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JEWISH SCHOLARS HAVE FINALLY PUT FORWARD AN APOLOGETIC ON JESUSPlease understand that this page is for information. If you are a Christian Bible believer you will quickly see the tricks these people use to make Jesus an impostor Messiah. They had to come up with such an apologetic sooner of later because Christians are crawling all over Israel sharing the Gospel. I make no effort to answer all of the claims. Suffice it so say that the heavy evidence to Jews is the scholars since the time of Christ like Maimonades. These rabbis were practical agnostics. They believe that it is impossible to know God in any personal way, that God is far away out to lunch, and it is the duty of man to make the world a better place and leave his children a good inheritance. Except for a very small minority, Jews worldwide have NO religious zeal. |
So, I do NOT intend for you to take the following as valid in any way. It is organized unbelief. But, like the Muslim scholars in the last 100 years, Jewish scholars are developing a systematic theological position on why Jesus is not the Messiah.
If it were not for the enormous windfall Israel makes from Christians who make pilgrimage, and if the USA were not the financial and military guardian of Israel, the Jews would be just as fierce with hate and prosecution of Christians witnessing in Israel as the Muslims in Mecca when they find a Christians in the neighborhood.
GET THIS STRAIGHT-- THE JEWS, ESPECIALLY ZIONISTS, HATE THE LORD JESUS CHRIST.
Some lunatic Christian Bible teachers, and a lot of Bible believing pastors in the USA and the world, live with the illusion that Jews in Israel have a benign tolerance. This is true, but they hate Jesus. Their tolerance for Jesus was defined long ago by a Jewish American satirist. He said, "The Jews, after Christmas buying is over, join hands around the cash register and sing, 'What a Friend We have in Jesus.' "
So read and learn. This study will possibly help you in witnessing to a Jew. You do need to know what he has been told by the Rabbis and Jewish scholars.
LETTER FROM MIKE GLAD
By Mike Glad
This
is a Jew who is trying to help me understand why it is
totally unreasonable
for Jews to take Jesus Christ seriously.
From:
_______@________
Sent: Tuesday, March 05, 2013 12:06 AM
To: [ Steve Van
Nattan ]
Subject: Why Jews Don't Believe In Jesus Why Jews Don't Believe In
Jesus
For 2,000 years Jews have rejected the Christian idea of Jesus as messiah. Why?
By Rabbi Shraga Simmons with thanks to Rabbi Michael Skobac, Jews for Judaism
One of the most common questions we receive at Aish.com is: "Why don't Jews believe in Jesus?" Let's understand why ? not in order to disparage other religions, but rather to clarify the Jewish position.
Jews do not accept Jesus as the messiah because: 1.Jesus did not fulfill the messianic prophecies. 2.Jesus did not embody the personal qualifications of the Messiah. 3.Biblical verses "referring" to Jesus are mistranslations. 4.Jewish belief is based on national revelation.
But first, some background: What exactly is the Messiah?
The word "Messiah" is an English rendering of the Hebrew word Mashiach, which means "anointed." It usually refers to a person initiated into God's service by being anointed with oil. (Exodus 29:7, 1-Kings 1:39, 2-Kings 9:3)
1. Jesus Did Not Fulfill the Messianic Prophecies
What is the Messiah supposed to accomplish? One of the central themes of biblical prophecy is the promise of a future age of perfection characterized by universal peace and recognition of God. (Isaiah 2:1-4, 32:15-18, 60:15-18; Zephaniah 3:9; Hosea 2:20-22; Amos 9:13-15; Micah 4:1-4; Zechariah 8:23, 14:9; Jeremiah 31:33-34)
Specifically, the Bible says he will: A.Build the Third Temple (Ezekiel 37:26-28). B.Gather all Jews back to the Land of Israel (Isaiah 43:5-6). C.Usher in an era of world peace, and end all hatred, oppression, suffering and disease. As it says: "Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall man learn war anymore." (Isaiah 2:4) D.Spread universal knowledge of the God of Israel, which will unite humanity as one. As it says: "God will be King over all the world ? on that day, God will be One and His Name will be One" (Zechariah 14:9).
If an individual fails to fulfill even one of these conditions, then he cannot be the Messiah.
Because no one has ever fulfilled the Bible's description of this future King, Jews still await the coming of the Messiah. All past Messianic claimants, including Jesus of Nazareth, Bar Cochba and Shabbtai Tzvi have been rejected.
Christians counter that Jesus will fulfill these in the Second Coming. Jewish sources show that the Messiah will fulfill the prophecies outright; in the Bible no concept of a second coming exists.
2) Jesus Did Not Embody the Personal Qualifications of Messiah
A. Messiah as Prophet
The Messiah will become the greatest prophet in history, second only to Moses. (Targum - Isaiah 11:2; Maimonides - Yad Teshuva 9:2)
Prophecy can only exist in Israel when the land is inhabited by a majority of world Jewry, a situation which has not existed since 300 BCE. During the time of Ezra, when the majority of Jews remained in Babylon, prophecy ended upon the death of the last prophets ? Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi.
Jesus appeared on the scene approximately 350 years after prophecy had ended, and thus could not be a prophet.
B. Descendent of David
Many prophetic passages speak of a descendant of King David who will rule Israel during the age of perfection. (Isaiah 11:1-9; Jeremiah 23:5-6, 30:7-10, 33:14-16; Ezekiel 34:11-31, 37:21-28; Hosea 3:4-5)
The Messiah must be descended on his father's side from King David (see Genesis 49:10, Isaiah 11:1, Jeremiah 23:5, 33:17; Ezekiel 34:23-24). According to the Christian claim that Jesus was the product of a virgin birth, he had no father ? and thus could not have possibly fulfilled the messianic requirement of being descended on his father's side from King David. (1)
According to Jewish sources, the Messiah will be born of human parents and possess normal physical attributes like other people. He will not be a demi-god, (2) nor will he possess supernatural qualities.
C. Torah Observance
The Messiah will lead the Jewish people to full Torah observance. The Torah states that all mitzvot remain binding forever, and anyone coming to change the Torah is immediately identified as a false prophet. (Deut. 13:1-4)
Throughout the New Testament, Jesus contradicts the Torah and states that its commandments are no longer applicable. For example, John 9:14 records that Jesus made a paste in violation of Shabbat, which caused the Pharisees to say (verse 16), "He does not observe Shabbat!"
3) Mistranslated Verses "Referring" to Jesus
Biblical verses can only be understood by studying the original Hebrew text ? which reveals many discrepancies in the Christian translation.
A. Virgin Birth
The Christian idea of a virgin birth is derived from the verse in Isaiah 7:14 describing an "alma" as giving birth. The word "alma" has always meant a young woman, but Christian theologians came centuries later and translated it as "virgin." This accords Jesus' birth with the first century pagan idea of mortals being impregnated by gods.
B. Suffering Servant
Christianity claims that Isaiah chapter 53 refers to Jesus, as the "suffering servant."
In actuality, Isaiah 53 directly follows the theme of chapter 52, describing the exile and redemption of the Jewish people. The prophecies are written in the singular form because the Jews ("Israel") are regarded as one unit. Throughout Jewish scripture, Israel is repeatedly called, in the singular, the "Servant of God" (see Isaiah 43:8). In fact, Isaiah states no less than 11 times in the chapters prior to 53 that the Servant of God is Israel.
When read correctly, Isaiah 53 clearly [and ironically] refers to the Jewish people being "bruised, crushed and as sheep brought to slaughter" at the hands of the nations of the world. These descriptions are used throughout Jewish scripture to graphically describe the suffering of the Jewish people (see Psalm 44).
Isaiah 53 concludes that when the Jewish people are redeemed, the nations will recognize and accept responsibility for the inordinate suffering and death of the Jews.
4) Jewish Belief is Based Solely on National Revelation
Throughout history, thousands of religions have been started by individuals, attempting to convince people that he or she is God's true prophet. But personal revelation is an extremely weak basis for a religion because one can never know if it is indeed true. Since others did not hear God speak to this person, they have to take his word for it. Even if the individual claiming personal revelation performs miracles, they do not prove he is a genuine prophet. All the miracles show ? assuming they are genuine ? is that he has certain powers. It has nothing to do with his claim of prophecy.
Judaism, unique among all of the world's major religions, does not rely on "claims of miracles" as the basis for its religion. In fact, the Bible says that God sometimes grants the power of "miracles" to charlatans, in order to test Jewish loyalty to the Torah (Deut. 13:4).
Of the thousands of religions in human history, only Judaism bases its belief on national revelation ? i.e. God speaking to the entire nation. If God is going to start a religion, it makes sense He'll tell everyone, not just one person.
Maimonides states (Foundations of Torah, ch. 8):
The Jews did not believe in Moses, our teacher, because of the miracles he performed. Whenever anyone's belief is based on seeing miracles, he has lingering doubts, because it is possible the miracles were performed through magic or sorcery. All of the miracles performed by Moses in the desert were because they were necessary, and not as proof of his prophecy. What then was the basis of [Jewish] belief? The Revelation at Mount Sinai, which we saw with our own eyes and heard with our own ears, not dependent on the testimony of others... as it says, "Face to face, God spoke with you..." The Torah also states: "God did not make this covenant with our fathers, but with us ? who are all here alive today." (Deut. 5:3)
Judaism is not miracles. It is the personal eyewitness experience of every man, woman and child, standing at Mount Sinai 3,300 years ago.
For further reading: "Did God Speak at Mount Sinai?"
Waiting for the Messiah
The world is in desperate need of Messianic redemption. To the extent that we are aware of the problems of society, is the extent we will yearn for redemption. As the Talmud says, one of the first questions asked of a Jew on Judgment Day is: "Did you yearn for the arrival of the Messiah?"
How can we hasten the coming of the Messiah? The best way is to love all humanity generously, to keep the mitzvot of the Torah (as best we can), and to encourage others to do so as well.
Despite the gloom, the world does seem headed toward redemption. One apparent sign is that the Jewish people have returned to the Land of Israel and made it bloom again. Additionally, a major movement is afoot of young Jews returning to Torah tradition.
The Messiah can come any day, and it all depends on our actions. God is ready when we are. For as King David says: "Redemption will come today ? if you hearken to His voice."
For further study: • Jews for Judaism
• "The Real Messiah," by Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan
• "Let's Get Biblical! Why Doesn't Judaism Accept the Christian Messiah?," by Rabbi Tovia Singer
• "The Path of the Righteous Gentile," by Chaim Clorfene and Yakov Rogalsky
FOOTNOTES
(1) In response, it is claimed that Joseph adopted Jesus, and passed on his genealogy via adoption. There are two problems with this claim:
a) There is no biblical basis for the idea of a father passing on his tribal line by adoption. A priest who adopts a son from another tribe cannot make him a priest by adoption.
b) Joseph could never pass on by adoption that which he doesn't have. Because Joseph descended from Jeconiah (Matthew 1:11) he fell under the curse of that king that none of his descendants could ever sit as king upon the throne of David. (Jeremiah 22:30; 36:30)
To answer this difficult problem, apologists claim that Jesus traces himself back to King David through his mother Mary, who allegedly descends from David, as shown in the third chapter of Luke. There are four basic problems with this claim:
a) There is no evidence that Mary descends from David. The third chapter of Luke traces Joseph's genealogy, not Mary's.
b) Even if Mary can trace herself back to David, that doesn't help Jesus, since tribal affiliation goes only through the father, not mother. Cf. Numbers 1:18; Ezra 2:59.
c) Even if family line could go through the mother, Mary was not from a legitimate Messianic family. According to the Bible, the Messiah must be a descendent of David through his son Solomon (II Samuel 7:14; I Chronicles 17:11-14, 22:9-10, 28:4-6). The third chapter of Luke is irrelevant to this discussion because it describes lineage of David's son Nathan, not Solomon. (Luke 3:31)
d) Luke 3:27 lists Shealtiel and Zerubbabel in his genealogy. These two also appear in Matthew 1:12 as descendants of the cursed Jeconiah. If Mary descends from them, it would also disqualify her from being a Messianic progenitor.
(2) Maimonides devotes much of the "Guide for the Perplexed" to the fundamental idea that God is incorporeal, meaning that He assumes no physical form. God is Eternal, above time. He is Infinite, beyond space. He cannot be born, and cannot die. Saying that God assumes human form makes God small, diminishing both His unity and His divinity. As the Torah says: "God is not a mortal" (Numbers 23:19)
CONCLUSION
By
Editor of Blessed Quietness Journal
Steve Van Nattan
Texas
The above apologetic is given by a bright and sincere Jewish spiritual leader. But, though he is very articulate, someone is very right, and someone is very wrong.
So, I answer the discussion by dealing, not with the logic presented, but with an admittedly ad homenum discussion.
ARE JEWISH SOURCES TRUSTWORTHY IN SPIRITUAL MATTERS?
Romans
10:1 Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might
be saved.
2 For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according
to knowledge.
3 For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going
about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto
the righteousness of God.
4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness
to every one that believeth.
5 For Moses describeth the righteousness which
is of the law, That the man which doeth those things shall live by them.
6
But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine
heart, Who shall ascend into heaven? (that is, to bring Christ down from above:)
7 Or, Who shall descend into the deep? (that is, to bring up Christ again
from the dead.)
8 But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth,
and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach;
9 That if thou
shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart
that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
10 For with the
heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made
unto salvation.
11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall
not be ashamed.
So, the Rabbi who answered Christians above comes from zeal, no doubt about it. And, I do not know about you, but I find that I can get a lot farther in a discussion with a man who has zeal for his errors or beliefs. A blasé man will agree with any idiot standing in front of him. So, Rabbi Skobac encourages me. He, like the Jews in Paul's day, has a true zeal for Yahweh. That is a great starting point.
Like those Jews long ago, Rabbi Skobac wants to establish his own righteousness, that is, the righteousness of Jews without Jesus. There is virtually no compromise possible by either Rabbi Skobac or myself. I might enjoy lunch with him, but we would never leave in agreement. We now have the stupid world of Christendom in which most Reformed Churches, Mennonites, many Baptists, Charismatics, and the Roman Catholic Whore have jumped ship on the Gospel. Paul delivered the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the Jews first, as he says. In every new city he entered he went straight to the Rabbis and delivered to them the Gospel.
In Corinth the Jewish spiritual leaders received the Gospel, but in most cities the same response as that of Rabbi Skobac resulted, and unlike Rabbi Skobac, Paul was attacked even physically by more spiritual Jews he witnessed to. And so, even today as I write, Hassidic Jews in Jerusalem throw rocks and break windows of Jews turned Christians. And, the police do not really make a serious attempt to stop it.
Again, I will not debate the above discussion by Rabbi Skobac. He comes from his presupposition, and I come from mine. I use 66 books in my Bible, and he uses 39 in his. We do not have the same point of reference. The Old Testament is fulfilled in Jesus Christ, and the Rabbi would no possibly allow me my presupposition. So, argument is pointless.
Romans
2:17 Behold, thou art called a Jew, and restest in the law, and makest thy boast
of God,
18 And knowest his will, and approvest the things that are more excellent,
being instructed out of the law;
19 And art confident that thou thyself art
a guide of the blind, a light of them which are in darkness,
20 An instructor
of the foolish, a teacher of babes, which hast the form of knowledge and of the
truth in the law.
21 Thou therefore which teachest another, teachest thou
not thyself? thou that preachest a man should not steal, dost thou steal?
22
Thou that sayest a man should not commit adultery, dost thou commit adultery?
thou that abhorrest idols, dost thou commit sacrilege?
23 Thou that makest
thy boast of the law, through breaking the law dishonourest thou God?
24 For
the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles through you, as it is written.
25 For circumcision verily profiteth, if thou keep the law: but if thou be
a breaker of the law, thy circumcision is made uncircumcision.
26 Therefore
if the uncircumcision keep the righteousness of the law, shall not his uncircumcision
be counted for circumcision?
27 And shall not uncircumcision which is by nature,
if it fulfil the law, judge thee, who by the letter and circumcision dost transgress
the law?
28 For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision,
which is outward in the flesh:
29 But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly;
and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose
praise is not of men, but of God.
I read a poignant story written by Harry Golden, the Jewish columnist from the 1950s and 60s. He said he went to visit a Rabbi in New York City one day, and in talking about his life and work for the Jewish community, the Rabbi pointed out a wooden box on the fireplace mantel. He then told Harry, "I kept every foreskin of every Jewish boy I ever circumcised." The Rabbit clearly believed those dried up foreskins were a badge of distinction that would commend him to God.
Dear Christian reader.... God loves the Jewish people, but they will not listen. They are content to cling to their works, rituals, and legal thoroughness, but they do not show that they have a living faith. I have met many Jews, and they are dry spiritually. They also totally fail to take the message of Yahweh to the Gentiles. You can become a Judaistic Jew if you are a Gentile, but you have to beat the door down or throw money through the door before you knock.
I worked with a Polish Catholic fellow when I was doing US Military service during the Vietnam Era. He had become impressed with Judaism, possibly because of the much simpler rituals that were not a spooky as Catholicism. He approached the Jewish Chaplain on Fort Knox where we served, and he asked if he could convert to the Jewish faith. The Rabbi said, "Please do not do that. Judaism is so much trouble and bother. You would make yourself miserable." My friend said it was not prejudice that showed. He felt the Rabbi sincerely felt it was almost cruel to help a Gentile come under the yoke of Judaism. Is that not pathetic. This Rabbi thought he was one of the special people of Yahweh, but he basically had a go to hell attitude as to sharing his faith with a Gentile.
I invite you to read the book of Ruth in the Bible. Boaz was not a bit timid about marrying the wife of a Moabite (the Moabites had been cursed by God long before). She was the wife of a relative of his who had died, and as the kinsman redeemer in Moses' Law, Boaz married her and loved her. Their son was Obed. His son was Jesse, and Jesse's youngest son was David, the heroic and most famous leader in Jewish History outside of Moses.
Please do not be guilty, Christian saint, of turning on the Jewish people and dismissing them to hell, as if God stopped loving them when he saved you. And, please do not be intimidated by the defective reasonings of Rabbis. They have learned to be soft spoken and kind hearted as they attack Jesus Christ. Many in Christendom become self-conscious and start believing the Jews are really saved and do not need the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Well, let Jesus have the last word"
Matthew
10:32 Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also
before my Father which is in heaven.
33 But whosoever shall deny me before
men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.
34 Think not
that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.
A word to Rabbi Skobac in regard to the above words of Messiah Jesus Christ:
Here is your Bible, and your God, speaking about a coming day when he will destroy all Jews who lie about holiness and righteousness:
Zephaniah
3:11 In that day shalt thou not be ashamed for all thy doings, wherein thou hast
transgressed against me: for then I will take away out of the midst of thee them
that rejoice in thy pride, and thou shalt no more be haughty because of my holy
mountain.
12 I will also leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor
people, and they shall trust in the name of the LORD.
13 The remnant of Israel
shall not do iniquity, nor speak lies; neither shall a deceitful tongue be found
in their mouth: for they shall feed and lie down, and none shall make them afraid.
What, sir, is your destiny if you are defending a lie?
LINKS:
JEWS FOR JUDAISM
End of video
JEWS FOR JESUS
DR. BEN DAVID LEW
Dr. Lew ministered to Jews and Arabs in Detroit for many years. Our family visited him and his wife in their mission. He was a very sweet man, void of guile. His mission was of not offense to Judaistic Jews in the neighborhood. Some resisted him, but Jewish leaders in Detroit highly respected him because of his suffering in the Holocaust.
DR. MARVIN "Marv" ROSENTHAL- Prophecy teacher and converted Jew
I have heard this man several times and enjoyed personal fellowship with him. Though he has taken a Middle Tribulation Rapture, his observations are priceless. Please listen to Part One, and then Google, or check the right column, for the other five parts.
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