Who is/are Abraham’s Heir(s)?

Since the rebirth of the modern State of Israel up until today, the Jewish people have had to fight for our right to exist, especially in this land. Some--our enemies throughout the Middle East -- and even among some parts of the Body of Messiah -- doubt our right to exist. The good news is that it is not up to them or us. Scripture says it is up to God and He never changes or goes back on what He promised.

Several years ago, I wrote this article addressing some of the lies in Fulfillment or Replacement Theology—the mistaken belief that the Church basically replaced Israel, getting all the “good” promises, and leaving the Jewish people with the curses. The Apostle Paul prophesied that this lie would take root in the Church. He also prophesied that one day “all Israel will be saved.” And Yeshua himself said he won’t come back until HIS people in Jerusalem are ready to welcome him back!

Please read and share with your friends.

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(Originally published in December 2014)

The Lord speaks to Abraham in Genesis 26:

For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham. I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because Abraham obeyed me and did everything I required of him, keeping my commands, my decrees and my instructions.” (Gen. 26:3b-5)

In this promise to Isaac, the Lord affirms that the promise to Abraham, of the physical land of Israel, is meant for Isaac’s physical descendants, whom he declares will be as numerous as the stars of the sky, adding that through them, all nations on earth will be blessed.

God, then, affirms these promises to natural Israel to Jacob, Abraham’s grandson:

“I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring.” (Gen. 28:13-14)

This is very significant for several reasons: One Man Can’t Be as Many as the Stars in the Sky. Keep reading.

Those who embrace Fulfillment Theology (a more polite version of Replacement Theology) claim that all the promises to Abraham were fulfilled in the person of Yeshua on the cross. In other words, according to one of their leading theologians, the land promises are no longer to the Jews, but to all believers. And they no longer refer to the Jewish people living in Israel, but to the Church possessing the whole world, referring to Romans 4:13. But the mystery, a word that Paul often uses to describe God's dealing between the Church and Israel, is that both are true.

There is no argument that Abraham has spiritual children—believers in the Messiah from all nations—and that the most precious fulfillment of Abrahamic promise is in Yeshua and His followers. But what Fulfillment/Replacement Theology does is draw a line directly from Abraham to Yeshua. It ignores the fact that God reaffirmed the land promises to Isaac and Jacob—probably so that it would be clear to future generations that the spiritual fulfillment of God's promises to Abraham in the Church, the "one new man," is not the only fulfillment.

The promises we see here are to Abraham’s physical son and grandson and to his physical seed—which would be like the stars and spread out through the east, north and south, meaning it was not merely to one person, Yeshua, as they claim. This promise clearly refers to the physical land of Israel and multiple recipients.

I am writing this blog from a most improbable place--the restored nation of Israel. The fact that Israel is an actual nation state today could only be by the hand of God. We wandered for 2000 years without a homeland. There is no example in history of an ethnic group retaining their identity after two or three generations of being separated from their geographical homeland. The fact that there are Jews on Earth is a miracle.

But the brilliant scholar (in much of his theology) N. T. Wright explains away the nation of Israel by going through history of the late 18th century in early 19th century, while not seeing the unseen hand of God in her regathering and rebirth.

Centuries of European anti-Semitism came to their awful climax in the Holocaust, when six million European Jews died. Some in the West knew and did nothing. Many knew little and cared less. Some cared but knew little. When the facts came to light, a huge head of steam built up, not least from horror, deep sympathy, and residual guilt either for conniving with anti-Semitism or at least for standing by and doing nothing. The Jews, millions felt, must have a homeland. ... Only their ancient homeland, promised by God to Abraham, possessed by Joshua, would do.  Many thousands had already emigrated there. ... In May 1948 the United Nations set up the new state of Israel.

To be clear, they did not "die"; they were murdered!

In other words, according to Wright, a historical event that just happened to fulfill dozens of Old Testament prophecies (Ezek. 36:24, Jer. 30:3, Is. 66:7-8, to name a few) can simply be logically explained. As if God's hand is not on history.

The DNA is in—Jews are Jews!

These passages also confirm that Israel will remain a significant nation in the future. Why is this important? Because many claim that present-day Israelis are not really Jews. The theory is that a massive group of Europeans called Khazars converted to Judaism. The story is that the ruling class of the Khazars, who formed the Southern Russia empire in the eighth century, converted to Judaism. According to this myth, the entire community of Khazars converted, and their descendants now make up what we know as Ashkenazi or European Jewry—like me.

The first problem here is that only about half of Israelis are European Jews. The other half, Sephardic Jews, come from all over the Middle East and Africa. What’s more, scientists have now proved through DNA tests (click here to read the article) that 75% of all European Jewish men come from the Middle East—not southern Russia, meaning 87.5% of Israeli Jewish men have roots in the Middle East.

And don't forget God, who promised that Jews must still be in Jerusalem when Yeshua returns (Zech. 12:10, Zech. 14:1-4, Matt. 23:39, Rev. 1:7). How can they be in Israel as Zechariah says, if the Land of Israel is not promised to them and those possessing it today are imposters? Furthermore, if Israelis today are not really Jews, then we don't know who the real Jews are (Mormons?)!

In Matthew 23:39, Yeshua says that the Jews will see Him again when they confess, Blessed is He (Yeshua) that comes in the name of the Lord. How can that happen if they don’t exist?

In addition to the dozens of promises where God says He will bring the Jews back into their own land he affirms with Isaac the physical Land of Israel as a gift from God: “To you and your descendants I will give all these lands.”

So the idea that the supernatural return of Jews from all over the world is really just an elaborate hoax or amazing coincidence in which God had no hand is absurd. In fact, I would suggest that it takes more faith to believe that than to believe that modern-day Israel is a fulfillment of prophecy. It would have to mean that there is another identifiably Jewish group out there that has yet to claim the land—not possible.

If Only the Boycotters were to Truly Boycott

And lastly, the Replacement/Fulfillment camp claims that the Jewish people were a blessing to the world by bringing forth the Messiah, and therefore, I guess, have fulfilled their purpose and are no longer needed. Does that sound like God? I used you to introduce Me to the world, but now you're lost and no longer needed. Your promises have been taken away, but you get to keep your curses. Yes, that is what Replacement Theology teaches.

Another reason, as some claim, is because of Jewish rejection of Jesus (which wasn’t as widespread as some think: see this video), God has cursed Israel and cast them aside. It is true that the most powerful fulfillment of the prophecy to be a blessing to the nations was through Yeshua; however, God continues to use Israel to bless the world in so many other ways.

In fact, Israel is the leading nation in the world (per capita) in providing technological breakthroughs in communications and medicine. Fifteen percent of all Nobel Peace Prize winners have been Jewish, despite making up only .03 percent of the world's population. After decades of worrying yearly about whether we would have enough rainfall, Israel now desalinates seawater, and 70% of the country's drinking water comes from the Mediterranean Sea!

If all of those calling for a boycott against Israel were to truly stop using products that Israel profits from, they would need to get rid of their iphones, stop using instant messaging, and go homeopathic, because it is unlikely that receiving medical attention would be completely Judenfrei—free from Jewish influence.

You see, Paul said that God’s calling on ethnic Israel is irrevocable (Rom. 11:29), and that was after Yeshua died and rose from the dead. Yet, Fulfillment Theology says that all the promises to Abraham were fulfilled in full on the cross. Clearly, Paul disagreed with this view as he affirms several times in Romans 9-11 of God’s continued love and calling on natural Israel. He even predicts in Romans 11 that the future Church would seek to erase Israel from God’s plan. And that has happened.

I once asked a theologian who embraces Fulfillment Theology what N. T. Wright would say about all the prophecies in the Old Testament regarding the Messiah returning to Israel and establishing a messianic kingdom. He answered that those promises have been fulfilled in Christ. Hmmm. That means we really do not understand Revelation 1:7, which says every eye will see him when he comes, or chapter 19, that speaks of him returning from heaven—a heavenly view of what Zechariah sees in chapter 14 when he comes to the Mount of Olives.

No Place for Pride

Often when I write on this topic, some wrongly assume that I am claiming Jewish superiority. God forbid! This is not at all about Jews being better than those from the nations. God called Abraham and His descendants because of His desire to reach the nations. This is about God’s faithfulness, not any superiority. God’s hand on Israel is not because of Jewish obedience or righteousness, but for his glory to be a light for the nations (Is. 42:6).