Lesson XI
A Basic Text
1 Corinthians 10:32
I 1
Corinthians 10:32 is a basic text for the study of ecclesiology.
1
Corinthians 10:32
(32)
Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the
It
is a revelation from God given to the Apostle Paul by divine Inspiration.
Questions
are in order:
Was
this verse written before or after the cross?
Was
it written before or after Pentecost?
Was
it written for our day and age or some other age?
The
answers are obvious.
Paul,
the minister to the Church, acknowledges three classes of people in the world
to this day.
And
Paul places each in a different but definite position:
§ Jews
§ Gentiles and
§ the Church of God
Is
Paul not telling us that the Gentiles and the Jews are both to be distinguished
as not being the Church?
Furthermore,
are the Jews to this moment not making history distinct, apart from the history
being made by the Gentiles and the Church?
No
one Scripture verse destroys the idea of replacement theology (the Church has
replaced Israel) as does this verse.
II 2 Timothy
2
Timothy 2:15
(15)
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman
that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the
word of truth.
We
are to rightly divide the Word of Truth. And here is an example of what that
includes.
We
must divide the truth of the Church from that given to Jews or Gentiles.
In
Ephesians 2:11, Paul writing to the Church
says, remember ye were Gentiles.
(11)
Wherefore remember, that ye [being] in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by
that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands;
III This division
is also found in 1 Corinthians 1:22-24
1
Corinthians 1:22-24
(22)
For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom:
(23)
But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock,
and unto the Greeks foolishness;
(24)
But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God,
and the wisdom of God.
Notice
verse 22: The Jews, the Greeks or
Gentiles
verse 23: But we
– the Church.
We
want to see clearly that during this age certain Scriptural facts are there for
Gentiles or Nations. Certain other facts
are directed only to the Jews, and other scriptures are directed only to the
Church.
There
is such a thing as “Church Truth” in Scripture.
These divisions are basic to pre-millennial theology.
That
there were saved people long before the Church appeared in history, there is no
doubt. We name a few: Adam, Eve, Abel,
Enoch, Noah. To my knowledge, no one
refers to these people named as being “the Israel of God.” These must be identified as saved Gentiles.
We
must remember that the first man to be identified as an Israelite was Jacob.
Genesis
32:28. “Thy name shall be called no more
Jacob, but
2
Kings 17:34 “the
Lord commanded the children of Jacob , whom
He called
So
the men of faith before Jacob were saved but they were never named Israelites
or Jews.
Jews
in days now past, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David, were men of faith, therefore
saved people, and could rightly be called “the Israel of God.”
In
our age, only people of faith in Christ are saved and a part of the true
Church.
Thus,
there were saved Gentiles before our time.
There were saved Jews before our time. But they were not the Church of
Jesus Christ.
So in
making the distinction in our text between Jews, Gentiles and the Church, the
doctrine of salvation is not the question.
We are dealing with the matter of position before God.
All who
ever were saved or ever will be saved, were and are saved by grace apart from
human works. We state this because some
have taught that there is a different way of salvation since the cross than
before the cross. But see it this way.
Old
Testament saints were saved by looking forward to the work of the cross by
their sacrifices; New Testament saints are saved by looking backward to the
cross and prove it by keeping the Lord’s Supper.
Romans 4:1-8 lays out the foundation of salvation by grace.
Romans
4:1-8
(1)
What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh,
hath found?
(2)
For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath [whereof] to glory; but not
before God.
(3)
For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.
(4)
Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of
grace, but of debt.
(5)
But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him
that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for
righteousness.
(6)
Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the
man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without
works,
(7)
[Saying], Blessed [are] they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are
covered.
(8)
Blessed [is] the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.
And
we insert, Paul could speak of “Abraham our father” because he was of the stock
of Israel.
Philippians
3:5
(5)
Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of
In
Romans 4:1-5, we note that Abraham believed God (Genesis 15:6) and was thereby
made righteous. Not to one who works, because that involves debt.
Romans
4:6-8 speaks of David: Blessed is the man to whom God imputes righteousness
without works.
Ephesians
2:8-9 states that we are saved by grace through faith plus nothing.
From
John 1:29, Jesus is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Thus all are saved by the same Saviour.
John
4:42
(42)
And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because
of thy saying: for we have heard [him] ourselves, and know that this is indeed
the Christ, the Saviour of the world.
Hebrews
13:5 Jesus says
to all saved people, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
Never
leave! One day hearing of a couple who had separated, I asked my wife if she had ever
thought that I might leave her. Her
reply: “I have never thought you would
leave me any more than my Dad would leave me.”
IV We repeat
some facts we must understand.
1. To take Paul’s epistles out of the Bible, we
will not find much Church truth left in the Bible.
2. Paul’s message is not a message given by a
Christ on earth, but by a Christ risen and in Heaven.
2
Corinthians 5:16 “
… though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet, now henceforth know we
[him] no more.”
3. Paul’s message came from a resurrected,
glorified Christ from Heaven for heavenly people.
Hebrews
1:1 God spake by prophets; God has spoken by His Son.
Hebrews
12:25 “See that
ye refuse not Him that speaketh … from Heaven.” We repeat, to a Heavenly people He speaks
from heaven. We are citizens of heaven
Philippians 3:20 Earth
for the Church, is like a Hotel. It is a
stopping place until we get home!
4.
While Christ was on earth, before his death he was a minister of the
circumcision, an earthly people.
Remember Romans 15:8.
Romans
15:8
(8)
Now I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of
God, to confirm the promises [made] unto the fathers:
John
1:11 He came
unto His own and His own received him not.
Matthew
15:24 Jesus
said he was sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
Matthew
chapters 5,6,7
The so called “sermon on the mount” was preached to a Jewish
audience. It was an earthly message for
an earthly people. It can only be
fulfilled when the Great King is here and the Kingdom comes.
Matthew
5:35
(35)
Nor by the earth; for it is his footstool: neither by
Matthew
6:13
(13)
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the
power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
We
observe two verses to show the need for “rightly dividing the word of
truth”. Matthew 6:14-15 is
Matthew
6:14-15
(14)
For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive
you:
(15)
But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive
your trespasses.
Compare
Ephesians 4:32
Ephesians
4:32
(32)
And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as
God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.
We
forgive because we have been forgiven for Christ’s sake, not because we forgive
others.
V The Chart- “The Biblical History of Peoples” is an overview of the Bible (in 8 slides).
Pertain to the beginning of the
human race and the beginning of the Gentile Nations.
Genesis 10:5
(5) By these were the
isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after
their families, in their nations.
At the very beginning a Seed was
promised to Eve
Genesis 3:15
(15) And I will put
enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall
bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
This seed would be a Redeemer, a Saviour who would come through Noah’s son, Shem.
Genesis 9:26
(26) And he said,
Blessed [be] the LORD God of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant.
Pertain primarily to the Jews of
the Nation of Israel. Throughout these
chapters there are promises of a Messiah, a Christ, who would also be the King
of the Jews.
Matthew 16:18
(18) And I say also
unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I
will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
It was Jesus who introduced the
Church and said He would be the builder.
We
are persuaded that this general outline of the Bible makes sense.
We
quote another:
“If
the Church is only the fulfillment of Old Testament promises made to Israel,
then a-millennialism is correct.
However, if the Church does not fulfill Old Testament promises made to
Israel, then pre-millennialism is correct.”
Therefore
the study of ecclesiology is very important, and it is here the major division
comes between these two positions.
The
Question is: Is Israel of the Bible the
same Israel as today?
As
we see it, the Church is being built on this side of the tomb, the resurrection side. It was the resurrection that changed
“grave-yards” into “cemeteries” which means “sleeping places.”
It
is clearly stated in Scripture that it was after His death, His resurrection
and His ascension to Heaven that Christ became head of the Church.
See
the following scriptures: Ephesians
1:19-23, Ephesians 4:8-12, and Colossians 1:18.
Ephesians
1:19-23
(19)
And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe,
according to the working of his mighty power
(20)
Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set [him] at
his own right hand in the heavenly [places],
(21)
Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name
that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come:
(22)
And hath put all [things] under his feet, and gave him [to be] the head over all
[things] to the church,
(23)
Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.
Ephesians
4:8-12
(8)
Wherefore he saith, When he
ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men
(9)
(Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the
lower parts of the earth?
(10)
He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that
he might fill all things
(11)
And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some,
pastors and teachers;
(12)
For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the
edifying of the body of Christ:
Colossians
1:18
(18)
And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn
from the dead; that in all [things] he might have the preeminence.