The Bible Nerd

Being in Israel was a odd mix of experiences and learning opportunities.  On one level, there was the connection with Biblical history and archeology.  On another level, there was the modern political situation with the issues between the Israelis and the Palestinians.  One moment, I would be looking at various layers of destruction in the ruins of Jericho, and the next moment I was being shown a checkpoint where someone blew themselves up last year.  All of it served to complicate my views on Israel and God’s plan.  Things were much simpler sitting in a classroom in the United States, far removed from the pain and suffering of the land.

So, when people ask me about my views on Israel, I have my views from political science, my views from the Bible, and then I have my personal feelings as an ethnic Jew who has visited the modern nation.  Even though I can discuss passages that pertain to Israel, like we have done the last two posts, in the end, my view of Israel comes from looking at the whole of God’s redemptive plan.  From Genesis to Deuteronomy, God unfolds His plan to create a holy nation bound to Him in covenant and love.  That theocracy was to be guided by priests, prophets, and elders to serve a holy, loving God.  Under civil, ceremonial, and moral law, Israel was given the blessing of being a witness to the surrounding nations by being set apart.

Unfortunately, as the story goes on from Judges to Esther, it is one long, sad tale of their disobedience, idolatry, and social injustice.  This covenant breaking was met with stiff justice as they were taken out of the land and exiled, stripped of the temple, kingship, and their homes. It is abundantly clear that man can’t obtain his own righteousness through the law.  As a physical nation, Israel “blasphemed the name of God among the nations” (Romans 2:24, Isaiah 52:5), and God spoke through the prophets that a new covenant would be needed (Jeremiah 31:31-34).  In this “New” covenant, the law would be on their hearts (Jer. 31), God’s Spirit would be in them (Joel 2:28), and the Suffering Servant would die so that they might have forgiveness from sins (Isaiah 53).

When Jesus did come to earth, He made it clear that He was not there to be king nor to establish a physical kingdom (John 6:15).  The disciples and Jews struggled with this as their messianic expectations were for Israel to be restored and the Romans expelled.  Instead of staying in Jerusalem, Jesus commanded the early church to go out to the “ends of Earth” (Acts 1:8).  Paul’s definition of the “body of Christ”, the church, is one that is spiritual and made up of all ethnicities all over the world (Ephesians 2:14-22).  The old covenant, law, was seen by Paul and the author of Hebrews as a “shadow” of the New Covenant (Hebrews 10:1).  Hebrews 1 – 10 is a consistent argument to not look back to the old covenant, as something much better is here now in Christ.

The question then is, does it fit with this plan to go back to a physical kingdom?  Why would God reestablish Israel as a nation in our modern times, almost two thousand years after it fell to the Romans?  I have heard two different arguments about this, and neither necessitate you being a believer in replacement theology or Christian Zionism.

First, many believe that God is not “going back” to a physical kingdom, but He is merely adding the physical kingdom to the already existing spiritual one in the church.  They point to numerous Scriptures that they feel support their view.  In Acts 1:6, the disciples ask Jesus if He is now going to restore the kingdom of Israel.  Jesus’ reply in Acts 1:7 says, “It is not for you to know the times”.  Jesus doesn’t say, “I am never going to do that”, but instead just tells them that it isn’t their place to know when this will occur.  In Romans 11:11-32, Paul talks about God’s plan to bring the Jews to Him through jealousy of the Gentile believers.  “All Israel being saved” in 11:26 is interpreted to be a huge wave of Jews that will turn back to God shortly before the return of Jesus.  Obviously, this view then interprets most of the Old Testament predictions about the Jews return and Israel in a literal fashion.

Second, some believe that God has concrete plans for the Jews and Israel, but that they are not fulfillments of Biblical prophecy.  This view states that the old covenant is dead, and with it was His focus on a physical nation.  Jesus came to reveal the spiritual kingdom, and it would make no sense to go back to a physical nation anymore.  God does love the Jews and has given them special blessings and gifts, but their existence as a political nation is not necessary for the return of Jesus.  Fitting with this view, they interpret most Old Testament predictions about the future of Israel as pertaining to the church (spiritual fulfillment).  They don’t view the church as replacing Israel at all, but rather they have been “grafted in” to true Israel alongside their Jewish Christian brothers and sisters.  There was never a “replacement”, only an “addition”.

In the next post, I will wrap up this question by addressing a few passages that didn’t fit yet with our previous posts.  Again, there is no way to do full justice to this issue on a blog, but my prayer is that these posts help you and spur you to press into the word of God.  There are so many books and sermons out there on this subject, but we should build our foundation from the Bible alone.  No matter what our view ends up being, let us not grow weary in praying for peace in this situation.  Jews and Palestinians have suffered for so long, and much of our world has given up on the peace process all together.  One new man in Christ.