Simply Angie
This question has become surprisingly controversial in our day. Yet it isn’t a question we should answer emotionally or politically, but carefully—by looking at the whole counsel of God. Like a puzzle, the answer becomes much clearer when we stop focusing on a single piece and step back to see the full picture of Scripture. The Aerial View: Seeing the Whole PuzzleI love the Bible. It is a vast library inspired by God and includes 66 books of history, poetry, doctrine, and prophecy. Because it is so deep, most of us (myself included) tend to “snack on it,” tasting just a bite at a time. We look at a few verses a day, asking, “How does this apply to me, and how can this help me get through today?” There is a sweetness in that daily bread, but there is also a danger. When we only look at a sampler plate, we are like someone trying to understand a 5,000-piece puzzle by only looking at ten pieces. You might be seeing something true—a bit of blue sky or a petal of a flower—but you aren’t seeing the whole picture. Without the “aerial view,” our understanding of God’s plan becomes distorted. Years ago, I challenged myself to read the Bible through as quickly as possible. It changed everything for me. Instead of trying to remember what I read last year, I was connecting what I read last week. Suddenly, the puzzle pieces began to snap together. I wasn’t just looking at isolated verses; I was seeing the “Big Picture,” or as Paul called it, “all the counsel of God.” Why Context Matters TodayI believe many of the arguments and ideologies we see in society today - particularly within the church - come from people focusing on one small section of the puzzle while ignoring the rest of the box. If we want to understand the big questions - like “Who are God’s people?” or “What is our role in the end times?” - we cannot simply pluck out one verse or chapter and build a tower on it. We have to compare Scripture to Scripture. We have to look at the history of God’s dealings with man from Creation through the early church, and then into prophecy, to see the consistent heart of God. Before we dive into the specifics of what is happening in the world today, we have to agree on the foundation: We need the whole picture to see the true image. The Seed and the StrategyOne of the biggest “puzzle pieces” being debated today is the question: Who are God’s chosen people? In our modern world, this has become a volatile, emotional topic. We see people labeled and “canceled” based on their position on Israel and the conflicts in the Middle East. But if we take an aerial view of the Scriptures, we see that God’s plan was never about a “better” race of people; it was about a Redemption Strategy for all mankind. From the very beginning in Genesis, God promised a Savior. After His covenant with Noah and following the great flood, He wanted to move His plan forward through a specific bloodline. God chose Abram (later called Abraham) for this purpose, not because Abraham was perfect, but because He knew that Abraham had the faith to obey Him. God established the Hebrew people and promised them a unique privilege: the Savior of the world would come through their bloodline. While reconfirming this covenant to Moses and the rest of the Hebrew people (the children of Israel), God laid out more specific expectations for both parties. God’s promises of blessings and cursings were dependent upon their response to His Word. In what we might call the “legal fine print” of the Covenant found in Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28, God laid out a clear “If/Then” agreement:
Throughout the Old Testament, we see a cycle repeat as a result of that covenant agreement. When Israel looked to God in faith and walked in obedience, they thrived and were nearly invincible. When they rebelled against God and turned to idols, they suffered. This wasn’t because God stopped loving them, but because the Jewish people broke the covenant. This Old Testament covenant wasn't a “blank check” of protection and blessing regardless of behavior. It was a conditional relationship. God clearly demonstrated time and again that He keeps His promises. In fact, this historical record of the children of Israel demonstrated what a personal relationship with God looked like from all sides. Not Seeds, but One SeedMany people zero in on a selection of the Old Testament promises to Abraham and stay there. They see a biological bloodline and an earthly kingdom, assuming the biological bloodline carries an unconditional “blank check” of blessing today. But when we look at the “aerial view” and include the New Testament, the Apostle Paul (a Hebrew of Hebrews himself!) clarifies the picture for us:
The bloodline was the vehicle; Christ is the Destination. Every blessing promised in the Old Testament finds its ultimate fulfillment and home in Jesus, the Messiah, the Saviour of the world. In Acts 13, Paul the Apostle gave a stirring history lesson to the Jews while declaring that God brought Israel the Saviour, Jesus, through the bloodline of David as He had promised in the first covenant. Look how he concludes this speech…
The Stumbling Block and God’s New Chosen PeopleThe timeline of the Bible is a straight line to the Cross. At that moment, the road split. While many claim a “birthright” of blessing based on heritage, the Apostle Peter, himself a devout Jew, made it clear that Christ is the only dividing line. He describes Jesus as the “Chief Corner Stone,” but for those who reject Him, He becomes a “stone of stumbling.” Then, Peter uses the most sacred titles of the Old Testament and gives them a new, spiritual home:
Notice what he says: these believers, who “in time past were not a people,” are now the people of God. He isn’t talking about DNA or a physical border. He is talking about those who have been called “out of darkness.” It couldn’t be more clear: God’s “chosen people” today are those who have chosen His Son. Whether you are a Jew in Jerusalem or a Gentile in Georgia, the only way to be part of that “holy nation” is through faith in the Saviour. Those who received Jesus—both Jew and Gentile—became the “children of promise.” Those who rejected Him remained behind a “stumbling block” of their own choosing. As Paul says in Galatians 3:29: “And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” And again in Galatians 4:28: “Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise.” Under the New Covenant, there is no part of the inheritance that bypasses Jesus. The only way to the Father—and the only way to the Blessing—is through the Seed of Abraham, which is Christ. The Transition: From Shadow to SubstanceIf we stop at the Old Testament, we are looking at a “vanishing” piece of the puzzle. The book of Hebrews was written specifically to explain this transition to people who were struggling to let go of the old rituals and bloodlines. Hebrews 8:6-7, 13 makes a startling declaration:
Why the “Unchanging God” made a “New” DealSome argue that because God is unchanging, His covenant with the physical nation must remain exactly as it was in the days of Moses. But the “Aerial View” shows us that God’s nature is unchanging, but His dealings with man progress toward a goal. In Hebrews 8-11, we read an articulate explanation of the old and new covenants and their purpose in God’s eternal plan. The Old Covenant was a “shadow of things to come,” while the New Covenant is the substance of the eternal inheritance.
When the “Better Covenant” arrived at the Cross, the Old Covenant “vanished away” as the temporary legal requirement for righteousness. To try to go back to the Old Covenant today—whether by rebuilding a temple or by claiming special blessings based on physical bloodlines—is to reject the “Better” thing God has provided. As Hebrews 9:15 explains, Christ is the mediator of the New Testament (Covenant) so that “they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.” Looking AheadWhy is it important for us to establish a solid understanding of the Biblical definition of God’s chosen people, Israel? When we lose this aerial view, we start using the Bible to support political agendas rather than the Person of Christ. We start “cherry-picking” verses to justify earthly wars instead of sharing the Heavenly Gospel. Next week, I want to talk about what this means for us practically. If the “Seed is Christ,” how should we as believers look at the chaos in the world today? Are we called to be political strategists, or are we called to be something else entirely? Until then, I encourage you to look at the “whole puzzle.” Don’t just take my word for it—read Galatians, Romans, and Hebrews this week. Look at the map for yourself. Blessings, P.S. I’m still learning to step back and look at the whole picture myself. The more I read Scripture in context, the more I see that God’s plan has always centered on one Person— the Lord Jesus Christ. Talk to you again soon. Can’t wait?
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Saturday, March 14, 2026
Who are God’s Chosen People?
