- Apr 7, 2012
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My answer would be no. It's still about Israel. Election is still about the nation of Israel. In Romans, Paul addresses the Gentile believers in the church at Rome and he tells them that they have been grafted into Israel. In Galatians he explains how those who have been baptized with Christ have become Abraham's seed and heir according to the promise. The promise that he is talking about is the land that God promised to Abraham.
15 For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.
16 And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered.
17 Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee. (Gen. 13:15-17 KJV)
7 And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee.
8 And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God. (Gen. 17:7-8 KJV)
God told Abraham that He would give him all the land that he could see. The promise was made to Abraham and his seed. The land was also promised to Isaac and Jacob. Abraham never received that land.
2 And he said, Men, brethren, and fathers, hearken; The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Charran,
3 And said unto him, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and come into the land which I shall shew thee.
4 Then came he out of the land of the Chaldaeans, and dwelt in Charran: and from thence, when his father was dead, he removed him into this land, wherein ye now dwell.
5 And he gave him none inheritance in it, no, not so much as to set his foot on: yet he promised that he would give it to him for a possession, and to his seed after him, when as yet he had no child. (Acts 7:2-5 KJV)
So God promised the land to Abraham but Stephen says that Abraham never received it. That means the only way that Abraham can receive the promise is through the Resurrection.
Notice what Isaac says to Jacob.
And Isaac called Jacob, and blessed him, and charged him, and said unto him, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan.
2 Arise, go to Padanaram, to the house of Bethuel thy mother's father; and take thee a wife from thence of the daughters of Laban thy mother's brother.
3 And God Almighty bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a multitude of people;
4 And give thee the blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to thy seed with thee; that thou mayest inherit the land wherein thou art a stranger, which God gave unto Abraham. (Gen. 28:1-4 KJV)
Notice here that "the blessing of Abraham" is to inherit the land that God gave to Abraham. This phrase, "the blessing of Abraham" appears only twice in Scripture. It appears here in Genesis and once in Galatians where Paul applies it to the Gentiles.
11 But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith.
12 And the law is not of faith: but, The man that doeth them shall live in them.
13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:
14 That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. (Gal. 3:11-14 KJV)
Christ redeemed the Jews from the Law that "the blessing of Abraham" might come on the Gentiles. Remember that "the blessing of Abraham" is the land promise. Paul said that this promise is to the Gentiles also through faith in Christ. He goes on to explain that when God made the promise to Abraham and his Seed, He didn't mean seeds, He meant seed. The Jews understood that the promises were to them because they were the seed of Abraham. However, Paul clarifies this and says that God didn't mean seeds plural. He meant seed singular and that Seed is Christ.
16 Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ. (Gal. 3:16 KJV)
So, the promises to Abraham and his seed were not to the Jews, but rather to Christ. He is the Seed that the promises were made to. Paul goes on to say that those who have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ and if they are Christ's then they are Abraham's seed and heirs according to the promise, the promise is the land that was promised to Abraham.
26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.
27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.
29 And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise. (Gal. 3:26-29 KJV)
So, when Christ inherits the kingdom, those who are Christ's will inherit it too. This is what Election and Predestination are all about. Israel is God's elect.
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