The Christian Online Magazine -
Email Randy
Read Randy's biography at the bottom of this article.
The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham . . . And said unto him, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and come into the land which I shall shew thee. (Acts 7:1-3).
I am a Jew. My father taught me to love the God of Abraham. As an infant, a moyel brought me into the covenant of Abraham through circumcision. As I grew in the Jewish community, that same moyel became my Hebrew teacher and taught me to love the example of our father Abraham.
Why is he known as “Our father Abraham?” How do Gentiles relate to the father of Judaism? As a Jewish believer in Jesus, these concepts fascinate me. I want you to share my passion for Israel and the Jewish people because God made a promise to those who bless the Jews. God declared, “I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee” (Gen 12:3). You have a Jewish connection to the Christian faith and I want to help you find it. My prayer is that you will fall so deeply in love with the God of Israel that you will visit the land of Israel and allow the Bible to come alive. I want you to be a tool in God’s hand to bless the Jews. Our father Abraham might be a doorway to your greatest blessing.
His story, and the history of my people begin in the 12th chapter of Genesis. This is where we enter the headwaters of the river of Jewish life. The river of faith flowed from Abraham, to his son, and then to his grandson. God’s love was revealed from generation to generation. That is why He is called the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. In Judaism, faith is transmitted as a father passes on the love of God to his children.
It is also through Abraham that non-Jews are invited to understand the concept of faith that brings all believers into the family of God. By faith, Abraham journeyed to the land of promise. By faith, he led Isaac up Mt. Moriah as a willing sacrifice to God. Abraham’s faith was tested and Scripture validates it for all generations to see.
Abraham “believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness” (Genesis 15:6). Paul quoted this in Romans 4:3 explaining the foundations of Christian faith. We follow in the spiritual footsteps of Abraham when we believe. The Hebrew word used in that famous text is “heh-eh-meen (believe).” This is where we get our word “amen.” When a preacher says something great in church, we often shout “amen!” What we are really saying is, “I believe” what the preacher said. Each person who believes in the God of Israel exhibits our father Abraham’s faith. Abraham should be remembered with every “amen” since he is credited with the first record of the word being used in the Bible! Quite a testimony, don’t you think?
Let me share another testimony. Abram is my namesake. My friends call me Randy, but in the synagogue, when I am called up to chant a blessing during the reading of the Torah, they call Avram, ben Moshe Aron and I know they are calling me. That is my Hebrew name. I am Abram, the son of Moses Aaron. Abram was the name of my father’s grandfather. Moshe Aron was my Dad. Jewish children are often named this way. It is customary to be known as the son of our father. This practice is quite ancient. Jewish kings and prophets were often identified by their Hebrew name followed by the name of their father. We are connected to those who went before us. Generation to generation--Judaism lives--the God of Israel is made known, that is why it is seen as a tragedy when a Jew comes to faith in Jesus.
This was made clear to me early in my walk of faith. My Christian journey began in February of 1973. As you might imagine, this caused a scandal in the Jewish community. I was identified as a traitor and shunned by friends and family. Eventually, a very strange invitation came to me. My former Hebrew teacher called me to a meeting. He had a profound impact on my life. From moyel to mentor, this man taught me to read from the Torah, he trained me to sound the ram’s horn, he prepared me for my Bar Mitzvah, and groomed me to lead the junior congregation of our synagogue. I assume that my conversion was one of his worst disappointments.
In an effort to bring me back into the fold, I was invited to his home to visit with a highly respected rabbi from Israel. This dignitary from a distinguished talmudic institute in the Holy land seemed to be on a mission. As you may guess, I was apprehensive, yet compelled to show honor to my parents and my former teacher so I went.
The evening was grueling. I listened to numerous arguments against my newfound faith. The rabbi was courteous as long as I made no defense of my faith. Since I felt no sense of obligation to argue, I just quietly listened until a fateful moment.
The rabbi spoke of our father Abraham. He ridiculed my decision to believe in Jesus and asked me how I could show such disrespect for the faith of our fathers and the history of our people. His argument turned on a statement that Abraham “had chosen God” and this was why Jews throughout history had an obligation to remain Jewish.
It was then, after what seemed like many hours of sitting through a one-sided debate, I spoke one quiet statement. I was heavily “out-gunned” by my elders. They were both Bible experts and distinguished religious leaders. I was just a young new believer in Jesus. Yet something stirred within my soul. In spite of his skill and reputation, I knew the rabbi was incorrect. Quite passively I said, “Rabbi, Abraham did not choose God. God chose Abraham.”
That was the end of congeniality. The rabbi did not receive my humble correction as it was intended. He was insulted and the discussion ended abruptly. I had disarmed him without realizing what had occurred. In retrospect, I know that God helped me. The Ruach HaKodesh—the Holy Spirit indwells believers in Jesus. The Spirit of God had given me those few words that I spoke that night. He also taught me an important lesson. The rabbi was wrong about our father Abraham. God wants us to believe rightly. In later years, I learned that many myths about Abraham exist with Judaism. Since very little is known with certainty about the early years of Abram’s life, many legends have developed to fill in the blanks.
One such rabbinic tale suggests that Abram’s father Terah was a professional idol-maker. Abram could have taken over the family business and made a good living in Ur of the Chaldees (Gen. 12:28). Instead, he believed God and journeyed to the land of Canaan. The story of his exit is very colorful within Jewish lore. The following account is my paraphrase of an ancient Jewish legend.
When Abram was a young man, he told his mother that his father’s idols were hungry. Abram requested that she prepare a meal for them. She cooked a nice dinner but they did not eat anything. Abram told her that the idols did not like her cooking. So she worked very hard and served a sumptuous banquet for the wood and stone idols. When no one was looking, Abram smashed all but the largest idol with an axe. Then he placed the axe in the hand of the large idol.
When his father heard the commotion, he came and found all but one of his idols destroyed. Terah screamed at Abram, “What have you done? Why did you smash my idols?” Abram responded with intensity, “Dad, they were hungry. I just fed them. When the little ones reached to take their portion, the big idol killed the rest of them.” Terah was exasperated. He turned to Abram and said, “What nonsense! I made these idols. They cannot move. You smashed them Abram! You put the axe in the hand of the remaining idol. Now you tell me lies and expect me to believe that the idol did this terrible thing.” Abram said, “Dad, you are right. You made these idols with your own hands. They cannot move, they cannot breathe, they cannot deliver you from your enemies, and they cannot protect you from sickness or death. Why do you worship them? There is only one true God. He created the heavens and the earth. He is the only God that I will worship!” With that, Abram smashed the last idol and left town on his journey of faith.
Abraham has always been a role model inspiring Jews to believe in God. However, the rabbi gave Abraham more credit than was due him. When I think of the one-sided debate with the rabbi so many years ago, I am reminded that the Bible does not credit Abraham with the wisdom to choose God. No human virtue was involved. I still believe my simple response was profoundly correct. “Abraham did not choose God. God chose Abraham.” God alone is good and I thank God that He permits us to believe in His Son Jesus.
This article began with a quote about Abraham from Stephen, the first Jewish-Christian martyr. The message will conclude with a note about Stephen. He was “full of faith and power, (he) did great wonders and miracles among the people.” Stephen was an ordained waiter appointed to the post when the twelve disciples stopped serving tables to spend time in prayer and Bible study (Acts 6:2). But Stephen served more than food! He also served the truth. He told the whole story from Abraham to Jesus. The religious leaders responded by killing the waiter. Stephen held to the faith of our father Abraham and was rewarded by spending eternity with Jesus. How about you? What do you believe about Jesus? If you have questions about my Jewish Savior, please write to me at CROSSTALK, P.O. Box 2528, Cedar Hill, Texas, 75106. I’d love to send you some FREE literature about the Jewish connection to Christianity. My e-mail address is randy@crosstalk.org.
In closing, I want to remind you that Abraham took his son to Mt. Moriah. This is also where Jesus ministered and is home to the Western Wall of our ancient Temple in Israel. Like Abraham, I believe we are all on a journey of faith. Would you like to visit Mt. Moriah to pray at that same wall? May I send you a FREE brochure about our Fall 2001 Holy land tour? You are invited to join me on a unique journey of faith in Israel. If you have longed to visit Israel where the Bible comes alive, then join the tour I will be leading from October 23-November 1, 2001. For more details, call at 1-800-688-3422. I would love to hear from you.
Copyright Randy Weiss
___________________
Randy Weiss, Ph.D., is a Jewish believer in Jesus serving in ministry since 1973. He is a member of the Board of Directors of WME and a contributing editor to World Evangelism. He hosts CrossTalk, a weekly TV program and teaches about the Jewish festivals, Israel, and the Jewish origins of the Church. Dr. Weiss is Dean of Jewish Studies at Columbia Evangelical Seminary and an adjunct faculty member of Global University. Randy is married with 6 children and 3 grandchildren.
If you are interested in visiting Israel, join Randy on his upcoming Holy Land tour October 23, 2001. Call 1-800-688-3422 for a tour brochure. If you would like a FREE copy of this entire series about the Temple Mount, please contact Randy at CrossTalk, P.O. Box 2528, Cedar Hill, Texas 75106-2528. Send e-mail to him at randy@crosstalk.org. Please send him your comments on this article and remember to pray for the ministry of Dr. Weiss.
