Nic Lesmeister
Nic Lesmeister

About

Nic Lesmeister is an American pastor and the Executive Director of "Gateway Center for Israel”. He is also the Executive Pastor of Church & Jewish Relations at Gateway Church. Nic received a life calling to serve the Jewish people in 2011 while in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia with one of his spiritual fathers, Dr. Wayne Wilks. After a successful business exit as an entrepreneur in the finance sector, Nic moved his family to Israel where in 2015 he earned a Master's Degree in Nonprofit Management and Leadership from The Hebrew University of Jerusalem. In 2019, Nic Lesmeister led the vision to create the new "Gateway Center for Israel" as a part of Gateway Church, and serves as its Executive Director. Nic and his wife, Tabatha, have three children and live in Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas.

  
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Nic Lesmeister

Video
Do You Condemn Jewish Anti-Arab and Anti-Christian Hate?
"Just as antisemitism by the church should be condemned, you should also condemn anti-Arab, anti-Muslim, and anti-Christian discrimination of the present racist state of Israel." Nic Lesmeister, Executive Director of Gateway Center for Israel, gives an "unequivocal YES" to this statement as he navigates this controversial topic in another episode of "Responding to Viewer Comments."
Antisemitism, Modern Israel
 3 mins
Video
Who are the Wicked Tenants in Matthew 21?
Does Matthew 21 teach that God took His Kingdom away from Israel due to disbelief and gave it to Gentile believers (the Church) instead? Exactly who was Jesus speaking to in this chapter? Gateway Center for Israel Executive Director Nic Lesmeister tackles these questions in this episode of "Responding to Viewer Comments."
Antisemitism, Theology
 4 mins
Video
Does Galatians Disprove Everything We Say!?
The most popular question asked by our viewers so far is: "Didn't God say there is no longer Jew or Gentile in Galatians 3:28?" If so, wouldn't that mean Paul's letter to the Galatians disproves all we've been saying…but also implies there is no longer male or female?
Antisemitism, Theology
 5 mins
Video
Are Messianic Jews a Biblical Identity?
Is there such a thing as a "Messianic Jew?" Does Jewish identity still matter, or do Jews become Christians, embracing a new religion, when they accept Jesus? Nic Lesmeister, Executive Director of the Gateway Center for Israel, states why GCFI embraces the biblical concept that Jewish believers in Jesus are still Jewish in this episode of"Responding to Viewers Comments."
Theology
 3 mins
Video
Are we Sure Paul Didn’t Abandon Judaism?
In this first episode of our new series: "Responding to Viewer Comments", Gateway Center for Israel Executive Director Nic Lesmeister examines whether or not Paul disavowed Judaism because of the Gospel opposition he encountered from the Pharisees and Sadducees. Nic uses examples of how Jesus Himself responded to this same Jewish leadership opposition to formulate his conclusion.
Theology
 4 mins
Video
Should Gentiles Celebrate the Biblical Feasts?
If Jesus was Jewish and celebrated what many call the "biblical feasts," shouldn't we, as Gentile believers in Jesus, also celebrate them? Using Acts 15, Nic Lesmeister, director of the Gateway Center for Israel, answers this question by explaining why it is important for Jewish and Gentile believers to maintain their God-given distinctions through mutual love and respect.
Jewish Holidays, Jewish Outreach
 7 mins
Video
Israel: Covenant, Controversy, and Conflict
For decades, world leaders have searched for a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Nothing seems to work, as the conflict rages on. Most Christians care about this conflict, but are intimidated and confused on what to believe, what to say, and what to do about it. Speaking at the Gateway Church Shabbat service in June 2023, Pastor Nic Lesmeister provides the "why" behind this conflict, and offers a simple framework for how Christians can navigate this complicated issue.
End Times, Modern Israel
 44 mins
Video
Viewing Conflict Through A Biblical Framework
Israel Masterclass: Session 9
How can we take all that we've learned in the Israel Masterclass and put it to practical use in our daily lives? Nic Lesmeister wraps up this ninth and final session by explaining how to grasp - and then discuss with understanding - the very complicated issues surrounding Israel & the Jewish people today.
Antisemitism, End Times, Jewish Outreach, Modern Israel, Theology
 18 mins
Video
Understand Zionism
Israel Masterclass: Session 4
Few words can stir up both negative and positive reactions more than the term Zionism. This phrase has been a lightning rod on a global scale since the October 7 Hamas attack against Israel. There are many forms of Zionism: religious, secular, Christian, and even Islamic (yep). It can be defined simply as the national movement of Jewish people returning to and establishing self-autonomy (or self-rule) in their ancestral homeland, Israel. But what exactly does the Bible say? Did Jesus ever speak about Zionism?
Antisemitism, Jewish History, Lecture, Modern Israel, Theology
 24 mins
Video
The Controversy of Israel
Israel Masterclass: Session 1
On October 7, 2023, the most horrific attack against Jewish people since the Holocaust 80 years before was carried out by Hamas. But, instead of empathy, the world has responded to this atrocity by being offended by Israel's self-defense. Unfortunately, the Church as a whole has been rather silent as a violent war of words has been unleashed against the Jewish people. Exactly how should the Church be biblically responding to this global offense toward Israel?
Antisemitism, Interviews, Lecture, Modern Israel
 20 mins
Video
Gateway's History with Israel
Israel Masterclass: Interview
When, why, and how did Gateway Church embrace the importance of having a biblical, sincere love for Israel & the Jewish people? In this introductory session of the Israel Masterclass, Nic Lesmeister sits down with Dr. Wayne Wilks and Dr. Greg Stone to talk about this fascinating history.
Interviews, Lecture, Theology
 22 mins
Video
Where Does War in Israel Fit Into Biblical Prophecy?
Just how close are we to the return of Jesus due to the war in Israel? In this final segment of the TKU Center for Israel Q&A, hosted by Gateway Ministry Experience Pastor Phillip Hunter, Nic and David discuss the three prerequisites Yeshua outlined in Matthew 24 for His second coming - and offer insight into biblical prophecy and the end times from a Jewish perspective.
End Times, Interviews, Lecture, Modern Israel, Theology
 10 mins
Video
How can we Walk Alongside Palestinians or Pro-Palestinian People?
What should a Christian's response be towards those who are Palestinian or pro-Palestinian? Gateway Ministry Experience Pastor Phillip Hunter takes several questions along this line from the TKU Israel Q&A student audience on this topic for Gateway Center for Israel's Nic Lesmeister and David Blease to tackle. Their answers include what it means to show compassion towards those we may never agree with, and how to be a bridge of love to those who are hurting and suffering on the Palestinian side of the current war.
Antisemitism, Interviews, Jewish Life, Modern Israel, Theology
 8 mins
Video
How do we Love Israelis and Palestinians?
Is it possible for Christians to "stand for Israel" and love Palestinian believers as well? During the TKU Center for Israel Q&A, Gateway Ministry Experience Pastor Phillip Hunter poses this question. In their answer, Nic and David define the theological "scandal of particularity" and how Christians can indeed love both in a world that demands we choose a side.
Antisemitism, End Times, Interviews, Jewish Life, Modern Israel
 6 mins
Video
Why is This War Different?
Is this current war between Hamas and Israel different in some way from the other military conflicts Israel has had in the past? How does the second coming of Jesus fit into this scenario? In this TKU Center for Israel Q & A session hosted by Gateway Ministry Experience Pastor Phillip Hunter, Nic and David explore a biblical view of the current war and offer insight into how Christians should respond and pray into this simple yet complex situation.
End Times, Interviews, Modern Israel, Theology
 6 mins
Video
Where is God’s Covenant with Israel in the New Testament?
Wasn't Israel's Old Testament covenant with God replaced by Jesus' "new covenant" with the whole world? In this second video of the TKU Q & A session conducted by Gateway Ministry Experience Pastor Phillip Hunter, Nic and David discuss how and where God's covenantal promises can be found in the New Testament - and why it's defaming God's character to claim He broke His covenant with Israel.
Interviews, Jewish Outreach, Lecture, Theology
 9 mins
Video
A Brief History of Israel (Abraham, Jesus, Modern Day)
Gateway Ministry Experience Pastor Phillip Hunter recently conducted a Q & A with Gateway Center for Israel's Nic Lesmeister and David Blease at The King's University. In this introductory session, they give a short biblical and historical overview of the Jewish people, spanning from Abraham to modern day Israel.
Interviews, Jewish History, Lecture, Modern Israel
 14 mins
Video
Did Paul Abandon the Jewish People for the Gentiles?
Did a frustrated Paul, famously known as the "Apostle to the Gentiles," actually give up on his own Jewish people? Gateway Center for Israel Executive Director Nic Lesmeister unpacks in this video how certain verses in Acts 18-21 have been historically misinterpreted - and how they prove instead that Paul continued to prioritize his ministry "to the Jew first."
Jewish Outreach, Theology
 5 mins
Video
Is the Jewishness of Jesus Really that Important? Interview with Nic Lesmeister
Did Jesus, born a Jewish man, stop being Jewish and just start a new religion? What about Paul, the "Apostle to the Gentiles?" Did he abandon his Jewish life? Watch this conversation between Gateway Center for Israel Teaching Pastor David Blease and Executive Director Nic Lesmeister as they take a deep dive on the topic of the Jewishness of Jesus - and why it still matters today.
Interviews, Jewish Outreach, Theology
 36 mins
Video
Simplifying Israel's Complex History
In this podcast, Nic Lesmeister and David Blease with Gateway Center for Israel try and simplify some of the complex points of Israel's history that have led to today's current events. Topics touched on in their conversation include the secular founding of the modern State of Israel, the Arab world's view of Palestinians, the legitimacy of a Palestinian state, what the West fails to understand about the Middle East, and why the Jewish people have been historically hated down through the centuries.
Interviews, Jewish History, Jewish Life, Modern Israel
 35 mins
Article
The Apostle Paul's Warning to Christians about Israel
With worldwide antisemitism on the rise, it is more important than ever for Christians to take a biblical stand for Israel & the Jewish people. But Is it possible we have missed a crucial warning written in the book of Romans by the Apostle Paul?
Antisemitism, Modern Israel
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