When God renamed and annointed Jacob as Israel and stated that his people would be a chosen nation, our omniscient Creator did not do this lightly. He selected a special nation, as arbiters of his moral law. He gave them a ceremmonial law to point people to the soon coming king Jesus, who would be also of their lineage. He united himself with them through a special covenant and also instituted civil laws of cleanliness and behaviour as an example for those nations around them, some of them even punishable by death, to show that not only was he a God of mercy and love, but also a god of righteousness (see Uzzah!!)
Israel as a nation messed up. Big time. Even with warnings from Daniel, Amos, Isaiah, Ezekiel and a whole host of other prophets which make up the bulk of the Old Testament, they still even betrayed Jesus. But God still had a work for his chosen people, and he still used the apostles and those who worked with them to spread the gospel to both Jew and Gentile. Remarkably they were all sons of Israel as well.
To add finality to this, God used his final canonical prophet John to remind Israel and the Gentiles that his promise was complete, and that the inhabitants of the new Jersualem would be entering a city with the names of the apostles and the tribes of Israel. Even the city is called Jerusalem. City of Peace.
With this in mind, why does modern Christendom go out on a limb to discard everything that God instructed the old Israel? Why with the new Covenant are the principles of the old covenant somehow all done away with ? Did God not give his chosen nation laws on diet, behaviour, a moral code, prophets, etc all for a reason ? Should we not be using the instructions given to ancient Israel, outside of the corruption and burdensome nature given it by their rabbinical leaders, as principles for our own lives in harmony with the spiritual law God has placed in our heart?
After all through the divine inspiration of the Holy Spirit is the Bible not a book authored by those from that chosen nation?
Thoughts???
Agape 
Israel as a nation messed up. Big time. Even with warnings from Daniel, Amos, Isaiah, Ezekiel and a whole host of other prophets which make up the bulk of the Old Testament, they still even betrayed Jesus. But God still had a work for his chosen people, and he still used the apostles and those who worked with them to spread the gospel to both Jew and Gentile. Remarkably they were all sons of Israel as well.
To add finality to this, God used his final canonical prophet John to remind Israel and the Gentiles that his promise was complete, and that the inhabitants of the new Jersualem would be entering a city with the names of the apostles and the tribes of Israel. Even the city is called Jerusalem. City of Peace.
With this in mind, why does modern Christendom go out on a limb to discard everything that God instructed the old Israel? Why with the new Covenant are the principles of the old covenant somehow all done away with ? Did God not give his chosen nation laws on diet, behaviour, a moral code, prophets, etc all for a reason ? Should we not be using the instructions given to ancient Israel, outside of the corruption and burdensome nature given it by their rabbinical leaders, as principles for our own lives in harmony with the spiritual law God has placed in our heart?
After all through the divine inspiration of the Holy Spirit is the Bible not a book authored by those from that chosen nation?
Thoughts???
Agape
