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Romans Chapter 11 Israel’s Rejection not Complete nor Final 11:1 So I ask, God has not rejected > Has God once and for all turned away from the people of Israel, to the point that he will not even call them into salvation, are they condemned to hell just based on their nationality. Is God so angry with them that he has thrown out the baby with the bath water because there is no saving either. his people, > Has his anger toward those with whom he had made a covenant of obedience, which they themselves have broken. Caused him to reject and cutoff even those who might repent, causing them to suffer the eternal consequence of their fathers sins. has he? > Is this what God is saying he has done, or is there more then just a blanket statement here, that covers all Jews with condemnation, not matter their willingness to put their faith in God, though in much smaller numbers. Absolutely not! > Without any doubt, it simply is not the case! God never rejects the individual based on what the collective has done. He simply is bypassing the broken covenant with the Jews as a nation and reaching out to all peoples on a individual bases, as opposed to the former, which was through the Jewish nation. For I too am an Israelite, > Let me give you the best example that I can, myself, you all know that I am a Jew. But for those who were unaware of this, let me establish it for the record, and make it clear, that I am not in my argument of repudiating the Jews, as having sole possession of God, renouncing my citizenship as an Israelite. Rather I am establishing it as the rightful covenant, that I am compelled to fulfill. Just as I do not reject the law because liberty thru grace has come to man, but seek to fulfill the law thru the power of grace that has come to me. So because salvation has come to the Gentiles also, I seek to convert the Jews thru the grace that has come to the Gentiles. Which is right because salvation came to the Gentiles, thru the Jews, whom Jesus was himself. a descendant of Abraham, > So here is my claim to being an Israelite, and let the record show, that I still embrace that which I am, a true descendant of Abraham, not just in the flesh, but also in faith. I have a historical claim to being a child of Abraham and a spiritual claim, as one living in faith before God, as a leader among the Gentiles and proclaiming salvation thru Christ. from the tribe of Benjamin. > And more specifically I am also from the tribe of Benjamin, which bordered on Jerusalem. So I was raised not in a distant and well removed place from Jewish traditions. But in sight and full view of all that transpired among the government of the Jews. All the religious practices were a part of my life from childhood, I am a Jew. 11:2 God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew! > There are no secrets before God, God has always known who were his friends and who were his enemies, and made plans to save his friends and destroy his enemies. God always knew that not all Jews loved him, in fact most didn’t. They were simply living off the inheritance left to them from the rich faith of their forefathers. But now that trust fund has been wasted and like the prodigal son, they have no fortune or faith of their own to rely upon to take care of them. They must live on their own, as a destitute and poor people. God will sustain the faithful, but he will no longer allow the wicked among them to live off the comforts of his blessings of the faithful. God tells man that if he will not labor, he should not eat. In the same manner, he tells the Israelites, if you will not be faithful to me, you will not sit at my table of blessings and eat. Do you not know > If you didn’t already know, let me give you a another history lesson about Gods power and how he makes preparations ahead of time, to handle that which seems out of control and is actually coming about just as he foreknew it would. Because God is always ahead of man in that which he does. what the scripture says about Elijah, > That lesson is in the account of Elijah, where after defeating the wicked in a massive show of supernatural power of God. Elijah was angry due to Israel’s sinfulness in the sight of Gods glory and the fact that they would not repent and serve God. how he pleads > So he prosecutes them before the throne of God and argues their sinfulness before God, as being an unworthy people. He attacks them for what they have done and suffers in anguish over his feelings of solitude, for what has taken place. with God > He instructs God, as though to teach God, what has taken place and is pointing out his faithfulness alone. He wants God to realize that Elijah is overpowered in his battle and that God may have misjudged the situation. That it is Elijah himself who will have to pay the price and consequences for his having misjudged their reaction to his display of power, or so he thinks. against Israel? > So he lays out an argument against what it is that Israel has done and seeks out God with his complaint of them, and to see what will happen to him in the future. 11:3 "Lord, they have killed your prophets, > Many of Gods prophets are now dead, they were slain by Ahab the husband of Jezebel, who ordered their deaths, because they would not worship Baal, the false god of idol worship. They consider us who are faithful to you, to be in the way and want nothing to do with us. they have demolished > They showed no respect for you, they vandalized all that you have stood for. They wanted to remove you from the land and wipe out any memory of who you are from their minds. They are trying to evict God from Israel. your altars; > Your altars have all been torn down and no one even cares, if you care that they have done this, they have turned their backs on you and your laws. I alone am left > What they did, they did all across the land and now there is no one but myself who stands up for your name. I fought against them and won, but in the end it was all for nothing, because they still did not repent. I just made them even madder at me, I went and stirred the hornets nest and now it’s me that they’re after. and they are seeking my life!" > They have threatened to kill me and what more can I do, I’ve had all I can take and am sacred to death, at what they will do to me. I don’t have even one friend to stand by me and console me in my anguish. I am in a constant state of trials, and not even sure now if you care what happens to me. 11:4 But what was the divine > Having this view, how did God see things differently then did Elijah? How does Gods supreme position counteract the plans of man, who are trying to circumvent that which God is doing. How in this case then did God make sure that the faithful would out survive the evil that was in the land. response to him? > And what was his answer to Elijah, as to his destitute and defeated position, at least as Elijah saw it. Did he seem alarmed or set back in his plans, was God caught off guard by Elijahs news, and would God have alter his thinking in order to recoup his losses. God never has a contingency plan, the future is as he predestined it to be. God foreknew mans wickedness, just as he foreknew mans faithfulness. So was God speechless at this cry of Elijahs? "I have kept > Not at all, God instead told Elijah that he was well prepared to carry on the Jewish faith, thru a group of Jews that Elijah was not even aware of. No matter the condition of this current group of Israeli leaders, God was able to rebuild Israel without their repentance, he had already written off the wicked as having any redeeming value. for myself > Because it is God himself who holds and keeps the faithful to be alive in their faithfulness. He hides them away in reserve, so that they are always there for him to do thru man, what it is that need be done. So it is God who preserves man, that is what is relevant and not man who preserves God. God reasons with man to instruct them, not to receive instruction from them. In the end it is always God going ahead of us that makes the difference, God is not in the rears, following behind in the supply line waiting for us to call for more ammunition. He is in front, circumventing the enemy and preparing your arrival. seven thousand men > So God had these seven thousand men kept out of the current battle, they were hidden away from or at least not even known of by Elijah, who had no idea that thy existed. No man knew their corporate identity, but God even had them numbered according to his desire to preserve the lineage thru the faithful. who have not > These were men who God helped remain faithful and secluded, and had been living in and invisible world, as compared to the real world that was all around them. They existed outside the realm of influence of the government of even the prophets, they were not defiled in the sins of Israel. This is not to say that they were one large group that lived together, almost invisible to others. They could have been scatter across no-mans-land, even unknown to each other. bowed the knee to Baal." > They would not worship false Gods or manmade idles, they knew who the true God was and worshiped only him. 11:5 So in the same way > God has been dealing with the condition of man in the same way since the beginning of creation. He provides for us in the face of sin, what we are not able to do for ourselves. He prepares the future and determines the path of believers and the judgement of the unbelievers. at the present time > Currently, the Jewish people have rejected Christ on a massive scale, you will hardly find anyone who can survive, let alone thrive in their faith among the Jewish people, rather they will persecute you, as I once did. there is a remnant > But that is not to say that all have gone astray and evil is in every heart of the Jews, I am evidence as proof of this, so are the Apostles. They are among a small but persistent group of faithful Jews, that are living proof of Gods power to keep the Jews alive in the tradition of Abraham’s faithfulness. We are kept alive despite our being persecuted to the point of death. chosen by grace. > And the only reason that we are alive and faithful, is that Christ chose us thru his mercy and extended to us his grace. That we might believe in that which to us in our normal state of sinfulness, is unbelievable. He gave us divine protection and divine insight, that was in prior times foreign to us. 11:6 And if it is by grace, it is no longer by works, > As a direct result of that, we can put to death any rumors or thoughts that somehow God was motivated to save us, due our having demonstrated some unique character that spurred him on to redeem us. Or obligated him to do so out of his moral righteousness to defend them that were as he is, in their own ethical behavior. It cannot therefore be an outpouring of response to vibrant and living mankind, that moral decency says must be preserved for the benefit of others. Sparing us was not due to necessity, but due to premeditated mercy to save us, from our worthlessness and place us into his worthiness. To transplant us from the desert of death, which is our self-definition, into an oasis of life, which is the self-definition of Gods existence. otherwise > If this were not the case, then there would be no need for the grace of God to be present in our lives. There would be no need for intercession to pray for that which we fail or do not have, because it would be attainable to us independently. Nor intervention from God on our behalf going before us to prepare our way, because we would be the cause of our own destiny. Your trust in God would be misplaced because your trust in him would be unnecessary, because you own deeds would cause him to deal with you based on your merit alone and payment of wage due you. Just as does an employer have an obligation to pay his employee a right wage for his merit of labor; God being a just God, would honor your righteousness and he would do so gladly because of who he is, if that were the case. grace would no longer > So grace is present, only when works, merit, and labor are absent, grace fills the vacuum of the void, that is there due to the absence of righteousness in mankind due to the sin, that has ate away the character in men to produce it. There can therefore be no righteousness where there is sin and no sin where the is righteousness. God is righteous and has no sin by nature, where man is sinful and bears no righteousness by nature, they are opposing forces that cannot be joined, except thru grace. be grace. > So it is all in Gods mercy, that man is able to find salvation. Where man has labored only for the wages of his sins and the results that, that sin brings to them. Because his efforts for holiness, for holiness sake alone, is void and absent. But God for righteousness sake, where sin is absent, produced grace and its effect, salvation. So it is God who establishes his righteousness thru us, not because we impressed him into defending and aligning himself with our good deeds. But out of the pity, that he took thru mercy on us, to save us without any cause to do so, but, what-was-himself, he saved us by. 11:7 What then? Israel failed > Israel had a plan, one that made them the rulers of rightness in the world, thru a form of righteousness, that they would have attained independently from God. Yet it was somewhat based on Gods standards, that they modified to make it look as though they were obedient. But only thru loop holes, that they had woven into their rules and regulations, and those were modifications that God did not honor. But even in those vain attempts at glory, they could not even meet their own standards, let alone Gods. to obtain > So they could not grasp a hold of it and retain their hold on to it, it kept slipping thru their hands and no amount of effort on their part, could make what they were doing legitimate. Even if their intention was to do rightness, they failed at it, it was a futile effort. But God new this was a problem of mans sin, and that he could deal with it, if man is willing to yield to his providing a resolution of it, for man. what it was diligently seeking, > But what Israel was trying to do, was show God how worthy they were outside of his provision for salvation. Not based on their forefathers examples of faith, but on what they considered was good works, but which God rejected. They truly labored at a form of godliness, but came up way short of their goal to acquire it. but the elect > While just the opposite has now happened to the chosen individuals, that were not Israeli. What happened to them was that God just showed up in their lives, one at a time and said, believe and trust in me, and I will provide you with salvation and call you righteous on account of my righteousness and ability to do so. I will write off your debt of sin, as having been fully received and recompensed, by yourselves having been recovered, thru my sons sacrifice on the cross. obtained it. > So the people that God choose to invite into his kingdom, had never even tried to please him or become righteous on their own. But then suddenly they became righteous even though they were not, and that was a gift from God, that came out of nowhere unexpectedly. It provided man with everything he needed for eternal life, all for nothing, because of God and, what-was-of-himself, to do of his own accord. So these he granted insight to believe with, so that they lacked nothing to obtain salvation without works of their own righteousness. God took their old life as a trade in for a new life thru Christ, and no further payment was needed, accepted or required for you to have ownership in Gods kingdom. You have a clear title of ownership now in Christ, God has devalued the dollar of mans goodness, to the point that it is worthless as a currency to which he would receive it from you as a payment for anything. So with nothing to offer God, you obtained salvation in spite of that fact. The rest > Then all those who refused to be enlightened, but rather choose to live in themselves for the gratification of sin. God grouped them together as outcast from receiving his mercy or even understanding what it is to have faith. To them it is foolishness, because in their conceit they thought themselves to be wise, and the elect that God made his, they considered as uneducated fools. Even as lesser humans in their genetic makeup, even worthy of death, they even thought themselves doing good to God by killing us off. I know, I was that way myself. were hardened, > So God puffed up their conceit, so that they would never be able to accept or even understand his offer of salvation and instead, turned them into living object lessons for the elect to see. As to how sin fully corrupts and reveals Gods glory, for what he has overcome for them to be saved in him. So the wicked in their vain wisdom, became the fools and never figured it out in life, and then in death it was too late. But we who have faith, learn from their conceit and understand the clear distinction between Gods goodness and their evil. 11:8 as it is written, "God gave > It is always in the providence of Gods will, that mans destiny is determined and sustained according to Gods desire, to either punish disobedience or bless that which he chooses to bless, according to his purpose. When God is angered over the Jews indignation and stubborn self-righteousness. God turns them over to the effects of that stubbornness and predestines them to live in this state of sin, without the ability or insight as to remove themselves from it. It is like being thrown into a deep well with no way out, unless someone lowers down a rope to rescue them. But God is not doing so at this time and they must live in this darkened world until God pulls them out of it. them a spirit > God instilled in them as a internal consequence of their sin, a outlook on life and eternity, that is self replicating itself among the people. It is as though each generation is teaching the next generation to live in denial of the truth. They seem to want to promote this lie as truth without investigating its validity. They teach and believe what is a myth and fantasy of their own making, and whether or not it is true is irrelevant to them. They prefer according to this internal attitude, that God has put in them, to have this outlook among them, that is self satisfying their vision of God, regardless as to whether or not it is true. They cannot be convinced otherwise in any argument though, because it is of God, that they should live in this state of mind. of stupor, > So what God did was dull their senses, so that their perception was incapable of recognizing their own egotistical attitudes. As a result of this condition, their focus then became egocentric on themselves, their world became exclusive to themselves and their ability to discern their own status was taken from them. They were operating in a diminished level of rational, yet could not perceive this diminished capability, due to the fact that their dulled senses imposed on them from God, prevented them from realizing their own condition. It was as though the nerve endings in their hands had been severed and they could not feel the pain of the fire when placing their hands in the hot coals. They were suffering grave damage, but unaware of the damage being caused to them without the warnings of the pain. They therefore suffered permanent loss of the hand, due to their diminished capacity to function and reason. eyes > As a direct result of this their vision became cloudy, they only saw what was near to their own purpose as imposed on them by God and what as outside of this field of vision was inconsequential to their thought process. They saw only their immediate self-centered world in front of them, that which was outside of this mind-sight, was disregarded and discarded as having any relevancy, as to its impact on their current or eternal destiny. that would not see > God had made it a fact in their lives that any of the truth that could set them free from this state of mind, was out of their field of vision. And though it might be clearly seen by others, to them it was nothing but indefinable objects, that just blur together and the effort to disseminate between them, too difficult a task for them to undertake. The process itself being out of their reach from the curse that God had put them under to live in this state of denial, made it impossible for them to find the truth. and ears > God also made them to live as an obstinate people, whose minds were closed to even hear the truth. Even if they were to hear it, their false pride, which God had so swelled within them, that they could not even open their ears and hearts to the possibility of being wrong. They simply turned a deaf ear thru their hardened hearts to the truth. They would rather deny the truth when hearing it and live in the shame from that act of dishonor, that, that ignorance would bring upon them. Then acknowledge it with honor, and submit to their failure in public humility. that would not hear, > So God constructed in their mindset, a soundproof heart of hearing, that would filter out the truth from ever reaching their hearts. So that they could not know the truth, even though they might try in their own efforts to now the truth. It would be beyond who they had become to receive the sound of it, the very pitch of its sound was to high from them to hear. God had limited their hearing to only low frequency rumbles, but the truth of God was only audible to those that God allowed to hear high frequency ranges. Just as dogs hear higher frequencies then humans, they could not hear the truth that God was speaking in. Because he was speaking in a frequency range higher then their hearing abilities. Just an analogy, but you get the point, it was their perceptive abilities that God took away from them. to this very day." 11:9 And David says, "Let their table become a snare > And so the host let them eat to their own demise, until they became fat and lazy off his blessings. And from that they could no longer labor due to their preoccupation with the luxury that surrounded them. They in their delusion, thought that the party would never end and so they did not prepare for their future and disregarded their sins. But soon it will come upon them and that which they relished in will destroy them, it consume their health and clog their arteries. and trap, a stumbling block and a retribution for them; > And from those well developed, poor health patterns, that they had lived in. Now became then embedded habits to them, as lifelong aliments from which they could not be healed. And from that they got what they deserved from the abuses of Gods goodness, that they took upon themselves, because they did not consider the ill effects of their behavior. 11:10 let their eyes be darkened > So I want them to be blinded by my truth and the light that I give them will be to bright for them to look upon with true eyes. So they will turn aside and live in the shadows, away from the exposure of what my mercy would do in them. Their lives will exist in the dull realms of darkness, where clear distinction is shrouded in the darkness of their minds. As a result of their narrow vision that I have given them, because that is what they wanted, that is where I have predestined them to live. so that > As a direct result of this having come upon them, they will exist in this state perpetually as a people. Predestined by me to do so, there will be no exit from this as a people. It is imprisonment imposed by me, which I brought upon them for their abuse of my goodness to them. they may not see, > That in this state, they will live in a walled compound which they have built, but then I have locked them in. Because they built arbitrary walls to keep themselves separate from man with my grace, which I wanted them to demonstrate on my behalf. I have now blinded them from even knowing their own condition, until I am no longer angry with them. What they constructed to keep my mercy in, I have used to keep my mercy out. I forbid them the use of my mercy, for their own self-centered intentions of its use. and make their backs bend continually." > Till finally one day, they are completely immobile from the weight, and their own secular concepts, of my having given them the truth to guide them. Whereas though, they rewrote it into their curriculum, as it benefited them, instead of becoming a benefit to man, as I had intended for them to do. So that they are now crushed from the weight of what they have done and I have no pity for them at this time and so they exist in this state. 11:11 I ask then, they did not stumble > The Jewish people have fallen from the grace of God… that I have argued for myself and clearly established it as the truth. Though there is a remnant among them that are true believers, as I myself am, the nation as a place of worship, is no more. Nor do the Jewish people have a right to claim themselves, as the chosen people of God, though they once were, they are no longer. into an irrevocable fall, > So this status that they are currently in, is it permanent, would and will God ever restore them to that status that they once held? Can the same God who demoted them in their position, promote them that they regain a
right place and standing before him? > Or is it Gods intention to eliminate them forever from his grace? Have they had there last dance and has God forgotten them and moved on to establish
himself in the rest of the world? > Don’t even think that way! God has in no way abandoned and abolished Israel as a people to which he will work thru. This is simply a redirection of Gods grace on a temporary basis. God will one day restore Israel to her former status, his promise to Israel is still intact, just operating at a diminished level. But by their transgression > So when we consider the Jewish people themselves, we should not ourselves though hold them in disregard. Because what has happened to them, left the door open for the non-Jews to come in and fellowship with Christ and become his church. It was their inaction before God, that made the non-Jews active in faith before God. So in a sense, they are still responsible for your knowledge of faith, and for that you should have gratitude and not disdain for them. But remember their current condition, because you were once as they are now, and you have direct access due to their failure and God is allowing you to pick up the slack, from what they did not do. salvation has come > So your salvation is now in full bloom among the Gentiles, because of the previous labors of the Jewish people. As misguided as many of them were, they were the ones who Christ appeared thru and made salvation possible. So you are saved according to Gods promise of salvation to the Jewish forefathers and God has now extended that offer of salvation directly to the Gentiles. to the Gentiles, > So for now, it is you Gentiles who have the responsibility to establish the true faith, that God wanted to establish beforehand among the Jewish people. You are now become the teachers of the world, even to the Jews. As to how one must be saved, and this is done for a purpose, as I have just stated, God is not done with the Jewish people. Instead he is driving home to them a lesson, which they will not then forget. That God is at all times the author of salvation and that no man saves himself thru the law, but it is God who saves man from being condemned by the law. to make Israel jealous. > So Gods intent then in dealing with the people of Israel, is to frustrate them in their attempts of saving themselves thru self- righteousness. By them seeing that Gods is blessing the work of Jesus thru the Gentiles, that the Jews look down their nose at, as not being worthy before God. Yet they see that he is in fellowship with them, so that they will learn, that what God desires is faith in his work that God is doing, not faith in ones own work, that we ourselves are doing. 11:12 Now if their transgression > And the cause of this is the result of the Jewish people having failed as a nation, to honor God and mankind with a demonstration of true faith. This was a sin before God and his retribution followed after it, which caused them to be disjointed as a single people, with God as their purpose. means riches > So the effect of their punishment, meant that the wisdom and salvation of God for mankind, came directly to the non-Jewish people. Bypassing the Jews, you became the recipients of Gods wealth and desires, his love was poured out on you and all his blessings followed that to you instead of the Jews. for the world > And that effect is being reproduced in all parts of the world with the continuing opposition of the Jewish people. The message is still going forward, the world is seeing Gods blessings independently from the Jews, whom God had wanted and intended to bless all nations thru. and their defeat > So God overthrew them as a people and a nation, and is scattering them to all ends of the earth. And the meaning behind this action as it reverberates in the earth, is Gods message going out to all the world directly. Instead of a corporate body designed to do so, their demise has altered the method by which God presents the gospel to mankind. means riches > So the power of God is dispersed to those who are throughout the world and instead of the world coming to the Jews to find God. God is meeting them all where they are with his message and establishing his authority thru them. Where there was once a poverty of understanding, there is now the wisdom of Gods glory in all its fullness. This is not a lesser version of the gospel going forward, but all that would come thru the Jews, is now going directly to the people. for the Gentiles, > So all of what occurs now thru the message of Christ, in his church, is the result of broken fellowship between God and the Jewish people. Who God wanted to reach man thru, and so it is the Jews loss and the Gentiles gain. But the gospel message remains the same as it always was, salvation by faith. how much more > So just consider for a moment the magnitude of Gods message, getting brought to the world in its original form, as he wanted for it to be. How the focus of the world would change, if the gospel was flowing out from the Jews as God intended it to be. The sheer concentration of his call to salvation as a whole nation dedicated to one mission only, and that to evangelize the whole would with the message of Christ. will their full restoration bring? > Just Imagine the zeal, that is the character of the Jewish people, studied and determined as they are. What it would cause to happen in the earth, when the people see Gods blessings flowing consistently thru the Jewish people as a nation once again. Whose natural position in God is to provide salvation for mankind thru them, then we would see the power of Gods living in and thru man, as he wants it to be according to his promise to their forefathers. 11:13 Now I am speaking > So my message is for your benefit, this message is for you from God. So that you may know from where it came and where it is leading you, as a body with one authority over you, who is Christ. to you Gentiles. > So my instruction is not to instruct the Jewish people in the teaching which they already have in front of them. But to instruct you with what you were not raised to understand. I am just trying to bring you up to speed, as to what God has been doing all along in saving man from his sins. Beginning with the Jews and now in you. Seeing that > This is especially true for me a Jew, who has been appointed by God to do just that for you. So you see that there is purpose to my life and an intentional action on my part to teach you. I am an apostle > I hold a position in this body of Christ, as that of an apostle. Which means that I have been entrusted by, empowered by, and being held accountable by God. As one who will live his life for the sole purpose of promoting and establishing the foundational truths, that the church needs to build itself upon. From its beginning in us and ending in Christ return, having lived thru all the believers who repeated our instructions, to carry forward the truth of the gospel in their lives. to the Gentiles, > All of this I am doing as a Jew, to supply you the Gentiles with all that I am able to bring to you. So you are well equipped with the history and foundational truths of Gods deliverance of man thru the Jews, but meant to be received by all Jews and non-Jews equally. I magnify > I want you to look upon what I am doing and regard it as highly an office as I do. Not that you see me as one greater then you, but to establish the proper order of honor of offices and God in your own churches. And that you yield to the authority, that I have been given by God to teach you. Therefore obey what I teach you and understand, that with a very real sense of pride, I am an apostle of Christ. my ministry, > And not just an apostle, but specifically as one on a mission to establish the church of God among the Gentile world. It is my attempt to draw you into my vision, so that the work of my ministry is done by you, in that, it has come to you by me. So as you see me labor in you, you also will labor in each other. In so doing, validate my ministry in you, as having been profitable to God, for having redeemed mankind. First thru Christ, then thru the Jews and us apostles, then thru you the Gentile churches. 11:14 if somehow I could provoke > That from them seeing you responding so vigorously to my teaching, that you are willing to boldly follow after me in my ministry and live for Christ with a passion, that they think only themselves to posses. That it would stir them to pay attention to what God is really doing and not listen to the lies, that they have learned to use to excuse their behavior. my people > That then from this witness in you, the Jewish people would become the recipients of what they had previously possessed. That it would shake them out of their denial and into the hard truth of what they have done. to jealousy > Even if it began with envy over your having possession of what is rightfully their to rein over. At least they would be taking notice of it and not wanting to be left on the outside of what God is doing. So they would look closely at the claims being made against them, then God could open the desires of their heart and deal with them face to face. and save some of them. > Then possibly, some would turn away from the false but embedded culture of religion, that they have learned to live with and give their lives up for Christ as I have. The long term hope for the Jews is still valid, but in the short term, they have been cut off from Gods direct blessing. 11:15 For if their rejection > If in this dissimilar interest, that being that they wanted to represent God in the power of their flesh and wanting to enlist God in sustaining them in their evil desires. Because God could not give into their desires of self preservation, as an acceptable mode of redeeming man. God redirected his focus from a single entity, of the gospel coming to mankind and instead, cast off the hierarchy of central command, as the rule of his people. In favor of a localized command structure, where he would go to the world in small pockets of believers, guiding each individually from within them, thru his Holy Spirit. is the reconciliation > So that what in effect was bad for Israel, was good for you and gave you freedom in Christ directly. So that God established his command structure thru the Gentiles and leaving aside the Jews, as having any overall unequal position in the church. So that you have not only found salvation in what God has done, but autonomy to rule yourselves in your labors, to live in rightfully in his kingdom. Of course, with this is your own accountability before God, but also the opportunity to have progress for your own status and effectiveness. Just as I am seeking to do through promoting my ministry in you, this is right for you to do also. of the world, > So the entire world is a different stage-set, now that God is not acting thru the nation of Israel, as a means of bringing his gospel message to mankind. The play has moved into the audience and they have become personal participants in that which God is establishing. The actors have been sent home and the people are now the players of their own parts. No more spectators as a group or category, you have all become street actors and have a part to play, written into the script by God. what will their acceptance be > But this is a temporary condition only, one day God will reset the play back to the stage, where the message will played out. God has damaged them intentionally and left them crippled in their ability to go forward as a people, who were once officially sanctioned by him. To whom the world was once to unite themselves with, to attain salvation, and will do so again, when their broken leg gets healed and they are able to run again. but life from the dead? > Then the restricted and the old retires who have been lounging around, will have discovered the fountain of youth. They will take up their old crippled bodies and have young vibrant bodies to run with. But with all the wisdom that their age has provided them, as to what is foolish, what is wise and what is important to live for. It is an almost unimaginable sight for us to think of, but it will happen. 11:16 If the first portion of the dough offered > So God began with that which is good in himself, he was the author of the method that would rise up a people, to follow after him according to the faith, first established thru the forefathers among the Jewish people. That which they did was the first offerings of faith to God, and God accepted their faith as a sufficient means to forgive them, thru the coming Messiahs sacrifice for them. They began that work which is now being perfected in you and me. So all that is being completed in the body of Christ, is the direct result of those whose faith was made perfect, thru the perfect faith of God, that he invested in them. is holy, > So since God is perfect and the motivation behind his labors in us is perfect, the end results in us will produce perfection, not in the flesh, but in the Spirit. Which is now alive in us, and because it was all effectual, as an outpouring of his glory. It will also show his glory, as that which is done in man, and man will show the glory of God thru themselves. then the whole batch is holy, > So then the work, that we do is a result of the right intentions having begun in us, to produce the right work in us. The labors who came before you, had the right motivations behind them and the holiness of God manifest thru them. So all the work of Christ thru us, is then made perfect thru the same Spirit of faith, that came to us from God, who is our Holy beginning. Because he started the work in us, it will not fail or falter in the Spirit, even if the flesh does. and if the root is holy, > So if God is at the base of what it is that we do, and he established the process that would see us thru it. And that process was begun in a people, then those people were made to begin the process and end the process, with it not being contaminated and discarded by the sins that men do. Or in other words, we cannot muck it up. For if that were the case, then men could have no part in the work that God is doing. But because it is a spiritual work, that God is doing thru man, then men are able be part of the process and not spoil the root of the intentions, that are Gods to produce. so too are the branches. > So the church that God has brought out of his labor in Christ, is a perfect fit for that which he is doing for mankind. He did not have to alter the root of the tree, to impart to the church what it needed to survive. But he altered the branches, so that they produced that which the root fed to them. They became that which the root provided in them. So because the root feeds holiness, they produce holiness, from the original intention of the root. God cut then branches off from their own former roots and the corrupt nutrients of sin, that they were making effective in them, and supplanted that source of sin, with his source of holiness. Which is alive in every believer, according to the first-faith, that came from the Jewish forefathers, which God authored in them. 11:17 Now if some of the branches > God looked and saw that many of the Jewish people, were Jews on paper only, they had no real linkage to what their forefathers stood for. Other then living off the blessings of inheritance, that their forefathers had labored in faith for in God and was left for them. They had no interest in Gods glory or the virtue for which God was, they wanted social status, but didn’t care for Gods eternal glory or the meaning of it and they were not feeding off the pure root. They were rejecting its nutrition and were not bearing fruit, even thou the root was keeping them alive, they were unprofitable to the root. were broken off, > So God in his sovereignty, cutoff the Jews, who were not faithful to his glory or in his promise to their forefathers, so he took away the inheritance that they were living on. He took away their temple and turned his back on their present condition and this he did as an act of discipline. So that all would not be lost in them in the end, he detached them from the power source of the root and their legal status was denied them. So that they were deported from the state of citizenship as the "chosen people" of God. and you, > Now the Gentiles, who you are, became the church along with the Jewish remnant, which I am. A new covenant by which God interacts with the practices of man, thru a new method, but a continuation of that which God was doing to keep the promise to the Jewish forefathers. This is God doing for man, what man failed to do thru Gods instructions. The salvation process is therefore fully dependent on Gods ability to keep his promise of salvation and on his power to see it thru. And you are the recipients of his salvation, regardless of your past non-participation in the process. a wild olive shoot, > You who had no part in what God was doing, as a organized people as the Jews did, because you were not being sustained by agreements, made in ages prior to your life. Because you had no forefathers of faith to form this allegiance thru. Because you were out their doing life, with no forethought, as to what God was doing in the institution of mankind or the destiny to which you were being daily condemned of your actions. You had no central existence with God and no purpose outside of what you were doing at any given time. You were unfocused and unnecessary for God to take note of you, to fulfill his promise to man, he could have done it without you, but chose to use you. were grafted > So now God took these of you, who were on the outside of his focused group of the Jews, and he gave that inheritance to you, whom the Jews hated. The blessings that they ate, were taken from them and given to them that the Jews loathed. God took away the refuge that the Jews shared in him, so that God went and lived in them that the Jews loathed, and became as a spiritual refuge for them that the Jews were despising as unholy people. God became the non-Jews refuge and he became their strength, to live against the rivers current of sin, that had control of their lives. They became the face of God on earth and the representation of his mercy, towards man to save them from sin. The full power of God, that was before only present among some of the Jews, such as the prophets and King David, was now fully prevalent in the lives of all the non-Jewish believers. in among them > So now the Jews and the Gentiles share the same root, God has combined a remnant of the Jews, as I myself am, and the Gentile people, into one body to make up one entity, as the body of Christ that is alive in the earth. So what the Jews failed to do as a nation, God did apart from them and made it possible for salvation to be available, even to those ignorant of his past dealings with the Jewish people. and participated > So you are now knit together as a one people, who are active in the same cause and that is to glorify the God of heaven and earth. To submit your bodies to the will of the Spirit and live in your bodies as foreigners to your own bodies. Knowing that you have an external and eternal body, that is waiting to replace and be the only viable option to your solution of sin, that your current body is comprised of. So you have a function now just as did the Jews before you. You have a unity in Gods work, instead of the dysfunction, that came from that which was your separate course of action without Christ. Which was you before Christ entered into you in your salvation. But now you have a destiny secured by Gods decision to do so, not by your own merit to be apart of his tree of life giving salvation, but by his decision to include you, in what he was doing. in the richness > All the blessing, that are a part of being knit into his spirits controlling influence over you, are now evident in the changing tide of your life. Where you once just floated where ever the current of sin took you, now you have rescued and pulled from the waters and placed into a ship of destiny, that has only one course to follow. And that course is not subject to where the waters go, or the destiny of sin, but opposes the forces of sin. Instead it is a ship alive to Gods blessing and his holiness, which is the reward of his virtue itself. Not in short supply, so that it cost you dearly to obtain it, but growing freely out of the pure root, to which you have obtained a part in its formation. It is for those who find it in response to Gods call and take into them to sustain them, as their life’s purpose. of the olive root, > So that you are now alive in the very source that God himself is, that which God feeds you, is that which is his nature alone to be. There is no foreign substance in him that would pollute the character of his person or those who are alive in that which he provides in them. He provides only that which his perfect virtue produces and therefore, produces no sin in those who make their life in among his branches, that feed off of his root of holiness. Though your bodies will fail, your Spirit which is your life in him, will remain undefiled and in perfect fellowship with him. Until the sinful body fades away, and the spiritual body of Christ, is whole with you as its members. 11:18 do not boast over the branches. > Your current state in the family of God, came to you when you were unaware of it. It sought you, you did not seek it. So your position as a growing and fruitful member of Christ body, is an act of God removing you from a mindless existence, with no claim to godliness and inserting you into his bloodline, that you were not aware of. You are a product of someone else’s labor, someone else’s investment and are as a homeless person taken in off the streets. To which you had no residence or status in that home, but now you have been given a personal place of refuge and along with that, a share in the upkeep of that new home. But if you boast, > On the other hand, for some of you, no amount of instruction will stop you from trying to express your self worth to the world. Your pride is always overpowering your wit and then abandoning you, leaving you to pick up the pieces every time. As much as I wish you would walk in the humility of this, so that I wouldn’t have to drive home the point even harder, I will try to preempt your argument. remember > So let me try to plant a seed in your memory, as a recovery point when it happens to you. So that when you fail at this, you might remember this one bit of information, that will set you back on the right course with God and increase what should be your humility in this. that you do not support the root, > You did not create God, he created you, he is not a figment of your imagination, but you are a figure out of his imagination. God does not come unassembled and left up to you to try make the pieces of God, fit into the messed up construction of your own life, that you have devised. It is you who are in disarray, with fractured ideas and concepts, that do not match up to Gods ultimately defining character of who you will become. So you must dismantle that which you have become, apart from God and be rejoined to him, according the instructions that he has given us. And those instructions, are his word and Holy Spirit who guides you in his truth. but the root supports you. > God is the ultimate of all that is, therefore you should conceive and digest fully the truth, that God is not dependent upon your actions in life. But you are dependent on his actions and the power that makes you alive, came to you from God. He is not formed out of the need for man to believe in a higher power, man is conceived out of this higher power who is God. The cosmos did not form itself out of the need of man, to have a dwelling place to put a higher calling, but a higher calling spoke it, and it was, you are an end product of Gods existence, God is not a byproduct of you. 11:19 Then you will say, "The branches > So you’ll argue that God has thrown out the Jewish state, as heirs to the blessings of Gods kingdom and that any claim they make is invalid. That their legal rights have been canceled due to their own state of rebellion against God and they are evil in his sight. were broken off > That they have no right to the blessing of God and that they are outcast in the eyes of God. That it was God who did this act, not us who forced them out and replaced them, that is the thing you need to grasp here. This is all an act of God, not man. so that > Here is where you yourself can go astray, in missing the reason and point of why the Jews lost their home in God. We try to assume out of it, some statement to the effect, that we ourselves are the reason for their dismissal. That we thru superior beings, overcame the Jews and took away their favor with God. I could be > And that God did this to them, so that you, as the church, could take their place and receive their blessings. That we pushed them aside to take away from them that which they had. The sole purpose you are supposing then, is that God did it all for your sake, at the cost to the Jews, just because you were more special. grafted in." > That you are rightful heirs to the throne of his grace and it is not your fault that the Jews arrogance became their own defeat. But that, all that has occurred, was for your benefit alone, placing yourselves above them, as though they were inferior to you in the flesh and you being deserving of your new state with God. That God saw you as fruitful, and them as fruitless. 11:20 Granted! They were broken off > Though it is true, that God basically fired them and he sent them out into the world without severance pay, and they are no longer a part of Gods work force. In the sense and meaning, that they are not currently engaged in the promotion of the gospel message to the world as a nation. And that you the church, that are mainly Gentiles, have taken their place, as to being the primary contractor for this job. So that they have been set aside and you have been brought in to replace them. because of their unbelief, > The reason behind Gods action against them is very simple and basic, they didn’t believe wholeheartedly in the work they were doing. You had a whole bunch of people showing up to collect a paycheck, but not caring about the worked that they agreed to do. And not one of the so called leaders, was checking on the quality of the work. And when God saw what they were doing, he fired them and brought in a fresh crew to complete the work. God condemned the work which they had done and tore down the previous labors work, as unlivable and unprofitable. So because their heart was not in it and they had no personal passion or saw themselves, as having no stake in the work they were doing as a point personal pride. In that, they would not live under their own construction, but rather they told others to live there. While they lived in a more pash setting, apart from this place where they told others to live, but exempted themselves from it. This being the law which I am referring too, and the fact that they were not spiritually a part of it. Only in the flesh did they connect themselves to it, in meaningless rituals to God, because they had no meaning to them. They would certainly sentence everyone else under the law, but not themselves. but you stand by faith. > That is not who you are, you have a new beginning, that is fresh in every way. God is not even using the old design, that he had for them. He has drawn up a new plan and has written your names all over it, and in this plan, there is no other place to dwell except in the new construction. It is your home and you move in immediately upon your conversion to faith based trust in Christ, or might I more accurately say that God moves into your home. Because you are the home in which he dwells, and as part of the church body, which you have become. Is that which God is now engaging, as the messenger of his glory and that which he uses to invoke man too faith in him. Do not be arrogant, > So don’t think too highly of the fact that you now have their jobs, remember that, that is what they did also. They looked down on others, in this case you, and look what happened to them. So remember your place with humility, in the fact that you were the homeless ones that God gave a job to. Don’t become puffed up once you’ve learned a thing or two about it and consider yourself an expert. Becoming a condescending one at that, one that ridicules others for what you yourself, did not know just a short time ago. but fear! > Be diligent and have concern over the condition of the church and what it is that they portray to the world. Even if some of them do fall away from the truth in arrogance, remain as the remnant of true believers, that live in the humility of what it is that they have received. Do not take your place and state with God lightly, as though it were a deserving position. Consider yourself as a guest in the presence of God, show respect to him for what he has granted you and do not take it for granted, because he will know your true intentions. Show that you have the essence of wisdom in you concerning this, in that, "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom". Know that God is greater than you, and make your bed accordingly, set your mind according to that fact and you will live in the presence of God forever. 11:21 For if God did not spare > And because God was not willing to put up with those who came out of his family. Because they who were to be the representatives of God, became as unbelievers themselves, and therefore as dead branches on the tree. He cut them off with deliberate forethought, as to what he was doing. They did not fall from the tree naturally, God took an ax to them. the natural branches, > And these were the ones that had access to his throne of grace, but did not want to be associated with the one on the throne. They wanted the recognition, but not the relationship that came with the association, but it was the relationship that made viable in the first place. It would be like living in someone’s mansion by invitation, but not wanting anything to do with the owner; How long do you think he would put up with your attitude. So without that relationship, it became an unwanted association from Gods position also, and in that, it was him that sustained the association, it was in his interest to end it also. perhaps > So what I am saying is that considering the uniqueness of the Jews position in the first place, and that, it had no saving virtue to them without the relationship. One must always be aware and cognate of the fact, that what sin wrought in one group mankind, it is quite able to do in another group people, of the same nature. he will not spare you. > So just because you believe now, does not mean that those who come after you will not corrupt the truth, as did the Jewish people. That your fate, if it is you, will be any different then the Jews. So think carefully, as to how you think and what your attitude is toward those around you and the Jews. God can take away his mission from among you, leaving you with only a church building, but without the Spirit of God showing up. Because when two or three are not gathering in his name, but are there for their own cause, they can do nothing without Christ presence in them. 11:22 Notice therefore > Because of everything that was taught you concerning the actions of Gods dealings with the Jews and the Gentiles. We can extract two simple but vital concepts, concerning the character and motivations, that help us to understand God more fully. Without these, you will not exceed in blessing, or avoid the traps of sin. the kindness > The first is Gods desire to be kind and loving to us and that we should note, that, that is his original intent in creating us. He wanted no part in punishing mankind in the beginning, but as a part of his Holy character, did it come upon him to do so. It is his gentleness though, that God wants in us to flourish, not his anger. He no more wants the frustration of anger then do you, but that does not prevent God from establishing a right standing in is actions against man. He does not like getting angry, but when he does, he can fully vent it upon mankind. and harshness of God- > The second point of course is then the determination that is behind God, as part of Gods character to establish his character and willingness to execute swift judgment. Once God makes up his mind to proceed down a certain course and to act in judgement. After having expended his mercies to try and restore a people to their right state of mind, concerning their place in Gods family. It is executed without any retraction or hesitation on his part and the penalty can be very severe. Including death, so that one is permanently removed from redemption’s possibility. harshness toward those > And whom that severity falls upon, is not the innocent who have lived inside of his precepts. It is directed at those who have hearts of denial and who call themselves believers, but in fact are unbelievers. They only say they believe for public recognition and public approval, not for the approval of God in their hearts. They disregard the relationship to God in their hearts, by denying the faith by which one is alive in God. And that is why they come under Gods actions of severity and judgement. who have fallen, > So it is those who have denied the power of God and had a taste of his blessings. That is why God was angered, that, in that he had given them good things. They rebelled and wanted nothing to do with his laws of faith and obedience to his precepts of living right before God. They struck out on their own into darkness, in full light of his truth, that he had given them to guide them in the safety of his ways. They snuffed at Gods sovereignty and received the severe punishment of that action. but God’s kindness > On the other hand, at the same time, God was acting severely with the Jewish people. He was developing a new form of mercy towards those who he had wanted to reach thru the Jewish people. In that effort he was prepared to set an even newer standard of gentleness and generosity towards this people. He wanted a new relationship, based on the same precepts of faith, but without the walls of separation that kept man apart from Gods direct counsel and forgiveness. Which is a sustaining force, not before available to man. toward you, > And those that this came to are you Gentiles as a people, not divided into one nation, but divided nations living as one people to God. Empowered by that same Holy Spirit, that empowers them all, so that they are united not by physical ties of their family, but out of their spiritual ties to Christ body. provided you continue > But as I have been very precise in pointing out to you all of this. You must realize that this is still a conditional status, based on having faith in God and not just the institution of the church, that resides in the building up of a human empire under the banner of religion. God has no respect for the plaques on their walls stating their beliefs or the numbers in their congregations, that are compiled of an untrue faith. It’s not the outward appearance, that impresses God to kindness towards us, but what reside in the lining of their hearts in faith towards God. It is the character of our faith, not the establishment of our corporate structure, that yields influence among humanity. A cross on the wall means nothing to God, but a heart that shares in and bears the wounds of the meaning of the cross with Christ, means abundance and blessings. in his kindness; > So to receive the gentleness of Gods desire towards you, is to not presume upon it, as though God distributes it, regardless of your own recognition to honor him in faith. God is not kind sparingly, but with generosity, not for those whom presume to take it for granted or that it is theirs by right. God is under no obligation to love you, but does so according to your relationship to him, one in which he is preserving you in your faith. otherwise > Therefore, if one does not posses, that which God seeks thru faith in him, it is not a loss to God, to lose you from his presence. If there is no connection between you and him, where is the relationship that defines your unity, there is none. Therefore, there is no continuation of his mercy towards you. you also will be cut off. > And that which you have, will be taken away and given to another. The blessings and mercy that you once enjoyed, will no longer be present among you. It will be transferred to back to the Jews, just as it was transferred to you. 11:23 And even they- if they do not continue > So it is should not come to any great surprise to any of you, if God restores them back into the body of Christ. Seeing as that is his intention in turning over the duties of messenger to the Gentiles. So it is reasonable to think, that they might turn from their current state and find favor once again it Gods mercy, it’s happened before. in their unbelief- > Because it is and always has been a state of unbelief, that has caused God to act against them. So if they turn their hearts in faith towards God, then God will accept them in that, that, is his purpose to restore them. will be grafted in, > So that place where they once reigned before God, will once again make them the primary messengers of salvation in Christ, and God will reattach them to the olive tree of life, that comes out from him where they were before. That nourishment then, that we all are experiencing, will flow thru them as a nation, with one single purpose, and that is to take Christ to the world. for God is able > Because of one thing you can be absolutely sure, that is, God is in no way limited or restricted to do, that in which he chooses to do. The very salvation of man was impossible, but not to God. Because everything we do is within the boundaries of our physical world, so we think of God in the same terms. But God is just the opposite, in every instance that we find limits, God finds the possibility of our impossibility. God passes thru that which holds us prisoner and is able to establish us after himself, in the same way. That is why he is God, if he could not, he would not be God. to graft them in again. > So what he had the power to cutoff, he also has the power to reunite, bringing the Jews back into the main stream, of that which he is doing. For you the reasoning may be unclear, but for God, who has made promises to their forefathers, it is a process of necessity, that is taking place to keep that promise alive. 11:24 For if you were cut off from what is by nature a wild olive tree, > You were living out in the wilderness, as far as the known spiritual truths were concerned, that were being made known by God to the Jewish people. God was not dealing with you directly, only with the Jewish people. The only way you could find out anything about God, would have been thru the Jews. God was not at the time attending to the entire world or trying to cultivate the entire planet, just the Jews. If the weeds were growing up around you from your sins, God didn’t care or try to weed them out from you, because you were under his curse, you were on your own, live or die. and grafted, > But then God changed all that and integrated you into his plan and purpose without your own awareness of it, until it happened to you. Then you suddenly became awake, to what before, you had completely slept thru. As obvious as it is to you now, then you didn’t even know. But now you are at the center of what God is doing and you can be fully engaged with God, as your principle investor, of that which you are doing. God has taken a stake in your future and made you one of the beneficiaries of its out come. contrary to nature, > And all of this is done in opposition, to that which your flesh is attempting to do to you, and that is to make you its slave. You were not refined in the Holy character and attributes of Gods holiness, it didn’t seem necessary to you or prospers for your soul, that God would take any notice of you, for blessing or judgement sake. There was no basis for God to look on you and determine by evaluation, that you were profitable servants or redeemable wealth, for the sake of morality on earth, in heaven or as standard bearers for his ambassadors on earth. into a cultivated > But ambassadors you became and not only that, he is taking on the responsibility of training you in the fine arts of his attributes and virtue. All that he is, he is setting aside in you as the body of Christ, so that you can demonstrate his glory on earth. You are being prepared, not only for your mission here on earth, but he is elevating you in stature in heaven as leaders, as the reward of what it is you are doing for him now. olive tree, > You are his primary concern now, not the Jewish nation, but that is with a reason and that, is to make the Jewish people jealous, at all that he is doing thru you. He wants them to see the reality of his right blessings, that they could have, if they will only repent and turn to him thru Christ for salvation. He has made you into that which they should have become, but did not. how much more > So if that is what he wanted all along, was to make the Jews into that which it is that you are now doing. Doesn’t it stand to reason, that God is standing ready to restore to them, that blessing of promise he made to their forefathers. That is, when they come to their senses about what it is they have done wrong and seek God out, wholeheartedly, to correct it. That’s what God is all about, right, restoration of man to himself, that was Christ death and resurrection purpose. So why would we try to make it any less effective, by eliminating an entire people from participating, in that which Christ sacrificed so much to attain for them. We should desire it on Christ behalf for them, so that we are also Christ like. will these natural branches > So knowing, that God is ready to take back the Jewish people, that he had set aside for this purpose originally. That they are currently under a state of punishment for their unbelief, but are the basis for all that God has done for man thus far in history. Until their unbelief became so apparent, that God could no longer sustain them in it. Not just because it was sin, which is reason enough, but for their own good, they needed discipline to right them in the water, so to speak, so they don’t all perish. be grafted back into > That for him to take them back into fellowship with him once more and integrate them back into his purpose for man. Should certainly not seem a strange thought to you, knowing how merciful he has dealt with you. Who were complete foreigners to him when he took you in. Yet he considered the Jews his people, even "the apple of his eye", they were his project and craftsmanship, that he wanted so much to display his glory in. their own olive tree? > For it was their destiny, to do that which you are doing, which for mankind in the first place, was impossible. But God did it all without any of our help, even though we all saw it happening before us. The Jews were the first to know of Gods intentions for mankind, and he planted his first efforts in them and you came afterwards. And many a reward came from Gods work in them, the most being Christ himself, not to mention the forefathers an prophets. 11:25 For I do not want > Therefore, I want you to listen closely to what is that I am saying and don’t get my words twisted into something, that I haven’t said. Learn the definitions of what I am teaching, so you can properly apply them to your thinking. Don’t let your own biases determine what your willing to hear and then just disregard the rest. Bad things happen, when people begin to work all their ideas from a focal point of a preconceived idea, rather then the pure truth. Because they focus only on what fits into their motives, which is at the center of their intentions. Instead of deriving their motives in which to live by, from the truth first. They see things and interpret things only from their position, which they wrongly have established as the basis of all truth. So in having placed their life upon the wrong foundation of truth, they continually are laboring to shave and reshape, the real truth to comply with and fit the structure of reality that they live in. And soon the truth is completely gone, along with the safety of its covering and the roof is leaking in on them. Because they have made their covering in life out of a paper mache that is too pores, having been made out of dissimilar materials, that will not bind to one another. Their lives are like mixing oil and water, when the still comes, they always come apart. Only in constantly stirring things up around them are they able to keep up the impression, that all things in their lives are firmly bonded together. When things are wrong in their life, they would rather shift the focus on someone else, then deal with letting others see the mess they are in. you to be ignorant > And don’t think to yourselves, that it is not important to understand in the right way. Otherwise you will be distributing to the world a false sense of truth and security, one that God will stand on you with, and then you’ll look foolish and lose credibility in your witness. A false sense of security was what came down on the Jews and made you Gentiles the beneficiaries of Gods grace. So I want you to be wiser then them in both mind and deed, so it doesn’t happen again. That is what I am trying to head off, don’t become a repeat offender of their sins, learn from the errors of history and don’t repeat them. of this mystery, > Now that which came about was not a big secret, and I don’t want you to be wrong in misunderstanding, that which is in the providence of God to do. It wasn’t that only the intelligent or a few privileged people new of this doctrines existence. It is just an act of God, that didn’t require you participation in producing results until now. And now that God has engaged you in this, don’t think it was a necessity on his part, in that he is using you, that it gives you leverage over the Jews. But think it a privilege on your part to be included in the awesome scope of Gods will and not left out as you were before. brothers and sisters, > We are all in this together and what helps one, helps us all, in the same way that when one is hurt by the misuse of the truth in someone’s hands, who speculates to their own benefit a false doctrine. Whether intentional or in error, we all suffer in the wake of it, so unite in this with me, and be united with one another in this. Don’t use it to separate anyone from God or yourself from participating in their possibility of converting to Christ. God is doing the impossible in mankind, so don’t rule it out. so that > My intention in saying this is clarity of the issue, not confusion, the last thing I want is the misunderstanding or misuse of my teachings for the wrong intentions. So be precise in your thinking, just as I am being precise in my teaching. you may not > Because there is this danger, that someone will act out with a misguided point of view, I am giving you this warning to prevent that from happening. So that you don’t misdirect your efforts, that would mislead you to a wrong conclusion, concerning how God is looking upon the Jewish people in comparison to you. Because God is not making a comparison or value judgement between the two of you, only a course change in his methods of saving mankind thru Christ redemption, and the promotion of that knowledge among mankind. be conceited: > It does you no good to think that something is the truth, only to find out later, that you didn’t have the facts right in the beginning and that is what led to your miscalculation. Because in that state, all you are really doing then is guessing and that leaves the door open for people to presume, that they know more then you or that their position is a superior one. There is no room in this for you to think better of yourselves then that of the Jews. If you do, it is only false pride, that you arrived at by making false conclusions, concerning your self-worth to God, as compared to the Jews self-worth to God. God loves people individually, not collectively, though he will bless collectively and judge also in that manner. His love is demonstrated to each at their own level of intimacy with him, and every conversion is given special attention. Whether it is a Jew or a Gentile, you are no more or less special to God, then the other Jews or Gentiles, you are all equal to the blood of Christ, in your intrinsic value to God. A partial hardening > So what God has done with the Jews, is both a corporate act, as a collective judgment of blindness, and a separate act in individuality, as he holds together a remnant to carry the mission on to its ultimate conclusion. That judgment he will cause to happen to the Jews, though some, as myself, are not blind to Christ as the Messiah. We suffer the abandonment of Gods blessing as a nation, which leaves all of in the same body in Christ, not as though we are equal-but-separate, but rather equal-and-united. has happened to Israel > So my people have been made subject to judgment, while at the same time our souls are being redeemed thru Christ. But in much smaller numbers then that of our nations total people. But just you wait, because one day God will remove the darkness from their eyes and they will see Christ the Messiah whom they rejected, and their hearts will believe once again. until the full number > Because for now, God is making all things, by and large, proceed thru those who are Gentile and he will continue in that. Until God is satisfied, that the blindness that he has brought upon the Jews is sufficient and the ministry of the Gentiles has run its course. God knows what that trigger point to make this happen, is not man, so don’t speculate to it, you’ll just look foolish and egotistical. of the Gentiles has come in. > Everything is proceeding according to Gods plan, for the Gentiles and the salvation of man proceeding to the world thru them. They being the message bearers and the main recipients of his call into salvation, in this plan of Gods. His plan will not cease or be put off, until it has run its full and complete course, in which God has predetermined, what that point is and no man knows it. 11:26 And so all Israel will be saved, > Because from that point on, Israel will be in one accord with the Father and salvation will come to all those who turn their faith to him. This will not be like the remnant that there is now, this will be the very leaders of the Jews, proclaiming and recognizing Jesus as the Messiah. Just as there was mass rejection of Jesus as the Messiah by the Jewish leaders, that led to his crucifixion. There will mass acceptance and attempts by these leaders to establish Jesus as the Lord, over all creation. To officially proclaim him as the Messiah, that was to come and save them. as it is written: > And this is borne out in scripture which tells us beforehand, that it will happen like this in Israel, just as it foretold the first coming of Jesus. "The Deliverer will come out of Zion; > His place of origin will be referred to symbolically as Zion, because he came from on high, and in this case Zion is a hill, where the city of David was built and King David was the faithful servant of God. So this also represents the faithful people of God, those who stand for Christ in their lives. God will come to them thru these faithful people of the church, who have preached the gospel and converted sinners to Christ. he will remove ungodliness from Jacob. 11:27 And this is my covenant with them, when I take away their sins." 11:28 In regard to the gospel > Now currently, the Jews for the most part hate the gospel message of Christ and are at war with it. They don’t like it because it does not give them preeminence on earth, or make them superior in the flesh to Gentiles, which has been the crux of their religious structure. They don’t want to change that but establish it, so they have rebelled against the gospel message and that is why they are rejected by God. they are enemies > So if you are at war with God, then you will have no peace with him and he will fight back against you. You will not be treated like friends, but foes, part of the resistance, resisters to the truth. So God has made them like the prodigal sons, except that God did not just let them wander off from their fathers security and blessing. He sent them away to fend for themselves and live in their disbelief and be as outcast before his grace. for your sake, > This God did so that he could establish his gospel message thru the church, which is made from many nations of Gentiles. The Gentiles are serving God just as the faithful son did in the prodigal son story. Although it is hoped by me that you the church, will rejoice with the Father, when he finally brings the Jewish people back home again. Unlike the obedient son, who then became jealous of restored son who came home. It is their exile that has led to the ministry of the church, your promotion is due to their decline, what is tragedy for them, has meant many blessings for you. But do not despise them, that is not your place to do so, God is teaching them the truth in this act of their disobedience. They are learning it the hard way, because they would not receive it the easy way, thru the true gospel message of Christ as their Messiah. But you are receiving it, and in that rejoice with all blessings and understanding of it, it is a good thing for you, even if it is at the Jews expense. You need not morn their loss, to the extent that you are not able to rejoice in Gods victory over your sins. They are in the hands of a providential God and his hand of punishment is upon them for now and his blessing is upon you because of that and that is good. but in regard > Now in the same aspect of this parables teaching on the prodigal son, God does not hate them. He is disciplining them as a father does on earth to his own children, and one day, as in life, the discipline will end. So we must relate to that part of the parable also, the father wept over the disobedient son, he never hated him. to election > Because they are part of the that original plan to save mankind thru the Jews, that process will one day proceed, as them having a prominent role in it again. When God once again demonstrates his providence and claiming them against the desires of his spiritual enemies. That they are his chosen people on earth and that they will prevail because it is the will of God for that to happen, and the spiritual darkness of the devil cannot prevent it from happening. they are dearly loved > Just because God is disciplining his Jewish children does cause him to despise them, is he angered at them. Yes, but God is able to love them he disciplines, because he knows that love does not allow disobedience to his authority to reign. God is correcting them thru this, but his punishment is not opened and will one day cease. for the sake of the fathers. > And all of this comes from his deep love for the relationship he had with their Jewish forefathers. He is doing this out of respect for them, in that they had a right relationship with him and he gave them promises to make their offspring, a right people. But do not think that the forefathers are not with God in this, it is because their hearts were on Gods side, they too, want nothing to do with a faithless people. They want their same faith in God to be displayed as a nation, one that represents them to be a true faith as they had been. They do not want frauds to tarnish the faith, that they stood for and spoil the image of Gods glory in their name. They do not want evil thinking Jews, to hold the reigns to what should be a faithful nation, that they received in promise. They want children more faithful then themselves, their desires were to glorify God and nothing less. So do not think that those to whom the promise was made, feel sighted by what God is doing. They are thankful and grateful for his providence and intervention by God. 11:29 For the gifts and the call of God > So in the same way when he sounds out his intentions for us, he does so with forethought and deliberate action on his part. That which he says he will do thru you will be done completely and effectively. It is not a partial calling where he tells us one situation will exist for us, only to arrive and find it was a bate and switch. God tells us up front, that which he will do thru us and what the conditions of that fulfillment will be. If it is salvation by grace he says so, if it is thru the works of the law, he says so, but he never tells us one and then requires the other. are irrevocable. > God always keeps his word, he never says one thing but does another, and the instructions he gives are revealing of that truth. God does not rescind an order given or take back a promise and only give a smaller portion, where he said it would be a full portion. What God declares is absolute and no one has the power to change it and God will stand by it. 11:30 Just as you were > There was a time not long ago, that your status with God was not one of endearing favor. God was not dealing with you, so as to bring his precepts to you as a people, who had been given a promise of a sure future thru that promise. Your were simply not part of the plan that God was executing among the Jews. So before, you were a godless people that God wanted to reach thru the Jews, but not work thru as a people with a collective identity in him. formerly disobedient to God, > You lived every day according to your own standards, that were devised by men and not by God. Those standards all failed to meet with Gods approval and so he rejected you as a people, who were left apart from his glorious acts. You did not have the mind of God in you, nor did your desires to glorify him, drive you motivations in life. but have now > But because the Jews went from proclaiming to be on Gods side, and professed to be believers and the chosen people of God. Yet when Christ came, they rejected him and became as you once were, unbelievers. So God has come to you directly with his gospel message and know your eyes are open to what they rejected and you became the believers in Christ, that they rejected. So now you have a promise made to you, though you were not a people of God as the Jews were. Yet thru Christ, you are become his people and that promise is an eternal one. God will never alter that promise of your individual salvation, it is timeless in nature. received mercy > So God has made you the Gentiles, his ministers of the gospel and this is because he chose to show you his mercy and grace. Which before he refused to deal with you because of his relationship to the Jews, but now you have what they had. due to their disobedience, > But now that they have rejected his provision for salvation thru Jesus, it is a direct result of that unbelief in their hearts, that God has chosen you. Their failure became a benefit to you, because they showed no respect towards God. So God in turn is showing his respect for you, and your eternal souls, giving you eternal life and direct access to God, thru Jesus. 11:31 so they too > So the place they once possessed, in Gods plan of providing salvation thru the Jewish nation. Has been occupied by you Gentiles and the place where you were existing prior to Christ, that is, a state of unbelief, they are now occupying. They have been shuffled out of the line, that they once had sole possession of, back to where you were. Their unfaithfulness has been replaced with your faithfulness, this so that just as the law revealed their sins, your faith, will reveal their unfaithfulness. So that they who boasted of being faithful, will be put to shame. have now been > So God caused this to come upon them, so that they could learn in the long run that they had failed, in what it took to become saved from their sins. Because there was no future of Christ in them, in that God knew they would stay disobedient. God is showing them, that he does not honor their works, but he is honoring the Gentiles faith, in place of what he is rejecting in them. disobedient in order that, > They have now failed in serving God, and the effect of that is God giving salvation to you, without you even asking for it or seeking it. God has let their unbelief have a global effect on man, but God is not condemning man, because the Jews as one nation has sinned. But instead, is setting all the other nations free to come to Christ because one nation has sinned. Who could have guessed, that God would deal so mercifully to those who did not even know him, not because they did good, but because the Jews were unfaithful. by the mercy > So because they sinned, you have received mercy, it is as though a person of great wealth looked and saw his family spoiled from his goodness and abundance that he provided to them. So he altered his death will from giving everything to them, so that he gave everything, to all those who he did not know. He became an act of charity to anyone who was not of his family, what a surprise to them strangers. But then instructed those whom he gave all his wealth to, to try and save his own family from their spoiled lives and restore them to a right mind, invite them to labor in the Lord thru faith with you. shown to you, > So then God, in giving you all of his great wealth of salvation, is demonstrating to the Jews, how his mercy is meant to be displayed in them. He is doing and demonstrating to them, what they were supposed to be doing all along. Yet he is still giving them an opportunity thru you, at real life in him, as it should be. Not according to the blessing, that they lived under from their forefathers, but by the provision, that they had been shown before in Christ, but rejected. they too may > In being outcast from God in this manner, it now sets the stage for them to also to be saved, apart from their status as the chosen people of God. The linkage of being Jewish, as the only way to find salvation from God, has been done away with. And now, not only Jews in a corporate context, can know God and be saved. But Jews apart from their heritage, are able individually to be a separate people to God and separate from the Jewish religious sect, at the same time. Though the corporate Jewish people have been rejected, the individual Jew, is able thru Christ, to attain salvation that is being provided thru the Gentile people as messengers. Very humbling for the condescending Jews of the Gentiles to accept, but eternal life to those who do. receive mercy. > But God in doing this, is acting out of mercy towards both the Jews and the Gentiles, who are all able to come to find salvation, as a part of his grace and mercy for all mankind. So what might seem harsh to man, or as God abandoning his promise to the forefathers of the Jewish nation. Is actually God fulfilling his promise, otherwise he would have sustained a nation, living under its own deceptions. Who would have no chance of corporately coming to the knowledge of Christ in a saving faith. Because not even the Jewish people sought God of their own accord, but God provided salvation thru them, despite them. 11:32 For God has consigned > So God gave all of mankind over to their addictions and sinful behavior to be held captive by it. Prisoners to the end, with their guilt well established, despite their opportunities to escape from it. Despite their higher learning, the Jews remained defiant and despite the Gentiles innocence of the hearing the law and being schooled in its instructions. They did not choose of their own accord to live rightfully before God, so God has designated them according his status and state as a Holy judge. He used himself as the plum line of holiness and measured all of man, as being crooked and bent from any form of holiness. all to disobedience > In this state, everyone was found guilty under the same sin of unbelief. No one group was able to show to God, that opportunity provided them with advantage. Either as under instruction of holiness thru the given law to the Jews, or the ability to achieve it naturally over time, without the weight of the law bearing down on them, convicting them readily of the daily actions, as were the Gentiles. Both groups had their lives corrupted by sin and rebellion, and so God pronounced sentence on all of mankind, as being equally guilty of the same offense. That neither time under ignorance or correction under the law would prevail over, or prevent mans sinfulness and unbelief. so that he may > As an effect of God having done this, God could without accusation of mistreatment, deal justly with all of mankind. Because whether he bruised our conscience with the law, or left us untested, without chastisement, left to live in and of our own accords. God was now able to clear the way for man to be equally found guiltily to sin, but also free to be forgiven in him. Because he has proven all men alike, hopelessly lost to their sinful flesh. This then gave God opportunity to bestow salvation under the banner of grace and grace alone. show mercy to all. > So out of this evidence and judgment of God, came grace and mercy, provided to those who would acknowledge such to God and trust in God for that salvation from sin. Which he has shown only to be available to man thru his mercy and grace, because man failed regardless of opportunity or status. 11:33 Oh, the depth of the riches > And the blessings that come out of this act of mercy on his part, are beyond description to the human mind. Which cannot even conceive in adequate terms, the never-ending state that God is. Where timelessness exist, as a normal state in Gods existence, time to God is only an acronym of the existence of man or lesser thinking, that exist only in a finite state, that will one pass away. There is no human way to describe his boundless energy and power to overcome any, and all creation, and to form that into blessing for his people. and wisdom > As in all that is light and seeable, Gods wisdom is bright to where all other lights fade in his presence. His is complete in reasoning and produces only, that which is Holy. His instincts are perfect and his outcome, as he knew they would be. There is no guessing to that which is profitable and right in him, that which he does is always the right way and leaves not room for error, to create any cause for reform or modification to his being and ways. He is always right the first time and is never in need of correction. It is man alone, who is out of alignment, having followed the devil into his state of sin and judgement. and knowledge > And who can calculate the coming and goings of God, is their any thing that is able to measure, all that he knows and understands. When the power of his will is that which controls the universe of creation, what is there, that can add to him beyond that which he is. Creation cannot modify its creator, or teach the creator about creation itself. That which created it, is that which gave it its limits and freedom. Creation is not fully instructed in the unlimited and infinite domain, of which the creator resides. of God! > Because there is not anything that man knows, where God is not permanent and unmovable in his preeminence of all that he does. All of creation, even in its eternal form, is temporal to God, who is from everlasting without beginning. To which there is no comparison, to that which was created, by that which is timeless in existence. Because God has no fixed point of origin to reference from, that which is formed, is not able find some measuring point of comparison, of itself, too God. How unsearchable > So where does man begin finding the roots of God? He doesn’t, that which God is, is indefinable in mans understanding of things. God
is unquestionable in determining the matrix of his existence or the compass of his moral
basis. Invisible to mans visual capability, any effort of man to find God, are
unattainable to man, apart from God revealing himself to man. We cannot find out God or
trace the way he is. We are confined, where he is expansive, so the confined cannot begin
the journey, of how God is or establish Gods way. > Even in the conclusions that God renders, it is not possible to raise an argument against them. He considers every fact, he weighs every bit of evidence and all his conclusion are perfect every time. Nothing is ever hidden from him or inadmissible evidence kept from him, that which is, he knows. If he does not know it, then it does not exist, because he authored all existence. and how fathomless > There is no way to scale down God to mans image, the furthest reaches of the universe, are to small to contain any part of God. His dimensions are boundless, where man occupies substance, God occupies space. Where space is absent, God fills the void. Where void is absent, there is Gods fullness. Whether in darkness or light, sound or silence, even the descriptive imagination of man, is insufficient to propose the finding of God, in the subject of himself. his ways! > What causes God to proceed or end some existence, does not happen the way man determines things. Gods ways, are unlike the decisions of man, his methods seem opposed to our thoughts, his patterns make no sense to us. Gods culture does not exist on earth, God is far from mans ideas. Because man moves and proceeds in effort, from his place on earth which is fixed and limited. But God starts from eternity, where he spans all physical and preconceived ideas of what exist. 11:34 For who has known > So man simply does not have the mental capacity, to take in all that is God. In fact he did not create us at his level, so we cannot even understand his concept of things. His approach is nothing like our approach, we are not even able to perceive, that which is at the center of God. We cannot wrap our understanding around it and analyze it with our mental capacity, the human mind cannot take in that which is infinite. God created our minds for the awe of his glory, not for us to know it, as though it were equal to us. Even though we were originally created with his holiness as a shared trait or attribute. It is not a practical assignment or assessment of who we are. It is impractical for us to comprehend his thoughts, due to our minds being miniature in structure and performance. We might as well try to see in all directions at one time. We can’t, it is our physical limitations, that God made in us, that makes that impossible. We have a preset point of view, that we can take in and that is how it is with us concerning the things, that are God himself, we can see pictures of him in creation, but not him. the mind of the Lord, > God is not contained in a body like structure like we are, that has one stationary place in space, time and matter. God is outside of our physical existence and therefore, his mind does not reach conclusions, based on the things that man perceives in the physical realm. The mind of God perceives all things that exist in space, time and matter simultaneously. So we cannot consider the matters of the Lord and be anywhere near his range of thoughts. or who has been his counselor? > So in light of that, how then did God consult them, of their status in creation and use them to advise himself on their process in time. When they came after the fact, he does inquire of man after, he creates him and asks, how should I create you or what is your judgment in what I should do. Your thoughts on a matter, would be irrelevant to the source of any solution. Because even as governments of men always do, they, as you would, exempt themselves from any conditions or solutions, that they would put on others. Why you might ask, because their judgments and solutions all have their basis in error, they don’t work for them, so God has no need of their guidance. God sets all standards himself and uses himself as that standard. Because as he swore an oath to Abraham, he swore it by himself, because there was no one higher than himself to swear it by. > Also were we are told in this scripture a definition or condition, concerning the obligations, that God would find himself under, to do or act differently to man. Take for example Sodom and Gomorrah, where if the angels would have found even ten righteous men, God obligated himself to Abraham, to act differently then was his intention to destroy the two cities. So then the question is, is God under any form of obligation to man, that he should have to modify his intentions or his view point about man. Has man done anything, that would prevent God from executing judgement on man, or has God made an obligation to man in some manner, that would prevent his finding all of mankind guilty and punishable for sin? In short, the answer is no. who has first Was man in existence before God, or did man rise up out of Gods will and planning and his power to make it happen? Is God mans imagination or is man in Gods image on earth? No one instructed God in creation, so knowing that, you develop your own self-awareness, with a right position in relation to God, is then how you arrive at proper thinking. If you think you are self-aware, apart from God, then you deny God in your heart. But if you know that your self-awareness is benefit from God, that he gave that power to mankind, then you know your origin properly. given to God, Having deeds of righteousness and existence, that God was not aware of, so that God was taught in some new thing? Did man ever rise up before God and declare a work to be done, that God needed, but did not have the resources to do himself and had not already done? What efforts has man engaged himself in, that God did not first form in his body, the muscle and brain functions, that enables him to do these acts, that impresses the man that does them? That he thinks God should note, what he has done, as being self-evident of their independent existence before God, and therefore power and rights before God. that God What could man ever do, that would alter the God-man relationship between God and man, that would make it a Man-god relationship, that was of at least an equal position between man and God? So that God would need to alter his position, as a sovereign God, over all creation and share that with another person, as a place of equality. needs to repay him? 11:36 For from him > Lets begin with where everything came from, and that it was spoken into existence, according to Gods command. It was God who authored the idea to create the universe and all that was in it. Their was no reverse engineering involved, where God found something and figured out from it, how to make more of creation. Rather, it was not and then it was, and that is how everything came into being. Nor was God formed out of the collective conscience of man, who gave life and existence to God, so that God received his power out of the willpower of man. God was first and all things came after him, the will of man had nothing to do with it. In fact, mans will to do, or think anything, is at the bequest of God, to allow that condition to exist. and through him > So where did this power come from, that is of God? Is there a way to no why it is? The best way to know this concept, is that the limits that man knows and see are not
natural. That is they are all installed and created out of Gods ability to set up the
standards of, time, size, mass, etc.. The natural state of things is God, who has no
boundaries, that are definable or to which can be attached a description, that is clear to
the mind of man. So ours is the abnormal condition, in that we have been made with
restrictions and God has not any. So all things came from what God defined them to be, and
they are operating according to his instructions and are not able to exceed, that which he
gave them ability to do. So man is, due to Gods definitions of every created thing, that
which God empowered them to be in function. They operate out of that, from that which he
empowered them to do. > So what comes into existence, has all its authorship in God. What has function, has it from that authorship, in that, it has been established to exist in a certain place and time, and occupy that place for its designated period. Then what it was as the source of his glory, it then returns to, as an expression of his glory. Gods glory is always returned to him and never spent. Even if it rebels in sin, it returns to reveal his glory. His state is not altered, to take the shape of what is in existence, but all are still attached to his glory. Even sin does not expend from Gods glory or evaporate from his presence any of his majesty. His glorious state still returns to him untarnished, even magnified in the eyes of those whose senses, were not perceptive to his natural glory, so every created thing, is for his glory. are all things. > So where there is nothing or where there is substance, they all exist as Gods glory, fitted together to be for himself a pleasurable thing. Not a formation of mans consciousness, but preexisting. Where matter is formed, and is formulated, out of an idea, that is of God. Establishing all creation out from his own designs and for his own purpose. To him > So let us not be silent concerning our understanding, of that which God is, and in all that he has revealed to us. Let us return to him his glory, in full knowledge, that it is his and that we are just sharing in it, not possessors of it by nature. But rather, from, thru and for him, is our only desire to be. Our place, is in the presence of his present place, and for us to fulfill that function, that he created in us to be, and so should our desires be also, to fulfill that function. be glory > As it all came out from the source of his glory, let us all rejoice in it and return with thankfulness in our hearts, that it is his glory that reigns over us. Let us rejoice in his glory, so that we may focus on that which is rich in its nature. So that we who are made poor from our sin, which is the absence of Gods glory, then can come alive in his glory and be made wealthy out of our poverty. By adhering to his rich glory, we improve ourselves, as we prove Gods glory in our lives, as that which is empty and void with out him, just as God looked and found the earth. Let our life be filled with his glory, just as the earth was filled with his glory. It makes so much sense, when we grasp hold of this concept, that it is his glory that makes us wealthy, not our independent poverty. That comes from the draining effects of life support, that sin draws from us. It is that lifting up and clinging to our sins, that causes our poverty. So a wealthy life comes from our close proximity to the glory of the Father, and a life of poverty, comes as we distance our self, from the promotion of his glory, to the promotion of ourselves. It is a simple proximity effect, the closer you get to the light source, the brighter it is to see the things around you more clearly, and the further you move away into darkness, the less clear it is to see and understand, that which is going on in your life. And thus, confusion is in the darkness, and clarity is in the light, and the glory of God, is in the light. forever! > And that lasting effect of Gods glory in the light, is that it never ceases. Where darkness just keeps getting darker, till there is nothing there but the black of sin. God is continually brighter the closer you get to him, so where there exist more light, there is not emptiness, as in darkness. But fullness of purity and Gods holiness, and therefore, more fullness of life. Which then reveals the uncleanness of sin, which God then removes from you, as is the power of his grace and glory to do. Just as the heat of the fire removes the impurities of the metal, so Gods glory will separate out from you, your improprieties, that are foreign to his glory. That you may become as wealthy as a refined and precious metal, strengthened in the courage of Gods eternal and everlasting will to do so. Amen. > That is what I want in life, nothing more and nothing less, then Gods glory taking me all the way there. Not by my might, but from, thru and for him, so that I am able to live exclusively in his company. In this, I will live in the most exclusive community available, which is the property of God, of which I am, where I dwell in him and he dwells in me, that is what I long for. |
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© Copyright. 2003 - By John Thomas Publishing Co. John Thomas Publishing Co. Content Copyright © 2003 John Thomas Publishing.
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