20250907_AbrahamicCovenant

[0:00] This place looks strangely familiar. The color scheme is a little different, but it's delightful to be here.! Thank you for extending the invitation to me.

[0:14] ! I appreciate it very much. We're going to have some time for Q&A, I am determined.

[0:28] Marie, if I go beyond 1015, give me this. And if I pay no attention to you, stand up and give me this.

[0:42] We used to have a Q&A, but more often than not, it was not honored because I took too much time.

[0:54] This morning I'm going to try and discipline myself. And we'll see how that works. All right.

[1:06] First thing I want to do is pray for a dear friend. I received word just a few minutes ago that he was requesting prayer. I didn't get to John to mention it in time, so let's pause now for a word of prayer for Ed Patton, shall we?

[1:22] Loving Father, we're truly grateful for this brother that we uphold in prayer before you even now. We know that there are numerous physical issues that he's dealing with.

[1:34] And we know that in our weakness you can provide a strength that is far beyond our own. So we ask that that will be his portion. And we know that Ed is continuing to grieve over the loss of his beloved wife, Betty.

[1:50] And we're so grateful that he is surrounded by family who love him and care for him just as they did their mother. So we ask that in these days you will find Ed in a condition that we know is prepared for heaven.

[2:08] And we anticipate the gathering that's going to take place there perhaps much sooner than we know. In accordance with the scripture we'll be looking at this morning, we recognize that the time may be very, very short.

[2:23] So we ask that it may be sanctified unto you, that hearts and minds will be attuned to yours, and that each of us here this morning will benefit from the content in a maximum way.

[2:36] Pray also for Nathan and his family as they're away from us. Thank you that you've made this time of rest and relaxation and recuperation available to them.

[2:47] We trust that they'll be able to maximize it in every way, family being together in a way, and taking in the word in a new and refreshing environment. Ask your blessing upon them as they travel, that you'll bring them all back to us safely by your grace.

[3:02] Commit this time to you with thanksgiving in Christ's name. Amen. Well, first thing I want you to do is turn to the first book in the Bible.

[3:15] And don't be discouraged because we're not going to preach through this whole thing. We're just going to start right here. In Genesis chapter 12, God is speaking to Abraham.

[3:35] And the reason I'm bringing this particular message... And every time... Excuse me. Every time I have opportunity to bring one message, it's always very exasperating because it's difficult to settle on what to bring.

[3:54] There are a number of possibilities. But this was a slam dunk. Excuse me. And we're going to be bringing this particular message in view of what's happening in the Mideast, and in particular with the nation of Israel.

[4:14] I don't know how aware of it you are, but when it comes to nations, the United States of America is about the only nation that is positive in a real way toward the nation of Israel.

[4:33] The media has done a hatchet job in extolling the virtues of the Palestinians and making Israel out to be a bunch of bad guys.

[4:44] I can assure you that is a distortion. You need to be very, very careful what you hear through the media, especially in this day and age.

[4:56] You cannot believe everything that you read in print. And one of the most disgusting comments I've ever heard anyone make happened to come from a Christian who said, Oh, I know it's true. I read it in the paper.

[5:11] Well, there was a day in the past of the United States when the printing press had a lot more honor attached to it than what it does today.

[5:23] So you have to take just about everything that you hear and read with a grain of salt, except when it comes to this book. So what we are going to do is examine as briefly as we can and still try to allow some time for Q&A regarding what is happening in the Mideast right now.

[5:41] It is rather evident that Israel is in a very difficult location. But this is where they have been since this passion passage that we're going to be reading about here in Genesis chapter 12.

[5:58] So let's just begin, if we may. Okay. The Lord said to Abram, go forth from your country and from your relatives and from your father's house to the land, which I will show you.

[6:12] And I will make you a great nation and I will bless you and make your name great. And so you shall be a blessing. And I will bless those who bless you and the one who curses you.

[6:26] I will curse. And in you, all the families of the earth shall be blessed. Now, there are numerous other places that we're going to examine, but I would have you also come, if you would, to Genesis, back a few chapters, to 17.

[6:47] And while you're turning to it, let me remind you that this book that we are examining called the Bible is primarily a Jewish book.

[6:58] It's content consists of inspired of God writings, every one of which, all 66 books, were contributed to by Jews.

[7:13] Not by Christians, but by Jews. Now, when you get into the New Testament, some of that changes and does begin to be Jewish or Christian.

[7:27] But there is a valid difference that is made there and by way of a distinction. So I want you to look at this in chapter 17 as well.

[7:38] It says, when Abram was 99 years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, I am God Almighty, walk before me and be blameless.

[7:49] And I will establish my covenant between me and you, and I will multiply you exceedingly. And Abraham fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying, As for me, behold, my covenant is with you.

[8:06] That is, Abraham. And this, by the way, is forever going to be known as the Abrahamic covenant. He says, you shall be the father of a multitude of nations.

[8:22] Now, we know that is not only going to be Israel, but it is going to be the Arab nation as well. Because you will recall, Abraham had a son, Isaac.

[8:41] And Isaac had two sons, Ishmael and Jacob. And Jacob is going to be the father of the Jewish nation.

[8:54] Ishmael, the twin brother, is going to be the father of the Arab nations. Many do not realize this.

[9:05] So the ancestry goes all the way back to Abram. And as someone has said, this is why these people fight so much.

[9:16] They're relatives. Now, being a Christian community that we are, we know there's no fighting that goes on among us.

[9:27] But, well, let us move on in the text here, shall we? And Abram fell on his face. Verse 3. And God talked with him, saying, As for me, my covenant is with you.

[9:40] And you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham.

[9:51] For I will make you the father of a multitude of nations. Now, we're going to move on through the Old Testament. Eventually, we'll get to the new.

[10:03] But we are going to be tracking this because it is very, very significant. And I would have you turn from here, from Genesis. Let us go for just a moment to Judges, chapter 2.

[10:18] Also, back in the Old Testament, Joshua and Judges. Judges, chapter 2.

[10:30] These, of course, are all Jews. And the text says, Now, the angel of the Lord came up from Gilgal to Bochim.

[10:44] And he said, I brought you up out of Egypt and led you into the land which I have sworn to your fathers, which is the land of Israel.

[10:57] And I said, I will never break my covenant with you. Now, the question I want to ask you is this.

[11:10] Do words mean anything? Do you see specifically what God is saying here? I brought you up out of Egypt and led you into the land which I have sworn to your fathers.

[11:30] And I said, I will never break my covenant with you. What do you mean when you tell someone that you will never do thus and so?

[11:47] Does that mean? Does that mean? I know that's what I said, but you didn't think I was serious, did you? How are we going to take this when it comes from the word of God himself?

[12:02] Does it contain a maybe? Can we maybe read between the lines and take it this way?

[12:13] I will never break my covenant with you unless you prove yourselves to be unworthy. Then you're on your own. Now, that's called reading between the lines.

[12:26] What isn't there? How seriously is this to be taken? All right? Let's consider 1 Samuel 12.

[12:43] 1 Samuel 12. And verse 12.

[12:55] 1 Samuel 13. 1 Samuel 13. 1 Samuel 13.

[13:09] 1 Samuel 13. 1 Samuel 13. 1 Samuel 13. 1 Samuel 13. 1 Samuel 13. 1 Samuel 13. 1 Samuel 13. 1 Samuel 13. 1 Samuel 13.

[13:20] 1 Samuel 13. 1 Samuel 13. 1 Samuel 13. 1 Samuel 13. 1 Samuel 13. the fact that all of the other nations around them had a king. So-and-so's got a king, so-and-so's got a king, they've got a king. Why can't we have a king? Well, you've got God, the creator. Yes, but he's not a king. Why can't we? So the people murmured against the Lord, and the text says, in verse 12, you saw that Nahash, the king of the sons of Ammon, came against you.

[13:48] You said to me, No, but a king shall reign over us, although the Lord your God was your king. Now therefore, here is the king whom you have chosen, whom you have asked for, and behold, the Lord has set a king over you. If you will fear the Lord and serve him and listen to his voice and not rebel against the command of the Lord, then both of you, and also the king who reigns over you, will follow the Lord your God. And if you will not listen to the voice of the Lord, but rebel against the command of the Lord, then the hand of the Lord will be against you as it was against your fathers. Even now, take the stand and see this great thing which the Lord will do before your eyes.

[14:39] And then he says, Is not the wheat harvest today? I will call to the Lord that he may send thunder and rain, and you will know and see that your wickedness is great, which you've done in the sight of the Lord, by asking for yourselves a king. So Samuel said to the Lord, And the Lord sent thunder and rain that day, and all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel.

[15:04] And then all the people said to Samuel, Pray for your servants to the Lord your God, so that we may not die. For we have added to all our sins this evil by asking for ourselves a king.

[15:17] Samuel said to the people, Do not fear. You have committed all this evil. Yet, do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart.

[15:28] And then he goes on and tells them that he's going to give them a king. And here, by the way, is where a very important principle comes into play. And that is this. It goes all the way back here. Actually, it goes all the way back to Genesis. And that is, God has given to human beings a very powerful thing called a volition, a will, which means we as created beings under the hand and dominion of the almighty God still possess the ability to tell God, get lost. I don't want to do what you say. I want to do what I want to do.

[16:11] That's called human volition. We all have one. And we are given full privilege to exercise it. You must understand we are all born with that thing called a volition.

[16:26] And that's part of what separates us from all the rest of creation. We have an intelligence about us and a will that allows us to actually exceed or decline to whatever God may require.

[16:42] You don't have to do what God says. You can go your own way. But you're going to pay your own fare. And you're going to suffer the consequences that come from that.

[16:54] So it is a principle that is established way back in the Old Testament. God has not made us puppets or automatons. He's not made us robots. He's given us the ability and the power and the wisdom to make choices.

[17:08] So we have to be very careful about the choices that we make. Now we're going to have to hurry through this because I want to make sure that you have time for Q&A. So let's go to Psalm 89.

[17:27] Psalm 89. And we'll just do the first four verses.

[17:37] Now do you see the theme that's being established here?

[18:04] In verse 2, verse 1, I'm sorry. It's, I will make known thy faithfulness. And then in verse 2, your loving kindness will be built up forever and thou wilt establish thy faithfulness.

[18:22] And to play that out, he goes to the term covenant because that's vividly connected with faithfulness. I have made a covenant with my chosen.

[18:36] I have sworn to David, my servant. I will establish your seed forever.

[18:46] That means David's offspring, his children. And David, we know, is going to be not the first, but the second king of Israel.

[18:57] And he will be from the tribe of Judah, which is very significant. Because when he says, I will establish your seed forever, that has a hidden kind of reference to the ultimate seed that will come from David, who is also known as the son of David, who is none other than Yeshua HaMashiach, Jesus the Messiah.

[19:25] And for his genealogy, you can consult Matthew's Gospel, chapter 1, and you will find David there. And you can go to Luke's Gospel, chapter 4, and you will find David there.

[19:38] Because he comes through both of those in the bloodlines. And the text goes on to talk about, It is remarkable how God has vested all of this in David, the king.

[19:56] And by the way, you're going to get to meet that man one day. And yes, we're talking about David, the king.

[20:08] He's one more who will be resurrected during the millennium, just like you will be. And we're all going to be there, and it's going to take place for a thousand years. And you're going, I suspect that that's what it's going to take to meet everybody.

[20:22] Because it's going to be quite a time. So, if you would come down to verse 30 of this same psalm. Psalm 89 and verse 30.

[20:33] And here, the psalmist, under inspiration, is writing this as God inspired him. And he's talking again about David.

[20:45] And he says, If his sons, if his sons forsake my law, and they will, they will, and do not walk in my judgments, if they violate my statutes, they will, and do not keep my commandments, they won't, then I will visit their transgressions with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes.

[21:18] But, do words mean anything? But, I will not break off my loving kindness from him, nor deal falsely in my faithfulness.

[21:36] My covenant, I will not violate. Although Israel will. But, God says he will not.

[21:48] Why? Because God is comprised of different stuff, if you will, than what Israel is. He is the faithful God who cannot lie, and who cannot lead astray.

[22:01] But, David, and the kings that follow him, are all going to have the ability to do that, just like you do. Just like I do.

[22:12] You have a volition. You can rebel against the authority of God. My covenant, I will not violate, nor will I alter the utterance of my lips.

[22:24] Once, I have sworn by my holiness, I will not lie to David. His descendants shall endure forever, and his throne as the sun before me.

[22:43] It shall be established forever like the moon, and the witness in the sky is faithful, but thou hast cast off and rejected.

[22:57] Thou hast been full of wrath against thine anointed. Thou hast spurned the covenant of thy servant. Thou hast profaned. All of this is saying, over and over again, that Israel is going to conduct themselves in such a way that God would have every reason to just wash his hands of the whole mess and go to somebody else.

[23:23] Now, please hear this. That is precisely what the majority of the people who call themselves Christians believe.

[23:37] It is called replacement theology. Well, who has been replaced? The Jew and the Jewish people.

[23:52] Why have they been replaced? Because they no longer deserved to be God's chosen people. Got that?

[24:04] That's the reasoning. But let me ask you a question. When did they ever deserve to be God's chosen people?

[24:16] They never did. And they still don't. Well, then, why did God choose them? Simply because if God was going to choose somebody, he had to choose somebody.

[24:36] And he looked upon the earth as it existed at the times with the tribes and the peoples, and he saw this small, relatively insignificant tribe that didn't stand out among anybody.

[24:54] I guess you would say kind of like an underdog. And God said, I'm going to choose them. I'm going to make them.

[25:06] My special people. So in a sense, God took the lowest that existed at the time and chose to elevate them by his grace.

[25:18] He is not going to serve them on the basis of their desserts because they don't deserve it. And let me just inject something here too. You who have exercised your faith in Jesus Christ and received salvation from him, you don't deserve it either.

[25:37] Do you? No. If you deserved it, it wouldn't be grace. It would be merit. It would be works. It would be you earned it.

[25:48] It would be you have it coming. You don't have it coming. We are recipients of the grace of God because of the God who extended that grace to us, not because we have somehow proved ourselves to be worthy of his choice.

[26:02] Nobody's worthy of his choice. Why? Because all have sinned. All have sinned and fall far short of the glory and the standards of God. None of us measure up.

[26:13] None of us. Someone says, does that include preachers? My response is, it especially includes preachers.

[26:24] Nobody deserves it. That's what makes it so wonderful. That's what makes God's grace, God's grace. It is bestowed only upon those who, first of all, recognize their unworthiness.

[26:40] Excuse me. All right. Let's go to Psalm 94. Just over a few pages.

[26:54] Psalm 94. And verse 12. Blessed is the man whom thou dost chasten, O Lord, and dost teach out of thy law, that thou mayest grant him relief from the days of adversity, until a pit is dug for the wicked.

[27:23] For the Lord will not abandon his people. Well, what if they deserve to be abandoned?

[27:35] Well, they do deserve to be abandoned. The Lord will not abandon his people, nor will he forsake his inheritance.

[27:48] All right. While we're on a roll in the Old Testament, come with me, if you would, please, to Ezekiel chapter 36. Ezekiel chapter 36.

[28:06] And verse 16. Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, Son of man, when the house of Israel was living in their own land, they defiled it by their ways and their deeds.

[28:25] Their way before me was like the uncleanness of a woman in her impurity. Now, folks, that is not meant to be a compliment.

[28:40] Therefore, I poured out my wrath on them for the blood which they had shed on the land, because they had defiled it with their idols.

[28:55] Who? Israel! Israel defiled the land with idols? Are you serious? Also, I scattered them among the nations, and they were dispersed throughout the lands.

[29:15] According to their ways and their deeds, I judged them. This is heavy stuff. When they came to the nations where they went, they profane my holy name, because it was said of them, these are the people of the Lord.

[29:37] Yet, they have come out of his land. But I have concern for my holy name. Do you know what that means?

[29:49] Do you know what God is saying here? I have a vested interest in my integrity. And I am not going to allow the wretched disobedience of my people whom I've chosen, who've turned against me, I'm not going to allow my character to be smeared by treating them the way they treat me.

[30:19] Do you see what's going on here? This is very one-sided. Very one-sided. I had concern for my holy name.

[30:31] In other words, Israel did not have the ability to respect itself by keeping the commandment that their forefathers made with me.

[30:43] But that doesn't mean I'm going to allow my reputation to be tarnished by turning my back on them. Do they deserve me turning my back on them? Of course they do!

[30:55] Then why don't you? Because I am God and I have locked myself in with my word. And I cannot and will not go back on it.

[31:11] Folks, this is everything. You see what we're talking about? You see how important this is? If God is not reliable in these ways.

[31:23] And by the way, if God's integrity would allow him to scrap Israel for their disobedience, why couldn't he scrap you for yours?

[31:42] Do you enjoy this thing called eternal life? Kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed at the last time?

[31:58] Do you put any stock in that? Do you think you can count on that? Absolutely! Why? Same reason as Israel is able to count on it, but they're not counting on it now.

[32:13] Do you realize in 1948 when Israel was reestablished as a land, it had all of the markings of divine working just written all over it.

[32:32] because these were a bunch of ragtag people who had been virtually kicked out of the land by invading nations, and I'm going to give you just, oh, that clock is just as ugly as it has ever been.

[32:52] I'm going to shorten this and say God has given Israel a new birth in 1948, and when they came to occupy that land and David Ben-Gurion made that announcement in 1948, May 14, President Harry S.

[33:19] Truman of the United States was the first one to acknowledge their statehood, and a few other nations came along. And the very next day, the very next day, they were attacked by a half dozen Arab nations that surrounded them, intent on making sure that Israel was going to be a stillborn nation, and would never come to fruition.

[33:47] That was the war for independence. There was absolutely no way in the world, humanly speaking, that Israel would be able to sustain that.

[33:57] They would be wiped out within a couple of days. But they won that war. To this day, there remains no human explanation for that.

[34:10] And it goes on. There's other incidents that I do not have time to record for you, but they are significant. One more in the Old Testament, and that is in Amos chapter 9, back in the Minor Prophets.

[34:28] Hosea, Joel, and Amos. They were prophets that were famous. Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, and Nahum too. Okay. Amos chapter 9, and verse 11.

[34:41] In that day, I will raise up the fallen booth of David. Now, this is not talking about David the man.

[34:54] This is talking about the restoration of Israel. And wall up its breaches. I will also raise up its ruins and rebuild it as in the days of old, that they may possess the remnant of Edom, and all the nations who are called by my name, declares the Lord who does this.

[35:20] Verse 14. Also, I will restore the captivity of my people Israel, and they will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them.

[35:33] They will also plant vineyards and drink their wine and make gardens and eat their fruit. I will also plant them on their land and they will not again be rooted out from their land which I have given them, says the Lord.

[35:55] Again, I ask you, do words mean anything? Does God's words mean anything? well then, how is it that it has come to pass that virtually all the nations, with the exception of the United States, is supporting Israel?

[36:17] Israel? Where does that come from? Why do we? Why are we? There are multiple reasons involved, and much of it is too complex for me to go into, to try to explain, because we do not have the time, but let me just run something by you very quickly, and then we'll open it for Q&A.

[36:35] in 586 BC, that is almost 600 years before Jesus was born, all right, get that time frame fixed, Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, came against Israel, and completely destroyed the people, the city, led them into captivity, took their king, Zedekiah, and watched made him watch the execution of all of his sons, and then they put out the eyes of king Zedekiah of Israel, and made him walk with the children of Israel all the way to Babylon.

[37:30] They're going to be there for 70 years, and at the end of that captivity, God is going to raise up a man by the name of Nehemiah, and he's going to be commissioned by the king, by the way, and it won't be the king of Babylon because he has been defeated and deposed by the next reigning monarch who was sympathetic with the Jews and let them all go home, but most of the Jews didn't want to go home.

[38:00] Why? Because they've been in Babylon for 70 years, had children, grandchildren, and probably only a small percentage of them actually returned under Zerubbabel, I'm sorry, and Nehemiah, and they began building up everything again, and reestablished the land, rebuilt the walls, and everything was going great until 70 A.D.

[38:31] This is about 35 years after Jesus went back to heaven, 35, but he prophesied before, a few days before his death on the cross, Jesus prophesied that the enemy was going to come against Jerusalem again and destroy the temple and everything, and by the way, the temple had only been completed with the modernization of Herod for four years, and Jesus said not one stone is going to be left upon another because they knew not the day of their visitation, and they rejected the Messiah, and everything came crashing down because in 70 A.D., the Roman general Titus came in and virtually leveled everything, carried the Jews away in captivity, forbade them to return to the land, scattered them all over the world.

[39:33] The few that settled there or remained there that were of no benefit to Rome were allowed to populate and remultiply and so on until another 70 years passed, and in 131 A.D., this is about 100 years after the death of Christ.

[39:52] The nation is going to be sacked again, and this time by the Romans because there had been a renegade Jew by the name of Bar Kokhba, who proclaimed himself to be the Messiah of Israel, and got a bunch of ragtag people behind him, and they gave the Roman soldiers who were occupying them fits until finally they had enough, and they sent word back to Rome that these Jews are misbehaving again, send more troops, and this time we'll teach them a lesson they'll never forget, and that's exactly what happened, and in 131, Bar Kokhba was eliminated, and this time the Jews were carried off into captivity again, and Rome came in, and they salted, I mean with salt, they salted the whole area all around there, put up signs saying no Jew is permitted here under penalty of death, and Israel took another major hit, now I want to ask you a question, what do you think is going on here?

[41:01] In 70 AD, God allowed his chosen people, put quotes around that, chosen, underline that, God allowed his chosen people to be in an unmerciful way, slaughtered by the Romans, and they had crosses, crosses established everywhere, with Jews' bodies hanging upon them, the Romans had crucified them, hundreds of them, where was God?

[41:39] Israel, is that a nice way for God to treat his chosen people? And then in 131 AD, 70 years later, same thing, this time Romans again, who were the Romans?

[41:57] A bunch of pagans, a bunch of idol worshipers, they had multiple gods, who was Israel? Israel. I see you, Marie.

[42:09] Who was Israel? They were God's chosen people. Well, how do you explain God, who is supposed to be all powerful, allowing this kind of treatment and defeat of his chosen people, how does that compute?

[42:28] That doesn't make any sense. And the world at large reached a grand conclusion, but it was a totally wrong conclusion.

[42:40] And their conclusion was this. Well, it is very apparent that God is finished completely, totally with Israel. He's not going to take their behavior any longer.

[42:53] He's written them off. He's turned them over to the enemy. Do you know that that was a very logical conclusion to reach? Everything pointed to that, except it wasn't true.

[43:10] What God was allowing was the extreme discipline chastising of his consistently rebellious people. And listen, listen.

[43:22] He told them through the prophet Jeremiah, one that we didn't have time to consider. He told them through the prophet Jeremiah, if you don't mend your ways and get rid of your idols, I'm going to allow the enemy to come in and take you away like a storm, and you won't be able to stand against them.

[43:41] And that's exactly what happened. And then it happened again. And Israel's been scattered throughout the whole world. They are a pariah to most nations.

[43:52] So, long story short, one more reference. Well, I've got to discipline my, I've got to cut this off. So let's take Q&A.

[44:03] If there are questions or comments out there, you're welcome to express them. Have we got a roving mic? We do. Okay. Anybody have a question back or in the back?

[44:18] Okay. Okay. Marv, in light of these verses that you referenced, Genesis 12 and Psalm 89 and Amos 9, how did the people that subscribe to replacement theology get around those?

[44:35] Well, they arrived at it simply by applying the kind of human standards that we all use. And their logic was simply this.

[44:47] God has allowed these enemies to come in and do this to Israel because of their continual disobedience. And what that does is that proves that God has written them off entirely.

[45:00] So the chosen people are no longer the chosen people. Guess who is the new chosen people? You are.

[45:12] The church. The church has replaced the nation of Israel. Israel. In point of fact, we have not.

[45:23] We have not replaced Israel at all. We are an addition, but not a replacement. Makes all the difference in the world.

[45:35] And this is a, this is, let me put it this way. The position that I have just expressed, which is called replacement theology, theology, is the official position of probably 75% of Christendom in the world today.

[45:56] all of the Roman Catholics have that as a position of doctrine that the church, and in their view, it is the Roman Catholic church in particular that has replaced the nation of Israel as God's chosen people.

[46:12] And Israel is out, permanently gone, kaput. They have, Israel has no more plan in the program and the future of God than does the nation of Scotland or some black like that.

[46:26] Nothing, nothing special anymore. Yes, Susie? They're just saying effectively that God lies and doesn't keep his word. I'm sorry I'm not, I didn't hear that. Let me, let me, let me straighten this here.

[46:37] I'll tell you what, this old age is a bummer. Go ahead. They are saying that God lies and doesn't keep his word when they subscribe to that.

[46:48] Well, that is exactly what they're saying. But, you know, I, I can't give you an explanation as to why those who jumped on that didn't, well, let me put it this way.

[47:02] When Jesus was with his disciples in John chapter 14, he told them, let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in me. And he said, I will come again and receive you unto my soul.

[47:16] Let not your hearts be troubled. Jesus said, I'm going away. He's talking about his ascension. He said, I'm going away, but I will come again and receive you to myself that where I am, there you may be also.

[47:31] All right? Well, they waited. They waited. And he didn't come. Was there another comment or question? Yeah.

[47:42] Yes. Along those lines, I was wondering why? There you go. Go ahead.

[47:53] What was your question? If Israel is the chosen people of God, I'm wondering why does Paul find it necessary, I believe it's in Galatians, to make the firm distinction that when God made the Abrahamic covenant and he used the word seed, he was not referring to multiple descendants, but to a single descendant, which was Christ.

[48:22] I'm sorry. I'm sorry. My hearing aids have let me down. I didn't get your question. Speak up a little louder, please. Okay. So, I'm wondering if Israel is God's chosen people due to the Abrahamic covenant.

[48:40] Yes. why does Paul, I believe it's Galatians, why does Paul find it necessary to make a firm distinction that when God was speaking to Abraham during the covenant and he used the word seed, he was not referring to multiple descendants, but to a single descendant, which was Christ.

[49:04] I'm sorry. I'm not following the logic of your question, but I'd be happy to talk to you privately about it later. Sure. I'm just not understanding the implications of your question.

[49:16] Somebody else has, back here. I think what Brad's referring to is, and I have heard, and I don't understand it, so if you can explain this to me, I would appreciate it, that I have heard that the people that are in Israel now are not the real Jews.

[49:37] Now, how that can be, I have no idea, but see, if they're not the real Jews, that's what Brad is referring to, that it's only the seed of Abraham, which it does say that we are like, we are part of the Hebrews once we...

[49:51] Okay. Okay. That I did understand. There is absolutely no question that the Jews who were in Israel today are Jews, and do you know what the evidence is? It's called deoxyribonucleic acid, otherwise known as DNA.

[50:08] The Jews who were in Israel today have Jewish blood in them, and it is verified. Matter of fact, extraordinary thing happened probably no more than 20 years ago, but if you want, you can Google this.

[50:23] There were a delegation of a delegation of Ethiopians came to Israel, to Jerusalem, to make a plea.

[50:41] And these Ethiopians were as black as Negroes can be. And they told the Jewish authorities that they wanted to emigrate from Ethiopia to Israel.

[50:59] Now, this was no more than 20 years ago. Okay. And they said, well, you can't be Jews. Because when Israel established the land and retook the land in 1948 and established the land, they extended a worldwide invitation to everyone in the world who is a Jew.

[51:26] You are welcome to come home. That was called the law of return. And Jews from all over the world started migrating, especially, well, not right away, but especially later.

[51:40] Huge number came from Russia and other places in Europe. And they came in to Israel and they were told that we will support you.

[51:51] We will find employment for you. And we will provide for your needs with housing and everything else. And, of course, the population of Israel just began to mushroom. And today it is a very powerful nation, by the way.

[52:05] So what happened was when they got this request from these Ethiopians, they were insisting that they were Jewish.

[52:19] And they said, well, how can you be Jewish? You know, you're... So they sent a team of so-called, I guess, experts, Jewish authorities down to Ethiopia to research this and find out what was going on.

[52:37] And when they got down there, they discovered that these Ethiopians, black as we would say as the ace of spades, had erected synagogues and they were teaching the law of Moses and everything.

[52:52] And it had been going on for a long time. And who knew about this? Not only that, but they have a shrine there that they insist houses the Ark of the Covenant.

[53:08] What? The Ark of the Covenant? In Ethiopia? Well, they won't allow anybody in to see it.

[53:21] They have one person who is designated as the caretaker of the Ark in that facility. And he lives in that place and never leaves it until he dies.

[53:34] And they go in and carry out his body and they have another replacement to be in there with that Ark of the Covenant. And this is present day history I'm talking about.

[53:46] This is today. And they will not allow visitors. They will not allow people to go in. Just think of what a tourist attraction that would be. Are you kidding me? So they've never allowed anybody in to verify it.

[53:59] But they insist. So anyway, long story short, what they did, they conducted DNA tests on these black Ethiopians and discovered they've got Jewish blood.

[54:15] What? Now, I don't know if it's true or not, but much of the tradition says that that Jewish blood came from the queen of Ethiopia who visited when Solomon was king because she had heard of all of the glories and wonders that Solomon had accomplished in Israel.

[54:42] And she went there herself to see. And when she did, she was absolutely overwhelmed. And she made the statement that she had heard about the exploits of Solomon and the tremendous increase that he had made in Israel and the beauty and the buildings and everything.

[55:02] And then she made this statement. She said, but the half has not been told. In other words, what I found far exceeded all that I had heard.

[55:13] And the story goes on to say, and I don't know that it's true. I cannot verify it. It cannot be established. But Solomon, Solomon, who was the son of David, supposedly the wisest man that ever lived, he was super intelligent, except when it came to one thing.

[55:43] Women. Women. This guy had a harem that wouldn't quit. And he loved many strange women. And you know what those women did? Those women did to Solomon the same thing that their ancestors did to the kings hundreds of years earlier.

[56:01] They led him astray. And Solomon became a reprobate. I do not know that we're going to see Solomon in heaven.

[56:12] I don't know that he was a true believer or not. He's questionable. But anyway, the story goes on. And this is best to take in peace together. And we can't verify this. But the suspicion is that Solomon and the queen of Sheba got it together.

[56:31] Heba got it sexually and produced a strain that would resonate through the centuries in a line that had Jewish blood in it.

[56:46] Not only Jewish blood, but royal Jewish blood. By the way, nobody here probably is old enough to remember this. But Haile Selassie probably doesn't mean a thing to you.

[56:59] Haile Selassie was the king of Ethiopia. And do you know what Haile Selassie insisted upon?

[57:12] He insisted that he was a direct descendant of Solomon and the queen of Sheba. And that's what gave him the right to the throne there in Ethiopia.

[57:27] Now, it cannot be verified. And I'm not saying that this is true. But this is what is explained. And nobody has been able to refute it. So when they did DNA testing on these Ethiopians, they discovered, lo and behold, these people have Jewish blood in them.

[57:48] And the invitation that went out was, everyone all over the world who has Jewish blood is welcome to come home to Israel.

[58:00] And we will support you. We will find logic for you. We will find a job for you. And we will take care of you and take heed on your own feet. Well, long story short, Israel took a 747.

[58:19] That's a big one. A big plane. They took all the seats out of it. And they sent it down to Ethiopia.

[58:31] And they filled that 747 with hundreds of Ethiopian Jews who sat on the floor of that jet plane, flew it back to Israel.

[58:49] And they remain there today. So the complexion, no pun intended, of Israel has been changed somewhat.

[59:01] And they and their descendants are still there today. Now, you can Google it if you want because this happened in the 1990s.

[59:14] Not that long ago. So, anyway, what I want, the point that I want to make is that all of this having to do with Israel is, oh, yeah, I need to do this.

[59:30] Excuse me. I need, yeah. This is a book that Keith Steigers gave me several years ago. It was published, it was published in 2008.

[59:46] Okay? And it's titled Israel Stein, The Ancient Blueprints of the Future Middle East. The author is Bill Salas.

[59:57] I've never heard of him, but it's quite a book. And I want to share with you this summary that's near the end of the book. And bear in mind, if you will, this book was published in 2008.

[60:12] Okay? 17 years ago. And here he says, In conclusion, the time is at hand to consider Zephaniah's call to caution.

[60:25] Now, we didn't have time to look at him, but at the time of this writing, he's talking about writing this book, The Reformation of the Nation Israel is Underway. Hmm.

[60:38] That was in 2008. A strong, wealthy Jewish nation is on the horizon.

[60:51] That was 2008. Don't be surprised to see the Israeli Defense Force evict the Hamas from ancient Philistia.

[61:10] Ancient Philistia? What's another name for ancient Philistia? Anybody? Hmm?

[61:23] Hmm. Hmm. Hmm. Hmm. Do you ever hear of Gaza?

[61:36] Gaza? You know who else came from Gaza? Big guy. His name was Goliath.

[61:49] Came from a city there in that area called Gath. Gath. Goliath of Gath. He was a Philistine. Hmm.

[62:02] Is anybody connecting the dots? Don't be surprised to see the Israeli Defense Force evict the Hamas from ancient Philistia and the other terrorist entities out of Israel Stein proper.

[62:20] Gaza will soon. Gaza will soon be deserted. 17 years ago that was written. And what's happening right now?

[62:31] It is in process of being deserted. serving as an end time sign that the day of the Lord's anger is shortly to follow.

[62:45] That was 17 years ago. That was 17 years ago. And let me tell you something. Do you know what all this is, bottom line?

[62:58] Bottom line? Connect the dots. Connect the dates. We could be out of here before this year ends.

[63:13] And when I say out of here, I mean up there. And I'm not talking about the undertaker. I'm talking about the upper taker.

[63:26] That's how close this thing is getting. And it sends a chill up my spine. But you know what? The chill turns to warmth because I know.

[63:40] God is in it. And he's right on track. And what he's doing right now with Israel. Is end time stuff. And.

[63:50] It needs to be added. That. The scriptures say that Israel. It's going to be regathered. The people are going to be in the land. But. They will be there in.

[64:05] Unbelief. You probably don't know this. But I do. From two trips to Israel. You find out these things. Do you realize.

[64:16] That in the whole population of Israel. There's only. 10. Percent of the population. Who says.

[64:26] They are. Religious. What that means is. They're Jews. They are Jews. By birth. And by generation.

[64:37] They are Jews. But they are not Jewish. In their religion. They don't go to the Sabbath. They don't keep the Sabbath. They don't go to the synagogue. They don't have a kosher diet. They live.

[64:48] Just like the rest of the world. And if you ask them. As I did sometimes. When we were over there. Are you Jewish? Well yes. I'm. I'm Jewish. I'm Jewish. But. I'm not a religious Jew.

[65:00] And they make sure. That you understand that. And do you know what happened. With the Jewish mentality. Well you can understand. With all of these defeats.

[65:11] By all of these enemies. Do you know what it looked like. To them. It looked to them also like. They had been cast off of God. God was finished with them. So.

[65:23] Judaism. Is very little practice today. In all the land of Israel. Most of it. Is pure. Secularism. Only 10%.

[65:34] Consider themselves. To be. Religious Jews. So. There. This. We just. Folks. I apologize for one thing.

[65:44] Not only did we not scratch the surface. We didn't even scratch the scratch. On the surface. This thing is so involved.

[65:55] But it bears your kind attention. Because let me tell you something. Israel. Is not finished. Israel. Remains.

[66:06] The chosen people of God. And they continue to this day. Under. A certain amount. And a certain kind. Of divine discipline. But all of this. Is coming to a head.

[66:17] And God has not forsaken. His people. Even though. They did everything. To cause him. To do suit. To do that. They are still. His chosen people.

[66:28] What about the church then? The church. Which is the body of Christ. Is an entirely different group. But. And I want to make this distinction. Because this is so powerful.

[66:38] And I'm going to let you go. It has often been said. That. Israel. Cannot be. God's chosen people. And.

[66:50] The church. Be. God's chosen people. God can't have. Two. Chosen people. He can only have one. And the answer to that. Is.

[67:01] God has. One people. And they are Jews. And. Gentiles. Who have put. Their faith and trust.

[67:12] In Jesus Christ. And they are called. The singular. People. Of God. And it doesn't matter. Whether they're Jews.

[67:23] Or Gentiles. They are still. The people. Of God. So God only has. One people. And they are those. Who are rightly. Related. To him.

[67:34] You may be. A Jew. Who has come. To faith. In Jesus Christ. As your personal. Savior. And you are a member. Of the body. Of Christ. Just as much. As any Gentile.

[67:45] Is who's put their faith. And trust. In Christ. As well. Now I know. This whole thing. Evokes a lot of questions. And I'll be happy. To talk with anybody. About it. After we dismiss. And. Let us stand.

[67:56] For a word of prayer. Shall we? Our father. We recognize. That what we have considered. In a very brief. Fashion. Leaves.

[68:07] A lot of questions. Unanswered. And we're. Sorry for that. But we're encouraged. Because. We believe. That there are some here. This morning. Who will be activated.

[68:18] To further pursuit. On their own. And will. Engage this study. And see. If these things. Be true. Many are. Many here. Today.

[68:28] Are capable. Of adding. Significant content. To what we've already studied. And we pray your blessing. Upon them. We ask that as we dismiss. That we'll go from here. Recognizing. And being even more persuaded.

[68:40] Than we ever were. That you are a God. Of absolute fidelity. Loyalty. Trustworthiness. You will not go back. On your word. Even though. All those to whom.

[68:51] You've given it. Deserve. To be forsaken. And yet. You are of a different stripe. You are of a God. Who cannot lie.

[69:02] And we take great pleasure. And comfort in that truth. In Christ's name. Amen. Amen. You are of a different stripe. You are the God who cannot lie. And we take great pleasure and comfort in that truth. In Christ's name, amen.