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"Messianic Judaism"; or Judaising Christianity
Part 3 - The Movement Partly a Reaction By DAVID BARON |
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| The Movement partly a Reaction. Now let me say, before proceeding to define our own position and to point out a few of the fallacies and dangers of this movement, that it is partly a reaction and protest against certain wrong methods of Jewish missions and missionaries, and wrong views in the churches in reference to Israel. (1) Societies and missions have not been content with merely evangelising the Jews, and bringing those whose hearts were inclined toward the Gospel into living contact with Christ, but have sought to absorb them into the particular sect and party to which they themselves belonged, and more or less to Gentilise as well as "Christianise" them. (2) Christianity has for the most part been presented to the Jews as an alien system in a Gentile garb, and instead of presenting Christ to them as their "very own"—the Divine King of their people, the sum and substance of their Scriptures, the Fulfiller of their Law and their Prophets, the embodiment of all the promises and covenants which God made with their fathers; and the New Testament as the continuation and completion of the self-revelation of God to Moses and the Prophets—the Gentile Churches have invited the Jews to "change their religion," and Jewish converts have been designated "proselytes." (3) As to the nation of Israel, these "proselytes" were taught for the most part that it is dead and done for; that the names "Israel," "Zion," "Jerusalem," in the great prophecies and promises which are manifestly yet unfulfilled, are no longer to be taken literally, but apply to "the Church," excepting when those names and terms occur in connection with curses and threatenings—then, of course, they do still apply to the "Jews." In short, that the most which is to be expected in reference to the future of the Jewish people is the absorption of a certain number within the Church. This being so, any special sympathy and interest on the part of Jewish converts for their own nation was looked down upon almost with suspicion, and any hopes for a future national restoration of their people was regarded "as Jewish," if not carnal. In short, the "proselyte" must make himself as "un-Jewish" as possible, even to the changing of his old Jewish name for a Gentile one. Our Own Position and Views. Now, I need not explain to any reader of The Scattered Nation that the Hebrew Christian Testimony to Israel holds different views, and works upon quite different principles. We are full of hope for the future of our nation, and most firmly believe with the Apostle Paul that the gifts and the calling of God in relation to Israel are "without repentance" or a change of mind on His part. We believe that Israel is still God's nation; that Zion will yet again be the centre of God's kingdom upon earth, and that not through the Churches, which are becoming more and more apostate and worldly, but through restored and converted Israel shall all the nations of the earth be led to a knowledge of Christ, and all the earth be filled with the knowledge of Jehovah, even as the waters cover the sea. Nor is the aim of our "Testimony" to "proselytise" a few Jews for this or that particular sect or party in Christendom, but to spread abroad, and as widely as possible, the knowledge of Israel's true Messiah and Saviour among the scattered people. We repudiate and resent the term, "proselyte" as applied to a Jewish believer, for by faith in the Redeemer promised to our fathers he has become a true "Israelite," who has entered into his own promised heritage of covenanted blessing—"a Jew" not only "outwardly," like his unbelieving brethren, but also "inwardly, in spirit and in truth," whose praise is not of men but of God. But, holding these views and cherishing these hopes, and with hearts full of yearning love for our nation, we do not overlook nor forget the great though temporary break in Israel's national history occasioned by national apostasy and sin, nor the solemn consequences both to Israel himself and the world of this break in God's national dealings with our people, and the special character of the dispensation which was inaugurated by the advent of the long-promised Redeemer, and the preaching of His Gospel. |
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