Part #9 of “WHAT SHALL WE SAY THEN?”
Gentiles On His Mind
God Almighty “ALWAYS” had the Gentiles on His Mind.
The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, also always was, the God of the Gentiles.
Paul the ‘only’ Divinely Hand-picked apostle of the Gentiles put it across like this in [Romans 3:29]:
“Is He the God of the Jews only? Is He not also of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also”.
Melchizedek The Mystery Man Of Scripture
The person and identity of Melchizedek, the mystery man of the Scriptures has given theologians and Bible students many sleepless nights.
Who in the world is Melchizedek?
Melchizedek is a very important name in Scripture. He must be, because even the New Testament in the book of [Hebrews 7] has much to say about him.
JESUS CHRIST, after the cross, is referred to as a priest forever after the “order of Melchizedek” in [Hebrews 7:17].
This is undoubtedly, highly significant and a topic for ‘another day’.
And if the LORD decides not to tarry much longer, we’ll find out for sure very soon.
While Abraham was still Abram and he met Melchizedek king of Salem in [Genesis 14:18-19], something wonderful got revealed.
Scripture here in tells us that Melchizedek was the priest of the “Most High God” and he blessed Abram accordingly.
“Blessed be Abram of the ‘most high God’, possessor of heaven and earth”.
The Hebrew term for ‘the most high God’ is ‘the God of the Gentiles’. He is the same God of all Scripture and his Name here is ‘EL ELYON’.
Every time you come across the “most High God” in Scripture, remember He is ‘EL ELYON’, the “God of the Gentiles”.
Indeed, God had the “Gentiles on His Mind”.
In The Loins Of Abraham
We Gentiles were in the spiritual loins of Abraham when God called out Abraham in [Genesis 12:1-3].
And God called him out with a ‘Spiritual Promise”, “and in thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed”.
Note that this promised blessing was a spiritual one and ‘NOT’ a material one, as has been erroneously taught.
Scripture specifically talks about this blessing in [Galatians 3:14], as revealed to Paul by the “Ascended Lord Jesus” in Glory.
“That the ‘blessing of Abraham’ might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ”.
What exactly is this blessing?
“That we might receive the promise of the (Holy) Spirit through (how?) faith”.
Faith In What
“That Jesus Christ died for our sins, was buried and rose again”
This is what the Bible categorically calls “THE GOSPEL” and not “A Gospel” as revealed in [1 Corinthians 15:1-4].
The moment we believe, we enter into that Abrahamic Promise, ‘made by God’, “EL ELYON”, the God of the Gentiles.
And this promise was in actuality a “double blessing’.
It was the blessing of “Salvation” and the receiving of His “Holy Spirit”, simultaneously by (get this clear) FAITH + NOTHING.
Anything else outside of what Scripture has revealed here, is a ‘false teaching’.
In this current dispensation of the Age of Grace, we are living in fulfillment of that Abrahamic Promise.
[Hebrews 11:13] shows us that though Abraham did not live to see the promise, He saw it by faith and believed it.
Setting The Stage For The Gentiles
God, EL ELYON”, was setting the stage for the Gentiles. And He was doing this about five hundred years before giving the Law to Moses as “I AM”.
Is it any coincidence that God Almighty revealed Himself as “EL ELYON” to Abraham first, before He revealed Himself as “I Am” to Moses?
Not at all, God was working according to a plan, His plan.
This is one of the reasons why even we as believers in Christ are referred to as “the children of Abraham” in [Galatians 3:7].
Scripture further declares us as “Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise (made to Abraham)” [Galatians 3:29].
So the God of the Bible is not just the God of the Jews only, as Paul tells us.
HE has ‘ALWAYS’ also been, the God of the Gentiles (the non Jews).
Absolutely! The God of Genesis to Revelation is everyone’s True God.
He is the True God of every Hindu, Sikh, Muslim, Buddhist, Jain and every other religious and non-religious person on the planet.
Hammering It Home
Lets hammer home this concept even further as Scripture in [Isaiah 42:1] spoke about the Gentiles.
“Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him”.
Isaiah the Jewish prophet in about 700 BC is speaking of Christ the Messiah here.
He continues, “He (The Messiah) shall bring forth judgment (rule, government) to (whom?) the Gentiles”.
This is an Old Testament concept.
Absolutely! God had the Gentiles on His mind, but not until He had finished His work with Israel.
This was all part of the Old Testament Covenant with Israel.
The day would come when Israel had completed the promises, then God would turn to the Gentile world.
Israel’s Great Commission
Isaiah foretold “The Great Commission” of [Matthew 28:19-20].
The prophet said this in [Isaiah 49:6] referring to the believing remnant of the nation of Israel:
“I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.'”
Israel was to have had the opportunity, and they did to a certain extent. Because every word in the Bible has been written by Jews.
And God had even more than that in mind for the nation, but they rejected it in their unbelief.
They refused to acknowledge and accept their Messiah Jesus Christ.
Instead in their unbelief, they likened Him to a common criminal and crucified Him.
It was God’s idea to go to the Gentile world through this Covenant people of Israel.
God from the beginning knew that the day would come when He would go to whole Gentile world with His Salvation.
But Israel was constantly rejecting this idea.
As a result God had to send the Nation of Israel out into dispersion.
He took away their Temple (destroyed in 70 AD) and took away their land.
And God set aside Israel’s “Great Commission”, to be fulfilled at a later date.
Then God turned to the Gentiles through the Apostle Paul with this tremendous “Gospel of the Grace”.
This Gospel, which was ‘kept secret’ in the mind of God since the world began, was finally unveiled and revealed.
Scripture calls it the “Hidden Mystery” [Romans 16:25] and [Ephesians 3:9].
The time for gathering in the Gentiles had arrived in perfect accordance with heaven’s plan.
Indeed, God always had the Gentiles on His mind.
An Open Door And A Free Path
The Gospel of Grace is an open door and a free path to “whosever will” believe +nothing.
A new age was instituted and ushered in through the cross. It’s the “Age Of Grace”.
God, without Israel, and without the Law, is now reaching out to every individual through the Gospel of Grace.
And this is God’s sole purpose today, “to take out of them (Gentiles) a people for His Name” [Acts 15:14].
Once again, by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul reaches way back into the Old Testament and brings it into the new.
Recalling what the prophet Hosea wrote, Paul says in [Romans 9:25-26]:
“As he saith also in O-see, (Book of Hosea) I will call them my people, which were not my people and her beloved, which was not beloved”.
Who were the people that were not His people? The Gentiles!
“And it shall come to pass”. When God says it shall come to pass means it definitely will take place [Numbers 23:19].
“That in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people; there shall they be called the children of the living God.”
Who were the people who would finally come to the place where they would say, “You’re my God”?
Well, you and I now in this Age of Grace.
And God would say, “You’re my people.”
That was all foretold clearly back there in the Old Testament even in the Book of Hosea.
Paul here is dealing with Israel’s past, and why they have been having the problems that they’ve had.
Israel’s Attitude
They always had an “attitude” towards Gentiles, and were seen by them as “uncircumcised dogs”.
Their religiosity had hardened their hearts and blinded them in pride filled unbelief.
And now God was getting ready to do something new that they could never envision. This would throw a big curve at them.
Israel some had serious lessons to learn and would have to learn it the hard way.
Their constant disobedience and unbelief was about to release an open door and pathway to freedom and liberty to those “uncircumcised dogs”.
For God had us Gentiles secretly in His Heart and Mind and the “fullness of time” in God’s agenda had arrived.
This was going to send the Jewish religious pride right out of the window.
For God has ‘never’ been a “respecter of persons’. There is no partiality with Him.
Paul our apostle is setting the stage to bring in his final, “WHAT SHALL WE SAY THEN”?
For God indeed, always had the “Gentiles On His Mind”.
