Archive for September 2011

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"What is Messianic Judaism?"

Messianic Judaism is the term given to Jewish people who believe and have accepted Yeshua (the Hebrew name for Jesus) of Nazareth as the promised Messiah of the Hebrew Scriptures. These Jewish people do not stop being Jewish, but they continue to remain strong in their Jewish identity, lifestyle and culture, while following Yeshua as He is revealed in the Brit Chadashah, the New Covenant. Many Messianic Jews refer to themselves as “completed Jews,” since they believe that their faith in the God of Israel has been “completed” or fulfilled in Yeshua. In reality, Messianic Judaism began 2,000 years ago. Yeshua Himself was an observant Jew, most of the Apostles and writers of the New Covenant were Jewish, and the vast majority of the early believers in Yeshua were also Jewish (see Acts chapter 2). Traditional rabbinical Judaism today does not believe that Yeshua is the Jewish Messiah. Observant Jews are still waiting faithfully in accordance with the Rambam’s (Rabbi Moses Maimonides, 1134-1204) “Thirteen Principles of Jewish Faith,” which states in Principle 12, “I believe with perfect faith in the coming of the Messiah. However long it takes, I will await His coming every day.” Most secular Jews do not believe in the physical coming of a personal Messiah, but some still look forward to a general Messianic concept or Messianic Age. Today, it is estimated that there are over 350,000 Messianic Jews in the world, and the numbers are growing all the time. Messianic synagogues have also become very popular, and recent estimates number more than 200 congregations in this country. There are also many Messianic congregations in Israel and around the world. Messianic Jews continue to celebrate the Jewish festivals and feast days as prescribed in the Hebrew Scriptures (i.e., Passover, Day of Atonement, etc.) but they do it in a way that demonstrates how Yeshua has already fulfilled these Holy Days. Most Messianic Jews do not celebrate Christmas or Easter, since neither holiday is mentioned in the New Covenant. Jews who now follow Yeshua the Messiah understand that everything given in the Old Covenant was a “mere shadow” of the better things to come in the New. by Gotquestions.org

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What Does the Bible Teach?

1. Can those born of God leave Christ?

1John 2:19

“They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us.For if they had belonged to us, (Once Saved)they would have remained with us; (Always Saved)but their going showed that none of them belonged to us.”

John indicates here that leaving Christ indicates that one had never been born of God

2. Can those born of God live a lifestyle of sin?

1John 3:6

“No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him.” Read more

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Should Christians Live in Fear?

If a doctrine has no application, then it has no relevance to the Christian life. What is the application of the Doctrine of Eternal Security? One application is to consider whether Christians should live in fear of going to hell. And if so, on what basis should they fear? Free Grace advocates a “no fear” philosophy, regardless of the performance of the supposed “Christian”. And even if one falls away and doesn’t believe in Christ such a person is still supposedly “saved”. Lordship Salvation advocates that Christians should fear that perhaps they are only nominal Christians and have yet to be born of God. And thus they don’t fear losing salvation, but they fear that they may not have gained it yet. Arminians advocate that Christians should fearthat they may lose their salvation. The Bible advocates the Calvinist point of view on this issue, as there are clear warnings to make sure you have been born of God, as in 2Cor 13:5, and warnings to nominal Christians against falling away (as I deal with below), yet the security of the true believer is also clearly advocated (as in Ephesians 1 and 1John 4:15-18) and other places. In fact 1John 4:18 advocates no fear of condemnation for those living in Christ as does Romans 8.

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Be A Man!

"Be a man!" Those words haunted me for years. I heard them growing up, and seen examples of what not to be. Finally hearing the condemning words from my 27 year old Korean girlfriend, 4 years ago: "Be...A...Man! Can't you do anything right!?" I've learned much in the past 4 years. One thing; To be a man, does not mean to be proud (Luke 14:11), to know everything (1 Cor. 8:1-2), to be physically strong (1 Timothy 4:8), or hard (Mark 6:52) (Proverbs 14:12). As Godly Men we have a much higher standard to live by. (Matthew 12:36, Hebrews 13:17) A friend of mine and example of godly character, proudly displays on his laptop, "Real men love Jesus". Read more