“Re-Judaizing Jesus”
Time Magazine recently published an article which implies that a rising number of Christian teachers regard “[Jewish] sources like the Mishnah and Rabbi Akiva as vital to understanding” Yeshua. Surely, reference to this literature among the Hebrew Roots community is common, but according to the aforementioned article, it is also true of at least two Christian leaders.
My hope is that believers who come across factoids like this will not take them to heart, and will instead steer clear of Jewish literature as an avenue for understanding Yeshua. Seeing the Master in His proper historical and cultural context is one thing, but the Talmud and other Jewish writings are ultimately useful and authoritative for one thing only: acquiring an understanding of Judaism—a Judaism which is historically and spiritually hostile to the Messiah Yeshua. Indeed, did not the Master Himself say to the fathers of Rabbinic Judaism, “Rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far away from me. But in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.’” (Mark 7:7) For all their alleged wisdom and insight, the Rabbis take us on a circuitous journey around and passing by the God of Israel, failing to deliver us into a deeper relationship with and knowledge of Him.


Lindsey Miller laments about Pesach in Spain in her recent article,
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This was the question that the World Jewish Digest asked this past high holiday season in light of a 2006 Harris Poll “showing that just 30 percent of Jews in a nationwide survey said they were ‘absolutely certain’ there was a God.”
My wife, Esther, sat staring at my computer screen. “Kevin Geoffrey has… issues?” she questioned. “I’m not so sure about this blog thing, Kev.” But despite Esther’s hesitancy, I’m strangely comfortable with the idea. “Kevin Geoffrey has Messianic Jewish Issues” expresses the need I feel to be brutally honest about everything I write about here on my new web log — including myself. Yes, Kevin Geoffrey has issues… Messianic Jewish issues, that is! Hence, the goal of this blog: straightforward discussion of issues concerning Messianic Jewish identity and function in the 21st century.