The Israel of God in the Middle East

 The Israel of God in the Middle East


Dedicated to all regenerate Christians living in the Middle East


I strongly suspect that the most important people, and the most sublime activity taking place in the Middle East today, are seriously neglected--even among thoughtful and well-informed Christians.


Who constitutes the "Israel of God," (Gal. 6:16b), in the Middle East (or anywhere else in the rest of the world) today?  According to the Holy Scripture, in both the Old and New Testaments, the "Israel of God" are the people who truly believe in the one and only God.  The only way to believe in the one and only God is through saving (or regenerative) faith in Jesus Christ, The God/Man Second Person of the Holy Trinity.


. . . Therefore, the "Israel of God" is the church of Christ, made up of elect and redeemed Jews and Gentiles.  No one else is or can be the "Israel of God."  Since this is true, what are we to make of the nation of Israel?  We should view the nation of Israel as just that--a nation.  The fact that it has the name "Israel" should not be taken too seriously, nor should it give us cause for concern.

 

Undoubtedly, some members of the "Israel of God" are to be found in the nation of Israel--but all of them are Christians, people who believe that Jesus Christ is the Messiah of God.  Everybody else living in the nation of Israel is not of Israel, and they are not even Israelites.  This group would include Jews who do not believe in Jesus Christ; and it includes Muslims who do not believe in Jesus Christ; and it would include anyone else in the nation of Israel who does not believe in Jesus Christ.

 

But, we want to be fair here: the exact same standard applies to every other nation in the Middle East; and in every nation on earth.  In them all are members of the "Israel of God," and all of them are baptized into the mystical Body of Christ, the church.

 

When serious Christians think about and pray about world events--be they in the Middle East or elsewhere--our primary concern should always be for the children of God in the midst of those events.  It is also good and proper for us to be concerned about the unbelievers in all the lands on earth--but the church must always be first.

 

What probably makes the events in the Middle East most interesting to us (in the west), is the fact that the conflict is taking place in the area in which the Bible itself emanated.  Also, it kind of seemingly presents a sort of "good" versus "evil" scenario.  But the truth is, that we are often deceived about this "good" versus "evil" dynamic.  To say, "the Israelis are right/and the Muslims are wrong"; or, "The Muslims are right/and the Israelis are wrong," is to get the whole thing wrong.

 

What really matters in this, and all other cases, is the church.  This is not to deny that there are legitimate civil and magisterial claims of "rightness" or "wrongness" that really do apply.  And it does not mean that civil and lawful remedies are not to be sought out. . . . What it does mean for regenerate Christian churchmen is that we recognize that what the world sees as the essential struggle is not the essential struggle.

 

Ironically, to use the Middle East as a test case, (and this could be done anywhere else on earth, too), the antagonists all agree with one another.  At heart, if the contestants do not love God in Jesus Chist, then, in fact, they are very much aligned with each other in their greater conflict with God (and His true Israel).

 

I am not seeking to make light of what is going on in the Middle East; nor am I suggesting that we may not have our own personal "favorites" in the fight.  But what I am proposing, is that thoughtful Christians understand what (and who) really matters in all these contests--and that is Christ and His church.


So, the next time you see a message on a church's changeable sign board, which reads, "Pray for Israel," do just that: pray for the true Israel (the church); and then pray for the national "Israel"; and, while you are at it, pray for "Israel's" opponents.

 

To regard any self-conscious rejecter of Jesus Christ as a member of the "Israel of God," is idolatrous, foolhardy, ignorant, and (extremely) God-dishonoring.

 

Do pray for the "Israel of God."

 

Rev. Mark J. Henninger

Treatise #18

24 July 2025

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