In the Cocoon (Killing the Hostility, 2/2)

I'm writing part 2 of the Killing the Hostility posts on May 11, 2016, the modern-day nation of Israel's 68th birthday, Yom Haatzmaut.  68 years ago, God did a miracle, fulfilling the Old Testament prophecies of Ezekiel 36-39, most specifically Ezek. 37:1-14.  The dry bones live! And, Israel's population is 10x what it was in 1948.1  For your listening and viewing pleasure today:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgXXJBmwBJg

Now....consider the cocoon.  What began as eggs on a leaf transformed next into caterpillars.  This stage moved to that of a pupa (chrysalis, cocoon).  From that hatched a beautiful butterfly.  Yet, all were stages of the same organism, despite their disparate appearances.

Once again, today's (and yesterday's passage) - - Ephesians 2:11-16 (NET)

1Therefore remember that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh – who are called “uncircumcision” by the so-called “circumcision” that is performed on the body by human hands – 12that you were at that time without the Messiah, alienated from the citizenship of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13But now in Christ Jesus you who used to be far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14For he is our peace, the one who made both groups into one and who destroyed the middle wall of partition, the hostility, 15when he nullified in his flesh the law of commandments in decrees. He did this to create in himself one new man out of two, thus making peace, 16and to reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by which the hostility has been killed.

In eternity past, God saw all and planned all.  Yes, the Jews became manifested as His chosen race from the days of Abraham.  Still, he saw the Ephesian Christians, even then.   He saw every believer "in Christ", even then.  We are all part of the butterfly life cycle.  The Jews were the first manifestation of His redemptive grace through faith (Genesis 15:6; Habakkuk 2:4  - - "the just shall live by faith").  However, the Church of Jesus Christ was grafted in, bound up in the cocoon with the Jewish people from the time of Jesus Christ's resurrection onward.  At the moment, the Christian Church age is continuing to unfold.  But, the end of the story is not yet.

Look, the honest seeker will find that there are hundreds of Old Testament prophecies about Messiah, and that Jesus Christ fulfilled/is fulfilling the ones which predicted the suffering prophet and Melchizedekian priest.  He has yet to fulfill the ones about the messianic conquering King.  That will occur in the "final stage of the butterfly's development".  Two illustrative links:

http://christianity.about.com/od/biblefactsandlists/a/Prophecies-Jesus.htm

http://www.accordingtothescriptures.org/prophecy/353prophecies.html

So, now to the central tenet of our text and the central question from yesterday's part 1:  How do we heal the schism? There is only one path to healing, and that is through "the Way, the Truth, and the Life" (John 14:6), Jesus Christ. Ephesians 2:14 states "He is our peace" - - - not only the Christian's peace but the Jew's peace as well.

Currently, we are like that ridiculous image posted in yesterday's blog - - that of the 2-headed monster, with one eye in each head.  Yet, despite how we act toward one another, in reality, we are all, Jew and Gentile, bound up in the cocoon of God's eternal plan, hatched before the foundations of this world were ever laid.

Through His blood sacrifice, Jesus overrode (but did not negate) the Mosaic Law with His law of love and grace.  His new commandment pushed the traditions of the first century off of their pedestal and re-framed the theology.  At the end of the Church Age, He will return as conquering King.  At that time, the eyes of the Jewish people will be opened, and they will embrace Him as their true Mashiach (Messiah).   Messianic Jews know this truth and have already embraced Him as their Mashiach.

The reconciliation has already occurred, positionally, in the heavenly realm that exists independent of time and space.  God's divine plan is established and sure.  Through the cross of Jesus Christ, the hostilities between Jew and Christian have been slain.

As God fulfilled the Ezekiel 37 prophecies 68 years ago, He is continuing to unfold His plan in our modern time.  As surely as prophecies were fulfilled centuries ago, the remainder will be fulfilled in the centuries to come.  Our immutable Jehovah G-d has promised.  And, His Word can never be undone.

One Body - - Jew and "Greek" - - even so come, Lord Jesus!

Source:

https://flashtrafficblog.wordpress.com/2016/05/11/four-big-things-to-celebrate-on-israels-68th-modern-birthday/

Israel's Time-out

Most of us can remember time-out, or being "grounded".  Are there any "perfect children" out there?
No, I didn't think so, lol!  Our parents, at some time or other, took away some of the privileges of "sonship", due to our disobedience.

We are in Romans 11 today, a chapter in which Paul is describing how God has done this with the nation of Israel.  He has set the Jewish race aside during this present Gentile age.  Why did God do this?  Because of their refusal of Jesus Christ and His gospel. Because of their refusal to believe (11:20).   (More about God's "why" later...)

Does this mean that God has permanently abandoned His chosen people?  Absolutely not! As Paul says in verse 29:  "The gifts and calling of God are irrevocable."  God is keeping His promises to His chosen people, although it may not look that way to a casual observer.  And, in vs. 11 we read that they did not stumble and fall permanently.  So, God is now, in this present day, saving a remnant of Jews (vs. 5).  But the majority of them have been blinded spiritually, experiencing a partial hardening of their hearts toward salvation through Jesus Christ.

25 For I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: A partial hardening has happened to Israel until the full number of the Gentiles has come in.

Paul calls this a "mystery", a μυστήριον, in the Greek.   When we read, "show you a mystery" in the New Testament, we need to understand that the phrase is better translated "tell you a secret".  In other words, these "mysteries" are God giving some new revelation that He had previously kept to Himself.1

This brings us to the rest of God's "why" about hardening the hearts of the Jewish people.  He did it so that Gentiles would be evangelized and "grafted in" to the tree of salvation.  (I wrote about this in a previous post: "I'm a Wild Olive Branch, How About You?"  You can read it here: http://resplendentdaughter.blogspot.com/2014/08/good-morning-ezra-8-begins-by-listing.html )

Does that mean that He makes it impossible for Jewish people to be saved?  NO!  God's hardening does, however, make it more difficult.  Paul warns us Gentiles to not let this situation make us "conceited" over what God is doing in the lives of the Jews.  Instead, it should make us grateful, that salvation was extended to us Gentiles at all!

This explains why it is so difficult to witness to a person of Jewish heritage/faith.  Of all people in this present Church age to come to Jesus Christ, Jews find it the most difficult.  So close, but yet so far!  Interestingly, when those of Jewish heritage DO come to Jesus Christ, I truly believe that they "get it the most right" of any of the Christian sects, because they "marry" the beautiful feasts of Judaism with their salvation through grace, in Jesus Christ.  They are able then to see most clearly how God has revealed Himself over the eons, in one continuous glory.

If this idea of God hardening the hearts of the Jews (or of anybody else, for that matter) bothers you, come back tomorrow.  We'll explore this conundrum in more depth, as well as looking at how Israel will be once again be returned to the preeminent position.

Father, first of all, I acknowledge that my understanding is limited.  I'm just grateful that You choose to reveal Yourself to us humans at all.  We are not meant to understand everything.  You have had a magnificent plan all along.  Thank you for allowing us to learn the minutest portion of the mysteries, the secrets of Your heart.  In Jesus' name, amen.

Source:

http://doctrine.org/pauls-mystery/