All Israel shall be Saved but They are not All Israel which are of Israel

-

 

Will all of Israel be saved in the last days? Scripture is clear on this point, that all Israel shall be saved (Romans 11:26). However, the “all” is not without exception because they are not all Israel which are of Israel (Romans 9:6). Those who insist that “all”, “world”, or “any” must mean everyone head-to-head without exception, necessarily fall into the false doctrine of Jewish universalism. Romans 9:6 and 11:26 can be reconciled to mean: not all Israelites are eternally predestined as the elect of God, and God has promised that ALL the elect Israelites will be saved.

 

Contrary to what Amillennial replacement theology insists, “Israel” can only refer to the Church in the form of a nation, not the stateless New Testament Church. When God promised something to Israel, He really intends the nation of Israel as the immediate audience i.e., the physical descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob who will reap the blessings of the covenants that will be fulfilled according to God’s Word. The reading of Old Testament prophecies will produce much confusion if the plain meaning of “Israel” is denied. On the other hand, there are clear passages of God’s promises directly made to the Gentile Christians instead.  E.g., Ephesians 3:6 – “That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel:”

 

Let the distinction be made: 1) Israel i.e., the Church in the form of a nation (the elect physical descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob), and 2) the New Testament Church in her stateless form (the elect spiritual descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob). These two distinct forms make up the Universal Church.

 

Let’s be clear that by no means one can be saved by being physically a Jew. One must first be eternally and unconditionally called to be the spiritual children of Abraham and eternal election is manifested in faith. Romans 2:28-29 tells us what it means to be the elect physical descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob: “For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: 29But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.”

 

Whereas for the reprobate physical descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (together with the reprobate gentiles), God will condemn according to His wise decree of eternal reprobation, hence they are not all Israel which are of Israel.

 

Paul has clearly said in Romans 11:24-27 that God is not done yet with Israel (i.e., the Church in the form of a nation) and He will totally restore her in the promised land when the fullness of the gentiles be fulfilled: 24For if thou [gentiles] wert cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and wert graffed contrary to nature into a good olive tree [Abrahamic Covenant]: how much more shall these, which be the natural branches [Israel], be graffed into their own olive tree [Abrahamic Covenant]? 25For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. 26And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: 27For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins. [brackets mine]

 

The current nation of Israel is far from being the holy nation that God commands her to be and far from being called the Church in the form of a nation. Yet, the restoration of Israel as a nation in the year 1948 is neither a coincidence nor an ordinary national establishment like any other nation. It acts as God’s providential prelude to the great restoration of Israel. Indeed, undeniably they are currently a Christ-denying nation, but God has protected them in every war. Surrounding enemy nations desire to obliterate Israel since 1948, but to no avail. Every war and other events that Israel has been facing since 1948 are the means towards the appearance of the Antichrist, the event of Jacob’s trouble (the Great Tribulation), and the repentance of ALL Israel.

 

All the elect physical descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob from all the 12 tribes of Israel will finally acknowledge Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour. After Israel is spiritually restored, Jesus Christ will establish His Millennial Kingdom on Earth after the Battle of Armageddon and rule from Jerusalem. God has promised that He will re-gather the nation of Israel (this time as a truly holy nation) and save all the elect Israelites. Their blindness is only temporary.

 

Ezekiel 11:17-21

17Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will even gather you from the people, and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel. 18And they shall come thither, and they shall take away all the detestable things thereof and all the abominations thereof from thence. 19And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh: 20That they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God. 21But as for them whose heart walketh after the heart of their detestable things and their abominations, I will recompense their way upon their own heads, saith the Lord GOD. 

 

 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Romans 8:28 and Its Implication on the Doctrine of God’s Eternal Reprobation

-
  And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his  purpose (Romans 8:28). This verse is most quoted for the Christian’s comfort and assures us that whatever circumstances we experience in our lives, God always works all things for the elect’s good, who are called to the unmerited salvation of the soul since before the foundation of the world for the glory of His grace. The lack of understanding of this verse causes some to lose faith when they encounter trials and tribulations. Even for the elect who is not justified yet in time (i.e. currently a hater of God, but a sure lover of God in the future), the glorious promise of Romans 8:28 is upon them because the goodness of God will lead him to repentance according to His perfect timing (Romans 2:4). His goodness will never separate the elect from the love God. The universe exists for the good of God’s elect and ultimately to manifest the glory of God. " For I ...
Read more

The Origin of Moral Evil as Revealed in the Word of God

-
  This article is an expansion of my previous article “A Brief Thought on the Origin of Moral Evil”.    The origin of moral evil has baffled many Christian theologians throughout the ages. For many years, I have been thinking much about the topic of theodicy. If God is good, why is there evil? Many Christians concluded that God is the creator of everything except sin or moral evil because the infinitely good God cannot be involved with sin in any way. Satan and man are the sole causes, founders, and creators of sin. For many Christians, that’s the safety mark. However, I am not satisfied with that cowardly answer. I heartily agree with the famous Christian Counsellor, Jay Adams, who laid out the most basic theodicy question in his book “The Grand Demonstration: A Biblical Study of the So-called Problem of Evil”:   “To say that all evil is the result of the fall of Adam is perfectly true—but piteously inadequate. That response merely moves the question back...
Read more

Felix Culpa

-
  Most Christians would imagine that the universal fall of man into sin is something unfortunate. God is sad and broken-hearted at the current state of the world and wished that no one had sinned. He had no other choice but to curse the world to punish humanity for their abuse of free will. He forced Himself to do it. Many would have wished that Adam and Eve had not sinned against God and hypothesized what would have happened if man did not fall into sin. Some might have even joked that they would scold Adam and Eve in heaven for being deceived by the serpent. They imagined a hypothetical post-adamic world of peace and righteousness, where Christ does not even have to come to save mankind. Since God's original plan failed because Adam sinned and brought along his posterity down the drain, therefore now God must activate His back up plan to bring in the second Adam, Jesus Christ, to die for the sins of men and rose again on the third day for their justification. Is the above descr...
Read more