 |
| Painting by Gustave Doré |
How is it that a remnant of the ancient Hebrews were saved, if ’in Christ and through Christ we are saved;’ the Lord Jesus having not been earth born until after Israel was established, — more than two millennia of its existence being in the grace of God, and also, often at times, in rebellion against God? So much rebellion, that through all of its historical existence, the Word has expressly made it a point that most of the Jews, were as the non-Jews, whereas, at all times, there has been a remnant of a greater whole, whom lived in the mercy of God.
Abraham was righteous, but his son Ishmael was not. Isaac was righteous, but his son Esau was not, Jacob was righteous, but nearly all of his sons, whom God had mercy on, behaved themselves as murderers, selling their brother Joseph into slavery, and forsaking him as good as dead. Elimelech (book of Ruth) was of Bethlehem, but it was Ruth of Moab who was righteous.
What of Abraham, and those whom God the Father calls ‘righteous;’ the Lord having sanctified them, and noting that they believed God; they ‘had and have’ ‘faith,’ and their hearts ‘were and are’ meek unto God? Themselves, the scripture of the Word of God memorializes, showing this gospel of God, that by and through ‘faith’ are we saved, and not us ourselves because of our own righteousness; that is, — not because of our own good works, — nor because of our lineage, — nor because of our strength of will, but we are saved because of the mercy of the living God, whom does not weary, nor do his eyes slumber, and he proves our hearts and the intentions of our mind. For God is not a man that we can trifle with, but an invisible Spirit, and he has proclaimed from Moses and through all the prophets, whom are the people of the God of Abraham; yea, not after the flesh, for Ishmael, nor Esau, nor many of the kings of the nation state of ancient Israel found acceptance with God; the Lord being a “Jealous God,” suffering not any to take his glory, nor to make peace with him if they be haughty and proud, but on those who approach his majesty in meekness, it might be that the Lord is merciful unto those who lean upon him with all their heart, and all their mind, and all their might.
 |
| Painting by Gustave Doré. (Exodus from Egypt through the wilderness.) |
In the reading of the book of The Revelation of Saint John The Divine, the reader is presented with the proclamation that twelve thousand saints of each of the 12 tribes of Israel are saved, totaling one hundred and forty thousand saints, and we also read that after this, a great multitude of people, which none could number, arrayed in fine linen, were also praising and glorifying God, in the name of his Sun of Righteousness, Christ Jesus, the Lord and Son of God. These two groups, — representing one body of Christ, — of which they who are holy are all members of, — and in accordance to the Word and Spirit of the Word of God, as we read through Paul, are meek and holy with the ‘Christ mind,’ none vaunting themselves above any other of the house, but working together to the edifying of the house of God, that Christ be ‘all in all.’
Who are then those 144,000, given the distinction between the tribes of Israel and the holy multitude, if not the Hebrews whom God sanctified with the Spirit of the Bridegroom, and their life, being memorialized in the scripture, pointing to the pattern fulfilled in the lowly and meek of heart, Jesus, our Lord? The Lord’s parabolic language at play, and also literal in the proclamation of the 144,000, signifying the completeness and perfection of God’s will; He, having told us through his Word, that none of his sheep remain lost, for the Great Shepherd seeks the lost sheep of Israel, saving his whole house; yea, graciously searching out each one by one: the 144,000 representing a picture of, both the entire Israel of God, and bearing the distinction as the remnant of the Hebrews who attained, because of God’s mercy, unto salvation, — and they all, having the Spirit of Meekness unto God, — recognized as of the House of God together with the great multitude of people from all nations whom the Lord does and will save. So, we have the parable of the 144,000 representing one group, as the Hebrews, and an entire group, as the multitude of people from different nations.
The Lord, making all his purpose perfect has ordained a way unto himself, and the strength to be in that way being his Spirit, that whomsoever shall hearken unto God, must be lowly and meek in obedience to God, and if obedient, then we love all of us of the Israel of God, even the only Son of God, whom the world, scripture sais, has despised and crucified and treated spitefully as nothing to regard, and nothing of any consequence to observe, or of any importance to consider.
 |
| Painting by Gustave Doré. Moses breaks the stone tablets upon which God wrote the commandments after seeing the people had no faith and had made themselves an idol, though God did marvelously for them in freeing them from Pharaoh. |
But, as it was with Moses, the Lord has set as a stumbling block: lowliness of heart and mind with meekness unto God, — that whosever thinks they might ascribe righteousness unto themselves that is not of God, such a stumbling block pulverizes and brings to nothing, and whosoever falls upon that stumbling block shall have a broken heart and a contrite spirit, which is the sacrifice the Lord accepts (Psalm 51:17).
God began declaring the arrival of Jesus since Moses, whom said, to the people that a prophet like unto himself would arise, and to him, the people should listen and hearken. The key there being, who was Moses that we may recognize what such a prophet like unto him would arise? And if we rejoice in the reading of the Word, we find that the Lord sais, Moses was the meekest man on earth; the man of God, and we see that Moses was THE express image of the leader and commander who beared with a spirit of longsuffering the half-heartedness of the Hebrews who left Egypt; and we see, if we look diligently with a meek heart ready to consider, — we see that Moses was a writer, and he sought after the response of the Lord on all things, and God performed mighty and marvelous miracles through him, all of these, being forerunners to the fulfillment of the perfect man, that Christ of God, whom God has the strength to send and strengthen that he may remain. And none of the prophets after, — not Joshua, nor the ‘Judges,’ nor Elijah, or Elisha, not Nehemiah, or Ezra, or Jonah, or Daniel, or Zephaniah, or Zechariah, none of these holy persons, whom the Lord blessed, were as Moses, though they were great, and the Lord truly continued the foreshadowing of arrival of the pattern of his Christ, through them, but Moses was the undisputed leader and commander of a great multitude, and he did govern with a perfect heart before God, and he was that obedient man unto God, and so he found grace with the Lord, who called him his friend.
But who shall understand these things; is it no only those who love the Lord, who has set his Word, which is the light of the knowledge of God, yes, his ‘Sun’ as ‘the way, the truth, and the life?’ It is they who understand that they are to put on the meekness of God, whom being all-powerful, and worthy of all majesty, has set forth a way, and a truth, and the holy life, through which we might be acceptable unto him. For often, as it is shown in the exodus of the Hebrews from Egypt, — often has it been in scripture that those who say they are of God, and partake in the traditions, being of the community, and ‘of the people’ of the Lord, that they are not of God, but only those who have faith, which is the gift of God. Even in the exodus from Egypt, the Holy Spirit foreshadows that not all that left Egypt were counted as of Israel, but that a great number of people who were not of the Hebrews left Egypt with them. That, itself, being a multi-faceted allegory that the Israel of God is of the Holy Spirit, and not of flesh, and also, many will call themselves after the Israel of God, and seek with hearts of ‘gain & advantage’ the group with the ‘winning side,’ but it is of God, and not us, to deem whom is accepted and whom is not; the Lord having mercy on whom he will have mercy, and quickening the Spirit of whom he chooses.
Wherefore, none of the million and a half Hebrews, and Egyptians who left Egypt, except the children of these, and the whole house of Joshua and Caleb, entered into the ‘promised land,’ (the ‘promised land’ being itself an allegory of eternal salvation and favor with God).
It is then, that in each of the books of the Holy Bible, continuing with Joshua, that the Lord greatly emphasizes a separation of those who subscribe themselves as of the Israel of God, and those whom are genuinely meek unto God; — through this action, ‘showing’ that not all are righteous, but the Lord has been patient and gracious, and the Spirit of God shall be upon whom the Lord chooses. That, whithersoever he has called a people his own; not after the flesh, nor of the will of man, nor by lineage (by blood), but after the Holy Spirit, they who have wholehearted faith in God, love God and are at peace with his Word, which has declared the Spirit of Meekness, whom is true and faithful, as the Spirit of God the Father, and he has spoken to us of the arrival of his only begotten Christ, as a prophet like unto Moses, a great leader and commander of the holy people, who has not done away with Moses and the prophets, but has fulfilled their prophecy in one man, Jesus, whose good works were seen of thousands and written that we might believe with meekness, that the Spirit of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; the Spirit of Moses, and all the prophets, is the Spirit of Faith in the Righteousness of God, and that earnest believing, being a good work that is testament that we, being Jews, or of the people of the nations of the world; that we, being Christians, see the form and function of the Christ Spirit and the Christ mind, in full regalia across the scripture. And if we have that strength to have faith, then we read Jesus, and we understand, that Jesus is the King and Lord of the Israel of God, yea, he is the only Sun of Jehova.
Comments