Friday, 25 March 2022

Jewish Evangelism - Just Scratching the Surface (part 4)

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Are you getting tired of reading about Jewish evangelism? I hope not. I will change subjects eventually, but not yet. I find there is a lot of talk about Jewish evangelism, but not much action. This week I had a conference call on this subject with a man, who shall remain nameless. He is Jewish and has dedicated his life to Jewish evangelism. I'll let you know how it goes.

Five-Fold Ministries

There are 5 equipping offices (sometimes called five-fold ministry) described by Paul ... Ephesians 4:11-12 He Himself gave some to be emissaries (apostles), some as prophets, some as proclaimers of the Good News (evangelists), and some as shepherds (pastors) and teachers - to equip the kedoshim (holy ones or saints) for the work of service, for building up the body of Messiah.

Then Paul tells us how long we will have these 5 equipping ministries ... Ephesians 4:13 This will continue until we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of Ben-Elohim - to mature adulthood, to the measure of the stature of Messiah's fullness. It's pretty easy to see, we have not yet attained the mature measure of fullness we see in Yeshua. He is coming back for a bride, and He is not going to marry a bride unworthy of Who He is! Take out the double negative for an easier understanding.

The half critiqued office mentioned above is apostles. Let me try to clear up some misunderstanding. The capital "A" Apostles are the original 12 chosen by Yeshua (one by the Holy Spirit after Judas's demise). They all died sometime after Yeshua's resurrection and ascension. But there are also until today, little "a" apostles. These are people who have an anointing to anoint others as they plant and establish more of the five-fold ministries.

Just like capital "A" and little "a" apostles, there are capital "P" and little "p" prophets. The capital "P" Prophets are the prophetic names in the Bible. The little "p" prophets are with us until this day, proclaiming God's word with a sense of God's timing. The confusion and critique I mentioned before that surrounds the prophetic is multi-faceted. Many of God's people are from time to time prophetic, but that does not make them prophets. I could (and probably will) write extensively on this subject alone, but some other time.

What About Evangelists?

This brings us to our subject today, the office of the evangelist. While very few of us will ever hold the office of an evangelist, all of us will be evangelistic. "Office evangelists" have the unique ability to develop evangelistic capabilities in others as they impart the gifting so obviously present in their own lives.

Rabbi Trail: Each of these office holders may seem a little unbalanced (example, John the Baptist) to the rest of the world. It is because they are. They are so focused in their gifting that other areas of their lives may seem neglected. Rather than viewing this as a negative, we should see the official gifting as a blessing from the Lord, to be cherished and appreciated. End RT.

The Great Commission

After His crucifixion, Yeshua met the 11 Apostles in the Galilee. After they worshipped Him, He said this to them and now He is saying these same words to us. Matthew 24:18-20 All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, immersing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Ruach ha-Kodesh, teaching them to observe all I have commanded you. And remember! I am with you always, even to the end of the age.

These 3 verses of Scripture form a sandwich. "Go therefore and make disciples ..." is the meat in the middle. The top slice of bread is "All authority ..." When we "go," we go with Yeshua's authority (and all authority is His). The bottom slice of bread is "I am with you always ..." When we "go," Yeshua is always with us.

Zechariah chapter 4 offers us a vision of two olive trees. This vision reappears in Revelation 11:4 as two witnesses. The conclusion of the vision is important to us today, Zechariah 4:6b "Not by might, nor by power, but by My Ruach!" says Adonai-Tzva'ot. The two witnesses could be the witness of Jewish and non-Jewish people. Together, we form a witness that has the power of God to change hearts and lives. I'll write more about that next time.