What Is the Opportunity?

Jewish people living in Israel today speak Modern Hebrew. Developed from the language of the Hebrew Scriptures, also known as the Old Testament, Modern Hebrew is spoken by around nine million people. Most live in Israel, but there are more than 200,000 speakers of Modern Hebrew in the USA.¹

There are now faithful Modern Hebrew-speaking churches scattered throughout the land of Israel. But reports from the field indicate that very little faithful Bible-teaching literature is available in Modern Hebrew, and it is estimated that 70 percent of pastors in Israel have no formal theological training. At the same time, many younger Jews in Israel are being converted to Christ and are enthusiastic to know more about Him.

The Apostle Paul proclaimed that the gospel is “the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek” (Rom. 1:16). Scripture also tells us that the church in all its fullness will include believers in Jesus from both Jewish and gentile backgrounds (Rom. 11). Thus, it is imperative that we take the gospel to Jews, including those who speak Modern Hebrew. Jews can come to Jesus only when the gospel is preached so that they might be converted by the power of the Holy Spirit and become Christ’s disciples (Matt. 28:19).

Ligonier Ministries is ready to step forward to provide trustworthy discipleship resources in Modern Hebrew to support growing Christians in Israel and around the world.

How Is Ligonier Meeting These Needs?

We strive to reach pastors, laypeople, and unbelievers from all walks of life who speak Modern Hebrew through the following outreach efforts:

The Ligonier Statement on Christology

Christology—the doctrine of Christ—is a central issue in the Hebrew-speaking world. As the church continues to grow, it is imperative that believers learn the truths of Scripture as summarized in the great confessions of faith. We produced The Word Made Flesh: The Ligonier Statement on Christology to help Christians know what the church has historically taught and provide clarity on the person and work of Christ. Our goal is to distribute this statement worldwide, and it has already been translated into numerous languages, including Modern Hebrew.

Video Teaching Series

Israel is a highly developed country with widespread online activity, so work is underway on providing Ligonier video teaching series in modern Hebrew with subtitles. Our plans include translating and releasing the following titles:

• Hath God Said? with R.C. Sproul
• Knowing Scripture with R.C. Sproul
• Why We Trust the Bible with Stephen Nichols
• The Basics of the Christian Life with Sinclair Ferguson
• The Reformed Pastor with Ian Hamilton
• Basic Training with R.C. Sproul

Books

Growing interest in Reformed theology has sparked an eagerness for more resources from R.C. Sproul and Ligonier Ministries. Our plans include translating, printing, and distributing the following titles:

• The Holiness of God by R.C. Sproul
• Can I Trust the Bible? by R.C. Sproul
• Can I Be Sure I Am Saved? by R.C. Sproul
• Why Should I Join a Church? by R.C. Sproul

Recently Published Books

• What Does It Mean to be Born Again? by R.C. Sproul

How Do Your Gifts Help?

These are only a few of our many international outreach projects underway. We ask you to prayerfully consider supporting our efforts through your financial gifts and prayers for the Modern Hebrew-speaking and global church. Your generosity helps us translate, print, and distribute trustworthy resources, providing countless opportunities to reach people with the truth of God’s Word. You can donate here.

Our policy is to apply gifts given toward a specific program. If we receive more contributions than can be wisely used for a given project, we apply these funds to meet other pressing needs in our outreach efforts. We are committed to stewarding all gifts wisely toward the goal of proclaiming the holiness of God to as many people as possible. Ligonier Ministries is a member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability.

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¹ See https://mfa.gov.il/ and https://theculturetrip.com as at October 27, 2020