Many prevalent misunderstandings of Bible prophecy, particularly as it relates to the Jews and to the last days, are based upon the false premise that God’s promise to Abraham was entirely and only for his literal seed.
My subject today is in the form of a question: Are you a Jew? Nearly 4,000 years ago, God promised Abraham that he and his seed, his descendants, would one day possess this entire world as an inheritance. Perhaps you say that you were always taught and always believed that the land which God promised to Abraham and his seed was Canaan, or the land which is now geographically pointed out as Palestine. No, No! Nothing is made plainer in the Bible than the fact that the promise which God made to Abraham and to his seed, was that he and they should be heirs, in God’s appointed time, of this entire world. The Apostle Paul mentioned this promise. Peter wrote about it. In Romans 4:13 Paul wrote, “For the promise, THAT HE SHOULD BE THE HEIR OF THE WORLD, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.” (Emphasis added.)
Did Paul, by inspiration, say that the promise to Abraham and his seed was that they should be heirs of Canaan, or of Palestine? No, No! “…the promise, that he should be the heir of the world…”! And the same promise, in the same verse was given, not only to Abraham but also to Abraham’s seed. This brings us to another question. Who is, or who are the seed of Abraham? Now, this was not a promise to literal seed. Many prevalent misunderstandings of Bible prophecy, particularly as it relates to the last days, are based upon the false premise that God’s promise to Abraham was entirely and only for his literal seed. And then it is presumed that his literal seed are the Jews. My soul! Don’t these Biblical expositors know that the Arabs are also the literal seed of Abraham? There is not one promise in the Gospel of Jesus Christ to any literal race, color, or nationality on this earth! But the New Testament declares in Revelation 22:17,
“And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.”
“Whosoever will” 
Black, white, brown, red, yellow, European, Asian, American, Scandinavian, African, Latin: “Whosoever will,” let him partake of the promise of God through Christ; and any teaching which declares that God will honor any race or nationality above another or with special treatment, is contrary to the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
In ordinary human life and human law, possessions are passed down from literal father to literal son. That is, just because you are the son of John Smith, a multi-millionaire, you will receive a fabulous inheritance. Undeserving and illicit sons have, in this human procedure, received tremendous inheritances which they have proceeded, like the Prodigal Son, to eat and drink away until they have found themselves wallowing with the swine. The Gospel of Jesus Christ does not proceed this way. It is not like this. It does not follow faulty human judgment but Divine wisdom, grace, and love.
God’s promise to Abraham was for him and for all of his spiritual seed who, in coming generations, like him, would seek to walk and live in the way of God. Now, we have read from Romans 4:13 --"13 For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraman, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith."
--that the promise to Abraham and his seed was not to be heirs of Canaan or a small strip of land in the Middle East, but heirs of the world, Let us connect this thought with a verse from the Old Testament and one from the New. In Psalm 37:11 the Bible tells us:
“But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.” And Psalm 37:29 adds: “The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein for ever.”
Coming to the New Testament, Jesus said in Matthew 5:5:
“Blessed are the meek: for they SHALL inherit the earth.” (Emphasis added.)
He did not say that they HAVE INHERITED the earth, or that they “DO POSSESS” the earth today, but they SHALL INHERIT the earth. Thus we have seen, so far, that the Bible tells us Abraham and his seed shall inherit the earth, or the whole world. The meek and the righteous shall inherit the whole world. When they do, they shall possess it forever. Now, I want to have my part in that everlasting possession. So do you. And you may be meek, and you may be righteous, but who are the seed of Abraham? What does the Bible mean that Abraham and his seed are heirs of the entire world? Let me ask: Are you a Jew? Let us say that you were born in America, your father was born in America, and all of your ancestors were Aryan all the way back to Japheth, the son of Noah. Yet, I ask you in all sincerity: Are you a Jew?
Some of you may say, “No, I’m a Christian.” So, accepting your statement that you are a Christian, that you are a believer in Christ, I still ask: Are you a Jew? Now although, to my knowledge, I have no Jewish blood flowing in my veins, yet I will say that I AM A JEW. I am a Jew in the sight of God. What is a Jew? I do not mean, what is a Jew according to the dictionary, or according to the Israelis in the Middle East, or according to orthodox theology, but what is a Jew according to the Bible? What is a Jew according to God? Let us give the Bible answer to this question today.
The Bible tells us that God is going to recreate this earth with its atmospheric heavens into a new heaven and a new earth. And the Book of Revelation forecasts that the New Jerusalem will be the capital city. The Revelator declares there will be a great and beautiful wall ‘round about the capital city, “And” he says, in Revelation 21:12, “had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel.”
People these days like to joke about St. Peter at the gate. The Bible tells us here that there will be twelve gates and at each gate there will be an angel of God. Also, on each gate there will be the name of a nation of the new earth. What will those nations be? Will any of earth’s present nations be among them? Revelation 21:24 calls them “the nations of them which are saved.” Many today fondly believe- or at least hope- that their own beloved country will continue a glorious existence forever in the new earth. But let us notice that the Bible did not say that present nations would be saved, but rather that the nations which shall exist in the new earth will be made up “of those who are saved.” As the Bible said: “the nations OF them WHICH ARE SAVED.” That is, the nations on the new earth will be made up ONLY of the saved, AND NOBODY ELSE BUT THE SAVED.
GENUINELY PATRIOTIC Americans- and I classify myself as one of them- would like to believe that the United States of America will take its place among the everlasting nations of the new earth, but this is only wishful thinking, based upon strictly human desire, and not upon God’s will. The Bible tells us that every nation which is upon the earth today shall be destroyed, and shall never rise again. God portrays His final judgment upon the nations in the 25th chapter of Jeremiah. The prophet declares in Jeremiah 25:15:
“For thus saith the Lord God of Israel unto me; Take the wine cup of this fury at my hand, and cause all the nations, to whom I send thee, to drink it.”
In those ancient days, criminals who were condemned to death, were given a cup of wine which contained poison. In this Bible prophecy, this custom is used to symbolize the final destruction of the nations. The prophet says in Jeremiah 25:17:
“Then took I the cup at the Lord’s hand, and made all the nations to drink, unto whom the Lord had sent me.”
Now let us ask, upon which nations, and upon how many nations does this final judgment of God fall? The prophecy tells us in Jeremiah 25:26:
"26 And all the kings of the north, far and near, one with another, and all the kingdoms the world, which are upon the face of the earth: and the king of Sheshach shall drink after them."
Every nation on the globe is included in this judgment. Not one will escape. In Jeremiah 25:27 the Bible says:
“Therefore thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; Drink ye, and be drunken, and spue, and fall, and rise no more, because of the sword which I will send among you.”
The word “sword” of course, indicates war. It will be the final Armageddon, which will bring the destruction of every nation on earth. That means Great Britain and Germany and Italy and Japan. That means the United States of America. And it is prophesied here in the Bible that it will be a JUDGMENT OF GOD. Not only does the Bible here declare that every nation upon the face of the earth SHALL FALL, but it adds that they shall RISE NO MORE.
That means Russia and Canada and EVERY NATION THAT EXISTS UPON THE FACE OF THE GLOBE. In fact, when once God has regenerated this old earth and has made all things new, and the saved are living upon the new earth, it shall be forgotten that these old nations ever existed. God says in Isaiah 65:17,
“For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: AND THE FORMER SHALL NOT BE REMEMBERED, NOR COME INTO MIND.” (Emphasis added.)
In the new earth we shall not even remember that there ever was such a nation as the United States of America. In fact, this entire old earth shall be forever forgotten. God will not suffer us to bear in our minds the brutal scars of a sin-cursed earth, or the memory of friends or loved ones who were lost.
But while the Bible tells us that the nations of the saved upon the new earth will be “out of every kindred and tongue and people and nation…” that is, every nation and race from this old earth will be represented, yet, there will be only one name for all of the saved. What will that name be? The Bible tell us in Galatians 3:28-29,
“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.
“And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”
How do we become Abraham’s seed through Christ? The Bible tells us in Galatians 3:16,
“Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, WHICH IS CHRIST.” (Emphasis added.)
Jesus Christ was the LITERAL seed of Abraham, and by accepting Christ we become, through Him, the SPIRITUAL seed. There will be ONLY ONE NAME for all of the saved, and that name will be ISRAEL. Do you know what “Israel” is or what the term “Israel” really means? Do you know what an "Israelite” is? I believe that if you were to ask this question of a number of people, you would receive a number of different answers. Some of them would say: An Israelite is a Jew: a person whose father and mother are Jews. And others would probably say: Israel is that little country which occupies Palestine in the Middle East. But I wonder how many people really know what the Bible definition of “Israel” is?
We might clarify this by modernizing the words of Paul, which I read a few moments ago. Instead of saying, “There is neither Jew nor Greek,” let us put it this way: that in the sight of God, “There is neither American nor Russian; there is neither black nor white; for you are all one in Christ; and IF YOU ARE CHRIST’S THEN YOU ARE ABRAHAM’S SEED.”
Do you see what God is telling us here? If you are Christ’s, you are Abraham’s seed. And if you are Abraham’s seed, then YOU ARE AN ISRAELITE in the sight of God. Did you never realize that before? Perhaps you say: “I am a Christian.” Yes, but only by being a Christian will God, in this dispensation, accept you as an Israelite. For, as the Bible tells us: “if you are Christ’s, THEN are you Abraham’s seed.” (Emphasis added.)
Does the thought of being an Israelite confuse you? Hear what the Bible tells us in Romans 2:28-29,
“For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:
“But he IS a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.” (Emphasis added.)
There is only one way today in which you can become an Israelite in the sight of God, and that is by accepting Jesus Christ. Even in the new earth, all of the saved shall be known by the name Israel. In fact, after this dispensation is ended, and the dispensation of the Kingdom of God is eternally ushered in, the name “Israel” shall forever remain, for the Lord God tells us in Isaiah 66:22,
“For as the new heavens and the new earth, WHICH I WILL MAKE, shall remain before me, saith the Lord, so shall your seed and YOUR NAME REMAIN.” (Emphasis added.)
As we have shown, the seed is Christ, and all who, through Christ, become the seed of Abraham. And in this prophecy of the new heaven and earth, God tells us that THE NAME ISRAEL shall remain forever. This was the purpose of God over 3,700 years ago. For this name was not humanly devised or selected. It was not given by a human father to his offspring. *Read Genesis 32 and you will see that God Himself came to this earth and gave that name. It means “Prevailer with God” and the name Israel will be perpetuated for all the ages of eternity for all of the victorious ransomed of the Lord in God’s Kingdom.
Today it is impossible for an American, without Christ, to be an Israelite. It is impossible for a Jew, without Christ, to be an Israelite. A man may be a Jew in the sight of men; he may have Jewish parents, and be able to trace his Jewish ancestry back a thousand years, BUT HE IS NOT AN ISRAELITE in the sight of God. “He is NOT a Jew, which is one outwardly,” says the Bible. Do you not see what that means? A man is NOT a Jew in the sight of God simply because he has Jewish blood in his veins. But “IF YOU ARE CHRIST’S,” the Bible tells us THEN you are Abraham’s seed. There is only one way to become an Israelite. There is only one way for the Jew, as well as for the Gentile, or any race or nation of people, and that is: BY ACCEPTING CHRIST.
Let me share with you what the Bible tells us about this in Ephesians 2:11-13.
"11 Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands; 12 That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: 13 But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ."
So, in time past you were an alien because you were without Christ. You were an alien from what? From the commonwealth of Israel. What does it mean to be an alien? It means that you are not a citizen. Now, the Bible says here that to be without Christ is to be an alien from the commonwealth of Israel. You are not a citizen of Israel. But when you accept Christ, you become a citizen of that commonwealth. Therefore, being no longer an alien, you are an Israelite.
This is why the Revelator tells us in Revelation 21:12 that the walls of the New Jerusalem, the capital city of the new earth, will have twelve great gates, and on each gate will be the name of a nation of Israel. Israel will be the name of all the saved. It means, by definition as I said, “Prevailer with God,” and all of the Ransomed of the Lord, with God, will have won the victory of this life, and will have prevailed, through grace, over death and sin forever.
*Genesis 32:1-32
1 And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him
2 And when Jacob saw them, he said, This is God's host: and he called the name of that place Mahanaim.
3 And Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother unto the land of Seir, the country of Edom.
4 And he commanded them, saying, Thus shall ye speak unto my lord Esau; Thy servant Jacob saith thus, I have sojourned with Laban, and stayed there until now:
5 And I have oxen, and asses, flocks, and menservants, and womenservants: and I have sent to tell my lord, that I may find grace in thy sight.
6 And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, We came to thy brother Esau, and also he cometh to meet thee, and four hundred men with him.
7 Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed: and he divided the people that was with him, and the flocks, and herds, and the camels, into two bands;
8 And said, If Esau come to the one company, and smite it, then the other company which is left shall escape.
9 And Jacob said, O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, the Lord which saidst unto me, Return unto thy country, and to thy kindred, and I will deal well with thee:
10 I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which thou hast shewed unto thy servant; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan; and now I am become two bands.
11 Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I fear him, lest he will come and smite me, and the mother with the children.
12 And thou saidst, I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.
13 And he lodged there that same night; and took of that which came to his hand a present for Esau his brother;
14 Two hundred she goats, and twenty he goats, two hundred ewes, and twenty rams,
15 Thirty milch camels with their colts, forty kine, and ten bulls, twenty she asses, and ten foals.
16 And he delivered them into the hand of his servants, every drove by themselves; and said unto his servants, Pass over before me, and put a space betwixt drove and drove.
17 And he commanded the foremost, saying, When Esau my brother meeteth thee, and asketh thee, saying, Whose art thou? and wither goest thou? and whose are these before thee?
18 Then thou shalt say, They be thy servant Jacob's; it is a present sent unto my lord Esau: and, behold, also he is behind us.
19 And so commanded he the second, and the third, and all that followed the droves, saying, On this manner shall ye speak unto Esau, when ye find him.
20 And say ye moreover, Behold, thy servant Jacob is behind us. For he said, I will appease him with the present that goeth before me, and afterward I will see his face; peradventure he will accept of me.
21 So went the present over before him: and himself lodged that night in the company.
22 And he rose up that night, and took his two wives, and his two womenservants, and his eleven sons, and passed over the ford Jabbok.
23 And he took them, and sent them over the brook, and sent over that he had.
24 And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.
25 And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him.
26 And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.
27 And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob.
28 And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.
29 And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there.
30 And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.
31 And as he passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh.
32 Therefore the children of Israel eat not of the sinew which shrank, which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh in the sinew that shrank.