For a long time, there has been a controversy in the Christian world about Jews, and their place in God’s economy. While I think His obvious love for them is plainly eternal and has never been revoked, there are many in the Church today (particularly in America) who embrace what has been called “Replacement Theology.”
This idea basically states that because the ancient Jews rejected God and followed after foreign gods, He transferred His famous Old Testament blessings and promises from them to…the Church.
Too many even believe that the OT itself is now outdated and irrelevant; whole denominations give it minimal if any study. Oddly, one organization famous for passing out copies of the Bible, excludes almost all the OT.
In the run-up to Hitler, the German Church severely curtailed the teaching and study of the Old Testament, or Hebrew Scriptures. This was a key puzzle piece for the Austrian corporal, as he put into practice his grotesque plans for the Jewish people.
Yet in the Old Testament itself are numerous prophecies that attest to the fact that God Himself has never forsaken the Jews, and never will.
In Jeremiah 51:5, He declares:
“For Israel hath not been forsaken, nor Judah of his God, of the Lord of hosts; though their land was filled with sin against the Holy One of Israel.”
In one fell swoop, God is telling us that Replacement Theology is false. He acknowledges that the ancient Jews allowed sin in the land, and then He also quite clearly states that that corporate sin was not enough to revoke His unconditional covenant with Abraham (Genesis 15).
God loves all people. All means all. Included in that list is the nation He has brought back in our time. The Jews—Israel—are under the watchful care of the One who created them.
God’s love for the Jewish people—which I enjoy watching—is sure and permanent.
Try replacing that.