I’m always surprised at how many Christian people think that Jewish people are the true people of God and going to heaven, simply because they’re Jewish.
Many Christians support political Israel because they see Israel as “brothers and sisters”. According to them Jesus said, “No-one comes to the Father except through me or if you’re Jewish”.
Jesus Messiah
On the contrary, the Bible repeatedly tells that the true people of God are those who believe God’s promise. (cf. Romans 9:6, 8, 16, 32; Galatians 3:29) The Jewish people have by and large rejected God’s promised Messiah and have thereby have ceased to be the people of God. Being Jewish, or being religious, does not earn righteousness.
A righteous standing before God is only available through faith in Jesus, God’s promised Messiah (Romans 1:16-17).
Please feel free to support Israel, but don’t do it because of theological reasons.
Biblically, Jewish people are not God’s chosen, special people as chapters 9-11 of Romans tells us.
Jewish people need Jesus just as much as your unbelieving friends or Muslim colleagues.
True faith
Romans 2:28-29 says:
For no one is a Jew who is merely one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward and physical. But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter.
True Jewishness and true circumcision were always matters of the heart. No-one was saved just because they were Jewish. True faith was always and is always the inward work of the Holy Spirit. True faith belongs to those, who by the convicting work of the Holy Spirit, have repented of their hard hearts and put their trust in God. This kind of person seeks to win the approval of God, rather than human beings.
Being Jewish or religious doesn’t help if your heart is not right with God, i.e. if you have not put your faith in God’s promised Messiah.
Supporting Israel
Feel free to support Israel and share Facebook updates about Israel because of historical reasons, political reasons, or sentimental reasons.
But don’t support Israel because you think Jewish people are the people of God1.
Rather give your money, support and activism to God’s true people who are in need: the persecuted church, Christian refugees and those seeking to reach Jewish people for Jesus.
Author’s note: Since the original post, President Trump has recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. I would argue that this holds absolutely no theological or prophetic value. Christian people look forward to the New Jerusalem from heaven – not earth. (cf. Revelation 21:1-4) Old Testament Jerusalem finds its fulfillment in Jesus, the renewed people of God and the renewed universe – not the old, earthly Jerusalem.
- I see all the Old Testament prophecies about Israel fulfilled by Jesus himself (the true Israelite) or by his church (the church now and the church glorified in heaven).
Hi Jill, I just read a paragraph in the Book “The community of Jesus: a theology of the church”, and a thought it may be helpful to our discussion. It reads, ” [The New Testament] do[es] not reveal an “Israel vs. the church” dichotomy. They contend that Jewish and Gentile covenant keepers are together God’s people. Both share the same identity and mission. Each has clear ethnic identity, but these differences ultimately disappear in the body of Christ. These texts do not support a replacement theory in which the church completely supplants Israel as God’s people or a separate, two-covenant (one for Israel and one for Gentiles) theory. They suggest a unity theory. They teach that God will bless all nations through Abraham. Peoples from the nations will then take up the mission of being a kingdom of priests with those who led them to Christ. Jews and Gentiles will then work together to complete God’s mission until Jesus comes again. God will keep his word, and his people will respond as he has declared (Isaiah 65– 66; Eph 1: 3– 14).” I trust you will have a good 2016!
Hi Jill
I appreciate your commitment to Scripture! I think we’ll just have to agree to disagree on this one, knowing that we both hold to the supremacy of the gospel.
Andre
PS Galatians 3:29 says, “And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise.”
PPS Thanks for taking the time to read my blog.
Hi Andre, Thanks for your reply. Jeremiah 33:25-26 “Thus says the Lord: If my covenant with day and night does not stand, and if I have not appointed the ordinances of the heavens and the earth, then will I also cast away the descendants of Jacob and David My servant and will not choose one of his offspring to be ruler over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. For I will cause their captivity to be reversed and I will have mercy, kindness and steadfast love on them.”
Jesus is a Jew. He came to earth and lived In Judah and Israel, as a Jew. True Christianity is Jewish. When Jesus returns, He will return to Israel, to the Jews! His feet will touch down on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem. His third temple will be built in Jerusalem. Not Cape Town, not London nor anywhere else. He is God of the Jews first and foremost and we are the “other flock” of which He spoke.
In Matthew 25:32-46 the Lord speaks about separating the sheep from the goats and in verse 40 He says ” …… Truly I tell you, in so far as you did it for one of the least of these My brethren, you did it for Me.” Now who, literally, are the brethren of the Lord? The Jews, of course! We are to bless Israel and support her in every way. Genesis 12:3 “I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse”.
Romans 11:17-18 “But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive, were grafted in among them and became partakers with them of the rich root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches; but if you are arrogant, remember that it is not you who supports the root, but the root supports you.” We are grafted into the rich Jewish heritage, by the grace of the Lord.
Replacement theology seemed plausible when the Jewish people were in exile, but since the Lord has miraculously restored the Jews to their ancient homeland Israel, it can be seen for what it is, namely anti-Semitism. And while many of the prophecies were fulfilled by the Lord Jesus, the re-establishment of Israel is further fulfillment of ancient prophecies, all pointing to His soon return.
To quote W N Ewer & T E Brown:
“How odd of God to choose the Jews;
But not so odd as those who choose the Jewish God
but spurn the Jews”.
Blessings,
Jill
Hi Jill
Apologies for the delayed reply, as I have been on holiday.
Yes, some have called this “replacement” theology, but I would call it sound, “biblical” theology. The reason why I say this is because in the Bible, Old Testament and New Testament, there has always been
only ONE people of God. God’s people are always those called to gather round his word, those who believe God’s promise. This definition is true for Old and New Testaments.
The Gentiles have indeed been grafted in with the Jews to form the new, multi-ethnic people of God. Thus, the church (believing Gentiles and Messianic Jews) form the renewed ONE people of God. Non-Christians people who do not believe the gospel, like Jewish people – who have rejected God’s promised Messiah – can by definition not be the “people of God”.
The Apostle Paul said that “not all Israel is Israel” i.e. what makes you a member of the people of God is not your ethnicity or “Jewishness”, but whether you believe God’s promises. That was true even for Old Testament Israel. If one rejects God’s promises (like Jewish people) one falls under judgment and can indeed be called an enemy of God. One then, like all non-Christians, needs to repent and believe the gospel. Which I hope and pray many Jewish people will do.
Hope this clarifies my position.
In Christ
Andre
This is called Replacement Theology and is not the truth! We Christians are only branches which have been grafted into the true olive tree (Israel). We have not taken the place of the Jews. The spiritual eyes of the Jews have only been temporarily blinded to the Lord Jesus, in order that the fullness of the gentiles may come in – Rom 11:25. And in Eph 3:6 says “… that in union with the Messiah and through the good news the gentiles were to be joint heirs, a joint body and joint sharers with the Jews in what G-d has promised”. Also Rom 15:27 urges us to support the Jews materially because we have received from them spiritually (not replaced them). See also Isaiah 44: 21-28 and 49: 14-16. The Jews are and will always be G-D’s chosen people.