The Originals Pt. 5 - Israels Salvation

The Best News Ever: The Originals Pt.5 - Israel’s Salvation

Opening:

· Story

· Introduction

Some people know the Bible really well, but they misapply or misquote it

When Paul wrote the book of Romans, there was already a belief that God was done with the nation of Israel because they had rejected Christ

The church that began in Jerusalem was now mostly Gentile in the rest of the world; most of the congregations which were scattered throughout the modern world were all non-Jewish people

Romans 11:25-27 is a summary of the rest of the chapter

Paul began with the question "Has God cast away His people?" then definitively answered it: "Certainly not!" (v. 1)

Amillennialists believe that God has rejected Israel

Amillennialists deny the millennium—the earthly thousand-year kingdom—and all of God's promises to Israel

They believe that all the promises God made to the Jews in the Old Testament were forfeited because of Israel's rejection of the Messiah and will instead be fulfilled in the church

Amillennialism spiritualizes the eschatological texts of Scripture; it disregards the plain meaning of the text

Amillennialism was already developing by the time Paul started writing Romans, so he addressed it specifically in chapter 11

Blindness Is on Israel Presently (v.25a)

Paul referred specifically to Israel

It's the same in verse 1, when he said, "Has God cast away His people?"

God's people are the Jewish people- Romans 9:3

Israel is God's covenant people, and Paul was one of them

Blindness has overtaken them in interpreting the Old Testament Scriptures, especially those Scriptures that refer to the coming Messiah- 2 Corinthians 3:14-15

There's a national blindness, though there are some Jews who believe; Paul was one of them, and the early church in Jerusalem were others

The modern state of Israel was born May 14, 1948

In 1948, only twenty-three Jews in the nation of Israel believed that Jesus is the Messiah; today, over 30,000 believe Jesus is the Messiah

The population of Israel today is 9 million; 6.6 million are Jewish, so only a fraction of a percent believes in Jesus

Israel's blindness is undeniable

Jesus recognized their blindness and prophesied the fall of Jerusalem under Titus in 70 AD (see Luke 19:42-44)

Because they were blind and rejected Jesus as their Messiah, they lost everything

They lost the temple, they lost their national identity for 2,000 years, and they lost their land

But, worst of all, they lost eternal life (see John 5:40)

Blindness is on Israel presently, but God has preserved them

God brought them back from captivity

If you study Jewish history and you still don't believe in miracles, you aren't a realist

What other nation has ever survived as a distinct race after 400 years of slavery, two total destructions, multiple deportations, 2,000 years of dispersion, and a holocaust?

Jerusalem has been fought over numerous times throughout history

It's been destroyed twice, besieged twenty-three times, attacked fifty-two times, and captured and recaptured forty-four times

The miracle of Israel is that it feels safe and peaceful and the economy is thriving

The nation of Israel consists of 9 million people surrounded by a hundred million enemies who want to annihilate them

Will Israel survive in the future? And why has she survived in the past?

If God has cast away His people, why are they back in their own land?

Benefits Are Given Simultaneously (v. 25b)

Blindness is on Israel, but that blindness has brought a benefit

Israel has rejected Jesus as the Messiah, but that has opened a door for Gentiles

Because Israel rejected Him, He's offered to the world

Paul always went to the synagogue first, then to the Gentiles (see Romans 1:16)

But because he was continually rejected in the synagogue, he became known as the Apostle to the Gentiles (see Acts 13:46)

God promised Abraham a nation and said, "In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed" (Genesis 12:3)

0.2 percent of the world's population is Jewish

20 percent of the Nobel Peace Prizes ever awarded have been given to Jews, as well as over 30 percent of the Nobel prizes for music, science, and literature

If you've ever taken an aspirin, you can thank a Jewish man named Friedrich Bayer

If you've ever been vaccinated for polio, you can thank two Jewish men: Dr. Albert Sabin and Dr. Jonas Salk

If you've ever had your gums numbed with Novocain, you can thank Jewish chemist Dr. Albert Einhorn

If you've ever been given streptomycin, you can thank Jewish physician Abraham Waksman

The discovery of the double helix coil of DNA was made by James Watson and Francis Crick

If you've ever been forgiven of your sins, you can thank a Jewish Savior—the Messiah

Israel is blind, but that blindness is temporary

Their blindness has opened a door of faith for us

Paul used the analogy of an olive tree whose branches—Israel—had been cut off and branches from a wild olive tree—the Gentiles—were grafted in (see v. 17)

In the ancient Mediterranean world, olives were a commercial mainstay

Olive trees can live for hundreds of years, but individual branches can stop producing fruit; those branches are then cut off, and branches are taken from younger trees and grafted into the older trunks

Paul's analogy was very clear:

The old, nonproductive branches—the Israelites—were broken off because of their blindness

The branches from a wild olive tree were grafted in—the simultaneous benefit of bringing the Gentiles into the church

We get our energy and nourishment from God's covenant promises to Israel

We are tapped into the trunk of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, not as Israel's replacement, but in addition to Israel, to add fruit for the kingdom (see Matthew 21:42-43)

John 10:16

This is why no Christian can be anti-Semitic—we owe them too much

They gave us our heritage, our Bible, and our Messiah

"The fullness of the Gentiles" (v. 25)

In the NLT, this phrase is translated as "the full number of Gentiles"

Acts 15:7

When the present age runs its course and the church is filled with the last Gentile believer, the rapture of the church will happen (see 1 Thessalonians 4:16)

Blessing Will Happen Ultimately (vv. 26-27)

In verse 29, Paul specifically referred to God's promises to Israel

Paul presented a contrast throughout chapter 11

"Stumbled" (v. 11), "fall" (v. 12), "failure" (v. 12), "cast away" (v. 15), "broken off" (v. 17)—all of this language speaks of Israel's experiences and consequences because they rejected the Messiah

"Salvation" (v. 11), "fullness" (v. 12), "acceptance" (v. 15), "life from the dead" (v. 15)—their rejection has caused God to set them aside temporarily, but they will be restored ultimately

"All Israel will be saved" (v. 26)

The term "all Israel" appears 156 times in the Old Testament

Whenever this term is used, it doesn't refer to all Jews throughout history; it speaks of all Jews alive at one particular time

Paul wasn't saying that every Jew who ever lived will be saved; he was speaking of the Jews at the time of Christ's return, who will see Him and receive Him

In the future tribulation period, the Jewish nation will believe in Jesus Christ; 144,000 Jews will be saved (see Revelation 7:4-8)

Two witnesses will also preach from Jerusalem, and by the end of their ministry, the city will glorify God (see Revelation 11:2-13)

The blindness that has been on Israel will be lifted at the second coming

"They will look on Me whom they pierced" (Zechariah 12:10)

This is an odd statement because God said it; how can God, who is spirit, be pierced?

The only answer is that the Spirit had to become incarnate

Israel will mourn because they'll recognize that He was the Messiah all along

There's only one way to be forgiven of our sins, and that's through the Messiah

In that day, Israel will recognize that He is the one and turn back to Him, and all Israel will be saved (see Matthew 23:39)

If you think it's impossible for Israel to come to Christ, look at Paul the apostle, who was anti-Christian and blind (see Romans 11:1)

If you say that God can't save all of Israel, how do you explain God saving millions of Gentiles ever since Israel rejected Him?

Conclusion

Israel is God's yardstick

By Israel, He measures time

By Israel, He measures other nations, even though He knows who He's dealing with

God called them stiff-necked eight times and stubborn seven times in the Bible

He said they do what is right in their own eyes three times

They persisted and fell away, disobeyed and were taken into captivity

They worshiped idols and rejected their Messiah

Yet God's calling is irrevocable

He will persist in His covenant with Abraham

He will save and seal 144,000 Jews in the tribulation period

When Christ returns, the nation will receive Him as Messiah

Do you want proof of the inspiration of Scripture?

Prayer