Rabbi Schneider takes us on a spiritual journey through Ephesians, emphasizing the distinction between human works and divine gifts. He reflects on the transformation of apostle Paul as a testament to divine intervention and the notion of being chosen. As you listen, you will explore the comfort of divine protection and the responsibility to walk in the good works prepared for us, underscoring the importance of living out our faith as a testament to the world.
Hello and welcome to Discovering the Jewish Jesus. I’m your host, Dustin Roberts, and today Rabbi Schneider explains that to truly receive salvation, the only way is if the Father gives it. How often are you really sure of your path and your choices? You know, I think that we all like to believe that we’re captains of our own destiny, but what if everything we thought we knew about our choices was backwards? Well, today Rabbi’s gonna address that topic. when he reveals some truly stunning truths about salvation. And if you’ve missed any of these messages in this series, I want to encourage you to catch up online at discoveringthejewishjesus.com. And now let’s get started. Here’s Rabbi with today’s message.
SPEAKER 02 :
We’re continuing a series today in one of my favorite books in the entire Bible. I’m sure it’s probably many of your favorite books. We’re going to the book of Ephesians. And I left off last time at the end of season two in verse number 10 of chapter two. So let’s just go back looking at verse number 10, the two preceding verses, just to put things in context and to lay the foundation for us going forward today. Father God, we open our heart to you. Father, we’re hungry and we’re needy. We ask that you would impart your truth deep into the kishkas, deep into the center of our being. And Father, it would be life to us that you would empower us to move forward in your will. Your word is truth. Father, we ask you to revive us with your word. Revive us, we pray, Father, through the living word of God that’s living and active and sharper than a two-edged sword, able to divide, Father, even the soul from the spirit. Speak to us, oh God, and impart your divine life and make a divine impression on our soul. Mark us today, we ask in Yeshua’s name and for Jesus’ fame. Amen and amen. So going back to chapter two, last time I was talking about, for by grace you’ve been saved through faith, and that is not of yourselves, it’s the gift of God. But we need to understand that the only thing that makes you and I, those that are true believers, the only thing that makes us different than others is the gift that we’ve received. Paul says, by grace you’ve been saved through faith, and that is not of yourselves, get it now, it’s the gift of God. Why are you one way and other people don’t share your faith? I mean, for example, to give a real obvious example, I grew up in a very Jewish neighborhood. I came to faith in 1978 when Jesus supernaturally appeared in my bedroom in a vision of the night. None of the other Jews that I went to school with believed. I asked myself, why am I the only Jew in my whole high school that believes? And you know what the answer was? Because God revealed himself to me beloved ones in a way that he didn’t reveal himself to all those other Jewish people that I knew that did not believe. So the gift of faith that I received, it really was, it was a remarkable gift through nothing of my own. So let’s listen again. For by grace you’ve been saved through faith, and that is not of yourselves. It is the gift of God, listen to this, not as a result of works so that no one may boast. Listen to this. Someone said, put this in your pipe and smoke it. You did nothing to add to your salvation. Jesus is the author and finisher of your faith. You did nothing. You were chosen in him, according to Ephesians 1, before the foundation of the world. Yeshua said, you did not choose me. I chose you. To really give a powerful example, think about the apostle Shaul, we call him in Hebrew, the apostle Paul. Here he is on his way to Damascus, right, to arrest any Jew that believed in Jesus. He was gonna take him bound hand and foot and throw him in prison. Paul was in hearty agreement when they were stoning Stephen to death. He was an enemy of the church. He was an enemy of God. He was an enemy of Jesus. So think about it again. He’s on his horse on the way to Damascus to arrest any Jew that believed in Jesus and imprison them. All the sudden, as he’s on his way to torture any Jewish believer, what happens? A light from heaven blinds him. He falls off his horse. He’s laying on the ground, terrified. He is terrified. He just got shocked out of his mind when a light from heaven just blinded him and knocked him off his horse. He’s on the ground overwhelmed by this power that was so much bigger than him. And in trembling fear, he says, who are you? And the voice says, I am Jesus. I am Yeshua whom you’re persecuting. And by the way, Paul said the voice that spoke to him was in the Hebrew dialect. So he said, I am Yeshua whom you are persecuting. Now get up, Paul. and it will be told what you must do for me. So my question is, what did Paul do to add to his salvation? What good work did Paul have to his credit? He’s knocked off his horse, he’s blinded by the light, and the Lord speaks to him and said, get up, Paul, it’s hard to kick against the goats, isn’t it? Get up now, and it will be told what you, listen now, must do for me. It was a sovereign act of God. And that experience, of course, marked Paul and changed the trajectory of his life forever. The Lord left him in that state of blindness until Paul was utterly, just completely broken. And then after Paul is completely broken and God knows he’s broken, he’s prayed for, his eyes are open, and now he starts his mission. The point is, my friends, and the point that Paul is trying to make here Our salvation is a precious gift that we’ve received. And so what makes you different from your neighbors maybe that don’t believe or your in-laws or relatives or people at work, whoever it is, what makes you different from those that don’t believe is just one thing. You were chosen and given a gift. This is how Paul begins the book of Ephesians. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, listen now, who chose us in him before the foundation of the world. Jesus said in John 6 and John 10, Jesus said, you believe not because you’re not my sheep. John 10, Jesus said, you believe not because you’re not my sheep. I know my sheep, he said, my Father’s given them to me. And in John 6, he said, don’t grumble among yourself to those that weren’t believing in him. He said, no one comes to me unless the Father draws them. All the Father gives me shall come to me and he that comes to me, I will in no wise cast out. And then at the end of John 6, when almost everybody had left, Jesus said to the few that remained, do you want to leave too? They said, well, where are we going to go? You alone have the words of life. And then Yeshua concluded the whole thing. And he said, this is why I said to you that no man can come to me. unless it’s been granted him from the Father. I know that many of you have heard me teach on this many times before, but it’s a real important foundation to know this, because if you think that you’re the one that got yourself saved, then you could just as easily get yourself unsaved. If you’re the one that got yourself saved, then you’ve got to be the one to keep yourself saved. And what security can we possibly have in our walk with God if we have to keep ourselves saved? See what I’m saying? If I got myself saved, because somehow I chose God, the Bible says, you did not choose me. Jesus said, I chose you. But if I got saved because I first chose God, then I got to keep myself saved. And what confidence can I have that I’m going to keep myself saved? I mean, if it’s up to me to keep myself saved, I have no confidence in my ultimate destiny because I don’t know if I can keep myself saved. I mean, who knows what’s going to happen tomorrow? Maybe I could get the most tragic situation that I could ever face, and in my tragedy, maybe I would curse God. I mean, maybe if my house burned down and my wife got killed and my daughter got killed and then I got boils all over my skin like Job. I mean, how do I know if I wouldn’t just in my humanity just break and curse God? And we don’t know what tomorrow holds. And so it’s such a comfort to know that he that began a good work in you, the scripture says, he that began a good work in you will complete the work in you. So my confidence isn’t in my ability to keep myself saved. No, my confidence is in the fact that God saved me and he’s going to keep me. He’s going to keep me. The Bible says we’re protected till the day of Christ Jesus.
SPEAKER 01 :
You’re listening to Discovering the Jewish Jesus with Rabbi Schneider, and he’ll be right back. And I want to share with you that in the rush of everyday life, sometimes it’s a challenge to connect with God. And that’s why Rabbi Schneider launched a one-minute audio devotional that’s here to help you. You can start each morning with a powerful message. I believe it’ll give you spiritual insight and strength for your day ahead. Just search for A Minute with Rabbi on your favorite podcasting platform or or visit discoveringthejewishjesus.com. To become a blessing in someone’s life today, get in touch to partner with us. Our mission is to prepare the world for Jesus’ return, and your financial gift is channeled directly toward this worthy cause. Take your first step today by calling 800-777-7835. That’s 800-777-7835. Or visit us at discoveringthejewishjesus.com. Your contribution will equip others for Messiah’s return. And now here is Rabbi Schneider with the rest of today’s message.
SPEAKER 02 :
We’re saved, the Bible says, through faith. And now in verse number eight, once again, and the faith that we’ve received, listen now, it’s not something that we chose or manufactured. It was given to us as a gift. You see, Yeshua said, everybody in John 6 that hears and learns from the Father comes to me. All that have heard and learned from the Father, Yeshua said, come to me. Now think about that. Jesus said, if you’ve heard and learned from the Father, the result’s gonna be, you’re gonna come to me. Now think about this. Yeshua said to Peter, who do they say that I am? And Peter said, well, some say Elijah, And some see John the Baptist back from the dead. And Yeshua said, Kepha or Kepha, who do you say that I am? And Peter responded, they’re all the same person, Peter, Kepha, they’re the same person. Peter said, you’re the Messiah, you’re the Christ. the son of the living God. And you know what Yeshua said to him? Blessed art thou, Simon, son of Jonah. Talking to Peter, he said, blessed are you, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you. It didn’t come from your own mind, and someone else didn’t reveal this to you. He said, blessed art thou, he said, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. This is a revelation that you have, Peter, that was given to you as a gift from God. And he said, and on this rock, Jesus continued, I’ll build my church. The church is built on the revelation that the father gives to those that are his, that Yeshua is his son. And then they come to his son and are saved. So by grace, you’ve been saved through faith and it’s not of yourselves, it’s the gift of God. And then in the ninth verse, Paul continues, this gift that we’ve been given, It’s not as a result of anything that we’ve done. It’s not a result of works. God didn’t say, you know what, I’m going to give you faith. He didn’t say, Jill, I’m going to give you faith, you know what, because you’re a pretty good gal. And he didn’t say, Mikey, you know what? I’m going to give you faith because I’ve been watching you. You’re a pretty good dude. You’re a good guy, Mikey. I saw you help that person the other day. I’m going to give you faith. No, Paul said it’s not on the basis of anything that we’ve done. He said it’s not a result of works so that no one may boast. Nothing that you did. has contributed to your salvation. It is the gift of God. Yes, we do have to choose Jesus, but we choose him because he first chose us. The Bible says we love him because he first loved us. God is at work in our life, both to will and to do for his own good pleasure. God is the one that’s at work in our soul, sanctifying us, transforming us, giving us faith, giving us a new nature. What is the new nature that you have? The Bible says that you were born again. The Bible says we were born not of the will of man, nor the will of flesh, but we were born by God. There’s nothing that you did to cause yourself to become born again. It’s not of the will of man, nor the will of flesh John revealed to us, but we’re born of God. We’re given a brand new nature. We’re given the actual zoe life, the uncreated life. everlasting life of God’s Spirit and the Son. And so this whole thing I’m trying to help you understand, it’s the work of God. It’s all the work of God. And so what this does, and where I really wanted to get to with all of this, my beloved friends, is that we need to be very careful to guard our heart against pride. Because the only difference that you and I that love God are different from anybody else is that God gave us this gift. The scripture says that we, you and I, that believe, were by nature, in other words, in our natural state of being, you and I were by nature, listen, children of wrath, the scripture says, even as the rest, indulging in the lust of the flesh and of the mind and being led by the course of this world. So we were no different than anybody else. The only thing that made us different is God himself. Not as a result of works, listen now, so that no one may boast. So we gotta be careful with our words. All right, let’s continue on. New territory now. We have not covered this next verse much. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we would walk in them. So I want us to think about the fact that a lot of times we think that getting saved, it’s all about our own personal enjoyment. I mean, a lot of times we’ve come to Jesus because we need help. We just want to feel better. We’ve got a problem. We want the problem to be solved. And you know what? There’s nothing wrong with coming to Jesus for help. In fact, Jesus said, all that are weary and heavy laden, come to me and I’ll give you rest. Jesus said, all that are thirsty, come, I’ll give you living waters. So there’s nothing wrong with you and I coming to Jesus in desperation, looking to him for help. But the problem is if we never go onto maturity from there, because it’s not just about our personal enjoyment with God. It’s not just about us being made whole or looking for our own happiness. God’s got to work for us to do. And some of us really need to understand this. Some of us are looking for all the benefits and all the blessings, but we’re not willing to look to God to understand what our responsibilities are. So listen to what verse 10 says again in chapter two. For we, that’s you and me, right? You and I. For we are his workmanship, he made us, he created us, created in Christ Jesus, listen now, for us. good works which God prepared beforehand so that we would, listen, walk in them. So God’s got a work for you and I to do. He’s got a work for us to do. He’s created us to be his witnesses in the earth. I mean, these are Jesus’s final marching orders. You shall be my witnesses. But I am so disheartened. I’m so sad and disheartened by so many of God’s people that will not take their faith outside of their own home or their church walls. They don’t talk about Jesus in public. They don’t talk about Jesus with anybody that they don’t first know knows Jesus. They will not be willing to put themselves out there to be rejected. Beloved, oh my gosh, it’s so terrible. I just was watching a YouTube earlier today, and they were talking about a particular person that this past June during Gay Pride Month, the number one Christian song on iTunes was by a transgender artist. Okay, Christian songs, number one song for a brief period of time by a transgender artist, and then they were interviewing some of the other Christian artists about this phenomenon, and one really well-known Christian artist, I mean like mainstream, known for worship, She was on a radio show. They asked her, what do you think about homosexuality? She said, well, I really don’t know about homosexuality. I don’t really have an opinion. She said, I’m still learning. I would just tell you to go to the Bible and see what it says. I’m still, you know, trying to figure it out. It’s like… She just didn’t want to take a position. What do you mean go to the Bible? The Bible already told us what God thinks about that. But so many of God’s people, they’re not willing to be witnesses. God created us to walk in good works. And the one work that he’s called us all to walk in, beloved, is to be a bold witness that Jesus is the only way to heaven and to be a mouthpiece for the principles of the kingdom of God. Beloved, I say this with authenticity before the Lord, discovering the Jewish Jesus is one of the best and most important ministries that you can partner with on the earth. We are reaching the world with the gospel and more precisely today, we’re reaching Jewish people with the gospel, which is the mandate of the church. Paul said to the Jew first and also to the Greek or to the Gentiles, by partnering with Discovering the Jewish Jesus, you are being used to create breakthrough in the world for Jewish people to be reached. We are broadcasting right now in 97% of the homes in Israel that have television sets, as well as a big portion of the entire Middle East. We’re also broadcasting on secular networks, secular television outlets in America for the purpose of reaching the unreached and Jewish people. Beloved, this is the work of the church. James said, faith without works is dead. In other words, for this application, we might agree that it’s important to reach Jewish people with the gospel, but we need to follow up agreement with that by doing something. By you becoming a monthly partner with this ministry, you take a step forward and be part of God’s steps on the earth to reach around the globe to gather in a harvest of precious Jewish souls. When Jewish people come to faith in him, that creates a spiritual climate for the Lord’s return. There’s not a more important time to reach Jewish people than right now when anti-Semitism is growing. when Jewish people are feeling shaken, when they’re looking for answers, when they’re looking for hope, now is the time, I believe more than ever before, to bring the good news of the Jewish Messiah Jesus to them. And you can be a part of doing that by becoming a monthly partner today.
SPEAKER 01 :
Amen. Take that step of faith right now by going online to give at discoveringthejewishjesus.com. You can also give us a call at 800-777-7835. And friends today, I want to let you know that we have a special free gift for you. It’s brand new and it has to do with the Aaronic Blessing. We’ve got a new complimentary bundle that we believe is going to help you explore this timeless blessing to discover its relevance in our lives today. It’s an engaging bundle and it includes a comprehensive PDF study where Rabbi Schneider unpacks each and every phrase of the sacred blessing. It’ll reveal how God’s covenant name, Yahweh, speaks of His intimate care and protection over our life. And you’ll also receive an engaging MP3 audio message that’s definitely going to bring a fresh perspective and practical application to this ancient benediction. If you’re ready to explore the depths of God’s favor and find His peace in a new way, make sure to request this free resource today. All you have to do is visit myfreegift.com forward slash peace. That’s myfreegift.com forward slash peace. And if this resource, it touches your life, or if today’s lesson has an impact on you, would you consider giving to support us once again? Your gift can really help someone else have that same kind of experience you’ve had. So please give by calling us at 800-777-7835. That’s 800-777-7835. Thanks so much for believing in this mission that God has given us and supporting this ministry. And now let’s close today’s program on owning our own salvation with a special blessing. Rabbi.
SPEAKER 02 :
What I love about the Aaronic blessing is that it did not originate with man. The words actually proceeded from the very essence of God himself. The blessing comes from the book of Numbers, chapter six. So listen to these words and receive the blessing of the Lord into your life today.
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 Dustin Roberts, and this program is produced and sponsored by Discovering the Jewish Jesus. Be sure to join us next time when Rabbi Schneider shows us why we’re the image of God’s workmanship. That’s coming up Wednesday on Discovering the Jewish Jesus.
