Sharing the Vision, July 2006

Have you ever driven by a car wash in progress? I’m talking about the car wash where some kids are on the side of the street with "Free Car Wash" written on neon poster board. They are also jumping up and down trying to get your attention. Maybe it is a church youth group wanting to raise funds for camp or a local band wanting the resources for their upcoming band trip. If you take them up on their "Free" offer, you will hear the story of their future goal and before you know it, you are making a "donation." You leave with a good feeling of having done a "good deed" and "Hey, you got your car washed!"

Step back for a moment and ask yourself something.

Why would a group of youth gather themselves together to wash other people’s cars for free? What pulled them together to plan, locate, and actually get out on a sunny day to wash other people’s cars? The answer is obvious: they have a shared vision to make a trip or to accomplish something together. It is more than a hope. They are actually gathering the resources and expending energies to accomplish something for their hope – their shared vision.

The principles exhibited by a youth car wash are the same principles necessary in any important movement of people. The participants in a combined effort must share the same vision for it to be successful. Furthermore, the participants view the co-laboring effort as a significant part in preparing for the vision. We call it a vision; however, it is not seen with eyes. Like faith, it comes by hearing, not by sight.

Drawing one more principle from the "car wash" example… If one of the youth is a non-participant in the "car wash," you know that he or she really does not share the vision with the others. It is clear that he or she does not believe in what they are doing.

Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained, but happy is he who keeps the law.

Proverbs 29:18

The lack of vision leads to disunity and failure of future goals. On the other hand, unity by sharing the same vision with "rules of conduct" among the participants leads to unity and success.

You don’t have to be a seasoned sage to know of these principles or understand them. You, as a reader, can probably cite other examples as well. But let us consider our faith, and in particular, the Messianic Movement we are all part of. What is the shared vision of the Messianic Movement? Do we all share that vision?

It is obvious to you and me that not everyone is participating in the same "car wash" called the Messianic Movement. The reason is simple. We don’t all share the same vision. The purpose of this article is not to point out all the differences; instead, my desire is for the reader to understand some of the differences in vision with the resulting understanding as to why we can’t all get it together.

These are over simplified statements, but they are valid perceptions of elements within the Messianic Movement. If you want to understand them more accurately, you will need to hear them for yourselves directly. My perceptions are based on more than 20 years experience and past direct involvement.

1. The Messianic Jewish Alliance of America (MJAA) is an individual membership organization. The MJAA was developed out of the previous Hebrew Christian Alliance of America. It appears that the vision of the organization is for Joel Chernoff, the General Secretary, to represent all Messianic believers worldwide as a non-governmental organization (NGO) before the United Nations, as a pro-Israel group (paralleling Christian Zionism) before the Prime Minister of Israel, and as the believing Jewish wing of the Christian Church. The International Alliance of Messianic Congregations and Synagogues (IAMCS) is the congregational membership element under the same leadership.

2. The Union of Messianic JEWISH Congregations (UMJC) is a congregational membership organization. I have capitalized the word "JEWISH" because the vision of the organization is primarily directed at Jewish persons with the hope that someday their Messianic JEWISH assemblies will be found acceptable to the larger Jewish community. Their vision is to become a recognizable element in Messianic JUDAISM. They have a position paper Defining Messianic Judaism. The MJAA and the IAMCS also share in some of the same elements of this definition.

3. Tikkun (Restoration) Ministries is a congregational membership organization led by Dr. Daniel Juster. Dr. Juster was the first General Secretary of the UMJC. It appears that his vision of the organization is to seek reconciliation between the Christian community and the emerging Messianic Jews. As a sidebar comment, individuals from the MJAA, UMJC, Tikkun and other churchmen have formed an initiative called "Jerusalem Council II" seeking reconciliation with the Pope and other high church orders for past divisions of Jewish believers and the church.

4. The Messianic Israel Alliance (MIA) is an individual and congregational membership organization. The vision of the MIA is based on the identity teaching of Batya Wooten concerning the two-houses of Israel (the House of Israel and the House of Judah) being the whole house of Israel. Like Juster, Wooten’s roots come from her past involvement with the leaders and organizations previously mentioned. While the aforementioned organizations assert their Jewishness, the MIA asserts the Ephraimite (non-Jewish) posture. The previously mentioned organizations consider the Ephraimite posture to be heretical (certainly not part of their vision). In fact, the obstinance displayed by the IAMCS, UMJC, and Tikkun congregational leaders against the "two house teaching" serves partially as a shared vision for them.

5. First Fruits of Zion (FFOZ) is a publishing ministry. Their vision is to develop and produce educational materials supportive of the Messianic Movement. Their market includes pro-Israel evangelical churches and Messianic fellowships and congregations. They have a pro-Torah vision promoting the Hebrew understanding in the New Testament. In recent years, the MJAA and UMJC have become resistant to the FFOZ pro-Torah position. Simply put, they think the Torah is Jew-only and complain that teaching others brings in too many non-Jews to their assemblies. FFOZ does not agree with the "two-house teaching" primarily because they generally avoid prophetic material and subjects.

6. There are a number of Hebrew Roots ministries (too numerous to name) that vary greatly in structure from extensions of some churches to completely independent fellowships and congregations. Many of these groups have nothing to do with any of the previously mentioned organizations. In part, they are not aware of their existence. When they do learn of them, they tend to steer clear of them and their on-going struggles. However, Hebrews Roots ministries and groups do share a common vision concerning the "Hebrew Roots" of the Christian faith. They believe that past and historical Hebrew understandings enrich their faith. This can vary from Passover to the teachings of the other feasts of the Lord to observing Sabbath and eating Kosher style. These groups do not assert their "Jewish or Ephraimite" identity. They are more than happy to remain "Gentile" and further the claims of Christianity. Christian Zionists could be argued to be a completely separate definition, but when you compare a typical Hebrew Roots believer to a Christian Zionist they are virtually identical in their faith. The difference is in their resulting actions. The Hebrews Roots emphasis and energy is toward other believers (the church) and Christian Zionists are energized toward the Jewish people and the nation of Israel.

7. Jews for Jesus is not really part of the Messianic Movement based on their own definition. They are an evangelical organization with the goal of leading Jews to the Lord and sending them to local churches. Their vision is consistent with the church and their Jewishness is expressed for the most part as culture only.

8. I have to mention one more organization – Lion and Lamb Ministries. Lion and Lamb Ministries is a non membership teaching ministry. I, Monte Judah, started Lion and Lamb Ministries to share the vision of the coming Messianic Age. Lion and Lamb Ministries promotes the development of leaders and the establishment of fellowships and congregations. I am pursuing the teaching of Moses and the Messiah, therefore, I share in some elements of the previously mentioned organizations. I share the faith with my Jewish brethren that Yeshua of Nazareth is the Messiah; I teach the future "restoration" of Israel including the reunion of the two houses of Israel; I believe that everyone, including Gentiles, is to receive the teaching of the Torah. These are the major differences (in vision) between all previously mentioned groups and myself.

… which brings us back to our article. It is no wonder that these elements and organizations in the Messianic Movement don’t get along with me or each other. We don’t share the same vision. When you further add the human elements of egotism and envy, the Messianic Movement becomes very "messy."

Maybe the question really should be "What is the vision for the Messianic Movement that God wants us to have?" Does God want us to be an evolutionary element of the church or the fourth branch of Judaism? Does God want us to all be like the Jews? No matter how many ideas are put forth by men or Messianic organizations to self-define themselves I don’t think they reach the goal. I think the real definition of who we are and what we are doing comes from God and it is found within the Scriptures given to us.

The greatest vision of our faith is the Messiah. The Messiah is to be our Savior, Deliverer, and Redeemer. He is also to restore all things. The Messiah has completed the work of redemption as the promised Lamb of God. However, Messiah Yeshua is yet to fulfill the words of the prophets to gather the scattered of Israel from the nations. In this generation, we have seen this gathering started with the House of Judah returning to the land of Israel, but we have not yet seen what Paul referred to in the book of Romans.

For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery, lest you be wise in your own estimation, that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fulness of the Gentiles has come in; and thus all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, "The Deliverer will come from Zion, He will remove ungodliness from Jacob. And this is My covenant with them, When I take away their sins."

Romans 11:25-27

We have not yet seen the complete fulfillment of the prophesied New Covenant by Jeremiah.

"Behold, days are coming," declares the Lord, "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them," declares the Lord. "But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days," declares the Lord, "I will put My law within them, and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. And they shall not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them," declares the Lord, "for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more."

Jeremiah 31:31-34

Please note the last expression in both passages. The House of Israel and the House of Judah are the recipients of the New Covenant. It is to be the unifying vision of the Messiah’s redemption that results in all persons knowing the Lord (including the Gentiles). This promise was originally given to Abraham that in his "seed all the families of the earth would be blessed."

Many Bible teachers have been perplexed by the words of Paul declaring that "all Israel would be saved." It doesn’t fit their definition of church and the New Covenant. Messianic Jewish leaders who deny the two house teaching don’t seem to understand much of anything expressed in Romans 9 through 11. They certainly don’t understand the "remnant of Israel" (a theme expressly taught beginning with the fathers). The "natural and wild branches" that are grafted in is another area of misunderstanding. So when Paul quotes the prophets and speaks of a prophetic scenario (the time of the Gentiles being fulfilled) it is simply too much. None of this conforms to their definition of the world being just Jews and Gentiles.

What is the vision of the Messiah among religious Jews (those who do not believe that Yeshua is the Messiah)? Amazingly, it is the same as what Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel said. That is why it differs dramatically from what the church says! The church has dismissed and ignored what the prophets really said about the Messiah’s future role in restoration. This is why the religious Jews reject the vision of the Christian church concerning Jesus Christ. According to the Jews, Yeshua didn’t fulfill all of the prophecies to be the Messiah.

There are many sources that can be referenced for Judaism’s vision of the Messiah just as there are varying perspectives in Christianity. However, one part of the Jewish Messianic vision stands out more so. It is the future restoration (reunion) of the two houses of Israel – the consolation of Israel and the redemption of Jerusalem. Judaism has extended the Torah-commanded seven day Feast of Unleavened Bread by one day. Instead of concluding Unleavened Bread on the 21st of Nisan as Moses instructed in the Torah, it is concluded on the 22nd with a dramatic teaching from Isaiah 11. The following is a commentary from the Hertz’s Pentateuch and Haftorahs (a Torah Chumash) for the eighth day of Passover (Unleavened Bread).

"Intimately bound up with the Jewish Messianic hope is the thought of … the Passover of the future. It will be a new redemption and a new Exodus, this time as exodus of the Jewish people from the lands of their dispersion and an ingathering into the Holy Land. ‘The Lord will set His hand again the second time to recover the remnant of His people, that shall remain from Assyria and from Egypt, etc.’ (Isa 11:11). It has been maintained that the last two days of Passover (in Israel the last day) are observed as full Yom Tov to celebrate in anticipation the Passover of the future;… It was natural, therefore, that the greatest and most famous of all the Messianic prophecies (Isaiah 11), with its allusion to the redemption from Egypt (11,15, 16), should be chosen as the theme of the Haftorah for the last day; with the happy result, as well, that the Bible readings on the great Festival of Deliverance conclude with a forward-looking message of wonderful hope and optimism." pg 1023.

Not only does Isaiah 11 speak of the ingathering, another exodus, but it addresses the very controversy of the two house teaching.

Then the jealousy of Ephraim will depart, and those who harass Judah will be cut off; Ephraim will not be jealous of Judah, and Judah will not harass Ephraim.

Isaiah 11:13

Here is a real irony in the present Messianic Movement. The Messianic JEWISH organizations refer to all "two house teaching" as heretical. They maintain that they are the able representatives to share the Messiah properly with the non-believing Jewish brethren. Little do they understand that religious Jews believe in the future restoration of the two houses. Judaism believes that when non-Jews gather to them and the Torah then the Messiah is coming soon; this is the Jewish Messianic vision. Consider the irony. Messianic JEWS refer to the Jewish Messianic vision as "heretical." They will never be acceptable to the larger Jewish community and their efforts to share Yeshua will be rejected. They don’t have the same vision. As long the church and erring Messianic Jews treat the future exodus and Messianic hope of the future gathering as "heretical," they discredit the promises of God given by the prophets and prove that Yeshua of Nazareth is not the Messiah to the Jewish people.

Consider this additional expectation shared by the religious Jewish community.

Moses Maimonides wrote the Mishnah Torah and codified Jewish law. In his treatise entitled Law of the Kings, chapter 11, section 4, he states that the Messiah must do certain things to be the Messiah. One is to rebuild the temple. The second is that he must gather and bring back the exiles, captives, and scattered of Israel (this includes all tribes). The number one reason that many Jews deny Yeshua is because He did not bring back the tribes from the House of Israel. Again, if you say there is no house of Israel to be restored, then you deny the expectation of the Jewish people and blaspheme the word of God given by the Prophets of Israel.

The Prophets of Israel specifically address the restoration of the two houses, the future exodus, and the restoration of all things – the Messianic Age.

"Therefore behold, days are coming," declares the Lord, "when it will no longer be said, ‘As the Lord lives, who brought up the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt,’ but, ‘As the Lord lives, who brought up the sons of Israel from the land of the north and from all the countries where He had banished them.’ For I will restore them to their own land which I gave to their fathers."

Jeremiah 16:14-15

"Behold, the days are coming," declares the Lord, "When I shall raise up for David a righteous Branch; and He will reign as king and act wisely and do justice and righteousness in the land. In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely; and this is His name by which He will be called, ‘The Lord our righteousness.’ Therefore behold, the days are coming," declares the Lord, "when they will no longer say, ‘As the Lord lives, who brought up the sons of Israel from the land of Egypt.’ but, ‘As the Lord lives, who brought up and led back the descendants of the household of Israel from the north land and from all the countries where I had driven them.’ Then they will live on their own soil."

Jeremiah 23:5-8

When Yeshua walked with the disciples, many in Israel were expecting the Messiah to come as King and run off the Romans. They were expecting the kingdom to be freedom from captivity and oppression. They were expecting the Messiah to bring back the captives (the House of Israel) and restore the land like the days of King David and Solomon. However, they forgot that the House of Judah was to be brought back from nations their fathers never heard of. The Babylonian exile and return was not the fulfillment of the greater exodus for them. Instead, Judah was yet to go into captivity (history proved it to be 70A.D.) and then the Messiah would gather both Judah and Israel in a unique way from all of the nations.

"Behold, I am going to send for many fishermen," declares the Lord, "and they will fish for them; and afterwards I shall send for many hunters, and they will hunt them from every mountain and every hill, and from the clefts of the rocks."

Jeremiah 16:16

After His resurrection, Yeshua appointed His followers to be the fishermen for the "sons of God." That is the way it has been until this generation. I say "until this generation" because Yeshua also spoke of one final generation that would see the completion of this process. That generation is not to pass away until all things are fulfilled. Of that generation, the prophet Jeremiah spoke these words.

O Lord, my strength and my stronghold, and my refuge in the day of distress, to Thee the nations will come from the ends of the earth and say, "Our fathers have inherited nothing but falsehood, futility and things of no profit."

Jeremiah 16:19

The testimony of many Messianic brethren is this shared vision. We now see that being scattered in the nations brought only "falsehoods, futility, and things of no profit." We desire to return to the Lord, to pursue true faith. No longer do the traditions of men (Christian or Jewish) meet our spiritual needs; we now see that our previous instruction was no substitute for God’s commandments and teaching. The Holy Spirit has awakened in us the desire to turn to God and the path back to the land of Israel and all the people of Israel. This is the Messianic vision described by Moses and the Prophets. This is what Yeshua and the Apostles spoke of. In searching for all of Israel, the Jewish people are the most obvious to see. Therefore a Jewish testimony of faith in the Messiah is a compelling part of this vision. However, whether you are Jew or not, the Messianic vision is for all who desire the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

"Therefore behold, I am going to make them know— This time I will make them know My power and My might; and they shall know that My name is the Lord."

Jeremiah 16:21

This is the same language used by God and Moses when the children of Israel left Egypt. But the comparison is more emphatic for the greater exodus. Instead of ten judgments upon Egypt, the book of Revelation details 21 of them. Our return from the nations is like the exodus from Egypt. It is not just about deliverance and salvation; it is about God keeping His promises and making Himself known to all.

"For, behold, days are coming," declares the Lord, "when I will restore the fortunes of My people Israel and Judah." The Lord says, "I will also bring them back to the land that I gave to their forefathers, and they shall possess it." Now these are the words which the Lord spoke concerning Israel and concerning Judah, for thus says the Lord, "I have heard a sound of terror, of dread, and there is no peace. Ask now, and see, if a male can give birth. Why do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a woman in childbirth? And why have all faces turned pale?" Alas! for that day is great, there is none like it; and it is the time of Jacob's distress, but he will be saved from it."

Jeremiah 30:3-7

The Messianic vision includes the restoration of the two houses of Israel. The first hint of Israel being divided into two houses came from Jacob. When Jacob returned with his family to face Esau, he divided his family into "two companies." This was to preserve them while facing Jacob’s enemies. Jacob, the Scripture says, was fearful. He wrestled with God, refusing to let Him go without a blessing. In the end, Jacob "prevailed" and faced his enemy. His family was reunited in the land.

The prophecy of Jacob’s distress at the end of the ages is the same. Presently, the house of Israel and Judah are divided. We live in a time of terror (in fact, we are fighting the war of terror worldwide). But soon, God will declare an end to the exile and He will bring us together as one people of Israel.

Then He said to me, "Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel; behold, they say, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope has perished. We are completely cut off.’ Therefore prophesy, and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God, "Behold, I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves, My people; and I will bring you into the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves and caused you to come up out of your graves, My people. And I will put My Spirit within you, and you will come to life, and I will place you on your own land. Then you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken and done it," declares the Lord.’"

Ezekiel 37:11-14

The vision of the valley of dry bones in Ezekiel 37 is a well known prophecy. Because of the Holocaust, we saw the bones and skin on the bones. Many believe that the birth of the modern nation of Israel is out of those bones. I agree. But the Lord has said that the bones he is speaking of are more than just that of the Jews in the Holocaust. He is referring to the bones of all the tribes and their graves in all of the nations.

Before we go any further, let us make sure that our definition of Israel lines up with God’s definition of Israel. Are Jews part of Israel? Yes. Is everyone in Israel a Jew? No. Is the House of Judah made up of Jews? Yes. Is the House of Israel made up of just Jews? No. The House of Israel is the Northern Kingdom of Israel. It is led by the House of Ephraim. Ephraim is not a Jew, nor are the other nine tribes under Ephraim’s leadership forming the House of Israel. Normative, traditional Judaism knows this and agrees with this definition. It is only a handful of Messianic Jewish leaders, who claim a "unique calling" as Jews, who ignore and distort the definition of the "whole house of Israel." They flatly deny the existence of the House of Ephraim. Still further, they want the believing Gentiles to stay in their churches. They fear that too many Gentile believers will "dilute" their "Jewishness" while trying to convince the local Jewish community that they are Jewish.

I have a confession to make. When I hear the leadership of the MJAA and UMJC make those kind of statements, I consider that to be bigotry. They are trying to build the "middle wall of partition" in the temple Yeshua built in our hearts. I see men who are devoid of basic Torah instruction. I see them denying God’s promises and, therefore, unfaithful by not believing the promises of God. I see men who are not part of the "remnant of Israel" – the "children of promise." Instead, they assert their physical birth over the "spiritual rebirth." Now before you become critical of my confession, maybe you should hear God’s opinion of Jewish believers who assert their "Jewishness" to the exclusion of the "children of promise" in these last days.

I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich), and the blasphemy by those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.

Revelation 2:9

Behold, I will cause those of the synagogue of Satan, who say that they are Jews, and are not, but lie— behold, I will make them to come and bow down at your feet, and to know that I have loved you.

Revelation 3:9

I would remind my Messianic Jewish brethren who reference their "unique calling" of Jewishness and call others "heretics" who believe the promises of God for the restoration of ALL Israel that they are clearly described in the Scripture by these two references. But being described as members of the "synagogue of Satan" is even harsh to me. I struggled with that criticism from Yeshua until recently.

You can judge their behavior for yourself. Recently, some of the highest leaders of several Messianic organizations (God knows who they are) assembled to take issue with a Messianic Musician and worship leader. They took him to task because he was a friend of a "two house" teacher. He was scheduled to lead worship at a future Feast of Tabernacles assembly of that "two house" teacher. Remember, these leaders call the "two house" teaching "heresy." They went further. They personally threatened the worship leader and his ministry by stating that they would cut him off from fellowship and prohibit him from being able to lead worship in any Messianic congregation under their control. Remember, this worship leader has a traveling ministry and relies on love offerings and honorariums to provide for his family. Needless to say, he was devastated.

This is not a singular incident; it has happened to many teachers and brethren. It is the unwritten policy of these organizations to misbehave like tyrants and bullies. It trickles down from regional leaders to congregational leaders.

So as fellow Messianic believers, do you believe that the leaders of other Messianic organizations have the right to conspire together, to extort, intimidate, and otherwise threaten other ministries and believers that are not members of their organizations? Do you believe conspiracy, extortion, intimidation, and criminal behavior is the evidence of Godly leadership? According to the criminal laws of our land, if one organization conspires with another to prohibit a still other organization from doing business with others, it is called extortion and "organized crime." According to the civil laws of our land, the same activity is called "tortuous interference." Again, I ask you as fellow Messianic believers, do you believe this activity is acceptable behavior for men leading major Messianic organizations, ministries, and congregations?

I don’t and I don’t believe you do either. When I reach an impasse with another ministry or congregation, I leave it to the Lord. I don’t try to find ways to disrupt their assembly or worship.

I believe their behavior is more like a group of neighborhood bullies forcing their will upon others. Is this the way the Messiah leads? No. This is the way HaSatan works. So which synagogue are these leaders a member of? It appears that Yeshua was right to refer to them this way.

If you are a Messianic believer in a congregation led by those who assert their Jewishness over the Messiah and refer to the Jewish Messianic vision as "heresy," may I suggest that you re-evaluate your position. Ask yourself, "Do I believe what those leaders believe? Is it right what they do to other Messianic brethren?"

Putting all that behind us… How does the Messianic vision of the two houses come together? The prophet Ezekiel gives us a detailed account. It is part of the dry bones coming together. It is a prophesied part of the last generation just before the Messianic Age.

The word of the Lord came again to me saying, "And you, son of man, take for yourself one stick and write on it, 'For Judah and for the sons of Israel, his companions'; then take another stick and write on it, 'For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim and all the house of Israel, his companions. "Then join them for yourself one to another into one stick, that they may become one in your hand. And when the sons of your people speak to you saying, ‘Will you not declare to us what you mean by these?’ say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God, "Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel, his companions; and I will put them with it, with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they will be one in My hand."’ And say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God, "Behold, I will take the sons of Israel from among the nations where they have gone, and I will gather them from every side and bring them into their own land; and I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel; and one king will be king for all of them; and they will no longer be two nations, and they will no longer be divided into two kingdoms. And they will no longer defile themselves with their idols, or with their detestable things, or with any of their transgressions; but I will deliver them from all their dwelling places in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them. And they will be My people, and I will be their God. And My servant David will be king over them, and they will all have one shepherd; and they will walk in My ordinances, and keep My statutes, and observe them.’"

Ezekiel 37:15-24

According to this account, the Spirit of God will put a desire in the heart of Ephraim (the House of Israel) to join his brother Judah (the House of Judah). Ephraim will bring his companions (Gentiles). They will no longer defile themselves with idols (such as bowing down to decorated evergreen trees), cease from eating unclean things (such as pig and cockroaches from the sea), and they will learn Torah so as not to transgress God’s commandments (like ignoring the Sabbath). But the best part is that they (Judah and Ephraim) will jointly declare the Son of David – Messiah Yeshua – to be their KING.

Brethren, the Messianic vision is anticipating the end of the ages. It is when God’s Spirit is poured out greater than the day of Pentecost (Acts 2). It is returning to the Torah and learning God’s way of living. It is returning to Him with all of your heart even though your lips know not what to say or how to say it. The Messianic vision is about repairing old breaches and separated brothers being rejoined. It is about restoration. But it is also about a time of distress – Jacob’s trouble – and tribulation. Praise God that those days will be shortened and that the Son of Man will return on the clouds of glory in the days immediately following the tribulation. He will usher in the Messianic Age.

This is the message and the vision of the Messianic movement. This is the same message and vision that the Apostle Paul gave at his trial.

And now I am standing trial for the hope of the promise made by God to our fathers; the promise to which our twelve tribes hope to attain, as they earnestly serve God night and day. And for this hope, O King, I am being accused by Jews.

Acts 26:6-7

Paul knew that the great Messianic Hope was for the Messiah to return and bring back the exiles and scattered of Israel from the nations. He knew it was a promise to ALL twelve tribes of Israel, not just the Jews and Gentiles. He, too, was in dispute with some of his Jewish brethren.

Does your teacher and congregation have the same Messianic vision as Paul had? Are you part of the Messianic vision? Or, are you part of another vision to assert Judah over Ephraim, or Ephraim over Judah, and deny the promises of God?

I have shared my testimony of transition from Baptist to Messianic. It was born out of studying Isaiah and the other Prophets of Israel. I heard them describing how God would bring us back from the nations as he brought our fathers out of Egypt. Once I began to walk in Torah and keep His commandments, the Messianic vision appeared. I was able to find some like-minded brethren who shared the vision. I was a young man then, married with children on the way. Hosea, the prophet to the house of Israel, named his children to match the prophetic message of his day. When my son was born, the name Ephraim was chosen. In my heart, I wanted to see within the days of his life Ephraim and Judah become "one in the hand of the Lord." As he grew, he learned of this prophecy and that his name meant to be "fruitful and multiply." I have heard him say of his name that he has a "good" name. The life of my son has been a reminder to me of the Messianic vision.

This last month, June 2006, Ephraim took a bride in marriage. The house of Ephraim (his house) has now been established. I am still holding to the Messianic vision. I am still looking without natural eyes to the restoration of the whole house of Israel, the greater exodus, the great tribulation, and the return of the King so that we might dwell in righteousness. For what it is worth, Ephraim is not a child anymore. His house is now established.

Did you "see" the car wash I spoke of at the beginning? The Messianic vision is like that car wash. We are joined together with the shared vision of things future. We also co-labor together doing mundane things (washing cars), but there is one overwhelming difference. The waters we use are "living" and they come from the "Rock." Our "living waters" spring up into eternal life.

Share the vision.

YAVOH, He is Coming is a monthly newsletter published as an outreach ministry of Lion and Lamb Ministries
The ministry is a non-profit organization with an end time prophetic message in a Messianic Jewish context.
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Editor - Monte Judah
Electronic Editor - Ephraim Judah

Lion and Lamb Ministries
PO Box 720968
Norman, OK 73070
Phone: (405) 447 4429
Fax: (405) 447 3775
E-mail: info@lionlamb.net
Web: lionlamb.net