The little nation of Israel was chosen by God to be a testimony to him to the rest of the world. When Israel was freed from Egypt it was to fulfill Genesis 12 to make his name great and to bless all the families of the earth (Gen 12). David was told to build the temple: “so that your name will be great forever” (2 Sam 7:26). And in Jeremiah 13:11 the Lord says: “For as a belt is bound around the waist so I bound all the people of Israel and all the people of Judah to me, declares the Lord, to be a people for my renown, and praise and honor”.
Today we are Israel. In Galatians 6:16 Paul states: “neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is the new creation. Peace and mercy to all who follow this rule – to the Israel of God.” Hallelujah! We are the new creation! We are Israel today, both Jew and Gentile who accept Christ.
Make no mistake about it – we are the “sand on the seashore” that is too numerous to count, we are the ones to be a blessing to the world around us, those who are not yet “Israel”. We are the royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession “who are to declare his praises” (1 Pet2:9), before we were not a people, now we are a people, we are his people.
So in knowing Jesus know that you are a blessing to those around you. You are made new and are a royal priest intentionally placed by God right where you are to make God’s name great, to make his name renown. God chose Israel, and as the current day “Israel”, he chooses you and me to make him known.
From Acts 17:26, 27: “From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.”
Barnabas Man 