Jesus Messiah Fellowship
Light To The Nations
Conversion To The Messianic Judaism Of Jesus Messiah
By Cohen G. Reckart, Pastor
Converting to the original New Testament Judaism of Jesus Messiah has been distorted by nearly all religious groups. Many do not hide the fact that they are making converts to their own denomination or group and never mention conversion to the Kingdom of God into the Judaism of Jesus Messiah. Instead, each sect has its own particular recipe or formula by which a person is made to feel or believe they have become a Christian within that group. With over 3,000 different sects within Christianity and as many recipes and formulas for salvation, what is the real truth. Is joining a denomination or a fringe group the same as conversion to the Messianic Judaism Jesus founded as the Kingdom of God? What is the ancient conversion method of Jesus and the Apostles into the Kingdom of God and why are so many millions balking at leaving man-made religion not desiring to go back to the original New Testament Judaism of Jesus? The following study is designed to help the seeker of the Kingdom of God obtain insight into the original conversion process for Jews and Gentiles into the Messianic Judaism of Jesus.
Conversion is a spiritual experience. By spiritual we mean holy and following the leading of God's holy Spirit. Being spiritual has to do with the level of fellowship a person has with God. A person who always thinks with carnal methods is not spiritual. In the conversion experience the carnal mind or worldly mind comes under subjection to the Messianic Judaism of Jesus. The person desires to be converted from either a sinful life or from a religious background in which there is no salvation through Jesus. Being religious and belonging to a sect of Christianity does no guarantee a person is saved even if they claim they are saved by faith.
In conversion a person's life is completely made into something new, something God creates holy, and the final product is a son or a daughter of God. The conversion process is simple yet for many it may take days, weeks, months, or years, since the completion of the process is determined by the faith of the candidate. In pure faith there is the immediate and instant conversion, nothing wavering, picking up one's cross and following Jesus with no apprehension or wanting to question every detail of his Messianic Judaism. In cases where a person wants to fight and struggle with following Jesus in his Messianic Judaism, conversion will take months and years if it ever is completed at all. There cannot be a full conversion until a person's faith has reached its level of acceptance with the Lord Jesus. Faith is not just a mental acceptance of Jesus as a historical person or even as the Savior. Bible faith in Jesus Messiah comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God (Romans 10:17).
Thus, faith and believing the Word are united in such a manner that unless an individual submits to the Word of God through faith in Jesus, a person's beliefs is not faith. All faith MUST be Word of God based. Mental acceptance of Jesus with no submission or no personal commitment to all of the New Testament Word of God is not saving faith. Conversion is the process of receiving Jesus as the Messiah-Saviour and coming into his Messianic Judaistic Kingdom (Mark 10:15). By receiving the Word of Truth and by grace through faith, each convert leaves a sinful life and becomes a new creation in Jesus Messiah. This can happen just as quick as a person submits to the Word of God and out of the faith the Word generates, believes and confesses Jesus is the Messiah as the Apostle Peter preached in Acts 2:38. No man can certify when a person is saved. The Lord Jesus has reserved that honor unto himself. Acts 5:32 tells us that God gives the Holy Spirit baptism to them that have obeyed him. Without Holy Spirit baptism a person IS NOT IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD (John 3:3-5). Until the moment of conversion is reached and certified by the Lord Jesus through Holy Spirit baptism, a person remains in the conversion process of faith. John the Baptist prophesied that Jesus would baptize all converts to the Kingdom with Holy Spirit baptism (Mark 1:8). It is interesting how many religions will lie on John, Jesus, and the Word of God and say Holy Spirit baptism is not essential to salvation (John 7:38-39). They will invent a false Holy Spirit baptism that is not like that of Acts chapter two that was poured out upon the Jewish converts to the Messianic Judaism of Jesus.
Conversions are required of both adult Jews and Gentiles for entry into the Kingdom of God. There are no special exclusions for Jews. They cannot be saved by the Law and ignore Jesus Messiah. They cannot claim salvation through Abraham and ignore Jesus. All Jews must be saved by the same plan of salvation preached by the Apostle Peter in Acts chapter two. All Jews and all Gentiles must come into the Kingdom by the new birth process of water and Spirit (John 3:3-5). Those who do are then after called *Jews by choice.* Believing in Jesus or having membership in a Church does not automatically confer conversion or salvation upon an individual. Regardless of a person's religious background, each of us must go through conversion. Even if a person is raised in a "Christian" home or a Jewish family where faith in Jesus and fulfillment of Acts 2:38 is unquestioned, the spiritual status of being saved is denied until conversion has been acknowledged and accomplished. There are those who have received Holy Spirit baptism who reject in their heart to be included in the Messianic Judaism of Jesus. Such person's have received the Holy Spirit in vain because they have REFUSED to all the Spirit to LEAD THEM INTO ALL TRUTH AND RIGHTEOUSNESS (Hebrews 4:2, 1John 4:6). Such an individual will eventually end up lost because they will follow their own theories, their own *convictions*, some man's theology, and refuse to walk in the Light as the Spirit reveals the full truth about Jesus Messiah.
Conversion of children must be done with the consent of the parents. Usually the Pastor or Minister will assign a person or a couple to teach the child conversion classes by means of Bible stories and teaching sunday school or young peoples sessions. To often religion is taught on these occasions and there is no goal or plan to use them as a means of conversion classes. The result is minds with a religious knowledge but no conversions. It would be of great service if the conversion classes are done in the presence of the parents with no pressure on them to convert.
During the conversion classes a person is brought to repentance of sin (forsaking Jewish and Gentile evil) and unholy conduct, as these are discovered by means of the new convert studies. After conversion classes have brought a person to repentance and they are fully determined to become a Messianic Believer and follower of Jesus, they are qualified for baptism. The separation waters of baptism is the place where a lostr condition and sinful life is left behind and a new life begins. This is pictured in the children of Israel crossing the Red Sea and the Jordan river. They were baptized unto Moses in the Red Sea, meaning they were leaving the authority of Pharoah and had willingly come over under the authority of Moses. They were leaving one kingdom to come over under the rule and authority of another Kingdom. There would be a past life rejected and a new life accepted. Old things would pass away and all things would become new. Thus, in the separation waters of baptism a person is forsaking the old life, the old man of sins, the bondage to the devil's kingdom, and coming over under the throne of Jesus and by faith entering into his Kingdom. Until a person is baptized scripturally they are not in the Kingdom. Baptism is not a ritual to determine if there is a trinity of if there is one God. Baptism was never intended to be a statement about how many gods there are. Baptism was the event that a person by faith crossed over under the blood of Jesus into the Kingdom of God. If this is not the faith and purpose of a person's baptism then it is not valid. No baptism in the titles of Matthew 28:19 is valid. The only valid baptism is found in Acts 2:38 for it is in this text that a person fulfills the entire conversion process.
Conversion requires several progressive affirmations of faith. Until a person by faith accepts the *yoke of the Kingdom of God* and accepts the validity of the New Covenant reigning supreme over the Old Testament, Jewish traditions, and Gentile religions, conversion is IMPOSSIBLE. Is it any wonder then that religious traditions can become stumblingblocks so a person never fulfills this faith conversion? Joining any religion that rejects the validity of the Judaism of Jesus Messiah is a false conversion, is a farce, and all the religion a person practices becomes meaningless. It is the acceptance of the Messianic Judaism of Jesus in the Kingdom of God that validates conversion is according to the New Covenant.
The length of time it takes for an adult to be converted will depend upon the secular background and sinful circumstances they bring to the conversion process. The amount of study of the Word that a person is prepared to put into the conversion process will determine how fast this is accomplished. In some cases conversion in heart can take place in one worship service and a person will faithfully complete new convert classes. In many cases conversion may take six months, a year, and sometimes longer, because the candidate refuses to be raised to the level of faith to accept all that the Messianic follower of Jesus practice as the Judaism of Jesus. These want to be Messianic but live like members of other religions. They will follow the religious advice of other religious followers. As long as this prevails, a person will never be converted. Conversion demands that a person come as did Ruth: "Your God will become my God, and your people shall become my people." Ruth was converted to the Jewish religion. She DID NOT attempt to convert the Jewish religion to her Moabite religious customs. She did not attempt to compromise the Jewish religious experience by merging Gentile pagan religious practices to allow for her to be part Jewish in religion and also part pagan. Conversion demands total rejection of all paganism, even if it is adopted or accepted *Christian paganism.*
In conversion a person is *adopted* into the Messianic Judaism of Jesus and becomes a joint heir of all the blessings and promises. He or she joins the Judaism of Jesus, comes under the throne of the Davidic Kingdom of God, and becomes a Jew by choice. From this moment of conversion on, a person is not considered a son or daughter of his or her natural parents and their religion, but a son or daughter of Abraham.