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And we are not going to finish the entire chapter here today. It's a long chapter. There's a lot of great information. We'll get through about half of it, a little bit less than half, and finish it next week. And I love the book of Romans. You know, I don't mind going slowly through this book. It's one of really the key books on salvation in the Bible, perhaps outside of John, or maybe even above John, being a really key book on salvation. Great doctrine, great information. I heard a testimony recently from this person on YouTube, and I don't know if he's saved or not. He grew up as a oneness Pentecostal. And I was listening to it, trying to take down notes to hear kind of the arguments that they use and stuff like that. And he said, like, when he was growing up, he's like, they didn't directly say this, but it was just kind of understood that, hey, you know, we don't read the book of Romans. That's for Baptists. Well, praise the Lord. I love this book, right? It's like, but you know, I love all the books, but it's like, we don't really read Romans because that's for Baptists. Yeah, I guess there's too many verses, right, that say salvation's by grace through faith in the book of Romans for oneness Pentecostal. It's a great book. There's a lot of great information and so many chapters that focus on salvation. Obviously, the main focus here is about the Jews, though, chapters nine through 11. And point number one, I want you to realize is this. Some Israelites got saved. Some Israelites got saved when Jesus Christ came, although they rejected him as a nation, there were Israelites that got saved. Verse one, I say then, have God cast away his people? God forbid, for I also am an Israelite of the seed of Abraham of the tribe of Benjamin. And Paul's proof that God's people were not cast away is that he was saved. He says, you know, it's not that God just rejected every single one of them because, hey, I'm saved. I believe on Jesus Christ. I wasn't cast away. And the reason why he's saying this is because when you're reading chapters nine and 10, and you're seeing how the Jews are rejected, it's very easy to develop the attitude that God rejected every single one individually, and they all became reprobates, but that's simply not true. Paul the Apostle was of the tribe of Benjamin, and he believed. And I want you to realize there are saved people in every country in the world. There are saved people all over the world. There are a lot of wicked countries and ungodly countries and un-Christian countries. That doesn't mean everybody in that country is unsaved though, right? There are saved people that live in these Muslim countries. There are saved people that live in North Korea. There are saved people in all of these... There are saved people in Israel today that grew up in this God-hating religion, but they believed on Jesus Christ when they heard the gospel. There are saved people everywhere. Look, we're coming up on the 500-year anniversary of the Battle of Mactan, just in a couple months. Right? You know, 1521, right? Guess what? There were saved people in the Philippines 500 years ago before Catholics came to this country. Okay? There were already saved people here. Now, I'm not saying most were saved, but don't... Whoa, man, I thought the Baptists just got here 100 years ago. No, no, there were saved people all over the world, and they might have gone by different names because they didn't necessarily know that Baptist was a name that God's people were kind of taking on and stuff like that, but there were saved people all over the world. Why? The gospel spread to the ends of the earth. Now, it's going to spread even more during the end times, but don't think, man, there's not a single saved person here in the Philippines until 100 years ago. That's not true. There were saved people a long time ago. There have always been saved people, okay? God's word spread to the ends of the world. You might even have this attitude, man, you know, I felt like a couple years ago I was the only person in the Philippines that cared about the things of God. But that's not true, is it? There are plenty of people that care about the things of God. Now, they might not have been gathered together in one location, and that's why you need church to gather everybody together, but there was already saved people that cared about the things of God years ago. There always have been here, okay? Notice what it says here in verse 2, God hath not cast away his people which he foreknew. He's saying, I'm saved, I'm not cast away because he foreknew, he knew ahead of time, I would believe on Jesus Christ and get saved when I heard the gospel. So he's saying it's not that everybody's cast away because, you know what, some people did get saved, and God foreknew some would get saved. As a nation though, it's really driving home the point, yes, they were rejected even though a remnant ended up getting saved, okay? God hath not cast away his people which he foreknew, why ye not with the scripture saith of Elias, how he maketh intercession to God against Israel, saying, Lord, they have killed thy prophets and dig down thine altars, and I am left alone, and they seek my life. Now, this is a quote from 1 Kings 19. Go to 1 Kings 19 real quickly, 1 Kings 19, 1 Kings 19, 1 Kings 19, and see, Elijah developed an attitude that he was left alone, and they're trying to kill me. He really felt like he was the last person who really cared about the things of God. I'm sure he realized there's other people that were saved, but he really felt like I'm the only one who's not bowing my knee to Baal, but that's simply not true. It's not true. 1 Kings 19 verse 18, yet I have left me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed on to Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him. And the Bible's saying here there's seven thousand in Israel, seven thousand. Now the population's a lot more in today's world, so the seven thousand would be much more if you just extrapolated or multiplied by like 50 or whatever the number would be. During this time period in Israel alone, there were seven thousand people not bowing the knee to Baal. And I'll tell you what, if the abomination of desolation happens in our lifetime, you're going to find there's lots of people that don't bow down and worship the mark of the beast, take the mark of the beast. Now they might not even all be saved. Some of them probably wouldn't be saved, some would be saved, but there'd be lots of people that didn't take the mark. And let me tell you something, there are people that, you know what, they do want to serve God. They're not the only one, and look, we're not the only people in the Philippines either. There are people all over the Philippines that want to serve God. We are not the only ones, okay? Elijah developed this attitude, I'm the only one, but he wasn't. Verse 19, so he departed thence and found Elisha the son of Shaphat. So here in verse 19, we see the importance of having fellowship because Elijah basically wants to give up because he feels like he's the only one, and then he runs into Elisha and he realizes, hey, this guy's just as zealous as me. This guy loves the things of God just as much as me. And you know what, I want you to realize there are people that love God just as much as you love God. There are people in this room that love God just as much as you love God. But you know what, you have to actually link up with God's people. You need to have fellowship with God's people or you will be depressed like Elijah was depressed. Go back to Romans 11, Romans 11, Romans 11. Romans chapter 11. Romans chapter 11. And notice what it says here in verse four, Romans 11, verse four. Romans chapter 11, verse four. But what sayeth the answer of God unto him? Because see, the Bible records what Elijah said. It doesn't mean that it was actually true though. See, the Bible will record men saying things. It doesn't mean that it's true. Elijah says, I'm the only one left, but what does God answer him in verse four here of Romans 11? But what sayeth the answer of God unto him? I have reserved to myself 7,000 men who have not bowed the knee to the image of Baal. He says, Elijah, you're wrong. I know you're a great prophet. I know you're the most mighty man on earth, but you know what, you're wrong. You're not the only one. He's saying Elijah was wrong about that. There were 7,000 people. Verse five, even so then at this present time also. So Paul links back during that day, it was so wicked and ungodly that Elijah felt like he was the only one. And Paul the apostle, a great man of God says, even at this day, 2000 years ago approximately, even so then at this present time also, there is a remnant according to the election of grace. He says there is still a remnant, a small amount that are saved, that have the ethnicity but chose to believe on Jesus Christ. Now realize it says, according to the election of grace, not according to the election of race. It's only one letter difference, but a lot of Baptists don't seem to figure this out. I mean, I don't know how you're going to walk away from this and say that Jews are God's chosen people. But what about that verse in Romans 11 later? You know, next week. Next week, I'll talk about that verse. But he says, according to the election of grace. And I want you to realize something, because this doesn't just show that the Zionists are wrong. It disproves dispensational salvation, because you know what's being linked, Elijah in the Old Testament, and Paul the apostle in the New Testament, even so at this present time also, meaning during Elijah's day, there was a remnant according to the election of grace in the Old Testament, and in this day also there's a remnant according to the election of grace. You say why? Because salvation has always been by grace through faith. We're just on the other side of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. People in the Old Testament were on this side of the resurrection, and they believed on the coming Messiah that would come and die and pay for their sins. Now we're on this side, and you must realize that the Messiah already came. You can't be looking forward to another Messiah because he already came, but they still got saved by grace through faith, and you say why? Because we can't go to heaven by our works because we're guilty for all of sin and come short. Guess what? In the Old Testament, they weren't sinless either, and if we can't work our way to heaven, neither could they. So it has always been by grace, and this is linking different time periods, different dispensations, whatever you want to call it. It's linking people in the Old Testament with the New Testament, and they were both saved by grace through faith. That's what the Bible teaches. But it's election according to the election of grace, not according to the election of race, as Jews would think. Romans 11, verse 6. So point number one is some Israelites got saved. Point number two, what about true salvation? Don't you hear a lot of people talk about, what about true salvation? What's the true Christian? There's a very famous boxer here in the Philippines that talks about the true Christian. True salvation. Right? Well, what does the Bible say? What is true salvation? Romans 11, verse 6. And if by grace, then it is no more of works, otherwise grace is no more grace. So the first half of this verse says, you know what? If it's by grace, and we are saved by grace through faith, not of works, if we're saved by grace, it's not of works. And if you add any amount of works, grace is no more grace. So basically, if someone says, I believe in salvation by grace through faith, but I just think you also have to get baptized. It's not salvation by grace through faith. Or they say, well, I think it's salvation by grace through faith, but I just think that you have to repent of your sins. It's not salvation by grace through faith. You're earning your way by what you're doing. Or I just got to give my life to God and quit drinking and quit smoking. Once again, you're earning your salvation by your works, and it's no longer grace. It's not 99.9% grace, and then just 0.1% something else. It's 100% salvation by grace through faith. It's also not, well, you know, I believe it's salvation by grace through faith, but if you're really saved, then you're going to have works. Separate the grace and the works, my friends. Don't try to mix them together and make salvation confusing. No, if it's by grace, it's not of works, and if you add any amount of work, it's no longer grace, according to the Bible. And if by grace and it is no more of works, otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then it is no more grace, otherwise work is no more work. So the Bible says very clear here, it mentions if it's grace, it can't be works, otherwise grace is not grace. If it's works, it's not grace, otherwise work is not work. Because grace means 100% free, and if you're adding any amount of work, that's not grace. And if it's work, you can't say there's some grace in there because it's your works that gets you to heaven. It's one or the other. Now the most shocking thing to new soul winners is always, I cannot believe how few people are saved. Is that not true? Every single one of us that goes soul winning, I mean, when you first start going, you're shocked. You're like, man. And look, here's what's sad about it, especially as you're new, you'll ask them the questions and they'll seem like they get it and you're getting excited. But you're like, oh man, it's like so few people are actually saved. Now here's my hope. I hope there's just a lot more people that are really confused about salvation. They got saved and they just got super confused by heretics. But I don't think that's usually the case. I like to think that I wish that there was 10% of people saved out there, but there's not. There's very few people. And here's the reality, if you run into somebody saved around this area, we probably already got them saved. Now I'm not saying that there was never anybody saved in this area because I'm sure there were, but I'm just saying most people that are saved around this area, it's like, oh, how'd you hear this? Yeah, someone from your church gave us an invitation and we heard that. I mean, usually it's because we already got them saved. And I wish this were not true. Look, I wish that most Catholics were saved. I wish most people of any religion were saved. I wish I was wrong. People think that we're arrogant, like you guys just want to be the only ones. I don't want to be the only ones. I hope all these people that hate us and are preaching works, I wish they were saved, but they're not. They're preaching salvation by grace plus works. And that is not grace according to the Bible. It's interesting because in these modern versions, they decided to change this verse. Now look at Romans 11, six in your King James and Romans 11, six is a pretty long verse, isn't it? I mean, it's really thorough. It really explains salvation. Here's what it says in the ESV and look, I'll be honest. I believe this is the number one most clear verse in the Bible about salvation being not works at all. I don't use this verse when I go soul winning because it's usually not necessary and it's a little bit more in depth maybe than I need to be most of the time. But just in terms of the verses I've read over, I believe this is more clear than Ephesians 2, 8 and 9 or John 3, 16 or whatever verse. It's just super clear if it's grace, it cannot be works, right? Well, in the modern versions, this is what it says in the ESV. But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works. Otherwise grace would no longer be grace. Say Brother Succy, what's wrong with that? That's the end of the verse. What happened to the second half? I guess here's what they always say, well, you know, just in the Greek, you could translate it different ways. So in the Greek, you could just take out half the verse. I mean, they just removed it. They just took out half the verse. It's like, oh, you know, because you know, they'll say things like, well, you know, in the Greek, there's this apostrophe and some people might translate it this way or this. So some people might just take out half the verse. That's an interesting translation method you have. But it's always interesting because the modern versions are just kind of in unison to do the same thing. In the NIV, and if by grace then it cannot be based on works, if it were, grace would no longer be grace. What happened to the second half of the verse? And look, I understand that the first half of the verse of Romans 11, 6 is super clear, but God's really trying to just drive home the point. And why are they taking out things out of common, popular, important verses? Look, this is the modern versions. They always change the Word of God. And look, the King James was the Word of God, and it was the one used for hundreds of years until all these modern versions are made in order to make money. You know what a good way is to make money? Sell a fake Bible. You'll make lots of money. I mean, literally, you will make lots of money if you just make a fake Bible. Now, I don't know at what point God will kill you, but you'll make a lot of money, though. Right? I mean, that's reality. You'll make a lot of money if you just make a false Bible. I don't really understand why so many people want to have a Bible, then they never read it. It's like, I got to buy a Bible. I got a Bible. It's like, but you're never going to read it. So why did you buy it, right? Because here's the thing. I don't think the King James is the most sold Bible anymore, but it's certainly the most read. Because people like us, we read the Bible, and we know this is the Word of God. And a lot of people, these mega churches, they want to have a Bible, and then they'll just do kind of their, you know, one verse of the week sort of technique. It's like, it's like, what's your Bible reading plan? You know what? I don't want to go too in depth and get confused. I'm going to focus on one word a day, right? Genesis 1 verse 1, in. I just want to look up, you know, all the connotations. Every time the word in appears in the Bible, the next word, the. Let's just look up every single time the word the appears, right, and then go back to the Greek and study another language or the Hebrew, I should say. Beginning. Let's look up every time. Not just beginning. Let's look up begin and begins and whatever. It's just like, you know, people just need to read the Bible, right? Now turn your Bible to Acts 10, Acts 10, Acts chapter 10, Acts 10. So look, Romans 11 is just very clear that dispensational salvation is a joke because it's linking together Old Testament with New Testament, right? It's linking together Old Testament with New Testament. Now people have different terms when you say dispensational salvation, and some people would say hyper dispensationalism. I will say that Peter Rockman wrote a book of why he does not believe in hyper dispensationalism. However, he still believes salvation is different in different time periods. So I just say dispensational salvation because people have different meanings of hyper dispensationalism or stuff like that. But look, anyone who's teaching salvation is different in different time periods. They obviously don't know what they're talking about because this is a clear verse in the book of Romans that links together Old Testament and New Testament. Acts 10 verse 43. Let me show you another a couple of other examples. Acts 10 verse 43. To him give all the prophets witness all the prophets that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins through whose name? Through Jesus Christ, right? All the prophets, this is what they spoke of, that salvation was by grace through faith in a coming Messiah. And when Jesus Christ came, hey, that's the name above every name. There's none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved. The name of Jesus Christ according to the Bible. And people in the Old Testament, they didn't know that name, but they believed on the same person we do. They believe in the same eternal son of God that we believe on for their salvation, right? Just like we look back on the eternal son of God who came and was born of the Virgin Mary, lived a perfect life, and died for our sins, to him give all the prophets witness. All of them taught the same thing. All of them taught salvation was by grace through faith. They did not teach salvation by works in the Old Testament. They taught salvation by grace through faith. Now here's the thing. The Old Testament does not primarily focus on salvation. And when I say Old Testament, I'm saying before the book of Matthew, because I realize most of the gospels, it's still before Jesus rose again, so that's technically Old Testament, right? But most of the books before Matthew, Malachi to Genesis, right? It doesn't really focus on salvation that much. Now it does talk about salvation, but I want you to realize the Word of God was spoken before it was written. You say, Brother Stuckey, how did the prophets go soul winning in the Old Testament? Probably the same way we do. They just talked about how, hey, this is the one who's going to die and pay for your sins. They probably used verses like Romans 3 23 that were not written down, but that they were spoken. They probably used verses like John 3 16. They probably used pretty much the same verses, but you know, it's just now we have the entire Bible and it's all written down. But they were preaching and speaking the Word of God all the time. They weren't just preaching sermons, right? They preach sermons against sin and wickedness, but all of those characters, they were soul winners too. Because even in the Old Testament, it talks about shining brightly if you're a soul winner. He that winneth souls is wise. So people like Noah and Moses and Daniel and all these characters, even though the purpose of their ministry, what we see is not focused primarily on preaching the gospel, they were also winners. Every single one of them. It's just not the most significant thing to write down in the Bible about their lives. These verses were probably already spoken, and they were already using them. Right? I mean, if you were to look back at the ministry of Pastor Jimenez and look at the end of his ministry, 70 years from now, and the Bible were to write about, I mean, obviously the Bible's finished. I'm just using an example. You know what it would probably talk about? It would probably talk about the Orlando protests. But he's been soul winning since before he was saved, right? I mean, his parents are soul winners. So he's been soul winning since before he was saved, but you know, what would it write about? You say, Brother Stuckey, Noah never went soul winning. I mean, it was just about the flood. No, that's just the most significant thing that happened in the life of Noah. But he was still a soul winner, right? Anybody who's going to be greatly used by God is a soul winner because he that winneth souls is wise. So if you're not a soul winner, you're not going to have the wisdom to be used by God to preach mighty sermons. Okay? Go to John three, John three, John three. John chapter three. Look, obviously, soul winning is really excited. But you know what? Honestly, for our purpose, looking back on the life of Moses, the parting of the Red Sea is kind of more exciting to read about, right? We got plenty of soul winning stories in the Bible. But you know, I want you to realize it's nothing different. Like, oh, man, once John the Baptist was born, then this thing called soul winning God invented. No, I mean, for one, John the Baptist is before Jesus Christ in terms of his ministry, before Jesus rose again. And look, in the Old Testament, they're preaching the gospel. Look, even and you don't have to turn there. But in Psalm 51, David talked about after he's heard about the sin he committed, and he's wrong, and Nathan rebukes him. He's like, you know, restoring to me the joy of thy salvation, not restoring to me the salvation because he didn't lose his salvation. Restoring to me the joy of this thy salvation. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways and sinners shall be converted onto thee. What's he talking about? Soul winning. David. David was a soul winner, according to Psalm 51. But he wasn't a soul winner when he was committing those sins because he was backslid. Because when you're following God, you're going to be a soul winner. Look, soul winning was in the Old Testament, and it was always salvation by grace through faith. John three, verse seven, John three, verse seven. Marvel not that I said unto thee, ye must be born again. Don't be surprised I'm saying you got to be born again, Nicodemus. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and now hears the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh and whither it goeth. So is everyone that is born of the Spirit. So Jesus is talking about being born again, okay? Verse nine, Nicodemus answered and said unto them, How can these things be? He's saying, I don't get it. How is it that people are being born again? Notice the response of Jesus. Jesus answered and said unto them, Art thou a master of Israel? And no, it's not these things. He's like, you're one of the teachers, and you don't understand that salvation is by grace through faith, and you get born again? What is he saying? He's saying, hey, you know what? This is all throughout the Old Testament. You ought to know this from the scriptures. How have you not heard this? I mean, it's in the Old Testament, and you've heard people preaching these sermons. Like, how do you not get this? This is not something that's new. He's like, art thou a master of Israel? And no, it's not these things. He's like, you ought to know this. And so here's what Jesus is saying. It shouldn't be a shock to us that salvation is by grace through faith, because it's always been like that. And look, when John 3 is being written, this is before the resurrection of Jesus, my friend. And here's what dispensational salvationists will say. People that teach this. They'll say, well, this is literally what the famous dispensational teachers say. And the reason why I know this is because before the documentary on dispensationalism, I watched a lot of these videos of these heretics to try to see what they said, to prepare for the documentary and stuff like that. And just I would send the sound bites to the people because we kind of co-did it with First Works Baptist Church, the documentary. But here's what they'll say. Well, Jesus, they'll admit Jesus preached salvation by grace through faith. But the reason why he did that is to prepare people for when it would be salvation by grace through faith. I mean, like, how do you even respond to that? It's like, yes, Jesus preached salvation by grace through faith. However, it wasn't salvation by grace through faith during that time period. These are the words of Gene Kamm and the other famous ones. But he was preparing people for one day when it would be salvation by grace through faith. So my question is this. Can I preach? Because they believe that during the end time, salvation is by works again. That's what they believe. That's what a lot of these Baptist pastors believe. So here's my question. If Jesus preached about salvation before it was actually like that, can I preach salvation by grace through works to prepare people for the tribulation? Can I just pray, hey, salvation by repent of your sins and give your life to God and work your way to heaven? I'm just preparing people for when it is salvation by grace, by works. I mean, isn't that ridiculous? You know why Jesus preached salvation by grace through faith? Because it was by grace through faith. I mean, it's not confusing. And it's like, it's funny, these teachers, they, they, and here's the thing. People think these people are really intelligent. And the reason why is because they just don't know what the Bible says for themselves. But they, they, they will, they'll go through all of these things and be super complicated and they'll talk about all these books and they'll go back to the Greek and people think, man, he must be really smart. But actually when you know what you're talking about, you realize these guys know nothing. They're fools. It's so confusing. It's like, you know why the gap theory is so confusing? Because it's, it's a fraud. Yeah, it's pretty confusing. Yeah. You know, you're, you're doing your reading, you're doing your one word a day. Anna is January 1st, the is January 2nd, beginning is January 3rd, God is January 4th, created is January 5th, the is January 6th, heaven is January 7th, and is January 8th, the is January 9th, earth is January 10th, and then all of a sudden, oh, you've got a four and a half billion year gap before verse two. Yeah, that's pretty confusing. I mean, yeah, the gap theory is pretty confusing. No, no, no. Oh, there's a reference. Go to, thanks, brother. Go to Jeremiah chapter whatever in your Bible. It's like, yeah, you know what? That's pretty confusing. It's like, I just believe somebody that's saved has the spirit of truth inside of them, and they can read the Bible and understand for themselves. Are there going to be things that are confusing? Of course. But look, the spirit of truth is a better teacher than me, and you do not need me to learn the word of God. Now I can help you because obviously I've read it many times. But at the same time, you can learn everything I learned just by reading the Bible for yourself. You don't have to buy this book for $29.99 to learn how this whatever doctrine is. No, I mean, they're just making merchandise off of you. That's reality. Okay, now go in your Bible to back to Romans 11, Romans 11, Romans 11. So what's true salvation? It means 100% grace. No works involved. Now, Calvinists will say, Well, yeah, we believe it's 100% grace. It's so much grace that God just gives you the faith, and it's 100% him. But here's what's funny about this. Calvinists will say, Well, we're the true ones believe in it's by grace alone. In fact, many of the Calvinist churches in the US, they'll be called Grace Something Church. Okay, the sovereign grace that they teach. But what's funny about it is they'll look at somebody who drinks alcohol and they'll say, Okay, they're not saved because they don't have the works. I thought you believe salvation was by grace. So why are you looking at people that aren't going to church and saying, Well, they're not saved because they're not going to church. They're not saved because they don't read the Bible. They're not saved because, you know, they go to parties. It's like, why are you questioning their salvation if you believe salvation is by grace through faith? Doesn't make sense. See, we don't question the salvation of somebody who's living in sin if they believe the right thing. Why? Because we do believe salvation by grace through faith. But God gives us free will to make our own choices because we do not serve an evil God that damns people to hell apart from their opportunity to believe and get saved. Point number one, some Israelites got saved. Point two, we talked about true salvation. Point three, let's talk about the darkening of Israel. And if you remember the parables we've looked at, the word of God was poured out to Israel and all these prophets were sent onto them. And last of all, the son was sent and they rejected him. And when you reject God and you reject his word, you're going to get more in sin and become very wicked. And that is what happened to Israel. Verse seven, what then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for, but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded. Now don't a lot of people tell you that Israel and the election are one in the same? The Jews in the election are one in the same. Don't a lot of people say that? Why does it say in verse seven, Israel hath not obtained, but the election hath obtained? You know what that's saying? It means the election and Israel, the election and the Jews, they're not the same. You're elect based on, did you believe on Jesus Christ? Well the Jews are the elect and chosen of God, not according to the Bible, not according to Romans 11, seven that says Israel hath not obtained, but the elect hath obtained. You say, Brother Shucky, who's the elect? Do you believe on Jesus Christ? You're elect. You're chosen based on the foreknowledge of God that you'd believe on Jesus Christ. You are elect and chosen according to the Bible. Now the difference is that in the Old Testament, God also chose the nation to pour out his blessings upon, but there were still saved people that were not Israelites that lived in Assyria and all over the world, in Egypt, in Babylon, that believed on Jesus and were saved, and they were the elect as well on an individual basis. Now what does God use in today's world? He uses churches, right? You gather together at a church, you hear the word of God, the church has the authority for baptism, the church sends people out soul winning, and this is the way God operates. Well here's the thing, we would lose our blessing as a church if we did not produce fruit. The candlestick would be removed. Well Israel stopped producing fruit, they weren't getting people saved, so their candlestick is basically removed, so to speak, and I'll show you this here in the Bible. So Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for, but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded, according as it is written, God hath given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear unto this day. Now this does not mean that none of them got saved, because Paul got saved, and others got saved. But the majority of them, they were blinded, and they became very angry at the message of God. Now here's some verses from the Talmud, okay, I'm going to give you an example of how they became very blinded and they hate the things of God. There is no religion on the planet that hates Jesus Christ more than Judaism, none. Satan worshipers do not hate Jesus as much as a religion of Judaism, because in Judaism they openly blaspheme Jesus Christ. They'll say that he was basically a false prophet. Show me another religion that says Jesus was a false prophet. The Muslims say he's one of the five prophets. Now they're wrong, because he's God in the flesh, he's the eternal son of God. We understand that, but they don't blaspheme Jesus in terms of the fact saying he was a wicked sorcerer. I mean the Hindus say he was a great Hindu swami, right? I mean the Buddhists say, yeah, he was wearing that orange, you know, dress, whatever thing and everything, and he was a Buddhist teacher who shaved his head. That's what they teach, right? I mean pretty much every religion likes to claim Jesus Christ, except Judaism. They openly blaspheme who Jesus Christ is. This is what it says in the Sanhedrin 43a, and it says it relates the trial and execution of a sorcerer named Jesus, or Yeshu in Hebrew, a sorcerer named Yeshu, which is referring to Jesus Christ, and his five disciples. The sorcerer is stoned and hanged on the eve of Passover. So they say that he was a sorcerer with five disciples. Now obviously we know that he had more than five disciples, but I'm just saying this is what it says in the Sanhedrin, referring to Jesus Christ, that he was a sorcerer. Well isn't sorcery, don't you get the death penalty for that according to the Bible? It's a pretty wicked sin, and they're saying Jesus Christ according to the Jewish teachings. This is what a Jew learns at a young age, that Jesus Christ was a sorcerer. That's what they teach. In Sanhedrin 107, tells of a Jesus, Yeshu, offended his teacher by paying too much attention to the end keeper's wife. So basically Jesus wants to commit adultery or fornication or whatever. Well I mean adultery, I mean this person's married. The end keeper's wife. And Jesus wished to be forgiven, but his rabbi was too slow to forgive him. And Jesus in despair went away and put up a brick idol and worshiped it. So basically Jesus wanted to commit adultery, and he got in trouble for it, and he went to a brick idol to pray to, and you know he thought that would get him forgiveness or whatever. Right? Well I mean, here's the thing, I mean they're mocking Jesus in this with a brick idol, which obviously this is false, but they've got a whole wall that they're praying to. It's like, he's praying to a brick idol. You go to the Wailing Wall where there's like five million bricks or whatever it's made out of. It's just like, okay, I mean obviously this is false. They're just blaspheming Jesus, but you've got a whole wall that you're, you know, worshipping, you know? And if you've never seen that, the Wailing Wall, go to YouTube today. You'll get some laughs. The Wailing Wall and Jews, and you'll see these Jews just, you know, it's like the bobblehead you have in your car, right? You know, except their whole body's bobbing, right? In Gethin 56b and 57a, a story is told in which Ankelos summons up the spirit of a Yeshu who sought to harm Israel. He describes his punishment in the afterlife as boiling in excrement. So here, Jesus, he sought to harm Israel when he lived, and this wicked person summons Jesus up, right? And so, according to what they're saying, Jesus was anti-Israel. But what's funny is, I'm sure he preached the gospel to Jews more than anybody else. People will claim that we're anti-Hindu, we're anti-Muslim, we're anti-Jew. No, we preach the gospel to everybody. But the truth is the truth, and a false religion is a false religion, and we don't lie about it. We say what the truth is, but we also preach the gospel. But they say Jesus was a bad person, right? That's what it teaches in the Talmud. This is what a Jew learns growing up. This is why you're going to find, if you ever run into Jews out soul winning, they are the most blasphemous people that you will ever meet. Now, are there exceptions? I'm sure. But I have run into a lot of Jews door to door in the United States. Has anyone ever talked to a Jew out soul winning before? Probably not a lot in the Philippines, right? Anybody? Nobody? Well, you'll have to take my word for it. But if you remember, I always give this story. Brother Bo told us that when he was in Rizal Park, there was a Filipino Jew in the background just pretending he was on the cross, ow, ow, I'm in pain, while his soul winning partner was preaching the gospel. Do Muslims do that? Mocking Jesus Christ? Do Buddhists do Hindus? No. The Jews do though, because they hate Jesus Christ. Romans 11, verse nine, and David sayeth, let their table be made a snare and a trap and a stumbling block and a recompense onto them. Now, go back to Psalm 69, where this is quoted, Psalm 69, Psalm 69, Psalm chapter 69. And look, you preach this way and people say, well, you know, you hate Jews because you preach a sermon against the Jews. Well, you know, if I hate Jews, then why did I do a soul winning marathon in New York City, which is like the big hub of Judaism in the US. If I hated them so much, what I would do is I would never say anything against them. And I would just say, don't worry. You're God's chosen people. You'll make it into heaven. I mean, isn't that what you do if you really hated them? It's like, there's a lot of Baptist churches that do that and they can look like they love them, but they hate them because if you love them, you'll tell them the truth. And what's the truth? He that believeth not the sun shall not see life. Oh, unless your skin colors a certain color, then you get to see life. Is that what the Bible says? We're not saved by race. We're saved by grace. And if you don't believe in the sun, you will not see life, whether you're Jew or Gentile or Muslim or Hindu, whomever. Psalm 69 verse 22, let their table become a snare before them and not what should have been for their welfare. Let it become a trap. Let their eyes be darkened that they see not and make their loins continually to shake. So the book of Romans is quoting from David in Psalm 69. Go back to Romans 11, Romans 11, Romans chapter 11. So look, the rejection of Israel was already prophesied all the way back in Psalm because obviously God knew what was going to take place. I mean, it's not a new thing. They became wicked and they were rejected even during the life of David. And so here's what it says, the life of the Psalmist here in Psalm 69, David. Romans 11 verse 10, notice what it says, let their eyes be darkened that they may not see and bow down their back all way. And God says, you know, these people are so wicked, let their eyes be darkened. I'm done with this group of people. I'm not pouring out the word of God to them. I'm going to move on to other people that are more receptive. And doesn't this make sense? I mean, if we go soul winning in a new location and nobody gets saved and we get lots of doors slammed in our face and they threatened to burn down our cars or whatever, it's like, you know, we're probably going to preach the gospel somewhere else. And that seems crazy because you're not going to have that here. But, you know, that's literally the sort of reaction that the Jews had. It's like, man, I'm putting in my time to try to preach the gospel and you're threatening to kill me. Here's the thing, I understand we want to be bold and zealous. But, you know, if there's other people that are receptive, there really is no point to preach the gospel to people that are just rejecting it. Now you say, Brother Stuckey, that's watered down. Well, didn't Jesus say in Matthew 10, just shake off your feet and go to the next town or city? So that's what Jesus Christ said. Because here's the reality. We're going to try to knock as many doors as we can here in Metro Manila and Pasig and Kayenta Rizal and all these areas. But, you know, we're not going to be able to knock every single door. We're going to go to the areas that are receptive. You know, we did a soul winning marathon during that feast of whatever Catholic scene or whatever recently, what was that for? The Immaculate Conception, right? And we got a lot of people saved in that area. And here's the thing, we have no problem doing another soul winning marathon in that general area because it was receptive. But what if, what if we came back from that day and we had five salvations? Now that's not a failure because whenever you preach the word of God, you did your job. But are we going to go back and do another soul winning marathon in that area that rejected it? It's like, Brother Stuckey, let's find the richest neighborhood. Because if we can get just one of them to come to church, that offering is going to be so high, right? It's like, no, we're not going to go to the rich area because we're going to have less people saved. Now look, we try to knock all those doors. And look, you ought to be happy that I knocked all the doors behind that church over there, all that neighborhood, which is a more rich area, right? And guess what? It's not that receptive. I remember going five straight hours preaching the gospel with no salvations. There are areas like that in the Philippines, right? But we try to leave, especially for soul winning marathons, we try to leave the really receptive areas. We try to go to parks because you can get a lot of people saved. So we want this balance of knocking every door, but also going to the areas like parks where we can get a lot of people saved. We're not avoiding certain areas, but here's the thing, you know what? We're going to go to those last instead of first, because we're going to focus on the areas where we're going to get fruit, okay? So it says that in Romans chapter 11, and then notice what it says in verse 11. We'll look at a few more verses. Point number one, some Israelites got saved. Point two, we talked about true salvation. Point three, the darkening of Israel. Point four, let's talk about the restoration of Israel. Because I think that sometimes we could even get the wrong idea about the Jews in our modern day. Because here's the thing, the Jews showed so much persecution to the non-Jews or the Gentiles that we can kind of turn it around and be like, haha, you've been rejected. Look at you, God rejected you. And it's like God's done with you, and we could have the wrong attitude. And the Bible addresses that pretty much the rest of Romans 11, which we're going to talk about and really explain in depth. Some of it today, some next week. Verse 11, I say then, have they stumbled that they should fall? Was the purpose of Israel being rejected just so they could be destroyed and haha, you're done, there you go. Have they stumbled that they should fall? Should we rejoice in the fact, man, God destroyed those people because they're so wicked? God forbid. But rather through their fall, salvation has come unto the Gentiles. And God says the reason why I got rid of them is because more people would get saved because they're just not doing their job. I'm going to give it to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof. And Israel wasn't doing it. So God says, why would I keep pouring out my blessings on these people when they're producing no fruit and they're rejecting the word of God? And it's like their fall resulted in the gospel going to the Gentiles. And look, that was Paul's main ministry. Paul is the most famous apostle primarily because he brought the gospel to newer areas, right? Not just to the Jews, but he brought it to the Gentiles. And they embraced the gospel, okay? And so this is the reason why Israel was destroyed. And also it says, for to provoke them to jealousy. And see, here's the thing, anybody with common sense could look at what happened to them and say, man, God has rejected us. God doesn't love us like he used to. And look, I promise you, there were people living thousands of years ago in the Old Testament times. And when they went into bondage, those that actually knew the Bible would have known exactly why it happened. And it would have caused some people even to get saved and be provoked to jealousy. Man, we've been rejected. It would actually cause some of them to actually get saved. Now the most are going to reject, but those that have a brain and know what the Bible says and are humble, they'd be like, man, maybe we're rejected. Cause God promised us this and yet we don't have it anymore. Why is that? And then they searched the scriptures, oh, it's cause we're wicked. It was like a King Josiah moment. The word of God was read, oh man. So that is why we're in bondage. It's like God didn't give us this everlasting covenant of this land no matter what. It would actually provoke some to jealousy to end up getting saved to realize we were supposed to be God's people and yet we've been rejected. Why is that? And some would have ended up getting saved as a result of this. More Gentiles and more Jews would have gotten saved as a result of this. And that's what took place. Verse 12. Notice this, now if the fall of them be the riches of the world. Now why is the fall of the Jews the riches of the world? Cause the Jews were not preaching the gospel all over the world and by them being rejected, this actually resulted in the world really getting the gospel. And what does the Bible say in the book of Acts? Basically you start in Jerusalem and eventually you go to the ends of the earth. Get churches started everywhere and in all Judea and into the uttermost part of the earth. And you see in Acts this explosion where churches are getting started everywhere. That is what the goal of God is and it's always been his goal for people to get saved. And so this is the riches of the world that the Jews were rejected and the diminishing of them, the riches of the Gentiles. But notice this, how much more their fullness. And see what the Bible's saying is, wouldn't it be good though, if some of these Jews actually came back and embraced the message of salvation? We ought to be excited about that, okay? Now there's an end times application and we'll talk about that more and I've talked about that during the Revelation series, but I'm just saying just from a standpoint today, wouldn't it be great if somebody from a God hating religion humbled themselves and believed on Jesus Christ? Cause sometimes we can have this attitude, all these Muslims are such wicked people. No, praise the Lord if a Muslim gets saved. These Buddhists are such wicked people. Praise the Lord if they get saved. These people from these cults are our enemies. Yeah, but individually if somebody believes on Jesus, praise the Lord for that. And you know, Paul the Apostle is kind of the perfect one to talk about this. You know why? Cause he was an enemy of the truth. He thought he had the truth and he was wrong and he preached against it and persecuted it. And a lot of people were kind of hesitant to accept him cause they're like, man, this guy was like killing us recently, right? He was persecuting us. Look, praise the Lord if people like that that have been deceived, it's not that they're a wicked person but they're doing wicked things because they believe the wrong thing, right? Praise the Lord if someone like that believes on Jesus Christ and gets saved. And there were some Jews that did. And look, there are some Jews today that get saved and we should not have the attitude that we hate them as a people. Now we hate the religion, but you don't hate the individual person who's been lied to unless they become an enemy of God, right? Verse 13, for I speak to you Gentiles in as much as I am the apostle of the Gentiles. I magnify mine office. If by any means I may provoke to emulation them which are my flesh and might save some of them. And Paul says, I have a goal to save some of them. Verse 15, for the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world. So them being destroyed as a people is the reconciling of the world. What shall the receiving of them be? But life from the dead. And if some of them believe on Jesus and get saved it's life from the dead according to the Bible. Now, why does that say that? Well, directly because they've been rejected as a people. So basically God was done with them but some can still end up getting saved life from the dead. But I think even kind of a dual application is because Israel is the most godless place in the world. It is such a wicked area in the world today. I mean, literally like someone in that area it's like, can you imagine? I mean, here's the thing. Somebody comes to our church for the first time. It's like, man, you know what? I grew up in the Philippines and I listened to online preaching. I got saved through the online ministry. Hey, praise the Lord. A lot of people have that testimony. Or I grew up in a Baptist church and I heard the gospel but I changed churches because they weren't really feeding me and stuff like, hey, praise the Lord, right? You wouldn't be shocked by that testimony but wouldn't you be shocked if someone says, hey, I was born in Israel and I was taught that Jesus Christ was a wicked sorcerer and I ended up hearing the gospel and I got saved. You'd be like, what in the world? But you know what, it happens though. There are people that grow up in this religion that can get saved. It's not like they're all reprobates. Now the religion's rejected. That doesn't mean everyone in the religion is a reprobate. And look, I don't believe most of them are reprobates. Just because it's a very wicked religion doesn't mean all of them are reprobates. And look, you know, when it comes to people that have such a false religion, it really takes something amazing for them to actually get saved. I mean, if somebody's really dogmatic about their false religion and they were taught it their whole lives and they're very zealous, it really takes something to kind of shake them into reality for them to end up getting saved. Now I want to give you an example of something that I believe is gonna happen and it is gonna cause some Jews to end up getting saved. You know, during the end times, the middle part of Daniel's 70th week is gonna be quite an interesting moment. That is when the Antichrist is gonna declare himself to be God. And guess what? The Muslims and Hindus and all these religions, the Buddhists, they're looking forward toward this coming Messiah. And you know what? It fits exactly who the Antichrist is gonna be. Kalki, I think, is the name of the Hindu Messiah or Savior that's gonna come and everything. But it really fits what the Antichrist is. And all of these religions are gonna embrace this because that's what they were expecting. Now there are gonna be some people individually that don't take the mark of the beast because they say, man, this is wicked or this is wrong and they'll end up getting saved from every religion. But especially with the Jews. You say, why? Because the Jews believe salvation is by race. They believe they're God's chosen people. And here's the thing, there's gonna be both a political and a spiritual rise of the Antichrist. And the Antichrist will rise politically first and then during the middle of Daniel's 70th week, oh, by the way, I'm God. By the way, worship me. Here's the thing, a lot of people are gonna be on board with that, but what's gonna happen during the middle week because the Jews are not looking for a spiritual Messiah. They're looking for a political Messiah that makes them powerful. The Antichrist is turning on the Jews midway through Daniel's 70th week. That actually might be an event that causes some of them to humble themselves and say, man, it's not salvation by race. We're rejected because they're gonna think, man, this is exactly like we expected. We're becoming powerful, everything's perfect, but wait, woe to you that are in Jerusalem during that day. Because all of a sudden the Antichrist, because the Antichrist is just using the Jews and he's gonna turn on them because he got brought to political power. He turns on the Jews midway through Daniel's 70th week and everyone individually has a choice. Do we take the mark of the beast? Or do we reject it? Now here's the thing, most people from other religions that are still during that time period, they're probably gonna take the mark because this is what they've been taught. But this is the exact opposite of what the Jews are expecting because they believe that they're being brought to power. And so what's gonna happen when the Antichrist says, oh, by the way, worship me, I'm done with you. Well, some are gonna get on board, but it actually might be an event that will actually humble themselves. And it's literally gonna be like life from the dead because they were literally the most blasphemous people, but it doesn't mean that they were all reprobates. It means they believed a false religion. And I personally believe that during Daniel's 70th week, not most of them, but some of them during that time period, midway through, I believe that's actually gonna be an event that might shake them into humbling themselves. Because here's the thing, for most of them, there's pretty much nothing that's gonna humble them to get saved. And here's the thing, I've tried to preach the gospel to many Jews door to door. And I'll tell you, this is how it goes. You knock on the door, they open the door, I'm a Jew. It's like, that's literally how it goes. They've got like this thing on the door that shows that they're a Jew, but literally they'll smirk at you, oh, I'm a Jew, right? They literally just mock you. I mean, because they're taught that they're better than everybody else. And if somebody's taught their whole life, we are better than everybody else, and we're just especially God's people just because of our skin color. No matter what we do, you're gonna be an arrogant Mayabong person, right? They have to be humble to get saved. And literally the only thing I can think of is the Antichrist turning on them. It's like, oh, some of them might end up getting saved. Now, I don't know how many, I don't think it's gonna be the majority, but I do think it's an event that actually might shake some of them into reality. You say, well, how will they get saved? Because they gotta hear the gospel. Look, during the end times, I believe everybody's gonna be hearing the gospel. Because the two witnesses are gonna be preaching the truth, and what is the social media gonna do during that time period? All of our YouTubes are shut down and everything like that, but because they hate these two witnesses so much, they're gonna broadcast the entire message of them. Now, they're gonna mock it, but some are gonna listen and say, oh, I actually agree with that. Isn't that what happens in today's world? Right, they wanna mock Bible-believing preachers. It's like, you're spreading our message. And they're probably all over social media, and they're gonna have sound bites of them saying, you know, you gotta believe on Jesus to get saved, or you're gonna go to hell, and they're gonna mock it, and yet they're letting people hear the gospel, right? Because this is what people that hate us do. They get so filled full of envy and anger and bitterness and everything and pride, they just spread our message. Praise the Lord. So that's what's happening right now in Los Angeles, California. Great job, you're spreading the message. I mean, I looked this morning, NBC and all of these major networks that are talking about how these sodomites just bombed a church. Yeah, you're pretty much confirming everything the man of God just said that you're mad at him for. It's like, we're gonna disprove him by saying we're wicked people. We're gonna bomb his church. Look, anybody with a brain that's not a fool, they're gonna be like, oh man, you know, maybe some of what he said actually might be right. Because look, I've run into plenty of people that when they first started listening to online preaching, they really disagreed, and they were kind of angry about it. And then they kept listening, and it's like, oh yeah, actually, that does make sense. And then they ended up getting saved. And you know what? The same thing I believe is gonna happen during the end times. And look, I don't think it's just gonna be from the Jews' religion, but that one really fits the most because they're the ones that are turned on. But there's gonna be other people from other religions that, you know what, they end up believing. Anyway, it's gonna be like life from the dead for the Jews, because they're the most godless, wicked area that you can come to the point where you think there is no hope for anybody there. But that's not true, though. They're not all reprobates, and some will believe. And here's the truth. If I knocked on a door today, and someone said that they were Jewish, I would ask them if I could show them the plan of salvation. Right. And if they were willing to listen, I would show them the entire plan of salvation, and I would hope and pray they got saved. Now, most likely, they would probably just mock or criticize or say they're not interested. But if they're willing to listen, I'll preach the gospel to them. Why? Just because they were raised in a wicked religion does not mean that they're automatically a wicked person. And look, it's not like Catholicism. It's the world's greatest religion either, my friend. It's probably most or half of you are raised Catholic. It's not like being raised Catholic. Wow, man, I wasn't raised a Jew. I was raised Catholic. All right, you killed like so many people as a religion. You know, like 100 million people over hundreds of years and everything. It's not like that's something to brag about, okay? And yet, you were receptive to the gospel, and even some of them. And it's like life from the day because it's such a wicked area. Let's close in a word of prayer. Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for allowing us to be here today and getting to see your word here in Romans chapter 11, and help us to apply this to our lives. Help us not to develop this attitude and feel like, oh, we're special because of who we are, just automatically better than them. You know, some of them could be willing to listen to the gospel, and some can still get saved even in today's world with such a wicked religion, God. And help us do everything we can as a church to just spread the gospel and get as many people saved as we can. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. Amen.