Gentiles vs. Messianic Believers

Q. I am confused about the use of “gentile” by some people. What do I call myself (not knowing if I’m Jewish or not) being a “messianic” believer?

A. The answer to your question is in your question, but let me give some information first. The term gentile has several meanings. The word itself comes from the Latin “gentilis” and it means “a people not Jewish.” The Hebrew term for this concept is “goy” meaning a stranger, non-Jew. Its plural form “goyim” means “nation” (Gen 12.2, 17.20) applying to Israel and it can be applied to non-Israelites (Deut. 15.6, 28.12, 36). Eventually the term can to be applied to unbelievers. Eph 2.11-22 is a good example of how one who was considered a gentile in times past can be spiritually brought near to God. In the 1st century these gentiles, which also meant “a pagan” had a specific term applied to them. They were no longer considered pagans, but God-fearers. This term is used in the book of Acts all over the place. The Greek term is “phoubemenoi” and you can see already the root of that word is where we get “phobia” from. They were also called “devout” which is the Greek word “sebemenoi” and that word is also used for these non-Jewish believers in Acts. These were specific synagogue terms used for these people and it was a compliment.

That probably doesn’t help with your confusion but it’s some back-round on this question, and it was something that has been dealt with for thousands of years. Now we come to some modern terms for a believer. The believers in Yeshua were called “mashiachim” in the 1st century and it is seen today as messianic. But, anyone who had an eschatological expectation of the Messiah was seen as “messianic” also. The term in Greek is where “Christian” comes from. In a Hebrew context it is “messianic, in Greek it is “Christian” and both mean the same thing. However, over the years there came to be a distinction between the two because of replacement theology. As a result, the term Christian today means something different than Messianic, and with two diverse theologies. So, with that in mind let’s get to the heart of your question. In my opinion, I don’t think the Lord really cares about what we call ourselves, what is important is what He calls us. He says we believe so “believer” is good. That’s what I go by a lot of times. I’m just a believer. Child of God or “son” in my case is a good one. Although I have Jewish descendants on both sides of the family, that doesn’t matter to the Lord.

Faith is what counts no matter what your pedigree is, so being Jewish doesn’t really matter except for some commandments that may apply. Some think that they have “Jewish blood” because Jews were scattered all over the world and there ”has to be some in there somewhere” they will say and they consider themselves “Jewish”. The problem with that is if there is no evidence for that in your family, then you can’t really back- up what you say and it can hurt your witness. Secondly, it’s like stealing the identity of someone then and you wouldn’t want that. Third, it doesn’t really matter as long as you come to the Lord in faith, believing in Yeshua and you keep His commandments found in the Torah. There is nothing wrong with someone who comes to faith from among the nations. That is what God wanted all along. There was no Jew or Gentile in the beginning. Man sinned and God redeemed him. God made promises to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and they represented all mankind in these promises.

Their descendents were to go into the nations and tell them they can have peace with God, and miserably failed but it didn’t stop the Lord. There has always been a faithful remnant that carried on the work and the world has heard the good news. When one from the nations comes in repentance to the Lord and in true faith they are grafted into the Olive Tree (Rom 9-11) along with those who come to faith from among Israel. The two groups become one in His Body, His Kahal, His Bride, His Name and there is one Shepherd and one King to lead them. In your question you called yourself a believer, so go with that and I’m sure the Lord has no problem with it either.