Israel

Irrevocable

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As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers’ sakes.  For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.  For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief: even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.  For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.
Romans 11:28-32

The Jewish people are enemies only because they have rejected the gospel of Jesus Christ.  They have done so, so that, we Gentiles might become part of God’s kingdom as well as the Jew.

There seems to be a growing trend for some Christian speaker, preachers, teachers, and from all walks of life, teaching that the Church is the new Israel.  That is assuming that God has forsaken the Old Testament Israel, for the Church (which is the Body of Christ).  My question is: If the Church is the new Israel what will happen to Israel?

Verse 29 of our text says, “The gifts and calling of God are without repentance (are Irrevocable).”  Meaning that what God has said in the Old Testament concerning His covenant people will not fail to come to pass.  There are many prophecies of the Old Testament that have not yet come to pass.  Those prophecies and promises cannot be claimed to be the Church’s, except for our encouragement, and education, and growth.

God says, “I will be merciful to whom I will be merciful.”  God chose to blind the eyes of  many Jewish people to bring Gentiles to Himself.  Let us be thankful to the people of Israel for their part in our salvation; for it is through them that we have received our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and from them we have received God’s word.

Antisemitism must stop among those who are Christian or God can set us aside as He has Israel.  God is not one who forsakes His people.  He has a remnant who believe Him and live for Him.  One day all Israel shall be saved (Romans 11:25-27),  The apostle Paul was writing here of his people, not the Church.

“The gifts and calling of God are irrevocable.”  It is an encouragement to know that God’s word, prophecies and promises do not change.  It is comforting to know that He does not give up on His people.

Living Life In The LORD

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And the word of the LORD came unto Zechariah, saying, ‘Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, ‘Execute true judgment, and shew mercy and compassions every man to his brother: and oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor; and let none of you imagine evil against his brother in your heart.  But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear.  Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the LORD of hosts hath sent in His spirit by the former prophets: therefore came a great wrath from the LORD of hosts.  Therefore it is come to pass, that as He cried, and they would not hear; so they cried, and I would not hear,’ saith the LORD of hosts: ‘but I scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations whom they knew not. Thus the land was desolate after them, that no man passed through nor returned: for they laid the pleasant land desolate.’ ”
Zechariah 7:8-14

Before they had gone into captivity the people of Israel/Judah had turned the backs on the LORD, and served other gods which were no gods, but demons.

When they turned their backs on GOD they had no desire to love their neighbor, not even their own family.  So the prophets had warned them of their undoing.

For the follower of Jesus Christ today one way to tell that we are  right with the LORD is by the way we love our neighbor; whether it be the orphan, the widow, the stranger,  and/or the poor.

Jesus Christ, as Chief Ruler of your life is the best life to live; and that will have the above justness toward all people, and we will treat them rightly..

A Father with His Sons

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Jacob/Israel was in Egypt with all of his family, and he knows that he is about to die from this world. So, he calls all twelve of his sons and tells them how they have lived, and will be known by how they have lived.

I share here today only what Jacob said of Joseph:

Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches run over the wall:  The archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him: But his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the Mighty God of Jacob; (from thence is the shepherd, the stone of Israel:)  Even by the God of thy father, who shall help thee; and by the Almighty, who shall bless thee with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that lieth under, blessings of the breasts, and of the womb:  The blessings of thy father have prevailed above the blessings of my progenitors unto the utmost bound of the everlasting hills: they shall be on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him that was separate from his brethren.
Genesis 49:22-26

Most of chapter forty nine is given to Jacob’s words concerning each son.  Jacob saw the character of each son, but Joseph’s character is above them all.

Sometimes it seems  that people do not care about character; their own, or anyone else’s.  Character is who you are when you think no one is watching – what you do, and what you say, even what you think.

We all have character, and it matters what kind of character you are. You either have a godly character, on an ungodly character. The godly character is in touch with God through the devoted reading, being read by, and study of God’s word – the Bible; and putting the word to work in our lives. They desire that Jesus Christ will be seen at work in their lives.

We see godly character in Joseph when he is alone with Potiphar’s wife, and she tries to seduce him, and he tells her that he would not only be sinning against her husband who has trust for him, and for her; but even worse  he  would be sinning against God.

The person with ungodly character would say something like, I am pure” and then turn around and go to bed with a prostitute when no one was around. Maybe some other thing as well.  An ungodly character would also tell you one thing, and some else something different, about the same thing.

How can we have a godly character?  The first way is to come to Jesus Christ in faith, confessing Him as Lord, and believing in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, and you will be saved.  Then as a newborn Christian you get into the word of God, searching the word daily.  Start reading the Scriptures first in the Gospels – Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, and I think, beginning with the Gospel of John.

The Psalmist wrote, “Your word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against You.”  Psalm 119;11 and verse 9 of that Psalm says, “How shall a young man cleanse his way?  By taking heed according to Your word.”  That is the way to growing godly character.

Will you begin today building godly character by calling on the name of Jesus Christ the Son of the Living God?

Captives Hear the LORD’S Word

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Captives may hear the good news of God’s word, but will they believe and do the will of God? That is the question for myself as well as you the reader. The following is a promise from GOD, of their return to Him, and they to their land of promise as well.

Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
“Son of man, thy brethren, even thy brethren, the men of thy kindred, and all the house of Israel wholly, are they unto whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem have said, ‘Get you far from the LORD: unto us is this land given in possession.’ Therefore say, ‘Thus saith the Lord GOD; Although I have cast them far off among the heathen, and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them as a little sanctuary in the countries where they shall come.’ Therefore say, ‘Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will even gather you from the people, and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.’  And they shall come thither, and they shall take away all the detestable things thereof and all the abominations thereof from thence. And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh: that they may walk in My statutes, and keep Mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be My people, and I will be their God. But as for them whose heart walketh after the heart of their detestable things and their abominations, I will recompense their way upon their own heads,” saith the Lord GOD.
Ezekiel 11:14-21

Note that the LORD says, “I will be to them a little sanctuary in the countries where they shall come.”

The LORD God is our shelter, our comfort, our strength; a very present help in our time of need; no matter what situation we are in in life.

There is only hope for salvation and eternal life through Jesus Christ who died on the cross, was buried, and He rose again. He is returning soon. Be ready by calling on His name.

A Change Is Coming

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For Zion’s sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth.  And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory: and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the LORD shall name. Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God. Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate: but thou shalt be called Hephzibah, and thy land Beulah: for the LORD delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married.  For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee: and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee.
Isaiah 62:1-5

A change is coming for God’s people of Zion. I do not believe in “Replacement Theology” which is the replacing Israel [Zion] with the Church, and making all the promises of Israel now being promises to the Church. Those of you who believe that; do you also accept the curses God warns Israel about? (Leviticus 26:14-26).

These verses from Isaiah 62 are promise to Israel of a change that is coming. It has not occurred yet; but that change is coming.

The LORD God loves the people of Israel, and one day they will become, not Forsaken, but Hephzibah or “My Delight”. God’s Delight will be Israel, and their land called, “My Bride.” Yes Israel shall have a remnant return unto the LORD, and He will make them His wife forever more

How will this take place? Only God knows for sure. It seems to me He gives us clues to how it will happen though. Israel will go through a time that the prophet Jeremiah calls the time of Jacob’s trouble,

Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble; but he shall be saved out of it.

Jeremiah 30:7

It will be a period of time when the Church (all those who are born again) will no longer be on earth, but will be with the LORD. Near the end of that time of their trouble, a remnant will have their hearts changed, “They will look on the One whom they pierced,” and they too will be saved, go into a new age of one thousand years, and receive all the promises that have not yet been fulfilled.

The born again are those who have been changed from a sinner (which includes all of us), into a saint (called so by God Himself, not by some man, or religious institution). To be born again is to realize and receive the marvelous grace of God He displayed on the cross through the death of His only begotten Son Jesus Christ. He was buried, and He rose again.  He said, “I will come again.” Are you ready? All you need is to call on the name of Jesus, He will hear you and give you eternal life. For God’s sake, and your own call on Him now.

He Believed God

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And Israel said unto Joseph, “Behold, I die: but God shall be with you, and bring you again unto the land of your fathers. Moreover I have given to thee one portion above thy brethren, which I took out of the hand of the Amorite with my sword and with my bow.”
Genesis 48:21-22

Jacob, now called “Israel” since his wrestling match with the LORD, is near death, and believes God’s word to him that they will not stay in Egypt too long.

O that Christians would believe what God says concerning Himself, the way we ought to live, pray, and tell the world about His marvelous mercy and grace. It is definitely displayed by God smiting His own Son on the cross, taking His life paying the sin debt we owed. Jesus was buried, and on the third day He rose from the dead triumphing over sin, death, and the grave.

Call on His name, the name of Jesus, and He will hear you and deliver you from sin and death.

A Promise Of Almighty God

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And God appeared unto Jacob again, when he came out of Padanaram, and blessed him.  And God said unto him, “Thy name is Jacob: thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name:” and He called his name Israel.  And God said unto him, “I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins; and the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee I will give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the land.”  And God went up from him in the place where He talked with him.
Genesis 35:9-13

They Shall Not Be Found

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Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; “Behold, I will punish the king of Babylon and his land, as I have punished the king of Assyria.  And I will bring Israel again to his habitation, and he shall feed on Carmel and Bashan, and his soul shall be satisfied upon mount Ephraim and Gilead. In those days, and in that time,” saith the LORD, “the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found: for I will pardon them whom I reserve.”
Jeremiah 50:18-20

GOD Is With Jacob

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“But fear not thou, O My servant Jacob, and be not dismayed, O Israel: for, behold, I will save thee from afar off, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and be in rest and at ease, and none shall make him afraid.  Fear thou not, O Jacob My servant,” saith the LORD: “for I am with thee; for I will make a full end of all the nations whither I have driven thee: but I will not make a full end of thee, but correct thee in measure; yet will I not leave thee wholly unpunished.”
Jeremiah 46:27-28

They Shall Be My People, and I Will Be Their God

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And now therefore thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning this city, whereof ye say, “It shall be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence; behold, I will gather them out of all countries, whither I have driven them in Mine anger, and in My fury, and in great wrath; and I will bring them again unto this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely: and they shall be My people, and I will be their God: and I will give them one heart, and one way, that they may fear Me for ever, for the good of them, and of their children after them: and I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; but I will put My fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from Me. Yea, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will plant them in this land assuredly with My whole heart and with My whole soul.”
Jeremiah 32:36-41

God’s Warning Of Judgment On His People

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O ye children of Benjamin, gather yourselves to flee out of the midst of Jerusalem, and blow the trumpet in Tekoa, and set up a sign of fire in Bethhaccerem: for evil appeareth out of the north, and great destruction.  I have likened the daughter of Zion to a comely and delicate woman.  The shepherds with their flocks shall come unto her; they shall pitch their tents against her round about; they shall feed every one in his place.  Prepare ye war against her; arise, and let us go up at noon. Woe unto us! For the day goeth away, for the shadows of the evening are stretched out.  Arise, and let us go by night, and let us destroy her palaces.
Jeremiah 6:1-5

Mercy On The Whole House Of Israel

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Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD;
“Now will I bring again the captivity of Jacob, and have mercy upon the whole house of Israel, and will be jealous for My holy name; after that they have borne their shame, and all their trespasses whereby they have trespassed against Me, when they dwelt safely in their land, and none made them afraid. When I have brought them again from the people, and gathered them out of their enemies’ lands, and am sanctified in them in the sight of many nations; then shall they know that I am the LORD their God, which caused them to be led into captivity among the heathen: but I have gathered them unto their own land, and have left none of them any more there. Neither will I hide My face any more from them: for I have poured out My Spirit upon the house of Israel,”
saith the Lord GOD.
Ezekiel 39:25-29

The LORD Is Round About His People

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They that trust in the LORD shall be as Mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth for ever.
As the mountains are round about Jerusalem, so the LORD is round about His people from henceforth even for ever. For the rod of the wicked shall not rest upon the lot of the righteous; lest the righteous put forth their hands unto iniquity.
Do good, O LORD, unto those that be good, and to them that are upright in their hearts.
As for such as turn aside unto their crooked ways, the LORD shall lead them forth with the workers of iniquity: but peace shall be upon Israel.

Psalm 125:1-5

The LORD Your God Has Fought For You

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And it came to pass a long time after that the LORD had given rest unto Israel from all their enemies round about, that Joshua waxed old and stricken in age.  And Joshua called for all Israel, and for their elders, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers, and said unto them, “I am old and stricken in age: and ye have seen all that the LORD your God hath done unto all these nations because of you; for the LORD your God is He that hath fought for you.  Behold, I have divided unto you by lot these nations that remain, to be an inheritance for your tribes, from Jordan, with all the nations that I have cut off, even unto the great sea westward.  And the LORD your God, He shall expel them from before you, and drive them from out of your sight; and ye shall possess their land, as the LORD your God hath promised unto you.
“Be ye therefore very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in the book of the law of Moses, that ye turn not aside therefrom to the right hand or to the left; that ye come not among these nations, these that remain among you; neither make mention of the name of their gods, nor cause to swear by them, neither serve them, nor bow yourselves unto them: but cleave unto the LORD your God, as ye have done unto this day.  For the LORD hath driven out from before you great nations and strong: but as for you, no man hath been able to stand before you unto this day.  One man of you shall chase a thousand: for the LORD your God, He it is that fighteth for you, as He hath promised you. Take good heed therefore unto yourselves, that ye love the LORD your God.”
Joshua 23:1-11

The Mountain of the House of the LORD Shall Be Established

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But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it.  And many nations shall come, and say, “Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths:” for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.  And He shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.  But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid: for the mouth of the LORD of hosts hath spoken it.  For all people will walk every one in the name of his god, and we will walk in the name of the LORD our God for ever and ever.
Micah 4:1-5

…For it is time to seek the LORD…

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And Ephraim is as an heifer that is taught, and loveth to tread out the corn; but I passed over upon her fair neck: I will make Ephraim to ride; Judah shall plow, and Jacob shall break his clods.  Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till He come and rain righteousness upon you.  Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity; ye have eaten the fruit of lies: because thou didst trust in thy way, in the multitude of thy mighty men.  Therefore shall a tumult arise among thy people, and all thy fortresses shall be spoiled, as Shalman spoiled Betharbel in the day of battle: the mother was dashed in pieces upon her children.  So shall Bethel do unto you because of your great wickedness: in a morning shall the king of Israel utterly be cut off.
Hosea 10:11-15

Neither will I hide My face… from them

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“…And I will set My glory among the heathen, and all the heathen shall see My judgment that I have executed, and My hand that I have laid upon them.  So the house of Israel shall know that I am the LORD their God from that day and forward.  And the heathen shall know that the house of Israel went into captivity for their iniquity: because they trespassed against Me, therefore hid I My face from them, and gave them into the hand of their enemies: so fell they all by the sword.  According to their uncleanness and according to their transgressions have I done unto them, and hid My face from them.”
Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; “Now will I bring again the captivity of Jacob, and have mercy upon the whole house of Israel, and will be jealous for My holy name; after that they have borne their shame, and all their trespasses whereby they have trespassed against Me, when they dwelt safely in their land, and none made them afraid.  When I have brought them again from the people, and gathered them out of their enemies’ lands, and am sanctified in them in the sight of many nations; then shall they know that I am the LORD their God, which caused them to be led into captivity among the heathen: but I have gathered them unto their own land, and have left none of them any more there.  Neither will I hide My face any more from them: for I have poured out My Spirit upon the house of Israel,” saith the Lord GOD.
Ezekiel 39:21-29

You Cannot Curse Whom GOD Has Blessed

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And he took up his parable, and said, “Rise up, Balak, and hear; hearken unto me, thou son of Zippor: God is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son of man, that He should repent: hath He said, and shall He not do or hath He spoken, and shall He not make it good?
“Behold, I have received commandment to bless: and He hath blessed; and I cannot reverse it.  He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath He seen perverseness in Israel: the LORD his God is with him, and the shout of a King is among them. God brought them out of Egypt; He hath as it were the strength of an unicorn.  Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob, neither is there any divination against Israel: according to this time it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel, ‘What hath God wrought!’  Behold, the people shall rise up as a great lion, and lift up himself as a young lion: he shall not lie down until he eat of the prey, and drink the blood of the slain.”
Numbers 23:18-24

But He answered and said,
“Every plant, which My heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up.”
Matthew 15:13

Known unto God are all His works from the beginning of the world.
Acts 15:18

When Grace Is No Longer Grace

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I say then, Hath God cast away His people? God forbid. For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.  God hath not cast away His people which He foreknew. Wot ye not what the Scripture saith of Elias? How he maketh intercession to God against Israel, saying, “Lord, they have killed Thy prophets, and digged down thine altars; and I am left alone, and they seek my life.”  But what saith the answer of God unto him? “I have reserved to Myself seven thousand men, who have not bowed the knee to the image of Baal.”
Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace.  And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.
Romans 11:1-6

I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy…

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What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid.  For He saith to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.”  So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.  For the Scripture saith unto Pharaoh, “Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew My power in thee, and that My name might be declared throughout all the earth.”  Therefore hath He mercy on whom He will have mercy, and whom He will He hardeneth.
Romans 9:14-18

The Vineyard

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And He began to speak unto them by parables.
“A certain man planted a vineyard, and set an hedge about it, and digged a place for the winefat, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country. And at the season he sent to the husbandmen a servant, that he might receive from the husbandmen of the fruit of the vineyard. And they caught and beat him, and sent him away empty. And again he sent unto them another servant; and at him they cast stones, and wounded him in the head, and sent him away shamefully handled. And again he sent another; and him they killed, and many others; beating some, and killing some.’
‘Having yet therefore one son, his wellbeloved, he sent him also last unto them, saying, ‘They will reverence my son.’ But those husbandmen said among themselves, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance shall be ours.’ And they took him, and killed him, and cast him out of the vineyard. What shall therefore the lord of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the husbandmen, and will give the vineyard unto others. And have ye not read this Scripture; ‘The stone which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner: this was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes’?”
And they sought to lay hold on Him, but feared the people: for they knew that He had spoken the parable against them: and they left Him, and went their way. Mark 12:1-12

Jesus is speaking here of the vineyard called Israel. They have rejected God’s ownership of the vineyard, the nation. They have rejected His servants that He sent to receive from them what is due Him and that is their love, respect, and obedience to His word. Also see Isaiah 5:1-7.

The last show of grace and mercy God would give to them was by sending His only begotten Son (John 3:16), and they rejected Him, beating Him and finding nothing in Him worthy of death sentenced Him to die on the cross; the cruelest means of death, by the Romans.

Dear reader, today that show of grace and mercy of God’s Son Jesus; His dying on the cross; was for the redemption of all people who will hear Him, believe His word, and call on His name. He died for you, was buried, and He rose from that grave and came out alive. All who come to Him, He gives eternal life with Him. Reject Him no more. Believe Him.

The Eyes of the Lord GOD

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“Behold, the eyes of the Lord GOD are upon the sinful kingdom, and I will destroy it from off the face of the earth; saving that I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob, saith the LORD.” Amos 9:8 (KJB)

 

“eyes … upon the sinful kingdom — that is, I am watching all its sinful course in order to punish it (compare Amo_9:4; Psa_34:15, Psa_34:16).

not utterly destroy the house of Jacob — Though as a “kingdom” the nation is now utterly to perish, a remnant is to be spared for “Jacob,” their forefather’s sake (compare Jer_30:11); to fulfil the covenant whereby “the seed of Israel” is hereafter to be “a nation for ever” (Jer_31:36).”  From the Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary

 

“The guilty will certainly be punished. If they enter the sacred place of worship, even that will not shelter them, Amo_9:1. Flight and concealment will be in vain. Let them climb ever so high, or burrow ever so deep; let them scale the loftiest hills, or dive into the deepest seas-the consequences of their sins will overtake them, Amo_9:2-3. How can sinners hope to escape from Him whose chambers are built in the heavens and whose voice governs the tides, Amo_9:6? The great desolations of the past prove the exactness and severity of His judgments, Amo_9:7-8. How remarkably Amo_9:9 has been fulfilled? Notwithstanding their scatterings, the Hebrew people have been preserved as a race.

The final paragraph, Amo_9:11-15, is very reassuring. It is a burst of noble anticipation, quoted by the Apostle James, Act_15:14-17. The promises made to Abraham and David are yet to be fulfilled. The derision of their foes, of whom Edom was the ringleader, will be silenced. Through the parted curtain, we descry the golden age of the future. There is a divine plan working to its conclusion, and Israel shall yet come again to the land given to their fathers.” From THROUGH THE BIBLE DAY BY DAY with F. B. Meyer for Amos 9:1-15

I Will Accept You

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“I will accept you with your sweet savour, when I bring you out from the people, and gather you out of the countries wherein ye have been scattered; and I will be sanctified in you before the heathen. And ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I shall bring you into the land of Israel, into the country for the which I lifted up Mine hand to give it to your fathers. And there shall ye remember your ways, and all your doings, wherein ye have been defiled; and ye shall lothe yourselves in your own sight for all your evils that ye have committed. And ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I have wrought with you for My name’s sake, not according to your wicked ways, nor according to your corrupt doings, O ye house of Israel, saith the Lord GOD.” Ezekiel 20:41-44 (KJB)

“I will accept you” says the LORD. He will not accept them because of their holiness, righteousnesses, or their sacrifices. He accepts them because of His good, Holy, and Righteous Name.

Keep in mind, if you will, the one’s to whom God is speaking through the prophet are the people of Israel in captivity in Babylon. They are being promised that they will one day return to their Promised Land.  Most of these who are hearing would not. Ezekiel himself would not see his homeland again.  The nation would return. They did return.

The Lord GOD says to you today, “I will accept you, but not because of your sacrifices, not because of your holiness, righteousness; but for My own Name’s sake.”  His Name is the Name that is above every name (Philippians 2:10-11).

I am not accepted by God because of anything good in me, but because of the gift of Jesus Christ – His death on the cross, His burial, and resurrection.  He is the fullness of the Godhead bodily (Romans 1:20; Colossians 1:19; 2:9).

The Lord accepts all who will come to Him through Jesus Christ. Call on His Name.

The LORD Gives Life

/ Tim A. / Leave a comment

“Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

‘Son of man, cause Jerusalem to know her abominations, and say, ‘Thus saith the Lord GOD unto Jerusalem; ‘Thy birth and thy nativity is of the land of Canaan; thy father was an Amorite, and thy mother an Hittite. And as for thy nativity, in the day thou wast born thy navel was not cut, neither wast thou washed in water to supple thee; thou wast not salted at all, nor swaddled at all. None eye pitied thee, to do any of these unto thee, to have compassion upon thee; but thou wast cast out in the open field, to the loathing of thy person, in the day that thou wast born. And when I passed by thee, and saw thee polluted in thine own blood, I said unto thee in thy blood, ‘Live;’ yea, I said unto thee in thy blood, ‘Live.’ ” Ezekiel 16:1-6 (KJB)

Ezekiel’s word from God for Israel is that “You were found by Me in a state of  death, and dying. No one else took pity on you. There is no other god who found you, and gave you life. I said unto you, ‘Live’ and gave you My grace and mercy.”

The condition of every man, woman, boy, or girl who has ever been born is death. Apart from the grace of God, and the blood of the Lamb of God, who is Jesus Christ there is only death for all.

The only Man who ever lived without sin died for us all, that we might have life through His name. His name is Jesus.

May we not flaunt His grace through licentious, debaucherous, hate filled living which comes from death.

Paul the apostle tells us, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23),  and he also tells us that “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures; and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures…” (1 Corinthians 15:3-4).

The Lord GOD through faith in Jesus Christ is the only One who gives life. Call on His name.

The Eyes and the Ears

/ Tim A. / Leave a comment

“The word of the LORD also came unto me, saying,

‘Son of man, thou dwellest in the midst of a rebellious house, which have eyes to see, and see not; they have ears to hear, and hear not: for they are a rebellious house.’ ”  Ezekiel 12:1-2 (KJB)

I thank the Lord God of Heaven and earth, for my eyes and my hearing as often as I think of the blessing.  That is almost every day, and sometimes several times through the day.

The above text tells us that this rebellious house had eyes, but did not see; and ears, but did not hear.  That means to me that they had chosen not to see what God did; and chose not to hear what God said.

This is a people to whom God had blessed with His word, His commandments, and they would also (and did) be the people through whom God would bring the Savior into the world.

When Jesus came into the world many still refused to see and hear. Even though it was quite clearly spoken in their covenant word of God, many of the elite scribes and priests refused to see and hear the One God had sent.

The Body of Christ, the Christian Church needs to realize today that we have been given the one way to salvation from sin and death; we have only one word from God; and today, neither any other day is the day to refuse to see God fulfilling His word, or hearing what He says.

See, and witness the power of God through the cross of Jesus Christ. Hear what God says, and do it. Several times Jesus said, “He that has ears to hear, let him hear”.

“eyes to see, and see not, … ears to hear, and hear not — fulfilling the prophecy of Deu_29:4, here quoted by Ezekiel (compare Isa_6:9; Jer_5:21). Ezekiel needed often to be reminded of the people’s perversity, lest he should be discouraged by the little effect produced by his prophecies. Their “not seeing” is the result of perversity, not incapacity. They are willfully blind. The persons most interested in this prophecy were those dwelling at Jerusalem; and it is among them that Ezekiel was transported in spirit, and performed in vision, not outwardly, the typical acts. At the same time, the symbolical prophecy was designed to warn the exiles at Chebar against cherishing hopes, as many did in opposition to God’s revealed word, of returning to Jerusalem, as if that city was to stand; externally living afar off, their hearts dwelt in that corrupt and doomed capital.”    From the Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary for Ezekiel 12:1-2