I want to start this teaching off with a definition:
Replacement theology - teaches that the church is the replacement for Israel and that the many promises made to Israel in the Bible are already fulfilled
Replacement theology is taught in almost all Christian denominations today. The phrase 'Jesus came to build His Church and we are a part of it' is a phrase you will hear many times if you sit in a pew today. Out with the old and in with the new, but have Christian institutions seemingly forgotten about the promises and covenants God and Yeshua (Jesus' real name) made with Israel? How does the Church tie into Israel today? That is what we will be writing about today.
Israel for the Jews, and the Church for Christians?
The most popular theory I can find regarding this question is that Israel has lost their position as God's chosen people because they refused to acknowledge who Yeshua was, crucified Him, and now are still waiting for the Messiah to arrive. Therefore, God now considers the church to be His chosen people. This is what Yeshua and His disciples established during the reserrection. This is the replacement theory we defined at the start.
If you have read our Jew vs Gentile teaching, you should already be able to poke holes in this theory, but let's continue breaking this replacement theory down. As we always do, let's define some terms (I will take some of the content from our Jew vs Gentile teaching) :
Israel:
The word Israel first comes up in Genesis, and is used when God renames Jacob to Israel:
Gen 32:28 Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.”
Checking the Hebrew Definition:
Yisrâʼêl, yis-raw-ale'; from H8280 and H410; he will rule as God; Jisraël, a symbolical name of Jacob; also (typically) of his posterity and power:—Israel.
The meaning of 'Israel' then is to be a ruler with power, with God. This was the blessing that was given to Jacob by 'changing' his name.
After Jacob died, this 'name' was passed onto the 12 tribes, and they collectively were known as Israel. This shows that Israel is a people, and not a country or land. Of course, this does not mean the country of Israel is not important, but what is important is - where God's people are, that is where Israel is. Israel as a country now contains mostly Jews. The true people of God, the true Israel, are scattered all around the world.
We see that Paul teaches that if you are a Gentile (Basically an unbeliever), and you believe in Yeshua and follow Him, you can be grafted into Israel and become a part of God's chosen people.
You are therefore made an Israelite through spirit, and not through flesh. You form part of God's chosen people.
Jew:
Yᵉhûwdîy, yeh-hoo-dee'; patronymically from H3063; a Jehudite (i.e. Judaite or Jew), or descendant of Jehudah (i.e. Judah):—Jew.
By this definition, a Jew is a descendant of the tribe of Judah. It means 'of Judean descent'.
Judah was one of the 12 tribes of Israel. After the Exodus of Egypt, King Solomon (Son of David), who ruled over the 12 tribes of Israel, started to fall away from God. As punishment, God divided the tribes of Israel into two factions - The Kingdom of Israel, consisting of 10 out of the 12 tribes. The other, The Kingdom of Judah, consisting of the remaining two tribes (Judah and Benjamin).
So in summary, all those from the Kingdom of Judah (Even if you were from the tribe of Benjamin), became known as the Jews.
Church:
Church is a New Testament term. It translates from the Greek word ekklesia:
ekklēsía, ek-klay-see'-ah; from a compound of G1537 and a derivative of G2564; a calling out, i.e. (concretely) a popular meeting, especially a religious congregation (Jewish synagogue, or Christian community of members on earth or saints in heaven or both):—assembly, church.
This definition shows that the church does not refer to a place or building, but to a body of people.
Church or Ekklesia is not a 'new' word or term, it is just the word for an assembly or religious congregation.
The real smoking gun is that we find the word Ekklesia in Greek Translations of the Old Testament, and I want to highlight one specific verse to showcase this perfectly:
Deu 31:30 And Moses recited the words of this song from beginning to end in the hearing of the whole assembly (Ekklesia) of Israel:
So we can now conclude that Church = Ekklesia = Assembly.
So we can re-write this verse as:
Deu 31:30 And Moses recited the words of this song from beginning to end in the hearing of the whole Church of Israel:
As you can see, Church is not a new term and only references a religious assembly or group of people. It is not a special word or place.
Christian
This is the term 99% of the Christian faith call themselves, but this is not a term widely used in the Bible.
Its roots come from the word Christianos (Greek):
Act 11:26 and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.
Christianós, khris-tee-an-os'; from G5547; a Christian, i.e. follower of Christ:—Christian.
The word 'Christians' is only mentioned three times in the entire Bible. There were many names used to call followers of Christ, the most popular ones were followers of The Way and the Nazarenes. All of these formed a new religious sect within the larger Israel / Jewish people. A sect is a group of people with slightly different beliefs to that of the larger group.
If you want a study on these sects, reach out to us in the contact form.
In summary, a Christian is a follower of Christ, however being a follower of Christ did not form a new religion, but instead formed a new sect within the existing framework of what Jews were already following.
Summary of our definitions:
- Israel - God's chosen people (Not a country or land). Any unbeliever can become a part of Israel through the spirit by believing in Yeshua.
- Jew - Anyone who descended from the Kingdom of Judah (The tribes of Judah & Benjamin)
- Church - Refers to a religious assembly or group of people and not a building or land. In the Old Testament, this word was used multiple times to refer to Israel (i.e. The Church of Israel). The word has no special connection to God.
- Christian - A term referring to a believer in Yeshua. It did not form a new religion, but only created a new sect within the Jews, with the difference being that Christians believed in Yeshua being the Messiah.
The Church in a Post-Yeshua World
Based on these definitions, the conclusion already seems clear, but let's dive more into some of the promises God made with His people.
In Hebrews, we find that God mentions he made His new covenant with the House of Israel and the House of Judah. Both of these make up Israel, as the original kingdom was broken up into Judah (2 tribes) and Israel (10 tribes) due to King Solomon's sin. We have a whole teaching on this here.
Heb 8:8 But God found fault with the people and said[fn]: “The days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah.
Yeshua himself declared that he was sent to Earth for the lost sheep of Israel:
Mat 15:24 He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.”
If Christians think that the Church is now the new Israel, they will have a hard time explaining Yeshua's actions discussed below.
After Yeshua rose from the dead and was about to ascend to Heaven, his disciples wanted to know about the future. They asked him:
Act 1:6 Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”
To which Yeshua responds:
Act 1:7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority.
Even the disciples, who established the church, asked when Israel will be restored. They knew that all the promises and covenants God made were done with Israel (God's chosen people). Yeshua responds that God will do it in His own time, meaning He is going to restore Israel (remember this is not a place, but His people).
Israel Prophesied About in Heaven
Even to enter Heaven, you need to be a part of Israel:
Rev 21:12 It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel.
Luk 22:30 so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
Luk 1:33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob (Israel) for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.
If the Church has replaced Israel, why are we going to be in Heaven, with the 12 tribes of Israel? Surely we should instead be a part of the Church's mentioned in Revelation? But no, Yeshua mentions He reigns over the house of Jacob (Israel). If the Church had replaced Israel, the angel Gabriel should have told Mary that the child would reign over the Christian church instead of the House of Jacob.
Where Does Christianity fit into Israel?
Now that we have established that the Church has not replaced Israel, how do Christians or Christianity tie into this belief?
Paul speaks about this extensively in his letters. He mentions that Israel is not finished, but anyone who wanted to, could become a part of Israel.
He mentions in Romans that anyone who is an unbeliever or has fallen away, can be grafted into Israel:
Rom 11:23 And if they do not persist in unbelief, they will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again.
He also mentions in Romans, Galatians, and Colossians that there is no difference between Jew and Gentile, but one under Christ.
Rom 10:12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him,
Gal 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
Col 3:11 Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.
So ultimately, your job as a Christian in the context of Israel, as Paul states, is to spread the Gospel to the unbelievers (i.e. Gentiles), so that they may be grafted into Israel and become a part of God's people.
In God's eyes, there is no Christian or Jew or Church. There is only Israel, who are His chosen people. We have not replaced the original people of Israel, we have been grafted into Israel through our belief and faith in Yeshua's sacrifice.
Conclusion
The relationship between Israel, the Church, and Christianity is one of unity and continuity rather than replacement. Through Scripture, it becomes clear that God’s promises and covenants with Israel remain, even in today's world of replacement theory - That the Church has replaced Israel. The Church has not replaced Israel; instead, believers in Yeshua are grafted into Israel, becoming part of God’s chosen people.
Understanding the definitions explored in this teaching helps clarify this truth:
- Israel refers to God’s chosen people, not a physical land or country. Through faith in Yeshua, anyone—Jew or Gentile—can be spiritually grafted into Israel.
- Jew describes descendants of the tribe of Judah (and Benjamin after the division of the kingdom). Jews form part of Israel’s physical lineage, but Israel, as defined by God, is spiritual and includes all who follow Him.
- Church (or “Ekklesia”) simply means a religious assembly or congregation. It is not a building or an entity that replaced Israel but refers to gatherings of God’s people, which have existed throughout biblical history.
- Christianity originally referred to followers of Christ and was used to describe a sect within Judaism that recognized Yeshua as the Messiah. It was never meant to signify a new religion but a continuation of God’s covenant with His people.
In God’s eyes, there is no separation between Christians and Jews, Church and Israel. There is only Israel—His chosen people, scattered across the world, united by faith in Yeshua.
As modern-day Israel or Christians, our role is to share the Gospel with those who do not yet believe, so they too can be grafted into the spiritual family of Israel. Paul’s teachings remind us that in Christ, there is no distinction between Jew and Gentile. Together, we form one body, united under the promises God made to His people from the beginning.
Be Blessed!
