Attached is an insightful 8 paged prophetic teaching by GateKeepers
Prophetic Minister Mike Natt. Enjoy
*
Christians Uncompromised For Israel **
*

July 2008

By Mike Natt


          /Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, "This is the
          way, walk in it," Whenever you turn to the right hand or
          whenever you turn to the left (Isaiah 30:21)/


          /"He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the
          churches." (Revelation 2:29)///


          Understanding and adhering to God's truth is often like
          walking a tight rope. It requires balance in order to avoid
          the pitfalls on the left and the right.  The moral pitfalls of
          legalism and license illustrate this principle. Times change,
          culture changes, emphases change, but God and His Word never
          change.  He is eternal, and His truth endures forever (Psalm
          117:2).  Truth can be neglected or lost like the Book of the
          Law in the days preceding King Josiah (2 Kings 22:8).  Truths
          can be rediscovered and reemphasized such as "Justification by
          Faith" and "The Priesthood of All Believers" following the
          Protestant Reformation.  However, truth can only be lost and
          rediscovered in terms of man's understanding and adherence.
          Truth is enduring and unchangeable.  The same Spirit that
          inspired holy men to declare God's prophetic truth (2 Peter
          1:21) will lead us in understanding and applying truth today
          (John 16:13).


          One truth that was lost for much of the Church Age is the
          understanding of God's consummating and unchanging plan for
          the nation of Israel. Christians can debate and come to
          different conclusions on finer points of eschatology. The
          truth that God _has_ a unique and unchangeable, predetermined
          past, present and future destiny for the nation of Israel is
          clear in Scripture.  However, this truth was virtually lost
          throughout much of the Church Age, and is still disputed
          today.  Many Christians have come to a greater understanding
          of Biblical truth related to Israel during the past 60 years
          since Israel was reestablished as a modern nation.
          Rediscovery of these truths has accelerated during the past 40
          years after the city of Jerusalem returned to Jewish
          jurisdiction as prophesied by Jesus (Luke 21:24).


          Respected Christian leaders both past and present have
          interpreted and applied the Scriptures related to Israel in
          different ways. Teachers and leaders will be held to a
          stricter judgment (James 3:1). Those who know the Masters will
          (by implication, Christians living today with more
          understanding of God's will than Christians of previous
          generations) and don't do it are disciplined more severely
          than those who don't know His will (Luke 12:47).  Ultimately,
          each of us is responsible to search the Scriptures to
          determine what is true (Acts 17:11).  Distinguishing God's
          truth from church tradition and doctrines established
          centuries ago can be a daunting task! The Scriptures are the
          infallible Word of God in all matters of faith - including
          Israel. Sometimes God will overlook our ignorance (Acts
          17:30).  Some issues will be addressed in the present age, but
          all issues will ultimately be addressed before His judgment
          seat (2 Corinthians 5:9-10).


          Jesus is the head of His church (Colossians 1:18).  He is the
          same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8).  As He
          addressed issues in the seven churches in the Book of
          Revelation, so He addresses issues in the present church. When
          Jesus dealt with issues in the Ephesian church, He
          acknowledged positive things, and called them to deal with
          issues that displeased Him.  There would be consequences for
          disobeying what the Spirit was saying to the church.


          /I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you
          cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who
          say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars;
          and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored
          for My name's sake and have not become weary. Nevertheless I
          have this against you, that you have left your first love.
          Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do
          the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove
          your lampstand from its place--unless you repent. (Revelation
          2:2-5)/


          There are pitfalls on the left (Dual Covenant Theology) and
          pitfalls on the right (Replacement Theology) that have either
          added to or taken away from Scriptural requirements of
          salvation or God's plan for Israel.


          /Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall
          not add to it nor take away from it. (Deuteronomy 12:32). /


          This is by no means an exhaustive treatment of these
          subjects.  I am simply trying to address some key Biblical
          truths pertaining to God's purposes for Israel, and how the
          pitfalls of Dual Covenant Theology and Replacement Theology
          contradict Scripture.  First, let's take a brief look at the
          plumb line of Scriptural truths, against which all theology
          must be measured.


                                       _Scriptural Truths Pertaining To
          God's Purposes For Israel_


          1.       The land of Israel belongs to the descendents of
          Jacob as an everlasting possession.


          /He remembers His _covenant forever_,
                   The word which He _commanded_, _for a thousand
          generations_,
          _The covenant_ which He made with Abraham,
                   And His _oath_ to Isaac,
           And _confirmed_ it to Jacob for a _statute_,
                   To Israel as an _everlasting covenant_,
           Saying, "To you I will give the land of Canaan
                   As _the allotment of your inheritance_," (Psalm
          105:8-11)/


          /It shall come to pass in that day
                That the Lord shall set His hand again the second time
                To recover the remnant of His people who are left,
                From Assyria (Iraq) and Egypt,
                From Pathros (Egypt) and Cush (Ethiopia),
                From Elam (Iran) and Shinar (Iraq),
                From Hamath (Syria) and the islands of the sea.
                 He will set up a banner for the nations,
                And will assemble the outcasts of Israel,
                And gather together the dispersed of Judah
                From the four corners of the earth. (Isaiah 11:11-12)/


          2.       God will bless those who bless Israel, and curse
          those who curse Israel.


          /I will bless those who bless you,
                And I will curse him who curses you;
                And in you all the families of the earth shall be
          blessed." (Genesis 12:3)

          For thus says the LORD of hosts: "He sent Me after glory, to
          the nations which plunder you; for he who touches you touches
          the apple of His eye. (Zechariah 2:8)/


          3.       God's plan for Israel and the Jewish people is
          irrevocable.

/Thus says the LORD:

      "If heaven above can be measured,
      And the foundations of the earth searched out beneath,
      I will also cast off all the seed of Israel
      For all that they have done, says the LORD. (Jeremiah 31:37)/

/Concerning the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but concerning
the election they are beloved for the sake of the fathers. For the gifts
and the calling of God are irrevocable, (Romans 11:28-29)/


          4.       God will defend Israel against the nations that
          attack her.


          /And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a
          very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away
          will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth
          are gathered against it. (Zechariah 12:2)/


          /In that day the LORD will defend the inhabitants of
          Jerusalem; the one who is feeble among them in that day shall
          be like David, and the house of David shall be like God, like
          the Angel of the LORD before them. It shall be in that day
          that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against
          Jerusalem. (Zechariah 12:8-9)/


          5.       Israel will turn to their Messiah Jesus in the latter
          days.


          /For the children of Israel shall abide many days without king
          or prince, without sacrifice or sacred pillar, without ephod
          or teraphim. Afterward the children of Israel shall return and
          seek the LORD their God and David their king. They shall fear
          the LORD and His goodness in the latter days. (Hosea 3:4-5)/


          /"And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants
          of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they
          will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for
          Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one
          grieves for a firstborn. (Zechariah 12:10)/


          6.       God's work in the nation of Israel will result in an
          acceleration of His redemptive work in the nations
          (particularly the nations that are currently bound by the
          spirit of Islam).

/"Therefore say to the house of Israel, 'Thus says the Lord GOD: "I do
not do this for your sake, O house of Israel, but for My holy name's
sake, which you have profaned among the nations wherever you went. And I
will sanctify My great name, which has been profaned among the nations,
which you have profaned in their midst; _and the nations shall know that
I am the LORD," says the Lord GOD, "when I am hallowed in you before
their eyes_. (Ezekiel 36:22-23)/


          /In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria,
          and the Assyrian will come into Egypt and the Egyptian into
          Assyria, and the Egyptians will serve with the Assyrians. In
          that day Israel will be one of three with Egypt and Assyria--a
          blessing in the midst of the land, whom the LORD of hosts
          shall bless, saying, "Blessed is Egypt My people, and Assyria
          the work of My hands, and Israel My inheritance." (Isaiah
          19:23-25)/


          7.    Jesus will return to Jerusalem, and reign from that city.


          /And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives,
          Which faces Jerusalem on the east. And the Mount of Olives
          shall be split in two, >From east to west, Making a very large
          valley; Half of the mountain shall move toward the north And
          half of it toward the south. (Zechariah 14:4)/


          /Many people shall come and say, " Come, and let us go up to
          the mountain of the LORD, To the house of the God of Jacob; He
          will teach us His ways, And we shall walk in His paths." For
          out of Zion shall go forth the law, And the word of the LORD
          from Jerusalem. (Isaiah 2:3)/


          _Error of Dual Covenant Theology_

Dual Covenant Theology is a Christian
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian> belief which teaches Jews
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jew> can go to heaven
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heaven> simply by keeping the Law of Moses
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torah>, because of the "everlasting
covenant <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Covenant_%28biblical%29>" between
Abraham <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abraham> and God
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/God> expressed in the Old Testament
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Testament>, whereas Gentiles
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gentile> (those not Jews or Jewish
proselytes <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proselytes>) must convert to
Christianity <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity>. (Wikipedia)


          Dual Covenant Theology dishonors Christ, dishonors Scripture,
          and it gives the Jewish people a false sense hope of their
          eternal state apart from embracing their Messiah.


          Paul makes three important assertions in Romans 1:16:


          1.                 The gospel of Christ (Messiah) is the power
          of God unto salvation.


          2.                 The gospel is to be proclaimed to the Jew.


          3.                 He is not ashamed of the gospel of Christ.


          The New Testament is abundantly clear that our faith in
          Christ's atoning death, burial, and resurrection is the only
          means of eternal salvation.


          /Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other
          name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."
          (Acts 4:12)/


          /I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the
          Father except through Me. (John 14:6)/


          Paul strove in his preaching, practice, and prayer to convince
          Jewish people to believe in Jesus as their Messiah.


          /Immediately he preached the Christ in the synagogues, that He
          is the Son of God. (Acts 9:20)/


          /Because for the hope of Israel I am bound with this chain."
          (Acts 28:20)/


          /Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is
          that they may be saved. (Romans 10:1)/


          Many who adhere to Dual Covenant Theology publicly distance
          themselves from Messianic Jewish believers so that they will
          not "offend" the Jewish people. While we should be
          compassionate, patient and sensitive to Jewish people, we must
          never compromise our beliefs or our association with brethren
          in the faith.


          Paul sternly rebuked Peter who was ashamed of associating with
          Gentile believers.


          /Now when Peter had come to Antioch, I withstood him to his
          face, because he was to be blamed; for before certain men came
          from James, he would eat with the Gentiles; but when they
          came, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing those who
          were of the circumcision. (Galatians 2:11-12)/


          He urged Timothy, his son in the faith, to not be ashamed of
          bearing the testimony of Christ.


          /Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor
          of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for
          the gospel according to the power of God, (1 Timothy 1:8)/


          Jesus is very direct and clear about the consequences of being
          ashamed of Him and His words in this adulterous and sinful
          generation.


          /For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous
          and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be
          ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy
          angels." (Mark 8:38)/


          We should never compromise our beliefs.  This dishonors
          Christ.  It is often born out of the fear of man or an attempt
          to avoid reproach for the sake of Christ. Jewish people are
          intelligent and perceptive, and they will recognize
          disingenuous behavior.  Ultimately, the Jewish people will
          respect a Christian who is loving, sensitive, yet clear about
          his faith.  For an excellent example of an authentic
          relationship between a Christian and a Jew, I recommend the
          book "The Christian and the Pharisee: Two Outspoken Religious
          Leaders Debate the Road to Heaven
         
<http://www.amazon.com/Christian-Pharisee-Outspoken-Religious-Leaders/dp/04466
97346/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1214072340&sr=1-1>"
          by R. T. Kendall and David Rosen.


          It is a sobering truth that all people who reject Jesus as
          Messiah spend eternity apart from Him in an eternal state of
          torment.  This is too important of a truth to withhold from
          anyone, especially the Jewish people.


          /Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for
          if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your
          sins." (John 8:24)/


          _Error of Replacement Theology_

*Replacement Theology teaches that the church has replaced the Jewish
people and the nation of Israel in the purposes of God. It boldly
declares that the Church is now the "New Israel," that God has rejected
and is punishing the Jewish people because of their rejection of Jesus
Christ, and that there is no future for the Jewish people as a nation or
the land of Israel. According to Replacement Theology, all the Old
Testament promises made to Israel, unless they were historically
fulfilled before the first coming of Messiah, are now the property of
the Christian Church.** **(adapted from the article "The Resurgence of
Christian Anti-Semitism" by Gene Shaparenko).**__*


          Replacement Theology also dishonors Christ, dishonors
          Scripture, and it gives the church a false sense of identity
          apart from its Hebraic roots. Robbing Israel of its rightful
          place in God's purposes robs the church of many blessings.
          Certainly, as a people grafted into the Olive Tree, Gentile
          believers today are partakers of the Old Testament prophetic
          promises originally intended for Israel. However, in context,
          some promises are exclusively for Israel.


          There are two mysteries that all believers must recognize.
          Ignorance of the first mystery promoted pride in some early
          Jewish believers, and ignorance of the second mystery has
          promoted pride in some Gentile believers.


          1.       The Gentiles are joint heirs with the Jews.


          /by which, when you read, you may understand my knowledge in
          _the mystery of Christ_), which in other ages was not made
          known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed by the
          Spirit to His holy apostles and prophets: that the Gentiles
          should be fellow heirs, of the same body, and partakers of His
          promise in Christ through the gospel (Ephesians 3:4-6)/


          2.       The nation of Israel will be restored.


          /For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be _ignorant
          of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion_,
          that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the
          fullness of the Gentiles has come in. /


          /And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written:

                " The Deliverer will come out of Zion,
                And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob;
                 For this is My covenant with them,
                When I take away their sins." (Romans 11:25-27)/


          Here are some additional reasons why Christians must recognize
          God's unique plan for the Jewish people and the nation of Israel.


          1.                 God chose the nation of Israel for a unique
          purpose.  Israel's election is for God's glory:


          /This is God's wisdom, God's plan, all for His glory/


          /Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge
          of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past
          finding out!
                 "For who has known the mind of the LORD?
                Or who has become His counselor?"//^ /


          /      "Or who has first given to Him
                And it shall be repaid to him?"

          For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom
          be glory forever. Amen. (Romans 11:33-36)/


          2.                 God did not make a covenant with The
          Gentiles.  The Gentiles are partakers of God's covenant with
          Israel. Salvation was extended to the Gentiles in order to
          provoke Israel to jealousy.


          /Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make
          a new covenant _with the house of Israel and with the house of
          Judah_ (Jeremiah 31:31)/


          /I say then, have they stumbled that they should fall?
          Certainly not! But through their fall, to provoke them to
          jealousy, salvation has come to the Gentiles. (Romans 11:11)/


          3.                 All Christians should be thankful for the
          blessings and inheritance they have obtained through Israel.


          /Who are Israelites, to whom pertain the adoption, the glory,
          the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and
          the promises; of whom are the fathers and from whom, according
          to the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the eternally
          blessed God. Amen (Romans 9:4-5)/


          /You will say then, "Branches were broken off that I might be
          grafted in."  Well said. Because of unbelief they were broken
          off, and you stand by faith. Do not be haughty, but fear.  For
          if God did not spare the natural branches, He may not spare
          you either. Do not boast against the branches. But if you do
          boast, remember that you do not support the root, but the root
          supports you. (Romans 11:18-21)/


          For a more complete rendering of how a Christian should regard
          Israel and the Jewish people, I recommend the book "Your
          People Shall Be My People" by Don Finto.


          /Now if their fall is riches for the world, and their failure
          riches for the Gentiles, how much more their fullness! (Romans
          11:12)/