Christian Living

THE SPIRIT OF SLUMBER

by paul hoffmaster
02/24/19
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Throughout Biblical history, one sees the Jewish people exhibiting a wide range of behavior.  The Scriptures are full of recorded periods of obedience followed by equal times of rebellion.   God fearing Kings were followed by their disobedient heirs who willingly transgressed against their creator.  God released countless acts of correction and chastisement.  There were positive responses which were short lived, because the Jewish people favored a lifestyle more in keeping with how other nations conducted themselves. (I Samuel 8:5)  God allowed a division of the Jewish people into two kingdoms: The Northern Kingdom, known as Israel, and the Southern Kingdom, identified as Judah.  Years later, both Kingdoms would be overrun by heathenistic nations that would dissolve their two kingdoms.  After years of captivity, the remnants of Judah returned to their land and rebuilt the holy city of Jerusalem.  The Northern Kingdom never recovered due to a large degree to their intermarriage with their captives and, as a result, became ostracized from the reestablished Southern Kingdom.  God never forsook His chosen people, for He always had the faithful who stayed loyal to Him no matter what the cost.  Through endless chastisements, His love and commitment to His people continued to be offered.  God so loved the Jews that He sent Jesus to offer them forgiveness for their waywardness.  Instead of acceptance, they once again rejected His offer and crucified His only Son.  What was to follow was a plan that would not only give the Jewish people another opportunity for reconciliation, but also offer an invitation to the non-Jews to receive all the benefits of His Kingdom.  What was that plan?

The “faithful” Jews stayed submissive to God throughout history.  They would continue to experience God’s Grace, from generation to generation.  God did not give up on those who were disobedient, but introduced a way in which they could see the Truth and once again become the shining example of God’s love.  What God did would boggle the mind of even the most seasoned Believer.  God gave His rebellious people a “spirit of slumber,” where they would enter a time of not being able to see or hear the Truth.  Moses and Isaiah, as well as David, proclaimed many years before that the eyes of the Jews would “…Be darkened, that they may not see, and bow down their back always.” (Deuteronomy 29:10, Isaiah 29:10, Romans 11: 8-10,)  God’s plan was not to reject them, but to use Gentiles, filled with His power, to provoke them to jealousy. (Romans 11:11,14)  When the Jews would see the favor that would be bestowed on the non-Jews, they would see what they were missing and would repent of their sins and be reconciled to God.  By acknowledging their wrong doings, the “spirit of slumber” would be removed and the Truth revealed.  What they would see was the Jesus they had crucified was the key to complete restoration.  For the Jews to understand this, they had to hear the Gospel.  That is where the Church comes in.  It is the Christians responsibility to understand their calling and reach out, not only to their fellow non-Jews, but also to the Jews as well.  If it had not been for God’s love of the Jews and His willingness to take radical steps to restore them, we non-Jews would never be part of God’s Kingdom! (Read Romans chapters 10 and 11.)

Many Believers fail to understand God’s reconciliation plan for the Jews.  We must never flaunt our faith at the expense of the Jewish people.  We must exhibit humility for it is not by accident that we became part of God’s family; rather we became instruments of righteousness that exhibit the Grace of God to both the Gentiles and the Jews.  Are we provoking all peoples to seek the real Truth?