Do Something About It | A Biblical Call to Bless Israel Through Acts of Service

The relationship between Christians and Jews has been fraught with tension, misunderstanding, and tragedy for nearly two millennia. The holocaust proved that enlightenment, theological reform, and whatever other societal “progress,” did not preclude modern Christianity from the virus of anti-semitism. So the question remains, how do we overcome and completely eradicate the hatred of Jews by those who call themselves followers of the Messiah? 

Though this topic is broad and there are, no doubt, many plausible answers, in this article, I will make a case for one particular answer that I believe to be critical. That is the relationally healing and trust-building effect of shoulder-to-shoulder acts of service by Christians towards the Jewish people. I contend that Christian acts of service performed for the Jewish people are significant to the eradication of Christian Jew-hatred, a key to gaining relational fidelity with the Jewish people, and a critical component of God’s master plan for global redemption.

Biblical Precedent

After creation, the fall, and the flood, humanity was in need of redemption. God launched His plan of redemption through Father Abraham. It is clear in the first few verses of Genesis twelve, what Abraham’s mission is. He must become a great nation, receive God’s blessing, and bring blessing to all the families of the earth.

Abraham, however, is not the only one to receive a redemptive directive in these verses. Those outside the nation of Israel also receive instruction. God says, “I will bless those who bless you (Abraham), and he who dishonors you I will curse.” In order to receive the blessing of God, non-Jews must bless the Jewish people. Certainly, “blessing” includes acts of service.

The Ammonites and Moabites give us insight into what “blessing Israel” and being cursed for dishonoring Israel entails. After the children of Israel became a nation in Egypt and were delivered from slavery and on their way to the promised land, they passed by Ammon and Moab. Deuteronomy 23 tells us that because they did not bring bread and water out to Israel, and because they hired Balaam to curse Israel, the Ammonites and Moabites were not allowed to enter into the assembly of God until the tenth generation, and Israel should not “seek their peace or their prosperity all your days forever.” Blessing Israel consisted of a very simple act of service–bringing bread and water out to Israel. The curse for dishonoring was severe—no entry to God’s presence, no peace, and no prosperity.  

Even Balaam, though he spoke words of blessing towards Israel, advised the Moabites to commit evil and ruthless actions against Israel, and ended up losing his life because of it. Ruth, the Moabitess, chooses to bless Israel by serving her mother-in-law and becomes a matriarch in the line of King David and Yeshua Messiah. Acts of service matter!

Christian Zionist, Lynne Hilton, serving Orthodox Jewish vineyard owners in Samaria through HaYovel/The Israel Guys

We also have New Testament examples of non-Jews blessing Israel and being blessed. The centurion in Luke chapter seven is said to have loved the Jewish nation and even built a synagogue for them. When Yeshua hears of this service, he goes and brings healing to the centurion's servant. Also, Cornelius was said to be an “upright and God-fearing man, who is well spoken of by the whole Jewish nation,” who “gave alms generously to the people.” Twice in the chapter, it is written that Corneilious’s alms had been seen by the Lord. Because his prayer was heard and his alms were seen, he was visited by an angel, Peter came to his house, and his whole household was saved and baptised in the Holy Spirit. 

The Apostle Paul gives a very straightforward instruction in Romans 15:27: Non-Jews have received much spiritual blessing from the Jewish people; therefore, non-Jews should be “of service to them in material blessings.” 

Yeshua himself declared that if the nations did loving acts of service to the “least of these my brethren” (which can certainly be interpreted as referring specifically to the Jewish people), that they had done it to Him and could enter into His kingdom and eternal life.  

Christian Zionists serving Orthodox Jewish communities of Samaria through HaYovel/The Israel Guys

The Early Church & Middle Ages

Unfortunately, there were unavoidable actions taken early on by Christians that majorly contributed to the growing relational divide between them and non-Christian Jews. Having been warned by Yeshua to flee Jerusalem before its destruction in 70AD, the early Christians made the perceivably traitorous move of deserting their Jewish brethren. The situation only worsened when Rabbi Akiva pronounced Bar Kochba as Messiah, who then led a revolt against the Romans. Of course, the early Christians could not accept that one other than Yeshua could be the Messiah.

Early Church father, Eusebius, wrote that Roman Emperor Titus had served God by destroying the Temple and sending the Jewish people into exile. These two actions were viewed by Christians as punishment on the Jewish people for killing Yeshua. The Jewish people saw these two actions as treasonous and sins worthy of messianic vengeance. These actions are important to note because they tore down the trust-foundation of the relationship between Christians and Jews, building a platform for later misunderstandings and atrocities to occur. It would stand to reason that only the effects of positive relational actions could ever heal the damages done by these negative actions.

The Nicene Council was a watershed moment in many ways. Relevant to our discussion, it massively strengthened the burgeoning trend of emphasizing ideas over observance. The majority of the discussion concerned defining the essence of God. There was no mention of God’s land or people at the council, and unsurprisingly, the event was not held in Israel, and the one hundred and twenty Jewish bishops who were serving at the time were not invited. It was also decided that the date for Easter would be set in such a way that it would never coincide with Passover. Though slightly removed from our main focus of acts of service, observing something together is closely related. 

In this vein, in the fourth Century, John Chrysostom called out his sheep, saying they should stop attending the synagogue and celebrating Jewish festivals. This is not only a theological declaration that all Jews are “Christ killers,” it is a relational stunt. Chrysostom is saying that Jews are unworthy of fellowship. They should not be respected and surely not served or blessed.   

Later Christian intolerance toward Jewish observance is evident in the conversion liturgy. A Jewish convert to Christianity would be forced to declare, “I do here and now renounce every rite and observance of the Jewish religion, detesting all its most solemn ceremonies and tenets that in former days I kept and held. In future I will practise no rite or celebration connected with it, nor any custom of my past error, promising neither to seek it out nor to perform it,” and “Never again will I fulfill any of the offices of Jewish ceremonies to which I was addicted.” Further disgust for Jewish observance was cultivated by coupling traditions with child murder in the form of blood libels. 

This hatred for Jewish observance and the prohibition of any Christian participation in it, would have significantly inhibited any opportunity for fellowship and acts of service. Furthermore, it continued to cement Christianity's identity as an antinomian, Jewish-culture-less, religion. Rabbi Boyarin contrasts this with Judaism, which he contends has never been a religion. Judaism, he says, is an ethnicity, culture, and practice. Scholars have pointed out that Christianity, as a religion, became limited to a "belief system" totally separated from the bodily practices of the church.

Several points can be observed here. The first is that, with so much attention being drawn to actions, no Jewish person or even convert, for that matter, would dare do anything together with a Gentile for fear that they would be accused of doing something Jewish. This would especially be the case for observant Jews. The second is that since Jewish observance is so embedded in everyday life, it would be impossible for a Gentile to do anything together with a Jew without appearing to do or at least approve of Jewish observance.

Additionally, even a well-meaning Christian who tried to bless Israel by acts of kindness would likely be repulsed by the Jewish people's inability to accept food and fellowship contrary to their customs. This would cause the Gentile, who is likely already uneasy with Jewish observance, to be offended, and because of his offence, make no effort at understanding. 

 Thus, the gate to blessing Israel–gifting or serving–was effectively sealed shut, and the consequences came to a head in the Shoah. How would God save the world from this horrible predicament? Genesis 12 had been all but reversed. Abraham was scattered, his land was desolate, and the nations were in no way blessing him. It was an “all is lost” moment in God’s redemptive plan.

Christian Zionists serving Orthodox Jewish farmers in Samaria through HaYovel/The Israel Guys

Modern Shifts

During the Jewish emancipation and enlightenment of the 17-1800s, the Jewish people became more integrated into world society. Just when things seemed to be getting better for the Jewish people, the darkness of the Holocaust enveloped Germany and began spreading throughout Europe. Though light ultimately prevailed, the devastation was more sinister and immense than previously imaginable. The level of darkness, coupled with the fact that it happened in Germany, the epicenter of Christian theology and philosophy for five hundred years, shook many Christians to the core. Was this largely due to Christians not blessing the Jewish people, not having a relationship with them, and therefore making the path clear for dehumanization and genocide?

One could say that Christians not blessing the Jewish people was not the problem, but rather a symptom of a greater root problem. I would partially agree. The root problem was supersessionism. However, if Christians were to begin blessing Israel, they would get to know the Jewish people better. In this way, most of the world's antisemitic lies would be easily debunked. At that point, the Jewish people would be seen as brothers rather than enemies. The question is, will Christians overcome supersessionism without first beginning to bless Israel? 

Or perhaps we should flip the question: will Christians bless Israel without first getting rid of replacement theology? I think there is space in most Christians' worthy-acts-of-service box to include humanitarian aid to Jewish people. With the rebirth of the State of Israel, there is also the incentive to fulfill prophecy. The theological explosion of interest in the authentic Jewishness of Jesus certainly provides incentive to get to know and serve Israeli Jews. So yes, I believe that it is more possible for a supersessionist to overcome replacement theology by blessing Israel than by debating the alternatives to supersessionism. 

I have personally witnessed thousands of Christians physically serving Orthodox Jews and, through this, effectively losing their supersessionism. It is incredible to witness. Trust is built, assumptions are lost, and true relationships are forged. There is something about the humility it takes to serve, the experience of having your 2000-year-old enemy genuinely ask to serve you, and the overwhelming feeling that God is in the middle of it that transforms everyone involved.

Christian Zionists serving Orthodox Jewish vineyard owners in Samaria through HaYovel/The Israel Guys

As a side note, but relevant to our times, I can only imagine that our technology-captured, and therefore relationally-challenged culture only heightens the effect of a genuinely given act of hands-on service.

Why Acts of Service Matter

The timeless adage, “actions speak louder than words,” is true. Often, that phrase is used to say that your actions are not aligned with your words, and we believe your actions. But it is also applicable in the sense that sometimes words are insufficient. It could be because of a previous wrongdoing, but usually, because of some level of distrust, there can be a real need to prove your point with actions.

Psychologist, Dr. Henry Cloud, describes what it takes to build trust. He says that having empathy and understanding what people need are the first steps. The next step is to take empathetic actions to meet that need. This builds trust. This is a very basic scriptural principle. “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Carl Braaten notes with stinging accuracy, “When we Christians do not walk together with Jews, we are in danger of regressing to the paganism from which we emerged.”

The Jewish people’s identity as God’s chosen has been robbed, they have been lied about, cheated, tortured, and murdered by people who professed Christianity. If we want ot rebuild trust, we cannot rely on words alone. We must take serious, sacrificial action. Action that proves that we know who they are, understand their struggles, and will stand with them. Lack of service will lead to closed, self-protecting hearts who feel unsafe and will communicate in ways that only exacerbate misunderstandings. 

Our heroes took action! Corrie Ten-Boom, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and Irena Sendler blessed the Jewish people by putting their faith into action. They did not just quote scripture or simply pray for the best; they sacrificially gave their lives. 

Christian Zionists serving Orthodox Jewish vineyard owners in Samaria through HaYovel/The Israel Guys (See Jeremiah 31:5 and Isaiah 61:5)

A Vision for Blessing Israel

Throughout this article, I have argued that it is vital for Christians to perform acts of service for the Jewish People. This begs the question: Is it possible for every Christian to physically bless the Jewish people on a regular basis? 

I believe Matthew 25 gives us a good list to start with. “I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.” Our challenge is to find Jewish people who live closest to us and get to know them well enough to determine whether they have any of those needs. If we truly understood that when we serve them, we are serving Yeshua, we would not hesitate.

There are a plethora of other options, including volunteering in Israel, at your local Jewish Community Center, or Synagogue. Yes, you will get strange looks. But we must change that for heaven’s sake. We must turn from the error of our ways and, instead of taking the historical approach that “God will use us to punish the Jews,” take up a banner that reads “God will use us to serve, bless, and comfort the Jewish People.” For too long, Christians have sided with the Hamans, Hitlers, and Hamas’s of this world. It is time to side with God and follow His designated path to Redemption–bless His people.

Conclusion

There is a strong biblical case for the importance of non-Jews' acts of service towards the Jewish people. You could say it is a mandate and an integral key in God’s master plan of salvation for the world. Church history shows how the body of Messiah veered off track, disabling her from fulfilling one of her greatest responsibilities. Over and over again throughout history, opportunities were missed and ended in tragedy. 

Misunderstanding of Scripture by Christians led to relational distancing from the Jewish people. Relational distance led to immorality–justification of inhumane treatment. Immorality led to dehumanization. And dehumanization led to genocide–the Shoah. Thankfully, today we are seeing a shift in the interpretation of scripture, and that has led to unprecedented relational breakthroughs. 

Trust can only be built with empathetic actions. The way forward is to find ways to invite, encourage, and set up opportunities for Christians to serve Jewish people. It is the Biblical way, it is proven through history and psychology, and its simplicity enables its attainability. Indeed, Christian acts of service performed for the Jewish people are significant to the eradication of Christian Jew-hatred, a key to gaining relational fidelity with the Jewish people, and a critical component of God’s master plan for global redemption.

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