A Jew Looks for Faith in Christ
by Pastor Walter Snyder

Q: Dear Pastor, I am a Jew married to a Lutheran woman. I've never been particularly
religious but am now somewhat drawn to my wife's church, both because of it and because
I sincerely want our lives to be lived together in as many ways as possible. I sincerely want
to believe the things she does. Therefore, I'd be most appreciative for any comments or
suggestions you might have that could help me in my quest (or should I say on my
pilgrimage). I also want to worship with her and be a part of her entire religious life. Can
you help in finding faith and in learning to worship as a Lutheran?

A: Dear friend, first of all, don't worry about the details of ritual and worship. To know Jesus, we
must experience Him, in the Scriptures and in the Church. I don't know how liturgical your wife's
congregation is, but the traditional services, drawn from the Scriptures will, over time, seep into
your mind and your heart. The connections between the Testaments become clearer. The presence
of the Messiah in Word and Sacrament is not only a head- but a heart-matter.

Since you are, at least by birth and culture, a Jew, use the Scriptures that speak of the coming
One, be he called Messiah, Servant, David's Son. Especially during this season of Lent, when the
passion and death of Jesus is so much in focus, use Psalm 22 and the Servant passages of Isaiah,
especially 52:13-53:12. Compare these words with the accounts of the evangelists concerning the
crucifixion. In so doing, I think you'll discover that the One revealed in the Gospels and Epistles
is the One promised to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

As you continue your pilgrimage, I won't tell you to "give yourself" to Christ, because He is the
Giver. Take from Him His love, His forgiveness, His keeping of the Commandments on your
behalf. As Paul writes, the message of the cross is folly and a stumbling block to Jew and Gentile
alike (1 Corinthians 1:23). It is only faith created by God through the message of Christ crucified
that can grasp---not understand, but grasp and hang on to for dear life---the blessed message of
salvation. 

Faith is neither rational nor irrational. It is above and beyond both. Faith is also not the object; it is
the tool God uses. Christ is the object. As the writer of Hebrews says, "Faith is the assurance of
things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. (11:1)" Trying to find or to measure faith
chases away both faith and its object. Thus, immediately after Hebrews 11, a chapter listing many
of the faithful from Abel through early martyrs of the New Testament, the writer goes on to say
that we are "looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set
before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of
God. (12:2)"

As you look for and to Jesus, know that He is the Good Shepherd who already, through your wife
and the Church, through His Word and Holy Spirit, seeks you out. Get a copy of the Small
Catechism and read at least one of the "Six Chief Parts" each day. Ponder sin in its enormity, God
in His perfection, and Jesus in His dying yet ever-living love. Discover how Noah in the Ark and
Moses at the Red Sea foreshadow Baptism. See how the angel of death is turned away forever,
not by blood painted on doors, but poured out on Calvary, sprinkled on the baptized, and drunk
with thanksgiving in Holy Communion.

Ask also for prayers and for mentors on your pilgrimage. If I cannot advise you any more, I will
still invite you to email me and encourage me to keep you in my prayers, for it is God who wants
all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth, and I trust that he hears our
prayers in this regard.

God bless you and guide you through the Wilderness and into the Promised Land.

Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are from ~The Holy Bible, English Standard
Version~<TM>, © 2001 by Crossway Bibles.

Ask the Pastor, © 2003 by Walter P. Snyder. It may be reproduced in totality, including this
disclaimer, by anyone, provided that no profit is generated by said republication and
redistribution. Translations into other languages should similarly note the United States
and any appropriate international copyrights, as well as God's Scriptural injunctions
concerning the property of others.

Walter Snyder is the pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Emma, Missouri and coauthor of
the book "What Do Lutherans Believe."