What Should Christians Think About Modern Israel?
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In the final episode of “Israel, the Church, and God’s Promises,” Bryan Catherman and Josiah Walker finally answer the question many people wanted answered in episode one: What should Christians think about modern Israel? We took the scenic route because the Bible took the scenic route. Abraham, Sinai, land, exile, prophets, Jesus, the church, Romans 9 to 11.
Romans 11 gives us important guardrails. Paul speaks of a partial hardening, the fullness of the Gentiles, and the hope that “all Israel will be saved.” Christians have understood that phrase in different ways, and faithful believers disagree about the details. But Romans 11 is clear about at least this much: God has not failed, Gentiles have no reason to boast, unbelief matters, and any future hope for Jewish people comes only through Christ.
The picture of the olive tree is especially helpful. Some branches are broken off because of unbelief. Gentiles are grafted in by faith. Natural branches can be grafted back in. That means this is not about Gentile arrogance or Jewish dismissal. It is one tree, one root, one people of God gathered through faith in Christ.
That helps us speak carefully about modern Israel. Modern Israel is a real nation-state in God’s providence, but it is not automatically identical with biblical covenant Israel. Christians may disagree about how modern Israel relates to prophecy, but we should not hand any modern nation a theological blank check. Not Israel. Not America. Not anybody. Nations can be significant without being infallible.
So Christians should reject anti-Semitism without hesitation. We should pray for Jewish people to know Christ. We should also reject hatred toward Palestinians, Arabs, and others in the region. They, too, are image-bearers. We should care about peace, justice, truth, and the advance of the gospel among all peoples.
Our hope is not in borders, leaders, armies, elections, or prophecy charts. Our hope is in Jesus Christ, the risen King. The Bible begins in Genesis and ends in Revelation, with God dwelling forever with his redeemed people in the new creation. That is where the promises finally land. Subscribe and listen wherever you get podcasts, watch on our YouTube channel, or listen here:
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