In Touch Quarter 2 - 2018

More documents

Info

Editorial Jacob Vince Stewards of the Vineyard About us CFI-UK seeks to bless Israel by means of practical and moral support, and to serve the Church in teaching about God’s purposes for Israel and the Hebraic heritage of our faith. CFI-UK also produces a monthly Prayer Letter, an audio Middle East Report and distributes the Haverim Hebraic teaching CDs. Please send for full details of projects in Israel and also the teaching resources available. As an educational charity, we carry a variety of resources relevant to our purpose. We do not necessarily endorse every view expressed by our guest writers or authors. Published by: CFI Charitable Trust PO Box 2687 Eastbourne BN22 7LZ Tel: 01323 410 810 Fax: 01323 410 211 Email: info@cfi.org.uk www.cfi.org.uk facebook.com/cfiuk twitter.com/cfi_uk Registered Charity No. 1101899 Registered Office c/o Caladine, Chantry House 22 Upperton Road Eastbourne, BN21 1BF Company No: 0498515 VAT Registration No: GB678780275 Front Cover Image: Vineyard, Israel You will remember the story Jesus tells where the landowner planted a vineyard and rented it out to tenants. When he sent servants to the harvest they were beaten. Finally he sends his son, who they throw out of the vineyard, killing him. Jesus related this story to the kingdom of God, saying it will be taken from those tenants and handed to other tenants. In Matthew the story comes after Jesus has cleared out the temple courts and in Luke after Jesus’ authority has been questioned by the religious leaders. Often this passage is seen as taking away from the Jews and giving to the Gentiles, or taking away from Israel and handing to the Church 1 . But actually, Jesus is not speaking to Israel as a whole or the Jews as a whole, he is speaking to the religious authorities of his day in Jerusalem, who claim the authority of the prophets as custodians of the truth about God, but are not doing with it what they should. So what happens is that Jesus takes the responsibility away from these Jewish authorities and ‘gives it to the gentiles and the Church?’ No! Rather he gives the responsibility to new Jewish custodians, apostle-disciples, to record the further unfolding of Jesus’ words and actions in the apostles’ teaching (Acts 2:42) to which the Early Church devoted themselves, as should we. Look again at Jesus’ words in the gospel record of Matthew, “Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit. … When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard Jesus’ parables, they knew he was talking about ‘them’. They looked for a way to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowd because the people held that he was a prophet” (Matthew 21:43; 45-46). Then similarly in Mark, “Then the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders looked for a way to arrest him because they knew he had spoken the parable against ‘them’. But they were afraid of the crowd; so they left him and went away” (Mark 12:12). And finally in Luke, “The teachers of the law and the chief priests looked for a way to arrest him immediately, because they knew he had spoken this parable against ‘them’. But they were afraid of the people” (Luke 20:19). So we see that it was not taken away from the Jewish people as a whole but rather the leaders of the day. This enables us to link the Jewish prophets of old, whom the religious leaders in Jesus’ day claimed as their authority, with Jesus’ Jewish apostle-disciples, including Paul as one untimely born (1 Corinthians 15:8). They were tasked as his witnesses (Luke 24:48) to write down their eyewitness statement of all Jesus began to do and to teach (Acts 1:1). All the writers of the complete canon of Scripture, ‘lawyers’, prophets, psalmists and apostles, are Jewish 2 . God sets the parameters in the Law, shows how these are outworked in the Prophets, reiterates them in the Psalms, which in the Hebrew order ends with a summary in the Chronicles, so completing the first three parts of the canon of scripture, to which in due season are added the Apostles’ teaching. “God in his wisdom said,’I will send them prophets and apostles.’” (Luke 11:49) As the apostle Peter writes, “I want you to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the command given by our Lord and Saviour through your apostles.” (2 Peter 3:2). We are called to “correctly handle the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15), “think about such things” and “put into practice” (Philippians 4:8-9). 1. It does talk about handing to ‘a people’, (today one might say the ordinary people), so in this sense it could mean the Church as a people, but if so the care is given through Jewish apostle-disciples. 2. The final quarter of our Bible was selected on the basis of it having Jewish apostolic authority. 2 IN TOUCH • 2 nd Quarter 2018
CFI-UK Event Holocaust Memorial Day 2018 Julia Soakell As we look back at the persecution of the Jewish people, the Holocaust and the atrocities that followed, many hundreds of Jews, Christians, CFI supporters and members of the public, took the time in January to remember, and indeed promise never to forget, as they marked the UK’s Holocaust Memorial Day (HMD) for 2018. Following Jewish tradition, seen on the now famous film Schindler’s List, the CFI Northern Regional event at Hollybush Christian Fellowship, Thirsk, saw over a hundred people lay stones in an Act of Remembrance. CFI’s David Soakell, Church Liaison Officer, spoke at the event. Comments were passed on saying it should be an annual event, and that it was both a great success and a deeply moving service. It was organised by Glynis Brooks, Regional Link for Yorkshire, Liz Palmer and a team of supporters. A collection at this event was sent to the CFI Jerusalem ‘Forsake Them Not’ project in Israel. Two of the CFI Regional Links, Philip Aitchison (Scottish Borders) and Moira Dare Edwards (Essex) hosted photographic exhibitions called No Childs Play. Philip’s event in Hawick was held in the local library, where local High School pupils and members of the public also heard first-hand testimony of two students from Jedburgh Grammar School, who gave accounts of their trips to the concentration camps in Auschwitz, as well as a presentation of ‘Children in the Holocaust’ by Dr Max Debono- DeLaurentis [of MMDL Discernment and Study Ministry, www.maxddl.org]. Moira’s exhibition was part of a week-long event, which has been strongly supported in her area for many years. A lot of hard work is involved each year but pupils in this area have been visiting Moira’s events over many years now and this will bear a great legacy in their hearts. Judy Johnson, Regional Link for Dorset, reported that an event at Winchester Minster was a great occasion where members of the local synagogue mingled with Christians from the area and conversed about many related issues, building up trust and good relationships. David Walker, Regional Link in the West Midlands, assisted and led events in late January. He had the help of Frank Hackett, Church Link, and Black Country Friends of Israel, where again members of the Central Synagogue attended the event and held a collection for the CFI ‘Forsake Them Not’ project. CFI were also involved or ran events in Middlesbrough and Sunderland. Don and Deana Leather, Church Links for New Life Church Billingham, arranged a scheme with the help of Julia Soakell to give each child in their Sunday School and youth group an age-appropriate book, highlighting the Holocaust from an educational basis. Church Links also attended and organised events for Holocaust Memorial Day, including Jennifer Nevill at Longton Elim Church, Stoke on Trent, where the pastor, local deputy mayor and Steven Jaffe from the Board of Deputies were special guests. Pam Wyles, Church Link, marked the day with a showing of the film ‘Jacob’s Tears’ and a time of prayer, showing that small and large events to mark HMD are equally important – and that CFI supporters can be a great asset to churches and communities to keep this remembrance alive each year. 2 nd Quarter 2018 • IN TOUCH 3
Page 1: 2 nd Quarter 2018 • No 195 Christ
Page 5 and 6: with you Satan! for it is written:
Page 7 and 8: particular is astonishing - no wond
Page 9 and 10: together in a way that does not hav
Page 11 and 12: Resources 2018 www.cfi.org.uk/shop

In Touch Quarter 2 - 2018

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?