The concept of achdut is a major concept in Jewish thought. The term Derekh Ha’Achdut means the path of unity. But it means more than that; it also means harmony and solidarity. It is an awareness of the same interests, goals, and purpose to accomplish a common goal, even amidst differing beliefs and personalities. Paul (Shaul) gives us a great picture of achdut in I Corinthians 12:12, which states, “For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Mashiach.” This is a beautiful description of achdut. We all have a common identity, but we have a different function. However, the body of Mashiach is greatly divided today. In the United States alone there are over 200 Christian denominations in the U.S. and a staggering 45,000 globally, according to the Center for the Study of Global Christianity. But the divide is still deeper than that. This does not even take into consideration the Jewish believers in Yeshua. Again, being a part of a body means that we have the same identity but different functions. The appropriate question to ask is: What does that have to do with the concept of achdut? In Exodus 19:6, HaShem tells Israel, through the mouth of Moses, “And you shall be to Me a kingdom of Priests.” There is a wonderful description of function found in Isaiah 49:5-6, where we read, “And now the Lord says, who formed Me from the womb to be His servant, to bring Jacob back to Him, so that Israel is gathered to Him (For I shall be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, And my God shall be my strength), indeed He says, is it too small a thing that You should be My servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved ones of Israel; I will also give You as a light to the Gentiles, that You should be My salvation to the ends of the earth.”
This refers to Yeshua HaMashiach as well as the Jewish people. Shaul also echoes the same concept in Acts 13:46-48, after many opposed what he and Barnabas had been teaching. He stated, “It was necessary that the Word of God should be spoken to you first; but since you reject it, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, behold, we will turn to the Gentiles. For the Lord has commanded us: I have set you as a light to the Gentiles, that you should be for salvation to the ends of the earth. When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and glorified the Word of the Lord. And as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.”
Here, we see that the Gentiles have their identity in Yeshua, just as the Jews do when they believe in Yeshua as Mashiach. Yet, they have a different purpose. We are told in Deuteronomy 32:21-22, “They have made zealous (קנה) with what is not God (אל); they have provoked Me to anger with their idols. So, I will make them zealous (קנה) with those who are not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation.” The identity of the Jew is to be found in HaShem through the merit, zechut, of Yeshua, and their function is to be a light to the nations just as the Gentiles must find their identity in Yeshua and understand their function is to provoke the Jews to a belief in Yeshua.
How will this ever truly take place? Shaul tells us that to form the proper foundation for achdut, several things must be established. In Ephesians 2, Shaul explains how we find our proper identity and how to begin to come into achdut. He states, “Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision, by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands, that at that time you were without Mashiach, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without HaShem in the world. But now in Yeshua HaMashiach, you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Mashiach.”
We, as Gentiles, were outsiders, and just as Shaul stated before Mashiach, we had no place in the covenants. But now, through Yeshua and the acceptance of His sacrifice, we have become a part of the commonwealth (עדת) of Israel. We have a place to fit in and belong to HaShem through the sacrifice of Yeshua. We are now a part of the covenants of HaShem. We are no longer aliens (זרים) and we are no longer strangers (נכרים). This is the meaning of achdut, to be part of and connected to something far greater than ourselves, to accomplish the common good.
How does Yeshua establish common ground for Gentiles who have accepted Him as Lord and Savior with Judaism, which seems vastly different from Christianity? Shaul gives us the answer in verses 14-17 of this passage. He writes, “For He Himself is our peace (שלום) who has made both one, (השּנים לאחד) and has broken down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is the law of commandments contained in ordinances, (תּורת המּצווֹת) so as to create in Himself one new man (לאדם חדש אחד) from the two, thus making peace, and that He might reconcile them both to HaShem in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. And He came and preached peace (שלום) to you who were afar off (Gentiles) and to those who were near (Jews). For through Him, we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.” Please notice the term “one new man.” The word for one is (אחד), and it is the shoresh (root) for achdut (אחדות).
Please notice the word enmity (אֵיבָה). This word means “hostility and hatred.” So Shaul says Yeshua has broken down the middle wall of hostility and hatred toward the Torah and the Mitzvot. This may come as quite a surprise to many in the Church. Shaul is saying that unless the hatred/hostility toward the Torah and the Mitzvot is broken down in the life of both Christians and many Jews, the Body of Mashiach will never be achdut; they will never be united. As a result, they will understand neither their identity nor their function.
We see this concept in Yeshua’s prayer in John 17 as He prays for achdut among Jews and Gentiles. Starting in vs. 6, we read, “I have manifested Your name to the men whom you have given Me out of the world. They were Yours, and You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word. Now they have known that all things which You have given Me are from You. For I have given to them the words which You have given Me, and they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me. I pray for them. I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given me, for they are Yours. And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them. Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one (אחד), even as we are...I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all be one (אחד), as You, Father, are in Me and I in You; that they also may be one (אחד), in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.”
Yeshua is praying that we become echad (one) and come into unity (achdut) with our Jewish brothers and sisters. Yet, Shaul states that acceptance of Yeshua is the starting point of this concept of achdut; it is only the starting place. We must understand that the common foundation for both groups is the Torah (תורה). When Shaul stated in II Timothy 2:15 to “be diligent to present yourselves approved to HaShem as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth,” he is defining the word of truth. There was no New Testament at that time; he was referring to the Torah. The Word of HaShem is conceptual, not abstract. It builds upon a foundation, and when that foundation is ignored, the interpretation of the entire Word of HaShem becomes fragmented. Many believe that the Law (Torah) has been done away with. However, absolutely nothing in the Bible (Old or New Covenants) makes that statement. When the very foundation of the Bible itself is ignored, it opens the door to replacement theology and supersessionism. Supersessionism is a belief of many Christian denominations that the Church has superseded Israel and has taken over their role as HaShem’s covenant people. Yeshua’s own words demonstrate that this has never been the case. Along with supersessionism, a similar term is also used, which is called replacement theology. This belief teaches that not only has the Church replaced Israel, but that the Jews are no longer the chosen people of HaShem, and as a result, the Torah is no longer valid today. These false doctrines are still taught in congregations all over the world. It is high time that the Church go through another reformation.
Derek Ha’Achdut’s purpose is to teach the fullness of our faith in Yeshua by teaching the foundations of the Torah. We will provide teachings, articles, and videos from the written Torah’s foundation. In addition, we will also use the Oral Torah, Midrash, Talmud, and the Writings of the Rabbis as source information for our teachings. We will not fragment the Word of HaShem. The Church must understand the fullness of her Jewish Roots to be a fully functioning partner in the Commonwealth of Israel.
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