Note that the church and Israel aren't mutually exclusive, for a believer can be a member of the church and a member of Israel at the same time:
"For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin" (Romans 11:1).
"I am verily a man which am a Jew" (Acts 22:3).
"Are they Hebrews? so am I. Are they Israelites? so am I. Are they the seed of Abraham? so am I" (2 Corinthians 11:22).
Note that nobody, Jew or Gentile, can ever come to the Father apart from faith in Jesus:
"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me" (John 14:6).
"By the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole... Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved" (Acts 4:10, 12).
"If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned" (John 15:6).
"Though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed" (Galatians 1:8).
And nobody, Jew or Gentile, can have faith in Jesus without being part of the church:
"There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all" (Ephesians 4:4-6), which body is the church: "the church, which is his body" (Ephesians 1:22-23).
"For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit" (1 Corinthians 12:13).
"For the hope of Israel I am bound with this chain" (Acts 28:20).
"To give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins" (Acts 5:31).
"For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek" (Romans 1:16).
"For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him" (Romans 10:12).
Note that only a remnant of physical Israel will be saved:
"Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant shall be saved" (Romans 9:27).
"They which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed" (Romans 9:8).
"They are not all Israel, which are of Israel" (Romans 9:6).
"Because of unbelief they were broken off" (Romans 11:20).
"If ye were Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abraham" (John 8:39).
"Think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire" (Matthew 3:9-10).
Therefore, when Paul says "all Israel shall be saved" (Romans 11:26), "all Israel" doesn't refer to all of physical Israel, but to all of the commonwealth and olive tree of Israel, which now includes all of the Gentiles and Jews who are saved (Romans 10:12-13), for Paul expressly says that Gentile believers are no longer strangers and foreigners in the commonwealth and olive tree of Israel, but are now fellow citizens and fellow branches with Jewish believers: "At that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise... Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints" (Ephesians 2:12, 19); "Some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert grafted in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree" (Romans 11:17), and this olive tree and commonwealth will also include the remnant of physical Israel who will be saved at the 2nd coming (Zechariah 12:10-13:6), for "they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be graffed in... and so all Israel shall be saved" (Romans 11:23-26).
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No Jews In Christ?
"For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 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" (Galatians 3:27-29). Note that this simply means that God makes no distinctions regarding ethnicity or gender as far as being in Christ and an heir of Abraham is concerned, "for there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him" (Romans 10:12).
Note that just as Galatians 3:27-29 doesn't mean that there are no males or females in the body of Christ (1 Timothy 2:11-14; 1 Corinthians 14:34-37), so it doesn't mean that there are no Jews or Gentiles in the body of Christ, for the Apostle Paul expressly and repeatedly identifies himself as a Jew while addressing Gentiles: "I am a man which am a Jew" (Acts 21:39); "For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin" (Romans 11:1); "Are they Hebrews? so am I. Are they Israelites? so am I. Are they the seed of Abraham? so am I" (2 Corinthians 11:22).
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New Covenant For Israel Now
Note that the letter to the Hebrews tells them that the New Covenant has already replaced the Old Covenant; the following passage is only in future tense when quoting directly from Jeremiah; before and after the quote it is not in future tense: "[Jesus] is [present tense] the mediator of a better covenant, which was established [perfect tense] upon better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second. For finding fault with them, he saith, [begins direct quote from Jeremiah 31:31-34] Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people: And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more. [ends direct quote from Jeremiah 31:31-34]. In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made [perfect tense] the first old" (Hebrews 8:6-13).
"Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; And having an high priest over the house of God; Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith" (Hebrews 10:19-22).
"Behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom" (Matthew 27:51).
"[Jesus] is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance" (Hebrews 9:15).
"Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling... See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven" (Hebrews 12:24-25).
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Saved Israel Has The Spirit
Note that the filling of the Holy Spirit which Christians receive today, whether Jew or Gentile, is the fulfillment of God's OT promise to Israel:
"I will put my spirit within you" (Ezekiel 36:27).
"This is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy" (Acts 2:16-18).
"Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear" (Acts 2:33).
"The Gentiles have been made partakers of their spiritual things" (Romans 15:27).
"That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith" (Galatians 3:14).
"And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost" (Acts 10:45).
"For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit" (1 Corinthians 12:13).
"If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his" (Romans 8:9).
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The Kingdom Of God Includes The Spirit
Note that the preaching of the kingdom of God is a preaching of the Spirit:
"Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God" (John 3:5).
"For the kingdom of God is... righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost" (Romans 14:17).
"Ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out" (Luke 13:28).
"And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land" (Ezekiel 37:14).
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OT Israel Could Have The Spirit
Note that the same phrases used to describe the OT saints with the Holy Spirit are used to describe us in the Church with the Holy Spirit:
FILLED WITH
It says the former OT (now NT) saints could be "filled with" the Spirit:
It says John the Baptist "shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother's womb" (Luke 1:15).
"Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost" (Luke 1:41).
"Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost" (Luke 1:67).
"I have filled him with the spirit of God" (Exodus 31:3).
Just as we in the Church can be "filled with" the Holy Spirit:
"They were all filled with the Holy Ghost" (Acts 2:4).
"Seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost" (Acts 6:3).
"Be filled with the Spirit" (Ephesians 5:18).
And just as Jesus himself is "filled with" the Holy Spirit:
"Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost" (Luke 4:1).
IN
The former OT (now NT) saints could have the Holy Spirit "in" them:
It says of the OT prophets: "The Spirit of Christ which was in them" (1 Peter 1:11).
Christ put "his holy Spirit within" Moses (Isaiah 63:11) to the point where Moses was even able to pass on the Spirit to Joshua through the laying on of hands (Deuteronomy 34:9, compare Acts 8:17).
Joseph was "a man in whom the Spirit of God is" (Genesis 41:38).
Joshua was "a man in whom is the spirit" (Numbers 27:18).
"Thy spirit in thy prophets" (Nehemiah 9:30).
Just as we in the Church can have the Holy Spirit "in" us:
"His Spirit that dwelleth in you" (Romans 8:11).
"The Spirit of God dwelleth in you" (1 Corinthians 3:16).
"The Holy Ghost which is in you" (1 Corinthians 6:19).
"The Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us" (2 Timothy 1:14).
UPON
The former OT (now NT) saints could have the Holy Spirit "upon" them:
"The spirit rested upon them, they prophesied" (Numbers 11:25).
"The Spirit of the LORD will come upon thee, and thou shalt prophesy" (1 Samuel 10:6).
"The Spirit of the LORD fell upon me" (Ezekiel 11:5).
It says of Simeon: "The Holy Ghost was upon him" (Luke 2:25).
Just as we in the Church can have the Holy Spirit "upon" us:
"The Holy Ghost is come upon you" (Acts 1:8).
"The Holy Ghost fell on all them" (Acts 10:44).
"The Holy Ghost came on them" (Acts 19:6).
"The spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you" (1 Peter 4:14).
And just as Jesus himself has the Holy Spirit "upon" him:
"The Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him" (Matthew 3:16).
"I will put my spirit upon him" (Matthew 12:18).
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me" (Luke 4:18).
DRINK
The former OT (now NT) saints could "drink" of the Spirit:
"And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ" (1 Corinthians 10:4).
Just as we in the Church can "drink" of the Spirit:
"For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit" (1 Corinthians 12:13).
Note that in 1 Corinthians 10:4 Paul refers to that "spiritual" rock, the Spirit of Christ, which is the Spirit: "They drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ" (1 Corinthians 10:4); "The Lord is that Spirit" (2 Corinthians 3:17).
EMPOWERED
The former OT (now NT) saints could be empowered by the Spirit:
"I am full of power by the spirit of the LORD" (Micah 3:8).
Just as we in the Church can be empowered by the Spirit:
"Strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man" (Ephesians 3:16).
And just as Jesus himself is empowered by the Spirit:
"Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit" (Luke 4:14).
SPEAK
The former OT (now NT) saints could speak by the Holy Spirit:
"The Spirit of the LORD spake by me" (2 Samuel 23:2).
"The Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake" (Acts 1:16).
"Well spake the Holy Ghost by Esaias the prophet" (Acts 28:25).
"Holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost" (2 Peter 1:21).
Just as we in the Church can speak by the Holy Spirit:
"It is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost" (Mark 13:11).
"Then Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, said unto them" (Acts 4:8).
"Man speaking by the Spirit of God" (1 Corinthians 12:3).
TAUGHT
The former OT (now NT) saints could be taught by the Spirit:
"Thou gavest also thy good spirit to instruct them" (Nehemiah 9:20).
Just as we in the Church can be taught by the Spirit:
"The Holy Ghost shall teach you" (Luke 12:12).
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Comforter Could Not Come?
Note that in John 16:7, Jesus didn't mean that the Holy Spirit had not yet come to men, for the Holy Spirit could not have "filled" (e.g. Luke 1:15) former OT (now NT) saints and been "in" (e.g. 1 Peter 1:11) former OT (now NT) saints and been "upon" (e.g. Numbers 11:25) former OT (now NT) saints and former OT (now NT) saints could not have "drank" of the Spirit (1 Corinthians 10:4) and the Spirit could not have "empowered" former OT (now NT) saints (Micah 3:8) and former OT (now NT) saints could not have "spoken" by the Spirit (e.g. 2 Samuel 23:2) and the Spirit could not have "taught" former OT (now NT) saints (Nehemiah 9:20) if he had not yet come to men. I believe what Jesus was referring to in John 16:7 was the fulfillment of the promise of Joel 2:28 when the Spirit would be poured out upon all NT believers (Acts 2:16-17), and not just on some, as in the OT. Note that in this way Pentecost was also the fulfillment of Moses' prayer in Numbers 11:29, for Moses had the Holy Spirit (Isaiah 63:11), and prayed that God would also put his Spirit not only upon some of his people, like he did with the 70 elders (Numbers 11:25), but upon all of his people, like he did with the church at Pentecost (Acts 1:8).
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Spirit Not Yet Given?
Note that John 7:39 doesn't mean that the Holy Spirit hadn't yet been given to any saints, for the Holy Spirit could not have "filled" (e.g. Luke 1:15) former OT (now NT) saints and been "in" (e.g. 1 Peter 1:11) former OT (now NT) saints and been "upon" (e.g. Numbers 11:25) former OT (now NT) saints and former OT (now NT) saints could not have "drank" of the Spirit (1 Corinthians 10:4) and the Spirit could not have "empowered" former OT (now NT) saints (Micah 3:8) and former OT (now NT) saints could not have "spoken" by the Spirit (e.g. 2 Samuel 23:2) and the Spirit could not have "taught" former OT (now NT) saints (Nehemiah 9:20) if he had not been given to some OT saints. I believe what John was referring to in John 7:39 was the fulfillment of the promise of Joel 2:28 when the Spirit would be given to all NT saints (Acts 2:16-17), and not just to some, as in the OT. Note that in this way Pentecost was also the fulfillment of Moses' prayer in Numbers 11:29, for Moses had been given the Holy Spirit (Isaiah 63:11), and he prayed that God would also give his Spirit not only to some of his people, like he did to the 70 elders (Numbers 11:25), but to all of his people, like he did to the church at Pentecost (Acts 1:8).
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Acts 19:1-6?
Note that when John the Baptist saw Jesus, he proclaimed that Jesus was the Son of God (John 1:34), and that Jesus was the Lamb that would take away the sins of the world (John 1:29, 35-36), and that Jesus was the one who would baptize believers in the Holy Spirit (John 1:27, 30; Mark 1:7-8); and those who believed in Jesus before the cross knew that "all things that John [the Baptist] spake of this man were true" (John 10:41).
John the Baptist knew everything that Paul told those in Acts 19, indeed Paul told them that John the Baptist himself had taught what he was now teaching them (Acts 19:4).
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OT Sanctification
Note that it says the former OT (now NT) saints could be sanctified:
"Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee" (Jeremiah 1:5).
"Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the LORD that doth sanctify you" (Exodus 31:13).
"And ye shall keep my statutes, and do them: I am the LORD which sanctify you" (Leviticus 20:8).
"I gave them my sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the LORD that sanctify them" (Ezekiel 20:12).
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Body = Church
Note that no verse says or requires that any Israelite believer in Christ not be a part of the church. Believing Gentiles and believing Israelites are in the same "body, the church" (Colossians 1:18), "the church, which is his body" (Ephesians 1:22-23), "his body's sake, which is the church" (Colossians 1:24), "for we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh. This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church" (Ephesians 5:30-32). Christ doesn't marry part of his body, but his entire body, the church. Note that all of these verses equate the body and the church, and that no verse distinguishes between the body and the church, or says the church is only part of the body.
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Joint Heirs
"That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel" (Ephesians 3:6).
Note that Ephesians 3:6 concerns salvation; Paul is saying that Gentile and Israelite believers are "fellowheirs" in salvation as they are both "partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel" (Ephesians 3:6), "for I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek" (Romans 1:16), "for there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him" (Romans 10:12).
Note that Ephesians 3:6 in no way teaches that Israel is an heir outside of the church, but even says that Gentiles are "fellow" heirs with Israel and of the "same" body as Israel.
Note that in 1 Peter 3:7, Peter similarly refers to two groups of people, husbands and wives, and says that these two groups are "heirs [plural] together." So nothing requires that when two groups are both heirs, that one group must not be part of the church.
God has as many heirs as he has children: "The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs [plural]" (Romans 8:16-17); we Gentiles are heirs (plural): "If ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs [plural]" (Galatians 3:16).
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OT Israel Now In Church
Note that there are no longer any OT believers. All believers of all past ages are now part of the body of Christ (Ephesians 4:4-5), for now all believers of all past ages believe in Christ's finished work on the cross (Ephesians 4:8-10; 1 Peter 3:18-19; 1 Peter 4:6), which is our new testament (new covenant) salvation (Matthew 26:28), and now all believers of all past ages are after Pentecost.
I believe that before the saints under the old covenant died they were saved as much as was possible before the cross and Pentecost had been accomplished. "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad" (John 8:56). "They drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ" (1 Corinthians 10:4). "These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.. they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city... Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt" (Hebrews 11:13, 16, 25-26).
CROWNS
I believe every former OT (now NT) believer will "love his appearing" as much as any other believer in the church who has already died (2 Timothy 4:8).
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One Way Only
Note that no one at any time can be eternally saved without believing in Jesus and his finished work on the cross: "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: NO MAN cometh unto the Father, but by me" (John 14:6); "By the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole... Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved" (Acts 4:10, 12).
This is why Jesus had to bring the new covenant to the saints who died before the cross; otherwise, their sins could never have been forgiven: "For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins" (Matthew 26:28); "For this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead" (1 Peter 4:6). In the same way, Jesus would have to bring the new covenant to anyone who died after the cross without hearing of Jesus, if their sins are ever to be forgiven.
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Israel In The Millennium Will Be In The Church
Note that no scripture states that any mortal or immortal Israelite believer in the millennial kingdom will not be in the church.
In the millennium, all believers will continue to be part of the church, for the Bible nowhere refers to a "church age" ending, but instead says that the church is "throughout all ages, world without end" (Ephesians 3:21).
Note that no verse says the Mosaic Covenant will be restored in the millennial kingdom; the practices outlined in Zechariah 14 and Ezekiel 40-48 aren't the Mosaic law. The Mosaic covenant has been disannulled: "There is verily a disannulling of the commandment going before for the weakness and unprofitableness thereof" (Hebrews 7:18), and no Israelite believer can ever think they are justified by the Mosaic law in any way without their falling from grace, for "Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace" (Galatians 5:4).
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Different Covenants?
Note that Paul in no way recognizes any distinction between the covenants made with believing Israelites and those also made with believing Gentiles that would separate any believing Israelite from the church.
Believing Israelites are part of the church, for Paul said: "I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin" (Romans 11:1). Nonbelieving Israelites are lost just as other nonbelievers, for Jesus said: "No man cometh unto the Father, but by me" (John 14:6).
Note that no verse and no covenant says or requires that any Israelite believer in Christ not be a part of the church. "Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing" (1 Corinthians 7:19).
Note that Paul's declaring himself a circumcised Israelite in no way separates him or any other circumcised Israelite believer from the church: "circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews" (Philippians 3:5), but his declaration even proves that circumcised believing Israelites are in the church.
Mosaic Covenant -- See Israel In Millennium section above.
New Covenant -- See OT Israel section above.
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Blindness In Part
"Blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in" (Romans 11:25). Note that it is only a blindness "in part" that has come upon physical Israel, for the church was begun by Israelites: "For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin" (Romans 11:1), and there still are a great many Jewish believers today: "For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit" (1 Corinthians 12:13).
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Only Some Of Israel Cut Off
Note that Romans 11:20-22 refers to individuals, not groups of people, for Paul says that only "some" of the natural branches have been broken off (Romans 11:17, 21), and you don't ever want to be broken off: "Thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear: For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee. Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off" (Romans 11:20-22). "If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned" (John 15:6).
While believing Gentiles have been grafted into spiritual Israel (Romans 11:17, 4:16; Ephesians 2:12-19, Galatians 3:7-29; John 11:52), any Jew broken off from spiritual Israel can be grafted in again:
"They also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be grafted in: for God is able to graff them in again" (Romans 11:23).
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More Than One Israel?
Some may think it strange the New Testament can refer to two different but overlapping sets of people by the same name "Israel." But didn't the Old Testament do the same thing? In the Old Testament, the name "Israel" is used to refer to all 12 tribes descended from the 12 sons of Jacob/Israel (Genesis 49:2, 49:28, 1 Kings 8:16), the tribe of Joseph becoming the two tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh (Genesis 48:5). Later, after the division of the kingdom, "all Israel" sometimes refers to just those in the kingdom of Israel as opposed to the kingdom of Judah (2 Chronicles 10:16-19, 28:26), or to just those in the kingdom of Judah (2 Chronicles 11:3), or to both (2 Chronicles 12:13, 13:5). So when reading the Old Testament, sometimes we need to distinguish between physical Israel and political Israel in order to correctly determine which one an Old Testament passage is referring to, just as now when reading the New Testament we need to distinguish between physical Israel and spiritual Israel in order to correctly understand many passages.
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Signs And Wonders
Note that signs and wonders are not only in the OT, but are also in the NT:
"Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you" (Acts 2:22).
"Many wonders and signs were done by the apostles" (Acts 2:43).
"That signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child Jesus" (Acts 4:30).
"By the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders wrought among the people" (Acts 5:12).
Note that signs and wonders are in no way mutually exclusive with the leadership of the Holy Spirit, but are even performed by the power of the Holy Spirit:
"Through mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God; so that from Jerusalem, and round about unto Illyricum, I have fully preached the gospel of Christ" (Romans 15:19).
"God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will" (Hebrews 2:4).
And signs and wonders are not only for Jews, but are also for Gentiles:
"The Lord, which gave testimony unto the word of his grace, and granted signs and wonders to be done by their hands" (Acts 14:3).
"Truly the signs of an apostle were wrought among you in all patience, in signs, and wonders, and mighty deeds" (2 Corinthians 12:12).
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"Holy Ghost" vs. "Holy Spirit"?
Note that it says of the former OT prophets: "The Spirit of Christ which was in them" (1 Peter 1:11); "for the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost" (2 Peter 1:21); John the Baptist was "filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother's womb" (Luke 1:15); "Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost" (Luke 1:41); "Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost" (Luke 1:67).
Note that it says: "The Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us" (2 Timothy 1:14); "After that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise" (Ephesians 1:13); "How much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?" (Luke 11:13).
Note that in all of the verses above, "Spirit" and "Ghost" are simply different translations of the exact same Greek word pneuma.
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Like The Stars In Heaven
Note that the following verses refer to the literal, physical seed of Abraham as the stars in heaven:
"The LORD had said he would increase Israel like to the stars of the heavens" (1 Chronicles 27:23); "Their children also multipliedst thou as the stars of heaven, and broughtest them into the land, concerning which thou hadst promised to their fathers, that they should go in to possess it" (Nehemiah 9:23); "God hath made thee as the stars of heaven for multitude" (Deuteronomy 10:22); "Ye are this day as the stars of heaven for multitude" (Deuteronomy 1:10).
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Why Did Unbelieving Jews Persecute The Church?
I believe the unbelieving Jews persecuted the church for the same reason they persecuted Jesus Christ himself: "Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also. But all these things will they do unto you for my name's sake, because they know not him that sent me" (John 15:20-21).
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Hebrews
How could "holy brethren" (Hebrews 3:1) "which have believed" (Hebrews 4:3) and who are encouraged to "hold fast our profession" (Hebrews 4:14), "the profession of our faith" (Hebrews 10:23), "not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching" (Hebrews 10:25), and "looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith" (Hebrews 12:2), and who have come "to the general assembly and church" (Hebrews 12:23) not be in the body of Christ? Isn't it true that "there is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all" (Ephesians 4:4-6), and that "by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit" (1 Corinthians 12:13)?
Isn't Paul a Hebrew? "Are they Hebrews? so am I" (2 Corinthians 11:22), "an Hebrew of the Hebrews" (Philippians 3:5); "I heard a voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?" (Acts 26:14). Is Paul then not part of the body of Christ?
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1 Peter
Do Peter's references to unbelieving Gentiles in 1 Peter 2:12, 4:3 require that Peter was addressing only Jewish Christians? Doesn't Paul refer in the same manner to believers living among unbelieving Gentiles?
"Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God" (1 Corinthians 10:32).
"That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour; not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles" (1 Thessalonians 4:4-5).
"It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father's wife" (1 Corinthians 5:1).
"I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils" (1 Corinthians 10:20).