(All scripture from the World English Bible, ebible.org, all rights reserved)
“When the children of your people speak to you, saying, ‘Won’t you show us what you mean by these?’ tell them, ‘The Lord Yahweh says: “Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his companions; and I will put them with it, with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they will be one in my hand. The sticks on which you write will be in your hand before their eyes.”’ Say to them, ‘The Lord Yahweh says: “Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the nations where they have gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land. I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel. One king will be king to them all. They will no longer be two nations. They won’t be divided into two kingdoms any more at all. They won’t defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions; but I will save them out of all their dwelling places in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them. So they will be my people, and I will be their God. “‘“My servant David will be king over them. They all will have one shepherd. They will also walk in my ordinances and observe my statutes, and do them. They will dwell in the land that I have given to Jacob my servant, in which your fathers lived. They will dwell therein, they, and their children, and their children’s children, forever. David my servant will be their prince forever. Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them. It will be an everlasting covenant with them. I will place them, multiply them, and will set my sanctuary among them forever more. My tent also will be with them. I will be their God, and they will be my people. The nations will know that I am Yahweh who sanctifies Israel, when my sanctuary is among them forever more.”’””
(Ezekiel 37:18-27)
“But deal with me, Yahweh the Lord, for your name’s sake,
because your loving kindness is good, deliver me;
for I am poor and needy.
My heart is wounded within me.
I fade away like an evening shadow.
I am shaken off like a locust.
My knees are weak through fasting.
My body is thin and lacks fat.
I have also become a reproach to them.
When they see me, they shake their head.
Help me, Yahweh, my God.
Save me according to your loving kindness;
that they may know that this is your hand;
that you, Yahweh, have done it.
They may curse, but you bless.
When they arise, they will be shamed,
but your servant shall rejoice.”
(Psalm 109:21-28)
The people were about to head into exile. The judgment for their behaviour was at hand. The nations around them were laughing and mocking. Ridiculing them and preparing to take advantage of the situation. But God was continuing to promise. He was promising a restoration. He was promising a return to the Land from wherever in the world His children went (something we have been seeing the partial fulfillment of since Israel became a nation again in 1948). He promised a Son of David would be their king (Messiah). He promised a renewed covenant with them (through the sacrifice of Jesus). He promised that He would walk with them and be their God and restore them to where they once were as the apple of His eye (which is being fulfilled and will FULLY be fulfilled in the future – Jews have NOT been replaced by anyone or anything. They are the chosen people of God and always will be.). Their enemies would not stop Him. The Jews were not finished.
The people who had gathered against them would see His restoration of them. They would see His people gathered again. They would see God moving to lift His people and restore His people and see His people thrive. Even though they had rebelled, He would preserve a remnant. They would learn to be strong in Him. They would grow and be strengthened. They would again have their heads lifted up by God. And all those people who had mocked them. Who had laughed at them. Who had tried to take advantage of them over the years. They would be ashamed of what they had done. Of their attitude. Because God would show Himself to them and show that His people were HIS people. They would see the truth and would not be able to deny it.
Summary
The church is made up of those who trust in Jesus. Jews are part of that. They were the first ones to trust in Jesus. They are the foundation of the church. Gentiles were grafted in. We were added. We didn’t replace. Whether or not all the Jews trust in Jesus right now isn’t the issue. It never was and it never will be. God will deal with the nation of the Jews in His time and His way. He has promised they would all turn to Him, so it’s a done deal. It WILL happen. Meanwhile, the rest of us who trust in Jesus (Jew and Gentile) continue to trust in Jesus and do what He calls us to. We’re here to spread the message. We can point to what God is doing with His people as proof that God’s promises stand. We can show through His fulfillment of His promises to the Jews that His promises to us are just as valid. That they will come to pass. We get to walk in the freedom of trusting in Jesus and so does everyone who trusts in Jesus. None of us are replacing any other of us. We are all part of the vine. We are all fruit of His finished work. We are all brothers and sisters in Him. That will never change.
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