Join Rabbi Schneider as he addresses common identity struggles faced by many today, both Jew and Gentile alike. He speaks candidly about the mistaken view of Jewish superiority in faith and the barriers it can create in one’s spiritual journey. Through biblical exegesis, he emphasizes that all believers are equal partakers of God’s kingdom, encouraging Gentiles to find their place and confidence in God’s plan. Rediscover the powerful narrative that no longer holds Gentiles as strangers or aliens but as fellow citizens in the spirit-filled house of God.
00:00:01 Introduction to Discovering the Jewish Jesus
Welcome to Discovering the Jewish Jesus. I’m Dustin Roberts, your host. And for the next 25 minutes, Rabbi Schneider explores deep revelations from the book of Ephesians. And it’s a special series because it was recorded during the fall holy days in Israel. All right, the Jewish people, they’re God’s first covenant people, and he still has a plan and purpose for them. But where does that leave those of us like you and I who might be Gentiles? And how alike are we really compared to Jewish people in God’s eyes? Well, today, Rabbi Schneider is gonna address this topic in an honest and biblically balanced way. And if you wanna get Rabbi’s notes on this message, just go to discoveringthejewishjesus.com. Click the Resources tab. And now, here’s Rabbi.
SPEAKER 03 :
Coming at you today, beloved one, from Jerusalem, Israel. Special day here in the land. This is the last day of the Feast of Sukkot, the Feast of Tabernacles. Tonight, we’re going to begin celebrating here Simchat Torah. which means the joy of Torah, because every year Orthodox Jewish people have a cycle that they go through where they’re all reading the same portion of the Torah every Sabbath and they complete it in a year and then start over right on Simchat Torah. This is the completion of the Torah, the beginning of the celebration of the new reading, and it’s gonna be a really, Exciting time here tonight. Cynthia and I are planning on going to the wall. There’s going to be a lot of joy. That’s what the word simchat means, joy. So we’re just glad to be here. Let’s begin by praying today. Father, we open our hearts to you. Fill us with your joy, Father God. In Yeshua’s name, amen. Now, what Paul has been speaking of in Ephesians 2 is how in Messiah… The Lord has brought together both Jew and Gentile. In fact, Paul calls this a great mystery, that He had been called to reveal the mystery that was hidden and has now been revealed, and that is that Jew and Gentile have become one in Messiah, that God broke down the law that divided Jew and Gentile by giving us both access to Him in the person of Messiah, Yeshua. And so, this of course is a beautiful, beautiful thing in the love of God. Because of course, God loves everybody. Both Jew and Gentile have been created by the same maker. And so, before Yeshua came in the B’ri Kadashah in the New Testament, The only people that knew the Lord were the Israelites. But God’s purpose was always to extend his covenant of love beyond just Israel, so that his covenant of love would extend to the entire world. And that’s what happened when Yeshua came. He brought in what we call the new covenant. And in the new covenant, God’s love is accessible now to every man, woman, and child that’s ever been born through the person of Messiah Jesus. So with that in mind, I’m gonna pick up where I left off last time. I’m picking up now in the 17th verse of chapter number two. Hear the word of God. He came, speaking of Yeshua, and preached peace to you who were far off and away to those who are near. Let me read that again. He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. Who was far away? The Gentiles. Who was already near? The Jews. So Yeshua came and preached salvation to the Gentiles that were far away, because remember, up until Yeshua came, the world of the Gentiles didn’t have the revelation of God. Only the Israelites did, only the Jews did. But Yeshua came to bring revelation to those who formerly did not know God, the world of Gentiles, and he came to preach peace to the Jew. Remember, Paul said the gospel’s to the Jew first and also to the Greek or to the Gentile. Paul continues on here, and he’s speaking to the Gentiles, because remember, Paul was the apostle to the Gentiles. Peter was the apostle to the Jew. Paul was the apostle to the Gentiles. And so Paul continues speaking again to the Gentiles. So through him, We both, Jew and Gentile alike, have our access in one spirit to the Father. So now Jew and Gentile alike have been made partakers of the same spirit. We drink of the same spirit. It’s no longer on the basis of the law, which separated Israel from the rest of the world, because now the Lord has made a new way. The righteousness of God, apart from the law, has been revealed. It’s the righteousness by faith that comes to both Jew and Gentile alike through Messiah Yeshua. We both have access now to the same Father, and we both approach him the same way, not by the works of the law anymore, but through the shed blood of Messiah Jesus. So now Paul continues to address the Gentiles, and he says, so you are no longer You’re no longer a second-class citizen if you’re a Gentile. Don’t feel like a second-class citizen. So you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are, I’m speaking to you, Mr. and Mrs. Gentile, in the love of God, you are now fellow citizens with the saints and are of God’s household. So I don’t want you to think of yourself if you’re a Gentile as second best. A lot of Gentiles, they so admire Jewish people for being God’s first covenant people. They’re so in awe of that, that they see themselves almost as second-class citizens. And there’s three problems with that. Number one, it’s not biblical. because Paul just got done saying you’re no longer an alien. You’re now a fellow heir of the kingdom of God. You’re on equal footing. Jew and Gentile are one in Messiah. Okay, so number one, the problem with thinking that you’re inferior to Jewish people, it’s unbiblical. Problem number two with that is it gives you a wrong self-image and an identity. You’re on equal footing. You have equal access. You can go as far as you want to go with God. And just because someone’s Jewish, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re closer to Hashem than you are. Because you can get as close to Him as you want to get if you keep on pressing in and keep on giving Him your life, keep on drawing near to Him. he’s gonna draw near to you. So number two, the problem with thinking that Jewish people are superior is that it keeps you in a place where you have a wrong identity. And problem number three, beloved one, is that if you’re a Gentile and you hold Jewish people over here to the point that you almost idolize them, it prevents you from being the solid witness to them that the Lord has called you to be. I’ve led many groups to Israel. And of course, through my ministry, I’ve met many people. I’ve even pastored many Gentile people. And what I have oftentimes found is that Gentiles are so in awe of the Jewish people because they read the book and they read about God’s love for the Jewish people. They read the book of Deuteronomy where the Lord said to the Jewish people, you alone have I chosen to be a people for myself above all the peoples on the face of the earth. And that’s true. Israel is the chosen people of the first covenant. And only they had the revelation of Yahweh. But Paul just got done telling us that now through Yeshua, The message of redemption has been preached not only to Jewish people, but to the Gentiles that were far off. And now this message of salvation in Messiah Yeshua makes us equal in Him, Jew and Gentile, one in Messiah, no dividing wall. So if you think the Jewish people are way up here, what’s gonna happen is you’re not gonna witness to them. And so a lot of Gentile people that love Yeshua, they get around a Jewish person, the first covenant people, and they think to themselves, you know, they’re a Jew, and they’re afraid to talk to them about Jesus, because they think, who am I to tell this person about Yeshua? They’re the first covenant people. They’re the apple of God’s eye, and they are, but beloved, Yeshua said to the Jewish people, unless you believe that I am He saying to the Jew, you will die in your sins. Jews need Messiah just as much as you do.
SPEAKER 01 :
You’re listening to Discovering the Jewish Jesus with Rabbi Schneider. But first, did you know that thousands of years ago, God gave his people a powerful blessing that captured his heart for them? And this ancient benediction, it offers love, protection, and peace. You can discover how the Aaronic blessing can transform your life with our free bundle, including a PDF and MP3 teaching. Claim your free gift now at myfreegift.com forward slash peace. Just as this program has been a blessing to you, you can multiply the blessing with others. It’s simple when you become a monthly partner. Give a financial gift of any amount today or set up your monthly automated gift by calling this number, 800-777-7835. That’s 800-777-7835. Or you can visit discoveringthejewishjesus.com when you give your equipping others for Jesus’ return. And now, here is Rabbi Schneider.
SPEAKER 03 :
I hope that I’m bringing clarity here that you can’t think of yourself as somehow being inferior to Jewish people because now Jew and Gentile are one in Messiah. We both come in through the same way. And we both can go as far as we want to go. Now, it is true that there’s oftentimes a special anointing on Jewish people that know Messiah. And this is in fulfillment of Zechariah words that in the last days, 10 men from all nations will take a hold of the garment of a Jew and say, we want to go with you for we know that God is with you. I believe that the foremost evangelist in the last days will be Jews, but this does not in any way make Jewish people superior to the Lord. It just means that they’re fulfilling their calling because they’ve been called to be a light to the nations. And the scripture says, if Gentiles were blessed when Jewish people rejected the gospel, Because as a result, beloved one, of Jewish people rejecting the gospel, Paul was sent to the Gentiles. Remember, Paul was at the temple and Paul was thinking that he was going to go tell all his Jewish brethren about Yeshua. Once he had the vision, when Yeshua appeared to him on the road and Yeshua blinded Paul and knocked him off his horse. And Paul said, who are you? And a bright light said to him, I’m Yeshua. Now get up and it’s gonna be told what you’re gonna do for me. And Paul remained blind for a while. And then Yeshua opened his eyes and Paul was fully convinced that Yeshua of Nazareth was the prophesied Jewish Messiah. And of course that set the trajectory for the rest of Paul’s life. He became the apostle to the Gentiles. So as the result of the Jewish people rejecting Messiah, because when Paul was at the temple after he had this vision on the road to Damascus, he thought he was gonna go to the Jews, but God said, they will not receive your testimony, Paul. I’m sending you far away to the Gentiles. So Paul says, because of their rejection, I was sent to you and you were blessed. How much more will you be blessed, Paul, speaking to the Gentiles, when Jewish people receive the Messiah? So it is true that there’s still a unique call upon Jewish people to be the evangelist of the world, but in no way does that cause us to be spiritually above anybody else. It’s just a calling in God’s redemptive plan. And we’re all called, right? I mean, there’s many Gentiles that are powerful evangelists, many Gentiles that have a powerful prophetic ministry, all the different types of giftings, but we have to have balance to this. And the problem that I’m addressing is many Gentiles are so enamored with Jewish people and they don’t think enough of themselves that they’re not even witnessing to Jewish people, and beloved, this ought not to be. Because when Yeshua came, when he was walking on the flesh and the earth, do you know he went only to the Jews first? When a Gentile person came to him, Jesus said, I’ve come only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And of course the Gentiles said, yes, but even the dogs eat the scraps from under the table. And Yeshua was so moved with compassion and love, he blessed this one. So he was moved with compassion. But when Yeshua came, he just came to the Jewish people. It was after Yeshua ascended to heaven that the scripture that Paul just got done giving us was fulfilled when Paul became the apostle to the Gentiles. And so Paul was once again saying here, that peace was preached to you who are far away and to those who are near, for through him we both now have access in one spirit to the Father. So just continuing on, so then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and are of God’s household. Having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the chief cornerstone in whom the whole building being fit together is growing into a holy temple in the Lord. So we come together in unity now, and it’s a beautiful thing being filled with the spirit, having the love of God that unites us together, Jew and Gentile, one in Messiah. There’s a song, one of the early messianic songs that was by one of the Chernoff brothers, by a group called Lamb, and it was Jew and Gentile, one in Messiah. And it went something like, Jew and Gentile, one in Messiah, one in Yeshua, one in the Father. Jew and Gentile, one in Messiah, one in Yeshua’s love, Bum, bum. I used to actually have that song played at the beginning of each one of our Shabbat services. This is what Paul’s talking about here. And listen to what Paul says in the 22nd verse again. He says, we are being built together into a dwelling of God in the spirit. Now think about this. We are being built together, Jew and Gentile alike, those that are of the remnant. Those that are chosen from amongst both Jew and Gentile, those are the elect of the Father. We are being built, listen now, in the spirit to be the dwelling place of Hashem, of God. And a lot of people today are struggling with identity. Who am I? I think it’s the second most fundamental question of the universe. The first most fundamental question is, is there a God and who is He? The second most fundamental question of the universe is who am I? Who is God and who am I? And so we, a lot of us are looking around and you’re trying to figure out who am I? or by a boy or a girl is so confused anymore with the culture that we’re living in, the whole transgender movement, people looking for identity in their profession. All types of things are going on. People are looking to find out who they are. They want to be comfortable in their own skin. Well, Paul helps us to understand who we are when he tells us that we’ve been called and chosen out of the world to be a dwelling place of God’s spirit. We wake up in the morning and you don’t have to look to the world to find out who you are. If we’re serious about the word and serious about our walk with Hashem, know that the Lord told us here that you and I are being built together into a dwelling place of God in the spirit. And so when I wake up in the morning, I need to present myself to the Lord. Paul said in the book of Romans that we’re to present the members of our body as a living sacrifice to God. The Lord said, if you come out from the world and cleanse yourself of these things, he said, I’m gonna receive you to myself. And so isn’t that what we want? To be drawn in to a closer walk with God? So if we’ll realize that we are being built up to become the dwelling place of God, to become a habitation, You see behind me the Dome of the Rock, that golden dome, that’s a Muslim shrine now. That’s where the temple of Yahweh used to be before the Romans came in and destroyed it in 70 AD. The Shekinah glory of God used to dwell in Yahweh’s temple. Now God’s dwelling place is in you and I, who he created in his own image, but in order for him to find a resting place in us, in order for the glory of God to settle upon our soul so that we could experience his shalom, the shalom of Yahweh, his glory, his presence and his beauty, in order for that to happen, we need to come out of the world and cleanse ourself of it. so that we can become the dwelling place of God. So Paul says we’re being built up together into the dwelling place of God in the Spirit. I want to really encourage us to take that seriously. You are God’s dwelling place. We’re his temple. So we don’t want to have a temple that we have caretakership over. that we’ve been given authority over, that we’ve been given the responsibility of hosting, we don’t want to allow our temple to be defiled because God can’t rest in a defiled temple. So if you’re serious about experiencing God’s presence, the Bible says we need to come out of the world. And the Lord says, and I will receive you to myself and I will be your God. and you will be my people. You know, David said your presence is better than life. Remember that old hymn?
SPEAKER 02 :
Thy loving kindness is better than life. Thy loving kindness is better than life.
SPEAKER 03 :
My heart will bless thee. My lips shall praise thee. I will offer myself to you. You, my beloved friend, are the dwelling place of God. Let’s come out of the world and he will receive us to himself and we’ll experience the loving kindness and the beauty of his presence and peace in our very souls. The Bible tells us that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. And when I think about fearing God, one of the areas that strikes me is, am I willing to honor the Lord with my finances? Now, I know some are probably objecting, well, as believers, we don’t have to fear the Lord. I’m talking about having a holy reverence for God and treating Him as holy. When we treat God as holy in our life, we’re going to put Him first in our finances. Beloved, I just want to ask you, if you believe that I’m authentic, that this ministry is authentic, that it’s helping you, I want to ask you to open your heart to the Holy Spirit and allow Him to speak to you regarding sowing a financial gift into this ministry so that we can continue to do the work that God’s calling us to do. When you sow your financial gifts into discovering the Jewish Jesus, you’re going to reap a reward from all the fruit that this ministry is gaining. Thank you and shalom.
SPEAKER 01 :
Amen. And if God is calling you to give a gift to this ministry, then would you please give directly online at discoveringthejewishjesus.com. You can also call us at 800-777-7835. Or you can send your donation through the mail to discoveringthejewishjesus.com. PO Box 777, Blissfield, Michigan 49228. And I know firsthand that it can be really hard to realize the impact that you’re having when you give, but I want you to know that we feel it here. In fact, through your generosity of listeners like you, we’ve been able to get Rabbi’s teachings into prisons And we are seeing a huge harvest of souls for Christ. We have over 1.2 million prisoners who listen each and every year. And even more encouraging, based on the most recent info that we’ve collected, we have multiple people each and every single day saying that they want to receive Christ. There is a huge opportunity to keep reaching people for the Lord. And friends, with your help, you’re opening that door for them to hear about the hope of Jesus in a really dark place where that hope is needed. And if you want to help us fulfill that commission in a bigger way, once again, please consider giving. Just follow the Lord’s leading. Go online, give at discoveringthejewishjesus.com. You can give a one-time donation or you can become a monthly partner with us. And if it’s easier for you, you can also text in your gift. Just text the keyword rabbi to the number 45777. That’s the keyword rabbi to the phone number 45777. Now here’s Rabbi with a special blessing.
SPEAKER 03 :
In the book of Numbers chapter six, we find a personal blessing from God our Father. This blessing should touch our hearts because it’s so personal. Father God wants to intimately bless you. So receive his blessing into your life today with gladness and an open heart.
The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift you up with His countenance. And the Lord give you, beloved one, His peace. God bless you and shalom.
SPEAKER 01 :
I’m your host, Dustin Roberts, and this program is produced and sponsored by Discovering the Jewish Jesus. Join us next time when Rabbi Schneider continues exploring the book of Ephesians and we’ll discover God’s perfect beauty. That’s Tuesday on Discovering the Jewish Jesus.
