Monday, January 09, 2017

Who are the Assembly of God's People?


Due to snow and ice this past weekend, church and Sunday school were cancelled for this past Sunday (January 8). The first class will be held this next Sunday, January 15.

Understanding who make up the community of God's chosen people is central to understanding eschatology. The assembly of Israel in the Old Testament, with the coming of Christ, had an in-grafting of Gentiles to the Jews who believed in Jesus as their Messiah. Those who did not believe in Jesus were pruned or cut off from the assembly of Israel.

The word translated as "church" in the New Testament comes from the Greek word "ecclesia" -- congregation. In the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, the Septuagint, the Hebrew word for the assembly of the people of Israel was translated as "ecclesia".

This continuity of the assembly of Israel, the assembly of the people of God, has a continuity from the Old Testament into the New Testament. It should be noted that the Church does not replace Israel. Rather, God has graciously grafted in believing Gentiles with believing Jews. This is one people where there is no distinction between Jew and Gentile.

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