Fulfilled in Christ

The Gospel of John is full of I am’s: “I am the bread of Life”; “I am the light of the world”; “Before Abraham was, I am…”; “I am the good shepherd”; “I am the door”; “I am the way the truth and the life”. It is clear also that John was putting Jesus forward as the hope of Israel.

If Jesus fulfilled all the Old Covenant shadows, such as the priesthood, Sabbath and temple, etc. why do some not include in this that Jesus also fulfilled the imagery of the term Israel and the Promised Land? What is the difference? We should include the nation of Israel and the land. Jesus fulfilled them all.

Take for example Jacob. His name was changed to Israel. Did Jacob really overcome by his own works and merits, or was he given that blessing in Christ? The name Israel that was accredited to Jacob was really fulfilled in Jesus Christ. We know certainly that Jesus Christ alone overcame. Jacob (Israel) therefore was a picture of Christ and spoke of the coming redeemer.

Concerning the land, Jesus said, “…believe Me, the hour comes, when you shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem worship the Father…But the hour comes and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in Spirit and in truth…” (John 4:21-23). With this one statement Jesus abrogated all holy land. It does not exist anymore. He is its fulfilment.

Jesus also said, “Wherever two or three are gathered, there am I in the midst of them.” (Matt 18:20). By this He meant that no one had to come to the temple or to Jerusalem to worship. He also said in the Sermon on the Mount, “Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth.” (Matt 5:5).

The Greek word He used here for earth is ge. This term was used for land in general, or was used for Israel’s land. In religious terms it referred to the fulfilment of promise. The Bible portrays the Promised Land as being fulfilled in rest and symbolizing redemption (Heb 4:8). Christ Himself is the promise of rest and redemption for the meek. “Thank you Father, for You have hid this from the wise and revealed it to babes…Come to Me…and I will give you rest.” (Matt 11:25, 28).

The land refers to the Old Testament garden imagery: paradise. It means a place of rest, fulfilment, where there is no sin, where there is no frustration, where only good happens. This is not something to come, but it is our redemption. We hear this in secular songs, people wishing for such a place. We have such a place. He is Jesus, who overcomes sin in the heart with faith.

But many of the Jews were Zionists, meaning they wanted a restored kingdom in Israel, in Jerusalem. They wanted what they wanted, not what God was doing. This is not what Jesus came to do. All the apostles said that the church is the fulfilment of the Old Testament types and shadows. None of them mentioned any continuing role of any of these types, including Israel, the land, or the temple.