Of Israel’s 8.5 million people, only about 2 percent are Believers in Yeshua (Jesus). Approximately 20,000 of those are Messianic Jews (Jewish Believers in Yeshua). Gentile Believers in Israel are frequently viewed there as dangerous missionaries, while Messianic Jews are often believed to have betrayed their Jewish faith. It can be challenging.
Lord, please strengthen the Body of Messiah in Israel. Encourage these Believers – both Messianic and Gentile – and help them to stand firm in their faith. Please build up the bonds of unity between them and reinforce their fellowship with each other. Draw them deeper into the Scriptures so they may increase in knowledge and understanding of Your Word. May they have great joy that radiates Your glory and provokes Jewish people to jealousy (Romans 11:11).
Please instill ministry leaders with vision and wisdom for serving the Body of Messiah and reaching out to Israelis who need to know Yeshua.
Father, Your Word says we are to pray for all who are in authority that we may live peaceful and quiet lives (1 Timothy 2:1‒2). We bring Israel’s Prime Minister Netanyahu before You, Lord, and ask that You give him great wisdom to lead and protect Israel. Stir him to call upon You for guidance, and reveal Yeshua to him. Please strengthen him with integrity, and guard against anything that would interfere with his responsibilities to govern Israel well. Surround him with wise counsel, giving him inspiration, innovation and favor to accomplish Your purposes in the defense and prosperity of the State of Israel.
Lord, how many lives have been shattered by terrorism in Israel? You know each one, and we lift them up to You. While the families of terrorists receive monthly payments to honor their brutal acts of hatred, victims and families must cope with the traumatic stress and fear that often pervades the lives of those subjected to such violence.
Please comfort and strengthen those who have been attacked. Heal their bodies, minds and hearts. Help them to not be consumed by fear, but bring them to the Good News that Yeshua is the Messiah and that You love them dearly.
Please also comfort those who have lost loved ones, and bring Your peace to Jerusalem and all Israel.
Fifty percent of Israel’s Jewish people consider themselves secular Jewish. Forty percent of those – though they may culturally practice some Jewish observances – say they don’t believe in God.
Yeshua, how You wept over Your people in Jerusalem, whom You longed to gather to Yourself as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings (Luke 13:34). We ask that You will awaken a hunger for You among Israel’s secular Jewish people. Open their eyes to see irrefutable evidence of Your existence, holiness and love.
Please reveal the truth to those who believe in some errant form of You. And to those who think You are distant, show Yourself as the One who longs for intimate fellowship with His people. May Your goodness and truth be inescapable to them.
Yeshua, thank You for humbling Yourself in the manger and on the tree. Draw near again to open the hearts of Israel’s secular Jews who have no interest in the Father. Stir up their hearts to see and receive You.
Do you want to know how to pray for Israel in greater detail and depth? Jewish Voice Ministries has put together this Intercessory Prayer Guide for Israel that provides focused, targeted requests to help you pray for the nation of God’s People. We hope this prayer guide can help both Messianic Jews and Christians pray their support for Israel.
Since Yeshua’s (Jesus’) first disciples, there have always been Jewish Believers in Him. Even so, what today is called the Messianic Movement is relatively new. Its beginning is intertwined with the Jesus Movement of the 1960s. Messianic Judaism comprises Believers in Jesus, worship observances and lifestyles that are identifiably Jewish. It has much to offer the Body of Messiah and is having a valuable impact within the Church in several ways.
Mark grew up in a kosher home. He came across a back issue of Jewish Voice Today magazine and read personal stories of Jewish people who came to faith in Yeshua. The testimonies intrigued him, and he wanted to know more.
When he learned of a Messianic Jewish congregation located three hours away from him, he made the trek one Sabbath. Afterward, he talked with the rabbi and placed his faith in Yeshua as the Messiah.
Back at home, Mark visited churches, but nothing fit for him. He missed the observances of his Jewish identity and longed for a place to worship with other Jewish Believers. When he discovered a Messianic fellowship in his own city, Mark found his congregational home and has been attending ever since.
The same kind of story occurs regularly all over the world. When the Lemba Jewish community in Zimbabwe first met representatives of Jewish Voice Ministries International (JVMI), they were thrilled to discover a Jewish expression of faith in Yeshua.
The Lemba have clear ties to the ancient people of Israel, particularly the Levites. They have maintained their Jewish identity through the centuries, even after many came to faith in Yeshua. But they weren’t comfortable in either traditional Christian or non-Yeshua-professing Jewish synagogues. When Lemba Believers learned of Messianic Judaism, they said, “Ah, this is the community where we can fully belong!” As Jewish Believers in Yeshua, no other form of worship met all of their needs.
“I had no idea how much Jesus is evident in the Jewish feast of Passover,” one woman said. “Before I attended a Passover Seder at my church, I never thought Jewish observances were relevant to my faith as a Christian.” This Gentile had been a Believer for more than 30 years but didn’t realize how little she knew about her faith’s connection with Judaism.
Messianic Judaism’s presence in the Body of Messiah brings to light the Jewishness of faith in Yeshua. It draws attention to the Jewish context of the Bible. This is an essential element to fully understanding the teachings of the New Covenant and recognizing God’s redemptive thread running consistently through the Old Covenant and pointing clearly to Jesus.
Gentiles have much to gain from Messianic Judaism as it enriches their relationships with God through an understanding of the Jewish roots of their faith.
In the years before Jewish Voice president and CEO Jonathan Bernis placed his faith in Yeshua, several people shared the Gospel with him. What stands out to him now about those instances is that each time he explained to the well-meaning Believers that he is Jewish, they apologized – as if the Gospel is not for Jewish people.
An unfortunate number of Gentile Christians are under the impression that Jewish people have another way of receiving God’s redemption. However, in John 14:6, Yeshua said that no one comes to the Father except through Him. Acts 4:12 further states that there is salvation in no one else and by no other name than Yeshua. When Jonathan came to believe in Yeshua, he was surprised to learn that not only was Yeshua for Jewish people, but the Gospel was for them first (Romans 1:16).
Messianic Judaism brings focus to the fact that Jewish people need Yeshua and inspires Gentile Believers to pray for and reach out to them.
A woman approached JVMI staff member Rabbi Jack Zimmerman shortly before his speaking session at a conference in New York. She was convinced that he was “a Jewish-Christian rabbi trying to bring her back under the Law.” As Rabbi Jack spoke with her, it became clear that she also wasn’t sure that God continues to have a distinct plan and purpose for Israel and the Jewish people.
After Jack’s teaching, her entire perspective had changed. She came to understand that God is not finished with Israel and that Christians have a responsibility to support Israel and pray for the Jewish people.
A dangerous misconception exists in parts of the Church today, in which some believe that God has rejected Israel and replaced her with the Church. The book of Romans emphatically teaches otherwise. Not only is the Gospel for the Jewish people first, but the apostle Paul also notes that:
Messianic Judaism underscores for Gentile Believers the everlasting nature of God’s covenant with Israel (Genesis 17:17). It inspires within the Church a love for Jewish people and Israel.
Messianic Judaism is good for the Body of Messiah. Not only does it provide a fitting worship experience for Jewish Believers, but its presence enhances the walk of Gentile Believers by providing vital and rich biblical context for faith in Jesus. It also helps maintain the integrity of Scripture regarding the Jewish need of Yeshua, God’s faithfulness to Israel and the Church’s responsibility in these regards. As Messianic Judaism grows, so will its positive influence in the Body of Messiah.
