Jonathan Bernis - Jesus, What's In His Name?
Jonathan Bernis: Shalom and welcome to Jewish Voice. Thank you for joining us today. I'm Jonathan Bernis and I'm joined once again by my co-host, Ezra Benjamin. Ezra, growing up in a Jewish family, Jesus was the God of another religion, Christianity.
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: I had no concept that he was Jewish or that he had anything to do with my heritage as a Jew. Jesus was a New Testament figure just as Abraham or Moses were my Old Testament heroes. Now, that completely changed in college when I read the New Testament for the first time, and actually discovered that Jesus was Jewish. In fact, his name wasn't Jesus, it was a Hebrew name, Yeshua. And then, when I went back to my own scriptures, I discovered that he was there also, prominently, because Yeshua means salvation.
Ezra Benjamin: Amen. And Jonathan, many of our audience may be going, you know, "Of course, Jesus was Jewish. I see that very clearly in the scriptures". And yet, for others listening and watching today, it may not be something you think about very often, but Jesus' name, as you said, the name in Hebrew given to him, also represents his calling, his purpose in coming to earth to die as our Savior. And the verse you're referring to, I'm gonna jump right in if that's okay, to the scriptures, is Matthew 1:21. And this is when Mary is understanding that she's going to become pregnant by the involvement of the Holy Spirit, right, "The spirit will come upon you, and you'll give birth to a child". And it says, "She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus". I'm reading the English translation here, "Because he will save his people from their sins". And we read that in English and go, "Okay, his name is Jesus". But then there's this little footnote, if I trace it out here and it says, "In Hebrew, Yeshua". Now, why does that matter so much that you're to give him the name Yeshua? Because he'll save his people from their sins.
Jonathan Bernis: That's his purpose for coming. You know, the name Jesus doesn't connect. You don't grasp what his name really means until you go back to the Hebrew. And then, you understand, you'll call his name Yeshua, salvation, or God saves because he is going to save his people from their sins.
Ezra Benjamin: And that's it.
Jonathan Bernis: Not just his own people, in fact, but God so loved the world, that he sent his only son, that whoever would believe in him would not perish, but have everlasting life, would have salvation. You know, one of the comments, one of the criticisms, actually that I hear a lot from Jewish people, because this is what they've been, they're parroting, they've been taught is that Jesus isn't found in the Old Testament, that salvation is not a Jewish theme, personal salvation, but it's absolutely incorrect.
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: Like those people, until I began to study the scriptures for myself, I simply believed what I was taught.
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: By the rabbis.
Ezra Benjamin: And so, literally, what's being said here in Matthew 1, the beginning of the gospel accounts, is you're to call his name salvation, Yeshua, because he'll save his people from their sins.
Jonathan Bernis: And then, everything falls into place.
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: Understanding Yeshua is salvation causes everything to fall into place.
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: That he's given the name that identifies his purpose.
Ezra Benjamin: His destiny, his calling, his purpose. Jonathan, it's not a New Testament word or even idea this name Yeshua salvation. We see it in the very beginnings of the Old Testament, the Jewish scriptures.
Jonathan Bernis: Exactly. Thematically, Ezra, it's something that begins in the very beginning and is carried through. And this is an example of the continuity of scripture from Genesis to revelation.
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: That God who saves, and the agency of that salvation is through the Messiah. It repeats itself over and over and over again. The idea of personal salvation is very, very clear. Let's begin, let's look at a few...
Ezra Benjamin: Sure.
Jonathan Bernis: In the Old Testament. Let's start with Exodus 15:2, and we'll put it up on the screen for you. "The Lord is my strength and my defense: he has become my salvation". This is personal salvation. "Has become my salvation". And you have, in the Hebrew, the word for Jesus. You have Yeshua. He has become my Yeshua, my Jesus, if you will.
Ezra Benjamin: Right. And the context here, Jonathan, if you check out the rest of Exodus is, remember, Israel has just, by the hand of the Lord, walked through a dry seabed, and the Egyptian army has been drowned as the waters come back to their place. And so, Moses and Miriam and the people of Israel being delivered, being saved from a life of 400 years of slavery now into freedom, are saying, "The Lord is my strength. He's my defender, and he has become my Yeshua. He's literally saved us from death and slavery in Egypt and freed us to worship him".
Jonathan Bernis: Isaiah 12:2, great example. Let's look at Isaiah 12:2 together. It says this, "Surely God is my salvation:" he is my Yeshua.
Ezra Benjamin: That's right.
Jonathan Bernis: Yeshua'ti, here. My salvation. "I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself," isn't that interesting? "Is my strength and my defense: he has become my Yeshua". My Jesus. There it is, folks. I don't want people to miss the significance of Isaiah 12:2. This is written hundreds of years before the New Testament is written.
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: Hundreds of years before Jesus is ever born.
Ezra Benjamin: That's right. And Jonathan, the verse right after 12:2, Isaiah 12:3 says this, "With joy, you will draw water from the wells of salvation". From the wells of Yeshua. Remember, what did Jesus say? He said, "I am the living waters. Anyone who believes in me," according to the scriptures, "Out of him will flow rivers of living water". And we see right here those rivers of salvation, those wells of salvation, as you said, hundreds of years before Jesus walks on earth. >:.>:.You should read Isaiah 12 tonight. Just pray and read Isaiah 12. It's just astounding. "God is my salvation: I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord himself is my strength and my defense: he has become my salvation".
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: This is... So, really, we see the deity of Yeshua...
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: In this verse. You have to have eyes to see it, but it's there.
Ezra Benjamin: That's right.
Jonathan Bernis: Here is Jesus in the Old Testament, ladies and gentlemen. Jesus is in the Old Testament.
Ezra Benjamin: Amen.
Jonathan Bernis: But his Hebrew name, his given name, Yeshua, he is our salvation.
Ezra Benjamin: That's right.
Jonathan Bernis: God himself, has become our salvation. I'm so glad for this.
Ezra Benjamin: I am, too, Jonathan.
Jonathan Bernis: I am so glad for this.
Ezra Benjamin: And you know, that expression, "I myself, the Lord, the Lord himself," we see that elsewhere in the scriptures. We actually see it in Exodus. God says, "I myself, I myself will pass through the land of Egypt". And he's doing that to judge the Egyptians, to judge any household that didn't have the blood of the lamb on its doorpost. And so, God says, "I myself will judge those who don't trust in me, those who don't put their faith in me". But here, "The Lord, the Lord himself is also our defense and our salvation".
Jonathan Bernis: Psalm 13:5, Psalm 13:5. "But I will trust in your unfailing love: my heart rejoices in your salvation".
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: In your salvation. Once again, you have a form of Jesus, Yeshua right in there.
Ezra Benjamin: Bi-Yeshua-teka, it says in the Hebrew, your salvation.
Jonathan Bernis: So, it's a fallacy that Jesus is not found in the Old Testament. He is, but by his Hebrew, Yeshua.
Ezra Benjamin: Right. And Jonathan, even as we're looking at this verse in Psalm 13, I'm challenged, actually, maybe it's the conviction of the Holy Spirit, I wanna challenge you at home. It says, "My heart rejoices in your salvation, Lord". My heart rejoices in your Yeshua. And I'm asking myself, "Do every time I think of my salvation, that the Lord, through faith in Jesus, in Yeshua, he's brought me from death to life, from slavery, to sin, to freedom as a new creation, does my heart rejoice? Does our heart rejoice"? It's a reason for rejoicing.
Jonathan Bernis: I think that's a great question and a convicting question. Are you thankful today for your salvation? And Ezra, this is not just about being saved from our sins.
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: This is about being saved from so many different situations.
Ezra Benjamin: Sure.
Jonathan Bernis: I can't tell you the number of times that I avoided being hit or hitting another car.
Ezra Benjamin: Sure.
Jonathan Bernis: There's been times that I just knew right in my heart, it was divine intervention. The Lord intervened.
Ezra Benjamin: The Lord intervenes. And sometimes, you know, we feel like something's delayed and it's delayed. "Lord, why is it taking so long"? And then, we look back and go, "Ah, he was protecting me from something". "Ah, he was saving me for something better". Our heart rejoices in the Lord's, not only saving us from our sin, but his presence and his intervention in our lives.
Jonathan Bernis: Yeah. You know, sometimes, it's in hindsight.
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: We're waiting, we're waiting, "Lord, where are you? Where are you? You let me down". And then, in hindsight, we see that the Lord really did intervene at the right time.
Ezra Benjamin: That's right.
Jonathan Bernis: For our ultimate salvation.
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: And perfection.
Ezra Benjamin: Right. Oh, it's incredible. Makes me wanna do a little dance right now.
Jonathan Bernis: I'm rejoicing just thinking about it. Yeah. God has worked out our salvation. And think of this, Ezra, that he destined us for salvation.
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: For eternal salvation before we were formed in the womb. That should make you rejoice.
Ezra Benjamin: Yeah, it's incredible. You know, we're predestined, if you will. It was our destiny to have this encounter, this eternity changing encounter with the Lord who brought us salvation. Not by works, but by faith.
Jonathan Bernis: I don't know what you're going through right now. You may be going through some really difficult challenges, but I want you to just take a moment and rejoice in the Lord, rejoice in your salvation. It's guaranteed. It's a promise. You're a citizen of the Kingdom of God. Rejoice in the Lord, and again, I say rejoice. Well, we have more to go through in our study of Yeshua, Jesus. So, keep your Bibles out for a deeper dive into scripture. But first, we're eager to share how Jewish Voice is being used to bring God's message of salvation all over the world, and reaching thousands with the gospel through practical care and ministry.
Jonathan Bernis: Welcome back. Ezra and I are ready to dive into more scripture in just a minute. But first, I wanna say thank you for your prayers, for your support, for standing with this ministry as a partner, so that we can proclaim the gospel to Jewish people and their neighbors around the world. We could not do what we do without you. Ezra, thank God for our partners.
Ezra Benjamin: Amen. Thank you. We don't wanna go without your help and without your support, and also without your prayers to serve these Jewish communities around the world. So, thank you.
Jonathan Bernis: Well, the theme is Yeshua'tenu. Adonai Yeshua'tenu, the Lord, our salvation.
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: Yeshua, the name Yeshua, Jesus, is salvation. His Hebrew name Yeshua means salvation. And that's why he's given the name Yeshua. Just Jesus alone disconnected from the Hebraic roots doesn't make sense, but when you go back to his Hebrew name...
Ezra Benjamin: That's right,
Jonathan Bernis: Yeshua, it all fits together. And we have a continuous message from Genesis to revelation. We looked at a couple verses. I just wanna make one point before we move into the New Testament.
Ezra Benjamin: Sure.
Jonathan Bernis: Ezra, and that is that the Hebrew language is really a unique language. It's multifaceted. And the Hebraic concept, which is what we try to teach at Jewish Voice about meditation, about how to approach the scriptures, is based on the word "Hagah".
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: Right? To meditate.
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: And the idea of meditate is to say, to mutter over and over again. God told Joshua, as he was preparing Joshua to bring the children of Israel into the Promised Land after Moses passed away to meditate on his word, day and night. That word meditate, hagah, we derive from that haggadah, to tell is about confession.
Ezra Benjamin: Jonathan, maybe our audience is listening and saying, "Wait a minute, meditation. Are you talking about some, you know, Eastern mystic religion"? No. Those religious systems stole the idea, Jonathan, from the Bible, from the, the Hebraic roots, from that Jewish faith. The word hagah literally means to speak over and over. It's not meditation like maybe it's been misunderstood today to go to some alternate realm and transform your reality, it's a Hebraic, it's a Jewish concept. To speak forth, to focus on the words and promises of God, to the point that they become a part of your life. That living an active word becomes a part of your life.
Jonathan Bernis: It's very clear in Romans 10. "Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God". And so, to activate the word, we have to confess the word and hear it over and over and over again to generate faith. "How shall one believe unless they hear, for with the heart, we believe through hearing and with the mouth, confession is made unto salvation". So, the whole idea of the revelation of God as our salvation is to get it into our heart where it becomes a reality. And then, as it says in Psalm, we rejoice in our salvation because it becomes a reality in our lives.
Ezra Benjamin: That's right. And Jonathan, I'm convicted, even as we're talking here, what am I hearing and what am I repeating? What are the words that come outta my mouth? What are the words that come outta your mouth? What am I hagahing, if you will? What am I allowing to be the repetition coming outta my mouth? Because whatever that is, it's gonna get deep down in my heart. What I'm listening to and the narrative I'm repeating, the things I'm repeating is true, are what's gonna be the content of my heart. I want it to be the living and active Word of God.
Jonathan Bernis: If you're hearing negative, negative, negative, negative news, negative input, negative, it'll get into your heart, you'll believe it. Some of you have believed the wrong thing. I wanna believe the truth of God's word, and I wanna focus on the Lord who is my salvation. In the midst of everything crumbling around me, I have this sure foundation.
Ezra Benjamin: That's right.
Jonathan Bernis: That Adonai yeshu'ti is the Lord, my salvation.
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: Who will see me through.
Ezra Benjamin: Amen. You know, as we read in Exodus, Jonathan, and I'm just gonna say it right can, the hagah, can the repetition, the meditation out of our heart, through our mouth be, "Behold, God is my Yeshua. I will trust and I will not be afraid. He's my strength and my song. He's the one who's become our salvation. I want that to be my heart cry and my hagah".
Jonathan Bernis: Yeah, well let's speak out another one and go to the New Testament. 1 John 4:14.
Ezra Benjamin: We have it right here on the screen. "And we have seen and we testify that the father has sent his son to be the Savior of the world". And this idea here in Hebrew, Jonathan, is Mashiach, it literally means anointed one. But it's related in the Hebrew to salvation, the anointed one who brings salvation. And so, John, this Jewish believer is saying, "We don't just believe something we haven't seen, we've seen and we're bearing testimony that the father sent his son, whose name is salvation, to be the anointed one who brings salvation to the world".
Jonathan Bernis: Yeah.
Ezra Benjamin: His name is his calling.
Jonathan Bernis: You know, i, Chuckle every time I say this, but Jesus Christ is not the first and last name of our Savior.
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: He is our salvation. He is the Lord, our salvation. Who is the Mashiach, the anointed one.
Ezra Benjamin: That's right.
Jonathan Bernis: The anointed one who brings salvation, the Carrier of salvation.
Ezra Benjamin: And maybe we don't think of that much, but I want to challenge you. We say Jesus Christ, and we mean, you know, with all devotion and love for the Lord, we're talking about, about Jesus, about our Savior, about our redeemer, the Savior of the world. But what we're really saying, if we look back to the original Hebrew, is salvation, the anointed one who brings salvation. My Lord and Savior is the anointed one who brings salvation.
Jonathan Bernis: And Ezra, we have seen and testify...
Ezra Benjamin: Amen.
Jonathan Bernis: That he is...
Ezra Benjamin: Yes, we have.
Jonathan Bernis: Our salvation.
Ezra Benjamin: Jonathan, talk to me a little bit more about Romans 10. You referenced it. But this idea that maybe we read and we read and we don't understand where it says that faith, which is we know is a gift of God unto salvation, it comes by hearing. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.
Jonathan Bernis: Yeah, well there's... If you look at the verse, hearing appears twice. "Faith cometh by hearing," once, "Hearing by the Word of God". Why is hearing mentioned twice? And I think, Ezra, it's because there's two ears that are being referenced.
Ezra Benjamin: Okay.
Jonathan Bernis: There's the natural hearing, and then there's the hearing of our heart. So, I've heard it put this way that the longest 19 inches are between our head and our heart. Faith dwells in the heart. We hear and that is the access point to the hearing of our heart. So, when we hear it enough, we hear it with our heart, and when we speak it forth, it becomes a reality. Here's a biblical truth, with the heart we believe, with the mouth confession is made unto. The context is salvation.
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: We hear, we believe, we confess unto, and are saved. But it's true with every promise of God. Every promise of God is obtained through faith. Faith is the vehicle that we receive the promises of God through. And so, if we need healing, if we need a financial provision, we confess the promises of God, we hear it until we hear it here, and then we speak it forth and it becomes a reality in our lives. That is a biblical principle. That is not hocus pocus. That is not name it and claim it. That is not blab it and grab it. That is biblical truth that I think has been robbed by the enemy, a biblical truth that has been abused and robbed by the enemy. It's still a biblical truth and it needs to be followed. Paul says this in Romans 10. He says that the salvation of Israel, and this is the context, is really not that complex. All they need to do is to hear and believe.
Ezra Benjamin: Right.
Jonathan Bernis: But the problem is one being sent. One has to be sent to proclaim the truth, the good news, Yeshua'ti., Adonai Yeshua'ti, the Lord is our salvation, so that people, and in context, the Jewish people, will hear here, believe in their heart, confess with their mouth unto salvation. So, what is says in essence in Romans 10 is, "This is not complicated. It's very simple. The challenge is people being sent to proclaim the good news".
Ezra Benjamin: "Blessed upon the mountains are the feet of those, and the voices of those who bring good news, who proclaim salvation".
Jonathan Bernis: And that's what we're about at Jewish Voice, proclaiming the good news. We need to step away for another minute. Our announcer is gonna share some opportunities with you so that you can partner with us to help hurting Jewish people all over the world, and the greatest way that we can help them is proclaiming the good news. So, stay tuned, because then we're gonna pray together for your needs after this break.
Jonathan Bernis: We like to leave time in every program to pray for your needs. And we get a lot of prayer requests, by email, by mail. We know that many of you that are watching are going through some really challenging times. So many, Ezra. Our theme this week is Yeshua, salvation. Adonai Yeshua'ti, the Lord is my salvation. We wanna rejoice in that.
Ezra Benjamin: Amen.
Jonathan Bernis: God wants to save you. Not only will he save you from your sins for eternity, but he will save you out of whatever situation you are going through if you'll trust him. I believe God wants to touch people today, Ezra.
Ezra Benjamin: That's right.
Jonathan Bernis: Let's invoke the name Yeshua today. When we pray, we pray to the father in the name of Yeshua, and he hears our prayers and answers. And there's Yeshua at the right hand of the father, making intercession for us. Why don't you lead us out?
Ezra Benjamin: Be honored to. Lord, we thank you that you have been given the name that is above every name.
Jonathan Bernis: Thank you, Lord.
Ezra Benjamin: Yeshua. And I wanna pray two things right now. I pray for those watching and listening today, Lord, for your deliverance, for your salvation out of the trials and the difficulties, the adverse circumstances they're going through. And Lord, I pray as you save and deliver us, your sons and daughters, that you would open our mouths and give our listeners boldness and courage to proclaim your Yeshua, to proclaim your salvation to their friends and families, and that salvation would break forth in their lives. In Yeshua's name.
Jonathan Bernis: In Yeshua's name, receive salvation for your family.
Ezra Benjamin: Amen.
Jonathan Bernis: Receive salvation out of your situation. In Jesus name, in the name of Yeshua, our salvation, amen. If you'd like more information about our ministry, you can log on to jewishvoice.tv and you can also send us your prayer request right on the website. We have a team here at Jewish Voice that's committed to praying over your prayer requests by name. We believe in the power of prayer, and we care about you. And more importantly, God cares about you. Believe that. Well, as we close our program today, I wanna remind you of what God declares in Psalm 122:6. "Pray for the peace of Jerusalem, may they prosper who love thee". So, please pray for Israel and the Jewish people this week. Until next time, this is Jonathan Bernis, along with Ezra Benjamin saying, shalom, and God bless you.