Layers_Of_Truth (@Layers_Of_Truth)

“TURNING THE TABLES”…. What does that mean? (A “Case Study” About Christianity vs. Judaism) Sometimes life-lessons are placed before us in plain sight…. Sometimes we look at them and we still don’t SEE THEM…. And sometimes we see those life-lessons coming into focus as if it came from a bolt of lightening… Consider the expression “Turning the Tables”…. Where did that phrase originate? How often have we heard it? What does it mean? For most of my life, I’ve believed that when someone “turns the tables” it meant that someone who was at some sort of disadvantage found a way to reverse their circumstances and prevail over their opponents. I’ve believed that “turning the tables” was coined to remind us that so long as we were persistent in our actions and refused to give-up - then we could prevail against adversity… But very recently, I was looking at a painting of Jesus confronting the money changers in the Temple in Jerusalem and I was reminded about the connection between what Jesus did and what that expression “turning the tables” was really about. Jesus literally “turned over the tables” that the Jewish money changes and merchants were using to desecrate the temple into the equivalent of a modern day “swap meet”. Jesus was a Jew - but he was evolving in his ministry into the Savior of mankind. He was carrying out his mission to TEACH us ALL that the “old ways” had devolved into GREED and OPPORTUNISM. He was about to submit to His Father’s will to suffer and die on the cross so that the sins of mankind would be forgiven. Then, 3 days later, he arose from the dead and ascended into Heaven in what Christians know was his Resurrection. These facts are well established in the GOSPELS OF THE NEW TESTAMENT - which is the history lesson for ALL Christians to learn about and accept as the basis of their faith. But this “history lesson” is also given for non-Christians to learn about as well…. The Jews had the OLD TESTAMENT as their record about the history of humanity from the beginning of the world; the Garden of Eden; the experience of Adam and Eve and their temptation by Satan; the presentation of the Ten Commandments to Moses on Mt. Sinai; the flight from slavery in Egypt and the wars and struggles of the Jewish people against their many enemies and tormentors… Have we missed anything important here?…. How about the promise made by God to the Jewish people about sending a MESSIAH to save them and lead them to peace and greatness? These prophecies are clearly documented in the OLD TESTAMENT. And yet, when JESUS was born - Jewish King Herod FEARED that the prophecies were predicting the arrival of the “King of the Jews” which threatened Herod’s power. His reaction was to send his soldiers out to kill all infant males in the kingdom. So, what we have here is a Jewish king who knew the prophecies about a MESSIAH - but not as a fulfillment of God’s promise to the Jewish people - but as a threat to the “old order” and his power as king! As JESUS grew up and began to show his community that he was incredibly wise and extraordinary, he was obviously interacting with Jewish community leaders and rabbis who must have realized that perhaps he might be “special”. Eventually, Jesus began his ministry - and several Jews joined him as disciples. They were drawn to his teachings and this very likely drew more attention from the Jews in government as well. The gospels describe Jesus arriving at the gates of Jerusalem riding on a donkey with crowds of Jews hailing him as the “King of the Jews” AND THEN, we have the incident at the Temple…. Jesus confronted the “money changers” for their desecration of the sacred Temple. He violently confronted them - chastised them and turned their tables over - spilling their money and displays onto the floor. It is noteworthy that this incident was the only example in the New Testament where Jesus displayed any kind of violence or angry confrontation. Can we assume that this confrontation at the Temple was - perhaps - the “last straw” for the Jewish leaders who feared His ministry and the growing influence he was having on the Jewish people? Had His “activism” and ministry finally reached a point where He was becoming too much of a “threat” to the powers-that-be? Most Christians know the rest of this story…. BUT SO DO MOST OF THE JEWS ALIVE TODAY… So let’s review…. The Jewish King Herod attempted to have Jesus killed in Bethlehem (along with many other Jewish infants) in order to prevent a “King of the Jews” from ever becoming a leader of the Jewish people as the prophecies foretold). As an adult, Jesus began his public life of of teaching, miracles and gathering his disciples and followers which drew the attention of the Jewish authorities. His arrival in Jerusalem drew admiration of many Jewish people who hailed him as “King of the Jews” Jesus “TURNED THE TABLES” on the Jewish merchants and money changers…. No doubt they reported this to the Jewish authorities”. And then, Jesus was arrested, flogged, judged and convicted, and crucified on Calvary…. Three days he arose from the tomb and was RESURRECTED INTO HEAVEN… AND THROUGH IT ALL - THE JEWS REJECTED JESUS AS THE “MESSIAH” - THEY CRUCIFIED HIM - THEY PERSECUTED HIS DISCIPLES - KILLING MANY OF THEM AND HIS OTHER FOLLOWERS - AND THE JEWS CONTINUE TO THIS DAY TO DENY THE DIVINITY OF CHRIST AS WELL AS HIS FULFILLMENT OF THE SCRIPTURES AND PROPHECIES ABOUT A “MESSIAH”… THE JEWS HAVE DELIBERATELY REJECTED JESUS CHRIST - THEY STILL DO TODAY! At every step of the way - JEWS conspired against JESUS CHRIST and his CHRISTIAN FOLLOWERS. Through VIOLENCE - the JEWS have tried to destroy the EARLY CHRISTIAN CHURCH and their ANTI-CHRISTIAN ACTIONS continue still today… AND YET, modern Christians leaders preach about the “fellowship of Christians a Jews”. They tell us that we must actively oppose “anti-Semitism” and defend our “Jewish brothers” from the “hateful” treatment that they suffer at the hands of their enemies. COULD IT BE THAT AFTER ALL THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH HAS EXPERIENCED FROM THE PERSECUTION OF THE JEWS THAT THE JEWS HAVE FINALLY “TURNED THE TABLES” ON US? If you are a CHRISTIAN - YOU MUST EXAMINE THE COMPLETE HISTORY OF THE PERSECUTION OF “YOUR” CHRISTIAN FAITH BY THE JEWS…. YOU MUST LEARN THAT THERE IS NO “FELLOWSHIP” BETWEEN YOURSELVES AND THE JEWISH PEOPLE…. YOU SHOULD LEARN THAT JEWS HAVE OFTEN INFILTRATED YOUR CHURCH LEADERSHIP AS WELL AS YOUR GOVERNMENT THROUGHOUT THE HISTORY OF MANKIND - JEWS ASSERT INCREDIBLY DESTRUCTIVE INFLUENCE OVER YOUR CHURCH LEADERS AND TOO MANY OF OUR POLITICIANS AND GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS… In Closing…. There are places in the world - INCLUDING THE UNITED STATES - where what I’ve written about here will be called “ANTI-SEMITISM”. What it’s REALLY about is AN AFFIRMATION OF MY CHRISTIAN FAITH AS WELL AS A REJECTION OF “ZIONISM” AND ITS INFILTRATION INTO THE CHRISTIAN FAITH AND THE AMERICAN GOVERNMENT… Have you ever heard the phrase “WHAT WOULD JESUS DO?”…. Perhaps the answer we should learn is “JESUS TURNED THE TABLES ON THE JEWISH OLD ORDER”…. Shouldn’t CHRISTIANS DO THE SAME? My final word… I CAN EXPLAIN ALL OF THIS TO YOU - BUT I CAN’T UNDERSTAND IT FOR YOU… GOD BLESS YOU 🙏🏼✝️ GOD BLESS THE CHRISTIAN FAITH - GOD BLESS AMERICA 🙏🏼✝️🇺🇸