According to Scriptures, Israel has a specified place in God’s plan. Denying this also calls God a liar and lays the groundwork for Christian anti-Semitism. We move from Augustine to Auschwitz when we follow this thread in history, and the tragedy is it’s happening again. There’s an anti-Semitism in some Christian churches that could lead to the next Holocaust. As Friedrich Hegel said, “The only thing we learn from history is that we learn nothing from history.”
Many people have difficulty understanding these end time events regarding Israel, not so much because of their eschatology, but because of difficulties with their ecclesiology and hermeneutics.
Eschatology: the study of the end times, of last things.
Ecclesiology: the study of the Church.
Hermeneutics: the principles used to interpret the Bible.
Our eschatology will be derived from our hermeneutics, which also aids in our ecclesiology. The problem here is that most Christians haven’t done their homework in these areas of understanding the Word. A great majority don’t make a habit of thinking about God’s purpose for His Church, the Bride of Christ. Few ask the questions that lead to committed study of the subject. Our search for truth about the Church is a study in ecclesiology.
Romans 11:25-29 I want to lay all this out on the table as clearly as I can, friends. This is complicated. It would be easy to misinterpret what’s going on and arrogantly assume that you’re royalty and they’re just rabble, out on their ears for good. But that’s not it at all. This hardness on the part of insider Israel toward God is temporary. Its effect is to open things up to all the outsiders so that we end up with a full house. Before it’s all over, there will be a complete Israel. As it is written, A champion will stride down from the mountain of Zion; he’ll clean house in Jacob. And this is my commitment to my people: removal of their sins. From your point of view as you hear and embrace the good news of the Message, it looks like the Jews are God’s enemies. But looked at from the long-range perspective of God’s overall purpose, they remain God’s oldest friends. God’s gifts and God’s call are under full warranty–never canceled, never rescinded.
