The book is now finished but I have decided to delay it due to certain considerations. Again, I will announce the official release as soon as I can: original post follows.Here is another segment from the book. I am currently proofreading the printed proof copy before the main printing is done. I am taking extra time with it so I don't have as many typos and errors as I ended up with in my first book. Live and learn. Hopefully I can have it printed and ready for sale within a week or so. I'll make the announcement when I get them in hand. Blessings.
In Christ,
Jonn
INTRODUCTION
A few years ago I wrote
a short newsletter for a church that I was attending. The church taught the pre-trib
rapture, so as you might expect my newsletter was full of articles on the
subject of how the Jews had rejected Christ and for this reason we Gentiles were
grafted in.
I remember thinking
how lucky we were as Gentiles that the Jews did not accept Christ, for if they
had accepted Him we would never have been invited to be heirs of God. How
fortunate for us!
Well, every now and
again it would dawn on me that not all of Israel had rejected Him. I mean, I
remember a few Israelites that did accept Him, they were:
"The first, Simon, who is called
Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother;
Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of
Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; Simon the Canaanite, and
Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him."
Well, I suppose we shouldn’t count
Judas but anyway after these we see Paul, Barnabas, Stephen and three thousand
at Pentecost who also believed. Not only these but others such as Nicodemus and
Joseph of Arimathea who prepared the tomb and took Jesus’ body for burial.
Even at His birth we
see faithful Israelites such as Anna and Simeon who, being old, waited at the
Temple to see the Christ child and declare His arrival upon the earth.
So how can we then say
Israel rejected Christ? Why would God toss aside those Israelites who did believe
only to bring in a bunch of self-righteous, ignorant Gentiles?
The honest reader sees
the logical problem that this understanding creates and this book is dedicated
to showing that reader that Israel has already been redeemed and how you also
are part of that saved body.
Still, tell someone
today that they are God’s chosen people and they will usually show little
interest in hearing more. In fact, many will be offended at the idea “How dare
you blaspheme against God’s TRUE chosen people” (the modern state of Israel)
many would say in protest, as they unwittingly reject their birthright.
However, Israel was already
completely lost at the time of Christ’s arrival. This is attested to in Amos 7:8:
"And the LORD said unto me, Amos,
what seest thou? And I said, A plumbline. Then said the Lord, Behold, I will
set a plumbline in the midst of my people Israel: I will not again pass by them
any more:"
Jesus shows up as the
plumbline in the midst of Israel, providing a straight and narrow way that
those who believe might be saved. At this time Israel had to make a choice.
They could remain under the law and be lost or believe in Christ and be born
again into a spiritual body.
While many physical
Israelites went the wrong way, others believed and became spiritual Israel via
the born again experience. Afterward, the salvation message was able to go out
among the Gentiles and they too could decide whether or not to follow Jesus. If
they believed in Him then they were also “born again” into that same spiritual entity
known as Israel.
The fact that you must
be "born again" really should be a big clue. What else could that
mean other than that God has translated the body of Israel into a spiritual
body? Jesus Himself explains that our spiritual birth is of the utmost importance
in John 3:5-6 where we read:
“Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say
unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter
into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that
which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”
When God transitioned
His chosen people from a physical entity into a spiritual one He effectively
created two Israels, one believing and one not believing.
This way He was able
to keep all of His promises to Israel such as "all Israel shall be
saved" and at the same time keep all of His curses on Israel such as
"I will not pass by them any more".
Paul addresses this
understanding in Romans 9:6-8:
"Not as though the word of God hath
taken none effect. For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel: Neither,
because they are the seed of Abraham, are they all children: but, In Isaac
shall thy seed be called. That is, They which are the children of the flesh,
these are not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for
the seed."
Although clearly
spelled out, many refuse to hear this truth. They reject it, if not only on blatant
ignorance of the Scriptures, then almost always on the false teaching that says
they will miss the Tribulation by being raptured.
If Christians were to acknowledge
that they are the chosen people it would mean facing the fact that they must go
through the Tribulation. It would be undeniable since Revelation speaks of Israelites
being present during that time, but clearly no one wants that.
Even though God has
already said that He "will not pass by them anymore" many still prefer
the lie. Yes, they would prefer to be raptured out before the trouble begins,
leaving the poor physical Jews down here to face the wrath.
Well, you can believe
the lie of an early rapture if you want to or you can believe the uncomfortable
truth which reveals that you are indeed Israel and unless you die before it
starts you will be in the Tribulation!
Unfortunately modern Christians
are paralleling the actions of the ancient Jews of Jesus' day which caused them
to miss the Messiah. They were caught up in the love of tradition and erroneous
belief systems which left them completely unprepared to see and understand the
Truth.
Oh Israel, I advise
you to embrace this teaching and start preparing your spiritual house for the
times ahead. Read, study and pray. This book is a simple first step. So, let’s
get started.
In
Christ,
Jonn
Mooney
March,
2013
