“I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you”(Genesis 12:2-3).
What is a Jew? Who is a Jew? Is being Jewish an ethnicity or a religion — or both? In other words, what makes you Jewish? Can you simply convert to being a Jew — and if so, are you converting your ethnicity or your religion — or both?
Are you Jewish if you have one Jewish parent? Which one? “These questions are not easy to answer, and even within the Jewish community, there are disagreements” (Dan Sered, COO, Jews for Jesus).
Perhaps the more important, even most important, question remains, was Jesus Jewish? If so, why was it important?
Birth of a Nation
We know the story of Abraham from the Bible — the father of the Jewish nation. As Dan Sered puts it, “Biblically, we know that the Jewish people were descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. So being Jewish meant that you were a part of a family, a bloodline.”
If we’re honest, we know that even today, Jews have a special bond with each other. They have a shared history and a shared future.
Throughout generations — thousands of years — of attacks, dispersion, enslavement, antisemitism, and even genocide, the Jews have survived as a people, as a nation. A family and a bloodline like no other.
God had determined to call out an individual group, a special nation of people, to fulfill a special purpose for himself. That nation, that people, would carry his Word and bring that message to a sinful world. Ultimately, through that people, God would bless all the people of an entire world, offering a means of reconciliation to himself.
If we wonder why God chose the descendants of Abraham, the Jews, as his chosen people, perhaps therein lies the answer. A single group of people who would stubbornly and heroically carry his Word, His law, and his prophecies.
God chose the Jews because they would protect God’s message at all costs. Through them would come all the prophecy, all of the foreshadowing.
That could only have been done here on earth through a single group and could not have been left to the broader Gentile population. His message would not have been protected and maintained as it was by the Jews.
Dan Sered puts it this way: “A big part of our history is rooted in God using the Jewish people to be a light to the nations. For the most part, Israel fails in their job/call, but God in His infinite wisdom continues to love and spare them.”
The Promise
In both the Old and the New Testaments, God is referred to as “the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” In them, through them, God's relationship of promise and purpose was fixed for all those who descended from them.
The message of that promise was delivered first to Abram when God changed his name from Abram to Abraham — the “ha” being Hebrew for “the father of multitudes:”
“I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you”(Genesis 12:2-3).
From Abraham, through Isaac and Jacob, then through Moses, and on to King David. Through the exile and then through their land being conquered by other empires — the Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, and Romans — the Jews carried God’s Word and God’s promise.
Thus, there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen from the exile to the Messiah (Matthew 1:17).
The Old Testament made promises of a Messiah who would save Israel — save the Jews and save the rest of the world.
That Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament was a Jewish savior, chosen by God for a special purpose from a special people. The Messiah was to serve God’s purpose by fulfilling all Jewish prophecy and reconciling the world to himself:
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God (Revelation 21:3).
Was Jesus a Jew?
The Bible offers two separate genealogies for Jesus in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. Two gospels, two distinct audiences. One written for and addressed to “Theophilus” — to whom Luke also addresses the Book of the Acts of the Apostles.
Since Theophilus is a male name of Greek origin, it would be clear that Luke’s audience was Gentile in nature. Matthew’s gospel, on the other hand, is clearly written for a Jewish Christian audience.
Matthew begins his record with Abraham, the father of the Hebrew nation, and ends with Joseph, Jesus’ earthly father, and includes David, king of Israel — all critically important to establish Jesus’ Jewish heritage. The connection between Abraham and David was critical to establish Jesus’ credentials as Messiah.
Luke, on the other hand, follows the genealogy of Mary — to David through his son Nathan. Jewish heritage during this era was passed on through the mother.
Even though some aspects of the Jewish culture and religion were passed on through the father, such as priesthood, the birthright to be considered Jewish came through the mother.
So, Jesus was born in Bethlehem to a Jewish mother, raised in a Jewish home, and raised by parents who followed Jewish law and respected Jewish festivals.
Jesus also honored his Jewish heritage in every religious sense. He was called Rabbi, or Teacher, and preached in temples throughout Israel.
Jesus identified Himself as a Jew. Speaking to the Samaritan woman at the well, Jesus said, “You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews” (John 4:22).
In being the Son of God, however, Jesus had a perfect understanding of the right relationship with the Father.
Jesus saved his most harsh criticism for the religious practices of the Pharisees — clearly rejecting the hypocrisy among the practices of the religious leaders. He often challenged them in public — resulting in many calling him heretical and blasphemous.
He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him (John 1:11).
Moreover, in Jesus’ time, there was a very strong expectation of a “conquering Messiah” who would save the Jews from the oppression of Rome. Instead, Jesus fulfilled the image of the suffering Messiah described in chapter 53 of the Book of Isaiah.
Children of the Promise
Yes, in the Old and New Testaments, God is called the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob — because with them, God's promises were prepared for all those who descended from them. Yet, according to Paul, through Christ, we have become descendants of Abraham:
In other words, it is not the children by physical descent who are God’s children, but it is the children of the promise who are regarded as Abraham’s offspring (Romans 9:8).
If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise (Galatians 3:29).
Clearly, although he was a Jew on earth, Jesus now transcends all cultures. In fact, he transcends every human boundary, whether nationality, ethnicity, culture, race, or background.
Artists throughout history, in every nation and every culture, have reimagined Jesus from their own perspective, depicting him in every artistic style.
In fact, no other person in history has inspired the arts as Jesus has. But let’s make no mistake — Jesus was born Jewish. In that he still lives, he is Jewish. His return will be to Israel.
Jesus is indeed the Jewish Messiah, the Son of David — and sent through and to the Jews.
But then…in His death and ultimate resurrection, Jesus guaranteed salvation for all who would trust and believe in Him (Ephesians 2:11–22).
Jesus, the Jewish Messiah — the Savior for all people.
For further reading:
What Is Biblical Prophecy about Israel?
Photo Credit: ©iStock/Getty Images Plus/Javier_Art_Photography
