Church Fathers Justin Martyr and John Chrysostom On Spiritual Israel

by northwye Mon Jul 18, 2011 8:02 pm

Church Fathers Justin Martyr and John Chrysostom On Spiritual Israel
Bernard Pyron

While the traditional Calvinists taught that the "church" is Israel, or spiritual
Israel, almost all Calvinists are now part of that construct which Revelation 17: 1- 11 refers
to as Mystery Babylon the Great, the Mother of Harlots and Abominations of
the Earth." The Remnant of Israel now claims the faithful people of God are Israel.
Its interesting to find that some of the early church fathers agreed with us.

Justin Martyr on "the true spiritual Israel"
"Jesus Christ ... is the new law, and the new covenant, and the
expectation of those who out of every people wait for the good things
of God. For the true spiritual Israel, and the descendants of Judah,
Jacob, Isaac, and Abraham (who in uncircumcision was approved of and
blessed by God on account of his faith, and called the father of many
nations), are we who have been led to God through this crucified
Christ."
John Chrysostom on Galatians 6:15-16
"Observe the power of the Cross, to what a pitch it hath raised him!
not only hath it put to death for him all mundane affairs, but hath
set him far above the Old Dispensation. What can be comparable to this
power? for the Cross hath persuaded him, who was willing to be slain
and to slay others for the sake of circumcision, to leave it on a
level with uncircumcision, and to seek for things strange and
marvellous and above the heavens. This our rule of life he calls "a
new creature," both on account of what is past, and of what is to
come; of what is past, because our soul, which had grown old with the
oldness of sin, hath been all at once renewed by baptism, as if it had
been created again. Wherefore we require a new and heavenly rule of
life. And of things to come, because both the heaven and the earth,
and all the creation, shall with our bodies be translated into
incorruption. Tell me not then, he says, of circumcision, which now
availeth nothing; (for how shall it appear, when all things have
undergone such a change?) but seek the new things of grace. For they
who pursue these things shall enjoy peace and amity, and may properly
be called by the name of "Israel." While they who hold contrary
sentiments, although they be descended from him and bear his
appellation, have yet fallen away from all these things, both the
relationship and the name itself. But it is in their power to be true
Israelites, who keep this rule, who desist from the old ways, and
follow after grace."
These excerpts from the writings on Justin Martyr and John Chrysostom,
show that they understood what Paul was talking about when he said there are two Israels
in Romans 9: 6-8. So, Galatians 6: 16 in effect says "...and upon the
Israel (which) is of God." In other words, the Israel Paul is talking
about here is that Israel which is of God. This is consistent with
what he says in Romans 9: 8, "...They which are of the children of the
flesh, these are not the children of God." Physical Israel as the children
of the flesh and not transformed into spiritual Israel is not the Israel of God.
Galatians 6: 16 in the Textus Receptus says "...ton Israel tau Theau."
The article "ton" makes this Israel different, as well as "tau" or
"of" between Israel and God, "THE Israel OF God."
Paul uses "spiritual" and "spiritually" in a number of verses. He
uses "spiritual" in 21 places and "spiritually" in three verses. But
he did not choose to use "spiritual" in Galatians 6: 16, or in Romans
11: 26, where he might have written "spiritual Israel" to distinguish
it from fleshly Israel. In I Corinthians 10: 18 he says "Behold Israel
after the flesh..." to distinguish this Israel from Israel which are
the children of the promise (Romans 9: 8) or
Israel (he calls it Jerusalem) "which is above is free, which is the
mother of us all," Galatians 4: 26) which he might have called
"spiritual Israel."
The quote above from Justin Martyr, "Abraham who in uncircumcision was
approved of and blessed by God," is something the Pharisees who in Acts
15: 1 insisted that Gentile Christians be circumcised did not
understand of accept. Paul explains in Romans 4: 10 that Abraham was called
and honored by God while he was still uncircumcised.
What John Chrysostom says is even more important:
"Observe the power of the Cross, to what a pitch it hath raised him!
not only hath it put to death for him all mundane affairs, but hath
set him far above the Old Dispensation. What can be comparable to this
power? for the Cross hath persuaded him, who was willing to be slain
and to slay others for the sake of circumcision, to leave it on a
level with uncircumcision, and to seek for things strange and
marvellous and above the heavens."
Chrysostom is saying is that the physical Israelite was
transformed from a physical being to a spiritual being by believing on
Christ and his work on the Cross. That which was only physical
before, illustrated by circumcision of the flesh of male Israelites,
was transformed or translated into the spiritual by the Cross and on
the Day of Pentecost, when tongues of fire appeared on the people
Peter addressed, a form of the shining and the transfiguration of Luke 9: 28-36.
The guys who before gloried in being circumcised in the flesh, and were in
bondage to that fleshly evidence, now became spiritual and free, and
the evidence of that was the tongues of fire on them.
The word "translated" which we tend to think is limited to translating
one language into another is used three times in the Bible. First, it
is used in II Samuel 3:9-10 where the King James Version says "So do
God to Abner, and more also, except, as the LORD hath sworn to David,
even so I do to him; To translate the kingdom from the house of Saul,
and to set up the throne of David over Israel and over Judah, from Dan
even to Beer-sheba."
But, for example, the New American Standard Bible has "to transfer the
kingdom from the house of Saul and to establish the throne of David
over Israel and over Judah."
Then in Colossians 1: 13 Paul says "Who hath delivered us from the
power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear
Son."
But The New American Standard says "For He rescued us from the domain
of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,"
To me, "translated," when you know it means also to transform, is a
more powerful expression than just saying "transfer" or "transferred,"
which are more mundane expressions.
Hebrews 11: 5 in the King James says God translated Enoch.
John Chrysostom says "the Cross hath persuaded him (the physical
Israelite), who was willing to be slain and to slay others for the
sake of circumcision, to leave (circumcision)." Circumcision was finished
at the Cross.
On http://www.udonet.com/circumcision/christian.html0 Laura
Jezek says ""The New Testament teaches that we as New Covenant
believers are supposed to accept His circumcision, His baptism, His
death, and His
resurrection as our propitiation (Col. 2:8-14). The writings of the
Early Church Fathers are filled with references to this. They speak
over and over of "giving thanks to our Savior for taking our
circumcision for us, and shedding His innocent blood once for all, so
that we'll never have to."
Hebrews 9: 22 teaches that "And almost all things are by the law purged with blood: and without shedding
of blood is no remission." That is, without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sins under the law.
Leviticus 17: 11 says "...for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul." Matthew 5: 17 says
"Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.."
Christ fulfilled and abolished that part of the Law dealing with
ceremony and sacrifice. But he did not come to abolish the
righteousness of
God. For example, usury, or making money from charging interest on
loans, is forbidden in Exodus 22: 25, but this moral teaching was not
abolished in the New Covenant. The shedding of blood under the Old
Covenant Law was fulfilled by Christ and after the Cross shedding of
blood
has no value in atonement for sin. Animal sacrifice and any other
shedding of blood under the Old Covenant pointed to Christ's sacrifice
once and for all time for sin.
After Christ was circumcised, and after he shed his blood on the
Cross and died, the ceremonial law, including circumcision was fulfilled, that is, it was
completed and afterward circumcision has no meaning as pointing to
Christ's sacrifice.
She quotes Galatians 5: 3 "For I testify again to every man that is
circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law" and then says
here Paul reasons again that the genitals are no
longer a status symbol. Therefore the only acceptable thing to do with
them is to leave them alone the way God created them."
In saying "the genitals are a status symbol' she means that to the
physical Israelites the circumcised status is a symbol of belonging
to the chosen people.
She is arguing that Christians should not circumcise, even if they
believe it is not done for religious reasons. She notes that
"Cutting a baby without anesthesia is a separate sin all its own. It
is hoped by many that in the near future it will be illegal to do so
in this country."
On this site it says that Laura Jezek is a freelance writer and
a theological student
To finish up the thoughts on Paul's use of "Israel" in two different
ways, for Galatians 6: 16 and Romans 11: 36, Paul leaves it up the
reader to decide from the context and from his other writings which
Israel he is talking about, especially in Romans 9: 6-8.