יום הכיפורים
Yom HaKipurim Yom Kippur – The Day of Atonement is still celebrated by Jews today. It is their most important holiday. It comes on the tenth day of the first month. So it is ten days after their New Year (from the rabbinic tradition not given to Moses and not the technical Jewish New Year), Rosh Hashanah. Thus, it comes at a good time for them to practice self-evaluation and repentance at the "beginning of the year." It is referred to as Shabbat Shabbaton, “Sabbath of Solemn Rest” or “Sabbath of Sabbaths.” Old Testament Scriptures Leviticus 16:2-6 the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron your brother not to come at any time into the Holy Place inside the veil, before the mercy seat that is on the ark, so that he may not die. For I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat. But in this way Aaron shall come into the Holy Place: with a bull from the herd for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. He shall put on the holy linen coat and shall have the linen undergarment on his body, and he shall tie the linen sash around his waist, and wear the linen turban; these are the holy garments. He shall bathe his body in water and then put them on. And he shall take from the congregation of the people of Israel two male goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering. “Aaron shall offer the bull as a sin offering for himself and shall make atonement for himself and for his house. Leviticus 16:20-22 “And when he has made an end of atoning for the Holy Place and the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall present the live goat. And Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, and confess over it all the iniquities of the people of Israel, and all their transgressions, all their sins. And he shall put them on the head of the goat and send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who is in readiness. The goat shall bear all their iniquities on itself to a remote area, and he shall let the goat go free in the wilderness. Leviticus 16:29-34 He shall make atonement for the holy sanctuary, and he shall make atonement for the tent of meeting and for the altar, and he shall make atonement for the priests and for all the people of the assembly. And this shall be a statute forever for you, that atonement may be made for the people of Israel once in the year because of all their sins. Procedures For The High Priest To Follow A. Do NOT come at any time into the Holy Place. (16:2). Even the high priest did not have free access to the Holy of Holies, which represented the presence of God. The high priest, like all of the people, was a sinner. And God is absolutely holy. Because of that, there was a separation. “Your iniquities have created a separation between you and God.”(Isaiah 59:2). The veil, which separated the rest of the tabernacle from the holy of holies, was a visible symbol of the gap between God and man. God was so serious about the methods used to worship Him, when two of Aaron’s sons used their own ways to approach God, they were killed. Therefore, unrighteous man can only approach a holy God through the way that He has prescribed. The high priest could only come in to the holy of holies once per year on the day of atonement. And very specific procedures were given for him to follow before he was allowed to approach God. This day, and the procedures to follow are as we will see a picture of the gospel message. Sinful man cannot approach God through his good deeds, devices, or methods. There is a wall separating us from Him that can only be bridged through His mercy. (And it was the mercy seat that the high priest approached.) B. Wear holy linen garments (16:4) – To signify the solemnity of this even the high priest had special garments to wear. It was a solemn and serious thing to approach a holy God. The high priest could not roll out of bed in the morning and just casually or sloppily enter into God’s presence. He had to ready himself. He had to wear the garments approved by God. This showed that he respected God’s commands and his own role in representing God’s people as a mediator. Jesus would later tell a parable, teaching His followers that you cannot attend the wedding feast wearing your own clothes. We cannot approach God by our own efforts, but only by what He provides us. The “holy garments” are an outward picture of that reality. C. Bath – “He shall bathe his body in water and then put them on.” (Leviticus 16:4) Before the high priest could even put on the clothes, he had to first bathe. The physical bath would remove outer dirt and impurities, things unfit to take into God’s presence. That reminds us that a person has to be clean and pure in order to approach God. The outer washing is a picture of that spiritual transaction that has to take as we must be consecrated and cleansed to come in to God’s presence. 1 Peter 3:21 – Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
That is a reminder that sanctification is an ongoing process. D. Aaron (and future high priests) first offered a bull offering for himself and his family (16:6) – The high priests themselves were sinners. So how could they be representatives of the people and come before the Lord as their mediator? Their own sins had to be dealt with first. So before Aaron could even come into God’s presence or offer a sacrifice for the people, he had to offer one for himself and his own family. E. Two goats (16:7-10) – Next the high priest would take two goats and bring them to the entrance of the tabernacle. Lots would be cast. One would be chosen for the sacrifice. The other would be chosen as the scapegoat. After the other sacrifices were made, the priest would lay his hands on the scapegoat, and confess the sins of Israel, ritually removing them from Israel and putting them onto the innocent animal. That animal would then be sent into the wilderness away from the Israelite camp. It was another physical picture of the spiritual reality taught in Psalm 113:12, ” As far as the east is from the west so far does he remove our transgressions from us.” Their sins were symbolically imputed to the animal who took the suffering for them.
F. Censer with coals from the altar and two handfuls of sweet incense – The high priest was to offer up incense before the Lord INSIDE the veil. The text says, “so that he does not die.” The incense cloud would cover the mercy seat and God would show mercy. Incense often represents prayers in the Bible. And we are reminded from this that Jesus as our high priest also offers intercession for us that we may receive mercy from God. (Romans 8:34) G. Sprinkle blood from the bull offering – In the next step, the priest would take some of the blood of the bull sacrifice and sprinkle it on the mercy seat that is on top of the Ark of the Covenant. The bull’s blood was offered for the high priest and his own family. Only after first receiving forgiveness could he represent the people. He would sprinkle the blood seven times. Seven represented the number of perfection or completeness. So it reminds us that God’s forgiveness is complete. Those whom He cleans, are completely clean. H. The second goat of the sin offering (16:14-16) – After the high priest was cleansed, he would then offer the goat sacrifice for the people, following the same ritual of sprinkling the blood on the mercy seat seven times ” Leviticus 16:17 – “has made atonement for himself and for his house and for all the assembly of Israel.” After sprinkling the mercy seat, he would then go back outside the tabernacle and sprinkle the horns on the altar. Something interesting I noticed is that not only did the people need atoning for. The altar itself, the holy place, and even the tabernacle needed atoning for. ” Leviticus 16:20 “And when he has made an end of atoning for the Holy Place and the tent of meeting and the altar.” That is very revealing. There is nothing holy apart from God Himself. The most beautiful and holy-looking things themselves were unclean.
Atonement meaning –
What word does the sacrificial system bring to your mind? For me, it is TEDIOUS. We have only covered a few of the many regulations of this ONE DAY per year. Rules for bathing. Rules for how to wear clothes. Rules for animals. Rules for sacrifices. Rules for the tabernacle. Rules for going in to the holy place. Rules for sprinkling. And many rules aren’t even mentioned here. Rules for the exact composition of ingredients of the incense. Rules for the exact dimensions and materials for the veil and tent. Also, there had to be atonement for so many people, atonement for the high priest first, atonement for the altar, atonement for the tent, atonement for the holy place (atonement for the things used to bring atonement to others)! This specific ritual had to be done every year, over and over and over and over again. And that is only one day per year. The rest of the year was filled with other sacrifices, repeated again and again and again. Praise God we can read and study this and understand God’s plan. But brothers and sisters, we also praise God that we are not under this anymore. Why? Jesus. All of this was designed to point us to Christ. Symbolism and Pointing to Christ in the NT Hebrews is like the New Testament Leviticus. The writer shows us how God used these Old Testament rituals, which were temporary, to point us to something far greater, which is permanent. Hebrews 9:11-15; But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God. Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant. Hebrews 9:25-26 – Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. Hebrews 10:11-12 – And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God. If you have studied Hebrews before, you probably are aware of the theme. The writer’s thesis is simple: Jesus is superior. He goes through many different things and proves that Jesus is superior to them all. Jesus is superior to the angels. Jesus is superior to Moses. He is superior to the priests. He is superior to Old Testament leaders. His sacrifice is superior to the Old Testament sacrifices. His covenant is superior to the Old Covenant. Jesus is far greater than everything else that has come before (or will come after). Those things, however, serve their purpose. What is their purpose? The lead us to Christ. By being compared to Christ, they reveal to us how glorious He is. Think about it this way. If the Old Testament sacrificial system was never established, people would not be aware of how serious their sins are. Nor would they have the same level of gratitude for and awe of Jesus’ once-for-all sacrifice. These things very existence glorify Jesus who outshines them. Jesus could do in one man and in one moment what thousands of men and millions of sacrifices could not accomplish in hundreds of years. When you look specifically at the tabernacle and the Day of Atonement, you see that Jesus is everything. Jesus provides us with the garments to wear, giving us white robes. Jesus’ blood purifies us from our sin. Jesus is the high priest coming into God’s presence and offering a sacrifice on our behalf. And He Himself is that perfect sacrifice. He is the one who tears down the veil. He is the altar. He is the lampstand. He is our intercessor. He is our mediator. He represents us to God as our advocate. And He reveals God to us. There are a couple of differences though between Jesus’ sacrifice and the Day of Atonement. Jesus did not need to purify Himself or offer sacrifices for Himself as Aaron did. He was already perfectly holy. Therefore, He is a better mediator. Also, His sacrifice is better. Once was enough. His blood is absolutely perfect and infinitely valuable. So one sacrifice for all time is sufficient. It never needs to be repeated. Also, He can go into the Holy of Holies at any time because He Himself is holy. He is better than the scapegoat, because the scapegoat only took the people’s sins away (and that symbolically and for a short amount of time). Jesus’ actually imputes His righteousness to us. So not only can He can in to the Holy of Holies at any time, but those in Him can too. We can boldly approach God’s throne of grace directly at any time as His children because of Christ’s work for us. What the people would do? Leviticus 23:26-32 – And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Now on the tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. It shall be for you a time of holy convocation, and you shall afflict yourselves and present a food offering to the Lord. And you shall not do any work on that very day, for it is a Day of Atonement, to make atonement for you before the Lord your God. For whoever is not afflicted on that very day shall be cut off from his people. And whoever does any work on that very day, that person I will destroy from among his people. You shall not do any work. It is a statute forever throughout your generations in all your dwelling places. It shall be to you a Sabbath of solemn rest, and you shall afflict yourselves. On the ninth day of the month beginning at evening, from evening to evening shall you keep your Sabbath.” We have looked at the priest’s role, I want to briefly look at what the people would do on this day.
Baptism is a symbol of spiritual cleansing, or purification. How often do you need to clean your house, is once enough? Many often turn comprehensive cleaning into a yearly ritual, “spring cleaning.” If at no other time, once a year the whole house is scoured into shape. There’s a difference between tidying and cleaning. Tidying involves putting shoes on racks, clothes into drawers, books on shelves, and toys in bins. Cleaning requires vacuuming, mopping, spraying, wiping, scrubbing, and magic-erasing. To my eyes, at least, tidying makes a more immediate, obvious difference. But cleaning reaches deeper, and its effects last longer. Did you know that in the law God gave Israel through Moses, God himself instructed the people to clean his house once a year? Leviticus 16: Purging God’s People and Place; Leviticus 16 is a familiar passage, but we often miss this aspect of it. In the instructions this chapter gives for what is often called the Day of Atonement—or Yom Kippur—God appoints cleansing not only for the people, but also for his tabernacle. Why did God’s house need cleaning? At the literary center of Leviticus 16, and at the center of the actions it prescribes for this day, is a sin offering brought into the Holy of Holies, the innermost room of the tabernacle, God’s portable dwelling with his people (Lev. 16:15–19). This was the only time when anyone was permitted to enter the Holy of Holies, and only the high priest was granted entry (cf. Heb. 9:6–7). The high priest was instructed to kill the goat of the sin offering, collect its blood in a bowl, enter the Holy of Holies, and sprinkle the blood over and in front of the mercy seat (Lev. 16:15). To what effect? “Thus he shall make atonement for the Holy Place, because of the uncleannesses of the people of Israel and because of their transgressions, all their sins.” And what happens to the innermost room happens to the whole: “And so he shall do for the tent of meeting, which dwells with them in the midst of their uncleannesses” (Lev. 16:16). Leviticus 16 teaches us sin not only burdens us with guilt, it also stains us and whatever we touch. Sin makes us both unclean and transmitters of uncleanness. Through the tabernacle, God dwelt with the Israelites in a special way. But their sin came between them and God. The people’s sin dirtied God’s house. It threatened to push away the God who graciously chose to dwell with them (Ex. 29:45–46; Lev. 26:11–12). Leviticus 16 teaches us sin not only burdens us with guilt, it also stains us and stains whatever we touch. So, this divinely appointed yearly cleaning of God’s had two effects: the Day of Atonement purged God’s people and his place. We see both in Leviticus 16:33: “He shall make atonement for the holy sanctuary, and he shall make atonement for the tent of meeting and for the altar, and he shall make atonement for the priests and for all the people of the assembly.” Jesus’s Offering in Hebrews: But sin’s problems go even deeper than what Leviticus 16 tells us. Israel’s sins eventually piled up to such an extent that, as the Lord warned in advance, the land “vomited” them out (Lev. 18:24–25). Ultimately, the sins that Israel committed drove the Lord far from his sanctuary (Ezek. 8:6). In judgment, God’s glory departed from his sanctuary (Ezek. 10:1–22). And though God restored his people and enabled them to rebuild their temple, the underlying condition of sin persisted. Persisted, that is, until Jesus came to deliver us. As Hebrews tells us, the fact that the Day of Atonement had to be repeated yearly signals that it wasn’t a final solution to sin: “For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered every year, make perfect those who draw near” (Heb. 10:1). But that is just what Jesus came to do. The fact that the Day of Atonement had to be repeated yearly signals that it was not a final solution to sin. On the cross, Jesus gave his life for ours, paying the price we deserved for our sins. Echoing Leviticus 17:11, Hebrews 9:22 reminds us, “[W]ithout the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.” In his death, Jesus “bore the sins of many” (Heb. 9:28). And then, on the third day, he rose from the dead, thereby obtaining “the power of an indestructible life” (Heb. 7:16). Jesus then did what the high priest on Yom Kippur only foreshadowed: he entered God’s Holy of Holies in heaven, and presented himself there to the Father as the perfect, sufficient, once-for-all sacrifice. Only in light of what we’ve seen in Leviticus 16 do passages like the following make sense: Thus it was necessary for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these rites, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. Nor did he enter to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by his sacrifice. (Heb. 9:24–26; cf. 9:11–12) By entering God’s dwelling in heaven and presenting himself to God, Jesus perfectly purged God’s people and his place. On the cross, Jesus was slain as the spotless victim whose blood purchases our eternal life (Heb. 9:22, 28; cf. 9:15; 13:20). After rising again, he was appointed high priest in the order of Melchizedek (Heb. 5:7–10; 7:11–28). Then, after ascending to heaven (Heb. 4:14; 7:26), Jesus offered himself, his body, his blood, by presenting himself alive to God in the throne room of God’s heavenly tabernacle (Heb. 7:27; 8:1–5; 9:11–14, 23–28; 10:10–14; 12:24). In addition to cleansing God’s dwelling in heaven, Jesus’s heavenly offering obtained for us perfection (Heb. 10:14), redemption (Heb. 9:12), forgiveness (Heb. 10:18), and unhindered access to God forever (Heb. 4:16, 10:19–20). Deepest Deep Clean: Parts of this reading of Hebrews might be new to you. Many Christians have understood Hebrews to locate Jesus’s offering exclusively on the cross. But a deeper understanding of Leviticus 16 can help us understand the book of Hebrews better, too. The high point of the Day of Atonement was what the high priest did in the Holy of Holies. Hebrews itself tells us this when it reminds us that only the high priest could enter the Holy of Holies, “and he but once a year, and not without taking blood, which he offers for himself and for the unintentional sins of the people” (Heb. 9:7). Where and when did the high priest make his offering? When he entered God’s earthly inner sanctum. Where and when did Christ make his offering? When he entered God’s heavenly inner sanctum, after rising from the dead and ascending to heaven. This in no way downplays or diminishes the cross, since the cross is where Jesus gave his life for ours, defeated death, bore the curse of the old covenant, and inaugurated the new (Heb. 2:9, 14–15; 9:15–17; 13:20). By presenting himself alive to God in heaven, Christ presented to the Father what his death on earth accomplished. In heaven, Christ offered to God what he achieved on the cross. This is the cleansing we need far more than any spring cleaning. And it’s the deepest deep clean that can never—and need never—be Lessons Every part of the Bible is useful and rich, even Leviticus! There is great value in studying the Old Testament sacrificial system and feasts (below), but we do not have to go back to the Old Testament law. The rules for this festival and the others we have studied are found in Leviticus. Leviticus gives us the Old Testament law. If you are under the obligation to observe the feasts, then you are under obligation to obey the whole law. We are not. We are under Christ. We are free of this tedious system, which was never intended to be permanent, but which always was intended to point us to something better, that is Christ. Having said that, there is great value in studying this and the other feasts. What?
How to celebrate the Day of Atonement today? A. We don’t need to keep the day of atonement the same way they did in the Old Testament. And in fact, it would be impossible for us to do so since there is no temple or sacrificial system in place today. That was something that had to be repeated over and over every year in order to provide a temporary cover for sins. God designed it to point to something far greater, far more superior. Christ. B. We should remember Christ’s sacrifice every day. We celebrate this all the time because there is nothing more important. C. We should also have times of repentance and self-denial (fasting.) We should do that regularly as a lifestyle. And we should also have times when we set aside to do it. That is one benefit of having a set day for everyone to practice repentance and self-evaluation together. At the same time, all doing it together can become legalistic and less personal. So today, we need to make time to repent on a regular basis. D. We should regularly confess our sins and seek forgiveness. It is an amazing privilege that cleansing is available to us so we should not take it for granted. Today we have seen some of the background for the Day of Atonement. And we have seen that this festival points us squarely to Christ who is superior in every way. If I could leave you with one thing- it is this: I hope you will be in complete awe of Jesus. Prayer Points
Nothing goes better with spending time with God
than a good cup of coffee! Our culture is very interested in the journey of discovering individual identity. Personality tests, dream assessments, even Buzzfeed quizzes are available everywhere you look. It seems like everyone is searching for something to tell them who they are, where they belong and how they relate to the world. The Bible says that all men and women are created in God’s image. Humankind was created to reflect some of God’s attributes. You can look for your identity anywhere, but followers of Jesus are called to find their identity in Him. Our identity is in the one True God Where Do You Find Your Identity? Sit down with a cup of coffee, and learn more about how our creator reveals our identity in him through his word to us! While our world encourages you to look within yourself for your identity, your natural tendency is to search for your identity in external things. One of the first places that you can be tempted to look to is your career. Spending your time and energy pursuing your career can cause you to feel like it is a defining characteristic of who you are. After all, a job that you are dedicated to is likely to take up most of your time and attention. Jobs and careers are closely connected to other places where you can search for your identity, such as financial success and status. But it doesn’t stop there. We also ask our relationship statuses, appearance, grades, and reputation to provide a sense of identity. Any or all of these may feel like solid foundations, but none of them are permanent. Any of them could change without warning. If you base your identity on things like success, wealth, power, physical appearance, and so on, you are setting yourself up for great disappointment. A sudden job loss could leave you questioning your choices in life. One piece of gossip aimed your way could destroy your reputation, even if it is untrue. Your appearance will change as you get older. God, however, is unchanging. He is reliable. He is the same yesterday, today and forever. If you find your identity in Him, you will never ultimately be let down because He has proven time and time again to be trustworthy. It is important, as you define your identity, that God not be just an aspect of who you are, like “I am a Christian,” or ”I am religious,” or “I am spiritual”. Understanding your identity in God starts with understanding who He is, what He says about Himself, and what He says about you. Your identity can be defined by who God is making you to be in His image. How God Sees His Children To be able to understand your identity as a follower of Christ, you need to understand how He sees you. It’s tempting to build your identity on what you accomplish, but this is not a stable foundation. Your true identity is ultimately based on what God has done for you. In the Bible, God tells us often about how He views His people. Let’s take a look at what He says about you, if you received Him as your Lord and Savior. (Learn how to have a personal relationship with God and ask Him to be your Lord and Savior.) You Are Loved In Christ, you are loved. You were created with a purpose. You are not just a convenient carbon copy of someone else. You were created uniquely and with intention. God lovingly designed every detail of your person. Can you imagine the love involved with that intricate design? You Are Chosen In Christ, you are not only loved but chosen. God sent His own Son to earth to die in your place so that you could be included in His family. God was not obligated to choose you based on your performance or credentials. He chose to carry out an intricate plan that involved the death of His own perfect Son, which allowed you the opportunity to be a child of God. You are no mistake. You are chosen and wanted. You Are Forgiven In order to be counted a child of the perfect Father, you had to be free of sin — that is, you had to be perfect with regard to doing right and not doing wrong. That is a tall order considering no one but Jesus was or is perfect and no one can attain perfection by their own effort. However, because Jesus, who was without sin, died the death you should have on the cross, you can be forgiven of sin. What you’ve done wrong is not counted against you, and all that Christ did right is counted for you. This forgiveness allows you to be considered a child of God. Therefore, in God’s eyes, if you have accepted what Jesus did for you, you are completely forgiven. From His perspective, you are without sin. It’s not that you won’t sin, but when He looks at you, He calls you forgiven. That is something on which you can build your identity. You Are Redeemed What does your forgiveness mean? You are redeemed — that is, Christ’s sacrifice has bought you back from the forces of sin and evil that once owned and controlled you and made you His. When God looks at you, He does not see a former sinner. He does not see you in light of who you once were. He sees you as redeemed: a new creation that has been made whole. You do not have to define yourself in light of your past mistakes. God does not do that. You can walk in the identity of someone who is made new in Christ. You Are Adopted What does it mean to be considered a child of God? It means that you have been adopted into His family. You are considered a legitimate child of the God of the universe, having all the rights and standing of Jesus His Son. God sees you as a cherished child who bears His name. Just as earthly adoption is a legally binding process that names you a permanent part of a family, heavenly adoption is just as permanent and binding. You are His child, and He will never take that away. What the Bible Says About Identity in Christ You don’t have to take anyone’s word for it. Actually, God wants you to find out for yourself by reading His Word. It is so important that you go to the Bible to find out how He feels about you. Your identity should never be based on a hope or a guess. God gave us His Word, the Bible, so you can know Him and know who He is making you to be in Him. “You are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household.” (Ephesians 2:19, New International Version) We are members of His household, not strangers. If you follow Christ, you belong in God’s household and with His people. In this passage, Paul is encouraging followers of Christ to remember that they are all part of one family. They are to be unified with each other. This can only happen if you understand that you are a legitimate child of God. You are part of His family. “God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.” (2 Corinthians 9:8, NIV) As a child of God, you are blessed and provided for. God is able to provide you with everything you need in Christ. He is the Owner of everything and the Giver of all good things. “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know Him.” (1 John 3:1, NIV) In Christ, you are loved. Your identity is a child of God. This Bible verse comes from a chapter that warns against the temptation to stray from God into sin. You can resist sin by remembering that God has the best for His children. He offers you more than the world ever could. You are complete in His love. “The LORD your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in His love He will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.” (Zephaniah 3:17, NIV) Jesus delights in you. You are not just accepted or put up with. You are welcomed into His family with delight. When correction comes, it lasts for a short time because the goal is for it to help you reflect God’s holy character more accurately. He delights in you so much that He is making you more like Himself day by day. “God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:21, NIV) You are God’s righteousness. You are His goodness and rightness because of what Christ did on the cross. This was given to you, and you are called righteous by the Lord of the universe. You can live in light of the righteousness you were given. It not only allows you to approach God with confidence, but it allows you to be an ambassador to others around you. Because your righteousness is not earned but freely given through faith in Jesus, you can share this gift with others and invite them to be God’s righteousness too. “Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” (Colossians 3:13, NIV) You are forgiven. If you are a follower of Christ, you have become God’s child because the Lord forgave you for the sin you committed against Him. As someone who is forgiven, you can now freely forgive others. God extended grace — that is, undeserved favor — to you. You can extend that grace to others around you. “We are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10, NIV) You were created with a purpose. God had specific intentions for your life when He brought you into the world. First and foremost, your purpose is to know Him and glorify Him. Then you can engage in other good works that will bring God glory and grow your own faith. You were saved from great sin. Now, as a child of God, you can walk with God and do great good through His work in you. “If anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” (2 Corinthians 5:17, NIV) In Christ, you are a new creation. God has made you new. The old things that used to define you have been taken away. God used to identify you as an enemy, but now he knows you as a child. You who were a sinner are now righteous. You are new because through Jesus your sin has been paid for. You have been restored in right standing before God. “You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light.” (1 Peter 2:9, NIV) You are special to God. You are chosen by Him. This verse comes from a passage that talks about how Christ was rejected by many. But by faith in Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit, if you trust in Jesus, you are part of His holy, chosen people. You can rid yourself of things that are part of the old you, part of the darkness, such as deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander because you have been brought into wonderful light. Obstacles to Believing in Your Identity Even if you know all these things about where a follower of Christ finds their identity, there can often be obstacles standing in the way of believing who you are in Christ. Other sources of identity often stand in the way, such as career, appearance or money. But there are other things that can distract you as well. Past Sin Everyone has made mistakes. Everyone has sinned. If you accept Christ, God forgives you of these things. Psalm 103:12 (NIV) says, “As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.” Transgression is another word for sin or mistakes. God removes your sin from you. You will still often remember your sins, and those memories can make you feel unworthy, keeping you from accepting your true identity. Outside Messages or Experiences You might not just remember what you have done; you may also remember what people have done to you. Maybe you were treated poorly or neglected. Maybe people told you negative things about yourself. The world is broken by sin. There are people who have experienced unspeakable injustice. From gossip to verbal and physical abuse, outside messages are trying to shape your identity every day. Those outside messages can lead you to believe that you are unworthy of what the Bible says is true of you in Christ. False Beliefs As you follow Jesus, you will seek to know Him more. You can do this through time in the Word, through prayer, through talking with friends or a mentor and through gathering together with other believers in worship. As your understanding of God grows, you may recognize flawed beliefs that you held before that do not line up with what you are hearing and learning about your identity now. Maybe you grew up learning that you can lose your salvation. Maybe you thought that there were certain behaviors or sins that disqualify you from receiving Christ’s salvation. There are many false beliefs out there that seem correct but really take away from who God is and what He says. It can be confusing to work through these differences. How Can You Respond? These obstacles are difficult to navigate. It’s easy to believe that these things are legitimate barriers to following Jesus. But by the power of the Holy Spirit, you can overcome these obstacles and live fully in the identity that you were given in Jesus. Repent The word “repent” means that you agree with God. So the first thing you can do to embrace your identity is to agree with Him that you are believing things that are no longer true of you. Bring the things you are struggling with to Him. Admit that they are difficult for you to overcome. Confess that you believe Him when He says that they are no longer true of you. Grieve Many places in scripture encourage believers of Jesus to mourn over their sin. Although your sin no longer defines your identity, you do still experience its effects in your life. Therefore, it is legitimate and even important to grieve the sin that keeps you from truly believing the things Jesus says. You can also grieve the sins that were committed against you and all that those wounds cost you. You can grieve the effect that it had on your relationship with the Lord. Paul was one of the leaders of the early church who helped write the Bible’s New Testament. In a letter to one church, which we now know as the Bible’s book of 1 Thessalonians, he talks about how to mourn for lost loved ones. He helps us to understand how we can grieve well. “Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope” (1 Thessalonians 4:13, NIV). In this passage, “those who sleep in death” is referring to followers of Jesus who have passed away. Paul says that we can grieve that they are no longer here and yet have hope that in Jesus they live in eternity. The same principle applies to grief over sin. You can grieve your own sin and the sin of others, all the while knowing that you have hope in Christ. You are a new creation. You are forgiven and restored in Jesus. Invite the Lord to Change Your Mind When you have confessed and grieved these things, you can ask God to help you believe what is true. He is the one who renews your mind and changes your heart. God is the one who grows your faith and makes you new. Ask Him to help you believe the things that He says of you. Ask Him to continue to make you into the person that He intends you to be in Jesus. He is faithful, and He will do it. Invite Others to Help You God never meant for you to walk with Jesus on your own. He brings people into your life so that you can encourage one another. When you are struggling with past sin or false and discouraging beliefs, share that struggle with a trusted friend. Inviting others to pray for you and remind you of the truth can be so beneficial. A believer that is farther along on their faith journey can provide great insight to you as you walk with Jesus. Consider inviting a fellow believer to mentor you in areas that are a struggle for you. When Christ followers bear one another’s burdens, they not only grow closer to the Lord, but they grow in unity with other Christ followers. The gospel message is the
Good News of God’s grace, so it is important to know what grace is and to constantly seek to get a better view of what grace does in our lives. Grace is an essential part of God’s character. Grace is closely related to God’s benevolence, love, and mercy. Grace can be variously defined as “God’s favor toward the unworthy” or “God’s benevolence on the undeserving.” In His grace, God is willing to forgive us and bless us abundantly, in spite of the fact that we don’t deserve to be treated so well or dealt with so generously. To fully understand grace, we need to consider who we were without Christ and who we become with Christ. We were born in sin (Psalm 51:5), and we were guilty of breaking God’s holy laws (Romans 3:9–20, 23; 1 John 1:8–10). We were enemies of God (Romans 5:6, 10; 8:7; Colossians 1:21), deserving of death (Romans 6:23a). We were unrighteous (Romans 3:10) and without means of justifying ourselves (Romans 3:20). Spiritually, we were destitute, blind, unclean, and dead. Our souls were in peril of everlasting punishment. But then came grace. God extended His favor to us. Grace is what saves us (Ephesians 2:8). Grace is the essence of the gospel (Acts 20:24). Grace gives us victory over sin (James 4:6). Grace gives us “eternal encouragement and good hope” (2 Thessalonians 2:16). Paul repeatedly identified grace as the basis of his calling as an apostle (Romans 15:15; 1 Corinthians 3:10; Ephesians 3:2, 7). Jesus Christ is the embodiment of grace, coupled with truth (John 1:14). The Bible repeatedly calls grace a “gift” (e.g., Ephesians 4:7). This is an important analogy because it teaches us some key things about grace: First, anyone who has ever received a gift understands that a gift is much different from a loan, which requires repayment or return by the recipient. The fact that grace is a gift means that nothing is owed in return. Second, there is no cost to the person who receives a gift. A gift is free to the recipient, although it is not free to the giver, who bears the expense. The gift of salvation costs us sinners nothing. But the price of such an extravagant gift came at a great cost for our Lord Jesus, who died in our place. Third, once a gift has been given, ownership of the gift has transferred and it is now ours to keep. There is a permanence in a gift that does not exist with loans or advances. When a gift changes hands, the giver permanently relinquishes all rights to renege or take back the gift in future. God’s grace is ours forever. Fourth, in the giving of a gift, the giver voluntarily forfeits something he owns, willingly losing what belongs to him so that the recipient will profit from it. The giver becomes poorer so the recipient can become richer. This generous and voluntary exchangefrom the giver to the recipient is visible in 2 Corinthians 8:9: “You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.” Finally, the Bible teaches that grace is completely unmerited. The gift and the act of giving have nothing at all to do with our merit or innate quality (Romans 4:4; 11:5–6; 2 Timothy 1:9–10). In fact, the Bible says quite clearly that we don’t deserve God’s salvation. Romans 5:8–10 says, “God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. . . . While we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son.” Grace does not stop once we are saved; God is gracious to us for the rest of our lives, working within and upon us. The Bible encourages us with many additional benefits that grace secures for every believer: • Grace justifies us before a holy God (Romans 3:24; Ephesians 1:6; Titus 3:7). • Grace provides us access to God to communicate and fellowship with Him (Ephesians 1:6; Hebrews 4:16). • Grace wins for us a new relationship of intimacy with God (Exodus 33:17). • Grace disciplines and trains us to live in a way that honors God (Titus 2:11–14; 2 Corinthians 8:7). • Grace grants us immeasurable spiritual riches (Proverbs 10:22; Ephesians 2:7). • Grace helps us in our every need (Hebrews 4:16). • Grace is the reason behind our every deliverance (Psalm 44:3–8; Hebrews 4:16). • Grace preserves us and comforts, encourages, and strengthens us (2 Corinthians 13:14; 2 Thessalonians 2:16–17; 2 Timothy 2:1). Grace is actively and continually working in the lives of God’s people. Paul credited the success of his ministry not to his own substantial labors but to “the grace of God that was with me” (1 Corinthians 15:10). Grace is the ongoing, benevolent act of God working in us, without which we can do nothing (John 15:5). Grace is greater than our sin (Romans 5:20), more abundant than we expect (1 Timothy 1:14), and too wonderful for words (2 Corinthians 9:15). As the recipients of God’s grace, Christians are to be gracious to others. Grace is given to us to serve others and to exercise our spiritual gifts for the building up of the church (Romans 12:6; Ephesians 3:2, 7; 4:7; 1 Peter 4:10). Believing God’s Promises
The Bible is full of God’s promises that can encourage us in our faith. After all, faith and hope are dependent on promises – something that we expect, look forward to. A promise is an anchor. If we can trust a promise that we have been given, it will become life-giving. A hopeful expectancy can fill one with joy and motivation. We know we can trust the promises of God. He is not a man, that He would lie (Numbers 23:19). And that in all cases, the words of the Lord stand true, though every man be a liar. (Romans 3:4). When we trust God’s promises, we know that: “Hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (Romans. 5:5). What does God promise us? The word “promise” can equate to a declaration or commitment. It was binding in Biblical times. And still today, it can be legally binding in certain cultures. According to the English dictionary, a promise gives the receiver of a promise a right to expect or to claim the performance or forbearance of a specified act. Making a promise gives ground for expectation of success, improvement, or excellence. It is an assurance. Unsurprisingly, it gives hope, builds faith, and encourages optimism. In the Hebrew Bible, the word “promise” appears over 50 times, and the New Testament adds another 70+ to that. But that’s just the word alone. If you consider the actual promises, depending on the source, you will discover that there are close to 9,000 promises in the Word of God! Some say it’s more like 30,000, if you include ones made to specific people that were fulfilled. Bible Verses about God’s Promises Thus, considering the vast number of biblical promises, it would be impossible to list them here. The author of The Pilgrims Progress, John Bunyan wrote: “The pathway of life is strewn so thickly with the promises of God, that it is impossible to take one step without treading upon one of them.” What is important to remember, however, is the fact that God’s promises are trustworthy and dependable! Hebrews 10:23 says: “Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; for He is faithful that hath promised.” Jesus promised that he will never leave us nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:15). And that He is with us unto the end of age (Matthew 28:20). We are promised a place in the world to come, as well as the riches and grace of being seated with Jesus in heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6). We are saved by grace through faith, which is also a promise that God made (Ephesians 2:8). And since there is no falsehood in God, we know that promise is true! We are the work of the Lord’s hands, created for good works which God created before we were born (Ephesians 2:10). God’s Promises in the BibleIn summary, we are promised by God some very foundational things that we could not live without. They are essential to our existence and give us hope for the future. We are promised:
These promises are at the core of our faith. God has so loved the world that He made it clear how we can regain access to His presence. He gave His Son to unite us with Himself and to invite us to His Kingdom. That is the Good News of the Gospel and the great promise that will not be broken. The Promises of God to Israel When we talk about the promises of God, we have to acknowledge an important fact. Before any of His promises can be applied to the Body of Messiah, God’s promises were first given to His people Israel. And it is impressive how often God stresses the fact that His promises are eternal and last forever. The whole story of salvation centers around the history of Israel, her creation, redemption and restoration. God’s might and power is evident in His everlasting promise to Israel (first laid out in Genesis 12:1-3). There, the Lord promises He will make Abram into a great nation and will bless him. Later on, in Deuteronomy 30:3-5, God promises to Israel a specific land – you guessed it! From that moment on, we know it as the Promised Land. The Lord said He would bring his people to the land He chose, and He would make their descendants prosperous. Throughout the books of Moses, we can read promises that the Lord will be Israel’s God, and they will be His special treasure in all of the earth. Israel is God’s very own possession. God also promises that the Messiah would come out of Israel, out of the kingly Davidic line. (Isaiah 11:1, Genesis 3:5, Isaiah 7:14) The Apostle Paul promises that the future hope for Israel’s salvation is sure and that God will make good on His promises (Romans 9-11). We see a revolution after the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. This is when the gentiles are invited to the table, so to speak. A revelation comes over the first church that many of God’s promises are for the whole world. Gentiles are welcomed into the family of God through faith in Jesus. He grants them full access to the throne of grace, just like to the Jewish people (Matthew 8:5-13). Just as God gave special promises to the Jewish people, He also promised a place within His family to the gentiles. They were grafted in to the “wild olive branches” which is Israel and the Jewish people (Romans 11:17). However, the Word of God clearly shows God’s heart for all nations and all people-- long centuries before Jesus was crucified and rose from the dead. Before kings and queens, before God chose Israel, even before God made Abraham His friend, God gave a promise to all mankind. Do you remember the story of Noah? Early on in world history, God miraculously saves Noah and his family. They were the only humans on earth to survive a flood. And that is when God showed up in nature to send a message. He gave mankind a promise in the rainbow. “I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. …The rainbow shall be in the cloud, and I will look on it to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth. And God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth.” (Genesis 9:13,16-17) In all God’s goodness, we know that He is for us and His promises are true. We see a beautiful confirmation of that in Paul’s letter to Corinthians: "For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.” (1 Cor. 1:20). But what does it mean, that His promises are yes and amen? It does not mean that He says yes to any request we may utter towards the heavens. If you’d consider the Greek language, you’d notice that what Paul is essentially saying is that God’s promises are always sure and firm. God’s promises are “yes and amen” because they are unwavering, unchangeable and alive in us. His “Yes” is a declaration of life. And Jesus’ “Amen” is an assurance that what He promised, will come to pass. Whenever we feel like we have lost hope, we can turn to God’s promise that His mercies are new every morning. Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever, which is another promise of God. We can put our daily hope in an unchangeable Messiah. When we pray the promises of God over ourselves, they strengthen our faith. We find in them the assurance of our identity in Jesus. Which in turn enables us to stand firm against evil and the works of the devil. The author of Hebrews 11:1 tells us that, “…Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” This being so, we hold on to the substance of hope… that which we do not see, through the promise of the Word. We can hold God’s promises to the highest standard and expectation. Because His plans and purposes are unchanging, and He himself, does not change. Anything we face in life, or in the world at large, is not outside of God’s plan or foreknowledge. On this side of heaven, we face opposition for our faith. Both from within our sinful nature and from the external pressures of the world. But we are strengthened in our inner man when we pray through the promises of God. We have the strength in our heart and stand firm in our confidence in Messiah. And place in our identity in Him as redeemed, sanctified, victorious and seated with him in heavenly places. “But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.” (Romans 8:11) No one likes a detour or delay in a journey. Whenever we encounter a road under construction or traffic that halts our trek by half an hour, we may feel tempted to throw up our hands and say, “Why now? Why did this have to happen to me?’ Enter the Israelites, who had endured hundreds of years of slavery in Egypt. When God freed them, through his servant Moses and via 10 plagues (Exodus 7-11) and a splitting sea (Exodus 14), they must have thought that they’d arrive in the land of their dreams, the Promised Land, in no time. But sure enough, they hit snags along the way. The journey takes too long, and they turn to other idols and gods to speed up the process (Exodus 32). The proverbial straw breaks the camel’s back when they reach the Promised Land and send spies to scout the area. When the spies realize that the fortified city and its people within are intimidating. All but Caleb and Joshua, two of the spies, try to dissuade the Israelites from going into the new land (Numbers 32). Because of their obstinance and disobedience and forgetfulness of God’s promises, God delays their entry into the Promised Land by 40 years. Aside from Caleb and Joshua, anyone over a certain age would not see the Promised Land, since their generation did not exercise a strong faith in God’s provision. Although the 40 years in the desert may serve as a cautionary tale of sorts, can we learn anything from the Israelites as they wandered for four decades? Indeed. We’ll dive into some of the many lessons from the 40 years in the desert. God Provides in Our Darkest Moments In the desert, the Israelites had run low on provisions (Numbers 11:5). It gets to the point where the Israelites pine after the “good ole days” of their slavery in Egypt, where they didn’t have to worry about starvation. They get so hungry that they think hundreds of years doing hard slave labor in Egypt sounds like paradise. God, seeing their need for food, provides them with a substance known as manna. A heavenly bread of sorts that means “what is it?” He also gives them protein via quail and provides these bread and birds from heaven daily until they enter the Promised Land. God understood that the desert was a temporary limbo for the Israelites. They wouldn’t stay there forever but would enter the Promised Land decades later. Nevertheless, he meets their needs, nonetheless. From this, we can learn that God meets us in limbo. We might be waiting on a job or living from paycheck to paycheck, but God provides for us in the desert and in the Promised Land. He doesn’t leave or forsake us in our greatest hour of need. God's Plan Never "Seems to Align" with Ours Nor does his timeline. The Israelites may have thought that everything would be smooth sailing since they left their former lives from Egypt. No longer would they have to operate under cruel taskmasters, and they had a bright future ahead. But they expected it all to happen so fast. So easily. They didn’t realize that sometimes getting to the Promised Land takes time. That God may have wanted them to learn some lessons along the way about trusting him, and that he fights for them when they are surrounded by a great number of enemies on their way to the Promised Land (Exodus 17). We can learn that God’s timeline and plan often veer far away from how we expect a situation to play out or an outcome to fall in our favor. Nevertheless, God’s plans always are best, and we have to trust in him. Especially when we need to rely on his provisions, like the Israelites in the desert. God Doesn’t Keep Us in the Desert Forever Forty years sounds like a long time. To the Israelites who were in their teens, they didn’t reach the Promised Land until they had turned 50 or 60 years old. But even though God’s timeline may not align with ours, he doesn’t keep us in the desert forever. Whether the “desert” we’re currently enduring is a trial or if we think of the “desert” as this world (a limbo until we reach the Promised Land of paradise) God doesn’t hold us in limbo forever. We will reach the Promised Land since promised is in the title. God doesn’t break covenants, and he won’t keep us suspended in the desert for eternity. Whether our trial lasts four years or 40, we will make it to the Promised Land. WHERE IT ALL BEGAN Genesis 12:1–3 This is, of course, the seminal passage that describes God’s call of Abram and the basis for the Abrahamic Covenant. In this text we find three essential elements: land (v. 1: “…to the land that I will show you”), offspring (v. 2 “I will make you a great nation”), and blessing (vv. 2–3 “I will bless you… and you shall be a blessing”). As noted, the first element of this covenant is the land. Literal land. This is verified in the next text. The Abrahamic Covenant is unconditional and absolutely dependent upon God. He is taking full responsibility for its fulfillment. Genesis 15:18. In the previous verses of chapter 15 we observe God making a covenant with Himself to fulfill the covenant He made with Abram. Because of this distinction, we understand the Abrahamic Covenant is unconditional and absolutely dependent upon God. He is taking full responsibility for its fulfillment. Note verse 18 in which He tells Abram, “To your descendants I have given this land from the river of Egypt as far as the great river, the river Euphrates.” Without a doubt, the land is a literal land—a piece of real estate and not to be allegorized or spiritualized in any manner. As we fast forward hundreds of years (following Israel’s 400 years in Egypt and the ensuing Exodus), we observe Joshua as the leader of the Israelites and God’s very specific words to him as they are about to enter the Promised Land. Joshua 1:3, 6–7. “Every place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you, just as I spoke to Moses… Be strong and courageous, for you shall give this people possession of the land-which I swore to their fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous…” (NASB; Note: Numbers 33:50-34:34 describes the extent of the land and how it was to be apportioned). The above texts give us our starting point and verify that God intended His Chosen People to have a land of their own to possess. While this is indisputable biblical truth, the question and controversy lies in their actual possessing (or not) of all the land God had indeed promised. ISRAEL’S POSSESSION OF THE LAND Joshua 11:23; 21:43–45. “So Joshua took the whole land, according to all that the Lᴏʀᴅ had spoken to Moses, and Joshua gave it for an inheritance to Israel according to their divisions by their tribes. Thus the land had rest from war… So the Lᴏʀᴅ gave Israel all the land which He had sworn to give to their fathers, and they possessed it and lived in it. And the Lᴏʀᴅ gave them rest on every side, according to all that He had sworn to their fathers, and no one of all their enemies stood before them; the Lᴏʀᴅ gave all their enemies into their hand. Not one of the good promises which the Lᴏʀᴅ had made to the house of Israel failed; all came to pass.” By all indications, a literal reading of the text would lead us to believe and understand that Israel had taken full possession of the land that God had promised in the Abrahamic Covenant. However, there are other texts which tell us otherwise in order to answer our opening questions. The following references are important to this discussion and need to be understood: Joshua 13:1: “The Lᴏʀᴅ said to [Joshua], ‘You are old and advanced in years, and very much of the land remains to be possessed.’” v. 13 “But the sons of Israel did not dispossess the Geshurites or the Maacathites.” 15:63; 16:10: “Now as for the Jebusites, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the sons of Judah could not drive them out. . . but they did not drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer.” 17:12 “But the sons of Manasseh could not take possession of these cities, because the Canannites persisted in living in that land.” Throughout these texts, it is also to be noted that on several occasions, it also reads that those Israel could not drive out “live among Israel until this day.” GOD’S PROMISE NEVER FAILS Did they really possess ALL the land? The simple answer is: No. But does not Scripture then contradict itself, and did God not really fulfill His promise to Israel? While they took the land and lived in it, they never fully “dispossessed” the enemies from the land. 1. It is important to point out that the Israelites did indeed take the land God had promised and that God gave them the land (Josh. 11:23; 21:43–45). To take the land and have it given to them is to be differentiated from fully possessing the land. So while they took the land and lived in it, they never fully “dispossessed” the enemies from the land. To the writing of the book of Joshua, the enemies persisted until that time at least. 2. The fact that Israel “possessed and lived in the land” does not negate the fact that they might possess still more of it. 3. At the very time Scripture records Israel’s possession of the land (Josh. 21), their enemies (living among them) posed no threat. They had been subdued by Israel even though they were not completely driven out. 4. It wasn’t until the time of Solomon (not even David) that Israel’s borders came close to the parameters that God described in His Word. Israel’s borders extended to the border of Egypt (1 Kings 4:21) but not the river of Egypt mentioned in Genesis 15:18. There are other distinctions that must be considered that help us understand the dilemma and controversy of Israel’s possession of the land. First, there is an additional text relating to the Abrahamic Covenant where God is once again speaking to Abraham. Genesis 17:7–8 reads, “I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your descendants after you. I will give to you and to your descendants after you, the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.” “Everlasting” is the emphasis here, and without a doubt, Israel has NOT been in possession of the land in perpetuity. Throughout history, the Israelites have been exiled, taken captive, booted out (the Diaspora), and even to this day, the full extent of the land is NOT theirs. They have never been in full possession of all the land. So, what gives? What could God possibly have meant in His covenant with Abraham? Amos 9:11–15 gives us insight that helps unravel the controversy and lingering questions: “In that day [the future Millennial Kingdom]… Behold, days are coming… I will restore the captivity of My people Israel… I will also plant them on their land, and they will not again be rooted out from their land which I have given them,” says the Lᴏʀᴅ your God.” One day, at the end of the Tribulation, all of surviving Israel will “look on Me whom they have pierced.” Israel’s history of rebellion, idolatry, unfaithfulness, and rejection of Jesus Christ as their true Messiah has kept them from fully realizing the Abrahamic Covenant and fully possessing the land. One day, at the end of the Tribulation, all of surviving Israel will “look on Me whom they have pierced” (Zech. 12:10). Israel’s repentance will be complete, and they will inhabit the future kingdom over which Christ will reign as their Messiah. Then and only then will Israel fully possess the land promised to them. God is faithful to His Word—to Israel and to us! God’s Love for Israel Hosea 11:1-12 Richard Halverson, former chaplain of the United States Senate, once wrote, “There is nothing you can do to make God love you more, nor is there anything you can do to make God love you less! His love is Unconditional, Impartial, Everlasting, Infinite, and Perfect.” This description aptly expresses God’s love for Israel. God appears in this chapter as a loving Father grieving over Israel, His rebellious son. Israel’s rebellious attitude was inexplicable in view of all that God had done for the nation. God birthed Israel; and through the centuries, He nourished, instructed, and protected the nation. But Israel proved to be an ungrateful son who insulted God by acts of immorality, idolatry, and indifference. Like any wayward son, Israel needed chastening. In His sovereign love, God corrected the prodigal nation in order to restore it to a loving relationship with Himself. God’s Call God demonstrated His love for Israel from its inception as a nation. Hosea said, “When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt” (v. 1). God is pictured as a tender, loving father who adopted Israel to be His son and entered into a covenant relationship with the nation. His choice of Israel was an act of pure, sovereign grace, not due to any merit within the nation (Dt. 7:6–8). He displayed His love by delivering Israel from 400 years of Egyptian bondage. The prophets repeatedly used this deliverance as an illustration of God’s power on behalf of His people. The phrase called my son out of Egypt also is applied typologically to Jesus Christ in Matthew 2:15. Israel, the covenant people, is the type; and Jesus the Messiah is the antitype. Both Israel and Jesus went to Egypt for protection-Israel because of a severe famine in Canaan during the days of Joseph; Jesus because of Herod’s threat to kill all children two years and under in Jerusalem and Bethlehem. Hosea’s statement is a historical reference to Israel’s physical redemption from Egypt. Matthew’s statement refers to Jesus the Redeemer who provides spiritual redemption from the bondage of sin and eternal death. The nation responded to God’s love like a wayward son. To correct Israel’s waywardness, God sent prophet after prophet who pleaded with the nation to repent and return to the Lord. Hosea said, “As they called them [the prophets sent by God], so they [Israel] went from them; they sacrificed unto Baalim, and burned incense to carved images” (v. 2). The more God called, the more Israel rejected Him and rebelled against His love. Turning a deaf ear to God’s prophets, the nation chose to practice idolatry instead. God’s Care Like a loving father, God had cared tenderly for the nation during its journey through the wilderness: I taught Ephraim also to go, taking them by their arms, but they knew not that I healed them. I drew them with cords of a man, with bands of love; and I was to them as they that take off the yoke on their jaws, and I laid food before them (vv. 3–4). This statement of guiding and guarding Israel through the wilderness is tender and touching. The Lord took Israel by the arm to guide the nation over difficult obstacles, so it would not stumble and get hurt. When Israel fell during times of testing, God was there to heal its wounds. God’s love and compassion for Israel is like that of a herdsman who cares for his heifer. The herdsman repositions the yoke’s strap under the ox’s jaw, enabling the animal to eat its food with ease. With a handful of grain, the herdsman bends down and tenderly feeds his animal. God did not lead Israel like a dumb animal, with ropes and halters. He guided Israel with cords of tenderness, kindness, and love; compassionately and continually, he eased the nation’s strain and burden. For 40 long years, God graciously provided food and water for Israel during its wilderness wanderings. Israel was more than willing to enjoy God’s generous gifts and gracious love. But like an ungrateful son, Israel took God for granted, disobeying His commands and disregarding His will. God’s Chastening Although God is long-suffering, His patience has limits. As any good father should, He had to correct wayward Israel for its ingratitude and rebellion. Hosea said, “He (Israel) shall not return into the land of Egypt, but the Assyrian shall be his king, because they refused to return” (v. 5). Egypt is a symbol for the new type of exile Israel would face in Assyria. With the collapse and capture of Israel’s political leadership, the king of Assyria would control the nation’s government. Thus Israel would have no king (cf. 10:3, 7, 15). Because the Israelites refused to repent, their bondage at the hands of Assyria would be far more severe and last longer than their time of slavery in Egypt. Judgment hovered over Israel like the legendary sword of Damocles and, in God’s time, would strike the nation: And the sword shall abide on his cities, and shall consume his branches [i.e., villages], and devour them [i.e., demolish the bars and bolts of their gates], because of their own counsels (v. 6). The sword would whirl around as it swept the land, devouring Israel’s cities, villages, and defenses. Destruction would come on Israel because it went to Canaanite deities, such as Baal, for deliverance from Assyria, rather than going to the Lord. Another reason for Israel’s destruction was its continual backsliding. God said, “And my people are bent [hung up on] to backsliding from me; though they [God’s prophets] called them to the Most High, none at all would exalt him” (v. 7). No one in Israel heeded the prophet’s message because sin had lured the nation into such deep moral apathy that its ears were dull of hearing. God’s Compassion The Law of Moses required that every rebellious son who would not obey his father or heed his reprimand be put to death (Dt. 21:18–21). Israel was such a son. He flaunted God’s love, took for granted God’s mercy and compassion, ignored the many warnings of judgment, and deserved to be annihilated. But God’s great love for His covenant people would not allow Him to abandon Israel. God expresses His lament and deep love for Israel in four rhetorical questions: How shall I give thee up, Ephraim? How shall I deliver [surrender] thee, Israel? How shall I make thee as Admah? How shall I set thee as Zeboiim? Mine heart is turned within me; my compassions are kindled together (v. 8). Admah and Zeboiim were two cities that were annihilated with Sodom and Gomorrah when God rained fire and brimstone on them (Dt. 29:22–23). Though Israel deserved the judgment of Admah and Zeboiim, God’s heart revolted within Him at such a thought. Instead, He turned from His fierce anger to show Israel mercy and compassion. God has an eternal relationship with Israel. He chose her, called her, cared for her, and chastens her when necessary; but it is not His divine purpose to destroy her: Thus saith the LORD, If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, saith the LORD (Jer. 31:37). God will never annihilate Israel because of the promises He made in the Abrahamic Covenant. Although Israel will be severely punished for her sin, God always tempers His justice with divine compassion and will not obliterate the nation: “I will not execute the fierceness of mine anger, I will not return to destroy Ephraim; for I am God, and not man, the Holy One in the midst of thee, and I will not enter into the city” (v. 9). Nor will God return to destroy Israel as He did during the Assyrian invasion. On the contrary, He tempers His chastening with compassion and covenant love, in hopes that His punishment will result in Israel’s restoration and redemption. Keep in mind that God’s judgment on Israel, His son, is both punitive and remedial. Everything that befell Israel was intended to chasten the prodigal nation back to God. No man can question God’s actions because the Lord is “God, and not man, the Holy One in the midst of [Israel].” God always does what is just and right, whether we understand it or not. In the future, the people of Israel will return swiftly to their land from all over the world to experience God’s blessing in the Millennial Kingdom. Abruptly, the subject switches to a future time when God will summon Israel back to the land for the Kingdom blessing of the Abrahamic Covenant. Hosea used a number of metaphors to express Israel’s return: “They shall walk after the LORD; he shall roar like a lion; when he shall roar, then the children shall tremble from the west” (v. 10). In the past, God destroyed Israel like a roaring lion (5:14); in the future, He will call Israel back to its land with His roar. During the return, “they shall tremble like a bird out of Egypt, and like a dove out of the land of Assyria, and I will place them in their houses, saith the LORD” (v. 11). No longer will Israel be like a “silly dove” (7:11), flittering around in confusion, but will be like a dove flying home, trembling with excitement, as it returns in haste to its nest. In the future, the people of Israel will return swiftly to their land from all over the world to experience God’s blessing in the Millennial Kingdom. This promise is affirmed by the words, “saith the LORD.” Chapter 11 ends with God representing Himself as a man enveloped by Israel’s sin. “Ephraim encompasseth me about with lies, and the house of Israel with deceit, but Judah yet ruleth with God, and is faithful with the saints” (v. 12). Hosea had exposed Israel’s unfaithfulness and hypocrisy through lies and deceit. The nation had pretended to worship Jehovah while practicing idolatry. Although the King James Version contrasts the faithlessness and insincerity of Israel to the faithfulness of Judah, Jewish Scriptures render the last verse differently. They show Judah as defiant also. The Hebrew word rud, translated “ruleth” (v. 12) means “to wander restlessly” or “to be unruly” against God. Judah, despite all her privileges (Temple, priesthood, covenant promises), was like a restless, unruly animal that cast off all restraints and wandered away from its master--just like Israel. Most commentators accept this interpretation, which seems to be the teaching of verse 12. On the other hand, God faithfully keeps His covenant promises of redemption and restoration to “the saints” in both Israel and Judah. Likewise, God will bring redemption and restoration to a generation of Jewish people who will come to Him in repentance. In the Kingdom Age, Israel’s sorrow will turn to joy as the once-wayward son experiences spiritual renewal through God’s loving compassion. There's honey in the rock Water in the stone Manna on the ground No matter where I go 'I don't need to worry now that I know Everything I need You've got There's honey in the rock 'Praying for a miracle Thirsty for the living well Only You can satisfy Sweetness at the mercy seat Now I've tasted, it's not hard to see Only You can satisfy There's honey in the rock There's honey in the rock There's honey in the rock There's honey in the rock (yeah) Freedom where the Spirit is Bounty in the wilderness You will always satisfy (yeah) There's honey in the rock Water in the stone Manna on the ground No matter where I go I don't need to worry now that I know Everything I need You've got There's honey in the rock Purpose in Your plan Power in the blood Healing in Your hands Started flowing when You said it is done Everything You did's enough I keep looking, I keep finding You keep giving, keep providing I have all that I need You are all that I need I keep praying, You keep moving I keep praising, You keep proving I have all that I need You are all that I need I keep looking, I keep finding You keep giving, keep providing I have all that I need You are all that I need Oh, how sweet, how sweet it is To trust in You Jesus https://youtu.be/DxWp0q6eEOY Antisemitism has never been constrained by time or religion – it has continued throughout history at the hands of atheists, Christians, Muslims and pagans alike. Whether Jewish people have assimilated into the culture or kept themselves to themselves in their own communities, they have been hated and persecuted wherever they go, and whatever they do. Whether in exile or in their own land, in Babylon or in Egypt, in Christian Europe, Atheist Russia or the Muslim Middle East, whether they’re following God or in rebellion against him, the attacks do not stop. ANTISEMITISM, THE OLDEST HATRED? Whenever there is an attack on Jewish people abroad, no matter what the motivation, there are always those who turn to blame Israel. “Absolutely appalling and a criminal act, but does it ever occur to… the present Israeli government that it’s [sic] actions against Palestinians may be reigniting antisemitism?” British lawmaker, Jenny Tonge, opined that Israel’s policies were the reason for the mass murder of Jews in Pittsburgh – an absolutely appalling act of antisemitism on her own part. But antisemitism goes back long before the troubles of the modern State of Israel ever existed. It was not the ‘occupation’ that was bothering Adolf Hitler… or the Spanish Inquisitors, or the perpetrators of the violent pogroms and Crusades that destroyed Jewish lives throughout the centuries in Europe and Russia. We can be confident it was not the settlements or checkpoints that got Haman’s goat in the story of Esther, or put the Amalekites’ nose out of joint to the degree that they tried to kill off the entire people group just after the Exodus. It is not that the State of Israel causes racism against the Jewish people, but rather, racism against the Jews that demonstrates the need for a Jewish state. As long as there has been a people of God, chosen for His purposes, the attacks and annihilation attempts have been relentless. It is ludicrous to suggest that the State of Israel is to blame for violence perpetrated against the Jewish people. THE TRUE OBJECT OF HATRED: THE GOD OF ISRAEL What makes Jewish people Jewish? The God who called the nation into being for His own purposes. It was God who created the people of Israel. God changed Jacob’s name to Israel and ordained that his twelve sons would become the twelve tribes of Israel. His people. They were a people chosen by God, led by God, instructed by God, and precious to God. And they are called by His name. “For you are a people holy to the LORD your God. The LORD your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession.” (Deuteronomy 7:6) WHY DID GOD CHOOSE ISRAEL? => Not only did they identify themselves with Him, but God identified Himself with them. He is, and always will be, The God of Israel He refers to Himself in Scripture hundreds of times as the God of Israel. The God who delivered Israel from Egypt. One day, we learn from Jeremiah 16:14 and 23:7-8, we will know Him as the God who regathered Israel. Whichever way you look at it, God is inextricably linked to Israel, and always will be. This irks a lot of people. Some are bitter about the fact that God chose a particular nation at all, or the fact that Israel (like all of humanity) has always been so undeserving of God’s grace, or that God is the one in charge and gets to make such choices without consulting anyone. “Antisemitism stems from the inherently rebellious hearts of humans. As the people of God, the Jews are associated with God, and thus Jew hatred is sometimes subliminal but always due to an unregenerate heart.” Christine Darg. Dr. Richard Bookers says in a similar vein that Jew hatred is God hatred because the Jews remind the world they are accountable to God for their lives and they don’t want to be reminded. HOW CAN CHRIST FOLLOWERS STAND AGAINST ANTISEMITISM? “You cannot love God”, warned Corrie Ten Boom, “without loving the Jewish people”. It is shocking that this even needs to be pointed out, yet church history makes an extremely uncomfortable reading when it comes to the treatment of the Jews. What a sad misrepresentation of Christianity. I'm sure subconsciously, this gives the Jewish population an underlying judgment of all Christian's or Christianity. This may cause them to view Christian's through a filtered lens, that sees separation and opposition instead of unity and oneness. The vast majority of Christian's cant relate to antisemitism, and aren't aware of it, because they were taught "there is no jew or gentile for we are all one." This could also cause a Jewish person to -wrongly- view anything not meant specifically because of Jewish identity as a "separate identity," and in turn, "misidentify" antisemitism. But what can Christians do to stand against antisemitism today? 1. PRAY We cannot underestimate the impact of our prayers. Let’s pray for the bereaved, for the frightened Jewish communities facing antisemitism in the US, in France, in the UK, and all over the world. We must also pray for their enemies. Pray for those trapped in webs of bitterness and lies. Pray for Christians who are blinded to the truth about God’s heart for His people. You can be sure that your prayers will be reaching the Father’s heart, and we know that if we pray in accordance with His will, He hears, and He will answer. You could also send a letter to a synagogue near you to let them know that you are praying for them, standing with them, and that you care. 2. PUBLICLY STAND UP FOR THE TRUTH AND DENOUNCE LIES The Body of Messiah has a prophetic ministry to bring to light words or actions that portray untruth There are so many falsehoods defaming Israel and the Jewish people in circulation. It is simply not true that Israel is an Apartheid state, or that they are committing genocide. There are no Jewish plots in progress to take over the world, or even the Middle East. Israel will do everything it can to avoid killing civilians, especially children, and the lies that are perpetrated on these matters fuel the fires of antisemitic hatred. It’s important to investigate for yourself what is true and what is not, rather than believing one side or the other, but when you find solid facts, make them known. Whether it manifests as Alt-Right racism or Far-Left hatred of Israel, antisemitism is fueled by conspiracy stories. Behind them lies the peddler of falsehoods and the spreader of fear: the father of lies himself. We can help combat antisemitism by uncovering and proclaiming the truth. 3. REMIND PEOPLE THAT JESUS IS JEWISH –PRESENT TENSE! As Russell Moore put it so well in his piece in the Washington Post, “If you hate the Jews, you hate Jesus too”: “I will often hear Christians say, “Remember that Jesus was Jewish.” That’s true enough, but the past tense makes it sound as though Jesus’ Jewishness were something he sloughed off at the resurrection. Jesus is alive now, enthroned in heaven. He is transfigured and glorified, yes, but he is still Jesus. This means he is still, and always will be, human. He is still, and always will be, the son of Mary. He is, and always will be, a Galilean. When Jesus appeared before Saul of Tarsus on the Road to Damascus, the resurrected Christ introduced himself as “Jesus of Nazareth” (Acts 22:8). Jesus is Jewish, present tense… He is of the tribe of Judah. He is of the House of David… As Christians, we are, all of us, adopted into a Jewish family, into an Israelite story.” In the past it may have been misunderstood in the New Testament to think that Jesus was against the Jewish people as a whole. That is not Accurate. But not only is Jesus Jewish, his entire family, all his disciples, and most of the early church were Jewish too. The Bible teaches God is not done with Israel, and will never forsake the Jewish people (Romans 9-11). True followers of Christ, know that Jesus was standing up to the Pharisees- religious authorities, oppressors of the common people in a fully Jewish community. 4. IDENTIFY WITH THE PEOPLE OF ISRAEL It is important to stand with the Jewish people especially in times like this – to identify with the people of Israel as they are under attack. During the Holocaust when the Nazis were making Jews wear a yellow star, the Danish king is said to have suggested to his finance minister, Vilhelm Buhl, "perhaps we should all wear it.” Such an act would completely negate the attempt to isolate and victimize the Jewish people. Similarly, when a brick came through the window of a Jewish family at Hanukkah time, the entire town of Billings, Montana, decided to put Jewish Hanukkiahs in their windows in solidarity. The attacks by the KKK soon stopped. It took courage for people to stand with their Jewish neighbors, knowing that they are making themselves a target too, but it’s a powerful thing to do. For Gentile believers in Yeshua, identification with Israel is not a mere gesture, but an expression of reality – of the deep truth that you are grafted into the commonwealth of Israel. Ruth’s courageous love for Naomi’s people and their God did not go unnoticed, and neither will yours. “Do not urge me to leave you or to return from following you. For where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there will I be buried. May the Lord do so to me and more also if anything but death parts me from you.” (Ruth 1:16-17) Israel has no bigger support than that of true followers of Christ. Sadly, not all 'Christians" represent the cross well, hence why we need more of him- we are all flawed imperfect human beings navigating this existence in need of a savior. The Scripture cannot state it more unambiguously than God’s promise to Abraham and his descendants in Genesis 12:3 – “I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” https://www.oneforisrael.org/news/eruption-of-antisemitism/ In the final analysis, antisemitism is more destructive to those who practice it than to those who bear the brunt of it. Hard as it may be to contemplate the anguish of Jewish people who have suffered such cruelty at the hands of their enemies throughout the centuries, it is even more frightening to consider the eternal judgment courted by those who are determined to hate what God Himself loves. As the character, Yakov Bok in Bernard Malamud’s award-winning novel The Fixer observes as he reads the New Testament his guards have given him, “If you want to be an anti-Semite, you must first hate Jesus Christ.” No one loved his own people more than 'Jesus. As believers in Messiah, we have a vital part to play to stem the tide of antisemitism. Starting at home, we are charged with the task of praying for the Jewish people and demonstrating our support by coming alongside our Jewish neighbors with affirmation as well as the encouraging words of the Gospel. We must speak out against religious and ethnic hatred wherever we find it – not only against the Jewish people but against anyone. This is something I have always personally and faithfully taken akin to, with a special admiration for Israel. After all, it is exactly what Christians were taught, and practice. In the Old Testament, the wonderful characteristics of God’s love were in a very clear way revealed to Israel. This nation owes its entire existence to the love of God. However, it was always meant to be a reciprocating love in which the obligation rested on Israel to respond to God’s love by living in the right relationship with Him. Moses said to his people: “The LORD did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any other people, for you were the least of all peoples; but because the LORD loves you, and because He would keep the oath which He swore to your fathers, the LORD has brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you from the house of bondage, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Therefore know that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments; and He repays those who hate Him to their face, to destroy them. He will not be slack with him who hates Him; He will repay him to his face” (Deut. 7:7-10). Every member of the nation who did not love the Lord and turn his back upon Him, would pierce himself through with many sorrows. He would be the sufferer. On the other hand, those who love the Lord will be richly blessed: “And He will love you and bless you and multiply you; He will also bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your land… the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flock, in the land of which He swore to your fathers to give you. You shall be blessed above all peoples” (Deut. 7:13-14). To qualify for these blessings, there is only the demand of true love which must also manifest in works of charity: “And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments of the LORD and His statutes which I command you today for your good?” (Deut. 10:12-13). He would also protect them against the plots and attacks of their enemies, of which there were many. Balak, the king of Moab, hired Balaam to curse Israel: “Nevertheless the LORD your God would not listen to Balaam, but the LORD your God turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the LORD your God loves you” (Deut. 23:5). Balaam advised Balak not to curse Israel or to fight against them because the Lord fights for them. He counselled Balak to befriend himself with Israel and invite them to the feasts of Moab’s gods. Should Israel agree to social and religious compromise with Moab, they would become untrue to God, despise His love and worship other gods. The doctrine of Balaam is the doctrine of compromise with an apostate world, against which the New Testament church is also warned in Rev. 2:14. This self-destructing compromise caused a big disaster in Israel. They accepted an invitation to a Baal feast, participated in the sacrifices, and many Israeli men also took heathen wives in Moab. In doing so, Israel didn’t honour their relationship of love towards God but instead committed treason against Him. As a result, the wrath of God was kindled against Israel and He sent a plague over them in which 24 000 people died (Num. 25:1-3, 9). In spite of incidents of this nature, in which Israel often in their history invited the anger of God, the love of God for Israel never changed. Many individuals died as a result of their sins and rebellion, but that did not destroy God’s covenant with Israel. His love for them is comprehensive and all-embracing. It doesn’t only include promises about their spiritual revival and physical restoration in their land, but also the promise of His daily care to save them from all dangers and anxieties: “But now, thus says the LORD who created you, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel: Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you. For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Saviour, I gave Egypt for your ransom, Ethiopia and Seba in your place. Since you were precious in My sight, you have been honoured, and I have loved you; therefore I will give men for you, and people for your life. Fear not, for I am with you; I will bring your descendants from the east, and gather you from the west. I will say to the north, Give them up! And to the south, Do not keep them back! Bring My sons from afar and My daughters from the ends of the earth – everyone who is called by My name, whom I have created for My glory; I have formed him, yes, I have made him” (Is. 43:1-7). The question may be asked: Why does the Lord have to gather this people from the four corners of the earth and bring the dispersed ones back to their land? Why did they become unfaithful to the Lord and forfeited His blessings? It is because of the hardening of their hearts. Instead of worshipping the God of Israel they were deceived by Satan to live a life of licentiousness in which they also worshipped the Baals: “But you have not called upon Me, O Jacob; and you have been weary of Me, O Israel. You have not brought Me the sheep of your burnt offerings, nor have you honoured Me with your sacrifices… but you have burdened Me with your sins, you have wearied Me with your iniquities” (Is. 43:22-24). To this licentiousness and lack of love Israel often committed themselves. They were warned that it would ultimately lead to great calamities and disaster, including the international dispersion of the nation: “If you do not carefully observe all the words of this law that are written in this book, that you may fear this glorious and awesome name, THE LORD YOUR GOD, then the LORD will bring upon you and your descendants extraordinary plagues… And it shall be, that just as the LORD rejoiced over you to do you good and multiply you, so the LORD will rejoice over you to destroy you and bring you to nothing; and you shall be plucked from off the land which you go to possess. Then the LORD will scatter you among all peoples, from one end of the earth to the other… And among those nations you shall find no rest, nor shall the sole of your foot have a resting place; but there the LORD will give you a trembling heart, failing eyes, and anguish of soul. Your life shall hang in doubt before you” (Deut. 28:58-66). Eventually Israel also rejected and turned their backs upon their Messiah, the Lord Jesus, who is the personification of God’s love for them. That was the final sin that filled the cup of their iniquities and gave rise to the international dispersion against which Moses warned them. Jesus said: “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! See! Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, Blessed is He who come in the name of the Lord!” (Mt. 23:37-39). Of the international dispersion of Israel that would follow after they rejected the Messiah and would endure until they finally accept Him, Jesus said: “And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled” (Lk. 21:24). Although the destruction of Jerusalem and the diaspora of Israel constitute divine judgements, it was never meant to be an absolute rejection of Israel and the abrogation of God’s covenant with them. The God of Israel says: “Yet for all that, when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not cast them away, nor shall I abhor them, to utterly destroy them and break My covenant with them; For I am the LORD their God. But for their sake I will remember the covenant of their ancestors, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the nations, that I might be their God: I am the LORD” (Lev. 26:44-45). Paul also confirms the fact that the Lord didn’t reject His people Israel. At the end of the times of the Gentiles, which is the end of the Church dispensation, the trampling of Jerusalem will be terminated and the people be restored physically and spiritually: “I say then, has God cast away His people? Certainly not! For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. God has not cast away His people whom He foreknew… hardening in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: The Deliverer will come out of Zion, and He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob; for this is My covenant with them, when I take away their sins” (Rom. 11:1-2, 25-27). What we now see in Israel, as well as in the salvation of an increasing number of Messianic Jews who return to the God of their fathers through Jesus Christ, is confirmation of sure promises that God will never abandon Israel. His love for Israel is eternal and unchangeable. Listen to what He says through the prophet Hosea about this forsaken woman, Israel, who wandered away from Him: “I will punish her for the days of the Baals to which she burned incense… Therefore, behold, I will allure her, will bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfort to her. I will give her her vineyards from there, and the Valley of Achor as a door of hope; she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, as in the day when she came up from the land of Egypt… I will take from her mouth the name of the Baals, and they shall be remembered by their name no more” (Hos. 2:13-17). The prophets Isaiah also confirms the restored relationship of love between Israel and God: “Do not fear, for you will not be ashamed; nor be disgraced, for you will not be put to shame; for you will forget the shame of your youth, and will not remember the reproach of your widowhood anymore. For your Maker is your husband, the LORD of hosts is His name; and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel; He is called the God of the whole earth. For the LORD has called you like a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, like a youthful wife when you were refused, says your God. For a mere moment I have forsaken you, but with great mercies I will gather you. With a little wrath I hid My face from you for a moment; but with everlasting kindness I will have mercy on you, says the LORD your Redeemer” (Is. 54:4-8). To Hosea this wonderful prospect was also revealed, and he concludes his writings with a prophecy on the restored relationship between Israel and their God: “I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely, for My anger has turned away from him. I will be like the dew to Israel; he shall grow like the lily, and lengthen his roots like Lebanon. His branches shall spread; his beauty shall be like an olive tree, and his fragrance like Lebanon. Those who dwell under his shadow shall return; they shall be revived like grain, and grow like the vine” (Hos. 14:4-7) The prophet Jeremiah emphasises the eternal love that God has for Israel: “Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love, therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you. Again I will build you, and you shall be rebuilt, O virgin of Israel! You shall again be adorned with your tambourines, and shall go forth in the dances of those who rejoice. You shall yet plant vines on the mountains of Samaria… He who scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him as a shepherd does his flock. For the LORD has redeemed Jacob, and ransomed him from the hand of one stronger than he. Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, streaming to the goodness of the LORD… their souls shall be like a well watered garden, and they shall sorrow no more at all… for I will turn their mourning to joy, will comfort them, and make them rejoice rather than sorrow… Is Ephraim My dear son? Is he a pleasant child? For though I spoke against him, I earnestly remember him still; therefore My heart yearns for him; I will surely have mercy on him, says the LORD“ (Jer. 31:3-20). It is evident from God’s dealing with Israel that His love has a clear element of chastening. This love is so pure that it can’t allow people who have accepted it to compromise with a sinful world, or to be licentious and permissive as is the case in the humanistic love of fallen man. A wayward child who persists with his uncharitable conduct must be reprimanded, disciplined, and chastised. However, these disciplinary actions are instituted with the best interests of the person(s) involved. If you're a loving parent and your child's hair is on fire- would that parent say, "that's okay, you're going in the right direction," or would they speak the truth in love? I love you- you're running toward that cliff and your hair is on fire, let's put the fire out and turn around. The chastising of Israel is an act of love as it is aimed at their return to the Lord. Those who have sorrow over their sins and truly repent from it will be met by a loving, forgiving Father. He will also completely restore a repentant Israel: “For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you… I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgements and do them. Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be My people and I will be your God” (Ezek. 36:24-28). The day of Israel’s national conversion will be when the Messiah, Jesus, sets feet on the Mount of Olives at the end of the great tribulation. He will then judge the nations and save the remnant of His people, Israel. Under strong conviction of sin, worked by the Holy Spirit, they will grieve over their sins, pray for pardon and mercy, and accept Jesus as Messiah and Saviour: “And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they have pierced; they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn… They will call on My name, and I will answer them. I will say, This is My people, and each one will say, the LORD is my God” (Zech. 12:10 and 13:9). The bond of love that was broken by Israel because of their sins, will be fully restored: “O Israel, return to the LORD your God, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity… Say to Him, Take away all iniquity; receive us graciously… [To these word of repentance God will say]: I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely” (Hos. 14:1-4). Isaiah says: “In that day the LORD of hosts will be for a crown of glory and a diadem or beauty to the remnant of His people” (Is. 28:5). All the nations will know about the spiritual revival of Israel and gladly associate with them to share in the blessings: “In those days ten men from every language of the nations shall grasp the sleeve of a Jewish man, saying, Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you” (Zech. 8:23). The saved remnant of Israel will be united in their love for God and serve Him with their whole heart. God says: “This is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. No more shall every man teach his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD, for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more” (Jer. 31:33-34). The dedication of Israel as a people will then be like that small group of exemplary men of God in the Old Testament. The Lord will take pleasure in them like He took pleasure in David, who was a man after God’s heart. David declared his love for God by saying: “I will love You, O LORD my strength” (Ps. 18:1). Another psalmist expressed his love for the Word of God: “I love Your commandments more than gold, yes, than fine gold!… Your word is very pure; therefore Your servant loves it… My soul keeps Your testimonies, and I love them exceedingly” (Ps. 119:127, 140, 167). Is your delight also in the word of God and do you meditate on it day and night? Are your footsteps anchored in the word of God, and have you hidden His words in your heart that you might not sin against Him? Then the blessings of the Lord will surround you and the Holy One of Israel will protect you. God’s love for Israel will also be poured out in your heart. You will pray for them and earnestly desire their salvation. God says: “For Zion’s sake I will not hold My peace, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until her righteousness goes forth as brightness, and her salvation as a lamp that burns… I have set watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem, who shall never hold their peace day or night. You who make mention of the LORD, do not keep silent, and give Him no rest till He establishes and till He makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth” (Is. 62:1, 6-7). Before this can happen, a passionate love must be awakened in the hearts of Jews for the land of their fathers and the city of Jerusalem. These convictions and feelings must induce them to return and prepare Jerusalem and its inhabitants for the soon coming of the Messiah! This awakening is finally occurring in our generation. The gospel is being heard in Israel again, after 2,000 years of exile. God loves Israel, declaring, “I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have drawn you with lovingkindness” (Jer. 31:3). God is eternal, and His love is eternal. To possess the love of God is to love that which he loves. One cannot claim to have God’s love, and simultaneously hate Israel, His chosen people. There is clearly no place for anti-Semitism in the heart of any Christian. God called followers of Jesus to love and serve Israel through the message of the Gospel. As with the renewed covenant offered to Israel, our sins are removed freely with faith in God's great sacrifice and work on the cross. The nation of Israel doesn't have that protection, but God promises to deliver them as a nation when they've gone too far from him. That's Israel's history, a pattern of national wandering from God, suffering, bondage, then redemption and deliverance. God's word says that greater sufferings bring greater rewards, because God- through Christ- compensates our weaknesses. The weaker we are, the greater he can demonstrate his greatness and faithfulness when called upon. If we are close to God, he will listen and answer. God always delivers Israel before it's too late, when they are far away, he promises to answer them from afar. The renewed covenant, the law of Christ, given by our God of Israel that made himself known to the beloved patriarchs, frees us from this bondage and is freely offered to anyone who accepts it. Anyone who is under the law of Christ, should love, honor, and praise Israel for nourishing the deep roots of the mosaic covenant long enough for the gentiles to have an opportunity to be in grafted into the one family of God. Judaism is a deep, rich, beautiful religion. The Jewish people are loving, kind, generous, and are zealous for God. But they are doing this from the wilderness, they haven't entered the promised land. They need a Shepard to draw nearer to God- that is Christ. God will eventually deliver Israel at the end of the age, through Jesus Christ- their savior, whom is very well active and alive in spirit today. God calls followers of Christ to Shepard, love, and guide Israel through the Gospel. To love Israel is not a blanket endorsement of all their beliefs and behaviors. God, who loves Israel and chose them to be His people (Deut. 7:6-8), also called them to be holy (Ex. 19:5-6; Lev. 11:45), and promised blessing or cursing, based on their obedience to Him (Deut. 28:1-68). Israel can and does fail, often rejecting God’s love for them and walking in the ways of the world (see 2 Chron. 36:15-16; Jer. 7:25-26; 25:4-7; Ezek. 16; Matt. 23:1-39; Acts 7:51-53; 1 Thess. 2:14-16). The national rejection and crucifixion of Jesus (Matt. 27:22-23; Acts 2:22-23; 4:27-28), Israel’s promised Messiah (Deut. 18:15; Isa. 7:14; 9:6-7;53; 61:1; Matt. 1:1, 17; Luke 1:31-33), is their greatest failure. Did Israel act alone in crucifying Jesus, their Messiah? No! God foretold Israel’s Messiah would suffer and die (Ps. 22:11-18; Isa. 53); and, according to His sovereignty, He used wicked men, both Jews and Gentiles, to accomplish His will (Acts 22:22-23; 4:27-28). If it be inquired, as constantly it is, who put Christ to death? It may be pointed out that He was offered by the Father (Ps. 22:15; John 3:16; Rom. 3:25), of His own free will (John 10:17; Heb. 7:27; 9:14; 10:12), by the Spirit (Heb. 9:14), and by men—Herod, Pilate, the Gentiles, and Israel (Acts 2:23; 4:27). To this may be added that part of His death was contributed by Satan (cf. Gen. 3:15).[1] Israel struggles with God and is disoriented. They get confused on what loving shepherding is, and can mistake it for antisemitism. The problem with Israel not knowing how to solve antisemitism, is that they don't know God's word. I've read a lot on Jewish sites/holocaust education sites that portray the religion of Christianity and the word of god very negative. It's also often incorrect or from a Jewish perspective which isn't a complete view. Communication is the only way to solve any misunderstanding, but Judaism doesn't want to listen to a Christian perspective. That can only last for so long, until it's no longer functional. Antisemitism is not caused by the New Testament, Christian doctrine, or beliefs that Jesus was killed by the Jews. If that is being used as a means for anti-semitism, it is a wrong understanding or representation of Scripture. God caused the death and resurrections of the messiah. There are dark and grievous period of history and antisemitism, which in order to truly fix, need to be understood as antisemitism needs to stop, and Israel can not accurately see how to fix it. Their messiah Jesus Christ is the only answer, but it's up to them when it occurs. Nothing like the holocaust should ever happen again, and it's up to Judaism to openly talk about it with whom may not agree with them, not just those who do agree with them. Resurrection is the key word- meaning, Jesus is living and active today through the Holy Spirit and body of Christ, the spirit of truth. Any governing policies in today's society that counteracts the spirit of truth causes disruption. God uses the body of Christ as vessels for the spirit of truth. God, who loves Israel with an everlasting love, continues to keep His word to them. Israel has a future hope because of the promises and covenants God made through the patriarchs and prophets (Gen. 12:1-3; 15:18; 17:8; Deut. 30:1-10; 2 Sam. 7:16; Ps. 89:33-37; Jer. 31:31-33). Though unbelieving Israel is currently under divine discipline (Matt. 23:37-39), God’s covenants and promises are still in effect (Rom. 9:1-5), and will remain in force until Jesus returns and is accepted as their Messiah. It is wrong to think the church has replaced Israel, for “God has not rejected His people whom He foreknew” (Rom. 11:2), even though there is a “partial hardening” among them until Messiah returns (Rom. 11:25-27). Until then, unbelieving Israel is under spiritual darkness and divine judgment. The apostle Paul—a biological Jew himself—revealed that God’s promises and covenants are still valid for national Israel, and wished all would come to faith in Christ. I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit, that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart [for unbelieving Israel]. For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh [to whom Paul is related biologically], who are Israelites, to whom belongs the adoption as sons, and the glory and the covenants and the giving of the Law and the temple service and the promises, whose are the fathers, and from whom is the Christ according to the flesh [i.e. Messiah], who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen. (Rom. 9:1-5) Those who have the privilege of being witnesses to the truth, have a responsibility to the truth. Today, Jews and Gentiles alike, become partakers of the church, the body of Christ, when they believe in Jesus as their Savior (Gal. 3:26-28; Eph. 1:22-23; cf. 1 Cor. 10:32). The church is looking forward to the return of Christ, in which He will catch away (ἁρπάζω harpazo – to seize, catch up, snatch away) Christians to heaven (1 Thess. 4:13-17). Until God resumes His prophetic plans for Israel, the Christian is called to love them, pray for them, and share the gospel of grace that they may turn to Jesus as the Christ and be saved (Rom. 1:16; 1 Cor. 1:18-24; 15:3-4). Antisemitism has only one sure antidote: the perfect love of Messiah that “casts out fear” (1 John 4:18). The question “who are the seed of Abraham?” can be answered several ways, and it is important to make some distinctions. There is the Seed of Abraham (Seed being singular); there is the seed of Abraham physically (descendants of Abraham according to the flesh); and there is the seed of Abraham spiritually(those who, like Abraham, have faith in God). The (singular) Seed of Abraham is Christ, as Galatians 3:16, quoting Genesis 12:7, says, “The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. Scripture does not say ‘and to seeds,’ meaning many people, but ‘and to your seed,’ meaning one person, who is Christ.” The passage goes on to explain that an inheritance was promised to Abraham’s Seed (Christ) apart from the Law. Later, the Mosaic Law was introduced, but it did not annul the promises made to Abraham or to Abraham’s Seed (Christ). There is a "mystery" the Bible speaks of in regard to ethnic Israel, but when the signs of Christ's return are near, it is clear that the Gospel must be preached to the Jew first then Gentile. Another indication -why it hasn't been preached to Israel before- out of respect, yet the time has come. Just as Abraham believed God and his faith was counted as righteousness (Genesis 15:6), so are all today who believe in God’s Son justified apart from the Law. In this way, Abraham is the “father” of all who believe (Romans 4:11–17). “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:29). Of course, the seed of Abraham can also refer to the Hebrew people who descended from Abraham through Isaac. Still more broadly, the seed of Abraham could include Arabs, who trace their lineage through Ishmael. This is the physical seed of Abraham. The spiritual seed of Abraham (believers in Jesus Christ) is comprised of people of all nationalities and ethnicities. The Jewish religious leaders of the first century took pride in that they were Abraham’s seed. They saw their physical connection to Abraham as a guarantee of God’s favor. This attitude kept them from seeing their need for repentance of the heart-- and brought condemnation from John the Baptist, who warned them to repent. Anticipating their fallback argument that they were the seed of Abraham, John said, “Do not think you can say to yourselves, "We have Abraham as our father.’ I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham” (Matthew 3:9). Jesus dealt with the same issue later. In speaking to the unbelieving Jews, Jesus emphasized their need to receive His words as truth and obey His commands. They replied, “We be Abraham’s seed” (John 8:33, KJV). Jesus then rebukes them for plotting ways to murder Him; their stubborn response was again, “Abraham is our father” (verse 39a). At this, Jesus makes a distinction between the physical seed of Abraham and the true, spiritual seed of Abraham: “If you were Abraham’s children . . . then you would do what Abraham did” (verse 39b). The conversation heats up as the Jews for a third time reference their connection to Abraham: "Are you greater than our father Abraham?” they ask Jesus (verse 53). Jesus provokes them further: “Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad” (verse 56). The Jews’ are incredulous that Jesus would claim to be a contemporary of Abraham, and that’s when Jesus brings the exchange to a climax with a claim to full deity: “Very truly I tell you, . . . before Abraham was born, I am!” (verse 58). In a fury, the Jews attempted to stone Jesus (verse 59), again proving that being the physical seed of Abraham is not enough-- they had to be born again (John 3:3). Paul sums up the difference between the seeds of Abraham in Romans 2:28–29: “A person is not a Jew who is one only outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a person’s praise is not from other people, but from God.” Could you possibly imagine how MUCH Joy and delight God would have if his physical seed, also became his spiritual seed? It's both full and in complete harmony! Fulfilling "all the words of his law." Together as one! Israel returns to the father... Out of the wilderness, the lost bride, reunited to the bridegroom. That is God's Story! So many hills and valleys, a long and winding journey to the promised land, reunited and home at last! The lord is faithfully and patiently waiting for this day, so that all the nations can rejoice together in his re-unification with his lost bride, Israel, his treasured possession, the apple of his eye! Romans 11:12 I ask then, did they stumble so as to fall beyond Recovery? Certainly not! Why? Because we have Jesus- the forgiver of all sins! However, because of their trespass, salvation has come to the Gentiles to make Israel jealous. But if their trespass means riches for the world, and their failure means riches for the Gentiles, How MUCH GREATER riches will their fullness bring! Cross References Acts 3:21 Heaven must take Him in until the time comes for the restoration of all things, which God announced long ago through His holy prophets. Romans 11:25 I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you will not be conceited: A hardening in part has come to Israel, until the full number of the Gentiles has come in. Treasury of ScriptureNow if the fall of them be the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles; how much more their fullness? Romans 11:15,33 For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the dead? … Romans 9:23 And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory, Ephesians 3:8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; diminishing. Romans 11:25 For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. Isaiah 11:11-16 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea… Isaiah 12:1-6 And in that day thou shalt say, O LORD, I will praise thee: though thou wast angry with me, thine anger is turned away, and thou comfortedst me… Isaiah’s ministry spanned fifty years as he prophesied and addressed the sins of the people during the reign of four different kings. As a messenger of God’s covenant, one of Isaiah’s primary roles was to remind the people what God expected of them. The book has a coherent structure, which can be divided into two parts, but written by one author. The first half, chapters 1-39, focuses on God’s judgment of His people, while the second half, chapters 40-66, focuses on the salvation of God’s people. Another key difference is the first half deals more with the Assyrian crisis while the second half deals with the Babylonian crisis and resulting exile. Despite these calamities, an overarching theme throughout the book of Isaiah is God’s special relationship with the nation of Israel and the unfortunate need of judgment and exile to bring about the future restoration of God’s people.
GOD’S JUDGMENT AND SALVATION OF HIS PEOPLE Michael Wilkins explains, “The people of Israel understood that God was using them as a people to fulfill the prophecies of Isaiah; however, the problem was Israel, as a nation, had failed in its mission and as a result had become a blind and deaf servant”[1] (Isaiah 42:18-25). God can use anyone and anything to accomplish His plan and during the first part of Isaiah, He uses the Assyrian army to confront the people’s sinfulness and bring about judgment and salvation. “Assyria was the rod of Yahweh’s anger and the staff in their hands was His fury” (Isaiah 10:5). In the second half of Isaiah, it would be the Babylon Empire that the Lord would use to pronounce judgment on Israel, but even before the exile took place in 586 B.C., the Lord planned to use Cyrus, the Persian king to allow the people to return home. As J. J. M. Roberts asserts, “Israel’s current predicament was due to the sins of her people (Isaiah 42:24-25). Their plight was well deserved, their coming salvation was due simply to Yahweh’s graciousness, and the appropriate response was to return to Yahweh in trust and confidence”[2] (Isaiah 43:22-44:2). Ultimately, the hope and salvation of Israel would only come through their suffering, judgment, and exile. RESTORATION AND TRANSFORMATION OF THE CITY OF JERUSALEM Barry Webb explains, “The transformation of Zion is both the literary link and formal key that helps us understand the message of Isaiah.”[3]In chapter one, Zion, the unfaithful prostitute is reduced, but in chapter two, Zion, Yahweh’s bride is exalted and taken back, following the divorce/exile. This dichotomy is a powerful reminder of God’s grace and the comparison being made is how old Jerusalem was equated with God’s judgment while the New Jerusalem was going to be a place of God’s blessing and a place where God establishes His kingdom forever. Roberts explains, “Isaiah’s transformation of the royal ideology and the Zion tradition became the wellspring from which the later messianic expectations and the hopes for a New Jerusalem [and] the conception of a heavenly Jerusalem and a transhistorical view of salvation that includes even the ultimate victory over death [arose].”[4] After the purge, John Watts shows, “The important thing about Zion is her reputation as Yahweh’s dwelling. It is Yahweh’s house, the temple, which stands out, because He is present and active there.”[5] This is reminiscent of Isaiah’s vision again, as the glory of the Lord filled the temple. His holiness is overwhelming, as the seraphim are depicted covering their face and feet, calling out to one another, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory” (Isaiah 6:3). Watts adds, “Yahweh’s presence in the temple lifts its importance to supremacy and this has nothing to do with Israel or Judah, their kings or leaders. Purely because Yahweh is there, Zion attracts the other nations.”[6] Then the imagery of beating swords into plowshares and spears into pruning hooks is profound. Here, Geoffrey Grogan explains, “The issues that set nations against one another do not disappear automatically but are settled by the supreme Judge, whose decisions are accepted. Thus there is no uneasy calm but peace based on righteousness.”[7] The coming kingdom of God and the future restoration of Israel are dominant themes. Gary Yates states, “God is going to bring the people back to their homeland; there is going to be the restoration of the Davidic Dynasty, through the Messiah; the temple will be rebuilt; and as the nations see how God blesses Israel, they will come to the Promise Land to worship God.”[8] Sin still had consequences, so as the children of Israel return home from the Babylonian exile, they find themselves impoverished and living under foreign oppression. It is here, Yates asserts, “If the return from exile is all there is, then Isaiah’s prophecies and promises are a disappointment at best and they are an outright failure at worst.”[9] Ultimately, the full restoration will not occur until they have fully returned to the Lord (Isaiah 56:1-7). The new heavens and new earth referenced in Isaiah 65 and the New Testament, (Hebrews 12:22-24) says the blessings and presence of God are being enjoyed now, but in the future there will come a time where God completely reverses the effects of the fall. This means death, violence, and wickedness will be replaced with life, love, and harmony and Isaiah recognized, as he looked to the future kingdom, some of these promises and blessings are being enjoyed now, but some are still yet to come. LORD AS KING AND HOLY ONE OF ISRAEL Roberts states, “If there is any one concept central to the whole book of Isaiah, it is the vision of Yahweh as the Holy One of Israel [and] Isaiah’s vision… left a lasting impression on the prophet’s ministry.”[10] Isaiah’s vision in chapter six is profound as the glory of the Lord filled the temple and this encounter would shape his entire ministry and message. Isaiah desperately wanted the nation of Israel to have a similar experience and encounter, so that they too would find themselves undone by their sinful lives. Unfortunately, Israel had to learn the hard way, despite God’s sincere desire to enter into a relationship with His people. Instead of pouring out blessings, as a result of righteous behavior, the Lord would use the exile to purge all the unholy traits from the people. God is the one the people should have put their trust in exclusively, but the people, instead, chose to rely on political and military alliances for protection. The main issue throughout Isaiah was Israel’s failure to deal with its own spiritual apostasy and no alliance made with any other nation could protect them from the Lord’s wrath. The holiness of the Lord demanded a proper response from His children, but as Roberts explains, “If Israel refused to look to Yahweh, to trust in the quiet waters of Shiloah, God would send the raging waters of Assyria against them to reveal the vanity of their trust in human power”[11] (Isaiah 8:5-8). LORD OVER ALL NATIONS Roberts further illustrates how, “Before Yahweh would fight for Zion; He would fight against her (Isaiah 31:4-5). Jerusalem would be humbled and humiliated, but in the hour of her desperation, when Yahweh had cleansed her in the fiery judgment, God would intervene to save her from her arrogant enemies (Isaiah 31:4-5). Then Jerusalem would be exalted and glorified.”[12] While God used Assyria and Babylon as tools to purge Judah and Israel of sin, the very nations used by God would face judgment themselves because they failed to recognize Yahweh as Lord over all. When reading Isaiah 45, part of which focused on the fact that God is the one who “Forms light and creates darkness, the one who makes peace and creates calamity. I am the One who does these things.” This portion of Scripture is amazing, especially considering most people do not normally think that God has anything to do with the darkness. In fact, most people define darkness as the absence of light, so Isaiah is making a profound assertion here that God declares that He is even in the dark chaos of the world, and for this reason, followers can have peace, even in the darkness, because He is Lord over all. John Oswalt explains, “What Isaiah asserts is that God, as creator, is ultimately responsible for everything in nature, from light to dark, and for everything in history, from good fortune to misfortune. No other beings or forces are responsible for anything.”[13] Even in darkness and chaos, God is with every true follower, and the darkness will eventually give way to the light of day. “For the light has shone already into the darkness and the darkness cannot overcome it” (John 1:5). FUTURE MESSIAH AND SUFFERING SERVANT Instead of leading the people of other nations to Yahweh, the people of Israel often did the exact opposite by worshipping the false gods of other nations. In the midst of this apostasy, Isaiah promises that God would provide a solution to the problem, which was the raising up of an individual Servant who would restore the national servant, the nation of Israel. Richard Averbeck explains, “The Lord’s concern for the nations, not just Israel, is declared in the larger context in Isaiah 49:6-7; 56:6-7 and now the same sacrificial redemption and restoration applies to them as well.”[14] This means the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53 brought redemption and restoration, as Averbeck says, “To the Jew first, but also to the Greek” (Romans 1:16). Roberts further explains, “The plan of salvation, centered in the vicarious death of Jesus Christ is dependent on [Second] Isaiah’s portrayal of the Suffering Servant, and the NT emphasis on the receptions of that salvation through faith picks up and continues the Isaianic demand for faith.”[15] In light of the entire canon of Scripture, God still has a plan for the nation of Israel and while they were spiritually blind to the Suffering Servant’s arrival, Isaiah 61:1-3 indicates the first coming of Jesus began the restoration of Israel and the second coming will finish it. Jesus quoted these words in Luke 4:18-19 and as He read to the people in the synagogue, He stopped in the middle of 61:2 after the words, “The time of the Lord’s favor has come.” Rolling up the scroll, He said, “The Scripture you have just heard has been fulfilled this very day!” (Luke 4:21). While the world is now under God’s favor; His wrath is yet to come.[16] Robert Hughes and J. Carl Laney explain how Isaiah 61:1, “Revealed that the Messiah, who ministered salvation at His first coming, will also minister comfort for redeemed Israel at His second coming.”[17] By His death and resurrection, Jesus instituted and inaugurated a new phase of God’s kingdom, some of which is now, and some of which is still to come, when Christ returns. While this student does not agree with Roger’s conclusion on the matter of multiple authors of Isaiah, nonetheless, Rogers does offer considerable insight on the overarching themes in the book that bears his name. Upon reading Isaiah, there is no denying the special relationship God had and still has with His children, but while they were supposed to be a light and witness for God, they fell victim to greed and apostasy. God wanted the best for them, yet the nations of Judah and Israel chose to find their own versions of “God’s best” outside of God’s will. As a parent punishes a child, Yahweh too is forced to pronounce judgment before He is able to provide salvation. This salvation ultimately finds its initial fulfillment in the arrival of the Suffering Servant, the Messiah, but even then, as Isaiah prophesied, “He would be despised and rejected by man” (Isaiah 53:3). The words written by the eighth century prophet are just as relevant today and much can be applied to nations, like America, by heeding what was revealed in the woe oracles against foreign nations. These declarations can directly be traced back to the Abrahamic Covenant, which God made with man and are unconditional promises by God. Christ is coming back, a future kingdom will be established forever, and the Lord will rule over all, as every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord (Isaiah 45:23; Philippians 2:10). In addition to Isaiah having multiple dominant themes, it also is the only Old Testament book to predict the virgin birth of Christ (7:14), the ministry of John the Baptist (40:3-5), and contains one the Old Testament’s clearest statements on the Trinity (48:16). Next to Deuteronomy, Isaiah presents the most detailed information on the person and work of God and also the Messiah’s role as both sacrificial lamb and ruling lion. Christ was obedient and empowered by the Father and He will return one day as the anointed one of the Lord and victorious warrior (63:1-6). “This is the day the Lord has made, let us be glad and rejoice in it” (Psalm 118:24)… This is the Lord’s Day… This is Easter Sunday… This is Resurrection Day… This is a glorious day… Every Sunday we gather in celebration of the truths that it is finished—Jesus has paid it all, and that He is risen—and because He lives so will we… And all of this hinges on what happened on this weekend all those years ago… Don Carson has said that, “The entire Bible pivots on one weekend in Jerusalem two thousand years ago.” And if that’s true of the Bible how much more so of our lives? Friends, the gospel is the most important message in existence… It defines our lives as Christians and it’s where true life is found… And at the heart of the gospel is this weekend… On this weekend, roughly 2,000 years ago Christ was crucified; and then on the third day, on the Sunday after His death, up from the grave He rose… He got up from the grave, He defeated death, He defeated sin, and He satisfied God’s wrath for His people… But over 700 years before the cross of Christ, Isaiah laid out what happened perfectly… Jesus Himself said in Luke 22:37, “For I tell you that this Scripture must be fulfilled in me: And he was numbered with the transgressors.’ For what is written about me has its fulfillment.” There He was speaking of Isaiah 53; and in Isaiah 53 we find an amazing picture of the gospel… Charles Spurgeon called this chapter, “the Bible in miniature, the Gospel at its essence…” And so, today we’re going to look at this gospel message, we’re going to look at Good Friday and Easter through the lens of Isaiah 53… And given the critical nature of the gospel, regardless of how familiar you may think you are with this message, you would do well to give it your upmost attention this morning… Because again, if the Bible pivots on this, how much more so our lives? So let’s dive in… Isaiah 53- Our text begins in verse 1 with the questions, “Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” Well the answer to the first question seems to be no one, and the answer to the second question is first Israel and then the world… Isaiah says, “Who has believed what he has heard from us?…” Us being the prophets of Israel; those who faithfully proclaimed God’s Word… And then he speaks of the arm of the Lord. And what’s typically meant by the arm of the Lord in God’s Word is the power of God in action… And in this context the power of God in action is Jesus, the Suffering Servant Himself… And we can see this as the text shifts from speaking of the arm of the Lord to speaking of a person… In verse 2 we read, “For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him.” So, notice that the arm of the Lord is now referred to as a He. And in light of the whole of Scripture this makes sense… The gospel is the good news about the person and work of Jesus Christ; who He is and what He has done and will do… And in Romans 1:16 we’re told that the gospel, “is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” Or we could say to Israel and to the world… And that’s exactly what we’re being told here… The power of God in action, the power of God for salvation is revealed in a person, in a servant, in the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53, in Jesus… In Isaiah 52:13, just before this we’re told that the one Isaiah 53 speaks of is indeed a servant. God’s Word says, “Behold, my servant shall act wisely; he shall be high and lifted up, and shall be exalted.” And we refer to Isaiah 53 as the Suffering Servant passage, because it tells us how this Servant of God suffered for the sins of man; it tells us how Jesus conquered through death… Now, outside of the grace of God no one believes this message… Even Israel who saw Jesus face to face didn’t see Him for who He was; that’s in part because they weren’t looking for a suffering servant, but a conquering hero; but also, Isaiah says, they didn’t see Jesus rightly because, “he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him.” Jesus looked like an average Palestinian Jew… He didn’t look special or attractive… He didn’t have blond hair and blue eyes… And He certainly didn’t look like what they were looking for in a King… So in verse 3 Isaiah tells us, “He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.” But, Jesus was and is the King of the universe. “For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him” (Colossians 1:16). He is the, “King of kings and Lord of lords” (Revelation 19:16)… We owe Him our allegiance. We were created for Him… We owe Him our esteem… To esteem is to regard highly or favorably, with proper respect and admiration… But Isaiah says that we despised Him and esteemed Him not… We were created to delight in Him and esteem Him, but in our sin we despise Him and esteem Him not… This was true of Israel and the world by and large… And that’s because it’s true of everyone in their sin… In the flesh we are unable to see the beauty and majesty of Jesus… His beauty can only be seen by faith… In verse 2 it says that after coming to this world Jesus grew up before God… He was always before God’s eyes; but the eyes of man never rightly looked upon Him, at least not without a work of grace… Jesus has always been in perfect communion with God the Father and God the Spirit… Our triune God is holy, perfect, and good, and has always existed in perfect joy in and of Himself. And even after Jesus left heaven and came to earth to save sinners, before going to the cross God always looked upon Him in love and joy… But He was despised and rejected by men… He was not rightly esteemed… And this is the heart of what sin is: rejecting God, not esteeming Him rightly; and regardless of what we think, if we don’t esteem God rightly we despise Him because we belittle Him and seek to put ourselves in His place… This is what mankind has been doing since Adam and Eve, but this is especially what happened when Jesus came to earth… In verse 4 we read, “Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.” In other words, He took on our sorrows and sufferings, yet the world thought He was being punished by God for His disobedience… The Jewish leaders accused Him of sinning against God and had Him sentenced to death. And notice that Isaiah says, “we esteemed him stricken…” In other words he’s including himself with those who would have Jesus crucified… He did that 700 years before it happened… And understand, we should write ourselves into that as well, even 2,000 years after it happened… Sure we’d like to think that we would do better, but we wouldn’t… As that old hymn asks, “Were you there when they crucified my Lord?” Friends, we were there, because we are no different than they in our flesh… We would have shouted crucify Him because we would have thought Him guilty… And as we watched Him suffer we would’ve thought He was getting what He deserved for His sin… Oh, but it wasn’t His sin that He suffered and died for, but ours… In verse 5 we read, “But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.” They esteem Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted; they thought He was being punished by God for His sin, and we would’ve too… But, in actuality, God in the flesh was being punished for our sin… It was our griefs, our sorrows, our transgressions, our iniquities… And notice the language here; again, this was written 700 years before the cross, yet God’s Word says, “he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows . . . . he was pierced . . . . he was crushed…” This is what is known as prophetic perfects… In other words, God has said it, so it is as good as done… That’s why the Bible speaks of Jesus as the Lamb who was slain before the foundation of the world… In other words, God’s plan before He created the world was to save the world through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. The gospel is not plan B… There are no plan Bs with God… The cross was the plan before creation, so Isaiah can say with confidence that Jesus will be pierced, crushed, chastised, and wounded for our salvation… He can write as if it was already done, because it was already as good as done… And as we look back at the cross, we look back knowing that all of this did indeed happen, that it is finished… God made good on His Word, as He always does… Jesus was pierced for our transgressions by three nails and one spear… His chastisement brought us peace… The idea behind chastisement here is corporal punishment… And that’s what happened… Jesus was tried, He was flogged and beaten, and then He was crucified… It was corporal punishment inflicted upon Him as though He had committed a crime… But it wasn’t He who committed the crime, but us… So He took our punishment… He was wounded for us… He had a crown of thorns beaten into His head, His beard ripped from His face… Pierced, chastised, wounded… Oh but worst of all, He was crushed for our iniquities… In verse 10 Isaiah elaborates on this a bit, saying, “Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him; he has put him to grief…” Jesus wasn’t crushed by the beatings, by the nails, by the cross, or by the spear; He was crushed by the wrath of almighty God… Verse 6 helps us understand this; it says, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” This is the Old Testament language of atonement and of sacrificial lambs… And that’s exactly what Jesus is… He’s the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world, because it was laid on Him… “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—everyone—to his own way…” And basically what that means is what Romans 3:23 says: “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” We have turned to our own way instead of God’s way… We have sought to live for ourselves instead of God’s glory… We have despised Him and esteemed Him not… As I said earlier, we were created to delight in Jesus and esteem Him, but in our sin we despise Him and esteem Him not, we turn to our own way… And why do we do that? Because we think we know better than God… We think our way is better than God’s way… That’s essentially what sin is, and that’s always what sin promises. Our sin tells us that there is more joy to be had in sin, there is more pleasure to be found in doing things our way, in going after the desires of our flesh, than there is to be found in Christ… Sin says, “Just come with me… Go here, do this, look at that, try this… Follow me into the darkness, for there’s joy in the night…” And indeed there may be some pleasure in the night… But there is always sorrow in the morning… But with God, in following Jesus, as Psalm 30:5 tells us, sorrow may last for the night, but joy comes in the morning… Our way leads to destruction, God’s way leads to eternal life… Our way leads to ruin, following Jesus who is the life, the truth, and the way leads to eternal joy… From what may seem like the smallest sin, to the greatest—every sin is an offense against the infinitely perfect, just, good God of the universe… Every sin offends His infinite glory… Therefore every sin is an infinite offense, and deserves infinite wrath, infinite punishment… But God laid on Jesus the iniquity of us all. “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21)… And when He took on our sin, He took on the punishment for our sin: the infinite righteous wrath of God, in all of its fury… We have committed a crime against God; and the punishment for that crime is infinite wrath… But Jesus took that wrath on Himself, and it crushed Him… It was the Lord who crushed Him… As bad as the cross and all that sinful man did to Him was, it does not compare to the wrath and fury of almighty God that was poured out upon Him… And it was God’s will that this happen… It was the will of the Lord to crush Him this way… Peter says the same thing when he’s preaching to the Jews in Acts 2:23. He says, “this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God (the will of God), you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.” Jesus was delivered up, He was crucified, and He was crushed according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God… This was God’s plan A, and there is no plan B… And though it was the hands of lawless men that crucified and killed Him, it was God, it was God’s wrath that crushed Him. In verse 7 and 8 we read, “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth. By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people?” Isaiah is saying that Jesus went to the cross willingly, and on that cross He was cut off and stricken for the transgression of the people of God… Now, those who were doing this didn’t realize what all was happening; that’s why Jesus prays, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34)… As they hung Him there on that cross He was cut off from God and soon cut of from life. As it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree” . . . . But that was the point. In hanging on the tree, on the cross, “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us” (Galatians 3:13)… He was cut off and cursed… For the first time ever, He was cut off from God’s loving presence and He was under God’s wrath… He cried out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” And then with the fury of a hundred billion Niagara Falls, God’s wrath poured out upon Him until it was completely satisfied. Because Jesus is God the Son, because He is the infinite God of the universe in the flesh, He was able to satisfy God’s infinite wrath in a few hours on the cross… He took the cup of God’s wrath and drank it down to the dregs, and proclaimed, “It is finished…” Imagine a man standing at the bottom of Niagara Falls, under all its force and water pressure, and yet not only be able to take it, but to drink it until there was no water left… That’s essentially what Jesus did with God’s wrath… It was a spiritual reality that wasn’t visible to those around Him, but it was far more intense and real than the nails holding Him to the cross… And He suffered under it until it was satisfied… In verse 11 we’re told that, “Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities.” Jesus is God… He had knowledge of all that was going to happen… It wasn’t forced upon Him… No one take’s His life; He Himself says, “No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord” (John 10:18). “[F]or the joy that was set before him [He] endured the cross” (Hebrews 12:2)… You see it wasn’t nails, or even our sin that held Jesus to the cross, but love… His love for the Father and His love for His people… He was a willing and joyful Savior… And He was the only suitable Savior… Verse 9 says, after He died, “they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth.” He had done nothing wrong, and He said nothing wrong. He was perfect in Word and deed. He had total moral purity… He was the perfect man… And that made Him a suitable sacrifice for the sins of man… As the perfect man He could stand in the place of men as our representative… As verse 10 says, his soul could make an offering for guilt… And notice that legal language… The language of guilt, the language of chastisement, the language of transgression… And these are between us and God… In our sin we are guilty before God, we deserve the wrath of God, we have transgressed against God… Understand then, that the cross of Christ first and foremost saves us from God… But, it had to be the perfect sacrifice to save us from God… It had to be the perfect man, and the perfect God… The perfect man being a suitable substitute, and the perfect God being a sufficient sacrifice; and that’s who Jesus is… He’s 100% man and 100% God… A few weeks ago my family and I went to the zoo… At one point we stopped to buy a drink, and while we were in line I noticed this little girl—maybe 2 or 3 years old—come up and snatch a bag of popcorn… Her mother quickly got it from her and took it back, so it was no big deal; but it could have been… For instance, let’s say I’m in line and a young boy—about 10 years old or so—tries to buy popcorn, but when he goes to pay for it he realizes that he’s a dollar short. Now, I could offer him a dollar and cover the cost no problem. The clerk would take the money, and the boy would take the popcorn. All parties would be happy with the transaction… That’s suitable.. It’s no problem… But let’s say it went down different, and this time he just does what that little girl did, but he keeps running. He takes the popcorn and takes off… The clerk goes after him screaming, “Thief!” But when he gets around the corner this boy runs into a police officer. Now I could offer to pay for the popcorn completely, but that might not get him off the hook. At this point he’s done something both morally and legally wrong; he’s broken the law. And so a few bucks for popcorn isn’t going to cover his offense. The officer and the clerk do not have to accept my money, they don’t have to set this boy free, because it’s about more than a debt, it’s also about justice… Well friends, that’s how it is with us… Our offense against God is both moral and legal; and it’s an infinite offense… So, it couldn’t just be anyone who paid the price for our sin… Just because someone tries to pay the price for our sin doesn’t mean that they did… Just because someone sets out to satisfy the wrath of God due His people, doesn’t mean they did… But we know for sure that Christ did indeed pay the price, that He is indeed the perfect sacrifice, that He did indeed satisfy the wrath of God… That He was both a suitable and sufficient Savior… How do we know this? Well look at the rest of our text… In the rest of verse 10 it says, “he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.” And then in verse 12 it says, “Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.” Did you catch all of that? Jesus poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors… He was nailed to our cross and hung there in our place beside two thieves… And there He poured Himself out to the death as God poured out His wrath until it was satisfied… That’s when Jesus cried out, “It is finished!” But He didn’t cry out, “I am finished…” It is finished, not Jesus… Jesus’s days are prolonged, He shall see His offspring, the will of the Lord shall prosper in his hand… God’s Word says, “Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong…” Do you see what He’s saying there? That’s the language of a victor, of a conquering hero enjoying the spoils of His victory… Verse 12 says He died with the transgressors, but it follows that with the word “yet”… Yet He bore the sin of many… In other words, what happened at the cross was what theologians call penal substitutionary atonement: the guiltless dies to save the guilty… In our place condemned He hung on our cross taking the wrath due us until it was completely satisfied… And we know that it was indeed satisfied because it says after dying He’s now a victor, and He makes intercession for sinners… This is priestly language… The author of Hebrews refers to this when he says, “The former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office, but he (Jesus) holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever. Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:23-25)… So do you see? Do you see how we know that Jesus did indeed satisfy the wrath of God for all who will turn from their sin and trust in Him? Because He is alive! He’s a victor! He’s a conqueror! He was a suitable, successful sacrifice… Jesus wrote a check with His life and death… He signed that check by taking on God’s wrath on the cross… And we can see that the check cleared because on the Sunday after Good Friday Jesus got up from the grave! Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!!! His blood was the payment and His life was the cost… And because He is the perfect God man there was sufficient funds in the bank to cover the check He wrote on the cross… He paid it all! As we sing, “Because the sinless Savior died, my sinful soul is counted free; for God the just is satisfied to look on Him and pardon me…” And we know He’s satisfied because Jesus is alive! We know His death was not in vain because death could not hold Him! The resurrection was God declaring to the world that Jesus did not die in vain and that He is indeed the Son of God, the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world, and the conquering Lion of Judah! And now He always lives to make intercession for His people… As we read earlier, “Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us” (Romans 8:33-34)… Jesus is alive!!! Rising He justified, freely forever, all who will turn from their sin and trust in Him… Remember, verse 6 told us that all we like sheep have gone astray; every one of us has turned to His own way… In our flesh we have despised Jesus and esteemed Him not… That’s the great sin that is behind all of our sin… So to turn from our sin means that we turn from our way to God’s way… And God’s design for our lives is to delight in Jesus, not despise Him; and to die to ourselves and esteem Him… We owe Him our esteem… Again, to esteem is to regard highly or favorably, with proper respect and admiration… In other words, it’s to magnify, to glorify… That’s why we exist: to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever; and Jesus is God… He proved Himself to be the true Son of God when He got up from the grave!!! So how do we esteem Jesus? We trust that it is finished! That Jesus did everything necessary to save us from our sin, to save us from death, to save us from God and His righteous wrath… Peter elaborates on this in 1 Peter 2:24-25 saying, “[Jesus] himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” By His wounds we are healed… Healed from what? From the disease of sin, that’s what… Jesus’ death frees us from slavery to sin. His victory over sin gives us victory over sin… On the cross He purchased the redemption of all who will turn from their sin, trust Him, and follow Him… By His grace He gives those for whom He died eyes to see His beauty, so that we might see and know that He is the way, that He is better than anything this world could offer us or take away from us… And in that moment, we are healed… But, because He conquered the grave when He rose from the dead, we will be healed from sin and all of its effects, including death… We will have eternal resurrection life with Jesus… Because He lives so will we… If, we return to the Shepherd and Overseer of our souls… If we esteem Him… Jesus has already paid it all… The check has cleared, for He is risen… What we must decide is whether we will go our own way, or His… Our way is foolishness… Sin never makes good on its promises, but God always does… And I hope you’ve caught what God has been doing in His Word this morning, what He’s been doing in speaking of Christ’s life, death, and resurrection and the promises attached to them… He’s been wooing you… Sinclair Ferguson points this out, saying, “When we think of Christ dying on the cross we are shown the lengths to which God’s love goes in order to win us back to himself. We would almost think that God loved us more than he loves his Son! We cannot measure such love by any other standard. He is saying to us: I love you this much. The cross is the heart of the gospel. It makes the gospel good news: Christ died for us. He has stood in our place before God’s judgment seat. He has borne our sins. God has done something on the cross which we could never do for ourselves. But God does something to us as well as for us through the cross. He persuades us that he love us.” And if we are persuaded of that, we will love Him. And if we love Him we will trust Him, we will follow Him, we will esteem Him… He is the risen Lord, and He deserves nothing less… ![]() We are definitely living in the last days.
And yet the last day has not come. That’s how we talk if we use the vocabulary of the New Testament. The last day refers to the future—the culminating day of God’s final salvation and wrath being revealed for all to see (see 1 Thess. 5:1–11). We are told in Scripture that though we know this day is coming, we cannot know the day or the hour of the last day itself (cf. Matt. 24:36). The last days refers to the period of time we are now in—between Christ’s death/resurrection/ascension and his second appearing or return. This is also called “the last time/s” (Jude 1:18; 1 Pet. 1:20) or “the last hour” (1 John 2:18) or “the end of the ages” (1 Cor. 10:11). It is helpful to think of the Old Testament as the age of promise, where God promised his people a Messiah who would establish and rule over his Kingdom. With the advent of Jesus as the Christ, or the Messiah, we have the age of fulfillment. The promises of God are being fulfilled in these last days, even if they will not being ultimately or finally consummated or fulfilled until the last day. Theologians call this the “already” (it has already dawned, the fulfillment has begun) and the “not yet” (it is not yet finalized or complete). The illustration at the top of this page illustrated how both the inbreaking blessings, along with suffering and tribulation, continue in this overlap of the ages. For a helpful summary of this paradigm, see Ben Gladd’s piece here “The Two Ages.” If you want to check out the biblical references for yourself on the last day vs. last days/last time/last hour/end of the ages distinction, see below: “Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore we know that it is the last hour.” (1 John 2:18) “He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you. . . .” (1 Pet. 1:20) “Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come.” (1 Cor. 10:11) “But in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.” (Heb. 1:2) “But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty.” (2 Tim. 3:1) “In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions.” (Jude 1:18) “. . . scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires.” (2 Pet. 3:3) “Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days.” (James 5:3) “And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.” (Acts 2:17) Biblical history is divided up into two distinct ages: the age of promise, when God promised to make all things right by establishing his kingdom and rule through his Messiah, and the age of fulfillment, when God’s promises are fulfilled. The Old Testament prophets talked about the age of fulfillment as the “latter days”. While they expected these latter days to come with the Messiah at the end of much tribulation and suffering, the New Testament authors tell us that these days have intruded into history earlier than that with the coming of Jesus Christ. Now, we live in the overlap of these ages, in the “already-not yet”—the age of fulfillment, the latter days, having come “already” with the kingdom of God through Jesus Christ, and the age of promise, with its accompanying suffering and tribulation, still remaining until the second coming of Messiah Jesus. A Better EdenThe phrase “two ages” refers to two distinct epochs of biblical history. The first epoch could be considered the period of “promises”—God promises to dwell with his people, bring about the arrival of the messiah, establish the kingdom, offer forgiveness of sin, raise the saints from the dead, and so forth. The second epoch is the age of fulfillmentand takes place during the period known as the “latter days” or the “end times.” There is where eschatology comes to the fore. Our English term “eschatology” comes from two Greek words: eschatos (“last”) and logos (“word”). So, eschatology is the “study of the last things.” We should consider the final phase of redemption to be “eschatological,” as it takes place at the very end of history. The Old Testament uses the phrase “latter days” or the “last days” to refer to this final period of Israel’s history (e.g., Gen. 49:1; Num. 24:14; Dan. 2:28–29, 45). All the events that take place within this period, whether acts of judgment or restoration, are “eschatological.” Though some believe that these two ages can only be discerned in the latter portion of the Old Testament, we can find evidence of eschatology in Genesis 1–3. While creation is deemed “good” (Gen. 1:3, 10, 18, 21, 25) and Adam and Eve “very good” (Gen. 1:31), there remains an element of incompleteness. For example, Adam and Eve, while perfectly fashioned in God’s image, can still sin. Sin can still invade the created order, too. Lastly, God created the cosmos to be a gigantic, cosmic temple so he can move in and dwell intimately with it. If Adam and Eve obey God’s commission in 1:28 and his law in 2:16–17 by producing godly descendants, expanding the boundaries of Eden and filling the earth with God’s glory, keeping his commands, and subduing evil, then the earth would be transformed into an incorruptible creation, evil would be abolished, and humanity would inherit incorruptible bodies. God would descend to earth to rule and dwell with humanity for all of eternity. Those are future realities contingent upon perfect obedience. That is the expectation of Genesis 1–2. Those expectations are very much related to what will transpire in the “latter days.” Like a seed germinating, sprouting, and eventually growing into a tree, the Old Testament writings begin with an eschatological seed in Genesis 1–3 and then develop into a vast tree by the close of the canon. The period of the “latter days” is not unrelated or disconnected to the rest of the Old Testament. It is the climax of Israel’s story. A Better Promised Land The Old Testament writers and prophets foresaw a time when the final redemption of God’s people and creation would emerge. This second epoch or age in Israel’s career was to take place at the end of history. This period is an irreversible break with the events that preceding. The Old Testament does not give us a line-by-line account of how the events will unfold. The Old Testament prophets tend to leave out elements depending upon the aim of their oracles. Nevertheless, a broad outline of what will transpire in the “latter days” is clear enough:
Thus, the “latter days” entail positive and negative elements with the negative elements generally preceding the positive. We can graphically depict the Old Testament’s expectation of the end of history: God first judges then restores. At that point, God will descend from heaven and dwell with redeemed humanity in the new creation for all of eternity. The Overlap of the Ages in the New TestamentOne of the most striking dimensions of the New Testament is the apostles’s insistence that the “latter days” have broken into history. Each New Testament book, in some way, claims that the last epoch in Israel’s history has begun through the person of Christ. All that the Old Testament foresaw would occur in the end times has begun to be fulfilled in the first coming of Christ and continues until the second coming of Christ. The Old Testament end-time expectations of the great tribulation, God’s subjugation of the Gentiles, deliverance of Israel from oppressors, Israel’s restoration and resurrection, the new covenant, the promised Spirit, the new creation, the new temple, a messianic king, and the establishment of God’s kingdom have all been set in motion through Christ’s death and resurrection. The expression “already-not yet” refers to two stages of the fulfillment of the latter days. It is “already” because the latter days have dawned in Christ, but it is “not yet” since the latter days have not consummately arrived. Scholars often use the phrase “inaugurated eschatology” or overlap of the ages to describe this phenomenon. The New Testament outlines the following schema of fulfillment: We will briefly examine two dimensions of the already-not yet—the kingdom of God and the presence of the antichrist. The Inauguration of the End-Time KingdomMuch of what Jesus says in the Gospels is centered upon the establishment of the end-time kingdom, an event that, according to the Old Testament, was to take place at the very end of history. Jesus argues that the kingdom has indeed arrived, but his followers and the crowds struggled to believe Jesus’s staggering claims. Central to this discussion is Jesus’s claim that the disciples have received the “mysteries of the kingdom” (Matt. 13:11; Mark 4:11; Luke 8:10). The term “mystery” originates in the book of Daniel, especially chapters 2 and 4, where it concerns judgment upon pagan nations and the establishment of God’s end-time kingdom. Nebuchadnezzar dreamed about a colossus with four parts, and each part represented four pagan kingdoms (Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome). A “stone” then smashed the statue and eventually filled the entire earth, illustrating that the whole earth was filled with God’s kingdom (Dan. 2:29–35). The prophet Daniel interpreted the meaning of Nebuchadnezzar’s symbolic dream (Dan. 2:36–45). Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and Daniel’s interpretation of it constitute the “mystery.” The divine revelation is thus “hidden” (Nebuchadnezzar) but later “revealed” (Daniel). “Mystery” then becomes a framework for understanding revelation that generally refers to a teaching or doctrine that entails new or surprising elements. What does Jesus mean by the “mystery of the kingdom of God”? In the immediate context of Matthew 13, the “mystery” is related to the parable of the sower and the following parables concerning the kingdom. The Old Testament prophecies expected the establishment of the end-time kingdom to be a decisive overthrow of God’s enemies at one consummate point at the very end of world history (e. g., Gen. 49:9–10; Num. 24:14–19; Dan. 2:35, 44–45). What makes Jesus’s teaching about the kingdom a “mystery” is the contrast with the Old Testament expectation of the kingdom. One of the main tenets of the prophesied latter-day kingdom is the consummate establishment of God’s kingdom directly preceded by the ultimate destruction of unrighteousness and foreign oppression. The advent of the Messiah would signal the death knell of evil empires. Pagan kings and their kingdoms were to be destroyed or “crushed” (Dan. 2:44). Such a defeat and judgment would be decisive and happen all at once at the end point of history. But Jesus claims that the advent of the Messiah and the latter-day kingdom does not happen all at once. Paradoxically, two realms coexist simultaneously—those who belong to the kingdom and those who belong to the “evil one.” The kingdom has been inaugurated but remains to be consummately fulfilled. The two ages mysteriously overlap. The Mysterious Presence of the AntichristThe two ages are very much on Paul’s mind in 2 Thessalonians 2:5–8: “Don’t you remember that when I was still with you I told you about this? And you know what currently restrains him [the man of lawlessness], so that he will be revealed in his time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work, but the one now restraining will do so until he is out of the way, and then the lawless one will be revealed” (HCSB). Paul’s understanding of the end-time opponent here is largely indebted to the book of Daniel, where a ghastly figure will oppress and deceive the covenant community in the “latter days.” According to Daniel 11, an end-time attack upon Israel will manifest itself in two ways. An opponent will persecute righteous Israelites. Daniel 11:31 says, “His armed forces will rise up to desecrate the temple fortress and will abolish the daily sacrifice. Then they will set up the abomination that causes desolation” (cf. Dan. 2:8, 11, 25; 8:9–12; Isa. 14:12–14). Here the enemy will wage war against the temple precinct and defile it by “setting up the abomination that causes desolation.” Daniel 11:33–35 further describe the attack against the “wise” within the covenant community: “Those who are wise will instruct many, though for a time they will fall by the sword or be burned or captured or plundered” (Dan. 11:33). The righteous, nevertheless, will persevere under pressure, though they will “fall” and be “refined” and “purified” (Dan. 11:32, 36; cf. 12:10). According to Daniel, Israel’s latter-day enemy will also deceive some within the Israelite community by enticing speech. His deception results in some within the covenant community “forsaking the holy covenant” (Dan. 11:30). His influence through “flattery” also extends to those “who violate the covenant” to become even more godless (Dan. 11:32), to compromise, and to foster deception and further compromise among others. At the Olivet Discourse, Jesus, too, discusses end-time opponents of Israel using language from the book of Daniel: “Many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many…and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people.” (Matt. 24:5, 11; cf. 24:23–26). Jesus envisions an antichrist figure(s) that will deceive Israel preceding the destruction of the temple in A.D. 70. In Matthew 24:5, the oppressor will be characterized by deception, claiming to be “the Messiah,” and, therefore, upsetting the faith of “many.” In light of our brief analysis, we can now understand Paul’s admonitions to the Thessalonian community. Paul corrects the church’s confusion over the second coming of Christ. He makes it clear that Christ’s second coming has not yet occurred, since that day will be preceded by two events—“apostasy” and the unveiling of the “man of lawlessness” (2:3, NASB). Paul claims in 2:3 that Daniel’s “man of lawlessness” has not yet arrived on the scene, but, alarmingly, there is a sense in which the end-time oppressor is already on the scene (see 1 John 2:18–19). This suggestion explains the language in 2:7: “The mystery of lawlessness is already at work.” Paul is not teaching a general form of wickedness and persecution but a specific end-time deception and persecution that ought to be attributed to the church’s end-time antagonist. Paul employs “mystery” here in 2 Thessalonians 2:7 to describe a unique situation with startling ramifications: according to Daniel, the end-time persecutor will appear to the covenant community in his full bodily presence in the future, yet Paul argues that the antagonist is nevertheless “already at work” in the community. The church is to be on high alert for false teaching, so it must embrace the apostolic message of the gospel and its implications for daily living. Christian Ethics in the Already-Not YetEschatology, when properly understood, is not simply an exercise in theological speculation but fuel for Christian living. If believers are genuinely a “new creation” and part of the new heavens and earth (2 Cor. 5:17), then we possess the ability to overcome sin and temptation. Conversely, if a corporate antichrist is in our midst, then believers must devote themselves to the Bible to stave off false teaching and bear up under intense persecution. ![]() WHAT IF THE ACTUAL REASON WHY THE RABBIS REJECTED JESUS IS BEING HIDDEN FROM YOU? What if Jesus is the best kept secret in Judaism, hidden on purpose from all of us? We all are witnesses of the exclusiveness that the Rabbis created for themselves in their tradition. But this is not something new. It was like that already 2000 years ago. Jesus was the only one who dared to stand up against the religious oppression by breaking down the walls that rabbinical tradition had put up. Jesus opened the door to God for everyone: for the simple ones and even for the Gentiles. And so today, thanks to Jesus, millions of Gentiles from all over the world, from different cultures and countries, believe in the God of Israel and find a future, hope, comfort, joy and everlasting life in the very same Jew who lived here, in Israel, 2000 years ago. (We dedicated another video to the fact that the Rabbis depict Jesus as a sorcerer who led Israel into idolatry that you can watch here.) NOW WE WOULD LIKE TO REVEAL THE ACTUAL REASON WHY JESUS WAS REJECTED BY THE RELIGIOUS LEADERS OF HIS TIME. Contrary to the rabbinical explanation and according to the descriptions in the New Testament gospels, the actual reason why the Pharisees rejected Jesus as Messiah lies in the fact that the religious leaders of his time were corrupt. All they cared about was control, power and to make money at the expense of the people. Jesus threatened the exclusiveness of the sect which they had created. They knew that if the people of Israel accepted and followed Jesus, they’d lose their power, their influence, their control, their honored position and of course, their source of income. But how can we know who was right? It’s actually not that hard at all. First, let’s go 2000 years back in time. While the religious leaders at Jesus’ time, the Rabbis, were busy coming up with legalistic traditions and rules, isolating their people from the world and defying the Gentiles, Jesus on the other hand, talked about grace, modesty, compassion and love. While the Rabbis were busy with oppressing and intimidating the people making them view God as some kind of moral monster who only wants to punish, Jesus talked openly about the fact that all need the love and forgiveness of God. Forgiveness that is based on God’s grace and compassion, not on our own human attempts to impress him with all kinds of ceremonies and habits. Where others threw stones, Jesus forgave. While others blamed the poor for their own suffering, Jesus had fellowship with the outcasts, willingly listened to their troubles, healed the lepers and ate with the families of the rejected ones. Where others only saw prostitutes, tax collectors and worthless fishermen, Jesus saw a group of people with the potential to change the world. Like every religion, the religion of the rabbinical tradition tries to develop the idea that God cares only about the members of their sect and hates the rest of the world. They wanted to make all of Israel believe that God cares only about Jews. In fact, the Rabbis have been claiming for 2000 years that only the Jews are important and that God doesn’t care about Gentiles, that they are not important and that their purpose lies in serving us, the Jews. Jesus stood up against the claim that there is a group of people who are better or more important in God’s eyes than other people. No matter if they’re Rabbis or Popes, Jesus and the NT calls them to love, grace and compassion, mercy and peace among people. This threatened the intimidation and the oppression imposed by the rabbinical tradition. AND WHAT ABOUT YOU? Are you offended by Jesus’ sayings? Like this one: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God… Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you…” (Matthew Chap. 5, NT) Or how about this request of the NT: “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another…” (Epistle to the Ephesians, Chap. 4, NT) Does that really sound bad? Whoever takes courage and reads the NT will notice that Jesus was gentle, modest, sensitive, compassionate, loving and showed great kindness and compassion. But what did make him angry was the use of God’s name in vain and the religious oppression on the part of the Rabbis of his time. They were coming up with rules, habits, ceremonies and strange traditions that were forced upon the simple people, claiming that this is God’s will. They took power for themselves and controlled the people by spreading fear and threatening economically those who followed them. And all this was done in God’s name. Sound familiar? POWER CORRUPTS Many of the Rabbis of the Sanhedrin and the priests of Jesus’ time were hypocritical, corrupt, liars, and thieves. Their deeds, done in God’s name, were in contradiction to the OT. But Jesus was not the only one who thought that way. Reading, for example, what Josephus wrote, a Jewish historian at the time of the 2nd temple, we see that this was a dark time of political corruption and wickedness. The high priests’ appointments were purely political, based on power and manipulation, and the temple had become a marketplace. When they noticed that Jesus had power to perform miracles in the name of the God of Israel and that they could not, they became jealous and feared to lose their position. They did not want to lose their power and control over the people of Israel. They did not want to lose their honorable position and the respect they received from so many people. And they knew that if the people of Israel were to follow Jesus, the Messiah, they would lose everything. And for that reason the religious leaders of rabbinical Judaism 2000 years ago, and until today, reject Jesus and the fact that he’s the Messiah. The Dead Sea Scrolls, dated to the Second Temple period, also contain severe criticism against the corrupt leaders of Judaism of that time. This might be hard to believe, but even the Talmud, Tractate Pesachim 57, admits and attacks with determination the corruption among the priestly families in Israel at the time of Jesus. In a lecture given by Professor Rachel Elior, Hebrew University, on the Dead Sea Scrolls, she says that the mere discovery of these scrolls in the Judean Desert, is proof of the poor condition the temple priesthood was in. According to Elior, scrolls written by the Sadducean priesthood describe how they had to flee for their lives and hide from the new priests who replaced them by force. In Prof. Elior’s opinion, when we find in the scrolls references to a war between “Sons of Light” and “Sons of Darkness,” the “Sons of Darkness” are the corrupt priests who caused a spiritual decay and the destruction of the temple. According to the book of Numbers, chapter 20, the priesthood was supposed to be passed on from father to son, and the High Priest ministered until the day of his death. However, according to the Encyclopaedia Hebraica, the spiritual leadership in Israel during the Second Temple period was so corrupt that the appointment of the High Priest was controlled by a group of rich and privileged priestly families from which most of the priests came. According to Tractate Yoma 8 and 9, the high priests bought their position from the political rulers and took turns every year. In other words, the Sages themselves admit that the spiritual leadership at Jesus’ time was corrupt. They used to harass the people without mercy. The way the NT writings describe the level of corruption that the Rabbis and priests had reached during the Second Temple period is being backed up both from historical sources and the Talmud itself. This is what Jesus fought against. And because of that he was rejected by the religious leaders. It’s important to understand that just like the prophets in the OT, one of the tasks of the Messiah was to point out the sins of the religious leaders, rebuke them and show the people their real face. So is it really that surprising that they rejected and killed him? BUT GLADLY ENOUGH, GOD IS AN EXPERT IN TURNING BITTER INTO SWEET. He used the rejection and the death of the Messiah to bring about healing and forgiveness. Just like the sacrifice on the altar offered in the temple for the sins of the people, so is the Messiah the eternal sacrifice. Not only for our sin but for the sins of the whole world. The blood that was shed because of our sin has made for us a new covenant. Rabbi Isaac Liechtenstein, who lived in the 20th century, main rabbi of Hungary, was willing to swim against the tide. Though it was forbidden, he read the NT. These are his words: “I used to think that the NT is an unclean book, a source of pride selfishness, hate, antisemitism and violence. But when I opened this book, I felt it capture my heart in a special and wonderful way. All of a sudden glory and light filled my soul. I was looking for thorns, but I found roses, pearls instead of stones, I found love instead of hate. Instead of revenge, I found forgiveness. Liberty, instead of slavery.” (Rabbi Isaac Liechtenstein) Amazing, right? When a Rabbi shows courage and instead of blindly following the habit of rejecting the Messiah hereads the NT with an open heart, his life changes completely. He does not try anymore to force rules and odd traditions on people as if we could impress God by doing so. Rather, he understands that the peace the Messiah has come to give is first of all internal, for only in that way can our relationship with God be restored. To sum it up: Since the corrupt religious leaders of Jesus’ time did not want to lose their power and control, they didn’t have another choice but to reject God’s Messiah and to get rid of him. However, God used this to bring a perfect sacrifice, forgiveness and atonement. Thanks to the Messiah, this good news would not be exclusive but spread throughout all the nations of the earth. The Jewish Messiah became a blessing to the Gentiles. This God who created, upholds and loves all of his creation loves so much that he revealed himself to humanity and gave his life in the person of the Messiah, for Jews and Gentiles. https://www.oneforisrael.org/bible-based-teaching-from-israel/the-untold-reason-why-jewish-people-do-not-believe-jesus-is-the-messiah/ |
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