The Time of the End; and, Is Israel of God, or [only] of Man?

Heb 1:1-2 
Dan 10 – 12 
Ezek 36 
Mt 24:3-8; Mk 13; Lk 21 

Do you know what time it is?  When did the “last days” begin?  When is the “time of the end”, or, “the end-times”, “the time of the end”? According to the Holy Spirit through whoever wrote the Letter to the Hebrews, the last days began on that momentous Pentecost nine days after Jesus ascended back to Heaven to sit at God the Father’s right hand, and YHVH God began to pour out His Spirit upon – even into – all born-again Jewish believers – male and female, old and young, slave and free.

According to our Lord and Savior, Jesus says that the end-times, the last generation, is the one that sees the fig tree shooting forth leaves. The fig tree is national Israel, the very fig tree that He cursed for not having any fruit that He looked for, but that He gave as a sign to watch for and to heed in connection with His glorious return to establish forever God’s Kingdom back to Jacob, even to Israel, and over all the nations, and throughout the entire Universe that He created and made! Israel is about to fulfill her 77th year as a restored sovereign nation of the Jewish people back in the very land (part of it, for now) promised to the physical descendants of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob. This will not be fully fulfilled, though, until the salvation of “all Israel” (not every Jew or Israeli, but the full remnant from all of the tribes), as the apostle Paul writes to especially Gentile believers in Rom 11. The blessing to the whole world, as promised by YHVH God to Abraham, requires the salvation of the nation of Israel with every citizen saved. (Rom 11:11-15, 25-36; Zec 12:10-14)

Salvation is by grace through repentance and faith in the gospel for any individual, and for Israel as a nation. God judges each generation by the light it has of His truth. The Creation is proof enough for all time that there is a powerful and amazing Creator, who is to be worshiped. The Torah/ 5 Books of Moses gives more light of the knowledge of the one true living God, and what He requires of man generally, and to the Jews and Israel particularly. The Prophets of YHVH give more light of truth, to the Jews first, and also to the nations of the Middle East. Promises of a Savior and Deliverer are sprinkled throughout the OT Scriptures, out from Israel and Judah, for Israel, and including the Gentiles and nations. 

The New Testament brings us the full written revelation of the Creator and His Son, the Redeemer and Savior from sin and all its consequences, first to the Chosen People, the Jews, and also for the Gentiles. The light of the gospel was spread by Israeli Jews – to Jerusalem, to Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. The rejection of the gospel by God’s people was long before prophesied as part of God’s plan and foreknowledge of His righteous way of taking the gospel to the ends of the world. The birth of the Messiah, and His sacrificial death, burial, resurrection — being witnessed by hundreds — is the turning point of all history. The Day of Judgment and return of the Lord Jesus Christ to rule and reign on the Earth, with the resurrected and raptured saints, is the goal of all prophecy this side of eternity. We are living in Bible times!

Do we understand the times and know what the Church/Body of Christ should do?  Many people are looking for answers to what is going on, and what, if anything, does it mean!

Scattered Israel in exile for 1900 years and more out of their promised land gave most people, including even born-again Bible believing Christians, to think and act as if God is finished with Israel and with the Jews for having any special and unique purpose anymore.

Then came 1948 – but not in a vacuum – and the question posed to all – including to Jews and to Christians – is the other side of Jesus’/Yeshua’s coin: “Is Israel of God, or [only] of man?” Yeshua gave a “time-stamp” for recognizing the last generation before His return. 

It does not matter what our own “rapture timing” is; the Father’s appointed time governs the timing of the “last day” and hour for His return in the generation which sees the fig tree put forth her leaves. 

Show mercy to the least of My brethren. These are the unbelieving Jews first of all, a particular people in covenant relationship with the God of the Universe, even if they do not know or believe it: God is faithful, and cannot deny Himself. The Apostle Paul relates to them in a similar way:  his heart-felt desire for the salvation of his unbelieving Jewish people, who persecuted him; yet he expressed his grief that they were not yet saved and was willing to die for them, and even be cut off from Messiah, if that was what it would take. 

This is the Church’s/Body of Christ’s calling of showing mercy to the Jews and Israel, and to provoke them to jealousy for their own God and Savior King. The coming great tribulation/Jacob’s Trouble will present the opportunity for the proving of that calling to Gentile believers first of all, and to Gentiles in general. Such it was during the Nazi reign of terror against the Jews specifically, and there were believers and unbelievers who knew to distinguish between good evil, and risked their own lives to help rescue and save Jews from death. 

Preparation for that time is today, with the nation Israel and the Jewish people world-wide under increasing attack for even existing, not allowed to even defend themselves from false accusations. Are you standing up and speaking out on their behalf, for the sake of the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, sacrificially risking your own lives and livelihood? The Jewish people are being given the opportunity to see what it feels like to be hated without a cause, no matter what they do or explain.  This is what we have done towards our own God and HIS Messiah/Anointed One, and is focused in our rejection and spite towards His uniquely beloved Son, Jesus Christ. There is nothing new under the Sun, and there are consequences of our choices. Fear the Lord, and give Him glory!  Every knee will bow and tongue confess that Jesus Christ is LORD/YHVH!