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WHO ARE 'GOD’S CHOSEN PEOPLE'?
By Rev. Ted Pike
11 Jul 05
There is a simple, biblical answer to that question: all who trust in Jesus Christ,
giving God the same trust and obedience that faithful Abraham gave, are, in
spiritual terms, “the Israel of God.” St. Paul defines spiritual
Israel in Galatians: “It is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham.” (3:6) “Those
who are of faith are blessed with Abraham, the believer.” (3:9) “And
if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according
to the promise.” (3:29)
Such constitute that posterity of Abraham who will be as numerous
as the “dust of the earth” (Gen. 13:16). These are his
descendants by faith, multitudes in every age, both Jew and Gentile,
who trust in that great, singular “seed” of Abraham,
Jesus Christ (Gal. 3:16).
Yet, Paul also has much to say about who constitutes physical Israel.
He says that those physical descendants of Abraham who reject Jesus
are not to be counted as true Jews. “For they are not all Israel
who are descended from Israel.” (Rom. 9:6) …“it
is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but
the children of the promise are regarded as descendants.” (Rom.
9:8)
Paul portrays such false Jews as those who are descended from authentic
Jewish branches, branches that once grew out of the tree of life,
Jesus Christ. Yet, “because of unbelief, they were broken off.” (Rom.
11:17) Such unbelieving Jews, in Paul’s time and also today,
have no right to be called authentic Jews, the “seed of Abraham,” “the
children of Israel,” or “God’s chosen people.” In
fact, Paul quotes grievous biblical curses upon them (Rom. 11:8-10)
depriving them of any spiritual comfort in being physical descendants
of Abraham.
Such curses are found in the Old Testament book of Deuteronomy,
(Deut. 28:15-18) where God threatens Israel that, if she does not
obey, loathsome and incurable curses will cling to unbelieving Jewry.
These are curses of spiritual sickness and blindness, culminating
someday in the physical horrors and spiritual confusion of the great
tribulation.
Did Israel heed Moses' warning? She did not. In fact, both people
and leaders cried out for crucifixion of the giver of Israel’s
law, their true Messiah, Jesus Christ.
As a result, Talmudic Judaism, loyal to those who crucified Christ
- the Pharisees and to their Antichrist Talmud - has become perhaps
the driest, most spiritually unsatisfying of the world’s great
religions. It remains spiritually withered, not only under Moses’ curses,
but under Christ’s, who cursed and dried up the proverbial
fig tree of Israel (Mark 11:13, 14, 20, 21) and said “…your
house is left to you desolate…you shall not see me again until
the time comes when you say, Blessed is he who comes in the name
of the Lord!” (Luke 13:35)
Paul describes Christ-rejecting Jews as “enemies of the gospel” (Rom.
11:28), commanding Christians to “beware of the false circumcision” (Phil.
3:2). Christ, also commands the church to “beware of the leaven
(teaching) of the Pharisees” (Luke 12:1). He refers to them
in Revelation as “the synagogue of Satan, who say they are
Jews, and are not, but lie.” (Rev. 3:9)
May we conclude, then, that the church of Jesus Christ is now the
complete inheritor of the promises given Abraham, and that God is
finished with the unbelieving nation of Israel?
Absolutely not.
CHRIST WILL HAVE RIGHTEOUSNESS FROM THE JEWS
Scripture, especially in the Old Testament, teaches in hundreds
of instances that, despite the apostasy of Israel, God will someday
be honored and obeyed by a predestined believing remnant of Jews.
Some passages are:
Isaiah 4:4, 10:20, 14:3, 31:12, 51:17, 52:1-4, 64:9-10
Jeremiah 3:22-24, 30:8, 33:6,8, 50:20
Ezekiel 11:19-20, 16:41-42, 39:22, 44:23
Joel 2:18-20
Zephaniah 2:7, 3:11-20
One third of Jewry and their proselytes (See, The
Khazars: Do They Destroy God’s Plan for the Jews?) will,
out of great tribulation, repent and turn to their true Messiah
at his Second Coming. (Ezek. 5:12; Zech. 13:8)
FUTURE BLESSINGS ON THE REMNANT
It is with this coming remnant in mind that Paul informs us that,
(in the present tense) to them “belongs the adoption as sons,
and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and
the temple service, and the promises.” (Rom. 9:4)
Let’s
consider the spiritual inheritance that this predestined remnant
possesses, a legacy awaiting full activation when Christ re-gathers
them to Palestine and begins his millennial reign.
First, the remnant possesses the promise of “the adoption
as sons.” Millions of Jews, though presently rejecting Christ,
have been foreknown by Christ to someday be “adopted as sons” through
repentance.
Second, the remnant possesses “the glory”. The Shekinah
glory that descended on Moses, the tabernacle, and the prophets,
etc. - is promised to descend once again upon the remnant. The Holy
Spirit will be poured out upon them. (Joel 2:28)
Third, the remnant possesses “the covenants.” These
include the right to possess Canaan land in a physical, literal way.
Old Testament scripture is emphatic that title to the physical land
of Israel belongs to those of the physical seed of Abraham, who also
do his works of faith. (Ezek 47:14) This covenant was not made to
the Gentile church.
When this remnant at last gives Christ the same obedience that “God’s
chosen people” gave him under Joshua and Ezra, then they will
have divine approval to occupy the Holy Land. During the last 2,000
years no generation of Jews has given Christ such obedience. As a
result, scripture forbids them to re-occupy a land dedicated to faith,
obedience and holiness.
Fourth, the remnant possesses the “giving of the law” and
the “temple services.” Even though Hebrews in the Old
Testament rarely fulfilled his law perfectly, God will someday have
obedience from the Jewish remnant and their posterity. This will
be through faith, but also by perfect keeping of the Mosaic law.
To them is entrusted the privilege to facilitate the temple service
during the millennium. (Ezek. 40-48)
Fifth, the remnant possesses “the promises.” These
are the wealth of prophetic assurances that, despite the depths of
apostasy Israel’s evil leaders have led the Jewish people into,
someday, when they repent, God will fulfill all Old Testament prophesies
concerning national redemption and blessing under Jesus Christ.
At that time, Paul tells us, Isaiah 59:20 will be fulfilled: “The
Deliverer (Jesus) will come from Zion and will remove ungodliness
from Jacob.” (Rom. 11:26) That promise was not fulfilled, in
the national sense that Isaiah prophesied it, by Christ’s first
coming. Instead, Paul, writing twenty-three years after Christ’s
first coming, anticipated that day. That will be a time when not
just a few token Jews will believe on Christ, but “all Israel
will be saved.” (Rom. 11:26) At present, that could amount
to as many as 6 million Jews.
RESURRECTING DRY BONES
Clearly, nearly 2,000 years of Jewry have died in rejection and
unbelief in Christ. Such past generations have not proven to be God’s
chosen people. Instead, if they have believed the Talmud’s
false testimonies against Christ - that he was a bastard (Sanh. 106b),
a deceiver of his people (Sanh. 43a), and is now in hell (Git. 56b-57a) – then
they have been of the synagogue of Satan. They have died in their
sins.
Yet, the prophet Ezekiel assures us that someday the dry bones
of the remnant will be resurrected (Ezek. 37). Out of the spiritual
barrenness of Talmudic Judaism and the terror of the great tribulation,
Christ will spiritually gather their bones together. He will spiritually
attach sinews and muscles, clothing them with skin, and raising them
up to stand in faith as a mighty, militant remnant before him.
IMPREGNABLE ISRAEL
Yet, before the remnant will be revealed, Ezek. 38:9 tells us that
Israel must first ascend to a place of such supremacy over the nations
that “there is no one to make them afraid, living securely
in their land.” (Ezek. 39:26) They will be “at rest…living
without walls and having no bars or gates.” (Ezek. 38:11)
Tomorrow, Israel will have so subjected her mid-east enemies and
the world that she has no need of military defenses. Yet, Israel
will not be at peace because she has obeyed God. Quite the contrary.
She is profaning his name (Ezek. 39:7); iniquitous and acting treacherously
against God (Ezek.39:23); unclean and transgressing (Ezek. 39:24);
and playing the harlot (Ezek.16:41).
As a result of such abominations, God, far from blessing Israel, “is
hiding his face from her.” (Ezek. 39:23)
How is such dominion possible? It may be that along with world
military, media, and financial supremacy, “anti-hate” laws
will be Israel’s most powerful tool to quell rebellion. As
we are seeing at this moment, the evil Jewish leadership of ADL/B’nai
B’rith has been incredibly successful in persuading the nations
of the western, industrialized world to adopt such anti-Christian,
anti-free speech legislation.
The ultimate purpose of hate laws is to bring Jews, Judaism, and
Zionism into a place of such invulnerability that literally no one,
Christian or Arab, can breathe a word of criticism against matters
Jewish. The penalty, as the world saw in Philadelphia on Oct. 10th,
when ADL had eleven Christians arrested for the “hate crime” of
preaching the gospel to homosexuals, will be harsh fines and imprisonment.
Ultimately, it may even mean death.
THE REMNANT APPEARS
Yet, it is very significant that, even when Israel will have triumphed
over the nations, God still refers to her as “my people” – i.e. “God’s
chosen people.” (Ezek 38:14, 16, 39:7)
How can this be, since scripture clearly teaches that unbelieving
Jews are not God’s people? Answer: It is because that
special generation that will become his “chosen people” will
have at last come upon the scene!
There they are, squarely in the
middle of a Zionist world empire, oblivious of their destiny. Yet,
when Antichrist encircles Jerusalem, profaning its temple by committing
the “Abomination of Desolation” and
desecrating everything that is sacred to Judaism, this divinely selected
remnant, though exiled to the nations in great tribulation, will
be miraculously preserved unto faith in Christ.
Could it be that many Jews today constitute that elected generation?
No one knows.
But of one thing we are certain. All Christians must behave toward
Jews as if someday they could, in fact, be our brothers in Christ,
fellow-heirs of salvation. When that happens, every Christian should
be able to look back on his demeanor toward “God’s chosen
people” as a record void of blemish, void of any word or action
that he should ever have to apologize for.
For much more about Biblical prophecy and Israel, link to these
articles:
A much more detailed overview of God’s majestic
plan for the remnant is found in Rev. Ted Pike’s 345-page book, “Israel:
Our Duty…Our Dilemma,” at $17.95 postpaid. This,
along with Pike’s video documentaries, is available at www.truthtellers.org.
“Israel: Our Duty…Our Dilemma” is available
free to talk show hosts who request it.
Rev. Ted Pike is director of the National Prayer Network, a Christian/conservative
watchdog organization.
He is available for interview at (503) 631-3808.
National Prayer Network, P.O. Box 828, Clackamas, OR 97015
