The Road to Emmaus Ministry Update

For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come . 1 Corinthians 11:26

1 Corinthians 11:26

April & May 2019 Ministry Update

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Shalom Shalom (Perfect Peace),

Passover

On the 14 ^th into the 15 ^th of Aviv on God’s calendar (the evening of April 19 ^th on the Gregorian calendar) most Israeli households came together to celebrate the Lord’s Passover by remembering the deliverance of God’s people from slavery.

(Quick note: The bottle above is grape juice)

That evening was the highlight for us since our last prayer letter. Our congregation came together, not only to remember God’s hand of deliverance from the bondage in Egypt, but most importantly to show Jesus – Yeshua – Salvation Himself in the Passover. Unfortunately, this is what is missing in all of the other Jewish Passover Seders that don’t know our Savior – the remembrance of the death of the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world (John 1:29).

During our Passover Seder we wanted to make sure we brought the whole of the Scriptures from Genesis to Revelation to show the work of our Messiah. We had over 40 people from both Jews and Gentiles from all over the world participate. We made sure when it came to the bread and third cup (which represented the body and blood of Christ to initiate the New Covenant) that only believers who were born again by grace through faith in the finished work of Christ on the cross participated.

There are six important ways that we compared the Passover Lamb in Exodus with the Passover Lamb in Jesus:

1. Exodus 12:1-2 – The feast marked a new year and new beginning for the Israelites.

In Messiah, every believer is a new creation (2 Cor. 5:17). Old things and the old life are past.

2. Exodus 12:5 – A male lamb in its first year was taken into the home on the tenth of Aviv/Nisan (the first month on God’s calendar). While in the home it was inspected for defects. If it was without spot or blemish, it was then sacrificed on the 14 ^th of the month.

Jesus was closely inspected by Pilate (Matt. 27:11-26); Herod (Luke 23:8-12); Annas (John 18:12-13); Caiaphas (Matt. 26:57). They found no fault in Him. Jesus the Christ is the “ Lamb without blemish and without spot ” (1 Peter 1:19).

3. Exodus 12:6 – the whole “assembly of the congregation” of God’s people was required to participate in the sacrifice and meal.

Accepting the Messiah’s sacrifice is required for all who want to be a part of God’s congregation / Body (Romans 3:21-26).

4. Exodus 12:7, 12, 22 – The blood of the sacrificed lamb was applied to the doorframe – the lintel and side posts. Because of the covering of blood, the house was spared from God’s plague (Lev. 17:11).

The Lord shed His blood to rescue His people. We need to be covered/justified by the blood of the Lamb to be rescued from condemnation (Romans 3:25, 5:9).

5. The Passover is to be kept as a remembrance forever.

And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the Lord throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever. ( Exo. 12:14 )

The Lord declared “ This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me ”. Luke 22:19

6. God commanded Israel not to break any bones of the sacrificed lamb.

In one house shall it be eaten; thou shalt not carry forth ought of the flesh abroad out of the house; neither shall ye break a bone thereof. ( Exo. 12:46 )

The gospel of John in chapter 19:32-33 declared the reality that the Lamb of God and His bones remained unbroken.

Our goal in the Passover and throughout our ministry is to point everything to the person and finished work of our Savior. By God’s grace we were able to use the blessing of Passover to do just that – to show the preeminence and finished work of our blessed Savior Yeshua Ha’Mashiach the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world (John 1:29; Colossians 1:14-22).

1 Cor. 5:7-8 Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth .

We had 43 people partake in the Passover Seder.

Giving the gospel to Shiah .

David on his way to base.

Salach who we met at Galilee.

Gospel Opportunities

Friday Outreach

A smile and a greeting can bring great opportunity for the gospel. I met a Jewish man named Judah on my way to prayer and outreach. On Friday’s the common greeting is “Shabbat Shalom” because Friday is seen as the preparation day for the sabbath. Most of the time I greet people it is met with indifference but this day I got a favorable response. Judah knew very little English, so we communicated mainly in Hebrew or “Hebrish” (Hebrew with some English) as it’s known on the street. Our conversation lead to questions of faith since the man was a religious Jew. I was able to give my testimony and I asked if he would be willing to take a full (OT & NT) Bible with verses highlighted about who the Messiah is. Most often they will not take it, but I encouraged him all the more to take the only book that can provide life. He said “normally I wouldn’t take this, but I am in deep thought as to what Hashem (God) would have me do and where to live. Who knows, maybe this book has the answers I am looking for”. He took it and we exchanged contact information. The man walked with me an extra 15 minutes in the opposite direction he was going. Please keep Judah, and many like him in prayer, that he might come to know the Messiah!

The same day I saw an ultra-orthodox man on a bench who looked very sad and lonely. It is important to remember, that in this busy world where we never seem to have enough time, there are still some very lonely people who need our Savior. I briefly spoke to the man and offered him a booklet with just verses from the Tanach (OT) that speak about Jesus. That day was the second time a highly religious rabbinic Jew took material from me -- a Christian Jew… To God be the glory!

Touring Outreach

When visiting the Sea of Galilee, with some guests from the Ministry House, we met a young Druze man named Salach. The Druze are an Arabic-speaking esoteric ethno-religious group originating in Western Asia who self-identify as Al-Muwaḥḥidūn (lit., "The People of Monotheism"). Jethro of Midian, in the book of Exodus, is considered an ancestor of all people from the Mountain of Druze region, who revere him as their spiritual founder and chief prophet. The Druze have no homeland so they are very faithful to serve in the country they live in. This young man was very friendly and appreciative of David and Abby serving in the IDF. We got to talking about faith and he sees himself as a traditional Druze but one that is still searching for truth. We spoke about my Judaeo-Christian belief and he understands that Jesus didn’t come to start a new religion or write a new book but rather, like all the prophets, He called His people back to God and showed Himself as the atonement. We exchanged numbers and he said he will be coming to visit our congregation to learn more about what we believe. Please pray for Salach that he may find the truth and believe!

Yom Hatzmaot Outreach

We celebrated Israel’s Independence Day (Yom Hatzmaot) at a park with some from our congregation. We prayed before our day that God would bring divine appointments and He didn’t disappoint.

We met a lawyer named Yechezkel and his wife who came to Israel 30 years ago as orthodox Jews returning home to Israel from England. I took the opportunity to reach out to them and they came over and eventually asked about our group. This gave me the opportunity to tell them we too were Jews but ones that believe in Yeshua as the Messiah and we were celebrating with our Kehilla (word for congregation). They were very fascinated that a fellow Jew would come to live in Israel who believed in Yeshua. We realized we had a lot in common from our past business experience and we exchanged numbers to meet up later and discuss some more. It is a blessing to be able to use my past business experience for more opportunities to talk about our Savior.

Shiah – A young man in the army who is a practicing Orthodox asked Abigail for directions and ended up staying awhile to have some watermelon as it was a warm day. Amazingly the young man was very open to tell about his faith and said he had never heard about a messianic Jew (A Jew who believes in Jesus). We had some good discussion about Messianic prophecies and how Yeshua fulfilled all that was required. We gave him our Kehilla information and invited him to come as he usually spends his weekends off from the army in Jerusalem. Situations like this give us a chance to spread the gospel and invite people to come to our services. Most don’t come but occasionally some will show up, sometimes many weeks after giving them our contact information. Pray for Shiah and others like him to be led to come back and seek to know our Messiah!

Some from our congregation celebrating Yom Hatzmaot (Independence Day).

Life in the Land and Friedman Family Happenings

Hebrew Ulpan Class

Continuing Hebrew Studies are going well. The class has been interesting in that it is a perfect mix between Jews, Arabs, and Christians. One day the teacher was trying to explain (in Hebrew of course) the differences between the three religions. When I explained to them that I, like the early church, was both Jewish and a follower of Jesus it caused great confusion. Unfortunately, the history between the Jews and Christendom has not been good and has added to the misunderstanding. One of the rabbinic Jews in the class is my friend named Baruch. When he found out that I was a Jew who believes in Jesus he wanted to find out why. He and I have had good conversations. He wants me to meet with his rabbi to try and “bring me back on the path to being a good Jew”. I told him I would gladly meet with him. Please pray for this opportunity that the Lord can use it for His glory and their good.

Hebrew Bible Study

I have recently joined a Hebrew speaking Bible study. I meet with two of my Hebrew speaking friends with the goal to reach out to the native Israelis with the gospel. We study the weekly Torah portion that is read in all the synagogues. Since it is in high Biblical Hebrew it is hard for me to understand all of the words, but it is quite helpful in my Hebrew learning process and for the sake of the gospel. Pray that many will come to hear the Word.

Reaching Jewish people around the world with the Gospel

A good friend of ours, Jim Reiner, who is a part of our home church in Hawaii, has come to visit us twice and has a heart to learn how to reach the Jewish people with the gospel. We have spent a lot of time talking about the gospel in the OT and how it relates to the Hebrew world. I mentioned to Jim how he can find Israeli Jews when he got back home. I told him they are usually selling dead sea products in the mall.

Jim’s note below really blessed our hearts as this is another aspect of our ministry in seeing the gospel go back home with those that visit us here in Jerusalem -- effectively multiplying our efforts to reach our people with the Gospel all over the world!

Suddenly there was a lotion shop I did not see before. I told him I had been to Jerusalem and had a Tanakh to share with a Jewish man. He said, ‘Great. I can read Hebrew. Show me something to read.’ So, I opened the Tanakh to the bookmark at Isaiah 53 and handed the book to him. He started reading at the bottom of the page and flipped to the next page and kept reading. He was using his finger to follow his place, so I could also look at the English at the same time. He was just about done with verse 5. I thought to myself I have to ask him if he knows who he is reading about. Chen stopped reading and looked at me and said, ‘this is Jesus.’ What?! You know this is Jesus? Chen said ‘Yes, this is Jesus the Messiah’. You know Jesus as the Messiah?! He said, ‘Yes, Jesus is Savior.’

I asked him how he came to know this. He said from a pastor at a church in Jerusalem. Chen told me he is the only one here (referring to all the Jews on Front St) who believe this. He said the rest are stubborn. He told me Israel needs people like me. It needs non-Jewish people who will take the time and effort to go there and sit with a Jew and look at the Tanakh and talk about it. His opinion is that Jew to Jew witnessing for Yeshua Ha’Mashiach can be very difficult. Many of the Jews are stubborn.

Now I figured I had exceeded the amount of time a salesperson can be away from his job, so I said I probably should be going so he can keep selling. I have notice in the past the ones I talk to are rushed and not willing to give me more than 60 seconds. After I mention Yeshua they are done with me. But Chen told me, ‘Come with me. The store is closing.’ We walked together all the way to the other end of Front St talking about Israel, the Messiah, the need to share the good news, desire to travel there, love for Jewish people. He said Israel needs the Messiah, Jesus. It needs people to come share this message.

I know none of this would happen were it not for time with the Lord and time with you. Thank you.

Bro Jim.

Abigail completed her service in the IDF

It is amazing how quickly time has flown by. Abigail completed her two year service in the Israeli army in April. What started out with such unknowns and anxiety has ended very well. Abigail was discharged with honors and love from her fellow soldiers who said she brought a smile and an attitude that was a great blessing. She was able to point it all back to her faith in her Savior. We are so thankful and blessed for what a wonderful testimony our daughter has been. To God be all the glory!

Again, we would like to give a special thank you to each one of you who continue to support and pray for us and our ministry. We are very grateful!

Love and Blessings in the Messiah,

Scott, Beth, Abigail, David, Mark, Levi

לוי ,מארק ,דוד ,אביגיל ,ג'יין ,סקוט

“ We have but one thing to do: we have but one Person to please. Has your life been thus simplified? "

Andrew Bonar

To make a donation to our ministry please press here:

IBJM On-Line Giving Link or call IBJM at (423) 876-8150 or mail to IBJM PO Box 1386 Hixson,TN 37343 and mark support for Scott & Beth Friedman

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Prayer Requests

Continue to pray for Beth's sister Dawn as she is recovering from cancer. She completed 12 chemotherapy sessions and at this point appears cancer free! We are praising God for the victory so far but Dawn will still need a lot of prayer to fully recover and be completely healed.

The salvation of those who God has appointed for us to meet. We especially want to be able to see the fruit of our labors in new believers coming to faith.

Our congregation to grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. Especially for new believers.

Those coming, especially for IDF Soldiers, to our Shabbat Meal time to hear the gospel.

Our adult children back in America that they would continue strong in the faith.

P raise the Lord that our son and his wife Anne are expecting their second child. Pray for them as they are coming to visit on June 7.

David as he serves in the IDF and works to be a great witness and light of the gospel; for Mark and Levi as they play with the neighbor children.

Abigail as she is now finished with the army and is helping us in the ministry.

Hebrew studies for all of us including Mark & Levi and me (Scott).

More Israelis to come to our new Hebrew Bible study.

I will represent our Messiah properly in the teaching of the Word and the preaching of the gospel as we gather together with our congregation, as I walk the streets, and spend time at the Western Wall.

Pray that the Lord will continue to keep us healthy and provide for our monthly financial needs.

As always, pray for the peace of Jerusalem, especially now with all that is going on with the surrounding nations, the elections, and the upcoming Trump "peace plan"...

-- Sha’alu Shalom Yerushalim Psalm 122:6

Isaiah 54:7

For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee.

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