We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers, remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Thessalonians 1:2-3 ESV)
"Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord God: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came. And I will vindicate the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them. And the nations will know that I am the Lord, declares the Lord God, when through you I vindicate my holiness before their eyes. I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries and bring you into your own land. (Ezekiel 36:22-24 ESV)
So I will show my greatness and my holiness and make myself known in the eyes of many nations. Then they will know that I am the LORD. (Ezekiel 38:23 ESV)
So I will make my holy name known among my people Israel and will no longer allow it to be profaned. Then the nations will know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel. (Ezekiel 39:7 CSB)
It is not possible to prove that God exist. So God use the existence of Israel to prove His existence.
See then the kindness and severity of God: to those who fell, severity, but to you, God's kindness, if you continue in His kindness; for otherwise you too will be cut off. (Romans 11:22 NASB)
Sin has two purposes, to show the kindness of God and also His severity.
No matter how heinous a sinner you are, if you come to God for mercy, He will show it to you and pardon you through His Son, who had died for the sins of the world. And let all the wicked people rejoice at this good news from Jesus Christ. There is no one so bad that he cannot be saved by the blood of Jesus.
This saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance: "Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners" - and I am the worst of them. But I received mercy for this reason, so that in me, the worst of them, Christ Jesus might demonstrate his extraordinary patience as an example to those who would believe in him for eternal life. (1 Timothy 1:15-16 CSB)
If you think that you are good enough to face God, you will realize how severe is His judgement. Every evil thought and every idle word have to be accounted for. There is no one so good that they do not need the saviour.
And I tell you this, you must give an account on judgment day for every idle word you speak. (Matthew 12:36 NLT)
Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God's kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off. (Romans 11:22 ESV)
The elects are chosen to show God's grace and kindness, the rejects are to demonstrate God's justice and severity.
After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, that no wind might blow on earth or sea or against any tree. Then I saw another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, with the seal of the living God, and he called with a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm earth and sea, saying, "Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, until we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads." And I heard the number of the sealed, 144,000, sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel: 12,000 from the tribe of Judah were sealed, 12,000 from the tribe of Reuben, 12,000 from the tribe of Gad, 12,000 from the tribe of Asher, 12,000 from the tribe of Naphtali, 12,000 from the tribe of Manasseh, 12,000 from the tribe of Simeon, 12,000 from the tribe of Levi, 12,000 from the tribe of Issachar, 12,000 from the tribe of Zebulun, 12,000 from the tribe of Joseph, 12,000 from the tribe of Benjamin were sealed. (Revelation 7:1-8 ESV)
The 144000 will be sealed at the sixth seal and martyred by the seventh trumpet.
Then I looked, and behold, on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father's name written on their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven like the roar of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder. The voice I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps, and they were singing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders. No one could learn that song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. It is these who have not defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins. It is these who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. These have been redeemed from mankind as firstfruits for God and the Lamb, and in their mouth no lie was found, for they are blameless. (Revelation 14:1-5 ESV)
And when I saw the Lamb open the sixth seal, there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black like sackcloth of goat hair, and the whole moon turned blood red, and the stars of the sky fell to the earth like unripe figs dropping from a tree shaken by a great wind. The sky receded like a scroll being rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved from its place. (Revelation 6:12-14 BSB)
Then I saw the seven angels who stand in the presence of God; seven trumpets were given to them. Another angel, with a golden incense burner, came and stood at the altar. He was given a large amount of incense to offer with the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar in front of the throne. The smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, went up in the presence of God from the angel's hand. The angel took the incense burner, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it to the earth; there were peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake. (Revelation 8:2-5 CSB)
For three and a half days some from the peoples and tribes and languages and nations will gaze at their dead bodies and refuse to let them be placed in a tomb, and those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and make merry and exchange presents, because these two prophets had been a torment to those who dwell on the earth. But after the three and a half days a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood up on their feet, and great fear fell on those who saw them. Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, "Come up here!" And they went up to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies watched them. And at that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven. (Revelation 11:9-13 ESV)
And the temple of God which is in heaven was opened; and the ark of His covenant appeared in His temple, and there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder, and an earthquake, and a great hailstorm. (Revelation 11:19 NASB)
The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and out of the temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying, "It is done!" Then there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder and a severe earthquake. No earthquake like it has ever occurred since mankind has been on earth, so tremendous was the quake. The great city split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. God remembered Babylon the Great and gave her the cup filled with the wine of the fury of his wrath. 20 Every island fled away and the mountains could not be found. From the sky huge hailstones, each weighing about a hundred pounds, fell on people. And they cursed God on account of the plague of hail, because the plague was so terrible. (Revelation 16:17-21 NIV)
It is not because of your righteousness or uprightness of heart that you are going in to possess their land, but it is because of their wickedness that the LORD your God is driving out these nations before you, to keep the promise He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. (Deuteronomy 9:5 BSB)
God gave the promised land to Israel to keep the promise He swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. That is why it is called the promised land.
Therefore tell the house of Israel that this is what the Lord GOD says: It is not for your sake that I will act, O house of Israel, but for My holy name, which you profaned among the nations to which you went. I will show the holiness of My great name, which has been profaned among the nations - the name you have profaned among them. Then the nations will know that I am the LORD, declares the Lord GOD, when I show My holiness in you before their eyes. For I will take you from among the nations and gather you out of all the countries, and I will bring you back into your own land. (Ezekiel 36:22-24 BSB)
God restored Israel to the promised land in 1948 to show the holiness of His great name and to keep the promise He swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed. (Malachi 3:6 KJV)
"Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord God: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came. And I will vindicate the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them. And the nations will know that I am the Lord, declares the Lord God, when through you I vindicate my holiness before their eyes. I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries and bring you into your own land. (Ezekiel 36:22-24 ESV)
God restored Israel to vindicate the holiness of His great name in the eyes of the nations. But the nations still refused to recognise the God of Israel. So there will be the Gog and Magog war where God will defeat Gog miraculously. And that will end secularism.
So I will show my greatness and my holiness and make myself known in the eyes of many nations. Then they will know that I am the LORD. (Ezekiel 38:23 ESV)
So I will make my holy name known among my people Israel and will no longer allow it to be profaned. Then the nations will know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel. (Ezekiel 39:7 CSB)
Therefore, he had to be like his brothers and sisters in every way, so that he could become a merciful and faithful high priest in matters pertaining to God, to make atonement for the sins of the people. For since he himself has suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted. (Hebrews 2:18 CSB)
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has been tempted in every way as we are, yet without sin. (Hebrews 4:15 CSB)
God put Himself in our shoes, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. He is able to sympathize with our weakness. Are we able to put ourselves in other people's shoes?
Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. (Philippians 2:5-8 KJV)
But I have chosen Jerusalem, that my name might be there; and have chosen David to be over my people Israel. (2 Chronicles 6:6 KJV)
Moreover, the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah: "Have you not noticed what these people are saying: 'The LORD has rejected the two families He had chosen'? So they despise My people and no longer regard them as a nation. This is what the LORD says: If I have not established My covenant with the day and the night and the fixed order of heaven and earth, then I would also reject the descendants of Jacob and of My servant David, so as not to take from his descendants rulers over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For I will restore them from captivity and will have compassion on them." (Jeremiah 33:23-26 BSB)
This interesting video "Who Controlled Jerusalem the Longest? - YouTube" gave us a rational basis for a secular solution to the Israel-Palestinian problem. It concluded at the end of the video that since the Muslims controlled Jerusalem for 1283 years and the Jews for 1197 years, then it ought to be a two-state solution. I think for all those people who do not believe in the Bible, he has a very good case.
But both the Jews and the Muslims will not accept the solution. Neither will the Bible believing Christians. Above all, the God who created the heavens and the earth will bring to pass all that He had purposed. God is the factor overlooked in secular solution.
On that day, when all the nations of the earth gather against her, I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples; all who would heave it away will be severely injured. (Zechariah 12:3 BSB)
The LORD of Hosts has sworn: As I have purposed, so it will be; as I have planned it, so it will happen. (Isaiah 14:24 CSB)
I declare the end from the beginning, and from long ago what is not yet done, saying: my plan will take place, and I will do all my will. (Isaiah 46:10 CSB)
Most importantly, I want to remind you that in the last days scoffers will come, mocking the truth and following their own desires. They will say, "What happened to the promise that Jesus is coming again? From before the times of our ancestors, everything has remained the same since the world was first created." (2 Peter 3:3-4 NLT)
We are fortunate to be born in the period where Israel became a nation again and Bible prophecy started to kick in again. If you were born five hundred years ago, there was no way to answer the scoffers, except to tell them that you believe by faith. Today at least we can tell scoffers that Israel is back, fulfilling Bible prophecies about its restoration and that more fulfilments will follow.
Bible prophecy is very focused. It is about Yeshua Hamashiach and Israel. Only when Israel is back, then would Bible prophecies continue. The major outline for the future of Israel can be found in Ezekiel 33-47 and Daniel 7-12.
Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. (Matthew 5:17 KJV)
Thus says the LORD, who gives the sun for light by day and the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar - the LORD of hosts is his name: "If this fixed order departs from before me, declares the LORD, then shall the offspring of Israel cease from being a nation before me forever." (Jeremiah 31:35-36 ESV)
Moreover, the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah: "Have you not noticed what these people are saying: 'The LORD has rejected the two families He had chosen'? So they despise My people and no longer regard them as a nation. This is what the LORD says: If I have not established My covenant with the day and the night and the fixed order of heaven and earth, then I would also reject the descendants of Jacob and of My servant David, so as not to take from his descendants rulers over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For I will restore them from captivity and will have compassion on them." (Jeremiah 33:23-26 BSB)
Even when the fixed order of the sun for light by day and the moon and the stars for light by night is no longer needed, Israel will continue to exist.
The sun shall be no more your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give you light; but the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. (Isaiah 60:19 ESV)
And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. (Revelation 21:23 ESV)
And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever. (Revelation 22:5 ESV)
