- Abraham Foxman, of the Anti-Defamation League, recently
pronounced that acceptance of the New Testament record that the Jews had
Christ killed is "anti-Semitic." This implicates tens of millions
of Bible-believing Christians worldwide. With ADL's charge comes the necessity,
especially for Christians, to reexamine the issue of who is to blame for
the crucifixion.
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- Scripture teaches no one is guilty for the sins of another.
We all enter the world innocent of the misdeeds of our parents. This includes
every Jewish child.
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- Yet the Bible also teaches we can become guilty of the
sin of another by sympathy with it. Christ said the Pharisees were guilty
of the murder of Abel and all righteous blood from the beginning of the
world. (Mat. 23:35) Why? Because the Pharisees persecuted righteousness.
Had they been present in the time of Abel, they would have murdered Abel.
Thus, according to Christ, it is possible to become spiritually guilty
of a sin, such as murder or adultery, even without physically committing
the act. The will is there. All that is lacking is the opportunity.
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- Modern or rabbinic Judaism is a product of those very
Pharisees whom Christ excoriated, and who ultimately had Him crucified.
The authoritative Universal Jewish Encyclopedia explains:
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- "The Jewish religion as it is today traces its descent
without a break through all the centuries from the Pharisees. Their leading
ideas and methods found expression in a literature of enormous extent,
of which a great deal is still in existence.. The Talmud is the largest
and most important single piece of that literature.." The Universal
Jewish Encyclopedia, Article on "Pharisaism," p. 474
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- If a Jewish child is born into an Orthodox Jewish family,
he innocently enters a religious system entirely obedient to those who
masterminded the crucifixion of Jesus. The Pharisees and their vast, rambling
"anti-bible", the Talmud, possess greater authority for religious
Jews than does the Old Testament. As the Universal Jewish Encyclopedia
confirms: "Thus the ultimate authority for Orthodoxy is the Babylonian
Talmud. The Bible itself ranks second to it in reality, if not in theory."
Universal Jewish Encyclopedia, "Authority" p. 637.
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- What does the Talmud teach about Jesus? It says He seduced
and deceived the people. Git.56b-57a. He was a bastard, his mother Mary
being a whore. San.106b. He practiced sorcery and enticed His race to apostasy.
San.43a. He was a fool. San.67a. He was stoned, burned, decapitated and
strangled in His death. San. 106b, Git.57a. He was excommunicated for the
thought of seducing a woman and in His shame fell down and worshipped a
brick. San.107b. He is now in hell, languishing in boiling hot semen. Git.56a.
The Talmud is emphatic that it was necessary to kill Jesus because He was
"one of the three worst enemies of Judaism." Git.56a. He was
a false prophet who seduced and deceived the people. Git.56b-57a.
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- Is the modern Jew guilty of the death of Christ? The
answer is simple. If he agrees with the Talmud that the Pharisees did the
right thing by having Jesus crucified, then that Jew today is as guilty
as the Jewish mob that sided with the Pharisees 2,000 years ago, shouting
"Crucify Him, crucify Him." Mk. 15:13. If, however, the modern
Jew disassociates himself from loyalty to the Pharisees and their claims
against Christ, then he is free from any guilt.
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- The New Testament Gospels present in clearest terms successful
efforts by the Pharisees to persuade the Romans to crucify Christ. In the
Book of Acts, the disciples, in face to face rebuke of the Pharisees, insistently
identify them as the culprits: "The God of our fathers raised up Jesus,
whom you had put to death by hanging Him on the cross." Acts 5:30;
cf. Acts 2:22, 36; 3:13-15; 4:10.
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- Unfortunately, amid the shock waves of Mel Gibson's "Passion,"
many evangelical Christian leaders rushed forward to absolve all Jews of
any spiritual guilt concerning the crucifixion. They declared, as many
evangelicals believe, that we are all guilty of the crucifixion. The idea
of "corporate guilt" for Christ's death is unknown to Scripture.
While we "all have sinned and come short of the glory of God"
(Rom. 3:23), we have not all crucified Jesus. Such pandering not only makes
God's law of none effect, it attempts to free the Jews from a burden of
guilt they themselves invited. To hasten the crucifixion of Christ, the
Jewish leaders said, "His blood be upon us and upon our children."
Mk. 27:25. All adult Jews who still support the Pharisaic system which
crucified Christ are thus linked in spiritual guilt with those who actively
accomplished the act.
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- Of course, anyone, such as a gentile Satanist, who approves
of the crucifixion, or a Christian who becomes apostate (Heb. 6:6), is
spiritually guilty of crucifying Christ. Rabbinic Judaism however, because
it constitutes the "synagogue of Satan" (Rev. 2:9) uniquely incurs
blame for Christ's death upon all Jews who give themselves to it.
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- During the past century, Jewish apologists, for purposes
of ecumenical harmony with Christians, have referred to Jesus in such terms
as "a great teacher." Such a description is found nowhere in
rabbinic Judaism's most sacred repository of authority, the Babylonian
Talmud. Rabbinic Judaism, despite efforts to whitewash it, remains of all
great religions (including Islam) the most vehemently opposed to the claims
of Christ. To be a religious, observant Jew is to embrace the Talmud and
its blasphemous opinion of Christ.
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- Someday, the Bible teaches, a remnant of Jews out of
the Great Tribulation will believe on the One their fathers crucified.
Yet for the present, the church must heed Christ's warning to "Beware
of the leaven (teaching) of the Pharisees." Matt. 16:6. In other words:
Beware of Judaism. Paul also warns the church, referring to unbelieving
Jews as "enemies" (Rom. 11:28) "...who both killed the Lord
Jesus and prophets, and drove us out. They are not pleasing to God, but
hostile to all men." I Thess. 2:15
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- The Jews were given transcendent spiritual light, first
at Sinai, and then through their prophets. When they rejected that light,
they were plunged into incredible darkness. While individual Jews may not
necessarily be held guilty of such apostasy, the fact is Jewish leadership
and institutions remain formidably opposed to Christianity. Moses warned
the Jews that if they rejected God's law, they would be cursed above all
nations. Deut. 28:15. They not only rejected God's law, but crucified its
giver, Jesus Christ. Christ said that the House of Israel, after its rejection
of Him, would be left desolate. Lk.13:35.
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- Today, no evangelical leader has the privilege of removing
guilt from Jews who still reject their Messiah and embrace the teaching
of His murderers. Christ has both a long-standing love-affair and quarrel
with the Jewish nation. He will settle that quarrel some day on His own
terms, at last obtaining faith, obedience, and righteousness from what
scripture repeatedly describes as a "stiff-necked people."
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- Such a people now control Hollywood and America's media.
They dominate Congress. They dictate America's foreign policy in the Middle
East. They are the fountainhead of anti-Christian activity and legislation,
including so-called "anti-hate" laws which strip Christians of
free speech. In short, they are more determined than ever that Christ will
never prevail. Yet in the end, Christ will have righteousness from His
people, the Jews. "They will look on Him whom they pierced and they
will mourn ... as one mourns for an only son." Zech. 12:10.
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- ~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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- Rev. Ted Pike is director of the National Prayer Network,
a Christian/conservative watchdog organization.
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- TALK SHOW HOSTS: Interview Rev. Ted Pike on this subject.
Call (503) 631-3808.
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