Replacement Theology - true or false?

[Checkpoint]

This is a controversial issue. The Church has answered "true" for most of its duration, but is now more likely to answer "false".

The debate centers around how the nation and people of Israel has been viewed by God since the coming of Jesus as Messiah and Savior.

It is basically about God's promises as found in the Old and New Covenant and how they are to be, or have been or are being, applied and fulfilled.

Questions arise, for example, as to just who are "God's chosen people".

Has Israel been "replaced" by believers, or what?

[jgh7]

This is a controversial issue. The Church has answered "true" for most of its duration, but is now more likely to answer "false".

The debate centers around how the nation and people of Israel has been viewed by God since the coming of Jesus as Messiah and Savior.

It is basically about God's promises as found in the Old and New Covenant and how they are to be, or have been or are being, applied and fulfilled.

Questions arise, for example, as to just who are "God's chosen people".

Has Israel been "replaced" by believers, or what?

No. Israel has not been replaced. The family just grew. The invitation is for the entire world now.

Galatians 3:26-28

26 So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, 27 for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

[brianbbs67]

We are grafted into Isreal, sharing their promises and covenants. Ephesians 2: 11-16 sum it up pretty well.

11 Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh--who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands--
12 that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
13 But now in Christ Jesus you who were once far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
14 For he Himself is our peace, who made the both one, (circumcised and not) and has broken down the middle wall of separation, 15 having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances(the curse of the law, the law's punishment)so as to create Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, 16 and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity.

[Checkpoint]

This is a controversial issue. The Church has answered "true" for most of its duration, but is now more likely to answer "false".

The debate centers around how the nation and people of Israel has been viewed by God since the coming of Jesus as Messiah and Savior.

It is basically about God's promises as found in the Old and New Covenant and how they are to be, or have been or are being, applied and fulfilled.

Questions arise, for example, as to just who are "God's chosen people".

Has Israel been "replaced" by believers, or what?

No. Israel has not been replaced. The family just grew. The invitation is for the entire world now.

Galatians 3:26-28

26 So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, 27 for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

Indeed.

That is an incredible change that had repercussions, effectively putting everyone involved on a completely different footing.

Paul writes of this in the very next chapter, in Galatians 4:

22For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and the other by the free woman. 23His son by the slave woman was born according to the flesh, but his son by the free woman was born as the result of a divine promise.

24These things are being taken figuratively: The women represent two covenants. One covenant is from Mount Sinai and bears children who are to be slaves: This is Hagar. 25Now Hagar stands for Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present city of Jerusalem, because she is in slavery with her children. 26But the Jerusalem that is above is free, and she is our mother. 27For it is written:

“Be glad, barren woman,

you who never bore a child;

shout for joy and cry aloud,

you who were never in labor;

because more are the children of the desolate woman

than of her who has a husband.�

28Now you, brothers and sisters, like Isaac, are children of promise. 29At that time the son born according to the flesh persecuted the son born by the power of the Spirit. It is the same now. 30But what does Scripture say? “Get rid of the slave woman and her son, for the slave woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with the free woman’s son.� f 31Therefore, brothers and sisters, we are not children of the slave woman, but of the free woman.

[JehovahsWitness]

QUESTION: Who are "God's chosen people"?


♦ANSWER All spirit anointed born again Christians regardless of their nationality The natural descendants of Abraham were God's special nation who had a privileged position in God's eyes but they lost that position because of their unfaithfulness. Now God has opened that privilege up so anyone (of any nationality), so collectively all born again Christians make up SPIRITUAL ISRAEL, God's new "chosen" or special people?

NOTE Most references to "Israel" in the Christian scriptures, are in fact refering to these spiritual Israelites.

GALATIANS 3:26-27
In Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. - NIV

ACTS 10:34,35
Opening his mouth, Peter said: "I most certainly understand now that God is not one to show partiality but in every nation the man who fears Him and does what is right is welcome to Him. - NASB

ROMAN 10:12
For there is no distinction of the Jew and the Greek: for the same is Lord over all, rich unto all that call upon him. - Douay-Rheims Bible

JW

To learn more please go to other posts related to...

GOD'S KINGDOM , THE 144, 000 and .... SPIRITUAL ISRAEL

NOTE All posts I write represent my personal faith based beliefs as one of Jehovah's Witnesses

[liamconnor]

[Replying to post 1 by Checkpoint]

It matter greatly what criteria we are using for answering this question. If we are using Scripture, then the answer is patently 'false', there is no "replacement".

Romans outlines the sequence: a partial hardening of Israel; inclusion of Gentiles, then restoration of the rest of Israel; then the End, the resurrection.

[Matthew S Islam]

Greetings Jehovah's Witness.

QUESTION: Who are "God's chosen people"?[/b]


♦ANSWER: The natural descendants of Abraham were God's special nation who had a privileged position in God's eyes but they lost that position because of their unfaithfulness.

This seems to make the most sense. The Jewish people failed to recognize the Messiah and have gone completely astray:

"He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him." [John 1:11]

"And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the number of names together were about a hundred and twenty,)" [Acts 1:15]


What is the fate of the Jews who refuse to acknowledge Jesus(pbuh) as the Messiah? Will their lineage somehow exempt them from God's Judgement? If their nation is pretty much doomed, then what is this other than "replacement theology"?


---


Could you share your perspective on how the Biblical Prophecies/Promises are understood in light of their blasphemy? Are the disbelieving Jews still entitled to the bounties God once offered them? Are they going to lead all nations in the Messianic Age? Is the land of Israel exclusively theirs, and do they have the right to establish political sovereignty therein prior to the coming of the Messiah? When Jesus comes back, will the Jews embrace him and be forgiven, or will they reject him yet again?

[Checkpoint]

We are grafted into Isreal, sharing their promises and covenants. Ephesians 2: 11-16 sum it up pretty well.

11 Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh--who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands--
12 that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
13 But now in Christ Jesus you who were once far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
14 For he Himself is our peace, who made the both one, (circumcised and not) and has broken down the middle wall of separation, 15 having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances(the curse of the law, the law's punishment)so as to create Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, 16 and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity.

This passage does explain well the grafting in of the Gentiles, but says nothing about the grafting of the Jews that also took and takes place.

Paul gives the full grafting teaching in Romans 11:

16If the part of the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, then the whole batch is holy; if the root is holy, so are the branches.

17If some of the branches have been broken off, and you, though a wild olive shoot, have been grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing sap from the olive root, 18do not consider yourself to be superior to those other branches. If you do, consider this: You do not support the root, but the root supports you. 19You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I could be grafted in.� 20Granted. But they were broken off because of unbelief, and you stand by faith. Do not be arrogant, but tremble. 21For if God did not spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either.

22Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off. 23And if they do not persist in unbelief, they will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. 24After all, if you were cut out of an olive tree that is wild by nature, and contrary to nature were grafted into a cultivated olive tree, how much more readily will these, the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree!

25I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, 26and in this way e all Israel will be saved. As it is written:

“The deliverer will come from Zion;

he will turn godlessness away from Jacob.

27And this is f my covenant with them

when I take away their sins.�

28As far as the gospel is concerned, they are enemies for your sake; but as far as election is concerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs, 29for God’s gifts and his call are irrevocable. 30Just as you who were at one time disobedient to God have now received mercy as a result of their disobedience, 31so they too have now become disobedient in order that they too may now h receive mercy as a result of God’s mercy to you. 32For God has bound everyone over to disobedience so that he may have mercy on them all.

[JehovahsWitness]

What is the fate of the Jews who refuse to acknowledge Jesus(pbuh) as the Messiah? ...

Jehovah is no longer dealing with the Jews as a nation but rather as individuals, the Jews no longer exist in God's eyes in the sense you seem to be using it. A natural Jew will be judged on the same basis as an arab, an australian or an American. A natural Jew has no higher standard in God's eyes because of his cultural heritage than a native American or an African does because of his. Christ has levelled the playing field.

If their nation is pretty much doomed, then what is this other than "replacement theology"?

ALL nation's are doomed from a biblical point of view. God will soon wipe the nation of Israel of the face of the planet. He will do the same to the Arab nation's, the American nations , Britain, all the African Asian European nations... indeed God will destroy all human governments and the nation's will all cease to exist.



Individuals from all these nation's can humble themselves and accept His rulership through Christ and survive the coming destruction. If not they will go the way of the governments they support.

REVELATION 7:9, 10

And look! a great crowd, which no man was able to number, out of all nations and tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, dressed in white robes;+ and there were palm branches in their hands. And they keep shouting with a loud voice, saying: “Salvation we owe to our God, who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb.�

JW




RELATED POSTS

Is the Jewish nation doomed to destruction? [This post]
http://debatingchristianity.com/forum/v ... 218#956218


Was the establishment of the political state of Israel in 1948 the fulfillment of bible prophecy?
viewtopic.php?p=1106047#p1106047

To learn more please go to other posts related to...

GOD'S KINGDOM , THE 144, 000 and .... SPIRITUAL ISRAEL

NOTE All posts I write represent my personal faith based beliefs as one of Jehovah's Witnesses

[showme]

This is a controversial issue. The Church has answered "true" for most of its duration, but is now more likely to answer "false".

The debate centers around how the nation and people of Israel has been viewed by God since the coming of Jesus as Messiah and Savior.

It is basically about God's promises as found in the Old and New Covenant and how they are to be, or have been or are being, applied and fulfilled.

Questions arise, for example, as to just who are "God's chosen people".

Has Israel been "replaced" by believers, or what?

Well, we are approaching when the nations will be gathered against Jerusalem, and the nations/Gentiles will "capture" "Jerusalem", and then the "LORD" will go out and fight those nations (Zechariah 14:1-3), which is centered around Har-Magedon (Revelation 16:13-17), the "valley of judgment" (Joel 3:2) in which the nations/Gentiles will be judged. It is also known as "Jacob's distress" (Jeremiah 30:7) whereas he (Jacob) "will be saved from it", but the nations/Gentiles, "where I have scattered you", "I will completely destroy". At that time the survivors of the nations/Gentiles will confess that our "fathers" "have inherited nothing but falsehood" (Jeremiah 16:19).