The Restoration of the New Testament church is a fast-catching slogan in American evangelical circles. On November 2, 1987, two gentlemen made an appointment with me, Mr. Bufo and Mr. Murphy. They revealed they were coming from New Jersey churches that wanted to restore the New Testament church, assuming they were coming from churches of Christ, or at least from the Christian church. After a few minutes, which they articulated with "restoration" terminology, it became evident that they wanted to restore the New Testament church as "the five-fold ministry of the early church in operation today." When I did not know the "five-fold" ministry of the early church, it was clear that the "Restoration of the New Testament church" meant a different thing to me than it did to them.
In Tiberias, right above the Sea of Galilee, some fifty Russian families say they want to be like the first-century church. I visited a dear sister in the Golan Heights one weekend and had the opportunity to visit with these Russians. When I arrived on Friday afternoon at around 3, they informed me that if I came in now, I would have to stay there through Saturday evening. They would have no part of me if I "desecrate" the Sabbath. These Russians come from a forlorn corner of the earth right by the Caspian Sea called Maikop. There are whole villages in that region that all desire to return and be like the New Testament church. They have some things in common with the Western "Restorationist" tradition, but they are certainly different in many ways.
These situations are shared in order to make three points:
(a) Slogans are good, but they do not guarantee substance.
(b) The churches of Christ do not have a monopoly on methods and the Restoration of the New Testament church.
(c) If the process of Restoration does not continue, we will abdicate and capitulate to the Catholico-Protestant tradition. We must pry ourselves loose from the bog and become more honest.
I say these things as an introduction. Now, let me set the stage for the study that we are going to conduct.
The study aims to provide a glimpse of Jewish Evangelism and encouragement for Jewish Evangelism.
Most of us will be new to the material presented in these lessons. Because of its nature, it is imperative to have a clear mind and an open Bible. It is also important that you do not pass judgment until you have heard the entire lesson.
The restoration movement was started in Scotland in the 19th Century CE by Scottish Reform clergy. It was brought to America from S c o t l a n d. It found fertile soil in America that gave the restoration ideals a tremendous forward push. The Campbell brothers became influential speakers for this Restoration of Christianity. There is little doubt the
The Scottish Reform, Presbyterian ideals, and theology influenced Campbells. Among the most visible influences of the Reformed background on the "Restoration Movement" is the attitude of the churches of Christ in America towards Israel. What is the attitude?
One short example,
After and because Israel rejected the Gospel, and for that reason
has she been rejected, and the missionaries turned to the Gentiles. Because of the behavior of Israel, the Apostle Paul turns to the Gentiles, and contrary to the Jews, they accept the Gospel.
Biblical scholar Ernst Haenchent, in his Commentary on the Acts of the Apostles, said it like this:
"According to Luke, the leaders of the primitive Christian mission were Jews who were faithful to the law and who did not originally intend to undertake a Gentile mission. The missionaries addressed Gentiles only after the Jews had rejected the Gospel. If the church carried on the Gentile mission exclusively, it is because the Jews rejected the Gospel and, therefore, have been rejected by God. God is not partial where he grants salvation to people other than Israel." (Ernst Haenchen, The Acts of the Apostles: A Commentary, trans. B. Noble et al. Philadelphia, 1971, p. 100)
This attitude toward Israel must be examined again in light of the Restoration principles. We have bought into something that only some people have examined for themselves. We are drawing fences around the wrong corrals. We are not fulfilling the responsibility of being like the First Century church and denying ourselves the fullness of God's life. But above all, we are holding to a position directly and diametrically opposed to the plain Word of God.
The synonyms for "Restoration" include Recondition, Reconstruct, Rejuvenate,Reestablish, Reinstate, Refresh, and Revive.
If, in the process of what we call "Restoration," we leave no room for some of these concepts, we should call the movement something else.
As someone dedicated to the church's Restoration, I challenge you to open your minds and hearts to God's Word. Let the Bible Speak to us.
Let us approach the Bible on this subject without any prejudice.
I assure you that what I state has nothing to do with premillennial doctrines. The teaching of premillennialism is false and constitutes a misreading of the scriptures. I believe understanding the concept of Israel can help us understand the Restoration movement in our own days and understand God better. Our knowledge of and about God comes from His relationship with Israel. We read about Israel on every page of the Bible, both the Old and New Testaments. How can some be so oblivious to Israel and so involved with God and Yeshua?
An example of this attitude:
What is the name of the Land on which the Israelites settled? Most people from the churches of Christ call it Palestine. Why Palestine? Is Palestine a Biblical name? What is the Biblical name? Matthew 2:19-20: "But when Herod was dead, behold the angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, 'Arise and take the Child and His mother, and go into the land of Israel; for those who sought the child's life are dead.'"
What can we do to change this situation and continue with the Restoration of the New Testament Church?
Restoration: A Biblical Model
Ezra the Scribe. Nehemiah 8-9.
Judea went into exile in 586 B.C.E. God's warning to Judea did no good, and he sent Sanacherib, king of Babylon, to capture and take the people of Jerusalem into captivity. Exile was a ruthless way of destroying a nation. Very few nations have ever survived exile. The Jewish people hold the record on this matter. After 2000 years, they returned to the Land of their forefathers.
The ten northern tribes of Israel were exiled in 722 BCE and never returned to their Land. They were lost, assimilated into the world, and impossible to distinguish.
Persia, the superpower of the known world at that time, officially recognized the Restoration of Judea to the Land. Persia was interested in and willing to help restore the Jewish people. First, King Cyrus issued an edict to let the Jews return to their Land seventy years after the exile. Ezra was chosen to go back with a group of people to rebuild the city of Jerusalem. They return and find the city, and the Land is ravaged. They start to rebuild and soon realize they have enemies from their neighbors and within the camp. Years go by, and the work is still unfinished. Prophets like Haggai speak to the people and urge them to get busy
finishing the House of the Lord. Haggai 2:5-9:
"Now therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts; Consider your ways. You have sown much, and bring in little; you eat, but you have not enough; you drink, but you are not filled with drink'; you clothe yourselves, but there is none warm, and he that earns wages earns wages to put into a pocket with holes. Thus saith the Lord of hosts: Consider your ways! Go up to the mountain, and bring wood, and build the house, and I will take pleasure in it, and I will be glorified, said the Lord. You look for much, and lo, it came to little, and when you brought it home, I did blow upon it. Why? Said the Lord of Hosts. Because of mine house that is waste, and you run every man unto his own house."
There is a letter from Artaxerxes the King (Ezra 7:13-14) giving permission and support to Ezra to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple. We later find Nehemiah, a minister in the court of Artaxerxes, pleading with God and the King about the condition of Jerusalem in 443 BCE. The proclamation of Cyrus was made in the year 536 BCE. The Restoration of the Exiles to their Land and then their Spiritual Restoration was a long and challenging process. It took organization - see Nehemiah 2:11 - 3:32- to get everyone involved in specific, specialized tasks.
The Word of God was then reestablished as the standard constitution for the people's lives. How was it done? ---> Neh.8:1-18.
The people wanted to know what is written in the book of the
Law of God. The people heard the Word as a public
affair. It was not done in private. The reading and discussing of the Word of the Lord needed to be a public affair. Experts were called to explain the Word of the Lord to those who needed to be equipped to understand the ancient document.
The people understood they needed to follow the Word of the Lord. They were deeply grieved when they discovered they had not followed the Lord's instructions, and their natural reaction was discouragement.
Ezra tells them to rejoice now that they know. If you know something is wrong, you can dedicate yourself to fixing it.
They got a chance to celebrate and begin doing what needed to be done right then, not starting with some grand world plan but what the moment required. It was the time of the feast of booths, so they immediately kept the feast of Booths.
Restoration had taken place.
Conclusion:
Restoration is a process. It has several elements that are essential for its accomplishment. From observation, the churches of Christ today are not interested in Restoration. Here are some elements that must be present for Restoration to occur.
The pieces that can be picked up. If we do not believe that it is possible to discover the evidence of what the early church was like - it would be impossible to do a restoration job. We believe that the facts about the early church can be known today. Who will do the work of discovering the early church practices? Who will teach them? Who will have the authority to explain the Word to the people? A better understanding of the Eph.4:11 passage will give a clue that will answer these questions.
1. Courageous people are needed to encourage the people, to keep the flag of truth waving in the winds of freedom of thought, and to be able to talk about anything from the Word of God without fear of being castigated.
2. Organization of participation. Like Nehemiah, let us get everyone involved in the reconstruction process.
3 . We need empathy and sympathy for other people's problems. We must care so much that we are willing to leave our posts and seek to do the will of the Lord. Both Ezra and Nehemiah left very good positions within the court of the kings of Persia to go to their forefathers' God-forsaken Land.
4. We need to start doing what we can right now.
What does this have to do with Israel? First, we needed to explore Restoration. Second, if we in the churches of Christ do not care about the Restoration of the First Century church, Israel will in no way play a part in our world.
If we are serious about Restoration, we must draw some conclusions. The world that we live in has too many "Protestant Pseudo-Churches" that claim to be seeking the truth and are only self-perpetuating temples of doom.
A total reexamination of the place of Israel in God's plan for the world is not a luxury. It is an imperative.
If we get the courage to look into the Word of God without prejudice, a new wave of life will overtake us and shine from our hearts out to the rest of the world. If we harden our hearts and put "the church" before Yeshua, the Messiah, Yeshua will leave us. We will find ourselves like many other so-called "Christian Churches" that are void and empty of any meaning. Connection with the root, Yeshua, will bring a new relationship with the Historical people of God - and that people is ISRAEL.
Bibliography:
Jervell, Jacob. Luke and the People of God, Augsburg Press, (Minneapolis 1979)
Richardson, Peter. Israel in the Apostolic Church, Cambridge University Press, (Cambridge 1969)
Williamson, Clark M. Has God rejected His People?, Abingdon Press, (Nashville 1982)
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