We recently went to a wedding out of state.  We prayed that the trip would be a blessing and that we would be used by the Living God to touch lives.

While traveling from the wedding ceremony to the reception, we passed a church called Mars Hill Baptist Church.

I commented to my husband, “I really love how Rav Shaul (The Apostle Paul) gave us a plan for how to communicate with people who have no knowledge of the Bible or the God of the Bible.  Paul addressed pagan Greeks in Athens at Mars Hill (the Areopagus–’Hill or Ares’, the god of war) in the Book of Acts chapter 17.  While we drove, I opened my Bible to Acts and outlined the principles Paul delineated in sharing the truth with people who were totally disconnected from Judeo or Judeo-Christian thought.

Here’s what I told my husband.  First, please read what I told my husband; then see how, later that evening, the Chinese waiter we met found great fortune!

Acts 17:16-23:  A Summary

Paul was in Athens waiting for his companions, Silas and Timothy.  The Scripture says that “…his spirit was being provoked within him as he was observing the city full of idols.”  He was reasoning in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Gentiles, and in the market place every day. Epicurean and Stoic philosophers were conversing with him and saying, “What would this idle babbler wish to say?”  Others, “He seems to be a proclaimer of strange deities,” — because he was preaching Yeshua (Ieosus in Greek, Jesus in English) and the resurrection.”

They brought Paul to the Areopagus (the Hill of Ares, the Greek god of war) wanting to know what this new teaching was.  They told Paul he was “bringing some strange things to our (their) ears; so we (they) want to know what these things mean.”  So Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, “Men of Athens, I observe that you are very religious in all respects.  For while I was passing through and examining the objects of your worship, I also found an altar with this inscription, “TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.’  Therefore, what you worship in ignorance, this I proclaim to you.”

Paul’s Style and Wisdom In Communicating

• First, his radar equipment was on — “his spirit was being provoked within him as he was observing a city full of idols.”  Are you provoked when people are deceived — spending their time, talent, energies & money worshipping idols/false dreams/false gods, etc.?
• Then, he built a bridge. He acknowledged what was important to these people and their culture:  Religion.
• He spoke after studying their interests and told them that he checked out what was important to them (“examining the objects of your worship.”)
• He did not shrink back though he was with “sophisticated” thinkers: Epicurean and Stoic philosophers — knowing that the Truth of the Word, the Gospel, is stronger than the most sophisticated or arrogant thoughts of man.
• He also did not take offense and get sidetracked by their nasty words, having been called an “idle babbler”.  Instead, he had a spirit of boldness, stood in the midst of this famous place and began to speak.

The Principles (Acts 17: 24-31)

• Paul distinguishes the God of Scripture from their gods:
  1. He lays the foundation that God created the heavens and earth and He is in charge!: “There is a God who made the world and all things in it.  He is Lord of heaven and earth.”
  2. This God is different than their gods for He does not dwell in temples made with hands.
  3. This God does not have needs (as opposed to pagan gods which need to rest, be fed, be fashioned and be fastened down!
  4. This God is not provincial:  He gives to all people life and breath and all things.
• Paul discusses how this God relates to them
  1. God made every nation of mankind from one man, establishing the unity amongst us…we are all related! (And, as he states a bit later, we all need to repent or we each will face judgment.)
  2. God determines appointed times and boundaries of their habitation.  These are not random boundaries, neither is this determination for random purposes, but in order “that people would seek Him if they might grope for Him.”
• Paul states mega-truths about God’s relationship to people:
  • God is not far from each one of us — no matter what our nationality or thinking system is!
  • In HIM we live, move, and have our being (exist).  Every breath comes from Him.  We are not our “own person”.
• Paul relates truth to their own Athenian experience to build an intellectual bridge:
  • “Even as some of your own poets have said, “For we also are His children.”
• Paul builds on their experience to distinguish truth from pagan thought:
  • “Being children of God we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art or thought of man.”
• Paul moves into the principles of the Gospel:  People will give an account for their lives and must repent
  • “Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent.”
• Paul declares that judgment is coming:
  • “He has fixed a day in which He will judge the inhabited earth in righteousness.”
• Paul reveals who the Judge is:
  • “…He will judge the inhabited earth in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed.
• Paul proves why the Judge has authority to judge: The Fact of the Resurrection
  • “..having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead.”

Some people, upon hearing about the resurrection of this Judge from the dead, sneered.  Some wanted to hear more.  Paul left.  He didn’t beg people.  He didn’t argue.  He also did not want to engage in fruitless conversation where people are “forever learning and NEVER coming to a knowledge of the truth.”

The Chinese Waiter

A few hours after the wedding reception we got hungry.  The weather was cold and damp.  Chinese food with hot Chinese tea sounded great.
We found a restaurant close by, went in, and ordered.  We asked for chopsticks.  I know about five or six Chinese words, and said, “thank you” in Chinese.  The waiter asked where I learned how to use chopsticks and the few Chinese expressions.  I shared that I have had Chinese friends since high school.

“Where are you from?” I asked.
“Beijing.  But, I lived in Chinatown in NY for a little while.”

“What is your religious background?”
“My parents are Buddhist.”

(He did not take ownership of that religion.)

“May I share something with you?”

I then took him through as much of Acts 17 as I could remember.  I told him how God loves him and though He spoke the universe into being, created the boundaries for the nations and knows the number of hairs on his head.  The waiter marveled at this truth about God knowing the number of hairs on his head!

“He does?”

“Yes, He does.”

I shared as much of the rest of the above principles as I could remember and gave the waiter opportunity to receive forgiveness from the Judge, because the Judge also paid the penalty for the waiter’s sin.

I don’t do easy believism stuff – “Ask Jesus into your heart.”  Acts 17 and many other passages of Scripture emphasize repentance.  I took him through the Ten Commandments – a good thing to do – because even if people think they haven’t sinned since they haven’t murdered, committed adultery or stolen, who has not lied or secretly coveted what someone else has?  (Commandments 9 and 10!)

The waiter humbly bowed his head, eagerly confessed his sins and believed and confessed Yeshua as his savior.  He kept saying how thankful he was.
We sent him a Chinese New Testament and Psalms, and a Chinese book on apologetics.  When we called him to see how he was doing, he related how grateful he was.

What can we learn from this experience of reading the Scripture and seeing an immediate application?

Don’t categorize or prejudge people.  Don’t assume people aren’t open because they come from a culture whose thought is so radically different from Biblical thought.  Let your spirit be provoked as Paul’s was that people were in bondage to falsehood and would be facing an eternity separated from the Lord of heaven and earth.

You never know what God’s purposes are for you in everyday situations.  So, if you are a believer, remain open to whom the LORD of the Harvest wants to send you on a daily basis.

God’s ways are not ours with respect to whom we think we are equipped to minister.  Remember, Paul was “advancing in Judaism beyond many of his contemporaries among his countrymen, being more extremely zealous for his ancestral traditions. (Galatians 1:13-16)  He was “A Hebrew of Hebrews, as to the Torah (Law), a Pharisee.”…yet with all his sophisticated Jewish learning, the LORD sent him to the Gentiles, to reach out to people who neither knew nor cared about Paul’s intense rabbinic training and knowledge of Judaism.  God’s economy often does not make sense.  Peter, an unlearned (in terms of Judaism, Torah, etc.) fisherman, was made the apostle to the circumcision (Jewish people).
You never know to whom you are talking, or to whom the LORD wants you to speak.

There is a rich harvest for Yahveh’s glory out there.  Yeshua said the fields were white unto harvest.  Therefore, beseech the LORD of the harvest to send laborers into the harvest…even into a Chinese restaurant!

If you are seeking to know the LOVE God has for you and the TRUTH and would like to cancel that “Judgment” appointment:

Perhaps you have searched high and low for “that crazy missing part”, knowing that something is missing in your life.  You may have dabbled in different religions and read all sorts of philosophies (as the Epicureans and Stoics of old – one indulging, hoping to find happiness, the other withholding and living stoically, hoping to find meaning).  Perhaps you have even paid money for self improvement seminars and have come away feeling even emptier.  Please consider what you have just read: that the Scriptures declare that all people have an appointment with the Judge of the whole earth.  Believers in Yeshua had that appointment, but they will never be judged for their sins because the Sinless Messiah was judged two thousand years ago on the tree (cross) for them.  He made atonement for their sins and yours… the difference is they took the offer of forgiveness, love and eternal life.

If you, too, want to clear your conscience, find LOVE that lasts forever, and have everlasting life, then:

1. Speak to the Creator.  His name is Yahveh…the God of Israel…the God of the Bible.  The call is free!
2. Agree with Him that you deserve to be judged for actions, thoughts and/or words that you have done that have violated His law.
3. Tell him about those actions, thoughts and/or words.  This is what the word “confession” means:  “to agree with”; you agree with Him that these things violated His Holy standard and are worthy of judgment.  Reviewing the 10 Commandments may help jog your memory. (See Exodus Chapter 20 verses 1-17)
4. Acknowledge your rebellion toward Him and that in many respects you did not realize that in HIM you live, and move, and have your being.
5. Believe that Yeshua the Messiah, loved you so much that He gave His sinless life for you.  Acknowledge that His work alone, not your good deeds, are sufficient to soothe a Holy God, who, though HE IS LOVE, must punish sin.
6. In prayer, receive Messiah Yeshua into your life and heart.  (Say audibly:  “Messiah Yeshua, I receive you now into my life and heart”)
7. Tell someone else what happened.  For it is written in Romans chapter 10, verse 9 – 13:  “that if you confess with your mouth Yeshua as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.  For the Scripture says,  “WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.”  For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him; for “WHOEVER WILL CALL ON THE NAME OF THE LORD (YAHVEH) WILL BE SAVED.”

The answer is “jugo de manzana”, literally translating to: “Juice from (or of) apple.”

For a great story, please read on…

Several years ago, exhausted and slouched in a chair, I tried my best to be responsive to a family member.  He had just returned from school.  How was school today?  What did you learn in Spanish class?  He said, “We are working on how to say different foods in Spanish.”  I said, “Oh, like jugo de naranja, for orange juice.”  I had remembered a little from several years of high school Spanish.

My mind wandered.  I thought, “How do you say apple juice in Spanish?”  Has that ever happened to you…you know something; it just doesn’t come into your mind?  Thank you middle age!

Well, I decided to take a walk to check the mail.  Our mail was delivered to a central location about three quarters of a mile from the house.  As it was late fall, it was beginning to get dark.  I thought to myself, “You don’t start walking by yourself in the dark.”  I reasoned that I really needed to check the mail and get some exercise.  So I went.

For the first half mile not a soul was around.  I was picking up speed as the sun had set.  Finally I saw a woman walking slowly.  I said a quick hello as I rushed by.  Then in my heart I heard, “Go back and speak with her.”  I turned around and introduced myself.  She was an older woman with a Spanish accent.  She was from Puerto Rico.  She introduced herself and then she told me her last name.  It was German.  I asked her if her husband was also from Puerto Rico.  “No, he is from Germany.”  I made a quick assessment (wrong) that he could be one of those anti-Semites that went to Latin America and other Spanish speaking countries after World War II.

She interrupted my thoughts, “He is a Holocaust survivor.  He was six years old when his mother was sent to Auschwitz.  When she got out five years later and went to retrieve him at the orphanage, he did not recognize her.”

My throat tightened as I tried my best to hold back sobs.  Can you imagine being a mother and not have your child recognize you, particularly after years of devastation, deprivation, and degradation?

We changed topics and began to speak about politics.  I decided not to check the mail.  She said, “Would you like to meet my husband?”  I said, “Sure” and we headed back to her home, which was in the same direction as mine.

When her husband, George, opened the door, I saw a six foot man about seventy years old.  I burst into tears.  I did not see a seventy year old, but a six year old who had been devastated by the Holocaust.

The couple tried to comfort me.  I told them I did not need to be comforted.  I was sharing in the grief, the generational grief that my people have gone through.  I explained in English and Spanish that my tears were because of his pain, which I felt.

Maria then asked if I wanted something to drink.  She asked, “Would you like some apple juice?”  “Apple juice!  By the way, how do you say that in Spanish?”

“Jugo de manzana.”

Then I told them that an hour and a half before I sat tired in a chair thinking about how to say that.  They were amazed.  So was I.

Sometimes we think we are alone in our thoughts.  The Living God knows our thoughts…and showed me He “hears” me…whether I speak, cry, or think!

Three weeks later I came back to their house with the Prophetic Prints.  I gave them their choice.  “Choose as many as you would like.”  George selected “A Father to the Fatherless is God in His Holy Habitation.” (Psalm 68:5)  I insisted that he choose more than a 5 x 7″ print.  He then selected the lithograph, “The Prophetic Regathering of Israel.”

We chatted a little and I began to leave.  Maria walked me to the car.  I knew George was to have another print.  I felt I could not leave the driveway until he was given the framed “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves those crushed in spirit” (Psalm 34:18)  that I had brought.

“Maria, the LORD wants George to have this.”  Maria happily took the framed print, confirming that she knew he was to have it.

I have since bumped into George on several occasions – in the grocery store, on a sidewalk… and at another amazing time which will be in an upcoming post involving another Holocaust survivor!

Please pray for this couple–for the love of God, the healing power of the Word and the Good News of salvation to enter their hearts and lives.  Surely, the LORD sets up these divine appointments with the purpose of showing His tender love and grace, wanting to fulfill what is written in Jeremiah 31:2-3:  “Thus says Yahveh, “The people who survived the sword found grace in the wilderness–Israel, when it went to find its rest.”  The LORD appeared to him from afar, saying, “I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have drawn you with lovingkindness.”

Last year, my elderly cousin, a Conservative/Orthodox Jewish woman, whom I will call Ida, asked me if there was an afterlife.  She had asked the same question of her rabbi and a pastor at her grandson’s wedding (it was an intermarriage).

Here’s what I wrote to Ida…

It’s always wonderful to speak with you!  I am glad Sam and Angela had a beautiful wedding.

You told me a few weeks ago that you asked your rabbi if there was an afterlife.  Then you told me you also asked the same question of the pastor that officiated at the wedding.

Here’s what the Hebrew Scriptures teach:

When King David had a son with Bathsheba (before Solomon) and that first baby was very ill, King David fasted.  Then the baby died.  Afterward King David ate food.  He said to his servants, “While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept; for I said, ‘Who knows, the L-RD may be gracious to me, that the child may live.’  “But now he has died; why should I fast?  Can I bring him back again?  I will go to him, but he will not return to me.”  (2 Samuel chapter 12 verses 22-23)  King David obviously knew that the baby went somewhere after his death, and after his own death, he would also go there.

Furthermore, in the twelfth chapter of Daniel the Prophet it says, “Now at that time Michael (the archangel who protects Israel), the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people, will arise.  And there will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time; and at that time your people, everyone who is found written in the book, will be rescued.  Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground (i.e. who are dead) will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt…  Go your way, Daniel, for these words are concealed and sealed up until the end time.  Many will be purged, purified and refined, but the wicked will act wickedly; and none of the wicked will understand, but those who have insight will understand…But as for you, go you way to the end; then you will enter into rest and rise again for your allotted portion at the end of the age.”  (Daniel chapter 12 verses 1,2,9,10,13)

King Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes 3 verse 11, “…He has also set eternity in their heart…”

Because He has set eternity in your heart, Ida:  That is why you are asking if there is an afterlife.  Generally we are distracted by daily chores, worries, activities, and fulfilling dreams in this life, and rarely, if ever, think about eternal matters.  However, you have asked one of the most important questions that can be asked!  Yes, there is an afterlife.  The issue is:  Will you, according to the Prophet Daniel, spend eternity in the Holy One of Israel’s presence, or in a place of disgrace and everlasting contempt? What is the basis of “rising to everlasting life” vs. everlasting separation from the Living God?

Here is the answer!

Two thousand years ago there were some Jewish siblings: Lazarus, Martha and Mary.  Lazarus was sick.  Yeshua (Jesus) knew about this.  Then Lazarus died.  “Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off; and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary, to console them concerning their brother.  Martha then said to Yeshua, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.  Even now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give You.”

Yeshua said to her, “Your brother will rise again.”

Martha said to Him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.”

Yeshua said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die.  Do you believe this?”

She said to Him, “Yes, Lord; I have believed that You are the Messiah, the Son of God even He who comes into the world.”  (John chapter 11 verses 18-27)

Then, Yeshua proved who He said He was by raising Lazarus from the dead! 

Also, a young Jewish ruler asked Yeshua, “Rabbi, what must I do that I may obtain eternal life?” (Matthew chapter 19 verse 16)

Clearly, two thousand years ago the idea of eternal life and the kingdom of heaven was part of Jewish thought.  The liberal rabbis of today, who discount the authority of the Scriptures, have dismissed this…possibly because of the agony of the Holocaust and the subsequent feeling of being abandoned by the G-d of Israel.

Nicodemus, the Teacher of Israel, came by night to Yeshua, afraid to be seen by his peers in the Sanhedrin.  After telling him that he must be born from above (born again), Yeshua said, “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness (Numbers chapter 21 verses 9-21) even so must the Son of Man be lifted up so that whoever believes in Him will have eternal life  (John chapter 3 verse 15)  Yeshua takes an event from Jewish history to explain what He came to do.  You see, fifteen hundred years prior, some Israelites were bitten by vipers and died in the wilderness.  Moses was told to make a bronze serpent and set it on a standard.  “And it came about, that if a serpent bit any man, when he looked to the bronze serpent, he lived.”  Messiah was lifted up on the tree (cross), raised from the dead, and gives eternal life to those who look to (believe in) Him.

Yeshua continues to tell Nicodemus:  “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.“  Truly, truly I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.” (John chapter 5 vs. 24)

What is this judgment?

“Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them.  And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds.  And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them; and they were judged, everyone according to their deeds.  Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire.  This is the second death, the lake of fire.  And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire (Revelation chapter 20 verses 11-15)

All people have sinned and fall short of God’s righteous standard.  The composite of all the sins in this world is reflected in a world that is out of control with pain, violence, separation, poverty, injustice, etc.

However, the good news is the Messiah bore our sins in His body on the tree when He purposefully came to provide atonement for us.  His blood atonement covers our sins, just like the Passover lamb’s blood on the lintel of the doorpost spared every Israelite firstborn who came inside the house, on whose doorposts the blood had been applied. (see “Post #1!”)

“For the penalty of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Yeshua the Messiah.” (Romans 6:23)  Yeshua is the Passover Lamb who delivers from condemnation, all and only those, who believe in Him.

Ida, The Scriptures are clear that there is no other way to obtain eternal life.

During Hanukkah two thousand years ago, Messiah Yeshua said, as recorded in John chapter 10 verse 18, “No man takes My life, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again.  This commandment I received from My Father.” So much for the outrageous history of blaming Jews for the killing of Christ. Incidentally, please read Acts 4: 27-28 which clearly states who is indeed responsible, humanly speaking, for His death–”Herod (a convert to Judaism; Pontius Pilate–a Gentile; the Gentiles, and the people of Israel to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predestined to occur.”  Wow!  The God of Israel predestined the Messiah to be put to death for the sins of all people.

This correlates with what we read in Isaiah chapter 53:  “It pleased Yahveh to crush Him, putting Him to grief; if He would render Himself as a guilt offering, He will see his offspring, He will prolong his days…”  This Messiah would be the guilt offering for Israel and the nations.  He would then see and have his days prolonged, clearly speaking of resurrection!. 

There is a lot here, Ida.  The main thing is the Good News:  The God of Israel loves you and your family.  He is offering you and them eternal life.  But an offer does not take effect until there is an acceptance of that specific offer.  This is a legal transaction resulting in grace and eternal life!  If anyone would come to Him, it must be completely on His terms and not our own! His terms are stated in Romans chapter 10, “That if you confess with your mouth Yeshua is LORD and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation, for the Hebrew Scripture says, ‘Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.’”

For thirty four years I have prayed for you, almost daily.  If the nature of life and death; and these issues of eternal life and appearing before the Living God, either on our own merits/good works which are insufficient because they are tainted, or in the merits of Messiah’s perfect work on the tree, weren’t so serious, I wouldn’t be praying for you, nor would I have written you about what you could see as offensive.

I know if you humble yourself and ask the God of Israel if Messiah Yeshua is in fact the means by which you, Ida, can know you have eternal life when you pass from this place of pain...He will show you.

I love you!