On this one nation God bestowed a unique privilege. His laws for them were demanding and strict. But Israel was expected to acknowledge and accept His authority on the basis of all they were allowed to hear and see of His mighty greatness.
Yes, Israel did have faith. Faith in God’s holy Law. But Israel could not carry through with the Law. If they could have done so there would not have been need of the blood. But “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness” (Hebrews 9:22) The need for faith in the power of the blood already became obvious while they were still under the power of their Egyptian oppressors. The blood had to be on the door-posts and through those blood smeared door-posts they could safely step out into a wicked world.
When Israel had come to that point in time of almost entering their promised land, Moses stood between God and His people and reminded Israel:
Deuteronomy 4:32-36 “Ask now about the former days long before your time, from the day God created man on earth; ask from one end of the heavens to the other!
Has anything so great as this ever happened or has anything like it ever been heard of? Has any people ‘heard’ the voice of God speaking out of the fire as you have, and lived? Has any god ever tried to take for himself a nation out of another nation? By testings, by miraculous signs and wonders; by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm or by great and awesome deeds like the Lord your God did in Egypt ‘before your very eyes’? You were ‘shown’ these things so that you might know that the Lord is God; besides Him there is no other! From Heaven He made you ‘hear’ His voice to discipline you. On earth He ‘showed’ His great fire and you ‘heard’ His words out of the fire.”
From here we take a large step into the New Testament, to the shepherds, during the night in which Jesus was born.
Luke 2:18 “When they had ‘seen’ Him they spread the word around concerning what they had been ‘told’ about this child.”
These shepherds, what did they hear the angel telling them? What did they hear and see in the night-sky? And when they went to investigate, what did they find? They found the child and found everything just as the Lord had ‘told’ them about. Israel was privileged. Israel may believe the testimony of eyewitnesses and what they were allowed to see and hear. But there was more.
While he was in prison John the Baptist heard what Christ was doing in the community and sent his disciples to ask Him:
Luke 7:22,23 “Are you the One Who was to come or should we expect someone else?”
Jesus replied:
‘Go back and report to John what you ‘hear and see’. The blind receive their sight, the lame walk. Those who had leprosy are healed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised and the good news is preached to the poor. Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me.”
In prison John himself could not see any of the mighty miracles by Jesus. So Jesus told John’s disciples ‘Go and tell John what you hear and see. If anything will answer the question nagging on John’s mind it must be that you tell him about the amazing things you are able to see and hear. Tell him about the dancing in the streets of those who once were lame or blind. About the lepers who were healed and are now back in the community talking with people who once were deaf. Tell him about the Good News you are hearing. Go back to John and tell him what you hear and see.
At no time in her history did the nation of Israel have so much to hear and see. So many examples of what her God was doing. But only a number of individual Jews did believe. The nation and her leadership remained determined not to believe the Good News about the Kingdom of Heaven, determined to reject Him Who was preaching it.
On the day of Pentecost the town was turned upside down. All those foreign visitors heard those lowly educated Galileans speaking in, for them, foreign languages, declaring the wonders of God. And then came Peter’s powerful sermon. This is how Peter concluded:
Acts 2:32,33 “God has raised ‘this’ Jesus to life and we are all witnesses to the fact. Exalted to the right hand of God He has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now ‘see and hear’.
Then came the bitter consternation among the Jewish leadership, when God used this simple fisherman in the conversion of three thousand people. How could it be? We know the answer. It was NOT Peter, it was the God of Israel allowing these people to hear and see .It was the Holy Spirit using Peter as the spokesperson for God. Listen again:
Acts 2:36 “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made ‘this’ Jesus, Whom you crucified both Lord and Christ.”
Three thousand Jews were stricken in their conscience. They DID see and hear and . . . believed. Miracles and wonders did NOT save them, but FAITH did.
Miracles and wonders! Yes, From the days of Israel’s slavery in Egypt, until the day of Pentecost and after. But that only, so that Israel may believe her God. God meant to attract that recalcitrant nation to Himself and His grace. Sadly, all the effort, of many long years in many places delivered only limited result. In our next chapter we will see the reason why. Today sinners need to hear Jesus and see His Cross; then to believe and be saved.
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