Rahm Emanuel expected to quit White House

I don’t buy that for a minute. Obama once stated, “Everything I need to know about Israel I can get from Rahm.”

Rahm’s one of those self-loathing Jews who think Israel is a ‘zionist entity’.

As I understand it, Matthew, John, Paul, Peter and the other Jews who followed Christ remained Jews. Paul became the missionary to the Gentiles, who later became known as Christians. However, the Jews who followed Christ retained their Jewish identity back then, as they continue to do so today.

they did not preach, "Convert and become a Christian" - neither did Peter in Acts 2. Instead, they taught, "Repent, the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!"

Prior to the crucifixion and resurrection, they taught "Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand". After the resurrection, they taught "Repent, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ." Both before and after the resurrection, "Repent" included faith in and following of Jesus as the Christ. Paul, Peter, and all the apostles/disciples preached a message of "BELIEVE in CHRIST JESUS". That message is the same whether you are Jew or Gentile. And ever since the early days of the Church, when at Antioch the disciples were first called "Christians" if you are a Disciple of Jesus then you are a Christian.

neither did Peter in Acts 2. Instead, they taught, "Repent, the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!"

Really?

Acts 3:12-21
12 So when Peter saw it, he responded to the people: "Men of Israel, why do you marvel at this? Or why look so intently at us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? 13 The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified His Servant Jesus, whom you delivered up and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let Him go. 14 But you denied the Holy One and the Just, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, 15 and killed the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, of which we are witnesses. 16 And His name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all. 17 Yet now, brethren, I know that you did it in ignorance, as did also your rulers. 18 But those things which God foretold by the mouth of all His prophets, that the Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled. 19 Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, 20 and that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before, 21 whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began.

Different translations use various words there such as “return to God” or “be converted” etc. However, both in the context of this passage, and from a hermeneutical consideration of the writings of Peter, Paul, James, and John, salvation for either the Jew or the Gentile comes by grace through faith in Jesus and not through observation of the law or ceremonial traditions. Jesus told Nicodemus (one of the most “righteous” Jewish leaders of His day) “you must be born again”. If you want to use some other word besides “converted” to describe this repentance and turning away from one’s past life to a new life of faith in Christ, then it becomes just a matter of semantics.

However, both in the context of this passage, and from a hermeneutical consideration of the writings of Peter, Paul, James, and John, salvation for either the Jew or the Gentile comes by grace through faith in Jesus and not through observation of the law or ceremonial traditions.

You seem to be operating under the assumption that the "religion" of Jesus, Peter, John, and Paul is DIFFERENT than the religion of the "Old Testament." Hebrews 11 ought to be enough to dispel such a supercessionist perspective.

Look up etymology of "hermenetuic" and tell me what that has to do with the faith of the Bible. You can't pull that crap with me. A word is defined by it's usage, and only someone with a theological ax to grind would EVER translate epistrepho as "converted." Look it each usage in the New Testament and the Septuagint and you will see the silliness of saying the verb "turn" or "return" is anything close to "be converted." The fact is, Peter was speaking either Western Aramaic or Mishnaic Hebrew. The two words Greek words, "metanoeo" and "epistrepho" mostly likely represent the single Hebrew word "shuv" [turn] - which is the word used in the Hebrew Scriptures for "repent." The Septuagint's use of "epistrepho" proves this connection to shuv.

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