All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works. (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
Jesus, the Living Word of God, must have preeminence in all things, including matters of faith and how we live out that faith. For this reason, His testimony is of greater importance and greater veracity than all others we have discussed previously.
Many Jews recognized the power in Jesus' words and the authority by which He spoke them.
And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine: For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. (Matthew 7:28-29)
One day, a Roman centurion came to Jesus, asking Him to heal a sick servant and, as He recognized Jesus' power and authority, Jesus recognized His faith.
When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 8:10-11)
First, Jesus recognizes a present faith, then speaks of future faith. The present faith Jesus spoke of was that of a man who was not a Jew. He was a Roman, a man from the west. Think for a moment about Jesus' words here. According to Jesus, this Gentile, a man outside the covenants of God, had greater faith than all the Jews living in Israel at that time.
The future faith Jesus spoke of is a reminder to us today (who have the blessing of access to the full volume of Scripture) of the vision of John in Revelation 7. (The full title of that book, by the way, is 'The Revelation of Jesus Christ'. See Revelation 1:1.)
After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” (Revelation 7:9-10)
This gathering of people from the east and the west; believers who will sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in heaven; from every people and language group of the earth, was not really a new concept to those listening when Jesus spoke that day the centurion came. They were familiar with the writings of Isaiah, who recorded a very special promise of God.
It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth. (Isaiah 49:6)
Perhaps this won't come as a new revelation to you, but I noticed something pretty amazing while comparing the events of Matthew 8 with those of Revelation 7 in light of God's promise in Isaiah 49. (Keep reading if you would like to know what it is.)
Follow the train of thought here with me, if you will, please...
Israel was chosen by God to be a light to the Gentiles. The Gospel was presented first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.(Romans 1:16)
The peoples from every corner of the earth in Revelation 7 don't praise the Lamb around the throne until after another momentous event takes place. The 4 angels stand at each of the 4 corners of the earth, holding back the winds of destruction.
And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.In Isaiah 49, God promised to restore the preserved of Israel, which, in the context of the future of Israel as recorded in that chapter, I believe may very well be a reference to the sealing of the 144,000 Jews in the tribulation period (Revelation 7:1-8).
And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel. (Revelation 7:2-4)
12,000 from each of the 12 tribes are chosen, then, and only then, does a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages cry out, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”
Here comes the amazing thing to me:
After being chosen and sealed, those 144,00 Jews then go out to evangelize the whole earth.
During the tribulation period, once again the Gospel message is given first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. Israel is the vehicle by which God has, and does and will transport His message of love, forgiveness and salvation to the nations.
The wheels on this train of thought are still turning...
God used Israel to make Himself and the coming Messiah known to the world. His covenants, His mercy, His holiness, His glory, His wrath and His love were all revealed in His dealings with Israel and through His mouth-pieces, the prophets.
God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high: (Hebrews 1:1-4)
Through the mouths of the prophets, He told Israel of the coming Redeemer who was for the salvation of not just Israel but the whole world. And, now, Messiah has come; God manifested in flesh.
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)That verse, John 3:16, sums up the New Covenant God has freely offered to all who will partake. The blood of Christ was shed, not just for those who were already partakers of God's promises, but also for those on the outside.
That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. (Ephesians 2:12-13)
That passage says that those who were not descendants of Abraham, alienated form the covenants of God, have now been brought close by the blood of Christ. As a result, those who have repented and placed their faith in Jesus Christ alone for salvation can say:
For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us. (Ephesians 2:14)
What was that middle wall of partition?
When Jesus breathed His final breath on the cross, immediately the curtain in the temple was torn in two from top to bottom (Matthew 27:51 CEV).
That middle wall of partition, the curtain in the temple, was designed to prevent anything or anyone unclean entering the Holy of Holies, where God's glory came down in the temple. This meant that no Gentile could ever enter and draw close to God. It also meant that the average Jew could not enter or meet with God in a personal way.
Only the high priest could go to the other side of the curtain and then only on certain days and only after certain cleansing rituals and putting on the proper garments. All of that may or may not have protected him from the holiness of God, because God sees the heart. (There is a story of tying a rope to the high priest’s ankle so he could be dragged out if he fell dead in the presence of the glory of God.)
The tearing of the curtain from top to bottom at the moment of Jesus' death illustrated a great and wondrous truth. We no longer need to go through a priest to meet with God. Jesus' sacrifice atoned for all of our sins and granted us direct access to the Father through the Son!
For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh. (Ephesians 2:14-17)
What is the “enmity” referenced in that passage? The rendering in the Amplified Bible may help us gain some insight.
For He is [Himself] our peace (our bond of unity and harmony). He has made us both [Jew and Gentile] one [body], and has broken down (destroyed, abolished) the hostile dividing wall between us, By abolishing in His [own crucified] flesh the enmity [caused by] the Law with its decrees and ordinances (Ephesians 2:14-15 AMP)
The enmity here is two-fold - enmity between Jew and Gentile, between those under the covenants of God and those outside of the covenants of God and also enmity between all people and God. For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men (Romans 1:18).
Notice that Romans 1:18 makes no differentiation between Jew and Gentile. God's wrath is revealed against ALL that is an affront to His holy character, no matter the source. For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).
The Law, the ordinances given by God to reveal His holiness and show us how to live, also revealed the sinfulness in the heart of mankind and our utter helplessness to please God or save ourselves.
But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed.
Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. (Galatians 3:23-24)
The Law showed us our desperate need of a Savior, One Who would fulfill all the Law demanded on our behalf. When His blood poured out on Calvary, Jesus accomplished this and, oh, so much more. (Read Ephesians 1&2 for the so much more.) That curtain, the dividing wall between us and God has been destroyed forever.
Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil... (Hebrews 10:19-20)
Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit. (Ephesians 2:19-22)
Jew or Gentile makes no difference; all those who have accepted Jesus as their personal Messiah, Savior and Lord are fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God.
ALL believers are built on the same foundation; the foundation laid by God in His revelations, first to the prophets, then to the apostles and then in these last days He has spoken unto us by his Son (Hebrews 1:2), Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone (Ephesians 2:20), In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit. (Ephesians 2:21-22)
Lets take a fresh look at those last few verses of Ephesians 2.
He’s using us all—irrespective of how we got here—in what he is building. He used the apostles and prophets for the foundation. Now he’s using you, fitting you in brick by brick, stone by stone, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone that holds all the parts together. We see it taking shape day after day—a holy temple built by God, all of us built into it, a temple in which God is quite at home. (Ephesians 2:21-22 MSG)
Notice, it doesn't matter how we got here. Whether we are descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob or “strangers and foreigners,” we are all equal partakers of the New Covenant, and equal parts of the building, each fitting in because Jesus Christ, the chief cornerstone, made us fit and holds us all together. We see it taking shape day after day—a holy temple built by God, all of us built into it, a temple in which God is quite at home.
No matter where we came from, no matter our ancestry, no matter what we've done, through the blood of Christ, we have this amazing revelation of the grace of God, that He would choose to dwell in us!
Next, The Conclusion
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