2002-01-01
Good Morning Faithful Readers,
When I dwell on as much of the whole picture as I am capable of seeing, I am never short of amazed at the extent of Jehovah Shammah’s love, compassion, and patience that has been shown to Israel. I celebrate that, because the Jews are my own people and the non-believing ones have been a source of great frustration to me. By saying that, I do not want to imply that I am not a sinner or that I am better than they are. It’s just that Jehovah Shammah, the Lord is there, has given me the faith to see Who my Messiah is even through so many Jews reject Him. Because I know this, I also feel the frustration at having to wait for the Lord to lift the veil from other Jewish eyes and wonder which of my family and traditionally Jewish friends, if any, will be in that one-third, the remnant who will come to faith in Him [ZECH 13: 9]. What is done about this, when, and to whom is the Lord’s sovereign right to decide, and not mine. I am commanded to be patient and to keep my faith strong.
The frustration that I feel now must pale in comparison to that which Jesus Christ had to have felt shortly before He delivered the Olivet discourse when He spoke in MT 23: 37-24: 2 about the coming destruction of the Temple. “Jerusalem! Jerusalem! You kill the prophets and stone the messengers God has sent you! How many times I wanted to put My arms around all your people, just as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you would not let Me! And so your Temple will be abandoned and empty. From now on, I tell you, you will never see Me again until you say, ‘God bless Him Who comes in the name of the Lord.’ Jesus left and was going away from the Temple when His disciples came to Him to call His attention to its buildings. ‘Yes,’ He said, ‘you may well look at all these. I tell you this: not a single stone here will be left in its place; every one of them will be thrown down.’” We must remember that the Father made it clear to David that His love for Jerusalem was great. PS 87: 1-2, “The Lord built His city on the sacred hill [referring to Mt. Moriah, to Zion], more than any other place in Israel He loves the city of Jerusalem.” It is why He encouraged the Psalmist in PS 122: 6 to pray, “Sha ah lu shalom Yerusaliem” which means in English, “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem. May she always prosper.” The Temple itself is Jehovah Shammah’s very home. Once before he had seen His home sadly defiled as we saw in Ezekiel’s vision in EZK 8: 7-12. Now, in the time of Christ’s incarnation, in another form, it was happening again.
The destruction of the Temple which happened in 70 AD was a direct result of people not acknowledging the presence of Jehovah Shammah and not recognizing Christ as His Son. The act of Christ’s rejection was the final blow. A second and longer dyaspora (scattering of the Jews and loss of Israel’s nationhood) had to follow, or Jehovah Shammah would not have demonstrated His righteousness. Yet, in the face of all of this, we must see His compassion first in JN 17: 25-26 in Christ’s intercessory prayer to the Father for His disciples. “Righteous Father! The world does not know that You sent Me. I made you know to them, and I will continue to do so, in order that the love you have for Me may be in them and so that I also may be in them.” This was only to be the beginning of the love and compassion Christ has for those who believe. The ultimate sacrifice of His own life on the cross was the greatest manifestation of His love anyone has ever seen. HE 10: 14, “With that one sacrifice then, He made perfect forever those who are purified from sin.” Paul framed it in unmistakable terms in RO 5: 1, “Now that we have been put right with God through faith, we have peace with God.” That has huge implications for all who believe in Christ, each and every one of us.
There is no question that the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD was a supernaturally dictated and controlled event. The way Solomon’s Temple was constructed reveals this. It had huge rectangular blocks with gold wedged between them. The Romans who had been in control of the government were in authority only because God allowed it. DN 4: 17, “This is the decision of the alert and watchful angels. So then, let all people everywhere know that the Supreme God has power over human kingdoms and that He can give them to anyone He chooses-even to the least important of men.” Relations between the Jews and Romans deteriorated leading to Emperor Vespasian’s issuing the order to his general, Titus, to go forward and destroy the Temple and the city. Of course, taking the gold was a motivating force as well. The Romans left not one stone unturned as this was God’s will at the time.
A less compassionate God would have thrown up His hands and allowed the total destruction of the Jews. But, our loving Abba chose to punish and not exterminate them. Christ’s death on the cross making salvation to believers was not Jehovah Shammah’s only gift. JN 16: 7, [Christ speaking] “But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper [Holy Spirit] shall not come to you. But if I go, I will send Him to you.” So where is the Temple, you might ask? That question is answered in 1 COR 3: 16, “Surely you know that you are God’s Temple and that God’s Spirit lives within you.”
PRAYER: O Lord, this is personal! Even though the historical aspects of today’s message are about the rejection of the Messiah by the Jews and the destruction of Solomon’s Temple, the real message of these Scriptures is the revelation in them of Your love, patience, and compassion. This is extended to the Jews and includes everyone else who pledges his heartfelt faith in Your Son [RO 1: 16]. As believers, it touches each of our lives even though 33 AD when Your Son was crucified and 70 AD when the Temple was destroyed was so long ago for us in 2001. Despite mankind’s sinfulness and disobedience, You are there for us. You remind us in RO 5: 11 that we were once enemies and through Jesus Christ, You have made us Your friends. This was done when none of us deserved it. Only the love that You have for us could explain this magnificent and painful sacrifice of Christ on the cross for us. When You followed that with giving us the gift of the Holy Spirit to dwell within us, Your will that we should return Your love in kind to each other and to You was made clear. Today, we dedicate ourselves to obeying Your will and to acknowledging Your leadership over our lives. We humbly offer You our adoration, worship, loyalty, trust, obedience, honor, glory, praise, and thanksgiving. In Christ’s name, amen.
The remaining messages as I wind down this long “Who Is God?” series are about the blessings our Jehovah Shammah gives us. This wonderful and rich series of gifts from Him leads to the greatest gift of all-eternal life with Him. We do not waste our time at all when we focus on these blessings, so that we can know something about the extent of the grace which He shows us and take the time to show Him our gratitude. We truly are nobodys without the Father, which in my mind at least, is sufficient reason for us to answer His command to make Him the center of our lives. Bask in the warmth of His loving embrace today and always. We none of us deserve it, but since it has been given freely by Him, we can enjoy this great outpouring of His love for us always being grateful for it. Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn