In this riveting episode, we delve into the Book of Romans, often hailed as the Constitution of Christianity. Using the lens of Biblical prophecy, we explore the profound and enduring role of Israel in both past and present contexts. Discover why the land of Israel, its people, and its promises remain central to world events and how God’s word foretells these miraculous happenings. Through a detailed study of Romans chapter 11, we uncover how close we are to witnessing the prophecy’s fulfillment.
ADRIAN ROGERS WAS A MOTIVATOR, AN ENCOURAGER, AND A LEADER OF THE FAITH. HE WAS ALSO PASSIONATE ABOUT PRESENTING SCRIPTURAL APPLICATION TO EVERYDAY LIFE CIRCUMSTANCES. AND YOU’LL HEAR THAT IN TODAY’S MESSAGE. NOW LET’S JOIN ADRIAN ROGERS.
SPEAKER 01 :
WE’RE MAKING OUR WAY THROUGH THE BOOK OF ROMANS. WE CALL THAT THE CONSTITUTION OF CHRISTIANITY. a solid word for an unsure age, foundations for our faith. That’s what it’s all about, and we’ve come today to chapter 11. Now, this chapter is a wonderful chapter, but it is full, and I’m going to try to go through 36 verses. Some of them we’ll touch very lightly, and some none at all. As a matter of fact, it’s a convoluted passage of Scripture, but it has great, great, blessings in it and great significance for these days in which we live because all of us have a feeling that we’re kind of looking into the muzzle of a loaded cannon and the storm clouds of Armageddon are gathering more and more and more. And the central focus of all of that is Israel, the land and the people. That’s what we’re dealing with today. Today is a message that deals in many ways with Bible prophecy. And it deals with the land of Israel. The title of the message is God through with the Jew. Now you may say, what does that have to do with me? I’m not a Jew. I’m a Gentile. Well, it has everything to do with you. And friend, it has everything to do with Bible prophecy. Almost 100% of the Bible prophecies are related to Israel, the land, and the people. So you need to listen up today because you’re going to learn something that will be an encouragement to you. Now, I say that Israel, the nation Israel, is the focal point in today’s world. Israel is in the headlines of every newspaper, not only in America, but around the world. The eyes of the world are focused on the little nation of Israel. And well, they should be, for Israel is the land and the people of destiny, as the Jew goes. So goes the world. Israel is God’s yardstick, God’s outline, God’s blueprint, God’s program, and God’s prophecy for all of the other nations of the world. Now, Paul has been talking about God’s plan and how it includes the Gentile. And some of the Jews may have been asking, well, what about us? What about the promises that God has made to us? And so Paul asked a rhetorical question in chapter 11 and verse 1. I say then, hath God… Cast away his people. God forbid. Now he’s saying, I’m not finished with the Jew. I have not cast away my people. I have not been unfaithful. I have not broken my promises. I have not altered my covenants. I have not forgotten my word. Paul says, God forbid that God could ever do that. And so Paul is going to show us in just a moment that God is not finished with the Jew. And I hope that you will understand that today. Israel, in many ways, the nation and the people are the center and the focus of the entire world. The land of Israel that I visited many times is the geographic center of the world. In Ezekiel 5, 5, God says to that land, I have put you in the midst of the nations and That is, you are in, as some give it, the navel of the nations. Israel is a land bridge between three continents, Asia, Africa, and Europe. It’s a great military and economic crossroads right there in the very hub of the nation. It is the geographic center of the world. It’s the revelation center. The book that I hold in my hand that I’m preaching from was written in that land area. By those people, by and large. It’s here where Moses and the prophets gave us the Word of God. It is the spiritual center because Jesus is of the tribe of Judah. Jesus is a Jew and He was born in the land of Israel. He lived in the land of Israel. He taught in the land of Israel. He was crucified in the land of Israel. He was buried in the land of Israel. He rose in the land of Israel. He ascended from the land of Israel. He’s coming back to the Mount of Olives right there by Jerusalem. So it is the spiritual center. It is the prophetic center. If you want to know what God is doing in the world, if you want to understand Bible prophecy, you’ll never understand it apart from understanding what God is doing in Israel. It is the storm center. As we’ve said, the clouds of Armageddon are gathering even as we’re talking. But thank God it will be the peace center. That’s the reason the Bible tells us to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. And there will never be peace in this world until there’s peace in Jerusalem. And there won’t be peace in Jerusalem without Jesus, the Prince of Peace. And it is the glory center. One of these days when the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as waters that cover the sea, the law shall go forth from Zion and God is going to rule and to reign on this earth from Jerusalem. Frederick the Great, it is said, one time asked his court chaplain, can you give me proof of the inspiration of the Word of God? How can I know that the Bible is the inspired and fallible Word of God? And Frederick the Great’s court chaplain gave one answer. He said, the Jew. sire that is just look at god’s dealing with israel this nation is a god created god decreed god loved god called god elected and god protected people and it is not without significance that Jerusalem, the capital of this land, is the most important city upon the face of the earth. Not Washington, not Moscow, not London, not Paris, not Tokyo, but Jerusalem. Most important city upon the face of the earth. And in the book of Zechariah chapter 12 and verse 3, the Bible says, “…in the last days Jerusalem will be a burdensome stone.” for all the nations of the world. And friend, that is true today in a very real way. And there’s more pressure being put on Israel right now to sacrifice her sovereignty and to take Jerusalem and make it an international city rather than the capital of God’s ancient people and God’s ancient land. So, Paul comes to this question in the book of Romans. Has God cast away His people? God… Forbid. And then he gives five proofs that he has not. And that’s what the message is going to consist of today, these five proofs. And the first proof is what I want to call the convicting power of God. The convicting power of God. Write that down and look, if you will, in verse 1 again. I say then, hath God cast away his people? God forbid. Now notice the illustration he gives. For I also am an Israelite of the seed of Abraham of the tribe of Benjamin. Paul says, I am a Jew. I am exhibit number one. And why did Paul use himself as an example? Because there were other Jews around. Well, he was a believing Jew. He believed in the Lord Jesus Christ. And he said that he was a pattern. God made him a pattern. He said of himself in another place, he was one born out of due time. That is, he was not in the due time, but he was out ahead of his time. I want you to think about how the Apostle Paul was saved. Well, he weren’t saved the way the Apostle Paul was saved. Paul was on the road to Damascus persecuting Christians. And suddenly… He saw a light above the brightness of the noonday sun. He was knocked off his horse. He’s blind. Jesus appears to him literally and the heavens are rolled back. He sees Christ and the Lord speaks to him and the apostle Paul is converted. And then the apostle Paul becomes, as he says, a missionary to the Gentiles. And notice in verse 13, for I speak unto you Gentiles in as much as I am the apostle of the Gentiles. I magnify my office. God used him to evangelize the pagans of this world. Well, that’s what God is going to do with Israel. There is coming a day, friend, when God will supernaturally appear to Israel. They will see him. The as Paul saw Jesus, and a nation will be born in a day. Now let me give you a scripture for that, in case you wonder about that. Zechariah chapter 12, verses 8 through 11. In that day shall the Lord defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem. Now the day he’s talking about is the day that he’s already talked about when all the nations of the world are going to come against Jerusalem. This is the beginning of Armageddon. And the Antichrist and his forces will be bivouacked there in the valley of Megiddo. And they’re getting ready for that last sortie against Jerusalem. And it’s going to look dark for the people of God. And God says, in that day, in that day, as the news tightens around Jerusalem and the people of Jerusalem, God says, in that day shall the Lord… defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David now David was a mighty warrior and God says in that day the puny Israelite is going to be like David and the house of David shall be as God and the angel of the Lord before them and it shall come to pass in that day that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem And now watch this. And I will pour upon the house of David. Now he’s talking about Jews now. And upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications. Now watch this point. And they shall look upon me whom they have pierced. Did you read that? That’s not New Testament. How did Jesus die? He died on a cross. They pierced his hands and his feet. And God says, in that day, they are going to see me whom they have pierced. Now, folks, not only the Jews, but we pierced him also. But that’s not the point he’s making right now. He’s making the point that they’re going to see him. Now, who is speaking? Jehovah is speaking. Who is he speaking to his people? Well, Jehovah is a spirit. God is a spirit. How can you pierce a spirit? The only way I know is that spirit has to take flesh. He has to become incarnate. He has to die upon a cross. They shall look upon me whom they have pierced and shall mourn for him as one mourneth for his only son. Oh friend, just as the apostle Paul saw the Lord Jesus, the resurrected glorified Jesus, these Jews in that day are going to see him. And then Paul became a witness to the nations of the world. And these Jews are going to become a witness to the nations of the world. In Revelation chapter 7, John the Apostle had a foreglimpse into glory. And he saw a great number of Jews. He said 144,000 of all the tribes of Israel. They are sealed with the seal of God in their foreheads. And then he tells in Revelation chapter 7, beginning about verse 9, of the witness of these 144,000. And he said, I saw a great multitude of all kindreds, tribes, peoples, nations, a multitude that no man could number. And these are the ones that have come out of the great tribulation, washed their robes white and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. These are people who had never heard the gospel, who will be witnessed to by these 144,000 Jews. Can you imagine what it would be like now? Not one Apostle Paul, but 144,000 Apostle Pauls preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ who had been miraculously converted. So what’s he saying? He’s saying, listen, God’s not finished. I am an example. I am a pattern of what God is going to do with the Jew. So the very first thing that I want you to put down of these five proofs is this, the converting power of God. Now, if you don’t think that Israel can come to Christ, you don’t understand the power of God. The same power that convicted the Apostle Paul is the power that will bring them to Jesus. Now, here’s the second reason. Not only the convicting power of God, but here’s the second reason. The careful preservation of God. Now, God is carefully preserving His people. Look in verses 2 and following. Have God cast away His people which He foreknew? Watch ye not what the scripture saith to Elijah. Don’t you know what the scripture said to Elijah? How he maketh intercession to God against Israel, saying, Lord, they’ve killed thy prophets. Dig 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 7,000 men who have not bowed the knee to the image of Baal. Now here’s the therefore. Even so, then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace. Now what does that mean? A remnant means that which is left, that which is saved, that which is not destroyed. Old Elijah was there. having a contest with 450 prophets of Baal, he said, Lord, I’m the only one. There’s nobody left, and now they’re trying to kill me. And God says, Son, look up here. Let me tell you something. You’re not the only one left. And when you die, Israel will not die. Why, right over here. I’ve got 7,000. He had more than 7,000, but there were 7,000 right there who had not bowed the knee. to Baal. God always has a remnant. God always has a faithful people. And Israel, there’s always been a remnant of believing Jews and there always will be because God is the one who preserves Israel. Go back to chapter 9 and verse 27. Isaiah also cried concerning Israel, though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant shall be saved. Now friend, listen to me. The Jews were not the chosen people because of their faithfulness, and they’re not going to be rejected because of their unfaithfulness. Now, God here is talking nationally. He’s not talking personally. He’s talking nationally. He’s saying there will always be a nation Israel. The Jewish nation… The Jewish faith are indestructible. I want to give you a great passage to put in your margin. This is one of the greatest passages in the Bible, in my estimation. It’s found in Psalm 89, and it’s talking about God’s irrevocable covenant and promise to David. Now, this is what he says to King David, beginning in verse 27. Also, I will make him… He’s talking now about David. Also, I will make him my firstborn higher than the kings of the earth. And this is a prophecy for David’s greater son, the Lord Jesus, when every knee shall bow. My mercy will I keep with him forevermore. Just underscore evermore. My covenant shall stand fast with him. His seed, that is his descendants, also will I make to endure forever. Underscore that, endure forever. And his throne as the days of heaven. Now, he talks about David’s descendants, his seed, and he says this, “‘If his children forsake my law and walk not in my judgments,’ and by the way, they did forsake God’s law, “‘and if they break my statutes,’ and they have broken his statutes, “‘and keep not my commandments, and they have not kept them,’ God says, “‘Then will I visit their transgression with the rod and their iniquity with stripes.’ God said, “‘I’ll take them to the woodshed,’ and boy, he has done that.'” But notice the nevertheless in verse 33. And friend, just underscore that in your Bible. Nevertheless, my loving kindness will I not utterly take from him, nor suffer my faithfulness to fail. My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that has gone out of my lips. Once have I sworn by my holiness that I will not lie unto David. His seed shall endure forever and his throne as the sun before me. It shall be established forever as the moon and as a fateful witness in heaven. Then he says, Selah. What does that mean? It means just think about that. Selah means just ponder that. God is saying, look, I have made a promise to David. If his descendants, if they break my laws, if they won’t keep my statutes, then they’re going to be punished. But I am going to keep my word. God has always had a remnant. And this nation is God-elected, God-decreed, and God-preserved. God prophesied that they would be disobedient, they would be dispersed, they would be discredited, but they would not be destroyed. And the king of Egypt… could not diminish them. The Red Sea could not drown them. Jonah’s whale could not digest them. The fiery furnace could not devour them. The gallows of Haman could not hang them. And the nations of the world cannot assimilate them. And the dictators of this world cannot annihilate God’s ancient people, the Jew. They have known all kinds of persecution. But you see, what God is talking about here is His preserving people. power he has a remnant according to grace now you think about the jews today did you know that they’re less than four tenths of one percent of the world’s population let that sink in four tenths of one percent not even one half of one percent the jews and yet the jewish people have captured the Almost 12%, almost 12% of all of the honors in science and health and medicine and music and public life, the Nobel Prize winners for the last 25 years, of them one-third to one-fourth have been Jews. Now, four-tenths of 1%, and yet one-third to one-fourth of the Nobel Prizes have gone to Jews. You don’t realize how God has touched your life through the Jewish nation. If you’ve ever taken an aspirin, Bear, who developed aspirin, was a Jew. If you have been vaccinated against polio, Sabin and Salk were Jews. If you’ve gone to the dentist and he deadened your gums, why, Waxman, Stricker rather, who developed Novocaine, was a Jew. If you’ve ever had an infection and used reptomycin, Waxman was a Jew. If you’ve ever had psychoanalysis, Freud was a Jew. If you’ve given to the Salvation Army or have been ministered to by the Salvation Army, the mother of William Booth, the founder of the Salvation Army, was a Jew. If in college you studied philosophy, Spinoza and other philosophers, many of them have been Jews. As a matter of fact, all history really revolves around six Jews. Moses, Paul… Marx, Freud, Albert Einstein, and then in the category all by himself, Jesus. They’re all Jews. They’re all Jews, whether for good or bad. I’m not saying that Marx was good. I’m just simply saying that they were Jews, that God has preserved these people in And then out of this nation, God has a remnant of believers. As he told Elijah, I’ve got 7,000 who have not bowed the knee to Baal. And so what you see is the convicting power of God. What you see is the continuing preservation of God. And then I want you to see what I’m going to call the controlling plan of God. Because see, God has a plan. Now watch this. Begin in verse 11 and see what he says here in verse 11 of chapter 11. I say then, have they stumbled that they should fall? Talking about the Jews. God forbid. But rather, through their fall, salvation is coming to the Gentiles for to provoke them to jealousy. God let the Gentiles get saved so that we could live godly lives and cause Jews to want what we have. That’s what he’s saying here, that he would see in us the beauty of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, notice what he says in verse 12. Now, if the fall of them be the riches of the world… and the diminishing of them, the riches of the Gentiles, how much more their fullness. Now, what’s he saying? He’s saying, look, in my plan, I had a Jewish Messiah. The Jews rejected him. But that gave me the platform to go to the Gentiles. And Paul became the apostle to the Gentiles. And you and I are reading from a Jew who wrote to us. the book of Romans, and we are listening to it today, and we’re being blessed by the mysterious plan of God. But God says, listen, that came about in a strange way when the Jews turned from the gospel, and we Gentiles are blessed. But now notice what he’s saying. I want you to listen to his inference here. He’s saying, listen, if God kept His Word to the Gentiles, and He did keep His Word to the Gentiles, remember that Israel was not to be just simply a reservoir into which God poured His blessings, but it was to be a pipeline through which God would disperse His blessings. And God said to Abraham, Abraham, through you all the nations of the world should be blessed. What God is saying is this, if I have prophesied that the Gentiles would be saved and they have been saved, how much more then will I keep my word to Israel and bring them back to me? Notice in verse 12, there is a fullness coming for Israel. Do you see that? He says, God forbid, now if the fall of them be the riches of the world and the diminishing of them, the riches of the Gentiles, how much more their fullness? Listen to what he’s saying. In verse 15 he speaks of their receiving. For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be? What is the point? What is the point? Listen to the point. You have to follow Paul’s logic. Paul is saying that God is doing all of this according to a magnificent plan. And they were diminished. They fell away. But he’s saying they will come back. They are diminished now, but they will be full. They went away, but they will be received. And what God is saying is if I kept my word to the Gentiles, I’m going to keep my word to the Jews. And if I could take unsaved pagan Gentiles… and bring them to Israel’s Messiah, how much more can I take Israel and bring Israel to her own Messiah? Now, here’s the next thing. Not only the power of God, the preservation of God, the plan of God, but the continuing promise of God. That’s the next thing. Notice, if you will, in verse 16 of this same chapter. “‘For if the first fruit be holy, the lump is also holy, and if the root be holy, so are the branches.'” Now, what he’s talking here is the covenant that he made with Abraham and with Isaac and Jacob. In the Old Testament, when there would be a woman would be baking bread, according to Old Testament law, she had to take a pinch of that dough and offer it up to God. Numbers tells us about that. She’d take part of that dough and offer it to God. It belonged to God. Now, that lump meant that the whole lump was holy because that pinch of dough had been offered to God. All of the bread belonged to God who gives us our daily bread. And then he says also the same thing, that if the root be holy, so are the branches. That is, the tree is going to be like the roots of the tree. Now, what he’s saying is this. that God made promises to Abraham. God made a covenant, an unbreakable covenant with Abraham. And so if that little lump of dough, Abraham, was holy, all the loaf belongs to me, God is saying. And if Abraham, the root, is mine… The tree is mine. Now, what God is simply saying is this, I am going to keep my covenant promise to Abraham. And God has not broken His promise, and God cannot break His promise to Abraham, Isaac, and to Jacob. Now, Abraham is the tree, and we who are Gentiles have simply been grafted in. Look in 17 and 18 of this. And if some of the branches be broken off, that’s unbelieving Jews, and thou being a wild olive tree, that’s you, mister, were grafted in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree, boast not against the branches. But if thou boast, remember, thou bearest not the root, but the root thee. In other words, hey friend, we have entered into Israel’s blessings. We’re just grafted in. That’s all we are. We’re the wild olive. The Jews are the true thing. And so what he is saying is this, that if I can take unbelieving pagans and make believers out of them, how much more can I bring Jews to their true Messiah? I was speaking to some Jewish rabbis. And by the way, I love Jewish rabbis. They are witty, charming, delightful, and very intelligent. And they were saying, we don’t think you ought to proselytize us. I said, look, folks, you proselytize me. You proselytize me. I belong in that olive tree only by the grace of God. I’m rooted in Abraham just as every Jew is rooted in Abraham. Is this getting too deep for you? I hope not. Let’s move on to the third thing here. And that is the culminating purpose of God. What is the culminating purpose of God? What is God aiming at? Well, begin in verse 25. And he says, for I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery. lest ye should be wise in your own conceits, that blindness in part is happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles become in. And so all Israel shall be saved. As it is written, there shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob. Now, he’s not talking here about spiritual Israel. He’s talking about natural Israel. God never calls spiritual Israel Jacob. He’s talking about literal fleshly Jews here. Now, let me tell you how God is going to consummate His purpose and His plan with the Jews. Now, be very alert right now. How’s God going to do it? Number one, He’s going to do it in His time. Now, look in verse 25. Look at it now so your eyes can see it. I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits, that blindness in part, the blindness is not total and it is not final. Blindness in part is happened to Israel until, until the fullness of the Gentiles become in. If you want to get a blessing sometime, just study the untils in the Bible. Just study the untils. God does things in His time, whether you like it or not. God has a purpose. God is visiting the Gentiles to take out of them a people for His name. That’s what the book of Acts says. And afterward, He’s going to return and build again the tabernacle of David. He does it until the fullness of the Gentiles comes in. What is the fullness of the Gentiles? That’s the church. One of these days, the church is going to be complete. When will the church be complete? When will the last soul be saved? I don’t know when the last soul will be saved, but when the last soul is saved, that will be the fullness of the Gentiles. There’s a number known to God alone. I don’t know. You don’t know. Nobody knows when that last soul is going to be saved. But the Bible tells us that God is going to do it in His time, and blindness in part has happened to Israel until… The fullness of the Gentiles comes in. So number one, it is in His time. Number two, it is through His Son. Look, if you will, now in verse 26. And so all Israel shall be saved as it is written. There shall come out of Zion the deliverer and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob. Who is the deliverer? His name is Jesus. Just in the darkest hour for Israel. This is when they’re going to look upon him whom they have pierced. This is what the Bible says in Zechariah chapter 12, verse 9. It shall come to pass in that day that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. And I will pour upon the house of David and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem the spirit of grace and of supplications. And they shall look upon me whom they have pierced. That’s what he’s talking about right here, the deliverer. shall come out of Zion. Then he says in Zechariah chapter 13 and verse 1, in that day there shall be a fountain open to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and uncleanness. What is that fountain? There’s a fountain filled with blood drawn from Emmanuel’s veins and sinners plunge beneath that flood. lose all their guilty stains. So number one, listen, it is in His time. Number two, through His Son. Now next, according to His Word. Look, if you will, in verse 27 now. This is my covenant unto them. That means an unbreakable promise. When I shall take away their sins. As concerning the gospel, they’re enemies for your sakes. But as touching the election, they are beloved for the Father’s sakes. That is the fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance. Now what does that mean? God keeps His Word. God is not a liar. If God says He’s going to do it, He’s going to do it. You say, I don’t understand it. You don’t change it. You say, I don’t believe it. That doesn’t make any difference. God will keep His Word. It is in God’s time. It is through God’s Son. It is according to God’s Word. Now, next of all, I want you to notice it is by God’s grace. Begin in verse 30 and look at this. 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 how many? Upon all. Again, don’t get the idea that God only wants some people saved. God says all are unbelievers. And God says, I want mercy upon all. But the point is that God is going to do this just out of sheer grace. And remember that over there in verse 6, And if by grace it is no more works, otherwise grace is no more grace. And if by works it is no more grace, otherwise work is no more work. What does he mean by that? I’m just going to do it by my grace. I mean, this is the sovereign God who is going to do this. It is through His Son, friend. It is by His grace. And finally, it is for His glory. Look at this in verses 33 through 36. Paul just gets through writing. I can just see him as he wipes his tears. And he just, he throws up his hands and he says, Oh! the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God. How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out. For who hath known the mind of the Lord? Or who hath been his counselor? Or who hath first given to him and it should be recompense unto him again? For of him and through him and to him are all things to whom be glory forever. Amen. Now you say, Pastor Rogers, I don’t understand predestination. I don’t understand election. I don’t understand foreknowledge. I don’t understand all of this. Well, help yourself. Neither do I. And not anybody out there who does. You know how I know? The Apostle Paul didn’t know. He said, who can understand this? Who has been God’s counselor? His ways are past finding out. So why don’t you quit trying? And begin to live by the Word of God, what God has revealed to you. You say, I don’t understand how there can be an election and God can know ahead of time and yet man has a free will. Just believe it. It’s not up to you to synthesize these things. It’s not up to you to put these things together. You just simply believe. When the Bible says, whosoever will may come, believe it. And when the Bible says that God wants to have mercy upon all, believe it. And when the Bible says Christ died for the whole world, believe it. And just say, who can understand the ways of God, the mind of God? And right here in this passage of Scripture, I want to tell you something, folks. Theology turns to doxology. What a mighty God. What a mighty God. But what he is showing is this, that God is not finished with the Jew. He shows the power of God that convicted him. That’s going to happen to the Jew one time. He shows the preservation of God that kept that remnant. in Elijah’s day and how God is preserving the Jews today. He shows the plan of God, incredible. The Jews turn from him, but Paul turned to the Gentiles, and the Gentiles get saved, and then the Jews are going to come back, and a great number of them are going to get saved. And then he talks about the promises of God, that God has made a covenant with Abraham. Abraham is the root. The root is holy, so is the tree. That first lump belongs to God, so does the whole loaf of bread belong to God. Now that’s the promise of God. God will not break His promise. And then finally, the purpose of God. So all Israel shall be saved. Doesn’t mean every Jew will be saved. It means those who trust in Him are the true Israel. They’re going to be saved whether they’re Jew or Gentile. They’re going to come to the Lord Jesus Christ. I want to read this to you. I copied this out of a news magazine I get from a Jewish organization, not Christian at all. They are so orthodox, they won’t even spell the name God. They say G-D. They would not even spell God lest they be accused of using God’s name irreverently. By the way, these people are planning to rebuild the temple, the people who wrote this article. Here’s what this Jew said, and I want you to listen to this. Israel is celebrating the Jubilee of Redemption. This is the first Jubilee in the modern history of Israel. The unique significance of this Jubilee is that it is celebrated at the time of the end time redemption. Even though the people of Israel have passed through exciting times in their biblical history… We are now living in the most exciting time in the history of the chosen people of God. All of the prophecies of the God of Israel are being fulfilled since the creation of the state of Israel. Over the past 50 years, God has again dramatically appeared in the life of His beloved nation and land. All His prophetic promises are becoming a reality. According to the word of God, three major events will occur in the end time prior to the coming of Mashiach ben David. That is Messiah, son of David. First is the reestablishment of the state of Israel and the land of Israel. We saw that May 14, 15, 1948. The second is the regathering of the Jewish people to the promised land from all over the world. We’ve seen that as they’ve come even out of Soviet Russia on wings of eagles. The third is the rebuilding of the temple on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem on the same place as the first and second temples. This man and others are gathering money, gathering materials to rebuild the temple right there on the Mount of Olives. And what he’s saying is this. Everything is at hand. We’re ready. This is the most exciting time. This is the year of jubilee redemption. He just doesn’t know how much he knows. He just does not know how much he knows. And my heart almost explodes when I think of people like this who will see him and say, what are those wounds in your hands? And you say, these are they. For I was wounded in the house of my friends. And in that day, there’ll be a fountain open for the inhabitants of Jerusalem. for cleansing, and for sin. Is God through with a Jew? God forbid. And He’s not through with you either. If you want Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and Lord, let me help you to pray right now so you can be saved. Would you pray like this, Dear God, I am a sinner. Now, folks, you’ll never get saved until you come that far. I am a sinner. I am a sinner. And my sin deserves judgment. But I need and I want mercy. Jesus, I believe that you are the Messiah of Israel. The Savior of the world. Thank you, Lord, that I could be grafted into that olive tree. Lord Jesus, now, right now, right now, I open my heart. I receive you, Jesus, as my Lord and Savior. Come into my life. Forgive my sin. Save me, Jesus. Did you pray that? Then by faith pray this way. Thank you for saving me. I don’t look for a sign. I don’t ask for a feeling. I stand upon your word. You said if I would trust you, you would save me. Thank you for saving me. And now, Lord Jesus, give me the courage to make it public. Help me never to be ashamed of you. In your name I pray. Amen.
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