Israël in the New Testament

[Lenard]

I was in a discussion with a friend of mine and she said that
the New Testament tells that the people of Israël are like any
other nation because they crucified the Christ.
Is this true. And if this is mentioned in the New Testament in which
book and verse is this mentioned?

God bless,
Lenard

 

[Rafael]

Leonard, this is a complicated subject that I have only recently come to understand better, as it isn't really taught correctly most of the time. Israel is still the same people that God has made covenant with today as was in the Old Testament. In the New Testament, we see this:

Acts 13:23 Of this man’s seed hath God according to his promise raised unto Israel a Saviour, Jesus:

You will find that people's knowledge of who Israel is varies greatly from church to church and people to people.
All of Israel is both houses of Israel and then all the people who have decided to come within the covenant given to them by God through Abraham, the father of our faith. This promise is in the Old Testament and in the New Testament:

Hebrews 8:6 But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how
much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was
established upon better promises. 7 For if that first covenant had
been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second.
8 For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith
the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and
with the house of Judah:
10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel
after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind,
and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they
shall be to me a people:

Jer 31:31 "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-- 32 not according to the covenant that I made with their
fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of
the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a
husband to them, says the LORD. 33 But this is the covenant that I
will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I
will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I
will be their God, and they shall be My people.

Ro 4:16 Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the
end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which
is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who
is the father of us all,

If your interesting in knowing more, there is a portion of a book available to read online that explains many things at this link: http://www.aarons-advocates.org/BACONT.html

 

[Friendship]

I know its great to get the scriptures on these things but I also know a lot of people especially new Christian look at them and go HUH, so, Israel has always been the chosen country and even still everything revolves around it that is why there is always so much fighting over there because the enemy would like to destroy it. When Jesus came the people under the covenant was not to eager to except him while people outside of the covenant excepted him with open arms therefore opening the doors for all people and not just the people in Israel. The people of Israel have been through so much as a result of them just always being under attack they were slaves in the days of Moses and then they did lose their nation for some time and then there was Hiltler who just brought devestation to the Jewish people but as a result of this horrible event the Jews got their nation back which is Israel and the bible says that when Israel becomes a nation again that that generation will not pass well they became a nation again in the 60's so by that we can know that time is growing short but in the tribulation period which is to come 144,000 people from the 12 tribes of Israel will marked by God to out and witness to those left behind and those with the Mark of God cannot be harmed, so yes I believe that Israel is still God's chosen country and the Jews are still God's chosen people but because of what Jesus done for the world we are all able to be part God's Kingdom. I get a little tired about hearing about the Jews crucifying Jesus for starters that is what he came here to do also they turned him over but they did not actually do the crucifying but if someone want to blame someone they need to blame themselves we all crucified Jesus every sin every wrong in our lives he died so that we may live and be forgiven for those things so he died for us all and we are all the reason that he came and that he died and Praise God he rose again.