Unity made possible

 

READ Ezekiel 37–40

Most know the song with these words: “Leg bone connected knee bone, Knee bone connected thighbone, Thighbone connected hipbone, Don’t you hear the word of the Lord?” Not everyone knows it is a Black spiritual based on Ezekiel 37, a vision God gave His prophet of dead people brought to life by His power. This vision depicts God’s plan for His exiled people to restore them to their own land.

Then he said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Behold, they say, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are indeed cut off.’ Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will open your graves and raise you from your graves, O my people. And I will bring you into the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and raise you from your graves, O my people. And I will put my Spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will do it, declares the Lord.” (Ezekiel 37:11–14)

Not only that, He would unite Judah and Israel that they would be one nation rather than two kingdoms:

Behold, I will take the people of Israel from the nations among which they have gone, and will gather them from all around, and bring them to their own land. And I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel. And one king shall be king over them all, and they shall be no longer two nations, and no longer divided into two kingdoms. They shall not defile themselves anymore with their idols and their detestable things, or with any of their transgressions. But I will save them from all the backslidings in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them; and they shall be my people, and I will be their God . . . . I will make a covenant of peace with them. It shall be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will set them in their land and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in their midst forevermore. My dwelling place shall be with them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Then the nations will know that I am the Lord who sanctifies Israel, when my sanctuary is in their midst forevermore. (37:21–28)

God united His people and set them apart for Himself. He still does that. Recently, a couple who divorced twenty years ago were separately led to the Lord. They came together as God restored their love and commitment to one another. They now help other married couples whose marriages are in trouble. A similar reunion happened with a couple in our family.

The NT tells of a larger union when God did the seemingly impossible by uniting Jews and Gentiles through Jesus Christ:

Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles . . .  were separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. (Ephesians 2:11–16)

Restored relationships begin with being brought into a faith relationship with Jesus. As sin is confessed and hearts are changed, division becomes unbearable. God’s people want to be in harmony with one another. Sometimes broken marriages are restored, or family feuds come to an end, or personal animosity ceases. God is a God of peace and when His Spirit lives in a human heart, that peace becomes a powerful motivation. We are called to live “with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” (Ephesians 4:2–3)

Someone posted on social media a quote that ‘once the world found love, we would have peace,’ no doubt not realizing that true love has only one source:

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. (1 John 4:7–9)

Lord, may Your Spirit fill me with Your love today. I know that apart from You, genuine love and any unity with others would be impossible.

 

Grace — not new but eternal . . .

A Friday surprise . . . the New COVENANT was first announced in the Old Testament! Not only that, it came through a prophet whose messages from God were not well received:

“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” (Jeremiah 31:31–34)

This covenant with Israel was confirmed in other passages including this one:

And in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written, “The Deliverer will come from Zion, he will banish ungodliness from Jacob; and this will be my covenant with them when I take away their sins.” (Romans 11:26–27)

This is an unconditional covenant for all of Israel, distinct from the Mosaic covenant that had been broken. It promises new life, is universal in scope with forgiveness of sin, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit enabling God’s people to live righteously. Israel would enjoy material blessings, a rebuilt sanctuary and the “law of the Messiah” that is like the law of Moses as it leaves out Sabbath law and dietary codes. “Love your neighbor” is in both, but motivation changed. Moses said, ‘do this and be blessed’ whereas the New Covenant says, ‘you have been blessed, therefore do this . . . .’ Finally, it shows how the spiritual blessings of the Jewish covenants extend to all people of faith in Christ!

For instance, “The mystery of Christ, which was not made known to the sons of men in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit. This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.” (Ephesians 3:5–6, also 2:11–16)

Rather than supposing the church replaces Israel as God’s people, this could be called a “partaker view” explained this way: “Gentiles were not able to enjoy the spiritual blessings of the Jewish covenants; hence, they were strangers from the commonwealth of Israel . . . . However, when the Messiah died, the Mosaic Law, the middle wall of partition, was broken down. Now by faith Gentiles, as Gentiles, can enjoy the spiritual blessings of the four unconditional covenants. That is why Gentiles today are partakers of Jewish spiritual blessings, not “takers over” of the promises made to Israel.

But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree. (Romans 11:17)

Those who believe in the Messiah, whether Jew or not, enjoy all God’s promised spiritual blessings for believers in the Messiah. Whether Jews or Gentiles they reap spiritual benefits that would never be ours otherwise. Through His death on the cross for our sins, the eight covenants of the Bible include explicit provisions, immensely helpful in understanding Scripture. I’ve met a few Messianic Jews and delight in the richness of how their background knowledge enriches their relationship with the Lord.

GAZE INTO HIS GLORY. Jesus Christ, born a Jew, came to earth to die for all people. All are sinners. All need a Savior. I need Him as my Savior but also to enable me to live as an adopted child of God. He is my Substitute, my Prophet, Priest and King. He makes sense of covenants, dispensations, commandments and even the morning’s news and many aspects of living here on this earth and at the same time being a citizen of heaven. He gives me purpose and joy, ability in weakness and the great privilege and delight of focusing on Him instead of my woeful self. He makes promises that I know He will keep. I see His plan and His faithfulness in these covenants and in the remarkable pages of Scripture. Today, as in all days, He feeds me from His Word and worship rises from my heart!