What We Believe ?

OUR FAITH: 　- We believe there is one God. He is the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Different characteristics, but only one God. He is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the Old and New Testament, manifested in different characteristics throughout history, but always the same God.

MESSIAH IS GOD: We believe Yeshua is God. He is Divine and He is the Deity. He is the　perfect image of God the Father, come into the world in the form of a man. He is equal to God. He came down from heaven, born of a Jewish woman. He became a man, in the flesh and blood, in order to die for the sins of mankind.　 He rose from the dead, a new creation, and will return in a new body unto eternity, giving eternal life unto all who believe in Him. He is, was, and always will be fully God, though also fully man.　　

OUR MISSION: Our mission is: To publish the gospel of Yeshua to the Jewish community of Tampa Bay in order to win Jewish souls for the Kingdom of God.

SALVATION: All men are sinners, in need of redemption. Salvation is our redemption from judgment because of sin. The reason that people die is because of sin. But death is not the end. What is coming upon mankind is far worse than death. After death, all the souls of mankind through all history will be resurrected, and be brought before God on a great white throne of judgment. There is a judgment coming unto all mankind, because of sin. God has decreed this judgment because we rebelled against God, from the earliest of days, and have corrupted the perfect universe of His creation. But, on the other hand, God’s love is so great, that He has published Good News to mankind – there is redemption from this judgment coming on the world. God has given His own life, so that we might have a way to escape the wrath and the just penalty that is coming. God has paid the penalty of our sins, taking the sentence of judgment upon Himself. He did this by enduring great suffering, and death, being crucified, slaughtered like a lamb on Passover about 2000 years ago. Through this death on the stake, Yeshua has made an atonement for our souls, if only we believe in Him. And by that atonement, the sentence of judgment will pass over each of us. There is no other way. But the way is sure, if only we believe in Him.

HEAVEN AND HELL: Truly, whosoever believes in Yeshua is saved from the horrible judgment coming upon mankind. The unbelieving portion will be cast into hell, a place of suffering, a lake of fire, along with Satan, his demonic hosts, and all who have rebelled against God both in heaven and on earth. Hell is a real place, not a literary illusion or metaphor. Hell is a place of eternal anguish and unthinkable agony, and is the just and deserving fate of ALL mankind because of sin and rebellion against God. No man is without sin, and therefore, no one ever born can justify before God’s throne why they should not be cast into Hell. We are ALL deserving of that fate of eternity in hell. Unbelievers scoff at this remark, thinking themselves to be good and decent people, but unbelief is the most serious sin of all, thus they are blind to their state of rebellion, and moreover they don’t see that God has judged ALL mankind as a whole, as if we are one person in Adam, all responsible for the sins of the whole, going back to the beginning. BUT, God’s mercy is so great, that He has provided redemption on an individual, case by case basis, from that horrible fate that will be soon coming upon mankind as sure as the sunset. The Merciful Almighty God has provided relief through the simplest of means, available to each and every still living soul under the sun, requiring exactly the same standard, no matter who we are - rich or poor, male or female, Jew or Gentile, whatever. All have sinned and come short of the glory. But if we believe in Messiah Yeshua, we are saved. It’s really that simple. Believe in your heart and confess with your lips that He died for your sins, and rose from the dead, and you will be saved from an eternity of hell. That means you will receive what you did NOT deserve. Because your faith in God gives glory to Him, and reverses the pattern of rebellion by men who refuse to acknowledge Him for who He is. God’s grace provides you with mercy, unearned; instead of what you deserved, which is punishment. All men will one day stand before the Great White Throne of Judgment, but when we do, if you have accepted Yeshua HaMashiach into your heart, you will surely not be cast into the lake of fire with that stubborn part of mankind that refused God’s offer to just believe in His Son. Instead, you will enter by another gate, and live forever in heaven with God, a place known also as the Kingdom of God.

THE KINGDOM OF GOD: A "Kingdom" is simply the domain of the King. The Kingdom of God is the domain of God. It is His "realm", as the Kings of the nations call it. The realm is that which the King rules over – in this case the entire earth. The Kingdom of God, also called the Kingdom of Heaven, is coming to the earth with God, when He returns, because this first creation is passing away. The Kingdom of God is currently in heaven, in the invisible realm, where God currently abides, until the time that He returns to Jerusalem. The earth, is meanwhile, temporarily under the domain and control of Satan. This is a former archangel who rebelled against God, in an epic struggle that took place in the unseen realm of heaven. Satan has already been defeated, at the tree of sacrifice (the cross), by God’s sacrificial death and subsequent resurrection from the dead. However, until God returns, the world is ruled by the devil, and mankind continues to be led astray by him and his hosts who sit over this realm, manipulating it until God returns. For those of us who know and believe in Yeshua, we have power over the devil in this world, even as we wait for Yeshua’s triumphant return. When He returns, Satan will be cast in to the lake of fire forever, and God will set up his own Kingdom on earth. In it, there is no death, no sorrow, no sickness, no pain, no lack, no grief; but rather, there is nothing but peace, prosperity, health, love, rejoicing, and happiness forevermore.

When Yeshua came the first time, every place He went, He announced the arrival of the Kingdom of God. He taught about it, often in parables, and demonstrated it by great signs and wonders. Everything Yeshua did was to make the point that the Kingdom of God had arrived on earth. The apostles after Him did likewise, as many great signs were done by their hands, and they preached the same gospel of the Kingdom as Yeshua. Although the Kingdom is not fully established yet for all to see, the promises of the Kingdom of God are meant for us today, as much as for the future. The bible teaches that if we receive Yeshua into our hearts, we have the King living inside of us, and therefore the realm of the Kingdom of God is opened to us as well. As such, the aspects and characteristics of the Kingdom do become manifest reality for our lives as we grow in the Spirit of God. We have promises, for example, of healing, joy, prosperity, victory, vindication, peace, and life forevermore. Once a person is saved, we are called to grow in the Lord’s Spirit, and thus, we are able to grasp these blessings now. There will come a day when Yeshua returns to Jerusalem, and the Kingdom will be fully established and revealed unto all the earth. The Kingdom belongs to the Lord, and to all who believe in Him.

MESSIANIC JUDAISM: TNJ is part of an international movement of God called "Messianic Judaism", which promotes the salvation of the Jewish people in every community where Jews can be found.　 We encourage our congregants to become members the Messianic Jewish Alliance of America (MJAA)　 www.mjaa.org . Messianic Judaism is not a denomination or a religion, just people who love Yeshua and believe that God's covenant with Israel is forever.

HOLY SPIRIT: The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God that abides in the world. The Holy Spirit IS God. His presence is literally the presence of the Lord, Yeshua, abiding in Spiritual form. He makes His place in the hearts of men. We are the "Temple" of God’s Spirit, which abides with us. At TNJ our high calling is to reach　our Jewish community. This can’t be done without the Holy Spirit. We believe　the power of the gospel to the　Jewish people is being released in our time because the wall of partition is coming down, and there is a renewal of unity between Jew and Gentile that has not existed since the days recorded in the book of Acts, when many miracles were done by the hands of the Jewish Apostles. Jew and Gentile at TNJ are united together in　the common vision to worship God and to publish the good news to Israel.　　The bible says there is one Spirit, one God, who unites all believers together in Him.　 At TNJ, we believe our God is with us, literally, living and abiding on His throne and revealing His glory whenever we gather together in His name.　 Because God is with us, we are able to fufill our mission. Hallelujah!

OUR VALUES: Love the Lord your God with all your heart. And love your neighbor as yourself.　In this, the entire Torah is fulfilled.　We teach our children this creed.

THE BIBLE: Our bible is　the Old Testament and the New Testament.　We believe the bible is 100% true.　

We do not accept the sayings of the Rabbis, or any books not in the Old or New Testament, as authoritative scripture. We admire the　scholarship and wisdom of books like the Jewish Talmud, Midrashim, and other writings of the great Jewish Rabbis and leaders of old,　but we don’t rely on them. We are thankful for them, but we rely only on the written bible as authority, not commentary on the bible.

THE CHURCH: The body of Messiah is one. It is not many. Essentially, messianic Jews believe the same things about God, the Messiah, and the Bible as nearly every mainstream evangelical Christian denomination in America – Baptist, Presbyterian, Pentecostal, Episcopal, and so on. Of course, there are many deep stylistic differences in our worship, teachings, and lifestyle. But theologically, we believe in the same God as that of the Christian faith, which owes it roots to the Jewish people. The mainstream church, however, tends to have a different understanding of Israel in prophecy. That is the one theological issue that tends to be unique about messianic Judaism.

ISRAEL: We believe that Israel is the covenant nation of God forever. , God has a special plan and purpose for Israel, different than all other nations. The mainstream church has taught that God’s plan for Israel was abolished by Messiah’s coming, and replaced by the gentile church. Though the covenant of law that was given at Mt. Sinai has in fact passed away, His covenant with Israel is forever. The New Covenant is not the abolition, but rather, the salvation of Israel through the law being placed upon the hearts of the people. As for the law, it is holy, and perfect. No man can live up to it. No man is saved by it. But it is nonetheless, our teacher and way of life, to the extent we are able to keep it. Not our salvation. Messiah is our savior.

Many churches today have repented of that wrong theology known as "replacement theology". But plenty still have not, and continue to teach that Jesus came to abolish the law, and everything promised concerning Israel is abolished along with it. We at TNJ, as typical of the messianic Jewish movement, believe that Israel is the nation of God, and that God’s covenant with Israel is eternal, and irrefutable. When Yeshua returns, as promised in the bible, Israel’s covenant relationship with God will be fulfilled unto all eternity as the Messiah takes the throne of David in Jerusalem.

Israel's rebirth in 1948 is taken as a sign that Yeshua will return very soon, probably in this generation. He will reign as King over the entire earth forever. Nations and governments as we know them today, will be made subject to　His rule, and the dominion over the earth will belong to the nation of Israel. The gospel has gone forth to every nation, tribe and tongue. All who are believers in Yeshua, Jew and Gentile alike, are heirs of the Kingdom of God, and therefore have a place and purpose under the umbrella of God’s covenant with His own nation – Israel. He will establish Israel as the ruling nation over all nations, as promised originally to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. All who belong to God will benefit from this and be a part of it.