What’s your (real) objection? (Part 2)
For Jews only?
“For God so loved the world [Jews + non-Jews] that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” —the apostle John
Based upon the fact that Jesus was born and died a Jew together with other historical data, a friend of mine has concluded there is no evidence that Jesus intended to create a new religion. I agree! (see previous blog)
Given the foregoing, my friend has also concluded that Jesus’ vision didn’t extend beyond the Jewish people. As a result, he is puzzled by the survival and growth of Christianity. Indeed, with a current global constituency estimated to be over 2.4 billion adherents, it is the largest religious faith in the world. Moreover, while most Christians are not Jews, I know many Jews in Israel and elsewhere who have become passionate followers of Jesus.
Let’s examine the early history of humankind more closely to discern God’s plan for all people and the Jews’ place in that plan. Following Adam and Eve’s treasonous rebellion, God told the serpent (aka Satan) “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” Note that this declaration predates the arrival of the Jewish people and looks ahead to the time when Jesus triumphed over Satan on the cross. A natural reading of the text is that the beneficiaries of Jesus’ victory are not only the Jewish race but all of humanity.
One of the pivotal moments in history was God’s election of Abram (renamed Abraham) as the progenitor of the Jewish Messiah. God announced His sovereign decision to carry out His redemptive plan through someone from Abraham’s lineage after Abraham obeyed His command to sacrifice his son Isaac. When God saw Abraham’s obedience, He provided a lamb as a substitute for Isaac. In addition, He declared, “And through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed—all because you have obeyed me.” Thus, His plan was to bless all of humankind and not just Abraham’s direct line of descendants. Indeed, most Jews today would disagree that Christianity is for Jews only!
The remarkable growth of the Christian church flows from the intimate relationship between Jesus and those following him.
In any event, in his letter to the fledgling church at Ephesus, the apostle Paul explains Jesus’ role in reconciling and uniting all humanity under his banner as follows: “For he himself [Jesus] is our peace, who has made the two groups [Jews and non-Jews] one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.”
The remarkable growth of the Christian church flows from the intimate relationship between Jesus and those following him. From personal experience, the benefits of believing in him including knowing God, experiencing His presence, and finding purpose in life explain the continuing growth of the global church. And they have nothing whatsoever to do with religion!
Next blog: Whatever will be will be?
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