Mid-Acts Distinctions...
From the Mid-Acts Perspective, its obvious in that when Christ asserts in Matt. 16:18 that "Upon this rock I will build my church," He is referring to a church they already know about. He asserts, "I will build my church," not "a church."
Also, He ties it to Peter's confession, or acknowledgement, in verse 16, that He [Jesus] is "the Christ, the Son of the living God."
In other words, He is not referring to the Body of Christ, as that church, or assembly of people, was still a Mystery "hid IN GOD," Eph. 3:9.
The "church" He was referring to, then, was Messianic. Read John 1 all the way through.
Per Eph. 2, the middle wall of partition was still up. Thus, this was His Messianic assembly: that believing remant within that nation at that time.
Its confession was not that He died for their sins, for He had not yet died.
Some examples [but be sure to read all of John 1].
John 9:
35 Jesus heard that they had cast him [the blind man He'd healed] out; and when he found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God?
36. He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him?
37: And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen him, and it is he that talketh with thee.
38. And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him.
Its a beautiful, touching passage. He came unto His own, and though the great majority refused to believe that He was the Son of God come in the name of His Father to confirm the truth of God's promises to that nation, here was one who simply said "Lord, I believe." Here was one of His own who'd believed Him. He must have been very happy in that rare of monents among so many of His own, who continued to refuse to trust that He was His Father's confirmation of His promises to them.
Here is another - again - this was before He died for sins...
Luke 2:
25. And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him.
26. And it was revealed unto to him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Christ.
27. And he came into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him after the custom of thr law,
28. Then took he him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said,
29. Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word:
30. For my eyes have seen thy salvation,
31. Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people;
32. A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel.
I mean, children are precious as all get up - but here was their Christ! What a sight to behold this particular child must have been! What emotions this hundredfold blessing of a child He must have been to behold by someone that believing all those years that Israel had not heard from God!
Here was a "futurist" indeed!
For that is what we are - we see no need WHATSOEVER to symbolize away God's seeming turn from His ancient people once more, whom Paul would later assert with every fiber of his "futurist" spirit to be a people whom God FOREKNEW!
You know what that means - that UNCONDITIONAL COVENANT He confirmed some four hundred years before the Law to Abraham, by virtue of THE FACT, of His having made that promise NOT JUST TO ABRAHAM - BUT "TO THY SEED" - GET THIS-TO-HIS-SON - TO CHRIST!!! Gal. 3:15-18.
No, that is not the Body of Christ - that is Israel; that is God's Messianic Assembly, and its Isaiah 2:1-5 destiny.
And I'm fine with that, as a member of that other: that Heavenly assembly: the Body of Christ of God's Mystery in His Son that was "hid in God... from ages and from generations," until Paul, Eph. 3; Col. 1.
I'm content with this two assembly doctrine "of whom the whole family, in Earth [Israel one day] and in Heaven [the Body one day] is named," as to both "our Lord Jesus Christ," Eph. 3:14, 15.
Me, I'm okay with God's having once more placed His Prophesied plans for this people HE FOREKNEW, on hold til He finishes up His New Creature: The Body of the Mystery!
I'm okay with Israel being on hold.
"For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures" as we study in His Word just what He has in store for His ancient people who He FOREKNEW "might have hope" during this Mystery Age of God's seeming silence some would symbolize away in their misunderstanding of this TEMPORARY Mystery visit of God's among the Gentiles, Rom. 15:4; 11:23-29; Acts 15:15-17; 2 Peter 3.
From the Mid-Acts Perspective, its obvious in that when Christ asserts in Matt. 16:18 that "Upon this rock I will build my church," He is referring to a church they already know about. He asserts, "I will build my church," not "a church."
Also, He ties it to Peter's confession, or acknowledgement, in verse 16, that He [Jesus] is "the Christ, the Son of the living God."
In other words, He is not referring to the Body of Christ, as that church, or assembly of people, was still a Mystery "hid IN GOD," Eph. 3:9.
The "church" He was referring to, then, was Messianic. Read John 1 all the way through.
Per Eph. 2, the middle wall of partition was still up. Thus, this was His Messianic assembly: that believing remant within that nation at that time.
Its confession was not that He died for their sins, for He had not yet died.
Some examples [but be sure to read all of John 1].
John 9:
35 Jesus heard that they had cast him [the blind man He'd healed] out; and when he found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God?
36. He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him?
37: And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen him, and it is he that talketh with thee.
38. And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him.
Its a beautiful, touching passage. He came unto His own, and though the great majority refused to believe that He was the Son of God come in the name of His Father to confirm the truth of God's promises to that nation, here was one who simply said "Lord, I believe." Here was one of His own who'd believed Him. He must have been very happy in that rare of monents among so many of His own, who continued to refuse to trust that He was His Father's confirmation of His promises to them.
Here is another - again - this was before He died for sins...
Luke 2:
25. And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him.
26. And it was revealed unto to him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Christ.
27. And he came into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him after the custom of thr law,
28. Then took he him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said,
29. Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word:
30. For my eyes have seen thy salvation,
31. Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people;
32. A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel.
I mean, children are precious as all get up - but here was their Christ! What a sight to behold this particular child must have been! What emotions this hundredfold blessing of a child He must have been to behold by someone that believing all those years that Israel had not heard from God!
Here was a "futurist" indeed!
For that is what we are - we see no need WHATSOEVER to symbolize away God's seeming turn from His ancient people once more, whom Paul would later assert with every fiber of his "futurist" spirit to be a people whom God FOREKNEW!
You know what that means - that UNCONDITIONAL COVENANT He confirmed some four hundred years before the Law to Abraham, by virtue of THE FACT, of His having made that promise NOT JUST TO ABRAHAM - BUT "TO THY SEED" - GET THIS-TO-HIS-SON - TO CHRIST!!! Gal. 3:15-18.
No, that is not the Body of Christ - that is Israel; that is God's Messianic Assembly, and its Isaiah 2:1-5 destiny.
And I'm fine with that, as a member of that other: that Heavenly assembly: the Body of Christ of God's Mystery in His Son that was "hid in God... from ages and from generations," until Paul, Eph. 3; Col. 1.
I'm content with this two assembly doctrine "of whom the whole family, in Earth [Israel one day] and in Heaven [the Body one day] is named," as to both "our Lord Jesus Christ," Eph. 3:14, 15.
Me, I'm okay with God's having once more placed His Prophesied plans for this people HE FOREKNEW, on hold til He finishes up His New Creature: The Body of the Mystery!
I'm okay with Israel being on hold.
"For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures" as we study in His Word just what He has in store for His ancient people who He FOREKNEW "might have hope" during this Mystery Age of God's seeming silence some would symbolize away in their misunderstanding of this TEMPORARY Mystery visit of God's among the Gentiles, Rom. 15:4; 11:23-29; Acts 15:15-17; 2 Peter 3.
Last edited:
Upvote
0
