Why Israel? “…as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless. But whatever things were gain to me, those I counted as loss for the sake of Christ.” (Phil.3:6, 7). These are the words of a zealous Jew who first tried to destroy the Church but then, following his conversion to Christ, became the Church’s champion and first apologist. His given name was Saul of Tarsus. We know him as Paul, Apostle to the Gentiles.
As one of the few Jews of his day who believed Christ was the Son Of God, Paul struggled to understand what would become of his fellow Jews. Since they had corporately rejected Jesus as Messiah, what did this mean for their future, more specifically, their eternity?
The essence of Paul’s debate with himself is played out through Romans Chapters 9 -11. He begins with the recognition that being born a Jew has certain advantages: clearly they can call themselves God’s Chosen people, the only nation on earth with whom God made covenants; theirs are the Patriarchs - Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; theirs are the ‘promises’ of good things to come. (Rom. 9: 4, 5)
Gentiles could make no similar claims. In fact, in Paul’s view, there were distinct disadvantages to being born a Gentile. He wrote that Gentiles without Christ
“…were alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world.” (Ephesians 2:12). Thus, while Jews could rightly claim they belonged to the family of God, Gentiles were merely orphans, without a Father, and worse, without hope. That is, until the crucifixion of Christ opened up new possibilities for them: “But now in Christ Jesus you (Gentiles) who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.” (Eph.2:13).
Because of Christ’s atoning sacrifice on the Cross, Gentiles now had access to the Father, but, Paul admonishes, this is not an occasion for boasting, and it certainly does not mean Gentiles should be arrogant toward Jews. On the contrary:
“But if some of the (Jewish) branches were broken off, and you (Gentiles), being a wild olive, were grafted in among them and became partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches; but if you are arrogant, remember that it is not you who supports the root, but the root supports you.”
(Romans 11:17, 18).
When I consider Paul’s words about the olive tree whose rich root system gave life-giving nourishment to the branches, I often wonder how this might logically apply to the six million European Jews who were systematically exterminated by the Nazis in so-called Christian Europe. Did the severing or cutting-off of this Jewish root system in Europe mean that, since the Gentile branches could no longer receive the spiritual sap they needed to survive and thrive, they then began a slow process of decay and death? And surely it is not stretching the point to say that the spiritual passion which gave rise to the great churches and cathedrals of Europe in earlier centuries has, in more recent times, given way to something that is but a pale reflection of its fervent and faith-filled past. If the Church in Europe is not quite dead, it is very much in need of spiritual life support.
Case in point: On a recent Sunday afternoon stroll in Amsterdam, I wandered into one of those tall, cathedral churches just beside a city square, a formerly sacred place where, in happier times, Christians gathered to sing the great hymns of the faith as the pipe organ gave triumphant accompaniment. Sadly, this was no longer true for this church. An admission fee was now required to enter the sanctuary where a museum exhibit from Istanbul was on display. Free access was available to the adjacent bookstore where a broad selection of Islamic books was for sale even as Christian literature was noticeably absent. Needless to say, I left empty-handed and wondering about that church’s once glorious past and more dismal future. The words of a lecture I had heard in Jerusalem a year earlier echoed in my mind. The presenter was from the Hebrew University, an expert on Islam who was also fluent in Arabic. His research allowed him to boldly declare that the Dutch cities of Rotterdam and Amsterdam were well on their way to becoming the first Islamicized cities of Europe as defined by predominantly Muslim populations.
This grand church edifice, having lost its Christian heart, was giving silent testimony to the truth of the professor’s words.
Amsterdam, all of us remember, was also home to the young Jewish diarist, Anne Frank, whose literary skills and insightful mind could have led to a promising career had she not been born into a Jewish family at the wrong time. Instead, this Jewish teenager’s life was cut short in a death camp called Bergen-Belsen, one of an estimated 120,000 Dutch-Jewish citizens from a European Jewish root system which promised so much, not just to Europe, but to the world. Anne Frank was but one of an estimated 1.5 M Jewish children who were systematically exterminated by the Nazi war machine during the Holocaust. What medical mysteries might they have unlocked had they been allowed to realize their full potential? What contributions might they have made to the arts and sciences? Now we’ll never know…
But if, what the surviving Jewish world has already contributed in every field of human endeavour is any indication of the treasure lost, then the world as we know it is poorer by far. The Almighty God promised Abraham:
“And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you,
And make your name great; And so you shall be a blessing…” Genesis 12: 2
AND SO YOU SHALL BE A BLESSING!
God chose one ordinary man to be the Father of an extraordinary nation, a nation He would later call Israel. God said He hadn’t chosen them because they were more numerous than other nations but, rather, because He loved them (Deut.7:7).
As His chosen nation, they would a blessing to other nations.
The Jews have been a blessing. They have blessed the world with medical cures, music, the arts and sciences, numerous inventions and, of even greater importance, an oral/written tradition that points us back to the God who was there in the beginning.
Moreover, they have also given us the One who alone gives meaning to life and hope for eternity. Perhaps the time has come to favour Israel (Psalm102:13), to show appreciation to the Jews for all they have done, and to bless them as they have blessed us. And perhaps this is exactly what Paul meant by his words in Romans 15: 27: “For if the Gentiles have shared in their spiritual things, they are indebted to minister to them also in material things.” Or, as Jesus taught: “Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it (helped those in need) to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.” (Matthew 25:40).
Rev. John Tweedie
Chairman Christians for Israel