IS GOD FINISHED WITH THE NATION OF ISRAEL? (Part 3)
God’s Invitation to Grace ❧ Part 51
Romans 11:7-36 ❧ Pastor, Dr. John Denney
- Scriptural: Prophecy! I want you to understand this mystery, dear brothers and sisters, so that you will not feel proud about yourselves. Some of the people of Israel have hard hearts, but this will last only until the full number of Gentiles comes to Christ. And so all Israel will be saved (Romans 11:25-26, NLT). What is that mystery? God’s plans are to graft in all the branches of the Gentiles until their number is complete – only He knows how many. Some of the people of Israel have hard hearts, but this will last only until the full number of Gentiles comes to Christ. When that time comes, He will save Israel. Israel will be reinstated as God’s people. God was faithful to His plans in the past, He will certainly be faithful to them in the future!
What’s the future hold? We are living in a day when we are seeing fascinating events unfold God said would happen in the final days of planet Earth – especially concerning the nation of Israel. The late theologian R.C. Sproul commented: …we have seen the greatest concentration of eschatology (fulfillment of last days prophecy) that the church has ever known. God is literally gathering the Jewish nation together from the four corners of the world. In addition to this, the very nations God said would form an alliance against Israel have risen to world superpower status and are actively planning and working toward Israel’s destruction. Not that many years ago, Israel was not a nation, Russia was a “Chrisitan” nation (prior to 1917), Persia, modern day Iran, was Israel’s strong ally. Many scoffed at the notion Israel would be a nation again. Yet, Isaac Newton, after reading Daniel and Revelation predicted more than 220 years in advance Israel would become a nation once again. They did! In 1917 Russia radically turned Marxist. Persia did an about face in their relationship with Israel becoming their foe instead of their friend. Prophecy is taking place before our very eyes!
Add to this the birth of what we know today as the EU, or more accurately – Rome Revived. More than 1600 years ago Europe was united under the rule of Rome. When the empire of Rome collapsed in 476AD, it shattered like the pieces of a broken plate. For more than 1600 years it remained divided. Yet, a little less than ten years after Israel was reborn a treaty was formed with six European nations called the Treaty of Rome 1957. In a little more than sixty years, those six nations have exponentially grown into 27. What this means is the EU is just 17 countries shy of completely reuniting Europe into a “supernational organization” as in the days of Rome (and there are currently 9 more countries standing in line for membership). Today, the EU has its own currency, the Euro (used by 20 of EU countries), its own constitution (no mention of God), its own parliament (732 members), its own military, its own president (rotates every six months by a different country). The reason this is important is because God told the prophet Daniel more than 2600 years ago that in Earth’s final days Rome would be revived and be ruled by ten rulers (Dan. 2, 7). Napolean and Hitler tried to unite to unite Europe but failed. What this means is just as God is summoning the Jewish people back to Israel (Ezek. 37:11-12; 38:8), He is also summoning the nations together – setting the stage – for the last kingdom to rule the Earth (Tribulation) before the coming of the Messiah.. This is not a coincidence but providence.
This June Israel celebrates their 57th year anniversary of the “Six Day War.” From 600 BC (not as commonly held 70 AD) until 1967, the city had been under Gentile control and domination. What was significant about the Six Day War was that for the first time since 70 AD the Jews took back the temple mount. God is again setting the stage for Israel’s future just like He said He would. Jesus said the city of Jerusalem will be ….trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled (Lk. 21:24). When will they be fulfilled? For the Church it will be when the last Gentile to be saved turns to Christ. What happens then? Christ will come for His Church in the Rapture (1 Thess. 4:13-18). We don’t know the day or the hour (Matt. 24:36), but we are clearly seeing the world stage being rapidly set.
In the meantime, God is gathering the Jews to Israel just like He said He would. Ezekeil 37: I will take the Israelites out of the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from all around and bring them back to their own land. God is pulling the heartstrings of hundreds of thousands of Jews from around the world to return to the land of Israel.
Let me give you a picture of what Paul is talking about will happen with Israel. We looked at this last week as well. But I think revisiting this is important. At one point toward the middle of the seven-year Tribulation, a time when the world will be run by one world leader – the Anti-Christ, he will try to destroy Israel. He will succeed in destroying two-thirds of them. Zechariah 13:8 In the whole land, declares the Lord, two thirds will be struck down and perish, yet one third will be left in it. And this third I will bring into the fire, I will refine them like silver, test them like gold. They will call on My name and I will answer them and I will say, `They are My people’ and they will say `The Lord is our God’ When he does, Israel will think that the end has finally come.
By the way, did you know that the world’s three major religions – Christianity, Judaism, and Islam all predict a world leader in the last days who will be the manifestation of evil? Islam believes a person called Dajjal (Arabic “deceiver”) will rule the world. He will have one eye (I don’t know why). He will possess supernatural powers, will claim to be God yet be the incarnation of evil. He will gather together several thousand Jewish followers, rule in Jerusalem, and be slain by Jesus when He returns from Heaven.
Judaism believes a Roman ruler by the name of Armilus will rule. He will be a miracle worker, lead armies against Jerusalem but will be killed by Messiah ben David, the true Messiah.
Christianity calls this world ruler the Antichrist (anti meaning against or in place of). More than a hundred passages of Scripture describe his origin, character, career, kingdom, and final end. He will be the second person in the false trinity attempting to mimic the true trinity of God. The Bible says he will rise up between the ten kings of the earth as a little horn (Daniel 7:8) and subdue three kings and eventually rule the world for a short period of time. Many believe he is alive today preparing for his debut. He has about 25 different names in the Bible. He will emerge as a charismatic leader. He will have great oratory skills that will unite the world in three ways: economically, spiritually, and politically. He will be extremely cunning. He will be immoral. He will…try to change the set times and the laws(Dan. 7:25). says he’ll change Jewish festivals and laws – meaning he’ll make immorality acceptable in the name of religion. Seeing the dramatic shifts of morality in the world today, it is not hard to see one man could bring greater changes in law. Issues such as the redefinition of marriage, gay marriages, abortion, the destruction of the family are all shifting.
He will make a seven-year peace covenant with Israel. He will be cruel. He will declare himself to be God. Rev. 13:8 goes on to say the whole world will worship him. When he sets himself up in the new temple and calls himself God, this will be the “abomination of desolation” Jesus said would happen (Matt. 24:15). We think, “How in the world could this happen?” It will. And that is when the eyes of the nation of Israel will suddenly be opened that he is not the true Christ. How can all this happen? I came across these sobering and stinging words of Dr. David Jeremiah that I though I’d share with you. …it is the church itself that paves the way for the delusion to come. Because there is no teaching on prophecy in most evangelical churches, people are unprepared for what is to come. It will be very easy for the Anti-Christ to move into that vacuum of knowledge and deceive the inhabitants of planet earth.
When the Antichrist breaks his seven-year covenant with Israel and tries to destroy God’s people, then Jesus steps in. Zachariah 12:10 is a picture of this. And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on Me the One who they pierced and mourn for Him as one mourns for an only child and grieve bitterly for Him as one grieves for a first-born son. He describes what Christ’s coming looks like in chapter 14. This is the Day of the Lord in which Jesus will fight against the nations (14:2-3). Then Zechariah 14:4 says Jesus’ will stand on the Mount of Olives It will be cataclysmic. Rev. 19:14 says there will be an army behind Him dressed in white – that’s us. Many interpreters believe that during the final days on Earth, during the terrible time of Tribulation, that one third of the nation of Israel will be saved. There is coming a time in the future that there will be a major turning around in the nation of Israel. They will look to Him whom they have pierced.
This is what Paul means when he says God has future plans for Israel. This part of the mystery Paul is talking about in verse 25. God is not finished with Israel. Paul says many of the Jews hearts are hardened against the Gospel, a partial hardening, but not all. Why? So the Gospel would go to the Gentiles. That’s the other part of the mystery – the Church (Eph. 3). It wasn’t revealed as such in the OT. God does say He is going to bring many gentiles to salvation, but it is not until the NT we understand He would do this through the Church. That’s what v.v. 33-36 are all about (Read 33-36). Paul gets caught up in the rhapsody of the awe-inspiring depth and breadth of God’s unsearchable wisdom!
How incredible and wonderful God’s wisdom is! Elizabeth Elliot, in her book Let Me Be a Woman, records the story of Gladys Aylward, a young girl who was unable to accept the looks God had given her. Gladys told how when she was a child she had two great sorrows. One, that while all her friends had beautiful golden hair, hers was black. The other, that while her friends were still growing, she had stopped. She was about four feet ten inches tall. But when at last she reached the country to which God had called her to be a missionary, she stood on the wharf in Shanghai and looked around at the people to whom He had called her. “Every single one of them” she said, “had black hair. And every one of them had stopped growing when I did.” She was able to look to God and exclaim, “Lord God, You know what You’re doing!” We may not always understand how God works, but He always keeps His promises.
