Friday, June 9, 2017
One of the sure indicators of the end-times is that “many false prophets will rise up and deceive many” (Matt. 24:11). If you know God’s Word and are alert to today’s deceptively progressive Christianity, you know that Jesus’ warning is increasingly true. So be on your spiritual guard.
Today, many deceivers teach a false unity that Orthodox Jews of Israel are heirs with believing Christians, and that it’s our Christian duty to financially support them based on God’s Word to Abraham, saying, “I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you” (Gen. 12:3), and thus seduce many to support Jews, their customs, their feasts and their special days.
These false teachers, primarily men, will cover their heads with the Jewish prayer shawl as they pray before their congregations in a show of solidarity with unbelieving Jews. They teach as if God gave us no further Word concerning the Abrahamic covenant or our Christian covenant.
Spiritually, Christians have no common ground with Orthodox Jews or Muslims. They know who Jesus is, but reject Him. God said, “I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonors his head” (1 Cor. 11:3–4), meaning he dishonors Christ.
First, understand that there was a time when God said of ancient Jews, “Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people…you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Ex. 19:5–6). The condition of that promise, however, was that “if you will indeed obey”, but they would not.
Second, when Christ the Messiah came as prophesied, “He came to His own, [Jews] and His own did not receive Him” (John 1:11). Consequently, “Because of unbelief they [Jews] were broken off” (Rom. 11:20) from the Abrahamic covenant promise of God, saying, “if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise” (Gal. 3:29).
Third, post-Calvary, God now says of New Covenant believers in Christ that “you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God” (1 Peter 2:9–10). [emphasis added] Bless the Lord!
An immutable exchange has occurred from Old Testament Orthodox Jews to New Covenant believing Christians, and anyone who denies that Christians are today the chosen people of God is a deceiver. Because of unbelief religious Jews have lost their once-held position of being “a special treasure to Me above all people”, which today is applicable only to true Christians.
God still seeks true Jews, “For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable” (Rom. 11:29). However, “he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, [physically] nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh; but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God” (Rom. 2:28–29).
Orthodox Jews and Muslims denounce Jesus as the Son of God; they reject Moses’ teachings of Christ (Deut. 18:15–22 and Acts 3:19–24); they reject New Covenant truths of Christ. Yet, many highly influential Western pastors, loving the praise of man more than the praise of God, teach a damnable false unity between Christians, Jews and Muslims, leading many to universalism.
But God said: “Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God” (2 Cor. 6:14–16).
Orthodox Jews and Muslims, though knowing who Jesus Christ is, live in spiritual darkness and are separated from God. They are both spiritually lawless. They are both of Belial. They are both the habitation of idols. They are both destined for destruction unless, in faith, they turn to Christ.
The Jews, for 2,012 Hebraic years have rejected Messiah Jesus Christ since AD 33. But at the appointed time of May 1948, God, being zealous for His land and His saints, ushered in the time of the end, and by His Spirit called physical Jews from the world back to the land of Israel, and Israel was reborn. Yet, religious Jews today despise Messiah Jesus Christ.
Therefore, “they are not all Israel who are of Israel, nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham; [meaning both Jews and Muslims] but, in Isaac your seed shall be called. That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed” (Rom. 9:6–8); see also Galatians 3:29.
With that backdrop consider that God said, “Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son. Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also” (1 John 2:22–23). Yet, many deceivers teach that we have fellowship with unbelieving Jews and Muslims. But we do not! We have no unity with them, but are to evangelize them in the salvation truth of Christ.
Orthodox Jews and Muslims are antichrist, for they deny “that Jesus is the Christ”. God said “he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him” (John 3:36). That promise attends Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, New Age and any other false religions that deny Jesus as the only way, truth and life to God. Likewise, God clearly commands His saints of our obligation toward those who intellectually know Christ but believe not His doctrine thereof.
God further commanded, “Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house nor greet him; for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds” (2 John 1:9–11). [emphasis added]
The truth that Orthodox Jews do “not abide in the doctrine of Christ”, though they were the first to whom the truth was preached by Christ Himself, is all the reason Christians need to have no fellowship with those who revile the name of Messiah Jesus Christ. It isn’t as if they had no opportunity to believe, for they were the first to have opportunity to believe the gospel.
Have they fallen beyond recovery? Certainly not, for “if they do not continue in unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again” (Rom. 11:23). The Apostle Paul vexed by their unbelief proclaimed, “I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen according to the flesh, who are Israelites, to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises” (Rom. 9:3–4).
Many Christians fearing man more than God, refuse to hold salvation faith in Christ Jesus exclusive, and thus deceivably co-mingle faith in Christ with demons. Thus, many deceived Christians work diligently to build false spiritual bridges between Christians and unbelieving Jews and Muslims, an outright disobedience to the commands of Jesus Christ Himself.
If you are part of a church that sends money to Orthodox Jews in Israel, or provides funding to The Temple Institute, know that your money is funding the third Temple which Antichrist will desecrate, “who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God” (2 Thess. 2:4).
Jesus taught evangelism: “preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick…Whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart. And whoever will not receive you, when you go out of that city, shake off the very dust from your feet as a testimony against them” (Luke 9:2–5). And we NEVER EVER seek common ground between the Talmud, the Quran, and the Bible!
Yet, many influential pastors seek such common ground, and break bread with Muslims who deny that Jesus is the Son of God; and other mega-church pastors send large sums of money to unbelieving Jews in Israel who hate Jesus Christ even more than Muslims. But Jesus said, “Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces” (Matt. 7:6). And the good news of the cross of Jesus Christ is indeed a “pearl of great price” (Matt. 13:46) and Christians must honor and defend it.
It’s important to understand that the religious leaders of Judaism and Islam know exactly who Jesus Christ is, and that He claimed to be the Son of God, and that He gave His life on Calvary for the remission of sins. Yet, Judaism and Islam vehemently deny Christ, which makes them that much more culpable in the coming Day of Judgment. They are without excuse, for they know exactly who Jesus is but deliberately trample the pearl of Christ “under their feet”.
The only redemptive covenant today is the New Covenant in the shed blood of Jesus Christ, of which God said to unbelieving Jews, “This is the stone that was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone. Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:11–12).
True salvation faith is this: “that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Rom. 10:9–10). You are an eternal being, and the above process is the only path to eternal life and being a true Jew.
Marlin J. Yoder
