It seems to me there are three kinds of people in the church when it comes to Israel.
1. Those who believe God gave Israel the land
There are those like me, who believe the people of Israel have a covenant with God to exist in the land He gave them. We don’t believe Israel is infallible. We don’t believe its government leaders are infallible. We don’t believe they are saved without Jesus. We know the leaders, government, and people have made and will continue to make mistakes and commit evil acts, as all people do, and the church should not hesitate to call out evil when it’s present.
We simply believe God gave them a clearly defined piece of land and blessed them to exist there as a nation until He returns. We oppose anything that threatens their existence or their right to live within the God-defined boundaries of the land. We want them to thrive and flourish as a people, as we want for all peoples. And we recognize the key role Israel will play in the events of the end times. (I explain why in Are Jews Still God’s Chosen People?)
2. Those who support Israel for humanitarian reasons
The second group doesn’t believe Israel has a covenant with God for the land, but supports the Jewish people’s right to keep living in their ancestral homeland for basic humanitarian reasons, as any decent person would. They also want to see Israel thrive as a nation, as they want for all peoples and nations.
I have some theological differences with this group, but we ultimately want the same thing: for all peoples, including the Jews, to thrive in their homeland. They aren’t prejudiced against Jews. They see them as any other group of people. I disagree with them in some nuanced ways, but I understand where they’re coming from.
3. Those who see Israel as the enemy
The third group thinks Israel is the “synagogue of Satan.” They are prejudiced against Israel and see the Jewish people as colonizers and manipulative oppressors. They have bought into false narratives spread by people intentionally trying to stir up prejudice against the Jews.
If you believe a baby born to a Jewish family belongs to the synagogue of Satan simply because of its ethnicity, you are a racist. If you feel opposition not to guilty individuals but to the Jewish people as a whole, you are a racist. And if you want to see the Jews displaced from their homeland and removed from any position of influence, I believe you are being oppressed and manipulated by a dark spiritual force.
That same dark spiritual force also wants to see Islam welcomed into every free nation in the world, so people in this third group are usually defending Islam as well, siding with terrorist organizations over Israel, from the Free Palestine movement to supporters of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.
I still love the people in this group, and so does Jesus. But I believe you are in danger. You’ve been deceived into fighting on the wrong side while thinking you’re fighting for the good guys. The fruit of this view ultimately produces hate and suspicion instead of love and healing.
The love of the Gentiles is supposed to be a light to Israel, and to all nations, that welcomes them back in.
