Let me draw a fine point. Must a Jew accept Christendom, or is it enough to accept Jesus/Yeshua as the Messiah of Israel? Growing numbers of Israelis are recognizing Yeshua as the Messiah and Son of God. Do they also have to accept all the traditions of ecclesiastical church history? I think not. Here is an excerpt from my latest book that explains my simple point. (The Hebrew God Who Has No Name – Chapter 8)
Restoration Timing?
Even the Second Coming, the climactic event of history, requires this timing. The Messiah clearly remains in Heaven until a certain time … and then He comes! He comes at the time of restoration of everything the holy prophets have said. Jesus cannot return until Yehovah’s Name is restored according to Peter’s sermon in Acts 3.
that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before, whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began. Acts 3:20-21
“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! See! Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of Yehovah!’” Matthew 23:37-39
Second Coming?
There is no question that the Second Coming is the crowning event of human history. We are close to the Messiah’s entrance. There is a classic joke about the Messiah finally appearing in Jerusalem and the Mayor goes out to meet Him. The Mayor says: “Welcome to Jerusalem. We have waited for you for so long, but I just have one question. Is this your first or second visit?”
The viewpoint of Jews continues to be a very serious issue. What do they think about the Messiah? How do they consider the Christian hope? Truly, a rapidly growing anticipation of the Messiah exists in Israel. Leading rabbis speak out that His coming is close. As the hope for a peace deal dies, more Israeli’s are considering their faith seriously, even if they are not religious. On a 2007 visit to Israel, I heard two prominent Israeli speakers touch the subject. One was in Jerusalem and one was in the Golan. Both made similar statements that shocked me by their public candor and position taken. Neither man had acknowledged Jesus as the Messiah, but both believed in the Messiah, the Son of David. They both said that “when He comes, we will look at His hands and feet; and then we will all rejoice together”. The Golan speaker spoke those exact words to our Christian tour group. He flatly stated that the Holy Spirit (Ruach ha Kodesh) speaks to him in his heart. He said that he didn’t know “about those scholars down in Jerusalem with their stacks of books, but the Messiah is coming and I will look at His hands and feet, and then we will all dance together.”
When Will Jews See Jesus?
One of the most severe judgments of history was the removal of Israel from their land after rejecting the Messiah. Paul describes it as “the severity of God” in Romans 11:22. That event opened the way for the nations to be saved; but what about Israel? When will they see the Messiah?
What if I told you that it hinges on Jews changing one of their most common Scripture prayers? It is located in their Passover hymn (known to Jews as the Hallel – Psalms 113-118).
Blessed is he who comes in the name of Yehovah! We have blessed you from the house of Yehovah. Psalm 118:26
The problem is that the Jews do not pronounce the Name. They replace the word Yehovah with the word Lord, or in Hebrew; Adonai. Therefore, I submit that part of the scales falling off the eyes of the Jewish people definitely involves the revelation of the restoration and use of Yehovah’s Name! Jesus even declared this directly in the Gospels. Although it is mistranslated LORD in our English Bibles, the Name of Yehovah was quoted by Yeshua Himself directly from Psalm 118:26.
Jesus said: for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of Yehovah!” Matthew 23:39
We know He said Yehovah, because this was a direct quote. Psalm 118 has the Name, Yehovah, no less than 28 times in the Hebrew text! So, does that really mean the Jews will begin using His Name again? Yes!
Note, that Jews will say: “Blessed is He” who comes in Yehovah’s Name. Jesus did that; and the Jews of His day did not say blessed is He, but killed Him for “blasphemy” for claiming the Name of Yehovah. We also may be rejected for speaking the Name, but proclaim it we must, as we stand with Israel and the Jewish people as they begin to profess: “Blessed is He who comes in the Name of Yehovah!”
Les Lawrence, Voice of Christian Zionists (Read more)
(New explanation for why I use God’s literal covenant Name: Yehovah. Here is a link to the best simple explanation I know, from my friend, Keith Johnson.)
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Elisha Vision - Commentary 
Evidence of the Maccabees for Hanukkah
16 12 2022These coins are 2,200 years old, from the time of the Jewish revolt against the Greeks. (link to 2min. video) The coins were discovered in a desert cave near the Dead Sea. The Greek King Antiochos IV Epiphanes (known as “the Wicked”) ruled the Seleucid Empire at that time. Epiphanes means: “God manifest”, which tells us he was worshipped as a god. No wonder the Jewish Maccabees would not submit to him. He had already defiled the Jewish Temple and would have destroyed it. When he was defeated in the revolt of the Jews, the Temple was saved. My wife, Doreen, wrote a children’s book explaining How Hanukkah Saved Christmas. The Messiah was prophesied to enter the Temple. If the Greeks had destroyed it, the prophecy could not have been fulfilled.
Archaeologists Find Silver Coins in Judean Desert; Evidence from Maccabean Revolt Era Coincides with Hanukkah Celebration – The Jewish Maccabean revolt against the Greek Seleucid Kingdom more than two thousand years ago is one of the most stirring events in Jewish history. The revolt and the miracle of the provision of oil in the Temple led to the Jewish celebration of Hanukkah, which is the festival celebrating the uprising against the Greek Seleucid kings and the restoration of the Jewish Temple. Last May, archaeologists discovered a wooden box containing 15 silver coins dating back 2,200 years to the time of the Hellenistic ruler Antiochus IV, who desecrated the Temple and persecuted the Jews.
The blasphemy of the Greek King, claiming to be a god, was a typical copycat example of Satan co-opting Yehovah’s plan for Jesus, who really was God in human form. The incarnation of Jesus was the real fulfillment of the prophecy of Immanuel, God with us! Isaiah saw it and Matthew reported it.
Happy Hanukkah and Merry Christmas, overlapping this year. Hanukkah starts at sundown Sunday.
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem and pray for rain.
Les Lawrence, a voice of Christian Zionists (Read more)
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Tags: Antiochus, Christmas, Hanukkah, Jerusalem, Jews, Maccabees, Temple
Categories : Israel Commentary