Did the Jews reject Christ? Yes. Is this the end of the story for them, the end of their special relationship with God? In no way. If we say that Israel no longer has a special place in God's plans we are ignoring what the Bible says. Paul is completely realistic about Israel. Yes, they did reject the Messiah, moreover this was not a one-off aberration, but rebelling against God was a deeply ingrained habit. Yet they are still uppermost in God's plans. Even the gospel going to the Gentiles is part of God's plan to make Israel realise how much she is missing.
We should rejoice in this. For if Israel's rejection of God brought blessing to us with the gospel being spread throughout the world, things will get even better when Israel eventually responds to God as a nation. Imagine the joy in God's heart when Israel eventually repents and puts its faith in Christ (Zech 12:10-14; Luke 15:7).
There is a general lesson we can glean from all this as well. It is always in our interests for someone else to be blessed. The religious leaders in Jesus' day were offended when He blessed "sinners". After Pentecost the Jews were offended that the gospel went to the Gentiles. We can be jealous or offended when God blesses other people. Instead we should rejoice when others are blessed (Romans 12:15).
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