Jesus Of Nazareth

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Recommended: Judaism contrasts with Christianity

I will now discuss some common inter-religious points of contention. Christians and Jews share much in common, with heritage chief among them. Both Christians and Jews long for God to fulfill prophecies found within the Tanakh. However, interpretations of these prophecies has created a large gap between the two religions. The primary issue being the core belief in Christianity that Jesus of Nazareth is the prophesied Messiah.
According to Christian belief, Jesus of Nazareth is the long awaited Messiah who traces his lineage back to King David. Christians argue that Jesus fulfilled many prophecies, more than just being born to the Davidic dynasty. However, Judaism contends that many of the prophecies that Christianity claim to be fulfilled …show more content…

"I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also." (John 14:3) Christians believe that any unfilled prophecies will be fulfilled when Jesus comes again in his full glory. "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him" (Matthew 25:31-32) Jesus will come to claim his throne and will be anointed as King of the Eternal Kingdom. Judaism refutes this idea, claiming that no where in Scripture does it speak of the Messiah coming a second time to finish what he started. The work of the Messiah is a present reality with present results. Any failure to accomplish Messianic prophecy proves the false validity of the Messiah. The Messiah is prophesied to usher in the messianic age, and the current status of the world does not reflect the promises of the messianic …show more content…

The core belief in Jesus Christ as the incarnate Son of God completely separates Christian from Jew. A shared heritage and belief in the same God is not enough to bridge the gap between religions. For Judaism, belief in anything but the one true God (such as Jesus as Incarnate Son of God) is idolatry. Our worship of Jesus as the Messiah is an idolatrous act that will always divide Christianity from Judaism. But I do not believe that this gap should keep Christians from pursuing friendship and dialogue with followers of Judaism. I hope that this brief analysis of the Messiah will help inform Christians of the reasons why Christians and Jews do not share a closer bond. And I encourage Christians to seek conversations with Jews to better understand Judaism theologically. Much can be gained from an open and peaceful relationship between Judaism and

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