The Christian's Greatest Discovery - Part 11

Liz Aiello: Jesus said if we know the truth, the truth will make us free. On this edition of Messianic Perspectives, Dr. Gary Hedrick shows us one truth in particular that enables us to walk in real freedom. Stay with us as we discuss the Christian's greatest discovery. Shalom, and welcome to Messianic Perspectives, a daily program where we look into the Scriptures from a distinctive first-century Jewish point of view. I'm Liz Aiello. Today, Dr. Gary Hedrick is discussing the Christian's greatest discovery. I'll be back at the close of the program to tell you about our special offer. And now, with today's installment, here's Gary Hedrick.
Dr. Gary Hedrick: Welcome you, listening friend. It's good to have you with us today as we continue our series of studies from the life of Abraham, which we've entitled "The Christian's Greatest Discovery." And of course, the discovery we've been talking about is the assurance of salvation. And we've been noticing how even Abraham, that great patriarch of the Jewish nation, even Abraham needed assurance. And God gave it to him by confirming and reconfirming his covenant with Abraham over and over again. And when we ran out of time on the last program, we were talking about the fact that the blessing of the Abrahamic covenant wasn't just for the Jews, although that's certainly part of it. But the blessing of the Abrahamic covenant is for all nations—the Jews, the Gentiles, and the church of God. God has a non-discriminatory policy. Sometimes we Christians get so caught up in the whole idea of the Jews being God's chosen people—and they are God's chosen people—but we need to remember that God loves Gentiles as well. He loves the Arab people. In fact, since we're right here in Genesis anyway, let me show you something in Genesis chapter 16. This is where we find the origin of the Arab nations. And you will recall that after Hagar conceived a child by Abraham, his wife, Sarah, had her evicted. Sarah was jealous of the fact that Hagar had been able to conceive a child because she couldn't have a child herself. So there was Hagar, the Egyptian handmaid of Sarah, pregnant, wandering around in exile out there in that Palestinian desert. Now, remember, that baby inside her was half Hebrew and half Egyptian. Abraham was the father, Hagar was the mother. And that's what the Arab people are, basically—half Jewish and half Egyptian. That's who they are. So these people who are warring and feuding in the Middle East, the Arabs and the Jews, are cousins. It's a family feud. But there Hagar was, wandering around in the desert, nowhere to go, no one to turn to, a completely hopeless situation from a human standpoint. And what happened? The Bible says here in Genesis 16:7, "And the angel of the Lord found her, that is, found Hagar, by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur." The Lord found Hagar, it says. I like that. He was pursuing her, you see. And it wouldn't have mattered where she went, God would have found her. Listen, she could have been 10,000 miles away in the most remote part of Antarctica, and God would have found her. But in this case, he found her by a well. And he began to speak to her. And he said in verse 8, "Hagar, Sarah's maid, whence comest thou? And whither wilt thou go? Where did you come from and where are you going?" And that blew Hagar's mind, that God knew her name and that he saw her. In Egyptian religion, Egyptian mythology, the gods and goddesses were all very impersonal. They were untouchable. And here was the Hebrew God, the God of Abraham, talking to her. And not only that, but he even knew her name. Can you imagine how she felt? She didn't think anybody cared. And then the Lord appears to her personally. That's why from that day forward, Hagar called that place Beer-lahai-roi. In the Hebrew, it means "well of the living one who sees me." But that's the kind of a God he is. And by the way, my friend, he sees you too. You may be wandering around in a wilderness of your own, and you may think nobody cares, but God does. He sees you, and he knows you, and he loves you. And look what else the Lord told Hagar. He said in verse 10, "I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall not be numbered for multitude." And her son, of course, was Ishmael. And Ishmael became the father of the Arab nations. When Jesus comes again, all nations, Jews and Gentiles alike, all nations will be blessed in Abraham's seed. And they shall beat their swords into plowshares, Isaiah says, and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore. Won't that be nice? Then every man shall sit under his own vine and fig tree according to the prophets. Sickness and disease will be unknown, and poverty will be banished forever. And at long last, this world will enjoy the long-hoped-for and long-dreamed-of age of prosperity and blessing under the reign of King Jesus, the Messiah, in that glorious millennial age. The Jews call it the Messianic Age. Christians call it the Millennial Kingdom. It refers to the same period of time, and may God hasten that day. In the meantime, we'll continue proclaiming the gospel to the Jew first and also to the Gentile. Pray for us, won't you? Pray for our missionaries. Let me share something with you. I think it'll encourage you that the Lord is at work among his people, the Jews. We heard about a young Hasidic Jew in Ohio who has come to the Lord. You know, the Hasidic Jews are the ones who wear black clothing and long beards and locks of hair down the sides and black hats. They are very, very devout people. And this young Jewish man, his name is Yitzhak, had been studying the 110th Psalm, where it says "The Lord"—and that's Yahweh in the Hebrew—"The Lord said unto my Lord"—and that's the Hebrew word Adonai—"sit thou at my right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool." Well, the more Yitzhak read that passage, the more confused he became. Was God speaking to himself? "The Lord said unto my Lord"—who was David's Lord? Was it the Messiah? The rabbis said no. So he was very confused and he went to the synagogue and checked the Jewish commentaries. And they said this was a reference to King David and his son. But Yitzhak wasn't convinced. Finally, he sought the advice of some Christians. And these Christians met with Yitzhak one night and very lovingly explained to him that the 110th Psalm is where David is actually overhearing a conversation between God the Father and God the Son, between God the Father and Yeshua, the Messiah. And what it means is that God the Father said to the Messiah, "Sit thou at my right hand." And there was Yitzhak, dressed in black, with his curls and beard, and there were these Christians. And when they were finished explaining Psalm 110, Yitzhak told them, he said, "That's what I believe." And that night, he came to saving faith in Yeshua HaMashiach, Jesus the Messiah. Well, the immediate response of Yitzhak's family was to disown him. But a few weeks later, Yitzhak's father called him on the phone and said, "I cannot disown you. You are my son. You will always be my son." And then he asked Yitzhak, he said, "Son, tell me why you have made this decision to follow Jesus." And Yitzhak told his father about Psalm 110 and some other Messianic passages and had an opportunity to share with him his faith in Jesus Christ. Then, Yitzhak's father suddenly became ill and died before Yitzhak could get to the hospital. They told him later that just before his father died, with that Jewish family standing all around the bed, he looked up at them and he said this: "If Yeshua is good enough for Yitzhak, he's good enough for me." And that precious Jewish man died a believer in Jesus Christ. And then after the traditional seven days of mourning, which the Jews call Shiva, Yitzhak stood before a council of 17 Orthodox Jewish rabbis. This was in Shaker Heights, Ohio, over on the east side of Cleveland, and he testified of his faith in Yeshua HaMashiach. The rabbis were quoting from their commentaries and they were trying to convince him to recant his faith in Jesus Christ. And Yitzhak presented them with five specific Messianic passages they couldn't explain. Finally, at the end of the session, he told these 17 rabbis, he said, "You can have your commentaries, I'll take the Bible." You see, the Lord is at work among his people, the Jews. He hasn't forgotten them. The question is, have we? Have we forgotten them? Instead of "to the Jew first," are we taking the gospel to the Jew last? Well, here at the Christian Jew Foundation, we're working to maintain that biblical priority. Our specialty is Jewish evangelism, and we're out there reaching Jewish people with the gospel. Our workers are in Israel, England, South America, the United States, South Africa—in just about every major Jewish population center of the world. And it's your prayers and your giving that make it all possible. Well, that's all for today.
Liz Aiello: Thank you, Gary. And thank you, listening friend, for tuning in today. It's always good to have you with us as we look into God's word together. Now, let me tell you about our special offer. It's the compact disc which includes all of the programs in this current series of studies on "The Christian's Greatest Discovery." Of course, the discovery we're talking about is the truth of the believer's security. When we understand that salvation depends on Christ and his merits, rather than on ourselves and our merits, then we've taken the first step toward walking in true freedom. It's unfortunate that so many of us don't fully appreciate our security in Christ. We get bogged down in our spiritual lives because we never know from one minute to the next how we stand with God. That's why this teaching is so important. We need to know that our standing before God doesn't fluctuate depending on how well we perform. All of our sins—past, present, and future—have been forgiven through the shed blood of the Messiah. His righteousness has been imputed to us. So we can know that we're saved. And that's what this series is all about. The title once again is "The Christian's Greatest Discovery," and it can be yours for a gift of just $6 or more to Messianic Perspectives. Just visit our secure online store at messianicspecialties.com to place your order. If you would prefer to order by mail, just address your request to Messianic Perspectives, PO Box 345, San Antonio, Texas 78292. To order by phone, use our toll-free order line. The number is 1-800-926-5397. And as always, when you're in touch with us, please mention the call letters of this station. If you're listening to our webcast or podcast, we need to know that too. I'm Liz Aiello. Join us next time, won't you? As Dr. Gary Hedrick continues our series of studies on "The Christian's Greatest Discovery," right here on Messianic Perspectives.