from both Jews and Gentiles, become one people. His impassioned plea to the Father before going to the cross was “that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know You sent me, and loved me before the foundation of the world” (John 17:23).

Well, it’s no surprise that the world still remains unconvinced of his Messiahship.  How could it be otherwise when his followers have separated into over 40,000 denominations and other unaffiliated groups.

 But even before our divisions metastasized there existed an issue of unity between the Jewish and non-Jewish followers of Yeshua.  It began on the day the Lord told Peter to witness to the family of Cornelius. Before then the Jewish nation was under the impression this salvation belonged exclusively to them. Now, suddenly, it was being offered to others.  Worse, these “others” were the former bane of their existence – the Gentiles. The very ones they’d been shunning for the past 1400 years, according to Moses' instructions.

But hadn’t Yeshua prepared his Jewish followers for this when he was with them in the flesh? Hadn’t he told them, “I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will hear my voice, and they will become one flock with one shepherd” (John 10:16)? Nevertheless, it was still a tough pill for Jewish Israel to swallow. And it was made harder, because along with this influx of unsavory outsiders, Israel was being asked to transition from their God-given covenant of Law to a new covenant of grace.  

The transition was so formidable, that to make it happen, God had to raise up a uniquely qualified man –Saul (later Paul) of Tarsus. To this former Pharisee was given the anointing to bring us all together under “the law of liberty” (James 1:25).  And even though the Roman Empire cut short his work, along with Jewish life in Jerusalem, God made sure Paul’s teachings were preserved as Scripture in the New Testament.  

Now for 2000 years, unity of Jewish and “Gentile” believers in Messiah has not been an issue. Mainly because after the first century there were almost no Jewish believers! And the non-Jewish believers had taken on another identity, calling themselves “Christians.” But after the physical rebirth of Israel, many Jews began experiencing a spiritual rebirth. And all of sudden the term “Gentile believer” was back. Along with the issue of us all becoming one again.

As I see it, the term “Gentile believer” is inherently discriminatory and creates an unhealthy division in the body of Messiah. If one is a “Gentile” it implies you are an unbeliever, outside the camp of God’s people. Although the word translated as “Gentile” just means “nations” in both the Hebrew (goyim) and Greek(ethnos), it carries centuries of baggage. Over half its usages in the Old Testament are negative. And so is a quarter of its usage in the New Testament, where it is occasionally translated as “heathen” or “pagan.”  It may not equate non-Jewish believers with being “uncircumcised Philistines,” but it doesn’t define them as “Snow White,” either.

But weren’t we all made “white as snow” in Yeshua? Weren’t we all circumcised with the circumcision made without hands?  Why then should we who are not Jewish be saddled with terminology that immediately creates a division in the body of Messiah? From God’s perspective we are no longer goyim. We are no longer Gentiles. We have come out of the nations and are now included with God’s people. We have been counted as part of the nation of Israel, co-inheritors with all Jewish believers in the promises made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. “For if you belong to Messiah, you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise” (Gal. 3:29). 

Paul had explained, just prior to that verse, that now “there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, neither male nor female; for you are all one in Messiah Yeshua” (Gal.3:28). Did he mean Jews are no longer Jews, Greeks no longer Greeks, females no longer females? Of course not! Until the Lord returns and we are transfigured into our new bodies we remain who we are in this world. But_ in Messiah_, all racial, national, economic, gender – and other fleshly differences – disappear. In him we become one people!

It was Peter, the first Jew to witness to non-Jews, who later said to the entire body of Messiah, “You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession” ( 1 Pet. 2:9). He had taken the very words Moses had spoken to all Israel and applied them to the New Covenant ecclesia _without distinction. _He was not saying the “church”had replaced the physical descendants of Abraham as God’s people, but that all who are in Messiah, both Jew and non-Jew, are the chosen remnant of Israel.

As God is restoring the nation to the land today, I believe it’s also time to strive for greater unity among Jewish and non-Jewish followers of Yeshua. So that, as he prayed to the Father, “the world may know You sent me.” 

A good place to begin is by retiring the unbiblical term “Gentile believer” once and for all.

Brian Hennessy is author of Valley of the Steeples

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Are Gentiles Still Gentiles or 'Spiritual Jews' After Coming to the Faith? - SAM NADLER CHARISMA NEWS

Are Gentiles Still Gentiles or 'Spiritual Jews' After Coming to the Faith?

 6/30/2016 SAM NADLER  charisma news

A Messianic Jewish congregation celebration (Flickr )

In a previous article on this page titled, "Messianic Believers: No Separation from Jewish Roots," I wrote about what it means to be a Messianic Jewish believer in Yeshua. Now, we'll look at the other side of the ledger.

If you were not born Jewish and you believe in Yeshua, you are a "Messianic Gentile." Mazel Tov (congratulations), and welcome to the family! That being said, just as there are misconceptions about Jewish believers, there are also some mistaken beliefs about Gentile believers in Messiah that need to be clarified.

First, what is a "Gentile?" The word Gentile simply means "one of the nations," and is derived from the Latin gens meaning "nation."

This is a direct parallel to the Hebrew word for nation, goy (plural, "goyim"). Unfortunately, just as anti-Semites use the word Jew in a negative manner, the word Gentile or goy is often mistakenly thought of as a synonym for "pagan or "anti-Semite." Also, many Jewish people see the word Gentile as being synonymous with "Christian."

Before Yeshua came and was proclaimed among the nations, the customary way for Gentiles to get right with God was to become a proselyte, or convert, to Judaism. All non-Jews at that time were considered pagans since they were not permitted into the Temple to make the appropriate sacrifices for their sins. Therefore in Matthew's account Yeshua said,

"But when you pray, do not use vain repetitions, as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their much speaking" (Matthew 6:7).

"If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector" (Matt. 18:17).

At the time of His earthly ministry, Yeshua's disciples were all Jews, and as such, they believed that the religion of truth was the Jewish religion. Gentiles, by definition, were not part of "the people of God," and were considered outside of the Jewish faith (Eph. 2:11-12). Today however, because of the apostasy of traditional Judaism, it is more accurate to call our Messianic faith "biblical faith" rather than the "Jewish faith."

Though conversion to Judaism was at one time the only way for Gentiles to be accepted into the biblical faith, during His ministry Yeshua "hinted" at the inclusion of the Gentiles into the people of God (John 10:16), but even here gives only a hint. For Yeshua at that time to clearly mention Gentiles as co-heirs with Jews would have been distracting to His disciples. Since many people identified Gentiles with paganism, this truth regarding Gentiles being accepted as co-heirs with Jewish believers in Yeshua awaited further and future revelation.

A common question brought up in regards to this matter is, "Are Gentiles still Gentiles after coming to faith in Messiah Yeshua, or do they become 'spiritual Jews?'"

When Paul was writing to the congregation in Rome, he addressed the non-Jewish believers there by saying,"But I am speaking to you who are Gentiles" (Rom. 11:13). Just as Paul referred to himself in Acts 22:3 and in Romans 11:1 in the present tense as a "Jew" and as an "Israelite", so he now refers to the non-Jewish believers in the present tense as "Gentiles." In other words, though they are saved and are brethren in the faith (Rom. 1:13; 11:25), they are still Gentiles—that is, non-Jews, and that is okay!

In Messiah, Gentiles are truly co-heirs with Jewish believers, but this does not mean that either group loses their personal identity. Read Galatians 3:28 carefully: "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, and there is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus."

Faith in Yeshua does not change a person's cultural, national or ethnic identity any more than faith would change their gender or the color of their skin. As surely as Jews remain Jews when they come to faith in Yeshua (Acts 22:3), so also do Gentiles remain Gentiles after coming to faith in Yeshua.

This is good news, and in it we see that God loves diversity. Of course He does; He created it, and has redeemed it! Our unity is not experienced through uniformity, and our diversity does not necessarily bring division. The reality of our unity is based upon the truth of who Yeshua is and what He has actually done for all who believe in Him. This reality of our unity in Yeshua is experienced as we live out our faith in Him and love one another. Our unity amidst diversity brings greater glory to God as His life is manifested trans-culturally and trans-ethnically (Rev. 5:9). 

This unique unity demonstrates grace and love through Yeshua as the spiritual way and witness of peace and harmony in the world:

"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." (John 13:34-35). 

Dr. Sam Nadler is a Jewish believer in Jesus who has been in Messianic ministry for over 40 years. Sam is the president of Word of Messiah Ministries, which is bringing the Good News to the Jew first but not to the Jew only, and planting Messianic Congregations in Jewish communities worldwide. To encourage and equip the Body of Messiah in our shared calling, Sam is invited to speak in churches across the country, and has written multiple books on Jewish evangelism, discipleship, and the Feasts of Israel. For more information and resources, or to invite Sam to speak at your church, visit: www.wordofmessiah.org.  

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