The company you keep by David Brickner, executive director

Transcription

1 The company you keep by David Brickner, executive director If I asked, What s the most recent scandal you ve heard or read about in the news? you could probably think of something within seconds. There s never any shortage of such things. And as the whiff of scandal becomes the stench of corruption, the aftermath of blaming and avoiding blame soon follows. Scandal and corruption have plagued governments, institutions of higher learning, businesses and even the church for a very long time. In reality, it isn t institutions or organizations that become corrupt, but people. And while many are ready to weigh in on whatever the most recent scandal or cover up may be, few are ready to talk about the underlying reason for it: the sinfulness of the human heart. That problem has been with us from the beginning. Here is a major problem we need to grapple with: how do we select and train leaders for our organizations and institutions? We tend to focus on core competencies, the ability to do the job at hand, while a person s character is too often presumed. Yet it is character that matters most when it comes to people in general and leaders in particular. A leader s character, and especially a leader s integrity, is the best defense against the failures that end up in scandal and the often-resulting cover-up. Such integrity is not learned through books; it is developed over time. Still, it helps to have a depth of understanding of what the word means. Integrity comes from the Latin word integer (whole), meaning complete or entire, undivided. In other words, you are on the inside how you appear on the outside. In the Bible, the words that are used to describe integrity (tam in Hebrew, teleios in Greek) are also translated blameless or perfect, a tall order indeed for any human being. Of course, no one apart from our Messiah Jesus is perfect or without blame. But we have integrity when we are unified in our heart to fully seek after Him. Our inward disposition matches our outward commitments to be with God, to be in His presence, and to please Him in every respect. The Psalmist twice asks the question, Who may abide in your tabernacle? Who may dwell in Your holy hill? ; and Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD? Or who may stand in His holy place? (Psalm15:1; 24:3). The answer is the one who walks with integrity. The rest of those two passages from the Psalms then describe what that integrity looks like. I d like to point out a few things about the description of integrity from Psalm 15. Integrity begins as an internal reality when we speak truth in our hearts. The outworking of that integrity shows in how (continued on page 2) In this edition August 2013 David Brickner s insights on integrity...1 Prayer prompters, cartoon and onlinextras...3 True confessions from Kharkov...4,5 Sneak preview of That s Just Moishe: Collected Wisdom, Wit and Whimsy from the Founder of Jews for Jesus...6 How jury duty can be a witness for Jesus...7 Bits from our branches in San Francisco, Dnepropetrovsk, and New York City...8

2 (continued from page 1) we treat others, as well as in our willingness to turn from what is wrong and take a stand for what is right. And integrity requires us to keep our commitments, even when it costs us a great deal to do so. All of these things are difficult, especially in our relativistic society. But it is well worth it to live a life of integrity, worth it to be in the Lord s presence. Do you remember the story of when Peter and John were arrested by the Sanhedrin in the Temple? Neither of these two men possessed an impressive level of education or standing in the community. Nevertheless, this body of Jewish leadership recognized something very different about Peter and John. The Bible says they marveled, and they realized that they had been with Jesus (Acts 4:13). There is something about continually being in God s presence that helps us avoid sin and keeps us active in our pursuit of godly character. The best way to learn and practice integrity is to be in His presence and in the presence of those who likewise are pursuing Him with their whole hearts. In the very beginning of His ministry, when Jesus invited the disciples to follow Him they asked, where are you staying? He said to them, Come and see (John 1:38b-39a). Jesus accessibility and His transparency helped these uneducated fishermen to become a marvel to the Jewish leaders of Israel. The disciples learned integrity through meeting with Y shua (Jesus), learning from Him and modeling their lives after Him. Early on in my ministry, our Jews for Jesus founder, Moishe Rosen, invited me to stay in his home for nearly a month. During that time he gave me a lot. Each day, early in the morning we would sit at his kitchen table talking, reading the Bible, praying and writing thank-you postcards to donors. I will always treasure that time with Moishe. Though there wasn t any specific program of learning that he imparted to me, he did impart a great deal as he lived his life in my presence and I in his. The disciples learned integrity through meeting with Y shua (Jesus), learning from Him and modeling their lives after Him. I have tried to follow that example in training new leaders in Jews for Jesus. The more time we can spend together not necessarily in a programmatic training, but in an exchange of life experience the more I think I am able to help and encourage them in their leadership. It is an effort, but also a huge blessing. In my own personal life, I find that doing life together with a small group of men consecrated to serving God helps me in my own integrity before God. As we check in with one another weekly, pray for each other, share our struggles and, from time to time, go backpacking together in the Sierra mountains, my ability to resist the temptations of the world and follow the Lord increases. It s all about the company you keep first, being in the presence of God through time spent in prayer and in the Word, but also spending time with those who are committed to following Him. Indeed, that is exactly what God intends for all who would follow Him. To ascend God s holy hill, to dwell in His tent with Him, means living a life of integrity that makes us different than the life we would live on our own. The company we keep won t guarantee a life free of sin, or even a life that avoids failure or scandal, but it will strengthen us toward a life lived with integrity; to live as Jesus did, to live in His presence each and every day as people who reflect the life of the Savior. As a result, we not only please God and enjoy fellowship with Him and one another, but we also have something to offer those who don t yet know Him. We can t help but bring something of Y shua s presence into our relationship with others. We can t help talking about what He means to us. C.S. Lewis wrote in Mere Christianity: The Church exists for nothing else but to draw [people] into Christ, to make them little Christs. If they are not doing that, all the cathedrals, clergy, missions, sermons, even the Bible itself, are simply a waste of time. God became Man for no other purpose. And with integrity, we live for that same purpose as well. Read more of David s reflections on integrity and faithfulness in an article that concludes with an extremely cool story at j4j.co/intfaith We exist to make the messiahship of Jesus an unavoidable issue to our Jewish people worldwide. Jews for Jesus international headquarters: 60 Haight Street, San Francisco, CA ; jfj@jewsforjesus.org; web: jewsforjesus.org; also working in: Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Russia, South Africa, Switzerland, Ukraine and the United Kingdom; editor: Ruth Rosen; art director: Paige Saunders; design and illustration: David Yapp; Volume 12:5773, August 2013; 2013

3 onlinextras The expanded edition of our newsletter at j4j.co/xtras813 gives you: the answer to our surprising but true question bonus bits from our Israel branch videos: see our Israel staff in action and rejoice with Shoshannah over Janice s salvation hyperlinks to make it easier to jump to all the related (archived) articles and photos mentioned throughout this newsletter prayer prompters Please pray for: the pursuit of integrity, that our staff meet challenges to integrity with faithfulness and that God enables us to pass on that commitment to our newer staff God s blessing on our Kharkov branch, particularly Mikhail and Alek, and salvation for Leonid, one of Alek's contacts (pp. 4 5) all to go well in the final stages of our soon to be released book, That s Just Moishe: Collected Wisdom, Wit and Whimsy from the Founder of Jews for Jesus (p. 6) for Aaron to be interested in knowing more about Jesus (SF); grace and strength for new Jewish believer Janice (NYC) (p. 8) Massah, which is continuing through August 14; for meaningful conversations with Israeli trekkers, good follow-up, and God s continued work in the lives of all who participated fruitful follow-up from last month s New York City Summer Witnessing Campaign and for the campaigners re-entry into their normal routines after this intense time of ministry God s blessing on our Berlin* (Jul 25 Aug 10), Budapest (Aug 15 31) and Montreal (Aug 15 31) campaigns God to work in the lives of last month s Halutzim participants** this month s East and West Coast Adventure Camps final preparations for our Moscow campaign Sept 6 14 (training Sept 2 5) wisdom in planning for our next Behold Your God Israel campaign This month's banner photo is Rebekah Smith, currently on maternity leave from our London branch. Cartoon by Jay Colle *Surprising but true: guess how many Israelis became citizens of Germany in 2012? Find the answer when you go to this month s online extras. **Find out what Halutzim is and how God used it in the life of Jeremiah Zaretsky some thirteen years ago, go to j4j.co/jerhal 3

4 Mikhail I am not ashamed of... what exactly? Those who sow in tears by Mikhail Vayshengolts J esus Christ warned us, For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels (Mark 8:38). And of course, we all know very well the words of the Apostle Paul in Romans 1:16, I am not ashamed of the gospel... But how can we tell whether or not we are ashamed? Well, what about shame that is not seen outwardly, but finds a seat in a believer s heart? When we hear some Christians saying there must be some way for Jewish people to be saved other than faith in Jesus, how do we feel about saying He is the only way? Are we embarrassed to say what the Scriptures teach because it is not popular? Any of us Jews for Jesus missionaries can be somewhat brave during an evangelistic outreach. And many believers who see what we do consider us brave people. Nevertheless, we sometimes struggle just like anyone else. Here is what I mean. About ten years ago, when I would go on sorties (tract-passing expeditions) in 4 Kharkov, I always explained what my pamphlets were about as I handed them out. I d say, This is about Jesus Christ, because otherwise people might confuse me with those who distribute ads! But there came a moment during a sortie when I realized that if I didn t keep saying what my pamphlets were about, I could hand out more. For instance, instead of handing out 750, I could hand out about 1,000 broadsides. What to do? Speak up, or be silent about Jesus? I had to conclude that under those circumstances, 750 were a better result than 1,000. Similarly, we look forward to personal interactions with Jewish people in one-on-one visits. But still, Jesus is a very sensitive topic with our people. I know that I can keep the conversation calmer when I only talk about God, because this is more comfortable for most Jewish people than hearing the name Jesus. But isn t hesitation to name His name the very shame that the Apostle Paul spoke about? Even missionaries must check to see that we are being consistent. I will never forget the time I finished a sortie in an open market and needed to stay to purchase some food for my family. I didn t particularly want my bright yellow Jews for Jesus T-shirt to call attention to me and perhaps become a distraction from my shopping. So I took it off, turned it inside out and put it back on. But the letters were still visible through my T-shirt. An elderly woman who was able to read them proclaimed loudly, Oh! He s ashamed! He is for Jesus, but he s ashamed! What a lesson I learned that day! Yes, everyone looks at us when we wear Jews for Jesus T-shirts. But in fact, they are staring at the name of Jesus. If we are ashamed, it means that Jesus is not really such an important person to us. If we are firmly for Jesus, maybe other people who see will understand that they also need to be for Jesus. So now I say, let them look at our T-shirts even when the sortie is done! Even if some people will humiliate us, Messiah Jesus was humiliated first, For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls (Hebrews 12:3). Mikhail Vayshengolts leads our work in Kharkov. You can read more about our work there at j4j.co/kharkov. Find out more about Mikhail (Misha) at j4j.co/misha T o tell the truth, it s not always easy to sow the gospel, especially in Jewish hearts. When we sow the gospel on the streets, we face opposition in the form of anti-semites, some of whom are members of the Russian Orthodox Church. We also face opposition from religious Jews. I will confess to you that I m not always overflowing with love when I m scolded, spit on or pushed while handing out gospel pamphlets. I ve often found myself filled with indignation, Why are people doing this? I d think. This is life-giving news for them, but they don t want to listen. Then I remember that Jesus said, You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust (Matthew 5:43-45). It s not difficult to love those who are eager to hear the gospel, but I ve had to ask the Lord many times to give me love for those who instead try to interfere with or persecute me. And He answers those prayers. It s very important, when facing opposition, not to relate to it personally, because the opposition is usually meant to counteract the gospel (or in the case of anti-semitism, to show contempt for an entire people). It usually has very little to do with the person bringing the gospel. Understanding that without Jesus, people are like lost sheep, helps me love even those who are hostile. I remember that the Lord loves not only believers, but the entire world, including those who oppose us. The Scriptures tell us clearly, For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16). When I recall how many sins Y shua forgave me, I remember that it s not because of my merit that I have the gift of eternal life. In God s eyes I was no better than those I meet today, whose hearts resist the gospel. If I respond to their anger according to the flesh, I will not see the Spirit of God acting in those hearts. As people look at me, I really want them to see Y shua (Jesus). But if I show anger and discontent, the only Y shua they will see is the letters on my T-shirt. Once a Jewish man named Leonid scolded me when I came to visit him. I was upset inwardly, but I said goodbye politely and left. I prayed long for him, but the next time I called him, he remained aggressive towards the gospel. On the third time, his aggression changed to interest and curiosity. Praise the Lord, He does not allow us to be tested beyond what we can bear. The more time I spend with Y shua in my prayer room, the more He fills me with His love, so that I can offer it even to those who oppose me. It is only when we look at people with the eyes of Y shua that we understand their deep need for Him. The more room we give to Him in our lives, the more room we have in our hearts to love those who persecute us. And we will experience what Paul said when he wrote, I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me (Galatians 2:20). 5

5 SNEAK PREVIEW That s Just Moishe: Collected Wisdom, Wit and Whimsy from the Founder of Jews for Jesus It s almost here! Our 40th year anniversary begins September 17, so for the next twelve months you re invited to join us in celebrating four decades of God s goodness to Jews for Jesus. We ll be rolling out all sorts of new stuff to celebrate the past, present and future of our mission to reach Jewish people for Jesus. That includes the soon release of a companion book to Called to Controversy: the Unlikely Story of Moishe Rosen and the Founding of Jews for Jesus. We ve chosen twelve of our favorite lead newsletter articles by Moishe, reflections that give insight into principles that not only shaped our ministry, but also the lives and ministries of many people he mentored throughout his life. You ll also find excerpts from Moishe s leadership lessons, most of which have not previously been offered to the public. Below is a sample from that second section. And finally, we collected many of Moishe s little sayings along with cartoons and drawings to highlight the whimsical side of our founder. Stay tuned for info on how you can get your own copy of That s Just Moishe: Collected Wisdom, Wit and Whimsy from the Founder of Jews for Jesus. Meanwhile, we hope you enjoy the excerpt below: and Principle. The moral muscle you build by operating your principles is used by God to empower you and enable you to deal with situations before they arise so you don t have to start searching to find those inner resources at the crucial moment of testing. They are immediately before you as policies and principles under which you normally operate. Without personal ethics, you will not be able to uphold the ethics of the church, or the ministry in that moment of testing, when there is no one present to witness your choice. It is not enough to be accountable to other people. In that lonely moment of testing, you have got to be accountable to yourself as one who controls self and is accountable to God. Even God does not make you do things His way in that moment. You have to answer to yourself and support the decisions you have made about the person you want to be. That is why it is the ends justify the means or that they are choosing the lesser of two evils. Ethics protects against those kinds of traps because it takes into account the means as well as the ends. When we subscribe to a system of ethics, we are disciplining ourselves, restricting ourselves to being and doing according to certain standards. When we choose a Christlike aim, we automatically exclude ourselves from an ends justify the means type of ethic. We cannot separate the means from the ends! Both the means and the ends are opportunities to conform to or distort the character of God... to obey or disobey God... to follow Y shua s example or depart from it. *** Personal ethics entail your commitment to standards that enable you to achieve your honorable aims and purposes. They Personal Ethics There are ethics of society and organization ethics, but it is also important to have your own personal ethics. Each of us has to act alone in private situations that test our ethics. When those test times and trying situations come, how you handle temptation will depend in large part on your own personal ethical code. You need to know that you gain strength from exercising or operating your own principles under the supervision of the Holy Spirit. Those are key words when seen together: Operate so important that each one of us thinks and decides very carefully about our own, individual, very personal ethics. *** Without ethics, people generally move toward their goal in whatever way presents itself or seems likely to get results. People are apt, at some point, to take questionable shortcuts to reach their goals. They may rationalize that Cartoon by Carol Clemons are principles that translate into personal policies and are applied as personal procedures. We can provide ministry ethics. But without the personal ethics of each one of you to uphold them, they will be merely institutional. Your ethics are your own personal tool. If you forge them carefully and prayerfully, they can be an exceedingly valuable tool. 6

6 Now when they bring you to the synagogues and magistrates and authorities, do not worry about how or what you should answer, or what you should say. For the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say. Luke 12:11-12 You might not ever have to answer for your faith before government authorities, but chances are you will be summoned to court for another reason: Jury duty! Some look forward to jury duty while others do all they can to avoid it. But have you ever seen it as an opportunity to share the gospel? When Shosh shared the following story, we just had to pass it along to you. We hope you ll enjoy, and who knows? Maybe it will give you some ideas of how to respond next time you are summoned for jury duty. editor My name was pulled from the first round lottery for jury duty. I reported as directed to Jury Room A. Inside were six attorneys and 31 other potential jurors. I had been assigned as Juror #9. I listened as eight potential jurors were all asked similar questions. Based on their life experience, employment and medical history could they give a fair verdict in this particular trial? It was a bodily injury case, which had already gone to trial, and fault had been determined. Now, the new trial would determine whether the plaintiff was entitled to millions of dollars or zero, based on loss of income as well as pain and suffering. By the time the lead attorney for the plaintiff questioned me, Juror #9, I had a pretty good idea of the questions I d need to answer. I prayed God would help me use those questions as a platform to say who I was, a Jew for Jesus. And what I believed. Attorney: Mrs. Weinisch, do you think based on your beliefs you can award millions of dollars to the plaintiff if the evidence proves his injuries are the direct result of the accident? Me: Yes. Attorney: Mrs. Weinisch, do you think based on your beliefs you can award zero, nothing to the plaintiff if the evidence proves his injuries are not the direct result of the accident? Me: Yes. Attorney: I see you work for... (He couldn t say the words Jews for Jesus)... I see you are a Bible teacher. Me: Yes. Attorney: Do you think you can examine the evidence and make a decision that is not influenced by your religious convictions but just on the evidence? And would you be able to base your decision solely on the evidence and not on pressure from others? Me: You see who I work for? Attorney: Yes, well I wasn t sure... Me: Jews for Jesus. I am Jewish and I believe Jesus is the Messiah my people are waiting for. In order to come to the conclusion that Jesus is the Messiah I have examined the evidence for myself. I had to put aside everything I had heard from my rabbi and my family and make an informed decision based on the evidence. My job with Jews for Jesus is to encourage other Jewish people to do the same to think for themselves. To examine the evidence and make an intelligent, informed decision aside from preconceived notions and pressure. My evidence is the Bible. Show me your evidence and I will make my decision based solely on that evidence. Attorney: Thank you, Mrs. Weinisch. I was chosen to participate as a juror for this trial. However, on the second day of the trial, the case settled out of court. But I had accomplished what I had hoped to; I testified to the name of the Lord before the court! Shoshannah Weinisch is a missionary at our Manhattan branch (see Bits from the Branches on page 8). You can find out more about Shoshannah at: j4j.co/shosh Shoshannah with her husband Stewart. 7

7 Bits from the Dnepropetrovsk Tatyana Bolotova reports, We never know what will result from the gospel seed we sow on the streets. But sometimes the Lord gives us a glimpse and we receive fresh energy to bring again and again the news of salvation to the dying people in this world. Recently, during a sortie, a young man came up and said that our tract, which he had received a year ago, prompted him to think about the meaning of life. He is now a Christian, he attends an evangelical church and prays for the salvation of the Jewish people. Praise the Lord! New York City Shoshannah Weinisch reports, I have many opportunities to share the gospel with individuals, but it seems like my husband Stewart is always the one actually praying with people to receive the Lord. We call him The Closer! It is encouraging to see God using my husband in this season of our lives, but while I extend authentic ministry to a full caseload of Jewish women, I have to admit sometimes I feel inadequate comparing myself to him. So I have been praying and asking others to pray that God would allow me to lead a Jewish woman to faith. Just this past week I received a contact, Janice*, from my colleague, Jeremiah. I called her and we had a good conversation. She agreed to meet me the following week. I invited Giselle, a new missionary, to come along on the visit. During the visit we learned Janice actually believed Jesus was God from what she had learned on her own, but she didn t understand that Jesus was God s means of forgiving her sin. She didn t understand the personal relationship she could have with God by accepting Jesus as her Messiah. I shared with her John 3:1-16. Then Janice asked, Do I get born again by working on being a better person? So we looked at Romans 10:8-11. Janice got it! She made a profession of her faith in Y shua as the promised Messiah. The next day Stewart spoke with Janice on the phone to confirm that she understood what had happened and she did! I got SO excited that I did a little praise jig! My co-worker Sandy made me a sign and a little video to commemorate the event (See it online using the link on p. 3). Please pray for Janice, that she will be well-grounded in her new faith as we continue meeting together. I know God is pleased with the sowing I do year after year. But it is a real treat when we see results. San Francisco Headquarters Matt Sieger reports, Some of our headquarters staff have been playing basketball at a nearby playground during lunch hour. During our day of prayer, former intern (now a missionary trainee) and hoops player Jesse Danziger prayed that these fun times might also serve as an outreach. The next day seven of us hit the court for our lunchtime game. We needed one more player in order to play four-on-four. We spotted a guy nearby and asked if he wanted to play. We introduced ourselves to Aaron*. Then the conversation went this way: Aaron: Are you guys all off work today or something? Us: No, we all work at the same place and come out here on lunch hour. Aaron: Wow! I wish I worked at a place like that. Me: Do you want to work at Jews for Jesus? Aaron: Jews for Jesus? I m Jewish, but I m not for Jesus. We knew Jesse s prayer had been answered. Aaron had already noticed our production facility a block from headquarters. He s a nice guy and a good ballplayer. I think he may have noticed that unlike in a lot of pickup basketball games we didn t argue calls or fight with each other. But we play hard! We told Aaron he s welcome to join us for basketball anytime, and he seems interested. Please pray that his spiritual interest might develop as well. *Not their real names