JEWS MEET THEIR MESSIAH

It is one of those big, untold stories: Millions of Jews have begun a quest to find their Messiah. In unprecedented numbers Jews are searching for answers to the deepest and most important questions in life. Some are searching through the Hebrew Scriptures, others are reading the New Testament for the first time. They are searching on Google for information about the Messiah or are watching a new series of videos by Jews who claim to have found the answers. These videos, some of which have gone viral, were produced and posted on a new website called I Met Messiah (http://www.imetmessiah.com/). ¦ Take the story of Mitch Forman who grew up in a religious Jewish family. He was a successful chef until his wild lifestyle cost him his dream job. This caused him to spiral out of control and he felt he was wasting his life. A Christian girl he met sparked some jealousy in Mitch, as she seemed to know more about the Hebrew Scriptures than he did. As he began to study the New Testament, he saw that it was mostly written by Jews and that the prophesied coming Messiah in the Hebrew Bible was none other than Jesus of Nazareth! He promptly accepted Christ as his personal Saviour and Messiah! ¦ Steve Fenchel's life was changed by the death of his father. He started mixing with "the wrong crowd" and slowly his life began to unravel. He began to use drugs to escape the darkness and depression. It was the writings of C.S. Lewis that opened Steve's heart to Jesus. His friends became believers in Jesus and through their witness he saw the answer to his search for happi-ness and meaning. ¦ Growing up in a Jewish family in Columbus, Ohio, where everyone seemed to be talking at once, it was no surprise when Diane Cohen became an attorney and an active leader in the synagogue. Although warned by her old-world grandmother to be careful about Christian antisemitism, Diane was drawn to a book entitled, Rabbi Jesus. Reading it on an airplane, she struck up a conver-sation with a Christian woman, herself an author. Diane next entered a difficult time when her marriage of 28 years dissolved. Some time later, she received a package in the mail from the woman she had met on the plane which contained one of her books and a card with the Scripture, "He will delight in you with song" (Zephaniah 3:17) - the verse of Scripture Diane had awoken with in her mind that very day! Deeply moved, Diane attended a service with her believing sister, received prayer, and became a believer! ¦ Growing up, Mottel Baleston's only contact with Christians was with Italian Catholics; therefore, he pictured Jesus as Italian. He was shocked to discover Jesus was Jewish and the New Testa-ment was written by Jewish men. When he began reading the New Testament, he expected to find an antisemitic handbook, but was surprised it began with a state-ment about three Jewish men (David, Abraham and Jesus) and how one is the anticipated Messiah of Israel. Mottel's life was changed when he discovered following Jesus was the most Jewish thing a person can do. He tapped into a powerful truth for his Jewish people. ¦ Professor Rose Harrison grew up during World War II and faced a lot of hardships, including anti-semitism. Despite overcoming great odds, she felt empty. Rose was determined and passionate; she went on to get a doctorate and became a College professor. But still she felt something was missing. During one of her classes, a student wrote a paper that changed her life. The student wrote about virtues and values. This paper was very different from any other she had seen written on the subject. Rose ended up befriending the student and he shared with her how his faith in the Messiah changed him and gave him meaning and fulfilment in life. After attending a church and seeing a faith community that was loving and caring, she realized there was something more to Jesus and Christianity. Rose found the peace and fulfilment she was looking for through a relationship with her Messiah. I Met Messiah is one of multiple evangelistic websites developed by Eitan Bar, a native Jewish Israeli who was born and raised in Tel Aviv. He has a background in multimedia design and visual communications, and holds an MA in theology. He currently serves as director of Media and Evangelism of One for Israel. Throughout the world, there are many large communities of Jewish believers in Yeshua. In Israel, there are many communities and home fellowships of Messianic Jews. Source: Eitan Bar, Joel News International 968, Nov. 2015.