Chapter 1: Tempting God for a sign
I remember like it was yesterday. I came into my room and I start tempting God. You know, I asked him, "If Yeshua is real Messiah, please reveal me." And you're an Orthodox right now. Yeah. And I asked him for the miracle. And he did it. Deep in my heart, I thought that that must be coincidence. And he did it again. And after that I found myself on my knees and my prayer was simple something like please God for me forgive me for my unbelief and be my God and I will be your servant.
And after that simple words something deep in my heart happened that I lost the fear. I wasn't afraid anymore that being Jew and to believe in Jesus, you know, I didn't care. I knew that I I I am who I am. I I'm believer in Yeshua, the Messiah, the Messiah of Israel. Wow. Why would a Jewish man do that?
Chapter 2: Scripture and the family
Because on that very night, I was in a congregation, a messianic congregation. Messianic congregation. And a pastor of that congregation, he was preaching about Isaiah chapter 7. And King Aaz was asked by Isaiah for sign. But King Aas said no, I he refused to ask a sign. He said he placed himself as a religious man. He said that I will not tempt God. And the pastor's message was tempt God because God want to reveal himself to you.
So I repeated what my pastor taught taught me in that very night. I came and I tempted God. I I asked for sign and he revealed himself miraculously. The only condition on that prayer was because I knew that many Jewish believers who followed Yeshua, they were rejected by their families. And my prayer was that was your family orthodox? Yes, still. And my prayer was please God that I will not be rejected yet as you are rejected by your people.
And you know after 30 years Yeshua is faithful. God is faithful. I'm not rejected by my family.
Chapter 3: Cultural identity and Israel
I'm respected. I keep in touch with all my cousins and with my aunts. And praise God. Praise God. He answered that prayer. Amen. Amen. Beautiful. And you know a lot of orthodox people would even sit sha which means it's like a they have a funeral basically for a Jewish man who believes in that was I afraid of. So this is a miracle in and of itself. Wow. Beautiful. You know, God is working and he worked through our family because we lived in Central Asia.
And when I came to Israel, something happened in my perspective because being in former Soviet Union, we didn't believe God. But I kept tradition and I I used to go to the synagogue because I thought keeping our identity as a Jew, keeping the tradition, going to the synagogue, keeping the kosher home, celebrating the holidays, keeping the Sabbath, that preserved us in the exile. But now I believe I understand that it's God's plan to bring eventually all of us back to the land of Israel. Being in in Israel, I started learning the language.
Chapter 4: Seeking truth and Messiah
I went to the Israeli army and after my military service, I met a guy who wasn't Jewish. He was Russian and he was like a Bible man. Were you seeking at that time or was just a guy? I wasn't seeking. I lost money. I opened the business and that business didn't work out. So, and I was kind of depression. Yeah. Per se. And I met the guy and this guy was telling me about Jewish history because he was reading the Bible all all the time.
And I found myself that I have no idea of my roots on my history. Going to the synagogue we read only five book of Moses but beyond that we never read. little portion of the aftar the the portion of the prophets there they're very little and we never knew the whole history of the Jewish people and I start reading the Bible and when we came of the issue of the Messiah he said that Yeshua he is the one who fulfilled all the prophecies of the old testament about the Messiah and I argued with him because in that time and Ra Rabbi Milubavich who lived on them that time in Kern Heights, New York. He was alive back then and everybody in Israel believed that he's the Messiah because people call him Messiah and he never refused that he's the Messiah, you know. And his pictures of that lovely face where all of the Israel even today you can see even in New York.
Yeah. So and he said that the true Messiah must be rejected and despised by Jewish people and the only person who rejected and despised until this day is the Yeshua from the Nazareth. So when I was arguing with him and in the same time I was reading the Bible it was long process a few months. What's happened
Chapter 5: Conversion and conviction
was I came to the Messianic congregation. That congregation was planted by Chosen People Ministries and the pastor of that congregation was Georgian Jew, the Jew from Georgia, Russia. And one of the night when he preached about Isaiah chapter 7 he convinced me that we should talk to God directly because God is not the fruit of our imagination. He's real God. He's alive. And is this the point you enter the congregation?
That's right. Yeah. Okay. So, you say, "I'm testing God." And Yes. Yes. And it's And it's also interesting because you don't need belief to test something. That's right. So, I don't need to believe in Jesus to try it out. But if you will ask him, he will never reject your question. I I truly believe. And if you knock on the door, he will open. Amen. Yeah. 100%. Yeah. So since then past 30 years and since then I'm more convinced that my Messiah is alive and as Job said that I believe that my eyes will gaze the true God not the eyes of somebody else but my eyes I will see him.
So that's our hope that one day we will see him face to face because he is the true way, truth, and the life. And whoever believes in him and trust in him will never be ashamed. Amen. And I'm so happy to see you, a Jewish man, a believer in Yeshua. I just I love it. So you became a believer. I'm
Chapter 6: Current ministry and life
sure you told your family about it. They didn't reject you. What are you doing now with your faith? So I am a pastor of Messianic congregation that was 11 you can't make this up. Yeah that was planted 14 years ago. we are also helping to the needy in our community. we absorbing new immigrants who come to Israel. two years no four years ago. Yeah, four years ago the war have started in Ukraine and we observed many families from Ukraine and also from Russia.
So that's our ministry also. I'm teaching in Israeli college the Bible in Russian program. I speak Russian fluently. Yeah. And I'm also a tour guide. Multi-talented man. trying to Yeah. So that's my passion, you know. I love traveling around Israel and I love to combine the Bible stories with the places. And you don't have to go far in Israel, right? It's just it's so many places all over this place.
And we are actually standing right outside. That's right. The house of Simon the Tanner. Yeah. Simon the Tanner. Now, this is where Peter had a vision where basically the gospel became available to the Gentiles too. Peter, you think you will come down? Peter, probably not. Wow, what a cool and interesting story. I really appreciate. And guys, we're going to leave Nia's description links of his church if you want to go ahead and pour into that your support.
And we're going to go ahead and leave the tour guide link as well to make sure that you guys can come here and see Nia and do a nice trip with him. Sure. Na, thank you. So, I'm so excited and happy to hear about your transformation from a Jewish Orthodox man into a Jewish believer in Yeshua. Amen. Do you still feel Jewish? Complete Jew.
