What Did Jesus Change? The Gentiles

When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking for help. "Lord," he said, "my servant lies at home paralyzed and in terrible suffering." Jesus said to him, "I will go and heal him." The centurion replied, "Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and that one, 'Come,' and he comes. I say to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it." 

When Jesus heard this, he was astonished and said to those following him, "I tell you the truth, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith. I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Then Jesus said to the centurion, "Go! It will be done just as you believed it would." And his servant was healed at that very hour. -Matthew 8:5-13

This is one of the few times the Bible records a transaction between Yeshua (Jesus) and a non-Jewish person. From Christianity's point of view, it may seem a little disappointing that Jesus would spend so much time among the Jews who ultimately would reject him and barely give a nod to the Gentiles who would come to adore him. Of course, that viewpoint is significantly skewed, both from the Biblical record and from the nature, character, and mission of the Jewish Messiah (as opposed to the Christian Jesus), but let's examine this matter a bit further.

From a strict Messianic Jewish point of view, Yeshua "was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel" (Matthew 15:24) and thus his lack of interaction with Gentiles was to be expected. After all, he's the Messiah to the Jewish nation, not to all the nations. Yet his interactions with non-Jews, rare though they may have been, were extremely telling. The story of the interaction between the Roman Centurion and Yeshua, already quoted, paints a portrait of a Gentile who had great faith in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. We don't imagine he could have known Yeshua was not only a teacher and prophet but the Messiah as well, but he knew enough to believe Yeshua was a holy man of God, able to heal through faith. It was the Centurion's faith as a matter of fact, that surprised even the Master:

"When Jesus heard this, he was astonished and said to those following him, "I tell you the truth, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith." -Matthew 8:10

That had to have stung the Jewish people hearing Yeshua speak, particularly the disciples who were with the Master. What Yeshua said immediately afterward must have been even more shocking:

"I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." -Matthew 8:11-12

Taken in context, Yeshua seems to be saying that at least some of the Gentiles of the nations will come to great faith and will "take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven" while some of the Jewish people (subjects of the kingdom) will be "thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth".

I imagine I'll get quite a bit of rebuttal on what I just said from the Messianic Jewish community, but when you consider the message of Paul to the mixed Jewish/Gentile congregation in Rome recorded in Romans 11, you see that the "glue" that keeps us attached to the holy root isn't being Jewish or Gentile, but rather, it's faith. Yeshua said it in Matthew 8 and he says it again here:

Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is suffering terribly from demon-possession." Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, "Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us." He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel." The woman came and knelt before him. "Lord, help me!" she said. He replied, "It is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their dogs." "Yes, Lord," she said, "but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table." Then Jesus answered, "Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted." And her daughter was healed from that very hour. -Matthew 15:21-28

The Syro-phoenician, even in the face of the apparently harsh words of Yeshua, continued in her faith, humbly approaching the Master for the sake of her daughter and such great faith was rewarded. How many people, having once been rebuked, would have sadly gone away, condemning their child to unimaginable suffering because the Master said "no" once? This woman did what most mothers do for the sake of their children; suffer virtually any hardship and opposition to get help for her beloved offspring.

We can argue if Yeshua was testing this woman by calling her a "dog" or if he seriously wanted her to just go away, but if the latter, her persistance convinced the Messiah of her faith and faith, above all other considerations, is what heals and saves.

We also know of a Samaritan woman who talked to Yeshua at a well (John 4:4-42) and the Master was bluntly honest with her, too:

He told her, "Go, call your husband and come back."

"I have no husband," she replied.

Jesus said to her, "You are right when you say you have no husband. The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true." -John 4:16-18

Nevertheless, he also tells her that he is the "living water" and that "..whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." (John 4:14) which is somewhat confusing if he otherwise didn't want to give her the time of day. In fact, something amazing happens as a result of this "chance" encounter:

Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman's testimony, "He told me everything I ever did." So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. And because of his words many more became believers. They said to the woman, "We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world." -John 4:39-42

Yeshua actually stayed with the Samaritans for two days (in those days, Jews and Samaritans didn't particularly get along, so this was at least unusual if not unheard of) and he spoke to them all directly, and not just to the one Samaritan woman. As a result, many of the Samaritans came to faith and believed "this man really is the Savior of the world" (emphasis mine).

One of the arguments in strict Messianic Judaism is that, because Yeshua came only for the lost sheep of Israel, we must take his words and teachings within that context rather than applying them liberally to all believers, Jewish and Gentile alike. I've been told that, while Gentiles can read and study the teachings of Yeshua from the Gospels, they must all be understood specifically as teachings to the Jews and not to the Gentile nations. I have a few problems with that understanding.

I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me - just as the Father knows me and I know the Father - and I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. -John 10:14-16

"They too will listen to my voice.." (emphasis mine). This is a very important saying of the Master and indicates his direct intent to include the Gentile nations as his "flock" and his declaration that he is the "Good Shepherd" to the Gentile "sheep" as well as the Jewish "sheep". It is also a passage that I've never seen quoted in strict Messianic Jewish writings (though of course, I haven't read them all). I was a tad surprised that I didn't find an analysis of this passage in Mark Kinzer's Postmissionary Messianic Judaism: Redefining Christian Engagement with the Jewish People. When I was reading and reviewing Dr. Kinzer's book, I thought he would find it necessary to offer his understanding of this critical passage, particularly in light of his proposal of Bilateral Ecclesiology as a method of healing the schism between believing Jews and Gentiles. One cannot discuss the relationship between Jewish and Gentile disciples of the Master without considering the "Good Shepherd". Then, there are also these words:

Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." -Matthew 28:16-20

Let's read part of that again:

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you... (emphasis mine)

Just so we're clear on this, let's find out what a disciple is:

one who accepts and assists in spreading the doctrines of another: as a : one of the twelve in the inner circle of Christ's followers according to the Gospel accounts b : a convinced adherent of a school or individual -Merriam-Webster Dictionary

That's the dictionary definition. Let's take a look at a couple of other viewpoints. Bible.org states that the Christian definition is:

In Ancient Greek, the verb manthano is used to denote the process by which one acquired theoretical knowledge. A disciple was a learner. A man was known as a mathetes or disciple when he bound himself to another in order to acquire his practical and theoretical knowledge. The word was sometimes nearly synonymous with the term apprentice. There was never a disciple without a master or teacher. In some Greek circles the teacher was paid by his disciples.

The commentary from Bible.org goes on to make this statement about Rabbinic Judaism's interpretation of a disciple:

As R. T. France has observed, “Every Jewish teacher worth his salt had his circle of ‘disciples’ who ‘followed’ him (literally walking behind him as he rode or walked ahead), looked after his daily needs, and soaked up his teaching. Their teacher was the most important person in their Lives.”

In Judaism one must learn not only the Old Testament Scriptures, but also the oral traditions, the traditions of the fathers. One would attach himself to a Rabbi, who would serve as a kind of mediator between the student and the Scriptures. One dared not to interpret the Scriptures independently, and could only speak with authority after years of study under a master. Since there were several masters, there sprang up several schools of rabbinical thought, each in competition with the others.

Although I can't find the specific sources, in Rabbinic Judaism in days gone by a disciple would attempt to imitate his Master in every aspect of life, including how he dressed, how he ate, how he spoke, as well as what he taught. Some stories (and I don't know how true these are) say that a few disciples even went to the extreme of hiding in the Master's home to secretly observe how the Master relieved himself and even how he made love to his wife.

I know, those last bits seem a bit bold, but I include them to illustrate that a disciple in Jewish tradition is not just a convert or a "classroom student", but someone who learns by imitating the actions and teachings of the Master teaching him.

How do we apply this to Matthew 28 and the Gentiles? So far, we can conclude that although Yeshua came for the lost sheep of Israel, he did not limit himself in absolute terms from Gentiles and in fact, it seems that the only Gentiles he had anything to do with were those who approached him specifically as a matter of faith. Beyond that, Yeshua stated his intent to be a Good Shepherd to both the Jewish and Gentile flocks and out of two pens to be one shepherd to one flock. He also said that he wanted his Jewish disciples to teach the Gentiles to become disciples and to teach the Gentile disciples everything he had taught the Jewish disciples.

When I've mentioned that last comment before, the response from the MJ/BE perspective was to say that Yeshua taught "mainly moral law", as a way of expressing that he did not teach Jewish distinctiveness and thus, such specific Jewish behavior was not intended to be passed on to the Gentiles. Maybe so and maybe not, but I suspect that the answer to that question lies in the writings of the Apostles, which I'll cover in my next blog.

NOTE: Judah Gabriel recently posted a paper written by J.K. McGee on his blog titled "One Law for All". The timing is very good and should add some perspective to what I've already learned in this area from my recent studies as well as providing additional dimension to the next part of this series.

One final point to consider. You may assume that the only reason Yeshua came "for the lost sheep of Israel" was that they were "the lost sheep of Israel". He was and is the Messiah, so what else should he be doing? I agree, but I think there was another reason that has a direct application to the rest of the world.

It is too small a thing for you to be my servant
to restore the tribes of Jacob
and bring back those of Israel I have kept.
I will also make you a light for the Gentiles,
that you may bring my salvation to the ends of the earth. -Isaiah 49:6

Israel was always intended to be an example; a light to the nations, leading the pagan Gentiles to the One God. If "salvation is from the Jews" (John 4:22), then the leaders and the examples who draw the Gentiles to the Messiah must be the believing Jewish people. Beyond what I've said before, perhaps another reason Yeshua went to the lost sheep of Israel was so that they could be found and then go to the lost sheep of the nations. Food for thought.