Study of the Church (Distinction of the Church)

Grace Bible Church

4000 E. Collins Rd. P.O. Box #3762 Gillette, WY 82717 (307) 686-1516

- Preaching the Living WORD through the Written WORD - 2 Tim 4:2 -

ECCLESIOLOGY

(DISTINCTIVENESS OF THE CHURCH AND ISRAEL)

Grace Bible Church, Gillette, Wyoming

Pastor Daryl Hilbert

I. THE CHURCH WAS NOT PREDICTED IN OT

A. The prophets predicted the suffering of Christ (1st Coming) and the Glories of Christ (2nd Coming), but not the Church in between (1 Pet 1:10-12)

B. The OT establishes a time-lapse between dispensations for the Church.

1. Jesus separated dispensations of Isaiah’s prophecy (Is 61:1-2, cp Lk 4:18-20).

2. Israel has a time without and will have a time with her King (Hos 3:4, cp Hos 3:5).

3. The Church Age was hidden between the 69th and 70th week of Daniel (Dan 9:24-27)

II. THE CHURCH WAS CALLED A MYSTERY IN OT

A. The Greek word is “mustếrion” (mystery) and was used by Pagan cults (early Gnosticism) for “an unknown secret revealed only to the initiated.”

B. The biblical usage came to mean “something hidden by God (OT), but now revealed (NT)”.

C. That mystery hidden by God was the Church (Eph 3:1-10)

1. It was hidden by God but now revealed (5,9)

2. It includes Gentile and Jewish believers (6,8)

3. The Church is revealed by God in the Church Age (10)

III. COMPARISON BETWEEN CHURCH AND ISRAEL

A. Differences

ISRAEL		CHURCH
Based on physical birth	RELATION	Based on spiritual birth
Abraham	HEADSHIP	Christ
One Nation	NATIONALITY	From all Nations
National and Individual	DIVINE INTERACTION	Individual salvation but relationship in the body of Christ
From Abraham on	DISPENSATIONS	Restricted to this age only
Present – Mosaic Future – New Covenant	GOVERNING PRINCIPLE	A grace system

B. Distinctions

1. Israel and the Church are clearly established (Acts 5:31 cp. 21:19).

2. Israel and the Church are clearly distinguished (1Co 10:32; Gal 2:7-9; Rom 1:16).

3. The term Israel is used for the physical descendants of Abraham (Rom 9:1-5).

4. Believing Jews and Gentiles are called the “church,” not Israel (Gal 3:28; Eph 2:13-15; Eph 3:6-10; Col 3:11).

5. Difficult Passages:

a) Rom 9:6 – “spiritual Israel”

(1) Paul does speak of a “spiritual Israel,” but this does not refer to the church, rather Paul is separating “natural” Israel from “believing” Israel. (Rom 9:6)

(2) ...(Rom 9:6) does not say that the spiritual remnant within Israel is the church. It simply distinguishes the nation as a whole from the believing element within the nation. (Ryrie, Dispensationalism, p127)

(3) …où gár pántes hoi ex Israếl hoútoi Israếl could be literally translated, “for not all these out of Israel are Israel.” Note the NET Bible, “For not all those who are descended from Israel are truly Israel.”

b) Gal 6:16 – “Israel of God”

(1) The phrase “Israel of God” in Gal 6:15-16 does not refer to the church as Amillennialists claim, but to Jewish believers. These Jewish believers would be in contrast with the “Israel after the flesh” (1Co 10:18).

(2) There are two recipients in Gal 6:16.

(a) The “them” in the phrase “upon them” refers to the “new creation” in vs. 15, i.e. the church

(b) The group, “Israel of God” refers to believing Jews.

(d) The word, “and” (kaì ) can be a connector of two groups

(3) There are sixty-five usages of the term, “Israel” in the N.T.

(a) All references to term “Israel” refer to Jews

(b) In light of the context of the Bible, it would be strange for “Israel” to include the Gentiles.

(4) ...[in Gal 6:15-16] Paul is simply singling out Christian Jews for special recognition in the benediction. (Ryrie, Dispensationalism, p128)

c) Gal 3:7 – “sons of Abraham”

(1) Gentiles are called the “sons of Abraham” (Gal 3:7), but it is because Abraham is the father of all those who believe (Ro 4:11), fulfilling the prophecy, “All nations will be blessed through you.” (Gal 3:8). The rest of the Abrahamic Covenant belongs to Israel and not to the Gentiles.

(a) [Paul] was making the same point to the believing Jews in Galatia that Jesus made to the unbelieving Jews in Jerusalem: Only genuine believers, those who are of faith, have any claim to a spiritual relationship to Abraham, or to God. Jews with no faith in the Lord Jesus Christ are not true sons of Abraham, whereas Gentiles who believe in Him are. (MacArthur in loc.)

(b) Of great significance is the fact that the church is never called the seed of Jacob. The fact the church is called the seed of Abraham should not lead to the confusion of Israel and the church. (Chafer, Systematic Theology, Vol 2, p255)

(c) "Those who are the spiritual seed are partakers of Jewish spiritual blessings but are never said to become partakers of the physical, material, or national promises" (Arnold Fruchtenbaum, Israel and the Church, p120-126)

C. Conclusions

1. If you make the church and Israel the same entity, then how do you distinguish the prophecies written to one or the other?

2. If the church and Israel are one in the same, why do the Scriptures consistently use the two terms? (Rom 11:1,11)

3. Why are there no specific references that would support the church being called “Israel” (especially from Romans).

4. Justin Martyr was the first to call the church the “true Israel” A.D. 160, which gives this name a post apostolic date.

5. Covenant theologians believe that all redeemed of every age are part of the Church. There is a redeemed remnant in every age, but the church is a distinctive group.

6. If you combine Israel and the church, then you cancel out any future plan for Israel. (Rev 7:4)

a) [The church’s]...character is distinct as a living organism, the Body of Christ. The time of her existence is distinctive to this present dispensation, which makes the church distinct from Israel and not a new spiritual Israel. (Ryrie, Dispensationalism, p141-2)

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