What is Messianic Niagara?

Messianic Niagara is a grass-roots organization based out of the Niagara Region in Ontario, Canada. Our primary objective is to teach Christians the Biblical reality that Gentile believers are a part of Israel by faith in the Messiah (Ephesians 2:11-13) and are obligated to live a lifestyle consistent with the commandments found in the Bible (1 Corinthians 7:19). That being said, we proudly proclaim to both Jews and Gentiles that Yeshua of Nazareth is the Messiah prophesied in the Hebrew Scriptures.
 

Are you a Messianic congregation?

Currently, an official Messianic congregation does not exist in the Niagara Region. Messianic Niagara does host a Shabbat table fellowship on Friday night. With God's help, we will begin to facilitate further opportunities for learning and fellowship. Please continue to visit the home page of this website for upcoming events.
 

What is Messianic Judaism?

Messianic Judaism is a religious movement made up of both Jews and Gentiles who believe that Yeshua of Nazareth is the promised Messiah and Saviour of Israel and wish to express that faith by living out the norms of the Torah and Jewish tradition. To traditional Judaism, belief in Yeshua as the Messiah is untenable. Likewise, to traditional Christianity, keeping the particulars of the Torah is frowned upon. For Messianics, we cannot envision giving up the Messiah Yeshua or the Torah. Messianic Niagara realizes that most within the Messianic Jewish movement come from a Gentile Christian background and therefore, to the traditional Jewish community, Messianic Judaism may seem deceptive. While we cannot speak for everyone within the Messianic movement, as far as Messianic Niagara is concerned, we endeavour to uphold the Torah and Jewish tradition, all in the name of our Master, Yeshua of Nazareth whom we believe is the promised Mashiach. With God's help, Messianic Judaism very well could be the vehicle in which there can finally be true reconciliation between Jews and Christians.

If you are interested in learning more about the foundational truths of Messianic Judaism, please let us know. Also, if you are interested in taking a 10 week course exploring the Jewish foundations of our faith called HaYesod, please let us know.
 

Questions from a Christian Perspective

The following are questions that the average Christian
might ask after viewing this website.

Why do you try to obey the Law of Moses?

The simple answer is because God told us to. Followers of Jesus should uphold the Law (Romans 3:31). The notion that Christians shouldn't keep the commandments of the Torah is not actually found anywhere in the Bible. According to the Bible, any prophet or king of Israel who teaches that it's permissible to break the commandments of the Torah should be labeled a false prophet (Deuteronomy 13:1-5 and 17:18-20). Therefore if we truly believe that Jesus or Paul put an end to any part of the Torah, then that would mean they were false prophets. Messianic Niagara upholds the truth that Jesus and all of the Apostles did not teach against keeping the Torah but obeyed it themselves (John 15:10, Acts 21:24) and expected us to as well.

The Prophets of the Hebrew Scriptures spoke of a time when the Messiah would come and, as a result, the Torah would go forth to the ends of the earth (Isaiah 2:3, 42:4). Jesus Himself taught the Torah would never be done away with and that His followers should keep even the smallest commandments of the Torah in order to be great in the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 5:16-20). Additionally, all of the Apostles upheld the Torah, exhorting followers of Jesus to keep the Torah in imitation of Him (Romans 8:7-9, 1 John 5:2-3, James 1:25).

Do you believe that you are saved by works?

The Bible is clear that no one is saved by keeping any kind of law, whether man-made laws or the laws of God. The Bible also makes it clear that we have all broken God's Law and therefore we are separated from Him. God is infinitely holy, so no amount of law-keeping will merit salvation. Whether they lived before the coming of Jesus or after the coming of Jesus, no one is saved by keeping the Law. It's only through faith in the death and resurrection of God's infinitely holy Messiah that a person can be saved. Once coming to faith in the Messiah, though, the Believer is obligated to keep the commandments of God's Torah. The keeping of the commandments does not get you saved nor does it keep you saved, it is simply doing what is right (the commandments define what is right and wrong [Romans 7:7]).

Click here to view a video devoted to this question.


Why do you refer to Jesus as Yeshua?

In Matthew 1:21, it says: "She will bear a son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins." The Hebrew name Yeshua means "salvation," therefore when the angel instructed Joseph to name the Messiah "'Yeshua' [salvation], for He will save His people from their sins," he was making a play on words. Jesus would have been known to His family, friends and disciples as Yeshua. How did we get the name Jesus? The Gospels were written in Greek and therefore the Messiah's name was transliterated into Greek. Eventually, the Greek transliteration was transliterated into Latin and finally, transliterated into English as Jesus. There is absolutely nothing wrong with calling the Messiah by the name Jesus but Messianic Niagara seeks to emphasize the Jewish and Hebraic nature of the Gospels and will generally refer to the Messiah as Yeshua.