Bible Studies

“From Scofield to Scripture: Why I Changed My Mind About Israel”

by Brother Carlton 
04/17/26
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I want to begin on a personal note, because this is not just a theological issue for me—it’s part of my own journey.

I was raised in a small Baptist church where my pastor encouraged my great-grandmother to buy me a Scofield Reference Bible. She did, and I devoured it. Along with that Bible came a system of interpretation—Dispensationalism—that shaped how I understood prophecy, Israel, and the end times. I didn’t just hear it on Sundays; I absorbed it through books, sermons, and teachings. Like many Protestants, I came to believe that modern Israel held a unique, ongoing covenant status with God, and that supporting it was almost part of being a faithful Christian.

But over time, as I studied Scripture more carefully, I began to notice tensions. Then those tensions became contradictions. The more I read the New Testament, the more I realized that what I had been taught didn’t fully line up with what the apostles actually said. By God’s grace, I came to believe the Lord delivered me from those errors and gave me a clearer, more Christ-centered understanding of His Word.

What I’m about to say is not against Jewish people. That needs to be clear from the beginning. Jesus was a Jew. The apostles were Jews. Salvation came through the Jewish people in that sense. The question is not whether we love Jewish people—we absolutely should. The question is whether the Bible teaches that the modern nation-state of Israel still holds a special covenant status that Christians are obligated to support. When you examine the New Testament closely, the answer is no.

One of the biggest shifts we see in the New Testament is that the promises of God are no longer centered on an ethnic nation, but on a Person—Jesus Christ. Paul makes this very clear in Galatians 3:16 when he says that the promises were made not to many “seeds,” but to one “seed,” which is Christ. That’s a powerful statement. It means the fulfillment of God’s promises is found in Christ Himself.

Then Paul takes it a step further. In Galatians 3:29, he says that if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise. That changes everything. It means the inheritance is not based on physical descent, but on union with Christ. And just a verse before that, Paul says there is neither Jew nor Greek, for all are one in Christ Jesus. In other words, ethnicity no longer determines covenant standing. Faith in Christ does.

Paul reinforces this idea again in Romans 2, where he says a person is not a Jew outwardly, but inwardly. Circumcision is not merely physical—it’s of the heart, by the Spirit. That’s a direct challenge to any belief system that places covenant importance on physical descent apart from spiritual transformation. According to Paul, a “true Jew” is someone whose heart has been changed by God, not simply someone who traces their lineage back to Abraham.

Jesus Himself makes this point even more forcefully. In the Gospel of John 8, when people claim Abraham as their father, Jesus tells them that if they were truly Abraham’s children, they would do the works of Abraham. Instead, He says their real father is the devil because they reject Him. That’s a sobering statement. It shows that physical descent means nothing if there is no faith.

This same theme appears in the Gospel of Matthew 21. After giving the parable of the vineyard, Jesus tells the religious leaders that the kingdom of God will be taken from them and given to a people who will produce its fruit. That’s a transfer of covenant privilege. Not to another ethnic group, but to a people defined by faith and obedience. In Matthew 8, He adds that many will come from the east and west to sit with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, while the “children of the kingdom” will be cast out. Again, faith is the determining factor—not ethnicity.

This brings us to something many Protestants overlook—the Old Covenant itself was temporary and has now passed away. The writer of Epistle to the Hebrews says that God has made the first covenant old, and what is old is ready to vanish away. He also says that Jesus is the mediator of a better covenant. That’s crucial. You can’t hold onto Old Covenant categories, like land promises in their original form, without undermining the New Covenant that Christ established.

Jesus makes this transition unmistakable in Matthew 23 when He says, “Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.” This was not just symbolic language. It was a prophetic declaration of judgment that was fulfilled in 70 AD when Jerusalem and the temple were destroyed. That event marked the end of the Old Covenant system. It was the visible sign that the old order had passed away.

This idea isn’t new even in the Old Testament. In Book of Jeremiah 3:8, God speaks of giving Israel a bill of divorce because of unfaithfulness. Teachers like Harold Camping often pointed to this to show that covenant relationship can be broken. When you connect that with Jesus’ words about desolation and the destruction of Jerusalem, the picture becomes clear. The Old Covenant reached its conclusion, and the New Covenant in Christ took its place.

Another important shift in the New Testament is the focus on a different kind of Jerusalem. In Galatians 4, Paul contrasts the earthly Jerusalem with the Jerusalem above. He says the Jerusalem above is free and is the mother of believers. Then in Hebrews 12, he says that believers have already come to Mount Zion, the heavenly Jerusalem. And in Book of Revelation 21, we see the New Jerusalem coming down from heaven. The emphasis is no longer on an earthly city, but a heavenly one. Christian Zionism points people to the land. The New Testament points us to heaven.

Paul brings everything together in Ephesians 2 when he says that Christ has made both Jew and Gentile one and has broken down the dividing wall between them. He says Christ created one new man, not two separate covenant peoples. That means there is not one program for Israel and another for the church. There is one people of God in Christ.

Peter says the same thing when he calls believers a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, and a holy nation. Those are titles once given to Israel, now applied to the church. The identity of God’s people has been redefined around Christ.

This isn’t just a theological issue—it has real-world implications. When Christians automatically support one nation as “God’s chosen” while ignoring the suffering of others, including Palestinian Christians, we risk losing the heart of the gospel. Jesus does not love one group’s children more than another’s. He calls us to love all people and especially those who belong to Him.

So we are not called to be blindly pro-Israel or pro-Palestine. We are called to be pro-Christ and pro-His kingdom.

Looking back, I’m grateful for how the Lord led me out of a system that I once fully embraced. It wasn’t easy to rethink things I had believed for years, especially when they were reinforced by trusted teachers and widely accepted in evangelical circles. But Scripture must be our final authority.

And when we let the New Testament speak clearly, it tells us that the promises are fulfilled in Christ, the people of God are those who belong to Him, the Old Covenant has passed away, and the true Jerusalem is heavenly.

So I say this with sincerity and conviction: let’s return to the Word of God. Let’s exalt Christ above systems. And let’s identify the people of God not by ethnicity or land, but by faith in Jesus Christ alone.

Brother Carlton is a former U.S. Marine, Hollywood actor, and entrepreneur whose life journey—from the Marine Corps to Hollywood to Christian ministry—has given him a unique perspective on faith, purpose, and personal transformation. Today, he devotes his time to studying Scripture, writing, speaking, and helping select small business owners improve their marketing and grow their businesses ethically and effectively.

His book, Digging For Spiritual Treasure: A Collection of Meditations From My Hollywood Apartment, shares powerful spiritual insights drawn from Scripture and real-life experiences to help readers deepen their faith and apply biblical wisdom in everyday life. Search “Digging For Spiritual Treasure Brother Carlton” on Amazon to learn more.

You can also listen to The Brother Carlton Show on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, where he shares biblical insights, life lessons, and practical wisdom for living with greater purpose.

For ministry, speaking, or business inquiries: [email protected] (please include “HELP” in the subject line)