Events and Administration
To Whom Shall We Go?
In the Talmud there is an aggadic passage which records an imaginary conversation between God and the people of Israel. In the passage, Israel stands before God guilty of sin and seeking some sort of vindication. God recommends that they appeal to the forefathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob for mercy. In the imaginary conversation Israel responds as follows:
“King of the Universe! To whom shall we go? To Abraham…? He did not entreat you for mercy upon us. To Isaac…? He did not entreat you for mercy upon us. To Jacob…? He did not entreat you for mercy upon us. To whom then shall we go now? Rather let the Lord state our case!” The Holy One, shall answer them, “Since ye have made yourselves dependent upon Me, ‘though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.’” (Babylonian Talmud, Shabbat 89b, quoting Isaiah 1:18)
The Talmud recognizes that in the final judgment, the merit of the forefathers is inadequate. There is no atonement or vindication for Israel unless God Himself provides it. God is the lone redeemer of Israel.
He has provided the means for that redemption through the death and resurrection of His Son, Yeshua of Nazareth. When Yeshua taught about His divine mission and declared that He was indeed descended from the Father and that those who believed on Him would have eternal life, many of his disciples abandoned Him. At that time, Yeshua ‘said to the twelve, ‘You do not want to go away also, do you?’ Simon Peter answered Him, ‘Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. We have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God’” (John 6:67–69).
At First Fruits of Zion, we are now presenting a major new teaching effort entitled To Whom Shall We Go: Examining Jewish Objections to Yeshua. The conference is designed to answer anti-missionary arguments against the Gospel and to establish a Messianic Jewish approach to Christology. So far, we have three dates scheduled. Check the conference schedule on the website. We will be releasing an audio version of two of the teaching sessions under the title “Who Do You Say That I Am” in the next couple of weeks.
Want to attend one of the seminars? You might want to consider coming to Hudson, Wisconsin for Shavuot this May. Enjoy Shavuot on May 23 with congregation Beth Immanuel. The To Whom Shall We Go Conference will be May 24 and 25, concluding with an erev-Shabbat meal. Then on Saturday, enjoy Shabbat with congregation Beth Immanuel again. Sounds fun doesn’t it? Watch for registration details coming soon. Space will be limited.
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