Paul's Burden for Israel

Sue last week gave me a copy of Howell's teaching on Romans 9 forward, and I really found that useful. What I found particularly useful is these great charts that Howell draws. So you're going to get one of them today. And this is a legal paper, so they have to probably switch gears on the copying machine to get that done.

It'll reflect really nicely between verses 5 and 6. And as I prepared for today, Roger, to be honest with you, I think retrospectively it would have been good to stop at 5, but then again we've got to pick up the pace and so we're going through 7. And that'll just open up a door that begins with verse 6 that ultimately could have been opened next week rather than today. But we're going to open it today and let Jim keep going through it next week and opening it more widely. Let's go ahead now.

The introduction to chapters 9 through 11 is about Israel. The next three chapters are really very Jewish focused. It's about Israel, but it's really, I think, essential for our own salvation. Remember about our salvation, we've been saved, we're being saved, we're going to be saved. really reflects, I think, how we relate to Israel, and that's so important. Remember, all of the Bible is for us. It's not all about us, but it's all for us, and God hasn't given us, you know, 70% of the text is Old Testament for no good reason. I mean, and we're going to see how really, as we already know, Christ is really steeped in Jewish roots.

And so that's going to be a door, again, that we're going to open some today. So what am I doing here? All right. So one thing for us as believers is our position slash place versus that of Israel. And yet there's much of the church today, the body of Christ, that really lives under Israeli principles in terms of God's message to the Jew. And that's not correct. So we've got to kind of focus in on what God's message was to Israel versus what it is to us and how we ultimately relate those two messages in terms of an interpretation that is founded in truth. So chapter 9 is basically the past. Chapter 10, mostly the present, and Chapter 11, mostly the future. And that's not perfect. There's a little bit of overlap between past, present, and future in those particular chapters. And Margaret now is bearing gifts. Today's handout. We also need to recognize that in the future, God's going to share his mercy with the remnant of Israel. And that creates a principle of hope.

So God's not through with Israel. I mean, many people kind of interpret the fact that Israel's history, Israel's anything but history. And we're going to start today to understand this distinction between the natural Israelite versus the spiritual Israelite. And that's a principle that's going to carry forward with us. And the promise here is really not according to the flesh.

In fact, I would contend that almost all Jews today take one of three positions. Number one, they could care less about anything. I mean, really, seriously, I know many Jews that don't relate to their history as a Jewish citizen at all, zero. And then there's the Zionists, the people that are very motivated to the land only, right? I mean, they're Jewish by tradition. They may go to the synagogue once a year or something, but I mean, basically the religious aspect of the Jewish history is something that they don't really care much about, but they're concerned about the land, right? And Israel versus the Arab world always, right? Pro-Israel. And then the third, I mean, I'm generalizing, but I think then the third Jew is someone who takes his or her faith quite seriously.

These are the people you see at the Wailing Wall. Margaret and I had the privilege of going to Jerusalem about three years ago. All these garbed and long-haired and beanie kind of Israelites who really take their faith seriously. Skullcaps, whatever you want to call them.

So I think that that generalization kind of works. So all of those in terms of today really reflect not the spiritual seed, although you could say that the third group maybe is still seeking the Messiah seriously and believes that the Lord Jesus Christ is not him.

I think that's an obvious conclusion. So let's open the door now to Romans 9, 1 through 3. Now what I'm going to be doing, and I think Jim and Roger may do this too, is lump verses together that have thematics with them. This kind of dissection of a single verse at a time like we've been doing through Romans 8 is probably going to be historic to a large extent at this point, although we may revert to that at times. So using the NIB, which I liked best in terms of translation, I speak the truth.

This is Paul. Now remember, we just came from nor height, nor depth, nor any other creation shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Period. In fact, in some commentaries I really read the concept that some people think that Romans 9 through 11 has no place in the Book of Romans, that it was mistakenly placed here. Well, you can view it that way, but this is our Bible and here's Romans 9.

But look at the transition. I speak the truth in Christ. I'm not lying. My conscience confirms it in the Holy Spirit. I have great sorrow and increasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, those of my own race. How's that for a transition? from there's nothing that can separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." My goodness.

Not only a new chapter, it's kind of like a whole new book is what it is. So let's build on that theme. I think the background for this, and I've simply shared this as a single verse, and we could find many other verses in the Acts and elsewhere in the Scriptures to defend this. The background goes something like this.

In Acts 23.12 it says, when it was day, certain of the Jews banded together and bound themselves under a curse, saying that they would neither eat nor drink till they had killed Paul." I mean, again, that's just a representative verse that reflects the opinion of his own countrymen about him. I mean, we talk about the Lord Jesus Christ and the earthly persecution against him. Paul is walking in those same shoes right now.

Isn't that similar even to the day where a member of a Jewish family becomes a Jew and they ostracize the believer? Yeah, I think you meant to say if a member of the Jewish family becomes a believer, a Christian, right? Yes, that often does occur. And I think it's true of many other religions when people come to Christ, is they're really ostracized from their family and their faith, their old faith.

So I think Paul here, in so many ways, is demonstrating his great love for the Israelites. Remember, the background is he's hated by his fellow countrymen. So let's look at the examples of that. First of all, he speaks the truth in Christ. He's not kind of being wishy-washy here. He's firmly standing on the truth that he's demonstrated throughout the first eight chapters of Romans. Boy, think of the text that precedes this.

He's speaking the truth about how he feels about his fellow Israelites based on where he stands and positioned in the Lord Jesus Christ. Gotta start there. We all have to start there. And we finish there, hopefully. But where we're at in Christ and the truth of the Lord Jesus Christ and who He is is the foundation on which we all stand. Each and every day and every minute of every day. And it's neat that Paul The first thing he says here is he speaks the truth in Christ.

Is this kind of apologetically? Think about this, I'm not lying. What do you think about somebody who says I'm not lying? Let's not spend time there. And then he goes on to say, oh, by the way, I'm not only not lying, but my conscience is confirmed by the Holy Spirit.

President Commons at the time for people to lie and it was, I know we talked about that in the lady study, and that a lot of these pagan and they're used to that. Lying was sort of thought highly of, if you were lying. I mean, how good a liar you were. If you got away with it, how good a liar you were. But Margaret, if he's speaking the truth in Christ, why does he need to proclaim that he's not lying? Because I think that everyone lied a lot. Okay, so if I say something, you say, I'm not lying, honey. What's your next thought? Well, but if everyone normally did lie, I think he was trying to set himself apart from it. You can say, Bob, I'm glad you said that. This reflects kind of where you've been coming from here recently. Roger?

Vermin called this the cultural insight, right? Yeah, yeah. Cultural insight, exactly. The culture had, you know, a good lie, or hey, it's okay. Yes, Carol, please. It touches me that when Paul says this, because there are those of us who, excuse me, we've been intertwined with a Jewish family for over 35 years, involved in every crisis, and happy marriage, and so on, in both of our lives, and this could be my prayer every day. I know how it feels about it, that they would be saved. A bit apologetic, but yet it's in the text, and we believe that perhaps it's culturally important and representative of where Paul was at with his fellow citizens. Third point, I went ahead too quickly.

Conscience confirms it in the Holy Spirit. Again, if the truth is in Christ, I think to attribute the fact that the Holy Spirit confirming it. I mean, he's saying it in the text, but in a sense, don't you think he's just kind of being open and free in terms of the way he's sharing what the message is here? In other words, I'm not only not lying, the truth is not only in Christ, but yet the Spirit gives me comfort in what I'm going to tell you right now. I mean, this is really on solid ground.

And so I think between the first statement and the third that we can go on to the fourth. So it says in the text that he's experiencing great sorrow, and I like the term unceasing anguish. Boy, I mean, that's very descriptive. And I'm not going to spend a lot of time going through the Greek words here. We just don't have time to do that as much, I think, in the seconds that lie ahead. But I think you get the idea.

This is bothersome to him. And he's willing that he could wish myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers. and could wish is an imperfect tense verb which really kind of reflects that kind of ongoing action. He's wishing repeatedly that he could be accursed and this is present tense. So it's kind of like I'm wishing all the time that I could be accursed or cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers. Now we're going to pause here a second because that's a fairly dramatic statement here. Carol, maybe we should meet afterwards.

So this takes us back to Moses, and Moses kind of reflected a kind of a similar thought, and that related to his experience on Sinai when he came down and kind of experienced what was going on down in the valley down there. And let's, you don't have to turn to this, it's on your printed document, but Exodus 32. Honey, could I, is there another copy of the handout? Is there one in the back here? I got it too, I got it.

So in Exodus 32, 31 to 32, it says, Moses returned unto the Lord and said, O this people have sinned a great sin, and I've made them gods of gold, and have made them gods of gold. Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin, and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written. How's that for kind of a similar circumstance, right?

So this is you know, a position that Paul takes reflecting his great love for his people. And Moses reflected that same love. I mean, he was willing to sacrifice himself to kind of have the sin of the nation of Israel forgiven before the Lord. And I think Paul's taking on that same position.

But look at this. That's why I took us back to verse 39 in chapter 8. I thought Paul had just said that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ. love of God in Christ Jesus. So, let's look at this a little more closely. What's Paul really saying here? Have we translated verse 3 correctly? Is there something wrong here? Well, let's take a closer look. McGee claims that, no, he thinks we've translated it incorrectly.

And I went back to the Interlunar Greek, and by the way, the way the NIV shares this is really very consistent with what the ILG says. What the ILG says is very much like kind of Paul would be, you know, willing to be accursed from Christ for his brethren. I mean, that's the way it reads. But McGee says no. He said, thus his view of what Paul's saying is here, for I was once myself accursed from Christ, just like my brethren. I know I cannot be accursed and I want them to come to know Christ and be in my present position."

I mean that's really quite a paraphrase. And if you look back at the Greek verb very carefully, I could wish or hew come is an idiomatic which reflects cultural and individualistic applications. Imperfect, we've already covered, it's an imperfect tense, kind of repeatedly thought, expressed, And maybe another way of translating was, I was on the point of wishing. So kind of in context, I was kind of almost wishing that I would be accursed from Christ.

Let me ask your thoughts. Anybody have some thoughts on this? Because I've kind of made a conclusion myself. Honey, are you going to say something? You're just scratching your chin there. No, I'm just thinking. Anybody else thinking? Well, I think like, you know, with your children, I mean, you do have those thoughts sometimes, if they go through something that's painful to them, you know, you would gladly substitute yourself in that position, knowing you can't. But I mean, I still think that thought process is a sacrifice. Okay.

But this is even a little more dramatic, don't you think, that he would curse his faith in Christ for his brethren? But I think really what Paul is saying, and this is kind of what I'm trying to do to paraphrase this, for I could wish that I myself were cursed, but, if it were possible, but it's not.

I mean, it's kind of this... It's for emphasis, don't you think? I think so, yeah. Because Paul wrote that way in many of his books, where he just, he kind of would say really strong things for emphasis. That's what I would say. Well, I think emphasis, but I think it's also a life and death issue and he knows that. Absolutely.

And I think your example of kind of a substitutionary opportunity that we don't have but we'd like to have. I mean, I know when Sharon was dying, I wish I could have been me instead of her. But yet, it wasn't possible. But I would have had been that way, but that wasn't God's plan.

I mean, so Paul's saying, gee, I love my brethren so much that I'm willing to kind of, you know, give up my relationship to Christ if all of them would come to be saved. I mean, I think culturally acceptable, but Paul is not contradicting, you know, the ten epistles or whatever he's written. I don't know how many exactly, but that all the work that Paul has done to reflect on God's truth in the Word would not be, you know, made void because of this statement. Remember, the Bible can always be used to contradict the position of truth by an individual who picks out one verse.

But when we put it all into context, that's where it really fits in. Anybody want to argue with that one? It's a nice thing to reflect on. That's right. I mean, that's really the bottom line. All right, let's go on now to what I consider really a very important part of the text today, and that's Romans 4 and 5, chapter 9, verses 4 and 5.

So verse 3 continues, so Paul says, For I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen, according to the flesh, who are Israelites. It's kind of funny on a verse break, why wasn't who are Israelites put in verse 3? I have no idea, but we're not there to figure that one out. Okay, so the beginning of verse 4 is defining his brethren, who are the people of Israel.

Theirs is the adoption as sons, theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship, and the promises. Theirs are the patriarchs or fathers, and from them is Christ the human ancestry of Christ. who is God over all, forever praised, Amen. So this begins our study of the uniqueness of Israel, God's eight blessings that are directed to Israel, and by the way, other than the eighth to Israel only. So let's take a look at these in more detail. The first is the adoption, and that adoption is both divine in terms of spiritual and national because there is an appeal to the nation itself in terms of the promises given to the nation. We'll return to that in a second. So this is the only nation God has ever declared to be a son.

So what I'd like to do would be, Lindy, would you look at Exodus 4.22?

And Wayne, could you get Hosea 11.1? Let's just take a look at some of these verses. We are not going to have time to look at all the verses that reflect on these eight blessings to the nation of Israel, but I do want to look at a few because they substantiate the point.

So Exodus 4.22 and Hosea 11.1. Whoever gets whichever one first, go ahead and read it. Hosea, remember it's after Genesis. Before Matthew. Read out, let me speak up.

Then say to Pharaoh, this is what the Lord says, Israel is my firstborn son. Good, very simply stated. When Israel was a child, then I loved him and called my son out of Egypt. Yeah, and you don't find that directed towards Iraq. find that directed towards Canada. Israel is the only nation approached as God's son. Interesting, huh? And if you think about the body of Christ, that's not a nation, it's the world who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. So Israel is unique in being the only nation adapted as a son. And there's a number of other verses, by the way, that reflect on this very special relationship.

Deuteronomy 7.6, Isaiah 66.22, which by the way Verne covered about three or four weeks ago from the pulpit, Amos 3.2, Jeremiah 31.9, all of the additional verses for you to take a look at if you want to look at this very special relationship.

The same Greek term, actually very interesting, is used for us as believers in Romans 8.15. In fact, we're adopted sons. Same Greek term. So the relationship that God created with a nation of Israel is that same adoption process that he's used for us as individual believers. But remember, we're not a nation, we're a body. And that body transcends the many nations of the world. Any questions on the adoption? All right.

The glory is next, and this is the familiar term we see so often in reflecting God's glory, doxa, which is the Shekinah or abiding glory. So let's look at how that's manifested. This is shown to the nation in so many different ways, in the wilderness, in the filling, the tabernacle, and then ultimately Solomon's temple. And these, I think, are verses that are reflecting that. And maybe we should take a look at these since we're not going to be spending much additional time on the glory.

So Donna, Exodus 25.8, 21 and 22. So why don't you do all three of those? And Vani, would you take Exodus 40, 34 to 38, and Roger 2 Chronicles 5, 14. So these reflect these three different kinds of experiences. Donna, we're going to be studying chapters 9 through 11 now. Just trust me. We're going to be going back into that other part of the Bible, right? Okay, Sue, do it.

Let them construct the sanctuary for me, that I may dwell among them. You shall put a mercy seat on top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the testimony which I will give to you. There I will meet with you, and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are upon the ark of the testimony, I will speak to you about all that I will give you in commandments for the son of Israel.

Exodus 40 verse 34-38 Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting, because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And throughout all their journeys, whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the sons of Israel would set out. But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out until the day when it was taken up. For throughout all their journey, the cloud of the Lord was on the tabernacle by day, and there was fire in it by night in the sight of all the house of Israel. So the priest could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled the house of God.

Okay, so these are just a couple of verses on wilderness, tabernacle, and temple. And there are many, many more, by the way, but these are just representative verses. God's glory was present with the nation in different forms, in different ways, at different times. But God's glory was manifested in those forms to the nation of Israel. And the question I have for the class today is, are we in any way less privileged? What do you think about God's glory and how it relates to us?

Well, again, a number of potential verses we could try. I just like John 17, 22, in the Lord's heavenly prayer in Gethsemane, and the glory which thou gavest me, I have given them that may be one even as we are one. How about that? I mean, there's no way we're in a position of consolation here.

I mean, God's glory is more, if you will, more manifested in us than it was the nation. But yet still, glory is one of these eight blessings conferred on the nation of Israel, identified in Romans 9. But remember, to the nation now, not to the individual Jew, to the nation. And that's what's different about the body of Christ. Because we live among a fallen world and we have been selected by the process of God's great grace in our faith. come into a different relationship, and God's glory is sufficient for each and every one of us, and more than sufficient. So we as individuals have taken on the same privilege the entire nation of Israel had. And we now, I think, if you will, have a more glorious relationship than that was conferred on the nation of Israel.

The covenants. What's a covenant? It's a contract. And does it depend on one or both? It depends. Sometimes I'm just God and sometimes I'm both God and Israel. And what are your thoughts about the many covenants that we read about in the Old Testament?

The Adamic covenant, the Noahic covenant, and the foundation, I think, for the nation of Israel is the Abrahamic covenant, right? Which is declared in Genesis 12 Let's decide whether, in a second, whether we're going to go back and look at these. The specific covenants that are under the Abrahamic covenant, including the land, which is really the Palestinian covenant described in Deuteronomy, the covenant that relates to the seed, which is the Davidic covenant, described in 2 Samuel 7. And then the third is the blessing, if you will, which is the new covenant promised in Jeremiah 31.

Now, Newell points out that with covenants, and this is a quote, with covenants, and that's a quote within a quote, Gentiles have absolutely nothing actively to do. So these covenants all are a contract between God and the nation of Israel. And what is it dependent upon? God. This is a one way contract, but yet for the nation ultimately to experience these covenants, do they have to do anything? What do they have to do to experience the covenants in reality? They just need to show up, right? I mean, there's nothing dependent on... They need to be born Jewish. Right. That's it.

But, you know, as we think about the Abrahamic Covenant in this broadest perspective as reaching the nation of Israel, there were those who believed in the Covenant and God's promises, and there were those that didn't. But the Covenant will go ahead and be fulfilled no matter whether they believe or not, right? This is a one-way contract. And those in the nation of Israel who accepted the covenants by faith were ultimately the ones that would trust God's promises for everything He gave them.

Remember, the nation of Israel is not the spiritual Israel. And that's, again, going to be something we're going to be increasingly looking at. Let's go ahead and look at the Abrahamic covenants, since it's the father, if you will, of these other three covenants.

So, honey, would you look at Genesis 12? You don't have a Bible? Here, here, look at Genesis 12, 1 through 3. Carol, how about the second one, which is Genesis 15, 18, and then let's have Doris, how about Genesis 17, 2 through 7? Can you get that for us? And we're not going to look at these other verses because I think you can all look at those up on your own time. Right.

Now the Lord hath said unto Abraham, Get thee out of my country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will show thee. 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. And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse them that curse thee. And in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. Okay, thank you. 1518?

On that day, the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt as far as the great river of the river of Euphrates. And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly. And Abram fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying, As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and now shall be a father of many nations. Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, that thy name shall be Abraham, for a father of many nations have I made thee. And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. And I will establish my covenant between thee and me, and thy seed after thee, in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. Does everybody see that that's kind of the foundation of everything that follows?

It's a direct report to Israel. Remember, the Adamic covenant, the Noahic covenant, all preceded these covenants that were directed towards Israel. So the covenant, the Palestinian covenant, the Davidic covenant, the New Covenant, all fall within the domain in terms of the promises God has made to the nation of Israel.

These are not directed to the body of Christ. The Jeremiah promise of the New Covenant really reflects the Millennial Kingdom and the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ to reign. It does not reflect the New Covenant meaning the cross and the Church. We importantly want to distinguish the New Covenant from the Everlasting Covenant. By the way, the Everlasting Covenant was a contract between God and His Son. We're the ones who are privileged by that relationship described in Hebrews. But the New Covenant isn't the cross bringing a new believer out of the Jewish tradition. The New Covenant towards Israel is one reflecting the reign of the Lord Jesus Christ over the millennium. So we'll not look at this in any more detail now. The next of these blessings is the Law. And Exodus 19 through chapter 31, we've got 13 chapters to read. Art, would you read those 13 chapters for us, please? Art? Oh, I see. You only have a New Testament, too. All right. How about this?

As I was kind of pausing and had this thought, I said, no other nation was so addressed or privileged. But was the nation of Israel privileged by the law being placed over them? What do you think about that? This is unique to the nation of Israel. Is that a privilege to have a law superimposed from a believer's perspective? Absolutely not, right? The law has no role over our lives at all. Absolutely none. I mean, by God's great grace, we're above the law.

And Christ really declared that with no uncertainty. What, honey? Well, I was just thinking, of course, the reason the law was given is because he had all these covenants with him. He'd given them all his promises. And they just couldn't You know, they didn't believe him. They whined, they moaned and wanted more. And finally, he just said, well, you know, because there was no law, they didn't. There was no standard that they had or they felt they had. So, of course, he gave the law to show them how they couldn't keep it.

After that great verse, we all love so much, Galatians 2.20, for I have been crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live.

Ruth, would you turn to Galatians 2.21? It's one of Margaret's favorite verses, but let's read that in relationship to the law and the believer.

We always forget that next verse, but the next verse is actually as uplifting and powerful as Galatians 2.20. Go ahead, Ruthie. 2.21.

I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing. Isn't that unbelievable? If we could come to Christ through the law, then he died. I love it, the King James, in vain. It was a worthless death, if in fact the law could bring us into the right relationship to God.

So that's why I put this question mark after privilege. You disobedient guys and gals, here's the law, get with it. That's a privilege, if you will, or a blessing to Israel alone. It seems to me that the law convicts the Jew as well as it also convicts us. and me that I am a sinner. And so it was not for salvation, but it was for conviction of sin. Yeah, the purpose of the law is to convict, right? To bring us to Christ.

And you know, even though the Gentile was not under the law, he or she really, in many ways, had their own legal system worked out how to develop a relationship to God. And if you think about our government, I mean, the law, to some extent, reflects many of the principles of active government today and over the history of mankind. Legal systems are there for everybody, and as believers, we're really encouraged and really demanded not to follow legal systems. Christ is above the law. And as it says in 221, grace is the principle by which we operate, not law.

Didn't they choose to have the law, though? Oh, absolutely. Because they wanted a king over their land, too, and God granted that. So, I mean, all these principles of Israel needing guidance, God, I guess, did, quote, bless them with a law because they'd actually requested it. I didn't go back and look at that specifically, but that's a nice point.

Now, service of God is another one of these areas that has been mentioned among the eight. This was initiated in Egypt with a Passover, and we'll not take time to look at that right now. The tribe of Levi, the priests, and the tabernacle temple worship is another example of the service of God. And this is declared in a number of sections of the Old Testament. And the third thing I've listed is this is not for the body of Christ. So this service issue, the worship service, and how it's carried out was all directed to Israel.

And I think Galatians 4 and 9 is particularly appropriate here. But now, after that, you've known God, or rather are known of God. This is the believer, right? How turn you again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage?" This whole kind of declaring the worship and service of God to be carried out with a specific format is death in the city to God.

Now we can approach him as informally as possible, with as much freedom as possible. There's no tradition we have to follow here. And I don't know about many of you, but when you go to Episcopal church or Catholic church, you're just overwhelmed by all this documentation and tradition and garb and robe. Anyway, if you will, those are weak and beggarly elements. They really are. And we worship in freedom and in informality. That's not informality to be misinterpreted, because our worship is in Christ. But that gives us tremendous freedom as to how we worship.

But yet the nation of Israel got this service of God. And there's the scriptures to support how the Passover and the tradition of the Levites and priests and setting the standard for how worship should be performed was carried out. No other nation got that. Just Israel. All right, the promises. A promise is an announcement, and it's often given to denote God's gracious provisions.

And examples of this are the salvation promises that were read by Margaret in Genesis 12.3, the land promises also given to Abraham in Genesis 13, 14, and 15, the kingdom promises, which are largely in the text that David has written, Any comments at all about the promises? I think we don't really need to spend a lot of time there. There were lots of promises given to the nation related to the things that were just mentioned.

All right, the patriarchs next are the fathers in some of the texts. And this is really Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and his 12 sons. And those are kind of looked at repeatedly in scripture as the fathers. And I put here in detail one or two verses in Genesis 49. Let's read those, because Judah is a very special individual as a son of Jacob.

And it says, Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise. Thy hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies, thy father's children shall bow down before thee. Judah is a lion's welt from the prey, my son, thou art God up. He stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion, who shall rouse him up? The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come. And unto him shall the gathering of the people be." So who's the Shiloh?

Christ himself, right? So Christ came out of Judah, who came out of Jacob, who came out of Isaac, who came out of Abraham. And there's, if you will, the patriarchal history that God has ultimately declared and I mean, think about all the people in the world who declare Abraham as their father. I mean, there's the Gentile or the church, if you will, the believing Gentile, the nation of Israel, the Islam faith, et cetera. But the patriarchal relationship comes through Isaac and Judah, whereas the Muslims have missed that, right? They've gone after Ishmael and not after Isaac. And it's neat to reflect on where the world's at today and what the promises were in Genesis about those two lines and how they would differ. All right. And God's specific selection. Let's do a look at that.

Deuteronomy 10.15. Who's ready to go on that? Wayne, how about you? Could you get that Deuteronomy? You do have an Old Testament, is that correct? Bob and Nancy, I'm coming to you guys back there too, so get ready. And you were born in Tel Aviv, is that right?

Only the Lord hath a delight in thy fathers, to love them. And he chose their seed after them, even you above all people, as it is this day. Okay, it's in context, if you read more of those verses, this is God's specific choice of his patriarchs and his fathers. Not declared by man, but by him.

And the final of the eight is Christ, the Messiah. And from them, let's go back, Margaret, you have the text in chapter 9, verse 5. Roger, maybe you have it, read it in context, would you? And from them is Christ, the human ancestry. The end of verse 5, or before the... who are the fathers, and from whom is Christ according to the flesh, who is over all. God bless forever. Amen.

Yeah, from the flesh is really also translated as traced from the human ancestry. And here are numerous verses that we can all look at. Let's just look at a couple. Maybe Nancy, why don't you look at Romans 1-3, and Bob, if you'd look at Matthew 1-1, and we'll just look at those two. Actually, let's keep going. Carol, Hebrews 2-16, and Sue, John 4-9. So let's look at all four of those. Onward. The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. For assuredly he does not give help to angels, but he gives help to the descendants of Abraham.

Therefore, the Samaritan woman said to him, how is it that you, being a Jew, ask me for a drink, if I am a Samaritan woman? For Jews have no feelings for Samaritans." Nothing but Jewish roots, huh? Nothing but Jewish roots. The Lord Jesus Christ, this eight blessing, if you will, unique to Israel, is that Christ came from Israel. I think those verses really nicely exemplify that. And there are many more.

It says he's overall. And when we think of all, we think of each, every, any, all, the whole, everyone, all things, everything. Pretty inclusive. It's a term that's obviously broadly applied. And these verses reflect kind of that not only is he overall, but he made them all. And he's really the controlling force about the entire universe. The Lord Jesus Christ is an eighth blessing, but he's not the last by mistake, is he? And I think, without doubt, he appears to excel them all. And this is what, ultimately, the first seven relate to. They all relate to the Lord Jesus Christ.

Then the text says, God's blessed forever. Amen. And in Romans 125, it has a similar kind of benediction, who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshiped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. Talking about the Heavenly Father.

And note that the amen is after both verses. And the amen just puts a bit of conclusive aspect or nature to the phrase that precedes it. So let it be. It's a done deal. God is blessed forever. Amen. Now, you've got howls. Did we get that copy, Sue, on the legal paper? So I need a copy of that for sure. All right, let's see. I got it. So open up this. And Hal, as he usually did, did a wonderful job on this.

So what we're looking at here. is the Romans 9, 4, and 5, eight blessings to the nation of Israel scenario, and at the top we've got kind of the oracles or the Word of God which transcends all of time. And then Romans 9, 4 to 5 on your left, and we have these eight blessings, if you will.

So you see the timeline from the bottom left of creation through families to the flood, And then the whole issue of the church on the bottom. Don't get wrapped up in the bottom because that's more engineering than I want to see in terms of the diagram. Let's come to the nation of Israel, which begins with Abraham. Does everybody see Abraham kind of in the middle, upper part of the diagram?

And then if we go from left to right, let's look at these eight promises. So we see the fathers at the top, which really, again, represent Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and his sons. And that was a temporal period, terminated after the death of Judah, presumably, since Judah's in the line. The promises are eternal. So they begin with Abraham, but they extend to eternity, through the cross, through the tribulation, through the millennium, and into the new heavens and new earth. The service of God terminated at the cross. So the way people worshipped is no longer the way Israel was told to worship. Done deal. The law was made void by the cross.

The covenants are those promises which are just like the promises. Remember the covenants, many of them are tied into promises. Those are kind of the same deal, but the promises you could potentially say are in many ways more extenuating. Nevertheless, the covenants began with Abraham and extend into eternity future.

The glory, what do we think about when we think of the glory? Well, the glory to the nation of Israel was, as we described, tabernacle, temple, wilderness, and then that left, didn't it? And we're told that the glory will again return during the millennial reign. So that's coming back. So there will be a service of worship and there will be potentially, I don't know, Roger, animal sacrifice during the millennium? I think so, right? The nation of Israel will return, I think. It's much like it was back in the Old Testament times. That will be repeated in a sense.

And then the adoption process, of course, adopted as sons is a process that God's declared for Israel. And that adoption hasn't ceased. With a cross, that adoption of the nation of Israel as His son has not changed. And that will extend through eternity. So praise God for Hal's beautiful diagram, because it kind of puts these eight blessings, if you will, into perspective.

OK, we're going to kind of move very quickly to finish up. Romans 9 6 it's not as though God's Word had failed for all who are descended from Israel are Israel Has God's Word really failed? What are you? Thoughts about that? What about all those promises?

Well, we can turn to God's own word to see if it's valid. God said in Isaiah 55, 11, So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth. It shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. So, God's going to be true to his promises. The problem is, the nation of Israel, just like many of us in the day in which we live, are impatient. When is this deal going to get done here? But God's Word never returns void and will continue to manifest itself over time.

For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel. Doesn't this appear to be kind of a strange statement? Very strange. It seems difficult to discern. And here's that little announcement, if you will, and this is kind of the beginning of what we're going to be doing over the next few months. Here we begin to dissect the natural Israel from the spiritual Israel. And we've kind of dealt with this a little bit in Romans already, but now we're going to really be able to look at this front and center. So this is going to be much of the study that exists over the next couple of months.

Romans 9.7, Nor because they are his descendants are they all Abraham's children. On the contrary, it is through Isaac that your offspring be reckoned." A reminder of the foundation of mankind's relationship to God.

Genesis 21.12, And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman, in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice, for in Isaac shall thy seed be blessed. So the nation of Israel comes out of Isaac, not out of Ishmael. Secondly, Galatians 3, 6 and 7, even as Abraham believed God and was accounted to him for righteousness, know ye therefore that they which are of the faith, the same are the children of Abraham. Now those who are not of the faith are not the spiritual seed of Israel. Again, we're going to build on this subsequently.

And Romans 2.28 and 29 is what I alluded to a few minutes ago. In Romans, we've already touched on this.

For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly. Remember the three groups of Jews I kind of mentioned to you at the beginning in terms of the people care about nothing? Then the Zionists, the land dwelling interest of the nation of Israel as their only care. And then finally, kind of the Orthodox Jew. But it says here, he's not a Jew who's one outwardly. Neither is that circumcision which is outward in the flesh. But he is a Jew which is one inwardly. And circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter. His praise is not of men, but of God. So a question for all of us. How do these verses impact us as believers? Is this irrelevant to us? Is it about us? Not about us, but is it for us? And how is it for us?

Well, I have a couple of other thoughts here. Reflect on your experiences with Jewish people. And in medicine and science, believe me. I've had a lot. There are a lot of Jewish people in science and medicine. I think it's been a very humbling experience to be put in a position by the Lord to have to confront Jews all the time about my faith, and it's happened numerous times. And I can't think of one instance where I've seen a Jewish colleague come to the Lord Jesus Christ, a boy I've shared.

And it's been really a humbling opportunity to be put in a position where they accept me as part of their crowd in terms of the academics. But then when we start talking about things other than the academics, we can have a conversation. And Margaret's had the privilege of witnessing a few of those with me. But it's really a privilege.

But boy, the Jew is, in my opinion, almost more interested in where you're coming from than the Gentile non-believer who doesn't care much. The Jew seems to be steeped in a tradition down deep. that is interested in why you believe what you believe. Now again, nobody's come to be saved during any of these conversations, but yet it's a little different than when you're talking to a Gentile, who's an unbeliever. And I think the final point is, does it relate at all in how we share the gospel with them? And remember, the gospel is always Christ, and then Christ, and then Christ. So the Jew doesn't believe that Christ is who he said he was. And by the way, most Gentiles don't either. But yet the whole approach to that, in terms of God's promises to the nation of Israel, does reflect on the way, by the Spirit, we interact with the Jew.

Well, good. It's been fun to teach this. This is fun stuff. We're beginning with a lot of new meat now, and Jim's going to take us on to the next part of the text next week. Let's bow in prayer. Father, we are truly privileged to be able to reflect a little bit on promises made to a nation that is not us, but yet ones that will be fulfilled. And as we interact with the Jewish people in our day-to-day walk, we trust that the foundation that you've given us in Christ will ultimately be able to be shared by the Spirit with those of a faith that is very different, if present at all, from ours. And we're thankful for the many promises you've given Israel, and those promises are all concluded and wrapped up in the Lord Jesus Christ. May we be willing to move forward as the Spirit opens doors for us to share the Lord Jesus Christ with a people who are very doubtful and very unwilling to know the truth that you've given them. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.