A reader who recently read Romans, Chapter 11, e-mailed us and proceeded to ask this paraphrased question: "...if the fall of the Jews brought salvation to the world, how much more then their restoration." Has God cast away the Jews?

We would answer first that we do not believe that Israel has been "castoff " in a way that they can no longer be saved. God has not doomed any Jewish person, thrown Israel away, or any thing that would permanently exclude a Jew from salvation. What is taught is that God has always had a people. As he did with Adam and Eve, with Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob (Israel), etc.

Jeremiah 18:1-6 explains the plan of God for us:

Because of Israel's continued idolatry and rebellion, the Lord took a remnant of Israel, as clay in the potter's hands, and formed His chosen vessel. That new vessel, is the Church. The new vessel was made from the "old clay" (Israel).

The Church was originally ALL Jewish. From those present in the upper room on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2) to the 3,000 added to the church latter that day, they were ALL "...Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven." (Acts 2:5)

The church has never been a "Gentile" church. It began Jewish and later received both Samaritans and Gentiles. God has not "cast off" the Jews. Any Jewish person can still be saved the same as anyone else. The requirements are the same for both Jew and Gentile. A reading of Acts 2:38-39 will show that salvation is available to everyone.

This fits perfectly with Rom 9:21 "Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?" Doesn't God have the ability to take two of one family and accept the sacrifice of one and reject the sacrifice of the other? He did it with Cain and Abel. God gave Cain the opportunity to partake of the same acceptance as his brother Abel?

God gave Cain the opportunity to not only be accepted, but to actually rise above Abel and "rule over him." When the Lord sent the "fire of the Holy Ghost" on the day of Pentecost He was accepting the sacrifice of one part of the family and rejecting the sacrifice of the other. However, the rejected part was given an invitation to join in to the same blessing and even to rise above the others.

Unfortunately, just as Cain rebelled and destroyed Abel, the bulk of the Jewish leadership rebelled and tried to destroy the Church. Some of those Jewish leaders believed and were saved, the other died in their sins. The choice was theirs just as the choice remains today for every single individual in the world to believe, obey and be saved, or to reject, rebel and be lost: Jew or Gentile.

The dispensational teaching of John Darby in the early 1800's introduced the theory that God had temporarily cast the Jews aside, created the church which will someday be removed (raptured) and afterward He will turn back to the Jews, reinstate the same old failed system of Law Keeping and give the Jews a 2nd chance to be saved under the Law.

The dispensational teaching says that Jews can be saved today by the cleansing power of the Blood of Jesus Christ and then, after the church is "raptured," those who were not saved before can be saved without the Blood of Jesus simply by going back under the Law, the very Law that Jesus came to fulfill.

No, God has not "cast off" the Jews. Many people get upset at the term "Replacement Theology" because they don’t understand what it really means. So for their benefit I have coined a new phrase: "Remnant Theology." The Lord took a "remnant" of Israel and from that remnant He made the church, the vessel that today is about to receive His Spirit.

As his chosen vessel, the church has become His chosen people. For God to ever take old, law-keeping Israel again as His chosen vessel, He would have to discard the Church. In the eyes of the Bridegroom, who is more chosen than the Bride?

Paul explains that the "Law" was a schoolmaster that is no longer needed:

Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. (Galatians 3:24-25)

The reader stated, "...if the fall of the Jews brought salvation to the world, how much more then their restoration." I agree that a mass revival of Jews, forsaking they old failed system, turning to God through the Church would have a tremendous influence on the rest of the world. And, such an event is possible. We should certainly strive as hard to win Jewish people to the Lord as we do any other group of people. But let us never forget that the gospel of Jesus Christ is the "Everlasting Gospel."

No other name. No other creed. No other method. No other plan of Salvation now or in the future.

Jeremiah explained it like this:

In that the Lord said, through Jeremiah, "I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel..." he was informing them that the "Old Covenant" was going to be replace. He said they broke His "old" Covenant and He was going to make a "New" Covenant. That is exactly what He did when He poured out His Spirit on the part of Israel that was gathered in the upper room.

Historians estimate before Jerusalem was destroyed in 70 AD the church in Jerusalem had over 70,000 members, almost all of them Jews. We can never say that He has thrown them away, doomed them to sure destruction, or any such thing. As He stated, the wicked will be cast into the lake of fire, but the righteous will be saved: Jew or Gentile. [][][][]