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Which Israel In The Grace Era Is Recognized By God?

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Which Israel In The Grace Era Is Recognized
By God?


Buff Scott, Jr.

Pre-NoteIt is my conviction that believers in this grace era comprise Israel of the Promise. I have affirmed, and continue to affirm, that because of old Israel's chronic rebelliousness and whoredom, her husband, God, divorced her and that this rejection—divorce—was formally finalized in A. D. 67-70 when God utilized the Roman Army to remove her as His once favored wife or divine nation.

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In Romans 9:1-5, the great apostle Paul expressed his concern and love for his fellow fleshly Jews. He begins to explain and clarify, starting with verse 6.

"But it is not as though the word of God has failed," he writes. "For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel, and not all are children of Abraham because they are his offspring, but 'through Isaac shall your offspring be named.' This means it is not the children of the flesh [old Israel] who are [today] the children of God, but the children of the promise [God made to Abraham] are counted as offspring."

The true seed or children of Abraham today are children of the promise, a spiritual Israel, rather than of the flesh, for "In Isaac shall your seed be called" [Gen. 21:12].

To put it another way, Paul is clearly saying there is another Israel greater than old Israel. God's other Israel is comprised of the children of the promise—believers in the Messiah. Consequently, all of those who have accepted Jesus as their Lord and Messiah, whether Jew or Gentile, may very well be called the "Israel of God," or God's holy nation, or spiritual Jews. Paul, in writing to Christian believers at Galatia, spoke of them [Christian believers] as the "Israel of God" [Gal. 6:16].

"Spiritual Jews"? Yes. "A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly...No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly" [Rom. 2:28-29]. To be a Jew inwardly translates into being a spiritual Jew.

Peter writes to Christian believers, "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His own possession" [I Peter 2:9]. Our God does not have two chosen races, two chosen priesthoods, two holy nations, or two holy peoples. Simply speaking, National Israel in the Middle East is not a holy nation, not even potentially, nor is she a chosen race or people. Old Israel once was, but no longer, because God formally divorced her in A. D. 67-70, during which time her Temple, her sacrifices, her rituals, her ceremonies, her feast days, her form of religious and political government, her Holy City Jerusalem, her dominion, and her kingdom were amputated.

There's no way to avoid the reality of the biblical testimony. God no longer recognizes natural Jews or National Israel as His elected nation and chosen people. "Israel" is still God's elected nation, but not old Israel. It is the Israel of the Promise, the redeemed community. "Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience" [Col. 3:1].

Paul addresses these words to Christian believers, not to the Jewish community or to the Jewish nation, and calls them "God's chosen people." God has only one holy nation in His domain [1 Peter 2:9]. It is not National Israel. Under Jesus, only those who have been born anew compose God's holy nation, which is spiritual in nature—not National.

After much patience and longsuffering with old Israel, God disowned her as His once-beloved wife. I see fleshly Israel in the Middle East as a counterfeit copy of God's once-beloved nation. It was formally over in A. D. 70 for old Israel as a divine nation! God had had enough of His one-time wife who persisted in spiritual adultery. She had become a stiff-neck people. "You stiff-necked people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are just like your fathers—you always resist the Holy Spirit" [Acts 7:51].

Even Jesus foretold of the disaster that would come upon God's one-time wife when He said, "When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near...They [Jews] will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations" [Luke 21:20-24]. Jesus made it plain that all this punishment that came upon the Jews was "in fulfillment of all that has been written" [v. 22]. The path of old Israel had ended, never to rise again as God's favorite nation.

But is God finished with Jews as a race? Absolutely not! No more than He is finished with Gentiles as a race. God has not forsaken Jews or Gentiles. He wants all of them to come to His Son for deliverance and salvation. For the time may come when God will "graft them [Jews] in again...if they do not persist in unbelief" [Rom. 11:23].

My entire thrust in this feature has been that He is finished with the Jews as a holy people and nation or as a religious and political State. We ought to accept the reality that God has only one "Israel" today, and she is the family or one body of believers [Eph. 4:4].

Do I believe National Israel in the Middle East has a right to exist? Certainly! As an established State or Country, National Israel has every right in the world to not only exist but to defend herself against her enemies. And should the Arab Palestinians ever be given a State of their own, whether by diplomatic negotiations or by the State of Israel granting them land they [Israel] now occupy, the attacks on Israel should cease. If they do not, Israel should wipe them off the face of the earth.​
 
Good interesting discussion, Buff.

At the second advent of Christ, what happens then? The millennium begins. Notice what it says in the book of Hosea.

"I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely, For My anger has turned away from him. I will be like the dew to Israel; He shall grow like the lily, And lengthen his roots like Lebanon. His branches shall spread; His beauty shall be like an olive tree, And his fragrance like Lebanon. Those who dwell under his shadow shall return; They shall be revived like grain, And grow like a vine. Their scent shall be like the wine of Lebanon.

- Hosea 14:4-7 (NKJV)


Also in the millennium, God will put Judah and the House of Israel back together again.

Thoughts?


—Pie
 
Good interesting discussion, Buff.

At the second advent of Christ, what happens then? The millennium begins. Notice what it says in the book of Hosea.

"I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely, For My anger has turned away from him. I will be like the dew to Israel; He shall grow like the lily, And lengthen his roots like Lebanon. His branches shall spread; His beauty shall be like an olive tree, And his fragrance like Lebanon. Those who dwell under his shadow shall return; They shall be revived like grain, And grow like a vine. Their scent shall be like the wine of Lebanon.

- Hosea 14:4-7 (NKJV)


Also in the millennium, God will put Judah and the House of Israel back together again.

Thoughts?


—Pie
Pie:

Thanks for your input. On the millennium, my thought is that it began on the Birthday of the Christian community and will not end until Jesus makes His second and final advent. The 1000-year reign, or millennium, in the Book of Revelation, appears to be strongly symbolic. Maybe more on this later.​
 
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Which Israel In The Grace Era Is Recognized By God?
Buff Scott, Jr.
Pre-NoteIt is my conviction that believers in this grace era comprise Israel of the Promise. I have affirmed, and continue to affirm, that because of old Israel's chronic rebelliousness and whoredom, her husband, God, divorced her and that this rejection—divorce—was formally finalized in A. D. 67-70 when God utilized the Roman Army to remove her as His once favored wife or divine nation.
In Romans 9:1-5, the great apostle Paul expressed his concern and love for his fellow fleshly Jews. He begins to explain and clarify, starting with verse 6.
"But it is not as though the word of God has failed," he writes. "For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel, and not all are children of Abraham because they are his offspring, but 'through Isaac shall your offspring be named.' This means it is not the children of the flesh [old Israel] who are [today] the children of God, but the children of the promise [God made to Abraham] are counted as offspring."
The true seed or children of Abraham today are children of the promise, a spiritual Israel, rather than of the flesh, for "In Isaac shall your seed be called" [Gen. 21:12].
To put it another way, Paul is clearly saying there is another Israel greater than old Israel. God's other Israel is comprised of the children of the promise—believers in the Messiah. Consequently, all of those who have accepted Jesus as their Lord and Messiah, whether Jew or Gentile, may very well be called the "Israel of God," or God's holy nation, or spiritual Jews. Paul, in writing to Christian believers at Galatia, spoke of them [Christian believers] as the "Israel of God" [Gal. 6:16].

"Spiritual Jews"? Yes. "A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly...No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly" [Rom. 2:28-29]. To be a Jew inwardly translates into being a spiritual Jew.

Peter writes to Christian believers, "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His own possession" [I Peter 2:9]. Our God does not have two chosen races, two chosen priesthoods, two holy nations, or two holy peoples. Simply speaking, National Israel in the Middle East is not a holy nation, not even potentially, nor is she a chosen race or people. Old Israel once was, but no longer, because God formally divorced her in A. D. 67-70, during which time her Temple, her sacrifices, her rituals, her ceremonies, her feast days, her form of religious and political government, her Holy City Jerusalem, her dominion, and her kingdom were amputated.

There's no way to avoid the reality of the biblical testimony. God no longer recognizes natural Jews or National Israel as His elected nation and chosen people. "Israel" is still God's elected nation, but not old Israel. It is the Israel of the Promise, the redeemed community. "Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience" [Col. 3:1].

Paul addresses these words to Christian believers, not to the Jewish community or to the Jewish nation, and calls them "God's chosen people." God has only one holy nation in His domain [1 Peter 2:9]. It is not National Israel. Under Jesus, only those who have been born anew compose God's holy nation, which is spiritual in nature—not National.

After much patience and longsuffering with old Israel, God disowned her as His once-beloved wife. I see fleshly Israel in the Middle East as a counterfeit copy of God's once-beloved nation. It was formally over in A. D. 70 for old Israel as a divine nation! God had had enough of His one-time wife who persisted in spiritual adultery. She had become a stiff-neck people. "You stiff-necked people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are just like your fathers—you always resist the Holy Spirit" [Acts 7:51].

Even Jesus foretold of the disaster that would come upon God's one-time wife when He said, "When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near...They [Jews] will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations" [Luke 21:20-24]. Jesus made it plain that all this punishment that came upon the Jews was "in fulfillment of all that has been written" [v. 22]. The path of old Israel had ended, never to rise again as God's favorite nation.

But is God finished with Jews as a race? Absolutely not! No more than He is finished with Gentiles as a race. God has not forsaken Jews or Gentiles. He wants all of them to come to His Son for deliverance and salvation. For the time may come when God will "graft them [Jews] in again...if they do not persist in unbelief" [Rom. 11:23].

My entire thrust in this feature has been that He is finished with the Jews as a holy people and nation or as a religious and political State. We ought to accept the reality that God has only one "Israel" today, and she is the family or one body of believers [Eph. 4:4].

Do I believe National Israel in the Middle East has a right to exist? Certainly! As an established State or Country, National Israel has every right in the world to not only exist but to defend herself against her enemies. And should the Arab Palestinians ever be given a State of their own, whether by diplomatic negotiations or by the State of Israel granting them land they [Israel] now occupy, the attacks on Israel should cease. If they do not, Israel should wipe them off the face of the earth.​
The "grace era" being the NT. . .and the last temporal era.
 
The "grace era" being the NT. . .and the last temporal era.
Eleanor:

"Grace era" alludes to the ushering in of the Christian community, the ekklesia of Christ, the new covenant [Acts, chapter2]. The new covenant scriptures were written some years after the new covenant was initiated.​

Buff
 
Eleanor:

"Grace era" alludes to the ushering in of the Christian community, the ekklesia of Christ, the new covenant [Acts, chapter2]. The new covenant scriptures were written some years after the new covenant was initiated.​

Buff
Does Paul not include Israel in the one olive tree (Jer 11:16) of God's people, the church (Ro 11:17), from which tree Israel has been cut off and the Gentiles grafted in. . .where Israel's destiny is to be grafted back. . .IF (not "when") they do not persist in unbelief (Ro 11:17-23)?
 
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My entire thrust in this feature has been that He is finished with the Jews as a holy people and nation or as a religious and political State. We ought to accept the reality that God has only one "Israel" today, and she is the family or one body of believers [Eph. 4:4].

Do I believe National Israel in the Middle East has a right to exist? Certainly! As an established State or Country, National Israel has every right in the world to not only exist but to defend herself against her enemies. And should the Arab Palestinians ever be given a State of their own, whether by diplomatic negotiations or by the State of Israel granting them land they [Israel] now occupy, the attacks on Israel should cease. If they do not, Israel should wipe them off the face of the earth.
Be careful, here. There is much to say about God's chosen people in Israel; not only in prophecy but in practical current events —God is not done with Israel. They are indeed special.
 
Does Paul not include Israel in the one olive tree (Jer 11:16) of God's people, the church (Ro 11:17), from which tree Israel has been cut off and the Gentiles grafted in. . .where Israel's destiny is to be grafted back. . .IF (not "when") they do not persist in unbelief (Ro 11:17-23)?
Eleanor:

God wants all fleshly Jews to come to His Son for deliverance and salvation, as He does the Gentiles. For the time may come when God will “graft them [Jews] in again...if they do not persist in unbelief” [Rom. 11:23]. Every Jew today who turns to God via Jesus Christ is grafted into God's new Israel, the redeemed community. But they cannot be grafted in as long as they "persist in unbelief."​
 
Eleanor:

God wants all fleshly Jews to come to His Son for deliverance and salvation, as He does the Gentiles. For the time may come when God will “graft them [Jews] in again...if they do not persist in unbelief” [Rom. 11:23]. Every Jew today who turns to God via Jesus Christ is grafted into God's new Israel, the redeemed community.
But they cannot be grafted in as long as they "persist in unbelief."
That applies to all mankind.

The Jews are on the same footing with God as are the Gentiles (all mankind). . .salvation is only by faith in Jesus Christ.
 
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Good interesting discussion, Buff.

At the second advent of Christ, what happens then? The millennium begins. Notice what it says in the book of Hosea.

"I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely, For My anger has turned away from him. I will be like the dew to Israel; He shall grow like the lily, And lengthen his roots like Lebanon. His branches shall spread; His beauty shall be like an olive tree, And his fragrance like Lebanon. Those who dwell under his shadow shall return; They shall be revived like grain, And grow like a vine. Their scent shall be like the wine of Lebanon.

- Hosea 14:4-7 (NKJV)


Also in the millennium, God will put Judah and the House of Israel back together again.

Thoughts?


—Pie

This is not as simple as it sounds. It is very easy to show that the 'reign of Christ' comes when he arrives in Nazareth, and that the OT passage was meant to be seen that way, and that the long reign of the Rev is actually now. Otherwise there is a redundancy at the end of the Rev: a long reign happens (in the future) only to fail; and the NHNE takes the place of everything. If a long 1000 year reign is so ideal, why doesn't it just last forever? In fact, isn't that what people say about Israel's land promiseses, that they last forever? But the NHNE changes all that anyway.
 
Eleanor:

God wants all fleshly Jews to come to His Son for deliverance and salvation, as He does the Gentiles. For the time may come when God will “graft them [Jews] in again...if they do not persist in unbelief” [Rom. 11:23]. Every Jew today who turns to God via Jesus Christ is grafted into God's new Israel, the redeemed community. But they cannot be grafted in as long as they "persist in unbelief."​

That's right. It is an individual matter, but as a snapshot at the time, Jews did not believe, did not populate the Christian fellowships, like Gentiles did.
 
Be careful, here. There is much to say about God's chosen people in Israel; not only in prophecy but in practical current events —God is not done with Israel. They are indeed special.

Can you be specific? The term in Acts 3 for not recognizing Jesus as the new Moses is extremely dire. That would mean that only a few Jews would end up in the Israel of God of the end of Rom 11. And that would be by faith.
 
Pie:

Thanks for your input. On the millennium, my thought is that it began on the Birthday of the Christian community and will not end until Jesus makes His second and final advent. The 1000-year reign, or millennium, in the Book of Revelation, appears to be strongly symbolic. Maybe more on this later.​

Don't base anything on the Rev that is not crystal clear elsewhere.
 
This is not as simple as it sounds. It is very easy to show that the 'reign of Christ' comes when he arrives in Nazareth, and that the OT passage was meant to be seen that way, and that the long reign of the Rev is actually now. Otherwise there is a redundancy at the end of the Rev: a long reign happens (in the future) only to fail; and the NHNE takes the place of everything. If a long 1000 year reign is so ideal, why doesn't it just last forever? In fact, isn't that what people say about Israel's land promiseses, that they last forever? But the NHNE changes all that anyway.
I would think the time began during the first century reformation. The vail was rent .Restoring the reign of Christ
 
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