Building the Church, the Process of the Fullness of the Gentiles Coming In, and the Salvation of Israel

In Matthew 16:18 Jesus states that He will build His church.  When He said those words, the formation of the church was yet future.

At the end of Mt. 23, just before He began His instruction regarding His return, Jesus gives a farewell to the unrepentant nation of Israel.  He wanted to gather Jerusalem to Himself and He used the analogy of a mother hen gathering her chicks.  Unrepentant Israel however was unwilling.  We see the grief in Jesus heart over the hardness of His people's hearts.  Because of the hardness of Israel's heart, Jesus tells His own that her house is being left desolate.  Jesus came to His own people in truth and light and love and offered them the kingdom God had long promised.  With unrepentant hearts, they rejected the King and did not receive the blessings of the kingdom.

Is Jesus done with the nation of Israel?  Would they never receive the blessings of the kingdom?  Would He never rule over them as their Savior and King?  Was He giving Israel a final farewell?  Here we can insert an emphatic, no.  Jesus said that they would not see Him again until they say, "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord." (Mt. 23:39)

This is what the crowds had shouted when He rode into Jerusalem on a donkey just a few days earlier.  These words were taken from Psalm 118:26.  But these words, when spoken at that time, though true and appropriate, were said with mostly unrepentant, hard hearts and blind eyes.  One day, all of Israel will say, in faith, "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord." 

Paul spoke of the future salvation of national Israel in his letter to the Romans.  Romans 11:25-26:  "For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery-so that you will not be wise in your own estimation-that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, THE DELIVERER WILL COME FROM ZION, HE WILL REMOVE UNGODLINESS FROM JACOB.  THIS IS MY COVENANT WITH THEM, WHEN I TAKE AWAY THEIR SINS."

Isaiah 59:20, 21:  "A Redeemer will come to Zion, and to those who turn from transgression in Jacob," declares the LORD.  "As for Me, this is My covenant with them," says the LORD: "My Spirit which is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your offspring, nor from the mouth of your offspring's offspring," says the LORD, "from now and forever."   

Jeremiah also prophesied of the future salvation of national Israel.  Jeremiah 31:33-34:  "But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days," declares the LORD, "I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.  They shall not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more."

Before His ascension into heaven, Jesus commanded His Jewish disciples to go and make disciples of all nations.  From the day of Pentecost until now, Jesus has been building His church while the nation of Israel remains in spiritual blindness.  Jesus is in the process of gathering His "other sheep."  (John 10:16)  Jewish people are being saved during this age because Paul tells us that only a partial hardening of Israel's heart has happened.  The fullness of the Gentiles is in the process of coming in.  In Matthew 24:14, Jesus said the gospel of the kingdom would be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.  The fullness of the Gentiles comes in at the end of the age.  Jesus said that He would be with His church always, even to the end of the age.  (Mt. 28:20)  The process of building His church would end, at the end of the age.

Where does this put the church in relation to the great tribulation?   It places the church on the earth during the great tribulation.

Let's take a look at Revelation 12:13-17:  "And when the dragon saw that he was thrown down to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male child.  But the two wings of the great eagle were given to the woman, so that she could fly into the wilderness to her place, where she was nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent.  And the serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, so that he might cause her to be swept away with the flood.  But the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and drank up the river which the dragon poured out of his mouth.  So the dragon was enraged with the woman, and went off to make war with the rest of her children, who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus."

From Revelation 12:1-5 we know the woman to be Israel.

From Revelation 12:6, we know Israel will be protected in the wilderness for the second half of Daniel's 70th Week:  "Then the woman fled into the wilderness where she had a place prepared by God, so that there she would be nourished for one thousand two hundred and sixty days."

The end of the age has not occurred when Antichrist desecrates the temple, stopping the sacrifices and setting himself up as God. (Mt. 24)  The fullness of the Gentiles has not yet come in so when Israel flees to the wilderness, it will not be in faith with her Messiah.  When Antichrist is revealed, she will only recognize that Antichrist was not her Messiah. 

The dragon, or the devil, was enraged with Israel.  The devil has always hated Israel because Jesus came from Israel.  The devil is unable to get to Israel with her protected in the wilderness.  He goes off to make war then with the rest of Israel's children, those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus.

The gospel was first preached to Israel.  The first converts were Jewish believers.  Jewish believers were commissioned to make disciples from all nations.  Who are the rest of Israel's children, those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus?  The rest of Israel's children is the church that the Lord will still be in the process of building at the time Antichrist desecrates the temple.  As the church is being persecuted by Antichrist, the gospel will be going out.  When the number of the elect martyrs is complete, when the last person in this age has heard the gospel, this age will end, bringing the fullness of the Gentiles in, and the Lord will then turn His focus onto the salvation of Israel, the 144,000 being the first fruits.   

Zechariah 13:8,9:  "It will come about in all the land," 
Declares the LORD, 
"That two parts in it will be cut off and perish; 
But the third will be left in it.  
"And I will bring the third part through the fire, 
Refine them as silver is refined, 
And test them as gold is tested.  
They will call on My name, 
And I will answer them; 
I will say, 'They are My people,' 
And they will say, 
'The LORD is my God.' "

Revelation 14:1, 4:  "Then I looked, and behold, the Lamb was standing on Mt. Zion, and with Him one hundred and forty-four thousand, having His name and the name of His Father written on their foreheads...These are the ones who have not been defiled with women, for they have kept themselves chaste.  These are the one who follow the Lamb wherever He goes.  These have been purchased from among men as first fruits to God and to the Lamb."

Oh how precious is the blood of Jesus!

Daniel 9:24:  "Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy place."

I won't post it here, but the twelfth chapter of Zechariah would be a good read now too.  

Your thoughts on my conclusions are most welcome.

(By the way, I do think God will use an angel to announce the gospel as well...Check out Rev. 14:6,7.  The second half of Daniel's 70th Week is going to be an amazing time here on earth.)

One more thought just came to mind...Believing Jews will be in Israel at the time Antichrist desecrates the temple.  It makes sense that as this wave of people flees Judea, believing Jews will be among the crowds...What an opportunity to share the gospel they will have!