Replacement or Inclusion Theology

This article briefly highlights the relationship between Jews and Christians and the place of the nation of Israel in world history.

Paul’s insight into “the mystery of Christ”

For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles, bow my knees. You have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace that was given to me for you, how by revelation I was made to understand by revelation the mystery that has been kept secret for long ages past, but now has been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of God whom I serve in Christ Jesus. In former generations it was not made known to people as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to his holy apostles and prophets: that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. This gospel I was appointed to preach by the gift and grace of God through his power. (Eph. 3:1-7).

The view of the relationship between Old Testament Israel and the Christian church known as replacement theology means that the Christian church has taken over Israel’s role as God’s people. In the biblical context above, Paul expresses a different view that could be called “inclusion theology.” The Gentiles who believe in the Messiah have been included in Israel and have received a share in all of Israel’s messianic promises: …the Gentiles have the same inheritance as we do, belong to the same body, and share in the same promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. How are we to understand this?

In some of his other letters, Paul explains further.

For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel, nor are all the children of Abraham children of Abraham. No, the children of Isaac are to be counted as your children. That is to say, the children of God are not those who are children by natural [ethnic] descent, but the children of the promise are counted as his descendants. (Romans 9:6-8).

I ask now: Has God rejected his people? Certainly not. I myself am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham and of the tribe of Benjamin. God has not rejected his people, whom he has known from before. Or do you not know what the Scripture says in the passage about Elijah, how he turns to God and accuses Israel: Lord, they have killed your prophets and torn down your altars. I alone am left, and they are seeking to kill me. But what is God’s answer to him? I have reserved for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal. In the same way, there is also a remnant chosen by grace in this present time. (Romans 11:1-5).

But if some of the branches have been broken off, and you, a wild olive shoot, have been grafted in among them and have shared in the nourishing root of the olive tree, do not boast over the branches. If you do boast, remember that it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you. (Romans 11:17-18).

One cannot base an opinion on isolated quotes. The above Bible verses must be examined in their context. However, it is clear that “Israel” in these Bible verses has nothing to do with ethnicity but with a person’s relationship with God, regardless of the ethnic group into which she was born. Ethnic Jews who deny Jesus as the Messiah do not share in God’s grace and promises. They are like branches cut off from a true olive tree, while believing Gentiles share in the life of the true olive tree through grafting. And this life means eternal life in Christ.

But how should we view today’s ethnic Jews and the nation of Israel?

In another context, Paul explains that there is a divine purpose for the nations.

…And he has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their habitation. (Acts 17:26).

A central theme throughout the Old Testament is that the area assigned to the ethnic Jewish people is the area where the modern nation of Israel is located, with Jerusalem as its capital. This idea is not denied in the New Testament. Jesus prophesied the destruction of Jerusalem, which occurred in 70 AD. This extremely traumatic event for the Jewish people is seen by many Bible scholars as the definitive end of the Mosaic era. Jesus had predicted the total destruction of the temple, “not one stone will be left upon another, everything will be torn down.” The temple was completely destroyed, Jerusalem was devastated, the priests were killed, the genealogical records kept in the temple were burned, and the people who survived were sold into slavery or deported all over the world, just as Jesus had predicted. Thus, the old order, the old covenant, with Moses as mediator, came to an end. A new order was established, a new covenant, with Jesus as high priest and mediator. And a new temple began to be built, with Jesus as the cornerstone and those who believe in him as living stones joined together to form God’s dwelling place in the Spirit. Here there is no Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female, for all are one in Christ.

The new covenant in Christ is seen in relation to the old Mosaic covenant as a better covenant, a better order (Hebrews 9:9). Jeremiah had prophesied about a new covenant: Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah… (Jeremiah 31:31f). This is the new covenant in my blood, said Jesus when he handed out a cup of wine to his first disciples during the Passover meal. The new covenant was initially made with an ethnic Jewish congregation, the house of Israel and the house of Judah. When Peter visited Cornelius’ house, he understood that the covenant would be extended to the Gentiles as well. This idea was foreign to many Jews, but after studying the Scriptures, they saw that it was true. And since the Scriptures foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, they proclaimed this good news in advance to Abraham: “In you all nations will be blessed.” (Gal 3:8). When the Jewish church understood this, they began to actively evangelize among the Gentiles. Jesus’ exhortation: The kingdom of God is here. Repent and believe the gospel, was now proclaimed to all nations.

God’s chosen people

But aren’t the Jews God’s chosen people? Yes, they are. All Jews in the olive tree, Paul speaks of. They cooperate with God’s counsel, repent, and believe the gospel. And all Gentiles who repent and believe the gospel are included, grafted into the Jewish community in Christ. They are all true Jews, in the true Israel. They are God’s chosen people who will inherit the kingdom of God. This fulfills what Jesus said, that there would be one flock and one shepherd (John 10:16).

Jesus also said that Jerusalem would be under the control of the Gentile nations until their time was over (Luke 21:24). Today, Jerusalem has been under Jewish rule for several years, which should be seen as a sign of the times.

In the new era that follows Jesus’ return, as far as I can understand, national borders will still exist, but probably without today’s border controls. In this kingdom of peace, people will be able to travel freely, and Jerusalem will be a world capital where the “great king” has his seat. Those of ethnic Jewish descent who recognize Jesus as the Messiah will live in peace in their land, and together with other believers in the Messiah, they will be servants of the king, bringing blessings to all the peoples of the earth. The Palestinians who turn to the Messiah will have the same status as “princes of Judah,” according to the prophet Zechariah (Zechariah 9:7). Thus, the Palestinian conflict will finally be resolved. According to the Bible, the devil, the destroyer of nations, will be bound during this millennium, and all nations will see how good it is when God reigns and dwells among the children of men. There is much to ponder about this time; the Bible says some things, but much is hidden.

Some Bible scholars believe that the so-called millennium should be seen as a symbolic number and that this time has already begun on the day of Pentecost in connection with the coming of the Holy Spirit, and will only increase in strength. God’s kingdom is like a grain of wheat that is planted and then just grows and grows. And like the woman who mixes leaven into three measures of flour and kneads and kneads until the whole dough is leavened. Whatever the case may be with the millennium, the Bible’s message is that everything will be permeated by Christ. God’s kingdom is advancing, and when the time comes, the King, Jesus, will return to earth to take possession of his kingdom.

There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female. You are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to the promise.(Gal 3:28-29).

In Christ and in an eternal perspective, there will be no ethnic conflicts. According to the promise, we are all descendants of Abraham. There are no slaves. We are all free, called to serve God and one another. There is no gender difference. We all have the status of firstborn sons with inheritance rights.

But in the present time, there are differences. Some of these can be experienced as positive and some as negative. National borders are currently necessary, and everyone who is born has an ethnicity and nationality. Social differences exist partly because of the family you are born into and partly because of how you succeed in life. Most people probably consider it positive that we are born as men and women; moreover, it is a prerequisite for the continuation of the family line. But all this is temporary. When new eras dawn, things will change. We shall see.

Tommy Lindén

(This text is translated from Swedish to English using DeepL. If you find any serious errors, please let me know and I will correct them. Thank you. tommylindensweden@gmail.com)