Identity Theft Read online

  “Hi…eh…Dr. Luke.”

  “Dr. Luke was the first historian among the early believers. He traveled with Shaul for some time, always taking notes. Eventually, when Shaul was imprisoned in Caesarea for two years, he began to put together an account of their travels. And he collected information from others, firsthand accounts, so he could write a history of the Kehilah, going as far back as the birth of the prophet John. There is no one up here, other than God and Shaul himself, who knows more about Shaul than Dr. Luke.

  “I think Shaul would agree that I know more about him than he knows about himself. He was brilliant, but he really could have used a smartphone,” laughed Luke. “He was so focused on his task that he would often wear two different types of sandals, forget to eat, or even have his tunic on backward for half a day until someone finally had the courage to tell him. Of course he would always laugh at his absentmindedness. The first thing he would ask me every morning was, ‘What city are we in?’ It became a running joke between us, even when he was imprisoned for two years in Caesarea, waking up in the same place each morning. The authorities allowed me almost constant access to Shaul during that time.

  “But let’s talk about Shaul’s commitment to reach the Jewish people even while he was called to the Gentiles,” said the doctor. Before me lay two passages:

  I am talking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch as I am the apostle to the Gentiles, I take pride in my ministry in the hope that I may somehow arouse my own people to envy and save some of them (Romans 11:13-14).

  For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile (Romans 1:16).

  “This next passage may shock you as it did me when I heard Shaul dictate these heartrending words to Tertius, his scribe. We were in Corinth at the time and Shaul was greatly concerned for the believers in Rome. Emperor Claudius had expelled the Jews, both Messianic and non-Messianic, from the city in 49 ce. Midway through the next decade they were allowed to return, however the non-Jewish leaders of the Roman kehilot had falsely believed that the exile of the Jews had been a sign that God had rejected them permanently. Upon their return they were treated poorly—as second-class citizens. Much of the book of Romans was written to counter this false theology, with chapters nine through eleven, in particular, being devoted to the topic of God’s irrevocable covenant relationship with His people, Israel. And I recall Shaul, weeping unashamedly, sharing God’s heart for his brothers after the flesh—Israel.”

  I speak the truth in [the Messiah] —I am not lying, my conscience confirms it through the Holy Spirit—I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from [Messiah] for the sake of my people, those of my own race, the people of Israel. Theirs is the adoption to sonship; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship and the promises. Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of the Messiah, who is God over all, forever praised! Amen (Romans 9:1-5).

  I was stunned by what I’d just read. “Yes, David, he was willing to give up his place in Heaven, in the Messianic Kingdom, if by doing so more of his people could know the Messiah and receive eternal life. He carried this burden with him until the end. While false historians have portrayed Shaul as an enemy of Israel, I never met anyone who loved the Jewish people more. Despite his calling to the Gentiles,” continued Dr. Luke, “the principle, to the Jew first, was always foremost in his mind. Take a look at these passages.” Scriptures appeared again as clouds in the air; only this time they were scrolling as I read them. Certain words were in boldface. This was to highlight the fact that Shaul’s priority, in every city he visited, was always to seek out the Jewish people and tell them the good news of their risen Messiah:

  When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. John was with them as their helper (Acts 13:5).

  From Perga they went on to Pisidian Antioch. On the Sabbath they entered the synagogue and sat down (Acts 13:14).

  At Iconium Paul and Barnabas went as usual into the Jewish synagogue. There they spoke so effectively that a great number of Jews and Greeks believed (Acts 14:1).

  On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place [where Jewish people met for] prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there (Acts 16:13).

  As was his custom, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures (Acts 17:2).

  As soon as it was night, the believers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue (Acts 17:10).

  Every Sabbath he reasoned in the synagogue, trying to persuade Jews and Greeks (Acts 18:4).

  They arrived at Ephesus, where Paul left Priscilla and Aquila. He himself went into the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews (Acts 18:19).

  Paul entered the synagogue and spoke boldly there for three months, arguing persuasively about the kingdom of God (Acts 19:8).

  “We see from Acts 14:1, where it says, ‘as usual,’ and Acts 17:2, which states, ‘as was his custom,’ that this was something Shaul always did. I was with him during much of this time, and the moment we arrived in a new city, his first question was always, ‘Where’s the synagogue?’ If we’d had a GPS back then, he would have had it programmed to locate every synagogue!

  “In many of these places, numerous Jewish people came to faith; in others, there would be persecution. More often than not, it was a mixture of both.

  “Everything originates with the Jewish people in God’s scheme of things. The Jewish people gave the world the revelation of the one true God, His Word—the Bible—and ultimately the Messiah, Yeshua Himself. In addition to instant messaging and Starbucks,” Luke said with a smile.

  Then becoming serious again, he added, “And the children of Abraham have paid a heavy price for being God’s chosen vessel—persecution, hatred, even attempted genocide, have pursued them to this day. Without Israel, there is no Messiah, and no salvation. And since the New Covenant was made with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, and salvation is of the Jews, it should come as no surprise that Heaven decreed the good news would be preached to the Jewish people first, and then to the nations. And this proclamation was not without effect! Far more Jewish people than is realized received Yeshua in those first two centuries! And today, again, more and more Jewish people in Israel and all around the world are embracing Him.

  “I remember when Shaul returned to Jerusalem,” Luke continued. “I believe the year was 58 CE, almost three decades after the birth of the first community of believers. The Gospel by that time had gone all around the known world.

  “And surely, you would have thought, by now the Jewish revival in Jerusalem would have died down. But it was not so, David. The movement had continued unabated. When we arrived in Jerusalem, Shaul met with Jacob, the brother of Yeshua and senior leader of the Jerusalem community.”

  Luke turned to Ariel, “I’m assuming you have explained the Jacob/James name debacle. Such nonsense!”

  “Nope, I let Jacob do that himself,” Ariel responded with a wink.

  “Good. Jacob and the elders,” Dr. Luke continued, “gave a great report concerning the work of the Gospel in Jerusalem.”

  Another verse formed before me.

  …Then they said to [Shaul]: “You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews have believed, and all of them are zealous for the law” (Acts 21:20).

  “There are two eye-openers here and a mistranslation.” I could see that Dr. Luke loved to teach. “First, they report to Shaul that the revival is continuing in power and bearing much fruit. However, it is even better than what you read David, because the Greek word translated “thousands” is muriades. Do you know what that word means in English?”

  “Muriades,” I thought aloud. “Clearly, by context, it is an amount. It sounds
like myriads.”

  “Right, David. Do you know the meaning of myriad?” asked Dr. Luke.

  “I don’t know. I guess it means a lot.”

  “One myriad is ten thousand. Myriads, plural, are tens of thousands!”

  A verse formed in front of me as Ariel jumped in, “Dr. Stern’s translation of this verse is more accurate.”

  I read, “…They also said to him, ‘You see, brother, how many tens of thousands of believers there are among the Judeans, and they are all zealots for the Torah’” (Acts 21:20 CBJ).

  “Not only does Dr. Stern’s translation bring out the fact that tens of thousands of Jews or Judeans—Jews who lived in the areas surrounding Jerusalem—had embraced Yeshua, but it suggests something that would have sent shockwaves throughout the Middle Ages during the Crusades and Inquisitions—that these tens of thousands of Jewish believers were ‘zealots for the Torah!’ Oh, that those so-called Christians who outlawed the Sabbath, forced Jews to deny Judaism and be baptized, among other atrocities, could have simply read this book instead of listening to the lies and half-truths that abounded!

  “It destroys the myth that Yeshua came to start a new religion apart from Judaism. Jacob, here, is clearly not reporting this to Shaul as a problem, but as something good. In Yeshua, the Law had meaning. Ezekiel and Jeremiah both prophesied that one day God, who had written His Law on tablets of stone, would one day write it on their hearts!”

  …I will put My law in their minds and write it on their hearts… (Jeremiah 31:33).

  I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws (Ezekiel 36:26-27).

  “Somehow many Christians today have come to look at the Torah, the Law of God given to the Jews, as a bad thing. It was bad only in that it could not produce life—but it was never intended to. The Law itself was given as a revelation of God’s righteousness, and thus it exposed man’s sinfulness. The Law of Moses not only showed us how to live, it served another role in that it revealed our inability to actually keep the Law—it revealed our need for a Redeemer.

  “Shaul, speaking of the Torah in Romans, says: ‘So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and good…. We know that the law is spiritual…’ (Rom. 7:12,14).

  “These were Jewish believers on fire for God and zealous for the Torah. Now keep in mind, when people today think of the Torah, they often conjure up images of black hats, long black coats, and endless, tedious ritual. Most of modern-day Judaism is not following the Torah per se, but traditions built upon the Torah and a supposed secret Oral Law,1 which Moses was given on Mount Sinai, in addition to the written Law.

  “But goodness, what is more Torah than the Ten Commandments? Take a look at them—they are God’s practical instructions for righteous living, far removed from rote tradition! They are in fact responsible for all that is good in Western civilization. Our constitutions, legal codes, and court systems all find their source in the Law of Moses. The only thing remotely close to ritual is the keeping of the Sabbath, and who can argue with the fact that we all need time off for rest, reflection, and rejuvenation?

  “And, David, here is something you may have overlooked. While Shaul had written some of his letters to individual congregations by this time, there was as yet no New Testament. All that the new believers had were the Hebrew Scriptures—the Torah, the Prophets, and the Writings.”

  “So even the Gentiles of the day were almost solely reliant on the Old Testament?” I asked.

  “David—there was nothing else!” Luke asserted. “In fact, when Shaul wrote to Timothy that ‘all Scripture is God-breathed,’ he was referring to the Old Testament! (See 2 Timothy 3:16.)

  “To further illustrate this point, take a look at what Jacob and the other leaders were concerned about.” A passage formed as clouds before me.

  [The Jewish believers] 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. What shall we do? They will certainly hear that you have come, so do what we tell you. There are four men with us who have made a vow. 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 21:21-24).

  “Some of the Jewish believers were concerned by rumors that Shaul was teaching a heresy, saying Jews who embraced Yeshua should ‘turn away’ from the Torah. Furthermore, it confirms that Shaul himself was ‘living in obedience to the Law.’ The funny thing is the very idea that caused deep concern among the apostles eventually became Church policy in the Middle Ages. The believers were alarmed that Shaul may have rejected the Torah, but by the Middle Ages, not only were Jews who came to faith not encouraged to continue to live as Jews, they were forbidden to do so! Acts records that Shaul, Jacob, and the other apostles affirmed that it is wrong to teach Jewish believers to forsake Jewish life and calling, but the Church of the Middle Age made it doctrine!

  “Some, even today, teach that Shaul left Judaism. But I can show you, just from what I wrote in Acts, that he continued to follow the Torah.

  “In Acts 18:18, Shaul cut his hair because of a vow he had taken. What kind of vow do you think would require you to cut your hair?”

  “I am not sure.” I responded, wishing I had been more attentive in Hebrew school.

  “In Numbers 6, Moses receives special instructions for a man or a woman who wants to make a vow of dedication to the Lord. It is called a Nazirite vow. During the vow, you would not cut your hair, but at the end of the vow, you would shave your head completely, and Shaul did that.

  “Another example is in Acts 27. Let’s use Dr. Stern’s translation for this: ‘Since much time had been lost, and continuing the voyage was risky, because it was already past Yom-Kippur…’ (Acts 27:9 CBJ).

  “Shaul specifically mentions the Fast, referring to Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, here. But why did he not just say, ‘because fall had arrived’? Had Shaul truly disassociated himself from Judaism, as some claim, he would not still have been referencing the Hebrew calendar.

  “Further evidence is provided when Shaul is on trial in Acts 23:6. He appeals to the fact that he is a Pharisee and the son of a Pharisee. Notice he doesn’t say that he was, but that he is, as in, ‘the present tense,’ a Pharisee. People today think the word Pharisee means hypocrite, and yet here was one of the most honest, true-to-yourself, theologians in the world saying, ‘I’m a Pharisee!’

  “Okay. Let’s get back to Shaul in Jerusalem; I remember it well! Jacob and the other leaders came up with a plan to show clearly that Shaul continued to live as a Jew. So that everyone would know that he ‘was living in obedience to the Law.’ I recorded it in Acts 21. And Shaul, who was nobody’s push-over—and I know that better than anyone—went along with the plan just to prove that it was true, that he, while ‘not under the condemnation of the Law,’ still sought to live according to God’s pattern for Israel—the Law of Moses.

  “Take it from one of Shaul’s closest companions for many years, David. He never stopped living as a Jew.”

  “Hang on there, Luke. Remember our instructions. Everything must be backed up with Scripture, not commentary. Only then will he be prepared,” Ariel interrupted.

  “And what do you think I have been doing for the past half hour?” remarked the doctor. “David, I wish you great success on your journey. I trust that something I said will prove useful.”

  And with that, he disappeared from the screen.

  Note

  * * *

  1. The Oral Law or oral tradition is believed to have accompanied the written Torah which Moses received on Mt. Sinai. The Oral Law was supposedly given in order to know how to live out the written Torah. It is
believed that Moses passed this down to Joshua and from Joshua to future generations, all the way until it was codified in the Talmud, beginning around 200 ce. However, there couldn’t have been an Oral Law because in the time of King Josiah, they had lost the written Law and didn’t even know what Passover was, much less an oral tradition. When the book of the Law was recovered, they had to start from scratch. If there had ever been an oral tradition, it had long been gone. Strangely, the Oral Law has now been written down in the Mishna and Talmud. It is probable that the religious Jews in the time of Yeshua did not actually believe that the Oral Law came from Mt. Sinai, as it was merely referred to as The Traditions of the Elders. Yeshua Himself rebuked the Pharisees for putting these traditions above the Word of God (see Mark 7:9).

  Furthermore, concerning the idea of an Oral Law, we find in Exodus 24:3-4 that, “When Moses went and told the people all the Lord’s words and laws, they responded with one voice, ‘Everything the Lord has said we will do.’ Moses then wrote down everything the Lord had said….” This passage says that God shared all His laws and Moses wrote them down. There was no secret Oral Law. The children of Israel were told to obey all that was written (see Deut. 30:10; 31:9,24,26; Josh. 1:8). For deeper study on this subject see Michael L. Brown, Answering Jewish Objections to Jesus: Traditional Jewish Objections, Volume 5 (San Francisco: Purple Pomegranate, 2010).

  Chapter Twenty

  BREAKING NEWS!

  FIRST-CENTURY

  ORTHODOX JEWS PROVE

  YESHUA IS MESSIAH

  “Wait! Rules? Prepared? Journey? What are you all referring to?”

  “Soon, David, soon.” Ariel reached for my hand and we were flying back to the classroom.

  Seated at my desk with Ariel standing in front of the massive tablet, he began to sum up this last visit with Luke. “So, you see, not only was there a massive revival in Jerusalem with signs, wonders, and miracles, but these Jews continued to live as Jews. If you had walked up to Yochanan (John), Jacob, Kefa or any other of the leaders of the Jerusalem revival and said, ‘Praise God! How does it feel to be free of the Torah and Judaism and to now be a Christian?’ they would have stared at you blankly. They wouldn’t have known what you were talking about. All they understood was that they, as Jews, had met their long-awaited Messiah. What could be more Jewish than that? What they may have asked, is, ‘What is a Christian?’ as they referred to themselves simply as believers in those early days. The term Christian to describe believers in the Christ, which is merely Greek for Messiah, was first coined by unbelievers many years later, in Antioch, a Greek-speaking city.