Israel Is Fallen And Set-Aside.

A foundational understanding for Parts 4 & 5 is that Israel currently IS and Has Been “LO-AMMI” [i.e., “not My people,” Hosea 1:9] for more than 1,900 years to this present time. Consequently, as a nation, Israel has not been in service concerning the will and purposes of God since “the fall of them”’ and being ‘set aside’ (cf. Rom. 11:10-12, 15, Acts 28:28), and they will be until today’s Gentile age is completed (see Rom. 11:25).

Recall that in Matt. 15:24 Jesus said “I am come ONLY to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” Jesus had told His twelve Apsotles “Go NOT into the way of the GENTILES,” but Israel ONLY.

“These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go NOT into the way of the GENTILES, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: ⁶ But Go Rather To The Lost Sheep Of The House Of Israel.” Matt. 10:5-6

Then some 20 years after Pentecost the Apostle Paul declared the “the fall of them [Israel]” (Rom. 11:12); this was sealed with the words of Acts 28:26-28, about 35 years after Pentecost.

²⁸ Be it known therefore unto you, [the nation of Israel], that the salvation of God, [meaning the Deliverer Himself, the One Who mediates salvation, the Lord Christ Jesus], is [taken from National Israel and] sent unto the Gentiles, and They Will Hear It.” [they will receive salvation and the One Who brings it]. Acts 28:28

Preliminarily we should note the status of the two God-ordained people groups noted in Scripture.

1. The Nation Israel is currently “fallen” due to unbelief, being and out of favor with God as it has been since Acts 28:28 and it will be “until the time of the Gentiles is fulfilled (Rom. 11:25).

²⁵ For I [Paul] would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery [secret], lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. Romans 11:25 (KJV)

2) The Gentile church of “the mystery [secret],” which Paul called “the body of Christ” is now growing to its “fulness” or completion, to then be secretly and silently resurrected to “appear with Him in glory” (Col. 3:4b) “in the heavenly places” (Eph. 1:3). This ‘co-appearing’ of Christ as “the head” with “His body” in heaven’s glory is next of God’s agenda;

 ⁴ When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in [heaven’s] glory. Col. 3:4

We recognize that the faithful of Israel’s Dead believers will be ‘resurrected’ at Christ’s 2^nd coming (cf. Rev. 20:6). Many of Israel’s believing remnant will be saved Alive out of the Tribulation at Christ’s 2^nd coming when they “look upon [Him] whom they have pierced” (Zech 12:10) and “In that day there shall be a fountain [of His blood] opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness.” Zechariah 13:1

Then after the 1,000-year Reign of Christ the Nation Israel will reign forever on “the New Earth.” (Rev. 5:10, 20:6). This was promised to the Nation Israel ONLY. This reigning will not include Israel’s Gentile proselytes who were not promised “the Kingdom,” but rather they were promised “everlasting life.”

So, Israel today is ‘fallen’ and Israel’s promised Kingdom program is currently SET ASIDE. So there are none TODAY of any race, neither Jew or Gentile, who have any way of qualifying to participate in Israel’s long-promised Kingdom program to come on earth. Membership in Israel as a Jew was closed over 1,900 years ago. Later I will explain exactly when that door closed. Suffice to say that door will remain closed until sometime after the Gentile church of “the body of Christ” is suddenly and quietly resurrected from planet earth in their spirit-bodies to “appear with Him [Christ] in [heaven’s] glory” (cf. Col. 3:4).

We should also recognize that in general (as seen below and in Part 5) there are three classes or kinds of ‘Christ believers’ in the world today. Yet the three wind up in either of these Two Possible Eternal Destinies.

• The first group is destined for the “paradise” of “the new earth” under Israel’s eternal Kingdom reign with Christ.
• Today God’s favor is upon the Gentile “church, which is His [Christ’s] body” which is destined to “appear with Him [Christ] in [heaven’s] glory” (Col. 3:4), “in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 1:3).

Now I will address the 1^st of the three kinds of ‘Christ believers’ in the world today. Most perceptive Christians may recognize these.

1. The First kind of believers are those today who have “believed” in Jesus Christ unto “everlasting life” per John 3:16, wherein Jesus refers to these believers as “whosoever believeth.” They are saved from perdition (eternal judgment).

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish [Grk. apollymi, not be destroyed], but have everlasting life.” John 3:16 (KJV)

This category of “whosoever” (Gentile and non-Jewish believers) existed from Jesus’ day and many others do unto to this very day. Today they are among the traditional believers that go under any of the many broadly named groups such as fundamentalist, evangelicals, Pentecostals, and others. They are saved, believing in the Cross-work of Jesus Christ for their salvation (cf. 1Cor 15:3-4). But most have not become intelligized members of Gentile “body of Christ” that is destined to dwell eternally “in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 1:3) They never grew in the faith and knowledge of Paul’s 2^nd ministry.

Paul’s 2^nd ministry is his POST-Acts ministry and epistles which began with the fall of the Nation of Israel in unbelief.’ Israels calling and fall was over a 2,000-year process after the Nation of Israel had been born with Exodus 19:5-6:

⁵ Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: ⁶ And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an Holy Nation. These are the words which thou [Moses] shalt speak unto the children of Israel. Exodus 19:5-6 (KJV)

Israel had such a special calling and hope, yet;

1) Israel consistently rejected the Lord God by killing all the prophets He sent them.

2)  He then sent “the Son” whom they crucified.

3) Then they rejected the witness of the Holy Spirit expressed in Stephen’s words of Acts 7:51-58 before they “stoned Stephen” [v59) to death.

The book of Acts then is the fulcrum transitioning from of ‘the fall of Israel under the Law,’ shifting to Paul’s “gospel of the GRACE of God” (Acts 20:24) and salvation “by grace through faith” (Eph. 2:8-9) … totally apart from One’s Performance Under The Law’s, rituals, and rites.

The fall of Isarel was completed and declared with the words of Paul as seen in Acts 28:26-28. Then we get Paul’s last 7 epistles (as chronologically written). In them we learn of Paul’s added “revelation of the mystery [secret plan of God]” that Paul received directly from the ascended Lord Jesus as explained in his Post-Acts epistles of Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 & 2 Timothy, Titus, and Philemon.

There are many such ‘believers’ today who are Saved From Perdition … but they should to have gone on in “the faith” to gain the Knowledge Of and Belief In Paul’s Post-Acts Grace Gospel of “the revelation of the Mystery” concerning the Gentile church of “the body of Christ” … But THEY NEVER DID. Thus they will not “appear with Him [Christ]” (Col 3:4) “in the heavenly places” (Eph. 1:3). Sadly, being trapped under the false ‘religious dogmas’ of organized manmade man-controlled Christendom, most Christian believers today have NEVER CLEARLY HEARD, and Consequently, THEY HAVE NOT BELIEVED PAUL’S POST-ACTS GOSPEL.

They are what I call ‘minimalist believers’ who have been saved to have “everlasting life” but they have not grown to attain the “adoption” (Rom. 9:4) or sonship (Eph. 1:5) as would have been necessary for service in Israel’s Kingdom on earth (Rev. 5:10) nor to “reign with Him” (2Tim. 2:12) in heaven.

So far as we know, these folks will ultimately be among those who will eternally dwell “in paradise” on “The New Earth” along with Adam, Noah, and many others who believed and obeyed God’s words of ‘life’ to them in their time… but they never became intelligized or qualified for Israel’s Kingdom Reign on earth, nor what Paul called “the prize of the high calling” (Phili. 3:14) of heaven. It would help to recall Jesus’ words to the then believing ‘thief on the cross.’ Jesus promised he would one day be with Jesus “in paradise” (cf. Luke 23:43).

All such folks have been ‘saved’ unto “everlasting life” per John 3:16’s “whosoever believeth.” … but they are not ‘of’ or ‘blessed with’ the ‘Nation Israel,’… nor are they of the Post-Acts Gentile “church” of the one “body of Christ.” As seen below these believers are disqualified from; Israel’s promised Kingdom Reign program, and they are disqualified from the Gentile “church” of “the body of Christ” that is destined to “the heavenly places” of which they have no knowledge or belief.

1. There are many saved minimalist simple believers’ today who have Not Heard, and so do ‘Not Know Of,’ and therefore Cannot Believe Paul’s Post-Acts “Mystery” gospel that reveals the calling, and hope of the Gentile church of “the body of Christ” … unto “the Heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 1:3). So, they will miss out on ‘heaven.’ This is likely because… they then adhere to the false religious dogmas of man’s religion which has robbed them of the knowledge of the Pauline truth of the heaven-bound Gentile “church, which is His body” (Eph. 1:22b-23a). They have no part in His body’s ‘heavenly’ calling or hope.
2. Then also these ‘minimalist believers’ of today most likely believed Jesus’ Gospel of John 3:16, which was chronologically written AFTER Israel ‘fell’ and was ‘set aside,’ then being NON-OPERATIONAL (cf. Rom. 11:10-11, 15, 25). Note that John’s gospel was written in AD85, long after Israel had fallen in Acts 28:28.

Thus these ‘minimalist believers’ not only have No Part In The Gentile “Body Of Christ” that is destined for heaven. They also Have NO Part In Israel’s ultimate Kingdom Reign on earth. But they will have a place in “the Paradise” of God on the “New Earth” under Israel’s reign and tutelage.

NOTE: Membership in Jesus’ “little flock” (Luke 12:32) of water baptized Messianic believers has been CLOSED to ALL men, both Jews and Gentiles, for over 1,900 years, per the outcome of Acts 15 Jerusalem Council meeting. Recall that with that meeting Israel’s Apostles of standing ‘bound’ or limited their ministry to Only the Existing Believing Jews of That Day. Per Gal. 2:9, they ceased adding to their number when they recognized and commissioned Paul and Barnabas to bring Paul’s new ‘Pure Grace Gospel’ to ‘ALL Men’ alike since ‘All unbelievers,’ both unbelieving Jews and unbelieving Gentiles were then seen as lost Gentiles regardless of their race. That is why Paul wrote “there is none righteous no not one” (Rom. 3:1). 

Paul’s “gospel of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24) then, after the setting aside of Israel in Acts 28:28, led to Christ revealing to Paul the added “revelation of the mystery [secret]” and “the fellowship of the mystery [secret]” of the Gentile “church, which is His body” as note in Paul’s latter, Post-Acts 28, seven epistles.

(For more detail regarding the significance of the Acts 15 Jerusalem Council meeting see: https://artlicursi.com/articles/key-points-drawn-acts-15-jerusalem-council-meeting )