The promises of Abraham will be fulfilled. All prophesy will come to pass. The promises remain and all nations who accept this favored nation will be blessed in them.
Acts 1:6 Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. 8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
The written Word in Scripture is a progressive history of God’s love for the world.
The Gospel of the Kingdom is the Good News of the arrival of their King. Jesus told them that the Kingdom of Heaven had arrived. Jesus sent forth the twelve Apostles telling them not to go to the Gentiles but go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. When the Jews rejected their King His grace was gifted to the Gentiles. Jesus came to Israel to fulfill the Law. He came as Christ Jesus the Messiah the Son of the living God to save His people. God alone can reveal the deity of Jesus to us.
John the Baptist was the herald of Jesus the King of the Jews. John’s father being filled with Holy Spirit spoke that the Lord God of Israel will come to redeem His people.
Luke 1:67
Now his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying:
68 “Blessed is the Lord God of Israel,
For He has visited and redeemed His people,
69 And has raised up a horn of salvation for us
In the house of His servant David,
70 As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets,
Who have been since the world began,
71 That we should be saved from our enemies
And from the hand of all who hate us,
72 To perform the mercy promised to our fathers
And to remember His holy covenant,
73 The oath which He swore to our father Abraham:
74 To grant us that we,
Being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
Might serve Him without fear,
75 In holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life.
Anti-semitism will remain until Christ returns. The Messiah would fulfill all the promises to the fathers and remember His covenant with Abraham.
In Luke 18:31 on the way to Jerusalem for the last Passover and speaking to the twelve He told them that all things written by the prophets concerning the Son of God would be accomplished. He would be led as a sheep to be slaughtered. He would be mocked, spit upon and scourged and put to death. The Apostles did not understand the significance. BUT on the 3rd day He would be raised from the dead and in His resurrection He would conquer the last enemy of believers…death. His death in our place allows us to live forever with Him.
James 3:17 (ESV) "But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.”
True wisdom from God is pure, peace-loving, considerate, full of mercy, impartial and sincere. …the world's wisdom leads to pride and envy (James 3:16), but today we'll learn that God's wisdom leads to the polar opposite: peace and gentleness (James 3:17). First5
This week, I had a Sabbath Moment reader tell me, “I am emotionally parched.”
And I do get it. Good choice of words. Spent, or at the end; times, without even knowing it, when we need space to be (and stay) emotionally and spiritually hydrated.
So, this week, the power of pause.
And the permission to make space that can heal.
We are all wired to be replenished. And care of any kind begins with self-care.
I stand by that, more than ever. Depletion and exhaustion, and being parched, are rampant. No one of us is on this journey alone. And we need one another not only for care and comfort, but to pick up the pieces and find ways to create spaces in our world that do not diminish, belittle or devastate.
What can I do to create that kind of world?
Too often, when I see acts of courage, I see heroism, and I don't see myself. Or I see how far I have to go. Or I see how far short I have fallen.
But I do understand tired. And I do understand discouraged. And I do understand the end of my resources.
Hope comes from ordinary people who care. Sabbath Moments
Zechariah 12:7–10
7 “The Lord will save the tents of Judah first, so that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem shall not become greater than that of Judah. 8 In that day the Lord will defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; the one who is feeble among them in that day shall be like David, and the house of David shall be like God, like the Angel of the Lord before them. 9 It shall be in that day that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. Mourning for the Pierced One 10 “And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn. The New King James Version
Under Yahweh’s direct protection, even the weak become strong. Grace is special favor freely given by God to the nation, whereas pleas for mercy represent Yahweh’s response to the nation’s petitions. The two together portray the vast extent of divine providence. The change in pronoun is done for stylistic reasons; the subject is still God. “One wails over an only child”, this phrase refers to the heartbreaking effect the nation’s idolatry has on God. John’s Gospel uses this phrase at the end of a sequence of old testament allusions and quotations designed to show how the details of Jesus’ crucifixion aligned with biblical prophecy. In John 19:32–37, the soldiers pierce Jesus’ side with a spear, and John identifies that action as the fulfillment of Zechariah 12:10 (John 19:37).The great mourning will resemble the laments that accompanying the loss of an only child. Faithlife Study Bible
Tents of Judah alludes to Jews living outside Jerusalem in the rural districts of the land. The house of David means David’s descendants. With bold analogy, Zechariah likens David’s descendants to God. All the nations that have attacked Jerusalem will be judged and destroyed. The metaphor pour is derived from the deluge of winter rains and speaks of abundant provision.
Spirit of grace refers to the gracious working of the Holy Spirit that leads to conviction and repentance. The Spirit will stimulate an attitude of repentance and prayer for God’s mercy. There are many significant ministries of the Holy Spirit in the period of the Hebrew kingdom.
“Me whom they pierced” is often regarded by Jewish commentators as a corporate reference to the Jews killed in the defense of Jerusalem. The Jewish Talmud views the text as referring to the Messiah who will be pierced in battle. The messianic view is favored by the fact that Jesus was pierced with a spear after His death on the Cross (John 19:34). The NKJV Study Bible
John 19:37 And again another Scripture says, “They shall look on Him whom they pierced.”
Revelation 1:7 Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen.
Ezekiel 39:29 And I will not hide My face from them anymore; for I shall have poured out My Spirit on the house of Israel,’ says the Lord GOD.”
Joel 2:28–29
“And it shall come to pass afterward
That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh;
Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
Your old men shall dream dreams,
Your young men shall see visions.
And also on My menservants and on
My maidservantsI will pour out
My Spirit in those days.
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