Apples of Gold May/Jun 2022
People in Israel are always trying to find something new and interesting. For a long time, the ultra-Orthodox Jews promoted as messiah a man from New York City. Now they boast yet another one. I try to open the blind eyes of these people to the truth of the Lord. But they like to listen to fables. It is our duty to go to them to teach them what is written in the Holy Bible by the Holy Spirit.
Recently I went to an ultra-Orthodox synagogue, as I have many times before. This time I came with a picture of a rabbi riding on a big lion. The rabbi calls himself the messiah. “Where is it written that the Messiah will come on a lion?” I asked the rabbi at the synagogue.
“In which yeshiva have you studied?” he asked me.
“I never studied in a yeshiva,” I replied.
“So you are an ignorant man,” he said.
“From where have you taken these stories about the Messiah?” I asked once more.
“How do you know this is not the truth?” he asked me.
I opened the Bible to Zechariah 9:9 and read it in Hebrew to the rabbi and all who were with him. But before I read, I showed them the Bible to ask them if it was kosher so they could not claim it was a Christian book. When they agreed it was kosher, I read, “Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding on a donkey.”
“From which children’s book have you taken this nice picture and called the man on the lion the Messiah of Israel?” I asked the rabbi.
This was too much for them. How could I, who had never studied in the yeshiva, criticize them? They became suspicious and asked how I came to my beliefs.
“I believe only what is written in the Holy Bible, not in fables,” I replied. “None of you can change my mind, as your minds have been changed.”
The rabbi replied, “You spoke for a long time, and we listened to you. But now it is our turn to learn who you really are. Why did you come here? To which organization do you belong?”
“I came because I believe what is written in the Holy Bible. Is that against the law? It is written in Ezekiel 33:11, ‘Turn, turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?’ It is my obligation to warn people like you. Read what is written in Leviticus 26 to learn the clear answer.”
“Do you believe in the rabbi from New York?” one man asked.
“If you show me what is written about the man from New York in the Bible, I will believe,” I replied. “But you have come to a false belief. It is clearly written who the Messiah is in Zechariah 9:9. You can also read the truth in Isaiah 53. Those who believe what is written here have believed in Christ.”
“No more questions!” one said. “You have made it clear who you are. You have come to try to make us Christians!”
“I have no Christian books, only the Holy Bible,” I said. “It gives you a clear picture of who the Messiah is and what He has done for us all. Your nice pictures will not help you. Our obligation is to be the watchmen of the house of Israel. Though there are always many people who agree with you, many more are coming to us. They have heard enough of your fictitious stories, and they want the truth from the Bible itself.”
Some of the men were interested in hearing more, so I showed them all that is written in the Bible about the Messiah. I also read for them Jeremiah 31:34: “For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”
It is important to pray for these people who walk in such great darkness.
From The Friends of Israel archives
Hello. I really am blessed by Zvi’s testimonies. I admire his courage to speak to his people who need to receive the true messiah.
He referred to specific time-relevant stories, sometimes. I could better relate to them if you could also specify the date of accounts from the archives. Thank you.
I love apples of gold. I love hearing the narrator’s voice and how he speaks to God’s people about the Messiah using Old Testament scriptures. Gives me chills. As the sun rises I listen.