The Great Hope of Israel and All Mankind
“Now Adonai said to Avram, Get yourself out of your country, away from your kinsmen and away from your father’s house, and go to the land that I will show you. I will make of you a great nation, I will bless you, and I will make your name great; and you are to be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, but I will curse anyone who curses you; and by you all the families of the earth will be blessed.” — Genesis 12: 1-3 (CJB)
“The promised benefit to the whole human race was later revealed as Mashiach – the “Suffering Servant” Yeshua willingly paid the penalty and made the ultimate sacrifice for our sins. That is, the promise to Abraham was really the promise of one unique seed, Mashiach, in whom all the covenants would find their fulfillment (Galatians 3: 16). The theological term called the “eternal covenant” refers to an agreement within the G-dhead, made before the foundation of the world, out of which all the covenants with mankind would later flow. He made us, for His own. He draws us, to Himself, to enjoy and spend an eternity with Him in Heaven.” Osterman, D.A., Mashiach, Kindle Edition.
Luke 2:25-35
25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. 27 And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, 28 he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said,
29 “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word;
30 for my eyes have seen your salvation
31 that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles,and for glory to your people Israel.”
33 And his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him. 34 And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed 35 (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.”
The consolation of Israel that Simeon had been waiting for comes from Isaiah 40:1–2:
Isaiah 40:1-2 – Comfort for God’s People
1 Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.
2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins
The Promised Messiah was the fulfillment of the hope that God had promised Israel and His chosen people. It was the consolation that the young child before Simeon would bring to a long suffering people. When Jesus was born, the voice of God became flesh and dwelt among us. And the message he brought was, “Comfort, comfort my people.”
Simeon had not lost faith in the promises of his God. He had not lost faith that the promises in Scripture would certainly be fulfilled. He understood the character of God. He understood His attributes. He knew that his God is “the faithful God” (Deuteronomy 7:9; Hos. 11:12), the “God of faithfulness” (Deuteronomy 32:4) whose every “work is done in faithfulness” (Psalm 33:4). He understood that “His faithfulness is a shield and bulwark” to His people (Psalm 91:4), causing them to exclaim, “Great is Your faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:23). Simeon saw all the promises of God fulfilled right before his very eyes. He knew that the Savior of the world was before him. He knew that all of God’s promises yet to be fulfilled would be fulfilled though this young baby.
The most significant of all God’s trustworthy promises was the promise that He would send His Son, the Messiah and Savior, into the world. In 2 Corinthians 1:20, Paul wrote, “For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory.” The great hope of the Jewish nation and all the nations of the world was and is God’s promised Messiah. The Old Testament is filled with hundreds of prophecies of the coming of Messiah. Many of those promises were fulfilled at the first coming of Jesus Christ, and the remainder will be fulfilled when He returns in glory.
The work of such Messianic Jewish organizations such as Jews for Jesus and One for Israel are bringing this message of hope to an unbelieving Jewish people. Below is the Statement of Faith for Jews for Jesus. Read through it and you will see that Jews for Jesus takes the mainstream Christian positions that Jesus is the Messiah, that his coming was prophesied in the Hebrew Bible, and that Jesus is the son of God, the second person of the Trinity. Jews for Jesus believes that their views of the Messiah are entirely compatible with the view of God presented in Jewish scriptures, and that the doctrine of the Trinity, fundamental to the Christian faith, is not entirely alien to Judaism. After the Statement of Faith is a testimony of “Suzie, an Israeli Jewish girl who found out whom the Messiah Actually is!” Please take the time to watch it as it is very inspiring. Be aware that she is speaking Hebrew so you must read the subtitles quickly!
We believe that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are divinely inspired, verbally and completely inerrant in the original writings and of supreme and final authority in all matters of faith and life.
We recognize the value of traditional Jewish literature, but only where it is supported by or conformable to the Word of God. We regard it as in no way binding upon life or faith.
We believe in one sovereign God, existing in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, perfect in holiness, infinite in wisdom, unbounded in power and measureless in love; that God is the source of all creation and that through the immediate exercise of His power all things came into being.
We believe that God the Father is the author of eternal salvation, having loved the world and given His Son for its redemption.
We believe that Jesus the Messiah was eternally pre-existent and is co-equal with God the Father; that He took on Himself the nature of man through the virgin birth so that He possesses both divine and human natures.
We believe in His sinless life and perfect obedience to the Law; in His atoning death, burial, bodily resurrection, ascension into heaven, high-priestly intercession and His personal return in power and glory.
We believe that the Holy Spirit is co-equal and co-eternal with the Father and the Son; that He was active in the creation of all things and continues to be so in providence; that He convicts the world of sin, righteousness and judgment, and that He regenerates, sanctifies, baptizes, indwells, seals, illumines, guides and bestows His gifts upon all believers.
We believe that God created man in His image; that because of the disobedience of our first parents at the Garden of Eden they lost their innocence and both they and their descendants, separated from God, suffer physical and spiritual death and that all human beings, with the exception of Jesus the Messiah, are sinners by nature and practice.
We believe that Jesus the Messiah died for our sins, according to the Scriptures, as a representative and substitutionary sacrifice; that all who believe in Him are justified, not by any works of righteousness they have done, but by His perfect righteousness and atoning blood and that there is no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.
We believe that Israel exists as a covenant people through whom God continues to accomplish His purposes and that the Church is an elect people in accordance with the New Covenant, comprising both Jews and Gentiles who acknowledge Jesus as Messiah and Redeemer.
We believe that Jesus the Messiah will return personally in order to consummate the prophesied purposes concerning His kingdom.
We believe in the bodily resurrection of the just and the unjust, the everlasting blessedness of the saved and the everlasting conscious punishment of the lost.
One for Israel – Jewish Evangelism in Israel Support us in sharing Jesus Christ.
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