The fact that God persistently loves Israel in spite of herself bodes well for the rest of us

5 min read

“True, some of them were unfaithful; but just because they were unfaithful, does that mean God will be unfaithful?”

-Romans 3:3, NLT

Over lunch, Matthew and Ron were covering their normal trail of topics…politics, sports, and entertainment. At one point, the conversation turned to the conflict in Israel.

Neither of them are experts on the matter, so the tempo of the conversation slowed. They both had more questions than answers.

Obviously, it’s a complicated subject.

But when Ron said “All I know is that God is pretty much done with Israel,” it hit Matthew wrong. He didn’t know everything the Bible says about the matter, but he was fairly certain there’s a case for believing that God is not done with Israel, i.e., Jewish people.

Matthew asked, “Why would God be done with Israel? Didn’t he make unconditional promises to the their patriarch, Abraham, and his descendants?”

“Yes,” Ron replied, “but Israel didn’t hold up their end of it. They constantly turned away from God and ultimately they rejected the Messiah, Jesus.”

“Wait,” Matthew said, “so you mean God’s loyalty to people hinges on whether they are always loyal to him?

Ron’s face revealed some uncertainty. He went quiet.

Matthew asked, “If God isn’t loyal to Israel, why would he be loyal to any of us?I mean, haven’t we all done the same thing? Even those of us who have confessed Jesus as our Savior, don’t we have our moments of stubborn disbelief, rebellion, and idolatry?

So, does God abandon us when this happens?

No, thankfully, that isn’t how God operates. People may condemn or reject us when we fail, but not God. Rather, he holds on to us.

Matthew kept going:

The Bible clearly says that God chose Israel. Specifically, he chose them as the people he would use to bring Jesus into the world. When God told Abraham way back when that the whole world would be “blessed” through him, he was hinting at the future arrival of Jesus via Abraham’s descendants.

And sure enough, about 2,000 years later, Jesus came into the world as a descendant of Abraham. Jesus’ parents and his family were Jewish. As the fulfilment of the promise, Jesus was born, raised, buried, and resurrected in the same land that Abraham settled.

Jesus, the ultimate Blessing, was delivered to humanity by way of an unremarkable people inhabiting a tiny country by the name of Israel.

That fact is more relevant than ever right now.

But to be clear, Ron, God choosing Israel does not mean that he loves them more than the rest of us. God loves both Jew and Gentile. As Jesus himself said, ‘For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life.’ (John 3:16)

It does mean, however, that God called Israel to be his special vessel in this world. Even though Israel hasn’t lived up to their calling, God never canceled them. His redemptive plan for them is still in effect. His promises to them may be on hold, but not voided. Why? Because as Paul put it,

For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. Romans 11:29

In other words, God keeps his word. He is supremely faithful. Over and over, God promised to be loyal to Israel, even when she was not loyal to him.

"If God isn't loyal to Israel, why would he be loyal to any of us?"

Sure, Israel has a sketchy past, but don’t we all? The bottom line is that once we enter into a relationship with God by faith, that relationship is sustained not by our successes but by the steadfast love of God.

Wrapping it Up

Ron looked and Matthew and said, “Wow, you’ve obviously been thinking about this stuff.”

He replied, “Yeah, I have been thinking about it and reading my Bible a little more, too. I don’t have it all sorted out, but for me the whole thing comes down to this question:

Just how loyal is God?

And the answer, I believe, is that he is infinitely loyal. Whether you are a Jew or Gentile, once in a relationship with him, always in a relationship with him.

“Interesting,” Ron replied, “I never thought of it that way.”

It’s a new day with God. Run with it.