Categories
Examining Biblical Scripture

Aliyah: a new discovery about the Father’s Heart

A Life of Discovery

Life with Jesus, Yeshua, is a journey of constant discovery. I know that. I’ve known that for over thirty years.

A most recent discovery

Aliyah is for the Jews to return to the land AND also to the Father.

It is not only to return to Israel, but it is to return to Yehovah.

And quite possibly, the physical return is separate from the spiritual return, so that for some Jews, returning to the Father, turning from secularism and accepting by Faith that God exists, is Aliyah. This is actually for us all to study… and so I include the entire chapter of Joel 2 for your consideration.

Our prayer for Yehovah’s Will to be done:

Oh Father, may we pray… Joel 2 – the judgment and the return.

*The Day of the Lord

Joel 2

“Blow the [a]trumpet in Zion,
And sound an alarm in My holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble;
For the day of the Lord is coming,
For it is at hand:

A day of darkness and gloominess,
A day of clouds and thick darkness,
Like the morning clouds spread over the mountains.
A people come, great and strong,
The like of whom has never been;
Nor will there ever be any such after them,
Even for many successive generations.

A fire devours before them,
And behind them a flame burns;
The land is like the Garden of Eden before them,
And behind them a desolate wilderness;
Surely nothing shall escape them.

Their appearance is like the appearance of horses;
And like [b]swift steeds, so they run.

With a noise like chariots
Over mountaintops they leap,
Like the noise of a flaming fire that devours the stubble,
Like a strong people set in battle array.

Before them the people writhe in pain;
All faces [c]are drained of color.

They run like mighty men,
They climb the wall like men of war;
Every one marches in formation,
And they do not break ranks.

They do not push one another;
Every one marches in his own [d]column.
Though they lunge between the weapons,
They are not [e]cut down.

They run to and fro in the city,
They run on the wall;
They climb into the houses,
They enter at the windows like a thief.

10 

The earth quakes before them,
The heavens tremble;
The sun and moon grow dark,
And the stars diminish their brightness.

11 

The Lord gives voice before His army,
For His camp is very great;
For strong is the One who executes His word.
For the day of the Lord is great and very terrible;
Who can endure it?

12 

“Now, therefore,” says the Lord,
“Turn to Me with all your heart,
With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.”

13 

So rend your heart, and not your garments;
Return to the Lord your God,
For He is gracious and merciful,
Slow to anger, and of great kindness;
And He relents from doing harm.

14 

Who knows if He will turn and relent,
And leave a blessing behind Him—
A grain offering and a drink offering
For the Lord your God?

15 

Blow the [f]trumpet in Zion,
Consecrate a fast,
Call a sacred assembly;

16 

Gather the people,
Sanctify the congregation,
Assemble the elders,
Gather the children and nursing babes;
Let the bridegroom go out from his chamber,
And the bride from her dressing room.

17 

Let the priests, who minister to the Lord,
Weep between the porch and the altar;
Let them say, “Spare Your people, O Lord,
And do not give Your heritage to reproach,
That the nations should [g]rule over them.
Why should they say among the peoples,
‘Where is their God?’ ”

18 

Then the Lord will be zealous for His land,
And pity His people.

19 

The Lord will answer and say to His people,
“Behold, I will send you grain and new wine and oil,
And you will be satisfied by them;
I will no longer make you a reproach among the nations.

20 

“But I will remove far from you the northern army,
And will drive him away into a barren and desolate land,
With his face toward the eastern sea
And his back toward the western sea;
His stench will come up,
And his foul odor will rise,
Because he has done [h]monstrous things.”

21 

Fear not, O land;
Be glad and rejoice,
For the Lord has done [i]marvelous things!

22 

Do not be afraid, you beasts of the field;
For the open pastures are springing up,
And the tree bears its fruit;
The fig tree and the vine yield their strength.

23 

Be glad then, you children of Zion,
And rejoice in the Lord your God;
For He has given you the [j]former rain faithfully,
And He will cause the rain to come down for you—
The former rain,
And the latter rain in the first month.

24 

The threshing floors shall be full of wheat,
And the vats shall overflow with new wine and oil.

25 

“So I will restore to you the years that the swarming [k]locust has eaten,
The crawling locust,
The consuming locust,
And the chewing locust,
My great army which I sent among you.

26 

You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied,
And praise the name of the Lord your God,
Who has dealt wondrously with you;
And My people shall never be put to shame.

27 

Then you shall know that I am in the midst of Israel:
am the Lord your God
And there is no other.
My people shall never be put to shame.

28 

“And it shall come to pass afterward
That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh;
Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
Your old men shall dream dreams,
Your young men shall see visions.

29 

And also on My menservants and on My maidservants
I will pour out My Spirit in those days.

30 

“And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth:
Blood and fire and pillars of smoke.

31 

The sun shall be turned into darkness,
And the moon into blood,
Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord.

32 

And it shall come to pass
That whoever calls on the name of the Lord
Shall be [l]saved.
For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be [m]deliverance,
As the Lord has said,
Among the remnant whom the Lord calls.”

Now, Father, bring your people back to you. In faith, in physical, or both.

Amen.

* Thank you to Bible Gateway for making the Word of GOD accessible and available for all to read and receive.

Categories
Reflections and Poetry

Who are the Spiritual Jews

G-D’s Chosen People

I don’t follow replacement theology. God does not change, yesterday today or forever. Hebrews 13:8 says that of Jesus and I believe he has the character of the Father.

Jews are chosen by G-D. This was and is and always will be. That is my view, based upon my knowledge of the Bible and based on my faith in a GOD who is consistent to His Word.

But who are the spiritual Jews? 

Is there such a person who is a non-Jew by blood but is grafted to the Hebraic fabric? I believe Ruth, the moabite and great grandmother of King David was one such person. I believe it is possible to be one who is a part of the Jewish fabric by choice rather than blood. In these days, I believe such people are dedicated Believers of Yeshua/Jesus.

BUT what of the right to live in Israel?

If there are spiritual Jews does that give them the right to be considered Jewish and therefore have they the right to live in Israel? Apparently at present, some Messianic Jews are being kept out of Israel because some in authority don’t want followers of Yeshua to be allowed to live in the Homeland of the Jewish people. Therefore, right now the thought of allowing Messianic Gentiles is irrelevant at best and unlikely for the current age.

Common Sense, Fear and History

One day, if those grafted into the Jewish heritage by faith in Yeshua as Messiah are permitted citizenship in Israel, then couldn’t that necessarily lead to those Jews who don’t believe in Yeshua as Messiah being turfed out? That perhaps is what current Jewish leaders are concerned could happen and therefore are trying to prevent the whole mess by making it very difficult for practicing Messianic Jews to migrate there in the first place. Personally, I would hope that no Jewish person would ever be turned away from their homeland. It was created for them and so needs to be available to them.

I do not subscribe to the view that a secular Jew could not be welcomed into Israel. Israel was re-formed in 1947-8 because the European majority felt guilty for the Holocaust and the anti-semitism that led up to it, and believed it overdue to give the Jewish people a nation of their own. So in human terms at least, to restrict Jews at all doesn’t seem right to me.

What is G-D’s Perspective

G-D will ultimately decide what to do with the Jewish person who does not acknowledge Him, but I trust every opportunity for a turning will be available to such a person. I believe G-D made a covenant with Abraham and He will keep it with his descendants, regardless of faith, until or unless He must separate as He did in the desert between those who stood with Moses and those who did not.

There has been huge grace afforded to Jewish people down through the Ages as evidenced by their significant contributions to society and their subsequent success and influence in the world. That is G-D’s blessing. And until G-D removes that blessing it is not for us to say differently.

But…

We who lack Jewish heritage yet follow the God of the Hebrews reap blessing from our faith. And so it is credible to think that one day we might have our home in Israel. What a wonder! And yet, even if that became a possibility, we must not take it for granted; just as He withdrew favour from unbelieving Jews, so too can he eliminate Gentiles from His Rest. In Romans 11, Paul discusses this at some length. And if you check out Hebrews 3 and 4, the writer speaks a great deal about the value of God’s rest and the consequence of disobedience.

Homeland for whom?

So…

The spiritual Jew is one who loves the LORD and is fully committed to him, recognising his full identity and his full purpose. (Isaiah 49:6)

Yes, I think there is such a thing as a spiritual Jew.

Whether or not his homeland will become Israel remains to be seen. Certainly we have our Home with the LORD, and ultimately, our citizenship is in Heaven. (Philippians 3:20) Perhaps on earth it will also be in Israel, but whether we would have that privilege, for my part, it is too soon to say.

Aliya

One thing is for sure, the Jewish person is to fulfil his call to Aliya and I am praying for the return of all Jews to their natural and spiritual Homeland of Israel, and that it will be in G-D’s perfect way and in His perfect time. Following that is the return of Jesus, the Saviour and Messiah. Perhaps then and not before will we know where he wants each and all of his people to reside.