Bible Study Lessons
The following bible study lessons are available:
The Redemption
I Christian view on redemption
1. BIBLE REFERENCES
Luk 2:38 And she coming in that instant gave thanks likewise unto the Lord, and spake of him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem.
Luk 21:28 And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.
Rom 3:24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
Rom 8:23 And not only [they], but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, [to wit], the redemption of our body.
1Cr 1:30 But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:
Eph 1:7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;
Eph 1:14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.
Eph 4:30 And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.
Col 1:14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, [even] the forgiveness of sins:
Hbr 9:12 Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption [for us].
Hbr 9:15 And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions [that were] under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.
2. GREEK DEFINITION
A-1 Verb Strong's Number: 1805
Greek: exagorazo
a strengthened form of agorazo, "to buy" (see BUY, No. 1), denotes "to buy out" (ex for ek), especially of purchasing a slave with a view to his freedom. It is used metaphorically (a) in Gal 3:13; 4:5, of the deliverance by Christ of Christian Jews from the Law and its curse; what is said of lutron (RANSOM, No. 1) is true of this verb and of agorazo, as to the Death of Christ, that Scripture does not say to whom the price was paid; the various suggestions made are purely speculative; (b) in the Middle Voice, "to buy up for oneself," Eph 5:16; and Col 4:5, of "buying up the opportunity" (RV marg.; text, "redeeming the time," where "time" is kairos, "a season," a time in which something is seasonable), i.e., making the most of every opportunity, turning each to the best advantage since none can be recalled if missed. Note: In Rev 5:9; 14:3,4, AV, agorazo, "to purchase" (RV) is translated "redeemed." See PURCHASE.A-2 Verb Strong's Number: 3084
Greek: lutroo
"to release on receipt of ransom" (akin to lutron, "a ransom"), is used in the Middle Voice, signifying "to release by paying a ransom price, to redeem" (a) in the natural sense of delivering, Luk 24:21, of setting Israel free from the Roman yoke; (b) in a spiritual sense, Tts 2:14, of the work of Christ in "redeeming" men "from all iniquity" (anomia, "lawlessness," the bondage of self-will which rejects the will of God); 1Pe 1:18 (Passive Voice), "ye were redeemed," from a vain manner of life, i.e., from bondage to tradition. In both instances the Death of Christ is stated as the means of "redemption." Note: While both No. 1 and No. 2 are translated "to redeem," exagorazo does not signify the actual "redemption," but the price paid with a view to it, lutroo signifies the actual "deliverance," the setting at liberty.B-1 Noun Strong's Number: 3085
Greek: lutrosis
"a redemption" (akin to A, No. 2), is used (a) in the general sense of "deliverance," of the nation of Israel, Luk 1:68 RV, "wrought redemption;" Luk 2:38; (b) of "the redemptive work" of Christ, Hbr 9:12, bringing deliverance through His death, from the guilt and power of sin. In the Sept., Lev 25:29,48; Num 18:16; Jdg 1:15; Psa 49:8; 111:9; 130:7; Isa 63:4.B-2 Noun Strong's Number: 629
Greek: apolutrosis
a strengthened form of No. 1, lit., "a releasing, for (i.e., on payment of) a ransom." It is used of (a) "deliverance" from physical torture, Hbr 11:35, see DELIVER, B, No. 1; (b) the deliverance of the people of God at the coming of Christ with His glorified saints, "in a cloud with power and great glory," Luk 21:28, a "redemption" to be accomplished at the "outshining of His Parousia," 2Th 2:8, i.e., at His second advent; (c) forgiveness and justification, "redemption" as the result of expiation, deliverance from the guilt of sins, Rom 3:24, "through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus;" Eph 1:7, defined as "the forgiveness of our trespasses," RV; so Col 1:14, "the forgiveness of our sins," indicating both the liberation from the guilt and doom of sin and the introduction into a life of liberty, "newness of life" ( Rom 6:4); Hbr 9:15, "for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first covenant," RV, here "redemption of" is equivalent to "redemption from," the genitive case being used of the object from which the "redemption" is effected, not from the consequence of the transgressions, but from the trangressions themselves; (d) the deliverance of the believer from the presence and power of sin, and of his body from bondage to corruption, at the coming (the Parousia in its inception) of the Lord Jesus, Rom 8:23; 1Cr 1:30; Eph 1:14; 4:30. See also PROPITIATION
2. Salvation
1. BIBLE REFERENCES for Salvation
Mat 1:21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.
Act 4:12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved
Rom 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek
Rom 10:10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation
2. GREEK DEFINITION
N.T View = soteria {so-tay-ree'-ah}
1) deliverance, preservation, safety, salvation
a) deliverance from the molestation of enemies
b) in an ethical sense, that which concludes to the souls safety or salvation
2) of Messianic salvation
a) salvation as the present possession of all true Christians
3) future salvation, the sum of benefits and blessings which the Christians, redeemed from all earthly ills, will enjoy after the visible return of Christ from heaven in the consummated and eternal kingdom of God. ++++
Fourfold salvation: saved from the penalty, power, presence and most importantly the pleasure of sin. A.W. Pink
3 Justification by Faith
A. Understanding Faith
For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, {it is} the gift of God;not as a result of works, so that no one may boast (Eph 2:8)
He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:5)
It proceeds on the imputing or crediting to the believer by God himself of the perfect righteousness, active and passive, of his Representative and Surety, Jesus Christ ( Rom 10:3-9).
Justification is not the forgiveness of a man without righteousness, but a declaration that he possesses a righteousness which perfectly and for ever satisfies the law, namely, Christ's righteousness ( 2Cr 5:21; Rom 4:6-8).The sole condition on which this righteousness is imputed or credited to the believer is faith in or on the Lord Jesus Christ. Faith is called a "condition," not because it possesses any merit, but only because it is the instrument, the only instrument by which the soul appropriates or apprehends Christ and his righteousness ( Rom 1:17; 3:25,26; 4:20,22; Phl 3:8-11; Gal 2:16).
The act of faith which thus secures our justification secures also at the same time our sanctification ( q.v.); and thus the doctrine of justification by faith does not lead to licentiousness ( Rom 6:2-7). Good works, while not the ground, are the certain consequence of justification ( 6:14; 7:6).
B. Scripture for justification by faith (Rom. 4),
Rom 4:1
What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, has found?
Rom 4:2
For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God.
Rom 4:3
For what does the Scripture say? "ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS CREDITED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS."
C. The Importance of Justification
First, this truth is at the heart of the gospel. In fact, it is impossible to properly understand the gospel unless you understand this truth. Martin Luther, the great reformer of the 1500s, said that "Without the doctrine of justification the world is utter death and darkness.". One of the battle cries during this reformation was that justification is by faith alone.
Justification is so important that Luther came to say that this is the doctrine by which the church stands or falls. Unfortunately, much of the church today doesn't even know about this doctrine.
John Calvin, another Reformer, said "Justification is the principal ground on which religion must be supported, so it requires greater care and attention. For unless you understand first of all your position before God, and what the judgement is which He passes on you, you have no foundation in which your salvation can be laid, or on which holiness towards God can be reared."
More recently, the second greatest revival in church history was also started as a result of this truth. In the 1700s, God used Jonathon Edward's preaching on justification to start what is now known as the great awakening.
II Jewish view of redemption
1. Biblical references
Exd 14:13 And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever.
Psa 14:7 Oh that the salvation of Israel [were come] out of Zion! when the LORD bringeth back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice, [and] Israel shall be glad.
Isa 49:6 And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth
Eze 37:23 Neither shall they defile themselves any more with theiridols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions: but I will save them out of all their dwellingplaces, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God.
Zec 9:9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he [is] just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.
Lev 25:24 And in all the land of your possession ye shall grant a redemption for the land.
Lev 25:51 If [there be] yet many years [behind], according unto them he shall give again the price of his redemption out of the money that he was bought for.
Lev 25:52 And if there remain but few years unto the year of jubile, then he shall count with him, [and] according unto his years shall he give him again the price of his redemption.
Num 3:49 And Moses took the redemption money of them that were over and above them that were redeemed by the Levites:
Psa 49:8 (For the redemption of their soul [is] precious, and it ceaseth for ever:)
Psa 111:9 He sent redemption unto his people: he hath commanded his covenant for ever: holy and reverend [is] his name.
Psa 130:7 Let Israel hope in the LORD: for with the LORD [there is] mercy, and with him [is] plenteous redemption.
2. Definition of redemption
1. REDEMPTION
(ga'al)
a) (Qal)
1) to act as kinsman, do the part of next of kin, act as kinsman-redeemer
a) by marrying brother's widow to beget a child for him, to redeem from slavery, to redeem land, to exact vengeance
2) to redeem (by payment)
3) to redeem (with God as subject)
a) individuals from death
b) Israel from Egyptian bondage
c) Israel from exile
d) (Niphal)
4) to redeem oneselfa) biblical references
Of persons or property
Lev 25:25-34; 27:2-13,14-33; Rth 4:3-10
Redemption money paid to priests
Num 3:46-51
Of the firstborn
See FIRSTBORN T0001837
Of land
See JUBILEE T0002869
OF OUR SOULS
Psa 111:9; 130:7; Mat 20:28; Mar 10:45; Luk 2:38; Act 20:28; Rom 3:24-26; 1Cr 1:30; 6:20; 7:23; Gal 1:4; 2:20; 4:4,5; Eph 1:7; 5:2; Col 1:14,20-22; 1Ti 2:6; Tts 2:14; Hbr 9:12,15; 1Pe 1:18,19; Rev 5:9,10
See ATONEMENT. T0000485
See RANSOM T0004059
2. Salvation(yasha)
1) to save, be saved, be delivered
a) (Niphal)
1) to be liberated, be saved, be delivered
2) to be saved (in battle), be victorious
b) (Hiphil)
1) to save, deliver
2) to save from moral troubles
3) to give victory to
This word is used of the deliverance of the Israelites from the Egyptians ( Exd 14:13), and of deliverance generally from evil or danger. In the New Testament it is specially used with reference to the great deliverance from the guilt and the pollution of sin wrought out by Jesus Christ, "the great salvation" ( Hbr 2:3).
3. Jewish mindset of redemption is physical
When Christians talk about redemption, they are talking about their messiah saving them from punishment for sin, which they believe is the fate of every person who doesn't accept their messiah. The Jewish view of redemption is very different. For Jews, the bad thing that God redeems, or saves, us from is not sin, but exile.
The Encyclopaedia Judaica offers a broader definition; it defines redemption as "salvation from the states or circumstances that destroy the value of human existence or human existence itself."
a. For example, the paradigmatic redemption story in the Torah is the Exodus from Egypt, where God redeems the people from slavery, oppression, and exile; see Exodus 6:1-10, among many other places.b. Much later, when the Israelite kingdom gets overthrown by nasty empires like the Babylonians and the Assyrians, prophets such as Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Jeremiah preached to the people that God would eventually restore Israel to its land and renew both the Temple worship and the line of kings descended from King David. See for example, extended sections of the book of Isaiah, including chapters 40-54, or Ezekiel chapter 37, or Jeremiah chapter 32. The later prophets sometimes looked back to the redemption from Egypt as an inspiration or assurance that there would be a future, even greater redemption from their current suffering.
c. In post-Biblical times, when the Jews were again in exile and the Temple lay in ruins after the Roman destruction of Jerusalem in 70 C.E., the rabbis associated redemption, as before:
1. with return to the land and the restoration of native kingship.
2. They also began to discuss the idea of a messiah, whom they thought of as a Jewish king who would lead the people back from their dispersal. All these events would take place when the Jews were worthy of them; repentance and good deeds were the key to the ushering in of the messianic era.
3. A third element mixed in with the post-Biblical concept of redemption is the idea of resurrection of the dead, which some rabbis believed would happen in messianic times.d. In the late middle ages, some mystics began to see the Jewish situation of exile as being part of a cosmic drama involving the very nature of God- just as the Jews were in exile from their land, an aspect of God went into "exile" with us, and the Jewish redemption will mirror the perfection and wholeness of the Divine in the upper worlds. The task of the Jews in exile is to gather "Divine Sparks" and lift them up to their Source; when enough holiness has been "raised up," the world will find its perfection and the Jews will be gathered in. This is a difficult and complex theology, full of metaphors and symbols, but it gave rise to the idea of "tikkun olam," or "repairing the world," which many liberal Jews understand as our part in the redemption drama.
e. Today:
1. Both the Reform and Reconstructionist movements have reworked the idea of messiah to symbolize not a particular person but an age when the entire world, including the Jewish people, will be redeemed from all that causes our humanity to be diminished- including but not limited to Jewish dispersal. Even with the Jews back in Israel, there are still vast human problems that indicate that the age of wholeness and peace has not arrived; thus, many Jews, both liberal and traditional, believe that they have a personal responsibility to engage in small but cumulative acts which will either hasten or make us worthy of the messianic age.
2. Orthodox. You may have noticed advertisements placed by Lubavitcher Hassidim, who advise us to bring the "Moshiach" (Messiah) with acts of kindness and compassion,.***It's all part of the Jewish belief in redemption, and the fundamental belief in a brighter future.
4. Jewish discription of redemption
a. Exile in the past
(By : Solomon Schechter Lewis N. Dembitz)
The name of the benediction which follows the reading of the Shema'.
It refers to God's redemption of Israel from Egyptian bondage, and
closes with the words "who hath redeemed ["ga'al"] Israel." when
"Moses and the children of Israel struck up a song to thee in great gladness,
and all of them said [quoting from the Song on the Sea] 'Who is like thee
among the gods, O Lord? Who is like thee, revered in holiness, fearful in
praises, doing wonders?'" Both the evening and the morning service then
introduce the last verse of the song; "The Lord will reign forever and ever,"
and after a verse from the Prophets concerning Israel's redemption,
come the closing words: "Blessed. . . . He has redeemed Israel."
The past tense—in other words, the exclusive reference to the redemption
from Egypt—is noted in Pes. 117b
b. Exile is future: a pregnancy, Redemption is birth
Golus (exile) is likened to pregnancy, and the geulah (redemption) is likened to birth, as the verse states about Moshiach "Ani hayom yelidasicha", "today I gave birth to you." (Tehillim 119) Just as at the end of nine months a pregnant woman will begin to cry out in pain (from "birthpangs"), similarly the time at the end of the period of golus, right before the geulah when the moment of salvation is near (which is the "preganacy" of the time of golus), is referred to as "birthpangs". This is the idea of "birthpangs of Moshiach" which occur to Israel "from the straits" which are called "eis tzora", "time of trouble" and precisely from these troubles we will be saved.
c. Relation to Messiah.
"Salvation" and "redemption" ("ge'ulah"), as applied in the Messianic conception, are identical. As God is the "Moshia'," so He is also the "Go'el" (Isa. xliv. 23, xlviii. 20, lii. 9, lxiii. 9; Ps. lxxiv. 2).
This savior or redeemer is Yhwh (Isa. xliv. 24, xlvii. 4, xlviii. 17, lxiii. 16; Deutero-Isaiah prefers the latter term). The remnant are the "ge'ulim," redeemed of Yhwh (Isa. lxii. 12; Ps. cvii. 2). The primary idea underlying the term "ga'al," like that basic to "padah," the derivatives of which are also employed to designate those that are saved for and in this Messianic kingdom (Isa. li. 11; Zech. x. 8; Ps. xxv. 22; cxxx. 7, 8; comp. Isa. i. 27), is related to that of "yasha'" only in so far as both connote an act that results in freedom or ease to its beneficiary. The slave, for instance, might be redeemed from bondage as was Israel (Deut. xiii. 6, xxi. 8; II Sam. vii. 23; Neh. i. 10; Mic. vi. 4). The Exile was a period of captivity. By bringing home the dispersed, God was their redeemer; and in consequence Israel was saved. In ancient Israel the go'el was one upon whom had fallen the obligation to pay the honors due to a deceased kinsman; for with no son born to him a man was deprived of the filial tribute, and his name was in danger of obliteration; therefore it was the duty of the go'el, the next of kin, to raise up his name.
5. Time of redemptionm - Will the Redemption be in Nissan or Tishrei?
A. Which month?
There is a dispute in the gemora between Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Yehoshua (Rosh Hashana 11a). They disagree on the following point: will the final redemption take place in Tishrei or Nissan.
1. Rabbi Eliezer says that we were redeemed from Egypt in Nissan, but the final redemption will take place in Tishrei. Rabbi Yehoshua says that just as we were redeemed from Egypt in Nissan, so too the final redemption take place in Nissan.
2. Chassidus explains as follows: Nissan and Tishrei represent different qualities. These qualities are found in the months (moments in time) of Tishrei and Nissan, but in the Supernal realms where there is no time they still have unique identities. Tishrei is the month of Rosh Hashana, when the spiritual energy of the year is brought down. This is a fixed measure of spiritual "shefa" (energy). Even the Hebrew word for year "shana" reflects the idea of repetition. Nissan, on the other hand, is when we came out of Egypt amidst miracles and wonders. Nissan is the head of the months, the very first mitzvah in the Torah (read in every synagogue this coming Shabbos, 25 Adar). The Hebrew word for month, "chodesh" reflects the idea of newness. Tishrei is nature, Nissan is miracle.
We find that the Rambam (Maimonides) seemingly rules in favor of Rabbi Eliezer. In his Laws of Repentance, Hilchos Tshuva 7:5, the Rambam states that "Yisroel will not be redeemed except through tshuva". Similarly, in Tanya the Alter Rebbe writes that all the revelations of the Messianic age are dependent on our efforts and actions in the time of exile. Yet we find that Midrash Shmuel Rabba 15:11 sides with Rabbi Yehoshua: that the ultimate redemption will take place in Nissan. Seemingly our sources are in contradiction. The Rebbe resolves the contradiction: the tshuva of Yisroel at the end of exile is a guarantee of Hashem in His Torah! (See the Rambam there: וכבר הבטיחה תורה שסוף ישראל לעשות תשובה בסוף גלותן ומיד הן נגאלין) Therefore the work of Yisroel, the tshuva (aspect of Tishrei) has within it the power of a promise of the Torah which is unlimited by nature (aspect of Nissan). And more than this: they will be able to feel that what they are accomplishing in the way of tshuva is not natural, not within the realm of human nature. Rather, it comes from the power of the Torah's promise that Yisroel will do tshuva—that the Torah's promise is bringing them to tshuva, which is the aspect of Nissan (above nature) within the aspect of Tishrei (tshuva).
B. What year?
Where are we? At the end of the exile of the Jewish people.
Where are we headed? To the true and final redemption of the Jewish nation.
And through the Jewish people—G-d's chosen nation of priests—the entire world will finally be liberated from darkness and illuminated with the light of redemption. We are literally on the verge of a new world: a world that will reflect the true will of its Creator, Who desires only good for His creatures. The transition to this new world can be a smooth one, full of happiness and joy (contrary to popular misconceptions). What is the key? The key, according to the Zohar (the fundemental book of Jewish "mysticism") is to learn the inner dimension of Torah: the secrets of Torah, the soul of Torah, that which gives life to the commandments, which are the body of Torah. Learning and doing; learning and doing; and always with joy! the spread the inner dimension of Torah around the globe. Our sources will be classic kabbalah (Jewish "mysticism") primarily as interpreted and taught by the nesher hagadol, the extension of Moshe Rabbeinu who is present in every generation. This refers to the Admorim of Chabad Chassidus, beginning from the Baal Shem Tov and continuing through to the Lubavitcher Rebbe.
C. What will happen?
The concept of salvation was tied to that of restoration for Israel.
The Jews of the first century expected to be rescued from foreign dominion. This would occur after they suffered (a purification process) for past breaches of their covenant with God. (See: Deuteronomy 4:32, Isaiah 40:1-2, Jerermiah 31:27-40, Ezekiel 18; 36:24-28, and Hosea 14:2.)
Textual requirements
Most of the textual requirements concerning the messiah and what he will do are located within the Book of Isaiah, although requirements are mentioned in other prophets as well.
1 The Sanhedrin will be re-established (Isaiah 1:26)
2 Once he is King, leaders of other nations will look to him for guidance. (Isaiah 2:4)
3 The whole world will worship the One God of Israel (Isaiah 2:17)
4 He will be descended from King David (Isaiah 11:1) via King Solomon (1 Chron. 22:8-10)
5 The Moshiach will be a man of this world, an observant Jew with "fear of God" (Isaiah 11:2)
6 Evil and tyranny will not be able to stand before his leadership (Isaiah 11:4)
7 Knowledge of God will fill the world (Isaiah 11:9)
8 He will include and attract all cultures and nations (Isaiah 11:10)
9 All Jews will have returned to their homeland (Isaiah 11:12)
10 He will swallow up death forever (Isaiah 25:8)
11 There will be no more hunger or illness, and death will cease (Isaiah 25:8)
12 All of the dead will rise again (Isaiah 26:19)
13 The Jewish people will experience eternal joy and gladness (Isaiah 51:11)
14 He will be a messenger of peace (Isaiah 52:7)
15 Nations will end up recognizing the wrongs they did Israel (Isaiah 52:13-53:5)
16 For My House shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations (Isaiah 56:3-7)
17 The peoples of the world will turn to the Jews for spiritual guidance (Zechariah 8:23)
18 The ruined cities of Israel will be restored (Ezekiel 16:55)
19 Weapons of war will be destroyed (Ezekiel 39:9)
20 The Temple will be rebuilt (Ezekiel 40) resuming many of the suspended mitzvos
21 He will then perfect the entire world to serve God together, as it is written (Zephaniah 3:9)
21 Jews will know the Torah without Study (Jeremiah 31:33)
22 He will give you all the desires of your heart (Psalms 37:4)
23 He will take the barren land and make it abundant and fruitful (Isaiah 51:3, Amos 9:13-15, Ezekiel 36:29-30, Isaiah 11:6-9)
Present-day positions
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism maintains that Jews are obligated to accept Maimonides's 13 Principles of Faith, including an unwavering belief in the coming of the messiah.
Conservative Judaism
Emet Ve-Emunah, the Conservative movement's statement of principles, states:
Since no one can say for certain what will happen in the Messianic era each of us is free to fashion personal speculation. Some of us accept these speculations are literally true, while others understand them as elaborate metaphors... For the world community we dream of an age when warfare will be abolished, when justice and compassion will be axioms of all, as it is said in Isaiah 11: "...the land shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." For our people, we dream of the ingathering of all Jews to Zion where we can again be masters of our own destiny and express our distinctive genius in every area of our national life. We affirm Isaiah's prophecy (2:3) that "...Torah shall come forth from Zion, the word of the Lord from Jerusalem".
We do not know when the Messiah will come, nor whether he will be a charismatic human figure or is a symbol of the redemption of humankind from the evils of the world. Through the doctrine of a Messianic figure, Judaism teaches us that every individual human being must live as if he or she, individually, has the responsibility to bring about the messianic age. Beyond that, we echo the words of Maimonides based on the prophet Habakkuk (2:3) that though he may tarry, yet do we wait for him each day.
The messiah in Reform and Reconstructionist Judaism
Reform Judaism and Reconstructionist Judaism generally do not accept the idea that there will be a messiah. Some believe that there may be some sort of "messianic age" (the World to Come) in the sense of a "utopia," which all Jews are obligated to work towards.
In 1976, the Central Conference of American Rabbis, the official body of American Reform rabbis, authored "Reform Judaism: A Centenary Perspective". While not an official statement of principles, it is meant to describe the spiritual state of modern Reform Judaism. In regard to the messianic era, it states:
Previous generations of Reform Jews had unbound confidence in humanity's potential for good. We have lived through terrible tragedy and been compelled to reappropriate our tradition's realism about the human capacity for evil. Yet our people has always refused to despair. The survivors of the Holocaust, being granted life, seized it, nurtured it, and, rising above catastrophe, showed humankind that the human spirit is indomitable. The State of Israel, established and maintained by the Jewish will to live, demonstrates what a united people can accomplish in history. The existence of the Jew is an argument against despair; Jewish survival is warrant for human hope. We remain God's witness that history is not meaningless. We affirm that with God's help people are not powerless to affect their destiny. We dedicate ourselves, as did the generations of Jews who went before us, to work and wait for that day when "They shall not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea."
World Peace
And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. (Isaiah 2:4)
The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together . . . and the sucking child shall play on the hole of the cobra . . . . (Isaiah 11:6-8).
Universal Knowledge of God
for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. (Isaiah 11:9)
No longer shall one teach his neighbor or shall one teach his brother, saying, "Know the Lord," for they shall all know Me, from their smallest to their greatest," says the Lord . . . . (Jeremiah 31:33)
And the Lord shall be king over all the earth. In that day shall there be one Lord, and His name one. (Zechariah 14:9)
Resurrection of the Dead
Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust, for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead. (Isaiah 26:19)
And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. (Daniel 12:2)
Therefore, prophesy and say to them, "So says the Lord God, 'Lo! I open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves as My people, and bring you home to the land of Israel. Then you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and lead you up out of your graves as My people.' " (Ezekiel 37:12-13)
Ingathering of Israel
I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather you from the west. I will say to the north, "Give up," and to the south, "Keep not back, bring My sons from far, and My daughter from the ends of the earth." (see also Jeremiah 16:15, 23:3; Isaiah 11:12; Zechariah 10:6; Ezekiel 37:21-22) (Isaiah 43:5-6).
Building of The Third Temple
And I will set My Sanctuary in the midst of them forevermore. My temple also shall be with them. Yes, I will be their God and they shall be My people. And the heathen shall know that I the Lord do sanctify Israel, when My sanctuary shall be in the midst of them forevermore. (See also Ezekiel 40-48; Isaiah 33:20) (Ezekiel 37:26-28)
When the Christian claim of Jesus' messiahship is considered, it is quite clear that the very opposite had occurred during the century that marks the birth of Christianity. In fact, during this first century there was no resurrection of the dead as prophesied by Daniel and Isaiah. Instead, the Romans slaughtered many hundreds of thousands of Jews during this time. There was no ingathering of the exiles either. Instead, the Jewish people were exiled from their land and dispersed throughout the Roman Empire. The universal knowledge of God did not take place at that time as well. Rather, as a result of this exile, the knowledge of Torah and its observance decreased. There was no Temple built at any time during the first century, although a temple in Jerusalem was destroyed in the year 70 C.E. Clearly, there is no relationship between what the Bible says about the messiah and what the Messianic movement teaches.To the Jewish people, a redeemer meant a second Moses who would lead the people during the end times. As stated in Scripture: “Thus says the Lord of Hosts, ‘Behold I am going to save My people from the land of the east and the of the west; and I will bring them back and they will live in the midst of Jerusalem;…’”[xxv] .
The Jewish people must accept this principle of redemption, because Moses wrote concerning it: “…Then the Lord your God will restore you from captivity.”[xxvi] Also, Ezekiel wrote: “For I will take you from the nations, gather you from all the lands and bring you into your own land.”[xxvii] Essentially, rabbis believe God has two different paths to redemption. One path leads to redemption faster, if Jewish people repent: “…And thou shalt return unto the Lord thy God, and hearken to His voice…that the Lord thy God will turn [thy captivity],…”[xxviii] If not, and the Jewish people come up short, the Jewish people have to wait till the end times.
Having, then, explained these ends and made them clear, I now say that we already know that, should our repentance not be completed previously, we would linger in exile until the fulfillment of the end.[xxix]
So, what does God do? He puts the Jewish people in situations where they need to turn to Him in repentance. Then, the people are redeemed,
If the Israelites will repent, they will be redeemed. If not, the Holy One, Blessed be He, will raise up a king whose decrees will be even more severe than those of Haman, whereupon they will repent and thus be redeemed. (Sanhedrin 97b.)[xxx]
To a Jewish person, repentance means to turn back. The rabbis say four things are necessary for a genuine repentance. One, a person must make a renunciation of sin. Two, that person must show remorse. Three, that person, then, must strive for forgiveness. Four, that person does not go back to sin. As Hosea states,
Return, O Israel unto the Lord thy God; for thou hast stumbled in thine iniquity. Take with you words, and return to the Lord; say unto Him: “Forgive all iniquity, and accept that which is good, so will we render for bullocks the offering of our lips….” (Hosea 14:2-5)[xxxi]
In Jewish thought, Messiah does not redeem. Rather, a person redeems one’s own self. In fact, the rabbis teach: "Every man shall be put to death for his own sins."[xxxii] Perhaps, this concept is taken from the Prophet Ezekiel 18:20:
The person who sins will die.…The righteousness of the righteous will be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked will be upon himself.
III. REDEMPTION THROUGH JEWISH EYES
Even though the idea of redemption (physical), is part of the plan of God, it has always been assumed in the Jewish community that God will do this regardless. For most Jews, the idea of redemption means peace from our enemies. In the N.T., Jesus states our enemy is sin and our need to have an inner peace, before we can have an outer peace.
The idea of salvation has always been present in the O.T., but our rabbis have missed this. When Jesus came and asked Nicodemus, You must be “born again” to see the Kingdom of God, Nicodemus just assumed because he was a rabbi he was in. In fact most Jews felt if they were good, they were in. At the end of their conversation Nicodemus asks, “how can these things be?”. He was puzzled and I love Yeshua’s response. “You are the teacher of Israel and don’t understand?”. What a statement. Jesus is pondering the state of affairs in Israel and is not very happy. The teacher of Israel didn’t understand about spiritual salvation. How would the people know, if their rabbis didn’t have a clue.
Jesus came to unlock in the N.T. the message of salvation that has always been there.
1. Faith has always been the means of salvation in both the Old and New Testament
A. Definition of Faith:
Now faith is the assurance of {things} hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the men of old gained approval ( Heb 11:1-2)
B. Faith is same in the O.T. and the N.T.
"Behold, as for the proud one, His soul is not right within him; But the righteous will live by his faith
(Hab 2:4) …..
For in it {the} righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "BUT THE RIGHTEOUS {man} SHALL LIVE BY FAITH. (Rom 1:17)
But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, [it is] evident: for, The just shall live by faith. (Gal 3:11Then he believed in the LORD; and He reckoned it to him as righteousness (Gen 15:6)
.Even so Abraham BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS (Gal 3:6)
C. They had Faith in Messiah
1. Abel had faith in Messiah atonement
Abel understood from the garden what a righteous sacrifice wasBy faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous, God testifying about his gifts, and through faith, though he is dead, he still speaks (Heb 11:4)
2. Abraham had faith in Messiah’s atonement
In the “Akidah”..the bidding of Isaac, Abraham could see a future sacrifice in MessiahThen Abraham raised his eyes and looked, and behold, behind {him} a ram caught in the thicket by his horns; and Abraham went and took the ram and offered him up for a burnt offering in the place of his sonAbraham called the name of that place The LORD Will Provide, as it is said to this day, "In the mount of the LORD it will be provided." (Gen 22:13-14)
By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was offering up his only begotten {son;} Heb (11:17)
"Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw {it} and was glad. (Jhn 8:56 )
3. Moses had faith in Messiah’s atonement
In the Passover, Moses could understand that faith in the blood of the lamb would lead to MessiahBy faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter,
choosing rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin,
considering the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the reward. By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of the blood (Heb 24-27)
D. They were justified by Messiah
As we saw, the Jewish community outs their faith in their deeds (good works). On the outside this sounds good, but I believe we can make a case that justification comes from faith in Messiah.
Isa 53:11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, [and] shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
Justification
(tsadaq)
1) to be just, be righteous 3) (Piel) justify, make to appear righteous,
a) (Hiphil) b) (Niphal) to be put or made right, be justified
1) to do or bring justice (in administering law)
2) to have a just cause, be in the right
2) to be justified 4) to be just, be righteous (in conduct and character)
2. JESUS TEACHES ABOUT SALVATION FROM THE OLD TESTAMANT
A. IN STORY
1. Jhn 3:3, 14 – SERPENT ON THE CROSS – SALVATION STORY
Jesus answered and said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God….."As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up;so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life
Num 21:4 Then they set out from Mount Hor by the way of the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom; and the people became impatient because of the journey.
Num 21:5 The people spoke against God and Moses, "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this miserable food."
Num 21:6 The LORD sent fiery serpents among the people and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died.
Num 21:7 So the people came to Moses and said, "We have sinned, because we have spoken againstthe LORD and you; intercede with the LORD, that He may remove the serpents from us." And Moses interceded for the people.
Num 21:8 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Make a fiery {serpent,} and set it on a standard; and it shall come about, that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, he will live."
Num 21:9 And Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on the standard; and it came about, that if a serpent bit any man, when he looked to the bronze serpent, he lived.2. Last Supper – New Covenant - The Redemption At Passover
`I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from their bondage. I will also redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments. `Then I will take you for My people, and I will be your God. (Exodus 6:6-7)
God is saying that He will redeem them as a kinsman would, and purchase them as His own people, forming a relationship so that they would be uniquely His, and He would be their God. This verse is recited every year at Passover to remember the relationship that God began with His peopleEach of the four verbs God used in the promise above (bring out, deliver, redeem, and take) is related to one of the four cups of wine used in the Seder meal. The third cup of the Passover meal is called the Cup of Redemption, and was associated with God's promise, "I will redeem you".
This is the cup that Jesus held up at the last Passover supper, and said was His blood shed to redeem us as His people, in a new covenant for the forgiveness of sins. Jesus is describing how through His atoning death, he has "purchased us", to set us free from slavery to sin and death.
Luk 22:19 And when He had taken {some} bread {and} given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me."
Luk 22:20 And in the same way {He took} the cup after they had eaten, saying, "This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood.
B. IN A BIBLE STUDY
Luk 24:21 "But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, it is the third day since these things happened.
Luk 24:22 "But also some women among us amazed us. When they were at the tomb early in the morning,
Luk 24:23 and did not find His body, they came, saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said that He was alive.
Luk 24:24 "Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just exactly as the women also had said; but Him they did not see."
Luk 24:25 And He said to them, "O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken!
Luk 24:26 "Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?"
Luk 24:27 Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.1. What did Jesus teach them about Messiah’s Atonement from the O.T.?
Gen 3;15- And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel.
Isisiah 53:6-10- We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. 7 He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth…. But the LORD was pleased To crush Him, putting {Him} to grief; If He would render Himself {as} a guilt offering
Psalm 22- Dogs have surrounded me; a band of evil men has encircled me, they have pierced my hands and my feet… They will come and will declare His righteousness To a people who will be born, that He has performed it.
Zech 12:10- "And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son
3. PAUL IS TEACHING SALVATION FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT
Rom 2:29But he [is] a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision [is that] of the heart, in the spirit, [and] not in the letter; whose praise [is] not of men, but of God.
Rom 11:26
And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:TITUS 2:14
Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works1Cr 6:11
And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God
4. PETER TEACHES SALVATION FROM THE O.T.
1Pe 2:24
and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.5. The Old testament clearly teaches about a cleansing that comes form God
Psa 51:1 Be gracious to me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness; According to the greatness of Your compassion blot out my transgressions.
Psa 51:2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity And cleanse me from my sin.
Psa 51:3 For I know my transgressions, And my sin is ever before me.
Psa 51:4 Against You, You only, I have sinned And done what is evil in Your sight, So that You are justified when You speak And blameless when You judge.
Psa 51:5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived meto be clean, be pure
taher (taw-hare’)
a) (Qal)
1) to be clean (physically - of disease)
2) to be clean ceremonially
3) to purify, be clean morally, made clean
b) (Piel)
1) to cleanse, purify
a) physically
b) ceremonially
c) morally
2) to pronounce clean
3) to perform the ceremony of cleansing
c) (Pual) to be cleansed, be pronounced clean
d) (Hithpael)
1) to purify oneself
a) ceremonially
b) morally
2) to present oneself for purification
Exd 29:36 And thou shalt offer every day a bullock [for] a sin offering for atonement: and thou shalt cleanse the altar, when thou hast made an atonement for it, and thou shalt anoint it, to sanctify it
Eze 36:33 Thus saith the Lord GOD; In the day that I shall have cleansed you from all your iniquities I will also cause [you] to dwell in the cities, and the wastes shall be builded
Zec 13:1In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness
6. The means of this cleansing – New Covanent – The blood of Yeshua
A. MOSES TAUGHT ABOUT CLEANSING
Deu 30:1
"So it shall be when all of these things have come upon you, the blessing and the curse which I have set before you, and you call {them} to mind in all nations where the LORD your God has banished you,
Deu 30:2
and you return to the LORD your God and obey Him with all your heart and soul according to all that I command you today, you and your sons,
Deu 30:3
then the LORD your God will restore you from captivity, and have compassion on you, and will gather you again from all the peoples where the LORD your God has scattered you.
Deu 30:4
"If your outcasts are at the ends of the earth, from there the LORD your God will gather you, and from there He will bring you back.
Deu 30:5
"The LORD your God will bring you into the land which your fathers possessed, and you shall possess it; and He will prosper you and multiply you more than your fathers.
Deu 30:6
"Moreover the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, so that you may live.
B. JEREMIAH TAUGHT ABOUT A NEW HEART
Jer 4:4
Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can quench [it], because of the evil of your doingsJer 31:31
"Behold, days are coming," declares the LORD, "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah,
Jer 31:32
not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them," declares the LORD.
Jer 31:33
"But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days," declares the LORD, "I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
C. EZEKIEL TAUGHT ABOUT BEING CLEANSED FROM SIN
Eze 11:19
And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh
Eze 36:24
"For I will take you from the nations, gather you from all the lands and bring you into your own land.
Eze 36:25
"Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols.
Eze 36:26
"Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.
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