Torah Portion VA’ETCHANAN – Devarim (Deuteronomy) 3:23–7:11 Haftarah: Isaiah 40:1–26
The MAP Revolution Part 5
“Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. “A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So then, you will know them by their fruits. Matthew 7:15-20
Shabbat Shalom, dearly beloved!
As you read the following article, keep the fruit in mind and remember what Yeshua said about bad fruit. Remember what He was going to do with it!
The Error of Replacement Theology
(Adjusted from the original article published by “Bridges for Peace”)
Perhaps you have heard of the term replacement theology. However, if you look it up in a dictionary of Church history, you will not find it listed as a systematic study. Rather, it is a doctrinal teaching that originated in the early Church. It became the fertile soil from which Christian anti-Semitism grew and has infected the Church for nearly 1,900 years.
What is Replacement Theology?
Replacement theology was introduced to the Church shortly after Gentile leadership took over from Jewish leadership. What are its premises?
According to Replacement Theology:
- Israel (the Jewish people and the land) has been replaced by the Christian Church for the purposes of God, or, more precisely, the Church is the historic continuation of Israel to the exclusion of the former.
- The Jewish people are now no longer “chosen people.” In fact, they are no different from any other group, such as the English, Spanish, or Africans.
- Apart from repentance, the new birth, and incorporation into the Church, the Jewish people have no future, no hope, and no calling in the plan of God. The same is true for every other nation and group.
- Since Pentecost in Acts 2, the term “Israel,” as found in the Bible, now refers to the Church. The promises, covenants, and blessings ascribed to Israel in the Bible have been taken away from the Jews and given to the Church, which has superseded them. However, the Jews are subject to the curses found in the Bible as a result of their rejection of Christ.
How Do Replacement Theologians Argue Their Case?
(Note: added rebuttal to each point.)
They Say: To be a son of Abraham is to have faith in Jesus Christ. For them, Galatians 3:29 shows that sonship to Abraham is seen only in spiritual, not national terms: “And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise.”
Rebuttal: While this is a wonderful inclusive promise for Gentiles, this verse does not exclude the Jewish people from their original covenant, promise, and blessing as the natural seed of Abraham. This verse simply joins the Gentile Christians to what God has already started with Israel.
They Say: The promise of the land of Canaan to Abraham was only a “starter.” The real Promised Land is the whole world. They use Romans 4:13 to claim that the Church will inherit the world, not Israel. “For the promise that he should be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.”
Rebuttal: Where does this verse exclude Abraham and His natural progeny, the Jews? It simply says that, through the law, they would not inherit the world, but this would be acquired through faith. This is also true of the Church.
They Say: The nation of Israel was only the seed of the future Church, which would arise and incorporate people of all nations (Mal. 1:11). “For from the rising of the sun, even unto the going down of the same, My Name shall be great among the nations, and in every place, incense shall be offered to My Name, and a pure offering for My Name shall be great among the nations, says the Lord of Hosts.”
Rebuttal: This is great and shows that the Jewish people and Israel fulfilled one of their callings to be “a light to the nations,” so that God’s Word has gone around the world. It does not suggest God’s dealings with Israel were negated because His Name spread around the world.
They Say: Yeshua (Jesus) taught that the Jews would lose their spiritual privileges and be replaced by another people (Matt. 21:43): “Therefore I am saying to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits of it.'”
Rebuttal: In this passage, Yeshua (Jesus) was talking about the Priests and Pharisees, who failed as leaders of the people. This passage is not talking about the Jewish people or the nation of Israel.
They Say: A true Jew is anyone born of the Spirit, whether he is racially Gentile or Jewish (Rom. 2:28–29). “For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision which is outward in the flesh; But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit and not in the letter, whose praise is not of men but of God.”
Rebuttal: This argument does not support the notion that the Church replaced Israel. Rather, it simply reinforces what had been said throughout the Hebrew Scriptures [the Old Testament], and it certainly qualifies the spiritual qualifications for Jews or anyone who professes to be a follower of the God of Israel.
They Say: Paul shows that the Church is really the same “olive tree” as Israel was. Therefore, to distinguish between Israel and the Church is, strictly speaking, false. Indeed, people of Jewish origin need to be grafted back into the Church (Rom 11:17–23).
Rebuttal: This claim is the most outrageous because this passage clearly shows that we Gentiles are the “wild olive branches” who get our lives from being grafted into the olive tree. The tree represents the covenants, promises, and hopes of Israel (Eph. 2:12), rooted in the Messiah and fed by the sap, which represents the Holy Spirit, giving life to the Jews (the “natural branches”) and Gentiles alike. We Gentiles are told to remember that the olive tree holds us up and not to be arrogant or boast against the “natural branches” because they can be grafted in again. The olive tree is not the Church. We are simply grafted into God’s plan, which preceded us by 2,000 years.
They Say: All the promises made to Israel in the Old Testament, unless they were historically fulfilled before the coming of Jesus Christ, are now the property of the Christian Church. These promises should not be interpreted literally or carnally, but spiritually and symbolically. References to Israel, Jerusalem, Zion, and the Temple, when they are prophetic, really refer to the Church (II Cor. 1:20). “For all the promises of God in Him (Jesus) are Yea, and in Him, Amen, unto the glory of God by us.” Therefore, they teach that the New Testament needs to be taught figuratively, not literally.
Rebuttal: Shortly, we will look at the fact that the New Testament references to Israel clearly pertain to Israel, not the Church. Therefore, no promise to Israel and the Jewish people in the Bible is figurative, nor can they be relegated to the Church alone. The promises and covenants are literal. Many of them are everlasting, and we Christians can participate in them as part of our rebirth, but not to the exclusion of Israel.
The New Testament speaks of the Church’s relationship to Israel and her covenants as being “grafted in” (Rom. 11:17), “brought near” (Eph. 2:13), “Abraham’s offspring (by faith)” (Rom. 4:16), and “partakers” (Rom. 15:27), not as usurpers of the covenant and a replacement for physical Israel. We Gentile Christians simply joined in with what God had been doing in Israel. God did not break His covenant promises with Israel (Rom. 11:29).
How Did the Position of the Early Church Fathers Affect the Church?
Let us look at a brief history of the first four centuries of Christianity, which established a “legacy of hatred” towards the Jewish people, something that was against the clear teaching of the New Testament.
In the first century AD, the church was well connected to its Jewish roots, and Yeshua did not intend for it to be any other way. After all, Jesus is Jewish, and the basis of His teaching is consistent with the Hebrew Scriptures. In Matthew 5:17–18, He states: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfil them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.” Before the First Jewish Revolt in AD 66, Christianity was basically a sect of Judaism, as were the Pharisees, Sadducees, and Essenes.
The antagonism of the early Christians towards the Jews was reflected in the writings of the early Church Fathers. For example, Justin Martyr (c. AD 160), in speaking to a Jew, said, “The Scriptures are not yours, but ours.” Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyon (c. AD 177), declared: “Jews are disinherited from the grace of God.” Tertullian (AD 160–230), in his treatise “Against the Jews,” announced that God had rejected the Jews in favor of the Christians.
In the early 4th century, Eusebius wrote that the promises of the Hebrew Scriptures were for Christians and not the Jews, though the curses were for the Jews. He argued that the Church was the continuation of the Old Testament and thus superseded Judaism. The young Church declared itself to be the true Israel, or “Israel according to the Spirit,” heir to the divine promises. They found it essential to discredit “Israel according to the flesh” to prove that God had cast away His people and transferred His love to the Christians.
At the beginning of the 4th century, a monumental event occurred for the Church, which placed “The Church Triumphant” over “Vanquished Israel.” In AD 306, Constantine became the first Christian Roman Emperor. At first, he had a rather pluralistic view and accorded Jews the same religious rights as Christians. However, in AD 321, he made Christianity the official religion of the Empire, to the exclusion of all other religions. This signaled the end of the persecution of Christians but the beginning of discrimination and persecution against the Jewish people.
Already at the Church Council in Elvira (Spain) in AD 305, declarations were made to keep Jews and Christians apart. This included ordering Christians not to share meals with Jews, not to marry Jews, not to use Jews to bless their fields, and not to observe the Jewish Sabbath.
In AD 313, Imperial Rome issued the Edict of Milan, which granted favor to Christianity while outlawing synagogues. Then, in AD 315, another edict allowed the burning of Jews if they were convicted of breaking the laws. As Christianity became the religion of the state, further laws were passed against the Jews:
- The ancient privileges granted to the Jews were withdrawn.
- Rabbinical jurisdiction was abolished or severely curtailed.
- Proselytizing of Judaism was prohibited and made punishable by death.
- Jews were excluded from holding high office or military careers.
These and other restrictions were confirmed over and over again by various Church Councils for the next 1,000 years.
In AD 321, Constantine decreed all business should cease on “The honored day of the sun.” By substituting Sunday for Saturday as the day for Christian worship, he further advanced the split. This Jewish Shabbat/Christian Sunday controversy also came up at the first real ecumenical Council of Nicaea (AD 325), which concluded Sunday to be the Christian day of rest, although it was debated for long after that. In AD 325, the Council of Nicaea divorced the Church completely from the Jews and anything Jewish. (Bridges for Peace)
This message will continue in The MAP Revolution Series Part 6.
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