DISPENSATIONALISM REFUTED [Part 12] - The Restoration of the State of Israel?

In 1948 the State of Israel was restored, in part. 

Doesn't that "prove" that the Dispensationalists are right when they suggest that there are prophecies still to be fulfilled about Jerusalem and the Jewish people?

Wasn't the restoration of Israel a fulfillment of Biblical prophecy?

Not exactly.

Take a few minutes and listen as Keith explains what prophetic scriptures say about the restoration of Jerusalem in both the Old and the New Testament scriptures.

Click the image above to watch the video, or visit the YouTube channel here>

DISPENSATIONALISM REFUTED [Part 7] - Slave and Free Women

This "Bonus" episode of the series looks a bit closer at Paul's metaphor in Galatians of the Free Woman [Sarah] and the Slave Woman [Hagar] and how they reflect either those who are the true children of Abraham or merely those who are children by birth or circumcision.

CLICK IMAGE ABOVE OR WATCH ON KEITH'S YOUTUBE CHANNEL HERE>

DISPENSATIONALISM REFUTED [Part 6] Galatians 3-6

In this video, Keith looks at chapters 3-6, especially:

In chapter 4 where Paul shows concern that the Galatians were "observing days and months and seasons and years!" which correspond to Jewish Sabbath days, festivals and feast days.

And also where Paul uses the metaphor of the Slave Woman and the Free Woman to correspond to the Old Covenant [the Law] and the New Covenant [Life in Christ], we look at those distinctions and what they mean for us today.

Keep in mind that Paul ends this epistle by saying: "And as for all who walk by this rule [the New Covenant reality found in Christ], peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God." ch. 6 v. 16

So, the "Israel of God" are those who are in Christ, not those who keep the Law and look to the keeping of feasts, festivals and sabbaths.

DISPENSATIONALISM REFUTED [Part 2] - Who Owns The Land?

In this video session, Keith examines the land promises made to Israel and asks:
*Did God's promise to Abraham apply to every Jewish person on earth?
*Was this promise to give the land to Abraham's offspring ever literally fulfilled in history?
*Who does that land really belong to? 
*Where there any conditions to owning that land?
*What surprising thing does the Apostle Paul reveal to us about that promise to Abraham?
*What is "Replacement Theology"?

For more on this:
4 REASONS GOD DOESN'T OWE ANY LAND TO ISRAEL

TODAY'S ISRAEL: IS GOD ON HER SIDE? by Jon Zens [quoted in video above]

ONLY THOSE IN CHRIST ARE TRUE ISRAEL

“For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel; nor are they all children because they are Abraham’s descendants…That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants.” [Romans 9:6-8]

Jewish people are beautiful. They are dearly loved of God, and they were the people God chose [through Abraham’s bloodline] to deliver a Messiah to us all through the incarnation of Christ.

But being Jewish [that is, being one of the physical descendants of Abraham] does not make you “Israel”. What makes you, or anyone, “Israel” is Christ. Without Christ, no one is the “Israel of God”, according to the New Testament.

The Apostle Paul was very clear about this when he wrote to the Christian church in Galatia:

"And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise." (Gal. 3:28)

When Paul says that belonging to Christ makes you “Abraham’s offspring” he doesn’t mean that you suddenly become transformed into a Jew…at least not ethnically. But spiritually, yes, we are transformed into the offspring of Abraham by remaining in Christ because it is Christ who makes us “Israel”, not our ethnicity or bloodline.

In Galatians, Paul spends a lot of time explaining specifically how that promise to Abraham was fulfilled in the Church, not in the physical descendants of those of the ethnic nation.

Paul says, "The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as referring to many, but rather to one, “And to your seed,” that is, Christ." (Gal. 3:16)

Here, Paul is specifically referring to the OT promise made to Abraham in Genesis 12:7 - "And the Lord appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land."

So, his entire point is this: Being in Christ makes you “Israel”, or “Abraham’s offspring”, and therefore the promise made to Abraham is now imparted to you because of Jesus, who was the “seed” being referred to when God made His promise in Gen. 12:7.

Paul makes the case that the promise made to Abraham was made to Jesus, not to every single Jewish person alive. Therefore, only those who are "in Christ" are the "offspring of Abraham and heirs according to the promise."

Paul's teaching clarifies to whom this promise is valid. It is not valid for those Jews who claim Abraham as their Father but do not do the works of Abraham (have faith in God and obey).

Both John the Baptist and Jesus both affirmed that those who claimed to be the children of Abraham were liars if they continued to reject Jesus as Messiah. [See Matt. 3:9 and John 8:39-44]

The nation of Israel [that is, the people who claimed to be “Israel” but rejected Jesus as their Messiah] was destroyed in AD 70 for rejecting Christ. Just as Christ prophesied it would be in the Olivet Discourse (see Mark 13, Matthew 24, Luke 21).

The true “Israel” of God -- that is, those people who were in Christ and were spiritually the children of Abraham -- were spared and did not die in the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. 

Church history reveals that several among them received dreams and visions which warned them to flee the city to Pela, a neighboring town, and the Christian community escaped by obeying that warning.

Notice also that the promise mentions giving the land to the seed, which is Christ, not to everyone who claimed to be in Abraham’s bloodline. The only right given to the “Holy Land” was given directly – and specifically – to Christ.

In the process of giving the right to inherit this land to Christ, those who rejected Christ lost any and all rights they may have had otherwise.

Those who once “tended the vineyard” were punished for rejecting the son and killing him. Because of this, the vineyard was taken from them and “given to another people who will produce its fruit”, as Jesus explained in his Parable of the Vineyard in Matthew 21:33-46.

This should come as no surprise since the land itself never belonged to the Jewish people in the first place.

According to Leviticus 25:23, the land wasn’t given to the Jewish people forever. It was conditionally promised to them for as long as they remained faithful to God:

'The land must not be sold permanently, because the land is mine and you reside in my land as foreigners and strangers.” – [Lev. 23:23]

And: Leviticus 20:22 says: 

"'Keep all my decrees and laws and follow them, so that the land where I am bringing you to live may not vomit you out.”

So, the Jewish people are a beautiful people, and they are still dearly loved of God. But if they continue to reject Jesus as the Messiah, then they are not “Israel”, they are separated from God, and "antichrist", according to 1 John 2:22:

"Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist—denying the Father and the Son."

We, like Paul, may continue to pray that they might embrace the Good News that their Messiah has already come and follow the path of Jesus. We may even wish that we would be accursed so that they might be saved [if that were possible].

But until they follow Jesus, they are not Israel.

Jesus makes us Israel, and only Jesus.

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4 Reasons Why God Doesn't Owe Any Land To Israel.

"On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your offspring I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates.." – [Genesis 15:18]

I’ve been challenged by several people to explain how this verse could be true if – as I suggest – God has no special plans for ethnic Jews or the secular nation of Israel today or in the future.

In fact, I’ve been told that this verse above is “the unanswerable verse” that cannot be explained any other way than to concede that Jewish people today are still owed something by God – namely to eventually lay claim to the geographic land mentioned here.

But is that the case? I believe the Bible itself gives us four very solid reasons to say, emphatically, “No”.

First, according to Joshua 21:43, God has already given the Jewish people all of the land that was promised to Abraham:

“Thus the Lord gave to Israel all the land that he swore to give to their fathers. And they took possession of it, and they settled there. And the Lord gave them rest on every side just as he had sworn to their fathers. Not one of all their enemies had withstood them, for the Lord had given all their enemies into their hands. Not one word of all the good promises that the Lord had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass.”

Second, in 1 Kings 4:21 we are told that:

“Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines and to the border of Egypt. They brought tribute and served Solomon all the days of his life.”

Third, according to Leviticus 25:23, the land wasn’t given to them forever, it was conditionally promised to them for as long as they remained faithful to God:

'The land must not be sold permanently, because the land is mine and you reside in my land as foreigners and strangers.” – [Lev. 23:23]

And: Leviticus 20:22 says: 

"'Keep all my decrees and laws and follow them, so that the land where I am bringing you to live may not vomit you out.”

And, finally, when it comes to the question of the Genesis passage above we have to ask, “Was God's promise to a race of people?”

Here's what the Apostle Paul says:

"Now the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring [seed]. It does not say, “And to offsprings [seeds],” referring to many, but referring to one, “And to your offspring [seed],” who is Christ." – [Galatians 3:16]

Paul reveals that the promises that God made to Abraham were not made to every single descendant of Abraham, but it was made to his "seed" (singular)...and who is that?

It’s Jesus.

So, in summary, that verse in Genesis where God promises the land to Abraham and ‘his offspring’ was fulfilled to the Children of Israel during the time of Joshua, and even more so during the reign of Solomon. But prophetically, the verse was actually a reference to the Messiah who was/is the actual “offspring” which God had in mind all along.

So, if we are in Christ, then we Abraham's offspring too, and we're also heirs according to the promise:

"And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise." - [Galatians 3:29]

In short, God does not owe today’s Jewish people any land whatsoever, especially since they deny that Jesus is the Messiah and until they receive Him as their Lord, they are “anti-Christ” according to 1 John 2:22 and 2 John 1:7.

We do pray that they – and all nations – would come to see that Jesus is the Christ and one day place their hope in Him alone.



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Things I Don't Believe Anymore

We have a saying in our house church family: "Everyone is in process."

This means that we have accepted the idea that different people are at different places in their Christian walk, and that because of this we do not all agree on every little point of doctrine.

It also means that, over time, our views and beliefs are subject to change and to develop as we live life, study scripture, and learn to hear the voice of God more clearly.

As a result, there are things that I used to believe a few years ago that I now no longer hold to be true. Here are just a few of those beliefs that I no longer believe:

Tithing - The New Testament does not teach tithing for Christians. Historically the Christian church did not teach it and waited until 777 AD under Charlemagne to institute an official mandate for tithing (in order to support a professional clergy class which arose from a shift during the reign of Constantine). That's a long time to go before recognizing the tithe in the New Testament church. So, what did the Christian church teach and practice before that?

Read about that here:
Why Oh Why Does The Church Tithe?

Immortal Souls - I used to stand up and proclaim that every human alive is already immortal. The only question is where they will spend their eternity. Now I completely reject that notion of defacto human immortality of the soul. Mainly because we have so many scriptures all through the Bible that proclaim that those who have Christ have life and those that do not have Christ do not have life. Or that those who reject Christ will die, or be destroyed, or perish, etc.

Read more about what changed my mind here:
Mortal Souls

Eternal Suffering In Hell - Since I don't accept the inherent eternal existence of human souls, I also reject the idea that the doctrine of eternal suffering in hell is taught by the scriptures. The Christian church, from the beginning, always had 3 different perspectives on the eternal fate of non-believers. Some believed that they would suffer for a time and then be destroyed. Others believed that they would suffer for a time and then receive the opportunity for redemption. Lastly, a small minority believed that they would suffer forever in flames of fire. The majority view was actually the idea that suffering was temporary followed by an opportunity for salvation.

Learn more about the three views of hell here:
What We Should Believe About Hell

Blessing the Nation of Israel - For years I affirmed the notion that America must "bless Israel" or God would curse our nation. Now I understand that the New Testament teaches that Jesus is the true Israel, and that only those in Christ are the Israel of God. Those who reject Christ as Messiah (and that would be Jewish people in the nation of Israel today) are called "anti-christ" by the New Testament. Jesus himself says that those who reject Him also reject God the Father.

I also recently learned that this Pro-Israel view is about as old as the Mormon cult which started the same year (1830) and was invented by a guy named Darby. This new teaching is called "Dispensationalism" and no Christian before 1830 believed it.

I've written more about this here:
Bless Israel?
Galatians 3:16

A Futurist View of Prophecy - Once upon a time I believed whole-heartedly the Dispensational view that Matthew 24 and Revelation are about events in the future that will precede the return of Christ. Now I read those passages very differently and I am convinced that they are speaking largely about the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70, not about some future events that must take place in the Middle East before Christ can return.

Learn more here:
Jesus the Prophet

What beliefs do you no longer hold true? Please share in the comments below.

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Galatians 3:16

In Galatians, Paul spends a lot of time explaining specifically how that promise to Abraham was fulfilled in the Church, not in the physical descendants of those of the ethnic nation.

Paul says, "The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as referring to many, but rather to one, “And to your seed,” that is, Christ." (Gal. 3:16)

Here, Paul is specifically referring to the OT promise made to Abraham in Genesis 12:7 - "And the Lord appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land."

Then Paul concludes chapter 3 of Galatians by saying this:

"And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise." (Gal. 3:28)

So, clearly, Paul makes the case that this promise made to Abraham was made to Jesus, not to every single Jewish person alive. Therefore, only those who are "in Christ" are the "offspring of Abraham and heirs according to the promise."

Secondly, the specific promise is also from Genesis 12, and in the same way, Paul's teaching clarifies to whom this promise is valid. It is not valid for those Jews who claim Abraham as their Father but do not do the works of Abraham (have faith in God and obey).

The nation of Israel was judged for rejecting Christ. Just as Christ prophesied it would be in the Olivet Discourse (see Mark 13, Matthew 24, Luke 21).

For thousands of years God continued to give the Jews opportunities to keep the conditional Covenant he made with them. Their final opportunity came when He sent His son and as Jesus warned them, their punishment for killing the Son would be that God would take the Kingdom from them and give it to others. (See Mt. 21:33-46; Mark 12:1-9; Luke 20:9-19)

When Jerusalem was destroyed in AD 70, that was the final straw for every Jew who rejected God and His Messiah. This was also in fulfillment of the 70 Weeks prophecy in Daniel. Jesus, the Prince, was cut off in the middle of the week (His ministry was 3 and a half years long) and when Christ was crucified "he put an end to the daily sacrifice".

When the city of Jerusalem was destroyed in AD 70, this was the end of their Temple, their Priesthood and their Daily Sacrifice. All 3 of these are now realized in the Church of Jesus. (We are the living Temple of the Holy Spirit, the Priesthood of Believers and the daily living sacrifice to God).

The secular Jewish nation that we have now in the Middle East is a godless one. They are not religious Jews. There is no difference between a secular Jewish nation that persecutes Christians in Palestine and rejects Jesus as Messiah and the Pharisees of Jesus' day who rejected Christ and persecuted Christians in Palestine. No difference.

So, as far as I can see, there is no reason to "Bless Israel" unless you're understanding that "Israel" is actually everyone who is found in Christ, because the Christian community is now the "true circumcision" (Phil. 3:3)

As Paul clearly teaches:

"For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel; nor are they all children because they are Abraham’s descendants, but: “through Isaac your descendants will be named.” That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants." (Romans 9:6-7)

And:

"Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham." (Gal. 3:7)

And:

"...the mystery of Christ, which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed to His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit; to be specific, that the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel." (Eph. 3:4-6)

So, there's one Body - the Church - which is made up of "all the nations of the earth" who are blessed by the Seed of Abraham (that is Christ) by faith in Him alone.

If you're curious, the teaching that we should bless Israel, etc. is relatively new and came through a guy named John Nelson Darby in 1830. When he introduced his teachings (which became Dispensationalism) he admitted that this was "new revelation" and that the Church did not ever believe or teach these things (which is confirmed by reading Church History).

So, you are free, of course, to continue to believe that God still has a special plan for the ethnic Jews of the Earth that currently reject Christ, but I believe the NT is clear that the only hope for the Jews (and the rest of the planet) is to receive Jesus as Messiah and follow Him. God does not have any other special plan for the Jewish people apart from His Son.

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