My story:
“I started believing in Jesus a little over a month ago. I grew up in a completely atheist home and at some point (about two years ago) I realized that I do believe in something beyond the physical.
I learned quite a bit about Judaism, the history of our nation, and its different streams. I looked into Kabbalah and Karaite Judaism but nothing really grabbed me, and I had no meaningful religious experience. One weekend I thought I’d try reading about Jesus (I had some kind of inner call to it), and after a lot of inner wrestling that comes from this tribalistic thinking we all grow up with (“Jesus is rubbish, Jesus didn’t exist, Jesus is for Gentile Christians”) I managed to overcome my negative impulses and do some research.
I immediately realized that I loved Him very much, and that He was the culmination of everything I believed in (about objective morality, about God and what He wants for us, the attitude of the Pharisees compared to the simplicity of true faith and so on). From there I came to your videos and website and everything became even more logical and *Jewish.*
Since then my faith only gets stronger. I want to say thank you very much for your sacrifice for the sake of saving souls as God wills.”
What to know
- Despite the fact that Jesus is Jewish, from the tribe of Judah, many Jewish people struggle to see Him as “one of the tribe.” However, there have been some positive developments with more and more Israelis recognizing the Jewishness of Jesus.
- There are many different streams of Judaism, just as there are many different Christian denominations. Kabbalah is more mystical and has roots in quite dark spirituality, whereas the Karaites only believe the Scriptures, leaning less on rabbinic writings like the Talmud.
- Although Jewish people hold all sorts of beliefs and none, believing in Jesus is seen as a red line that should not be crossed. Many Jewish people are atheists as this man was, others practice new age spirituality and even Buddhism, all of which is acceptable, but for some reason believing in Jesus as the Jewish Messiah is beyond the pale!
How to Pray
- Please pray that more and more Israelis accept Jesus as one of the tribe, and see His message as relevant to Jewish people.
- Pray for those who are curious to learn about Jesus but feel hesitant — pray for courage to explore the New Testament and the teachings of Jesus.
- Pray for this person in particular to grow in their understanding of the faith and in love for the Lord.
