Israel Rejected

Posted on by korgrocker

“I ask, then, has God rejected his own people, the nation of Israel? Of course not! I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham and a member of the tribe of Benjamin. No, God has not rejected his own people, whom he chose from the very beginning.  … ”
Romans 11:1-2a NLT

Paul continues his theme of salvation for all, by asking himself another question. Has God replaced the Jews with another nation, rejecting the “nation of Israel” in the process? Such a thought he quickly dispelled, because it would mean that God had rejected him, something that could never be the case after his encounter with the risen Jesus on the Damascus Road. Once again he set out his pedigree, with a family line he could trace all the way back to Abraham. He was one of the “stars” that God invited Abraham to count in the promise about the number of Abraham’s descendants (Genesis 15:5). So Paul assured himself that he was still counted as one of God’s “own people”. 

God’s grace and mercy is unlimited so He will never reject anyone who comes to Him in repentance. But in history there was a time when man’s wickedness was such that God had no choice but to reject and destroy mankind. We read in Genesis 6:5-6, “The Lord observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil. So the Lord was sorry he had ever made them and put them on the earth. It broke his heart”. These were the days of Noah but before the flood. On another occasion there was the depravity of the people in the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, and how these cities and all within them were destroyed (read Genesis 18 and 19). Through the times of the Judges, the people of Israel were time and time again overcome by their enemies, because God had turned His back on them because of their sin and rebellion. In it all, however, God’s rejection of mankind is not His choice – it follows wrong human choices. The choices of evil and sinful ways rather than God’s ways will not end well.

We live today in a season of grace. Through Jesus, and because of God’s patience, rejection and destruction of the wicked has been delayed until another time. We know that, because Jesus told us through the old Apostle John (Revelation 20). There will be that awful day when large numbers of people will stand before God, and the same penalty for sin will fall upon them as it did in the days of Noah, and Sodom and Gomorrah. 

Like Paul, we pilgrims have not been rejected by God. To the contrary He loves us and cares for us. And we remember that as God’s people, we were chosen “from the very beginning“. We read in Ephesians 1:4-5, “Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure“. There is something warm and secure, knowing that we are God’s children. Sometimes we might look around us and see a distressed world. We ask God where He is in it all. But as God’s sons and daughters we trust Him for our future, regardless of the apparent mayhem. remember – this is a world where God’s grace is available to all, but one day, He will call time. If the world seems evil now imagine what it will be like without God. Second thoughts, don’t bother! It will be too horrible to contemplate.

Father God. We are so grateful that nothing happens in this world without You allowing it. We echo the words at the end of Revelation – Come Lord Jesus. Amen.

A Guiding Light

Posted on by korgrocker

“You who call yourselves Jews are relying on God’s law, and you boast about your special relationship with him. You know what he wants; you know what is right because you have been taught his law. You are convinced that you are a guide for the blind and a light for people who are lost in darkness. You think you can instruct the ignorant and teach children the ways of God. For you are certain that God’s law gives you complete knowledge and truth. Well then, if you teach others, why don’t you teach yourself? You tell others not to steal, but do you steal? You say it is wrong to commit adultery, but do you commit adultery? You condemn idolatry, but do you use items stolen from pagan temples? You are so proud of knowing the law, but you dishonour God by breaking it. No wonder the Scriptures say, “The Gentiles blaspheme the name of God because of you.””
Romans‬ ‭2‬:‭17‬-‭24‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Paul continues in his rant about the Jewish Christians in Rome. He points out that they have the benefit of knowing what righteous living is all about because they have been schooled in the Law from an early age. The problem is that this seems to have introduced feelings of arrogance. Paul points out to them that they know all about the Law, they rely on it, he says, and therefore they claim to “know what is right”, claims added to because they know their special heritage. They are now all puffed up with their knowledge and assumed standing before God, and are convinced that they can act as examples to the Gentiles around them, teaching them all about God. Live like us and do what we do, they say, and you won’t go far wrong.

But Paul points out to them that they need to get their own lives in order before they can take the moral high ground and teach others. And he finishes these verses with the damning indictment that because of their hypocrisy, the very people they are trying to be an example to are taking the view that if this behaviour has God’s blessing then they want nothing to do with it. The classic trap the Jewish Christians had fallen into was the one described in the familiar line, “Don’t do as I do, do as I say”. Has anyone ever heard a parent say that? Or someone else in authority? 

Jesus had a run-in with the Pharisees over this very problem. They started off by asking Him for the reason why His disciples didn’t follow the Jewish traditions of things like hand washing. Jesus’s response was, “You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you, for he wrote, ‘These people honour me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” (Matthew 15:7-8). And as usual, the finger of the Master landed right on the issue. 

Hypocrisy is an easy trap to fall into. As an example, someone I knew once stuck a fish symbol on the boot of his car, advertising the fact that he was a Christian. But one day he drove in a hurry through a small village, significantly exceeding the speed limit, and causing dismay to the locals. He stopped a few miles further on for petrol, and one of the cars he had overtaken in the village pulled up behind him. The driver got out and proceeded to point out to my friend that if he was going to advertise his Christian faith, he needed to do it in more ways than just putting a sticker on his car (or words to that effect). But of course such a problem would never arise with us pilgrims, would it? Our driving manners are exemplary, aren’t they?

We read what Jesus thought about hypocrisy in His Sermon on the Mount. We read in Matthew 7:3-5, “And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye“. And this is the theme Paul took up in His letter to the Roman Jewish Christians.

A common objection from people who turn down an invitation to a church service is that the building is full of hypocrites. That may or may not be true, but the world’s perception of Christians has been tarnished by the behaviour of some, hopefully just a few. The people in our secular societies look on, expecting more from Christians than perhaps they should. They observe one Christian behaving badly and straight away decide all Christians are the same. We know that we are “work in progress” but that’s no excuse if our behaviour causes those around us to stumble. 

Most people’s view of Jesus can only be obtained by observing His followers. We pilgrims need to bear that in mind the next time our right foot on the gas pedal feels a bit heavy.

Dear Father God. We are “work in progress” we know, but that is not an excuse for sinful behaviour. We are so grateful for your patience and grace – where would we be without it! Amen.