Hi everyone! My name is Rachel Smith, and I met Abigail Breland at the University of Mobile! I am so encouraged by this platform, and greatly admire Abigail for creating this forum as a means to spread the amazing, soul-redeeming truth that we have been set free from condemnation and fear and no longer have to look any farther from the Person of Jesus Christ to know who we are! Let’s talk about TRUE identity! I have been walking with the Lord for more than a decade and it STILL blows my mind how the Gospel continues to stretch my thinking and understanding of Who God is and challenge me in ways I never thought possible! We see clearly throughout Scripture that from the beginning, God chose the nation of Israel to reveal Himself to mankind. He promised Abraham in Genesis 12:1-3, “I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” The Old Testament goes into great detail to express the lengths God goes to rescue and deliver His people Israel (the Exodus story, Joseph, the story of Esther, David and Goliath, Daniel in the lion’s den, etc). In Zechariah 2:8-10, God calls Israel “the apple of His eye” meaning the pupil; this is the most sensitive part of the human body! God definitely has a soft spot for this nation, and continues to this day to show His love to the world through how He has treated them. Now, here’s the thing: I’m not Jewish. This used to confuse me when I was a younger believer. I used to wonder why the Bible was written solely about Israel, and also how it at all related to me, a “Gentile” living across the world in America, in a completely different time, culture and place. God showed me something amazing! When we become born-again believers, whether we are Jewish or not, God accepts us! Jesus said in John 12:32, “And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw ALL PEOPLE to myself.” (emphasis added). Guys guys guys - what does that mean!? That means that His promises for Israel, to protect Israel from harm, to redeem and to never forsake, to exalt and to protect “as the apple of His eye” - even though I’m not Jewish, those promises are for ME. This has transformed the way I read the Bible - it’s no longer just about a random people who I have no association with (other than they were created by the same God). Through our inheritance by faith, these people I’m reading about are my family, my ancestors. The Bible becomes the ultimate family scrapbook full of stories of people who have walked this road of faith before me. I have been transformed since I understood the relationship I have to Israel, and I pray you come to understand that too! You are chosen, redeemed, set apart, and delivered. You are loved, protected, and greatly cherished by the King of Kings and Lord of Lords! My hope and prayer is that when you read God’s love letter to Israel in Scripture, you begin to see your name written in the text, too. ❤️
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