Strong Man Of God Blog

On January 28, 2014 in Holidays by Robert Kelley

Originally Posted 12/29/2013

Proud and arrogant professing Christians among the Gentiles have failed to heed the apostle Paul’s warning not to go there. With the rise of manmade Christianity the religion in the second century already there were anti-Semitic voices among church leaders. By the 4^th century Catholic bishop, Augustine of Hippo, through his allegorical method of interpreting Scripture taught that every promise made to Israel was instead for the Church as its replacement. This wretched and bigoted heresy took hold in Rome and was not forsaken by famous 16^th century Protestant Reformation leaders Luther and Calvin nor has it been by many that idolize Augustine and the reformers today. Apparently, reform of the Catholic Church by them was intended to only be selective since replacing Israel with the Church is a sin of magnitude far exceeding for example, “indulgences” in wickedness and destructive damage given the apostle Paul’s plain and specific warning in Romans 11:16-22. ^{1, 2}
How could they miss the fact that biblical Christianity is not some new thing separate and different from Judaism, but in fact, is its completion through Jesus the Jewish Messiah (Matthew 5:17-20)? The New Testament writers to a man certainly understood this to be true. The apostle John in the rich prophetic symbolism of the Lord’s Revelation, records ethnic Israel as His persecuted mother and Christians as “her offspring,” (Revelation 12:1-6, 13-17, NKJV). Interpreting God’s Word and especially prophecy as allegory where not warranted by the text itself is sin because He gave it to be taken literally or else why are we celebrating the prophesied birth of Christ and all that unfolded at His first coming as literal fulfillment? And why are we foolishly even waiting for His prophesied literal Second Coming if all biblical prophecy is obscured in the murky waters of allegory which is open only to speculative, subjective interpretation? ³

Just because a prophecy is hard to understand or has not yet been fulfilled, does not mean it is not to be taken literally! But with Israel something more sinister is going on as it concerns professing Christians denying God’s continuing distinct love and promised future blessings for them as His chosen people (Jeremiah 31:3). Well-known among those who have persecuted the Jews in history are professing Christians and church leaders; impostors and men quenching the Holy Spirit as loveless, self-absorbed religionists. Guilty professing Christians and so-called "theologians" who hold to the corrupt doctrine called “Replacement Theology,” purposely misinterpret and misapply prophetic Scriptures that plainly refer to God’s yet future dealings with Israel through her Messiah-King, Jesus, among their reasons to justify their humanly unexplainable contempt for and persecution of the Jews. Spiritually, as Revelation 12 makes plain, we understand that the historic irrational hatred of the Jews springs perpetually from Satan who has hated them as he hated Adam: because God loves them and through them has kept His promise of a Champion for us all to defeat him (Genesis 3:15; Deuteronomy 7:6-8)!

Nevertheless, how clever the author of confusion, Satan, who has thoroughly confused, divided and conquered much of outwardly professing Christianity and theologians with all of their many theologies crafted out of the arrogant pride of the sinful flesh who reject God’s Word as it is written, instead imposing their thoughts upon and twisting it to suit their shameful ends to include the former enslavement of my people and murder! God is about to destroy both corrupt theologians and their theologies who have deceived and led many astray in His judgment upon manmade Christianity the religion already underway and soon to be felt hard in the West just as it happened to the wise in their own eyes in all of the major judgments He has brought upon the Jewish people (Isaiah 29:13-14; Jeremiah 8:8-12; Matthew 15:1-14, 23:1-33; 1 Corinthians 3:18-23; 2 Peter 3:14-16). In those days, no faithful Christian will stand by the power of what he and others he reveres think about God and His Word. But he will stand by what he knows of God and His Word in his faith tried and exercised in God’s strength supplied through His crucible of painful life experiences (Romans 5:1-5; Hebrews 5:12-6:12, 12:1-11; 1 Peter 1:1-9; 2 Peter 1:1-11). The word “theology” will never be used again!

Clearly, Jesus was born King of the Jews, believed He was during His life, died, rose again and returns the same (Luke 1:30-33, 22:14-18, 28-30, 23:1-3, 35-43, 24:13-49; Acts 3:13-26). As powerfully depicted to John in the Lord’s Revelation, when He comes, many crowns adorn His head representing the multiple realms of dominion from earth to Heaven His rule will encompass not the least of which will be the nation and people of ethnic Israel in fulfillment of every Bible prophecy declaring it to the glory of God the Father (Isaiah 33:17-24; Jeremiah 30:1-9; Hosea 3;1-5; Amos 9:7-15; Matthew 28:18; Revelation 11:15, 19:11-16)! Truly, the entire cultural character of the Lord’s global millennial reign is Jewish since the nations must come worship Him at Jerusalem during “the Feast of Tabernacles” with those that do not being severely punished (Zechariah 14:16-19). And even with all of the nations (ethnicities) of those saved bringing their glory into the new eternal order after the Lord’s millennial reign, things honoring of Jewish heritage such as “New Jerusalem” as the true eternal city, a wall of “twelve gates” with the names of Israel’s “twelve tribes” written on them and twelve wall foundations with the names of Messiah’s twelve exclusively Jewish apostles written on them are prominently displayed forever (Revelation 21:1-14, 22-27)!

It is for good reason during this season of grace that the Lord left us no images of Jesus the Jewish Messiah since men are called to look to Him in faith and worship in spirit and truth (John 3:16, 4:20-26, 20:24-29). Therefore, let all who have tried to make the Lord Jesus over into their own ethnic image repent! Repent also from every form of Jewish bigotry. For with reverence and an overflowing debt of gratitude we Gentiles that are saved are to love the people of the Lord’s ethnicity caring for their physical welfare as fellow saints and longing for the salvation of the unsaved as those that have been grafted into their olive tree (Romans 15:25-28). None of this means we are to look the other way when individual Jews or Israel now in the land sin. The Lord Himself is sober about His own people calling those that oppose the Gospel and persecute persons who have turned to Him, “a synagogue of Satan,” (Revelation 2:9, 3:9, NKJV). Finally, let every guilty soul repent from holding to “Replacement Theology” understanding that your corrupt thinking is not only heretical, but also denies and makes a mockery of Israel’s literal hope in Jesus the Jewish Messiah expressed by godly Zacharias in his Holy Spirit inspired prophetic utterance over his son, John, we count precious at Christmas (Luke 1:67-80).

1 For additional insight on Replacement Theology as a heresy, see the article in the May-June 2013 Zion’s Fire Magazine, Replacement Theology: Disdaining God’s Character by David Ettinger though in it, I was saddened to learn that some contemporary thinkers I greatly admire through ignorance of biblical prophecy cannot see modern Israel’s place in God’s steadily unfolding work paving the way for the return of Jesus the Jewish Messiah.
2 To learn more about Augustine of Hippo see the Wikipedia Encyclopedia article of the same title.

3 See the article featured at the Web Site, Bible Study Tools, The Rise Of Allegorical Interpretation.

Tagged With: The Church does not replace Israel

Jesus: The Jewish Messiah, Pt. 1

On January 28, 2014 in Holidays by Robert Kelley

(I have posted my blog today to enjoy some extra days off celebrating Christmas. The Lord saying the same, I will post my next blog on Sunday, December 29, 2013. Merry Christmas to you and yours!)

Though the use of His name, Yeshua (or Yehoshua), in the Hebrew tongue was long ago supplanted among the Gentiles with the English, Jesus, the Man to whom the name belongs has always been and remains Jewish in ethnicity and heritage even now as a glorified immortal (Deuteronomy 17:14-15; Isaiah 22:20-23; Revelation 3:7, 5:1-7)! While the translation of His name into the many languages of the peoples is quite understandable, professing Western European Christians with their predominant manmade Christianity the religion have taken the extraordinary step of effectively erasing not only the Jewish ethnicity of Jesus, but His masculinity by artistically reinventing Him in art as an effeminate looking blond, long haired, blue eyed Anglo-European. Those that stumble over the Lord Jesus as a Jewish Man for whatever reasons, unavoidably end up failing to fully appreciate the prophetic significance of the New Testament narrative presenting His birth celebrated at Christmas and God’s subsequent multi-layered work of salvation through Him on behalf of the Jews and all mankind.

For centuries prior to the birth of Jesus in the city of king David’s nativity, God spoke through men He used as seers; prophets through whom He revealed His foreordained plans to raise up a mighty King of the Jewish people (Genesis 49:8-12; Numbers 24:15-19; 1 Chronicles 17:1-15; Psalm 89:19-37; Jeremiah 23:5-6; Micah 5:2-4; Matthew 2:1-12). The Son of God from eternity was incarnated; conceived in the womb of a Jewish virgin named Mary (Miriam) engaged to a Jewish man, Joseph, both of whom were descendants of David fulfilling the words of the prophet and angelic messenger (Isaiah 7:10-14; Luke 1:26-38). With the help of God, Mary and her relative, Elizabeth, understood the prophetic significance to their people of the royal Child Mary carried; the Jewish Savior and King she birthed that we worship at Christmas (Luke 1:39-56, 2:1-14)! Jesus is called in English, Christ or Messiah meaning Anointed One because He is expressly chosen by God to serve His purposes to deliver and rule over Israel as of first importance, then all the peoples of the earth (Isaiah 11:1-10, 42:1-7, 49:5-6, 61:1-11; Matthew 12:15-21; Luke 4:16-21).

The rest of the Christmas narrative in Luke continues unfolding in the context of heightened messianic expectations stirred by God as well as Jewish sacred ritual He mandated in His covenant with Abraham (which required the circumcision of Jesus as a Jewish male) and the Law (Genesis 17:9-14; Luke 2:15-38). Later, bound up in His name announced by the angel and with an introduction from His relative, John the Baptist, Jesus the Jewish Messiah displayed the superior power He had to deliver the people of His heritage from the afflicting powers of darkness as well as sin and death (Matthew 3:1-17, 4:12-25; Mark 2:1-12; Luke 7:11-17). He later fully accomplished an eternal atonement for them through His sacrifice on Calvary after their rejection (Isaiah 52:13-15; Matthew 16:13-23, 27:1-56). The many rejected Him not understanding that deliverance from personal sin was their greatest need (Isaiah 53). While not completely explained by the prophets because they did not understand all that they were saying and writing about God’s future salvation (1 Peter 1:10-12), it was revealed by the Lord’s apostles that God’s blessing of the Gentiles through Israel’s Savior and King was their inclusion with them through repentance and faith in the grace of His salvation during this temporary season of grace about to close (Ephesians 2:11-3:13)!

Having broken the Old Covenant God made with them at Sinai, the Lord Jesus came to usher in the promise of God’s New Covenant with Israel through His blood offered not in the Jewish copy of the heavenly sanctuary (in all of history no other people on earth has been given designs and instructions to build things that copy the originals in Heaven), but the very sanctuary of Heaven itself (Jeremiah 31:31-34; Luke 22:19-20; Hebrews 7:11-8:13, 9:11-28). While the blessings of God’s New Covenant with Israel has been graciously expanded by Him to include Gentiles that believe on Jesus, it is of a first priority the fulfillment of His promise to the Jews as the apostle Paul laments in the face of his people’s stubborn unbelief (Romans 1:16, 9:1-5). God’s New Covenant with Israel is the only one in the Bible that speaks directly to Jews and Gentiles as believers in Jesus, “the way” in its terms and conditions (John 14:1-6; Acts 9:1-2; Hebrews 10:11-39, NKJV). The structure and terms of God’s covenants with Abraham and David apply only to them but find ultimate fulfillment exclusively in Jesus who causes the promised blessings to flow to Israel and us through Himself by faith (Galatians 3:15-18, 26-29).

Knowing everything about the past and future as though they were before Him in the present (Isaiah 41:21-23, 42:8-9), the omniscient God led the apostle Paul to write to the Christians at Rome in his epistle we call Romans. In it, the Jewish apostle to us Gentiles not only perfectly reviews and presents the major thrust of God’s great salvation, but right in the middle as it were, he warns the Gentiles at Rome (which three centuries later would become the corrupt seat of Christianity the religion of men) and the world over who would be the major stewards of the faith for as it has turned out nearly nineteen hundred years, not to get the big head concerning God’s remedial judgment of the Jewish people. He has not abandoned His chosen people! Jesus their Messiah will return to fulfill all of the salvation tied promises made to them as a people by way of an elect remnant including the blessings of the New Covenant and secure dwelling back in the land He promised to their fathers (Genesis 12:1-3, 15:1-21; Jeremiah 30-33; Ezekiel 36-37; Malachi 3:16-18; Luke 13:34-35, 21:20-24; Romans 11:1-29; Revelation 7:1-8).

Tagged With: Jesus The Jewish Messiah

Strong Man Of God Blog

Robert Kelley's weekly instruction, observations and reflections inspired by the Lord posted each Sunday night.

Search

Categories

Archives