Lesson 12: Judaism

Hans was a German who moved to America. At college he made friends who were Jews. He became familiar with the history of the Jews and learned that millions of them had been killed by Germans under Hitler. He felt ashamed of being a German, and wondered if he should join Judaism to partly repay what his country had done.

► Read Isaiah 52:13–53:12 aloud together. Each student should write a paragraph that summarizes this scripture passage. If you did not know about Jesus, what could you see that this passage says about the person called the “Servant”? Each student should write a list of statements. As a group, discuss what you have written.

Judaism is more closely related to Christianity than any other religion that does not claim to be Christian. Judaism claims to worship the God of ancient Israel, the God of the Old Testament, which is the same God worshipped in Christianity. The scriptures of Judaism are the Old Testament in the Christian Bible.

Followers of Judaism believe the Old Testament, but they do not understand the most important truths in the Old Testament about the Messiah, see John 5:39-40, 2 Corinthians 3:14-16.

[1]Modern Judaism originated from the religion and history of ancient Israel as described in the Old Testament. Practices and beliefs have adapted through the centuries and are not identical to the original ones.

There are about 14 million followers of Judaism. Almost half of them live in the nation of Israel.

Judaism is the primary religion of the nation of Israel, and most followers of Judaism are ethnically Jews, whether they live in Israel or elsewhere. To say someone is a Jew usually identifies his religion and his ethnicity, and sometimes his nationality.

However, definitions are difficult. Most followers of Judaism are of Jewish ethnicity, but people have converted to Judaism from other ethnic groups. Judaism is a national religion, but 25% of the people in Israel are not Jews, in religion or ethnicity. Many Jews do not live in Israel, and some who live in Israel do not practice any religion seriously. A person who is ethnically a Jew, whether in Israel or anywhere else, may be a convert to a different religion, or even be an atheist.

► Explain what a Jew is, first with an ethnic definition, then with a religious definition.

Hebrew Scriptures

Torah is a Hebrew word that means teaching, direction, or law. The word is used most specifically to refer to the first five books of the Old Testament. It is sometimes used more broadly to refer to the Hebrew Bible, which is the Old Testament in Protestant Christian Bibles. The term Torah has been used even more broadly to include explanations of the Hebrew scriptures written by early Jewish scholars.

Jews have very high reverence for the scriptures inspired by God. In ancient times the Torah (referring to the five books) was copied with very careful practices that prevented errors. The scrolls containing the Torah were treated with great reverence.

The Talmud is a collection of the writings of ancient Jewish rabbis. Printed in book form, it is more than 6,000 pages. Judaism depends on the Talmud for authority for their traditions and practices.

Circumcision

Genesis 17:9-14 is the record of God’s command to Abraham that all males in his household would be circumcised. Circumcision is a sign of the covenant between God and Israel. Israelites referred to people of other nations as “the Uncircumcised”—people who did not have God’s law or covenant. In modern times, many people who are not Jews practice circumcision as a medical procedure, but the Jews still consider it a religious practice.

Sabbath

The Sabbath is the seventh day of the week. The Sabbath commemorates the day that God rested from his work after the six days of creation (Genesis 2:2-3). God said that people are to rest on the Sabbath (Exodus 20:8-11). The Jews developed many restrictions for the Sabbath to apply the principle of resting from work. Jews who follow the Sabbath restrictions strictly do not do any business or any work on the Sabbath if it can possibly be avoided. They attempt to make modern applications of ancient Sabbath restrictions. For example, ancient Jews were not supposed to start a fire in their house on the Sabbath (Exodus 35:3), though they could keep a fire going if it were started previously. Some modern Jews will not turn on electric lights or heat on the Sabbath, but they will use lights and heat that were turned on previously.

The nation of Israel in general rejected Jesus as Messiah. Jews who believed in Jesus were the first members of the Christian church, then the spread of the gospel brought Gentiles into the church.

God desires that all Jews be saved, see Romans 9:31, Romans 10:1, and Romans 11:1.

Today there are organizations such as Jews for Jesus who try to keep the Jewish heritage while becoming Christians. They are called “Messianic Jews” because they accept Jesus as the Messiah while continuing to identify themselves as Jews. They are not part of the religion of Judaism.

Judaism is the religion of the Jews who tried to keep the religion of the Old Testament while rejecting Jesus as the fulfillment of the Old Testament hopes. There are three main groups within modern Judaism: Orthodox Judaism, Reform Judaism, and Conservative Judaism.

Over the centuries, Judaism has continued to develop its traditions, while keeping many traditions from ancient times. Many Jews follow traditions of dress that make them recognizable as Jews. They also follow the Old Testament restrictions of diet, like abstinence from eating pork.

Christians are free from the Old Testament requirements of special days and diet because those things were symbols of Christ, and now he has fulfilled them, see Colossians 2:16-17.

In Judaism, salvation does not occur as an individual conversion experience. Jews believe they can live in a blessed, covenant relationship with God by following his commandments. Salvation means deliverance from situations of oppression or conditions that keep them from serving God as they should. Salvation is more of a national or group matter than an individual matter.

► What is the concept of salvation in Judaism?

According to biblical Christianity, salvation means personal deliverance from sin. Anyone who is saved is saved by grace through faith, whether he is a Jew or a Gentile. Everyone has sinned and needs forgiveness. Salvation is not achieved by keeping the details of the Old Testament law, but by finding grace through faith. No person is justified by keeping the law, because everyone has already sinned and broken the law (Romans 3:20-23).

Christianity is the continuation and fulfillment of the religion of Israel as revealed in the Old Testament. God is the God of the Jews and Gentiles both, and has the same plan of salvation for all (Romans 3:29-30).

The prophets of Israel predicted the coming of Jesus. The essence of Old Testament faith was relationship with God, made possible by his forgiveness and grace. Therefore, Christians claim the writings of the Old Testament as their heritage.[1] Christians follow the example of those who were in right relationship to God all the way back to the beginning of mankind. In a sense, the true Jew is the one who received God’s work of grace in his heart (Romans 2:28-29). The blessing of Abraham is available for Gentiles (Galatians 3:14).

► Why is it true to say that Christianity is not a new religion?

There is no single organization for all followers of Judaism, no single statement of beliefs that they all hold, and no final authority for doctrine that all recognize. Some of their organizations are very conservative, with a high view of the authority of scripture, and trying to hold the ancient traditions and beliefs. More liberal Jewish organizations have adapted their beliefs and practices to make them fit modern culture, choosing what they want to keep from tradition and scripture.

Judaism does not believe that God is a Trinity or that an incarnation has happened. Jews believe that Jesus was a controversial teacher who was not the Messiah and was not God.

The Old Testament predicted that the Messiah would be Almighty God, see Isaiah 9:6. The New Testament declares that Jesus is God the Son and the Messiah, see Romans 1:1-4.

The expectation that a Messiah will come is central to Judaism. They do not believe that the Messiah has come yet. They believe that the Messiah will not be an incarnation of God, but a specially anointed man, who will bring peace to the world.

Conservative Jews believe that the Messiah will be a literal person. Liberal Jews are more likely to consider the Messiah a figurative expression for the agent of peace, which could be some group or organization.

► Describe Judaism’s concept of a messiah.

The Bible tells us that the time will come when Israel will accept Christ. (See Romans 11:23-26.) The Apostle Paul said that right now the gospel is spreading among the Gentiles, and the Jews are mostly blind to the gospel. But he goes on to say, “All Israel will be saved” (Romans 11:26). That doesn’t mean that every individual Jew will be saved, but as a nation they have rejected Jesus, and as a nation they will repent and accept him. Even now, many individual Jews are being converted.

► Now go back and read the bold and italicized text and each scripture.

Some Jews are prejudiced against Christianity because Jews have sometimes been severely persecuted by professed Christians in the past. We can try to help them realize certain truths about the persecution. First, Jesus never encouraged persecution, and professed Christians who hate others are not following his example. Persecution is political as well as religious, and motivated by reasons that are opposed to the principles of Christianity. The best way for a Jew to be convinced that Christians are not his enemies is for Christians to show the love of Christ.

[1]A Jew’s religion is strongly connected to his extended family, a way of life, and an ancient heritage. A Jew may think that he would lose everything that matters if he converted to another religion. The Christian should show that Jesus is the natural fulfillment of the Jewish religion. He is the Messiah they expected. He provided the salvation described in the Old Testament.

The fact that Jesus is the Messiah is demonstrated by his fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy about the Messiah. Examples are the prediction that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2) and that he would be of the tribe of Judah (Genesis 49:10). It is even more important to show from Isaiah 52:13-53:12 that he accomplished the salvation that was expected of the Messiah. Jesus did not yet fulfill the Messianic prophecy of world peace, but it is reasonable that salvation from sin must come first because war comes from the sinful hearts of people.

It is important to share the gospel and emphasize that a person who is saved comes into a personal relationship with God. Jews believe in God but do not have a personal relationship with him.

It is possible to explain the gospel using only the Old Testament. All people have sinned against God (Psalm 143:2). Sin separates people from God (Isaiah 59:2). The Messiah suffered and died as a sacrifice for our sins (Isaiah 53:5). God promises to forgive and cleanse the one who repents and believes (Isaiah 1:16-18).

Psalm 51 is a prayer of repentance and faith. David prayed for forgiveness and cleansing. This is a prayer inspired by the Spirit of God, which tells us that God offers forgiveness this way. If a person believes that God has provided Jesus as a sacrifice for sin, he can pray this prayer in faith and receive God’s grace.

David is a Jewish man whose family came from Germany. His grandparents all died in the Nazi prison camps. He says that the Jews felt that they were being killed by the Christian world because the churches of Germany and in the rest of the world let it happen. His parents told him to never look at a cross because it represented death. Every day his school bus passed a church with a cross, and he tried not to look at it. One day a Jewish friend tried to give him a New Testament, but he refused, saying that it was not for Jews. Later another friend showed him verses in the Old Testament and in the New Testament that he had never seen before. David had many questions about why the world is like it is, and he began to see the answers in the Bible. He came to faith that Jesus is the Messiah.

► Now read Isaiah 52:13–53:12 again. Each student should write a paragraph explaining the message this passage has for a follower of Judaism. Several students can share what they wrote.

Remember to find an opportunity to present the gospel to someone from this religious group. Prepare to share with your classmates about the conversation you have had. Write your 2-page written report and turn it in to your class leader.