Apples of Gold May/Jun 2021

As we say here in Israel, “Le roi est mort, vive le roi,” which is French for “The king is dead, long live the king!”

Apparently, a new “king” is coming—a rabbi. I have never seen him or heard about him. Posters cover the buildings along the streets, declaring this rabbi will speak to us. His appearance is supposedly a great privilege for us. But who is he?

His people walk around handing out invitations about the rabbi they call the “holy one.” One day four of his men gave me an invitation.

“Whom have you believed?” I asked them. “This man, or almighty God?”

“Why do you ask such a question?” one replied.

“Because people who believe in God do not go to others and tell them a man is really the Messiah and that we must come and listen to what he has to say and worship him,” I said.

“Are you against him? What has he done to you?” another asked.

“I am against those who call themselves holy and try to convince people to worship them,” I said. “I believe in the living God, and it is my obligation to go before blind people like you to warn them against this evil way. It is clearly written in Ezekiel 33:7, ‘Son of man: I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel.’ And all those who believe in God have an obligation to warn others. So, you see, it is my obligation not to bring misleading teaching, as you are doing now.”

“Who is your rabbi?” one asked.

“I have never believed in man as god, as you do,” I said. “I can trust in man as a friend, but not as you are doing. It is clearly written in Deuteronomy 6:14 and 16, ‘You shall not go after other gods,’ and ‘You shall not tempt the LORD your God.’ So now, look in the mirror and see in whom you have truly believed so you will not try to convince people to worship false gods.”

I showed them the Bible and asked, “What is more important? The Bible or all those fictitious stories you tell people? You must leave this way of life, go the right way, worship the living God, and obey His commands, as it is written in Leviticus 26.”

I told them, “You belong to a new sect that believes in many gods. My God is the one you pray to every day with your lips, but you are far from Him in your hearts. Read the Bible, and pray from your heart. Then the Lord will give you the wisdom to know and obey Him. Then you will never succumb to such superstitions.”

After nearly two hours of showing them the truth, the time had come to broach the main subject. “What do you think? Will the Messiah return?” I asked them.

“How will He return when He was never here?” one replied.

This gave me the chance to show them He was here and to tell them what He has done for us all and that He will one day return. “Are you dreaming?” one asked. “Where did you get this idea?”

“From the Bible!” I answered. For the first time, they became serious and wanted to know where this information was written. Thank the Lord He opened their hearts, and they wanted to know about Him. I was so happy. I showed them my Bible and asked them to confirm that I was using the true Bible. Then I opened it to Isaiah 53, and they started to read.

Suddenly, they declared, “You believe in This Man, Jesus!”

“Our duty is to believe what is written in the Bible,” I told them, “not in all those crazy posters.” They wanted to know how I came to faith in Jesus. I had been waiting for this question for hours. With joy, I told them my story.

Zvi Kalisher (1928–2014) was a Holocaust survivor who was known for his unswerving faithfulness to the Lord and his bold witness in Jerusalem. He was with The Friends of Israel for more than 55 years.