11 Defection From God

 “We will not long for God’s affection until we feel the pain of our defection…”

The Jewish character, Teyve from the play, Fiddler on the Roof 

after receiving news of the Jews eviction from their town, looks to the heavens and prays to God, "I know that we are the chosen people, but for once, could you not choose someone else?"

Why has Israel Had to Survive So Much Persecution?

In the last post, we considered the story of the prodigal son. That is the story of a young man of privilege living in his father's house, yet unhappy to remain there. He chose to dismiss his father's discipline and care for him. Setting out on his own with the inheritance promised to him, the prodigal illustrates for us the cost of dismissing God and the longing of the Father to have us restored back to himself. 

Of course, this illustration was used of the Lord Jesus to describe the attitude of Israel toward their Father God and the longing of God to have them restored to a place of fellowship with Him. In fact, this is very much the experience of the world since Adam’s defection from God’s affection.

“We will continue to feel the pain of our defection until we long for God’s affection…” That defection has resulted in the pain and evil of the world that we see in the news headlines and in our lives every day.

When this loss of affection spans several generations, the spiritual vacuum is filled by evil practices that delight the flesh. This living after the flesh is called carnal living and it always resists the Spirit of God. Families and nations fall prey to the manipulations of Satan and life becomes filled with animosities, wars and division.

This brings the world into a state of judicial darkness: 

""Because that, when they knew God, they glorified [him] not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. ... For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: ...And even as they did not like to retain God in [their] knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;" 

Romans 1:21-28 KJV. 

A Unique Calling

This pattern of descent into darkness is being repeated in the church, just as it has occurred throughout human history since Adam's defection in the garden of Eden. It was from the midst of this past darkness that God called a man out of idolatry to make of him a great nation. 

It is God's intent to use Abraham through whom the promised seed would come. According to God, it was through Abraham's Son, Isaac that the promises be fulfilled: "in Isaac shall thy seed be called" 

Isaac's son, Jacob likewise received the promises but it required him to wrestle with the angel of the Lord. Through this wrestling match, Jacob would receive a permanent physical wound, survive and be renamed Israel, "Prince of God". 

Sadly, as time went on, the descendants of Israel also defected from God and adapted the many reprobate practices of the nations around them. Were it not for God's mercy and faithfulness to His promises that preserved Israel, their defection from God would have caused them to be lost to the ages like other ancient cultures.

Rather than being used of God to be a light to the world, the Jewish experience has largely been filled with the arrogant demands of a petulant child who wastes his inheritance among the heathen nations. Then when Israel's substance was wasted by profligate living, their arrogance is despised by those same nations.

Though Israel clings to their law-keeping and their promises to cause their Messiah to come, it will take a period of great tribulation and destruction to finally bring them to see that Messiah has "come unto His own, but His own received Him not". 

When they do receive Him, it will bring them back from their defection from God's affections and allow them to finally enjoy full fellowship with their God.

Israel Today

In light of the evil that we witness in and around Israel today (2024), How are we to understand the state of Israel in this day of grace?…. 

The state of Israel that we see today was funded by the globalist family of the Rothschilds after the devastation of World War 2. While it is remains to be seen with any certainty what motives they had in doing so, I think that it is safe to say that fulfilling the desire of displaced Jews to return to their homeland was only a ruse. 

After all, Satan loves to hide his manipulations behind a veneer of religion. This allows him to use accusations of racism and anti-semitism as a cover for his serpent-like crushing of dissent. This cover can then be used by him to set up a one world government for the serpent's seed (antichrist) to rule over mankind. By this means, Satan hopes to prevent God from fulfilling His promise in Genesis 3:15 of crushing the head of Satan's serpent.

However, we are told in Psalm 76:10 that God uses the wrath of man to praise Him.

"Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee: the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain."  

So, even though mankind may be given over to evil intentions, God uses that to accomplish His purposes and then restrains the rest of man’s evil intent.

So, Israel’s virtue as a nation is no different than any other nation except in one very important respect…Israel is the only nation in the history of the world that God has made an unconditional covenant with. 

Other nations have made conditional covenants with God, e.g. the Mayflower Compact in North America, some would argue that the Magna Carta in England was such as well. However these covenants require a commitment from men. Once men have failed, the covenants are essentially void.

The unconditional covenants made by God with Israel, do not depend upon Israel's obedience to remain in effect. They own the covenants because God, who cannot lie, has sworn by Himself that He will do them. Although Israel still owns these unconditional covenants, their possession, or enjoyment of them depend upon Israel's willing submission to a conditional covenant. 

Israel agreed to a conditional covenant with God through Moses at Mount Sinai. This covenant lays out conditions of blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience. Among these conditions is the stipulation that Israel must accept the King of God's choosing. Through the prophets God showed Israel how to recognize that King.

When they failed to recognize Jesus as their Messiah, they failed to recognize the King that God had chosen. Therefore the Kingdom was offered to Israel and rejected by them. Jesus declared that the Kingdom would be taken from them and given to a future generation in Israel that will recognize Him and willingly submit to His rule.

"Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation (generation) bringing forth the fruits thereof." Matthew 21:43 KJV

Therefore, it is because of the unconditional covenants that Israel remains as a distinct nation and owners of the Kingdom inheritance, even while they fail to possess or enjoy that inheritance. For this reason God allows the enemy to partially fulfill his evil intent of persecuting and destroying Israel...often through human governments. 

Carnality vs. Spirituality

Israel's experience of living opposed to the Spirit of God helps us to see what it means to be a spiritual Christian vs. a carnal Christian: 

A spiritual Christian has a strong desire to know God’s heart. There are local churches who teach that there is no such thing as carnal Christians. According to them, “If He is not Lord of all, He is not Lord at all” (Lordship Salvation). By implication, this says that if you are not a spiritual Christian then you are not a Christian at all. 

To be sure, there are a lot of false professors of Christianity. The use their profession to win favor and yet continue to live without any desire for live for God's honor. However, there are also many who are truly saved and yet continue to live against their conscience, grieving the Holy Spirit.

In fact, there is not a Christian alive who has not at some point unhappily lived according to the flesh. The Father's even handed discipline is reserved for us in those times until we find ourselves happily restored back to Him.

Others teach that you must have some ecstatic experience of the Spirit to show that you are a spiritual Christian. However the definition of what it means to be spiritual is often left somewhat ambiguous.

1 Corinthians 3:1-3 shows us that it is possible to be saved and yet live in the power of the flesh instead of the power of the Spirit of God.

"And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, [even] as unto babes in Christ. I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able [to bear it], neither yet now are ye able. For ye are yet carnal: for whereas [there is] among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?”

When we are living carnally, there is a suppressed desire for the truth of God and a loss of affection toward God. However, just as Israel's unbelief led to the postponement of their inheritance, the carnal Christian can be assured of their salvation even though they do not enjoy the blessings of their salvation. 

The fellowship that God desires with us is far greater than the knowledge of having our sins forgiven...as wonderful as that is. He wants our affection for Him to be more like His abiding affection for us. This requires deeper knowledge of Him.

"Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls." 

Matthew 11:29 KJV

This is why He sent His Spirit to indwell each believer. Through Him we are helped in our striving against the flesh that resists coming to know Him. The Spirit of God reveals Christ to us in His Word and through us by living in the Spirit rather than in the flesh.

This post has considered how God has obligated Himself on using the nation of Israel to restore the world back to Himself through the King that He has chosen.This failure illustrates for us that even though Israel and Christians fail to honor the King, the promise of God's coming Kingdom and of salvation cannot fail.

smc

10 Two Kingdoms

As of this writing, the truth of God is maligned by extremist/elitist thinking. This is never more evident than in the conflict between the Israeli government and the Gentiles living in Judea or what the world refers to as Palestine.

The truth of God's coming Kingdom on earth is being used as a pretext for violence against non Jews. This is advocated by some Israeli citizens, many who falsely claim to be Jews. It is always the enemies mode of operation to pretend to be someone and behave badly in order to cast those that they pretend to be in a bad light.

Since the events of Eden, our world has been governed by an unseen realm of malevolent demons who hate mankind. This helps us to see why the world is so full of evil and why demons consider the nation of Israel to be such a threat to their dominion. This demonic hatred is behind every attempt to malign both Israel and the church by attacks from within and from outside.

So, it is important for us to understand the truth that the present state of Israel is what the prophet Ezekiel described to be like a valley of dry bones (Ezekiel 37:1-2). It is remarkable that Israel is the only nation of antiquity to return to its homeland with its own language and culture after its people were scattered throughout the world. 

Yet, the present regathering is but a skeleton or a scaffolding of what is to come. It is a lifeless gathering of dead bones...It is not the fulfillment of Land, Seed and Blessing promised to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. It is only a sliver of land surrounding Jerusalem that will one day be the city of the great king (Psalm 48:2) There can be no earthly kingdom until the king is on earth.

So do I not believe that God is Sovereign?

There is a universal kingdom where God sovereignly rules directly over both the physical and the spiritual, or the seen and the unseen realms of creation. These two realms (physical and spiritual) were one at creation but they were separated following the events of Eden when Adam and Eve treasonously doubted God’s goodness. 

As a result of this separation between the earth and the heavens, mankind is all about forcefully regaining his dominion. Man does this by attempting to create a portal that reconnects earth with that heavenly realm. 

This first attempt at world dominion was made with the tower of Babel. (Genesis 11) It became the source of all human religion. “Babylon, the mother of harlots” (Rev 17:5) God could not allow this false portal to continue without restraint, so He confounded their languages and they dispersed into different language groups.

In this way God has established sovereign national borders:

"And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;" - Acts 17:26 KJV

God’s plan for an earthly Kingdom is about establishing the portal to heaven through the seed of the woman (Jesus Christ) by means of the nation of Israel. We see that developed in the covenants that God made with Israel.

In Genesis 28 God confirmed His covenant with Abraham when Abraham's grandson, Jacob, was given a vision of a ladder reaching to heaven. 

"And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it." 

Genesis 28:12 KJV

Jacob called this ladder the 'gate to heaven'. 

Jesus related Jacob's dream to His disciples when He said, "Hereafter shall ye see the angels ascending and descending upon the son of man" (John 1:51) In this Jesus confirmed to them that He alone is that ladder, that portal or gate, to heaven.

Even though mankind is created to be a little lower than the angels, God set mankind over the works of His hands. Yet because of Adam's sin, there exists a vail separating the earthly realm from the heavenly realm. Adam's dominion was lost and there remains that unseen realm over which only Jesus as a man who overcame death can exercise dominion:

"Thou hast 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. But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man." 

Hebrews 2:8-9 KJV

The heavenly and earthly realms will be made one again through the man, Jesus Christ. This will be the answer to the prayer that we are commanded to pray: "Thy will is to be done on earth as it is in heaven."

So, Where Is Jesus Christ Now?

Previously we noted some of the scriptures that tell us that all authority has been given to the Lord Jesus after His resurrection from the dead and His ascension into glory. Notice that He is presently enthroned with the Father with sovereign authority over both the earthly and heavenly realms. 

"Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him." 

1 Peter 3:22 KJV

With all of that authority we rightly call Him the King who reigns. It is true that He is one with the Father in sovereign rule over the earth. Yet, there is a realm over which Jesus Christ is anointed to rule over, but He has not yet been enthroned. 

This is the very earthly kingdom that God has ordained to come through the physical descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. From their seed, Jesus is come to crush the head of the serpent and set right all that was lost in Eden. Do you think that Lucifer (Satan) is motivated to keep that from happening?

It is God and God alone that will restore God’s order through the earthly kingdom that He has promised. This will culminate when Jesus is finally acknowledged as King of kings and Lord of lords. 

Shortly before his execution, the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy of this event:

"That thou keep [this] commandment without spot, unrebukeable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ: Which in his times he shall shew, [who is] the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords; Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom [be] honour and power everlasting. Amen." 

1 Timothy 6:14-16 KJV

Paul indicates that it hasn’t happened yet but ‘in His times’, The Lord’s enemies in both the seen and unseen realms will be defeated. The separation between these realms will cease. God will be vindicated in the realms in which He was denied His rightful place as Lord of all.

After all is restored back to what God originally created, He will create a new heavens and a new earth.

In the Theocratic Kingdom, there is an indirect rule through a man. This is more limited than the universal kingdom. It is administered through human agency.

Notice that the Time of the Universal Kingdom is eternal;

"The LORD reigneth, he is clothed with majesty; the LORD is clothed with strength, [wherewith] he hath girded himself: the world also is stablished, that it cannot be moved. Thy throne [is] established of old: thou [art] from everlasting." 

Psalm 93:1-2 KJV

In contrast, the prophet Daniel informs us that the Theocratic Kingdom is a future enduring kingdom...

"And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, [but] it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever." 

Daniel 2:44 KJV

The Scope of the Kingdom: The Universal Kingdom is over all time and space. This is the Kingdom over which the Lord Jesus currently reigns with the Father; 

"The LORD hath prepared his throne in the heavens; and his kingdom ruleth over all."

Psalm 103:19 KJV

Once again, Daniel reveals that the Theocratic Kingdom is not present, but will be coming to earth in the days of certain kings:

"These great beasts, which are four, [are] four kings, [which] shall arise out of the earth. But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever."

Daniel 7:17,18 KJV

The Rule of the Kingdom: In Daniel 4:17 and other places we see that the Universal kingdom is ruled directly by God; 

"This matter [is] by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones: to the intent that the living may know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the basest of men." 

Daniel 4:17 KJV

On the other hand, the Theocratic Kingdom is an earthly kingdom ruled indirectly by a man.

"Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou [art] my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Ask of me, and I shall give [thee] the heathen [for] thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth [for] thy possession." 

Psalm 2:6-8 KJV

The Existence of the Kingdom: Finally, we learn from Psalm 93:1,2 the Universal Kingdom is independent of a human response; 

"...the world also is stablished, that it cannot be moved."

After the Jewish leaders rejected Jesus as Messiah, in Matthew ch. 12, The Lord Jesus declared in Matthew 23 that the Theocratic Kingdom is contingent upon a human response, in particular the obedience of the nation of Israel.

"For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed [is] he that cometh in the name of the Lord." 

Matthew 23:39 KJV

The recognition of the existence of two kingdoms, one that is eternal and present, another that is temporal and future brings clarity to the present state of our world. The promise of a coming earthly kingdom administered from Jerusalem is not a political fabrication, it is an unchangeable proclamation. 

It is the longing of God's heart to see His kingdom on earth realized. As Christians, can we long for anything less?

smc

9 If Our God Reigns, Why Is The World So Full of Evil?

"And Jesus came and spoke to them saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth." 

Matthew 28:18

We rightly proclaim that our God reigns. Yet If He is Sovereign then why is the world in the mess that it is in? Why is evil that we see and experience allowed to seemingly go on unpunished?

In the next few posts, we are going to consider:

• How the story of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15 relates to God's Kingdom plan.
• The announcement of God's Kingdom plan in Genesis 3:15
• The distinctions between the Universal kingdom and the Theocratic Kingdom

"And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou [art] cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel." 

Genesis 3:14-15 KJV

Dr. Dwight Pentecost of Moody Bible Institute always asked his students, "What is the most important verse of the Bible?" While many students would say John 3:16, Dr. Pentecost would always point to Genesis 3:15

The evil in our world is due to an agonizing period of estrangement from God that began in the garden of Eden with the defection of Adam and Eve. God's announcement of a Restoring Seed in Genesis 3:15 is the Father’s sovereign plan for restoring the kingdom back to what was originally intended in Eden.

This estrangement from God was illustrated by the Lord Jesus to His followers in the story of the prodigal son in the 15th chapter of Luke's gospel.

This interaction between parents and children is not unfamiliar to us. My mother never could forgive me for becoming a teenager. There is something that happens to us somewhere around the transition between 5th and 6th grade levels. This is perhaps more obvious in boys as they begin to assert their independence. With this comes a change in the display of their affections. I remember it as a period when my friends approval begin to take the place of affection that my parents once had. 

On the parenting side, it seems to happen very abruptly and it is a point of sadness and even grief. It can develop into a point of bitterness and resentment between the parent and child. Perhaps, it is the reality of this experience that causes us to respond readily to the story of the prodigal son that the Lord shared in Luke15.

This story communicates a shocking loss of affection of a son towards his father. What captures the attention of the listener to this story is that the son’s disregard for his father is so abrupt and treacherous. We are left to marvel at the cheeky ingratitude of the son for demanding his inheritance. With this demand was the implication that the son considered his father as dead to him. 

We tend to focus most on the bitter experience of the son in a far country and consider his loss of privilege to be well deserved. However, this story is as much about the affections of the Father as it is about the defection of the son. The father's very painful experience in this story does not cause him to become bitter or declare that his son should die.

"And he that curseth his father, or his mother, shall surely be put to death." 

Exodus 21:17

In the story of the prodigal, societal norms of Jewish law would dictate that the father would not allow such an evil act to go unpunished. For such a blatant insult as demanding his inheritance and leaving the household, the father would be expected to act according to the law and have his son stoned to death.

Yet, equal to the shock of the sons demands was the gracious reaction of the father towards his wayward child. The attitude of the father was one of seemingly ‘giving in’ to his demands, all the while anticipating a restored relationship with his son. 

The story of the prodigal is at least in part intended to show that God the Father’s heart is longing for restoration of the son’s affections. The father’s first priority is not to look for our perfections, as much as He is looking for our affections. When we desire to know His heart, we are directed, or led, by His Spirit.

Let’s remind ourselves of Eden’s events:

1. God as Sovereign and Universal King creates the universe and is King over all creation (Gen 1–2). 
2. God creates man in His own image as a son and king so man can represent God on the earth and rule over God’s creation on His behalf for His glory (Gen 1:26–28; Ps 8). 
3. Man fails his task of ruling the creation for God’s glory by sinning against his Creator (Gen 3); the vice-regent rebels against the King. 
4. The fall results in a cursed creation in which man is subject to death, the creation is subject to futility, and Satan usurps authority (Gen 3). 
5. God promises a Savior, a Satan (serpent)-crusher and curse-remover from the seed of the woman who will save man and restore the creation (Gen 3:15).

Genesis 3:15 is God’s introduction to His plan for restoring that place of affection and fellowship between God and man that was lost in Eden. The crushing of the heel represents the terrible cost of the cross, but there is also the anticipated crushing of the head of the serpent that will remove Satan from power over the earth.

One thing that we are intended to learn from the story of the prodigal is that it is not so much about the prodigal as it is about the immense patience of the Father toward his erring creatures. 

God is not capricious and He does not arbitrarily cause events: Everything that He does is to make the world of men ready for the Kingdom. God allows us to experience the evil of our decisions in order to make us ready to respond to Him. 

After Adam’s defection from trusting in the goodness of God, the poignant question that God asks Adam and Eve in the garden is a plaintive, ‘where are you?’ 

This was not a question asked in ignorance of Adam’s physical location. Rather, it strikes me as being asked in a state of grief. When I held my fathers hand as he took his last breaths at the age of 62, I cried out to God, why have his affections been taken from us? God used my fathers agonizing death from cancer to cause me to ask, "if it was me laying there, where would my soul be going?"

God's question was likewise a cry of grief that His beloved creatures were now subject to death. In a similar manner, God’s question to Adam as, “O Adam, Why have your affections been taken from me?”

Of course, this was not a surprise to an omniscient God. We read that as believers, we were chosen in Him before the foundation of the world. God knew that only by creating mankind as agents of free will, could His love be fully experienced.

God’s unfolding kingdom plan 

God's fullest expression of love unfolds in His plan for winning back the affection of his lost humanity. God has allowed His children, like the prodigals that we are, to freely choose to leave and experience the evil results of our abandonment. He needs for prodigal mankind to likewise long for the restoration of full fellowship with HIm. That requires both God and mankind to go through some very painful times.

This timeline charts His plan to restore the Kingdom and reveal His chosen King.

This plan of God is intended to bring mankind back to that desire to enthrone Him as King on the throne of our affections and thus restore His earthly Kingdom.

Michael Vlatch summarizes the path to the eternal state in his book: He shall reign forever…

“Ever since the fall, God's plan has been to restore His creation through His son who must reign successfully as a man, as it was God's original intention that a man would rule His earthly Kingdom.

The first Adam failed, and the Kingdom was corrupted. Jesus, the Last Adam will restore the Kingdom back to its "very good" state.

This is why Jesus had to be fully man. He also had to be fully God without a sin nature to have the power to reverse the evil consequence of the Fall.

In the restored, earthly Kingdom, Israel will now enjoy all the promises God made to her in the covenants. All of the nations will be there and will look to Israel for leadership in learning the ways of the Lord. The kings of the nations will worship only Him and bring contributions for His glory.

After the Kingdom rule of 1000 years, Jesus will have finished His mission and given the Kingdom back to the Father. This present earth and heavens will be dissolved and replaced with a new heavens and a new earth where they rule as one in righteousness forever. (Both the physical and spiritual realms of) Creation will unite and come full circle back to a very good one!”

In the eternal state (that follows the Kingdom), all (a countless multitude) people will be in sinless resurrection bodies. Then they will be able to be in the Father's presence and fellowship with Him as it was originally intended.

In Genesis 3:15, God declares His anticipation of both the cost and the outcome of His plan. This is the unfolding of the drama that we are exploring as we consider His affection for the kingdom that was lost in Eden and that He will restore in the future. 

Review Questions:

• Why did God create Adam and Eve? 
• God created man in His own image as a                    and                              

• Why does God allow evil to exist in His creation?
  
• God's fullest expression of                            unfolds in His plan for winning back the                                                      of his lost humanity.

• What does the story of the Prodigal son in Luke 15 teach us about our heavenly Father's heart?
• The father’s first priority is not our perfections                                             as much as He is looking for our affections                                                .

This brings us to consider a scriptural distinction between two kingdoms. More on this in the next post...