GOOD NEWS FOR ISRAEL
building bridges of peace between Jews and Christians
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GOOD NEWS FOR ISRAEL building bridges of peace between Jews and Christians
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Galilee at sundown INTRODUCTION Over the years I have been frequently asked questions like:
Broadly my reply contains two elements: “First of all I believe that it is important for me to focus my interests on what is of interest to God. My understanding is that God loves Israel, He always has, and He always will. Secondly, Jesus was a Jew; he was born a Jew, he lived as a Jew, his earthly ministry was almost exclusively to his own people – who were Jewish.” You cannot read very much of the Bible before you become confronted with the fact that there is a primary focus on both the people of Israel and the land of Israel. There are over 2500 references to “Israel” in the Bible including the New Testament. You could almost be forgiven for thinking that God has an obsession with “Israel”; such is the thrust of much of the content in the Bible. One person once explained to me the reason why she was so interested in Israel. “I read my Bible” she said, “and I find I have no choice.” This is not to say that “Israel” is God’s only focus, nor is it to suggest that it should be the only focus for all Christians. But what I do say is that Israel should be in our focus. Moreover we (as believers in Jesus) will be the richer spiritually if we understand the place of Israel in God’s purposes. At a personal level, I became a disciple of Jesus in my teens, and for the next 25 years or so, was directly involved in Evangelism to Gentiles. This included 15 years in the full time ministry. My first real contact with the Jewish community did not occur until 1979 when I was a Pastor in the Wollongong area in New South Wales. The outcome of that initial contact ultimately resulted in a Biblical re-focus for me. Since 1987 my energies have therefore been directed towards God’s purposes for Israel and the Jewish people. Following are twenty reasons which I put forward as the basis for my personal focus on Israel. These reasons are only stated briefly with scripture references in the hope that you may want to discover for yourself what the word of God says about Israel. It is important that the all scripture be interpreted within the context in which it was given. I find that too many Christians want to spiritualise the meaning of Scripture. In other words, they want to interpret all Bible verses as though they were given to Christians. While it is true that the Holy Spirit will use any Scripture to speak to us today, it is important for the purposes of hermeneutics (interpretation) to observe the original context in which scriptures were given. By the way, it goes without saying, that if you do not accept the Bible as the word of God, then the following statements will have no meaning. But if you do accept the Bible as God’s word, then like the friend mentioned above, you may have no choice but to come to these same conclusions. Finally, I need to say that this is not meant to be either a comprehensive nor an in-depth treatment on such an important subject, rather it is put forward as an ice-breaker into what is a neglected truth. Fraser J Harding
TWENTY REASONS WHY 1. God has made an Everlasting Covenant with Israel (Genesis 17:7-10). This was first given to Abraham, then to Isaac (Genesis 17:19), and to Jacob (Genesis 28:13-15; 35:10-12; 48:4). The covenant was unconditional and has never been revoked. It involved a commitment to not only be their God forever but to provide them with a specified land area already spoken of in Genesis 15:18. This was no ordinary contract. It was not made by two parties. It was given by God. Israel has been disobedient to God, and for that she has paid dearly. She has been persecuted, and almost destroyed. But the terms of God's covenant have not been - as some teach - abrogated. They stand forever. Israel is still in God’s sights as far as His everlasting Covenant is concerned. 2. Israel is the first born son of God (Exodus 4:22). We are familiar with the scripture that says that Jesus (“Yeshua” in Hebrew) is the only begotten son of God. (John 3:16), but early on in biblical history, we read that “Israel” is God’s first born. It is clear that both of these “Sons” are precious to him, even if his first born may have become something of a “prodigal”! 3. Israel is the wife of God (Is. 54:5). Many of the prophets indicate how Israel (as God’s wife) has, in a variety of ways, (sadly) deserted her husband. The New Testament also talks about the “Bride of the Lamb” (Revelation 19:9 & 21:9) which undoubtedly includes true followers of Jesus, but it is clear from Scripture that Israel is the one that was betrothed to God Himself. 4. Israel is the Apple of God’s Eye (Zechariah 2:8). The Hebrew for “apple” is “gate’ or “entry”. We generally refer to that part of the anatomy of the eye as the “pupil”. I have a particular eye problem which causes me to protect the pupils of my eyes at all cost. It is obvious from Scripture that God is also anxious to protect his “pupil” – Israel. So much so that Zechariah goes on to say that God will deal severely with nations that plunder Israel. 5. God has chosen Israel to be His people (Deuteronomy 7: 6-8). This may be a mystery to some people or it may even be a point of aggravation to others. But the Bible reveals that God chose Israel, not because they were great in number, but simply because He loved them. Some people may want to argue against this statement, but in so doing may find that the argument they have is with God Himself. Believers in Jesus are also described as being chosen by God (1 Peter 2:9). 6. God will judge nations and individuals according to their attitude towards Israel (Obadiah 15-16 & Genesis 12:3). There is a day coming when both nations and individuals will be held accountable for treating His people (i.e. Israel) negatively. This is a very sobering fact. There is no other nation in the world about which God reacts in such a way. There is unquestionably a special place in His heart for them. 7. God has made a new covenant with “The House of Israel and the House of Judah” (Jeremiah 31:31-34). God specifically says that this covenant is to supersede the (conditional) Mosaic Covenant. This “new” covenant therefore does not affect the covenant given to Abraham (which was unconditional). In the new covenant God promises to give knowledge of His law in their minds, to write it on their hearts, and to be their God. Jesus established the New Covenant when He shed his blood on the Cross. The “Church” has therefore also partaken of the spiritual blessings of the New Covenant (Ephesians 2:11-16). 8. God promises to make Jerusalem “A praise in all the earth” (Isaiah 62:7). No other city has ever been given such a promise. The whole of chapter 62 of Isaiah needs to be studied to see how passionate God is about Jerusalem. “For Zion’s (Israel’s) sake I will not hold my peace and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until her righteousness goes forth as brightness and her salvation as a lamp that burns.” God promised also to set watchmen on the walls who are to keep reminding God about what He has promised in relation to Jerusalem. Such is His passion concerning Jerusalem. Such should be my passion to keep reminding Him! 9. God’s commitment to Israel as a nation is unambiguous and unequivocal (Jeremiah 31:35-37). Only when day and night cease will Israel cease to be a nation. If ever the sun, moon and stars cease to function, only then will God cast off the “seed of Israel”. Such is the certainty of the ongoing existence of Israel. Even during the period when Israel had no land, no political structure and no language, God still kept them in His sights. Psalm 121:4 assures us that “He that keeps Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps”. 10. The Re-Establishment of the Nation of Israel was nothing short of a Miracle of God (Isaiah 66:8). Since 1948, Israel continues to celebrate its miraculous restoration. No other nation has ever experienced such a “rebirth”. There are those who say that this event was effected by political manoeuvres. It was Derek Prince who said that "To believe that the re-establishment of Israel was a mere political accident is like believing that the world is flat". See Amos 9:14-15. This leads us to 11. The Regathering of the Jewish People to the Land is a fulfilment of Bible Prophecy (Jeremiah 16:14-16). In 1948, there were less than a million people living in what had been called Palestine. Today there are more than 6 million, and the Jews are continuing to move there every day in spite of the critical situation in that land. Now if there is one OT scripture that foretold this there are dozens. In Jeremiah, in Isaiah, in Zechariah, Amos and so on. The passage in Jeremiah mentioned above typifies the type of prophetic utterance that was repeated many times. A political accident? An emphatic "no". The regathering of the Nation is a modern day miracle 12. The revival of the Hebrew language is more than mere coincidence (Zephaniah 3:9). The Hebrew language died out as a daily language of communication almost 1900 years ago. But Hebrew has been miraculously resurrected, and it is the language of modern day Israel. The prophet Zephaniah actually foretold that there would come a day when "God would restore to the peoples a pure language, in order that they all may call on the name of the LORD". The living Bible actually reads "At that time I will change the speech of my returning people to pure Hebrew". In 1948 it became the official language of the new state of Israel. Hebrew is now taught not just in Israel, but around the world where ever the Diaspora are situated. 13. When the Bible talks about “Israel” it means “Israel”, not the “Church”. There is not one particular scripture for this statement, but as already stated in the introduction, Israel is mentioned over 2500 times throughout the Bible. No one could ever doubt that the references in the Old Testament refer either to the people or the land of Israel. In the New Testament “Israel” is mentioned 77 times. Although there are those who want to relate some of these references to “The New Israel” or “the Church”, a careful study will reveal otherwise. The next point helps clarify this point. 14. Israel has not been permanently rejected by God (Romans 11:1-2). Paul asks the question “Has God cast away His people?” His answer: – “Never!” Then he (Paul) identifies himself as an “Israelite of the seed of Abraham of the tribe of Benjamin”. This has to do with his physical heritage, not his spiritual position in Jesus. Elsewhere in Romans 11 we read that Israel herself has “stumbled” (v 11), been “cast away” (v15), and “because of unbelief were broken off” (v17).But a careful study of chapter 11 shows that this is not a permanent outcome for Israel. Moreover it does not indicate that the Church has replaced Israel. 15. God has used Israel’s unbelief to bring salvation to the Gentiles (Romans 11:11). Life is full of mysteries and this is one of them. You and I (as gentiles) are in a sense debtors to the Jewish people, because in this strange way, we have (through their rejection of the Gospel of Christ), been privileged to experience God’s salvation. 16. Even in Israel’s state of unbelief, blessings have been brought to the world (Romans 11: 12 & 15). Look at what they have done for the world even in their state of unbelief. They are at the cutting edge in Medicine, Science, the Arts and Entertainment etc. We owe so much to the Jews. Twelve percent of world’s Scientists are Jews even though they represent 0.8% of the total population. This should not surprise us for the Bible told us all along that they would be a blessing to the world! 17. The blessings for the world brought about by the ultimate salvation of Israel will be wonderful (Romans 11:12 & 15). In trying to compare how the world will benefit when Israel comes to acceptance of God’s salvation in Christ, he says it will be “life from the dead”. What an exciting time we are yet to experience when God’s purposes for Israel are fulfilled. 18. All Israel will be saved (Romans 11:26). Paul says even though hardening in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in (Romans 11:25), all Israel will be saved. Hallelujah! It is important for the Gospel to be brought to the Gentiles, for that is a key issue in terms of the salvation of the Jews. I want to underline that Paul is not spiritualising “Israel” here to mean the “church”. How nonsensical that interpretation would be in this Biblical context! 19. When Jesus came the first time, it was to His own people – the people of Israel (John 1:11). Geographically he was born in Bethlehem. Jesus’ purpose in coming is clearly stated. “He came unto His own”. His ministry was almost exclusively to his own people, the people of “Israel”. His first disciples were all Jewish. Those who were inspired by the Holy Spirit to write (what has become known as) the New Testament (with one possible exception) were all Jewish. Gentiles have also been blessed, for the Word tells us that by grace through faith in Jesus and His death and resurrection, we have been brought into God’s family (Ephesians 2:8-13). 20. When Jesus comes again it will also be to His people (Zechariah 12:10). Jesus’ departure from His initial ministry on this earth was from the Mount of Olives. His return will be to Jerusalem. It will affect the whole world, but His second coming will not be to an Australian American or British City, it will be to Jerusalem in Israel. To His own people Jewish people Jesus said “Your house is left desolate….assuredly I say to you, you shall not see Me until the time comes when you say “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord” (Luke 13:35). His coming will usher in the Messianic Age which the prophets foretold. Just before Jesus’ ascension the disciples asked Him “Lord will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6) Jesus did not ridicule their question. It is my conviction that He will do just that when He comes the next time.
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