Romans 11:1-2
A Work to Finish
Last week I began a message with on two subjects: Israel and God. The
thought of Israel came from these two verses. Paul asked the
question, "Has God cast Israel away?" Paul answered his own question
in those same verses.
Romans 11:1 …God forbid….
Romans 11:2 God hath not cast away his people
which he foreknew….
But that was the short answer. I wanted to give a longer answer
demonstrating what God has done, is doing, and will do with Israel.
At the same time, we considered God. God is an infinite God. We are
finite. The finite cannot comprehend the infinite. You cannot pour the
infinite into the finite. If we gave our lives to trying to learn
about God, we never could; even so, it is good for us to take
advantage of learning what we can every opportunity we get.
So far, we have seen three truths about Israel and three truths about
God.
I. First Truths:
A. About Israel - Israel is supernatural in its origin. We have
the history of Israel going back to its parents, Abraham and
Sarah. There would be no Israel if God had not
supernaturally selected, protected, and promoted Israel.
B. About God - God usually does not work quickly, directly, or
simply. In establishing Israel, God worked very slowly and
took them in one of the most difficult and round about ways
possible. (Take heart if God works that way in your life!)
II. Second Truths:
A. About Israel - Israel has been stubborn in their sin.
(1) Even before they left Egypt, Israel began to murmur,
complain, and doubt; but that would not be their biggest
sin. Once out of Egypt, they began to disobey and
rebel, but that would not be their biggest sin. Before
long, they would want to appoint a leader and return to
Egypt, but that would not be their biggest sin. No,
their biggest sin was taking idols, little gods, and
calling them their God.
(2) And Israel did not quit sinning once they came into the
Promised Land. As badly as America is sinning today,
America cannot commit a new sin because Israel has
already committed them all. They rebelled against God
for 2,000 years and then they committed the greatest of
all sins, they crucified God’s Son.
B. About God - God is merciful. God is just and God’s justice is
severe, but God there are two things we can learn about God’s
mercy from studying Israel.
(1) God never lead with judgment. He always lead with mercy.
(2) God’s mercy always exceeded His justice. If it had not,
there would be no Israel today.
III. Third Truths:
A. About Israel - Israel has experienced severity in their
judgment. As a result of all of their sin and rebellion, God
has poured judgment upon Israel like no other nation as ever
felt. God not only overthrew Israel, dispossessing them of
their place and their land, but He had continued to punish
them even after they lost their land. The crusades and the
Nazis are just two examples of God’s ongoing judgment.
B. About God
(1) God has decreed that the wages of sin is death and the
interest on sin is pain and suffering. Like it not,
that is one truth we had better learn.
(2) For 2,000 years, Israel has experienced God’s justice
which is about the same about of time God worked with
Israel before His wrath was poured out. That makes me
think that it is about time for something new to begin
and something new will begin when Jesus takes His
Church off this earth.
IV. Fourth Truths
A. About Israel - Israel has been sought by God.
1. One of the problems with preaching a long message over a
period of time is that I cannot balance out some
important truths.
2. Last week, all I had time to emphasize was the severity of
God’s judgments against Israel.
a. Make no mistake. God is severe in His judgments.
b. However, God is also loving, kind, and merciful.
c. God did not pour out judgment first. God poured out
mercy and grace—a lot of mercy and grace.
d. God sought and loved on Israel for 2,000 years!
3. We can see God’s search for Israel throughout the Bible.
a. God found Israel in need and naked.
Ezekiel 16:8 Now when I passed by thee, and
looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the time
of love; and I spread my skirt over thee, and
covered thy nakedness: yea, I sware unto thee,
and entered into a covenant with thee, saith
the Lord GOD, and thou becamest mine.
(1) This could apply to two different times in
Israel’s history.
(a) Israel was in need and naked when God found
Abraham and Sarah.
i. Here was a couple who were nearing the
end of their lives, childless and
with no hope.
ii. But God found them, loved them, and
cast His skirt over them.
(b) It could also be when God found Israel in
Egypt.
i. God sent Israel down to Egypt with
blessings.
aa. Joseph was the 2nd most power
ruler in the land.
bb. Pharaoh gave them some of the
best land in Egypt.
cc. He gave them positions as his
servants.
dd. Israel had great favor in the
sight of all Egypt.
ii. But then the camera was turned off for
400 years and when we see them again,
things are bad.
aa. They were an oppressed and
enslaved people.
bb. They were being forced to make
bricks for Egypt out of straw
and mud.
cc. They were being forced to drown
their babies and feed them to
their alligators.
iii. But God found them, loved them, and
cast His skirt over them.
(2) Notice, God finds us all in need and naked.
(a) People sometimes wonder why life is so
difficult, why so many bad things happen.
(b) God never intended us to live like this!
(c) God created us to walk in harmony with Him,
to be protected and provided for by Him.
(d) Man chose to sin and sin has left us all in
great need.
(e) Then God comes along!
i. He loves on us.
ii. He casts His skirt over us.
(3) But notice also, the covenant between God and
Israel was by mutual consent.
(a) God has gone severe on Israel, but it was
Israel who broke the covenant.
(b) God made an offer to Israel in the
wilderness and Israel accepted—knowing
both the terms of blessings and of
judgments.
(c) It was and is Israel’s reneging on their
part that has brought them into such a dire
place.
b. God loved Israel. His desire was to make kings and
priests out of the entire nation.
Jeremiah 31:3 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.
Exodus 19:6 And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of
priests, and an holy nation. These are the words
which thou shalt speak unto the children of
Israel.
c. To that end, God has sought for Israel.
2 Chronicles 24:19 Yet he sent prophets to them,
to bring them again unto the LORD; and they
testified against them: but they would not give
ear.
2 Chronicles 36:15 And the LORD God of their
fathers sent to them by his messengers, rising
up betimes, and sending; because he had
compassion on his people, and on his dwelling
place:
2 Kings 17:13 Yet the LORD testified against
Israel, and against Judah, by all the prophets,
and by all the seers, saying, Turn ye from your
evil ways, and keep my commandments and my
statutes, according to all the law which I
commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you
by my servants the prophets.
(1) God not only sought for them in the Old
Testament. He sought for them in the New
as well.
(a) \\#Luke 15:1-7\\
(b) Parable of the lost sheep
(2) God is STILL seeking Israel—not so much as a
nation, but individually.
Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel
of Christ: for it is the power of God unto
salvation to every one that believeth; to the
Jew first, and also to the Greek.
B. About God - What can we learn about God from this?
1. We can learn that God wants sinners to be saved.
2. Truly it does not matter if they are red, yellow, black,
and white for they are all precious in His sight.
3. By the way, you and I have been sought by God too.
4. Indeed, we are less than nothing, but God loves us and
wants to cast His skirt over us. Like the Good Shepherd,
He has wondered up and down the hills of sin and the
streets of wickedness; but He is looking for you.
5. Won’t you come to Him today?
V. Fifth Truth
A. About Israel - Israel will be saved by God’s grace.
1. Israel’s best days are ahead of them.
2. God is going to finish His work with the church and return
to use the nation of Israel.
a. In fact, He is going to make them a kingdom of priests
and a holy nation.
b. I am not speaking individually now, but of the whole
nation.
3. The days of God’s future blessings are prophesied in the
Bible.
Jeremiah 30:18 Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I
will bring again the captivity of Jacob’s tents,
and have mercy on his dwellingplaces; and the
city shall be builded upon her own heap, and the
palace shall remain after the manner thereof.
22 And ye shall be my people, and I will be
your God.
Jeremiah 31:1 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….
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.
4. Let me summarize what God is going to do with Israel.
a. Things are going to continue to deteriorate. I pray we
will have some upticks and I hope that if we do, they
will last a long time; but the overall direction
mankind is going is down.
b. Based on what I am seeing, I think the human race will
fall into anarchy and chaos.
Rev 6:4 And there went out another horse that
was red: and power was given to him that sat
thereon to take peace from the earth, and that
they should kill one another: and there was
given unto him a great sword.
c. A leader will come out of that chaos which will solve
one of the world’s longest and biggest problems, the
Middle East crisis.
d. He will forge a 7 year treaty with Israel and the
world, but in the middle of that treaty, this leader
will announce that he is god.
e. Then Israel will reject him and join with the
Christians who have also rejected him.
f. But Israel will not only reject the false god. They—
as a nation—will accept Jesus as their Savior.
g. Both the Jews and the Christians will be hunted and
persecuted by him for 3 1/2 years.
h. The only thing that will save them is the return of
Jesus to this earth.
i. At which time, Jesus will establish a world-wide
kingdom based in Israel and a period of peace and
prosperity will begin that this world has never seen.
B. About God - What can we learn about God?
1. We can learn that God always does it what He says.
2. God entered into a covenant with Israel, and He will do
what He promised He will do—both the judgment and the
blessings!
3. How does that effect you and me?
a. God has promised us mercy, love, and forgiveness if
we surrender ourselves to His Son, Jesus.
b. But God has promised severe judgment against us if we
reject Him.
Friend, do not put off accepting Jesus Christ any longer. Turn to
Him today!
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