TheKnight
Guardian of Life
Living in sin? How is it living in sin? You don't have to convert to Judaism to be right with God. A person who converts is someone who feels such a deep attachment to Judaism and the Jewish people that they cannot help but to become Jewish. For many Noahides, however, they don't feel that spiritual connection to the Jewish people and therefore see no need to convert. God doesn't require conversion because there are laws that Noahides can follow to be righteous. A Noahide who keeps the Noahide commandments has righteousness like that of the High Priest. The Jews are the nation of priests. What good is a priest without a congregation? The Jews are the Light to the nations. Us nations don't need to become Jews to be right in God's eyes.I am confused...isn't that a bit like living in sin? Acting like you're married but not actually committing to the other party? What is the point of believing what Jews believe if you don't convert? What does God think about that?
Most Noahides believe what Jews believe because they believe that Judaism is true. What does God think about it? I wouldn't be so arrogant to assume that I know what God thinks about something.
What if he was really the boogie monster. I'm not concerned with what ifs. The fact is that there isn't anything in the Tanach about the Messiah setting up a spiritual kingdom (God already as a spiritual kingdom). There is nothing in the Tanach that says that Moshiach will establish a heavenly kingdom by dying and raising from the dead. It says (very clearly and in many places) that Moshiach will bring world peace. Jesus didn't do that and thus is not the Messiah.That is exactly what the majority of the first century Jews thought. He wasn't their political Messiah so he couldn't be the right one. What if the Kingdom wasn't earthly? What if the solutions he offered were spiritual? What if it was a heavenly kingdom but its rulership was over the earth at a future time?
I'm not going to go through all of them because I've seen them before. Let's assume that all these passages are talking about the Messiah.On the contrary, Jesus fulfilled all the prophesies ever written about him. Most of them were things over which he had no control.
How about these prophesies?.....
Jesus was not the only person who was born of the tribe of Judah. In fact, according to the NT he had brothers and sisters who would also have been born of the tribe of Judah.Gen. 49:10 Born of the tribe of Judah
Again,many people came after David who descendants of David. Jesus wasn't the only one.Ps. 132:11; From the family of
Isa. 9:7; David the son of Jesse
11:1, 10
Again, not something that is specific to Jesus alone, but many people have been born in Bethlehem.Mic. 5:2 Born in Bethlehem
This is in no way verifiable, and the verse doesn't say virging, but young woman. Not only that, but any one with reading comprehension skills could read Isaiah chapter 7 and see that this verse isn't a messianic prophesy.Isa. 7:14 Born of a virgin
Babies were killed after plenty of people's births.Jer. 31:15 Babies killed after his birth
Hosea 11:1 "When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and out of Egypt I called My son. "Hos. 11:1 Called out of Egypt
Is that a prophesy about Jesus?
Really? Who was this one like Elijah? It wasn't John the baptist.Mal. 3:1; 4:5; Way prepared beforehand by one like Elijah.
John 1:21 "They asked him, "Then who are you? Are you Elijah?"
He said, "I am not."
Yeah, plenty of people were commissioned by God, this doesn't make them Moshiach.Isa. 61:1, 2 Commissioned by God.
I speak with Illustrations all the time.Ps. 78:2 Spoke with illustrations
He carried people's sicknesses? When did he do that? Do you mean he healed people? Doctors do that all the time.Isa. 53:4 Carried our sicknesses
I'm zealous for God too and I'm not the Messiah.Ps. 69:9 Zealous for Yahwehs house
Plenty of people weren't believed in during that time period.Isa. 53:1 Not believed in.
Jesus never become a rock...so I'm not exactly sure how you explain this one.Isa. 28:16; Rejected, but becomes chief cornerstone
Isa. 8:14, 15 Becomes stone of stumbling
I've been betrayed too, does that make me the Messiah?Ps. 41:9; 109:8 One apostle unfaithful; betrays him
I've been betrayed for money before too....Zech. 11:12 Betrayed for 30 pieces of silver
And?Zech. 13:7 Disciples scatter
Jesus was never anointed...Ps. 2:1, 2 Roman powers and leaders of Israel
act together against anointed of Yahweh
Maybe you should read my above responses. My point is that none of these "prophesies" are specific to Jesus. In fact, for almost all of them I'm sure you could find hundreds of counterexamples of people who also did the same thing. Even if these prophesies are messianic, they're not important. The important prophesies are the ones where the Messiah actually does something. Like creating world peace (Isaiah 2:4), rebuilding the temple (Ezekiel 27:15-38), and bringing about universal knowledge of God (Isaiah 11:9).These were all fulfilled in Jesus. How can you say he did not fulfill prophesy?
God wouldn't punish me for not believing in someone whose theology blatantly contradicted His Torah.What if the Messiah has come and you missed him?
Jews and some Noahides don't write God out of respect for God's name. It comes from a Jewish law that states one should not destroy the name of God. It's not obligatory however (hence why I write God all the time).Thanks for the nutshell NH. May I ask why you cannot write God? Is there a problem with that? I am curious as I see others do this and I would like to ask why?
Having been through hundreds of these debates myself I won't address anything directly but I will make an offer. I will go so far as to tell you that one place the christian view of the Moshiach fails is in what they consider to be messianic verses (Isaiah 7:14 is the one that personaly drives me crazy). When reading these verses that christianity claims to be messianic we have to look at the over-arching theme and aks ourselves, "Does this fit into Jewish thought and the Torah?". If it doesn't, then it's not a true perspective. Having done it myself, I know how hard it can be to empty my mind and learn about Judaism from the Jewish viewpoint and not the christian view point. But this is whatmust be done if you truely want to know about Judaism, or any other religion for that matter. If you were studying about Islam would you go ask christians about Islam? Of course not. You would go ask Muslims about Islam.
And in the end what we think of Judaism is irrelevant because we are not members of that religion. And weather you believe what I say is irrelevant as well. Why? Because you are a christian. You saw a need for self improvement in yourself and you sought G-d and His foregiveness and mercy. You improved yourself and sought to be a better person. IMHO you don't have to change. You are fine as a good christian. Be the best christian you can be and keep studying and growing. Because you see in all of the Jewish Tanach where salvation and religion are concerned nowhere, and I mean NOWHERE does it state that there is only one way to Hashem and salvation. Yes, the Jews are bound to Judaism but the rest of humanity is bound to no one religion. think about it; if there were to be one single true religion, and that religion was the single way to Hashem and salvation, it would be written in huge letters all over the Torah and Tanach, yes? But it is not. Nowhere is it written that one day their would be one true path and religion.
Here's a link to Chabad's online Tanach. You can go through and look up all your scriptural references there and see some of the differences between the Jewish interpretation and the christian one. Check the box near the top that turns on Rashi's commentary also. Enjoy!
The Complete Tanach with Rashi - Classic Texts - Torah - Bible
:yes: Couldn't have said it better myself.