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The Daily Word of Righteousness
The Whole House of Israel, #7
Say to them, "this is what the Sovereign LORD says: ‘I am going to take the stick of Joseph—which is in Ephraim's hand—and of the Israelite tribes associated with him, and join it to Judah's stick, making them a single stick of wood, and they will become one in my hand.'" (Ezekiel 37:19—NIV)
In the Day of the Lord the stick of Ephraim (elect Jews and Gentiles) will be joined to the stick of Judah (elect Jews). Both groups will become one in God's hand.
The vast army that will return with the Lord Jesus will, as we have said, include the saints of all ages. Many of them—perhaps the majority—will have been born Jewish. We Gentiles are newcomers on the scene. We do not hold up the Olive Tree. The Olive Tree holds us up.
We Gentiles have become altogether too arrogant and conceited, not realizing that our salvation is Jewish bread. Our city is Jerusalem: first the earthly Jerusalem when the Lord returns, and then the new Jerusalem at the beginning of eternity.
God never changes His mind, knowing the end from the beginning. His gifts and callings are without repentance. Salvation is of the Jews, not the Jews by race but by promise. This is true Israel. We Gentiles have been grafted into true Israel. If we really are a Christian, and not just a member of an Evangelical church or a Charismatic church, we will be raised along with the Jewish saints of all the centuries.
After the vast army has been raised it will deliver Jerusalem from the wicked, as we have said, install the Kingdom of God, and turn away godlessness from the elect Jews who are living in the land of Israel at that time. This is the way I see the picture.
And say to them, "This is what the Sovereign LORD says: ‘I will take the Israelites out of the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from all around and bring them back into their own land.'" (Ezekiel 37:21—NIV)
In a way the pattern resembles the resurrection of our body. While we are alive on the earth our body is dead because of sin. But our inward nature, which has been resurrected with Christ and has ascended with Christ to the right hand of God, is being perfected. We are of the righteous who are being made perfect.
But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, (Hebrews 12:22,23—NIV)
In the Day of the Lord our inward nature will descend with the Lord and be joined to our formerly dead body. Then our body will be gloriously alive.
So it is with Jerusalem. Jerusalem today is in bondage with her children, as Paul says. But her true saints are with the Lord in the spirit realm. When the Lord returns the saints will make the dead body of Jerusalem gloriously alive.
We have always pictured that if someone is to be saved they must "take the four steps of salvation." This is not true. Consider what happened to Saul on the road to Damascus! The Lord intervened in Saul's life and saved him in a sovereign manner.
To be continued.