When I was in 7th grade, I looked forward all year long to my school trip to the Six Flags amusement park. I was so excited to trade in classes and homework for the chance to ride roller coasters with my friends for a whole day.
For my first attraction of the morning, I headed to the Batman ride. In the sweltering heat, I strapped myself into my seat, anxiously anticipating the thrills to come. But only seconds after the ride began, I was thrown against the side hard enough that I hit my head and fell unconscious. When the ride ended, I had no sense of where I was, and my friends helped me stumble my way to the first aid tent. Between the head injury and a mild heat stroke, I spent the rest of the day in the tent alternating between waking up sick and falling back asleep while everyone else had a great time.
I missed out on a fun day. It’s a sad feeling to be left out of something special you’ve been promised. Thankfully, that’s a feeling no one has to experience when they want to know Jesus. Whether you are Jewish or Gentile, Jesus makes His gift of eternal salvation from sin freely available to you. But what about Israel? Does God’s free gift of salvation nullify His ancient promises made solely to the Jewish people?
Salvation Is Offered to Everybody…
The apostle Paul wrote that “there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. For ‘whoever calls on the name of the Lᴏʀᴅ shall be saved’” (Romans 10:12–13; cf. Galatians 3:28). God “desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:4).
We recognize the special place the descendants of Abraham—the nation of Israel—hold in God’s heart, and we act on our Lord’s command to bless them.
In the 1st century AD when Paul shared the gospel throughout the known world, he made it “his custom” to enter synagogues and share the Good News of Jesus first with the Jewish people (Acts 17:2). Often rejected by the Jewish leaders there, Paul and his traveling companions “shook off the dust from their feet” (Acts 13:51) and continued on to share their message with more grateful recipients, both Jewish and Gentile (14:1). So, as Paul propelled the growth of the church, his practice validated his message that the gospel is not for Gentiles only or Jewish people only. It is “the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek” (Romans 1:16).
As the apostle Peter learned in his vision in which God told him to kill and eat meat that Peter considered unclean (Acts 10:9–16), salvation from sin is not ethnically exclusive, for “God shows no partiality. But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him” (vv. 34–35). What a blessing God has bestowed on all the world, that all who believe in the name of Jesus may enjoy His forgiveness and grace!
…But Israel’s Covenantal Blessings Are Not
But because of God’s amazing gift, some believe His prior promises are fulfilled and done away with—including His promises made specifically to Israel. That would mean that His covenants designated for the “house of Israel,” such as those concerning the Jewish people’s line and their right to the Promised Land of Israel (Jeremiah 31:31–36; Ezekiel 36:22–38) are either made void or transferred to Christians. God declared no such thing. It is important that Christians don’t fall into the trap of hijacking the treasures God deliberately set aside for His Chosen People. For if He were to revoke these benefits from His covenant people, how could we trust that He won’t do the same to Christians?
We who love Jesus happily make it our life’s work to obey God’s commands and Great Commission: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19). But in addition, we here at The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry—and anyone else who loves Israel in word and deed—follow a particular calling according to the promise God applied to all of humanity when he told Abraham, “I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you” (Genesis 12:3).
Why We Bless Israel
We recognize the special place the descendants of Abraham—the nation of Israel—hold in God’s heart, and we act on our Lord’s command to bless them. We are burdened to comfort His people (Isaiah 40:1), so we offer them physical aid, spiritual encouragement, and Christian love all throughout the world—from the United States to Ukraine, from Canada to Australia, and from Argentina to Israel. Such love for those Jesus calls “the least of these My brethren” (Matthew 25:40) brings God glory because our efforts become acts of service to Him too.
The gospel of salvation works in tandem with God’s promises to Israel, as both demonstrate His unsurpassable grace in offering goodness that humans could never earn on their own.
God first spoke His Word to the Jewish people (Romans 3:2). He placed His people in the land of Israel, a crossroads that connected every corner of the known world and drew Gentiles from Africa, Asia, and Europe to the Jewish people, allowing them an opportunity to share God’s truths with all. In response, we must follow God’s call to bless them, a promise for which He set no expiration date. It remains in effect as long as the Jewish people exist (Jeremiah 31:35–36).
Even though we gladly share the Word of God and the Good News of Jesus the Messiah with everyone, we make a concerted effort to demonstrate our love for the Jewish people and the nation of Israel through advocacy, tangible support, and acts of service. The gospel of salvation works in tandem with God’s promises to Israel, as both demonstrate His unsurpassable grace in offering goodness that humans could never earn on their own. Fidelity to the Bible necessitates that we work toward both these purposes: blessing the Jewish people and sharing the gospel message with the world.
It’s no fun to be left out—whether from something as small as a day at Six Flags or as large as God’s eternal promises. We can find comfort knowing that no one gets left out of God’s wonderful offer of salvation from eternal condemnation. When we accept that fully inclusive offer, we become new creatures in Christ, driven to walk in His ways and celebrate His plans—including the great future He has promised Israel: “I will put My Spirit in you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land” (Ezekiel 37:14).
Photo: The Friends of Israel Archives
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I was blessed in the 3 trips I was priviledged to make to Israel
May God give you Gaza and the hostages alive