Israel finally has a government, but it is entirely a product of hostility and resentment towards Netanyahu. After repeated failures to form a government, and as most of the world including the United States becomes increasingly hostile, some Israelis are hoping for the arrival of the Messiah. If we are to recognize the Messiah when he does come, it may be necessary to broaden our expectations beyond just looking for a great leader to suddenly appear. Perhaps G-d has something more elaborate in mind.

The Messiah is supposed to gather the Jewish people back to the land of Israel, but Israel has already been gathered and modern Israel has fulfilled prophecies without the appearance of the Messiah. It is said that prophecy is being fulfilled in a non-miraculous way because of certain modern conditions.

This seems like a poor excuse. The Jews are to be gathered to Israel by the Messiah, and there should have been a Messiah when Israel was restored. Even if the Lord is actually causing the events to occur, there must be a Messiah leading the way. There have been miraculous military victories by Israel. Events do suggest that the Lord is involved in ways that are beneficial to Israel. Instead of making excuses for why the Messiah did not gather the Jews, perhaps we should consider the possibility that it was the Messiah who gathered the Jews. If the Lord has been helping Israel, then perhaps the Lord is the Messiah. The idea that the Lord is the Messiah who restored Israel should be given some consideration, but the this idea is very problematic for religious Jews.

The Messiah is a human, and if he has already restored Israel, then he must have been born sometime in the past as a human. If the Messiah is also the Lord, it means he must be someone who was born sometime in the past as a Jew, but who is also the Lord.

Christianity is nothing more than many different Gentile interpretations of the teachings of a first century Jewish rabbi, who claimed to be the Messiah, and who also claimed to be the Lord. Jewish scholars overwhelmingly rejected his claim since the Messiah is a man and a man cannot be the Lord. But what if the Lord wants to be a man for some reason, does G-d have the power to create that condition?

This is not to say that Christianity is correct, Christianity teaches that Jesus took the punishment for our sins. This not only contradicts the Scriptures; it means that G-d does not execute justice, and worse yet it means that G-d is dishonest for saying He executes justice. G-d would not punish one person for the sins of someone else, but the idea that He would is only an interpretation of the teachings of Jesus. Jesus spoke in riddles.

The Christian “Trinity” also contradicts the Scriptures, but the consciousness of G-d greatly transcends our ability to comprehend. There is only one G-d transcending time and space, but G-d can create time and space in a way that allows Him to send part of Himself into time. There is the consciousness of G-d outside of time and the consciousness of G-d moving through time, both of which are beyond our ability to comprehend.

There is indication in the Bible that G-d transcends time, and there is indication in the Bible that G-d moves through time. This is not a contradiction since both can be true. We can say that there is only one G-d (outside of time) while a part of G-d moving through time explains passages in the Bible where the Lord interacts with creation in a way that seems as though the Lord changes His mind. Surely G-d can send part of Himself into time, to be born into the world if this is something that He wants to do. If He has a good reason, G-d can do anything He wants.

Jewish scholars say there is nothing to indicate a Messiah who comes a second time, but Mosses went up the mountain to be with G-d, and then he came back down the mountain. This was not the second coming of Mosses, but only a return. If the Messiah is a human who is also the Lord, He can overcome death and have the longevity to be a two-thousand-year-old human, still alive, and intervening in human affairs to re-establish Israel. If Jesus is still alive; he may yet cause the temple to be rebuilt and fulfill all the other prophecies during his first (and only) (very long) lifetime.

The Messiah is not punished for our sins, so there would have to be some other reason for him to come to the Earth and die the way he did. If G-d sent the Messiah to die on a cross, and then caused him to be followed in error by billions of Gentiles, and then he returns to rescue Israel in the last days with a revelation of all truth, that would certainly be a more compelling story than some great leader who suddenly appears like a knight in shining armor.