The Mosaic Law was actually a marriage covenant between God and the nation of Israel. According to this marriage covenant, God was to provide for Israel while Israel served God with a heart of love. However, Israel was an unfaithful wife, and God sent her away into captivity in Babylon. God brought Israel back to the promised land after 70 years, but one could say that the marriage was never reconciled because Israel was continuously under the rule of other nations.

John the Baptist and the Lord Jesus came to Israel preaching “the kingdom of heaven is at hand”. This was actually an offer to reconcile the marriage according to the New Covenant which was foretold by the prophets in the Old Testament scriptures.

I often mention that the nation of Israel as a whole rejected the New Covenant during the Acts period. That means that Israel rejected the marriage of the New Covenant as well as the New Covenant Kingdom. However, even a casual reading of the gospels and the book of Acts will reveal a considerable number of Jews who did believe that Jesus was the Messiah, and who did believe that Jesus had come to establish the New Covenant Kingdom. That raises the question of how many Jews had to believe before the Lord Jesus would actually take the reins of government and establish the kingdom.

First of all, the Lord Jesus was not a revolutionary. He did not come to overthrow the existing government by mean of a military revolution. All of the scriptures teach the importance of submission to the existing authorities. David would not overthrow Saul by force. Paul and Peter both instructed believers to be in submission to political authorities. When Peter drew his sword to defend the Lord Jesus, the Lord said to him,

Matt 26:52
52 . . . "Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword. (NKJ)

This would imply that at least the Jewish leadership would have to accept Jesus Christ by faith and voluntarily relinquish their power before Jesus could serve Israel as King. However, God actually has a much better plan for His ascension to power. Paul gave us a glimpse into that perfect plan in Romans 11.

Rom 11:26-27
26 And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:
27 For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins. (KJV)

During the tribulation period, the antichrist will dedicate himself to destroying every single Jew on the face of the earth. The anti-Semitism of Nazi Germany was but a hint of the hatred and annihilation the Jews will face under the antichrist. Even many believing Jews will be killed during that time, but God will protect 144,000 Jews from the terror of the antichrist.

When Christ returns to earth near the end of the tribulation period, He will gather His elect from the four winds of heaven.

Matt 24:30-31
30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. (KJV)

At that time kingdom saints, both living and dead, will be caught up into the clouds of heaven where they will be given glorified bodies. By this means all Israel will be saved. They will be joined with Christ in a marriage which is based on the New Covenant, and they will return to the earth with Christ to serve Him as His Bride in the New Covenant Kingdom.

Write me at: jimjoan77@juno.com

Other church links:
http://www.peacechurch-ok.org/
http://www.eleventhavenuechurch.com/
http://gracebiblechurch-fw.com/