A Remarkable Nation
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
1 At the same time, saith the Lord,
Will I be the God of all the families of Israel,
And they shall be my people.
2 Thus saith the Lord,
The people which were left of the sword found grace in the wilderness;
Even Israel, when I went to cause him to rest.
3 The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying,
Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love:
Therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.
4 Again I will build thee, and thou shalt be built, O virgin of Israel:
Thou shalt again be adorned with thy tabrets,
And shalt go forth in the dances of them that make merry.
5 Thou shalt yet plant vines upon the mountains of Samaria:
The planters shall plant, and shall eat them as common things.
6 For there shall be a day,
That the watchmen upon the mount Ephraim shall cry,
Arise ye, and let us go up to Zion unto the Lord our God.
7 For thus saith the Lord;
Sing with gladness for Jacob,
And shout among the chief of the nations:
Publish ye, praise ye, and say,
O Lord, save thy people, the remnant of Israel.
8 Behold, I will bring them from the north country,
And gather them from the coasts of the earth,
And with them the blind and the lame,
The woman with child and her that travaileth with child together:
A great company shall return thither.
9 They shall come with weeping,
And with supplications will I lead them:
I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters
In a straight way, wherein they shall not stumble:
For I am a father to Israel,
And Ephraim is my firstborn.
10 Hear the word of the Lord, O ye nations,
And declare it in the isles afar off, and say,
He that scattered Israel will gather him,
And keep him, as a shepherd doth his flock.
11 For the Lord hath redeemed Jacob,
And ransomed him from the hand of him that was stronger than he.
12 Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion,
And shall flow together to the goodness of the Lord,
For wheat, and for wine, and for oil,
And for the young of the flock and of the herd:
And their soul shall be as a watered garden;
And they shall not sorrow any more at all.
13 Then shall the virgin rejoice in the dance,
Both young men and old together:
For I will turn their mourning into joy,
And will comfort them, and make them rejoice from their sorrow.
14 And I will satiate the soul of the priests with fatness,
And my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, saith the Lord.
I want to start out by saying that Israel, not the United States, not Russia, but Israel, is the most important nation on earth.
Jerusalem, not Washington, not Moscow, not Peking, not Paris, not London, is the most important city on earth.
Why is this? You cannot understand the future, you cannot understand Bible prophecy, and you cannot even understand the ways and the workings of God, if you don't understand Israel. The Jew is God's yardstick, God's measuring rod, God's blueprint, God's outline, God's plan for the future.
Historically, the Jews are a people without parallel in the annals of human history. No other nation on earth has experienced the presence and mighty hand of God as has Israel; no other nation on earth has survived oppression, captivity, and dispersion like that of Israel. From its origin, the Hebrew race has been at the center of God’s dealing with mankind.
Israel is the geographical center of the world.
Israel is the geographical center of the world.
Ezekiel tells us, “ Thus saith the Lord God: 'This is Jerusalem; I have set it in the midst of the nations and countries that are round about her.” (5:5) It is here at this tiny nation that three great continents - Europe, Asia, and Africa, meet together.
It is the spiritual center of the world.
It is the spiritual center of the world.
It is here that Jesus Christ was born, lived, died, was raised, ascended, and one day the Lord Jesus will return to rule and reign over this earth.
It is the prophetical center of the world.
It is the prophetical center of the world.
If you want to know what time it is on God's clock, look at Israel.
If you want to know what day it is on God's calendar, look at Israel.
If you want to know what degree it is on God's thermometer, look at Israel.
You can summarize Biblical prophecy in three words, Jews, Jerusalem, and Jesus. They are interwoven.
It is the political center of the world.
It is the political center of the world.
It is here that Armageddon, the last battle of the last war, will be fought. When we speak of Israel we justly confess, amazing race, amazing place, amazing grace. Israel, is a remarkable nation. What God has done to that nation, for that nation, and through that nation is remarkable. Is it not remarkable that,
As a race Israel was old when Rome was young?
That Israel has outlived every nation and empire that has persecuted him?
That in every field of endeavor to which Israel has turned his hand he has known astonishing success?
That Israel has defied the laws of history and preserved his racial identity though scattered in a hundred countries for hundreds upon hundreds of years?
Israel is one of the greatest phenomena that history has witnessed.
Past
Past
Israel began back in Genesis...
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 a promise to the nation of Israel.
Do you see in the text I read (Jer 31:10)?
That promise was repeated again in Ezek. 11:17, “Thus saith the Lord God, I will even gather you from the people, and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.”
24 For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land.
That is why the Jew cannot be eliminated.
Where are the Babylonians, the Hittites, the Amalekites, the Philistines, and the Assyrians? We read about the captivity throughout the Old Testament...They are no more, but the Jew still stands.
The regathering of the nation of Israel is one of the major prophetic themes of the Old Testament. And on May 14th, 1948, this finally came to pass, and the most important event of the twentieth century finally took place, a nation was born in a day.
A nation that was dormant and dead for 2,000 years was raised to life. How do you explain that?
It’s remarkable...
Present
Present
In 1948, they re-gathered as a nation with a population of only 800,000 and today has a population of over 9,000,000…That’s remarkable…It’s Bible prophecy coming true.
The fighting over there has always been about land…The fighting going on right now is about land…God give Israel the land over there, and the Gentiles have always worked to take it away from them...
It’s interesting, Hamas is fighting Israel right now saying they are fighting for their land, but there is not one shred of historical fact that shows that Palestine ever, not even for one day, had rule over the land they say belongs to them…Let me tell you what is happening, they are fighting for a lie...
Now...
Historically, the Jews have rejected the Messiah, that’s where the Church as we know it today come in, but I want you to know that God is not done with Israel...
God has set the Jews to the side for now, in this day of grace, but He is not done with them any stretch of the imagination.
Future
Future
Do you know one of the purposes of the Great Tribulation is to purify Israel! That’s why its called “the time of Jacob’s trouble.”(Jer 30:7)
The great tribulation will be a time of unprecedented trouble for Israel, but through it, rebelliousness will be purged away, and the nation will be prepared to received her Messiah.
All the nations of the world will one day come against Israel, and it will trigger the Battle of Armageddon...
“Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations as when He fought in the day of battle.” (Zech. 14:2-3) Just like the cavalry in the old cowboy movies, the Lord Jesus is going to come at the last minute and deliver Israel from certain destruction.
When that happens, notice carefully Israel's response, "And I will pour upon the house of David and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and of supplication; and they shall look on Me whom they have pierced.” (Zech. 12:10)
Scales of blindness will finally fall from Israel's eyes. Her heart will be softened toward the Lord Jesus Christ, and in an instant, an entire nation will not only be saved physically, but will be saved spiritually.
Paul tells us in (Rom 11:26) "So all Israel shall be saved.”
J.C. Hoover was a missionary to the Jews in Denver, Colorado. One day he was traveling in a car with a Jewish Rabbi. As they drove up to the synagogue the Rabbi said to his friend, “Mr. Hoover, you Gentile Christians are looking for the second coming of your Saviour, Jesus Christ, and we Jews are looking for the first coming of our Messiah. Who knows but He might be the same person.” The Rabbi paused for a moment and then he said, “Mr. Hoover, how do you think we will recognize our Messiah?” Quietly and reverently, the missionary read the words of the prophet Zechariah, “And they shall look on Me whom they have pierced.” The Rabbi was silent as he got out of the car and slowly walked into the synagogue.
Conclusion
Conclusion
The day is coming, when Israel, although blind at present, will recognize the Lord Jesus as the Messiah, and He who was crucified by them, will then be received by them.
You read Zechariah 12, 13, 14 and it would seem this is almost taking place right now, but these verses, are in fact, talking about the Second Coming of our Lord.
You know what we’re seeing right now? We are seeing what the Bible calls birth pangs…It’s going to happen soon…The Lord is going to rapture His Church out, and give this world what’s it’s been wanting for a long time, and that is life without God…Are you ready tonight? He could rapture us home tonight, maybe during the night, maybe early tomorrow? We need to be ready.
What should our response be to everything happening in Israel today?
6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:
They shall prosper that love thee.
...