From Jim McGuiggan... ARE GENTILE BELIEVERS

ARE GENTILE BELIEVERS

Jeremiah 31:31-34 is addressed to Jews—not Gentiles! It’s addressed to a people whose fathers were brought up out of the land of Egypt, who had a covenant made with them; a covenant they continued to break down the years. It is to them that God said he would make a new covenant.

The Hebrew writer calls on that text in Hebrews 8:6-13 and he calls the new covenant a “second” covenant. It’s the second covenant because it replaces the first covenant. He says if the first covenant had accomplished what he had in mind God would not have sought for a second. Since Israel continually proved faithless to the first covenant God took away the first that he might establish the second (Hebrews 10:9). It was by this second that believing Jews were set apart as the people of God (Hebrews 10:10).

This covenant of which Jesus is the embodiment and the mediator (Hebrews 8:6) is “new” in relation to Israelites. Those who knowingly rejected Jesus were to be “cut off” from among “the people” (Act 3:22-23). Jewish people are no longer in covenant relationship with God on the basis of the first covenant because that first covenant was removed (and with the removal the removal of the condemnation it brought the nation) so that God could fulfil his promises to them in and by Jesus Christ in a second covenant. Those who knowingly reject the second covenant and cling to (or return to) the first covenant are under a covenant that proclaims their condemnation as a "national" entity. That is, as a nation constituted "a nation" under the terms of the Mosaic/Sinaitic covenant they have been condemned by the very covenant that constituted them a "kingdom" and "nation".

The gracious God did not “dump” Israel but offered them a new relationship with him in and by Jesus under the terms of a new and second covenant.

To speak of the new covenant in relationship to Gentiles is a mistake. God had made no first covenant with them nor did he make a second covenant with them. The terms new and first and second deal with the covenant in Jesus from a Jewish perspective.

Gentiles share in the covenant made in and by Jesus, of course (see 2 Corinthians 3) but we need to allow specific texts to make their own specific points.

In Jesus Christ God brought together Jews and Gentiles as the People of God (Ephesians 2:11-22 and elsewhere), making of them “one new man”. But how he unfolded his eternal purpose in history must be acknowledged. Jews and Gentiles are equal and fellow-heirs in Jesus and God eternally purposed it to be so (Ephesians 2—3) but it was through Jews and not Gentiles that he developed his theodrama in history. We need to acknowledge this.

Gentiles partake of the blessing of Israel’s promises (Romans 11:17-24 and Romans 15:27) and we need to remember that.

We need to allow the Hebrew writer to address his Jewish brothers and sisters. We need to allow the truth, “To the Jew first…” (Romans 1:16 and Acts 3:25-26 and 13:46) for so God purposed it and has worked it out. We need to allow Jeremiah 31 and Hebrews 8 to address who they address—people who continually broke the first covenant, whose fathers were led up out of Egypt and so forth.

I think too that we should insist that all who have the faith of Abraham are “Abraham’s children” for he and he alone was circumcised after his relationship was established with God (Romans 4:9-11). This wasn’t true of Isaac or Jacob (Israel) and they are not the “fathers of all that believe”. Romans 4:11 expressly claims that Abraham was not circumcised until after he was made right with God in order that he might be the father of all who believed whether Jews or Gentiles.

Gentile Christians are not “children of Israel”. True “Israelites” Paul would say (Romans 9:6) are physical descendants of Jacob (Israel) who have embraced Jesus in faith (compare Revelation 2:9, 3:9 and John 8:32-44). Those who knowingly reject Jesus are not truly Israelites. There is an “Israel of God” over against an “Israel” which is uncovenanted (compare Galatians 6:16, a disputed text).

Jews and Gentiles who have embraced Jesus in faith are “Abraham’s children and heirs according to promise” (Galatians 3:26-29). From a historical viewpoint and in light of how God developed his redemptive purpose Gentiles are not “Israel” though they are certainly Abraham’s children.

©2004 Jim McGuiggan. All materials are free to be copied and used as long as money is not being made.

Many thanks to brother Ed Healy, for allowing me to post from his website, the abiding word.com.