This past Sunday, we considered the question of how Christians today should relate to Jews and also the modern state of Israel. After an introduction, we gave 10 principles to help with that question.
- We are in an in-between period that Jesus calls “the times of the Gentiles.” Note Luke 21:24; Romans 11:25
- The times of the Gentiles will not end until the tribulation period. Note the word “until” in Romans 11:25 and Luke 21:24-26
- During this in-between time period, God is not actively working with the nation of Israel as a whole. Note Romans 11:24 where it speaks of “blindness” that has come in part to Israel.
- God will one day redeem the people of Israel (and us too!) at the second coming of Christ. Note Luke 21:27-28; Romans 11:26
- During this in-between, time God still is saving some Israelites. Note Romans 1:16; 11:2-5
- While we wait for the fullness of the Gentiles to come in, the covenant with Abraham and his descendants is still in operation. That covenant includes these words in Genesis 12:3 – “I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you.” Blessing the Jewish people today means, at a minimum, that we should have a disposition of grace and favor toward them.
- The modern state of Israel is not Biblical Israel.
- Even though the modern state of Israel is not Biblical Israel, it does have the right to exist.
- Even though the modern state of Israel is not Biblical Israel, many ethnic Jews do live there and as such God cares about them.
- No individual or nation right now lives or governs perfectly. That means that not everything that any individual Jew or the modern state of Israel does is necessarily the right thing to do.
For a fuller explanation for all of these principles, listen to the sermon linked here!