Israel, the Church, and the Bible (Part 2)

                                                    Introduction

Title: Israel, the Church, and the Bible (Part 2)

Subtitle: The Fulfillment of Prophecies in the New Testament.

Key Idea: The Old Testament prophecies about Christ and His kingdom were fulfilled in a new, unexpected way.

Bible Verse: "But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman..." (Galatians 4:4)

                                                      Review the first study

In our first study, we examined the old Testament prophecies concerning the coming of Christ and his kingdom.

1. We learned that God promised Abraham that his “seed” who is Christ would be a blessings, to all nations.
2. We examined the Old Testament prophecies concerning the coming of Christ From king David line.
3. Prophet Daniel foretold about the coming of Christ, and  the kingdom of God, during the time of the Roman Empire. And told us exactly about the time of Christ coming.(seventy week of Danial)
4. Angel Gabriel appeared to Mary. He delivered to her the same message that aligned with the prophet Isaiah’s words.
5. Christ would be given the throne of his father David, and he will rain forever. (Luke1:32b-33). This raise an important question: How and when this happened?

Today, we will explore about the fulfillment of these prophecies in the New Testamen.

  1. The Nature of the Kingdom of God

What was the central message of Christ's preaching? The Kingdom of God. This is a crucial point. In the Gospel of Mark, we read, "The time has come, he said, the kingdom of God is near. Repent

and believe the good news!" (Mark 1:15). The Gospel of Matthew echoes this message: "From that time on, Jesus began to preach, 'Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near'" (Matthew 4:17).

It's clear that when Christ came, the kingdom of God was at hand. Is there any doubt about this fact?

What was the nature of the kingdom that Christ proclaimed? We can find the answer in Christ's parables (Matthew chapter 13) and the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew chapters 5-7). For the purpose of our study, let's focus on the parables of Christ.

                                                       The Parables of Christ

In the Parable of the Weeds (Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43), Christ compared the kingdom of heaven to a man who sowed good seed, but his enemy sowed weeds among them. When the servants asked if they should pull the weeds, the owner replied, "Let both grow together until the harvest" (Matthew 13:30). Christ later explained this parable to his disciples, revealing that in his kingdom, both the "sons of the kingdom" and the "sons of the evil one" would coexist until the end of the age and the day of judgment.

In the Parables of the Mustard Seed and the Yeast (Matthew 13:31-33), Christ spoke about the widespread growth and prosperity of the kingdom of God throughout the entire world. In the Parable of the Net (Matthew 13:47-50), Christ described the end of the world, when God would separate the wicked from the righteous.

From these parables, we can conclude that the kingdom of God arrived in an unexpected, unseen, and spiritual way. No one was anticipating that the kingdom would come as a spiritual entity that would spread to all people, not just one nation. This spiritual kingdom will continue until the end of the world, when Christ returns, the day of judgment arrives, and the eternal kingdom begins.

                                           What are the secrets of the kingdom?

This is the new nature and concept of the kingdom, what Christ referred to as the "secrets of the kingdom." He told his disciples: "The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you" (Matthew 13:11). The Jews and even the disciples were expecting an earthly kingdom, but God had a different plan: for Christ to establish a spiritual kingdom for all people (Matthew 13:16-17).

What does this mean for us today? It means that all the prophecies and promises made to the people of Israel, about the coming of Christ and his kingdom were fulfilled, when Christ arrived and proclaimed the kingdom of God.

Indeed, the kingdom of God was at hand when Christ came. He healed people and freed them from sin and the power of Satan. That's why Jesus once told the Jews, "But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you" (Matthew 12:28). This directly challenges the "postponement theology," which claims the kingdom of God will only appear in the future after Christ's second coming. We will discuss this issue in more detail later.

2. Did Christ Sit as a king on the Throne of David?

Now we can address the question: did Christ sit on the throne of his father David, and when did this happen? To answer this, we must first look at the events that occurred after Christ's resurrection.

A. The Road to Emmaus: (Luke 24:13-35) After his resurrection, Christ appeared to two disciples on their way to Emmaus. He heard them discussing his death and asked what they were talking about. They replied, "But we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel" (Luke 24:21). By this, they meant they hoped Christ would liberate Israel, establish his kingdom, and sit on David's throne.

Christ's response was unexpected and stunning. He said, "How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?" (Luke 24:25-26). He then "explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself" (Luke 24:27), starting with Moses and all the prophets.

In other words, Christ was saying, "Yes, I fulfilled your hope to redeem Israel, but in a way you never expected." He told them that all the Old Testament prophecies spoke of his redemptive work. Notice that Christ said he would "enter his glory" after suffering. This implies that he would be glorified as the Son of Man in his resurrection and be crowned as king.

When Christ sits on David’s throne

B. Peter's Sermon: (Acts 2:25-36) Another passage that speaks clearly about Christ sitting on David's throne is the Apostle Peter's first sermon after Pentecost. Quoting Psalms 16:8-11, Peter said of David: "But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. Seeing what was ahead, he spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to the grave, nor did his body see decay. God has raised this Jesus to life... Exalted to the right hand of God..." (Acts 2:30-33a).

Peter then quoted Psalm 110: "The Lord said to my Lord, 'Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet'" (Acts 2:34b). He concluded, "Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ" (Acts 2:36). The Apostle Paul also spoke about the promises made to King David and how they were fulfilled through Jesus' resurrection (see Acts 13:32-34).

                                                       The Conclusion

It is clear that through his resurrection, Christ not only sat on the throne of King David, but was also exalted to the right hand of God, receiving all power and glory. This is the spiritual kingdom that Christ came to establish—a kingdom that is not temporary, and that includes all people on earth. This takes us back to Daniel's prophecy in chapter 7:13-14, where he foretold the coming of the Son of Man on the clouds. When he was gloryfied by setting at the right hand of God.

Again, the "postponement theology" appears here. Some theologians do not see Christ's resurrection as the fulfillment of him sitting on David's throne. Instead, they postpone this fulfillment until Christ's second coming, when he will establish his earthly kingdom. They believe this will fulfill the Old Testament prophecies to the people of Israel. They hold this belief, because they think that since the Jews rejected Christ as their king, God postponed his kingdom for Israel until the second coming of Christ.

3. Who Are the People of God?

To answer this important question, we can turn to Paul's letter to the Ephesians, chapter 2, verses 11-22. Here, the Apostle Paul reminds the Gentile believers of their past life, when they were "separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel... and without God in the world." He then says, "But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ" (Ephesians 2:12-13).

Paul then presents a crucial truth: "For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one... and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility... His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross" (Ephesians 2:14-16). The two groups here are Christian Jews and Christian Gentiles. Paul's emphasis on "one new man" and "one body" means there is now after Christ one people of God, not two, consisting of both Jews and Gentiles.

One new people of God

Paul concludes by speaking to the Christian Gentiles, saying ,  “Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household" (Ephesians 2:19). He had previously said they were "excluded from citizenship in Israel," but now he says they are "fellow citizens with God's people." This signifies that there is now one new Israel, made up of both Christian Gentiles and Christian Jews. This aligns with what Jesus once said: "I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd" (John 10:16).

Summary: The Church is not a separate entity, but the unified New Israel.

                                                What is the mystery of Christ?

This leads us to another vital truth. In Ephesians chapter 3, Paul writes about the "mystery of

Christ, which was not made known to men in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God's holy apostles and prophets. This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus" (Ephesians 3:5-6). This is the mystery of Christ: that the Gentiles are now joint heirs with Israel in the kingdom of God. There is no separation between them, and there are no separate earthly promises to Israel apart from Jesus Christ and the new covenant.

One olive tree

This is consistent with what Paul wrote in his letter to the Romans, chapter 11, about the Gentiles being grafted into the olive tree and now sharing in the "nourishing sap from the olive root" (Romans 11:17). There is now one olive tree representing the people of God, who collectively share all the privileges of the kingdom of God. The Apostle James also spoke about this at the first Jerusalem council when he quoted the prophet Amos regarding the rebuilding and restoring of the fallen "tent of David": "That the remnant of men may seek the Lord, and all the Gentiles who bear my name" (Acts 15:16). This is what I call "Fulfillment Theology," not "Replacement Theology."

4. Who Is the Seed of Abraham?

From our first study, we learned that those who believe in Christ are the children of Abraham, fulfilling God's promise to him: "You will be the father of many nations." The Apostle Paul concluded chapter 3 of his letter to the Galatians with these verses: "You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:26-28). Paul then declared a crucial fact: "If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise" (Galatians 3:29).  

So, who is the seed of Abraham after Christ's coming? The answer is clearly the Church. There is one people of God, not two. The question we need to discuss now is: what kind of inheritance will the Church have according to the promise to Abraham? We will answer this now.

5. The Nature of the Church's Inheritance

To answer this question, we'll return to the Apostle Paul's letter to the Romans, chapter 4. In this chapter, Paul compares faith and works, stating that Abraham was justified by faith, not by his works, and this happened before he was circumcised. Paul then reaches this conclusion: "So then, he [Abraham] is the father of all who believe" (Romans 4:11). This means he is the father of all believers, both those who are circumcised and those who are uncircumcised.

In verses 13 and 14, Paul makes this important statement: "It was not through the law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith. For if those who live by the law are heirs, faith has no value and the promise is worthless."

We notice two important things here:

1. Paul does not speak about the inheritance of a specific land but the inheritance of the world. Why? Because God's purpose from the beginning was to give his people, through Christ (the seed of Abraham), a different kind of inheritance—not an earthly one, but the inheritance of the kingdom of God. This kingdom would first be spiritual, then eternal. This is why Christ said, "Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth" (Matthew 5:5).
2. Paul assures us that after Christ, these promises of inheritance are not related to those who live under the law. If they were, "faith has no value and the promise is worthless."

To whom, then, do these promises of inheritance belong? Paul answers in verses 16 and 17a: "Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham's offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. As it is written: 'I have made you a father of many nations.'"

We can conclude that the Church, as the seed of Abraham through faith in Christ, is inheriting the promise of God's kingdom.