Discovering The Jewish Jesus

Rabbi K.A. Schneider: The word Christianity is a term that was coined by the church fathers to describe the faith that was in Jesus. But Jesus never came to start a new religion called Christianity.

It's important to say at the onset that Jesus, whose Hebrew name is Yeshua, came as a Jew. Being Jewish is not a matter of choice; it's a matter of birth. Someone becomes a Jew by being born into the world through the physical lineage of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

It's different than becoming a Christian. A Christian is something that we choose to be. There comes a point in time where we decide that we're going to follow the Messiah, follow the Christ. Sometimes people say to me, "How can you be a Jew and be a Christian?" as if they're two different religions. Beloved, nothing could be farther from the truth.

You can be a Christian whether you're a Jew or a Gentile. A Christian is just somebody that's choosing to follow the Christ or the anointed one. A Christian isn't something by birth; by birth, you're either a Jew or you're a Gentile. Jesus came into the world as a Jew, born into the world through the physical descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

He was raised by observant Jewish parents. We know that Yeshua's parents were observant Jewish parents—in other words, not only were they born Jewish, but they were practicing the religion that God revealed to the Hebrews. We know this because the scripture tells us in the book of Luke chapter two, verses 41 and 42, that Yeshua's parents took Jesus to Jerusalem for Passover every year.

Only an observant Jewish family, only someone that was serious about following the revelation that God had given to the children of Israel through Moses, would go to Jerusalem every year to celebrate Passover. We know that Jesus continued in his Jewish identity as he began to enter into his calling by ministering to only Jewish people.

Remember someone came to him and Yeshua said it's not right to give the children's bread away because he came to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Jesus's disciples were all Jewish. He came as a Jew, was raised by observant Jewish parents, and ministered to Jewish people.

Then he died on the cross with the sign above his head that said, "Yeshua of Nazareth, King of the Jews." Jesus is the fulfillment of the prophecy that God gave the Jewish people in the Hebrew Bible. He's the offspring of David (Revelation 22:16). He's coming back as the offspring of David. We're going to a Jewish place; the heavenly city is called New Jerusalem, and the gates there are inscribed with the 12 tribes of Israel.

The point that I'm making is that this is all a Jewish thing. Faith in Jesus is a Jewish thing. This is why Yeshua said to the woman of Samaria in John 4:22, "Salvation is of the Jews." Yeshua did not see himself as one that came to start a new religion called Christianity.

Jesus rather saw himself as the one that came to fulfill Judaism, the one that came to fulfill all the prophecies that God had given us in the Hebrew Bible. That's why he said in Matthew 5:17, "Do not think I've come to abolish the law and the prophets; for I've not come to abolish but to fulfill."

The word Christianity is nowhere found in the entire Bible. The word Christianity is a term that was coined by the church fathers to describe the faith that was in Jesus. But Jesus never came to start a new religion called Christianity. He came rather to fulfill Judaism; he came to fulfill the prophecies of the Hebrew Bible.

The word Christian is used in the New Testament three times. As I said earlier, the word Christian is just the term that defines one who's following the Christ, which is the Greek word for the Hebrew word Mashiach, which means the anointed one. If we're a Christian, it just simply means we're following the Messiah, following the anointed one.

You can be a Jew or a Gentile and be following the anointed one. But the word Christianity describes a different world religion, and Jesus never came to start a new world religion. He rather came to fulfill that which was already revealed. Once again, Matthew 5:17 says, "Do not think I've come to abolish the law and the prophets, for I've not come to abolish but to fulfill."

In the Gospel of John chapter five, verse 46, Jesus said, "Moses wrote of me." He's fulfilling that which Moses and the prophets had already written. I love the story in John 4:22 and that whole section around those verses there, where Yeshua gets into a discussion with the woman from Samaria at the well.

He begins to dialogue with her; he reveals to her that she's had five husbands and that the man that she's now living with is not her husband. In this revelation, as Yeshua exposes the details of her life, she recognizes that this man must be a prophet.

How could he know that I've had five husbands and that I'm living with this guy now that is not my husband? Perceiving that he has supernatural power to know these details of her life and that he must be a prophet, she begins to dialogue with him about spiritual things. She says, "Sir, I perceive you're a prophet. We Samaritans worship over here in this mountain, and you Jews worship in Jerusalem."

Jesus said to her, "Woman, you don't know what you're worshipping. We know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews." By hearing this, it helps you understand that if you want to understand your faith in Yeshua more accurately, more scripturally, more biblically, you need to understand it from a Jewish perspective.

Remember Jesus said to her, "Woman, you don't know what you're worshipping." It was ignorance, and there's a difference between ignorance and stupidity; ignorance just means you don't know. He said, "Woman, you don't know what you're worshipping. We know what we worship, for salvation is from the Jews." If you want to understand your faith more biblically, understand your faith in Jesus from a Judaic perspective.

This is why Romans chapters 9 through 11 teach us that it's the scriptures of the Hebrew Bible that support our faith. We don't support the faith of the Old Testament, but rather the faith of the Old Testament is what supports our faith. If we want to understand our faith, we need to understand the Hebrew scriptures. He gets in this discussion with her, and he says, "We know what we worship, for salvation is from the Jews."

They go on a little bit longer, and she begins to speak to him about the Messiah. She says, "I know that when Messiah comes..." And you know what Yeshua said to her in the 26th verse of John 4? He said to her, "Woman, I who speak to you am he."

We're looking at messianic prophecy, and we're declaring to you today that Yeshua is the fulfillment of the messianic prophecy contained in the Hebrew Bible. In the book of Luke chapter 24, beginning at verse 13, we find a great illustration of this. As we approach Luke 24, Yeshua's disciples were totally lost.

They had left everything to follow Yeshua, and now Yeshua had been crucified. For all they knew, everything that they had believed in had come crashing down. This one that they had left everything for, this one that they believed is the Messiah, this one that they believed would liberate Israel—he, as far as they knew, was dead and gone.

They're totally broken, totally downcast. As they're walking on a road to Emmaus, Yeshua approaches them in disguise. He took on another physical form. He approaches these disciples as they're on this road to Emmaus, and Jesus plays dumb with them a little bit. He says, "What's wrong, guys?" Of course, Jesus knows what's wrong; he knows exactly what's going on.

They said, "Don't you know what's wrong? We believed that this one was the Messiah. All Israel was hearing about him, and they crucified him." The Bible says that Yeshua began to take them on a journey through the scriptures. Hear what Yeshua said to them as I read now the book of Luke chapter 24, verse 27, as Yeshua enters into this dialogue with his disciples who think that their Messiah had been crucified.

"Beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he explained to them the things concerning himself in all the scriptures." Then he opened their eyes to understand who he was by showing them all the messianic prophecies concerning himself in the Hebrew Bible, both from Moses and the rest of the prophets.

Dustin Roberts: You're listening to Discovering the Jewish Jesus with Rabbi Schneider, and he'll be right back. I want to share with you that in the rush of everyday life, sometimes it's a challenge to connect with God. That's why Rabbi Schneider launched a one-minute audio devotional that's here to help you.

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Rabbi K.A. Schneider: We're going to consider now some of those messianic prophecies that Yeshua must have shared with his disciples as he was bringing them on a journey through the Hebrew Bible. I want to go back to the very beginning, to the book of Bereshit, in the book of Genesis chapter 3, verse 15.

Man had fallen, and after man fell, the Lord comes and he pronounces a curse. He pronounces a curse on the man that he'll have to earn his living by the sweat of a brow. He pronounces a curse on the woman that in pain she'll give birth to children. Now he pronounces a curse to the serpent.

In Genesis 3:15, he says to the serpent that the seed of the woman is going to come and crush his head. This is the first messianic prophecy in the Hebrew Bible. In this portion of scripture, Genesis 3:15, the Lord reveals that the Messiah will come through the woman and that it will crush the devil under his feet.

What's interesting about this is that it's the only time that I know of in scripture where the seed is referred to as coming from the woman. All the other times in scripture, the seed is identified with the man. It's the identity of the man that determines the identity of the child: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It's the father that gives identity to the child; it's the father's seed.

In this situation in Genesis 3:15, the Lord said it's going to be the woman's seed. Why? Because Yeshua had no earthly father. The Lord says by the woman's seed because there was no earthly father involved. By the woman's seed and the Holy Spirit, Messiah would come and crush the serpent under his feet.

As we continue, I want to point out that as we trace Yeshua's lineage, not only did it take place supernaturally through the woman, but the Lord further reveals in the Hebrew scriptures the line that this birth of Messiah into the world would proceed from. He said it's going to be through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

The Lord tells us in the book of Genesis, the book of Bereshit chapter 17, verse 19, that it's going to be through Abraham and Isaac that the covenant would be fulfilled. He continues that in the book of Numbers chapter number 24, verse number 19, where he said, "It's going to continue on through Jacob, and one will be born through Jacob that will have dominion."

We see this fulfilled in Matthew chapter one, verse two, where Yeshua's genealogy is traced. It's traced back to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Once again, the beginning of the New Testament begins by tracing Yeshua's genealogy through the Old Testament because the Lord wants to show us how the Hebrew Bible, the Old Testament, and the New Testament fit together like a hand in a glove.

As we continue on this theme of Messiah's birth, the Lord was very clear in the Hebrew Bible that his birth would come into the world through a virgin. We read in the book of Isaiah chapter seven, verse 14, these words: "Therefore the Lord, Yahweh himself, will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call his name Immanuel."

We want to point out a few things about this verse. Let me read it again: "Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: behold, a virgin shall conceive; she'll be with child and bear a son, and she will call his name Immanuel." The first thing that I want to point out here is that the Lord uses the word "sign" in this verse.

What does he mean by that? That we're going to know that this one that's coming into the world is the Messiah because there's going to be a sign that he's going to come into this world through a virgin. In other words, he's going to come into this world through a woman that never had physical sexual relations with a man.

Secondly, I want to point out that we learn from this verse that our faith rests on the supernatural. Messiah didn't come into the world through the natural relation between a man and his wife, but he came in supernaturally; a virgin conceived and bore a child. The Lord is showing us that our faith rests on the supernatural.

Jesus rose from the dead; it's supernatural. I pray, Father, that you'll build up our hearts with your fire and with your life to be able to believe in you for the supernatural and to be able to receive Yeshua—your supernatural life implanted into our souls, into our bellies, into our hearts, that we might walk in supernatural faith, Lord, and that we might live supernatural lives. We don't want to walk as mere men relying on the course of this age; we want to walk, Lord Jesus, like you walked, supernaturally in this world. Amen.

Of course, we see the phenomenon of the virgin birth come to pass in the New Testament; it's recorded for us in the book of Matthew chapter one, verses 18 through 25. We also see that Messiah will be born in Bethlehem. The Tanakh reveals to us in the book of Micah chapter five, verse two, that Messiah would be born into the world in Bethlehem.

I'm reading now Micah chapter five, verse two, these words: "But as for you, Bethlehem, from you one will go forth for me to be ruler in Israel. As for you, Bethlehem, from you one will go forth to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, from the days of eternity." The Lord told us that one would be born in this city of Bethlehem whose goings were from eternity.

He is the substance of the invisible God; Yeshua HaMashiach is the visible manifestation of the invisible God. In him, the fullness of the Godhead dwells. That's why his goings forth are from eternity. Of course, we read about this fulfillment in Matthew chapter two, verses one through six, that Yeshua was born into the world in the city of Bethlehem.

We read in the book of Deuteronomy that the Lord says to Moses, "Moses, I'm going to bring to you, to the people of Israel, one that's going to be like you. He's going to be a prophet, and he's going to be a deliverer. Anyone that does not listen to him, I'm going to require it of him." I'm going to read for you now Deuteronomy as we continue this theme of messianic prophecy, seeing our faith in Messiah Jesus rooted in the Hebrew Bible.

That's why Jesus said, "Do not think I've come to abolish the law and the prophets, for I've not come to abolish but to fulfill." Hear the word of God: "I will raise up a prophet from among their countrymen like you, and I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. It shall come about that whoever will not listen to my words which he shall speak in my name, I myself will require it of him."

We read in the Gospel of John chapter seven, verse 40, that the multitude, after seeing Jesus's miracles and hearing his words, they said to themselves, "Surely this is the prophet." What prophet were they speaking of? They were speaking of the prophet that they were expecting to see arise because of the prophetic word that God gave Moses in the section of scripture that I just read for you.

I always make it a priority to teach the truth of the word of God. I know that on the earth today, sometimes it's hard to find teaching that you feel is authentic and that feeds you. I want to simply say this: it costs me a lot of money to broadcast. Christian programmers like myself, we have to pay for our own airtime.

The only way that I can broadcast is when those that are receiving from this ministry respond by financially sowing into it. If you believe in me, if this ministry is feeding you, would you make a special offering to the Lord through Discovering the Jewish Jesus? The Bible teaches that we should financially support those that are feeding us.

Paul said such men are worthy of support. If you're being blessed by this ministry, if you believe in what we're doing, if you want other people to be blessed by it, simply respond to the Holy Spirit and make an offering to the Lord today through Discovering the Jewish Jesus. I want to thank you in advance for your support. God bless you and shalom.

Dustin Roberts: If God is calling you to give to Discovering the Jewish Jesus, would you give us a call today? You can reach us at 800-777-7835, or you can also give online. Just visit our website at DiscoveringTheJewishJesus.com.

One place that your giving is making a huge impact is with Jewish people. This is something really close to my heart and close to Rabbi's heart because at Discovering the Jewish Jesus, we're not just talking about Israel; we're actively engaged there. Our Hebrew YouTube channel is a bridge where people in the land of Israel are actually watching Discovering the Jewish Jesus in Hebrew, learning about the Messiah in their own language.

God is moving, and that's not all. We're actively putting up billboards in Tel Aviv; we just put one in Safed, which is just north of the Galilee, that tell people to go learn more, to find out that Jesus is the Messiah. This isn't just ministry; this is God's redemptive plan, and it's prophecy unfolding before our eyes. We're about to do it in New York City as well, to reach Jewish people there.

If you want to support Discovering the Jewish Jesus reaching Jewish people with the Gospel, make sure to visit DiscoveringTheJewishJesus.com and give today. You can also text your donation to us; just text the keyword GIVE to the number 888-777. That's GIVE to the number 888-777. And now, here's Rabbi Schneider to speak God's sacred and special blessing over our lives.

Rabbi K.A. Schneider: What I love about the Aaronic blessing is that it did not originate with man. The words actually proceeded from the very essence of God himself. The blessing comes from the book of Numbers chapter 6. So listen to these words and receive the blessing of the Lord into your life today.

[Singing in Hebrew] Yevarechecha Adonai Veyishmerecha. Yaer Adonai Panav Elecha Vichuneka. Yisa Adonai Panav Elecha Veyasem Lecha Shalom.

The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift you up with his countenance, and the Lord give you, beloved one, his peace. God bless you and shalom.

Dustin Roberts: This program is produced and sponsored by Discovering the Jewish Jesus. I'm your host, Dustin Roberts. Make sure to come back next week when Rabbi Schneider presents a special Passover message. That's Monday on Discovering the Jewish Jesus.