To our Jewish friends.
When the children of Israel were in the process of being delivered from Egypt’s bondage they were instructed to kill a lamb and put the blood on the doorposts and lintel of their homes.
When God saw the blood He passed over and didn’t destroy any of the people inside.
Was God’s judgment averted because of the goodness of the people or was it the because of the innocent life of the lamb sacrificed on their behalf?
Obviously it was because of the Passover lamb and had nothing to do with whether a person was good or bad. The concept that sin separates us from a holy God and that only God Himself can bridge that gap is taught throughout the Scriptures.
Leviticus 17:11, says, “For the life of the flesh is in the blood; and I have given it for you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement by reason of the life.”
Note this verse doesn’t say that good deeds can atone for sin; only blood.
Why then the commandments?
They were given as a means of gaining a life that God would bless here on earth, but they were never given as a means of gaining eternal life with God. We must merely turn to the first book of the Torah, and read how our father Abraham attained the righteousness needed to spend eternity with God.
Genesis 15:6 says, “Abraham believed God and it was counted unto him as righteousness.”
Interestingly enough, this took place before Abraham was even circumcised! This shows that acceptance before God was never determined because of what we do for God. Abraham is in heaven because he had faith in God. But because Abraham was a good man he was richly rewarded by God here on earth.
Let’s go forward in Israel’s history to the time of the prophet Isaiah (750 BCE), where he wrote, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall upon him.”
The prophet Isaiah includes himself among those who have gone astray and he foretells of a day when all sins are going to be placed on someone who, like the Passover lamb, would avert God’s judgment.
That someone is the Messiah.
HOW TO RECOGNIZE THE MESSIAH
There are over 300 prophecies in the Hebrew Scriptures foretelling the coming of the Promised One.
- The Coming King would:
- Be a direct descendant of King David (Isaiah 11:1)
- Be born in the town of Bethlehem (Micah 5:1);
- Make His entrance into Jerusalem riding on a donkey (Zechariah 9:9)
- Be rejected by His own people and accepted by the gentiles (Isaiah 53:3; Isaiah 11:10);
- Suffer for the sins of His people (Isaiah 53:4-6);
- Experience death by crucifixion (hands and feet pierced) (Psalm 22:17);
- Die with the wicked (Isaiah 53:9);
- Make His grave with the rich (Isaiah 53:9);
Only One Person has fulfilled such requirements. For more evidence of the witness borne by Scripture, as well as that transcribed in ancient history, go to Free Literature and download The Hope of Israel.
