SPELLING EDITED J-47. Is ISRAEL the BRIDE of CHRIST? There is a controversy among Christians as to WHO IS the bride of Christ? I think that most Christians believe and teach that the “church” is the bride of Christ based upon verses of Scripture in the New Testament. But yet other Christians believe that ISRAEL is the bride of Christ based upon verses of Scripture from the Old Testament. There are several verses of Scripture in the Old Testament that CLEARLY point to ISRAEL as being the wife of Almighty God Yahweh. Here is one of those Scriptures. Please read Isaiah 54:5. “For your Maker is your HUSBAND; the LORD of hosts is His name; and your Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.” So then, who is the bride of Christ, according to the WHOLE word of Almighty God? Which group of Christians is correctly interpreting the Scripture in the LIGHT of the WHOLE word of Almighty God? Before we get deep into this study in the Scriptures to UNVEIL who is the bride of Christ, we need to know and understand that we believe what we believe based upon HOW we INTERPRET the Scriptures. For example, there are no less than three DIFFERENT “interpretations” of Isaiah 54:5 which we just read. #1. Some Christians, namely Oneness Pentecostal Christians, interpret this verse of Scripture as the Maker and the Redeemer as being the one God in one person, as in, the Father and the Son are one and the self-same person. #2. Other Christians, namely Trinitarian Christians, interpret this verse of Scripture as being Almighty God the Father and God the Son, the second person of a Godhead Trinity God. And together they are the One God named Yahweh. #3. And yet other Christians, namely Biblical Unitarian Christians, and I myself interpret this verse of Scripture as Yahweh our Maker as being the only true God is ONE person who has always existed without a beginning. And we interpret our Redeemer as being the Son of Yahweh who came into existence at his virgin birth as the fully human Son of God to be our Savior that Yahweh Himself raised up from among the brethren of Israel. And then AFTER the cross, Yahweh the Father highly exalted the Son of MAN, Jesus, to BECOME a God under his God and Father to rule FOR Yahweh during the seventh 1000 year long day of Yahweh’s Sabbath rest. That is why Jesus said that he is the Lord of the Sabbath. I believe that the word made FLESH means that the spoken word of PROPHECY was made FLESH, as in, fully human having NO divine nature DURING the days of his FLESH. I mean, why call it “the days of his FLESH” if so be that Jesus was full Almighty God and fully human having TWO natures at the SAME time, one divine, and one human? For you see, there are no verses of Scripture that even hint that Jesus had TWO natures at the same time. Personally, I believe that the prophecies of Jesus were prophesied in the ORDER that they would be fulfilled. And, according to the PROPHECY in Isaiah 9:6.7, Jesus will not be CALLED the mighty God UNTIL the world to come when the government of the world will be LAID upon his shoulders BY Yahweh Himself GIVING the Son of man, Jesus, the authority to rule IN the NAME OF Yahweh. As you read this prophecy, please notice that a CHILD is prophesied to be BORN FIRST and THEN a Son is given. Please read Isaiah 9:6,7.
“For (Order of event #1 that has already been FULFILLED) unto us, a CHILD is BORN, (THEN comes Order of event #2 that has also already been FULFILLED) unto us a son is given: (Speaking of the HUMAN Son of MAN, Jesus as the Son given as the ONE sacrifice for the sins of the world. Yahweh provided His own Lamb that was slain in the mind of God from the foundation of the world. God chose His Lamb to be made inferior to the angels so He made the human race a little lower than the angelic beings) and (And THEN Order of event #3 is YET FUTURE and it is YET TO BE FULFILLED) the government shall be upon his shoulder: (Which is the WRATH of God executed by Jesus. That is WHEN the kingdoms of this present world will become the kingdom of God's dear Son to begin the 1000 year reign of Jesus) and ( And THEN will come Order of event #4 that is YET FUTURE and it is YET TO BE FULFILLED WHEN the government will be set upon the shoulder of Jesus IN the world to come, at which TIME) his NAME shall be CALLED Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, (Or more precisely, according to Hebrew 5:9, the Father of everlasting life or the AUTHOR of eternal life. For you see, it was BECAUSE, OF the Son of man, Jesus obeying his God and Father's Will, that Jesus made it possible for whosoever believes in him shall be saved. Jesus was MADE perfect and he BECAME the Father of eternal life AFTER the cross. For you see, the Son of MAN, Jesus, was GIVEN the authority and the power AFTER the cross to JUDGE and also to give eternal life to whomsoever he chooses. This is why Psalms 2 prophesies to kiss the feet of God’s Son whom He ordained to be his King of kings and Lord of lords. Jesus is also called) The Prince of Peace. (And, according to Revelation 1:5 and Acts 7:56, Jesus is our Prince right now standing at the right hand of God. But at his second coming, Jesus will SIT on the right hand of Yahweh to rule and reign FOR Yahweh as the Lord of the Sabbath. And at that time, the kingdoms of this present world will become the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ. And) 7. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.”
Also, please notice WHO is doing the PERFORMING of His own spoken word of PROPHECY that came forth OUT FROM His mouth. It is Almighty God Yahweh the creator who is performing His own word. So to me, Jesus is the FULFILLMENT of the spoken word of PROPHECY. The word was with God and [a] “God” was the word just like “light” was the word in Genesis 1:3. To me, Jesus began as a THOUGHT in God’s mind as God's secret plan of salvation. Not just the salvation of mankind that He had not yet created, but also the RESTORATION of the entire universe back to being at PEACE having no WAR. In other words, God created the human race to put an END to Satan His enemy, and all EVIL. Please read the studies under the heading >>>WHY ARE WE HERE-IS GOD AT WAR?<<< But for now, let us continue with section two, the UNVEILING of WHO IS the bride of Christ, according to the WHOLE word of Almighty God and not according to cherry-picked verses of Scripture being taken out of their context and interpreted incorrectly. SECTION TWO UNVEILING THE BRIDE OF CHRIST! Everyone has probably heard the rhetorical question, “Which came first, the chicken or the egg? It is the type of question that makes one THINK. And that is what I want you to do with these other two questions. # 1. Which came first, Israel or the church? #2. Which came first, the Old Covenant, or the New Covenant? Be careful how you answer these two questions. Think PAST the OBVIOUS. Now, while the obvious answer is true when it comes to the FULFILMENT of prophecy, the END TRUTH is that the New Covenant and the Church came FIRST in the mind and plan of Almighty God. For you see, in the mind and plan of God it was the SECOND Adam who came FIRST. For you see, it was the LAST Adam whose shed blood established the New Covenant that is called the New Testament in the King James Version. Please read Matthew 26:28.
“For this is my blood of the new testament, (Or the New Covenant) which is shed for many for the remission of sins.” The Bible teaches us that the Lamb was slain before the foundation of the world. But yet we all agree that the Son of God was not literally slain before God created mankind. Rather, we know and understand that God’s slain Lamb for the one and only one-time sacrifice for the sins of the world was in the mind and PLAN of Yahweh to bring into existence. So the MAKER, the husband of Israel, had His Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel in His mind, and plan of salvation long before Israel came into existence. Jesus said in John 18:36,37 that his END was that he was BORN to be the King of Israel in the world yet to come. For you see, Jesus also said that his kingdom was not of THIS world. Please read John 18:36,37. “Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: (But we know from other verses of Scripture that Jesus is coming again to rule as King over Israel in the world yet to come. So right now in this present world, Jesus is only King of his CHURCH) if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence. 37. Pilate, therefore, said unto him, Are you a king then? Jesus answered You say that I am a king. To this END was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice.” Yes, God made the first Adam first but BEFORE God made the FIRST Adam God already had the second or the LAST Adam in His mind and plan to be SLAIN as an innocent man to be the Redeemer of fallen man BEFORE the first Adam was ever created. This is why Jesus said that he was BEFORE Abraham and why John the Baptist said that Jesus was BEFORE him when John the Baptist was actually born six months before Jesus. Here is what I believe and teach and WHY I believe and teach what I do. In what I teach, I do not find any verses of Scripture in the entire Bible that contradict what I teach when they are interpreted correcting in the LIGHT of the WHOLE word of Almighty God. I believe that God creates everything perfect in the day that he creates it. So I believe that God created the earth perfect and then the earth BECAME void and empty. I believe that the creation account from Genesis 1:3 on is God recreating the earth or restoring the earth to once again be habitable. I believe that BEFORE God ever created the human race that Lucifer waged a literal WAR with God and attacked God’s throne. And to summarize as quickly as I can this war between God and His enemy Satan that is still going on, I believe that God pushed back Lucifer and his army of angels out of both the third and second heavens and imprisoned them here on the earth to not go beyond the first heaven, the atmosphere of the earth. At that time before God created the first Adam Lucifer who is now called Satan, the adversary, was still [a] god of the earth. Lucifer became a rebel god who is warring against Yahweh his creator, the one who set him to be a God over the earth in ages past. I believe that God was going to destroy Lucifer and the fallen angels when Lucifer falsely accused God of creating his evil and thus it was God’s fault that he made war with God to try and take over God’s throne. So God devised a PLAN that he kept SECRET from everyone, both the fallen angels and the good angels. In order to prove to the good angels that He did NOT create Lucifer with a rebellious nature, God said to the angels what he would do to clear His name of being accused that He created Lucifer flawed. God said to the angels, here is what WE will do. Let us make man in our image and after our likeness but let us make the man or the humans a little LOWER and inferior to you angels. And if one man lives without disobeying what I tell him to do then that will clear my name of falsely being accused that it is my fault that Lucifer and one-third of the angels I created made war against my throne. Then God created the first Adam and gave him DOMINION over the earth. In other words, God DETHRONED Satan as a god over the earth and replaced him with the “first” Adam as [a] God over the earth while having in his mind and plan the LAST Adam. So then, in God’s wisdom, He knew His adversary Lucifer would not obey His rules to not interfere with man’s decisions so God HID PROPHECY in the Scriptures of the LAST Adam because God knew that Satan would interfere and trick the first Adam to disobey God’s ONE commandment to not eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. So before ever creating the first Adam God already had devised a PLAN in his mind of the SECOND and LAST Adam. And in the same way, God had already had the church in His mind and PLAN before God ever chose Abraham to be the father of many nations. And, in order for God to NOT break His own rule of not interfering with man’s decisions, He needed a man to FIRST offer his only begotten son so that God could then offer up his first only begotten Son, the Son of MAN who is the last the second Adam, so that He could reconcile mankind back to Himself WITH the Son of MAN, Jesus. Please read 2 Corinthians 5:17-21. “Therefore, if any man is IN Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things have become new. (And natural ISRAEL as a whole is not yet IN Jesus Christ in this present world. So one of the keys to understanding WHO the bride of Christ truly is in the light of the whole word of God then one MUST know that God chose salvation to be IN His Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel before the foundation of the world. Yahweh the Maker chose whosoever of ANY person who BELIEVES IN Jesus Christ the ONLY name given among the human race whereby we MUST be saved to be the bride of Christ. As you continue to read this passage of Scripture, please notice that it is Almighty God Yahweh the Father who is the one doing the RECONCILING of mankind to Himself. Yahweh PERFORMS His own word of prophecy) 18. And all things (Or more precisely, the ALL of WHOSEVER BELIEVES in Jesus to be created by God to become a new creature created IN Jesus Christ) are OF God, who has reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ, and has given to us the ministry of reconciliation; (And this is why God HID the PROPHECY of His yet coming Messiah in Genesis 2:26 saying “let us make man in OUR image and after OUR likeness and then God alone and by Himself created the FIRST Adam that He knew would be tricked by His enemy Satan to sin. But God already had in His mind and PLAN to reconcile whosoever believes in His so great a salvation back to himself so that He could GIVE the saved people TO His now glorified Son of Man whom He made both Lord and Christ, according to Acts 2:36) 19. To wit, that God was IN Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and has committed unto us (Speaking of the New creature created by God IN Jesus Christ) the word of reconciliation. 20, Now then we are ambassadors FOR Christ, (In other words, just as Jesus was an ambassador FOR Yahweh as the first APOSTLE to be sent into the world in the NAME OF Yahweh so are we now being SENT into the world as ambassadors FOR Jesus in “his” NAME) as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be you reconciled to God. (Or we pray IN the NAME of Jesus, be you reconciled to God) 21. For He (Speaking of Yahweh the Maker who PERFORMS His own spoken word of prophecy) has made him be sin for us, who knew no sin; (According to Yahweh’s word of prophecy in Isaiah chapter 53) that we might be made the righteousness of God IN him.”
So again, in order for God to not interfere with man’s decision by tricking man or by forcing humans to obey Him, God chose to save mankind by the foolishness of preaching. And whosoever of their own free will believe the TRUE gospel of Jesus Christ might be saved and be “espoused” to Jesus Christ. Please read 2 Corinthians 11:2. “For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have ESPOUSED YOU to one HUSBAND, that I may present YOU (The WHOSOEVER of ANY man who BELIEVES in Jesus as their Savior and as their Lord) as a chaste virgin TO Christ.” CLEARLY, the Apostle Paul is teaching us that the ONE HUSBAND is our Lord Jesus the “Christ” the SON OF the living God. Just as a side note, some Christians do NOT believe in what they call “Lordship salvation” but rather, they believe in grace ALONE salvation. But, according to Romans 10:9-13, we are to confess Jesus as our Lord. Please read the studies under the heading >>>CAN WE LOSE ETERNAL LIFE?<<< But for now, let us go ahead and read Romans 10:9-13. Romans 10:9-13. “That IF you shall CONFESS with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you shall be saved. 10. For with the heart, man believes unto righteousness; and with the mouth, confession is made unto salvation. 11. For the Scripture says, Whosoever believes on him shall not be ashamed. 12. For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. 13. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Now the reason why God made such harsh punishment as DEATH for the first Adam simply disobeying God was so that He could destroy Satan and the fallen angels in the lake of fire with permanent DEATH when His PLAN of salvation comes to its complete END on the final Day of Judgment after the 1000 years of the seventh days of creation are finished. The LITERAL translation of Genesis 2:1-3 says that the heavens and the earth are BEING finished and all the HOST of them and that God IS FINISHING them IN the seventh day speaking of the seventh 1000 year long day of Yahweh’s rest in the world yet to come. God is STILL yet working on us humans. God is NOT finished making us in the IMAGE of Himself and His Son. God is still yet conforming us into the image of His Son who was the FIRSTBORN creature in the IMAGE OF his God and Father, the invisible God. So God will be finishing the REST of His NEW CREATION of righteous people IN Jesus Christ DURING the Millennial reign of Jesus. And that is WHEN Israel will become the bride of Christ by becoming a part of the CHURCH. Please read the study “WHO IS THE BRIDE OF CHRIST?” In that study, I explain that BOTH Israel AND the church are the one bride of Christ and how the FIRST chosen people of God will be the LAST to receive eternal life. God declared the END from the beginning but it was the END that God had in His mind FIRST. God wants to END this WAR with Satan is such a way that there will NEVER be another war in heaven ever again. Now to God, a day is as a 1000 years and a thousand years is as a single day to Him. So to us, seven days is 7000 years which is a long time but to God, it is just 7 DAYS. So while NATURAL Israel came before the church it was PROPHESIED that Abraham would become the father of MANY nations some four hundred years BEFORE the nation of Israel ever came to be in existence. Please read Galatians 3:16-18. “Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He says not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to your seed, which is Christ. 17. And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of no effect. (In other words, the New Covenant IN Jesus Christ was confirmed by God BEFORE the Law of Moses which came four hundred years AFTER God confirmed the New Covenant in the PROMISE that He made to Abraham) 18. For if the inheritance be of the law, it is no more of promise: but God gave it to Abraham by promise.” You see, the Law of Moses contained in ORDINANCES was ADDED until the SECOND Adam came. Continue reading the very next verse of Scripture. Please read Galatians 3:19. “Wherefore then serve the law? It was ADDED because of transgressions, TILL the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.” And we all agree that the “SEED” is the Messiah who is the LAST Adam, according to 2 Corinthians 15:45-49 which is one of the keys to understanding the TRUE sound Biblical meaning of Genesis 2:26 where God said let us make man in our image. 2 Corinthians 15:45-49. “And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit. (Yahweh MADE the last Adam to become a quickening spirit by highly exalting the Son of MAN after the cross. For you see, Almighty God Yahweh the Father GAVE the Son of man. Jesus the SAME LIFE that has always been in the Father to the Son to be having in himself. And God did this NOT because Jesus was already the eternal Son of God but because Jesus was the Son of MAN. And the Father ALSO gave the Son of MAN the power and the authority to JUDGE and give eternal life to whomsoever Jesus finds WORTHY to receive eternal life in the world to come) 46. Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual. (In other words, the last Adam who was MADE to become DEITY to rule FOR Yahweh did not come FIRST. But rather, the HUMAN Son of God came FIRST, and THEN God made the human Son become His Lord of lords and His King of kings to rule for Yahweh in the world yet to come. The human Son BECAME the Lord that will come again from heaven) 47. The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven. (Or the first estate of Jesus was of the earth, born of a woman to be the MORTAL human Son of God. And the SECOND MAN has now become the Lord who was MADE Lord by Yahweh the Father in heaven, according to Acts 2:26. For the true sound Biblical meaning of Jesus being the Lord FROM heaven, please read the study “WHAT DOES 1 CORINTHIANS 15:47 TRULY MEAN?”) 48. As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they (Speaking of the ALL of whosoever believes in Jesus to be created by God IN Jesus Christ to become NEW creatures) also that are heavenly. 49. And as WE have borne the image of the earthly, WE shall ALSO bear the image of the heavenly.” But right now, we are being CONFORMED into the IMAGE of God’s dear Son who went BEFORE us as the CAPTAIN of our salvation and the FIRSTBORN among many BRETHREN. Please read Hebrews 2:5-13. “For unto the angels has He NOT put in subjection the world to come, whereof we speak. 6. But one in a certain place testified, saying, What is man, that You are mindful of him? or the son of man, that You visit him? 7. You MADE him a little LOWER than the angels; You CROWNED him with glory and honor, and (You) did SET him over the works of YOUR hands: 8. You have put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that He put all in subjection under him, He left nothing that is not put under him. BUT now WE see NOT YET all things put under him. 9. BUT WE see Jesus, who was MADE a little LOWER than the angels for the suffering of death, CROWNED with glory and honor; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man. 10. For it became Him, for whom are ALL things, (Or for whom are the ALL of whosoever BELIEVES to be made a NEW CREATION of God) and by whom are ALL things, (Speaking of all God’s NEW CREATION of righteous people being conformed in the IMAGE of His FIRSTBORN Son, Jesus who was the first human to be made in the perfect IMAGE of God to become the firstborn of every CREATURE) in bringing many sons unto glory, to MAKE the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. (Let “us” make man, as in, fallen man, in OUR image after OUR likeness, as in, the image of OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. Can you not see that Genesis 1:26 is a PROPHECY where God is speaking TO His yet FUTURE Messiah saying IF you do all my will even to die on the cross then I will CROWN you with glory and honor and SET you as my King of kings and Lord of Lords and you shall be called the mighty God, the God of the whole earth for you will rule and reign in my NAME. It was the Son of MAN who died on the cross to become our salvation and God set a JOY before him to endure the cross. And we have a JOY set before us to endure unto the end to be saved. And that joy is to be made a partaker of the divine nature of immortality to receive a new glorified immortal body of flesh and bones like Jesus has already received when his God and Father glorified him) 11. For both he that sanctifies and they who are sanctified are all OF ONE: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them BRETHREN, (Jesus is our brother. Jesus is our fellow. Jesus is the firstborn from the dead one of many brethren to be GIVEN the divine nature of immortality. Jesus is the FIRST of the earth who is earthly to be made spiritual with a new glorified immortal body of flesh and bones, And we who are created IN Jesus will ALSO be made like Jesus with spiritual immortal bodies of flesh and bones at the coming of Jesus. Jesus is our fellow servant and he is) 12. Saying, I will declare Your name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto You. 13. And again, I will put my trust in Him. And again, Behold I and the children which God has GIVEN me.” Yes, the prophecy in the Old Testament from where this verse is quoted in spoke to Israel. But the fulfillment says in the midst of the CHURCH and NOT in the midst of Israel. You have to understand that God CONCLUDED ALL of Israel to be under SIN so that He could show them His mercy and grace to save them IN His Son. Please read Psalm 22:22,23. “I will declare your name unto my brethren: (WHO are the brethren according to Matthew 12:48,49? The brethren are the disciples or the learners and followers of Jesus. Did Jesus die on the cross to save ONLY Israel? Are not the Gentile believers saved IN Jesus just the same as the Jews are saved IN Jesus?) in the midst of the congregation will I praise you. (And WHO is the congregation will also praise Yahweh, according to Hebrews 2:12 which we just read? The congregation is the CHURCH. Israel is NOT the church and the church did NOT replace Israel. But rather, God cut-off every last branch from the Olive tree, and the ONLY way for any of Israel to be grafted into the Olive tree is to become a NEW CREATURE created IN Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul said that neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything but a NEW CREATURE. In the church, there is no more Jew or Gentile. We are all ONE IN Jesus Christ) 23. You that fear (Can Gentiles ALSO fear) the LORD, praise him; all you the SEED of Jacob, glorify him; and fear him, all you the SEED of Israel.” And Jacob, that God surnamed Israel, is the seed of Isaac which is the seed of Abraham. And Jesus is the SEED of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And we who are IN Christ are the seed of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob surnamed ISRAEL. In marriage, it is the Father that GIVES the “bride” to the bridegroom. So to me, the bride of Christ is the CHURCH because God will give PEOPLE to His Anointed One, Jesus, who He has raised up from among the people to be His Holy one of Israel. The LAST to be called to the MARRIAGE of the Lamb by the gospel to be saved is the Gentiles. But the FIRST to be called to the MARRIAGE of God’s Son by the gospel to be saved was ISRAEL who rejected God’s invitation to marry His Son, Jesus. And for that reason, God invited the Gentiles to marry His Son, Jesus in order to PROVOKE Israel to jealousy. For you see, God promised to turn to a REMNANT of Israel a SECOND time to deliver them. Please read Isaiah 11:10-12. “And in that day (Speaking of the Millennial reign of Jesus the 1000 year-long DAY of the Lord) there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious. 11. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the REMNANT of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. 12. AND he shall set up an ensign for the nations and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth. This means that BOTH the Jews and the Gentiles will be taught the true Gospel of Jesus Christ DURING the 1000 year reign of Jesus. I believe that most if not all natural-born of Israel DURING the Millennial age will be saved. And I believe that many Gentiles DURING the Millennium will also be saved. But Revelation 20 makes it perfectly clear that Satan will be let loose to DECEIVE the NATIONS one final time to make war with God’s people. So it is clear that some Gentiles will NOT be saved. Please read the studies that I have on the end times under the heading >>>PROPHECY-THE COMING OF JESUS<<< But for now, let us keep comparing the END of prophecy being FIRST in the mind and PLAN of God. The FIRST circumcision was made with hands according to the Law of Moses but the SECOND circumcision is made by Jesus. Paul says NOT made with hands. We all agree that there are many types and shadows in the Old Testament that point to Jesus such as Joseph being made second in command over all of Egypt pictures the Son of MAN, Jesus being given a new name that is higher than any other name to sit at the right hand of Almighty God to be second in command under Yahweh. Well, I believe that Joshua is also a type or figure of Jesus as well. And here is one of several verses as to why I believe this. Please read Joshua 5:2. “At that time the LORD said unto Joshua, Make you sharp knives, and circumcise again the children of Israel the second time.” I believe that this is a picture of Jesus circumcising the remnant of Israel DURING the Millennium with the TRUE circumcision of the cutting away of sin NOT made with hands. The Gospel is the power of God to them who BELIEVE. And when Israel BELIEVES that Jesus is their Messiah during the world to come they will be circumcised a SECOND time with the TRUE circumcision of Jesus cutting away the sin of their flesh. Again, the Law of Moses was added BECAUSE OF Israel disobeying God. And all the children over 21 years of age except for Joshua and Caleb died in the wilderness because they disobeyed God to go and possess the land that God promised to Abraham and his seed. And for that reason, the FIRST which is natural Israel shall be LAST to receive eternal life and enter the CITY of God, the Holy Jerusalem. The LAST is the all of whosoever of the Jews and the Gentiles who BELIEVE unto the end to be saved. And the LAST shall be first to receive eternal life and enter the CITY, the Holy Jerusalem AT the coming of Jesus. Please read Luke13:23-30. “Then said one unto him, Lord, are there few that are saved? And he said unto them, 24. Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able. 25. When once the master of the house is risen up and has shut to the door, and you begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence you are: 26. Then shall you begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in your presence, and you have taught in our streets. (So Jesus is speaking about UNBELIEVING Israel) 27. But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence you are; depart from me, all you workers of iniquity. (And unbelief in Jesus is a SIN) 28. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth when YOU shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, (And all the Old Testament saints that Jesus preached the Gospel to when he descended into the heart of the earth for 3 days and three nights) in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out. 29. AND they (Speaking of all of whosoever believe to become a New Creature created IN Jesus Christ) shall come from the east, and from the west, and from the north, and from the south, and shall sit down (On thrones to rule and reign WITH Jesus) in the kingdom of God. 30. And, behold, there are last which shall be first, and there are first which shall be last.” So then, BOTH Israel AND the church is the bride of Christ but ONLY those IN Jesus Christ in this PRESENT world will go into the marriage to become that Lamb’s wife FIRST at his coming before the 1000 year-long DAY of the Lord. And the DURING the Millennial reign of the Lord of the Sabbath, ISRAEL will be “espoused” to Jesus to become his wife at the END of the 1000 year reign of Jesus. For you see, ONLY those who are God’s NEW creatures created IN Jesus Christ are the BRIDE of Christ. And right now, ISRAEL is not yet saved in this present, And those of Israel who are saved during this present world become the faithful believers in the BODY of Jesus, which is the CHURCH. And that is why almost all Christians believe and teach that the bride of Christ IS the CHURCH. For you see, the church is NOT Israel and Israel is NOT the church But ANY of Israel can become part of the church just the same as ANY Gentile can become part of the church. God still loves Israel and He has promised to turn to her REMNANT a SECOND time which begins AT the second coming of God and does not end until the 1000 year reign of Jesus is finished. There is a little truth on the side that teaches AGAINST the church being the bride of Christ but they error by not seeing that the church is PROPHESIED in the Old Testament. The word church simply means the CALLED-OUT ones. So while the actual word “church” is a New Testament word there are many SHADOWS or figures of the church in the Old Testament. The church is called out of Egypt to be set free from the bondage of the world. Egypt is a figure of the world and bondage in Egypt is the figure of the bondage of sin. So then, Israel is the church, in that, Israel is a SHADOW or a figure pointing to the CHURCH just like many shadows and figures point to the BRIDEGROOM, our Lord, and Savior Jesus Christ. Also, God chose us (the CALLED-OUT ones IN His yet future Messiah BEFORE the foundation of the world as Yahweh’s WAY of bringing an END to EVIL once and for all eternity. And because of the suffering that those who BELIEVE in God’s so great a salvation endure, it has not entered into our mind the things that God has prepared for us who love God who loved us first. 1 Corinthians 2:6-10. “Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to naught: 7. But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: 8. Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. (That is WHY God kept His plan of salvation a SECRET until the fullness of time when he could finally reveal His ARM, Jesus who will rule FOR Yahweh in the world to come. And at that time The now highly exalted Son of man will be called by the name the mighty God, the God of the whole earth. And the NEW NAME of Jesus is Yahweh our RIGHTEOUSNESS. In that DAY Yahweh will be King of the earth. In that day, there will be ONE Yahweh and His NAME shall be ONE, as in ONE with the Father. For you see, Yahweh surnamed the Son of MAN, Jesus with a NEW NAME, the NAME that is above every name so that AT that NAME every knee will bow and confess Jesus as Lord TO the glory OF Almighty God the Father the ONLY TRUE God) 9. But as it is written, Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for them that love him. 10. But God has revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searches all things, yea, the deep things of God.” And the cross-reference to this prophecy of our Lord of Glory, the Son of MAN who was crucified in the mind and plan of Yahweh from the foundation of the world is Isaiah 64:4. Isaiah 64:4. “For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither has the eye seen, O God, beside You, (LITERALLY meaning that men since the beginning of the world have not seen [A] God beside You or at your right-hand side Yahweh sitting on YOUR throne with You) what He has prepared for him that waits for him.” The letter “O” which is Old English for the word “Oh” is NOT in the original text. So to me, Isaiah 64:4 should read that from the beginning of the world no human has ever seen [a] God sitting beside You Yahweh at your right hand ruling on your throne. Yahweh the creator is THE God OF Gods that He Himself SET many of His created creatures to be Gods or mighty ones over different parts of His creations. And Lucifer was once a “good” God that Yahweh Himself set to be a ruler over the earth in a previous age before God created the first Adam. The very reason God ever created the human race a little LOWER or inferior to the angels was for the purpose of DETHRONING Lucifer and PROMOTING another to take his place as the tenant of the earth. Please read the studies under the heading >>>WHY ARE WE HERE-IS GOD AT WAR?<<< But for now, I want you to read a passage of Scripture where the Apostle Paul is specifically speaking about the CHURCH as being the bride of Christ. Please read Ephesians 5:22-33. “Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, AS unto the Lord. (Paul is comparing the marriage of the WIFE to her own HUSBAND as the CHURCH submits to our Lord Jesus Christ) 23. For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the savior of the body. 24. Therefore (Or for this very reason that Jesus is the HEAD of the church) as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything. 25. Husbands, love your wives (Or each husband love his own wife), even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; 26. That he might sanctify and cleanse it (Or HER) with the washing of water by the word, 27. That he might present it (Or HER) to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it (Or HER) should be holy and without blemish. 28. So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loves his wife loves himself. 29. For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourishes and cherishes it, even as the Lord the church: 30. For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. (In other words, we are flesh of the flesh of Jesus and bone of bone of the LAST Adam as Eve was the flesh of flesh and bone of bone of her husband the FIRST Adam. Just as Eve came out of the first Adam so does the church come out of the LAST Adam) 31. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be ONE flesh. 32. This is a great mystery: (Speaking of becoming ONE as a husband and wife become ONE) but I speak CONCERNING Christ and the church. (Becoming ONE the same as a HUSBAND and his WIFE become ONE) 33. Nevertheless, (Or even if you do not understand this mystery of the called-out ones becoming ONE with Jesus even as the Father and Jesus are ONE) let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and the wife, see that she reverences her husband.”
Jesus was in the mind and plan of God before Adam, before Abraham, before Moses, and before John the Baptist even though they all came into existence before Jesus. God declared the END from the beginning by hiding PROPHECY in the Scriptures. And the “church” was hidden under the name “Israel”. Did you know that the name “Israel” means “He will rule FOR God”? Here is how E-Sword define the name Israel H3478 יִשְׂרָאֵל yiśrâ'êl yis-raw-ale' From H8280 and H410; he will rule as God; Jisrael, a symbolic name of Jacob; also (typically) of his posterity: - Israel. So in truth, the HEAD of the church is hidden in the name “ISRAEL” but the BODY of Jesus Christ, the church will also rule WITH Jesus during the 1000 year reign of Jesus. So WHY would God appoint a MAN to rule AS God over Israel in the world to come. Here are some of those reasons. Israel did not want to hear Yahweh’s thundering voice anymore. They wanted to hear from God through a prophet of God. So God promised that He would raise up a Prophet like Moses from among the people of Israel and put His word into the mouth of that Prophet which we know to be Jesus. Please read Exodus 20:19. “And they said unto Moses, Speak you with us, and we will hear: but let NOT God speak with us, lest we die.”
Now please read Deuteronomy 5:24-28. “And you said, (Or and Israel said) Behold, the LORD our God has shown us His glory and His greatness, and we have heard His voice out of the midst of the fire: we have seen this day that God does talk with man, and He lives. (And we tinkled in our pants with FEAR) 25. Now, therefore, why should we die? for this great fire will consume us: IF we hear the voice of the LORD our God ANY MORE, then we shall die. 26. For who is there of all flesh, that has heard the voice of the living God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as we have, and lived? 27. Go YOU near, (Or Moses, you go near to God for us) and hear all that the LORD our God shall say: and then YOU speak unto us all that the LORD our God shall speak unto YOU; and we will hear it, and do it. 28 And the LORD heard the voice of your words when you spake unto me; and the LORD said unto me, I have heard the voice of the words of this people, which they have spoken unto you: they have well said all that they have spoken.” To me, this is like God saying to Moses, I heard what Israel said to you Moses and that is EXACTLY what I WANTED them to say. For you see, Moses, now that they have ASKED for me to speak to them through you, my “prophet” I can now raise up a Prophet in the future who will also be my Messiah to save them. Please read Deuteronomy 18:15-19. “The LORD you God will raise up unto you a Prophet from the midst of you, of your brethren, like unto me; unto him you shall hearken; 16. According to all that YOU DESIRED of the LORD your God in Horeb in the day of the assembly, saying, Let me NOT hear again the voice of the LORD my God, neither let me see this great fire anymore, that I die not. (But let God speak to a Prophet and we will hear that Prophet) 17. And the LORD said unto me, They have well spoken that which they have spoken. 18. I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto you, and will put MY words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. 19. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will NOT hearken unto MY words which he shall speak in MY NAME, I will require it of him.” So since Israel did NOT want to hear directly from God anymore, God promised them a Prophet. Also, Israel did not want Yahweh to be their “King”. They wanted a king like all the other nations. Israel wanted a king they could see. So according to 1 Samuel 8:6,7, Yahweh told Samuel that Israel did not reject him, but rather, they rejected Yahweh as their “RULER”. So Yahweh told Samuel to appoint them a king as they desired. Please read 1 Samuel 8:6,7. “But the thing displeased Samuel, when they said, Give us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed unto the LORD. 7. And the LORD said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto you: for they have NOT rejected you, BUT they have rejected ME, that I should NOT reign over them.” We can read more about Yahweh being the King over Israel in 1 Samuel 12:1216. And as you read this passage of Scripture I want you to think about the FIRST Adam and the LAST Adam. The first Adam FAILED but the last Adam was VICTORIOUS. And in the same way, all of the FIRST “kings” over Israel failed but we know from God’s word that our King of kings will be VICTORIOUS in the world yet to come. Please read 1 Samuel 12:12-16. “And when you saw that Nahash the king of the children of Ammon came against you, you said unto me, Nay; but a king shall reign over us: when the LORD your God was your king. (Again, we see that God was ALREADY the King over Israel but Israel said “nay” or NO we want a “human” king to rule over us. A king we can see and not die) 13. Now, therefore, behold the king whom YOU have chosen, and whom YOU have desired! and, behold, the LORD hath set a king over you. 14. If you will fear the LORD, and serve him, and obey his voice, and not rebel against the commandment of the LORD, then shall both you and also the king that reign over you, continue following the LORD your God: 15, But if you will not obey the voice of the LORD, but rebel against the commandment of the LORD, then shall the hand of the LORD be against you, as it was against your fathers. 16. Now, therefore, stand and see this great thing, which the LORD WILL do before your eyes.” Here in verse 16 is a HIDDEN “Aleph-Tav” prophecy of Jesus. For those of you who have never heard of the Aleph and the Tav, the Aleph is the first Hebrew letter of the Hebrew alphabet and the Tav is the last letter of the Hebrew alphabet. These two letters, the Aleph and the Tav, appear together some 7000 times in the Hebrew Scriptures of the Old Testament but yet they are never translated. Some Bible scholars believe that they are “pointers” pointing to Jesus. The Aleph and the Tav also point to things that are definitely NOT Jesus but that does not prove that many of the Aleph and the Tav is not a pointer pointing to Jesus. When I read this verse, I translate the Aleph Tav as “Messiah Jesus” So here is how 1 Samuel 12:16 would read with the Aleph Tav translated as “Messiah Jesus” since we know that Jesus IS the Messiah. 1 Samuel 12:16 with the Aleph Tav translated. “Now, therefore, stand and see (ALEPH TAV) this great thing, (Messiah Jesus your King which you asked for) which the LORD WILL do before your eyes.” Israel did not love God in the same way that God loved her. Israel continually went after other gods. So Yahweh DIVORCED Israel so that she can marry ANOTHER. God still loves Israel God knew his adversary Lucifer and all Satan’s trickery and deceit so God HID prophecy in His word to save mankind in STAGES. But it was the END that God had in His mind and plan of salvation long before Israel ever existed. God prophesied that a CHILD would be BORN first. Then God would visit the Son of man as a child morning by morning to TEACH him of His way. And when the child LEARNED to choose the good and refused the evil God CALLED the Son of man to live in RIGHTEOUSNESS. God then COMMISSIONED the Son of man with power on high and sent him into the world. This was when God fulfilled His spoken word of prophecy to provide Israel with a Prophet. God put His words in the mouth of Jesus but Israel, for the most part, did not believe the words of Jesus. God still went ahead and highly exalted the Son of man to be His King over Israel because God declared the END from the beginning. So God provided Israel with a King who will rule for Yahweh in the name of Yahweh in the world to come. And Yahweh provided Israel with a God that she can see and not be afraid of dying. And God also prophesied that He would marry Israel to His SON at the end of the world yet to come. And here is why I say this. Jesus told Israel a parable in Matthew 25:1-14 about a King who prepared a wedding for His Son and NOT a wedding for Himself so that Yahweh could remarry Israel. So to me, Yahweh is not going to REmarry Israel. But rather, Israel will marry God’s Son. But first God needed to abolish the Law of Moses contained in ordinances. For you see, in those ordinances there was a law that a wife that is given a writing of divorcement could not marry another man unless her husband died. And since Yahweh can NOT DIE, He abolished the Law of Moses contained in ordinances so Israel could marry God’s Son. I will cover those verses right after we read Deuteronomy 18:17 again. When I read Deuteronomy 18:17 where God said Israel has spoken WELL, I thought to myself that God WANTED Israel to say those words that she did not want to hear directly from Yahweh anymore. To me, it was like Yahweh could now provide Israel with a Prophet who would become her Messiah and her King in the world to come which He already had in His mind and Plan to do, BUT He needed man to ASK Him before He could intervene and help man. Let us read that passage of Scripture again. Please read Deuteronomy 18:15-19. “The LORD your God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of you, of your brethren, like unto me; unto him you shall hearken; 16. According TO all that YOU DESIRED of the LORD your God in Horeb in the day of the assembly, SAYING, Let me not hear again the voice of the LORD my God, neither let me see this great fire anymore, that I die not. 17. And the LORD said unto me, They have WELL SPOKEN that which they have spoken. (To me, this is like Almighty God saying, That is exactly what I wanted them to say so I could provide them with the Messiah that I have had planned for them before the foundation of the world. Remember that God ADDED the Law of Moses contained in ordinances UNTIL His Messiah came. God already had the New Covenant all planned out in his mind and plan of salvation BEFORE Abraham was born. God did not have all His plan of salvation prophesied at the same time. But rather God HID a little prophecy here and a little prophecy there, here a little and there a little to KEEP His plan of salvation a SECRET. But the END of God’s plan of salvation was His CHURCH, the CALLED-OUT ones that He CREATES in the image of His FIRSTBORN Son that was the first to be made in the IMAGE of his God and Father) 18. I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto you, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. 19. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him.” Let us examine the Scriptures that explain WHY Israel will be “espoused” to God’s Son in the world to come and NOT remarry Yahweh Himself. Let us begin by reading the Law that God ADDED until His Messiah came. Keep in mind that God honors His own laws. Please read Deuteronomy 24:1-4. “When a man has taken a wife and married her, and it come to pass that she find no favor in his eyes because he has found some uncleanness in her: then let him write her a bill of divorcement, and give it in her hand, and send her out of his house. 2. And when she is departed out of his house, she may go and be another man's wife. 3. And if the latter husband hate her, and write her a bill of divorcement, and gives it in her hand, and sends her out of his house; or if the latter husband die, which took her to be his wife; 4. Her former husband, which sent her away, may NOT take her AGAIN to be his wife, after that she is defiled; for that is an abomination before the LORD: and you shall not cause the land to sin, which the LORD your God gives you for an inheritance.” Now, at the beginning of this study, we already read where Yahweh married Israel but we will read that verse again. Please read Isaiah 54:5. “For your Maker is your HUSBAND; the LORD of hosts is His name; and your Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.” And, according to Jeremiah 3:8, we also know that Yahweh put Israel away for a moment and gave her a bill or writing of DIVORCE. So, according to the law that He gave to Moses, Yahweh is NOT allowed to ever marry Israel again, but Israel can marry ANOTHER. Please read Jeremiah 3:1,8,14. “1. They say, If a man puts away his wife, and she goes from him, and becomes another man's, shall he return unto her again? Shall not that land be greatly polluted? But you have played the harlot with many lovers; yet return again to me, says the LORD… ...8. And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away and has given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also... ...14. Turn, O backsliding children, says the LORD; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you TO Zion:” You can not be DIVORCED and MARRIED at the same time. So to me, verse 14 should read as Yahweh saying, I am possessing you. I am “Beulah” and I have dominion over you. I will bring you TO Zion to marry another. Here is how E-Sword defines the Hebrew word that is translated as “married” in verse 14. H1166 בָּעַל bâ‛al baw-al' A primitive root; to be master; hence (as denominative from H1167) to marry: - Beulah have dominion (over), be husband, marry (-ried, X wife). So who or what is Zion? The word “Zion” is found 153 time in the King James Version. And to me, that is a very interesting number. It is the number of fish that was caught in the net when Jesus said cast your net out on the other side. The number 153 is truly an amazing number with many hidden meanings but that is another study in and of itself. Let us see who or what Zion is by reading some of those 153 verses where the word “Zion” is found. Isaiah 62:1-5. “For Zion's sake will I not hold my peace, AND for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burns. 2. And the Gentiles shall see your righteousness, and all kings your glory: and you shall be called by a new name, which the mouth of the LORD shall name. (In other words, Israel will no longer be called “ISRAEL” in the world to come. She will be given a NEW NAME) 3. You shall ALSO be a crown of glory in the hand of the LORD and a royal diadem in the hand of you God. 4. You shall no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall your land any more be termed Desolate: but you shall be called Hephzibah, (Or my delight which means that Israel will BELIEVE in Jesus as the Christ, the SON OF the living God to be SAVED and become a part of the CHURCH because without FAITH it is impossible to be a delight to Yahweh) and your land Beulah: for the LORD delights in you, and your land shall be married. (The land speaks of the children that the REMNANT of Israel will bear DURING the 1000 year reign of Jesus that will marry “Zion” the church of the firstborn. The word marry means to JOIN or to become ONE with another) 5. For (Or because) as a young man marries a virgin, so shall your sons marry you: (Speaking of Israel marrying ZION in the world yet to come) and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall you God rejoice over you.” When you understand that Jerusalem is the MOTHER of us ALL, then you will see that the “sons” of Israel who will MARRY Israel is speaking of natural unsaved Israel marrying the BODY of Jesus Christ, the CHURCH of the FIRSTBORN. In other words, in the world to come, Israel will be JOINED together with the church as the CALLED-OUT ones. This is why I teach my readers to think of the Millennium as being another “church” age. So in truth, the church is BOTH the bride of Christ AND the BODY of Christ. We become ONE with Jesus, as a wife becomes ONE with her husband. And as the husband is the head of his wife so is Jesus the head of his church which is likened to a BODY having many MEMBERS where the head of the body directs the members of the body. Let us read where the Jews who come to Jesus no longer go to Mount Horeb or to Mount Sinai, but rather, they will come to Mount Sion which is written as Mount Zion in the Old Testament but they are one and the same. Please read Hebrews 12:18-29. “For you are NOT come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest, 19. And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard intreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more: 20. (For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart: 21. And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:) 22. BUT you are come unto mount Sion and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, 23. To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, 24. And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel. 25. See that you refuse not him that speaks. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape if we turn away from Him that speaketh from heaven: (It is Yahweh who speaks from heaven through His SON, the Son of MAN, Jesus whom God raised up to be His Prophet that Israel desired) 26. Whose voice then shook the earth: but now He hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. 27. And this word, Yet once more, signifies the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. (And one of the things that God is in the process of performing in His word of prophecy is to REMOVE Lucifer the adversary of God) 28. Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear: 29. For our God is a consuming fire.” So then, in Jeremiah 3:14 we see that Yahweh DIVORCED Israel and that He promised to bring her TO ZION. which we just learned in the CHURCH of the firstborn that we know is Jesus. Let us read that verse again. Jeremiah 3:14. “Turn, O backsliding children says the LORD; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you TO Zion:” But in order to be JOINED or added to the CHURCH one must become IN Jesus Christ. So then, Jesus is the DOOR to the sheepfold, and Jesus has TWO sheepfolds, the Jews, and the Gentiles that become ONE. The unsaved Jewish sheepfold does not follow the voice of Jesus and the unsaved Gentile sheepfold does not follow the voice of Jesus. So no sheep actually becomes the ONE Sheepfold of Jesus until they go through the ONE DOOR to enter into ZION, the CHURCH of the firstborn from the dead, the firstborn among many brethren. With this in mind let us read Matthew 22:2 where Jesus is teaching a parable of a king that has prepared a wedding for his SON. Matthew 22:2. “The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son,” NOT a marriage for Himself to remarry but a marriage FOR His SON. Now let us read Romans 7:1-4 where Paul teaches us that the CHURCH will be married to ANOTHER whom God raised from the dead. Please read Romans 7:1-4. “Know you not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the law,) how that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives? 2. For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he lives; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband. 3. So then if, while her husband lives, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband be dead, she is free from that law; so that she is no adulteress, though she is married to another man. 4. WHEREFORE, my brethren, you also are become dead to the law BY the body of Christ; that you should be married to ANOTHER even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.” First, please notice that Paul is speaking about being married to ANOTHER and NOT about being REMARRIED back to Yahweh the Father. Then know and understand that the Law of Moses contained in ORDINANCES was ABOLISHED at the cross BY the flesh of Jesus, according to Ephesians 2:19 and Colossians 2:8-17. So those IN Jesus Christ are not under those ORDINANCES that were ADDED until Christ came. We are dead to the law or to the OLD Covenant. So then, in the world yet to come when Jesus Christ comes again, that is when a REMNANT of natural Israel will be SAVED. It will be DURING the 1000 year reign of Jesus that the Jews will come to Jesus generation after generation to be saved. And saved Israel will be JOINED to mount ZION which is the CHURCH of the FIRSTBORN. And the firstborn from the dead ones is Jesus who is the FORERUNNER gone before us as the FIRSTFRUITS unto God. Zion or Sion, as it is spelled in the New Testament, is the city, the Holy Jerusalem in Revelation 21:2,10 which are ALL the SAINTS, the CHURCH of the FIRSTBORN among MANY brethren. Please read the study “WHO IS THE BRIDE OF CHRIST?” But for now, please read Isaiah where God tells Israel to put on beautiful garments. Isaiah 52:1-3. “Awake, awake; (TWO calls to awake, the FIRST coming and then the second coming of Jesus) put on you strength, O Zion; (Speaking of those of Israel and the Gentiles who answer the first call to AWAKE to come into Zion, the CHURCH of the firstborn from the dead) put on your beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city: (The second call to AWAKE) for henceforth there shall no more come into YOU the uncircumcised and the unclean. (In other words, AFTER the two calls of AWAKE have ended the NO MORE people will be saved. After both worlds have ended no more unsaved people can enter into the city of God, the Holy Jerusalem that will come down from heaven to the new earth that Yahweh will create after the final Day of Judgment when all the unsaved will be destroyed in the lake of fire) 2. Shake yourself from the dust;(Or make yourself ready O Zion) arise, and sit down, O Jerusalem: (Or awake and MARRY O unsaved Israel) loose yourself from the bands of your neck, O captive daughter of Zion. (God is speaking to both the church and unsaved Israel to loose themselves from the Old Covenant Law of Moses contained in ordinances to trust in the NEW Covenant alone) 3. For thus says the LORD, You have sold yourselves for naught; and you shall be redeemed without money.” Both Christians and unsaved Israel sell ourselves when we disobey the commandments of God under the New Covenant written in the New Testament. There is only ONE WAY to be redeemed and that is to be MARRIED to the redeemer, the Son of the living God. We are espoused to Jesus now and at his coming for his bride we will be married to God’s Son, Jesus, as in we will be made ONE WITH Jesus EVEN AS Jesus is ONE with the Father. Please read John 17:11-22. “And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to you. Holy Father, keep through Your own name those whom you have given me, that they may be one, as we are. 12. While I was with them in the world, I kept them in your name: those that you gave me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled. 13. And now come I to you; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves. 14. I have given them your word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 15. I pray not that you should take them out of the world, but that you should keep them from the evil. 16. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 17. Sanctify them through your truth: your word is truth. 18. As you have sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world. 19. And for their sakes, I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth. 20. Neither do I pray for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; 21. That they all may be one; as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22. And the glory which you gave me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:” So then, the marriage of the church to the Son of God is the figurative language of becoming ONE with Jesus even as Jesus became ONE with his God and Father Yahweh. Again, please read the study “WHO IS THE BRIDE OF CHRIST?” For you see both studies together give you all the verses to the complete picture of the bride of Christ. Thanks for reading and may God bless you richly as you continue seeking the truth of the WHOLE word of Almighty God. Your brother in our Lord Jesus Christ, Brother Mark. RETURN TO HOMEPAGE AT |