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"Building Bridges from Brooklyn to Richmond" by Sam Nadler |
Why Leah, Why Israel, Why You? by Sam Nadler
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I was honored to be invited to the conference that Bay Ridge Christian Center held right in the heart of Brooklyn, near one of the ultra orthodox Jewish communities. Even the name of the conference is intriguing: “God, the Jew and You.” It is always a privilege for me personally to return to the NYC area, since I ministered there for so many years. Now after over thirty years in Jewish ministry and seeing a great number of Jewish people come to faith in Messiah, I know God has done great things, but He is not finished yet. The Messianic Movement is growing strong and expanding worldwide as more churches are getting involved in reaching out to their Jewish friends and neighbors. Nonetheless, there is still a great need for more prayer warriors, more laborers, and a deeper understanding of how to communicate with love and sensitivity the Good News to Jewish people from various religious upbringings. The conference was attended not only by believers desirous to reach out to the Jewish people, but also by various representatives from Jewish missions in the New York area. Additionally, there were seekers of Messiah from the Jewish community. I taught from Jeremiah 31:1-3, which is the source of Paul’s teaching that we find in Romans 11:26. Paul exhorts the Romans and all of us that God’s promise of Israel’s salvation will be fulfilled. Furthermore, Paul instructs Gentiles to be faithful to their calling from God to make Israel jealous (Romans 11:11). God’s faithfulness to His people is demonstrated through the mercy and love of His body (Romans 11:31). We are His hands that are still stretched out to His people (Romans 10:21). As I concluded my message, I challenged all of us to be faithful to God’s calling upon our lives. I was encouraged by the response. Afterwards, many came up to me with questions, but I was especially blessed by one particular Jewish man, Alan*. My heart is greatly burdened for him. Unlike some others there, Alan did not place his faith in Messiah that night. I asked him, “Alan can you give me one good reason why you would not want to trust in Yeshua right now?” He replied, “Well, Scriptures do seem to be clear that Yeshua is the Messiah, and I do see a valid reason to trust in Yeshua for forgiveness, but Sam, I am just not ready yet.” My heart broke for him for he could see the truth, yet he still resisted to put His trust in the Lord. I continued to implore him, “Alan, none of us know what tomorrow may bring! Here’s my number, please call me so we can talk further about this.” He thanked me and left, back to his life without the Lord. A Delightful Blessing One of the highlights of this trip was that my friend, Dean Stein, accompanied me. Dean is a Jewish believer; he is not only a successful businessman, but also a disciple of Yeshua, who is eager to make more disciples for the Lord. He went with me with a purpose: to ask me questions and pick my brain regarding how to be even more effective in his outreach to his Jewish friends and family. Dean was planning to accompany me for awhile, but this trip to Brooklyn was a great opportunity for him, since he grew up in the New York area. It was a wonderful time of fellowship and discipleship throughout the whole trip. After the meeting at the WMM literature table, Dean was as busy as a one-armed paper-hanger, with people crowding the table eager for more teaching resources. Later Dean said, “I had a great time of juggling the people’s questions as well as filling their orders. It reminded me of what it was like at my bagel shop years ago!” Dean is a wonderful example of God’s redeeming grace that is working among Jewish people through the power of the Holy Spirit today. Seeing what God has done for Dean gives me confidence in what God can do for Alan as well. Let us pray for Alan to put his trust in Messiah Yeshua, for He is the only hope for him, for Israel, and for the whole world. Rich blessings in Richmond Another example of how churches and Jewish ministry can work together hand in hand was also seen in my trip to Virginia. Several years ago a pastor participated in our Passover Seder outreach in Charlotte, and saw effective ministry to Jewish people as well as how edifying it can be for believers. So when this pastor went to serve Calvary Chapel in Richmond, Va., he remembered how blessed he was by seeing Messiah in the Feast of Passover, additionally having a Jewish believer in his fellowship encouraged him to invite me to speak on God’s burden for Israel at his church. After the meeting I had an opportunity to spend time privately with him and some others from the leadership of the church. They were eager to learn more about the Jewish roots of their faith and to be an effective witness to their community. They have invited me to return in December and teach a Jewish Evangelism Seminar, and also to conduct a Passover Seder outreach next spring. What a great blessing to my heart to see WMM working together with local churches to make a difference in their communities. Thank you for partnering with us in ministry through your prayerful support. Y |
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