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Focus on the Future - 7
God’s Final Chosen
Many Christians and Jews believe God is fulfilling His
covenant to Abraham in Jerusalem. So do Muslims. That’s at the bottom
of why they keep fighting over there.
Conflict in Jerusalem is nothing new. For thousands
of years, religious people have been acting out their hostilities there.
A major bone of contention is this: Who are God’s real chosen people,
the inheritors of His promise to Abraham?
The Bible is clear. Galatians 3 verse 7: AKnow that only those who are
of faith are sons of Abraham. Now, anyone can become true children of
Abraham, but only by reflecting his faith in the Messiah of the covenant.
According to this Scripture text, does having the blood of Abraham automatically
make him one’s spiritual father?
That question came up back in Christ's day. Jewish
religious leaders felt no need of Jesus. To them He was a hillbilly troublemaker
from the highlands of Galilee. They wished He had stayed at that little
carpenter shop in Nazareth. But Jesus refused to be intimidated by their
rejection of Him. Instead He questioned their own spiritual qualifications.
He declared in John chapter 8 verse 39: "If you were Abraham's children,
you would do the works of Abraham."
Evidently having the blood of Abraham is not enough
to qualify as his child. One must share the faith of Abraham. Faith in
the Messiah that motivates faithfulness to God’s covenant.
It’s a lot like faithfulness in marriage. Jeannie and I have a partnership
going. Years ago we exchanged vows and agreed that by God’s grace we will
be faithful to each other. And we are committed to stay that way—otherwise
our marriage covenant is forfeited. Now, I’m happy to tell you that Jeannie
and I have no intention of relinquishing our relationship. Just the same,
we realize that both of us must remain faithful or we’ll lose what we
have.
Just so with the covenant between God and His people. More is involved
than a faithful God keeping His promises. It’s a partnership. We too must
honor the terms of the covenant. This explains why all God's promises
are conditional upon human cooperation. Never forget it, friend. Faith
and faithfulness are not optional when it comes to God’s covenant.
Back in Bible times, what made the difference between true and false prophecy?
True prophets taught that God’s people must be faithful to continue receiving
covenant blessings. False prophets declared that God had guaranteed covenant
blessings to Israel, no matter how they behaved. Deadly delusion! False
faith in Jerusalem brought ruin in Old Testament times and then again
in the New Testament. Will it happen once more today?
Enlightened Bible scholars know that the Old Testament is not primarily
Israel-centered, but Messiah-centered. Everything depends upon our relationship
with Christ. Listen to this from 2nd Corinthians 1 verse 20. AFor all
the promises of God in Him [that’s in Jesus] are Yes.” Do you see it,
friend? God has nothing for His people apart from Jesus. Nobody outside
of Christ can claim to be God’s chosen people.
This matter of a chosen people raises all kinds of
questions. One that has troubled many is: Does God play favorites? No,
friend. Scripture says He is no respecter of persons; He doesn’t value
one ethnic group above another. So in what sense were the Jews His chosen
people?
Let's get some background on this. Long ago God called Abraham for a specific
purpose. He promised in Genesis 12 verse 3: AIn you all the families of
the earth shall be blessed. The Lord called the children of Abraham to
be channels of blessing to the whole worldBExhibit A of blessings shared
through a faith community. Unfortunately, God’s chosen people chose to
keep the blessings of Abraham's covenant all to themselves.
That’s how it was when Jesus arrived on the scene as
Messiah. But He refused to go along with national prejudice against Gentiles.
He visited their villages, slept under their roofs and feasted at their
tables.
The most rabid religious racism Christ confronted was at Jerusalem’s temple.
Jews of that time forbade Gentiles from even worshiping side-by-side with
them inside the temple. Archeologists in the year 1871, digging in the
ruins of Jerusalem’s Temple Mount found the very stone marked with the
following warning in both Hebrew and Greek: "No man of another race
is to proceed within the partition and enclosing wall about the sanctuary.
And one arrested there will have himself to blame for the penalty of death
which will be imposed as a consequence."
Outrageous! But Jesus broke through that wall. He created in Himself a
new humanity, equally including Jews and Gentile. The Bible says: AFor
in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith.@ That’s Ephesians
2 verse 26.
Tragically, most of Christ’s fellow Jews persisted in rejecting His inclusive
community of grace. Back then, the Bible says, “He came to His own, and
His own did not receive Him." John 1 verse 11.
Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter recounts a trip to Israel in his book,
The Blood of Abraham. While there he visited Golda Meir, prime minister
at the time. Their conversation drifted into religion. Carter commented
about the lack of spiritual interest among most Israelis. The prime minister
agreed but said she wasn't concerned because many of her countrymen were
still very devoted to their faith. She added with a laugh, "If you
attend a session of the Knesset [the Israeli parliament], you will see
them in action and will know they have not lost their faith."
It seems like the situation in Jerusalem is basically the same as it was
2,000 years ago. Yet even after Jewish leaders rejected their Messiah,
God's mercy lingered. Christ after His resurrection sent His disciples
first to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Thousands of individual
Jews accepted Jesus. Yet the nation itself persisted in resisting its
Messiah.
Jesus warned about the fatal consequences of rejecting
Him. Matthew 21 verse 43: "The kingdom of God will be taken from
you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it." That’s how the
covenant promises transferred over to believers in Jesus, both Jews and
Gentiles. And so we read in Galatians 3 verse 29: "If you are Christ's
then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.”
Praise the Lord! More and more Jewish people are becoming true children
of Abraham. Not because they were born that way but because of accepting
Jesus as Messiah. Multitudes more will, according to Scripture. Meanwhile,
Abraham's covenant now belongs not to one particular nation but to anyone
and everyone who believes in Jesus.
Tell me, friend, have you accepted Jesus as your personal
Messiah—your Savior from sin? If not, you can do so right here and now.
God’s gift of salvation is real. Our part is to make our commitment real
by exercising faith in Jesus. I invite you to pray with me now as we close
this broadcast.
“Father in heaven, God of Abraham, we confess that we have sinned. We
are unworthy—just as unworthy as those who crucified their Messiah. All
of us have gone astray from your plan and your purpose. We’ve been selfish
and unloving, even with family and the friends we love most. We’ve been
unfaithful, too. Forgive us, we pray. Thank you that complete forgiveness
is ours through Jesus. We believe in Him. We believe He is who He claimed
to be—Your Son and our Savior. We believe He died for our sins and rose
again. Thank You for accepting us fully and freely in His name. Thank
You that Christ is coming soon and will take us to Your heavenly home.
Keep us day by day we pray, in the name of Jesus, our Messiah, Amen.”
My friend, if you prayed that prayer and meant it, congratulations! You
are now a child of God.
So now what? Where do you go from here? Well, the Bible says that you’re
like a newborn baby, needing nourishment to grow. Not just to survive
but to thrive!
Our nourishment for Christian growth comes in the study of God’s Word.
Connie, tell our listening friends what we have today to assist them with
their Bible study.
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