he's talking about the Torah he's talking about the prophets now that was another big aha moment whoa that this this Gentile God if you will it's Jewish I'm originally from New York City um grew up in a Jewish home when I was a child I went to synagogue I remember learning about Abraham David and Goliath learning to read Torah portion learning to chant blessings there was a religion that I was being taught that I learned pretty well and an identity that I was taught and I learned pretty well what it meant to be a Jew
but what about the God of the Jews that was kind of like a missing piece I was working as a camp counselor beautiful place on on the Lakes Lake Winnipesaukee up in New Hampshire I began to look at the the incredible creation looking at the mountains looking at the Lakes looking at the trees for the first time in my life something began to open up there's no way that this could have happened just by itself I had a friend back then who showed up at the camp just at the same time I did another Jewish
kid he had a Bible with him and that Bible included the New Testament my first reaction was you know why why are you even like looking at that why are you even considering that what's what's the point how could you you know give that any regard at all this was a gentile religion this was the non-Christian thing this was the the religion for those people one day and I really can't tell you why maybe curiosity I don't know I opened up my friend's Bible now I had never opened the New Testament in my life and
I looked at what Jesus was saying there first thing I read goes like this blessed are those who know their need of God they shall be satisfied I was never exposed to such a question or never exposed to such a a proposition hey hey did you ever consider that you might need God something hit me here knowing your need of God and for the first time in my life I began to realize you know something I think I might need that and the synagogue like I said taught me about being Jewish you taught me the
stories of of the Bible but there was a difference between learning stories and learn knowing the author if I could possibly come to a knowledge of him not just know about him or not just know you know what he said to do or not to do if I could somehow know him that would be the best knowing that there is I began to to seek in my heart and I began to read more of this Jesus and the words of this Jesus I learned that he's Jewish he's talking about the Torah talking about the prophets
he's talking about David he's talking about Elijah I was reading the words of a rabbi this was not what I expected opening up the Gentile Bible he was addressing issues of my heart how I should relate to other people what how or how God Is So righteous and holy and that he wants me in my heart to be righteous and holy I know that I'm impure I know I know that I'm not right I know that there's so much imperfection but I also see this this this Perfection before me this beauty before me and I
read in the Hebrew Bible how God's messenger God's servant was wounded he was bruised for our iniquities sins something had happened something had turned my heart around and I became open to God and the Fulfillment of everything that my upbringing pointed to as second semester in school there was nobody in the dormitory room but me and I had been reading and soaking it all in thinking about it and mulling over this for months but I finally I got up from my bed stood up and I just kind of I said to myself you know I
might as well just admit it I believe this this is who I am I I felt something like physically come over me top of my head kind of going down it was real it was there it was like almost physically you could feel it but I knew that it was kind of like the air that wasn't you couldn't grasp it but it was there came down but most importantly what this was saying to me I remembered as clear as day it was saying to me son what you have just said is the truth as a
Jew believing in the Jewish Messiah I'm more complete as a Jew than I ever was when I opened up my heart to see beyond Prejudice to see beyond artificial walls that have been created over the centuries and I began to understand that my faith is complete that I do not have to wait forever to know who this Messiah is who this one who is to come who it is at the Passover that we're waiting for when we open up the door and look outside I know who he is I know that he needed to come
as Messiah the suffering servant and that one day he will come again as Messiah King of Kings [Music]
