The Book of Acts: Chapter 28 (pt 16 of 16)

Look at I Peter 2:4-10:

You have come to the Living Stone, depised indeed by men but chosen and greatly honoured by God. So you yourselves, as living stones, must be built up into a spiritual House of God, in which you become a holy priesthood, able to offer those spiritual sacrifices which are acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. There is a passage to this effect in scripture, and it runs like this:

Behold! I lay in zion a chief corner stone, elect, precious;
And he that believeth on him shall not be put to shame.

It is to you who believe in him that he is “precious,” but to those who disobey God, it is thre that:

The stone which the builders rejected,
The same was made the head of the corner.

And he is to them:

A stone of stumbling and a rock of offence,

Yet, they stumble at the Word of God for in their hearts they are unwilling to obey it—which makes stumbling a foregone conclusion. But you are God’s “chosen generation,” his “royal priesthood,” his “holy nation,” his “peculiar people”—all theold titles of God’s people now belong to you. It is for you now to demonstrate the goodness of him who has called you out of darkness into his amazing light. In the past you were not “a people” at all; now you are the people of God. In the past you had not experience of his mercy, but now it is intimately yours” —I Peter 2:4-10

I want you to notice that Peter takes Old Testament texts that were originally directed solely to the Jews and applies them to Gentile believers. The same thing happens in Romans 9:25-26 when Paul cites Hosea 2:23 and 1:10 as an explanation for the salvation of Gentiles. These texts in Hosea were also addressed to disobedient Israelites. The “Great Reversal” occurs when the blessings God had provided for the Jews are now offered to the Gentiles, as well. That is what Acts chapter 28 is all about. The Lord is still working with the Jews, and salvation is available to them (and anyone else) who wishes to accept it. What could be better news for those of us who are Gentiles?

God has faithfully preserved a remnant of believing Jews, which guarantees a bright future for the nation Israel:

And Isaiah cries out on behalf of Israel, “Though the number of the children of Israel are as the sand of the sea, only the remnant will be saved, for the Lord will execute his sentence on the earth completely and quickly.” Just as Isaiah predicted, “If the Lord of armies had not left us descendants, we would have become like Sodom, and we would have resembled Gomorrah” —Romans 9:27-29

I go into more depth into this point, in a study I entitled, “Dust and Stars.” But what I think is important to understand is that YHWH is using the evangelization of the Gentiles to provoke the Jews to jealousy. Paul wrote this in the 11^th chapter of Romans:

Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Seeing that I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, if somehow I could provoke my people to jealousy and save some of them —Romans 11:13-14

When the times of the Gentiles is complete, and the temporary and partial hardening of the Jews is removed, then Israel will be drawn to faith in the Messiah and “all Israel will be saved.” God has used Jewish unbelief to open the door for Gentile evangelism, and this has been a tremendous blessing to the Gentiles. Just imagine the blessing to the Gentiles when Israel comes to faith!

Now if their transgression means riches for the world and their defeat means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their full restoration bring? —Romans 11:12

Now I am going to end this chapter—and this study of the Book of Acts—with the words Paul wrote at the end of Romans 11:

I stand amazed at the fathomless wealth of God’s wisdom and God’s knowledge. How could man ever understand his reasons for action, or explain his methods of working? For:

Who hath known the mind of the Lord?
Or who hath been his counselor?
Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again?

For everything began with him, continues its existence because of him, and ends in him. To him be the glory for ever, amen! —Romans 11:33-36

Advertisement