Jewish, Christian, Messianic Jew

Alysa Stanton Becomes First Female Black Rabbi
First African-American Jewish Rabbi To Be Ordained Was Raised in a Pentecostal Family

Okay, I saw this this morning and was feeling a bit downbeat. It's a bit of a "owning my race" kinda thing. I just get kinda sad when I see African-Americans becoming Mormons or Muslims or Jews. IT's common to all, I suspect because my Jewish friend who is an atheist/agnostic says that although she doesn't believe in God she gets very upset when she sees a Jew converting to Christianity. So, yeah, I'm not alone in this tendency.

I can see why many people would like Judaism. It's tough to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, especially when one sees bad Christian spirituality and the failure of Christians to move strongholds. And if we seem to have yet another religion -- in which we don't see the power of God, and only see words, semantics, behavior, morality-- then there really is no difference. There is also in the human soul a desire to do the works of God and as Christians we believe the error is that they don't realize that doing the works of God is simply allowing God to be the worker, that as Isaiah says "all our righteousness is like a filthy menstrual rag." We definitely need to see the power of the living God in our lives so that we can have Elijah Challenges and show that Jesus is Lord.

The trouble is that with all our church-going and Bible studies Bible-believers we simply do not know their Bibles and they don't know why they believe and they don't know anything about why they are Christians. They think they know. And it's hard to speak to folks who think they know. One doesn't want to call them close-minded or uneducated but often they are. So when someone comes up to teach them something they consider the teacher's knowledge "deep." As Jesus said in the gospel of Matthew 13:19 "When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh
the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart...." Jesus said that if you don't understand this parable you will not understand any of His parables. Quite simply, folks who leave Christianity did not understand the kingdom. They have never understood that Jesus came to free us from sin, the law, the demonic, and to prepare us to be children of a God who is spirit by making our minds less carnal and less focused on things of earth.

But I have met so many Bible believing Christians who don't understand apologetics that when they come up against a challenge to Christ they fail miserably. There is, it seems, a place in our studies from which we never rise. And, truth to tell, many of us are plain dumb about our religion...for all our studies. Trust me: I have an ex-friend who was very churchy and loved God and ended up joining a rastafarian cult.

St Paul warns those who have returned to legalism that they are under a curse. And I wonder about people returning to a Jewish denomination that is not really Biblical. Conversion to Orthodox Judaism is one thing, conversion to Reform Judaism is another.

Anyway, here is a verse Isaiah 44:5 I have never ever ever heard any minister preach on. It seems to say that in the last days there will be three kinds of people worshiping Jehovah: The People of Jacob, The Lord's People, and People of Jacob who are the Lord's people. At least that's how I understand it. One wonders why one rarely hears sermons on this in the Christian community. Am not saying we should not try to preach the gospel to our Jewish friends but when the days of the Church are over, the world will once again be divided between Jews and Gentiles. (The church is neither gentile nor Jew but called out.)

GOD'S WORD® Translation (©1995)
One person will say, "I belong to the LORD." Another will call on the name of Jacob. Another will write on his hand, "The LORD's," and he will adopt the name of Israel.

King James Bible
One shall say, I am the LORD's; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall subscribe with his hand unto the LORD, and surname himself by the name of Israel.

American King James Version
One shall say, I am the LORD's; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall subscribe with his hand to the LORD, and surname himself by the name of Israel.

American Standard Version
One shall say, I am Jehovah's; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall subscribe with his hand unto Jehovah, and surname himself by the name of Israel.

Bible in Basic English
One will say, I am the Lord's; and another will give himself the name, Jacob; another will put a mark on his hand, I am the Lord's, and another will take the name of Israel for himself.

Douay-Rheims Bible
One shall say: I am the Lord's, and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob, and another shall subscribe with his hand, To the Lord, and surname himself by the name of Israel.

Darby Bible Translation
One shall say, I am Jehovah's; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall write with his hand: I am Jehovah's, and surname himself by the name of Israel.

English Revised Version
One shall say, I am the LORD'S; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall subscribe with his hand unto the LORD, and surname himself by the name of Israel.

Webster's Bible Translation
One shall say, I am the LORD'S; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall subscribe with his hand to the LORD, and surname himself by the name of Israel.

World English Bible
One will say, 'I am Yahweh's;' and another will be called by the name of Jacob; and another will write with his hand 'to Yahweh,' and honor the name of Israel."

Young's Literal Translation
This one saith, For Jehovah I am, And this calleth himself by the name of Jacob, And this one writeth with his hand, 'For Jehovah,' and by the name of Israel surnameth himself.

New American Standard Bible (©1995)
"This one will say, 'I am the LORD'S'; And that one will call on the name of Jacob; And another will write on his hand, 'Belonging to the LORD,' And will name Israel's name with honor.
I can see why many people really don't know where y,

But unlike Mormonism and Islam, Judaism accepts Yahweh and the Tanakh. So the issue of blacks and their conversion to Judaism -- which seems to be happening a lot lately-- got me thinking about this verse.