The New Covenant-Part 3

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Evidences For The Future Fulfillment Of The New Covenant With National Israel

The previous article noted that the major issue related to the New Covenant is if there will be a complete fulfillment of the New Covenant with literal, national Israel in the future. The present article will examine several biblical evidences to the effect that God will fulfill the New Covenant with literal, national Israel in the future.

First, in one of the major Old Testament passages in which God presented promises of the New Covenant (Ezekiel 36:21-38), He clearly indicated that He would fulfill those prom­ises with the same national people who profaned His holy name among the Gentiles. The context (Ezekiel 36:16-20) and language (“house of Israel,” vv. 22, 32, 37) of this passage signify that those people were the literal people of Israel. Because of its unbelief, national Israel has not yet received the fulfillment of the New Covenant promises of Ezekiel 36 since the time Jesus established that covenant when He shed His blood on the cross. Since God indicated that He would fulfill the New Covenant promises with literal Israel, and since that nation has not yet received the fulfillment of those promises, one must conclude that they will be fulfilled with national Israel in the future.

Second, God’s declaration that He would fulfill the promises of the New Covenant be­cause of Israel’s profaning of His holy name among the Gentiles (Ezekiel 36:20-23) indi­cates that literal, national Israel does not forfeit its relationship to the New Covenant. In­stead of the nation’s disobedience preventing its receiving the fulfillment of the New Cov­enant promises, it actually causes it.

Third, an earlier article noted that some of the New Covenant promises were spiritual in nature, but others were material and national in nature. In addition, it was noted that the Church today partakes of the spiritual blessings which God promised as part of the New Covenant, such as regeneration, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, and possession of the new nature. The Apostle Paul declared that Church believers have been blessed “with all spiritual blessings” (Ephesians 1:3).

It should be noted, however, that although the Church partakes of the spiritual blessings of the New Covenant, the material and national promises of that covenant are not being fulfilled with the Church. For example, one of the national promises was that once Israel would enter into the New Covenant relationship with God, that nation would receive no more threats and insults from other nations (Ezekiel 34:28-29). By contrast, in spite of the fact that the Church has had a relationship to the New Covenant throughout its history, it has been threatened, insulted, and persecuted many times by different nations.

Since the material and national promises of the New Covenant are not being fulfilled with the Church, that means that those promises have not yet been fulfilled. Since God has declared His determination to perform all His promises (including the material and national ones) of the New Covenant (Ezekiel 36:26), one must conclude that those promises will be fulfilled with the nation of Israel in the future.

Fourth, after the Church came into existence and began to partake of the spiritual bless­ings of the New Covenant, the Apostle Paul declared that the nation of Israel would experience the fulfillment of the New Covenant when the Messiah would come in His Second Coming (Romans 11:25-29). Paul was not original in this declaration, for the Old Testament taught that God would fulfill the New Covenant with Israel when the Messiah would come in conjunction with Israel’s final regathering from its dispersion and permanent restoration to the land of Israel (Isaiah 59:20-21; Jeremiah 32:37-44; 50:4-5; Ezekiel 36:22-28; 37:21-28).

Paul stated that God would not repent (change His mind) concerning this future calling for Israel which He announced in the Old Testament (Romans 11:29). In other words, God’s calling for Israel to enter into New Covenant relationship with Him in the future is irrevo­cable. It must happen. Paul signified that, when Israel enters into that relationship with God, the Isaiah 59:20-21 New Covenant prophecy will be fulfilled.

The fact that Paul had literal, national Israel in mind when he made these statements in Roman 11 is evident from at least three things. First, in verse one he clearly indicated that he was talking about the people of God who were as much literal Israelites, physical de­scendants of Abraham, and members of Israelite tribes as he was. Second, in verse 14 Paul declared that the Israel to which he referred was his flesh (his own countrymen). Third, Paul contrasted the Israel of this chapter with the Gentiles (vv. 11-14, 25). It is evi­dent that in Romans 11 Paul was teaching that literal, national Israel will enter into New Covenant relationship with God in conjunction with the Second Coming of the Messiah.

The fact that Paul taught this after the Church had come into existence and had begun to partake of the spiritual blessings of the New Covenant indicates two things. First, the literal nation of Israel has not forfeited its promised relationship to the New Covenant be­cause of its unbelief and rebellion against God. Second, although the Church is partaking of the spiritual blessings of the New Covenant, it has not replaced literal Israel in its prom­ised relationship to that covenant. Thus, Paul clearly stated that God has not cast away His people of Israel (Romans 11:1-2).

Concluding Considerations

It is apparent that Jesus established the New Covenant when He shed His blood on the cross (Luke 22:20; 1 Corinthians 11:25; Hebrews 8:6-13; 9:15; 12:24). The Church, which began shortly after Christ’s death (Acts 2:1-4; 11:15), has partaken of the spiritual blessings of the New Covenant. According to the Apostle Paul’s teaching in Romans 11, during the time of the Church, a remnant of literal, national Israel is being saved by the grace of God through faith in Christ. Those Israelites become members of the Church through salvation. They thereby partake of the spiritual blessings of the New Covenant, as do the other mem­bers of the Church. But they do not partake of the material and national blessings of the New Covenant, as the rest of the Church does not.

By contrast with this remnant of Israel, the majority of literal, national Israel during the time of the Church does not become saved because of its hardened unbelief. As a result, that majority does not obtain any of the promised blessings of the New Covenant, even though it seeks many of those blessings during that time. Because of their unbelief, the majority of the nations have been removed by God from the place of covenant blessing which the nation of Israel enjoyed with Him in the past. This means, then, that national Israel failed to enter the New Covenant relationship with God in conjunction with the Messiah’s First Coming.

While the majority of national Israel remains in unbelief outside the place of covenant blessing, many Gentiles, who originally were not in that place of blessing, are being grafted into it by God’s grace through faith in Christ. These saved Gentiles are members of the Church. They are grafted into the place of covenant blessing in the sense that they partake of the spiritual blessings of the New Covenant, as do the remnant Israelite members of the Church.

Although believing Gentiles are grafted into the place of covenant blessing in place of the unbelieving majority of national Israel, that does not mean that the fulfillment of the New Covenant with literal, national Israel has been nullified. Paul made it very clear that the majority of national Israel will not be removed from the place of covenant blessing forever. That removal is only temporary. When the great harvest of Gentile souls has been gathered and the Messiah returns, national Israel will be saved and placed back into the place of covenant blessing (Romans 11:23-27). At that time literal, national Israel will enter fully into the New Covenant relationship with God, and all the promises (spiritual, material, and national) of that covenant will be fulfilled completely with that nation. Thus, although national Israel failed to enter the New Covenant relationship with God in conjunction with the Messiah’s First Coming, it will enter it in conjunction with His Second Coming.

In Romans 11, therefore, Paul explained how the Church now partakes of the spiritual blessings of the New Covenant. The complete fulfillment of that covenant with national Israel, however, has not been and never will be nullified.

For a comparison of Covenant Theology and Dispensational Theology obtain the follow­ing book: Renald E. Showers, There Really Is A Difference! (The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry. Telephone: 800-257-7843. Mailing address: P.O. Box 908, Bellmawr, NJ 08099).

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