The Road to Emmaus Ministry Update

Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool . Isa. 1:18

Isaiah 1:18

June / July 2018 Ministry Update

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Shalom Aleichem,

Tisha B’Av -- Tragedy to Triumph

Beginning on the evening of July 21 was the 9 ^th day of the fifth month of Av on the Jewish Calendar. It is considered the saddest day in Jewish history. It ended three weeks of national mourning for the destruction of the Holy Temples in Jerusalem and other national tragedies. We took this opportunity to teach about the history of this day and preach the gospel of our blessed Messiah.

Events of this day throughout history:

The Babylonians destroyed the first temple and took the Jewish people captive in 586 BC
The Romans destroyed the second temple and dispersed the Jewish people in AD 70
On this day in 1096, the Crusades began during which 1.2 million Jews were killed
The Jews were expelled from England in 1290
The Jews were expelled from Spain in 1492 (it is possible the inquisitions intensified the torture during this date)
The Nazi’s took pleasure in organizing murderous actions against the Jewish Community. Heinrich Himmler presented the Nazi’s “Final Solution” to wipe out all Jews in Europe.
In 1942, on this same day, the Nazis began to deport all Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto to extermination camps.

With the destruction of the Temple and the horrible events of Tisha B’Av what are the Jewish people to do now?

The Rabbinic Jewish people are told by the Rabbis to follow a man-made religion of works referred to as Halacha or “Jewish Law”.

One of the laws are for morning and evening prayers to be presented at the Wailing Wall -- the Kotel.

Why is it called the Wailing Wall? Because the Jewish people are weeping over the loss of the only legitimate means for atonement. Without a Temple and without faith in the finished work of Jesus the Messiah they have no atonement.

They are praying for a solution to their sin and an atonement which only comes through the shedding of blood…

Lev 17:10-11 And whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among you, that eateth any manner of blood; I will even set my face against that soul that eateth blood, and will cut him off from among his people. For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul .

Isaiah, who prophesied the destruction of the Temple and against the actions of the nation of Israel also prophesied of the coming Messiah who would be the solution to their need for a blood sacrifice:

He is God with us

Isa. 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel . עמנו אל

He is the Prince of Peace

Isa. 9:6-7 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace . Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this .

He was Rejected of men and yet is the Justifier of our sins

Isa. 52:13-53:12 (53:3-6) He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all .

It is our prayer that the Jewish people would recognize these verses as speaking of our Messiah and the only solution to our sin and the horrible events of Tisha B’Av. We prayerfully preach our Messiah crucified, buried, and raised from the dead to provide the much-needed solution to our problem of sin and the need of an atoning sacrifice . Please pray with us that many will come to know Jesus as their Savior.

Mark & Levi helping with putting together our new hymnals.

Visiting and encouraging our old friends. Valerie & Esther are Jews from Russia and don't speak English so we had to fumble through broken Hebrew to communicate. We learned that the language of kindness is always understood...

The Road to Emmaus team getting ready to go out on Friday to witness of our blessed Savior.

Our congregation meeting at the Ministry House.

Gospel Opportunities

We have had a very busy time of sharing the gospel. I continue to have meetings and build relationships with David, Anton, Yashi and others we have witnessed to. As well, we continue to make new friends and open new doors for the gospel. Along with our regular opportunities for the witnessing, during everyday life, we make it a point to go out on Wednesday’s to the Western Wall and Friday mornings with Bibles and tracts to different parts of the city with many from our congregation.

Friday witnessing

We met a young man named Yashi who took a Bible and came to our weekly service. He grew up Orthodox but has become a secular seeker for the truth. He studies the Bible at a university but more in a philosophical rather than a religious way. He asked many questions and we continue to stay in contact. We also met a man named Mair who is a Jewish lawyer and was very open to discuss our faith. He indicated he wanted to come and see what we do. He asked many questions and seemed very sincere in his search. We hope and pray he will come.

IDF Soldiers

Both Abby and David have many opportunities to share their faith in their respective positions in the IDF. We had one of Abby’s fellow soldiers over for a Shabbat meal. He is orthodox, so this was the first time Avraham had been to a Jewish believer’s home for Shabbat. He was able to see the Messiah throughout the meal. He asked many questions and seemed interested in why we do what we do.

Abby also hosted a dinner at our home with 10 of her fellow soldiers. There were three soldiers, Gabby, Ophrey, and Yael who were willing to talk about our faith. I had an especially interesting discussion with Yael who had never read Isaiah 53 where I was able to show Yeshua in the Scriptures. I gave her a Bible and she was so appreciative to learn about the Messiah.

David is in a pre-army program which has opened the door to bring many lone-soldiers home with him during Shabbat. One in particular, Sam, who grew up in a secular Jewish home seems to be very interested in hearing about our faith. He has attended our services and stayed with us at our home. He asks many questions and seems very open to the gospel.

Sinai – Hotel Manager for Shabbat Dinner . We had another divine appointment as we were meeting with a hotel manager to view a property for an upcoming tour group with IBJM. Sinai, the hotel manager, showed us around the hotel and as the leading of God would have it we got into a discussion about our beliefs. Sinai is a non-religious Jew who studies comparative religions to try and understand who God is and is intrigued by our faith as Jews who believe in Yeshua as their Messiah. He had never participated in a Shabbat Dinner hosted by a Jewish believer, so we invited him over. He agreed to come, which gave us the opportunity to show Yeshua throughout the dinner. We have since had him over for a church service which he plans to keep coming to as he is able. I also continue to meet with him during the week and discuss the gospel. As God’s providence would have it he no longer works at the hotel and the IBJM tour is not even going to stay there but it was God’s plan that we would meet. We see this as a divine appointment indeed! We are excited to see what God has in store for Sinai. Please pray for the Lord to lead and open his heart to the gospel.

Kfir & Guy

We had the pleasure of hosting a birthday party for Kfir, a young Jewish man who lives in Jerusalem. We met Kfir in Houston earlier this year where our friend Pastor Isaac had been ministering to him for quite some time. He told Isaac he would never enter a “church” and yet Isaac was able to not only see him in church but also ministered to him by inviting him to his home for Shabbat meals and such. Kfir recently moved back to Israel. We were able to have him and his brother Guy over for a meal and a birthday party. Kfir was very thankful and indicated he wanted to come again and especially to see our church service. Kfir and Guy are agnostics but are open to talk about our faith. We hope and pray we can pick up where Pastor Isaac left off by lovingly showing him and his brother our Savior.

Kfir and Guy -- Please pray that they will continue to come and learn about our Messiah!

Life in the Land

Road to Emmaus Congregation

The congregation continues to grow and each week we have new visitors from Israel and around the world. Prayer meeting has been a great blessing every Tuesday as well as Friday morning witnessing. We have also put together a new hymnal with English and Hebrew songs that are especially enjoyed with our new piano which was graciously donated by the Nibbes who are part of our congregation.

IBJM Team Visit

Had a great time with the IBJM team led by brother Ed Frampton. It was Brother Ed’s first time to see and stay at the Everlasting Nation Ministry House. We toured many sites and had a great time visiting with Mary, Jacki, Phyllis, and Katie. It was the first time to Israel for Phyllis and Katie which is always a joy to see believers in the Land for the first time. We were greatly encouraged by their visit.

Interns

Kathryn & Emily

We were sad to see Kathryn and Emily leave us. We enjoyed the time they were here as they were able to help in many aspects of the ministry. We will continue to develop the intern program with the hopes to see others here.

Ministry Needs

Many people have asked if we have any specific financial needs and how to participate with us for the gospel in Israel. We are here by faith and trust the Lord will provide for our needs, but we recognize many are not called to do what we do nor are able to be here but still want to be a part of ministering to the Jewish People here in Israel. For that reason, we want to provide this information so those who are led can contribute to our ministry. The most important way to help us is to pray for the Lord’s power to be displayed in us and through us and that many will come to faith through our preaching and living out the gospel. Another way is to contribute financially. We cannot be here without the sacrifice of other believers in giving to our ministry. The basic cost of living here in Israel is very high so our needs are simple in that we just need to pay for our basic living expenses in order to allow us to continue to stay here and minister among God’s people. At the bottom of our prayer letters has always been a donation link and other ways to give. The on-line giving link is below:

To donate to our ministry please press here:

IBJM On-Line Giving Link

We also have a link to our personal ministry website which is still under construction, but we hope to have it up and functional soon.

Friedman Family Happenings

Beth is busier than ever with her duties at home, schooling the children, and assisting with the ministry and the Ministry House. The Lord has really blessed Beth with the gift of serving and hospitality. The ministry couldn’t function without her.

We miss our three older sons and their families who live in America very much but are pleased to know they are doing well in their jobs and growing spiritually. Robert, Casey, and Thomas tell us often of their many opportunities for the gospel at work.

Our son Thomas recently took a second job at the airport. This allows us to fly standby to America which will be a great benefit to enable us to see our family more often. We are hoping to see Casey, Anne, and our new granddaughter Lana this month.

Abigail is almost 75% completed with her IDF service. She has done very well and continues to be a great light in a dark world. We are very thankful for what God continues to do in her life.

David just finished his pre-IDF preparatory program and will officially enter into the IDF on August 13 for two years and eight months. David has been preparing spiritually for the IDF over these past couple of years and now he is much better prepared physically, mentally, and emotionally. Please pray for God’s protection and leading as he enters what will be a challenging three months of language and physical training. It is our prayer that David will be right where God will use him the most.

Mark & Levi continue to do well in school. They work in year-round home school which allows us the flexibility for them to be able to take off during the year. This is especially helpful when we have groups staying at the Ministry House and Mark & Levi can assist us with our tours around the city. They are a big part of our ministry.

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

“It is no small comfort to me to know that God has called me to my work, putting me where I am and as I am. I have not sought the position, and I dare not leave it. He knows why He places me here whether to do, or learn, or suffer.”

J. Hudson Taylor

Prayer Requests

Pray for 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.

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

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

Pray for our adult children back in America that they would continue strong in the faith.

Pray for our trip to see Casey and Anne that Lord will make a way for us on standby.

Pray for our children Abby and David as they serve in the IDF and work to be a great witness and light of the gospel; for Mark and Levi as they play with the neighbor children.

Pray for Hebrew studies for all of us including Mark & Levi. Especially for the supernatural gift to learn and for the time to study.

Pray for grace and strength for Beth as she manages all of the tasks of homeschooling, entertaining, preparing for our weekly meetings, and helping with the needs of the Ministry House.

Pray for me that 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 -- Sha’alu Shalom Yerushalim Psalm 122:6

Ezekiel 39:28

Then shall they know that I am the Lord their God, which caused them to be led into captivity among the heathen: but I have gathered them unto their own land, and have left none of them any more there.

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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