Whatever you believe about the people of Israel, nothing can justify what happened on October 7. See the film Screams Before Silence.
Before listening to what some Jews have to say about the most famous Jew of all time, I think it is important to hear what one of the captives has to say about her experience in Gaza.
Christians should call out antisemitism whether its source be Christian or Islamic (see Antisemitism in the Church1 and Christian-Muslim Relations: Implications for Jews and Israel).2
Because many Christians are opposing antisemitism, God is removing the wall of hostility between the Church and the Jewish people. (See the Bible Project’s Does the Church Supersede Israel?, the article ‘Tertium Genus or Dyadic Unity? Investigating Sociopolitical Salvation in Ephesians’ and Lamb of the Free: Recovering the Varied Sacrificial Understandings of Jesus’s Death by Andrew R Rillera.)
The way the Church treated Jews for over a thousand years was shameful. Fortunately, many Christians are waking up (see video below).
Unfortunately, some Christian leaders still spread lies about Israel and the Church. (Usually this is not done intentionally. But a lie believed and repeated, is still a lie spread.)
If a Jew starts following Yeshua (Jesus), should they observe the laws of Moses?
‘When we arrived at Jerusalem, the brothers and sisters received us warmly. 18 The next day Paul and the rest of us went to see James, and all the elders were present. 19 Paul greeted them and reported in detail what God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry.
20 When they heard this, they praised God. Then they said to Paul: “You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews have believed, and all of them are zealous for the law. 21 They have been informed that you teach all the Jews who live among the Gentiles to turn away from Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or live according to our customs. 22 What shall we do? They will certainly hear that you have come, 23 so do what we tell you. There are four men with us who have made a vow. 24 Take these men, join in their purification rites and pay their expenses, so that they can have their heads shaved. Then everyone will know there is no truth in these reports about you, but that you yourself are living in obedience to the law....’ (Acts 21:17-24)
“Then everyone will know there is no truth in these reports about you, but that you yourself are living in obedience to the law.”3
Yeshua told the Jewish people that they should observe the laws given to them through Moses.
‘Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: 2 “The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. 3 So you must be careful to do everything they tell you.” ’(The Gospel According to Matthew, 23:1-3a)
So why did so many of the Jewish religious leaders hate Yeshua? It's because he told them things they did not want to hear. He pointed out their hypocrisy. Matthew 23 continues with these words:
“But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach.”
It is important to note, there are many hypocrites in the church; hypocrisy is not unique to the Jewish religious leaders of Yeshua's day. (Evil people who seek positions of power often pretend to be good. Those who misrepresent God will have much to answer for.)
Yeshua embarrassed the religious leaders in front of the crowds; this they could not handle (see the The Gospel According to Matthew ). But he did not hate the religious leaders. He loved them. He knew they could not endure what he had to say, and that it would eventually result in his death.4 (A death he had to die to implement the new covenant, promised through the prophet Jeremiah).
“It needs a clean heart to have pure hands, all the power of a live soul to keep the law—a power of life, not of struggle; the strength of love, not the effort of duty.” ~ George MacDonald
Many Jews rightly reject much of what is widely believed within the Church, because it does not have biblical support, and goes directly against a biblical view of justice.
“Strange that in a Christian land it should need to be said, that to punish the innocent and let the guilty go free is unjust!” - George MacDonald (From “Justice” in Unspoken Sermons. The text is available on the CCEL website ).
See also The “Gospel” of Divine Abuse by Eitan Bar, and The Inescapable Love of God by Thomas Talbott.
But just because some Christians have attached a false meaning to Jesus death and resurrection, it does not follow that he did not die and rise from the dead, and it does not mean Yeshua is not the Messiah, it just means many Christians have misinterpreted what they have read in the scriptures (as have many Jews).
We must love truth more than what we believe. If we don’t love truth more than our beliefs, no amount of evidence will change our minds because we’ve already decided what we are going to believe. (I think a good example of intellectual dishonesty can be found in the video "Christian Prince exposes Rabbi Tovia Singer Folly !")
If you are a Jew, what do you think would have happened if after Jesus was crucified, the Jewish leaders realised that they had asked the Romans to put an innocent man to death, repented of that sin, embraced Jesus' teaching, and encouraged the Jewish people to treat the Roman occupiers kindly? Unfortunately, most of the Jewish religious leaders—thinking they were righteous—were not that concerned with being saved from their sins. They were more concerned with being saved from the Romans. (See Why Don't Jews Believe in Jesus: A Jewish-Christian Unfolds the Great Mystery by Eitan Bar, and The Hope of the Gospel by George MacDonald.)
But don't the rabbis say that the Messiah will be a political leader? Many do. And yes he will be. When he returns, he will rule the world from Jerusalem (see "The Hidden Prophecy of Israel No One Talks About | Matt 24:30" on Rewire with Adam Finlay).
An Idiot (Westerner's) Guide to Hamas
Israelis must listen to the Palestinians!
Why the GERMANS (and Europeans) don’t understand the Arab-Israeli conflict
'If Israel had genocidal intent...'
Israel persecuted at The Hague. Why the nations rage against Israel
The Nakba (I’m famous! But also wrong?)
The REAL Reason The World is Obsessed With Israel
Turn the Other Cheek? Is Pacifism Right?
Lecture I – Understanding Israel Biblically
EXPOSING HAMAS: The Religion Beneath The Violence
Arab Muslim Speaks About Her Life in Israel
Does Israel Occupy the West Bank?
Why Trading Land For Peace Is Destroying Israel | Thomas Sowell
A Prize for Genocide | Our Middle East
Kanye West, Antisemitism, and Candace Owens
Why You Should Care About Passover
Purim and the Cross of Mordecai
Pentecost special! - The Harvest of the Feast of Weeks
Why is Israel so Wealthy? (For a detailed look at why Jews have been so successful economically, see Wealth, Poverty and Politics by Thomas Sowell.)
Why has America pursued such disastrous policies in the Middle East? See About Bernard Lewis
1. Some interpretations of the Bible do lead to antisemitism; others lead Christians to strongly support Israel. Broadly speaking, there are three views about the Church and Israel within Christianity. See Dr. Stephen J. Lennox, “Are the Jews Still God’s Chosen People” on the Kingswood University YouTube channel.
2. For a good example of a Christian calling out antisemitism in the Islamic world see Raymond Ibrahim's video (YouTube) "How Muslims Exploit the Bible to Justify Hate for Christians & Jews."
3. Jews and gentiles should both be free to follow their customs and laws. God wants a Church where Jews and Gentiles respect, love, and honour each other. For an in-depth look at how gentile believers should view Torah observant Jewish believers see ‘Tertium Genus or Dyadic Unity? Investigating Sociopolitical Salvation in Ephesians’ by Andrew R Rillera. See also “The Hope and the Jews” in The One Purpose of God by Jan Bonda. Much of the antisemitism in the Church has been driven by a misunderstanding of the relationship between Jewish and gentile customs within the Church (see ‘Tertium Genus or Dyadic Unity? Investigating Sociopolitical Salvation in Ephesians’ by Andrew R Rillera). It has also been largely driven by a fear of Hell (see “A Legacy of Fear and Persecution” in Thomas Talbott's book, The Inescapable Love of God ).
Paul observed the laws of Moses and encouraged Jewish believers to live in obedience to the Torah, but he knew that no one could be justified before God through simply trying to keep those laws. (See here and here. And even though gentiles are not bound by the Torah, we can learn much from those laws; which is not such a bad idea, considering that western society has gone so astray. See here. See also By This Standard by Greg L. Bahnsen and The Quest for Cosmic Justice by Thomas Sowell.) Christians can learn much from the Jews. See here. See also The Rational Bible: Deuteronomy by Dennis Prager.
4. It's important to note that many of the Jewish religious leaders were honest men who did not hate Yeshua. They were well aware of the hypocrisy within their midst. Many of the priests would eventually became followers of Yeshua, see the book of Acts ).
How should unbelievers be treated?
According to the Rabbis, who is the Messiah?