To Be Of Israel

The Lord declared that that the Twelve will come with Him at the Second Coming “in glory even as I am, to judge the whole house of Israel, even as many as have loved me and kept my commandments, and none else” (Doctrine and Covenants 29:1). Here we have it seems a definition of the house of Israel: those who love Him and keep His commandments. Of course we can consider the house of Israel to refer to the literal descendants of Jacob, but this definition based on our actions instead of lineage is certainly the more important one and clearly what will matter to the Lord when He comes again. President Nelson similarly taught, “the very name of Israel refers to a person who is willing to let God prevail in his or her life…. The word willing is crucial to this interpretation of Israel. We all have our agency. We can choose to be of Israel, or not. We can choose to let God prevail in our lives, or not.” Our physical lineage is of far less importance to the Lord than our righteousness—we can choose whether we are a part of the house of Israel in the spiritual sense. As we gather Israel we are not just preaching the gospel to those who are descended from a specific line of people; rather “the Lord is gathering those who are willing to let God prevail in their lives. The Lord is gathering those who will choose to let God be the most important influence in their lives.” As the Bible Dictionary states, Israel can denote “the true believers in Christ, regardless of their lineage or geographical location.”

                Other scriptures similarly confirm that righteousness, and not lineage, is what matters most to the Lord. When the Savior spoke to the Pharisees and condemned their wickedness, they responded, “We be Abraham’s seed…. Abraham is our father”). The Savior replied that what mattered was that they would be like Abraham, “If ye were Abraham’s children, ye would do the works of Abraham. But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham” (John 8:33,39). When the John the Baptist spoke to the Pharisees and Sadducees, he also warned them about focusing solely on their lineage: “And think not to say within yourselves, We are the children of Abraham, and we only have power to bring seed unto our father Abraham; for I say unto you that God is able of these stones to raise up children into Abraham” (JST Matthew 3:36). Being of Abraham literally was of far less importance than “[bringing] forth fruits meet for repentance.” Mormon similarly taught that to be of Israel means to repent and come unto the Savior. He quoted these words of Jesus: “Turn, all ye Gentiles, from your wicked ways; and repent of your evil doings.” After listing many of those evil doings they needed to turn away from, the Lord invited, “Come unto me, and be baptized in my name, that ye may receive a remission of your sins, and be filled with the Holy Ghost, that ye may be numbered with my people who are of the house of Israel” (3 Nephi 30:2). To be of Israel is to repent, come unto the Savior, and be baptized in his name—then we are numbered about Israel no matter what our lineage is. President Nelson summarized the principle with this powerful declaration: “The gospel net to gather scattered Israel is expansive. There is room for each person who will fully embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ. Each convert becomes one of God’s covenant children, whether by birth or by adoption. Each becomes a full heir to all that God has promised the faithful children of Israel!”