4-29-20 Leave God's Stuff Alone
Leave God’s Stuff Alone! :: By Mark Susswein
Over the last few decades, nations of the world have discussed ways to divide the Land of Israel and its eternal capital city of Jerusalem in order for a two-state solution to become reality.
The world is continually trying to figure out how the Palestinians and Jews could live together in peace. The world is also determined to control the fate of Israel and the Jewish people. It is more accurate to state the world ‘thinks’ it has that authority and power to make that happen.
You would think when it comes to deciding Israel’s future, she would be at the very least a participant in those discussions. Far too often, she is not, and neither is the God of Israel who just happens to be the owner of that land, the Land of Israel.
It would be wise for those nations to proceed with caution, but it goes way beyond that.
These nations will face the consequences of rebelling against God’s word as they move forward to not only divide His land, but mistreating the Jewish people throughout her history as well. These nations are ignoring the covenants God made with Israel and the Jewish people.
If there is any misunderstanding or confusion as to whom the Land of Israel belongs, the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament makes it very clear; it is the Jewish people’s homeland, period.
Also, as we move along on what is going to be a world-changing event, the New Testament reveals to us how God’s covenants with His chosen people will be fulfilled in the Messianic Kingdom.
Those covenants are the Abrahamic Covenant, the Davidic Covenant, the Land Covenant and the New Covenant. These covenants made thousands of years ago are still quite valid and will be kept exactly as the God of Israel said in Matthew 5:18. “For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.”
Here’s a brief description of each of those covenants:
The Abrahamic Covenant is unconditional, meaning nothing depends on what Abraham or his descendants do. The obligation and responsibility rests with God alone. That continues to this day.
I encourage you to read Genesis 15 where it details the actual ceremony that took place making that covenant unconditional. This is God staking His own life on its ‘exact’ fulfillment.
God promised Abraham three major items. Number one, the Land. Number two, Abraham’s descendants would make a ‘great nation,’ and three, the promise of redemption.
Right here is where Satan steps in. He hates Israel and the Jewish people to no end. He hates what God loves. His unreachable goal or intention, if you will, is to divide the Land of Israel and destroy the Jewish people.
The nations of the world would like nothing more than to divide up the Land of Israel, the very same intentions as Satan himself; and yes, the desire to rid the world of the Jews is, sadly, still in play. Harsh words for sure, but true.
The reality is this: If Satan can destroy the Jews and/or change the boundaries that God declared, then he can prove God to be a covenant breaker. God would then be obliged by His own standards of holiness and justice to reap the consequences of a broken covenant. And most importantly, if God doesn’t keep His promise exactly as He stated, there would be a lot of doubt about the promise of a Redeemer for the world. Think about that. No Jews, no reason for the return of Messiah Jesus, and Satan wins. That, my brothers and sisters, will never happen.
The Abrahamic Covenant is vital. It is the covenant that is the foundation for all the other covenants. It ensures Israel of her inheritance. It also guarantees Israel’s eventual repentance and future restoration of the Land during the millennial reign of Messiah. This is crucial, so please take the time to read Deuteronomy 30:1-10.
This covenant reaffirms that the Land of Israel is Israel’s eternal inheritance.
Now we come to another unconditional covenant, the Davidic Covenant, found in 2nd Samuel 7.
This covenant guarantees Israel an eternal King who will rule from David’s throne forever, and spoiler alert… He will rule from the eternal Jewish capital city of Jerusalem; and, of course, the King to come is Messiah Jesus, the Anointed One.
It is unfortunate that the world’s nations desperately want to divide Israel and its capital. They do not know or understand what God’s plans are for His nation and His people. Why would they? They do not even acknowledge His existence. After all, it was said a few years ago that “God is dead.” Ouch!
God’s plan is a simple one. Jerusalem will be the capital city of Israel. It will not be a divided city in a divided land as the international community intends to do. There will not be a Palestinian state existing side by side with Israel when Messiah reigns.
We all know context in scripture is vital. Most of us are familiar with Matthew 6:10.
“Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”
This verse is for the future. It is a direct reference to when a descendant of David’s will sit on David’s throne and rule Israel and the world from Jerusalem. This has not happened, and it did not happen the first time when God came to earth in the flesh whom we know as Jesus. This is a prophecy yet to be fulfilled, and that means God’s promise to the Jewish people concerning the Land of Israel is still very much valid and intact.
At His 2nd coming, Messiah Jesus will reign as King of kings ruling with a rod of iron from an eternal capital city in an eternal Jewish state.
Now, to tie this all together we have the New Covenant. This covenant is all about the Son of God.
The New Covenant has been paid for and validated in the blood that Jesus shed on the cross and makes fulfillment of the Abrahamic Covenant, the Land Covenant and the Davidic Covenant all possible.
That same atoning blood that covers our sins is the same blood that will provide atonement for Israel’s national sin in the very near future, as prophecy reveals to us.
By the way, brothers and sisters, it is the same blood covenant that guarantees our inheritance as Christians which also guarantees the Jewish peoples’ eternal right to the land, as declared in the Abrahamic Covenant.
If you are a Gentile believer, or a Jewish believer in Messiah who, for whatever reason, rejects Israel’s exclusive and permanent right to the Land of Israel, you must understand you are going against the God of Israel no differently than when the nations gather to do the work of Satan.
This is nothing but spiritual warfare. To discredit God’s Son and to make God out to be a liar and a covenant breaker by dividing and destroying Israel is Satan’s ultimate goal. This is what drives him.
As we know, God cannot lie. God is not and never will be a liar. Look at Numbers 23:19:
“God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?”
There are going to be consequences, as I said earlier. If the nations of the world continue on this evil path, the consequences will be severe; God’s word says so. A verse from the Prophet Joel is so worth repeating:
“I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. And I will enter into judgment with them there, on behalf of my people and my heritage Israel, because they have scattered them among the nations and have divided up my land” (Joel 3:2).
Will God change His mind? No!
Will God revoke His covenants? No!
We know all about ex-President Barack Obama’s red line. Well, God has a red line as well. The difference is He will enforce it.
The God of Israel made covenants which are eternal for His chosen nation and people. He staked His own life on fulfilling them.
As Christians, it is our duty to pray for Jerusalem, for Israel, and for every Jew that lives there as well the Jews living around the world.
According to the word of God, some terrible things are about to happen, and that time is known as the Great Tribulation with Israel and the Jews the centerpiece of that event yet to unfold. It will certainly be a time of testing for Israel and her people, to say the least.
For Israel and the Jewish people, real peace and security comes from Genesis 17:7, “And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you.”
Here again, this is God’s perfect plan coming together.
As we believers in Christ look at the world and see evil and wickedness increasing by the day, we could very easily get fearful and doubtful and maybe even question our own faith. However, there is hope, and that hope is known as our Blessed Hope, and we need to heed the words from Jesus the Messiah:
“Now when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near” (Luke 21:28).
Mark Susswein
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