Gentiles are connected to Abraham by faith — the same faith-plus-nothing salvation Abraham exercised — not by becoming Jews.
Les Feldick teaches that Abraham was saved by faith plus nothing, and Gentile believers are saved the same way. That shared faith makes believers children of Abraham in a spiritual sense, while a Gentile never becomes a Jew. Gentile believers today are pictured as resting on the root of Abraham and feasting on the promises God made to him.
Romans 4:9 — Paul's question about whether the blessedness comes on the circumcision only or also on the uncircumcision directly asks how Gentiles share in the righteousness of faith demonstrated by Abraham.
Galatians 3:7 — Scripture explicitly identifies those of faith as children of Abraham, which is the heart of the Gentile connection to Abraham.
In Romans 4:9 the Apostle Paul asks, "Cometh this blessedness then upon the circumcision only, or upon the uncircumcision also? for we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness." The question connects the uncircumcised — Gentiles — to the same reckoning of righteousness by faith that Abraham experienced. Galatians 3:7 declares plainly, "Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham." The covenant God made with Abraham in Genesis 12 also carries a worldwide promise: "in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed" (Genesis 12:3). The promise of an uncountable spiritual seed is pictured in Genesis 15:5 — "Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be." At the same time, Scripture reminds Gentile believers that they were once "aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise" (Ephesians 2:12), showing that the natural connection to Israel did not belong to them.
Les Feldick's consistent answer is that Gentiles are connected to Abraham through a shared faith, not through a change of racial identity. In Romans 4, Paul points back to Abraham and asks whether the blessing of righteousness comes on the circumcision only or also on the uncircumcision (Clip 0). Les explains that "Abraham was saved by faith plus nothing, we're saved by faith plus nothing," and that this is the spiritual connection that makes believers children of Abraham (Clip 1). Les is emphatic that this does not make Gentiles Jews. "A Jew is a Jew. A Gentile is a Gentile," he says, and salvation never makes a Jew out of a Gentile (Clips 1, 2). Using the olive tree imagery of Romans 11, Les pictures Gentile believers as "resting on the root of Abraham" and "feasting off of that which God had promised the man Abraham," without becoming part of the nation of Israel themselves (Clip 3). The historical background, Les notes, is that Abraham was called out of Ur of the Chaldees out of idolatry, and with that call the nation of Israel began (Clips 4, 7). Abraham was taken out of the mainstream of humanity to become the father of the nation of Israel and the recipient of the covenant promises of land, nation, and government (Clips 4, 5). Gentile believers, who were once "Gentiles in the flesh, non-Jews, not part of the Abrahamic family or covenant," now feast on the blessings of that covenant through the Gospel (Clips 6, 3).
No. Les Feldick says people are "way out in left field" if they think becoming a Christian makes them a Jew. "A Jew is a Jew. A Gentile is a Gentile." Believers are children of Abraham by faith — Galatians says "they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham" — but this is a spiritual connection. Salvation does not make a Jew out of a Gentile whatsoever, and the wild olive tree imagery of Romans 11 pictures Gentiles feasting on the root of Abraham without becoming Jews.
Abraham was part of the general race of humanity coming out of Adam when God put His finger on him in Ur of the Chaldees. God called him out of idolatry and gave him the covenant, making him the father of a whole new race — the nation of Israel. So the nation of Israel began with Abraham's call. The connection for Gentiles is not through Abraham's physical bloodline but through the kind of faith Abraham exercised when God called him.
Les pictures the present age as the Gentiles resting on the root of Abraham and feasting off all that God had promised the man Abraham. This means the Gospel has gone out to the Gentiles, and they have had just as much opportunity at salvation and a relationship with God as Israel did in the Old Testament. It does not mean they become part of Israel's racial identity — they are feasting on the blessings of the root through faith.
Paul's Question About Circumcision and Uncircumcision
Les shows Paul asking whether the blessedness of righteousness by faith comes on the circumcision only or also on the uncircumcision, setting up the inclusion of believing Gentiles in Abraham's example of faith.
Saved by Faith Plus Nothing — the Spiritual Connection
Les explains that Abraham was saved by faith plus nothing and Gentile believers are saved the same way; this is the spiritual connection that makes believers children of Abraham without becoming Jews.
Children of Faith Are Children of Abraham
Les teaches that Paul calls believers children of Abraham because of faith, and that salvation never makes a Jew out of a Gentile.
Gentile Branches Resting on the Root of Abraham
Using the olive tree imagery of Romans 11, Les pictures Gentile believers feasting on the promises God made to Abraham while remaining Gentiles.
Abraham Called Out of Ur to Father a New Race
Les explains that Abraham was part of the general human race until God plucked him out in Ur of the Chaldees to become the father of the nation of Israel.
Abraham as the Example of Faith for New Testament Believers
Les notes that Paul uses Abraham as the example of faith for New Testament believers even though Abraham belongs to the Old Testament program and received covenant promises of nation, land, and government.
Gentiles Once Outside the Abrahamic Covenant
Les reminds Gentile believers that they were once "Gentiles in the flesh" — non-Jews, not part of the Abrahamic family or covenant — and were called uncircumcision by the circumcised Jew.
Jew and Gentile as the Bible's Two Categories
Les teaches that Scripture divides humanity into Jew and Gentile, that religious conversion never makes a Gentile a Jew racially, and that Israel began with God's call of Abraham out of Ur and out of idolatry.
Romans 4:9: Cometh this blessedness then upon the circumcision only, or upon the uncircumcision also? for we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness.
Paul's question directly raises how the uncircumcised (Gentiles) share in the righteousness of faith demonstrated by Abraham.
Galatians 3:7: Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham.
This verse identifies believers of faith — including Gentiles — as Abraham's children, which is the heart of the connection.
Genesis 12:2-3: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
The Abrahamic covenant, which Les says began in Genesis 12, promises blessing to all families of the earth, foreshadowing Gentile inclusion.
Ephesians 2:12: That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:
This verse reminds Gentile believers that they were once outside the commonwealth of Israel and the covenants of promise before faith in Christ.
Romans 4:5: But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.
The truth that God justifies the ungodly through faith alone is the basis of Abraham's righteousness that Clip 0 references.
Genesis 15:5: And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.
God's promise of spiritual seed as numerous as the stars is the promise Les connects to believers' spiritual connection to Abraham.
No. Les Feldick is emphatic that "a Jew is a Jew and a Gentile is a Gentile" and that salvation never makes a Jew out of a Gentile. The connection to Abraham is spiritual — through the same faith-plus-nothing salvation — not a change of racial identity (Clips 1, 2).
Scripture says "they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham" (Galatians 3:7). Les explains that the connection is faith, not bloodline. Abraham was saved by faith plus nothing, and so are Gentile believers, which makes them spiritual children of Abraham without becoming Jews (Clips 1, 2).
Les teaches that the nation of Israel began when God called Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldees, out of idolatry, and gave him the covenant promises. Abraham was taken out of the mainstream of humanity and became the father of a new race of people — the nation of Israel (Clips 4, 7).
Watch the Teaching: Justified by Faith Alone — What Romans 4 Really Teaches