Do you fit in?

A Christian asked, "Where exactly do Messianic Jews fit in as far as the End Times are concerned?" and "Do they count as Israel or as the Church?" I'm tempted to point out that those mentioned in Revelation 12:17 don't exactly sound like the average church group to me, but instead, I ask, "Do Messianic Jews “fit in” at all? Must they “fit in”, necessarily? And why? Who chooses the container in which we must fit? Do the plans of G-d always (or ever) fit into our neat, tidy, eschatological theories, compartments and such? Will many, just like those in the first century, be too wrapped up in their own misunderstandings to discern the things that unfold in the days to come? Then, I try to relax a bit.

While we’re asking; where, actually, does the “church” fit in? I mean, even Rav Shaul referred to these things as a “mystery”, did he not? Perhaps it's the other groups that need to “fit in”. It might sound crazy, but let's not lose sight of the facts. Messiah Yeshua came solely to Israel. His disciples later carried the message of salvation to the surrounding nations and outsiders. Maybe they are the ones who are unable to accurately find their place. Just a thought, but that would explain why we were given Romans 11, no?

People have always been quite fond of pointing out what words aren't in scripture - and in this instance, you'll find I'm no different. If you consider the fact that the word “church” is found nowhere in the original scriptures, but is used as a translation of the word ἐκκλησία – the ekklesia, or the “called out assembly”, it begs the question; is it possible that even our nomenclature has contributed to massive distortions in understanding? Let me present it this way; the word “church” is from the old English word “cirice”, which is from the ancient Germanic word “kirika”, which, strangely, is from the Greek word κυριακὴ, which means “of the L-rd”, but is not even the word used to refer to this assembly in the Greek text originally. So, why the change? It's not as though English speakers wouldn't have understood the word "assembly". Why substitute it with a tri-translated distortion? Does taking what was once referred to as the “called out assembly”, and re-naming it the “church”, cause it to appear that those who are not the “church” are not “of the L-rd”?

The ramifications are plain to see. Most Christians would say, “Yes, the L-rd is Jesus, and Israel isn’t of the L-rd because they haven’t accepted Jesus.” They may even go on to say, as they have in past centuries, “Since they aren’t then of the L-rd, they should be converted.” Then, they might go on to say, as they have in centuries past, “Since they won’t be converted, they should be shunned, exiled, or even killed.” It’s happened just that way many times before, obviously. Rav Shaul, however, teaches that unto Israel were given the covenants, oracles, promises, adoption, etc. (Rom. 9:4) – so, they’re very much “of the L-rd”, who is G-d, contrary to the majority of Christian thought, teaching and action for so many centuries.

Saying all of that to say, the original question was flawed from the start. Messianic Jews fit in exactly where HaShem put them - directly in the center of His plan. Incidentally, He placed Israel there, too - as well as the believing nations. Thankfully, our position in Mashiach needn't be a territorial dispute. There are a great many weaknesses with any understanding that originates with man – not because of scripture, but because of our mishandling of it, not because of Israel, but because of the church’s misappropriating of it, and not because of Messianic Judaism, but because of many Christians misunderstanding it.

Further reading: The Case for Messianic Jewish Identity - by Calvin L. Smith

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