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Psalms 78:30-39 They were
not deprived of their craving; But while their food was still in their mouths, The wrath of God came against them,
And slew the stoutest of them, And struck down the choice men of Israel. In spite of this they
still sinned, And did not believe in His wondrous works. Therefore their days
He consumed in futility, And their years in fear. When He slew them, then they
sought Him; And they returned and sought earnestly for God. Then they
remembered that God was their
rock, And the Most High God their Redeemer. Nevertheless they flattered Him
with their mouth, And they lied to Him with their tongue; For their heart was
not steadfast with Him, Nor were they faithful in His covenant. But He, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, And did not destroy them. Yes, many a time He turned His
anger away, And did not stir up all His wrath; For He remembered that they were but flesh, A breath that passes
away and does not come again. Father
God I fear for your people in Israel. The unrest that is coming to a boiling
point in the Middle East appears to be ready to erupt like a volcano. I know
you will protect them as you always have and our prayers are with your people.
We thank you for all that you do in our lives and we ask that you keep us
humble as you are. We give you all the glory and praise. Amen!
Romans 11:11-36 NKJV
This
week’s lesson covers a number of verses and they are all interrelated, so it is
hard to do just a small section of them. Most are understandable and don’t need
much explanation so I will lump verses together.
Romans
11:11-36:
11 I say then, have they stumbled that they should
fall? Certainly not! But through their fall, to provoke them to jealousy, salvation
has come to the Gentiles.
12 Now if their fall is riches for the world, and their failure riches for the
Gentiles, how much more their fullness! The question is
implying, “did God's people fall beyond recovery, without hope of salvation?” No,
they were disobedient, so God made salvation available to the Gentiles. God wanted
His own people to become jealous and claim it for themselves. Now if the Gentiles
were enriched because the people of Israel turned down God's offer of
salvation, think of the fullness and riches the world will share when the
Jewish people finally accept Jesus as there saviour.
13 For I speak to you Gentiles; inasmuch as I am an
apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry,
14 if by any means I may provoke to jealousy those who are my flesh and save some
of them. As a result of the Jewish people rejecting
Jesus, the true church was started and God appointed Paul to be the one to
spread the Gospel to the Gentile nations. Through this appointment Paul
emphasizes his desire to provoke his kinsman to jealousy any way he can so that
some will come to know Jesus as their saviour.
15 For if their being cast away is the reconciling of the world, what
will their acceptance be but life from the dead? The first part of this question refers to God
temporarily setting aside His people for the formation of the Church, but at
some point in time the Jewish people will be resurrected with the revelation of
the second come of Christ and the beginning of the Millennial reign. They will
be brought back from the death of unbelief to the light of belief.
16 For if the firstfruit is holy, the lump is
also holy; and if the root is holy, so are the branches. First-fruits is referring to the Patriarchs
of the OT, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. They were holy and so are their
descendants. They are the chosen people of God therefore they are holy, just as
the roots of a tree would be holy, the tree as a whole would be holy.
17 And if some of the branches were broken off, and
you, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them, and with them became
a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree, This
is referring to the Jewish people being branches of an olive tree and God being
the life giving root, and because of their disobedience and unbelief He has
temporarily pruned them from the tree. With the formation of the true church
through the apostles, any Gentile that believes (meaning a wild olive tree), is
grafted on to a cultivated tree of life and fed through the life giving root
system of God.
18 do not boast against the branches. But if you do
boast, remember that you do not
support the root, but the root supports you.
19 You will say then, "Branches were broken off
that I might be grafted in."
20 Well said.
Because of unbelief they were broken off, and you stand by faith. Do not be
haughty, but fear.
21 For if God did not spare the natural branches,
He may not spare you either.
22 Therefore consider the goodness and severity of
God: on those who fell, severity; but toward you, goodness, if you continue in His goodness. Otherwise you also will
be cut off. What Paul is saying here is that we need to
keep our flesh/human carnality in check. Don’t let our flesh rear up and start
bragging we are better than the Israelites, because they were pruned away and
we are grafted in. We don’t support the root, it is through God’s mercy that we
have the possibility of being grafted in and He supports us. It was because of
disobedience and unbelief on the Israelites part they were broken off and
because of our faith we are grafted in. We should forever keep in mind that
through our thoughts, actions, and faith in the finished work of the Cross, we
will remain grafted into the tree of life, but if we lose sight of the Cross
and what Jesus did for us, we will be broken off just as the Israelites.
What about the modern day
Churches? How do they compare to what Paul is stating in these verses? Are they
hot or cold, do they preach the Bible in its entirety or bits and piece so as
not to offend? Revelation 3:15-22 NLT "I know all the
things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish that you were one or
the other! 16 But since you are like
lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth! 17 You say, 'I am rich. I have everything I want. I don't need a
thing!' And you don't realize that you are wretched and miserable and poor and
blind and naked. 18 So I advise you to buy
gold from Me—gold that has been purified by fire. Then you will be rich. Also
buy white garments from Me so you will not be shamed by your nakedness, and
ointment for your eyes so you will be able to see. 19 I correct and discipline everyone I love. So be diligent and
turn from your indifference. 20"Look! I stand at the
door and knock. If you hear My voice and open the door, I will come in, and we
will share a meal together as friends.
21 Those who are
victorious will sit with Me on My throne, just as I was victorious and sat with
My Father on His throne. 22 "Anyone with ears to
hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what He is saying to the
churches."
23 And they also, if they do not continue in
unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again.
24 For if you were cut out of the olive tree which
is wild by nature, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive
tree, how much more will these, who are
natural branches, be grafted
into their own olive tree? These verses are referring to Israel and if
they change their ways and belief, God is merciful and has the power to graft
them back in to the tree of life. If God can graft in wild branches, which is
not normal by nature and give them life, then He can certainly graft back in
the natural branches and is eager to do so.
25 For I do not desire, brethren, that you should
be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that
blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has
come in. What is this mystery that Paul is referring
to? It is that veil that God has temporarily place over the Israelite’s. Paul
is telling the Gentiles not to get boastful and big headed because God has
granted them the gift of grace and not his chosen people. This blindness of the
Jews will continue until the end of the Church Age, and then at that time a
revelation will start, but not become fully unveiled, until the second coming
of Jesus Christ at the battle of Armageddon.
26 And so all Israel will be saved, as it is
written: "THE DELIVERER WILL COME OUT OF ZION, AND HE WILL TURN AWAY
UNGODLINESS FROM JACOB;
27 FOR THIS IS MY COVENANT WITH THEM, WHEN I TAKE
AWAY THEIR SINS." These verses are again stating that Israel
will be saved when the Church Age ends and the Second Coming of Jesus Christ
(The Deliverer) takes place. Jesus will deliver them from the Antichrist and
forgive their sins.
28 Concerning the gospel they are enemies for your
sake, but concerning the election they are beloved for the sake of the fathers.
During the Church Age the Israelites are considered enemies of the
Gospel of Jesus Christ due to their rejection of Jesus. This has benefited the
Gentiles, but we Gentiles only rate second in comparison to Israel. Israel is
God’s chosen people and beloved above all due to the love God had for Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob.
29 For the gifts and the calling of God are
irrevocable. God's gifts and His call can never be
withdrawn. God is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. He will not change
and His plan will be carried out no matter what we think and believe. It is all
recorded in the Bible and what is going on in the world has been prophesized
and is coming into effect.
30 For as you were once disobedient to God, yet
have now obtained mercy through their disobedience,
31 even so these also have now been disobedient,
that through the mercy shown you they also may obtain mercy.
Verse 30 speaks of we Gentiles that are Born Again who were once lost,
due to disobedience, have come to know Jesus as our Saviour because God poured
out his gift of grace to us. This grace was poured out to us because of
Israel’s disobedience and rejection of Jesus, but one must keep in mind that
this was God’s plan all along, and we didn’t become eligible for the gift of
Grace because of Israel’s fall. Verse 31 is saying just the opposite of verse
30, but directed to God’s chosen people the Jews. Just as we were once
disobedient and without faith, but was called and received God’s mercy, one day
the Israelites will also be called and receive God’s gift of Grace.
32 For God has committed them all to disobedience,
that He might have mercy on all. The key word here is “all”. Jew and Gentile
alike, at some point in time God has subject all to disobedience and unbelief.
God has and is doing this in hopes of people turning from their wicked ways and
accepting Jesus as their Saviour.
33 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom
and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past
finding out! How great are God's riches and wisdom and
knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand His decisions and His
ways! As human beings we can’t even begin to try to understand the wisdom and
knowledge of God. The only way of searching and finding out a fraction of what
God desires from us is through the Holy Spirit and what He reveals to us.
34 "FOR WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD? OR
WHO HAS BECOME HIS COUNSELOR?" This verse is
taken from Isaiah 40:13, 14. Is there
anyone that knows God’s thoughts or can give Him advice? No one can! God is:
Omniscience;
The quality of knowing all things at once; universal knowledge; knowledge
unbounded or infinite.
Omnipotent; Almighty; possessing unlimited power; all
powerful.
Omnipresent; Presence in every place at the same time;
unbounded or universal presence; ubiquity.
35 "OR WHO HAS FIRST GIVEN TO HIM AND IT SHALL
BE REPAID TO HIM?" This verse is taken from Job 41:11. The original Hebrew says, “Who hath first
given unto Me, that I should repay him?” God
asks who has given to Him anything that He should be under obligation to repay
someone? This is the sense in which the apostle uses the word here. Who has, by
his services, laid God under obligation to recompense or pay him again? Everything
in Heaven and under Heaven was created by God and belongs to God. This shows
that no one can plead his own merits, or advance with a claim on God. All the
favors of salvation must be bestowed by mercy and grace. God owns them all, and
he has a right to bestow them when and where he pleases. The same claim to all
things is repeatedly made by God in Exodus 19:5;
Deuteronomy 10:14; Psalm 24:1; Psalm
50:12. What is boils down to is, what we sow is what we reap!
36 For of Him and through Him and to Him are all
things, to whom be glory forever. Amen. For
everything comes from Him via creation and exists by His knowledge, power, and
presence. Everything is intended for His glory. For thine is the kingdom, and
the power, and the glory, forever! Amen!
Romans
1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ,
for it is
the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes…...
Psalms
51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit
within me.
John 3:3 Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you,
unless
one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."
Bill Wiesbrock
Last Week’s Trivia: Who was Abishag?
Answer: Abishag was a pretty girl from Shunam.
Abishag was hired to nurse David in his old age. After David’s death, David’s
son Adonijah wanted to marry her, but was forbidden by Solomon because of the
possible threat to Solomon’s throne; 1 Kings 1,2.
This week’s Trivia: Who was Abishai?
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