This is essentially 2 messages combined. Each with significant relevance to us, today: that all life, matters; everyone; that each might come to know God and gain eternal life.
Turn to: Ps 122
Jerusalem: why has the world stopped and turned its attention to Israel? It is, they are, the center of God’s attention, God’s people, God’s covenant, God’s heart, and God’s intentions for the world, go through these two things - Israel and Jerusalem: not, the USA.
Why? How? Because everything revolves around Israel, everything. Because it is Israel that God has chosen to impact, affect, and bless the world and to glorify Himself.
Deuteronomy 7:6 “For you [Israel] are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession”
Isaiah 42:6 "I the LORD have called unto you in righteousness, and have taken hold of your hand, and submitted you as the people's covenant, as a light unto the nations"
Isaiah 49:3 “You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified“
The world is alerted, why? Israel is God’s chosen people through whom the Messiah will come to bless the world.
Genesis 22:18 “And through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me”
Jerusalem is the place where God has designated:
First: His presence - 1Kings 8:10-11; Rom 9:4
Second: His chosen people, Israel, to worship and beseech Him - Ps 27:4; 42:4
Third: His peace offering and eternal dwelling place, with His chosen people through whom He has blessed the world, and those chosen people from the world, who would come to the Messiah - Isaiah the nations and kings will bring to God…
Revelation 21:1-4 2I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.
Why should these current events matter to us? Because this is about our God and His good intentions for the world. His faithfulness to His covenant, and His calling to Himself a people of His own choosing - for life: to go from life to life (Exodus 19:5-6; Deut 4:20; 7:6; John 1:12-13; 1Peter 1:2:9)
And because, as God’s people, we who are not Israel in the Hebrew sense, have been made part of Israel, wild olive shoots, grafted into the cultivated tree, Israel.
Romans 11:11-36
Therefore, what is happening concerns us, the Church, as we are on the mission granted us, the privilege of bringing the good news of this Messiah to the entire world, for life.
This, whether the world is cognizant or not, effects the whole world, and as we can see, somehow, though they might not know why, they, the world cannot turn their eyes away. (1Cor 2:6-16)
Matthew 24:6-8 “6You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7Nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8All these are the beginning of birth pains.”
Do not panic - such things must happen, God is sovereign, you, in Christ, are His beloved children
Do not overreact - saying “Here He is!”, “There He is!”, “Now, is the time!”
Turn to: Luke 17:20-24 (25-37)
Recognize the times for what they are - the beginning of the birth pains, labor pains of sorts, ready yourselves
Respond in repentance, prayer, and joy - commune with God in word, prayer, fellowship, repentance - not going our own way, but God’s (Isaiah 58:13; Gal 5:13-18)
Respond with urgency in ministry to one another and mission to the lost - act as one who knows the days are short - “How would I live if I had a short time to live?”, “How deeply would I love if the time were short?”, “With whom would I share the good news of the kingdom?”
And how then should we live in these times?
Turn to: 1Peter 3:13-22; 4:1-5, 7-18
