Subject: Tzemach logo

Name: Joe Davidson

Message: I think I will enjoy your news letter. This is the first time visiting your sight.
The first thing I noticed though was your inaccurate tree logo. It's very, very unscriptural.
Our Father has not cut off Israel and we are not engrafted into Messiah.
This is the rub between Messianic Judaism and Christianity.
There was a partial reformation in the 1500's and this is the final restoration before the coming of Messiah.
Yeshua said "other sheep I have I must bring to this fold." He has no other fold but Israel.
We as gentile beleivers are ingrafted into believing Israel by the blood of Messiah.
He is our circumcision, the cutting off of the way of the flesh in Him.
I bees quite now. If you wish to discuss, fine. If not, we still be brethren.

Shalom

Joe D.

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Hi Joe,

Thank you for your comment.

The logo does not represent "Messianic" Christianity. It represents Israel and is found in Jeremiah 23:5,6.

"Behold, the days are coming," declares the LORD.
When I will raise up for David a righteous Branch (Tzemach);
And He will reign as King and act wisely
And do justice and righteousness in the land.
"In His days Judah will be saved,
And Israel will dwell securely;
And this is His name by which He will be called,
The LORD our righteousness.'

The word "Tzemach" is Hebrew and it means "branch," and we are speaking of Yeshuah as the fulfillment of the covenant with David in II Samuel 7. The promise to David was that he and his offspring would rule (kingdom, house, and throne) forever. Yet the lineage of the kings was cut off following the Babylonian conquest and the death of king Zedekiah, so it appeared impossible for that covenanted promise to be fulfilled. This is why the gospel writers painfully drag us through the genealogy from Jesus (Yeshuah) to King David, and even to Abraham, to demonstrate Yeshuah as the fulfillment of the "Tzemach" prophecy. We do not intend for it to have any "replacement" implications. We are opposed to "replacement theology." Although we do have a hand full of Jewish believers in Yeshuah in our congregation, we are not a part of the Messianic denomination. We believe that all Christian Churches should find their roots in Israel and not Rome (thus the reason for the book "Hebraic Roots").

Blessings from the Tzemach Institute for Biblical Studies,