DISCERNING THE TIMES #1

 

ISRAEL AND THE GENTILES

 

1Chr. 12 ³² From the tribe of Issachar, there were 200 leaders of the tribe with their relatives. All these men understood the signs of the times and knew the best course for Israel to take. NLT

 

I.                   Israel is God’s time clock

 

A.    Abraham would bring forth a nation that would bless nations.

 

Gen. 12 ^2 “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; NIV

 

Gen. 18 ^18 Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all nations on earth will be blessed through him. NIV

 

B.   All are blessed who bless Israel

Gen. 12 ^3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth NIV

 

C.   Israel scattered because of her idolatry

Eze. 12 ^15 “They will know that I am the Lord, when I disperse them among the nations and scatter them through the countries. NIV

 

D.   Israel would return home before time of the Messiah.

Eze. 37 ^13 Then you, my people, will know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. ^14 I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done it, declares the Lord.’” NIV

 

E.   Israel will burden the world

Zechariah 12:2-3 Behold, I will make Jerusalem a goblet of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples. Then they will lay siege against Judah and Jerusalem. And in that day I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who try to lift it will be severely injured. All nations of the earth will gather for war because of it [Literal translation from the original Hebrew].

 

Having examined the prophets they warn us that we need to keep our eye on God’s time piece, Israel.

 

Immediately following Ezekiel 37, the return of Israel as a nation, we have the 38,39 that explain the coming invasion of Israel.

 

II.                The times of the Gentiles

 

A. The fullness of the Gentiles

a. The Jews are blinded.

Rom. 11 ²⁵ For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. KJV

 

Rom. 11 ²⁵ I want you to understand this mystery, dear brothers and sisters, so that you will not feel proud about yourselves. Some of the people of Israel have hard hearts, but this will last only until the full number of Gentiles comes to Christ. NLT

 

  b. The door is open for non-Jews to be saved.

When Jesus is dedicated at the temple Simeon prophesies

that this child would be a savior to the Gentiles.

 

Luke 2 ^28 Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying:

^29 “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,

you now dismiss your servant in peace.

^30 For my eyes have seen your salvation,

^31 which you have prepared in the sight of all people,

^32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles

and for glory to your people Israel.”

^33 The child’s father and mother marveled at what was said about him. ^34 Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, NIV

 

          c. The fullness of the Gentiles is the church.

 

The disciples are told in Matt. 28 the Great Commission is to take the gospel to all the nations of the earth.

 

The early church was consisting of Jews. They would then under the purpose of the gospel was for Gentiles as well.

 

Acts 11 ^18 When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, “So then, God has granted even the Gentiles repentance unto life.” NIV

 

Acts 14 ^27 On arriving there, they gathered the church together and reported all that God had done through them and how he had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles. NIV

 

The door of salvation has swung open to “whosoever will”.

Today is the day of salvation.

Many think to put off their salvation until the tribulation.

Let me give you 4 reasons why you should not wait.

 

1. You may die before the great tribulation

 

2. You will not believe on the Lord Jesus during the

     tribulation.

 

2Thes. 2 ^9 The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, ^10 and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. ^11 For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie ^12 and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness. NIV

 

3. It would be a foolish decision

 

Do you want the pain, misery, and perhaps being decapitated for the cause of Christ?

 

4. Most importantly, you will miss knowing Jesus today!

 

 

        B. The Times of the Gentiles.

 

a. The times of the Gentiles began with the Daniels image that he saw consisting of 5 Gentile nations that would rule over Israel.

 

The king of Babylon brings Daniel in to give him the dream and its interpretation at the risk of his life and his counsels. After consulting his 3 Hebrew friends, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, he receives the dream and its interpretation. It was an image made up of different metals that illustrated the kingdoms that would rule over Israel.

 

Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, the Roman Empire, and the Revised Roman Empire are the Gentile nations that would rule over Israel. These are found in Daniel 2:31-35.

 

The last kingdom is made of iron and clay. This is the revised Roman Empire. We know it today as the ECC.

 

                b. Times of Gentiles will end at the battle of

                     Armageddon.

 

Luke 11 ^20 “When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near. ^21 Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country not enter the city. ^22 For this is the time of punishment in fulfillment of all that has been written. ^23 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people. ^24 They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. NIV

 

Jerusalem was trampled underfoot by Babylon, Persia, Greece and ancient Rome; she will again be trampled underfoot by Antichrist when he comes to power in the final phase of the Roman Empire.

 

Jerusalem is taken half taken under siege and when it appears the Jews will be defeated Jesus will appear with his host to fight the Battle of Armageddon.

 

Zec. 14 ^2 I will gather all the nations to Jerusalem to fight against it; the city will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the women raped. Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be taken from the city.

^3 Then the Lord will go out and fight against those nations, as he fights in the day of battle. ^4 On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south. NIV

 

Rev. 19 ^11 I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. ^12 His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. ^13 He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. ^14 The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. ^15 Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.” He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. ^16 On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND Lord OF LordS. NIV

 

^19 Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to make war against the rider on the horse and his army. ^20 But the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who had performed the miraculous signs on his behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped his image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. ^21 The rest of them were killed with the sword that came out of the mouth of the rider on the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh. NIV

 

Israel will never again be destroyed!

 

In order to destroy Israel you have to destroy the power that regulates the universe you will have to remove God from His throne.

 

Jer. 31 ³⁵ Thus saith the LORD, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, which divideth the sea when the waves thereof roar; The LORD of hosts is his name: ³⁶ If those ordinances depart from before me, saith the LORD, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me for ever. ³⁷ Thus saith the LORD; If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, saith the LORD. KJV

 

When the sun, moon and stars don’t shine; when the heavens can be measured, the fountains of the earth are discovered, then He will stop Israel from being a nation.

 

I have news for you; “that ain’t gonna happen”!

 

We are debtors to the Jews for the prophets and the Messiah. We must embrace the nation of Israel. We Gentiles must understand that this is our time of receiving Christ. The clock is winding down.