WELCOME !
Southern Maine & the N.H. Seacoast Regions
FIRST & ONLY 'MESSIANIC CONGREGATION' !
' United in Messiah ' is a congregation of Jews and Gentiles who believe in the Messiah Yeshua (Jesus), and who worship the God of Israel in a Jewish way. We are committed to 'restoring' the Jewish Roots of our faith in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Our purpose is to proclaim Messiah Yeshua to Jewish and non-Jewish people, connect them personally with the God of Israel through prayer and worship, draw them into fellowship, lead them to spiritual maturity, equip them to serve, and inspire believers everywhere to reconnect with their Jewish roots.
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'Much Alike the Early Apostolic Church'
1. We believe the Scriptures to be the only inspired Word of God. The Word of God includes the Tanach (Old Testament) and the Brit Chadashah (New Testament).
2 Timothy 3:16: All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.
2. We believe in the Elohim of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the one true God Deut. 6:4: Hear, O Israel: The LORD (YHVH) our God is one LORD, and Yeshua, God's Son, the only Messiah for the Jew and Gentile. Acts 4:12: Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
3. We believe in the absolute unity of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. God is 'Echad', One. Deut. 6:4: Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD.
They are all one and it is a mystery that makes them one. This is clearly Biblically-based but not fully understood by finite man.
Genesis 1:2: And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
John 1:14: He was in the beginning with God. 3All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.
4. We believe in Deity of the Messiah as proclaimed in the Scriptures:
Isaiah 7:14: Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.
Micah 5:2: But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Thou you are little among the thousands of Judah,out of you shall come forth to Me; The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting.
John 1: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2The same was in the beginning with God.
John 10:27-38. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. 28And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. 29My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. 30I and My Father are one… If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; 38but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him.”
5. We believe in the miraculous birth of the Messiah by the virgin Miryam:
Isaiah 7:14: Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel;
Matthew 1:18-25: Now the birth of the Messiah Yeshua was as follows: After His mother Miryam was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. 19Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. 20But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Miryam your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.22So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: 23“Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” translated, “God with us”. 24Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, 25and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name Yeshua.
6. We believe it's God's desire to redeem all mankind.
2 Peter 3:9. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
His means of atonement for the world is through the suffering, death and resurrection of Messiah, Yeshua.
Isaiah 53: 4-11: Surely He has borne our griefs, And carried our sorrows. Yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions,bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him… Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand. He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, for He shall bear their iniquities, and by His stripes we are healed.
Lev. 17:11: For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that makes an atonement for the soul.
John 14:1-6: Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. 2In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.4And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know… I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
We receive this salvation by faith in Yeshua and God's grace.
Ephesians 2:4-8: But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Messiah (for by grace you have been saved), 6and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Messiah Yeshua, 7that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Messiah Yeshua. 8For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9not of works, lest anyone should boast.
Romans 3:23; 6:22, 23; 10:8-13: For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in the Messiah Yeshua, 25whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood… But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life. 23For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Yeshua the Messiah, our Lord… 8But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): 9that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Yeshua, and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 11For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.” 12For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. 13For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
7. We believe that the body of Messiah, Yeshua is represented by Jews and Gentiles who live for him according to a Biblical standard. There is no division between Jew and Gentile in the life of the congregation.
Eph 2:11-18: Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh—who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands— 12that at that time you were without the Messiah, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13But now in Yeshua the Messiah you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Messiah. 14For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, 15having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, 16and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. 17And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near. 18For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.
Romans 10: 11,12: For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.” 12For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. 13For “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
8. We believe that God is in covenant relationship with Israel. They are His people created by Him to bring Messiah to the world.
Genesis 22:18. “In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”
God will be faithful to fulfill His promises with Israel. He has promised them the land of Israel. He will not fail to keep His promise,
Jeremiah 31:31-37. 31“Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, 32not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. 33“But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the LORD, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34“They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the LORD, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.” Thus says the LORD, Who gives the sun for light by day, and the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night, Who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar; The LORD of hosts is His name: “If this fixed order depart from before Me,” declares the LORD, “Then the offspring of Israel also will cease from being a nation before Me forever.” Thus says the LORD: “If the heavens above can be measure, and the foundations of the earth searched out below, Then I will also cast off all the offspring of Israel, for all that they have done,” declares the LORD.
The church does not fulfill or replace Israel, they come alongside Israel.
Romans 11:11-32. 11I say then, they (Israel) did not stumble so as to fall, did they? May it never be! But by their transgression salvation has come to the Gentiles, to make them jealous. 12Now if their (Israel’s) transgression is riches for the world and their failure is riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their fulfillment be! … 15For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? 16If the first piece of dough is holy, the lump is also; and if the root is holy, the branches are too…. Do not be conceited, but fear; 21for if God did not spare the natural branches (Israel), He will not spare you, either. 22Behold then the kindness and severity of God; to those who fell, severity, but to you, God’s kindness, if you continue in His kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off. 23And they (Israel) also, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again… a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; 26and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, “The Deliverer will come from Zion, He will remove ungodliness from Jacob… This is My covenant with them, When I take away their sins.”…From the standpoint of the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but from the standpoint of God’s choice they are beloved for the sake of the fathers; 29for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.30For just as you once were disobedient to God, but now have been shown mercy because of their disobedience, 31so these also now have been disobedient, that because of the mercy shown to you they also may now be shown mercy.
The Nation of Israel, in their unbelief, are like the proverbial Prodigal Son. They are always a child of the Father, but living outside of the blessing of the Father's estate, as long as they continue to reject their Messiah. The Father waits longingly for their return to receive their full inheritance. There is rejoicing in Heaven when any sinner comes back to the Father in repentance.
Luke 15:11-32: …But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. 21“And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22“But the father said to his slaves, ‘Quickly bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet; 23and bring the fattened calf, kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; 24for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.’ And they began to celebrate.’…
9. We believe that Messiah commanded all disciples to participate in mikvah (water) immersion as an outward sign of our inward faith, not for salvation. This is also an identification with our new life in Messiah His death and resurrection.
Acts 2:37-38: Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Yeshua the Messiah, for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.”
Acts 8:34-38. Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, “See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized? Then Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.”And he answered and said, “I believe that Yeshua the Messiah is the Son of God.”38So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him. 39Now when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, so that the eunuch saw him no more.
10. Every believer should participate in the ceremony of communion, which Yeshua established as a memorial for all believers, the night before he died, at His Passover meal:
Luke 22:17-20: And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He said, “Take this and share it among yourselves; 18for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine from now on until the kingdom of God comes.” 19And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” 20And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood.
Paul also writes in1 Cor. 11:23-34: 23For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Yeshua, in the night in which He was betrayed took bread; 24and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” 25In the same way He took the cup also after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” 26For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes. … For the Messiah, our Passover also has been sacrificed. 8Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
11. We believe that Yeshua will return again as He promised to remove/rescue the saints, judge the world and establish His kingdom in heaven and on earth for a literal thousand years,
Rev 20:1-12. And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; 3and he threw him into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he would not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed… And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Yeshua and because of the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Messiah for a thousand years. 5The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were completed. This is the first resurrection. 6Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Messiah and will reign with Him for a thousand years.
After He puts His enemies under His dominion, He will hand over the kingdom to the Father for all eternity,
1 Thess 4:13-18, 5:1-6. 13But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope. 14For if we believe that Yeshua the Messiah died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Yeshua. 15For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Messiah will rise first. 17Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord…. 2For you yourselves know full well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night. 3While they are saying, “Peace and safety!” then destruction will come upon them suddenly like labor pains upon a woman with child, and they will not escape. 4But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day would overtake you like a thief; 5for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of night, nor of darkness; 6so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober.
No man knows the day or hour of these occurrences.
Matthew 24:36: “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. 37“For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah. 38“For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be.
12. We believe that every member of the body of Messiah should strive to live a life that is holy and reflects a Biblical standard.
Gal 5:16-25. But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. 17For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. 18But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law. 19Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, 21envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24Now those who belong to Yeshua the Messiah have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.
We acknowledge man's continued struggle in striving against the sin nature, condemned by the Law of God.
Romans 7:4-25. What shall we say then? Is the Law sin? May it never be! On the contrary, I would not have come to know sin except through the Law; for I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said, “You shall not covet.” 8But sin, taking opportunity through the commandment, produced in me coveting of every kind… So then, the Law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good.13Therefore did that which is good become a cause of death for me? May it never be! Rather it was sin, in order that it might be shown to be sin by effecting my death through that which is good, so that through the commandment sin would become utterly sinful… 4For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin. 15For what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate. 16But if I do the very thing I do not want to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that the Law is good. 17So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. 18For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. 19For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. 20But if I am doing the very thing I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me…. 24Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? 25Thanks be to God through Yeshua Messiah, our Lord!
Yet, this does not give excuse to anyone who lives in the consistent practice of unrepented sin. We should live in purity and holiness, walking with, and focused on God.
1 John 1:5-10: 5This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. 6If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; 7but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us.
Ephesians 5:1-21: 3But immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints; 4and there must be no filthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks….17So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit, 19speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; 20always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah to God the Father; 21and be subject to one another in the fear of Messiah.
Forgiveness of sin by God does not mean we have been granted permission to sin; rather, it means we are free from being in bondage to sin.
Romans 6:1-7: What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? 2May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it? 3Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Messiah Yeshua have been baptized into His death? 4Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as the Messiah was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. 5For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; 7for he who has died is freed from sin.
13. We believe that the Ruach HaKodesh (God's Holy Spirit) gives spiritual gifts to believers, though no one particular gift is given to every believer.
1 Corinthians chapters 12, 13, 14:4Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. 6There are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons. 7But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good… 11But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually just as He wills…. 13For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit…. 27Now you are Messiah’s body, and individually members of it. 28And God has appointed in the church, first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, various kinds of tongues… 1If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing. 4Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, 5does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, 6does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; 7bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things…. 13But now abide these three; faith, hope, love; but the greatest of these is love.
What WE BELIEVE
1. We believe the Scriptures to be the only inspired Word of God. The Word of God includes the Tanach (Old Testament) and the Brit Chadashah (New Testament).
2 Timothy 3:16: All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.
2. We believe in the Elohim of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the one true God Deut. 6:4: Hear, O Israel: The LORD (YHVH) our God is one LORD, and Yeshua, God's Son, the only Messiah for the Jew and Gentile. Acts 4:12: Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
3. We believe in the absolute unity of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. God is 'Echad', One. Deut. 6:4: Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD.
They are all one and it is a mystery that makes them one. This is clearly Biblically-based but not fully understood by finite man.
Genesis 1:2: And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
John 1:14: He was in the beginning with God. 3All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.
4. We believe in Deity of the Messiah as proclaimed in the Scriptures:
Isaiah 7:14: Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.
Micah 5:2: But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Thou you are little among the thousands of Judah,out of you shall come forth to Me; The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting.
John 1: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2The same was in the beginning with God.
John 10:27-38. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. 28And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. 29My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. 30I and My Father are one… If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; 38but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him.”
5. We believe in the miraculous birth of the Messiah by the virgin Miryam:
Isaiah 7:14: Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel;
Matthew 1:18-25: Now the birth of the Messiah Yeshua was as follows: After His mother Miryam was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. 19Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. 20But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Miryam your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.22So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: 23“Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” translated, “God with us”. 24Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, 25and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name Yeshua.
6. We believe it's God's desire to redeem all mankind.
2 Peter 3:9. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
His means of atonement for the world is through the suffering, death and resurrection of Messiah, Yeshua.
Isaiah 53: 4-11: Surely He has borne our griefs, And carried our sorrows. Yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions,bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him… Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand. He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, for He shall bear their iniquities, and by His stripes we are healed.
Lev. 17:11: For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that makes an atonement for the soul.
John 14:1-6: Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. 2In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.4And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know… I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
We receive this salvation by faith in Yeshua and God's grace.
Ephesians 2:4-8: But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Messiah (for by grace you have been saved), 6and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Messiah Yeshua, 7that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Messiah Yeshua. 8For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9not of works, lest anyone should boast.
Romans 3:23; 6:22, 23; 10:8-13: For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in the Messiah Yeshua, 25whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood… But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life. 23For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Yeshua the Messiah, our Lord… 8But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): 9that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Yeshua, and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 11For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.” 12For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. 13For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
7. We believe that the body of Messiah, Yeshua is represented by Jews and Gentiles who live for him according to a Biblical standard. There is no division between Jew and Gentile in the life of the congregation.
Eph 2:11-18: Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh—who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands— 12that at that time you were without the Messiah, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13But now in Yeshua the Messiah you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Messiah. 14For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, 15having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, 16and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. 17And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near. 18For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.
Romans 10: 11,12: For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.” 12For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. 13For “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
8. We believe that God is in covenant relationship with Israel. They are His people created by Him to bring Messiah to the world.
Genesis 22:18. “In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”
God will be faithful to fulfill His promises with Israel. He has promised them the land of Israel. He will not fail to keep His promise,
Jeremiah 31:31-37. 31“Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, 32not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. 33“But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the LORD, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34“They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the LORD, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.” Thus says the LORD, Who gives the sun for light by day, and the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night, Who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar; The LORD of hosts is His name: “If this fixed order depart from before Me,” declares the LORD, “Then the offspring of Israel also will cease from being a nation before Me forever.” Thus says the LORD: “If the heavens above can be measure, and the foundations of the earth searched out below, Then I will also cast off all the offspring of Israel, for all that they have done,” declares the LORD.
The church does not fulfill or replace Israel, they come alongside Israel.
Romans 11:11-32. 11I say then, they (Israel) did not stumble so as to fall, did they? May it never be! But by their transgression salvation has come to the Gentiles, to make them jealous. 12Now if their (Israel’s) transgression is riches for the world and their failure is riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their fulfillment be! … 15For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? 16If the first piece of dough is holy, the lump is also; and if the root is holy, the branches are too…. Do not be conceited, but fear; 21for if God did not spare the natural branches (Israel), He will not spare you, either. 22Behold then the kindness and severity of God; to those who fell, severity, but to you, God’s kindness, if you continue in His kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off. 23And they (Israel) also, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again… a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; 26and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, “The Deliverer will come from Zion, He will remove ungodliness from Jacob… This is My covenant with them, When I take away their sins.”…From the standpoint of the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but from the standpoint of God’s choice they are beloved for the sake of the fathers; 29for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.30For just as you once were disobedient to God, but now have been shown mercy because of their disobedience, 31so these also now have been disobedient, that because of the mercy shown to you they also may now be shown mercy.
The Nation of Israel, in their unbelief, are like the proverbial Prodigal Son. They are always a child of the Father, but living outside of the blessing of the Father's estate, as long as they continue to reject their Messiah. The Father waits longingly for their return to receive their full inheritance. There is rejoicing in Heaven when any sinner comes back to the Father in repentance.
Luke 15:11-32: …But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. 21“And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22“But the father said to his slaves, ‘Quickly bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet; 23and bring the fattened calf, kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; 24for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.’ And they began to celebrate.’…
9. We believe that Messiah commanded all disciples to participate in mikvah (water) immersion as an outward sign of our inward faith, not for salvation. This is also an identification with our new life in Messiah His death and resurrection.
Acts 2:37-38: Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Yeshua the Messiah, for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.”
Acts 8:34-38. Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, “See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized? Then Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.”And he answered and said, “I believe that Yeshua the Messiah is the Son of God.”38So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him. 39Now when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, so that the eunuch saw him no more.
10. Every believer should participate in the ceremony of communion, which Yeshua established as a memorial for all believers, the night before he died, at His Passover meal:
Luke 22:17-20: And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He said, “Take this and share it among yourselves; 18for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine from now on until the kingdom of God comes.” 19And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” 20And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood.
Paul also writes in1 Cor. 11:23-34: 23For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Yeshua, in the night in which He was betrayed took bread; 24and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” 25In the same way He took the cup also after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” 26For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes. … For the Messiah, our Passover also has been sacrificed. 8Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
11. We believe that Yeshua will return again as He promised to remove/rescue the saints, judge the world and establish His kingdom in heaven and on earth for a literal thousand years,
Rev 20:1-12. And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; 3and he threw him into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he would not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed… And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Yeshua and because of the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Messiah for a thousand years. 5The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were completed. This is the first resurrection. 6Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Messiah and will reign with Him for a thousand years.
After He puts His enemies under His dominion, He will hand over the kingdom to the Father for all eternity,
1 Thess 4:13-18, 5:1-6. 13But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope. 14For if we believe that Yeshua the Messiah died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Yeshua. 15For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Messiah will rise first. 17Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord…. 2For you yourselves know full well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night. 3While they are saying, “Peace and safety!” then destruction will come upon them suddenly like labor pains upon a woman with child, and they will not escape. 4But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day would overtake you like a thief; 5for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of night, nor of darkness; 6so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober.
No man knows the day or hour of these occurrences.
Matthew 24:36: “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. 37“For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah. 38“For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be.
12. We believe that every member of the body of Messiah should strive to live a life that is holy and reflects a Biblical standard.
Gal 5:16-25. But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. 17For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. 18But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law. 19Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, 21envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24Now those who belong to Yeshua the Messiah have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.
We acknowledge man's continued struggle in striving against the sin nature, condemned by the Law of God.
Romans 7:4-25. What shall we say then? Is the Law sin? May it never be! On the contrary, I would not have come to know sin except through the Law; for I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said, “You shall not covet.” 8But sin, taking opportunity through the commandment, produced in me coveting of every kind… So then, the Law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good.13Therefore did that which is good become a cause of death for me? May it never be! Rather it was sin, in order that it might be shown to be sin by effecting my death through that which is good, so that through the commandment sin would become utterly sinful… 4For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin. 15For what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate. 16But if I do the very thing I do not want to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that the Law is good. 17So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. 18For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. 19For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. 20But if I am doing the very thing I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me…. 24Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? 25Thanks be to God through Yeshua Messiah, our Lord!
Yet, this does not give excuse to anyone who lives in the consistent practice of unrepented sin. We should live in purity and holiness, walking with, and focused on God.
1 John 1:5-10: 5This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. 6If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; 7but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us.
Ephesians 5:1-21: 3But immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints; 4and there must be no filthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks….17So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit, 19speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; 20always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah to God the Father; 21and be subject to one another in the fear of Messiah.
Forgiveness of sin by God does not mean we have been granted permission to sin; rather, it means we are free from being in bondage to sin.
Romans 6:1-7: What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? 2May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it? 3Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Messiah Yeshua have been baptized into His death? 4Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as the Messiah was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. 5For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; 7for he who has died is freed from sin.
13. We believe that the Ruach HaKodesh (God's Holy Spirit) gives spiritual gifts to believers, though no one particular gift is given to every believer.
1 Corinthians chapters 12, 13, 14:4Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. 6There are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons. 7But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good… 11But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually just as He wills…. 13For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit…. 27Now you are Messiah’s body, and individually members of it. 28And God has appointed in the church, first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, various kinds of tongues… 1If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing. 4Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, 5does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, 6does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; 7bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things…. 13But now abide these three; faith, hope, love; but the greatest of these is love.
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