Steve Conover: Thank you for joining us for The Friends of Israel Today. I'm Steve Conover, executive director of The Friends of Israel. With me is our host and teacher, Chris Katulka.

Chris Katulka: Hello everyone. Today we're kicking off a new series. It's called Not So Fast! Does the Church Really Replace Israel? In fact, what we're going to be doing over the next few weeks is looking at particular verses that individuals like to use to show that the church has replaced Israel. Today, we're going to start with one that's often used, Galatians 6:16, and it has to do with when Paul says the “Israel of God.” Is it talking about the church or is God still speaking to the people he's been speaking to from the Old Testament through the New Testament when he calls Israel “Israel?”

Steve Conover: This is a very important study. We hope you'll join us for all four weeks. But first in the news, a new survey found that more than half of Israelis, 52%, are worried about revealing their Israeli identity while traveling abroad because of concerns about antisemitism or hostility. Since October 7th, 2023, 41% of Israelis say these concerns have caused them to change how they travel, including changing their behavior, altering plans, or canceling trips altogether.

Chris Katulka: Well, Steve, here's my take. I don't blame Israelis for feeling this way. We've seen stories on social media from California and Washington DC to cities across Europe of Israelis being targeted simply for being Israeli while on vacation. There have been reports of hotel staff saying “Free Palestine” as Israeli guests check in and restaurant servers treating Israeli customers with hostility simply because of their nationality. Given that kind of atmosphere, it's not hard to understand why some Israelis would rather keep their identity private while traveling. 

Chris Katulka: Over the next four weeks, we're going to begin a new series called Not So Fast! Does the Church Really Replace Israel? There's several New Testament passages that are often brought into discussion about Israel and the church. Sometimes a verse is quoted, a phrase is isolated, and we're told there it is, the church is now Israel. The distinction that once existed between Israel and the nations have disappeared, the promises God made to Israel now belong to the church.

But over the next few weeks, I want to slow us down a little bit. Not so fast. Before we build an entire theology on a phrase or a verse, we need to ask what the New Testament writer actually said and who he was talking to. We need to read the verse in its context. We need to notice the grammar. We need to pay attention to the argument of the book. And perhaps most importantly, we need to allow the Apostle Paul, because that's who we're going to be looking at over the next few weeks, we need to allow him to use words the way Paul uses them rather than loading them with conclusions that we've already reached. We'll look at several verses over the next few weeks, but today I want to begin with perhaps one of the most frequently cited verses in the entire discussion.

Galatians 6:16, when Paul writes, "And as many as walk according to this rule, peace and mercy be upon them and upon the Israel of God." There it is, the Israel of God. For many Christians, that phrase settles the issue. Paul is supposedly giving the church a new name. Jews and Gentiles have become one people in Christ. Therefore, we're told Paul now calls that people the Israel of God, case closed. Except maybe it's not quite that simple. When we slow down and we look at the verse more carefully, something becomes apparent that can easily be overlooked. See, Paul appears to be speaking about two groups. He speaks first about “as many as walk according to this rule,” and then he says, "And upon the Israel of God." I'm going to tell you something, that little word “and” matters. Remember grammar school? Remember learning about that word conjunctions?

“And,” “but,” “or,” and yes, even “yet.” To understand why, we need to back up and look at what Paul has been arguing all throughout the book of Galatians, not just in Galatians 6:16. See, Galatians is written in the middle of a controversy over Gentile believers and the Mosaic law, particularly circumcision. Certain teachers were troubling the Galatian churches by insisting that Gentiles needed to be circumcised. In fact, some Gentiles may have even wanted to become circumcised. And for that reason, they were telling Gentile believers that faith in Christ wasn't enough. They needed to take on an identity marker of Jewish covenant membership. And Paul strongly opposed that teaching, and that's why circumcision appears over and over throughout the letter. Now listen, Paul was not attacking Jewish people. He was not arguing that circumcision has become meaningless for the Jewish people. He'll talk about that both in Galatians and in Romans.

He is addressing a very specific question, must Gentiles become circumcised in order to belong to the people of God in the Messiah? And Paul's answer is no. And that brings us to the immediate context of Galatians 6. Beginning in verse 12, Paul returns to the issue of once again, circumcision. And he says that those who are trying to compel the Galatians to be circumcised want to make a good showing in the flesh. They want to boast in the Galatians' flesh. And then Paul says in verse 14, "But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ." And then we arrive at verse 15, "For in Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but a new creation." See, that is the rule, the "rule" that Paul refers to in verse 16, our verse here. Circumcision is not what gives a Gentile standing before God.

Uncircumcision is not what gives someone standing before God either. The decisive reality is what? New creation. Salvation is found in Christ and Christ alone. So Paul is saying in verse 16, "As many as walk according to this rule, peace and mercy be upon them." So who are these people? They are those who have embraced Paul's gospel and live according to the truth that he has just stated. Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision determines our standing before God. What matters is new creation brought about through Christ. And then Paul adds another phrase, "And upon the Israel of God." Okay, people. So listen, the Greek. We're going to get into Greek here a little bit. The Greek construction of this sentence is incredibly important. Paul uses the very common conjunction for “and,” and the word in Greek is kai. The ordinary Greek word that's translated “and.” “Peace and mercy be upon those who walk according to this rule and upon the Israel of God." The most natural reading is that Paul has one group in mind with the first phrase and then adds another group with the second phrase. Believing Gentiles who have rejected the pressure of becoming circumcised are one group and believing Jewish people, the Israel of God are another. Both standing together in Christ, both receive peace and mercy, but Paul doesn't have to erase their identities in order to affirm their spiritual equality.

Now, some interpreters will argue that the word kai (“and”) should be interpreted here as meaning something like “even.” And on that reading, Paul would be saying peace and mercy upon them even upon the Israel of God. In other words, the second expression would simply rename the first group. All believers together therefore would constitute the Israel of God. Now grammatically, it is possible for the Greek word kai to sometimes function that way, and we should acknowledge that. But possibility is not the same thing as probability. The context of Galatians makes the ordinary meaning “and” particularly natural. And you can hear it here, the two views that I just talked about in these two prominent English translations. Listen to how they translated this Greek phrase so that you can hear how their interpretation affects the way that we read this verse. In the New King James, Galatians 6:16 says, "As many as walk according to this rule, peace and mercy be upon them and upon the Israel of God." Do you hear how the “and,” the conjunction, creates the two categories?

Now listen to how the NIV, the New International Version, interpreted Galatians 6:16. “Peace and mercy to all who follow this rule, to the Israel of God.” Did you notice how the interpreters of the NIV left out everything? The conjunction. Left out “and upon?” They interpreted the conjunction as a way to say that the church has become Israel. They are assuming it right there. Now let's think about Paul's entire argument though. Throughout this letter, Paul has been defending Gentile believers from the demand that they become Jewish proselytes through circumcision. Now I want you to imagine that at the very conclusion of the letter, Paul suddenly says in effect, "Oh, by the way, all you Gentiles are Israel now." That would be a really strange way to conclude the argument. Paul has just spent six chapters telling Gentiles that they don't need to take on a Jewish covenant markers in order to belong to Christ.

Why would he finish by assigning them a Jewish national identity, a Jewish national designation that he is nowhere clearly assigned to Gentiles throughout the letter or anywhere else for that matter? There's a much simpler reading. Gentiles do not need to become Jews. Jewish believers do not cease being Jewish people. Together they are united in Christ and Paul pronounces peace and mercy upon both of them. That reading actually fits the argument of Galatians beautifully. And when we come back, we're going to see more clearly how when Paul says “Israel of God,” he's actually speaking to Israel, not the church. So stick around.

Steve Conover: Chris, whenever I travel with The Friends of Israel, I've noticed how fascinated people are with modern Jewish culture and customs. Their holidays, music, literature, religious practices, and even their food.

Chris Katulka: Steve, I totally agree. And I actually believe that knowing more about modern Jewish practices does something that may sound surprising. I actually think it can help combat antisemitism, the hatred of the Jewish people. See, understanding modern Jewish culture and customs helps you understand many of the misconceptions surrounding the Jewish people today. In fact, my friend Steve Herzig does an amazing job giving readers a look into the modern Jewish world in his book, Jewish Culture and Customs. Steve was actually raised in an observant Jewish home before coming to faith in Jesus the Messiah.

Steve Conover: Yeah. So he understands these traditions from a personal experience.

Chris Katulka: Exactly. And what makes this book especially meaningful is the way that Steve connects Jewish life and culture to the person and work of Jesus.

Steve Conover: I love that so much. You can order your copy of Jewish Culture and Customs by going to foiradio.org. Again, that's foiradio.org.

Chris Katulka: Welcome back everyone. We've just started a series called Not So Fast! Does the Church Really Replace Israel? And we'll be looking at several New Testament passages that are often brought into discussion about Israel and the church. Today we're looking at the famous Israel of God passage in Galatians 6:16 and questioning whether Paul was speaking of one group of people or two—Jews and Gentiles. Now, we're looking at the context of the entire letter to help give us a better understanding of what Paul was saying there. And remember earlier in Galatians, Paul makes one of his most famous statements in Galatians chapter 3:28. You know this one. Paul says this, “There is neither Jew nor Greek. There is neither slave nor free. There is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” That verse is sometimes interpreted to mean that these distinctions cease to exist, but clearly Paul isn't communicating that.

A man doesn't cease being a male when he believes in Jesus. A woman doesn't cease being a female. A slave in the first century did not automatically become legally free the moment he trusted in Christ. So what is Paul saying here? He means that these distinctions do not determine a person's standing in Christ. Jew and Greek have equal access to salvation. Male and female have equal standing before God. Slave and free come to Christ on precisely the same basis. Unity does not require the destruction of distinction. And that principle helps us tremendously when we reach Galatians 6:16. Paul can affirm complete spiritual unity between Jew and Gentile believers while still recognizing that they remain Jewish and Gentile believers. In fact, Paul does this elsewhere. He repeatedly refers to himself as an Israelite. Years after becoming a follower of Jesus, Paul doesn't say, "I used to be an Israelite." He says, "I am an Israelite." In Romans 11:1, he asks, "Has God cast away his people?" And how does he answer?

"May it never be, certainly not, for I am an Israelite of the seed of Abraham, the tribe of Benjamin." See, Paul's faith in Jesus didn't erase his Israelite identity. It confirmed that he was an Israelite who believed Israel's Messiah had come. And that helps us understand this beautiful phrase, “Israel of God.” Paul spent his time teaching Galatians and confronting agitators who promoted a false gospel. They boasted in circumcision. They pressured the Gentiles. They distort the purpose of the law, but Paul does not want his condemnation of those teachers to become a condemnation of believing Israel. There were Jewish believers who embraced the gospel of grace. There were Israelites who confessed to Jesus as Messiah. There were Jewish followers of Jesus who did not demand that Gentiles become circumcised in order to be saved. And at the end of this heated letter, Paul may be making a deliberate distinction.

There are those who boast in circumcision, and then there is the Israel of God, faithful Jewish believers in Jesus, Israelites who recognize their Messiah. Paul blesses them, peace and mercy be upon them. See, actually that makes the phrase far richer than simply turning it into another name for the church. In fact, Paul is able to acknowledge believing Gentiles and believing Israel together without collapsing them into one. And that is a really important distinction because sometimes our theology assumes that unity requires replacement. It doesn't. The New Testament can affirm that Jews and Gentiles are one in Christ without saying Gentiles become Jews. It can affirm that both receive the Holy Spirit without saying the church becomes Israel. It can affirm that both are children of Abraham by faith without erasing the ethnic and national identity of Israel. And it can affirm that both belong to the Messiah while maintaining distinctions within the people of God.

And there's one more important principle here. When a word has an established meaning throughout an author's writings, we should be very cautious about assigning it an entirely new meaning in one disputed verse. Paul uses the term “Israel” repeatedly. And when Paul says Israel, I'm going to tell you something. He means Israel. He means Jewish people. Sometimes he's speaking of unbelieving Israel, sometimes believing Israel, sometimes Israel corporately, sometimes a remnant within Israel, but it would be unusual for Paul to suddenly use Israel to mean the predominantly Gentile church without giving us some clear indication that he's redefining the term altogether. That doesn't mean that Gentiles are outsiders of God's grace. Far from it. The astonishing message of Paul's ministry is that Gentiles have been brought near through Israel's Messiah without having to become Israelites. That is what makes grace so extraordinary. Gentiles don't have to exchange their ethnicity in order to belong to Jesus.

They don't have to become Jewish first. They come as Gentiles. They believe Israel's Messiah. They receive the Spirit. They become sons and daughters of God. They share in the spiritual blessings that God promised through Abraham and they stand alongside Jewish believers as equals before God. And perhaps that is what we should hear when we arrive at the final words of Galatians. Paul has fought fiercely throughout this letter for the freedom of Gentile believers. Don't let anyone tell you that you must be circumcised to complete what Christ has done in you. Do not boast in the flesh. Don't trust in your ethnic markers. Boast in the cross. What matters is new creation. And then he concludes, "As many as walk according to this rule, peace be upon them and upon the Israel of God." So when someone points to this phrase, the “Israel of God" and says, "There it is." Paul says the church has replaced Israel. Perhaps our response should simply be, "Ah, not so fast.”

Look at the sentence. Look at the conjunction. Look at the context. Look at Paul's arguments. Paul doesn't need Gentiles to become Israel. He has spent the whole letter telling them not to become Jews. Instead, the gospel creates something remarkable. Jewish believers remain Jewish, Gentile believers remain Gentile. Both belong fully to Jesus Christ. Both stand on the same ground at the foot of the cross and both receive the blessing Paul pronounced at the end of the letter, “Peace, mercy, and grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Steve Conover: Now, Apples of Gold, a dramatic reading from the life and ministry of Holocaust survivor, Zvi Kalisher.

Mike Kellogg: For many days I had been asking myself, How do I find people like me, who survived the Holocaust, so that I may bring them the gospel of Christ? Speaking to them about faith is not easy. They do not want to hear about the Bible. But as we say in Israel, “If God wills it, even a broom can shoot.”

Recently a friend came to my home to ask for my help. “Zvi,” he said, “I know a 90-year-old man who is a Holocaust survivor and does not want to hear about the Lord. Would you please come and speak to him? He only wants to speak with people who have suffered as he did because they understand what he is going through.”

“I am ready,” I said. So I went to his home with my friend. We talked for quite a while and began to develop a friendship. I asked him how he dealt with all he endured during World War II, and I listened to his reply. Then he asked me the same question.

“In the beginning,” I said, “it was very hard for me. But over time, I started to read the Holy Bible and grow closer to the Lord; and He gave me hope and the courage to go on living. During the Holocaust, I was jealous of those who died. I was 10 when the Nazis came through Poland, where I lived. I was separated from my family and have never seen them again.

“When the war was over I came to Israel, and someone gave me a Bible. I read Psalm 27:10, where it is written, ‘When my father and my mother forsake me, then the LORD will take care of me.’ He gave me courage to live and even enabled me to encourage others who walked the same long road of suffering.

“And here I am today, no longer suffering, because I put my trust in the Lord.”

He had many questions, and I told him how I came to know the Lord personally. At the beginning of my visit, he was extremely distraught. But he paid great attention to everything I said, and in time I saw great joy appear over his face. Then I opened the Bible and began to read to him.

He listened, and I could sense the Lord’s presence. I have spoken to other Holocaust survivors, and they all ask the same questions: “How can you speak about faith in God? You know what I have lived through! Where was God then?”

I asked him, “How old are you?”

“I am 90 years old,” he replied.

“And who gave you this long life if not God Himself? You could have died in Europe, but He brought you here and has taken care of you. So if you want to know where God was, look at yourself. He was with you the entire time so that you should come to know Him and tell others about Him.”

I showed him how God has blessed His Chosen People by giving us back the land He promised to us and to our descendants forever. When he asked me where such promises are written, I showed him Genesis 12:7; 13:14–17; 15:18; 17:8; and Exodus 23:31.

Then he asked, “Can you give me a Bible? I would like to read it.” I was waiting for him to ask. 

“It is good for you to read,” I said. “You must read and also open your heart before the Lord. He will encourage you, as He did me. He gave me the courage to go on living. And here I am today, doing His will with much joy. Despite all we have gone through, God has not forsaken us. As it is written, ‘You are My servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified’” (Isa. 49:3).

Steve Conover: Thank you for joining us for today's episode of The Friends of Israel Today. Don't forget to order your copy of Jewish Culture and Customs. You can do that at foiradio.org. Again, that's foiradio.org. This week we looked at Galatians 6:16. Chris, what are we looking at next week?

Chris Katulka: Yeah, we're going to look at another verse that is often used to show that there is a “true” Jew and oftentimes used to show that God has abandoned the Jewish people of the Old Testament as the church becomes the “true” Jew. And that comes from Romans 2:28-29. It's not the Jew on display. That's what we're going to be looking at and is really God getting rid of the Jewish people as a result of that? And I'm going to say, let's slow it down.

Steve Conover: Excellent. We'll look at that together next week. Join us then. As we close, I'd like to thank our radio team: Host and teacher Chris Katulka. Executive producer, Lisa Small. Associate producer, Sarah Fern. Engineer, Bob Beebe. Program editor, Jeremy Strong. Apples of Gold was voiced by the late Mike Kellogg. And I'm Steve Conover, executive director of The Friends of Israel. The Friends of Israel Today is a production of The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry. Passion for God's Word. Compassion for God's Chosen People.