| All my
life I was taught that "Israel" is a
country and the citizens were Israelis or
Israelites. The first time
"Israel" shows in the bible is Genesis
chapter 32 verse 28 - 32. The angel that Jacob
wrestled all night renamed
Jacob.
“Your
name will no longer
be Jacob,” the
man told him. “From
now on you will be called Israel,
because you
have fought with God and with men and have
won.” “Please tell me your name,”
Jacob said. “Why do you want to know my
name?” the man replied. Then he blessed
Jacob there. Jacob
named the place Peniel (which means “face of
God”), for he said, “I have seen God
face to face, yet my life has been spared.”
The sun was rising as Jacob left Peniel, and he
was limping because of the injury to his hip.
From that time
on the believers and followers of the God of
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are referred to as
"Israel," "Israelis" or
"Israelites." This is not as I had
always thought... I had thought that the
Israelites were called for their country. It
becomes clear when you follow the scriptures from
Genesis forward. The Israelis or Israelites are
those who God raised from the societies of the
world who had worshiped and followed the true God
of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob... Here's the
shocker.... the spiritual descendants of Jacob
are "Israel." These same spiritual
descendants who accepted the Messiah, Jesus, The
Son of God, are "Israel." to this very
day. The same people worship and follow Jesus. We
are "ISRAEL" the Jewish-Christians...
not the Jews who refuse to follow Christ, Jesus.
Those who refuse Jesus are simply Jews, not
"Israelis"... at least they are not
Israelites in the way the scriptures define
"Israel." Read on... Let the written
word of God speak.
Let the
scriptures speak....
Hosea, chapter
2 verse 23
At that time I will plant a crop of Israelites
and raise them for myself.
I will show
love to those I called ‘Not loved.
And to
those I called ‘Not my people,’ I
will say, ‘Now you are my people.’ And
they will reply, ‘You are our God!’”
He is speaking
of the Gentiles, who were "not my
people." It was not a "plot of
ground" or a country, whose citizens were
called by the country's name! It was a
"People" that God "planted."
He said so in in verse 23! Those PEOPLE
are Israelites and their country is named
after them. The opposite
of the usual.
Before Jesus,
when "Israel" is used in the Old
Testament, the "Israelis" or
"Israelites" are the descendants of
Jacob...
Fast Forward to
the New Testament... After
God sent His Son... all who accept His Son, Jesus
are "Israel."
Not what you
have been taught?
Let the
scriptures speak for themselves... Here's what
Jesus had to say...
Matthew
21: 42 Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read
in the scriptures, The
stone which the builders rejected, the same is
become the head of the corner:
this is the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in
our eyes?
Matthew
21:43 Therefore say I unto you, The
kingdom of God shall be taken from you,
and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits
thereof.
Jesus is talking
to Jews... He is telling them that the
"stone they rejected" would be taken
from them and given to the Gentiles. We
(Christians) are the ones to whom it was given. We
are "Israel."
There are more
scriptures to confirm this. The partial list is
at the bottom of the page.
After this page,
I suggest you read the entire chapters of the
scriptures referenced here... read slowly...
understand it. It is very rewarding!
KEY
SCRIPTURES: Hebrews
8:7 through 8:13 and Hebrews
10:8 through 10:18. Those
who follow Jesus are truly Israelis. Not the plot
of ground, not the country but "Israel"
as it was first meant to define and describe
Jacob and his descendants. As it was explained to
Jacob by the angel who Jacob wrestled: “From
now on you will be called Israel,
because you
have fought with God and with men and have
won.”
As you follow
the scriptures you will see how Israel came into
existence and how "Israel" is shown to
be a spiritual entity, not a plot of ground or a
group of people from a country... You will see
how the "corner stone" was taken from
the Jews and given to any and
all people who follow
Jesus... regardless of nationality, race, creed
or origin. These people are "Israel" as
intended in the way the angel of God meant.
Through the years and biblical accounts the plot
of ground or nation became "Israel"
only in the minds of men. In the spiritual and in
the heavenly realm, the true "Israel"
remains constant. Israel is a
Spiritual Entity not a piece
of real estate!
Here is one of
many scriptures that make the point... Matthew 8:
10
When Jesus heard this, he was amazed. Turning to
those who were following him, he said, “I
tell you the truth, I
haven’t seen faith like this in all Israel!
11
And I tell you this, that many Gentiles
will come from all over the world—from
east and west—and sit down with Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob at the feast in the Kingdom of
Heaven. 12
But many Israelites—those
for whom the Kingdom was prepared—will
be thrown into outer darkness,
where there will be weeping and gnashing of
teeth.”
Scriptures
of interest that make the point.
GEN 32:28 <> GEN 49:10 <> HOSEA 2:23
<> MATTHEW 21:43 <> ACTS 10:28
<> ACTS 13:46 <> ROMANS 2:23-29
<> 9:6-8 <> 9:27 <> GALATIANS
3:14 <> GAL 3:26 thru 3:29 <> GAL
5:17 <> 2nd TIMOTHY 2:10 <> HEB
10:26-27 <> EPHESIANS 2:12-13
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