Shalom all! I know it has been a little while since my last blog. Today,  I thought I would share some history with you, that would help us to dispel a lie that has moved through the ages of time, especially through the church ages. I think in exposing this lie, there will be a truth revealed that will not only help us to put Israel back in their place, but also, it will bring the church back to its foundations. And in return, it will ultimately help us to fulfill the call of One New Man. Side note: If this is your first time visiting my blog page, you can visit the “About” page, to see a complete definition of One New Man.  It is the lie, that God is so angry with Israel, that He has replaced Israel with the church. This is where replacement theology comes in. What is replacement theology?  It  is the teaching that the Christian church has replaced national Israel regarding the plan, purpose, and promises of God, as well as replacing them as the primary means by which the world is blessed by God’s work. And unfortunately, this lie began with the church fathers. For time sake, here are just a few quotes from some of them:

Justin Martyr  (100 AD – 165 AD) claimed that God’s covenant with Israel was no longer valid and that Gentiles replaced the Jews in God’s redemptive plan

Eusebius (263 AD – 339 AD) wrote the history of the church for the first three centuries. He taught that the blessings in the Tanakh (the Jewish Bible/Old Testament) were for the Christians and the curses were for the Jews. He declared that the church was the “true Israel of God” and  had replaced Israel in God’s covenants.

Then to make things worse, a man named Constantine (272-337 AD) who was the Roman Emperor and the main component, in rooting out the Jewish roots, replaced everything Jewish with Paganism. This would include the feasts, the Jewish calendar and even the special day of worship from Saturday to Sunday. I recommend reading “How the Cross Became a Sword”  by Richard Booker. It’s only about 45 pages, but has a wealth of recorded events that separated Christianity from its Jewish roots.  It also records how Hitler quoted Martin Luther, to justify the Holocaust. Martin Luther  played a great part, in the church father history that turned on the Jews. “Luther’s pen was dipped in poison and his writings that contained some of the most malicious language ever used against the Jews. He was not only the theologian of the reformation, but his ideas and writings would be used by Hitler for Christian justification of the holocaust. His final comment on the Jews was, We are at fault for not slaying them.”  (How the Cross Became a Sword).

No wonder why some of us would think that God is through with Israel. If satan can’t kill the Jews, he sure will have them removed from their own roots. What do I mean when I say that? We understand about the church being removed from its Jewish roots, but Jews, being removed from its own Jewish roots?  There were many accounts in history, where if the Jews didn’t give up their Jewish practices, like celebrating the Sabbath,  they would be burned at the stake. They had to submit to being baptized by the Catholic Church and become Christians. You will see this happening in the accounts of the Spanish Inquisition.

I can tell you personally, being a Jewish believer, that has had the experience in growing up in a predominantly Gentile church, I was made to feel that I had been the one that was grafted in. There never seemed to be a place for a Jewish believer. It’s like I sort of got lost within the church, with no Jewish identity. But after years of anti-Semitism from my own family and especially the church, God began to do a work in me that would wake me up from all the distortion, all the confusion, and He took me by the hand and rebuilt not only my foundation in the Jewish Messiah, but also showed me who I really was as a Jew. This is the greatest part of my testimony after receiving Christ as Lord. God restored my Jewishness to me.  He took a nothing and nobody, and gave me Jesus. And in the process of time,  understanding, and healing, He helped me come into who I really was as a Jew. If God is so through with the Jews, why would He take the time to not only save me, but restore me back to my Jewishness? He is also doing this with many other Messianic Jewish believers for preparation of these last days.

Romans 11:1. “I say then, has God cast away His people? God forbid. For I am also an Israelite of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.” God used Paul, and he was surely Jewish! I encourage you to continue to read Romans Chapters 9-11. You will see Israel in the past, present, and future in the mind of God.  Let’s look at one scripture that I am sure we are all familiar with.  Romans 1:16,  ^“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ,^[ for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. Now let me interject this thought. This scripture, quite often is quoted only half way. You only hear the first part of this scripture. But when it gets to the part about the Jew first, people stop there. Is it possible, once again that we are dealing with a root issue?

Friends, God is doing something wonderful behind the scenes at this time. He is getting us ready to be awakened to who we really are, not only in Him, but who we are as One New Man. In a nutshell, Jesus said in John 17:20-23, that the world will believe in Him through them! Who is them? Jew and Gentile believers.  There is also a glory that Jesus talked about that we will move in. And that will only happen as we move in it together! Amen! So let’s receive our Jewish brothers and sisters who are already in the Lord and give them their place. As far as unbelieving Israel, let’s be obedient and practice the law of evangelism, First to the Jew and to the Gentile. Side note: Next blog….why to the Jew First?  Let’s learn about our history, and our Jewish roots, so we don’t make the same mistakes as our church fathers did. Thus we can receive and walk in the true blessing that happens when we bless Israel.

Genesis 12:3

 I will bless those who bless you,
And I will curse him who curses you;
And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

Jeremiah 31:35-36

Be blessed my friends! Shalom and Shalom!!