I am Barabbas

I am Barabbas
In Defense of the Faith
Monday, February 24, 2014
Pete Garcia

In my recent discussions with those hermeneutically opposed to my biblical worldview, we seem to keep coming back to the discussion of whether the Church is now “True Israel”. In fact, it seems to be the biggest stumbling block in our little group that we have (aside from whether there will be an actual, literal millennial reign of Christ on earth). Now, many will admit that God still has a plan for “Israel” (national/ethnic Jews), but since Christ has come and fulfilled everything, He now is Israel.

According to them, because Christ is the fulfillment of everything in the Old Testament, and we are now in Christ, we are Israel. The viewpoint of these is that God only ever had one people, for all time, and that through national Israel’s failings, we have not only been grafted in, but somehow, we have become the tree itself instead of just a lonely branch.

Granted, as Christian’s, we are ‘seed of Abraham’ in the spiritual sense. (Gal 3:16) But that does not make the Church the ‘seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob’. Needless to say, all that seems to do is discount God’s specific calling of a real, physical people out of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. (Rom 9:6-13) Quoting the conversation between God and Moses, Paul records that God declares “I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy.” In Romans 9, Paul further goes on to use Pharaoh as an example of God raising Him up, only so that He could use him to demonstrate His power.

For the Scripture says to the Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.”Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens. (Rom 9:17-18 NKJV)

So it is with the creation of Israel, that God deliberately set Abram aside as a Gentile (Josh 24:2), and then through His calling, changes Abram to Abraham and from Sarai, to Sarah, where then Moses records Abram as being the first Hebrew in Scriptures. (Gen 14:13). And through Abraham’s son Isaac (the son of promise), would come a physical nation whose calling was to be as a ‘kingdom of priests’ before the Lord…

Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.” (Exodus 19:5-6)

Paul further clarifies, that because of Israel’s rejection of their Messiah, God would cause a partial hardening to happen (Rom 11:25), but because of God’s promises [covenants] to the patriarchs, they (Israel as a physical people) are beloved. So that puts them at odds directly with the Church in Paul’s day, and even unto our day, that this hardening has continued, and will continue, until God once again turns His focus back upon the people that He originally called for Himself.

Concerning the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but concerning the election they are beloved for the sake of the fathers. For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. For as you were once disobedient to God, yet have now obtained mercy through their disobedience, even so these also have now been disobedient, that through the mercy shown you they also may obtain mercy. For God has committed them all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all. (Rom 11:28-32)

And since the Church is not an enemy to the cross, but redeemed by it, we cannot be the same thing. The argument then shifts that we are now “true Israel” or “spiritual Israel”. According to Arnold G. Fruchtenbaum, the term “Israel” is used 73 times in the New Testament, of which, the vast majority refers to national, ethnic Israel. Two verses I have had used on me repeatedly, [url=http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans 9:6;Gal]Gal. 3:16 and Romans 9:6[/url], SEEM to lead one to the view that the Church has taken Israel’s place, if taken completely out of the context with the rest of the chapter or even book, as with Galatians. [See here for an excellent explanation of this entire topic] I would like to pull two quotes from here that capitalize on this point with extreme clarity.

• The usage of the terms Israel and the church in the early chapters of the book of Acts is in complete harmony, for Israel exists there alongside the newly formed church, and the two entities are kept separate in terminology [Ibid., p. 189].
  
• On the contrary, the apostle is concerned with correcting the gospel preached to the Galatians by the Judaizers, particularly their false contention that it was necessary to be circumcised to be saved and to observe as Christians certain requirements of the law of Moses in order to remain in divine favor . . . The apostle makes no attempt whatsoever to deny that there is a legitimate distinction of race between Gentile and Jewish believers in the church . . . . There is a remnant of Jewish believers in the church according to the election of grace . . . . This approach fails to see that Paul does not say there is neither Jew nor Greek within the church. He speaks of those who are “in Christ.” . . . But Paul also says there is neither male nor female, nor slave nor free man in Christ. Would he then deny sexual differences within the church? Or the social differences in Paul’s day? Is it not plain that Paul is not speaking of national or ethnic differences in Christ, but of spiritual status? In that sense there is no difference in Christ [Ibid., p. 190].
  

True Israel then are those Jews who have come to faith in their Jewish Messiah, Jesus Christ, and through faith have been redeemed by His blood, and not through the blood required of by the Mosaic covenant (the Law) i.e.…. that of bulls, goats, and sheep. Hebrews 10:11-14 states;

…For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified.

But God also promised Abraham that he would be a ‘father of many nations’, not only as numerous as the grains of sand on the seashores, but as many as the stars in the heavens above (Gen 22:16-18).

That leads me to think that God was telling Abraham prophetically that there would be both physical descendents and spiritual ones. I don’t think Abraham would have understood that at that time, but what he was expecting, was a physical heir, one of his own flesh. But as with the sand and the stars, one would come by the flesh, the other through like-faith. Two distinct nations unified in Christ in this dispensation, but who, still remain their distinct identities. The Gentiles are the wild branch grafted in, and the other, the natural branch, becoming true Israel. Are we then True Israel if we are grafted in?

…You will say then, “Branches were broken off that I might be grafted in.” Well said. Because of unbelief they were broken off, and you stand by faith. Do not be haughty, but fear. For if God did not spare the natural branches, He may not spare you either. Therefore consider the goodness and severity of God: on those who fell, severity; but toward you, goodness, if you continue in His goodness. Otherwise you also will be cut off. And they also, if they do not continue in unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. (Rom 9:16-23)

First of all, the olive tree is and isn’t Israel, because Israel isn’t a tree, it’s a nation. It represents Israel nationally, but it’s not even the tree itself, but just the branches. It is a metaphor meant to convey the place of privilege that Israel had prior to the Church’s birth at Pentecost. This example of the olive tree also can’t be speaking about salvation.

As born again believers, can we be ‘cut off’ as Israel has? No, because Paul writes in both Ephesians 1:11-14 and in 2 Corinthians 1:21-22, that we are purchased by God, and sealed by His Holy Spirit until the day of redemption. So if we could be cut off, Paul would be contradicting himself.

What is at stake here is not salvation, but privilege. What we are grafted into, is that same privilege in God’s economy, as Israel once had. Remember back to Exodus 19, where God assembled the nation of Israel together for the first time at Mt. Sinai, and stated “then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people”. Their calling was as a nation. Their covenant they agreed to as a nation was conditional (Ex. 24:1-4), but the Abrahamic covenant (Gen 15:12-20) was not. Abraham’s calling and the covenants that ensued through Isaac and Jacob were unconditional. SO if the Church replaces Israel, who they say represents the tree, then the whole tree would have to be cut down if it were to be cut off.

The Connection

You and I as believers are grafted into this place of privilege in God’s sovereign plan, we are now God’s focus in this dispensation I call the “Age of the Church”. We have been gifted with the giving of the Holy Spirit, and have a complete set of Scriptures and 20 centuries of hindsight that we can look back upon and see how God’s word has not only been faithful, but come to pass exactly as it said it would.

But we as a people are no better than were the Jews of yester-year. We still sin, because we still live in our sin-corrupted bodies and a sin-stained world. The only difference between them and us, is that we have the once and for all sacrifice applied to our lives, that we might become the righteousness of God through Christ. (2 Cor 5:21)

To think now, that we have achieved some level of superiority over the Jews, whether that is admitted out loud, or only in our heads, is ludicrous. It is all by grace and mercy, that we even have the opportunity to accept Jesus as Lord. It was only through the Jewish race that a Messiah could come. It was only through the patriarchs like Abraham that demonstrated for us what faith looks like, so that we could have a standard to measure our own lives against.

Did they know what the Messiah would come and do? Did they know He would not only make a way that we could be reconciled to God, but also that He would conquer death and hell?

Scriptures tell us that they longed to understand His coming, but only got bits and pieces. (1 Peter 1:10-12) They looked forward to His coming, and we look back. God through His own sovereignty chose them (Israel) as a people, just as in this age, He chose us.

It is God who chooses to whom He will have mercy on. And at the end of this Age, God will, because He is faithful, fulfill to the uttermost the things that He made covenant with them through their patriarchs. And if God could break His unbreakable covenants with them, then we should be fearful.

It was a natural procession of thinking in fallen men, that because of the Roman destruction of Jerusalem and their Temple, and because Jews remained hostile to the Gospel, because of this partial hardening, that they were doomed and cursed for all eternity. As the Church became more Gentile, the tendency became to lay the blame of Christ’s crucifixion solely on the Jews. So who really killed Christ? Let’s look and see who our likely candidates COULD have been?

1. Judas Iscariot betrayed Christ (Zech 11:12-13; Matt 26:15, 27:3,9)
   
2. Roman leadership washed their hands of Christ (Pilate, Herod) and actually mocked, beat, scourged, and nailed Him to the cross. (Matt 27:27-31)
   
3. The Jews chanted “crucify Him” (Matt 27:24-26)
   
4. God the Father (Isa 53:10, Acts 2:23; Romans 8:32; 1 Peter 1:19-20) knowingly and willingly allowed it.
   
5. You and I required it. (Gal 6:14; Eph 2:16; Col 1:20; Heb 12:2)
   

It was because of my sins that the Father determined to find a way before the foundation of the world, to bridge that gap between His perfect righteousness and my vile wickedness.

It was His plan to bring through the Jews, a perfect man, who would be betrayed by Judas, rejected by His own people, who through the Romans would crucify the Son of Man, for my behalf. So I have no one to blame but myself.

But for those replacement theologians who still insist that I am now Israel, then there is only one person who I qualify to be.

I am Barabbas.

http://www.omegaletter.com/articles/articles.asp?ArticleID=7768

Jarhead wrote:

Pete Garcia nails it again.

Another Barabbas...
His name is Barabbas

The Son Of Living God Yeshua HaMashiach Is About To Rapture His Bride- He & He Alone Can Set Us Free


May 3, 2017

Jesus made His triumphal entrance to Jerusalem at the beginning of the Passover feast. Jesus was eventually arrested and tried for crimes. Barabbas was also a prisoner at that time. 
The penalty for Barabbas' crime was death by crucifixion. At that time in Jerusalem there was a Passover custom which allowed or required Pontius Pilate, the current governor of Judea, to commute one prisoner's death sentence by popular acclaim. The crowd (or multitude) were offered to have either Barabbas or Jesus Christ released from Roman custody. The crowd chose Barabbas to be released and Jesus of Nazareth to be crucified. This account is recorded in the gospels of Matthew (27:15-26), Mark (15:6-15), and Luke (23:13–25), and in John (18:38, 19:16).

Barabbas was a thief, murderer and rebel. Matthew described him as notorious (Matthew 27:16). Everything about Barabbas is true of us today. We are all sinners. Barabbas accepted Jesus as his replacement on the cross. Barabbas knew Jesus was innocent and this innocent Man would die in his place. Barabbas knew he didn't do anything to deserve this freedom. Barabbas accepted the gift of freedom and Jesus took his place on the Cross. Jesus died in the sinner's place. Barabbas was set free. Barabbas, a thief, murderer and rebel was saved at the expense of Jesus Christ, just as we who are believers are saved. 
The name Barabbas is a combination of two Aramaic words, bar, which means son, and abba, which means father. So Barabbas means “son of the father” ~ which of course, all believers are by their position in Christ.

Jesus was crucified alongside 2 thieves, one on the right side and one on the left. Only in the Gospel of Luke does this discussion take place.
Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, "If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us." 
But the other, answering, rebuked him, saying, "Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? 
"And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong." 
Then he said to Jesus, "Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom." 
And Jesus said to him, "Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise." Luke 23:39-43 

Barabbas walked away a free man. Jesus and two thieves were crucified. While hanging on their crosses, suffering the agony of pain, humiliation and dying one of the thieves blasphemed Him but the other asked Jesus to remember him in Jesus' Kingdom. And Jesus said to him "Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise." 

There are three groups of people represented here. The "Barabbas group," the believers, accepting the free gift of grace from Jesus and escaping the Tribulation, they are "raptured." Another group is the "unbelieving thief" group. They do not believe, they reject Jesus and they die, and are separated forever. The "believing and accepting Jesus" thief makes up the group that will come to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior during the Tribulation. They are the Tribulation saints, they will come to Jesus, endure with their faith but will be martyred. They will be with Jesus in Paradise.

We read in Matthew 20:28 "just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many." The word “for” there means in place of, instead of. We read in 1 Thessalonians 5:9 and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come. When Jesus Christ died on the cross, He delivered us from the wrath and He set us free.

Amen, and AMEN!