God Wants a Gigantic, Diverse Family
- Bishop Keith Butler
- Jul 31, 2023
- 2 min read
But I say, Did not Israel know? First Moses saith, I will provoke you to jealousy by them that are no people, and by a foolish nation I will anger you. (Romans 10:19)
In Romans 10:19, Paul quoted the words of Moses in the book of Deuteronomy.
People tend to like people who are like them, and the Jewish people were no different. They preferred Jews over every other people group because they were the people of covenant. No other nation had such a relationship with God. They thought they were superior to every other group of people. After all, only the Jews could trace their faith back to Abraham, the father of faith with whom God cut an eternal covenant!
So, even before the Jews entered the Promised Land, God warned them they would one day be jealous of a people who weren’t born into a covenant like they were. A day would come when men and women without a covenant would be born again and be joined in a covenant in Jesus’ blood!
Israel was and still is a favored nation in God’s eyes. Jesus was born a Jew. He preached to Jews and trained twelve Jewish men as their rabbi. However, Jesus came not only for the Jews, but for the entire world. John 3:16 says, “God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son.”
The Greek word that is translated nations in Romans 10:19 is ethnos. It also translates as a race, tribe, a foreign non-Jewish person, Gentile, heathen, nation, and people. It is the origin of the English word ethnicity. Jesus died for Jews. He also died for every race, tribe, foreign non-Jew, Gentile, heathen, nation, and people.
Practical Application
God wants a gigantic, diverse family! Don’t be like the Jews and think your race, tribe, or group is better than any other. Jesus died for everyone!
