In Both Of Us

"without listening to the Spirit of God, Ruach HaKodesh (רוח הקודש), in both of us."

THERE IS only one living God, who speaks and guides and loves. Love is the key because love covers a multitude of sins and errors and bad choices (1 Peter 4:8). It extends beyond rules, beyond cultures and upbringings. Beyond our vocabulary choices, our mistakes in doctrines. Beyond languages. Nations.

Love that formed the Jews extended itself to the Gentiles. We were grafted in and should retain this in our knowledge (Romans 11:17). We should also fix in our thinking that God to us, G_d to them, speaks the same message. We’ve mostly divided it and made them, the Jews, not as up-to-date. A little behind. Less spiritual. We’ve based it on Scriptures without listening to the Spirit of God, Ruach HaKodesh (רוח הקודש), in both of us.

You heard me. God has not abandoned the Jews, just like He did not abandon the Gentiles. If we are not the people of the apostle Paul’s letters, those in cities filled with temples dedicated to idols, if we’ve “modernized” our thinking of ourselves, then why do we leave God’s people locked in the past? Jesus fulfilled the Old Covenant (Matthew 5:17), so we dust our hands and shake our heads. Then turn back there and read its psalms, quote it praises, and study its stories. We write of the names of God found in it, encouraging ourselves. And pray “God help the Jews” with more than a little bit of arrogance.

Paul made it clear their God is now ours. The apostle John made it clear, God so loved the world. Jesus made it clear He died for all people. And Peter, in a sermon on a Jewish feast day, in the capital of the Jews, Jerusalem, to a crowd of Jews from many nations, said, “This is that our ancestor prophesied over us from G_d (Acts 2:16).” Peter’s dream caused the Jews to speak the Gospel to the Gentiles (Acts 10:11). What began in the Jews expanded to us.

We, over time, erased them out of it.

God does not follow our path. We must follow His. His footsteps are larger, His heart bigger, His kindness expansive, His generosity deeper than the ocean, His love of unfathomable height and breadth. While we were making Christianity Gentile, He’s been speaking to the Jews. Same message. Same context. Same freedom. Using His Word, written to them, He’s shown them His salvation. What was prophesied to us is today to them. We can’t see it for staring at our own reflection. But there, on the screen, a Rebbe said to a Jewish audience to walk by faith and Hashem would supply the answer. And in another place, a Jew with stage four cancer proclaimed the blessing of a Rebbe had healed him completely.

Are you listening? G_d did that, he said. And they danced and praised His name.

“And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.” (Genesis 17:7-8)

“Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.” (John 4:21-22)

Photo by Francesco Alberti on Unsplash


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Suzanne D. Williams, Author
www.suzannedwilliams.com
www.feelgoodromance.com