“God’s Heart and Plan for Israel”
Luke 19:28-48
Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, “If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes.” – Luke 19:41-42
As you read the Bible you cannot help but notice that Israel is a dominant theme. All the way back in Genesis it says, “Terah became the father of Abram” [Gen 11:27]. Abram, whose name was changed to Abraham, was chosen by God to start a new nation.
“The Lord said to Abram, ‘Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you. ‘I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you.” All the way back in Genesis 12, God promised Abraham a people, a nation, and a land.
Then as you turn to the other end of your Bible, Israel is described again, a remnant, 144,000, twelve thousand from every tribe that will be sealed by God and live into the Millennium. Even at the end of Revelation there is a description of “the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.” [Rev 21:2] The people, nation, and land of Israel are in the Bible from cover to cover. It is without a doubt that a good understanding of the Bible requires an understanding of Israel.
We get valuable insight into the nation of Israel in our passage this morning. Jesus has set his eyes on Jerusalem. He has made his way down from Galilee. He has taken a peculiar route, through Samaria and then through Perea, which is east of the Jordan.
When you look at a map you find that this is not the most expeditious route. Jesus, however, is on a divine mission with a divine timetable. His mission is the Cross and His timeline culminates on the day of Passover. We see this unfold in our passage this morning.
All of this has prophetic significance. Over twenty prophecies are fulfilled from the day Jesus enters Jerusalem until the day of His crucifixion and resurrection. Simply put, it is a probabilistic impossibility for anyone to fulfill all these prophecies unless God is involved.
This is irrefutable evidence that the Bible is God’s personal Word to us. We therefore ought to be reading it regularly, and even more so living by its precepts.
Jesus, remember, is the Word. And so, following God’ Word means following Jesus, which is the ultimate quality of discipleship.
