The Central Hope of the Redemption of Israel


The Church has promoted replacement theology since the gentiles took the primary leadership role of the church in the 4th century. However, what is the true gospel? What does the Bible say about Israel? Well, if we are to have a straight forward Biblical interpretation that doesn't over-spiritualize the text we must hold that Romans 9-11 outlines that God's old testament plan of the redemption for the nation of Israel was never redefined but rather clarified and even re-emphasized through Jesus Christ. Jesus affirmed that He is the Messiah of Israel which in a 1st century Jewish context could only mean 1 thing.... He was the son of David, the King of Israel who will sit on the throne in Jerusalem and rule the nations forever. Many people look at the parables of Jesus and say that Jesus redefined the "kingdom" to be spiritual rather than a physical Jewish kingdom. But is this really the main emphasis of the kingdom parables? And can we really build a brand new theological framework from parables that were designed to be difficult to understand to harden the wicked and draw the hungry to repentance (Matt. 13:10-17)?

If you are to look at the larger context and all the words of Jesus that is not at all what Christ is doing. Instead we can see that the correction that Jesus is making to the Jews through the parables is that they aren't exempt from the Day of The Lord Judgement like they believed would come upon the gentile nations, but rather if they also didn't repent the "kingdom" would suddenly come upon them too just like the rest of the wicked in the earth. Jesus was simply issuing a universal declaration for everyone everywhere to repent for the Kingdom of Heaven was at hand.

If you doubt what I am saying then why does Jesus do a 40 day bible study on the "kingdom of God" in a resurrected body with the Apostles and the main question that is raised becomes, ...... "Jesus is now the time you will restore the kingdom of Israel (Acts 1:6)?" Jesus doesn't deny or rebuke this question He simply says its not for them to know the timing. You put this together with Romans 9-11 and it becomes very clear that the hope of a theocratic Jewish state ruling all the nations under the leadership of Messiah inaugurated at the Day of the Lord is still very much the central hope of redemptive history.