On Thursday night, we began concluding our short series on Israel's Two Salvations. I am very pleased with the great interest it has generated and the recognition that it provides answers to Bible passages that have long troubled believers, like James 2:14-26. A few have asked if I know this teaching is contrary to most other teaching out there on this subject. I know, but am untroubled because most of historic Christianity has rejected Paul's distinct apostleship and, therefore, is in rebellion against God and His Word. A very few others, those looking for safety in numbers, asked: Who else teaches these things? My answer to this is to say that these teachings are supported by the only ones who really matter: God the Father--God the Son—God the Holy Spirit; Paul, Peter, James and John; all the holy prophets; and the Scriptures as a whole! And that's good enough company for me and gives me all the security I need!!

What Salvation? Pt. 2
(James 2:14)

Because most of historic Christianity has thrown away rightly-dividing the Bible by discarding Paul's distinct apostleship, James 2:14-26 has become an endless source of confusion and despair for members of the Body of Christ, beginning with v. 14: What does it profit, my brethren, though a man say he has faith and have not works? Can faith save him?

First, we need to appreciate that this verse did not just fall from nowhere out of the clear blue sky! It has a context. It flows out of James 1:1-2:13 and flows into James 3-5. Doing so, will force us to ask questions like: What, exactly, does the “it” that is supposed to bring profit to the brethren (and Christ) refer back to? And, what, exactly, is the “man” saved from and to? We will answer the former question in Pt. 2 of this article, and the latter question below.

WHAT “SALVATION”?

Based on the immediate context, what we do know definitively is that this salvation cannot be referring to individual salvation before God and His Tribunal—to being justified or declared right as ENEMY SINNERS before Him, granted eternal life, by faith without works. This is because James identified his readers earlier in chapters 1-2 as ones who already had individual salvation based on the Crosswork of Christ and, therefore were eternally secure. James identified them as brethren—fellow members of the Believing Remnant of Israel (James 1:1; 2, 16, 19; 2:1, 5, 14). He stated categorically that they have the faith of Christ, the Lord of glory (James 2:1) —they had faith in Christ's faithful work for them on the Cross—i.e., individual salvation and forgiveness of all personal sins. In addition, James said that along with himself, they were born of God with the word of truth, the first fruits of His new creations, from whom He will create His own saved and restored--great and holy--Nation of Israel, fulfilling His Prophetic Program with them.

Therefore, the salvation in context is referring to Israel's national salvation—to being justified or declared right as RIGHTEOUSN FRIENDS before Christ at His 2nd Coming by faith with works, forgiven all association with Israel's national debt of sin/s, resulting in an abounding entrance into God's long-prophesied everlasting earthly Kingdom where they will live out their everlasting life (James 2:5, 13; 5:7‑9; 1 Pet. 1:3-11; Mat. 21:43; Acts 1:6).

On the one hand, this salvation saved them from that untoward and perverse, evil and wicked generation upon whom the wrath of God was coming, especially in and through the Tribulation Period, and especially in its final 3.5 years (James 1:3‑5, 12, 5:7‑9; Acts 2:40, 47).

On the other hand, it saved them unto God's good and perfect blessings (James 1:12) that would save their souls from physical death because of UNRIGHTEOUSNESS (James 1:14‑21; 2:13; 5:9; Acts 2-4 with 5:1-11), justified before Christ at His 2nd Coming, culminating in an abounding entrance into the Kingdom (James 2:5; 5:7‑9; 1 Pet. 1:3-11).

Next time we will look at what was supposed to bring profit to the brethren.

We continued our important study of the two major salvations in God's Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel by looking at the infamous passage of James 2:14-26, which has caused so much needless confusion and despair within historic Christianity.

WHAT DOES IT PROFIT (James 2:14)?

The most important thing to realize when it comes to the controversial passage of James 2:14-26 is that it doesn't fall out of the clear blue sky. It has a context. First, it belongs in the broad context of God's Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel to restore His glory on earth, which had been spoken about since the world began as revealed in the non-Pauline Scriptures (Lk. 1:72; Acts 3:21). Therefore, it is NOT in the context of God's Mystery Program with the Body of Christ to restore His glory in the heavenlies, which was NOT spoken about but kept secret since the world began as revealed in the Pauline Scriptures (Rom. 16:25; Eph. 3:1-10). Second, it belongs in the immediate context of James 1:1-2:13 and leads into James 3-5. Therefore, it does NOT belong in the context of Rom. 1-4. Having the right context in mind, we can make several observations:

1. James is writing to the Believing Remnant of the scattered 12 Tribes of the Nation of Israel (James 1:1--i.e., those who have the faith of the Lord Jesus Christ—the Lord of Glory—James 2:1), especially as ones who will be going through the Tribulation Period, which culminates in the 2nd Coming of Christ.
   (James 1:1‑12; 2:1‑13; 5:7‑9)
2. Since James is writing to believers—those who already have individual salvation before God and His Tribunal, granted everlasting life and forgiven all personal sins by faith without works—he is not writing about how sinners become saints before God—justification as ENEMY SINNERS before God--but how those who are individually saved can go on to participate in another “salvation”—Israel's national salvation by faith with works—justification as RIGHTEOUS FRIENDS before Christ at His 2nd Coming for an abounding entrance into the Kingdom.
   (James 2:5)
3. And to participate in this (James 2:5), believing Israel must make use of the foretaste of New Covenant and Kingdom blessings God will give them, especially as they go through the Tribulation Period, and especially, ESPECIALLY, as they go through its final 3.5 years.
   (Mat. 25:31-46)
4. In God's Prophetic Program the ultimate hope of every Israelite, especially every believing Israelite (and friendly believing Gentiles associated with them), is to have an abounding entrance into Israel's long-prophesied Kingdom of God on earth.
   (1 Pet. 1:13; Hos. 2:15; Ex. 19:6)
5. Therefore, James asks: What, brethren (fellow members of the Believing Remnant of Israel), does it profit/benefit (profit the person whose hope is being declared right—justified—before Christ at His 2nd Coming for an abounding entrance into the kingdom; profit the brethren as a whole; or profit the Lord Jesus Christ) if someone says he has faith (as an individually saved person, a member of the Believing Remnant of Israel—justified before God unto everlasting life by faith without works) but does not have works (in ministry to Christ's people and through them Christ Himself)? Can (that) faith save him (from the coming wrath upon that evil generation and unto an abounding entrance into the Kingdom by being declared right before Christ at His 2nd Coming by faith with works as a participant in Israel's national salvation?) Of course NOT!
6. Let's highlight the logic.
   1. What benefit is there if God gives the members of the Believing Remnant His good and perfect gifts, gifts that can save their souls from the wrath coming upon that evil generation, equipping them to faithfully endure to the end of the Tribulation Period while ministering to the brethren in unity and peace and through them Christ (James 1:17, 21; 5:7‑9)—what's the benefit of all that IF THEY DON'T MAKE USE OF THOSE BLESSINGS? None. The person who hopes to be declared right before Christ at His 2nd Coming for an abounding entrance into the Kingdom, won't profit because his hope won't be fulfilled. And Christ and His people won't benefit because that person's lack of support deprives them of what they need.
      Do you think Christ will declare right (justify) such a one at His 2nd coming? NO, he will be declared wrong!
   2. And what benefit is there for someone to try to maintain his riches while being poor in faith and faithfulness, depriving the brethren of his support, when God has chosen those who are rich in faith and faithfulness, and, therefore, poor in the things of the world (because of severe persecution of God's people in the Tribulation Period) to be the inheritors of the Kingdom--?!
      James 1:11‑12; 2:1-6)
      
      Do you think Christ will declare right (justify) such a one at His 2nd Coming for participation in Israel's national salvation, which God will accomplish through believing Israel, the brethren--the very people of Christ the person refused to minister to?! NO, he will be declared wrong!
   3. And what benefit is there if you will be judged by the (KING'S) Royal Law, which demands perfect obedience (and which they will be empowered to do through God's provision of a foretaste of New Covenant blessings (James 1:21; 4:5)) at Christ the KING's return if you break His most fundamental summary command: Love thy neighbor (especially thy brethren!) as thyself (James 2:6‑13)?!
      
      Do you think the KING will declare right such a one at His 2nd Coming? NO, he will be declared wrong!
   4. And what benefit is there if when Christ returns in all Glory and Power as Judge He will judge according to the principle that those who ministered to the least of His people simultaneously ministered to Him (James 2:15‑16; Mat. 25:31-39). Whereas those who despised, deserted and deprived Christ's people simultaneously despised, deserted and deprived Christ (James 1:1-2:13).
      
      It is the former group that will be approved —declared right— —justified— at His 2nd Coming, welcomed with an abounding entrance into Israel's long-prophesied Kingdom of Peace and Righteousness on earth. The latter group, however, will be declared wrong—disapproved—condemned— at His 2nd Coming when He comes as Judge (James 5:9)?

In short, James 2:14 warns every member of believing Israel that they will need to make use of all the blessings God will give them to participate in Israel's national salvation that will save them out of the trials and difficulties of the Tribulation Period and save them unto the peace and prosperity of Israel's Millennial Kingdom. If they don't, there is no benefit—to themselves, to the brethren or to Christ.

We continued our study of the two major salvations and justifications in God's Prophetic Program in James 2:17-26 by looking at the faith of devils and the faith of Abraham.

WHAT IS DEAD FAITH
(James 2:17-20)?

INTRODUCTION

Last time we looked at James 2:14‑16. We saw that James is NOT talking about how unrighteous enemy sinners participate in individual salvation before God (justification before God and His Tribunal unto everlasting life by faith WITHOUT works), but about how righteous friends (saints) participate in Israel's national salvation unto an abounding entrance into the everlasting Kingdom to live out, inherit, their everlasting life there (justification before Christ at His 2nd Coming by faith WITH works).

Even though in the former case (individual salvation before God) faith is separated from the sinner's works, it is not dead and alone but alive and complete because it is connected to Christ and His Work/s. And in the latter case (Israel's national salvation) faith is alive and complete when it is connected to the saint's works, which show the fruit of God working in and through him.

DEAD FAITH

James goes on to explain that the person who has faith (a believer with individual salvation) but hides it by separating it from works that minister to Christ and His people, especially during the Tribulation Period: his faith is dead. It is not dead because it never existed or ceased to exist, but because it is separated from works, being left alone. James illustrates this in v. 26 with a body that has been separated from the spirit/soul: It is dead! Not because the body never existed or ceased to exist (they are digging up bodies that have been buried for thousands of years!) but because it is unable to reach its intended purpose of embodied physical life.

So too, in the context of God's Prophetic Program, which will be fulfilled by Israel's national salvation, faith is dead when separated from the saint's works. Not because it never existed or ceased to exist but because it is unable to reach its intended purpose of ministering to Christ, the Believing Remnant (the brethren), especially during the Tribulation Period, culminating in a believer being approved (declared right—justified) before Christ at His 2nd Coming thereby gaining a warm welcome with an abounding entrance into Israel's earthly Kingdom (Acts 1:6), which is ALL ISRAEL'S GREATEST AND ULTIMATE HOPE!

LOOSE PARAPHRASE

James 2:17—

Even so--in this way, the unfaithful believer's faith being without works won't profit/benefit Christ and His People in the midst of great persecution, and the unfaithful believer will not gain/profit the approval of Christ at His 2nd Coming for an abounding entrance into Israel's earthly Kingdom by participating in Israel's national salvation, which is every true Israelite's greatest hope.

faith, if it has not works, is dead, being alone—without works, faith is hidden and left by itself, separated from its intended purpose of, on the one hand, supporting fellow members of the Believing Remnant of Israel, the brethren, and, on the other hand, of gaining for the believer an abounding entrance into the Kingdom. Therefore, that faith is DEAD.

James 2:18

Ye, a man may say: You have faith, and (I say) I have works (with faith). (If I say) show me your faith without your works—which you won't be able to do because works are what make a person's inner invisible faith, which can only be seen by God, visible).

And I will show you my faith by my works--for faith that is unshown (hidden) is dead because it won't reach its end goal of ministering to Christ by ministering to the brethren, nor will it result in participation in Israel's national salvation for an abounding entrance into the Kingdom.

James 2:19

You (for example) believe that there is one God; you do well (as far as it goes): (But so do) the devils also believe and tremble--even the devils (disobedient spirit beings) show their faith is alive by doing works of fear and trembling as they look ahead to coming judgment of Christ (Mat. 8:29; Mk. 1:23‑24)!

This illustration is another proof that that James is not talking about individual salvation from sin and spiritual death before God in this passage, for individual salvation does not apply to spirit beings—angels or devils. But participation in Israel's national salvation does apply to them—just read the Book of Revelation! When Christ returns to fulfill His Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel, He will do so by destroying His enemies—human and spirit/angelic—and saving His friends—believing Israel and their believing Gentile friends. Then God's elect spirit beings—angels--will minister to the Nation of Israel and the Gentile nations that make up the Kingdom (Heb. 1:14; Lk. 1:19; Dan. 10:13, 21; 12:1; the Book of Revelation).

James' point is that if even believing disobedient spirit beings--devils--show their faith is alive by their works of fear and trembling at the coming judgment of Christ, what does that say about disobedient human believers who don't show their faith is alive by works, not even the works of fearing and trembling at the coming judgment of Christ! Nothing good! In other words: Does anyone think that disobedient believers (whose faith isn't even as responsive as that of the devils!!) will be approved and declared right by Christ at His 2nd Coming for participation in Israel's national salvation and an abounding entrance into the Kingdom! No way: O VAIN man.

James 2:20—

(And now we come full circle from v. 17) But will you know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead--because it remains unshown (hidden), therefore, unable to reach its intended goal of benefiting Christ and His People, and unable to gain for the unfaithful believer the greatest desire of every true Israelite: an abounding entrance into Israel's long-prophesied earthly Kingdom!

We continue our study of the two major salvations and justifications in God's Prophetic Program as presented in James 2:17-26. Last time we looked at the faith of devils, and this week we looked at the faith of Abraham.

Faith of Believing Angels and Humans

In the context of God's Prophetic Program, James warns the members of the Believing Remnant of Israel, especially as they go through the Tribulation Period, that while participation in individual salvation (justification before God) is by faith WITHOUT works (of their own but connected to Christ's Work/s--James 1:18; 2:1, et al.); their participation in Israel's national salvation is by faith with (their own) works, the works of ministering to Christ and His people. Doing this will result in being approved, justified, before Christ at His 2nd Coming for an abounding entrance into Israel's long-prophesied Kingdom of God on earth (Acts 1:6). Not doing so, however, will result in disapproval, being declared wrong before Christ at His 2nd Coming for a less than abounding entrance into the Kingdom or even exclusion from it.

One way James illustrates this is with the fact that even the faith of believing disobedient devils is not dead because it can be seen in their works of trembling in anticipation of Christ's 2nd Coming as Judge (Mat. 8:29; Mk. 1:23‑24; 5:7)! This illustration proves that James is not referring to the “faith without works” for participation in individual salvation before God because fallen angels are not offered that! Rather, he is referring to the “faith with works” that leads to participation in Israel's national salvation. In other words, while angels will not participate in individual salvation (for Christ became a human to save humanity not an angel to save angels—Heb. 2:7‑9!), they will participate in Israel's national salvation by ministering to the saved and restored Nation of Israel and the friendly Gentile nations in the Kingdom (Heb. 1:14; Lk. 1:19; Dan. 10:13, 21; 12:1 Dan. 10:13, 21; 12:1; Mat. 4:1-11).

Let's summarize the salvations of men and angels in chart form:

We finished our study of James with regard to Isreal's two salvations/justifications. In addition, we addressed the great error of Rewards Theology, how it moves our focus away from Christ and places it on ourselves.

The Bottom Line On James 2:14-26

We have seen that James in no way contradicts Paul. They are referring to two different salvations/justifications. Paul is explaining how enemy sinners are saved unto everlasting life, forgiven all personal sins—i.e., justification by faith without works before God—individual salvation. This is applicable to all dispensations and programs. James, however, explains how individually saved saints—righteous friends--in God's Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel, can also participate in Israel's national salvation unto life in Israel's earthly Kingdom, forgiven all association with Israel's national debt of sins—i.e., justification by faith with works before Christ at His 2nd Coming.

So let's spell it out step-by-step:

Individual Salvation—This salvation applies to all people in every program, dispensation, age, time, etc. Abraham, Rahab, James and his readers, every believer in the Dispensation of Grace—and all sinners born into the world since the fall of Adam—justification of enemy sinners before God, granted eternal life and forgiven all personal sins, by faith without works. But we must be clear. This faith without works is not alone or dead because while disconnected from the enemy sinner's works, it is connected by God to Christ's work. Paul in the Pauline Scriptures explains this.

Israel's National Salvation—This salvation applies only to saints in God's Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel who have already participated in individual salvation. In His Prophetic Program, saints also have the opportunity to participate in Israel's national salvation, forgiven all association with Israel's national debt of sin/s unto an abounding life in Israel's earthly Kingdom. This is justification of righteous friends before Christ at His 2nd Coming, and it is by faith with works, which is also not alone or dead because it is connected to the righteous friend's works. James and the non-Pauline Scriptures fully explain this.

On Thursday night, we continued looked at why understanding and appreciating the two (major) salvations in God's Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel is so important. First, our "reward" is a clear understanding not only of how individual sinners are saved in any dispensation, but how that salvation is eternally secure as well because it is not based on us and our works but on Christ and His Work/s. Second, it "rewards" us by opening up the Scriptures, especially the non-Pauline Scriptures.

How Israel's Two Salvations Enhance Bible Understanding (Pt. 1)

When we appreciate the two (major) salvations in God's Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel, it will enhance our reading, studying and understanding of the whole Bible.

INTRODUCTION

Everything begins with Individual Salvation—justification of ENEMY SINNERS before God by faith without works of the sinner (because God attaches the sinner's faith to Christ and His Work/s) unto eternal life. Individual Salvation applies to all sinners in all dispensations, ages and times--both in His Prophetic Program and in His Mystery Program. It applies to all powerless, ungodly sinners born into the world as members of a humanity on enemy status before God. In short, it applies to every single person born into the world since the fall of Adam.

In God's Prophetic Program, Moses made sure this universal fact was made known and easily understood when he stated categorically that Abraham (as an idol-worshipping Gentile, an ungodly sinner on enemy status before God) believed in the LORD (and His Word to him) and He counted it (his faith) to him for righteousness—justification before God without any works of the sinner (because God attaches the sinner's faith to Christ and His Work/s). And Paul re-affirms this truth in God's Mystery Program (Rom. 4:3).

Then, in God's Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel, believers—SAINTS—those who have already participated in Individual Salvation are qualified to participate in Israel's National Salvation as well—justification as RIGHTEOUS FRIENDS before Christ at His 2nd Coming by faith with the works of His SAINT'S (which are really works God produces in and through them!) for abounding life in Israel's earthly Kingdom. This second salvation, Israel's National Salvation, ONLY applies to believers in God's Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel. It does not apply to us today in God's Mystery Program with the Body of Christ because today God is not working with the Nation of Israel, and He won't again until He ends the Dispensation of Grace through the Rapture and restarts His Prophetic Program with Israel in which Israel's National Salvation will once more be in effect.

LET'S OPEN OUR BIBLES

Let's look at some examples to see how this works:

1. James 2:21‑24:
1. Individual Salvation—Abraham believed God and it was counted unto him for righteousness—justification as an enemy sinner before God by faith without (his) works unto everlasting life (James 2:23a Gen. 15:6).
2. Israel's National Salvation—Then, having participated in individual salvation, he was qualified to participate in Israel's National Salvation, offering up Isaac as a picture of what God the Father and God the Son would do some 2,000 years later Mt. Calvary to provide for Israel's National Salvation. In doing this, Abraham participated in Israel's National Salvation—justified as a righteous friend before Christ at His 2nd Coming unto abounding life in Israel's Kingdom by faith with (his) works. He is memorialized in the Heb. 11 Hall of Fame of Faith, revered throughout history, and will abide in the great City of the Kingdom (Heb. 11).
3. And in God's Prophetic Program those who participate in Israel's whole salvation package--both Individual Salvation and Israel's National Salvation—their faith is complete because it will reach its goal of an abounding entrance into the Kingdom.
2. James 2:25: Rahab was justified by works (of faith—faith with works).
1. Individual Salvation—Rahab's faith, while implied here (James is talking about works that come out of faith), it is explicit in Josh. 2. She believed in the one true LORD God of Israel. Therefore, like Abraham, God counted her faith for righteousness—justification as an enemy sinner before God by faith without her works (but which God connected to Christ and His Work) (Josh. 2).
2. Israel's National Salvation—Then, she relied on and appealed to God's promise to Abraham whereby Gentiles who blessed Israel would be blessed in return (Gen. 12:2‑3). She blessed Israel by providing a means of escape to Israel's spies. She then participated in Israel's National Salvation: She and her family were saved from the coming wrath of the destruction of Jericho and continued to live under the protection of Israel and their God at that time. Later she was incorporated into the genealogy of Jesus (Josh. 6:25--Mat. 1:5), eternally memorialized in the Hall of Fame of Faith in Heb. 11 and, no doubt, will receive abounding life in Israel's earthly Kingdom in the future.
3. Luke 7:1-17: The Gentile Centurion—Similar to Rahab the Gentile.
1. Individual salvation—He was a God-fearing Gentile of great faith, who believed in the one true God of Israel—justification by faith without works—EVEN WITHOUT CIRCUMCISION AND/OR WATER BAPTISM (Lk. 7:9)!
2. Israel's National Salvation—Like Rahab, he too relied on and appealed to the promise in the Abrahamic Covenant that Gentiles who blessed Israel would be blessed. He loved Israel and blessed the nation and by building a synagogue (Lk. 7:3‑5). Therefore, the Lord Jesus Christ blessed him with a blessing from Israel's Law—healing of sicknesses (Deut. 28:4‑6).
3. Certainly by proselytizing to Judaism—going under the Law's food regulations, undergoing circumcision, being water baptized, etc.--he would be able to participate more fully in Israel's National Salvation, but this had no bearing on his FULL AND COMPLETE participation in Individual Salvation.
4. Luke 7:36-50: The anointing of Jesus by the Woman, who was a sinner.
1. Individual Salvation—She was saved by faith without works (Lk. 7:50), Jesus forgave her sins and, therefore, she loved greatly (Lk. 7:48‑50). She believed in God and recognized His Sent One when He came—and God counted her faith for righteousness.
2. Israel's National Salvation—She anointed the feet of Jesus, recognizing Him as Israel's King, Messiah and Savior (Ps. 2). She participated in Israel's National salvation at that time, then by being memorialized in Israel's Scriptures (see also Mat. 26:13 Mk. 14:9 for similar examples) and will, no doubt, receive abounding life in Israel's Kingdom in the future.
3. There is another way this account can be understood. Jesus' ministries to various individuals in the Gospel Accounts often sets them up as representing some aspect of the fallen Nation of Israel, which is often described as an adulterous woman or wife (Hosea). If that is the case here, this woman would also be a picture of Israel returning to the Lord in faith.

Next time we will look at other passages that open before our eyes when we have an appreciation of the two salvations in God's Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel to restore His glory on earth.

On Thursday night, we finished our miniseries on the two (major) salvations in God's Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel by looking at the account of the Rich Young Ruler. This account is one of the most misunderstood and misapplied in the Scriptures.

Israel's Two Salvations and the Rich Young Ruler

INTRODUCTION

During our study of the two (major) salvations in God's Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel, several people asked about how this teaching might impact typical interpretations of the account of the Rich Young Ruler (RYR). Is this account about individual salvation before God? If so, then is Jesus teaching salvation is by works? While many liberal theologians have no problem with this, many conservative evangelicals do. They try to explain this away by saying He is only engaged in “pre-evangelism” whereby he tries to bring the RYR to faith by showing his sinfulness under the Law, and this would lead him to faith. But does the context really allow for this?

No, there is a much simpler and better answer to this when we recognize, understand and appreciate this account in the light of Israel's two salvations.

WHAT IS THE RICH YOUNG RULER (RYR) REALLY ASKING?

Before we can understand Jesus's response, we need to understand what the RYR is really asking as recorded in the three synoptic Gospels—Mat. 19:16-30; Mk. 10:17-30; Lk. 18:18-30 (also Lk. 10:25-30). In Matthew the RYR's asks: Good Master, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life? But what, exactly, does the RYR mean by “having” eternal life? If you think he is asking about individual salvation, then you will think he wants to know what good works he must do as a sinner to gain a right standing before God and be granted the inheritance of eternal life.

Let's look a little deeper. The underlying Greek word for “have” here is a general word that means to possess, make use of, access. Matthew clarified what the RYR was asking through a progression of statements that go from the RYR's “have eternal life (Mat. 19:16),” to Jesus's “entering into life” (Mat. 19:17), which is further explained as “entering into the Kingdom of God/Heaven” (Mat. 19:23‑24), which finally culminates in “INHERITING eternal life” in Israel's earthly Kingdom (Mat. 19:30). Putting this all together: The RYR is asking about how he INHERITS—possesses, accesses, comes into--the inheritance of eternal life he thinks God had already granted him for an abounding entrance into Israel's earthly Kingdom as a natural descendant of Abraham and a member of Nation of Israel that has the Law and circumcision (Mat. 3:8 Jn. 8:38). In short, the RYR wasn't asking about how he as a sinner could participate in individual salvation, but how he as a righteous member of God's people could participate in Israel's national salvation.

While Matthew led us to the INHERIT concept in several steps, Mark and Luke lead us to it explicitly and directly. For them, the RYR asked: Good Master, what shall I do to INHERIT eternal life (Mk. 10:17 Lk. 18:18). This is important because the biblical concept of inheritance always refers to an adult sonship provision, which for Israel will be INHERITED—entered into, possessed and accessed—at the 2nd Coming of Christ when He will accomplish Israel's national salvation for entrance into the Kingdom. At that time, believing Israel will finally receive the sonship position they threw away at Sinai when they went under the Law according to the flesh. This sonship INHERITANCE of life and blessing will equip and empower them to be God's great and holy Nation on earth, restoring His glory there.

INDIVIDUAL SALVATION AND ISRAEL'S NATIONAL SALVATION

Believing Israelites were granted this inheritance of eternal life from God the Father the moment they believed in God and God counted their faith for righteousness (Gen. 15:6—i.e., individual salvation by faith without works). But it will be through God the Son that they will “have” --possess, access, come into, enter into and enjoy—that inheritance because the Father sent Him to lead them into the Kingdom as participants in Israel's national salvation (Mat. 19:21‑24; Jn. 5:16-30).

This is a simple everyday concept. Many years ago, I heard of a young man whose parents died in a car accident when he was 12. His aunt and uncle explained that his parents had given him an inheritance, that he would INHERIT—come into, possess, access--when he was 21. Similarly, God had granted Israel an inheritance at the beginning of their national life (Ex. 4:22), but they won't “have” it to possess, access fully, come into and enjoy, until the Lord Jesus Christ leads them into the Kingdom as participants in Israel's national salvation.

We see a classic example of this with Abraham. In Gen. 12 and 15, God granted to Abraham/Israel an inheritance that included a miraculous seed, innumerable progeny, a nation, and an extensive land. But that inheritance will not be INHERITED—come into, entered into, have, possessed, accessed and enjoyed—until Israel enters their adult sonship position when Christ returns and ushers them into the Kingdom.

THE RICH YOUNG RULER OR THE RICH YOUNG LUTHER?

Remember, this is the account of the RICH YOUNG RULER OF ISRAEL, not the RICH YOUNG LUTHER OF GERMANY! The RYR was not looking to be granted eternal life for individual salvation before God as a sinner. And that is not the question Jesus answered. Rather, he was the product of Israel's vain religious system (VRS), and as such he assumed he was already in a right standing before God and already had individual salvation that granted him eternal life just because he was a natural descendent of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, a member of the Nation of Israel to whom God had given circumcision and the Law (Mat. 3:7‑9; Jn. 8:37-59; also Rom. 2:12-29). Therefore, he thought he would participate in Israel's national salvation for an abounding entrance into Israel's earthly Kingdom, and he was asking Jesus how he could attain unto that (Acts 1:6)!

This is the great problem with Israel's VRS and the followers it produces, like the RYR. It removes believing/faith. In God's Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel as revealed in the Bible, everything begins with FAITH. First and most important, the Israelite must not just be the physical descendant of Abraham, but his spiritual descendant by following in Abraham's spiritual footsteps of faith—Abraham believed in God and God counted his faith for righteousness--resulting in individual salvation—justification as an ENEMY SINNER before God the Father, who grants them as members of Believing Israel an inheritance of eternal life by faith without works. Then, second, after that, the saved individual in God's Prophetic Program will come into that inheritance--possessing, enjoying and accessing it—INHERIT it--by participating in Israel's national salvation—justification of RIGHTEOUS FRIENDS/SAINTS before Christ at His 2nd Coming for abounding life in the Kingdom by faith with works. The RYR is asking about the latter not the former.

Then You Will Know That I AM (Jn. 8:28)!

In Jn. 8:21‑24, Jesus quoted the life and death warning of the Prophet Ezekiel to the Nation of Israel about the coming wrath of God in the Babylonian Conquest. Jesus quotes Ezekiel's life and death warning to warn the Israel of His day about the coming wrath of God in the Tribulation Period, for Ye shall die in your sin/s (Jn. 8:21, 24 Ezek. 3:18, 19, 20).

EZEKIEL

In Jn. 8:28, Jesus quotes a second warning from Ezekiel: Then ye shall know that I AM (the LORD). Ezekiel uses this warning some 70 times, usually at the end of major passages that reveal the coming wrath and judgment God will pour out on Israel or Gentile enemy nations unto destruction (45 times) or of mercy and blessing unto deliverance (25 times). Therefore, this phrase is a warning of curses to His enemies, and a promise of blessings to His friends, through which God will fulfill His Prophetic Program with Israel, manifesting His Glory over the whole earth. Then, all nations will know that I AM (the LORD) (Ezek. 6:7, 10, 13, 14 7:4, 9, 27 36:11, 23, 38 39:6, 22, 28; et al.).

Let's use Ezek. 6:1-10 to illustrate how this phrase works and its relationship to Christ's earthly ministry, and especially Jn. 8.

1. Ezek. 6:1‑2: God told Ezekiel to set his face towards the mountains of Israel, and prophesy against them. Here God aims His coming wrath against the Nation of Israel unto destruction. Jesus set's His face against Jerusalem and prophesies judgement against her (Mat. 23:37‑38 24:2).
2. Ezek. 6:3‑7: God's wrath was coming on the Nation of Israel because they rejected the worship of the one true God in the Jerusalem Temple and set up idolatrous shrines and altars throughout the land, worshipping the false gods and Satan (Jn. 8:38‑44). Therefore, God would swiftly and surely destroy the altars along with those who built them—They shall die in their sins (Ezek. 3:19 Jn. 8:21, 24) and then they shall know that I am the LORD (Ezek. 6:7 Jn. 8:28).
3. Ezek. 6:8‑10: But even amid His wrath and judgment, God is not all done with Israel. He will preserve a believing remnant who will be saved from the coming wrath unto life in the relative peace and prosperity of Babylon, during which a Believing Remnant of Israel would be preserved. But the adulterous Israel is warned (like the adulterous woman in Jn. 8:1-11) that they will be destroyed and die in their sins (Ezek. 3:19). Jesus promises deliverance to those who believe and follow Him with life in the Kingdom but destruction to those who don't, who will die in their sin/sins of unbelief (Jn. 8:30‑37).
4. Later Ezekiel will set his face in blessing toward Israel unto deliverance and life (Ezek. 36:1-15). In this way all Israel—believing and unbelieving--might know that I am the LORD (Ezek. 6:7, 9 36:11, 23, 38). Jesus will set His face toward blessings for believing Israel by dying for them on the Cross (Lk. 9:51).

EXODUS

We see something similar in Exodus where this phrase is used some 10 times, mostly with regard to warning Egypt and Pharaoh of God's coming wrath and the Israelites of God's coming mercy.

1. Ex. 5:2: Pharaoh taunts God with: Who is the LORD that I should obey His voice to let Israel go? I know not the LORD, neither will I let Israel go!
2. Ex. 6:7: Promise of Blessing to Israel—I will take you to Me for a people, and I will be to you God ... Then ye shall know that I am the LORD your God!r
3. Ex. 7:5: Because Pharaoh will not hearken unto Moses, God will bring great judgments upon him and: Then the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD!
4. Ex. 8:22: God will divide the Israelites from the Egyptians by afflicting the latter with a plague of flies but not the former. Then Israel and Moses would: Know that I am the LORD!
5. Ex. 14:4, 18: God will deliver the Israelites and destroy the Egyptian army so that the Egyptians might know that I am the LORD!
6. Ex. 16:12: God blessed Israel with food from heaven, manna, so that they shall know that I am the LORD your God (Jehovah)!
7. Ex. 29:46: God will bless Israel with dwelling among them and will be their God that they shall know that I am the LORD their God!
8. Ex. 31:13: God blessed Israel with the Sabbath that they might know that I am the LORD that does sanctify you—Jehovah/LORD your sanctification.

CONCLUSION

With this Old Testament context, we can appreciate that in Jn. 8 Jesus warned unbelieving Israel of the coming wrath and judgment of God unto destruction and death, while promising believing Israel the mercy and grace of God unto deliverance and life in the Kingdom.

On Thursday night, we looked at Jn. 8:28, which added two more references from the Old Testament, especially Ezekiel. We already looked at "Ye shall die in your sin/s) (Jn. 8:21, 24). Here we have two more: "Son of Man" and "Then ye shall know I AM."

The Son of Man (Jn. 8:28)

In Jn. 8:28, Jesus identifies Himself as the Son of Man. This phrase is used some 106 times in the Old Testament. While this phrase can refer to humanity in general—a human person--God magnified it by applying it to the Prophet Ezekiel in particular, whom God sent to warn Israel about the coming wrath of God. In fact, of the 106 times it is used in the OT, 93 refer directly to Ezekiel, beginning with Ezek. 2:1, etc. Then God magnified it again to refer to the singular—one of a kind--Son of Man, whom He will send from Heaven in judgment to destroy all the kingdoms on earth and replace them with His own divinely originated everlasting righteous Kingdom of God on earth (Dan. 7:13‑14 Mat. 25:31 Acts 7:56).

All three of these meanings apply to Jesus Christ in the Gospel Accounts:

1. He is the Son of Man in the sense of being the eternal Word, God the Son, enfleshed into the human line of David and embodied in the human person of Jesus Christ (Jn. 1:1-18; 3:13).
• He is the absolute I AM--the fulfiller of the Davidic Covenant—Israel's Davidic Messiah and King, providing for Israel's national salvation (Jn. 4:25‑26 6:20 8:58).
• Christ's Incarnation (Lk. 3:38).
2. He is the Son of Man like unto the Prophet Ezekiel. Unlike Ezekiel, however, God sent His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, from the heavenly divine realm to warn Israel of the coming wrath and offering them a means of salvation by believing and following Him (Jn. 8:21, 24, 28‑33).
• He is the I AM of location because He is not from below—the temporal earthly human realm of darkness—but from above—the eternal heavenly divine realm of Light (Jn. 8:23).
• Christ's 1st Coming (Jn. 8).
3. And He is the Son of Man who will fulfill Daniel's prophecy. He will come in judgment to destroy all the earthly kingdoms and set His own righteous kingdom on earth. First, He must be glorified as God-Man by being raised up on the Cross by men and raised from the dead by God, whereby He will ascend back to the Father and be seated at His right hand forevermore (Jn. 3:13‑15).
• In doing so, He reveals that He is the great I AM (Ex. 3:14‑15) who bears God's I AM Jehovah LORD Name because He is an eternal member of the Triune Godhead. Now He returns to the eternal glory He had before as God the Son (I AM of location), not only as God, but as Man--the God-Man (absolute I AM), who is authorized to dispense eternal life to humanity (Predicate I AM—I AM the Bread of Life, the Light of the World; the Way, the Truth and the Life!
• Christ's 2nd Coming (Mat. 25:31).

We restarted our study of Jn. 8 by looking at Jesus's use of the sentence: Then ye shall know that I AM in Jn. 8:28. While this phrase is used some 70 times in the Book of Ezekiel alone, we began by looking at the 10 uses in Exodus.

Process of Hardening Hearts

Some Bible teachers, I think, relish the idea that God desires to bless some people (including themselves!) while desiring to curse others. They seem to enjoy the idea that God excuses and saves some (including themselves!) while condemning and destroying others. This is especially brought out in the contest between Pharaoh with his Egyptian “gods” and Moses with his one true LORD God.

It is true that God hardened Pharaoh's heart (Ex. 9:12 10:1, 20, 27 11:10), but what often goes unnoticed is that the account states almost as frequently that Pharaoh hardened his own heart (Ex. 8:15, 32 9:34). So, which is it? Did God harden Pharaoh's heart? Or, did Pharaoh harden his own heart? The answer is both.

It is important to appreciate how God hardened Pharaoh's heart. Did He do it because His absolute intent was to harden Pharaoh's heart so that He could destroy him? Or, was God's intent to soften Pharaoh's heart by extending grace and mercy to him. God didn't have to send Moses repeatedly to warn and petition Pharaoh to let the Israelites go. If God's intent was to wipe Pharaoh and Egypt off the face of the earth, He could have done that with one swing of His all-powerful arm. Instead, He dealt with Pharaoh out of His longsuffering mercy. His heart's desire being that Pharaoh would receive God's Word in faith (1 Tim. 2:3, jump off his throne, put one arm around Moses and the other around Aaron, saying: Let's send the LORD's on their way! And if Pharaoh had blessed Israel rather than curse them, he would have been blessed in accord with the Abrahamic Covenant (Gen. 12:3).

This leads us to the fundamental law/principle of divine interaction with fallen sinful humanity. When God extends grace and mercy to sinners, and they reject in unbelief, it ALWAYS results in hardening of the heart. In a sense, God hardened the heart because He sent the mercy. But on the other hand the sinner hardened himself by rejecting it in unbelief. Receiving God and His Word in faith ALWAYS results in softening the heart, and that is ALWAYS God's desire. Therefore, the hardening or softening of the sinner's heart is not something God enforces upon the sinner, but something that the sinner enforces on himself.

1. While foreknowing that Pharaoh would reject Him in unbelief, He didn't desire that outcome or force it on Pharaoh. By showing mercy to rebellious Pharaoh, warning and petitioning him, God's desire was to soften his heart with faith unto salvation. But in rejecting God's grace and mercy in unbelief, Pharaoh hardened his own heart unto destruction (see above references).
2. Throughout Israel's mostly rebellious history, God continually extended grace and mercy to the nation. But every time He did, they rejected it in unbelief, which resulted in Israel's heart being hardened all the more. Not because that was God's intent! God's intent was that extending mercy to Israel it would soften heart in faith unto salvation. But in rejecting it in unbelief, Israel hardened her own heart unto destruction. In fact, God eventually concluded that if showing Israel mercy only resulted in the further hardening of her heart, then the best thing to do is to stop interacting with Israel so that His grace and mercy couldn't harden her heart any more. So, He went back to His place and was silent for some 400 years after the Babylonian Captivity until the days of Jesus when He broke His silence through the ministry of John the Baptist (Is. 1; Amos 8:11‑12; Mat. 3).
3. Paul gives us the explanation of this in 2 Cor. 4:3‑4. If our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost; in whom the god of this world (Satan) has blinded (hardened) the minds (hearts) of them who believe NOT! Lost sinners are those who have rejected God's grace in unbelief, giving Satan a beachhead from which he works to hide the gospel from them all the more, increasing hardening their hearts and blinding their minds.

So, here is the process of hardening:

1. In a sense, God hardens the unbelieving hearts by showing them mercy and grace.
2. Sinners who reject that mercy and grace in unbelief, harden their own hearts.
3. Which gives a foothold to Satan who continues the blinding and hardening process.

On Thursday night, we looked at Jesus's quote from Ezekiel, and saw how Ezekiel used it: Then ye shall know that I AM (the LORD) (Jn. 8:28).

Ezekiel and Jesus

In Jn. 8:28, Jesus proclaims: When ye have lift up the Son of Man, then shall ye know that I AM! This phrase is a rich motif in Israel's history, especially as recorded by Moses in the Book of Exodus (10 times) and Ezekiel in the Book of Ezekiel (70 times). Whereas in the Exodus account, this phrase is used of Moses and Israel only in the positive sense as a promise of deliverance, it is used of Pharaoh and Egypt only in the negative sense as a warning of destruction (Ex. 6:7 7:5, 17 8:22 14:4, 18 16:12 29:46 31:13).

But all this changes in the Book of Ezekiel. There, it is mostly used in the negative sense as a warning of judgment and destruction not only in reference to the Gentile nations but in reference to Israel as well (Ezek. 6: 7, 10, 13, 14 7:4, 9, 27; et al.). God sent Ezekiel to prophesy about the coming of the final stage of the Babylonian Captivity—the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple at which time Israel died as a nation. For Ezekiel, what the latter prophets had been speaking about for some 200 years (Is. 29; Is. 39:6‑8; Jer. 29; Ezek. 33:21‑22), and what Moses had spoken about some 900 years before (Lev. 26:27-34), was now going to occur.

The LORD revealed to Moses that if ye will not for all this hearken unto me, but walk contrary unto me; then I will walk contrary unto you also in fury (Ezek. 6:12); and I, even I, will chastise you seven times for your sins (Ezek. 14:10). And ye shall eat the flesh of your sons, and the flesh of your daughters shall ye eat (2 Kgs. 6:28‑29 Ezek. 5:10).

And I will destroy your high places, and cut down your images, and cast your carcases upon the carcases of your idols, and my soul shall abhor you. And I will make your cities waste, and bring your sanctuaries unto desolation (Ezek. 6:1‑7),

and I will not smell the savour of your sweet odours (Is. 1:1-15; Is. 3:23‑26 Mal. 1:10 Amos 5:21‑24).

And I will bring the land into desolation (Ezek. 6:14):

and your enemies which dwell therein shall be astonished at it. And I will scatter you among the heathen, and will draw out a sword after you: and your land shall be desolate, and your cities waste (Ezek. 6:8, 14 Ps. 44:11).

Ezekiel explains that what God said in the past and has been warning about for some 1,000 years has been fulfilled in the present. And then THEY SHALL KNOW THAT I AM THE LORD (Ezek. 6:7, 10, 13, 14). They will know that His Word never comes back empty (Ezek. 6:10). He not only knows and plans the future; He has the power to accomplish and carry it out.

On Thursday night, we continued to look at why Jesus quoted Ezekiel's statement: Then ye shall know that I AM (the LORD) in Jn. 8:28. We did this by looking at how Ezekiel used it.

To Lift Up or Not To Lift Up?

John is renowned for his use of irony in the Gospel of John. One type of irony is “polysemy” (Gk. many-SIGNS!—how appropriate for John's Gospel of Signs—Jn. 20:30‑31), which refers to “playing with two or more different meanings for the same word.” Take the word “bank” for example. On the one hand “bank” can mean a financial institution, on the other hand it can mean the side of a river. “Light” can mean illumination, or it can mean something not heavy or not serious. So too, in the Bible “lift-up” is a word that can have more than one meaning.

For instance, when Joseph was interpreting the dreams of Pharaoh's cupbearer and chief backer, he explained to the cupbearer that Pharaoh would lift up thine head and restore you unto thy place (Gen. 40:13). But to the chief baker he explained that “in three days shall Pharaoh lift up thy head from off thee and shall hang thee on a tree (Gen. 40:19). Two very different meanings indeed! For the cupbearer lifting up thine head meant restoration and life. For the chief baker, however, it meant destruction and death (Gen. 40:20). We see this ironic polysemy again in Is. 52:13‑15. There, v. 13 states that “My servant shall be exalted and extolled (lifted up) and be very high. But shockingly this lifting up, this glorification process, begins with dishonorable suffering and death (v. 14) after which comes restoration and life (v. 15).

John joins in the fun of ironic polysemy in Jn. 3:14 where Jesus proclaims: As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life (Jn. 3:14‑15). Like Isaiah, Jesus Christ's “lifting up,” His glorification, begins with suffering and death. Men will lift Him up on the Cross (Jn. 8:28), which sets in motion a divine chain of events that will lift Him up from the earthly realm and return Him to the heavenly realm in eternal glory (Jn. 12:32‑36). Let's go through this glorification process step-by-step:

1. Men will lift up Christ on the Cross.
2. God will raise Him from the dead.
3. He will be exalted into God's presence and seated at His right hand in eternal glory now not only as the Son of God but as the Son of Man—the God-Man—who is qualified to be granted all authority and power to represent and judge humanity.
4. Then as Daniel's Son of Man, the glorified Risen Lord Jesus Christ will return to the earthly realm in power and glory to destroy all the kingdoms of earth and set up His own everlasting Kingdom of God and Heaven on earth (Dan. 7:1-13).
5. Then this Kingdom will be given to the believing and restored Nation of Israel (Mat. 21:43), thereby fulfilling all the promises God ever made to Israel, bringing His Prophetic Program to re-establish His glory on earth to completion.
6. And then, ALL SHALL KNOW THAT I AM THE LORD (Jn. 8:28 Ezek. 39:7).

We looked at how for John the first step in the glorification of the the Lord Jesus Christ begins with the lifting up of the Son of Man of the Cross by men, which sets in motion a whole chain of divine events.

The Process of Glorification

We have seen that the phrase: Then ye shall know that I AM (the LORD)--whether in the days of Moses at the Exodus (used some 10X) or in the days of Ezekiel at the Babylonian Captivity (used some 70 times)--always refers to the time when what God said in the past about the future comes to pass. With regard to the promises of deliverance God gave to Israel through Moses at the Exodus, the time period extended from years (commissioning of Moses to arriving at Sinai) to a few decades (wilderness wanderings to entering into the Promised Land). With regard to the promises of destruction God gave to Israel through a long line of prophets that stretched all the way back to Moses in Lev. 26:27-39, that time period extended some 900 years, being fulfilled in Ezekiel's day with the Babylonian Captivity that put Israel to death as a nation.

When, after much longsuffering patience while He first dispenses mercy and grace to rebels, God's Word is accomplished and fulfilled-whether the delay is measured in days, years or decades or centuries or millennia—then they will know that I AM the LORD. And what will they “know”? They will know that He is the I AM Jehovah LORD God of Israel, the Creator who not only knows and plans the future, but who has the surpassing power and authority to carry it out. They will “know” that His Word NEVER returns empty. What He has spoken ALWAYS is accomplished and fulfilled (Ezek. 6:10).

So too, when Jesus said: When ye have lift up the Son of Man, then shall ye know that I AM, and that I do nothing of Myself, but as My Father hath taught Me, I speak those things (Jn. 28). For when they lift Him up, it will set in motion a glorification process that will accomplish everything God the Father said through God the Son in His earthly ministry. When they lifted Him up on the Cross ... God the Father will raise Him from the dead ... exalt Him to His Own right hand ... and seat Him in eternal glory, which He already had as the Son of God, but now has as the Son of Man. He is the God-Man, the only One qualified to possess the power and authority to represent and judge humans, with which He will return as Daniel's Son of Man to destroy all the kingdoms of earth and replace them with His Own Kingdom of God and Heaven on earth, thereby fulfilling all the promises God gave to Israel and accomplishing His Prophetic Program as revealed by all the holy prophets since the world began (Lk. 1:70 Acts 3:21).

In short, through this glorification process, He will go from presenting Himself as Ezekiel's Son of Man sent by God to dispense mercy and deliverance at His 1st Coming, to presenting Himself as Daniel's Son of Man sent by God to dispense wrath, judgment and destruction at His 2nd Coming (Dan. 7:13‑14). And when that happens THEN (INDEED!) THEY SHALL KNOW THAT I AM (THE LORD), for I never speak in vain!!

On Thursday night, we looked at what Jesus meant when He said that then you shall know that I AM with respect to believers and unbelievers (Jn. 8:28-35). What, exactly, will they know?

They Know I AM Who and What? (Jn. 8:28)

Jesus declares in Jn. 8:28: When ye have lifted up the Son of Man, then shall ye know that I AM! But I AM what? We see in passages like Jn. 4:26, 6:20, 8:24, 58 and others that when Jesus uses absolute I AM ___ sayings, He is not just revealing Himself as the Messiah and King of Israel, the Creator and Savior of the world (I AM the LORD), but that He is the One who has all the resources and authority to fulfill God's Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel to restore His glory on earth. All Israel needed to “do” was fill in the blank in faith. In order to teach them how to do this, God gave them examples of how they were to know Him.

Saints Who Believed in GOD THE FATHER in the Old Testament

In the Old Testament before Jesus Christ came in His earthly ministry, the LORD gave Israel many ways to fill in the blank space of His I AM Jehovah Name. Here are some of them:

1. I AM the LORD your Provider (Gen. 22:14)—Israel's Provider in general, but here, specifically in context, He will provide HIMSELF a sacrifice, which is fulfilled by the Lord Jesus Christ on the Cross some 2,000 years later (Jn. 10:11 15:13).
2. I AM the LORD your Healer (Ex. 15:26)—Israel's Healer, which Jesus Christ demonstrates through His signs of healing and giving life (Jn. 5:4‑8 9:6‑7; Jn. 11).
3. I AM the LORD your Banner (Ex. 17:15)—He is the place where believing Israel was to gather. He was their Conquering Hero, the Destroyer of all enemies (Jn. 8:31‑32 15:5).
4. I AM the LORD your Peace (Judges 6:24)—the Risen Lord Jesus Christ fulfilled this, beginning with the Peter and the 12 and ultimately for the restored Nation of Israel and through Israel, the whole earth (Jn. 14:27 20:19‑23 Lk. 2:14).
5. I AM the LORD your Righteousness (Jer. 23:6)—Jesus Christ fulfills this by freeing those who believe from their sin/s thereby bringing them into righteousness (Jn. 8:30‑32).
6. I AM the LORD your Shepherd (Ps. 23:1)—Jesus Christ identifies Himself as the Good Shepherd of Israel (Jn. 10:11).
7. I AM the LORD Who is Present With You (Ezek. 48:35)—the greatest example of this was God the Son incarnated into the human line of David in the human being of the Lord Jesus Christ, who tabernacled among Israel, especially Believing Israel (Jn. 1:14).

Saints Who Believe and Are Alive At Christ's 1st Coming:

According to the Jn. 5 principle (Jn. 5:37-47), those saints who were alive at Christ's 1st Coming—the Believing Remnant of Israel in the early 1st century, who believed and knew the God of the Old Testament as their Provider, Healer, Banner, Peace, Righteousness, Shepherd—will know, believe and receive the Son because He only speaks the words and does the works of the Father (Jn. 5:19-30). In short, they will recognize the Father in the Son and, therefore, receive and believe in Him as well.

Believing Israel in the days of Jesus Christ knew Him as Ezekiel's Son of Man who was sent to dispense mercy and grace, warning and salvation:

1. I AM (the LORD) the Bread of Life (Jn. 6:25, 41, 48, 51), the One who gives them life.
2. I AM (the LORD) the Light of the World (Jn. 8:12), the One who gives them light.
3. I AM (the LORD) the Door of the Sheep (Jn. 10:7, 9), the One who gives them safe passage into Israel's earthly Kingdom.
4. I AM (the LORD) the Good Shepherd (Jn. 10:11, 14), the One who dies for them.
5. I AM (the LORD) the Resurrection and the Life (Jn. 11:25) for those who die shall live.
6. I AM (the LORD) the Way, the Truth and the Life (Jn. 14:6), who brings them to the Father.
7. I AM (the LORD) the True Vine (Jn. 15:1, 5), the One in whom they will abide and bear fruit.

But What About Those Who Don't Believe?

Again, Jesus laid the foundational principle for this in Jn. 5:36-47 where He explained that the bulk of the Nation of Israel rejected the Lord Jesus Christ in unbelief (Jn. 1:11) because they didn't really believe in God, the Scriptures and Moses. Therefore, they didn't recognize the Father in the Son, nor did they recognize that what the Scriptures and Moses wrote about was Him. At Christ's 1st Coming (and throughout most of their ancient history) Israel was an apostate nation run by a vain religious system that was ruled by the Gentiles, who were ruled by Satan (Jn. 8:44; Mat. 4-5).

Therefore, unbelievers who refuse to know Him in unbelief will remain in their sin/s and in the future will know Him not as Ezekiel's Son of Man who comes dispensing warning and salvation (at Christ's 1st Coming), but as Daniel's Son of Man who comes dispensing wrath, judgment and destruction (at Christ's 2nd Coming). In short, they will know Him as I AM THE LORD YOUR SMITER (Ezek. 7:9 Is. 9:13 Jn. 8:26).

In conclusion, while all—believers and unbelievers alike—will then know that the LORD'S Word/s never return empty (Ezek. 6:10), unbelievers will know it in cursing—judgment, wrath and destruction—whereas believers will know it in blessing—grace, warning and salvation.

On Thursday night, We looked at what Jesus meant when He said that then you shall know that I AM ___ with respect to believing and unbelieving Israel (Jn. 8:28-35).

Faith and the Gospel of John

Thinking that the Gospel of John is primarily about personal evangelism in the Dispensation of Grace, results in all kinds of impossible problems, one of which being FAITH. What, exactly, is faith according to John? If John is about personal evangelism to lost unbelieving sinners on their way to Hell, as most teach, then salvation may be by faith, but not just any old faith, not just superficial or passing faith, not just head faith—whatever all that means. Rather, it requires a certain quantity of deep and sincere faith (but just how much and how deep and sincere, exactly?), enduring and abiding faith, faith that withstands testing, true faith, heart faith—whatever all that means (Jn. 8:30‑32). If this traditional teaching is correct, it expects an awful lot from a powerless ungodly enemy sinner to figure out and do in order to be saved!

DISPENSATIONALISM AND FAITH IN OT

This errant teaching is prevalent in dispensationalism in general, and Mid-Acts dispensationalism in specific. It is embedded in their dispensational schemes that associate each dispensation with a particular “testing/s” (except our own Dispensation of Grace!) whereby sinners weren't saved SOLELY by faith but by faith with works--faith that passed the “testing”. One such teacher puts it this way: Salvation of Old Testament sinners was “essentially” by faith but “required” works. Of course, and no matter how much such teachers try to deny it, this is salvation by faith plus works. The account of Noah and the Flood is often used to support their errant teaching. If Noah truly believed and was saved, they insist, he would do what God told him to do and build the ark. If he didn't, it would mean that he either wasn't really saved to begin with (inadequate faith), or he was saved but then lost his salvation (the wrong kind of faith).

But let's all rejoice that such teaching is impossibly wrong for what believer in any dispensation does what he knows God has told him to do?! No, the moment Noah believed in God and His word to him, like Abraham, God counted his faith for righteousness—justification AS AN ENEMY SINNER by faith WITHOUT works, instantly participating in individual salvation unto eternal spiritual life forevermore. Then, once individually saved, God gave him an opportunity to participate in the preparation of Israel's national salvation by building an ark, which would save him from physical death in the coming judgment of the flood at that time and an abounding entrance into the Kingdom in the future—justification AS A RIGHTEOUS FRIEND by faith WITH works before Christ at His 2nd Coming. If Noah had never finished the ark, perhaps because of persecution or because of enjoying the fruit of the vine too much, he would have undergone physical death in the flood at that time and a diminished status in the Kingdom in the future, but he most certainly would not have lost his spiritual eternal life from and with God!

WHAT SAITH THE SCRIPTURES

Confusing how a person in God's Prophetic Program participates in individual salvation vs. Israel's national salvation adds unbearable levels of complexity to the simplicity of faith righteousness and is contrary to the Scriptures. In Gen. 15:6, Moses didn't say Abraham believed in the Lord with a deeply heart-felt faith that was especially sincere and was unwaverable through all testings that mattered, so that on his death bed and after close examination, God justified him. No! Moses explained in all its simplicity that Abraham believed in the LORD, and He counted it to him for righteousness. Can't get any simpler or clearer than that! Paul seconds this some 2000 years later, when he explained that all this complexity and confusion comes from the serpent who beguiled Eve through his subtilty, corrupting minds from the simplicity that is in Christ Jesus NOT FROM GOD (2 Cor. 10:11).

THE TWO SALVATIONS IN GOD'S PROPHETIC PROGRAM WITH ISRAEL

When we recognize that there were not one, but two major salvations people could participate in God's Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel, all complexity and confusion vanishes. For Christ came AT THAT TIME not primarily for personal evangelism to “save” lost enemy sinners going to Hell (He's been doing that every second of every day since the fall of Adam, INCLUDING DURING HIS EARTHLY MINISTRY!). Rather, He came AT THAT TIME (in accord with Daniel's Time Schedule) to “save” believing Israel—His righteous saints and friends. He came AT THAT TIME to save believing Israel because they were powerlessly enslaved to and suffering under apostate Israel and her vain religious system (Mat. 4:23-5:12). He came AT THAT TIME, John says, to save believing Israel by empowering and authorizing them to become who they already were—the children of God—God's true Nation of Israel (Jn. 1:12). Christ came AT THAT TIME to take the Kingdom away from the current apostate rulers in Israel who were taking it by violence, and give it to His own--the children of God—believing Israel—whereby He would make of them His own great and holy Nation of Israel (Mat. 21:43 Acts 1:7).

ERRANT FAITH

Understanding this corrects the errant teaching that adds degrees and levels, qualities and quantities, to faith. In dispensationalism this means that the “testings” associated with various dispensations weren't the basis for how enemy sinners participated in individual salvation, but for how His righteous friends participated in Israel's national salvation, partially at that time and more fully in the future Kingdom. The former was always, is always and will always be by faith WITHOUT works. The latter was by faith WITH works—abiding, enduring, keeping the Law, etc.

In conclusion, those who believed in God (individual salvation unto eternal life—Jn. 8:31) were to also now believe the Lord Jesus Christ--God the Son—God's Sent One—for He is the One who will save/deliver believing Israel from the coming wrath (Tribulation Period) and usher them into Israel's earthly kingdom. Or as Jesus put it to His closest disciples/apostles near the end of His earthly ministry: Ye believe in God, believe also in Me (Jn. 14:1).

On Thursday night, we looked at the great divide in the Nation of Israel between unbelieving Israel, who remains a slave to sin, and believing Israel, who is set free from unbelieving Israel and its vain religious system to remain with the Son in God's house of Israel (Jn. 8:35).

Who Is Blind?

We see one of John's ironies in Jn. 9:41: Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, we see; therefore your sin remains. The whole Nation of Israel—Believing and Unbelieving Israel—existed in the darkness of the ruined and dead Nation, enslaved to a vain religious system that kept God and His things from them. “Seeing” for Believing Israel meant suffering and persecution as they hungered and thirsted for righteousness, longing to be set free from Israel's sinful predicament under the Curses of the Law in the Courses of Punishment. But for Unbelieving Israel this meant having all the power and authority to rule without the constraints of God and His Word, willfully and contentedly not “seeing” the sinful ruin of the nation under their rebellious rule, thinking it would go on forever.

But Jesus in Jn. 8:35 announced the destinies of these two groups within Israel. On the one hand, Unbelieving Israel claimed to “see” and didn't recognize their need for the Light of the Lord Jesus Christ, rejecting Him in unbelief (Jn. 1:12 9:5) while exposing the fact that they were blind, spiritually blind and would remain the slave of sin, destined for removal from the house of God and Israel unto destruction (Mat. 15:14 21:43). On the other hand, Believing Israel acknowledged their blindness, for they recognized they were suffering in the darkness of apostate Israel and its vain religious system and longed for deliverance and salvation (Lk. 2:25, 38), thereby showing the fact that they could “see”, “see” spiritually. For they were the true children of God (Jn. 1:12 3:3), and they will remain in the house of God and Israel forevermore. (Jn. 1:12 9:5)

Jesus uses similar irony in Mk. 2:17: When Jesus heard it, he saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. The fact was that the whole Nation of Israel was sick and sinful from head to toe (Is. 1; Mat. 4:22-5:12). Unbelieving Israel denied this and, therefore, had no need of a healing Doctor or a Savior, and they rejected the Lord Jesus Christ in unbelief when He came. In doing so, they would remain in their advancing sickness and increasing sin forevermore. But those who accepted and recognized their sickness and sinful predicament recognized their need for a healing Doctor and Savior, and they received the Lord Jesus Christ in faith when He came. In doing so, they received His healing Light, Life and Righteousness and would remain in His house forevermore.

In short, those who claimed to “see” and be “well” and “righteous” saw no need for God's Son when He came and remained what they were before: The “blind”, “sick” and “sinners”, the children of the devil (Jn. 8:44). But those who acknowledged that they were “blind” and “sick” and “sinners” recognized their need for God's Son when He came and believed on Him to become who they really were: The “seeing”, “healed/saved” and “righteous” children of God, who will remain in the house of God and Israel in the Light and Life of Christ, forevermore.

On Thursday night, we read our way through Jn. 8:30-59, understanding it in the context of God's Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel and interpreting it in accord with the principles John gave us in Jn. 5.

Believers? Or Not?? (Jn. 8:30-45)

Because most teachers of the Gospel of John erroneously think it is primarily about personal evangelism in the Dispensation of Grace, they have erroneously concluded that Jn. 8:30-47 refers to one group of people—unbelievers. But this conclusion is impossible:

1. Traditional teaching suggests that the believing Jews in Jn. 8:30-32, those whom John identifies TWICE as believing Jews (Jn. 8:30, 31), weren't, in fact, believing Jews. They say these Jews had insufficient faith in quality (it wasn't sincere enough) or in quantity (it wasn't big enough or didn't last long enough)—whatever these things mean! But this is impossible because while the human author John might have been deceived about the true state of the hearts of these Jews, God the Holy Spirit most certainly wasn't, and He is the divine author of these verses. God the Holy Spirit through the Apostle John states definitively twice that Jesus began by speaking to true believers in Christ and His Word/s—Believing Israel (Jn. 8:30‑32), and those who do that are the saved children of God (Jn. 1:12 3:16).
2. Traditional teaching says the pronoun “they” in verse 34 must refer to the immediately preceding group, i.e., those whom John (and the Holy Spirit) identified as believers. Therefore, because these “believers” increasingly rebelled against Jesus's teaching in the following verses, they must not have really been believers at all. They were, in fact, unbelievers. But as we said above, while John might have been fooled about the hearts, God the Holy Spirit wasn't! Therefore, unless John (and the Holy Spirit) got confused and contradicted himself, Christ first addressed Believing Israel, but then Unbelieving Israel interrupted, and He addressed them for the rest of the chapter (Jn. 8:45, 46).
3. Pronouns don't always refer to the closest noun. This is especially in a public setting of a raucous meeting where people are interjecting, talking over each other and riding rough-shod over others. Here, Jesus begins by addressing and blessing believing Israel with Light that leads to the truth that will set them free. But then the larger part of the audience—unbelieving Israel—intrudes, interrupts and overpowers the discussion in an attempt to keep Believing Israel from receiving God's blessings. Jesus allows Himself to be sidetracked and will deal with unbelieving Israel for the rest of Jn. 8, not returning to believing Israel until Jn. 9.
   Therefore, the pronoun “they” refers back to the unbelievers in verses 25-29, who didn't know Him or understand what He said. This is supported by the fact that John (and the Holy Spirit) state categorically not once but twice that the group He was speaking to beginning in Jn. 8:34 was the unbelieving Jews (Jn. 8:45, 46) not the believing Jews (Jn. 8:30, 31).
4. Finally, there is another example in Jn. 8 of the use of a pronoun “they/them” that does not refer to the immediately preceding audience. John concludes Jn. 8:1-11 with everyone who heard Jesus departing the Temple one-by-one—no one is left. But then, in the very next verse, John states that Jesus spoke unto “THEM” (Jn. 8:12). He couldn't have been speaking to the immediately preceding audience because they were long gone and out of sight. Rather it refers back to the Pharisees in Jn. 7:45-53, which is affirmed in Jn. 8:13.

In conclusion, in Jn. 8 Jesus begins by addressing Believing Israel, but then is interrupted by Unbelieving Israel, and He deals with them through the rest of Jn. 8, returning to Believing Israel and discipleship in Jn. 9.

On Thursday night, we read our way through Jn. 8:30-59, understanding it in the context of God's Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel and interpreting it in accord with the principles John gave us in Jn. 5.

An Outline of Jn. 8

In Jn. 8-9, John gives us a clear picture of the two basic groups in Israel: Unbelieving Israel and Believing Israel:

1. Jn. 8:1-11: The account of the adulterous woman, which I suggest is the 2nd sign of the Cleansing of the Temple in John, represents Unbelieving Israel under the rule of its vain religious system that rejected, persecuted and plotted the death the Lord Jesus Christ, and His People--Believing Israel, who were powerless to become who they really were—the children of God (Jn. 1:12 ; Hosea).
2. Jn. 8:12-29: God the Father sent God the Son AT THAT TIME to display His glory to the nation by proclaiming His I AM Jehovah LORD Name—7 times in this one chapter (Jn. 8:12, 18, 23 (2X), 24, 28, 58 Ex. 34:5‑9), and like Moses, as He did so He hid Believing Israel in the “cleft of the rock” for safe keeping (Ex. 34).
3. Jn. 8:30-32: The Lord Jesus Christ, the I AM the Light of the world, shines His Light of Blessing and Salvation on those who hear, believe and receive Him—Believing Israel—showing them the way that will lead to the truth that will set them free INDEED; set free from Unbelieving Israel and its astronomical debt of sin/s, thereby empowering them to bear much fruit unto God (Jn. 15:5) and authorizing them to rule Israel's earthly Kingdom (Jn. 1:12 15:5 Mat. 21:43 Acts 1:6).
4. Jn. 8:33-35: But then, Unbelieving Israel does what it has always done—interrupted and overtook the conversation, as they tried to keep God and His blessings away from Believing Israel, subjecting Believing Israel to their own wicked power and authority that leads to enslaving death and darkness (Mat. 23:31, 37).
5. Jn. 8:36-59: Jesus allows Himself to be sidetracked by Unbelieving Israel, now shining His Light of Judgment and Destruction on them.

1. Jn. 8:37-43: Jesus's Light reveals that their father wasn't Abraham, nor God!
2. Jn. 8:44-59: Their father was the devil! They are the slave of the SIN of unbelief INDEED, which is the source of all their other innumerable sins. They will be removed from the house of God and Israel and destroyed.

Then in Jn. 9, Jesus returns to Believing Israel and discipleship by picking up where He left off in Jn. 8:30-32 with the sign of the Healing of the Blind Man from birth.

On Thursday night, we read our way through Jn. 9, understanding it in the context of God's Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel and interpreting it in accord with the principles John gave us in Jn. 5.

Outline of Jn. 9

When we understand the Gospel of John in the context of God's Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel (NOT His Mystery Program with the Body of Christ in the Dispensation of Grace!) and use the interpretive principles given to us in Jn. 5, we will recognize that this chapter is not about personal evangelism unto individual salvation of sinners because God and John emphasize in the opening verses that this account has nothing to do with individual personal sin/s (Jn. 9:1‑7). Rather, the Blind Man represents Believing Israel, which is suffering under Israel's astronomical NATIONAL debt of Sin/s in the darkness of the unbelieving dead Nation of Israel, enslaved to its vain religious system (VRS) whose father is the devil (Jn. 8:44).

In other words, the sign of the healing of the blind man points to Believing Israel, which is suffering under the Curses of the Law in the Courses of Punishment not because of their own personal sin/s but because of their association as Israelites with Israel's NATIONAL sin/s (Lev. 26; Deut. 28). What these powerless children of God needed AT THAT TIME to become the powerful children of God (Jn. 1:12) was not being set free from personal sin/s (they already had that in their individual salvation) but being set free from apostate Israel and her NATIONAL debt of Sin/s. In other words, Believing Israel in Jn. 8:30‑32 needed to be set free from unbelieving Israel in Jn. 8:33-59. And John gives us a picture of just that in the Sign of the Healing Of The Blind Man From Birth!

1. Jn. 9:1-7: John establishes that this healing was not about personal evangelism or individual salvation because the issue is not about the man's personal sins (Jn. 9:2‑3)! Rather, this sign is about what God is going to do to SET THE MAN FREE (who represents Believing Israel) from suffering in the darkness and death of unbelieving Israel, associated with her astronomical national debt of Sin/s. Remember, there wasn't supposed to be blindness, disease and devils in Israel! They were there because the Nation of Israel was under the Curses of the Law in the Courses of Punishment because of their rebellion against God and rejection of His Word/s (Lev. 26; Deut. 28).

And being a part of the Nation of Israel, Believing Israel suffered with them. Yes, they were the children of God, but before Christ came, they were powerless children of God. Jn. 1:12 explains that God sent His Son AT THAT TIME to set free Believing Israel, His children, from all the chains and hindrances that kept them from being who He created them to be: Empowered Children of God, who bear much fruit and are authorized to rule in Israel's earthly kingdom (Jn. 1:12 Mat. 21:43).

2. Jn. 9:8-17: He (Believing Israel) is SET FREE from the earthly community of Unbelieving Israel's neighbor/community, who didn't recognize him after the healing and subjected him to the power and authority of Israel's VRS whose father was the devil (Jn. 8:44). But the healed man's (and the healed Believing Israel's) power exceeded theirs as he remained in Christ's Word, testifying of Him in the midst of persecution as His disciple indeed (Jn. 8:32). He belonged to a greater community—the Community of God and His People (Mat. 12:46‑50)!
3. In Jn. 9:18-28: He (Believing Israel) is SET FREE from earthly parents/family of unbelieving Israel, who recognized him but out of fear of the Pharisees washed their hands of him and deserted him to subjection to Israel's VRS. He belonged to a greater family—the Family of God (Mat. 12:46‑50 Mk. 3:31‑35 Lk. 8:19‑20 Jn. 19:26‑27).
4. In 9:29-34: He (Believing Israel) is SET FREE from Israel's VRS itself, thereby overcoming its pretended power and authority as usurpers, having been an empowered child of God who testified of the Lord Jesus Christ—He is The Prophet, The Messian/Christ, the sinless Man approved of God—the true Possessor of all Power and Glory and the rightful Ruler of Israel and the world. Ironically, while the self-deceived, wrongful rulers of Israel assumed they were exercising their puny little power and authority in casting the man (and Believing Israel) out, it was, in fact, the supreme power and authority of God working in SETTING FREE the Blind Man (and Believing Israel) from the clutches of darkness of death in which Unbelieving Israel and its VRS whose father is the devil tried to hold them.
5. In Jn. 9:35-41: Now, having been COMPLETELY SET FREE from unbelieving Israel, Jesus sought the man (Believing Israel), His lost sheep, to protect him (Believing Israel) in the safety of His Own divinely originated family, community and true worship (Jn. 4:23). And this leads directly in Jn. 10 where Jesus proclaims: I AM the Good Shepherd.

In summary, the account of the Blind Man from Birth shows God's works in separating—SETTING FREE—powerless Believing Israel from all that enslaved and hindered them so that they could become the POWERFUL CHILDREN OF GOD He created them to be in accord with God's Prophetic Program with the Nation of Israel to restore His Glory on earth.

What Jn. 9 Illustrates

The blind man represents Believing Israel suffering in the darkness of unbelieving Israel under the Curses of the Law because of the rebelliousness of the Nation, and its astronomical national debt of sin/s. After all, there wasn't supposed to be blindness, sickness, illness, lack of well-being, etc. in Israel (Deut. 28:1-14; Lev. 26:1-13)! Israel wasn't supposed to look like the Gentile Nations (Deut. 28:15-68; Lev. 26:14-46)!! While the healing of the blind man does not illustrate personal evangelism unto individual salvation, it does illustrate several other things regarding the works that God will do to save Believing Israel from Unbelieving Israel and its vain religious system (VRS) whose father is the devil (Jn. 8:45):

1. Jn. 9 illustrates what Jesus's words to Believing Israel meant in Jn. 8:30‑32.
1. Jesus said: If ye continue in My word, then are ye My disciples INDEED (Jn. 8:31). And that's exactly what the healed blind man does in Jn. 9. He abides in Jesus' word/s (Jn. 9:11, 15, 17, 25‑27) and becomes His DISCIPLE INDEED (Jn. 9:27‑28), an empowered child of God (Jn. 1:12), who testifies of Jesus Christ in the midst of persecution, enduring to the end and overcoming the power and authority of Unbelieving Israel's usurping VRS (Jn. 9:27‑28 31‑33).
2. Jesus went on to say: And ye will know the truth and the truth shall make you free (Jn. 8:32). By abiding in Jesus Christ, the I AM the Light of the World, and His Word/s, the blind man was enlightened to the way that led to the truth whereby he was SET FREE (Jn. 8:32, SET FREE INDEED) (Jn. 8:36) to worship the One true God in truth and bear much fruit unto Him (Jn. 9:35‑38 4:23 15:5).
2. Jn. 9 illustrates Jn. 1:12, and how Christ came AT THAT TIME to give power to the powerless children of God so they could become who they were: Children of God empowered to bear much fruit unto God and authorized to rule in Israel's earthly Kingdom. So too, in Jn. 9 the blind man begins as a powerless child of God, born into the darkness of Israel's national debt of sin/s, suffering under the Curses of the Law, subjected to the power of Israel's VRS. But at the end of the chapter, the blind man becomes the powerful child of God, bearing testimony to the truth in Jesus Christ in spite of persecution, overcoming the power and authority of the VRS and enduring to the end, worshipping the one true God in truth (Jn. 9:35‑38).
3. Jn. 9 illustrates what is left in Israel's Prophetic Program in accord with Daniel's Time Schedule. It is interesting to note that Jesus is very present in Jn. 9:1-7, speaking and doing things. This represents His 1st Coming. Then Jesus leaves the scene and doesn't return for 27 verses in Jn. 9:35. While he is away, His disciple is empowered to carry out His ministry in His absence, faithfully testifying of Christ. This represents what Believing Israel will do while Christ is away between His 1st and 2nd Comings. While we get a brief glimpse of this in early Acts, it looks ahead to the future Tribulation Period (Jn. 9:8-8-34). Finally, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, returns, seeking and gathering Believing Israel, ushering them into Israel's long-prophesied earthly kingdom. This represents Christ's 2nd Coming and the establishment of the Kingdom (Jn. 9:35‑41).
4. Jn. 9 illustrates Jn. 14:1. As a member of Believing Israel, the blind man believed in God for participation in individual salvation and knew Him from the Scriptures and Moses. Therefore, when the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, came, he recognized the Father in the Son and believed on the Him as well for participation in Israel's national salvation (Jn. 5:36-47).

In conclusion, Jn. 9 is an illustration of all that we have learned in the first 8 chapters of the Gospel of John.