2002-01-01
Good Morning Faithful Ones,
Any Messianic Jew like myself would hardly be true to his faith without recognizing that a great and very special blessing has been extended to him. That blessing is having the veil removed from one’s eyes allowing us to recognize Who his Messiah actually is. Gentiles who have accepted Christ as their Savior have already come to the understanding of Who He is. I, for one-and I doubt I’m alone in this-eagerly await the day when my fellow Jews who practice traditional Judaism will also come to know Christ. It is my hope that they too will have the veil lifted from their eyes. I am allowed to know that this will happen by ZECH 13: 9 and RO 11: 25, “And I will test the third that survives and will purify them as silver is purified by fire. I will test them as gold is tested. Then they will pray to Me, and I will answer them. I will tell them that they are My people and they will confess that I am their Lord…There is a secret truth, my brothers, which I want you to know, for it will keep you from thinking how wise you are. It is that the stubbornness of the people of Israel is not permanent, but will last only until the complete number of Gentiles comes to God.”
I am led to continue writing about the details of God’s plan of redemption for mankind as it is revealed in the Scriptures. We know from the historical accounts of the Gospels and even from non-Biblical sources like Josephus Flavius, a Jewish historian who lived in Christ’s time, that Christ was a real person. We also know that He is the Messiah and Redeemer Who came to His own people, the Jews, and was not recognized for Who He is. Our faith, which comes from God through the Scriptures, and prayer tell us that Jesus Christ is both God and man. The Jewish rejection of Christ based on what they saw as His blasphemy was all part of God’s magnificent plan to bring salvation to believing mankind. A surprising twist to the story of Christ’s arrest and trial was Pontius Pilate’s initial inertia in agreeing to put Christ to death seen in MT 27: 17-19 & 22-24. ‘So when the crowd gathered, Pilate asked them, ‘Which one do you want me to set free for you? Jesus Barabbas or Jesus called the Messiah?’ He knew very well that the Jewish authorities had handed Jesus [called the Messiah] over to him because they were jealous. While Pilate was sitting in the judgment hall, his wife sent him a message: ‘Have nothing to do with that innocent Man, because in a dream last night I suffered much on account of Him’…[Pilate speaking to the crowd, chief priests, and elders] ‘What, then, shall I do with Jesus called the Messiah?’ ‘Crucify Him!’ they all answered. But Pilate asked, ‘What crime has He committed?’ Then they started shouting at the top of their voices: ‘Crucify Him!’ When Pilate saw that it was no use to go on, but that a riot might break out, he took some water, washed his hands in front of the crowd, and said, ‘I am not responsible for the death of this man! This is your doing.’” We must note that water will never wash away the guilt for the greatest travesty of justice known to mankind. Only the shedding of blood will wash away guilt [LV 17: 11 and HE 9: 22].
God’s plan was in action, and here’s some additional and compelling evidence. DT 21: 22-23 [KJV] sets down various laws that apply to ancient Jewish life. “And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death, and he be to be put to death, and thou hang him on a tree: His body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but thou shalt in any wise bury him that day; (for he that is hanged is accursed of God;) that thy land be not defiled, which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance.” I cited the KJV here because the use of the language gives us a deeper understanding of the cross reference found in GA 3: 13-14 amidst its discussion of Law or faith. “By becoming a curse for us, Christ has redeemed us from the curse that the Law brings; for Scripture [DT 21: 23] says, ‘Anyone who is hanged on a tree is under God’s curse.’ Christ did this in order that the blessing which God promised to Abraham might be given to the Gentiles by means of Christ Jesus, so that through faith we might receive the Spirit promised by God.” What must be understood here is that the purpose of the Law was to help mankind recognize what is righteous and what isn’t [RO 7:7], not to bring salvation. However, the purpose of Christ’s death on the cross was to institute the Covenant of Grace sealed by His blood [1 COR 11: 25] and to provide eternal forgiveness by the once-for-all, sufficient sin sacrifice that He made for us out of God’s grace [RO 3: 24-25; HE 10: 10]. That is how we can recognize the significance of the Jews of Christ’s time rejecting Him and the decision to hang Him on a tree to our lives today. How blessed we are that God loves us enough to have such a plan and was willing to make such an extraordinary sacrifice on our behalf when we surely don’t deserve it!
PRAYER: O Lord, long ago David wrote about Your chosen King, long before the name Jesus Christ, was on the lips of mankind. Those who heard and sang PS 2 were Jews who didn’t understand their human king’s words. PS 2: 1-3 prophesied the coming of the Messiah and His rejection. “Why do nations plan rebellion? Why do people make their useless plots? Their kings revolt, their rulers plot together against the Lord and against the King He chose. ‘Let us free ourselves from their rule,’ they say; ‘let us throw off their control.’” This is a clear reference to the collusion between the Jewish Sanhedrin (leaders) of Christ’s day and the Romans in Christ’s death. David’s psalm goes on to register Your reaction and reveal the future. PS 2: 4-9, “From His throne in heaven the Lord laughs and mocks their feeble plans. Then He warns them in anger and terrifies them with His fury. ‘On Zion, My sacred hill, ‘ He says, ‘I have installed My king.’ ‘I will announce,’ says the King, ‘what the Lord has declared. He said to Me: You are My Son; today I have become Your Father. Ask, and I will give You all the nations; the whole earth will be Yours. You will break them with an iron rod; You will shatter them in pieces like a clay pot.’” Still with all these prophecies, the Jewish people of Christ’s time and traditional Jews of today do not recognize Who Your Son is. We come before You, Dearest Abba, not with the intent of interfering with Your will, but with our plea that it will not be much longer before You lift the veil from the eyes of today’s Jews, so they will know the truth of His existence, repent of their sin, and come to faith in Him. We also plead that You will use each of us as instruments in bringing lost people of all backgrounds to the place where the Holy Spirit can bring them to faith, as well. We make this plea in eager anticipation of that Day when we can be together in Your new city on the Hill [Jerusalem] reveling in Your glory and celebrating the wedding feast of the Lamb. We acknowledge Christ is our Messiah and that You have greatly blessed us with His Atonement and His presence in our daily lives. You are truly an awesome God! In Christ’s holy name, we pray. Amen.
Tomorrow, I am led to examine citations that reveal the part of God’s plan which show how Christ’s Atonement brings eternal forgiveness of believing mankind’s sin. God’s love is all over this marvelous plan, and we need to recognize that, understand how it thwarts Satan’s efforts, and how it brings each of us to blessed victory over second death. God’s love for us extends to every aspect of our lives as individuals and as members of the Body of Christ. Through Christ, He has commanded us to “love one another as He loves us” [JN 13: 33-34]. The Scriptures truly are God’s love letter to His children. Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn