The Revelation of God's Ways

I. Accomplishing His Purposes through a Remnant
A. The principle of the remnant -- Rom. 11:1-10
1. It is related to God's purposes with His people being actually fulfilled in a remnant/smaller number rather than the whole nation in the Old Testament or the entire outward professing church in the New Testament.
2. The remnant are always a group raised up according to God's selection and grace, completely apart from any works of their own - Rom. 11:5-6
B. The Remnant in the 0ld Testament
1. Individuals and groups
a) Abel - Heb. 11:4
b) Enoch - Heb. 11:5-6
c) Noah - Heb. 11:7
d) Abraham - Heb. 11:8-13
e) Joseph - Gen. 45:5, 7-8a
f) Moses - Heb. 11:23-29
g) The tribe of the Levites - Ex. 19:5-6; 32:25-26, Deut. 10:8-9
h) The Nazarites - 1 Sam. 6:1-12; 1 Sam. 1:11, 27-28; Luke 1:15
i) Caleb and Joshua - Num. 14:22-24, 30
j) Gideon's 300 - Judges 7:3-8
k) David - 2 Sam. 5:6-10; Acts 7:45-46; 13:22
l) Daniel - Dan. 1:8, 6:10-11
m) The remnant from the Babylonian captivity - Ezra 1:3, 5; 7:1, 6-7; Neh. 2:11, 17; Haggai 1:14
n) The recovery of the remnant - Isa. 11:10-11, 16
C. The Remnant in the New Testament
1. The Gospels
a) Simeon and Anna - Luke 2:25-38
b) John the Baptist - Luke 3:1-20
c) The widowed woman of Sarepta - Luke :25-26
d) The leper, Naaman - Luke 4:27
e) The man who built his house upon a rock - Matt. 7:21-27
f) The one sown on the good earth - Matt. 13:3-9, 18-23
g) The wise virgins - Matt. 25:1-13
h) The faithful servant - Matt. 25:14-30
i) The ones "taken" - Matt. 24:40-42
j) Those who do the will of God - Mark 3:31-35
2. Acts
a) The 12 apostles - Acts 2:14; 4:13
b) Stephen - Acts 6:9 - 7:60
c) Paul - Acts 28:30-31
3. The Epistles
a) The remnant - Rom. 9:27; 11:5
b) A seed - Rom. 9:29
c) Elijah and the 7000 - Rom. 11:2-5
d) He that is spiritual - 1 Cor. 2:12-16; 3:1-3
e) Builders with gold, silver and precious stones - 1 Cor. 3:12-15
f) The one that receives the prize - 1 Cor. 9:24--10:5
g) The "good" at the judgment seat of Christ - 2 Cor. 5:9-11
h) A pure virgin to Christ - I Cor. 11:2-3
i) Those that inherit the kingdom of God - Gal. 5:21-22; 1 Cor. 6:911;
Eph. 5:5-6
j) A glorious church - Eph. 5:26-27
k) As many as be perfect - Phil. 3:11-19
l) Every man perfect in Christ Jesus - Col. 1:28
m) 0vercomers at His coming - 1 Thess. 2:19; 3:12-13; 5:23
n) Those guarding the deposit - 1 Tim. 6:20; 2 Tim. 1:12-14
o) Vessels unto honor/those calling on the Lord out of a pure heart
- 2 Tim. 2:20-22
p) Those that love his appearing - 2 Tim. 4:6-8
q) Those who give the more earnest heed - Heb. 2:1-3
r) Those who enter into His rest - Heb. 3:11--4:11
s) Them that are of full age - Heb. 5:11-- 6:10
t) Those who hold fast the confession - Heb. 10:23-31
u) Them that believe - Heb. 10:38--11:4b
v) The runners in the race - Heb. 12:1
w) The precious fruit of the earth - James 5:7
x) Those speeding up His coming - 2 Pet. 3:11-12
y) The strong - 1 John 2:14
z) Whatsoever is born of God - 1 John 5:4-5
aa) A full reward - 2 John 8
ab) Those having the spirit - Jude 19-21
4. Revelation
a) The overcomers in the churches - Rev. 2:7, 11, 17, 26; 3:5, 12, 21
b) The great multitude - Rev. 7:9-17
c) The man-child - Rev. 12:1-11
d) The first fruits - Rev. 14:1-5
e) The overcomers over the beast - Rev. 15:2-4
f) The bride - Rev. 19:7-9
g) The army - Rev. 19:14-19
h) The New Jerusalem - Rev. 21:1--22:5
II. Accomplishing His Purposes in His Way
A. God's unchangeable purposes - Rom. 11:16, 23-29
1. The firstfruits and root = the fathers (Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob)
- Rom. 11:16, 28
2. God's gifts and calling are irrevocable - Rom. 11:29
B. God's short term purposes - Rom. 11:11-15
1. Using failure in the short term to work for His long term and larger purpose
C. God's long term purposes - Rom. 11:11-15
1. God's ways in history are always with His ultimate purposes in view
- Rom. 11:33-36
D. The nature of God's purposes
1. Carried out in the realm of Life- Rom. 11:15-24
2. Carried out oganically and corporately - Rom. 11:15-24
3. Carried out according to the selection of grace - Rom. 11:5-6
4. Carried out in mercy - Rom. 11:30-32
III. Accomplishing His Purposes through and with Israel
A. The divine view to understand the Nation
1. The divine analysis of the human race - 1 Cor. 10:32; Rom. 11:1-2a, 7, 11-12,
15-21, 23-29, 33; Luke 21:24; Rev. 11:2
2. The divine sovereignty over the world situation - Acts 17:24-27; Dan. 2:21; 4:17, 28-37; 5:18-21
3. The divine program for the present age - Acts 1:6-8; 1 Cor. 12:13; Acts 15:12-18; Eph. 3:8-11; Rom. 16:25-26
B. The prophetic beginning of the Nation
1. The calling of the nation - Gen. 12:1-3
2. The promises to the nation
a) A great nation - Gen. 12:1-3
b) The Land of Canaan - Gen. 12:7; 13:14-17; 15:18-21; 17:8
c) A multiplied seed - Gen. 13:15-16; 15:18; 17:1-8; 22:17-18
d) An everlasting covenant and possession - Gen. 17:7-8
C. The prophetic history of the Nation
1. The continuance of the Nation - Jer. 30:10-11; 31:35-37
2. The promise of the land - Isa.11:11-12; 14:1-3; 43:5-7; 60:21;Jer. 16:14-15;30:17; 32:36-41; Ezek. 20:33-38, 41-42; 34:13; 36:23-24 37:21-22; 39:25-29; Zech. 8:1-8
3. The promises to David - 2 Sam. 7:4-17; 1 Chron. 17:4-17; Acts 15:13-18
4. The New Covenant - Jer. 31:31-37; Ezek. 36:25-28; Heb. 8:7-12
5. The 70 weeks of Daniel - Dan. 9:24-27
a) The nature of the 70 weeks - Dan. 9:24
b) The commandment to restore - Dan. 9:25
- The beginning of the 70 weeks ( The edict of Artaxerxes - Neh. 2:1-8; March 14, B.C. 445)
c) 7 weeks (Dan. 9:25) = 49 years to the rebuilding of Jerusalem (Neh. 3-6)
d) 62 weeks (Dan. 9:26a) = 434 years to Messiah the Prince (Matt. 21:1-11; 27:33-50; A.D. 32)
e) The destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 (Dan. 9:26b)
f) The parenthesis between the 69th and 70th week = the mystery of the church - Matt. 16:18-19; Eph. 3:1-11; Rom. 11:25
g) The mystery finished - Rev. 10:7
h) Rapture of the overcoming believers - (Rev. 12:1-5; 14:1-5;
Matt. 24:40-42)
i) 1 week (Dan. 9:27) = 7 years to the open coming of Christ
(Matt. 24:27, 30; Rev. 1:7; Zech. 12:10)
(1) The first 3 1/2 years - Antichrist makes a covenant with Israel for 7 years
(2) The last 3 1/2 years - Antichrist breaks the covenant and begins the abomination of desolation (Dan. 9:27; Matt. 24:15). This ushers in the Great Tribulation (Matt. 24:21; Rev.11:2; 12:6, 14; 13:1-5) lasting 42 months = 1260 days = 3 1/2 years).
D. The rejection of the Nation
1. Rejecting their King - Matt. 21:1-17; John 1:11
2. Cursing the fig tree - Matt. 21:18-20; Jer. 24:2-3, 5, 8
3. Transferring the Kingdom of God - Matt.21:33-46
4. Forsaking Jerusalem with its temple - Matt. 23:37-39; 24:1-2 (note: Matt. 23:39
- This happens at the Lord's open coming, cf. Rom. 11:23, 26).
E. The present position of the Nation
1. The beginning of birth pangs - Matt. 24:4-14
2. The blossoming of the fig tree (Israel) - Matt. 24:32-34; cf. Matt. 21:19, 43
3. Jews received on an individual basis - John 1:10-13; Rom. 11:1-6
4. The restoration of the nation (1948)
5. The return of Jerusalem (1967 - cf. Lk. 21:24)
6. The rebuilding of the Temple (? - cf. 2 Thess. 2:1-4)
7. The 70th week of Daniel and the Great Tribulation (Dan. 9:27; Matt. 24:15-26)
a) The Great Tribulation period of 3 1/2 years begins with Rev. 6:12 and supernatural calamities and ends with Rev. 16:1-21 and the seven last bowls of judgment on the earth.
F. The future position of the Nation
1. Restoration - Acts 1:6; 3:21; (See C above)
2. Conversion of the nation - Zech. 12-14; Rom. 9-11; Matt. 24:27-31
3. The earthly part of the millennium
a) The kingdom of Messiah - 2 Sam. 7:13
b) The tabernacle of David - Acts 15:16
c) The kingdom of the Son of Man (Matt. 13:41; Rev. 11:15) with the saved Israelites (Rom.11:26-27; Zech. 12:10; Ezek. 36:25-28) as the priests (Zech. 8:20-23; Isa. 2:2-3)
4. The New Jerusalem - Rev. 21:9-15, 21