The Church Must Be Set-Up In Its Fullness And In Turn It Will Provoke The Jews To Jealousy

    "I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall?  God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to Jealousy (Romans 11:11)."

      We must keep in mind that the Jews have not fallen that they cannot be saved.  They can be saved as a Gentile at any time they will believe.  But there is a difference in a Jew being saved and the Jews being grafted in.  To point out this truth -- this cutting off is to remain until the fullness of Gentiles.  Paul said in the 11th chapter even after the cutting off that there was a remnant being saved in his day.  In the 12th verse of the 11th chapter of Romans, "Now if the fall of them be the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles; how much more their fullness?"  He refers to the diminishing of them.  This diminishing points out that there is going to be a necessity of them being gathered together in a multitude and in a multitude be accepted as a nation or house.  We must keep in mind this cannot be until a Gentile church provokes them to jealousy.  Jesus, Himself, refers to this same revelation in Luke 21:24, "And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations; and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled."  Now in this verse the Words of Christ points out the diminishing of them.  It clearly points out that this scattering of them is not to be until the time of the  Gentiles have been fulfilled.  So just getting a Jew saved here and there is not what to which these prophecies refer.  There is a special event to take place before we get the Church set-up according to the perfect pattern.  This perfect pattern is what makes the fullness of the Gentiles.  For the chief apostle, James, said in Acts the 15th chapter that God had chosen the Gentiles in the last days to rebuild and set-up the Church to restore the ruins thereof and they are to completely reform the Church that the residue of men might seek after the Lord and points out it is the Gentiles to do it.  Verse 18, "Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world."  So it looks as though these Scriptures has placed the whole matter into the hands of the Gentiles to bring in the Jews after it is perfectly formed.  James further said himself in Verse 15, "And to this agree the words of the prophets; as it is written,"  The greatest thing for us to work to get the Gentile Church moving on in its fullness and don't get mixed up in this fullness doesn't mean all the Gentiles neither doest it specify a certain number but it refers to the pattern of the fullness of the Gentiles.  The Church being so glorious that it will provoke the Jews to jealousy, whether we are 300 or 10,000.

    Some seem to get the impression that we will have to get the Jews before we can appear in our glory, but that is a mistake.  We must appear as a Gentile Church in her glory before the grafting in of the Jews.  For many years I tried to get the Church to see that and they refused the revelation that would have brought the Church into her glory according to the perfect pattern and a perfect ministry.  Because many refused this, it became necessary to have a reformation in order to reform the house.  The vessel became marred in the Potter's hand and now He is remolding and making it into a vessel that pleases Him.  In the little set back, it became necessary that we should work harder than ever before.  I feel that God gave me the plan many years before the disruption but was hindered.  I still feel that I hold the secret of the plan and I know what I am doing.  At the proper time, I will rise up and accomplish the work that is to be done in the grafting in.  I do not feel that God has taken it out of my hands and I will appreciate the cooperation of all to get the Gentile Church to the place that it will provoke the Jews to jealousy.  Now this doesn't mean that a Jew cannot be saved at this present time.  There has always been Jews saved down through the century and so the Jews are waiting for that glorious day of the fulfillment of the 37th chapter of Ezekiel when they will get up as a graveyard an exceedingly great number of them.  Although every opportunity we have to get a Jew saved, we must use it for they have souls the same as the Gentiles.  It is even time for the Jews to lift up their heads for their redemption draweth night.

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* Article Written By:  The Late Grady R. Kent, St. John II, Chief Bishop of The Church of God, 1957-1964. This sermon was taken from The Vision Speaks, Volume 1 : Number 7 :  March 1958.

All grammatical and typographical errors have been corrected except for direct quotations from the Author.  Thought content of said article has not been change