From the Coordinator
Opportunities
In Jewish evangelism – as well as in world evangelism – we often search high and low for new opportunities to share the gospel with other people. We ought to continue that search without ignoring the opportunities which, unsought, “come” to us, so to speak.
Jewish evangelism does not take place in a vacuum. The great majority of “ordinary” Jews are well aware of the things that happen in the world around them. In that connection I am thinking of Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code – the book as well as the screen version; and I am thinking of the Gospel of Judas, which has recently published in Coptic and in English.
Each in their way they are false, judged by the canonical gospels, but due to the comprehensive media attention and people’s interest in them, it is not irrelevant to deal with them.
And even if we dare not call it a “blessing”, at least they give us a natural opening for talking about and witnessing about Jesus of Nazareth.
What an opportunity! The important thing is to grab it. Here are a few examples:
Chosen People Ministries, for example, did it in mid-May at a public meeting in New York, when the speakers were an orthodox rabbi, an evangelical Christian and a messianic Jew.
And if you click on to Jews for Jesus’ homepage, your attention is at once caught by a fine article by Naomi Rothstein about The Da Vinci Code.
According to The Da Vinci Code Christianity – and therefore also Messianic Judaism – is built on a lie. According to the Gospel of Judas it is Judas who redeems Jesus so that Jesus can get out of the prison which is his body.
There is no gospel message in either work; no good news from Israel’s God that salvation is about forgiveness of sin and guilt, which was accomplished through Jesus’ substitutionary death.
Let us use our opportunities.
With our intellect we will refute the fictions. But let us not stop here; let us also use our heart and mouth to witness about the crucified and risen Christ, Jesus of Nazareth.
Kai Kjær-Hansen
lcje.int@gmail.com