If your life is not in jeopardy for what you
believe, you’re probably on the wrong side!
“Indeed, all who want
to live a godly life united with the Messiah Yeshua will be persecuted.” (2Tim 3:12)
It is what you actually believe that determines how you walk out your faith,
“but avoid stupid controversies, genealogies,
quarrels and fights about the Torah; because they are worthless and
futile.” (Titus 3:9)
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Please Note: Absolutely nothing on this website should be taken as anti-Church. I am not anti-anything or anyone. I am only pro-Torah and pro-Truth (see “Philosophy”), but sometimes the Truth upsets our long-held beliefs. I know it certainly upset mine! For example, see “Why Isn’t My Theology Consistent Throughout the Website?”
“Witnessing” to Jewish Friends |
[See also Words to Avoid] |
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Show your Jewish friends that Yeshua (not “Jesus”) is the Jewish Messiah by using the Tenakh (“Old Testament”), not the Apostolic Writings (“New Testament”). To try to convince a Jewish person of anything using the Apostolic Writings would be just about as effective as if someone were to try to convince an Evangelical Christian of something by using the Book of Mormon. Jewish people do not consider it authoritative about anything.
It is best not to refer to the Hebrew Scriptures as the “Old Testament,” as that term suggests “dated” or “no longer with purpose.” The “Old Testament” should be called the Tenakh, the Jewish Bible, or the Hebrew Bible. (It consists of the Torah or five Books of Moses, the Nevi’m or Prophets, and the Ketuvim or Writings). I personally would suggest using the C0mplete Jewish Bible.
If the “New Testament” is used at all (and it really shouldn’t be), it should be referred to as the Apostolic Writings or B’rit Chadashah (say b-rit hah-da-SHAH), which means “New or Renewed Covenant.”
If you really must use a “Christian witnessing formula” (really not recommended), use prophetic scriptures from the Tenakh that point to the specifics of Yeshua’s life and death. Use verses from the Hebrew Bible in discussing topics like: Sin (Psalm 14:2-3, 51:5; Ecclesiastes 7:20; Isaiah 59:1-2), Atonement (Leviticus 17:11; Isaiah 53:5-6), Messiah (Isaiah 53; Daniel 9:16; Micah 5:1 [in their Jewish Tanakh, which is verse 2 in the Christian Bible]), and Faith (Genesis 15:6; Numbers 21:7-9; Joel 2:32).
For some, an explanation that all Gentiles do not consider themselves Christian may be necessary. Many Jews see all Gentiles and Christians as one and the same — anybody who is not a Jew or a Muslim is a “Christian.” They may also identify all Gentiles as persecutors of the Jewish faith. Humility, prayer, and genuine compassion must characterize your witness. Far too often Jewish impressions of Christianity have been characterized by arrogance, superiority, and a disregard for Jewish culture. Rabbi Sha’ul (Paul) warns us against this kind of Gentile pride in Romans 11:13-32.
Use terminology that emphasizes
the Jewishness of true Biblical faith. For example, don’t refer to
Yeshua as “Jesus Christ.” For many that will mean that “Christ” is
Jesus’s last name. Many Jews believe that “Jesus Christ” is the name
of the “Christian
Emphasize the absolute Jewishness
of true Biblical faith. Remember that the Bible is a totally Jewish
book, written in a Jewish place by Jews about Jews, describing Jewish lives in a
Jewish land. It is the written record of
You should emphasize your belief in the absolute oneness of God, as the primary statement of Jewish faith is the Shemah: “Shemah Yisrael, ADONAI Eloheinu, ADONAI echad — Hear, O Israel, ADONAI is our God, ADONAI is one.” When you speak of God the Father, Yeshua the Son, and the Ruach HaKodesh (the Holy Spirit), never identify Them as a “Trinity.” To most Jews this would be considered polytheism and they would stop you at that point. Use the term “Tri-unity” only if you absolutely must, but it is best to completely stay away from this concept at all until they are at least receptive to Yeshua as their Messiah.
Never, never, never
use the word “Jehovah”
— this is a false translation of
Know and recognize the Jewish calendar and holidays. A Jewish friend will appreciate that you know enough to respect their observances. For example, 2019 is the year 5780 on the Jewish calendar. Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, is from sunset on September 30 until sunset October 1 this year (2019) and will mark the beginning of the year 5762. (Remember that on the Hebrew calendar the day begins and ends at sunset, not at midnight.) And Yom Kippur, which is the holiest of the High Holy Days for Jews, is the Day of Atonement.
All that being said, however, the best possible thing by far that you can do to effectively witness to the Jewish people is to live a Biblical lifestyle, walking Torah and observing the Moadim (God’s Appointed Times). In the Torah God has decreed seven “appointed times” for His people to appear before Him in corporate holy assembly: Shabbat, Pesach, Matzah, Firstfruits, Shavuot, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot. He said that these are to be His “designated times of ADONAI that you are to proclaim as holy convocations” and that they are to be observed by all His people as “a permanent regulation, generation after generation” (a Hebrew idiom meaning “forever”). If you are a non-Jewish Believer in Israel’s Messiah, you have been grafted in to the Commonwealth of Israel for the express purpose of provoking Israel to jealousy (Romans 11:11-14). In short, you must be “more Jewish” than your Jewish friend. However, it you are not walking Torah and observing the Moadim, it will be obvious to your Jewish friend that you are simply attempting to convert him or her to Christianity! That is actually a very anti-Semitic thing to do, as it denies your friend his sacred right to his ethnic identity.
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