Bridging the gap in our faith in the Messiah, our Lord, requires that we read the Scriptures the same way.
Many Jews and Christians in America are fond of saying, "This is a Judeo-Christian culture." Yes, we share the same Old Testament and the belief in the Messiah. In fact, in our courts we all swear to tell the truth by the Bible. However, now that the Ten Commandments have been denigrated by the Supreme Court, what's next? Are the courts going to use different religious books for Americans to swear by before giving testimony?
It's interesting that Eichman, when tried by the Israeli court for crimes against humanity, he refused to swear on the Bible. There was a dilemma, until he wrote his own statement attesting what he was willing to swear by. He finally produced a document that was essentially his own bible, namely Hitler's infernal Nazi philosophy.
Without the authentic Scriptures, there is no moral code. Then every atheist has his own moral code, which is based on his own self-interest.
However, even though American Christians and Jews believe in the Bible, for the Jews the Messiah hasn't yet come to the world, but for Christians he has in the personage of Jesus Christ. How can the authentic Scriptures bridge the gap in our faith in the true Messiah?
According to my translation of Scriptures, the Children of Israel were the twelve tribes that prepared for the coming of the Messiah, and in the personage of the twelve disciples they represented the acceptance of Eashoa the Messiah who came to the world two thousand years ago. They went out and preached the Faith in our Lord Eashoa the Messiah's name.
On the other hand, the modern day Christians have concocted the concept of "the Israel of God." In other words, the Children of Israel today are not "the Israel of God," but they, "the Gentiles," are! This is simply not true. All those people who believe in the Messiah should consider themselves as the Children of Israel. Therefore, the Faith in the Messiah should encompass all those who accept Eashoa as the Messiah, and the name of this faith should be the Messianic Faith.
If we wish to bridge the gap between the Messianic Jews and modern Christianity, the name of our Lord should be pronounced correctly. Neither Jesus, nor Yeshua are correct pronunciations. His name must be pronounced Eashoa Msheekha, or Eashoa the Messiah.
It's easier for the Messianic Jews to accept this transliteration of the name of our Lord, I admit, but they must accept this if there's going to be a reconciliation. And it's necessary for the modern Christians to stop using the name "Jesus Christ," because this name is associated with the name the Nazis and their allies used in describing themselves in their persecution and genocide against the Jews.
The Messianic Jews have taken the first step by professing the faith in our Lord Eashoa Msheekha and calling Him "Yeshua." This is only a dialectical difference in pronunciation. It's based on the English transliteration. However, the English word, "Jesus," has no meaning in English or Ancient Aramaic. There is no "j" sound and no "s" sound in the name of our Lord. In the Ancient Aramaic, the name Eashoa means "Life-Giver." This meaning is only discernable in the Ancient Aramaic language if you pronounce the name correctly.
It is possible then for the Messianic Jews and the modern Christian churches to reconcile their differences over the Faith in our Lord Eashoa and declare Him the only Messiah and the Messianic Faith the only faith for the believers in the Messiah prophesied by the Scriptures.
January 25, 2004
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