Core Convictions

Disciple of Messiah exists to help believers read Scripture as one unified covenant story — the story of God’s faithfulness to Israel, fulfilled through Yeshua the Messiah, and moving toward the restoration of all things in the age to come.

The following convictions shape the teaching, studies, and resources found throughout this site.

1. Scripture Is One Unified Story

The Bible is not a collection of disconnected books or theological systems. It is a continuous narrative — from Genesis to Revelation — revealing God’s covenant purposes in history.

From the calling of Abraham, to the formation of Israel, to the promises of the prophets, to the mission of Messiah, Scripture unfolds one coherent story moving toward kingdom fulfillment.

2. Messiah Is the Center of That Story

Yeshua (Jesus) is the promised Messiah of Israel — the one through whom redemption, forgiveness, resurrection, and restoration are made possible.

His death and resurrection stand at the heart of the gospel. Salvation is by grace through faith in Him alone — for Jew and Gentile alike.

Yet His mission is not detached from Israel’s story; it brings that story to its intended goal.

3. The Gospel Is Larger Than Individual Salvation

While deeply personal, the gospel is not limited to individual forgiveness.

The apostolic message proclaims:

• The hope of Israel

• The ingathering of the nations

• The resurrection of the dead

• The restoration of creation

• The coming Kingdom of God

The cross is central — but it is the means through which these covenant promises are secured and ultimately fulfilled.

4. Israel Remains Central in God’s Covenant Purposes

God’s covenant with Israel is foundational to the biblical narrative.

The New Testament does not present the Church as replacing Israel, but as welcoming the nations into Israel’s covenant story through Messiah.

Gentile believers are grafted in — sharing in the promises while honoring the root that sustains them.

5. Unity in Messiah Does Not Erase Covenant Identity

All who belong to Messiah share equal standing before God.

There is no distinction in salvation, righteousness, or access to the Spirit.

Yet unity does not require the erasure of Israel’s covenant calling or the flattening of all distinctions into sameness.

The earliest disciples followed Messiah within the framework of Jewish covenant life while welcoming Gentiles into fellowship. Gentile believers were grafted into Israel’s covenant story and shared fully in its promises, while being guided by the instruction of Messiah and the apostles regarding their covenant participation.

In this way, the body of Messiah reflects both profound unity and divinely ordered diversity within God’s redemptive plan.

6. Scripture Must Be Read in Its Historical Context

The New Testament was written within a first-century Jewish world shaped by covenant expectation, temple life, and the hope of redemption.

Understanding this context — often referred to as Second Temple Judaism — helps illuminate passages that can otherwise be misunderstood when read through later theological frameworks.

7. The Torah and the Prophets Remain Foundational

The Hebrew Scriptures are not sidelined or replaced.

They form the theological, covenantal, and prophetic foundation upon which the New Testament stands.

Messiah walked fully within the life of Torah — teaching, embodying, and rightly interpreting it among His people. Through Him, Israel’s covenant calling is renewed and brought toward its appointed fulfillment.

Gentiles are graciously grafted into this redemptive story — joining the hope, discipleship, and kingdom promises first entrusted to Israel.

In this way, the Law and the Prophets find their fulfillment in Messiah without losing their enduring place within the unfolding biblical narrative.

8. The Kingdom of God: Proclaimed, Secured, and Awaited

Jesus proclaimed the nearness of the Kingdom, announcing that the long-awaited hope of Israel was drawing near.

Through His suffering and death, He secured redemption and validated the covenant promises — opening the way for forgiveness, resurrection, and life in the age to come.

Yet the fullness of Kingdom realization — including the restoration of Israel, the resurrection of the dead, and the renewal of all creation — awaits His return.

This reflects the biblical and Jewish apocalyptic framework of “this age” and “the age to come,” through which the New Testament message is best understood: redemption inaugurated through Messiah’s first coming, and consummated in the Day of the Lord when the Kingdom is fully revealed.

9. Discipleship Is Participation in God’s Story

Following Messiah is more than belief — it is covenant loyalty, obedience, endurance, and hope.

Disciples live within God’s unfolding redemptive plan, shaped by Scripture, empowered by the Spirit, and oriented toward the coming Kingdom.

Why These Convictions Matter

How we read Scripture shapes how we understand:

• The Gospel

• Israel

• The Church

• The Covenants

• The Kingdom

These convictions are not intended to create division, but to deepen understanding and restore continuity between the Hebrew Scriptures and the apostolic witness.

Our aim is simple:

To follow Messiah faithfully while honoring the story God has been telling from the beginning.