Before we get started today allow me as a reminder to say that when we become one in and with Christ by way of His essence through divine illumination we do not remain stagnant. As we're always on the increase of divine revelation of Christ as He's the Lord of Life, Truth, Grace and Love and His working is therefore both within and then through us. As long as we remain open and receptive of His activity.
Luke 1:67-68a
"And his father (that is the father of John the Baptist) was filled with the Holy Ghost, and (he, John's father) prophesied, (spoke forth by way of revelation) saying, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel;…"
Not the whole world yet, but Israel. I’ve said it more than once, people get a little bit upset when I point this out – that Christ came only to fulfill the covenants made with His covenant people, Israel. Up to that time in that particular economy wherein God had been dealing only or exclusively with Israel as a nation. So this makes it so plain and I’ve often had to quote Romans 15 verse 8 where Paul says, "I say now, that Jesus Christ was (past tense) a minister of the circumcision. (The Hebrews) For the truth of God (not because Paul dreamed it up but because it was a fact of Scripture) that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God to fulfill the promises made to the fathers."
That was the purpose of His first advent. This falls right in line with what Zacharias is speaking by the leading of the Holy Spirit's inspiration. All right look what he says, verse 68.
Luke 1:68-71a
"Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed His people, (the Nation of Israel) And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us (who are the ‘us’) in the house of his servant David (house of Judah); As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world (some would say ages, but since the trusting of God by trusting Abraham who's trust was credited him as faith because he passed through the crisis, through which he acquired the promise of his son Isaac) began. (speaking of the Old Testament/Covenant writers.) That we (the Hebrews) should be saved from our (what?) enemies,…"
Now, when Psalms speaks of sitting at the Father’s right hand, until He puts His foot on his enemies, what does it speak of? He’s going to destroy them [the religionists]. They’re under His control and He’s fed up with them. And they’re going to disappear. But we must understand that for the Hebrews elitists (those of the Sanhedrin or the Pharisee's, Sadducee and Scribes) the gentiles were all enemies and that because of the corruption of Judaism their hearts were blind to God's intent as revealed through His Son Christ Jesus. Look what it says:
Luke 1:71
"That we should be saved from our enemies, from the hand of all that hate us;"
My doesn’t the Middle East just ring in your ears? Yeah, it’s coming. Those that hate the physical nation of Israel, why? But this is only seen from the practical and religious perspective as God hates all forms of religion be it Judaism or Islam or even the western form of Christianity [Christian-Judaism if you will] because they all oppose God's activity through His Son Christ Jesus. Now here's their argument. Because their heirs of Abraham's covenant, the land of Palestine and are blowing them up every day. Oh, their (those who have become Christ centered their) enemy’s day is coming. Remember God has separated the Jews from the Israel of God for this house is made up of all who have become Christ centered ones, or the house El rules which is the meaning of Isra-El.
The God of glory is yet one day going to bring peace to Jerusalem. Now I must say this, God's covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob/Israel also included those who would come to the same kind of trust as Abram had. They're the descendents of the promise, they're the ones in a figure as the stars of the heavens great in number. Remember that the stars told the story of this Gospel but on the day Satan was cast from the presence of God the stars were shaken by force or moved out of their proper orbits by a degree or so, just as the earth was and will be again. For now that day there was an earth quake which split the rocks around the city of Jerusalem. Good thing that Jesus was crucified outside the city gates for I personally feel that the hole of it would have fallen just like Jericho did.
Luke 1:72
"To perform the mercy promised to our father, …"
What did the verse in Romans 15 that I quoted earlier say? We’d better go back and look at it. You probably can’t remember what I quoted anyway. So come back to Romans (keep your hand in Luke) because, see all these things fit. That’s the best way I can put on it, because it fits like fingers in a glove. Here in Romans chapter 15, this is from the Apostle of the Gentiles who is declaring the finished work of the Cross. But he’s letting it be known so clearly that Jesus had nothing to do with Gentiles in His earthly ministry (with one or two exceptions), and here’s the reason:
Romans 15:8
"Now I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers:"
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