Rightly
Dividing the Word of Truth
(II
Timothy 2:15)
The
Covenant Gospel and Paul’s Gospel of Grace
Part
III
Why
are we here?
We
continue to review and respond, in depth, to this question put forth in our
Bible study a few weeks ago. Is there more than one gospel in effect
today?
I
have decided to lecture on this topic because of its significance and because
there is a great deal of confusion in the church today in relation to this
subject matter.
We
have not drifted away from teaching the book of Revelation.
*****
Before
Jesus substitutionary death, burial, and resurrection, mankind was divided into
two groups: Jews and Gentiles; and this at the Creator God’s good judgment.
The
Old and New Testaments both make this very clear and give cause for this
distinction. It was the covenants the
LORD God made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and with their descendants through
Moses. These covenants were for the
nation of Israel alone and these covenants separated her from all other nations
on earth, making God’s chosen people absolutely unique in their standing and
relationship with their Creator God.
The
nation of Israel was segregated from all other peoples by the Mosaic Law and by
her special relationship with the One who calls Himself the “God of Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob.”
The
important distinction between Jews and Gentiles is maintained consistently
throughout the Bible:
Exodus 33
16: For is not the
fact of your going with us the sign that I and this people have grace in your
eyes so that we, that is, I and your people, are (what) separated from all other people on the face
of the earth? (Bible in Basic
English Version)
And:
Leviticus 20
16: And you are to
be holy to me; for I the Lord am holy and have made you separate from the
nations, so that you may be my people. (Bible in Basic
English Version)
And:
1 Chronicles 17
21: And what other
nation in the earth, like your people, did a god go out to take for himself, to
be his people, making his name great to be feared, driving out the nations from
before your people whom you made free and took out of Egypt
(Bible
in Basic English Version)
The
Apostle Paul reaffirms this Bible teaching in the New Testament:
Ephesians 2
11: Wherefore
remember, that once ye, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called
Uncircumcision by that which is called Circumcision, in the flesh, made by
hands;
12: that ye were (read now
carefully) at that time separate from
Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, strangers from
the (what?) covenants of the
promise, (therefore in a position) having
no hope and without God in the world.
That’s
as plain as daylight is to darkness my friends.
Gentiles
are not, never were, included in the covenant promises God made to Israel.
God
divided mankind into two groups, Jew and Gentile, and this actually began when
He called the man Abram, to leave his home, and his family, and directed him to
go to, “the land which I will show you.” (Genesis 12:1-3)
Abram
took God at His word. He believed God.
This
is not the same as believing in God.
Even Satan believes in God people.
Abram
acted on faith. To say this differently,
his belief became a “living faith.”
So
if you’ve been following the previous Bible lessons, then you’ve read this
information before. Jesus did not
have a ministry to gentiles during His earthly ministry. There are a few gentile exceptions recorded
for posterity in the book of Matthew and other places in Scripture, but that is
exactly what they are EXCEPTIONS.
For
those who are not sure what an “exception” is: an exception is someone who is NOT
included in or does not fit into a general rule, pattern, or judgment.
Previous
lessons cover this in greater detail and are available for viewing @ HBSGROUP.Blogspot.com
Now
I know this teaching may be difficult for some of you to understand.
I
get that. Believe me. You’re not alone and take comfort in knowing this.
The
twelve apostles were puzzled concerning salvation apart from the Law and Paul’s
writings to the gentiles especially. Peter
wrote:
II Peter 3
14: Therefore,
beloved, since you look for these things, be diligent to be found by Him in
peace, spotless and blameless,
15: and regard the
patience of our Lord as salvation; just as also our beloved brother (who is this) Paul, according to the (what) wisdom given him, (Paul did not receive
the doctrines of grace from the twelve or from any man. Paul received the revelation about salvation
by faith alone from the risen Lord) wrote
to you,
16: (read carefully) as also in all his letters, speaking in
them of (what) these things, (these
things which Peter and the other eleven were not privy too and were not
indoctrinated with) in which are some
things hard to understand, (now pay attention) which the untaught and
unstable (do what with) distort,
(but they don’t stop there) as they
do also the rest of the Scriptures, (to what end) to their own destruction.
17: You therefore,
beloved, knowing this beforehand, be on your guard so that you are not carried
away by the (what’s
the next word) error of
unprincipled men and fall away from your own steadfastness.
18: but grow in
the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ…
There
is much wisdom in that last verse and more than a hint for the rest of us.
*****
From
Adam to Abraham is roughly 2,000 years.
From
Abraham to Jesus Christ, where the LORD God is interacting primarily with His
elect, the Jews, (with some exceptions), is approximately another 2,000 years.
Therefore,
all the Old Testament prophets are writing to the covenant nation of Israel.
After
the LORD God promised King David that his throne would be established forever
in the Davidic Covenant, what do you suppose every God-fearing Jew was
earnestly seeking? Answer: the promised
Messiah
Old
Testament passages such as these which follow speak of the promised King and
Kingdom. And, once again, every
God-fearing Jew was aware of them!
Isaiah 9
7: There will be no
end to the increase of His government or of peace,
On the throne of (who) David and over His kingdom, To establish it
and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then and (for how
long) forevermore. (Who shall accomplish these things?) The zeal of the LORD of hosts will
accomplish this.
And:
Jeremiah 23
5: “Behold, the
days are coming,” declared the LORD, “When I will raise up for (who) David a righteous branch; And He will reign
as king and act wisely And do justice and righteousness in the land.
6: “In His days
Judah (the
nation of Israel) will be saved, And
Israel will dwell securely; And this is His name by which He will be called,
‘The LORD our righteousness.’
And:
Daniel 2
44: “In the days of
those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be
destroyed, and that kingdom will not be left for another people; it will crush
and put an end to all these kingdoms, but it will itself endure (how long) forever…”
But
once the Messiah arrived, these devout Jews believed the Messiah would:
Be
a descendant of King David
Gain
sovereignty over the land of Israel
Gather
the Jews from the four corners of the earth and return them to the land
Restore
them to full observance of Torah Law
Bring
peace to the entire earth
Knowing
this may help you understand why the Jews rejected Jesus as their king.
He
did not fit the “mold” of King David.
So,
when Pilate asked the angry crowd, “Shall
I crucify your King?”
The
chief priests answered, “We have no king
but Caesar.” (John 19:15)
Throughout
the gospel accounts, Jesus Christ and His disciples went throughout the land,
“preaching the gospel of the kingdom,” (Matthew 4:23; 9:35), and promising that
the kingdom is at hand to the Jew only.
(Matthew 4:17; Matthew 10:7)
The
point I’m making is this. The
preaching/teaching of the Gospel of the Kingdom continued long after Jesus
accession, as I’ve shown you beginning with the previous Bible lesson. Fifty days after Jesus’ crucifixion, the
twelve are still preaching the Covenant Gospel to Jews only at the Feast of the
Pentecost.
And
this practice continues well into the book of Acts.
(To
be continued)
©
Copyright 2011
GJ
Heitzman’s Ministry
All
Rights Reserved
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