Today’s Devotional – March 16th (Paul the Ultimate Replacement Theologian! Part 3)
By admin On January 14th, 2021.
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Today’s Devotional – March 16th
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Paul the Ultimate Replacement Theologian!
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Part 3
To read Part 1, click here… “March 14th (Paul the Ultimate Replacement Theologian!)”
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At the very end of Paul’s letter to the Galatians, he finishes with the dramatic statement… 
“For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing,
nor uncircumcision, but a new creature.
And as many as walk according to this rule,
peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God.
Galatians 6:15-16.
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Now there exists some confusion as to just who Paul is referring to as, “the Israel of God”, in this closing salutation found in Galatians.
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Many, or perhaps even most will say this is speaking of literal Israel over there in Palestine.
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And yet, some say this has to be referring to God’s faithful Believers.
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WHAT DID HENRY SAY?
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Now, that most notable theologian, Matthew Henry, made the following comment as to just who Paul was referring to, when he spoke of “the Israel of God”, at the end of the Galatian Epistle.
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Listen to Henry… “The Jews and judaizing teachers were for confining these blessings (peace & 
mercy) to such as were circumcised and kept the law of Moses.
mercy) to such as were circumcised and kept the law of Moses. But, on the contrary, the apostle declares that they (blessings of peace and mercy) BELONG TO ALL WHO WALK ACCORDING TO THE RULE OF THE GOSPEL, or of the new creature, even to all the Israel of God…
…INTIMATING THAT THOSE ONLY ARE THE TRUE ISRAEL OF GOD WHO WALK ACCORDING TO THIS RULE (the rule of becoming a new creation in Christ), and not that of circumcision, which they insisted so much upon, and therefore that this was the true way to obtain peace and mercy.”
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In other words, Henry correctly saw that only those who walk according to true circumcision of the heart are the true “Israel of God!”
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And it could not possibly be speaking of national Israel, since for the most part, they utterly failed to become a new creation!
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And neither do they, as a civil government, have “peace and mercy”, as God pronounces here in Galatians, through the hand of Paul.
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Matthew Henry – Wikipedia – Public Domain
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THE GREAT MESSAGE OF GALATIANS
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And of course, that was the whole point of Paul’s letter to the Galatians.
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Paul was trying to show this Gentile church, that such ceremonies and rituals were totally meaningless, and would ultimately bring that Galatian church into apostasy.
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And in the midst of his letter, he made this statement…
“Even as Abraham believed God,
and it was accounted to him for righteousness.
Know ye therefore that they which are of faith,
the same are the children of Abraham.”
Galatians 3:6, 7.
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Here Paul reveals just who are the true children of Abraham: those who live by faith, both Jew and Gentile alike!
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Schnorr von Carolsfeld – 1860 – Abram counts stars – Wikipedia – Public Domain
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“NEITHER GREEKS, JEWS, MALE OR FEMALE”
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Now Paul is revealing to Galatia, that being a Jew, means much more than simply being a Jew, “after the flesh” (see 1st Corinthians 10:18, for “after the flesh” reference).
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And Paul repeats this idea, in this next passage…
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Listen… “There is neither Jew nor Greek,
there is neither bond nor free,
there is neither male nor female:
for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.
And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed,
and heirs according to the promise.”
Galatians 3:28, 29.
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Here Paul says that God no longer is a respecter of the Jews above the gentiles.
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We are all now on equal ground, in Christ.
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“For I could wish that myself were accursed…for…my kinsmen”
Romans 9, (The Apostle, Paul, speaking of “Israel, according to the flesh”)
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Now, should Christians have a yearning in their hearts for “Israel-after-the-flesh”?
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Of course they should!
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And even though we know that God will never re-institute His sacrificial system in the nation of Israel, nevertheless, our prayers and hope are for the Salvation of each and every individual “Jew-after-the-flesh”!
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And it is really disingenuous for the apostate church-world to hang upon our necks, their unbiblical and derogatory tag, “replacement theology”, and make the false claim that we hate the Jews or are anti-Zionists!
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Paul had a great self-sacrificial love for his fellow kinsmen!
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And so should we!
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Jewish Children with their Teacher in Samarkand – Wikipedia – Public Domain
Paul persecuted by Pharisees & Sadducees – www.thebiblerevival.com – US Public Domain
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NO MORE BRICK-N-MORTAR TEMPLE
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Hopefully, there has been enough evidence presented in these three articles to cause those who desire to know the great spiritual nature of the Bible, to further search out and explore just what God was trying to tell us about Salvation, when He gave us these testimonies.
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Oh yes, to be sure, there was a literal nation of Israel in the Old Testament.
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And one great reason that God raised them up in the Old Testament, was to present us with allegorical pictures of His unfolding plan of Salvation.
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But they were a part of all the other many wonderful Bible stories, which presented the Gospel of Jesus Christ in pictures, in such a way, that reveals the great spiritual truths to us, “upon whom the ends of the world are come.”
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USMC – Prayer before Bible study – Wikimedia – Public Domain
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FOR YE ARE THE TEMPLE
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And though God may save very many literal Jews in these last days, God will never again raise up the Old Testament sacrificial system.
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Jesus was the fulfillment of that Old Testament temple service, and He is the only true temple, and we are the living stones in that eternal temple.
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Listen… “and the street of the city (New Jerusalem) was pure gold,
as it were transparent glass.
And I saw no temple therein:
for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.”
Revelation 21:21, 22
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TODAY’S PRAYER…
“Dear Lord, Help me to be a lover of truth. Give me the grace to not idolize my teachers, nor my favorite doctrines.
But help me to love the Bible above all, and to merely seek the truth, regardless of the consequences…
Woman Praying – cropped image – Wikimedia – Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license
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READ MORE…
To explore deeper into this subject, please read… “Fleeing to the Mountains: The Abomination in the Church, Part 1”…
…or you can also read…September 13 (“Do Replacement Theology Christians Hate Jews?”)
Question book magnify svg – Wikimedia – GNU license
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THE END
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TODAY’S FEATURED HEAVENLY SIGN
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ORION THE SOLDIER
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The pagan cultures saw this incredible constellation as a hunter, with a club.
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Well, they weren’t too far off.
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Actually, God created it to appear like a soldier.
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This is because all nature presents aspects of the Gospel.
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Listen… “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows his handiwork.” Psalm 19:1.
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Orionurania – Wikipedia – public domain
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7 MAJOR STARS OF ORION…
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Orion Constellation can best be seen all winter (but even in August in the pre-dawn hours of morning in eastern skies) traveling east to west through the night, in mid-sky.
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To find the seven major stars of Orion (one star on
each shoulder and one star on each foot, plus the three stars which make his belt), you can locate on just about any clear night regardless of the blackness of the night.
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To find Orion’s other stars, you need more star-visibility…a darker, moonless night, and possibly away from city lights.
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Orion – Wikimedia – share-alike license
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READ MORE…
To explore deeper into this subject, please read… “The Orion Phenomena”…
…or you can also read… “Orion the Soldier (Armor of God)”
Question book magnify svg – Wikimedia – GNU license
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TOMORROW:
“March 17th (Why Doesn’t My Christianity Work? Part 2)”
Question Mark – Wikimedia – Public Domain
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20+ MINUTE AUDIO STUDY IN JEREMIAH 
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ALL‘NOBLE BEREANS’ (open-minded seekers of Bible truth) ARE ENCOURAGED TO BEGIN FOLLOWING THIS 650+ AUDIO BIBLE STUDY THROUGH THE BOOK OF JEREMIAH EACH DAY ON THIS DAILY DEVOTIONAL.
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THIS STUDY #75 IS PRESENTED BY THE LATE HAROLD CAMPING, FORMER CEO OF FAMILY RADIO…
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Harold Camping Jeremiah Series #75
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above picture: Prophet Jeremiah – www.christianimagesource.org – Public Domain