Israelites are descendants of Jacob, collectively known as “Israel.”
“Your name will no longer be Jacob,” He said. “It will be Israel because you have struggled with God and with men and have prevailed.” Genesis 32:28
Physically, all those descended from Jacob are part of the nation of Israel. However, Christians also struggle “with God and with men” in our fight between walking in the Spirit and denying our flesh daily. Every day, we struggle between what God wants us to do and with what the people around us want us to do. To whom will we answer? Which will be pleased by our actions? Although we may be disciplined when we miss the mark, those of us sealed with the Holy Spirit will prevail.
This concept is confirmed by Paul in the book of Romans:
“Now if some of the branches were broken off, and you, though a wild olive branch, were grafted in among them and have come to share in the rich root of the cultivated olive tree,” Romans 11:17
Through the Holy Spirit, we have been grafted into the family tree of Israel. Though we may not be physically descended from Israel, we are made part of the nation through the Spirit of the LORD, Who is Jewish. His Israeli Spirit flourishes within us, making every verse of Scripture relevant to us who are in Messiah.
“And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, heirs according to the promise.” Galatians 3:29
Through faith in Jesus Christ, we have been adopted as daughters of the LORD, but that doesn’t just make us Christians sons and daughters to God all by ourselves. Instead, it means that we are adopted into his family of the children of Israel. Being a child of God means that we are grafted in, or adopted, into the nation of Israel. This is His nation. These are His people, and by His Grace, we are welcomed to join and be part of it. Because of our faith in Christ, we have been made spiritually a part of Israel.
We must understand what this relationship means. It means that every time God is speaking to Israel in the Bible, He’s speaking directly to us. Not some distant group of people at some distant time period - but all of Israel in every generation. Throughout the Law, He is explaining to us exactly what He expects from all of Israel, including you and me, in this current day. It affirms the concept that God does not ever change His mind or forsake His people. It also means that we should be making more of an effort to get to know our adoptive family and their ways better. These steps make our relationship with the LORD extremely closer and sweeter.
“But now in Christ Jesus, you who were far away have been brought near by the blood of the Messiah.” Ephesians 2:13
One way you can begin learning of our ancestral roots is by getting to know the Jewish liturgy here:
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