Israel's Covenantal Dilemma and Making sense of the Return of Jesus Part 2

When Jesus died on the cross, He cried out, "It is finished!" In His death, Jesus did what previously seemed to be impossible. He secured the redemption of humanity and of the cosmos. Perhaps because of Jesus' well-known phrase, many people assume the cross fulfilled all of God's promises,  but this is NOT what the Bible teaches.

Biblically speaking, the cross did not fulfill all the promises of God - IT SECURED THEM.

Tragically, we have neglected much of what the Bible says about the fulfill-ment of God's promises. However, the full magnitude of what the cross accomplished is revealed in both what was fulfilled when Jesus died and what will be fulfilled in the events we refer to as the "end times."

God has staked His honor on His ability to fulfill specific promises, and the plan of redemption is not completed until these promises are fulfilled.

The Atonement was finished at the cross, but there is more to the story, that must be finished at His return.

God Is Deeply Involved in History 

History is not aimless. The Bible tells us God is deeply involved in human history. He is leading humanity, from generation to generation, through a redemptive narrative towards a predetermined conclusion.

God is a master storyteller, and the plan of redemption is the most masterful story ever created.

The Bible's prediction of the end of the story should have the same effect on us as it did the saints who have gone before. It is the hope set before us, but far too often we fail to live with a biblical hope and expectation of the end because we are disconnected from the story. 

The End of a Story is the most Important Part 

Like any good story, the end is the most important part; however, many find the end of God's redemptive story difficult to grasp. The reason is typically because we may know individuals and events in the Bible, but struggle to connect them to the main elements that are driving the biblical story.

When you do not understand the key elements of the story, the end  becomes confusing. However, when we grasp the main elements of the story, the end is simply the logical conclusion of the story, and to fully grasp the gospel we need to understand the end of the story.

Many people assume the cross fulfilled all of God's promises, but that is not true. The cross secured all of God's promises, but did not fulfill them all. Therefore, to understand what is coming and to recognize God's activity in the earth, we need to know what He has set into motion that He must bring to completion. Even when God's people are rebellious, God's honor is at stake in the fulfilment of His promises. God may bring His promises to pass in shocking and surprising ways, but Moses recognized He must accomplish His promises in a way that remains true to what He told Abraham.

An Unprecedented Moment 

We live in an unprecedented moment in human history. We live in the first possible generation that could give witness  of the gospel to every tribe, nation, and tongue. 

Additionally, we live in the first generation in human history where Israel has become a global controversy.  Although Israel was always a central figure in the biblical narrative, during biblical times the vast majority of the earth was not aware Israel existed. Today, for the first time in history, Israel has become a global issue affecting nations.  

The global focus on Israel, and particularly Jerusalem, does not make sense according to human logic. Jerusalem is not a center of world finance or global business. It does not  produce natural resources that drive the global economy. There are far greater humanitarian challenges in the earth than Israel's complex relationship with the Palestinians. Though the issues surrounding Israel are important, there are much bigger conflicts in the earth. These other conflicts only receive a fraction of the attention Israel receives. The global focus on Israel simply does not make sense apart from what the Bible says about a final conflict over the salvation of Israel.

Living in a time when either of these events were occurring would be momentous in and of itself, but we live in a time when both events are occurring simultaneously for the first time in history.  This is unparalleled and unprecedented.

While we must avoid unbiblical attempts to predict the return of Jesus, the New Testament instructs us to understand the times and seasons in the earth.  Therefore, as we see the times and seasons shifting, we want to understand God's redemptive plan so that we can recognize His activity in the earth and fully engage in His mission.

The Story - The Key to the End

We cannot understand the end times by only focusing on the end times.  That is like trying to understand a movie by only watching the final ten minutes.  The key to understanding the main themes of the end times is to know the foundations of the biblical story and how they set up the end of the story. 

Too often, the end times seem confusing and strange because we do not understand the redemptive story - the biblical story.  Therefore, it's critical for us to see the end times as the logical conclusion to that story.  We need to know the story of God's redemptive plan and how He advances His plan through key events in history.

Different views of the end times have led to many books being written on the subject, but the majority of these books describe end time details without connecting them to descriptions of the end time events but have very little understanding of why these events must happen and what role they play in the redemptive story.  Understanding how the events of the end times relate to the story of the Bible is required to fully comprehend the return of Jesus.

The return of Jesus can seem complex and complicated when we do not understand how it is connected to the biblical story.

Because some believers do not understand the story, they avoid the subject of Jesus' return altogether, even though Jesus' return is a core component of the gospel. 

Other believers approach the end times primarily as a puzzle and become so lost in the details of the end of the age that they focus more on charts and graphs than how the end times relate to the mission of God happening now. 

The answer in each case is to anchor the return of Jesus in the overarching story of the Bible by putting end time events in the context of the biblical story.

When we fail to see Jesus' return as a part of the biblical story, the end times become a subject that is more trivial than missional. However the bible is written as an unfolding story, a great drama, that is building in intensity, where each part of the story, leads to the next and the details of the drama are given to provoke us to participate in God's mission.

Books written on the details of the end times are helpful, but it's not enough to know what happens in the future; we need to know what is propelling those specific events and why this age must conclude the way it will. 

We must connect the main themes of the beginning of the biblical story and discover how they set up the end of the story.  That is what we will do in this blog series, on the Israel Mandate, Israel's covenantal dilemma and the return of Jesus.

The Old Testament Sets he Stage

One of the most important parts of comprehending the plan of God for concluding His redemptive  story at the end of the age is the way we perceive the Old Testament.  Many believers think the Old Testament has been done away with, but the reality is not that simple. 

The Old Testament was the Bible the apostles preached from.  Our ability to fully grasp the redemptive story depends on our knowledge and understanding of the promises and foundations of the Old Testament. Once we understand those foundations, we need to know how Jesus fulfills God's redemptive plan, how we are to live in light of what has been fulfilled, and what remains to be fulfilled.

God's Covenant with Abraham

While there are things from the Old Testament that are passing away, the Bible never says the entire Old Testament is passing away.  We need to know the covenantal context of the Old Testament so we can recognize what is temporary and what is permanent in it.  The promises in the Old Testament continue to drive the redemptive story forward far more than most people realize.

The Old Testament is the foundation of the redemptive story. While portions of it have been fulfilled, its key promises remain unfulfilled and continue to undergird the redemptive plan in our day. God's promises are not only part of the past, they are part of our future. To understand the story of God, then, we have to study the plan of God in its natural order. This means understanding the foundation of the Old Testament, the work of Jesus in His first and second coming, and finally how that is applied in a New Testament context.

God began His redemption of the nations with a covenant made with Abraham.  This covenant is the foundation of the gospel because its success is guaranteed by God and not by Abraham. While many believers the Old Testament is passing away, it is more accurate to say the Mosaic covenant is passing away. Abraham's covenant has not passed away. It is very different from the law of Moses.  In a sense, both Jews and saved Gentiles are descendants of Abraham because he was born a Gentile and yet also become the father of the Jewish people. His life is a picture of how both Israel and the nations must come to salvation, therefore, the Apostle Paul identifies Abraham;'s covenant as the basis of the gospel.

Gal 3:16  Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ. 17  And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect. 18  For if the inheritance be of the law, it is no more of promise: but God gave it to Abraham by promise. 

These promises under gird the story of redemption and create a great tension throughout the biblical narrative as the prophets predict their fulfillment and, at the same time, wonder how God will ever bring these promise to fruition.  The New Testament authors marvel at how Jesus' death and resurrection becomes God's means of securing these promises.  These promises play a key role in redemption and a key role in Jesus return.  Therefore the first step in understanding the end times is to understand these promises and what the Bible says about God's commitment to them.

In Genesis 12, God begins to give shape and definition to His redemptive plan by calling out Abraham and giving him very specific promises.

Gen 12:1 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: 2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: 3  And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. 

God made three very distinct promises to Abraham. Each of these promises are key components of God's redemptive plan and all three - the promise of land, the promise of descendants, and the promises of the nations - must come to pass.  The conflict over these promises will set the stage for the final conflict at the end of the age.

Abraham's promises are a significant part of the "why" behind the "what" of end time events because the end of the age is designed to be God's great climatic fulfillment of these promises.  As a result, end-time passages typically emphasize the salvation of the Jewish people, the land of Israel (specifically, the city of Jerusalem), and the mention of the salvation of Gentiles.

The Growing Controversy over Abraham's Promises

When we look at the last hundred years of history through the lens of each promise, we see a growing escalation in the battle over the promises.  We see clear signs of God's commitment to each promise as well as intensifying resistance to each one.  The closer we get to the return of the Lord, the more extreme the conflict over these promises will become, setting the stage for the end times which will be the time of the most intense global conflict over these promises.  God will release unparalleled power in the nations to accomplish His purpose, and the enemy will release unprecedented opposition.

PROMISE 1 - THE LAND

The Bible tells us the Jewish possession of the land will become one of the main controversies in the earth, and now for the first time in two thousand years, there is a Jewish state in the land setting the context for that controversy.  We live in the first generation where the fulfillment of the land passages is suddenly possible.

Though the modern state of Israel is not a saved nation, the very presence of that state is a thunderous statement from God that He intends to fulfill the promise He made regarding the land. 

PROMISE 2 - ISRAEL'S SALVATION

The bible tellls us the salvation of the Jewish people will be contested - even to the point of attempted extermination - because the end of the age will result in their salvation (Daniel 7:21; Jeremiah 31:31-40; Zechariah 12:10; Matthew 23:39; 24:30; Romans 11:25-26; Revelation 1:7; 12:17. We live in time where there is a historical salvation occurring among the Jewish people.  Though Israel is not yet saved, messianic believers are taking their place.

Across the church, there is also a growing awareness of the need to understand what the Bible says about the salvation of Israel. The Lord is demonstrating His commitment to this promise.

At the same time, the twentieth century saw the horror of the Holocaust - the most gruesome attempt yet at preventing the salvation of the Jewish people - and it did not end with the Holocaust. The modern state of Israel has provoked antisemitism in an unprecedented way, and there are calls in some parts of the Islamic world for her destruction.  In some cases, there are accompanying calls for the annihilation of the Jewish people using anti-Semitic language that goes far beyond anything propogated by Adolf Hitler.

PROMISE 3 - THE NATIONS

The Bible predicts a remnant in all the nations must worship Israel's God before the age will end, and we are on the brink of incredible milestone in redemptive history: For the first time in history, it is now possible for the gospel to reach every tribe and tongue.  Evangelism is accelerating the millions have come to the gospel in the century.  We live in a time when the fastest growing church in the world is in a nation hostile to the gospel, and millions of people have gathered for mega crusades that would have been unimaginable in a previous generation.

At the same time, more Christians have been martyred in the last century than in all previous centuries combined, and persecution is on the rise in a number of nations that are hostile to the gospel.  Through the number of then un-reached people groups has dropped dramatically, many of remaining people groups will be most difficult to reach.....

......To be continued.

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