God Running is a place for anyone who wants to love Jesus more deeply, follow Jesus more closely, and love people the way Jesus wants us to.
In our last post from Romans we saw how deep and abiding was Paul’s love for the Jews, and how he prayed for them. And how his prayers were a big part of why he was able to care for them so, and forgive them for the way they persecuted him. If you’re interested, you can read more here: Unceasing Anguish–Romans 9:1-3.
In today’s post we’ll explore the blessings given to the Jewish people, and we’ll learn about how a Chief Rabbi became a Christian.
Romans 9:4-5
They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises. To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ, who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen.
A Chief Rabbi Encounters Jesus
Israel Zolli was the Chief Rabbi of Rome during the second world war. He was also an Italian doctorate professor of philosophy and an author. As the Chief Rabbi of Rome, Zolli once offered himself as a hostage to the Nazi forces occupying his city in exhcange for the release of several hundred of his fellow Jews. Eventually, recognizing the Nazi practice of executing Chief Rabbis in other prominent cities, Pope Pius XII hid Zolli and his family inside the Vatican.
After Rome was liberated, but before the end of the war, Israel Zolli was leading the Yom Kippur service in his synagogue. And during the service he had a vision of Jesus. And in his vision, Jesus said to Zolli: “You are here for the last time.”
On February 13, 1945, Zolli and his wife converted to Catholicism.
The Blessings of the Jews
I found Israel Zolli’s story to be fascinating for several reasons but one of them is because of the way he reminds me of Paul. In Philippians Paul tells us how utterly Jewish he is: “. . . circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee . . .” (Philippians 3:5)
Zolli was a Chief Rabbi for thirty years. On his mother’s side there was 130 years of rabbinical tradition. Zolli was a Hebrew of Hebrews and even a Rabbi of Rabbis. (Klyber)
Paul encountered Jesus in a vision on the road to Damascus.
Israel Zolli encountered Jesus in a vision during the service on Yom Kippur, a service he was facilitating.
As Paul wrote, the Jewish people were given by God the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the law, the worship, and the promises. From them God raised up the patriarchs, and through the Jews God raised up the Christ. What a privilege it is for the Jewish people to be entrusted with all of those blessings, and through so many generations. So why would Paul, a Hebrew of Hebrews, give all that up to follow Christ?
The Fulfillment of the Promise to the Jews
In a very real way, Paul is not giving up his Judaism to follow Jesus. Because Jesus is the fulfillment of Judaism.
I think Israel Zolli sheds light on this idea in a beautiful way.
One time, during an interview, Zolli was asked why he had given up the Synagogue for the Church. And he answered:
“But I have not given it up. Christianity is the integration (completion or crown) of the Synagogue. For the Synagogue was a promise, and Christianity is the fulfillment of that promise. The Synagogue pointed to Christianity; Christianity presupposes the Synagogue. So you see, one cannot exist without the other. What I converted to was the living Christianity.”
The interviewer probed him: “Then you believe that the Messiah (the Christ) has come?”
And Zolli answered: “Yes, positively. I have believed it many years. And now I am so firmly convinced of the truth of it that I can face the whole world and defend my faith with the certainty and solidity of the mountains.”
References:
Israel Zolli, Wikipedia
Father Arthur Klyber and Reverend Stephen Boyle, Before the Dawn: The Mysterious Conversion of Rome’s Chief Rabbi
Image of the Conversion of St. Paul mural via Vincenzo Camuccini–wikimedia commons
Available on Amazon, Google Play Books, and Audible!
Love Like Jesus: How Jesus Loved People (and how you can love like Jesus)
In this heartfelt, Scripture-rich journey, Kurt Bennett invites you to study not just the words of Jesus, but His actions—His love, His mercy, His boundaries, and even His naps.
Honest. Practical. Deeply human.
Love Like Jesus begins with the story of how after a life of regular church attendance and Bible study, Bennett was challenged by a pastor to study Jesus. That led to an obsessive seven year deep dive. After pouring over Jesus’ every interaction with another human being, he realized he was doing a much better job of studying Jesus’ words than he was following Jesus’ words and example. The honest and fearless revelations of Bennett’s own moral failures affirm he wrote this book for himself as much as for others. Love Like Jesus examines a variety of stories, examples, and research, including:
- Specific examples of how Jesus communicated God’s love to others.
- How Jesus demonstrated all five of Gary Chapman’s love languages (and how you can too).
- The story of how Billy Graham extended Christ’s extraordinary love and grace toward a man who misrepresented Jesus to millions.
- How to respond to critics the way Jesus did.
- How to love unlovable people the way Jesus did.
- How to survive a life of loving like Jesus (or how not to become a Christian doormat).
- How Jesus didn’t love everyone the same (and why you shouldn’t either).
- How Jesus guarded his heart by taking care of himself–he even napped–and why you should do the same.
- How Jesus loved his betrayer Judas, even to the very end.
With genuine unfiltered honesty, Love Like Jesus, shows you how to live a life according to God’s definition of success: A life of loving God well, and loving the people around you well too.
A life of loving like Jesus.
(Kindle, hardcover, and paperback now available on Amazon, the ebook is now available on Google Play Books, and the audiobook is available on Audible.)
Now you can take Love Like Jesus with you wherever life happens.
We recently released the audiobook version, beautifully narrated by Jonathan St. John. And it’s available on the following platforms:
It’s also available on Amazon, Hoopla, Audiobooksnow, Chirp, Libro, Overdrive, and virtually everywhere audiobooks are offered.
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