A LIGHT TO THE NATIONS (IS49:6)

Is 49:6 Is it too small a thing that You should be my servant; To raise up the tribes of Jacob; And to restore the preserved ones of Israel; I will also give you as light to the Nations

Many people today are seeking the miraculous. This is a natural and healthy response to the spiritual vacuum in modern society. I believe that two of the greatest miracles of God are very visible in the world today. Yet very few people are aware of the miraculous nature and importance of these events in God’s plans and purposes for the world.

I refer to the restoration of the physical nation of Israel in 1948, and the more recent restoration of the modern Messianic Jewish movement, which began in 1967. I believe that these are the two greatest miracles the world has seen since the resurrection of the Son of God, 2000 years ago. Both events unmistakably place this generation in the time the prophets termed "the end of the age."

Acts 3:21 Acts 3:21 says that every word God spoke through His prophets would be fulfilled in a time of restoration that will precede the return of the Messiah. According to that verse, before the Lord can return to take up His rightful throne in Jerusalem, the prophetic words of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and all of the other Old Testament prophets must be fulfilled.

This generation has had the incredible privilege of seeing 3000 year old Bible prophecy come to pass before its very eyes. On May 14^th 1948, a nation was indeed ‘born in a day’, when the modern state of Israel came into existence. The miracle of Ezekiel 36:8 was being fulfilled before the eyes of an often hostile world. As the gates of the German death camps were opened, the ‘dry bones’ of Ezekiel 37, the exiles of Zion, began to stream home to the land of their forefathers. In 1999, with the 20^th century came to a close, the Jewish population of Israel passed 5 million.

The final part of the Ezekiel 37 prophecy involves the imparting of the breath. The Hebrew word for breath is Ruach. Ruach also means spirit. As Jerusalem was re-united in 1967, an interesting dynamic began to occur. A large number of young Jews were swept into the Kingdom through the Jesus movement of the late 1960’s. These were the first-fruits of the fulfillment of Ezekiel 37:9. Since 1967 the number of Messianic Jewish fellowships has grown to be around 400 world-wide, more than 80 of them in Israel. Hundreds of thousands of Jews worldwide, and several thousand in Israel, have come to know Yeshua (Jesus) as Messiah. This is nothing short of another miracle considering that none of these Messianic congregations existed before 1967.

Several thousand of these ‘flesh and sinew’ covered ‘Ruach’ (Spirit) filled dry bones have immigrated to Israel to play a key part in the restoration process now taking place in that nation. They are the first-fruit of the restoration of the believing Jewish community of the book of Acts. They have come back to their Land, back to their God, and they worship the Messiah in a Jewish style. The Israeli Messianic Jewish believers represent a major milestone in the prophesied restoration of Israel, which the Bible tells us must precede the Lord's return. The Lord said in Matt 23:39 that He wouldn’t be seen again until the Jewish people welcome him back with the words "Baruch Haba B’Shem Adonai – Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord."

There is one final aspect to the fulfillment of Israel’s restoration – the fulfillment of Isaiah 2:3 For Out of Zion shall go Forth the Law and the Word of the Lord from Jerusalem. Israel was called to be a priestly nation and a light to the rest of the Nations from the time Moses received the Torah on Mt Sinai. The decree was re-iterated by the Lord’s last words spoken to His Jewish disciples in Matt 28:19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations. The apostles fulfilled this call and the Gospel went forth from Zion.

The climax of Israel's restoration, after coming back to the Land and having the Ruach Ha Kodesh (Holy Spirit) breathed into us, is to fulfill the call of Ex 19:6, Is 49:6 and Isaiah 2:3 - to be a Light to the Nations. The Out of Zion team has answered this call to take the Word out from Zion. There is an increasing number of Israeli believers answering this call to the nations.

In Romans 11:11 we read that salvation has come to the Gentiles to provoke Jewish people to jealousy. I believe that before this can be achieved, first the Messianic Jews must provoke the Church to jealousy so that she will seek to be restored to her Jewish roots. Then she will have what it takes to provoke the Jewish people to faith in Messiah. Therefore, we believe that Messianic Jewish Believers bear a responsibility to be a light to the Church. One day ten Gentiles will reach out to take hold of the garment of a Jew (Zech 8:23) and say " Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you." It is time for the Messianic Jewish movement to rise to its full stature and become the ‘light’ that we were called to be.

Like the sound of a shofar, this commission from God is being increasingly heard. For example Messianic Jewish Pastor Jonathan Cahn recently shared the dramatic testimony of what God is doing in Cuba and India. He emphasized that in these last days, God is re-uniting Jew and Gentile to minister together as in the first century. When the Jewish Believers assume their rightful place of taking the Gospel to the nations and not to the Jews alone, then the anointing of God will fall and produce an incredible harvest from all the nations. From the time of Mt. Sinai, the Lord called the Jewish people to be a light to the nations. Outreach to un believing Jews both in the Diaspora and in Israel, is still of great importance. We have not forgotten that the Gospel is for the Jew first. (Romans 1:16). Yeshua will not return until the Jews welcome Him back (Matthew 23:39 & Acts 3:21)

There is a hidden key to understanding the traumatic history of the Jewish people. From the be-ginning Israel was called to bring the knowledge of God and His salvation to the nations. That is why, since the time of the exodus from Egypt, the Devil has launched an all-out attack against the Jewish people, culminating in the darkest deed of man’s history, the Nazi holocaust. The creation of Israel and the Jewish people was a preparation for the coming of the promised Messiah. Satan attempted to prevent the Messiah’s coming by trying to destroy the Jewish people. Pharaoh, Haman, Antiochus Epiphanies, Herod and Hitler were wicked men chosen to carry out the Devil’s vicious scheme. But they all failed !

The Jewish people were chosen by God to be His priestly nation to fulfill His redemptive purposes in all the Earth. Jews have suffered dreadfully, partly because of our own disobedience and partly because of the threat that we represent to the enemies of God. The Jewish people have not been persecuted for who we are, but for who we represent – the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The God of Israel and His Anointed One.

In 1948 the nation of Israel miraculously re-emerged after 1900 years of exile. Since 1967 the Messianic Jewish community has also been in the process of re-emergence. We see both of these events are modern miracles, and both are a ‘beacon’ to Israel and to the Church, signaling the proximity of the Lord’s return.

OUT of ZION Ministries is an outreach of Tents of Mercy Congregation (led by Eitan Shishkoff) in northern Israel. In a fulfillment of Isaiah 49:6, OUT of ZION ministers in two specific areas. Firstly, to "raise up the tribes of Jacob" by being obedient to Romans 1:16, to take the Gospel to the Jew first. We are directly involved in Jewish evangelism and congregation planting in the CIS and Central Asia. Jewish style music and dance festivals have been undertaken in Samara and Murmansk (Russia), in Almaty (Kazakstan), and Bishkek (Kirgyzstan) resulting in a Messianic congregation being planted in each of these three cities. Another new Messianic congregation in Tashkent, Uzbekistan was added to this apostolic network in May 2000.

Secondly, our calling is to be a "Light to the Nations" This facet of the ministry involves building bridges of relationship through Churches about the Jewish roots of Christianity and the Biblical relationship between Israel and the Church, based on Romans 11 and Ephesians 2.

We believe that the restoration of Israel’s apostolic calling is at the forefront of what the Lord is doing in the earth today – it is ‘pioneering’ work. The purpose of this brochure is to enlist the prayer and financial support of individual Christians, Churches, and Christian organizations who have the same ‘pioneering’ vision. We seek to enlist the participation of God’s people around the world to partner with us as we go OUT of ZION to the Jew first and then to the Gentiles. You can play a key role by joining with us in prayer and intercession, and by investing financially to help us meet the practical needs of OUT of ZION and by supporting the on-going work in Israel .

We invite you to participate in the restoration of Israel by partnering with us as we go OUT of ZION to the Jews first, then to the Church and to the unsaved.

If you, your congregation, or your organization feels led to participate with, and/or contribute in some way to OUT of ZION, or if you wish to discuss the possibility of hosting an OUT of ZION meeting or seminar in your region, or you wish to invite David and Josie to share at your Church, conference or house meeting, please contact us at the address below.

MARANATHA YESHUA