Scripture
46Then Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and declared, “It was necessary that we first preach the word of God to you Jews. But since you have rejected it and judged yourselves unworthy of eternal life, we will offer it to the Gentiles.47For the Lord gave us this command when he said, ‘I have made you a light to the Gentiles, to bring salvation to the farthest corners of the earth.’” 48When the Gentiles heard this, they were very glad and thanked the Lord for his message; and all who were chosen for eternal life became believers. 49So the Lord’s message spread throughout that region. Acts 13:46-49
Observation
When we read of Saul’s conversion God makes it clear that his mission will be to bring The Good News to the Gentile nations. Peter laid the groundwork for this in Acts 10 and 11, but now Paul and Barnabas are sent as missionaries to the people who are hungry to hear God’s word of salvation. It’s not that all of the Jews were rejecting the message. Verse 43 tell us that “Many Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, and the two men urged them to continue to rely on the grace of God.” Out of jealousy at the size of the crowds the Jewish leaders ran Paul and Barnabas out of the synagogues. Here’s the amazing thing about our God. He always gave His chosen people the first chance to choose Him. Though they have largely given up on Jesus, He has not given up on them. Paul goes into more detail about this moment right here in Romans 10 and 11. One commentator explained it this way, “First, Israel's trespass, or sin, made it possible for salvation to come to the Gentiles. That sin was a refusal, on a national level, to obey the gospel of faith in Jesus (Romans 10:16). When Israel rejected Christ, God used that rejection to make His offer of salvation by grace through faith in Christ available to all people. God's second purpose, though, was to make Israel jealous. Paul introduced this idea in Romans 10:19. God plans to use this—jealousy of a close relationship with God enjoyed by Gentiles—to provoke many Jewish people to eventually come to Him, as well, also through faith in Christ.” God has taken the Good News to the farthest corners of the earth so that the farthest corners of the earth could take the Good News back to Israel.
Application
7,570 miles from where I sit this morning my Jewish friends in Israel are sharing the Good news of Jesus Christ with their neighbors, Jewish, Arab, Palestinian, really to any one who will listen. God is really moving in The Holy land. My pastor friend Illya said their Messianic Jewish church had over 40 water baptisms this past year, when the norm is maybe one per year! When I was there in Israel I realized how arrogant and ethnocentric my faith had become. I had not really given much thought at all to the Jewish nation and their salvation. They had rejected Christ so what else was there to do? Yet, there I was worshipping and praying with Jews to Jesus. They were such a small minority, often pressed against on every side, but they were mighty in their faith. I remember just crying during their Shabbat worship service with a new found gratitude that God had gone out of His way to find me living in the farthest corner from Israel. I also repented for taking for granted the gift of salvation. I always felt like an underdog as a Christian in California, but it’s a cake walk here in comparison to those who follow Jesus in Israel. My friend Pastor Phil McCallum opened my eyes to this reality of bringing back what was brought to us. “Most Israelis have never read a New Testament. If you were to ask them what's in the New Testament, some might imagine it's a book that teaches Christians how to persecute Jewish people. That's because persecution is what Jewish people have received over the last 2000 years from some Christians. I went onto Wikipedia, and I looked up the timeline of anti-Semitism. I found 130 pages with 1200 entries of historical events of great pain to Jewish people that were all done in the name of our faith. When you and I move toward Israeli people and show interest, doors open when we help in practical ways. For 2000 years, Jews have given us the Christians faith. Christians have a Jewish Bible written by exclusively Jewish authors. Christians pray to a God revealed to them through Jews. Christians put Jewish promises on the walls of their homes. Christians pray prayers in Hebrew when they say ‘Amen’. They sing in Hebrew when they say ‘Hallelujah’. Christians follow a Jewish Messiah. Isn't it only fitting that Christians should be like the Messiah to the Jews?”
Prayer
Lord, Your Scripture offers a great promise: "All Israel will be saved." Jews have been a light to the Gentiles. Now, the Gentiles need to bring light to the Jews in their time of need. I pray that You would continue to stir Your people to go out of our way to bring Your light to those around us. Whether it’s the person across the street or across the globe You’ve called us to share this light with those who are looking for it!
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