Post by John on Jan 18, 2019 10:19:04 GMT -5
It has been over 2000 years since Jesus was on this earth and approximately 2000 years since the epistles were written and the message of the gospel was taken to the gentiles and yet we still have strife over Jewish superiority and gentile hatred of the Jews. This is the result of a huge lack of understanding about the difference between being born of Jewish ancestry, and being a Jew in the sight of God.
Simply being a descendent of Abraham through Isaac, the child of promise, doesn't make you spiritually Jewish, and not being born a descendent of Abraham through Isaac, the child of promise, doesn't make you spiritually inferior. What most do not realize is that God was willing to save gentiles all along, and did, even before Jesus came on the scene. Under the law of Moses, a gentile could become an adopted Jew by following Jehovah and keeping the law of Moses, including the sign of circumcision. They then became as one born a Jew. On the other hand, there were numerous things a Jew could do that would cause them to be cut off from among God's people. The teachings in Romans were not new in that sense. The biggest difference is what would allow a gentile to become part of spiritual Israel and what would cause a Jew to be cut off from spiritual Israel. It is now centered around faith or lack of faith in Christ. Don't believe, you are not Israel. Believe, and you are Israel. As such, being a natural born Jew doesn't save you. Look at what John the Baptist said in Matthew 3:9,10...
And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
It is not so much that the Christian church has replaced Israel, as they are joined to Israel, and the unbelieving Jews are become as the unclean idol worshipping gentiles were before they came to place their trust in Jesus. That means that when it comes to salvation, there remains the same two camps there always were, true Israel, made up of those who place their trust in God, which today means Jesus Christ, and those who are not Israel because they did not place their trust in Christ because of unbelief. The unclean today are made up of unbelieving descendants of Abraham, though they be natural descendants of Isaac, and gentiles that never believed. One is no more unclean than the other. Christians are clean through the blood of Christ, and unbelievers are filthy because their sin stains remain. There is only one Israel and one church, and the two are one. There are not two Israel's and two churches with different standards. I want you to look at this next passage of scripture carefully.
"For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise."Galatians 3:26-29
That does not mean DNA changed. That does not mean a bond servant is suddenly free. That doesn't mean there are no physical differences or differences in roles between men and women. What it does mean is that when it comes to salvation, there are no differences. You are saved or lost. Being a natural Jew, free as opposed to a servant, or male as opposed to female, doesn't make you any more or less saved. But here is what is often overlooked. Verse 29 "And if ye be Christ's then are ye Abraham's seed..." In the sight of God, this man whose ancestry is mostly Italian on my Father's side and mostly English on my Mother's side is now Abraham's seed by adoption through faith in Christ. This man who was from a wild olive tree is now grafted in to the good olive tree, while many who are of Jewish ancestry are counted as no longer Abraham's seed and unclean because they rejected the only way of salvation, Jesus Christ.
Simply being a descendent of Abraham through Isaac, the child of promise, doesn't make you spiritually Jewish, and not being born a descendent of Abraham through Isaac, the child of promise, doesn't make you spiritually inferior. What most do not realize is that God was willing to save gentiles all along, and did, even before Jesus came on the scene. Under the law of Moses, a gentile could become an adopted Jew by following Jehovah and keeping the law of Moses, including the sign of circumcision. They then became as one born a Jew. On the other hand, there were numerous things a Jew could do that would cause them to be cut off from among God's people. The teachings in Romans were not new in that sense. The biggest difference is what would allow a gentile to become part of spiritual Israel and what would cause a Jew to be cut off from spiritual Israel. It is now centered around faith or lack of faith in Christ. Don't believe, you are not Israel. Believe, and you are Israel. As such, being a natural born Jew doesn't save you. Look at what John the Baptist said in Matthew 3:9,10...
And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
It is not so much that the Christian church has replaced Israel, as they are joined to Israel, and the unbelieving Jews are become as the unclean idol worshipping gentiles were before they came to place their trust in Jesus. That means that when it comes to salvation, there remains the same two camps there always were, true Israel, made up of those who place their trust in God, which today means Jesus Christ, and those who are not Israel because they did not place their trust in Christ because of unbelief. The unclean today are made up of unbelieving descendants of Abraham, though they be natural descendants of Isaac, and gentiles that never believed. One is no more unclean than the other. Christians are clean through the blood of Christ, and unbelievers are filthy because their sin stains remain. There is only one Israel and one church, and the two are one. There are not two Israel's and two churches with different standards. I want you to look at this next passage of scripture carefully.
"For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise."Galatians 3:26-29
That does not mean DNA changed. That does not mean a bond servant is suddenly free. That doesn't mean there are no physical differences or differences in roles between men and women. What it does mean is that when it comes to salvation, there are no differences. You are saved or lost. Being a natural Jew, free as opposed to a servant, or male as opposed to female, doesn't make you any more or less saved. But here is what is often overlooked. Verse 29 "And if ye be Christ's then are ye Abraham's seed..." In the sight of God, this man whose ancestry is mostly Italian on my Father's side and mostly English on my Mother's side is now Abraham's seed by adoption through faith in Christ. This man who was from a wild olive tree is now grafted in to the good olive tree, while many who are of Jewish ancestry are counted as no longer Abraham's seed and unclean because they rejected the only way of salvation, Jesus Christ.