Hope of the Gentiles

19 July 2025  Matthew 12:14-21  

“And in His name the Gentiles will hope.” Matthew 12:21

Christianity started as a Jewish thing. All of the first Christians were originally Jewish, and didn’t even consider Christianity to be a separate religion. Peter, James, John and all the other leaders of the earliest Church never appear to have intended a mission to the non-Jews.

By the time Matthew was written, however, Christians were quoting Isaiah, rejoicing in the time when even the Gentiles claimed the name of Jesus: “And in His name the Gentiles will hope” (Matthew 12:21).

So how did Christianity become more than just a Jewish thing?

Challenges to tradition Greek and Roman paganism began to appear as early as the 5^th century B.C. As far back as Socrates people began wondering if there were just one supreme god, speculating that such a supreme being made more rational and moral sense – it is one of the reasons that Socrates was condemned and forced to drink the hemlock. By the time of Jesus, these challenges had accelerated, driven in large degree by the emergence of the Roman imperial cult. Julius Caesar became the first Roman emperor to be made a god by decree of the Senate, and it caught on. Augustus was also deified, followed by Claudius, Vespasian, Titus and Nerva, and that was just in the first century. The first four emperors in the second century were also deified, and the pattern became clear. If you had the power of the army behind you, you could do whatever you wanted. You could even become a god.

This struck many people as corrupt and absurd, so as soon as the pattern began to emerge some Gentiles began to find their way into Jewish synagogues. They were impressed by the moral vigor of the Jews, and believed that it was because they worshipped only One God. Most of them never fully converted to Judaism because they found the requirements of circumcision and dietary restrictions repugnant, but they were permitted at synagogue services, and were known as “God Fearers.” Over time, it was these God Fearers who were most impressed by the resurrection of Jesus, and the intense moral earnestness of the Christians, and they became the core of the new believers in the Churches founded by St. Paul.

We may be witnessing the emergence of a new set of God Fearers in our time, people driven to reconsider religion because of the moral absurdity that has taken over large parts of the West. Various spiritual cancers are flourishing in the West under the general rubric of “tolerance.” People have been told by political, educational and entertainment elites that we must not argue or debate over matters of ultimate truth, but tolerate each other’s differences. In the absence of argument and debate, however, all we can do is fight. Then, of course, we are told that fighting is intolerant also, so we must simply be silent in the face of differences, or face exclusion from polite society. The resulting “cancel culture” has made moral truth little more than a hobby for the eccentric, and moral absurdities, particularly in the area of gender ideology, are allowed to roam wherever they want. The consequences of such enforced silence over moral differences include catastrophic increases in loneliness, depression, and anxiety, especially among the young.

While there are conflicting signs of a religious renewal in the U.S., there are signs that more Americans are reconsidering religion as a solution to the moral confusion of the times. More people are interested in Jesus, as evidenced by sharply increased Bible sales in the U.S. (up 22% in 2024). Polling also indicates that 34% of Americans believe the influence of religion is increasing, up from 22% in 2023 and 2024. These may be the God Fearers of today, people standing just outside the door of the Church, leaning in, trying to catch what’s going on inside.

Christianity became more than just a Jewish thing because people considered unreachable before wanted reliable answers to moral questions, and credible alternatives to obvious corruption.

God fearers are starting to appear again. Perhaps the time has come for us to speak our solutions a little louder.