(This summer I will have two new books out. The God That Answers by Fire:
7 Prophecies That Prove the Bible is True and Signal the End of the World, and Zechariah 2:4—The beginnings of Mishkenot Sha’nanim and the most amazing Bible prophecy you’ve never heard will be available on Amazon and I will post announcements when they are published, on my Patreon page.)
We Haven’t Replaced Israel
I intended to write about Israel’s current situation, as always volatile, especially in light of Trump’s cozying up with Qatar and the Syrian regime. Then I saw a social media post and that led me down a different path.
A person I know lightly posted about getting a “prophetic word” from Isaiah 49. I winced.
The resulting musing was about this person finding himself in the text.
No.
That’s not how this works.
The person that posted this item on social media comes from a solid family and solid church background, in fact, one that is rooted in pro-Israel support and a love for Bible prophecy.
Such people are targeted by the enemy. Increasingly, we are seeing brethren depart from solid Bible teaching to embrace this era’s apostate and heretical teachings. It’s all very simple: if you stay rooted in Scripture alone, you won’t stray. If however you begin to hear the lure, the siren song of errant thinking, you will be open to anything.
I’ve said many times, there is nothing evil about very occasionally applying a particular verse of Scripture to your own life, or your church. Nothing at all. But doing it consistently is a problem.
This is routinely done today with regard to Israel and Jewish history, and specifically the prophecies about them. Which is to say, a giant chunk of the Bible.
In the past 20 years, I’ve seen the Reformed set decimate pro-Israel support in the Southern Baptist Convention. I’ve seen Assemblies of God communities, once rooted in Israel teaching, fall for Emergent doctrines and pied pipers.
Taking Isaiah 49 and lifting the whole thing—very plainly about Israel and the restoration of the Jews—as a “prophetic word” about your own spiritual journey…sorry, that’s skewed thinking. This also leads to self-absorption. I remember a few years ago seeing some images of Elevation Church founder Steven Furtick in Israel. He was wearing some sort of cloak and holding a staff. He was comparing himself to Elijah or some nonsense. His followers don’t know enough to realize he is practicing a form of Replacement Theology. That involves (I know you know this) taking a passage or book of Scripture and transferring the meaning from Israel to something Christian. This is theological malpractice and is gaining steam.
The fundamental reason for this is overall biblical illiteracy in the United States. It’s a plague.
Sometimes Replacement Theology can be subtle, as in a sincere spiritual seeker’s personal life. You begin to see in Israel’s wanderings in the Sinai your own meandering path through life. Your struggles. Your periods of famine and hunger. Relationship distresses. Your own life is very special and meaningful.
But it has little-to-nothing to do with the Israelites and modern Jews. The prophecies and promises to the Jews are meant for them alone for the duration. It is not your name on the foundation stones and gates of the New Jerusalem.
It isn’t you that was meant to return from exile to your ancient homeland, once known as Palestine. It isn’t your territory that was predicted to bloom again in the last days, after thousands of years of existing as a desert.
If you know someone in your life succumbing to Replacement Theology, care enough about them to lead them back to truth.
Someday they will thank you. And the Jews will thank you.
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