If I could force every Messianic to read just a single blog post, it would be this one:
Should scholarship undermine experience?
What do I mean by this? I am referring to our brothers and sisters who study themselves out of belief in Yeshua as the Messiah, or study so that he becomes just another possible “candidate” for Messiah. This, I believe, is our most serious enemy in the Torah “movement.” I have seen countless people, all who truly love Hashem and pursue truth, yet the stone of stumbling, Yeshua, becomes the obstacle offense for a “true” Judaic theology.Yeshua and his identity as G-d’s Son are huge impediment to people who want to totally identify and become a part of today’s Judaism who has rejected him across the board. I can also attest to this because it happened to me, and only through a true miracle of G-d did I overcome this difficulty. During this time of struggle, I became a lame duck believer; a believer in name only but not in faith. I became an ineffectual and paralyzed part of the body of Messiah and wanted to leave this “messy- antic” movement so that I could blend in with Judaism who seems to have all the answers. It would have been easy; I am a Jew and I have the blood of Aaron coursing in my veins. It should have been easy; but it wasn’t at all, it was crippling.
I have seen this same transition among other Messianics, both Jew and gentile.
It goes like this:
- Torah is great!
- Torah is the truth!
- Judaism is the One True Religion!
- Judaism doesn’t like Christianity.
- Christianity is not from God!
- Christianity has false beliefs!
- The New Testament is heavily redacted!
- The New Testament isn’t reliable.
- Yeshua is a messiah.
- Yeshua might not be divine.
- Yeshua might not be the messiah.
- Jesus is a false messiah.
- Jesus is an idol, and Christianity is an idolatrous religion, the New Testament is a book of lies.