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