Category: Theology

Daniel C. Juster, Th. D., Restoration from Zion of Tikkun International

We are dealing with a significant problem in theology.  Much of the theology is being given to believers by preaching media stars and church leaders who I would call low information preachers.  They may have charisma and can hold a crowd well, but they say outlandish and heretical things.  One of the most glaring examples of this are the statements by some claiming that the “Old Testament” no longer applies to us or is irrelevant for New Covenant Christians.   One preacher even said that he put a sword through the Old Testament to be free from it.  The error is even more glaring in the light of the numerous statements in the New Testament on the authority and value of the Hebrew Bible.  One has to ask if these preachers ever had one course helping them to understand the Hebrew Bible and its application to the New Covenant era.  I doubt it.  Of course, understanding a national constitution in the Torah and the ritual system of the Tabernacle is much more challenging than the love chapter, I Cor. 13.  Yet these writings can be understood and applied.   It is important to do so.

From Matthew 5 :17, 18 we read, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets.  I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.  I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter or the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear form the Law until everything is accomplished.”

Then Yeshua goes on in the rest of the chapter to show how the Torah is applied in the New Covenant.   

Paul in speaking of the Hebrew Scriptures tell us in II Tim. 3:16, 17 that it is all “God breathed,” and is profitable for doctrine, reproof and for training in righteousness.” 

In Romans he tells in 15:4 that the Hebrew Bible was written to “teach us so that through endurance and  encouragement of the Scriptures, we might have hope.”   In 16:26 we read that what has been revealed to us now has been “made known by the prophetic writings by the eternal command of God so that all nations might believe in him.” 

Peter echoes this and says that the Scriptures came not by the will of mean, but men spoke as they were carried along by the Spirit. (II Peter 1:20) 

And we can go on and on.  We really can not understand the New Testaement without the Hebrew Scriptures.  Indeed, so much of the New Testament is interpretation and re-application of the Hebrew Bible. So much of God’s plan for world redemption and peace is in the Hebrew Bible.   And when the Apostles were teaching, there was no New Testament. They relied on the Hebrew Bible.

The false teachings called Marcionism, were condemned in the early centuries of Church History.  It is time to call out these false teachers and restore the authority of the Hebrew Bible. 

Daniel Juster, Restoration from Zion, of Tikkun International

A few months I was in dialogue with a famous New Testament Theologian form England.  Much of our discussion was on the issue of Israel and the Church.  He was basically “replacement theology” oriented.   This is the theology that says that the Church is now the ongoing meaning of Israel, the true Israel of God, and that ethnic Israel no longer has claim to the status of God’s elect people.  We spent much time on many passages, but he would not be convinced. 

Toward the end of our dialogue, I spoke about the fact that my hope is that when Israel as a nation turns to Yeshua, it will lead to the conversion of the nations of the World.  Indeed, it will lead to his return and world redemption.  He was astonished that I thought that there would be a mass conversion of the nations after the tribulation and the judgments of the wrath of God (Rev. 16).  I was astonished that this was not obvious to him, though I was raised with church teachers that never taught this but had a pessimistic view of the end of this age.  However, text after text shows us that the biblical hope is for world redemption.  I could fill pages and pages with texts form the Prophets and Psalms to show this.   There is no way out of the conclusion.  I will only refer to a few such texts.

The Isaiah 2 text is most amazing.  It predicts that all nations will come up to Jerusalem and that the Law would go forth from Zion.  The nations beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks.  Nations will no longer learn war?  The implications of this are enormous.  Isaiah 11 repeats that same hope with the idea that the Messiah is the banner for the nations.  Even nature, the animal kingdom, will be elevated to a new level of peace.

Isaiah 45 is sometimes looked at as teaching only that the unconverted are forced to bow the knee to Yeshua.  However, the context makes this pessimistic view impossible.  The text states, “Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth . .  By myself I have sworn, my mouth has uttered in all integrity, a word that will not be revoked.  Before me, every knee will bow , by me every tongue will swear.  They will say of me, ‘In the Lord along are righteousness and strength”  Philippians 2 repeates the promise and applies it to Yeshua.

This is a positive confession of faith!   Isaiah 60:3 says, “Nations will come to your light.”  Isaiah 65, Amos 9, Mica 4 and multiple Pslams repeat the hope that the nations as corporate people, will come to the knowledge of God.   

Yes, it will be rough sledding before that happens.  However, let us keep in mind that the extension of the Kingdom in Yeshua to Israel and the nations will eventually reach this world redemptive goal.

The Good News answered the great Jewish question of the day, where is the Kingdom of God promised by the prophets? The hope of the prophets was that Israel and the nations would be one under the rule of the Messiah, the Son of David. As we read in Isaiah 2, the word of the Lord will go forth from Zion and nations will no longer go to war. Even nature will be transformed; the wolf will lie down with the lamb (Isaiah 11). The earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord.

When Yeshua began His ministry his announcement astonished our people.   “The Kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe the Good News.” (Mark 1:14).   In Yeshua the Kingdom had come in such a way that it could be embraced and entered into. Yeshua demonstrated that the Kingdom really had appeared and was available even though the final fullness of this Kingdom established over all the Earth would still await a future intervention.

Where is the Kingdom of God? Anywhere the rule of God is established. To the extent that His rule is established in any sphere of human life, we can say there is the Kingdom. Yeshua comes with the power to establish His rule, beginning in our hearts. The power of the Kingdom delivers from disease and demonic oppression and enables us to live according to the teaching of Yeshua. This teaching brings Torah to its highest application. Hatred is removed from our hearts. Murder becomes impossible. We love our enemies. We not only avoid literal adultery, but have freedom from lust in our hearts. We are honest in our words and true to our promises.

The parables of Yeshua show the nature of the Kingdom He offers. It spreads by the seed of the Word of God and finds reception in willing soils (hearts). It grows from a small beginning, a mustard seed, into the largest plant in the garden. It is the treasure that supersedes all else (Matthew 13).

Therefore the message of the Good News is that the Kingdom of God is available. If we come to the Father on the basis of the death and resurrection of Yeshua, our sins are forgiven and we enter the Kingdom of God. God promises to put all things in our lives into His right order, Kingdom order, Torah in the New Covenant, through the power of the Spirit.

In past ages the Kingdom of God was identified with the rule of the Church. In more recent times, the Kingdom has been understood as the Millennial Age, something that has been postponed to the future. Both of these views contain Biblical truth, but do not describe the full picture of the Kingdom of God.

First of all, the Kingdom has really come to us through Yeshua the Messiah. It is now possible to enter the Kingdom, live from the Kingdom and to manifest His Kingdom rule. However, though it is a present reality, it is not yet here in fullness. This fullness of the Kingdom awaits the second coming of Yeshua. So where is the Kingdom seen? It is seen in manifestations of Kingdom power.

It is also seen wherever there is submission to the will of God:

“Your Kingdom come, Your will be done”
– Matthew 6:10.

The Holy Spirit now dwells in each individual disciple. The Kingdom is seen in the one who lives according to the teaching of Yeshua. The Kingdom is seen in marriages and families that are ordered through his presence and power (Ephesians 5-6).

The Kingdom is seen in the life of a congregation that is in correct biblical order. We might even say that congregational life is the fullest manifestation of the Kingdom in this lifetime; as Yeshua taught:

“I will establish My congregation (kehilah) and the gates of Hell will not prevail against it”
– Matthew 16:18.

Yet the Kingdom is always in partial manifestation to the extent that individuals and spheres of human life are in submission to God’s order. Perfect submission to God’s order in any sphere will not occur in this age.

The Kingdom is in manifestation when civil governors rule according to biblical principles.

Businessmen should run their businesses according to Kingdom values, producing products and services that benefit people, and using profits to bless employees, shareholders, and consumers. In this way, the business leader can create wealth for the benefit of all. His stewardship of wealth should be directed primarily for the extension of the Kingdom of God, not selfish or opulent living. Godly employees through prayer and faithfulness also have power to bring transformation to the business world around them.

Our involvement in the arts, science and education should all reflect Kingdom values as well

Seeking God’s Kingdom and its righteousness (Matthew 6:33) means to bring all areas of life into line with His Kingdom order, or “Torah.” No one knows how much the Kingdom can be manifested in all spheres before Yeshua’s return. In the fullness of the Kingdom after Yeshua’s return, Israel and the nations will be in right relationship toward one another, thus producing God’s international order and peace among nations. Until that day, let us seek to see the Kingdom in manifestation in every sphere to the fullest extent possible.

As far as the gospel is concerned; they are enemies for your sake; but as far as election is concerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs, for God’s gifts and His call are irrevocable – Rom 11:28-29.

The Jewish people, the nation of Israel, has an irrevocable calling. I have written about this calling in my book, The Irrevocable Calling. Israel’s preservation and return to the Land of Israel is a great testimony to the faithfulness of God and His ultimate Lordship over history.

Israel’s testimony memorializes God’s action in the history of the nation and points to the end days and the Age to come. For example, the Sabbath is a testimony to the fact that God created the heavens and the earth in six daysand rested on the seventh. It is a foreshadowing of the Age to Come, when all will enter into a total Sabbath rest in Him.

Passover leads to the Exodus from Egypt, and foreshadows all nations coming into their destiny in the Age to Come.

Shavuot (Pentecost), the first large harvest, was the time of the outpouring of the Spirit in the first century. It foreshadows all the earth being filled with the Spirit; the knowledge of God will cover the earth (Isaiah 11:9).

Yom Teruah, the Feast of Trumpets (Shofarot), announces the judgments of God and the coming of the Messiah to rule and reign. It includes the re-gathering of Israel (Isaiah 27) and the resurrection of the dead (I Thessalonians 4:16-17).

On Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, the High Priest made atonement for the people. Yeshua, our High Priest, entered into the Most Holy Place of the Heavenly Tabernacle with His own blood of (Hebrews 9). This atonement is yet to be applied nationally to Israel and the nations, (Zechariah 12:10, Rev. 22:2).

The great Feast of Harvest, of Tabernacles, looks forward to that Day of the Kingdom of God in which Israel and all the nations will be one under the Messiah. (Zech. 14:9)

Jewish followers of Yeshua are part of their people; Paul showed that he was obedient to Torah and demonstrated his continued part in the nation of Israel (Acts 21). Messianic Jewish congregations are a key way for Jewish followers of Yeshua to maintain their part both in Israel and the “church”. These congregations include Gentiles who enjoy identifying with the Jewish people and worshipping in a Jewish rooted context. Jewish life is communal and is hard to maintain individually. We affirm Jewish culture where it is good and beautiful, and we seek to live within this cultural context. Jewish disciples of Yeshua are both the saved remnant of Israel and the Jewish members of the Body of the Messiah, the Jewish part of the One New Man. They join Israel and the Church together in an unseen corporate connection. Someday all Israel will be part of the Body of the Messiah, grafted back into their own Olive Tree leading to life from the dead. (Romans 11:15)

All believers are to affirm that Israel is still chosen, has not been replaced, and that Jewish believers are still a part of this important calling. God’s goal is that Israel and the nations will be one under the rule of the Messiah.

We believe that God will restore all truth and right practice that has been lost to the Body of Believers. Various ages of the Church have seen advances and declines. Some truths have been emphasized in one period, lost in the next, and then picked up again in later times.

Some advances in recent time parallel the restoration of Israel. The re-discovery of the baptism in the Spirit and speaking in tongues was parallel in time to the early Zionist return to the Land of Israel; the Latter Rain revival happened in parallel to the independence of the nation of Israel and its recognition; the charismatic renewal in the late sixties came at the same time as Israel coming into government over the original, Old City section of Jerusalem.

On the other hand, there are dimensions of truth that seem less established today than in past years. The enforcement of congregational discipline was greater one hundred years ago than in today’s Western world. Divorce is common today. This is a terrible loss. In addition, every age of the Church has seen advances and bright shining examples of truth.

Restoration or Fullness?

The word “restoration” as it is used in Acts 3 connotes more than restoring something that was simply present before. “Repent…that He may send the Messiah appointed for you, Yeshua, whom heaven must receive until the time for restoring all the things about which God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets long ago” (Acts 3:20-21). This refers to a restoration of the world to Paradise. That all humanity would enter into Paradise is something beyond and greater than anything that has occurred in the past. The Scriptures lead us to believe that we are moving toward something greater than is usually connoted by the word restoration. We are moving toward FULLNESS.

This means that the Body of Believers will come to a place of maturity, unity, power and purity that is indicated in Ephesians 4-5 and Revelation 7. Five-fold ministry equips the saints until all come to the unity of faith and grow into a mature man, a corporate man. This is attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of the Messiah (Eph. 4:13). In Ephesians 5, the Bride of the Messiah is described as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless (5:27). Revelation 7 describes a multitude from all nations in heavenly worship, dressed in white robes, a picture of His last days Bride is the prayer for the unity of the Body which Yeshua petitioned for before His trial and crucifixion.

All of this gives us great hope that we will see the Body of Believers come into fullness. Only such a Bride will be able to adequately influence the salvation of Israel and all the nations of the world.

Yeshua’s prayer from John 17 envisions a unity among believers that is like the unity of His relationship with the Father.

“That they all may be one as you, Father, are in me, and I in you; that they also may be one in Us that the world may believe that you sent Me”
-John 17:21

We can also see that the unity of Yeshua’s followers is a key to the redemption of the world.

His prayer requires us to believe that this will happen. How do we work for unity? First, in our own congregations, we are to pray for unity and to come against the attacking spirits of evil that bring division, gossip, and more. In addition, we are to support the vision and direction of leaders where it is in line with Scripture. Beyond the local congregation, this unity will be expressed in praying for the unity of the leaders and congregations in our cities, counties, and regions. This means that congregational leaders will be drawn together for prayer and cooperative ministry. In addition, it means that we will pray for a recognized leadership to be called of God to lead the unity of the congregation of the city. They will have a governmental role.

Levels of Unity

Unity is expressed at many levels. A family in true unity has tremendous power as a force for the Kingdom. An eldership in unity also has great power. A whole congregation has more power. An apostolic stream of congregations has even more power. When congregations in an area are in unity, they have the power to bind the princes of darkness over a territory. In this unity great power will be released for salvation in each region.

We are told that when brothers dwell together in unity, God has commanded a blessing (Psalm 133). Unity comes through love that flows supernaturally from our relationship with Yeshua. Yeshua’s prayer is ultimately for linking true disciples in unity throughout the whole world. This prayer for unity must be fulfilled before His second coming, for after His coming no prayer for unity will be needed.

From Closer to Closer

Five-fold ministry (Eph. 4:11-16) is a key to this unity, especially the recognition of apostolic and prophetic authority and leadership. For under such equipping ministries, we will come to the unity of the faith and grow into a mature corporate man, fully equipped.

I believe that only a mighty revival will bring this unity, which will include new orientations in doctrine so that we can come together. The idea of a sloppy unity where there is a watering down of convictions is not biblical. The Spirit of God can bring us closer and closer in our convictions and can help us to cooperate in mutually beneficial efforts for the Kingdom. This quest for unity should characterize our whole lives.

Here are some aspects of what I consider a right theology that must prevail in the Messianic Jewish movement.

1. End Times – We are to be aligned with the last days’ church, which will lead to Israel being saved, the return of the Messiah Yeshua, and the Millennial Kingdom.   The teaching that we will be raptured out seven years before the great revival in Israel takes place, undercuts a key strategy for the last days’ Messianic movement.  We have to be here until the return of the Lord to fulfill the Romans 11 mandate.

2. Power of the Holy Spirit – The power of the Holy Spirit and all his gifts will be crucial to accomplish the last days’ task of the Messianic Jews and its partners in the larger Body of the Messiah of which we are a part.  Any teaching that diminishes this emphasis and does not motivate people through love to seek the power and all of the gifts of the Spirit is in these days counter-productive.  (I Cor. 14, Acts 1:8)

3. Apostolic/Prophetic Leadership – It is crucial as well to teach that apostolic and prophetic leadership must be raised up in Israel to bring unity to the Body and equipping to see the Body come into the maturity to which it is called.  (Eph. 4:11ff.)

4. Jewish Roots – In the New Covenant order, the Torah provides universal ethical and moral standards that are part of that righteous requirement to be fulfilled by those who walk in the Spirit (Romans 8:4).  Together with the Abrahamic Covenant (Land, People, Language, Nationhood) the Mosaic Commandments provide the markers of Jewish identity; without these, Jewish believers and Jews in general have no distinctive pattern of life that constitute their peoplehood (Acts 21:20-24).

Right theology is crucial, has great practical importance, and has to be established for us to fulfill our last days calling.  Pray with us for these foundational issues to be taught correctly.

For 35 years our ministries have taught the Gospel of the Kingdom in a way that connects us to the newer “Seven Mountain/Pillar Teaching”. This teaching is now becoming popular in both charismatic and evangelical streams.

We have taught generally that Yeshua’s followers are to be an influence of godly principles in every sphere of society. For example, a business leader is responsible to build his business according to godly principles and to be a testimony and influence in the way he conducts business. The artist is to create art that brings glory to God and influences society. Reformed theology taught that there were three essential spheres of authority that all people must experience, the Church, the family and the civil government (the political realm). No one can legitimately be separated from these, and all are called to walk in submission to God and His Law in each of these spheres. We could say that these three mountains are the larger of the seven.

The Church is the largest Mountain

The Church is not to govern the civil government or the civil government the Church. Rather, each is to be subject to God’s Law or principles for their own spheres. The Church is to be the prophetic and teaching voice for all spheres and is to help shape the larger culture. In the last century the Evangelical Church in the west largely abandoned culture formation in favor of a Gospel of escape. Looking either to heaven at death or to the rapture seven years before the return of Yeshua. Therefore the Church abandoned the larger culture for individual spirituality.

The seven mountains teaching, expands the classic spheres of authority, by looking at the main influences that shape the larger culture. It adds media, education, science, and business. The famous leader Bill Bright of Campus Crusade became the leading proponent of this teaching in his last years. Generally, society goes in the direction, for good or evil, according to who controls the levers of power in these spheres. The controllers of the cultural levers in the society are like the King.

Cultural Transformation

Today, control of several of the most influential spheres—both in Israel and most of the western world-is in the hands of the secular left, especially in education and media. There is still resistance in the business and political realm. The seven mountain teachers are encouraging believers to take up callings in each of the seven spheres to change the direction of the entire culture. Of course, the sphere of the Body or the Church is the most central since it makes disciples and teaches the basic principles for all the others. The Gospel is the Gospel of the Kingdom and we are to bring the Kingdom into all seven mountains. This can only occur by the power of the Spirit and hence revival is crucial.

However, there are very important qualifications for us in responding to this teaching. First of all, the Bible is quite clear that we will not be taking over the world and ruling all spheres in all nations before the second coming. In fact, the Bible leads us to believe that the fullness of the Kingdom will only come after the ultimate clash of good and evil leading to the return of the Messiah. So while we have a responsibility for the culture and are a witness by taking up this responsibility, we should have no illusions of ultimate victory before the return of the Lord. Yet, much good can be accomplished in the interim. In addition, we should note that the center of Kingdom advance is still the challenge of calling people to embrace and submit to the message of the Gospel. Ultimately the Kingdom we look for is that one described in the Bible when Yeshua sits on the throne of David in Jerusalem!